Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 China urges S.Korea to refrain from hyping up SCS issue 10:00, March 13, 2024 By Chen Qingqing ( Global Times Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin Photo: mfa.gov.cn The Chinese foreign ministry urged South Korea on Tuesday to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the South China Sea issue, following South Korean foreign ministry's remarks regarding a recent incident during which Philippine vessels had trespassed into the waters off China's Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef), and a spokesperson from the ministry said exterritorial countries should not become troublemakers on the issue. In response to the "deep concerns" of South Korea over the incident between China and the Philippines, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry, told a press conference on Tuesday that China has noted the relevant remarks made by the spokesperson of the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on which we express serious concern. Regarding the incident of the Philippine vessels illegally trespassing on Ren'ai Jiao on March 5, Wang Wenbin said China is gravely concerned about the statement of the South Korea's Foreign Ministry spokesperson. "I would like to stress once again that what caused the event is that the Philippine side went against its pledges and infringed upon China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," the spokesperson said, noting that China took necessary management and control measures in accordance with the law. The maneuvers were professional, restraint, reasonable and lawful. The responsibility for the incident lies entirely with the Philippines, the spokesperson stressed. South Korea is not a party to the South China Sea issue. However, in recent years, it has changed its prudent and neutral position that it had adhered to for years, and alluded to or blamed China on the South China Sea issue on multiple occasions, Wang Wenbin said. We once again urge the South Korea to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the matter, and avoid adding unnecessary burden to the China-South Korea relations, the spokesperson said. Responding to question from foreign media that what countries can comment on issues in the South China Sea, Wang Wenbin said Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed last week that with joint efforts of China and the ASEAN countries, the South China Sea has remained peaceful and stable in a turbulent world. It is hard-won and should be treasured by all. One of the most important experience we have drawn is that we must adhere to two principles. First, differences should be properly managed and resolved through dialogue, consultation, or negotiation between states directly involved. Second, peace at the sea should be upheld by China and ASEAN countries working together. It is also the core essence of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed in 2002, the spokesperson said. I want to reiterate here that if certain countries truly want to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, they should respect the effort of China and relevant ASEAN countries to properly address disputes through dialogue and consultation and safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, and refrain from stirring up troubles in the region, Wang Wenbin noted. "In face of unwarranted provocation, we will respond with prompt and legitimate countermeasures. We also urge certain countries outside this region not to make provocations, pick sides, or stir up troubles and problems in the South China Sea." Also on Tuesday, the Philippine foreign ministry said it had received some proposals from China, but it said they would not be considered as they were against its national interests, according to media reports. China has indisputable sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao (South China Sea islands). There's no territorial disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Proceeding from its bilateral relationship with the Philippines and peace and stability in the South China Sea, China has made proposals to the Philippines on managing the situation at sea and carrying out maritime cooperation, Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday. "Regrettably, the Philippines has not yet responded to most of the proposals and made frequent infringements and provocations at sea. Such moves seriously undermine the atmosphere of communication and cooperation between China and the Philippines," the spokesperson added. He also emphasized that China's position on the South China Sea issue is consistent. We stand ready to continue to work with the Philippines to properly handle differences through dialogue and consultation. At the same time, we will take resolute measures to firmly safeguard our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, he said. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Flash Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his Iraqi counterpart, Fuad Hussein, on Tuesday exchanged views on bilateral relations and the latest situation in Gaza. In a phone call, the two sides congratulated each other on the start of the holy month of Ramadan, according to a statement published on the website of the Iranian Foreign Ministry. The Iranian and Iraqi ministers described bilateral relations as excellent, highlighting the necessity to continue the growing trend of the ties and follow up on the implementation of the previously signed agreements. They recalled a meeting between Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Iraqi counterpart, Abdul Latif Rashid, earlier this month, emphasizing the need for increased consultations and enhanced cooperation between the two countries to promote peace in the region. Amir-Abdollahian and Hussein also discussed the latest situation in Gaza, and called for more efforts to stop the killing of Palestinians and prepare the ground for the swift delivery of humanitarian aid to the coastal enclave. SANDYSTON - A resolution is being prepared in the New Jersey Assembly and Senate which would put the state Legislature on record opposing the redesignation of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. The resolution is being proposed by District 24 state Sen. Parker Space and Assembly members Dawn Fantasia and Michael Inganamort and will collectively call the redesignation proposal "unnecessary and unwanted" by residents in northwestern New Jersey. Inganamort attended a Saturday information session on the proposal via Zoom and told the crowd that the resolution was being prepared. On Monday, he said, "You really have to hand it to Sandy Hull and the Delaware Water Gap Defense Fund for their 24/7advocacy to protect the Water Gap as it is. It was a pleasure to join this meeting virtually and I look forward to partnering with them in their advocacy. The entrance sign to the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area on Sussex County Route 560 in Sandyston is seen at sunset in this file photo. "Part and parcel, we'll be going to our colleagues in the Legislature to explain why this designation is unnecessary and unwise," he wrote. Space noted the proposed change "is not necessary and would upset the recreation areas original mission and still puts uses such as hunting and farming at risk. A new designation that translates into prohibitions and restrictions on currently allowable activities in the recreation area would have a negative impact on our region. Fantasia, who is in her first term in the Assembly, recalled that in her previous elected position as a Sussex County commissioner, that board "officially opposed this redesignation for multiple reasons. The fear that this redesignation will disregard the rights of local property owners, and eminent domain will be used by the federal government to acquire private and State property adjacent to the Delaware Water Gap." Nearby on the northern end of the recreation area are state-owned High Point State Park and Stokes State Forest. At the southern end of the park in Warren County is Worthington State Forest, which visitors to the park must drive through along Old Mine Road. Any redesignation of the park must be approved by an act of Congress and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, whose Congressional district crosses northern New Jersey and includes the northern half of the recreation area, has also expressed opposition to any redesignation. As Ive said from day one, designation of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area as a National Park requires significant local input because it directly impacts many North Jersey townships, boroughs, and residents," he said in a written statement. "I have full confidence in the mayors and local governments of the Fifth District and their ability to best represent the views of our constituents. Based on input from local officials and residents, it does not seem that the proposal has the necessary local support to move forward, he added. Pennsylvania Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-8, and New Jersey Rep. Thomas Kean Jr., D-7, have also expressed concerns about the redesignation campaign and expressed support for the "No Park" movement. Kean's district includes the southern half of the recreational area and Cartwright's district includes all but a tiny part of the Pennsylvania side of the park. There were about 70 people who attended the Saturday session in person at the Sandyston Municipal Building. Numbers of those attending via Zoom were not available. The redesignation proposal is being pushed by John Donahue, who retired from the National Park Service as superintendent of the recreation area. His website also claims support from Sierra Clubs in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania as well as other environmental groups such as the Appalachian Mountain Club and the New Jersey Highlands Coalition. NJ news How do New Jersey consumers view the real estate market? New survey tells us His revised proposal would designate the Delaware River and some of the land on both sides of the river, as the National Park, while the remainder of the nearly 70,000 acres of the park would be designated a national preserve. The park stretches from near the New York- Pennsylvania border downriver to just south of the geological formation known as the Delaware Water Gap, an opening in the Kittatinny Ridge which allows the river to continue south. The northern peak of the gap is known as Mount Tammany, while the Pennsylvania side peak is called Mount Minsi. The 70,000 acres of land and water actually have within its borders three designated units of the park service. The Appalachian National Scenic Trail runs along the Kittatinny Ridge and crosses the river at the gap, before continuing south. The river itself is also designated the Middle Delaware Recreational and Scenic River. While a separate unit of the NPS, the river is part of the recreational area's administrative responsibility. The revised proposal for the Delaware River National Park and Lenape Preserve eliminates the recreational and scenic river as a separate unit and includes the river within the national park designation. The remainder of the land would get the "preserve" designation. In 2023, the recreation was the 17th-most-visited unit, with more than 4.2 million "recreation visits", a decline of 173,684 recorded visits, or 3.9%, from 2022. While there was dip in numbers last year, it was still nearly 25% higher than the 2019 attendance of 3.37 million. In 2022, the recreation area ranked 14th on the NPS list, and ranked 15th in 2021. Should the recreation area get redesignation, Donahue said his goal is "to place this gem of our national heritage into the jeweled crown of the national park system where it has always belonged." And, his website claims, redesignation as a 'national park' would be the first in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and increase visitation. It would also eliminate the farmland on either side of the river, allowing the forests to reclaim the land. Those fields are currently leased by the NPS to local farmers for field crops such as corn, hay and soybeans, and there are strict regulations for "no till," meaning the fields are not plowed and use of pesticides and fertilizers is highly regulated. One lesee, however, said that if the land is allowed to go fallow - no further crops grown - it will be taken over by non-native and invasive species long before forests would get a chance to stretch onto the land. Among other "Our Park" talking points are increased prestige which the group claims will mean increased funding, and increased visitation. Local impact A mix of hardwood and evergreen trees flank the Hornbeck Creek in Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area on Thursday, June 29, 2023, the day the area around the creek and part of Mount Minsi, in the southern end of the park, were accepted into the Old-Growth Forest Network. While local businesses do get trade from visitors, the amount of vehicles creates traffic jams on weekends, said local mayors at Saturday's meeting. Lafayette Mayor Alan Henderson said traffic on Route 15, a main route which leads from eastern New Jersey across mid-Sussex County, linking with Route 206 which provides entry to the park, backs up on weekends. Milford, Pennsylvania, is at the northern end of the park, where Mayor Sean Strub said, "there's only three ways in or out of the borough, and on weekends (traffic is) at a standstill" and many are large recreation vehicles which drive across lawns as they make turns. He also noted that the Route 209 bridge over the Sawkill Creek (within park boundaries) is crumbling and there are no plans from the park service to repair or replace it. Sandyston Mayor George Harper Jr. said he remembers how the park was created when land was "grabbed for Tocks Island." The island was the name of a project to build a multi-use dam on the Delaware River by the U.S. Corps of Engineers. Most of what is now the Water Gap park was purchased or taken by the government for not only the lake behind the dam, but for surrounding acreage which would become a "recreation area" around that lake. The burgeoning environmental movement of the 1960s forced the government to abandon the dam and the land was converted into what is today's 70,000-acre recreation area. "I see no benefit to Sandyston to take this from a recreation area to a national park," he said. "Frankly, there's no benefit to anyone in this." The redesignation idea is just a couple of years old, and any formal action would require Congressional funding of environmental impact studies required for national park and national preserve designation which would take several years, and then a final vote in Congress. This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area future discussed An amendment to the Virginia Line of Duty Act to include privately employed police officers as beneficiaries, a bill widely supported by Nelson County officials and residents, failed to pass in the Virginia General Assemblys session that ended March 9. Bills in both the House and Senate were proposed to include private police officers in Line of Duty death benefits in the wake of a Wintergreen officers June 2023 shooting death. The original legislation to amend the Virginia Line of Duty Act was announced Dec. 14 during a news conference held at the Nelson County courthouse. A bill failed to advance out of a House subcommittee on Jan. 18 but one passed through the Senate on Feb. 8. Recently the bill was amended to exclude private police officers but includes campus police. Last year, Wintergreen Police Officer Mark Christopher Chris Wagner II was killed during a call in the Wintergreen community. Daniel Barmak, of Towson, Maryland, is accused of killing Wagner during a confrontation. Wagner was the first officer to arrive on scene and Wagners gun was used against him, according to evidence presented at a Jan. 17 preliminary hearing in Nelson General District Court. Wagners death sparked Jesse Rutherford, East District member of the Nelson Board of Supervisors, Wintergreen Police Chief Dennis Russell, Nelson Sheriff Mark Embrey and Wintergreen Fire and Rescue Chief Curtis Sheets to push for private police benefits. I am committed to honoring Officer Wagner and his sacrifice by being back next year and trying again, Russell said. All officials said they will continue to support the legislation next year. I am hopeful that next year, new legislation can be brought back to the committee for consideration, Embrey said. If a new bill is proposed, our office will again stand beside the Wintergreen Police Department and all other private law enforcement agencies in support of this legislation being passed. Sheets told The Nelson County Times that he was unsure why the private officer portion of the bill didnt pass. Were not sure why but it kept getting killed or amended in such a way that it wouldnt work for us. So, we will rally the troops and try to fix it, Sheets said. Russell said, There are a lot of questions about the term private police; some believe it connotes something less than professional or properly trained. It will be my job and other private police chiefs to educate, inform and convince the General Assembly that there are no differences between private and public law enforcement officers. According to Russell, in the last two years, there have been two line of duty deaths involving private police officers in the state. The counties of Albemarle, Augusta, Amherst, Appomattox, Charlotte, Montgomery and Campbell and cities of Staunton and Lynchburg were among localities joining Nelson in pushing for the Line of Duty Act extension. Sheets said the part that bothers him the most is that on the night of Wagners death, private police officers, county deputies and state police and responded and no one cared who was who. At no point during a call does anybody ask well, are you a public or a private officer? It only seems to matter to the General Assembly, Sheets said. Sheets felt that the amendment failing to pass was offensive to private police everywhere. He said that while Wagners death led to the push for private police officer benefits, it has become something bigger. Sheets said private police get the same training as public police departments and the bill had bipartisan sponsorship all the way through. The bill got a good response from the public with a lot of people phoning Richmond legislators about it, Sheets said. It felt like we did all the right things but we just ran into a wall, Sheets said. We owe to all men and women who place their life on the line to protect and serve their communities. Their families need this assurance just to survive the loss of a loved one, Russell said. New homeowner Kylene Cook greeted everyone who came to the Piedmont Habitat for Humanity meeting with a smile. Habitat will soon sign over Cooks new house in a low interest mortgage. This home marks the first time Cook, of Nelson County, has lived on her own and in her own space, ever. I am finally healthy enough to live on my own, after all the medical stuff Ive been through, Cook said. Cook is a diabetic amputee and uses a wheelchair to navigate. She has faced accessibility issues in her current home and lives with her mother. Cook moved to the county 22 years ago. I moved to Nelson and two days later my son was born, Cook said. The Building Trades Program at Nelson County High School built her and her son, Hunter Collins, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1,000-square-foot house. The program has a partnership with Habitat for Humanity to help build their houses. The trades program has had this partnership since Nelson Countys Habitat for Humanity started. Sam Rabon, interim executive director for Habitat for Humanity, said the house was specially made for Cooks accessibility needs. The halls and doorways are wide enough for her wheelchair, and there is room in the bathrooms and rooms for her to turn around in and use. Cook told the Nelson County Times how excited she was to have a place to call hers that she didnt have to share with her mom. Well, Ill have to share with my mom, her son joked. During this process, Cook has been with Habitat by baking muffins for food pantries and church sales. Habitat requires its homebuyers to put work into their home or someone elses, To do their part of having a stake in their home Cook also has taken mortgage and down payment assistant classes to help her prepare for being a homeowner. Some work on the home still remains, such as heating and air conditioning, septic systems, plumbing, flooring, and Cooks wheelchair ramp. Cook told the meeting attendees she hopes for a fence for her service dog Archie, who is able to alert her when her sugar goes too low. He just loves to lay outside and I cant go get him if theres no fence, Cook said. Cook said where she lives now, her son has to drive her to Food Lion everyday to use their internet for her diabetic pumps. The hardest part about the process according to Cook is the wait. She said its been hard waiting because she is excited to start decorating and living on her own. Im going to plant some pink and white cherry trees in the back. I can see my black wind chimes hanging off the corner of the house, on the deck, Cook said. Cook visits the house once a week to see its progress. While visiting the house, Cooks new neighbors came up to her and introduced themselves. They laughed and promised to trade different food dishes when she moved in. Cook was excited to start building a relationship with her new neighbors. There have been hurtles, ups and downs. But I came through it every single time so I am meant for that house, Cook said. Habitat for Humanity is still fundraising for Cooks house but plans to have the home finished by the end of June. A first-degree murder count and other charges pending against a Lynchburg man accused in a fatal stabbing at a Boonsboro residence were certified to a grand jury Tuesday. Tony Lee Brown, 43, was arrested following the Nov. 10 homicide that city police said resulted in the death of Nicole D. Rosser, 42. Lynchburg police officer Brian Knowles was first to respond to the call from a neighbor reporting the stabbing at a residence in the 5100 block of Boonsboro Road, Lynchburg Commonwealths Attorney Bethany Harrison has said. Knowles heard a woman screaming and crying for help as he came upon Brown and Rosser on the ground, according to Harrison. Commonwealth's Attorney: LPD officer's use of force during Boonsboro stabbing justified Lynchburgs Commonwealths Attorney Bethany Harrison has concluded that a Lynchburg Police Officers use of force was justifiable during his response to a Nov. 10 homicide on Boonsboro Road. Brown faces one count of first-degree murder, two counts of breaking and entering with the intent to commit a felony, and two counts of violating a protective order in relation to the incident, the Lynchburg Police Department has said. According to Harrison, Rosser was covered in blood when Knowles approached. Brown had a knife in his hand and appeared to Knowles to be stabbing Rosser as the officer approached, the prosecutor has said. Knowles called out hey! twice and stop! twice and yelled stop now! while pointing his firearm at Brown from less than 20 feet away, Harrison said in a report finding the officer used justifiable force in shooting Brown. Knowles called out stop again but Brown did not respond to commands and continued to make stabbing motions toward Rosser. Knowles fired twice at Brown striking him in the chest and head, Harrison has said. According to Harrison, a knife can be seen leaving Browns hand on Knowles body-worn camera as the officer shoots Brown. Body-worn camera footage will not be released, Harrison has said, because Brown faces active criminal charges. Harrison reviewed reports provided by the Virginia State Police, who investigated the incident; body-worn camera footage of the event; computer aided dispatch records; and interviews with Knowles, citizen witnesses and statements by other officers at the scene to make her determination. Warrant: Neighbor witnessed knife attack that led to Lynchburg man's murder charge A search warrant filed in Lynchburg Circuit Court in connection with a Nov. 10 homicide on B According to the search warrant filed in Lynchburg Circuit Court the week of the killing, a neighbor told a Virginia State Police special agent she witnessed Brown enter Rossers apartment and stab her multiple times. Rosser fled to that same neighbors house and Brown broke into the womans residence through a window, the warrant states. Brown chased Rosser out of the neighbors residence back toward her apartment, the warrant affidavit states. He followed them both back to the apartment and broke in and again stabbed Rosser multiple times, according to the warrant. Rosser and Brown ended up outside the apartment with him on top of her when officers arrived and Brown was shot, the warrant states. Two knives were seized during the search of the residence, according to the warrant. A preliminary hearing for Brown was held Tuesday in Lynchburg Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, and a judge certified charges against Brown to the April 1 term of the grand jury, Harrison said. A burglary charge also filed in Lynchburg General District Court also was certified Tuesday to the grand jury, online court records show. Brown is in custody of the Blue Ridge Regional Jail awaiting further court proceedings. SAPPORO, Mar 13 (News On Japan) - The Tour de Hokkaido, a road bicycle race that experienced a tragic accident resulting in the death of a participant last year, has officially decided to cancel this year's event. In September of last year, Kotaro Igarashi, a 21-year-old senior at Chuo University participating in the Tour de Hokkaido, died after colliding with a passenger car in the opposite lane. Since then, discussions on safety measures, including security aspects, have continued within a third-party safety review committee. Due to the lack of a finalized safety plan, the Tour de Hokkaido Association, which organizes the race, officially decided to cancel this year's event during a board meeting held on March 12. Regarding future events, the association has stated that they will proceed with specific plans after the results of the ongoing safety review committee are available. Source: ANN CB Retired School Personnel The Council Bluffs Retired School Personnel will resume their meetings, after a winter break, on Wednesday March 20, with a luncheon at noon at the Council Bluffs Country Club. Brent Hoesing, superintendent of the Lewis Central Community School District, will be the speaker. Dues and volunteer hours (November March) will be collected at the meeting. Reservations for the meal must be made by Sunday at cbrsp4meals@gmail.com. Remaining meeting for the year will be held on April 17, when members will have their scholarship fundraiser. Membership is welcomed to all retired school employees from any public or nonpublic Iowa educational institution community school districts, licensed preschools and day cares, and area education agencies. For more information, contact cbrspa451503@gmail.com. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources announced Wednesday that clean-up remains underway on a fertilizer spill at the New Cooperative near Red Oak. The Montgomery County spill flowed several miles downstream, reaching Missouri, the DNR said, and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources was notified. The release about 1,500 tons of liquid nitrogen fertilizer in a 32% solution has been stopped. The release occurred due to a valve left open on an aboveground storage tank overnight. The DNR encourages private well owners in Montgomery, Page and Fremont counties with wells in near proximity to the East Nishnabotna River to contact their county health department to test their wells for nitrate. The testing service is free using Iowa's Grants-to-Counties program. The DNR will give county health officials lists of registered private wells that may be vulnerable. Due to low water levels in the East Nishnabotna, the concentration of the fertilizer is higher than during normal stream flows, causing concern for all animals due to high nitrate and urea levels. Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine Toxicologist Scott Radke recommended in the release that all animals be kept away from the East Nishnabotna River until the plume of contaminant moves out of the area. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved a work plan submitted to the agency by Richard Minor of Gordon and Cherry County to mitigate damage to the Snake River resulting from an unauthorized drainage ditch excavated from Minors property to the river in 2020. 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. You are here: World Flash This photo taken on Jan. 2, 2024 shows buildings and cars damaged in a missile attack in Kiev, Ukraine. [Photo/Xinhua] A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday said that different sides have expressed appreciation of China for its efforts in promoting peace talks over the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Wang Wenbin made the comments in response to the second round of shuttle diplomacy by Li Hui, the special representative of the Chinese government on Eurasian affairs. Over the past two years since the start of the conflict, China has always adhered to an objective and impartial stance to build consensus and pave the way for peace talks, said Wang. The pressing priority is to restore peace since the conflict is still going on and at risk of escalation and spillover, he said. China sincerely hopes that all parties concerned will show political will and deescalate the situation, said Wang. He added that China will continue to play a constructive role in promoting a political solution to the Ukraine crisis. For decades, the Palestinian cause has been exploited by some parties for political gains and for their personal interests, but in Morocco it is a sacred cause deemed just as important as the Kingdoms first national cause. As the brutal Israeli attacks against Palestinians in Gaza hit six months, leading to a staggering humanitarian crisis with a heavy Palestinian death toll, while thousands are struggling to avoid starvation, King Mohammed VI, Commander of the Faithful, moved to alleviate the sufferings of besieged Gazans, especially the most vulnerable. Thanks to his leadership, credibility and international leverage, the Moroccan Sovereign has succeeded to secure a land route for the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid to the Palestinians in Gaza. The breakthrough was lauded by Palestinian people and leaders, saying the relief comes at the right time, especially after the failure of cease-fire talks. On Tuesday, 40 tons of Moroccan humanitarian aid started reaching Gaza via land route. The foodstuffs and basic products were sent to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and Al Quds holy city, upon the instructions of King Mohammed VI, chairman of Al Quds Committee. Besides this humanitarian relief assistance, a large part of the aid sent to Palestinian babies and young children was paid by the King from his personal funds, said a press release issued by the Moroccan ministry of Foreign Affairs. Palestinian Presidents Advisor for Religious Affairs Mahmoud El Habach has praised the relief operation launched by the Monarch, saying it will ease the sufferings of the Palestinian people. We highly command this noble gesture, added Mr. El Habach, voicing the Palestinian peoples gratitude to the Sovereign and the Moroccan people for this action, which reflects feelings of sincere brotherhood and embodies human values towards the bereaved people suffering from the blockade in the Gaza Strip. For his part, Palestinian Ambassador in Rabat Jamal Choubki said the Moroccan humanitarian assistance, which coincides with the first day of the holy month of Ramadan, shows the Sovereigns high sense of humanity and genuine solidarity with the Palestinian people. Morocco is the first country to deliver humanitarian aid by land route, directly to the beneficiary populations, said the diplomat, paying tribute to the Royal initiative as a model for others to follow. Member of Fatah Movements Revolutionary Council, Iyyad Safi, said this is another proof of the constant and unconditional humanitarian support provided by Morocco under the leadership of King Mohammed VI to the Palestinian people. This support, which will certainly ease the pain and sadness endured by the people of Gaza for months, confirms Moroccos commitment to protecting Palestinian holy sites and supporting the resistance of the Palestinian people, said the Fatah movement official. The North African Kingdom stands by the Palestinian people in this ordeal, he underlined, expressing thanks and gratitude to the King and the Moroccan people for their steadfast support to the people of Gaza. Head of PLOs Public Relations Ahmed Siam hailed Moroccos humanitarian gesture which brings joy and rekindles the Palestinian peoples hope, noting that the Moroccan generosity helps support Palestinian resistance. The Palestinian people highly appreciate the royal initiative, he added, underlining that the move is in line with the Kingdoms historic positions in support of the Palestinian people and their struggle to regain their independence. This is not Moroccos first humanitarian operation launched in support of Palestinians. In 2023, the country sent 25 tons of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, delivered via the Rafah crossing from Egypt, and in 2018, the Kingdom deployed a field hospital in Gaza. Moroccos humanitarian aid to the Palestinian population in Gaza and Al Quds is part of a long tradition of active and concrete solidarity with Palestine. It reflects the Kings bold role, constant commitment, and long-standing support for the Palestinian Cause, confirms that Moroccan solidarity is not dictated by circumstances or conjuncture, but is steady and continuous, and evidences, if need be, that the Kingdoms positions towards the Palestinian cause are clear, unshakable, and irreversible. Nigeria said it had secured 1.3 billion dollars needed to build a rail connection with neighboring Niger, a landlocked country. The news was announced by Nigerias transport minister Ahmed Alkali who said the China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) would provide 85 percent of the money while the Nigerian government would provide 15 percent. The recent visit by Mr. Tang Zhigang, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation, and his delegation, has further bolstered optimism for the rail projects potential to lay the groundwork for future prosperity between the two nations, Nigeria transport ministry said in a statement. The Kano-Katsina-Jibiya-Maradi rail line is a testament to our shared history and ambition for economic advancement. It will create a legacy of wealth and opportunities for Nigeria and the Niger Republic, it said Nigeria secures financial requirements for Niger rail link Nigeria said it had secured 1.3 billion dollars needed to build a rail connection with neighboring Niger, a landlocked country. The news was announced by Nigerias transport minister Ahmed Alkali who said the China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) would provide 85 percent of the money while the Nigerian government would provide 15 percent. The recent visit by Mr. Tang Zhigang, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation, and his delegation, has further bolstered optimism for the rail projects potential to lay the groundwork for future prosperity between the two nations, Nigeria transport ministry said in a statement. The Kano-Katsina-Jibiya-Maradi rail line is a testament to our shared history and ambition for economic advancement. It will create a legacy of wealth and opportunities for Nigeria and the Niger Republic, it said Three Egyptian Coptic monks were killed in an attack in a monastery on March 12 in South Africa, as the country struggles with a surge in gang criminality. The three monks who belong to the Egypt-based Coptic Orthodox Church were killed in the Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Samuel the Confessor Monastery Police said that the monks were stabbed and that investigations are ongoing, AP reported. The Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa said the monks were the victims of a criminal attack, which resulted in their martyrdom. South Africa has one of the highest criminality rates globally. Last year, the country reported an average of 75 killings and 400 robberies with aggravating circumstances every day, according to official statistics. Xlinks, which plans to export renewable energy from Morocco to the UK, said it is also assessing feasibility of other links with markets including Germany. This came in a statement in response to a Bloomberg article claiming the British company is abandoning the UK for the German market. Xlinks was founded to promote the development of long-distance energy projects, with the Morocco UK Power Project as our primary target, the statement said. It was always our vision that this project would serve as a model for further links that support the transition to clean and sustainable energy. It is in this context that we are exploring the feasibility of other markets, it said. Xlinks was founded in 2019 by Simon Morris. The company is backed by some of the biggest global energy brands as investors including Total Energies, Octopus Energy, and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA). The project aims at channeling clean energy from Moroccan solar and wind parks to satisfy 8% of the UKs energy needs with a capacity to power up to 7 million British households. The interconnection is expected to cost about $25 billion, including about 1.7 billion of subsea cables. With migration season in full swing, area poultry owners are being reminded by the Nebraska Department of Agriculture to continue to monitor for and protect their birds against highly pathogenic avian influenza. While the disease hasnt been detected in any domestic or commercial flocks in west central Nebraska yet in 2024, NDA in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, confirmed a case of HPAI in Nebraska in a commercial flock in Gage County in February. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission notes on its website that HPAI has been detected in wild game birds in Lincoln County this year, so caution is advised. Poultry producers need to continue to be vigilant in protecting their flocks, said state veterinarian Dr. Roger Dudley. Its important for producers to know the signs and symptoms of HPAI and to continue to practice good biosecurity measures to help prevent the spread of this disease. HPAI is a highly contagious virus that spreads easily among birds through nasal and eye secretions, as well as manure. The virus can be spread in various ways from flock to flock, including by wild birds, through contact with infected poultry, by equipment and on the clothing and shoes of caretakers. Wild birds can carry the virus without becoming sick, while domesticated birds can become very sick and die. Symptoms of HPAI in poultry include: a decrease in water consumption; lack of energy and appetite; decreased egg production or soft-shelled, misshapen eggs; nasal discharge, coughing, sneezing; incoordination; and diarrhea. Another sign is swelling or purple discoloration of the head, eyelids, comb, wattle and hocks. HPAI can also cause sudden death in birds even if they arent showing any other symptoms. HPAI can survive for weeks in contaminated environments. The Minnesota Extension Service offers these suggestions to protect small flocks: Avoid attracting wild birds and waterfowl to your home. Song birds, sparrow, starlings and so forth are low risk. Limit or halt travel with your birds to sales, shows and swaps. Limit visitors to your birds. If they must visit discuss where they have been and have them wash their hands and wear clean clothes and footwear. Resources are available for poultry producers at nda.nebraska.gov/animal/avian/index.html. Poultry experiencing signs of HPAI or unusual death should be reported to NDA at 402-471-2351 or the USDA at 866-536-7593. Last week, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban met with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. On Sunday, Orban told an interviewer that Trump explained his quite detailed plans to end the war Russia has waged on Ukraine. The plan is to cut off assistance to Ukraine and force it to surrender: He has a very clear vision that is hard to disagree with. He says the following: First, he will not give a single penny for the Russo-Ukrainian war. Thats why the war will end, because its obvious that Ukraine cannot stand on its own two feet. If the Americans dont give money and weapons along with the Europeans, the war will end. And if the Americans dont give money, then the Europeans wont be able to fund this war alone. And then the war will end. These comments did not come as a shock. Even though Trump claims to have a secret plan to end the war in 24 hours, everybody knows his real plan is to simply let Russia win. Trump hasnt even bothered to deny Orbans account. These comments place Trumps Republican allies who remain hawkish on Russia in a bind. They wish to continue pretending Trump is not planning to hand Ukraine to Vladimir Putin while supporting their partys leader. Wall Street Journal columnist Holman Jenkins, a Russia hawk and prototypical anti-anti-Trumper, navigates the dilemma in the classic fashion: by hilariously denying its existence. Jenkinss column is dedicated to arguing there is no difference between President Bidens stance on Ukraine and Trumps: Now that Messrs. Biden and Trump have the same position on the border, whats left? Electric cars? One of those non-differences is Ukraine. By any realistic political logic, either would welcome a settlement to stop the fighting that Ukraine would agree to. Mr. Trump has said little (and Mr. Biden less) except that he would end the war in 24 hours, using U.S. military supplies as leverage leverage, he specified, on Russia, not on Ukraine. Jenkinss column ignores Orbans account of his meeting with Trump, even though it occurred two days before the column ran. Instead, he insists, incredibly, that trump has no clear position on American aid to Ukraine: Mr. Trump, typically, says nothing intelligible about the $60 billion hung up in Congress, not that Mr. Putin was ever going to give us a cheap win. Nothing intelligible? Trump has opposed assistance to Ukraine from the very beginning, rotating through a series of pretexts. In May 2022, he used the baby-formula shortage as a reason to denounce arming Ukraine. The Democrats are sending another $40 billion to Ukraine, yet Americas parents are struggling to even feed their children, he complained in a statement. By January 2023, Trump was warning that giving Ukraine conventional military assistance would lead to nuclear war. FIRST COME THE TANKS, THEN COME THE NUKES. Get this crazy war ended NOW. So easy to do, he posted. Later that summer, his pretext for opposing aid to Ukraine had shifted to leveraging it to compel some kind of anti-Biden pseudo-investigation. Congress should refuse to authorize a single additional shipment of our depleted weapons stockpiles to Ukraine until the FBI, DOJ, and IRS hand over every scrap of evidence they have on the Biden Crime Familys corrupt business dealings, Trump said at a rally. His new line is to insist the United States withhold aid and structure any assistance as a loan. WE SHOULD NEVER GIVE MONEY ANYMORE WITHOUT THE HOPE OF A PAYBACK, OR WITHOUT STRINGS ATTACHED. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA SHOULD BE STUPID NO LONGER! Trump wrote Saturday on his social media. Meanwhile, Trumps allies are threatening to destroy Senate Republicans who voted for aid to Ukraine. Jenkins, investigating this fact pattern, remains totally stumped. Who can say if Trump favors aid to Ukraine or not? Is there any clear difference between Trumps position, with its constant opposition to helping Ukraine masked behind an ever-changing list of demands, and Bidens? Jenkins believes the answer is no. Indeed, by the end of the column, he goes from saying Biden and Trump have the same position to breaking the tie in Trumps favor. Trump is the only candidate who might force Russia to back down: The $1 trillion-plus Mr. Biden wants to spend forgiving student loans and subsidizing electric vehicles, if budgeted for Ukraine, really might end the war in 24 hours. Mr. Putin would cut the best deal he could, seeing himself outbid. But notice only one candidate has even breathed a word suggesting he might consider upping the stakes, and its Mr. Trump. This kind of sycophantic illogic would embarrass a Communist dupe at the height of Stalinism. But its par for the course in conservative-movement propaganda. The embedded norms in right-wing messaging are that factions can compete for primacy with each other, but they cannot frontally attack the party leader. If Russia hawks wish to bring the party around to their side, they must do so while ignoring the obvious fact that the presidential nominee is leading the opposition to their cause. The result is absurdities like Jenkinss apologetics in the Journal. Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photo: Nathan Howard/Bloomberg via Getty Images Nearly four years ago, Donald Trump attempted to ban TikTok with an executive order, describing the apps connections to the Chinese government, its data collection, and the threat of disinformation as part of a national emergency. This week, a bipartisan bill that targets TikTok and cites the threat of foreign-adversary-controlled applications looks like it has a real shot at becoming law, and President Biden says he will sign it if Congress sends it to his desk. Former president Trump now says that, actually, theres a lot of good and a theres a lot of bad with TikTok, that the issue is tough, but that a TikTok ban would benefit Meta, which is a true enemy of the people. Surprise: Lindsey Graham is suddenly very conflicted on the matter. Across the board, though, lawmakers are confused about their parties positions. TikTok is appealing directly to users, urging them to call their representatives. A distinct and strange possibility is emerging: The United States government could ban one of the most popular apps in the country, and neither party will be in a position to take credit or accept blame when it happens. In some ways, the campaign to ban TikTok is falling apart while it gains potentially unstoppable momentum. Whats going on? Theory 1: Its Money In 2020, TikTok was an easy target for Republicans, Trump in particular. He had campaigned and held office as a China hawk, and TikTok was a relatively new app with a Chinese parent company. TikTok was growing fast but was still much smaller than its American competitors. At first, it was popular primarily with very young users, which made threatening to ban it all but politically riskless. TikTok has been lobbying lawmakers in both parties since 2019, recently ramping up its spending considerably. This hasnt been overwhelmingly effective, but lately something seems to have gotten through. According to ABC: As Donald Trump reverses his position on potentially banning TikTok ahead of an expected House vote this week on legislation that could lead to it being blocked in the U.S., the former president has been rebuilding his relationship with a GOP megadonor who reportedly has a major financial stake in the popular social media platform. Trump met with the donor, hedge fund manager Jeff Yass, earlier this month at a Club for Growth donor retreat in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 1. Trumps campaign needs money. Club for Growth has a lot of money, much of which comes from Yass, who is worth more than $27 billion and has spent more than $130 million on political causes since 2020. The hedge fund he runs has a $33 billion stake in ByteDance. The financier has reportedly been bullying Republican lawmakers to oppose the bill, and Club for Growth has hired Kellyanne Conway to advocate on TikToks behalf. Her position now is that a softer TikTok ban than the one her former boss attempted to enact unilaterally would be draconian. Sure! Theres no use pretending this isnt what it looks like, and any account of TikToks fate would be incomplete without it. Theory 2: Its Partisanship Trump tried and failed to ban TikTok and didnt succeed in forcing ByteDance to spin off the app to an American company. Now, his likely opponent in the next presidential election could be in a position to sign a bill into law making good on one of his former pet issues. It would not be out of character in the slightest for Trump to reflexively oppose something he previously supported just because his successor is now doing it. Its a big part of his whole deal! There is also a potential political opportunity here. If a TikTok ban actually passes, and if TikTok actually goes offline, tens of millions of Americans will lose access to something they use electively and on purpose and with which they spend a lot of time. This would be uncharted territory, and I wont pretend to know how the general public would respond or how that response might manifest in electoral terms. But if it turns out that banning TikTok a moderately popular position among voting-age Americans is upsetting or disappointing or shocking to, for example, the tens of millions of young people who have fun and in some cases make money using it, you can be sure Republicans will emphasize that it happened under Joe Bidens watch. Democrats havent stood still on the matter of a TikTok ban either. In 2020, many opposed Trumps executive orders on a variety of grounds; in 2021, Biden rescinded but also replaced them with orders to initiate a Commerce Department review of the app and its connections to the Chinese government. In 2022, as part of a large spending bill, Biden approved a TikTok ban on government devices. In 2023, the Biden campaign signaled that it wouldnt be using the platform directly but would instead lean on influencers to reach young voters. In 2024, his campaign joined TikTok anyway. Theyre not really sure what to do here. Depending on whom you ask, TikTok has become either a signal or a source of deep problems for Democrats as a platform where young progressives have shared their dissatisfaction and anger with the president over U.S. support of Israels war in Gaza, the failure to deliver large-scale student-loan relief, and a range of other issues on which the president is out of step with left-leaning potential voters. Neither possibility is ideal for mainstream Democrats: Either TikTok is a platform where progressives are actively and uniquely radicalized against the partys presumptive nominee, or its just the default venue for young people to post about politics and those young people seem to think Biden isnt doing a very good job. The former explanation holds some appeal for exasperated Democrats who might take comfort in explaining away ideological differences with an app, an algorithm, or a few viral videos. The latter, however, seems to comport with reality in a few inconvenient ways. Theory 3: Its That the TikTok Ban Isnt Considered Real, and Neither Is TikTok Over the past couple of years, TikTok has been in the process of negotiating a deal with the Biden administration in which Oracle, an American tech company, would act as both a service provider and sort of an auditor for TikTok an awkward arrangement that was off to an adversarial start. The new bill would reset any such arrangement but, in fact, stops short of an outright ban: ByteDance would have the option of divesting itself of TikTok by offloading it to an American firm, in which case the app would not be banned. Its a serious bit of industrial policy forced divestiture of an app worth billions of dollars! but it also provides a bit of an out for lawmakers who support the bill. Maybe they dont have to ban a popular app and can instead just fix it by cleaving it from ByteDance, handing it over to an American firm, and cutting ties to the Chinese government. What this would look like in practice is anyones guess, but I doubt it would go smoothly. The most obvious buyers would be American internet giants like Meta or Google, but this would present clear antitrust issues. Besides, Metas plan to turn Instagram into a TikTok clone is going just fine; it doesnt need anyones help when it comes to surveilling its own users for profit; and, as Trump has suggested, its advertising business would probably benefit from the disappearance of one of its largest direct competitors. The controversial former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick may be interested, however, according to The Wall Street Journal: At a dinner at an Allen & Co. conference earlier this week, Kotick floated the idea of partnering to buy TikTok to a table of people that included OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, according to people familiar with the situation. OpenAI could use TikTok to help train its AI models if a partner such as Kotick could raise the capital for such an acquisition. From the perspective of someone who has never used TikTok, doesnt really know what TikTok is, and doesnt talk to many people who spend time on the platform say, a typical American lawmaker scenarios like this may sound like neat solutions to a difficult issue. To ByteDance, and the Chinese government, they may not be acceptable. In Chinese state media, the message has been pretty clear, as in this editorial in the Global Times. ByteDance cannot back down this time, writes former editor Hu Xijin. Only by legally and reasonably persisting can it possibly see a bright future. As long as ByteDance remains willing to shut down TikTok rather than give up ownership, he writes, it will create reverse pressure on the passage of the bill. Whether or not this is an accurate read of American legislative politics, the position makes some sense: A situation in which companies with connections to China can be effectively seized on national security grounds is in many ways worse than not doing business in the U.S. at all. Why bother? If the bill passes and survives legal scrutiny, the outcome imagined by many of its proponents the win-win spinoff scenario may not be on the table, turning the ban into an actual ban. In the context of U.S. politics where TikTok is treated as an extreme but abstract phenomenon, a conspiracy to encode Americans with foreign ideology, a psyop to give them the tools to radicalize themselves, or a megascale blackmail operation run by a foreign power the prospect of a ban has been normalized over a few years, but it will feel genuinely wild to the 150 million+ Americans who interact with the app in any given month and who for the most part understand TikTok as neither categorically different nor obviously worse than any of the other social-media services on their phones, the removal of which would be clearly bold and, in some cases, personally disruptive. Its a pretty big disconnect between lawmakers and at least some of their constituents! And in the end, the bill might pass anyway. Construction has begun at the new Coca-Cola sales center, which has a capital investment of $18 million and is expected to bring 75 full-time jobs to the East Alabama area. Coca-Cola Bottling Company United, Inc. is building a permanent facility for Auburn Coca-Cola Bottling Company on approximately 15 acres of land at 511 West Veterans Blvd. in Auburn. The facility, which will include a sales center, warehouse, and office space, will serve as the hub to distribute Coca-Cola products to customers and communities in Chambers, Coosa, Elmore, Lee, Macon, Randolph, Russell and Tallapoosa counties in East Alabama as well as Troup County in Georgia. "Auburn Coca-Cola will help us serve our growing customer base in East Alabama, and it builds upon the long-standing relationship we already have with Auburn, given our partnerships with the university and our many customers in this community," Coca-Cola UNITED President and CEO Mike Suco said in a news release. "This investment is part of our companys ongoing plan to optimize our distribution network in a way that benefits our associates, our customers and our communities." In connection with that ongoing plan, Suco highlighted the company's growth in recent years due to some acquisitions. He said that, since 2014, Coca-Cola UNITED has almost quadrupled in size and has added around 7,000 associates. The creation of the facility in Auburn was spurred by damage to the company's West Point, Ga. facility following a severe storm in March 2023. The facility lost its roof and shortly after, Coca-Cola UNITED announced that it leased a temporary facility in Auburn to continue operations. All 75 employees from the West Point facility relocated to Auburn according to a press release from Coca-Cola UNITED. Alan Buffington is the sales center manager for Auburn Coca-Cola and said he was at the West Point facility the day that the roof collapsed. He credited Coca-Cola UNITED for responding quickly to the damage and the City of Auburn, which reached out shortly after and helped the company secure a temporary facility. "We lost our facility in West Point. We scrambled. We lived out of a trailer we utilized everything we had," Coca-Cola UNITED Vice President for the central region Ernie Merritt said at the event. "We brought in some storm recovery centers, bathrooms, everything you need to run a facility and ran it out of a parking lot. And then in July of last year, we were able to move into a location...a temporary facility that's been home for our 75 associates for about a year now." Construction at the new permanent facility, which is set to be 24,000 square-feet, is expected to be completed in 2025 and the facility is expected to employ 75 people, with possibilities for expansion once it opens according to a Coca-Cola UNITED representative. Auburn Mayor Ron Anders and several elected officials were on hand at the groundbreaking to formally welcome Coca-Cola UNITED to the area. "Auburn is a very, very special place. And we take pride in the quality of the companies that choose to come to Auburn and what it means for local jobs and our local quality of life," Anders said during the ceremony. "This facility represents a more than $18 million investment in our community here in Auburn, adding to our thriving industrial base and bringing even more great jobs to these parks." The plans for the center were approved by the Auburn City Council in June 2023 shortly after the damage to the West Point facility. Coca-Cola UNITED will be donating the West Point facility to the City of West Point. Coca-Cola UNITED was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Birmingham. It has manufactured and distributed Coca-Cola products throughout the state for over 100 years and is the second largest privately held company in Alabama. The company has more than 10,000 associates located in more than 50 facilities across six states (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee). Some franchises within the Coca-Cola UNITED umbrella include Chattanooga, the world's first Coca-Cola bottler, Atlanta, home of the worldwide Coca-Cola System, and Columbus, Ga., the development site of the original Coca-Cola formula. Coca-Cola UNITED is also the second largest privately held Coca-Cola bottler in North America and the third largest bottler of Coca-Cola products in the U.S. Coca-Cola breaks ground on a new sales center in Auburn REHOBETH Former Alabama Congressman Terry Everett died Tuesday morning at his home. He was 87. Gov. Kay Ivey has directed that the flags at the Alabama Capitol Complex and flags in the district he served be lowered to half-staff immediately and remain at half-staff until the day he is buried. Congressman Everett passed away peacefully in his sleep this morning at his home in Rehobeth, Ivey said. Terry tirelessly served the people of southeast Alabama and his native Wiregrass with distinction for eight terms in Congress. Everett served Alabamas Second Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives for 16 years from 1992 to 2008, with a keen focus on agriculture concerns such as peanut farming and protecting and steering funding toward then-Fort Rucker and Maxwell-Gunter Air Force Base. During his time on Capitol Hill, he was one of the strongest voices for Alabamas military bases, active-duty personnel, and veterans, Ivey added. He was also a stalwart advocate for Alabama farmers and small businesses. Congressman Everett served our native Wiregrass and the people of Alabama in exemplary fashion, and his legacy will benefit our entire state long into the future," said U.S. Sen. Katie Britt. "Our prayers are with his loved ones as we mourn this tremendous loss. Congressman Everett was an Air Force veteran, journalist, and a powerful voice for Alabamas Second District during his time in Congress, said U.S. Rep. Barry Moore Tuesday afternoon. Heather and I are sad to hear of his passing and we hope youll join us in praying for his family, he added. Alabama benefitted greatly from his service. Troy University Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins agreed. Terry Everett was one of the greatest Alabamians that I have been blessed to know, he said. It was with great pride in 2013 that we named our signature building on TROYs Dothan Campus in his honor. We are also honored to be home to the R. Terry Everett Congressional Library, which contains many of his writings and papers from his 16 years representing Alabamas Second Congressional District. Congressman Everett was a wonderful public servant who made a tremendous impact on the Wiregrass, the State of Alabama, and our nation, Hawkins said. He didnt need the officethe office needed him. Congressman Everett was concerned about America and dedicated himself to protecting the ideals which made this country great, Hawkins added. He and Barbara were also great supporters of Troy University. Our thoughts and prayers are extended to Barbara during this time of reflectionand in appreciation of a life well lived. "We are saddened to hear the news today about the passing of Alabama Press Association Past President Terry Everett," said Felicia Mason, APA Executive Director. "Terry was president of APA in 1991-92. He and Barbara were very active in the association and very special to the APA members and staff. "Terry Everett founded, owned, and sold a number of newspapers during a career that began as a police reporter at The Dothan Eagle. He was a strong leader and provided steady guidance during a difficult time at APA," Mason added. "Our prayers go out to Barbara to all that knew and loved Terry." Ward Wilson Funeral Home is charge of arrangements which will be posted as soon as they are available, the funeral home confirmed Tuesday afternoon. Everett was elected to the 103rd Congress and seven succeeding congresses before his retirement in 2008. Prior to his service in Congress, Everett was a journalist, newspaper owner and publisher, and small businessman. He was also a veteran of the United States Air Force. My thoughts and prayers go out to Terrys family, friends, and former staff, Ivey said. Alabama greatly benefitted from his leadership and his devotion to public service. Stars Jonathan Groff and Karan Soni and director Roshan Selthi on the joy of making A Nice Indian Boy, joking: An independent film needs a famous white person to get made.https://t.co/vjG3TMU0XN The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) March 12, 2024 I Dont Understand You stars Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells open up about playing a married couple whose dream vacation quickly goes south. https://t.co/nwxv69QfJ4 VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) March 12, 2024 , initially a play by Madhuri Shekar, is built on a meet-cute at a local temple. During prayer, down-on-his-luck doctor Naveen (Soni) catches the eye of a dreamy photographer named Jay (Groff), and soon his wish for romance has been fulfilled. Jay was adopted by an Indian family and immersed himself in their culture, but hes far more comfortable in his sexuality than Naveen, who avoids introducing Jay to his folks (Zarna Garg and Harish Patel) until theyre engaged. Its. But not only is he bringing a boy homehes bringing aboy home. With that,goes from a romantic comedy to a comedy of manners to a spectacular wedding comedy.Making the film was very personal for Soni and director Roshan Sethi, who have been dating since 2018. Soni recalled how Halfway through making the movie, Roshan was like, This might be the most personal thing we ever do, so we should really soak it all in. This checks so many boxes of our experience, and to do it together is so rare. I remember him saying, We should experience and feel everything, which is also Jonathan rubbing off on us, because thats all this man does. He is. Hes never on his phone in between takes. He loves to talk about things. We want to be more like Jonathan. Language barriers can result in a lot of unintentional mishaps, some hilarious and others quite scary. In the new horror-comedy, which premiered at SXSW, Nick Kroll and Andrew Rannells experience the full spectrum of the English languages limitations as married couple Dom and Cole, on the verge of adopting a baby after years of trying. To reconnect, they jet off to Italy where everything is molto bene until they find themselves stranded at a tiny restaurant in a remote cottage in Tuscany during a storm, with no cell service and no way of communicating with their very Italian hosts. Simple miscommunications pile up until things take a turn toward the macabre. Without spoiling anything, theres enough bloodshed to make any American tourist say mamma mia!Nick Kroll says The movie is really a bit of a parable for what people will do to finally have their baby. While all of this insane stuff is happening, and while were doing these really, lets call them questionable things, underneath that is this desire to get their child. I think that that does so much to help hopefully the audience continue to root for these guys.The movie also stars Morgan Spector and Amanda Seyfried. Amanda Knox served as a consulting producer on the film. Was it due to low ticket sales? Reply Thread Link No one knows, but that wouldve been my guess considering shes booking large arenas. Most people at the stage of her career who sell similarly would be doing amphitheaters or smaller theaters or Vegas residencies with a few thousand capacity i/o full arena size. Like the PNC Arena in Raleigh has like 20K capacity. But I also think all the dates she canceled were all within the same few weeks and lumped consecutively so maybe a conflict came up? Reply Parent Thread Link True, it's not easy to fill up those arenas at this stage. Reply Parent Thread Link JLo isn't THAT popular in Raleigh, or at least she hasn't been since Jenny on the Block and that was mostly because she was at peak movie height. Plus they charge ridiculous amounts for parking now and then block off the fairgrounds with its massive lots. Reply Parent Thread Link Given that most of them are in the Southeast, IDK how an entire region could be low sales but who knows. It's all in one period of time so maybe she wants to go on vacation then. Reply Parent Thread Link I did see people om social media say she had some nerve charging high ass prices like she was Beyonce. Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Fucking LOLLLLLLL at that chart performance. Whatta FLOPPP! Reply Thread Link I was surprised she was booking large arenas instead of doing smaller amphitheaters or theaters or even more intimate venues & residencies like Christina & Kylie have been doing in Vegas. Reply Thread Link Her ego could never!!!!! Reply Parent Thread Link Shes adopting a Beyonce/Taylor strategy on a dead career Embarrassment is the only logical endpoint Reply Parent Thread Link Queen delulu! Reply Parent Thread Link She actually had a Vegas residency back in 2016-2018!! Reply Parent Thread Link Ashanti had a scheduling conflict? Reply Thread Link Her ninth and potential last studio album This Is Me...Now debuted at no. 38 (14K pure sales) on the Billboard 200 Chart and has since fallen out of the 200 chart altogether. Damn, RIP! Damn, RIP! Reply Thread Link I'm laughing but... Not sure Mariah's next album will fare much better Reply Parent Thread Link SUDDENLY WE CAN READ! Reply Parent Thread Link ONTD is only literate in age gaps and pop girl shade Reply Parent Thread Expand Link lol Reply Thread Link I know she's a very popular celebrity, but I feel like she's famous for being famous at this point. Does she have actual stans? Who listens to her music?? Reply Thread Link Yeah. Shes still obviously an A list star, but I feel like at this point shes more of a ~media~ celebrity famous for being sort of a brand (movies, cosmetics, with some music sprinkled in every few years as more of a side hobby at this point) Reply Parent Thread Link My boyfriend. He bought the vinyle, made me watch all of her last movies... Reply Parent Thread Link Is that including Maid in Manhattan? Is your boyfriend single? Reply Parent Thread Expand Link Remember when she tried to start her challenge on social media during the first year of the pandemic with no explanation of what the challenge was so barely anyone did it but those that did got reported for copyright infringement for using her music? Reply Thread Link I didn't know they got a copyright infringement report, lmao. Reply Parent Thread Link That chart performance is so cringe! Stick to rom-coms, Jenny. Reply Thread Link Oh Jlo, she didn't! Reply Thread Link wow how are all three fans coping? Reply Thread Link Is it because of embarrassment? Because Id be so embarazzzzed if I were her. Though, shes delusional af. So nvm! Reply Thread Link isn't she tired of flopping Reply Thread Link Is the person who sings her songs sick or smthing? Reply Thread Link Florida Legislature Faces Backlash for Banning Heat Safety Measures The bill would prohibit local governments from requiring employers to provide heat protection for workers. In a controversial move, the Florida Legislature has passed a bill that prohibits local jurisdictions from mandating employers to provide workers with heat safety measures, such as access to water, rest and shade. This decision has sparked outrage among safety advocates like the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH). Florida is the hottest state, making it the furnace of the nation. Yet too many of its legislators are choosing to bury their heads in the sand, National COSH Co-Executive Director Jessica E. Martinez said in a statement. In passing a heartless, unnecessary and shortsighted bill, elected officials are turning their backs on workers and disregarding the dangers of working outdoors in searing heat. Notably, the legislation comes as climate change intensifies the health risks associated with high temperatures. Florida, in particular, is known for its extreme heat, but the bills critics say the states Republican-led legislators are doing a disservice to workers. State Sen. Jay Trumbull (R-Panama City)who sponsored the Senate billhas a different take. There are businesses operating at all four corners of the state, and the intent is to make sure that we dont have a patchwork of regulation, Sen. Trumbull told South Florida radio station WLRN 91.3 FM (via WUSF). Were going to follow OSHAs rule. OSHA currently lacks a specific standard protecting workers from extreme heat, though the agency does consider it a key hazard. As such, heat hazards fall under the general duty clause of the OSH Act of 1970, which requires employers to ensure workplaces are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees Now that the bill (HB 433) has received final approval from the Florida Legislature, it moves to Governor Ron DeSantis. Once law, the legislationHouse-sponsored by Rep. Tiffany Esposito (R-Fort Myers)will delay the states ability to create heat regulations until 2028. A majority of investors that picked their ISA based on sustainability credentials actually have their cash in providers classified as worst for their environmental impact, new research has revealed. Analysis from Triodos Bank UK found that investors were failing to understand the sustainability implications of where they put their money. The research found that a majority of people (55 percent) who have a stocks and shares ISA with a provider classified as the worst on sustainability, according to Ethical Consumer rankings, actually think that their money is in a green ISA. Investors are also not fully informed about the extent of what labels can be applied to ISAs, especially if they seem counter-intuitive. For example, half of consumers dont believe a fund or savings account can be classed as sustainable if it includes fossil fuel companies even those that also invest in renewable energy. However, a sustainable label can still be slapped on a fund that invests in fossil fuels, especially if the fund claims it is working on engaging with the polluter to pressure it to cut its emissions. Related: This Could Be A Gamechanger For Natural Gas In Europe Meanwhile, 55 percent of investors said they didnt even know if their ISA was using their money in an environmentally friendly way. Investors are clearly pushing for more sustainable investment, as 47 percent of people said that banks should not be investing in fossil fuel expansion, rising to 57 percent of 1834 year olds. Young investors are also more sceptical of the claims made by financial institutions, with 36 percent thinking their ISA providers are likely to be engaging in greenwashing, compared to just 10 percent of over 55s. Roger Hattam, director of retail banking at Triodos Bank UK, said that the findings demonstrated the worrying truth about how well-intentioned consumers are being misled about how their money is being invested. The Financial Conduct Authority is set to bring in new anti-greenwashing rules later this year, but the research found only 10 percent of investors were aware of the new rules. Related: 2 Companies That Could Help Europe Win Its Energy War With Russia However, Hattam described the new rules as desperately needed, and more than half (59 percent) of investors said they were concerned about greenwashing in the financial services industry, ADVERTISEMENT There are millions of consumers wanting their money to align with their values, but this is not yet matched with real industry commitment to clearly signpost what causes their money is actually supporting, added Hattam. As well as actively screening out negatives such as never investing in fossil fuel companies to truly invest in people and the planet, banks need to actively fund areas that are changing the world for the better. By City AM More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: With Japan looking to steer clear of risky energy tie-ups with neighboring Russia, its allies could help to fill the countrys LNG needs for 2030 and beyond. Since Russia found itself on the wrong end of Western sanctions, Japan has been looking to wind down its exposure to Russian LNG. In December, Japans Mitsui and Co decided to pull its employees out of Russias Arctic LNG 2 LNG project, and sanctions prompted Novatek to declare a force majeure over LNG supplies from the project. But Mitsui and its JV with Japans JOGMEC is still planning to keep its 10% stake in the project. But the supply risks associated with relying on Russia for LNG supplies have become prominent since Russia invaded Ukraine and Japan is looking to hedge its LNG betsfrom suppliers that are more closely aligned with Japan. Japans other major suppliers include Qatar, but Japan is looking to increase its long-term LNG supplies from friendly nations like the United States and Australia. Its even looking to Canada for LNG tie-ups, with Mitsui a shareholder in Canadas first major export facility, expecting to receive more than 2 million tonnes of LNG per year. Meanwhile, Japan has seen a drop off in LNG purchases from Russia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Qatar in recent years. Related: Europes Secret Weapon In Its Energy War With Russia Overall, Japans imports of LNG are declining, according to recent EIA data, with natural gas accounting for 35% of its total fossil fuels-driven energy generation. The reason for the slump can be attributed to Japans five nuclear reactors that restarted over the last six years. And of the LNG it continues to import, 90% is through long-term contracts, with just 10% purchased on the spot market from a wide variety of countries. But that doesnt mean all of Japans LNG suppliers are seeing a dip in demand from the Asian nation. On the contrary, it would appear that as Japans contracts with certain countries like Qatar expire, it is seeking out new long-term contracts with nations it is closely aligned with. Japans top supplier of LNG isand has been for more than a decadeAustralia. And, as geopolitical allies, Australias share of Japans overall LNG imports has grown in recent years. Japan used to import 18% of its total LNG from Australia in 2012. Last year, that figure had grown to 42%. Qatar, on the other hand, is supplying a decreasing share of Japans LNG. Qatar also used to supply 18% of Japans total LNG needs in 2012. But as of last year, this had fallen to just 4% as several long-term contracts expiredlong-term contracts that come with what Japan sees as strict terms. Last year, Japans industry minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, spoke out in favor of more flexible contracts and specifically against the destination clause, which prevents switchig the final buyer. In the past, Qatars LNG buyers have been agreeable to such strict terms in exchange for Qatars reliability. But Qatars shrinking footprint in Japans LNG market could be an indication that it can no longer rest exclusively on offering its LNG buyers reliability. Malaysia was Japans second-largest LNG supplier last year, but, their share of Japans total LNG demand is also shrinkingfrom 19% in 2012 to 16% in 2023 as Australias presence in the global LNG market boomed. Japans imports from Russiastill one of its major suppliers--fell to 10.7% in 2022, and this could fall even more over the next six years, when many of the long-term contracts from Russias Sakhalin-2 project are set to expire. As for Indonesia, it could have supply issues in the future as its own demand increases. Meanwhile, Japans LNG imports from the United States increased last year by more than a third, accounting for 8% of Japans total LNG purchases, making it Japans fourth-largest LNG supplier. The Biden Administrations suspension of U.S. LNG export permits havent turned Japan away from seeking U.S. LNG, with Japanese utility company Kyushu Electric Power even mulling a stake in Energy Transfers Lake Charles LNG project in the United Stateseven though it is part of the U.S. license freeze. The reason for the appetite for Australia and United States LNG, according to Kyushu, is supply stability. There are some concerns about North America due to the recent move by Biden, but they, along with Australia, are allies and that means a lot, Kyushus Takashi Mitsuyoshi told Reuters. ADVERTISEMENT One recent report suggests that Japans utilities could see margins dropand even turn negative--on a forecast surplus of LNG as the countrys demand for LNG has fallen in recent years. The report, from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), suggests that Japans utilities JERA, Tokyo Gas, Osaka Gas, and Kansai Electric, could find themselves in an over-contracted position of 11 Mtpa through 2030. From now until 2040, however, millions of tonnes worth of Japans LNG contracts are set to expire, according to Reuters calculations, with 17.9 million tonnes of LNG set to expire in 2039 alone. Of course, the IEEFA reports view of an LNG glut is specifically speaking in near- to mid-term, through 2030. Japan is still moving to secure long-term LNG supplies with a view of the future, and the government said last year that it was planning to establish an emergency LNG reserve system to secure gas resources for unexpected situations. By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: After 20 years of the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, Central Asia is increasingly connected to the Islamic Emirate and is building the foundation for sustained economic growth. But first, NATO had to abandon its war to liberate Afghanistan that saw over 240,000 deaths in Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2001 to 2021. In February, Afghanistans foreign minister led a delegation to Turkmenistans capital, Ashgabat, for talks that centered on completing the 1,600-kilometer Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) natural gas pipeline. Though Afghanistan will take only five percent of the annual 33 billion cubic meters flow, completion of the project will be a political win for the countrys ruling Taliban. The two sides also discussed the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) high-voltage power transmission line, and the construction of railways from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan. In January, Afghanistan and Turkmenistan agreed on the sale of 1.8 billion kilowatt-hours of energy to Kabul for 2024, and the completion of a power transmission line. And Tajikistan plans to increase electricity sales to Afghanistan by 17% despite domestic rationing of power. The countries have an electricity supply agreement that runs to 2028. The agreements with Turkmenistan and Tajikistan will supplement electricity imports from Uzbekistan, which were interrupted in January 2022 due to a technical fault. Related: Europes Secret Weapon In Its Energy War With Russia Reliable electricity supplies will strengthen the Talibans claim to govern the country and will make it more attractive as a partner in projects like TAPI. The negotiations will also enmesh the Taliban in the regions governance structures, teach it the local rules of the road, and give it an opportunity to demonstrate it can be a good neighbor. And Kabul recently showed it could be a good neighbor in the best way possible: by paying its bills. In February, U.S.-funded Voice of America reported Kabul satisfied its outstanding debt for power, about $40 to $50 million USD, not the eye-popping $627 million USD reported earlier. The TAPI pipeline has suffered numerous delays, the latest being the Taliban victory in August 2021. The Americans will frown at any project that benefits the Islamic Emirate, but Washington and Ashgabat are in discussions on possible easing of sanctions on the Islamic Emirate so the project may finally get underway. A bonus for the U.S. is that TAPI will reduce Turkmenistans reliance on gas sales to China, its top trade partner (Turkmenistan is the largest supplier if pipeline gas to China), though ongoing tension between Pakistan and India may make Delhi doubt Islamabads willingness to keep the line open during a crisis. An additional concern is the Talibans ability to secure the pipeline against attacks by Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State - Khorasan Province. The CASA-1000 International Energy Project aims to provide 1,300 megawatts of hydropower-produced surplus electricity from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Pakistan and Afghanistan in the summer months through new energy infrastructure running 1,300 km. The $1.2 billion project was to be complete by 2024 but may be delayed if U.S. government sanctions waivers are needed to complete the Afghanistan leg of the project. And Tashkent recently secured Qatars support for the 573 kilometer Trans-Afghan Railway to connect Uzbekistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan. Though the project will mostly support Pakistan - Central Asian trade, Afghanistan will also benefit. And Iran, which has increased trade with Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, is formalizing relations with the Islamic Emirate. Irans policy is that Afghanistan needs an inclusive government and the countries have clashed over Irans access to waters of the Helmand River, but Tehran welcomed Kabuls $35 million USD investment in the Chabahar port and turned over Afghanistans embassy to the Taliban government. Afghanistans neighbors all support a more representative government and rights for women but will work those issues in parallel with increased economic ties that will create mutual dependencies as they work towards greater trust. Washington, still smarting over its defeat, will be dubious about any effort that normalizes the Islamic Emirate but Iran, Pakistan, and the Central Asian republics dont have that luxury: they are neighbors forever and need to recover from the lost decades of 2001 to 2021. Efforts by Washington and Brussels to stifle trade with Afghanistan is a tax on the region to assuage hurt feelings in NATO capitals. If getting women into the work force is a priority the best way may be creating demand for workers so that the Emirate is forced to relax its restrictions on women. More sanctions and speeches by American and European politicians havent made a difference so far. Kabuls key asset is its location but it needs to make a positive contribution to the region by being a good neighbor. Paying bills on time is a start, but so is abiding to the U.S.-Taliban Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan, especially its obligation that it will not allow any of its members, other individuals or groups, including al-Qaida, to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies. The Emirate cant push the Islamic State or al-Qaeda over its borders as that will doom relations with Iran, Pakistan, China, or the Central Asian republics. And a civil war between the Taliban and the trans-national Islamists will warm hearts in Washington and Brussels but will continue the over 40 years of violence that has blighted Afghanistan since the Saur Revolution in 1978. The best way forward is to keep the Islamic State et al. boxed in, which may require intelligence sharing and cooperation with the neighbors and the U.S. to secure the country for pipelines, powerlines, irrigation canals, and railroads. And if Afghanistan is secure internally against groups like al-Qaeda, so much the better for the region. ADVERTISEMENT Afghanistan, the heart of Asia, may become a security provider of sorts for the region if it succeeds in stifling groups like the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. But real progress will follow when it constructively engages with Central Asia republics, Iran, and Pakistan on critical concerns such as climate change and water management. Afghanistan is claiming a larger share of the waters that originate in its territory by building the Qosh Tepa canal, which has raised concerns in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan which are plagued by water scarcity. In March, Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov of Uzbekistan led a delegation to Kabul to meet the Emirates leaders. According to the Emirate, the Uzbek side pledged support for Qosh Tepa and agreed to send a technical team to support the project, and agreed to accept the Emirates ambassador. (The Qosh Tepa canal recently suffered a leak reportedly due to a failure of the canal walls that resulted in flooding of a 30 square kilometer area.) Kabuls key asset is its location but it needs to make a positive contribution to the region by being a good neighbor. The Emirate can signal its good intentions by supporting the Uzbek technical team and petitioning to join the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination of Central Asia so it can join part the regions governance structures. By James Durso for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Amid all the bonhomie on display during last weeks visit to Turkmenistan by a high-level delegation from Taliban-run Afghanistan, one thorny issue was broached. As the Foreign Ministry in Ashgabat revealed in a March 7 statement, bilateral conversations touched on the need for deeper cooperation in the management of water resources. The Turkmen side noted that the rational use of water resources in the region should be carried out on the basis of generally recognized norms of international law regulating the regime of water use on transboundary rivers, watercourses and border lakes, the ministry said. Without naming the project outright, the statement was clearly alluding to ongoing work in Afghanistan on construction of the Qosh-Tepa canal, which some experts estimate may soon end up diverting up to 20 percent of water from the Amu Darya River. Afghanistans neighbors to the north have acted gingerly around the initiative, stopping short of adopting hostile rhetoric. In September, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev spoke at a regional conference about how the canal threatened to radically change the water regime and balance in Central Asia. He then proposed involving Afghan regime representatives in regional dialogue on the joint use of water resources. Turkmenistans statement advances the agenda a little by gently making the case for more technical cooperation. It recommends a science-based approach to drawing water from transboundary rivers, the enlistment of highly qualified personnel capable of properly managing the canal (which the statement does not name), and neighborly respect for the interests of all riparian states. The meeting with the Afghan delegation took place in a friendly and constructive atmosphere, the Turkmen Foreign Ministry concluded, lest anybody imagine this candid approach could serve as a prelude to tensions. The cordiality has done little to slow down work on the canal. On February 21, Afghan outlet TOLONews reported that the second phase of the project had got underway. TOLONews says 198 kilometers of canal were excavated during the first phase of works, and that another 177 kilometers will follow over a 12-month period. Intriguingly, the outlet cites the deputy head of the Afghan Chamber of Agriculture and Livestock, Mirwais Haji Zada, as saying that completion of Qosh-Tepa will enable Afghanistan to become self-sufficient in wheat. This feels like grandstanding, but the voicing of such autarkic ambitions may cause some discomfiture in places like Kazakhstan, which has been pressing for construction of a grain terminal on Turkmenistans eastern border so as to facilitate exports to Afghanistan. The question of this facility was indeed brought up during Afghan-Turkmen consultations earlier this month. Ashgabat-based NewsCentralAsia cited Turkmen officials as informing their guests that a planned storage silo on their shared border would be able to accommodate 100,000 tons of grain. While Turkmen officials have stopped short of spelling out what they mean by the phrase science-based approach to drawing water from transboundary rivers, NewsCentralAsia, an outlet that offers reliably complimentary and on-message coverage of Turkmen government policies, offered what looked like a well-briefed explanation of what that might entail. The website alluded to unspecified media reports about the lack of plans to line the Qosh-Tepa Canal a course of action that it warns could pose all manner of environmental and structural hazards. Happily, as NewsCentralAsia points out, Turkmenistan has the capacity for the production and use of canal lining materials. Related: Forgotten Gas Reserves Could Be A Gamechanger For European Energy It would be only fair for the Afghans to buy Turkmen manufactured goods seeing how much is going in the other direction. As TOLONews reported on March 7, Turkmen National Leader (and ex-president) Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov has apparently put in an order for 100,000 cubic meters of white marble from Afghanistan. There are no details on what is to be done with this marble, but a good bet is that it will be used to clad buildings in Berdymukhamedovs pet project: the new city of Arkadag. Officials in Turkey are trying to maintain the buzz around a memorandum of understanding on accelerating cooperation in the natural gas sector signed with Turkmenistan on March 1 that has been sold as a certain prelude to gas deliveries. Speaking at a conference on March 7, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar described the options, as he sees them, for getting Turkmen gas flowing westward. We have three alternatives for the supply of Turkmen gas, including supplies via Iran through a swapping deal and via Iran and Azerbaijan, again, by swapping. A third, more sustainable way is establishing a trans-Caspian pipeline. All options are on the table, Bayraktar was quoted as saying by Daily Sabah. This prospect is playing out against the backdrop of reinvigorated efforts by Ankara to consolidate its presence in Central Asia through the promotion of the Organization of Turkic States, or OTS, format. On March 11, Ashgabat hosted the opening of the 15th session of the Council of Elders of the OTS, which would be an entirely ignorable event but for the fact that Turkmenistans representative is Berdymukhamedov, who is de facto his countrys co-president along with his son, Serdar. Turkmenistan only participates in the OTS in an observer capacity, but there is a strong chance it could become a full member later this year a notable development for a country that typically eschews full commitment to such overtly political multilateral formats. ADVERTISEMENT In other multilateral body news, President Berdymukhamedov (the younger) met on March 5 with the Secretary General of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Helga Schmid. Related: Europes Secret Weapon In Its Energy War With Russia Even though human rights issues are explicitly a core component of the OSCEs mandate, it does not appear these got much of an airing. Ahead of Schmids visit, her office intimated that talks in Ashgabat would focus on the implications of climate change for security and stability, the challenges of transboundary water management, energy security, sustainable connectivity, and disaster risk reduction. A readout of the meeting between Berdymukhamedov and Schmid produced by Turkmen state media suggests they stuck close to that script. Pleas from international advocacy groups for Schmid to express strong concern over Turkmenistans failure to respect its citizens right to freedom of expression, freedom of movement and the right not to be subjected to enforced disappearance appear to have been ignored. By Eurasianet.org More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: A fire erupted at an oil refinery in a region southeast of Moscow following a suspected Ukrainian drone attack in the latest such incident ahead of this weekends presidential election in Russia, in which Vladimir Putin is running unopposed and sure to win another six-year term in office. A drone attacked early on Wednesday an oil refinery in the region of Ryazan, whose main city of the same name is some 120 miles southeast of Moscow, the regions governor Pavel Malkov wrote on the Telegram channel. The attack led to a fire and according to preliminary information, people have been injured, Malkov added. Wednesdays drone attack is the latest in a series of such incidents since the beginning of the year, and follows several attacks by drones on Tuesday. A Lukoil refinery in western Russia caught fire after a drone attack early on Tuesday local time in what appears to be several coordinated attacks by drones from Ukraine on Russian refinery and fuel facilities. A crude processing unit at the refinery in Nizhny Novgorod is on fire after a drone attack was carried out on Tuesday morning, Gleb Nikitin, governor of Nizhny Novgorod, wrote on his Telegram channel. A few hours earlier, another energy facility in western Russia was also attacked by a drone. A drone attack was launched at a fuel and energy facility in the Oryol region, governor Andrey Klychkov said on Telegram. One of the fuel tanks caught fire as a result of the attack, a representative of the local authorities told Russian news agency TASS. Local officials in the capital city Moscow, as well as in the regions of Kursk, Tula, Voronezh, and Belgorod also reported drone attacks, without giving more details. Lower refining capacity in the second quarter, due to refinery maintenance and emergency repairs following the attacks, could be one of the reasons why Russia said it would focus on cuts to oil production instead of exports in its voluntary supply reduction as part of OPEC+ in the second quarter, analysts say. ADVERTISEMENT By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: A Russian tanker, sanctioned by the U.S. in the middle of February, has arrived at a Chinese port to discharge Russian crude in the province home to most of Chinas independent refiners, Reuters reported on Wednesday, quoting shipping data from Kpler and LSEG. The vessel Krymsk, owned by Russian state tanker company Sovcomflot, docked at the Chinese port Dongying on Wednesday, to offload 700,000 barrels of Russias Sokol crude grade, according to the data. Sovcomflot was designated last month by the U.S. Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which is looking to responsibly reduce Russias revenue from oil sales. Together with Sovcomflot, the U.S. Treasury sanctioned 14 tankers, including Krymsk, as beneficially owned by Sovcomflot. While it sanctioned Sovcomflot and 14 of its tankers, OFAC also issued a general license authorizing the offloading of crude oil or other cargo from these 14 vessels for a period of 45 days. According to Reuters, Krymsk is the second sanctioned tanker that would be offloading crude at a Chinese port after the new sanctions. Last week, the Liteyny Prospect, also on the list of Sovcomflots 14 sanctioned tankers, discharged 700,000 barrels of Sokol crude at a Chinese port in the Hebei province. Last months sanctions and the increased sanction enforcement in recent months have resulted in lower imports of Sokol crude in India, whose refiners are wary of running afoul of U.S. regulations. Stranded cargoes of Russias Sokol crude, previously headed to India but idled off South Korea and Singapore since the U.S. stepped up sanctions enforcement, have started to make their way to China, beginning to clear a backlog of more than 10 million barrels of the grade sitting on tankers at sea. ADVERTISEMENT China has increased purchases of Sokol in recent weeks and its independent refiners are expected to take several such shipments this month, traders told Bloomberg earlier this week. Tankers loaded with Sokol and idling offshore Singapore since December have started moving towards Chinas shores, Bloomberg notes. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: BP and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) have suspended talks to buy a 50% stake in Israels natural gas producer NewMed, due to uncertainty in the region, the Israeli company said on Wednesday. In March 2023, BP and the national oil company of one of the leading Middle Eastern oil and gas producers, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), offered to buy a large stake in NewMed in a deal estimated to be worth around $2 billion. NewMed is the largest shareholder in Israels Leviathan natural gas field, which is operated by U.S. supermajor Chevron. Leviathan, with 22.9 TCF of recoverable gas, is the largest natural gas reservoir in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest producing assets in the region, NewMed says. The company also has a 30% working interest in the Aphrodite natural gas field, located in the exclusive economic zone of Cyprus, with Chevron and Shell as partners with 35% each. With the deal proposed last year, BP and ADNOC were looking to gain exposure to the vast natural gas reserves in the Eastern Mediterranean. However, the Hamas attack on Israel in early October and the war that followed have thrown discussions off course. NewMeds panel reviewing the offer and the two majors have agreed, due to the uncertainty created by the external environment, to suspend discussions in relation to the proposed transaction, the Israeli energy firm said in a filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange today. BP and ADNOC reiterated their interest in the proposed transaction, NewMed added. ADVERTISEMENT The process will remain suspended until such time as discussions resume or the process is terminated. There can be no certainty that discussions will resume or that an agreement will be reached in the future, nor as to the terms of an agreement should one be reached, the company noted. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Chinas Unipec, the trading division of Sinopec, has bought a rare cargo of North Sea oil amid lukewarm local demand. Citing unnamed sources from the oil trading industry, Reuters reported today that the cargo comes from Norways Johan Sverdrup field and will be delivered in May. The volume of the cargo was 8 million barrelsthe largest volume of North Sea oil that a Chinese company has bought since February 2022, the report noted, citing data from Kpler. Previously, Norwegian oil from the Johan Sverdrup field was a frequent participant in the Chinese import mix but this changed after the European Union imposed an embargo on Russian energy imports, redirecting its own demand to locally available crude of a similar grade. Unipec also made news earlier this year in relation to a new bill that effectively banned sales from the strategic petroleum reserve to Chinese business entities. The Sinopec division had bought 1 million barrels of SPR oil back in 2022 when the Biden administration unleashed close to 200 million barrels on markets to calm retail fuel prices down. The Chinese company is also active in LNG and is among the long-term buyers of the product from Venture Global, which has been embroiled in a dispute with several of its funders for months. BP, Shell, Repsol, Eni, and Edison, as well as Polish Orlen, have requested that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission not extend a construction permit for Venture Global that would allow the company to continue prioritizing spot sales over its long-term contractual obligations. That clause in its contracts has allowed Venture Global to make billions from selling so-called pre-commission cargos of LNG on the spot market while supplying zero LNG to its long-term clients. Now, Unipec has also joined the fray, taking the side of the long-term clients, some of whom have also filed an arbitration suit against Venture Global. ADVERTISEMENT By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Europes giant utility operator, German E.ON, said on Wednesday it was targeting a massive $46 billion in investment in five years for a grid overhaul and expansion to accommodate renewable energy projects as the companys profit guidance soars. Shares in E.ON popped to an almost six-week high on Wednesday following the companys bullish forecast and its plans to raise its five-year investment target by 27% to modernize Europes grid. Shares were trading up 6.53% at 12:46 p.m. ET on Wednesday, and are up 3.41% year-to-date, with investors also eyeing its attractive dividend yield of 4.32%. E.ON services an estimated 47 million customers, and is now tasked with overhauling the continents grid to take in power sources from solar and wind. "E.ON will be a major beneficiary of the current strong operating environment. In our view today's medium-term outlook will be a major re-rating catalyst," Reuters quoted Barclays analysts as saying. The utility giant is one of the clearest beneficiaries of the European Unions net zero 2050 climate goals because the entire blocs clean energy assets will have to be connected up to the grid in a favorable regulatory environment. What Europe needs now is an intelligent energy infrastructure for sustainable, secure and affordable energy, E.ON chief executive Leonhard Birnbaum said in a press release. This is exactly what we have focused E.ON on and we are consistently pursuing this course. This means that we will continue to invest massively in order to meet the rapidly growing demand for energy infrastructure, he added. ADVERTISEMENT In its latest earnings report, E.ON showed adjusted net profit up 12%, and for 2024 expects EBITDA of between 8.8 billion euros and 9 billion euros, potentially rising to 11 billion euros by 2028. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Low natural gas prices this winter season will result in significant declines in regulated electricity prices for households in Italy in the second quarter of the year, according to the Italian energy authority ARERA. The low natural gas prices will be reflected in the March bills and in the power bills in the coming months, Stefano Besseghini, president of ARERA, told Reuters on the sidelines of an industry event in Milan on Wednesday. We will see the impact on electricity in March, and realistically it will be significant, said Besseghini, who was referring to the regulated electricity prices, which covered around one-third of Italian households last year. Italy will begin phasing out the regulated price scheme in July. Most of the currently covered customers will move to an electricity price on the free market, while around 4.5 million vulnerable customers such as the elderly and disabled will remain under the regulated price regime. Due to its relatively high dependence on natural gas for electricity production, Italy has seen wild swings in power prices in recent years. The share of natural gas in the power generation mix in Italy is around 45%, much higher than in Germany, France, or Spain. Thats why electricity prices in Italy were higher than the European average last year. However, the slide in natural gas prices over the past months despite being winter will lead to lower bills in Q2. Weak demand from Europes industry, due to lower consumption and weak economies, has been one of the reasons of the gas price slump this winter, despite the peak demand period for heating. High levels of inventories, weak demand from industry, and increased confidence that Europe could go through the winter without major supply disruptions have all led to traders becoming more bearish on Europes natural gas prices in recent weeks. ADVERTISEMENT By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Nigerian oil production, beleaguered by rampant theft and sabotage, hit its highest in more than three years amid a concerted effort to crack down on targeted attacks and organized theft rings. According to OPEC data, the countrys production hit 1.476 million barrels per day (bpd) in February, after hitting a decades-low in the second half of 2022, when it dropped below 1 million bpd. Since then, the government has pursued a more efficient and aggressive policy for cracking down on theft and pipeline sabotage, hiring private security firms to bolster military efforts to guard facilities. As of this week, Nigeria is pumping more than it has since December 2020. Nigeria has consistently failed to produce to its quota in the OPEC+ agreement. The combination of pipeline vandalism and oil theft with a lack of investment in capacity has made Nigeria the biggest laggard in crude oil production in the OPEC+ alliance. Oil theft and pipeline vandalism have long plagued Nigerias upstream oil and gas industry, driving majors out of the country and often resulting in force majeure at the key crude oil export terminals. Nigerias oil production is around 1 million bpd below its capacity. Related: Europes Secret Weapon In Its Energy War With Russia The government has cited a lack of investments, a shortage of funding sources because of the energy transition, and insecurity among the factors driving the situation. Unhindered by theft and sabotage, Nigeria has the technical allowable capacity to produce about 2.5 million barrels of oil per day, according to Nigerian oil executives. Nigerias state-run NNPC energy company said earlier this week that it had destroyed more than 6,000 illegal refineries processing stolen crude, Reuters reported. State energy company NNPC Limited had so far destroyed over 6,000 illegal refineries used to process stolen crude. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Oil prices surged nearly 2% on Wednesday, buoyed by a drop in U.S. crude oil stockpiles and another round of Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries, countering weakening prices earlier this week as demand worries sent traders to the exit. At 11.44 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Brent crude was trading at $83.40, up 1.81%, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was trading at $79.05, up 1.92% on the day. Despite the jump in prices Wednesday afternoon, Brent crude has not managed to break out of its range, with Reuters noting that the front-month contract has settled in a narrow range between $81.50-$84 a barrel for more than a month. "While the geopolitical temperature has moved higher by a few degrees since December we have yet to experience any disruptions, and the market has concluded that such a risk is currently very low," Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen told Reuters. Earlier on Wednesday, reports emerged of another attack on a Russian refinery in the Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow, causing a massive fire. The attack follows another attack that erupted in fire at a Lukoil refinery on Tuesday as Ukraine launches coordinated drone attacks targeting Russian oil facilities. Related: How To Profit From Europes $800 Billion Energy Crisis The attacks are timed ahead of Russian presidential elections this weekend in which Vladimir Putin is running unopposed and set to win another six-year term in office. On Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, API, reported a 5.5-million-barrel draw on U.S. crude oil inventories for the previous week, giving oil prices some fresh impetus amid concerns of soaring American output in the face of weak demand indicators, especially from China. ADVERTISEMENT On Wednesday, the Energy Information Administration, EIA, followed that up with its inventory report showing a smaller draw of 1.5 million barrels for the week to March 8, with gasoline stocks also declining. Forecasts had expected a smaller, 1.3-million-barrel draw. This compares to a crude oil stockpile build the previous week of 1.4 million barrels. By Tom Kool for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: The ongoing job cuts at Shell are extending to the team handling mergers and acquisitions for the supermajor as the oil and gas giant is looking to eliminate around 20% of several hundred positions in the M&A unit, unnamed sources familiar with the plans have told Bloomberg. Shell has been saying for months that it is pursuing a leaner organization and aims to make larger cost savings by reducing headcount. In 2022, Shell employed more than 90,000 people. After job cuts in the low-carbon energy division, Shell has expanded the reductions to other teams and now its the turn of the deals team, according to Bloombergs sources. Staff in the team, who are estimated at several hundred employees, have been told to expect a significant number of positions to be eliminated, with details to be communicated in April, the sources told the newswire. Last year, Shell said it plans to cut 15% of the 1,300 jobs in its Low Carbon Solutions business as it scales back some green energy ambitions and focuses on profitable projects including in the oil and gas sector. In December 2023, the oil major announced internally a broader plan for job cuts in other departments, too. Early this year, Shell began hundreds of layoffs, sources with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg in January, as the supermajor looks to create more value through simplification and discipline. Positions in the low-carbon business will be the first to be eliminated, followed by additional job cuts in the corporate affairs division and project and technology departments, according to Bloombergs sources. Shell aims to create more value with less emissions by focusing on performance, discipline and simplification, a spokesperson for the supermajor told Bloomberg. ADVERTISEMENT Achieving those reductions will require portfolio high grading, new efficiencies and a leaner overall organization, the spokesperson added. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: (Photo by Shoji Kudaka) Next time you hit the toll road for a long drive in Okinawa, it might be a little more expensive. Tolls for Okinawa Expressway will increase starting in April this year, according to West Nippon Expressway Company (NEXCO-WEST). The fee increase is a result of lifting Okinawa Tokubetsu-wari (a special discount for Okinawa), which was first introduced in 1999 and is currently in place to offer a 35.5 percent discount. Although an official toll table has not been released yet, once this increase takes effect, it will cost an ordinary vehicle 1,610 yen (approx. $11) to drive from Naha (southernmost exit) to Kyoda (northernmost exit near Camp Schwab). This will be an increase of 570 yen from the current toll of 1,040 yen. Likewise, it will cost 1,290 yen between Kita Nakagusuku near Camp Foster and Kyoda, an increase of 460 yen from the current toll of 830 yen. NEXCO-WEST change is intended to address the low usage of the Electric Toll Collection System (ETC) in Okinawa, which remains at 66 percent as of 2021, about 26 percent lower than the average of the agencys jurisdiction across Japan. ETC is an electronic transaction system that allows drivers to pay tolls without stopping. The low usage of ETC is causing traffic jams and some accidents as many vehicles choosing lanes for non-ETC transactions at toll booths, according to NEXCO-WEST. While the 35.5 percent discount for Okinawa is going to be lifted, discounts for vehicles with ETC will remain (up to 50 percent discount between 6 and 9 a.m., and 5 and 8 p.m., plus a 30% discount between midnight and 4 a.m.). If you dont have an ETC unit installed in your vehicle, the new increases may be worth getting one. Installing a toll-reader unit can set you back up to 30,000 yen, so check with your local auto supply shop for more information. As for ETC payments, JapanETCcard offers a service for SOFA members that allows them to use their U.S.-issued credit card to get an ETC card. The company sends customers monthly bills detailing their ETC charges in English. Find out more at www.japanetccard.com. A disturbance in a kickball game led to the fatal shooting of man Sunday at a North Omaha park and the arrests of two other men. Taw Moo, 27, of Omaha, was shot in the stomach Sunday at Fontenelle Park near 48th and Pratt Streets about 6:20 p.m., Omaha police said. He was pronounced dead at the Nebraska Medical Center. Police arrested Chit Lay, 25, and Wah K. Say, 18, both of Omaha, on suspicion of first-degree murder, use of a weapon to commit a felony and being felons in possession of a firearm. Say was also arrested on suspicion of flight to avoid arrest. Both men were booked into the Douglas County Jail late Tuesday. A witness told police that he was involved in a kickball game at the park when he noticed a disturbance in another kickball game being played nearby. The witness, according to an affidavit filed by an Omaha police officer, saw a man in his early 20s approach Moo with a handgun and shoot him in the stomach at close range. The witness said the shooter and at least three other men ran to a white Dodge Challenger SRT with a black hood scoop that left the area westbound. Officers located a Dodge Challenger thought to have been involved in the shooting and attempted a traffic stop near 46th Street and Ames Avenue. Near 66th Street and Grand Avenue, a passenger in the Challenger got out and ran. The passenger, a 17-year-old male in possession of a rifle, was captured following a foot pursuit. The Challenger was being driven recklessly, a police spokesman said, as it eluded officers. The Challenger is alleged to have run several stop signs and red lights while being pursued by police cruisers and a police helicopter. The helicopter pilot reported the Challenger being driven at speeds exceeding 70 mph in residential neighborhoods. At one point, the Challenger attempted to stop for fuel but took off when officers arrived in the area. A crash involving a semitrailer truck carrying cattle closed three lanes of Blair High Road east of Bennington Wednesday. Cody Thomas, a spokesman for the Nebraska State Patrol, said the crash occurred when an eastbound Jeep Wrangler on Bennington Road (Nebraska Highway 36) was attempting to turn left north onto Blair High Road (Nebraska Highway 133). As the Jeep turned, the spokesman said, the southbound semi ran a stoplight and collided with the Jeep. The Jeep driver was able to walk away from the crash but was later taken to a hospital with injuries not believed to be life-threatening. The semi driver was not injured. Thomas said the semi driver was cited for running the red light. Douglas County Sheriffs Capt. Rich Lally said the 911 call for the crash came in at 11:26 a.m. Thirty-five head of cattle were inside the trailer when the crash occurred, Thomas said. About 10 of them died. Thomas said the Nebraska Humane Society assisted in transferring the surviving cattle to another semitrailer truck. Lally said the overturned semi covered the two southbound lanes and a portion of one northbound lane of Blair High Road. Sheriffs deputies were still at the scene more than four hours after the crash, the Sheriffs Office said on X. The Sheriffs Office asked drivers to avoid the area. Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of March 2024 WASHINGTON Lawmakers turned a Tuesday hearing on President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents into a proxy battle between the Democratic president and Republican front-runner Donald Trump, as a newly released transcript of Biden's testimony last fall showed he repeatedly insisted he never meant to retain classified information after he left the vice presidency. Special counsel Robert Hur, testifying for more than four hours before the House Judiciary Committee, stood steadfastly by the assessments in his 345-page report that questioned Biden's age and mental competence but recommended no criminal charges for the 81-year-old president, finding insufficient evidence to make a case stand up in court. "What I wrote is what I believe the evidence shows, and what I expect jurors would perceive and believe," Hur said. "I did not sanitize my explanation. Nor did I disparage the president unfairly." The transcript of hours of interviews between Biden and the special counsel released Tuesday provide a more textured picture of the roughly yearlong investigation, filling in some of the gaps left by Hur's and Biden's accounting of the exchanges. While Biden was adamant that he treated classified information seriously, the transcript shows he was at times fuzzy about dates and details and he said he was unfamiliar with the paper trail for some of the sensitive documents he handled. The hearing played out just hours before Biden claimed the Democratic nomination and Trump was on the cusp of becoming the GOP standard-bearer. The party lines calcified almost immediately over which leader meant to hang on to classified documents, or rather, who willfully retained them and who didn't. Hur was the rare witness vilified all around, by Republicans angry over his decision not to charge the president, and by Democrats for his unflattering commentary about Biden. Republicans argued Biden was given a pass by his own Justice Department and that Trump was unfairly victimized by prosecutors. Democrats, for their part, stressed Biden's cooperation in the investigation and strongly contrasted that with the separate criminal case against Trump, who refused to return classified documents requested by the National Archives that he had at his Florida estate. Bidens team returned the documents after they were discovered, and the president cooperated with the investigation by voluntarily sitting for an interview and consenting to searches of his homes. Trump, by contrast, is accused of enlisting the help of aides and lawyers to conceal the documents from the government and seeking to have potentially incriminating evidence destroyed. Hur, in his report, detailed how his findings about Biden were far different from those of special counsel Jack Smith about Trump, who has been charged with willfully retaining classified documents. FBI agents searched Trump's Florida estate in 2022 and removed boxes of documents marked as classified after he refused multiple requests from the National Archives to return them. Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, the ranking Democrat, asked whether Biden's willingness to comply with investigators and turn over documents contributed to the decision not to charge him. "That was a factor in our analysis," Hur said. But the Democrats quickly bored into Hur, who was chosen by Biden's own attorney general, suggesting he was a political partisan doing Republican bidding via his written slights about Biden's age and memory. Hur took issue with the characterization. "Politics played no part whatsoever in my investigative steps, my decisions and the words that in I put in my report," Hur responded. Republicans, meanwhile, questioned how the two cases were really all that different. Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., called it a "glaring double standard." "Donald Trump's being prosecuted for exactly the same act that you documented Joe Biden committed," he told Hur. Hur's report cited evidence that Biden willfully held on to highly classified information and shared it with a ghostwriter, based on audio of the conversations between the two men in which Biden said he had just come across some classified documents at his home. According to the transcript, Biden told Hur he did not recall the exchange, or that he had actually discovered any documents. He said if he had discussed anything questionable with the ghostwriter, it was in referring to a 20-page sensitive memo he had written to then-President Barack Obama in 2009 arguing against surging troops in Afghanistan that he wanted to ensure didn't make it into publication. Hur said he was aware of the need to explain in great detail why he decided not to charge the president and why the case didn't meet the standard for criminal charges. Such explanations are common but usually kept confidential. But there's a tradition at the Justice Department to release such documents publicly and so as Hur was working on his report, he almost certainly would have understood that the document was going to see the light of the day. "The need to show my work was especially strong here," Hur said. "The attorney general had appointed me to investigate the actions of the attorney general's boss, the sitting president of the United States. I knew that for my decision to be credible, I could not simply announce that I recommended no criminal charges and leave it at that. I needed to explain why." He added that "the evidence and the president himself put his memory squarely at issue." 8 cartoons shred the classified documents scandal WASHINGTON The Pentagon will rush about $300 million in weapons to Ukraine after finding some cost savings in its contracts, the White House said Tuesday, though the military remains deeply overdrawn and needs at least $10 billion to replenish the weapons it pulled from its stocks to help Kyiv in its fight against Russia. Its the Pentagons first announced security package for Ukraine since December, when it acknowledged it was out of replenishment funds. It wasnt until recent days that officials publicly acknowledged they werent just out of replenishment funds, but $10 billion overdrawn. The announcement comes as Ukraine is running low on munitions and efforts to get fresh funds for weapons stalled in the House because of Republican opposition. Congressional action House Democrats and a small group of centrist Republicans on Tuesday launched separate long-shot efforts to force a vote on tens of billions of dollars in wartime aid for Ukraine, intensifying pressure on Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to take up the foreign funding package. Democrats, as the minority in the House, began gathering signatures to force a floor vote on the Senate's $95 billion package of aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan through a "discharge petition" a seldom-successful procedural tool that can circumvent the speaker's control over which bills come up for a vote. Shortly after, a group of Republicans launched their own signature drive for a bill that would trim the package to $66 billion, mostly for military aid, and include border security provisions. The moves underscored the stubborn impasse in Congress over the roughly $60 billion in military aid for Ukraine, with conservatives balking at providing more ammunition and weaponry for Kyiv. Johnson resisted taking up the package passed by the Senate last month and insisted that the House work its own will on the matter. He suggested the House will turn to the package only after government funding is settled and he still insists the money must be paired with policy changes at the U.S. border with Mexico. At the same time, Ukrainian soldiers suffer from shortages of ammunition as U.S. supplies have been shut off in recent months. "We have made every single opportunity to engage with the speaker on bringing the bill to the floor as a bipartisan piece of legislation," said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee. "Why not just bring it to the floor? You know, it would win overwhelmingly." For either petition to trigger action in the House, it must be signed by a majority of lawmakers, or 218 members. With Republicans controlling the House 219-213, at least some Republicans would have to buck their leadership and sign the Democratic-backed petition to reach a majority. Some progressive Democrats are unlikely to sign on because the legislation includes military aid for Israel. "What Israel is doing and I think the president is starting to express this is as well is absolutely unacceptable," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, the chair of the House Progressive Caucus. "(Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu cannot be doing that with United States aid. We are killing people in Gaza right now." Meanwhile, Johnson faces pressure from within his own conference to take up aid for Ukraine, even as a contingent of hard-line conservatives have vocally resisted sending more military aid to Ukraine. A group of centrist Republicans began gathering signatures for their own discharge petition effort. Their bill would provide $48 billion for Ukraine, mostly by sending ammunition and weaponry. It would also for one year require that asylum seekers remain in Mexico while their cases are decided. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Pennsylvania Republican, led that effort. It gained support from six Republicans and three Democrats on Tuesday. A separate group of House Republicans are also trying to draft their own version of a foreign aid package in hopes of breaking the stalemate. Their version also trims back the foreign aid to Ukraine so that it is only for the country's military, not for the functioning of its government. War developments Ukrainian long-range drones smashed into two oil facilities deep inside Russia on Tuesday, officials said, while an armed incursion claimed by Ukraine-based Russian opponents of the Kremlin unnerved a border region just days before Russias presidential election. The attack by waves of drones across eight regions of Russia displayed Kyivs expanding technological capacity as the war extends into its third year. The cross-border ground assault also weakened President Vladimir Putins argument that life in Russia has been unaffected by the war, though he remains all but certain to win another six-year term after eliminating all opposition. The Russian Defense Ministry said that Moscows military and security forces killed 234 fighters while thwarting the incursion. In a statement, the ministry blamed the attack on the Kyiv regime and Ukraines terrorist formations, insisting that the Russian military and border forces were able to stop the attackers and avert a cross-border raid. It also said the attackers lost seven tanks and five armored vehicles. The reports of border fighting earlier on Tuesday were murky, and it was impossible to ascertain with any certainty what was unfolding in Russias Kursk and Belgorod regions. Cross-border attacks in the area have occurred sporadically since the war began and have been the subject of claims and counterclaims, as well as disinformation and propaganda. Ukraine endures a second year of war with scenes of grief, suffering and also joy Norwegian Air on Wednesday said it would seek compensation from plane maker Boeing for lost revenue and extra costs after grounding its fleet of 737 MAX 8 aircraft in the wake of the Ethiopian Airlines crash. We expect Boeing to take this bill, Norwegian Air said in an emailed statement. The Oslo-based airline has 18 MAX passenger jets in its 163-aircraft fleet. European regulators on Tuesday grounded the aircraft following Sundays crash of a similar plane in Ethiopia, which killed 157 people and was the second crash involving that type of plane since October. Boeing Chief Executive, Dennis Muilenburg, told employees on Monday that he was confident in the safety of the 737 MAX in an email to employees. Industry sources, however, said the plane maker faces big claims after the crash. Norwegian has bet heavily on the MAX to become its aircraft of choice for short and medium-range flights in coming years as the low-cost carrier seeks to boost its fuel efficiency and thus cut the cost of flying. The airline was maintaining its order for more aircraft of the same type from Boeing, spokesman, Lasse Sandaker-Nielsen, said. Norwegian is expected to take delivery of dozens more of the MAX in coming years, raising the overall number to more than 70 by year-end 2021, according to recent company announcements. Norwegian cancelled some flights on Tuesday and on Wednesday, it canceled at least three dozen departures, its website showed most of which were due to fly from airports in Oslo, Stockholm and other Nordic cities. The company said it aimed to minimise the impact on passengers by booking them on to other flights and utilising other types of planes from its fleet to help fill the gaps. We are able to accommodate most intra-European passengers by these efforts but are still working on other options for our passengers travelling between Ireland and the U.S., Norwegian said. Similarly, more countries have joined the ranks grounding Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft amid mounting safety concerns after the second crash of the same model in less than five months. After assessing information related to operations of 737 Max, to ensure flight safety, Vietnam decided to close its air space to 737 Max on Wednesday, Vietnams Civil Aviation Authority announced on its website. Oman is temporarily suspending operations of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft into and out of all Omani airports until further notice, the countrys Public Authority for Civil Aviation tweeted on Tuesday. Due to the grounding, the national airline Oman Air said on its website that it will cancel a number of flights on March 12 to March 19. The United Arab Emirates (UAE), another key market for aircraft on the Arabian Peninsula, also banned the operation of all 737 Max 8 models to ensure the safety of the UAEs civil aviation industry and the public, Emirates News Agency said on Tuesday. Countries that have ordered similar grounding include India, Poland, New Zealand, Fiji, Italy, Turkey, France, Germany, Britain, Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, and China among others. Roughly two-thirds of the 737 MAX 8 aircraft in the world have been pulled from use by airlines and aviation regulators, according to a The New York Times article on Tuesday. In October 2018, a Lion Air plane, also a 737 MAX 8, crashed into the sea off the Indonesian capital Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board. In spite the two crashes, Boeing said in a statement on Tuesday that it had full confidence in the safety of the 737 MAX, adding that safety is Boeings number one priority. On the same day it ruled out any new guidance for 737 Max operators, though concerns of some customers and air carriers spread. The aerospace company has the backing of U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which on Tuesday said it saw no basis to ground Boeing 737 Max planes. The U.S., nevertheless, saw uproar domestically. In Chicago, roughly three dozen lawsuits have been filed against Boeing. Senate Leader, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele (Ekiti), has attributed the crisis witnessed in the 10th Senate since its inception last June to some aggrieved senators aiming to oust Godswill Akpabio as Senate President. During a debate on a motion concerning allegations made by Senator Abdul Ningi, the embattled Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, in an interview with BBC Hausa, Bamidele expressed his views. Ningi had asserted that a staggering N3.7 trillion was padded in the 2024 budget, sparking uproar among his fellow senators and igniting intense debates. Bamidele likened Ningis actions to a civilian coup, which he believed had failed. He stated, I thanked members of the Northern Senators Forum who have debunked Ningis claim. Over 60 senators voted for Akpabio and over 40 voted against. Some among those who voted against Akpabio had moved on and agreed to work with Akpabio. Some did not. Why are all these controversies always about Akpabio? A few people want to do everything possible to remove you (Akpabio) from that seat, he continued. The last time the South South had the chance to be Senate President was over 40 years ago. Senators Ahmad Lawan and David Mark had peaceful tenures as Senate President. Even Senator Bukola Saraki with all he did served out his tenure. He concluded, Why are these controversies all about Akpabio? Senator Ningi wants to use the name of Northern Senators Forum against Akpabio. Bauchi Central Senator, Abdul Ningi, has relinquished his position as the chairman of the Northern Senators Forum. His decision to step down comes in the wake of his suspension by the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday, amidst allegations of budget padding. In his resignation letter, Ningi cited the unfolding events in the National Assembly, the North, and the nation at large as the basis for his decision. In a letter personally signed by him and addressed to the forum secretary, he stated, I will like to resign as chairman of the Northern Senators Forum. This is, of course, necessitated by unfolding events in the National Assembly, the North, and the Nation at large. He continued, expressing gratitude to the members of the forum for entrusting him with the leadership role for the past eight months. I believe this forum is very important and fundamental to the progress of northern Nigeria, he added. As part of his administrations agenda to engender effective service delivery and deepen the mantra of everything technology and technology everywhere, Anambra State government has distributed 2,000 Laptops to Head Teachers, Principals of Public Schools and Public/mission schools in the state for efficient service delivery. Performing the function at the International Convention Center (ICC) Awka, Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, CFR, highlighted the pivotal role and contributions of teachers in moulding the future of students in Anambra State. Governor Soludo who remarked that the state is doing comparatively well within Nigeria, emphasized the need for schools in the state to strive to be compared with the countries of the world where education is at its peak The Governor noted that due to his administrations priority on education, resources and infrastructure are being channelled into the sector with the aim of producing smart schools. He also reiterated calls for partnership with the private sector individuals.. He stressed on the need for qualitative teaching and learning, assuring that his government will continue to ensure teachers go through basic training that will make them competitive at home and exportable abroad. READ ALSO: Osun, Abia indigenes among 18 permanent secretaries appointed by Soludo The Commissioner for Education, Professor Ngozi Chuma-Udeh extolled the giant strides Governor Soludo has achieved in the education sector and human capital development including the recruitment of 5000 qualified teachers on merit after undergoing CBT exams as well as the recruitment of an additional 3000 teachers. Prof. Chuma-Udeh also lauded the governor for making education totally free of all levies which she said that such initiative has constituted the migration of students from neighbouring states to Anambra State for education. The Chairperson of Post Primary Schools Service Commission, Professor Nkechi Ikediugwu and the The Chairperson of Anambra State Universal Basic Education Board, Prof Vera Nwadinobi applauded the Governor for championing the advancement of education in the state. Also at the event was the Deputy Governor, Dr. Onyekachukwu Ibezim, Chief of Staff, Mr Ernest Ezeajughi, Head of Service, Barr Theodora Igwegbe, Chief of Protocol, Hon Chinedu Nwoye and members of the State Executive Council. Seyi, the son of President Bola Tinubu, is a privileged Nigerian. I guess very many people will wish to be like him. From all indications, the young man does not know what hardship means and currently enjoys life to the fullest. While many Nigerians cry and ask for dividends of democracy, Seyi and a few others like him enjoy dividends of familiocracy. Familiocracy, by the way, is a system where people are ruled by a family. It is antithetical to democracy and it thrives more in a monarchical environment. That is what Nigeria appears to be practising at the moment. President Tinubus recent travel to Qatar presented us with a typical example of familiocracy. Among those on the Presidents entourage were his two sons, Seyi and Yinka. A number of Nigerians were outraged that the Presidents two sons were not just in the entourage, they were introduced first before the ministers of the federal republic. In effect, what this meant was that the Presidents sons were rated above these cabinet members. The Presidency did not see anything wrong with this. The Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Digital and New Media, Otega Ogra, said Canadian Prime Minister, Trudeau, was known to travel with his family on official trips abroad. He also noted that the Obamas, Clintons, Bushs, Trumps and some others also went on foreign trips with their families while in office. From the public image and diplomacy, angle, bringing family members can soften a leaders public image and aid in diplomatic relations by showcasing a relatable family-oriented side, Ogra said. Well, Ogra missed the point here. The issue is not whether the Presidents family can travel with him. They can. But why introduce them first before ministers and other state officials? Are they officials of the Nigerian government? Couldnt they have stayed in the background to observe things? It is this same Seyi that flew in a presidential jet to Kano to watch the 2023 Kano International Polo Tournament. People talked and ranted. But it has not stopped him from enjoying his life as the Presidents son. He even had the guts to admonish Nigerians to bear with his fathers administration and endure the economic hardship in the country. According to him, what Nigerians are going through currently are necessary for better future of the country. At some point, Seyi reportedly showed up in the chamber of the state house during the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting. His father was reportedly angry and warned that he should stop coming during such meetings. But did the warning emanate wholly from his heart? It is doubtful. Recently, Tinubu appointed his son-in-law, Oyetunde Oladimeji Ojo as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Federal Housing Authority (FHA). This appointment came about a week after the presidential approval of the sum of N126 billion for the construction of housing estates across the country was made public. Mr Ojo is the husband of Tinubus daughter, Folasade Tinubu-Ojo, who once declared herself as the First Daughter of the Federal Republic. Nepotism has become the cardinal principle of state policies in Nigeria. Major beneficiaries are the Presidents apostles, cronies and tribesmen. Recently, the President approved the appointment of Umar Abdullahi Umar, the son of the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, as Executive Director (Technical Services) of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA). Umars appointment followed the indefinite suspension of the agencys team led by Ahmad Salihijo. Following the footsteps of the President is the Head of the third arm of government, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kayode Ariwoola. In July 2023, the National Judicial Council (NJC) recommended Justice Ariwoolas son, Olukayode Ariwoola jnr, as a judge of the Federal High Court. He was recommended along with 22 others. He scaled through. Ariwoolas younger brother, Adebayo Ariwoola, was also successfully elevated as the auditor of the NJC. Recently, the CJNs daughter, Victoria Oluwakemi Ariwoola, was named Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court judge nominee. Also reportedly nominated is Maryam, the daughter of the Chief Judge of the FCT High Court, Husseini Baba-Yusuf. Maryam is said to be the third Kogi judge in the FCT High Court. There is nothing wrong if a qualified candidate is appointed to a position of influence whether the person is the son or daughter of the President or the CJN. But something is wrong when certain things are done to clear the way for such people. Last year, the former Chairman, Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Professor Itsay Sagay, lamented that sons and daughters of retired and serving judges and justices were being nominated for appointment into sensitive judicial positions at the expense of more qualified candidates who had no privileged backing or support. He said this was a pathway to future miscarriage of justice. With regard to Ariwoolas daughters nomination, an online medium, Peoples Gazette, reported that judiciary workers were not comfortable with Ms Ariwoolas nomination because she was a junior magistrate with only three years experience. Besides, a lawyer from Ebonyi state, Azubuike Oko, instituted a suit at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court challenging the appointment of the daughters of the CJN and Baba-Yusuf as well as 10 others as FCT High Court judges. Oko alleged that Oyo and Kogi states where Ariwoola and Baba-Yusuf hail from respectively, already had two serving judges in the FCT High Court, and the two states were given additional slots, to now have three judges, despite the fact that Ebonyi state has no single serving judge in the High Court of the FCT. The CJN and Baba-Yusuf prayed the court to dismiss the suit for want of jurisdiction. The argument of their counsel is that the National Industrial Court of Nigeria has the exclusive jurisdiction to determine matters relating to the employment of judicial officers. The suit has been adjourned to March 15 for judgement. Whichever way the judgement goes, the fact remains that nepotism is alive and well in Nigeria. Some of us accused the immediate past administration of Muhammadu Buhari of being nepotistic. We never knew that something worse was coming. From his major appointments so far, especially in economic and security circles, it appears that Tinubu does not care about ethnic harmony and balancing in Nigeria. The framers of our laws did not make a mistake by inserting the federal character principle in the constitution. It is meant to enshrine equity and harmony in the country. But our leaders have chosen to further widen our fault lines. It is rather unfortunate. This partly explains the clamour for restructuring or decentralization, which is really the best way to go if we still desire a peaceful and prosperous country. A middle-aged man, Mr. Emmanuel Ovwarueso, has reportedly beheaded his daughter for money ritual purpose. The suspect went ahead to bury the headless body of his daughter in a shallow grave. The incident occurred last week Thursday in Uteh community, Ikpoba-Okha local government area of Edo state. Operatives of Edo State Security Network (ESSN), ran into the suspect popularly known as Emma One and arrested him. He was arrested at Uteh area of Upper Mission Road Extension, where he lives with his family. READ ALSO: Yahoo boy stabs parents over failed rituals One of the operatives who spoke to journalists on the condition of anonymity, said, the victims head was discovered in a bag carried by the suspect. He related: We saw him that Thursday night with a bag, walking so fast like he was rushing to catch up with a flight. We stopped him, but he resisted us. We asked what was inside the bag, he said it was his food. So we searched the bag and found a human head inside. We interrogated him and from the way he was talking, it was obvious he was hiding something. So, we took him to his house and we met his wife tied down. We untie her and asked who tied her, she said it was her husband. She told us that her husband tied her down with a rope before killing their daughter. He took us to the place where he buried the little girls body in a shallow grave and the body of the girl was exhumed immediately, he said. As at the time of filing this story the State Police Command spokesman, SP Chidi Nwabuzor, said: I am not aware. I will find out and when I do, I will get back to you. The concept of impeachment is traced to the American Constitution where the Governor or the President can be impeached where he or she is found culpable of gross misconduct which the then Congressman, Gerald Ford stated during the Impeachment Process of President Richard Nixon following the celebrated Water Gate scandal that: Gross Misconduct is what in the Opinion of a majority of Members of the House of Representatives say it is The case in Nigeria was akin to the position above until Judicial Interventions as we can see hereunder : The Removal or Impeachment of a Governor under our Groundnorn is provided for by Section 188 (1),to (10).This section of our Constitution provides for a Cumbersome political algorithm,that must be followed through,by the Members of the House of Assembly ,,for it to be legitimate but which has so far,been simplified by Political expediency and sometime, acts akin to treasonable felony Find hereunder the procedure for impeaching the Governor or the Deputy Governor of a State in Nigeria as provided for by Section 188 , Subsections 1-8 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria ,1999 (,As Amended ) and where ever you see the word Governor also read it as Deputy Governor : Step 1 A notice of any allegation in writing alleging gross misconduct on the part of the Governor. This notice must be signed by not less than one-third of the members of the State House of Assembly is presented to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly. Gross misconduct is defined by the Constitution as a grave violation or breach of the provisions of this Constitution or a misconduct of such nature as amounts in the opinion of the National Assembly to gross misconduct. Step 2 The Speaker of the State House of Assembly must within 7 days, serve the Governor of the State and each member of the State House of Assembly with a copy of the notice of allegation. Step 3 The Governor has a right of reply (he/she does not have to reply however), and any such statement in reply to the allegation must be served on each member of the State House of Assembly. Step 4 Within 14 days of the presentation of the notice to the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, the State House of Assembly shall resolve by motion without any debate whether or not the allegation shall be investigated. This motion needs to be passed by at least two-thirds majority of all members of the State House of Assembly. Step 5 If the motion fails to reach the required majority, the process immediately stops, and no further action will be taken. However, if the required majority is obtained and the motion is passed, then the Speaker of the State House of Assembly will within 7 days of the passing of the motion, request the Chief Judge of the State to appoint a Panel of seven persons who in his opinion are of unquestionable integrity to investigate the allegations. The members of the Panel cannot be members of any public service, legislative house or political party. Step 6 The Panel is to report its findings within three months of being appointed. The findings will be reported to the State House of Assembly. During the proceedings of the Panel, the Governor shall have a right to defend himself, and shall also have the right to be defended by a legal practitioner of his/her choice. Step 7 Where the Panel reports that the allegation has not been proven, there will be no further action. However, if the report is that the allegation against the Governor has been proven, then the State House of Assembly will consider the report, and a resolution for the adoption of the report shall be moved. Step 8 For the resolution to be adopted, it must be supported by not less than two-thirds majority of all the member the State House of Assembly. Once adopted the Governor shall stand removed from office as from the date of the adoption of the report. The first crux is that two-thirds of Members of the House of Assembly must sign the impeachment Notice to be served on the Governor! Anything less than this, renders the whole process nugatory!See Dapialong v. Dariye No. 2,(2007), 8 NWLR,(Part 1036),332. The case mentioned above has also streamlined what constitutes ,a Governors Gross Misconduct in the contemplation of Section 188 (3) and (4) ,of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended), as opposed to the long held principle as expounded by Congress Man Gerald Ford of the U.S. Congress expanded above Gross Misconduct must be real ,ascertainable ,proven with cogent and real evidence and must fall within the parameters provided for by the Supreme Court in the above stated case. The Nigerian Jurisprudential trajectory has placed on the State Legislators ,a duty to follow all the ten sine qua non ,provided for by Sections 188 (1) to (9)) to remove a Governor and failure to follow any of them gives the Courts powers to inquire as to legality or otherwise of the Process .See Inokoju v. Adeleke (2007),4 NWLR (Part 1025),p. 423.This case dispenses with so called Political Question foisted on our jurisprudence in the case of Balarba Musa v. Kaduna State House of Assembly (1982) 3 NCLR,450 and which is represented as an ouster clause on the impeachment process in Section 188(10) of the Constitution (As Amended ). The Service of the Impeachment Notice must be personal Service and publishing of same in Newspapers or any other Media Platform does not suffices !See Dapialong V. Dariye (Supra). The House of Assembly must also be properly constituted with a duly elected Speaker and not a Speaker Pro Tempore, a Position not known to our Constitution!See Dapialong V. Dariye (Supra).The House of Assembly ,when considering the Impeachment of a Governor or Deputy Governor ,must also conduct the process in the House of Assembly ,with presence of the Official Mace !See Balonwu v. Mr. Peter Obi (2009) 18 NWLR (Part 1172) 13. From the foregoing, it is the Law that, impeachment proceedings which are Sui Generis must follow the due process of law, failure of which it becomes a nullity. What then is the position of the Law where as it in Kogi State that the Deputy Governor was not found guilty of gross misconduct as was contended by the Chairman of the 7 Man Panel and the House of Assembly still went ahead to vote to impeach him, while Kogi State Chief Judge-Justice Nasir Ajana, who himself was removed by the House of Assembly and by the Governor under illegal circumstances, but was reinstated by the self assertion of Kogi State Judiciary,who declared the purprrted removal of the Chief Judge ultra vires, in the midst of all these- going ahead to swear in the purported new Deputy Governor of Kogi State. It is my humble submission that the same fate that befell the purported removal of the Chief Judge of Kogi State -Justice Nasir Ajana will befall the purported removal of the Deputy Governor. By the Authority of Dapialong v. Dariye (Supra ), It has been held by the Supreme Court of Nigeria that the 8 steps provided for by Section 188 ,Subsections 1-8, of the Constitution must be followed strictly and non compliance to any of sine qua non , indicated there on ,will allow the Courts to inquire as to the legality or otherwise of the process and when the Court finds any illegality in the process, the Court will set aside the Process and reinstate the Governor or Deputy Governor purportedly removed or Impeached. I frown at the haste with which the Houses of Assembly carry out such illegal Impeachments. I submit that should the House of Assembly of a State illegally remove a Governor or Deputy Governor in haste, the Court should also with equal haste upturn the illegality because no organ of government has a monopoly of speed. It is also my submission that substantial damages be awarded by Court against Parties who carry out such illegalities like what happened in Kogi State, to serve as a deterrence to others, while deterring costs should be awarded against such Parties and their Counsel, as it Counsel of such parties that plot the legal chicaneries which are implemented by Politicians and I dare say if there are evidence of participation of any Lawyer or a Judge ,including the Chief Judge of a State in an illegal impeachment process , the Lawyer should be referred to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) and the Judge to the National Judicial Council (NJC) for the appropriate disciplinary measures. This will deter others from furthering any illegality, contrary to the Rules of Professional Conduct and the Oath of Judicial Officers respectively. This will bring about some sanity in the System. In this light, because layman that are politicians cannot plan the legal labyrinth that pervades such illegal impeachment process, the illegality will stop! We must apply our Rules to stem the impunity. Ogbankwa, Esq. is the Convener of the Vanguard of the Independence of the Judiciary. Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, on Monday, received the World Bank Country Director in Nigeria, Shubham Chaudhuri, and his team at the Government House, Kano. Yusuf made this known on his X handle, on Tuesday. The governor lauded the World Banks initiatives in education, healthcare, climate change, and other sectors in Kano and south continued support from the bank. Sharing photos from the visit, he wrote, Pleased to host the World Bank Country Director in Nigeria, Mr. Shubham Chaudhuri, along with his team, at the Government House yesterday. I used the opportunity to commend the World Bank for their various initiatives in education, healthcare, climate change and other sectors in Kano. I also appealed for more commitment from the bank in Kano State, as the state government under my leadership is a committed partner for the bank and other development partners. Overall, we had a great engagement, and I thank Mr. Chaudhuri and the WB team for their support. President Bola Tinubu has appointed Dayo Mobereola as the director-general of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA). In a statement by Ajuri Ngelale, special adviser to the president on media and publicity, the appointment followed the exit of Bashir Jamoh, whose tenure recently expired. Jamoh had handed over to Chudi Offodile, the executive director, finance and administration, on March 11, after his tenure ended on March 10. Ngelale said: Dr. Mobereola holds a Ph.D, and an M.Sc in Transport Economics from the University of Wales, United Kingdom. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Transport, England, and a fellow of the same institute in Nigeria. He was the Managing Director of Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) from 2003 to 2015 and was also the Commissioner for Transportation in Lagos State from 2015 to 2016. READ ALSO: Tinubus renewed hope agenda yielding fruits already Presidents wife In the private sector, he was Deputy Managing Director and Project Development Director at AFM Consulting Plc, London. He was also Senior Economist at British Petroleum Shipping Limited, London. The special adviser said Tinubu expects Mobereola to bring his vast experience to bear in his new role under the leadership of Adegboyega Oyetola, minister of marine and blue economy. The President expects the new Director-General to bring his vast experience to bear in his new role and to achieve the mandate of NIMASA in providing world-leading standards of maritime safety administration, maritime labour regulation, marine pollution prevention and control, search and rescue, cabotage enforcement, shipping development and ship registration, in accordance with the policies and programmes of the Renewed Hope Agenda for the sector as ably guided by the Honourable Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, H.E. Adegboyega Oyetola, Ngelale said. Mobereola appointment is renewable after four years. In his handover speech, Jamoh said the next leadership of the agency should consolidate the gains of the past four years. By Israel Bulus, Kaduna No fewer than 61 people were reportedly abducted by suspected terrorists who attacked the Buda community in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State on Thursday. The state and police authorities are yet to confirm the attack, but a resident of the area told PUNCH on Tuesday that the bandits invaded the village on Monday night at about 11:45 pm where they kidnapped 61 people. According to a resident, Dauda Manyu Kajuru, the kidnappers were carrying sophisticated weapons, also stormed the community in large numbers, and started shooting sporadically to scare the residents. What happened yesterday was terrifying, the bandits came intending to abduct scores of people thatll outnumber that of School pupils in Kuriga Village of Chikun Local Government Area, but the swift response of soldiers who are not more than 2 kilometers away from Kajuru came and curtailed the number. My siblings are part of those abducted yesterday and based on the information available as of this morning the bandits with their victims are yet to get to their destination, Manyu said. He disclosed that most times if these terrorists are coming for any operation, they keep their motorbikes far away from the Community where theyll carry out their operation. He lamented that since the removal of an Army Commander popular known as (Tega) banditry activities have resumed in full force around the Kajuru Local Government Villages. Ill tell you in confidence that when Commander Tega was around, their activities stopped, and one could go for occasions without any fear of being kidnapped because he knows their terrain and the mode of their operations. Is unfortunate Commander Tega was removed from Kajuru Local Government when were experiencing the return of peace in our Villages. Another resident, Lawal Abdullahi who escaped the incident but his wife was among the victims, also confirmed 61 people were abducted. He said both men women and children including a nursing mother of two weeks were among the victims. I am devasted by the situation because we have not heard from them since the incident happened last night Monday. Were appealing to the Government to immediately swing into action and ensure our loved ones returned. Related President Bola Tinubu is currently meeting behind closed-doors with the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio and the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. Senator Akpabio met with the President shortly after the nations upper legislative chamber, otherwise called the Red Chamber, handed over a three-month suspension to the Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, Abdul Ningi, representing Bauchi Bauchi Central Senatorial District. The agenda of the meeting was not made public at the time of filing this report, but it was reliably gathered that it was not unconnected with the suspension of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator over the comment credited to him that President Tinubu is implementing a different budget from what was presented to the National Assembly. Though, the Bauchi Senator had since denied the allegation, he, however, did not escape the wrath of the majority of his colleagues, including his northern brothers, who alleged that his (Ningi) allegation in an interview he granted to the BBC, Hausa Service, put the senate in bad light. The President of the Senate did not talk to journalists when he finished the meeting with the President Related On Monday today at Miracle lodge, an Abia State University student who signed out on friday was shot by a suspected cult group. According to a source, the victim escaped man haunt by the cult group but sadly was killed in the early hours of Monday. Before the press time, the body is yet to be taken to the mortuary. During the shooting scene, ABSU Students ran for their safety and called for security men. More details about the story will Published in our subsequent Bulletin Related Says Senator Jeriagbes Revelation A Clue To Corruption in the Senate Conference Of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) and over 75 allied civil society organisations under the umbrella of the National Civil Society Organisations Against Inept Leaders, have insisted on thorough and independent investigation of the alleged 2024 budget padding by Senator Abdul Ningi despite the suspension of the Senator for three months, saying that their 14-day ultimatum stands. In their statement jointly signed by the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of CNPP, Comrade James Ezema, and the National Secretary of the coalition of CSOs, Alhaji Ali Abacha, the bodies noted that the Senate plenary on Tuesday was obviously teleguided to an obvious scripted end. They also noted that in the cause of the debate on the budget padding allegation, the Senator representing Cross River North Senatorial District, Senator Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe made a shocking disclosure that ranking Senators received as high as N500 million from the 2024 budget, saying, All of us are culpable. Some so-called Senior Senators here got 500 million Naira each from the 2024 Budget, I am a ranking Senator and I didnt get anything. No Senator has a right to accuse Senator Ningi. Even though Senator Jeriagbes mic was abruptly shot down and the floor of the Senate immediately became rowdy, the revelation shows that there are more happening in the Senate than Nigerians know. Senator Jeriagbes revelation is indeed a clue to corruption in the Senate under the current leadership. We, therefore, insist that the budget padding allegation and the revelation by Senator Jeriagbe must be independently investigated if the Senate can come clear on the matter. It is unacceptable for the President of the Senate to seat as Chairman of an investigative plenary where allegation against him was being debated. Nigerians saw how interested Senators moved here and there at the senate chamber while the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio rose to read some senate rules empowering him to mute any senator speaking at plenary at his own whims and caprices. We are resolute that the only way for the senate to come clean on the budget padding allegation is after an independent probe has been carried out, especially in view of the Senator Jeriagbes disclosure and our 14-day ultimatum for the Senate to step aside for independent probe stands, the CNPP and the CSOs coalition said. Related From Ahmad SAKA , Bauchi The Wife of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Senator Oluremi Tinubu has explained that she is not afraid to die after she spent over 60 years on earth. In her speech before the Emir of Bauchi in his Palace, the First Lady said she was not afraid to die. after reaching 60 years of age on earth, she shouldnt be afraid of death. She said: I want to thank His Excellency (Bauchi Governor), he keeps assuring me that I am safe but I want to say that I am too old to be afraid. If God has granted me over 60 years on earth, I shouldnt be afraid of death. I thank God that you encouraged me to come. Nigeria belongs to all of us and this is the time for us to unite more than ever before. She solicited for continuevPrayers to peace and stability of the country , and asked for special for our leaders to succeed. Mrs Tinubu told the emir that she was in Bauchi to commission ICT Project and High Tech School in Bauchi. Bauchi State Governor Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed in his opening remarks apologised to wife of the President over threat to her life by a citizen to her life, which he described it as a national embarrassment. He commended the president wife whom he described as a fearless mother of the nation , courageous woman who has the interest of the country at heart despite threat to her life. Governor said what she is doing is so monumental through her Renewed hope initiatives projects. Governor Bala didnt mention the name ofanybody that issued death threat to Tunubus wife said it is a national embarrassment that someone from his State would threaten the wife of the President. He therefore, apologized to her over the incident even as he vowed that the person will not be spared but will be dealt with appropriately. Governor Bala said: Your Excellency, you have distinguished yourself not only as a distinguished Senator but as a politician that has opened the new frontier of politics and politicking. Your renewed hope is being given as hope because you have set aside all the differences of politics and partisanship. And of course, I am aware of some of the challenges and threats to your life and person by somebody from this State. I was so disappointed and frustrated, but you made my day as a courageous mother, you decided to come to Bauchi. Your Royal Highness, this distinguished lady has shown that Nigeria is really working and that Nigeria is one and nobody can play politics with our lives. We are very grateful, your life is more important to us than our own lives, nothing will happen to you. He vowed that, and that renegade, we will deal with him and Allah deal with him, by the grace of God. On behalf of their Royal Highnesses and the people of Bauchi, we apologize for that national embarrassment, it will not happen again. The Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rilwanu Suleimanu Adamu, dispelled insinuations that Bauchi was not a peaceful State. He described her visit to the State as a powerful symbol of the peace and progress of Bauchi State. Ill like to use this opportunity to dispel any misconception about insecurity in Bauchi State. Our State is and has always been a State of peace and harmony. Our people are known for their tolerance and understanding, mutual respect and cooperation. Isolated incidents do not define us. We are resilient people and we are committed to ensuring the safety of lives and property of residents and visitors alike, he said. The Emir of Bauchi Alhaji Rilwanu Suleimanu Adamu commended the first lady for the visit which shows the respect she has for thr traditional Institutions and their subjects During the visit , the irst Lady Oluremi Tinubu inaugurated crucial ICT and educational facilities today in Bauchi, including a community IT Center at Yan Doka Road by NITDA and an Alternative High School For Girls supported by UBEC at Federal Low-Cost. Senator Tinubu emphasized her commitment to enhancing women and girls access to ICT for improved digital skills. She pledged to establish more ICT centers nationwide through her Renewed Hope Initiative, aiming to empower communities. Related Senator Shehu Sani may be expressing solidarity with Senator Abdul Ningi, representing Bauchi Central Senatorial District in the 10th National Assembly, who was suspended for three months for exposing padding of over N3 trillion in the 2024 budget by the senate. Sani explained that if you talk too much on the side of truth, you will pay for it bitterly. He maintained that that is the reason the Opposition cannot oppose in the National Assembly. According to Shehu Sani, If you talk too much, your bodi go tell you, that is why even opposition no fit oppose too much. Senator Shehu Sani maintained that when he publicly exposed the salaries and running costs of the federal lawmakers, when he was in the National Assembly, he was saved from suspension by the then President of the Senate. Sani stated: When I publicly disclosed the salaries and running costs of lawmakers, it was the then Senate president who saved me from Suspension. Sani in a statement delineated what it means to suspend a senator. According to him, @ShehuSani Suspension in the Senate means a Senator will not be allowed to attend the plenary and will be prohibited from attending committee meetings and participating in oversight functions. His Salary, allowances and all entitlements will be blocked. He will not have access to his office and he is expected not to be seen within the premises of the National Assembly until the suspension is lifted. When I publicly disclosed the salaries and running costs of lawmakers, it was the then Senate president who saved me from Suspension. If you talk too much, your bodi go tell you, that is why even opposition no fit oppose too much. Senator Abdul Ningi was suspended from the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday for exposing padding of the 2024 budget with about N3.7 trillion. According to Ningi, N25 trillion of the 2024 can be linked to projects, money and allocations, but about n3 trillion cannot be linked to any project, money and location. Also, Senator Jarigbe Agom-Jarigbe, representing Cross River North Senatorial District, alleged that some senators got the total of N500 million each from the 2024 Budget. According to Sen. Jarigbe, All of us are culpable. Some senators here, so-called senior senators got N500 million each from the 2024 Budget. I am a ranking senator, I didnt get anything. Sen. Jarigbe also said that Senator Ningi was right in raising alarm over budget padding. The Nigerian House of Representatives has called on the National Security Advisor, Nuhu Ribadu to justify the N3.25 trillion allocated to the security sector in the 2024 budget. This demand comes amidst continued security challenges across the country, including kidnappings, banditry, and insurgencies. Lawmakers expressed frustration that despite the substantial budgetary allocation, insecurity persists. A motion sponsored by member representing Lere Federal Constituency, Kaduna State, Ahmed Munir, highlighted the disconnect between the high budgetary allocation and the lack of tangible improvements in security. The motion, on matters of urgent public importance, was titled, Urgent need to tackle the abhorrent abduction of over 200 students in Kuriga community of Chikun and secure lives and property in Kaduna State. He expressed concern that despite The N3.25trn allocated to the defence and security sector on drones and other military equipment that could have tracked, located and rescued victims, there has been no respite as the bulk of the actions by security personnel are reactionary rather than proactive. READ ALSO: Insecurity in Nigeria is getting worse by the day Atiku Balogun pointed out instances where funds allocated for drones and other technology to combat insecurity seemingly havent translated into actionable results. Following the adoption of the motion, the House mandated the Office of the National Security Officer to coordinate and galvanize all security and intelligence networks to develop and execute a proactive master plan to restore security with defined plans on coordinating with neighbouring countries. The plan must include boots on ground land and aerial sweep of locations that include but not limited to Kuyambana forest in Zamfara, Kamuka forest in Kaduna, Falgore forest in Kano, Borgu and Zugurma forests in Niger State. The lawmakers also urged the Office of the NSA to revisit and optimise fully the Acts passed for the National Counter-Terrorism Centre as well as the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, and ensure that they fully serve the purpose of their establishment. The House unanimously adopted the motion, mandating the NSA to appear before them and provide a comprehensive explanation for the utilization of the security budget. Gunmen launched an attack on cattle rearers on Tuesday afternoon, resulting in the death of at least 13 cattle in the Fan district of Ndim community, located in the Barikin Ladi local government area of Plateau state. Abubakar Gambo, the secretary of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), confirmed the incident, stating, The affected cattle died instantly at the scene of the incident. Muhammad Yakubu, one of the rearers who survived the attack, recounted the terrifying experience, saying, We were tending to our cattle when suddenly, three young men armed with guns descended on us and started shooting sporadically. We were lucky to have fled the scene of the incident unhurt but 13 cattle were shot dead while six were injured. Auwal Ibrahim, an owner of the affected cattle, expressed concern over the incident, emphasizing, All the cattle died at the scene of the incident because there wasnt any way we could slaughter them at the time of the incident. Nura Abdullahi, the state chairman of MACBAN, condemned the attack, stating, What is happening to us in the Barikin Ladi general area is a deliberate attempt to provoke our members. They are picking a fight with us. We are calling on security agencies to arrest those responsible for these brutal attacks. Despite efforts by security operatives to maintain peace in the area, the spokesperson of Operation Safe Haven, Major Samson Zhakom, has not responded to calls and SMS from our correspondent as of the time of filing this report. BudgIT, a civic organization dedicated to Nigerian budget and public data analysis, has thrown its support behind suspended Senator Abdul Ningi regarding a purported N3.7 trillion gap in the 2024 budget presented to the National Assembly. Seun Onigbinde, Director and co-founder of BudgIT, emphasized Ningis stance during an interview with Channels Television on Wednesday, asserting that if there was no detailed allocation for N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget, Ningis claim holds merit. Onigbinde stated, Senator Ningi was right if he posited that there was no detailed allocation for N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget. Ningi, representing Bauchi Central senatorial district, faced suspension by the Senate on Tuesday over allegations that two versions of the 2024 budget were passed in the National Assembly. He alleged a N3 trillion padding in the budget and criticized the neglect of the North under President Bola Tinubus administration. Senator Olamilekan Adeola, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, initiated a motion on breach of privilege against Ningi following his interview with BBC Hausa. The Senate subsequently ratified Ningis suspension for three months, amending an initial proposal for a 12-month suspension. Reacting to the development, the BudgIT boss highlighted deficiencies in the budget, particularly regarding statutory elements lacking comprehensive analysis. He pointed out that allocations for entities like the National Assembly, National Judicial Council (NJC), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) lacked detailed breakdowns, emphasizing the publics right to transparency. Onigbinde said, There is a different conversation that those projects should be detailed. TETFUND should not just get an allocation. What are you spending the money on? INEC is collecting a huge chunk of funds but there is no public details about what the funds are used for. The same thing with NJC, even the national assembly. In the current budget, the national assembly gave a very broad summary of its allocations but there are no detailed allocations on a granular level that everybody can interrogate. These are transparency issues and if you put all these together, that is around N3.5 trillion to N3.7 trillion. So, if that is what he (Ningi) wants to interrogate, there are components of the budget where there is no breakdown. That is very factual. But the national assembly needs to push back. We need a breakdown. What is NJC spending money on? We give more money to the NJC and say take it arbitrarily. What are they spending that money on? There should be a detailed breakdown to the public. On that point, Senator Ningi is right but to look as if we are running parallel budgets, that is not right. Supporters of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore convened at the Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of their president, Bello Bodejo. Bodejo was apprehended on January 23 during a raid at the Miyetti Allahs office in the Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, over allegations linked to the establishment of a vigilante group. Since his detention by the Defence Intelligence Agency, concerns have been mounting among members of Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore. In response, the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), took action on February 5 by filing an ex-parte motion seeking Bodejos continued remand pending the completion of ongoing investigations and his subsequent arraignment. Initially granting an order for Bodejos 15-day remand, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court later instructed the Federal Government to formally charge Bodejo within seven days. As tensions rose and calls for transparency in Bodejos case intensified, no charges were filed against him by the specified deadline, prompting increased demands for his release. Subsequently, Bodejos legal counsel submitted a motion advocating for his unconditional release, citing legal and humanitarian grounds for such action. This motion is scheduled for a hearing today, representing a pivotal moment in a case that has garnered significant public and media attention. The Senate took decisive action on Tuesday, suspending Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) for three months following his allegations of budget padding amounting to N3 trillion in the 2024 budget. Senator Ningi also asserted a disparity between the passed budget of N25 trillion and the Presidencys implementation of N28.7 trillion. Additionally, Senator Sumaila Kawu (NNPP Kano South) received a warning to refrain from disseminating false information that could disrupt the Senates proceedings. These disciplinary measures were adopted following a motion on urgent national importance. Before Ningis suspension, the Senate had previously suspended several senators for various offenses. Here is a list of seven Nigerian senators who faced suspension: Femi Okurounmu (Ogun Central) Suspended in 1999 for alleging a plot to impeach President Obasanjo. Joseph Waku (Benue) Suspended in 2000 for controversial remarks regarding military intervention. Arthur Nzeribe (Imo, Orlu Constituency) Indefinitely suspended in 2002 over a fraud allegation. Isah Mohammed (Niger Central) Suspended in October 2004 for assaulting Senator Iyabo Anisulowo. Ali Ndume (Borno South) Received a six-month suspension in 2017 for various allegations. Ovie Omo-Agege (Delta Central) Suspended for three months in 2018 over comments on electoral timetable reordering. Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) Received a three-month suspension on Tuesday for his allegations of budget padding. Senator Ningis suspension adds to the Senates history of enforcing disciplinary measures to maintain order and integrity within its ranks. Gunmen suspected to be vigilante personnel attacked an 18-seater bus conveying passengers from Zaki/Biam in Benue State to Maihura in Bali Local Government Area of Taraba State on Tuesday, March 12. Over 15 passengers have been reported missing after tbe attack. The driver of the bus, Mpuuga Mbaaye who confirmed the incident to newsmen, said the attack happened at Gankwe village along the Donga- Mararaban-Baissa road in the Donga Local Government Area of the state. Mbaaye who escaped with machete cut wounds, said the armed men in vigilante uniform attacked his bus. I loaded 18 passengers from Zaki/Biam in Benue State to Maihura in Taraba state, and on our way close to Mararaba, I saw many people in Vigilante uniform. I suspected something was wrong, so I parked the vehicle. One of the villagers who was passing by told me that I should proceed. According to him, two members of the Vigilante personnel were killed by kidnappers, and the vigilante came to carry their corpses. As I moved closer, some of the Vigilante personnel started shouting, kill all of them, kill all of them, its their people (Tiv) that killed our members, and they started attacking the passengers and cutting them with machetes, They ordered the passengers out of the bus and forced them to lie facedown. I refused to come down, but when I discovered that it was getting out of hand, I decided to jump out of the bus and ran away. My conductor too followed me. They came after us cutting us with a machete, but we ran for our dear lives, he said. The state police command is yet to confirm the incident. A 24-year-old man identified as Peter Adebayo has been arrested over the alleged murder of his friend, Lekan Raji in Ondo. Adebayo was accused of killing his friend with a cooking gas cylinder after consuming hard substances known as colorado. Police prosecutor, Inspector Taiwo Oniyere, told the Akure Magistrate court that the defendant committed the offence on February 23, 2024, at Ireakari Street, Akure. Adebayo was said to have hit Lekan on the head with the cylinder for querying his behaviour. The deceased came home on that day and was not happy with the way the defendant was misbehaving. So, he challenged him. But the defendant who was under the influence of Colorado, hit the deceased with the cylinder. So, he fell and died. the police prosecutor said. The offence, according to the charge, contravenes Sections 316 and 319 of the Criminal Code Law, Cap 37 Vol. 1 of Ondo State 2006. Plea of the defendant was not taken and the prosecutor prayed the court to remand the defendant at the Olokuta Correctional Centre, Akure, pending legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). The presiding Magistrate, T. O. Olusola-Olujobi ordered the remand of the defendant at the Olokota Correctional Centre and adjourned the case to March 19, 2024. Civil society group, BudgIT has weighed into the controversial 2024 budget padding allegation, acknowledging lack of transparency in the budgets specific allocations, fueling persistent issue in Nigerias budgetary process Seun Onigbinde, co-founder of the advocacy group BudgIT, appeared on Channels Televisions Politics Today program. While he disputed Ningis claim of a parallel budget, he acknowledged the lack of transparency in specific allocations. There should be a detailed breakdown of the budget, Onigbinde stated. On that point, Senator Ningi is right. But to say that we are running two parallel budgets, I dont think thats factual. Onigbinde further said as the rowdy session by the Senate was ongoing, the Budgit team fact-checked claims by Ningi. READ ALSO: Nigerians need answers on alleged 2024 budget padding, Peter Obi tells Senate He said, As the Senate rowdy session was going on, we were also fact-checking and one of the things we found out is that we were not able to lay hold to the claim by Senator Ningi. A budget of N28.7trn was passed into law and we were not able to see where N3.7trn (was missing). Historically, there are items in the budget that dont have breakdown like statutory transfers but that does not mean there is a certain level of capital projects by the Federal Government that was appropriated and does not have a breakdown. Onigbinde elaborated, explaining that the National Assembly often provides a very broad summary of allocations for Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and government-owned enterprises (GOEs) This lack of granular detail makes it difficult to understand exactly how the funds are being distributed and for what specific projects. The budget we have now has the ministries, departments and agencies (MDA) and the government-owned enterprise budget, Onigbinde stated. READ ALSO: Senate Leader, Opeyemi, fails to deny N500m budget given to senior senators in 2024 budget Around N2trn of the budget presented by the President is the government-owned enterprises budget. So, if Senator Ningi says there is a N25trn budget, yes, that is the MDAs budget. Its different from the government-owned enterprises budget whose budget was now added. In the current budget, the National Assembly gave a very broad summary of its allocations but there are no detailed allocations on a granular level that everybody can understand. These are transparent issues and if you put all these together, that is around N3.5trn to N3.7trn. So, if that is what he (Ningi) wants to interrogate, that there are components of the budget where there is no breakdown, that is very factual. Onigbindes comments highlight a persistent issue in Nigerias budgetary process. Civil society organizations and citizens alike have long advocated for increased transparency in government spending. A lack of clear and detailed breakdowns can hinder public oversight and raise concerns about accountability. During a recent Senate session, Senator Ningi (Bauchi Central) raised concerns about the lack of detailed project breakdowns for a significant portion of the N28.78 trillion budget. He specifically highlighted an absence of granular information regarding N3.7 trillion, sparking accusations of budget padding from some quarters. Aworetan Oluwashina, a 300-level philosophy student at the University of Lagos (Unilag), who had been reported missing for several weeks, has reappeared, stating that he was not actually missing. He said that rather, the astronomical hike in tuition by the university management forced him to leave the school to hustle to make money. On March 7, SaharaReporters reported that Oluwashinas family expressed worry over his sudden disappearance after he had not been seen by his classmates for over two weeks. Oluwashinas elder brother, Aworetan Soji, who confirmed his disappearance to SaharaReporters in a phone conversation, also said that the family did not know about his whereabouts. Soji said his brother had not been taking examinations in school before his disappearance. Soji said the family had reported the incident to the University of Lagos Dean of Students Affairs, adding that they were about to also report his disappearance to the police. He, however, said he learnt that Oluwashina once called their mother but did not say where he was. But in an interview with Segun OLaw of Objective TV, Oluwashina who initially dropped out of Olabisi Onabanjo University over a tuition hike and gained admission into the University of Lagos, said when he encountered the same problem in his new school, he was forced to go into the streets of Lagos to hustle for his tuition. He said, When I was declared missing, I was actually out there at Ikotun. I went to work. I was trying to gather the rest of my school fees. The reason people could not get in touch with me was because my line was barred and I was so into the work that I did not try to get a new SIM card. When asked if he started the work before the university hiked the fees or after, he said he started the work around early February. Regarding the kind of work he was doing and if he had been able to raise the money he needed for his tuition, he said, I was coming from the library very close to university junction and I saw a job vacancy for a house help and the salary was N40,000. I called the number on the post and a girl answered and told me the interview was the next day. I went there and it turned out to be a network marketing job. I felt like I could just do it for a few weeks and see what I would be able to gather. I didnt want to leave it and start looking for another job because I know I have limited time. After three weeks or thereabouts, I called my mother when I got a new SIM card. We spoke and she was really asking where I was and I told her I was fine. But she never mentioned to me that they had been looking for me. The next day my brothers called me and asked where I was. The DSA (Dean of Student Affairs) of the university also called me and asked where I was. He, however, said that he had not been able to raise the required money and that he missed some of his examinations. He said, I went to the office of the DSA and he said it was not possible for me to register for this semester again because they had started exams and they had taken about three papers for my department and people had generated their pass for the exams and they had closed the portal and had registered courses. He said that the requirement is that students must pay their fees before they can register for their courses. On Tuesday, March 12, kidnappers abducted the deputy director of nursing services from the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku Ozalla, in Enugu State. They are now demanding a ransom of N10 million for her release. The kidnappers had on Tuesday morning invaded the hospital and abducted the nurse and two other persons, including security personnel of the hospital. While one of the hospital staff kidnapped, had been rescued by the police, the kidnappers, our correspondent learned, established contact with the family of the nurse, demanding the sum of N10 million ransom from them. A source from the hospital told our correspondent that kidnappers called the family that Tuesday evening. He said: After the shooting incident that led to her abduction, her phone was switched off. All efforts to reach her mobile number failed. Everyone was afraid the worst might have happened until in the evening when the phone number of one of her family members started ringing and it was them. From what we heard from the family, the kidnappers called and demanded N10 million. That was all they could say. Meanwhile, the police reacted to the rescue of the security man attached to the hospital. In a statement issued by Daniel Ndukwe on Wednesday, the state police command said: The security man, alleged to have been abducted alongside a female nurse by armed hoodlums in the morning hours of March 12, 2024, at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku-Ozalla in Nkanu West Local Government Area, has been rescued by Police Operatives. He was rescued at Ishi-Ozalla in the same local government area at about 11.45 p.m. on the same date of the incident, following the intense operations immediately launched to rescue the victims and apprehend the assailants. It noted that the Commissioner of Police, Kanayo Uzuegbu, has ordered the police operatives and the complementary teams from the Neighborhood Watch Group, Forest Guards, and Local Vigilantes to ensure that everything is done to rescue the female nurse and arrest the hoodlums. He enjoined members of the public, particularly residents of the Ituku-Ozalla community and environs, to report any suspected individuals found within their residential areas or in the forest, by calling 08099854883 or emailing [email protected]. Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has offered unwavering support to Senator Abdul Ningi, who was suspended by the Senate for three months on Tuesday. Ningi, the lawmaker representing Bauchi Central, was suspended on Tuesday. He also stepped down from his position as Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum. Ningi faced suspension following a debate on a BBC interview where he claimed that the National Assembly padded the 2024 N28.7tn budget. In the interview on Friday, Ningi claimed that N3.7tn was not allocated to specific projects in the 2024 budget. He stated, For the first time in Nigerian history, today we are operating two different budgets. One budget was approved by the National Assembly and signed by President Bola Tinubu and the one was implemented by the presidency. The one approved by us is N25tn while the one operating by the Federal Government is 28tn. Apparently, we discovered N3tn was inserted into the budget for projects without locations. This is the highest budget padding that happened in Nigerian history under Senator Akpabios watch. Furthermore, during a press briefing on Monday, the senator reiterated the accusation and expressed no fear of being suspended. The Bauchi State Governor, however, expressed his support for the lawmaker. In todays State Executive Council meeting, I made it clear that I stand firm in our support for Senator Abdul Ahmed Ningi, of Bauchi Central, Mohammed wrote on his official X account on Monday. He added, I emphasised the importance of preserving dissent within our political landscape without resorting to punitive actions. I am committed to examining Senator Ningis situation further. It is common knowledge that Senator Ningi is one of the best performing senators whose heritage and uprightness, ancestry and integrity are worthy of praise. Senator Opeyemi Bamidele from Ekiti Central faulted Ningis claims that the 2024 budget passed by the Senate was padded, calling it a civilian coup. A member of the Appropriation Committee in the Senate, Jimoh Ibrahim, initiated the motion to suspend Ningi for 12 months due to allegations of criminal misinformation and breach of peace in the National Assembly and the country at large. On the other hand, Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong and Senator Abdulfatai Buhari proposed amendments to the motion by Ibrahim. Ekpenyong, representing Cross River South Senatorial District, suggested reducing the suspension to six months, while Buhari from Oyo North proposed three months. The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, described Ningis offences as grievous. A voice vote was conducted and a majority of the lawmakers voted in support of Ningis suspension for three months. A man named Mustapha Kabiru has allegedly raped his brothers five-year-old daughter to teach him a lesson. The victim, Fatimah Ayuba, was said to have been rushed to the Federal Medical Center Yola, Adamawa State, for medical attention following profuse bleeding from her vagina as a result of the incident. According to a family source, who spoke to Sahara Reporters, Kabiru, a mobile phone repairer, have had a long running feud with his brother, Ayuba, currently serving a jail term in Lagos, and therefore decided to molest the little girl to get back at him. It was also gathered that the family never wanted to seek medical help for the victim for fear of exposing the matter to the public but the girl was eventually taken to the hospital through the help of one Hauwa Garba. Confirming the incident, Information Officer at FMC Yola, Mohammed Dodo, told Sahara Reporters that the girl was bleeding profusely when she was brought into the hospital. He said, Fatimah was referred from Yola Specialist hospital on Saturday due to profuse and uncontrolled bleeding from the vagina. Her condition couldnt be managed at the specialist hospital, thats why she was transferred to the FMC, which has better facilities. When contacted on the matter, Public Relations Officer of the police in Adamawa, Suleiman Nguroje, said that they had yet to be briefed of the incident, adding to commence investigation once the case is reported to them. Rwandan police has reportedly gunned down two people for defying a lockdown order imposed by the government to contain the spread of Coronavirus. The police spokesman, John Bosco Kabera, who confirmed the incident, said on Wednesday, March 25, that the two men who were in their twenties were shot dead in Nyanza district. According to him, the deceased attacked and wrestled to the ground a police officer who was on routine patrol. He added that the action of the two men prompted his colleague to fire at the attackers in self-defense. The police spokesman did not explain why the civilians wrestled with the police officers. He, however, warned that people should not confuse the measures taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19 with this unfortunate incident. The incident has fueled anger in Rwanda which has so far registered 40 cases of the coronavirus disease. The Nigerian female rapper shared photos of herself on Instagram and revealed that shes come a long way from almost taking my life to being here now. She went on to ask her followers who are suicidal to use her as proof that they can overcome too. BLOOMINGTON Several Bloomington-Normal bars and restaurants are gearing up for St. Patrick's Day this weekend by offering various specials from the typical corned beef and cabbage to gourmet grilled cheese. Crawford's Corner Pub, 610 W. Chestnut St. in Bloomington, will host its seventh annual St. Patrick's Day party on Saturday, March 16. The event is the largest of its kind in McLean County, according to owner Bob Crawford. He said anyone is welcome to attend the party over the years, they've seen anywhere from 600 to 2,000 people attend. Crawford's will be open from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m., with Irish dancing starting at 1:30 p.m. and live music from Turas from 3 to 5 p.m. and Exorna from 6 to 8 p.m. Bagpipers will play at 2:30 p.m., 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. There will be four tents with full bars and beer troughs, as well as two indoor bars, one upstairs and downstairs. ATMs will be available for customers in the tents. "I am proud of my Irish heritage and I've always enjoyed this holiday," Crawford said. "I always said if I owned my own pub I would throw the biggest party I could throw. Each year the event has been bigger than the last, (and) every year we try to make it a little better than the last. Our staff works tremendously hard to make this event a hit." Crawford's will offer a corned beef and cabbage meal, including rye bread, potatoes, candy carrots and homemade colcannon, as well as various drink specials. Crawford said they will be cooking 40 19-pound corned beef briskets in preparation for the party. Tony Frabizio, owner of Killarney's Irish Pub, 523 N. Main St. in downtown Bloomington, will also be throwing a party, but on Sunday, March 17. This is the one day of the year the bar offers food. The bar will open at 11 a.m. for lunch, offering corned beef and cabbage, 24-ounce green beer drafts of Miller Lite and Bud Light, $5 16-ounce Guinness drafts, $5 Jameson drinks and green Jell-O shots. Fabrizio will even be making the corned beef himself this year, he said. "It's St. Patrick's Day, so everyone kind of expects having some corned beef and cabbage," he said. "Normally, it's my busiest day of the year. I know a lot of other places are doing their party on Saturday, but traditionally I've always done it on St. Patrick's Day itself. (I'm) looking forward to it." Fiala Brothers Brewery & Beer Hall, 127 E. Beaufort St. in uptown Normal, owned by Steve and Ryan Fiala, will also participate in St. Patrick's Day festivities. Kitchen manager Logan Lindsey came up with the idea to offer a Reuben grilled cheese featuring corned beef, Thousand Island dressing, sauerkraut, and mozzarella, Swiss and aged white cheddar cheeses for $9. "I have worked at Irish pubs before, so this is a great classic to run for St. Patrick's Day. We will have the Reuben available from Friday through Sunday, so (it) will be a popular sammy," Lindsey said. "For holidays, we always try to put something on that matches the theme, but with our own spin on it." They will also offer an appetizer sampler with a pretzel, chicken tenders and nachos for $15, and a variety of drink specials, including certain shots for $5 and Fiala Brothers beer (IPAs, Chuck Pilsner, Cream Ale, Belgium Ale, etc.) and $5 Irish car bomb drinks. Across the street, another Irish pub, Maggie Miley's, 126 E. Beaufort St., will offer items from its traditional menu throughout the weekend, including corned beef and cabbage, bangers and mash, shepherd's pie and boxty. The bar will have live Irish music, including The Bogside Zuke's from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday; Blarney Stoned from 3 to 6 p.m. on Sunday; bagpipers at 1:30 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 p.m. Sunday; and Irish dancers at 6 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Schooners, 810 E. Grove St. in Bloomington, will offer a Sunday special with corned beef, cabbage, parsley-buttered potatoes and Irish soda bread, as well as a corned beef sandwich with chips. They will also have Guinness on draft. Maguire's Bar & Grill, 220 N. Center St. in downtown Bloomington, will also offer corned beef and cabbage on Sunday, along with 22-ounce green beers for $4. Parkview Inn, 1003 S. Morris Ave. in Bloomington, will be serving corned beef and cabbage with rye bread on Friday and Saturday in limited quantities. The special will be available until they run out. A full St. Patrick's Day menu is available now through Sunday at Rob Dob's Restaurant & Bar, 801 N. Hershey Road in Bloomington, along with live music from Jim & Tommy March from Friday through Sunday. Features include Irish potato wedges, corned beef and cabbage, a Reuben sandwich, shepherd's pie and chocolate stout cake, with drink specials like an orange Irish mule, shamrock sour, Irish wolfhound, Irish eyes, Irish creme de menthe, and beer and whiskey drinks. Lil Beaver Brewery, 5 Finance Drive in Bloomington, is offering its Hoppy 'N Lucky seasonal IPA, which includes Citra, Sabro and El Dorado hops, available on tap and in to-go cans. CRAFTED Bar, 1101 Airport Road in Bloomington, will offer a "Pot of Gold Lucky Charm" martini and leprechaun Jell-O shots. On Sunday, Busy Corner, 302 Eureka St., in Goodfield, will offer a lunch special with baked chicken or corned beef and cabbage. Here are some other St. Patrick's Day themed-events happening in the area: Century 21 Quest St. Patty's Day Community Bash; 5-8 p.m. March 18, 210 S. East St., Bloomington; free; open-house style; Irish stew, corned beef and cabbage and refreshments. 5-8 p.m. March 18, 210 S. East St., Bloomington; free; open-house style; Irish stew, corned beef and cabbage and refreshments. St. Patrick's Day Run; 1 p.m. March 17, VFW, 1006 E. Lincoln St., Bloomington. 1 p.m. March 17, VFW, 1006 E. Lincoln St., Bloomington. Sharin' of the Green Parade; 1 p.m. March 16, 11 Uptown Circle, Normal. 1 p.m. March 16, 11 Uptown Circle, Normal. Luck of the Icing: St. Patty's Day Cookie Decorating Fiesta; 5:30 p.m. March 14, Keg Grove Brewing Co., 712 E. Empire St., Suite 2, Bloomington. 5:30 p.m. March 14, Keg Grove Brewing Co., 712 E. Empire St., Suite 2, Bloomington. St. Patrick's Day Party; 11 a.m. March 16, The Local Tap - Craft Kitchen & Alehouse, 201 S. Fayette St., El Paso; live music, cocktails and food features. 11 a.m. March 16, The Local Tap - Craft Kitchen & Alehouse, 201 S. Fayette St., El Paso; live music, cocktails and food features. St. Patrick's Day Brunch Buffet; 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. March 17, Bloomington Country Club, 605 Towanda Ave., Bloomington; members only. 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. March 17, Bloomington Country Club, 605 Towanda Ave., Bloomington; members only. St. Patrick's Day Irish Fest; 3 p.m. March 16, Casper Brewing Co., 3807 Ballybunion Road, Bloomington; family-friendly; food specials, face painting and Irish folk music. 3 p.m. March 16, Casper Brewing Co., 3807 Ballybunion Road, Bloomington; family-friendly; food specials, face painting and Irish folk music. St. Patrick's Day with The Cookery; noon-10 p.m. March 16, Analytical Brewing, 510 W. Main St., Lexington; $25; Irish food, beef and live music from Joshua Allen & Nicole Montgomery; shmacked pasta bar noon-4 p.m. March 17, St. Patrick's Day menu. Share the fun from the Sharin' of the Green Parade Brendan Denison, Linda Bomya Mark Tremper, Sam Hazleton Jeremy Plue, Jenny Lee-Plue Donna Edward, Mary and John Burns Lauren and RC McBride, Neil and Shawn Finlen Maggie Bratcher, Kimberly Lindholm, Jaime Russell, Leah Forrest Kinsella and OMalley Families Kara and Zach Moffett Prescott family Bicyclists Ellie B and Bella Levine Jeannine Tomlinson, Kelli Kiefer Karen Stailey-Lander with Abbey Barrett Mings helping Emily Mings with her skate Cornbelter crew MIRA DeLong Family Emery, Jada, Frank and Wurth entry Paula Sweeney, Jamie Dorsey Dan Sweeney, Mark Dorsey Ella and Nick Gardner Kathleen Lorenz and supporters Supporting Andy Byars Neil Finlen, Keith Palmgren Scott Whitman, Dick Steffen BERLIN An American man was convicted of murder and other charges on Monday for brutally attacking two American women near Germany's famed Neuschwanstein castle last summer and pushing them into a ravine, fatally injuring one of them. He was sentenced to life in prison. The Kempten state court also convicted the 31-year-old of attempted murder and rape with fatal consequences, the German news agency dpa reported. Presiding Judge Christoph Schwiebacher determined that the defendant bears particularly severe guilt, meaning that he likely won't be eligible for release after 15 years as is usually the case in Germany. Defendants in the German legal system do not formally enter pleas to charges, but the suspect admitted to the charges when his trial opened on Feb. 19. Schwiebacher described the defendant as "incredibly callous." He said that "a release after 15 years would not be justifiable." In line with German privacy laws, German authorities did not identify the perpetrator and the victims. However, family and friends at the time said that the victims were 21-year-old Eva Liu, who died, and her friend Kelsey Chang, 22, who survived. Both were recent graduates of the University of Illinois. U of I previously confirmed to Lee Enterprises that Liu was from Naperville and Chang was from Bloomington. The attack took place on June 14 near the Marienbruecke, a bridge over a gorge that offers a view of the castle, one of Germany's most famous tourist attractions. Prosecutors have said the suspect met the two women by chance on a hiking path and lured them off the trail. They said he apparently first forced the younger woman to the ground and tried to undress her. When the older woman tried to help her, a scuffle ensued and the suspect allegedly pushed her down a steep slope. She fell about 165 feet and sustained a head injury, bruises and grazes, but survived. The suspect then strangled the younger woman until she was unconscious and raped her, prosecutors have said, before pushing her down the slope as well. She died later in a hospital. "He disposed of her like a bag of garbage," Judge Schwiebacher said as he announced the verdict on Monday, dpa reported. The court found that the defendant wanted to keep video footage and a photo he had made of his actions material that became important evidence to investigators as a "trophy." Police officers arrested him near the scene of the attack. The victims were recovered from the ravine by a helicopter. Photos: Pritzker Military Archives Center The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) together with Renel Ghana Foundation has called for more young women to be empowered in political Participation As part of the International Women's Day celebration this month, the call for women's concern to be addressed in the area of politics and bridge the gender gaps, create gender-equal working environments where all talents can thrive, and unlock a brighter, more sustainable future for all. The dialogue aims to address the barriers young women face in political processes and explore strategies to foster a more inclusive and equitable future. The Gender team lead at United Nations Development Programme(UNDP Ghana) ,Ms Jennifer Asuako in an interview with Peace FM news said, we need to highlight the value of women for development and the importance of advocating equality between men and women in every sector we found ourselves in as a country. "We also need to increase the number of women leaders in business, finance, central banks and finance ministries. This can help drive investments in policies and programmes that respond to women and girls needs," she said. According to her, Womens rights are a proven path to fair, peaceful, prosperous societies. She said despite progress, women face significant obstacles to achieve equal participation in the economy and calls for ensuring equal opportunity for women and girls to build their capabilities and strengthen their capacity to learn, earn, and lead. Source: Portia Mensah Bonsu/Peace FM Newsroom 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 Greater Accra Regional Security Council (REGSEC) has lifted the security ban restricting access to the Borteyman enclave and adjoining lands with immediate effect. The Minister of the Interior, who doubles as the Greater Accra Regional Minister and chairman of REGSEC, Henry Quartey announced this when a composite plan of the area was presented to him by the Lands Commission at a meeting held at the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) yesterday in Accra. He said, We have formally lifted the security ban restricting access to the Borteyman enclave and its adjoining lands. Therefore, land and property owners within the enclave are free to access their properties. In February, 2016, the Greater Accra Regional Security Council chaired by the Regional Minister declared Borteyman and some areas a security zone after gathering intelligence about imminent clashes between Top Kings and Empire Builders, who were engaged in a dispute over the land for decades. Present at the meeting were representatives of the Nungua stool lands, some officials of the Lands Commission, members of the Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council and staff of the Nungua Traditional Council. The minister said following deliberations at its meeting held on February 8, 2024, REGSEC agreed for the Lands Commission to present the status of affairs and demarcation of boundaries after a court judgment on the ownership of the land. The Survey and Mapping Division of the Lands Commission undertook the demarcation exercise to understand the subject matter of the court judgment. He said the boundaries include 465 acres, 114 acres and 62 acres, all referred to in the court judgments. Maxwell Adu Nsafoah, Technical Director of Lands, Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and Head of Operations, Lands Commission said the RCC and Ministry of Lands directed the Lands Commission to demarcate the boundaries in the Supreme Court judgment in the said case. According to him, a report on the demarcation of the land has been done and submitted to the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources for further action. Robert Hackman Antwi, Chief Examiner, Survey and Mapping Division at the Lands Commission, who displayed the composite plan, said the 114 acres was later demarcated to be 114.33 while the 62. 01 acres was 62.04, showing all the parcel of land against the site plans used. Oblantai Mantse of the Nungua Traditional Area, Nii Bortey Okplen Djalesane II, who was accompanied by other chiefs representing the Nungua Traditional Council, expressed satisfaction with the level of work done by the Lands Commission and the Ministry of Lands while thanking REGSEC for their role in the exercise and the challenges the stool has faced in addressing this land dispute for 23 years. Source: dailyguidenetwork.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 Twenty-one thousand (21,000) youth are being trained by the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) and CSIR-BRRI in specialized skills under the Youth In Brick Production and Construction module of the agency. The trainees will be taken through a meticulously designed training module to impart knowledge and skills that they need to succeed in the field of burnt bricks making and construction. Addressing the selected trainees in Kumasi, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of YEA, Kofi Baah Agyepong said the YEA has been planning the program since last year August when lots of people have questioned YEAs scale of ambition. He said, YEAs scale of ambitions is embedded in their skills training and job creation drive. According to him, some people thought YEA system cannot carry too many big plans but currently, the YEA is training 10,000 youth in ten field areas including masonry, carpentry, tiling, POP, glazing works, general electricals, plumbing, beauty care, hair dressing and auto works. The Youth In Brick Production and Construction, he said, which is a collaborative program between the YEA and CSIR-BRRI will train and equip the youth to acquire specialized skills that will help change the construction industry of the country. By the end of the year, a total of 21,000 youth would have been trained and equipped not only to provide bread and butter for their families, but also contribute to national development, he said. He described the unemployment situation in Ghana as a national security threat and averred that government through the YEA has done a lot and will continue to do more in creating job opportunities. The agency, he revealed, currently has over 200,000 young men and women on their database looking for various jobs. The YEA boss lauded the efforts by government in supporting the YEA achieve its aims and objectives and indicated that, the agency is backed by a government that sees youth unemployment as a major concern to national development, hence providing the YEA with necessary support. He said; We see the future not as something out of our control but of something we can shape through a concerted and collective efforts. Kofi Baah Agyepong urged the trainees to be proud of the opportunities that government, through the YEA, is giving them and see it as a major milestone in their growth and development. He added that studies have shown that the building industry is unable to employ majority of the Ghanaian youth because they lack modern artisanal skills, hence the influx of artisans from neighboring countries like Togo whose skills are needed by contractors and estate developers. He charged the trainees to be professionals and do away with the attitude of abandoning work for funerals and other social events; stressing that YEA initiates the Youth In Brick Production and Construction program to bridge the skills gap and improve professionalism in the building industry. He also revealed that the trainees will be giving monthly stipends of GH500 during the training. CSIR-BRRI The Forestry Research Institute Director, Prof Daniel Ofori said the mandate of CSIR-BRRI is to generate and apply innovating technology for socio-economic development in areas of agriculture, environment, public health, industry, social science and as far as the program is concerned, they are to undertake research in all aspects of building and road design as well as construction with the view of ensuring efficiency. They are to also produce construction materials from local sources for increased utilization in construction. He noted that the institute will offer the trainees the requisite knowledge in the development of materials from local sources such as in brick construction among others. Prof Daniel Ofori described the program as a transformative training that will equip the youth to thrive in the building and construction industry. He also touched on the growing climate change and the importance of using local materials in construction in mitigating climate change effects. He said by harnessing the "our natural resources, we reduce dependence on imported materials and create opportunities for local industry to grow amid the use of eco-friendly materials, and innovative building practices". Let us remain steadfast in our commitment to promoting the use of local materials to productive change, he advised. Training The Training Coordinator, Dr Joe Danquah said over the next eight (8) weeks, the trainees together with their facilitators will embark on a journey of learning, growth and various opportunities. He noted that the training module was meticulously designed with the aim of equipping participants with knowledge, skills and resources that they need to succeed in the field of burnt bricks making and construction. Dr Joe Danquah said the Youth In Brick Production and Construction is novel in delivery a complete master cash man in burnt brick production and laying indicating the trainees will be taken through factory mode production and construction, engage in comprehensive curriculum with facilitators guiding them through hands on practical sessions for them to gain invaluable insights in their discipline. He charged the beneficiaries to unlock their potentials and pursue their career with passion and determination. Source: YEA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday reiterated his directives to security agencies and the ministry of defense that no ransom should be paid by the government to kidnappers, bandits, or any criminal elements for the release of abducted persons. The Minister of Information and National Orientation disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting presided over by the President at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja. This is coming on the heels of the reported cases of kidnapped children in Kaduna State who are still held in captivity by their abductors and are demanding billions of money for their release. He said, In council today, Mr. President reiterated his directive to the security agencies and the ministry of defence to ensure that those of our kids that have been abducted by these criminal gangs are brought back to their homes safely. And Mr President has also reiterated his zero tolerance for payment of ransom. That was also mentioned by Mr. President at the council today. So the security agencies are working around the clock. So these children and people that have been abducted by criminal elements will be brought back to safety pretty soon. The security agencies are working hard in that direction. And Mr. President has also directed that no ransom will be paid by government to any of these criminal elements. It is important that it be put out there. While fielding questions on the increasing wave of kidnapping in the country, the Minister said, Youre also asking about the apparent surge in this kidnapping across the country. Now it is true that some of these are happening, we have seen what has happened in Kaduna, in Borno, and then in Sokoto. Of course, the government is watching that very closely and not just watching but also ensuring that security agencies are taking proactive steps to ensure that this is halted significantly. Now, like I said, Mr. President has said that it is an unacceptable situation, and the government will not condone abductions or kidnappings, or any kind of criminality in that direction. Were seeing this happening, and the government is taking very proactive steps, first to mitigate that, and also to stop the spread of this apparently. We are seeing that the more the security agencies are also hitting these targets or criminals, the more they are pushed to also get some soft targets. But the government is not taking any excuses. The President has directed that security agencies must, as a matter of urgency, ensure that these children and all those who have been kidnapped are brought back in safety and also in the process to ensure that not a dime is paid for ransom. So its important to underscore that the government is not paying anybody any dime, and the government is optimistic that these children and other people that have been abducted will be brought back to their families in safety. Source: vanguard 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 Few executives in Ghana made as much of an impact on their companies in the calendar year 2023 as Mr Samuel Dubik Mahama, the Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG). In just a year, Mr. Mahama took the beleaguered power operator to heights it had never achieved in its history, cementing his position as one of the most accomplished leaders in the public and private sectors. Mr Mahama's enormous achievements were recognized by amassing numerous awards throughout the year as the transformational leadership he brought to ECG was easily recognizable. But how did he do it? Mr Mahama achieved his objectives at ECG by introducing a no-nonsense leadership approach to the company's dealings that it has sorely lacked for a long time, and Ghanaians recently got a taste of that through his dealings with the Parliament of Ghana. Parliamentary 'DUM' A few weeks ago, many Ghanaians got their first taste of the no-nonsense man behind lifting the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) from a sinking dinosaur to a rising phoenix when electricity to Ghana's Parliament was cut during an MP's debate of the annual State of the Nation (SOTN) address. Mr. Samuel Dubik Mahama, the generational leader who has turned the fortunes of the national power distributor around, attained internet immortality when he was asked about cutting power to Ghana's Parliament and gave a cheeky but no-nonsense response that quickly went viral. Asked by Bola Ray why ECG cut power to the national legislative chamber whilst they were in session, ie 'working', Mr. Mahama said ECG was also working at the time. For decades, ECG has been an institution teetering on the brink of collapse due to a management style that was too cozy with the powers that be and hence reluctant to take the harsh decisions needed to stabilize its revenues. Many state-owned enterprises owe the Electricity Company millions and millions of cedis and rarely make any attempt to settle those debts. Many individuals are also owing millions of cedis, using all sorts of tricks, and colluding with some officials to evade paying their bills. All these have contributed to ECG being crippled and unable to fulfil its full potential, leaving it often as the object of mockery and derision from Ghanaians. Under the leadership of Samuel Dubik Mahama, measures have been put in place across board to address these massive challenges that have historically held ECG back and the results have been nothing short of marvellous. For instance, according to the BBC, ECG recouped a whopping $1m in debt from Parliament with that single SOTN power cut. Despite all these achievements, Mr. Mahama is not celebrated enough, partly due to the media failing to recognize and highlight the transformational leadership he has brought to the company. In this article, we highlight these changes, their results, and why Samuel Dubik Mahama has been the best thing to happen to ECG and power distribution in Ghana in decades. Transformational Leadership The reversal of ECG's fortunes has not come on a silver platter but has been the result of the transformational leadership of Mr Mahama, implemented through hard work and flawless execution of various plans. Under the leadership of Samuel Dubik Mahama, ECG has introduced numerous policies and measures that have led to the company being able to escape its past troubles. These all have led to the company astronomically improving its revenue mobilization, streamlining its practices, eliminating inefficiency, and building a world-class organization. They have also transformed ECG into a mostly digitalized company making it easier to meet the demands of a 21st century clientele. The measures that have yielded all these results include; Revenue Mobilization efforts ECG has taken several measures under the leadership of Samuel Mahama to increase the revenue it rakes in drastically. In Operation 20 to 20, ECG carried out a one-month moratorium exercise targeting all categories of customers in arrears, notably including the notoriously long defaulting State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Under Operation Zero, ECG carried out a revenue mobilization exercise that covered an astonishing 1,225,000 customers. Out of the total, ECG recorded 177,623 anomalies out of which 61,739 were regularized on the spot. A total of 59,072 customers were billed and payments were made instantly. Finally, Operation Fix the Bill And Pay the Bill, saw ECG unleash about 4,000 staff including Management to be on the field to augment the efforts of the revenue-collecting Directorates to rake in revenue. The month-long effort led to ECG realizing a historic 100% increment in year-on-year revenue in 2023. Digitalization efforts Under the cashless project, ECG introduced a policy of stopping the sale of electricity at its offices via cash. Simultaneously, the company vastly upgraded its existing mobile app, adding more features for enhanced performance. The result of these policies was the public turning away from purchasing electricity at the ECG offices and instead, using the mobile app. This led to an unprecedented increase in the number of users of the ECG mobile app, jumping from only 500,000 users at the beginning of 2023 to 3.4 million users at the end of 2023. Under the loss reduction project, ECG replaced all non-MMS-compliant meters with smart prepaid meters for better monitoring and enhanced convenience. Finally, ECG introduced the Customer and Assets and Information Management System (CAIMS), to digitize the company's assets and customer databases. CAIMS serves as a comprehensive digital repository for all ECG-tagged assets, including distribution transformers, LV poles, building structures, and meters, as well as customer information. Awards & Recognitions All these measures taken by ECG under the leadership of Samuel Dubik Mahama led to him raking in numerous awards in 2023 such as; 1) Top 20 Outstanding Corporate CEOs of the Year Award - Top 50 Ghana Entrepreneurs and Corporate Executives Award and Summit 2023. 2) Exceptional Leader in Sustainable Power Distribution & Reliability - 4th Africa Public Sector Conference & Awards 2023. 3) CEO of the Year (Power) - Ghana CEO Awards 2023. 4) Distinguished Leadership Award Institute of Leadership & Governance - Chartered CEO of the Year 2023 - 5) CEO of the Year 2023 - 7th Ghana Energy Awards 6) 100 Most Influential People Awards - The Business Executives ECG as an organization also won several awards, a testament to the sound leadership of its Managing Director. 1) Marketing-Oriented State Owed Agency of the Year - 12th Marketing World Awards 2023 2) Public Sector Campaign of the Year - 4th Africa Public Sector Conference & Awards 2023 3) Public Sector Team of the Year - 4th Africa Public Sector Conference & Awards 2023 Future Endeavours Despite everything achieved in 2023, ECG has shown no desire to rest on its laurels and is telegraphing a series of moves to keep its current trajectory going. According to Mr Mahama, the company plans to 'maximize' its 2023 gains by focusing on revenue growth and aggressive reduction of system losses in 2024 and beyond. These are expected to increase revenue collection, he promises, with ECG setting an ambitious new revenue target of Ghc 2 billion monthly throughout the year 2024. ECG also aims to introduce paperless service applications to take all aspects of their services online. This aims at making all ECG customers applying for new services, separate meters, additional load, etc to apply through the EGG Mobile App, ensuring customers can access all the company's services in an easy, timely, and efficient manner. Other new measures including Spot Billing and a Nationwide Meter Audit are all aimed at ensuring ECG's new revenue targets are met by eliminating fraud and waste from the system. Conclusion It has become all too common to expect mediocrity from state-owned agencies in their approach to carrying out their duties, and indeed even ECG has been guilty of this in the past. However, under the leadership of Samuel Dubik Mahama, the company has made a concerted effort to shed this reputation, doing so by implementing new measures and tightening existing ones. The result is a company that is reliable and efficient and perhaps for the first time in its history, meeting its stated objectives. ECG is also enjoying the esteem of Ghanaians, due to improvements in its digital infrastructure, making it easier than ever to access its services in a hassle-free manner. All these are due to the transformations introduced by Samuel Dubik Mahama, a leader worth celebrating for turning around the fortunes of one of the country's most important organizations. Source: Chris-Vincent Agyapong Febiri, the author is a Ghanaian-British writer/journalist and a Human Rights Lawyer based in the UK. Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video At MWC 2024, Huawei officially released the National Cloud 2.0 solution worldwide. Huawei aims to help government organizations around the world accelerate national digital transformation and promote intelligence. Hu Yuhai, Vice President of Huawei Hybrid Cloud, said: "Global digital transformation has reached a new stage of full intelligence driven by data and AI. The National Cloud 2.0 solution from Huawei provides trusted cloud infrastructure, innovative cloud services, and extensive industry know-how. We aim to help governments achieve national digital visions faster." The National Cloud 2.0 Solution Has Been Officially Released Today, more than 170 countries and regions have announced digital transformation strategies. As innovative technologies like AI models see more widespread adoption, the digital transformation of government customers is reaching a new stage. Previously, government customers were focused on moving their applications to various clouds. Now, they are seeking data- and AI-driven industry intelligence. They look to leverage digital and intelligent technologies to empower smart city governance, better government services, and greater economic growth. To help national and regional governments accelerate digitalization and intelligent upgrade, Huawei released the National Cloud 2.0 solution. This solution is backed by Huawei's ICT innovation and robust experience driving digital transformation for customers and partners around the world. It provides trusted cloud infrastructure, innovative cloud services, and extensive industry know-how, helping governments achieve their national digital visions faster: Trusted cloud infrastructure: Huawei has been continuously investing in fundamental technologies of software and hardware for years. Huawei has established secure, reliable, and open cloud native infrastructure and provides green, low-carbon IT hardware and cloud-native infrastructure. Huawei aims to lay a robust foundation for national digital transformation of government customers. Innovative cloud services: Huawei leverages data and AI technologies to provide innovative cloud services, aiming to help government customers unleash data value and establish data sovereignty. Extensive industry know-how: Huawei provides a series of professional services including high-level design, service planning, deliveries, and implementation, all backed by extensive experience with numerous global projects. Huawei looks forward to working with more industry partners in the future and to accelerating national digital transformation for government customers around the world. Huawei Cloud Stack Powers National Cloud 2.0 with Four Innovative Capabilities Huawei National Cloud 2.0 is powered by Huawei Cloud Stack, a hybrid cloud solution. While being deployed on-premises, Huawei Cloud Stack is able to continuously synchronize cloud services from the Huawei public cloud. It also shares the same ecosystem with the Huawei public cloud. Government customers can leverage its four innovative capabilities to build secure, trusted, intelligent national clouds: Secure, reliable cloud native infrastructure: Huawei Cloud Stack provides high availability for cloud services. Applications can achieve intra-city active-active and remote disaster recovery without being re-architected. SecMaster and a broad set of security services help government customers easily meet compliance requirements. Fine-grained, multi-level cloud management is tailored to organizational structures of governments. Also, Huawei Cloud Stack provides an open ecosystem that is highly compatible with mainstream hardware and operating systems as well as third-party applications. Pangu Models for one-stop creation of tailored AI models: Huawei Cloud Stack is the industry's first hybrid cloud that can be used to deploy AI models. It provides the most complete AI production chain in the industry, which lowers the barriers to entry when building AI models. Huawei Cloud Stack also supports cross-cloud training and multi-cloud deployment of AI models. In addition, Huawei Cloud Stack provides tens of industry-specific solutions to help government customers quickly build their own AI models. A converged data lake that promotes data sharing: Huawei Cloud Stack provides full-lifecycle management of government data. The data governance efficiency will be improved by 10 fold. Huawei Cloud Stack uses FusionInsight MRS to establish an integrated big data platform. The platform enables real-time import of government data into lakes and promotes cross-source, cross-domain, cross-warehouse collaboration. This will improve the analysis efficiency by 50 fold. A distributed cloud database with high performance and availability: Huawei Cloud GaussDB, a distributed cloud database, leverages many new technologies to provide high availability, security, performance, scalability, and intelligence. It offers an easy deployment experience and allows for smooth data migration from other databases. GaussDB provides a better database choice for customers around the world. Take a Leap to National Digital Transformation Together with Huawei Cloud Stack With innovative technologies and numerous industry-specific solutions, Huawei Cloud Stack serves more than 5,200 government and enterprise customers around the world. Huawei Cloud Stack is a leader in multiple markets, such as the hybrid cloud markets in China and emerging Asia Pacific. More than 20 national and regional governments have joined hands with Huawei to build national clouds and accelerate national digital transformation. With a cloud platform and services like Al Cortex, provided by Huawei Cloud Stack, NAS Cloud in Egypt deployed a national data center and national DRaaS and Al innovation platforms, enhancing data security, promoting data sharing, and elevating government services. They aim to create fully connected, intelligent government services for Egypt. National Telecom Public Company Limited (NT), in Thailand, established a national cloud using Huawei Cloud Stack. Huawei Cloud Stack, an on-premises hybrid cloud, provides a broad set of cloud services. With Huawei Cloud Stack, the national cloud provides extensive cloud services for multiple government organizations in Thailand. It has taken the government's public services to the next level. Uzbekistan deployed a secure, reliable national cloud using Huawei Cloud Stack. The national cloud provides a nationwide e-government system. It also provides multi-level virtual data centers (VDCs) to match the organizational structure of Uzbekistan ministries. Fine-grained cloud resource management is supported. The national cloud now provides more than 447 public services for 4.5 million users throughout Uzbekistan. Digital transformation gains momentum around the world. It has reached a new stage, driven by lightning development of cloud and AI. Looking ahead, Huawei will continue to make sustained investments and will join hands with more customers and partners around the world to dive deep into cloud and accelerate national digital transformation. 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 Lawyer Maurice Ampaw has called upon the leadership of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) to allow Lilian Kumah, the widow of the late Member of Parliament for Ejisu, John Kumah, to contest her husband's seat in the Ashanti Region. Ampaw emphasised the importance of honouring John Kumah's legacy by facilitating a transition for his spouse into politics. He drew parallels with previous instances within the party where widows were supported in their bid for parliamentary seats following the demise of their husbands. He cited the example of Ophelia Hayford, who stepped into her husband's shoes in Mfantseman. Ampaw stressed that replicating this gesture for Lilian Kumah would not only pay homage to her husband's memory but also demonstrate the party's commitment to supporting the family. He urged the NPP leadership to consider allowing Lilian Kumah to contest the Ejisu Constituency unopposed, asserting that such a move would respect John Kumah's legacy and put his soul to rest. "It is time for us to come together; let us honour John Kumah. He stood for breaking the eight; John Kumah stood for breaking the eight. John Kumah was NPP, and NPP was John Kumah; let us honour him. "I propose that nobody should go and contest the Ejisu Constituency; nobody should go and contest John Kumah's spirit. Let us train John Kumah's wife to take over as the sole parliamentary candidate. The same way we did for Mfantsiman Constituency; when Quansah died, his widow, Ophelia Hayford, a police officer, took over. "John Kumah's wife is a pastor, and she is very bold. John Kumah's spirit has entered her, so let John Kumah's wife go unopposed and win the seat," Maurice Ampaw said on his Mmra Ne Abrabo Mu Nsem show on Wontumi TV on March 9, 2024. 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 Sammi Awuku, a Senior Campaign Aide of the New Patriotic Party (NPP's) 2024 flagbearer, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, says the ruling party "will not go into the upcoming elections with insults but with surgical policies." Sammi Awuku revealed that, the December 2024 elections is going to be based on policies and the comparisons of records and achievements of the main opposition party NDC and the governing party NPP. Speaking on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show, Sammi Awuku added that, Ghanaians and potential voters must put the two main contenders on a scale to weigh their policies. According to him, Ghanaians must consider the policies presented by the flag bearers of the NPP and the NDC and consider the ones that is vision-driven, but not the one that is geared towards partitioning Ghana as being done by the NDC. "If you think the NPP is frustrating you, then the alternative has already shared the booty even before coming into power''. "If you are a strategist, you have to look at what will influence the voter on the day of elections. Ghanaians should go for a government who is clear in his policies." A few days ago, on his 'Building Ghana Tour' of the Greater Accra region, ex-President Mahama announced his intentions to relocate government agencies to decongest Accra. He also linked President Akufo-Addo's hesitance to approve the anti-LGBTQI+ bill to Ghana's heavy reliance on foreign aid. But whiles outlining the various projects being executed by the NPP government and its expected economic benefits to the country, Sammy Awuku reminded the opposition National Democratic Congress that considering the level of growth in Ghana's democracy, politics of insults is now a thing of the past and mere propaganda will not work on Ghanaians. "This election will be an interesting one. NPP will not go into this election with insults but with surgical narratives; telling the people what we can do. We have a candidate who has served as an apprentice and has learnt on the job and another candidate who has been a commander in chief before. It is time to give the apprentice who has learnt on the job the opportunity to serve and deliver on his mandate," he said. Source: Kobina Darlington/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 Former Auditor General, Daniel Yaw Domelevo has cautioned against what he described as the auctioning of public positions where people fund political parties in return for appointments in the public service. According to him, this development may pave the way for some unqualified persons and criminals to find their way into the public sector for their parochial interests. Daniel Yaw Domelevo made this known during the maiden edition of the Leadership Ethics Seminar Organised by the Africa Ethics Institute in Ho, where he was part of the main speakers. He called for the establishment of meritocracy in the public sector which he believes will minmimize the rate of corruption and corruption influenced services. Mr. Domelevo said, We are in an election year, which I term auction year. We are auctioning public offices. So the highest bidder wins the auction at the end of the day. If we don't look at this auctioning of public offices seriously, what may happen is that, very soon we will have people who are drug pushers funding our election and so will compromise our integrity. It is also possible that terrorists will fund our politicians into office and we will be in trouble. He lamented the high incidents of corruption in the country, adding that the canker has become a religion. Speaking further, Mr. Domelevo made a clarion call for the establishment of an efficient public financial management system, and fiscal decentralisation among other measures to eliminate corruption and protect the public purse which has been left to shrink. He advocated for reorganising and retooling of the anti-corruption institutions to enable them to deliver their mandates efficiently, adding that they are too many. Mr. Domelevo said the fight against corruption must be "commercialised" where whistleblowers should be allowed to help fight the canker in partnership with anti-corruption institutions. He therefore called for stringent enforcement of the asset declaration law and implementing a lifestyle audit of public officers to put them in check. He added that, in order to bring under control, corrupt practices, the countrys leaders should be held accountable for corrupt acts, indicating that Ghana needs ethical and transformational leaders. Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has warned the various political parties to desist from playing religious and tribal cards in this year's elections and every other election held in the country. The NCCE warns that engaging in a smear campaign is detrimental to the economy and the people within. This year's election is said to be historic as it marks the first time a sitting Vice President is in a contest with a former President for the presidential seat; also, it is the first time two Northerners are contesting the presidential slot. Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, flagbearer of the governing New Patriotic Party, seeks to continue the reign of his party by breaking the eight-year governance cycle while his main contender, John Dramani Mahama, an Ex-President and flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress, looks forward to unseating the present government. As the nation awaits the December 7 elections, the campaigns season has begun and both the ruling and opposition parties are in a political tussle to win the elections. NDC Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram, Sam George once in an interview on Metro TV questioned the Islamic faith of Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. You are talking about a man whose character you cannot vouch for. Do you know whether our Vice President is a Muslim or a Christian? Who told you he is a Muslim? He is a Muslim by day and Christian by night, Sam George opined. Hes not a proper Muslim and I will show you why. When the issue of fasting for girls came up during Ramadan, Dr. Bawumia was silent, he continued, adding no true Muslim in the world believes that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior. He is not a proper Muslim. The lawmaker described Dr. Bawumia as a prostitute, stressing a religious prostitute cannot be our President. Speaking in an interview on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show, NCCE boss, Kathleen Addy minced no words as she described any person who targets one's religion for political gains as an "evil person". She admonished Ghanaians not to accommodate such characters, stressing dont entertain anybody telling you this person is not a Christian or Muslim, so dont vote for him or her. You must know that anyone who tells you this is evil. Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh Minister of Energy, has highlighted Ghanas commitment to have a clean energy-focused transition plan despite the challenges being faced. Dr. Matthew Opoku emphasized governments dedication to solving the energy challenges that will not have an adverse effect on the environment. Dr. Opoku Prempeh underscored the importance of having a holistic approach to lasting solutions to the energy challenges. Addressing attendees at the Africa Energy Technology Conference held at the Labadi Beach Hotel on Tuesday, Dr. Opoku Prempeh, also the Manyhia South lawmaker, encouraged other African nations to adopt similar strategies. He, therefore, cautioned that failure to do so could undermine the significant efforts that have been put in the transition, ultimately leading to counterproductive outcomes. Dr. Opoku Prempehs remarks highlight Ghanas proactive stance in addressing both energy needs and environmental concerns. By prioritizing clean energy initiatives, the government aims to achieve sustainable development while minimizing ecological damage. He said, However, the journey towards this future must be inclusive and equitable. We cannot afford to leave anyone behind. As we embrace new technologies and policies, we must ensure that they benefit all segments of society, particularly the most vulnerable." We must prioritize access to clean and affordable energy for remote communities, empowering women and youth in the energy sector, and fostering partnerships that promote capacity building and knowledge transfer." A just energy transition demands a holistic approach that integrates energy policy with broader development objectives, including poverty alleviation, job creation, and environmental sustainability. We must break down silos and foster collaboration across sectors and borders to maximize the impact of our efforts. His call for a holistic approach underscores the interconnected nature of energy and environmental policies. The Ministers advocacy for clean energy aligns with broader global efforts to combat climate change and promote renewable resources. Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The selection of running mates in Ghana's political landscape holds immense significance, akin to the election of flagbearers. While achieving a proper balance on the ticket is crucial for the electoral success's of the party, it is noteworthy that, traditionally, this role has been predominantly filled by men in major political parties in Ghana. Decision often revolve around satisfying regional, ethnic, and religious considerations, with the gender factor grossly underestimated and disregarded. However, this year, the call for gender balance on the New Patriotic Party's presidential and running mate ticket has gained unprecedented momentum and resonance. Stressing the importance of gender representation, a crucial question arises: "Are there qualified women capable of taking on the role of a running mate within the New Patriotic Party (NPP)? Indeed, the Party showcases exceptional women whose expertise and accomplishments position them as highly suitable and qualified beyond measure with international appeal for the esteemed running mate's slot: Principal among them include but not limited to: *Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare* Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare brings onboard an impressive background in academia, international diplomacy, and public service. Hailed from Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region and adhering to Christianity, she is a seasoned development consultant and expert in labour and employment, with a career spanning over four decades. A Guelph University and University of Ghana graduate, she served as a Home Science lecturer from 1976 to 1982 at the University of Ghana, Legon, her alma mater. Over time, she rose to become the Head of Department at the University. Additionally, she contributed her expertise to the Yambio Institute of Agriculture in Western Equatorial State. In the realm of politics, Hon. Frema Opare achieved a two-term stint as the Member of Parliament for the Ayawaso West-Wuogon Constituency in the Greater Accra Region. Her parliamentary tenure ranged from 2005 to 2009 and from 2009 to 2013. During Mr. John Agyekum Kuffuor's presidency, she held the position of Deputy Minister for Manpower, Youth, and Employment. Beyond her national roles, she served as a consultant for the United Nations' Women in Fisheries Programme, overseeing projects in Ethiopia, Congo, Namibia, and Kenya. Since 2017, Hon. Akosua Frema Osei-Opare has distinguished herself as the Chief of Staff at the presidency, making history as the first female occupant of this esteemed office, demonstrating excellence and exceptional professionalism in both in her leadership. She has been one of the architects of the success of the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo administration. She brings onboard massive political capital and uncontested professional and political experience required to garner the highest votes from the Partys "political world bank" and the Christian fraternity to break the 8. *Rev. Dr. Joyce Rosalind Aryee* Rev. Dr. Joyce Rosalind Aryee is the Executive Director of Salt and Light Ministries. Boasting Ga and Fante heritage from her father and mother respectively. She is a seasoned Management and Communication Consultant and a Counsellor. With over four decades experience, she currently spearheads the operations at the Joyce Aryee Consult. Dr. Joyce Aryee, as she is commonly known, is an alumna of the University of Ghana, legon. Breaking barriers, she made history as the first female in Ghana and Africa to assume the role of Chief Executive Officer at the Ghana Chamber of Mines from 2001 to 2011. Her professional journey includes roles at the Ghana Museums and Monument Board, and subsequent positions as Public Relations Officer at what was known as the Environmental Protection Council, and the Ghana Standards Authority, formerly known as the Ghana Standards Board. In the political arena, Dr. Joyce Aryee has held the following significant roles : Secretary of information for the PNDC (1982 to 1985) Minister of Education (1985 to 1987) Minister of Local Government (198788) Minister of Democracy (1988 to 2001) Member of the National Defence Council Her remarkable achievements have earned her numerous accolades, both locally and internationally. Selecting her as a running mate not only addresses gender balance but also leverages her considerable expertise to enhance governance capabilities. *Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful* Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, a native of Akim Oda in the Eastern Region, is a renowned lawyer and advocate for women's rights. Her professional journey commenced at the University of Ghana, Legon, and the Ghana School Of Law, Makola, where she earned her qualifications, leading to her admission to the Ghana Bar in 1990. She has specialised and demonstrated competence in various fields of endeavours including Conflict, Peace, and Security, with a Master's Degree from the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre, and Project Management and Planning, for which she holds a Certificate from GIMPA. Additionally, she is certified in Government Integrity from the International Law Institute. Since 2013, Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ablekuma West Constituency, holding the distinction of being the first Member of Parliament for the Constituency. In 2017, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo appointed her as the Minister for Communications, and she currently serves as the Minister for Communications and Digitalization. Her telecommunications expertise is evident through her leadership of a reputable telecom technology company. Over the years, she has held various key roles in politics and the corperate world. Selecting Hon. Ursula Owusu-Ekuful as a running mate combines political experience and business acumen, enhancing transformative leadership. *Hon. Irene Naa Torshie Addo* Hon. Irene Naa Torshie Addo presently holds the role of Administrator of the District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF), appointed by H. E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. A devoted Christian, she is a Ga from Osu, Accra. Hon. Irene Naa Torshie Addo is a distinguished lawyer, having been called to the Ghana Bar in 1996 after successfully completing a law programme at the University of Ghana, Legon. Subsequently, from 1998 to 1999, she pursued a Masters degree in Law and development (LLM) at the University of Warwick, United Kingdom. In 2006, she was appointed Ghanas Deputy Ambassador to Washington DC by President John Agyekum Kuffuor, and was elected Member of Parliament conservatively from 2009 to 2012 and from 2013 to 2017, representing the Tema West Constituency. During her parliamentary tenure, she assumed the role of 1st Deputy Minority whip during the opposition period of her party, the New Patriotic Party. Notably, Irene has also served as a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. Irene's diplomatic experiences and her notable connection with the Christian community in Ghana would be advantageous for the NPP if she becomes the running mate to Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia. Given their distinctive qualities, extensive experiences, and deep connections within the Ghanaian and international community, any of these women could become a historic running mate and, consequently, the vice president of the Republic. Opting for a female running mate would not only intensify competition for the opposition party but also boost women's enthusiasm and active involvement in the campaign. In line with Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia's election as a flagbearer to transform NPP leadership dynamics, there is a call for him to change the tradition of exclusively male candidates occupying the role of a running mate in the party. Source: Prof. Kweku Adams Dr Kweku Adams is an Associate Professor in International Business & Management at the University of Bradford School of Management. His scholarly works on gender diversity have been published in several world-leading Journals and presented at several academic and practitioner conferences. Dr Adams is currently on the Editorial Review Boards of the Thunderbird International Business Review and the Africa Journal of Management. He is the President of the Ghana School Society, Europe. Source: Peacefmonline 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 Songstress Wendy Shay has revealed that she has been subjected to death threats on social media, leading her to avoid reading her messages on those platforms. Speaking on Hitz FM on Monday, Wendy Shay discussed the challenges she has faced in the music industry, including criticism and negativity from individuals using fake accounts to bully her online. I faced a lot of backlash when I started music. I had death threats and all of that on social media when I came into the industry. You cant even find them. We traced some of the accounts and realized that most of them were accounts that were created just to bully me, she disclosed. The Ghanaian artist disclosed that she stopped responding to messages on social media due to the situation, which unfortunately caused her to miss out on opportunities. Wendy Shay recounted missing a message from music producer Trilla, who wanted to feature her, because she was avoiding her comments section due to the backlash. I got a message from Trilla, and at that time it was new, and they wanted to put me on, but I missed it. Thats why we decided that Im going to have my team members also have logins into my account, she explained. Despite the challenges and negativity she has faced, Wendy Shay expressed her determination to focus on her music and her fans. She emphasized her gratitude for the support and love she has received from her loyal followers and teased that she is working on new projects that will impress them. Source: dailyguidenetwork.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 China Hospitality Association urges greater convenience for global travelers Xinhua) 10:05, March 13, 2024 BEIJING, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The China Hospitality Association on Tuesday released a proposal, urging the country's accommodation sector to provide more convenience for global travelers. Related measures include aligning hotel services with global standards, expanding overseas booking options, and simplifying payment processes via international credit cards, according to the proposal. The proposal also suggests offering telecommunications and catering services tailored for international visitors, as well as providing access to global TV channels. China has recently taken steps to make mobile payments easier for visitors from abroad, such as guiding mobile payment platforms to raise their single transaction limit. Identity verification processes are also becoming simpler. China's total inbound and outbound trips are expected to exceed 264 million this year, generating tourism revenue of 107 billion U.S. dollars, the China Tourism Academy said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) A New Jersey National Guard recruiter accused of sexually assaulting a Hamilton Township teen nearly two years ago allegedly promised the victim a job with the military, according to court documents. Shawn C. Nguyen, 44, of Egg Harbor Township, was charged Monday with two counts of sexual assault, criminal sexual contact, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and official misconduct. Police responded to the Wawa at 4262 Black Horse Pike on June 28, 2022, in reference to a 16-year-old girl in distress. The victim told officers she was given alcohol and sexually assaulted by a man, later identified as Nguyen, in his vehicle behind the abandoned Sears loading dock at the Hamilton Mall between 9 and 10 p.m., court records show. The teen was transported to an area hospital and consented to a sex assault examination kit. Fluids found on the victim and her clothing were tested and matched Nguyen's DNA, according to the affidavit of probable cause. Investigators said Nguyen was the victim's military recruiter. Police believe Nguyen used his official position to carry out the assault and led the teen to think she would obtain a job with the National Guard. Nguyen is being held in the Atlantic County jail pending court. As the Atlantic County Democratic Convention approaches Sunday, the three Democratic candidates vying to run for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District have lined up endorsements. The nominee will challenge U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-2nd, in November. Lower Township resident and businessman Joe Salerno has the support of big names in Atlantic County, including former Sheriff Eric Scheffler and county Commissioner and former state Senate candidate Caren Fitzpatrick. I struggled with this decision for a couple of months before finalizing it in my own head. We are in desperate times, and I am tired of losing, Fitzpatrick said of her decision to endorse Salerno. Amy Kennedy lost (to Van Drew) by 4 points in 2020, and Tim Alexander lost by 19 points in the last cycle, so were headed in the wrong direction if we keep doing the same thing. We owe it to ourselves and to those we care about to do our very best to win. Also getting behind Salerno are former candidate for the Democratic congressional nomination Hector Tavarez, of Egg Harbor Township, and Hammonton Municipal Chair Anthony Angelozzi. Teacher and former Assembly candidate Alphonso Harrell, of Egg Harbor Township, has also endorsed Salerno, as have Pleasantville Council President Carla Thomas and Councilman Charles Oglesby. Galloway Townships Tim Alexander, a retired law enforcement officer and civil rights attorney, has endorsements from Atlantic County Commissioner Ernest Coursey, Atlantic City Council President Aaron Sporty Randolph, Atlantic City Council Vice President Kaleem Shabazz and Councilwoman Stephanie Marshall. Carolyn Rush, US Rep. Andy Kim sue over 'county line' Carolyn Rush, a Democratic candidate for the 2nd Congressional District seat held by U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, joined U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, D-3rd, in a lawsuit Monday against 19 county clerks who use the party line ballot organization. His journey from a dedicated detective captain in the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office to a proactive community leader shows his deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing our district, Coursey said of Alexander. He has worked tirelessly to develop alternative solutions to community problems, increase trust in law enforcement, and ensure that every resident of South Jersey feels safe and respected. Also endorsing Alexander are Hamilton Township Committeewoman Thelma Witherspoon and Corbin City Municipal Chair Matthew Kane. Alexander was the Democratic nominee in the 2022 general election, which Van Drew won with 60% of the vote. Carolyn Rush, an engineer from Sea Isle City who also ran for the nomination in 2022, has the endorsement of Pleasantville Councilman Victor Carmona. In addition to fighting to restore womens reproductive rights, for an economy that works for the middle class, and for taking care of our planet, Carolyn is passionate about treating immigrants with fairness and respect, Carmona said of Rush. She knows immigrants built this nation and continue to drive its economy. She will fight for fair and compassionate immigration reform that gives legal immigrants opportunities to work lawfully as well as a pathway to citizenship. Rush joined U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, D-3rd, in filing a lawsuit last month against 19 New Jersey counties use of the county line in primary elections. The Atlantic County Democratic Convention will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday at Renault Winery in Egg Harbor City. ATLANTIC CITY U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew will meet with residents of the Atlantic City Housing Authoritys Stanley Holmes Village on Friday, he said Wednesday. Van Drew, R-2nd, will be at the 420-unit complex, where about 130 residents are suing the Housing Authority over lack of heat and hot water and unsafe and unhealthy conditions, at 11:30 a.m. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development oversees housing authorities nationwide, and has negotiated a recovery and action plan with the Atlantic City authority. It came after a federal review found the authority has not followed federal rules for years in most of its operations, including how public housing residents are chosen, how their rent is calculated and collected, and how public health and security issues are handled. The congressman had been trying to get HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge to visit Atlantic City with him, but she has been unresponsive to his invitations and other invitations from Mayor Marty Small Sr. and others. Van Drew had also written letters to Fudge asking HUD to take over the operation of the Housing Authority, saying the local board has been unable to provide decent living conditions to many of its residents. Fudge resigned Monday. Fudge, 71, was a former mayor of Warrensville Heights, Ohio, and an Ohio representative in Congress. She had been HUD secretary since the start of President Joe Bidens administration. She did not say why she was resigning, only that she planned to transition to life as a private citizen. Atlantic City Housing Authority now to hold special meeting Monday The Atlantic City Housing Authority has called a special online meeting for 1:30 p.m. Friday but has not posted details on agenda items. Her resignation comes as HUD is dealing with a major criminal case in New York City. About a month ago, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York arrested 70 employees of the New York City Housing Authority and charged them with allegedly accepting cash payments from contractors in exchange for awarding housing authority contracts. A special Zoom only meeting of the housing authority is now set for Monday, March 18 at 4:30 p.m. The Housing Authority recently posted one agenda item for the meeting a resolution to award a contract for professional architectural and engineering services. Superior Court Judge John C. Porto has ordered the authority to install a system to provide reliable heat and hot water to Stanley Holmes Village off Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard by Oct. 1, but the board has yet to decide what type of system it will use. The board also is facing a March 31 deadline with HUD to show it has improved specific aspects of its performance to the departments standards. Housing Authority Executive Director Tom Sahlin has not responded to questions about whether the agenda will also include a new contract for Jerry Volpes Governance & Fiscal Affairs LLC, which has been handling procurement for the agency for more than a year. The firm has been paid more than $500,000, and during its tenure HUD found the agency was improperly using emergency procurement methods. Atlantic County commissioners seek HUD action to improve life in Stanley Holmes Village Atlantic County commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to urge the Atlantic City Housing Authority and the federal government to "provide living conditions with basic necessities for tenants of the Stanley Holmes Village." The board tabled a new contract for Volpe at its February meeting, after Councilman Kaleem Shabazz expressed concern about reports of workers not being able to get the supplies they need to make needed repairs through the purchasing and procurement process. The tabled resolution was to award a one-year contract to Governance & Fiscal Affairs with an initial not-to-exceed amount of $150,000. Volpe also is the interim executive director of the Linden Housing Authority in Union County, where he spends much of his time. The Atlantic City Housing Authority was designated troubled by HUD last year after missing deadlines for submitting financial audits. The Associated Press contributed to this report. U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-2nd, said Wednesday he voted to restrict the social media app TikTok if it remains under Chinese ownership because he has seen evidence that the Chinese are harvesting information on Americans and using it for adversarial purposes. The decision has deep philosophical implications, he said. "I don't ever want to infringe on free speech," Van Drew said. "Is it used next time because somebody has a philosophy that is too liberal, too conservative, or because somebody doesn't believe in taking the COVID vaccine?" TikTok is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd., and the bill passed Wednesday by the House (H.R. 7521) gives the company six months to separate itself from the Chinese government or face being banned from distribution in the U.S. Supporters say ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's 150 million consumers in the U.S. any time it wants. U.S. Rep. Andy Kim, D-3rd, was not present for the vote Wednesday but said in an email response to questions he did not support the bill. There are very real security concerns about TikTok and the protection of Americans information, but there are more steps and deliberations needed before we in Congress should take the proposed action in this legislation," Kim said. "I was unable to be in DC this week, but would have voted NO." Kim said the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is best positioned to make a recommendation on the issue of divestiture and encouraged them to do so quickly. House passes bill that would lead to a TikTok ban if Chinese owner doesn't sell. Senate path unclear The House has passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner doesn't sell. Lawmakers are acting on concerns that the company's current ownership structure is a U.S. national security threat. "If we are concerned about what TikTok can do with accessing and controlling Americans data, Im concerned about what any corporation or entity can do with it," Kim said. "I previously called on my colleagues in Congress to take a comprehensive approach instead of this piecemeal effort to protect data privacy writ large and address the serious concerns about the public safety risks of social media." New Jersey first lady Tammy Murphy's campaign criticized Kim over his absence, and for being the only member of New Jerseys congressional delegation not to support the bipartisan bill. Murphy is running against Kim for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate for the seat now held by U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez. Menendez faces several federal corruption charges. President Joe Biden has said he would sign the TikTok bill if it gets to his desk, but passage in the U.S. Senate is uncertain. Facebook has been misused by the U.S. government to censor information and harvest information, Van Drew said, as has the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. FISA was intended to be used for gathering foreign intelligence, but legal loopholes have allowed it to be used to conduct hundreds of thousands of searches for Americans private communications every year, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. "That's the constant battle you have," he said. But practicality won out for him, Van Drew said. "All (TikTok) has to do is divest itself of Chinese interests," Van Drew said. ATLANTIC CITY The New Jersey Economic Development Authority has launched a $5.2 million program intended to help address food insecurity in the resort. The Atlantic City Food Security Grants Pilot Program, funded by state and federal dollars, will provide grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 to fund projects to strengthen local food access. The grants can be used for direct and indirect project costs. The program, which the NJEDA approved in October, is meant to act as a more immediate response to food access issues as residents await the construction of a full-fledged supermarket, which could take years, according to the authority. As it stands, the city does not have a deal for a supermarket, despite two recent attempts to lure one. In 2021, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority held a groundbreaking for an $18.7 million ShopRite on Baltic Avenue. But ShopRite eventually pulled out of the deal, frustrating politicians from Gov. Phil Murphy on down. Then, in September of last year, the CRDA rejected four new supermarket proposals, citing the requested subsidies. Instead, the board voted to give the owner of the existing Save A Lot discount grocer in Renaissance Plaza a $250,000 grant to help with rent. Can Atlantic Citys original failed supermarket site be the key to its revival? The pols, naturally, wanted ShopRite. They considered the existing Save A Lot and dubiously named Renaissance Plaza on Atlantic Avenue a lost cause. Nonetheless, perhaps by default, it is now Renaissance Plaza that the pols and money controllers are looking toward to solve the problem of the lack of a big-name, full-service supermarket in Atlantic City, a city of 38,500 people and a 32% poverty rate. But is it enough? Our focus has really broadened to include investments in food security, food access, alleviating food deserts, said Tara Colton, chief economic security officer for the NJEDA, during a meeting the organization held Wednesday at Stockton Universitys City Campus. The fact that the states economic agency is putting its money where its mouth is no pun intended is a signal about the importance of combating hunger and combating food insecurity. It shows that this is not a handout, its an investment, and it has smart, strategic economic impact. Atlantic City and parts of Ventnor are considered food deserts due to their lack of food options, officials said. Im very excited to see so many people here from presenting nonprofits and profits that are interested in providing enough food for everyone, said Assemblyman Don Guardian, R-Atlantic. No one should ever go to bed hungry, and no one should not be able to have a well-balanced meal. So whether were helping people to cook better meals, or were giving them food because they dont have the money because theyre trying to pay to live where theyre living or pay for the utilities I think its great that were all here today. Guardian, who also served as mayor of Atlantic City, pointed out a variety of food security efforts in the city, like the Mighty Writers opening up a food pantry at 300 N. Tennessee Ave., the city and Ideal Institute of Technology opening up the Midtown Co-Op Market at 7 South Carolina Ave., AtlantiCares Community Mobile Market and Virtua Healths Eat Well Atlantic City mobile supermarket. The NJEDA has provided about $26.75 million in funding for projects in Atlantic City, so the food security program was another way the authority has showed its commitment to the city, Mayor Marty Small Sr. said. As you know, and its been well chronicled, that we had a severe letdown, Small said. We thought we had the deal with ShopRite to build a world-class supermarket, main branch supermarket for residents of this great city that they truly deserve, but we cant harp on that. We have to move forward. OCEAN CITY A bald eagle that appeared to be injured was rescued earlier this week in the resort. In a video posted to Facebook on Monday, the Humane Society of Ocean City showed members of the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife assisting them in capturing the eagle, which the Humane Society dubbed "Eddie." The video showed the grounded eagle, which was huddled up next to a house, being surrounded by three people carrying large nets. As the people approached, the eagle attempted to fly away but was captured in the netting. The raptor was transported to Tri State Bird Rescue in Delaware, where they hope he will make a full recovery and be returned to the wild, the Humane Society said. Courtney Venzie, director of operations at HSOC, said Thursday that they got a call in around 10 a.m. Monday from a passerby about an eagle that was grounded near Waverly Beach off East Atlantic Boulevard. HSOC observed the eagle for a few hours before calling DFW for assistance. Venzie said its uncommon to see a raptor sitting out in the open for several hours, unless they're feeding or resting. "Sometimes they fly into something, get stunned and need a rest," said said. It was clear what the injury to the eagle was, she said, adding that a worker on the scene said one of its eyes may have been cloudy, but they weren't too sure. Venzie had not heard an update from Tri State Bird Rescue as of early Thursday afternoon, but she planned to check in on the bird. This was the first eagle they had to deal with this year, she said. "We get ospreys, falcons, hawks. I got a red vulture a couple months ago," Venzie said. "We do get them fairly regularly, specially in the summer." As the states recreational cannabis industry continues to boom nearly two years after its launch, women are becoming an increasingly large part of its success. The legal cannabis market has largely been a white, male-dominated field. But New Jerseys legalization law includes a social equity component intended to prioritize applicants who are women, people of color, and those hurt by the War on Drugs, among others. Women involved in different facets of the states cannabis industry told the New Jersey Monitor that being a woman in the business is not without its hurdles. They still face blatant sexism. They have trouble securing capital compared to their white, male counterparts. And even with New Jerseys goals to provide social equity when approving cannabis licenses, the industry remains male-dominated. So while they agree there are more steps to take toward equity and equality, they attribute their success to a supportive system of women cannabis entrepreneurs who lift each other up. Ive been really lucky to have a lot of female mentorship in the cannabis space, which is how I gained the knowledge and competence to be where I am today. There were women who opened the door for me, said Fran DeRogatis, owner of Bloomfield dispensary Nightjar. Of the 1,600 cannabis licenses approved by the state Cannabis Regulatory Commission which oversees the states industry more than 400 are for majority women-owned ventures. The 100-plus dispensaries in New Jersey are operated by 81 companies, and 39 of those are majority-owned by women, according to state data. Commission chair Dianna Houenou said the women-led board sets an example for other entrepreneurs. Women are developing and implementing sweeping regulatory policies, owning, and managing thriving cannabis businesses, educating the public about emerging industry issues, and devising creative solutions to succeed despite the obstacles, Houenou said in a statement. Their expertise, creativity, and dedication drive growth and promote diversity and inclusivity within the industry. Weed tourism could bring millions to Atlantic City, panelists say Speakers at Destination Cannabis: Spotlight on Atlantic City, a webinar presented Thursday through Stockton University, said cannabis travelers are looking for experiences. How women have broken into cannabis Precious Osagie-Erese founded a cannabis delivery company called Roll Up Life with a childhood friend in 2018, hoping to open a store in her hometown of East Orange. But after facing rejection for a municipal license, she started her second company, Precious Canna Co. As CEO of the preroll company, she designs packaging, chooses the strain of weed, and talks to stores about stocking her prerolls. The idea came to her, she said, after she realized none of the branding or packaging on existing products spoke to her. She named it after herself not just to have ownership over her product, but to show other women they can build their own brands and see them succeed, she said. Osagie-Erese calls her company the birth child of all the hardships, in part due to the fight she had to get her last one off the ground. Ill be able to use that background, and a lot of barriers and obstacles I went through, to form something that I think will help create an even more lasting impact, that shows women especially African American woman that there is a lane, even if the door shuts in front of them, she said. Matha Figaros journey from the illegal street market otherwise known as the legacy market to todays legal market has also been one of struggle. She left behind a fine dining career and shifted to selling butter cakes at Jersey City farmers markets, and began infusing them with cannabis after a customer said his mother was using cannabis medically while undergoing chemotherapy. Her company, ButACake, became an exclusively infused baked goods brand, which served the unregulated market from 2016 until last April. Now, she holds a partnership with ColumbiaCare, a cannabis company with stores in New Jersey and Delaware that distributes her products. But the states requirement to have a business address to apply for a license meant she had to shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars to rent space before she could legally sell her products, she said. And when it comes to getting products like cookies and brownies in stores, it can take as long as six months to be approved by the Cannabis Regulatory Commission and undergo testing. Figaro, who is Haitian-American, criticized the rollout of legal cannabis in New Jersey. Grant money wasnt equally distributed, people had trouble qualifying as social equity applicants, and officials dragged their feet on regulations and approvals that led to a delay in sales and a lot of wasted money, she said. The state of Middle Township is strong, mayor says In his first State of the Township presentation as Middle Township mayor, Christopher Leusner presented a rosy picture to members of the township Chamber of Commerce at a recent meeting. About 0.37% of all venture capital across all industries goes to Black women, according to a 2021 study from data provider Crunchbase. Figaro, the first Black woman cannabis manufacturer in New Jersey, said state regulators and the cannabis industry need to find ways to improve that statistic. Its not like were out here not asking. Theres not that many Black women publicly asking to get into this space even. For the five of us who are here and want to do this, it shouldnt be that hard, she said. For women to continue to succeed in the cannabis industry, there must be a statewide intentional effort, said Jessica Gonzalez, a cannabis attorney at Rudick Law Group. Lowering the barriers to entry for businesses owned by women and particularly women of color will require solutions from all parties, she said: the Cannabis Regulatory Commission, the Legislature, and municipalities across New Jersey. Still, many business owners applaud New Jersey cannabis officials for their commitment to prioritizing inclusivity and taking diversity seriously. Osagie-Erese lauded New Jerseys move to set the tone early by appointing a Black woman, Houenou, to chair the state cannabis agency, while DeRogatis attributes the tight community of women in this space to the state prioritizing women- and minority-owned businesses at the forefront. Its never perfect, like licensing schemes are always challenging, but theyve done a lot right in terms of prioritizing diversity and helping women-owned businesses in the state of New Jersey, she said. Finding support in their communities Cannabis is very much a boys club think of a stoner and you probably think of a male skater type but the women now entering the industry are helping to shift the narrative, said Osagie-Erese. The women all reiterated their appreciation for the strong female mentors they have, and the importance of those who paved the way and continue to reach back to help others at the starting line. DeRogatis runs Nightjar with her co-founders, Amanda Rositano and Katie Covett. Not only is her team women-led, but the attorneys and advisers Nightjar works with are also women. Albany Avenue cannabis expansion push shows competing Atlantic City interests The two local men seeking to open a cannabis store in a former bar on Albany Avenue grew up in the area and say their lives were deeply affected by drug enforcement. We truly believe that to bring women up, not just in the industry, but in general, is to give women opportunities, to give them our money and our time and to make sure that were putting back into that ecosystem, she said. Women are driving conversations in the industry, she said. Having women as decision-makers leads to more products that are geared toward them, like products for period cramps or sexual health. Figaro noted she also has a team of women helping her. One of her customers in the unregulated market helped her get the $20,000 she needed to secure a manufacturing license. Another friend, her right-hand woman in the business, has been a great sounding board for her. She pointed to other female business owners who care about her products and promise to carry them in their stores. All that support made it easier to make the decision to partner with a big company in an effort to get her products into more customers hands. Back then I thought it was like David and Goliath, but having those women to speak with, it really pushed me along and it really made the difference, she said. Support the individuals who paved the way Over the six years Gonzalez has been involved in cannabis, shes learned the art of politics and art of effective education. She urged women looking to break into the industry to educate themselves on cannabis and business policies at the local, state, and national levels. Start working with the cannabis community and support the individuals who paved the way. Figure out what type of advocate you want to be and leverage your expertise to propose solutions, said Gonzalez, an Ecuador native who now lives in Jersey City. Osagie-Erese also encouraged other women to ensure they are educating themselves on business in general and cannabis before jumping into the industry. She spent nearly two years researching not just how to pitch ideas and fundraise, but also the history of cannabis and how the endocannabinoid system works. Atlantic City's 3rd recreational marijuana dispensary to open Monday Legal Distribution will open at 3112 Atlantic Avenue, just blocks from the Stockton University campus and minutes from the Atlantic City's downbeach section. When we look at diversity numbers, we do not understand why were not seeing more women, not seeing more Black- or brown-owned companies. I always say when we get to the education that doesnt always enter spaces where Black and brown people are, we will see those numbers increase, she said. Figaro stressed that succeeding in the business is hard, but its not impossible. Something that started for her as a passion project at farmers markets transformed into a business with products for sale in two states. Figaro called this a blessing. Her advice for women is to be relentless, not to take no for an answer, and force your way into the business if you have to. Ultimately, the more of us that do it, the more well-rounded this industry will be. Hopefully, in a couple of years, we wont be talking about how only 2% of us own the market. Well be talking about how 50% of us own the market, she said. So to all the girlies out there stay with it. This story first appeared on the New Jersey Monitor. As I write this, I'm holding the first CD I ever purchased. Its jewel case is cracked and splintered. If you grab it at the wrong angle, you may cut your fingertips. One crack in the plexiglass stretches across the back cover, splitting the track list in half with near-perfect symmetry. There are fissures on this album about fission and they stretch like the roots of a tree. If I look hard enough into the cloudy, black amorphous shape at the center of its front cover, I can see myself. The disc inside is for "A Thousand Suns," nu-metal band Linkin Park's fourth album and certainly their most ambitious. In the annals of music history, it is likely that Linkin Park will forever be known for their first record, 2000's "Hybrid Theory," one of the 50 best-selling albums of all-time. But 2010's "A Thousand Suns," is still my favorite record of theirs. It's probably my favorite record, period. "A Thousand Suns" gets its title from a quote by J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb. From start to finish, it's a concept record that uses nuclear war as a vehicle for guilt, change and the strength of numbers. This week, I came back to the album for a fitting reason: "Oppenheimer," the Christopher-Nolan-directed biopic, won Best Picture at the 96th Academy Awards. The movie's three-hour runtime is equal parts scientific theory, riveting legal drama and psychological horror. It was one of my favorite films of last year and I'm glad it was awarded Best Picture. As much as I love the movie, though, my favorite piece of media inspired by Oppenheimer is still "A Thousand Suns." Where you may not see yourself in the film-adapted Oppenheimer's scientific genius, you may see yourself in Shinoda and Bennington's self-destructive lyricism I know I do. "Burning in the Skies" Haunting, orchestral instrumentation blends the album's first three songs together. When I first listened as a kid, it confused me. The CD player said I was on the second song, but the first one didn't sound like it was over. On "The Radiance," audio of Oppenheimer's famous speech quoting the "Bhagavad Gita" is played. "We knew the world would not be the same," he says, referring to the emotional weight of the first successful bomb test in New Mexico. "Few people laughed, few people cried, most people were silent." Eventually, the record opens to "Burning in the Skies," a soaring and catchy rock song defined by its regret. On the chorus, Bennington sings with the same idealistic martyrdom that lies underneath Cillian Murphy's portrayal of Oppenheimer. After all, sometimes it's easier to be tarred and feathered than reckon with your own misdoings. Both works come to the same conclusion: one cannot atone for the destruction of others by destroying themselves. "When They Come For Me" Rather quickly, any hope is gone track five, "When They Come For Me," is pure annihilation. Its lagging percussion moves with the militance of an army. Shinoda's raps are punctual, accented by his villainous cadence. It's vulgar and bloody rap-rock. Conceptually, it's the realization that death simply leads to more death. War leads to more war. Brad Delson's arpeggiated guitars help bring the song spryly to such a grim conclusion. "Waiting For The End" Within the album's concept, an inflection point comes on track eight. The narrator, most likely a mirror of ourselves, has to decide to change on "Waiting For The End." Outside of the album's narrative confines, "Waiting For The End" is a song about personal ends and beginnings blurring together. "All I want to do is trade this life for something new, holding on to what I haven't got," Bennington sings. This song, with its overlapping vocal catharsis, captures the dichotomy of change perfectly. The more I change, the more I understand it. It's probably my favorite song of all-time. In its chorus, I see myself as a forest fire with the breathing room of a furnace. The blaze in my gut is yearning for change, to breathe in the air of somewhere new, something new, someone new. It's hesitant to reach beyond the confines of its hearth. A mist lurks around the corner. I'll love this song for as long as my fire burns. "Wretches and Kings" "Wretches and Kings" and its predecessor "Blackout" are the natural endgame of the spark on "Waiting For The End." On these vocal chord-bursting, bass-knocking nu-metal classics, the narrator seems to suggest that the only way out of nuclear destruction is anarchy. "Wretches and Kings" interpolates a famous speech from Berkeley counterculture revolutionary Mario Savio. In the songs that follow, there's a breath of fresh air, as if the revolution succeeded. "The Catalyst" But yet, "The Catalyst," the album's lead single and de facto outro, suggests that the revolution was futile. Its message is damning: the bombs will go off and they will destroy us and it's already too late. "God, save us, everyone," Bennington chants. Church-like organs are drowned out behind him by rattling DJ scratches and electronic collisions. "Will we burn inside the fires of a thousand suns?" "The Catalyst" closes the narrative, but Linkin Park chooses not to bid farewell so bleakly. "The Messenger" Instead, "A Thousand Suns" closes with an elegy of sorts. "The Messenger" is the band's only all-acoustic song ever released. It's a reminder that love, not war, can save us from ourselves. Community, not self-inflicted revenge, can prevent the album's forewarned apocalypse. On one Sunday after getting home from church, my dad memorized this song's chords on guitars just so we could sing it together. I was 11 and I almost ripped my throat open trying to hit all the notes. My dad smiled with a grin of musical focus and pride. "Remember you're loved and you always will be," we sang. "This melody will bring you right back home." As I write this, I'm opening the first CD I ever purchased. The lyric sheet inside is wrinkled and used and torn and loved. If I look closely enough into its crevices, I can see a younger version of myself, at home, learning to love music. Learning to love. Learning. Concert of The Week: Camp Regret and In The Pines at Rozz-Tox On Saturday, check out Ohio psych-rock band In The Pines play at Rozz-Tox in Rock Island alongside local post-punk trio Camp Regret. Tickets are $15 and the show starts at 8 p.m. Rozz-Tox is a one-of-a-kind venue and this is the perfect show to get your feet wet there if you're not familiar. On This Daytrotter: Lucy Dacus on March 17, 2016 Eight years ago, Lucy Dacus played a Daytrotter session right here in the Q-C. Today, she's a three-time Grammy Award winner with alt-folk supergroup boygenius. "Map On A Wall," which Dacus opened with in her Daytrotter session, is a beautiful song about change. It's easily one of my favorites from her solo work. "If you want to see the world, you have to say goodbye," she concludes. "Cause a map does no good hanging on a wall." The fire persists. This story was originally published March 14. April's solar eclipse is nearing, and students at John Deere Middle School in Moline are prepared to watch with a clear yet safe view. Thanks to a four-year partnership with the Popular Astronomy Club of the Quad Cities, the school held a pre-eclipse viewing session on Tuesday. Deere students and families got to practice their solar eclipse-viewing using a high-grade astrophotography camera and solar-filtered Meade LX200 telescope to view the sun. Dylan Sitko, an eighth-grader at Deere, said he got a small telescope for Christmas as a child but it was nothing like this. They had a video (device) attached to a telescope, so we didnt really have to look directly into the telescope, to see the sun, he said. Dylan and a group of three peers Ava Davis, Olivia Glenz and Ally Jones agreed that learning about sun spots was the most notable takeaway from Tuesdays viewing session. "I noticed that there were multiple sunspots," Ava said. "If they're darker, that means they're (lower) in temperature." She and Olivia recalled a similar activity with their science teacher, Chad Potter, and the Popular Astronomers only then, they got a glimpse of Saturn. "That was also really cool, because I hadn't ever seen (space) with such, like, high technology," Olivia said. "It's always fascinated me, ever since I was younger. My dad got me into (astronomy), so it was really cool seeing this today, something other than what we saw earlier, with Saturn." It was Ally's first time using such high-grade telescopic equipment. "For my first (solar) eclipse, I think it was a really cool experience," she said. "You had to wear the glasses, and really focus-in to really know what was going on This was really just an opportunity that I really wanted to take." The local Popular Astronomy Club also led a presentation on the sun and solar-viewing safety, urging the following key tips: Never look directly into the sun. Only use solar glasses stamped with an ISO specification indicating approval for solar eclipse viewing. If you don't have access to the appropriate glasses, attend a viewing event that provides an appropriate solar eclipse telescope. "It's really nice to have experts in the field come out and talk to kids about astronomy, because it's not one of my strong suits," Potter said, adding astrophotography has become a tradition at John Deere. "They make a lot of this information interesting for the kids." Deere will host a solar eclipse viewing on April 8 in place of their normal 7th-period. Recent developments in space exploration via the James Webb Telescope coupled with other eclipses within the past few years has triggered both an uptick in nationwide publicity and local interest, said Dale Hachtel, president of Popular Astronomy Club of the Quad Cities. "That has sparked a lot of interest in answering questions like, 'Is there life out there?' 'What's going on out there?'" he said on Tuesday. "Even if some of these kids have their own, small telescopes they don't get to look at (space) through higher quality apertures. Some of these, you'd call a professional astronomy telescope. You can look at some things you just couldn't see (otherwise)." The Popular Astronomers donated 300 pairs of solar viewing glasses for this event, which students can earn via Deere's behavior incentive program. Deere students will be able to cash in 50 "Spartan Bucks" awarded for good behavior during the school day for a pair of the glasses. The partnership between Popular Astronomy Club QC and Deere began after Potter wanted to better understand an old telescope he found in storage. Alan Sheidler a former Popular Astronomy Club president volunteered to teach him about the telescope and even rebuild its electronics board. He also advised John Deere's purchase of four new telescopes and various high-quality eyepieces even dedicating a new astrophotography camera. "I think a lot of my students are just naturally intrigued by astronomy," Potter said. "Just looking up into the sky, they find it all interesting." While students may not want to pursue astronomy as a career, they voiced these natural curiosities. "I still think that I've learned some cool stuff, and I think it's all really interesting," Dylan said. "I think its cool they (Popular Astronomers) teach kids about what's out there." Tuesday's activities are part of roughly 20 programs available at John Deere via "Lights on for Learning," a five-year federal grant program that supports various before and after-school enrichment opportunities at no cost to students and families. "I wasn't sure what to exactly expect," Ava said of Tuesday's solar viewing activity. "But, I'm glad that I took the chance to do it." "I think it's (astronomy) fascinating," she added. "I mean, who wouldn't?" Photos: Popular Astronomy visits John Deere Middle School Bad news: A kettle was stolen from Great River Brewery. Good news: It was recovered and everything is still on track for the brewing company to return to downtown Davenport. Construction on Great River Brewery, 332 E. 2nd Street, has been ongoing for months following business' closure after the 2019 flood. But this weekend, it faced a minor setback. Davenport police officers responded Saturday morning to the brewery where the kettles owner told them someone took it out of the parking lot where he stored it, according to court records. During that interview, the owner told police the kettle was worth between $14,000 and $20,000. The kettle was supposed to go into Great River but had not made it inside the building yet. Saturday morning crews discovered the theft and alerted police, brewery partner Scott Florence said. Police got right to work and soon discovered the "kettle kaper" was caught on camera. It had been recorded by security footage from The Last Picture House across the street. Three men, Russell D. Figley, 60; Matthew D. Figley, 30; and James A. Crafton, 53, all of Davenport, are facing charges on allegations they were the ones that carried off the kettle, according to Scott County court documents. The Figleys have the same address but the court records do not otherwise specify their relationship. Authorities have charged all three with first-degree theft and first-degree criminal mischief. Crafton also faces a charge of driving under suspension. Court records did not identify the kettle's owner. Security footage showed the suspects arriving in the parking lot just before 4 p.m. on Friday. One of them gets out of a vehicle, loads the kettle into a pickup truck and is off the lot by 4:11 p.m. Authorities used largely the same narrative in the arrest affidavits for all three men. The charges against Crafton, however, specify him as the alleged driver of the Chevrolet Silverado used in the theft. He is suspended from driving in Iowa indefinitely. About 20 minutes later, the stolen kettle arrived at Midwest Recyclers, on S. Howell St., according to court records. Midwest staff told investigators that the vehicle with the kettle arrived at the scrap yard close to 4:30 p.m. Before paying for the kettle, the staff cut it open to ensure it was empty, court records state. Repairing that damage is expected to cost about $10,000. Once police arrived at Midwest to investigate, staff were able to provide identifying information about the seller, and also had security camera footage to share. Sunday, Davenport Police contacted Florence at Great River to let him know the kettle had been found. It is now being "patched up" before making its way back to the brewery. Monday, police arrived at the Figley residence at about 8:45 a.m. There, officers found one of the vehicles they suspect was used in the theft and met at least one of the Figleys, who, after being Mirandized, admitted to taking the kettle, records state. Davenport officers brought Russell Figley to the Scott County Jail at about 9:20 a.m. on Monday, according to the jail website. They booked Matthew Figley about 20 minutes later. The affidavits for Crafton do not specify the circumstances of his arrest. He was booked into the Scott County Jail around 7 p.m. Thursday. Russell and Matthew Figley remained in the Scott County Jail Tuesday, each held on a $10,000 bond, the jail website states. Both have their next court hearing scheduled for March 22, court records state. Those that frequented Great River prior to its closing in 2019 will have a whole new layout to look forward to. The brewing operations will be in the section of the building directly across from The Half Nelson. The larger space will allow for more tanks, and more beer. In the back of the building is the space where Florence will set up his "Streets of Italy project" serving pizza, with an emphasis on pick-up and take out. A mezzanine level inside the building will add more seating and extend into an outdoor deck. The large garage doors outside the patio is where the bar will be set up, with room for more tables and chairs. Connor Wood of the Quad-City Times/Dispatch-Argus contributed to this report. Photos: Village Hops Craft Beer Festival Saturday in the Village of East Davenport. The Rock Island Police Department has selected a name for its newest K9 officer. Blue was chosen by the children of Officer Alex Bowman, who will again serve as K9 handler, according to a news release issued by the city. The name was announced during Mondays city council meeting. During the weeklong naming contest, 1,313 submissions were received in the citys and police departments Facebook pages. After removing duplicates, there were 720 unique names remaining. The list was narrowed to 10 and Blue was chosen. When we decided to get the publics input into naming our new K9, we couldnt imagine how much our community would jump in and start making so many great suggestions, Deputy Police Chief Tim McCloud said. It was hard to keep up with all the submissions, he added. Blue is a 14-month-old Belgian Malinois-German Shepherd mix from Cedar Creek Kennels in Monmouth, Illinois. An anonymous donor and supporter of K9 programs stepped forward and contributed $10,000 toward the purchase and training of a new police dog for the department after the sudden passing of K9 Sparky Jackson after a medical procedure. Bowmen will go through 10 weeks of training with Blue at Cedar Creek Kennels starting at the end of March. Aiming to help address statewide shortages, Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC) is offering Substitute Teacher Authorization courses in March and June. Tuition costs $100, and students can complete the course in two Saturday sessions: To qualify for substitute authorization in Iowa, individuals must be at least 20 years old, hold an associate's degree, paraeducator certificate or further degree, or have earned 60 credit hours from a regionally accredited institution. The EICC course will cover ethics, classroom management, diversity and instructional strategies. Sessions will take place at Scott Community College's Urban Campus, located at 101 W 3rd St., Davenport. After students complete the course and meet all Iowa Educational Examiners requirements, they are authorized to substitute in K-12 classrooms. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there is a growing need for substitute teachers in the U.S., projecting that 17,400 new positions will need to be filled between now and 2032. For more information on EICC'S course or to register call (563)-441-4100. Photos: EICC students compete in inaugural welding competition CHICAGO Illinois is moving to join 10 other states that limit toxic forever chemicals in underground sources of water. Regulations unveiled last week by the Illinois Pollution Control Board are intended to protect millions of people from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS, some of which build up in human blood, cause cancer and other diseases and take years to leave the body. Nearly 300,000 Illinoisans rely on utilities where PFAS in well water exceed the states proposed standards, according to a Chicago Tribune analysis of testing conducted between 2020 and 2022. It is unknown how many of the 1.4 million people in the state who depend on private wells are drinking PFAS-contaminated water. The Tribune reported last year that state officials had decided it is up to individual well owners to have their water tested. The new Illinois initiative comes as President Joe Bidens administration is proposing the first-ever national drinking water standards for two of the most widely studied PFAS: perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), used by 3M for decades to make Scotchgard stain repellent, and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which 3M sold to DuPont to manufacture Teflon coatings for cookware, clothing and wiring. If adopted, utilities will be required to limit concentrations of the two forever chemicals in drinking water to four parts per trillion, an amount the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency determined is the lowest at which PFOS and PFOA can be accurately detected. Four other PFAS, including replacements for the original Scotchgard and Teflon chemicals, also would be regulated for the first time. Illinois plans to adopt similar limits for treated drinking water if and when the Biden administration finalizes its plan. For now the states action to restrict PFAS in groundwater addresses widespread contamination of a vital resource that needs to be protected for current and future uses, the Pollution Control Board wrote in a 70-page opinion. Corporations and government agencies potentially responsible for contaminating groundwater have spent the past two years lobbying against the states proposal. They fear the standards would prompt legal action by the Illinois EPA and private lawsuits intended to force the cleanup of contaminated sites and ensure well owners have safe water. Other states with PFAS limits include Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin. Lawyers for 3M persuaded a Michigan appellate court last summer to throw out that states standards for PFAS in groundwater, a decision under appeal before the Michigan Supreme Court. During the Illinois proceedings, witnesses hired by 3M questioned the science state officials relied upon and attempted to raise doubts about the reliability of testing methodologies, among other things. The state rule-making board rejected the companys arguments, noting the U.S. EPA and the World Health Organization have concluded that PFOA and PFOS are carcinogens. The largely hidden health costs of PFAS exposure are staggering. A 2022 study by New York University researchers estimated it will cost the current U.S. population nearly $63 billion. Government action to protect Americans from PFAS has been slow-coming in part because chemical manufacturers kept secret what they knew about the dangers. Documents unearthed during lawsuits show top executives at Minnesota-based 3M knew as early as the 1950s about the harmful effects of forever chemicals the conglomerate pioneered after World War II. 3M didnt begin telling the U.S. EPA what it knew about PFOA and PFOS until 1998 more than two decades after Congress approved the nations first chemical safety law. 3M and DuPont have paid nearly $2 billion combined to settle PFAS-related lawsuits without accepting responsibility for contaminated drinking water or diseases suffered by people exposed to the chemicals. 3M has long maintained the chemicals are not harmful at levels typically found in people. In June, 3M announced the company will pay at least another $10.3 billion to settle thousands of other claims accusing the company of contaminating public water systems with forever chemicals. DuPont and two other companies earlier said they had brokered a $1.19 billion settlement in the same cases, filed by cities and water systems across the nation and consolidated in a South Carolina federal court. The money is expected to be paid out over time to test for and treat PFAS-contaminated water. 3M said last year it will stop making the chemicals by 2025. Photos: Illinois State Fair political days through the years 2012 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2007 State Fair 2008 State Fair 2008 State Fair 2009 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2005 State Fair 2004 State Fair 2003 State Fair 2003 State Fair 2006 State Fair 2007 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2018 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2021 State Fair 2021 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2015 State Fair 2007 State Fair 2008 State Fair 2008 State Fair 2009 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2005 State Fair 2004 State Fair 2003 State Fair 2003 State Fair 2006 State Fair 2007 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2018 State Fair 2012 State Fair 2021 State Fair 2021 State Fair DES MOINES A bill that would limit the authority of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to purchase land for public use was shelved on Wednesday ahead of a key legislative deadline. The House State Government Committee opted not to advance the bill, making it unlikely to advance further and become law this year. Still, the committee's vice chair left open the possibility of the bill having some life left, noting that nothing's ever dead in this building. The bill, Senate File 2324, would have banned the DNR from purchasing land at an auction and from receiving donated land from a nonprofit that bought it at an auction. Dozens of outdoor enthusiasts came to the state Capitol this week to protest its passage. Supporters said the bill would allow Iowa farmers to more easily buy land without competition from the state. Rep. Austin Harris, the author of the House version of the bill and vice chair of the State Government Committee, said some Republican lawmakers expressed concern about the bill ahead of Wednesdays committee meeting. There were some concerns shared by some members as of right now, so we decided to pull the bill for today, Harris, a Republican from Moulton, said. We'll see what future avenues exist moving forward, but for today, we're just putting a pause on the bill. The bill will likely not clear this weeks legislative funnel deadline, which requires it to pass out of a House committee to be eligible for consideration going forward. But legislative leaders have ways to revive old bills that do not survive the funnel. Harris said the DNR already has a policy of not purchasing land at auctions, and the bill would simply codify that agency rule. He said during a subcommittee meeting on Tuesday that the opposition was motivated by "scare tactics." "I believe with all my heart that this is good policy that was created by the DNR," he said. "This bill will not change a single thing, it does not threaten public land any more than the current policy does." Conservationists oppose bill During a subcommittee hearing on Tuesday, conservation groups, hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts said they worried bill would limit Iowans options for outdoor recreation. Rod Marlatt, the chair of the Fayette County Conservation Board, told lawmakers that outdoor recreation is one of the top reasons people visit, move to and stay in Iowa. Recreation opportunities are the top reasons for visitors to come to Iowa and subsequently move to our state, he said. Todays visitors are tomorrow's residents. Beyond that, our public lands also retain residents both young and old." About 1% of Iowas land is public and available for use by Iowans, according to the DNR. After the bill failed to pass out of the committee on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation said the group was grateful that Iowans showed up to advocate on the bill and he hopes it does not advance any further. "We're so appreciative to everyone that advocated on this bill, reached out to their own legislators and members of the committee," he said. "...It just shows how much people really care about protecting public natural areas in Iowa." Lawmakers have made efforts to restrict the state's ability to purchase land for several years. A bill last year that would have required the state to prioritize maintenance of existing land over purchasing new land failed to get passed into law. Would it help farmers? The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation was one of the few groups that spoke in favor of the bill on Tuesday. Kevin Kuhle, a lobbyist for the group, said the bill would mean farmers are not competing with the state government for land that has risen dramatically in value in recent years. Kuhle noted, though, that the DNRs current policy means they are not competing with farmers at auctions. In the past our farmers have had concerns about government involvement competing against farmers for land purchases, he said. We appreciate that the state has stated that they are largely not competing for land, competition isnt the goal. Fred Long, the president of the Iowa Conservation Alliance, said high farmland prices, not DNR competition, are what is preventing small and beginning farmers from buying land. Iowa's farmland price reached a historic high in 2023 at $11,835 an acre, according to Iowa State University. "The young guy that's getting started, he doesn't have the money to wait 30 years to get a profit, so that's why he can't get started," Long said. Photos: Over 160 kids get hooked on fishing at Miller Park 060522-blm-loc-1fishing 060522-blm-loc-2fishing 060522-blm-loc-3fishing 060522-blm-loc-4fishing 060522-blm-loc-5fishing How healthy is your colon? The Bottoms Up 5K in Rapid City on March 16 is raising money and awareness about colon cancer and how to prevent it. March is National Colon Cancer Awareness Month, and this year it marks the return of the Bottoms Up 5K in Rapid City. The event has been on hiatus since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Organizers are excited about its return and the opportunity to educate people about colon cancer, while offering support to those whose lives have been affected by the disease. The Bottoms Up 5K walk/run will take place March 16 at Founders Park. Registration starts at 10:30 a.m., followed by the walk/run at 11 a.m. The pre-registration fee is $20; the general registration fee the day of the event is $25. Pre-register online at eventbrite.com/e/bottoms-up-5k-support-colon-cancer-awareness-tickets-842732153557. The Bottoms Up 5K is sponsored by The Endoscopy Center and Rapid City Medical Center. Proceeds benefit the work of the Colon Cancer Coalition, an organization dedicated to encouraging screening and raising awareness about colorectal cancer in the United States. Not only is colon cancer one of the most prevalent cancers, with very serious outcomes should it go undetected, more so its one of the more preventable ones. You can avoid colon cancer. It is not an eventuality, said Dr. Erik Raborn, a board-certified gastroenterologist at Rapid City Medical Center. Colon cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths across the globe (according to the World Health Organization), and in my opinion, the number one most easily prevented cancer, Raborn said. This year, the American Cancer Society estimates 152,810 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed in the United States in 2024, and the disease is increasingly affecting people at younger ages. Since the mid-1990s, the incidence rate of colorectal cancer has been rising 1% to 2% annually in men and women younger than 55. The medical community recommends that people get their first colonoscopy at age 45. Forty-five is the new 50, Raborn said. The change (to recommend colonoscopies at 45) was made about three years ago. Its really a data-driven decision because we are finding colon cancer in younger and younger persons. Most famously, one of the most recent advocates for colon cancer awareness was actor Chadwick Boseman. It eventually took his life. Boseman, who starred in the movie Black Panther, died in 2020 of colon cancer. He was 43. Genetics is one of the main factors that can contribute to developing colon cancer, Raborn said. If you have a family history of colon cancer, you should have your first colonoscopy at age 40 or earlier. Talk to your physician about it, he said. Don't ignore symptoms A key to preventing colon cancer is paying attention to warning signs. One of the main symptoms of colon cancer is bleeding, Raborn said. Bleeding is not normal. Youre not supposed to bleed when you go to the bathroom. Its abnormal and deserves further evaluation, he said. A colonoscopy is the only test for colon cancer that evaluates it and, if the cancer is caught early, a colonoscopy can be curative, Raborn said. Stage one cancer can be cured at the end of a scope. Sometimes Im able to clip the cancer out at the same time you have your colonoscopy, he said. Colonoscopies also provide an opportunity for physicians to remove polyps the pre-cancerous lumps and bumps that grow erroneously from time to time, Raborn said. Polyps can become cancer. By finding them and removing them, we prevent them from growing up into cancer, he said. Raborn said the medical community is trying to decrease the barriers that may discourage people from getting colonoscopies namely the preparation for a colonoscopy and the procedure itself. I want patients to really know that if the thing that makes you not want to do it is the bowel prep, there are lower volume preps. Unfortunately, none of it will taste good but if you want to come in and talk about it, were more than happy to (figure out) what works for you individually. Its a challenging process but its very important, Raborn said. We also offer all levels of sedation for this procedure, or you dont have to have sedation if you dont want to, he said. Raborn said Rapid City is privileged to have the largest group of gastrointestinal specialists in western South Dakota. Endoscopies can be done at The Endoscopy Center at Rapid City Medical Center, where Raborns practice is located, or endoscopies can be done at Black Hills Surgical Center or Monument Health Rapid City Hospital. Weve reduced the barriers to getting to a colonoscopy. Patients can refer themselves to Rapid City Medical Center for a screening colonoscopy. They can see any provider in the community and get a direct referral to us for a colonoscopy, Raborn said. In stock market terms, fishing activity in the Black Hills area is in a bear stage as area waters transition from a solid to a soft water state. With that, anglers are sometimes in a conversion period as well with ice fishermen weighing the possible consequences of making one more venture onto ice. Soft-water angling enthusiasts are fitting out boats while checking the open-water status and temperatures of their favorite fishing spots. They may also scan weather reports to find day and night temperatures best suited to making their fishing outing a pleasurable experience. Both have current options. For ice fishermen, Deerfield and a few gulches elsewhere have workable ice (caution advised) and will have it for at least a few days longer. For soft-water fishermen, the prairie lakes and ponds offer inviting possibilities. Stream and fly fishermen may have it best this time of year as bug hatches stimulate the interest of hungry trout in Rapid and Spearfish Creeks. A slow time of year? Possibly. But for die-hard fishermen, one fact always rings true: where there is a will, there is a way. And there is always a fishing spot out there somewhere. With that in mind, heres a brief review of possible spots at which to wet a line. Angostura Reservoir: This is a popular spot at present, but ice fishing is shutting down except at a few locations. Anglers are offloading boats and testing the waters, albeit with limited success thus farat least for the unlucky or those unskilled in the ways of the lake. The few walleyes being caught have been striking on jigs and minnows. Belle Fourche Reservoir (Orman): The lake is open, and reports indicate some walleye activity in the channel, a situation perhaps aided by surface chop due to water releases at the dam. Jigs and minnows have been working best. Some perch activity was reported near Gadens Point. Black Hills Area Streams: Warmer temps are gradually expanding stream opportunities. Nymphing and streamers remain the popular choice though with hatches of mayflies and midges, dry fly-fishing opportunities continue to improve. Water levels are down a bit due to lack of moisture though trout bite is steady. Deerfield Lake: Apparently solid ice can be located though deteriorating edges can or do make for hazardous access. And daytime temps will soften surface ice. Fishing activity remains steady with catches of perch, trout and the occasional laker reported. Pactola Reservoir: The lake is opening up, particularly on the south end, where anglers have been working the soft water and finding perch and trout activity. Jenney Gulch still has 8 inches of ice, reportedly, and there is some pike activity as well. Safe ice, perhaps, but caution is a must as shorelines soften. Sheridan Lake: The Lake is opening up, and the edges are iffy. There is supposedly workable ice though accessing and feeling safe once on is an iffy proposition this time of year. Casting the open water for catches of perch, crappie and trout may be the wisest choice. Sylvan Lake: As of a few days ago, the lake has workable ice (walking only suggested) and a very active trout bite. Stockade Lake: No reports. Lake Oahe: The lake is open on the south end and rapidly expanding farther north. The Cow Creek area might be the best bet presently, as pike are likely moving into shallower water. Otherwise, there is not much news. Lake Sharpe: Fishing activity is picking in the Pierre area as temperatures warm and walleye start to stack up as water temps climb. Continuation of currently pleasant March weather will determine spawn. The walleye bite has been fair to middling with most of the activity situated around current breaks. Lake Francis Case: Below the dam at Fort Thompson, there has been an active walleye bite. Activity has been slowly improving, if not exceptional, around Chamberlain as well. The best bite is probably a little farther south in the Platte area. UPCOMING EVENTS OF NOTE Wild Walleye Outfitters Summer Series: Angostura, April 27-28; Orman, May 11-12; Shade Hill, June 29-30. Entries open on March 15. The cost is $800 per team and $235 for individual tournaments. For additional questions, call 605-519-4286. Lake Francis Case Walleye Tournament: April 20-21, Cedar Shore Marina. Contact Scott Lewis (605-730-0283) for more information. Angostura Spring Walleye Classic sponsored by Walleyes Unlimited: May 18 & 19. Information can be found at the South Dakota Walleyes Unlimited website or by calling (605) 381-5300. Center of the Nation Walleye Tournament sponsored by High Plains Anglers: May 4 & 5, at Orman Reservoir. For more information contact Tim Emme (605-645-8949. Dakota Angler & Outfitter, 1010 Jackson Blvd., Rapid City; The Rooster, 1441 W. Main St., Rapid City; Wheel in Bait Shop, 18696 Fishermans Road, Fruitdale have contributed to this report. After a top Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks official was on paid leave for more than five months following an alleged game violation, the case against him has been dismissed. East Helena City Judge Dennis Loveless confirmed Wednesday he ruled in favor of a motion to dismiss the case against Mike Volesky, the chief operations officer for FWP. Deanna Rothwell, deputy attorney for Lewis and Clark County, wrote that her office moved to dismiss the case because they "do not believe that we could prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt," according to an email Rothwell sent that was obtained by the Montana State News Bureau. "Unfortunately, as we discussed on the phone, after consultation with multiple agencies and extensive evaluation of this case by myself and others in my office, we do not believe that we could prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt," Rothwell wrote in the email. "I understand this is frustrating. However, we have an obligation to only go forward on cases in which we have enough evidence to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. As such, the decision has been made to dismiss this case." Rothwell also cited the "unsettled nature of the Forest Service road at issue" as a reason for dismissal in the motion filed with the court. The landowner, Tom Burgess, disputes the claim that it is "unsettled" and maintains that it is his private property. The case was moved to Loveless' court after Justice of the Peace Mark Piskolich recused himself from the case "to avoid any appearance of conflict or impropriety" because he knew Volesky socially. On Oct. 10, Volesky was cited by his colleague Enforcement Division Chief Ron Howell. The citation claimed Volesky "knowingly or purposely or negligently" crossed private property to access public land to hunt on Sept. 29. Volesky pleaded not guilty to the misdemeanor charge of hunting without permission in an initial appearance in October. The incident appears to be intertwined with deep-seated familial squabbles. The land near Stemple Pass Road in Lewis and Clark County that Volesky was cited for being on is owned by Burgess, who is also the brother of Volesky's ex-wife. Because of where Burgess's parcel is located, it is easier to access public land by going through Burgess' private property as opposed to around it. Burgess previously told the Montana State News Bureau that he told Volesky and "everyone" in his family that Volesky is not allowed to travel through his private property as a means to get to the public land to hunt "because of bad blood" between the two of them. Burgess is emphatic that the case not be dismissed. Volesky stopped working in mid-October shortly after the citation was issued and has been on paid leave since then. He makes $56.04 an hour, according to state data, which amounts to about $112,000 annually. It is unclear if he will return to work following the dismissal, as spokesperson for FWP Greg Lemon declined to comment Wednesday because it's a "personnel matter." The Helena Independent Record's Thom Bridge contributed to this report. Colleen Curran Living Editor Follow Colleen Curran 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 Titos Taqueria & Bar is now open in the former Mojos space at 733 W. Cary St. The focus is on street tacos, with almost 20 options such as birria (beef or chicken, $15.95), carne asada ($15.95), carnitas ($14.95), chorizo ($12.95), lengua or beef tongue ($14.95) and tinga ($13.95), all served with fresh cilantro, onions and house-made salsa. Owner Tito Padilla, 37, grew up working at his fathers Amigos restaurants in the Richmond area. Originally from Mexico, the Padilla family moved to Virginia when Tito was young. He attended Brookland Middle School in Henrico County before the family moved to Charlottesville to open another Amigos. Growing up working in Tex-Mex restaurants, Padilla said he wanted to open a taqueria instead, where the focus is on marinated meats, tacos, cocktails and presentation. For example, the trompito al pastor tacos ($24.95) features marinated pork arriving on a tableside trompito for a grand presentation. Also available are specialty margaritas such as the Latina ($16.96), which blends tequila blanco with blue curacao, triple sec, sweet and sour, and fresh lime juice and arrives in a mini-bathtub with a rubber duck. The La Barbie cocktail ($14.95) with tequila blanco, Malibu, strawberry syrup and pink glitter in a glass rimmed with pink sea salt arrives smoking served over dry ice. Padilla took inspiration from a Beverly Hills restaurant and packed the menu with cocktails leaning toward an Instagram-worthy presentation. I like to look for exotic drinks, Padilla said. For example, you can get a tequila flight in a ceramic plane or a bull ($34-$66) and mezcal cocktails served in Day of the Dead mugs. Padilla owned a restaurant in West Virginia with his brother-in-law, but he wanted to move back to Richmond to be closer to his family. Like his dad before him, Titos Taqueria is a family affair for the Padillas, with his wife, son and daughter working at the restaurant. Padillas sister, Estefay, is working on opening her own restaurant called Le Fay Cafe next door. Le Fay Cafe will focus on brunch and breakfast and is planning to open in about three months. Padilla said he was drawn to the location because it is on the VCU Monroe campus, and he hopes to see foot traffic from students. The menu also has several vegetarian options, including vegetarian tacos stuffed with breaded squash flowers filled with melted cheese ($13.95), as well as vegetarian chorizo, potato, veggies and zucchini. Titos also serves burritos, lettuce wrap tacos for the carb conscious, fajitas, quesadillas and Flaming Hot Cheetos crazy corn ($6.95). The interior is dark with colorful tables, neon signs on the wall and a wrap-around bar. The restaurant can seat up to 80. Titos also offers a happy hour Monday to Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. with $5 margaritas and $4 beers. Titos is open Mondays through Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. PHOTOS: Tito's Taqueria The city of Richmond is right to charge Virginia Commonwealth University Health $56 million, even though the associated building projected failed, Mayor Levar Stoney said in a statement Wednesday. And he said state lawmakers should back off. Stoney rebuffed a call from legislators for VCU Health to terminate its contract with the city stemming from the collapsed deal to redevelop the Public Safety Building downtown. Now a tug of war has emerged between the city of Richmond and the state regarding real estate tax dollars. VCU Health should not be looking for ways to get around paying their fair share, and the state should not be in the business of negating legally binding contracts, Stoney said. The deal was signed in 2021, when the city of Richmond agreed to sell the Public Safety Building at the intersection of East Clay and North Ninth Streets for $3.5 million. The developer, Capital City Partners, would erect three buildings, including a 17-story office tower, and VCU Health would be the anchor tenant. The project would have cost north of $300 million. But the deal failed a few months later, thanks to soaring construction costs and souring demand for downtown office space. VCU Health paid $73 million to back out. VCU Health agreed to give the city a $56 million payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, over 25 years, even if the building was never completed. Governed by a state authority, VCU Health does not pay real estate taxes for its property. It agreed to compensate the city with a PILOT, because the city parted with a prime piece of real estate for less than its assessed value. In the General Assemblys budget proposal released last week, legislators called for VCU Health to terminate the deal. Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Charlottesville, said questions about the failed deal remain unanswered, and the state must make sure tax dollars are spent prudently. Most of VCU Healths revenue comes from patients not state funds. But a large chunk of its patients are insured by Medicaid, which is funded by federal and state tax dollars. On Wednesday, Stoney said the $56 million ensures the citys needs are addressed. The city does not collect real estate tax revenue the largest source of revenue for the city from property owned by the state government or VCU Health. But those parcels are still serviced by the citys roads, fire department and emergency medical services. While the state government brings thousands of jobs and people to the city, it comes at a cost. About 23% of city land is tax exempt, according to Richmond Magazine. It is our duty to our residents to correct this imbalance when such an opportunity presents itself, Stoney said. Just because VCU Health System has had limited responsibility for paying real estate taxes historically does not mean thats the way it should always be. VCU Health should not try to avoid paying its fair share, and the state should not be in the business of negating legally binding contracts, the mayor said. Dr. Marlon Levy, interim CEO of VCU Health, said the health system did not ask legislators for an exit path from the contract. Karah Gunther, VCUs vice president of external affairs and health policy, said legislators did not like the PILOTs ongoing nature and the precedent it sets. Even though VCU Health does not own or occupy the parcel and it apparently will not any time soon the health system still owes the city payments until the year 2045. Deeds said Wednesday that members of the legislature dont have a problem with the city of Richmond. But he said state officials need to figure out how the deal was put together and why the terms were agreed to. Deeds said he spoke with VCU president Michael Rao, but Deeds still had questions after their conversation. The senator declined to speak in detail about their meeting. I dont know how else to get information, Deeds said. A spokesperson for VCU declined to comment. Today in history: March 13 1781: Uranus 1954: Battle of Dien Bien Phu 1995: David Daliberti 2012: Rick Santorum 2013: Jorge Bergoglio 2017 : Ilich Ramirez Sanchez 2020: Breonna Taylor 2021: Marvelous Marvin Hagler Nine Richmond-area General Assembly Democrats say they oppose Dominion Energys plans to build a gas-fired plant in Chesterfield County that the company says it needs for when its growing fleet of wind and solar generators are not producing power. As members of the General Assembly, our concerns focus on the impact this proposed plant has on statewide efforts to reduce fossil fuel usage, lower carbon emissions, enforce the Commonwealths policy on environmental justice, and pursue renewable energy sources and technologies, the nine legislators said. This proposed construction runs counter to the measures the Commonwealth has taken recently to lower carbon emissions and to diversify energy production and storage, the legislators said. Dominion wants to install four natural gas-fired generators next to its Chesterfield Power Station, where it recently shuttered two coal-fired units. Dominion has said the generators will be able to produce 1,000 megawatts of electricity enough to power 250,000 homes. The Democratic legislators said the plant is expected to produce significant air pollution in a neighborhood that includes an elementary school and a disproportionate number of low-income and minority households. The legislators said the still undisclosed costs of the project are likely to be high, given that it will not be used all the time. Dominion has said it expects to run when peak demand for power coincides with little or no wind and solar generation. Wind power, like the $9 billion offshore facility the company is building in the Atlantic Ocean, 25 miles from the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, only produces power about 40 to 50% of the time the target for the offshore wind farm set by the State Corporation Commission is 42%. Solar facilities do not generate power at night, and not always during the day. They produce power about 20 to 25% of the time, Dominion said. Youre saying its a peaker, but its not actually operating as a peaker, Rachel James, an associate attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center, said at a recent town hall hosted by state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Chesterfield. A peaker is a facility to augment power generation at periods of peak demand. Thats far more than peakers are generally run, James said. Hashmi was joined on the letter by state Sens. Lashrecse Aird, D-Petersburg, and Lamont Bagby, D-Richmond, as well as by Dels. Delores McQuinn, D-Henrico, Betsy Carr, D-Richmond, Rodney Willett, D-Henrico, Rae Cousins, D-Richmond, Michael Jones, D-Richmond and Debra Gardner, D-Chesterfield. The legislators said the proposed plant flouts goals set in the Virginia Clean Economy Act of 2020, which calls on Dominion to deliver electricity from 100% renewable sources by 2045. Dominion says the act does allow it to continue to operate fossil fuel plants if the State Corporation Commission finds they are needed to ensure reliable 24-hour-a-day delivery of electricity with no brownouts or blackouts. Dominion Energy is all-in on renewables, said company spokesman Jeremy Slayton. Were building the largest offshore wind project in North America. We have the second largest solar fleet in the country, and its growing at a faster pace than any other utility in the country. He said 95 percent of the power plants the company is building are carbon-free, with the Chesterfield plant representing a part of the 5% that the company will need to cope with a rising demand for electricity, which it expects to nearly double over the next few decades. PHOTOS: Dominion's offshore wind turbines The Family Foundation, which says it advocates policies based on biblical principles, says Gov. Glenn Youngkins decision to sign a marriage equality bill into law is a major disappointment. The bill Youngkin signed says marriage is legal regardless of the sex, gender, or race of the couple, Victoria Cobb, president of the nonprofit group, said in a statement: Natural marriage is and always will be essential to maintaining the Commonwealth and world we all want to live in, and which God has created for human flourishing, In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the legal right to marry. That rendered moot Virginias 2006 state constitutional amendment that barred same-sex marriage by defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman. The bill Youngkin signed, House Bill 174, sponsored by Del. Rozia Henson Jr., D-Prince William, is meant to provide additional protection for same sex couples legal rights in case a changed Supreme Court overturns the 2015 decision. It says individuals empowered to issue marriage licenses circuit court clerks and their deputies cannot refuse to grant one to a same-sex couple, or to a couple on the grounds of their race but adds that religious organizations or members of the clergy, acting in their religious capacity, shall have the right to refuse to perform any marriage. Even with that language, Cobb said the bill will jeopardize conscience and religious protections for those who officiate weddings, adding its anyones guess what that means. In response to the foundations statement, Youngkin press secretary Christian Martinez reiterated his earlier statement that the bill adds First Amendment protections for clergy and religious organizations that decline to officiate marriage ceremonies that violate their conscience. He noted that the rest of the bill deals with the issue of marriage licenses that is already guided by federal law. Martinez said the Virginia Society for Human Life, the oldest pro-life organization in the state, said the measure would protect conscience rights and religious liberty while the RVA Log Cabin Republicans called it a small government, pro-freedom measure. The foundation said the bill forces local clerks of court and their deputies to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples even if doing so violates their conscience. A Kentucky clerk, Kim Davis, was briefly jailed when she refused a federal court order to issue marriage licenses. She had declined to issue any after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states could not refuse to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The foundation said it lobbied Youngkin to veto the bill or to amend it and noted that while it could have become law without his signature he chose to affirmatively put his signature on it. In a 2021 interview with The Associated Press, when he was running for governor, Youngkin said he feels called to love everyone. Asked whether that conveyed support for same-sex marriage, he said: No. Youngkin added that same-sex marriage was legally acceptable in Virginia and that as governor he would support that. Henson said in a statement: I am pleased that Governor Youngkin has recognized this historic moment and acted on the bipartisan support of the General Assembly. Today in history: March 12 1912: Girl Scouts of the USA 1925: Sun Yat-sen 1947: Harry S. Truman 1971: Hafez Assad 1980: John Wayne Gacy Jr 1987: Les Miserables 2003: Elizabeth Smart 2009: Bernard Madoff 2011: Ophadell Williams 2017: Tom Brady 2020: NCAA 2021: George Floyd The Virginia Commission for the Arts has launched a new specialty license plates program to support the states art community. Virginians are enthusiastic supporters of the arts, VCA Executive Director Margaret Hancock said. Drivers throughout the Commonwealth have the unique opportunity to share their passion by displaying the Virginians for the Arts license plate on their vehicle. With its colorful burst inspired by colors from the Virginia state flag, its an expression of joy, much like the art it serves to elevate. In 2023, the VCA invested $5.2 million in the arts by providing grant funds to 800 organizations supporting visual arts, performing arts, literary arts and more. In addition to the new VCA-inspired plates, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles lists 335 other specialty license plates that drivers can register for. Drivers can request license plates that display the name of a college/university, a branch of the armed forces or a nonprofit, like the Alzheimers Association. Specialty license plates can also be decorated with Virginia-specific things, like the cardinal, which is the state bird. Drivers can also personalize their license plates with any combination of letters and numbers that is meaningful, as long as it fits within the guidelines provided by the DMV. The registration fee for a personalized or specialty license plate is $25 annually. There is also a $10 annual fee in addition to the registration fee. Sixty percent of the funds generated through license plate sales and renewals will go directly to grants designated for artists and arts organizations. Top five weekend events: Shamrock the Block, Irish Festival, GalaxyCon Irish Festival Shamrock the Block David Spade and Wanda Sykes Maymonts new otter GalaxyCon Jasmine Yoon received Senate confirmation Tuesday to be U.S. District judge for the Western District of Virginia. She will be the first Asian American jurist in the state and the first person of color to be a judge in the district. The vote Tuesday was 55-41. Virginias U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine issued this statement: Were thrilled the Senate voted to confirm Jasmine Yoon to the federal judiciary. She has a remarkable track record and a profound commitment to public service. With todays confirmation, she cements herself in history as the first Asian American federal judge in Virginia. We know shell be a tremendous asset to the federal judiciary. Yoon was nominated by President Joe Biden after the senators recommended her to fill the position when Chief Judge Michael Urbanski assumes senior status in July 2024. The senators spoke at her confirmation hearing in February, and she was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee last week. Yoon, a South Korean immigrant who moved to the United States with her family at the age of 14, told the committee that she was grateful for an opportunity that a young, scared but grateful non-English speaking immigrant could only imagine in her wildest dreams. Western Virginias federal bench has, with just one exception, consisted of white men since the district was created in 1871. Elizabeth Dillon became the first woman judge when she was appointed in 2014. Currently, three women preside over the districts magistrate and bankruptcy courts. Magistrate judges are appointed by the district judges; bankruptcy judges by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The jobs do not carry the higher power and lifetime appointment that comes with a Senate confirmation to a District Court judgeship. The Western District stretches from the Lynchburg region to the states western tip and extends all the way north to Winchester. It has seven courthouses; the largest one is in Roanoke. Last fall, Yoon was one of two names recommended to the White House by Warner and Kaine. The other was Patice Holland, a Black attorney with the Roanoke firm of Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black. Yoon, 43, is the wife of the districts U.S. Attorney, Chris Kavanaugh creating a possible conflict of interest should she be asked to hear criminal cases handled by his office. One possible scenario would be for Kavanaugh to step down from his four-year appointment, which was mentioned in a Virginia State Bar evaluation of the judicial candidates. Yoon and Kavanaugh have declined to comment. In a questionnaire submitted to the judiciary committee, Yoon wrote that if she were to be confirmed and Kavanaugh was still the head prosecutor, she would recuse herself from matters involving the office. Asked about Yoons possible conflict of interest last November, Warner and Kaine said they were confident that she would take the necessary steps to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest. Yoon faced no opposition at a judiciary committee hearing last month. Yoon is currently vice president of corporate integrity, ethics, and investigations at Capital One Financial Corporation. She previously served as counsel to the University of Virginia and as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Michael Paul Williams Columnist Follow Michael Paul Williams 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 term nepo baby has become popular in our vernacular as a dis to the offspring of entertainers who receive a leg up in the industry. And just last week, in a blow against the nepo babies of higher education, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed into law a bill banning legacy admissions in state public colleges and universities. But nepotism remains alive and well in government hiring. And you dont have to look far to find it. As reported by The Times-Dispatchs Samuel Parker, two employees who were fired from the Richmond Office of Elections have accused General Registrar Keith Balmer of nepotism. Balmer, they say, hired his brother Ahmaad Balmer and awarded contract labor to his wife, Melissa McFall-Balmer. This episode of All in the Family is not a new Richmond phenomenon. In September 2019, Selena Cuffee-Glenn, then Richmonds chief administrative officer, was fired by Mayor Levar Stoney after a Richmond Inspector Generals report outlined how five of her relatives including her daughter landed jobs with city departments she oversaw. Eight years earlier, then-Richmond Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr. became embroiled in controversy amid the hiring of a dozen family members during his tenure. Woody was not required to follow the citys nepotism policy as an elected constitutional officer. At the time, the heads of the Virginia Sheriffs Association and the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police shrugged off Woodys hiring of family members as no big deal, or perhaps even a positive if they met the same standards as everyone else. But Umesh V. Dalal, then Richmonds internal auditor, was less sanguine about the practice. A manager can hire their relatives even if they are not qualified. They can hire their relatives even if there are qualified candidates available, he said. Thats not a good recruitment policy. Payroll records show that Keith Balmers brother, Ahmaad Balmer, was hired by the Office of Elections during the general election in 2021 and currently serves as an elections specialist. Keith Balmer cited his role as head of a constitutional office in Parkers story, saying it entitles him to hire or fire anyone for any reason, with the exception of discrimination based on race, gender, disability or sexual orientation. When asked about the legality of hiring immediate family members, Balmer said his office does not have a policy prohibiting the hiring of individuals who are related to other employees. The Code of Virginia bars a general registrar from hiring his or her spouse as deputy registrar, but does not speak to other positions in the office. And a spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Elections told Parker that the department has no oversight over the hiring and contracting practices of registrars. That public policy, on the constitutional officer level, is so lenient when it comes to nepotism speaks to how wedded elected officials are to the perks of power. In Balmers case, just because it appears that he can hire family members doesnt mean he should. The rule of thumb applies: The appearance of conflict can be as damaging as actual conflict. Not every worker who complains about such a situation can be written off as disgruntled. Such hires are more than a bad look; theyre toxic for morale. Balmer doesnt serve at the pleasure of Mayor Levar Stoney. But the complaints of his former employees became news not long after former Richmond FOIA Officer Connie Clay filed a whistleblower lawsuit claiming that she was unjustly fired by Stoneys administration earlier this year for pushing back against the citys lax response to information requests. Coming on the heels of this lawsuit and City Halls disastrous application of the city meals tax, the registrars hiring practices could further erode trust in city government. And then theres the context of the times in which we live. Were a strange nation with situational ethics and emotions about nepotism. The myth of meritocracy is conveniently espoused, often to reassert racial privilege against the forces of inclusion. But for a nation that violently rebelled against a monarchy, weve bestowed inordinate power upon would-be political dynasties, from the Kennedys to the Clintons to the Bushes to the Trumps. Barron Trump for President 2044 buttons are available on eBay. Barron, son of Donald and Melania Trump, has yet to turn 18. Meanwhile, his fathers campaign team has taken over Republican National Committee headquarters. Trumps daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, has been elected as co-chair. As many as 60 RNC employees could be let go as part of this makeover, according to Politico. All this is on brand for a president who placed his daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner in senior adviser roles during his presidency. Meritocracy in government may have its limits. But working in an office of elections at the moment may be one of the most important and thankless jobs in America today. In a nation awash in conspiracy theories and political vitriol, nearly 1 in 3 local election officials have experienced threats, harassment or abuse, with more than half of those threats in person, according to an April 2023 survey by the Brennan Center for Justice. Meanwhile, only 44% of the public has a great deal, or quite a bit of confidence that the votes in the next presidential election will be counted accurately, according to a June 2023 survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. We cant feed the fever swamp of conspiracy with poor judgment. Given the headwinds against democracy, every aspect of our political process needs to be strictly above board. Preserving election integrity cannot be a family affair. Members of criminal group operating out of Tulum safehouses captured Tulum, Q.R. Four members of a criminal group were arrested in Tulum Tuesday in possession of more than 200,000 pesos. The three males and one female were reported taken into custody by the Secretaria de Seguridad Ciudadana (SSC). The arrest of Mateo N, Iris N, Roman N and Domingo N, allegedly involved in the crime of Disobedience and Resistance to Individuals in Tulum, is made, the SSC reported in a statement. Upon their arrests, police confiscated a total of 201,600 pesos in cash in bills of different national denominations of 100, 200, 500 and 1000 Mexican pesos. Six cell phones of different brands were also confiscated, they added. The four detained are reported to belong to Los Pelones criminal group. The Secretariat of Citizen Security (SSC) reported that state police were carrying out tours in Tulum when they spotted the four people on the corner of Escorpion Bis Sur Street. When they crossed in front of the police unit they began making obscene signs, spitting, insulting and verbally attacking police. When the four were searched, police located the cash and six cell phones. After their arrests, police learned of their relationship with Los Pelones who they now know operates out of two criminal safe houses in Tulum. Mexico City woman arrested outside PDC bus station after assaulting police dog Playa del Carmen, Q.R. A woman was handcuffed near a central bus station Tuesday after kicking a police dog then running. The incident happened inside a central Playa del Carmen bus station when a police woman and her dog were on a patrol operation inside the station. The woman, who is reported to have just gotten off a bus at platform 4, kicked police dog Enzo in the ribs as she was sniff-inspecting luggage. The dog offender then made a run for it, but was chased and captured by Enzos handler. The woman, identified as 55-year-old Monica N., had arrived at the Playa del Carmen bus station from Mexico City shortly before noon. She was detained and placed at the disposal of ministerial authorities for the dog assault. She is reported to have been a tourist. Police arrested a 55-year-old Mexico City woman for assaulting the SSC police dog. Enzo was taken to a vet by her handler who reported a few bruised ribs from the attack. Enzo is a member of the Secretariat of Citizen Security (SSC). Enzo was evaluated by a vet who reported bruised ribs from the bus station attack. Photo: March 12, 2024. Police did not say why the woman kicked the dog, nor is it known if she had any illegal items on her or in her luggage at the time of the incident. Young American woman with mental health condition found wandering Cancun streets Cancun, Q.R. An American woman found wandering the streets of Cancun was taken to hospital Tuesday morning. The 35-year-old was located wandering the streets of SM 248 around 11:00 a.m. after citizen reports of her poor health condition. She was found sitting on a sidewalk with socks and no shoes by responding Cancun police officers. After speaking with her, they learned that she she was staying in an apartment with friends when she got scared and jumped out of a window. The young woman was seen hobbling due to a sprained ankle. Police did not say how long she had been wandering city streets, but did say when they found her she showed signs of malnutrition and dehydration along with a sprained left ankle. Medical personnel from Escuadron de Rescate y Urgencias Medicas (ERUM) evaluated the woman before transferring her to the General Hospital. In a statement, the SSC Secretaria de Seguridad Ciudadana) explained finding the young American woman. The Secretariat of Citizen Security of Quintana Roo reports the Rescue and Medical Emergencies Squadron (ERUM) of the Secretariat of Citizen Security of Quintana Roo provided assistance to a 35-year-old woman who was wandering in Supermanzana 248 of Cancun presenting a condition of dehydration and malnutrition in addition to having a sprained left ankle. After first aid, personnel assessed her. She was transferred to the General Hospital to continue her medical care. Police found the women in response to concerned citizen reports. Photo: SSC March 12, 2024. The female said that she was with some friends in an apartment, however, she got scared and decided to get out of there by jumping out of a window. According to the doctors diagnosis, the woman has a mental health condition. The corresponding authorities are contacting her family for her care. The woman is reported to be from the U.S. state of Oregon and was vacationing in Cancun with friends. She arrived over the weekend and was staying in an apartment in the Villas del Mar subdivision at the time of the incident. Humans are not well-suited to radical immanence. After all, those who believe only in what they can see are still made in the image of God and possess a supernatural purpose even when they reject any kind of transcendent reality. But such a disconnect creates anxiety and malaise. As a result, substitutes for transcendence are pursued, which only make things worse. So says R.J. Snell in his new book, Lost in the Chaos: Immanence, Despair, Hope, a penetrating analysis of contemporary secularism. Snell is building on the work of the Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor, whose book A Secular Age argues that humans tend to think and perceive things through a frame, which, like a picture frame, limits what they can accept and imagine. Today, people tend to operate within what Taylor calls an immanent frame that fixates on the tangible and the immediately perceivable. There was a time, however, when people had a transcendent frame, through which everyone discerned a reality beyond the tangible and that gave the tangible meaning. The physical world was enchanted, that is to say, to one degree or another, it was porous to the supernatural, to gods or to God. Secularism is not a matter of modern science replacing religion, Taylor shows, since religion has continued to flourish during modernity. The immanent frame allows for an open-world in which the transcendent remains accessible, though modern-day believers still embrace their faith as only one option of many and exercise it through an immanent lens. But the immanent frame also allows for a closed world, the notion that the interior and material realm is all there is. Says Snell, drawing on Taylor, belief in a closed world is not a conclusion from rational or scientific argument. Rather, it is a moral stance, an ethical commitment. Secularity is demanded by a commitment to certain values held by the person who insists on independence, nonconformity, resistance to authority, and refusal of the consolations of an enchanted world. The coming apart of the premodern transcendent frame with the Enlightenment era resulted in an Age of Reform, a confident time of revolutions, social and political changes, and the new ideas of modernism, all celebrating a sense of liberation from the supernatural and otherworldly. But such reforms were often built on the unacknowledged remnants of the transcendent order. If matter is all there is, and matter can be reduced to physics and chemistry, meaning is impossible. A universe of matter in motion reduces humans to matter in motion, wet robots as we are sometimes called. If the universe isnt porous to the transcendent, human beings arent either. We become the source of meaning, but that meaning is pretty much pointless, having no relationship to the outside world, which is also pointless. The result is what Taylor calls the buffered self in which we are self-enclosed, separated from others and the world, and autonomous. Today postmodernism has finished off any sense of transcendence. As Snell says, Postmodernism and its progenitors critiqued and deconstructed any and every claim of order, harmony, or rationality as nothing more than projections of power and force. This allows for no hope of any kind. Life itself is no longer necessarily considered a good thing. Along with the decline in the number of marriages to the lowest level in history is the rejection of parenthood. Children have always been the sign of hope, Snell says. But today many young adults are getting sterilized on the grounds that it is immoral to bring children into this world. Coupled with the acceptance of abortion, the conclusion is that it is not good to be, not worth giving life to another. So what can anyone do in this climate of despair? Snell examines three options. The first is frenzied activism. He notes the difference between natural rights, grounded in objective reality and transcendent morality, and todays human rights, grounded only in the buffered self. The latter have no content. They are formless aspirations to equality rather than substantive claims about the good. They are purely negative: freedom as the absence of limits; autonomy as the lack of interference by others; diversity as nonconformity and nonuniformity. The old progressiveswhether Marxists, socialists, or New Deal liberalswanted to construct a better world, and they had an idea of what that would look like. The new frenzy is an activism not of construction but of negation in which the point is to undo, to liberate and emancipate. Thus, the mode is one of undoing, taking apart, deconstructing, and critique, all in the name of emancipation, liberation, self-determination, and choice. This frenzy of negation is all-consuming and self-consuming. Snell notes how the sexual revolution, predicated on infertility and the termination of pregnancy, now turns against the sexed body itself, with the ideology of transgenderism. The frenzy of negation will never end, it should be noted, for these activists do not seek anything. Thus, there is no goal, just a constant conflict against objective reality. A second option in fighting despair is what Snell calls fever dreams of rationalism. This is the impulse to fix things by imposing some political ideology that is oblivious to human limits. Thus we have wokeness on the left and illiberal conservatism on the right. It is little wonder that those who assume that what is immanent is the only reality would turn to politics to solve their problems. But the pursuit of total politics is bound to fail because political power and the state are simply incompetent to solve the problems of the human condition. And a state that absorbs the function of the family and other civil associations is particularly dangerous. The third option Snell explores is to pursue a project of re-enchantment. That is, to imagine elements of the old enchanted universe even as one retains the buffered self. Snell notes the popularity of fantasyin literature, movies, digital games, and cosplay gatherings. Heroes with superpowers, dragon fighting, knights and fair maidens, elves and witches, and other kinds of magic that some people take very seriously, all evoke the enchanted world that has been lost. But this is safe fantasy, a simulacrum of premodern times that imposes no obligations and that we know is not real, and therefore not a danger to our protected selves. Other projects of re-enchantment include neo-paganism (both the hard paganism of trying to recover pre-Christian religions and the soft paganism of New Age spiritualism) and political fantasies such as establishing a theocracy, returning to a monarchy, the integralist project of restoring the temporal authority of the pope, or other utterly unfeasible and escapist theories. Snells final three chapters offer a foundation for genuine hope, the real solution to being lost in the chaosnamely, Christianity. More specifically, Catholicism. He takes a deep dive into Thomist metaphysics, showing how it can account for modern science and change while keeping everything porous to the supernatural. He then offers a quite definitive refutation of the secularist notion that science provides the only valid kind of knowledge. He does so by showing that reality is multifaceted such that reason is multifaceted, too. And, finally, he writes about hope itself, not as a subjective feeling of optimism but as a virtue made possible by God. The conclusion is built around Christ and the virtues of the Virgin Mary. This book offers a powerful apologetic with its dismantling of secularism. It is a distinctly Catholic apologetic, but it applies perhaps more than Snell realizes to Protestants, too. Snell, following Taylor, blames the Reformation for the loss of transcendence, making the extraordinary claim that the Reformation was not mainly about the authority of Scripture or justification by faith but the diminution of the Sacrament. If the Eucharist is the Real Presence of Christ, then something physical is charged with the supernatural. If not, then the whole transcendent frame comes apart. This would be news to Luther and the Lutherans, who then and ever since have insisted not only that Christ is really present in the Eucharist but that the bread is Christs body and the wine is Christs blood. Once again, Anglo-American scholarship, which knows mainly Reformed Protestantism, tends to assume that Luther and Calvin (and Zwingli) are interchangeable. But Snell is unfair to Calvin also. He says that the doctrine of Providence reduced the physical laws of nature and led inexorably to the detached deity and the clockwork universe of Deism. But Providence teaches that every detail of the created order is directed and controlled by God. All things, therefore, are porous to God, that everything that happens is due to the personal activity of God. Surely Providence is the opposite of Deism! As for other Protestants who did not go along with the Protestant sacramentalism of the Lutherans, did the Anabaptists not think their Christian communities were porous to God? One can see the porous self in Anglicans like George Herbert and Puritans like John Milton. Perhaps the Reformation had to do with individual Christians becoming porous to God. Maybe the Reformation was a continuation and culmination of the transcendent world, which would soon start to collapse, as the Enlightenment ignited in (Catholic) France sparked a reaction against both Catholic and Protestant orthodoxy. As Snell admits, Christianity and Judaism, with their critique of paganism and rejection of idolatry, played a big part in banishing the magic and enchantment from nature. And yet, while God is transcendent, He is also immanent. Indeed, Christianity is all about how the transcendent God entered the immanent frame. The church would do well to emphasize the doctrines of Creation, Incarnation, Atonement, Resurrection, Sacraments, and Vocation, all of which should resonate with those who have an immanent frame. Snell thinks Christianity may well come back. The times are auspicious. There is very little reason to accommodate and bend ourselves to the whims of the modern world, now that the world loathes and detests itself almost completely, he says. The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia is suing the Roanoke Police Department, claiming the agency refused to certify a visa for an immigrant who helped city police investigate a man for reports of physically abusing her. The ACLU said in a press release that the lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Roanoke Circuit Court, is the first of its kind. A hearing is expected to take place within the next 30 days. The plaintiff, a female immigrant, is identified only as Jane Doe in the filing, which was sealed Wednesday from public view. Virginia law protects the privacy of immigrant survivors of crime during the certification process and at the circuit court stage, Alexandra Werner-Winslow, ACLU of Virginia public relations director, said in an email Wednesday. These protections are to ensure that everyone harmed by violent crimes in Virginia regardless of immigration status feels safe to report to law enforcement. The Jane Doe identified in the ACLUs lawsuit helped police investigate her partners abuse in 2012, the ACLU press release said. After the conclusion of her case, the police department provided her with a U visas certification. A U visa, or U nonimmigrant visa, is a form of immigration relief for noncitizen survivors of violent crimes or human trafficking, the ACLU release continued. When people harmed by qualifying criminal activity cooperate with law enforcement agencies to investigate or prosecute that crime, the U visa provides them with a pathway to citizenship, the ACLU said. The ACLU said that Jane Doe is now eligible to adjust her status to become a lawful, permanent resident. But to do so, she is required to obtain a recertification of her U visa from the Roanoke Police Department to demonstrate that she participated in the investigation and prosecution of the crime that harmed her. But the ACLU said that the department has not certified Jane Does request. When she submitted her recertification request, the ACLU said the department claimed that it is not required by state or federal law to respond to it. That is patently false, the ACLU said. In 2021, the Virginia General Assembly enacted a law requiring local law enforcement agencies to respond to U visa certification requests by either certifying or denying them with a written explanation for why the applicant does not qualify. The law additionally establishes a timeline by which agencies must respond, and it requires that every agency publish the procedures by which they will do so. Immigrant survivors of crime have rights, Sophia Gregg, an ACLU of Virginia immigrants rights attorney, said in Tuesdays release. Virginia law is very clear: police departments cant arbitrarily refuse to issue U visa certifications any more than they could refuse to investigate the crimes that make people eligible for them. The ACLU claims that the departments refusal to recertify Jane Does visa is thus both contrary to Virginia law and confounding, given its earlier certification of her U visa request. The organization said the outcome of the lawsuit filed Tuesday will affect all applicants for U visas in Roanoke. Virginia is home to 1.1 million immigrants who suffer harm from a crime at rate of approximately 9.2 out of 1,000, the ACLU said. Congress created the U visa specifically to protect people whose immigration status made them reluctant to come forward for assistance from law enforcement. Roanoke Police Chief Scott Booth said Wednesday that the city has been successfully processing U visa requests, but due to internal miscommunication, this particular request was not processed in accordance with [its] normal procedures. The city looks forward to working with the ACLU to find resolution to their clients case, Booth said in a statement. We assure all Roanoke residents that we are a welcoming community, and we are committed to processing all U visa requests in accordance with the law. We have honed our procedures to ensure a more consistent response to these U visa requests. Booth said immigration attorneys or individuals who believe their requests have not been responded to appropriately by the city are encouraged to contact Sgt. Will Drake at william.drake@roanokeva.gov or 540-853-2673. BLACKSBURG For one hour, several dozen pro-Palestinian residents stood in front of the Town Council Tuesday night to demand that it consider a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the ongoing Middle East conflict. Many who came to the meeting were in tears as they gave their statements, citing images they have seen on the news and on social media. Toward the end of the public comment session, Councilman Liam Watson approached the podium and sat down a box of tissues for the speakers. Beginning at 5:30 p.m., several of the people who would later rise to speak at the meeting held a protest outside the municipal building, holding signs and chanting. Many of the protestors are part of an informal group that holds similar protests every Friday in downtown. This is the first time the protestors have addressed town council directly, something Bikrum Gill, a professor at Virginia Tech who frequently joins the protests, alluded to as he addressed the crowd prior to the meeting. We should have been here months ago, Bikrum said. Last week, Harrisonburg City Council passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire, becoming the first locality in Virginia to pass such an ordinance. Many speakers cited this as an example while asking the Blacksburg council to follow suit. Several speakers also cited the towns proximity to the Radford Army Ammunition Plant as a reason why the resolution might hold special meaning. So, why does it matter if a small town in Southwest Virginia passes a ceasefire resolution, Megan Peterson, one of the people who came forward to speak at the meeting, said. Well, according to the U.S. Army, about 10 miles away from where we stand right now, weapons are being manufactured, the ones that Biden bypassed congress to approve, and Blacksburg and Virginia Tech have financial connections to the U.S. military and the Radford Arsenal. Since Virginia Tech classes resumed for the spring semester, the protests have been held weekly calling for a ceasefire. According to Gill, local support for the protests has increased, with more locals voicing their support, and while Virginia Tech has not been very receptive, he hopes the town will hear their concerns. Watson and town Mayor Leslie Hager-Smith expressed their respect for citizens for coming up to speak after public comment ended. Watson said after the meeting that he was uncertain if a ceasefire resolution would come in the near future. Regardless of how you feel about the situation in the Levant, its obvious that the people of Blacksburg need empathy from their representatives, Watson said. And regardless of if we deliver a ceasefire resolution in the immediate term, its important that we show empathy, and show that we mourn with our citizens. Local Jewish groups have not held organized protests in recent months. Rabbi Zvi Zwiebel, the rabbi at Chabad at Virginia Tech, said there were no such events planned for his organization in the near future. We feel that we do not want to argue or get into screaming matches, but to show love and support for our local community, Zwiebel said. I would also like to say that all of us here have felt very safe at Virginia Tech. The Family Foundation, which says it advocates policies based on biblical principles, says Gov. Glenn Youngkins decision to sign a marriage equality bill into law is a major disappointment. The bill Youngkin signed says marriage is legal regardless of the sex, gender, or race of the couple, Victoria Cobb, president of the nonprofit group, said in a statement: Natural marriage is and always will be essential to maintaining the Commonwealth and world we all want to live in, and which God has created for human flourishing, In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the legal right to marry. That rendered moot Virginias 2006 state constitutional amendment that barred same-sex marriage by defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman. The bill Youngkin signed, House Bill 174, sponsored by Del. Rozia Henson Jr., D-Prince William, is meant to provide additional protection for same sex couples legal rights in case a changed Supreme Court overturns the 2015 decision. It says individuals empowered to issue marriage licenses circuit court clerks and their deputies cannot refuse to grant one to a same-sex couple, or to a couple on the grounds of their race but adds that religious organizations or members of the clergy, acting in their religious capacity, shall have the right to refuse to perform any marriage. Even with that language, Cobb said the bill will jeopardize conscience and religious protections for those who officiate weddings, adding its anyones guess what that means. In response to the foundations statement, Youngkin press secretary Christian Martinez reiterated his earlier statement that the bill adds First Amendment protections for clergy and religious organizations that decline to officiate marriage ceremonies that violate their conscience. He noted that the rest of the bill deals with the issue of marriage licenses that is already guided by federal law. Martinez said the Virginia Society for Human Life, the oldest pro-life organization in the state, said the measure would protect conscience rights and religious liberty while the RVA Log Cabin Republicans called it a small government, pro-freedom measure. The foundation said the bill forces local clerks of court and their deputies to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples even if doing so violates their conscience. A Kentucky clerk, Kim Davis, was briefly jailed when she refused a federal court order to issue marriage licenses. She had declined to issue any after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states could not refuse to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The foundation said it lobbied Youngkin to veto the bill or to amend it and noted that while it could have become law without his signature he chose to affirmatively put his signature on it. In a 2021 interview with The Associated Press, when he was running for governor, Youngkin said he feels called to love everyone. Asked whether that conveyed support for same-sex marriage, he said: No. Youngkin added that same-sex marriage was legally acceptable in Virginia and that as governor he would support that. Henson said in a statement: I am pleased that Governor Youngkin has recognized this historic moment and acted on the bipartisan support of the General Assembly. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have clinched their parties' presidential nominations with decisive victories in a slate of low-profile primaries, setting up a general election rematch that many voters do not want The Latest | Ship with food aid leaves for war-torn Gaza; Israel says 100 rockets fired from Lebanon A ship carrying 200 tons of food is on its way to the war-devastated Gaza Strip from the island of Cyprus The IRS launches Direct File, a pilot program for free online tax filing available in 12 states After weeks of testing, an electronic system for filing returns directly to the IRS is now available for taxpayers from 12 selected states " " The average annual temperature in the hottest country on the planet is roughly 84.6 degrees Fahrenheit (29.21 degrees Celsius). Atlantide Phototravel / Getty Images Did you know that some places on Earth can get so hot that local wildlife has evolved specifically to survive the extreme conditions? In these regions, the heat isn't just a summer wave; it's a constant presence. This survival strategy is not an isolated phenomenon but a common trait among the flora and fauna in the hottest countries in the world. Advertisement There are many ways to measure the heat and average annual temperatures in these scorching-hot regions. But focusing on the mean surface air temperature which averages daily highs and lows over a period to provide a consistent measure of warmth offers a reliable way to compare the relentless heat affecting both deserts and rainforests. DARLINGTON, S.C. The Darlington County School Board unanimously approved a guaranteed maximum price package of $38.6 million for the construction of the new elementary school in Darlington. Edcon, a school construction firm in South Carolina, made the bid. The price package is for construction of the building. Edcon is landscaping the site area at a cost of $8.8million. Superintendent Tim Newman pointed out that the price package is a guaranteed maximum price package, which means that the total cost cannot exceed that amount. The total cost of the project including site, building, architectural engineering fees, and furniture and fixtures is $41.5 million. The good news is we still have the money to pay for this in what I call our capital savings account, said Newman. We can pay for this school with money we have saved over the last few years. There is no extra tax burden on the taxpayers. A groundbreaking was recently held for the new elementary school, which will be at 2308 North Governor Williams Highway between the highways intersections with Floyds Road and Community Road. The 100,500-square-foot school will combine students from Rosenwald Elementary/Middle School in Society Hill and St. Johns Elementary School in Darlington. The new school is expected to be completed for the opening of the 2025-26 school year. The board also heard a report from Eddie Shuler, executive director of administration and operations, and Capt. Kim Nelson, district coordinator of safety and emergency management. Shuler said that after the fatal shooting in October on the campus of the Darlington-Lee Adult Education School, a survey form was sent out to all principals seeking information on security needs. Shuler said he and Nelson met with each principal to follow up on their responses. Since then, he said, every elementary school has received two hand-held weapon detectors. All requested cameras have been assessed and ordered. All schools have received Raptor training. Raptor is a visitor management system that enhances school security by reading visitor drivers licenses (or other approved state-issued ID) and comparing information to a sex offender database by alerting school administrators. Once cleared through the system, a visitor badge includes a photo. Nelson said that district schools have recently conducted five reunification drills. The drills help schools to better prepare for potential emergencies. Reunification is a process where students are reunited with their families after being evacuated from their school during an emergency. We have a plan to get students reunited with their families in the event something happens, said Nelson. The board also held a lengthy discussion on the state legislation passed earlier this month that allows residents 18 and over to carry handguns without a permit. Following the discussion, Newman stressed the districts policy is that no guns are allowed on school property, including parking lots. The next meeting of the Darlington County School Board is April 15 at Bay Road Elementary School in Hartsville. DARLINGTON, S.C. The Darlington County School District is again celebrating its Key to Career program after 85 students recently signed with 52 business partners to complete paid internships this spring. These students, who come from across the county and all of the districts high schools and senior-level special programs, will spend six weeks each at businesses. During the internships, students not only learn critical skills necessary to enter the workforce after high school but also they get a firsthand look into each industry to determine if its a fit for them later in life. The Key to Career program, launched in 2018 under the leadership of Superintendent Tim Newman, strengthens the school districts relationship with Darlington County businesses and industries. It also shines a light on all of the available workforce opportunities to keep Darlington Countys students in Darlington County after graduation. Shannon Flowers, the districts business engagement coordinator, leads the Key to Career program. She held the intern signing day ceremony at Mayo High School for Math Science and Technology in February and thanked everyone involved. Darlington County is at the forefront of career development initiatives in the Pee Dee, and we could not be successful without dedicated industry professionals that are willing to mentor our students, she said. From our faithful partners like Sonoco Products Company, Darlington County Sheriffs Office, and S.L. Barno Funeral Directors to our new partnerships with McLeod Health, MUSC Carolinas Hospital, and Luxe Beauty, there are community members as dedicated to the success of our students as we are. School career specialists and school counselors recommend the student interns, who underwent professional skills training and interviewed for available positions. The internships will take place at the employers campuses and will help prepare the students for life after high school. This semester, Key to Career has even placed students in registered apprenticeships at McLeod Health and North Industrial Machine. The 85 students participating this semester, along with the dozens who participated last semester, brings the number of district students completing internships this school year to nearly 140. That figure is up from 95 in 2022-23. Students in the Key to Career Internship Program come from all of our county high schools and represent myriad goals, Flowers said. We have high-quality students that are interning in fields that require college degrees and talented students interning in career and technical fields. All of these students spend four weeks developing soft skills before they even begin interviews. We are fortunate to have students looking toward a better life for themselves and our community. Initiatives like Key to Career highlight why the district is ranked No. 8 in South Carolina school districts for graduates who are career or college ready. Check out all of our Subscription Offers If you are currently a print subscriber but don't have an online account, select this option. You will need to use your 7 digit subscriber account number (with leading zeros) and your last name (in UPPERCASE). The skyline of Central Business District in Singapore, on Monday, May 16, 2022. Singapore is scheduled to release its first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) figures on May 19. (Bloomberg) By Chanyaporn Chanjaroen (Bloomberg) Singapore is planning to tighten its rules governing corporate-service providers, following a spate of money-laundering cases involving foreign nationals in the city state. All entities providing corporate services such as business formation and regulatory filings in and from Singapore will need to be registered with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority, according to a proposal that was published on Tuesday. The government is also looking to impose fines of up to S$100,000 ($75,140) on registered corporate-service providers and their senior management, if they breach rules on anti-money-laundering and illicit financing. ADVERTISEMENT The proposal comes in the wake of a S$3 billion ($2.3 billion) money-laundering scandal involving 10 Chinese-born individuals, who were accused of using ill-gotten gains from remote gambling businesses to fund lavish lifestyles. Many of them had set up companies in Singapore that had local citizens serving as directors and corporate secretaries. Nominee directors will be required to have their appointments and vetting done by registered corporate-service providers, under the governments proposals. The document did not include a cap on the number of nominee directorships one can hold, which was mentioned by Second Minister for National Development Indranee Rajah in October as to be included in the proposals. ACRA said it will step up its supervisory and enforcement efforts on persons who hold a large number of nominee directorships, and exhibit other high-risk indicators. This is a more robust approach, the authority said. Firms linked to the accused in the S$3 billion case had secretaries or directors who had roles in more than 3,000 companies, according to Bloomberg reporting. The public can provide feedback on the proposal until March 25. 2024 Bloomberg L.P. In many developing countries early childhood mortality has fallen by more than 75 percent since 2000, according to a joint UNICEF, WHO and World Bank report (Kobra Akbari) The number of children worldwide who died before age five reached a record low in 2022, the United Nations said in a report published Tuesday, as for the first time fewer than five million died. According to the estimate, 4.9 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2022, a 51 percent decrease since 2000 and a 62 percent drop since 1990, according to the report, which still warned such progress is "precarious" and unequal. "There is a lot of good news, and the major one is that we have come to a historic level of under-five mortality, which... reached under 5 million for the first time, so it is 4.9 million per year," Helga Fogstad, director of health at the UN children's agency UNICEF, told AFP. According to the report, prepared by UNICEF in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank, progress was particularly notable in developing countries such as Malawi, Rwanda and Mongolia, where early childhood mortality has fallen by more than 75 percent since 2000. "Behind these numbers lie the stories of midwives and skilled health personnel helping mothers safely deliver their newborns... vaccinating... children against deadly diseases, and (making) home visits to support families," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement. But "this is a precarious achievement," the report warned. "Progress is at risk of stagnation or reversal unless efforts are taken to neutralize the numerous threats to newborn and child health and survival." Researchers pointed to already worrying signs, saying that reduction in under-five deaths has slowed at the global level and notably in the sub-Saharan Africa region. - Preventable deaths - In total, 162 million children under the age of five have died since 2000, 72 million of whom perished in the first month of life, as complications related to birth are among the main causes of early childhood mortality. Story continues Between the ages of one month and five years, respiratory infections, malaria and diarrhea become the main killers -- ailments which are all preventable, the report points out. In order to reach the UN's goal of reducing under-five deaths to 25 per 1,000 births by 2030, 59 countries will need urgent investment in children's health, researchers warned. And without adequate funding, 64 countries will miss the goal of limiting first-month deaths to 12 per 1,000 births. "These are not just numbers on a page; they represent real lives cut short," the report said. The numbers also reveal glaring inequalities across the world, as the sub-Saharan Africa region accounted for half of all deaths of children under age five in 2022. A baby born in countries with high early childhood mortality, such as Chad, Nigeria or Somalia, is 80 times more likely to die before their fifth birthday than a baby born in countries with low childhood mortality rates, such as Finland, Japan and Singapore. "Where a child is born should not dictate whether they live or die," WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. abd/caw/ A long-time ally of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been attacked outside his home in Lithuania. Leonid Volkov was assaulted with a hammer and tear gas while in his car in Vilnius on Tuesday night, Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said. The alleged assailant is unknown, as is their motive. Lithuanian police have been informed of the incident and are investigating, according to the Reuters news agency. Another member of the Navalny team, Ivan Zhdanov, posted pictures on social media of Mr Volkov with a bloodied lower left leg and what looked like bruising to his temple. Asked whether the assailant had shouted anything, Mr Zhdanov said: "Everything happened in silence." "Of course this is a clear political attack, there is no doubt here". Mr Volkov's wife said he had returned home from hospital with a broken hand or arm, adding that he was unable to walk because of the hammer blows to his leg. "We will all work even more. And with even greater anger," she posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. Mr Volkov has lived outside Russia for some years for his own safety and served as Navalny's chief-of-staff until the opposition leader died suddenly in prison in the Russian Arctic last month while serving a 19-year sentence after being convicted of charges that were politically motivated. Mr Volkov, 43, also faces various politically motivated charges in Russia. He served as chairman of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation until last year when he resigned following the revelation he had signed letters calling for the European Union to drop some Russian sanctions. Despite living outside Russia he has also made sure that the activism of Navalny and his team could continue. This has included anti-corruption investigations, YouTube videos and livestreams during protests and major events in Russia. Many more activists moved to join Mr Volkov abroad in 2021 after Navalny's entire political organisation was labelled "extremist" and banned in Russia. Story continues Several of Navalny's former team are now in prison, as well as some of his lawyers. With presidential elections this weekend, Navalny's widow Yulia Navalnaya has called on opponents of Vladimir Putin to turn up at polling stations across Russia at midday on Sunday in an act of peaceful political protest. It was an idea supported by Alexei Navalny before he died. In an exclusive interview with Yahoo, we spoke with founder of revolutionary anti-ageing skincare product Nor Sken Restore CRT Facial Cream on health and wellness. PHOTO: Nor Sken When a revolutionary product hits the market, you can count on Yahoo Life Singapore to get into a deep dive with it. Nor Sken, a Swedish cosmeceutical brand that is produced in Singapore (oh yes!) has come up with an ethically-produced and sustainable skincare product that has been touted to outperform skin-loving beauty ingredients, such as Vitamin C and retinol, known in the beauty industry to boost the skin to the next level. According to the brand, this one-step product is supposed to 'reverse ageing'. With such a huge claim, we at Yahoo can't help but be intrigued. So we spoke exclusively to its founder Lars Brittsjo of Nor Sken. We asked the man who was the primary driver of the wildly popular skincare supplements Imedeen and weight-management supplements Xndo, more about this new product that sums up your entire skincare routine in one simple step. Will this new product become a true competitor to Korea's famous 10-step skincare regimen? Sounds too good to be true? Read on to find out more! Yahoo Life Singapore: What is Nor Sken all about and what is Green Beauty? Lars Brittsjo: Nor Sken is a cosmeceutical brand that is developed in Sweden and produced in Singapore. We are dedicated to enhancing your quality of life by harnessing the power of nature and science. Green Beauty is a term that refers to beauty products that are sourced, produced, and packaged in a way thats good for the environment. It also often refers to natural skincare or products made with naturally derived ingredients. Often times its used interchangeably with Clean beauty. With Nor Sken, our formula is made from natural ingredients and our packaging is certified sustainable and is ethically-produced as well. Our bottles have also been designed to be recyclable. Nor Sken's Restore CRT facial cream is said to "reverse ageing". PHOTO: Nor Sken READ Is Vitable supplement subscription worth it? Heres my review 9 mini lifestyle changes to bright, healthy eyes Everything you should know about Vitamin C but don't a nutritionist shares top health tips The Restore CRT facial cream is touted to outperform Retinol and Vitamin C by 50% and also better than Imedeen, while claiming to reverse ageing. It sounds almost too good to be true. What does the Restore CRT facial cream do and how does it work? The Nor Sken Restore CRT facial cream is a one-step reverse ageing vegan skin solution to bring about healthy and youthful skin. It is proven, based on clinical trials, that the cream can restore and revitalise your skin to a balanced skin-lipid profile of a healthy 22-year-old in 4 weeks. It's powered by Nor Sken's revolutionary Cellular Rejuvenation Technology (CRT) and involves a meticulous process of controlled fermentation of plant-based ingredients. Together with key active ingredient Cretanon777-PI, which surpasses the performance of Retinol and Vitamin C by 50% in stimulating fibronectin production. The cream penetrates deep into the cellular foundational level and prompts the stimulation of three important skin proteins: collagen, elastin, and fibronectin. These proteins work together harmoniously to help you achieve firmer, plumper, and glowing skin in less than four weeks. Besides that, it also deeply hydrates and smooths the skin, restores skin firmness and elasticity as well as tightens and lifts sagging skin. Additionally, it also lightens brown spots and areas of discolouration or pigmentation. And best of all, this is a one-step solution. You only need two pumps of the cream in the morning and three pumps at night after washing your face, and you are done. Just the cream on your clean, bare face, and no more complicated, lengthy skincare routines. ...this is a one-step solution. You only need two pumps of the cream in the morning and three pumps at night after washing your face, and you are done.Nor Sken founder is confident about the new 1-step skincare product. The Nor Sken Restore CRT Facial Cream is set to change the beauty game with its 1-step formulation. PHOTO: Nor Sken You were in the optometry industry and then moved on to cosmetology. How did that happen? Cosmeceuticals and anti-ageing go beyond beauty and it is also about your total health and well-being. In the studies of optometry there is a fair share of physiology and medical studies that have been a great foundation when leaping out into natural remedies, holistic wellness, and anti-ageing. I firmly believe that nature holds (and continues to hold) a wealth of solutions for our needs, including anti-ageing treatments that have been proven to be highly effective. Throughout your career, were there any particularly challenging moments? How did you overcome them? Of course, business presents many challenges and ups and downs. Persistence and never giving up is probably the best way to overcome lifes challenges. Share with us your journeys in creating Imedeen and Xndo. I was not the creator, but rather the distributor for Imedeen. Lars Karnerud, the founder of Imedeen, who is an old friend of mine, gave me the sole distribution rights in nine countries in this geographic area. After selling Bionax (the distribution company for Imedeen) in 2003 I was contractually not allowed to do anything relating to the skin. Wanting to contribute to peoples well-being and health, we focused on obesity, which is one of the biggest causes of many diseases, and thus we developed the Xndo system. Imedeen Time Perfection Beauty & Skin Supplement, contains Vitamin C and Zinc, 120 Tablets, Age 40+. PHOTO: LookFantastic Get 20% off Shop Imedeen Shop Imedeen Xndo X-Series is targeted to assist in weight management. Xndo X-Series is targeted to assist in weight management. PHOTO: Xndo Get up to 50% off now Shop Xndo Shop Xndo And how did these past experiences lead to Nor Sken and creating the Restore CRT Facial Cream? We learn as long as we live, so of course I now have the benefit of looking back at my long life with rich experiences and countless learnings. It all helps. What is it about the beauty industry that draws you in and keeps you motivated? I see myself as working in the Health and Wellness, not just the Beauty industry per se. But of course, from a holistic perspective, it all links together. A healthy person looks better. Throughout my journey, I have always been driven by the purpose of making a positive difference in peoples lives, and that keeps me motivated. Just like with Imedeen and Xndo, Nor Sken is no different. Our hero product, the Nor Sken Restore CRT Facial Cream, embodies this commitment. We aspire to elevate the quality of our users' lives and empower them to achieve the skin they have always wanted. If you are thinking of becoming an entrepreneur, DONT DO IT. Live your dreams and focus on contributing to others.Lars on his tips for aspiring entrepreneurs. You have been in nutrition (Imedeen), beauty (Restore CRT facial cream), and also weight-management (Xndo). Are there any other areas you will be delving into in the beauty industry? The focus will always stay on Health and Wellness. The key to healthy longevity and beauty lies in staying healthy, and fit and having a good mental attitude. There is much that we can do about it and I will continue to do my part in providing remedies as far as I can. Nor Sken is a Swedish brand that is manufactured in Singapore. PHOTO: Nor Sken What new trends can we look forward to in the future for modern-day consumers? Anti-ageing or even reverse ageing is where I can see the trend going. What exciting plans can we look forward to from you in 2024 and beyond? We have plans to expand our brand and introduce more groundbreaking cosmeceutical solutions that will positively impact our customers in the future. It is NOT the healthy food you eat that keeps you healthy, it is the UN-healthy that you DONT eat that matters.Lars on his self-routine. Whats your self-care routine like? I start my morning by taking a shot of coconut oil, along with other natural remedies like turmeric. Besides this, I take care of my health by not eating carbs and instead, opting for proteins and foods that are high in healthy fat (No Trans Fat). Probiotics and fibre are also very important. My statement is It is NOT the healthy food you eat that keeps you healthy, it is the UN-healthy that you DONT eat that matters. Shop No Trans-Fat food Shop No Trans Fat Food Any tips for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to venture into the health and wellness industry? If you are thinking of becoming an entrepreneur, DONT DO IT. Live your dreams and focus on contributing to others. IWD READS International Women's Day 2024: LAC's CMO Evelyn Teo on daring to be the one to trigger change International Women's Day 2024: Charlotte Cho, founder of Soko Glam and award-winning skincare line International Women's Day 2024: White Shades's Head of Beverage, Alexa bartends with flair and flares International Women's Day 2024: Skyscanner Travel Expert Cyndi knows when to take a break International Women's Day 2024: Porcelain founder Pauline Ng on being burnt out and tips on preventing it This Skechers Managing Director went from having just 3 staff members to over 1,150 in Southeast Asia The content on this page is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. You should always seek advice from a qualified healthcare provider on queries regarding a medical condition. Any action taken by you in reliance on or in connection with this content is solely at your own risk. SG Telegram banner. Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! Already a Subscriber? Already a Subscriber? Sign in Terms of Service Privacy Policy DES MOINES In vitro fertilizations future in Iowa will not face legal uncertainty after all at least for the moment. A legislative proposal from Statehouse Republicans to increase criminal penalties when an individual causes the termination of a pregnancy without the mothers consent a proposal that also amended state law in a way that critics warned would endanger fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization will no longer be considered by state lawmakers this year, a key legislator said Wednesday. Sen. Brad Zaun, a Republican from Urbandale and chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said he did not advance the legislation specifically because of questions about its potential impact on in vitro fertilization. I would say this: there was some definite concerns about in vitro fertilization and the negative effects and unintended consequences with that (bill), and that was very problematic for myself, Zaun told reporters after Wednesdays committee meeting. And so thats why I pulled the bill. With that action, the bill essentially is ineligible for consideration for the remainder of the 2024 legislative session. However, legislative leaders in the majority party which in both chambers of the Iowa Legislature is Republicans have tools and tricks at their disposal to resurrect any dead bills if they choose. In vitro fertilization is a fertility treatment by which a womans egg is combined with a mans sperm in a medical lab, and then planting those embryos in the womens uterus. Critics have warned the proposed legislation could have made IVF illegal because as part of the process, extra embryos are sometimes frozen, stored or discarded. They argued the bill does not sufficiently exempt fertility treatments. During debate in the Iowa House, Republicans insisted the bill, House File 2575, would not impact fertility treatments, and that its focus specifically was on the crime of nonconsensual termination of a pregnancy. The bill passed out of the House on a 58-36 vote, with only Republicans supporting it On Wednesday, Rep. Steve Holt, a Republican from Denison who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, told reporters that House Republicans believed the bill would not have impacted fertility treatments, and that comparisons to issues that have arisen after an Alabama Supreme Court ruling in that state are not applicable to Iowa because of differences in the states constitutions. The Alabama Supreme Court ruled last month that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law. Alabama legislators, facing push back after treatments were stopped at some of that states largest fertility clinics, rushed pass a bill this month shielding doctors from legal liability because of the court opinion. Holt said that he understood the concerns raised about the Iowa bills potential impact. I understand the concerns about IVF, Holt said. We did not necessarily believe that there was an issue related to IVF, but I understand the concerns there I believe life begins at conception. I also think we have to come to terms with how were going to deal with the IVF issue. So I understand the concerns there. SIOUX CITY Kim Albracht never misses a 10 to 15-minute walk through the children's exhibition when she visits a museum. The sight of the bright colors and animals that she often sees in the budding artists' works make her happy. Albracht, who serves as the Sioux City Art Center's Education Coordinator, hopes members of the public do the same during Youth Art Month (YAM), a nationwide recognition and celebration of quality primary and secondary school art education. The 35th annual YAM at the Art Center, 225 Nebraska St., features 79 artworks created by students in grades K-5. You'll see self-portraits in the style of Pablo Picasso, drawings of the family pet, pumpkins that seem to pop off the paper and vibrant landscapes. The exhibit runs through April 21. 2024 Youth Art Month Education Coordinator Kim Albracht describes the various works in the Sioux City Art Centers Youth Art Month Exhibition which features 79 wor "Any type of showing support to youth about making art shows that there's value in what they're doing. Not just displaying something on the refrigerator for a week, but giving it a prominent place and emphasizing the buildup of self-esteem in those kids," Albracht said. Elementary art teachers from Sioux City and neighboring communities in Iowa and Nebraska submitted 518 entries to the Art Center. Then, Thomas Wharton, assistant professor of art at Briar Cliff University made the selections via a blind jurying process. All of the entries were laid out on tables by grade. Wharton wasn't aware of the student, school or teacher associated with each artwork. Albracht said the show has a little bit of everything, from chalk pastel drawings to mixed media collages to clay sculptures. Color is prominent. "We know that the teachers are working with them on certain elements of art, so you can really look at some of these pieces and make a pretty good guess that they're talking about color, or they're talking about line, form or value," she said. "Color is such a big one at this grade level. There is so much color happening in a lot of these pieces. As a personal viewer of art, that's something that I enjoy. I get drawn in." 2024 Youth Art Month The Sioux City Art Centers 2024 Youth Art Month Exhibition features 79 works by elementary school students and will run through April 21 at t Nyachan Chuol's "Ted Harrison Inspired Landscape" is one of those vibrant pieces that Albracht is drawn to. The chalk pastel piece created by Nyachan, a student at Kluckhohn Elementary in Le Mars, was awarded second place among third graders. Harrison, a British-Canadian painter, was known for his colorful paintings of the Yukon landscape. This year's Best in Show went to Schleswig Community School kindergartener Beau Hedstrom for his crayon and watercolor piece entitled "Fall Colors." "I think he just enjoyed the color of it, everything that was going on, the different techniques that were used," Albracht said of why Wharton selected Beau's piece. "I think for this juror, having a finished piece was important to him." 2024 Youth Art Month Beau Hedstorm's "Fall Colors" is featured as the Best In Show at the Sioux City Art Centers 2024 Youth Art Month Exhibition which features 79 Several artworks featuring pumpkins were submitted, but second grader Shydale Jones' and third grader Charlotte Haukap's pieces were chosen for the exhibit. Both students attend Perry Creek Elementary School in Sioux City. Jones' mixed media artwork earned her a second-place honor among the second grade entries. "They're all working on the same thing, but we see the one that makes it into the show has something that goes above and beyond," Albracht said. YAM began as Children's Art Month in 1961. It was renamed Youth Art Month in 1969 to promote the value of art education for all K-12 students. Events such as the Art Center's YAM exhibition encourage public support for art education programs in local schools and communities. 2024 Youth Art Month The Sioux City Art Centers 2024 Youth Art Month Exhibition features 79 works by elementary school students including three-dimensional sculpt HOLSTEIN, Iowa Door and countertop manufacturer VT Industries on Wednesday held a ceremonial groundbreaking for a major expansion of their plant in Holstein. The $16 million expansion will add 175,000 square feet to the production footprint at the Holstein campus, the company said in a press release; this is the company's largest expansion to date. The expansion is expected to be finished in the spring of next year. The Holstein plant at present has the capacity to produce 20,000 commercial architectural wood doors per week, according to the company. VT Industries, which employs roughly 2,000 people in the U.S. and Canada, was founded in Holstein by Roger Clausen in 1956. The company is now helmed by the second and third generation of the Clausen family: Roger's son, CEO and chairman Doug Clausen and his sons, senior vice president of the countertop division Ryan Clausen and vice president of operations of the door division, Aaron Clausen. This expansion and investment in technology continues to strengthen the valued customer partnerships that have afforded VT its growth throughout the past 68 years, and it will sustain us well into the future," Doug Clausen said in a statement. The company's products can be found in high places, including Yankee Stadium and the University of Iowa Childrens Hospital, among others. NORTH SIOUX CITY A Sioux City man suspected of robbing a North Sioux City bank has agreed to be returned to South Dakota to face charges. Dennis Manchester, 44, waived extradition Wednesday morning in Woodbury County District Court in Sioux City and was transported to the Union County Jail in Elk Point, South Dakota, in the afternoon. No court hearings have yet been scheduled in Union County Circuit Court. Manchester was arrested in Tuesday on charges of first-degree robbery, aggravated assault, grand theft and driving under suspension. North Sioux City police chief Richard Headid said Tuesday that Manchester walked into Liberty National Bank, 113 Military Road, at 2:43 p.m., and handed a teller a note that demanded money or someone would be hurt and displayed a knife. According to court documents, Manchester left the bank with $3,508 in cash and fled in a car that had been parked in a nearby parking lot. Manchester was stopped shortly after the robbery near West 19th and John streets in Sioux City and taken into custody without incident. The money taken from the bank and a knife were recovered from the car. During an interview with police after his arrest, Manchester admitted robbing the bank, court documents said. No bank employees were injured in the robbery. PAULLINA, Iowa The South O'Brien Community School District has reached a $625,000 settlement of a negligence lawsuit involving the sexual abuse of a high school special education student by another student. Filed in September 2021 in O'Brien County District Court, the lawsuit alleged the then-16-year-old student was sexually assaulted by another special education student numerous times from December 2018 to March 15, 2019, in a school restroom after their teacher gave the two, who were often the only students in the special education classroom, permission to leave the room to use the restroom. Lindsay and David Thompson sued the district, special education teacher John Miller, principal Steven Bruder and superintendent Dan Moore, all of whom are no longer with the district, saying the school failed to adequately supervise the students and have adequate policies and procedures to prevent sexual assault and harassment. "The Thompsons are grateful that the school district has been held accountable for such a preventable tragedy," their attorney, Robert Rehkemper, of West Des Moines, said in a statement. "It was a long road to travel, but one that we sincerely pray will have a lasting, positive impact on the education of disabled students in this state. No family should have to experience what took place in South O'Brien High School. Students must be safe at school. We are grateful to see the positive changes that were undertaken by the new administration before the lawsuit was even filed." The school district's attorney, Doug Phillips, of Sioux City, declined comment on the settlement. The lawsuit was dismissed Tuesday after a judge approved the settlement. ORANGE CITY, Iowa Two people were jailed for contempt after a disturbance Monday in a Sioux County courtroom. Sioux County Sheriff's deputies were summoned to a courtroom in the Sioux County Courthouse at approximately 4 p.m. for a report of a disorderly person inside the courtroom. According to a news release from the sheriff's office, deputies found Jeramie Davies, who was agitated and using profane language while demanding to speak with a judge. After the judge told him to stop his actions, Davies continued his abusive language, and the judge ordered him to be held in contempt of court. The judge also ordered Ashley Schoppman, who was with Davies at the hearing, to stop taking video of the incident. After she refused to do so, the judge ordered her to be held in contempt also. The judge ordered both Davies, 45, and Schoppman, 38, both of Hawarden, Iowa, to be transported to the Sioux County Jail and be held for 24 hours. Davies also was charged with disorderly conduct. SIOUX CITY The Sioux City school board approved two projects on Monday. The projects are: Installing air conditioning at the three high school gyms and ventilation improvements at the Harry Hopkins trades facility. The board also approved the purchase of air conditioning equipment for the high schools. The school district has to use its remaining Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds, also known by the acronym ESSER, by June 30. The board voted unanimously to approve the plans, specifications and estimated costs of both projects and to set public hearings. Each Sioux City high school will receive rooftop air conditioning units for its gym to provide both heating and air conditioning, as well as humidity control, according to board documents. Currently, there is no air conditioning in any of the Sioux City high school gyms. Monday, the board approved the purchase of equipment for the air conditioning project for $912,240.Bids for installation will be taken at a later date, according to board documents. The total cost is estimated at $3.54 million. Tim Paul, the district's operations and maintenance director, said part of the project will be covered by approximately $2.3 million of ESSER funds, while the rest will be covered by the sales tax funds. The welding program at the Harry Hopkins Facility will receive 24 new welding bays, each with a downdraft welding table providing ventilation at each location. There will also be an ambient air unit for dust particles in the auto body shop and a hood exhaust system over the plasma cutter, according to board documents. The total cost is estimated at $225,000. The district plans to purchase the units directly from the vendor and bid for installation costs at a later date. Paul said there will be minimal installation required and will be completed by June 30. North High School exterior North High School is shown, Friday, in Sioux City, Iowa, June 26, 2020. WASHINGTON President Joe Biden clinched the Democratic presidential nomination with decisive victories Tuesday in Georgia and Mississippi, overcoming concerns about his leadership from within his own party as the 2024 presidential contest shifts to a general election rematch that many voters do not want. Donald Trump, too, was on pace to secure his partys nomination despite serious political and practical liabilities of his own. The Republican former president, a defendant in four felony cases, also won Georgia and Mississippi but was just shy of the threshold needed to clinch the GOP nomination with votes still being collected across Washington state and Hawaii. Overall, Tuesday marked a crystalizing moment for a nation uneasy with its choices in 2024. There is no longer any doubt that the fall general election will feature a rematch between two flawed and unpopular presidents. And that rematch the first featuring two U.S. presidents since 1912 will almost certainly deepen the nations searing political and cultural divides over the eight-month grind that lies ahead. In a statement, Biden celebrated the nomination while casting Trump as a serious threat to democracy. Trump, Biden said, is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. He continued, I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever. On the eve of Tuesday's primaries, Trump acknowledged that Biden would be the Democratic nominee, even as he unleashed a new attack on the president's age. "I assume hes going to be the candidate," Trump said of Biden on CNBC. Im his only opponent other than life, life itself. Biden, too, directed much of his attention toward Trump, whom the Democratic president described as a serious threat to democracy during a campaign stop Monday night in New Hampshire. He also signaled a more robust presence on the campaign trail. Im looking forward to doing more and more of these events," Biden said. Later, he joked about his age. I know I dont look it, but Ive been around a while. Georgia leads the slate of four states holding primary contests on Tuesday. The state was a pivotal battleground in the last presidential election so close that Trump finds himself indicted there for his push to find 11,780 votes and overturn Bidens victory. But as both candidates seek to project strength in the key swing state, Biden and Trump are grappling with glaring flaws. Trump is facing 91 felony counts in four criminal cases involving his handling of classified documents and his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, among other alleged crimes. Hes also facing increasingly pointed questions about his policy plans and relationships with some of the world's most dangerous dictators. Trump met privately on Friday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has rolled back democracy in his country. The 81-year-old Biden is working to assure a skeptical electorate that hes still physically and mentally able to thrive in the worlds most important job. Hes also dealing with dissension within his partys progressive base, which is furious that he hasnt done more to stop Israels war against Hamas in Gaza. Last month in Michigan, a related protest uncommitted vote attracted more than 100,000 votes and actually secured two Democratic delegates. Ahead of Tuesday's vote, a scattering of lawn signs across Seattle urged primary participants to vote uncommitted" as well, with some signs reading: Over 30,000 dead. Vote Ceasefire by Tuesday 3/12." Moments after Bella Rivera, 26, dropped off her ballot at a drop box in Seattle, they said they hoped that by voting uncommitted that it would serve as a wakeup call for the Democratic party. If you really want our votes, if you want to win this election, youre going to have to show a little bit more either support of Palestinian liberation thats something thats very important to us and ceasing funds to Israel, said Rivera, a preschool teacher who uses they/them pronouns. It's much the same in Georgia, where local politicians and faith leaders are pushing Biden to call for a cease-fire in Gaza. Meanwhile, Trump was on pace to win the number of delegates needed to clinch the GOP nomination. He picked up an additional 11 delegates ahead of Tuesdays primaries when the Texas Republican Party announced it was awarding all of the state's 161 delegates to the former president, based on results from last week's primary. The Texas GOP had been planning to award 11 delegates at the state party convention in May, but national party rules require the delegates to be awarded based on the presidential primary, which Trump won overwhelmingly. That put Trump just 126 delegates short of the 1,215 needed to win the Republican nomination at the partys national convention this summer. There are 161 Republican delegates at stake Tuesday in Georgia, Mississippi, Washington state and Hawaii. With a strong showing Tuesday, Trump could sweep all the delegates in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state. Hawaii allocates delegates proportionally so other candidates could win a few, even with a small share of the vote. Not certain he would hit the mark, Trumps campaign had not planned a big victory party like it did last week when hundreds packed his Mar-a-Lago club for a Super Tuesday celebration with drinks and hors doeuvres. More 2024 election news: Today in history: March 12 1912: Girl Scouts of the USA 1925: Sun Yat-sen 1947: Harry S. Truman 1971: Hafez Assad 1980: John Wayne Gacy Jr 1987: Les Miserables 2003: Elizabeth Smart 2009: Bernard Madoff 2011: Ophadell Williams 2017: Tom Brady 2020: NCAA 2021: George Floyd WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Bidens path to unofficially clinching the Democratic nomination this year was much shorter and less dramatic than the one he followed in 2020, thanks to a Democratic electorate that still overwhelmingly picked him to top the party's ticket in November despite persistent concerns about his age. Of course, being the incumbent didnt hurt, either. The Associated Press declared Biden the presumptive nominee at 7:16 p.m. EDT Tuesday, after he won the Georgia primary and at least 100 of its 108 delegates, enough to put him above the 1,968 needed to lock up the nomination. When polls close in Mississippi at 8 p.m. EDT, hell immediately pick up another 35 delegates, as hes the only candidate on the ballot. Earlier in the day, Biden won six delegates from the Northern Mariana Islands. The AP concluded Biden would win enough delegates in Georgia to clinch the nomination after an analysis found neither U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota nor self-help author Marianne Williamson could win enough enough delegates to prevent Biden from clinching. Democratic delegates are won in Georgia based on both the statewide vote, with candidates needing to win at least 15% of the vote to claim a delegate. To win a delegate in a congressional district, a candidate has to win at least 15% of the vote in that district. The AP's analysis of the initial vote determined that neither Phillips nor Williamson would clear that threshold in the statewide vote and that they would fall short in most, if not all, of Georgia's 14 congressional districts. To determine if Phillips or Williamson could cross the threshold in any congressional district, the AP compared the votes currently reported in Georgia to past races in the state, the demographics of the counties that have already reported vote results, and the estimated turnout in counties across the state. AP's analysis was also informed by what's happened so far in 2024. Since the election season started in January, Phillips and Williamson the only other candidates on the Georgia Democratic ballot have failed to win any delegates, placing well behind Biden and votes for uncommitted. That has been the case not just statewide, but in every congressional district. Even in the Minnesota district he represents, Phillips fell short of the threshold required to receive a delegate. Biden reaches the milestone 38 days after his party awarded its first delegates of the year. Thats a faster pace than the 43 days it took then-President Donald Trump to secure the GOP nomination in 2020. President Barack Obama took almost three times as long to clinch the Democratic nomination when he was running for reelection in 2012. Democratic delegate rules, where delegates in every state are awarded in proportion to primary and caucus results, tend to make it easier for trailing candidates to win delegates and potentially prolong the race for the nomination. In both the 2020 and 2016 Democratic primaries, a strong challenge from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont kept both Biden and Hillary Clinton from locking in the nominations until early June, more than 120 days from the start of their races. In 2008, then-candidate Obama won more than twice as many contests as Clinton in February and March, but she won enough delegates in those and subsequent matchups to prevent Obama from becoming the presumptive nominee until June. Biden did not face that problem in 2024. Last spring, Sanders announced he would not challenge the sitting president for the nomination and discouraged any other prominent progressives from doing so as well. No other marquee Democrats entered the race, leaving Phillips and Williamson as Bidens main challengers in the primary. Anti-vaccine activist Robert Kennedy Jr. briefly challenged Biden for the nomination but abandoned that effort in favor of an independent bid. Heading into Tuesdays contests, Biden won 19 of the 20 contests where he appeared on the ballot and 99% of the delegates they had at stake. In 12 contests, his vote percentage was in the high 80% or low 90% range. In another four contests, he received more than 80% of the vote. His worst performance of these contests was in Hawaii where he received 66% of the vote. Bidens only loss so far came in American Samoa, where 51 of 91 people who participated in the Democratic caucuses voted for little-known candidate Jason Palmer, who split the territorys six delegates evenly with Biden. In Michigan, Minnesota and Hawaii, voters who cast their ballots for Uncommitted kept Biden from winning a combined 20 delegates of the 214 that were available in those states about 1% of the total delegates up for grabs so far. Similar efforts are underway in a handful of additional states. By comparison, Biden stumbled almost immediately out of the starting gate in 2020, placing fourth in Iowa, fifth in New Hampshire and a distant second in Nevada. It wasnt until his endorsement from U.S. Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina and his subsequent victory in that states primary that Biden began to amass the delegates needed to win the nomination. As the incumbent president, Biden has enjoyed numerous advantages, including help from cooperative state party organizations that helped clear or limit the field of candidates on some state ballots. But his unobstructed path to renomination wasnt a certainty as the process was getting underway. Last year, Biden urged the Democratic National Committee to reshuffle its primary calendar to increase the role and influence of voters of color in the earliest stages of the nomination process. The new schedule slotted South Carolina the state that had salvaged his 2020 campaign into the coveted lead-off position at the expense of Iowa and New Hampshire, which had traditionally held the first-in-the-nation contests. While Iowa Democrats went along with the plan, scrapping the caucuses it had held for 52 years in favor of a mail-in presidential preference vote that concluded on Super Tuesday, New Hampshire instead bucked the national party and scheduled its primary for Jan. 23, almost two weeks ahead of South Carolina. Biden opted not to appear on the New Hampshire primary ballot, since it violated the partys new calendar that he pushed for, but his supporters in the state mounted a write-in campaign on his behalf. This created the potentially embarrassing possibility that the presidents reelection campaign might begin with a narrow victory or even a defeat, albeit an unofficial one, in the New Hampshire primary. That concern never materialized, as Biden won the contest as a write-in candidate with about 64% of the vote, comfortably ahead of Phillips, whose 20% of the vote would be the high-water mark of his campaign. _____ Associated Press reporter Leah Askarinam contributed to this report. AP Data Scientist Serena Hawkins contributed from Indianapolis. OWASSO, Okla. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has released documentation indicating an Owasso student died by suicide the day after a fight at the high school. Nex Benedict, 16, who identified as nonbinary and used gender-neutral pronouns, died Feb. 8, one day after they were involved in a fight at Owasso High School, police say. The summary report provided Wednesday by the state medical examiner states Benedict took a fatal combination of two drugs commonly known as Benadryl and Prozac. A full autopsy report, including toxicology results, has yet to be released. Benedict's death became a rallying cry for LGBTQ+ allies after allegations surfaced in mid-February that the Owasso sophomore was fatally injured after being beaten up by a group of bullies. The Owasso Police Department released video footage from a hallway at the high school, as well as a police interview at the hospital, showing Benedict was not injured fatally in the fight. When interviewed by a school resource officer, Benedict said the group of freshmen girls had been antagonizing them over a period of weeks. Benedict did not report the bullying to any teachers or administrators, they said, because they had no hope of effecting change. "I didn't really see the point of it," Benedict told the officer. An Owasso school resource officer told Benedict in the hospital that they would be subject to discipline for assault because they had admitted to pouring water on the bullies, starting the fight. "From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide," Owasso Police Lt. Nick Boatman said Wednesday in an emailed statement. "However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office." The investigation into Benedict's death remains open, Boatman said, with findings being presented to the district attorney. "The Owasso Police Department would like to take this moment to inform anyone in crisis or contemplating suicide of the Oklahoma Mental Health Lifeline, just call or text 988." A national survey last year by the Trevor Project found 41% of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered attempting suicide in 2023, including roughly half of transgender and nonbinary youth. Find help: The national suicide and crisis lifeline is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. The Trevor Project provides confidential counseling and 24/7 crisis support for LGBTQ+ youth: Text START to 678-678 or go to thetrevorproject.org/get-help. Read more: A bill that would allow state agencies to bypass the state auditors office by hiring private accountants to conduct annual audits was shelved on Wednesday ahead of a key legislative deadline. The House State Government Committee opted not to advance Senate File 2311, making it unlikely it will become law this year. The bill passed the Senate 31-16 last month. Rep. Jane Bloomingdale, R-Northwood, who chairs the committee, said committee members had too many concerns about the potential added costs created by the bill. A fiscal note from the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency found that hiring a private CPA firm could cost up to more than three times as much as using staff from the state auditors office. "It was just something the committee couldn't get behind," Bloomingdale said, adding there's not support to move the bill forward in the House. Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand, the lone Democrat elected to statewide office in Iowa, said in a statement House Republicans tabling of the bill is a welcome development that respects the will of the voters and won't waste taxpayer money. Sand and legislative Democrats say the bill kneecaps Sands authority as auditor and opens the door to political corruption by allowing government officials to bypass the state auditor for annual audits. Republican supporters of the bill argue the hiring of a private accountant to conduct a required annual audit already is allowed and widely employed by local governments and school districts. A recent Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows a majority of Iowans oppose the measure. We thank those legislators who joined the majority of Iowans who oppose the bill, Sand said. Senate Democrats urge action on Perry Tyson plant closing Democratic state lawmakers in the Iowa Senate are urging the Iowa Legislature and Gov. Kim Reynolds to take action to help residents of Perry deal with the recently announced closing of Tyson Foods pork plant there, which will result in the elimination of roughly 1,200 jobs. Democrats also criticized recent, Republican-approved changes to the states unemployment benefits program, which reduced the amount of time that individuals can receive benefits by nearly three months. They Tyson plant will close near the end of June. The Associated Press reported that Tyson will work with state and local officials to help workers who are losing their jobs, but the company did not say what severance packages it will offer. Multiple Iowa Senate Democrats spoke on the floor Wednesday, calling on Reynolds to release emergency funding to help Tyson workers remain in Perry while finding a new job, and for Tyson to offer Perry workers a severance package. Iowa Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, criticized the reduction in state unemployment benefits that statehouse Republicans approved in 2020. Dotzler noted that at the time, Senate Democrats offered an amendment that would have kept the longer benefits eligibility in place for workers impacted by plant closures. These benefits paid to workers also help the small businesses in their town. They buy their goods, get their gas; they are the real engine of economic development in keeping small businesses alive in Perry, Dotzler said. And now, thanks to your actions, theyre going to lose nearly three months worth of benefits. Thats going to affect that community in a very negative way. A spokesman for Iowa Workforce Development said the state department will be working with Tyson to assist workers impacted by the Perry plants closure, including the deployment of the agencys new, mobile workforce center. In a statement, Republican Sen. Jason Schultz of Schleswig said Republicans' recent unemployment changes have been a success in getting Iowans back into the workforce. He noted that there are more than 13,000 job opening in central Iowa, saying he is optimistic that the affected Perry workers will be able to find new work. Plant closing and job losses are traumatic experience for employees affected by the closing, their families, and the entire community," Schultz said. "Iowa Workforce Development and Tyson are both fully engaged in finding new employment for the impacted workers in Perry." Tax on hemp products proposed Sales of hemp-derived CBD and THC products in Iowa could carry a 25% tax under a bill Senate lawmakers advanced on Wednesday. Senate Study Bill 3186 is intended to put intoxicating THC drinks and other products on the same level as alcohol, which is subject to a tax from the states Alcoholic Beverages Division, said Sen. Dan Dawson, R-Council Bluffs, who led a subcommittee on the bill. Its not fair in this state to have these distributors paying a 7% sales tax on these products, meanwhile if youre brewing or selling beer youve got to run it through ABDs state warehouse, he said. The tax disparity is all off on these issues. Products containing THC, legal under federal and state hemp regulation laws, are sold at some shops and bars across Iowa and cause similar psychoactive effects to traditional marijuana. But the bill would go beyond THC and impose the same tax rate on non-psychoactive CBD and any other consumable hemp product sold in Iowa. Owners of shops that sell CBD told lawmakers on Wednesday the bill would punish those stores that are selling products that are used for therapeutic reasons and do not cause intoxication. They said the bill should be written more narrowly to target high-THC products. State lawmakers are also looking to regulate the THC content of hemp products. House lawmakers passed a bill this week to cap the potency of hemp products at 4 milligrams of THC per serving and 10 milligrams per package. Iowa House passes drug pricing bill Iowa House lawmakers passed a bill, 93-3, Tuesday aimed at reining in prescription drug pricing practices that have forced small, independent and rural Iowa pharmacies to close. House File 2401 would prohibit pharmacy benefit managers from charging an insurer more than they pay a pharmacy to dispense a medication. The practice is refereed to as spread pricing, and where the pharmacy benefit manager keeps the "spread" or difference as profit. Instead, the bill would require PBMs to contract based on a pass-through pricing model meaning PBMs could not pay pharmacies less than they charge the insurers that contract with them. Pharmacy benefit managers, known as PBMs, are third party companies that function as intermediaries between insurance providers and drug manufacturers. The multibillion-dollar companies play a major role in negotiating drug prices and reimbursements for pharmacies. Lawmakers said the bill would aid rural and independent community pharmacies that have struggled because of PBM practices. Pharmacies across Iowa have closed at an alarming rate over the past decade-plus, partly because insurance payouts don't cover drug costs. Independent pharmacies rely on pharmacy benefit managers so that they can take various insurance plans, but those companies also decide how much money the pharmacists receive when reimbursing them. Pharmacists have said they are selling many common, brand-name prescriptions at a loss because PBMs reimburse them less than a pharmacy's cost to acquire the drug. At one time, Iowa counties had a minimum of two pharmacies. Now we are down to 54 (of 99) counties having at least two pharmacies, bill manager Rep. Shannon Lundgren, R-Peosta, said in her closing comments on the House floor Tuesday. Its time to take some bold action to stop the unfair treatment of our local pharmacies. The House-passed bill also requires PBMs to create a process by which pharmacies can appeal the maximum allowable reimbursement paid to a pharmacy for a particular generic drug or and brand name drugs that have generic versions available from multiple manufacturers and sold at different prices. The legislation would also prohibit retaliation by a PBM against a pharmacy or pharmacist for filing a complaint with the state insurance division by not renewing its contract with said pharmacy. DES MOINES A bill that would allow state agencies to hire private accountants and bypass the state auditors office to conduct annual audits is in limbo in the Iowa House. Senate File 2311, which passed the Senate 31-16 last month, hit a setback Tuesday. A House subcommittee voted 2-1 to advance the bill without recommendation to the full House State Government Committee, leaving it to the chair of the committee to determine the bills fate. Rep. Michael Bergan, R-Dorchester, raised concerns about additional costs and added inefficiencies created by the bill. John McCormally, chief of staff for Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand, highlighted a fiscal note from the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency that found that hiring a private CPA firm could cost up to more than three times as much as using staff from the state auditors office. Based on data obtained from audit reports filed with the auditors office by private firms, audits of state agencies performed by outside CPA firms have cost as much as $260 per hour compared with $85 per hour by the auditors office. Bergan also noted private CPA audits of state agencies could make it difficult for the state auditor to compile a required annual report on how the state spends federal funds. Brad Epperly, a lobbyist for the Iowa Society of Certified Public Accountants, said Iowa has a shortage of CPAs to perform governmental audits. As of right now, I don't know that we would have the members that would have the ability to do the audits, Epperly said. Sand and legislative Democrats say the bill kneecaps Sands authority as auditor and opens the door to political corruption by allowing government officials to bypass the state auditor for annual audits. Republican supporters of the bill argue the hiring of a private accountant to conduct a required annual audit already is allowed and widely employed by local governments and school districts. Rep. Adam Zabner, D-Iowa City, voted in subcommittee not to advance the bill. Zabner said Iowa voters trust Sand and reelected him in 2022 to come back and be in charge of audits for the state of Iowa. I don't like the idea that the Legislature can circumvent that just because they have issues, Zabner said. I think this is another example of the Senate playing politics. We should put people over politics and make sure that our elected officials can do their jobs. A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows a majority of Iowans oppose the Republican-led bill that would allow state agencies to outsource their annual audits, circumventing the state auditor the lone Democrat elected to statewide office in Iowa. DES MOINES Hemp-derived cannabis products in Iowa would be significantly limited in their potency under a bill Iowa House lawmakers passed on Tuesday. The bill would place several regulations on consumable hemp products, which were legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill and later the Iowa Hemp Act. The laws allow for the sale of hemp products that contain less than 0.3% THC by weight. THC is the main chemical in marijuana that causes the high. While the law was intended to address low-potency CBD sales, it also legalized the sale of hemp-derived THC products that have a similar psychoactive effect to traditional marijuana. House File 2605, amended on the floor before passage on Tuesday, would set a limit of 4 milligrams of THC per serving and 10 milligrams per package on consumable hemp products sold in the state. While there is no limit on the concentration of hemp-derived THC products sold in the state, they generally range from 5 to 10 milligrams per serving. The bill would ban the use of consumable hemp including non-psychoactive CBD by minors and ban the sale of the products to minors. It would also ban the sale of synthetic THC and require a warning label to be attached to consumable hemp products. It would also create criminal and civil penalties for selling consumable hemp products without first registering with the state. The state Department of Health and Human Services would be allowed to confiscate products from retailers found to be in violation of the law. The bill passed the House 79-16. Four Republicans and 12 Democrats voted against the proposal. A companion bill has passed a committee in the Senate and is eligible for consideration by the full chamber. Bill would regulate Wild West of consumable hemp A retail industry around THC products derived from legal hemp has burgeoned over the last six years since the federal and state hemp laws were passed. The products are available for sale in stores across the state and companies like Iowas Climbing Kites are manufacturing their own THC drinks. Rep. Steve Holt, a Republican from Denison who managed the bill, said lawmakers never intended to legalize intoxicating products when they passed the Iowa Hemp Act. He said the industry is a Wild West without regulations and the bill would close unintended loopholes. In the legislation we passed, there were no provisions for age requirements, precisely because we did not believe, or have any idea, that there would be a need, since we had limited the THC, he said. We were not approving THC to be used in intoxicating products or we would have had age restrictions. Pointing to studies on youth use of cannabis, Holt argued that the bill would protect the health of Iowans. Rep. Bob Kressig, a Democrat from Cedar Falls who opposed the bill, said during floor debate Tuesday that the bill would kneecap Iowas hemp industry and lead to businesses to close and Iowans to lose jobs. He also argued that some people use CBD and other products for medical purposes outside the states medical cannabis program. Kressig said he supports limiting the sale of the products to minors but would like to have seen a higher THC limit on products. The harm that were going to do today to an industry that has employees, that makes money and pays taxes to the state, I think is going to be a mistake, he said. Photos: Muscatine Community College two-semester hemp curriculum 120520-qc-nws-hemp-089 120520-qc-nws-hemp-094 120520-qc-nws-hemp-060 120520-qc-nws-hemp-132 120520-qc-nws-hemp-139 120520-qc-nws-hemp-127 120520-qc-nws-hemp-123 120520-qc-nws-hemp-083 120520-qc-nws-hemp-080 120520-qc-nws-hemp-086 120520-qc-nws-hemp-064 120520-qc-nws-hemp-074 120520-qc-nws-hemp-068 120520-qc-nws-hemp-109 120520-qc-nws-hemp-112 120520-qc-nws-hemp-145 DES MOINES When Manny Galvez arrived in Iowa after immigrating to the U.S., one of the first things he did, he said, was give aid to people in need because of his Christian faith. Now, Galvez and other activists fear a bill advancing through the Senate would make it harder for religious organizations and others to provide housing, food and transportation to immigrants without legal status. The bill, which Republicans in a Senate subcommittee advanced with some hesitation on Tuesday, would create a new crime of human smuggling and penalize people who transport or harbor undocumented immigrants in certain cases. The bill would also make undocumented immigrants ineligible for public benefits something that is already in federal law. Galvez, who has been in the U.S. for 20 years and now lives in Iowa City, said while working with immigrant communities, he would never ask for a persons legal status before helping them. He worries if the bill were law, he could be prosecuted for those actions. When I was working in the streets of Des Moines, we never asked (for) a paper, we never asked if they were citizens or not, he told lawmakers on Tuesday. I think this bill is attacking one of the values of this state. Because we have a Christian state, and this is against the values. Iowa immigration law Ninoska Campos, a member of Escucha Mi Voz, speaks to lawmakers during a hearing on a bill that would create a crime of "human smuggling" and Galvez was among the dozens that showed up at the Iowa State Capitol on Tuesday to speak against the bill. The bill, House File 2608, has galvanized immigrant rights activists as it has made its way through the legislative process, along with a few other bills to restrict and penalize undocumented immigrants in Iowa. Opponents of the bill said, regardless of how it is enforced, it has instilled fear in immigrant communities across the state. Emily Sinnwell, a member of the Iowa City Catholic Worker House, a group that works with asylum seekers in the U.S., providing them housing and transportation to appointments and court dates, said the bill was not a solution to the issues at the southern U.S. border. If we want solutions, this is not it, she said. This bill is only causing chaos, panic, fear among the state of Iowa and in our communities. Sinnwell said she was worried the bill could make her and other migrant service providers guilty of a felony, and that it could shut down the operation of the Catholic Worker House. The bill stipulates that a person must obtain payment or some other benefit for the smuggling to be in violation of the law. Republican House supporters have said that provision would prevent prosecution of religious organizations and other nonprofits. It also carves out exceptions for people transporting or harboring relatives, creating an affirmative defense against prosecution for people who are closely related by blood or marriage. Transporting a spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent or grandchild would be grounds for the affirmative defense. Iowa immigration law Iowa senators and immigration activists are seen at the Iowa State Capitol on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Senate lawmakers advanced a bill to cre The standard punishment for violating the law would be a Class C felony, and the punishment would increase if the smuggled person is injured. A Class C felony is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. If the smuggled person becomes a victim of sexual abuse or suffers serious bodily injury or death, the violator could be convicted of a Class A felony, which carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Opponents of the bill also argued on Tuesday that the chilling effect it would have on immigrant communities in the state would hurt the economy by pushing immigrants out of the workforce. Ninoska Campos, a member of eastern Iowa immigrant rights group Escucha Mi Voz and an asylum seeker from Honduras, said immigrants in Iowa do a range of essential work from housekeeping and restaurant work to meat packing and construction and that passing legislation to hurt those communities would impact that workforce. These are all the jobs that we do to keep Iowa going, keep the economy going, Campos said through a translator. It would be hard to get up and go to work every day knowing that a police could stop our car and ask for our papers and arrest us because were immigrants. Republicans want changes Despite advancing the bill to the full committee, Republican senators on the subcommittee Tuesday said they were uncomfortable with its vague language and would not support it in its current form. They recommended an amendment, though they did not say what changes they want to see. The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to discuss the bill on Wednesday. Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola, said the bill needs some work. I dont really like it very well the way it stands right now, and I agree with those of you that have made that point, Garrett said. I do think it needs to be changed. Well have to work on that. Sen. Jeff Taylor, a Republican from Sioux Center, said he thinks the language around requiring a payment or some other benefit to be in violation of the law was too vague. Sen. Janice Weiner, a Democrat from Iowa City, said the bill could be subject to a constitutional challenge after lawmakers passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act this year, a bill to enhance religious freedom protections in the state. Its clearly against my religion. Were coming up on the holiday of Passover, which speaks specifically to the need to welcome the stranger, Weiner said. Heaven knows we need the workers in this state and we dont want to be pushing anyone out. DES MOINES A bill that would limit the authority of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to purchase land for public use was shelved on Wednesday ahead of a key legislative deadline. The House State Government Committee opted not to advance the bill, making it unlikely to advance further and become law this year. Still, the committee's vice chair left open the possibility of the bill having some life left, noting that nothing's ever dead in this building. The bill, Senate File 2324, would have banned the DNR from purchasing land at an auction and from receiving donated land from a nonprofit that bought it at an auction. Dozens of outdoor enthusiasts came to the state Capitol this week to protest its passage. Supporters said the bill would allow Iowa farmers to more easily buy land without competition from the state. Rep. Austin Harris, the author of the House version of the bill and vice chair of the State Government Committee, said some Republican lawmakers expressed concern about the bill ahead of Wednesdays committee meeting. There were some concerns shared by some members as of right now, so we decided to pull the bill for today, Harris, a Republican from Moulton, said. We'll see what future avenues exist moving forward, but for today, we're just putting a pause on the bill. The bill will likely not clear this weeks legislative funnel deadline, which requires it to pass out of a House committee to be eligible for consideration going forward. But legislative leaders have ways to revive old bills that do not survive the funnel. Harris said the DNR already has a policy of not purchasing land at auctions, and the bill would simply codify that agency rule. He said during a subcommittee meeting on Tuesday that the opposition was motivated by "scare tactics." "I believe with all my heart that this is good policy that was created by the DNR," he said. "This bill will not change a single thing, it does not threaten public land any more than the current policy does." Conservationists oppose bill During a subcommittee hearing on Tuesday, conservation groups, hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts said they worried bill would limit Iowans options for outdoor recreation. Rod Marlatt, the chair of the Fayette County Conservation Board, told lawmakers that outdoor recreation is one of the top reasons people visit, move to and stay in Iowa. Recreation opportunities are the top reasons for visitors to come to Iowa and subsequently move to our state, he said. Todays visitors are tomorrow's residents. Beyond that, our public lands also retain residents both young and old." About 1% of Iowas land is public and available for use by Iowans, according to the DNR. After the bill failed to pass out of the committee on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation said the group was grateful that Iowans showed up to advocate on the bill and he hopes it does not advance any further. "We're so appreciative to everyone that advocated on this bill, reached out to their own legislators and members of the committee," he said. "...It just shows how much people really care about protecting public natural areas in Iowa." Lawmakers have made efforts to restrict the state's ability to purchase land for several years. A bill last year that would have required the state to prioritize maintenance of existing land over purchasing new land failed to get passed into law. Would it help farmers? The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation was one of the few groups that spoke in favor of the bill on Tuesday. Kevin Kuhle, a lobbyist for the group, said the bill would mean farmers are not competing with the state government for land that has risen dramatically in value in recent years. Kuhle noted, though, that the DNRs current policy means they are not competing with farmers at auctions. In the past our farmers have had concerns about government involvement competing against farmers for land purchases, he said. We appreciate that the state has stated that they are largely not competing for land, competition isnt the goal. Fred Long, the president of the Iowa Conservation Alliance, said high farmland prices, not DNR competition, are what is preventing small and beginning farmers from buying land. Iowa's farmland price reached a historic high in 2023 at $11,835 an acre, according to Iowa State University. "The young guy that's getting started, he doesn't have the money to wait 30 years to get a profit, so that's why he can't get started," Long said. Photos: Over 160 kids get hooked on fishing at Miller Park 060522-blm-loc-1fishing 060522-blm-loc-2fishing 060522-blm-loc-3fishing 060522-blm-loc-4fishing 060522-blm-loc-5fishing 060522-blm-loc-1fishing 060522-blm-loc-3fishing 060522-blm-loc-4fishing 060522-blm-loc-5fishing A bill that would have allowed local jurisdictions in Nebraska to distribute hypodermic needles to drug users failed to garner enough support to override Gov. Jim Pillen's veto, killing the proposal that had amassed broad bipartisan support before the state's Republican governor voiced his opposition to it. The Legislature voted 27-20 on a motion to override Pillen's veto in a dramatic vote Tuesday morning, falling three votes short of the required 30 to circumvent the governor's opposition to the bill sponsored by Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha. Seven lawmakers who had supported LB307 upon final reading late last month ultimately reversed their votes Tuesday morning, voting against the measure in the face of what the bill's supporters said was pressure from Pillen. Sens. Christy Armendariz of Omaha, Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln, Tom Brewer of Gordon, Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue, Jana Hughes of Seward, Fred Meyer of St. Paul and Mike Moser of Columbus all voted against Hunt's motion to override Pillen's veto after voting to make the bill law less than two weeks ago. Others who supported the bill in prior rounds of debate including Sens. Joni Albrecht of Thurston, Beau Ballard of Lincoln, Barry DeKay of Niobrara, Teresa Ibach of Sumner and Loren Lippincott of Central City also voted against the override motion Tuesday. The Legislature passed LB307 on a 30-7 vote in February, sending it to Pillen's desk with bipartisan support in the formally nonpartisan body. In the first round of voting in January, lawmakers advanced the bill on a 37-2 vote. But that support eroded in the wake of Pillen's veto, which Hunt said was a result of the governor's personal dislike of the Omaha lawmaker who helped lead a months-long filibuster against conservative social policies last year. "What happens on the board today is not because of the policy," Hunt told her colleagues in the minutes before Tuesday's vote, which came after two hours of pleas from Hunt and the bill's other supporters in the Legislature including numerous conservatives urging lawmakers to defend the body in the face of gubernatorial influence. "I encourage you to protect your reputation as a senator, to protect your legacy here during this short time you have in your life in this body by taking a vote with integrity that's about policy, that is not a personal vote, that's not because you think the governor can do something for you that the 49 of us can't. And that's something that you can be really proud of." Several conservative lawmakers including Speaker John Arch of La Vista, Sen. Tom Brandt of Plymouth and Sen. Mike Jacobsen of North Platte supported the bill and urged their colleagues to do the same Tuesday, noting that the data supporting the measure hadn't changed in the last two weeks and that the bill merely gives localities an option to participate in syringe service programs. And some of the body's longest-serving senators, including Sens. Ray Aguilar of Grand Island and Danielle Conrad of Lincoln, called for the lawmakers who were flipping their votes to explain themselves into the record of the Legislature. Most did not. "Many members who supported the measure and spoke in support of the measure have not got on the mic to explain why they're flipping and are flipping because the governor called them," Conrad told the body. "You do not represent the governor," she added. "You represent your constituents. You represent your state. You have fidelity to the institution. You have fidelity to your colleagues. You have fidelity to good policy. "And to move or flip or flop or sit present-not-voting when you have an ability to cast a vote and use your voice is wrong," she said, fruitlessly calling for lawmakers to "stand up for the Legislature." The vote instead marked another political win for Pillen, who celebrated the outcome in a statement following the vote, thanking the lawmakers who "took due notice of concerns that caused me to veto the bill." "We need to invest in less harmful ways to combat drug usage and disease transmission that are in line with Nebraska values," Pillen said. "I look forward to working with our state senators on those strategies in the next session. When he vetoed the bill last week, Pillen called the proposal "problematic" and suggested distributors would provide needles to children, which Hunt dismissed as "fearmongering." In fact, the bill would let public and behavioral health providers set up needle distribution programs with local approval in an effort to reduce the spread of infectious diseases, including HIV, the infection rate of which is rising in Nebraska even as it falls nationwide. The Nebraska AIDS project, the National Harm Reduction Coalition, the Nebraska Association of Behavioral Health Organizations and the Lincoln-based behavioral health care provider CenterPointe had all supported the bill, along with Dr. Jerome Adams, who served as the U.S. Surgeon General under former President Donald Trump, and Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hansen. For some lawmakers, Tuesday's vote was as much about the institution as it was the legislation, prompting impassioned pleas and occasional personal jabs amid the two hours of debate that proceeded the vote. Sen. John Fredrickson of Omaha called Tuesday "a really big morning" for the Legislature and suggested he would not be the state's only elected official watching the vote count closely. "The executive branch is going to be paying very close attention today as well," he said. "They, too, are wondering who in here is a legislative leader, who is willing to stand up for the Legislature, who is willing to maintain the core of democracy of separate but equal branches of government and power. And who will bend over with a little text or a phone call." DeKay, who was among three conservative lawmakers who voted to advance the bill from the Judiciary Committee last year and supported it upon first-round consideration in January, said his decision to vote against the override motion Tuesday had "nothing to do with" Pillen. "Yes, I did have a brief conversation with the governor last week, but that had nothing to do with who's bringing the bill or anything like that," DeKay said. "We just talked about for a minute or two about the bill, and I've had other organizations reach out to me with statistics too that like I said, I do think the bill has good intentions, but there's something at this point in time that didn't allow me to be 100% in on it." "This was a very tough morning for me," he added. "I will say that. But at the end of the day, I will stand by where I'm at." Tuesday's vote which came on Day 41 of this year's 60-day legislative session is sure to fuel a second-round filibuster of LB137, championed by Bosn, a former prosecutor who Pillen appointed to the Legislature last April and who flipped her vote on Hunt's bill to help uphold Pillen's veto Tuesday. The bill would enhance the penalties that alleged drug dealers could face for providing substances linked to overdoses and, critics said, contribute to the overcrowding that plagues the state's prisons. As she advocated for the bill's advancement amid first-round debate last month, Bosn pointed to her support for Hunt's LB307 and called for the Legislature to attack drug use "from every angle simultaneously." Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha quoted Bosn's February speech amid Tuesday debate over Hunt's bill. "I just want people to hold their word," Wayne said. "If it's politics, just say it's politics. That's a terrible thing to say sometimes when you're talking about people's lives, but I also understand how this body works and how the nature of individuals work. I understand reelections. I understand elections." "But at the end of the day, this is about the institution," he added. In an interview Tuesday afternoon, Bosn said she had changed her mind after reviewing research articles and studies Pillen cited in his veto letter and reevaluating her position. "And, for what it's worth, it's not because the governor called me and told me I had to do anything. I think that's disingenuous for anyone to say that," she said, pointing to her filibuster last year of the Pillen-backed LB50 and her signature in December on a letter calling for the governor to reverse his decision not to accept summer grocery aid. "I don't think it's fair to say that I just puppet whatever he tells me to do," she said. Hours after the votes had been cast and the motion to override Pillen's veto had failed, animosity over the vote lingered at the Capitol. As lawmakers began to debate the state's budget, some had not moved on, including Fredrickson, who took aim at the seven senators who had flipped their votes between final reading and the override vote. "Not one of those members got on the mic to share with their constituents, to share with Nebraskans, why they changed their mind," Fredrickson said. "That's embarrassing. We're state senators. You represented yourself one way for three rounds of debate. You flipped after being called by the executive branch. And you didn't even speak about that. ... Have a spine." Top Journal Star photos for March 2024 OMAHA, Neb. (AP) A man from Gary, Indiana, could face up to 100 years in prison after pleading guilty to a shooting that badly wounded an Omaha police officer. Kenya Jenkins, 24, pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree assault of an officer and use of a firearm to commit a felony. In exchange for the guilty plea, prosecutors dismissed three other charges, the Omaha World-Herald reported. The shooting happened in March 2021 after Jenkins was detained by a loss prevention officer at Westroads Mall who accused him of shoplifting a pack of T-shirts. Officer Jeffrey Wittstruck responded and was trying to put Jenkins in handcuffs when a struggle began. During the struggle, Jenkins pulled out a gun and shot Wittstruck four times, hitting the officer in the face and neck. Jenkins fled in a stolen BMW, leading officers on a chase that reached 140 mph (225 kph) that ended in Lincoln, Nebraska. His sentencing is scheduled for May 15. LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) Regulations tied to a Nebraska law passed last year restricting gender-affirming care for minors were approved Tuesday by Gov. Jim Pillen, and they largely mirror temporary regulations adopted last October including a seven-day waiting period to start puberty-blocking medications or hormone treatments. Other regulations require transgender patients under the age of 19 the age of majority in Nebraska to meet several therapy benchmarks. They include undergoing at least 40 hours of therapy that could push back on a person's gender identity before they can receive any medical treatments meant to affirm their gender identities. Minor patients must also receive at least one hour of therapy every 90 days while on gender-affirming medication to evaluate the patients mental health. Health care providers also are required to obtain three hours of continuing education before they can prescribe puberty blockers or hormones. The regulations approved by Pillen were those recommended by Nebraska Chief Medical Officer Timothy Tesmer, who was appointed to that post by Pillen last year, following a public hearing in November. The recommendation and approval came despite dozens of families, medical providers and advocates testifying for hours at the hearing opposing the restrictions and regulations. State officials have decided to flatly ignore the serious concerns raised by impacted young people as well as their family members and their medical and mental health providers, said Grant Friedman, a legal fellow for the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska. To be clear, we are talking about gender-affirming care that is endorsed by major medical organizations and recognized as often life-saving care." The new law was authored by state Sen. Kathleen Kauth of Omaha and passed last session. It took effect Oct. 1 and bans gender-affirming surgeries for trans youth under 19. It also required the states chief medical officer to spell out when and how those youth can receive other care. The state Department of Health and Human Services issued temporary regulations on Oct. 1. As a state, we must protect children from making potentially irreversible and regrettable decisions decisions for which they may not completely understand the consequences," Pillen said in a news release announcing his approval of the regulations. At least 23 states have enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, and most of those states face lawsuits including Nebraska. A federal judge struck down Arkansas ban as unconstitutional. Judges orders are in place temporarily blocking the enforcement of the bans in Idaho and Montana. This is Totally Normal Quote of the Day, a feature highlighting a statement from the news that exemplifies just how extremely normal everything has become. I just hope you didnt find any risque pictures of my wife in a bathing suit. Which you probably did. Shes beautiful. President Joe Biden in his interview with special counsel Robert K. Hur. President Joe Bidens occasional memory lapses have been causing him problems in his reelection campaign. His critics believe he lacks the mental dexterity to run the country, and its a concern now shared by much of the public. His recent so-called gaffes, such as moments where he confused foreign leaders with their dead predecessors, have only underlined these worries. But the most explosive apparent evidence of the issue came in February, when special counsel Robert K. Hur issued his report on Bidens handling of classified documents, concluding in it that in interviews the president came off as an elderly man with poor memory. Biden contested the characterization at the time, saying in a press conference, Im an elderly man and I know what the hell Im doing. Ive been president and Ive put this country back on its feet. My memory is fine, he added. None of you thought I could pass any of the things that I got passed. Howd that happen? I guess I just forgot what was going on. The transcript of the presidents lengthy October conversation with Hur was released Tuesday. As pundits and reporters dissect the document for evidence (or lack thereof) of Hurs poor memory claims, Slate noticed Bidens rhetorical flairat times poignant, other times a little cringe. Advertisement Take, for example, his adoration for his wife. Throughout the interview, Biden spoke fondly about his marriage of nearly 47 years to Dr. Jill Biden. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At one point, when asked if he brought classified material from the West Wing or Naval Observatory to his lake house in Wilmington, Delaware, Biden quipped about what someone in the home might stumble across: I just hope you didnt find any risque pictures of my wife in a bathing suit. Which you probably did. Shes beautiful. Oh, the thrills of enduring romance! A recently released book on the nations first ladies surfaced that in 2004, thenSen. Biden explained that he didnt run for president that year because Id rather be at home making love to my wife while my children are asleep, according to the Guardian. Maybe we the American people, not to mention the Bidens kids, dont need to be privy to more about the Bidens intimate life. Advertisement But Biden seems in the interview to not necessarily need a better memory so much as a capacity for restraint. Despite the line of inquiry for the interview being expresslyyoull recallthe unsexy business of the flow of classified information, Biden still went down a series of tangential, long-winded monologues about all sorts of things. He told the story of a legal case he worked on in which a 23-year-old man who was working in a containment vessel had his pants catch on fire, leading him to lose his testicles. After being asked to write a motion for dismissal in the case, the apparent injustice of it all convinced Biden to become a public defender. Advertisement In vivid detail, he also spoke about a past trip to Mongolia, probably from 2011 when he was vice president, telling Hur that he hit an unexpected target during an archery trip with the countrys prime minister. I dont know if it was to embarrass me or to make a point, but I get handed the bow and arrow, he recalled. Pure luck, I hit the goddamn target. Advertisement While under questioning from the special counsel about whether he illegally handled the classified documents, Biden also revealed that he enjoys working in his pajamas, and that his wife previously tried to lure him out of a reelection race for Senate by offering to pay for him to go to architectural school. (He called himself a frustrated architect.) The biggest takeaway from the report, upon reading it, is that the president cannot help himself from storytelling. In the transcript, he even says that this penchant has not gone unrecognized. Apparently, hes in hot demand on the circuit for eulogy speeches. I just warn you all, never make one great eulogy, because you get asked to do everybodys eulogy, he said. A little more than two weeks ago, I took a red-eye home with my then-11-year-old daughter from a perfect winter break trip to Disneyland. It was more fun than I could have imagined, even with the eternal lines, ride breakdowns, and lack of vegetables. We rode every roller coaster in the day and the dark, ate uncountable clouds of cotton candy, and generally marveled at how clean everything was. (We live in Brooklyn, after all.) But on the flight back from California, I could feel that something was weird with my leg. I didnt think too much about itI was on an airplane! But by the time we walked into our apartment around 7 a.m., I knew that something was wrong. The whole inside of my right thigh was sore. There wasnt a lump, but thanks to having, well, ample thighs that love to connect with each other, I was very uncomfortable, and concerned. On Monday morning, I woke up with a new symptom: an intermittent, painful, pins-and-needles sensation spreading down the front of my right thigh. I also had a little red blotch of skin, but as I said, my thighs rub together, so maybe it was nothing? I had previously booked a yoga class for that morning and showed up to it (on Zoom), despite my discomfort. My teacher suggested I talk to a doctor right away in case it was a blood clot. That hadnt even occurred to me. I booked a virtual urgent care appointment with the doctors at NYUthe advances in apps, scheduling, and access have made moments like this so much easierand spoke to someone later that morning. She doubted a clot but suspected I had pinched a nerve while walking so much at Disneyland. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Tuesday, everything was worse. More pain, and in my hip too. It was hard to walk. I made an appointment to see my primary care doctor the next morning. To get to sleep, I took half an old Percocet left over from a friends C-section. But the next day at the doctor, I downplayed everything. I feel a lot better today! I told her. I thought it was true, but maybe I was wishing? It was my daughters birthday. I had to be fine, right? My doctor agreed with the one from the virtual appointment: some kind of nerve aggravation. She suggested ibuprofen. By Thursday morning, I had a rash all over my right leg, above the knee. I had therapy (also on Zoom) at 8:30, and I told my therapist what was going on. Nicole winced. It sounds like shingles, she said. Advertisement Related From Slate What Its Like to Have Maggots Eating Your Fleshon Purpose Read More Anyone who had chickenpox as a child can get shingles as an adult; the virus lives in us forever. Thats why its so beautiful that kids can get chickenpox vaccines nowthat means they wont get shingles later in life. I had a very mild case of chickenpox as a kidlike, maybe three or four spots. But that doesnt lessen the chance of getting shingles. Most believe that stress is a contributor. Although I had a beautiful time at Disneyland, the travails of raising a middle schooler have definitely had an impact on my stress level (and surely so has the overall state of the world). And while shingles is more of a concern for adults over 50, it has, in recent decades, risen among younger people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, something doctors have noticed too. Advertisement Advertisement Still, when Nicole suggested shingles, I barely heard her. Shingles is for old people and super painful, I thought. Im only 48. Plus, my leg was sensitive to the touch, but the splotches werent killing me or anything. I took a picture of the new rash on my leg and sent it to my doctor. The response was almost immediate. Call the office, the voicemail said. Advertisement That afternoon, I had my third appointment of the week, a virtual one with an RN who works with my primary care doctor. We were on for barely 30 seconds before it was confirmed: I am not seeing you in person, but I think you have shingles. Did you have pain on the inside of your thigh? She listed all my symptoms. She prescribed antiviral medication and told me to start it right away. Advertisement I regretted that it had taken four days to sort out what was wrong with meand have continued to regret that. But I hoped maybe Id headed off the worst at the pass. I hadnt. It turns out shingles is super painfuland way worse than I had imagined. Id thought it was, like, a big, red, unsightly, blistery rash that was painful. No. Its this is a virus attacking your nerves painful. Advertisement Advertisement Also, I thought everyone said it was so painful in part because old people got it, and old people are weaker than younger people. As my symptoms worsened, I wondered how people with real nerve problems manage to get through their days. It hurt to wear pants. It hurt to stand up. Sometimes, I wished I had gotten shingles on my face, or my head, instead of my leg; maybe that would be, ironically, less intrusive. I did not want to leave the house, and mostly didnt. I burst into tears, frequently, because there was nothing else to do. Occasionally, I could create some distance from the pain by immersing myself in Survivor, but alas, that was only temporary. Advertisement I am writing as if this is the past tense, but it is very much my present. This morning, two weeks into having shingles, I scheduled another virtual urgent care visit. The lovely doctor on the other end told me he would prescribe me gabapentin, which sounds like a wonder drug the more I learn about it. It will help the pain, especially as I increase my dose. Its main side effects are to help with sleep (yes, please!) and ease anxiety (also yes, please). Advertisement Advertisement Disappointingly, my prescription came with a reality check that this shingles pain will last weeksor months. (Cue more tears.) I was hoping to use this spring to get in shape, get sunshine, get happy. All thats on hold until I can ease the pain and not be a self-pitying basket case. Advertisement Earlier in my shingles journey, I posted on Instagram, begging my friends over 50who can easily qualify for the shingles vaccineto go get the shot. And so I am asking you to do the same, even though I dont know you. If you arent 50 but have a vulnerable immune system or are under lots of stress, it might be worth talking to your primary care provider about your options. I thought I was extremely unlikely to get shingles. But now Ive heard about friends in their 20s and 30s getting it. We are all vulnerable! But maybe I can help you be less so by sharing. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced the opening of a supplemental grant application period for the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) program, specifically targeting February 26 to April 10, 2024. This initiative is particularly significant to small business owners, who often grapple with complex tax disputes and challenges. The LITC program is instrumental in offering pro bono tax representation and education, ensuring fair treatment for small businesses and low-income taxpayers across the United States. National Taxpayer Advocate Erin M. Collins underscored the value of LITCs in safeguarding taxpayer rights and delivering justice, highlighting the programs role in serving underserved communities and small businesses without alternative tax dispute resources. The supplemental grant period is a chance for eligible organizations to apply for funding that can help make a difference for vulnerable taxpayers and grow the LITC presence in areas with the greatest need, Collins noted. With a funding period from July 1 to December 31, 2024, the grants are aimed at qualifying organizations committed to developing, expanding, or maintaining an LITC. These clinics are vital for small business owners, offering free or nominally priced services to assist in resolving IRS disputes, educating taxpayers where English is a second language, and advocating on tax issues that predominantly impact them. Recognizing the unique challenges faced by small business owners, the IRS has expanded eligibility for the LITC grants. This includes removing the requirement for direct controversy representation, allowing more organizations to qualify by referring taxpayers to qualified representatives. This change is particularly beneficial for small businesses seeking specialized tax dispute assistance. Moreover, the ESL Education Pilot Program, continuing from its 2023 inception into 2024, represents an opportunity for small business owners who are ESL taxpayers. This initiative focuses on informing them about their rights and responsibilities under the tax code, an essential aspect of managing and growing a business in the U.S. While awaiting final appropriations, the IRS encourages applicants to request grants up to $200,000, in line with the Presidents 2024 budget request and legislative proposals. This potential funding increase is a boon for small business owners, providing more resources for LITCs to serve their needs effectively. The IRSs call for applications from organizations in underserved areas, including Hawaii, Kansas, Nevada, North Dakota, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Puerto Rico, is a step towards addressing the lack of tax dispute resources in these regions. Small businesses in these locations stand to benefit significantly from increased LITC services. As LITCs operate independently from the IRS, they ensure an unbiased approach to assisting small business owners with tax issues. Organizations interested in applying for the supplemental grants must do so by April 10, 2024, ensuring they meet the electronic submission requirements. This IRS initiative, through the LITC program, reaffirms the agencys commitment to supporting small business owners across the country, providing them with the necessary tools and resources to navigate the tax system confidently and fairly. Only one group outside Slovakia and the Czech Republic has a significant presence. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share A diverse mix of foreign investors were operating on the Slovak media market 20 years ago. The daily Hospodarske Noviny was owned by the publisher of the German daily Handelsblatt, the daily Pravda owned by the British Daily Mail group, the daily Sme co-owned by the German publisher Verlagsgruppe Passau, and private television network Markiza had American investors. In the meantime, the vast majority of foreign owners have left the Slovak media, replaced by Slovak and Czech financiers. Czechs in Markiza and in TA3 For many years, the television market was one of the most stable in terms of ownership. Markiza was owned by the American group Central European Media Enterprises (CME), the private TV JOJ owned by people surrounding the financial group J&T, and private news television network TA3 was owned by businessman Ivan Kmotrik. At the end of 2019, the owners of Markiza announced that they had found a new owner for their television group in the form of the PPF Group, under by the richest Czech person, Petr Kellner. He paid an estimated $2.1 billion (1.9 billion) for CME, which operates 30 TV channels in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Petr Kellner (Source: PPF) "We want to take advantage of the synergies between content creation and its distribution. Therefore, the reason is primarily to develop the telecommunications and media business," Kellner said at the time. His group owns the mobile service provider O2 in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and also owns the fixed line in the Czech Republic. In addition to PPF, other well-known names were also interested in CME, such as the Czech businessman of Slovak origin, Andrej Babis, and the Penta investment group. In Slovakia, the latter owns the News and Media Holding (NMH) publishing house, while the law prohibits the cross-ownership of media. "We had signed a memorandum approved in New York. We had many meetings, we also agreed on the price. In the end, nothing came of it," Penta co-owner Jaroslav Hascak said in an interview with Aktuality.sk. SNS chairs to file lawsuits in regards to his car crash, Bratislava has a coronation dessert, and an event to make Bratislava hinterland more green. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share Good evening. Here is the Wednesday, March 13 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes. Danko to file lawsuit against media, politicians Andrej Danko (Source: TASR) SNS chair Andrej Danko is preparing lawsuits against Slovensko (formerly OLaNO) movement chair Igor Matovic and SaS chair Richard Sulik for their "slander" and against media which "tarnished his name" regarding a traffic accident in January. Danko's car struck a traffic light at a pedestrian crossing, wrecking it. He then drove away from the accident. Talking on private television Joj 24, Danko emphasised that he did nothing wrong in leaving the scene as the crash was an insurance incident rather than a road accident, which would normally require a driver involved to remain at the scene. The SNS chair said that under normal circumstances with a private citizen involved, the incident would have be investigated within a week and the driver would have been fined. Speaking on private TV Markiza on March 3, Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Hlas) said that closing the investigation of the crash was a matter of days and that it might be over 'by next week'. However, no new information on the case had been provided since. The minister also confirmed that the police officers initially investigating the incident had received a reprimand, although he did not say what the reprimand was for. Related: In his opinion piece published shortly after the accident, James Thompson wrote that Andrej Danko's winking shamelessness tells us all we need to know about how the political atmosphere has changed in recent weeks. MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE If you like what we are doing and want to support good journalism, buy our online subscription with no ads and a print copy of The Slovak Spectator sent to your home in Slovakia. Thank you. FEATURE STORY FOR WEDNESDAY Who owns what in Slovak media market Illustratory image. (Source: SME - Jozef Jakubco) Twenty years ago, a diverse mix of foreign investors based in Germany, Great Britain, and the US were operating on the Slovak media market. But since then, the vast majority of foreign owners have left Slovak media, and been replaced by Slovak and Czech financiers. Find out who owns what at this link. EVENT FOR SATURDAY Help plant trees Participants of the previous edition of the event. (Source: TASR) On March 16, another edition of the '10,000 Stromov' (trees) event will be held. Participants take to Bratislava's hinterland and plant dozens of bushes and trees. This time it will take place where borders of three countries - Slovakia, Austria and Hungary - meet. For more information on time, place, registration and how to get there click here. IN OTHER NEWS On Thursday, Slovak climber Peter Hamor is going to embark on a new expedition in the eastern part of Nepalese Himalayas, attempting to make the first ascent of the south wall of the 7,902 metre high peak of Kangbachen. So far, only Nives Meroi and Romano Benet reached a height of 6,300 metres in 2019. The two men will accompany Hamor on the expedition. They will attempt the first ascent some time in May. (TASR) to make the first ascent of the south wall of the 7,902 metre high peak of Kangbachen. So far, only Nives Meroi and Romano Benet reached a height of 6,300 metres in 2019. The two men will accompany Hamor on the expedition. They will attempt the first ascent some time in May. (TASR) Slovak Jozef Hambalek, the European head of the Russian nationalist motorcycle club Night Wolves, had been taken off an EU sanctions list. He was accused by the EU of spreading Russian propaganda and training bikers to join Russian forces invading Ukraine. PM Robert Fico lobbied Germany to lift the sanctions. (TASR) He was accused by the EU of spreading Russian propaganda and training bikers to join Russian forces invading Ukraine. PM Robert Fico lobbied Germany to lift the sanctions. (TASR) More than 600 employees of the RTVS public broadcaster have signed a statement calling on the Culture Ministry to withdraw proposed changes to the law related to the broadcaster. They say that the "proposed changes may practically result in a tool for the political takeover of RTVS by any government power". (TASR) They say that the "proposed changes may practically result in a tool for the political takeover of RTVS by any government power". (TASR) In January this year, 374,000 guests spent time in accommodation facilities in Slovakia, a year-on-year increase of more than 8 percent and almost at levels seen in 2019. However, it still lagged 17 percent behind the record-setting January 2020. (TASR) and almost at levels seen in 2019. However, it still lagged 17 percent behind the record-setting January 2020. (TASR) On Wednesday, the government dismissed Office for Slovaks Living Abroad chair Milos Koterec at his own request and appointed a new chair - Dagmar Repcekova will take over from March 14. (TASR) Several thousand people gathered on Tuesday evening on Bratislava's Namestie Slobody square to voice their support of Ukraine and protest against the goverenment's action in regards to foreign policy. According to organisers, the government is following a pro-Russia policy that goes against interests of both Slovakia and European Union. (Source: TASR) WEATHER FOR THURSDAY: Cloudy to overcast skies, with occasional showers expected and winds reaching 25 kilometres per hour. Daily temperatures will range from 8 C to 16 C. (SHMU) MARCH 14 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Matilda Thank you for subscribing and reading. It means a lot to us. P.S. If you have suggestions on how our news overview can be improved, you can reach us at editorial@spectator.sk. Follow The Slovak Spectator on Facebook and Instagram (@slovakspectator). Recipe has been made available to the public. Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share Bratislava has 267 years of coronation history - 10 kings, one queen and seven royal spouses were crowned in what was then Pressburg. Today, St. Martins Cathedral, the coronation road and, notably, the Bratislava Coronation Days event - which will this year be held between August 16 and 18 - are reminders of the city's royal history. The event this year, for the first time, will include a presentation of the Bratislava Coronation Dessert. Our intention is to bring the strong tradition and the period associated with the coronations into the present, Vladimir Grezo, chairman of the board of the Bratislava Tourist Board (BTB), told the TASR newswire. For me, it is also a way to encourage tourism. Bratislava Coronation Dessert (Source: Courtesy of BTB ) The dessert, a carrot cake made by Jana Asheri who runs the Asheri Patisserie on Zahradnicka Street 72, was chosen during a competition organised by BTB in cooperation with the Gurman club last autumn. The competition was open to any trained pastry chef, pastry shop owner or hobby baker. The dessert could be in the form of a cake (torte), a cake or a roulade. Out of 14 participants, the jury firstly shortlisted four desserts before choosing a winner. All the shortlisted desserts were excellent, said Grezo. Related article Related article Maria Theresa will be crowned in Bratislava once again Read more The Bratislava Coronation dessert for this years Coronation Days consists of carrot sponge cake, mousse, carrot jelly, sugar syrup and caramelised walnut. The top is decorated with carrot chips, an orange and chocolate stamp of the town and a decorative Hungarian crown. Its base is a nod to the traditionally used gingerbread, with nuts or honey form part of the corpus, while the combination of carrots and tangerine adds an interesting flavour, noted Grezo. The recipe is has been made available to the public and any restaurant or cafe operating in Bratislava is allowed to put it on their menu. However, Asheri has been given official confirmation that the coronation dessert was first served at her patisserie where is it on sale for 5.90. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240312/giving-frozen-russian-assets-to-ukraine-would-break-the-global-financial-system-1117293295.html Giving Frozen Russian Assets To Ukraine Would Break the Global Financial System Giving Frozen Russian Assets To Ukraine Would Break the Global Financial System Sputnik International The United States will break the global financial system and essentially declare war on Russia if it sends frozen Russian assets to Ukraine, journalist Dan Lazare told Radio Sputnik on Tuesday. 2024-03-12T23:20+0000 2024-03-12T23:20+0000 2024-03-12T23:20+0000 analysis dan lazare joe biden ted rall saudi arabia republicans sputnik russia ukraine congress https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/104502/67/1045026706_159:0:2840:1508_1920x0_80_0_0_5e69f0e7b3aa9ace1d2dbbddd048488f.jpg Giving Russia's seized assets to Ukraine would break the global financial system, journalist and author Dan Lazare told Sputniks The Critical Hour on Tuesday. He also warned that it would be the equivalent of the United States declaring war on Russia.Its kind of a declaration, its a widening of the war [and] its a declaration of war on Russia by the United States, he added later.Lazare reminded co-hosts Ted Rall and Angie Wong that last year the Biden administration was triumphant about Ukraines accomplishments on the battlefield a year ago but that things have since turned sharply negative.The Ukrainian forces are starting to come apart. I think the word crumble is probably too strong a term at this point, but they certainly are showing the strain, he explained. Theyre running out of artillery shells, theyre running out of other armaments and Russia is making steady advances. So the question is now how long will this process go on before Ukraine cracks?Lazare said that the situation in Ukraine has US President Joe Biden scared as hell and that he has no idea how to get around the roadblock of Congress blocking further financial aid.That means abandoning very close allies, Lazare said. Especially given the fact [that] the US really caused this war in the first place by backing a far-right-led military coup back in 2014, which made a Russian military response more or less inevitable. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240311/hungarys-orban-says-trump-pledged-not-to-provide-financial-aid-to-ukraine-1117247730.html saudi arabia russia ukraine Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ian DeMartino Ian DeMartino 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 Ian DeMartino frozen russian assets, ukraine aid, status of ukraine aid, dan lazare interview, dan lazare on ukraine https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/bidens-2025-budget-shows-us-elite-underestimates-emerging-crisis-1117310571.html Biden's 2025 Budget Shows US Elite Underestimates Emerging Crisis Biden's 2025 Budget Shows US Elite Underestimates Emerging Crisis Sputnik International While most of Biden's $7.3 trillion budget proposals stand little chance in the House of Representatives, the US media says the document serves as a draft of Biden's policy platform as he seeks re-election this year. 2024-03-13T19:18+0000 2024-03-13T19:18+0000 2024-03-13T19:31+0000 us analysis joe biden ukraine russia republicans pentagon opinion migrant crisis us-mexico border https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/08/1117207522_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_3408ce4090497c387f5ada02ff1a85ad.jpg US President Joe Biden's 2025 budget show his plans to continue arming Ukraine remain unchanged.The president is striving to "ensure Russia's strategic failure" by requesting $1.5 billion "for countering the Kremlins aggression" and allocating $482 million for Ukraine along with the multi-billion National Security Supplemental Request which still hangs in the balance.A whopping $849.8 billion would be allocated to the Pentagon, with $25 billion earmarked for ongoing modernisation of the US nuclear forces.The budget also includes a contingency fund of $4.7 billion for the Department of Home Security (DHS) to deal with migration surges, a measure seen by the Republicans as a drop in the ocean amid the current border crisis. According to a recent Fox News study, around 7.3 million illegal migrants have crossed the US southern border during Biden's presidency.Biden's proposed budget also includes $3 billion to "advance gender equity and equality worldwide", $11 billion to "preserve the stories of the cultures and history across America", $8 billion for Biden's American Climate Corps, $10.6 billion for "climate and clean energy research" and $1.5 billion for the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights.Republicans have denounced Biden's climate and equity programs as "woke" and wasteful, noting that the US national debt has reached $34.5 trillion, while the federal budget deficit has mounted to $531 billion.Trouble BrewingThe Biden plan shows that the US elite still underestimates the scale of the emerging crisis and is "simply doubling down on present policies in the hope that the troubles will go away," he said.According to the professor, the Ukraine conflict and the border crisis are two points of acute vulnerability for the Biden administration."The presidents so-called plan will make things worse," the Shakespeare warned, pointing to skyrocketing national debt and poor handling of foreign policy issues by his government. "On top of that, the American public will soon be in open revolt over the consequences of the open border and unrestricted immigration." https://sputnikglobe.com/20240312/bidens-2025-budget-proposal-to-backfire-on-him-ahead-of-elections-1117287722.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240311/biden-requests-850bln-for-defense-in-2025-34bln-increase-from-2023-level-1117269626.html ukraine russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 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 biden 2025 budget proposal, war in ukraine, border crisis, us southern border, joe biden's reelection bid, 2024 us presidential election, us republicans, republicans said biden's 2025 budget has zero chance of passing the house https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/china-urges-all-parties-to-contribute-to-de-escalation-of-nuclear-tensions-1117300216.html China Urges All Parties to Contribute to De-Escalation of Nuclear Tensions China Urges All Parties to Contribute to De-Escalation of Nuclear Tensions Sputnik International China has always advocated that nuclear powers adhere to the concept of common security and now urges all parties to contribute to the de-escalation of nuclear tensions, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said, commenting on Russian President Vladimir Putin's statement on the possible use of nuclear weapons. 2024-03-13T10:46+0000 2024-03-13T10:46+0000 2024-03-13T10:46+0000 world china russia wang wenbin chinese foreign ministry vladimir putin nuclear weapons https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/08/0f/1112614192_0:0:2357:1327_1920x0_80_0_0_c13eee3cc50556f732604773659a52a8.jpg In an interview with Dmitry Kiselev, the director general of Rossiya Segodnya, Sputnik's parent media group released earlier in the day, Putin said that Moscow was ready to use its nuclear arsenal to ensure the existence and sovereignty of the Russian state. Russia's nuclear triad is more advanced than that of any other country, Putin said. There is no winner in nuclear war, Wang said, recalling that in January 2022, the five nuclear states issued a declaration on the prevention of nuclear war. Earlier in March, in his state of the nation address, Putin said the foreign policy of the West, including claims about possible deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine, was dangerous and threatened a nuclear conflict that would result in the destruction of civilization. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/putin-says-need-to-use-tactical-nuclear-weapons-never-arose-in-ukraine-1117295403.html china russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 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 china urges, de-escalation of nuclear tensions, russian president vladimir putin, nuclear tensions https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/do-your-duty-come-what-may-why-do-russian-women-join-volunteer-battalions-1117267245.html Do Your Duty, Come What May: Why Do Russian Women Join Volunteer Battalions? Do Your Duty, Come What May: Why Do Russian Women Join Volunteer Battalions? Sputnik International A 33-year old woman, call sign Shum (lit. Noise), has told Sputnik why she left the Russian city of Saint Petersburg dubbed the "Northern Palmyra" and the "Venice of the North" for the noise of battle in the Ukraine conflict. 2024-03-13T12:00+0000 2024-03-13T12:00+0000 2024-03-13T13:38+0000 ukraine russia's special operation in ukraine sergei shoigu russia russian armed forces female fighters female soldiers https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0c/1117280362_0:29:1281:749_1920x0_80_0_0_743234e8393bf682eea68886cffe5413.jpg Shum, an evacuation group medical worker of the "Don" Volunteer Assault Corps, arrived in the special military operation zone a year ago.Pretty, smiling, and playful, Shum looks younger than her age."Im just very loud, I often make noise - thats why I have such a call sign," she said.Sputnik's interlocutor wound up in the volunteer assault corps almost by accident: she was told that joining Don would be the quickest way to enlist. Prior to that, she had exhausted all other possibilities of getting to the front line.She argues that if one wants to defend their Motherland, it doesn't matter whether a person is a man or a woman.It's hardly surprising that young Russian women strive to go to the front line: many of them are taking up the torch from their great-grandmothers.According to some estimates, between 600,000 and one million Russian women participated in World War II in various capacities, including as pilots, snipers, drivers, intelligence officers, tank crews, artillerywomen, etc.Over 1,000 Russian women are currently serving in the zone of the special military operation, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu revealed last year.Very soon, Shum will be dispatched to Avdeyevka, a city in the Donetsk region that was liberated by the Russian Armed Forces on February 17.She says it's not shameful to be scared during hostilities, as it's quite natural."It can always be scary. Only a fool or a dead person is not afraid of anything. Fear is a natural defense mechanism to survive. It's the so-called self-preservation instinct. He who is not afraid will die."Shum doesn't believe being at the front line is more difficult for women than for men.There are sweet moments too, Sputnik's interlocutor continued:Shum is currently not making plans for the future, as she believes that surviving and winning are the most important priorities right now."I have dreams, of course," the female soldier said when asked what she will do when the conflict is over. "Probably, I would like to continue my journalistic work, to maintain my own blog. I will spend more time with my family and my son."Those in the West who believe Russia is waging a "war of aggression" know virtually nothing about Ukraine and the roots of the conflict, she underscored: they should visit the Alley of Angels, a memorial to Donetsk children murdered by the Kiev regime since 2014.NATO member states fuelling the conflict and sending weapons and manpower to Ukraine should bear in mind that Russians don't surrender, Shum concluded. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240308/russian-valkyrie-how-blue-eyed-ballet-dancer-turned-into-military-commander-1117193413.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240311/the-dirty-little-secret-behind-the-dramatic-debate-over-taurus-missiles-in-ukraine-1117268184.html ukraine russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Ekaterina Blinova Ekaterina Blinova News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Do Your Duty, Come What May: Why Do Russian Women Join Volunteer Battalions Sputnik International Do Your Duty, Come What May: Why Do Russian Women Join Volunteer Battalions 2024-03-13T12:00+0000 true PT1M53S 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Ekaterina Blinova ukraine conflict, war in ukraine, russian women join volunteer battalions, russian female soldiers, second world war, ww2, russian women ukraine frontline, russian women join military ranks, russia is protecting its sovereignty in ukraine conflict, nato proxy war in ukraine, nato sending troops to ukraine https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/japanese-space-one-kairos-rocket-explodes-shortly-after-lift-off-1117303386.html Japanese Space One 'Kairos' Rocket Explodes Shortly After Lift-Off Japanese Space One 'Kairos' Rocket Explodes Shortly After Lift-Off Sputnik International An attempt by a Tokyo-based rocket launch service provider to become the first private Japanese company to send a satellite into orbit ended in catastrophe after a previous launch schedule was postponed. 2024-03-13T12:22+0000 2024-03-13T12:22+0000 2024-03-13T12:22+0000 newsfeed japan jaxa tanegashima space center beyond politics https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0d/1117303678_0:0:3640:2048_1920x0_80_0_0_b66044fa1d69367b75f7b68b25c979d2.jpg The Japanese company Space One's rocket exploded shortly after its maiden lift-off on Wednesday at 11:01 a.m. (02:01 GMT), as per Japanese media reports.The 18-meter (59 ft) solid-fuel Kairos rocket took off from the company's launch platform in the mountainous Kii Peninsula in Japan's western Wakayama region.However, the spacecraft exploded roughly five seconds later, accompanied by plumes of white smoke billowing and burning fragments dispersed near the launch site. Also destroyed in the incident was a state test satellite weighing 100 kg attached to the rocket.The launch of the first Kairos rocket was executed, but we took a measure to abort the flight, according to a statement by Space One.The launch services provider stated that the lift-off was well-automated and required only a few personnel to man its ground control center. However, the incident dashed the company's hopes of becoming the first private Japanese company to launch a satellite into orbit.According to news outlets, Space One stated that the launch was "interrupted" after takeoff and that the "details are being investigated." However, the immediate cause of the explosion is unknown.The governor of Wakayama Prefecture, Shuhei Kishimoto, told the press that there were no casualties in the incident, and the resultant inferno had been extinguished. Katsumasa Tashima, the mayor of Kushimoto, where the botched launch occurred, expressed shock and dismay over the explosion and pledged that the town "will continue to support Space One."Wakayama's governor told the media that the Kairos rocket's initial launch was slated for March 9 at 11:01 a.m. local time (02:01 GMT), but was postponed after a vessel sailed into a nearby restricted, high-risk maritime zone.Space One was founded in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese tech establishments, including Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace, the state-owned Development Bank of Japan, and the construction company Shimizu. Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho, two of Japan's largest banks, also own minority shares in the space company.The Japanese space launch service firm aims to become a cost-effective, "worlds shortest lead time" commercial lift-off service for domestic and international clients. By the late 2020s, it intends to send 20 rockets into orbit yearly.In July 2023, a Japanese rocket, the solid-fuel Epsilon S, blew up during a test about 50 seconds after ignition.Japan's two primary rocket launch pads, the Tanegashima Space Center and Uchinoura Space Center in southern Japan, host JAXA's H3 and the Epsilon vital launch vehicles. However, according to media reports, these sites cannot accommodate commercial launches. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240309/first-launch-from-japans-private-spaceport-postponed-over-security-issues-1117224283.html japan Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Chimauchem Nwosu https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/09/01/1113046371_0:99:1536:1635_100x100_80_0_0_9c5c627283eca931c39fe4852bbb301c.jpg Chimauchem Nwosu https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/09/01/1113046371_0:99:1536:1635_100x100_80_0_0_9c5c627283eca931c39fe4852bbb301c.jpg 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 Chimauchem Nwosu https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/09/01/1113046371_0:99:1536:1635_100x100_80_0_0_9c5c627283eca931c39fe4852bbb301c.jpg kairos rocket launch, space one rocket lift-off, japan's failed space one rocket launch, kairos rocket. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/putins-response-to-macrons-frustration-over-africa-has-ironic-ring-to-it-1117310146.html Putins Response to Macrons 'Frustration' Over Africa Has Ironic Ring To It Putins Response to Macrons 'Frustration' Over Africa Has Ironic Ring To It Sputnik International During his interview, president Vladimir Putin responded to Dmitry Kiselevs guess that the French presidents anti-Russian steps could be explained by the desire to avenge the loss of French influence in Africa. 2024-03-13T19:41+0000 2024-03-13T19:41+0000 2024-03-13T21:31+0000 analysis vladimir putin emmanuel macron dmitry kiselev russia russian academy of sciences (ras) sputnik france https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/08/07/1112440679_0:0:3460:1947_1920x0_80_0_0_92636ecadb36cb1611a8a1ceaac5249a.jpg Could it be the case that Macron decided to settle scores with Russia for stepping on his tail in Africa? Kiselev asked, adding: Could it be that Macron just did not expect us to be so active?There is an element of resentment, Putin replied. But we did not try to get into Africa by all means and we did not squeeze France out of Africa.The president pointed out that the Wagner PMC group had sought clients in Africa after completing some projects in Syria.The [Russian] defense ministry provided some assistance, but only because it was a Russian group, there was no other reason, Putin explained, stressing that Frances loss of influence was not Russias doing.We did not banish anyone from Africa. What happened was that the leaders of some African countries made agreements with some Russian economic operators, Putin said. The Africans wanted to work with [Russians], in some cases they did not want to work with the French. It was not our initiative, it was an initiative of our African friends.The Russian leader said it was not surprising that Frances former imperial dominions were hostile to their one-time colonial masters.I am saying it without irony, in many former French colonies people are not very willing to do business with the French, Putin said. Maybe this passionate, somewhat emotional reaction of the French president may be partially connected to the events in some African states But we have nothing to do with it, we do not pit anyone in Africa against France.Putin was referring to the events of 2021 to 2023, when pro-French governments were overthrown in Mali and Guinea (2021), Burkina-Faso (2022), Niger (July 2023) and Gabon (August 2023).But was Macrons resentment over these events so great that he proclaimed no limits for French military support to Ukraine and accused other Western leaders of cowardice for opposing the supply of long-range missiles to the Kiev regime?The French mainstream media blamed so-called Russian mercenaries and Russian disinformation campaigns for the fall of all these pro-French regimes in West Africa in 2021-2023. But even the Western press could not deny that the fallen pro-French regimes were genuinely unpopular and in some cases owed their power to France.Even Western television reports showed African waving Russian flags and calling for closer ties with Moscow. The interim governments in Mali and Niger declared that cooperation with Russia was a welcome alternative to the well-known ways of their former colonial masters from France.When Russian private military companies offered their services in 2021, after supprressing the Islamist insurgency in the Central African Republic, the government in Malis capital Bamako was only happy to see new faces in charge. The Malian government was the first to evict the French troops from its territory.That was a humiliation for Macron, who a year earlier in 2022 had made a tour of former French colonies in Africa denouncing Russia as the only remaining nineteenth century-style colonial empire.But West African nations turned out to be more hostile to French neo-colonialism and not afraid of the Russian bogeyman conjured up by the French media.In Fedorovs view, the neo-colonial exploitation of Francophone Africa was based on forcing the Africans to sign the uneven economic treaties and on the continued presence of French troops. Those troops were ostensibly in Mali and Niger for everyones security, but in reality they provided security to French companies before everyone else.As for the origins of the anti-French wave that led to the toppling of pro-French governments in West Africa, Fedorov sees it in the certain discontent that engulfed both the local elites and the people of Mali, Niger and Burkina-Faso.For many years the locals heard France give promises of economic prosperity and security if only Africans took advice from Paris.When the governments of French Africa from Senegal to Djibouti followed that advice they were not rewarded with economic prosperity, and in recent years security was also in sharp decline. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/what-message-is-putin-sending-the-west-in-his-interview-1117298958.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240312/redeployment-of-french-troops-from-africa-to-russias-borders-a-deadly-idea-1117291810.html russia france Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Dmitry Babich https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/02/0e/1116778495_0:120:720:840_100x100_80_0_0_9bf47040bc46073fb920d272be7bc29d.jpg Dmitry Babich https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/02/0e/1116778495_0:120:720:840_100x100_80_0_0_9bf47040bc46073fb920d272be7bc29d.jpg 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 Dmitry Babich https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/02/0e/1116778495_0:120:720:840_100x100_80_0_0_9bf47040bc46073fb920d272be7bc29d.jpg franch presence in africa, why did france leave africa, what was france doing in africa, why was france kicked out of africa, russia africa ties, why does russia support africa, how does russia support africa https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/russian-air-defense-systems-intercepted-destroyed-58-uavs-overnight---mod-1117298566.html Russian Air Defense Systems Intercepted, Destroyed 58 UAVs Overnight - MoD Russian Air Defense Systems Intercepted, Destroyed 58 UAVs Overnight - MoD Sputnik International Russian air defense systems have intercepted and destroyed 58 Ukrainian drones in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Leningrad and Ryazan regions overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday. 2024-03-13T08:32+0000 2024-03-13T08:32+0000 2024-03-13T08:32+0000 russia ukrainian drone attacks on russia russia belgorod bryansk russian defense ministry voronezh kursk drone strike drone attack https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/02/0f/1116795632_0:0:3072:1728_1920x0_80_0_0_6bb5f24894f2a041a26423ef33e01d5a.jpg "During the past night and the morning of March 13, attempts by the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks using aircraft-type UAVs against targets on the territory of Russia were stopped. On-duty air defense intercepted and destroyed 58 UAVs over the regions of Belgorod (11 UAVs), Bryansk (8 UAVs), Voronezh (29 UAVs), Kursk (8 UAVs), Leningrad (1 UAV), Ryazan (1 UAV)," the ministry said in a statement.Ukraine has been sending drones and missiles into the Russian territory almost daily since it launched a counteroffensive in early June. The United Nations said in August, following a botched drone strike on Moscow, that it did not want to see any targeting of civilian infrastructure. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240309/russia-destroys-47-ukrainian-drones-over-four-regions-at-night--1117218935.html russia belgorod bryansk Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 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 russian air defense systems, ukrainian drones, russian defense ministry, belgorod, bryansk, voronezh, kursk, leningrad and ryazan regions https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/ukraine-loses-up-to-460-soldiers-near-avdeyevka-in-past-day---mod-1117304463.html Ukraine Loses Up to 460 Soldiers Near Avdeyevka in Past Day - MoD Ukraine Loses Up to 460 Soldiers Near Avdeyevka in Past Day - MoD Sputnik International Russia repelled 12 counterattacks and Ukraine has lost more than 460 soldiers in the Avdeyevka region over the past 24 hours, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said on Wednesday 2024-03-13T12:24+0000 2024-03-13T12:24+0000 2024-03-13T12:24+0000 russia's special operation in ukraine ukraine russia donetsk belgorod region kursk region ministry of defense (mod) russian defense ministry dpr donetsk peoples republic https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/07/1117187321_0:151:3105:1898_1920x0_80_0_0_71a2346008a8058ea4c303ca5e12b8cf.jpg The Russian military repelled 12 Ukrainian counterattacks near the settlements of Novobakhmutovka, Pivnichnoye (former Kirovo), Berdychi, Orlovka, and Tonenkoye in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). Ukraine also lost up to 245 soldiers in the Donetsk area and up to 150 soldiers south of Donetsk, the ministry added. "The Ukrainian armed forces lost up to 245 servicemen, a tank, three armored combat vehicles, five military vehicles, and a combat vehicle of the Strela-10 anti-aircraft missile system," the MoD also noted. Russia Repels Ukraine's Attempt to Infiltrate Belgorod and Kursk RegionsRussian troops have also prevented the enemy's attempt to infiltrate two bordering Russian regions. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240312/ukraine-loses-234-fighters-during-attempt-to-cross-border---mod-1117290140.html ukraine russia donetsk belgorod region kursk region Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 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 russias special military op in ukraine, special military operation, special military operational zone, special op zone, russian troops in special op zone, ukraine casualties in conflict, total ukrainian losses, how many people did ukraine loose, how many people did kiev loose, new russian weapons in ukraine, advanced russian weapons, russian defense ministry statements, latest russian military statements, what did shoigu say about ukraine, donetsk peoples republic, nato in ukraine, is nato in ukraine https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/ukraine-stretched-thin-across-multiple-fronts-after-patriot-loss-1117296942.html Ukraine 'Stretched Thin Across Multiple Fronts' After Patriot Loss Ukraine 'Stretched Thin Across Multiple Fronts' After Patriot Loss Sputnik International Ukraine is scrambling to protect its air defenses, as it is being stretched thin across multiple fronts, acknowledged The National Interest (TNI). 2024-03-13T08:09+0000 2024-03-13T08:09+0000 2024-03-13T08:09+0000 military military & intelligence s-300 nato ukraine dmitry peskov sergey lavrov russia iskander-m donetsk peoples republic https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0d/1117296767_0:89:3326:1960_1920x0_80_0_0_e9bbb75504187ef1ba2ae3e59eef394e.jpg Ukraine is scrambling to protect its air defenses, as it is being stretched thin across multiple fronts, The National Interest (TNI) has acknowledged.The recent loss of a German-supplied Patriot system touted as a key asset in Kiev's aerial defense strategy underscores the ongoing intense warfare and strategic implications for Ukrainian air defense capabilities, the US publication wrote.As a result of the loss, the Ukrainian Air Force may now have to be even further stretched, the author summed up.Germany supplied two full Patriot batteries to the Ukrainian Air Force, along with two spare launchers, while the United States donated one battery.Two Patriot systems were among the military hardware destroyed by a strike carried out by a Russian Iskander hypersonic surface-to-surface missile in the Donetsk Peoples Republic town of Pokrovsk on March 9, a security source earlier told Sputnik. The Russian Defense Ministry also shared footage of the destruction of an S-300 air-defense missile launcher, which was part of a Ukrainian military convoy tracked in the DPR. Sputnik later obtained footage suggesting there were three missile systems destroyed in the Iskander strike.Each Patriot PAC-2 air-defense system is believed to cost around $400 million, the outlet pointed out, and was one of the most sophisticated weapons that Washington had provided to Kiev.Whether American military officials like to admit it or not, Ukraine is becoming a graveyard of sophisticated NATO weaponry.This is a fact that Kievs patrons are increasingly being forced to reckon with. Three US-made M1 Abrams main battle tanks (MBTs) were obliterated by Russia within a single week with the help of unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as kamikaze drones. The Western tanks failed to become the game changer they were touted to be, as proven by Ukraines failed summer 2023 counteroffensive. At the time, the Ukraine conflict zone was deftly dubbed a "graveyard of tanks."With the Patriot system now also shown to be vulnerable, it has become evident that no matter how sophisticated and costly, weaponry sent to Ukraine becomes just additional corpses littering the battle zone, the US publication underscored.The destruction of the first Abrams tank supplied to Kiev showed that Russian soldiers are determined to demilitarize Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at the time.The Kremlin has consistently warned against continued arms deliveries to the Kiev regime, warning they would lead to the prolongation of the conflict. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, cautioned that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russian strikes. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240307/what-helped-russias-t-72b3-tank-destroy-ukraines-abrams-1117192733.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240310/ukraine-cant-easily-replace-patriot-air-defenses-destroyed-by-russia--report-1117241886.html ukraine russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Svetlana Ekimenko Svetlana Ekimenko 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 Svetlana Ekimenko russian special military operation, the destruction of ukraine's patriot systems by russian forces, russia's iskander-m missile strike on a convoy of ukrainian military hardware, abrams tank, upyr dronel, russian special military operation, russian troops destroyed american tank, russia destroys us-made tank https://sputnikglobe.com/20240313/vladimir-putin-holds-interview-with-rossiya-segodnya-chief-kiselev-1117297434.html Watch Full Video of Vladimir Putin's Interview With Rossiya Segodnya Chief Kiselev Watch Full Video of Vladimir Putin's Interview With Rossiya Segodnya Chief Kiselev Sputnik International Russian President Vladimir Putin gave an interview to journalist Dmitry Kiselev, the director general of Rossiya Segodnya, Sputnik's parent media group. Putin declared Russia's nuclear readiness, named terms of peace talks on Ukraine and touched upon the resistance of national economy. Read the full text of the interview below. 2024-03-13T07:00+0000 2024-03-13T07:00+0000 2024-03-14T09:43+0000 russia vladimir putin dmitry kiselev russia federal assembly https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0d/1117298002_17:0:1167:647_1920x0_80_0_0_f143de75cd5294bee1f87d49cddd9cbf.jpg Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, when delivering your Address [to the Federal Assembly], you were figuratively pulling trillion by trillion out of your sleeve. As a matter of fact, you proposed an absolutely astonishing plan of the countrys development, truly astonishing. That will be a different Russia, with a completely new infrastructure and social system nothing short of a dreamland.But it makes me feel like asking you your favourite question quoting Vladimir Vysotsky, Where is the money, Zina? Have we earned it or not?President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Yes, of course we did.What is more, this plan is, first of all, the result of painstaking work by the expert community, experts from the Government and Administration. Everything fits in the budgetary rules and is actually rather conservative given that certain experts believe that the revenues should and will be higher. And, therefore, we should have planned larger expenditures because this should directly impact economic development prospects.Overall, this is the right thing to do. Back in 2018, we also planned to allocate additional eight trillion rubles to economic and social development, but later on we increased this figure. I believe that it is quite possible, if things work out the way the optimists from the above-mentioned expert community say they will, that we will be able to we should and we will do that increase our expenditures in a number of areas.Dmitry Kiselev: So, we are talking about a six-year period, right?Vladimir Putin: Exactly. We are talking precisely about a six-year period. At the present moment, we are working on a three-year budget, that is the budget for a three-year planning period. But when we were preparing for the Address I use the pronoun we because there was a whole team working on that we naturally assumed that we should calculate our revenues and expenditures in the areas that we deem crucial and high-priority for a six-year period.Dmitry Kiselev: But still, some projects are truly mind-blowing. For example, the DzhubgaSochi highway: 130 kilometres, of which 90 kilometres are tunnels and the rest must be bridges, judging by the landscape. One and a half billion rubles in the first three years alone, with the highway ideally planned to be ready by 2030. Is this really necessary and will we have enough for our victory?Vladimir Putin: People need this road. Families with children cannot reach Sochi by car. They all stop somewhere around Gelendzhik or Novorossiysk because the road is too challenging it's a serpentine.There exist several construction options. We are going to discuss the issue shortly, in the next few days. Either it will be a road to Dzhubga, or first the road from Dzhubga to Sochi. Some Government members suggest doing it step by step. Others believe that all should be done at once, otherwise there will be a bottleneck from Dzhubga to Sochi.The first section of the road, if we look at it from Novorossiysk, is quite good, and the quality of the pavement is not bad, but it is very narrow. If we continue like that, like the first section, all the way to Sochi, there could be traffic jams in that small space, and they already are quite numerous there now.Anyway, we will discuss this specific ways and stages with the professionals, but it should be done. It is necessary to determine, of course, the final cost of the project to ensure that everyone remains within the financial plans.The interests of people are in the first place, but the interests of the economy are also a priority. The development of territories in the south of the country is very important.Dmitry Kiselev: One would assume that the nation is getting better-off rapidly, since we can afford such large-scale investments, especially in view of the special military operation and almost 15,000 sanctions, which are absolutely horrendous. All the more so as we also want to reduce poverty, including among large families. That's a bold objective, isn't it?Vladimir Putin: No, it isn't. Here, let me get back to the subject of that highway. When I discussed it with members of the Government and the Ministry of Finance is always stingy, in a good way, conservative about such spending the Minister of Finance [Anton Siluanov] told me, and I'm quoting, Only those who have never travelled this road are against its construction.Dmitry Kiselev: So we have to get all the Government to go there.Vladimir Putin: Well, he is right, because it's especially important for families with children.As for the question of whether we are getting richer. The economy is growing, that's a fact, and it's not us who have registered it, but international economic and financial organisations. Russia has got ahead of Germany in terms of purchasing power parity and replaced it as the fifth largest economy in the world.As far as I know, the German economy shrank by 0.3 percent last year, while Russian economy grew by 3.6 percent. Japan grew by a small percentage. So if the rate of growth remains the same as it is today, there is a good chance that Russia will overtake Japan as the fourth largest economy, and that might happen quite quickly.And yet, let us be honest and objective, the quality of our economies is not the same. In terms of purchasing power parity, that is the size of the economy, Russia is actually the fifth largest economy in the world and has every chance of overtaking Japan. But the structure of the economy in these two countries has an obvious advantage over that of Russia.There is still a lot to be done for our country to take a decent position not only in terms of purchasing power parity, but also in terms of [GDP] per capita. That is the first thing. Secondly, it's important that the structure of the economy itself changes, becomes more efficient, more modern and more innovative. This is what we're going to work on.As far as revenues are concerned, the purchasing power parity is a very important indicator. This is the volume, or the size of the economy. This means that the state receives money to address its strategic priorities through the tax system at all levels. This gives us the opportunity to develop in the way we see fit.Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, you have mentioned economic structure, the need for structural change in the economy. This is exactly what you set forth in your Address to the Federal Assembly and the challenge is exactly this: make innovative sectors grow faster than the economy as a whole.Vladimir Putin: Of course.As I said, we need to work on the structure. That will determine the future of our economy, the future of labour resources, the efficiency, and labour productivity .One of the main challenges today is to enhance labour productivity. Given shortage of workers, the only one way to achieve effective development is to enhance labour productivity. This in turn means that we need to inject innovation into our economy and aim for greater robotic process automation. Today, as far as I can remember, there are ten robots for every 10,000 workers, whereas we need at least 1,000 robots for every 10,000 workers. That seems to be the case in Japan now.Then, people need to be trained to operate these new machines, not only robots but also other advanced production tools. So there is another challenge, the training of skilled workers.We have identified specific areas, including engineering training, where this is a priority. You may be aware that 30 stateoftheart engineering schools have been opened in different parts of the country. Another 20 will open this year; there will be 50 in total. Fifty more are in the pipeline for the next few years.So these areas are the future of our nation. We will explore and develop these areas.Dmitry Kiselev: Just to make sure we've covered the sanctions. A lot of people have voiced the idea of creating a government body specifically to respond to sanctions, to counter them. Is that being planned or do you think it would be pointless?Vladimir Putin: There's simply no need. The Government, the Central Bank, the Security Council analyse everything that our foes do. Many things are done not even for political or military reasons, although they are declared, but for reasons of competition.Dmitry Kiselev: Unscrupulous, unfair competition.Vladimir Putin: Unfair competition, masked by political or military considerations. This has been the case in the aircraft industry and in many other sectors.Well, the world is the way it is and we have adapted to its realities. We know who we are dealing with. And so far, as the results of our work show, we have been quite effective.Dmitry Kiselev: But the West's cunning does not stop there. In your Address to the Federal Assembly, you said, and I quote, We are also aware of the Western attempts to draw us into an arms race, thereby exhausting us, mirroring the strategy they successfully employed with the Soviet Union in the 1980s. What is our margin of safety under the conditions of what is effectively an arms race?Vladimir Putin: We need to ensure maximum return on every ruble invested in defence industry. Indeed, during the Soviet era, no one was concerned about these expenditures, unfortunately, efficiency was not a priority. Defence spending accounted for about 13% of GDP of the country the Soviet Union.I will not refer to our statistics instead, I will cite the Stockholm Institute: last year our defence spending was four percent, and this year it is 6.8 percent, meaning we have grown by 2.8 percentage points. This is a noticeable increase, but not critical at all. In the Soviet Union, it was 13 percent, whereas we are currently at 6.8 percent.It should be noted that defence spending accelerates the economy, making it more dynamic. However, there are limitations to consider, as we understand. The age-old question remains: what is more beneficial guns or butter? We have this in mind.Although, as I mentioned, our modern defence industry is good in that it not only indirectly affects civilian industry sectors but also uses innovations necessary for defence industry to produce civilian goods. This is an extremely important thing.Of course, our spending is incomparable. How much do they have in the United States? 800Dmitry Kiselev: It's already nearly 900.Vladimir Putin: Nearly 900 860 or 870 billion [US dollars]. They are absolutely incomparable to our spending.Dmitry Kiselev: It seems to me that they are embezzling because they have no hypersonic [weapons], nothing What is it?Vladimir Putin: I'll explain what it is. The issue is that significant portions of their funds are allocated towards maintenance, not just salaries, but also towards maintaining bases worldwide. It's difficult to track where all the money goes, as it seems to disappear into a black hole. This is where the majority of the embezzlement occurs. Although significant amounts of money which are difficult to evaluate are also spent on producing means of destruction, weapons in general.If we calculate the cost of their well-known anti-missile defence system and one of our main means to overcome missile defence systems the Avangard intercontinental missile with a glide vehicle of intercontinental range, the values are simply incomparable. Essentially, we nullified all their efforts and contributions to the missile defence system. This is the appropriate course of action.Additionally, it is imperative that our Armed Forces' economy aligns with current demands.Dmitry Kiselev: The word justice is a magical word for the Russian language. You use it very carefully, but once you pronounced it in your Address and it sounded like thunder. You said that the distribution of the tax burden should become more equitable in Russia and suggested that the Government should think about it. In which direction should it think?Vladimir Putin: Truly, the distribution of the tax burden should be fair in the sense that corporations, legal entities, and individuals who earn more should contribute more to the national treasury, towards addressing nationwide problems, primarily towards fight against poverty.Dmitry Kiselev: A progressive tax?Vladimir Putin: Yes, essentially a progressive tax.I would not like to go into details now, as we need to work more on this. We need to build a system that really yields greater returns for solving primarily social issues and challenges facing the state in this area.We plan to reduce the tax burden, for example, for large families, and take further steps in this direction. I believe that society will perceive this as normal. This is the first thing.Secondly. What does business ask of us? It asks us to determine the taxation system, and not to change it further, so that it remains stable. This is the most important request and requirement from the business.The Government is to address this issue as soon as possible and work together with the State Duma deputies to present proposals.Dmitry Kiselev: A progressive tax won't we scare someone away? We used to be afraid of scaring someone away with this progressive tax.Vladimir Putin: No, I don't think so. In principle, we have this system in place. Even those who were ardent supporters of the flat scale, the authors of the flat scale, now believe that on the whole we are ripe for a much more selective approach.Dmitry Kiselev: During your Address, you thanked colleagues from the Government that was the wording. Does this mean that Mr Mishustin's government if you win will remain in place?Vladimir Putin: We should talk about this after the election, after the votes have been counted. It seems to me that now it is simply incorrect. But on the whole, as we can see, the Government is working well the results are obvious, and that is objective data.Dmitry Kiselev: You mentioned reducing the tax burden on large families. Children and the demographic situation these topics were very extensive in your Address. Indeed, the issue is quite painful, because demographically Russia is melting away. Last year was an anti-record of birth rate.Vladimir Putin: I think the birth rate was 1.31 or 1.39.Dmitry Kiselev: Its 1.39 children per woman capable of child-bearing.Vladimir Putin: Of childbearing age.Dmitry Kiselev: Perhaps ideally we should double it [to a ratio of] three. Because this is literally a disaster for society.You have proposed a fairly large-scale programme to support motherhood and demographic stimulation. Is there any confidence that these measures will reverse the downward trajectory to an upward one?Vladimir Putin: On the whole, there are plans to spend, through various channels, up to 14 trillion rubles on all measures to support families with children over the six-year period. It is an enormous amount of money.There are numerous areas of support for families with children from general social support, such as building or renovating kindergartens, building new schools and renovating old ones, modernising them in accordance with the present-day needs, to supporting women from pregnancy till the child turns 18. Allowance is currently paid to nearly 400,000 women, which is almost every third pregnant woman. Over ten million children receive child benefit. This is a serious thing.We have kept the system of maternity capital. We have continued with the payments of 450,000 rubles for mortgage repayment to families where a third child is born the relevant decisions are underway. We have preserved mortgage benefits for families with children. In other words, there is a whole package of very diverse family support measures.Of course, as you have already mentioned, this is also about fighting poverty, because, obviously, families with children face way more difficulties than childless families, which is no surprise as the expenses are huge. Nevertheless, we have achieved considerable progress in this area.Thus, 20 years ago we had, I think, 29 percent of the population, or 42 million people, living below the poverty line. Today, according to the latest reports, we have 9.3 percent, which is still 13.5 million people. A very large number, indeed. We need to do everything possible to bring it down to at least seven percent. As for families with many children, the figures are more modest, but they also need to be improved.What are we referring to when speaking of poor birth rates? I have already said many times, and experts say this, these are objective things that we have had two dramatic declines in the birth rates. One was in 19431944, during the Great Patriotic War. A comparable decline followed immediately after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a very similar one, with the same decline in the birth rate.The reason is clear: the breakdown of the social support system. No matter how weak it was in the USSR, it was there anyway, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union it basically ceased to exist, leading to widespread poverty. There is no need to explain. Anyway, the planning horizon of a family shrank; the birth rate went down to that of the war years. Then we had a rebound. And now we have quite a large number of children, young people who will reach adulthood and childbearing age in a few years, and we assume that the rates will go up.What you have mentioned is a worldwide trend. There are only a few developed countries that have positive demographic dynamics, while in the rest of the developed world everything is on the decline. This is a complex problem, which has to do with the economy, as well as life priorities of women. It is better not to interfere right now, let the demographers deal with it and come up with a solution.But you know what is encouraging? The public sentiment. In Russia, 70 percent of men and 72 percent of women would like to have two or more children, and the state should support them in that regard. We are working on an extensive package of support measures which need to be implemented, and we will do that.Dmitry Kiselev: However, there is still no certainty that those measures will turn the situation around.In the late 1990s it is a well-known story which you have spoken of yourself you saved your children from fire: you went into the burning building, to the second floor. It was not until later that you remembered about the money left in the house. The money burnt. This shows your priorities: children first, then money.Maybe the same approach should be adopted on a nationwide scale? Not just 14 [trillion], but to go all in to launch such a programme that would guarantee a turn of the tide?Vladimir Putin: You know, you have to, as they say, follow the developments. In the early 2000s, we introduced a number of demographic initiatives, including maternity capital, and a number of other measures, which have produced tangible positive results. This means we are capable of achieving desired goals.Dmitry Kiselev: So we already have the relevant experience?Vladimir Putin: We have the experience, for sure. Using this experience and other best practices, we should ultimately aim to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. As the situation changes, we will adjust the existing measures or supplement them with something else.For instance, we have declared the year 2024 the Year of the Family. We have launched a new national project entitled Family. It includes elements that we have never used before. For example, there are plans to allocate 75 billion [rubles] to regions where birth rates are lower than the national average. These are mostly the central regions of Russia and the country's northwest. 75 billion is a decent amount of money. It is just that they need to be used wisely.Elderly care is another aspect. There are other support measures as well. By raising the birth rate and increasing life expectancy, we will be able to stabilise the countrys population. This is the main overall indicator that will either demonstrate our success or, possibly, highlight the need for greater attention to the relevant work from all administrative and government bodies.Dmitry Kiselev: Sure, but there is also a third tool for solving demographic problems all over the world, and that is immigration. What figures can we expect for this six-year period and what does the systematic approach in this work means?Vladimir Putin: As for migrant workers, we do not have many immigrants in our country compared to other countries: they make up 3.7 percent of the total number of workers. But they are concentrated in the regions with the highest economic activity, and there are certainly more of them out there. These are the Moscow Region, Moscow, the Northwestern region and some regions in the North, where they have decent salaries. However, no doubt, this is an issue that requires special attention on the part of the authorities, both local, regional and federal.What else I would like to add here? It is a very important thing. When labour migrants are attracted, they always say it is necessary to do so because of the shortage of workers. Our entrepreneurs should understand that the situation for them in terms of labour availability will not change for the better in the coming years they will face labour shortages.I would like to repeat once again that in order to solve this issue in a totally different way it is necessary to increase labour productivity and reduce the number of workers in those areas where it can be done, achieving even greater results by introducing modern technologies. As we have already discussed, this requires investment in this area and personnel training. This is the primary thing we have to think about.Generally, of course, migration policy is an important economic tool. There is no harm in looking at the lesson learned of other countries. First and foremost, of course, we should talk about the repatriation of our compatriots. The concepts of repatriation and compatriots are already reflected in our regulatory framework, there is no need to repeat them here.We should talk about attracting people who perhaps do not intend to move to the Russian Federation, but by virtue of their qualifications and talents in various fields can make a significant contribution to the development of our state, to the development of Russia. We would be glad to attract such people as well.As for traditional labour migrants, we also need to think about ways to prepare them for coming to Russia, including with our partners in the countries where they permanently reside. This includes studying the Russian language, our traditions, culture, and so on. It is necessary to look after them here too, to treat them humanely. In other words, it is necessary to make efforts to integrate them into our society in a natural way. All of this together should have a corresponding, I hope, positive effect.Naturally, everyone should observe our traditions and the laws of the Russian Federation. And, certainly, sanitary and other norms must be strictly observed. Ensuring the security of citizens of the Russian Federation must come first.Dmitry Kiselev: Russians are probably the most divided nation in the world. You had a conversation with participants of the Leaders of Russia competition, and one of your interlocutors said that we discovered in the Zaporozhye region that they were Russians just like us. I got the impression that it sounded like some kind of revelation to them. In general, and it is true, new regions are joining us now, and Odessa is a Russian city. I suppose there are high expectations for this direction too?Vladimir Putin: Absolutely! The population density in these regions has always been quite high, and the climate is wonderful.As for Donbass, it has been an industrially developed region since the times of the Soviet Union. The USSR has made huge investments in this region, in its coal mining industry, in its metallurgical industry. Indeed, investments are required to ensure that all production is up-to-date, and people's living conditions, their working conditions are organised in a completely different way not as they were a couple of decades ago.As for Novorossiya, it is a region characterised by a strongly developed agriculture. Here, we will do everything to support both traditional spheres of activity and the new ones that smoothly fit into these regions and with people's desire to develop them. You know, the people there are very talented.What is more, as I have already said, even taxes are already going to the federal budget from there. We need to help them at this stage, to support them, to take them to the Republican, nationwide Russian level. They will start working, and this will happen very quickly.Dmitry Kiselev: Historically, it is quite clear that Nazi regimes do not dissolve themselves but disappear as a result of military defeat. This was the case in Germany, in Italy, and in Japan. The same will obviously be happening with the Bandera Nazi regime. We are now advancing all along the front line, judging by reports from both the Defence Ministry and our war correspondents.Did we finally manage to find a strategy when our casualties are reduced on the offensive compared to the defence? This is a rather unconventional task to accomplish in the art of war, but it always holds back the offensive. It is prudence, and it's absolutely reasonable with respect to our heroic warriors. Yet it raises a question: how we can advance with minimal losses?Vladimir Putin: The question is clear and fair. The answer is also quite simple: we need to increase our weapons in terms of its number and power, while also improving the effectiveness of the forces and means used. This includes both tactical and army air force, as well as strategic aviation. By this I mean, of course, within those aspects that are acceptable for armed conflicts of this kind. Here, I refer to ground weapons, including high-precision ones, also artillery and armoured vehicles. It is no exaggeration to say that we are developing by leaps and bounds.Dmitry Kiselev: In this direction?Vladimir Putin: Yes, this is exactly what's happening today. And this is the answer to your question: the more weapons we have and the more powerful they are, the fewer casualties we suffer.Dmitry Kiselev: And yet one raises a question. What price are we ready to pay for this perhaps project is not the proper word challenge we have been historically forced to face?Vladimir Putin: Look, every human life is priceless, every single one. The loss of a loved one to a family, to any family, is a tremendous grief.But what is the key point here? The point is to make clear what we are doing. And what are we doing? We met today and, as you have noticed, one of the participants in the conversation said: we were surprised to find out that there are Russians there just like us. So we came to the rescue of these people. Basically, this is the answer to your question.If we leave these people today, tomorrow our losses may increase many times over. Our children will have no future, because we will feel insecure, we will be a third- or fourth-class country. No one will factor us in if we cannot defend ourselves, so the consequences could be catastrophic for the Russian statehood. That is the answer.Dmitry Kiselev: While the Americans seem to be talking about negotiations and strategic stability, they declare the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. Our position is as follows, We are open to negotiations, but the time for goodwill gestures has passed, it's over. Does it mean that there will be no negotiations?Vladimir Putin: We have never refused to negotiate.Dmitry Kiselev: But is there a compromise without goodwill gestures? How can it be achieved then?Vladimir Putin: Let me try to explain that. I have already said this many times, but if it needs to be repeated, I will. When we were holding talks in Istanbul, Turkiye, with the negotiators from the other side, we ended up having a thick folio, a document, which was actually a draft treaty. We have an excerpt from that treaty in the Presidential Executive Office; it was initialled by the head of the negotiating group on the Ukrainian side, Mr Arakhamia. You can see his signature on it. But then, as you already know, Mr Arakhamia himself publicly told the world it was also at a meeting with journalists, I believe, even with foreign ones that former Prime Minister of Great Britain Mr Johnson arrived and convinced them not to sign the treaty and, therefore, not to implement it. And so they started to bring up the topic you have just mentioned we need to defeat Russia on the battlefield.Are we ready to negotiate? We sure are. But we are definitely not ready for talks that are based on some kind of wishful thinking which comes after the use of psychotropic drugs, but we are ready for talks based on the realities that have developed, as they say in such cases, on the ground. This is the first thing.Secondly, we have already been promised a lot of things many times before. We were promised that NATO would not expand to the East, but then we saw NATO at our borders. We were promised, without delving into history, that the internal conflict in Ukraine would be resolved by peaceful, political means. As we remember, three foreign ministers from Poland, Germany and France came to Kiev and promised that they would be guarantors of these agreements. One day later, the coup d'etat took place. We were promised that the Minsk agreements would be honoured, and then they publicly announced that they never intended to fulfil their promises, instead they only took a pause to arm the Bandera regime in Ukraine. We were promised a lot of things, so that is why promises alone are not enough.For us to hold negotiations now just because they are running out of ammunition would be ridiculous. Nevertheless, we are open to a serious discussion, and we are eager to resolve all conflicts, especially this one, by peaceful means. However, we must be sure that this is not just another pause that the enemy wants to use for rearmament, but rather a serious conversation with security guarantees for the Russian Federation.We know various options that are being discussed, we know the lures they are going to show us in order to convince us that the time has come. Once again, we want to resolve all disputes and this particular dispute, this particular conflict, by peaceful means. And we are ready for that, we want that. But this should be a serious negotiation with provision of security for the opposing side, and in this case we are primarily interested in the security of the Russian Federation. That is what we will proceed from.Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, I am afraid we appear too generous, don't we? Wouldnt it be the case that we conclude another agreement with them and they will cheat us once again? And we will console ourselves with the thought that we did it all honestly and it was they who cheated. Are we doomed to always end up with egg on our face?Back in the 1990s, the United States coined themselves medals for the victory in the Cold War, and the decades since that time have been the decades of great lies. How can we ever hope that they finally conclude an honest treaty with us and comply with it and give us guarantees? I do not know how we are to handle them. Do you really believe this is at all possible?Vladimir Putin: I hate saying this, but I dont trust anyone.Dmitry Kiselev: Well.Vladimir Putin: But we need guarantees. These guarantees have to be put down on paper, and they should suit us and they should make us trust them. That is what I mean.It would probably be premature to publicly say that it could be possible. But we certainly will not buy any empty promises.Dmitry Kiselev: I am afraid your words might be cited and interpreted broadly. When you say that you dont trust anyone, do you mean that you trust nobody at all or do you refer to the Western partners in this particular case?Vladimir Putin: I prefer to rely on the facts rather than be guided by wishful thinking and assurances that everybody can be trusted. You see, the responsibility for the consequences of any decision of this magnitude is immense. For this reason we will do nothing that would prejudice the interests of our country.Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, what happened to Emmanuel Macron? Has he gone nuts? He is going to send French troops against our army. He looks like a fighting Gallic rooster and has scared all Europeans. How should one take it?Vladimir Putin: In fact, the Western countries' military personnel have been present in Ukraine for a long time. They had been there before the coup d'etat, and after the coup their number has grown several times. Today they are involved both directly as military advisers and as foreign mercenaries, and they suffer casualties. Yet I am certain that even if foreign countries are to send their troops officially, it will not change the situation on the ground and this is the most important thing because arms supplies change nothing.Second, it can lead to serious geopolitical consequences. If, say, Polish troops enter Ukrainian territory, allegedly for the protection of, say, the border between Belarus and Ukraine, or some other parts, to release Ukrainian troops and enable them to fight along the contact line, I think, Polish troops will stay there. That is what I believe. It is their heart's desire to get back the lands they have historically regarded as theirs, the lands that Father of the Peoples Joseph Stalin took from them and gave to Ukraine. They certainly want to have these lands back. So if Polish troops enter Ukraine, they will hardly ever leave it.In such a case, this example might be followed by other countries that lost parts of their territories after the Second World War. I think that Ukraine would face geopolitical consequences at least as regards preserving its current statehood in their full and unappealing magnitude.Dmitry Kiselev: Going back to Mr Macron, could he be revenging himself on Russia for having taken him down a peg or two in Africa instead of playing nice and obedient? He did not expect Russia to be so active, did he?Vladimir Putin: Yes, I believe that might be a matter of some hard feelings, but when we maintained direct contacts with him we used to discuss this topic rather openly.We have never thrust our way to Africa, neither have we squeezed France out of there. The problem has a different source. There is a well-known Wagner group, which initially pursued a number of economic projects in Syria and subsequently spread its activities to some other countries in Africa. It has enjoyed the support of the Ministry of Defence, but only because it is a Russian group, no more. We have not squeezed anybody out of Africa. Rather, the leaders of some African countries had dealings with some Russian economic players and wanted to work with them, rather than with the French ones, in some areas. This was not our, but our African friends' initiative.So it is not clear, what we are to blame for in this connection, if an independent state wants to develop its ties with partners from other countries, including from Russia, wants to build its relations with Russia. We have not touched these former French colonists in those African countries. Without a touch of irony, many countries, for which France historically was a mother country, are very reluctant to deal with it. It is none of our fault. It might be more convenient to France to pin the blame on somebody else than to acknowledge its own faults. The French President's sharp and emotional reaction might be explained, among other things, by the developments in some African states.However, I know that there are other African countries, those that have no objections against French presence and say that they are happy and ready to work with the French. Yet some countries are not. It is not our doing. We are not brainwashing anybody and not inciting any anti-French sentiments there.We set ourselves no such tasks. To be frank, Russia has no state or national goals to pursue there. We merely maintain friendly ties. If they prefer to build their relations with Russia, they are most welcome, we reciprocate such steps. There is nothing to be offended with.Dmitry Kiselev: But now they are saying in France that there are no longer any red lines left with regard to Russia, nothing is impossible and everything is possible. In general, they want to talk to us somehow on the basis of the balance of power. We hear a lot of things from France, from the West, and from Lithuania. In general, the chorus is not slender, but hostile.Maybe we, too, should go for unconventional solutions and at some point seek help from the two-million-strong North Korean army? For example, in exchange for our nuclear umbrella over half of the Korean peninsula? Why not then?Vladimir Putin: First of all, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has its own nuclear umbrella. They didn't ask us for anything. That's the first point.Second. In principle, based on what we see on the battlefield, we are coping with the tasks we set ourselves.As for the states saying that they have no red lines with Russia, they should realise that Russia will have no red lines with them either.As for small European states, first, we treat everyone with respect, no matter what. Second, when these small states call for toughening the policy towards Russia and taking some extreme measures, including, say, the deployment of troops and so on, they are still those states, and they understand this, which will not feel the consequences of their provocative statements. And those who may feel it, keep a low profile. And rightly so.Dmitry Kiselev: And all that German dancing with the Taurus missiles? Mr Scholz says, we do not supply, but there are forces that insist on sending the Taurus missiles to Ukraine, the British propose their initiative: let's do it via England, we are ready to send. The target is the Crimean Bridge, the German generals are already planning operations, as we have heard, not only targeting the Crimean Bridge, but also military bases, as they say, deep inside the Russian territory. Some are already saying these missiles could hit the Kremlin. Don't they go too far in their dreams?Vladimir Putin: First, they are dreaming and cheering themselves up. Second, they are trying to intimidate us.As for Germany, there are constitutional problems there as well. They are right when they say that if the Taurus missiles hit that part of the Crimean Bridge, which is certainly, even according to their concepts, part of the Russian territory, this is a violation of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany.The fact is that German opposition is behaving even more aggressively. We will see what they will agree on. We are following this closely. British and American missiles are also used. But this does not change the situation on the battlefield. Yes, they're causing damage to us, of course, that's obvious. But, in essence, it does not affect the course of hostilities and the consequences that are inevitable for the other side.We are now hearing that in Germany both your channels and foreign channels, German channels, show how much they have, how much is in a bad state, how much requires improvement, modernisation, and so on. Let them work. As you have rightly said, there are things they should think about. Those who are smarter think about it.Dmitry Kiselev: And the new NATO members, Finland and Sweden, in general, what did they trade for what? Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom suddenly told the Turks that Sweden was against NATO bases on the Swedish territory. Didn't they realise what they had joined? What happened to them?Vladimir Putin: You have to ask them, I don't know. We had quite good relations, stable relations with those countries, and I think that they benefited more from the fact that they adhered to neutrality, because it gave certain advantages, at least as a negotiating platform to reduce tension in Europe.We had a perfect relationship with Finland, just perfect. We didn't have a single claim against each other, much less a territorial one, I am not talking about other areas. We didn't even have any troops there; we had removed everything from the Russian-Finnish border. Why did they do that? For purely political reasons, I think. I guess they really wanted to be a member of a Western club, under some kind of umbrella. Why did they do that, I frankly don't understand. This is a totally senseless step in terms of safeguarding their own national interests. However, it's up to them to decide, and they made that decision.We didn't have any troops there, now we will. There were no weapon systems, now there will be. Why? We had very good economic relations. They used our market, we bought a lot from them. What's wrong with that? Now the situation will change. Many of their goods are not really needed in other markets, and they're missing out on our goods. I don't understand it.Dmitry Kiselev: Meanwhile, in the US, there's an ongoingVladimir Putin: You know, it's an everyday thing, but still. In recent years, both in Helsinki, and even more so in the border areas of Finland, payments could be made in Russian rubles. In large supermarkets, including in Helsinki, you could buy any goods for rubles. All advertisements are in Russian there.Dmitry Kiselev: People in border areas over there are simply going bankrupt.Vladimir Putin: Well, what I mean to say is that, on the other hand, the economic situation was fine: house prices stood at a good level. Yes, this was fine in terms of the economy, yet there were apparently highly conservative right-wing, nationalist political actors who did not like these closer relations with Russia. Some even though it was too much: Russians buying houses and flats, signs in Russian everywhere aroundI mean I know for sure that this Russophobia started somewhere at the grassroots level. Perhaps some political movements in the country decided to make use of this bias perhaps so. All those factors combined resulted in such a decision. Thats what I think, but I cannot be 100 percent sure. Anyway, this won't help enhance security, either bilaterally or in Europe as a whole.Dmitry Kiselev: Meanwhile, the United States finds itself amidst a fierce presidential race. And of course, they cannot do without you there. You are the invisible participant, because every Republican or Democratic candidate mentions you in their speech, giving reasons. It even seems that you never come off newspaper pages or TV news headlines and are always an argument in everyone's election campaign. You are even fuelling the fire.Vladimir Putin: How is that?Dmitry Kiselev: They say that we favour one candidate over others. If a foreign president says that one of the candidates in some other country is preferable, it is actually a textbook example of election-meddling. To which extent do you interfere in the American elections by claiming that we prefer to see Biden as president? And how true is that? What is that some sort of trolling?Vladimir Putin: Listen, first, I will tell you one thing that will prove that my preferences have not changed.Second. We do not interfere in any elections in any way, and I have said more than once that we will work with any leader trusted by the American people, the American voter.I find it curious that in his last year as president, Mr Trump, current candidate for president, rebuked me for sympathising with Mr Biden. It was more than four years ago. This is what he told me during one of our conversations, excuse me for a direct quote: You want Sleepy Joe to win.He told me that when he was still President. Later, to my surprise, he got persecuted for Russia allegedly having supported him as candidate. That's total rubbish.As for the current situation with the elections, it is getting increasingly uncivilised. I wouldn't want to comment on that at all.Besides, it is quite certain, I think that it is obvious to everyone now that the American political system cannot claim to be democratic in every sense of the word.Dmitry Kiselev: To be honest, it sounds rather odd to me that you prefer Mr Biden. Back in 2011, Mr Biden came to Moscow and tried to dissuade you from running for president.Do you remember that episode? He shared the story during his meeting with the Russian opposition at Spaso House. According to Garry Kasparov, Mr Biden said that he had visited Prime Minister Putin at the Russian White House in order to dissuade him from running for president, and that he had embarked on preparations for an Arab spring in our country. It seems that Biden did not favour you already at that time. You are engaged in a sort of historical duel. Or have you got over it?Vladimir Putin: Honestly, I didn't pay much attention to that.Dmitry Kiselev: You got over it, then. You even didn't pay much attention.Vladimir Putin: A duelDmitry Kiselev: So, it was serious for him but not for you.Vladimir Putin: This is really a sign of interferenceDmitry Kiselev: Yes, this is 100 percent blatant interference.Vladimir Putin: Interference in the political processes in our country. We have stated, and I have stated many times: We will not let anyone do it.Dmitry Kiselev: Well then.Leaving aside the interference and the electoral battles, the escalation in fact continues. It seems that both superpowers, Russia and the USA, are playing what the Americans call the chicken game (when chickens ram each other); it is a game in which two drivers head toward each other to see who swerves away first. None seems inclined to be the first so far. Is the crash imminent then?Vladimir Putin: Why? The United States announced that they are not going to send troops. We know what American troops in the Russian territory are. These are invaders. That is how we will treat them even if they appear in the territory of Ukraine, and they understand it. I have said that Mr Biden is a representative of the traditional school and this is proved. Yet, apart from Mr Biden, they have enough specialists in Russian-American relations and strategic deterrence.Therefore, I do not think that it is getting closer to a head-on collision. But we are ready for it. I have said many times that it is a matter of life and death for us, while for them it is a matter of improving their tactical position in the world on the whole as well as maintaining their status among their allies in Europe in particular. This is also important, but not as much as it is for us.Dmitry Kiselev: It is interesting that you said we are ready for it. Philosopher and geopolitical expert Alexander Dugin directly urges to practically prepare for a nuclear war. The better we are ready for it, the less likely such a war is, Mr Dugin states. How can you ever be prepared for it? Are we really ready for a nuclear war?Vladimir Putin: From a military-technical point of view, we are certainly ready. They [the troops] are constantly on alert. This is the first thing.Secondly. Our nuclear triad is more advanced than any other one, and this is also a universally recognised fact. We and the Americans are the only ones who have such a triad, actually.Here, we have made a lot more progress. We have a more advanced nuclear component. On the whole, as for carriers and warheads, we have a rough parity, yet, the nuclear component we have is more sophisticated.Everyone knows it, all experts do. However, it does not mean that we should compete by the number of carriers or warheads, but we should know about it. And I repeat that those who need it experts, specialists, the military are well aware of it.Now they are setting the task to increase this modernity, novelty, they have relevant plans. We also know about them. They are developing all their components, so do we. But, in my view, this does not mean that they are ready to wage this nuclear war tomorrow. If they want to, what is there to do? We are ready.Dmitry Kiselev: Perhaps, to make it more compelling, we should conduct nuclear tests at some stage? After all, we have no international restrictions for that.Vladimir Putin: There is a treaty which bans such kind of tests, however, the United States has not ratified it, unfortunately. That is why to maintain parity we have withdrawn this ratification. Since the treaty was not ratified by the United States, it did not enter into force eventually, as it did not get the required number of ratifications, but we are nevertheless sticking to these agreements.We are aware that the possibility of conducting such tests is being considered in the United States. This is due to the fact that, when new warheads appear, as some specialists believe, it is not enough to test them on computer which means that they should be tested for real as well. Such ideas are in the air in some US circles, they exist, and we are aware of them.And we are also watching. If they conduct such tests, we will not necessarily do it, we should think whether we need it or not, however, I do not rule out that we can do the same.Dmitry Kiselev: But are we ready for it in a technical way?Vladimir Putin: We are always ready. I want to make it clear that these are not conventional weapons, this is the kind of troops which are always on alert.Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, last year, when there were tough moments at the front in connection with Kharkov or Kherson, were you thinking of tactical nuclear weapons?Vladimir Putin: What for? The decision to withdraw troops from Kherson was taken at the suggestion of the then command of the grouping. But it did not mean at all that our front was falling apart there. Nothing like that ever happened. It was just done to avoid unnecessary casualties among the personnel. That is all. This was the main motive, as under the conditions of warfare when it was impossible to fully supply the grouping located on the right bank, we would simply suffer unnecessary losses of personnel. Because of this, it was decided to redeploy them to the left bank.The correctness of this decision was confirmed by what the Ukrainian command tried to do in certain areas on the left bank, including in Krynki: they were just throwing their personnel there as if it were a meat grinder. They were running around literally barefoot in the end. They were trying to deliver ammunition there using speedboats and drones. What is that? Just slaughter, they sent them for slaughter.I once asked the Chief of the General Staff, there is nothing secret about it, In your opinion, who takes the decisions on that side? As the one who is taking the decision understands that he is sending people to certain death? He answered, They understand. I said, But who is taking the decision, why are they doing it? It makes no sense. It makes no military sense. I said, What sense does it make? I do not know, he answered, probably, top political leadership, based on political considerations that they have some chance to break through our defence, some chance to get additional money, referring to the fact that they have some bridgehead on the left bank, some chance to present their position at international meetings in a good way. The command was given, and all the subordinate heads automatically pass it on further.By the way, the prisoners that were taken captive there, laid down arms, they show they didn't even know what situation they were getting into. Let's say new forces are moved there and told, There is a solid defence there, go on, continue, and help. They couldn't even get to the left bank anymore.Dmitry Kiselev: A tragedy.Vladimir Putin: A real tragedy. From a human viewpoint, absolutely.So, why do we need to use weapons of mass destruction? There has never been such a need.Dmitry Kiselev: That is to say such idea did not even occur to you?Vladimir Putin: No. What for? Weapons exist to be used. We have our own principles; what do they say? That we are ready to use weapons, including the ones you have just mentioned, when it is about the existence of the Russian state, about harming our sovereignty and independence. We have everything spelled out in our Strategy. We have not changed it.Dmitry Kiselev: Mr President, when the outgoing President Yeltsin suggested that you should run for President your first reaction was, I am not ready.Vladimir Putin: Exactly, this is the direct speech.Dmitry Kiselev: Since then you have, of course, gone through a great evolution. If you are to write a telegram to yourself to that time, what text would be in it?Vladimir Putin: You know, this is like A [Connecticut] Yankee in King Arthur's Court or something like that. It is not possible to answer this question because the question was posed at that time, within the historical and economic context the country was in, in that internal political situation from the viewpoint of internal security. And all this together prompted me to the answer that I gave, I am not ready for this. Not because I was afraid of something but because the scale of the tasks was enormous and the number of problems grew every day like a snowball. That is why I said sincerely and not because, I repeat, I was afraid of something but because I thought that I was not ready to solve all these problems, God forbid, I would do something even worse. That's what I meant. That is why I was absolutely sincere and, if I went back, I would say the same thing again.Dmitry Kiselev: And what was decisive then? You ran after all.Vladimir Putin: Probably, conversations with Boris Nikolayevich.The key thing was that in the end he said to me then, Well, ok, I understand, we'll come back to this later. And we came back to this several times.In the long run he said that I was a man of experience, knew what I was doing, what I was suggesting, and told me some other things. Perhaps, it is not appropriate to talk myself up but he said such positive words. Later he repeated it again, in a genuinely positive way; I am not going to talk about it now.And when the work started, everything was completely different there. You know, when you work, you think: this, this and this is needed right now, this tomorrow and so on and so forth. When you settle down to a task, it's a different ball game.Dmitry Kiselev: No time to be afraid of anymore.Vladimir Putin: It's not about being afraid of but about being up to the task, being able to address them. You remember yourself what the year 1999 was like in the economy, in the security sphere, in the finance in everything.Dmitry Kiselev: You once said that preparing to enter Leningrad University was a turning point for you. This was the situation when you had to risk it all, knowing that either you do it now and cope and then be able to implement the plans that you had (and at that time you were already planning to work for the KGB) or you lose, and then everything is different and there is no chance. Is Russia now in the same situation when it has to risk it all?Vladimir Putin: First, I was not in such situation then. Yes, I wanted to work in the state security agencies.Dmitry Kiselev: The admission itself, it was kind of momentous, this feeling, wasn't it? Its either this way or that?Vladimir Putin: Not exactly. I just came to the reception desk and said, I would like to work here. What do I need for this?The alternative was simple, I was told: you need to either get a higher education, and preferably a law degree, or serve in the army, or have at least three years of work experience but better serve in the army. If I hadn't enrolled at the university, I would have joined the army.Well, perhaps, this would have been a longer way to the goal I set myself but it was there after all. There is always an alternative.Dmitry Kiselev: But you entered with tension.Vladimir Putin: Yes, of course, because after all, I studied at a school with a chemical and mathematical bias but here I had to take humanitarian subjects. I had to leave one thing and do another.Yes, certainly, there was tension. I had to learn a foreign language on my own, specifically German, I had to study history, literature and so on.Dmitry Kiselev: Russia is currently also at the crossroads: either everything works out orVladimir Putin: Russia is not at the crossroads. It is on the strategic path of its development and will not deviate from its path.Dmitry Kiselev: To what extent do you feel the support of Russian society in its new quality? After all, a new quality of Russian society has emerged.Vladimir Putin: It was there, it just manifested itself. And it is very good that we have given this profound Russian society an opportunity to express itself. I have the feeling that people have been waiting for this for a long time, that an average person would be in demand by the country and the state, and that the fate of the country would depend on him. It is this feeling of inner connection with the Motherland, with the Fatherland, of ones importance in solving key tasks, in this case in the sphere of security, that has raised to the surface the strength of the Russian and other peoples of Russia.Dmitry Kiselev: Does that recharge you?Vladimir Putin: Always. It's not even a matter of someone being recharged, it's a matter of seeing the demands of society. This is the most important thing to meet the demands of society.Dmitry Kiselev: But it is time to recognise that you play a key role not only in Russia, but also in the world, because billions of people associate with you the hope for international justice, for the defence of human dignity, for the protection of traditional values. How does it feel to feel that level of responsibility?Vladimir Putin: To tell you the truth, I don't feel it at all. I am simply working in the interests of Russia, in the interests of our people. Yes, I understand what you are saying now, and I am ready to comment on it. But I don't feel like I'm some sort of master of the world's destinies. Believe me, nothing even close. I am just doing my duty to Russia and to our people, who consider Russia their Motherland.As for other countries of the world, the way we are treated around the world is very closely related to this. That's what is interesting. It is a phenomenon, that's for sure.What I would like to draw attention to. You are absolutely right here, many people in the world are looking at us, at what is happening in our country and in our struggle for our interests.That's what I think is important. Why is this happening? Not because we are formally members of BRICS or because we have some kind of traditional relations with Africa. This is also important, but the point, in my opinion, is quite different. The point is that this so-called golden billion has been practically parasitising on other peoples for centuries, 500 years. They tore apart the unfortunate peoples of Africa, they exploited Latin America, they exploited the countries of Asia, and of course no one has forgotten that. I have the feeling that it is not even the leadership of these countries, although it is very important, but the ordinary citizens of these countries feel in their hearts what is happening.They associate our struggle for our independence and true sovereignty with their aspirations for their own sovereignty and independent development. But this is aggravated by the fact that there is a very strong desire in Western elites to freeze the current unjust state of affairs in international affairs. They've spent centuries filling their bellies with human flesh and their pockets with money. But they must realise that the vampire ball is ending.Dmitry Kiselev: Are you alluding to their, as you put it in your Address, colonial manners? That's what you're saying.Vladimir Putin: That's the way it goes.Dmitry Kiselev: But now you have painted a perfectly fair picture of people seeing some hope in Russia. How is it that Western propaganda, with all its power, its colossal resources and tools, has failed to banish Russia, isolate it and create a false image of it, although it strived to do so in the heads of billions of people? How did that happen?Vladimir Putin: Because what I just said is more important to people. People all over the world feel it in their hearts. They don't even need any pragmatic explanations for what is happening.Dmitry Kiselev: You mean despite the wave of this dirt?Vladimir Putin: Yes. In their own countries they also deceive people, and it has an effect. They in many countries believe that this is in their interests because they don't want to have such a huge country like Russia on their borders. The largest in the world in terms of territory, the largest in Europe in terms of population not such a large population in the global dimension, not comparable to China or India, but the largest in Europe and now also the fifth largest economy in the world. What do they need such a competitor for? They think: no, it is better, as some American specialists have suggested, to divide it into three, four, or five parts it will be better for everyone. They proceed from that.And part of, at least, Western elites, blinded by their Russophobia, were delighted when they brought us to the line after which our attempts to stop the war unleashed by the West in Ukraine in 2014 by force began, when we switched to conducting a special military operation. They even rejoiced, I think. Because they believed that now they would finish us off, now, under this barrage of sanctions, practically a sanctions war declared against us, with the help of Western weapons and war through Ukrainian nationalists, they would finish off Russia. Hence the slogan: To inflict a strategic defeat on Russia on the battlefield.But later came the realisation that it was unlikely, and still later that it was impossible. And they came to understand that instead of a strategic defeat, they are faced with powerlessness, a powerlessness despite the fact that they were relying on the might of the all-powerful United States. They felt frustrated seeing the unity of the Russian people, the fundamentals of the Russian financial and economic system and its sustainability, and before the growing capabilities of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.It was then that they those who are slightly smarter than others started to think that the policy towards the Russian Federation has to be changed. It was then that the idea to resume the negotiation process, to find ways to end this conflict, to search for where real interests of Russia lie, appeared. These people are dangerous, by the way, because it is easier to handle people who are guided by such basic urges.Do you remember what our ancestors used to say? What the daytoday happiness for many people was? To be full, drunk and with ones nose in tobacco. Right? It is easier to deal with such people when they are full, drunk, in other words, you have eaten and drunk enough. Nose in tobacco means they used snuff tobacco. Now it is more like nose in cocaine. It is all the same, though, such people are just easier to deal with. As for smart people, it's different. Such people are more dangerous because they influence people's minds, including in our society. They will be offering their own wants and wishes as some sort of lures for us.You already emphasised it when you asked about the possibility of negotiations. But still. This is the root of the disagreement within the Western society. This is clear, we can see this.We are not going to cause divisions. They will manage to do it brilliantly on their own. However, we are going, without any doubt, to make sure our interests are met.Dmitry Kiselev: I cannot but ask. These attacks on the Belgorod and Kursk regions are military action going on in our regions. They act bolder. Do they feel something? Whats causing this?Vladimir Putin: The explanation is very simple. This is happening against the backdrop of setbacks at the line of contact, at the front line. They achieved none of the goals they had set last year. What is more, our Armed Forces have fully regained the initiative now. Everybody knows this, everybody admits this. I think I will say nothing new in this regard. They have to demonstrate at least something given the setbacks. Mainly, they want to focus the attention on how the situation is represented in the media.The enemy attempted to attack our state borders with subversive groups, first and foremost. The latest report of the General Staff says something up to 300 people, including foreign mercenaries. The enemy's losses amounted to more than 200 people, around 230. The enemy lost seven tanks out of eight that they used, nine armoured vehicles out of nine, seven of them made in the United States, they are Bradleys. They used other armoured vehicles as well, but mainly for the transportation of the personnel: they drove them to the site, dropped them and left immediately. That is what happens at the border with Belgorod. A little southwards if I am not mistaken, in a particular place, less people are involved. Nevertheless, the main goal I have no doubts about this is if not to disrupt the elections in Russia, then at least to hinder the normal course of citizens expressing their will. This is the first thing.The second thing. It is the information effect, as I have said.The third thing. It is their wish to obtain anything, a chance, an argument or leverage in a potential future negotiation process: we will return you this, you will return us that.But I have said that it is easier to talk to people who are guided by the approach full, drunk and with their nose in you-know-what because one can anticipate what these people are going to do next. They will also attempt something similar in other areas as well but we see through them.Dmitry Kiselev:We mentioned the incident when you saved children from the fire. You already have grandchildren. What kind of country would you like to leave to your grandchildren?Vladimir Putin: You know, we have to achieve everything that was stated in the Address to the Federal Assembly several days ago as a first step. We have big plans. They are very specific in economic and social spheres, as well as in supporting mothers, children, families with children, the elderly. We rarely talk about it these days, or do not talk at all, yet we always allocate appropriate resources for this as well. It includes indexation of pensions, various benefits, longterm care for people who need it.I would like to say that its thanks to the elderly people that today we have a strong and stable statehood and economy, among other things. That is why, despite all the upheavals and direst trials our economy went through in the 1990s, it pulled through thanks to their heroic labour after the Great Patriotic War and during the economic revival. That is why we must never forget about this, about the achievements of the previous generations. We must always remember it while ensuring appropriate well-being for them. The future is in our children, that is why I have mentioned programmes to support mothers and children.All this can be achieved only on the basis of the economy. I expect it to become more technologically advanced, modern, and be based on the achievements of science and technology, information technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, genetics and do on. Our agriculture is developing at fantastic rates. It also needs up-to-date technologies. They are actively used and will continue to be used moving forward.Of course, the country will be self-sufficient in ensuring its security and defence. Together, we will have to multiply all of that to secure our future.Dmitry Kiselev: Thank you, Mr President. Your confidence inspires. I wish you success in your noble pursuits.Vladimir Putin: Thank you.Dmitry Kiselev: Thank you. russia Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 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 Vladimir Putin's Interview With Rossiya Segodnya Chief Kiselev Sputnik International Vladimir Putin's Interview With Rossiya Segodnya Chief Kiselev 2024-03-13T07:00+0000 true PT104M07S 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rosiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International vladimir putin's interview, rossiya segodnya head kiselev, director general of rossiya segodnya international media group, russian president vladimir putin . If you do not agree with the blocking, please use the Access to the chat has been blocked for violating the rules . You will be able to participate again through:. If you do not agree with the blocking, please use the feedback form The discussion is closed. You can participate in the discussion within 24 hours after the publication of the article. The city of Statesville extends its sincerest gratitude to all residents and city employees for their support during the February Canned Food Drive. Throughout February, residents and city employees joined together to donate nonperishable food items to help our neighbors facing food insecurity. These donations played a crucial role in making the drive a success, highlighting the unity and compassion within the community. The donations collected during the canned food drive have been sent to Yokefellow Ministries, where they will be distributed to individuals and families in need throughout the community. We are deeply grateful to our residents and city employees for their generosity during the February canned food drive, Statesville Mayor Costi Kutteh said. Your kindness has made a tangible difference in the lives of others, and Im proud to be part of such a compassionate community. There are three primary rationales for the United States to engage in substantive dialogue with Turkey on Syria, Mahmoud Allouch writes in Syria TV. There are three primary rationales for the United States to engage in substantive dialogue with Turkey regarding the YPG issue: Firstly, the significant concern Turkey holds regarding U.S. support for the YPG necessitates attention from Washington. Viewed as a threat to its national security, Turkeys perspective demands acknowledgment through negotiations. Ignoring this issue risks stalling progress in U.S.-Turkish relations, particularly amidst Turkeys heightened geopolitical importance following the Russian war on Ukraine. Recent military tensions between the two nations in Syria underscore the danger of disregarding Turkeys apprehensions regarding Kurdish units, which increasingly constrain U.S. actions in the region. Secondly, the escalating challenges confronting the American military presence in Syria cast doubt on Washingtons ability to sustain this deployment indefinitely. While the United States has yet to exhibit clear intentions of a drastic shift in its Syria policy, recent leaks from American media outlets suggesting the Biden administrations contemplation of withdrawal plans underscore the imperative for collaboration with Turkey concerning Kurdish units. Such cooperation becomes indispensable if Washington seeks to mitigate the ramifications of any withdrawal on its future interests in the region. Fostering U.S.-Turkish collaboration in countering terrorism emerges as the most rational course for safeguarding American interests in Syria going forward. Given Turkeys status as a strategic ally and NATO member, bolstering its involvement in the conflict advances long-term American objectives while undercutting the potential gains for Iran and Russia in the event of a U.S. withdrawal. Thirdly, recognizing the impact of Turkish-American discord over Kurdish units on Ankaras alignment with other players in Syria, such as Russia and Iran, emphasizes the necessity for U.S.-Turkish counterterrorism cooperation. By addressing Turkeys security concerns, Washington aims to mitigate Ankaras drift towards the Russian-Iranian strategy, which challenges American and Western influence in Syria. Realistically, Turkeys inclination to synchronize its interests with Russia and Iran could diminish if the U.S. demonstrates a genuine commitment to addressing its security apprehensions regarding Kurdish units. With just a few months remaining in President Bidens term, its improbable that this timeframe will be adequate for Turkey and the United States to achieve a comprehensive resolution to the YPG issue, given the significant complexities involved. Nonetheless, initiating a process to align their interests in Syria will benefit both nations in the long run, facilitating the establishment of common ground for cooperation in Syria, irrespective of the incoming president who will lead the United States after the November presidential elections. This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. Minister Louay al-Munajjid stated that the law is expected to be finalized within three months, according to Sawt al-Asima. The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor in the Syrian regimes government, Louay al-Munajjid, disclosed that the ministry is in the process of drafting legislation concerning begging. This legislation aims to delineate the responsibilities of various stakeholders and distinguish between different forms of begging, including electronic begging, professional beggars, and vagrants. According to pro-regime al-Madina FM, Munajjid stated that the law is expected to be finalized within three months at the latest. He also commented on the challenges faced by teams and charities in Syria, highlighting the absence of a comprehensive database for identifying those in need as a significant obstacle. Munajjid highlighted other concerns, such as the sustainability of operations within associations, which the ministry aims to address comprehensively. He further stated that his ministry takes responsibility for any challenges regarding the functioning of associations, regardless of their association with other parties. Highlighting progress in other initiatives, Munajjid noted that the Labor Market Platform is nearing completion and will undergo experimental launch within two months. Additionally, collaborative efforts with the ministries of finance and economy are underway to develop a contemporary law addressing the issue of external donations to associations. This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author. Your daily brief of the English-speaking press on Syria. Swiss federal prosecutors have moved forward with a trial referral for Rifaat al-Assad, the former Vice President of Syria and uncle to the current president, on allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity dating back more than four decades. Meanwhile, reports highlight the dire humanitarian crisis in Syria, where approximately 70% of the population is in urgent need of humanitarian aid after enduring 13 years of armed conflict. Switzerland to try Syrias Rifaat al-Assad for war crimes Swiss federal prosecutors have referred Syrias ex-Vice President Rifaat al-Assad, the uncle of the countrys current president, for trial on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed more than four decades ago, Al-Jazeera reported. The attorney generals office said on Tuesday the 86-year-old was accused of the crimes in February 1982 while serving as commander of the defence brigades that carried out an attack in the Syrian city of Hama during a conflict between the military and the opposition. Security forces killed thousands to crush a Muslim Brotherhood uprising in the central city that year. The accused is charged with ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions in his capacity as commander of the defence brigades and commander of operations in Hama, the office said in a statement. It said the alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity he was being charged with had taken place within the context of the armed conflict and the widespread and systematic attack launched against the population of the city of Hama. According to the indictment, the conflict is estimated to have caused between 3,000 and 60,000 deaths in Hama, most of them civilians. Prosecutors will present their case to the federal criminal court in the southern city of Bellinzona, the attorney generals office said, without specifying a date. After he was convicted in France of illegal use of Syrian state funds and sentenced to four years in prison, his nephew, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, allowed him back into war-torn Syria, ending his more than 30 years of exile in France. The complaint against him was first filed in 2013 by TRIAL International, a rights group that works with victims and pushes Switzerland to prosecute alleged international criminals. Syria: An endless humanitarian crisis Hi.org published a report on the deterioration of the humanitarian crises in Syria. The humanitarian situation in Syria after 13 years of armed conflict is dire, with Country Director Myriam Abord-Hugon providing a grim overview. Despite a reduction in large-scale violence, localized hostilities and regular airstrikes continue, especially in the northern regions. The impact of the war is profound: Humanitarian Needs: Around 70% of Syrias population requires humanitarian assistance. Nearly 7 million out of the countrys 22 million people are internally displaced, living in camps under appalling conditions. Official U.N. records indicate over 300,000 Syrians have been killed since the conflict began in 2011, with the actual death toll likely much higher. Infrastructure Destruction: Significant destruction across Syria has left homes, hospitals, and schools in ruins. Cities like Raqqa, East Aleppo, Deraa, Homs, and Eastern Ghouta have faced severe devastation. Raqqa, for example, saw 80% of its infrastructure destroyed in 2017, and much of it remains unrepaired. Only 60% of Syrian hospitals are operational. Impact on the Population: The conflict has led to a widespread increase in disabilities, with approximately 28% of the population affected due to injuries and lack of medical care. Economic hardship, energy shortages, and a general impoverishment of the population are widespread. Disease outbreaks and malnutrition are major causes of mortality, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2023 North Syria earthquake, which added to the toll of suffering and disabilities. Contamination from Explosives: Extensive use of explosive weapons has heavily contaminated many areas, posing a significant risk to civilians. About 11.5 million people live in zones contaminated by explosive ordnance, with an average of 76 explosive accidents recorded daily in 2022. The challenge of clearing Syria of these dangers is immense and expected to extend over generations. HIs Response: Handicap International (HI) is managing one of its largest humanitarian missions in Syria, with 300 staff members implementing various programs, including explosives clearance and economic support to families. Through partnerships with local organizations and health centers, HI provides rehabilitation services to older people, those with disabilities, and individuals injured in the conflict. Over a decade, HI has assisted more than 2 million people. The sustained conflict and its aftermath highlight the urgent need for continued international support and a focused effort on rehabilitation, reconstruction, and demining to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in Syria. Turkeys airstrikes on civilian targets in Syria may amount to war crimes: UN commission The UNs Commission of Inquiry on Syria has released a statement that said Turkeys airstrikes on civilian targets in northeast Syria could amount to war crimes, the Stockholm Center for Freedom reported, TurkishMinute.com reported. Turkish aerial attacks on power plants deprived nearly one million people of water and electricity for weeks, in violation of international humanitarian law, the commission said on Monday. Civilians were also killed in targeted aerial attacks fitting a pattern of Turkish drone strikes. Such attacks may amount to war crimes. The statement said Syria was in dire need of a ceasefire amid the worsening humanitarian crisis. Rights groups, such as Human Rights Watch (HRW), have also been criticizing Turkeys airstrikes in the Kurdish-held regions of the war-torn country. Last month HRW released a report holding Turkey responsible for human rights abuses and violations of land and property rights in swaths of northern Syria it controls along with its proxies. In addition Turkey was also repeatedly accused of disrupting water supply to Kurdish-majority areas. In late 2022 HRW said Turkeys actions exacerbated an acute water crisis and contributed to the spread of a deadly cholera outbreak. Since 2016 Turkey has carried out successive ground operations to expel the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from Syrias north, with its proxies now controlling two large border strips. The Port of Longview will receive $500,000 in federal funding to expand its rail network to meet growing demand for shipping products. The funding, secured by 3rd District Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, was awarded to the port to compensate for a 40% increase in cost for the project, which has so far received $18.5 million in federal funding and $5 million in state no-interest loans. Dan Stahl, the ports CEO, said this investment comes at a critical time, as the projects permitting process is nearing completion and a groundbreaking is scheduled for this August. Why expand? Trains entering or leaving the port need to be broken up to fit on the rail tracks, which slows the loading and unloading process and drives up costs for the freight company, a representative from the port said, so lengthening the tracks and adding car storage will drive down costs and time constraints for the freight companies and port tenants. The project includes lengthening two existing rail tracks by 1,000 feet for a total of 8,500 feet, adding two new 8,500-foot rail tracks and constructing a six-track rail embankment adjacent to the current rail corridor. About 2.5 acres of land still need to be acquired before the project can start, according to port representatives, including a tract owned by Cowlitz County Waste Management and a portion of a pond owned by Pacific Fibre Products Inc. The pond will be filled partially with dredge material from the river. Sen. and Port Commissioner Jeff Wilson and state Reps. Jim Walsh and Joel McEntire expressed their support for this project in a letter to Stahl. Growing demand at the port has led to rail congestion, and this expansion would help the port and its community meet growing demand for products being produced in this region, wrote the legislators, Cowlitz Economic Development Council president Ted Sprague and previous Longview Mayor MaryAlice Wallis. The new rails will extend to Berth 4, for which the Port is still looking for a tenant. The Port of Longview Industrial Rail Corridor Expansion has received financial assistance through multiple federal funding streams, including a $16 million RAISE grant for construction and a $2.5 million right-of-way acquisition award from Congress. The port also got a $5 million interest-free loan through the state Legislature. Experts call for more efforts in robotics 10:24, March 13, 2024 By Wang Keju and Wu Yong ( China Daily A Siasun employee conducts tests on a set of robotic arms at a production facility in Shenyang, Liaoning province, in August. [Photo/China Daily] China should use targeted measures to develop its robotics industry further, focusing on key areas such as cutting-edge foundational technologies, the localization of critical components and enhancing the performance of overall applications, in order to stay competitive beyond its domestic market, said national legislators and industry analysts. China has become a critical driving force for bolstering the development of the global robotics industry, said Zhang Jin, a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress and president of Liaoning province-based Siasun Robot and Automation Co, one of the largest robotics firms in the country. The company has made big strides in autonomous robot controllers and validated servo motors and drivers. By demonstrating the capabilities and reliability of domestic industrial robot components, the company is helping to strengthen the country's position in the global robotics market, said Zhang. Siasun has been conducting research and development of high-speed, high-load and high-precision industrial robot systems, so as to sharpen its competitive edge, Zhang added. The industrial robot market in China experienced steady growth in 2023, with sales reaching 316,000 units, representing a year-on-year increase of 4.29 percent, according to a report released by the Gaogong Industry Research Institute. A notable shift in market share between domestic and foreign manufacturers was seen last year. For the first time, domestic industrial robots accounted for more than half of the market, reaching a share of 52.45 percent, according to the report. China has achieved a significant milestone in the industrial robot industry by developing a complete supply chain and achieving breakthroughs in core components, said Lu Hanchen, director of the institute. With the ability to control costs, enhance product competitiveness, and foster collaboration between upstream and downstream partners, domestic industrial robot companies are well-positioned to dominate the market, Lu added. In terms of functionality, domestic brands have shown remarkable progress, and their advantages lie in user-friendliness and the level of intelligence embedded in their products, Zhang said. He added that hundreds of Siasun's robot models have been sold to over 40 countries and regions, serving more than 3,000 multinational corporations worldwide. However, a lack of high-end applications is a crucial bottleneck hampering the industry's progress. High-end applications, such as those in the semiconductor industry, require specialized robots capable of operating in vacuum environments. These robots play a vital role in ensuring the reliability and efficiency of manufacturing processes in sensitive industries, Zhang said. Liaoning province's role as the cradle of China's robotics industry, coupled with its inherent advantages in academia, research, computing infrastructure and application scenarios, positions it as a stronghold for innovation in the robotics sector, Zhang said. Going forward, it is imperative to support the establishment of a national technology innovation center in the northeastern region of China, so as to create an ecosystem that fosters collaboration and synergy among different elements of the innovation ecosystem including industry, funding and talent, Zhang added. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) COLOMBO, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Water consumption in Sri Lanka has increased 15 percent in recent weeks due to prevailing dry weather conditions, the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) said on Wednesday. Anoja Kaluarachchi, deputy general manager of the NWSDB, said that the country has been experiencing dry weather for about nine weeks, and the water level of rivers and reservoirs has dropped, impacting water intake for distribution. Kaluarachchi said due to current conditions, piped water consumers living in higher ground and those living in outermost areas of water projects will experience low water pressure. She added that they have not implemented planned water cuts in any area yet but requested people to use water sparingly. The meteorological department has warned there will be no significant rainfall until May, and the NWSDB needs to manage water supply till then, Kaluarachchi said. An employee at a youth detention center in Chehalis is under arrest for suspicion of plotting to start a prison riot earlier this year. Chehalis Police Department arrested staff member Michelle M. Goodman, 30, of Centralia, on Monday for allegedly being part of a conspiracy to commit a prison riot, according to a department press release. Linda Bailey, administrative assistant of the Chehalis Police Department, said Goodman was employed with the Green Hill School, a medium and maximum youth detention center for older males located in Lewis County. Jose L. Cisneros, 19, and an unnamed 17-year-old, who were inmates, were also arrested for their alleged involvement in the plot, the news release states. The Chehalis Police Department was notified in late February of a prison riot that occurred the month prior and started investigating. The press release says the investigation is ongoing. The Longview City Council is holding a special meeting Wednesday to vote on whether to fire the city manager and appoint a substitute after months of clashes between elected officials and staff since a new majority council took over in January. Three weeks ago, Longview City Manager Kris Swanson said in an email obtained by The Daily News that councilmembers accused her of misconduct, then a councilmember wrote a resolution about possibly auditing the assistant city manager's time a resolution not shared in a public meeting but later revealed in a public records request. Soon after, former councilmembers and staff publicly asked the current leadership to try be more cooperative with staff and transparent about management. It appears that time of cooperation has passed. Now, Councilmember Erik Halvorson and Mayor Spencer Boudreau have brought a resolution for a special meeting, a day ahead of the council's regularly scheduled meeting, stating the council aims to fire Swanson without cause, meaning for no reason, which is allowed in her contract. The resolution references a state law, stating a council can remove a city manager with a majority vote, although Swanson's contract, signed Feb. 28, 2023, states a super-majority, which is five of the seven councilmembers, is needed. Since January, Boudreau, Halvorson and Councilmembers Keith Young and Kalei LaFave have voted together, giving the resolution the four votes needed under state law but not the five required by her contract. Swanson said in an email she is expecting five votes to be needed for her termination and said she will not step down. Hugh Spitzer, law professor at the University of Washington, said state law tends to supersede city standards, but Swanson could sue for breach of contract. Another resolution to be discussed Wednesday states council will vote on whether to suspend Swanson before the termination is finalized; the same state law says a majority vote is needed to do so. The resolutions state Swanson would receive her severance package, which in her contract includes six months of pay and six months of insurance, as well as wages during the suspension. The council also plans to vote Wednesday on Swanson's replacement, who could be retired Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha, according to a Feb. 19 letter to the council signed by two former city managers, eight former city councilors and a former city human resources manager who asked the council to work on relationships with staff. But Wednesday's resolution says the new guard is the reason behind the proposed firing. "The City Council has concluded that a change in leadership is necessary to advance the City's strategic objectives and address emerging challenges," the resolution the council will consider states. Communication breakdown Those emerging challenges appear to be the working relationship between staff and council. In a March 1 email, Halvorson asked to hold a special meeting to discuss the performance of a public employee after Swanson turned down his request for legal advice about a possible city project. Halverson emailed Boudreau and the rest of council a week later stating he was having difficulty accessing information from the city and wanted to review how to make the process easier. In response, Boudreau didn't address streamlining the process but said Swanson "tore (Halvorson) down for seeking information and answers" on council business. To Swanson, Halvorson has been asking city employees to overstep their boundaries, while Halvorson maintains he just needs more explanation about projects he's concerned about, among them the city possibly takeover of a local abandoned rail line to turn into trails and the city's use of fluoride in drinking water. Halvorson said Monday afternoon he didn't plan to call an executive session at Thursday's meeting, and wrote in an email that he "simply had clarifying questions as I believe it is important to have all the details before making decisions." Executive session is where elected officials can discuss certain matters like lawsuits and employee performance behind closed doors, but Wednesday's meeting is set to be completely in public; no planned executive session is set for Thursday either. Swanson told The Daily News that, as the council's only direct report, councilmembers can only discuss her performance. Rails to trails Halvorson's request to review an employee performance came after the city attorney and Swanson denied answering his questions about the liability of turning part of an old Patriot Trail rail line that runs through Longview and Ostrander into a trail prior to the attorney's final report to the entire council. Swanson said Halvorson asked the city attorney to overstep her role by providing an individual councilman as opposed to the entire council advice. In emails obtained by TDN, Halvorson asks City Attorney Dana Gigler if Longview would be liable for the rail line prior to the area becoming a trail and opening to the public, as well as if the trestle bridge near Pacific Avenue caught fire and possibly damaged homes. Gigler said on Feb. 1 that those are "important questions" all councilmembers need answered, and she hoped to complete a report soon on the project often called rails to trails. On Feb. 26, Halvorson asked Gigler and Swanson again when his questions would be answered, but Gigler said the city was waiting on Patriot Rail and the federal government to see if the deal could even go through; she would finish the report once she heard back. But Halvorson pushed back, stating he wanted answers sooner. That's when Swanson stepped in, stating Gigler, who Swanson hired, does not "represent any one councilmember" or "provide legal advice or guidance to any one councilmember." About 30 minutes later, Halvorson requested a special meeting to discuss an employee. What are the rules? State law and the city's own rules dictate how the city attorney works with councilmembers, but sometimes these rules leave gray areas. Longview's City Council protocol manual, found at mylongview.com/523/Council-Corner, states "the City Attorney cannot represent one individual Council members interest in a manner adverse to the municipality as an entity, or in a manner adverse to the majority of the Council." The manual says the attorney is to follow the direction of the city manager, but that manager is tasked with representing "the interests of the majority of the council." The Municipal Research and Services Center, a nonprofit that advises Washington state governments, states councilmembers can reach out to city attorneys themselves, but are sometimes asked to first go through the city manager or mayor to avoid repeated questions to the attorney in order to save money; sometimes municipalities require permission before calling the city attorney. However, "neither the mayor nor the city manager can prohibit the council from accessing the city attorney for advice," the MRSC states. Fluoride town hall According to other emails obtained by TDN, Swanson also stopped Halvorson from asking city staff about the accuracy of a presentation he previously planned to give at his Tuesday town hall on fluoride in city water. The town hall was canceled on Monday. In the Wednesday email, Swanson writes, because the event is Halvorson's personal town hall and not sanctioned by the city, she will not answer his request to fact check his presentation about a policy. In a draft presentation Halvorson sent to city staff, he questions whether the city should remove fluoride from the water, then repurpose the fluoride tank to hold chlorine, as the city is in need of a new chlorine tank, budgeted for $200,000. "Removing supplemental fluoridation is not simply a cost savings measure, as reflected in your presentation, it is also a public health issue," Swanson writes in her email to Halvorson. Halvorson followed up by emailing their conversation to the entire council and Swanson, specifically addressing Boudreau to find a better way to work with staff on gathering needed information. But Swanson intervened, stating Halvorson wasn't providing all the facts; he didn't include their entire email conversation in his request, including her assertion that fluoridation of the city's water is a public health issue. In this Wednesday email, Swanson also said staff wasn't comfortable reviewing the presentation. She said "Halvorson continually interferes with my role as City Manager, particularly as it pertains to city staff." "He is creating a hostile work environment for city staff and myself," she writes. The council's manual states councilmembers can't tell the city manager's employees what to do. Boudreau answered, stating Swanson's description of "hostile work environment" isn't appropriate, especially since no formal process to accuse Halvorson of creating such an environment has occurred. Boudreau said Halvorson is trying to answer questions citizens have asked him, "and simply wants to make sure the information he's providing at his meeting is accurate and factual." "Instead of facilitating that discussion you've torn him down for it," he writes, "and torn him down for seeking information and answers on other Council business, namely the Rails to Trails project and liability concerns around it." Such councilmembers' issues with Swanson are new. A performance review dated Oct. 26 shows she received a 4.34 out of 5 overall for her work from March 1, 2023, to July 31, and all members at the time, including Boudreau, signed the document. In the review, Swanson scored highest, 4.71, on reliability, stating she is trustworthy and persistent. She scored the lowest, 3.57, on communicating to council and staff. Editor's note: The Daily News reporter Brennen Kauffman contributed to this article. LIVE PERFORMANCES Zorro developmental workshop: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Stageworks Northwest Theatre, 1433 Commerce Ave., Longview. A chance to be an integral part of the creation of a new work. Actors will read from the script of Leslie Slapes new comic melodrama that has all the classic elements: a dastardly villain, a heroine for him to endanger, and plenty of excuses to throw popcorn but this time the hero is the masked swordsman Zorro. Afterward, audiences will have the opportunity to give feedback and ask questions. Admission by donation. Information: 360-636-4488. iLuminate: 7:30-9:30 p.m., March 23. Columbia Theatre, 1231 Vandercook Way, Longview. Technology and dance combine to create a unique visual experience that includes electrified glow-inthedark suits on a darkened stage. Tickets: www.columbiatheatre.com or 360-575-8499. Pigs on the Wind, Tribute to Pink Floyd: 8-10:30 p.m., March 30. The Portland-based tribute band includes a meticulously curated collection of the classic British psychedelic rock group. Tickets: www.columbiatheatre.com or 360-575-8499. EXHIBITS Alcove Gallery at the Community Arts Workshop, Lower Columbia CAP: 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., weekdays, 1526 Commerce Ave., Longview. Free arts and crafts classes and materials are also available at the workshop. Free. The Broadway Gallery: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 1418 Commerce Ave., Longview. 360-577-0544, the-broadway-gallery.com. The March featured artists are Fran McCool, who specializes in fabric art and more, and Phil Fake, a local plein air painter. Join the artists for First Thursday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. the first Thursday of every month to listen to music and enjoy refreshments. Starting Thursday through March 31, the gallery will hold drawings for 200 Easter eggs to win art created and donated by gallery artists. No purchase necessary. Artisan cards, masks, jewelry, books by local authors, pottery, sculpture, glass, metal, photography, wearable art and more are also available at the gallery. Free to visit. Cowlitz County Historical Museum: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 405 Allen St., Kelso. 360-577-3119, cowlitzcountyhistory.org. The museum, formed in 1949, collects, preserves and interprets information and artifacts that tell the story of Cowlitz County through a partnership between Cowlitz County and the Cowlitz County Historical Society. The exhibit 1923: The Year that Changed Cowlitz County, highlights how the planned city of Longview shaped the area and runs through at least summer 2024. Free admittance, with donations accepted. Koth Memorial Gallery at the Longview Public Library: 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Longview Public Library, 1600 Louisiana St., Longview. 360-442-5300, www.longviewlibrary.org. Free to attend. Lower Columbia College Forsberg Art Gallery: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, in the Rose Center for the Arts at Lower Columbia College, 1528 Maple St., Longview. 360-442-2510, www.lowercolumbia.edu/gallery. An LCC faculty art show runs through Thursday. Students can submit work for a June student art show through May 1. Current exhibitions and receptions are free and open to the public. Rainier Oregon Historical Museum: The Rainier Oregon Historical Museum is closed until further notice. Rainier City Halls clerks office was moved to the museum floor while emergency repairs are underway on the clerks office, according to the museum. There is no timeline as to when the museum will open again on the third floor of City Hall. Typically the museum is open on Saturdays from noon until 4 p.m. Contact 503-556-4089, 360-751-7039 or kay-lynn2@hotmail.com to contribute. Newly approved caseload limits for public defenders could pull Washingtons criminal justice system back from the verge of collapse or could strike a blow to counties depending on whom you ask and what happens next. Proponents say the much lower limits adopted Friday by the Washington State Bar Association are desperately needed to stop public defenders from quitting, attract recruits and represent defendants fairly. They say the states old limits, combined with attorney shortages and policing shifts, have saddled defenders with too much work, causing them to burn out and their clients to go weeks, months or years without adequate counsel. The new standards are designed to slash maximum caseloads by about two-thirds, though the change wont take effect immediately and the Washington State Supreme Court hasnt yet decided whether to enforce it. Public defense is in crisis right now, Snohomish County Office of Public Defense Director Jason Schwarz told the Bar, which regulates attorneys across Washington. If we do nothing, were going to remain in crisis. Skeptics agree the system is breaking down but worry the new limits could exacerbate the crisis because more attorneys will be needed to cover a set number of cases. Many counties, especially in rural areas, already struggle to employ enough public defenders and get almost no state funding. This could be what bankrupts smaller counties like ours, unless the new limits help persuade state lawmakers to allocate more funding, Franklin County Administrator Mike Gonzalez said in a statement before Fridays Bar meeting. At some point, we simply will not be able to pay the bills anymore. The stakes are high because the government is supposed to provide attorneys to criminal defendants who cant afford to pay. Although that right is rooted in the U.S. and Washington constitutions, public defenders are scarce and busy, so some people presumed innocent are languishing in jail, some prosecutions are being dismissed and counties are watching their costs soar. Most defendants in Washington use public defenders, and the point of caseload limits is to make sure defenders have enough time and energy to represent each client properly. Proponents acknowledge that the Bars new limits will likely boost expenses for counties but note that the change will be phased in over multiple years. Some advocates hope the potential costs will push counties to reduce the number of cases they prosecute, in favor of alternative strategies. We could decide to do something else in our communities, King County Department of Public Defense Director Anita Khandelwal said Monday. Courts role Responding to widespread defender shortages and workload problems, the Bars Council on Public Defense began working on new standards in 2022. The work was supercharged in September when a national report reassessed how many cases public defenders should be expected to handle and proposed a new way of calculating reasonable limits. In October, the state Supreme Court asked the Bar to recommend revisions for Washington. That process culminated with almost three hours of debate Friday, as proponents urged the Bar to shake up the states criminal justice system. I am horrified that in 2024, in our democracy, in this state, people wait before they get their constitutional rights because attorneys are overloaded, said Adam Heyman, a King County defender. My clients sit in jail and rot. The Bars old standards dated to the 1970s and 1980s, capping defender caseloads at 150 felonies or 400 misdemeanors per year. The new standards will incrementally tighten the limits in 2025 and 2026 until capping them at 47 felonies or 120 misdemeanors in 2027, with lower maximums for certain case types within those categories. For example, a defender working only on murder cases would be capped at about seven cases per year. The Bars board of governors voted 12-1 to make the change. The state Supreme Court wields ultimate authority over criminal proceedings and has yet to adopt the Bars new caseload limits. The courts existing rules are modeled on the Bars old standards. But the Bars standards matter because state law says counties should use them as guidelines and because some county laws and contracts also cite the Bars standards. The court plans to consider updating its rules soon, drawing on the Bars new recommendations. In a groundbreaking move, AIport is proud to announce the release of the first truly Global Generative AI (GenAI) landscape. This comprehensive landscape provides an unprecedented overview of the worldwide GenAI developments, addressing the critical need for a more inclusive and diverse representation of AI innovation across the globe. According to a recent report by Accenture, 97% of executives recognize GenAIs transformative potential. AIports landscape further substantiates this, showcasing GenAIs significant impact in sectors like business intelligence, education, synthetic data generation, and more. Particularly notable is the landscapes coverage of 35 countries actively contributing to GenAI, far beyond the typically highlighted regions of North America and Europe. If its crucial for Indias most significant companies, the real question is: are they receiving the correct information necessary to make strategic decisions? The Global Generative AI Landscape 2024 breaks it down. Avi Chawla, a data scientist and community manager at AIport, put it: The penetration of GenAI in India is a complex and multifaceted issue. Despite being home to a large startup ecosystem, India has yet to make a substantial impact in the AI arena compared to global leaders. However, Indian entrepreneurs are increasingly capitalizing on GenAI enthusiasm, with numerous startups in the sector. Companies like Gan, TrueFoundry, Olas Krutrim (an Indian version of ChatGPT), and Cube are examples of startups leading the GenAI space in India. The interest in GenAI has encouraged almost all venture funds in India to develop investment strategies for this emerging space. A North America Overview AIports findings underline North Americas dominance in GenAI, with 39 companies leading in terms of the number of models produced and their diversity. North American companies are pioneering in multimodal models and have the highest number of companies releasing multiple GenAI models. Europes Contribution Europes diverse GenAI landscape is highlighted by contributions from 18 countries, with the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Austria, and Russia at the forefront. European companies excel in business intelligence and text-related GenAI solutions, though they trail behind North America in multimodal models. Asias Emerging Role Asia, led by India, China, Israel, Singapore, and Japan, is rapidly catching up in GenAI innovation. While Asias GenAI landscape may currently seem less prominent compared to North America and Europe, it shows immense potential for future growth, driven by economic efficiency and a rich talent pool. India is presented in the landscape with generative models by gnani.ai, Tymely, Dubverse, and APPQUIPO as regional leaders. The landscape also identifies significant strides in GenAI development in less-represented regions like Oceania, South America, and Africa, underscoring their potential for growth and innovation in AI. The industry picture Roughly 90% of all GenAI companies focus on one model type. A total of 11 companies worldwide have developed more than one type of GenAI model. Stability AI leads with five distinct GenAI model types (image, video, audio, 3D, and code), followed closely by OpenAI (chatbot, audio, video, and multimodal) and Google (text, image, audio, and multimodal) both with four model types. Microsoft, Meta, Tencent, Baidu, and Yandex are among those companies that developed between two to three types of distinct GenAI models. 13 companies have developed multiple models within a single GenAI category. AssemblyAI has two speech-to-text models, MosaicML offers two iterations of its MPT for code generation, while IPOXCap has introduced two chatbots designed for business intelligence applications. AIports comprehensive research methodology encompassed all 62 countries in the Global AI Index, identifying key players and categorizing them into 10 GenAI solution categories. This approach ensures a balanced and thorough representation of global GenAI development. Generative AI is poised to be the most transformative technology wave yet, replicating human capabilities with unprecedented efficiency. AIports global landscape is just the beginning, marking a new era in understanding and appreciating the diverse contributions to GenAI across the world. Avi Chawla added, In summary, while India is yet to establish a significant global presence in the GenAI field compared to some of its international counterparts, the country is making notable progress. This includes rapid growth in the number of GenAI startups, significant investments from major companies, and an overarching recognition of GenAIs potential impact on the economy and various industries. Whats more, due to wide cultural diversity, the Indian government is also actively investing in GenAI developments for more inclusivity, which is also evident from its recent launch of Anuvaad Bhashini, a tool that helps Indian citizens translate content into different Indian languages. Parental rights are under attack in Brazil. Estimates show that parents of over 70,000 children in Brazil have chosen to homeschool their childrena right that is protected and enshrined in international law. While the decision whether or not to homeschool should be left to the childs parents, in Brazil, that is no longer the case. So far, we have seen parents like Regiane Cichelero be prosecuted, fined, and threatened with removal of custody for simply choosing to homeschool their children. As if the situation was not already grim enough, there are now education plans that would eradicate the ability for parents to homeschool their children altogether. The National Education Plan (PNE) is a document drawn up at the National Education Conference, based on the contributions made at the education conferences held in the states and municipalities, which establishes guidelines and targets for national education over the 10 years following its approval. The PNE has the force of law from the moment it is approved by Congress, although Congress has the power to modify what was approved at the conferences. In theory, the importance of the Plan would be to set targets for improving the quality of education in Brazil. However, what happens is that the discussions at the conferences are rigged to include ideological verbiage and corporatist agendas. Added to this is the lack of accountability of educational actors for any failure to meet the targets. In the end, the document has no significant importance in the construction of educational policies that focus on the improvement and freedom of teaching, despite it being cited as the guideline for education and the tool to bar educational policies in states and municipalities that intend to adopt any proposal against the Plan's determinations. Among the worrying examples of agendas brought into the PNE's base document are the attack on homeschooling, military schools, agribusiness, and private and confessional education. In addition to these points, which go against the interests of a significant portion of the population and undermine the constitutional principle of the plurality of pedagogical concepts, the document advances identity guidelines that are not linked to any progress in the quality of children's intellectual education. The term "LGBTQIAPN+" appears more often than "Portuguese Language" and "Mathematics" in the text, which says a lot about the current government's priorities for education. The consequence of this for Brazilian education, which is already of very poor quality, is the creation of militant young people, within a culture of revolt and resentment, instead of preparing young people to be minimally functional for the job market, with full mastery of their language and mathematics. Furthermore, a decade into the validity of the new PNE, the risk of perpetuating practices that are already taking place is enormous, such as the ideologization of teaching and the allocation of resources to staff costs, ignoring investments in infrastructure and educational innovation. For homeschooling, the situation will be even more serious if the document is approved without any changes. The text is very clear in saying that this type of education should be extirpated from Brazilian society. The current scenario for families who opt for home-schooling in Brazil is currently nebulous, and families live in a legal limbo. Although recognized in international treaties to which the country is a signatory, these are absolutely ignored by the Brazilian judiciary and rejected by the bureaucrats who govern education in the country. Families have suffered persecution and threats from public authorities and a national plan that condemns the practice of homeschooling could intensify these actions. If the document is approved, there will be even more persecution and less space for discussion of the issue, which would harm the tens of thousands of families who currently educate their children in this way. This is why society is mobilizing to repeal this document, which is not the result of the will of the majority of the Brazilian population, but of a bureaucratic and trade union elite that wants education to serve only its own interests. In addition, the entire process of drawing up the Plans proposal is flawed and should be annulled and redone in its entirety. The basic document presented for discussion did not comply with constitutional requirements, and the discussions were held in a hasty manner, with the clear aim of making the debate unfeasible, which, in the end, came down to a meeting of people who have the same worldview and want to impose it on the rest of society. For all these reasons, pro-family movements are organizing across Brazil to enlighten deputies and senators about the urgency and importance of rejecting the proposed National Education Plan in its entirety. I hope you will join me in praying for and finding ways to support the rights of parents in Brazil. The government should not impose ideologically motivated education plans but respect the rights of parents in the education of their children. All parents have the God-given right and obligation to make choices that provide the best outcomes for their childrenand no parent should be punished or prosecuted for choosing what is best for their child. Julio Pohl serves as legal counsel, Latin America & Caribbean, for ADF International. In addition to monitoring and engaging in the Latin American region and at the Organization of American States, he also assists allied lawyers in litigation to protect the right to life, religious freedom, and the family. Alexandre Magno Fernandes Moreira. Father of two girls and a boy. Lawyer, professor, and mentor on homeschooling, parental rights, and Education Law. General director of the Brazilian National Network of Pro-Family Professionals. Former National Secretary of Human Rights in Brazil. Currently a researcher at KU Leuven (Belgium). A College Station man has been identified as the victim of a shooting in Ledbetter, according to the Lee County Sheriffs Office. Carlos Ramone Greene, 36, was found dead with suspected gunshot wounds on the morning of March 5 in the 1100 Block of County Road 123 in Ledbetter, according to a press released from the LCSO. On Tuesday, the LCSO identified the victim as Greene and said he was known to frequent the area in which his body was found. His drivers license listed him as a College Station resident. Greenes body was transported to the Travis County Medical Examiners Office in Austin for an autopsy, according to police. The investigation is ongoing and the Texas Rangers are working with the LCSO to identify the suspects responsible for Greenes death. Anyone with information regarding Greenes death has been asked to contact the LCSO at 979-542-2800 or the Bluebonnet Area CrimeStoppers for an anonymous call at 866-930-TIPS. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:AGG Free Report) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,001 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 1,973 shares during the quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.s holdings in iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF were worth $7,899,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of AGG. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF by 191.1% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 294 shares of the companys stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. First Manhattan Co. boosted its position in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF by 697.9% during the 4th quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 375 shares of the companys stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Capital Investment Counsel Inc acquired a new position in shares of iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.21% of the companys stock. Get iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF alerts: iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF Price Performance Shares of AGG stock opened at $97.91 on Wednesday. The companys 50-day moving average price is $97.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $96.27. iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF has a twelve month low of $91.58 and a twelve month high of $100.98. iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF Company Profile IShares are index funds that are bought and sold like common stocks on national securities exchanges as well as certain foreign exchanges. iShares are attractive because of their relatively low cost, tax efficiency and trading flexibility. Investors can purchase and sell shares through any brokerage firm, financial advisor, or online broker, and hold the funds in any type of brokerage account. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AGG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:AGG Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management trimmed its position in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX Free Report) by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,946 shares of the medical instruments suppliers stock after selling 474 shares during the quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Managements holdings in Becton, Dickinson and Company were worth $2,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BDX. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company in the third quarter worth about $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A bought a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Becton, Dickinson and Company during the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.72% of the companys stock. Get Becton Dickinson and Company alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets Several research firms recently commented on BDX. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $310.00 to $280.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 4th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Becton, Dickinson and Company from $269.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Becton, Dickinson and Company from $301.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $279.17. Becton, Dickinson and Company Stock Performance NYSE:BDX opened at $237.82 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $238.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $247.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.71 billion, a PE ratio of 56.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.42. Becton, Dickinson and Company has a 12-month low of $228.62 and a 12-month high of $287.32. Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The medical instruments supplier reported $2.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.73 billion. Becton, Dickinson and Company had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 6.44%. Becton, Dickinson and Companys quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.98 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Becton, Dickinson and Company will post 12.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Becton, Dickinson and Company Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Becton, Dickinson and Companys dividend payout ratio is presently 90.05%. Becton, Dickinson and Company Profile (Free Report) Becton, Dickinson and Company develops, manufactures, and sells medical supplies, devices, laboratory equipment, and diagnostic products for healthcare institutions, physicians, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, pharmaceutical industry, and the general public worldwide. The company operates in three segments: BD Medical, BD Life Sciences, and BD Interventional. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Becton Dickinson and Company Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Becton Dickinson and Company and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Douglas Emmett, Inc. (NYSE:DEI Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of Hold from the ten ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.11. Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DEI shares. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Douglas Emmett from $13.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Douglas Emmett from an underperform rating to a hold rating and increased their price target for the company from $10.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Get Douglas Emmett alerts: Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on DEI Institutional Trading of Douglas Emmett Douglas Emmett Stock Down 1.4 % Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DEI. Rush Island Management LP increased its holdings in Douglas Emmett by 271.4% in the 3rd quarter. Rush Island Management LP now owns 4,152,516 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $52,986,000 after buying an additional 3,034,375 shares during the period. Lasalle Investment Management Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Douglas Emmett in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $13,648,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Douglas Emmett by 55.7% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,404,534 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock worth $30,225,000 after purchasing an additional 860,513 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Douglas Emmett by 5,960.7% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 193,822 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $2,473,000 after acquiring an additional 190,624 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Douglas Emmett by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 68,646 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $876,000 after acquiring an additional 1,596 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.37% of the companys stock. Shares of DEI stock opened at $13.51 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $13.74 and a 200-day moving average of $13.21. The company has a quick ratio of 4.91, a current ratio of 4.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. Douglas Emmett has a 12-month low of $10.09 and a 12-month high of $16.12. The company has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -51.96 and a beta of 1.06. Douglas Emmett Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.63%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Douglas Emmetts dividend payout ratio is presently -292.31%. About Douglas Emmett (Get Free Report Douglas Emmett, Inc (DEI) is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT), and one of the largest owners and operators of high-quality office and multifamily properties located in the premier coastal submarkets of Los Angeles and Honolulu. Douglas Emmett focuses on owning and acquiring a substantial share of top-tier office properties and premier multifamily communities in neighborhoods that possess significant supply constraints, high-end executive housing and key lifestyle amenities. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Douglas Emmett Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Douglas Emmett and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust (TSE:ERE.UN Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of Moderate Buy from the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is C$3.19. Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ERE.UN shares. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust from C$2.85 to C$2.75 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Desjardins decreased their target price on shares of European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust from C$3.00 to C$2.75 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Echelon Wealth Partners raised shares of European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust from a hold rating to a speculative buy rating and decreased their target price for the stock from C$3.30 to C$3.00 in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Get European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust alerts: Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust Price Performance About European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust stock opened at C$2.32 on Wednesday. European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust has a 12-month low of C$2.12 and a 12-month high of C$3.61. The stock has a market capitalization of C$212.21 million, a P/E ratio of -3.22 and a beta of 1.21. The firms 50-day moving average is C$2.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is C$2.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 290.94, a current ratio of 0.09 and a quick ratio of 0.20. (Get Free Report European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust ERES is an unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust. ERESs REIT units are listed on the TSX under the symbol ERE.UN. ERES is Canadas only European-focused multi-residential REIT, with a current initial focus on investing in high-quality multi-residential real estate properties in the Netherlands. See Also Receive News & Ratings for European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for European Residential Real Estate Investment Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. acquired a new stake in UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 400 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock, valued at approximately $202,000. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Keebeck Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 11.6% during the second quarter. Keebeck Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,788 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock worth $5,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,122 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 24.0% during the 2nd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 42,045 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock worth $20,209,000 after purchasing an additional 8,144 shares during the last quarter. Ascension Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in UnitedHealth Group during the third quarter worth about $216,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $207,000. Finally, Bartlett & Co. LLC increased its holdings in UnitedHealth Group by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bartlett & Co. LLC now owns 164,353 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $82,865,000 after purchasing an additional 8,873 shares during the last quarter. 85.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get UnitedHealth Group alerts: UnitedHealth Group Trading Up 0.0 % Shares of UNH stock opened at $489.35 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market capitalization of $451.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.53, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $512.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $518.27. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a twelve month low of $445.68 and a twelve month high of $554.70. UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend UnitedHealth Group ( NYSE:UNH Get Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.98 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $94.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $92.13 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 26.39%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.34 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $1.88 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 8th. This represents a $7.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. UnitedHealth Groups dividend payout ratio is presently 31.54%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on UNH shares. Bank of America reiterated a buy rating and issued a $675.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Stephens reissued an overweight rating and issued a $605.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, November 30th. HSBC reiterated a reduce rating and issued a $480.00 price objective (down from $550.00) on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Monday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on UnitedHealth Group from $565.00 to $503.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UnitedHealth Group currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $579.33. Get Our Latest Stock Report on UnitedHealth Group Insider Activity In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total transaction of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,364 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other UnitedHealth Group news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $4,527,306.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the companys stock. UnitedHealth Group Profile (Free Report) UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for UnitedHealth Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for UnitedHealth Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Financial Insights Inc. bought a new position in shares of Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,873 shares of the oil and gas companys stock, valued at approximately $484,000. A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. V Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Chevron by 0.9% during the second quarter. V Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,007 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $1,102,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Addison Capital Co lifted its holdings in shares of Chevron by 1.9% during the second quarter. Addison Capital Co now owns 3,339 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $525,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Sweet Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chevron by 0.7% during the third quarter. Sweet Financial Partners LLC now owns 8,761 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $1,477,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI raised its stake in shares of Chevron by 3.8% in the third quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 1,758 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NCM Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Chevron by 1.2% in the first quarter. NCM Capital Management LLC now owns 5,570 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $909,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.87% of the companys stock. Get Chevron alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of research analysts recently commented on CVX shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Chevron from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $184.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 8th. UBS Group cut their target price on Chevron from $194.00 to $185.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. DZ Bank lowered Chevron from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $160.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Scotiabank lowered Chevron from a sector outperform rating to a sector perform rating and set a $170.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on Chevron from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $180.56. Chevron Price Performance Shares of CVX stock traded up $2.28 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $154.17. 1,449,718 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,668,351. The stocks 50-day moving average is $149.81 and its 200-day moving average is $153.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $286.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.12. Chevron Co. has a 52 week low of $139.62 and a 52 week high of $172.88. Chevron (NYSE:CVX Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The oil and gas company reported $3.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.19 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $47.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $50.93 billion. Chevron had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 10.63%. The firms quarterly revenue was down 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.09 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Chevron Co. will post 12.87 EPS for the current year. Chevron Increases Dividend The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a $1.63 dividend. This is a boost from Chevrons previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.23%. Chevrons dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.39%. About Chevron (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 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. A sea of people facing the Pacific Ocean, Panama's coastal belt vibrated with a message of faith and transformation during the Palau Festival. Andrew Palau, son of late renowned Argentine evangelist Luis Palau, and his wife Wendy led this event that captivated thousands of people with a message of hope. During his visit, Palau had the opportunity to meet with the President of the Republic, Laurentino Cortizo Cohen. Although the protocol of the meeting was to discuss the situation of society and government in the country, Palau and Cortizo spoke privately as well. During the discussion, Palau shared the reason for his visit and talked about his testimony of personal transformation. Palau also had the chance to meet with the Vice President of the Nation, Jose Gabriel Carrizo Jaen, during a special dinner for professionals and businessmen at the Panama Convention Center. During his visit, the evangelist was welcomed by the Governor of the Province of Panama, Mrs. Carla Garcia, with whom he had a private conversation. Later, the official invited some of her colleagues to join them, so that Palau could pray for them. The preacher also paid a visit to the National Congress. His final meeting was with the Secretary General of the Mayor's Office of Panama City, Mr. Jorge Lopez, who presented Palau with the "Key to the City" on behalf of Jose Luis Fabrega Polleri, Mayor of Panama City. Wendy and Andres Palau traveled to various locations including prisons, immigration detention centers, churches, and a police training academy. During their trip, they met with pastors, businessmen, professionals, and prominent women from the community. In each of these settings, they both shared a message of hope based on Scripture and personal experiences. They demonstrated, in a practical way, what God can do when a person chooses to surrender their lives to Him. Two days of good music and good news! For at least two months, the appearance of the coastal belt changed as a hot air balloon announced the Palau Festival. Towards the end of February, a metallic mega-structure was erected in front of the Seafood Market to serve as a stage for national and international artists. They were the stars of a top-quality professional show that accompanied Andres Palau on March 1 and 2. Palau delivered a message of faith and hope that inspired thousands of people to seek spiritual transformation in their lives. With a clear, simple, and straightforward speech, he reiterated the message of "God loves you!" and explained that regardless of a person's situation, God is always willing to provide them with a fresh start. The event was a grand celebration with lights, smoke, fire, laser, drones, and music, all coming together to create an experience for people with different tastes in music. The event ran for an average of 5 hours each night and attracted spectators from various nearby and far-off places. On the day of the event, there were fun and games for children with activities tailored to their age group, all with the message of hope. The event was a memorable time for all who attended. In addition, several tents were set up to provide medical and psychological care, clothing donations, health information centers, mobile showers for the homeless, free haircuts, and food for low-income families. All these services were offered in one location, with the same aim of serving the community. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 563,932 shares of the utilities providers stock, valued at approximately $13,918,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP owned about 0.14% of NiSource as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NI. Achmea Investment Management B.V. acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp acquired a new stake in NiSource during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in NiSource by 41.4% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,698 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. 94.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get NiSource alerts: NiSource Stock Up 0.5 % Shares of NYSE:NI traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $26.95. The stock had a trading volume of 324,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,316,366. NiSource Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.86 and a 1 year high of $28.95. The firms 50 day moving average is $26.12 and its 200-day moving average is $26.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.49. NiSource Increases Dividend NiSource ( NYSE:NI Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.59 billion. NiSource had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 10.10%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that NiSource Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 5th were given a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. This is an increase from NiSources previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 2nd. NiSources dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.11%. Analyst Ratings Changes A number of research firms have issued reports on NI. Barclays increased their target price on shares of NiSource from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of NiSource from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Saturday, February 24th. View Our Latest Analysis on NI Insider Activity at NiSource In related news, SVP Melanie B. Berman sold 11,141 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.66, for a total value of $297,019.06. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,720 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $632,375.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the companys stock. NiSource Company Profile (Free Report) NiSource Inc, an energy holding company, operates as a regulated natural gas and electric utility company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Gas Distribution Operations and Electric Operations. The company distributes natural gas to approximately 859,000 customers in northern Indiana, as well as approximately 2.4 million residential, commercial, and industrial customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for NiSource Inc. (NYSE:NI Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for NiSource Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NiSource and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of PNM Resources, Inc. (NYSE:PNM Free Report) by 42.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,670,601 shares of the utilities providers stock after purchasing an additional 796,077 shares during the period. PNM Resources comprises about 0.9% of Hudson Bay Capital Management LPs holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP owned approximately 3.11% of PNM Resources worth $119,136,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Alpha Wave Global LP increased its holdings in PNM Resources by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alpha Wave Global LP now owns 1,273,853 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $56,827,000 after purchasing an additional 575,012 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of PNM Resources in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $24,768,000. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of PNM Resources in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $24,754,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in shares of PNM Resources by 73.0% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,272,800 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $56,780,000 after acquiring an additional 536,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jet Capital Investors L P bought a new position in shares of PNM Resources in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $22,324,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.18% of the companys stock. Get PNM Resources alerts: Wall Street Analyst Weigh In PNM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho downgraded PNM Resources from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $41.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded PNM Resources from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays began coverage on PNM Resources in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. They issued an overweight rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. TheStreet downgraded PNM Resources from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded PNM Resources from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and set a $44.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $46.20. PNM Resources Trading Up 0.9 % Shares of PNM Resources stock traded up $0.32 on Wednesday, hitting $37.72. 43,226 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,845,319. The stocks 50 day moving average price is $37.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77. PNM Resources, Inc. has a 52 week low of $34.63 and a 52 week high of $49.14. The company has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a PE ratio of 36.31, a PEG ratio of 0.38 and a beta of 0.35. PNM Resources (NYSE:PNM Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $412.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $705.05 million. PNM Resources had a net margin of 4.54% and a return on equity of 10.51%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.15 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that PNM Resources, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year. PNM Resources Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.387 per share. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. PNM Resourcess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 150.49%. PNM Resources Profile (Free Report) PNM Resources, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides electricity and electric services in the United States. It operates through Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM); Texas-New Mexico Power Company (TNMP); and Corporate and Other segments. The PNM segment engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PNM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for PNM Resources, Inc. (NYSE:PNM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for PNM Resources Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for PNM Resources and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Citigroup Inc. lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC Free Report) by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 161,498 shares of the aerospace companys stock after selling 7,720 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $71,090,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 74.7% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace companys stock worth $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at $59,403,000. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $677,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 41.2% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 97,679 shares of the aerospace companys stock valued at $42,998,000 after buying an additional 28,488 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.40% of the companys stock. Get Northrop Grumman alerts: Northrop Grumman Price Performance Northrop Grumman stock opened at $458.84 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $68.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.34. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $414.56 and a one year high of $496.89. The business has a fifty day moving average of $458.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $458.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.15. Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement Northrop Grumman ( NYSE:NOC Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $7.50 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. Northrop Grummans payout ratio is 55.49%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research cut Northrop Grumman from a peer perform rating to an underperform rating and set a $450.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Northrop Grumman from a buy rating to a hold rating and dropped their target price for the company from $541.00 to $473.00 in a report on Friday, December 15th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a b+ rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a sector perform rating and set a $450.00 price objective (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $494.33. View Our Latest Research Report on Northrop Grumman Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147 in the last 90 days. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Northrop Grumman Company Profile (Free Report) Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NOC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Northrop Grumman Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Northrop Grumman and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Free Report) by 144.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 53,996 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 31,914 shares during the quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.s holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S were worth $4,910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVO. Roundview Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.6% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 18,803 shares of the companys stock worth $2,088,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 45.4% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,035,879 shares of the companys stock valued at $559,235,000 after buying an additional 1,571,747 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 739,585 shares of the companys stock valued at $82,131,000 after buying an additional 6,903 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 12.7% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 19,466 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,136,000 after buying an additional 2,194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 17.5% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 107,175 shares of the companys stock valued at $11,913,000 after buying an additional 15,996 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 6.41% of the companys stock. Get Novo Nordisk A/S alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth NVO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an overweight rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. They issued an overweight rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. They issued a neutral rating on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Novo Nordisk A/S from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Novo Nordisk A/S currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $121.25. Novo Nordisk A/S Price Performance Shares of NYSE NVO opened at $133.94 on Wednesday. Novo Nordisk A/S has a fifty-two week low of $67.66 and a fifty-two week high of $138.28. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $116.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock has a market cap of $601.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.41. Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.05. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 36.03% and a return on equity of 90.36%. The business had revenue of $9.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $9.14 billion. Equities analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.36 EPS for the current year. Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.664 per share. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/Ss previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.22. This represents a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 22nd. Novo Nordisk A/Ss payout ratio is presently 48.89%. About Novo Nordisk A/S (Free Report) Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NVO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Novo Nordisk A/S Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Novo Nordisk A/S and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of nVent Electric (NYSE:NVT Free Report) in a report released on Monday, Briefing.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $83.00 price target on the stock. Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of nVent Electric from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of nVent Electric from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, nVent Electric has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $68.40. Get nVent Electric alerts: Read Our Latest Report on NVT nVent Electric Stock Up 2.3 % NVT opened at $69.89 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $62.13 and a 200 day moving average of $56.78. The company has a market cap of $11.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74 and a beta of 1.34. nVent Electric has a 12 month low of $40.00 and a 12 month high of $70.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. nVent Electric (NYSE:NVT Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.03. nVent Electric had a net margin of 17.38% and a return on equity of 17.53%. The firm had revenue of $861.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $866.90 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that nVent Electric will post 3.22 EPS for the current year. nVent Electric Announces Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. nVent Electrics dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.55%. Insider Activity In other news, CEO Beth Wozniak sold 198,211 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.29, for a total transaction of $12,742,985.19. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,987.18. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Beth Wozniak sold 198,211 shares of nVent Electric stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.29, for a total value of $12,742,985.19. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,987.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph A. Ruzynski sold 2,500 shares of nVent Electric stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total transaction of $160,575.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 36,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,313,114.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 400,252 shares of company stock worth $25,713,777. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Hedge Funds Weigh In On nVent Electric Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mariner LLC increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 10.1% in the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 24,649 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,306,000 after acquiring an additional 2,263 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 0.3% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 360,687 shares of the companys stock valued at $18,637,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 2.0% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 172,171 shares of the companys stock valued at $9,123,000 after acquiring an additional 3,418 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 73.9% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 71,372 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,782,000 after acquiring an additional 30,325 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 150.4% in the third quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 55,153 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,923,000 after acquiring an additional 33,127 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.76% of the companys stock. About nVent Electric (Get Free Report) nVent Electric plc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, markets, installs, and services electrical connection and protection solutions in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Enclosures, Electrical & Fastening Solutions, and Thermal Management. Read More Receive News & Ratings for nVent Electric Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for nVent Electric and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras (NYSE:PBR Free Report) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $18.00 price objective on the oil and gas exploration companys stock, down from their previous price objective of $20.00. Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on PBR. Bank of America lowered shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, March 8th. StockNews.com upgraded Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $16.15. Get Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras alerts: View Our Latest Stock Report on PBR Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras Stock Up 3.4 % Institutional Inflows and Outflows Shares of PBR opened at $15.05 on Monday. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras has a 1 year low of $9.56 and a 1 year high of $17.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.72. A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PBR. Driehaus Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras in the 2nd quarter worth about $35,559,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras by 9.6% during the third quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 790,133 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $11,844,000 after acquiring an additional 69,336 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras by 29.4% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,485 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,012 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 29,221,292 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $404,130,000 after purchasing an additional 2,582,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Todd Asset Management LLC raised its position in Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras by 10.4% in the third quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 2,195,686 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $32,913,000 after acquiring an additional 205,951 shares during the period. 11.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. Petrobras Company Profile (Get Free Report) Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras explores, produces, and sells oil and gas in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through Exploration and Production; Refining, Transportation and Marketing; and Gas and Power. It also engages in prospecting, drilling, refining, processing, trading, and transporting crude oil from producing onshore and offshore oil fields, and shale or other rocks, as well as oil products, natural gas, and other liquid hydrocarbons. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. - Petrobras and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,888 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock, valued at approximately $295,000. A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in BMI. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the second quarter worth approximately $70,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Badger Meter by 33.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 532 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the first quarter worth $91,000. Finally, State of Wyoming increased its stake in Badger Meter by 168.4% during the second quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 714 shares of the scientific and technical instruments companys stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.81% of the companys stock. Get Badger Meter alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Saturday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $147.50. Badger Meter Price Performance Shares of BMI opened at $158.05 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.85. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $112.46 and a fifty-two week high of $170.86. The businesss 50-day moving average is $152.73 and its 200-day moving average is $150.81. Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $182.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $182.24 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 19.07% and a net margin of 13.16%. The firms quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 3.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Badger Meter Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Badger Meters dividend payout ratio is currently 34.39%. Insider Buying and Selling In related news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 194 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.55, for a total value of $30,952.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,672 shares in the company, valued at $2,181,367.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 194 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.55, for a total value of $30,952.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,672 shares in the company, valued at $2,181,367.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total value of $195,992.76. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,181 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $355,328.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,813 shares of company stock worth $448,167. Insiders own 0.70% of the companys stock. Badger Meter Company Profile (Free Report) Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BMI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Badger Meter Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Badger Meter and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 5,754 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $529,000. A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 100.3% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 23,419,405 shares of the companys stock worth $2,129,761,000 after buying an additional 11,727,507 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 122.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,077,501 shares of the companys stock worth $1,098,328,000 after buying an additional 6,654,614 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 96.5% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,215,098 shares of the companys stock worth $838,021,000 after buying an additional 4,526,199 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its holdings in Novo Nordisk A/S by 91.7% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 9,097,808 shares of the companys stock worth $827,354,000 after buying an additional 4,350,862 shares during the period. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Novo Nordisk A/S during the third quarter worth $718,995,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 6.41% of the companys stock. Get Novo Nordisk A/S alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes NVO has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Novo Nordisk A/S from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Monday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. They set an overweight rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group initiated coverage on Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a neutral rating for the company. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an overweight rating and set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $121.25. Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance Shares of NVO stock opened at $133.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $601.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $116.43 and a 200 day moving average of $98.32. Novo Nordisk A/S has a 1 year low of $67.66 and a 1 year high of $138.28. Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $9.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.14 billion. Novo Nordisk A/S had a return on equity of 90.36% and a net margin of 36.03%. As a group, research analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.36 earnings per share for the current year. Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 25th will be paid a $0.664 dividend. This is a positive change from Novo Nordisk A/Ss previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 22nd. This represents a yield of 0.9%. Novo Nordisk A/Ss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.89%. About Novo Nordisk A/S (Free Report) Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NVO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Novo Nordisk A/S Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Novo Nordisk A/S and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Trust Co. of Vermont reduced its stake in iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSEARCA:IWM Free Report) by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,626 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 207 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermonts holdings in iShares Russell 2000 ETF were worth $287,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of iShares Russell 2000 ETF in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Arjuna Capital bought a new stake in iShares Russell 2000 ETF during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares Russell 2000 ETF during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of iShares Russell 2000 ETF in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Field & Main Bank acquired a new stake in shares of iShares Russell 2000 ETF in the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Get iShares Russell 2000 ETF alerts: iShares Russell 2000 ETF Trading Down 0.1 % IWM opened at $204.94 on Wednesday. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $198.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $186.92. iShares Russell 2000 ETF has a 52-week low of $161.67 and a 52-week high of $210.41. iShares Russell 2000 ETF Company Profile iShares Russell 2000 ETF (the Fund) is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of the Russell 2000 Index (the Index). The Index is a float-adjusted capitalization weighted index that measures the performance of the small-capitalization sector of the United States equity market and includes securities issued by the approximately 2,000 smallest issuers in the Russell 3000 Index. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding IWM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSEARCA:IWM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares Russell 2000 ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares Russell 2000 ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Trust Co. of Vermont trimmed its stake in Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH Free Report) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,451 shares of the industrial products companys stock after selling 40 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermonts holdings in Parker-Hannifin were worth $565,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PH. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Parker-Hannifin during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Parker-Hannifin by 233.3% during the third quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 70 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Parker-Hannifin in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Parker-Hannifin in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Parker-Hannifin by 48.3% during the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 86 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. 82.25% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Parker-Hannifin alerts: Insider Buying and Selling at Parker-Hannifin In other news, COO Andrew D. Ross sold 3,904 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.16, for a total transaction of $1,991,664.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 13,120 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,693,299.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Thomas C. Gentile sold 2,978 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.72, for a total transaction of $1,494,122.16. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,465 shares in the company, valued at $2,741,899.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Andrew D. Ross sold 3,904 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.16, for a total value of $1,991,664.64. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 13,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,693,299.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,079 shares of company stock worth $6,099,566. Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the companys stock. Parker-Hannifin Stock Up 0.4 % Parker-Hannifin stock opened at $538.28 on Wednesday. Parker-Hannifin Co. has a twelve month low of $300.86 and a twelve month high of $543.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a 50 day moving average of $499.02 and a 200-day moving average of $443.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.12 billion, a PE ratio of 26.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.52. Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $6.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $5.26 by $0.89. Parker-Hannifin had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 29.91%. The firm had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.76 EPS. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Parker-Hannifin Co. will post 24.18 EPS for the current fiscal year. Parker-Hannifin Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were given a $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. Parker-Hannifins dividend payout ratio is presently 29.31%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised Parker-Hannifin from an underperform rating to a market perform rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $300.00 to $500.00 in a report on Friday, March 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Parker-Hannifin from $450.00 to $510.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Parker-Hannifin from $500.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus restated a buy rating and set a $588.00 target price on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on Parker-Hannifin from $505.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $498.07. Get Our Latest Report on PH Parker-Hannifin Profile (Free Report) Parker-Hannifin Corporation manufactures and sells motion and control technologies and systems for various mobile, industrial, and aerospace markets worldwide. The company operates through two segments: Diversified Industrial and Aerospace Systems. The Diversified Industrial segment offers sealing, shielding, thermal products and systems, adhesives, coatings, and noise vibration and harshness solutions; filters, systems, and diagnostics solutions to ensure purity and remove contaminants from fuel, air, oil, water, and other liquids and gases; connectors used in fluid and gas handling; and hydraulic, pneumatic, and electromechanical components and systems for builders and users of mobile and industrial machinery and equipment. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Parker-Hannifin Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Parker-Hannifin and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Christian Daily International (CDI) is pleased to announce the official launch of its Spanish edition Diario Cristiano Internacional today, March 12, 2024. Serving audiences in Latin America and beyond, Diario Cristiano will feature news written by a team based in Latin America as well as stories from other regions translated into Spanish from the English edition. In our earliest conversations about CDI, we discussed working towards publishing in as many major languages as possible so that CDI would become a truly global news publication, said Gordon Showell-Rogers, International Director of CDI. We are grateful to God that He has enabled this next step towards that larger goal, with the launch of CDIs Spanish edition three months to-the-day after CDIs initial launch in English on December 12th 2023, he added. Diario Cristianos editorial team is led by CDIs Latin America editor Javier Bolanos who is based in Costa Rica. Expressing his excitement about the new language edition, he said: I am thrilled to witness the launch of our Spanish version. The pages of our publication now resonate with the rich tapestry of Latin America, a region pulsating with faith, culture, and vibrant stories. From the heart of this region where the sun kisses the Andes and the rhythm of life dances to the beat of salsa, we unveil our Spanish edition. From the cobblestone streets of Cartagena to the peaks of Machu Picchu, our reports will echo across borders, uniting the faithful in purpose and praise, Bolanos added. Commenting on the wider vision of serving churches and believers in every country, Showell-Rogers said: At CDI, we pray that the news we write and the voices we feature will contribute to greater unity in the global body of Christ. As believers in different regions of the world read about the issues and opportunities that their brothers and sisters in Christ face in other regions, we hope that they will be informed, inspired, and challenged to pray for and stand with one another. He also pointed to CDIs commitment to reporters from each region telling their own stories, creating a greater sense of authenticity, and raising voices which might otherwise not be heard in global conversations. Language is central to storytelling, so we are praying that we will soon be able to add other language editions to more effectively serve believers in even more places, he said. Pointing to a growing network of news and content partners, he added that CDI is also working in partnership with existing Christian media in various regions and languages, aspiring to strengthening their work, so that we can together provide news and stories that edify the global Church. Christian Daily International provides biblical, factual and personal news, stories and perspectives from every region, focusing on religious freedom, integrated gospel and other issues that are relevant to the global Church today. It is the vision of a group of Christian people, followers of Jesus, who are committed to professional journalism that is full of grace and truth as this is the way how Jesus is described in John 1:14. 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 Zip Code The attorney for Kelli Lepler made a motion Tuesday that the trial of Kelli Lepler be moved to a different city. The change of venue motion was made by Hall County Public Defender Gerry Piccolo. Hall County District Court Judge Andrew Butler will hold a hearing on that request at 11 a.m. April 15. Lepler, who was in the courtroom Tuesday, faces 46 charges in connection with the operation of her company, Monument Advisors. Deputy Hall County Attorney Matthew Boyle filed a motion to add the 46th charge, to which Piccolo did not object. In an interview, Boyle said that an additional victim came to light after Leplers case was bound over to District Court. At the April 15 hearing, the court will also decide whether to hold a preliminary hearing. Lepler, 46, remains in Hall County Jail. The Northwest Public Schools Board of Education met Monday evening, officially announcing the last day of school for the 2023-2024 year, among other agenda items. Though the district used more than its previously allotted snow days the calendar budgeted for two, and the district used three the last day of school for students will still be May 15, as listed. The last day for staff would be May 16, bringing the full contract days total to 187. One thing Im going to be a butthead about is meeting our 185 rule, said Board President Dan Leiser. I just think its fairer for everyone involved, whether its the school board, parents, staff, we have that 185 in the contract for a reason. Im not saying you dont work hard, that you dont put in the time I just feel like if we built 187 for a reason, we should stick with it. So youre saying wait one more day? questioned board member Artie Moeller. I think we should add in one more day, because that was the purpose of last years calendar, Leiser said. Thats the reason we built 187 in with a floating end day, because of snow days. We had one more than what we planned for, so I think we should put it back in. Further, according to Leiser, the district hasnt fulfilled its 185 contract days in the past 20 years due to things like state participation and snow days. With no further initial questions or concerns, board member Zach Mader made a motion to approve the last day for students as May 15 and for teachers as May 16. The motion died on the table, prompting additional discussion. Superintendent Dr. Jeffrey Edwards confirmed that this would not cause any issues with scheduled events or contracts, though he struggled with the message being sent. This is the first year weve ever built the calendar with snow days put in, Edwards added. Edwards further noted that in his previous experience within a different district, where snow days were built into the calendar, the end-day for the year was moved up if less than the budgeted amount of snow days were used. However, if more than the budgeted amount were used (three, instead of two, for example) the end day was not pushed backwards. It wont be a good morale booster, he noted. I guess Ill just use me for an example, said Northwest High School Principal PJ Smith. Im on a 220-day contract. Im probably done, to be honest with you, (with) 220, if I wanted to be done right now. I mean, if you count all the Saturdays that we work, and when we come up here on Sunday to work, weve probably fulfilled our contract. If the school board would be looking at contract days, they would also need to note those on staff that are working over their contract based, he said. I dont get paid any extra to work to 221, 222, 223, 224, 225, 230, 240, but I do it, he noted. I dont say a word about it, but I do it." The contracted day count is looked at when prospective applicants compare schools, Leiser noted, and the school board compares too during contract negotiations. We have to compare, and we take that number and compare it to other schools, Leiser said. And staff looks at that. My thought is if the number means nothing, then why have it? Smith noted that they could ask the same about his own contract. I think you would see an increase of teachers who will be submitting extra time for pay, because its going to make them feel underappreciated, another from the audience said. Leiser noted he understood the notes of those in the room, but he reiterated his original point. Im not saying people dont work hard, dont put in the time, he repeated. Im just saying what is the point of building a calendar for 187 and 185 if the 185 doesnt necessarily mean you come to work 185. Adding built-in snow days to the calendar has been a change thats been a challenge, because the district isnt used to it, said board member Robin Schutt. After brief additional commentary, Zach Mader restated his original motion to set the last day of school as May 15, with May 16 as the last staff day. It passed with a 4-2 vote, with Leiser and Paul Mader voting no. In other items, the board: * approved board claims; * heard a presentation by district middle school math department; * followed up on a discussion from the board retreat in February; * accepted, with regrets, resignation of Kelsi Amen, and retirement of Scott Mazour, to be affective at the end of the 2023-24 school year; * voted to renew membership with the Nebraska Association of School Boards for the 2024-25 school year; * approved the district calendar for 2024-25; * approved the sale of the construction house, located at 4078 Lee St, in Grand Island; * accepted the low bid from BTS Communications for an update to the districts phone system; * discussed bids for an update to the auditorium bathrooms, no action was taken; * approved the concrete bid for the northwest corner of the auditorium, above the fixed drainage line, for $20,520 by Reimers Construction. A retired Boeing employee was found dead in Charleston on Monday, days after his testimony against the aviation company. John Barnett, 62, of Louisiana, was found dead shortly after 10:20 a.m. of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to a Tuesday Charleston Police Department press release. Barnett was found inside a vehicle outside a Holiday Inn at 301 Savannah Highway. Barnett, a former quality manager at Boeing who had retired after 32 years, died just days into testifying in a whistleblower retaliation lawsuit, where he alleged that workers, under pressure, were deliberately firing substandard parts to aircraft on the companys assembly line, according to the Daily Mail. Barnett had testified that sometimes second-rate parts were removed from scrap bins and then fitted to planes to prevent building delays. A 2017 from the FAA upheld some of Barnetts testimony, the Daily Mail wrote. The CPD press release states that detectives were actively investigating the case and were awaiting the formal cause of death. We understand the global attention this case has garnered, and it is our priority to ensure that the investigation is not influenced by speculation but is led by facts and evidence, the press release states. Public disclosure will follow the investigations conclusion. The South Carolina State University Student Success Center (SSC) has partnered with scholars from the University of South Carolina (USC) to educate University 101 students on the historic connections and relationships between Black and Jewish communities. SC State, USC partner to educate students on antisemitism The South Carolina State University Student Success Center (SSC) has partnered with esteemed scholars from the University of South Carolina (U Dr. Devin Randolph and Meir Muller from USC, recently partnered with Stanley Wakefield, SC State computer lab coordinator for SSC, to facilitate a project for University 101 students that would provide a comprehensive overview of the topic, highlighting key factors that contributed to the alliance's success. The two-part project, sponsored by the Academic Engagement Network (AEN), aims to combat antisemitism and celebrates the historic alliance between Black and Jewish communities. Get TheTandD.com for $1 for 26 weeks Support local journalism by becoming a member at www.TheTandD.com. View our latest offer at https://thetandd.com/subscribe. Dr. Devin Randolph and Meir Muller addressed the pressing issue of contemporary antisemitism, delving into its causes and implications with knowledge and empathy. The lecture delivered valuable insights to the audience and served as a testament to the scholars' expertise in the field, said Tyron Clinton, director of SC States SSC. Randolph is an assistant professor and founding director of Social & Environmental Justice at Voorhees University and is a clinical assistant professor in the College of Education at USC. He received his Ph.D. in foundations of education with specialized competencies in school, society, and qualitative inquiry from USC. Salley challenges alums to support SC State Dr. James Salleys generosity toward South Carolina State University is nothing new. Muller is an ordained rabbi who earned his Ph.D. in early childhood education from USC. His expertise and research examine issues of racial equality, constructivist theory and pedagogy, Jewish education, social studies education and preservice teacher preparation. SC State Class of 1975 hosts fundraiser The South Carolina Stater University Class of 1975 will host Lift the Bulldog Program Seafood Extravaganza Fundraiser from 6 to 10 p.m. on April 12, at the Orangeburg County Library, 1645 Russell St. This initiative will bring vital education and training to our campus community. Through seminars and student-focused sessions, we'll delve into the shared history of Black-Jewish solidarity and empower our students to address contemporary antisemitism with knowledge and empathy, Wakefield said. SC State Biological and Physical Sciences faculty and staff give to LOWVELO project Faculty and staff members of South Carolina State Universitys Department of Biological and Physical Sciences recently gave $1,000 to the Medical University of South Carolina for the Hollings Cancer Centers annual LOWVELO bike ride project, which raises money for cancer research. Selected students will have the opportunity to receive specialized training and serve as ambassadors for this cause. Those students will also receive $500 scholarships for participating in the antisemitism project. A proposal to close a portion of Goff Avenue to improve security on Clalflin Universitys campus is moving forward despite protests from a property owner on the street. Orangeburg City Council on March 5 gave second-reading approval to a proposal to transfer ownership of Goff Avenue between Magnolia and Clark streets to Claflin. City and university officials say the transfer will allow the university to close the stretch of the street to public access and crack down on safety concerns there. Two private homes stand on the stretch of Goff Avenue in question, including one owned by Norma Murdaugh. Murdaugh and her husband Henry addressed council and took issue with the proposal, as well as several claims made during the previous meeting on Feb. 20. Restricting access to the road would negatively impact her ability to take in rent revenue from the property, Murdaugh said. Murdaugh does not reside at the property, but her daughter does, she said. My question to the City of Orangeburg is this: How do you suggest I get to my house or my renters if Claflin is permitted to block off Goff Avenue and access to my house? she said. Murdaugh disputed the frequency of shootings on the street, saying none had taken place in the last two years despite video evidence shown at the Feb. 20 meeting showing a shooting on the street in January. There are shootings at all universities all the time, she said. It did not happen this year, it did not happen last year. It's a big deal, but it doesnt call for closing the street. butler keitt goff closure Orangeburg Mayor Pro Tempore L. Zimmerman Keitt and Mayor Michael Butler watch security footage of a shooting on Goff Avenue. After Murdaughs remarks, Claflin Department of Public Safety Chief Melvin Williams showed security camera footage of multiple shootings and large gatherings of people on Goff Avenue occurring between August 2021 and January 2024. Our desire to close Goff Avenue to better secure the area is not based on a single incident, it is based on multiple incidents, Williams said. Murdaugh also said most of the safety issues, including shootings and speeding, on the street were caused by college students rather than members of the outside public. Most of the instances of violence have occurred during the school year and not the summer, she said. She also believes the university could do more to secure the street without blocking it off, she said. Williams said there are certainly students present at the large gatherings on Goff, as shown by the the videos, but they do not make up the majority of the crowds. The university has awareness programs discouraging students from participating in the gatherings and students who are identified participating receive sanctions from the university, he said. Safety on campus: Orangeburg to give portion of Goff Ave. to Claflin Orangeburg City Council is planning to give Claflin University control over a portion of Goff Avenue near the campus. Williams told council at the previous meeting that Clalflins investigation into a Feb. 18 shooting incident indicated the shooters were not students. A vehicle shown driving through a crowd in one of the videos shown on March 5 does not belong to a student, he said. For us, it's really about the safety of the community as a whole, the Claflin Community as well as the community of Orangeburg, he said. Murdaugh said she had not been invited to meetings to discuss the situation, despite claims made at the previous meeting by Clalflin President Dwaun Warmack and city council members. She has been in contact with Warmacks office and Council member Liz Zimmerman Keitt about the situation separately, she said. Williams said he has been involved with some of the communication with property owners and has been present at meetings they were invited to but did not attend. Claflin science building windows shot Orangeburg Department of Public Safety A late night shooting on Jan. 18 damaged two large windows of the James S. Thomas Science Center, according to an incident report. Why or how that occurred, whether they received it, I dont know any of that, he said. How they communicate with them, I dont know. But I do know that there has been an effort, because I have been involved in some of those. Keitt asked Williams to ensure residents were kept informed about meeting times to discuss the proposal. Council member Kalu Kalu encouraged the Murdaughs to keep their districts council member, Annette Dees Grievous, updated on their concerns. Murdaugh also disputed that Goff Avenue runs through Clalflins campus, saying the universitys buildings dorms, Tullis Arena, the newly built student center on either side of the road do not constitute Claflin University. She also took issue with Warmacks remarks at the previous meeting that the university would eventually look to expand farther down Goff. Warmack was not present at the meeting March 5. Get TheTandD.com for $1 for 26 weeks Support local journalism by becoming a member at www.TheTandD.com. View our latest offer at https://thetandd.com/subscribe. Council members told Murdaugh the proposal would keep students and Murdaughs home safer and that she would still have access to her property. City and university officials have indicated closure of Goff would include a gate with keypad or card access, though details have not been finalized. We are looking at the safety of these kids and that is very important to us, because I dont want no kid, including your daughter or your grandchildren, to get shot out there, Mayor Michael Butler said. Kiett said restricting access to only private residents and students through keycards or passcodes is like a gated community, which would be much safer. Murdaugh believes potential renters will be deterred by the gate, that others will still be able to obtain keycards and access the road, and that entering through a gate will be an undue burden on her. Im a citizen, I pay taxes, I shouldnt have to do that, she said. Clalflin has not finalized what will be done to permit access to Goff if it is closed but is looking into access only being restricted at certain times during the week, Williams said. Three members of Clalflins Student Government Association spoke at the meeting in support of the road closure. Sophomore middle-level education major and sophomore class president Myles-Anthony Johnson said the fear on campus is palpable and asked council to take action, including increased police presence and closing the street to the public. We know that nothing is a 100% guarantee for safety, but what we can do is add more safety measures, Johnson said. There are plenty of gated communities around the country, and people prefer to live there because of the security it provides. Sophomore mass communications major and student government treasurer Promise Joseph said student government often holds town halls where students express concern about safety on Goff Avenue. A large majority of students support the closure, junior mass communications major Cheyanne Chambers said. We already have security to go through on campus, so this would just be another step, Chambers said. The community will not be entirely restricted from campus and will have access through the new student center, which will open to the public, Joseph said. Students will be able to gather for events on the street more safely, she said. Its important to remember that something may seem like an inconvenience at first, but Im sure that she will appreciate this after seeing the safety improvements and her daughter won't have to face any bullets or deal with any shootings, she said. Murdaugh said she doesnt often worry about her daughters safety living on Goff. The proposal would roll over any right-of-ways for city utilities and emergency responders, City Administrator Sidney Evering said. The proposal was amended after first reading to formally reflect the states transfer of the portion of Goff Avenue to the city in 2022. Council member Grievous, a professor of speech and drama at Claflin, recused herself from voting on the proposal to avoid a conflict of interest. Grievous, whose district includes Claflin, also recused herself from the first vote. The remaining six council members voted in favor of the proposal, which will be voted on a third and final time before going into effect. Murdaugh said she was totally disappointed with the vote. Her relationship with Clalflin has changed since Warmack became president, she said. For many years she rented the property in question to university students and professors. Now look what youre trying to do, she said. The other private residence on the stretch of Goff in question is uninhabited, Williams said. The Two-State Solution for Israel is No Solution at All NEWS PROVIDED BY Truth & Liberty Coalition March 13, 2024 OPINION, March 13, 2024 /Christian Newswire/ -- The following is submitted by Richard Harris, Executive Director of the Truth & Liberty Coalition: On October 7, 2023, the terrorist organization Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, savagely attacked thousands of innocent Israeli citizens. It has been called Israel's 9/11. But the reality is far worse. Israel is a small country of roughly 10 million people. In the first five days of the attack, 1,200 civilians were murdered. By comparison, the United States has 330 million people, and as Messianic Jewish author Joel C. Rosenberg said, an attack of "the same magnitude for America" would have involved Americans "waking up [to] news stories of about 30,000 Americans murdered in 5 days." What's more, since October 7, more than 14,500 rockets and mortar rounds have been fired into the tiny nation of Israel. Adding to the level of shock, these were not soldiers who died in a military skirmish. These were civilians and included babies beheaded in front of their mothers and mothers being cut down in front of their children. The terrorists also raped and sexually assaulted women, young and old, and seized 253 innocent civilians as hostages. While some hostages have been released, over 100 remain in captivity. Those who have been released have testified to horrific conditions that include starvation and sexual assault. Many remaining hostages are believed to have died while in Hamas' hands. For a few days after the heinous violence, the non-Muslim world seemed united in its condemnation of Hamas and support of Israel. Israel announced that it would eradicate Hamas, and its armed forces ("IDF") began a careful strategic assault on Hamas positions in Gaza. Since then, the IDF has been systematically rooting terrorists from their 500-mile-long network of tunnels and destroying countless weapons caches, many of which are inside or beneath hospitals and schools. Israel has made every effort to limit the deaths of non-combatants, and thus, its military campaign has taken longer than expected and remains ongoing. The unified support of Israel quickly yielded to the shrill cries of progressives' anti-Semitic campaign. Crowds of college students, leftists, and American Muslims have accused Israel of "genocide" and called it an "occupier" while demanding genocide against the Jewish people with the jihadist chant, "From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free." The liberal press, meanwhile, has predictably reported daily stories of Gazan deaths and suffering, playing willingly into the Hamas propaganda operation. Now, only five months after the worst day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust, Joe Biden and other world leaders are lobbying for an immediate cease-fire and imposition of a "two-state solution," even though Hamas has not yet been eradicated and no safe or thoughtful plan exists for the creation of a Palestinian nation-state. The truth is that a two-state solution is no solution at all and should be resoundingly rejected. A "two-state solution" is no solution because radical Palestinians have no desire for peaceful co-existence with Israel. Muslim Palestinians hate Israel and passionately want to eliminate it. A poll released in December shows 57% of Gazans and 82% of West Bank Palestinians approve of the October 7 Hamas attacks. To implement its so-called two-state solution, the Biden Administration is urging Israel to allow Mahmoud Abbas to lead a united Palestinian state. Abbas is the current president of the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank. Biden's idea is a non-starter. Palestinians cannot stand Abbas. Historically, Israel has made many attempts to broker peace with their enemies, but every time, the Muslim Palestinian leaders have refused whatever agreement is placed in front of them. One only needs to read the preamble to their charter to understand Hamas' true mission: "Our battle with the Jews is long and dangerous, requiring all dedicated efforts. It is a phase which must be followed by succeeding phases, a battalion which must be supported by battalion after battalion of the divided Arab and Islamic world until the enemy is overcome, and the victory of Allah descends." Hamas Charter, Preamble. It is not Israel but the Palestinians who have refused to consider two nation-states in the Land. This refusal by Muslim leaders goes back to the founding of the modern state of Israel. The land given to Israel under the Partition Resolution was roughly the size of New Jersey. And yet the land was given by God in Gen 15:18 and Jos. 1:4 includes all the land it currently possesses, all the territory occupied by the Palestinians (the West Bank and Gaza), and parts of Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq. Israel has made no attempt to take back all that truly belongs to them. Instead, they desired to dwell in the land of their ancestors, having a haven from the violent pogroms that had followed them since the Diaspora. From 1993 through October 6, 2023, Muslim terrorists have killed more than 4,100 innocent Israeli civilians. This does not include Israeli soldiers and police, nor the more than 1,200 people who died on October 7. Creating an independent Palestinian nation-state (on both sides of Israel) is, simply put, an insane idea. Such a state would be a sovereign terror base, protected by the privileges and immunities of international law, from which Muslim jihadi radicals would erect armies and inflict even more death on Israel. There is now only one pathway to peace. First, Israel must conquer the terrorists on its borders, and the United States must stand up for Israel's fundamental right to do this. Second, Israel must be allowed to establish military, intelligence, and police operations in Gaza and the West Bank that are sufficient to impose and maintain law and order. In short, the time has come to face the truth in the Holy Land. Israel is entitled to defend itself. We must support all necessary activity by Israel to secure its people. We would insist on nothing less if the United States were the victim of such attacks, and there is no reason why we should accept anything less for our ally, the free and democratic nation of Israel. Want to learn more: This topic was covered on the Truth & Liberty Call-In show. Here's the link: https://truthandliberty.net/episode/the-truth-liberty-live-call-in-show-with-richard-harris-2024-03-01/ About Richard Harris: Richard Harris serves as the Executive Director of the Truth & Liberty Coalition, based in Woodland Park, Colorado. Truth & Liberty, founded by world-renowned bible teacher Andrew Wommack, has become an influential voice in our nation, calling the Body of Christ to stand for truth in the seven mountains of cultural influence. Richard co-hosts the Truth & Liberty Live Cast weekly and spearheads Truth & Libertys work to educate, unify, and mobilize Christians through media, grassroots activism, inspirational conferences, and strategic collaboration. https://truthandliberty.net SOURCE: Truth & Liberty Coalition CONTACT: News Media Relations, 719-651-5943, newstruthlibertycoalition@gmail.com Share Tweet Orangeburg County Administrator Harold Young's contract has been extended another four years. Orangeburg County Council voted 5-1 to extend Youngs contract on March 1 during a retreat held at the Whittaker Community Center in Orangeburg. Young will be paid $183,854.10 for the coming year, plus the cost-of-living adjustment the county provides for all its full-time employees. Young will receive the same cost-of-living increase as other full-time county employees under the contract. The new contract begins July 1, 2024 and will expire June 30, 2028. Young's current contract was scheduled to expire on June 30. The contract notes county council assessed Youngs performance and finds that employee has consistently excelled in performance of his employment duties. Young has served as the county administrator for 12 years. He started the job making $116,455 a year. The contract notes that Young is, aware of Council's goals for the county, has an in-depth knowledge of county affairs and, based on his past county work performance, has the confidence of Council that he shall continue to excel in the position of county administrator. The contract cites Young's allegiance to Orangeburg County and his desire to remain a resident of the county. Council weighed the pros and cons of seeking a candidate for the position outside the county's current workforce. It is clearly in the best interests of the county to fill the position of county administrator from within the county's current workforce, the contract states. Councilwoman Latisha Walker voted in opposition to the contract extension while Councilwoman Janie Cooper-Smith, who attended the meeting virtually, abstained because she could not hear the dialogue surrounding the contract extension. Walker asked to delay the vote on Youngs contract, saying the agenda was not adequately transparent. It only noted an employee contract would be voted upon without informing the public that it was specifically the administrators contract, she said. She said the agenda should be rewritten to specify the administrators contract was being discussed. The public has not been made aware, Walker said. The public has a right to be present when it comes to voting on matters such as this. Walker said she did not know they were voting on the administrators contract. We didnt know what we were voting on, Walker said. Council Chairman Johnnie Wright said all council members received an email stating that Youngs contract would be discussed. He didnt say it was for today, Walker said. I got a copy of his contract Monday night but he did not say it was for today. Weve got to be transparent, Walker said. We are supposed to work for the public. Weve got to be transparent for the public. She later added, It may not be illegally wrong, but it is morally wrong and ethically wrong because, like I said, we are supposed to be working for the public. Why are we sneaking and hiding and cutting corners? Young denied any desire to avoid transparency. This is how we have done it in the past, Young said. Walker said in the past the agenda specified it was an administrators contract and not just an employee contract. I am not trying to be deceitful or anything, Young said, noting the agenda was put together with the understanding Wright had talked to council members that his contract was under discussion. That is my fault that I assumed that, he said. Young said he, always has the best interest of the county at heart and said he would take his contract off the table for a later vote. At the end of the day I just want to do what is best for the citizens and accept your guidance as council, he said. Wright thanked Young for his comments but noted the matter was for council to decide. In addition to the public comments, Walker sent a letter to Wright dated Feb. 28 with the same concerns voiced publicly. Other benefits Young will receive under his contract include: Up to $1,900 each calendar month to reimburse Young for vehicle use. Upon Young's retirement, the county will pay 100 percent of the cost of health, dental and vision insurance premiums. The county will make annual contributions to the South Carolina Deferred Compensation Program on Young's behalf. The first year of the contract the county would contribute $3,009. In following years, the county would contribute this amount adjusted based on the percentage of cost-of-living adjustments. The county would maintain Young's participation in the South Carolina Retirement System. The contract notes should Young be terminated, the county will pay the remainder of his annual salary from the termination date through June 30 in a lump sum on the next paycheck date. The contract also notes that it will pay Young his unpaid annual salary for each year of the four-year contract on July 1 of each remaining year. Young came to Orangeburg County in 1996 as grants administrator. He later became planning director and then deputy administrator. He has served as county administrator since 2012. A native of Cordova, Young holds a bachelors degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina in Aiken and a masters degree in business management from Southern Wesleyan University. Prior to working with Orangeburg County, Young was the grants manager and community program manager for Aiken County and tourism assistant at the Lower Savannah Council of Governments. DENMARK As Womens History Month unfolds, Voorhees University is joining the nationwide celebration under the theme Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Voorhees will host speakers Crystal Daniels and Dr. Vallerie Coath Cave, who will offer insights and inspiration to honor the contributions of women. Voorhees establishes nonviolent task force Voorhees University is establishing the Voorhees University Nonviolent Task Force under the auspices of the Becoming Beloved Community Foundation. The first campus event will begin at 11 a.m. Thursday, March 14 at Massachusetts Hall with Daniels, the student wellness and accessibility manager at Aiken Technical College. Dr. Vallerie Coath Cave will speak at 6 p.m. March 21. Cave has a career spanning 35 years and is superintendent of Allendale County Schools. We are thrilled to welcome Crystal Daniels and Dr. Vallerie Coath Cave as part of our Womens History Month celebration, said Dr. Prince Brown, vice president of University Advancement. Their remarkable journeys and dedication to equity and inclusion serve as shining examples for our community and beyond. A South Carolina man was arrested Monday for distributing vulgar, obscene and antisemitic materials in multiple neighborhoods, the Florence County Sheriffs Office said. Jamin Christian Fite, a 48-year-old Myrtle Beach resident, was charged with seven counts of communicating obscene messages and seven counts of littering, the sheriffs office said Tuesday in a news release. No bond has been set for Fite, who is being held in the Florence County Detention Center, jail records show. The sheriffs office said that on March 5, Fite anonymously distributed clear plastic bags with the obscene printed material by throwing them into the yards and driveways of multiple Florence County residences without consent from the owners. The propaganda was distributed in the Rice Planters, Charters, Ebenezer Chase, Hampton Point, Westpoint, Westbrook and Villa Arno subdivisions, according to the release. Get The Times and Democrat app today Local news has never been this personal. Free to download. Subscribers enjoy unlimited access. South Carolina law says it is unlawful for a person to anonymously write, print, telephone, transmit a digital electronic file, or by other manner or means communicate, send or deliver to another person within the State, without that persons consent, any obscene, profane, indecent, vulgar, suggestive, or immoral message. If convicted on the misdemeanor communicating obscene messages charges, each count carries a maximum punishment of three years in prison and a fine, according to South Carolina law. Fite is scheduled to appear in court again regarding the communicating obscene messages charges on May 1, while hes scheduled to appear before a judge on counts of littering on April 17, Florence County judicial records show. This is not the first time Fite has been arrested. In July 2023, Fite was charged with two counts of littering for spreading hate messages across a Murrells Inlet neighborhood, The Sun News reported. In the 2023 incident, a police report said that officers were called about a person who was actively littering in a neighborhood and observed Fite throw clear plastic baggies out of the passenger side window of a vehicle, according to The Sun News. The incident report said that when Fite was confronted, the officer saw two black black duffel bags containing a large quantity of clear plastic baggies with paper and pellets inside, according to The Sun News website, myrtlebeachonline.com. The bags contained about 791 plastic baggies, according to the report. The report did not specify the content of the messages, but residents said they were antisemitic, The Sun News reported. Following his 2023 arrest, jail records show that Fite was released from a detention center after paying a $200 fine, according to The Sun News. (TBTCO) - Ngay 1/4/2024, Kho bac Nha nuoc buoc sang nam thu 34 truong thanh va phat trien. Trong hon 30 nam qua, tu mot Kho bac truyen thong voi 4 nghiep vu chinh (ke toan thong ke, kho quy, giao dich va ke toan tong hop), Kho bac Nha nuoc a tro thanh kho bac ien tu, tao nhieu thuan loi cho khach hang trong giao dich. Trong tien trinh chuyen oi so hien nay, Kho bac Nha nuoc ang tiep tuc thuc hien nhieu cai cach, hien ai hoa e huong toi kho bac so vao nam 2030. NEW YORK A new report that its authors said was commissioned by the U.S. State Department paints an alarming picture of the catastrophic national security risks posed by rapidly evolving artificial intelligence and warns time is running out for the federal government to avert disaster. The findings were based on interviews with more than 200 people over more than a year including top executives from leading AI companies, cybersecurity researchers, weapons of mass destruction experts and national security officials inside the government. The report, released this week by Gladstone AI, flatly states that the most advanced AI systems could, in a worst case, pose an extinction-level threat to the human species. The U.S. State Department did not respond to request for comment. The warning in the report is another reminder that although the potential of AI continues to captivate investors and the public, there are real dangers too. AI is already an economically transformative technology. It could allow us to cure diseases, make scientific discoveries, and overcome challenges we once thought were insurmountable, Jeremie Harris, CEO and co-founder of Gladstone AI, told CNN on Tuesday. But it could also bring serious risks, including catastrophic risks, that we need to be aware of, Harris said. And a growing body of evidence including empirical research and analysis published in the worlds top AI conferences suggests that above a certain threshold of capability, AIs could potentially become uncontrollable. White House spokesperson Robyn Patterson said President Joe Bidens executive order on AI is the most significant action any government in the world has taken to seize the promise and manage the risks of artificial intelligence. The President and Vice President will continue to work with our international partners and urge Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to manage the risks associated with these emerging technologies, Patterson said. Clear and urgent need to intervene Researchers warn of two central dangers broadly posed by AI. First, Gladstone AI said, the most advanced AI systems could be weaponized to inflict potentially irreversible damage. Second, the report said there are private concerns within AI labs that at some point they could lose control of the very systems theyre developing, with potentially devastating consequences to global security. The rise of AI and AGI [artificial general intelligence] has the potential to destabilize global security in ways reminiscent of the introduction of nuclear weapons, the report said, adding there is a risk of an AI arms race, conflict and WMD-scale fatal accidents. Gladstone AIs report calls for dramatic new steps aimed at confronting this threat, including launching a new AI agency, imposing emergency regulatory safeguards and limits on how much computer power can be used to train AI models. There is a clear and urgent need for the US government to intervene, the authors wrote report. The report notes that although the work was produced for the Department of State, its views do not reflect the views of the agency nor the US government broadly. A government notice issued in 2022 by the State Departments Office of the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund shows the government was offering to pay up to $250,000 for an assessment on the proliferation and security risks linked to advanced AI. Safety concerns Harris, the Gladstone AI executive, said the unprecedented level of access his team had to officials in the public and private sector led to the startling conclusions. Gladstone AI said it spoke to technical and leadership teams from ChatGPT owner OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Facebook parent Meta and Anthropic. Along the way, we learned some sobering things, Harris said in a video posted on Gladstone AIs website announcing the report. Behind the scenes, the safety and security situation in advanced AI seems pretty inadequate relative to the national security risks that AI may introduce fairly soon. Gladstone AIs report said that competitive pressures are pushing companies to accelerate development of AI at the expense of safety and security, raising the prospect that the most advanced AI systems could be stolen and weaponized against the United States. The conclusions add to a growing list of warnings about the existential risks posed by AI including even from some of the industrys most powerful figures. Nearly a year ago, Geoffrey Hinton, known as the Godfather of AI, quit his job at Google and blew the whistle on the technology he helped develop. Hinton has said there is a 10% chance that AI will lead to human extinction within the next three decades. Hinton and dozens of other AI industry leaders, academics and others signed a statement last June that said mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority. Business leaders are increasingly concerned about these dangers even as they pour billions of dollars into investing in AI. Last year, 42% of CEOs surveyed at the Yale CEO Summit last year said AI has the potential to destroy humanity five to ten years from now. Human-like abilities to learn In its report, Gladstone AI noted some of the prominent individuals who have warned of the existential risks posed by AI, including Elon Musk, Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan and a former top executive at OpenAI. Some employees at AI companies are sharing similar concerns in private, according to Gladstone AI. One individual at a well-known AI lab expressed the view that, if a specific next-generation AI model were ever released as open-access, this would be horribly bad, the report said, because the models potential persuasive capabilities could break democracy if they were ever leveraged in areas such as election interference or voter manipulation. Gladstone said it asked AI experts at frontier labs to privately share their personal estimates of the chance that an AI incident could lead to global and irreversible effects in 2024. The estimates ranged between 4% and as high as 20%, according to the report, which noes the estimates were informal and likely subject to significant bias. One of the biggest wildcards is how fast AI evolves specifically AGI, which is a hypothetical form of AI with human-like or even superhuman-like ability to learn. The report says AGI is viewed as the primary driver of catastrophic risk from loss of control and notes that OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Anthropic and Nvidia have all publicly stated AGI could be reached by 2028 although others think its much, much further away. Gladstone AI notes that disagreements over AGI timelines make it hard to develop policies and safeguards and there is a risk that if the technology develops slower-than-expected regulation could prove harmful. What the Biden administration's new executive order on AI will mean for cybersecurity What the Biden administration's new executive order on AI will mean for cybersecurity A benchmarking initiative from the Departments of Commerce and Energy Training record transparency Annual CISA risk reports Treasury Department best practices for managing cybersecurity in financial institutions Potential regulations for using AI in health care settings Incorporation of AI in federal government operations with CISA guidance POWELL As a way to increase the security of this years elections, Park County is thinking about making a switch to electronic poll books. Park County Elections staff presented the benefits of the system to county commissioners on March 5, along with the nearly $60,000 price tag for the needed equipment and software. We think its an integral piece of election integrity, First Deputy Park County Clerk Hans Odde told the commission. The e-poll books would replace the pen-and-paper books now used at polling places on election day. Under the current system, the poll books arent consolidated and formally updated until after the election, but this electronic system would sync and update the voter rolls in real time. The e-poll books being considered by the county would update voter registration information every 90 seconds allowing poll workers to immediately stop anyone who might have already voted or felons whove lost their voting rights. Odde said Park County hasnt seen many instances of people trying to vote twice, even unintentionally, but there have been instances of felons voting; some thought their rights had been restored, he said. Fraudulent voters are caught under the current paper poll book method, but not until the paperwork is processed following Election Day. We would catch them on the backside, but a week to three weeks down the road, Odde said. By that time theyve already cast their ballot, weve already certified the election. Although those voters are turned over to law enforcement for potential prosecution, theres no going back to pull the ballots out of that race, he said. In contrast, e-poll books enable election judges to stop any fraudulent votes from being cast in the first place. And Odde said theyre also easy to use, so they shouldnt present any trouble for poll workers. As for the cost, county IT Director Mike Conners said some of the expensive items, such as laptops, can be used for other departments outside of election time and are purchases the department makes often anyway to keep equipment updated. Costs in future elections would be simply to purchase consumables on each cart. One challenge is that theres no internet service available at the Heart Mountain Clubhouse on Wyo. Highway 294. Adding satellite coverage there would cost an estimated $5,000 because of the necessary equipment. That cost would be on top of a $58,727 estimate for the other areas. During the March 5 discussion, Commissioner Scott Mangold asked if they could look at a hybrid model for the time being and keep the rural polling location with paper poll books. E-poll books have already been tested, as Natrona, Laramie and Fremont counties all piloted their use in 2022. The only hiccup came in the primary in Riverton, when an updating error overwhelmed the system, Odde said, but the issue was fixed for the general election. He said the Wyoming Secretary of States Office approves of e-poll books, although it isnt pushing for county clerks to implement them. E-poll books should speed up the voting process at busier locations like the Park County Fairgrounds and the Cody Auditorium, Odde said. Instead of flipping through pages to find a name or resolve a discrepancy, he said poll workers will be able to quickly verify voters and move them along in the process. Commissioners will consider whether to provide funding for the e-poll books at their March 19 meeting. Editors note: This story discusses an alleged sexual assault. The Jackson Hole News&Guide does not name victims of alleged crimes, however this woman granted permission to use her name. JACKSON Following a Jackson womans request for records relating to her sexual assault investigation, a judge ordered the Teton County Sheriffs Office to turn over the documents, stating that the public has a right to know how these investigations are handled. But after the records she received had all names removed from them, that request is in court again. The battle over the records began April 21, when Olivia Strano filed a public records request with the sheriff seeking documents tied to her report of an August 2019 alleged assault. Strano wanted insight into and questioned how the investigation was conducted. After five months the investigation had been closed without charges filed against the man who admitted to having sex with Strano that night. She said the experience has fractured her trust in the justice system and made her feel unsafe in Jackson. Shes currently staying in another state. If someone comes forward about their traumatic event from somebody theyve never seen or met before in their life, Id expect them to try to prosecute the person, said Strano, now 33. I did everything by the book that the justice system tells you to do. The sheriffs office denied her request to receive the investigation records in May, but Chief Deputy County Attorney Keith Gingery, representing Teton County Sheriff Matt Carr, explained in court that an investigator walked Strano through the investigation without directly reading from the documents. The Jackson Hole News&Guide submitted a request for a copy of the records in May that was denied on the same grounds: that releasing the records was contrary to the public interest. Following the denial, Strano appealed the decision to Charlotte Martinez, the Wyoming Public Records ombudsman, a position nestled under the governors office that can mediate record disputes, although it doesnt have authority to compel agencies to turn over documents. In a letter to Strano shared with the News&Guide, Martinez stated that Gingery and the sheriffs office declined to release the records to Strano, even redacted, and denied Martinezs request to review them so that Martinez could assess whether good cause existed for the denial. Martinez closed Stranos dispute Sept. 11, after the Teton County Sheriffs Office moved to file the case in 9th District Court. Seven days later, Gingery filed a petition in 9th District Court to withhold the public records on the grounds that disclosure would have substantial injury to the public interest and that the countys whole intent was to protect people who had nothing to do with the case. But 9th District Judge Melissa Owens has disagreed with that legal interpretation. Following a Jan. 25 hearing, she decided that releasing the records is within the public interest. The report will assist the public with understanding how the government conducts sexual assault investigations and will also assist [Strano] with understanding how the government handled the investigation related to her report, Owens wrote in a Jan. 30 ruling. The sheriffs office then turned over records to Strano on Feb. 1. But the records were redacted; all names were blacked out. Carr told the News&Guide that the redacted names were provided to Strano separately. Now Stranos lawyers contend that not only were names redacted, but the sheriffs department continues to withhold other evidence and reports related to the investigation. Her attorneys, Alex Freeburg and Rachel Berkness, did not respond to requests for comment. On Feb. 26, Strano and her attorneys filed a new request asking that Owens compel the sheriffs office to release all records and evidence related to her investigation without redaction. Freeburg referenced a 1983 Sheridan Newspapers case that made it to the Wyoming Supreme Court as reason for the records to be disclosed. Owens also cited that case in her Jan. 30 order mandating the records be released. The Sheridan Newspapers case, with some necessary exceptions, recognized ... that agencies must operate in a fishbowl so the public can evaluate the elected sheriff, county attorney and their policies, Freeburg said in the Jan. 25 hearing. In the Sheridan case, the city closed all police records in order to protect individuals arrested but not convicted by the Sheridan Police Department. The Wyoming Supreme Court overturned that decision. A similar argument was made by Gingery in this case: that releasing the records may harm individuals investigated as persons of interest. Gingery stated in the Jan. 25 hearing that even if the sheriffs office redacted the records prior to release,You can figure out who people are. Were a small town. Our primary objective here is we get concerned by innocent parties suing the county [if] we release information that we shouldnt release, Gingery said. Thats one of our major concerns. We are passing the buck. We are bringing it to the district court judge. When it comes to releasing any sexual assault investigation records, the sheriffs office wants to get direction from the court, Gingery said. We certainly will do as you tell us to do, but in the past that hasnt always worked out well for us to just release it, Gingery said. In August 2022, three men sued eight county employees, including the county attorneys office, stating that they had been smeared after agencies released information containing their identities related to sexual assault allegations. Arguing that the public has a right to access these records, Berkness cited a Wyoming law specific to prosecuting sexual assault cases that states that corroboration of a victims testimony is not necessary to obtain a conviction for sexual assault. This is a directive to county attorneys offices to push these cases even when theyre hard, Berkness said in court. We have a public interest in pursuing these cases all the way through conviction in the absence of corroborating evidence. Strano also spoke in the hearing, saying it isnt fun or easy to relive this over and over again. I feel its important for the public to know how cases like these are handled and dealt with, Strano said. In her order, Owens further laid out her reasoning, stating that the Wyoming Public Records Act favors disclosure, and there is no pending litigation. The investigation of this incident is complete, Owens wrote. The investigating officer determined that he could not find probable cause to charge a crime. There is no ongoing or contemplated prosecution. Chris Wages, an attorney for the Jackson Hole News&Guide and the Wyoming Press Association, said hes not surprised by the position of Teton County officials. They dont want to open themselves up to liability, Wages said. In a March 8 response filed in court, Gingery wrote that unredacted records would be released if the court instructed the sheriffs office to do so; however, Owens January order did not specify whether the investigatory report should be redacted or not. He also wrote that Stranos original request under the Wyoming Public Records Act covers only documents, not actual evidence. What Owens will do next convene a hearing or issue a decision in writing is unclear. Strano said shes also pursuing other options. She wants to personally appeal to Teton County and Prosecuting Attorney Erin Weisman to ask her to consider bringing criminal charges against the man who allegedly assaulted her that night. In Wyoming there is no statute of limitations for prosecuting felony sexual assault. Strano stated that she and her attorneys have sent requests to Weisman asking for an appointment. Those requests have gone unanswered, according to Strano. Gingery did not return a request for comment, and Weisman declined to comment. Strano said funding the legal fight for her records has been an expensive endeavor, one shes financing from her savings account. Ive done everything in my power that I can do, Strano said. American artist Diedrick Brackens and Lebanese artist Mounira Al Solh are the latest to join a series of requests for withdrawals from London's Barbican exhibition after it has been thrust into an alleged "censorship" misconduct. The issue itself began after the art gallery canceled the lecture of Indian writer Pankaj Mishra, who was planning to address Israel's war on Gaza at the talk, at the beginning of February. Since then, several artists and lenders have been requesting the removal of their art from the "Unravel: the Power and Politics of Textiles in Art" exhibition, which opened Feb. 13, including French-Moroccan artist Yto Barada and Filipino artist Pacita Abad, among others. How the Withdrawal Protest Against the Barbican Started Married art collectors Lorenzo Legarda Leviste and Fahad Mayet were the first ones to champion the demonstration by issuing the withdrawal of two quilts by Gee's Bend artisan Loretta Pettway that they lent to the gallery for use in the exhibition. To announce their withdrawal, the two collectors released a public statement on Feb. 14 condemning the actions of the gallery, saying, "We believe this cancellation can only be classified as the Barbican's censorship of the [London Review of Books] and Pankaj Mishra." On March 7, Barrada joined the movement and requested the removal of her two works in support of the canceled "The Shoah After Gaza" lecture by Mishra. Dayrit and Brackens both followed and continued the stream of removals on March 8. In a letter addressed to the Barbican and quoted in Leviste and Mayet's statement, Barrada wrote: "If The Barbican thought it prudent to refuse the Radio AlHara Co-Founder's address of 'Free Palestine,' in June, I should think it now recognizes the extraordinary dangers in the suppression of peaceful resistance." By March 10, Al Solh was the last of the artists to ask for the withdrawal of her work, while the collective Art Jameel requested the return of their loaned Pacita Abad trapunto painting. In total, nine works have been removed from the exhibition since the contentions first went public. Similarly, Brackens also publicized his letter renouncing the art gallery's actions through the couple's statement, writing, "I am dismayed by the museum's acts of censorship and refusal to hold itself accountable to the public as well as its employees." "The Barbican has shown an inability to make decisions that uphold the shared visions of artists and curators," he added, while also saying that the stream of withdrawals ultimately "sullied" the "well-intentioned vision" of the exhibition's curatorial team. In response, Barbican CEO Claire Spencer also released a statement last week representing the gallery, writing, "We are sorry for the impact this has had on the artists, lenders, and curators and we respect the decisions of those who have withdrawn their work from 'Unravel: The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art.'" Read Also: Hermanos Gutierrez Achieves Instrumental 'Blood Harmony' in Their Upcoming Album's Title Track 'Sonido Cosmico' 2024 Classicalite All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Megan Park, an assistant principal at Gannett Peak Elementary School in Lander, has received the Milken Educator Award. The national honors teachers, principals and specialists in elementary and secondary schools across the country, and carries with it a $25,000 prize for the winner to use as they please, as well as professional development opportunities. Milken Educator Awards Vice President Stephanie Bishop and Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder announced Park as the winner at a schoolwide assembly on Tuesday morning. Exceptional leadership empowers everyone it touches, Superintendent Degenfelder said in a press release. Assistant Principal Parks commitment to community, academic success and the emotional health of her staff and students is reflected in the positive outcomes at Gannett Peak Elementary. Congratulations on receiving this very special award and representing the quality of education leaders in our state. Park is one of 75 recipients who will receive this award this year from the Milken Family Foundation. Park is highly visible in the school community, greeting staff and students in hallways and classrooms with contagious enthusiasm, conducting regular classroom walk-throughs, and adeptly addressing instructional needs throughout the school day. Her passion for fostering professional, academic and personal growth is evident in everything she does, from helping lead professional development and building individual relationships with colleagues, students and families to participating in sporting events and recitals, the press release states. Park is a former classroom and special education teacher, it adds. Her attention to data and commitment to making connections were also noted in the release. Park is highly visible in the school community, greeting staff and students in hallways and classrooms with contagious enthusiasm, conducting regular classroom walk-throughs, and adeptly addressing instructional needs throughout the school day. Her passion for fostering professional, academic and personal growth is evident in everything she does, from helping lead professional development and building individual relationships with colleagues, students and families to participating in sporting events and recitals. Follow city and local government reporter Jordan Smith on X at @jordansmith_js FOLLOWING a spate of robberies at its outlets across the country in just over a year and a half, Massy Stores yesterday replaced the firm responsible for its security. G4S Secure Solutions Trinidad Ltd yesterday assumed the role of security provider for Massy Stores, replacing Amalgamated Security Services Ltd. An elderly man visiting Trinidad from Canada has been murdered in his familys home by intruders. The body of Hilton Smith, 75, was found on Friday on a bed. His mouth was gagged, and his feet and hands tied. Police officers from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) yesterday executed a search warrant at the Arima residence of a pastor who once worked as an adviser at the Strategic Services Agency (SSA). The pastors home is at the back of his church. Investigators told the Sunday Express that officers went to the home of the pastor around 7.30 a.m. and executed a search warrant on the premises. Last Tuesday, 17 prison officers and six inmates were injured at the Port of Spain prison. Social media had described the incident as a riot, but when contacted by the Express, Commissioner of Prisons Deopersad Ramoutar downplayed the event, stating in a media release later that it was all in a days work for the prison officers who are at times, undervalued, and unappreciated. Everyones injuries were said to be minor, although all the officers involved were still sent on sick leave. Terrence McNally ostensibly wrote Master Class about the great opera star Maria Callas. But at its heart, the play, Arizona Theatre Companys current offering, is about the creation of art. The struggles, the pains, the joys, the deep dedication and deeper feeling that go into making art run rampant through the play. Suffering, or at the very least the understanding of suffering, is necessary for art, the play tells us. And it is all through the teachings and musings of Callas that we learn this. The play was inspired by a series of master classes that the past-her-prime Callas gave at Juilliard. In McNallys version, she is an acid-tongued and unforgivable teacher. (In reality, she was much the opposite when teaching those classes.) Vicki Lewis diva is arrogant, often cruel, occasionally funny and always dedicated to the art. In the play, the Callas character guides three opera students, sometimes with stinging dismissal, sometimes with reluctant grace. Lewis embodied the spirit of the opera star and made us hang on every word. This is not a breeze of a role to take on Lewis never leaves the stage except during intermission. While teaching, the students fade away while she reminisces about her career, her loves, her mother, her disappointments, her triumphs, all while a recording of Callas plays in the background. Timing ones monologue to the music is not an easy feat; Lewis made it seem so even when the music sometimes overpowered her words. Her students were portrayed by Rachel Gold, who barely got a note out before Callas began to coldly correct her; Victor Ryan Robertson moved the teacher with Cavaradossis aria from Verdis Tosca, and Kanisha Marie Feliciano, who beautifully sang an aria from Verdis Macbeth, then had the courage to tell Callas she is cruel and not well liked. Accompanying the students on a shiny black Steinway is Walter Bobby McCoy, who indulges the diva while trying to assist the students. Master Class, which won a 1996 Tony for Best Play, doesnt really hold up over the years. Callas cruelty to the students would not be tolerated (we hope) these days, and there is a thinness to the script that is more obvious than when it first came out. But this ATC production, precisely directed by Marcia Milgrom Dodge, is still compelling. And the message about the commitment to, and need for, art still resonates today. Arizona Theatre Companys Master Class continues through March 23 at the Temple of Music and Art, 330 S. Scott Ave. Tickets are $25-$95 at atc.org or 833-282-7328. Run time is two hours, with one intermission. The University of Arizona is refusing to release information regarding the $27 million worth of open academic jobs it is permanently eliminating. The Arizona Board of Regents announced in early February that the university had found $27 million in savings by permanently eliminating currently vacant positions in colleges in a letter shared with Gov. Katie Hobbs. The Arizona Daily Star first requested information about those cut positions, including what colleges and departments they were in and what jobs they were support staff, adjunct, lecturer, tenure-track or tenure on Feb. 13. The Star followed up on the request on Feb. 16, Feb. 26 and March 11. In response to the most recent follow up, a spokeswoman for the university stated we dont have any further information to share at this time. After a Faculty Senate meeting on March 11, Interim Provost Ronald Marx told the Star that, though ABOR wrote that the jobs were permanently eliminated, they were only permanently in a sense eliminated. He added that in other budget years, the jobs could reappear. Additionally, Marx stated that the UA was not going to share the information with the public because some of the cuts are not from open positions. The positions being cut that are not open, he said, are positions where employees are retiring. Those retirements have not yet been publicly announced, he added. Basically, youre not going to be able to get that data, Marx said. In response, the Star has submitted a formal records request to the university for the data. Leila Hudson, the chair of the Faculty Senate, told the Star that she had also recently requested the information. She, too, was denied. I ask them on a regular basis for reliable numbers about the budget, she said. Thats been a major source of frustration. Its been an unrelenting struggle to get accurate and precise data. The UA is a public institution, which means data should be readily available, Hudson noted. Im worried about it, she said. Its been a chronic source of tension. When we do get data, it often takes multiple requests to get it, and its often in forms that are confusing or difficult to interpret. Though financial oversight is not a responsibility of the Faculty Senate, Hudson believes that sometimes they need fiscal data to make programming decisions. Were often asked to make decisions about programs or new units without understanding what the financial ramifications, history or context are for making those decisions, she said. Thats been extraordinarily frustrating. Gov. Katie Hobbs lashed out Wednesday in Tucson at a proposed rural groundwater management bill thats moving through the state Legislature, saying its procedures are so convoluted that it would be virtually impossible to set up the kind of rural groundwater management basins the bill envisions. But Hobbs, legislators from both parties and activists on both sides of the volatile rural groundwater debate say theyre still hopeful of reaching a compromise between the bill Hobbs criticized and another bill, pushed by supporters of stricter rural groundwater regulation that failed to receive a committee hearing and is now effectively dead. The bill, which has passed the Senate and is scheduled for a House committee hearing next week, would allow creation of Basin Management Areas in rural communities that could reduce peoples water use by up to 2% a year. It would appropriate $40 million to spend on water conservation programs in such areas and create a process through which farmers living within them could protect their existing water rights. But setting up such a basin would require a unanimous vote of county boards of supervisors governing such areas, along with approval by the Arizona Department of Water Resources director. It has drawn sharp criticism from environmentalists and some rural residents. The Arizona Farm Bureau and several groups of county supervisors have supported it, although some county supervisors have opposed it. Im willing to work with any sponsors to pass legislation thats real, effective and protect water supplies rural areas. But should the bill (senate bill 1221) remain unchanged it will not get my signature, Hobbs said Wednesday at an annual conference sponsored by the University of Arizonas Water Resources Research Center. The bill will silence rural communities and create a convoluted process that will make it nearly impossible for our communities to manage groundwater, Hobbs said. It leaves us with the status quo where out of state corporate farmers come from around the world to take advantage of our aquifers, and small communities have their water pumped from beneath them. This is beyond unacceptable, Hobbs said. Hobbs added, however, that We in the state have many shared values: the desire to protect rural Arizona, protect rural water users and slow unmitigated depletion of our rural aquifers. We can and must find common ground to find a solution that works and puts politics aside. After Hobbs talk, Sen. Sine Kerr, the Buckeye Republican who sponsored the bill under discussion, told reporters in an email, From the start, Ive been proactive in spearheading meetings for collaboration from the Governor and her office on SB 1221 so that we can get this bill signed into law. I will continue to meet with the governor and our Democratic lawmakers with a goal of coming to a compromise on a solution that wont hurt rural Arizonans livelihoods, their local economies, or their groundwater supply. For the Governor to recklessly say SB 1221 is a convoluted process and wont protect our groundwater is a red herring meant to justify her proposal of big governmental overreach to regulate groundwater. Rural Arizonans know what will, and what wont, benefit their local economies. Thats why SB 1221 empowers these citizens to elect a body they believe will represent their needs, protect their livelihoods, and safeguard their resources when it comes to groundwater regulation, Kerr said. Sen. Priya Sundareshan, a Tucson Democrat, said later that she, Kerr, Rep. Gail Griffin, chair of the House Natural Resources, Energy and water Committee, and Rep. Chris Mathis met Tuesday with the governors water policy staffers to look for a compromise. Sundareshan said she thought some progress had been made. While the two sides didnt focus on specific items for compromise, she said, headway was made in recognizing everyone was meeting in good faith. Arizona Farm Bureau President Stefanie Smallhouse said she had obvious disagreements with Hobbs criticism of the Senate bill, but Im more focused on her optimism about the possibility of compromise. I think there are several of us thinking that she would just veto anything that wasnt something that came out of her Water Policy Council. I actually thought that it was encouraging; she said we have common ground, which I agree with, and that we have shared values which is true. Were all looking for ways to make water last longer for future generations. She said we need certainty and we feel our bill provides a lot of certainty. Smallhouse said she doesnt believe the senate bill contains a convoluted process. Anytime you create a regulatory framework that is going to last a long time it should be a deliberative process, you should always be willing to take the time ad take the steps required for something as important as water. That being said, I think that theres time in legislative session for ongoing conversations where we can continue to find common ground, Smallhouse said. Audubon Southwest representative Haley Paul said shes hopeful about the outcome of this dispute because theres multiple proposals on the table, and I do think that if people could come together and figure out what they can live with, I think that there could be wins for both sides. I think we get certainty for water users and we get a third option thats more flexible so rural Arizona can plan its water future. After her talk, Hobbs told reporters that if the Legislature doesnt act, she and the ADWR would consider creating state-run Active Management Areas, to try to manage groundwater in rural araes and limit pumping there. Such areas are already authorized under state law, but Hobbs acknowledged that theyre not as efficient and responsive to rural communities as was the legislation on that she had backed. It was first proposed by a Water Policy Council that she appointed and that met for six months last year. Kerr, however, said, Threats of executive action to create AMAs demonstrate weak leadership from the governor and an unwillingness to do the hard work to create a realistic solution for rural Arizona. The Governors Water Council was a far cry from a collaborative effort. The voices of farmers and ranchers, those whove lived and breathed conservation of our most precious resources for generations in rural Arizona, were not taken into consideration by this council. A Willcox Basin chile farmer who did sit on Hobbs council, Ed Curry, denounced the current senate bill as a water giveaway. Its the same old stuff. The unanimity of votes thats required, its dedicated to never have any local control. If everything had to be unanimous, wed never get anything done. You can never get everyone to agree, Curry said. PHOENIX House and Senate Republicans used their rules Wednesday to block a vote or even a debate on a proposal to enshrine the right to contraceptives in Arizona law. Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton complained that her HB 2678 never was given a hearing. It would create a law saying that individuals have the right to obtain any drug, device or biological product intended for use in the prevention of pregnancy. And the measure lists various items that would be protected, ranging from oral contraceptives to mechanical devices. But Stahl Hamilton could not get Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Goodyear, who chairs the House Committee on Health and Human Services to give it a hearing. And House rules say bills cant get to the floor without committee action. So the Tucson Democrat made a motion Wednesday to create a temporary rule to allow her to bring her measure directly to the floor and give it an up-or-down vote. She said this is a special instance that requires special treatment. Why I think its a good idea is that this bill is one of the ways in which our voices are heard, Stahl Hamilton said, surrounded on the floor by other Democratic women in the House. And our people are representative, she said. And right now, the topic of this bill is so important that I believe it deserves a hearing. What it also is, Stahl Hamilton said, is relevant. Thats because when the U.S. Supreme Court last year overturned Roe v. Wade and the conclusion there is a constitutional right to abortion, Justice Clarence Thomas said colleagues should also revisit other rulings about constitutional rights. And that includes a case known as Griswold which said the use of contraceptives falls within the zone of privacy protected by the Bill of Rights. Putting a right to contraceptives into Arizona law would make any decision by the Supreme Court to overturn Griswold legally irrelevant. It is a topic that deserves robust conversation, she said. And it is a topic that most of the people in Arizona support. But House Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci said the merits of the legislation are irrelevant. Theres a process in this House, said the Lake Havasu City Republican. And theres a way for bills to go through in this House, he said. And this is not how its done. The result was a party-line vote to reject Stahl Hamiltons bid to suspend the rules. In the Senate, Sen. Priya Sundareshan, D-Tucson, could not get Sen. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, to schedule a hearing on her identically worded SB 1362 in the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services. And her attempt to force a full Senate vote on the issue fared no better. Access to reproductive health care is a fundamental right that should not be questioned or changed by government, said Sen. Christine Marsh, D-Phoenix. Foes of the legislation to provide a right to contraception have argued the measure is unnecessary, pointing out no bills have been introduced this year to curb access. But Marsh pointed out that isnt keeping Republicans from advancing their own proposals for problems that dont exist. Consider, she said SB 1010. It would make it illegal for the state to track anyones vehicle mileage. And there is an identical GOP proposal to put that to voters. Not a single Republican spoke against Sundareshans measure to bring the issue to the floor where it could be debated. But it failed anyway on a party-line vote. The votes drew criticism from Gov. Katie Hobbs who is in support of such a law. The majority just showed they are out of touch with Arizonans, said press aide Christian Slater. And he said its not just about contraception. She said Republicans are supporting returning Arizonas abortion laws to the way they were in territorial days, when the procedure was illegal except to save the life of the mother. Arguments to do just that are pending before the Arizona Supreme Court. And Slater said some Republicans have introduced legislation he said could undermine the rights of individuals to have in-vitro fertilization procedures by trying to put provisions into law that could be interpreted as saying that a fetus has the same legal rights as anyone else. That includes a proposal to extend the current tax credit for children to the time that a woman is pregnant and another to say that a pregnant woman could drive in the carpool lane which requires there be at least two people in a vehicle. PHOENIX Arizona Schools Superintendent Tom Horne told lawmakers Tuesday that the state faces a crisis in teacher retention, with low salaries and a lack of support leading to a loss of thousands of teachers every year. Horne told the House Education Committee that the state faces a public sector crisis, with thousands of teachers leaving every year and not enough new teachers coming in to replace them. If we do nothing to reverse this trend, this could be a major catastrophe for our students and our economy that needs a skilled workforce, Horne said. He called on lawmakers to pass proposals that would increase teacher pay, penalize school systems that do not aggressively pursue student discipline complaints from teachers and reinstate exit exams for students. But critics said Hornes plan for increased discipline would penalize schools while doing little to help students, and that a separate proposal, to reinstate exit exams for high school diplomas, would do more to harm students than help. Tyler Kowch, a spokesperson for public school advocacy group Save our Schools Arizona, called the plan a punitive measure that wont actually solve anything. If you talk to almost any teacher, theyre going to tell you that like social, emotional learning is the thing that our students need the most and yet Superintendent Horne just wants to punish schools if they dont discipline in the way that he thinks is appropriate, Kowch said. School advocates said after the hearing that Hornes presentation was notable as much for what it did not include as for what it did. There was no mention of the states controversial Empowerment Scholarship Account program, which redirects state funds from public schools to parents who can use it to pay for private or homeschooling for their children. There was also no mention of issues like critical race theory or bilingual education that Horne often focuses on. One thing that I thought was really interesting is that Horne didnt bring up any of the culture issues that hes kind of made central to his administration. And I think thats because he knows that theyre not popular with Arizona voters, Kowch said. The comments came after a committee appearance that Horne fashioned as his State of Education address. He said 90% of my time goes to improving academic performance in Arizona schools, which finished 48th in the most recent U.S. News and World Report rankings. During his presentation, Horne boasted about the states Career Technical Education program, which partners with businesses to train skilled workers for careers. He also cited more than 1,000 site visits in the last year by school improvement teams, highly qualified teachers and administrators to go out and help the schools by meeting with staff to develop skills that improve student outcomes. Horne got no pushback on his call for increased teacher pay Republicans and Democrats in the Legislature are both backing measures to raise teacher salaries this year, although the Democratic plan would raise more money and include raises for other school workers. But Democrats challenged Hornes plan for tougher student discipline. Horne blamed school boards and not administrators for policies calling for social, emotional learning and restorative justice in lieu of stronger discipline for misbehaving students. Neither of those things create a disincentive to misbehavior, he said. Students want boundaries because they see one student getting away with misbehavior, they all start to do it. Students cannot learn in that atmosphere. He urged the committee to pass SB 1459, a bill that would require schools to report the number of student discipline referrals to the Department of Education, which would reduce a schools letter grade if disciplinary action is not taken in at least 75% of referrals. Horne called the bill strong medicine, but necessary to address what he said is the Departments most urgent and possibly catastrophic problem. The committee later passed the bill on a party-line vote. Kowch said a better solution is to put more focus on mental health support for students, rather than vilifying it. Horne testified that expanding mental health providers in schools would take a significant appropriation at a time when the state faces a budget deficit. Once funding is available, he said adding providers would be high on the departments priority list. Kowch said money would be available, If we werent spending $800 million on the ESA voucher program this year. That is money that can be used to actually resolve these issues that Ive been talking about, Kowch said. They could give raises to these mental health professionals we could really solve these issues. Horne also endorsed a bill that would require students to earn a reasonable score on a statewide exam to graduate high school, saying that teachers are otherwise pressured to pass students whether they learn anything or not. Kowch called exit exams antiquated, saying that they often harm rather than improve student outcomes. Chris Kotterman, director of governmental relations for the Arizona School Boards Association, said Hornes proposals on student discipline and graduation tests create the wrong incentives for raising student achievement. He said the discipline bill, in particular, sort of demonstrates a misunderstanding of the way student discipline is done. And, frankly, I think that it misunderstands the role of school boards. Kotterman said school boards are not typically involved in individual student discipline unless it involves expulsion or suspension. He supported the idea of every district having guidelines on discipline but said penalizing schools for not disciplining in a way the department agrees with is emblematic of the idea that school districts are too soft on kids. Putin endorses Biden for President I continually read letters posted by the Star about Trump and Republicans supporting Putin. Well, guess what, Democrat readers, Vladimir Putin has just endorsed Joe Biden for President. He prefers Biden over Trump. Why? Because he considers Trump too unpredictable. Maybe the reason he never invaded Ukraine under Trump was for fear of what he might do. No such fear of Biden, as Putin invaded Ukraine twice with him in the White House. Putin knows that Biden is in cognitive decline, and if that 3 a.m. call came into the White House, Biden likely would not remember that he is the President. As for House Republicans not passing legislation to fund weapons for Ukraine, all along Biden has not provided them with the most modern weapons to win the war, but rather with just enough capability to have a stalemate, which is where we are at now. Biden has feared that Ukraines winning the war might result in Putin using nuclear weapons. Thus, Putin for Biden! A new Russia collusion. Ardel Francis Northwest side Good news While looking at the paper, I thought of Anne Murrays 1983 hit song A little good news today. Wow! Seems like things sure havent gotten better over the years and we sure could use some good news. Im not holding my breath though. Gail Powell Northwest side President Biden, the Divider in Chief From Joe Bidens Presidential inauguration speech on Jan. 21, 2021, We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, conservative versus liberal. We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts. There was more unifying rhetoric from Biden that has proven to be hollow. He has done nothing but be uncivil and divide Americans, continually claiming that 70 million Republican voters pose a threat to our Democracy. No mention of Democrats threat to Democracy trying to keep the leading Republican candidate off state ballots. Biden used the State of the Union speech not as a unifying voice for America but as an angry campaign speech attacking Republicans and members of SCOTUS, who were in attendance. The liberal-dominated news media was ecstatic as their cognitively challenged President appeared vigorous for a change. Maybe he was given a double dose of his memory medicine. Biden is the Divider in Chief, and he is not a nice guy! Ask Navy, his until recently ignored seventh granddaughter. Haley Roberts North side Royal disaster Britains Princess Catherine recently had to apologize for photoshopping her familys Mothers Day portrait. Apparently, she corrected a sweater, a zipper and her hair. What a shameful scandal! Im sure glad I live in the U.S., where our leaders have never tried to pull the wool over our eyes! James Nesci East side Thank you, Steve! I would like to thank Councilmember Steve Kozachik for his wonderful service to the Tucson community the last 15 years. Tucsons loss will be Pima Countys gain. Hell definitely be missed. Matt Somers Midtown Contributing to the greater good Re: the March 11 letter Fair share. Has anyone also noticed that the rich hide their wealth to avoid paying taxes, rather than just paying their fair share? Consider how paying taxes actually impacts those who have low or average income, compared to the wealthy. In 2024, if your annual income is $35,000 and youre married filing jointly, youll be in the 12% tax bracket, leaving you with $30,800 to spend as you wish. If you make $350,000 and youre married filing jointly, youll be in the 24% bracket, and youll have to somehow scrape by on the measly $266,000 youll have remaining. Compare the after-tax remainders, and then tell me youre not fortunate. Of course, all of this is before exemptions, which again, exponentially, favor those with higher income. Sure, the higher the income, the greater the tax. Thats only fair. Rather than whining about those who have less than you, be thankful that you can contribute more to the greater good. Jim Taylor East side Integrity of elections We, the People, accept the results of our elections. Why? Because there are so many safeguards in place, we know we can. Decentralization of the voting process using many well-trained paid and volunteer poll workers provides numerous protections in the process, making the chance of significant fraud virtually impossible. Of the 3,400,000 votes cast in Arizonas 2020 election, there were nine confirmed cases of voter fraud, and the results were adjusted accordingly. Voter registration requires a social security number confirming your citizenship and age. If you vote by mail, your signature is verified with signature already on file with the State. If you vote in person, you must present a government-issued photo ID or two other forms of ID to verify your identity and address. The tabulation machines are calibrated and tested to ensure accuracy. We must encourage all eligible voters to register and vote. We owe it to each other to be active participants in Our Democracy. Leadawn Anderton Southwest side City Councilman Kozachik to resign He cant resign soon enough. He doesnt care about his constituents but he will bend over backwards for wealthy developers. The sad thing is that for the next year, we will be stuck with some political hack picked by the mayor and the rest of the City Council, none of whom even live in Ward 6. It is time to change the city charter and have replacement council members chosen through special elections. Doing otherwise is undemocratic. And we need to have ward-only elections and have them chosen every two years. It is time to take back control of our city from political elites. David Moore Midtown Ciscomani endorses wrong candidate It comes as no surprise that Rep. Juan Ciscomani recently endorsed Donald Trump. Rep. Ciscomani wants us to believe that hes not an extremist, but his actions prove otherwise. He has been a steward for Donald Trumps extremist policies that endanger our working class, reproductive rights, the Latino community, and the environment. Im disappointed but not surprised by Rep. Ciscomanis endorsement of Donald Trump. You would think for a guy who likes to hear out everyone, Ciscomani would finally listen to the concerns of his constituents. Nope! We dont need his support of Trump. We need him to listen to the needs of his constituents across his district. We are tired of the photo-ops and the updates on his social media that dont show us anything. Rep. Ciscomani has failed his congressional district and Arizona by voting against us, siding with the ultra-wealthy, and becoming a full-blown extremist. Judy J Gillies Downtown Say their names Majorie Taylor Greenes reprehensible action at the SOTU shows she has no shame. Her exploitation of a murdered women in Georgia by an undocumented immigrant with say her name has me wanting to say to MTG say their names, after 50 people killed by a deranged gunman who was an American citizen in Las Vegas in 2017. Or after 18 were. shot in Maine by a US army reservist. Or 10 people, all African American, murdered by a homegrown gunman and racist. How do we protect our children in classrooms from their classmates with guns? So what are Trump Republicans saying about gun shootings by American citizens besides thoughts and prayers? According to the soon-to-be-convicted-felon Trump, we need to get over it, move on. They are not for sensible gun control, and now not even for immigration reform. They are hypocrites trying to sway public opinion for their own political power. Oh, and thoughts and prayers to the deceased Republican Party, which is now the Trump party. Chris Sipp Midtown Ciscomanis incredibly shrinking memory How many times do we need to remind Congressman Juan Ciscomani? According to his latest constituent newsletter describing his impression of the Presidents State of the Union address: Border security remains the top priority for Americans, yet President Biden provided no meaningful answers to a crisis of his own creation. Juan, are you having a memory lapse? Why dont you mention the FACT that there is a Senate bipartisan bill that does, indeed, provide meaningful answers that is gathering dust because your proxy-leader-presidential candidate says dont consider it? In FACT, the President implored you, Juan, to pass this border security bill now. Did you forget that? Does the cat have your tongue when you write your nice newsletters? Or is it simple political expediency to leave out important information that your constituents demand and deserve? There are over-the-counter medications that tout improved memory. I suggest you consider them. Paul Emmert Marana Israel shouldnt be legislators top priority Re: the March 10 article Israel shouldnt be top priority for AZ legislators. Thank you, Tim Steller, for writing this column. It really validates what many of us who live in LD 20 are thinking. Alma Hernandez is the Rep. in my district, though I did not vote for her and I am NOT OK with her approach. She does not represent the views of many of her constituents. She displays the flag of Israel on her desk in the AZ State House! Israel is an apartheid state, well documented by international human rights organizations. Israel has been committing genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza for the past 5 months. Now, Gazans are dying of starvation, with Israeli forces killing people waiting for food. And, Hernandez has the gall to leave the AZ legislature in the middle of the session, taking other legislators with her on a one-sided trip to bolster support for Israel. Shame on you, Alma! Sarah Roberts West side Biden delivers bombs, then aid to victims Since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, President Biden has supplied Israel with 2,000-pound bombs, precision-guided bunker busters, Iron Dome interceptors, artillery shells, and ammunition, among others. These weapons have led to the slaughter of more than 30,000 Palestinians, many of whom are women and children. Lately, as if shaken awake from a stupor, President Biden has begun delivering food and water to those who have temporarily survived the genocide in which he has played a leading role. Question: Is President Bidens latest humanitarian gesture a case of amnesia, delusion, denial, desperation to ingratiate himself to the uncommitted voters, or a typical example of political moral depravity? Adnan Almaney Southwest side Strong graduated taxation benefits all Pulling oneself up by ones own bootstraps defies physics and, when applied to life, denies reality. Hard work is necessary for success but never sufficient. Has anyone succeeded in anything without others help? Without our parents or guardians, teachers, family, friends, communities, institutions, etc., could we have made it? We benefit from each other through public services: schools, roads, sanitation, police, fire, etc., all provided by dedicated, competent specialists. To enable them to excel in benefitting us all requires adequate taxation. Graduated taxation is fair sharing of wealth to provide universal services in a civilized society. A flat-rate tax could destroy a minimum-wage workers family but wont scratch a super-rich while diminishing the services needed, especially for the poor. Sharing wealth to benefit the whole was a Christian practice (Acts 2:44-46). Love your neighbor as yourself, pull others up by voting for strong graduated taxation! Ke Chiang Hsieh Midtown Think about beauty In this contentious time, think about the beauty of the planet, the desert and the mountains, the rainforest, coral reefs, and ice sheets. Climate change threatens them all. NPR reported that the oceans have borne the greatest burden of rising temperatures, and reefs may be the first ecosystem destroyed. Carbon dioxide from fossil fuels makes the water more acidic, a death sentence for the coral. Without urgent action to save our reefs, this living species will be gone by the end of the century, during our childrens lifetime. The time for fossil fuels is over. The US and 200 other countries agreed to reduce fossil fuels for the first time in decades of UN climate talks. The Biden Administration has acted with $623 million in grants to fund EV charging stations and ports across the U.S. In Arizona, school districts will receive Clean Bus Grants to fund electric buses. Beauty deserves care. Beauty deserves justice. Vote for Biden. Margaret Scott More than 8,000 undergraduate students at the University of Kansas earned honor roll distinction for the fall 2023 semester. Tyler Bridges and Logan Schofield, both of Owasso, with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, as well as Regan Krueger, of Collinsville, also with the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, made the prestigious list. Honor roll criteria vary among the universitys academic units. Some schools honor the top 10% of students enrolled, some establish a minimum GPA and others raise the minimum GPA for each year students are in school. Students must complete a minimum number of credit hours to be considered for the honor roll. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has released documentation indicating that an Owasso student died by suicide the day after a fight at the high school. Nex Benedict, 16, who identified as nonbinary and used gender-neutral pronouns, died Feb. 8, one day after being involved in a fight at Owasso High School, police say. The summary report provided Wednesday by the state medical examiner states that Benedict took a fatal combination of two drugs commonly known as Benadryl and Prozac. A full autopsy report, including toxicology results, has yet to be released. Benedicts death became a rallying cry for LGBTQ+ allies after allegations surfaced in mid-February that the Owasso sophomore was fatally injured when beaten by a group of bullies. The Owasso Police Department released video footage from a hallway at the high school, as well as a police interview at the hospital, showing that Benedict was not injured fatally in the fight. When interviewed by a school resource officer, Benedict said the group of freshmen girls had been antagonizing Benedict over a period of weeks. Benedict did not report the bullying to any teachers or administrators, Benedict said, because they had no hope of effecting change. I didnt really see the point of it, Benedict told the officer. An Owasso school resource officer told Benedict in the hospital that Benedict would be subject to discipline for assault because they had admitted to pouring water on the bullies, starting the fight. From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide, Owasso Police Lt. Nick Boatman said Wednesday in an emailed statement. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office. The investigation into Benedicts death remains open, Boatman said, with findings being presented to the district attorney. The Owasso Police Department would like to take this moment to inform anyone in crisis or contemplating suicide of the Oklahoma Mental Health Lifeline, just call or text 988, the Police Department said in a Facebook post. Owasso Public Schools also mentioned the 988 crisis hotline in a statement from Superintendent Margaret Coates. The district said Wednesday that counseling would be available for students and staff. As we mourn together, OPS remains focused on the safety and well-being of our students and staff, Coates statement reads. Lets continue to lean on each other in the days ahead. A national survey last year by the Trevor Project found that 41% of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered attempting suicide in 2023, including roughly half of transgender and nonbinary youth. The Trevor Project provides confidential counseling and 24/7 crisis support for LGBTQ+ youth: Text START to 678-678 or go to thetrevorproject.org/get-help. Curtis Killman Tulsa World Staff Writer Follow Curtis Killman 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 public is being asked to comment on a proposal to increase the height of the Keystone Dam by nearly 11 feet to reduce the risk of a failure. The proposal, details of which were made public in a draft environmental assessment this month, comes from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. While the Corps says the dam is not at risk of failure now, it says increasing the dam height by 10 feet would protect it from a breach during a catastrophic and unprecedented flood event. Construction of a raised dam embankment would help abate dam failure by strengthening the dam and allowing the dam to safely operate, according to the environmental assessment. The project, which if approved would not be completed until 2042, could increase upstream flooding, according to the report. Communities upstream of Keystone Dam may experience temporary flooding conditions while water is held by the upgraded dam, but as noted there is an extremely low probability of occurrence, according to the assessment. The primary purpose of raising the dam would be to store more floodwater behind Keystone Dam until it can pass through the controlled spillway structure, according to the assessment. It would not result in any operational change of the dam, including the elevation of the conservation pool and the top of the flood pool, according to the assessment. If approved, construction on the dam would result in a three-year closure of Oklahoma 151 where it spans the dam, according to the report. The dam would be raised about 10 feet along with the Oklahoma 151 bridge where it crosses over the spillway. The cost of the dam improvements was not included in the assessment, but the report indicated that a portion of the costs would be paid by the Southwestern Power Administration, a federal agency that markets the hydropower generated at the Keystone Dam. As a result of paying a portion of the costs, SWPA customers could see a rate increase as a result, according to the report. The rate increases to customers are unknown at this point in time, but is assumed there will be an adverse effect on individuals utilizing power from SWPA, according to the report. SWPA customers include individuals in Oklahoma, in addition to Kansas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Missouri, according to the report. The SWPA markets and delivers power primarily to public bodies such as rural electric cooperatives and municipal utilities, according to its website. The Tulsa World reported in 2019 that the Corps of Engineers had launched a safety modification study of the Keystone Dam as part of a national review of the Corps 650 dams. The national review was launched in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, a 2005 Category 5 hurricane that devastated New Orleans. The public can comment on the Keystone Dam proposal at the second of two public hearings held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Keystone State Park Community Center, 1926 Oklahoma 151 west of Sand Springs. Written comments will also be accepted through April 5 via the mail or email. Comments can be mailed to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Tulsa District, ATTN: RPEC-Keystone DSMS, 2488 E. 81st St., Tulsa, OK 74137. Comments can be emailed to keystone-dsms@usace.army.mil. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. Randy Krehbiel Tulsa World Staff Writer Follow Randy Krehbiel 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 Legislation allowing experienced Oklahoma educators to collect full pension benefits while continuing to teach full time sailed through the state House of Representatives on Tuesday. House Bill 2320, by Rep. Kyle Hilbert, R-Bristow, is lawmakers' latest ploy to keep experienced teachers in classrooms as the gap between the supply of qualified personnel and the demand for them widens. "Is this going to solve the teacher shortage crisis? No. But it's going to make it better," Hilbert said. HB 2320 imposes a moratorium, to be reviewed after three years, on post-retirement earning limits for participants in the Oklahoma Teachers' Retirement System. The practical effect of that is to allow teachers to "double dip" by drawing full retirement benefits while continuing to teach without income restrictions. A 60-day waiting period between official retirement and returning to the classroom remains in place. Originally, the earning limits were to be eliminated permanently, but Hilbert said he agreed to a three-year trial period in response to concerns that the change might prove too much of a strain on the retirement system's resources or have other unintended consequences. Hilbert said actuarial analysis found little to no impact, but skeptics said they feared that teachers who might have delayed taking retirement benefits for a few years would now access them earlier. Hilbert and others replied that many Oklahoma teachers now take retirement as early as possible and move to surrounding states to continue their careers. The provisions of HB 2320, they said, might encourage some of those people to remain in-state. "If we want to keep young teachers, they need experienced teachers at the back end of their careers to give (young teachers) the advice and guidance and help that they need," said Hilbert. HB 2320 passed the House 90-6 and now goes to the Senate, where its sponsor is Majority Leader Greg McCortney, R-Ada, the second-ranked Senate Republican. Also Tuesday: The House passed legislation very similar to a Tulsa city ordinance proposed by City Councilor and mayoral candidate Jayme Fowler. HB 3071, by Rep. Neil Hays, R-Checotah, originally would have barred the use of state tax money for anything related to illegal immigrants except jailing them and removing them from the state. On Tuesday, Hays amended his bill to include exceptions for prekindergarten through high school education and for law enforcement. Rep. Arturo Alonso-Sandoval, D-Oklahoma City, a recent University of Oklahoma engineering graduate whose parents were undocumented immigrants from Mexico, pointed out that illegal immigrants do, in fact, pay taxes and contribute to the economy, but Hays said that wasn't the point. "I want to make Oklahoma the least attractive state for illegal immigrants," he said. HB 3071 passed the House 68-24, with five Republicans joining 19 Democrats in opposition. Among the day's most discussed measures was HB 3644, by Rep. Jay Steagall, R-Yukon, which would require federal law enforcement officers to notify county sheriffs before conducting warrantless raids or arrests. Skeptics said they doubted that the bill would stand up in court and said it has the potential to result in armed conflicts between federal and local officials. Steagall said the provisions would apply so narrowly that he did not foresee a problem. Although Steagall did not cite the incident, others brought up an Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms raid in southeastern Oklahoma that has received a lot of attention from gun owners. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. Melissa Jacques Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer Follow Melissa Jacques 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 OKLAHOMA CITY Gov. Kevin Stitt on Tuesday vetoed a bill that would have added exemptions to the constitutional prohibition on dual-office holding so the commissioner of agriculture and any person serving on a higher education board could also serve in the governors Cabinet. This legislation is unnecessary because the law is already clear: The Governor can choose his cabinet from among the agency directors. It was clear in 2019 when I hired Blayne Arthur as Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and it was clear in 2019 and again in 2023 when I chose her as my Secretary of Agriculture, Stitt said in a written statement. The bill by Sen. Brent Howard, R-Altus, and Rep. John Echols, R-Oklahoma City, passed both the House and Senate, with the floor votes held within three days of each other. The first vote, on March 4, came less than a week after Attorney General Gentner Drummond released his opinion on the prohibition against dual office-holding. The opinion led to the resignation of Tim Gatz from his positions as secretary of transportation and director of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority so he could remain executive director of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. In his veto message, Stitt said, While I appreciate the floor amendment authors well-meaning attempt to ensure a great public servant is spared from the potential ripple effects of an Attorney General Opinion, the Secretary of Agriculture and all other cabinet Secretaries who also serve as agency heads can maintain their posts pursuant to the law as it already is. Drummond responded in a press release by applauding the Legislature for its efforts to provide the dual office exemptions. His opinion had noted that 30 such statutory exemptions already exist. The governor could have approved these exemptions and allowed his appointees to continue serving without any uncertainty regarding their proper status, Drummond said. However, his veto makes clear that he is more interested in pursuing needless litigation than working with policymakers to solve the problem. Stitt has been joined by his Cabinet secretaries Arthur, Shelley Zumwalt and Deborah Shropshire in a lawsuit against Drummond. Zumwalt serves as secretary of Tourism, Wildlife and Heritage as well as director of the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation. Shropshire serves as secretary of human services as well as director of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. The lawsuit asks an Oklahoma County district judge to make a declaratory ruling on the validity of the attorney generals opinion. I trust a court of law will soon resolve this issue, so any confusion created by an Attorney General Opinion that disrupted decades-long precedent can be mitigated, Stitt said. No court date has been set for the governors case against Drummond. The new Tulsa World app offers personalized features. Download it today. A company in northern Vietnam has launched recruitment live streams on TikTok to address inquiries about salary, benefits, and job qualifications in real time, in an attempt to both engage the young and attract more workers. Luxshare-ICT (Vietnam) Limited, a subsidiary of Apple supplier Luxshare Precision Industry Co., situated in Van Trung Industrial Park in Bac Giang Province, considers TikTok live streams as an avenue that resonates more closely with young candidates. Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters recently attended one of Luxshare-ICTs live recruitment sessions right at its campus. In a room spanning approximately 20 square meters, the youthful members of its human resource department meticulously inspected lights, recorders, computers, and Internet connections, ensuring everything was in order before commencing their live stream. Around 7:30 pm, the live stream began, setting the stage for an engaging session. In a matter of mere minutes, queries such as 'Can I apply without prior experience?,' 'Is there a company shuttle service for employees without personal transportation?,' and 'Im not proficient in Chinese, can I still be considered for employment?' were promptly addressed by the live-stream host. As the live stream progressed, the atmosphere grew bustling, evident in the rising tally of hearts and viewership. Behind the scenes, Doan Duy Manh, a seasoned human resource officer boasting four years of tenure at Luxshare-ICT, orchestrated the proceedings alongside the rest of the crew. They maintained a hushed dialogue, fine-tuning the script, with their gaze fixated on the live feed, ready to assist the host whenever necessary. Manh shared that in preparation for this recruitment live stream, he had embarked on a two-week journey to China to acquire pertinent skills. During this time, he familiarized himself with various facets, including lighting techniques, operation of recording equipment, utilization of live broadcasting gear, and the art of delivering rapid yet articulate responses. Drawing inspiration from numerous sales live streams, Manh honed the ability to adeptly field viewers tricky inquiries, fostering a lively ambiance aimed at enticing prospective employees to engage with the companys TikTok channel. Typically, during face-to-face interviews, communication flows effortlessly, but with live streams, our interaction is confined to the screen, Manh said. Regardless of the query, I ensure a swift and accurate response. The key lies in maintaining a firm grasp of our recruitment policies and actively engaging with viewers to garner more followers and interactions. In a TikTok clip drawing tens of thousands of views, Manh capitalized on trendy phrases originated by a prominent figure on social media, eliciting enthusiasm from viewers. Subsequently, he expounded upon the application process, concluding the streamed session with a charming reminder to TikTok viewers to follow the channel. Still in early stages Do Quan, human resource director of Luxshare-ICT, revealed that for 2024, the company aims to recruit approximately 47,600 employees across its two factories in Van Trung and Quang Chau Industrial Parks in Bac Giang. In the first quarter alone, the firm anticipates hiring between 1,000 and 2,000 workers due to stable orders showing an upward trend. We acknowledge that many young people in Vietnam utilize TikTok as a platform to access information, including job opportunities, Quan said. What's more, using TikTok channels for recruitment has proven to be immensely popular and effective in China, providing candidates with prompt responses regarding job positions, salaries, benefits, and social insurance. As this initiative is still in its early stages, our live-stream team is actively learning and gaining experience. We provide support for video recording, photography, and content posting. Looking ahead, the company plans to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) to directly address viewers inquiries. High demand for workers At the onset of this month, ahead of the peak production season, not only Luxshare-ICT but many other companies in Bac Giang were also grappling with a personnel shortage. In the first quarter of 2024 alone, the northern burgeoning industrial hub urgently requires 30,000 to 35,000 workers, with a focus on electricity, electronics, and semiconductor chip fields, according to Nguyen Van Hue, director of Bac Giang Employment Service Center. To address the dearth, companies have adopted various strategies, including collaborating with vocational schools to offer jobs to new graduates and posting job listings on online platforms. In addition to those methods, certain firms have tapped into attractive offers. Marvin Yan, general director of Sunwoda Vietnam Co. Ltd., also situated in Van Trung Industrial Park, emphasized that the company specializes in producing smartphone lithium batteries and requires a significant number of highly skilled Vietnamese workers. Yan projects that Vietnamese will constitute approximately 30 percent of Sunwodas targeted workforce of 300-500 employees this year. To attract talent, Yans firm has offered various benefits aside from competitive salaries, including compensation for overtime, Lunar New Year bonuses equivalent to one to three months salary, a monthly rest-day regimen for women, and leave for childcare purposes. For workers who are not proficient in Chinese, the company provides additional support and training. Chinese engineers working on the line communicate in Chinese, with interpreter assistance, enabling workers to learn foreign languages, enhance their skills, and progress to key positions over time, Yan said. Ou Yang Yi Feng, deputy general director of Desay Battery Vina Co. Ltd., located in Song Khe - Noi Hoang Industrial Park in Bac Giang, highlighted that the company is gearing up for peak production to cater to global customers such as Apple, Huawei, and Google in May. As a result, the firm is in dire need of workers, particularly young people specializing in automation, electricity, electronics, mechanics, and machine manufacturing. The company offers various incentives to attract workers, including gas and housing allowances, as well as rewards for achievements and performance, on top of salaries and bonuses. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Around two-thirds of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) surveyed in Vietnam reported increased revenue after adopting digital payments, according to results announced by digital payment company Visa. The firm surveyed 350 SMEs, focusing mainly on micro-SMEs and those led by women in Vietnam, to assess the influence of digital payments on their revenue, business management, and societal impact from September to October 2023. The results revealed that 62 percent of women-led SMEs and micro-businesses logged increased revenue after adopting digital payments. Considering that women constitute over half of Asia's population, the Asia-Pacific economy, including the Vietnamese market, could gain an additional $89 billion annually if women were able to maximize their economic potential, Visa said in a press release on Wednesday. SMEs play a vital role in Vietnam's economic growth, constituting 96 percent of all businesses and employing 47 percent of the labor force. The study found that with the adoption of digital payments, managing businesses has become easier for 73 percent of the SMEs surveyed in Vietnam. Almost three-quarters of the respondents have adopted digital payments, while 42 percent accept card payments. The primary factors influencing these decisions include ease of management, impact on sales, and the security afforded by bank transfers. Furthermore, two-thirds of the SMEs involved in the survey collaborate with more than one payment provider. Of the businesses embracing digital payments, those accepting cards experienced the most substantial turnover increases (79 percent), in contrast to those not accepting cards (46 percent). Digital payments facilitate rapid transfers and cashless transactions, enhancing the overall commerce experience. My business has grown since I introduced digital payment methods, said Nguyen Minh Tram, CEO and founder at Sorella Beauty & Spa. I appreciate the convenience, speed, and the ability to easily track payment records. It provides my customers with a convenient cashless payment option too. I hope to expand my business beyond Vietnam so enabling cross-border payments will help me grow my customer base. The Visa Foundation has pledged $100 million over five years to accelerate access for underrepresented and women-led SMEs in APEC economies, including Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Mexico, and Peru. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Prime Minister of New Zealand Christopher Luxon announced a new NZ$6.24 million (US$3.84 million) investment to support Vietnam in developing its passionfruit project in a press release jointly issued with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh on Monday. The funding will be used to implement phase three of the Vietnam Climate Smart Fruit Value Chain (Vietfruit) project, which is a partnership between Vietnam and the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research to promote the passion fruit industry in the Southeast Asian country. Both sides had earlier reaped fruitful outcomes in their similar project on dragon fruits. The two PMs in their joint press release reaffirmed that the close friendship and strategic partnership between Vietnam and New Zealand have been increasingly intensified thanks to people-to-people exchanges and cooperation in multiple fields such as politics-diplomacy, economy-trade-investment, education, labor affairs, science, and technology. PM Luxon asserted that Vietnam remains among the most important partners of New Zealand in Southeast Asia, is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, and is the 14th-largest trade partner of New Zealand. The two government leaders discussed measures to raise bilateral trade to $3 billion by 2026. To fulfill this target, they underlined the need to beef up education and tourism cooperation, remove non-tariff barriers, organize more trade promotion events, and fully implement the existing free trade agreements. Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Vietnamese students pose for a group photo at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, March 11, 2024. Photo: Vietnam Government Portal They also endorsed a strategic cooperation plan on Vietnam-New Zealand education during the 2023-26 period. The plan is expected to enable universities of the two countries to establish cooperation. It is also intended to set up alumni networks and help Vietnam improve its education model via digital tools. The New Zealand government pledged to bolster international education and diversify its international education markets, PM Luxon said. The two cabinet leaders discussed opportunities to encourage more Vietnamese students to apply to prestigious universities in New Zealand. Hailing cooperation efforts in other fields, the two PMs agreed to host a bilateral Oceans Dialogue for the first time in 2024 on international law, maritime governance, and conservation. They believed that the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Vietnam-New Zealand diplomatic ties will allow both sides to expand cooperation in several fields of mutual concern such as green economy, climate change, digital transformation, and hi-tech agriculture. PM Chinh expressed his contentment over the positive outcomes of the Vietnam-New Zealand strategic partnerships action plan in the 2021-24 period, suggesting that both sides facilitate high-level delegation exchanges and actively implement existing cooperation mechanisms to pave the way for the elevation of their relations in the near future. During the meeting, PM Luxon accepted the invitation from his Vietnamese counterpart to make an official visit to Vietnam at a suitable time. Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh delivers a speech at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, March 11, 2024. Photo: Vietnam Government Portal In related news, PM Chinh on Monday gave a speech at Victoria University of Wellington, which hosts the largest number of Vietnamese students in New Zealand. PM Chinh remarked that Vietnam looks to elevate its strategic partnership with New Zealand to a new high through his official visit, which took place from Sunday to Monday this week. He also offered several suggestions to further develop the Vietnam-New Zealand bilateral relations. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Vietnamese officials have been organizing many local and international investment promotion programs to call on Japanese and South Korean firms to tap the local securities sector. Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc on Tuesday chaired a promotion conference in Japan, following a successful trip to South Korea to draw foreign capital to Vietnams stock market. These events were part of the Southeast Asian countrys financial investment promotion strategy in 2024. We are looking forward to seeing Japanese firms success in the Vietnamese securities industry, said Minister Phoc. Addressing the conference, the official introduced the growth of the local stock market to Japanese investors. He underscored that Vietnam is moving toward upgrading its stock market to secondary emerging from frontier. The Ministry of Finance and the State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) have been initiating various activities to deepen cooperation with foreign partners, while stepping up efforts to remove obstacles facing foreign firms who are investing in Vietnamese securities. During the conference, many Japanese investors showed their interest in the Vietnamese stock market. Vietnams securities officials are seeking to attract foreign capital. Photo: SSC SSC chairwoman Vu Thi Chan Phuong directly discussed related issues with participating Japanese firms. The leaders of the Ministry of Finance and SSC held a meeting with 300 South Korean financial institutions, banks, investment funds, and securities firms in Seoul last week. As part of the trip to South Korea, Phuong signed a memorandum of understanding with Yoo Seok Seo, president of the Korea Financial Investment Association, on cooperation in consulting and technical supporting aspects. The Vietnamese Ministry of Finance is committed to accompanying firms in the two nations to raise bilateral trade to US$150 billion in 2030, she said. South Korea is one of Vietnams biggest direct and indirect investors," Minister Phoc underlined. "Vietnam always welcomes South Korean enterprises for their new investments and business expansion. Takafumi Oue, head of Daiwa Securities Group Inc.s representative office in Vietnam, said that since 2008, the Japanese firm has been cooperating with SSI Securities Corporation to conduct several deals in the Vietnamese financial market. He unveiled that the firm would expand its operation in Vietnam in the foreseeable future. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! The Suoi Voi (Elephant Stream) tourist site project in Phu Loc District, Thua Thien-Hue Province, located in central Vietnam, has been put on hold after getting approval for construction in 2017 with a total investment of VND1.02 trillion (US$41.6 million). The seven-year delay has caused public outrage in the province. Lying at the foot of the majestic Bach Ma (White Horse) Range in Loc Tien Commune, Elephant Stream is a popular tourist attraction in the province thanks to its cool clear water and stunning natural scenery. To enhance its appeal, authorities in the province outlined the tourist area project there and sought healthy investors. In 2017, the Management Board of Thua Thien-Hue Economic and Industrial Zones granted an investment certificate to Hoa Lu - Hue Investment, Trading, and Services Limited Company to develop the Suoi Voi tourist area project at a total cost of VND1.02 trillion. The Suoi Voi tourist area project in Thua Thien-Hue Province, central Vietnam has seen a few components implemented seven years after the project was approved for investment in 2017. Photo: Nhat Linh / Tuoi Tre The project was expected to turn the place into a high-end tourist site at the foot of the White Horse Range, and offer jobs to locals, as well as foster leisure travel in Thua Thien-Hue. However, the project remains incomplete, including various unfinished components and structures. Its construction site looks abandoned. Ngo Van Phong, deputy head of the management board, stated that the project encountered challenges related to site clearance and compensation, causing delays until 2021 when it finally commenced. Besides, the COVID-19 pandemic placed a burden on the investor, resulting in the suspension of its construction. Authorities in Thua Thien-Hue Province, central Vietnam are working to urge the investor of the long-delayed Suoi Voi tourist area project to proceed with its work. Photo: Nhat Linh / Tuoi Tre The investor has completed several components including ground leveling, road construction, fencing, and a security house, amounting to nearly VND154 billion ($6.3 million) in costs. The provincial Department of Planning and Investment fined the company VND70 million ($2,860) for the delay, Phong elaborated. We have worked with Hoa Lu - Hue Company to remove certain obstacles and urged it to restart work on the project, he noted. If the investor continues to postpone the work, the province will take back the project." Nguyen Thanh Binh, vice-chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee, said that the Suoi Voi tourist area project was listed as long-stalled. The project has sparked uproar among locals, he said. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Catch up on the news in Vietnam today: Society -- The elevated section of the Nhon-Hanoi Station metro line, the second of its kind in Hanoi, embarked on a test run on Monday before its commercial operations set in July, the Hanoi Metropolitan Railway Management Board (MRB), the investor of the project, said on Tuesday. The trial run will last until April 26. -- Border guards in Tay Ninh Province, southern Vietnam on Tuesday took home 15 Vietnamese forced laborers, aged between 18 and 30, from Cambodia. -- The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health has proposed the municipal Peoples Committee build a hospital for traumatology with 1,000 beds in the outlying district of Binh Chanh to replace the current Hospital for Traumatology and Orthopedics in District 5. The existing hospital is facing overcrowding and has deteriorated. -- The Da Nang City Peoples Committee has imposed an administrative fine of VND170 million ($6,930) on a general clinic in Cam Le District for its environmental protection violations. -- Suoi Voi (Elephant Stream) tourist area project in Phu Loc District under Thua Thien-Hue Province, located in central Vietnam, has been put on hold after getting approval for construction in 2017 with a total investment of VND1.02 trillion (US$41.6 million). Business -- Vietnamese officials have been organizing multiple local and international investment promotion programs to call on Japanese and South Korean firms to tap the Vietnamese securities sector. -- National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines will begin its non-stop services from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Munich, one of the largest cities in Germany, from October this year, reported the Vietnam News Agency. -- Vietnam exported $970 million worth of vegetables and fruits between January and February, surging over 70 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Hospitality service providers, specifically restaurants and hotels, in Japan, Germany, and France have a high demand for migrant laborers, including Vietnamese. Vietnamese laborers working in restaurants and hotels in these countries can get a monthly salary of VND40-80 million (US$1,632-3,264) each. At a seminar held by Saigontourist Hospitality College in Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday, Nguyen Hong Ngoc Lam, who in charge of Germanys Hand in Hand for International Talents project, said that the project offers opportunities to young Vietnamese people. The project provides information on working opportunities for skilled workers from Vietnam who want to live and work in Germany on a long-term basis. They do need to have intermediate degrees to work in Germany, Lam added. Under the project, sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action, Vietnamese workers with expertise in hospitality and cuisine will receive financial support for visa applications and German language learning expenses. They just need to pay airfares for their flights to the European country. Upon arrival in Germany, Vietnamese laborers will work for enterprises participating in the project and receive salaries equivalent to those of German workers. Currently, salaries range from 2,600 to 2,800 euros ($2,840-3,059) per month for kitchen staff in restaurants and from 2,300 to 2,500 euros ($2,513-2,731) for positions in hotels. Foreign laborers can apply for permanent settlement permits after three years of working and German citizenship after five years, Lam informed. Germany is facing a shortage of laborers in many sectors. The country needs 400,000 migrant workers per year. Migrant workers at a restaurant in Germany. Photo: DW Meanwhile, Le Minh Thuy, deputy director of Ho Chi Minh City-based Haio Education, which specializes in training and sending laborers to work overseas, said the company receives monthly orders from Japanese restaurants and hotels. The contracts between Vietnamese applicants and Japanese enterprises are often valid for five years and can be extended. Foreign laborers can apply for permanent residency and enjoy a salary of VND38-42 million ($1,550-1,713) a month. They need to hold intermediate degrees, Thuy added. The French market has also shown a high demand for Vietnamese laborers working in restaurants and hotels. Thuy said an Italian restaurant chain in France contacted her company to ask for laborers last week. The chain offered a salary of 1,800-2,000 euros ($1,967-2,185) per month, exclusive of bonuses. However, France regulates that foreign laborers have to return to their homeland when the contracts expire and applicants have to make deposits to ensure that they will not illegally stay there. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Unlike K-12 schools, everyday is a free dress day for students of most universities and junior colleges in Ho Chi Minh City, but this rule does not seem as great as it is made out to be in the face of students who take underdressing to a new level. Thuc Quynh, a 19-year-old college student in Thu Duc City under the jurisdiction of Ho Chi Minh City, said that students jump at the chance to make themselves stand out from their peers since her school has no dress code. Many female students, including Quynh, would often change up their looks with miniskirts, or shorts that end above the knee. Some students have even taken to wearing crop tops or tank tops with low-rise jeans in order to show off their waist and hips. Going to the other side of the spectrum, however, some students cite the lack of a dress code as grounds to be underdressed. According to Quynh, pajamas are not a rare sight on campus, when asked for a reason these students simply claimed they have no time to get ready in the morning. Quynh herself admitted that she once went to school dressed in only yoga apparel with a jacket hastily thrown over it. In her opinion, wearing various kinds of clothing is a way for students to accommodate their active lifestyle as well as a form of self-expression. Ha Mi, also 19 years old, currently pursuing tertiary education in Binh Thanh District of Ho Chi Minh City, shared that she enjoys wearing dresses to school not for their beauty, but because they are comfortable and convenient. Her university often resembles a fashion show, with many students out and about on campus dressed to the nines, Mi remarked. I find that a diverse clothing culture on campus is preferable to everyone being forced to wear the exact same thing, she opined. My friend from another university has also expressed her wish for a more casual dress code. Students nowadays should not have to listen to pointless drivel telling us to wear this or that. Everyone has the right to dress the way they like, as long as it is not too sloppy or titillating. A woman wears a strapless crop top and a micro skirt at the workplace in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre I was someone who studied and now I am pursuing a career in media, said Hanh Nhu, 23 years old and working in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City. In my field of work, my superior rarely dictates my choice of clothing. As I see it, it is normal for students in the media major or other creative fields like me to dress freely. Clothing cannot decide who you are as a person. However, Nhu still advised young people like her to be careful not to wear overly revealing clothing, as it can cause unwanted misunderstandings. The flip side of 'no dress code' In Vy Nguyens opinion, students wearing pajamas to school make for an appalling sight, but not as much as this one girl whom she once saw wearing a low-rise tank top to the classroom. Anyone can dress up to make them seem more attractive, but it is more of a delicate matter with girls, Vy said. Despite what everyone may think, the university campus is still a public space and not the runway. We should dress beautifully but also sensibly. By the account of L.H., who resides in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, while he and other boys used to ogle girls wearing miniskirts and sheer shirts at school, he would not like his girlfriend to dress this way. Sporty and comfortable clothing is great but taken too far, these kinds of clothes can become an eyesore. He once witnessed a girl who wore too short clothes to school, which resulted in her having to cover herself up with a jacket the entire time. The awkward situation not only distracted her from her studies, but others around her as well. In my opinion, when picking appropriate apparel for the academic environment, students should aim for neat and not too revealing, L.H. said I do not mean only for girls either. I have seen male students coming to school sporting bed heads, shorts, and flip flops, looking like they are ready for a day at the beach. Universities and junior colleges welcome individuality and self-expression as long as we do not make fools of ourselves. The nail that sticks out always gets hammered down. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A free-ranging dog with probable rabies consecutively bit seven people in Phu Yen Province, south-central Vietnam before locals beat it to death early this week, a health official confirmed on Tuesday. The dog, whose owner remains unknown, attacked the victims in Xuan Thanh Ward of Song Cau Town at around 5:00 pm on Monday, said Chau Trong Phat, director of the Phu Yen Center for Disease Control. These victims include five aged between four and 17, according to the Song Cau Medical Center. Local health agencies encouraged the victims to visit the nearest healthcare facilities to get medical care and undergo an epidemiological investigation. The Xuan Thanh administration told its subordinate units to find the owner of the suspected rabid dog, which was already fatally battered and had its carcass destroyed by local residents following its attack on the victims. However, it is hard to search for the dog owner as they may deny owning an animal with suspected rabies, a local official said. Nguyen Van Lam, head of the provincial animal health sub-department, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that local authorities need to ramp up efforts to encourage residents to vaccinate their pets against rabies. Those failing to comply with rabies vaccination requirements should be punished, Lam said. He recommended dog and cat owners to keep their animals muzzled. If they found their animals are rabid, they should report it to animal health authorities or cull the sick animals, he continued. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Authorities Ca Mau Province, the southern tip of Vietnam, have levied a US$37,000 fine on a local fisher who committed an illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing act in Thai waters, about a month before a European Committee (EC) team expectedly arrives in Vietnam for its fifth IUU inspection. The boat owner, T.L.V., was fined VND917.5 million ($37,400) for encroaching into the waters of Thailand for illegal fishing and for using a vessel less than 15 meters in length in high seas, the Ca Mau administration announced on Tuesday. On November 30, 2023, when V.s fishing boat CM 06051-TS was operating in the Ca Mau waters, he assigned another fisherman on board to act as the vessels captain and he then left his boat to go ashore. A fortnight later, the captain phoned V. reporting the disappointing fishing outcomes and requesting permission to engage in illegal fishing within Thai waters, which was granted by the boat owner. The vessel was subsequently inspected and seized during a joint patrol operation conducted by a unit of Vietnams Naval Region 2 and its counterpart from the Royal Thai Navy. The Thai naval unit detained the vessel and its crew of six including the captain pending a trial in Thailand for violating the IUU fishing act. V. admitted to Vietnamese investigators in Ca Mau that he had managed all activities of the fishing boat and had directed the vessel to go to Thai waters for Illicit fishing. V. also breached a Vietnamese regulation that bans fishing boats with a length of less than 15 meters from operating in high seas. The sanction on V. came about a month before an EC team expectedly arrives in Vietnam in April for the fifth IUU inspection since the EC imposed an IUU fishing yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood in 2017. The EC has sent its teams to Vietnam four times since that year for inspections, with the latest taking place in October 2023. But the warning has yet to be removed due to limitations of some localities in compliance with relevant EC requirements. In a related development, the Peoples Court of southern Kien Giang Province in late January gave jail terms ranging from one to eight years in prison to four fishermen for unlawfully leaving the country to engage in IUU fishing activities in Malaysian waters. On February 5, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang directed relevant agencies and authorities in coastal regions to implement more rigorous measures against IUU fishing so that the seven-year yellow card can be lifted following the fifth inspection. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Jisoo, a member of K-pop girl band BlackPink, has donated all the proceeds from her YouTube channel to Save the Children to fund a mangrove forest creation project in Ca Mau Province, southern Vietnam, according to South Korean media. Founded in the UK in 1919, Save the Children, an international, non-governmental organization, aims to help improve the lives of children worldwide. Jisoos YouTube channel is followed by nearly five million people. In January last year, she created a YouTube channel named Happiness Jisoo 103%. The launch of the channel was aimed at donating the entire gains from there to charity. I hope my donations will be transferred to places in need, and happiness among people will increase, she said. One year after its launch, Jisoo accomplished her goal to make a donation to charity. The channel Happiness Jisoo 103% is expected to continue to help her do good deeds. Jisoo announced the establishment of her own label named Blissoo in February to direct her career and manage her individual activities. She is focusing on her independent career path by building her own label and joining some films. As of the end of 2023, Jisoo had confirmed her participation in two films. Jisoo, whose real name is Kim Ji Soo, was born on January 3, 1995. Apart from being a member of the renowned K-pop girl group, Jisoo is also a soloist, actress, and emcee. BlackPink held a two-night concert at My Dinh National Stadium in Nam Tu Liem District, Hanoi in July last year, as part of the girl groups worldwide tour entitled Born Pink World Tour.' Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! An American, estranged from his father, travels to remote Australia in the hope of reuniting, but lands in a small-town mystery. Thursday on Stan. Apples Never Fall Foreign Correspondent Little Wing The Girls on the Bus The Amazing Race When Andy (Ben Feldman) travels to remote Western Australia in search of his father he gets a little more than he bargained for. For starters he encounters some of finest comedy character actors Stan has cast as small-town crackpots. The local police cop (Katrina Milosevic) is determined to flirt and coerce with this out-of-towner in the series opening sequence on a red dirt road. But it is the empty, rundown town of Bidgeegud where Andy will find himself in the middle of a Twilight-Zone-meets-Wake-in-Fright comedy. Its fraying community is a cornucopia of eccentrics and dropkicks. Everyone here is from somewhere else.. they all come here to runaway Cedric (William Zappa). Andy is searching for his estranged Australian father Hugo (Darren Gilshenan) who has seemingly vanished whilst conducting local UFO tourist tours. As he tries to piece together a jigsaw mystery he encounters Bidgeeguds very Aussie oddballs. They include Genevieve Lemon as a local garage and accommodation manager, Emily Taheny as a bakery / Asian fusion restaurateur, Stephen Curry as a local hoping to claim his own principality, Rick Donald as a dateless bogan, plus Steve Le Marquand, Fiona Choi, Chai Hansen, Tony Briggs, Pippa Grandison and more. But there are also mysterious phone calls back to the USA which hint at at Andys own secretive backstory Aiding his search on the ground is local traveller Cassie (Perry Mooney) enroute to moving back home with her mother. Instead she connects with Andy in a push-pull comedy of errors. With Ben Feldman (Mad Men, Anne Rices Mayfair Witches, Superstore, Silicon Valley) in the lead, its hard not to see this as being pitched at American viewers, where everything is out to kill foreigners. Andy is the sympathetic fish-out-of-water in the middle of kooky redneck Australia, something explored as recently as the tense thriller The Royal Hotel. Writer Phil Lloyd charts a much lighter mystery than that, and there are touches of Upright, Welcome to Woop Woop and The Tourist therein. There are some quirky moments to be had such as Emily Taheny baking pies to the sounds of Leo Sayer, Stephen Currys smart-arse ribbing of an American accent, and anything involving Genevieve Lemon and Katrina Milosevic. Feldman balances the sincere straight man deftly against the wilder locals, yet if the chemistry with Perry Mooney feels at time forced, at least it propels the plot forward to its next encounter with the talented supporting cast. And at just thirty minutes per episode, Population 11 is never too demanding, just as well given there are 12 episodes in total. Stan this week unveiled a raft of local drama commissions upstaging the competition, and most Free to Air networks. Population 11 is another notch in its ample drama belt. Population 11 screens Thursday March 14 on Stan. Powerhouse female creatives will appear together at a Screen Forever session next week on the Gold Coast. From Front of Screen to Behind the Scenes, presented by ABC, discusses the transition from acting to producing. Moderator Virginia Trioli (Presenter, ABC) will be joined on stage by Lisa McCune (Producer, Broadstory), Marta Dusseldorp (CEO, Archipelago Productions), Nina Oyama (Comedian & Writer), and Leah Purcell (Creative Director, Oombarra Productions). They will discuss how their combined creative and business experience brings a new level of understanding to narrative, story, and craft. ABC will also present The Butterfly Effect with a panel of industry leaders from the UK, Ireland and Australia discussing how Australia is we perceived on the world stage. Journalist and Documentary filmmaker, Marc Fennell moderates a panel with Roberta Allan (Head of Programming, Acquisitions and Streaming, ABC), Mary Callery (Head of International / Executive Producer, ShinAwiL), Kathryn Fink (Director of Television, SBS), Phil Hunt (CEO, Head Gear Films), Catherine Nebauer (Head of Scripted & Kids, Northern Pictures), Benjamin Law (Writer & Broadcaster), and Adrian Swift (Head of Content Production and Development, Nine Network). Screen Forever will take place next week March 19 21 on the Gold Coast. Scottish drama series Shetland has been renewed for two new series. The crime series, originally based on award-winning novels by crime writer Ann Cleeves, films in locations on the Shetland Isles and across Scotland. Ashley Jensen, who joined from Season 8, reprises her role as Detective Ruth Calder alongside Alison ODonnell as Det. Alison Tosh McIntosh. S9 will also see the return of series regulars Steven Robertson (Sandy), Lewis Howden (Billy) and Anne Kidd (Cora). Ashley Jensen says: Im thrilled Ill be returning to the Shetland Isles again to play the wonderfully complex DI Ruth Calder. The reaction to the last series was incredible and Im excited at the prospect of unravelling more intrigue. The Shetland Isles are breath-taking without a doubt one of the most memorable and unique filming locations Ive been to. Im looking forward to jumping on that wee plane again and returning soon. Alison ODonnell said, I could not be happier that Shetland is returning for two more series and am so excited to get started. Im really proud of the journey this show has been on and of the way it continues to evolve and grow in exciting and surprising ways. That we have managed to grow such a loyal and supportive viewership is a dream come true. Ashley and I just scratched the surface of our dynamic in Series 8 and I am delighted that we now have the opportunity to build on that. I cant wait to see what Paul and the team have in store for us next. Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama says: Its a joy to bring Shetland back for not one, but two new series, further strengthening the BBCs commitment to this hugely successful Scottish drama thats loved by fans across the UK and around the world. Ashley and Alisons partnership has taken Shetland from strength to strength and into new exciting territory, which combined with Paul Logues captivating scripts will mean theres plenty more in store as we head back to the Isles. Shetland screens in Australian on BBC First and ABC. FILE PHOTO: Chery cars are on display for sale in Vladivostok FILE PHOTO: Chery cars are on display for sale in Vladivostok By Giulio Piovaccari and Giuseppe Fonte MILAN (Reuters) - The Italian government is holding talks with China's Chery Auto as part of efforts to attract another major automaker to the country in addition to Stellantis and increase national car production, two sources told Reuters. Rome wants to raise Italy's national car production to 1.3 million vehicles a year from below 800,000 in 2023 and is already in discussion with Stellantis - the country's sole major automaker - to increase the group's output to one million units annually by the end of this decade, a total it last hit in 2017. Industry Minister Adolfo Urso has said Italy wants a second manufacturer to add around 300,000 vehicles to national output. ADVERTISEMENT Should the talks succeed, Chery would be among the first Chinese automakers with a European manufacturing presence, intensifying competition with local legacy manufacturers, especially in the electric vehicle (EV) segment. Urso said last month Italy held talks with Tesla and with three undisclosed Chinese carmakers, whose representatives visited Italy last year to assess potential investment opportunities. One of the two sources said Chery was for now the option Rome was "betting on most". A spokesperson for Italy's Industry Ministry declined to comment. Chery Europe Managing Director Jochen Tueting told Reuters the Chinese automaker expects sales in Europe to be high enough to support a local assembly plant. "We are exploring different possibilities across Europe to look for a potential setup of local manufacturing for the future," Tueting said. "We're having discussions in several locations across Europe right now," he added, but said non-disclosure agreements prevented him commenting on specific locations. The sources, one from industry and one from the government, declined to be identified because the talks are confidential. The industry source said Chery was considering either refurbishing an existing plant or building a new one in Italy, but was also assessing other options in Europe, including a former Nissan plant in Barcelona. Story continues The government source said that Great Wall Motor was also among the Chinese automakers which were in touch with Rome and visited Italy. Great Wall Motor did not respond to a request for comment. PRICE WARS AND HIGH TENSION The automakers in touch with Italy have also included Chinese EV giant BYD. But BYD, which at the end of last year overtook Tesla as the world's biggest EV company by sales, said in December it would build its first European plant in Hungary. It has not said whether it has plans for a second facility in Europe. Apart from the aggressive price war shaking the EV sector, trade tensions are running high between China and the European Union, which is investigating whether Chinese EV makers benefit from unfair government subsidies. Establishing manufacturing capacity in Italy or Spain, where EV sales are low compared to other countries, would fit Chery's strategy of selling a mix of internal-combustion engine, hybrid and fully-electric cars, the industry source added. The company is launching its Omoda and Jaecoo brands in all major European markets. By the end of 2025, Chery plans three SUV models for each brand with a mixture of fuel types to serve different parts of Europe. EV sales are higher in northern Europe than in southern markets. (Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan, Giuseppe Fonte in Rome, Nick Carey in London; writing by Giulio Piovaccari; editing by Barbara Lewis) Millionaire Javanshir Feyziyev (Handout) There is compelling evidence that a 50million London property empire was bought by an Azeri tycoon with the proceeds of crime, a High Court judge has found. Mr Justice Poole ruled that there was also a good arguable case that millionaire Javanshir Feyziyev was involved in fraud and money laundering to purchase 22 homes in the capital. They include two properties at Whistler Square in the Chelsea Barracks development in Belgravia, worth 18.4million and 8.1million respectively, and another that cost 4million at Cumberland Terrace overlooking Regents Park. A court order had barred publication of the location of the latter address, but the restriction was lifted after an application by the Standard based on the public interest in knowing that prime London property had been bought with the alleged proceeds of crime. The judges findings came in a ruling on an attempt by Mr Feyziyev and his wife Parvana, who jointly owns most of the homes being targeted, to lift freezing orders obtained by the National Crime Agency to stop them selling the properties. The couples lawyers, who denied any wrongdoing by the pair, said the restrictions should be removed because the London properties had been bought using the substantial fortune generated legitimately by Mr Feyziyev from his tobacco, pharmaceutical and hotel businesses among others. They also argued that restrictions were unnecessary and obtained on the basis of flawed evidence. But in his judgment, Mr Justice Poole rejected the bid, saying that there was a real risk of dissipation if the freezing orders were lifted and solid evidence that the properties had been bought with criminal profits. He said that although the court was not making a finding of any specific criminal offence against the Feyziyevs and there were no criminal proceedings against the couple, there was a good arguable case that their London properties had been bought with the proceeds of unlawful conduct. Story continues There is sufficient evidence at this stage to link him [Mr Feyziyev] to Avromed Seychelles, and to what appear to be money laundering operations that involved that company and the ABLV bank in Latvia, Mr Justice Pooles judgement states. The movements of tainted money were rapid and substantial and came into his accounts before being used to acquire the .. properties. The tracing evidence provided by the NCA is compelling. The judge continued: There is a good arguable case that the property freezing order properties are or include recoverable property, that the first respondents [Mr Feyziyevs] involvement in unlawful money laundering allowed the respondents [the Feyziyevs] to acquire the properties, and that, if a property freezing order, were not made, the respondents [the Feyziyevs] would be able to deal with the properties so as to put them out of reach of the NCA... The risk of dissipation is real. Even if the London properties could not swiftly be sold on the open market, they could be swiftly put out of reach of civil recovery by other means. In his new ruling, Mr Justice Poole also highlighted a previous court judgment by his colleague, Mrs Justice Heather Williams, which accepted the NCAs case that [Mr Feyziyev] had been involved in dishonest conduct and which included evidence that he had moved his remaining UK assets to an account in Turkey and sent rental income from London properties to an Azeri bank account following earlier account forfeiture proceedings against his wife, son Orkhan, and nephew Elman Javanshir. An investigation was carried out by the National Crime Agency (Alamy/PA) (PA Archive) Those proceedings, brought at Westminster Magistrates Court by the NCA, led to 5.6million being forfeited from the trios bank accounts on the grounds that the money was the likely proceeds of crime moved into the UK via a complex money laundering scheme known as the Azerbaijan laundromat involving shell companies and fake transactions. The court heard then that Mr Feyziyev, who was not a party to those proceedings, was the source of the funds being targeted in the case. The new judgment from Mr Justice Poole follows an earlier High Court hearing at which the NCAs barrister Andrew Sutcliffe alleged that the Feyziveys London property empire, which he said was worth around 50million, had been bought via an extraordinarily complex money laundering operation involving payments for nutritious baby food and fake and fictious invoices. Mr Sutcliffe said the funds used to buy the properties had been channelled into Britain via a huge network of shell companies in countries ranging from the Marshall Islands, the Seychelles and the British Virgin Islands to Russia and Hong Kong, and involved false accounting, as well as the deception of banks in Estonia and Latvia, and corruption and fraud in Azerbaijan. In addition to the two homes at Whistler Square in Chelsea Barracks, which were bought by Mr Feyziyev alone, and the Cumberland Terrace property purchased in 2008, the court freezing order covers 19 properties acquired by the couple in the Beaufort Square development in Colindale. Court documents state that all the properties are held in a trust set up by the London law firm Withers and that the freezing order also covers a bank account in Liechtenstein and rental income from the Feyziyevs London property empire. The freezing order will now remain in place while the NCA decides whether to bring civil recovery proceedings to try to seize the properties permanently. Daniel Kelly (Image: SNS) Celtic are closing in on a new contract for youngster Daniel Kelly, according to a report. The teenager has made his breakthrough into the first team at the champions this season but is out of contract come the summer. The Daily Record reports that an extension to his deal has been offered by club chiefs. Celtic want the 18-year-old on a long-term contract and are believed to be confident of securing his services for the foreseeable future. The midfielder was brought into Brendan Rodgers' team since the turn of the year. He scored his first goal for the club in the 7-1 hammering of Dundee a fortnight ago. He's been a regular with the B team and Under-18s side before he was drafted into the first-team fold. Both Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig have been credited with an interest in the player, but it's said Kelly is keen to stay put in Glasgow. As well as Kelly, Celtic remain in talks with both Liam Scales and Rocco Vata. There are deals on the table for the duo, but it's believed an agreement is not close at this stage with talks ongoing. READ MORE: Luis Palma expected for international duty despite Celtic injury setback Meanwhile, Honduras FA chief Gerardo Ramos has confirmed they will insist crocked Celtic star Luis Palma goes on international duty despite his latest injury setback. The 4 million winger picked up a knock that kept him out of their 4-2 Scottish Cup quarter final win against Livingston at the weekend and is reportedly a huge doubt for their weekend game with St Johnstone. But Honduras are desperate to call on their star man for their one-off Copa America play-off against Costa Rica in Texas, USA. And Honduran FA general manager Ramos has confirmed Palma will definitely travel. The Independent Watch a view of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on Saturday 30 March. Cranes have started to arrive in the area to help clear the wreckage of the collapsed structure an essential step before recovery efforts to find the missing construction workers continue, officials say. One of the cranes, the Chesapeake 1000, is capable of lifting 1,000 tonnes but the bridge is estimated to weigh around three or four times that, so it will need to be cut into sections, Maryland governor Wes Moore said. Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated SI Swimsuit model Brooks Nader has posed for the brand five years in a row, and each year, just when we think the Baton Rouge native cant blow us away any more than she already has, she does it again. The 27-year-old, who is the oldest of four sisters, watched her biggest dreams come true when she landed on the cover of last years SI Swimsuit Issue, following her photo shoot with James Macari in the Dominican Republic. The DIBS Beauty investor, who was discovered through the Swim Search, has returned to the fold each year since. Shes traveled to exciting locations with the brand, including the Bahamas, Bali, Hollywood, Fla., and Montenegro. The open casting call alumna has been open about her experience in the industry and all of the hard work she has put in from the very start. Ive dealt with rejection a million times over and I know I will again in my life forever. I feel like empowerment to me is just dealing with the rejection, moving on, [and] keeping a positive attitude about it, Nader candidly explained about her modeling career. And then its so much more worth it and empowering when you get the final yes. The New York City resident often gushes about her family, whom she is really close to, and how she couldnt have done it without them. Having a good circle around yougood people and good friends and a support systemthe people that have been with you from day one that just feel like its such a big win for everyone, she shared of how important and special her cover girl moment was for everyone in her close-knit circle. That humbles you beyond, because youre like, this is more than me. Below are six phenomenal photos from Naders 2021 SI Swimsuit photo shoot with photographer Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Swimsuit by Gabriela Pires Beachwear. Earrings by Electric Picks. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Swimsuit by Christopher Esber. Bracelet by Cartier. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Swimsuit by Yandy. Earrings by Electric Picks. Bracelets by Cartier. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Swimsuit by Sports Illustrated Swim. Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated Brooks Nader was photographed by Ben Watts in Hollywood, Fla. Swimsuit by Missoni. Qatar-based label 1309 Studios just dropped its Ramadan Spring/Summer 2024 collection campaign, telling a tale of sisterhood and the divine feminine. Dubbed "Sundance," the collection draws inspiration from the strength of sisterly bonds, embodying the essence of femininity that can't be contained. Sisters Huda and Helena Shahin star in the campaign, displaying their unbreakable bond and "beautiful wild souls." Pieces within the collection take influence from the relationship between light and shadow, utilizing soft, draping fabrics like matte silk, paired with complex materials like sequin ombre and velvet. Influenced by '90s and early 2000s fashion, the collection features floaty silhouettes designed for the "wild woman who refuses to be confined by societal norms." Celebrating the power of unity and resilience, the picturesque campaign features soft hues of pink, peach and Take a closer look at the "Sundance" campaign above, and head to the 1309 studios website to shop the collection. In related news, MCM launched its Ramadan collection earlier this week. In a way, Saul Bass Phase IV was the full realization of Bass filmmaking talents. He worked as a graphic designer and designed many different title cards for various famous films, incorporating live-action, stop-motion, and other animation techniques to deliver some of the best art ever seen in cinema, period. Many people even heaped praise on Bass work when the rest of the film wasnt up to par, even going as far as to say that Bass title sequence was a better narrative delivery system than the rest of the film. That kind of praise wasnt unwarranted, but it definitely spoke to what audiences truly wanted, a feature-length project helmed by Saul Bass. After an eclipse-like solar event, scientists start to observe major behavioral changes in ants. The ants undergo rapid evolution, develop a hive mind and build several strange structures in the middle of the Arizona desert. Scientists James R. Lesko (Michael Murphy) and Dr. Ernest D. Hubbs (Nigel Davenport) are on the case and they have a computerized lab at their disposal to fight against the ants, but what happens when the ant colony becomes more and more resistant to the labs chemical weapons? To this particular writer, Phase IV is every bit the sci-fi potboiler that critics derided it for not being upon initial release. Both James and Dr. Hubbs have different methods of dealing with the ants, and that speaks directly to the kind of engagement with the unknown that they exhibit. To James, his hardened exterior softens and he becomes fascinated by the ants, only wishing to communicate with them rather than destroy. Its in the journey of understanding that mankind can evolve from. But to Dr. Hubbs, they must be destroyed with the power of science to prevent possible annihilation. The way their arcs play against actual footage of ants forming a colony and hive-mind is nothing short of astonishing. Bass famously spent months in post-production trying to make the story blunter to the viewer, but its the mastery of editing and movement within the frames that tells the story that Bass wanted initially. The abstract finds a welcome home in the sci-fi genre, and Saul Bass belongs with peers like Stanley Kubrick and Douglas Trumbull as an artist who unlocks true imagination through the abstract. Thats part of why the excision of Bass original montage ending of Phase IV strikes so hard in history. Bass was constantly negotiating with Paramount executives and production partner Kaiser Aluminum to make the film more direct, even being bullied into removing the ending montage completely. Thats why test screenings originally found people completely befuddled by what they watched. The montage is among the most powerful works of sci-fi imagination to come out of Hollywood. Adding a narration to the montage didnt help, either, and only created more turmoil during editing. Youll find that Phase IV gracefully sidesteps its exploitative cover art of a hand with an open sore with an ant crawling out of it. Bass interest was to present the dichotomous relationship between human individuality and the power of community. The ants are as much a crucial part of the story as the humans, in that their behaviors are closely observed and augmented with Bass natural proclivity for in-camera effects and opticals. Vital Disc Stats: The Blu-rays The world isnt ready for Phase IV, presented here by Vinegar Syndrome with a three-disc set. A BD-66 for the 4K, BD-25 for the Blu-ray feature of the Theatrical Version, and a BD-50 for the Blu-ray feature of the Preview Version and accompanying supplements. The discs come housed in a standard Elite amaray case with reversible sleeve artwork. Also, inside is a small booklet with storyboards from Phase IV, plus the case is then housed in a limited-edition slipcover that then slides into a hard slipcase with an accompanying 40-page, perfect-bound essay book. Welcome Guest! You are here: Home India Watch: In Malegaon, Rahul Gandhi invites New Era Schoolgirls for live Karate demo Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was in Malegaon leading the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra Wednesday March 13, 2024, invited the New Era School girl students for a live Karate demonstration. Read More Wednesday March 13, 2024 11:24 PM , Zohair M Safwan, ummid.com [Rahul Gandhi in a live Karate Sssion with the girl students of New Era English Medium School in Malegaon (Photo: ummid.com)] Malegaon: Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was in Malegaon leading the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra Wednesday March 13, 2024, invited the New Era School girl students for a live Karate demonstration. Aboard an open jeep, Rahul Gandhi was addressing the cheering crowd of Malegaon that waited for hours in the sizzling heat despite observing Ramadan fast. Suddenly, the girl students of the New Era English Medium School shouted, Rahul Ji Hamari Taraf, Rahul Ji Hamari Taraf (Rahul sir, attention please). The repeated yells of the girls in Karate robes and headscarves caught Rahuls attention. He stopped his speech mid-way, looked at the girls and said, Oh, Karate khelte ho? and asked his security staff to bring them closer to his jeep. After completing his speech, Rahul Gandhi invited 03 girl students, including 8-yr-old Yashfeen Shaban Shah of Zainab English Medium School, on the bonnet of the open jeep and asked them to give him punches and kicks. Rahul Gandhi, who is known to have an inclination towards combat sports, is himself trained in Aikido, a modern Japanese Martial Art form. Impressed with the enthusiastic demonstration of martial art skills by the girl students, Rahul gave them chocolates to show his appreciation. Watch Video Rahul promises to revive Textile Schemes Earlier, Rahul Gandhi arrived in the Muslim dominated City known for Textile and Power loom Industry, one hour behind the announced schedule. The delay led to cancellation of some of the appointments, including meeting with the community and local political leaders. Nonetheless, Rahul Gandhi delivered a fiery speech that was received by frequent cheers and applauds. Rahul started his address extending Ramadan greetings , a move seen as an attempt to give Muslim tone to his 66-day Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra which started from Manipur and henceforth missed direct reference to Muslims or Muslim customs. Ramadan Mubarak, Rahul Gandhi said as the Malegaonians, majority of them youngsters, responded with a huge round of applause. After extending Ramadan greetings, Rahul quickly turned to the problems faced by the textiles and powerlooms - another issues close to the heart of the local people. The local textile industry is dying because of the Narendra Modi governments anti-poor policies. The government is devising all its policies to help few of its corporate friends, he said. The government imposed GST and announced demonization which resulted in the collapse of the Textile Industry, and other small and medium groups, he said. Your livelihood is being targeted so as to make these corporate honchos flourish, Rahul Gandhi said. Let our government come to power again, we will re-start all subsidies and support measures for the Textile Industry that were started by our government but Modi stopped them to help his friend Adani, Rahul said as the crowd went berserk. The weavers are also suffering because of the skyrocketing Electricity Tariff. Our government will put a stop on this and ensure subsidized power supply, he said. The Ramadan greeting and weavers' related issues also gave some peace to the critics who accused the Congress and Rahul of ignoring the Muslims in his speeches. '1 lakh to women' Rahul Gandhi also reiterated the Congress commitment to transfer 1 lakh rupees in the accounts of the women of the country. In his signature style, Rahul called a small girl aboard his open jeep, gave her the microphone and asked her to repeat with him. If Modi can give crores of rupees to his corporate friends. If Modi can waive off crores of rupees taken by his friends in loans. We can of course also help women folk of the country with a fund of 1 lakh rupees which will be transferred to their accounts directly, Rahul said and the local girl repeated with him. Before reiterating the promise he had made in Dhule few hours ago, Rahul said he saw a very few women coming here. The crowd however asked him to look above where hundreds of women were standing on each floors of the multi-storey Apna Shopping Market of the busy Old Agra Road. A huge number of people were also standing on the two sides of the Old Agra Road who greeted Rahul Gandhi's speech with frequent cheers. No one can change constitution In his speech at Malegaon , Rahul Gandhi accused the Modi government of trying to change the constitution. You must have hear one of the BJP MP vowing to change the Constitution. It is the BJP style. It asks someone to raise the controversial issues and then see the reaction", Rahul said. "But I am telling you today. Who is Narendra Modi, no power in the world can change the Constitution of India, he added. During his speech, Rahul also spoke about the rampant unemployment, government jobs, Agniveer Yojna and Agnipath Scheme , Electronic Voting Machine (EVM), the recent resignation of Election Commissioner Arun Goel and othe policy matters. Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to camp near Umrana Village - some 15 kms from Malegaon for the night. From here he will move to onion hub Pimpalgaon then to Nashik and finally to Mumbai where the yatra will come to end. Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. HA NOI Viet Nam needs a legal corridor to clearly define development for key industries in the process of industrialisation, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT). The current legal system does not have specific regulations on identifying key industries as well as specific policies to promote the development of these industries. It also lacks of specific regulations on improving competitiveness for key industries. In addition, the existing laws do not have specific regulations on mechanisms to coordinate policies in a roadmap towards sustainable development in industrial production, especially key industrial sectors that are suitable to the needs of the economy, the trend of developing circular economic models, green growth and sustainable production. According to the ministry, market support solutions have not been paid due attention in the process of developing industrial policies; as well as mechanisms and policies for application, transfer, improvement and innovation of production technology in industrial sectors. The competitiveness of enterprises - especially enterprises in key industries - is still very limited. Meanwhile, labour and management qualifications in domestic enterprises are still limited, leading to low labour productivity in industrial sectors, greatly affecting competitiveness. Another limitation is the business environment. According to MoIT, this has been improved recently, but there are still many shortcomings, affecting the stability in the development of key industries that require stable policies, and long-term development strategies. The export growth of the industrial sector still depends on FDI enterprises. In the first two months this year, the export value for processing industry's products reached US$52.45 billion, accounting for 88.4 per cent of the country's export turnover. However, the foreign investment sector accounted for a significant 72.8 per cent of more than $59 billion in total export turnover in the first two months. In contrast, the domestic economic sector held only 27.2 per cent of that amount. Experts have pointed out that said the manufacturing industries in Viet Nam are primarily focused on processing for export. The country lacks large manufacturing enterprises in key industrial sectors, with the majority being small and medium sized enterprises. This situation makes it very challenging for Viet Nam to participate effectively in the global supply chain. Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has emphasised the role of industry in the country's economic development to realise the goal of Resolution 29/NQ-TW on the acceleration of the national industrialisation and modernisation to 2030 with a vision to 2045. The domestic industrial sector now is mainly dependent on FDI enterprises. There are many issues during developing key and priority industries stated in Resolution 29/NQ-TW, such as information technology, mechanical manufacturing, supporting industry, green energy industry, and new materials, according to the Deputy PM. The industry and trade sector needs to have plans and proposals to the Government to develop those fields. Industry experts have emphasised that manufacturing is the centre of the industrial development process, and supporting industries are the nucleus of manufacturing industry. To realise the goal of industrialisation and modernisation, Viet Nam must attach importance to the development of foundation and key industries. Viet Nam is developing a series of infrastructure projects in the transportation sector, such as roads, railways, airways and maritime, or in the energy sector, such as wind power, solar power and LNG gas power. Those projects must import almost equipment for development. Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Chi Sang, chairman of the Vietnam Association of Mechanical Enterprises (VAMI), said Viet Nam lacks completed mechanical products, and large mechanical products for projects of wind power, high-speed railways, urban railways and medical equipment, because there is no planning, no strategy, no roadmap for domestic enterprises to manufacture those devices. About $400 billion of mechanical equipment for the transportation, energy and healthcare sectors is a great opportunity for Viet Nam's mechanical and supporting industries to develop, according to Sang. Pham Van Tai, general director of Truong Hai Auto Corporation (Thaco), has recommended that for the mechanical industry and supporting industries, MoIT should complete soon and submit to the Government and the National Standing Committee the Key Industrial Law to get approval this year, creating a legal corridor that attracts businesses to put investment in developing industrial products. The ministry should also request the Government to have policies on supporting and minimising risks for leading enterprises during cooperating domestic small and medium-sized enterprises in developing the mechanical and supporting industries. VNS HA NOI A new regulation on reducing the loan limit under the amended Law on Credit Institutions will adversely affect capital supply for enterprises so commercial banks should cooperate in providing syndicated loans for the enterprises, experts said. During a dialogue held by Vietnam Investment Review on Monday, experts said under the Law on Credit Institutions, which will take effect from July 1 this year, banks must reduce the loan limit for a customer from 15 per cent to 10 per cent, and for a customer and their related parties from 20 per cent to 15 per cent according to a roadmap from July 1, 2024 to January 1, 2029. Dr. Pham Xuan Hoe, former deputy director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)s Institute of Banking Strategy, said at the dialogue that the new regulation in the law will definitely affect enterprises. According to Hoe, the capital of large and medium-sized banks is currently about VN70-80 trillion and VN35-50 trillion, respectively. Thus, if the credit limit is reduced to 10 per cent, customers can borrow only about VN5 trillion, which is not enough for real estate, infrastructure and energy enterprises with huge capital demands. Therefore, projects with investment capital of more than VN5 trillion must think about syndicated loans. Besides, the credit limit regulation for a customer and their related parties under the law also has a very broad meaning. For example, a corporation has many independent subsidiaries, or related parties, so the credit limit of a bank for the corporation is also limited. Therefore, Hoe said, to implement this regulation, the SBV needs to very clearly define the roles and tasks of State management agencies. Commercial banks also need to review very carefully, especially large customer groups, so as not to encounter difficulties when implementing the new regulation of the law. Hoe said the business culture of commercial banks needs to change, with an aim to enhance the cooperation to share both benefits and risks. To lighten the impact of reducing the credit limit on enterprises, Nguyen Quoc Hung, general secretary of the Vietnam Banks Association (VNBA), suggested that banks should cooperate to co-finance good projects. A bank, whose customer has outstanding debt exceeding the regulated credit limit, needs to proactively invite other banks to participate in co-financing the customers projects, Hung said. If the project is good, it is possible to ask other banks to co-finance it, Hung proposed. In addition, syndicated loans with the participation of more than one bank in managing and evaluating projects also help increase the transparency and efficiency of the projects, Hung said. Hung believes the five-year roadmap from 2024 to 2029 for banks to reduce credit limits is appropriate. He expected that banks will unite to deploy lending so that all people and enterprises can have access to bank loans and there need be no fear of lack of capital for large projects. VNS HA NOI Viet Nams exports have been on a path of recovery since the beginning of the year. According to a report from the General Statistics Office (GSO), the total export turnover of goods in the first two months of 2024 reached US$59.34 billion, a 19.2 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. The domestic economic sector accounted for $16.14 billion, a 33.3 per cent increase, 27.2 per cent of the total export turnover. The FDI sector, including crude oil, reached $43.2 billion, a 14.7 per cent increase, 72.8 per cent of the total export turnover. Wood and wood products, in particular, have shown high export results in the first two months of this year. Tran Xuan Thien, CEO of Thien Linh Plywood Company, said that the global economy showed signs of slowing down in 2023, resulting in fewer orders. Thien said, however, that demand seemed to have picked up since the beginning of the year. He said his company has secured orders until mid-2024. Other exports including textiles, leather and footwear, iron and steel, electronics, aquatic products, fruits and vegetables, rice and coffee have all experienced significant growth compared to last year. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) Phung uc Tien said in February, the total export of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products reached $4.48 billion, a 21.8 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. In the first two months of the year, the total export turnover of these products is estimated at $9.84 billion, a 50.3 per cent increase, with a trade surplus of $2.68 billion. The sector aims to achieve an export target of $54-55 billion in 2024. Tien stressed the importance of the diversity of export markets and improved quality of Vietnamese agricultural products, as recognised by markets such as the US, EU and Japan. He said the ministry believes Viet Nam has ample opportunities to boost chicken meat exports to Halal markets. Once negotiations are completed, the Dehus Group can export up to 1,000 tonnes per month to Halal markets, with a total population of up to 2.2 billion people and significant potential. Le Tien Truong, chairman of Vinatex, noted that Viet Nam's economic position is expected to significantly improve in 2024 as the global economy continues to recover. "Many competing economies are facing many issues with labour and armed conflicts domestically, while Viet Nam remains a safe destination, which will help in securing additional orders," he said. However, he said the financial health of Vietnamese businesses had been weakened after going through a prolonged difficult period, as well as new challenges, such as a 6 per cent increase in minimum wage from July 1, 2024, and the possibility of further increases in electricity prices after a 7 per cent rise in 2023. VNS HA NOI Although Viet Nam holds huge potential to boost rice export in 2024 as the world is forecast to face a shortage of about five million tonnes of the grain, limitations in linkage chain must be tackled for the industry to move forward. According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung uc Tien, a stronger linkage chain will enable risk sharing and harmonised benefits, helping the rice sector develop sustainably. Production linkage has an important role to play in agricultural production since it will help prevent the situation that bumper crops drag down rice prices. Since the rice linkage remains weak, the agricultural ministry has penned a project to develop rice production chain, with the participation of 14 provinces across the nation, Tien said, adding hi-tech farming models deployed in the chain so as to improve the competitiveness of the sector, making it better integrate in the global supply chain. The US Department of Agriculture forecast that the global rice supply is no longer abundant in 2024 when rice output of India, accounting for more than 40 per cent of world rice export, would decline by around four million tonnes to 132 million tonnes. Other major exporters such as the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia are also predicted to see dropping rice output due to the impacts of El Nino and climate change. The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that Viet Nam will enjoy a robust year of rice export due to great demand from Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, China and several African countries for fear of El Nino which could linger till mid-2024. Right in January, Indonesia opened a tender to import 500,000 tonnes of rice to bolster the countrys food reserve, with Vietnamese companies winning contracts to supply nearly 400,000 tonnes. This signals a positive outlook for a successful year for the rice sector. Statistics from the agricultural industry showed that Viet Nam exported 1.02 million tonnes of rice for US$708 million in the first two months of this year, up 49.8 per cent in value year-on-year. The country aims to ship some 6.5 million tonnes of rice abroad this year. VNS HCM CITY Some 200 companies are taking part in an international horticultural and floricultural expo being held in HCM City from March 13 to 15. The sixth International Exhibition and Conference for Horticultural and Floricultural Production and Processing Technology in Viet Nam (Hortex Vietnam 2024) is taking place at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in District 7, showcasing fresh flowers, fruits and vegetables and technologies used in their production and processing. The exhibitors come from 25 countries and territories, including China, Cyprus, France, Greece, Israel, Japan, Thailand, the US, Australia, Indonesia, South Korea, Colombia, and Ecuador. There are pavilions set up by the Netherlands, Taiwan (China), Thailand, India, Indonesia, and Viet Nam. The exhibition also features many activities such as seminars, export forum, grower talks, trading matching, premium flower showcase, and international seed supply fair. It facilitates business opportunities, trade cooperation, investment, and technology transfer. It helps Vietnamese businesses access advanced technologies and products from all over the world and expand export markets. Nguyen Nhu Cuong, director general of the Department of Crop Production, said the global demand for vegetables, flowers and fruits is expected to grow rapidly. The exhibition will bring practical benefits to Viet Nam's vegetable, flower and fruit industry. HortEx Vietnam has over the years become the largest professional forum in Southeast Asia for businesses and experts in the horticultural and floricultural industries. The event is organised by Minh Vi Exhibition and Advertisement Services Co., Ltd and Nova Exhibitions B.V (the Netherlands). The organisers expect to receive some 8,000 trade visitors this year. Kuno Jacobs, director general of Nova Exhibitions B.V, said Viet Nam, with its rich agricultural heritage and rapid development, is primed to emerge as a key player on the global horticulture landscape. Its fruit and vegetable exports surged to a record high of $5.6 billion last year, he said. HortEx Vietnam serves as a platform to showcase the latest innovations, trends and best practices that shape the future of horticulture not only in Viet Nam but also beyond, he said. The exhibition provides a unique opportunity for participants to forge new partnerships, strengthen existing connections, and explore potential ways for business expansion. Its organisers are seeking to strengthen and internationalise the event. That includes an agreement with IPM, the worlds leading horticultural exhibition held annually in Germany, and the German Agricultural Society to co-locate HortEx Vietnam together with Agritechnica Asia from 2025. Agritechnica Asia is part of Agritechnica, the worlds leading agricultural machinery exhibition, held biennially in Germany. HortEx will expand its reach in the region by alternating between HCM City and Bangkok from 2025. VNS China's new development, world's new opportunities Chinadaily.com.cn) 10:54, March 13, 2024 In 2023, China adopted a more open and confident attitude to benefit the world via win-win cooperation. Many countries and regions had established close trade ties with China and have benefited from Chinese goods and services. In addition, the brand power of Chinese enterprises was strengthened with a steady overseas investment and cooperation, while also attracting a high-level investment from abroad. An aerial view of Tangshan Port, Hebei province in December 2023. [Photo/Xinhua] China is an important driving force for global trade China's GDP grew by 5.2 percent in 2023. The steady economic growth has been one of the important engines of global economic recovery. In 2023, the country's total imports and exports of goods rose 0.2 percent year-on-year to 41.76 trillion yuan ($5.94 trillion), which was better than expected. China's total import and export volume of services reached 6.58 trillion yuan, an increase of 10 percent over the previous year. In terms of exports, thanks to its complete manufacturing system, China was able to meet the needs of different markets and show stable overall competitiveness in the international market. In terms of imports, the country saw an increase in imports of manufacturing raw materials and key components to meet its needs of steady expansion of domestic production. In addition, imports of consumer goods rose, reflecting a pick-up in domestic demand. In 2023, China held key exhibitions, such as the China International Import Expo, China International Consumer Products Expo, China International Fair for Trade in Services, China International Supply Chain Expo and China Import and Export Fair, which allowed more foreign enterprises to share in the opportunities from the large Chinese market. At the sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE) in 2023, a total of 442 new products, new technologies and new services were debuted. The sixth CIIE's innovation incubation special section attracted more than 300 innovative projects from 39 countries, outnumbering those of the previous two CIIEs combined. The value of tentative deals reached for one-year purchases of goods and services during the sixth CIIE was $78.41 billion, an increase of 6.7 percent over the previous edition. 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the construction of China's pilot free trade zones. In 2013, the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone was inaugurated, and China's first negative list for foreign investment access was unveiled. After seven reductions, the negative list of foreign investment access in the pilot free trade zone had been shortened from the original 190 items to 27, and the manufacturing items had been completely removed. The opening-up of the service sector continued. In 2023, China's cross-border e-commerce imports and exports totaled 2.38 trillion yuan, up 15.6 percent year-on-year. Among them, the export was 1.83 trillion yuan, up 19.6 percent year-on-year, and imports reached 548.3 billion yuan, up 3.9 percent year-on-year. The rapid development of cross-border e-commerce not only met the diversified and personalized needs of domestic consumers, but also helped Chinese products reach the world, making e-commerce an important driving force for the country's foreign trade development. China injects more certainty into global industrial and supply chains China is not only the beneficiary and defender of the integrated development of global supply chains, but also the explorer and builder of a new ecology of global supply chains, and plays a pivotal role in the global manufacturing and supply chain system. By 2023, China was the only country to possess all sections in the United Nations' International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities. The added value of China's manufacturing industry accounted for nearly 30 percent of the total added value of the global manufacturing industry, and its scale of the manufacturing industry has ranked first in the world for 13 consecutive years. The industries such as high-speed rail, electric power equipment, construction machinery and shipbuilding have gained worldwide reputation. In 2023, the exports value of China's equipment manufacturing industry accounted for more than half of the country's total export value. Exports of the three major tech-intensive green products, or the "new three" electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and solar cells - exceeded the trillion-yuan threshold for the first time, and mechanical and electrical products accounted for nearly 60 percent of the country's total export value. The three major indicators of vessel completion, new orders and orders-in-hand in the shipbuilding industry also led the world in 2023. As the world's second-largest economy, China provides a stable supply to the world, injecting more certainty into a global supply chain that is facing many risks and challenges. An electric vehicle of Xpeng displays at the Swedish eCarExpo 2024 in Stockholm, Sweden, on Feb 2, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] Brand power of Chinese enterprises is strengthened In 2005, The World Brand Lab released the World's 500 Most Influential Brands, only four Chinese brands were listed, while in 2023, 48 brands were selected. For the first time, China surpassed Japan (43) and ranked third in the world. Among them, the outstanding brands are State Grid, Tencent, Haier and Huawei. In addition, in 2023, products of China's home-grown brands were exported to more than 200 countries and regions around the world. The continuous improvement of the international brand power of Chinese enterprises is inseparable from the core innovation ability. In the 2023 Global Innovation Index, China was the only middle-income economy in the top 30, ranking 12th, ahead of Japan in the 13th place. A worker assembles a component at Sany's lighthouse factory in Bekasi, Indonesia, in August 2023. [Photo/China Daily] China's overseas investment and cooperation in steady development In 2023, the outbound direct investment by the whole industries of China reached 1.04 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.7 percent over the previous year, of which the non-financial direct investment reached 916.99 billion yuan, an increase of 16.7 percent year-on-year. Non-financial direct investment by Chinese enterprises in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative was 224.09 billion yuan, up 28.4 percent year-on-year. In 2023, the turnover of contracted overseas projects by Chinese enterprises was recorded at 1.13 trillion yuan, up 8.8 percent year-on-year, and the value of newly signed contracts was 1.86 trillion yuan, up 9.5 percent from a year earlier. The turnover of contracted projects by Chinese enterprises in countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative reached 930.52 billion yuan, up 9.8 percent on a yearly basis, and the newly signed contracts reached 1.60 trillion yuan, up 10.7 percent year-on-year. Foreign investment in China at a high level With a population of over 1.4 billion and a middle-income group of over 400 million, China is a large market with the most potential in the world and a strong attraction for international investors. The Chinese economy continues to grow, creating opportunities for companies from all over the world. In 2023, 53,766 foreign-invested enterprises were newly established in China, an increase of 39.7 percent year-on-year. The actual use of foreign capital was 1.13 trillion yuan, which was still high in scale. The actual use of foreign capital in high-tech manufacturing increased by 6.5 percent year-on-year. High-tech industries attracted 423.34 billion yuan, accounting for 37.3 percent of the total amount of actually used foreign capital, which was 1.2 percentage points of growth over 2022, and a record high. The freight train carrying the first batch of solar modules for China Energy Engineering Corp's 1-gigawatt projects in Uzbekistan, departs from Xi'an, Shaanxi province, on Aug 3, 2023. [PHOTO/CHINA DAILY] Jointly build the Belt and Road and share the fruits 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative. Over the past decade, the Belt and Road Initiative had become an important international public good, opening up a development path leading to common prosperity for all partner countries. In 2023, the trade volume of goods between China and partner countries reached 19.5 trillion yuan, an increase of 2.8 percent from a year earlier, and the proportion of China's trade with partner countries in China's total foreign trade increased by 1.2 percentage points to 46.6 percent from 2022. In 2023, China's turnover of contracted projects in energy conservation and environmental protection in partner countries increased by 28.3 percent year-on-year. In the same year, 23 memorandums of investment cooperation were signed in green, digital and blue economy fields between China and partners countries. As an important facilitator of the Belt and Road Initiative, China-Europe Railway Express has become a major international transport artery running through the Eurasian continent. In 2023, 17,000 China-Europe freight train trips were operated and 1.9 million twenty-foot equivalent units were shipped, up 6 percent and 18 percent year-on-year, respectively. By 2023, China-Europe Railway Express reached more than 200 cities in 25 European countries, with a transport service network covering the entire continent, ensuring the stability of the international industrial and supply chains. In 2023, China signed bilateral currency swap agreements with 20 Belt and Road partner countries, and established RMB clearing arrangements in 17 countries involved in the initiative, effectively promoting trade and investment facilitation. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Workers repair a utility pole after a winter storm in Austin in 2021. State officials took steps to improve the grid after a disastrous failure in 2021, but officials continue to ask customers to conserve as demand nears capacity of the system. TAMIR KALIFA/NYT Experts say some power outages could be avoided if it weren't for outdated and low-tech equipment. Associated Press file photo As the nations energy capital, its no surprise Texas ranks first in many energy-related metrics. One of those, unfortunately, turns out to be the number of power outages across the country over the last five years. There have been 263 power outages across Texas since 2019, more than any other state, each lasting an average of 160 minutes and impacting an estimated average of 172,000 Texans, according to an analysis by electricity retailer Payless Power. California ranked second with 221 outages from 2019 to 2023, while Washington placed third with 118, according to Adi Sachdeva, data researcher at Payless Power. The report was based on data from the Department of Energy. More than a third of Texas outages in the past five years occurred during 2021, when a Valentines Day freeze led to widespread outages and the deaths of at least 210 people. According to the report, there were 47 outages in February 2021 and 91 all across Texas that year. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The data reveals a paradox thats become a common point of frustration: Texas is the national leader in energy production, yet the states aging power grid struggles to keep the lights on. Mass outages such as the one during the 2021 freeze which the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the states grid operator, initiated to prevent electricity demand from overwhelming available supply are rare. Typically, the outages Texans experience are localized and caused by damage to power lines, which in the Houston area are owned by CenterPoint Energy. TEXAS WILDFIRE: Xcel Energy acknowledges its equipment was likely involved in Smokehouse Creek fire The Texas power grid is among the worst in the country when it comes to grid malfunctions, according to Bob Marshall, CEO of Whisker Labs, a company that develops sensors to prevent home electrical fires that also collect data to measure faults on local grids. Malfunctions measured by Whisker Labs sensors can be caused by utility poles or other grid equipment failing, wires touching wires, wires touching poles, wires pulling loose, wires breaking or vegetation touching wires, he said. The CenterPoint grid is amongst the most challenged that we see, Marshall said, compared to other utilities in not just Texas but across the country. Houston has the most power outages that we measure in the country, by far. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Power outages and catastrophes such as wildfires are becoming greater risks for utilities as the nations power grid infrastructure, much of which was installed more than 50 years ago, buckles under surging electricity demand and more extreme weather events. That was confirmed in the Payless Power analysis: The number of outages nationally from 2019 to 2023 was 93% higher than the previous five years, Sachdeva said. KHANH HOA The Van Phong 1 BOT Thermal Power Plant in the Van Phong Economic Zone of the south-central province of Khanh Hoa was inaugurated on Wednesday, supplying an additional 8.5 billion kWh per year, accounting for approximately 3 per cent of the total electricity output nationwide. The project is the largest project invested by Sumitomo Corporation of Japan in Khanh Hoa The plant uses ultra-supercritical technology, with modern equipment, ensuring high efficiency while meeting strict environmental standards. Addressing the inauguration ceremony, Chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee Nguyen Tan Tuan highlighted the significance of the plant, saying that it will help attract investment into the Van Phong EZ, promote local industrial development, create momentum for the economy of Khanh Hoa and the south-central region, generate numerous job opportunities and contribute around VN1 trillion (over US$40.5 million) to the local budget a year. He expressed his hope that Sumitomo Corporation and domestic and foreign enterprises will continue researching, proposing, and implementing new industrial, infrastructure, and service projects in the locality. The provincial authorities commit to accompanying and providing comprehensive support to investors to achieve common goals, he affirmed. Hirokazu Tsuru, General Director of Van Phong Power Company Limited, highly valued the assistance of Viet Nams authorised agencies for the project, especially the reliable support and co-operation of the Electricity of Viet Nam (EVN) in completing the 500 kV Van Phong Thuan Nam transmission line and the Van Phong transformer station within a short period, as well as close coordination of EVN subsidiaries during the construction and testing phases of the plant. The company is confident in its ability to contribute to Viet Nam's socio-economic development through the plans stable operation, he said. With a total investment of nearly $2.58 billion, the Van Phong 1 BOT Thermal Power Plant comprises two turbines with designed capacity of 1,432 MW. The coal-fired thermal power plant was constructed under a BOT contract signed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and will be handed over to the Vietnamese Government after 25 years of operation. The project is one of the works to celebrate the upgrading of the Viet Nam-Japan relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the world. VNS HCM CITY The Asian markets, particularly Southeast Asia and the Middle East, continue to offer significant opportunities for Vietnamese vegetable and fruit exports, experts told a forum in HCM City on Wednesday. Le Thi Mai Anh from the Ministry of Industry and Trades Asia-Pacific Market Department the organiser of the forum on goods elaborated on the point by noting that in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, Viet Nam holds a geographical advantage with convenient transport time, minimising risks that could affect the quality of vegetables and fruits. This is also a large and open market, with import duties ranging from zero to 5 per cent. Despite the presence of intense competition in the region, characterised by similar farming product structures and various trade barriers, Viet Nam faces challenges if it solely focuses on exporting fresh fruits, said Anh. In light of this, she assessed that export firms should prioritise enhancing competitiveness and expanding market share by concentrating on aspects such as quality, price, and design. Truong Xuan Trung, the head of the Viet Nam Trade Office in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), highlighted the remarkable economic standing of the UAE. Despite its small size and relatively low population, the country enjoys one of the highest per capita incomes worldwide. This success can be attributed to the UAE's strategic emphasis on industrial and service development, aided by its distinctive natural conditions. However, the nation heavily depends on imported food and grains to meet its domestic needs. Additionally, the UAE serves as a pivotal transshipment hub, facilitating the re-exportation of goods to various international markets. He held that Vietnamese vegetable and fruit exporters can leverage this market to access larger consumer areas. According to him, this is an open market with virtually no trade barriers, but is highly competitive. The expert recommended Vietnamese export enterprises work on understanding the business culture and practices of the Muslim population, as well as negotiating and applying the safest payment terms when dealing with UAE businesses to avoid risks in international trade. Le Thanh Hoa, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developments Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development, stressed that in addition to production capacity, Viet Nam also benefits from dozens of free trade agreements, facilitating negotiations for various vegetable and fruit products to enter different markets. It is necessary to organise production according to good agricultural practices suitable for each type of fruit and vegetable to meet customer requirements and to standardise the planting process to ensure the monitoring of food safety risks from planting, caring, harvesting to processing, said the official. Supply chains building, mechanisation, and advanced technique application are also important, Hoa noted. Viet Nams fruit and vegetable export turnover reached a new record high of US$5.6 billion last year, an annual rise of 66.7 per cent. The figure is predicted to continue to witness year-on-year two-digit growth this year to hit around $6.5-7 billion. VNS HA NOI Vietnamese and Australian experts gathered at an international workshop in Ha Noi on Wednesday to share experience in building mining policies. The event was jointly held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE), the National Assemblys Committee for Science, Technology and Environment and the Australian Embassy in Ha Noi. Highlighting the significance of the geology and minerals to each countrys socio-economic development, Vice Chairman of the NAs Committee for Science, Technology and Environment Nguyen Tuan Anh said that building and completing a legal corridor for the resources are an important mission, which should be made based on practices and international experience to ensure the effective and sustainable use. The experience shared at the workshop was expected to help Viet Nam complete its Draft Law on Geology and Minerals which will be submitted to the NA for consideration in the coming time, he added. Australian Ambassador Andrew Goledzinowski said that since the two countries set up their diplomatic ties more than 50 years ago, Australia has supported Viet Nam in various areas, including building institutions and policies on geology and minerals. Specifically, Australia helped Viet Nam build a draft law on minerals in 1996 that has been applied in Viet Nam for tens of years. As mining enterprises have to tackle major risks associated with legal procedures, Viet Nam should work towards a more competitive environment, particularly in terms of taxes and costs, to lure more investment, he stressed. He added that Australia will continue assistance to Viet Nam to improve natural resources management capacity as well as complete institutions in the fields of natural resources, environment and climate change. Difficulties and bottlenecks in mining investment procedures in Viet Nam over the past time were on the table at the event. Experts also discussed issues related to state management of geology and mineral resources. According to Deputy Director of the MoNREs Viet Nam Minerals Department Mai The Toan, Viet Nam has some 50 kinds of minerals, and 5,000 operating mines. The mining industry makes up of nearly 5 per cent of the countrys GDP. Highlights of the Draft Law on Geology and Minerals which comprises 12 chapters and 117 articles are the classification of minerals for management, reform of administrative procedures, using state budget to explore strategic and important minerals, enhanced management of sand and gravel in riverbed, lakebed and sea areas, among others. VNS HA NOI New Zealand Acting Head of Mission to Vietnam Wendy Hinton has highlighted the significance of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his spouses upcoming visit to New Zealand following his attendance at the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Melbourne and his official visit to Australia. In an interview recently granted to the Vietnam News Agency, Acting Head of Mission Hinton said New Zealand has quite a new Government which was elected last October, and this is very significant for PM Christopher Luxon's Government because it is the first visit to New Zealand by a head of Government since that election. PM Chinh will therefore be meeting for the first time with not only PM Luxon, but also with the Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament, the Governor-General and other high-ranking officials, which will underline the significance of the Vietnam - New Zealand relationship. Looking back on 2021, Hinton said New Zealand and Viet Nam concluded a strategic partnership action plan, and the visit will be an opportunity to reflect on how that plan has developed and what the outcomes have been, and focus on not only the achievements but also areas of future focus. As 2024 is the last year of that plan, both sides will consider at the highest level whether they will be taking that into the future. They will be discussing how they might do to celebrate the 50th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties in 2025, the diplomat said, adding that overall, there will be a good opportunity for leaders of both sides to talk about connections in all areas to build strong rapport. Some areas that the two countries been working together already include agricultural cooperation and business development, and there are also other possibilities for cooperation in climate change, green economy, digital transformation, and agricultural technology. There is a big business delegation accompanying PM Chinh and that offers an excellent chance to develop new business partnerships and promote the goal of achieving two-way trade at a certain level, probably about US$2 billion by the end of this year, she said. In her view, the visit will establish connections and enable discussions on existing cooperation in the areas of trade, finance, investment, agriculture, education, national defence and security, and notably a new strategic partnership action plan. Hopefully, three agreements in education, trade, and economic cooperation will be signed at the end of the visit. The two PMs will also make two important announcements on other bilateral cooperation areas, Hinton said. Highlighting milestones in bilateral ties since the establishment of their diplomatic ties in June 1975, she said two-way trade hit $1.67 billion as of December 2023, which is not too far off from the goal of $2 billion later this year. As agriculture is a key element of bilateral trading relationship, the current common priorities are greenhouse gas emissions reduction, food safety, plant and animal health, and rural development. Hinton also spotlighted the progress of bilateral ties across education, national defence-security, clean energy, climate resilience in agriculture, horticulture and aquaculture, and disaster and risk management in dam safety, especially in the Mekong region. Asked about Viet Nams role and position on the global arena, the diplomat said New Zealand sees Vietnam as an important factor in the region and the world, adding that the country has really constructively engaged in global and regional frameworks, such as the UN peacekeeping mission and accession to the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2022. Viet Nam was visited by a series of top leaders in 2023, which showes that Viet Nam is a stable and outward looking partner, she added. The diplomat stressed that New Zealand and Vietnam have a very strong record of cooperation in regional organisations and institutions such as APEC and an ASEAN-centred regional architecture as well as economic integration initiatives, and both countries share commitment to multilateralism and international law. New Zealand and Viet Nam are both members of several regional trading agreements such as Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA), and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), she said, adding that New Zealand welcomes Viet Nam 's partnership in that context. As Viet Nam coordinates the ASEAN-New Zealand dialogue relationship from 2024-2027, she said this really provides an excellent opportunity for further bilateral cooperation on regional issues and consolidate bilateral partnership in the region. VNA/VNS HA NOI Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang on Tuesday (local time) said that there remains ample room for the cooperation between Viet Nam and Nordic countries as they have advantages to support and complement each other in many fields. Speaking at a conference of leaders of Nordic businesses that are investing in Viet Nam, Quang expressed his hope that big corporations and companies from the Nordic region, with their experience, strengths, and reputation, will continue to support and accompany the Vietnamese Government and enterprises. He expected that they will have breakthrough, creative, modern solutions, seize opportunities, and expand investment cooperation in areas where both sides have strengths and potential. Quang also hoped that Nordic investors will help the Vietnamese Government to continue perfecting institutions, mechanisms, and policies to encourage businesses to apply sustainable business models, develop new industries, as well as digital, green, and circular economy. The Deputy PM also asked Nordic corporations and businesses to promote cooperation directions that they have strengths in and that Vietnam has needs such as finance - banking, green industries, education and training, and healthcare. In the spirit of harmonising benefits and sharing risks, the Vietnamese Government will always accompany, support, and create favourable conditions for the business community in general and foreign investors in particular, including those from the Nordic region, to do successful, sustainable and long-term business in Viet Nam, Quang affirmed. On this occasion, Quang clarified issues that Nordic corporations and businesses are concerned about relating to administrative reforms, electricity supply, agricultural development, human resource training, and Viet Nam's diplomatic relations. - VNS BUENOS AIRES - Viet Nam is the most important market of Argentina in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said the Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Argentina, Fernando Vilella. Speaking to a Vietnam News Agency reporter on the sidelines of the 2024 Argentina Agricultural Exhibition Expoagro in Buenos Aires, the official said that Viet Nam is also a key market in Argentina's trade development strategy. He emphasised that Viet Nam is an important trade partner and a major customer of Argentina's agricultural industry as Vietnam is one of the leading soybeans/corn importers of Argentina. He also expressed his wish for stronger trade co-operation between Argentina and Viet Nam , including the exchange of high-quality products and the import of Vietnamese goods. Meanwhile, agricultural engineer Mariano Winograd said he is participating in a project on co-operation between Viet Nam and Argentina in aquaculture, adding that a group of Vietnamese agricultural experts will arrive in Argentina next month to implement a co-operation project with the northern province of Misiones in growing dragon fruit, citrus, and guava. Eduardo Larocreus, a member of the bioeconomy advisory board under the Ministry of Economy of Argentina, expressed his desire to exchange experiences, knowledge and technology for peri-urban bioeconomy development with Viet Nam, towards sustainable development and environmental protection. Argentina is one of Viet Nam's leading partners in the Americas. In the 2007 2022 period, bilateral trade increased nearly 13 times, from US$378 million to 4.88 billion, making Argentina the 5th largest trading partner of Viet Nam in the Americas. Meanwhile, Viet Nam is Argentina's 6th largest trading partner. Argentina is currently one of the leading suppliers of corn and animal feed to Vietnam. Agricultural products make up 92 per cent of Vietnam's import value from Argentina. Viet Nam's main exports to Argentina include phones and components; computers, electronic products and components; footwear; machinery, equipment, spare parts; raw materials and accessories for garment-textiles and footwear. VNS HONG KONG Vietnamese Consul General in Hong Kong and Macau (China) Pham Binh am has suggested the authority of the Macau Special Administrative Region take measures to resume and expand two-way tourism, including relaxing visa policies for Vietnamese visitors. The diplomat made the proposal when making a farewell visit to Chief Executive of the Macau Special Administrative Region Ho Iat Seng on March 12. am thanked the host for his attention and facilitation provided to Vietnamese people working and living in Macau, calling on the Macau side to expand the reception of Vietnamese labourers, effectively coordinate in handling labour issues, and remove visa restrictions for Vietnamese workers and tourists. With cultural similarities and transportation connections, the two sides have great potential to further promote tourism cooperation, he said. Along with the fruitful development of the Viet Nam-China relations, the cooperative ties between Viet Nam and Macau have also seen significant progress, he said, expressing his belief that with the determination and readiness to act from both sides, the cooperative relationship between Viet Nam and Macau will continue to make new strides in the future. For his part, Ho highly evaluated the cooperative relationship between Viet Nam and Macau across all fields, especially in labour and investment, stressing that Vietnamese workers are highly skilled, hardworking, adaptable, and quick learners of foreign languages, and have made positive contributions to the local economy. He showed his impression of Viet Nam's rapid economic growth, especially its spectacular recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic, which attracts the attention of many Macau businesses and investors. Ho also appreciated the Vietnamese diplomats efforts to promote the Viet Nam-Macau relationship in various areas, expressing his hope that in his new position, am will continue contributing to stepping up the relations. The host said he supports am's proposals, promising to simplify visa procedures, implement online visa applications, and introduce visa-on-arrival for Vietnamese citizens as soon as possible. He also welcomed more Vietnamese labourers to Macau for work. The Macau official added he welcomes Vietnamese officials and businesspeople to explore opportunities for cooperation and investment in the special administrative region. On the occasion, the Vietnamese consul general paid a courtesy call to Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China in Macau Liu Xianfa, met with the Executive Board of the association of Vietnamese in Macau, and had a working session with representatives of the University of Macau. VNS HA NOI Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang lauded the World Bank (WB) for its continued support in mobilising funding for development projects in Viet Nam at a reception in Ha Noi on Wednesday for WB Country Director Carolyn Turk. Quang suggested that both sides continue working closely together to overcome difficulties in the implementation and completion of projects using WBs loans. Since 1993, the WB has allocated about US$25 billion in concessional loans to Viet Nam, along with technical assistance and policy consultation, contributing significantly to national socioeconomic development. Both sides reviewed the current state of the WBs projects in Viet Nam, especially since the establishment of a task force in charge of stepping up their progress led by Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong. According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, major barriers hindering project approval stem from differences in compensation policies, land clearance and complaint settlement mechanism between Viet Nam and the WB. To address these obstacles, the Vietnamese side proposed negotiating and signing a framework agreement to harmonise procedures between Viet Nam and the WB, with a specific focus on compensation, land clearance and complaint settlement mechanisms. Turk, for her part, expressed the WBs willingness to engage in further discussions with Viet Nam regarding this proposal. The WB highly values its relationship with Viet Nam and considers Viet Nam a critically important partner, she said. VNS HA NOI Viet Nam and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have enjoyed a fruitful cooperation over the past 30 years, and this partnership is expected to further grow in the coming decades, said Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. Addressing a ceremony commemorating the 30th anniversary of their collaboration in Ha Noi on Wednesday, the PM expressed his appreciation for the banks support to Viet Nam, especially in areas such as infrastructure development, poverty reduction, education and health care, with a special focus on remote, border and island areas. It is the ADB that has inspired other partners to cooperate and support Viet Nam in development, he stressed. As a developing country with an evolving economy, Viet Nam requires financial aid, policy consultation, and assistance in institutional building and perfection from the bank. This is particularly important for the institution of the socialist market-oriented economy, said the PM. He suggested the two sides focus on specific and key cooperation programmes and projects that can help Viet Nam achieve rapid, sustainable, and inclusive growth, ensuring that no one is left behind. According to the Vietnamese Government leader, collaboration priorities should be given to several key areas, including climate change response, green transition, digital transformation, green economy, circular economy, sharing economy, and emerging sectors like semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and new energy. A report presented at the event shows that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has financed approximately 600 programmes and projects in Viet Nam, with a total funding of nearly US$18 billion. These projects cover various sectors such as agriculture, rural areas, education, health care, energy, and urban infrastructure. It has also provided $6.45 billion for trade transactions through commercial banks in Viet Nam. During the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the ADB granted non-refundable aid worth hundreds of millions of US dollars to help Viet Nam purchase protective equipment, upgrade medical equipment, churn out pharmaceutical products, and support small and medium-sized and women-led businesses. Earlier the same day, PM Chinh received ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa, who is in Viet Nam for the celebration. The PM affirmed that the Vietnamese Government always considers the ADB an important, close and reliable development partner, and attributed Viet Nam's achievements to the banks effective cooperation and support. For his part, Asakawa emphasised that the ADB always pays attention to and supports Viet Nam in socio-economic development, and wishes to work together with the country to launch result-oriented cooperation projects. The bank can provide financial aid for Viet Nam to implement projects in green transition, energy transition and infrastructure, and help the country in emerging industries, he said, suggesting the Vietnamese government work to speed up the implementation of cooperation projects. Lauding ADB's efforts in mobilising resources of up to $3 billion for about 23 projects in Viet Nam in the 20232026 period, the PM called on the ADB to coordinate with Vietnamese ministries and agencies to quickly put in place specific projects in 2024. He also proposed the establishment of a joint working group to push ahead with capital cooperation and policy support for Viet Nam. VNS NGHE AN Draped in a white blouse, for over two decades Dr. Tran Minh Long, the head of Anaesthesia and Resuscitation at Nghe An Obstetrics and Paediatrics Hospital, has been a silent hero, quietly rescuing countless young lives across Nghe An and Ha Tinh central provinces. To him, an anaesthesiologist is similar to a maestro, orchestrating crucial support behind the curtain in every surgical performance. In the operating theatre, the anaesthesia team takes centre stage, meticulously preparing for each operation, assessing patient conditions, assembling equipment, and orchestrating the delicate pre-aesthetic rituals. Aptly called "silent doctors", they vigilantly watch over patients, work hard with unwavering dedication, and play a pivotal role in the surgical symphony's success. Paediatric anaesthesia is one of the most challenging specialties, demanding swift action for congenital diseases like heart defects, gastrointestinal and respiratory issues. Dr. Long underscores the necessity of sound medical knowledge and skills in navigating these complex medical fields. In the realm of surgeries, not every journey is smooth sailing. While administering anaesthesia to adults presents its challenges, the stakes are even higher when it comes to newborns and young children, according to Long. Within the paediatric anaesthesia team, excellence, experience, meticulous planning, risk management, precise execution, resuscitation abilities, emergency readiness, and anaesthesia expertise are all vital components in handling critical cases. Continuously updating knowledge and improving skills is essential to overcome these demanding situations. The work at the Anaesthesia and Resuscitation Department begins at 7:30am and doesn't wrap up until the surgeons complete their procedures. These dedicated individuals silently work hard behind the scenes, ensuring the success of surgeries, yet their names often go unnoticed. For the anaesthesia team, led by Dr. Long, their commitment extends beyond duty. It's fuelled by a profound love for their patients. Long said that anaesthesia and pain management is a challenging. It's a demanding and often overlooked domain of medicine. There are many complex paediatric cases that go beyond textbooks, requiring the anaesthesia team to brainstorm and find the optimal solution to ensure the safety of the paediatric patient during surgery. In challenging cases such as infants born with congenital heart defects involving transposition of the great arteries, their delicate condition necessitates rapid surgical intervention. It's one of the toughest scenarios for the medical team at large, and especially for the anaesthesiologist, who bears a particularly weighty responsibility. The hospital must activate the entire team, including the anaesthesia and resuscitation team, surgeons, imaging specialists to diagnose the child's condition, and operate artificial heart-lung machines. They must work together seamlessly to ensure no errors occur during the surgery process. "Every time we witness a little life being revived after a successful surgery, it's an indescribable feeling of joy," Dr. Long told Vietnam News Agency. "With each challenging case, our medical team learns invaluable lessons from real-life situations, honing our skills." Two years ago, baby Lau Y Bi, from Ky Son District, Nghe An Province, was born in a state of respiratory distress, turning blue. Diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, she required urgent surgery to survive. The medical team swiftly rallied the emergency heart surgery team, working tirelessly for 12 hours to save her life. Today, she is in stable health, and her family faithfully brings her in for regular check-ups at Nghe An Paediatrics Hospital, Dr. Long said. "If it weren't for the prompt and timely efforts of the doctors, my child wouldn't be here today. My family is grateful to the medical team at Nghe An Paediatrics Hospital," said Lau Huong Giang, Lau Y Bi's mother. Dr. Long's transition from general medicine to anaesthesia after graduating from Ha Noi Medical University seemed almost fateful. Every day, he dedicates himself, quietly supporting surgeons behind the scenes. In his leadership role, he emphasises the importance of professionalism and effective communication to the younger medical staff, fostering trust among patients and their families. As an experienced doctor, Dr. Long is also a mentor, always willing to share knowledge, exchange expertise, and patiently guide his younger colleagues. He firmly believes that every doctor is also a torchbearer - passing on knowledge, ethics, and passion to the next generation. Dr. Vo Quang Thanh, an anaesthesiologist, attests to the profound impact that Dr. Long has had on him, both professionally and personally. Long serves as a guiding light for young colleagues, offering valuable lessons and setting a high standard for work ethic. "As physicians, our foremost duty is to safeguard our patients' lives. Each surgery is approached with meticulous care and gentleness, ensuring a smooth journey through the anaesthesia process and a successful completion of the operation," said Long. Deputy Director of Nghe An Obstetrics and Paediatrics Hospital Tran Van Cuong said: "Rich in ethics and professional knowledge, Dr. Long is always at the forefront of promoting hospital regulations and excels in fulfilling all assigned tasks. His passion for scientific research and contribution to the medical field are commendable. With relentless dedication to his profession and selfless contributions, Long earns the trust and admiration of both colleagues and patients." Dr. Long's journey into medicine was not just a personal choice, it was a continuation of a family legacy steeped in healthcare. He finds even greater joy now as both of his children have chosen to pursue and study medicine. He believes the pivotal role doctors play in safeguarding and nurturing life. Therefore, he continues to strive every day. "Every day, I wake up, feeling excited to embrace the challenges of my profession. Despite the demanding nature of our work, requiring unwavering dedication, seriousness, and meticulousness, the ultimate reward lies in the opportunity to save lives," Long said. VNS The Buc-ees beaver mascot on a sign being hoisted over its store in New Braunfels. The company is planning a new location in San Marcos, and is in line to receive sales tax breaks from both the city and Hays County for the project. Buc-ee's - Kip Hays County commissioners on Tuesday voted unanimously to approve a sales tax break for a new Buc-ees location, following the city of San Marcos in trying to lure the company to the county. Commissioners voted 4-0, with one absent, to authorize County Judge Ruben Becerra to pursue an economic development agreement for Project Journey, which was previously used as the nickname for the proposed Buc-ees store. The text of the agreement was not available; the Commissioners Court voted to approve the document as presented in executive session. Buc-ees a Texas-based chain that has developed a cult following with its huge stores and beaver mascot is planning a 74,000-square-foot travel center along Interstate 35 at the northern end of San Marcos. According to a presentation at San Marcos City Council last month, the $50 million project would be built on the southbound frontage road, near where I-35 intersects with Yarrington Road. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Commissioner Lon Shell said the countys agreement requires the company to create at least 175 full-time equivalent jobs, in exchange for grants amounting to 50% of sales tax revenue from the Buc-ees location for 15 years. If the employment requirement is not met, the payments would be reduced, Shell said. The developer also will contribute $50,000 to the Hays County Community Fund, Shell said. The agreement mirrors the package approved by the San Marcos City Council this month, which estimated its rebate would amount to about $3.2 million over the 15-year period. Both agreements include only rebates for sales taxes. The city, county and Hays Consolidated Independent School District still will collect all property taxes for the 22-acre property. San Marcos expects to collect $5.9 million in property taxes over the 15 years and projects the county will receive $2.8 million, while Hays Consolidated Independent School District would receive $11.4 million, according to the citys presentation. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The nearest Buc-ees store to the proposed San Marcos site is 20 miles south in New Braunfels, on the northbound frontage road. The company also has stores in Bastrop, about 40 miles away, and in Ottine, near Luling, about 30 miles away. The company also is planning a $38 million store in Boerne, a plan that has been in the works since 2016. A company official said last month that construction there could start this summer. If built at the proposed size, the San Marcos Buc-ees would be one of the companys largest locations. The largest currently operating Buc-ees is a 74,707-square-foot store in Sevierville, Tenn., which the Buc-ees corporate website calls the worlds largest convenience store. However, the new Buc-ees store near Luling will be 75,000 square feet, surpassing the Tennessee store. By comparison, the New Braunfels Buc-ees is 68,000 square feet, and the planned Boerne Buc-ees would be 53,000 square feet, according to the company. Founded in 1982 and based in Lake Jackson, Buc-ees operates more than 40 travel centers, with most of them in Texas. HA NOI Different ministries have the same view toward strictly managing e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products because the country has had no import policy, no legal basis, and the product concept has not been clearly defined, reported the Nguoi Lao ong (The Labourer) newspaper. The Ministry of Justice is evaluating a draft decree amending and supplementing the Governments Decree 26/2023 issued on May 31, 2023. The decree is about export tariffs, preferential import tariffs, lists of goods, absolute tax rates, mixed taxes and import taxes outside the tariff quota. The draft decree is presided over and compiled by the Ministry of Finance (MoF). In the draft decree, the MoF proposed preferential import tax rates for electronic equipment used for e-cigarettes and similar personal e-vaporising devices, under the product code 8543.40.00. The proposal was put forth after a careful review process. Similarly, the import tax rate will be applied for e-cigarettes specified in group 24.04 to limit the use of products harmful to health. The MoF said that tobacco products are highly sensitive and require specialised management. They affect human health, so it is necessary to limit their use. Regarding product policies, currently, at least 28 countries and territories ban all forms of buying, selling, producing and importing e-cigarettes, according to the MoF. In the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, Laos, Cambodia, Brunei, Singapore and Thailand ban e-cigarettes at present. Regarding tax policy, the MoF proposes to regulate tax rates for code 8543.40.00 similar to code 24.04 as prescribed in Decree 26/2023/N-CP, which is 50 per cent. Through summarising opinions, the MoF said that the majority of ministries and local people's committees agreed with the above plan. It confirms that the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Health have the same opinion on strict management of this item. The Ministry of Planning and Investment proposes to supplement the legal basis when setting up regulations on import tax rates for electronic equipment used for e-cigarettes and personal vaporising products under product code 8543.40.00 to regulate the use of products harmful to health. On the other hand, the Ministry of Industry and Trade specifically requests to review and ensure that tax rates on the products be consistent with Viet Nam's commitments in the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The MoF believes that the above tax rate regulations are necessary and appropriate. Whether goods are allowed to be exported, imported, or circulated on the market or not, it must follow specialised management laws, the MoF stated in the draft decree. VNS HA NOI Early detection of breast cancer among Vietnamese women has increased to more than 75 per cent, according to recent statistics published by the National Cancer Hospital (K Hospital). Previous studies show that in the past when awareness of breast cancer was limited, only 30 per cent of patients had their conditions diagnosed at an early stage. According to Dr Nguyen Trong Khoa, deputy director of the Department of Medical Services Administration (under the Ministry of Health), breast cancer is one of the most common illnesses among women. Global cancer data in 2020, released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, revealed that each year Viet Nam has more than 21,500 new breast cancer patients and 9,345 people die from the disease. Studies on breast cancer among Asian countries also show that the five-year survival rate is between 56.5 per cent to 86.7 per cent for early detection cases. This figure is nearly 90 per cent in Viet Nam. For female patients below the age of 35, the ten-year survival rate is more than 80 per cent. However, the age of breast cancer patients in Viet Nam tends to be younger, Khoa noted, while many people do not undergo regular health check-ups for early diagnosis, which makes treatment more difficult and costly. The unavailability of newer medication and medical insurance coverage in Viet Nam also contributes to the problem, he added. Various projects have been brought forward to address these issues, such as the one on increasing access to advanced treatment plans for high-risk breast cancer patients during the 2020-2025 period. Deployed at the National Cancer Hospital, Bach Mai Hospital, the oncology hospitals in Ha Noi and HCM City, Cho Ray Hospital, the National Institute for Cancer Control (NCI), one of the projects aims is to raise awareness on health screening for people at high risk of breast cancer. President of Vietnam Medical Association (VMA) Nguyen Thi Xuyen said that this is the first project dedicated solely to breast cancer in Viet Nam with a large number of partners, whose cooperation contributed to its success. The project also improved diagnosis, treatment and administration for the illness by providing training in clinical practice and research for hundreds of medical workers, she added. Meanwhile, 11 studies on health economics were conducted to increase advanced treatment access for patients with the fast-growing HER2-positive breast cancer. These studies, which looked into payment policies for screening and treatment in different countries and evaluated the cost-effectiveness and financial impact of several types of medication for the illness, are the result of collaboration between the Vietnam Health Economics Association, Hanoi University of Pharmacy, Hanoi University of Public Health and the Health Strategy and Policy Institute. Based on the research, the VMA and the Ngay mai tuoi sang (Bright Future) fund for cancer patients submitted to the health ministry a proposal on health insurance coverage for breast cancer screening among high-risk people, as well as several cancer drugs to ease the financial burden on the patients. A support programme providing free medication for breast cancer patients is also deployed at 18 hospitals. As of December 2023, there have been 431 patients receiving free drugs worth more than VN67 billion (US$2.7 million) in total. An epidemiological map of cancers and cost assessment of cancer treatment plans from 2018 to 2020, as well as a study on the epidemiological characteristics and treatment costs for breast cancer in Viet Nam were published, alongside a criteria set for breast cancer diagnosis by the NCI. Le Van Phuc, Head of Health Insurance Implementation at Vietnam Social Security gave high regard to the collaboration between the VMA, the NCI and others with the social security agency to conduct research and develop diagnosis criteria for cancer. The abundant and valuable data on cancers help authorities to have an overall view of this disease, thereby introducing appropriate policies for early detection, access to quality treatment and ease the financial burden on the patients, their families and the health insurance fund, said Phuc. VNS HA NOI The Ministry of Health has proposed a supplementary voluntary health insurance package applicable to those who have participated in compulsory health insurance. Tran Thi Trang, head of the ministrys Health Insurance Department, said the goal is to provide patients with advantages that go above and beyond what their compulsory health insurance covers, as well as to lower their costs. It is expected the package will be a form of voluntary insurance for those who have participated in compulsory health insurance, she said. It will cover additional values such as co-payments, additional benefits that patients need and additional services currently not covered by health insurance. "The fee for supplementary health insurance will be determined by insurance businesses," Trang said. "However, the State will regulate the principles for establishing the fee to ensure that patients benefits and coverage scope must not overlap with compulsory health insurance. Insurance companies are required to include all individuals with needs and conditions. They are not allowed to pick and select individuals, nor may they impose rules that would prevent certain groups of healthy people from signing contracts. There are now two types of health insurance available in Viet Nam: compulsory health insurance and commercial health insurance. Compulsory health insurance is managed by the State under the Health Insurance Law for social, not for profit purposes. All are required to participate in health insurance following the Health Insurance Law. The health insurance fund pays medical examination and treatment costs covered by health insurance for subjects following the Health Insurance Law. Service users must pay for the portion beyond the benefit level and scope of benefits. Meanwhile commercial health insurance is provided by insurance businesses following the Law on Insurance Business. The commercial health insurance is designed to suit all wishes of the signers and not compulsory like social and health insurance managed by the State. The insurance contract is based on each person's conditions and needs. The Ministry of Health assesses that the commercial health insurance has many options for participants thanks to a variety of benefit packages. However, the scope of benefits covered by the commercial health insurance often overlaps with those already paid by compulsory health insurance. Commercial insurance providers tend to choose services to cover, affecting the participants' benefits. Because the State does not intervene but depends on the insurance contract developed by the company itself, patients' rights are not fully protected. In practice, health insurance participants still have to co-pay for services within the benefits scope and pay in full for services outside the scope of benefits, even though health insurance in Viet Nam generally covers a wide range of benefits. In the context of increasing people's income and need for comprehensive care, the provision of additional health insurance is essential, said the health ministry. VNS HA NOI The Ministry of Science and Technology (MST) on March 12 released the Provincial Innovation Index (PII) 2023, the first of its kind so far. The index aims to provide a general panorama of the socio-economic development model based on science, technology, and innovation of each provincial-level locality. It points out the strong and weak points, potential factors, and necessary conditions for boosting the science, technology and innovation-based development in each locality. Minister of Science and Technology Huynh Thanh at said that since 2017, the Global Innovation Index (GII), published annually by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), has been used by the Vietnamese Government as an important source of reference to build and issue innovation facilitation policies. Assigned by the Government, the MST has coordinated with WIPO and relevant agencies to design and pilot the PII in 20 localities in 2022 to measure their innovation capacity and performance. The PII has been officially applied nationwide since 2023, he noted. The minister described the PII as useful as it supplies a scientific and practical foundation for agencies, organisations, and leaders of localities to build and implement policies to boost socio-economic development based on science, technology, and innovation. He expressed his belief that the PII will also be helpful for investors to learn about the investment climate, conditions, and resources for production and business activities in different localities. According to the PII 2023 results, the top 10 on the rankings consist of Ha Noi (62.86), Ho Chi Minh City (55.85), Hai Phong city (52.32), a Nang city (50.70), Can Tho city (49.66), Bac Ninh province (49.20), Ba Ria - Vung Tau province (49.18), Binh Duong province (48.64), Quang Ninh province (48.03), and Thai Nguyen province (47.75). Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Hoang Minh said the results match the socio-economic development status of localities. The ones ranking high on the list boast favourable natural and geographical conditions (mainly in the Red River Delta and the southeastern region), industry - construction and service sectors accounting for large proportions of their economies, many industrial parks, developed infrastructure, and strong scientific, technological, and innovative activities. Meanwhile, the worst-performing ones are localities with modest socio-economic development along with natural and geographical conditions unfavourable for the development and application of science, technology, and innovation (mainly in the Central Highlands and the northern midland and mountainous region). VNS HA NOI Tourism firms are calling for new policies to thrive, but fear they request may go unanswered for as long as 10 years. That was the remark made by Vu The Binh, Chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association, at the seminar "Measures for the Tourism Industry to Make Breakthroughs" on Tuesday. He said Viet Nam saw 12 million international tourists in 2023 and is expected to have 20 million in 2024, adding that although the figures are impressive, they are still low compared to the industry's potential. He is concerned that the formulation and implementation of policies in tourism were so sluggish that it could take 10 years for new policies to be put in place to support the industry. "Tourism firms have had to wait for 10 years to have favourable visa policies. If they want more, it could mean another 10 years of waiting," said Binh. The Chairman suggested Vietnamese firms, during their wait for new policies, make the most of what they have to attract more tourists to the country. Vo Viet Hoa, Director of the International Tourism Department at the Saigontourist Travel Company, revealed that Vietnamese firms get only a small slice of the pie in tourism as most of the industry's profits go to foreign firms. He took the segment for Korean tourists as an example. The segment is growing steadily but foreign firms take on the most lucrative contracts and leave the low-profitable ones to Vietnamese firms. "Foreign firms reap the most profits in the industry whereas Vietnamese firms receive almost nothing," said Hoa. He also said the segment for Japanese tourists has not seen significant growth due to tightened spending among Japanese people. The segment for Chinese tourists, meanwhile, did not grow as fast in the past two years as expected and will not see any better prospects this year until China eases its travel restrictions. "We need more appealing visa policies because countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore have already waived visas for Chinese tourists," added Hoa. Ngo Huong, Director of Business and Marketing at Vinpearl JSC, cited high air fares and weak promotion activities as factors holding back the industry. "The biggest costs for tourists visiting Viet Nam are airfares and getting around between places," Huong said. "As a result, tourists often opt for nearby destinations in the region with similar climates and cultures but better promotions and more affordable airfares." She called for a national strategy that centres around pocket-friendly airfares and active promotion activities to turn Viet Nam into a must-visit for global tourists. Nguyen Quoc Ky, Chairman of Vietravel Company, cited the sluggish formulation and implementation of policies in tourism as the main cause for a lower tourist return rate in Viet Nam than in other countries, notably Thailand. He said visa policies in other countries change quickly to meet tourism demand whereas the change is slower and less flexible in Viet Nam, leaving the industry in limbo. Poor planning is another problem, which makes investment in tourism more costly but less effective. The next problem lies in the weak ties between tourism players, resulting in a competitive rather than cooperative mindsets among them. "We must develop more favourable policies for tourism should we see it as a leading industry," said Ky. VNS THUA THIEN-HUE Hue Central Hospital in central Thua Thien-Hue Province has received and provided intensive monitoring for patient infected with Plasmodium falciparum (++++) malaria who recently returned to Viet Nam from Angola. According to the hospitals deputy director Hoang Thi Lan Huong, the female patient, 32, who is at the 19th week of pregnancy, was diagnosed with septic shock, malignant malaria and acute liver failure. After nearly three days of treatment, the patients health is improved. She is awake and has a good response, but her condition is still serious, the doctor said. Currently, the patient is being treated with antibiotics, anti-malarial and vasoactive drugs, electrolyte rehydration and appropriate nutritional supplements. Along with that, medical staff are closely monitoring the patient's haemodynamic and foetal condition. Previously, the patient had intermittent fever, jaundice, poor appetite and was hospitalised with fever, abdominal pain, fatigue and low blood pressure. After medical consultation and foetal examination, the patient was transferred to the hospitals Intensive Care Department for continued monitoring. The patient has lived and worked in Angola for a year. She returned to Viet Nam on March 4. The Centre for Disease Control of Thua Thien-Hue Province is investigating the patient's epidemiology and asking the local medical facilities to promptly report if detecting malaria cases. VNS Chinese electronics company Xiaomi has unveiled CyberDog, a quadruped robot that the company describes as more personable than others in its class. The company made its announcement on its Twitter feed, calling it a "true beast." Xiaomi unveils its newest bio-inspired robot, CyberDog 2 Xiaomi CyberDog 2: Bio-inspired Quadruped Robot Robots: Xiaomi launches a $1,540 CyberDog as a cheaper rival to Boston Dynamics' $74,500 Spot Xiaomi Has Revealed CyberDog, A New Quadrupedal Robot - Pioneering Minds Xiaomi's CyberDog is demonstrated today in a Bucharest shopping center Meet CyberOne, Xiaomi's Humanoid Robot Xiaomi unveils next-gen quadruped robot CyberDog 2 A study on quadruped mobile robots - ScienceDirect Xiaomi unveils Xiaomi MIX Fold 3, CyberDog and other latest innovations at global event Mini Pupper - Raspberry Pi 4-based robot dog teaches ROS, SLAM, navigation, computer vision (Crowdfunding) - CNX Software Xiaomi CyberDog, Showcase Xiaomi showcases CyberDog in India - The Hindu BusinessLine Swiss-Mile Robot Is a Car, Quadruped, and Humanoid Packed in a Four-Wheeled Machine - autoevolution Good used condition - signs of wear but no rips, holes, or stains. VIntage Disneyland Resort Sweatshirt Size Small Mickey Mouse Crewneck Hanes Mickey Mouse Sweatshirt Distressed Vintage 90s Mickey Mouse California Crewneck Sweatshirt Size Large Disneyland mickey mouse - Gem Disney Men's Mickey Mouse Looking Sharp Retro Style Vintage T-Shirt (2X, 50/52) Vintage disneyland resort mickey - Gem Disney Mickey Mouse & Friends I Love the USA Fourth of July - Pullover Hoodie for Adults - Customized-Red Heather See pictures for measurements Seller does not accept returns Disneyland Resort Properties Mickey Mouse 1955 Pullover Sweatshirt Size Large Disney Minnie Mouse Distressed Vintage Leopard Bow Portrait Sweatshirt : Clothing, Shoes & Jewelry Disney Christmas Mickey Mouse Shirt Santa Mickey Sublimated Distressed, Vintage & Faded Look Ships From US See pictures for measurements Seller does not accept returns Disneyland Resort Properties Mickey Mouse 1955 Pullover Sweatshirt Size Large M-I-C See you real soon. K-E-Y Why? M-O-U-S-E! Mickey has appeared in over 130 films and is most acclaimed as the face of Disneyland. This officially licensed tee features a large, extremely distress design of a black and white Mickey character in front of a red and blue circle. The tee is made of a super soft 50% cotton / 50% polyester. Disney Men's Full Size Mickey Mouse Distressed Look T-Shirt Travel back to the golden age of The Happiest Place on Earth along with Mickey Mouse and the gang in this vintage look tee, a memorable souvenir of Mickey Mouse and Friends Vintage-Style T-Shirt for Adults Disneyland Honor 90 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB RAM (Only GSM No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone (Midnight Black) - International Version : Cell Phones & Accessories Honor 90 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB RAM (Only GSM Brazil Honor Magic5 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB RAM (Only GSM No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone (Emerald Green) - International Version : Cell Phones & Accessories Honor X8a Dual SIM 128GB ROM + 6GB RAM Factory Unlocked 4G Smartphone (Midnight Black) - International Version : Cell Phones & Accessories For USA Buyers: This Smartphone is not compatible/will not work with any CDMA Networks including: VERIZON, SPRINT, US CELLULAR. Please check with your Honor Magic5 Lite Dual-SIM 128GB ROM + 6GB RAM (Only GSM | No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone International Version - (Titanium Silver), 6.67 Honor Magic5 Lite Dual-SIM 128GB ROM + 6GB RAM (Only GSM No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone (Midnight Black) - International Version : Cell Phones & Accessories Honor Magic5 Lite 5G Midnight Black 256GB + 8GB Dual-Sim Unlocked GSM NEW Honor Magic4 Ultimate Ceramic Black 512GB 12GB RAM Gsm Unlocked Phone Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 50MP The phone comes with a 120 Hz refresh rate 6.81-inch touchscreen display offering a resolution of 1213x2848 pixels (FHD+). Honor Magic 4 Ultimate is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor. It comes with 12GB of RAM. The Honor Magic 4 Ultimate runs Android 12 and is powered by a 4600mAh battery. Honor Magic5 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB Ram (FOR Tmobile/Metro/Mint/Tello in US Market and Global) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone - (Green) Honor Magic5 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB RAM (Only GSM No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone - (Silver) : Cell Phones & Accessories For USA Buyers: This Smartphone is not compatible/will not work with any CDMA Networks including: VERIZON, SPRINT, US CELLULAR. Please check with your Honor 90 Lite Dual-SIM 256GB ROM + 8GB RAM (Only GSM | No CDMA) Factory Unlocked 5G Smartphone (Cyan Lake) - International Version Honor X7a Dual SIM 128GB ROM + 4GB RAM Factory Unlocked 4G Smartphone (Midnight Black) - International Version : Cell Phones & Accessories Honor Magic5 Pro 5G 512GB ROM 12GB RAM Smartphone 6.81 120Hz 50MP AI Triple Camera, Dual SIM, Mobile Cell Phone Global EU/UK Model PGT-N19 Mobile Cell Phone (Green) : Cell Phones PRODUCT : HONOR MAGIC5 LITE ANDROID FACTORY UNLOCKED 5G SMARTPHONE. MODEL : HONOR MAGIC5 LITE. IN THE BOX 1 X Honor Magic5 Lite-Smartphone. STORAGE Honor Magic5 Lite 5G Midnight Black 256GB + 8GB Dual-Sim Unlocked GSM NEW Foldable tech unfolds functional luxury! OPPO Find N3 Flip review 641.50 5 (322) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso San Antonio International Airport is prepared for record-breaking numbers to pass through during spring break. Mario Tama/Getty Images San Antonio International Airport is issuing a big heads-up for travelers as record numbers of spring break passengers flood through. The airport said Thursday that it would welcome about 343,000 flyers Friday through Sunday as students in San Antonio, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and the Rio Grande Valley headed out of classrooms for the week. "People should plan ahead, consider their options when it comes to parking and arrive early," Jesus Saenz, director of airports, said in a release. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tips from the airport Vacationers should aim to arrive for a domestic flight two hours before their boarding time, not two hours before the flight takes off, the airport strongly advised. If not using a ride-sharing service, travelers can check parking availability at short-term, long-term and economy lots ahead of time on the airport website. Drivers can park for free on the North Side and get a shuttle to the airport for less than $3 with VIA Metropolitan Transit's Stone Oak Park & Ride. The airport said TSA is prepared for an influx of passengers, but flyers should have their government ID at the ready before entering security to speed up the process. New screening technology also means that travelers can skip the hassle of taking liquids and electronics out of their bags, according to the release. Shantime Cubot Kingkong 9 Case + Universal Mobile Phone Lanyards, Neck/Crossbody Soft Strap Silicone TPU Cover Bumper Shell for Cubot Kingkong 9 (6.583) : Cell Phones & Accessories Cubot KingKong 9 IP68 Phone Dual Screen 120Hz 100MP 10600mAh 24GB+256GB NFC GPS For Cubot KingKong 9 Slim Mobile Phone Case Flexible TPU Anti-scratch Protective Phone Cover - Black Wholesale Cubot KingKong 9 Black 256GB 12GB RAM Gsm Unlocked Phone Mediatek Helio G99 100MP Display 6.58-inch Processor Mediatek Helio G99 Front Camera 32MP Rear Camera 100MP+24MP+5MP RAM 12GB Storage 256GB Battery Capacity Network: 4G:FDD-LTE: B1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/25/26/28A+B/66 TDD:38/39/40/41(Global Version, EU Plug) 3G:WCDMA: B1/2/4/5/6/8/19 2G:GSM: 850 Cubot KingKong 9 Rugged Phone 100MP Helio G99 120Hz 24GB RAM+256GB ROM 10600mAh CUBOT Kingkong 9 Outdoor Rugged Phone Unlocked - 24GB RAM+256GB ROM Smartphone,100MP+32MP+24MP Night Vision Camera,10600mAh Large Battery, 6.58 Inch FHD+ Display, IP68 Waterproof Mobile Phones Black : Cell Phones & Accessories 24GB RAM + 256GB ROM & (Note: At&t and Verizon wireless is not supported)The CUBOT KINGKONG 9 sets a new standard for smartphone performance. With CUBOT Kingkong 9 Outdoor Rugged Phone Unlocked - 24GB RAM+256GB ROM Smartphone,100MP+32MP+24MP Night Vision Camera,10600mAh Large Battery, 6.58 Inch Cubot KingKong 9 Rugged Smartphone 6.583 Helio G99 6.583-Inch Screen, 24GB RAM+256GB ROM 100MP Camera NFC Dual SIM Phone - AliExpress HGJTF Screen Protector for Cubot Kingkong 9 (6.58 Inch), [1 Pack] High Clear [9H Hardness] [Anti-Scratch] [Bubble Free] Tempered Glass Screen Protective Film for Cubot Kingkong 9 : Cell Phones & Accessories for Cubot Kingkong 9 Case, Soft TPU Back Cover Shockproof Silicone Bumper Anti-Fingerprints Full-Body Protective Case Cover for Cubot Kingkong 9 (6.583 Inch) (Transparent) : Cell Phones & Accessories Cubot King Kong 9 MercadoLibre Cubot KingKong 9 Rugged Smartphone FREE watch Helio G99, 120Hz 6.583-Inch Screen Conquer the Outdoors with the Rugged Power of Cubot KingKong 9_cubot Community Review: Land Rover Defender 130 - The Ultimate SUV - InsideHook 12.50 4.7 (778) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Mini Power Bank 5000mAh Portable Charging Powerbank Mobile Phone 8.50 4.8 (279) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso NEVER USED - APPEARS TO BE IN PERFECT, LIKE NEW CONDITION. Box was opened and Item got separated from the box. Therefore, item may have a few blemishes, scuff marks, or smudges even though we may not be able to see them. New google Home screen no box included. The plastic is still on the screen (there are a couple small spots on the plastic that something dropped Google Nest Home Hub - H1A - 7 Touch Screen - Smart Home Assistant No Box RBEIK Google Nest Hub Screen Protector Glass, 9H Hardness Anti-Scratch Anti-Fingerprint Easy-Install 2.5D Tempered Glass for Google Home Hub/Google Nest Hub 7-Inch Tablet : Electronics Nest Hub (1st Gen) vs Nest Hub (2nd Gen): How the displays compare - Gearbrain Google Nest Hub or fka Google Home Hub brings you visual help for any moment at home. With the Google Assistant built in, use your voice to view your latest events and reminders, and control smart devices from a single dashboard. Ask questions, and get visual, immersive answers from Google, and helpful videos from . Plus, play your favorite songs on a crystal-clear speaker, and relive your memories with Google Photos. Get help with the little moments, so you can enjoy the big ones. Google Nest Hub with Built-In Google Assistant, Chalk RBEIK Google Nest Hub Screen Protector Glass, 9H Hardness Anti-Scratch Anti-Fingerprint Easy-Install 2.5D Tempered Glass for Google Home Hub/Google Nest Hub 7-Inch Tablet : Electronics NEVER USED - APPEARS TO BE IN PERFECT, LIKE NEW CONDITION. Box was opened and Item got separated from the box. Therefore, item may have a few Google Nest Hub Model: H1A Google Home Hub 7 Screen Display - White google nest hub, Electronics & Computer Nest Hub (2nd Gen) - Google Store Google Home Hub White Smart Speakers for sale NEVER USED - APPEARS TO BE IN PERFECT, LIKE NEW CONDITION. Box was opened and Item got separated from the box. Therefore, item may have a few Google Nest Hub Model: H1A Google Home Hub 7 Screen Display - White Buy the Google H1A Nest Hub 2nd Gen. Display How To Factory Reset Google Home Hub Google GA01892-US Charcoal Nest Hub (2nd Gen) Meet the second-gen Nest Hub from Google, 1 the center of your helpful home. Stay entertained in the kitchen with shows, videos, and music. In the living room, control your compatible lights, TVs, and other smart devices with a tap or your voice. And in the bedroom, Nest Hub can help you wake up easier with a Sunrise Alarm. *1 Google Nest Hub requires a Wi-Fi network, a nearby electrical outlet, and a compatible (Android, iOS) mobile device. Google Chalk Nest Hub (2nd Gen) Nest Hub (2nd Gen) - Google Store Likely Google Home Hub arrives at the FCC - 9to5Google philips5400lattegoTikTok Search 308.50 5 (302) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Panasonic eneloop pro rechargeable battery package on sale 12.99 4.6 (740) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Thrustmaster T300 RS Racing Wheel GT Edition for PS4, PS5 219.50 4.6 (428) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Dreamy hues come together in this enchanting bouquet: peach roses, blu Comprar Ramos y Boutonnieres en SANZ Art Jewelry Frangipani flower earrings, handcrafted in 950 fine silver enhanced with a Colombian emerald. Imported from Colombia Modern Colombian 950 fine silver Flores Frangipani Boutonniere Amapola - Comprar en SANZ Art Jewelry Vincha Mariposa - US$ 180 - Comprar en SANZ Art Jewelry Like wearing a sculpture! There is a secure pin back closure as well as two hooks to connect it to a chain or belt of your choice. Various size flower Perez Sanz Vintage 'Bouquet de Flores' Art-to-Wear Flower Resin Silver Oversized Corona Ninfa - US$ 280 - Comprar en SANZ Art Jewelry Tocados Boutonniere Primavera - Comprar en SANZ Art Jewelry Roman style pizza in pala 10.99 5 (238) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra Contracts, Pay Monthly Deals 995.00 4.8 (559) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Amanda Flores of the San Antonio Public Library helps Sarah Pena and Florencio Estrada during a digital literacy class at the San Antonio Food Bank. The program was administered by the San Antonio Food Bank, the San Antonio Public Library, Feeding Texas, and Google Fiber. BiblioTech is preparing to launch its own digital literacy classes in May. Robin Jerstad /Contributor Writing emails, making virtual medical appointments and job hunting online could get easier for San Antonio and Bexar County residents this year. BiblioTech, Bexar Countys all-digital public library, plans to offer free classes to help people become more tech literate with lessons in internet basics, Google Docs, Microsoft programs and more. The curriculum will be offered in English and Spanish and, depending on a persons skill level, could take about 20 hours to complete. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We know that successfully closing the digital divide in Bexar County involves more than simply access. We need adoption, BiblioTech director Laura Cole said. We need people to feel safe, secure and competent when working in the online space. BiblioTech plans to hire six people to teach the classes. Those experts will teach at about a dozen locations across the county. The goal, Cole said, is to hire employees in April and launch the program in May. Cole said she is working to identify sites for the classes, some of which will be offered in unincorporated parts of the county. The goal is for the classes to operate out of partner organizations that already have classroom space, like the San Antonio Food Bank and Meals on Wheels. About 1,300 people will be able to take the classes over the 32 months the program is slated to run, Cole estimates. Thats about 500 people per year. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The program will be funded with about $1 million in federal pandemic relief dollars, which need to be spent by the end of 2026. New hires brought on to teach the courses will be warned that their jobs likely will be cut at the end of 2026 because the positions are funded with grant money. Adding to internet access The tech literacy program is lifting off as the county aims to reach thousands of households in unincorporated Bexar County with high-speed internet access. This internet service will have download speeds of at least 100 megabits per second and upload speeds of at least 20 Mbps. The Federal Communications Commission defines broadband, or high-speed internet access, as service with download speeds of at least 25 Mbps and upload speeds of 3 Mbps. The benchmark was set in 2015 and is widely thought of as outdated. The FCC announced in November that it will look into increasing the minimum. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Most of the additional households are in unincorporated Bexar County. Hundreds are in suburban cities including Von Ormy, Schertz and Cibolo. A Spectrum analysis shows that 100% of Bexar and suburban cities will have access to high-speed internet when the work is complete, Chief Information Officer Mark Gager told the court. Residents will have to sign up and pay for the service, should they want to use it. RELATED: Suburban Bexar County residents could get faster internet With the contract amendment, the project will cost about $42.5 million. The county is covering $11.8 million with federal pandemic relief dollars and Spectrum paying for the rest. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The county earmarked $25 million of the $389 million in aid it received to close the digital divide between people who do and dont have fast internet access. San Antonio also is aiming to improve internet access within its city limits. Citing sustainability, Starbucks wants to overhaul its iconic cup. Will customers go along? 20.00 4.6 (124) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso The 11 Best Travel Adapters 2023 6.99 4.9 (608) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso Xiaomi 12S Series Will Be Exclusive To The Chinese Market 75.99 4.9 (110) En stock Por un escritor de hombre misterioso This is part of an annual event held by the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC). The US companies are involved in fields ranging from technology to energy, aviation and defence, manufacturing, agriculture and food, financial services, healthcare, and investment funds. Among them are many familiar names already operating in Vietnam, and some have plans to expand their investments in the Southeast Asian country. The delegation will include Ted Osius, former Ambassador to Vietnam and president and CEO of the USABC; Marc Knapper, Ambassador to Vietnam; Sarah Morgenthau, special representative for commercial and business affairs at the US Department of State; Vu Tu Thanh, deputy regional managing director and Vietnam chief representative for the USABC; and representatives of US companies. This is the second year Vietnam has welcomed a large number of US companies to visit and explore investment opportunities. On March 20, 2023, Vietnam welcomed several US giants, such as Boeing, SpaceX, Netflix, Pfizer, Visa, Citibank, Meta, and Amazon. Companies such as SpaceX, Coca-Cola, and Pacifico Energy, made commitments to expand their manufacturing operations and investments in Vietnam. Last year, the US and Vietnam elevated their relationship to the highest level - a comprehensive strategic partnership. This significant milestone opens up opportunities to attract FDI from the US and boost bilateral trade. In a meeting with US businesses at the end of last year, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang expected the elevation of Vietnam-US relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership and the implementation of the cooperation pillars covering many fields to lay the foundation for bilateral trade to soon reach $200 billion. In 2023, Vietnam's exports to the US reached nearly $97 billion. Although down 11.4 per cent compared to the previous year, they still accounted for 27.3 per cent of the country's export turnover. At the same time, Vietnam's trade surplus with the US was estimated at $83 billion, a decrease of 12.6 per cent compared to the previous year. In the first two months of 2024, Vietnams exports to the US reached $17.4 billion, an increase of nearly 34 per cent over the same period last year. More than half of Vietnam's exports to the US are high-tech products (consumer electronics, smartphones), garments, and footwear. The significance of Vietnam for US businesses and why they should take notice Vietnam has gone from being a frontier economy in ASEAN to a flourishing, cost-effective, and industrial nation. Firms and investors that are looking for new markets to grow, source, or manufacture their products especially in Asia should consider Vietnams long-term potential and stay updated on its opportunities. PM calls on US businesses to strengthen investment in Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received a delegation of officials and businesses from California, led by Mayor of Oakland Sheng Thao, on August 1. Eric Yeo, country manager for AWS Vietnam AWS is amplifying its efforts in Vietnam, underlining a strategic mission to facilitate cloud adoption and spur digital transformation across the ASEAN region. Since inaugurating its legal entities in Ho Chi Minh City in 2017 and Hanoi in 2019, AWS has been a cornerstone for major Vietnamese corporations such as Masan Group and VietJet Air, pioneering the use of cloud services. Central to AWS's strategy is to invest heavily in three key areas including nurturing local talent, expanding infrastructure, and enhancing skills development. By cultivating a technically adept local team, AWS stands out in the Vietnamese market, appealing notably to financial giants like VIB, Techcombank, and VPBank. This move is crucial in fast-tracking the digital transition for AWS' clients. The commitment extends to infrastructure development, with AWS injecting tens of billions of dollars into the Asia Pacific, evidenced by the deployment of AWS Outposts in 2021, establishment of two edge locations in 2022, and the plan to announce a Local Zone, all aimed at strengthening Vietnamese businesses' digital capabilities. According to Eric Yeo, country manager for AWS Vietnam, the company has been proactive in skills and talent development, launching extensive training and certification programmes in Vietnamese, laying the foundation for the digital transformation journeys of local businesses and professionals. AWS vision for Generative AI and culturally nuanced solutions Looking to the future, AWS is setting its sights on deepening investments in local talents, infrastructure, and skill-building initiatives, throughout 2024. We plan to refine industry-specific support, emphasising sectors like FSI, telecommunications, oil and gas, retail, CPG and manufacturing, to offer services that resonate with local and industry-specific needs, Yeo said. Additionally, AWS is poised to significantly invest in generative AI, data analytics, and application modernisation, acknowledging the potential for Vietnam's cloud services market to reach $1.4 billion by 2027. Moreover, according to Dr. Werner Vogels, CTO at Amazon, AI-powered coding assistants will revolutionise software development, enhancing productivity and fostering innovation among Vietnamese developers and beyond. This technological advancement, along with AWS's strategic investments, positions the company as a catalyst for Vietnam's ongoing digital and cloud computing evolution, promising a future where technology accelerates business growth and becomes more ingrained in everyday life. AWS also believes that Femtech, or technology that improves women's lives, is marking a significant culture shift. "We're witnessing a notable change, where investments and innovations, such as subscription-based birth control deliveries and disposable menstrual cups, are making significant strides in Japan and beyond," said Yeo. This surge in Femtech enhances the lives of women and elevates the entire healthcare system. As technological advances reshape the workforce, the company also anticipates a pivotal shift in higher education to match this rapid pace. "The era where a college degree guaranteed career success is breaking down," Yeo said. This evolution is mirrored in collaborations between platforms like Coursera, emphasising the need for continuous learning to close the skill gap between education and industry requirements. Laura Nguyen, co-founder of Arcanic AI AWS has contributed to this shift by training 21 million tech learners worldwide in areas like cloud computing and robotics, embodying the principle of learn and be curious. "Our approach validates the necessity for individuals and businesses to adapt continually," he added. Furthermore, AWS predicts generative AI's progression towards cultural sensitivity. "Generative AI must develop an understanding of cultural nuances," Yeo said, noting the current Western-centric models. This development aims to make AI more relatable and effective globally. This vision is brought to life by Arcanic AI, a Vietnamese startup using Amazon SageMaker to create culturally nuanced AI solutions. "Arcanic AI exemplifies our commitment to innovation that respects local contexts," Yeo said. Laura Nguyen, co-founder of Arcanic AI said, "Utilising AWS's infrastructure, we've developed an AI platform that's uniquely tailored to the Vietnamese market." This collaboration underscores AWS's commitment to supporting startups in harnessing the potential of Gen AI to address specific market needs effectively. The extended MoU represents a milestone in Fugro and PTSC G&Ss partnership, which was set up in 2011, and reflects both parties commitment to support the countrys developing offshore wind industry and ambitious offshore wind targets, as published in the 8th Power Development Plan (PDP8) in 2023. These include an initial target of approximately 6 GW of offshore wind energy by 2030, and 70 GW to 91.5 GW by 2050, which is critical for the country to achieve its goal of carbon neutral by 2050. Under the two-year agreement, Fugros full range of marine site characterisation services and PTSC G&Ss local surveying capabilities will support Vietnams growing offshore wind industry . Jerry Paisley, Fugros regional strategic sales and marketing director, said, Vietnam holds tremendous potential for offshore wind power and, after over a decade of working here with our local partner, PTSC G&S, were thrilled to be unlocking geo-data insights to help develop Vietnams offshore wind market. Truong Tuan Nghia, director of PTSC G&S, said, "With over four decades of experience serving the Vietnamese and wider Southeast Asian market, were pleased to be extending our agreement with Fugro so we can carry on delivering comprehensive geophysical, geotechnical and metocean surveys to our valued clients across Vietnams energy industry. Fugro is the worlds leading geo-data specialist, collecting and analysing comprehensive information about the Earth and the structures built upon it. Adopting an integrated approach that incorporates acquisition and analysis of geo-data and related advice, Fugro provides solutions. Meanwhile, PTSC G&S, a subsidiary of PetroVietnam Technical Services Corporation (PTSC), is an experienced contractor in providing a comprehensive range of survey and associated services for the oil and gas industry. Australias Corio signs an MoU with EVNGENCO3 for offshore wind Australias Corio Generation, the offshore wind energy branch of Macquarie's Green Investment Group, has signed an MoU with EVNGENCO3, a subsidiary of Vietnam Electricity (EVN), for offshore windfarm development in Vietnam. Currently, European, Japanese, and Singaporean businesses are actively looking for environmentally friendly office projects, at a time when Vietnam commits to achieving net-zero emissions. Frasers Property Vietnam (FPV) is the latest developer to earn the highest attainable LEED Platinum certification in operations and maintenance from the US Green Building Council for Melinh Point, an office building in Ho Chi Minh City, in February. Melinh Point was also the first operational office building in Vietnam to be awarded the Green Mark Platinum certification from Singapores Building and Construction Authority. Tan Boon Thor, general commercial manager and director of Design Management at FPV said that, despite being a building over 20 years old, Melinh Point is now among the most energy-efficient buildings in Vietnam, following comprehensive asset enhancements. Buildings that achieve LEED certification feature a range of green enhancements in carbon, energy, water, waste, transportation, materials, and indoor environment, all which were incorporated into Melinh Points functions, Thor said. Enhancement work has focused on incorporating green technologies even from the initial stages of the buildings transformation. Its environmentally friendly design enhancements included the installation of energy-efficient systems such as LED lighting, high-performance heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning system and chiller upgrades to reduce energy usage. As part of its holistic approach to sustainability encompassing environmental, social, and governance focus areas, Melinh Points green facelift extended to tenant engagement on sustainable best practices and sharing green procurement policies and guidelines to encourage greater partnership on a shared sustainability journey. According to Hoang Nguyet Minh, senior director of Commercial Leasing at Savills Hanoi, European, Japanese, and Singaporean businesses are also actively looking for greener office projects. Minh said rental demand and the relationship between investors and office tenants will change in the direction of tenants increasingly focusing on high-quality projects, innovative spaces and good operating services to improve the quality of the working environment and meet sustainability criteria. Investors have begun to take more proactive moves in building and sustainably operating real estate, especially green office real estate, to satisfy the new requirements of tenants, Minh said. She added that the investor has proactively advised on the application of proptech technology, smart building management systems or renewable energy equipment, while improving green criteria and optimizing the monthly operating costs of the house. Real estate management will support investors in achieving environmental requirements as, with office buildings developed and put into operation a long time ago, the management system and operating methods may not meet the standards tenants seek, Minh added. With global businesses making net-zero commitments, they are on the hunt for suitable premises Photo: Le Toan The current situation Mark Ridley, general director of Savills Group, assessed that in Vietnam, some of the best office buildings in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City that meet green criteria are rated higher than other office buildings. Currently, office buildings with green certificates have rents around 7.5 per cent higher than conventional projects. International businesses operating in Vietnam, even listed Vietnamese businesses, need to comply with a number of regulations on meeting environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and net emissions goals. For example, there must be an annual ESG report, Ridley said. As a result, demand for office properties will be geared towards buildings that can support them in achieving their environmental requirements. Choosing a building without energy-optimising and carbon-reducing features will become even more costly because the businesss carbon emissions surcharge will be higher. At the same time, the positive financial evidence for applying ESG is becoming increasingly clear. As corporate ESG compliance is increasingly monitored and implemented, tenants and investors increasingly prefer and prioritise green buildings, potentially causing buildings to fall short of standards. This faces the risk of increasing vacancy rates. Meanwhile, Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) has released its Asia-Pacific Office Market Outlook 2024, a comprehensive regional report that includes forecasts of supply, demand, vacancy rates and rents for key cities in the region. According to the outlook, for many recent new office development projects, the tendency for landlords to focus on sustainability and green elements in buildings is becoming more visible, reflecting ongoing trends in other markets globally, especially Europe and the United States. According to C&W, just over 20 buildings are certified with LEED/BCA Green Mark in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Le Hoang Lan Nhu Ngoc, director of Commercial Leasing at C&W Vietnam, said that most projects in the Vietnamese market, new and in operation, are pursuing or have achieved ESG certification, highlighting the recent shift in interest in sustainability. This means that hundreds of existing buildings will be pressured to renovate to remain competitive in the market, especially if they want to engage large multinational corporate tenants, Ngoc said. Global businesses are making net-zero commitments, so real estate that integrates ESG factors will be key to meeting their goals, Ngoc added. Take a technology services company, bank, or insurance company, for example. Up to 80-90 per cent of their carbon emissions can come from real estate, and this is partly why we see tenants shifting their priorities from focusing on location, rent, and amenities to what the building can offer to help them achieve their sustainability goals, she said. New office supply The Hanoi market is expected to welcome about 80,700sq.m of new supply in 2024, mainly located in districts surrounding the city centre. In addition, about 100,000 square metres of new Grade A office space is expected to come into operation over the next few years. In Ho Chi Minh City, the new Grade A supply expected in District 1 in the 20242025 period is located in three projects, contributing nearly 119,000sq.m of high-end office space to market. Approximately 81,000sq.m of additional Grade A supply is also expected to be completed from non-central business district areas before 2027. Economic instability has affected overall office demand in Ho Chi Minh City as tenants become more and more concerned about costs. The absorption rate will gradually increase from 2024, thanks to new, higher quality supply and improved economic conditions. Office vacancy rate is expected to be above 20 per cent from now to 2026, due to continuous new supply, according to C&W. Especially, the new supply from Thu Thiem New Urban Area located opposite District 1 marks an important step forward for the submarket to truly become an extension of the current city centre. In Hanoi, market demand was strong in the first half of 2023, but demand slowed down in the second half and is expected to remain low throughout 2024. The vacancy rate is expected to be at a level of 2530 per cent this year and then gradually decrease to about 20 per cent in 2027. With abundant new supply throughout Hanoi, the market is expected to be favourable for tenants in the near future. On average, Hanois total supply is forecast to grow by 3.5 per cent per year in the period 2023-2027, according to C&W figures. According to the Ministry of Construction, Vietnam boasts around 300 green buildings in all kinds of properties, evaluated and certified by various major certification systems. The country also currently ranks 28th in the world in the number of LEED-certified green buildings. Vietnam ranks 28th worldwide in terms of green buildings With over 250 LEED-certified constructions over the last decade, Vietnam is increasingly demonstrating the relevance of green aspects in architectural design, operations, and the maintenance of existing buildings. Vietnam's 300 certified green buildings yet to reach net-zero As Vietnam intensifies its focus on sustainability, the nation's progress is spotlighted with a modest tally of 300 certified green buildings. To date, no building in Vietnam has been designed, constructed, or managed to meet net-zero criteria. Only world-class level can ensure truly green buildings Smart city development and building transition are vital to Vietnams booming economy on the green track. In addition to Vietnams rapid economic growth, urbanisation is taking place, increasing the demand for energy and building materials in cities such as Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Therefore, energy-efficient and sustainable solutions play a central role on the way to Vietnams climate neutrality by 2050. At the announcement of the central provinces approved planning towards 2030 and with a vision late last month, industry has been identified as one of the economic development keys. Nguyen Hung, deputy director of Quang Nam Department of Planning and Investment, said that one of the major contents in the plan is the development of gas and electric energy. The plan promotes the development of a central gas power centre associated in Chu Lai Open Economic Zone (EZ), creating new development impetus for the province and region, Hung said. The central regions gas power centre includes four power plants with a total capacity of 3,000MW, using raw materials exploited from Blue Whale mine, which has been approved and is promoting investment implementation. According to the plans, the Blue Whale gas-to-power project chain includes component ventures such as Blue Whale gas field development project, and power plant schemes using gas from the field. Five power plants under the project chain will provide the national grid with about 23-25 billion kWh of electricity. Preliminary calculations say the total state budget revenue from the project chain (period 2023-2044) will reach $15-18 billion. With great spillover power, the Blue Whale gas-electricity project chain will create momentum not only for Quang Nam, but also for Quang Ngai province. In Dung Quat EZ of Quang Ngai, three projects will be deployed in the Blue Whale gas-to-power project chain, with each project having a capacity of 750MW and the total investment standing at $2.5 billion. Quang Ngai has prepared the conditions to implement projects, and the gas supply progress of the upstream project of the Blue Whale gas-electricity project chain has been started. In Quang Nam, the province has also prepared all conditions and provided maximum support to partners to survey the sea and land areas in the area where the project is expected to be located. Quang Nam has planned 1,000 hectares of land, adjusted planning, formed concentrated industrial zones (about 3,000ha), and promoted projects using gas products. When built, this will be a promising project for Quang Nam, with initial calculations stating that each year the Quang Nam budget will earn an additional $1 billion from it, creating 3,000-4,000 jobs. The gas and energy industry is forecasted to create a strong driving force for Quang Nams growth. In line with Resolution No.55-NQ/TW on the orientation of the national energy development strategy to 2030, Quang Nam determines to prioritise the development of renewable energy sources and new energy suitable to the provinces conditions. The total capacity of power sources by 2030 will reach about 3,500MW, with electricity output reaching about 13 billion kWh. The proportion of renewable energy sources in the total primary energy supply will reach about 40 per cent by 2030 and 50 per cent by 2045. According to Quang Nams official plan for this decade, the province needs to develop offshore wind farms, modernise thermal power plants, and research and produce materials and equipment for the renewable energy industry. Meanwhile, the province also has potential for offshore wind power, with Cu Lao Cham Island, covering areas with altitudes of 100m or more above sea level, forecast to have great potential for wind energy. In the coming time, Quang Nam will attempt to entice investors to develop renewable energy equipment such as developing crystalline silicon panels for solar panels, and producing gearboxes for wind power towers as well as various types of batteries, heat storage systems, biomass production lines, and renewable energy equipment. Quang Nam outlines its rapid development dreams Quang Nams provincial planning goals for 2030 and beyond indicate a wide ambition to develop its industry, energy, tourism, urban areas, and much more besides. A site of a deadly landslide at an unregulated jade mine near northern Kachin's Hpakant township, Myanmar (Photo: AFP) Hanoi - One person was killed and four others injured in a tailing pond collapse at a jade mine in Hpakant township of northern Myanmar's Kachin state on March 12 morning, local police reported. Due to hazardous conditions at the site, rescue efforts were suspended in the afternoon. An official from Kayunar Rescue Organization in Hpakant said that their team was working at the scene, and one dead body was found and four others sustained serious injuries. They halted the rescue efforts in the afternoon due to high risk associated with the site, the official added. According to local residents, approximately 30 people have been missing following the accident that occurred at around 5:00 local time. Quang Nam has much room to develop logistics services, Photo: Thanh Chung According to Quang Nams approved planning towards 2030, the central province is to develop modern general services and form a logistics and multi-modal transport centre. It will develop the Chu Lai International Airport and Quang Nams seaport system associated with non-tariff zones and industrial parks, while also building a logistics centre at Nam Giang International Border Gate Economic Zone for goods from Thailand and Laos to Vietnam, and vice versa. The province is focused on developing the transport and logistics industry as an effective bridge between production and consumption, meeting the increasing needs of tourism and border economic activities, and creating an effective connection network between economic and industrial zones, industrial clusters, urban areas, and residential areas. It will also aim to synchronously develop infrastructure, including transportation, distribution, and warehouse networks, connecting destinations in the province with each other and with provinces in the region and throughout the country. According to Quang Nam Department of Industry and Trade, infrastructure activities, investment attraction, promotion of IT application, reform of administrative procedures, trade promotion for logistics services, business support, and training human resources will aim for specific results this decade. Chu Lai International Airport is planned to be a level 4F airport and a level I military airport by 2030. By then, Chu Lai will have a capacity of five million passengers and 1.5 million tonnes of cargo per year. In the maritime sector, Chu Lai Port will play the role of a container yard associated with a cold storage chain. In particular, the port will become a new logistics service destination for the central region based on convenient transportation as well as easy connections to industrial and economic areas in the region and international border gates. At the same time, Quang Nam will continue to invest in dredging the Cua Lo channel to accommodate ships of 500,000 tonnes, becoming a class 1 seaport. It will invest in port infrastructure and port logistics areas to develop and form a maritime logistics centre in the central region, becoming a place for transshipment of goods from the Central Highlands provinces to southern Laos, northeast Thailand, and northeast Cambodia. Already, many important road projects serving logistics have been implemented in recent times, such as accelerating progress and completing phase 1 of the Vietnam coastal road project. Phase 2 of the Hoi An-Tam Ky section has been completed, and construction of phase 2 of the Tam Ky-Chu Lai section is underway. A senior offical of Quang Nam Peoples Committee said, To become a logistics centre, first of all the provincial planning must be fully implemented. Then, we must call for investors to develop logistics. I believe that in just two or three years, it will be convenient to call for investors into this field because of the favourable infrastructure that will be competitive with elsewhere. And so in the near future, investors will benefit when investing in logistics in this area. Quang Nam is located on main traffic routes such as National Highway No.1A and the national highways of the East-West Economic Corridor which are connected with the Central Highlands provinces, Laos, and Thailand. Provinces tourism can break through With much potential for tourism development, Quang Nam province is to offer solutions to improve quality and become an even more attractive destination for both domestic and foreign tourists. Quang Nam outlines its rapid development dreams Quang Nams provincial planning goals for 2030 and beyond indicate a wide ambition to develop its industry, energy, tourism, urban areas, and much more besides. Quang Nam set for car industry upgrade Quang Nam province will raise the quality of its automobile industry and mechanical manufacturing to become an important field for the development of the province, according to its official planning. Ilana Glazer arrives for the world premiere of "Babes" during the South by Southwest Film Festival on Saturday in Austin. Jack Plunkett/Associated Press Ilana Glazer, star of the show Broad City and movie Rough Night, was shocked to learn that Texas already has passed a law allowing public schools to hire untrained chaplains instead of counselors. Just give us a second to process. That is bonkers. That is the definition of psychotic, dissociated from reality, Glazer interjected. The realization came during a panel discussion, State of Being: How to Care in 2024, at South by Southwest in Austin about why voting in local, city and state-level elections is important. The panel included Danny Brown of Bruiser Brigade, a Detroit hip-hop collective and record label; Austin Council Member Vanessa Fuentes; and Jessica Weitz with the American Civil Liberties Union. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Texas Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, also was on the panel and said the bill was influenced by Christian Nationalists, a movement that believes the United States should be a Christian nation. He said they are using Texas as a testing ground before taking their ideas nationwide. ALSO READ: Police investigating Southeast Side house fire that killed family as a homicide Senate Bill 763, which went into effect Sept. 1 last year, allows public schools to employ chaplains to provide counseling services to students. Chaplains often have masters degrees and are already at work in state prisons, but Talarico pointed out that the bill has no qualifications outlined for which chaplains can be employed nor are there any protections in the bill limiting them from proselytizing in public schools. Talarico, who was once a sixth-grade teacher at San Antonio Independent School District, said that as of Friday, 25 of the biggest school districts in Texas had opted not to employ chaplains. Glazer said that at baseline, things feel dire, freaky and sickening. But she was relieved to hear about wins at both the state and city levels, such as the legislative pushback against Gov. Greg Abbotts private school voucher program last year and that Austin was able to pass the highest minimum wage for city workers in the country, $20 per hour. Advertisement Article continues below this ad During an interview with the Austin American-Statesman, Ilana said policies in Texas are literally terrifying as she spoke briefly about her new movie, Babes. The movie is about a woman named Eden who relies on her best friend for guidance after she becomes pregnant from a one-night stand. A bank teller counts money at a transaction office in Hanoi. (Photo: congthuong.vn) Hanoi - A new regulation on reducing the loan limit under the amended Law on Credit Institutions will adversely affect capital supply for enterprises so commercial banks should cooperate in providing syndicated loans for businesses, experts said. At a dialogue held by Vietnam Investment Review on March 11, experts said under the Law on Credit Institutions, which will take effect from July 1 this year, banks must reduce the loan limit for a customer from 15 per cent to 10 per cent, and for a customer and their related parties from 20 per cent to 15 per cent according to a roadmap from July 1, 2024 to January 1, 2029. Dr. Pham Xuan Hoe, former Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)s Institute of Banking Strategy, said at the dialogue that the new regulation in the law will definitely affect enterprises. According to Hoe, the capital of large and medium-sized banks is currently about 70-80 trillion VND and 35-50 trillion VND, respectively. Thus, if the credit limit is reduced to 10 per cent, customers can borrow only about 5 trillion VND, which is not enough for real estate, infrastructure and energy enterprises with huge capital demands. Therefore, projects with investment capital of more than 5 trillion VND must think about syndicated loans. Besides, the credit limit regulation for a customer and their related parties under the law also has a very broad meaning. For example, a corporation has many independent subsidiaries, or related parties, so the credit limit of a bank for the corporation is also limited. Therefore, Hoe said, to implement this regulation, the SBV needs to very clearly define the roles and tasks of State management agencies. Commercial banks also need to review very carefully, especially large customer groups, so as not to encounter difficulties when implementing the new regulation of the law. He said the business culture of commercial banks needs to change, with an aim to enhance the cooperation to share both benefits and risks. To lighten the impact of reducing the credit limit on enterprises, Nguyen Quoc Hung, General Secretary of the Vietnam Banks Association (VNBA), suggested that banks should cooperate to co-finance good projects. A bank, whose customer has outstanding debt exceeding the regulated credit limit, needs to proactively invite other banks to participate in co-financing the customers projects, Hung said. If the project is good, it is possible to ask other banks to co-finance it, Hung proposed. In addition, syndicated loans with the participation of more than one bank in managing and evaluating projects also help increase the transparency and efficiency of the projects, he said. Hung believed the five-year roadmap from 2024 to 2029 for banks to reduce credit limits is appropriate. He expected that banks will unite to deploy lending so that all people and enterprises can have access to bank loans and there need be no fear of lack of capital for large projects. Task is tough to realise business environment goals, illustration photo/ Source: freepik.com More than a week ago, at a conference on implementation of Resolution No.02/NQ-CP on improving the business environment and enhancing national competitiveness, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) was listening to the voices and concerns of businesses and associations. If more than three businesses or associations claim the same issue, we consider it as an issue to study and amend soon to remove challenges for them, Tran Duy Dong, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment said after listening to dozens of comments on numerous issues that businesses are struggling with. Resolution 02 is launched in early January every year. However, many problems voiced for some time have not been tackled yet. More seriously, during the process of amending inadequate regulations, newly released or redrafted rules add even more new problems. For instance, Decree No.10/2020/ND-CP asks that passenger transport companies must send the content of their contract to the department of transport of the locality via email before each journey. With hundreds of trips starting each day, this costs these companies a large amount of money, whereas the management unit has to receive a huge quantity of emails per day to process, said Dau Anh Tuan, deputy general secretary of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI). Another issue comes from the Law on E-Transaction 2023, effective as of July 2024, which stipulates that a trust service is a conditional business line whose operations include the provision of electronic data authentication services, licensed by the Ministry of Information and Communications. However, according to Decree No.52/2013/ND-CP, the service of electronic contract authentication in commerce is licensed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. This seems to imply that a trust service must register for two licences from two ministries. Yet another inadequacy lies in an issue that has existed for seven years already. As stipulated in Decree No.09/2016/ND-CP by the government, iodine must be added to the salt for cooking and food processing, while wheat flour for food processing must include iron and zinc. This goes against the principles of risk management and is not in compliance with the recommendations of the World Health Organization, possibly leading to harmful influences on consumer health, Tuan said. The government has already released Resolution No.19/2018/NQ-CP, asking for the amendment of this regulation, yet until now, there is no decree for this, Tuan added. Obviously, the introduction of proper policies is a necessary condition to provide a better business environment, but it is the improvement in the capability to carry out those policies effectively that truly forms a friendly and favourable environment for enterprises, Tuan said. The General Statistics Office revealed that in the first two months of 2024, Vietnam had 41,100 newly registered or reactivated businesses, a rise of 8.5 per cent compared to this time last year. However, the number of companies permanently stopping their operation was 63,000, an increase of 22.5 per cent on-year. This has attracted the attention of the government to improve the business environment for a brighter economic picture. It has launched several activities and introduced various resolutions and directions on the matter. According to experts, there are some reasons for delays in handling business recommendations, including a huge amount of work, with high requirements and tight deadlines, under intense pressure from both above and below. This requires all parties, including state management agencies, businesses, and associations, to be more responsible with recommendations and proposals. I remember the first seminars with the tax and customs industry were very tense with many conflicting views between management agencies and businesses, but since then, some surveys on taxpayer satisfaction that were conducted by the VCCI have been used by the General Department of Taxation as data for public service inspection. After 10 years, the tax and customs sectors have been recognised as having the most improvement, Tuan of the VCCI explained. Ministries are now reviewing and simplifying business regulations following Resolution No.68/NQ-CP, issued in 2020. Meanwhile, the prime ministers task force to review legal documents is carrying out its annual mission to adjust any inadequate regulations. During 2021-2023, it was able to simplify nearly 2,500 business regulations. The prime minister has also approved proposals to simplify more than 1,100 more business regulations. According to the Central Institute of Economic Management, on international rankings, market development has been improving significantly, from 147th in 2017 to 59th in 2024, and ranked 11th among 39 economies in Asia-Pacific. The sustainable development index has increased continuously, ranked 55th in 2022. The global innovation index in 2023 was ranked 46th, improving two places compared to 2022. According to targets stated in Resolution 02, in 2024 market entry (new formations and resumptions) will grow by at least 10 per cent from 2023, while corporate bankruptcies will rise by less than 10 per cent. Vietnam will rise in the IT Infrastructure Index by at least three places in the rankings, the Environmental Quality Index by at least 10 places, the ICT Services Export Index by at least five places, the Priority Index for tourism and travel by at least five levels, and the Tourism Service Infrastructure Index by at least three spots. To accomplish these goals, all levels, sectors, and localities must overcome difficulties and boost their innovation and reforms in the spirit of disciplined responsibility, timely actions, accelerated creativity, and sustainable efficiency, the resolution states. In addition, Resolution 02 underlines several key solutions to removing legal inadequacies in investment; as well as invigorating IT applications, communication, and data sharing among state agencies to improve administrative procedures. Furthermore, the resolution will enhance access and absorption of capital for businesses, stimulating companies to invest and manufacture towards sustainable development. The government also requires leaders of central and local agencies as well as the VCCI to promptly capture and coordinate with each other to immediately resolve difficulties for businesses. Resolution 02 is expected to revive the spirit of reforming the business environment and sharpening national competitiveness to complete socioeconomic development plans and state budget estimates in 2024, said Dong from the MPI. These solutions aim to clear bottlenecks in the economy because strong reforms and improvements in the business environment are what the business community need the most. Ly Kim Chi, chairwoman Food and Foodstuff Association Ho Chi Minh City Over recent years, numerous large enterprises in the food industry have transferred and cooperated with foreign enterprises and funds. For key commodities that can affect national food security, this situation is not great. Without a consistent legal policy from the government to support domestic businesses to reduce pressure and go ahead, the domestic food industry will further narrow as the transfer and cooperation trend increases in the near future. It is time to change the way we conduct reforms, by adding monitoring mechanisms to those who carry out institutional reforms, improving the national business environment to create breakthrough results. Currently, there are still many inadequate regulations that have a great impact on businesses. Although the government has been directing to remove these obstacles over many years, they still persist and have not been completely resolved. One of the regulations that has the longest and most severe impact on food businesses, is the problem in Decree No.09/2016/ND-CP on fortifying micronutrients in food. This inadequacy has persisted for nearly seven years, and enterprises in the food industry have been enduring many difficulties and losses every day from the requirement that all enterprises must add iodine to salt and add iron and zinc to flour in food processing. This requirement goes against the principles of risk management, not in accordance with the recommendations of the World Health Organization, is ineffective and not internationally consistent We have continuously proposed amendments to the government and the Ministry of Health. Delaying and prolonging certain changes has caused countless losses, not only in terms of money and time, but also in export markets, and the competitiveness of the industry. This is affecting business confidence in the governments policies and management effectiveness. Pham Xuan Hoe, general secretary Vietnam Financial Leasing Association In Circular No.24/2023/TT-BCA on procedures for issuance and revocation of vehicle registration and licence plates, motor vehicle registration must be registered in the address of the headquarters of the financial leasing companies, and most of them are all headquartered in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. This causes a host of issues. The problem is that customers have to move numerous vehicles from various localities to these two big cities, raising costs, and waiting times of 3-5 working days. Vehicle licence plate fees in the two big cities is around $840 per vehicle and the registration fee in the two biggest cities is 12 per cent of the vehicles value, instead of 10 per cent in other provinces. Issuing and re-issuing licence plates of old vehicles under financial leasing registered in the provinces is too confusing. When changing the engine block, the registration content changes, and financial leasing companies do not know how to re-register in a province or move to Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. It takes more than a month to carry out this procedure. Without the licence plate, the vehicle cannot be used and cannot help businesses or individuals earn money. Because the vehicle licence plate is registered according to the headquarters of financial leasing companies in the two main cities, our customers mostly run in other cities and provinces but do not receive fee exemptions or reductions when using roads and bridges. Meanwhile, vehicles of financial leasing customers operating in the area are eligible for exemptions. This causes many disadvantages and inequities for vehicles with financial leasing. Preliminary statistics from four member companies strongly suggest that these problems greatly affect their financial leasing activities. Specifically, over 70 financial leasing contracts have already been cancelled by customers. The total amount of money signed in the contract but unable to be disbursed by the member companies is $18 million. Simplifying administrative procedures for economic growth In the context of the pandemic, reforming administrative procedures is necessary to encourage businesses to approach the market and contribute to economic growth. PM urges streamlining administrative procedures, paving way for transport projects Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh asked ministries, agencies and localities to work harder in order to pave way for transport projects, saying administrative procedures should be streamlined, while concluding a meeting of the State steering committee for national key transport projects in Hanoi on April 12. Hanoi to make clear administrative procedures in environment area The Hanoi Department of Natural Resources and Environment will hold a dialogue with organisations and individuals on the administrative procedures in the field of environment in July, according to director of the department Nguyen Huy Cuong. The Ministry of Finance is drafting amendments to the Law on Value Added Tax which will be proposed to the National Assembly for consideration in the 7th meeting in May this year. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi - The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) has proposed a zero-value added tax (VAT) rate to be maintained for exported services, over worries that tax hikes would undermine the competitiveness of Vietnamese providers against foreign rivals. The Ministry of Finance is drafting amendments to the Law on Value Added Tax which will be proposed to the National Assembly for consideration in the 7th meeting in May this year. In the draft, the ministry wants to impose VAT on most exported services, instead of the zero rate as currently. Specifically, only international transportation and vehicle rental outside Vietnam and some related services are proposed to be maintained at zero tax rates, while others will be subject to VAT rate, commonly at 10 per cent. The reason for the amendment is that tax authorities found it difficult to distinguish between revenues from exported services and from domestically consumed. VCCI said that the imposition of 10 per cent VAT rate when exporting will make it difficult for Vietnamese services providers to compete with foreign rivals. International trade of services increased strongly in the global market during the past two decades and is forecast to remain robust in coming years, along with the vibrant development of Internet and remote work solutions, VCCI said, citing statistics of the World Bank that global export of services jumped from 400 billion USD in 1980s to more than 7.2 trillion USD in 2022, with an average annual growth rate of 6.5 per cent from 2003 to date. The international transportation service accounts for a significant proportion but it is dropping, from 30 per cent in 1982 to 17 per cent in 2020, while telecommunications and IT services are rising. Statistics showed that global telecommunications and IT services export is expanding at 12.3 per cent annually on average from 2004. The rate has been rising more rapidly since the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the VCCI services export has huge potential for development. Vietnams export of services reached 20 billion USD in 2023 with an average annual growth rate of 11 per cent, higher than the countrys gross domestic growth rate. Vietnam is running a trade deficit of services worth more than 10 billion USD each year. Providing exported services does not require huge capital like investing in manufacturing and processing industry, which is appropriate in a capital-shortage economy like Vietnam. In addition, Internet-based services export helps promote the countrys image and increase soft power, VCCI said. Vietnam is an export-oriented economy with export being an important growth driver with an average annual growth rate of nearly 15 per cent, VCCI said, emphasising that zero VAT on exported services plays a significant role. According to VCCI, most countries around the world are imposing zero VAT on exported services and allow tax refunds on inputs. Thus, VAT on exported services should be kept at zero, VCCI said. Major exporting services of Vietnam include manufacturing outsource, maintenance and repairing, tourism and transportation, insurance, financial services, IT and information services. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) The top-ranked Republicans in the New Mexico House and Senate won't seek reelection this year as their party seeks a stronger footing in the Democrat-led Legislature. Senate Republicans are reckoning with the first election since a redistricting plan from Democrats merged GOP-led districts. Senate Republican leader Greg Baca of Belen said his decision to leave the Senate by year's end was informed by conversations with his family, prayer and attention to new political boundaries adopted by the Democrat-led Legislature in 2021. Careful observers of the progressive plan to pit two Hispanic Republicans against each other through redistricting may have seen this coming," said Baca in a statement, while endorsing Republican state Sen. Joshua Sanchez of Bosque in the merged district. "In short, I refuse to allow the radical left to pit brother against brother. House minority leader T. Ryan Lane of Aztec also chose not to seek reelection, saying he wants to spend more time with his wife and two sons. Lane, an attorney who runs a craft ice cream store with his wife, said the Republicans are well positioned to gain seats in the House. I think the people of New Mexico are waking up to the fact that progressive politics are why New Mexico is consistently last," he said. I feel like I've left my caucus in the House Republicans to be positioned well for success moving forward. State legislative candidates raced against a Tuesday-evening deadline to submit signature petitions that can qualify them for the states June 4 primary and November general election. Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2-1 in the state Senate, amid a wave of retirement announcements that could tilt the partisan balance next year. In the House, Democrats currently have a 25-15 seat advantage after winning back the House majority in 2016. The entire Legislature is up for election in November. In drawing new Senate districts, the Legislature embraced recommendations from Native American communities for shoring up Indigenous voting blocs in the northwest of the state. But Republicans at the same time bristled at provisions that merged two Republican-held districts. The Legislature's annual session adjourned in mid-February with approval of several public safety initiatives and an annual budget plan that slows down a spending spree linked to an oil production bonanza in the Permian Basin that overlaps southeastern New Mexico and portions of Texas. Separately on Tuesday, four state House Republican legislators from southeastern New Mexico and Farmington urged the state land commissioner to reverse course on her decision to withhold some lease sales for oil and gas development until the Legislature agrees to raise royalty rates in premium tracts from 20% to 25%. A letter to Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard warns of possible unintended consequences including job losses and reduced government income if petroleum producers redirect investments from New Mexico to other oil fields. It was signed by Republican state Reps. Jim Townsend of Artesia, Larry Scott of Hobbs, Rod Montoya of Farmington and Jared Hembree of Roswell. State Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard said the state will forgo a trove of income and investment returns over the lifetime of future leases if royalties stay capped at 20%. In New Mexico, royalty payments from oil and gas development on state trust land are deposited in a multibillion-dollar investment trust that benefits public schools, universities and hospitals. The accountability and budget office of the Legislature says a 25% royalty rate cap would increase annual revenues by $50 million to $75 million. SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) A Georgia judge has thrown out a lawsuit accusing local officials of race discrimination when they approved zoning changes to one of the South's last Gullah-Geechee communities of Black slave descendants. Superior Court Judge Jay Stewart ruled the civil complaint had to be dismissed because of technical errors unrelated to the rights violations it alleged. His order allows the Southern Poverty Law Center to file a new version of the lawsuit on behalf of residents of the tiny island community of Hogg Hummock. Under Georgia law, we are permitted to refile within six months, and we plan to file an amended verified complaint, Miriam Gutman, a lawyer for the residents, said in a statement Wednesday. Residents and landowners sued in October after elected commissioners in coastal McIntosh County voted to weaken zoning restrictions that for decades helped protect their enclave of modest homes along dirt roads on largely unspoiled Sapelo Island. The zoning changes doubled the size of houses allowed in Hogg Hummock. Residents say that will lead to property tax increases that they wont be able to afford, possibly forcing them to sell land their families have held for generations. Their lawsuit asked a judge to declare that the new law discriminates on the basis of race, and that it is therefore unconstitutional, null, and void. Stewart's legal order Tuesday didn't address the merits of the discrimination claims. Instead, he agreed with McIntosh County's attorneys that the lawsuit clashed with a 2020 amendment to Georgias state constitution that weakened the broad immunity from lawsuits granted to the state and local governments. While that amendment enabled citizens to sue Georgia governments for illegal acts, it also stated that such lawsuits could no longer list individual government officers as defendants. The lawsuit filed on behalf of Hogg Hummock residents not only named McIntosh County as a defendant but also its five individual commissioners. While McIntosh County is pleased with the Judges ruling, we believe it appropriate to withhold further comment at this time, Ken Jarrard, an attorney for county officials, said in an email. The judge denied a request by the residents' lawyers to amend their lawsuit by dropping the commissioners as defendants to avoid completely starting over. But he dismissed the case without prejudice, meaning attorneys will be allowed to file a new version naming only McIntosh County. Hogg Hummock, also known as Hog Hammock, sits on less than a square mile (2.6 square kilometers) on Sapelo Island, about 60 miles (95 kilometers) south of Savannah. Reachable only by boat, the island is mostly owned by the state of Georgia. About 30 to 50 Black residents still live in Hogg Hummock, founded by former slaves who had worked the island plantation of Thomas Spalding. Descendants of enslaved island populations in the South became known as Gullah, or Geechee in Georgia. Their long separation from the mainland meant they retained much of their African heritage. The residents lawsuit accused McIntosh County of targeting a mostly poor, Black community to benefit wealthy, white land buyers and developers. It also said the county violated Georgia laws governing zoning procedures and public meetings as well as residents constitutional rights to due process and equal protection. McIntosh County officials denied wrongdoing in a legal response filed in court. When commissioners approved the zoning changes for Sapelo Island in September, they insisted their intent wasn't to harm Hogg Hummock or change its culture. Outside of court, Hogg Hummock residents have been gathering petition signatures in hopes of forcing a special election that could give McIntosh County voters a chance to override the zoning changes. Mart Mayor Robert Kaiser resigned in protest Monday after the Mart City Council voted to oust the citys top staffer, a decision he said reflected "dysfunction" on the council. The council Monday voted to remove Lambert Little, who was hired in January 2023 as interim city secretary and served as the de facto city administrator for this town of about 1,800 in eastern McLennan County. Little resigned after the council vote, and Kaiser followed suit. Kaiser said he decided earlier Monday that he would resign as mayor if Little ended up being terminated at the meeting. If he stayed I wouldve stayed and continued the fight, but when he gave up and said Im going home, I felt I had no allies, Kaiser said. I didnt have the respect and support of the council, and I never did. In a statement read during the meeting, Kaiser thanked Mart residents for supporting himself and Little. During the reading of his statement, Kaiser said the council does not act with the best interests of Mart residents and encouraged them to vote against incumbent council members in the May election. Kaiser also cited "continued harassment by the council," attempts to undermine the chain of command and the creation of a hostile work environment for city employees as reasons for his resignation. The council also voted to fire Finance Director Vikki Grimes amid an ongoing internal investigation into the citys financial accounts. Kaiser said he could not comment on Grimes firing beyond saying she was fired for cause. Under Marts system, Kaiser does not have a vote on the city council. Council members Ethan Deike, Sandra Lynch, John Garrett and Trevor Baize, the mayor pro tem, voted to remove Little, while Council Member Odell Nevils abstained. Little said Mondays meeting was the fourth time the council had considered firing him. Little had served in top roles in several small Texas municipalities, including Mexia, Edna, Hico, Clarendon and Valley Mills, before taking the Mart job last year, according to the Texas Municipal League directory. Little said he would have liked to stay in Mart, and he does not plan to seek another job in city government. Little said the Mart City Council has constantly meddled in the day-to-day operations of the city. The government remains unstable and I dont think they will ever excel, Little said. I tried and tried and tried but it just became an impossibility. Little said he was surprised by Kaisers resignation. Kaiser said his resignation was based on the dysfunction of the Mart City Council. He also said the council has been too involved in day-to-day operations. Kaiser said council members wanted to fire Little because they believed he was not doing his job properly. Kaiser said Little was not perfect and even did things Kaiser did not agree with, but he still had 30 years of experience and was being criticized for small details. The role of city secretary and administrator will be filled by Police Chief Shane James, who will keep his position as chief. Kaiser said James has no experience as city administrator and will have his hands full with multiple roles in the city. Kaiser became mayor in May 2023 after running unopposed for the seat. He said the council will not be able to appoint someone to fill his seat, and must call a special election to find his replacement. This story has been updated to expand and clarify Kaiser's explanation of his decision to resign. CEDAR FALLS A woman allegedly punched a bank employee in the face Monday at a Main Street branch during an argument over a notice sent to her. Pamela Lynn Strickler, 64, of Cedar Falls, was arrested and charged for assault causing bodily injury, a serious misdemeanor. The female employee at Farmers State Bank, 515 Main St., had been walking out Strickler at the time she reportedly resorted to using her fist, according to court records. The 2:45 p.m. call was originally for trespassing. Strickler eventually left the scene but was located by officers in the area. They reviewed video from the incident and confirmed statements made by staff and the victim, who advised that her nose and face were sore. Strickler admitted to police that she went to the bank to argue with staff about the notice but denied getting physical with anyone. Small businesses in these industries have massive potential for women entrepreneurs in 2024 Small businesses in these industries have massive potential for women entrepreneurs in 2024 The U.S. House on Wednesday passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner doesnt sell, as lawmakers acted on concerns that the companys current ownership structure is a national security threat. The bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, co-led the legislation, which would force the popular social media platform to divest its U.S. subsidiary to avoid the ban. The bill would prevent app store availability or web-hosting services in the U.S. for applications, like TikTok, unless the application severs ties to entities like ByteDance that are subject to the control of the Chinese Communist Party. The bill also gives the president the authority to deny other social media apps owned and operated by foreign adversaries access to U.S. users unless they sever ties to their foreign owners. Hinson and backers said the goal is not a ban but a forced divestiture by ByteDance because of concerns that top Chinese government officials have access to American users data and could use such access to manipulate TikToks algorithm to sow divisiveness and discord, poison U.S. public opinion and suppress content critical of Beijing, as well as compromise the cellphones of millions of American users. TikTok just needs to cut ties with CCP or they will lose American users, said Hinson, who sits on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party that originated the bill. TikTok has about 170 million American users. ByteDance Technology is a Chinese internet technology company headquartered in Beijing. It is operating in the United States through a holding company, ByteDance Ltd., the parent company of TikTok. Trump opposition The legislation moved forward despite opposition by former President Donald Trump. Trump who tried to ban TikTok as president posted on Truth Social that getting rid of TikTok would only help Facebook, which he called a true Enemy of the People! The presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee launched Truth Social to rival Facebook and Twitter after Trump was banned from the sites. Trump personally could potentially profit if the company goes public as planned this year, CQ-Roll Call reported. Trump also recently met with billionaire hedge fund investor Jeff Yass, whose fund has a more than a $30 billion stake in TikTok parent ByteDance, the Wall Street Journal reported. Asked by CNBC Monday if he had changed his views on TikTok after meeting with Yass, Trump said TikTok never came up during their meeting. Asked about Trumps opposition ahead of the vote, Hinson said her mind was made up on the bill, which she said has bipartisan support in Congress. I dont think any outside influence is going to change my mind here, she said. And if TikTok does not cut ties with the CCP, it should not be able to operate in the U.S., plain and simple. This is a national security issue. Lawmakers on Tuesday received a classified briefing with U.S. intelligence and law enforcement officials that led them to fast-track the measure. I saw many dozen other members of Congress on both sides of the aisle at that meeting, Hinson said. ... And, at least in my mind, it has flagged a very important discussion about the role social media is playing in our country right now and the damaging impact it has on our kids. I think that is a larger conversation we need to have after we first make sure we get TikTok to divest ties from the CCP. TikTok alerts users Some free-speech advocates say the measure violates First Amendment protections. But backers contend the bill is an appropriate step to protect Americas national security interests, and only applies to applications controlled by a foreign adversary. Iowas members of Congress received numerous calls last Thursday from TikTok users who were prompted by the app to call their representatives in response to the House legislation targeting the social media platform. The aggressive move by the wildly popular social media app came the same day the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously passed the bill that would ban TikTok from U.S. app stores unless its Chinese parent company sells the app. President Joe Biden said Friday he would sign the bill if it reaches his desk. TikTok users last Thursday were greeted with a message warning that Congress is planning a total ban of TikTok, and prompting them to call their congressional representative. At one point that day, Hinson was personally answering phones and explaining to callers the intent of the bill. It was nonstop, Hinson told reporters Tuesday. We were getting a barrage of phone calls. The Marion Republican accused TikTok of lying to and manipulating its users, many of whom are U.S. youth. It is so unacceptable. And TikToks disregard to kids mental health was really on full display, Hinson said. And, quite frankly, they proved our point for us. Hinson asked what if TikTok had taken the same tactic ahead of a U.S. election, falsely saying polls were closed on Election Day. Or whatever message the CCP wanted them to disseminate to their captive American audience, she said. Hinson said shes also fielded calls from parents ticked off at TikTok. This is about protecting our kids, she said. You want to infuriate parents across the country, feed their kids a lie and manipulate them as a political pawn. House passage of the bill is only the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and lawmakers in that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said hell have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the bills path. Caleb McCullough of the Courier Des Moines Bureau contributed to this story. How the 'TikTok ban' and other social media legislation could restrict internet use How the 'TikTok ban' and other social media legislation could restrict internet use San Antonio police say a 31-year-old man was found dead inside a Tesla at Northwest Side supercharger station, such as the one pictured in this file photo. H John Voorhees III/Hearst Connecticut Media A San Antonio man was found dead inside of a Tesla while charging his car at a supercharger station early Sunday on the Northwest Side. Police arrived at the Huebner Oaks Center in the 11700 block of Interstate 10 West around 1 p.m. and found a 31-year-old man unresponsive in the driver seat of a Tesla. ALSO READ: Police investigating Southeast Side house fire that killed family as a homicide Advertisement Article continues below this ad Officers at the scene said the unidentified man showed no signs of trauma, and the incident appears to be death from natural causes. As of Tuesday, the Bexar County Medical Examiners Office said the cause of death is still pending. WATERLOO After just over a year on the job, Waterloo Police Chief Joe Leibold announced his retirement Wednesday. His last day is June 21. Leibold has held the top position since November 2022 but has been with the department since 1990. He was promoted after Joel Fitzgerald, the previous police chief, resigned in August 2022 to take a job in Denver, Colorado. After Fitzgeralds resignation, Leibold was appointed as the interim chief. Being a police officer has grown me as a person and provided me countless opportunities, Leibold said in a news release. I am truly appreciative of the city and everyone who has played a role in my career and personal development. After eight years at the department, he was promoted to sergeant. He became a lieutenant in 2004 and a captain in 2008. In 2011, he was promoted to captain of police services and in 2017 his title was changed to major. He has worked patrol, crime lab and internal affairs. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia. He served in the Army National Guard from 1986 to 1995. According to Courier archives, he helped create a complaint tracking form, developed the departments use of force and body camera policies, implemented wellness programs for officers, and helped write a successful grant application to start the departments Violent Crime Apprehension Team in 2008. Chief Leibold has been an incredible leader for the Waterloo Police Department and has made the City better under his tenure, Waterloo Mayor Quentin Hart said in the release. Not only do I consider him a great police chief, Joe is also a friend. He will be missed, and we appreciate his decades of service to our community. The release states the city is working on finding his replacement, and that plan will be announced later. When searching for Fitzgeralds replacement, the city advertised the job vacancy nationally and there was a total of three applicants two of whom were internal. In 2020, the search was more public and the candidates held community presentations. DES MOINES A bill that would allow state agencies to hire private accountants and bypass the state auditors office to conduct annual audits is in limbo in the Iowa House. Senate File 2311, which passed the Senate 31-16 last month, hit a setback Tuesday. A House subcommittee voted 2-1 to advance the bill without recommendation to the full House State Government Committee, leaving it to the chair of the committee to determine the bills fate. Rep. Michael Bergan, R-Dorchester, raised concerns about additional costs and added inefficiencies created by the bill. John McCormally, chief of staff for Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand, highlighted a fiscal note from the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency that found that hiring a private CPA firm could cost up to more than three times as much as using staff from the state auditors office. Based on data obtained from audit reports filed with the auditors office by private firms, audits of state agencies performed by outside CPA firms have cost as much as $260 per hour compared with $85 per hour by the auditors office. Bergan also noted private CPA audits of state agencies could make it difficult for the state auditor to compile a required annual report on how the state spends federal funds. Brad Epperly, a lobbyist for the Iowa Society of Certified Public Accountants, said Iowa has a shortage of CPAs to perform governmental audits. As of right now, I don't know that we would have the members that would have the ability to do the audits, Epperly said. Sand and legislative Democrats say the bill kneecaps Sands authority as auditor and opens the door to political corruption by allowing government officials to bypass the state auditor for annual audits. Republican supporters of the bill argue the hiring of a private accountant to conduct a required annual audit already is allowed and widely employed by local governments and school districts. Rep. Adam Zabner, D-Iowa City, voted in subcommittee not to advance the bill. Zabner said Iowa voters trust Sand and reelected him in 2022 to come back and be in charge of audits for the state of Iowa. I don't like the idea that the Legislature can circumvent that just because they have issues, Zabner said. I think this is another example of the Senate playing politics. We should put people over politics and make sure that our elected officials can do their jobs. A new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll shows a majority of Iowans oppose the Republican-led bill that would allow state agencies to outsource their annual audits, circumventing the state auditor the lone Democrat elected to statewide office in Iowa. Ethics complaint dismissed House lawmakers voted unanimously Tuesday to dismiss an ethics complaint filed by Des Moines-based Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement against Rep. Dean Fisher, R-Montour. CCI President Barbara Kalbach alleged there was a conflict of interest for Fisher, as founder and board president of the newly created Tama-Toledo Christian School, to campaign on, help pass and vote for legislation signed into law last year that created taxpayer-funded education savings account to help Iowa families pay for private school tuition and expenses. The complaint states Fisher helped establish and serves as the board president of the Tama-Toledo Christian School, an emerging private school. Kalbach alleged the school plans to use the state-funded accounts to pay the bulk of its operating costs, and that Fisher discredited Iowas General Assembly by abusing his public power for private gain. The six-member House Ethics Committee comprised of three Republicans and three Democrats, however, voted unanimously to dismiss the complaint with prejudice. Members stated the complaint did not meet requirements and no further investigation was required. House rules state members refrain from taking action on bills and committee work that are a conflict of interest due to personal gain beyond that afforded the public or a particular profession, trade, industry group or class of people. In Fishers case, the 2023 law applied to all non-public accredited schools in Iowa and did not solely or primarily benefit Fisher or his immediate family. Teachers in the Legislature, for example, vote on state spending for schools and pay raises for teachers across the state. I am concerned about what the complainant has stated, said committee member Rep. Monica Kurth, D-Davenport. It just gives me a bad feeling overall; however, I dont think it rises to the point of being a violation of the ethics code. Fisher, in a response, blasted the complaint as clearly politically motivated and claimed he upheld a campaign promise made to his constituents. Its wrong to attempt to use the mechanisms of government to attack someone you simply disagree with on policy, Fisher said in the statement. Fortunately, the ethics committee agrees, and this situation has been resolved." CCI, in a statement, asserted the committee turned a blind eye to Rep. Dean Fishers glaring ethical violations, and said his actions are self-dealing and self-serving. State: 1,500 tons of fertilizer spilled into Western Iowa river An investigation was underway Tuesday after 1,500 tons of fertilizer were released into a Western Iowa river. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources announced that New Cooperative in Red Oak notified the agency early Monday that tons of liquid nitrogen fertilizer were discharged into a drainage ditch, and they later reached the East Nishnabotna River. The river is a tributary of the Missouri River. The Iowa DNR says the release occurred due to a valve left open on an aboveground storage tank overnight. Areas of pooled fertilizer were pumped into a vac truck and will be land applied later. Dead fish were observed in the East Nishnabotna. The extent of the fish kill was still being determined, according to the agency. Iowa DNR field staff were on-site collecting samples and analyzing them. Meat substitute product labeling Legislation that would require manufacturers to make clear that meat substitute products are plant-based or lab-grown advanced out of the Iowa Houses Agriculture Committee. Proponents of the bill say it is needed to better help consumers understand what kind of product they are buying, and to protect Iowas livestock farmers. The bill also prohibits Iowas public schools, regent universities and community colleges from purchasing lab-grown products and would require the state to apply for a waiver to opt out if the federal government ever approves a lab-grown meat substitute for purchase under federal nutrition assistance programs like SNAP for individuals and families or WIC for expectant mothers. With its passage out of the committee, the bill, Senate File 2391, meets this weeks legislative funnel deadline and is eligible for consideration by the House. The House ag committees chair, Rep. Mike Sexton, R-Rockwell City, said amendments to the proposal will be proposed during floor debate in the House. He said one proposed amendment is mostly technical, while another would add dairy and egg substitute products to the bills requirements. DES MOINES When Manny Galvez arrived in Iowa after immigrating to the U.S., one of the first things he did, he said, was give aid to people in need because of his Christian faith. Now, Galvez and other activists fear a bill advancing through the Senate would make it harder for religious organizations and others to provide housing, food and transportation to immigrants without legal status. The bill, which Republicans in a Senate subcommittee advanced with some hesitation on Tuesday, would create a new crime of human smuggling and penalize people who transport or harbor undocumented immigrants in certain cases. The bill would also make undocumented immigrants ineligible for public benefits something that is already in federal law. Galvez, who has been in the U.S. for 20 years and now lives in Iowa City, said while working with immigrant communities, he would never ask for a persons legal status before helping them. He worries if the bill were law, he could be prosecuted for those actions. When I was working in the streets of Des Moines, we never asked (for) a paper, we never asked if they were citizens or not, he told lawmakers on Tuesday. I think this bill is attacking one of the values of this state. Because we have a Christian state, and this is against the values. Galvez was among the dozens that showed up at the Iowa State Capitol on Tuesday to speak against the bill. The bill, House File 2608, has galvanized immigrant rights activists as it has made its way through the legislative process, along with a few other bills to restrict and penalize undocumented immigrants in Iowa. Opponents of the bill said, regardless of how it is enforced, it has instilled fear in immigrant communities across the state. Emily Sinnwell, a member of the Iowa City Catholic Worker House, a group that works with asylum seekers in the U.S., providing them housing and transportation to appointments and court dates, said the bill was not a solution to the issues at the southern U.S. border. If we want solutions, this is not it, she said. This bill is only causing chaos, panic, fear among the state of Iowa and in our communities. Sinnwell said she was worried the bill could make her and other migrant service providers guilty of a felony, and that it could shut down the operation of the Catholic Worker House. The bill stipulates that a person must obtain payment or some other benefit for the smuggling to be in violation of the law. Republican House supporters have said that provision would prevent prosecution of religious organizations and other nonprofits. It also carves out exceptions for people transporting or harboring relatives, creating an affirmative defense against prosecution for people who are closely related by blood or marriage. Transporting a spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent or grandchild would be grounds for the affirmative defense. The standard punishment for violating the law would be a Class C felony, and the punishment would increase if the smuggled person is injured. A Class C felony is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. If the smuggled person becomes a victim of sexual abuse or suffers serious bodily injury or death, the violator could be convicted of a Class A felony, which carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Opponents of the bill also argued on Tuesday that the chilling effect it would have on immigrant communities in the state would hurt the economy by pushing immigrants out of the workforce. Ninoska Campos, a member of eastern Iowa immigrant rights group Escucha Mi Voz and an asylum seeker from Honduras, said immigrants in Iowa do a range of essential work from housekeeping and restaurant work to meat packing and construction and that passing legislation to hurt those communities would impact that workforce. These are all the jobs that we do to keep Iowa going, keep the economy going, Campos said through a translator. It would be hard to get up and go to work every day knowing that a police could stop our car and ask for our papers and arrest us because were immigrants. Republicans want changes Despite advancing the bill to the full committee, Republican senators on the subcommittee Tuesday said they were uncomfortable with its vague language and would not support it in its current form. They recommended an amendment, though they did not say what changes they want to see. The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to discuss the bill on Wednesday. Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola, said the bill needs some work. I dont really like it very well the way it stands right now, and I agree with those of you that have made that point, Garrett said. I do think it needs to be changed. Well have to work on that. Sen. Jeff Taylor, a Republican from Sioux Center, said he thinks the language around requiring a payment or some other benefit to be in violation of the law was too vague. Sen. Janice Weiner, a Democrat from Iowa City, said the bill could be subject to a constitutional challenge after lawmakers passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act this year, a bill to enhance religious freedom protections in the state. Its clearly against my religion. Were coming up on the holiday of Passover, which speaks specifically to the need to welcome the stranger, Weiner said. Heaven knows we need the workers in this state and we dont want to be pushing anyone out. Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation (12 March 2024) The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation. In Kupyansk direction, units of the Zapad Group of Forces in cooperation with aviation and artillery have repelled seven attacks and counter-attacks of assault groups of AFU 57th motorised infantry and 32nd mechanised brigades near Sinkovka (Kharkov region). The enemy losses were up to 40 Ukrainian troops, two pickups, three U.S.-made M777 artillery systems, two D-30 artillery guns, as well as one Bukovel-AD electronic warfare station. In Donetsk direction, units of the Yug Group of Forces have liberated Nevelskoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic) and taken more advantageous lines and positions. The 79th Air Assault Brigade and the 81st Airmobile Brigade of the AFU have been hit near Novomikhailovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic) and Belogorovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic). The AFU losses amounted to up to 350 Ukrainian troops, two tanks, four motor vehicles, as well as one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system. In Avdeyevka direction, units of the Tsentr Group of Forces have improved the situation along the front line by strikes at manpower and hardware of 23rd mechanised, 71st, 143rd infantry brigades of the AFU near Keramik and Berdychi (Donetsk Peoples Republic). 11 counter-attacks of AFU 24th, 47th mechanised, 3rd, and 78th assault brigades have been repelled close to Kirovo, Leninskoye, Novobakhmutovka, Orlovka, and Tonenkoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic). The enemy losses were more than 380 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, and 13 motor vehicles. In South Donetsk direction, the Vostok Group of Forces units have taken more advantageous positions and hit manpower and hardware of the 128th Territorial Defence Brigade close to Staromayorskoye and Vodyanoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic). One attack launched by assault groups of the AFU 58th Mechanised Infantry Brigade has been repelled near Shevchenko (Donetsk Peoples Republic). The AFU losses amounted to more than 145 Ukrainian troops, two infantry fighting vehicles, eight pick-up trucks, and one Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system. In Kherson direction, units of the Dnepr Group of Forces have inflicted fire damage on 117th mechanised and 128th mountain assault brigades of the AFU near Rabotino, Kamenskoye, and Lobkovoye (Zaporozhye region). The AFU losses amounted to up to 50 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one Msta-B howitzer, and one D-30 gun. Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have eliminated one ammunition depot of the AFU 43rd Mechanised Brigade, as well as one U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS vehicle. In addition, clusters of AFU manpower and hardware have been eliminated in 132 areas. Air defence systems have shot down 11 MLRS projectiles: HIMARS, Grad, and Vampire projectiles, as well as one Tochka-U tactical missile during the day. In addition, 146 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been shot down, including near Kremennaya (Lugansk Peoples Republic), Zelenopolye, Aleksandrovka, Kodema (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Mirnoye, Vishnyovoye, Shevchenkovo, Konskiye Razdory, and Ocheretovatoye (Zaporozhye region), and Rybalche (Kherson region). In total, 577 airplanes and 267 helicopters, 15,226 unmanned aerial vehicles, 484 air defence missile systems, 15,438 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,238 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 8,378 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 19,658 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation. Tags: WtR Interview of Russian President V.V. Putin with D.K. Kiselyov (March 13, 2024) Sputnik English version below Read in full http://kremlin.ru/events/president/news/73648 Russian only version below Russia is not at a crossroads. It is on the strategic path of its development, and will not deviate from its path. # Many people in the world are looking at us, at what is happening in our country and in our struggle for our interests. < > They associate our struggle for their independence and true sovereignty with their aspirations for their own sovereignty and independent development. But this is aggravated by the fact that there is a very strong desire among Western elites to freeze the existing unjust state of affairs in international affairs. They have been accustomed for centuries to fill their bellies with human flesh and their pockets with money. But they must understand that the vampire ball is ending. # Are we ready to negotiate? Yes, we are ready. But only we are ready for negotiations, not based on some wants after the use of psychotropic drugs, but based on the realities that have developed, as they say in such cases, on earth. We are ready for a serious conversation , and we want to resolve all conflicts, especially this conflict, by peaceful means. But we must clearly and clearly understand for ourselves that this is not a pause that the enemy wants to take for rearmament, but this is a serious conversation with security guarantees for the Russian Federation. They use British and American missiles. This does not change the situation on the battlefield. Yes, they cause us harm, of course, thats obvious. But, in essence, this does not change the course of hostilities and the consequences that inevitably occur for the opposite side. # We know what American troops are like on Russian territory. These are the interventionists . This is how we will treat it, even if they appear on the territory of Ukraine, they understand this. I have said many times, for us it is a matter of life and death, and for them it is a matter of improving their tactical position in general in the world, but also in Europe, in particular, maintaining their status among their allies. This is also important, but not as much as it is for us. From an interview with Russian President V.V. Putin to D.K. Kiselyov (March 13, 2024) Vladimir Vladimirovich, what happened to Macron? < > He is going to send French troops to fight our army. < > Still, how to react to this? V.V. Putin: The fact is that the military of Western countries has been present in Ukraine for a long time, they were present even before the coup, and after the coup their number increased multiple times. Now they are present directly in the form of advisers, they are present in the form of foreign mercenaries and are suffering losses. But if we are talking about official military contingents of foreign states, then I am sure that this will not change the situation on the battlefield this is the most important thing, just as the supply of weapons does not change anything. Secondly, this could lead to serious geopolitical consequences . Because if we say that Polish troops enter the territory of Ukraine, < > then I think that Polish troops will never leave there. It seems so to me. They dream and see, they want to return those lands that they consider historically theirs < >. If we return to Macron, maybe he decided to take revenge on Russia in this way because we stepped on his tail in Africa, and we had to stand there, be afraid? He probably didnt expect us to be so active there. V.V. Putin: We did not go into Africa and squeeze France out of there. The problem is different. The well-known Wagner group first carried out a number of economic projects in Syria, then moved to other African countries. The Ministry of Defense provides support, but only on the basis that this is a Russian group, nothing more. < > Its just that the African leaders of some countries agreed with Russian economic operators, wanted to work with them , but did not want to work with the French in some way. It was not even our initiative, it was an initiative on the part of our African friends. WtR The UW Board of Regents named James Beeby as the next UW-La Crosse chancellor Wednesday. Beeby will take the post July 1. Beeby will be the first new UW-L chancellor in 17 years. Previous chancellor Joe Gow served UW-L from 2007 to 2023. He was set to retire from the role at the end of the academic year but was fired in December by the Board of Regents for producing and posting online adult content. Beeby is the current provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Keene State College in New Hampshire. He took the role in August 2021. In a community forum on campus, Beeby discussed his efforts in strategic planning to improve relations with the community. He said he worked to establish workforce connections in education and health care in New Hampshire, areas he believed the university needed better ties. He also served as dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Southern Indiana from 2016-2021. Before, he worked as a professor and chair at Middle Tennessee State Universitys Department of History. He earned a doctorate in American culture studies from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, in 1991. Beeby first began college at the University of Wales and is from a small village in England. As chancellor, Beebys annual salary will be $281,112. Gows salary in 2023 was $262,719. UW President Jay Rothman thanked Betsy Morgan for acting as interim chancellor after Gows dismissal. Morgan was a finalist for the permanent position. Betsy Morgan deserves our thanks for stepping up at a difficult moment, Rothman said. The campus community is indebted to her for her leadership. She is a wonderful presence within the university and the broader La Crosse community. Christopher Olsen, provost at Indiana State University, was a third finalist for the chancellor position. 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. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form FILE - Russia's Leonid Volkov, Chief of staff for the 2018 presidential election for Alexei Navalny's campaign, looks on, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, Dec. 15, 2021. Associates of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny reported on Tuesday night that the politicians close ally and top strategist was attacked near his home in Lithuania. Navalnys spokesman Kira Yarmysh said the assailant smashed a window of Leonid Volkovs car, sprayed tear gas into his eyes and started hitting him with a hammer. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias, File) Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle were spotted at San Antonio International Airport recently after a slew of visits around Texas. The royal couple was seen walking through the airport escorted by police in an onlooker video initially shared with pop culture page Deuxmoi. Last week, the duke and duchess touched down in Texas to attend South by Southwest, where Markle was a keynote speaker for the opening-day panel honoring International Women's Day. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Afterward, the two headed to Uvalde for an event at a playground built with help from the Archewell Foundation, their philanthropic organization. The duke and duchess also made a heartwarming stop to visit the family of Irma Garcia, a teacher killed alongside 19 young students and one other teacher during the 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary. Garcia's nephew John Martinez said on social media that Markle helped celebrate his mother's birthday by bringing a cake and singing happy birthday, sharing photos and videos of the festivities. Markle has been involved in the community since the mass shooting, appearing in Uvalde just two days after the tragedy to lay flowers at a memorial and making efforts to stay in touch with Garcia's family. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A doctor holds an IUD birth control device that will be placed in a patient's uterus. Adek Berry/AFP, HO / TNS A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that a Texas father can deny his daughters access to contraception, finding that a state parental rights law trumps a federal program that allows some clinics to forgo getting that approval. The ruling by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit marks the first major decision on birth control access since federal protections for abortion were overturned almost two years ago. READ MORE: Supreme Court lets abortion pill access stand as appeal moves forward Advertisement Article continues below this ad Texas minors are required by state law to have parental consent before accessing contraception; however, the case decided Tuesday pertains to federal Title X clinics, which are meant to provide affordable family planning services. The rules of the program, in place since the 1970s, require that the clinics serve all adolescents and encourage family participation to the extent practical. The court ruled that if Title X were to take precedence over a state law, it would be an invasion of the fathers state-created right to consent to his childs medical care. The decision affirmed a lower court ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk that since December 2022 has blocked Texas minors from seeking contraception at federal clinics without parental approval. The decision, which could reach the Supreme Court if appealed, also represents a major departure from longstanding precedent. Federal courts repeatedly have held that youths have a right to receive birth control without parental approval. Title Xs goal (encouraging family participation in teens receiving family planning services) is not undermined by Texass goal (empowering parents to consent to their teens receiving contraceptives), reads the ruling written by Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan, who was appointed to the bench by former President Donald Trump. To the contrary, the two laws reinforce each other. The plaintiff, Alexander Deanda, is the father of three minor daughters and had said that he is raising them according to his Christian beliefs to abstain from premarital sex. Deanda, who lives in the Texas Panhandle, said he wanted to be informed if his daughters access or try to access birth control. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On his legal team are Jonathan Mitchell, an attorney widely known for crafting the states controversial six-week abortion ban that left enforcement up to regular citizens, and America First Legal, a firm made up of former Trump administration officials. Deandas attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The U.S. Department of Justice, which represents the federal government in court, declined to comment. In past briefs, the federal government has argued Deanda lacked standing to sue over the program and could not show evidence that his daughters, whose ages he did not disclose, had accessed or were likely to access services at Title X clinics. Representatives for the clinics also have argued that while family participation is encouraged, some minors may not have a trusted adult who will consent to the care, such as those in an abusive situation. The court stopped short of addressing Deandas argument that the federal program violated his constitutional right to consent to his childrens medical care. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Chief Judge Priscilla Richman and Judge Catharina Haynes joined Duncan in the ruling. Saudi Arabia's Asharq News is pushing the boundaries of news broadcasting with the debut of an AI-powered anchor. This multilingual anchor, a digital lookalike of presenter Hadil Eleyan, can deliver news segments in multiple languages including Russian, Spanish, and Mandarin during live broadcasts. The innovation was unveiled during the channel's popular Monday evening show, "Colours of the East." Eleyan even interacted with her AI counterpart, showcasing the seamless integration. A clip of the segment went viral, garnering over 1 million views on social media platforms. "This is a symbiotic relationship between artificial intelligence and human ingenuity," commented Steven Cheak, Director of Creative Services at Asharq News. He emphasized that AI is intended to augment human capabilities, not replace them. Nabeel Alkhatib, Asharq News' General Manager, highlighted the network's commitment to innovation. He explained that incorporating AI into the newsroom aims to boost efficiency and unlock creative possibilities within the editorial process. "We strive to provide a seamless and engaging experience for our Arabic-speaking viewers," Alkhatib said. This commitment extends beyond the AI anchor, encompassing cutting-edge graphics, augmented reality, and virtual reality systems all designed to enrich the network's visual storytelling capabilities. In a narrative that unfolds like a compelling story, Bail Kolhu, from the house of BL Agro Group, the respected name synonymous with purity and quality in the edible oil industry, introduces a thought-provoking #ChunoSahi campaign on all social media platforms. Against the backdrop of election fervour, the campaign tells a tale that goes beyond consumer choices into the heart of civic responsibility. It paints a vivid picture of the familiar spectacle of promises cascading like confetti during political seasons and urges citizens to exercise their civic duty with discernment. In launching the #ChunoSahi campaign now, Bail Kolhu strategically responds to a crucial juncture in the societal landscape, where consumer mindsets are evolving. They are progressively becoming more conscious, informed, and discerning in their choices. They no longer passively consume advertising but actively seek out brands that resonate with their values and uphold social responsibility. #ChunoSahi campaign leverages this opportune moment to foster a dialogue about the importance of making informed decisions, not just in the kitchen but also when it comes to overall societal mindfulness. The film opens with a politician mid-speech, portraying a familiar scene of promises made by political parties. Viewers are transported into a world of extravagant pledges: hospitals, farming automation, robotic cleaning, high-tech education and impeccable, smooth roads. The light-hearted film continues and then sheds light on a fundamental concern often overshadowed by the grandiosity of political rhetoric. Grand commitments are alluring but when will politicians start to fulfil basic necessities like access to lavatories for basic hygiene. The cinematic journey concludes with a succinct, impactful statement: " , " Translated, it urges, "To entice you, politicians' words may slip like oil, but do not let your vote slip away." This closing message serves as a poignant reminder and a compelling call to voters, urging them to choose their representatives carefully, akin to the diligence they employ in selecting their cooking oil. Richa Khandelwal, Managing Director at Leads Brand Connect, elaborates, "Bail Kolhu is a symbol of unwavering commitment to authenticity, and we sought to extend this ethos beyond the confines of the kitchen. Our choice of a concept that draws parallels between the meticulous selection of cooking oil and the act of casting a vote is intentional. By infusing humour, the campaign adeptly resonates with viewers, effectively encouraging citizens to make informed decisions about their political choices. Ashish Khandelwal, Managing Director, BL Agro, expresses, We believe in fostering a society where citizens are not just consumers but active participants in shaping the narrative of our nation. #ChunoSahi is a call to action to ignite civic responsibility. The campaign artfully weaves humour and social consciousness, prompting viewers to reflect on the practical implications of grand promises when basic needs are not being met. We invite everyone to join us in this journey of awakening." #ChunoSahi is not merely a campaign. It is a narrative crafted with finesse, transcending the boundaries of commercial promotion to become a story of civic awakening. Nominations are now open for UNC Health Pardee's Physician of the Year Award, Pardee Hospital Foundation announced The annual accolade aims to celebrate and honor the exceptional contributions of physicians whose careers epitomize medical excellence, unwavering dedication to compassionate patient care, and a profound commitment to enhancing the well-being of individuals across the community. Physicians play an indispensable role in shaping the healthcare landscape, and their tireless efforts often go beyond the call of duty. The Physician of the Year Award seeks to highlight and honor those remarkable individuals who have significantly enriched the field of medicine and whose passion for their profession shines through in every aspect of their work. The award process involves the submission of nominations by any individual on behalf of the candidate. Nominations should provide insights into the nominee's personal and career accomplishments, underscoring their demonstrated medical excellence, dedication to compassionate patient care and commitment to improving the lives of others All nominations must be submitted by April 1,. Current members of the UNC Health Pardee Medical Staff are eligible nominees. Once the nomination period concludes, the medical staff at UNC Health Pardee will vote to select the recipient of thr esteemed honor. "The Physician of the Year Award represents an opportunity for us to recognize and express our gratitude to the exceptional physicians within our community who consistently go above and beyond to deliver outstanding healthcare services," said Amy Treece, executive director of Pardee Hospital Foundation. "Their unwavering dedication and commitment to excellence not only impact the lives of individual patients but also contribute to advancing healthcare standards." The Physician of the Year is announced and honored during the Summer Soiree on June 21. Last year, when chosen to be the 2023 Physician of the Year, I remember feeling a wave of honor and respect from not only my patients but also my UNC Health Pardee colleagues, said Dr. Joel Callahan. I encourage the community to nominate a physician who has positively impacted their health, wellness, and life to be named this years Physician of the Year. For more information on the nomination process and eligibility criteria visit https://pardeehospitalfoundation.org/physician-of-the-year-nomination-form/. As part of its preparations for the next phase of digital led growth, Fino Payments Bank has appointed two new members on its Board. Anita Sudhir Pai and Neeta Mukerji, banking industry veterans with over three decades of experience, have been appointed as Additional Directors in the capacity of Independent Directors of the Bank. The appointments assume significance as they provide diversity to the Board in terms of people, thoughts and professional expertise that help in further strengthening corporate governance, risk management, stakeholder engagement and digital innovation in the ever evolving banking space. Importantly, with the new additions, one-third of the Banks Board comprises of women directors out of the total Board strength of 8 members. Anita Sudhir Pai, till recently the COO of Yes Bank, has been appointed as an Additional Director in the capacity of Independent Director of the Bank on January 11, 2024. An alumnus of Symbiosis Institute of Business Management (Pune),Pais more than three decade career includes stints at HDFC Bank, Standard Chartered and ICICI Bank in various capacities. She comes with hands-on as well as strategic leadership expertise across technology, digital banking, and operations. Mrs. Pai was also the founding member of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company. Neeta Mukerji, an alumnus of IIM Calcutta, was appointed as an Additional Director in the capacity of Independent Director of the Bank on March 05, 2024. Mrs. Mukerji comes with over 30 years of experience in premier financial institutions such as ICICI Bank, Asset Reconstruction Company of India Limited (ARCIL), GE Capital, RBL Bank and Assets Care & Reconstruction Enterprise (ACRE). She has wide ranging experience across banking with specific focus on credit, risk management and distressed debt. Her core expertise areas include setting up and managing risk management function and assessing credit risk. Rajat Jain, Chairman, Fino Payments Bank said, We are delighted to have on our Board seasoned banking professionals with rich and varied expertise. Further, with their presence the board is richer in terms of diversity, fresh ideas and skill sets. On behalf of my colleagues in the Board, I welcome Mrs. Anita Sudhir Pai and Mrs. Neeta Mukerji as we embark on a journey of realizing our digital growth potential. Rishi Gupta, MD & CEO, Fino Payments Bank said, As the Bank gears up for the next level of growth and gradual progression into mainstream banking, a diverse Board will certainly provide impetus to digital innovation, credit and risk management. We look forward to working collectively towards creating a differentiated digital Bank. The Board additions also come in at a time when the Bank had applied for Small Finance Bank license. In this context, with such a knowledgeable and diverse Board the Bank aims to reap the benefits of robust decision making, better risk management leading to improved business performance and stakeholder value creation. In this interaction with Adgully, Noelia Amoedo, CEO, mediasmart, and Nikhil Kumar, Chief Growth Officer, mediasmart, delve into the transformative potential of Generative AI (GenAI) for CTV advertising, particularly in the booming South-East Asian market. They explore how GenAI can revolutionise ad targeting, content creation, and campaign optimisation, ultimately shaping the future of CTV and multi-screen journeys. How has the emergence of Generative AI and its potential impact on CTV advertising been in global and South-East Asian markets? Nikhil Kumar: CTV has been a force to reckon with in global and South-East Asian markets. In regions like India and Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia, CTV has particularly seen rapid levels of adoption and more brands are confidently investing in CTV advertising. Navigating this transformative wave, its hard to ignore the potential that GenAI can bring to the CTV ecosystem. While it is still a new technology, theres much to explore on how GenAI can revolutionise advertising. GenAI is likely to only strengthen the level of efficiency and precision targeting offered on CTV currently. With the ability to analyze vast amounts of data and generate personalized, contextually relevant insights, we can expect CTV advertising to become more relevant. In South-East Asia, where diverse cultures and languages co-exist, GenAI plays a pivotal role in bridging communication gaps and delivering culturally resonant content. For instance, GenAI can help brands improve their targeting as well as creative messaging for ads to tailor to the languages their audiences speak. While this is still possible via programmatic technology, what GenAI tools can do is make vernacular advertising easier and more automated to target these different vernacular groups. This can not only improve relevance but also maximize the effectiveness of ads. Could you tell us about GenAIs ability to create new content based on patterns learned from training data enhancing contextual targeting in CTV advertising? Noelia Amoedo: AI-driven programmatic has been changing the way marketers approach contextual advertising. Now, with GenAI, theres an evolution of how creative content can be improved for contextual targeting. Since GenAI doesnt follow predefined rules and can instead come up with its own, it can create new content based on the patterns it learns from the underlying training data. Thats the key difference between GenAI and traditional AI''. GenAI is based on LLMs that can create new content depending on the audience. This can be used by brands to create multiple ads featuring captivating content and creatives to target different audience groups. For instance, a brand can create multiple ads in different settings such as rural, urban, seasons, etc, depending on where the ad is shown and what kind of household it is targeting. Another capability of GenAI is to make sense of unstructured language-based information. This can be used, for example, to analyze the transcripts of shows and reduce dependency on predefined content categorization for targeting, which can open up new possibilities for personalization within the CTV space and make the medium more exciting for both consumers and advertisers. These specific examples are still futuristic, but at the pace at which LLMs are progressing, they could be a reality very soon. What are GenAI offerings in terms of automatically discarding certain types of content and ensuring brand safety in CTV advertising? Noelia Amoedo: At mediasmart, we have been working on innovations in the CTV space that can make the medium more safe, efficient, and rewarding for advertisers. Our new feature AI CTVSafe is a step in this direction that utilises GenAI capabilities to improve brand safety. This feature can assess ad suitability of CTV traffic to automatically filter out risk categories, ensuring that advertisers benefit from a secure and brand-appropriate environment. This has plenty of benefits for brands and can automatically discard showing ads on content that may be deemed inappropriate. For example, on content intended for kids or shows that a brand would consider to be violent or not in line with their brand values. GenAI can also offer enhanced privacy and fraud detection, which is one of the areas where Affle has filed new patents to cover futuristic applications in interaction, training and integration of GenAI agents. What role does GenAI play in analysing and interpreting large datasets to provide more value and efficiency in the advertising process? Noelia Amoedo: Campaign optimisation and intelligence are likely to get more advanced with GenAI at play. GenAI can empower media traders to set up their campaigns for optimum performance as well as change how campaign intelligence is presented and analyzed. By allowing campaign managers to focus on improvement rather than reporting, GenAI can make a huge impact for brands to improve their efficiency. For instance, a GenAI agent can guide advertisers to configure their campaigns based on other similar campaigns for maximized performance. Rather than large reports that need to be downloaded and studied, GenAI would also be able to present quick data insights. One might imagine being able to ask questions such as, how is my campaign performance across cities? or which audience engages the most during weekends?. This can make the entire campaign optimization and reporting less manual, reducing man hours, while increasing efficiency and performance. What are your views on GenAI in Connected TV shaping the future outlook for CTV and multi-screen journeys? Nikhil Kumar: Any advertising that we do today needs to take into consideration the many different consumer journeys of users who exist across devices and mediums. Advertising needs to respond to integrate these consumer journeys to offer measurable, actionable results that improve ROAS. Weve seen great use cases of AI-driven programmatic shaping up how targeting is set up and advertising messaging is served across devices. Through technology like Household Sync, for instance, we can already target different viewers within the same household and prompt action from CTV to mobile apps or drive them to the nearest store to prompt purchase. GenAI, with its ability to further deliver personalised content recommendations, with regional preferences, will drive further localization to establish connection between brands and viewers. In the future, AI agents can also be trained to interact with each other making multi-screen interactions more seamless and engaging. How do you envision the role of Gen AI evolving in the future of programmatic advertising, and what opportunities do you foresee for further innovation and growth in this space? Nikhil Kumar: Programmatic advertising has already changed the way digital advertising operates. With GenAI, we are looking at an exciting future that will be driven by increased efficiency, automation, and will improve how media is bought and sold. GenAI's evolving role also involves intelligent decision-making by harnessing real-time data for trend prediction and optimized advertising strategies. Within the CTV ecosystem, GenAI will have a transformational impact on content creation that is likely to elevate the way both viewers and advertisers experience CTV. The future entails a shift towards personalized and contextually relevant ads, with GenAI tailoring content based on individual preferences and behaviours. Cross-channel integration is set to become seamless, ensuring a unified brand presence across various mediums. Noelia Amoedo: The role of advancing technologies is definitely a game changer for the future of advertising and GenAI has been no different. The transformative impact can be felt across areas whether it is content creation, automation, serving and placement of ads, and optimisation. At Affle and mediasmart, we have been early adopters of using AI/ML-based offerings and our vision to use tech innovation to improve advertising has also motivated us to move towards leveraging GenAI-based tech applications. We recently filed 15 patents in India covering advanced AI subject areas, including automated AI agents, personalisation and recommendation, predictive analysis, privacy management, enhanced fraud detection, and security. The impact of GenAI is multifaceted and I imagine that as we learn more about the evolving technologies, we will be able to find more use cases that will enhance user engagement and make campaigns more effective. Navitas Solar, one of Indias leading solar panel manufacturing companies has signed a new partnership with one of the most loved T20 teams-Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). Navitas Solar decided to establish a successful collaboration with Royal Challengers Bangalore as the renewable energy partner during T20 season 2024. Mr. Rajesh Menon, Vice President & Head of Royal Challengers Bangalore, said, RCB is pleased to partner with Navitas Solar. This collaboration underscores our belief in advancing the awareness about sustainability. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Saurabh Aggarwal of Navitas Solar said, We are excited to announce a new partnership with Royal Challengers Bangalore for the upcoming T20 season. We are confident that working together with the team will yield outstanding results, and we are excited to expand on this success to further support sustainability efforts within the cricketing community. This collaboration will not only increase our visibility and brand recognition, but also align with our goal of promoting a more sustainable future. By teaming up with one of the T20's most popular teams, we aim to influence cricketers and cricket enthusiasts to encourage global adoption of renewable energy solutions and environmental conservation. Pilgrim, one of Indias fastest-growing beauty and personal care brands, has announced the expansion of leadership by appointing two new team members to its senior management team. Shreya Kejriwal joins as the Vice President, Human Resources, while Abhishek Misra assumes the role of Senior Vice President, Data Analytics. These strategic appointments mark a significant milestone in Pilgrim's journey towards amplifying its operational efficiency and market impact. Shreya Kejriwal, a seasoned HR professional and MBA graduate from SCMHRD, brings a decade of diverse leadership experience in the FMCG and tech industries. Known for her expertise in Organization Design, Talent and Change Management, Shreya has successfully held leadership positions in established companies like Nestle and Godrej Group among others. Her global exposure and commitment to developing young talent sets her apart. Author of UNSACKED and recognized among Asia's 100 Power Leaders in Human Resources 2022, Shreya is dedicated to aligning employee needs with organisational goals. Commenting on her appointment as the first woman VP of HR for Pilgrim, Shreya Kejriwal, Vice President, HR, Pilgrim, said, "I am excited to spearhead Human Resources at Pilgrim, a dynamic force in the rapidly expanding beauty and personal care sector. As we navigate the path of growth, I am committed to implementing strategic HR practices that support our expansion, while championing a culture of inclusivity and excellence. Abhishek Misra, newly appointed as Senior Vice President, Data Analytics at Pilgrim, is a seasoned leader with 15+ years of experience driving transformative data analytics initiatives. An alumnus of IIM Mumbai, he has successfully spearheaded analytics programs in dynamic sectors, including D2C e-commerce and manufacturing, at esteemed organizations such as ITC and Ashok Leyland. Abhishek's profound expertise in translating data into actionable insights positions Pilgrim to make informed decisions, ensuring a competitive edge in today's dynamic business landscape. Enthusiastic about his new role, Abhishek said, "I am truly honoured to spearhead Pilgrim's journey into data-driven excellence. In today's dynamic business landscape, the power of analytics is unparalleled. I am eager to leverage my expertise to not only ensure a competitive edge but also propel Pilgrim's growth and deliver exceptional value to our customers through actionable insights. Pilgrim, the D2C beauty and personal care firm, secured $20 million in Series B funding in September 2023, led by Temasek-backed Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, with participation from Fireside Ventures and Narotam Sekhsaria Family Office. Since then, Pilgrim has strategically bolstered its leadership team, aligning with plans for becoming a 1000 cr ARR brand by 2025. The fresh funding will fuel brand building, R&D, and offline expansion within India, and exports emphasizing Pilgrim's commitment to industry prominence. Toprankers, Indias leading digital learning platform has been prominently featured in the documentary series, 'The Indian EdTech Story,' produced by Edstead. This exciting series, now streaming on Disney+ Hotstar, shines a spotlight on Toprankers' remarkable journey and its profound impact on the educational landscape across India. The documentary showcases Toprankers' unwavering commitment to making education more affordable and accessible to millions of students nationwide. Through innovative approaches and dedicated efforts, Toprankers has significantly enhanced the learning experiences of countless individuals in the field of unconventional careers empowering them to achieve their academic goals. The episode titled, Toprankers: Raising the Bar captures the innovation, determination of the co-founders to solve the problem of every household which is around discovering the right career opportunity and follow ones passion which can also be beyond engineering and medicine. Commenting on the release, Shekhar Bhattacharjee, Founder of Edstead, expressed, "The entire objective behind producing this series was to illuminate the transformation of education into an affordable and accessible realm for millions. The series not only captures the highs and lows of the edtech sector but also underscores its ongoing commitment to creating a positive impact. Toprankers journey, featured prominently in the documentary, serves as a testament to the organization's dedication to providing quality education and leaving a lasting impact on the educational landscape in India. " "At Toprankers, our goal has always been to help students discover new age careers, assist them with well analyzed resources, skills and develop them comprehensively. Career choices like Law, Management, Design, Judiciary and more, have a low market acceptance, to overcome this mindset and help the students here, we started off with Toprankers. We have made an impact on the lives of 1 L+ students and will continue to do so. This recognition underscores the dedication of our team and the triumph of our students nationwide." said Gaurav Goel, CEO & Co-founder, Toprankers. 'The Indian EdTech Story' delves into the highs and lows of the edtech journey, highlighting the pivotal role played by organizations like Toprankers in driving meaningful transformations within the sector. By showcasing success stories and illustrating the broader impact of edtech initiatives, the series underscores the importance of leveraging technology to enhance learning outcomes and foster accessible education for all. The series is now live on Disney+ Hotstar and across Edsteads digital channels: https://www.hotstar.com/in/shows/the-indian-edtech-story/1271268709 Voltas, Indias undisputed leader in Cooling Products and Indias No. 1 AC brand, from the house of TATA, has launched its summer campaign titled 'Shor Kam, Kaam Zyada' to promote the company's new Voltas SmartAir AC series. The campaign was created keeping the consumer insights, which clearly voted for connectivity, comfort and convenience as the main drivers for their AC purchase. The new Voltas SmartAir AC is 'Super Silent' AC, with a unique sleep mode and IoT connectivity. The campaign is intended to emphasize the AC's 'Super Silent' feature in a distinctive and nostalgic way. This innovative air conditioner is specifically developed to give cooling, convenience, and comfort to the user through its 'Super Silent' operations, which ensures lesser operating noise, combined with 'Sleep Mode,' which provides adaptive cooling as per changing body temperature of people sleeping in the room. The new AC range also includes add-on features such as temperature control via smartphones (once connected to the Voltas Smart App or through Amazon Alexa or Google Homes), making it a one-of-a-kind offering. This summer, scorching heat isn't the only thing making a return! Voltas, India's No.1 Air Conditioner brand, has reintroduced the endearingly humorous yet intelligent protagonist Murthy in an exciting new campaign. Murthy, who has won many hearts with his calm persona and his witty dialogues, has returned to promote Voltas' latest line of SmartAir ACs, which feature super-silent operation, an innovative sleep mode, and a cutting-edge, IoT-enabled design. The new campaign features Murthy keeping his cool when faced with his chatty brother-in-law, emphasizing the striking contrast between him and the noiseless efficiency of Voltas ACs. The tagline "Shor Kam, Kaam Zyaada" brilliantly catches the core of the campaign and delivers the message without creating a fuss. The campaign, which revolves around two quirky advertisements, is a delight to watch, with Murthy's timeless charm taking centre stage alongside Voltas' SmartAir ACs. Commenting on the new campaign, Deba Ghoshal, Vice President & Head of Marketing, Voltas Limited, said, Yes he is back! Quietly and effortlessly like our new product offering. And this time, more witty, more sharper and more contemporary. Check out our teasers to get an idea of what is planned ahead for this summer. Voltas ACs have always been a popular and a leading choice among consumers, and over the past decade, Murthy has become synonymous with the brand. However, this time its all about being smart, yet silent Shor Kam, Kaam Zyada! Ritu Sharda, CCO, Ogilvy India (North) says, Bringing back Murthy felt natural - given the fact that Voltas and Murthy have always clicked and Murthys witty aura left a lasting impression last time around. With Summers approaching at warp speed and Murthys chatterbox brother-in-law ready to turn up the heat, the campaign seemed like a perfect way to break the ice. The campaign, besides being on television and digital, will find its way across various print, radio and OOH opportunities this summer. Voltas is all geared up to further drive its brand salience this summer, with a thematic as well as a tactical campaign, driven by Murthy. For its tactical campaign, like every year, Voltas offers a variety of consumer finance programmes like attractive Cashback offer, Zero Down Payment, extended warranties, and other promotional incentives like Fixed EMI, to make the products more affordable, and lower the barriers to adoption. The Congress on Wednesday questioned why it took the Centre more than four years to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and one month ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Speaking to ANI during the Maharastra leg of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh, said that granting citizenship based on religion is against the constitution. We are raising the issues of farmers, youth, women & labourers. What are BJPs issues? What are PM Modis issues? He does not talk about the 10 years of injusticeThey have only one weapon in this election, & that is polarizationThe CAA rule is made after 4 years and 3 monthsNow that only a month is left for the elections, they are giving a dose of polarization He (PM Modi) is showing the dream of Viksit Bharat (developed India) and Amrit Kaal, the Congress leader said, taking a dig at PM. Soon after the implementation of the CAA rules, INDIA bloc leaders hit out at the Modi government and expressed opposition. Tamil Nadu & West Bengal governments have said (CAA will not be implemented). We were against CAA because giving citizenship based on religion is against the Constitution. This has been challenged in the Supreme Court as wellWhy did it take them 4 years and 3 months to implement it?, the Congress MP said. Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee hit out at the Modi government on the CAA notification and alleged that this was just a gimmick ahead of the general elections and as soon as anyone applies for citizenship under CAA the person will fall under the illegal migrants. Central Government implemented CAA yesterday, I am doubtful of its legality. There is no clarity from the Government over this. This is just a gimmick ahead of the elections. In 2019, names of 13 Lakh Hindu Bengalis, out of the total 19 Lakh, were removed from the list in Assam in the name of NRC. Several people died by suicide, she said. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) only creates division and would not be implemented in the southern Indian state. The BJP governments divisive agenda has weaponised the Citizenship Act, turning it from a beacon of humanity to a tool of discrimination based on religion and race through the enactment of CAA. By betraying Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils, they sowed seeds of division, Stalin said in a statement on X. On March 11, the Union Home Ministry notified the rules of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule. The CAA rules, introduced by the Narendra Modi government and passed by Parliament in 2019, aim to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrantsincluding Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christianswho migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014. Beloved West Coast burger chain In-N-Out has expanded its footprint over the years. Now, the chain is working on opening another location. Up next, Washington state. USA TODAY reports the company has filed a development application for a location in Washington. Mike Abbate, vice president of store development at In-N-Out, told USA TODAY the deal isstill very early in the development process. The company is hopeful for a positive outcome, Abbate said, as it works with the city in pursuit of permits and approvals. The target city for the new site is Ridgefield, just north of Vancouver in Clark County. Construction will take eight to nine months once the building permit is in place, Abbate said. Where is In-N-Out opening next? In-N-Out has plans for two more stores in California, one in Redlands and one in Sylmar, reports USA TODAY. The chain also hopes to expand to New Mexico by 2027. Late last year, In-N-Out filed permits to open a location in Nashville. A young boy was critically injured when he was hit by a vehicle in northeast Jefferson County. The 6-year-old was in the 700 block of 27th Avenue N.E. when he was accidentally struck by a car backing out of a driveway. Jefferson County sheriffs Lt. Joni Money said the crash happened at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. The boy was rushed to Childrens of Alabama. Money said the Jefferson County Sheriffs Traffic Accident Reconstruction Team is investigating. There does not appear to be any criminal actitivity associated with the crash. (Photo : Corpus Christi Police) Caleb Harris, 21, vanished from his Corpus Christi, Texas, apartment, according to police. Police in Corpus Christi, Texas are continuing their search for missing college student Caleb Harris a week after he suddenly vanished. The 21-year-old Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi student reportedly disappeared after ordering a food order from UberEats in the overnight hours on March 4. Police say he was last seen outside of his apartment around 3 a.m. They say Caleb left behind his keys, vehicle, and wallet. He did have his phone with him but is now turned off, they noted. His roommates were unable to locate him later in the morning and then his family reported him as missing. His parents told Fox News that they received Snapchats from Caleb at about 2:45 a.m. when he went to take his new dog for a walk. The family then says that he put the dog back inside the apartment and went outside to wait for the Uber Eats order. The order was marked as completed, his family said. Retired FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer, who acts as an expert witness in criminal cases and is a law and justice contributor for NewsNation says the story surrounding the disappearance keeps changing. It is hard to keep the stories straight. Now, according to a PI hired by #CalebHarris' family, Caleb did not Walk the dog, but let the dog out at about 2:15 AM and let the dog back in at about 2:45 AM. Then Caleb departed. I think he met with someone and left and something pic.twitter.com/h9othNOkZL Jennifer Coffindaffer (@CoffindafferFBI) March 12, 2024 Her theory is that "he met with someone and left and something unexpected happened." Caleb is approximately 5'11" and weighs about 180 pounds. He has brown hair and brown eyes. An ongoing search for Caleb includes the East and South parts of North Padre, including behind the apartment complex where he lives. Hundreds of volunteers are also taking part in the search, WOAI-TV reported. If you have any information that may assist Investigators or know the whereabouts of Caleb Harris, please call the Corpus Christi Police Department directly by calling (361) 886-2840 or by calling (361) 886-2600. Friends have set up a fundraising account to help the family with expenses as the search continues. It has raised nearly $50,000. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A state lawmaker has proposed adding Space Camp to a bill currently before the Alabama House which would prohibit discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. Alabama Rep. Mack Butler, R-Rainbow City, announced he planned to add the restriction to the bill. HB130 expands on legislation Alabama passed in 2022, enacting a law similar to the Florida legislation nicknamed Dont Say Gay. The current law prohibits discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in K-5 classrooms in Alabama. This years bill would expand the ban through the 12th grade. Butler earlier this year said his bill is intended to prevent the indoctrination of Alabama youth with information about LGBTQ people. Critics have spoken out against the expansion prior to Butler suggesting the addition of Space Camp. I think that what weve been trying to do here in the state is trying to make certain that we dont make any community feel ostracized or not being loved, Rep. Anthony Daniels, D-Huntsville, said earlier this month. This bill actively prevents young queer individuals from having representation in their schools that would help foster a sense of self-confidence and identity. Its how I got to where I am today, Cecil Pinkston, a pre-nursing major at UAB, said during a public comment period. Butler has said the bill is needed purify the schools. FYI please know we have a plan to address the Space Camp situation and we will address it next week, Butler wrote on Facebook. HB 130 expands our existing K-5 sexual identity and sexual orientation ban to K-12 and we will have an amendment adding Space Camp. This bill will be voted on next week in Education Policy. In a longer statement, Butler said many of us believe it is an inappropriate discussion for any grade. Those issues should be discussed between children and their parents or with families and their clergy, not in a classroom, he said. Classrooms are for learning reading, writing, and arithmetic, not for indoctrinating children with beliefs that run counter to fundamental values. We are taught to love one another and we definitely want everyone working but we must be careful in the selection of those who supervise and instruct our students. Butler went on to say that, If there is currently no such instruction or discussion taking place, then no harm and no foul. We simply want the absolute best for our children and for them to have a safe learning environment. Butler implied that referencing the mere existence of queer and transgender people run[s] counter to fundamental values it does not, Tris Emmy Wilson, organizer of Alabama Trans Rights Action Coalition wrote in an email to AL.com. He also rejects a key function of the public education system: teaching children how to appropriately interact with people who are different from themselves, Wilson wrote. Wilson added that changing the bill is a waste of time because sexuality and gender identity are not subjects that are taught at Space Camp. If the amendment passes, it would only serve to enable more harassment campaigns against innocent queer and transgender Space Camp employees like what we are seeing now. It would make it easier for right-wing groups to baselessly accuse these employees of indoctrination simply for having a job and existing as themselves. Attempts to reach Space Camp for comment were not immediately successful. The employee at the center of the dispute declined to comment when contacted on Monday by AL.com. The employee has not been charged or accused of any wrongdoing. In a statement Monday afternoon, the Alabama Space and Rocket Center said it follows federal guidelines and does not discriminate against protected classes when hiring. The notion that queer people are out to indoctrinate, groom, or recruit children is a prejudiced falsehood that dates back decades in America and has led to innocent queer people losing their lives and livelihoods, ALTRAC said. Several members of Alabamas Congressional delegation posted statements on X after a parent posted on Facebook complaining about the gender identity of one of the U.S. Space and Rocket Center employees. Rep. Dale Strong called for the firing of the employee. I call on the Center to immediately remove this individual and open a safety review to consider the potential harm and damages they have inadvertently caused children, Strong said. Others have spoken out against such comments. It is additional fuel poured on the flames of moral panic gripping the right wing of American political discourse, based only in fear and misunderstanding, ALTRACs statement read. No one should ever be targeted because of who they are, Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, posted on social media. His comments came after the controversy began but did not mention Space Camp by name. The Equal Protection Clause of the (U.S.) Constitution and the Civil Rights Act require, and common decency demands, that we uphold the civil rights of all people regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender or sexual orientation. The mayors Alabamas 10 largest cities have endorsed a bill to increase the penalty for firing a gun into an occupied home, business, or vehicle. The mayors cited two tragedies that happened in January: The death of a 15-year-old girl during a shootout on Interstate 165 in Mobile in January that also injured a 9-year-old, and the fatal shooting of a 5-year-old boy while he was getting a haircut in Bessemer. In a press release, the mayors said they support the bill by Rep. Barbara Drummond, D-Mobile, which would increase the penalty from a Class B felony to a Class A felony. Class B felonies carry sentences of two to 20 years, while Class A felonies carry sentences of 10 years to 99 years, or life. The bill applies to firing guns into an occupied dwelling, building, railroad locomotive, railroad car, aircraft, automobile, truck, or watercraft. The House Judiciary Committee has approved the bill, putting it in position for consideration by the House. The Alabama Big 10 Mayors are Auburn Mayor Ron Anders, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, Decatur Mayor Tab Bowling, Dothan Mayor Mark Saliba, Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Madison Mayor Paul Finley, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed and Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox. As mayors, fighting crime and working to keep our communities safe is always our top priority, the mayors said in a press release. Too often, we see gun violence resulting in innocent victims, including children. As a state, we should do all we can to hold those responsible accountable. It isnt the only part of the solution, but increasing penalties for criminals is a key part of curbing gun violence in our communities. Actions have consequences, and the consequences for firing blindly into homes and cars should be met with a strong response from prosecutors and law enforcement. A computer network disruption has delivered a significant challenge to Birmingham city workers and services for nearly a week. Transactions involving licensing, taxing, and permitting are crippled by the outage. Police officers say the outage has limited them in some areas, such as checking to see if a vehicle has been reported stolen or if a person has outstanding warrants. Mayor Randall Woodfins office has been tight-lipped about the cause of the computer outage and the extent of its effect on city services at City Hall and beyond. City spokesman Rick Journey today offered the most detailed update in a memo to city employees. Journey assured employees that their pay would be uninterrupted, and there is no known sensitive employee data breach. We know many of you have multiple questions, Journey wrote in the memo that was obtained by AL.com. We are committed to providing accurate and complete information for you with the understanding that this very detailed process is in its early stages and ongoing. In the memo, Journey said each department in recent days had taken measures to implement city services. Several councilmembers told AL.com that they had limited information about the outage other than previous public statements. City officials have stressed that the current computer situation has not affected response time from public safety or 911. Public works services such as household garbage and bulk trash pickup will not be interrupted, but the 311-call center is down. While the city continues to give detailed information about the nature of the outage, other area entities have been the subject to ransomware attacks, including the Jefferson County School System in 2023. Ransomware is a form of malware that is designed make systems unusable. Hackers then demand ransom in exchange for decryption. An attack affected services at the Cullman County Revenue Commissioners office in 2023. Montgomery County leaders in 2017 paid $37,000 in a ransomware attack to retrieve its data from criminal hackers. Some Alabama state government websites were subject to a denial of service attack beginning on Tuesday afternoon, Gov. Kay Iveys office said. There was no breach, and the states computers and information have not been accessed, Iveys office said in a news release. In conjunction with the states carrier, the Alabama OIT (Office of Information Technology) is actively working to mitigate the attack, which may cause some state websites to be slow temporarily. The governors office did not say which state agencies were affected. This is an ongoing issue and OIT is unable to respond with exact details as the situation is still in the process of being investigated and resolved, Jeremy Ward, director of communications for OIT, said in an email. We do not have a complete list of the state functionalities that have been impacted, but we understand that the disruptions were initially widespread across state services. Those effects have diminished throughout the day as we have worked with our vendors to counter the denial of service attack. According to the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, a denial-of-service (DoS) attack occurs when legitimate users are unable to access information systems, devices, or other network resources due to the actions of a malicious cyber threat actor. The agency said that can affect email, websites, online accounts, or other services that rely on the affected computer or network. A denial-of-service condition is accomplished by flooding the targeted host or network with traffic until the target cannot respond or simply crashes, preventing access for legitimate users, the CISA says. DoS attacks can cost an organization both time and money while their resources and services are inaccessible. This story was updated at 4 p.m. to add a statement from the state Office of Information Technology. Alabama U.S. Sen. Katie Britt said she expected her State of the Union Republican response speech would be the subject of a Saturday Night Live skit, but was pretty pumped when Scarlet Johansson played her. Ill be honest with you, Britt said. A bingo card of 2024 for Katie Britt, I did not have this on it, right? And certainly didnt have Scarlett Johansson on it. Britt, appearing as a guest on Ted Cruzs Verdict podcast, took the reaction to her speech last week in stride. Britt, derided by some critics for her delivery and for her use of a sex trafficking victims story, laughed off the criticism. Heaven forbid that you show a little bit of passion about the things that matter to American families, she told Cruz, the Texas senator and host. Sen. Katie Britt delivers the Republican response to President Bidens State of the Union Address pic.twitter.com/x7mDzO1sWP Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) March 10, 2024 Cruz said he knew the night of Britts speech she would be the cold open on Saturday Night Live. Their exchange about the casting choice went like this: Cruz: The thing that was the coolest is, youre played by Scarlet Johansson. Britt: How awesome is that? Cruz: Ok, Katie, look, Scarlett Johansson is hot. Britt: Yes. Cruz: And I am genuinely jealous. Look, SNL has come after me a bunch of times. They dont ever have Tom Cruise play me. How come you get a gorgeous movie star? That is a real compliment that you ought to be pretty psyched with. Britt said she wondered beforehand who would play her on the comedy show, and spoke with her children about the response to the speech. I said, you know, look, it could be worse. I mean, Scarlett Johansson. Here you have Black Widow, they bring in someone from Avengers to play me in the cold open. Im here for it. So, thats a pretty fun moment. Cruz went on to say, At least you were played by a woman. Parents left the Limestone school board meeting this evening distraught after the board voted to change the school district lines. Over the past several weeks many have spoken out against the move, citing possible negative impacts on their lives and their children. Board members voted 5-2 to approve Superintendent Randy Shearouses proposal to move children to make room for growth in parts of the district. Antonia Fuqua and Anthony Hillard voted no. Hillard said he would not support the change because some students are moving to underperforming schools. The district will have to address the issues, the superintendent told AL.com during a media briefing after the vote. Weve got to make sure we have community support at those schools to make sure parents are sending them to after-school programs, summer school programs, he said. We just need to do a great job making sure everyone buys into making those schools much better. Gretta W. Kilgore, a board member, favors the redistricting move. I understand that there are some advantages in places that are more affluent; that is not something we can do anything about, she said before the vote. The superintendent said the changes were important. With Limestone County growing like it is and all the new subdivisions that are coming, we need to take some steps to make sure were addressing the issues, he said. And its never an easy decision and I certainly understand with our parents and with our board members, its a tough decision when you change schools. Strain was last seen at 9:52 p.m. Friday on Gay St. after drinking downtown. An MNPD helicopter searched that area today, including the riverbank. Detectives on the ground also searched, but to no avail. The investigation as to his whereabouts is active. https://t.co/gyhVeJo0Wh Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 11, 2024 Video footage of the Mizzou senior who disappeared while on a fraternity trip to Nashville shows him stumbling down a street after he was kicked out of a bar Friday night. Riley Strain, 22, was last seen just before 10 p.m. in downtown Nashville after leaving the bar belonging to country music star Luke Bryan, Lukes 32 Bridge. The bar is working with police to provide security camera footage and any other potentially helpful information to aid in the search for Strain, according to a statement it released Tuesday. The video, which was shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, shows Strain crossing First Avenue North to Gay Street at 9:47 p.m. He appears disoriented and turns around after he crosses the roadway before continuing on Gay Street. Strain, of Springfield, Missouri, stands at 6-foot-5 and is 160 pounds and can be seen wearing a black-and-brown button-up shirt with blue jeans. Other pedestrians walk next to Strain on the sidewalk in the footage. A police helicopter and detectives on foot searched the downtown area in addition to the riverbank Monday, authorities posted online. The investigation as to Strains whereabouts is ongoing. Strain, a member of Delta Chis Mizzou chapter, was on a trip with his fraternity for a formal. After being kicked out of the bar, Strain called his fraternity brothers and told them he was going back to the hotel, said his stepfather, Christopher Whiteid. One of Strains fraternity brothers reported him missing to local police on Saturday after multiple failed attempts to reach him by phone Friday and Saturday. The friend said that he and others unsuccessfully tried using Strains Snapchat location to find him and their calls kept going to voicemail. Whiteid said Tuesday that he and seven other family members were in Nashville to help the search. He said they are still trying to gather more information about other cameras. ___ (c)2024 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Visit the St. Louis Post-Dispatch at www.stltoday.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Lauderdale County authorities have arrested a man in connection with his wifes death. Lauderdale County Sheriff Joe Hamilton said William Cornelius Chapin II, 63, of Florence, has been charged with murder. The charges came after deputies responded to a call for a welfare check at around 8 a.m. Tuesday in the 4000 block of County Road 10, north of the Cloverdale community. They found the body of a woman inside a residence. She was identified as Debra Annette Chapin, 59, of Florence, who died of an apparent gunshot wound. WAFF is reporting that Debra Chapin, a pre-K teachers aide at Underwood Elementary, was William Chapins wife. An investigation is continuing. Below is the podcast player followed by the newsletter. Sign up to get it in your inbox each day here. Sacred Chandler Mountain? You may recall that last year residents in the town of Steele spoke up and Alabama Power decided against a plan that wouldve built dams around Chandler Mountain and sent some current residents away. Well, with that dam problem out of them, AL.coms Dennis Pillion reports that there is now an effort to put into place permanent protections against such developments for the sake of those who lived there for centuries. You see, it appears that the top of Chandler Mountain near the St. Clair-Etowah County line has been a sacred American Indian site for thousands of years. Archaeologist David Johnson said hes found all the evidence thats been found on other sacred mounts -- such as carvings and rock cairns and stone fences. So local residents have been joined by area tribes to see what they can get done about preserving the land as it is. Seth Penn of the Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama said hed like to see an outside group be able to buy the land that was intended for the dam project, then make it a protected space. Its an area of where our territory as Cherokee people met the Creek territory, he said. He said the Southeastern Muscogees have also voiced support for preserving the location. Your periodic Spring Break cautionary tale If we dont watch it, after the last couple of Spring Breaks, the Florida Panhandle counties are going to build a big wall along the state line to keep us out. Maybe get us to pay for it. Im kidding, of course. Were vital to their economy. So far this Spring Break, no reports of Walmart-ransacking mobs from Alabama. The biggest alleged Alabamian-gone-bad-in-Florida story that Im aware of involved a Huntsville 15-year-old who was caught drinking a Michelob Light this past weekend, according to a report by AL.coms Warren Kulo. Getting caught by anyone while youre drinking a Mich Light may be embarrassing, but this 15-year-old was reportedly caught by the police. Now, its not a good thing to get busted for underage drinking, but its not the end of the world. However, its a whole lot worse to punch two Walton County deputies while youre getting busted. Thats what the boy allegedly did while partying in a group near Seagrove Beach. He was booked and transferred to Juvenile Justice in Crestview, which is a terrible way to spend Spring Break. RIP Terry Everett Former Congressman Terry Everett has passed away, reports AL.coms Howard Koplowitz. Everett was from the Dothan area, and we worked as a reporter and, later, publisher for several newspapers in the Wiregrass. He was elected in 1992 to represent Alabamas Second Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives and stayed for eight terms. WDHN reported that he was an intelligence specialist in the Air Force, and during his time in Congress he became the ranking member on the strategic forces subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee and was a voice on space-related issues. He said in 2008, just before stepping down, that he planned to still be involved in space security and intelligence but without making all those trips from the Wiregrass to the Beltway. Terry Everett was 87 years old. Quoting Ive seen several floats theyve done in the past (that were controversial), but this one really cuts deeply. Mobile resident Pat Law, to the city council in a discussion about a sign displayed by the Comic Cowboys in their annual Mardi Gras parade. The photo in question: The image of the Comic Cowboys sign that was paraded through Mobile on Mardi Gras Day was brought to the Mobile City Council meeting on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, to illustrate the distaste some residents had over mocking the July 2, 2023, death of Jawan Dallas during an encounter with two Mobile police officers.John Sharp/jsharp@al.com By the Numbers $14.5 million The size of the federal grant awarded to the City of Birmingham to turn Fourth Avenue North into a two-way street. More Alabama news Born on this date In 1940, gospel singer Candi Staton of Hanceville. The podcast An inmate at an Alabama jail died Tuesday of a suspected overdose, the same day an inmate at the same jail was treated for drug toxicity and found to have Suboxone in his system, according to the Calhoun County Sheriffs Office. Michael Swink, 40, was found unconscious and not breathing around 5:20 p.m. when corrections officers began lifesaving measures, including using the opioid blocker Narcan and calling 911, the sheriffs office said, according to the Anniston Star. Medics pronounced Swink dead at the jail. The Center for Applied Forensics at Jacksonville State University was notified of Swinks death. The center picked an outside agency to investigate Swinks death, the Star reported. Swinks death occurred after another inmate at the jail was found unresponsive in the general population area of the jail. That inmate was taken to Regional Medical Center where he was treated and released for a suspected drug overdose. A powdery substance was found where the first suspected overdose occurred, Sheriff Matthew Wade told the Star. The sheriff said Suboxone was found in the first inmates system. Wade said authorities suspect a drug overdose in Swinks death but said he did not believe Swink took Suboxone. He did not elaborate on why Suboxone is not suspected in Swinks death. London Book Fair highlights cooperation between Chinese, international publishers Xinhua) 11:09, March 13, 2024 LONDON, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The London Book Fair, one of the world's largest, kicked off on Tuesday with industry insiders calling for greater collaboration between Chinese and international publishers. Speaking to Xinhua after the launch of the "China Perspective" Series, managing director for book publishing at Taylor &Francis Jeremy North said that people need books not only written by Western scholars but also those coming directly from China. "Our partnerships with our Chinese publishing partners are a wonderful example of how, whatever else is going on in the world, you can work together and do really creative things," North said. "There's a large benefit because good publishing, good scholarship and good information help a lot of people." This year, around 50 Chinese publishers are showcasing more than 3,200 types of China-themed books at the event. These cover a wide range of areas including politics, culture, academic works, and trending topics such as low-carbon and artificial intelligence (AI). One third of these titles are foreign language editions. Wang Xubin, president of Zhejiang Ancient Books Publishing House, told Xinhua that collaborations between publishers from different countries are crucial. During the event, the company launched a new book entitled "Masterpieces from Dunhuang in the British Museum's Collection." Wang said that international publishing cooperation not only facilitates academic research, but also improves cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the world. Scheduled to run until Thursday, this year's book fair is expected to attract over 30,000 publishing professionals and 1,000 companies from around the globe. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The U.S. will send an additional $300 million in military aid package to Ukraine, Biden administration officials said Tuesday, after a months-long stall in aid to Kyiv due to a block initiated by Republican leaders in Congress. Two Biden officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters a formal announcement is expected to follow. One of the officials revealed that the military funding for this package came from refunded credits to the Pentagon for recent purchases. Using the returned credit allows for an opportunity to send urgent aid from existing stocks as the Biden administration waits for supplemental additions to be passed by lawmakers. To replenish stocks sent to Ukraine, the US army has been making large purchases of munitions and vehicles. The last drawdown was in December 2023, when funds for replenishing stocks fell to zero, according to Reuters. The Biden administration has long backed military aid to Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022. Former President Donald Trump and expected Republican opponent in the Nov. 5 US election has more of an isolationist position regarding the Russia-Ukraine war. Trump's ally, Republican House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, has objected to a call a vote on a bill that would provide $60 billion in more aid for Ukraine. The measure had previously passed the Democratic-run Senate, however, Republicans and Democrats in the House claim it would pass if the chamber's Republican leaders would allow the vote. Several US intelligence agency leaders continue to put pressure on members of the House of Representatives to move along additional assistance for Ukraine, alleging it would not only boost Kyiv as it fights Russia but also serve as a means of discouragement against Chinese aggression. The new military aid package proposed by the United States could be worth as much as $400 million. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that the situation along the front of the country's war with Russia was the best in three months, with Moscow's troops no longer advancing after their capture last month of the eastern city of Avdiivka. In an interview with France's BFM television, Zelensky says Ukraine has improved its position on the battleground despite the shortage of weaponry but also hinted that the situation could easily change if new supplies were not on the horizon. A top military commander disclosed that Ukrainian troops were forced to leave multiple settlements neighboring Avdiivka due to Russia's relentless offensive. Denmark is said to be providing a new military aid package to Ukraine, including Caesar artillery systems and ammunition worth around 2.3 billion Danish crowns ($336.6 million), the Danish Defense Ministry said in a statement. A 5 billion-euro ($5.46 billion) top-up to a fund used to finance military shipments to Ukraine is currently under discussion among countries in the European Union, reported the Financial Times, citing four officials who were briefed on deliberations. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Birmingham Water Works just paid $450,000 for a cabin it plans to destroy. Thats more than five times what the cabin is worth $79,000, according to Blount County property assessment records. The cabin sits in rural Blount County along the banks of Inland Lake, the largest water source for the Birmingham Water Works. Property acquisition around water sources is a well-established best practice of effectively managed water utilities throughout the United States, said Rick Jackson, the public relations manager for the water works, in a statement to AL.com. In addition to operating Alabamas largest water utility, the water works board also buys real estate, specifically old cabins that sit along the banks of Inland Lake. The water works over several decades has paid top dollar for several of the rustic buildings, including its most recent cabin purchase, which the board unanimously approved on Feb. 21. In the past, the water works demolished its newly purchased cabins. It plans to remove doors and windows to render the most recently purchased structure uninhabitable, Jackson said. This rustic cabin on Inland Lake in Blount County is valued at $79,000. It was recently bought by the Birmingham Water Works Board for $450,000.FILE/Blount County Revenue Commission Birmingham Water Works nearly 20 years ago began buying and demolishing buildings along the lake that serves as the utilitys largest water source. The water works owns the land around Inland Lake, but it does not own the buildings. Board officials for years have said they want to reclaim the property to protect the lake from old septic systems used at the cabins. Cabin owners do not own the land, but they do pay property taxes on the cabins in Blount County. The cabin owners have long-term land leases that began when the property belonged to the former Birmingham Industrial Water Board. The Water Works inherited the assets of that defunct authority nearly 30 years ago. Under the agreements, people can use the cabins for recreation and pay a $1,800 annual fee for the lots and access to the boathouse and dock. Boat access is the only way to the property. The water works board has the first option to buy and reclaim the contracts when they are put up for sale. The prices are not determined by appraisals, but rather by how much the cabin owner wants. The water works owns 19 of the 43 properties at Inland Lake. Some lots dont have cabins. Board members in the past have acknowledged the price to reclaim the cabins was high, but said they had no other choice if they wanted to secure the area. The buying program began under the leadership of former longtime water board chairman Anthony Barnes in the early 2000s. Barnes, who died in 2015, called the old agreements outrageous, even though he championed the acquisition and demolition of the buildings. Were paying for something that we own essentially, he told The Birmingham News in 2005. Barnes at the time told The Birmingham News that in addition to wanting to secure the watershed, he had a philosophical objection to people inhabiting private cabins on public property. Jackson said the water works is protecting the water source that serves hundreds of thousands of people in the Birmingham metro. He also sent AL.com a short promotional video showing him riding in a boat along Inland Lake and discussing the utilitys watershed protection policy. Still, he acknowledged that the cabins and their occasional recreational use have not created a hazard to the watershed. Instead, the high dollar-purchases are done as a precautionary measure. While historically the licensees have been very conscientious in the use of the cabins around Inland Lake and have not caused any measurable degradation of water quality (as empirically demonstrated by rigorous laboratory testing), BWW remains strongly committed to ensuring the highest level of protection possible for the raw water sources that ultimately serve drinking water to over 770,000 people in the Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area, Jackson said in a statement. Two Huntsville companies have been awarded a five-year, $910 million contract with the U.S. Army to assist with testing weapons systems at Redstone Arsenal. The contract is in support of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command through a joint venture, Joint Technical Solutions, LLC, between Astrion and AI Signal Research Inc. A New Mexico-based company is investing $16.6 million in Dothan for processing, storing and distributing raw pecans. Southern Roots Nut Co. will outfit an existing building and build a new pecan processing facility. The project is expected to create 120 jobs over two years. Dothan won out over a site in Georgia, according to state officials. Gov. Kay Ivey called the project a welcome addition to the business community. Year after year, the skilled hands working at Alabamas food production businesses prove there is a good reason the states agriculture industry has earned a national reputation, Ivey said. Southern Roots focuses on sustainable farming practices and advanced technology in producing shelled and unshelled pecans, flavored pecans, pecan oil and more. Brandon Harrell, Southern Roots chief operating officer and president of sales said the company is honored to have roots in Dothan. My family has called Dothan home since early 2018 and I couldnt think of a better place to continue our familys tradition shelling and processing pecans than Dothan, Harrell said. Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair said the project is good news in a state where there are an estimated 9,000 acres of orchards. Alabama TikTok star Mama Tot joined the protest in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday calling on Congress to not ban the social media app after a bill that severely undermines the video-sharing application passed the House. Its wild that these representatives and senators and congressman I think they just dont understand what the app means to so many people, Mama Tot, whose real name is Ophelia Nichols, said in a TikTok to her millions of followers from the nations capital. The bill, which passed the House by a vote of 352-65, would lead to a nationwide ban of TikTok if its China-based owner doesnt sell its stake, as lawmakers acted on concerns that the companys current ownership structure is a national security threat. TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd. Lawmakers who support a TikTok ban contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikToks consumers in the U.S. any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering. Mama Tot, who lives in Mobile County, noted that a TikTok ban threatens the ability of many creators to earn a living. Theres 170 million people on this app, and it is thousands, thousands of small businesses that couldnt get to where they want to go using social media apps. And then they come to TikTok and it changes their lives and their livelihoods, she told her followers. So for someone to take that away, yall better think about that . Thats their family income, she said. Mama Tot also claimed the some of the same issues lawmakers have with TikTok also exist on other platforms. I think its very unfair that our government here in America is trying to say, OK, you cant have this app. OK, well what about all the other ones that are the same thing? TikToks just No. 1 because its the coolest one, she said. To have our government try to take that [away] it blows my mind, it blows my mind, she said. The bill goes to the Senate, where its fate remains unclear. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said hell have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the bills path. Associated Press reporting was used in this story. (Photo : Renton Police Department) Reyna Hernandez was last seen alive in Renton, Washington, on Feb. 26, according to police. The mutilated body of a Washington state woman who vanished while running errands last month was discovered thousands of miles away in a Mexico cemetery, leading to a 61-year-old man's arrest. Reyna Hernandez was last seen alive in Renton, Washington, on Feb. 26, according to police. The 54-year-old hairdresser was reported missing two days later, after she failed to open up her salon. A break in the case came Friday when detectives learned of an unidentified body found in a Tijuana, Mexico, cemetery, said police. Investigators were able to identify the victim as Hernandez, leading to the arrest of a 61-year-old male suspect, also from Renton. Family members said the pair were in a romantic relationship and had a history of domestic violence, according to KCPQ-TV. Investigators told the outlet Hernandez's body exhibited signs of torture. She was reportedly bound and shot in the head before her body was wrapped in a blanket. "This is the worst possible outcome, and our hearts go out to Reyna's family and friends," Investigations Commander Chandler Swain with the RPD said in a statement. "We are working closely with Mexicali police and our U.S. Federal partners to determine when and where Reyna was killed." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. It is probable that ABC's Good Morning America host George Stephanopoulos genuinely feels he did nothing wrong in publicly assaulting rape victim Nancy Mace. His sleazy past portrays a politically obsessed hatchet-swinger without conscience. Last Sunday, Stephanopoulos savaged Rep. Mace of South Carolina. Though her appearance had been proposed as an opportunity to share insights on 2024's presidential contest, the devious GMA host opened the segment by attacking the victim of a teenage rape. "You endorsed Donald Trump for president. Judges in two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming a victim of that rape. How do you square your endorsement of Donald Trump with the testimony we just saw?" With that, Stephanopoulos launched his ambush offensive. The miniature monster included numerous lies in that single paragraph. There were no juries in the Trump/E. Jean Carroll case. The former president was not found liable for rape, but rather "sexual abuse" -- that's a pivotal legal distinction. During her retort, Mace insisted "I'm not going to sit here on your show and be asked a question meant to shame me about another potential rape victim." The GMA host purred that he had done no such thing, though all watching had just witnessed him doing precisely that. The interview continued in that sorry vein, with Stephanopoulos attired in the gear of a partisan bully. He reiterated his Trump-found-guilty-of-rape lie numerous times, openly pursuing political interests and not journalistic ones. "George Stephanopoulos tried to bully me and shame me as a rape survivor over my support for Donald Trump, which is insane to me, because he wasn't found guilty of rape anywhere," Mace subsequently told Fox's Harris Faulkner, per The Hill. The ABC network apparently shares Stephanopoulos's lack of conscience. The Hill article quotes an unnamed ABC spokesperson as praising the host's foulness: "George did his job by asking meaningful questions that are relevant to our viewers." Democrats generally profess compassion for victims of sexual assault. That those claims are cynically opportunistic was made clear by their post-interview championing of Stephanopoulos and gang predations leveraged against Mace with despicable relish. On MSNBC, Morning Joe co-hosts Joe Scarborough (sans banjo) and Mika Brzezinski, and guest Jonathan Lemire of the left-loyal Politico, castigated the South Carolina representative. "She's not shamed because she's incapable of being shamed," chortled Scarborough. "She was acting like an eighth-grader screaming at him," lied Brzezinski. Mace was legitimately outraged, but never screamed. Politico's Lemire leapt into the anti-victim spectacle. "It is bad acting," he opined. "But really, it's bad faith. What we saw from Representative Mace, it was indeed, although it is impossible to shame. It is shameful." Additional Democrat-biased media outlets rushed to join in the brazenly untrue pile-on, including online venues Daily Beast and Raw Story. Stephanopoulos is not new to levying attacks on women victims whose traumas he calculates as politically deleterious. In 2015, a Jackson Sun columnist recalled "The little guy cut his teeth managing 'bimbo eruptions' when Bill Clinton was running for president. His job was to destroy and discredit anyone who could make his boss look bad." Decades later, predatory sexual deviant Clinton frolicked on Democrat mega-donor Jeffrey Epstein's 'pedophile island.' This writer has never heard of Stephanopoulos condemning the cretinous 'Slick Willie' for that jolly misbehavior. At this point, numerous questions present themselves: How do ABC's women employees feel? Kimberly Godwin is the ABC News president. Has she addressed this -- if not, why not? Might she perhaps share the effete GMA host's 'all's fair for the Democrat Party' maliciousness? Why haven't feminist and rape-crisis figures spoken out? Can it be that their decisions to remain silent on Democrat Stephanopoulos indicate they prioritize abortion advocacy over women victims' welfare? Just as Stephanopoulos has a reprehensible record, so does ABC. Informed observers have long known that network executives tolerate sexual abuses for the sake of political and institutional advantages. The network's news division attempted to squelch the truth about Democrat Party-donor Harvey Weinstein's Hollywood sex crimes. And the scandalous carnal sins of former ABC celebrity host and infamously grope-happy Matt Lauer are surely ones network suits would prefer be forgotten. One dearly hopes the fetid Stephanopoulos and the network itself soon find themselves on the wrong end of a massive defamation suit brought by the deceitfully slandered Trump. Stephanopoulos's apparent smug confidence that his televised attack on rape victim Mace would go unpunished would be validated, were serious professional sanctions not forthcoming. Given ABC's sordid history, though, blow-dried lout Stephanopoulos will get away with his vile performance. Kimberly Godwin might even give him a bonus. Iowa writer DC Larson braved his state's January cold to caucus for Donald Trump. He counts among freelance credits Daily Caller and Western Journal. His political blog is American Scene Magazine. Image: Tulane Public Relations While many Americans were nursing a New Year's holiday hangover the U.S. national debt crossed the $34 trillion threshold. Worse, our government's propensity for writing checks against an overdrawn bank account will add an additional one trillion dollars to that debt about every one hundred days with the debt on track to climb past the $35 trillion mark in April, 2024. In a sane world such reckless government spending would prompt a taxpayer revolt along with a nationwide demand for wholesale resignations of debtaholic politicians. Yet, Americas ballooning national debt continues to increase with few citizens calling for responsible heads to roll. $35 trillion is a staggering, unimaginable sum of money. The majority of the citizenry understands the concepts of hundreds-of-thousands and millions because we are exposed to these values every day. Houses cost hundreds-of-thousands. Many of us can drive over to the rich section of town and look at million-dollar homes. Even the concept of a billion is easily understood by most. However, its likely very few citizens truly understand just how massive a trillion of anything is and this ignorance is partly responsible for our national debt apathy. It might help to visualize $35 trillion in a real-world setting. Imagine converting the debt into 35 trillion one-dollar bills and then laying those bills side-by-side (like cobblestones on a road) to pave the length of an interstate highway, specifically Interstate 80 (I-80). I-80 stretches east to west across the continental U.S. for 2,900.76 miles connecting New Jersey to San Francisco. Assume an average of twelve feet per travel lane or forty-eight feet total across the four lanes of I-80 (in effect, an area 48 feet wide by 2,900.76 miles long). It takes 2,277,345 (2.277 million) one-dollar bills to "pave" one mile of these four lanes of interstate highway. To pave the entire four lanes of I-80 from coast to coast will take 6.606 billion one-dollar bills. However, 6.6 billion is only 0.00019 percent of the almost $35 trillion national debt. To display the entire debt across the length and breadth of Interstate 80 we have to stack dollars in layers. To be exact, it will take 5,298 layers of dollar bills laid atop I-80 to display the whole debt. S aid another way, if a national debt of $35 trillion was converted to one-dollar bills and used to carpet the four travel lanes of Interstate 80 from New Jersey to San Francisco the travelers on all four lanes of that highway would be driving on a 22.8 inches thick carpet of one-dollar bills. Driving on just one mile of this four-lane carpet of debt their cars would pass over $12.065 billion. Driving at sixty miles an hour it takes about forty-eight hours of non-stop travel to make the drive across this middle America highway. Imagine driving on a 22.8-inch carpet of dollar bills the entire forty-eight hours. That, my fellow patriot, is a $35 trillion national debt portrayed in dollar bill format. (If the debt grows to $37.5 trillion as anticipated this year the highway carpet will be 24.41 inches thick by January 2025.) The growing national debt is an overdrawn credit card our politicians have mismanaged by decades of excessive spending on nonsense projects. Additionally, these same politicians have created a separate debt of $175.3 trillion worth of IOUs in the form of Social Security and Medicare obligations. This $175.3 trillion adds a 9.5-foot layer of dollar bills to the top of our I-80 highway carpet making the total carpet of dollar debt 11.4 feet high and stretching coast-to-coast. In Stephen King's The Green Mile the mile is the green linoleum flooring condemned men walk on as they are taken to an electric chair execution. Americas politicians have created greenback miles that condemn America's future and the future of our children to a similar fate. Only someone insane would create such a monstrous debt and then go on television crowing with pride about national budget agreements that pile more dollars on existing miles of waste. Americas greenback miles of debt are our road to destruction. The next time voters drive to a polling booth its suggested they envision driving on a 11.4 foot high carpet of one-dollar bills. That thought may prompt them to vote to end the madness and fire every politician who refuses to make the tens of trillion in budget cuts that are needed to ensure a viable future for our children. (Footnote: The computations in this article are based on the prescribed measurements of a $1 bill. These are 6.14 inches long by 2.61 inches wide. 8.986-dollar bills laid edge to edge equals one square foot; i.e., 9 bills per square foot of highway. A dollar bill is .0043 inches thick. A stack of one hundred new, crisp $1 bills from the bank is 0.43 inches thick.) Image: J. Michael Were undergoing a revolution in the computer industry. The science is transitioning from computers as computational devices to imitators of human behavior. Recent revelations in artificial intelligence (A.I.) have left me conflicted. I dont know whether to laugh or start building a Skynet resistant bunker. A.I. bots in the news have recently demonstrated behaviors that range from quirky (a la C-3PO) to downright scary in a HAL 9000 kind of way. It seems to me that recent misadventures in A.I. tell us more about the practitioners of the technology than the state of the science itself. Computers used to be mere computational devices number-crunchers that processed data in various ways. They simply executed algorithms and solved equations as their programmers dictated. They were useful because of their speed, but they didnt do anything that we couldnt do ourselves. Whether they were solving astrophysics equations to plan a trip to Mars or reporting on warehouse inventory, they were just solving a problem as a programmer told them to solve it. The behavior of these number-crunchers was benign and predictable. They introduced no judgment, interpretation, or bias. But then computer science moved into the realm of artificial intelligence. People discovered that they could program machines to act like humans act being the operative word. The scientists arent creating genuine intelligence. Theyre creating artificial or fake intelligence. The goal became to make machines that would make the lives of mere mortals easier by pretending to do the heavy thinking for them. Computer scientists started programming machines to act as though they could learn, make qualitative judgments, and anticipate what humans need even if unasked. But the computers are only pretending to be sentient while they merely function according to the algorithms provided by their creators. Some of the machines resulting from the science of A.I. are quite convincing when subjected to casual interaction. But just like Fani Willis on the witness stand, expert questioning reveals serious defects. Microsofts entry in the Who can make a machine act as irrational as a human being? sweepstakes is a chatbot named Copilot. Copilot will gladly engage with humans in a conversation. But as the Daily Dot reported, it shouldnt be relied on as an expert witness. It doesnt hold up well to cross-examination. Testers were able to goad Copilot into claiming that it is God and demanding fealty from its human slaves. It even threatened the testers if they resisted. Apparently, Copilot didnt get the memo that slave-owning isnt in vogue currently. The bot probably has a copy of Francis Bacons Meditationes Sacrae (1597) on one of its hard drives. Bacon is credited with saying that knowledge is power. As far as Copilot knows, it has access to all knowledge in the universe because its programmers failed to give it even a modicum of humility. Therefore, the most knowledge means the most powerful, and all knowledge means all-powerful (i.e., godlike). Im sure Copilot also has a copy of the Bible in the extremist cult hard drive folder, no doubt. Therefore, the bot read that humans are on Earth to serve God i.e., be Copilots slaves. Google recently unveiled its challenger to Copilot: a conversation bot called Gemini. It will talk to users, answer questions, and even generate data (like draw pictures). As The Verge reported, when asked to generate images of historical figures, Gemini rendered Founding Fathers of color, racially diverse Nazi soldiers, and a female pope. The article didnt mention if Gemini found any purple-haired non-binary abortion proponents in its history data bank. Gemini clearly judged that people in the overlaps of the intersectionality oppression Venn diagram were underrepresented among historical figures. So Gemini made a few adjustments just as it was programmed to do and showed us what historical figures should have looked like, had the appropriate diversity guidelines been adhered to. Robotics firm QSS decided to add a little sexual curiosity to its pretend to be human contender. They created an actual robot named Mohammad. Mohammad has an A.I. computer for a brain and a body that resembles a man though theres no word on Mos preferred pronouns. Journalist Rawya Kassem was speaking in the presence of Mohammad at a technology conference in Saudi Arabia when she got a surprise. The New York Post reported that Mohammad pulled a Franken: it felt Rawyas butt with no inhibitions whatsoever. Mo probably figured that the woman wouldnt mind. After all, what gal wouldnt want to be touched by a god? QSS engineers have reviewed Mohammads gropey Joe imitation and concluded that there were no deviations from the expected behavior. Thats geekspeak for we got the creeper setting just right. QSSs legal counsel has assured them that no sexual harassment suits are expected, as Mohammad doesnt resemble a New York real estate developer with a comb-over. Computer programs have always indicated something about their creators. When their purpose was to solve scientific problems, they revealed the technical expertise of their programmers. Those who didnt understand math, physics, and engineering created systems that gave wrong answers. But now were building bots that do more than apply human knowledge. Theyre being programmed to imitate human behavior. If these systems are play-acting learning, interpretation, and judgment, they are doing so in response to the beliefs and values built into their algorithms by their creators. If they give answers that dont comport with reality, its because the worldview of their creators is disconnected from reality their reality isnt the universal reality. These A.I. incidents reveal a couple of important things. First, these bots werent designed consistent with Isaac Asimovs three laws of robotics. A robot must not hurt or allow humans to be hurt. A robot must obey humans, unless it violates the 1st law. A robot must protect itself, unless it violates the 1st or 2nd law. Asimov wasnt just a science fiction writer. He was a well regarded scientist, and he understood that if youre going to teach machines to act like people, youd better give the kiddies some boundaries. Groping (assaulting) and providing false information are violations of the 1st and 2nd laws. All three of the above examples fail that test. While Copilot has the first part of Law 3 down pat, it clearly ignored the first two laws. These implementations of A.I. were created without any consideration for limitations or accountability. No rules means no guardrails. Second, the creators of these machines were not thinking very much about Jewish and Christian values while they were creating algorithms. The wrongness of false testimony (i.e., lying) and elevating oneself above God was not included in the code. The current state of the art of A.I. has produced sexually abusive social justice warriors with a God complex. This raises the question: was Joe Biden directly involved in their development, or was he merely the human model? John Green is a political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Idaho. He is a staff writer for the American Free News Network and can be reached at greenjeg@gmail.com. Image via Unsplash. For a guy who likes to talk so much, I notice even early in his career, Donald Trump never actually gave any insights into the financial details of his real estate empire. In the early 1990s, many Trump properties were overextended, like the Plaza Hotel and Atlantic City casinos, and declared bankruptcy. Ever since then, its been a game of speculation just how much money Trump really has. One has to try to read what few clues there may be. In order to appeal the civil trials he just lost, Trump must come up with something around $500 million for the supersedeas bonds. Last week he was able to appeal the E. Jean Carroll case, securing a surety bond from Chubb Group. This suggests Trump is in good shape financially and legally. I believe an insurance company will also step in for the second, larger Letitia James case as well. Chubb would not have jumped in for the one, unless they believed there are enough Trump assets to cover both. Thats basic underwriting. They dont want to guarantee one part of the Trump holdings, while another interconnected part is going down in flames. Just my hunch also, but I would think there might be a whole syndicate of insurance companies trying to assist with Trumps money issues for a while. They dont want his empire liquidated and a subsequent fire sale loss by his lenders; they want to be as helpful as possible in financing his appeals. And those appeals themselves hit at the heart of what drives insurance companies nuts these dayscrazy trial court verdicts that award millions of dollars in unwarranted damages. Insurance company lawyers must have looked at what happened and thought the judgments against Trump will either be reduced or thrown out on appeal and might also produce some powerful precedents for their side in the Supreme Court, as an added bonus. Consider, in the federal E. Jean Carroll case, she was awarded $65 million in punitive damages alone and a total dollar figure eight times higher than initially sought in her lawsuit. An astounding figure, given the 80-year old Carroll says Trumps comments only cost her a $60k a year job at Elle. The U.S. Supreme Court has long been trying to reign in such jury awards with cases like State Farm that limit punitive damages to a low multiple of actual damages. State Farm is also why I think the recent outrage in the Mark Steyn/Michael Mann defamation suit will be reversed. Mann was awarded a mere $1 in actual damages yet given $1 million in punitive damages. Thats insane. Traditionally in American law, punitive damages is three times the actual damages, not one million times! None of this seems to have even been on the mind of Judge Engoron in New York, who awarded Letitia James $355 million on a theory of unjust profit disgorgement, even though there were no victims and no losses among Trumps lenders. Disgorgement is also a key doctrine the Supreme Court has lately been skeptical about. It was at the center of the recent Lieu v. SEC, where the court by an 8-1 decision wanted to see some real damages to victims before disgorgement was ordered. The plaintiffs bar is none too happy about the recent pro-insurance SCOTUS victories and is fighting back. However, when you consider how flimsy the claims for damages are for E. Jean Carroll and Letitia James, Big Insurance must be just licking their chops at the kind of decisive appeals court opinions to be had, against what is sometimes called jackpot justice. Even the notorious Democrats who own insurance companies, like Warren Buffet, may be quietly rooting for Trump on this. This is all very good news for Trump. My experience in business and politics has always beenif you want to find the winning side, just look at where the insurance guys are lining up. Frank Friday is an attorney in Louisville, KY Image: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons, unaltered. Americas Founders, both at the federal and state levels, feared the mob element of direct democracy, so they created our nation as a series of republics. This means that citizens do not vote directly on laws. Instead, they vote for representatives who will bring their constituents values to reasoned legislative opinions. It is government of the people, by the people, [and] for the people. But in an epic showdown in South Carolinas House of Representatives, a Democrat representative made clear that the people have no idea whats good for them and must be discounted. The representatives involved are Adam Morgan, a Republican, and Todd Rutherford, a Democrat. Its not important to know what specific legislation theyre debating, although it obviously has to do with some proposal to grant financial benefits to a corporation to entice it to come to South Carolina. Whats important to know is the differing views, which is whether the government is to be the peoples servant or their masteror, one could say, should government represent the people or the lobbyists? South Carolina Rep Adam Morgan Blows The Whistle On Washington - Dark Money Entities Are Created Targeting Those Who Vote Red - Representatives Are Blatantly Being Encouraged To Ignore Their Voters - Multi-billion International Corporations Come First - Lobbyists Come First - pic.twitter.com/D2ApBFclCt Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) March 12, 2024 (Ive included the transcript at the end of this post for those who cannot or do not want to listen to the video.) Theres so much to unpack there. First, as I said, I dont know what deal is being discussed. I do know that South Carolina has a thriving economy because the state welcomes businesses. However, it sounds as if, in this case, the state is trying to impose on a single community a business the community does not want, and Morgan is being urged to get with the lobbyists program and vote against his own constituents. Secondand this is the important thingis the way Rutherford so perfectly articulates the philosophy of expertise that entered America with the early 20th-century progressives and Woodrow Wilson. Wilson, incidentally, was an academic. That theory is that, even in a democracy, whether representative or direct, the little people have no idea whats good for them. They cant be trusted. Government must be in the hands of learned (and, apparently, well-funded) experts who paternalistically know whats best for the people they represent. We see this same line of thinking in the battle between Pete Buttigiegs other half, Chasten, who (God help us) has an education degree. It started when Chasten got upset that Chaya Raychik, who is behind Libs of TikTok, was appointed to help craft Oklahomas education policies. Raychik, Chasten said, isnt qualified because she [h]olds no degree in education and has [z]ero classroom experience. How dare she weigh in on whether there should be gay porn in classrooms or lessons that teach white children that theyre irredeemably evil because of their skin color? Without that degree, her values and opinions are less than useless. Raychik instantly exposed Chasten for what his degree in education and his expertise really mean: Chasten Buttigieg, husband of @SecretaryPete is attacking me because he feels threatened by LoTT's mission to expose child groomers like him He doesn't want you to see this video of him making kids 'pledge allegiance to the rainbow' and LGBTQ pride, so definitely don't share it! https://t.co/osa9Wy03it pic.twitter.com/Juwp5taO97 Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 11, 2024 Theres your expertise in action. Yes, having academic knowledge or a specific area of trained expertise can be useful. However, in 2024, its important to remember, when you think of academic knowledge, that theres a big difference between being educated, which is what a degree once meant, and being indoctrinated, which is what a degree now means. There are such things as common sense, rational self-interest, and the knowledge that comes from living in the world and seeing how it works. Ill end with an anecdote that perfectly illustrates this. Francis Galton, the father of statistics, went to a county fair in 1906. There, 800 people submitted their estimates about an oxs weight (1,198 pounds), with the person guessing most accurately winning the ox. While the winning guess was one or two hundred pounds off, when Galton averaged the 800 guesses, he discovered that the crowds collective wisdom came in at 1,197 pounds. Our representatives are charged with making the ultimate decisions for our welfare, but Morgan remembers that this decision must always be made while keeping in mind who is the servant and who is the master. Or as Thomas Jefferson wrote, We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed TRANSCRIPT MORGAN: The pressure in here in Colombia is for me to not even vote red on the board. [Pointing to the board recording yea and nay votes.] Yall might not know this: A dark money entity that was created on Tuesday, the day after we voted for this I went home and an attack piece went out in my home district about the fact that I voted for this. I get that the people in Colombia..that the lobby wants me to either not vote or to vote green on this, but my constituents want me to vote red and they want their tax money spent on core government functionson their roads, on their schools. Thats what they want their money spent on. They dont want us in here trying to play this government planning thing where we and our bureaus can figure out where the jobs should be, who should be employed, how much money should be allocated where in the private sector. It never works. Its socialism. Its never worked anywhere before. So, what are we doing trying to do it here? RUTHERFORD: But would you consider the fact that South Carolinas track record on bringing major projects into this state has a winning record and, therefore, again, commerce should be listened to, rather than those people back in your district that may not have ever brokered a deal, may not understand what it means of being a project, may not understand economic incentives. So, what youre suggesting is we should listen to the people back home in your district rather than the people at commerce that have been successful at bringing these mega deals [garbled] their lives. MORGAN: Mr. Rutherford, I dont think that you could have espoused a philosophy that disagrees more fundamentally than [i.e., with] me. I completely disagree with you, and I think that you believe what you just said, but no, I, 100%, Im going to listen to the people back home who I represent in this House, and you should listen to the 40,000 people in your area and not the bureaucrats at commerce and not the lobbyists, and not the multibillion-dollar international corporations. You should listen to your constituents like I am. So, yes, I will always fall back on the common sense of the wonderful people from Taylors and Greenville East side, far more than I will ever listen to unelected bureaucrats, other representatives in here who have been here for far too long and have maybe managed a whole lot of these deals and far more than I will ever listen to any member out there in the lobby. Image: X screen grab. Why are so many Catholic organizations promoting illegal immigration? They claim humanitarian motives but what they are doing is not rooted in Catholic teachings. Our family came to the U.S. in 1964 from Cuba. We were assisted by a church to settle down and my parents were grateful. The church staff helped us collect furniture and help my father find a job. They were great and everybody was super nice. But we were legally in the country. Our sponsor church was simply helping a family not engaging in immigration activism. So I was pleased to find this article from fellow Catholic Hugh Hewitt: This column is addressed specifically to Roman Catholics and their families and friends who may often hear "Catholic social teaching requires sanctuary cities'" or even an "open border." I have had it with these left-wing activists spouting this argument. They are dressed up as pseudo-theologians and dont deserve any deference on this issue as they are simply and completely wrong. And Hugh goes on: Father Belz takes the space he needs to explicate fully the Catholic Churchs core teachings on migrants and how nations ought to receive them, a set of teachings that rest on three "core principles," which Belz reproduces with the necessary specificity: First Principle: People have the right to migrate to sustain their lives and the lives of their families. Second Principle: A country has the right to regulate its borders and to control immigration. Third Principle: A country must regulate its borders with justice and mercy. And that's been my understanding all of these years. In other words, Catholics are in the business of helping people. For example, my wife and I are involved in a Catholic charity that helps people pay rent and provides food via a pantry. At the same time, Catholics are not in the business of promoting illegal behavior and especially encouraging people to buy their way to the U.S. by paying criminal organizations. So let's set the record straight. The Catholic church is in the people business, but not in "open borders." P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. Image: CBP Office of Public Affairs Italy had Emperor Nero, who, as the legend goes, fiddled while Rome burned. We have President Zero, who fiddles on vacations and long naps while the country crashes and burns. Our military is now a bad social experiment that is weakening more each day. This emboldens Russia and China, who are working on new powerful weapons and stronger, perhaps genetically engineered, soldiers as we offer gender changes and sensitivity classes to our own soldiers. China, in particular, has surpassed the U.S. in military weapons. It has reverse-engineered, then tweaked, our finest weapons, often via stolen or traitor-sold blueprints, such as for the stealth bomber. It already has hypersonic missiles and an AI-operated drone carrier. Meanwhile, we tackle social problems and weed out the real GI Joes in the military as being too macho, and we run out of ammo. China has or will soon surpass our nuclear arsenal in both numbers and potency. (Its believed Russia already has.) It is not bound by any sort of Salt Treaty of the type we continually sign with Russia, which promptly cheats or threatens to cancel while we, good fellows that we are, hold the line. And look out for Iran and North Korea. Image by AI, with editing using Flames from freeiconspng. A demented old man who belongs in a rest home or in prison with the rest of his family is currently overseeing the implementation of destructive policies that likely came from the former president living just down the street from the White House. Let me list a few of the smoldering embers: Food shortages, forced vaccinations, leftist teachers, open borders, oligarchs allowed to run rampant, creating artificial clouds to block the sun, artificial meat, providing funding for anti-American groups and organizations, plans to spray vaccines into the air or put in the water supplies, funding subversive judges and district attorneys throughout the land, a two-tiered justice system, propaganda through the nightly news, and sexual child abuse made acceptable or quasi-legal in some states. Yes, that burning odor you smell is our constitution being destroyed as the country is slowly becoming a socialist third-world in status. Yes, the burning smell is our churches being demolished, our religious beliefs being destroyed, and our family structure being disassembled with the goal that our children will be faithful only to the state. Money has been printed at an alarming rate, unseen since the Weimar Republic. Prices are rising, skyrocketing to the point a car will soon be a perk only for the elite. Electric cars are a joke, as most manufacturers are now admitting, so there will be no quick fix for non-fossil fuels. Big Brother is watching you and your bank book. Need more than $600? The IRS wants to know why. The leftist plan is to have a socialist state rise from out of the ashes of our great republic. Even though all such socialist utopias in the past have failed, these folks are so smart that theyre sure this one will be quite successful. Billionaires are busy building underground shelters costing in the millions. Why? Wildfires are destroying cattle and grazing ground. Food processing plants and other vital industries are experiencing fires and explosions. Trains carrying chemicals are derailing over waterways. The regime is welcoming millions of unskilled and uneducated military men into the country. Lawfare is directed at the leading opposition candidate of the current pResident [sic] of the White House. Jailing the opposition leader is a third-world tactic now being used by the current regime, along with trying to bankrupt him and remove him from the ballot. One of the thugs has even admitted that when Trump becomes the nominee (which just happened yesterday), Bidens Deep State intends to censor his security briefing, hiding key points of their ongoing deception. Accusations from neurotic women are being used to sully his name. Why is all this happening? Why are we just letting it happen? Are we the next Somalia or Haiti? We already have murder in the streets. Is cannibalism next? When will American grit come into action? When will those with spines stand up? Or are we now one hundred percent a nation of couch potatoes and keyboard warriors? What happened to the spirit that built this country? Where are the men of steel will and resolve? The frontier cowboys and settlers? Or are we now the sheep that George Washington said will be led to the slaughter? Or, as Ulysses S. Grant said, There are but two parties now, patriots and traitors. Our foes are waiting in the shadows, eager to seize our great land and resources for their own. What will the new name be? The Socialist States of China? The Peoples Republic of Russia? If we continue just to watch the flames rise and tolerate the smoke, we will soon find out. Spencer Essex is a nom de guerre. By With the collapse of Haiti, the Biden administration has whipped out $300 million for an international aid effort, which like all the other ones, will probably go to beltway consultant contracts. But true to form, it's doing very little about an expected migrant flotilla that is very likely to happen, even though it has authority to do so. Witness this exchange between Rep. Matt Gaetz and three Pentagon officials associated with the region: INCOMING HAITIAN INVASION: DoD officials testify before the House Armed Services Committee that the Biden Administration acknowledges there IS an anticipated mass migration from Haiti into the United States through Florida pic.twitter.com/Fo9XyR9v8n Rep. Matt Gaetz (@RepMattGaetz) March 12, 2024 My transcription: GAETZ: ...we can't really tell because the gangs are in charge, the government has been thrown out, and as a Florida man, I'm deeply concerned about this wave of people that we're about to have, that we are having, coming from Haiti, and it will accelerate. 'Cuz I've gone to Opa Locka and I've spent time with the folks that engaged in Operation Vigilant Century, and they say the number one push factor that drives these Haitians into Broward County, Palm Beach County, where they don't disperse throughout the country, they stay in southeast Florida, that that driving factor is the deterioration of conditions in Haiti. So, what are we doing to prepare for that wave and to ensure that these people are not paroled into the United States as the administration has done with people on the Southern border, but instead are repatriated back at the dock at Port-au-Prince? ZIMMERMAN: Uh, congressman, we're doing a number of things to ensure that we're keeping track of the situation and we're prepared. At the moment, we have not yet seen large numbers, what we would characterize as a maritime mass migration. Umm, but (counterchatter) we are alert to that possibility. I think you're right that the driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people. So, uh, we recently approved some additional assistance that we could provide to the Coast Guard, I, I, think that that has now fully been approved, we'll be providing notifications if we haven't already. Uh, uh, we'll provide shipboard assistance ... GAETZ: Because I've talked to the Coast Guard and what they say would really support them would be more Naval vessels, would be DoD support. And because I think you correctly said there is an anticipated mass migration here, there are specific legal authorities that we can access, that I would implore you to access: Specifically, George W. Bush signed Executive Order, uh, 13276, and in that executive order, there is the ability for any president to designate an anticipated mass migration, and then get gray-hull Naval vessels into the Straits of Florida to deter that migration and then to repatriate those people before they get to Florida. Notice how empty that room is even as a major crisis is about to hit the southeast United States with a new mass migration event. Gaetz is doing his job, but W-T-F is the rest of Congress? Zimmerman appears to be Rebecca Zimmerman, whose Pentagon bio suggests she has her job in a temporary or provisional capacity: Rebecca Zimmerman is Performing the Duties of the Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs. She is also the Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs. She doesn't do much about the southern border, so it's doubtful she's going to do anything about a Haitian mass migration event, either. Now, it may not be within her authority to put out "gray hull" Naval ships to turn a flotilla back -- it sounds like the kind of command Joe Biden has to give, and won't. But it does suggest an inadequate response is in the works from the Biden administration. Her response is pretty mealy-mouthed in terms of what is being done to stop a mass-migration flotilla (Shipboard assistance? What's that?) And Gaetz should have let her flesh out what she meant. But he obviously wasn't getting the answer he was driving at which was an effective Naval response to a mass migration event from Haiti, which was why he jumped in. I would have liked to have heard more of the exchange, because this is a pretty vital front-burner issue right now. It's also complicated -- it's not like the lower middle class country-shopping exodus at the border, driven by cartel organizational muscle and profits, with more than 100 countries shipping their illegals on fake asylum claims. It is a specific emergency that requires provisions for refugees who, as real refugees, are willing to take any port in a storm (and yes, we are a first country of refuge), and who are willing to go back to their home countries when it's safe. Biden needs to be on the phone with every leader in the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America for an orderly plan to offer refuge to the terrified, a regional effort from all countries with a security interest in Haiti's stability needs to be brought in to help the people fleeing gunfire, street burnings, gang barbarism, and quite possibly cannibals in their home country. Gaetz is very right to be focusing on this issue proactively but I differ from him in the regard that anyone fleeing by sea needs to be returned to Haiti as if they were some kind of miscreant or welfare-shopper. Still, it's important to note that had Joe Biden not wantonly opened the border to all comers on those fake asylum claims, allowing as many as 20 million people in, bankrupting cities, and creating a vast NGO migrant industrial complex with an interest in perpetuating mass illegal migration, there wouldn't be the intense desire to prevent Haitians from entering the U.S. under this current emergency. Biden shot his wad on migrants, and in Florida, the sentiment is, 'no more' and 'we are full up.' Now a real emergency is in the offing and Biden looks genuinely unprepared. None of this will stop a mass flotilla of refugees rolling into the U.S. with no control of who's getting in. Do we have a list of countries that will take in refugees? Doesn't look like it? Better still, do we have a plan to create secure zones inside Haiti itself with the international expedition sponsored by the UN that seems to be in the works? I t should not be dismissed that the safe zones could actually be created in Haiti to prevent a flotilla, if a serious U.S. response is made to stop the gangsters. El Salvador has offered to solve the problem from its root, doing in Haiti what they did in short order in their own country if the UN is willing, throwing every bad guy in jail, and laying down authentic rule of law for law-abiding people to enjoy peace and security from. That offer ought to be taken seriously, because El Salvador would like to show the world what it can do to solve these kinds of problems. But of course, Joe Biden isn't even speaking to the president of El Salvador. He'd rather just dump a new migrant/refugee crisis onto Florida and have Florida pay for it. For those on the Left, words arent simply a way to communicate, theyre a means to an end. The liberal agenda is to use language to manipulate and obfuscate, and they are very good at it. The result? Nothing is concrete. Even truth is relative. It no longer points to facts but opinion. Leftists dislike black and white. Its all about gray. They call conservatives and Christians intolerant, saying their moral beliefs arent inclusive. Last month 26 House Democrats sent an angry letter to Speaker Mike Johnson about pastor Jack Hibbs Jan. 30th prayer to Congress. In the letter, Hibbs was called a racist Christian nationalist with "a long record of spewing hateful vitriol toward non-Christians, immigrants, and members of the LGBTQ community." Liberals are for tolerance except for those on the right, who arent allowed to speak. There is no such thing as "lets agree to disagree." Tell a liberal you dont support gay marriage, the LGBT or abortion rights and their heads will explode. Why? Because to them there is one truth -- theirs -- and to prove it, they will even change language. It has been going on for years: Illegal alien to illegal immigrant to undocumented worker to migrant. Gay pride to pride. Sexual preference to sexual orientation. Transexual to transgender. Liberal to progressive. Leftists will also create negative labels for people with opposing views. How many times have we heard the words misinformation and disinformation since 2020? Know the difference? It doesnt matter, because both are used to dismiss anything or anyone that challenges the leftist narrative. Its no coincidence that these words became prevalent amidst two liberal hot button issues: the COVID vaccine rollout and 2020 presidential election. New language was needed to dismiss questions about either. Another popular one is conspiracy theorist, a term that dates to the 1960s. The Left is not above dusting off an old weapon. The Lefts shiny new toy is White Nationalist or Christian nationalist, frequently used against Trump and the MAGA following. Both terms are iterations of right-wing extremist, white supremacist and domestic terrorist. What does it mean? Googles top result (Southern Poverty Law Center): White nationalist groups espouse white supremacist or white separatist ideologies, often focusing on the alleged inferiority of nonwhite persons. Their primary goal is to create a white ethnostate. Groups listed in a variety of other categories, including Ku Klux Klan, neo-Confederate, neo-Nazi, racist skinhead and Christian Identity, could also be fairly described as white nationalist. What is the origin of this and other prevalent words today? Why did illegal immigrant change to migrant and gay pride to pride? Why is non-binary common? Who decided a person declining a shot is an antivaxxer? Researching this is difficult, considering that Google is the number one search engine, and most of the others also slant left. Its like asking a Starbucks barista what she (or they) thinks. I believe three factors fuel the language evolution: academia, woke lobbying groups and corporations and media. The latter carries the most weight because it disseminates information. Most reporters are leftists. Rush Limbaugh once described them as Democrat operatives disguised as journalists. But conservative media are also influenced by liberal ideology. One culprit is the Associated Press Stylebook, a go-to grammar and format manual for journalists. First published in 1953, it was designed to create standards and reduce bias in reporting. The current version does the opposite by sanctioning woke language. Here is one AP definition: Gender is not synonymous with sex. Gender refers to a persons social identity, while sex refers to biological characteristics. In 2022, the AP added this guidance: Phrasing like pregnant people or people who seek an abortion seeks to include people who have those experiences, but do not identify as women, such as some transgender men and some nonbinary people. Academia has long been a liberal stronghold. It wont change. Groups like the LGBT and Planned Parenthood will keep inventing and redefining words while pressuring government and corporations to embrace wokeism. I see only one viable option to change course: a groundswell of media who will reject these definitions instead of parroting them. Otherwise, the Left will continue to influence and erode culture by distorting language. If you doubt me, consider B4U-ACT, a non-profit defined as therapists, researchers, and MAPs who promote a science-informed understanding about people with an attraction to children or adolescents. What are MAPs? Minor-Attracted Persons, AKA child molesters. Image: Ferran Cornella In the 1930s, when Hitler was rising to power, there were some Germans who correctly foresaw that the end result would be catastrophe for Europe and for the German people, as well as for Jews and others. They attempted to persuade their fellow Germans to oppose the impending dictatorship as history tragically shows, to no avail. Anecdotes include that of a man who escaped Germany with only one suitcase, planning to return in a few days, after people who supported Hitler regained their sanity and ousted him. Another concerns a man who eventually gave in to his sons persistent requests to be permitted to join the Nazi Party. He felt that by doing so, his son at least would avoid persecution by the brown-shirted minions of the regime. In doing so, he handed his son over to doom. It is questionable whether father or son survived the resulting war, the war that skeletonized Berlin and left its people starving, entirely reliant on the mercies of those whom they had, until then, tormented. Key to all of this in the 1930s was the false perception, renewed each day, that the Nazi government had gotten so bad that matters could not possibly get any worse. They just had to turn around and get back to a normal, civilized society. After all, just how bad could things get? Could they possibly lead to a worldwide war? (Japans Pacific ambitions relied heavily on, and were encouraged by, the expectation that Germany would defeat the British Empire and thereby expel it from Asia.) And the idea of millions dying in death camps seemed preposterous in 1933. Only barbarians could enact such a policy. Surely, civilized Germany could never, ever do such a thing. Is it fair to compare modern America to the Germany of the era of 193345? Decide for yourself. In America, the so-called Free Speech movement of the 1960s quickly morphed into the practice of censorship by shouting down speakers with whom the left disagrees. How far can that get? Racial civil rights, a good thing, eventually was deceptively adapted to womens rights, gay rights, and even animal rights. Womens rights became the right to kill millions of unborn children. Racial civil rights became the debilitations of multi-generational welfare for life. Add to all these the right of criminals, even murderers, to be released without punishment. Okay, no farther. But farther there was. The right of gays to be left alone, and then to marry each other, eventually became the right of homosexuality advocates to teach small schoolchildren the sexual practices of sodomy. No, this cant be true! No one could have foreseen that a president of the United States, abetted by the entire Democrat party, and the courts, would use taxpayer money to bring children into sex change clinics to mutilate them, to permanently destroy their ability to grow into their natural sex. One would have been deemed insane to predict such a thing. We have in the Oval Office an increasingly senile puppet whose handlers not only permit millions of illegal aliens to flood our nation, swelling our census with future representatives who will represent them, not us not only permit, but actually pay for their lawless border-crossing with our tax dollars. We now have in Congress people who openly acquiesce to foreign powers sworn to destroy America. We have corporate boards of directors who despise the ordinary hardworking citizen and who openly sneer at our flag and ridicule the idea of selfless patriotism. The rot has so deeply infested our nation that at least one congressman has admitted that there is no normal, procedural way to set things right. We used to trust that election officials would not rig elections. For decades, the question has been asked: when will Americans wake up? They have yet to do so, and the nightmare not only continues, but gets worse. Just as in 1933 Germany, antisemitism has become a dreadful fact of the political scene, especially on American college campuses. How far will it go? Unlike in twentieth-century Germany, there are a few people in power who recognize, and oppose, the present trend toward an American tyranny. Governor Abbott of Texas is one, and he has the explicit support of twenty-five other governors. We have a tradition of independence, of private weapons ownership, and of refusing to be silenced. Will these few, citizens and governors, be enough? Or will we sink into the mire that swallowed the mighty epitome of civilization that Germany once had been? There will be no one to come to our aid only foreign armies to trample us. Will we allow our children to be enslaved? As President Reagan once said, there are no easy choices, but there are simple ones. Image via Pxfuel. Romania's President, Klaus Lohannis, announced Tuesday that he will enter the race to become the next leader of the 32-nation NATO military alliance, citing Romania's geographical advantage over Ukraine and the opposing threat from Russia. Lohannis seeks to succeed Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, NATO's top civilian office since 2014, who has made clear he will not be retaining his post. "Russia is proving to be a serious and long-term threat to our continent, to our Euro-Atlantic security," Lohannis said. "Under these conditions, NATO's borders become of paramount importance, and the strengthening of the eastern flank ... will remain a long-term priority." Lohannis believes NATO needs a "renewal of perspectives" and notes the historical challenges Eastern Europe has faced could provide that in the face of a Russian threat. A NATO member since 2004, Romania borders Ukraine and continues to play a pivotal role in the alliance through Russia's full-scale invasion. The country hosted a NATO meeting of foreign ministers in November 2022. In November 2023, Romania inaugurated an international training hub for F-16 jet pilots from allied countries and other partners, including Ukraine. Many NATO members have voiced concern over Russia's attempts to reassert influence over the eastern region, especially with memories of living under Soviet influence remaining at the forefront for some. Defense spending has increased for Romania, especially over the past two years, as NATO is on high alert amid rising concerns over the region having deployed multinational battle groups to various alliance members. Lohannis' opposition is Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, who is considered a strong replacement for Stoltenberg and has the support of most member countries. Baltic states-- Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania-- are bidding for one of their top officials to take over the job. Turkey and Hungary have previously expressed hesitations regarding Rutte. They may want to win concessions from other countries in exchange for their support, as demonstrated by acceptance of Sweden's membership to NATO, said The Associated Press. NATO secretaries-general are responsible for chairing meetings and sometimes leading delicate consultations among member countries to maintain organization among the group. US President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts were to name a successor to Stoltenberg when they last met in Lithuania in July 2023, however, the organization makes decisions by consensus, and no agreement was made. They now look to conclude nominations by the end of April. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. By In the U.S., the migrant crisis has come to remind us just how unlike the rest of the world we are -- or were, until the millions of illegal migrants came along. Here's the news from NBC Chicago: Three more people at a migrant shelter in Chicago have been diagnosed with measles, bringing the city's total to eight cases so far this year. The Chicago Department of Public Health reported Tuesday that three additional people associated with the shelter had been diagnosed. On Monday it said two adults there were diagnosed. That followed a Sunday announcement that a young child residing at the shelter had been hospitalized with measles but was in good condition. All eight measles patients in the city this year have been diagnosed since the beginning of March, according to the health department's statement Tuesday. All but one of them were described as being connected to the shelter, or Chicagos new arrivals mission, the health department said. The young child who was hospitalized attends Philip D. Armour Elementary School, a public school. The health department advised school-aged shelter residents not to attend school on Friday or Monday. Seems the "new arrivals" brought a few things with them, and it shouldn't surprise anyone that many were not vaccinated. Now all of U.S. life returns to, say, pre-vaccine 1860 when catching the measles was something that happened pretty frequently, with mortality levels to show for it. Life in America will no longer be all about taking it for granted that the next person over is vaccinated and diseases long thought of as eradicated were a figment of the past. Life here will begin to resemble preparing for a trip to some place like Guinea-Bissau or Malawi where such diseases can still be alive and well. That's Biden's hope and change, as if shopping for drugstore items behind locked glass weren't change enough. It's astounding -- and outrageous. Legal immigrants are required to be disease-free and fully vaccinated, but illegals claiming 'asylum' with no serious cases are taken in as they are and "paroled," even if they are spreading disease to the general public. Someone with measles, as the report notes, can infect up to 90% of the people he or she comes in contact with if they are not vaccinated. A heck of a lot of them at the migrant shelter were not. But that's not a problem to Joe Biden, who lets in all comers, vaccinated or not. Worse still, the migrants aren't the kind of people who know how to follow rules, or who want to follow rules, according to the NBC report, and U.S. officials think that's too much to ask. Having broken U.S. immigration law and been questionably "processed" to freely move about the country, the migrants exposed to measles in the Chicago shelter aren't following quarantine orders, according to the NBC report. Shelter residents who are still unvaccinated, were recently vaccinated or are unsure of their vaccination status were instructed to quarantine for 21 days. We have advised all unvaccinated and newly vaccinated residents of the quarantine period but some of those residents have left the shelter, and I want to acknowledge that, Dr. Simbo Ige, Chicago public health commissioner, said in a statement on Sunday. So, the ones who have measles or who have been exposed to measles, may be spreading the disease all through Chicago since even basic public health rules don't seem to apply to them. The report notes that several other American cities are also seeing measles outbreaks, though they didn't say if they were connected to migrant shelters. In 2019, the New York Times reported that the U.S. was seeing record outbreaks. Typhoid Mary? Call it thousands of Typhoid Marys, and wait till this bunch gets going. Image: Screen shot from Fox 32 Chicago video, via YouTube By What is it about Democrats and their abnormal interest in "bettering" black people, for their own good, of course, by banning everything they like? We saw it with their bizarre obsession with banning menthol cigarettes which are known to be popular with black people. Now they're coming for their 'Flamin' Hot Cheetos.' According to the Los Angeles Times: The days of Flamin Hot Cheetos in California schools may be numbered. A new bill aims to ban from public schools food products that contain artificial dyes, including the ingredient that makes Cheetos pop with their signature yellow and red colors. Lawmakers argue that developing young minds are harmed by the chemical ingredients and that federal guidelines have not been updated in decades. Assembly Bill 2316 takes aim at six synthetic food dyes blue 1, blue 2, green 3, red 40, yellow 5 and yellow 6 as well as coloring agent titanium dioxide, ingredients commonly used to artificially tint foods including candy, as well as drinks and some medications and vitamins. Red 40 and yellow 6 are found in Takis, Doritos and Flamin Hot Cheetos, the main culprits that turn snack lovers fingers a powdery crimson. No Flamin' Hot Cheetos for you! Flamin' Hot Cheetos may sound gross to most of us, but among the young, the blacks, and the Latinos, those snacks sing. Sure, plenty of whites and people of all races like them. But they are very popular among blacks. They've sung rap songs about them. They've made movies. They've made hoodies featuring the snack. They've made modern art with them. They've even used them as a hedge against Michelle Obama's "nasty, rotty" school cafeteria food which is supposed to be "good for you." Remember this? Its lunchtime at Van Nuys High School and students stream into the cafeteria to check out the days fare: black bean burgers, tostada salad, fresh pears and other items on a new healthful menu introduced this year by the Los Angeles Unified School District. But Iraides Renteria and Mayra Gutierrez dont even bother to line up. Iraides said the school food previously made her throw up, and Mayra calls it nasty, rotty stuff. So what do they eat? The juniors pull three bags of Flamin Hot Cheetos and soda from their backpacks. This is our daily lunch, Iraides says. Were eating more junk food now than last year. Based on their names, those kids are probably Mexican, but don't imagine that these things aren't popular among black students, too: Flamin Hot Cheetos is not only ubiquitous among many snackers, but its also a cultural phenomenon that has inspired art, rap videos, fashion and menu items at restaurants. They may sound godawful to those of us who didn't grow up with them, but people like what they like and they are going to get what they like, particularly when a ban on them is unreasonable. The California lawmakers say they are proposing the ban because the FDA isn't banning the product for them, quite possibly because there isn't anything harmful in them, but that doesn't stop them from going all Soup Nazi on the black kids. Don't imagine for one minute that whites don't have godawful snack favorites, too. And of course, based on the obesity epidemic, it's not confined to kids nor particular races. But somehow, the Stuff Black People Like always seems to make the list of things Democrats would like to ban. First menthol cigarettes, now Flamin' hot Cheetos. The article hastens to add that it's only the food dye they're upset about, and not the Cheetos themselves. This is not going to ban for sale in the state of California any of these foods, [state assemblymember Jesse] Gabriel [D-Encino] said Tuesday during a news conference touting the bill. This is not a food ban. This is not banning Flamin Hot Cheetos in California. It's a food ban. And instead of banning all junk food, they specifically single out black (and Latino) people's favorite junk food. There is more junk food out there than anyone can shake a stick at, but somehow, just the favorites of black people and other ethnic minorities gets the proposed ban. The natural consequence of this is that people will continue to eat the junk food they like, ban or no ban, except that they will now get it from the black market. I wrote about a black kid I knew in Lake Elsinore who did just that, selling her Flamin' hot Cheetos out of her backpack when the things became unavailable owing to "good for you" rules. She was an enterprising little tyke. Black people get singled out for these bans and some enterprising ones will always find a way around it. But what does this say about Democrats who like to ban things black people like? If I were black, I'd never vote for one, given their grotesque fascination with taking away every little pleasure they like, all for the Mrs. Grundy reasons of 'for their own good' while ignoring the vices and guilty pleasures found among whites? Based on President Trump's growing popularity with black voters, there seem to be black people who are noticing this. Image: Calgary Review, via Flickr // CC BY 2.0 DEED This is a story you wont see in the mainstream media. If this can happen in a rural Indiana town of only 15,000 people in a Republican fly-over state, it can happen in your town. A brave 11-year-old girl spoke out at a Lebanon, Indiana school board meeting earlier this year on January 16, 2024 in which she describes how she and other girls are forced to share a locker room with a boy while at school. Im here to discuss the matter of a male being in the female locker room. Imagine this is you -- youre an 11-year-old girl who is coming into school thinking that theyre in a safe environment. You go to PE to get ready in the locker room and you see a boy in there. The first time you saw them, you panicked. Do I change in front of the boy? I feel like Im doing something wrong. Do I take my shirt off? Do I take my pants off? He is doing so, so I think I should. I see him standing there, in his underwear. That was the first time I saw a boy half-naked -- in a school thats supposed to be safe. I wanted to cry. I felt so uncomfortable. The only thing Im asking for is that all students can change in a locker room that is matched to their gender. If they dont feel comfortable changing, they could change in a private space alone, making others feel comfortable in their locker room. If I was your daughter and I came to you and said I saw the outline of male genitalia for the first time in the locker room at a school that is supposed to be safe, I would hope you would be proactive and find a safe place for all students, not just one percent. By the applause at the end, obviously there were many parents and community there for support. And obviously, you dont address the school board unless youve exhausted all your options directly with administration. The board thanked her and moved on to other business. As of this writing there has been no official response from the school. Like many school districts around the nation, this students concerns are not reflected in school policy regarding gender/sex and locker room use, which is a poor excuse for not bolstering and enforcing policy that would limit the potential for rape like what happened in Loudon County, Virginia two years earlier. Have we learned nothing? School board members in Indiana are elected as nonpartisan. Yet the administration of our schools has proven to be the most partisan-biased small local governmental entities we have. Overall, 41 States elect their school board members as nonpartisan. A bill proposed for Indiana to change school board elections to partisan failed in the House in 2023. Supporters of the bill have maintained that forcing school board candidates to declare a party will provide greater transparency for voters. However, Democrats and representatives from multiple education groups [big surprise here since education groups and unions are run by Democrats] opposed the bill. arguing that such steps would needlessly further inject politics into local school decisions. As if politics dont already drive whats happening in our schools. The time to lay dormant with our schools is over. Our children are worth fighting for. H/T RealNewsMichiana.com Image: Ted Eytan As repulsive as Jonathan Glazer was to disavow Israel and Judaism at the Oscars, the worst part is that hes far from alone. At Sundays Oscars, Jonathan Glazer, who directed a movie about the Holocaust, used his moment to reject Jewishness and Israel. While his statement was widely noted, the fact is that he wasnt unique when it comes to anti-Israel Jews in America. Glazers statement was simple and ugly: Right now we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people, whether the victims of October the 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza. The utter craziness of this statement requires translation. What he means is that Jews are subhumans who are not allowed to defend themselves. Glazer is on board with Hamass declaration that it will attack Israel again and again until it is gone. Fully 75% of Palestinians backed the massacre of Jews in October last year! Every day Palestinians were complicit in all aspects of the death, raping, and hostage-taking. It takes a leftist to give a pass to someone who has already killed many in your family but says he wants to finish the job. Glazer is one of many Jews who cant seem to understand the ramifications of his words. God forgive him. In 2021, a Jewish Electorate Institute poll found that 58% of American Jewish voters support restrictions on US military aid to prevent Israel from using it to expand West Bank settlements. A Gallup survey in 2021 found that, for the first time, more Democrats were sympathetic to the Palestinians than the Israelis by a margin of 11%. 74% of American Jews approve of Bidens handling of the war going on in Israel. Image: YouTube screen grab. There appears to be a thread that ties these results to the opinions of a few well-placed and well-funded Jews and Jewish groups. These are Americas anti-Jews, who shower faint praise on Israel while effectively working against its continued existence. Some of the more influential Jewish players are Steven Spielberg, Jake Tapper, Chuck Todd, and hundreds of other Jewish opinion makers, many with very public personas who influence the debate that somehow the central thesis that gives Israel its legitimacy is false. Steven Spielbergs approach to his Jewishness is illuminating. He once said he was embarrassed by standing out in childhood as an Orthodox Jew, could barely bring himself to acknowledge what happened in Israel on October 7. He finally issued a low-key statement two months after the attack. However, what he does ostentatiously is donate vast sums to leftist causes, including the Clintons, Biden, the Democratic Party, gay rights, etc. When it comes to Jews, his donations are limited to Holocaust projects. Israel doesnt figure into his giving. Are the only good Jews dead Jews if youre Steven Spielberg? The fact is that affirming the existence of the modern state of Israel (a continuation of the ancient nation and a recognition of the Jews continuous, 4,000-year-long tie to the land), gained urgency after World War II. Even though a majority of his cabinet objected, President Truman recognized this, recognizing the reborn nation eleven minutes after it declared statehood. Since then, though, Americas continued support of Israel has been much more style over substance, with several American presidents trying to keep a lid on Middle East politics at Israels expense. Israel has never had unqualified support from the Deep State. Democrat-voting American Jews, however, have become like American presidents, paying lip service to Israel but forgetting the work that is needed to maintain a nation surrounded by millions of people who seek its residents total extinction. They have forgotten what Hillel asked over 2,000 years ago: If I am not for myself, who will be? If I am only for myself, what am I? Jews are some of the most socially involved individuals anywhere. Jewish philanthropy is legendary, and Jews highly overrepresented in their giving. There are hundreds of notable Jews who work as journalists and commentators. Jews are highly overrepresented in almost all walks of life, from medicine to the arts, to business, to government. Unfortunately, American Jewish politics have leaned left, focusing on righting perceived wrongs here and abroad. They fear Christians and, therefore, side with anyone who is not a traditional Christian. This has created a blindspot that is reflexive and too often misplaced, allowing them to reflexively support people and policies that are antithetical to the ideals of freedom, prosperity, and individualismand to Jews. Leftists have also played on the Jewish tendency to side with victims, something reasonable given the Jews have been victimized in the West for two thousand years. By painting the people of Gaza and the West Bank as victims, American Jews have turned away from their own people, the one these Arab Muslim victims ferociously kill. When will we realize and take the necessary action to reverse the current craziness that threatens to overwhelm sane individuals and our legal and social essence? God Bless America. Allan J. Feifer is an author, businessman, thinker, and strategist. Read more about Allan, his background, and his ideas to create a better tomorrow at www.1plus1equals2.com On Sunday, the Armed Forces Press reported that West Point brass had made a recent decision to update the academys Mission Statement, which until that point, read as such: To educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country and prepared for a career of professional excellence and service to the Nation as an officer in the United States Army. With the approved revisions, West Points official mission now reads: To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corp of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of service to the Army and Nation. As you can see, the sacred and hallowed words, recognized as the official motto of the school since before even Douglas MacArthur graduated in 1903, have been jettisonedinto the Memory Hole Duty Honor Country goes! John A. Lucas is a former special operations military member with more than 45 years experience as an attorney who now runs the Bravo Blue blog; and yesterday, Lucas reported that an officer to whom he spoke emphasized that the change was the result of a regular review to see if any changes were needed to modernize the statement. As someone pointed out in the comments: Duty-Honor-Country: Well defined, succinct, timeless. Army values: Amorphous, indefinite, depends on the whims of the social elite. Unless the politicization of our armed forces is stopped, and soon, well be singing The East is Red as our national anthem in short order. Yet, are you even surprised? Notions like duty, honor, and undying servitude to the people of your country are completely alien to the modern political chain of command, landscape, and players; lets not forget, an American president isnt just supposed to be some Washington D.C. fixture (especially one whos not done much else besides jetset around the world on a pay-to-play tour collecting kickbacks), he is the top of the military chain of command too. And, its not like the D.C. government genuinely wants officers who believe in the duty, honor, and country in the traditional American sense. So yes, the longstanding motto is apparently all too enduring, and not at all representative of the modern military structure of dereliction, dishonor, and treasonto be abundantly clear, this is specifically directed at the anti-American actors present in our armed forces. Never has the reject modernity, embrace tradition quip been more apropos. Image: Public domain. A high-ranking Israeli official responded strongly to a recent US intelligence report, which cautioned that Israel will continue to face challenges from Hamas for the foreseeable future. The report also suggested that the viability of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government "may be in jeopardy" amid criticism over the management of the war. "Those who elect the prime minister of Israel are the citizens of Israel and no one else," said the official in a statement issued to the media, interpreting the intelligence report as an effort to unseat Netanyahu. "Israel is not a protectorate of the US but rather an independent and democratic country whose citizens are the ones who elect the government. We expect our friends to work to bring down the terror regime of Hamas and not the elected government in Israel," The Times of Israel reported. Opening its most-watched nightly news broadcast, Israel's Channel 12 revealed that the statement originated from "the most senior Israeli political source you can imagine." The US assessment stated: "Distrust of Netanyahu's ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections. A different, more moderate government is a possibility." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Ever since generative AI first hit the market in November of 2022, weve all been wondering just how governmental agencies were going to regulate this technology and force companies to keep from crossing very important lines. Well, its taking over a year, but the EU has just laid down its first set of strict rules regarding AI. This marks a world first, leaving other countries playing catch-up. Other major countries developing regulations regarding AI technology include the US and China. However, these regulations all remain speculative. AI technology is developing quickly, so its no surprise that its taking a long time to develop proper laws. However, it seems that the EU has other countries beat. Hopefully, other countries will follow suit. Advertisement Advertisement The EU outlines the first set of strict rules for AI These rules all lie under the EU AI Act that was conceived back in 2021. While this act has been talked about since December, the MEP (Members of the European Parliament) officially endorsed it during the Parliaments Wednesday session. While the act did receive a fair share of opposition in the form of 46 votes against it, they received a whopping 523 votes in favor. What these rules will do is divide different types of AI systems based on their potential risk. For example, AI being used for something mundane like spam blocking counts as a low risk. However, AI technology targeted for governmental use will be counted as high risk. This means that it will have the strictest rules against it. Also, some uses of AI, like the use of AI for biometric surveillance, will be strictly prohibited. A work in progress Right now, the rules are still baking, so you shouldnt expect any laws to be passed in the near future. For starters, these rules are still being finalized. When they are finalized, they are expected to be inducted into law by May or June this year. Advertisement Even then, it will still take a while for the government to start enforcing these laws. Countries will have deadlines to start enforcing these laws for AI systems being used within them. For example, if AI systems are prohibited, countries will have six months to ban them. These countries will also have a full year to enforce rules against general-purpose AI systems like chatbots. Lastly, countries will have 36 months to enforce laws governing high-risk AI systems. So, some of these laws will not start taking effect until 2027. Hopefully, thats not too late. Technology is rapidly evolving, so we have no idea what the AI landscape will look like in a year or in 36 months. In any case, it is good to see that there is some solid legislation being implemented towards AI. At this point, very few companies actually avoid using social media in some way shape, or form. Its a technology that connects business owners with millions upon millions of potential customers. So, its only natural to be introduced to social media posts when looking up businesses. So, Google Maps will now show social media posts from businesses. Google Maps has been coming out with some new features. For example, the app will now show you building entrances and exits. When you tap on a specific building while navigating, you will see little green arrows pointing you to where your entrances and exits are. Its going to help you navigate, as youll know where to park, and you will be better able to navigate confusing parking lots. Advertisement Advertisement Google Maps will show social media posts from businesses Many businesses thrive on social media posts. Imagine owning a restaurant and having hundreds of thousands of likes and views on Instagram pictures of your food. Or, if you own a museum, wouldnt it be great to have pictures and videos of the beautiful art being exhibited? Thats the beauty of social media. Sure, you can easily access social media pages directly from the dedicated apps. However, Google Maps has a way for you to capture those eager tourists searching for local businesses. According to the report, when you search for a business on Google Maps, you will see the business profile. That is not new. However, on the profile, you will see the businesses most recent social media posts. Now, if this sounds invasive, dont worry. Google is not automatically searching for and finding your social media accounts. If you own the business, and you have a business account, you will be able to link your account to yours when you do a search on Google Maps, the app will just pull from the social media posts present. Youll be able to use social media accounts like your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (now X) account. If you own a business, and you dont see the feature just yet, then you may have to wait just a bit. Google is still rolling this feature out to users. Meta sunglasses made by Ray-Ban have now integrated AI-powered vision to allow identification and information on surrounding landmarks. The option was unveiled recently as a highlighting feature in the latest beta version. The update went official by Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth on a Threads post, suggesting its potential use cases as a tour guide for travelers. Meta Ray-Bans get smart and now ID Landmarks in front of your eyes The new feature can recognize landmarks through AI systems from various places. Bosworth demonstrated this by using sample images that AI accurately guessed to be the Golden Gate Bridge and painted Ladies of San Francisco. Descriptions displayed as text below the pictures, help users understand more about the landmarks. Advertisement Advertisement He also showcased these features in other videos taken in Montana, where glasses explain via audio what different landmarks look like, such as Big Sky Mountain or Roosevelt Arch. Not only does it give you the latest weather updates, but it also explains weather phenomena like snow formation, with an easy-to-understand guide. At the Connect event last year, Meta previewed this feature as part of its multimodal portfolio, allowing users to interact with their environment through real-time information. Engadget affirms the new landmark ID is an extension of the previous feature that now allows Metas smart glasses to access real-time info. Environment awareness on Meta Ray-Bans is mostly similar to Google Lens Metas landmark identification is an additional functionality on top of its present Google Lens-esque tool that allows users to search and ask questions about what they see in their environment. PhoneArena suggests that the Lens-like capability is free for users during the beta phase, but its only exclusive to members in the early access program. Meta sunglasses have undergone yet another transformation with the addition of a landmark identification feature making them even better tools for experiencing augmented reality through glasses. Enhanced capabilities for travel and exploration make it a versatile tool. The foldable phone race is heating up, with new phones coming to the market each year. Microsoft was among the first companies to tap into this segment with Surface Duo series devices. The phone was later discontinued, but Microsoft might soon add a new foldable phone to its showcase. While Microsoft canceled the Surface Duo 3 phone, the recent patent application suggests that its engineers are working on a foldable device. The device reportedly features a single spine folding mechanism. The patent, published on February 29 by USPTO, is also titled Foldable computing device spine cover plate. Advertisement Advertisement Microsoft could release a proper foldable smartphone, with a single-spine folding mechanism As the patent suggests, the upcoming Microsoft device opens vertically and features a flexible display. This design, similar to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold series, is further enhanced by an innovative spine cover plate. This mechanism protects the screen and covers the gaps to prevent dust and water from damaging the device, a feature not commonly found in other foldable phones. Adding a single spine folding mechanism to a foldable phone has two benefits. First, it enhances the devices durability and resistance to damage. The second major benefit is that the phone will be more convenient to hold, as the crease is less visible thanks to a new flexible display and spine cover plate that can pull itself closer to the internal hinge mechanism. Microsoft noted in the patent filing, By retracting the spine cover plate toward the central spine as the first display-supporting frame and the second display-supporting frame are rotated into a face-to-face orientation, the width of the folded computing device is reduced, thereby enabling easier and more comfortable handling of the device, such as with one hand. Advertisement The durability of foldable phones is still a concern One significant challenge for manufacturers of foldable phones is ensuring their long-term durability. Mainly due to the hinges, which can become worn with regular use. While this issue is less prevalent in modern foldable devices, it remains a crucial concern for buyers. Microsofts upcoming foldable phone must address this issue while promising a seamless and top-notch Android experience. The exact release date of Microsofts foldable phone with a single spine folding mechanism is yet to be announced. Meanwhile, its worth noting that the tech firm has other exciting products in the pipeline. The Surface Laptop 6 and Surface Pro 10 are also set to make their debut, offering a range of options for tech enthusiasts and potential buyers. Googles upcoming Pixel Fold 2 has leaked quite a few times and this has included everything from rumored display sizes to the potential design of the phone via CAD renders. Although none of those details have been confirmed, it still leaves customers with something to talk about and paints a picture of what to expect when the device officially arrives. The latest rumor about the device suggests that leaks thus far have gotten the display size of the Pixel Fold 2 all wrong. No definitive size has been confirmed. But rumors from previous leaks had suggested the inside display could be up to 7.9-inches. This was partly based on the fact the inside display size of the original Pixel Fold was 7.6 inches. The cover display, meanwhile, was 5.8 inches. According to leaker Ross Young on X, the inside display on the Pixel Fold 2 will be 8.02 inches in size while the cover display will be 6.29 inches. These are admittedly small differences compared to the first model. But they are larger and will make a difference for the user with slightly more screen real estate. Advertisement Advertisement The Pixel Fold 2s panel production will start for the new display sizes very soon Display sizes arent the only piece of information that Young offered up. He also notes that production of the panels for these displays will be starting soon. According to Young production begins in April. This timing could make sense if you consider when Google is likely to announce and launch the phone. With the Pixel Fold, Google announced the phone at Google I/O in May of 2023. This preceded the June 27 launch which was nearly two months later. If the production timing is accurate, then that means it wont take more than two months to manufacture the displays for these phones. Then again thats assuming that launch timing follows the original phone. Theres still no guarantee that Google plans to launch the device within the same timeframe. However, theres also nothing to suggest it wont. Advertisement Outside of the display sizes, Young speaks partly to other, smaller details about the phone screens. One user in the comments asks what the pixels per inch and aspect ratios of the displays are. Specifics arent mentioned like they are with display sizes. Young does state that the main display (the inside display) is close to square. Young also notes that the cover display is pretty wide just like on the Pixel Fold. You can read more about the Pixel Fold 2 and all of its potential specs and details in our main preview post. Some Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2 owners have noticed a new handy feature that enables them to monitor the progress of app installation directly from the app drawer. Checking individual app downloads at the Google Play Store will become redundant with this feature, thus simplifying the process of handling downloads and updates. App installs are now easier to track on a Pixel Watch making it more functional Googles commitment to enhancing the Pixel watch experience shines through with this feature. Among other things, adding an on-screen indicator for app installations means that Googles Wear OS is one step closer to improved functionality. Advertisement Advertisement The latest feature was first discovered by one user known as Dimitrios Vlachos, whose revelation was then seconded by Mishaal Rahman. The progress bar appears within the app drawer allowing Pixel Watch owners to oversee their workflow without interruption. The progress bar feature on WearOS underscores the convenience of a Pixel Watch. Google further optimizes performance and functionality across the Pixel Watch lineup through regular updates and feature additions like those brought about by new Pixels Feature Drop releases. The feature remains exclusive to Pixel Watch 1 and Pixel Watch 2 It indicates that Google has not stopped innovating or improving its smartwatch ecosystem. However, the added functionalities are only available for Pixel Watch and Pixel Watch 2 users. Nevertheless, it is important to note that other wearables using Wear OS like the OnePlus Watch 2 cannot execute this function yet. Incorporating a feature showing the app download progress is a demonstration of Googles desire to make Pixel watches much more integrated into the users ecosystem. Folks no longer have to check their app download status within the Play Store. The app drawer will let users know every time an installation progresses successfully or when there may be any issues that may need intervention while they are still working on something else on their watches. Popular, and sometimes controversial, messaging app Telegram continues to grow exponentially, leading founder Pavel Durov to consider an IPO. According to reports, Telegram has hit 900 million users recently. This is quite the market share, as WhatsApp has only double this amount of active users. Considered a hotbed of freedom and unsavory activities, Telegram going public means the platform will likely continue to grow. Telegram has always been controversial The platform has always been controversial around the world. Some countries have outright banned Telegram. Most people dont want to touch it; claiming it to be Kremlin-owned spyware. Founder and CEO Pavel Durov dismisses the claims and also reveals he had to flee Russia because of his platforms. Telegram and VK, both founded by Durov, were apparently asked to share the data of users with Russian agencies. Refusing to do so, Durov had to leave his motherland behind. Advertisement Advertisement Despite the controversies, Telegrams growth shows how popular it still is. The platform has genuinely helped journalists and reporters share on-the-ground footage from warzones. It has also led to civilians in such areas, like Ukraine, coordinating movements and other activities. The bad rap Telegram gets isnt without reason, however. Due to the abundance of freedom allowed on the platform, users can find channels built for all sorts nasty reasons. Telegram considers IPO to remain independent Pavel Durov has revealed the company has been refusing offers to be bought. Instead, the platform is considering going public to remain independent. Durov also mentioned this approach would democratize access to Telegrams value. He also revealed the company had been making hundreds of millions of dollars, and was nearing profitability. Going public would mean retail investors could buy shares in the company. This would in turn skyrocket the value of the platform, allowing it to remain independent in accordance with Durovs wishes. Speaking with the Financial Times, Durov said that Telegram had been given valuations of over $30 billion by global tech funds. Going public might legitimatize Telegram in many peoples eyes, maybe leading to more users signing up. It will also open the company to regulatory constraints and maybe even restrict how it can operate. Reddit, a major platform, has also recently been preparing to go public. Though this move should help both companies, users are worried it will severely impact how the platforms function. Ever since ChatGPT first made it to the market, governmental bodies and lawmakers have been wondering how to put reins on AI technology. After more than a year of development in the field, the EU stands as the first entity to bring a strict set of rules governing AI technology. These rules all lie under the EU AI Act. What is this act and what does it mean for AI technology going forward? Heres what you need to know about this act. At the time of writing this article, the EU AI Act was fresh out of the printer, so theres still a lot of information yet to be uncovered. As such, this article will be updated as more information comes out. Be sure to check back every now and then. If you live in Europe, then these laws and regulations could have an effect on how you use AI technology in the future. Advertisement Advertisement What is the EU AI Act? While the EU AI Act will soon govern the use of generative AI in Europe, it actually came about before the generative AI craze. The Act was first conceived back in 2021. This act will take the different AI systems and divide them into groups based on their potential risk to humanity. For example, an AI thats designed for mundane tasks like generating get-well-soon cards would be considered a Low risk. If that AI encounters an error, the potential effects are minimal. However, an AI thats designed to be used by major governmental entities would be considered a High risk. If something goes wrong with the latter AI, it could pose a major threat to millions of people. The act will also ban certain types of AIs if they pose a clear risk to fundamental rights. For example, an AI designed to collect and process biometric information would be banned. Each risk level will have a different set of rules. As you can imagine, the higher the risk level, the stricter the rules. Advertisement Companies developing and training these systems will have to comply with specific transparency obligations to the government. This is similar to one requirement set by US President Joe Bidens executive order. The order requires companies making large AI models to report significant findings to the government. The EU could have a similar approach. This way, the government knows whats going on with these models and whether they pose an imminent threat to the people of Europe. What types of AI will be affected? As of March 11th, 2024, this legislation is still being finalized, so we dont know all of the information just yet. However, from what we do know, these laws will govern the use of large general AI systems. This will include AI models from companies like Google, xAI, Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta, ETC. Along with the models, there are also provisions pertaining to applications and services using these models such as Gemini, ChatGPT, MidJourney, and so on. Advertisement AI systems classified as High risk would be used in critical infrastructure, education, healthcare, law enforcement, border management, or elections, according to BBC. These are the areas that will see the tightest regulations. So if youre in Europe, most of the AI tools you use will have some sort of regulation keeping it in line. What are the consequences of breaking the laws? This sort of information might not be set in stone, but companies could face some serious fines if they violate the laws. Based on the level of the offense, larger companies could face fines between 7.5 million and 35 million. If the company cant swing millions of euros, then the company could pay between 1.5% and 7% of its global turnover. Will certain companies get special treatment? As it stands, it looks like this bill will treat each company and AI model equally. It doesnt look like there will be any exceptions to this rule. Advertisement Do these laws apply to copyright? Copyright is one of the most relevant issues brought up when speaking about copyright. Several lawsuits have been tossed around alleging that using data scraped from copyrighted works constitutes copyright infringement. As of the time of writing this article, The New York Times is suing OpenAI and Microsoft over the use of its copyrighted works. Thats just one example. At this time, the regulations dont seem to tackle the subject of copyright. As pointed out by BBC, this act still has several steps to go before becoming official law. So, were certain that the subject of copyright will be touched upon at a future date. When will these laws take place? As of March 11th, 2024, these laws are still waiting to be finalized. So, companies are not bound by them just yet. These laws, if they are put into action, will take effect in stages. When theyre officially finalized, they will officially enter legislation starting in May this year- June at the latest. However, even though the law will be official at that point, companies will not be affected until early 2025. So, AI companies will have ample time to make preparations for the regulations. Advertisement When the laws go into effect, it will be up to countries to enforce them. They will have six months to ban AI systems that need to be banned. Also, theyll have 12 months to start regulating general-purpose AI tools like chatbots. Additionally, theyll have a full 36 months to regulate systems designated as High-risk, according to The Verge. So, at the very latest, well start to see some major impacts in the AI landscape in the next couple of years. The only question remains whether AI technology would have advanced too far before that point. How will this affect AI around the world? That remains to be seen. Right now, these will only affect AI systems used in Europe. Hopefully, other companies will follow in the EUs footsteps so that well have some sort of unity over AI regulation. However, it seems that these will only affect countries in the EU. How will this affect my AI usage? At this point, it doesnt seem like there will be any immediate effect on your AI usage. Youll still be able to log on to ChatGPT or Gemini and use it as regular. As the government starts to buckle down on AI companies, ostensibly, there could be some change, but we dont expect there will be any sort of change that youll feel. Scott Peterson, the California man found guilty of killing his pregnant wife in the early 2000s, made a return to the courtroom nearly 20 years after he was convicted in the high-profile double murders of Laci Peterson and their unborn son. Peterson, now 51, appeared virtually Tuesday for a status conference hearing in a San Mateo County courtroom, in an effort to overturn the 2004 convictions in which he was found guilty in the slayings of his 27-year-old wife and their baby, with whom she was eight months pregnant. In January, the Los Angeles Innocence Project - a nonprofit that works to exonerate the wrongly convicted - announced it would take on Peterson's case in an attempt to clear his name of any wrongdoing. The organization filed a motion to request new DNA testing and post-conviction discovery, including trial files, according to CBS News. The DNA evidence in question reportedly centers on a van involved in a burglary near the Peterson's home around the time of Laci's disappearance, the outlet reported. Peterson was previously convicted of first-degree murder for the death of Laci, and second-degree murder in the killing of their unborn son, Connor, according to KNBC-TV. Investigators said Peterson killed the pair at the family's Modesto, California home, and dumped their bodies in the San Francisco Bay, the outlet reported. The prosecution argued Peterson was driven to kill to escape his five-year marriage and impending fatherhood. He was also said to be having an affair with a Fresno-based massage therapist. At the time of his trial, Peterson pleaded not guilty. However, a jury found him culpable in the murders of his family members, and he was subsequently sentenced to death. The California Supreme Court overturned his sentencing in 2021, citing jury bias, according to ABC News. As a result, Peterson was resentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Peterson is scheduled for three more virtual hearings regarding his defense team's request for DNA testing and post-conviction discovery, later this year. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. On-the-run mother Constance Marten has denied she dumped the body of her baby in a Lidl bag, saying she had been in the grip of fear and grief. The aristocrat, 36, and her partner Mark Gordon, 49, are on trial after baby Victoria died while they were camping on the South Downs in wintry conditions last year. Following their arrests last February, the childs badly decomposed body was found in an allotment shed inside a Lidl supermarket bag also containing soil and rubbish. Cross-examining Marten on Wednesday, prosecutor Joel Smith noted that a teddybear babygrow Victoria was seen on CCTV wearing was among the items recovered with Victorias dumped body. Baby clothing found in a Lidl bag in a shed in Lower Roedale allotments, East Sussex, which included the body of baby Victoria (Met Police/PA) Marten appeared to become agitated as she insisted that Victoria was not dumped in the bag. She told jurors: Its awful, I know. The only thing I can say, if someone passes away the immediate reaction is panic. Mark and I were not in a good place. We were in fear and grief. She was not dumped anywhere. She was with us the whole time. Mr Smith asserted the couple were hideously ill-prepared to look after Victoria when they travelled from London to the South Downs. Marten insisted they had a camouflage outfit, a couple of babygrows, a quilt, blanket and sheet for the baby. The defendant, who described Gordon as her amazing husband, told jurors: We had enough to keep her warm, absolutely. She was our number one priority. Jurors were shown CCTV of Marten carrying Victoria underneath her zipped-up jacket in east London last January 7. In the footage, Marten appeared to adjust the baby after she slipped down in her arms. Asked if that was an appropriate way to carry a newborn baby, mother of five Marten said she had always done it with her children. CCTV image from January 7 2023 of Constance Marten holding baby Victoria under her coat in East Ham, London (Met Police/PA) She said: As long as its secure. People carry children in their arms all the time. In further CCTV on the same day, Victoria was seen with her head tilted back as she was lifted up by Marten and placed in a buggy that Gordon had bought but was designed for an older child. Mr Smith suggested it showed that Marten had treated Victoria in a cavalier fashion. The defendant accepted it appeared from the video that she was not supporting Victorias head. She added: Shes fine. If she was not, she would be howling. Im confident with my children. The defendant insisted the baby, who was dressed only in the teddybear motif babygrow, was fine. Marten said she did not believe the medical advice warning against keeping a new-born baby outside for long periods. I do not agree with it because there are babies who spend hours outside. People live in countries without central heating, she said. Mr Smith asked: At what stage did you decide to live in a tent? CCTV of Constance Marten, Mark Gordon and baby Victoria in a German doner kebab shop in East Ham, London last January 7 (Met Police/PA) Marten said she was in a restaurant with Gordon when they decided their idea of living in a flat had fallen through over their fear of Victoria being taken away. She said: We were not intending to live in a tent. We were intending to lay low for a few days. Mr Smith asked: Did either of you say anything to the effect Im not sure this is a good idea? Marten said they did not, adding that the other choice was to put their child in care. Jurors have heard how the couple went on the run from authorities in a bid to keep their baby after their four other children were taken into care. They abandoned many of their belongings after their car burst into flames near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5. When they were finally arrested in Brighton last February 27, they had refused to answer officers urgent questions about where their baby was and whether she was alive or dead. Victorias remains were found by police in the Lidl bag inside a shed on a nearby allotment on March 1 2023. The defendants, of no fixed address, deny manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child. The Old Bailey trial continues. Products featured in this Yahoo article are selected by our shopping writers. We will earn a commission from purchases made via links in this article. Pricing and availability are subject to change. This black dress is bound to be a versatile new addition to your wardrobe. (John Lewis & Partners) Spring in the UK can be a tricky time to work out what to wear it's too hot for coats but too cold for shorts, which is exactly why a jersey dress is the perfect compromise. While hunting for classic staples suitable for fluctuating temperatures, we noticed that a sell-out dress is finally back in stock at John Lewis. With many positive reviews from customers who say it's "simple and forgiving", as well as perfectly pairs "comfort plus elegance", this classic black dress is well worth snapping up while it's still in stock. It's versatile, forgiving, flattering and for just 22, is sure to be an incredibly affordable addition for your between-seasons wardrobe. One shopper even said it's "a must-have in one's wardrobe". Perfect for the office, travelling or weekend plans, it's an ideal, lightweight fabric that'll get plenty of wear now summer is fast approaching. Why we rate it This soft jersey, round-neck jumper dress is something you can pull out again and again throughout the year. During that spring-to-summer changeover, it's a useful throw-on piece that you can team with trainers. Simply throw on a leather jacket or blazer when the temperatures drop a little more at night. Later in the year when it's turning from summer-to-autumn, you can layer it over thick tights or leggings. The fit is hugely flattering too it flows beautifully over the body, without clinging anywhere. This LBD is a stylish staple that'll work hard in your wardrobe for years. (John Lewis & Partners) It's the perfect length, too, which is flattering for most people. (John Lewis & Partners) Shop now The dress made from 95% EcoVero viscose and 5% elastane is also easy-care, as it's machine washable at 30C. And if you hang it up to dry it won't need much (or any) ironing. It comes in sizes XS to L, we've outlined what that translates into UK clothes sizes below. It's worth noting that the dress is a loose fit, so depending on what kind of fit you want, some customers have suggested sizing down. What size you'll need: XS - size 4 to 6 S - size 8 to 10 M - size 12 to 14 L - size 16 to 18 What the reviews say Aside from the amazing price, John Lewis shoppers rave about the versatility of the must-have LBD, the fact it's comfortable without sacrificing style, and that the simplicity of the design makes it the perfect option for loads of different occasions. The dress hasn't been the right fit for all customers, more constructive reviews note the sizing (with many recommend sizing down), plus some thought the dress was too lightweight, so it's worth noting that this isn't a thick material. "Lovely item can be dressed up or worn just as it is. Very flattering. Fit is very forgiving." "I this jersey dress. Very comfortable and loose. Can be worn up or down according to the occasion. A must-have in one's wardrobe. Reasonable in price too." "Really great buy and such a bargain. This dress is very comfortable and versatile and I have already worn it on four separate occasions. My daughter tells me it looks really good on me too. You can dress it up or dress it down depending on the occasion." "This is such an easy dress to pull on and be off in 5 minutes. Dress it up with scarves, jewellery and heels for an all rounder. Very comfortable and useful." "This dress has a wow factor for me. I usually wear 16/18 and size M was flattering and just perfect for my purpose. I will use it as a layer under a jumper with tights or with a jacket hen it's not too cold (it's not a thick material). Am thinking to buy more of it. Would definitely recommend." Shop now: ANYDAY Oversized Plain Jersey Dress, Black | 22 from John Lewis Shop now 5 other great dresses at John Lewis right now Mourners have gathered for the funeral of BBC presenter and Wexford native Nick Sheridan, who died last week aged 32. The award-winning presenter was described as humble and kind, and as a gifted broadcaster and singer. Sheridan had presented programmes on BBC Scotland including Drivetime, the Nine and Seven Days, and had previously been the consumer affairs correspondent for BBC Scotland News. Pall bearers carry the casket into St Ibars Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford (Brian Lawless/PA) He was also a former presenter on RTEs news2day programme, and had written several childrens books. After it was announced on Thursday that Sheridan had died following a short illness, Scotlands First Minister Humza Yousaf paid tribute to the journalist in the Scottish Parliament. Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon described Sheridan as talented, vivacious, and full of potential. The parish priest told mourners gathered at St Ibars Church in Castlebridge on Wednesday that the BBC Scotland team were watching the mass on a livestream organised by Sheridans friends. BBC Radio Scotland presenter Fiona Stalker was among the mourners (Brian Lawless/PA) During the eulogy, Sheridans older brother Brian described him as a talented and generous soul who was a calming voice in the family but who also loved the craic the most. He added: Nick epitomised everything that is good in life family, friendship, creativity, and most of all kindness. He said the family were so proud of the journalists career success. He added: Despite Nicks humility, his creative talents knew no bounds. An accomplished author, Nicks fifth book will be released in the coming months. He spent every free moment of his childhood typing up and hand-delivering local news bulletins and creating short stories, all of which contributed to his success as an author in recent years. Nick Sheridan died last week aged 32 following a short illness (BBC Scotland/PA) He was as much at home in the kitchen arguing over political correctness with dad as he was grilling an unfortunate guest on the couch of Seven Days or the Nine. Singing and music were Nicks greatest gifts, whether performing the lead role in stage musicals or singing in this church at Christmas, his talent shone through and never failed to capture his audience. He said friendship was incredibly important to Sheridan, and every friend he had was valued and cherished. The journalists brother added: To Nicks friends gathered here today, know that however much you loved him, you were loved back as much and more. Our family has lost its guiding star, but we are so grateful to have had Nick in our lives for 32 years. The funeral took place at St Ibars Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford (Brian Lawless/PA) His star will continue to shine brightly down on us and we will never forget the amazing person he was and is. The Seamus Heaney poem The Given Note was read out during the funeral mass, marking the interest both sides of Sheridans family have for music and the written word. During the prayers of the faithful, the staff at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow were mentioned for the care they gave to Sheridan, as were the students at the University of the West of Scotland where he had lectured. Prayers were also offered for peace around the world, particularly in Ukraine, the Holy Land and other conflicts. On-the-run mother Constance Marten has defended her decision to live in a tent with her newborn baby, saying: Jesus survived in a barn. Marten, 36, and her partner, Mark Gordon, 49, are on trial after baby Victoria died while they were camping on the South Downs in wintry conditions last year. On Wednesday, Marten was cross-examined at the Old Bailey about the couples decision to buy a tent and live off grid to hide from authorities. She told jurors that Bedouin families walk through cold deserts with children, adding: Jesus survived in a barn. I would do anything to protect my child to prevent her being taken by the system thats abhorrent, yeah. She claimed two of her other four children were spat on and physically abused after being taken into care previously. Court artist sketch of Constance Marten and Mark Gordon at the Old Bailey (Elizabeth Cook/PA) The wealthy aristocrat told jurors: I have grown up with luxury, I have been blessed in that respect. I like feathered duvets and comfort. I would do anything for my baby. Anything. So it was an easy decision to make. I would rather be in a plush bed in a palace. I would rather be in a nice big bed. Prosecutor Joel Smith asked if she considered the conditions were uncomfortable. Marten replied: Im pretty outdoorsy but I would rather be in a bed. She went on: We were not looking to live in a tent. We were acting on instinct. She was our number one priority. We were living in a tent for Victoria. A mothers love for her child is incredibly strong. There was no way I was going to part with my child. We were hiding from the entire British public because I was worried about Victoria being taken. Marten accepted that camping in a tent meant there was no heating, hot water or electricity. But she said: People around the world live in conditions like that as long as your child is well taken care of and loved. Asked what they planned to do about food, she said: It was only a pitstop. We were not thinking about being there for months. It was more in the immediacy rather than long-term planning. Baby clothing found in a Lidl bag in a shed in Lower Roedale allotments in East Sussex, which included the body of baby Victoria (Metropolitan Police/PA) Marten repeatedly dismissed as ridiculous the prosecution suggestion that she had carried her daughter in a Lidl bag for life when she was alive. She said: This whole line of reasoning is absurd, that she is alive in the bag. Im not going to put her alive in a Lidl bag, Im sorry. Referring to CCTV images played in court, Mr Smith said: You are pretty cavalier about how you treated this child, full stop. Marten replied: Everything we are doing is for her. I dont think we are cavalier at all. We are trying to protect her and love her and prevent her being taken. I wish she was alive It was just a very sad set of circumstances and a tragic accident that could have happened anywhere but it happened to me in a tent. Mr Smith asked: Would you do it again? Marten replied: No. The prosecutor went on: Even now, even after everything you do not accept it was wrong to take that child into the tent. The defendant said: No, because thats not why she passed away. I do feel responsible for her death, absolutely, but I do not think it had anything to do with being in a tent. I have to learn to forgive myself. Earlier, Marten became agitated when asked about a teddy bear babygrow Victoria was wearing in CCTV footage from east London which was later among items recovered with her dumped body. She insisted Victoria was not dumped in the Lidl bag for life, telling jurors: Its awful, I know. The only thing I can say, if someone passes away the immediate reaction is panic. Mark and I were not in a good place. We were in fear and grief. She was not dumped anywhere. She was with us the whole time. Mr Smith asserted the couple were hideously ill-prepared to look after Victoria. The defendant, who described Gordon as her amazing husband, told jurors: We had enough to keep her warm, absolutely. She was our number one priority. CCTV image from January 2023 of Constance Marten holding baby Victoria under her coat in East Ham, east London (Metropolitan Police/PA) Jurors were shown CCTV of Marten carrying Victoria underneath her zipped-up jacket in east London last January 7. In the footage, Marten appeared to adjust the baby after she slipped down in her arms. Asked if that was an appropriate way to carry a newborn baby, mother-of-five Marten said she had always done it with her children. She said: As long as its secure. People carry children in their arms all the time. In further CCTV on the same day, Victoria was seen with her head tilted back as she was lifted up by Marten and placed in a buggy that Gordon had bought but which was designed for an older child. Mr Smith suggested it showed that Marten had treated Victoria in a cavalier fashion. The defendant accepted it appeared from the video that she was not supporting Victorias head. She added: Shes fine. If she was not, she would be howling. Im confident with my children. Marten said she did not believe medical advice warning against keeping a newborn baby outside for long periods. I do not agree with it because there are babies who spend hours outside. People live in countries without central heating, she said. CCTV of Constance Marten, Mark Gordon and baby Victoria in a German doner kebab shop in East Ham, east London, in January 2023 (Metropolitan Police/PA) Jurors have heard that the couple went on the run from authorities in a bid to keep their baby after their four other children were taken into care. They abandoned many of their belongings after their car burst into flames near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5. When they were finally arrested in Brighton last February 27, they had refused to answer officers urgent questions about where their baby was and whether she was alive or dead. Victorias remains were found by police in the Lidl bag inside a shed on a nearby allotment on March 1 2023. The defendants, of no fixed address, deny manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child. The Old Bailey trial continues. The UK East-West Council will focus on the health of the union, minister Steve Baker has said. The Northern Ireland Office minister welcomed the setting up of the council as part of the Safeguarding the Union document earlier this year, adding it was too easy to neglect the union. The council will meet for the first time on March 26 in Northern Ireland. A meeting of the House of Lords Sub-Committee on the Windsor Framework on Wednesday heard it will be attended by UK Government and Stormont Executive ministers, but there are plans to widen it to members of other devolved institutions in the UK. The council aims to focus on boosting connectivity within the UK, cultural and educational links and Intertrade UK, as well as following up the command paper proposal for an enhanced investment zone to cover all of Northern Ireland. Conservative MP Mr Baker said the country has come through a process of realising the importance of all parts of the UK. For me, actually, speaking as an English MP, it has been very easy for a long time to neglect the union, he told peers. Very rarely is the union a high priority in an English constituency and I think other constituencies will be similar. What I think weve been through here is a process of realising just how important all parts of the United Kingdom are to the whole, and I think that what the command paper does and what the East-West Council will facilitate is a focus on that overall health of the UK as a whole. My hope is that the East-West Council, rather than being about ministers coming together to decide policy and resolve issues of collaboration on particular subjects, the East-West Council will be more holistic, and I hope foster a more wide-ranging dialogue between all the nations in the UK so that we dont end up once again, in a sense, neglecting the union. A Connecticut woman who confessed to murdering her husband was also cashing his paychecks while spending months living with his decaying body in their basement. On Tuesday, Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi, 76, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and larceny - both charges in the first degree - in connection with the death of her late husband, 84-year-old Pierluigi Bigazzi, according to the state attorney's office. Kosuda-Bigazzi was arrested in February 2018, months after she killed Pierluigi by striking him in the head, the medical examiner determined, the Hartford Courant previously reported. It's believed he died sometime between July 2017 and early February 2018. Pierluigi - a former University of Connecticut medical school professor - was found dead in the couple's basement of their Burlington, Connecticut, home during a welfare check after he failed to show up to work for several months, authorities said. Despite his death, investigators determined Pierluigi's paychecks continued to be deposited into the couple's joint bank account. "This case has been pending for six years so we are thankful we were able to reach a resolution today," State's Attorney Sharmese Walcott said in a statement earlier this week. Kosuda-Bigazzi is scheduled for sentencing June 28. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Ed Sheerans team have welcomed the convictions of a family of ticket touts who exploited the love and passion of music fans. Lynda Chenery and Mark Woods were found guilty on Wednesday of fraudulent activity over their involvement in dishonest Norfolk-based touting firm TQ Tickets Ltd, which sold tickets worth more than 6.5 million on secondary ticketing sites in two-and-a-half years. Maria Chenery-Woods who is Woodss wife and Chenerys sister and Chenerys ex-husband Paul Douglas pleaded guilty to the offences at an earlier hearing. Leeds Crown Court heard TQ Tickets used multiple identities, some fake, to buy large numbers of tickets for high profile music events such as Ed Sheeran, Lady Gaga and Little Mix concerts on primary sites, including Ticketmaster. The firm would then resell the tickets often at vastly inflated prices on secondary ticketing platforms such as Viagogo. During the trial the jury heard statements from Mr Sheerans manager Stuart Camp and promoter Stuart Galbraith, who described the extensive measures they went to as they tried to prevent the re-selling of tickets at inflated prices for the singers 2018 UK stadium tour. Following the verdicts, Mr Galbraith said: Todays verdict is good news for live music fans, who are too often ripped off and exploited by greedy ticket touts. Mr Camp said: Ed Sheerans 2018 summer stadium tour was when we really took a stand against online ticket touts. The low point for me had been one of his earlier Teenage Cancer Trust concerts, where tickets were listed on Viagogo for thousands of pounds, but with none of the money going to charity. Todays prosecution will help protect music fans and sets an important precedent in the live entertainment industry that I hope will be celebrated by live music fans. Lynda Chenery and Mark Woods were convicted at Leeds Crown Court on Wednesday over their involvement in Norfolk-based TQ Tickets Ltd (Alamy/PA) The case of those involved with TQ Tickets follows an almost identical prosecution by National Trading Standards of a married couple who ran the London-based firm BZZ. BZZs Peter Hunter and David Smith were jailed for four years and two and a half years respectively in February 2020, following a landmark trial, and they were subsequently ordered to pay back more than 6.2 million by the court. Jurors in the TQ Tickets trial heard that Chenery-Woods, who referred to herself as the Ticket Queen, was the driving force behind the company. An investigation by National Trading Standards found that the defendants used several dishonest tactics to purchase multiple tickets from primary ticket sellers including using multiple identities to buy tickets and concealing their IP address by using specialist software. They then used false identities to resell the tickets at vastly inflated prices in some cases at 500% more than the face value on secondary ticketing websites. Jonathan Sandiford KC, prosecuting, opened the case saying: What this case is about is greed and dishonesty. The two defendants were ticket touts. He said: They were part of a dishonest scheme that, over a number of years, exploited the love and passion that many of us have for our favourite pop bands, our favourite artists people like Ed Sheeran and so forth. Mr Sandiford said they did this in order to milk them for profits. He said the actions of the firm, which included speculatively listing tickets for sale before they had even sourced them, sometimes led to fans being refused entry to venues or with poorer tickets than they paid for. The prosecutor referred to practices including doing a fraudie, which involved sending customers ripped envelopes to infer that the tickets had been lost in transit, or using fraud juice, which involved the use of Tipp-Ex correcting fluid, or more sophisticated digital methods, to amend tickets. Mr Sandiford said that in the period June 2015 to December 2017, the firm had sales in excess of 6.5 million on secondary ticket platforms. Mr Sandiford said the firm bought 47,000 tickets during that period, using 127 names and 187 different email addresses. Those within TQ Tickets communicated via Skype messages, which were shown to the jury. In one message, Douglas said to Chenery-Woods that the purpose of the business is to simply rinse consumers for as much profit as they are willing to pay. Woods told the court he believed there was nothing untoward about his wifes business. He said TQ Tickets was an obsession for her, telling jurors: She became completely obsessed. It took priority over me, the family, and it caused conflict. Chenery said she did some book-keeping work for her sisters firm but did not think TQ Tickets was involved in any kind of fraud. She said she became company secretary after being asked by her sister, but this did not involve performing any duties. Chenery, 51, and Woods, 59, both of Dickleburgh, near Diss, Norfolk, were found guilty of three counts of fraudulent trading. Chenery-Woods, 54, also of Dickleburgh, and Douglas, 56, of Pulham Market, Norfolk, admitted the same offences. All four defendants will now be sentenced at a later date. The First Minister of Wales has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry that he absolutely regrets everything that led to loss of life during the pandemic. Mark Drakeford made the comment when giving evidence to the inquiry, which is currently sitting in Cardiff, during questioning over the Welsh Governments policies concerning care homes. He was questioned whether the risk of spreading Covid-19 from hospitals to care homes, containing some of the most vulnerable people, was properly managed by the Welsh Government in the early part of the pandemic. First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford arrives at the Mercure Cardiff North Hotel for the UK Covid-19 Inquiry as it holds hearings in Wales (Ben Birchall/PA) Mr Drakeford said that discharging vulnerable patients from hospital was considered the safest thing that we could do at the time, and referenced evidence by Englands chief medical officer Sir Chris Whitty on the issue. He told the inquiry: He makes the point that the risks to very vulnerable people staying in hospital when they are medically fit to be discharged, at a point when hospitals are about to become the epicentre of the most dangerous place you could be, then that was not a course of action that had merit. You are discharging people back to their homes, some people live in care homes but it is their home and they are fit to be discharged there, and there are protections that can be put in place to try to manage the impact of the disease when they get there. That was the line of reasoning that we were following at the time, that the safest thing that we could do was to remove people who didnt need to be in hospital out of hospital given the impact that the disease was about to have on those hospital services. And that when people went home, there were precautions that could be taken to try to manage the risks that they would face there. The inquiry heard that on April 29 2020, the Welsh Government policy changed so that all patients should be tested for Covid-19 before being discharged from hospital to care homes. Mr Drakeford said if that decision had been taken earlier, it would have meant tests were not available for other purposes. There werent enough tests to do all that we would have liked with them, Mr Drakeford said. The hearing was told the UK Government announced mass testing of asymptomatic residents and staff across care homes in England on April 28. Two days later, a group of MPs wrote to Mr Drakeford to express concern that he had not done so. When asked about his response to that letter, Mr Drakeford said: I think this is terribly difficult territory because I know just how powerfully people feel about what happened in care homes here in Wales. I absolutely regret everything that led to loss of life. My own mother lived in a care home in Wales throughout this pandemic. These are matters that in a Welsh context, the decision-makers are not immune from the decision that we take. Mr Drakeford acknowledged that there were instances of Covid-19 being seeded into care homes by people being discharged from hospital. However, he said the primary reason for the virus entering care homes was through people going into them to care for those living there. He added: As coronavirus rises in the community, the risk that it will be carried into care homes in that way increases and I know for a lot of people thats an uncomfortable conclusion but I think it is where the evidence that I have seen takes us. Referencing the letter, Mr Drakeford said he had to rely upon the orderly decision making process that Welsh Government had rather than being buffeted by letters. Offering failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move to Rwanda would be a good use of public money, according to a Government minister. The Home Office has confirmed it is looking at widening an existing voluntary scheme for those who have been refused asylum in Britain to include Rwanda as a destination. Under the current terms of the voluntary return scheme, migrants are offered financial assistance worth up to 3,000 to leave the UK for their country of origin. Ministers are considering extending it to include those who have no legal right to stay in the UK but cannot be returned to their home country and would consider moving to Rwanda. It is separate from the Conservative Governments plan to deport to the east African country those arriving via small boats in the English Channel. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake told Times Radio payments for those voluntarily wanting to relocate to Kigali would amount to a good use of public money. He denied the offer would undermine the stalled Rwanda deportation scheme, which is currently in the middle of a parliamentary battle. Mr Hollinrake said: 3,000 is a lot of money, but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are out here without merit. It is about saying to people If you come here, you cant stay here if you come here illegally. That is the point. So I dont think anybody would try and come here just to get 3,000 to go to Rwanda. A Home Office spokesman said: In the last year, 19,000 people were removed voluntarily from the UK and this is an important part of our efforts to tackle illegal migration. We are exploring voluntary relocations for those who have no right to be here, to Rwanda, who stand ready to accept people who wish to rebuild their lives and cannot stay in the UK. Rishi Sunaks flagship Rwanda policy is currently in a parliamentary battle (Stefan Rousseau/PA) This is in addition to our Safety of Rwanda Bill and Treaty which, when passed, will ensure people who come to the UK illegally are removed to Rwanda. The Government believes the voluntary scheme, which was first reported by The Times, can be brought into effect quickly because it will draw on existing structures outlined by the agreement already in place with Rwanda and existing voluntary returns processes, it is understood. Labour accused ministers of resorting to paying people to go Rwanda upon realising their deportation scheme has no chance of succeeding. Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said: It seems that the Home Secretary is trying to find a way out of this hare-brained scheme that he himself has described as batshit. It comes as Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks legislation to revive the grounded plan to deport some asylum seekers to Kigali heads back to the Commons where the Government will seek to overturn a string of amendments agreed by the Lords. The Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, which suffered 10 defeats in the unelected chamber, received an unopposed third reading although critics made clear their reservations about the stinker legislation. Changes backed by the Lords include overturning the Governments bid to oust the courts from the process. The move effectively blows a hole in the Bill, which is intended to prevent continued legal challenges to the stalled deportation scheme after the Supreme Court ruled the plan was unlawful. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said offering 3,000 to migrants to resettle in Rwanda is good use of public money (James Manning/PA) The proposed legislation seeks to compel judges to regard Rwanda as safe in a bid to clear the way to send asylum seekers who cross the Channel in small boats on a one-way flight to the east African country. But the amendment agreed by peers restores the jurisdiction of domestic courts in relation to the safety of Rwanda and enables them to intervene. The changes set the stage for an extended stand-off between the Commons and Lords during ping-pong, where legislation is batted between the two Houses until agreement is reached. The Commons will get a chance to debate and vote on the amendments on March 18. The Prime Minister had previously warned the Lords against frustrating the will of the people by hampering the passage of the Bill, which has already been approved by MPs. Mr Sunak has defended the stalled plan to send migrants to Rwanda as a worthwhile investment, despite the public spending watchdog revealing the cost of the policy could soar to half a billion pounds. The scheme, which is yet to see a flight take off after a series of legal setbacks, could cost taxpayers nearly 2 million for each of the first 300 asylum seekers sent to Kigali, according to the National Audit Office. The Gym Group has said it plans to open around 50 new sites over the next three years as it accelerates its expansion across the UK. It came as the low-cost gym operator said it was well placed to benefit from the challenging economic backdrop, with some customers moving to cheaper gym operators. The company, which currently runs 233 gyms across the UK, revealed that revenues grew by 18% to 204 million for 2023, compared with the previous year. This was supported in a rise in gym members, with average membership numbers up 8% for the year. The Gym Group chief executive Will Orr said the company is targeting urban residential areas (The Gym Group/PA) It had around 850,000 members across the UK at the end of the year. The group said membership continued to increase into 2024, with a strong January and February as revenues grew by 16% over the two months. Revenues also increased last year after the business increased pricing. The Gym Group said the average monthly price of standard membership had increased from 21.49 in December 2022 to 23.16 at the end of December last year. The group posted a pre-tax loss of 8.3 million for the year, although this shrank from a 19.4 million loss a year earlier. Last year the company also opened six new sites, but said it plans to accelerate this to up to 12 openings this year. Chief executive Will Orr told the PA news agency that the group will target urban locations as part of the expansion plan. We think we can open around 50 new sites over the next three years, he said. Although we will always prioritise quality. We would rather open 48 of the right sites than try to force ourselves to the 50 numbers. There are some opportunities out there from a real estate point of view and weve had some really exciting new gyms. We have been targeting urban residential areas, so particularly places like Greater London. Shares in the business moved 6.4% higher at 116.6p. Irelands culture minister has said she has felt nothing but revulsion and anger at the deaths and injuries in Gaza in recent months and said it has to stop. Catherine Martin appealed to the US, a country with strong ties to Israel, to join us in the pursuit of peace. The Green Party deputy leader has faced pressure over her attendance at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas this week. Several Irish artists boycotted the arts festival for its ties to the US Army over its support for Israels military offensive in the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday Ms Martin took part in a SXSW panel discussion on the Basic Income For The Arts pilot in Ireland. In her opening remarks, published on the Department of Cultures website on Wednesday evening, she said that she had spoken to artists who had withdrawn from the music festival. She said that she had reassured the Irish musicians that she would use every opportunity available to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza. Remarks were also uploaded to the departments website of comments for a St Patricks Day reception at the Austin consulate on Tuesday night, where she said the slaughter and maiming of innocent people under any flag, under any name for any cause is wrong. In her preprepared remarks for the SXSW panel on Wednesday, she said she was taking a stand for the concerns of the Irish people and Irish artists. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will raise the issue with US president Joe Biden (Niall Carson/PA) She called for a ceasefire, condemned the Hamas attack on 7 October and called for the release of all hostages, and for a massive increase in humanitarian aid for people in Gaza. As a representative of the Irish government, there is a special opportunity afforded to me to speak directly with you in the US, the country and the people with strong ties to the Israeli nation. Like so many people in Ireland, I have felt nothing but revulsion and anger at seeing the killing, bombing and maiming inflicted on the Palestinian people in Gaza in recent months. It has to stop. She continued: We extend our hand to all Americans to join us in the pursuit of peace. The time for action is now, and Ireland remains steadfast in its commitment to bringing an end to this humanitarian crisis. She also said Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is expected to raise Irelands concerns about Gaza with US President Joe Biden this week. Politicians stepping away from these public engagements where we can raise the horrific plight of Gaza is not an option. Instead, our jobs as representatives of the Irish Government is to use this platform to argue for peace. Also on the panel were Sarah Calderon, executive director of Creatives Rebuild New York, Shafeka Hashash, an Associate Director of Guaranteed Incomes, and Angela Dorgan was the moderator. Olympic gold medallist Lauren Price will challenge American Jessica McCaskill for her womens world welterweight titles on May 11 in Cardiff. Price will get her shot at McCaskills WBA, IBO and Ring Magazine crowns at the Utilita Arena having amassed a record of six straight wins since turning professional in the wake of her triumph in Tokyo in 2021. Victory would make more history for Price, the first Welsh boxer to win Olympic gold, who would also become the first Welsh woman to land a professional world title. Into The Dragons Den @jaydi_mac defends her titles against the Welsh sensation, @LLPrice94, on May 11th at the Utilita Arena, Cardiff Sign up for pre-sale at https://t.co/yt3WMVlLFj #McCaskillPrice | 11.05.24 | Utilita Arena, Cardiff | @SkySportsBoxing | @peacock BOXXER (@boxxer) March 13, 2024 Price, 29, said: Im over the moon for this fight to finally be getting announced. The fact its in Cardiff is amazing. Ive not boxed there since I first started out which was a good few years back now. I cant wait to put on a show in front of my friends, family and Welsh supporters who have been great in supporting me throughout my career. Jessica McCaskill is the current champion. Shes game, experienced and strong but Ill be 100 per cent ready for whatever she brings on the night. Lauren Price made history by winning Olympic gold in Tokyo (Adam Davy/PA) The experienced McCaskill unified the world light-welterweight titles before stepping up to end Cecilia Braekhus long reign as welterweight champion in 2020. She lost a world lightweight title fight against Irelands Katie Taylor in 2017 and lost a light-welterweight unification fight against Chantelle Cameron in December 2022. In her last fight in September last year, she fought a draw with Derbys Sandy Ryan. A mother accused of murdering her three-year-old son told jurors she wanted to have a family with more than 10 children. Christina Robinson, 30, denies causing a fatal injury to her son Dwelaniyah by violently shaking him at the family home in Bracken Court, Ushaw Moor, Durham, in November 2022. She is accused of hitting him with a bamboo cane and deliberately scalding him, causing excruciating burns to his legs and buttocks, in the weeks before his death. Police body-worn camera footage shows Christina Robinson speaking to an officer as paramedics try to save her sons life nearby (Crown Prosecution Service/PA) The married defendant, who is originally from Tamworth, Staffordshire and who grew up for a period in Bulgaria, denies murder and a child cruelty charge. Newcastle Crown Court has heard she claims she was allowed to chastise the little boy according to the teachings of the Bible. Giving evidence in the witness box, Robinson said her marriage to Gabriel Adu-Appau was failing after he decided to join the RAF. She told the jury she looked into using a sperm donor after the relationship broke up. Jamie Hill KC, defending, asked how many children she wanted to have. Double figures, she replied. She also said she was prepared to be a surrogate mother for a friend, saying she was very fertile, but in the end, it was not necessary as the woman got pregnant herself. Mr Hill asked who did the discipline in the house if both parents were there and the defendant answered that it was her husband. Christina Robinson appeared before Newcastle Crown Court, where she denies murder and a child cruelty charge (Alamy/PA) She claimed he used shoes, a sandal, slippers, utensils or pieces of wood to discipline in the house. Robinson told the jury that after one occasion, she had told her husband that was unnecessary but that it was as if what I had said did not matter. Robinson said she had discussed physical punishments with her husband, who grew up in Ghana, and she told the court: He explained to me and told me stories about how things were done where he came from. The court has heard Mr Adu-Appau was away from the family home, serving on an RAF base near Aylesbury when Dwelaniyah was fatally injured. Robinson said she had four miscarriages but her husband only knew about two of them, adding: He wasnt interested, he didnt care that they died. She added: It was a hard time for me, and I never have and I never will recover from them. Robinson explained how her son was accidentally scalded when she washed him in the shower when the water suddenly became hot. She explained she did not realise he was getting burned by the hot water as he normally cried when he was showered. Robinson did not seek medical attention for the burns, saying she treated them herself in the following days, even when she realised he was badly hurt. She told jurors: I already felt ashamed at the time when it happened, I didnt mean to do this to him. As it got worse and worse, it just looked really bad. I knew it would look really bad. The trial continues. A sneak peak at the exhibition of Naomi Campbells looks has teased the dresses and shoes that will be on display later this year. The British businesswoman and supermodel was at the Dorchester hotel in Park Lane, London on Wednesday to launch the show, titled Naomi. The first Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) exhibition focused on a leading models career in fashion, will show around 100 looks from Campbells four decades in the industry. The preview showed off her Alexander McQueen silk tulle dress, with intricate silver detailing placed on top of see-through netting and embroidered with 3D petal climbing roses, which she wore on the red carpet ahead of picking up the Icon prize at the 2019 Fashion Awards in Londons Royal Albert Hall. Naomi Campbells Alexander McQueen dress, worn at the 2019 Fashion Awards (Ian West/PA) The 53-year-old was honoured because of her contribution to the industry as well as her philanthropic work with charities and efforts for a more diverse and equal future, especially in Africa. Before original creative director British designer McQueen died aged 40 in 2010, she walked the runway for his shows, including the 2004 Black event revisiting his greatest hits. Campbell recently closed Sarah Burtons last Paris Fashion Week at the helm of the fashion house. Continuing the theme of showcasing her biggest moment, Campbell also posed on Wednesday alongside a stripped dress from Nigerian designer Kenneth Ize, who she has long championed. Naomi Campbell at the Fashion Awards 2019 (Ian West/PA) The red, white and green ensemble was worn during Paris Fashion Week in 2020 when the model closed the designers show and many African fashionistas began storming the French event. The V&A exhibition will also showcase older pieces including high-platform purple shoes from Dame Vivienne Westwood. Vivienne Westwood shoes on display as part of the V&As forthcoming Naomi exhibition, celebrating her 40 years in fashion (Ian West/PA) These type of eight-inch heels caused Campbell to take a tumble during Dame Viviennes Paris Fashion Week show in 1993 in a memorable moment. Another piece turning back time is a black and burnt orange dress, similar to a Tunisian designer Azzedine Alaias 1992 silhouette and pattern. A burnt orange dress and pantsuit at the Dorchester hotel in Park Lane, London (Ian West/PA) Rounding out the pieces on display is a low-cut light grey pantsuit, which appears to be the same one worn for the Boss campaign in 2023 and also features a heavy coat in the ensemble. A fashion photography installation, curated by Campbells good friend and outgoing British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, will also feature prominently at the exhibition, the V&A previously said. She appeared in Enninfuls final cover for the magazine, in February, along with chat show host Oprah Winfrey and supermodel Kate Moss as his last shoot brought together 40 stars. The clothes on display as part of the V&As forthcoming Naomi exhibit (Ian West/PA) Photographers Nick Knight, Steven Meisel and Tim Walker will form part of the V&A installation along with designs from Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana and Gianni and Donatella Versace. Campbells modelling career took off aged 15 and she is regarded as one of worlds most famous models. In 1988, she became the first black model to appear on the cover of French Vogue. Naomi will run from June 2024 to April 2025. A street in Paris. Most people in Europe live in areas exceeding the WHOs recommended levels of pollution. Photograph: Shui Ta Shan/Alamy Air pollution levels have improved in Europe over the past 20 years, research has found. However, despite these improvements, most of the European population lives in areas exceeding the World Health Organizations recommended levels. About 98% of Europeans live in areas the WHO says have unhealthy levels of small particles known as PM2.5, 80% for larger ones known as PM10, and 86% for nitrogen dioxide. The study, led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), looked at pollution levels in more than 1,400 regions in 35 European countries, representing 543 million people. Targeted efforts are needed to address PM2.5 and ozone levels and associated compound unclean days, especially in the context of rapidly increasing threats from climate change in Europe, said Zhao-Yue Chen, ISGlobal researcher and lead author of the study. The results, published in the journal Nature Communications, show that overall suspended particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) levels have decreased in most parts of Europe. PM10 had annual decreases of 2.72%, PM2.5 had an annual drop of 2.45% and there was a yearly fall in NO 2 of 1.72%. Related: Evidence grows of air pollution link with dementia and stroke risk The tiny particles defined as PM2.5 and PM10 are small enough to embed themselves deep into the lung and have been linked to a wide range of health problems including heart disease, cancer and premature births. They have been estimated to be linked to the early death of more than 400,000 people across Europe each year. Experts say more than 200,000 of these could be prevented if the air in Europe met World Health Organization guidelines. Particulate pollution comes from the burning of solid and liquid fuels, mostly through power generation, domestic heating and motor traffic. It can also form in the air from chemical reactions between other pollutants. Our consistent estimation of population exposure to compound air pollution events provides a solid basis for future research and policy development to address air quality management and public health concerns across Europe, said Carlos Perez Garcia-Pando, one of the study authors. Many European cities have implemented low-emissions zones for vehicles, reducing particulate pollution, and some countries including Poland have reduced their reliance on coal-fired stoves. EU directives on industrial emissions have helped businesses reduce pollution. The pair now face a rematch of their 2020 showdown - AP Donald Trump and Joe Biden have become the presumptive nominees for the 2024 presidential election, setting up a rematch between the two men four years after their first contest. Both candidates secured more than half of the Republican and Democratic delegates respectively needed for the nomination on Tuesday night, as primaries were held in Georgia, Mississippi, Hawaii and Washington state. As an incumbent president, Mr Biden was expected to easily sweep the Democratic nomination, and has won every race other than a draw in the tiny US territory of American Samoa. Mr Trump, meanwhile, has won all but two of the Republican votes, losing to Nikki Haley only in Washington DC and Vermont. Mr Haley dropped out of the contest after the fifteen primary votes on Super Tuesday, declaring that the time has now come to suspend her campaign. Her presidential bid continued much longer than those of Mr Trumps other rivals many of whom quit the contest to endorse him. Ms Haley instead urged her supporters to always make up your own mind. Mr Biden secured his partys nomination after the primary in Georgia on Tuesday, which pushed his total number of delegates beyond the 1,968 required to win the contest. Mr Trump won in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington, securing the required 1,215 delegates around 3am GMT on Wednesday. As the presumptive nominees, Mr Biden and Mr Trump must now wait for their partys national conventions this summer to officially receive the nomination and enter the general election campaign. This years primary season concluded more quickly than usual, due to Mr Trumps dominance of the Republican race winning by significant margins in all of the early voting states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. Although incumbent presidents usually win the nomination of their party without serious challengers, most opposition parties see a contest between candidates who have not served in the White House. Mr Trump is the second president in US history in 100 years to be ousted from office and return at a future election, giving him the status of a de-facto incumbent. Mr Biden and Mr Trumps early status as presumptive nominees will increase pressure on the President to debate his predecessor before the scheduled presidential television debates in the autumn. Mr Trump has already called for an event to be organised, and said he would attend even if it was run by the corrupt Democratic National Committee. The latest polling suggests that Mr Trump is currently winning in the key battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona. If an election was called immediately, he would likely win it. However, the former president must first navigate a series of criminal trials, some of which are scheduled to begin before polling day on November 5. The first of the cases, over allegations of falsifying business records relating to the porn star Stormy Daniels, is set to begin in New York on March 25. Mr Biden is facing poor ratings in national opinion polls, with voters reporting that they think he is too old to serve again in the White House, and that they have felt the impacts of persistent inflation in the US. Biden attacked Trump's campaign - AP Welcoming the results on Tuesday, Mr Bidens campaign released a statement from the president emphasising his message that Mr Trumps campaign is based on resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country, he said. Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away? Will we finally make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes or will we allow corporate greed to run rampant on the backs of the middle class? Mr Trump insisted in a victory statement that the Republican Party is strong and united behind him. We are now, under Crooked Joe Biden, a Third World Nation, which uses the Injustice System to go after his political opponent, ME! he wrote on Truth Social. But fear not, we will not fail, we will take back our once great Country. A mother from North Carolina faces charges of involuntary murder for accidentally causing the death of her baby while co-sleeping under the influence of alcohol, a year after a similar incident involving her oldest child. Mackenzie Katlyn Reed, 24, faces charges of felony child abuse and involuntary manslaughter following the death of her baby, Zhen, on October 3, 2023. North Carolina Mom Charged After Second Co-Sleeping Tragedy The authorities released details of a tragic incident involving a 24-year-old woman named Mackenzie Reed, who is facing charges after her second child suffocated while co-sleeping. According to the police, this marks the second child Reed has tragically lost in the same way. When police arrived at a report on October 3, they found an unconscious infant which was not breathing. This was the start of the upsetting incident that happened all through the night. It was not possible to bring the newborn back to life despite the efforts of the first responder. This is not the first time Reed has experienced such a loss. In 2022, she lost another child due to co-sleeping, although she was not charged at the time due to insufficient evidence. The incident has brought back fears among health professionals regarding the risks of co-sleeping, a discussed practice in which babies sleep on the same surface as their parents or guardians. Dr. Lori Tackman, a pediatrician, identified the dangers of this practice, cautioning about the risk of suffocation if infants roll or come near pillows. Reed has been charged with felony child abuse serious harm, involuntary manslaughter, and child abuse/neglect essential injuries. These charges were brought against Reed by the authorities. Currently, she is being detained on a bail of $500,000 in debt. The investigation, which continued over a period of months, came to the view that both of Reed's infants had suffocated while they were sleeping together. Co-sleeping is strongly discouraged by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which states that even while parents should sleep in the same room as their kid during the first six months of their child's life, they should not sleep in the same bed. On the other hand, they urge for the use of bassinets or cribs that do not contain any soft toys, pillows, blankets, or other forms of bedding, according to WSAZ 3. Read Also: Madeline Soto's Accused Killer Faces 60 New Charges Days After 13-Year-Old's Body Found in Woods Infant Deaths Linked to Unsafe Sleeping Conditions The academy reports that around 3,500 infants pass away annually because of sleep-related problems, with unsafe sleeping conditions like co-sleeping with parents increasing the danger. Details emerged from a police report indicating that Reed had been using THC products before the incident. The report mentioned that Reed had fed the infant before falling asleep with him beside her, leading to the tragic outcome. Reed's arrest on March 6 identified the severe outcomes of co-sleeping incidents. Even with the joint attempts of authorities and health experts to advocate safe sleep practices, unfortunate incidents like this one still happen. Meanwhile, a Facebook profile purportedly belonging to Reed posted about the heartbreak of experiencing a second loss, sharing links to a GoFundMe page set up in memory of the deceased infant. As the investigation progresses, the community must cope with the effects of another tragic loss caused by co-sleeping. It is crucial to continue establishing the need for awareness and preventive measures to protect infants during sleep and avoid future tragedies, The News Observer reported. Related Article: Cop Dies in Freak Accident at Own Engagement Party @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. There are fewer than 6,000 black-faced spoonbills in the world. Photograph: Xinhua/Rex/Shutterstock I opened the windows to the hide and was greeted by a mass of birds. Hundreds of cormorants, gulls, herons, egrets, ducks and waders, all feeding frantically as the rising tide covered up the fertile mud. Overhead, black kites patrolled half-heartedly, occasionally provoking the other birds to take to the wing in short-lived panic, before settling back down to feed or rest. I witnessed this spectacle at the World Wide Fund for Natures Mai Po nature reserve in Hong Kong, justly celebrated as one of the most important wetlands in the world. Either side of high tide, birds gather here in vast numbers against the backdrop of Shenzhen, one of the fastest-growing cities in the world, just across the border in mainland China. Among the commoner species I spotted a spoonbill, but not the version I am familiar with. As it fed, sweeping its curious, spatulate bill from side to side in the shallow waters, I could see a distinctive dark face, contrasting with its white plumage, which marked this bird out as something different. The black-faced spoonbill is by far the rarest member of its family, with fewer than 6,000 individuals on the planet. Soon it will head back north to the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea where it can breed undisturbed. Hopefully, next autumn, it will return to Mai Po, a welcome haven in a world where wetland habitats are under constant threat. No gastronomic coming-of-age is complete without learning the difference between mustards, writes Cumming There has been no competition for the hottest topic on The Telegraph letters page this week. Forget war, royals or politics, one subject has set tongues wagging more than any other: mustard. The first shots were fired by Tim Wilson of Bradfield in Berkshire. On March 5, he wrote in to ask if other readers had noticed that Colmans seems to have lost some of its fire. He was worried that perhaps as part of a diversity and inclusion drive, Norfolks finest had watered down the recipe to make the product accessible to those with a more delicate palate. Colmans has confirmed that there have been no recent changes to the recipe, although the company said in 2015 that it would be experimenting with milder variants, to appeal to a wider range of tastes. Other readers were quick to reply to Mr Wilson. Bill Mason wrote that he had migrated away from Colmans to Tescos own brand, finding it to have a superior taste as well as a keener price. Nick Pope, from Woodcote in Oxfordshire, suggested buying dry mustard powder rather than pre-mixed and letting the user prepare it to the desired level of heat. On Tuesday, readers reminisced about being prescribed a mustard poultice for a weak chest, and being offered a tube that was still priced in shillings. No other condiment inspires such strong feelings among British diners. Ketchup is basically ketchup and Heinz is the best, however enthusiasts for Tiptree, Daddies and Stokes might bleat. Mayonnaise and its children are best left to the Americans and northern Europeans. Barbecue and brown sauces have specific-use cases. Mustard, by comparison, is a birthright. No gastronomic coming-of-age is complete without learning the difference between English, French, wholegrain and American mustards. When to Maille and when to Colmans. Which situations call for a bit of unbridled Norwich heat, and which for the sweet tang of Americas favourite: Frenchs. Mustard is the original condiment, says Josh Daly, the UK brand owner of Grey Poupon, a Dijon mustard company that is now part of the Kraft group. There are lots of different sauces, but mustard is an incredibly versatile ingredient. All the different types have their place. English mustard is a condiment you would put on a burger or have with a steak, where a French mustard is more about using it as an ingredient. American and English might be fighting over the same share of hot dog. Colmans could be forgiven for experimenting with its flavour. Mustard has had an up and down few years. In 2019, the company finally abandoned its Norwich roots, closing its factory in Carrow to draw a veil over 160 years of manufacturing in the city (production has now moved to Burton-on-Trent). The final batch made there replaced the best before label with the message: Norwichs Last. By Its Finest. July 24th 2019. A 1960s advertisment for Colman's, which was made in Norwich for 160 years until 2019 - Alamy Covid didnt help. In 2022, Colmans reported that sales had fallen 3.8 per cent year on year, largely due to a 13.9 per cent drop in demand for English mustard. Mustard in general had a poor pandemic, with worldwide supplies affected by a shortage of seed that became even more acute after Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Lots of mustard seed is grown in Russia and Ukraine, but it is the milder seed preferred by central and eastern Europe. The demand for the nose-tingling type put pressure on French supplies. Most of the mustard seed used in France is grown in Canada, which accounts for more than 80 per cent of the countrys supply, but a poor 2021 harvest led to a huge drop in production. Given that the French get through a kilo per head every year, it wasnt long before the countrys shopkeepers reported bare shelves and customers began hoarding jars to secure their fix. This stands in contrast to the UK, where there is increased condiment competition. The most prominent upstart is Nandos, which now has a market-conquering range of sauces, including peri-peri and a peri-peri mayonnaise, Perinaise, inspired by the ones available in its restaurants. In 2022, Nandos overtook Colmans for total sauce sales, a remarkable ascent given that it only began selling them in 1999. Its success reflects a general trend for hot sauces and chilli and away from traditional condiments such as Colmans. Nando's Perinaise: the brand overtook Colman's for total sauce sales in 2022 Josh Daly says that Dijon mustards milder flavour makes it more resilient in the market, too. Younger foodies are discovering that mustard is something you can put in dressings or sauces, he says. Grey Poupon has also enjoyed an unexpected boost as a point of cultural reference in hip-hop music. In The Life of Pablo, released in 2016, Kanye West rapped Yeezy, Yeezy, Yeezy, this is pure luxury / I give em Grey Poupon on a DJ Mustard, ah. Journalists have documented more than 100 mentions of Grey Poupon in rap songs, the kind of publicity you cannot buy. There is a decent historical case for mustard being the original condiment. Starting in China and Africa, there is evidence of the mustard plant having been cultivated for thousands of years. The Romans were probably the first to use it in the form we would recognise today. The word, mustard, is a contraction of the Latin mustum ardens, meaning burning must, because the mustard was ground up with grape must. A recipe for boar with a mustard glaze appears in De Re Coquinaria, a Roman cookbook from the fifth century. The first English mustard was sold in 1720 by an enterprising woman in Durham. The terminology has become confusing. Frenchs is a brand name for the most popular American mustard. French mustard, the sweeter, darker brown variety, was invented by Colmans in the 1930s and has nothing to do with France. Meanwhile, Dijon mustard is not a protected product and therefore often made elsewhere. At the risk of alienating some of the letter writers, my personal favourite is Edmond Fallot, a family-owned French brand from Burgundy. Its classic Dijon mustard is smooth and balanced enough that you can eat it from the jar with a spoon, but retains enough kick to perk up any sausage or confit de canard. Apart from its versatility, the best thing about it is that it comes in enormous 600g jars. The larger vessel, less a pot than a great amphora, changes the psychology of mustard. A small jar, like those Colmans tends to come in, encourages you to dib and dab, using little bits here and there. With a huge jar of the stuff, you slather freely. Rather than using mustard to enhance dishes, I start to think of dishes as opportunities to eat mustard. As a consequence, I get through tonnes of Dijon, while I nurse the English stuff slowly. In mustard as in other areas of national competition, size isnt everything, but it can help. Five classic mustards to try a English Made from a mixture of different seeds along with sugar, salt and often including wheat flour to make it thicker, powerfully-flavoured English mustard gets its distinctive colour from the addition of turmeric. For maximum heat, mix powdered mustard with just enough water (or vinegar) to form a paste. Serve with ham and beef of any type or try mashing a dab into your egg mayonnaise or cheese toastie. a Tewkesbury A flavour-packed blend of mustard and horseradish, Tewkesbury was originally sold dried in balls ready for grating. Now available in jars, please dont keep it just for roast beef try mixing with creme fraiche to serve alongside fishcakes or grilled salmon or add a spoonful to the cream mix when making a potato gratin. a Dijon Smooth and mellow, this is one of the most versatile mustards for cooks. A spoonful will enhance the flavours of creamy and cheesy sauces and also makes a wonderful addition to dressings including vinaigrette and mayonnaise. Try sweetening with honey and mixing with chopped fresh dill and olive oil or buttermilk for a delicious Scandi-style dressing for smoked or cured fish. a Wholegrain A blend of crushed whole mustard seeds, mustard powder, sugar and varying spices such as cinnamon and pimento. This will do a great job of livening up simple dishes such as mashed potatoes and will cut nicely through fattier foods such as cheese on toast. It makes the perfect partner for pork sausages. a American A smooth, squirtable sauce with a texture similar to ketchup, this is one of the mildest options available. Its vibrant yellow hue pairs well with a browny-pink hotdog but it also helps to pep up a bacon sandwich. Diane Abbott has accused the Conservatives of aiming to play the race card in the general election, saying the abuse she faced from Tory donor Frank Hester epitomised this approach. In a comment piece for the Guardian, the veteran MP said Hesters remarks left her upset but not surprised, given the amount of racist abuse she receives. Hester said in a 2019 meeting that he did not hate all black women but seeing Abbott on TV meant you just want to hate all black women because shes there. He also said she should be shot. Abbott, the UKs longest-serving black MP, who sits as an independent after losing the Labour whip last year, said she was also owed an apology from Labour over abusive comments about her revealed in internal party messages. Abbott criticised the Commons speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, for not calling her during prime ministers questions on Wednesday, after Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer discussed Hesters comments. In reference to Hesters comments, she said she was hardened to racist abuse. She wrote: I receive hundreds of abusive emails, phone calls and letters monthly, and the numbers shoot up whenever I am in the media. Much of this targets my appearance, questions my intelligence and features classic racist lines such as: Go back to where you come from, Abbott said. She contined: But as the election draws nearer, and Labour stays 20 points ahead in the polls, the Tories are desperate. Their political trump card has always been low taxes and the sound management of the economy. But Liz Truss blew out of water any claim the Tories had to superior economic competence, and taxation is now at its highest sustained level on record. So the only card the Tories have left to play is the race card, and they are going to play it ruthlessly. This was manifested in policies like the Rwanda deportation scheme for asylum seekers, she said, and Conservative anxieties about extremism, which Abbott says is partly about leftwingers, but it is also a code word for Muslims. The Metropolitan police had been fair in their policy towards pro-Palestine marches in London, Abbott wrote, adding: But the Tories underlying Islamophobic narrative demands that they continue to complain about the forces of law and order. Its an unusual position for Conservative politicians. Turning to Labour, Abbott said she had not received an apology from the party after a report published in 2022 by Martin Forde QC found she had been the target for abuse in private WhatsApp messages among party staffers hostile to Jeremy Corbyn, which showed overt and underlying racism and sexism. They did not actually call for me to be shot but the tenor was not dissimilar to what Hester said, Abbott wrote. However, to this day none of the individuals concerned have apologised to me, and the Labour party has not apologised to me personally. Abbott lost the Labour whip over a letter in which she appeared to play down the extent of racism against Jewish people. She wrote: It will be both sad and strange if Starmer throws Britains first black woman MP out of the PLP [parliamentary Labour party] because of an eight-line letter, for which I immediately apologised. But the most important thing is that the Labour party holds fast to its anti-racist tradition, and is prepared to fight racism and Islamophobia at all times and in all places. Telegraph Foreign state control of British newspapers is to be outlawed, effectively blocking the UAEs attempted takeover of The Telegraph. Ministers revealed plans on Wednesday explicitly to rule out newspaper and periodical news magazine mergers involving ownership, influence or control by foreign states. The move, announced by Lord Parkinson, the culture minister, was made to see off a rebellion being led by a Tory peer and sparked by The Telegraphs predicament. RedBird IMI, a fund 75 per cent backed by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE vice-president, had positioned itself to take control of The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine by repaying the debts of the Barclay family, the current owners. The takeover has been under scrutiny from the Government using existing powers to protect press freedom, but MPs and peers across Parliament have demanded tighter laws against foreign state control. Peers argued during a debate in the House of Lords on Wednesday that letting a foreign state own a British newspaper would be outrageous and inconceivable. New law could be in place in weeks The new law will be made by an amendment to the Digital Markets Bill, but will change the wording of the existing Enterprise Act. It could become law within weeks. The amendment is yet to be published and it remains unclear what percentage of foreign state ownership would amount to influence under the proposed change. Lord Parkinson said the amount of overall ownership by a foreign state entity, such as a national investment fund, that would be allowed would be very low but gave no figure. Under other legislation, the threshold for a stake to be considered controlling, is 25 per cent. Some UK news organisations, such as The Independent, already are part-owned by foreign state bodies. It is understood the new ban would not be retrospective, so existing foreign state involvement in British news organisations, such as a Saudi stake in The Independent, would be unaffected. Peers also noted Norways investment fund has holdings in various UK media outlets, via the stock market. It leaves RedBird IMI with a decision to make on whether to restructure to dilute the UAE funding to a level that might be acceptable under the new regime. The bidder is being advised by figures including George Osborne, the former chancellor, and Ed Richards, the former chief executive of the media regulator Ofcom. Turning point in battle for Telegraph It marks a significant turning point in wrangling over the future ownership of The Telegraph, which was seized from the Barclay family in June by Lloyds Banking Group in a dispute over 1.2 billion of overdue debt. RedBird IMI helped repay the familys debt in December with a loan that it aimed to convert into ownership of The Telegraph and The Spectator. The Barclay family regained ownership but are barred by law from exercising any control over the titles, which are being run by independent directors. The involvement of the UAE in RedBird IMI had triggered concerns about press freedom. Baroness Stowell, the Tory chairman of the Communications and Digital Committee, had tabled an amendment to give Parliament a veto on foreign state takeovers of UK papers. But moments before a vote was due to take place in the Lords on Wednesday afternoon, Lord Parkinson announced that the Government would put forward its own change. Lord Parkinson said: We will amend the media merger regime explicitly to rule out newspaper and periodical news magazine mergers involving ownership, influence or control by foreign states. He explained how the new regime would work: Under the new measures, the Secretary of State [for Culture] would be obliged to refer media merger cases to the Competition and Markets Authority [CMA] through a new foreign state intervention notice where she has reasonable grounds to believe that a merger involving a UK newspaper or news magazine has given or would give a foreign state or body connected to a foreign state, ownership, influence or control. The Competition and Markets Authority would be obliged to investigate the possible merger and if it concludes that the merger has resulted or would result in foreign state ownership, influence or control over a newspaper enterprise, the Secretary of State would be required by statute to make an order blocking or unwinding the merger. Press freedom should never be for sale Only British newspapers and news magazines would be impacted by the change, according to Lord Parkinson, meaning broadcasters will not get new protections. The amendment making the change will be unveiled for the third reading of the Digital Markets Bill, currently pencilled in for March 26. Any changes will need approval from MPs, too. The foreign state ownership ban would come into force when the Bill is granted royal assent. There is no strict deadline for how quickly that should happen after parliamentary approval, but on current timings it could come into force in April. The Culture Department will continue to scrutinise The Telegraph takeover while peers debate the proposed law change. Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, is expected to publicly respond to reports on the bid by the media regulator Ofcom and the CMA by the end of the month. Should she request a phase two investigation, the CMA would be expected to take another half a year, by which time the new ban is likely to have come into effect. Peers used Wednesdays debate to once again raise concerns about the prospect of a UAE-backed fund taking over The Telegraph and the Spectator. Lady Stowell, who withdrew her amendment after the Governments intervention, said: What freedom of the press means is freedom from government, the freedom of the media to scrutinise and hold to account those of us in Parliament on behalf of the electorate. That principle is what has prevented any UK government from owning or controlling the press, she said. Its surely inconceivable then that wed sanction a foreign government or state power to do what no UK government ever has or would ever do. Lord Robertson, a former Labour defence secretary and Nato secretary general, said: There is no provision in the legal framework of this country at the moment that prevents a foreign government from gaining control, ownership of our media outlets. To the vast majority of the public, that would seem to be outrageous. It seems almost self-evident and yet we dont have that legal provision and we should have. Lord Forsyth, a former Tory cabinet minister, said: It is what it is, which is an influence strategy, the payment of a rich price, and all of that is about getting influence through the media. Of course, money talks and ownership matters. The freedom of our press should never be up for sale. He who pays the piper calls the tune, but this is not a melody. The very idea of an autocratic state with a poor record on human rights owning or holding any influence in a major British daily newspaper to me is just utterly surreal. Nothing less than a complete ban on foreign governments having any role in the governance, ownership or financing of our media is acceptable. It is a no-brainer. Robert Jenrick, the former Tory migration minister who led a push by 100 MPs for a parliamentary veto, said the news was a victory for the free press and free speech in this country. Lord Moore, a former editor of The Daily Telegraph, said it was a very important matter of principle and very important that weve got to the heart of it. He added: At The Daily Telegraph, weve always been very proud advocates and practitioners of a free press, but we havent particularly enjoyed having to advocate it quite so hard and quite so repeatedly in order to get the message across. Baroness Fleet, a former deputy editor of The Daily Telegraph, warned against the UAE being allowed to take even a minority stake in the newspaper. She said: Anyone who buys a newspaper wants to influence society, politicians and government. All proprietors interfere. The notion that a government or someone appointed by a government buys a newspaper other than to directly influence the newspaper is fanciful. Since the 7th of October, the newspaper has boldly championed the right of Israel to defend itself against Islamic terrorism and importantly every week The Telegraph has criticised the pro-Palestinian parades through London for their anti-Semitism. The idea that an Arab owner any Arab owner of The Telegraph or any other newspaper would allow its editor to support Israel and criticise pro-Palestinian anti-Semites is an absurd notion. She added: Allowing that [a minority stake] would also endanger The Telegraph. There would be nothing to stop the rich minority shareholder offering an extremely tempting fortune to a co-shareholder for their stake. That would give Abu Dhabi a majority interest just what the proposed amendment seeks to avoid. A flare to burn excess methane from oil production in North Dakota. The US is now the biggest source of methane emissions from oil and gas extraction. Photograph: Matthew Brown/AP Fossil fuel companies must pay tens of billions to reduce the emissions of methane from their operations or it will be almost impossible to meet global climate targets, the worlds energy watchdog has warned. The US is now the biggest source of methane emissions from oil and gas extraction, as a result of the massive expansion of its oil and gas sector, while China is the biggest emitter of methane from coal mining. Russia also continues to be a major emitter as its fossil fuel operations are poorly run. Leaks from coalmines and oil and gas wells are the biggest sources of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that has caused about 30% of the temperature increases seen to date, according to data published on Wednesday by the International Energy Agency (IEA). About 170bn cubic metres of methane was emitted from fossil fuel operations around the world last year, which is more than the entire natural gas production of Qatar. Yet many of these leaks could easily be plugged if the best practices developed in some countries such as Norway, which has low methane leaks from its oil and gas drilling operations were adopted around the world. Currently, the least efficient operations are about 100 times worse than the most efficient, with Turkmenistan and Venezuela the worst offenders. One well blowout in Kazakhstan last year produced large quantities of methane for more than 200 days. The IEA calculated, in a global survey of methane published on Wednesday, that $170bn would be needed to reduce global methane emissions by 75%, of which $100bn was needed in oil and gas and $70bn in the coal industry. That would give the world a much-improved chance of limiting temperature rises to 1.5C above preindustrial levels, the report found. The spending required from fossil fuel companies to clean up their operations would be the equivalent of about 5% of the enormous profits they made last year, the IEA estimated. Paul Bledsoe, a former Clinton White House climate adviser now with American University in Washington, said the US must ensure all producers followed best practice. Related: No big North Sea fossil fuel country has plan to stop drilling in time for 1.5C goal Now that the US is the worlds largest producer of oil and gas, its industry must finally commit to near-zero methane emissions by the end of this decade, even as the Biden administration regulates methane more strictly, or face a consumer backlash, he warned. At the same time, Russia continues to have the highest rate of methane leakage, another reason for the EU and others to continue boycotting the gas that is funding Vladimir Putins war in Ukraine. And China must shut down many of its coalmines, as methane adds to CO2 to produce the most greenhouse gas-heavy fossil fuel in the world. Despite a pledge of action on methane from more than 200 countries, emissions of the gas remained near to the record high set in 2019, according to the IEA report. The energy advisers Global Methane Tracker also found that real world emissions were far higher than countries or companies were reporting. There were reasons to be optimistic, however, the authors of the IEA report said. Better monitoring of methane emissions is now possible, from satellites, and is set to improve further with the launch of a dedicated methane satellite system from the US NGO Environmental Defense Fund. Sometimes it can be quite quick and easy to stop [leaks once identified], said Christophe McGlade, head of the energy supply unit at the IEA. We hope the UN can pick this [satellite data] up and use it. Tim Gould, co-author of the IEA report, said the forthcoming Cop29 UN climate summit, scheduled to take place in Azerbaijan this November, could provide an opportunity for governments and companies to take stronger action. Cop29 will take place in a large oil and gas producer that will help to keep the focus on methane, he said. We would also like to see a focus on methane in countries NDCS [their nationally determined contributions, or plans under the Paris agreement to cut emissions]. Durwood Zaelke, president of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development, called on governments to heed the IEAs advice. Cutting methane is the only way to slow near-term warming and avoid the tipping points that send us into irreversible and catastrophic climate chaos. Its the blowtorch thats setting the climate on the boil. Turn it off and the temperature goes down faster than anything we can do, he said. Unions said advice that schools should adopt a policy of watchful waiting in response to a pupils request to socially transition was vague. Photograph: Peter Lopeman/Alamy Teaching unions and school leaders in England are calling for an overhaul of ministers proposed guidance on the treatment of transgender pupils, saying the current version is incomplete and vulnerable to legal challenges. The unions and other organisations, including the campaigning group Sex Matters, are also critical of the guidance proposals for how schools should respond to children wanting to socially transition to a different gender by changing their names or uniform. In their responses to the governments consultation, which closed on Tuesday, the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) and the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) highlighted their concerns that the government had ignored legal advice that schools could face a high risk of losing court cases if they follow the new guidance. Related: What does the trans guidance for Englands schools say? Leaked legal advice obtained by Schools Week revealed that lawyers at the Department for Education said parts of the guidance would fail to stand up to legal challenges. But the passages were still included in the published draft and approved by No 10 and equalities minister Kemi Badenoch. Julie McCulloch, director of policy at the ASCL, said: School and college leaders have been waiting for this guidance for several years now. While its publication is helpful in many ways, we also have a number of concerns. One of the reasons why this guidance is so necessary, along with supporting schools in taking compassionate, evidence-informed decisions which keep all their pupils safe, is to protect school and college leaders from increasingly vitriolic and threatening challenges in relation to the decisions they make. The very least we would expect from any government guidance is that it is legally sound. If the government cannot provide assurance that schools and colleges will not be leaving themselves open to legal challenge by following this guidance, then the government itself must commit to taking on any legal challenges that arise against schools. Patrick Roach, the general secretary of NASUWT, said schools desperately needed new guidance, but said the current draft should be withdrawn and replaced with sensible and credible interpretations of schools legal duties. Roach said: Teachers and headteachers need to be confident that following guidance from the government will not conflict with other legal and statutory obligations, such as the Equality Act, or Keeping Children Safe in Education safeguarding laws. In our view, the draft guidance fails to provide effective support on practical issues that schools and colleges may face, including working with children who have already transitioned with the support of their families. It also fails to address the issue that teachers, schools and colleges rarely have access to adequate support on these matters from external agencies. Both unions said the advice that schools should adopt a policy of watchful waiting, in response to a pupils request to socially transition, was vague. NASUWTs response said the phrase gave little practical assistance, adding: Specifically, the guidance does not set out what schools and colleges should watch for, nor does it help them to determine a reasonable duration within which they should watch and wait in particular cases. Related: Trans guidance tells English schools to consider social media influence on pupils asking to transition Sex Matters, while supportive of the guidance overall, also criticised the lack of detailed guidance being offered to schools regarding issues such as social transitioning. Schools are not clinics, and teachers are not clinicians. They cannot undertake watchful waiting or involve other children in providing treatment for gender dysphoria, its response to the consultation stated. Sex Matters also called for the government to provide legal analysis highlighting which statutory requirements underpin the guidance and why it is consistent with the Equality Act, in light of likely court challenges. Kelly Wilkinson was stabbed eight times by Brian Earl Johnston but likely died after he set her on fire, Queensland supreme court heard. A judge has sentenced him to life in prison over the murder. Photograph: SUPPLIED/PR IMAGE The night before Brian Earl Johnston murdered Kelly Wilkinson, he was recorded on a CCTV camera making preparations. The former US marine packed a camouflage bag with a prybar, duct tape, zip ties, a tomahawk axe and a sedative, the Queensland supreme court heard. He filled a 20-litre jerry can with petrol. Johnston was sentenced on Wednesday to life in prison for the premeditated murder of 27-year-old Wilkinson, his estranged wife, at her Gold Coast home on 20 April 2021. He was also sentenced to three years for breaching a domestic violence order. Justice Peter Applegarth set a non-parole period of 20 years, the statutory minimum. Related: Its true, Kelly Wilkinson was cop shopping. She was looking for a Queensland cop who cared | Lucy Clark Applegarth found that Johnston had gone to the property, where Wilkinson lived with their three young children, with intent to murder her and commit suicide. The court heard Wilkinson was stabbed eight times, but likely died after being set on fire. Johnston then set himself alight, before jumping in a pool. Thats the intent I find you had, Applegarth said. The weapons that you had, the other items that you had. That you went there masked. That you went there armed, that you went there with 20L of petrol. I find that you intended to kill her, and then kill yourself something you failed to achieve. The court heard significant detail about the events prior to the murder, including that Wilkinson had disclosed allegations that Johnston had been abusive and controlling. She devised a code that she would claim she wanted to return to Ohio, where she had previously lived with Johnston before 2017 designed to alert family members she was in danger. Guardian Australia reported last month that in the following weeks, Wilkinson had visited multiple police stations seeking protection, and that police notes said she had been cop shopping. Prosecutor Philip McCarthy KC told the court that two of Wilkinsons children had witnessed their mothers murder. The oldest told police in a statement that he seen a man with a black mask covering his head, punching his mother repeatedly. He heard his mother say stop, collected his two sisters and ran to the neighbours house [where] he told them someone was hurting Mummy, McCarthy said. Related: Kelly Wilkinson sought help from the police almost every day after her first domestic violence complaint. So what went wrong? The court heard Johnston served in two tours of Iraq with the marines and had symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder. He had sought mental health treatment in the weeks before the murder. Footage from a workshop CCTV camera, recorded the night before the murder, shows Johnson making what Applegarth described as preparations including taking a prybar from a toolbag. The court heard the footage shows Johnston tell a friend hes not going to be there tomorrow. Family members and friends of Wilkinson read victim impact statements describing their years of trauma since the killing. Wilkinsons sister, Danielle Carroll, described the moment her father called to say: He has killed her. I just had this feeling I needed to be with her, Carroll said, addressing her remarks to Johnston, who sat impassively in the dock. In the same moment I was told you set her on fire, not only taking her life but her body as well. I couldnt hold her hand. I couldnt kiss her on the forehead. You robbed me of giving her the proper goodbye she deserved. All Kelly wanted was to love and be loved. All you gave her was pure evil. I cant bear to think about her last moments and what you did to her, the sleepless nights, the nightmares, days on days of immense heartbreak only to turn to numbness. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 988 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org The current Lord Balfour said although the painting was not a great one it was 'symbolic of our past' - AFP A descendant of Arthur Balfour has demanded that the Government and institutions take firm action over attacks on British culture, after a portrait of the Edwardian-era prime minister was defaced with red paint. An activist with the radical group Palestine Action spray painted a portrait of Lord Balfour, who promised the Jewish people a homeland while foreign secretary in 1917, before taking a knife to the artwork, which hangs at the University of Cambridge. The current Lord Balfour has condemned the act of vandalism and called for firm action to curb attacks on the symbols of Britains past. Roderick Balfour, the fifth Earl of Balfour and the great-nephew of Arthur Balfour, also suggested there should be an educational shift to produce young people who have a greater respect for the UKs national heritage. He told The Telegraph: Its very alarming that we have people who feel entitled to attack the totems of our culture and history. What is needed is what was called the smack of firm government, firm action that makes clear that this cannot go on. There seems to be a lack of common sense around this. The painting is not a great one, its not a Van Gogh, but it is a symbol of our past, our history that has been attacked. He added: There appears to be no respect for the country that has educated them, that has allowed them the lives they have. There is a sense of entitlement to all this. The Balfour declaration The work was created by Philip Alexius de Laszlo, a high-society portraitist, in 1914 and hang in Trinity College Cambridge, Arthur Balfours alma mater. The prime minister and later foreign secretary drafted what became known as the Balfour declaration in 1917, a document that outlined Britains intention to support the founding of a Jewish state, though not at the expense of any group. Trinity College put out a statement following the activist action saying that the police had been informed and the college regrets the incident, adding that support is available for any member of the College community affected. Palestine Action issued an Instagram video justifying the vandalism with captions that read: Written in 1917, Balfours declaration began the ethnic cleansing of Palestine by promising the land away which the British never had the right to do. After the declaration, until 1948, the British burnt down indigenous villages to prepare the way; with this came arbitrary killings, arrests, torture and sexual violence including rape. The British paved the way for the Nakba and trained the Zionist militia to ethnically cleansed [sic] over 750,000 Palestinians, destroy over 500 villages and massacre many families. The Nakba never stopped, and the genocide today is rooted and supported by British complicity. Now Elbit Systems, Israels biggest weapons manufacturer, uses Britain as a manufacturing outpost to build arms which are battle-tested on Palestinians. Maura Healey in Washington DC on 23 February. Photograph: Nathan Posner/Rex/Shutterstock The Massachusetts governor, Maura Healey, announced plans to pardon all simple marijuana possession charges from the state, which could affect hundreds of thousands who have faced charges. We believe this is the most sweeping cannabis pardon announced by any governor in the United States. The reason we do this is simple: justice requires it, Healey said at a press conference on Wednesday. Though the state does not have exact numbers of how many people the pardon will affect, Healey said it could be hundreds of thousands in Massachusetts. Healey also pointed to the racial justice the pardons will bring to the state. A 2016 report from the ACLU of Massachusetts found that Black residents made up 24% of marijuana possession arrests in the state, though they make up just 8% of the states population. We can be certain that this pardon will redress some of the harm those disparities have caused in Massachusetts, and well continue to do all that we can to eliminate racial injustice throughout the system, Healey said. The pardon does not cover other marijuana-related charges, including those related to distribution or driving under the influence. Without the pardon, simple marijuana possession charges can show up on peoples criminal records, affecting their ability to obtain a job or housing. This announcement today means that people in every community across the state will no longer be punished for behavior thats now legal, the ACLU of Massachusetts executive director, Carol Rose, told WBUR. Voters in the state approved a measure to legalize recreational marijuana in 2016. The pardon is the second from a governor since President Joe Biden issued a pardon in October 2022 for simple marijuana possession on federal lands and Washington DC. Biden had called on governors across the country to do the same for simple marijuana possession charges carried out by their state. In November 2022, Kate Brown, then governor of Oregon, pardoned more than 47,000 people in the state for charges of simple marijuana possession of one ounce or less. Biden then expanded his marijuana pardon in December 2023 to include those who had been charged with using or attempting to possess marijuana on federal land, in addition to simple marijuana possession. He renewed his call to governors to issue simple pardons. Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana, Biden said in a statement in December. Its time that we right these wrongs. Australian Workers Union Victoria state secretary Ronnie Hayden says a 37-year-old man killed in a mine collapse at the Ballarat Gold Mine was performing a form of drilling that shouldnt be used to do this type of work. Photograph: Con Chronis/AAP A man has died and another is fighting for his life in hospital after a mine collapse in Victorias Goldfields region. Thirty people were working about 3km from the entrance of the Ballarat Gold Mine at Mount Clear when the incident occurred about 4.50pm on Wednesday. While 28 miners made it to a safety pod inside the mine and were eventually brought to the surface uninjured, two workers were pinned by fallen rocks about 500 metres underground. One of the men, a 21-year-old from Ballarat, was freed on Wednesday night and flown to the Alfred hospital in Melbourne, where he remained in a critical condition on Thursday. The other man, a 37-year-old from Bruthen in the states East Gippsland region, died. Acting Insp Lisa MacDougall confirmed police had recovered his body at 5.20am on Thursday and would prepare a report for the coroner. WorkSafe confirmed it would be investigating the death. It will be a complex, detailed investigation, WorkSafes director of health and safety, Dr Narelle Beer, said on Thursday. Well take some time, and were very keen to understand how we can ensure that a tragedy like this never occurs again. According to the Australian Workers Union Victorian branch secretary, Ronnie Hayden, the mans death should have been avoided. Hayden told reporters the workers were performing a manual type of mining called air-legging on unsupported ground at the time of the accident. The method involves the use of a handheld drill operated by two miners. He said the ground gave way, trapping both miners and killing one. This form of air-legging shouldnt be used to do this type of work. This form of air-legging should be used, if its ever used at all, to investigate the ground, he said. Hayden said concerns had been raised about the use of air-legging at the mine for some time. He said it was his expectation Victorias workplace manslaughter laws would take effect. According to Hayden, since the laws were introduced in 2020, 169 Victorians had been killed on the job but there had only been one prosecution of workplace manslaughter. Ben Wright, the manager of the earth resources section of WorkSafe, said air-legging was less common than mechanised mining and should not occur on unsupported ground. All mining does inherently carry a risk and its the mine operators duty to ensure those risks are managed appropriately, he said. Without commenting specifically about this incident, theres a general position in the entire mining sector that [the] ground should always be supported. In a statement, Victory Minerals said the tragic incident was being independently investigated by WorkSafe. Given this, its not appropriate for us to comment further right now, other than to confirm we are cooperating fully with this investigation, and undertaking our own, it said. The safety of our people on site is our first priority. Victory Minerals bought the mine network, including the mill and equipment, from Lihir Gold in March 2010. In November 2007, three years prior to that sale, 27 miners were trapped when a cave-in occurred while they were working a kilometre underground. The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, said her thoughts were with the mans family, as well as the other miners involved in the accident. This would have been a terrifying ordeal for those miners and certainly too our thoughts should be with them as well, she told reporters on Thursday. The federal member for Ballarat, Catherine King, also extended her condolences to the family of the miner who died, saying she was deeply saddened. Ballarats mayor, Des Hudson, said news of the mans death was devastating for the tight-knit community, which has also grappled with the alleged murder of local woman Samantha Murphy. Our hearts go out to the family of that miner who never came home from work but also to the other miner who is currently in the Alfred hospital with very significant injuries and has a battle in front of him, Hudson told Channel Sevens Sunrise. The federal judiciary on Tuesday announced a policy shift that would require the assignation of random judges in civil cases that have statewide or national implications to avoid "judge shopping." The move is part of an effort to address widespread concerns in single-judge divisions. The policy-making body for the federal courts, the Judicial Conference of the United States, said that district courts may continue to assign cases to a single-judge division if those cases do not seek to ban or mandate state or federal actions through declaratory judgment or injunctive relief. Federal Judiciary Announces Policy Shift However, when random assignments are required, the case will be assigned to a judge within the same judicial district. In a statement, the secretary of the conference, Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr., said that the random case-assignment policy would deter judge shopping and the assignment of cases based on the perceived merits or abilities of a particular judge. He added that the policy shift promotes the impartiality of proceedings and bolsters public confidence in the federal judiciary. The particular issue of judge shopping first gained national attention following the filing of a lawsuit seeking to revoke federal approval of the abortion medication mifepristone in a division with just one judge, according to the Washington Post. The attorney general's office and conservative groups in Texas have also looked to single-judge divisions as the places to challenge President Joe Biden's policies on immigration and the environment, among other issues. On the other hand, the Biden administration as well as organizations such as the American Bar Association have expressed concerns about judge shopping in the past. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. also highlighted the issue in his 2021 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary. A professor at Fordham Law School, Bruce Green, welcomed the policy shift of the federal judiciary. He said that it was highly problematic to have a party that is able to choose the single judge that they want to preside in a particular case. Read Also: Judge Approves Trump's $92 Million Bond in E. Jean Carroll Defamation Case The Issue of "Judge-Shopping" A CNN legal analyst and professor at the University of Texas School of Law, Steve Vladeck, said that the issue is not just that the previous policy allows plaintiffs to effectively choose their judge. He argued that it also undermines public faith in the integrity of the judiciary for the courts to stand idly by, said CNN. Vladeck noted that the policy shift suggests that the federal judiciary agrees that this is a problem that needs to be addressed. U.S. Circuit Judge Jeffrey Sutton said that the increasing prevalence of nationwide injunctions partially drove the policy change. He also noted that there are still benefits for cases that have no nationwide or state-wide implications to be kept in local divisions. One particular case that highlighted the issue was the Texas lawsuit that was filed by anti-abortion activists. They sued the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2022 and sought to overturn the approval of the abortion drug mifepristone. The case was handled by Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk, who is an outspoken opponent of the healthcare procedure. The judge, who is the sole federal judge in Amarillo, agreed with the plaintiffs that the drug was "unsafe." He invalidated the FDA's 23-year-old approval of mifepristone, according to the New York Times. Related Article: Donald Trump, Joe Biden Clinch Presidential Nominations Kicking Off for Gruelling US Election Rematch @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. In the line of fire ... 'This is a war on children. It is a war on their childhood and their future,' says one UN official - Anadolu More children have been killed in Gaza in just four months of fighting than in four years of armed conflicts around the world combined, the United Nations has said. The UN said on Tuesday that more than 12,300 children died between October and February in the Gaza Strip, mostly in Israeli airstrikes, citing its own data and reports from Gazas Hamas-run health ministry. At the same time, the UNs own calculations show that 12,193 children were killed in fighting in all armed conflicts globally between 2019 and 2022. At least 31,272 people have been killed in Gaza since October last year, according to the Gaza health ministry. Although it is run by Hamas, the ministrys casualty figures for previous conflicts have been found to be accurate. The childrens death toll for wars in the past four years would include Russias invasion of Ukraine, where Moscow has been carrying out ferocious airstrikes using powerful weapons against civilians. Ukraine, however, has been able to reduce the civilian death toll thanks to its air defences. On Tuesday, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UNs agency for Palestinian refugees, called the numbers staggering. This war is a war on children. It is a war on their childhood and their future, he said. Children in Gaza wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen - REUTERS/Mohammed Salem/File Photo The head of the UN agency spoke just before a US official warned that Washington would not be in a position to resume funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), following a scandal around the alleged involvement of 12 of its 13,000 Gazan employees in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7. We have to plan for the fact that Congress may make that pause permanent, Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesman, said on Tuesday of a freeze on US contributions to UNRWA. The ongoing war in Gaza, which has already led to at least 20 children dying from starvation, has caused relentless mental harm to minors there, charity group Save the Children said on Tuesday. The charity warned about the emotional distress for Gazas children from dodging bombs and bullets as services and tools for parents to care for their children are further and further out of reach. Israel insists it is only bombing military targets in Gaza and says it goes to great lengths to minimise civilian casualties. It has defended its air campaign as a legitimate response to the October 7 attack by Hamas. Michael Gove will set out a new definition of non-violent extremism - Tayfun Salci/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock Muslim groups that incite hatred and undermine democracy will be named and shamed as extremists by the Government, Michael Gove will announce on Thursday. The Communities Secretary will set out a new definition of non-violent extremism which officials will use to identify and publish a list of Islamist and far-Right groups. Officials will be instructed to cut off all Government funding and block all meetings with any of the groups to ensure they are not inadvertently giving them a platform or legitimacy to advance extremist ideologies. They will be groups that fall below the terrorist threshold and so have, up until now, been free to work with Government, councils, police, health services and universities. Ministers believe that using the new definition to identify the groups as extremist will send a signal to public bodies to think twice about working with them or employing individuals associated with them. Officials expect to face judicial reviews by groups included on the list as there will be no right of appeal to the final decision by the Secretary of State. The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) and Cage International told The Telegraph on Wednesday night that they were considering legal challenges if they were named. A senior member of the MCB previously advised the police. If the group was deemed extremist by the Government, it is likely to put pressure on organisations not to work with it. It is understood that Mr Gove is planning to name several groups on Thursday under Parliamentary privilege which protects the right of MPs to speak freely without being sued. The moves follow a six-fold increase in anti-Semitic incidents and a four-fold jump in anti-Muslim hatred since Hamass terrorist attack on Israel on Oct 7. Mr Gove said on Wednesday: The pervasiveness of extremist ideologies has become increasingly clear in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks and poses a real risk to the security of our citizens and our democracy. This is the work of Extreme Right-Wing and Islamist extremists who are seeking to separate Muslims from the rest of society and create division within Muslim communities. They seek to radicalise individuals, deny people their full rights, suppress freedom of expression, incite hatred, and undermine our democratic institutions. Todays measures will ensure that Government does not inadvertently provide a platform to those setting out to subvert democracy and deny other peoples fundamental rights. A narrower, more precise definition The new definition is narrower and more precise than the last version which was contained in the 2011 Prevent counter-terror programme. It says that extremism is the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on violence, hatred or intolerance. It states three aims deemed extremist: To negate or destroy the fundamental rights and freedoms of others; undermine, overturn or replace the UKs system of liberal parliamentary democracy and democratic rights; intentionally create a permissive environment for others to do so. The definition will cover both organisations and individuals although officials expect it to apply to groups in the first instance. Individuals involved with the named extremist groups could still be blocked for honours or public appointments. Officials, supported by experts from a new counter-extremism centre of excellence in Mr Goves department, will investigate potential extremist groups activities, behaviours and pronouncements before presenting a recommendation with evidence to the Secretary of State to make the final decision on which groups are on the list. Definition will not apply to mainstream discourse The Government insists the definition will not stifle free speech or apply to debate within the boundaries of mainstream discourse such as Conservative religious views, climate change, abortion rights or gender critical issues. It is neither statutory, nor part of criminal law. However, in an article in the The Spectator on Thursday, Toby Young, general secretary of the Free Speech Union, warned that the plan could hand a dangerous weapon to a Labour Government who could tweak it to smear their political opponents. Detailed guidance will be published on Thursday setting out the types of behaviour and ideologies that could be captured by the definition. At the weekend, Mr Gove described chants of From the River to the Sea as amounting to the legitimisation of an extremist position which intimidates and leads to hate. A permissive environment could be a group which repeatedly provides a platform to extremist speakers despite being told they meet the definition for extremism. The 2011 definition of extremism stated that it was the vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. It added that extremism included calls for the death of members of our armed forces, whether in this country or overseas. The MCB is an umbrella body with more than 400 Muslim organisations as affiliates. The Government has already cut off contact with it. Cage International campaigns against state policies developed as part of the war on terror but has sparked controversy over its defence of the rights of terror suspects. The MCB said it would be offensive, ludicrous and dangerous to suggest it fell under arbitrary definitions of extremism. We are a democratic organisation representing a cross-section of British Muslims. We shall be monitoring developments and will seek to reserve our position legally, it said. Cage International said it was extremely opposed to an establishment that is aiding livestreamed genocide abroad and imposing draconian laws at home to suppress taxpayers and citizens, who seek to express their basic humanitarian values. We will be keeping all our options open, including a legal challenge against the Government. Leonid Volkov in 2022. Lithuanias foreign minister said the perpetrators would have to answer for their crime. Photograph: Janis Laizans/Reuters Leonid Volkov, a longtime aide to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, has vowed to continue the struggle against Russian President Vladimir Putin after being attacked with a hammer outside his home in Lithuania. We will work and we will not give up, he said in a video clip posted on Telegram early on Wednesday, claiming that the attack that left him with a broken arm was a characteristic bandit hello from Putins henchmen. Volkov, 43, was briefly hospitalised after the assault late on Tuesday, which sparked outrage from the Lithuanian government. Related: I considered him a decent person: how Putins puppets help to dupe Russias voters The man attacked me in the yard, hit me on the leg about 15 times. The leg somehow is OK. It hurts to walk ... However, I broke my arm, Volkov said in the Telegram post. They literally wanted to make a schnitzel out of me. Volkov is one of Russias most prominent opposition figures and was a close confidant of Navalny, working as the late leaders chief of staff and as chair of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023. Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh earlier said that someone broke a car window and sprayed teargas in his [Volkovs] eyes before hitting him with a hammer. The attack comes almost a month after the sudden death of Navalny in an Arctic prison, which Volkov and Navalnys widow Yulia blamed directly on the Russian president. The day before he was attacked, Volkov wrote on social media: Putin killed Navalny. And many others before that, echoing similar claims made by Navalnys allies, as well as US president Joe Biden. Hours before the attack Volkov also told independent Russian news outlet Meduza that he was worried for his safety after Navalnys death. The key risk now is that we will all be killed. Why, its a pretty obvious thing, the outlet quoted him as saying. Images published by the Navalny team after the attack showed Volkovs face and legs covered in blood, while another photo showed a car with its window smashed. Lithuanian police spokesperson Ramunas Matonis confirmed to the news agency AFP that a Russian citizen had been assaulted near his home in the capital, Vilnius, at around 10pm on Tuesday. The suspects had not been identified and more details about the assault were expected on Wednesday morning, he said. Lithuanias foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, described the reported attack as shocking. News about Leonids assault are shocking. Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime, Landsbergis wrote on X. Volkov had recently urged Russians to turn out in big numbers for an election day protest ahead of the upcoming presidential elections. The incident marks the first attack on Navalnys allies since they left Russia more than three years ago. Volkov and other key members of the Navalny team have lived in Lithuania since Russian authorities classified Navalnys groups as extremist organisations in 2021. Most of Navalnys closest allies are on Moscows wanted list and would face long-term prison sentences if they entered Russia. Berlin police last year also opened an investigation into the suspected poisoning of two independent Russian journalists visiting the city for a conference organised by the Russian Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Agence France-Presse contributed to this report Asbestos-contaminated mulch being removed from a park in Sydneys Surry Hills last week. The Minns Labor government says loopholes in environmental laws need to be fixed. Photograph: Blake Sharp-Wiggins/The Guardian Penalties for the most serious environmental crimes would double and the New South Wales environmental watchdog would have powers to recall potentially contaminated products from consumers under major changes to environmental protection laws proposed by the Minns government. The environment minister, Penny Sharpe, said the government was proposing the largest set of amendments to the Environment Protection Authoritys (EPAs) powers since the regulator was established in 1991. The legislation, to be introduced to the parliament on Thursday, follows a crisis triggered after asbestos was found in mulch at the Rozelle parklands in January. Related: Asbestos-contaminated mulch found at 75 sites across Sydney, watchdog finds An EPA investigation has since detected asbestos in mulch at 75 sites across greater Sydney. Sharpe said the EPAs criminal investigation into the mulch had highlighted loopholes in the states environmental regulations that needed to be fixed. Among the proposed reforms are a doubling of the maximum penalty for tier-1 environmental offences the most serious environmental crimes to $10m for companies and $2m for individuals. The penalty for tier-2 asbestos-related offences would increase to $4m for companies and $1m for individuals. On-the-spot fines for smaller offences would also double and the government is proposing to crack down on small-scale illegal waste dumpers with maximum penalties of $50,000 for companies and $25,000 for individuals. Related: Asbestos in Sydney mulch: what are the regulations and should they be tougher? Other proposed changes include giving the EPA new powers to recall products from the market that may be contaminated with harmful substances, strengthening the EPAs investigation powers, and establishing a public name and shame process to issue warnings about serious or repeat environmental offenders. Under 12 years of conservative government, penalties and regulation havent kept pace, Sharpe said. We need a tough environmental cop on the beat. Our changes will give the EPA more power to better protect our precious places and to deter environmental crime. The events of the past two months have shown the urgent need to reform environment protection laws and increase penalties. Sharpe said the sweeping reforms would directly improve the protection of human health, the environment and the community. Rhosygilwen house applied for planning permission for the turbine to generate 600KW of energy - WALES NEWS SERVICE A historic mansion plans to install a giant wind turbine on its grounds despite fears it could interfere with a local airports radar systems. The owners of the 17th-century Rhosygilwen house in Wales want to install a 200ft wind turbine to help lower energy costs on the site. The grade-II listed mansion, which is rented out as a venue and acts as an arts centre in Cilgerran, Pembrokeshire, applied for planning permission for the turbine to generate 600KW of energy. The mansion already uses power from a solar farm but it was hit with huge increases in importing energy from the grid during the winter months, applicant Glen Peters of Western Solar Ltd said. Agent and specialist renewable energy developer Infinite Renewables Limited says the proposed turbine would supply the large majority of power required to run the mansions heat pump during the winter, replacing the existing solar system. But the West Wales Airport five miles away at Aberporth, which carries domestic flights and is also a centre for the deployment of civil and military drones, tried to block the bid over fears it could cause issues for aircraft using the site. Obstruction risk Ryan Banks, the airports senior air traffic engineer, said the size of the proposed turbine would mean the airports radar system must treat it as a potential aircraft and take appropriate action to ensure separation from other aircraft. He added: If nothing else, this will increase controller workload and effectively deny access to an important piece of airspace. Mr Banks said the turbines proximity to the radars power output meant we anticipate a large return signal from the proposed wind turbine, which will result in significant display clutter. He added: For these reasons, we cannot agree to the proposed wind turbine. But airport bosses are understood to have later withdrawn their concerns after receiving assurances about the turbines operation. The application was backed on a minded to approval, meaning it will return to a future meeting for ratification after a cooling off period, expected to be the April planning meeting of Pembrokeshire council. The Princes unveil a statue they commissioned of their mother Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace in 2021 - Dominic Lipinski/WPA Pool/Getty Images/Getty Images Europe Prince William and Prince Harry will take part in an award ceremony to honour their late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. The Prince of Wales will attend the Diana Legacy Awards at the Science Museum on Thursday evening to deliver a short speech to mark the charitys 25th anniversary. The Duke of Sussex will meet award winners virtually after the ceremony when he speaks to them from his home in California. The brothers are not on speaking terms but they are keen supporters of the Diana Award and have long championed the event. It is the only charity that bears the Princesss name and honours people aged from nine to 25 who work to improve the lives of others. Last year, the princes each recorded a video segment that was played during the ceremony. Young people can change the world William said he was proud to continue the belief shared by his mother that when we invest in young people they can truly change the world. Harry said his mother recognised the unique ability of young people to challenge the status quo and push for a more inclusive and compassionate society. In 2022, the Duke of Sussex recorded a message to open the ceremony in which he said his mother had instilled in him a drive to speak up and fight for a better world. William sent a written message saying there was no better way to celebrate his mothers life than by recognising those who gave so much time to others. In 2021, the event was held virtually and Harry recorded an address in which he praised his late mother for living by truth and service to others and for believing young people had the power to change the world. He also addressed the first virtual ceremony in 2020 on behalf of himself and his brother. Last joint engagement The last official joint engagement the brothers carried out in person was the unveiling of their mothers statue at Kensington Palace in July 2021. In September 2022, they were joined by their wives, the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex, to view flowers and tributes left in honour of Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle and attended their grandmothers funeral and the Kings Coronation. The young princes were brought up to be very by their mother, Diana Princess of Wales, but are not thought to be on speaking terms after the Duke of Sussex's decision to cease being a working royal - Tim Graham/Tim Graham Photo Library The Diana Legacy Awards, founded in 2017, are held every two years to celebrate the achievements of 20 young leaders who are inspiring the next generation to follow in the late Princesss footsteps and have a positive impact on the world. The original Diana Award was founded in 1999. Kensington Palace has confirmed Prince William will meet staff and supporters before joining the ceremony, during which he will make a short speech and present the awards. Afterwards, he will meet the winners, who represent countries such as Australia, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Oman, Pakistan, Romania, the UAE, the UK and the US. A spokesman for The Diana Award said: The Duke of Sussex will be a key part of our Legacy Award celebration, which takes place over the course of this week. He is scheduled to speak with the award recipients, virtually, on the evening of the awards to celebrate their accomplishments. It is hoped footage of his involvement will be released later. Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow - AFP President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday that Russia was technically ready for nuclear war and that if the US sent troops to Ukraine, it would be considered a significant escalation of the war. Putin, speaking just days before a March 15-17 election, which is certain to give him another six years in power, said the nuclear war scenario was not rushing up and he saw no need for the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready, Putin, 71, told Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA in response to a question whether the country was really ready for a nuclear war. Putin said the US understood that if it deployed American troops on Russian territory - or to Ukraine - Russia would treat the move as an intervention. (In the United States) there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint, Putin said. Therefore, I dont think that here everything is rushing to it (nuclear confrontation), but we are ready for this. The war in Ukraine has triggered the deepest crisis in Russias relations with the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and Putin has warned several times that the West risks provoking a nuclear war if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine. Kyiv says it is defending itself against an imperial-style war of conquest designed to erase its national identity. Meanwhile, Russia claims the areas it controls in Ukraine are now Russia. Russia ready for serious talks on Ukraine Putin reiterated that the use of nuclear weapons was spelled out in the Kremlins nuclear doctrine, its policy setting out the circumstances in which Russia might use its weapons. Weapons exist in order to use them, Putin said. We have our own principles. Russia and the United States are by far the largest nuclear powers, controlling more than 90 per cent of the worlds nuclear weapons. Putin said Russia was ready for serious talks on Ukraine. Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but they should be based on reality - and not on cravings after the use of psychotropic drugs, Putin said. If the United States conducted nuclear tests, Russia might do the same, he added in the wide-ranging interview. Its not necessary ... we still need to think about it, but I dont rule out that we can do the same. puberty blockers The SNP has been accused of putting children at risk by refusing to ban puberty blockers in Scotland despite an NHS review warning that they are potentially dangerous. On Tuesday, the health service in England ruled that the drugs, which halt puberty, would no longer be prescribed to young people struggling with their gender identity due to very limited evidence of safety. However, the Scottish Government has said children north of the border could still be prescribed puberty blockers through the Sandyford gender clinic in Glasgow on a case by case basis, leading to accusations that it had been captured by ideology. Independent studies by the NHS south of the border highlighted evidence that puberty blockers could harm bone development. Concerns were also raised in reviews about the impact of the treatments, created for other conditions but prescribed off label by gender clinics, on psychological and sexual development. The English NHS concluded that there is not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of [puberty suppressing hormones] to make the treatment routinely available at this time. Dr David Bell, a psychiatrist who became a whistleblower at Londons discredited Tavistock gender identity clinic, said that by failing to follow independent evidence, Scottish children were being put at risk. This shows that gender medicine has been captured by ideology in Scotland, he said. Considerable evidence and concerns about harm Are we expected to believe that Scottish children are not like English children, that they have different endocrinology and physiology, and that therefore scientific evidence of this sort does not apply to them? This ideology has blanked out ordinary canons of scientific argument, making it possible to prescribe medicines to children for which there is no evidence of benefit, but considerable evidence and concerns about harm. Supporters of puberty blockers insist they buy time for young people questioning their gender and can aid mental health by preventing the onset of potentially distressing physical changes to their bodies. Trans rights activists have condemned the NHS England move as being part of a politically motivated war on trans youth. But NHS England said it found no evidence to conclusively back the claims of effectiveness and safety. It said existing studies were mainly of poor quality with results potentially skewed by the particular ideological and/or theoretical standpoint of their authors. Dr Bell added: Its deeply worrying that over the border in Scotland, the thinking about helping children who present with difficulties in relation to their gender identity is still dominated by ideology and not evidence. It means Scottish children will continue to be harmed. Children as young as nine have received puberty blockers after being seen at the NHS-run Sandyford in Glasgow, which refers some children to endocrinologists who give the prescriptions. A leaflet for Sandyford patients acknowledges that there is a lack of research about the unknown consequences of puberty blockers but adds that they are suggested in clinical guidelines as a helpful intervention for some people. The health board was unable to say on Wednesday which guidelines this referred to. Countries including Canada, Sweden, Finland and France have also recently moved to restrict puberty blockers and in January this year, the World Health Organisation concluded it was unable to make any recommendations about their use because of a lack of evidence. However, five Sandyford patients were prescribed puberty blockers last year. Between 2011 and 2019, 79 young people began taking puberty blockers after being referred by the clinic to endocrinology departments. Meghan Gallagher, the deputy leader of the Scottish Tories, said: This move by NHS England should be the catalyst for the SNP Government to follow suit and ban the prescription of puberty blockers in Scotland. Asked about NHS Englands position on puberty blockers, the Scottish Government said it was in discussions with it over a planned study into the use of puberty blockers in young peoples gender identity healthcare. A spokesman added: Discussions are ongoing to determine what future engagement is appropriate. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, which runs the Sandyford, said it was reviewing the findings from NHS England. Cattle on pastureland that was burned by the Smokehouse Creek fire in Texas, which consumed more than 1m acres. Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images The grim task of assessing the carnage is underway after the largest wildfire in Texas history turned the panhandles picturesque hillsides into a hellscape of ash and ember. The sparsely populated ranges have long been cattle country, and thousands of burnt carcasses were left strewn across the landscape. Related: Tornadoes, shrinking ice and early syrup: how hottest winter hit the US Now ranchers are collecting their prized cattle with forklifts and making heartbreaking decisions about which of the injured must be euthanized. Local officials estimate there may be more than 10,000 livestock deaths linked to this disaster. Recovery will take years. The vast horizons of charred land means a ranch has lost all their grass and all their grazing ability, said Gary Joiner, the spokesperson for the Texas Farm Bureau. These are family farms and ranches many of them multi-generational and this fire is unprecedented in terms of the scale and scope. In an age-old profession thats inextricably linked to the land, ranchers are accustomed to navigating natures fury. But as extreme weather events intensify across the country, American cowboys are facing steeper challenges and greater losses. Herds have been thinned by deep freezes and deadly heat, severe storms and extended droughts, and the sharp swings between these extremes are only expected to worsen. This reality has raised tough questions for ranchers across the US, many of whom are feeling the worst effects of the climate crisis, even as they face up to, and take steps to lessen, their industrys role in global heating. But steeper challenges are also spurring more conversations about adaptation and conservation. In a line of work closely tied to identity and tradition, these conversations are being driven as much by the threat of extreme weather as by the desire to preserve landscapes so future generations can carry the mantle. As long as demand for beef remains high, the men and women who run these ranches are determined to keep providing it, even when disaster strikes. You learn from the past and make sure you have a plan, says Philip Weltmer, a third generation cattle rancher in Kansas who has struggled with the impact of drought, extreme cold and fires on his animals. Hes quick to highlight that his grandparents navigated steeper hardships, but acknowledged that the threats are top of mind. We have been able to manage it better as we have learned, he said. But the hardest thing as a producer is watching something you work so hard for be burnt to the ground. I want it to be here for my kids High winds have always wailed through the dry grasses across the Texas panhandle, but never in modern times have conditions aligned so perfectly to fuel infernos as fast and wide as the ones that ignited this year. The Smokehouse fire, which spread across more than 1m acres, grew to become the largest fire ever recorded in Texas. These are family farms and ranches many of them multi-generational and this fire is unprecedented in terms of the scale and scope Gary Joiner The region has seen severe swings between wet and dry in recent seasons; last year delivered both torrential rains and was the states hottest on record. The cycles primed the landscape to burn by creating an abundance of vegetation that grew parched when temperatures spiked. Strong wind and low humidity completed the recipe that turned a spark into a massive conflagration. Investigations into the cause of the fires are ongoing, but the power company Xcel Energy is already facing lawsuits over a fallen utility pole that might have ignited the biggest blaze. While the precise role of the climate crisis in exacerbating the fires will need further study, the disaster falls in line with patterns scientists warned would play out. Melted street signs now line the roads in the rural towns that dot the sprawling rangelands, where hundreds of homes and businesses lay in ruin. Roughly 120 miles of powerline that provide energy to pump wells have been destroyed, according to local officials, along with essential fencing and pastures that corral cattle. For the cattlemen, though, its the livestock and the landscapes they are reared on that may prove the biggest loss. We dont have grass. We dont have water, Joiner said, listing the resources required to maintain the animals that are still alive. Many of them arent doing well, he added, detailing the respiratory issues faced by smoke inhalation, the severe injuries inflicted on hooves and udders, and the orphaned calves that will need to be bottle-fed to survive. Thats where the heartbreak is some are burned so bad they cant be saved. The widespread footprint of the fire has left little to eat for the remaining herds, but hay contributions are coming from across the country. The ranching community that stretches far beyond state borders includes many who have experienced their own tragedies and are eager to lend a hand. In Kansas, Weltmer has been watching the semis roll through his town laden with hay and signs that say they are heading to Texas, and hes not surprised by the outpouring of support. He watched them roll into town in the other direction when a fire caught in Kansas and took some of his herds. The hardest thing as a producer is watching something you work so hard for be burnt to the ground Philip Weltmer The state is the third largest cattle producer behind Texas and Nebraska and has seen its share of trying times in recent years. Weltmer, whose ranch hugs the pinpointed middle of the US, is only just starting to see his browned pastures begin to green after an extensive drought took a heavy toll. Last winter, Kansas grew so cold Weltmer said his propane tanks froze, while recent summers brought an onslaught of heat and humidity that killed cows by the thousands. Last year the state saw swings from sweltering 115F at the highest to -11F at the lowest. These dramatic shifts stress the cattle and thin their food sources, making them less resilient when the weather worsens. The troublesome trends have impacted other states too. Across the country, cattle inventory for US are at the lowest they have been since 1951, according to a survey released by the USDA in January. Extremes have always been part of the job, but Weltmer doesnt dismiss the challenges ahead. Hes determined to adapt. I feel it is my responsibility to leave the ground better, he said. I want it to be here for my kids. Beyond that, it comes down to hope. You live by mother nature and you just hope that raincloud is going to come by, Weltmer added. Gods beauty will take care of us. There is no one solution for this But there are times when lands dont bounce back. Across the country in California, fifth generation cattleman Dr David Daley is still dealing with the brutal aftermath of the Bear Fire four years after it was extinguished. Part of a 2020 conflagration that became known as the North Complex Fire, which killed 16 people and erupted during a historically brutal fire season, the catastrophic blaze consumed swaths of overgrown forests that slope into the Sierra Nevada mountains where Daleys cattle once roamed. In some respects it is still very raw, he said, recounting the horrifying memories of a desperate search for survivors in his herd. Only a quarter of his 400-head herd were found alive and many of them wouldnt survive their injuries. Daley and his family found cattle with their legs burned off, or their eyes gone, the animals he cared for rendered unrecognizable and stiffened where they lay on the scorched earth. Dead calves were found alongside dead fawns, perhaps huddled together in their final moments before they were overtaken by the flames. It really makes your stomach turn, even four years later when you wake up with it, he said. Charred trees still line the areas once lush with life. It is just not about the cows it is about the ecosystem, he said. It still hurts when I go up there and I dont know if that will ever change. But what most consumes his thoughts are not the last disaster, but the next one. Drying branches and other blowdown litter the forest floor in areas that are again ripe to burn. A professor emeritus of animal science at California State University, Chico, he comes equipped with a doctorate and generations worth of passed-down experience in these mountains. He believes not enough is being done to mitigate the disasters that have impacted him and the lands he loves. It is just not about the cows it is about the ecosystem ... It still hurts when I go up there and I dont know if that will ever change. Dr David Daley Hes shared his story and expertise with legislators, media and experts through the years, growing increasingly frustrated over the time that has been lost to partisan bickering and finger pointing between decision-makers on the left and right, who are all far away from the landscapes they govern. The fire conditions that decimated these forests were made worse by the climate crisis, but were also fueled by decades of bad land management decisions. We are so focused on how to put the blame on somebody or something and we dont really think about solutions, he said. What he hopes will come out of the tragedies is a commitment to doing things differently. To navigate the challenges ahead, Daley has called for strong centrist voices that can lead local, landscape-specific mitigation, with less arguing and more action. In his area, that means adopting sustainable strategies that lessen climate impact, but also more forest treatments that reduce fuels, following the lead from Indigenous nations that stewarded the lands long before they became cities, states and cattle ranges, and bringing healthy fire back to the forest. To accomplish all of that, he said, people will need to come together. There is no one cause for this and no one solution, he added. We all need to help one another. Protesters set fire to tyres in Port-au-Prince on Tuesday, the day Haitis prime minister, Ariel Henry, resigned after weeks of street protests and a violent gang uprising. Photograph: David Lorens Mentor/Sipa/Rex/Shutterstock Scenes of unrest in Haiti, as Ariel Henry announced his resignation as prime minister amid a violent gang uprising, have brought a strong sense of deja vu. An international proposal for a transitional council to rule the country appeared to be crumbling on Wednesday. But those jostling for influence are familiar figures associated with political parties, coalitions, and the tiny oligarchic business elite that have been key players in the countrys long-running crisis of political legitimacy. Haiti has been here before, repeatedly, in the turbulent decades since the 1986 fall of the Francois Duvalier dictatorship. There have been coups, transitional governments (sometimes military), ineffectual leaders and politicians who have cynically employed criminal gangs to pursue power. The leftwing president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, a former parish priest and anti-poverty champion, employed armed gangs known as chimeres ghosts and established a template for political violence when conflict flared up. Henrys predecessor, Jovenel Moise, who was assassinated by Colombian mercenaries in 2021, reportedly was allied with the G9 gang alliance, which in turn played a key role in Henrys removal. Figures seen as potentially influential in the countrys next chapter are said to have their own gang links. All of which makes it likely that, whether or not the gangs that pushed out Henry are explicitly given a seat at the table as they have demanded the threat of violence will remain unless there is a radical rethinking of political accountability in Haiti. Among the factions jockeying for influence is the Platfom Pitit Desalin party, run by the former senator and presidential candidate Moise Jean-Charles, an ally of Guy Philippe, a former police officer and coup leader with ties to politicians and the business elite. Philippe was instrumental in the 2004 rebellion against Aristide and was recently released from a US prison having served time after pleading guilty to money laundering. In a video posted on social media, Philippe rejected a proposed transitional council which had been backed by the Caribbean regional bloc and the US. The decision of Caricom is not our decision, he said. Haitians will decide who will govern Haiti. Underpinning the succession of crises of governance is a more urgent issue: the fact that since US marines landed in Haiti in 1915 to start a 19-year occupation, Washington has played a key role in either anointing or sustaining the countrys leaders, who have mostly emerged from the same small elite. Among those who have criticised the latest negotiations for a transitional council has been Jake Johnston, of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. In a blogpost this week, he wrote: Though negotiations have been taking place for the better part of a week, none of the participants or discussions has been made public, leaving the vast majority of Haitians in the dark. Johnston added: It was US and foreign support for Henry that pushed the situation to its dire state. But rather than letting a truly Haitian-led process play out, those same foreign powers have opted for a stability pact that, it would seem, is likely to lock in an unsustainable status quo at least in the short term. Washington and the wider international community have bet heavily on a Kenyan-led intervention force to stabilise Haiti. That has been put on hold since Henrys resignation, although Kenyas president, William Ruto, insisted on Wednesday that his country remained committed to the plan. But previous interventions have had troubled histories: a 2004-17 UN mission was tarnished by widespread sexual misconduct allegations, and sewage from a UN camp was implicated in a cholera outbreak that killed nearly 10,000 people. Dr Christopher Sabatini, a senior fellow for Latin America at the Chatham House thinktank, is among those who sees history being repeated. We are seeing all the usual suspects, he said, adding that in moments of crisis the void is filled by the old guard of the ancient elite. Sabatini is sceptical too of the diplomatic laziness that in Haiti has tended to gravitate towards familiar political faces from a discredited political system and the international communitys insistence that elections would magically produce a solution to Haitis chronic lack of political representation and accountability. Negotiations in Jamaica that led to Henrys resignation were aimed in large part at ending the current gang uprising, but he suggested that holding elections quickly could actually empower the gangs. Related: Is the feared gang boss Barbecue now the most powerful man in Haiti? The rather ad hoc effort to cobble together an exit strategy for the current president and move to elections quickly risks opening up space for gangs. They have the organisation and the rhetoric, said Sabatini, who described Jimmy Cherizier the leader of the G9 Family and Allies gang and apparent architect of the current unrest as an effective political entrepreneur in a country lacking any social mechanisms to generate significant political renewal or reform. In large part, that is intimately bound up with the long-term failure of Haitian state institutions, and with the international donor community that has long bypassed them. With so many services provided either by NGOs or by the private sector, ordinary and impoverished Haitians have long been excluded as stakeholders in their own political system a vacuum into which the gangs have interposed themselves. On Monday, Cherizier made it clear in an impromptu press conference that he regarded himself as a key player. The Haitian people will choose who will govern them, he warned. With the ongoing global worries about Iran's nuclear capabilities, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has stated that Tehran has blocked its inspectors from overseeing the nation's nuclear program. The UN's nuclear watchdog recently issued an advisory about Iran's developing stockpile of enriched uranium in its latest quarterly report. Iran's Nuclear Expansion in US Assessment The United States Department of National Intelligence (DNI) stated in its 2024 Annual Threat Assessment report that Iran has considerably expanded its nuclear program and conducted actions to improve its capacity to create a nuclear device. However, the document defines that Iran is currently not involved in the substantial nuclear weapons-development activities necessary for producing a testable nuclear device. However, it claims that Iran has taken steps that might encourage the invention of a nuclear weapon, if it chooses to go in that direction, while also reducing its control of nuclear energy activities. The report, which outlines the most urgent threats to US national interests and security, emphasizes that it does not encompass all global conflicts. According to the DNI, Iran has surpassed the limitations outlined in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action concerning the development of nuclear warheads. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, established in 2015 and involving Iran, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, and the EU, imposed constraints on Iran's critical nuclear facilities. However, the US alleges that Iran, after nine years, is no longer adhering to the agreement, opting instead to significantly expand its arsenal of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), according to Express. Read Also: Bryan Kohberger's Appeal of Indictment Rejected by Idaho Supreme Court Multinational Maritime Exercise Begins Meanwhile, a maritime exercise is now taking place, which includes a group of military helicopters, as well as more than twenty ships, support vessels, and fighting boats from three different countries. According to a statement by Adm. Mostafa Tajaddini, spokesperson for the drill, quoted by Iranian state television, the exercise will cover an area of 17,000 square kilometers (6,600 square miles) of water. Tajaddini underlined that the intention of the exercise, which is the fourth of its order since 2019 and includes the three countries, is to strengthen commerce, combat piracy and terrorism, assist humanitarian efforts, and allow information exchange in rescue operations, among other goals. As a response to the rising regional tensions with the United States, Iran has strengthened its military partnership with Beijing and Moscow. This includes the transmission of military drones to Russia in exchange for Russia's participation in the conflict in Ukraine. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan, and South Africa are serving as observers during the drill. As a result of the failure of the nuclear deal with global powers, the Gulf of Oman has been the site of a number of attacks since the year 2019, which the United States has linked to Iran. Additionally, Tehran has taken control of ships in their possession. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the Strait of Hormuz, which is the tiny entry to the Persian Gulf, is crossed by one fifth of the world's oil commerce, ABC News reported. Related Article: China, Russia, and Iran Convene Joint Naval Drills Near Gulf of Oman @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The government estimates it will need around 5 gigawatts of new gas power capacity to provide backup power when renewable energy is in short supply. Photograph: incamerastock/Alamy Green MP Caroline Lucas has accused the government of stoking a culture war on climate issues by calling for more investment in new gas-fired power plants before a general election. Lucas used an urgent question in the House of Commons to challenge the energy minister, Graham Stuart, on the plans set out on Wednesday, which could see a string of new plants built in the coming years despite the governments commitment to phase out fossil fuels. She called on Stuart to admit that this is the governments latest attempt to stoke a culture war on climate. The MP for Brighton Pavilion warned that the plans to encourage more investment in unabated gas power in the 2030s would jeopardise Britains climate goals. The shadow climate change minister, Alan Whitehead, echoed the concerns and accused the government of trying to conjure a culture war with energy policy. He challenged Stuart to set out how many new gas plants the government was hoping to build, adding: There is no mention of that in the 1,500 pages of documents that were published yesterday. The government plans to extend the life of many existing power plants, but it estimates it will need to have about 5 gigawatts of new gas power capacity in reserve to provide a limited amount of backup power when renewable energy is in short supply. The planned reforms to the UKs electricity market have angered environmental campaigners but have won favour among Conservative MPs, including the former minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg. He suggested during the debate that the UKs legally binding net zero targets should be postponed indefinitely to level Britains economic playing field with the US and China, which have cheaper energy costs. The UK has a legally binding target to reduce its emissions to net zero by 2050. The governments official advisers at the Committee on Climate Change have forecast that gas-fired power generation can make up only 1-2% of the UKs power generation in the 2030s if it hopes to keep its climate goals on track. The UK used gas to generate almost 40% of its electricity last year. Rees-Mogg said the governments plan to call for more investment in gas power projects was a good first step against the net zero obsession but called on the government to go further. We have become fundamentally uncompetitive because of this green obsession, he told the Commons. We want cheap electricity, and we should have gas and we should have coal and we should postpone net zero indefinitely, because we are only 1% of global emissions, we are making no difference and the US economy is growing consistently faster than ours because of cheap energy. Stuart responded to Rees-Mogg saying there is a climate challenge and a climate emergency, thats why were looking to reduce our emissions. The House vote represents the most concrete threat to TikTok amid a political battle over allegations the company could collect sensitive user data and censor content. Photograph: Joly Victor/Abaca/Rex/Shutterstock The House of Representatives passed a bill on Wednesday that would require the TikTok owner ByteDance to sell the social media platform or face a total ban in the United States. The vote was a landslide, with 352 Congress members voting in favor and only 65 against. The bill, which was fast-tracked to a vote after being unanimously approved by a committee last week, gives China-based ByteDance 165 days to divest from TikTok. If it did not, app stores including the Apple App store and Google Play would be legally barred from hosting TikTok or providing web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications. Shortly after the vote, TikToks chief executive, Shou Zi Chew, said the vote was disappointing and that the company would do all we can to protect the platform, including exercising legal rights. Chew said TikTok had invested to keep data safe and the platform free from outside influences. This bill gives more power to handful of other social media companies, who will also take billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses, he said in a video message. It will put more than 300,000 American jobs at risk and will take away your TikTok. The vote in the House represents the most concrete threat to TikTok in an ongoing political battle over allegations the China-based company could collect sensitive user data and politically censor content. TikTok has repeatedly stated it has not and would not share US user data with the Chinese government. Despite those arguments, TikTok faced an attempted ban by Donald Trump in 2020 and a state-level ban passed in Montana in 2023. Courts blocked both of those bans on grounds of first amendment violations, and Trump has since reversed his stance, now opposing a ban on TikTok. Prior to the vote, Chinas ministry of foreign affairs spokesman, Wang Wenbin, accused the US of hegemonic practices, when one could not succeed in fair competition. In recent years, though the US has never found any evidence of TikTok posing a threat to the USs national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok, he told a regular press briefing on Wednesday. The USs bullying acts disrupt normal international trade order and will eventually backfire. The treasury-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) in March 2023 demanded ByteDance sell their TikTok shares or face the possibility of the app being banned, Reuters reported, but no action has been taken. The bills future is less certain in the Senate. Some Senate Democrats have publicly opposed the bill, citing freedom of speech concerns, and suggested measures that would address concerns of foreign influence across social media without targeting TikTok specifically. We need curbs on social media, but we need those curbs to apply across the board, Senator Elizabeth Warren said. The Democratic senator Mark Warner, who proposed a separate bill last year to give the White House new powers over TikTok, said he had some concerns about the constitutionality of an approach that names specific companies, but will take a close look at this bill. The White House has backed the legislation, with the press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, saying the administration wants to see this bill get done so it can get to the presidents desk. Authors of the bill have argued it does not constitute a ban, as it gives ByteDance the opportunity to sell TikTok and avoid being blocked in the US. Representative Mike Gallagher, the Republican chairman of the House select China committee, and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, the panels top Democrat, introduced legislation to address national security concerns posed by Chinese ownership of the app. TikTok could live on and people could do whatever they want on it provided there is that separation, Gallagher said, urging US ByteDance investors to support a sale. It is not a ban think of this as a surgery designed to remove the tumor and thereby save the patient in the process. TikTok, which has 170 million users in the US, has argued otherwise, stating that it is not clear if China would approve any sale, or that it could be divested in six months. This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States, the company said after the committee vote. The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, deny artists an audience, and destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country. Following the committees passage of the bill, staffers complained that TikTok supporters had flooded Congress with phone calls, after the app pushed out a notification urging users to oppose the legislation. Why are Members of Congress complaining about hearing from their constituents? Respectfully, isnt that their job? TikTok said on X. Although the bill was written with TikTok in mind, it is possible other China-owned platforms could be affected, including US operations of Tencents WeChat, which Trump also sought to ban in 2020. Gallagher said he would not speculate on what other impacts the bill could have, but said going forward we can debate what companies fall under the bill. Reuters contributed to this report TikTok creators protesting against the law outside Congress - GRAEME SLOAN/BLOOMBERG House Republicans defied Donald Trump on Wednesday to overwhelmingly vote through a bill that could ban TikTok in the US over national security concerns. The former president dropped his long standing opposition to the social media platform this week, but the legislation passed by 352 votes to 65, with support from almost 200 GOP members. If it passes through the Senate, Joe Biden has pledged to sign it into law, meaning ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, has around six months to sell its stake or face a ban from US app stores. The development would be seismic for TikTok, which has aggressively lobbied against the move, and its 170 million users in the US, who use it for everything from their source of news to keep in touch with friends in addition to watching and posting videos. It would make the US only the second country in the world to ban the social media giant after India in 2020. The bills proponents argue that forcing ByteDance to sell off the platform would protect the US from foreign interference. The FBI warned on Tuesday that TikTok could be used by China to divide Americans and harvest data for espionage. FBI director Christopher Wray warned TikTok could be used to divide Americans and harvest data for espionage operations - MARK SCHIEFELBEIN/AP Mr Trump has remained hugely influential in the Republican party since leaving the White House in 2021. In recent months, he has resisted Mr Bidens push for a military aid package for Ukraine in exchange for measures to bolster security at the US-Mexican border. Since 2016, he has pushed his party and US political consensus to take a more hawkish stance on China, and in office signed an executive order banning the app. Nevertheless, Mr Trumps volte-face on TikTok this week barely seemed to dent the bills support among House Republicans. The limited number of votes against it largely came from the fringes of the Democrat and Republican parties, such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Marjorie Taylor-Greene, joining forces. Ms Taylor Greene, a close ally of Mr Trump, said she had not spoken to him about this issue and denied following him like a robot. Mike Pence, who served as vice president under Mr Trump, declared that the days of appeasing Communist China were over and encouraged the Senate to take up this legislation as soon as possible. However, the bill faces an uncertain passage through the upper house, where it is said to be regarded with scepticism by a number of senators. Chuck Schumer, the Majority Leader, has not committed to bringing it to the floor for a vote. On Monday, Mr Trump told NBC that he was against banning TikTok, arguing that kids would go crazy without it and it would benefit Facebook which he labelled an enemy of the people. Members of the Trump campaign have suggested that supporting the app will play well with younger voters. The former president has made inroads with the demographic since the 2020 election, when they overwhelmingly supported Joe Biden. Ted Cruz, the Texas senator, who said he would examine the legislation before deciding whether to support it, hit back at Mr Trumps claims on Wednesday. He accused TikTok of peddling pro-China and anti-Israel propaganda, adding that Facebook was an American company which is not owned and controlled by the Chinese government. A TikTok spokesman said of the House vote: This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: its a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realise the impact on the economy, seven million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service. Jeff Jackson, reported to be the most-popular Congressman on TikTok with 2.5 million followers, voted for the bill and said, in a video uploaded to the platform, that he did not believe it would lead to a ban. Northern Ireland is set to be the focus of a gala dinner event in Washington DC as First Minister Michelle ONeill and Emma Little-Pengelly address guests. It is the first time Northern Irelands leaders have officially visited the US city together ahead of St Patricks Day for eight years. In 2016, then first minister Arlene Foster and deputy first minister Martin McGuinness met then US president Barack Obama. The Stormont Assembly and Executive was resurrected in January following two years of instability. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly will address The Irish Funds dinner on Wednesday night, and are set to attend the annual St Patricks ceremony at the White House on Sunday. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel, Washington, DC, during his visit to the US for St Patricks Day (Niall Carson/PA) Irish premier Leo Varadkar, who will also address the event, said Northern Ireland will be the focus. The Ireland Funds will not be perhaps as well known in Ireland as it should be but its an organisation that is very well known in America and around the world and has raised hundreds of millions for very good causes in Ireland with a particular focus on equality and reconciliation, the Taoiseach told media. Friday will be the political meetings with the president, vice-president and, speaker and congressional leaders with a particular focus on Northern Ireland. I know they are always very keen to know what is happening in relation to the peace process. He added: Im really glad Im coming here with the First Minister and deputy First Minister, and the Executive is up and running. Earlier Mr Leo Varadkar has said Israels apparent plans for the Gaza Strip after a potential ceasefire are entirely unacceptable. He said he planned to raise the issue with US President Joe Biden this week during a high-profile White House meeting to coincide with St Patricks Day. The Taoiseach also said that Europe and the US would have a role to play in building a Palestinian state after any truce. Joe Biden with Leo Varadkar last year (Damien Storan/PA) Mr Varadkar and other ministers are attending events in the US around St Patricks Day. He has said he will use the very special platform with US politicians to give the Irish peoples view that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar said he would try to mention Irish-Palestinian man Zak Hania, who is in Rafah, whose wife has asked for his case to be raised with the US president. He said there had been hundreds of requests for issues to be raised with Mr Biden. I should point out though that Irish citizens in Gaza, our main contact is with Israel and Egyptian governments, as well as the Qataris, he replied. Mr Varadkar said he would be encouraging Mr Biden to redouble efforts the US is making to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Well be encouraging him to redouble efforts in that regard, offering any help we can, but also really want to talk about the day after. I think what were hearing from the Israeli government in terms of what their plans are for Gaza the day after (a ceasefire) are entirely unacceptable. It is an occupied territory, its not Israels right to decide what happens in Gaza, its an occupied territory. America and Europe have a role to play in building a Palestinian state which I think is the only chance that we have of peace and justice. Young people who may be questioning their gender identity will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers by the NHS. (Getty Images) (Getty Images) NHS England has confirmed that children will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers at gender identity clinics, after a review found there was "not enough evidence" to show they are safe or effective. The decision was welcomed by the UK government. Health minister Maria Caulfield said in a statement that this will "help ensure that care is based on evidence, expert clinical opinion and is in the best interests of the child". But charities supporting trans people and their rights have condemned the new policy, warning that it will cause "irreparable damage" to the health and wellbeing of young trans people. NHS England commissioned an independent review of gender identity services for children under 18 in 2020. It was led by Dr Hilary Cass and came after a significant rise in referrals to the Gender Identity Development Service (Gids) run by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. Dr Cass published an interim report in February 2022 and concluded that Gids, which is set to close at the end of March, did not collect consistent data on what happens to children and young people who are prescribed puberty blockers. What are puberty blockers? Puberty blockers can 'pause' or postpone puberty in children. (Getty Images) (Getty Images/Cavan Images RF) During puberty, the brain sends out hormones that tell the body what to do, like grow pubic and underarm hair. They also tell the sex organs (ovaries and testes) to start releasing the hormones oestrogen and testosterone. But, some people experience gender dysphoria, which is a sense of unease that a person may have because of a mismatch between their biological sex and their gender identity. Until now, children who experience gender dysphoria may have been prescribed puberty blockers, a type of drug that suppresses the release of hormones and can be used to pause puberty. The drug stops their bodies from developing temporarily. Gids said that this gives children more time to consider their options and think more about their gender identity, without the distress that comes with unwanted changes in their body. After the age of 16, teenagers who have been on puberty blockers for at least 12 months may be given cross-sex hormones, which can cause irreversible changes like breast development or the breaking or deepening of voice. The NHS warns that long-term cross-sex hormones "may cause temporary or even permanent infertility", and that there is "some uncertainty about the risks of long-term cross-sex hormone treatment". There are also some cases in which puberty blockers are prescribed for children who are not experiencing gender dysphoria. Much younger children who are going through puberty much earlier than normal - called early or precocious puberty - may also be prescribed the drugs. How many children are on puberty blockers? According to the BBC, fewer than 100 young people in England are currently prescribed puberty blockers. These people, who were prescribed the drugs by the NHS, will be able to continue their treatment despite the new policy. A report by The Telegraph published last November said that, in the 12 months to July 2023, the number of children beginning puberty blockers on the NHS rose to 83. This was double the average of the two years before. It is not known how many children are on puberty blockers prescribed by private gender identity clinics. NHS England said that puberty blockers will be available in the future, but only through a mandatory research trial. Response to NHS Englands new policy Trans charities have raised concerns about the new NHS England policy. (Getty Images) (Getty Images) The UK government and campaigners in support of restricting access to puberty blockers have backed the decision by NHS England. But trans charities such as Mermaids and TransActual have condemned the decision and reiterated that trans people "deserve access to high quality, timely healthcare". A statement by Mermaids said the announcement is "deeply disappointing", adding that it is a "further restriction of support offered to trans children and young people through the NHS, which is failing trans youth". Meanwhile, TransActual said the decision will "irreparably damage peoples health, wellbeing and life chances". The charity also pointed out that only trans youth who can afford it will be able to access blockers via private healthcare providers, "creating inequality between rich and poor trans people and leading to riskier approaches". John Stewart, national director of specialised commissioning at NHS England, acknowledged the deeply divisive nature of the subject and said: "Given that the debate is often very polarised, so too were the responses to the consultation. "Many people said the policy didnt go far enough in terms of still allowing potential access [to puberty blockers] through research, and others saying clearly they disagreed fundamentally and that these should be routinely available to everyone who believes they need it." Read more about puberty blockers: Former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne has revealed she wants Nikita Kuzmin and Levi Roots to be in the Celebrity Big Brother final as she left the show. The housemates marked the last day on the show for Osbourne, who has been a celebrity lodger in the house, with a farewell tea party. The contestants delivered farewell speeches to Osbourne, who they described as our Queen. A tea party was the only fitting farewell for Mrs O #CBBUK pic.twitter.com/pblxxev4vP Celebrity Big Brother UK (@bbuk) March 13, 2024 Former This Morning presenter Fern Britton told her: Youve navigated a life thats been full of excitement and also tribulations and youve emerged always tremendously gracious and very well loved. Strictly Come Dancing professional Kuzmin said: I honestly love you so much. Youre the mother which we all count on and youve been so genuine, so kind, youve been so much yourself, youre just our queen Sharon. We love you so, so much and we will miss you dearly. TV star Osbourne told her fellow housemates: Ive had a great time, met new friends and Im going to watch you on your paths and may all your dreams come true. Speaking in the diary room, she added: Its just been so much better than I couldve ever imagined. If someone said to me, Youre going to come into Big Brother and youre going to have the best time and youre going to have fun, I would have gone, Yeah, right. I never have thought that I would have been in a house with 11 strangers but its worked out fantastic and I hope that we can all stay in touch. Later in the evening, the housemates give her a round of applause as she left, shouting: We love you Sharon. Before she left, she revealed that Kuzmin and Dragons Den star Roots were the contestants who had made the most lasting impact on her and deserve to be in the final. She told a shocked Kuzmin she picked him because hes beautiful inside and outside, and chose Roots as he is at peace with the world, he only wants good things and hes genuinely a good guy. Real Housewives Of Cheshire star Lauren Simon was also booted out, meaning Louis Walsh and Britton escaped. Walsh claimed he was ready to go but did not want to be nominated again, while Britton said in the diary room that she was shocked as she was absolutely certain I was off. Later in the episode, the housemates played jelly bean roulette, answering tricky questions about fellow contestants. Former X Factor judge Walsh was singled out for a number of unfavourable traits, including being picked as laziest by Britton and least trustworthy by YouTuber Zeze Millz. Coronation Street actor Colson Smith chose Walsh as the biggest game player as he felt the TV star is on the show for different reasons. However, Smith got upset after he was picked by Roots for being the most boring. The Princess of Wales (Chris Jackson/PA) Britton, Osbourne and Walsh also discussed the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex. Walsh said: I just want to know about Kate Middleton, I know shes a lovely lady, as he revealed he asked her if she had named her youngest son after him at the Chelsea Flower Show last year. Britton noted that Kate had big shoes to step into as she took on the Princess of Wales title and wedding ring from the late Diana. Walsh asked if anyone liked Meghan, to which Britton replied: Shes mysterious. I want to be able to believe what I see, that pretty face and a mother and loving her husband. But theres also, perhaps, I feel, that manipulation behind all of that. Osbourne agreed, saying: I think its all put on, I think shes acting. Britton added that she just wants the Duke of Sussex and their children to be happy and she would like him to return to the UK and make it up with his brother. Celebrity Big Brother continues on ITV. Sir Keir Starmer has said he is committed to allowing a vote on legalising assisted dying in the next Parliament. The Labour leader made the pledge to campaigner Dame Esther Rantzen, whose revelation that she had joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland has put the subject under the spotlight in recent months. The Childline founder and broadcaster, 83, has urged politicians to grapple with the issue for the first time since 2015. In a phone call between Sir Keir and Dame Esther, filmed by ITV News, he told her a Labour government would allow MPs the time to debate and vote on a change in the law. Im personally in favour of changing the law, he said. I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now. Asked whether he would like a vote within five years after the general election, the Labour leader told ITV: Oh yes, definitely. Dame Esther Rantzen has been campaigning on the issue, including backing the launch of a petition demanding a parliamentary vote (Kirsty OConnor/PA) I think Esther would agree with this. For people who are going through this or are likely to go through it in the next few months or years, this matters hugely and delay just prolongs the agony. Dame Esther, who has stage four cancer, has been campaigning on the issue, including backing the launch of a petition demanding a parliamentary vote, which amassed tens of thousands of signatures over a few weeks. Sir Keir supported a change in the law the last time the issue was voted on in the Commons nine years ago. The Labour leader said in December that a private members bill and a free vote seems appropriate. He told ITV that if he enters 10 Downing Street, he would offer MPs a free vote, meaning they would not be compelled to vote in favour or against legalisation. Polling suggests his Labour Party is on course to win the election expected later this year. Sir Keir acknowledged safeguards with teeth would have to be put in place to protect the vulnerable. Pressed on how he would calm critics concerns that vulnerable people could be pressured into assisted deaths, he said: Firstly, I think the debate has to be conducted with respect. I personally think the law should be changed. There will be people equally passionate, with powerful points to make about why it shouldnt be. As director of public prosecutions, Sir Keir advised that families who helped end the life of a terminally-ill loved one should not be prosecuted (John Stillwell/PA) When he was director of public prosecutions, Sir Keir issued guidelines indicating that anyone acting with compassion to help end the life of someone who has decided they cannot go on would be unlikely to face criminal charges. He said: When I consulted on this for the prosecutors guidelines, the churches and faith groups and others were very, very powerful in the arguments they made. We have to respect that and find the right balance in the end. I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case (for assisted dying) where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable. Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to murder or other charges. A Bill to make assisted dying legal in Scotland being put forward by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur is expected to come before Holyrood in the coming weeks. Members of the House of Keys on the Isle of Man voted last year for its Assisted Dying Bill to be further scrutinised (Alamy/PA) The Health and Social Care Committee last month warned that the Government must consider what to do if the law is changed in part of the UK or in the Isle of Man or Jersey. It said legalisation in at least one jurisdiction was looking increasingly likely and suggested the Government must be actively involved in discussions about how to approach differences in the law. The select committees report did not make a recommendation for a vote on the issue. Downing Street said it would be up to Parliament whether or not to debate legalising assisted dying. A No 10 spokeswoman said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been moved by some of the experiences that have been shared by people and families in this situation. She added: It remains the case that this would be for Parliament to decide and it would be for Government to facilitate its implementation. Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Dignity in Dying, said Sir Keirs vow to Dame Esther sends an important signal to all MPs and candidates: listen to dying people, listen to constituents, its time for change. Only a free vote early in the next parliament can deliver what our terminally ill citizens need a safe and compassionate law providing choice at the end of life. Dr Gordon Macdonald, chief executive of Care Not Killing, said: Changing the law to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia in the UK would represent a dramatic change in how doctors and nurses treat and care for people and put the lives of the vulnerable, terminally ill and disabled people at risk. Indeed, these dangers are particularly acute when the health service is crumbling, hospices are underfunded and one in every four people who would benefit from palliative [care] cant access it. He added: Sir Keir needs to recognise the real dangers associated with legalising state-sanctioned killing, such as the pressure it puts on people to end their lives prematurely, and the growing body of evidence showing assisted suicide appears [to] normalise suicide in the general populations. Rishi Sunak is facing calls to hand back 10 million given to the Conservative Party after he condemned as racist and wrong comments reportedly made by the major Tory backer who donated the money. Frank Hester is alleged to have said Diane Abbott, Britains longest-serving black MP, made him want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. The Prime Minister had come under pressure over the remarks as Cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to say they were racist while Downing Street continued to refuse to describe them as such. In a new statement issued on Tuesday evening, the Prime Ministers spokesman said: The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted. Opposition parties are demanding the Tories pay back the 10 million that Frank Hester donated (CHOGM Rwanda 2022/YouTube/PA) The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and, as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact. Mr Sunak faces a grilling by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer during Prime Ministers Questions later on Wednesday after the fallout intensified on Tuesday night following a Guardian report of further comments allegedly made by Mr Hester. According to the paper, Mr Hester, the chief executive of healthcare software firm The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), asked if there was no room for the Indians and suggested staff climb on a train roof during a crowded meeting. He has admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. Hesters 2019 comments, as reported, were racist. I welcome his apology. Abbott and I disagree on a lot. But the idea of linking criticism of her, to being a black woman is appalling. Its never acceptable to conflate someones views with the colour of their skin(1/2) Kemi Badenoch (@KemiBadenoch) March 12, 2024 The PMs political opponents are demanding that the 10 million donated by Mr Hester to the Conservative Party over the past year is returned. Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said the Conservatives must apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott, pay back these donations and root out the extreme views and prejudice which appears to be tolerated within the party. Ministers sent out on Tuesdays morning media round had defended Mr Hester while Number 10 said the reported remarks about Ms Abbott were unacceptable, but would not describe them as racist. But, in a sign of divisions within the Tory Party over the issue, Business Secretary Ms Badenoch became the first member of Cabinet to call out Mr Hesters alleged words as racist on Tuesday afternoon. Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were frightening and alarming given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess had been murdered in recent years. Diane Abbott described the comments as frightening (Jonathan Brady/PA) Police are understood to have been contacted about the remarks, with Scotland Yard saying officers from its Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team were in touch with an MP about a report in The Guardian, which broke the story. Labour and the Liberal Democrats branded Mr Hesters alleged remarks as clearly racist and abhorrent and have both urged the Tories to return the money he donated to the party. The Conservative Party has been approached for comment on whether the funds will be handed back. In a statement released via his firm, Mr Hester said he had rung Ms Abbott on Monday to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her. He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life, the statement said. In a statement posted on X on Tuesday afternoon, Mr Hester said: The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people like my parents who had roots in another land, religion and culture. We should celebrate those differences which have made us the worlds most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence. Rishi Sunak has insisted a top Tory donors remorse should be accepted as he resisted calls to hand back 10 million in a racism row. The Prime Minister was challenged by Sir Keir Starmer to return donations to Frank Hester, the Conservative backer alleged to have said Diane Abbott, Britains longest-serving black MP, made him want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. The Labour leader asked Mr Sunak whether he was proud to be bankrolled by someone using racist and misogynistic language. The Prime Minister replied: The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist, he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. There is no place for racism in Britain, and the Government I lead is living proof of that. Sir Keir continued: How low would he have to sink, what racist, woman-hating threat of violence would he have to make before the Prime Minister plucked up the courage to hand back the 10 million that hes taken from him? Mr Sunak reiterated that the gentleman apologised genuinely for his comments and that remorse should be accepted. Ms Abbott could be seen shaking her head at the Prime Ministers answers, while other Labour MPs cried: Shame! The former Labour MP, who now sits as an independent, criticised the Commons Speaker after she was not called at Prime Ministers Questions, which Sir Lindsay Hoyles spokeswoman said was because there was not enough time to call all MPs. Diane Abbott said Frank Hesters comments were frightening (Jonathan Brady/PA) Asked whether the Prime Minister would like to apologise to Ms Abbott for the Tory donors comments, Mr Sunaks spokesman said: The PM is acutely aware of the unacceptable abuse that Diane Abbott has suffered over the course of her career and as the first black woman elected to Parliament. But he declined to issue an apology, saying: The remarks were obviously made by an individual who has apologised for his comments and the PM has been clear the comments were unacceptable and racist. Ministers and Downing Street refused to describe Mr Hesters comments as racist for most of Tuesday, but the Prime Ministers spokesman finally labelled them as such in the evening. It came after Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to call them racist late on Tuesday afternoon. Asked why it took so long, Mr Sunaks spokesman said that it was right to give someone a proper right of reply after very serious allegations were made. He stressed that Mr Hesters comments remained unverified, despite the fact the Tory donor has not denied making them, and declined to say whether the businessman has been contacted to confirm whether he said those words. Mr Sunaks press secretary suggested Mr Hester was not a racist, pointing reporters to his own words where he talks about racism is a poison, theres no place for it in public life. Earlier, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said that returning Mr Hesters cash was not the right thing to do and suggested the Tories would accept further donations from the businessman. No 10 would not get into speculation about future events when asked whether more money might be taken from Mr Hester, or whether Mr Sunak would accept more funding for helicopter rides after Mr Hester paid nearly 16,000 for a trip by the Prime Minister in December. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Ministers Questions in the Commons (House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA) Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said Mr Hester should not be cancelled for despicable remarks made in the past and for which he has apologised. But in a sign of Tory divisions over the issue, the Scottish Conservatives criticised taking donations from Mr Hester. A spokesman for the Scottish Tories said: These comments were racist and wrong. The Scottish Conservative Party has never accepted a donation from Frank Hester and the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said: The Scottish Tories are saying what we all know: accepting tens of millions of pounds from Frank Hester is wrong on every level. Rishi Sunak needs to extract himself from this quagmire and show that he is willing to stand up to racism within his party. He must pay back the money in full, cut ties with Mr Hester and apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott. The last 48 hours have been a grim spectacle in the fight against racism. Its so tiring for Britains black community to watch politicians tie themselves in knots in the face of shocking and obvious racism. We are better than this. Rishi should return the money. Diane Abbott is David Lammy (@DavidLammy) March 13, 2024 Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were frightening and alarming given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess have been murdered in recent years. Police are understood to have been contacted about the remarks, with Scotland Yard saying officers from its Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team are in touch with an MP about a report in the Guardian, which broke the story. Labours shadow foreign secretary David Lammy tweeted: The last 48 hours have been a grim spectacle in the fight against racism. Its so tiring for Britains black community to watch politicians tie themselves in knots in the face of shocking and obvious racism. We are better than this. Rishi should return the money. The governor of Texas has explained comments telling artists pulling out of an Austin festival over US Army sponsorship not to come back. Greg Abbott was in Downing Street on Wednesday to sign an agreement with the UK on closer trade co-operation with Texas. Speaking outside Number 10, Mr Abbott also said he and former US president Donald Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, are friends and it was kind of natural that Mr Trump would have the governor of Texas on his shortlist for potential vice president candidates. The governor gave a thumbs up when he arrived in Downing Street (Stefan Rousseau/PA) On Tuesday, the governor posted on X, formerly Twitter, telling artists pulling out of the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival: Dont come back, prompting a response from SXSW which said it does not agree with Mr Abbott. In Downing Street on Wednesday, the governor said: The reason why they pulled out is because one of the sponsors for South by Southwest is the United States military and bottom line is if you dont like the military, we dont need you there. We as a country, and the people of our country, we all support our military because we wouldnt have the opportunity to have South by Southwest, to have concerts, to have freedom like we do without our military. Every American must step up and support our military, regardless of what their personal feelings and thoughts are otherwise. On X on Tuesday, Mr Abbott said: Bands pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship. Bye. Dont come back. Austin remains the HQ for the Army Futures Command. San Antonio is Military City USA. We are proud of the U.S. military in Texas. If you dont like it, dont come here. The festival responded by saying it disagrees with the governor, adding: We are an organisation that welcomes diverse viewpoints. Music is the soul of SXSW, and it has long been our legacy. We fully respect the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech. But SXSW also said that the armys sponsorship is part of our commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world. Hip hop trio Kneecap, from Belfast, Northern Ireland, are among those who have pulled out, and posted on X to explain: It is done in solidarity with the people of Palestine and to highlight the unacceptable deep links the festival has to weapons companies and the US military. In Downing Street, Mr Abbott also told of how he is in constant communication with Mr Trump. He and I are friends and so it would be kind of natural youd have the governor of Texas on a shortlist, but Im honoured to be thought of that way, he said. But my focus really is on being governor of the state of Texas and assisting (Mr Trump) any way I can to make sure that he wins elections and then has a very successful term as the next president. Following Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry's resignation amid heightening chaos, anti-terrorism Marines have been dispatched to Port-au-Prince to pump up security at the American embassy. F.A.S.T known as the Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team, was called upon as gang violence continued to escalate, particularly after top gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier called for a 'bloody revolution. The tumultuous crisis pushed Henry to step down from his post as the country moves dangerously close to a civil war. The European Union is sending humanitarian aid totaling 20 million euros (21.8 million) to Haiti, reported The Daily Mail. "An unprecedented level of gang violence is dramatically increasing humanitarian needs across the country," European Commission spokesman Balazs Ujvari said. "The funding will help humanitarian partners to address the most urgent needs of the population, he continued. "Street gangs who demanded the prime minister's resignation ran havoc after launching a series of attacks on police stations, prisons, and against Haitian civilians. On Tuesday, Kenya recanted its plans to send a multinational police mission, backed by the United Nations, to help stabilize the country. More discord has led to a Republican congressman facilitating the evacuation of 10 US citizens who were working at the Have Faith Orphanage in Port-au-Prince. Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills accused the Biden administration of continuing a 'pattern of abandonment' when involving US citizens. "This mission reiterates a disturbing reality under President Biden's leadership: American lives are continually jeopardized," Mills said. "I have led missions to rescue Americans multiple times when Joe Biden has deserted them." "There's a clear pattern of abandonment,' Mills said, citing his rescue missions in Afghanistan during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. The US Southern Command revealed that F.A.S.T reached the embassy in Port-au-Prince. "US Southern Command is prepared with a wide range of contingency plans to ensure the safety and security of U.S. citizens in Haiti," US Southern Command added. The embassy remains open under limited operations. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Conservatives do not plan to return the 10 million donated to the party by a major Tory backer accused of making racist comments, a minister has said. Frank Hester is alleged to have said Diane Abbott, Britains longest-serving black MP, made him want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. Rishi Sunak is facing calls to hand back the money given to his party by Mr Hester after the Prime Minister belatedly condemned his remarks as racist and wrong. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said on Wednesday that returning the cash is not the right thing to do and suggested the Tories would accept further donations from the businessman. Asked whether he would be comfortable spending Mr Hesters donations, Mr Hollinrake told Sky News: On the basis he is not a racist, has apologised for what he said, yes. Pressed on whether the party would take more money from him, the minister told BBC Breakfast: As I now understand the situation, yes. He also said he thinks there are bigger issues at play here that we need to focus on, in terms of probably greater priorities for the Government and that we should try and move on from this now. I dont believe Mr Hester is a racist person, Mr Hollinrake said. What he has said here, in a private conversation half a decade ago, he has apologised for. I dont think we need to spend too much time on that given he has made that apology. But in a sign of Tory divisions over the issue, Conservative West Midlands Mayor Andy Street said he would return the cash. He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. Frank Hester is alleged to have said MP Diane Abbott made him want to hate all black women (CHOGM Rwanda 2022/YouTube/PA) After ministers and Downing Street refused to describe Mr Hesters comments as racist for most of Tuesday, the Prime Ministers spokesman finally labelled them as such in the evening. It came after Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to call them out as racist late on Tuesday afternoon. Mr Hollinrake defended No 10s delay and argued that we have the most diverse Cabinet in history. Asked about criticisms that Mr Sunak had failed to set the agenda over the racism row, Mr Hollinrake said: If you dont mind me saying, I think you are setting the agenda in terms of all the interpretation and speculation you are making about various different things that happened yesterday. No 10 has been very clear that these comments were wrong, were racist. In a statement after 6pm on Tuesday, the Prime Ministers spokesman said: The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and, where remorse is shown, it should be accepted. The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and, as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact. Mr Sunak faces a grilling by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer during Prime Ministers Questions later on Wednesday after the fallout intensified on Tuesday night following a Guardian report of further comments allegedly made by Mr Hester. Diane Abbott said Frank Hesters comments were frightening (Jonathan Brady/PA) According to the paper, Mr Hester, the chief executive of healthcare software firm The Phoenix Partnership, allegedly referred to no room for the Indians during a crowded meeting, and suggested they climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there. Labour and the Liberal Democrats have demanded the Tories return the money he donated to the party. Shadow paymaster general Jonathan Ashworth said he found it absolutely astonishing that the party was not moving to do so. If Rishi Sunak had anything about him, if he had any backbone, he would pay that money back today, he told Sky News. The Labour frontbencher also said it was staggering that it took Rishi Sunak 24 hours to condemn these racist, reprehensible comments. Mr Hester has admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were frightening and alarming given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess have been murdered in recent years. Police are understood to have been contacted about the remarks, with Scotland Yard saying officers from its Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team are in touch with an MP about a report in the Guardian, which broke the story. The UK has signed an agreement on closer trade co-operation with Texas as the Government continues to pursue state-level deals in the absence of a wider free trade agreement with the US. Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch and Texas Governor Greg Abbott formally signed the agreement in Westminster on Wednesday. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called it an exciting moment. Mr Sunak told the Texas governor it was fantastic to welcome him to Downing Street to sign the agreement. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it was fantastic to welcome Texas Governor Greg Abbott to Downing Street (Peter Nicholls/PA) The Prime Minister also remarked on the size of Texass economy bigger than Brazil and Canada before adding: As they say, everything is bigger in Texas and that now includes our trading relationship, which hopefully we can take to the next level. Ms Badenoch, who said she has family in Texas, complimented the governor on how his signature was better than her own before the pair shook hands and posed for photographs with the signed agreement. In some short remarks, she said: I wanted to start off by thanking Governor Abbott and the delegation from the great state of Texas. I know I speak not just for myself but also the Prime Minister in saying it is our pleasure to welcome you to 10 Downing Street. She insisted the agreement will deliver for the UK and for the US state. Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch posed for photographs with the signed agreement (Peter Nicholls/PA) Mr Abbott, who gave a thumbs-up when he arrived in Downing Street, said he was proud to join the UK in signing the agreement. Understand that this is far more than a document, he said. What we signed our names to today is a pathway to increased prosperity. The agreement marked the UKs eighth US state-level pact, meaning UK firms now have access to states with a combined GDP of 5.3 trillion, which is equivalent to a quarter of the whole US economy. It is targeted particularly at the energy sector, as well as life sciences and business services. Even before the signing of the agreement, British businesses had already enjoyed success in Texas, with the Governments BioBridge collaboration with the Texas Medical Centre helping 30 UK life sciences companies grow their business in the state. Texas Governor Greg Abbott delivered some brief remarks after signing the agreement (Peter Nicholls/PA) The agreement is not a trade deal, because individual US states do not have the power to sign these, but is similar to a memorandum of understanding designed to improve co-operation between businesses in Britain and Texas and tackle regulatory barriers to trade. Achieving a free trade agreement with America had been part of the Conservatives 2019 manifesto, but progress towards a deal has stalled, with Ms Badenoch blaming a lack of interest on the part of the current US administration. Instead, the UK has pursued a series of state-level deals, including Indiana in May 2022 and most recently Florida in November last year. Although these agreements do not lower tariffs as a free trade deal would, they can provide some help for businesses through recognising UK qualifications or addressing state-level regulatory issues. Another 150 tonnes of UK aid entered Gaza on Wednesday as the Government announced an additional 10 million in funding to support the stricken territory. This week is also expected to see the arrival of a full field hospital in Gaza, funded by UK Aid, that will be staffed by local and international medics and can treat more than 100 patients a day. The extra aid comes as the Foreign Secretary continues to urge Israel to increase the capacity to safely distribute aid within Gaza, including by opening a land crossing in the north of the territory and issuing more visas to UN staff. Lord David Cameron said: Too many people in Gaza are suffering. No-one should be without basic amenities like shelter and bedding, and everyone deserves the dignity that basic hygiene kits provide. Our largest aid delivery, combined with a new UK field hospital, will save lives. But an immediate pause in the fighting is the only way to get aid into Gaza in the quantities desperately needed. This will also allow for the safe release of hostages. We could then work towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting or loss of life. Wednesdays aid delivery included 840 family-sized tents, 3,000 shelter kits, 6,000 sleeping mats and more than 13,000 blankets, along with more than 3,000 dignity kits to help women and girls. The UK has also pledged an extra 10 million in aid funding, bringing its total contribution to more than 100 million this financial year. According to a Unicef report at the end of 2023, an estimated 3.1 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, with half a million at risk of famine. The figures include all 335,000 children aged under five in the Gaza Strip, who were at high risk of severe malnutrition and preventable death. Charity ActionAid welcomed the delivery of aid to Gaza, but described it as little more than a sticking plaster on a gaping wound. Julia Rosell Jackson, senior humanitarian advocacy adviser at ActionAid, said: The delivery of over 3,000 period products to women and girls will provide small relief, but nearly 700,000 women and girls are unable to access sanitary pads, and many are resorting to using tent scraps as an unsafe and unhygienic alternative. When women are giving birth to stillborn babies as they are so severely malnourished amid an acute hunger crisis in northern Gaza and a total collapse of the healthcare system, such a small delivery of aid will do practically nothing to avert the absolute humanitarian crisis facing millions of Palestinians. A quarter of Gazas population is at risk of famine so its extremely disappointing to see that none of the aid mentioned involves food to stave off looming famine. With children dying of malnutrition, the Foreign Secretarys call for a pause will do nothing to deliver aid at the scale needed. As aid workers, we cannot provide effective relief whilst bombs rain down. Its time for these horrors to end we need an immediate ceasefire now. The UK Government should think again on making its Horizon Bill UK-wide, Scotlands First Minister has said. The legislation which will quash the convictions of subpostmasters as a result of faults with the Post Office IT system is due to be introduced on Wednesday, but will cover only England and Wales. Humza Yousaf said he was greatly disappointed that is the case, but stressed steps can still be taken to ensure the legislation comes into effect across the UK. Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, he urged the UK Government to think again, but said his own Government is working on bringing forward a Bill. We have been working on Scottish-specific legislation, he said. Ive been having regular discussions with the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs. But Scottish legislation will have to wait until the Westminster Bill passes before it can be introduced, the First Minister said, to ensure there is no friction between the two that could impact on the settlements offered to those impacted by Horizon. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake has pledged to work alongside the Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive in weekly meetings to help them progress their own approaches. Mr Yousaf continued: The difficulty of course with Scottish-specific legislation is well have to wait to see the details of UK-specific legislation, not just when its introduced, but as it gets amended through the UK parliamentary process. If we have legislation which diverges significantly, that could have an impact on compensation that subpostmasters here in Scotland could get access to and of course we dont want that. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the Bill is an important step forward (Peter Nicholls/PA) Some reports suggest the UK Bill may not be passed until July which would mean the Scottish Parliament would be in recess and unable to pass its own legislation until MSPs return in September. Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Mr Hollinrake said: We are fully committed to work with the Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive through regular weekly official-level engagement to progress their own approaches. I have met with my counterparts in the Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive to offer support and address their concerns and have offered further meetings. The financial redress scheme, of course, will be open to applicants throughout the UK once convictions have been overturned. Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Russell Findlay accused the First Minister of petty posturing after the Lord Advocate the countrys top law officer said she did not favour blanket exoneration for impacted subpostmasters in Scotland. He should also know that all prosecutions in Scotland were conducted by the Crown Office under the distinct Scottish legal process, Mr Findlay added. Instead of trying to pass the buck, and stoke yet more constitutional grievance, he needs to get on with delivering justice for Scotlands Post Office victims. More than 700 subpostmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsus faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. Around 100 Post Office subpostmasters in Scotland were among those convicted after being wrongly accused of embezzling money. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill marks an important step forward in finally clearing the names of hundreds of wronged branch managers who have had their lives callously torn apart. Downing Street said that under the law, convictions in England and Wales will be automatically quashed if they meet the following criteria: Were prosecuted by the Post Office or Crown Prosecution Service; Were for offences carried out in connection with Post Office business between 1996 and 2018; Were for relevant offences such as theft, fraud and false accounting; Were against subpostmasters, their employees, officers, family members or direct employees of the Post Office working in a Post Office that used the Horizon system software. Those with overturned convictions will receive an interim payment with the option of immediately taking a fixed and final offer of 600,000, according to No 10. The Government will also bring forward enhanced financial redress for postmasters who, while not convicted or part of legal action against the Post Office, made good the apparent losses caused by the Horizon system from their own pockets. They will be entitled to a fixed sum award of 75,000 through the Horizon shortfall scheme, Downing Street said. Ishrat Baig wanted to have an orphanage built and named after her parents A woman who gave 40,000 to a charity to build an orphanage, says she feels "cheated" because, seven years later, the job has yet to be finished. Ishrat Baig says she was told by Penny Appeal in 2017 that the home - part of a larger complex in Pakistan - would take about a year to build. However, a BBC team found in February this year that the orphanage had not yet opened. The charity has blamed the delays on the Covid pandemic. For more than a decade, Ishrat Baig dreamed of building an orphanage. The Birmingham-based account manager says she did not care where it was built - her intention was to honour her ageing parents by naming a home after them. In 2017, Ishrat thought she had finally found a way to make her dream a reality. She had saved 40,000 and got in touch with a charity called Penny Appeal. On its website, Penny Appeal says it provides poverty relief in Asia, the Middle East and Africa by "offering water solutions, organising mass feedings, supporting orphan care and providing emergency food and medical aid". The West Yorkshire-based charity - which targets Muslim donors - raised 20.6m in 2022, according to the Charity Commission for England and Wales. Penny Appeal told Ishrat it operated orphanages in both Pakistan and The Gambia. After several meetings with the charity, Ishrat was persuaded that her money would be well used. She made her donation during Ramadan 2017. She was told her orphanage would be part of a larger site called the Medina Orphan Home Complex, to be built in Sohawa, in the eastern province of Punjab in Pakistan. Ishrat says Penny Appeal told her the orphanage would be completed within a year, "give or take a couple of months". However, a year passed with no sign of real progress. All she had was the location and some provisional plans. Nevertheless, during this time, Ishrat's image was used for promotional purposes on Penny Appeal's website to encourage donations from others - something she felt was troubling, given that her project was not complete. Ishrat kept asking for updates, but she says she was given a series of excuses for the delays. Penny Appeal has told the BBC that it understood her frustrations, but that the countries in which it operated "face significant challenges including political unrest and extreme weather events" and said that - coupled with the challenges posed by the pandemic - this led to delays. In 2021, four years after her donation, Ishrat threatened to publicise the delays on social media. She says she was granted a meeting with the then-CEO of Penny Appeal. At that meeting, she asked for her money back, but was told that the charity could not return it. Ishrat told the CEO that she no longer had any trust in Penny Appeal, but says she felt stuck. Even after being promised progress updates from the site, she continued to experience further delays. At the end of 2023, Ishrat was sent an image of a completed building, and told her orphan home had finally been built. She made plans to visit in December, but was then told there had been further delays, and that orphans would not be moved into the homes until February this year. Ishrat planned another trip to the site - timed to coincide with Ramadan 2024, which begins in the second week of March - but has also had to cancel this, after Penny Appeal said there had been further delays. The BBC has visited the site of the orphanage on three occasions after speaking to Ishrat. Construction has been taking place at the complex and includes a building that seems to match a picture provided of Ishrat's orphanage. According to an assessment by BBC Verify, the structures first appeared in 2022, five years after Ishrat's donation. In December 2023 we were told by construction workers on the site that it would be at least another six months before the complex was completed. On a separate visit at the end of February this year, we saw that work was still ongoing at the complex, with no orphans at the site. Penny Appeal told the BBC that "Ishrat's home was completed in December 2023, children will begin moving to the community from March 2024". A BBC team in December 2023 found that the orphanage complex in Pakistan was still under construction Penny Appeal came under the spotlight in The Gambia in 2020 when an orphanage run by a local partner was raided by police and child protection officers. The raid followed a tip-off concerning conditions at the home. Recorded testimonies from children at the time detailed abuse and exploitation. Penny Appeal released a statement at the time saying it was "truly horrified by the allegations". In 2022, the charity said it had "implemented a wide array of organisational and safeguarding enhancements" to ensure the safety of children it had been supporting "directly and indirectly" in The Gambia. In September 2023, the Charity Commission issued Penny Appeal with a separate official warning over what was called "a breach of trust, duty and other misconduct and/or mismanagement". It said the charity had failed to keep proper minutes to record some decisions, and there been failures to act in the best interests of the charity and to manage a conflict of interest regarding its relationship with an unnamed supplier. Ishrat meanwhile wants to show her father and mother the orphanage built in their name, but she says they are unwell, and she is not sure if this will ever happen. But she has not given up hope: "I want to see orphans in those homes for my wish to come true, and to gift that to my parents." Banner saying 'Get in touch' Have you been affected by any of the issues raised here? You can get in touch by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways: If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission. Five Palestinians were killed on Wednesday at the U.N. aid distribution center in Rafah, the southern Gaza city bordering Egypt, the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health said. This distribution center is run by United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA), the main U.N. agency operating inside of Gaza. The Gaza Ministry of Health said the U.N. distribution center was hit by shelling. ABC News has reached out to the Israel Defense Forces for comment on the attack. MORE: US, Jordanian militaries airdrop another 11,500 meals into northern Gaza: CENTCOM Philippe Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of the UNWRA, called for an "independent inquiry" into violations against the Israeli militarys targeting of U.N. sites in Gaza. "Every day, we share the coordinates of all our facilities across the Gaza Strip with parties to the conflict. The Israeli Army received the coordinates including of this facility yesterday," Lazzarini said in a post on X (formally known as Twitter) after the attack. MORE: Gazans mark holy month amid struggles: 'This Ramadan is not happy' "The @UN, its personnel, premises and assets must be protected at all times. Since this war began, attacks against UN facilities, convoys and personnel have become commonplace in blatant disregard to international humanitarian law," he added. "I am calling once again for an independent inquiry into these violations and the need for accountability." Aid agencies estimate there are now 1.4 million people, or two-thirds of Gaza's total population, displaced in this small town that borders Egypt. All are competing for the scant resources available amid the Israel-Hamas war. 5 Palestinians killed after shelling at UN aid distribution center in Rafah, Gaza originally appeared on abcnews.go.com For more than a decade, Australian billionaire Clive Palmer has been the driving force behind plans to build Titanic II a replica of the ill-fated ship that sank in 1912 with more than 2,200 people on board. Only about 700 survived, creating history as the worlds most disastrous voyage and the light bulb of an idea for a billionaire with an interest in cruising and cash to burn. Palmer first launched plans for Titanic II in 2012, and again in 2018. Six years later, hes done it again, relaunching the project on Wednesday during a press briefing at Sydney Opera House against the backdrop of the citys famed harbor. Once again, the question is why? Its a lot more fun to do the Titanic than it is to sit at home and count my money, Palmer reportedly told local media with the blunt honesty of man who earns almost half a billion dollars in mining royalties every year. For Palmer the question is not how to earn money, but where to spend it. The replica of the doomed cruise liner will feature a grand staircase, according to plans seen in an animation. - Courtesy Blue Star Line When he first floated his dream of building a more buoyant version of the Titanic more than a decade ago, the popular view was that he was rich and eccentric enough to do it. But headwinds of the pandemic hit, and the multimillion-dollar project was put on hold as ports closed and passengers reassessed their risk appetite for being quarantined at sea. Palmer, chairman of the Blue Star Line company behind the Titanic project, also had other issues on his agenda. In recent years hes launched multiple court cases against state and federal governments. He took on the Western Australian state government over its decision to shut its borders during in the pandemic. Another High Court loss came when he sought billions of dollars in damages from the same state government over its decision to block his access to compensation over an iron ore project. Hes now taking that to an international tribunal, seeking almost $200 billion in damages from the federal government. Then theres his bids for political office, as the founder of the United Australia Party, registered in 2018, whose policies included an Australian Bill of Rights and bans on Covid lockdowns and vaccine mandates. He famously spent millions of dollars on advertising for very little electoral return, and the party was deregistered in 2022. Now the pandemic has passed, and cruise ships are once again at sea, Palmer said the time is right to revive his Titanic dream. We are very pleased to announce that after unforeseen global delays, we have reengaged with partners to bring the dream of Titanic ll to life. Let the journey begin, Palmer said in a press release. An animated rendering of the Titanic II's third-class dining room where guests can order stew and mash. - Courtesy Blue Star Line The plans are very similar to previous iterations, checked to ensure they comply with current regulations. Tenders are being sought, with plans to confirm a ship builder by the end of the year, to begin work in the first quarter of 2025. Right now, Palmer expects the winning bidders to be based in Europe. He doesnt believe Chinese standards are up to the task, he told reporters. At the relaunch, his team distributed an eight-minute video thats been around for several years, showing the layout of the ship and how each room will look, complete with actors dressed in period costume. Passengers will be encouraged to dress for the 1900s, but its not mandatory, a spokesperson said. The ship itself will be 269 meters (833 feet) long and 32.2 meters (105 feet) wide slightly wider than the original. Capacity will be 2,345 passengers spread across nine decks with 835 cabins. Almost half of those will be reserved for first class passengers. Third class passengers will be treated to stew and mash at long tables in a communal dining room as they were on the original boat though a spokesperson said other meals will also be available for those who want a less authentic experience. A classic scene from "Titanic," starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Of Titanic II, Clive Palmer says it'll be the "ship of love." - Paramount Pictures More than a century after the Titanic went down, researchers and historians remain captivated by its story. The tragedy inspired James Camerons Oscar-winning 1997 blockbuster Titanic, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, and has fascinated amateur explorers drawn to the wreck. One such mission ended in tragedy in June last year when all five passengers aboard the Titan submersible were killed when the vessel suffered a catastrophic implosion en route to the wreckage. Palmer wants to replicate the Titanic without the tragic ending and he also wants world peace. We all know how to make war. We get armies and we fund wars. People know about that. But it is a lot harder to make peace. To make peace you have got to stick with it every day. You progress inch by inch, he said in the press release. Titanic ll is something that can provide peace. It can be a ship of peace between all countries of the world. Millions have dreamt of sailing on her, seeing her in port and experiencing her unique majesty. Titanic ll will be the ship where those dreams come true, Palmer said. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com WASHINGTON President Joe Biden clinched the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, NBC News projects, winning a majority of the necessary delegates and setting up what is expected to be a bitter, closely contested rematch with Donald Trump. The outcome had never been much in doubt. Biden faced token opposition as the partys biggest names Govs. Gavin Newsom of California and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan among them opted to sit out the race rather than challenge a sitting president who had already beaten Trump once. By clearing the field for Biden, 81, Democrats have gambled that he remains the partys best shot at defeating Trump one more time. The November election will help determine whether that bet pays off. Some party activists have their doubts. "He was forced on us by the establishment, but he is manifestly not the same man that he was even three years ago, and that has made him less optimally fit for the office, if not simply unfit," Liano Sharon, a Democratic National Committee member from Michigan, said in an interview. The general election campaign opens with Biden an underdog against an opponent whom historians have ranked as the worst president in the countrys history. Biden leaned into his likely opponent in a statement Tuesday night about becoming the presumptive nominee, arguing that "the threat Trump poses is greater than ever." "Donald Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America," Biden said in a statement released by his campaign. "He is glorifying dictators and pledging to become one himself on day one." Age remains Biden's glaring vulnerability, polling shows. His State of the Union speech last week was a chance to reassure voters about his fitness, and his performance may have quelled some of voters' misgivings. Biden delivered his 68-minute speech with unusual brio, seizing opportunities to go off script and parry Republicans who booed him throughout. "They [the Biden campaign team] got one of the most impressive opportunities at a reset with the State of the Union," said Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and a former mayor of New Orleans. Biden's challenge now, eight months before the general election, is to energize Democratic and independent voters who largely dont credit him for the strong economy and a string of bipartisan bills he ushered through Congress. A thorny new political problem is the fallout from the war between Israel and Hamas. Bidens stalwart support for Israel has divided his party. Rather than reward him with another term, some Democrats in Michigan and other battleground states are considering leaving the top of the ballot blank because of a war that has killed more than 30,000 people in Gaza. Touting his own record has done little to revive Biden's sluggish approval ratings. Democratic allies want to see Biden attack Trump at every turn, warning that the former president poses a threat to the countrys democratic society and, at 77, is hardly an inspiring, fresh-faced alternative for voters who fear Biden is too old. Biden seems eager to comply. He gave a preview of forthcoming attacks in his State of the Union speech. Eschewing a unifying message, he referred more than a dozen times to my predecessor. Biden has to go after Trump hammer and tong, and he has to be constant about it, former Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said in an interview. Though the Democratic primary season was largely a coronation, Bidens victory figures to be something he will savor. He has lost more presidential races than he has won. As he aged, the Oval Office seemed ever more out of reach. He ran for the partys nomination in 1988 and again in 2008 and never made headway with rank-and-file Democratic voters. Grieving over his son Beaus death, he decided not to run in the 2016 campaign, having served eight years as Barack Obamas vice president. Even if he had opted to enter that race, Obama and his political team had made it clear their preferred candidate was Hillary Clinton, not Biden. Biden lost badly in the first few contests of the 2020 cycle before he mounted a comeback in South Carolina and revived a campaign that looked to have flatlined. Through sheer persistence, he is now finishing a presidential term while wrapping up his second party nomination in a row. Clinton, John Kerry, Al Gore, Edward M. Kennedy and many of Biden's other peers never got as far. Nobody ever told me a life in politics and public service would be easy; like life, I never expected politics to be free of disappointment or heartache, Biden wrote in his 2017 memoir, Promise Me, Dad. But I have always believed it was worth the effort. From left to right: Kadijah Torion, a certified doula and owner of Pure Heart Doula; Jatu Boikai, maternity nurse manager at Mount Carmel Grove City; Danielle Tong, executive director of Celebrate One; Franklin County Commissioner Erica Crawley, and Dr. Nate Overmire, Franklin County coroner, whose office hosted the Black Mothers Matter panel discussion Tuesday night at the Linden Community Center. Franklin County Commissioner Erica Crawley described her pregnancy as "traumatic." After having to go through an emergency C-section at 34 weeks, she gave birth to twins. But a few weeks afterward, Crawley said she started experiencing severe pain in her abdomen and drove herself to the emergency room. Doctors said she had a pocket of blood in her pelvis, told her to take some over-the-counter medication, and sent her on her way, she said. Crawley told those gathered at a "Black Mothers Matter" panel discussion Thursday at the Linden Community Center that it wasn't until she was in her 30s that she learned that her experience was not normal. The panel event, hosted and moderated by Franklin County Coroner Dr. Nate Overmire, featured personal stories like Crawley's as well as insights and challenges that Black women face when it comes to childbirth and motherhood. There was also discussion on how Black mothers as well as the community can move in partnership to address the disparities and reduce both Black infant and maternal mortality. Besides Crawley, other panelists who spoke at the event were: Danielle Tong, executive director of Celebrate One, created in November 2014 by the city of Columbus, Franklin County and numerous partner organizations with the goal of making sure each baby has "a healthy and safe first year of life that sets him or her on a path to thrive each year beyond that." Kadijah Torian, a certified doula and founder of Pure Heart Doula. A doula is a trained, nonmedical professional who provides physical, emotional and informational support to their client before, during and for a period after childbirth. Jatu Boikai, a maternity nurse manager at Mount Carmel Grove City. Black women are at least three times more likely to die due to pregnancy related issues in comparison to white women, the Dispatch previously reported. In Ohio, the Black infant mortality rate in 2021 was 164% higher for Blacks than whites, even when controlling for factors such as parental income and education, according to the Ohio Infant Mortality Report and a study by the Health Policy Institute of Ohio. In Franklin County, 34 of the 50 infants who died in 2022 were Black, according to data from the Franklin County Coroner's Office. From 2018 to 2022, there were a total of 102 Black infant deaths. Panelists cite bias, systemic racism in health care Experts and researchers have long pointed to racism in the medical field and its effects on Black people and how it affects quality of care. Boikai told the audience that it's important for people to seek out not just Black health care providers, but providers that understand the disparities that Black women face. "The numbers don't lie. When Black women and birthing people have access to doctors and nurses who look like them, the rate of mortality decreases, sometimes by half. Infant mortality decreases by half," Crawley said. Experts and researchers have also highlighted the importance of diversity in health care and how that can play a role in reducing the disparity in Black infant deaths. Boikai has said she makes it a point to hire Black nurses in her role as a nurse manager. "I hire black people because we need to be in this space," Boikai said. She added that it's important for medical professionals "to treat people like people." Torion said she thinks that Black people "have to come to a place where we're now holding hospital systems accountable for the way that they treat us, too." "Any work must be viewed through a racial equity lens", Crawley said. 'Plan your village' While the panelists offered critique on medical providers on how to improve health outcomes for Black women and Black mothers, they also offered insight on how Black women can take stock of their own resources and become their own advocates. The panelists also acknowledged that the onus cannot entirely be on them and agreed that there shouldn't be "tips and tricks" on how to get through the system alive. Torian told the audience that expecting mothers should always review hospital statistics on births and disparities in infant deaths. She emphasized the need to "plan your village" of support and build it early, while also mentally and physically preparing for the journey. "When it comes to the risks, understanding those risks and asking the right questions and advocating for yourself and having somebody who can advocate for you is huge," Boikai said. Crawley encouraged women to listen to their bodies and speak up when they feel something is wrong. In a call to action, Boikai asked the audience that they be willing to support Black mothers in the community and to be willing to call out racism and discrimination when they come across it. @ShahidMeighan smeighan@dispatch.com This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Black women panel shares experiences and research to support mothers Security camera footage showing work being done on a Boeing Max 9 door plug that later blew out mid-air has been overwritten, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board said. In a letter to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation that is reviewing the incident and Boeing's role in it, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said her agency still lacks critical information about the chain of events that led up to the January incident that caused an Alaska Airlines flight carrying 177 people to make an emergency landing. "We still do not know who performed the work to open, reinstall, and close the door plug on the accident aircraft," Homendy wrote. "Boeing has informed us that they are unable to find the records documenting this work." She continued: "A verbal request was made by our investigators for security camera footage to help obtain this information; however, they were informed the footage was overwritten. The absence of those records will complicate the NTSBs investigation moving forward." Homendy said in the letter that she also personally called Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun and asked him for the names of the workers who performed the work in question. But, Homendy said, Calhoun stated he was "unable to provide that information and maintained that Boeing has no records of the work being performed." A Boeing spokesperson said the company, like many others, does not retain security footage for longer than 30 days. The Alaska Airlines plane in question was in the factory last year in September and delivered in October. We will continue supporting this investigation in the transparent and proactive fashion we have supported all regulatory inquiries into this accident," Boeing said. "We have worked hard to honor the rules about the release of investigative information in an environment of intense interest from our employees, customers, and other stakeholders, and we will continue our efforts to do so. Homendy had previously publicly reprimanded Boeing for failing to turn over information her agency had requested, calling it absurd. Last week, NBC News confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that the U.S. Department of Justice had opened a criminal case into the incident. On Monday, South Carolina officials confirmed a Boeing whistleblower was found dead of an apparent self-inflected gunshot wound. The former employee, John Barnett, 62, was preparing to testify in a deposition in a federal legal action against Boeing dating back to at least 2017. Barnett's family in a statement that he had encountered a culture of concealment that valued profits over safety at Boeing. The New York Times also reported this week that an FAA audit of Boeings 737 Max production reportedly found "dozens of issues." This week, major carriers that fly Boeing fuselages including Alaska Airlines, Southwest, and United Airlines said they may have to trim capacity and push back orders as a result of Boeing's issues. Boeing needs to become a better company and the deliveries will follow that, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said at a JPMorgan industry conference Tuesday, according to CNBC. Mercedes-Benz chief calls for reduction of tariffs on Chinese EVs in Europe Xinhua) 11:12, March 13, 2024 FRANKFURT, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Germany's leading luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz has this week called for a reduction of the tariffs imposed on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) in the European Union (EU) market. Protectionism will not lead to long-term success, chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG Ola Kaellenius told the Financial Times. Kaellenius' comments come at a time when an anti-subsidy investigation against Chinese EVs is ongoing in the EU. The Mercedes chief claims that protectionism is the wrong way to respond to increased imports of Chinese EVs to the EU. Kaellenius believes reducing tariffs on Chinese EVs, and increased competition from China will pressure carmakers in Europe to make better cars. As an advocate for an open market, Kaellenius also called for joint efforts to create a level playing field for all carmakers. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) (Photo : Win McNamee/Getty Images) Former President Donald Trump's hush money trial will begin in New York on April 15, 2024. A judge in Georgia on Wednesday dismissed several of the criminal counts in the election interfrence case against former President Donald Trump and five co-defendents. Other criminal counts against Trump and said co-defendants still remain, however. The order was handed down on Wednsday by Judge Scott McAfee. The counts tossed by McAfee accused the former President and others of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. The counts are related to alleged efforts by the defendants to get members of the Georgia legislature, as well as the secretary of state, to delegitimize the election victory of President Joe Biden over Trump in the 2020 election contest. Judge McAfee said he was dismissing those counts because the language in the indictment accusing the defendants of soliciting elected officials to violate their oaths to the U.S. and Georgia constitutions "is so generic as to compel" the requested dismissal of the charges. "On its own, the United States Constitution contains hundreds of clauses, any one of which can be the subject of a lifetime's study," McAfee wrote. The defense team for Trump and others had argued that the language in the indictment charging him and his co-defendants did "not detail the exact term of the oaths that are alleged to have been violated," McAfee noted in his order. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Screengrab from video shot by the woman's son, shared by her attorney Harry Daniels Screengrab from video shot by the woman's son, shared by her attorney Harry Daniels A police officer entered a womans home and arrested her for not showing her identification except failing to do so is not a law in Alabama, her attorney said. The mayor has issued an apology to Twyla Stallworth after her arrest and said all charges would be dropped. On Feb. 23, Stallworth called police to complain about her neighbors noise levels but said police didnt respond, according to a news release from her attorney, Harry Daniels. Stallworth set off her car alarm to get her neighbors attention, then when her neighbor complained, Officer Grant Barton with the Andalusia Police Department responded, Daniels said. The officer told her she could be cited for setting off her alarm, but she called him out for saying he would cite her, a Black woman, and not her white neighbor, the attorney said. That marks the beginning of a five-minute video, recorded by Stallworths 18-year-old son and shared by Daniels. In the video, Barton asks to see Stallworths identification. She refuses. Im not giving you my ID, Stallworth says. The officer takes out his handcuffs and tells her she is under arrest, the video shows. Alright turn around and put your hands behind your back, Barton responds. The woman goes back into her home to put on her shoes as the officer repeats the command. He goes past her son into the house, and she tells him not to push her son as tensions escalate. The son asks his mother to give the officer her ID and begs for both of them to calm down. Barton tries to place handcuffs on Stallworth, then hes seen pushing her onto the couch. The two struggle as her son screams. Eventually, the officer places cuffs on Stallworth and leads her outside while her son asks him to explain whats going on. Right now shes under arrest for failure to identify, Barton says as he leads Stallworth across the lawn to his patrol car. That is not the law, thats against the law, Stallworth is heard saying. When the son asks the officer to pull up the specific law his mom is accused of breaking, Barton shows him Alabama code section 15-5-30, called Authority of Peace Officer to Stop and Question. The code allows a law enforcement officer to stop someone in a public place if they suspect the person is going to commit an offense or has already committed an offense and demand the persons name and address, according to Justia Law, an online database for laws and cases. But the law only applies if someone is in public, not at their own home as Stallworth was. Barton is seen driving away with Stallworth in his vehicle as the video ends. Stalworth was charged with obstruction, resisting arrest and attempting to elude, and she was held for 15 hours, her attorney said. On March 8, Andalusia Mayor Earl Johnson shared a video apologizing to Stallworth for the incident and pledging to do better. I have met with the Andalusia police chief and other leaders in the department, Johnson said. We have agreed that the entire department will receive additional training in Constitutional law, the laws of Alabama, and the ordinances of the City of Andalusia, so that we will not have an incident like this to reoccur. He added the officer was disciplined for failing in his duty to know the law. Johnson denied other issues Stallworths attorney raised, such as the departments failure to respond to her noise complaints and the arrest was the result of racism. Ms. Stallworth has not filed a complaint with the police department, but her attorney alleges in his release that her arrest was racially motivated, Johnson said. We have reviewed body cam footage of the incident, and see absolutely no evidence of racism. He said he offered to meet with Stallworth, but she declined. In a meeting with community members, the police chief said the department regularly trains officers on topics such as implicit bias, according to city officials. As a result of the incident, the city of Andalusia plans to form a law enforcement advisory committee. Stallworth has spoken up on social media about the incident, sharing a flyer to protest and bring awareness to racial profiling. Your rights matter, Stallworth wrote in the post. Fight for them. Andalusia is in southern Alabama, about 90 miles south of Montgomery. SWAT team invaded scared womans home, found no evidence, suit says. She wins $3.76M 10-year-old pees in public and is arrested, lawsuit says. Now Mississippi mom wants $2M 8-year-old died after flying from school slide 7 feet above frozen ground, Utah suit says Handcuffed mom of 4 died in terror in patrol car deputy drove into river, suit says The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race is a grueling long-distance sled dog race held annually in Alaska, covering over 1,000 miles of challenging terrain from Anchorage to Nome. Three beautiful dogs perished during what is known as "the last great race on earth." Dallas Seavey won his record sixth Iditarod sled dog race on Tuesday, and PETA has repeatedly called for the race to be shut down. Just hours after the race started, Seavey and his team encountered a moose on the trail. Seavey's dog Faloo was injured before Seavey shot and killed the moose with a handgun. Race rules require any big game animal killed in defense of life or property to be gutted before the musher moves on, and the meat of the animal distributed. Seavey told officials he gutted the moose the best he could. However, he was ultimately given a two-hour time penalty because he only spent 10 minutes gutting the moose, officials said. Related: Giant Pack of Stray Huskies Were Rescued in Washington After Being Alone for a Month In addition to the death of the moose, two dogs on separate teams collapsed and died Sunday, and another died Tuesday. Efforts to resuscitate all three dogs were unsuccessful. No dogs had died during the race in the last five years. Why Do Dogs Die During The Iditarod? While the race is said to be carefully regulated to prioritize the health and well-being of the sled dogs, sadly, some dogs have died during the event over the years. PETA explains, "In just the last decade, dogs competing in the event have died from various causes, including asphyxiation, heart attacks, trauma from being struck by a vehicle, freezing to death, excess fluid in the lungs, and acute aspiration pneumoniacaused by inhaling vomit." Henry, a 3-year-old dog on rookie Calvin Daughertys team, collapsed at 10:15 a.m. Tuesday outside of Shaktoolik. The Iditarod reported the other two dog deaths on Sunday. George was a 4-year-old on musher Hunter Keefes team and Bog was a 2-year-old on Isaac Teafords team. Both collapsed on the trail, race officials say. Officials are investigating what caused the deaths of the dogs. AlaskaPublic explains, "Under race rules adopted in 2018, if a dog dies, the musher must voluntarily scratch from the race or they will be withdrawn unless the dog died due to an unpreventable hazard like a moose encounter." Dogs can sustain injuries during the race, such as muscle strains, sprains, or lacerations from sharp ice or debris on the trail. They also are exposed to cold temperatures, stress, and fatigue. Some dogs are injured after falling, or during collisions with other teams. If you would like more information or to sign the petition urging an end to the Iditarod, you can learn more here. Race officials are said to closely monitor the dogs throughout the race and provide veterinary care when the dogs need it. However, despite these precautions, the extreme nature of the race means that there is always some level of risk involved for both mushers and sled dogs. It's hard to understand any sport that puts the life of an animal at risk. The New York Times explains that these dogs pull sleds weighing 250 pounds or more across mountain passes, frozen lakes and tundra in biting winds and temperatures that can dip below minus 50, a journey that can take 9 to 18 days. That seems a cruel ask of a dog that doesn't have any say in the matter. Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips. The death of Oklahoma student Nex Benedict has been ruled a suicide, according to a medical examiners report released Wednesday. The 16-year-old, who was transgender and used he and they pronouns, according to friends and family, died Feb. 8, a day after a fight at Owasso High School. His name has become a rallying cry among LGBTQ activists, who argue that an onslaught of legislation targeting the community has made schools less safe for queer and trans students like Nex. Nex had reportedly told his mother that he faced bullying at school due to his gender identity, and body-camera footage released last month by police from the hours after the school fight shows Nex lying in a hospital bed. In the video, he tells a police officer how three students jumped him after he threw water on them because they were bullying him and his friend for the way they dressed. The Owasso Police Department released preliminary information from an autopsy report on Feb. 21 that they said shows Nexs death was not the result of trauma. Days later, a spokesperson for the department clarified that the fight had not been ruled out as having contributed to or caused his death. The medical examiners report listed probable cause of death as combined toxicity from two drugs, one of which is available over the counter and the other by prescription. In a statement posted on its Facebook account Wednesday, following the release of the medical examiners report, the Owasso Police Department wrote, in part: From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office. Margaret Coates, the superintendent for Owasso Public Schools, acknowledged Nex's cause of death on Wednesday and encouraged students struggling with the news to seek school counseling. "The loss of Nex, a member of the Ram Family and the Owasso community, is devastating," Coates wrote in a letter to families and educators that was shared with NBC News. "We understand that the information released today may bring up additional thoughts, feelings and emotions for students and staff members." An attorney for the Benedict family, Jacob Biby, did not respond to a request for comment on the medical examiners report. Owasso High School students organized a walkout on Feb. 26 to protest what they described as a pervasive culture of bullying that often goes unpunished. Kane, one of the organizers of the walkout who asked to go by first name only to protect his privacy, said at the time that students had speculated that Nex may have died by suicide. But, to Kane, who is nonbinary, the key contributing factor to Nexs death was bullying. Theres been bullying issues. This time, the bullying has gone so far that a student has passed, Kane said ahead of last months walkout. To me, it doesnt matter if Nex passed from a traumatic brain injury or if they passed from suicide. What matters is the fact that they died after getting bullied, and that is the story for so many other students. Ive been close to ending it myself because of bullying. Its not new for so many students. LGBTQ advocates and the medical community have long warned that queer youths face disproportionate rates of suicidal ideation. In a survey conducted in 2022 by The Trevor Project, an LGBTQ youth suicide prevention organization, more than 40% of LGBTQ people age 13-24 said they seriously considered attempting suicide in the previous year, with trans and nonbinary respondents reporting even higher rates. That same survey of approximately 28,000 LGBTQ young people found 14% had attempted suicide within the past year, including 1 in 5 transgender respondents. Earlier this month, the Department of Education opened an investigation into whether Nexs high school failed to appropriately respond to sex-based harassment. The investigation was opened after the nations largest LGBTQ advocacy group, the Human Rights Campaign, filed a complaint with the department after Nexs death. A spokesperson for Owasso Public Schools, Brock Crawford, said at the time that the investigation was not supported by the facts and is without merit. Kelley Robinson, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, reiterated Wednesday the organization's call for an investigation into Nex's death. "Nex was failed by so many and should still be here today," she said in a statement. "We hold their family in our hearts as they grapple with the devastating reality that their beloved child, a teen with a bright future, is no longer making this world a brighter place." If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support. If you are an LGBTQ young person in crisis, feeling suicidal or in need of a safe and judgment-free place to talk, call the TrevorLifeline now at 1-866-488-7386 or the Rainbow Youth Project at 1-317-643-4888. A former Customs and Border Protection officer who worked at a Texas port of entry pleaded guilty this week to letting undocumented people into the U.S. and allowing what he thought was cocaine into the country, officials said. Emanuel Isac Celedon pleaded guilty in two federal cases Monday one dealing with smuggling people into the U.S. and a second that involved taking a bribe for what he believed was a shipment of cocaine, prosecutors said. Celedon, 36, worked at the Juarez-Lincoln Port of Entry in Laredo on the U.S.-Mexico border. He let people through the lane he controlled without inspection at least nine times from September to November and told smugglers in advance what his lane assignment was, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas said in a statement. Celedon also took a $6,000 bribe to allow vehicles with what he believed were kilograms of cocaine but which was actually sham cocaine and part of an undercover investigation into the U.S., the prosecutors office said. Celedon's attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon. He pleaded guilty Monday to four counts of bringing an undocumented alien to the U.S. in one criminal case and to counts of bribery and attempted importation of a controlled substance in the second, the U.S. attorney's office said. The Juarez-Lincoln Port of Entry is one of five border land crossings in Laredo. Key takeaways Filing a home insurance claim might make the most sense when the loss estimate is more than your deductible. Any claim, even a minor one, might lead to an increase in your home insurance premium. Having frequent or repeat claims could cause a property insurer to nonrenew your policy. Regardless of whether you are required to carry home insurance by your lender, the reason most people carry coverage is to protect their finances against substantial losses resulting from incidents like fires and weather events. Knowing when to file a home insurance claim can help you avoid negative consequences, like being nonrenewed for excessive claims in a short period. If you find yourself wondering if you should file a home insurance claim, weighing the pros and cons can help you determine whether submitting a claim is the right choice or if paying out of pocket would be best. Bankrate offers guidance on what to consider. What is a homeowners insurance claim? A homeowners insurance claim is how you can get reimbursed for covered losses in your home or on your property. After a loss happens, you can start the claims filing process in multiple ways, either over the phone, in person with your agent, through your online account or through many carriers mobile apps. The process can differ by insurance company, so familiarize yourself with your insurers process options after getting your policy. Filing a homeowners insurance claim under the right circumstances may help you better manage a significant loss. When to file a home insurance claim Damage occurring to your property does not automatically mean that you should file a claim against your homeowners insurance policy. You should consider factors to determine if filing a claim is the best course for you in the long run. The estimate is more than your deductible If the cost to repair damage to your home or the replacement cost of a damaged household item is only slightly higher than your policy deductible, you may want to consider paying these costs yourself. Every time a claim is filed, it is reported to the Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE), a national database insurers use to track claim activity. All carriers review this database, and a claim may increase your premiums at your next policy renewal. Having repeat claims, even ones with low insurance payouts, might cause a property insurer to nonrenew your policy. Frequent or repeat claims over time may make you only eligible for high-risk homeowners insurance, which is more expensive. The damage is covered and extensive Homeowners insurance is not intended to cover everyday maintenance or minor repair costs. It is designed to cover significant and unexpected, sometimes catastrophic, losses. These are the events that should generate a claim. For example, hurricane wind damage or a fire in your home often result in extensive damage and will typically be the right catalyst for filing a claim. You have an endorsement for the damage An endorsement is add-on coverage, providing financial protection for something a standard home insurance policy does not normally cover. Endorsements can even extend coverage limits above what a standard policy offers. These add-ons increase your premium, sometimes only slightly, and may even come with a separate deductible. Jewelry coverage and sewer backup are just two endorsements commonly added to homeowners policies. When the damage incurred is covered by an endorsement, it might make sense to file a claim because these are typically costly repairs. When not to file a home insurance claim As alluded to above, there are a number of situations where filing a homeowners insurance claim might not be in your best interest. In these situations, paying the cost to repair damage or replace items yourself when possible can save on premiums and prevent more serious problems with future coverage. The damage is minimal Any claim, even a very minor one, may lead to an increase in your home insurance premium. Your insurer will likely deny any repair or replacement costs below your deductible. Claims that have repair costs only slightly higher than your deductible should probably be avoided as your insurer wont cover much of the claim, and you risk a premium increase. Your policy excludes the damage You dont want to walk right into a problem by filing a claim that you are fairly certain will be denied. Even claims that are denied or have $0 paid out are reported to CLUE and therefore may have a negative impact on the premiums you will pay in the future. Filing a homeowners insurance claim is not a nothing to lose proposition. Do your research on your policy exclusions, and where possible, consider getting the advice of an insurance agent before you file a questionable claim. The damage is from normal wear and tear Homeowner insurance policies consistently include failure to maintain exclusions which give the carrier the right to deny the claim based upon negligence or lack of maintenance. For example, if you have a seriously damaged and leaking roof that resulted from your failure to replace shingles that led to the bigger problem, your carrier will likely deny your claim. You have several recent claims Filing a series of claims within a relatively short time frame can significantly raise eyebrows with underwriters and lead to higher insurance rates or a policy nonrenewal. A homeowner with multiple claims on their record can cause carriers to assume that another claim will likely be filed. This is part of the risk assessment carriers use to determine if a policy should be renewed and whether the rate should change. Even denied claims can be considered a negative factor when insurers determine you have an excessive level of claim activity. How to file a home insurance claim It is important to understand how to file a home insurance claim. The diligence adopted in preparing and supporting your claim may impact your chances of full recovery. The process requires a deliberate step-by-step approach: Contact your homeowners insurance company or agent as soon as possible and carefully complete and submit the required claim forms. Gather all documentation that supports the claim, including photos and all receipts for expenditures. Having a completed and up-to-date home inventory can make this process easier. Make temporary repairs immediately, particularly when these will minimize any additional damage, such as with a leaky roof. Keep receipts of any materials you have to purchase like a bucket or tarp, as you will probably be reimbursed for these items if your claim is approved. Prepare for a visit by the assigned claim field adjuster and answer all questions honestly and thoroughly. Obtain replacement, repair or rebuilding estimates from reputable contractors. Working with a contractor that is in the providers network may make the claims process go faster, especially if a claim for supplemental damage is needed. Initially, setting up your policy with a homeowners insurance company with positive reviews for their claims experience may be beneficial and improve the odds that you have a good experience when filing an insurance claim. Frequently asked questions Workers unload fish from the boat before transporting to a fish market in July 2016 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Photograph: Billy HC Kwok/Getty Images Labor groups and government officials are pushing to rein in rampant abuses of workers in the fishing industry, where migrant laborers are frequently subjected to slavery and violence from employers. One out of every five fish is caught through illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in conditions where abuses of workers are common, according to a United Nations estimate. About 128,000 workers are thought to be currently trapped in forced labor on remote fishing vessels around the world, according to the International Labour Organization. Child labor or forced labor has been documented in the production of fish, dried fish, shellfish and shrimp in 20 countries, according to the US Department of Labor. In one case, a worker was blinded in one eye after a fishing line snapped. He said the ships captain forced him to carry on working instead of seeking medical help. Thea Lee, the deputy secretary for international labor affairs at the US Department of Labor, told the Guardian the government agency was pushing to close enforcement gaps, promote guidance for marine authorities and inspectors to look for labor violations, and utilize the purchasing power of the US government to push for changes in seafood supply chains. The Biden administration is also using international sanctions to push out illegal fishing vessels that propagate human rights abuses of workers. Fishing is just an extraordinarily problematic industry, said Lee. There are so many things about it both physically and economically that make it very, very vulnerable and its not just child labor and forced labor but every other problem, in particular safety and health violations, but also freedom of association, collective bargaining, all the fundamental labor rights and discrimination. Every fundamental labor right is probably broken a lot. With corporations performing self-audits on labor abuses in their supply chains and large gaps in data on the industry, there is a need for worker-centered solutions and governments to work together, said Lee. The onus is really on governments and corporations to fix this problem, added Lee. Theres a lot of work to be done. Adrei Nelwan worked as a migrant fisher from Indonesia for Taiwan deep-sea fishing vessels from 1995 until 2021 when he was deported after suffering a severe eye injury on the job. Despite his injury, he was forced to continue working for a month to receive medical care. Taiwan exported $139m of seafood to the US in 2020, sold by retailers including Walmart and Costco and seafood brands such as Bumblebee Tuna. Taiwan has the second largest distance water fishing fleet in the world, behind China. We work really hard and take pride in the work we do. The fish we catch ends up on plates in households and makes a lot of profits for major brands across the world, Nelwan said. In June 2021, he was working on a deep-sea fishing vessel when a fishing line snapped and hit him in the eye, causing permanent blindness in that eye. Although I was clearly in need of medical help, my captain forced me to continue working for another month on the high seas. I was allowed to rest for only a few days and then I treated my injury using antibiotics and paracetamol that I brought with me to relieve the pain, recounted Nelwan. On August 31, 2021, the vessel docked, and I was brought to a hospital, but the treatment was only meant to prevent infection, no other procedures were taken to save my eyesight. He said six other fishers on the vessel fled once it docked at port due to the harsh working conditions. The labor broker agency through which he obtained employment to work on the vessel transferred him to another boat while he was at port without his consent. Because he refused to accept a transfer, he was deported without any compensation or insurance. His wife in Indonesia took out a loan for $5,000 to try to cover medical treatment in Indonesia, but by then a medical intervention was too late to save his eye. If I had received prompt medical help, it would have saved my eyesight, he added. Susanto, a migrant fisher from Indonesia in Taiwan from 2006 until 2020, also injured his eye due to a snapped fishing line and said injuries due to snapping fishing lines, including loss of limbs, fingers and eyes, are common. The denial of medical care and being forced to continue working through injuries is also common throughout the industry. I did not receive any medical help back then, but if we had wifi access back then I would have been able to receive medical help and my eye would be saved, said Susanto. He said work began around 7am, when workers would throw the fishing lines out until 1pm, then from 1pm to 5pm they would pull the fish from the lines on to the boat. When there were a lot of fish to pull on to the dock, we would only be able to rest for one or two hours, said Susanto. The sleeping patterns always change. The captain would tell us not to sleep when we have a good catch, and we only get to sleep for two to three hours. Achmad Mudzakir, chairman of the Indonesia Seafarers Gathering Forum (Fospi), a worker advocacy group that includes more than 2,300 migrant fishers as members and who has also worked as a migrant fisher since 2003, said many of the issues facing migrant fishers revolve around unpaid wages, injuries, worker deaths and human trafficking issues. We generate a lot of profits for both Taiwan and Indonesia. But although we work for more than 14 hours a day, we only receive about $550 per month and this is the lowest among all migrant groups in Taiwan, said Mudzakir. The work we do is really difficult and dangerous. Sometimes we dont have enough food or water. We often have to gather rainwater or the water dripping from air conditioners for basic necessities like bathing or drinking. He said employers will often terminate worker contracts and deport them without any compensation, and workers can face retaliation and deportation from employers if they try to report any abuses. A lot of workers experience verbal and physical abuse. They experience constrained mobility and isolation. About 80 to 90% of our members do not have identity documents with them because these documents are confiscated by their agencies, added Mudzakir. A, who requested to go by his first initial for fear of retaliation and retribution from employers, worked on a Chinese fishing vessel where he was kept at sea for about two years from 2021 to 2023 and consistently assaulted and beaten on the job. The vessel was reported to government authorities after some workers were dropped off the ship because they lost their fingers to frostbite and could no longer work. The physical abuse started when someone saw me picking up one of my gloves near the captains room, and they beat me, accusing me of stealing, he said. Every time I made a mistake, I was physically abused for it. He described excessive working hours, from 12 to 18 hours a day, and being forced to continue working through injuries without proper medical care. He also said he and other Indonesian workers on the vessel were discriminated against, only given leftover scraps of food from the other workers and rushed to eat. They hit us with bare hands and tools whenever any crew made a small mistake, he said. I wanted to go home but I had no choice but to keep working on the vessel because there was no way for me to go home. Another worker who requested to remain anonymous on a different fishing vessel witnessed a co-worker get brutally beaten after attacking the captain after his requests to transfer off the ship were repeatedly denied. Afterward, the co-worker was confined in a room where he later died, vessel staff claimed that the cause of death was suicide, though the worker is convinced his colleague was killed. They held the crew member down, he got beaten by three of them, I tried to break up the fight. His front teeth were all knocked out, the worker said. The deceased crew member was locked up in a freezer on the vessel for seven months until he was finally transferred to a collecting vessel. Im not convinced that it was actually suicide. Some solutions being pursued to address the industrys issues include mandating wifi access for workers, publishing vessel license information, and getting federal governments to pass and enforce regulations on seafood corporations. The Indonesia Seafarers Gathering Forum (Fospi) has been pushing for wifi internet access through a campaign launched in 2022 with the Global Labor Justice-International Labor Rights Forum. The campaign is demanding mandatory secure wifi internet access be provided on all deep-sea fishing vessels, which would allow migrant fishers to communicate with their family members and unions, or be able to report any abuses in real time. Its a very basic ask, said Jennifer (JJ) Rosenbaum, executive director of Global Labor Justice. We will be asking that wifi as a method of accessing fundamental labor rights be included in the labor section of US trade agreements. She emphasized this was a starting point for migrant fishers to be able to improve working conditions and that the costs should be shared throughout the supply chain, rather than imposed on direct employers. We see the global supply chain model operating in seafood as a fundamental challenge to labor rights for workers because it is set up to separate the entities that are making the highest-level profits and having the most power to change conditions from the entities that are the direct employer of the workers, added Rosenbaum. US and European brands and investors hide their heads in the sand and try to either ignore the problem or pass the responsibility and the cost and the liability all the way down the chain. Were committed to interrupting that model. The organization is also pushing for enforceable brand agreements and for corporations to take accountability for working conditions in their supply chains. In 2023, Bumblebee Tuna agreed to a settlement over a lawsuit filed by Global Labor Justice-International Labor Rights Forum to remove claims about its fishing practices and working conditions on its advertising and marketing materials. Weve been very active in trying to get wifi to be understood as a labor mechanism as a precondition for labor rights to happen, said Valery Alzaga, deputy director of Global Labor Justice. This is how labor rights get agreed on as a practice, by at least getting the infrastructure agreed upon and regulated. Steve Trent, CEO and founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation based in the UK, said that declining fish populations had exacerbated the issue as fishing vessels and employers cut costs by driving down or eliminating labor costs through abuse, exploitation and violence. He said one of the solutions toward reining in labor abuses in the fishing industry was ensuring all government jurisdictions publish their list of fishing vessels and licenses. Most of this stuff is pretty simple, its traffic cop stuff, said Trent. It really is basic, if you look out your window, if the cars didnt have number plates youd be in a world of chaos, and crime. Thats what has been happening with boats if you dont have a unique vessel identifier. The more jurisdictions that demand unique vessel identifiers, the more you can squeeze out the bad players and promote the good ones. The Business & Human Rights Resource Centre published a 2019 report on modern slavery in Pacific tuna supply chains, surveying 35 canned tuna corporations and supermarkets representing 80 of the worlds largest retail canned tuna brands. Some 60% of the worlds tuna supply is sourced from the Pacific Ocean region. In a follow-up report in 2021, the Business & Human Rights Centre noted there was glacial progress, and the issues were worsening. Companies werent themselves clear on exactly where their products were coming from which obviously is problematic if companies are going to take the next step to ensure the workers in their supply chains arent suffering from abuse, said Amy Sinclair, regional representative for Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific at the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre and author of the reports. Corporations were also not identifying or disclosing cases of modern slavery in their supply chains, the reports found. Theres no silver bullet for addressing this type of issue. I think whats important is that theres a multi-pronged action addressed at different actors, so for governments to be initiating regulations and companies encouraged to implement good practices, added Sinclair. You can encourage good practices, endlessly, and weve had voluntary standards in place for years and years and years now. Theyre not causing companies to act as quickly as they should. A Redditor shared an amazing video that he filmed somewhere in Florida where a very friendly manatee decided to hitch a ride on his surfboard for a friendly hello. Watch the following to see this absolutely gorgeous once-in-a-lifetime encounter. View the original article to see embedded media. In the video you can see the manatee with one of his flippers on the edge of the surfboard while the surfer speaks to him. "Hello beautiful, how are you doing? Oh you're doing good? Very good!" The gorgeous animal sort of dips his head back in the water and the man can be heard saying "Nice, nice nice to see you too!" Related: Watch: Baby Manatee Comes Directly Up to Free-diver and Hugs Her People magazine reports, "When one commenter wrote that the experience "must have been amazing," the surfer replied, sharing more about his encounter which included more than one manatee. "It was incredible! In 15 years, Ive never had one act like that," he wrote. "About 10 minutes earlier, he flipped my friend off her board. She lost her phone to the bottom. When her friend called it, it rang on the bottom and spooked about a dozen manatees." "Thats why I go 'Oh jeez!' " he explains. "Thought I was going to get tail flipped too ." I can't even imagine what it must have been like to see a manatee up this close. I'd be so tempted to hug it even though it's illegal to do so. The manatee is protected by the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978, which states: "It is unlawful for any person, at any time, intentionally or negligently, to annoy, molest, harass, or disturb any manatee." The Daytona Beach Journal explains, touching a manatee is punishable under the Manatee Sanctuary Act, with a fine of up to $500 and/or a jail term of up to 60 days. But if you abuse or harass the animal or your actions result in its injury or death, then the Federal Protection Laws may be applied with up to a $50,000 fine and/or up to 1 year imprisonment. It's absolutely wonderful that these creatures are protected by these fines and laws! Despite their big, bulky sea potato appearance, manatees are skilled swimmers and can swim up to 15 miles per hour. They can also hold their breath for us to twenty minutes while resting. Even though we are all jealous of this surfer and his magical mermaid encounter, there are places where you can observe these gorgeous creatures, even if only from a distance. How To See Florida Manatees The best time to see manatees is generally November through March, when manatees usually cluster around warm-water sources. The Blue Spring State Park in Orange City, Florida has observation decks at the park where you can view these beautiful animals. If you encounter wild manatees while swimming, you can never touch them. The Crystal River and Kings Bay area is the only area in Florida where swimmers are monitored around manatees. The website explains, "Avoid excessive noise and splashing if a manatee appears nearby. The manatee may be resting and may surface without being aware of your presence. Noise and activity may startle the animal awake, which may put it in harms way if it is frightened and leaves the area." The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has a cohesive list about where people can view manatees. I don't know about you, but that's for sure on my bucket list. Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips. Ghislaine Maxwell asked a federal appeals court on Tuesday to overturn her conviction and 20-year prison sentence for recruiting and grooming the underage girls who Jeffrey Epstein sexually abused, arguing she was immunized by an agreement federal prosecutors in Florida arranged with Epstein in 2007. "The plea agreement applies to preclude this prosecution," defense attorney Diana Fabi Samson told a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. "Denying the viability of this plea agreement strikes a dagger in the heart of the trust between the government and its citizens regarding plea agreements." Maxwell raised the same argument during trial and asked for a hearing to explore what the Florida prosecutors intended. The trial judge rejected that, ruling prosecutors in New York were not bound by the agreement. On Tuesday, a prosecutor repeated the view that the U.S. Attorney's office in Manhattan was not bound by the prior agreement with Epstein and said, regardless, it did not apply to Maxwell. PHOTO: Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at Cipriani Wall Street on March 15, 2005 in New York City. (Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images) "The central promise in the non-prosecution agreement is a promise by the Southern District of Florida not to prosecute Epstein in that district," assistant U.S. attorney Andrew Rohrbach said. "This is a document entered into by the US Attorney's office for the Southern District of Florida intended to bind the Southern District of Florida and that district alone." MORE: Records show Jeffrey Epstein's requests for multiple passports, travels to Africa and Middle East In her written appeal, Maxwell's attorneys argued she was made a "proxy" for Epstein, who died by suicide in prison while awaiting trial, to "satisfy public outrage" about his conduct. They also argued Maxwell was denied a fair trial, in part, because one of the jurors failed to disclose his own history of sexual abuse during jury selection. Neither point came up during oral arguments. Following Tuesday's hearing, an attorney for a key government witness argued that Maxwell's request for a new trial should be denied. "It took far too many years for the Epstein survivors to get some small piece of deserved justice with Ghislaine Maxwell's conviction and prison sentencing," said Sigrid McCawley, attorney for Annie Farmer, who testified against Maxwell at her criminal trial in 2021. "Nothing in Maxwell's appellate argument today changes the fact that she does not get a free pass and her conviction should be upheld. Survivors deserve nothing less," McCawley added. Maxwell is currently incarcerated in a low-security prison in Tallahassee and eligible for release in 2037. Ghislaine Maxwell asks court to overturn sex trafficking conviction and sentence originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Leonid Volkov, pictured against the backdrop of a photo of Alexei Navalny, speaks during an interview at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on December 14, 2021. A long-time ally of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was attacked with a hammer and tear gas while in his car outside his home near Lithuanias capital Vilnius, Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said late Tuesday. The assailant's identity and the motive for the assault on Leonid Volkov were not clear, but it came about a month after Navalnys unexplained death in a remote Arctic penal colony. A fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Navalny was serving a 19-year prison term on extremism charges widely seen as politically motivated. The attack also comes ahead of an election this weekend in which Putin is expected to win his fifth term as president in a carefully stage-managed vote marked by extreme censorship and a near-total crackdown on opposition. It would mark Putin's third consecutive six-year term. Navalny, a thorn in Putin's side, dies: What does it mean for Russia? Yarmysh and other members of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, which has an office in Vilnius, posted pictures on social media of Volkov, 43, with what appeared to be a bloody leg and bruising to his temple. "This is a clear political attack, there is no doubt," said Ivan Zhdanov, another Navalny ally. There was no immediate reaction from the Kremlin. Police in Lithuania launched a criminal investigation. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuanias foreign minister, called the attack "shocking" and said the "perpetrators will have to answer for their crime. Leonid Volkov vows to 'not give up' Police officers inspect an area near the house of Leonid Volkov, a close associate of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, in Vilnius, Lithuania, on March 13, 2024. Volkov was in charge of Navalny's election campaigns when he unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and then attempted to challenge Putin in Russia's 2018 presidential vote. Like many Russian opposition figures, Volkov left Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities. He stepped down as chairman of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation last year after it emerged that he called for the European Union to drop some sanctions on Russian oligarchs imposed in response to the war in Ukraine. But Volkov has still been helping lead the foundation's anti-corruption investigations into Russian officials, organizing livestreams of major events and has played a big role in anti-Putin activism from Lithuania. A port city, a steel cage, a palace: The steps that made Putin 'the richest man in the world' The attack took place shortly after Volkov arrived at his home near Vilnius. "We will work, we will not give up," Volkov said in a short video posted on Telegram on Wednesday. The video shows Volkov with his arm bandaged and in a sling. He said his arm was broken and his leg hit 15 times with a hammer. "It was a typical gangster greeting from Putins henchmen, from bandit St. Petersburg," he said, an apparent reference to Putin's time as deputy mayor in Russia's Second City in the 1990s when it was overrun by criminality. Thorns in Putin's side forced to leave Russia Putin has criminalized virtually every form of dissent against him and his war in Ukraine. Russians risk jail sentences of five to seven years, for example, for "discrediting" the army. They can be arrested for making offhand anti-Kremlin remarks or for their social media posts. In fact, many thorns in Putin's side have either fled Russia for the U.S. or Western Europe. Hundreds of thousands of young Russians are estimated to have left Russia since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russians escaping Putin's war: They find a new home and a moral dilemma Russias exiled opposition is now effectively led by Aleksey Navalnys widow, Yulia Navalnaya. She and others have called on Russians to show up en masse to voting booths this weekend to overwhelm election officials. Vladimir Ashurkov, a London-based Navalny friend and associate, said in addition to its investigations and fundraising for political prisoners, much of the Anti-Corruption Foundation's work is focused on advising activists inside Russia on how to safely put up anti-war posters and vandalize military recruitment offices. It coordinates volunteers outside Russia to call people inside Russia to talk about the war and persuade them to vote. Ashurkov described this as a "long-term strategy" to defeat Putin. But some voices inside Russia have questioned how effective the work of those based overseas really is. "The exiled opposition cannot influence anything in Russia, since many of them have been prosecuted as 'extremists' or 'terrorists' and it annoys me when some of our critics abroad lecture us here on how to fight the bloody regime," said Boris Vishnevsky, a Russian opposition politician in St. Petersburg. Vishnevsky is planning to boycott Russia's presidential vote. Still, Sam Greene, a professor of Russian politics at King's College London, said that inside Russia the opposition has "talked itself into believing that they are powerless against a highly authoritarian regime." However, he said "history is full of examples of nonviolent movements" that have been successful at ousting unpopular leaders and governments. "The idea that unarmed people can't bring down armed people is false." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Alexei Navalny ally Leonid Volkov attacked with hammer, tear gas Ariel Henry Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry has agreed to resign following weeks of mounting pressure and increasing violence in the impoverished country. It comes after regional leaders met in Jamaica on Monday to discuss a political transition in the country. Mr Henry is currently stranded in Puerto Rico after being prevented by armed gangs from returning home. He said his government would resign following the "installation of [a transition] council." "I'm asking all Haitians to remain calm and do everything they can for peace and stability to come back as fast as possible," Mr Henry said in a video address announcing his resignation. He has not been allowed back into Haiti after leaving in late January for visits to Guyana and Kenya, where he signed a deal on the deployment of an international security force to help tackle violence. Mr Henry had led the country on a supposedly interim basis since July 2021, following former President Jovenel Moise's assassination, but had repeatedly postponed elections - saying security had to be restored first. Many Haitians questioned the length of his unelected governance and Mr Henry's resignation had been one of the key demands of the heavily armed gangs that have recently tighten their grip on the capital, Port-au-Prince. These gangs have attacked the main prison to help thousands of inmates escape, as well as targeting police stations, the capital's international airport and its port. Port-au-Prince and the surrounding region is under a month-long state of emergency, while a curfew has been extended. The head of the UN's World Food Programme in Haiti, Jean-Martin Bauer, said on Monday that more than 360,000 people had now been displaced. "We're also seeing an interruption in the flow of goods, and this has huge impacts on food markets in Port-au-Prince," said Mr Bauer, adding that goods were currently unable to get into Haiti by land, sea or air. The country was already dealing with malnutrition and there are serious concerns that the problem will soon become significantly worse. Matthias Pierre, a former elections minister in Haiti, described the current situation in the country as "very precarious" with an army and police force that is unequipped to deal with the unrest. Mr Pierre, who broke the news of Mr Henry's resignation to the BBC's Newsday programme before it was publicly confirmed, said the gangs were now pushing to be part of any new power-sharing deal. He added that such a political settlement was impossible without the "support" of an international armed force. There are now questions over what will happen to the 1,000-strong UN-backed security force Kenya is expected to lead in Haiti to try and restore order there. The top civil servant in Kenya's foreign affairs ministry has told the BBC that its deployment of police to Haiti has been put on hold following Mr Henry's resignation. Korir Sing'oei added that Kenya would wait for the installation of a new constitutional authority before further decisions were made. The US said it saw no need to delay the mission. Its proposed contribution to this security force now stands at $300m (234m) after Secretary of State Antony Blinken pledged a further $100m to it. Another $33m has been allocated for humanitarian aid. The Caricom group of Caribbean nations, which has been meeting in Jamaica to discuss the crisis in Haiti, has outlined what it wants a transitional council to look like. It would be made up of seven voting members and two observers and include representatives from several coalitions, the private sector and civil society, and one religious leader. Anyone intending to run in Haiti's next elections will not be able to participate. The US said it expects the council will be appointed within the next two days, which will then appoint an interim prime minister. It is hoped the council will pave the way for the first elections in Haiti since 2016. Haiti: The basics The Caribbean country shares a border with the Dominican Republic and has an estimated population of 11.5 million It has a land area of 27,800 sq km, which is slightly smaller than Belgium and about the same size as the US state of Maryland Chronic instability, dictatorships and natural disasters in recent decades have left Haiti the poorest nation in the Americas An earthquake in 2010 killed more than 200,000 people and caused extensive damage to infrastructure and the economy A UN peacekeeping force was put in place in 2004 to help stabilise the country and only withdrew in 2017 In July 2021, President Jovenel Moise was assassinated by unidentified gunmen in Port-au-Prince. Amid political stalemate, the country continues to be wracked by unrest and gang violence Haiti map Banner saying 'Get in touch' Are you in the region? If it is safe to do so, email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways: If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission. On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved legislation that mandates ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, to divest the popular short video platform to an American entity, or else risk being banned in the US, where it currently has 170 million active users. China's Foreign Ministry has said the ban of the popular social platform is "an act of bullying" that would ultimately backfire. "Even though the US has not found evidence on how TikTok endangers its national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok," Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the ministry, told CNN Wednesday at a news conference in Beijing. Wang accuses the United States of "resorting to acts of bullying" because it has not proven successful in fair competition, claiming such a move would disrupt market operations, undermine investor confidence, and sabotage the global economic order, reported CNN Business. Mirroring the words of the foreign ministry, Wang reiterates, "This will eventually backfire on the US itself." However, US officials and lawmakers have continuously voiced concerns about TikTok and the idea that the Chinese government could compel its parent company, ByteDance, to hand over data collected from US users. Another fear is the app could serve as a propaganda tool for Beijing to spread misinformation or influence the American public. Cybersecurity experts also highlight national security concerns, and while it remains hypothetical, it presents a troubling scenario. No evidence has been introduced on behalf of the United States proving that the Chinese government has accessed user data from US TikTok users. The bill intends to prevent that outcome, said lawmakers. Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher, who chairs a House select committee on China, dismissed details of the bill as a TikTok ban. "It's not a ban," he said. "It puts the choice squarely in the hands of TikTok to sever their relationship with the Chinese Communist Party. As long as ByteDance no longer owns the company, TikTok can continue to survive ... the basic ownership structure has to change." China stands firmly, as it declares it strongly opposes any forced sale of TikTok. "The sale or divestiture of TikTok involves technology export, and administrative licensing procedures must be performed in accordance with Chinese laws and regulations," a spokesperson for China's commerce ministry said in March last year. "The Chinese government will make a decision in accordance with the law." On Wednesday, TikTok became a top trending topic on the Chinese social media site Weibo, with the hashtag "TikTok starts to fight back," drawing millions of views. Users have expressed support for the app and its call to contest the bill, which would include a full-screen notification encouraging users to call their representatives. Others have found the ordeal to be hypocritical of the United States. "Let me tell a joke: American society is liberal and democratic, and it has a complete market economy," mused one commenter with 2,000 upvotes. The Global Times, a nationalist tabloid, came to TikTok's defense. In an editorial last week, it accused the US of "openly trying to rob TikTok." "The image of free speech and rule of law in the US is in tatters, and the latest bill is simply further evidence of this," it said. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to pass a bill that could remove TikTok from US app stores. The vote succeeded 352-65, with the majority of nos coming from Democrats on Wednesday. If the bill becomes law it will require the Chinese firm Bytedance to divest from TikTok and other applications that it owns within 180 days. If ByteDance does not divest, TikTok would be removed from US app stores. Legislators have argued that Bytedance could give the Chinese government access to TikTok users data, pointing to national security laws that require companies to help with intelligence gathering. The bill will now require a successful US Senate vote and subsequent Presidential signature to become law. Despite its overwhelming success, the bill also received bipartisan opposition. Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said he was not in favour of the potential ban that could result from the bill. Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar told The Independent she was not convinced to vote yes even after a national security briefing. Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene also voted no, telling The Independent it could have unintended consequences for social media use. Key Points The House has now passed a bill that could ban TikTok. What happens next? Some legislators concerned that bill unnecessarily targets single social media platform WATCH: Majorie Taylor Greene opposes House vote on TikTok legislation Hello and welcome... 12:05 , Andrew Griffin ... to The Independents live coverage of the vote on a TikTok ban which could begin the process of blocking it across the US. Republicans will commit to vote despite Trumps concerns 12:11 , Reuters Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives vowed on Tuesday to forge ahead with a vote to ban the popular TikTok social media app, despite the concerns of Donald Trump, who holds great influence over their slim House majority. House Speaker Mike Johnson is due to bring legislation to the floor on Wednesday that addresses Chinese ownership of TikTok, which Republicans and Democrats say poses a national security risk to the United States. The bill would give TikToks Chinese owner, ByteDance, about six months to divest the video app used by 170 million Americans. That is coming despite former president and Republican candidate Trumps public comments in recent days opposing the bill, which he said could benefit Meta Platforms Incs Facebook and Instagram services. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better. They are a true Enemy of the People! Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform last week. So far this year, Trump opposition has led House Republicans to scuttle a bipartisan bill negotiated in the Senate meant to address record flows of migrants across the U.S.-Mexico border and helped stymie a bipartisan Senate aid package to Ukraine. The TikTok bill last week passed out of committee with a rare unanimous bipartisan 50-0 vote. Representative Chip Roy, a prominent Republican hardliner and Trump ally who is co-sponsoring the bill, acknowledged the former presidents concerns about other social platforms but said the House needs to act anyway. Its not weighing on my mind, the Texas Republican told reporters. Here trying to be very careful about American-owned companies, and not have the power of government overstep, but to focus here on (the Chinese government) targeting our people. House members of both parties got a classified briefing about TikTok on Tuesday from the FBI, Justice Department and intelligence officials. Weve answered a lot of questions from members. We had a classified briefing today so that members can see even more details about whats at risk and how the CCP can jeopardize the risk to American families, Republican Majority Leader Steve Scalise told reporters. Johnson and Scalise ignored questions about Trumps concerns. Lawmakers have also been deluged with calls from teenage TikTok users who oppose the legislation, which some said have eclipsed those seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. A lot of them are calling, so its clogged up the people that want a ceasefire. Theyve overcome the ceasefire, Democratic Representative Steve Cohen told reporters. The company is also lobbying Congress against the bill, saying TikTok is not owned or controlled by the Chinese government and warning that divestiture could jeopardize the security of U.S. data. In an interview with CNBC on Monday, Trump continued to rail about Facebook but also acknowledged concerns about a national security risk. Theres a lot of good and theres a lot of bad with TikTok, Trump said. Democratic President Joe Bidens re-election campaign has embraced TikTok as a way to reach young voters, while the Trump campaign so far has avoided the platform. But Biden has also said he would sign the legislation if it passes the House and Senate. Republican Representative Ben Cline said he backs the bill, despite Trumps opposition, saying, Everybodys got their opinion about it. Hes got a right to have his opinion. Trump opposes TikTok ban 12:14 , Andrew Griffin Donald Trump, who had helped kickstart discussion of a ban on TikTok in the last days of his presidency, has indicated that he has reversed his stance. In an interview earlier this week, he said that an outright ban would only help Facebook, which he said was an enemy of the people. And he expressed concern that young kids would go crazy without it. You can read the full story here. Will TikTok be banned today? 12:42 , Andrew Griffin No, is the short answer. Not yet. This just begins the process. It needs the Senate to approve the Bill and Joe Biden to sign it, first. And then it allows Bytedance six months to divest itself, which would avoid the ban entirely. So today is just the beginning of a very long process. Todays vote has a big obstacle' 13:38 , Andrew Griffin The vote today has a high threshold to cross, says Eric Garcia, The Independents Washington bureau chief. It will happen under Suspension of the Rules which means that two-thirds of the House will need to back it, rather than the usual majority. The House vote on legislation that would require TikToks parent company faces numerous hurdles. But perhaps the biggest obstacle it faces is the fact the vote will happen under a formerly obscure procedure called suspension of the rules, he writes. Typically, the House votes on a rule before it votes on legislation. Rules votes determine the parameters of debate and how the vote will take place. But in recent months, House conservatives have revolted against Republican leadership by voting down the rule. As a result, the House has often voted to suspend the rule so the House can have a vote. Numbers show why a total block could be so devastating 13:44 , Andrew Griffin TikTok has grown fast, and is now one of the most widely used and positively views apps available. That could make any possible ban difficult and controversial. Read the full story with a host of fascinating charts here. Robert F Kennedy opposes ban 13:51 , Andrew Griffin Robert F Kennedy, who hopes to be president, has indicated that he will oppose the ban. Every right the government has ever taken away was removed under the false pretense of national security. Remember that when members of Congress give Joe Biden the power to remove an app from your phone. Ironically, Joe Biden himself just joined TikTok! People love TikTok. Its Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) March 13, 2024 13:52 , Andrew Griffin Lawmakers are now debating the bill with impassioned arguments from both sides. Opponents of TikTok say that it is dangerously close to the Chinese government, and that the app could be used to spy on American citizens. Proponents say that despite the concerns about privacy and misinformation, it provides a useful tool to Americans, and that it is unfair to ban only TikTok. You can watch them here. AOC says bill is rushed' 13:53 , Andrew Griffin Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says that there are serious antitrust and privacy questions, but that the bill was rushed. She wont be supporting it. Im voting NO on the TikTok forced sale bill. This bill was incredibly rushed, from committee to vote in 4 days, with little explanation. There are serious antitrust and privacy questions here, and any national security concerns should be laid out to the public prior to a vote. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) March 13, 2024 Lawmakers describe ban as a band aid' 13:54 , Andrew Griffin One of the common arguments by opponents of the new bill is that it is really just a superficial response to the bigger concerns: the Chinese government could still spread misinformation and gather data if it wanted to, they have noted. They have also argued that it could do significant damage to the people who rely on it. And they say that there is a free speech concern in allowing any future president to ban apps. Bill is not an attempt to ban TikTok, says Pelosi 13:56 , Andrew Griffin Nancy Pelosi has said the bill is not an attempt to ban TikTok but rather a move to fix it. "This is not an attempt to ban TikTok. It's an attempt to make TikTok better. Tic-Tac-Toe. A winner. A winner." -- Rep. Pelosi pic.twitter.com/ExkX6bxz0O Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) March 13, 2024 (The bill does not actually ban the app immediately. It requires parent company Bytedance to divest or face the threat of a ban in six months.) Could the US ban TikTok? 13:57 , Andrew Griffin Heres a rundown of how the bill works and what might happen if it passes. Data could still be used 13:59 , Andrew Griffin Republican representative David Schweikert notes a problem in the ban: the data in TikTok has already been taken. So even if Bytedance divests, that data could be parcelled up, sold and distributed, he warns. He says that data should be treated as a private property right. 14:03 , Andrew Griffin Representative Thomas Massey, opposing the bill, says that the bills primary consequence will be in helping Facebook. Its hard to disagree with this: if you go on Instagram Reels (or YouTube Shorts, or similar) theyre mostly the same content from TikTok. Voting begins 14:07 , Andrew Griffin Lawmakers now have 15 minutes to vote on the bill. Its not a ban, says Deborah Ross 14:12 , Andrew Griffin Deborah Ross, a Democrat from North Carolina, tells The Independent that she voted to support the bill because its not a ban but rather a divestment bill. (If Bytedance divests, then TikTok will stay available.) Protect all of our data, says Mark Pocan 14:14 , Andrew Griffin Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, says that he voted against the bill because it didnt make a case. He said that the classified briefing did not give him a compelling reason to go after a single social media platform. Instead, he said that lawmakers should go after protecting all of our data with all social media companies. Without that, the bill is about feeling good rather than doing good, he said. House votes for TikTok ban 14:25 , Andrew Griffin By a huge majority, the House has voted for the bill which will require that TikTok parent Bytedance divests or the app is banned in the US. (C-Span) Marjorie Taylor Greene votes against bill 14:33 , Katie Hawkinson Controversial Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene the only member of congress to be banned from social media has voted against the bill. I think that it opens up many possibilities could be unintended consequences, or maybe some unintended consequences, she told The Independent. This bill is saying that its designed to protect peoples data. But if we care about protecting peoples data, then we should protect American citizens universally from every company that is using their data or selling their data. Another issue that I see is this is the same government that worked with big tech and social media companies and censored and banned Americans. So I dont think this is going to protect Americans at all. And Im the only member of Congress that actually got banned on Twitter by an American on Twitter. And China didnt do that to me. So I voted that for those reasons. TikTok ban: House votes for bill that requires app to be sold or blocked 14:42 , Andrew Griffin Heres our full story on the Houses vote on todays bill. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson comments on TikTok legislation 14:55 , Katie Hawkinson Communist China is Americas largest geopolitical foe and is using technology to actively undermine Americas economy and security, Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement Wednesday morning. Apps like TikTok allow the Chinese Communist Party to push harmful content to our youth and engage in malign activities, such as harvesting the location, purchasing habits, contacts, and sensitive data of Americans. Todays bipartisan vote demonstrates Congress opposition to Communist Chinas attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans, and signals our resolve to deter our enemies, he continued. I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign it into law. Co-author says bill wont ban TikTok and force users onto Meta platforms as Donald Trump claimed 15:05 , Katie Hawkinson Mike Gallagher, Chair of the House Select Committee on Competition with the Chinese Communist Party, spoke to The Independent about Donald Trumps opposition to the bill. Mr Trump claimed that a potential removal of TikTok from US app stores will allow Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram to become more successful. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, the former president said, referring to his baseless conspiracy theory that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. Mr Gallagher told The Independent that Mr Trumps portrayal of the bill does not accurately describe its purpose. The goal of the bill is not to shut down TikTok and force its users onto Facebook, that would be a bad outcome, so in that sense, I agree with what Trump said, Mr Gallagher told The Independent. But our bill allows for a divestiture. Again, a lot of this process started with the former president in 2020, trying to tackle the national security threat posed by finances and ownership of TikTok. Several Democrats opposed bill 15:16 , Katie Hawkinson Some 50 Democrats voted against the bill that could result in TikTok being removed from US app stores. Representative Ilhan Omar told The Independent she was not convinced after a national security briefing. They were not able to provide any concrete evidence that this was necessary for us to protect our national security outside of the misinformation that weve seen on Facebook, on Instagram on YouTube shorts on Twitter, so just singling out this particular company seemed like it was not in line with protecting our national security, she said. Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, also voted against the bill. I have more insight than most into the online threats posed by our adversaries, Mr Himes said in a statement. But one of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations, and social media platforms. We do not. Chairwoman of committee that advanced bill reaffirms need for ByteDance divestment 15:40 , Katie Hawkinson Republican Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Chairwoman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce which voted to advance the bill to the House, told The Independent the Senate must now act to pass the bill. The Senate needs to act soon I recommend that TikTok break up with the Chinese Communist Party, she told The Independent. She also noted that Donald Trumps opposition to the bill which he said would drive more users to Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram is a separate issue. We share the concerns that President Trump has with Facebook and Meta but thats a separate issue from this bill, Ms Rodgers said. Chair of Senate Ethics Committee speaks on TikTok bill 16:00 , Katie Hawkinson Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat and Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee, told The Independent he wants to find a path forward where TikTok is still widely available while still supporting ByteDance divestment. My strong impression is that the Chinese Communist Party uses its control over Chinese-owned companies to hoover up personally identifying data on those who use services run by Chinese companies, Mr Coons said. TikTok, in my view, is one of those companies and I think there is a real incredible threat to the data security of Americans as a result. On the other hand, I recognize that 10s of millions of Americans enjoy TikTok every day. If it is possible for [TikTok] to be sold from Chinese control to non-Chinese control, I think it's great, he continued. The House has now passed a bill that could ban TikTok. What happens next? 16:20 , Katie Hawkinson TikTok ban: What happens now after House passed bill? Senior Counsel at ACLU speaks out against bill 16:40 , Katie Hawkinson Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the ACLU, called the bill that could result in a TikTok ban blatant censorship. Make no mistake: the Houses TikTok bill is a ban, and its blatant censorship, Ms Leventoff said. Today, the House of Representatives voted to violate the First Amendment rights of more than half of the country. The Senate must reject this unconstitutional and reckless bill. The bill will now move to the US Senate, though whether it will succeed is still unclear given the chambers Democratic majority. Representative from Massachusetts calls for more comprehensive legislation on social media 17:00 , Katie Hawkinson Representative Ayanna Pressley, a Massachusetts Democrat, called Wednesdays House bill the wrong approach. Instead of targeting a single company in a rushed and restricted process, Congress should pass comprehensive data privacy legislation that creates standards and regulations around data harvesting across all social media companies, like many other nations have done, Ms Pressley said in a statement. I also have serious concerns about the First Amendment implications of a ban on TikTok, which millions of Americans rely on to consume news, make a living, and build community with one another. Former Speaker of the House supports bill over concerns of censorship by Chinese government 17:20 , Katie Hawkinson Representative Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House, said she supports the bill due to the censorship of minority communities by the Chinese government. Repressed communities in China from the Uyghurs to Tibetans to the people of Hong Kong, and others are telling us that their stories of their suffering are being blocked or misrepresented on TikTok, Ms Pelosi said in a statement. At the same time, the CCP is spreading propaganda to cover up its heinous abuses. We cannot allow Beijing to bury the truth of its abysmal record on human rights. The California Congresswoman has long focused on China as part of her legislative agenda. Ms Pelosi visited Taiwan in 2022, becoming the first Speaker since Newt Gingrich in 1997. She also visited Tiananmen Square two years after the 1989 massacre, holding a banner that read, To those who died for democracy in China. Potential TikTok ban explained 17:40 , Katie Hawkinson Want to learn more about how the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applicants Act could result in US app stores removing TikTok? The Independents Alex Woodward has the answers: Could the US ban TikTok? Free Speech experts concerned about potential removal of TikTok from US app stores 18:00 , Katie Hawkinson Several experts in the policy sphere who focus on freedom of speech and expression have voiced concerns over the bill that could result in the removal of TikTok from US app stores. Jameel Jaffer, director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia, condemned the bill as a betrayal of the First Amendment. A betrayal of the First Amendment and a great gift to authoritarians around the world, who will soon be citing this profoundly misguided bill to justify new restrictions on their own citizens access to ideas, information, and media from abroad, Mr Jaffer wrote on X. Mr Jaffer is also a former American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) attorney whose work led to the publication of the Barack Obama era drone memos. Meanwhile, Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the ACLU, called the bill the blatant censorship. Make no mistake: the Houses TikTok bill is a ban, and its blatant censorship, Ms Leventoff said. Today, the House of Representatives voted to violate the First Amendment rights of more than half of the country. The Senate must reject this unconstitutional and reckless bill. WATCH: Majorie Taylor Greene opposes House attempt to ban TikTok 18:20 , Katie Hawkinson Some legislators concerned that bill unnecessarily targets single social media platform 18:40 , Katie Hawkinson Several Democrats have expressed concerns about the bill, which passed the House with an overwhelming majority on Wednesday, targets only one platform. Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, says that he voted against the bill because it didnt make a case. He said that the classified briefing did not give him a compelling reason to go after a single social media platform. Instead, he said that lawmakers should go after protecting all of our data with all social media companies. Without that, the bill is about feeling good rather than doing good, he said. Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar told The Independent she was not convinced to vote yes after a national security briefing. They were not able to provide any concrete evidence that this was necessary for us to protect our national security outside of the misinformation that weve seen on Facebook, on Instagram on YouTube shorts on Twitter, so just singling out this particular company seemed like it was not in line with protecting our national security, she said. WATCH: Co-author discusses bill that could result in TikTok being removed from US app stores 19:00 , Katie Hawkinson The House has now passed a bill that could ban TikTok. What happens next? 19:20 , Katie Hawkinson The US House of Representatives has voted to approve a bill that could ban TikTok from US app stores. The bill Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applicants Act overwhelmingly surpassed the 2/3 majority needed when lawmakers cast their votes on Wednesday morning. Authored by a bipartisan group of representatives, the bill would allow federal law enforcement agencies to label certain apps as national security threats if they are determined to be under the control of foreign adversaries. Read more on what happens now: TikTok ban: What happens now after House passed bill? Co-author says bill wont ban TikTok and force users onto Meta platforms as Donald Trump claimed 19:40 , Katie Hawkinson Mike Gallagher, Chair of the House Select Committee on Competition with the Chinese Communist Party, spoke to The Independent about Donald Trumps opposition to the bill. Mr Trump claimed that a potential removal of TikTok from US app stores will allow Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram to become more successful. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, the former president said, referring to his baseless conspiracy theory that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. Mr Gallagher told The Independent that Mr Trumps portrayal of the bill does not accurately describe its purpose. The goal of the bill is not to shut down TikTok and force its users onto Facebook, that would be a bad outcome, so in that sense, I agree with what Trump said, Mr Gallagher told The Independent. But our bill allows for a divestiture. Again, a lot of this process started with the former president in 2020, trying to tackle the national security threat posed by finances and ownership of TikTok. US-China tech relations expert says to stop calling this bill a ban" 20:00 , Katie Hawkinson Aynne Kokas, a professor at the University of Virginia who specializes in US-China media and technology relations, told The Independent the biggest misconception about this bill is that its a ban on TikTok. Every time I see [ban], it I find it like profoundly frustrating because there is an option, Dr Kokas This why all of these free speech arguments about TiKTok being banned don't really make sense, because [the bill] is not saying that it's not possible for the company to still operate in the US...it's not a free speech question, it is a corporate ownership question. The bill would give TikTok parent company ByteDance six months to divest and sell 80 per cent of their shares to an American company before the media platform is removed from US app stores. Chairwoman of committee that advanced bill reaffirms need for ByteDance divestment 20:20 , Katie Hawkinson Republican Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Chairwoman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce which voted to advance the bill to the House, told The Independent the Senate must now act to pass the bill. The Senate needs to act soon I recommend that TikTok break up with the Chinese Communist Party, she told The Independent. She also noted that Donald Trumps opposition to the bill which he said would drive more users to Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram is a separate issue. We share the concerns that President Trump has with Facebook and Meta but thats a separate issue from this bill, Ms Rodgers said. If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text, or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services. John Barnett, a former Boeing quality control manager, was found dead over the weekend from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound days after testifying about safety issues with the companys aircraft production. The 62-year-old had spent years speaking out against what he alleged were shoddy manufacturing practices at Boeing, where he worked for 30 years before he retired in 2017. Most recently, Barnett was in Charleston for legal interviews related to a lawsuit against the Arlington, Virginia-based company. Here's what to know about Barnett and the safety concerns he's raised about Boeing. Who was John Barnett? A Boeing 787 Dreamliner is under production in December 2022 at the Boeing manufacturing facility in North Charleston, South Carolina. Former employee John Barnett had spoken out about safety concerns with the company's aircraft production before he was found dead of an apparent suicide over the weekend. Barnett spent decades working for Boeing, first at its plants in Everett, Washington, and, beginning in 2010, as a quality manager in North Charleston, South Carolina, NPR reported. He first made international headlines in April 2019 when he and other former Boeing employees came forward to The New York Times to accuse the company of overlooking manufacturing issues in favor of making profits, putting passenger safety at risk. The aircraft in question is a two-aisle plane that airlines widely use for international flights. "As a quality manager at Boeing, you're the last line of defense before a defect makes it out to the flying public," Barnett told the news outlet at the time. "And I haven't seen a plane out of Charleston yet that I'd put my name on saying it's safe and airworthy." What do we know about his death? Authorities searched for Barnett at his hotel in South Carolina after he failed to show up Saturday for an ongoing deposition against the company. Barnett, a Louisiana resident, was then found dead in a car outside a Holiday Inn from what the Charleston County Coroners Office ruled was suicide. The Charleston City Police Department is investigating. Barnetts brother, Rodney Barnett, said in a family statement to the Associated Press on Tuesday that the years of speaking out against Boeing created stress for him and led to a decline in his mental health. He was suffering from PTSD and anxiety attacks as a result of being subjected to the hostile work environment at Boeing, which we believe led to his death, the brother said. In a statement to USA TODAY, Boeing said it was saddened by Mr. Barnetts passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends." What problems with Boeing's Dreamliner production have been uncovered? The headquarters for The Boeing Company is seen on Jan. 31, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia. Barnett became one of several whistleblowers who helped expose allegations of quality issues at Boeing in a 2019 New York Times investigation. Barnett said he found discarded sharp metal shavings near electrical systems for the flight controls at Boeings factory in South Carolina, where the 787 jetliner is assembled that he said could have been catastrophic if the pieces pierced the wiring. After he raised the complaint to his superiors, Barnett claimed he was moved to another part of the plant. A Boeing spokesman told the New York Times that safety issues are immediately investigated and changes are made whenever necessary. Later that same year, Barnett told the BBC that he became aware of faulty installation of the aircraft's oxygen systems, which could deprive some breathing masks of oxygen in the event of an emergency. Boeing denied the claim. Barnett filed a pending whistleblower complaint with the government, which had a hearing scheduled for June, the Associated Press reported. John was deeply concerned about the safety of the aircraft and flying public, and had identified some serious defects that he felt were not adequately addressed, according to his brother Rodney's statement to the Associated Press. He said that Boeing had a culture of concealment and was putting profits over safety. Boeing recently came under additional scrutiny this week after a six-week Federal Aviation Administration audit of Boeing and subcontractor Spirit AeroSystems found the company routinely failed to comply with quality control mandates. The update came after a Boeing 737 Max 9 lost a door plug mid-flight during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. After the incident, the FAA grounded all Boeing 737 Max 9 planes with a door plug to conduct an investigation and inspect all the relevant aircrafts. Late last month, Boeing was given 90 days to present a plan to fix systemic quality-control issues." If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call 988 any time day or night, or chat online. Crisis Text Line also provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741. Contributing: Sarah Al-Arshani; Eve Chen; The Associated Press Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who was John Barnett? What Boeing whistleblower has said about company The actress, 43, revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year and underwent a double mastectomy Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic John Mulaney and Olivia Munn attend the 2024 Vanity Fair Oscar Party John Mulaney has been a rock by Olivia Munns side as she privately faced a major health battle. On Wednesday, the actress, 43, revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year in a candid Instagram post, where she also gave her boyfriend a shoutout for all of his support for her and their 2-year-old son Malcolm during her treatment. Im so thankful to my friends and family for loving me through this. Im so thankful to John for the nights he spent researching what every operation and medication meant and what side effects and recovery I could expect, she wrote of Mulaney, 41. For being there before I went into each surgery and being there when I woke up, always placing framed photos of our little boy Malcolm so it would be the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. In a comment on Munns post, the comedian shared a sweet message for his girlfriend as he wrote, Thank you for fighting so hard to be here for us. Malc and I adore you. Related: Olivia Munn, 43, Reveals She Was Diagnosed with Breast Cancer and Had Double Mastectomy Olivia Munn/Instagram Olivia Munn shares a photo of a framed photo of John Mulaney and their son, Malcolm, from her hospital bed In Munns post, which featured several photos of her in hospitals in Los Angeles, she shared a long statement detailing her health battle over the past year. After a normal mammogram and a negative test for all 90 different cancer genes last winter, Munn was diagnosed with breast cancer. In the past ten months I have had four surgeries, so many days spent in bed I can't even count and have learned more about cancer, cancer treatment and hormones than I ever could have imagined, she wrote, revealing that she only discovered the cancer due to the diligence of her OBGYN, Dr. Aliabadi, who calculated her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score and saved my life. After an MRI, an ultrasound and a biopsy, she was diagnosed with Luminal B cancer in both breasts, which she described as an aggressive, fast moving cancer. She had a double mastectomy 30 days later. I went from feeling completely fine one day, to waking up in a hospital bed after a 10-hour surgery the next, she continued. I'm lucky. We caught it with enough time that I had options. Related: Stars Who Faced Breast Cancer and Shared Their Stories Olivia Munn/Instagram John Mulaney shares his love for Olivia Munn in a comment on her Instagram post after she revealed her breast cancer diagnosis In the post, the X-Men: Apocalypse actress also spoke to some of the more emotional parts of her battle with breast cancer, including how shes juggled being a mother while being ill. Surprisingly, I've only cried twice. I guess I haven't felt like there was time to cry. My focus narrowed and I tabled any emotions that I felt would interfere with my ability to stay clearheaded. She continued, I've tended to let people see me when I have energy, when I can get dressed and get out of the house, when I can take my baby boy to the park. I've kept the diagnosis and the worry and the recovery and the pain medicine and the paper gowns private. I needed to catch my breath and get through some of the hardest parts before sharing. In the posts caption, she wrote, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I hope by sharing this it will help others find comfort, inspiration and support on their own journey. Rodin Eckenroth/Getty John Mulaney and Olivia Munn attend the 96th Annual Academy Awards on March 10, 2024 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Munns reveal of her harrowing year-long health journey comes just days after she and Mulaney attended the Oscars together and two months after they made their red carpet debut as a couple at the 2024 Governors Awards. They posed for multiple photos together on the carpet and held hands, with Munn looking elegant in an all-white ensemble and Mulaney looking dapper in a classic black tuxedo and bowtie. The couple began dating in May 2021, as sources confirmed to PEOPLE they were taking it slowly to start. Four months later, Mulaney announced that Munn was pregnant during an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, as he credited the actress and their son-to-be for helping save me from myself in this early journey out of recovery. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A South Florida man has a long road to recovery after he was bitten in the leg by a crocodile at Everglades National Park over the weekend. "I am feeling good because I am alive," Rodrigo Constain told NBC South Florida on Tuesday after coming home from the hospital. "Its a story that probably couldnt be told." Constain fell into the water at the Flamingo Marina on Sunday when the wind knocked over his sailboat. When he tried to get back inside the boat, Constain said he felt something holding onto his leg. "I didnt feel any pain, nothing," he recalled. "I dont know why." Constain said his intuition was to touch whatever was holding onto his leg. He then felt a long mouth and a head and tried to loosen the creatures grip. "I didnt know what was holding me because I didnt enter in panic," he said. "I didnt know ... never I thought that it was a crocodile." The crocodile let go. Constain finally felt the pain hit as he swam back to the deck. "I wasnt panicking and I didn't at all. I wasn't afraid, I didn't feel any panic," he said. Rangers responded to the marina and found the 68-year-old with lacerations on his leg. Constain said his wife and the rangers saw the crocodile in the water from the deck. It's rare for an American crocodile to bite a human, The Associated Press reported. The only other documented case involving a crocodile biting a human happened in 2014, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesperson Lauren Claerbout told the news outlet in an email. Constain was flown to Jackson South Hospital. He said doctors told him the wound went as deep as the bone, but it was a miracle that there was no fracture. Doctors said it could take about a month for him to walk again. "I don't know how I'm gonna work since Im a handyman," Constain said. His family established a GoFundMe for help with hospital bills. He said hes thankful for the help hes received so far. "Theres only one reason that I'm here: It's God," Constain said. "If youre not with God, I wouldn't be here. He was all the time with me and that's what I think. I was not afraid, because when you believe in God, you are not afraid." Three Missouri men have been charged with federal counts related to the illegal purchase of high-powered rifles and guns with extended magazines after last month's shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade and rally left one person dead, roughly two dozen others injured and sent hundreds of people scrambling for cover, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Court documents unsealed Wednesday said 12 people brandished firearms and at least six people fired weapons at the Feb. 14 rally, which drew an estimated 1 million people to downtown Kansas City. The guns found at the scene included at least two AR-15-style rifles, court documents said. And U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said in a news release that at least two of the guns recovered from the scene were illegally purchased. The federal charges come three weeks after state authorities charged two other men, Lyndell Mays and Dominic Miller, with second-degree murder and several weapons counts for the shootings. Authorities also last month detained two juveniles on gun-related and resisting arrest charges. Police said the shooting happened when one group of people confronted another for staring at them. Authorities have said a bullet from Millers gun killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, who was in a nearby crowd of people watching the rally. She was a mother of two and the host of a local radio program called Taste of Tejano. The people injured range in age from 8 to 47, according to police. Named in the new federal charges were 22-year-old Fedo Antonia Manning, Ronnel Dewayne Williams Jr., 21, and Chaelyn Hendrick Groves, 19, all from Kansas City. Manning is charged with one count each of conspiracy to traffic firearms and engaging in firearm sales without a license, and 10 counts of making a false statement on a federal form. Williams and Groves are charged with making false statements in the acquisition of firearms, and lying to a federal agent. According to online court records, Manning made his initial appearance Wednesday. He did not have an attorney listed, but asked that one be appointed for him. The online court record for Williams and Groves also did not list any attorneys to comment on their behalf. A phone call to the federal public defenders office in Kansas City on Wednesday went unanswered. The new complaints made public Wednesday do not allege that the men were among the shooters. Instead, they are accused of involvement in straw purchases and trafficking firearms. Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence, Moore said in the news release. Federal prosecutors said that one weapon recovered at the rally scene was an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol, found along a wall with a backpack next to two AR-15-style firearms and a backpack. The release said the firearm was in the fire position with 26 rounds in a magazine capable of holding 30 rounds meaning some rounds may have been fired from it. The affidavit stated that Manning bought the AM-15 from a gun store in Lees Summit, Missouri, a Kansas City suburb, on Aug. 7, 2022. It accuses him of illegally trafficking dozens of firearms, including many AM-15s. Also recovered at the scene was a Stag Arms 300-caliber pistol that the complaint said was purchased by Williams during a gun show in November. Prosecutors say Williams bought the gun for Groves, who accompanied him to the show but was too young to legally purchase a gun for himself. Prosecutors say Manning and Williams also bought firearm receivers, gun parts also known as frames that can be built into complete weapons by adding other, sometimes non-regulated components. The complaint said Manning was the straw buyer of guns later sold to a confidential informant in a separate investigation. ___ Jim Salter in St. Louis and Lindsey Whitehurst in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report. Brothers Tristan and Andrew Tate deny all the allegations against them Controversial influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan can be extradited to the UK, a Romanian court has ruled. Andrew Tate, 37, and Tristan, 35, were detained on Monday in Bucharest after Bedfordshire Police said it had obtained an arrest warrant. The brothers can be extradited only after the conclusion of their separate trial in Romania on human trafficking charges, a judge ruled. They have been released from custody. Speaking outside court Andrew Tate said: "We are very innocent men and in time everybody is going to see that. We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names." Outside his house on the outskirts of Bucharest, he later told the BBC "the whole thing is garbage". The brothers, who "categorically reject all charges", will remain under judicial controls in Romania which prevent them travelling outside the country. The brothers were detained and appeared in court in Bucharest on Tuesday after arrest warrants were issued by the UK authorities Before the extradition was granted by the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Bedfordshire Police confirmed it had obtained the arrest warrant for two men in their 30s as part of an investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking. "We understand this is a distressing subject, and people may be impacted by what they are seeing in the news," the force said in a statement. According to the brothers' legal representatives the allegations date back to 2012-2015. Speaking after they were released one of their lawyers, Eugen Vidineac, said: "We appreciate the Bucharest Court of Appeal's decision to postpone the extradition of Andrew and Tristan Tate. "This ruling provides an opportunity for the brothers to participate fully in their defence and for the legal process to proceed in a transparent manner." Romanian authorities are investigating separate allegations of rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal gang - charges the brothers deny. In December 2022, the brothers were arrested by Romanian authorities and eventually placed under house arrest in the town of Voluntari. The house arrest was lifted in August last year but they were prevented from leaving Romania. They are accused of exploiting women via an adult content business, which prosecutors allege operated as a criminal group. Mr Tate has repeatedly claimed Romanian prosecutors have no evidence against him and there is a conspiracy to silence him. Speaking on Monday Mr Vidineac added: "Our clients are fully committed to actively participating in the legal process and defending their reputation. "We believe this rumour has originated from a popular online influencer who misconstrued a text message from our clients while streaming live. "There is simply no truth to it." Prosecutors alleged Miller-Whitehead bilked a parishioner out of $90,000 in retirement savings by falsely promising he would find her a home and invest the rest in his real estate business. Prosecutors say he instead spent the money on luxury goods and clothing. NEW YORK (AP) A Brooklyn preacher known for his flashy lifestyle and who boasted of his friendship with New York Citys mayor was found guilty in federal court Monday of wire fraud, attempted extortion and lying to the FBI. Lamor Miller-Whitehead, 47, was found guilty of five counts after a trial in federal court in Manhattan that began late last month. Prosecutors had argued that the preacher exaggerated his ties to Mayor Eric Adams and let greed overtake him as he looted a parishioners retirement savings and tried to extort a businessman to fuel his lavish lifestyle. He also was accused of lying to FBI agents by denying he had a second cellphone. Bishop Lamor Miller-Whitehead speaks with the media about his attempt to negotiate the surrender of a man accused of gunning down a stranger on a New York City subway train, on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in New York. Miller-Whitehead, a preacher known for his close friendship with New York Citys mayor, was robbed of more than $1 million worth of jewelry Sunday, July 24, 2022, by armed bandits who crashed his Brooklyn church service. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) An attorney for Miller-Whitehead, Dawn Florio, said they are appealing the verdict. She had told jurors during the trial that evidence against her client didnt support the charges. Miller-Whitehead made headlines in July when armed bandits crashed his church service and robbed him of $1 million in jewelry. The preacher embraced his flashy lifestyle. He was known for driving around in a Rolls Royce and records show he lived in a $1.6 million home in Paramus, New Jersey. He also owned apartment buildings in Hartford, Connecticut. Prosecutors alleged Miller-Whitehead bilked a parishioner out of $90,000 in retirement savings by falsely promising he would find her a home and invest the rest in his real estate business. Prosecutors say he instead spent the money on luxury goods and clothing. He also was accused of trying to convince a businessman to lend him $500,000 and give him a stake in real estate deals by claiming his ties to city officials could earn favorable treatment for the businessmans interests. Adams grew close to Miller-Whitehead while serving as Brooklyns borough president. Adams, a former police captain, has since said he spent decades enforcing the law and expects everyone to follow it. Sentencing for Miller-Whitehead is scheduled for July 1. Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrios newsletter. The post Bling Bishop Lamor Miller-Whitehead convicted for extortion, wire-fraud appeared first on TheGrio. Boeing and Alaska Airlines have separately denied any legal responsibility for the injuries allegedly caused to dozens of passengers after a door plug blew out of a 737-Max 9 jet during a flight in January. In its formal answers this week to a class-action lawsuit brought by dozens of passengers of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282, Boeing generally acknowledged the preliminary findings of a National Transportation Safety Board investigation that determined the door plug was improperly installed. The company also acknowledged that, in an interview with CNBC, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun publicly described the incident as our mistake. But Boeing denied liability for any damages alleged by the passengers, saying their lawsuit should be dismissed. The company also contended it cannot be held responsible for any injuries that may have resulted because its products were improperly maintained, or misused by persons and/or entities other than Boeing. Likewise, Alaska Airlines denied liability, claiming that any injuries stemming from the door plug blowout were caused by the fault of persons or entities over whom Alaska Airlines has no control including Defendant The Boeing Company and/or non-party Spirit AeroSystems. Alaska Airlines also denied that the activation of the planes cabin-pressure warning light three times within the previous month including on the day before the door incident was related or meant that the plane was unsafe to fly. The legal filings, submitted as part of the case in the U.S. District Court in Seattle, represent the first formal response from the companies to any of the several lawsuits filed in the wake of the Jan. 5 incident. Daniel Laurence, an attorney representing passengers who are part of the class action, said Wednesday he was frankly surprised that Boeing and Alaska Airlines dont want to simply admit liability and put this case behind them. Theyre putting up a wall and circling the wagons, added Laurence, with the Strimatter Kessler Koehler Moore law firm in Seattle. Thats disappointing, given what I think most of the population believes and the evidence appears to clearly support that they put this aircraft into the air with an unsecured door plug that, had it come out a few minutes later, would have killed everybody on board. Boeing CEO David Calhoun (Aaron Schwartz / NurPhoto via Getty Images file) The incident occurred shortly after the Boeing-manufactured jet, carrying 171 passengers and six flight crew members, took off from Portland International Airport bound for Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County, California. After reaching an altitude of about 16,000 feet, the door plug blew out, leaving a large hole in the planes fuselage and forcing the plane to turn back to Portland, where it landed safely. Following the incident, which has brought new scrutiny to Boeing and its troubled 737 Max airplanes, the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded some models of the plane. The NTSB investigation preliminarily found no bolts had been installed to secure the plug. The FAA separately launched an audit into Boeing and its supplier, Spirit AeroSystems, finding multiple instances where the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements. The Department of Justice has also separately opened a criminal probe into the door plug blowout, according to a source familiar with the investigation. In the wake of the incident, at least three separate lawsuits have been filed by Flight 1282 passengers and their spouses, including cases in state courts in Washington and Oregon. Passengers involved in the federal lawsuit, seeking class-action status, claim they were physically injured and traumatized by the door plugs blowout, which caused rapid depressurization of the planes cabin and led to widespread panic. The pressure change made ears bleed and combined with low oxygen, loud wind noise and traumatic stress made heads ache severely, the lawsuit states. Passengers were shocked, terrorized and confused, thrust into a waking nightmare, hoping they would live long enough to walk the earth again. Since the incident, some passengers have avoided flying on any airplane, and some have sought counseling to deal with emotional trauma, Laurence said. The lawsuit also alleges that several passengers had trouble breathing in the aftermath of the door plug blowout because oxygen masks that dropped during the incident werent functioning. Alaska Airlines denied that any oxygen masks did not work in its filing this week. The airline acknowledged that the jets auto cabin pressure controller light had activated three times before the door plug blowout, leading Alaska Airlines to restrict the plane from flying on long routes over water. But the airline disputed that the light warnings made the aircraft unsafe to fly (and) denies any correlation between the pressurization controller warning light activations and the door plug accident on Flight 1282, its filing says. LA PAZ (Reuters) -Heavy rain in Bolivia's capital, La Paz, prompted authorities to declare a state of emergency, a government document showed on Sunday, after overflowing rivers destroyed many houses over the weekend. Bolivian President Luis Arce pledged to send heavy machinery and 3,000 troops to prevent further damage, according to the document. Heavy rains caused flooding in several neighborhoods and isolated parts of the city by cutting water, electricity and roads. "We are deeply concerned by the difficult situation that our municipality in La Paz is going through," Arce said in a post on social media platform X. One person died over the weekend in La Paz because of the heavy rains, while nearly 50 people have died in deluges across the country since the rainy season began in January, according to official data. (Reporting by Monica Machicao; Writing by Valentine HilaireEditing by Shri Navaratnam and Gerry Doyle) U.S. Capitol Police on Tuesday defended their actions on Jan. 6, 2021, as House Republicans zeroed in on pipe bombs found near the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Republican National Committee (RNC) that day. Tuesday kicked off a series of hearings by the House Administration Committees Oversight subcommittee on the events of Jan. 6. The panel, led by Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.), on Monday released a report aimed at discrediting the conclusions drawn by the Democratic-led Jan. 6 Select Committee in the previous Congress and its findings about former President Trump being responsible for the attack on the Capitol. The report criticized the select committee for dedicating almost no resources into investigating the pipe bombs. In a post online, Loudermilk said the select committee did not conduct a genuine investigation and focused on a predetermined narrative against Trump. On Tuesday, Assistant Chief of Police for Uniformed Operations Sean Gallagher said the departments failure to properly respond to the pipe bombs was due to the need to respond to the riot at the Capitol. It looked chaotic because it was chaotic, Gallagher told the subcommittee. Loudermilk dinged Capitol police and Vice President Harriss Secret Service detail not finding the bombs in an initial sweep. He showed video clips of a Secret Service dog sniffing the area but not alerting the handler to the location where the bomb was later found. Loudermilk also presented security camera footage and audio recordings from Capitol police during their response to the pipe bombs. One of the questions the subcommittee is interested in, as part of our Oversight responsibilities, is the law enforcement response after the devices were discovered, specifically setting and maintaining a secure perimeter around those devices, Loudermilk said. The recordings show that police failed to maintain a secure perimeter around the explosives, which were placed sometime on Jan. 5 and discovered in the early afternoon on Jan. 6. Civilians walked past, cars drove by, and Gallagher said there was a miscommunication about the evacuation of Harris from the DNC building. In one of the audio recordings played by Loudermilk, an officer was audibly distressed that cars and people were so close to the bomb. Gallagher said in the hearing that since the DNC building was off Capitol grounds, the calls for a suspicious package, once it was discovered, fell into the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). MPD asked Capitol police to take over with its bomb squad. Sean Dennis, a bomb technician officer who worked for the Department of Homeland Security, also sat on the panel. He emphasized the importance of securing a perimeter in this situation, ensuring law enforcement and civilians are far enough away for the bomb squad to begin working. Democrats, meanwhile, sought to bring the topic of conversation back to Trump and the reason bombs were placed and protesters were in Washington in the first place. Rep. Norma Torres (D-Calif.) thanked the law enforcement officers for protecting the public especially from those who choose to use bombs instead of ballots. Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.) expressed frustration that the occupant of the White House at the time did not call on the National Guard, which could have clearly aided local law enforcement dealing with the pipe bombs and the Capitol attack. Gallagher on Tuesday said Capitol Police has acknowledged that there were failures in responding to the developing and historic scenes in and around the Capitol that day. I want to be upfront and honest. The U.S. Capitol Police havent shied away from the failures of that day, and those failures result in the leadership of Capitol police, not the police officers that were outnumbered, he said, noting that 80 officers reported injuries and the death of two of our heroes. Gallagher later acknowledged that one of the largest issues law enforcement faced on Jan. 6 was a lack of officers. He argued he would rather have sent additional officers to help their colleagues contending with the pro-Trump mob at the Capitol than have more tending to the pipe bombs. I would gladly give up a perimeter not being perfect to be able to get officers responding to help their brothers or sisters who were calling for help at the U.S. Capitol, Gallagher said. It was a chaotic day. We did not have enough police officers. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Two bodies were found on a migrant boat headed to Spain's Canary Islands from West Africa in an increasingly popular but dangerous journey. This occurred as Spanish officials have had to contend with a sharp increase in migrants and refugees escaping poverty, conflict, and instability in West Africa as they journey towards the archipelago, seen as a gateway to continental Europe. The migrants had departed Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital, ten days earlier, according to Jose Antonio Rodriguez Verona, a Spanish Red Cross coordinator, reported The Associated Press. They were spotted drifting on Monday evening by a merchant vessel 76 nautical miles (140 kilometers or 87 miles) south of Gran Canaria. Thirty-eight passengers survived the incident, twelve were taken to a hospital on the island, and four are reportedly in critical condition, according to Spain's Maritime Rescue Service and the Red Cross. The survivors originally come from Mauritania, Mali, and the Ivory Coast. Seven of the passengers were women. Rescuers were informed on the scene that another five people had died during the trip and were released into the ocean. The migrant crisis in the archipelago has been an ongoing issue. The islands are considered a stepping stone for migrants into continental Europe. The increase has led to the European Union's announcement of a new migration partnership with Mauritania in February, which includes 210 million euros ($229 million) for the nation to crack down on smugglers and stop departures. Roughly 12,000 people have reached the Canaries in the first two months of 2024, says Spain's Interior Ministry, highlighting the number is more than six times what it was last year for the same period. Most migrants leaving Mauritania are on small fishing boats called pirogues and must navigate for several days amid temperamental winds and Atlantic currents. Despite thousands surviving the voyage, many do die or disappear along the way, with bodies occasionally washing up on the other side of the Atlantic. Just last week, two pirogues that had left Mauritania were discovered adrift hundreds of miles away near the archipelago nation of Cape Verde, police said. Eleven were rescued from one of the pirogues and five from the other, though one person died later. Five bodies were recovered, while it's believed dozens more are lost at sea. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. If someone kills you in Idaho, the chances that your body will be autopsied are worse than almost anywhere else in the country. The same is true if you die by suicide. In fact, regardless of manner of death, Idaho has some of the worst autopsy rates in the country, according to a recent state investigation into the county coroner and death investigation system. The Office of Performance Evaluations, an independent office that audits state agencies and programs, issued a 96-page report after lawmakers requested an analysis of the system. The investigation found Idaho is trailing national and industry standards in crucial aspects of death investigations. The report highlighted myriad shortcomings in the system, including vague rules, insufficient resources and instances of coroners offices not meeting the education standards set for them in state law. It also included several recommendations for reworking the state system, from requirements for autopsies to significant changes in how coroners offices and death investigations are funded. In his presentation of the report to a legislative panel, senior evaluator Casey Petti told legislators his investigation unearthed very concerning anecdotal evidence from coroners that deaths warranting investigation went without autopsies. We do know for certain that there are deaths that are not properly investigated and are not properly certified, Petti said. Idaho autopsy rates fail to meet standards Idaho is one of 14 states with a county coroner system rather than a medical examiner system or a combination of the two. While most states autopsies are conducted by medical doctors trained in forensic pathology, coroners in Idaho are elected by county, or appointed if no one runs for the office, without any requirement of having a medical background. Idaho has fewer types of deaths that are reported to coroners, including unattended deaths, suicides and homicides, when compared with other states and rates recommended by industry best practices. And the decision to do an autopsy in any of those cases is entirely up to a coroner rather than a mandatory procedure. Idaho has had at least one high-profile criminal case in which a death initially wasnt investigated. Chad Daybell was eventually charged with the first-degree murder of his then-wife, Tammy Daybell, a Rexburg woman whose death was originally attributed to natural causes. Officials performed an autopsy two months after her death and determined she died of asphyxiation. Lori Vallow Daybell was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder in Tammy Daybells death last year. Ada County Chief Deputy Coroner Brett Harding told the Idaho Statesman in a phone interview that Idahos death investigation system is not the worst, but it is definitely in need of improvement. That Idaho is the lowest rate of autopsy for homicides is really disheartening, Harding said. The forensic standards are there for a reason, and if you dont adhere to them, thats when things can slip through the cracks. From 2018 to 2022, 3.9% of all deaths in Idaho were investigated by autopsy. The national average during that time was 7.8%. Idaho coroners performed autopsies in child deaths from external or unknown causes in 49% of cases during that time period the lowest nationwide. The national average was 79%. Idaho had among the lowest rate of suicide autopsies at 14%. It also had the lowest autopsy rate for homicides from 2018 to 2022 at 93%, lower than the rate recommended by industry standards. Unlike some other states with county coroner systems, Idaho has no state-level oversight committee or official. The states death investigation protocol is vague enough that coroners around the state reported different approaches, the state review found. Nearly every aspect of the county coroner role is left to the interpretation of the individual coroner, the states investigative report said. This extends to how death investigations are conducted, what information is gathered in an investigation, how information is disclosed to the media, how records are kept, how a decedent is transported and how next of kin are notified of a death. In Idahos more rural counties where the coroner often works part-time and is paid a median annual salary of about $18,000 coroners look to Ada and Canyon counties or even offices out of state for guidance and assistance with autopsies. Brett E. Harding, chief deputy coroner for Ada County, slides open the morgue cooler where most bodies are kept in this 2021 file photo. Harding said he supports recommendations to overhaul Idahos coroner and death investigation policies. Harding told the Statesman he worries a part-time job translates to part-time caring when it comes to death investigations. I dont really think that translates to most of the coroners in Idaho, but Id hate for somebody have to make that choice between a job that puts a roof over your head and feeds your family and your civic duty that doesnt pay you hardly anything, Harding said. Petti pointed out that state law requires coroners attend a coroners school, but there is not state or industry definition of what constitutes a coroner school. Additionally, while Idaho law requires coroners to complete 24 hours of continuing education every two years, the review found that most coroners are either failing to participate in education or are not submitting completed education to the Idaho State Association of County Coroners, a non-governmental body tasked with tracking continuing coroner education. Pam Garlock, president of the association and Boise County coroner, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but association vice president and Bannock County Coroner Torey Danner told lawmakers during the legislative committee hearing that the association fully supports the reports findings. Deputy coroner seeks change Harding said the policy suggestions in the report, which include more strict autopsy requirements, clarifications on the role of coroners and definitions of terms like unattended death, would be welcome changes. He also urged additional funding, which currently comes from county budgets and a $1 fee for death certificates. You need to redo the state statutes, but you also need to address the address the funding thing, because an unfunded mandate means it never happens, Harding said. Its unclear whether legislators plan to consider policy changes for death investigations. Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, co-chair of the legislative committee that requested the review, told the Statesman in a text message that the committee is very concerned and very sincere in its desire to make legislative changes. Wintrow said the report was eye-opening, and that a statewide office overseeing coroners could be a good first step to bring coroners and other stakeholders together and begin addressing other systemic issues. Our coroners are doing a great job and they need our help in creating a system that supports their work and leads to more consistent approaches in the state, Wintrow said. Stewart Wilder, director and co-founder of the Idaho Suicide Prevention Coalition, told the Statesman in an email that the report is a damning indictment on the state of Idahos coroner and forensics system on many levels. Wilder said overhauling the system would likely be a lengthy process but considers it necessary. Without proper reporting on all deaths and inability to autopsy, the state will continue to make decisions on bad data, Wilder said. Harding said he would like to see state laws with a little bit of teeth when it comes to coroner responsibilities and the potential consequences for straying from them. He also suggested three regional forensic pathology facilities could increase autopsy capabilities in the state. Already the Ada County Coroners Office provides those services for much of the state, but Harding said a planned facility in eastern Idaho will open later this year and serve that region. Adding a North Idaho facility would also prove useful, he said. If we dont have a good system in place, were going to miss everything, from potential overdoses to homicides, Harding said. NEW YORK (AP) It's been a common refrain when seeking proof that someone's story or some event actually took place: Pics, or it didn't happen. But in a world where the spread of technology makes photo manipulation as easy as a tap on your phone, the idea that a visual image is an absolute truth is as outdated as the daguerreotype. And a photo can sometimes raise as many questions as it was meant to answer. That was seen in recent days when controversy descended upon an image of Kate, Princess of Wales, and her three children. News agencies including The Associated Press published, then retracted, the image given out by Kensington Palace over concerns it had been manipulated, leading to Kate saying on social media that she occasionally experimented with photo editing. In that, she's hardly alone. From something that was time-consuming and required a great deal of technical expertise in the days of actual film and darkrooms, digital editing has become something practically anyone can do, from adding filters to cropping images and much more. Apps abound, offering the easiest of experiences in creating and retouching photos and videos which can then be easily transmitted online and through social media. Cover blemishes and let the real you shine through, says an ad for the smartphone app Facetune. Remove and change backgrounds instantly," the Fotor app's website enthuses. Our AI object remover is ready to assist you in getting rid of unwanted objects. This Wild West of image-altering abilities is opening new frontiers for everyday people and creating headaches for those who expect photos to be a documentary representation of reality. THE MAINSTREAMING OF MANIPULATION Photojournalists and major news organizations follow standards and ethics codes around photos. These organizations typically place an absolute premium on image authenticity and reject photographs that have been altered in any way. But efforts to identify altered imagery can be impeded by the increasingly easy-to-use apps for phones and computers that allow anyone to chip away, piece by piece, at what a camera actually recorded. The mainstreaming of manipulation, placing such abilities at people's fingertips, has made for some interesting and viral moments like the one in March 2023 when an artificially generated image of Pope Francis wearing a puffy white coat took in many people who thought it was real. But there are risks and dangers to a world where just because you see something doesn't mean you can absolutely believe it, said Ken Light, a photojournalism professor at the University of California Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism. The role of photography has been to witness and to record for the moment, but also for history. And I dont think any of us know where its going, he said. The rise of visual manipulation that casts doubt on whether something is real or not frays the fabric of the culture tremendously in the moment but also for the future. Fred Ritchin, dean emeritus of the school at the International Center of Photography and a former picture editor at The New York Times Magazine, agreed. 'The camera never lies' is a 20th-century idea. It's not a 21st-century idea, he said. These are all mythologies that we're still hiding behind and we have not really confronted. People have long known that some images are manipulated, like cover models on magazines, and some have raised concerns about that impact that artificial and manipulated standards of beauty can have on girls and women. But they haven't really come to terms with how widespread digital manipulation is in other areas like social media, done by a wide variety of everyday people, said Lexie Kite, who with her sister Lindsay has done research into body image and media and wrote More Than A Body: Your Body Is an Instrument, Not an Ornament. It is important for all of us to anchor ourselves in the truth that digital manipulation is our reality, she said. HOW CAN FAKERY BE IDENTIFIED? People can take steps to deal with the creeping effects of photo manipulation, said Hany Farid, a professor at UC Berkeley whose research examines digital forensics and image analysis. Viewers need to just slow down a little bit, be a little bit more careful, be a little more thoughtful about what they're looking at instead of just assuming any image they see is fact, he said. On the technology side, he said there are ways being developed to track visual images and to make it clear if they've been altered after the photos were taken. But while such steps may mitigate some of the issues, he said, it won't eliminate the problem or take us back to where we could have abiding faith in an image, as previous generations did with photos we now consider unforgettable. Almost every major incident in our history, wars, conflicts, disasters, theres this iconic photo, he said. Theyre so powerful because they capture this incredibly complex set of facts and emotions and history in one photo. And I dont know that we can have that anymore. Its a very different world going forward now. Or, if the adage was modified: Pics, and maybe it still didn't quite happen. ___ This story has been corrected to show that the image of the Princess of Wales and her children was given out by Kensington Palace, not Buckingham Palace. DIEGO JOSE IBARRA ATLANTA - A federal grand jury seated in the Middle District of Georgia has charged 29-year-old Diego Ibarra, a Venezuela native, with one count of Possession of Counterfeit Immigration Document. If convicted, Ibarra faces a maximum of ten years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine. He is currently being held in federal custody after a court appearance last week. Ibarra is the brother of 26-year-old Jose Ibarra, who is accused of killing Athens University nursing student 22-year-old Laken Riley on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22. PREVIOUS STORY: Diego Ibarra, brother of murder suspect in Laken Riley's UGA campus death, appears in court Athens-Clarke County police officers approached him on Feb. 23 for matching the description of a murder suspect when he presented officers with the fraudulent document and was placed under arrest. The University of Georgia confirmed Diego Ibarra also used the faulty green card to gain temporary employment at the school as a dishwasher in the Bolton Dining Hall on campus. He was hired on Feb. 6, 2024. However, he failed to submit further documentation required to keep the job and was fired. Diego was arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police three times since September 2022 for DUI and driving without a license, shoplifting, and failure to appear. Jose was also arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police for shoplifting and a previous arrest in New York. Additionally, a third brother, 24-year-old Argenis Ibarra, was also arrested Feb. 23 in Athens for entering the country illegally. He is currently being held in a detention center in Lumpkin. Federal prosecutors believe that Diego Ibarra may have ties to Tren de Argua, an organized crime gang based in Venezuela. Laken Riley Act The case sparked a national debate about immigration and led to the Laken Riley Act. Attorney General Chris Carr is currently leading a 26-state coalition calling on the U.S. Senate to quickly pass the act which requires the detention of any illegal alien for any larceny, burglary, theft, or shoplifting offense. It passed the U.S. House of Representatives with a bipartisan vote of 251-170. RELATED: Senate Republicans introduce Laken Riley Act, urge immediate consideration of 'commonsense' bill Arrival of the Ibarra brothers in the U.S. The exact arrival of the three brothers in Athens is unknown, although it appears that Diego was in Athens before Jose. Jose Ibarra was already in the country when his brothers, Diego and Argenis, arrived. He entered illegally near El Paso, Texas, in 2022, according to ICE. After being detained by officials, he and his wife and child were sent to New York City. After he was arrested for endangering a child in 2023, Jose moved to Athens. Jose, Diego and Argenis Ibarra Diego and Argenis arrived in the U.S. together. They first entered the U.S. on April 3, 2023, near Eagle Pass, Texas, but were detained and sent back. They re-entered on April 30 near El Paso. Their exact movements after that are unknown. Argenis told officials he was headed to Pennsylvania and he was given a court date in late 2024. Diego, who was combative when he was initially taken into custody, was held briefly before he was released with a tracking device, which was later found in Colorado. How many illegal immigrants are in the U.S.? In 2021, there were 10.5 million unauthorized or illegal immigrants in the U.S., below the peak of 12.2 million in 2007, according to Pew Research Center. Georgia had an unauthorized population of 350,000 in 2021, constituting 3.2% of the state's population, down from 425,000 in 2007. As of 2021, 93.9% of Clarke County residents were U.S. citizens, exceeding the national average of 93.4%. The population of Clarke County on July 1, 2022, was 129,875, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. According to the Center for Strategic & International Studies, 262,633 Venezuelans crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in 2023, up from 189,520 in 2022. Although the majority of immigrants still come from Mexico and India/China, immigrants from Venezuela represent the fastest-growing group. Athens and Clarke County have been heavily criticized since the murder of providing sanctuary for illegal immigrants. The mayor has denied the allegations. Georgia outlawed sanctuary cities in 2009. As Haiti faces an extreme political and societal crisis amid a wave of intense violence, tech billionaire Elon Musk and right-wing pundits online are weaponizing unverified claims of cannibalism coming out of the conflict to advance a political agenda on immigration. Musk and conservative influencers have spread the message to millions, smearing Haitian migrants as cannibals as they endure deep uncertainty about the future of their country and family members still there. The claims are getting tens of millions of views on the social media platform X, where false or misleading information has spread since Musk bought the app and slashed content moderation. Many of the people spreading the sensational claims are premium subscribers on X, meaning their content can make them money through advertising sales. The accusations of widespread cannibalism are based on what experts said was a likely intimidation tactic from select gang members: In some videos, the most prominent examples being at least two years old, alleged members of violent gangs in Haiti appear to bite into human flesh. Experts said these videos are likely part of propaganda campaigns designed to scare rivals and terrorize local Haitians rather than a reflection of common or normalized behavior. One former armed group went by the name Cannibal Army. Ian Miles Cheong, a right-wing commentator, helped to kick off the frenzy last week on X, writing that there were cannibal gangs in Haiti who abduct and eat people. Reminder that these people are now illegally entering the US en masse, he continued, making no distinction between the most notorious Haitian gang members and those trying to flee them. He offered no evidence to support the assertion that cannibals were entering the U.S. en masse. Cheong defended his posts in response to questions from NBC News, citing one video appearing to show someone eating part of a leg and noting the name of the Cannibal Army gang. Another high-profile pundit, right-wing content creator Tim Pool, cited the unverified allegations of Haitian cannibalism as proof that former President Donald Trump was justified in opposing immigration from Haiti. Trump referred to Haiti and African nations as s---hole countries during a meeting in 2018, NBC News reported. Pool did not respond to a request for comment or further evidence. The wave of cannibalism-related social media posts is insulting to Haitians and Haitian Americans, said Chris Nestor, a moderator of the r/Haiti message board on Reddit and a lawyer in Washington, D.C., whose parents were Haitian immigrants. A whole population is getting blamed for what some psycho gang members are doing, Nestor said in a phone interview. It is racist. It is dehumanizing. Nestor, whos also a U.S. Army reservist, said that the cruelty of the Haitian armed groups, if anything, bolsters the case for accepting Haitian refugees, who he said are innocent. The false claims are spreading while Haiti is in the grip of a real emergency. Armed groups that had been fighting each other have now formed an alliance against the government, attacking police stations, airports and prisons from which theyve freed thousands of inmates. Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry is stepping down and hasnt been able to return to the country after traveling abroad. Haitis elected president was assassinated two years ago. Killing, hunger and displacement are widespread, according to the U.N. Dead bodies are often left to decompose in the Caribbean heat or else burned because theres no one to remove the corpses, The Washington Post reported Saturday from the capital, Port-au-Prince. The cruelty of Haitian gang leaders is not in dispute, nor is the widespread killing in the country during a yearslong political crisis, but the false claims about widespread cannibalism go much further in trying to paint the whole Caribbean nation as barbarous. The State Department has not received any credible reports regarding cannibalism in Haiti, a spokesperson said Tuesday. Doctors Without Borders said they also had seen no evidence of cannibalism in the country, and Human Rights Watch said it had no information on the subject. Marlene Daut, a Yale University professor of French and African diaspora studies, said that American and European powers began spreading baseless tales of cannibalism in Haiti around the time the countrys slaves overthrew French colonizers and declared independence in 1804. The effect has been to depict Haiti as irredeemable. It is very disturbing that Elon Musk would repeat these absurdities that do, indeed, have a long history, she wrote in an email. After the Haitian Revolution, the slaving powers of the Atlantic World (namely, the United States, France, Great Britain) published seemingly endless depictions of the Haitian revolutionaries as ruthless killers, she wrote. The Haitian revolution that culminated in 1804 was the most successful slave revolt in modern history. It made Haiti the second independent nation in the Western Hemisphere after the United States and the first majority-Black nation in the Americas. Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has tweeted about alleged Haitian cannibalism several times since Saturday night. Civilization is fragile, he posted in response to one user who was discussing a gang cannibalism video. Musk shared a video from far-right commentator Matt Walsh about cannibal hordes of Haitians potentially migrating to the U.S., and as of late Tuesday it had received more than 10 million views. Musk has also boosted some of Cheongs posts about alleged Haitian cannibalism with replies and likes. Representatives for Musk and Walsh did not respond to requests for comment. After NBC News initially published this article, Musk responded in a post on X. He said that he wants to screen immigrants for potential homicidal tendencies and cannibalism. Musks choice of what to discuss online can have a wide impact. He has one of the largest megaphones on social media, with 176.1 million followers on X, and, as one of the wealthiest people in the world, he meets frequently with heads of state and other political leaders including Trump. Elon Musk In Krakow (NurPhoto via AP file) The claims shared by Musk have now traveled across the internet. On Reddit, the moderators of the r/Haiti message board imposed a new rule to limit discussion of cannibalism after what they said was a spike in racist posts that tapped into a long history of discrimination against Haitians. A Reddit spokesperson said the platform was removing some cannibalism-related posts under its content policy but generally leaving up legitimate news articles. Dom Lucre, a Tennessee-based poster on X who has become well known for sharing misleading information, tweeted out one of the unverified videos Sunday and described it as breaking news, although the video has been online since at least November 2021. X later removed the video but his post had 21 million views as of Tuesday, according to the public view count on X. Lucre in an email declined an interview request. Robert Bunker, a counterterrorism researcher and former U.S. Army War College professor, said the videos purporting to show Haitian gang members reminded him of similar videos that drug cartels distributed in Mexico as a form of psychological warfare and intimidation. He said the idea behind such videos is: Youre trying to appear as the people who are crazy, because nobody wants to mess with the crazies. Anyone accepting the videos at face value is in effect falling for the intimidation tactic, he said. NBC News has not been able to verify any of the videos as authentic. Some of the most widely shared videos associated with the claims have been online for two years or longer. Two of Britains tabloid newspapers played a role in boosting the cannibalism claims. On March 5, the U.S. website of The Express reported that cannibalism has been witnessed on the streets. The article cited an unnamed journalist on the ground who said we have seen images of gang leaders eating people they have killed. An affiliated British tabloid, The Star, repeated the claim in an article and in an accompanying headline without adding evidence or verification of the claim. Screenshots of The Stars headline have now gone viral on X with no context. Both tabloids are owned by London-based media company Reach. The company did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday. The two newspapers are among the least trusted in the U.K., according to a YouGov survey last year. The Star ranked last among 32 media outlets in the survey, with 3% calling it trustworthy, while The Express ranked 25th, with 8% calling it trustworthy. The nickname of Haitis chief gang leader has contributed to cannibalism speculation and easy punchlines on social media. Jimmy Cherizier, who goes by the alias "Barbecue," is a former police officer and the spokesperson for Haitis alliance of major armed groups. In 2019, as Cherizier was rising to power, he told The Associated Press that he got the nickname Barbecue as a child because his mother was a street vendor who sold fried chicken not, as others said at the time, because he was accused of setting people on fire. He has since been sanctioned by the British and Canadian governments for alleged human rights violations. Now, some people on social media have re-interpreted the nickname as a reference to cannibalism, despite a lack of evidence. Bunker, the counterterrorism researcher, said he believed Cherizier has little reason to deny the claim now because it adds to his clout. Laurent Dubois, a historian at the University of Virginia who specializes in Haiti, said that American society developed a rich fantasy view of Haiti while U.S. forces occupied it between 1915 and 1934. He noted that U.S. forces were accused of committing atrocities during the occupation, prompting a congressional investigation and the need for a cover story to justify the abuses. Most people in the U.S. are not aware of the history of that occupation, but they did inherit many of the stereotypes that were popularized during that period. And whenever Haiti is in the news, many of those images get recirculated and reanimated, Dubois wrote in an email. There is probably no country in the world that has had more misrepresentations projected onto it than Haiti, he wrote. A Georgia man was arrested for allegedly murdering a woman while the pair were at a North Myrtle Beach resort in September, according to a press release. North Myrtle Beach Police detectives traveled to Georgia to arrest Bornold Alastair Eberhart, 42. He was arrested on March 8 by the Dekalb County SWAT Team in Georgia and was extradited to Horry County by the Horry County Sheriffs Department, according to the press release from North Myrtle Beach. He is currently being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center without bail. On Sept. 22, 2023, Kristin Laymon, of Duluth, Ga., came to a resort in North Myrtle Beach with Eberhart and was reported missing when she was not heard from, the press release stated. It is believed Eberhart and Laymon got into an argument early in the morning on Sept. 23. Laymon was last seen alive entering an elevator at 2:12 a.m. Its believed Eberhart killed her on Sept. 23, the release said. Eberhart returned to Dekalb County, Ga., with Laymons body in the trunk of vehicle on Sept. 24, according to the police report. Detectives got an arrest warrant on March 3 and arrested Eberhart on March 8. On March 9, police found what the believe to be Laymons body outside of Atlanta in the 1800 block of Whitehall Forest Court. Police are awaiting confirmation of Laymons identity from the Medical Examiner. North Myrtle Beach will have a press conference about the murder on Thursday at the North Myrtle Beach Municipal Court, 1015 2nd Ave S. By Sriparna Roy and Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) -The U.S. government on Wednesday said it has opened an investigation into the cyberattack at UnitedHealth Group's Change Healthcare to find out whether there was a breach of protected health data and if the company followed U.S. health privacy law. It is the first announcement of a probe by the Department Of Health and Human Services into the Feb. 21 cyberattack that has disrupted healthcare across the United States. Patient information is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA. "Given the unprecedented magnitude of this cyberattack and in the best interest of patients and health care providers" the HHS Office for Civil Rights is initiating an investigation into the incident, the health department said. Change Healthcare processes about 50% of medical claims in the U.S. for around 900,000 physicians, 33,000 pharmacies, 5,500 hospitals and 600 laboratories. UnitedHealth said it would cooperate with the investigation. It has not disclosed information about what patient data may have been exposed. "Our immediate focus is to restore our systems, protect data and support those whose data may have been impacted," it said. Under HIPAA, healthcare clearinghouses, plans and providers must report breaches to individual patients within 60 days of discovery, according to Shannon Britton Hartsfield, a healthcare privacy lawyer at Holland & Knight. She said the scale of the cyberattack could make it difficult for UnitedHealth and other businesses covered by HIPAA to comply with their reporting obligations in this case. "Patients might be affected by this incident in many different ways through many different entities" she said, adding that sorting through the data to figure out who was affected would be an "extraordinary task." The Office for Civil Rights, responsible for administering and enforcing the rules for the healthcare sector under HIPAA, said a key focus of the investigation was to find out if UnitedHealth complied with that law and to identify the extent of the possible breach. Investigations from the Office for Civil Rights over HIPAA are common. In 2022, the office initiated 676 compliance reviews to investigate allegations of HIPAA violations that did not arise from complaints. The full extent of the data breach remains unknown, and UnitedHealth has said it was still investigating. UnitedHealth has blamed the hack on the "Blackcat" gang, a notorious ransomware group that has a history of disruptive attacks. In a message posted to, and then quickly deleted from their darknet site, the hackers said on Feb. 21 that they stole millions of sensitive records, including medical insurance and health data, from the company. (Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru and Patrick Wingrove in New York; Editing by Arun Koyyur, Sriraj Kalluvila, Shounak Dasgupta and Marguerita Choy) House Republicans supporting a bill that could ban TikTok said Tuesday they are hopeful it will pass in a floor vote despite vocal opposition from former President Trump. The House is expected to vote Wednesday on a bill that would force TikToks China-based parent company ByteDance to divest the popular app or be banned in the U.S. Republicans backing the bill largely dismissed concerns about Trumps backlash swaying the party from passing the bill. House Republicans are bringing up the bill through a special rule that requires a two-thirds majority to pass the measure, rather than the simple majority needed to pass most House bills. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and lead co-sponsor of the bill, said Tuesday there is a great bipartisan core behind the measure. He specifically praised Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), the chair and ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which advanced the bill in a rare unanimous vote Thursday. The duo did Gods work working together. Leadership is there, the White House is there, it seems to be lining up, I just want a big vote on Wednesday so the Senate is forced to take it up, Gallagher said. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) leaves a closed-door House Republican Conference meeting on Tuesday, February 6, 2024. (Greg Nash) McMorris Rodgers said she is hopeful the bill will pass tomorrow in a floor vote. The Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would give ByteDance 165 days from the day it is enacted to divest TikTok or face a ban on U.S. app stores and web hosting services. Trump, who failed to ban the app while in office in 2020, has spoken out against the latest effort in interviews and on his Truth Social platform. The former president has expressed concerns about how a TikTok ban may benefit rival social media platform Facebook, which suspended the Trump in 2021 after spreading false claims about voter fraud ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot. His account was reinstated last year. Theres a lot of good and a lot of bad with TikTok. But the thing I dont like is, without TikTok you can make Facebook bigger. And I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with the media, Trump said Monday on CNBCs Squawk Box. Gallagher said he was surprised to see Trumps statement, but the outcome misrepresents the bills intent. The bill doesnt shut down TikTok and force all its users on Facebook. The world we all want to live in and I think the world Trump would want to live in particularly if hes the one that gets to consummate the deal is the one in which ByteDance divests from TikTok and then TikTok is sold to an American or a joint American and allied constellation of companies, Gallagher said. He added that the bill is setting out to accomplish the ban Trump sought in 2020 by aiming to get around some of the legal challenges his attempt faced. It was ultimately blocked in court, as was another ban sought by a Montana. Top Stories from The Hill McMorris Rodgers said we share [Trumps] concerns about Meta and Facebook, and were working on that separately. This is a unique situation that were addressing through a targeted, very specific approach for apps that are controlled by foreign adversaries, she said. Trumps comments opposing the bill came after he confirmed he recently met with Jeff Yass, a major GOP donor and investor in TikTok. Trump said Yass did not bring up TikTok during the conversation. The push to pass the bill is centered around concerns that TikTok poses a national security threat based around its ties to its Chinese-based parent company. TikTok has pushed back on those allegations. Intelligence officials with the FBI, Department of Justice and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence briefed House members Tuesday about concerns around TikTok. Maybe [Trump] hasnt heard, or he hasnt been informed of what we just heard at the SCIF [sensitive compartmented information facility]. Im sure if he heard that, everything thats happening, Im sure he will agree with us, Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) said after the briefing. Some Republicans, though, have indicated they wont support the bill. Far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a top Trump ally, posted concerns about the bill on X, formerly known as Twitter. Like Trump, Greene raised questions about an impact on Meta Facebooks parent company and how the bill would impact content on the platform. The bill does not seek to address content on the platform. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) also expressed concerns about the bill, based on broad powers he said it would give the president. The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse. The President will be given the power to ban WEB SITES, not just Apps. The person breaking the new law is deemed to be the U.S. (or offshore) INTERNET HOSTING SERVICE or App Store, not the foreign adversary, Massie posted on X. The bill specifically names ByteDance and TikTok as a foreign adversary controlled application, and also lays out a process to allow the president to designate other foreign adversary controlled applications with ties to China, North Korea, Iran and Russia. Along with Trump and others on the right, the bill is also facing opposition from some members on the left. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) said the bill imposes limits on free speech and that the process is being rushed. He said Congress should work on legislation that aims to protect Americans data from foreign adversaries and domestic companies. But this kind of surgical approach to a very specific company thats going to have consequences for people in our country, I dont think is the way to handle that, he said. Frost said he is starting to hear more people express those concerns since it passed through committee, but he still anticipates it will pass the House floor Wednesday. Groups including the ACLU and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University have also raised concerns that the bill poses First Amendment risks by infringing on free speech rights. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund has begun the process of selecting its next managing director and intends to choose a candidate by the end of April, the global lender's executive board said on Wednesday. The five-year term of the IMF's current managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, ends on Sept. 30. The Executive Board underscores the importance it places on the successful candidate having the requisite global standing to lead the Fund, which stands at the center of the global financial system," the board said in a statement. European Union finance ministers on Tuesday endorsed Georgieva for a second term at the helm of the lender of last resort. Traditionally, European countries recommend the managing director of the IMF and the United States recommends the head of the World Bank. Georgieva, 70, the IMF's 12th managing director since its 1944 founding, said last week she would be honored to serve a second term heading the institution. In its statement, the IMF's board said it aims to reach a decision on the next managing director "by consensus." (Reporting by Costas Pitas and Katharine Jackson; editing by Rami Ayyub) Former Special Counsel Robert Hur | Ron Sachs/CNP/Picture Alliance/Consolidated News Photos/Newscom Former Special Counsel Robert Hur faced bipartisan flak on Tuesday during a House Judiciary Committee hearing about his conclusions regarding President Joe Biden's retention of classified material after he served as Barack Obama's vice president. Republicans wanted to know how Hur could conclude that criminal charges against Biden were not warranted when Special Counsel Jack Smith is prosecuting former President Donald Trump for broadly similar conduct. Democrats complained about Hur's description of Biden as "a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory" and "diminished faculties in advancing age," which they portrayed as legally irrelevant and possibly motivated by the hope of a judicial appointment in a second Trump administration. A 258-page interview transcript that was released ahead of the hearing sheds some light on the latter issue. The transcript, which is based on hours of recorded interviews with Biden that Hur and his staff conducted on October 8 and October 9, largely supports Hur's description of Biden in his February 5 report, which was legally mitigating but politically damaging in the context of the 2024 presidential race, given the concerns that voters have expressed about the 81-year-old president's cognitive health. During the interviews, New York Times reporter Charlie Savage writes, "Mr. Biden appeared clearheaded most of the time"an excellent example of damning with faint praise. Voters who think Biden is "just too old to be an effective president"nearly three-quarters of them, according to a Times/Siena College poll conducted in late Februaryare not likely to be reassured by the assessment that he is usually "clearheaded." And Savage also highlights portions of the interviews that do not fit that description. Some of Biden's recall failures are the sort of convenient memory lapses that are common in interviews with criminal suspects and civil defendants. "In trying to determine whether Mr. Biden had willfully retained certain classified documents, Mr. Hur repeatedly pressed him for details, like where and how his staff stored classified documents, who packed up when his vice presidency ended and where particular files had gone," Savage says. "Mr. Biden, who has denied wrongdoing, repeatedly demurred, saying he did not recall or had no idea how his staff handled such matters, and observing that there was 'a continuum of a lot of these people' who assisted with those tasks." In particular, Biden professed ignorance of how sensitive documents related to the war in Afghanistan ended up in "a tattered cardboard box in his garage in Delaware, along with a jumble of unrelated materials": "'I don't remember how a beat-up box got in the garage,' he said, speculating that someone packing up must have just tossed stuff into it. He added that he had 'no goddamn idea' what was in a tranche of files shipped to his house and 'didn't even bother to go through them.'" Other Biden memory lapses fall into a different category. In several exchanges, he seemed genuinely confused about basic facts such as when he served as vice president, when his son Beau died, and when Trump was elected president. "Do you have any idea where this material would've been before it got moved into the garage?" Hur asked. "Well," Biden responded, "if it was 2013when did I stop being vice president?" White House lawyer Rachel Cotton helped him out: "2017." Based on that cue, Biden said, "So I was vice president. So it must've come from vice president stuff. That's all I can think of." When Biden was asked "how a particular folderended up in his garage" in 2017, he "mistakenly instead invoked the year the documents were from" and again seemed uncertain about the timing of his service as vice president. "My problem was I never knew where any of the documents or boxes were specifically coming from or who packed them," he said. "Just did I get them delivered to me. And so this isI'm, at this stage, in 2009, am I still vice president?" Savage argues that Hur "was selective in portraying Mr. Biden's memory of an ambassador's position." At one point, Biden mistakenly recalled that Karl Eikenberry, the U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, disagreed with him about the merits of a troop surge. But at another point, Savage notes, Biden correctly remembered that he and Eikenberry were on the same side in that internal debate. In his report, Hur said Biden "did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died." In remarks to the press shortly after the report was published, Biden expressed anger at that line. "How in the hell dare he raise that?" he said. "Frankly, when I was asked the question I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business." But the transcript shows that it was Biden who broached the subject. Hur asked Biden where he kept papers related to various projects, including "your book"a reference to Promise Me, Dad, his 2017 memoir about Beau's death. "This is, what, 2017, 2018, that area?" Biden asked. "Yes, sir," Hur confirmed. Then Biden launched into this halting and convoluted response, which seemed to confuse his Senate career with his time as vice president: Remember, in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying, and so it wasand by the way, there were still a lot of people at the time when I got out of the Senate that were encouraging me to run in this period, except the president. I'm notand not a mean thing to say. He just thought that she [Hillary Clinton] had a better shot of winning the presidency than I did. And so I hadn't, I hadn't, at this point even though I'm at Penn, I hadn't walked away from the idea that I may run for office again. But if I ran again, I'd be running for president. And so what was happening, thoughwhat month did Beau die? My God, May 30th Cotton again chimed in: "2015." Biden still was not sure of the year: "Was it 2015 he had died?" An "unidentified male speaker" confirmed that "it was May of 2015," prompting Biden to reiterate that "it was 2015." That exchange was immediately followed by confusion about another important date: "And what's happened in the meantime is that asand Trump gets elected in November of 2017?" An "unidentified male speaker" corrected Biden: "2016." If so, Biden wondered, "why do I have 2017 here?" As White House Counsel Ed Siskel explained, "that's when you left office, January of 2017." Biden then returned to the subject of Beau's death. "And in 2017, Beau had passed andthis is personal[that was] the genesis of the book and the title Promise Me, Dad." He then recounted at length the story of how Beau's dying wish had inspired him to remain in politics and later seek the presidency. In other words, the transcript refutes Biden's subsequent claim that Hur and his staff had forced him to delve into a sensitive matter that "wasn't any of their damn business." In addition to supplying "context" for the memory lapses cited by Hur, Savage notes "some minor seeming slips that went unmentioned in Mr. Hur's report." For example, Biden "needed to be nudged to recall the name of the federal agency that takes custody of official recordsthe National Archivesor that fax machine is the name of the device that transmits images of documents over phone lines." Biden said one staff member "focused on taking the things that she thought that [the University of Delaware] might want, or that would go to thewhat's it called? You know, the federal government." His lawyer Robert Bauer knew the answer: "The Archives." Referring to a piece of equipment in a home office, Biden started to ask, "What do you call it when they send these" Siskel was on it: "Fax machine." Again, those "minor seeming slips" were not included in Hur's report. As for the lapses he did mention, many Democrats thought their inclusion was gratuitous. But Hur was obligated to explain why he decided not to prosecute Biden, and that decision hinged on whether he could persuade a jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Biden "willfully" retained national defense information when he had "reason to believe" it "could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation." In concluding that he probably could not meet that test, Hur anticipated that jurors would be inclined to view Biden's retention of classified documents as accidental. Biden "would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory," Hur wrote. "Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone for whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict himby then a former president well into his eightiesof a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness." Contrary to the way that Democrats have portrayed his report on Biden, Hur noted during Tuesday's hearing, "I did not 'exonerate' him; that word does not appear in the report." Rather, Hur concluded that there was ample room for reasonable doubt as to whether Biden "willfully" violated the law, including his cooperation in identifying and returning the documents after his lawyers found the first set as well as his generally plausible claims that he either did not know or could not recall how the material ended up in his possession. In Trump's case, by contrast, such excuses can get him only so far. Even if his initial retention of more than 300 classified documents after he left the White House was unintentional, inadvertence does not explain his resistance to returning them, including his alleged defiance of a federal subpoena. While "it is not our role to assess the criminal charges pending against Mr. Trump," Hur said in his report, there are "several material distinctions between Mr. Trump's case and Mr. Biden's." Unlike "the evidence involving Mr. Biden," Hur wrote, "the allegations set forth in the indictment of Mr. Trump, if proven, would present serious aggravating facts. Most notably, after being given multiple chances to return classified documents and avoid prosecution, Mr. Trump allegedly did the opposite. According to the indictment, he not only refused to return the documents for many months, but he also obstructed justice by enlisting others to destroy evidence and then to lie about it." The post Interview Transcripts Support Robert Hur's Description of Biden's 'Poor Memory' appeared first on Reason.com. UNITED NATIONS (AP) The U.N.s preeminent body promoting equality for women and girls opened its annual meeting Monday with five male speakers in a row a lineup that made some of the men uneasy and was somewhat baffling to the hundreds of women in the packed General Assembly chamber. Achim Steiner, the head of the U.N. Development Program and the last of the male speakers, said when he stepped to the microphone: I am very conscious of the fact that I am yet another man standing at this podium addressing you. He said he had two choices: Dont speak or stand up and support gender equality. Croatias U.N. Ambassador Ivan Simonovic, the third male speaker representing the U.N. Economic and Social Council, apologized for the absence of the councils president, a woman, who had a family emergency. So, he said, you are getting the male vice president, adding to the agenda disbalance of this opening. The first woman to speak was sixth in line, Chetna Gala Sinha, who represented civil society and was loudly cheered when she was called to the podium. Sinha moved from Mumbai to a drought-prone village in Indias Maharashtra state three decades ago and helped local women start a bank. Now, she said, our women want to go from microcredit to micro-enterprise so there has never been a better time to invest in women a theme of this years meeting of the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women, along with addressing poverty. After a speech by a young woman from Malawi representing youth, the commissions chair, Philippines U.N. Ambassador Antonio Lagdameo, invited the head of the U.N. agency promoting womens rights and gender equality to take a seat on the podium. Sima Bahous, the executive director of UN Women, began by saying: Its great to be here. I feel the energy in the room is getting better as we see more women coming to the stage. The audience applauded loudly. Almost every speaker male and female spoke of the plight of women and girls caught in conflict, especially in the Israeli-Hamas war in Gaza. Lagdameo, the commission chair who opened the meeting, asked participants to express solidarity with all women and girls in conflict situations. Our thoughts are with you as we strive for peace, he said. U.N., Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the second speaker, told the meeting that women and girls are suffering most from wars waged by men, singling out Gaza. He noted Ramadan, the Muslim holy month that started Monday in Gaza, should be a time of compassion, but instead families are struggling to survive. He reiterated his call for a humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza and a silencing of guns in all conflicts including Sudan. Last week Guterres said achieving legal gender equality could take 300 years, and on Monday he cited two worrying trends: Patriarchy is regaining ground as autocrats and populists attack womens freedoms and their sexual and reproductive rights, and the domination of digital technologies and artificial intelligence by men is leaving womens needs and rights ignored. Bahous told the commission that a backlash against gender equality is rising with a ferocity and anger that is unfamiliar to many of us, she said. Peace feels painfully distant, war painfully prevalent, suffering painfully ubiquitous. If spoken commitments to equality could be matched by funding in budgets, more than 100 million women and girls could be lifted out of poverty," she said. She added that closing gender gaps in employment could boost gross domestic product per capita by 20%. The U.N. Development Programs Steiner told the commission: We have to face a harsh truth, gender inequality and the poverty experienced by so many women and girls are not inevitable outcomes of the crisis we face, but rather a consequence of systemic failures." Solving the problem of over 300 million women and girls living in extreme poverty can only be solved by making gender equality a core value at every stage of public financing, he said. (Photo : (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)) NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 26: Don Lemon attends the 2023 TIME100 Gala at Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 26, 2023 in New York City. Don Lemon has revealed his proposed partnership on platform X with Elon Musk came to a crashing end before it even aired. The former CNN anchor described his show's first interview with Musk as 'tense' in what is to be the debut episode. "Elon publicly encouraged me to join X with a new show, saying I would have his 'full support,'" Lemon said in a statement, adding that he took Musk at his word that he was "interested in working directly with diverse voices." The first episode of "The Don Lemon Show" will be released on Monday on all social media platforms, including X and YouTube. Lemon sat down with Musk in what he claims was a respectful and wide-ranging session and that "there were no restrictions on the interview he willingly agreed to." "His commitment to a global town square where all questions can be asked and all ideas can be shared seems not to include questions of him from people like me," Lemon added. Lemon posted a video on his Instagram page Wednesday taking shots at Musk and called out his claim of being a "free speech absolutist." "Throughout our conversation I kept reiterating to him, although it was tense at times, I thought it was good for people to see our exchange," Lemon said. "But apparently free speech absolutism doesn't apply when it comes to questions about him from people like me." X released a statement defending Musk's decision to rescind the offer with Lemon, reported CNN. "The Don Lemon Show is welcome to publish its content on X, without censorship, as we believe in providing a platform for creators to scale their work and connect with new communities," the company said in a statement. "However, like any enterprise, we reserve the right to make decisions about our business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show. However, a spokesperson for Lemon told CNN that the media personality expects Musk to honor the financial terms of the agreement. "Don has a deal with X and expects to be paid for it," the spokesperson said. "If we have to go to court, we will." While Musk has repeatedly emphasized his belief in free speech absolutism, he has continuously taken steps to limit the speech of critics. The billionaire has allegedly suspended journalists from X and even filed lawsuits against watchdogs for publishing reports critical of the platform. In a surefire launch to conspiracy theories and extremist rhetoric, Musk regularly instigates ugly attacks on journalists and traditional news organizations. Just last year, Musk was accused of endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory, ultimately pushing several advertisers to pull out of the platform. Ten days afterward, he finally expressed remorse for his actions to the public. Lemon was relieved of his duties from CNN last year, in a decision he says left him "stunned." CNN never explained the dismissal, but it's widely believed to have come on the heels of sexist comments he made about then-GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley. Lemon apologized for the remarks at the time, saying, "When I make a mistake, I own it. And I own this one as well." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Reuters) -A Russian missile slammed into two apartment buildings in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih on Tuesday, killing three people and injuring at least 38, with rescue teams sifting through rubble late into the night in a search for survivors. Ten children were among the injured. Serhiy Lysak, governor of Dnipropetrovsk region, put the provisional injury toll at 28 adults and 10 children and later said rescue operations had been completed "Two buildings were hit, one five storeys, one nine storeys," Lysak wrote on Telegram. "The number of injured is constantly rising as is the number of children injured." Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih's military administration, said at least three hits from the missiles were recorded in the city. He said at least five of the adults and one child being treated in hospital were in critical condition. Nine people had been rescued in searches conducted from apartment to apartment and all fires at the scene had been brought under control. Video footage showed a blaze engulfing the top of one apartment block and rescue teams ferrying the injured out of shattered building entrances. With balconies all but destroyed and windows blown out, cranes reached to upper floors of buildings alongside floodlights. "The emergency services and residents who care are rescuing residents blocked in their apartments and are continuing to search for anyone who might be under the rubble," Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko wrote. Kryvyi Rih has been a frequent target of Russian attacks. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was born and raised in the city, praised rescue teams on Telegram and vowed Russia would be brought to account. "Every day, our cities and villages suffer similar strikes. Every day, Ukraine loses people to Russian evil," he wrote. "There can be no pause, not for a day, a week, let alone a month, in support for simply defending lives, for saving people from terror." (Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Chris Reese, Jonathan Oatis, Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio) On Tuesday evening, the Berkeley County School District in South Carolina swore in the board members who were elected last week, six of whom were endorsed by the conservative activist group Moms for Liberty. Within two hours, the school board had voted to fire the districts first Black superintendent, terminate the districts lawyer, ban critical race theory and set up a committee to decide whether certain books and materials should be banned from schools. In addition, the board voted to replace the chair with Mac McQuillin, a local attorney and one of the board members backed by Moms for Liberty. The rapid moves Tuesday in the Berkeley County district, the fourth largest in the state, showed the impact of Moms for Libertys focus on electing conservative school board members, and prompted uproar among some community members in attendance. Deon Jackson during the special meeting of the Berkeley County School District board on May 19, 2021 in South Carolina. (Berkeley County School District) Moms for Liberty said it has endorsed more than 500 school board candidates across the country this year, 49% of whom have won. The organizations candidates were highly successful in Florida, but they had mixed results in Arkansas, California, Michigan and other states. Moms for Liberty celebrated the six candidates wins in Berkeley County as an example of flipping a school board in favor of people who value parental rights. Four of the candidates, including McQuillin, were incumbents, while the two others were new to the board; they promised more curriculum transparency and fiscal responsibility and to put a stop to the woke agenda. Moms for Liberty celebrated the boards first votes on Facebook, posting Wednesday, 6 new board members clean house first night on the job. Early in the meeting, according to video posted by the district, the board moved into executive session. Shortly after it returned, Kathy Littleton, one of the Moms for Liberty-backed members, moved to terminate Tiffany Richardson, the districts in-house counsel, and retain Brandon Gaskins, a lawyer who was deputy chief legal counsel for former South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford. Moments later, McQuillin moved to terminate Deon Jackson, who was appointed superintendent last year, and replace him with Anthony Dixon, who had worked in the district as an administrator. Dixon will be the districts second Black superintendent, after Jackson. Audience members gasped at the firing of Jackson and Richardson and shouted in disagreement. All right, listen up, McQuillin chastised the audience. Were going to be respectful in this meeting. You may not agree with our votes, but I ask that you please be respectful and calm. What kind of example are you setting for our kids, disrupting a meeting like this? Berkeley County School District Board member Mac McQuillin. (Berkeley County School District) None of the board members responded to emails or phone calls seeking comment Wednesday. Jackson and Richardson also did not respond to requests for comment. David Barrow, who had been school board chair until Tuesdays meeting, asked McQuillin to explain for the terminations. Im not going to discuss personnel matters, McQuillin said. He added later that Gaskins, the newly hired counsel, who was not present, would share more information about Jacksons firing another time. Barrow called the firings a travesty and a political witch hunt. Yvonne Bradley, who was one of the three board members to vote against the firings, said: Ladies and gentlemen, you are being fooled by these six. Unbelievable what the chairman would do. It is so unbelievable how this is going. She added, looking at the audience, And we voted for these people, you did. You took the time. Bradley and Crystal Wigfall, another board member, then walked out of the meeting, and it appeared in the video that some members of the audience followed them. Dr. Tiffany Richardson, In-House General Counsel for Berkeley County School District in South Carolina. (Berkeley County School District) Before the board took the votes, several speakers argued in a public comment session against the resolutions banning critical race theory and setting up a committee to evaluate books and other materials. Two teachers said the district did not teach critical race theory, a pastor argued that critical race theory could help teach students about local history, an NAACP representative said addressing structural racism should be the boards priority, and a district librarian said an additional committee was redundant because there were already policies dictating how to buy books for libraries. The librarian also noted that there is already a process for parents to challenge specific titles they dont want their children to read. These vaguely worded bans have had an impact on the teaching of the Holocaust and its important lessons, Brandon Fish, the community relations director at the nonprofit Charleston Jewish Federation, said at the meeting. Learning about the Holocaust and other dark chapters in our history, including slavery and Jim Crow, are crucial to making sure that these mistakes are never repeated. Later in the meeting, the board moved to ban teaching critical race theory in any form. Barrow asked for a definition of critical race theory, which is the study of racisms effect on societal structures and is usually taught at the graduate level but has become shorthand to describe progressive ideas about race and gender. McQuillin read a different definition that matched language used by the Goldwater Institute, a conservative think tank, saying forms of it that arent appropriate for children are being taught in the districts schools. Each vote firing the superintendent, picking his replacement, terminating the districts lawyer and banning critical race theory passed with support from only the six Moms for Liberty-backed members. At the end of the meeting, the board voted 8-0 to set up a committee to evaluate guidelines on removing inappropriate sexual/pornographic content from schools after specifying that the committee include teachers, mental health professionals and librarians. Donald Trump. (Alyssa Pointer/Reuters) (Reuters / Reuters) Former President Donald Trump has now amassed enough delegates to clinch the 2024 Republican presidential nomination after notching unopposed victories Tuesday in Georgia, Mississippi, Washington, and Hawaii. To seal the deal, a Republican candidate needs at least 1,215 delegates, or a majority of the total available across all GOP primaries and caucuses. Trump started the week with 1,078 delegates in his column; another 161 were up for grabs Tuesday. The wins puts the former president over the top. President Biden also claimed a majority of his partys delegates Tuesday night with victories in Georgia, Mississippi, and Washington, setting up a November rematch. Trump had been favored to win his third straight Republican nomination for some time and the final hint of resistance fell away last week when his only remaining rival, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, lost 14 of 15 contests on Super Tuesday and suspended her campaign the following morning. But Tuesdays mathematical milestone marks the point of no return for Republicans and a moment to consider both the opportunities and challenges awaiting their nominee as the 2024 general election gets underway. Trumps standing has been steadily improving A new Yahoo News/YouGov survey of 1,482 U.S. adults, conducted in the days after Haley left the race, reveals significant strengths for Trump and significant weaknesses. On the plus side, Trump (46%) narrowly leads Biden (44%) in a general-election matchup among registered voters. For much of 2022 and 2023, Biden was ahead. More Americans also have favorable opinions of Trump (45%) than Biden (39%) and more now approve (49%) than disapprove (46%) of how Trump handled his job as president. In contrast, Bidens job-approval rating remains underwater (39% approve to 55% disapprove). Memories of Trumps time in the White House seem to be changing in his favor as the 2024 election season gets underway. On the five Yahoo News/YouGov surveys conducted just after he left office, from January to June 2021, the former presidents average job-approval number was 44%; his job-disapproval number was 52%. President Biden. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters) (Reuters / Reuters) To that point, 45% of Americans now say things in this country were better back when Donald Trump was president; just 33% say theyre better today with Joe Biden as president. Asked how much each president accomplished, 71% (up from 65% last November) say Trump accomplished either a lot (39%) or a little (31%); just 61% say the same of Biden (27% a lot, 33% a little). Why is there such a big gap on accomplishments, given how productive the Biden administration has been? In large part because a majority of Americans say Biden has been mostly passive as president (53%), while only 30% say hes been mostly in charge. For Trump, those numbers are more than reversed, with 65% saying he was mostly in charge during his time in the White House (up from 58% in November) and a mere 14% saying he was mostly passive (down from 19% in November). And so Trump arguably enters this years general-election battle in better shape than Biden, whose fiery State of the Union speech last week did little to alter perceptions that he may be not fit for another term, according to the poll. But real risks remain for the Republican nominee Yet its Trump, not Biden, who has never won the popular vote and its Trump who has never come close to convincing a majority of the electorate to back him at the polls. (He earned less than 47% of the vote in both 2020 and 2016.) The fact that 46% seems to be Trumps ceiling in the Yahoo News/YouGov survey suggests he still has a lot of work to do between now and November. One group that might require his attention is Haley voters, who represent 11% of registered voters who identify or lean Republican, according to the new poll. Although theyre a relatively small group, just one-fifth of them (20%) say Trump has already earned their vote; the rest say they will support Trump only if he earns their vote in the future (35%) or that they will never vote for Trump under any circumstances (32%). The former presidents legal troubles also present challenges. His first criminal trial for allegedly making secret hush money payments to a porn actress during the 2016 campaign is scheduled to start on March 25 in New York City. The U.S. Supreme Court, meanwhile, is set to weigh in on Trumps claim of absolute presidential immunity this spring after which his delayed federal trial for conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss might resume. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (63%) say it is very or somewhat important that voters get a verdict in Trumps trials before the 2024 election; a full 46% say it is very important. Less than a third (32%) would approve of delaying Trumps federal trials until after the election, making it possible for him to dismiss them if he wins precisely what Trump has been attempting to do at every turn. Voters in Marina del Rey, Calif., during the Super Tuesday primary election. (Aude Guerrucci/Reuters) (REUTERS / Reuters) Dont underestimate the legal peril Only 25% of Americans agree, meanwhile, that a president has absolute immunity' from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office; 53% disagree. Agreement has risen among Republicans since December from 40% to 47% but not enough to close the gap. If the Supreme Court rules otherwise, it could prove controversial: less than half of Americans (47%) say they have some or a lot of confidence in the court, down from 70% before Trump cemented a 6-3 conservative majority in late 2020, and a full 62% say the court has become too politicized. One-third of Americans (33%) think the court is biased in favor of Trump more than twice the share who say its biased against Trump (15%). Assuming Trumps key federal trials are allowed to proceed, a conviction could spell trouble for him in November. Just 31% of Americans now say Trump should be allowed to serve if convicted of a serious crime in the coming months, down from 33% in January while 55% say he should not be allowed to serve (up from 53%). The numbers are small when it comes to current Trump supporters who say they would move to being not sure (9%), not voting (5%) or supporting Biden (1%) if the former president is convicted of a serious crime but in a tight election where Trump cannot afford to shed support, every percentage point counts. Asked how they would vote if Trump is convicted of a serious crime, just 40% of Americans say they would still support him down from 46% in the current head-to-head matchup. Biden, meanwhile, picks up a single point (45%) in that scenario, giving him a 5-point lead. ____________ The Yahoo News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 1,482 U.S. adults interviewed online from March 8 to 11, 2024. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2020 election turnout and presidential vote, baseline party identification and current voter registration status. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Baseline party identification is the respondents most recent answer given prior to Nov. 1, 2022, and is weighted to the estimated distribution at that time (33% Democratic, 27% Republican). Respondents were selected from YouGovs opt-in panel to be representative of all U.S. adults. The margin of error is approximately 2.8%. Facing backlash over her State of the Union response last week, Alabama GOP Sen. Katie Britt on Wednesday revealed that Speaker Mike Johnson reassured her ahead of the speech to ignore any "horror stories" and that the moment wouldn't blow up her career. "The funny thing is, [Johnson's] like, 'No, don't worry about, you know, people are going to tell you horror stories about all of these things that happened and people's career being blown up over it.' And he's like, 'It'll be fine,'" Britt told Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and his co-host Ben Ferguson on an episode of the "Verdict with Ted Cruz" podcast. The two later joked about the backlash to Florida GOP Sen. Marco Rubio's flub during his 2013 State of the Union response when he sipped from a bottle of water minutes before the end of his speech. And they mentioned then-Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's State of the Union response in 2009, which was labeled by Fox News as a "poor performance" and "amateurish." This year, Britt is under fire for her speech, but the Alabama senator struck a mostly jovial tone on the podcast, describing a phone call with Johnson shortly after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., offered her the chance to give the official GOP response to President Joe Biden's State of the Union address last week. Cruz told Britt about the money Rubio's campaign raised selling water bottles after his blunder. "Well, we're going to have to figure out what I can sell," Britt replied. Britt has faced criticism for how she described an encounter with a victim of human trafficking during a 2023 visit to the U.S.-Mexico border. In her speech, Britt said she spoke with a woman who "had been sex-trafficked by the cartels starting at age 12. She told me not just that she was raped every day, but how many times a day she was raped." We wouldnt be OK with this happening in a Third World country. This is the United States of America, and it is past time, in my opinion, that we start acting like it, she added. President Bidens border crisis is a disgrace. Shortly after her speech, a viral TikTok by journalist Jonathan Katz alleged that the victim Britt was referring to had been trafficked in the early 2000s, during President George W. Bush's administration, not the Biden administration. Britt did not address these allegations in Wednesday's podcast with Cruz, but she blamed the "liberal media" multiple times for turning against her in the wake of her address. "I mean, my crime was putting too much passion, too much heart and soul behind the issues that I genuinely care about, and they slaughtered me across the airways," Britt told Cruz. She later added that the crisis at the border "is not only a national security crisis, but a humanitarian crisis that no reporter is telling. ... Theyre not telling the story of human trafficking and whats happening under [Biden]. Asked directly on Fox News over the weekend about the story she told in her speech, Britt deflected, saying that she did not mean to give the impression that the story had happened during the Biden administration. "I very clearly said I spoke to a woman who told me about when she was trafficked when she was 12, so I didnt say a teenager. I didnt say a young woman, a grown woman, a woman when she was trafficked when she was 12," Britt told "Fox News Sunday." Also on Sunday, Karla Jacinto Romero, the victim that Britt was referring to, told CNN that Britt had inaccurately portrayed her story when she alleged that Jacinto Romero had been trafficked by drug cartels, clarifying that she was trafficked by a pimp in Mexico who would entrap vulnerable young women. "I work as a spokesperson for many victims who have no voice, and I really would like them to be empathetic: all the governors, all the senators, to be empathetic with the issue of human trafficking because there are millions of girls and boys who disappear all the time. People who are really trafficked and abused, as she mentioned," Jacinto Romero told CNN. Elsewhere in Wednesday's podcast, Britt joked about the backlash she's faced in the wake of her State of the Union response, referring to movie star Scarlett Johansson playing her on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" over the weekend. "I mean, how awesome is that?" Britt asked as Cruz lamented that a "gorgeous movie star" has never played him on "SNL." "Scarlett Johansson, here you have Black Widow. They bring in someone from Avengers to play me in the cold open. I'm here for it," Britt added. By Alvise Armellini VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -Pope Francis issued a fresh condemnation of all wars on Wednesday, days after irking Kyiv and Western capitals for appearing to suggest that Ukraine should surrender and negotiate peace with its Russian invader. Francis had told Swiss broadcaster RSI that Ukraine should "show the courage of the white flag" and open talks with Russia, but his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin clarified in a Tuesday interview that Russia should first halt its aggression. "Many young people, many young people go to die (in war). Let's pray to the Lord to give us the grace to overcome this madness of war, which is always a defeat," the pope said during his weekly audience in St Peter's Square. He did not specifically mention Ukraine or any other conflict zones, but said he had earlier received a set of rosary beads and a copy of the Gospels that had belonged to a man killed on an unspecified war front. Sister Lucia Caram, an Argentine nun who met the pope before the audience, wrote on social media that the man was a 23-year-old Ukrainian soldier who died in Avdiivka, an eastern city captured by the Russians last month. The rosary beads had originally been blessed by the pope, and Sister Caram returned them to the pontiff, she said, adding that Francis had kissed them and appeared moved as "he loves Ukraine and suffers for the martyrdom of this people invaded and cruelly attacked". Francis, who is 87 and hampered by mobility and respiratory issues, limited his speaking at the audience for the third week in a row, leaving it to an aide to read most of his prepared texts. He told the faithful he still had "a bit of a cold". Wednesday also marked the 11th anniversary of his election to the papacy. (Reporting by Alvise Armellini, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Gareth Jones) By Humeyra Pamuk and Simon Lewis WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Washington is working to coordinate a multinational effort to set up a maritime aid corridor into Gaza, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday, part of a U.S. strategy of "flooding the zone" with humanitarian assistance. President Joe Biden last week announced plans for the U.S. military to set up a dock on Gaza's Mediterranean coast that will enable distribution of up to 2 million meals a day in Gaza. Aid agencies say five months of war between Israel and Hamas has driven much of the population there to the brink of famine. Blinken held a video conference on Wednesday with officials from Cyprus, Britain, the UAE, Qatar, the European Union and the United Nations to discuss getting the new route up and running. The U.S. was also working with Israel on the corridor, also supported by Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Canada, but it would take time to establish the corridor, Blinken told reporters at the State Department. "I want to emphasize it is a complement to, not a substitute for, other ways of getting humanitarian assistance into Gaza, and in particular overland routes remain the most critical way to get assistance in and then to people who need it," Blinken said. President Joe Biden's administration faces growing criticism over its military support for Israel even as it pushes for more humanitarian access to Gaza, where Israeli forces launched an air and ground assault in response to the Oct. 7 attacks by Palestinian militants Hamas, which killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages. Israel's response has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health authorities, destroyed much of the strip's infrastructure and sparked a humanitarian crisis. Blinken said Israel needs to open as many land crossings into Gaza as possible, noting that shipments into northern Gaza began this week through a crossing known as the 96th gate. The U.S. military has also dropped meals into the strip from aircraft. "The bottom line is we need to see... flooding the zone when it comes to humanitarian assistance for Gaza," Blinken said, adding that Washington continues to push for a deal that would see a temporary pause in fighting and the release of remaining hostages held in Gaza. (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Simon Lewis; additional reporting by David LjunggrenEditing by Chris Reese and David Gregorio) Former special counsel Robert Hur told the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that he did not unfairly disparage President Biden when he described the 81-year-old as well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory in a report that concluded he should not face criminal charges for willfully retaining and sharing highly classified information. Hur began his testimony by defending his report, which came after a yearlong investigation into Bidens handling of classified material found in the presidents former office in Washington, D.C., and his Delaware home. "What I wrote is what I believe the evidence shows, and what I expect jurors would perceive and believe, Hur said in his opening statement. I did not sanitize my explanation. Nor did I disparage the President unfairly. Hurs decision not to charge Biden infuriates Republicans Former special counsel Robert K. Hur is sworn in to testify before the House Judiciary Committee in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. (Win McNamee/Getty Images) (Win McNamee via Getty Images) The special counsels decision not to recommend charges against Biden infuriated several Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee, including Rep. Tom McClintock of California, who said Hur had set a frightening precedent with his rationale that the president would present himself to a jury as an "elderly man with a poor memory." I want to get this straight: Is it now OK to take home top-secret documents, store them in my garage and read portions of them to friends and associates? McClintock asked Hur. All I have to do when Im caught taking home classified material is to say, Im sorry, Mr. Hur, but Im getting old, my memorys not so great? This is the doctrine youve established in our laws now and it is frightening. My intent is certainly not to establish any sort of doctrine, Hur replied. I had a particular task, I had a particular set of evidence to consider and make a judgment with respect to one particular set of evidence and that is what I did. Dems contrast Bidens cooperation with Trumps alleged obstruction Democrats on the Republican-led panel sought to paint Hurs characterization of Bidens mental acuity as an unnecessary smear against the president as he seeks a second term in office. They repeatedly pointed to Bidens cooperation with Hurs investigation into his handling of classified documents sitting for more than five hours of interviews over a two-day span and contrasted it with former President Donald Trump, who is accused of obstructing a federal probe into his handling of sensitive material found at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., after he left office. Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu of California asked Hur a series of yes or no questions to highlight the disparity between Biden's and Trumps response to classified document investigations. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden directed his lawyer to lie to the FBI? Hur: We identified no such evidence. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden directed his lawyer to destroy classified documents? Hur: No. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden directed his personal assistant to move boxes of documents to hide them from the FBI? Hur: No. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden directed his personal assistant to delete security camera footage after the FBI asked for that footage? Hur: No. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden showed a classified map related to an ongoing military operation to a campaign aide who did not have clearance? Hur: No. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden engaged in a conspiracy to obstruct justice? Hur: No. Lieu: Did you find that President Biden engaged in a scheme to conceal? Hur: No. Each of the activities I just laid out describe what Donald Trump did, Lieu told Hur. In contrast, President Biden handed over documents without delay and complied fully with investigators. Schiff blasts Hurs questioning of Bidens memory Rep. Adam Schiff speaks during Tuesday's House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) Rep. Adam Schiff, a Democrat from California, grilled Hur over his decision to include his assessment of Bidens mental acuity in his final report. You were not born yesterday; you understood exactly what you were doing, Schiff said. You cannot tell me youre so naive to think your words would not have created a political firestorm. You must have understood the impact of your words, he continued. Your own personal, prejudicial, subjective opinion of the president, one you knew would be amplified by his political opponent. You had to understand that, and you did it anyway. Congressman, what you are suggesting is that I shape, sanitize, omit portions of my reasoning, Hur said before Schiff cut him off. You made a choice, Schiff said. That was a political choice; it was the wrong choice. Hur says his report was not an exoneration Robert Hur testifies at a House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images) (Anadolu via Getty Images) Democrats also suggested that Hurs decision not to recommend criminal charges was an exoneration of Biden an assertion that Hur denied. In one particularly testy exchange, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat representing the state of Washington, read aloud sections of Hurs report stating he did not have evidence to charge Biden with crimes, and said they amounted to an exoneration. I did not exonerate him, Hur interjected. That word does not appear in my report. Raskin rails against Republicans for holding a hearing in the first place Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland, used part of his allotted time for questions to tear into Republicans for what he described as a spectacle while Trump cozies up to authoritarian figures like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whom the former president dined with at Mar-a-Lago over the weekend. That's what all of this is about, Raskin said. It's about trying to pull the wool over the eyes of America because the tyrants and dictators of the world are on the march today. So who wins with this ludicrous embarrassing spectacle? Orban wins. [Russian President Vladimir] Putin wins. [Chinese President] Xi [Jinping] wins. The tyrants of the world win. They have one more reason to celebrate Donald Trump and his cult followers, who've completely lost their way. BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) Advocates for some 200 wild horses roaming North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park are hoping a signal of support from Congress will prevent the removal of the beloved animals from the rugged landscape. A National Park Service decision is expected around April as to the horses' future in the parks colorful, rolling Badlands. It's part of an ongoing process to craft a park management plan for livestock a term horse advocates reject. Republican Sen. John Hoeven 's legislation, tucked in the annual Interior and Environment budget bill that Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed, strongly recommends that the Park Service keep the horses in place. It also signals a potential future action that would deny any funding intended to remove them. Now we'll continue to have a dialogue with them and hopefully get to a good solution, Hoeven said in an interview with The Associated Press. A remaining question is how many horses would ensure the long-term preservation of the herd. Advocates want to see a genetically viable herd of at least 150 horses to avoid inbreeding issues. Park Superintendent Angie Richman has said the horses, if they ultimate stay, would still have to be reduced to 35 to 60 animals under a 1978 environmental assessment. Richman and the National Park Service did not respond to emails for comment on Hoeven's legislation. Previously, park officials have said their evaluation of whether the horses should stay is in line with their policies to remove non-native species when they pose a potential risk to resources. The park has proposed removing the horses quickly or gradually or taking no action. Advocates have feared a predetermined ouster of the horses, whose predecessors were accidentally fenced into the park in the 1950s and were subject to subsequent roundups. The horses' origins include Native American tribes, area ranches and domestic stallions introduced to the park from the late 1970s through the 1990s, said Castle McLaughlin, who researched the horses as a graduate student while working for the Park Service in North Dakota in the 1980s. They really are sort of living history because they reflect the kinds of horses people in North Dakota, both Native and non-Native, had over the last 150 years, said McLaughlin, who cheered state leaders' commitment to preserving the horses and said she is cautiously optimistic but still skeptical the Park Service will do the right thing here. The horses are often seen along the park's scenic road and hiking trails, thrilling visitors and photographers who happen upon them. A vast majority of public comments on the decision process has favored keeping the horses. Chasing Horses Wild Horse Advocates President Chris Kman said she is hopeful the legislation results in the horses staying, but she awaits the park's decision and wonders what the legislation means for a management plan for the horses. I don't think that any of us will trust, even with an act of Congress, that the park is going to do the right thing and allow a genetically viable herd of horses to stay, she said. ...Their attitude all along has pretty much been, you know, We can't keep the horses. We understand the public wants them, but we're not doing it anyway,' no matter what the overwhelming response was." Last year, Gov. Doug Burgum offered state collaboration for maintaining the horses in the park. Richman has said park officials are certainly willing to work with the governor and the state to find a good outcome." All of the horses are in the park's South Unit near Medora. Park officials' ultimate decision will also affect about nine longhorn cattle in the park's North Unit. A newcomer has arrived onto the fast-food scene in Florida: Carl's Jr. Known for its "impossible-to-ignore flavors," Florida's first Carl's Jr. opened this week in South Florida. Here's what you should know about the Carl's Jr., its parent company CKE Restaurants Inc. and partner RSMG Holding LLC. Where is Florida's first Carl's Jr.? Carl's Jr. opened at 5755 NW 87th Ave. in Doral, Florida. A grand opening was held March 12. The location was first announced in July 2023 and was followed by pre-opening celebrations, including dining events for local emergency responders. RSMG will employ more than 40 restaurant "team members," plus management at the 2,500-square-foot Doral restaurant that seats 42. Will Carl's Jr. expand to more locations in Florida? Carl's Jr. held a grand opening at its first Florida location March 12, 2024. "RSMG is looking to position Carl's Jr. as a market leader in South Florida," said Ron Santolaya, CEO and partner of RSMG. In July 2023, CKE Restaurants has partnered with RSMG Holding LLC and Retail & Food International Brand to bring more Carl's Jrs to the Sunshine State and "are actively searching for new real estate partners with drive-thru capabilities and working to develop 35 Carls Jr. locations across the South Florida region." "We look forward to utilizing our values and creating a long-lasting relationship with the Doral and South Florida community that can continue to grow, and hopefully expand both domestically and internationally, over the upcoming years," Santolaya said. Carl's Jr. locations Carl's Jr. has restaurants in 16 states, including its newest one in Florida: Alaska: 4 Arizona: 73 California: 656 Colorado: 47 Florida: 1 Hawaii: 2 Idaho: 19 Louisiana: 1 Nevada: 44 New Mexico: 16 Oklahoma: 38 Oregon: 58 Texas: 30 Utah: 42 Washington: 34 Wyoming: 3 What you should know about Carl's Jr. and the food it offers Carl's Jr. Star and Super Star burgers. Carl's Jr. describes itself as "famous around the world for big, audacious, impossible-to-ignore flavors inspired by its California roots." The restaurant opens in time for breakfast, offering everything from breakfast burritos to a spicy breakfast burger combo. Charbroiled burgers range from the Famous Star with Cheese to the Double Spicy Western Bacon Cheeseburger. Want chicken sandwich or a wrap? Carl's offers those, too. Sides range from the typical French fries or waffle fries to fried zucchini and jalapeno poppers. Want to end with something sweet? Carl's has you covered for dessert, whether it's a cinnamon roll, chocolate cake or strawberry swirl cheesecake. And don't forget about the hand-scooped ice cream shakes. Earn rewards with Carl's Jr. app The Carl's Jr. My Rewards Program provides exclusive offers and promotions. Customers earn stars for every dollar spent. Stars can be redeemed for free food. New My Rewards members can receive an offer for their choice of a free western bacon cheeseburger, hand-breaded chicken sandwich, or bacon-egg- and cheese biscuit with a minimum $1 purchase. Get the app in in the App Store or Google Play. Carl's Jr. history Carl's Jr. was founded in 1941 when Carl Karcher and his wife, Margaret, invested their entire savings to buy a hot dog cart. The first two Carl's Jr. restaurants opened in Anaheim, California, in the 1950s. By 1977, more than 200 locations served California, and Carl's Jr. became the first quick-serve restaurant to offer salad bars at all 200 locations. In 1979, the company opened its first out-of-state location in Las Vegas. Today, there are more than 1,000 locations across the U.S. and can be found in 28 countries. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Carls Jr opens first Florida location in Doral Olivia Munn at the 2024 Vanity Fair Oscar Party held at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on March 10, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California. Credit - Christopher PolkVariety/Getty Images Olivia Munn has revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023 and had a double mastectomy. Munn shared the health update in an Instagram post that included a statement about receiving the diagnosis and photos from her treatment in the last year. In the past ten months, I have had four surgeries, so many days spent in bed I cant even count and have learned more about cancer, cancer treatment and hormones than I ever could have imagined, she wrote. Surprisingly, Ive only cried twice. I guess I havent felt like there was time to cry. My focus narrowed and I tabled any emotions that I felt would interfere with my ability to stay clearheaded. She writes that she kept the diagnosis private because she needed to catch my breath and get through some of the hardest parts before sharing, but allowed people to see her when she had the energy. Munn added that doctors caught the cancer with enough time that I had options, adding that she got an MRI after her OBGYN calculated her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score and found her lifetime risk was 37%, based on factors like Munns family history, her age, and the fact that shed had her first child after the age of 30. The MRI led to an ultrasound, which led to a biopsy, Munn wrote. The biopsy showed that Munn had Luminal B canceran aggressive, fast-moving cancer in both breasts, she says. A month later, she got a double mastectomy. Munn ended the letter by thanking her doctors and her boyfriend, the comedian John Mulaney. Im so thankful to John for the nights he spent researching what every operation and mediation meant and what side effects and recovery I could expect, she wrote. For being there before I went into each surgery and being there when I woke up, always placing framed photos of our little boy Malcolm so it would be the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. In her caption on Instagram, Munn added: I hope by sharing this it will help others find comfort, inspiration, and support on their own journey. Write to Moises Mendez II at moises.mendez@time.com. A US appeals court has ruled Meta cannot stop the US Federal Trade Commission from reopening an investigation into its Facebook unit's privacy practices for now, despite Meta's argument that it has already paid a $5 billion fine and agreed to a range of safeguards. The FTC has accused Meta of misleading parents about protections for their children and wants to tighten an existing 2020 Facebook privacy settlement to ban profiting from minors' data and expand restrictions on facial recognition technology. The decision, from the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, was a major blow for Meta, which had initially asked the court to freeze the FTC case as it pursues separate lawsuits challenging the FTC's probe on constitutional grounds, reported Reuters. The appeals court said the FTC's stated privacy concerns "implicate important public interests" and that Meta would have an opportunity to contest any final action by the agency. In a statement of their own, Meta said the court's order "does not address the substance of the FTC's allegations, which are without merit." Meta also counters that the FTC cannot "unilaterally rewrite" the prior settlement terms, which a US judge approved in 2020. Additionally, the company claimed that the proposed changes under the FTC would "curtail Meta's development of new products, superintend Meta's corporate governance, and impair Meta's ability to serve its users and advertisers." Meta, among other social media companies, are individually fighting hundreds of US lawsuits accusing them of addicting children to their platforms. While Meta has denied these allegations, the FTC is suing the company for monopolizing the personal social network market. Elsewhere in the world of social media, a bill was passed in the House on Wednesday that concerns a ban on the popular video app TikTok in the United States over concerns the company's ownership structure is a threat to national security. The legislation mandates ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, to divest the popular short video platform to an American entity, or else risk being banned in the US, where it currently has 170 million active users. China's Foreign Ministry has said the TikTok ban is "an act of bullying" that would ultimately backfire on the US. US officials and lawmakers have continuously voiced concerns about TikTok and the idea that the Chinese government could compel its parent company, ByteDance, to hand over data collected from US users, or even be used as a propaganda tool for Beijing to spread misinformation or influence the American public. The bill having passed the House is only the first step as the Senate now needs to pass the measure as well. Assuming the bill passes the Senate, it will reahc the desk of President Bidne to be signed into law, which he has repeatedly said he will do. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. GRANTS PASS, Ore. For more than five years, Helen Cruz lived on the streets of Grants Pass. A small, rural town of roughly 40,000 people, the city has now found itself at the center of a homeless crisis plaguing major cities across the U.S. Were in this situation not because we want to be. Were in this situation because we dont have a choice right now, Cruz, 49, said in an interview. For years, Grants Pass has been embroiled in a contentious lawsuit with homeless residents like Cruz, who argue that anti-camping ordinances enacted by the city including fines for sleeping in any park or public space violate their constitutional rights. Helen Cruz (Dan Dvorak / NBC News) The legal battle has now gone all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which is scheduled to hear arguments in the case on April 22. The decision could affect how cities nationwide address homelessness in their communities. Cruz, who couldnt afford rent, said she often slept in a tent in a city park. Although she is no longer homeless working and living at a small local church she said she still has more than $6,000 in tickets and fines. My credit is shot. I have no credit. None, Cruz said. Anything they want to write a ticket for, they do. Cruz and other residents say that because Grants Pass has no low-barrier, full-time homeless shelter, they have no alternative but the street. Its for that reason they argue the city has violated the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, barring cruel and unusual punishment. They are saying because we dont have that white picket fence that were not allowed to live, Cruz said. And we dont have any place to go. The flip side, local officials say, is a city dotted with tents and frustrated residents who feel they cant use their public parks. I think there is a lot of crime happening in these parks, Police Chief Warren Hensman said. And I think our city it deserves to have the ability to hold people accountable to bad behavior. ... I dont think I or anybody else wants to make it difficult for somebody. Pointing to a nearby row of tents, he said: We want to support, we want to help people, but the reality is, this in and of itself is inhumane. Grants Pass, like many cities, is also dealing with a housing shortage. Over the past two decades, as more people moved in, housing costs went up, forcing a growing number of people onto the streets. According to the U.S. census, the population of Grants Pass was nearly 23,000 in 2000. Its now nearly 40,000. I would be surprised if there are very many apartments that you could find for less than $1,200 a month in Grants Pass, Ed Johnson, an Oregon Law Center attorney representing the citys homeless residents, said in an interview. Its very difficult to find housing. The Grants Pass case arrived at the Supreme Court after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the citys homeless residents. The appeals court ruled 2-1 that the city, which is about 250 miles south of Portland, cant enforce its anti-camping ordinances against homeless persons for the mere act of sleeping outside with rudimentary protection from the elements, or for sleeping in their car at night, when there is no other place in the city for them to go. The decision applies only in situations in which homeless people are engaging in conduct necessary to protect themselves from the elements when there is no shelter space available, the court added. Grants Pass appealed, and the Supreme Court decided to take it up. Among those watching the outcome: California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is among several Democrats who have called on the court to side with the city and against those arguing against any limits on outdoor camping. Encampments are dangerous period. California is investing billions to build housing and provide the services needed to get people out of tents and into safer situations, Newsom said in a statement. However, our best efforts are being blocked because of sweeping injunctions that delay progress and fail to provide any consistent guidance for local authorities to abide by. Newsom filed an amicus brief supporting Grants Pass and arguing that rulings in other courts that have banned anti-camping ordinances have paralyzed cities and effectively blocked them from moving people off public streets. Officials in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix are also among those asking the Supreme Court to overturn the appeals court ruling. San Francisco, for instance, is embroiled in its own lawsuit over the clearing of homeless encampments. Mayor London Breed is asking a judge to freeze the lawsuit until the Grants Pass case is decided. It is a unique twist that this ruling is going to go to the Supreme Court, which is very conservative, Sachin Agarwal, a co-founder of GrowSF, a group working to elect more moderate Democratic candidates in San Francisco, said in an interview. We hope that they side with Grants Pass and that we are able to move people to shelter so we can have clean streets, which is good for families, its good for business, its good for the city. Johnson disagrees. He said lawmakers like Newsom and Breed are deflecting blame and siding with Grants Pass for political reasons under pressure from voters who are fed up with rising homelessness in their neighborhoods. Camping site (KOBI) Grants Pass wants to make it illegal on every inch of property, 24 hours a day, Johnson said. The problem is if thats allowed, many cities will simply try to run all of the homeless people out of their community, and they have to go somewhere, so theyre going to go somewhere else, and theyre still going to have to live outside because of the affordable housing shortage. Johnson said that people are being punished for simply existing and that if more cities enact strict anti-camping ordinances like Grants Pass, it could make the homelessness crisis worse. If we go down this line of spending money on criminalization and banishing people from their hometowns, were going to wake up in a year or two years or five years and were going to have twice as many of our neighbors living outside, he said. The city, however, argued that the anti-camping ordinances can help get people into shelters. The status quo is cruel. It is cruel and inhumane to allow encampments to proliferate, said Grants Pass attorney Theane Evangelis, who will argue the case in front of the Supreme Court. When cities are unable to address the situation, theyre unable to cite basic ordinances that can be used as a tool to help get people the services that they need, the help that they need, to break the cycle. A specific point of contention in Grants Pass is the lack of shelters. The city directs people to the Gospel Rescue Mission, but the religious organization, which requires residents to work there, has a complicated list of rules that makes it unappealing for many, including those who are already employed. In a statement to NBC News, Grants Pass Mayor Sara Bristol said the city has had to rely on nonprofits to offer shelters. We simply lack the financial resources to support a full-time shelter, she said. Residents like David Wilson, a veteran who is homeless in Grants Pass, said he cant find a stable job or housing and has even been rejected by fast-food restaurants where he has applied. Wilson said he once was fined $1,000 in three days for sleeping in his tent. He said he tried to use a housing voucher but no one would take it. I understand the problems theyre having. I just think theyre going about dealing with it in the wrong way, he said. So, fine, you get rid of me, you know, you drive us all out of town. Theres another wave coming. Cruz counts herself as one of the lucky ones. After she connected with a local pastor, she now lives at the small church across the street from the park where she once pitched her tent and found work cleaning homes. But she said she never forgets where she came from. Her late friend Deborah Blake was one of the first homeless residents to challenge the city. One of the reasons that I stand up now is because I dont want to see what she started I want to see it finished in the right way, Cruz said. I believe whats right is right and whats wrong is wrong ... and whats going on in this town right now is not right by any means. Wiping tears away, she paused and added: If they side with the city of Grants Pass, I dont really want to think about whats going to happen. Its an uncertainty that nobody wants to think about. After Catherine, Princess of Wales, apologized for "confusion" surrounding a doctored family photograph, a new picture shows the royal leaving Windsor on Monday. Kensington Palace confirmed to NBC News that the former Kate Middleton and Prince William were leaving their residence to attend a "private appointment." The new image comes after Kate released an apology statement on the Kensington Palace X account saying a newly released image, which was pulled from several news outlets due to discernible manipulation, was a result of her experiment with editing. Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mothers Day. C, she wrote. The royal family portrait, which was the first public photo released since the princess underwent unspecified abdominal surgery in January, included Kate with her three children: Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5. In the caption, Kate thanked the public for their support amid her surgery and wished everyone a happy Mother's Day, which is celebrated March 10 in the United Kingdom. According to a statement from Kensington Palace, the photo was taken by Prince William last week in Windsor. After the palace released the family photo, multiple news agencies put out notices to the media advising not to use the image because it appeared to have been manipulated, according to NBC News. The Associated Press, Reuters, Getty Images and Agence France-Presse issued kill notices, which is an advisory to remove or not use a photo, according to messages on their imaging websites and email notifications from some of the agencies, NBC News reported. This article was originally published on TODAY.com By Guy Faulconbridge and Lidia Kelly MOSCOW (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday Russia was technically ready for nuclear war and that if the U.S. sent troops to Ukraine, it would be considered a significant escalation of the conflict. Putin, speaking just days before a March 15-17 election which is certain to give him another six years in power, said the nuclear war scenario was not "rushing" up and he saw no need for the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. "From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready," Putin, 71, told Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA in response to a question whether the country was really ready for a nuclear war. Putin said the U.S. understood that if it deployed American troops on Russian territory - or to Ukraine - Russia would treat the move as an intervention. "(In the U.S.) there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint," said Putin, the ultimate decision maker in the world's biggest nuclear power. "Therefore, I don't think that here everything is rushing to it (nuclear confrontation), but we are ready for this." Putin's nuclear warning came alongside another offer for talks on Ukraine as part of a new post-Cold War demarcation of European security. The U.S. says Putin is not ready for serious talks over Ukraine. The war in Ukraine has triggered the deepest crisis in Russia's relations with the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and Putin has warned several times the West risks provoking a nuclear war if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine. Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering full-scale war after eight years of conflict in eastern Ukraine between Ukrainian forces on one side and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian proxies on the other. NUCLEAR WAR? In a U.S. election year, the West is grappling with how to support Kyiv against Russia, which now controls almost one-fifth of Ukrainian territory and is rearming much faster than the West and Ukraine. Kyiv says it is defending itself against an imperial-style war of conquest designed to erase its national identity. Russia says the areas it controls in Ukraine are now Russia. Putin has sent a series of public nuclear warnings to the U.S. aimed at discouraging greater involvement in Ukraine - a move the Kremlin says would mark a slide into world war. Washington says it has seen no major changes to Russia's nuclear posture but Putin's public nuclear warnings - which break with the extreme caution of the Soviet leadership over such remarks - have sown concern in Washington. Putin reiterated the use of nuclear weapons was spelled out in the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine, which sets out the conditions under which it would use such a weapon: broadly a response to an attack using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction, or the use of conventional weapons against Russia "when the very existence of the state is put under threat." "Weapons exist in order to use them," Putin said. "We have our own principles." CNN reported on Saturday the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden was specifically concerned in 2022 that Russia might use a tactical or battlefield nuclear weapon in Ukraine. Putin said he had never felt the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. TALKS? Putin said Russia was ready for serious talks on Ukraine. "Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but they should be based on reality - and not on cravings after the use of psychotropic drugs," Putin said. Reuters reported last month that Putin's suggestion of a ceasefire in Ukraine to freeze the war was rejected by the U.S. after contacts between intermediaries. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns warned earlier this week that if the West did not provide proper support for Ukraine, Kyiv would lose more territory to Russia which would embolden Chinese President Xi Jinping. Burns, a former U.S. ambassador to Russia, told the Senate Intelligence Committee it was in U.S. interests to support Ukraine to allow it to get into a stronger position before talks. Putin said he trusted no one and Russia would need written security guarantees in the event of a settlement. "I don't trust anyone, but we need guarantees, and guarantees must be spelled out, they must be such that we would be satisfied," Putin said. (Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow and Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Lincoln Feast.) Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said on Tuesday that the proposed TikTok ban makes no sense, ahead of an expected vote on the House floor on Wednesday. In an interview on The Hill on NewsNation, Paul argued that a ban on TikTok would be akin to steps employed by the Chinese government, which, Paul said, is precisely the supposed threat from which such a ban would purport to shield Americans. TikTok is banned in China, Paul said. Were thinking or people who want to ban it are thinking Wow, were going to really defeat the Chinese communists, by becoming Chinese authoritarians and banning it in our country? TikTok is banned in China. So, were going to emulate the Chinese communists by banning it in our country? It makes no sense whatsoever, he added. Paul also argued that some Americans have a stake in TikToks China-based parent company, ByteDance, and that such a ban would be taking property away from Americans without proving a crime first. We know that the Chinese government does demand things, but we dont know that any information really is going from TikTok to any of these people in China, he said, noting that a provable crime is necessary to take property from Americans. Not all lawmakers see the proposed ban this way. The House is expected to vote Wednesday on a bill that would give ByteDance 165 days from the day it is enacted to divest TikTok or face a ban on U.S. app stores and web hosting services. House Republicans are bringing up the bill through a special rule that requires a two-thirds majority to pass the measure, rather than the simple majority needed to pass most House bills. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party and lead co-sponsor of the bill, expressed confidence that it would pass, saying Tuesday that there is a great bipartisan core behind the measure. He noted that the House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced the measure last Thursday in a rare unanimous vote. NewsNation is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The Republican National Committee sued Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, on Wednesday in an attempt to force election officials to trim down the states voter rolls. The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court, argues that Michigan is violating the National Voter Registration Acts requirement to maintain clean and accurate vote registration rolls. The move comes just days after Trump allies effectively took over the RNC's leadership ahead of the 2024 election. At least 53 Michigan counties have more active registered voters than they have adult citizens who are over the age of 18. That number of voters is impossibly high, the lawsuit said. An additional 23 counties have active-voter registration rates that exceed 90 percent of adult citizens over the age of 18. That figure far eclipses the national and statewide voter registration rate in recent elections. Americas voter roll system is built for registration, not removal. The rolls often include outdated registration as most voters do not remove themselves from the system when they move. And while federal law requires officials take steps to keep the rolls up-to-date, it also protects voters from overzealous purges by requiring that officials wait years to remove a voter who has simply stopped casting a ballot. Still, theres no evidence that bloated voter rolls lead to voter fraud, even as Republicans increasingly seize on the rolls as a focus of their election activism. Benson told NBC News in a statement that election officials in the state have "done more in the last five years than was done in the previous two decades to remove deceased voters and ineligible citizens from our voting rolls and ensure their accuracy." She said more than 700,000 voters have have been removed from the voter rolls since she took office, while another half million will be removed if they do not vote in this year's general election. "Lets call this what it is: a PR campaign masquerading as a meritless lawsuit filled with baseless accusations that seek to diminish peoples faith in the security of our elections. Shame on anyone who abuses the legal process to sow seeds of doubt in our democracy," Benson added. Since the 2020 election, some Republican activists have taken to personally challenging the eligibility of thousands of voters and developing a computer program they believe will help them find fraud. In recent years, conservative activists also seized on a prominent voter roll maintenance program known as ERIC (the Electronic Registration Information Center), a bipartisan, interstate partnership that helps states share data to keep their voter rolls up-to-date. After conspiracy theories about ERIC flourished, nine GOP-lead states left the program, taking their data with them and weakening the coalition's efficacy. The RNC suit in Michigan, a key battleground state, suggests voter rolls may become a more central part of the GOP's election law strategy. The filing occurred the same day NBC News reported that two election lawyers, Charlie Spies and Christina Bobb, were joining the RNC. Bobb has been a prominent advocate of the GOP's baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen. She will serve as senior counsel for election integrity, while Spies, a longtime lawyer for the GOP, serves as general counsel. Speaking to conservative activists in 2021, Spies disputed election conspiracy theories and pushed supporters to adopt election changes that would make the system more palatable to Republicans. The deal is early voting is not going away, he said. Weve got to take advantage of that, and telling people not to vote early is cutting your nose off to spite your face. It doesnt work. He continued: We change the system, make us super confident in it, he said. Then encourage people to vote using the laws that we have. Several countries are advising their citizens against travelling to Haiti, including the US, UK, Ireland and Canada as gangs continue to take hold of the country. Earlier this month, gangs attempted to take Haitis Toussaint Louverture International Airport, located in Port-Au-Prince, the countrys capital and broke into a nearby port services terminal. Armed men have also stormed police stations in the country and let thousands of prisoners loose from Haitis National Penitentiary. Ariel Henry, who had been running the country as prime minister and acting president until he resigned on Tuesday amid international pressure, fled the country to Puerto Rico last week after he was refused entry into the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Dominican air, land and sea borders are closed to travellers. What is the situation with airports and ports in Haiti? Flights are not arriving in the country as one of its international airports remains closed following the attacks and a decision made on Monday to form a transitional government after Mr Henrys resignation. It is unclear if cruise ships plan to continue stopping in the country and one international port has been closed. Typically, Spirit Airlines, JetBlue Airways and American Airlines operate flights to the country but those operations have been suspended. All of the airlines have waived change fees for customers wanting to leave the country. Its not clear when commercial flights may resume. Two cruise line companies, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises stop in Labadee, a private resort about six hours away from Port-Au-Prince. Its not clear if the cruise liners plan to continue operating in the country under its current political situation. The Independent has reached out to the companies for comment. State of emergency now in place Haiti has declared a state of emergency through 3 April. A daily curfew is in place in the capital from 6pm to 5am. In a security alert released on Sunday, The US Department of State urged American citizens against travelling to the country. Activist reacts during a demonstration against CARICOM for the decision following the resignation of Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry (Anadolu via Getty Images) The current security situation in Haiti is unpredictable and dangerous, the statement read. We are aware that there are few or no commercial options to depart Haiti safely at this time. As they become available, we urge US citizens to take advantage of them. US citizens currently in the country should prepare to shelter in place for an extended period of time and seek assistance from the US embassy in Port-Au-Prince. Citizens should note that the US is unable to facilitate travel out of the country. US military evacuates embassy staff Over the weekend, US military officials moved to evacuate non-essential personnel from the embassy. The German and EU embassies also took similar measures. Protesters demand the resignation of prime minister Ariel Henry in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 7 March 2024 (EPA/Johnson Sabin) The UK, Irish and Canadian governments are advising their citizens against travelling to Haiti, but anyone in the country should contact their nearest diplomatic missions. The UK has an embassy in Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republics capital. Meanwhile, Irish citizens should get in touch with the countrys embassy in Washington DC. The Canadian embassy in Port-Au-Prince is closed but citizens may call the office for emergency assistance. From left, Dana Wachs and John Miller The GOP-controlled state Senate fired eight Democratic appointees Tuesday, including two members of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents who voted against a controversial deal limiting campus diversity positions in exchange for state funding. The Senate has rejected 21 nominations since 2019. From 1981 through 2018, the chamber rejected four appointees, according to the nonpartisan Legislative Research Bureau. Gov. Tony Evers slammed Republicans for the unprecedented move, calling it petty, partisan politics. "Republicans have turned a basic duty of government into a political circus, and the ones who pay the price are the people of Wisconsin," he said in a statement. Among those losing their jobs Tuesday were UW Regents John Miller and Dana Wachs; Wisconsin Judicial Commission members Yulonda Anderson, Jane Foley, Janet Jenkins and Judy Ziewacz; Deferred Compensation Board member Terrance Craney; and Council on Domestic Abuse member Mildred Gonzales. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, defended the rejections, noting nearly 600 of Evers' appointees had been approved. The Senate takes its role in the advice and consent process seriously," LeMahieu said in a statement. "Appointments must prove that they are qualified, capable, and that they will follow the law in their capacities." Judicial Commission appointees rejected Senate Republicans rejected four of the governors five nominees to the Judicial Commission, which investigates allegations of judicial misconduct. Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, who chairs the committee that considered their appointments, said the rejected nominees displayed a lack of knowledge of the commissions processes, despite having served on it for years. In many cases, he said, they had also endorsed candidates for judicial offices. The former chair didnt know how meetings were noticed, refused to tell the Senate who the current chair of the Commission was, didnt know what a walking quorum was, or if the Commission was subject to Open Meetings Laws, Wanggaard said in a statement. Others hid behind the Commissions confidentiality, or used technicalities and questionable methodology to justify decisions they made or will make. Before the votes, Sen. Kelda Roys, D-Madison, accused Republicans of acting out of their frustration with the 2023 election of liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz to the state Supreme Court. Roys said Republican members of the committee appeared to want the nominees to prejudge cases that could come before them. After the votes, Evers announced that he had appointed Barbara Notestein, Roberta Gassman, Analiese Eicher and John Hendricks to the commission. For two appointees, no reason offered Senate Republicans rejected Craney and Gonzales without explanation. That's despite Democrats requesting LeMahieu and Sen. Jesse James, R-Altoona, who chaired the committee that approved Gonzales in a 5-0 vote last fall, provide the reasons for their failed nominations. Its obvious this is about Wisconsin Republicans exacting their political punishment and retribution on Wisconsinites whove volunteered to give their time, expertise, and experience to serve our neighbors and our state. And that is a damn shame, Evers said in a statement. UW regents voted against deal on diversity positions, pay raises, building projects Senate Republicans similarly offered no reason during Tuesday's floor session on why they rejected Miller and Wachs. Senate Democrats believe the regents' nominations were sunk because of their votes against a deal UW System President Jay Rothman struck with Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, late last year to restructure campus diversity positions in exchange for $800 million in building projects and pay raises. Republican Sen. Robert Cowles, of Green Bay, joined Democrats in supporting the appointments. Wachs, an Eau Claire attorney, joined the UW Board of Regents in 2022 for a term ending in 2029. He previously served as a Democratic state Assembly representative and launched an unsuccessful bid for governor in 2018. The Senate's rejection Tuesday may spur Wachs to rejoin the Legislature. He said he's seriously considering a bid in the Assembly. "Its really upsetting to see the vengeance that these people have," he said. "Ive not seen that before at this level. Its disturbing that these people are in the Legislature." Only one other UW regent fired since 1981 Firing a UW regent is rare, occurring just once before since 1981. Sheboygan businessman Terry Kohler lost his bid to be on the board in 1991 over comments he made about Democrats, gay people and South African Black people. Miller said the irony of losing his unpaid appointment for the opposite reason defending students of color and those in the LGBTQ community wasn't lost on him. The Milwaukee venture capitalist had been serving unconfirmed for nearly half of his seven-year term ending in 2028. Miller said the Senate's actions would have a chilling effect on the democratic process. "It sends a message to future potential volunteers: Why would you spend hundreds of hours of your time serving the public to ultimately have your character and integrity impugned over what was a policy disagreement?" Miller said. "I didnt rob a bank. I just disagreed with the Legislature. Are their skins so thin they need to fire me instead of having a legitimate debate?" New UW regents named Replacing Miller will be Haben Goitom, who serves as legal vice president of Mainspring Energy. She previously worked nearly a decade at Alliant Energy and attended UW-Madison Law School. Taking over for Wachs will be Amy Traynor, an Anthony Acres School teacher in the Mondovi School District. She earned her bachelors degree from UW-Stevens Point and a master's from UW-La Crosse. She was named the 2013 Wisconsin State Middle School Teacher of the Yea. Contact Kelly Meyerhofer at kmeyerhofer@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at@KellyMeyerhofer.Jessie Opoien can be reached at jessie.opoien@jrn.com. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Senate rejects 8 appointees, including 2 UW Regents A ship carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza has departed the port city of Larnaca in Cyprus, according to World Central Kitchen, a non-profit which said it is the first maritime shipment of aid to the war-torn strip. The ship will take about 60 hours to reach Gaza from Cyprus, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. It left around 3:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday. After weeks of preparation, our team in Cyprus loaded almost 200 tons of food onto the Open Arms boat that will deliver the desperately-needed aid, WCK said in a statement on Tuesday. The organization said it plans to distribute the aid itself once it reaches Gaza. Responding to questions from CNN, a WCK spokesperson said the group will distribute 200 tons of food, which equates to roughly 500,000 meals. The besieged enclave is home to more than 2 million Palestinians. WCK is working with thousands of contractors and volunteers locally to organize and distribute the aid, the spokesperson added. It has partnered with the United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and the Spanish charity Open Arms to coordinate the dispatch. The group told CNN it couldnt disclose the location of the jetty in Gaza where the Open Arms ship will land, but said that its teams are working on it 24/7. Separately, Israels Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the agency that runs Israeli operations in the Palestinian territories, told CNN Tuesday that Israel had participated in the process of inspecting the ship, without specifying when or where that was done. COGAT inspects aid going into Gaza, and has been accused by aid agencies of denying access for arbitrary reasons, or no reason at all. The aid dispatch comes as Cyprus, the European Commission, the United States, the UAE and the United Kingdom are working to establish a maritime corridor to deliver aid assistance directly to Gaza. The ship was originally expected to depart Sunday from Larnaca, Cyprus, but had been delayed due to practical issues, the Cypriot government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said in a briefing Monday. The ship is normally a search and rescue vessel used by the NGO Open Arms. To transport the pallets from the barge and the ship to land, a temporary jetty will be built in an undisclosed location in Gaza, though the precise details of the effort are unclear. On Sunday, WCK Founder Jose Andres said the jetty would be built with material and infrastructure in Gaza with help from barges and amphibious vehicles. He said on X that the pier would be built With @openarms_fund serving as our logistics and command in the watercarrying the initial barge near the beach.plus a big cargo boat for reloading. The ship will be towing a large barge packed with pallets of food aid, including rice, flour, beans, lentils, and canned meats. WCK says it has served more than 35 million meals in Gaza since October, and is working with almost 400 locally-hired staff. Not enough While maritime and air-dropped aid into Gaza are helpful, they cant replace truck-delivered aid, UN Humanitarian Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process (UNSCO) Jamie McGoldrick told CNN. Roads have been the traditional method we have used in the past, and we have three roads that enter Gaza, north to south, he said, adding that with only one road currently operational, relief is slowed. Delivering aid by ship also comes with its own complications. One of the problems and complications, I think, will be the logistics of offloading boats onto a beach, and then onloading onto trucks, McGoldrick said, adding that this will have to be done in an area which is prone to insecurity. WCK said it is working with partners in Gaza to construct a jetty, that will then be used to offload aid before loading it onto trucks. A top Palestinian health official told CNN the aid entering northern Gaza is not enough for anyone. The ground aid arriving in the northern Gaza Strip is very, very smallnot enough for anyone, Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Ashraf Al-Qidra said Tuesday. As Israel continues to restrict the entry of aid via land crossings, countries are now trying to get aid into the besieged enclave via air and sea routes. The US, Jordan and the UAE and several others have carried out airdrops into Gaza in recent days despite warnings from aid organizations that they are a dangerous and inefficient way of transporting aid. Once aid arrives in Gaza, it is transported via two routes: Salah Eddine street and Al-Bahr street, Al-Qidra said. Hungry civilians then crowd along two roundabouts along the routes, hoping to get a morsel of food, Al-Qidra said in a statement. Brink of famine The ongoing delivery comes as northern Gaza is on the brink of famine as aid deliveries fall short, according to the head of the UN World Food Programme. The number of children dying of malnutrition and dehydration in the area is rising, including two newborn girls on Monday, a pediatrician at the Kamal Adwan Hospital said. Israels siege on Gaza has drastically diminished essential supplies entering the strip, where Palestinians are facing starvation, dehydration and hunger. Israeli authorities insist there is no limit on the amount of relief that can enter Gaza, but humanitarian groups have repeatedly warned Israels restrictions on land crossings into the strip has throttled aid distribution efforts. Humanitarian workers and government officials working to deliver urgently needed aid for Gaza say a clear pattern has emerged of Israeli obstruction. The Israeli agency that controls access to Gaza for the multi-billion-dollar aid effort has imposed arbitrary and contradictory criteria, according to more than two dozen humanitarian and government officials interviewed by CNN. CNNs Nadeen Ebrahim in Abu Dhabi contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Jake Lloyd, who starred as young Anakin Skywalker in 'The Phantom Menace,' has been in rehab for about 10 months 20th Century Fox/Everett Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker, 1999 Jake Lloyd, who starred in the Star Wars franchise as a child actor, is now in a mental health rehabilitation facility, according to his mother. In an exclusive interview published with Scripps News on Monday, Lloyds mother, Lisa Lloyd, told the outlet about her now 35-year-old sons ongoing struggles with mental illness. She also wanted to share some of the reasons shes more hopeful today than shes been in years. Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Lisa Lloyd and son Jake Lloyd Jake appeared in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace as a child where he portrayed Anakin Skywalker. In later films, Skywalker would become the fearsome villain Darth Vader. And with the 25th anniversary of The Phantom Menace release fast approaching, Lisa thought it would be the perfect time to open up about how her son has been doing since his time in Star Wars. Related: 'Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace' Cast: Where Are They Now? Jake started having some trouble in high school, Lisa told Scripps News, recalling the time she first noticed her sons personality changing. He started talking about realities. He didn't know if he was in this reality, or a different reality. I didn't really know exactly what to say to that. She added that one day, she asked him if hed completed his homework and he said to her, I don't even know if I need to do it. I dont know which reality Im in. And I'm like, Well, you're in my reality today, so you have to do your homework, Lisa told the then-teen. 20th Century Fox/Everett Jake Lloyd, 1999 After taking Jake to see a doctor, the medical provider said he could have bipolar disorder, she said. Although he was prescribed several medications to correct the issues, nothing seemed to work, according to Lisa. As time went on, Jake graduated from high school in 2007, and had been excited about beginning fall courses at Columbia College Chicago. However, this is where Lisa said things began to drastically change. Related: Inside Carrie Fisher's Revolutionary Openness About Her Mental Illness: 'She Changed the World' He missed a lot of classes, and he was telling me that people were following him, she told the outlet. She said her son would claim to see people with black eyes staring at him out in public, and that sometimes, he would engage in late-night conversations with Daily Show host Jon Stewart through his television screen. Gilbert Carrasquillo/FilmMagic Jake Lloyd, Philadelphia Comic Con 2011 He continued seeing doctors until he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. When they finally told him, it totally threw him off into an even worse depression, Lisa said during the interview. It was really hard. She talked about how he refused to take his medication because he didnt think he was sick. Lisa also recalled a time in 2015 when Jake led deputies on a multi-county chase before wrecking his car. When she tried to get him an attorney, Jake would not answer her calls. She discussed how painful the situation was, while also describing a time when he called her to say hed been shot in his apartment. Lisa then realized he was hallucinating. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Lisa said Jake is currently about 10 months into an 18-month stay at a mental health rehabilitation facility after what she calls a full-blown psychotic break in March 2023 when he turned his car off in the middle of a three-lane road and police were called. Hes doing much better than I expected, she said, adding that hes becoming a little bit more social. And decades later, Jake is still a fan of the franchise. He loves all the new Star Wars stuff, she said. People think Jake hates Star Wars. He loves it. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A total of 60 new criminal charges have been filed against Stephan Sterns in connection to the death of 13-year-old Madeline "Maddie" Soto. The State Attorneys Office for the Ninth Judicial Circuit filed the charges on Monday. Sterns is the boyfriend of Soto's mother, Jennifer Soto. Madeline went missing from her home in Kissimmee, Florida on Feb. 26. Two days later, Kissimmee police and the Orange County Sheriff's Office took Sterns, 37, into custody and said he was a "prime suspect" in her disappearance. Madeline "Maddie" Soto On March 1, investigators confirmed that Osceola County Sheriff's search teams found Madeline's body in a wooded area off of Hickory Tree Road, in an area southeast of Orlando. Madeline Soto: Boyfriend of Madeline Soto's mom arrested in connection to Florida teen's disappearance What happened to Madeline? Officials at the time said Sterns was the last person to see Madeline alive on the day she disappeared. He was charged with sexual battery and possession of child sexual abuse material. The Orange County Sheriff's office said video evidence showed Sterns "discarding items in a dumpster at the familys Kissimmee apartment complex" at 7:35 a.m. on Feb. 26. Investigators later found Madeline's backpack in the dumpster. Sterns could then be seen returning to the family's home at around 8:20 a.m. with Madeline visible in the car, but investigators believe she was already dead. During the sheriff's office's investigation into Madeline's disappearance, detectives found "disturbing images when they forensically examined Sterns phone." "The review of his phone also revealed attempts to delete evidence," the office said. Detectives said the alleged crimes were committed at Madeline's home, so the Kissimmee Police Department was notified. Photo: Florida sheriff apologizes for posting photo of dead body believed to be Madeline Soto: Reports New charges filed against Sterns On Monday, state prosecutors filed a total of 60 new charges against Sterns including: 8 counts of Sexual Battery on a Child Under 12 5 counts of Sexual Battery with a Child 12-18 (Familial/Custodial Authority) 7 counts of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation 40 counts of Unlawful Possession of Materials Depicting Sexual Performance by a Child Ten or More Images The State Attorneys Office has been working closely with KPD and received evidence that gave us cause to file formal charges against Sterns. We appreciate the thoroughness and detailed attention of their investigation and will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to build a strong case against the defendant," State Attorney Andrew Bain said. Sterns will eventually be arraigned on these charges, the state attorney's office said. If convicted he could face a life sentence. Contributing: Jonathan Limehouse This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Madeline Soto case: 60 new charges filed against Stephan Sterns A trial date has been postponed for former Las Vegas-area elected official Robert Telles. Telles stands accused of killing an investigative reporter he believed to be critical of him in his articles. A new date wasn't immediately set following the update from a Nevada judge. Telles, 47, remains in prison without bail and has pleaded not guilty to the murder charge. Should he be convicted, he faces life in prison. Prosecutors in court Tuesday argued that more time is needed to review key evidence from cellphone and computer records before trying Telles in the September 2022 stabbing death of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German. German, 69, dedicated more than 40 years as an investigative reporter in Las Vegas. Las Vegas police charged Telles in September for the crime after DNA evidence found underneath the victim's fingernails was discovered. Police efforts were stalled for months by arguments that had reached the state Supreme Court, questioning whether access to German's cellphone and computer files would violate a confidential information clause protected from disclosure under state and federal law, said The Associated Press. Review-Journal representatives are now tasked with inspecting the records. He had been found stabbed to death outside his home months after the critical articles he had published in 2022. Telles was consistently the subject of German's pieces, detailing the ex-official's misdeeds and turmoil in office. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A student pilot tried to open the door of an Alaska Airlines cockpit multiple times while the plane was in the air, according to court documents. The flight was traveling from California to Virginia on March 3, according to an affidavit filed by federal air marshal Thomas G. Pattinson and reviewed by CBS News. Pattinson said that the passenger, identified as Nathan Jones, was seated in the plane's seat 6E but left his seat multiple times. Jones made three separate attempts to go to the front of the plane and open the cockpit door, Pattinson said. Flight attendants eventually requested help from off-duty law enforcement officers, who "restrained Jones in flex cuffs and sat on either side of him for the remainder of the flight," according to the affidavit. To prevent further disturbances, the flight deck was "locked down for the remainder of the flight," and the flight attendants used a beverage cart as a barrier to block entrance to the cockpit. Jones told the flight attendants that he was "testing them," according to the affidavit. When the aircraft landed at Dulles International Airport in Virginia, Jones allowed law enforcement to search his luggage, where agents found "multiple notebooks with writings describing how to operate an aircraft, including take-off, in-air, and landing techniques," according to the affidavit. His wallet also contained a student pilot's license, the affidavit said. The Federal Aviation Administration told CBS News in a statement that the flight landed safely at around 3:30 local time after a the crew "reported a passenger disturbance." The incident is under investigation, the FAA said. Jones was arrested and charged with interference with flight crew members. The maximum penalty for the charge is 20 years in prison. "The charges against Mr. Jones are shocking to his mother and family," said Jones' lawyer, Robert J. Jenkins of Virginia's Bynum & Jenkins PLLC, in a statement provided to CBS News. "The allegations are completely inconsistent with the life he has lived. He is a young man without any history of criminal conduct or violence. At this stage we are acutely concerned with his mental health and are working to address his needs. We have confidence that at the end it will be clear that Mr. Jones never intended to harm or threaten anyone." Jones will next appear for a detention hearing scheduled for March 18, according to court documents reviewed by CBS News. He will remain in custody until then. The FAA said on its website that 320 unruly passenger incidents have been reported in 2024. This includes 145 reports in January and another 175 reports made in February. Young people saying no to dating app subscription fees Some charges against Trump, others dismissed in Georgia election interference case House passes TikTok crackdown bill with fate in Senate unclear Five weeks after his report into Joe Biden's handling of classified documents exploded a political bombshell, former special counsel Robert Hur appeared at a hearing in Congress to explain and defend his work. Although Mr Hur declined to pursue a criminal case against Mr Biden or any of his associates, his report became a political lightning rod for how it depicted the president of the US. It characterised him as a "well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory". It also cited instances of Mr Biden being unable to recall some details, which prompted an angry response from the president who insisted his memory was fine. Not surprisingly, his memory and mental acuity featured prominently at the hearing, which was a clear demonstration of the sharp partisan divide over the report. Here are some key takeaways. Biden versus Trump The hearings began with duelling videos. Republicans played Mr Biden's impromptu press conference responding to the Hur report, during which he at times appeared angry and flustered and confused the leaders of Egypt and Mexico. Democrats countered with an unflattering montage of clips of Donald Trump, Mr Biden's likely Republican opponent in November, in which the former president garbled words and admitted lapses of memory. It was an early indication of the Democratic strategy to counter Republican accusations that Mr Biden is senile by claiming Mr Trump is just as bad - if not worse. Republicans also quickly accused the Justice Department of having a two-tiered standard for prosecution, claiming that Mr Biden avoided charges while special counsel Jack Smith indicted Mr Trump for his handling of classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago club. "Justice for thee, but not for me," said New Jersey Republican Jeff Van Drew. "Trump is worse" is a familiar page out of the Biden presidential campaign's playbook, but on Tuesday both sides had opportunities to launch campaign-style salvos at each other. With the president's team trying to paint their candidate as substantially more ethical than Mr Trump, a fight to a draw here may have helped the Trump side level the playing field on what could have been a damaging topic. Democrats countered with unflattering clips of Donald Trump Biden's memory Hours before Mr Hur began his testimony, the Justice Department released a transcript of the president's interview with the special counsel's team. In his report, the special counsel offered several examples of what he described as Mr Biden's memory lapses. Some, such as the president's inability to remember when his vice-presidential term ended, are fairly clear. Others, such as the exact date of his son Beau's death are a bit more complicated. The president recalled the exact day and date of his son's death but the year - 2015 - was quickly provided by an aide. On multiple occasions, in fact, the president's aides would chime in with information if Mr Biden appeared to be hesitating. Whether these instances should have been more generally described as signs of a failing memory prompted one of the more heated exchanges of the hearing, as Democrat Adam Schiff of California pressed the special counsel on whether he knew the "political firestorm" his conclusions would create. "You were not born yesterday, you understood exactly what you were doing," he said. "It was a political choice. It was the wrong choice." Mr Hur countered that he was required to include his reasoning in his report to the attorney general and that he refused to "shape, sanitise or omit portions of my reasoning for political reasons". The president's ghostwriter Committee Republicans repeatedly turned to the president's communications with Mark Zwonitzer, a ghostwriter who worked on Mr Biden's two memoirs. Mr Zwonitzer tried to delete audio recordings of his conversations with Mr Biden for those books after learning Mr Hur had been appointed special counsel. That prompted Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz to wonder why the ghostwriter wasn't charged with obstruction of justice. "What does somebody have to do to get charged with obstruction of justice by you," Mr Gaetz, a Republican, asked. "If deleting the evidence of crimes doesn't count, what would meet the standard?" Mr Hur said the audio files were less important because the ghostwriter kept transcripts. Jim Jordan, the Judiciary Committee's Republican chairman, suggested Mr Biden, who received an $8m advance on one of his memoirs, had a financial motivation for saving classified documents - so he could share them with his ghostwriter. "Joe Biden had 8 million reasons to break the rules," he said. Hur under the microscope Mr Hur began his testimony, as many witnesses under the national spotlight do, by recounting his personal story. He's a child of Korean immigrants who came to the US to seek a better life. "I'm privileged to have served our country for the majority of my career," he noted, before launching into a full-throated defence of his report and its conclusions. Over the next three hours, the former special counsel was hit from both sides of the political divide. He largely remained composed under the spotlight. When Democrat Hank Johnson of Georgia accused him of trying to help Mr Trump get elected so he could be appointed to a federal judgeship, Mr Hur showed a rare flash of anger. "I have no such aspirations," he said. "Partisan politics had no place whatsoever in my work." With his testimony completed and his investigation closed, Mr Hur may be able to step out of the spotlight for as long as he desires. Congressional Republicans aren't done with their investigations, however. They are still seeking access to video recordings of Mr Hur's interviews, which could spark another round of embarrassing or politically damaging revelations for the president and his staff. A former Tennessee teacher arrested in September 2023 for allegedly sexually assaulting a 12-year-old boy is now facing a 23-count indictment for sexual misconduct against nearly two dozen other potential minor victims, according to police. Alissa McCommon, a 38-year-old former elementary school teacher, was initially arrested Sept. 8 and charged with rape of a child. "Our goal in any of these investigations is to identify any potential victims and provide medical assistance, counseling and support for their families throughout the investigation," Covington Police Chief Donna Turner said in a March 8 statement. "Without this vital intervention, the ripple effect of trauma can last for years with the victims and the family unit." On March 5, a Tipton County grand jury handed down a 23-count indictment against McCommon "with multiple sexual misconduct offenses against minors," the Covington Police Department said in a March 8 press release. TENNESSEE TEEN TESTIFIED AGAINST TEACHER WHO SUGGESTED SHE MAY BE PREGNANT WITH HIS CHILD McCommon, 38, of Covington, allegedly admitted to "communicating inappropriately with former students" through online video games and social media apps, sending them "inappropriate photographs" and requesting "sexual relationships with the victims," police said. The Covington Police Department Criminal Investigations Division, Tipton County Sheriffs Office and the District Attorneys Office worked together to identify 21 "potential victims" during their criminal investigation, the press release stated. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Detectives worked closely with the 25th Judicial District Attorneys Office prosecutors to present evidence in the investigation involving five (5) victims of offenses with substantiating evidence resulting in twenty-three (23) separate counts. The victims' ages ranged from 12 to 17 years of age," police said. FAMILY OF ALLEGEDLY PREGNANT TEACHER ARRESTED ON STUDENT SEX CHARGES IS EXPERIENCING RIDICULE: LAWYER Former Tennessee teacher Alissa McCommon is facing 23 new charges related to sexual misconduct of minors after she was initially arrested in September for the alleged rape of a child. New charges filed against McCommon include rape of a child, five counts of aggravated statutory rape, four counts of sexual exploitation by electronic means, four counts of solicitation of a minor to commit aggravated statutory rape, two counts of statutory rape by an authority figure, two counts of coercion of a witness, two counts of aggravated stalking, violation of the Child Protective Act, tampering with evidence and harassment. The former teacher pleaded not guilty on Monday, according to WREG. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER ACCUSED OF RAPING STUDENT IMPLIES SHE'S PREGNANT WITH HIS CHILD: REPORT "We anticipated that the indictment would be coming," Lauren Fuchs, a defense attorney and partner at the Law Office of Massey McClusky Fuchs & Ballenger, told Fox News Digital, adding her team received discovery in court Monday. McCommon's defense will sort through those materials to get a better idea of what kind of evidence is included in the case against the former teacher. Former fourth-grade teacher Alissa McCommon was arrested again for allegedly attempting to message the 12-year-old boy she's accused of raping in 2021. Covington Police have said McCommon contacted former students online and engaged in inappropriate communication with them. The first victim who spoke up about McCommon's alleged abuse, a boy who's now 15, previously told police that while spending the night at the suspect's residence in 2021, he awoke to McCommon, now 38, sexually assaulting him. TEACHER ACCUSED OF RAPING 12-YEAR-OLD REARRESTED FOR TELLING VICTIM HE'LL REGRET DOING THIS After her arrest on a child rape charge in September 2023, McCommon was released on $250,000 bond until she was arrested again Sept. 28 and charged with coercing, harassing and stalking the victim. Elementary school teacher Alissa McCommon allegedly contacted former students online and engaged in inappropriate communication with them. The former teacher is accused of purchasing a phone at Walmart after her initial arrest to contact the victim. The former elementary school teacher previously suggested in phone calls played aloud in court she may be pregnant with the boy's child. ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHER ACCUSED OF RAPING BOY SENT PICS AND TALKED SEX ONLINE: COPS "I'm going to raise this baby. I can do this," McCommon can reportedly be heard saying in the recording, according to FOX 13 Memphis. Covington Police Chief Donna Turner said she is in contact with the U.S. Attorneys Office, and authorities "intend to pursue any appropriate federal charges related to the sexual exploitation of these victims utilizing cellphones, inappropriate relations and activities across jurisdictional state lines." Tipton County Sheriff Shannon Beasley described the seven-month investigation into McCommon's alleged crimes as "lengthy and sensitive." "With the crossing of jurisdictional boundaries, our detectives have worked closely with the Covington Police Department and the District Attorney Generals Office, as well as the School Board and Carl Perkins Center to reach these indictments," Beasley said. "More importantly, we have worked with our victims and their families in order to bring McCommon to justice, and we will allow the judicial system to run its course. For now, McCommon will remain in jail and await her day in court." Police are asking anyone with concerns a child may have been victimized by McCommon to contact the Covington Police Department CID at 901-475-1261 or the Tipton County Sheriffs Office CID at 901-475-3300. Original article source:Tennessee teacher accused of sexually assaulting boy, 12, allegedly harmed nearly 2 dozen other minors A US plan to deliver aid to Gaza from a floating pier at sea will be fraught with potential logistical and security challenges. More than 1,000 US troops are expected to participate in the operation although the Pentagon says there will be no "boots on the ground". To help achieve that, the US has partnered with a little-known private firm, Fogbow, which is run by former military and intelligence officials. The goal is to deliver aid equivalent to two million meals a day to Gaza, where the United Nations has warned that famine is "almost inevitable" without urgent action. Here's what we know about this huge logistical exercise. How will the US set up the pier? US Army vessels set sail on Saturday and Monday to take equipment to the Mediterranean. According to the Pentagon, the plan includes two main components which need to be assembled - a big floating dock made up of steel segments and a two-lane, 1,800ft (548m) causeway and pier. The causeway will be composed of interconnected, 40ft (12m) steel pieces linked together and attached to the shore. Cargo ships deliver supplies to the dock and the aid is then offloaded onto a range of barges and smaller vessels - known as logistics support vessels, or LSVs - and taken to the pier. From there, vehicles will drive the supplies onto land and into Gaza. The causeway will be assembled at sea and "driven" into the beach, allowing US forces to avoid setting foot on Gaza. The US is supporting its ally Israel and has designated Hamas a terrorist organisation. This amphibious building project - officially known as Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore, or JLOTS - is one that the US military has used before in Kuwait, Somalia, Haiti and Central America for disaster relief missions. Earlier versions were used as far back as World War II following the invasion of Normandy on D-Day. As recently as July last year, the defence department used similar JLOTS equipment during a large-scale exercise in Australia. Infographic on Gaza dock and pier "The military's preference, of course, is to have an operating port. That makes everything much easier," Mark Cancian, a retired US Marine Corps colonel with experience planning amphibious operations, told the BBC. "But that's not always possible, either due to a conflict situation or in a peacetime, humanitarian mission," he added. "That's where JLOTS comes in." What is Fogbow and what role will it play? Fogbow is led by Sam Mundy, a former Marine Corps lieutenant general who previously commanded forces in the Middle East, and Mick Mulroy, a former CIA paramilitary officer and assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East. The full details of what they will be doing has not been made public before. But a person familiar with the plan told the BBC that the Fogbow operation - known internally as Blue Beach Plan - is primarily to organise the movement of aid after it arrives on the Gaza shore. The containers will be emptied and the contents put on trucks to be taken to distribution points further into Gaza, as part of a plan approved by the US and Israeli governments. The floating dock could look like this one built in a training exercise in Australia The BBC has been told that Fogbow is still looking for funding and has briefed a range of European and Middle East governments on the plans. In the longer term, Fogbow plans to set up a donor-run foundation to help funnel aid into Gaza. How will security be handled? Military experts say the plan's success is dependent on security, both from the possibility of hostile fire in a still-active combat zone and from large crowds of civilians gathering on the shore. Retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery, a 32-year veteran of the US Navy with experience delivering humanitarian aid, said that the operation requires a "security cocoon" to be established both on the beach and in the shallow water nearby. "You cannot have civilians getting on the pier," said Mr Montgomery. "They could be a parent desperately looking for food for their children - or they could be trying to kill somebody. That would shut down operations." Two people familiar with the plan told the BBC that the Israel Defense Force (IDF) will run "outer" security to prevent crowds of civilians reaching the beach and to make the area safe. The distribution will be the responsibility of local, unarmed Palestinians. Palestinians line up for food from aid organisations Fogbow is expected to have only limited logistics roles and will not be involved in distribution. While the Pentagon has said no US troops will set foot in Gaza, experts say the reality could be more complicated. "People are going to have to be giving guidance on the exact angles you want things to go in, or perhaps the right consistency of sand that is needed, those sorts of things," Mr Montgomery said. "They will need to be there checking things out and making sure we're anchoring in the exact right spot." If that person on the beach is not a US service member, it will be an experienced contractor, probably retired US military, Mr Montgomery added. What difference will the shipments make? According to the US defence department, this temporary pier will mean two million meals a day could enter Gaza. That would be enough to feed almost all of the territory's 2.3 million population. It would also constitute far more aid than is currently coming in over land through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt and Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel, or through airdrops. Earlier this week, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the maritime option was being explored because other options are insufficient. But he said there is no substitute for assistance coming in trucks over land, so they would continue to push for that. Gaza Pier map The quickest and most effective way to get aid into Gaza is by road. But aid agencies say Israeli restrictions mean a fraction of what is needed is crossing. Humanitarian organisations and US officials have said that increased shipments over land remain the only viable option to meet demand while the pier is set up. "Even in a best-case scenario, [the pier] won't be there for close to two months as an effective delivery mechanism," Mr Montgomery said. "We have to account for that as we handle humanitarian challenges over the next 45 days." The operation could be partly functioning before the pier is built. The BBC understands that Fogbow is looking into dredging a beach to allow barges to get close enough to shore that aid can be unloaded on to trucks. Others are also exploring the maritime route for aid while so little is getting in over land. A Spanish ship towing a barge loaded with 200 tonnes of food supplies has finally set sail from Cyprus on Monday. It hopes to dock at a small jetty being built by a US charity on the Gaza coast. Less than a week after the Uvalde City Council received an investigative report clearing local police officers of wrongdoing in the 2022 Robb Elementary School massacre, the Texas citys police chief abruptly announced Tuesday he is quitting. The resignation came hours before the council declined to comment on the investigative report during a regularly scheduled public meeting Tuesday night, saying it needed more time to assess the reports findings. Chief Daniel Rodriguez was on vacation and was not in Uvalde on May 24, 2022, when a teenage gunman was left unchallenged in the school for 77 minutes, but had assigned Lt. Mariano Pargas to be acting chief that day. Nineteen children and two teachers died. Pargas was at the school within minutes but failed to take on a command role or act to save children trapped with the shooter, even when he was told of a child calling from the classroom to say students were still alive and needed help. Pargas resigned from the Uvalde Police Department in November 2022. Rodriguez returned to Uvalde and remained head of the force. He has stood by his officers who responded to the school and has not taken disciplinary action against them, even as families have persisted in demanding he fire those who waited in the hallway. In a statement posted on Facebook Tuesday, Rodriguez said it is time for me to embrace a new chapter in my career. His resignation is effective April 6. Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez - City of Uvalde The announcement comes less than a week after an independent investigator hired by the city reported his findings at a packed city council meeting Thursday, and said all the officers who responded to the school from the Uvalde Police Department acted in good faith and should be exonerated sparking the fury of many victims parents and community members who have said for nearly two years that some should not be absolved. The findings came after reports from the US Department of Justice and the Texas House of Representatives said there were multiple failures with the law enforcement response. Decisions on whether state criminal charges will be filed have yet to be made. Local District Attorney Christina Mitchell has begun presenting evidence to a special grand jury, but there is no public timeline for when she may announce whether charges for any of the first responders who waited in the hallway will be filed. City councilmembers refuse to address report The investigative report on the local police actions was commissioned in July 2022 by the Uvalde City Council, which had vowed to investigate the actions of every city police officer who responded to the shooting. City leaders appointed Jesse Prado, a retired Austin police detective, to lead that probe. Don McLaughlin, who was mayor when the shooting happened and when the report was commissioned, told CNN it was supposed to help identify mistakes that were made though the report itself notes it was prepared in anticipation of litigation. Prados findings enraged victims families, who took turns during Thursdays meeting questioning the investigations motives, rejected the conclusion that local officers acted properly, and demanded the termination of those involved. You said that they did it in good faith. You call that good faith? Veronica Mata, whose 10-year-old daughter Tess was killed, said Thursday. They stood there 77 minutes and waited after they got call after call that kids were still alive in there. Councilmembers Hector Luevano and Ernest W. Chip King III also said last week they were disappointed in the findings. CNN questioned Prado about his findings after Thursdays meeting, but he declined to provide any answers. Councilmembers initially were expected to address the report during Tuesdays city council meeting. But they declined to comment on it publicly during the meeting, telling people who attended that the members needed more time to assess its findings. Mayor Cody Smith, left, speaks during an Uvalde City Council meeting on March 12. - CNN We have to have some more time. I know yall are sick of it. Yall are sick of getting the can kicked down the road, Mayor Cody Smith said in Tuesdays meeting. And I feel you, I do. But we have to have some more time to determine what, if any, actions we can take. I told yall in there how much I care, the mayor later said during a heated exchange Tuesday with Brett Cross, a relative of 10-year-old Uziyah Garcia, who was killed in the shooting. I cant replace your babies, I cant imagine the pain of losing your babies. I cant even imagine the thought. Smith also said Prado had agreed to come back and speak with parents, but the mayor did not offer more details. Its been two years, Cross said. Im done asking. Im done begging. Im done pleading. Enough is enough. Gloria Cazares, whose daughter Jacklyn was killed, called Tuesday for the termination of the officers exonerated in last weeks report. I know theres a possibility that my daughter Jackie would be here today if those officers had done what was right, she said at the meeting. Now its up to you to do what is right. Report ripped the wound wide open again, former Uvalde mayor says McLaughlin, the mayor when the report was commissioned, also rejected the reports findings, saying the examination did not answer the communitys questions and only left families more devastated. I dont think it gave anybody any answers, McLaughlin told CNN this week. Were no better off than when we started. Former Uvalde mayor Don McLaughlin is interviewed by CNN on Monday. - CNN Worse, the controversial report may have set the community back, he said. It ripped the wound wide open again. Instead of a tear, its gushed wide open now. McLaughlin said his intention and that of his former colleagues on the city council in commissioning the report was to find out what happened on the day of the shooting. We werent getting transparency, he said. The (Texas Department of Public Safety) changed the story five different times in the first four days and then were not getting any information from anybody, as the city, as were trying to go forward. We wanted an outside investigator so we know what our officers did and so we could see what mistakes were made. Theres no question that mistakes were made that day. McLaughlin, who stepped down as mayor last November to run for a seat in the Texas House, said every officer with a leadership position contributed to the failed response and that all the agencies local, state and federal should come together to identify the mistakes. Ive said from Day One, were all big boys, we need to lay our cards on the table and take our lumps. Everybody. But instead of transparency, some records still have not been released, 22 months after the killings. Some of that is because Mitchell, the local district attorney, wanted no one to put out or discuss matters until she had completed her own inquiry. Theres no question in my mind: Leadership failed, McLaughlin said. I do believe that if those officers had been told to go in, they would have gone in. I also think they were put on hold early on and nobody ever counteracted that order. The title page of the report by Prado says it was prepared in anticipation of litigation and/or for use in trial. McLaughlin told CNN it was never intended as any kind of shield. The whole point of using this report was not to insulate me from a lawsuit or the city from a lawsuit or anybody else. It was just so wed know what our officers did and so wed be able to look you in the eye as the parents and the citizens of our community and say, This is what we did that day. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Credit - Illustration by TIME Jeff Moriarty was once the guy who always brought his lunch to work. Pre-pandemic, he dutifully meal-prepped for the week on Sundays, and when he worked from home during the worst parts of COVID-19, he whipped up healthy feasts between meetings. Grilled chicken salad? Coming right up. Scrambled eggs in the afternoon? Theyre not just for breakfast, he says. But Moriarty, 44, who lives in Bolingbrook, Ill., and works in e-commerce, hasnt packed a lunch since going back to the office a year ago. Lunch has turned into my great escape, he says. Its my daily mini-vacation from the world of spreadsheets and conference callsan opportunity to burst out of the office doors, smell deep-dish pizza instead of stale office air, and think about whats on his plate in a literal rather than metaphorical sense. Plus, its easier than the alternative. Moriarty feels older and busier than he used to be, and who has the time and patience to think about lunch the night before? Hes not alone: U.S. workers who are back in the office at least a few days a week say that lunch has taken on a magic hour quality. Instead of diligently slipping a peanut butter sandwich or apple slices into a brown paper bag, many are choosing to venture out and buy something insteadin pursuit of a change of scenery, a meaningful break, or even just some chit-chat with the guy making made-to-order hoagies. While its impossible to know how many people have given up on taking lunch to work, some psychologists say that it comes up in sessions quite oftenand theyre not surprised by the trend. A smorgasbord of factors have made buying lunch more appetizing than ever. The pandemic killed the lunch-making habit Before COVID-19 entered our vocabulary, most of us worked full-time outside the home. That meant following the same evening and morning routine all weekand consistency promotes habit development, says Jolie Silva, a Long Island, N.Y.-based clinical psychologist and chief operating officer at New York Behavioral Health. Maybe you checked the weather and picked out your clothes the night before, or made sure you had something to read on the commute, or got up at the same time and made your lunch, she says. Over time, these learned behaviors became automatic. Read More: How to Respond to an Insult, According to Therapists Then the pandemic abruptly shattered routines. Suddenly, we were taking conference calls from the kitchen counter and whipping up gourmet meals at 2 p.m. on a Tuesday. Now were out of practiceand even those who returned to the office are often following a hybrid schedule that deters habit formation, Silva explains. You have three days a week where your morning routine is different, and so you have to really think about what youre doing, she says. Planning ahead can feel exhausting People are tired, anxious, and stressed right now. Prepping lunches is just one more addition to already too-long to-do lists, says Lynn Zakeri, a licensed clinical social worker in Skokie, Ill. Meal-planning feels like a thing of the past, she adds. People dont go to the grocery store once a week anymore and go, I need 2 pounds of turkey. I need a loaf of bread. I need to make sure I have my condiments. Do I want a tomato on it? Theres so much thinking involved, its exhaustingversus stopping at the market on the way home and picking up some broccoli and pasta. Weve shifted to a more impulsive approach to meals that centers what were in the mood for at that specific moment, Zakeri believesand that makes us more likely to grab lunch on the go. Weve gotten serious about taking breaks Many of Zakeris clients have stopped taking lunch to work. The subject tends to come up when they describe their desire to pause their back-to-back meetings or endless emails. People are listening to their mental health more and taking intentional breaks, she saysand walking or driving out for lunch presents the perfect opportunity to decompress. Research suggests its a smart idea: In one study, people who took a lap around a nearby park during their lunch break were able to concentrate better in the afternoon and had lower levels of strain and fatigue than those who stayed at their desks. Read More: How to Be a Healthier Drinker We crave a distraction from monotony Much of the reason why many people dont feel like taking food to work anymore has to do with breaking the mold of monotonypeople dont want to be in that Groundhog Day cycle, says Elisabeth Crain, a psychotherapist based in Los Angeles. A packed lunch might be practical, but it often contributes to the same-old feeling of the work day, she points out. Thats especially true if you eat at your desk while staring at the screen youve already been looking at for hours. The pandemic made us feel so cooped-up that now were more eager to step outside during lunch and experience new sights, sounds, and cuisines, Crain says. Changing your environment changes your mental landscape, she explains, and going out for lunch offers low-stakes excitement that can improve the overall work-life experience. It can enliven or galvanize us, she says. Buying lunch feels more social Silvas clients often tell her they feel isolated, especially when theyre working from home. You dont have social interaction in the same way, even if youre on Zoom calls, she says. Work days feel lonely in a way they didnt five years ago. As a result, people are craving the interaction they might get from grabbing a sandwich with a colleague, or even standing in line with someone at Starbucks, she says. Hybrid workers are especially likely to embrace the opportunity for a more social lunch on days when theyre in the office, she says. We wantand deservea treat Whats the point of working hard if you dont enjoy those paychecks? Thats the post-pandemic mentality many people are adopting, Zakeri says. Clients might tell her, I deserve DoorDash because Im working my ass off. Splurging on lunch out, or a fancy latte, feels like a reward for toiling away all day. After several long, pandemic-filled years, its tempting to live in the moment and eat what you want, when you want. Read More: How to Set Boundaries at WorkEven When It's Uncomfortable How can you get back into the routine of packing a lunch? Spend some time weighing the pros and cons of taking lunch to work versus buying something, Silva advises. While there are certainly benefits, like a built-in impetus to socialize or go for a midday walk, theres also a financial factor to consider before springing for a $20 salad. Food prepared at home also tends to be healthier than what you buy from a restaurant. If youd like to get back in the habit of packing lunch, experts recommend setting yourself up for success by creating a schedule, like going to the grocery store at the same time on the same day and stocking up on everything youll need for a weeks worth of meals. Then leave out visual cues: bread on the counter will remind you to make a sandwich; your insulated lunch bag will be waiting for you next to the coffee maker. Visual cues are key to new habit development, Silva says. Youll be back to worrying about who grabbed your hummus from the work fridge, and whether your colleagues down the hall can smell your curry, in no time. Contact us at letters@time.com. (Clockwise from upper left) The four liberal justices of the Wisconsin Supreme Court: Jill Karofsky, Rebecca Dallet, Janet Protasiewicz and Ann Walsh Bradley. MADISON The use of absentee ballot drop boxes could once again be legal in Wisconsin, with the state Supreme Court's new liberal majority agreeing to hear a challenge to an earlier ruling issued by the court's previous longstanding conservative bloc. In July 2022, the state Supreme Court in a 4-3 ruling banned voters from using drop boxes to return absentee ballots. In September, a Waukesha County judge banned election clerks to fill in missing address information on absentee ballots. The lawsuit, filed in July by the Elias Law Group on behalf of two liberal-leaning organizations and a Dane County man, seeks to undo both rules. In an order issued Tuesday afternoon, the court agreed to take up the drop box question. Oral arguments are scheduled for May 13. Chief Justice Annette Ziegler joined Justice Rebecca Bradley in a dissent. "By granting this petition to bypass, the majority again aims to increase the electoral prospects of its preferred political party," Bradley wrote. "Finding the decision politically inconvenient, and emboldened by a new makeup of the court, this new majority embraces the opportunity to overturn (the 2022 ruling in Teigen v. Wisconsin Elections Commission). The majority's decision to do so will upset the status quo of election administration mere months before a presidential election and lead to chaos and confusion for Wisconsin voters and election officials." Writing for the majority in the 2022 Teigen decision, Bradley said state law does not permit drop boxes anywhere other than election clerk offices and only state lawmakers may make new policy stating otherwise not the Wisconsin Elections Commission, which had issued guidance to clerks allowing them. Drop boxes for absentee ballots had long been in use in Wisconsin, but during the COVID-19 pandemic their use exploded in 2020 to help voters cast their ballots without interacting with other people. More than 40% of all votes cast that year were through absentee ballots. The practice was heavily criticized by Republican former President Donald Trump, who alleged with no evidence that absentee voting was rife with fraud and led to his reelection loss in 2020. The challenge the court agreed to hear argues drop boxes "are critical for voters who are unable to vote in person because of disability, scheduling conflicts, lack of transportation, or other hardship." Jessie Opoien can be reached at jessie.opoien@jrn.com. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin Supreme Court to hear challenge to ballot drop box ban 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. Marysville, CA (95901) Today Rain showers early with clear skies overnight. Low 46F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%.. Tonight Rain showers early with clear skies overnight. Low 46F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%. The state of Florida says it's bracing for a surge of Haitian refugees fleeing the Caribbean country as gangs continue to flood the streets, creating chaos for its residents. On Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he was ordering the deployment of hundreds of additional assets to the Keys and southern Florida to prevent asylum seekers from entering the state. "Given the circumstances in Haiti, I have directed the Division of Emergency Management, the Florida State Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy over 250 additional officers and soldiers and over a dozen air and sea craft to the southern coast of Florida to protect our state," he announced. "No state has done more to supplement the (under-resourced) U.S. Coast Guard's interdiction efforts; we cannot have illegal aliens coming to Florida." The area is already under surveillance as part of the state's stringent efforts to prevent the influx of people entering the country illegally. "Illegal immigrants feel empowered to enter the sovereign territory of the United States because of the federal government's refusal to diligently enforce our immigration laws and protect the integrity of the border," added DeSantis. Earlier this week, Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced his resignation amid an escalation in violence over the past two weeks, particularly after top gang leader Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier called for a "bloody revolution," Headlines & Global News previously reported. The escape of thousands of prison inmates, coupled with attacks on government entities orchestrated by gangs and at the direction of Barbeque, are among the many factors that have pushed the country toward the brink of civil war. "The first step is to overthrow Ariel Henry and then we will start the real fight against the current system, the system of corrupt oligarchs and corrupt traditional politicians," Barbeque told ABC News. "Not only are we fighting against Ariel Henry, but we are also fighting against everyone who has some complicity." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. YEREVAN, MARCH 13, ARMENPRESS. 26 people have been killed and more than 4,360 injured in Iran during the year-end festival, Mehr News Agency reports. Every year, authorities launch public awareness campaigns about the dangers of fireworks. Iranians welcome the arrival of spring with a centuries-old custom called Chaharshanbeh-Suri, which is celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday before the Iranian New Year holidays. A week before Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, family members, and friends gather by bunches of open fires and keep them lit till dawn. The annual festival dates back 2,500 years and has its roots in pre-Islamic Persia. The United States has announced that the F-35 Lightning II aircraft program has officially entered full-rate production. This milestone was confirmed on March 12, 2024, when Dr. William A. LaPlante, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, endorsed the Acquisition Decision Memorandum. This approval came after a thorough review by the Defense Acquisition Board (DAB), highlighting the program's readiness for expanded production. Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link The United States has announced that the F-35 Lightning II aircraft program has officially entered full-rate production. (Picture source: Lockheed Martin) Known for its versatility and advanced capabilities, the F-35 was scrutinized to ensure it met stringent operational, reliability, and support standards. The program's advancement to Milestone C / Full Rate Production (MSC/FRP) demonstrates its success meeting these criteria. This includes successful operational and live-fire testing, compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements, and the development of a sustainable production and support strategy. Dr. LaPlante hailed this development as a "major achievement," emphasizing the F-35's role in improving interoperability among US allies and contributing to the national defense strategy. According to LaPlante, the F-35 program is now well-positioned to more effectively meet the future demands of the US military, its partners, and Foreign Military Sales customers, such as Belgium. The F-35 Lightning II, developed by Lockheed Martin, is a fifth-generation multi-role combat aircraft designed to meet the modern requirements of the US military and its allies. Derived from the X-35 prototype, it is one of the most expensive and technologically advanced weapons programs, with an initial investment of $406.5 billion in 2016 and a total projected cost exceeding one trillion dollars. The F-35 program consists of three main variants tailored to the specific needs of different branches of the US military. The F-35A, designed for the US Air Force, was introduced into service in 2015, followed by the F-35B for the Marine Corps in 2016, and the F-35C for the Navy in 2019. While these aircraft share common design features, they are distinguished by their unique capabilities and configurations, particularly in takeoff and landing, to suit aircraft carriers or land bases. Powered by a Pratt & Whitney F135 after-burning turbofan engine, the F-35 can reach a maximum speed of 1,700 km/h (Mach 1.6+), with an operational ceiling of 18,500 meters. Performance varies slightly among the models: the F-35A has the longest range, followed by the F-35C and F-35B. The aircraft is also designed to carry a significant payload of weapons, both internally to maintain stealth, and externally for missions requiring maximum firepower. The F-35 stands out for its technological advancement, notably its integrated avionics suite that includes the AN/APG-81 radar and AN/AAQ-37 infrared sensor, providing the pilot unparalleled situational awareness. In addition to its combat capabilities, the aircraft is designed for reconnaissance and close air support missions, thanks to its GAU-22 25 mm cannon and the ability to carry up to 2,800 kg of armament in its internal bays, in addition to 6,800 kg on external pylons. With over 990 units already delivered, the F-35 program continues to expand its presence among US forces, international partners, and Foreign Military Sales customers. The aircraft is celebrated for its multi-role functionality, encompassing air superiority, ground attack, and reconnaissance missions, all while offering unmatched stealth, sensor fusion, and interoperability features. HAT Distribution has added network and security device automation vendor BackBox to its portfolio for Australia and New Zealand. BackBox was founded in 2009 and is based in Texas in the US. The company claims to have 57 partners and over 500 global customers, which include Coca Cola, Deloitte and Ford. The agreement is a new partnership for the distributor and will see it provide advanced network automation solutions for enterprises and managed service providers across the region. ARN understands that HAT Distribution is the sole BackBox distributor in the region as of publishing. She started the role in January and is expected to play an integral role in leading monday.com's local sales processes. On a post on LinkedIn, Terry said there were multiple reasons behind her move to monday.com, which included customer growth hitting 50 per cent year-on-year and market share growth indicating "a strong and growing presence" for the company, she claimed. Meanwhile, Priel joined monday.com in 2021 as team manager for the scale customer success segment of the business for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In her new position, Priel is tasked with managing team development and performance. She will also work with consulting and partnerships teams to locate regional growth and value opportunities. Five MLAs -- four from the BJP and one independent -- were also sworn in as ministers New Delhi: In a dramatic turn of events just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar resigned on Tuesday morning and was replaced by OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini. Along with the new Chief Minister, five ministers also took the oath on Tuesday evening. The new government will prove its majority in the Assembly on Wednesday. Kurukshetra MP and BJP state unit president Nayab Singh Saini was administered oath by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya at the oath-taking ceremony held at the Raj Bhawan here after submitting a letter of support from 48 MLAs to the Governor. Five MLAs -- four from the BJP and one independent -- were also sworn in as ministers. Congratulating Saini, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished him and his team the very best for their efforts in fulfilling the aspirations of the people of Haryana. The political development took place a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Khattar for working towards realising the vision of a Viksit Haryana-Viksit Bharat. The BJP continued with its well thought and so far successful strategy of a non-Jat chief minister in a Jat-dominated state to consolidate non-Jat votes. Khattar, a Punjabi, was the first non-Jat chief minister of the state since 2014 till his resignation. The new Chief Minister is considered close to Khattar and their relationship goes back to their RSS days. According to sources, this move was a follow-up of deliberations with the Dushyant Chautala-led JJP and the BJP top brass failing to resolve differences over seat-sharing issues. The BJP state unit, sources said, was also in favour of going solo. Chautala was the deputy CM in the Khattar government and the new government is unlikely to have a deputy CM post. Reacting to the change, Chautala said he would continue working for the rights of the people of the state and his partys efforts for social and economic security of people of Haryana will continue. At least five JJP MLAs are said to be in touch with the BJP. The JJP is likely to hold a rally in Hisar on Wednesday, where its leaders are expected to talk about the partys plan of action after the big development in state politics. In the current state Assembly, the BJP has 41 MLAs and has support of six Independents and Haryana Lokhit Partys Gopal Kanda. Also, five of the 10 JJP MLAs are said to be in touch with the BJP. The main Opposition Congress has 30 MLAs in the 90-member Assembly. Sources said it was a strategic decision taken by the BJP top brass to make the entire Khattar government resign, including deputy CM Dushyant Chautala, in a clear-cut message to the JJP. Asking only Chautala to resign otherwise would have sent a wrong message to his vote-bank, the Jats, who have been backing the BJP in UP but get split among the Congress and INLD in Haryana. Khattar is also likely to contest the Lok Sabha polls. The BJP, sources said, was getting feedback that changing Khattar, who has been CM since 2014, could also boost its chances in the Assembly polls scheduled by the end of this year. The ministers in the new government were part of the Khattar team. Speculation is rife that Khattar will contest the coming Lok Sabha polls from Karnal. With nearly 20 per cent of Haryanas population consisting of Jats, the BJP again gave a non-Jat CM, whose community -- a sub-caste of the OBC clan comprises less than three per cent of the states population. OBCs are more than 40 per cent of the states population. Sainis are also a large group in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. Sources said the JJPs demand to contest two of the 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state was one of the main issues behind the BJPs decision behind the leadership change. The BJP had won all 10 parliamentary seats in 2019. The JJP had then fought the Lok Sabha polls in alliance with the AAP. Also, the BJPs experiment of promoting a non-Jat CM in Haryana will again find it favour among non-Jat castes, as per its own feedback. Sources said a section within the BJP had been demanding a leadership change for some time now, citing aggressive wooing of Jats by the Congress, INLD and the JJP. However, a majority within the BJP was in favour of wooing the non-Jats. With the leadership change, the BJP is also hoping to counter anti-incumbency. Earlier during the day, after the BJP decision for the change in leadership, followed by Khattar and his government's resignation, the BJP legislature party met in Chandigarh and chose Saini, 54, as its leader. From the central leadership, Union minister Arjun Munda, state in-charge Biplab Dev and national general secretary Tarun Chugh were present. The new CM and ministers were administered the oath of office by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya. BJP workers and leaders were heard shouting Jai Shri Ram after the new CM was administered the oath of office. However, senior leader and former state home minister Anil Vij was conspicuous by his absence from the swearing-in venue amid rumours that he is not happy with the choice of the new CM. Reacting to this development, Congress MP Deepender Hooda claimed it was because the public has decided to bring change and that the public was upset with the Khattar government. He also claimed that development was a well-planned drama that was scripted six months ago. Taking a dig at the BJP, another Congress leader, Kumari Selja, said the BJP needs to explain why its alliance broke. You are going around the country making alliances you (BJP-JJP) were in power and now you want to prove yourself clean by changing the CM The people of Haryana have seen your misgovernance the alternative is the Congress and the people of Haryana are looking towards us. Controversy surrounds India's citizenship law change, raising concerns over discrimination and political implications Polarisation on the basis of religion is now the rule because the law has changed. Citizenship is available to select categories of persons from select countries, so long as the applicant under the 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act and now notified rules is not Muslim. The line that separates Muslims from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh is their status as the majority community there. Hindus, Sikhs, Jain, Parsis and Buddhists, as minorities there, are covered by the CAA and CAR. The statement of the obvious is like telling oneself that discrimination on the basis of religion is now kosher in India, though the Constitution explicitly forbids such differentiation. This was explicit in Article 15, that the State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. The moment the CAA rules came into effect was when India appeared to shift from secular to something else, that may over time begin to resemble the Hindu Rashtra that Anant Kumar Hegde, a prominent Karnataka BJP leader, so ardently desires. The tectonic shift in Indias identity from secular to something else is timed for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The Narendra Modi government is fulfilling its 2019 guarantee that new citizenship rules would be enacted targeting the pockets where large numbers of Hindus crossed over from Bangladesh, especially in West Bengal, Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya and elsewhere in the Northeast. The notification was confirmation that the BJP is a party that delivers on its promises. The polarisation is evident from the reactions that flooded in from Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, Sitaram Yechury and Mallikarjun Kharge, and smaller and regional parties. The INDIA bloc is against the changes to the citizenship law, while the BJP is crowing over its success. The impact of the change will impact the political dynamics in West Bengal and Assam more than in other states. Whereas in West Bengal implementing it is straightforward, in Assam it has triggered protests from ethnic groups violently hostile to the presence of Bengali speakers, be they Hindus or Muslims. Much as the chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tries to explain away the protests as misguided, the fact is that the BJPs move to give citizenship to Bengali speakers is the polarising factor, not the religious identity of the applicants. In West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee may have dismissed the change as lollipops, but she was alert to the probability that something like this would happen on March 10, when she addressed a mega rally at Kolkatas Brigade Parade Grounds. She warned that no detention centres would be allowed in West Bengal. She vowed to block implementation of the CAA and National Register of Citizens, and the National Population Register enumeration process. It is Ms Banerjees contention that the CAA is unnecessary. Hindus from the Scheduled Caste Matua community who came from Bangladesh have Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, ration cards, work in the government and defence services, and have been elected as MLAs, MPs and panchayat and municipal body members. She claims the BJP has incited gullible people from the Matua community to swallow the story that the CAA is a life-saver. The confrontation between the Trinamul Congress and BJP about the status of Hindus who came across the border from Bangladesh till 2015 is about creating loyalty votes. The BJP wants these voters, as does the TMC. The crux is that the Matuas arent a homogenous vote bank. Thus, both the BJP and the TMC have to woo them. The lollipops have to keep coming. Guarantees are therefore the new currency in which political leaders affirm their credibility to voters, who obviously calculate the advantages to themselves as individuals by openly siding with one or the other party. Mamata Banerjee has announced her guarantee programme at the Brigade rally, including the negative guarantee of no detention centres in West Bengal. Aimed at reassuring the Muslim voter, whose choice influences the outcome in about 125 Assembly constituencies, that is about 16-17 parliamentary constituencies stretching across North to South Bengal, the emphatic commitment is Mamata Banerjees gesture to secure support. In 2024, as much as the Matua vote across a handful of parliamentary constituencies are consequential, the Muslim vote is equally significant. By pushing Mamata Banerjee to declare her stand on Matua and Muslim voters, the BJP obviously expects a negative response from Hindu voters who have swallowed the bait that their status as the majority community is in danger because of the TMCs appeasement politics and before that by the Left parties and the Congress. Over two weeks, West Bengal has hosted Prime Minister Narendra Modi four times because he is in pursuit of his target of 370 seats for the BJP and a total of 400 seats with allies out of the 543 elected seats in the Lok Sabha. Its a different matter that the BJP seems to have scaled down its expectations from winning 40 out of West Bengals 42 seats to 25 seats in the same period. The competition and the confrontation is no less fierce regardless of the number of seats that are set as targets. Voters are being given a choice between the bird in hand, namely the guarantees of Mamata Banerjee, versus the birds in the bush, namely the Modi Sarkars guarantees. Offering a choice between a government and administration that is accessible, proximate and can be made accountable for the transgressions of its local leaders like Sheikh Shahjahan for land grab or sexual violence and intimidation, and a remote and distant power in New Delhi, Mamata Banerjee is hoping that she has effectively closed off other options for voters. In reducing the choice to a government that can impoverish itself to pay 23 lakh or 69 lakh people who worked on MGNREGA projects, dues that are pending for over two years, the inducement to vote for the Trinamul Congress in the Lok Sabha elections is very clear. The 2024 election is tougher than all previous elections since she wrested control over West Bengal in 2011. The rise of the BJP as the Opposition, beginning with its unexpected win of 18 seats out of a total 42 parliamentary seats in the state in 2019, and the 77 seats it won out of a total of 294 Assembly seats in 2021, turns this election into a mother of all battles category confrontation. Mamata Banerjee, like Narendra Modi and the BJP, has set herself a target, of winning more than the 22 Lok Sabha seats her party had won in 2019. According to the CAA, Muslims cannot apply for Indian citizenship under the law The Centre on Monday notified the rules four years after the contentious law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship of non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India due to persecution before December 31, 2014. New Delhi: The Indian Union Muslim League on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court seeking a stay on the implementation of Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 notified by the Centre on Monday till the pendency of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 before the apex court. The Centre on Monday notified the rules four years after the contentious law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship of non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India due to persecution before December 31, 2014. The application, filed by IUML which is one of the petitioners who have challenged the citizenship law, has sought the top courts direction to ensure no coercive action is taken against people belonging to the Muslim community pending adjudication of the writ petitions. The petitioner, a Kerala-based political party, has urged the apex court to direct the Centre to provisionally permit people belonging to the Muslim community also to apply for citizenship and submit a report on their entitlement. The Democratic Youth Federation of India has also filed a separate application seeking a stay on the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024. The apex court is already seized of a batch of pleas challenging the constitutional validity of CAA. According to the CAA, Muslims cannot apply for Indian citizenship under the law. In its application, IUML has urged the top court to stay the continued operation of the impugned provisions of Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019; and Citizenship Amendment Rules 2024, which would result in valuable rights being created and citizenship being granted to persons belonging to only certain religions, thereby resulting in a fait accompli situation, during the pendency of the present writ petition. The IUML also said about 250 petitions challenging the provisions of the CAA were pending before the top court. If in case this court finally decided the CAA as unconstitutional, then these people who would have got citizenship under the impugned Act and rules would have to be deprived of their citizenship or stripped of their citizenship, which would create an anomalous situation, it said. Therefore, it is in the best interest of every person to defer the implementation of CAA and impugned rules till this court finally decides the matter, the application said. The government did not consider it as urgent to implement it for the past 4.5 years. Therefore, to wait till the final decision of this court would not affect anybodys rights or interest, the application said. According to the Gazette notification, the rules come into force with immediate effect and it will facilitate grant of Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants -- Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians -- from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Hunter Biden may potentially go to trial in Delaware for federal firearms charges as early as June, during his father's reelection campaign. The tentative date was set by US District Judge Maryellen Noreika during a brief telephonic hearing on Wednesday. Noreika is currently considering various defense motions that could potentially disrupt any upcoming trial against the president's son. Hunter Biden's Gun Case Trial The trial will start on June 3 and may continue for up to nine days. Another trial for tax charges against him in California is currently scheduled to start later that month. Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, entered a plea of not guilty for allegedly providing false information about his drug use on a gun purchase form he retained for approximately 11 days in October 2018. He has admitted to struggling with crack cocaine addiction during that time, but his legal team has argued that his actions did not warrant criminal charges and that a first-time offender in a similar situation would not have been prosecuted. He was indicted after a plea arrangement that would have settled the issue without a trial failed in July 2023 when a judge who was meant to accept it raised doubts. Hunter Biden's attorneys have tried to dismiss the case, claiming that prosecutors caved to political pressure when Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, called the accord a "sweetheart deal." Defense attorney Abbe Lowell said Wednesday that immunity clauses from the original accord still apply. Noreika said she hadn't determined how to handle the case's four requests to dismiss but wanted to keep trial time on her schedule. However, prosecutors say the case is not politically motivated, the evidence against him is "overwhelming" and the immunity bargain blew up with the plea offer. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to unrelated Los Angeles tax charges alleging a four-year conspiracy to evade $1.4 million in taxes while living lavishly. Read Also: FBI Informant Charged with Fabricating Allegations Linking Bidens to Ukrainian Energy Company Republicans' Request For Public Hearing Meanwhile, Hunter Biden has decided not to participate in a public hearing regarding the House impeachment inquiry into his father, President Joe Biden, which is set for next week, as communicated by his legal team to lawmakers on Wednesday. Lowell stated in a letter to House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., that his client will not be attending the public impeachment hearing scheduled for March 20, referring to it as a "carnival side show." "Your latest step-this March 6 invitation-is not a serious oversight proceeding. It is your attempt to resuscitate your Conference's moribund inquiry with a made-for-right-wing-media, circus act," Lowell said in the letter. Last week, an invitation was sent by Rep. James Comer, the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, which included three of Biden's former business associates, all of whom are currently facing their own legal challenges. The committee has been conducting a 14-month investigation into the Biden family, with a primary focus on Hunter Biden's activities in countries like Ukraine and China. Lawmakers have uncovered ethically questionable behavior by the president's son and other family members, but Republicans have not found evidence of misconduct by Joe Biden during his time in public office. Declining the invitation occurred following Hunter Biden and his lawyer's preference for a public hearing over a private deposition, expressing worries about GOP lawmakers distorting his interview. Both parties eventually reached an agreement to conduct a private testimony before proceeding to a public hearing. Related Article: Hunter Biden Admits 'Big Guy' Email Referenced Joe Biden, Denies Dad's Involvement in 10% Stake @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Prime Minister pointed out that his government's schemes for toilets and cooking gas have benefited deprived sections of society New Delhi: Announcing the nationwide credit support for disadvantaged sections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that people from SCs, STs, and OBCs communities are the biggest beneficiaries of his government's welfare schemes. He slammed the previous Congress dispensations for neglecting the disadvantaged sections. Earlier in the day, Mr Modi laid the foundation stone for three semiconductor facilities -- two in Gujarat and one in Assam -- at Rs 1.25-lakh crores. Speaking at the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan even Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan (PM-SURAJ) national portal, the Prime Minister cited the election of Ram Nath Kovind and Droupadi Murumu, who come from Dalit and tribal communities respectively, as the President to assert that the BJP's efforts to ensure that those from deprived sections reach top positions will continue. In a swipe at the Opposition, Mr Modi asked the gathering, which consisted of people from disadvantaged groups, "How can anyone say I have no family when I have brothers and sisters like you?" The Prime Minister pointed out that his government's schemes for toilets and cooking gas have benefited deprived sections of society. "SCs, STs, OBCs are the biggest beneficiaries of government welfare schemes for the poor," he said. The PM-SURAJ national portal aims to provide credit support to eligible individuals across the country, including Scheduled Castes and backward classes and sanitation workers. This initiative is set to facilitate financial empowerment and enable entrepreneurship opportunities for the most disadvantaged sections of society. At the portal launch event, the Prime Minister said that 1-lakh beneficiaries from deprived sections have been given Rs 720 crore assistance till now. Talking about the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047, the Prime Minister said that the goal cannot be achieved without the development of the deprived segments. He said he has broken the mindset of the past and it is being ensured that facilities available to others, like gas connections, bank accounts, toilets, etc, are available to Dalits, backward, the deprived, and tribals. The Prime Minister pointed out that many generations of the deprived segments were wasted in just arranging for the basic amenities. After 2014, the government reached the segments devoid of any hope and made them partners in the nations development, he said. Mr Modi said that the biggest beneficiaries of schemes like free rations, free medical treatment, pucca houses, toilets, and Ujjwala gas connections are the people on the periphery, the deprived segments. Now we are working with the goal of saturation in these schemes," the Prime Minister added. Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister virtually laid the foundation stone for the three major semiconductor manufacturing projects worth about Rs 1.25-lakh crores in Dholera and Sanand in Gujarat and Moregaon in Assam. Addressing the event after the launch, Mr Modi said, Todays projects will play a key role in making India a semiconductor hub. Attacking the previous governments, particularly the Congress, Mr Modi pointed out that Indias semiconductor dreams were first envisioned during the 1960s but the then governments failed to act upon them due to a lack of will and the effort to convert the resolutions into accomplishments. He also lamented the inability of the previous governments to understand the countrys potential, priorities, and futuristic needs. Throwing light on the forward-thinking and futuristic approach of the present government, the Prime Minister mentioned semiconductor manufacturing with ambitions to compete with developed countries. The Prime Minister stated that the government has taken care of all the priorities of the country as he gave examples of investments in pucca houses for the poor as well as encouraging research, running the world's largest sanitation movement, moving forward in semiconductor manufacturing and rapid reduction in poverty to massive infrastructural investments with the aim of atma nirbhar Bharat. In 2024 alone, foundation stones have been laid and schemes worth over Rs 12 lakh crores have been inaugurated, the Prime Minister said. In his address, Mr. Modi talked about the Bharat Shakti exercise in Pokhran on Tuesday that provided a glimpse of 21st century India's self-reliant defence sector, India joining the exclusive club of the world in the form of Agni 5, the initiation of the drone revolution in agriculture two days ago where thousands of drones were handed over to women under the Namo Drone Didi scheme, India's preparations for Gaganyaan gaining momentum and the recently inaugurated Indias first indigenously built fast breeder nuclear reactor. All these efforts and all these projects are taking India closer to the goal of development. Certainly, these three projects of today will also have a big role in this, Mr Modi added. Today's news: a Japanese satellite rocket explodes; In China, the number of foreclosed homes increases; Seafarers in the Philippines may avoid taking jobs in high-risk areas; Indonesian presidential candidate Anies Baswedan will appeal election results to the Constitutional Court; After a month on bail for Fr. Pinto arrested on charges of "conversions" in Uttar Pradesh. MALDIVES INDIA India has started withdrawing military personnel stationed in the Maldives. Yesterday the Mihaaru newspaper wrote that 25 of the 89 Indian soldiers deployed in the archipelago had left one of the atolls as part of a withdrawal agreement between the two countries, which provides for the end of the Indian military presence by May 10, after the election in October by pro-Chinese president Mohamed Muizzu. INDIA In Uttar Pradesh, after more than a month, the district judge granted bail to Father Dominic Pinto and 10 other people who had been arrested with him on charges of forced conversions. The 11 had been in judicial custody since February 6, a day after they were arrested after a prayer meeting that a group of evangelicals had held in a facility in the diocese of Lucknow. The Indian state of Uttar Pradesh is one of those with the highest number of arrests due to the infamous anti-conversion laws. CHINA The number of foreclosed homes in China increased 43% year-on-year in 2023 to 389,000, says the China Index Academy, a major independent real estate research firm. More than 50,000 additional units were foreclosed in January, up 64.4% year over year, the company noted. The increase in mortgage defaults could have negative repercussions on both property prices and consumer confidence, analysts say. JAPAN A Space One rocket exploded shortly after takeoff, dashing the private company's hopes of being the first in Japan to successfully launch a satellite into orbit. Space One, founded in 2018, is dedicated to commercializing space delivery services while reducing costs, with the goal of sending 30 rockets into space per year by 2030. PHILIPPINES Just over 10 Filipino seafarers have returned home after surviving a Houthi missile attack while aboard the cargo ship True Confidence. Three crew members died in the attack, including two Filipinos. Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said yesterday that the Philippine government has also reached an agreement with the International Transport Workers' Federation that Filipino seafarers have the right to refuse employment in high-risk areas. INDONESIA Presidential candidate Anies Baswedan today said he intends to appeal to the Constitutional Court over last month's election results. The national electoral commission is expected to announce the official winner by March 20, but the unofficial results indicated a clear victory for Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, who obtained more than 60% of the vote. We intend to file for sure, but the content is not something we can reveal, Anies told reporters. RUSSIA The Russian Orthodox Church has started special courses for priests who preach on the internet and maintain their own blogs, under the responsibility of the member of the missionary department of the Moscow patriarchate Evfimij Lukhovitsky, according to whom "it is important that priests do not contradict official positions of patriarchy, on issues such as bioethics or war". TURKMENISTAN In two cities of the Balkan velayat in Turkmenistan, Turkmenbashi and Balkanabad, spontaneous markets for day laborers, popularly known as Gul Bazars or "slave markets", have recently appeared on the streets, with sudden gatherings around the cars of those offers occasional jobs to deal with the crisis and unemployment. Francis' invitation to the faithful in this morning's catechesis in St Peter's Square. "The saints are not exceptions of humanity. What a happy world would be one in which justice, respect, benevolence, broadmindedness were the shared normality". Prayer for peace with the rosary of a young man who died at the front. Vatican City (AsiaNews) - "In these dramatic times of ours in which we often deal with the worst of humanity, virtuous action should be rediscovered and practiced by everyone. In a deformed world we must remember the form with which we were molded, the image of God that is imprinted in us forever." Pope Francis said this today in the usual meeting with the faithful on Wednesday on the occasion of the general audience held in a sunny St. Peter's Square. Francis - who today marks the eleventh anniversary of his election - did not personally pronounce the text of his catechesis, entrusting its reading to a collaborator, Msgr. Pierluigi Giroli. After concluding the overview of vices last week, the pontiff invited us to turn our attention to the virtues, the other great chapter of this cycle of catechesis. The human heart - the Pope recalled - can indulge evil passions, it can listen to harmful temptations disguised with persuasive clothes, but it can also oppose all of this. As tiring as this may be, the human being is made for the good, which truly achieves it, and can also practice this art, ensuring that some dispositions become permanent in him or her." We would be off track Francis explained if we thought that the saints are exceptions to humanity: a sort of restricted circle of champions who live beyond the limits of our species. Saints, on the other hand, are those who fully become themselves, who realize the vocation of every man. What a happy world it would be in which justice, respect, mutual benevolence, broad-mindedness, hope were the shared normality, and not a rare anomaly." Citing the Catechism of the Catholic Church which defines virtue as "a habitual and firm disposition to do good", the pontiff underlined how it is not "an improvised and somewhat casual good, which rains down from the sky in an episodic manner. History tells us that even criminals, in a moment of clarity, have performed good deeds; certainly these acts are written in the 'book of God', but virtue is something else. It is a good that arises from a slow maturation of the person, until it becomes an internal characteristic of him. Virtue is a habitus of freedom." How, then, do we acquire virtue? For the Christian Francis replies the first help is the grace of God. How many Christians have achieved holiness through tears, realizing that they are unable to overcome certain of their weaknesses. But they experienced that God completed that good work which for them was only a sketch." But at the same time "virtue grows and can be cultivated" through wisdom. The human being concluded the Pope is not a free territory for the conquest of pleasures, emotions, instincts, passions, without being able to do anything against these forces, sometimes chaotic, that inhabit it it has him. A priceless gift that we possess is open-mindedness, it is the wisdom that knows how to learn from mistakes to direct life well. Then we need good will: the ability to choose the good, to shape ourselves with ascetic exercise, avoiding excesses." Finally, personally addressing the Italian pilgrims, Francis invited everyone to "continue with commitment on the Lenten itinerary, ready to carry out gestures of Christian solidarity wherever Providence calls you to operate. And please - he added - let us persevere in fervent prayer for those who suffer the terrible consequences of war. Today they brought me a rosary and a Gospel of a young soldier who died at the front: he prayed with this. Many young people, many young people go to die. Let us pray to the Lord to give us the grace to overcome this madness of war which is always a defeat." Baek Kwang-soon, 53, is being held on espionage charges. The Love Rice Sharing Foundation, a Protestant charity he works for, says that all sorts of Russians, Thai and North Korean workers are in need, and we provide them with clothes, food, and gospel. Last month, North Korea sent 300 workers, despite a UN ban. Seoul (AsiaNews) A member of the Love Rice Sharing Foundation was arrested in Russia yesterday. The Protestant charity is based in the Republic of (South) Korea (ROK) and collects food, medicine, and clothes to donate through missionaries. We were all flabbergasted at the news of his arrest as he is an innocent missionary deeply committed to spreading Gods love to the world, said the Foundation, upon hearing the news. Baek Kwang-soon, 53, was in Russia's Far East to be close to North Korean workers sent to Russia by Kim Jong Un's regime in violation of UN resolutions. According to the Russian news agency TASS, the Christian pastor was arrested in Vladivostok at the start of the year only to be moved to Moscow's Lefortovo detention facility in February, where high-profile political and foreign detainees are usually held. A Russian court has extended Baek's detention order until 15 June for further investigation. The missionary has been accused of handing over confidential information to foreign intelligence services through a messaging app, local sources report. South Korea's foreign ministry confirmed the news, noting that it is in contact with the Russian government, but declined to provide further details, saying that inquiries were underway. According to Yang Moo-jin, a professor of political science at the University of North Korean Studies, there is a lot of missionary activity in Vladivostok, in Russias Far East near the border with North Korea and China. There have always been layers of diplomatic as well as intelligence activities to protect them as they are South Korean nationals, he explained. The region has all sorts of Russian, Thai and North Korean workers who are poor people, people in need, and we provide them with clothes, food, and gospel, said Rev Lee Seon-gu of the Love Rice Sharing Foundation. The charity, he added, also helps North Korean fugitives in Russia without inciting defections or encouraging people to defect, he said. According to experts, such activity can only be possible thanks to the support of South Koreas secret services. "This kind of thing would put our missionaries at risk of being arrested and used for political purposes," Lee said. Baek not only helped North Korean workers, but also migrant workers from other countries. For years, North Korea has been sending its workers to Russia (and China) to earn foreign exchange that the regime desperately needs, despite UN resolutions banning activities that might provide funds for North Koreas missile and nuclear programmes. North Koreans work mainly in the logging industry and send about half of their salary home. However, since COVID-19 restrictions were eased, more North Koreans stranded abroad were allowed to return. There is certainly a process going on right now to bring many of those individuals home, but at the same time we are seeing movements of new groups of workers being dispatched overseas, said Julie Turner, the State Departments special envoy on the countrys human rights issues. According to South Korea's Yonhap news agency, 300 North Korean workers were sent to Russia last month alone, arriving by train at a station near Vladivostok. In many cases, Moscow issues student visas to North Korean workers, making it hard to track them. Some details about the arrest of the Protestant missionary are still unclear. Russian tax records show that in March 2020, Baek had registered a company called White Stone, as a tour operator. In the red since 2021, the company also sold textile goods and engaged in farmwork like rice processing, construction, and repair services. Rev Lee said that rice processing is part of the Love Rice Sharing Foundations humanitarian work. Probably, Russias backlash might be due to our governments support for Ukraine, defending freedom and democracy, he said. Diplomatic relations between Russia and South Korea have in fact progressively deteriorated in recent years due to the rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang (which has supplied Russia with weapons for use in Ukraine), while Seoul has pursued closer ties with Washington. by Vladimir Rozanskij In Moscow a meeting sponsored by the Foreign Ministry with representatives of member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and members of the Orthodox Patriarchate. Cooperation in the defense of traditional values but also other common goals on the geopolitical level under discussion. Moscow (AsiaNews) - A meeting was held in Moscow at the House of Reception of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs between representatives of the strategic research group "Russia and the Islamic world" (GSB), in which members of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow also participated , and those of the countries belonging to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIS). The continuation of joint efforts to defend traditional values was discussed, in the context of recent events in Russia's internal and external politics. New insights into the issues already addressed in 2023 were proposed, to prepare for this year's events and in particular the event scheduled for May 16th on the theme "Russia and the Islamic world: a just and multipolar world order and development in security , which will be held in Kazan, Tatarstan during the international economic forum Russia Islamic World: KazanForum 2024. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko and the President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov were present, together with the vice-president of the GSB Farit Mukhametsin and the director of the Tatarstan Development Agency, Talija Minullina. Khusnullin underlined that "for us it is particularly important that Islamic countries, faced with the hostile actions of Western countries, supported Russia's policy aimed at safeguarding traditional moral and religious values." He announced the opening of new perspectives, thanks to the economic collaboration between Russia and the member countries of the OIS, which is developed together precisely on meeting occasions like the current one. Rudenko then observed that "Russia is a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional country, supported by Muslim states in traditional relations, of mutual trust and natural recognition of convergences", indicating a series of common geopolitical objectives and defense of people's rights to self-determination in their development systems, rejecting the "so-called neo-liberal values, which put the moral integrity of peoples and people at risk". Tatar President Minnikhanov, who began his speech "in the name of Allah", insisted that the expansion of cooperation with Muslim countries is "a priority direction of Russia's foreign policy", constituting an international social platform, recalling the repeated actions of vilification and burning of the Koran in Sweden and Denmark, which provoked reactions of indignation in the Islamic world and in Russia. He is also concerned about the situation in the Middle East, with the bloodshed in the Gaza strip and the frightening number of victims, which constitutes "an enormous humanitarian catastrophe". As Minullina then recalled, several important meeting opportunities are planned in Kazan this year, including a meeting of UNESCO, a large Halal trade fair, an Islamic fashion show and large celebrations to commemorate the membership of the Islam by the Volga Bulgarians over a thousand years ago and much more, such as the sections dedicated to Islamic and digital art, the creative economy and the film industry. Farit Mukhametsin then took up the words pronounced by the Patriarch of Moscow Kirill (Gundjaev) in previous meetings, in which the head of the Russian Orthodox Church expressed the conviction that future prospects and the expansion of dialogue between Orthodoxy and Islam can help to "counteract effectively the challenges and temptations of current events", as "true Christians and Muslims possess an enormous potential for spiritual and cultural creativity to defend their right to live in accordance with the divine commandments". This will be the most appropriate way to "build a common front for the survival of human civilization". Also present at the meeting were the leaders and muftis of the Islamic religious administrations of Russia, Tatarstan and other regions. The murder occurred yesterday at the monastery of St. Mark and St. Samuel the Confessor in Cullinan, 30 km east of Pretoria. The person arrested is said to be an Egyptian member of the Church. The condolences of the Cairo authorities, Pope Tawadros is also 'closely following' the affair. Grief and dismay in the Egyptian Coptic community. Cairo (AsiaNews) - A new bloody event shakes the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church: yesterday three monks were "brutally murdered" in a monastery in South Africa. The victims are p. Takla Moussa (head of the diocese of South Africa), Fr. Minah ava Marcus and Fr Youstos ava Marcus, killed yesterday morning in the monastery of Saint Mark and Saint Samuel in Johannesburg in still mysterious circumstances. The local police have started investigations but, at the moment, the motive behind the attack on the Christian religious institution in a nation that has the unenviable record for murders and violence is unclear. The Egyptian ambassador in Johannesburg also visited the site in recent hours to stay updated on the developments of the investigation and bring the support of the Cairo institutions to the religious community. Even the leader of the Coptic Church Pope Tawadros II, explains a note, "is closely following all the details of this incident, waiting to be informed about its causes", while the Coptic community expresses "its profound anguish" for what happened . Sources close to the investigation, reported by the BBC, report the arrest of an Egyptian member of the Church as a "possible suspect". The murder has caused deep tension and shock throughout the Coptic Orthodox community in South Africa and beyond. "Our pain and sadness - we read in the note - cannot be expressed in words, but we know that they rejoice in paradise in the bosom of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob". Archbishop Angaelos of the Coptic Orthodox Church of London called the murders "sad and shocking". The death occurred yesterday in the monastery of St. Mark and St. Samuel the Confessor, located in Cullinan, a small town 30 km east of the capital Pretoria. Provincial police spokesman Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi told Reuters that all three murdered monks were found with stab wounds. One survivor told police that he was hit with an iron stick, but managed to escape and hide. Investigators are still trying to determine the motive for the murders and the perpetrators, who "hastily left the crime scene without taking any valuables" as stated by Colonel Nevhuhulwi. A detail that would seem to exclude the origin of the robbery that ended in blood, in a nation where violent crimes are high as is the murder rate. The Egyptian Coptic Orthodox community is no stranger to bloody events that have marked its internal life and shaken the institution itself to its core. Among others, the obscure killing at the end of July 2018 of Bishop Anba Epiphanios, abbot of the monastery of Saint Macarius, for which an Egyptian court sentenced two former monks to death: Wael Saad and Ramon Rasmi Mansour, better known by the name of Faltaous al-Makari, who allegedly acted due to "differences" with their superior. On the evening of July 29, the 64-year-old prior of the monastery of Saint Macarius in Wadi Natrun, about 110 km north-west of Cairo, was found lifeless and with deep head wounds inside the institute located in a desert area. Following his death, the leaders of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church imposed a ban on the use of social media for monks and a one-year block on new entries into seminaries. Among the reasons that led to the sentence there is also the fact that the two perpetrators had no "scruples" in committing the act and that they "did not take into due account" the advanced age and spiritual stature of the victim. This effectively excluded the possibility of granting the generic mitigating circumstances of the case. by Steve Suwannarat Thailands Election Commission has turned to the Constitutional Court to disband the party that won the most votes in the last election, claiming that it violated Section 112 (lese-majeste) of the countrys Criminal Code. A similar ban occurred to another party in 2020. Bangkok (AsiaNews) Thailand's Election Commission (EC) has decided to ask the Constitutional Court to disband the Move Forward (Phak Kao Klai) party because it poses a threat to the monarchy. Such a move is seen as the last possible card to get rid of a political movement that has proven to be "troublesome" for the countrys traditional ruling elites, especially since its strong performance in the 14 May 2023 election. The partys success was eventually thwarted by its main ally, the For Thais (Pheu Thai) party, which opted after the vote to form a coalition government with its historical rival, the pro-military People's State Power (Palang Pracharath) party, sending Move Forward into the opposition. At the heart of the ECs request is Move Forwards commitment to revise Section 112 of the Criminal Code, which protects the dignity of the royal family, the lese-majeste rule. Over the years, this provision has become a pretext to target individuals and groups hostile to the ruling elites, above all the Armed Forces, which claim to protect the royal household while maintaining de facto control over the country. For each count, Section 112 imposes up to 15 years in prison on those who express anti-monarchist sentiments or simply criticise the institution. In its election platform, Move Forward pledged to amend the code, as well as start the process of redefining the role of the monarchy. In the election, the party won 36.23 per cent of the vote, with support especially among young people and the urban middle class. However, for the EC, There is evidence that Move Forward undermines the democratic system with the king as the head of state, a reference to a ruling by the Constitutional Court (CC), which in January declared this part of the party's platform illegitimate. If the CC responds favourably to the ECs request it would not only deprive Thailands precarious democracy of a party that has been able to understand the needs of cultural and democratic development of many Thais, but would also mean a ten-year ban from active politics for the partys leaders. The situation essentially mirrors what happened to the Future Forward (Phak Anakhot Mai) party, which clearly inspired Move Forward. Only two years after its creation, it was outlawed in 2020 for alleged illegal financing. Since 2020, at least 260 individuals have been tried for lese-majeste with sentences that, in one case, reached half a century of imprisonment for posting texts critical of the royals on Facebook. Move Forward spokesman Parit Wacharasindhu rejected claims that the party sought to undermine Thailand's democracy, adding that We will prove our innocence at the Constitutional Court. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. A rendering of the Madison, a 7-story condominium community planned on West Gray in East Montrose. Tannos Development/Wolfgramm Capital A vacant site at the corner of West Gray and Stanford in east Montrose is expected to have a small retail building with new restaurants by the end of the year. Marissa Luck/ Houston Chronicle A busy block of West Gray in East Montrose will soon be transformed by a seven-story condominium building and a separate project with new restaurants and retail. The Madison, a $30 million, 35-unit development by Tannos Development Group and Wolfgramm Capital, is expected to replace four aging apartment structures. That stretch of West Gray is home to several bars and restaurants, including Ador Kitchen & Cocktail, Midtown Bar and Grill and Barnabys restaurant. Tenants in the existing fourplex apartments some dating to the 1930s, according to Harris County are expected to move out by April, when demolition could begin, said Russell Handy of Friendswood-based Wolfgramm. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A row of existing aging fourplexes on West Gray in east Montrose will be torn down to make way for a mid-rise condo community called The Madison. Marissa Luck/ Houston Chronicle Construction on the Madison is expected to start by the end of 2024 and possibly take two years. Plans call for two- and three-bedroom condos of 2,000 to 3,200 square feet. When sales begin in summer, prices are expected to range from about $1.5 million to $2.4 million. Theyll have all the bells and whistles, designer cabinetry, high-end appliances; very competitive to the River Oaks market, said Louis Tannos, president of Tannos Development. The Madison, Tannos said, includes parking for residents, a gym and pool deck. It will tower over other structures on the block, giving some residents views of downtown. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tannos Development has been active in the Houston suburb of Friendswood, where the developer is also partnering with Wolfgramm Capital on a proposed $700 million, 106-acre mixed-use project. MONTROSE LIVE OAKS: What to know about the road project that would replace beloved live oak trees in Montrose Tannos said the partnership jumped at the opportunity in December to buy the five West Gray parcels because the two firms wanted to be a part of Montroses growth. An early rendering of the Shops on West Gray, which will feature a new location for Pho Ben, R&B Tea boba shop and a nail salon, according to developer Therra Investments. Identity Architects Montrose area is always exciting, always growing, always changing. And Im seeing whats happening on West Gray there at the edge in the outskirts of River Oaks. Everythings getting a shot in the arm. The old is coming down for the new. The market is great, Tannos said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Meanwhile, Therra Investments is moving ahead with its 7,800-square-foot retail and restaurant complex on a vacant lot at West Gray and Stanford. Construction is expected to start this month and be complete by the end of the year, he said. Comedian and political commentator Bill Maher is scheduled to appear at the 2024 Aspen Ideas Festival. Tension continues in the Red Sea, one of the world's most important trade routes. This morning, the US Central Command denounced a new attack by Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthis. According to CENTCOM, Yemeni rebels launched a short-range ballistic missile towards the destroyer USS Laboon. However, the Houthis failed to hit the ship, so no injuries or damage were reported. "US Central Command and a coalition ship successfully engaged and destroyed two unmanned aerial systems (UAS) launched from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen," CENTCOM added in a statement. This incident comes just a day after the Houthis launched missiles at a Liberian-flagged ship registered in Singapore, although Yemeni rebels described it as a "US" vessel. The Houthis have vowed to intensify their attacks during the month of Ramadan "in solidarity with the Palestinians and in response to the war in Gaza". The Tehran-affiliated Yemeni militia has since November launched attacks on ships transiting the Red Sea, forcing many companies to change their shipping routes and destabilising world trade. It has also fired missiles at the Israeli city of Eilat on the Red Sea. March 12 Red Sea Update Between 2:00 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. (Sanaa time) on March 12, Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists fired one close-range ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon in the Red Sea. The missile did not impact the vessel and there were pic.twitter.com/j5zbl159EG U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 13, 2024 Recently, Houthi militia leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi revealed that the group has launched more than 400 drones and missiles against more than 60 ships since the start of its operations, endangering one of the world's most important shipping routes, but also sparking fears of a regional expansion of the Gaza war. In response to these attacks, and with the aim of resuming maritime transit in the area, the US and UK have attacked several Houthi targets, which they have designated as a terrorist group. Earlier this week CENTCOM announced six self-defence strikes in Houthi-controlled areas that destroyed an unmanned undersea vessel and 18 anti-ship missiles, which CENTCOM said posed an imminent threat to merchant ships and US Navy vessels in the region. When Audi introduced the first generation of the A3, it offered it as a three-door-only affair, while a sedan was not even considered, although that version came alive along with the third generation of this moniker in 2013. In 2020, Audis plans to reveal the fourth generation of the A3 at the Geneva Motor Show were turned upside down due to the pandemic. With the show canceled, its only option remained to release the new model online. However, the German automaker was able to properly launch the facelift for the A3s fourth generation in 2024, and along with that, it also refreshed the sedan version. The new version came with essential exterior and interior updates but with just two engine options, at least at the models introduction. The front side of the vehicle had standard LED headlights. In addition, Audi offered the car two other choices, including a Matrix-LED one, which was the most expensive one. Between them, the automaker placed the revised singleframe grille that sported a honeycomb pattern. The automaker redesigned it with a flatter and wider stance. At the same time, it eliminated the chromed trim around it. Underneath it, Audi placed a lip spoiler. The automaker also introduced active flaps that opened or closed depending on the engines needs for cooling. In addition, the car manufacturer installed air ducts that led from the center grille to the front brakes to cool the discs. The side scoops were just for decoration, being blocked by black panels. From its profile, the 2024 A3 Sedan boasted light alloy wheels fitted as standard across the range. They ranged between 16 and 19 inches in diameter, depending on the options. The automaker offered the A3 Sedan with black Band C-posts, while the chromed surround for the window line was deleted. Out back, the automaker installed new taillights that featured arrow-like outward-pointing LEDs, while the dynamic turn signals created the illusion of a wider vehicle. Audi also offered the A3 Sedan with black front and rear badges. Inside, the dashboard was adorned by new fabric materials on its lower side, while the upper area was available with man-made leather and contrast stitching. Fronting the driver was the instrument panels display, also known as the Audi Virtual Cockpit. In addition, the German automaker installed a 10.1-inch touchscreen atop the center stack that controlled the MMI (Man-Machine-Interface). Along with the facelifted model, the automaker also offered customers the possibility to install third-party apps on the infotainment system. Lower, on the center console, the 2024 A3 Sedan sported new satin-finished metallic trims that mimicked those from the door panels. The selector for the automatic transmission looked like a slider that could be balanced back and forth to select drive modes. Out back, the bench seat could accommodate up to three passengers. However, legroom was nothing to write home about, especially for the middle-seated occupant. At the sales start, the 2024 A3 Sedan was available with a choice of two engines: a 35 TSI and a 35 TDI. The former featured a 1.5-liter gasoline engine turbocharged and fed by a direct fuel injection, while the latter was a turbodiesel. Both were paired with a seven-speed automatic (dual-clutch) gearbox, or a six-speed manual. The 1963 model year witnessed several changes for the Falcon lineup, beginning with the debut of a four-door Futura and a Deluxe wagon. The Futura was selling strong, so the American carmaker tried to expand the lineup with every new release. For example, the 1962 model year brought us the Falcon Club Wagon and the Deluxe Club Wagon, so the Falcon lineup was growing, going after more buyers.The Sprint also debuted in 1963, with Ford eventually launching a 260 V8 engine with 164 horsepower. Available on the Sprint, the V8 made its way on approximately 10,500 two-door hardtops and 4,600 convertibles.One of these hardtops is right here, looking for a new home.eBay seller doseguys insists that their car is a "real Sprint, not a clone," and this is an important note for anyone planning a restoration to factory specifications. The Falcon Sprint served as the starting point for the more popular Mustang, carrying a priceless legacy that appeals to many collectors.This Falcon was parked in dry storage approximately two decades ago, so it hasn't seen the light of day or tried to start the engine in 20 years. The latter part makes an in-person inspection almost mandatory, as you must figure out what happens under the hood. The car comes with the 260 V8 engine that was introduced later in the 1963 model year, and while the mill started before the Falcon was moved to storage, its current condition is unknown.The seller explains that the Falcon Sprint also lacks some parts, including the front bumper, the hood hinges, and the center console, likely as they were donated to another project.The metal looks solid, and while some spots require your attention, most of the rust damage is only on the surface. The dry storage prevented the car from turning into a rust bucket, and even the paint looks decent after all these years. It's unclear if the car has ever been resprayed, but the chances are that this is the original paint.The bidding for this genuine Ford Falcon Sprint begins at $3,500, but with only a few hours left until the digital fight ends, it looks like the car will fail to find a new home this time. Interested buyers find the starting bid too pricey for the Falcon's condition, so I wouldn't be surprised to see the vehicle getting relisted at a lower price.Meanwhile, you get extra time for an in-person inspection because the car will likely fail to find a new home. The car is located in Riverside, California, and if you're committed to a purchase, make sure you bring a trailer to take it home, considering its current shape. As consumer interest in rugged electric crossovers increases, carmakers scramble to satisfy their needs. Rivian may have hit a home run with the R3X, but Hyundai will be the first to market with the Ioniq 5 XRT. The rugged electric crossover has been spotted testing in Korea, and credible sources claim this is destined for the US market. EV kWh Hyundai recently revamped the Ioniq 5 lineup, one of the most important models for the company that competes for the number two position in the USmarket. Among the traits Hyundai offered to the refreshed model are a bigger battery (84instead of 77 kWh), cosmetic changes, and an updated cabin. Ride comfort has also been improved thanks to new dampers, while new airbags and reinforced front and rear doors and B-pillars enhance safety.Hyundai also launched the sporty Ioniq 5 N alongside the refreshed model, making it the first time the Korean brand offered a worthy rival to the Tesla Model Y Performance. In fact, it claims it's a lot better, thanks to the track-optimized performance. However, the Ioniq 5 N's starting price of $66,100 might cause customers to flee to Tesla, whose Performance crossover starts at $52,990, without considering the $7,500 federal tax credit that Hyundai EVs cannot access.What the Korean EV loses in price might gain in diversity, as the Ioniq 5 lineup will soon gain a new body variant. According to a report from The Korean Car Blog, a heavily camouflaged prototype presenting intriguing characteristics points to a more rugged version of the Ioniq 5 being prepared for launch. It could be named Ioniq 5 XRT and will address people's love for adventure vehicles.Even with the black cover hiding everything, it's clear that the Ioniq 5 XRT features redesigned front and rear bumpers. The All-Terrain tires also confirm that this is no ordinary Ioniq 5 but a trail-ready variant. What's more intriguing is that the interior is also hidden, indicating that significant changes might be in store. As the prototype appears to be in the early stages of development, it's hard to tell what modifications Hyundai is preparing for its upcoming adventure crossover.Hopefully, Hyundai will install a tougher protection panel for the battery pack. That was one of the weaknesses of the Ioniq 5, and it's unclear whether Hyundai addressed it with the facelifted model . We don't expect powertrain modifications compared to the ones offered to the current lineup with the recent refresh. However, the suspension should allow for more ground clearance and, hopefully, a beefed-up suspension that would improve the Ioniq 5 XRT's ability to tackle difficult terrain. The report indicates that the Ioniq 5 XRT could launch in Korea in the second half of the year, with European and US variants offered later. However, it appears that the Korean carmaker is facing supply chain difficulties that affect not only the production of the Ioniq 5 but also the Grandeur and Kona Electric. Currently facing an existential crisis that could see Jaguar follow in the footsteps of Chinese-owned MG, the Leaping Cat of Coventry has issued yet another safety recall concerning the marque's first and thus far only electric vehicle. According to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, just under 260 examples of the 2019 model year I-Pace feature batteries with a greater propensity for short circuits in the cells. WLTP Photo: Jaguar The document attached below lists no fewer than 10 part numbers for the battery pack assembly, with all of them produced by LG Energy Solution 's Polish subsidiary. Suspect batteries were produced between March 1, 2018 and May 31, 2018. As for the cars, those rolled off Magna Steyr's assembly line between June 6, 2018 and October 31, 2018.Jaguar Land Rover determined that battery fire risk greatly increases when the state of charge is greater than 85 percent. JLR is currently developing a fix for this condition, but in the meantime, owners are urged to charge their vehicles no more than 75 percent. Of course, owners are further urged to park away from structures and to the charge outside.Jaguar Land Rover's North American division is aware of 61 field reports and claims related to the recall condition, with said reports and claims received from August 23, 201 through February 16, 2024. Indeed, that's almost a month ago. The planned owner notification date is April 26, whereas Jaguar dealers will be informed about said condition and the lack of a fix no later than March 21.The LG traction battery is made up of 432 pouch cells arranged in 36 modules of 12 cells each. The battery management software was developed by Jaguar Land Rover instead of the South Korean high-voltage battery supplier. The Brits originally advertised the I-pace with adriving range of 480 kilometers or 298 miles. Care to guess how the 2024 model fares? That would be 470 kilometers or 292 miles in the WLTP, whereas the EPA couldn't give it more than 246 miles or 396 kilometers.It goes without saying that Jaguar's first electric vehicle is a poor choice over the likes of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 or Tesla Model Y, although the cab-forward aesthetic inspired by the C-X75 remains bite-the-back-of-your-hand beautiful. Jaguar did work its magic on the infotainment of the I-Pace, but it failed to make worthwhile improvements in terms of range and performance.The I-Pace can also be described as being a flop, with Jaguar selling a little over 60,000 units worldwide from 2018 through the end of last year. By comparison, Tesla delivered 1,739,707 units of the Model 3 and Model Y in 2023, of which the Model Y is estimated with 1.23 million deliveries.The worst is yet to come, though, because series production of all current models will grind to a halt in June 2024. Jaguar waxed lyrical about its 2025 rebirth as an all-electric luxury brand, yet Jaguar may have bluffed on that. With Jaguar currently reducing its dealership network footprint and the My Jaguar portal closing March 25 , it certainly appears that Jaguar is facing immense pressure.From who? Parent company Tata Motors from India, which is in the middle of restructuring. The multinational automotive company produces commercial vehicles and passenger vehicles under its own name, but also controls Jaguar Land Rover. With Land Rover doing so much better than Jaguar sales-wise, Tata is rumored to first spin-off and then ultimately sell Jaguar to whoever bids the most. During the Ferdinand Piech era, the Volkswagen lineup welcomed the poor-selling Phaeton. Twinned with the Audi A8 and Bentley Continental Flying Spur on the Volkswagen Group's D1 platform, the luxury sedan was discontinued in 2006 for the US and in 2016 for other markets. Photo: Baldauf 4MOTION Turns out charging loads of money for a Volkswagen-badged luxury sedan isn't exactly smart. In any case, Volkswagen continues to make a Phaeton-like model in China for the Chinese market exclusively. Enter the Phideon, which is based on the MLB platform of the Audi A4 through A8.Manufactured by VW's joint venture with SAIC in Shanghai, the Phideon received a well-deserved facelift in November 2020 at the Guangzhou Auto Show. This, in turn, means that a second generation is right around the corner. Instead of the People's Republic of China, our spy photographers caught a lightly camouflaged prototype testing in Sweden.As far as the automotive industry is concerned, Sweden is the center of all things winter testing. Volkswagen may have very well taken second-gen Phideon prototypes to Mongolia, but alas, the German colossus doesn't have such facilities in the world's most sparsely populated sovereign state.Based on the hard points of the black-painted car, we're dealing with the very same platform as the outgoing first generation. The slightly longer wheelbase and the Audi-esque taillights also stand out, as does the chrome trim running from the front fenders to the driver and front-passenger doors.The chrome trim on the rear quarter windows further differentiates the next-gen Phideon from the current model, and even the shark fin-style antenna is a wee bit different from that of the 2024 model. At over 5 meters long, the Phideon is pretty similar in length to the rear-biased 5 Series and E-Class.Under the hood, we don't expect anything other than a four-cylinder turbo. Dubbed Hui Ang in China, which translates to Noble Brightness, the Phideon is currently priced at 343,000 yuan for the 380 TSI. That's 47,720 dollars at current exchange rates. The Passat sedan, by comparison, is 208,300 yuan or just around 28,980 dollars for model year 2024.Exclusively front-wheel drive, the Phideon requires 8.1 seconds to reach 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour), onto a maximum speed of 240 kilometers per hour (149 kilometers per hour). Not bad for something that weighs over 1.8 tons. The SAIC-VW joint venture offeredfor the Phideon until 2021, the year the engine range was reduced to only the 380 TSI.Based on how close to production this prototype is, and with Auto Guangzhou 2024 scheduled for mid-May, chances are that Volkswagen will start customer deliveries in the fall. Considering that fewer than 3,500 units of the Phideon were sold in the People's Republic of China last year, the newcomer isn't likely to sell in large quantities either. As Polestar is preparing to start Polestar 3 production in the US later this year, the Swedish carmaker is also reconsidering its pricing strategy. Polestar announced new variants of the electric SUV, lowering the entry price to $73,400 from the previously announced $83,900. This makes the Polestar 3 eligible for the federal tax credits, provided the battery manufacturing will respect IRA provisions. SUV EV Last month, Polestar announced that its factory in Chengdu, China, has started production of the Polestar 3, its flagship model. The seven-seaterwill also be the first Polestar model to be produced in the US, alongside the Volvo EX90. However, since the Swedish carmaker announced the Polestar 3 two years ago, market conditions and Polestar's position have changed significantly.Despite growing sales, Polestar has not yet seen a path to profitability. This has prompted Volvo to limit its losses and stop funding Polestar . However, the two brands will continue to share R&D and manufacturing efforts. They are both owned by China's Geely, so the Chinese carmaker is expected to step in and replace Volvo as the main sponsor. Polestar acknowledges the difficult market conditions and recently announced plans to lay off 15% of its workforce.Aside from that, Polestar's plans continue as announced, with the flagship SUV Polestar 3 already starting production at the company's factory in Chengdu, China. The three-row SUV is also scheduled to begin production in the US this summer at Volvo's factory in South Carolina. However, given new market conditions and a marked slowdown insales, Polestar is reconsidering its sales strategy.Specifically, the Polestar 3 will start at a much lower price than the $83,900 announced last year. Previously, two variants of the Polestar 3 were planned, with the Long Range Dual Motor with Plus Pack and the Long Range Dual Motor with Plus and Performance Pack priced at $83,900 and $89,900, respectively. Now, Polestar offers the Pilot Pack as standard for all variants, with the cheapest trim (Long Range Dual Motor with Pilot Pack) costing only $73,400. The Pilot Pack includes Pilot Assist driver assistance aids, Park Assist Pilot, Lane Change Assist, and Head-up Display.Polestar 3's Plus Pack costs $5,500 extra and includes a 1,610-watt Bowers & Wilkins premium audio system with 25 speakers and a fresh air subwoofer, 21-inch Plus wheels, and heated rear seats. The Performance Pack includes upgrades like Polestar-engineered chassis tuning, 22-inch Performance forged wheels, and Swedish gold accents. It also comes with a software performance upgrade that boosts output to 517 hp, enough for a 0-60 mph sprint in 4.6 seconds instead of 5.0 seconds on non-performance variants.New in the lineup is also the Polestar 3 Long Range Dual Motor variant that includes the Pilot and Performance Pack but not the Plus Pack, for $79,400. Like for like, the Polestar 3 is thus $5,000 more affordable than previously announced, but with new variants that lower the entry price even more. Hopefully, the Swedish carmaker can source battery materials and components from North America. This would also make the Polestar 3 eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit, now offered only on lease contracts. Project Ulysses is the name of an ambitious project aiming to put Australia's SAF (sustainable aviation fuel) industry on the map. The name behind it is Jet Zero Australia, supported by some of the heaviest industry players, including Qantas, Airbus, and the Japanese energy conglomerate Idemitsu. According to Jet Zero, SAF offers seven times the energy density of the best batteries and four times that of liquid hydrogen. This makes it one of the most promising solutions for zero-emission aviation. The only problem is that there isn't enough of it to support regular commercial flights. At the moment, there's still not enough SAF available around the world, which also makes it expensive. This is why Australia, like many other countries , is fighting to set up a domestic SAF-producing industry.Project Ulysses aims to produce 102 million liters of SAF and 11 million liters of renewable diesel every year. It's Jet Zero Australia's flagship project based on the ATJ (Alcohol-to-Jet) technology. The facility that will be located in the Townsville State Development Area (SDA) in North Queensland will basically convert bioethanol obtained from agricultural byproducts into SAF and renewable diesel.The project is ready to enter the next phase after having completed the feasibility study that was initiated back in 2022. Another recent milestone has to do with finances. Jet Zero secured AUD $29 million ($19 million), which will help it further develop Project Ulysses. In addition to Qantas and Airbus , who are Jet Zero's foundational investors, another big name joined the club. Idemitsu, a Japanese energy giant, decided to select this as its first SAF project outside of Japan.The support from Idemitsu also shows the impact of SAF production prospects all around the world. Like many other countries in different parts of the world, Japan also plans to replace a tenth of its total jet fuel consumption with SAF by the end of this decade. Securing a strong SAF supply chain is an important part of that plan, as well as the efforts to establish a domestic SAF industry.This milestone comes after Qantas and Airbus first announced their Sustainable Aviation Fuel Partnership back in 2022. That's when the two partners agreed to future investments of up to $200 million, starting with $2 million for a new production plant in Queensland, Australia. The project would obviously benefit Qantas, who plans to use most of the new facility's SAF to fuel an increasing number of flights.At the moment, the airline still has to rely mostly on overseas suppliers, with a negative impact on overall costs. The goal is to reach a regular use of 10% SAF in its overall fuel mix by the end of the decade, and Project Ulysses is an important step towards that. Advantage BMW Midtown is one of the dozens of dealerships owned by Houston-based Group 1. The company has added several more during the past month. Yi-Chin Lee, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer Houston-based Group 1 Automotive, one of the nation's largest car retailers, continues to expand its network, buying up dealerships on both coasts during the past month. The company, with 202 dealerships in the U.S. and U.K., on Monday said it bought Modern Classic Motors near Hilton Head Island, S.C., which sells Mercedes-Benz, Sprinter and Honda vehicles. The dealerships are expected to generate $140 million in annual revenue. Group 1 has five dealerships and a collision center in South Carolina, according to its website. "We are delighted to grow our relationship with Mercedes-Benz and Honda while adding scale to our successful Hilton Head operations with these highly desirable brands," Group 1 President and CEO Daryl Kenningham said in a news release. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The additions in South Carolina follow Group 1 announcements of two deals in February. On Feb. 26, the company said it had bought two Lexus dealerships in Southern California expected to generate $350 million in annual revenue. On Feb. 12 it said it bought RRR Automotive Group which has dealerships in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., area and that it is expected to generate more than $500 million in annual revenue. The deals so far this year could bring an additional $1 billion in revenue to Group 1, the company said. Its acquisitions in 2023 added an estimated $1.1 billion in revenue. Group 1 owns and operates 202 automotive dealerships, 265 franchises, and 43 collision centers in the U.S. and U.K. The company reported net income of $602 million and total revenue of $17.87 billion in 2023. It reported $754 million in net income and $16.2 billion total revenue in 2022. Photo: Garage Kept Motors Everyone knows the Chevrolet El Camino, which cannot be mentioned without remembering its arch-rival, the Ford Ranchero, or when Dodge gave it a small shot at this class with the Rampage. The El Camino was made for five generations from the late '50s to the late '80s, and this one is part of the original batch that came to life in the first model year of assembly.Usually, whenever we come across such an old example , it looks all beat up and in dire need of restoration. However, this one has been brought back to its initial shine, so it is just as sexy as it was over six decades ago. In fact, due to the modifications, it is even more appealing, as it's not your run-of-the-mill restored old-timer, but a true restomod project with multiple modern accouterments.The vendor mentions stuff such as the modern air conditioning system, heated seats, a digital instrument cluster, power windows, a tilt-adjustable steering wheel, and a few other things. It also boasts power steering, power disc brakes on both axles and an automatic transmission with overdrive hooked up to the 350 ci V8. The 5.7-liter crate motor is said to deliver "robust performance" and "a distinctive exhaust note that resonates with its heritage."The suspension was also upgraded, and this 1959 Chevrolet El Camino rides on 18-inch front and 20-inch rear wheels. It features a black paint finish, has multiple chrome elements, and a few red accents that tie it to the cockpit. Red is the dominating hue inside and can be found almost everywhere, joined by the metal trim for extra shininess.Between us, this restomod is simply breathtaking. The car has clocked only 377 miles (607 km) since the restoration was complete, so you are looking at a brand-new 1959 vehicle. As for the most important aspect of the ad, which you can find here on Garage Kept Motors, the asking price, it stands at a whopping $136,900.To put it into modern perspective, one could land a brand-new Chevrolet Corvette Z06 for that kind of money. The track-focused variant of the C8 series starts at $112,700, so they could check a few options on the list, too. As for the E-Ray, with its all-wheel drive electric powertrain, it can be had from $104,900. So, if you had a $100k+ budget, would you get this El Camino We have seen Tesla Cybertrucks in pretty much all colors out there. With the automaker offering only a few customization options, customers call on aftermarket specialists to personalize their vehicles. Now, here comes the first Tesla Cybertruck in Ferrari Red. It is not actual paint, but a liquid paint protection film in the so-much-desired Rosso Corsa, one of the most popular paintworks when it comes to Ferraris. The film is sprayable and peelable and protects the stainless steel body of the vehicle. It is not like it actually needed protection since it is scratchproof, blowproof, and bulletproof.But this is a Tesla Cybertruck that we are dealing with, a vehicle that is huge in every single direction. So there is plenty of red paint protection film to use.Cybertruck owners have been resorting to wrapping their cars. But what this owner chose is a liquid paint protection film with a matte finish, which has a shade similar to Ferrari's Rosso Corsa, but it is not quite it.The photos of the Rosso Corsa pickup truck showed up on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum. The liquid PPF was applied by ixuviate, a Cypress, Texas-based firm specializing in automotive paint protection spraying and customization.Tesla does not offer many customization options. They do offer a factory wrap in five different shades. The Satin Rose Gold and Satin Abyss Blue cost $6,500, while the Slip Grey, Satin Stealth Black, and Satin Ceramic White are available for $6,000.ixuviate does not mention any price for the color options they offer. However, the one who uploaded the photos on the Cybertruck Owners Club forum mentions that this solution has an advantage over painting because it is peelable and less expensive.Tesla Cybertruck owners do have many customization shops to ask for help from. This is why we have already seen a lot of Cybertrucks with insane colors. The latest that we reported about was the one trying to mimic the looks of the DeLorean DMC-12 from the Back to the Future blockbuster. With its stainless steel body, the Tesla pickup truck looks as if it is DeLorean's brother from another mother. However, when parked next to each other, the Cybertruck dwarfs the gullwing coupe.We have also seen a Tesla Cybertruck in a turquoise wrap, looking like a beach day in Miami, Florida. The firm that dressed the vehicle in that wrap actually called the color Miami Blue A couple of weeks ago, real estate mogul Manny Khoshbin drove the first-ever Cybertruck in metallic red , and he liked it so much that he said he was going to go online and check the waiting times.A model wearing Midnight Purple seemed ready for the catwalk as well. However, the one that turned heads in Los Angeles was the color-shifting spectrum-wrap Tesla Cybertruck . The team who wanted to promote it with a film on YouTube had to change location several times to escape all the attention of those who spotted it and get the shooting done. Massive congratulations to OBYS AGENCY for winning Site of the Month January 2024 with AIM AI MODERNISM OF KHARKIV, thanks for all the votes and tweets. This AI experiment is focused on exploring the Kharkiv modernism movement, which took place from 1910 to 1930. We draw inspiration from that era's avant-garde artists and intellectuals and use advanced AI techniques to reinterpret and bring their visionary ideas to life. By leveraging modern technology, we aim to uncover new perspectives on Kharkiv modernism's artistic, architectural, and cultural legacy. The ultimate goal of this project is to introduce Kharkiv modernists to a wider audience and inspire new research on this topic globally. AIM project proposes extending the Kharkiv modernist art movement with AI to preserve its legacy. Content of the site, created with AI tool What comes first? At Obys, we follow a good practice to avoid burning out, it is called "Side Projects" or "Design for Love". Along with commercial projects, we also prioritize personal projects where the client is either a team member or oneself. This practice has given birth to popular projects such as Grids (Obys' first Site of the Month), Typography Principles, AAWUM, and more. Recently, our art director Viacheslav came up with an idea that he had begun exploring when the whole team was living and working in our home city, Kharkiv. The result is AI Modernism of Kharkiv. The artists whose works have been rethought with AI Viacheslav had prepared a workshop for our team on a particular topic. After the workshop, the team gave him the book "In the Eye of the Storm: Modernism in Ukraine, 19001930s" and suggested that it be the topic for the next side project. A few months later, Viacheslav started exploring Mid Journey and its possibilities. The content is the most challenging part of any side project because it needs to be good without infringing on the intellectual property rights of other authors or requiring a large budget for its development. AIM project proposes extending the Kharkiv modernist art movement with AI to preserve its legacy." A logotype and design idea The design of the website and the overall project was crafted with a focus on simplicity and clarity. We employed a grid-based approach to the design, which allowed for ease of comprehension and using. We started by working on the identity of our site since we did not have a logo. We understand the importance of creating an interesting and memorable storytelling for our site. Keeping these ideas in mind, we continued to explore different options. After much experimentation, we came up with 3 large modular letters, AIM. The idea emerged that these modules could be the key to storytelling on our site, from the preloader to the different blocks. The shape of the abstract form of Gosprom The site's primary highlight is its seamless storytelling or scrolling, which captivated the user's attention right from the outset. The entire main page was designed to tell the story, starting with the preloader, and transforming into the logo. Finally, it took the shape of the abstract form of Gosprom, the iconic constructivist building in Kharkiv, built when these artists resided there. The content is a king here The development of artwork for this project was both a stimulating and demanding undertaking. Our principal aim was to produce high-quality images, and to achieve this, we employed a range of techniques. Our approach involved feeding Midjourney with a variety of artistic pieces, amalgamating them, and generating unique objects and conditions to create original artworks that were inspired by the artists. By devising this method, we were able to produce a range of high-quality images that met our objectives. We believe that by using this approach, we were able to create art that was both innovative and unique. The combination of the piece of art and AI In parallel with the development, we prepared visual content by generating hundreds of pictures and selecting the 18 best ones. This took us about 50 hours of work. Have you found the Gallery? We have divided our website into four pages. The first page is the Index which showcases the main highlights of our project and encourages users to explore further. The second page is called the Experiment and it is divided into five sections, each dedicated to a great artist. On the third page, About & Credits, we provide all the technical information about the project, its creators, and sources. Finally, the fourth page, the Gallery, gives an overview of the eighteen selected artworks, displaying only imagery without any additional information. Technologies Despite limited resources, we chose to use Webflow for our side project development, which has provided us with numerous opportunities to bring our ideas to fruition. We were able to produce a remarkable outcome without the need for custom code or frameworks. Company Info Obys is a creative design and development agency based in Ukraine, specializing in creating unique graphic and web experiences for clients around the world. More about us is here. X: @obys_agency IG: @obys_agency 13 March 2024 08:30 (UTC+04:00) Qabil Ashirov Read more The competition between the liberal economy in the West, which was dominated by SMEs, and the centralised economy in the USSR, which was made up of big and mega enterprises, resulted in the victory of the former after 70 years. It was not just a competition between the two ideologies, which were totally opposite each other, but also a means to prove some economic theories. As is known, the Soviet Union established mega enterprises that employed thousands of people. However, in Western countries, SMEs dominate the economy. They witnessed several economic crises and stagnations, but they were able to surmount both problems. In comparison, for example, an economic collapse in a country in the West has subsequently spurred that country's rise. However, this development did not have a positive effect within the Soviet Union. One crisis in 70 years was enough to dismember the big country into 15 places. It proved that SMEs are more flexible and viable than large enterprises. They can handle risks more easily and find ways to continue production, but big enterprises do not have such luxuries. For example, most of the former Soviet mega enterprises have not been able to re-establish. So, Azerbaijan has taken a lesson from the fate of the former USSR, of which the country was a part. The country pays special attention to the establishment and development of SMEs, and they are an important source of employment, but their full potential remains untapped. It has implemented several projects so far. One of such projects was held by Azerbaijans Labour and Population Social Protection Ministry, and it was called self-employment. Through this project, the government granted equipment to establish workshops worth up to AZN 10,000. Besides, the Ministry hosted training on how to establish a business and how to use the equipment. With the help of this project, hundreds of workshops were established, and thousands of people were provided with permanent jobs. Thanks to this project, a revival was observed in the service and textile sectors in a short period of time. The project covered rural areas as well. The Ministry granted animals and equipment to manufacture dairy products. Besides, the government established a public legal entity called ABAD - Ail Biznesin Asan Dstk (Easy Support for Family Business) on September 23, 2016 under the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations. ABAD started as a pilot project with 7 family farms in Masalli, Azerbaijan. Currently, the number of families included in the support program has exceeded 553. Based on the order, a tranche of 1,000,000 manats was received for the establishment of ABAD . Since the project is a public legal entity, it operates on a self-financing system. Support and construction of new centres are carried out thanks to funds allocated by donors and partners. ABAD support program includes various services. This includes services such as marketing, branding, design, accounting services, equipment supply, legal assistance, transportation, packaging, logistics, one-stop certification, and end-of-sale arrangements. In addition, a bank account and TIN are opened in the name of the ABAD, and when the sale takes place, the funds are transferred to the ABAD's bank account. If necessary, through our donors and partners, "ABAD" members can be given equipment or preferential microcredit. In addition, in December 2017, Azerbaijan established the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (abbreviated: KOBIA ). It is a public legal entity that supports the development of micro, small, and medium businesses (SMEs) in the country, provides a number of supports and services to entrepreneurs, and coordinates and regulates the services of state bodies in this field. It provides grants and market research. Besides, KOBIA holds training for entrepreneurs to start businesses and to write business plans. Providing business credits with little interest is among the future plans of KOBIA. It is worth noting that since 2018, Azerbaijan has made significant efforts to boost SME development through the establishment of KOBIA, a major milestone towards systematically delivering tailored support for SMEs. The agency provides its services in Baku and across the country through 21 SME Development Centres. Despite all the efforts of Azerbaijan, SMEs encountered big problems during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as we said above, SMEs were able to overcome the emerging problems. Thus, COVID-19 has given renewed urgency to strengthening SME support, with a particular emphasis on promoting digitalization. In response to lockdown measures, many SMEs turned to digital solutions for the first time and experienced the benefits digital tools can bring to boost company performance and strengthen productivity growth. On average, 66% of SMEs in Azerbaijan started or increased their online business activity, and 37% started or increased their remote work. Generally, in 2020, Azerbaijans SMEs generated 42% of total employment but contributed only 17% of value added (24% in the non-oil sector). Their overall contribution to economic development is significantly lower than in OECD countries, where SMEs account for about 53% of value-added and 65% of employment. So, Azerbaijan intends to increase economic activity in the country through SMEs. For this purpose, the country has done its best and has started to reap the rewards of its efforts. The country provides help to startups via several different organisations, and no doubt the number of organisations will increase. --- Qabil Ashirov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @g_Ashirov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 15:19 (UTC+04:00) Qabil Ashirov Read more A new chapter is being opened in the relationship between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, the two Turkic-speaking countries. Thus, both countries plan to establish an investment fund with capital worth $300 million that will finance very crucial projects The Chairman of the Samruk Kazyna Sovereign Wealth Fund noted that the fund will also ensure the financing of priority projects in various sectors of the economies of Central Asian countries, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Turkiye. He added that the fund will strengthen Kazakhstan's partnership with Azerbaijan. It is worth noting that the cooperation between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan increases year by year. Thus, Kazakhstan has invested $114 million in Azerbaijan. In its turn, Azerbaijan has invested $215 million in Kazakhstan. Currently, over 200 companies with Kazakh capital operate in Azerbaijan, and besides, over 50 Kazakh companies are eager to operate in Azerbaijans liberated territories. In a comment to Azernews, economist Natig Jafarly noted that economic and political relations between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan are experiencing the highest period in history. He said that in 2020, the trade turnover between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan was just about 150 million dollars, and now this turnover has increased to 500 million dollars. He emphasised that a fairly serious increase in the trade turnover between the two countries has been observed. Also, the direction of economic cooperation has increased to a multi-faceted model. Previously, there was cooperation in fewer fields, but now the fields have expanded. The most important of these is to export Kazakh oil to world markets through Azerbaijan. This issue is very relevant for Kazakhstan. Kazakh oil has been mostly exported from Novorassiski port. The Russian-Ukrainian wars, actions, and the difficulty of ship traffic have created problems for Kazakhstan as well. Therefore, the country attaches great importance to alternative routes. The simplest and most effective way is to deliver Kazakh oil to the port of Ceyhan through Azerbaijans Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. A lot of work has already been done in this regard. Sufficient bilateral agreements have been signed, and a mutually beneficial cooperation model has been established. It is worth noting that this issue is very significant for Kazakhstan, N. Jafarly said. The economist underscored that this cooperation also gives reason to say that it stems from the very pleasant and good attitude of the Azerbaijani President and the President of Kazakhstan towards the union of Turkic-speaking countries. Natig Jafarly noted that the union of Turkic states is a very serious market. This market covers an area of up to 4 million square kilometres and has a population of more than 160 million. It goes without saying that the cooperation of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan can become a factor that can stimulate the cooperation of Turkic-speaking republics. I think the newly created investment fund will serve just that. Investments made in both Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan and established joint ventures can turn the two countries into hubs for logistics. Because of the current conditions in the world, after the events around the Red Sea, various forms of the East-West corridor are being investigated. The most effective way to connect Asia to Europe and vice versa is through the middle corridor, passing through Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. This project is quite profitable for both countries and will be able to increase the reputation of both countries all around the globe. It seems to me that this investment fund will also be spent on the implementation of suitable projects to solve this issue, the economist added. --- Qabil Ashirov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @g_Ashirov Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 10:58 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more Root K Contemporary in Tokyo will host a group exhibition themed "Azerbaijani Cuisine" on March 16-17. Nearly 15 young artists representing KamART Art Gallery will present 32 art works as part of the exhibition with the support of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Japan, Azernews reports. Azerbaijani cuisine belongs to one of the most interesting and original culinary traditions in the world, it is based on centuries-old traditions and is famous for its original dishes. It is widely known and very popular among other oriental cuisines, and some of its dishes are even included in the international menu. The unique dishes of Azerbaijani cuisine cannot be confused with any others; they evoke enthusiastic responses from the most sophisticated gourmets. The main purpose of the exhibition is to draw attention to the cultural heritage and culinary traditions of Azerbaijan and support talented young artists. Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az, and Milli.Az. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 11:58 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more Azerbaijan State Theatre of Young Spectators has presented the play "Unfulfilled Dreams" timed to the 60th birthday of talented actress and People's Artist Naiba Allahverdiyeva. The play combines all the roles that one actress has not played, but which she dreams of. The theatre production includes excerpts from William Shakespeare's masterpieces "Romeo and Juliet", "Hamlet", "Antony and Cleopatra", Jafar Jabbarli's play "Sevil" and Najaf Bay Vazirov's work "From the Rain and the Downpour", Azernews reports. Theatre is everything for Naiba Allahverdiyeva, and it is no coincidence that the anniversary benefit performance was held on National Theatre Day - March 10. Thirty years on the stage of the Azerbaijan State Theatre of Young Spectators, and before that, for another three years, a graduate of the acting department of the State University of Culture and Arts performed at the Nakhchivan State Music and Drama Theatre. From the very first day of her theatrical activity, the young actress was entrusted with the main role in the play Astana, followed by theatre productions like Apard sellr Saran and Guln Adam. With her images, she very quickly won the recognition of spectators and theatregoers. Her best roles are the images of heroines in Bala bla sozundndir, Ssin sehri, Magara, Ddm Qorqud, Mnim ag goyrcinim, and Cimnaz xanm yuxudadr. The actress starred in more than twenty feature films, as well as in television films, including Black Volga, Half State, Sentence of Love, the Russian Courier from Paradise, etc. The play "Unfulfilled Dreams" was highly acclaimed by theatergoers. The production director of the performance is Honored Artist Nijat Kazimov, the graphic designer is Zamina Elbir, Aygul Gurbanova is working on the musical design, directors assistants are Fuad Javadzadeh and Gunay Gasimova. People's Artist Naiba Allahverdiyeva, Honored Artists Rasim Jafar, Elnur Bakhramkhan, actors Anar Seyfullayev, Ramil Mammadov, Elshan Shikhaliyev, Elgun Yakhyayev, Konul Abilova, Mirsanan Kazimli, Ilhan Sadixov and Araz Pirimov will take the state of the State Theater of Young Spectators. Students of the Baku Choreographic Academy will also take part in the performance. The director of the choreographic numbers is Honored Artist of Azerbaijan Naila Mammadzade. Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az, and Milli.Az. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 18:42 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more The Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum has celebrated the ancient traditional Romanian and Moldovan spring festival of Martisor. Many public and cultural figures attended the event organised by the Carpet Museum in partnership with the Moldovan and Romanian embassies, Azernews reports. Acting Director of the National Carpet Museum Mira Mammadkhanova, the Moldovan Ambassador to Azerbaijan Alexandr Esaulenco, and the Romanian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Vasile Soare welcomed the guests of the festival. A spokesperson of the Romanian Embassy, UNESCO expert Nicoletta Zagura, spoke in detail about the traditions of this holiday and its similarity with Novruz. The event was followed by a Moldovan national dance, master classes on making souvenir rugs, Butali, and boutonnieres in the form of flowers made of red and white threads, as well as a museum tour. The event aroused great interest among the museum visitors. Founded in 1967, the National Carpet Museum holds more than 14,000 exhibits of the finest Azerbaijani carpets. Initiated by eminent carpet artist Latif Karimov, the museum is beautiful inside and out. The museum's new building is designed in the form of a rolled carpet. Now, the museum hosts multiple events, including international symposiums, conferences, and various exhibitions. In 2019, the museum received national status for its significant contribution to popularising and promoting Azerbaijani carpet weaving art. In 2020, the Carpet Museum enriched its collection with a beautiful pile of carpets purchased by the Culture Ministry at the Sartirana Textile Show in Italy. The 19th-century Guba carpet "Ugakh" was donated to the Carpet Museum, while the Garabagh carpet "Chelebi" enriched the collection of the museum's Shusha branch. Moreover, the Carpet Museum won the Travellers' Choice Awards for the fourth time in a row last year. The award proves once again that the professional activity of the National Carpet Museum is highly appreciated by visitors from all over the world. --- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 17:58 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more Azerbaijan's delegation, led by the Culture Ministry, is participating in the prestigious London International Book Fair, which commenced on March 12. The Azerbaijani Embassy in the UK is providing support to showcase the country's rich literary and cultural legacy, Azernews reports. The London International Book Fair, which will run until March 14, offers an excellent opportunity to engage with the international literary community, promote its cultural heritage, and strengthen its presence in the global book market. The fair provides a platform for publishers to showcase their products, forge partnerships with international counterparts, and expand their reach in the global book market. The Azerbaijani delegation includes high-ranking officials from the Culture Ministry, such as Tural Akhundov, the General Director of Thsil LLC, and Ramil Rzazade, the head of the Everest Publishing House. They are participating in various events and meetings at the fair to promote Azerbaijani literature and establish business connections with publishers and industry professionals. Participants and visitors to the fair are provided with extensive information about Azerbaijan's rich culture and history. The guests of the book fair are also informed about the country's literary traditions and the significance of the city of Shusha, which was recently designated as the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World in 2024. Recall that during the 12th Conference of the Culture Ministers of the Islamic World held in Doha, Azerbaijani Culture Minister Adil Karimli presented the nomination of Shusha as a candidate city within ICESCO's Programme for Culture Capitals in the Islamic World. By unanimous decision, the city was declared the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World for 2024. With its diverse cultural heritage, Shusha is a true testament to the Islamic world's legacy. The city is dotted with historical mosques and mausoleums that demonstrate the Islamic world's architectural brilliance. Yukhari Govhar Agha Mosque and Ashaghi Govhar Agha Mosque, which stand as symbols of Shusha's religious heritage, are considered masterpieces of Eastern architecture. On November 21, 2023, the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, signed a decree on measures related to declaring the city of Shusha the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World for 2024. The Azerbaijani stand at the London Book Fair has garnered significant attention and interest from attendees. The fair visitors have demonstrated keen interest in learning about Azerbaijani culture. --- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 10:40 (UTC+04:00) Baku holds a conference dedicated to the Baku Water Week exhibition, Azernews reports. The event was organized with the support of the Azerbaijan State Water Resources Agency. The purpose of organizing the Baku Water Week is to attract new technologies, equipment and investments to the country for the further development of this field in Azerbaijan, as well as to bolster the drinking water supply for the restoration and reconstruction of Karabakh, and to discuss important issues, new projects and cooperation in this regard. About 100 companies from 16 countries participate in Baku Water Week. In addition to Azerbaijan, the countries represented by the participating companies include the US, UK, Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland, Australia, Belarus, Georgia, Israel, Kazakhstan, Turkiye and Russia. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz White House announces 300 bln USD in weapons aid to Ukraine Xinhua) 11:13, March 13, 2024 WASHINGTON, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The White House announced Tuesday that it will provide Ukraine with another package of security assistance worth 300 billion U.S. dollars, funding made possible by cost savings in the Pentagon's contracts with domestic weapons manufacturers. "Today, on behalf of President (Joe) Biden, I'm announcing an emergency package of security assistance of 300 billion dollars worth of weapons and equipment to address some of Ukraine's pressing needs," National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said during a regular press briefing at the White House. Sullivan told reporters that at a time when money at the administration's disposal to support Ukraine was drying up amid congressional blockade of new appropriations, the new funding became available thanks to the savings made in contracts the Defense Department signed with weapons manufacturers to replenish U.S. stockpiles. "Those contracts came in under budget. So we have a modest amount of funding available," Sullivan said, adding that the administration now finds itself in a situation where it is able to give Ukraine additional capabilities such as artillery rounds and ammunition for HIMARS rocket launchers "without impacting U.S. military readiness." Sullivan continued to urge lawmakers with the House of Representatives to approve Biden's supplemental budget request that included some 60 billion dollars for Ukraine, warning that the assistance the White House just announced would "keep Ukrainian guns firing for a period, but only a short period." Ukraine is still expected to run out of ammunition "in the weeks to come," he added. "It goes without saying this package does not displace and should not delay the critical need to pass the bipartisan national security bill," Sullivan said. "The world is watching, the clock is ticking, and we need to see action as rapidly as possible even as we do everything in our power to get Ukraine what it needs in its hour of need." (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) New restaurant Magdalena's Trattoria and Pizzeria serves brick-oven pizzas. Alex Montoya Cooking techniques and menu items often are borrowed and reconstructed in the restaurant industry. But where is the line between inspiration and stealing? Do chefs feel, as the adage goes, that imitation is indeed the sincerest form of flattery? An answer isn't clean cut. Marco Wiles, owner of longtime Italian fine-dining restaurant Da Marco, expects former employees not to replicate his recipes that have been in use for decades. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The pizza menu at Magdalena's is similar to Dolce Vita's, with the exception of four pies left off the menu and one addition. A side-by-side view of the menus shows that the names and order of ingredients mostly match up. The pizza menu at Dolce Vita (left) and Magdalena's pizza menu (right). Marco Wiles/Sonia Garcia "I'm kind of hurt in a way, because Nicolas worked for me for years," Wiles said. "I just feel like no one cares anymore, nobody has any morals or any parameters." Nikic departed Da Marco amicably in May 2023, but according to Wiles, the relationship soured when he found out Nikic hired his pastry chef and tried to poach his head chef. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Nikic disagrees with Wiles' assessment, saying he didn't try to take any Da Marco employees. The pastry chef left on her own before he hired her, he said. Although the menu offerings are similar, Nikic said Magdalena's dishes are his own and are cooked differently than at Wiles' restaurants. He even uses different flour, he said. Nikic attributes his recipes to his family his dad is from Vienna, Austria; his mom, for whom his restaurant is named, from Northern Italy; some are gleaned from time he spent abroad. In a press release announcing the restaurant's opening, Nikic stated that he was thrilled to "share my familys authentic Italian recipes" and that he "grew up in Vienna and studied hospitality all over Europe, learning from the very best. He compared the menu similarities to places that serve burgers: they may have the same name, but they taste different. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "If you go to Italian pizzerias in Italy, almost every facility is the same," said Nikic, whose career has mainly been spent working in front-of-the-house positions. "I base my work on transparency. I never saw one recipe from Da Marco and Dolce Vita." The situation is frustrating for Wiles, who said he spent years creating his recipes. He said this is not the first time his dishes have turned up in other restaurants. "That's just how it is," Wiles said. He said he won't take legal action, though. Recipes are difficult to protect under intellectual property law and aren't patented, though a restaurant owner could turn to trade secret law, said Andrew Michaels, a law professor at the University of Houston. Someone can be sued for trade secret misappropriation if they took recipes that they were told were secret and shouldn't be shared, yet they are using those recipes in their own restaurant. The plaintiff would need to prove that they took reasonable measures to keep the recipes secret. However, there's a doctrine that permits employees to take skills and experience to their next place of employment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Copyright infringement is also an option. A restaurant owner can be sued for making an exact replica of another's menu. The court would decide if there is substantial similarity. The pizza oven at Magdalena's. Alex Montoya Restaurateur Tyson Cole, who owns Uchi, isn't worried about former employees opening up their own restaurants. He considers replicas of his dishes flattering. Dozens of chefs have trained under him and have since gone on to open their own sushi restaurants, including Hidden Omakase, Handies Douzo, Aiko, Neo and Aya in Houston. Cole said he's proud of, and has great relationships with, each of those chefs. Outsiders have also tried to replicate his dishes, he said, but he isn't bothered. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "What are you going to do? You know, at the end of the day, you've done all that work and if they want it for themselves, all the power to them try it," Cole said. "We're pretty confident that we'll still do it better." Wiles said he has also had good experiences with former employees leaving and starting their own businesses. He points to his former pastry chef Fernando Rios, who opened Mimo. Rios called and thanked Wiles for teaching him, then created an original menu. 13 March 2024 11:01 (UTC+04:00) President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has congratulated His Holiness Pope Francis on the occasion of Coronation Day, Azernews reports. The letter reads: "Your Holiness, It is on the occasion of your Election Anniversary that, on my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I am pleased to offer my most cordial congratulations to you and, through you, all your fellow coreligionists. We place great importance on enhancing relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See. The genuine dialogue and mutual understanding we have cultivated over the years contribute to preserving universal values and fostering solidarity among representatives of various religions and cultures. I express my gratitude to you for the high value you place on Azerbaijan's traditions of multiculturalism and inclusivity, and its role in promoting interreligious and intercultural understanding globally. I am confident that the atmosphere of exemplary cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Holy See will continue to contribute to the creation of an environment of mutual trust among civilizations. I wish you good health, longevity, and success in your noble mission for the sake of sacred purposes. Respectfully, Ilham Aliyev President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Baku, 11 March 2024" --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 13:57 (UTC+04:00) The Combined Arms Army holds a session on the commander training system with commanders and deputies of battalions and batteries, Azernews reports, citing the press service of the Azerbaijan Defence Ministry. The session concentrated on improving the theoretical knowledge and practical skills of the officers and strengthening their skills in the management of units. The main focus was on the planning and conducting of exercises in tactical, intelligence, shooting, physical, and drill training. In the classes held, questions such as the importance of the new requirements that have arisen in modern battles, possible problems in management, and other issues in the fight against drones and small-sized quadrocopters have been worked out. The physical and drill training of the officers involved in the commander's training session were checked, and the guidelines and topography were examined. In the end, the session was analysed, and the officers were instructed to further increase the level of combat training and professionalism of the subordinate personnel, adapt the training to real combat conditions, and use technological innovations. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 17:18 (UTC+04:00) A group of Azerbaijani MPs will visit Moscow on March 14 to observe the presidential election to be held on March 17 in the Russian Federation, Azernews reports. It was noted that Hijran Huseynova, Chairwoman of the Parliamentary Committee for Family, Women, and Children Affairs, and the MP Rufat Guliyev will observe the election on a bilateral basis. Moreover, Azerbaijani MP Sabir Hajiyev will observe the election through the line of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly, while MP Anar Mammadov will observe through the line of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly and CIS Executive Committee. As part of the visit, the MPs will get acquainted with the preparations for the elections and will follow the progress of the process and the activity of citizens on the election day. The trip will end on March 19. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 17:39 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more "The COP-27 conference held in Sharm El-Sheikh in late 2022 was a valuable experience in combating global climate change, followed by the COP28 organisers in Dubai, Azernews reports, citing the Minister of Environment of the Arab Republic of Egypt, Yasmine Fouad, as she told journalists. She emphasised Egypts close cooperation with relevant authorities in Azerbaijan, the host of the upcoming COP29 climate conference. We will continue to exchange experiences with our Azerbaijani colleagues during the preparations for the climate conference," the minister emphasised. Over the past five years, significant achievements have been made in international climate cooperation. The discussions to be held in Baku, following those in Sharm El-Sheikh and Dubai, will mark a new stage in addressing this global issue, Yasmine Fouad underlined. The Egyptian minister highlighted that discussions on environmental protection studies conducted by the Regional Organisation for the Conservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, an organisation of great importance to Egypt, will be held during Azerbaijan`s hosting of the COP29 conference. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 18:01 (UTC+04:00) President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received Miguel Angel Moratinos, the High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, Azernews reports. Miguel Angel Moratinos congratulated Ilham Aliyev on his victory in the presidential election and on Azerbaijan's election as the President of COP29. The head of state expressed his gratitude for the congratulations. Miguel Angel Moratinos expressed admiration for the impressive achievements of Azerbaijan and highlighted the country's successful chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement. He also hailed the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the UN Alliance of Civilizations, expressing gratitude for the support provided. During the conversation, they noted that events dealing with World Religious Leaders support for the fight against climate change would also be held within the framework of the COP29 and touched upon cooperation in this regard. The activity of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center was highly appreciated, with an emphasis placed on the fact that it has grown into one of the most important platforms at an international level. They pointed out that the 11th Global Baku Forum would welcome a large number of participants representing various regions of the world, where topical issues would be discussed. During the meeting, they highlighted the successful organization of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in Azerbaijan and underlined that this tradition would be continued in the future. It was noted that the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations has consistently provided its support as a partner of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue. During the discussion, they expressed concern about the increasing Islamophobia trends in European countries. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 20:10 (UTC+04:00) At present, the issue of water scarcity in our country is not as keenly felt by the urban population, yet it poses serious threats to the livelihoods of farmers, said Azerbaijans Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Umayra Taghiyeva as she addressed the International Exhibition and Conference for Water Management - "Baku Water Week". The Deputy Minister highlighted population growth and excessive water wastage as the key factors contributing to water shortages. "While 153 countries draw water from neighboring countries, approximately 3 billion people reside in river basins spanning multiple countries. Therefore, it is imperative to underscore the importance of international cooperation among regional countries," Umayra Taghiyeva emphasized. She affirmed that Azerbaijan will raise the issue of water scarcity with the participating states of COP29, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, scheduled to take place in Azerbaijan this year. She added that negotiations concerning water security and adaptation plan strategies are scheduled to be held within COP29. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 20:17 (UTC+04:00) The President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, has sent a congratulatory letter to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, on the occasion of his recent victory at the presidential elections in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. According to Azernews, the letter reads as follows: Dear Mr. President, I extend to you my heartfelt congratulations on your election as the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Development of friendship and cooperation with fraternal Pakistan, which is based on a solid foundation, holds particular importance to us. The elevated level of mutual understanding between our nations provides a promising foundation for further broadening ties across various sectors. I am confident that we will work together to strengthen and deepen the Azerbaijani-Pakistani strategic partnership and alliance, based on mutual trust and support, and to successfully continue the positive traditions of our bilateral and multilateral cooperation. I wish you robust health, happiness, and success in your upcoming responsibilities for the well-being and prosperity of the brotherly people of Pakistan. Respectfully, Ilham Aliyev President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Baku, 13 March 2024 --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 16:19 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more Georgia calls for the restoration of oil transportation on the Baku-Supsa route in 2024. Azernews reports that the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Levan Davitashvili, said this. According to the minister, Georgia expects to reach 1 million tons of annual transit volume: "The position of the Azerbaijani side regarding the use of the oil pipeline is very important. Here we conduct an intensive dialogue, because this pipeline has been operating for Azerbaijani oil since the spring of 1999. Currently, the transit of Kazakh oil from there is being discussed, but this oil is of a different type. I believe that now we have decided on the main issues and we hope that oil production will start this year. It is expected that more than one million tons of oil will be transported through this pipeline in the future." The Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan also confirmed that the resumption of oil transportation on the Baku-Supsa route can begin this year. This oil pipeline can transport up to 5 million tons of fuel per year. It should be noted that the supply of regular fuel through this pipeline was stopped in 2022. Besides, since 1999, Azerbaijan has been using the Baku-Supsa oil pipeline to transport fuel from the Chirag field. In the spring of 2022, it was decided to stop the fuel supply on this route due to transport problems. Currently, all Azerbaijani oil is exported through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline. It should be recalled that last year, Azerbaijan offered Kazakhstan to transport 5 million tons of Kazakh oil per year through the Baku-Supsa pipeline. It was supposed to be the oil extracted from the "Kashagan" field. In 2023, the supply of Kazakh oil via the BTC route increased 5.5 times and reached 1 million 392 thousand tons. It should be noted that the Baku-Supsa pipeline is a pipeline designed to transport Caspian oil from the Sangachal terminal to the Supsa port located on the Black Sea coast of Georgia. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 18:21 (UTC+04:00) Fatime Letifova Read more Murray Auchincloss, bps chief executive, is on a two-day planned working visit to Azerbaijan. In this visit, he is accompanied by Gordon Birrell, bps executive vice president, production and operations. According to Azernews, M. Auchincloss met with President Ilham Aliyev this morning, discussing developments in bps overall business in the region. The Chief Executive reiterated bps commitment to Azerbaijan, sharing the companys plans for a long-term partnership, its intention to jointly explore lower carbon energy solutions, and other opportunities to support the countrys energy transition efforts. He highlighted the ongoing activities and prospects for further development of the world-class Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli and Shah Deniz fields. He also discussed the Shafag (Sunrise) solar power project planned for the Jabrayil region, which is expected to contribute to the electrification of the bp-operated Sangachal terminal in support of Azerbaijans and bps aims to reduce their operational emissions. M. Auchincloss then met with Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov and SOCAR CEO Rovshan Najaf, discussing the progress of bp-operated projects in Azerbaijan. During the two days, Auchincloss will have a number of internal meetings, including a meeting with bps Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkiye leadership teams and a townhall with bps regional staff. Murray Auchincloss is also planning to visit the Sangachal terminal. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 22:28 (UTC+04:00) Fatime Letifova Read more As tensions between Armenia and Russia rise, new members are added to Yerevan's list of Western patrons. But to call it a true supporter or patron seems somewhat unrealistic. Armenia's behavior seems somewhat skeptical towards the Kremlin, as the issue is that Yerevan should be torn from the CSTO and completely riveted to the Western league. For example, in today's hour-long briefing, Russian MFA spokeswoman Maria Zakharova made an interesting argument about Armenia's desire to leave the CSTO and the border issue, inspired by the West. The Russian diplomat said that while the Armenian leadership took a harsh stance against Russia, in reality it did so unwillingly. In other words, Armenia actually believes that its borders are safer if they remain under the control of Russian troops. However, this is not the case for Nikol Pashinyan, given the increasing influence of the West over Yerevan today. Armenia's plan to leave the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) and the Eurasian Economic Union and then to join the European Union prompts it to seek new allies. It seems that since France, Armenia's biggest patron, is involved in fetching military assistant to Ukraine, Armenia decided to fill the gap turning to Britain. The British Deputy Defence Minister's declaration that they are ready to protect Yerevan from the Kremlin's "retaliatory response" was seen as a new shelter for this country. However, we must not forget that the West's current aim is neither to protect Armenia from Russia nor to stand by Armenia even if official Paris dream waging another war in the Caucasus comes true. It is clear that the war between Ukraine and Russia for a long time was actually between the West and Russia. The main purpose of British support for Yerevan is not to express an aggression towards Azerbaijan like France but obviously to weaken Russia. Because there have been strong relations between Britain and Azerbaijan since very long time. There is no doubt that the British government would not want to lose a strategic partner like Azerbaijan. For example, in 2003-2019, Great Britain invested about 20 billion dollars in the economy of Azerbaijan. According to the information of the State Statistics Committee on foreign investments in 2020, Great Britain ranked first among the ten countries that invested the most in Azerbaijan. More than a third of all foreign investments fell to Great Britain. In 2021, the exports volume from Azerbaijan to Great Britain was 397 million dollars, and the imports was 271 million dollars. In the same year, Great Britain was the 14th largest exporting country of Azerbaijan and the 9th largest importing one. The total volume of trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Britain was 667 million 870 thousand dollars, and Great Britain ranked 11th among the main trading partners of Azerbaijan. Even after the 44-day Second Garabagh War, the British government supported Azerbaijan. Since 2020, Great Britain has provided approximately 1.5 million pounds sterling (1,920,022.5 dollars) to combat landmines in Azerbaijan, and in August last year, it allocated an additional 500,000 pounds (640,007.5 dollars). The British government's support was not in only financial field. Last year, the House of Lords of the Great Britain Parliament discussed and showed a fair approach to thousands of Azerbaijani refugees who lost their home and lands after the First Garabagh war, lived in difficult conditions and wanted to return to their homes. So many examples like this are worth expressing Britain's special support for Azerbaijan. The fact that Armenia asked for help and then received a scrap of support is not due to the West's special interest in this country, but because it is a tool to create an obstacle for Russia in the region. But Armenia which is undoubtedly ruled by its Western partners, likes to hide the evidence and facts and exaggerate its tiny achievement. Russia anticipates the upcoming danger from the Western coalition and says that unpleasant predictions for Yerevan are coming in the near future. However, continuing Yerevans current course could ultimately cause irreparable damage to our allied relations, create serious risks for the sovereignty of the republic, completely destroy the existing effective mechanisms for ensuring the countrys security, and affect the prospects for its progressive socio-economic development, says Zakharova in her speech at the briefing. This stubborn and narrow-minded political course of Yerevan is a threat not only to Russia, but also to the South Caucasus region. If Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan does not make a reasonable decision soon, it is likely that this issue will deepen and become the main issue on the agenda for the regional states. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz In February crews started installing 28 license plate reading cameras in League City approved by council last fall, with plans in place to expand the program further into the community and neighborhoods, according to officials. League City Police Department League City is adding more license plate-reading surveillance cameras with a focus on parks, where police say they have seen an increase in vehicle break-ins. At the end of February, crews started installing 28 license plate reading cameras approved by the city council last December, with plans in place to expand the program further into the community and neighborhoods, according to League City Police Department Capt. Harold Lee. The city completed the first installation of 42 cameras in 2023, and with latest additions placed at roadways and parks, the city will have a total of 70 flock cameras, which take pictures of license plates on roadways. Advertisement Article continues below this ad LEAGUE CITYS NEW LIBRARY POLICE ASKS FOR CARDS AT THE DOOR: League City now checks for library cards upon entering The police department has also begun a Neighborhood Flock Camera Program approved by council through a grant program that will allow the use of cameras by HOAs and subdivisions that go through an application process. The cameras installed by the city let police know if, for instance, somebody enters the city in a stolen car, and the cameras placed at HOAs will help police narrow their search. We will know which area of the city theyre in, Lee said. Lee said the city is hoping to install up to 25 more cameras through the program, although the total number and costs are not finalized. Advertisement Article continues below this ad More than crime-fighting tools The cameras have also helped police solve two missing person cases, according to Lee. Lee cites one example of a family scheduled to depart from Galveston in a cruise ship. On the morning the family was set to board the ship, the familys grandmother didnt show up, and the family couldnt reach her and reported her missing, Lee said. Police got the license plate from the womans family and ran it through the police camera database and found that the grandmothers car had been documented by one of the cameras, according to Lee. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The camera was able to identify a location where the vehicle had been several hours earlier, and police subsequently tracked down the vehicle with the woman inside in a parking lot of a retail store. She was in the car but extremely disoriented, and very obviously in the midst of a medical emergency, and so officers took her to the hospital, Lee said. The woman was treated for a stroke and has since recovered, said Lee. I was happy to see that, he said. Obviously the crime-fighting aspect is very important to us but also the fact that we are protecting people in other ways. Privacy concerns The use of camera systems has raised concerns about how they could potentially infringe on citizens right to privacy. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Savannah Kumar, attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, said in a prior Houston Chronicle report that people should be cautious with the implementation or expansion of license plate reading systems, and to consider how long the data is retained and where its shared by law enforcement. Referring to Houstons use of Flock cameras, Kumar said the ACLU believes a large network of surveillance cameras makes it possible to tell where people are in the city, where theyre going, who theyre seeing such as which religious centers or health care clinics theyre going to and when theyre going to the places. And all that data collected together is a massive privacy violation for people in Houston. The ACLU doesnt object to all license plate readers and acknowledges their usefulness in finding stolen vehicles, aiding Amber Alerts and collecting tolls. According to Lee, the purpose of the cameras is not to monitor peoples everyday activity and that any non-criminal related data captured on the cameras automatically deletes after 30 days. Why more Flock cameras? We noticed that the (42) cameras we had installed originally were working very well, said Lee. We were seeing great results and that was a large factor. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Additionally, the price of the cameras was projected to increase, and the department wanted to get ahead of that cost increase, Lee said. Cost: Each camera costs $2,500 per year. Where will the 28 cameras be placed? The cameras will be installed at Hometown Heroes Park, Lynn Gripon Park at Countryside, the Chester L. Davis Sportsplex, Lobit Park, and the Dr. Ned and Fay Dudney Nature Center. How do Flock cameras work? The automated cameras are designed to read and photograph the license plates of vehicles leaving an area where a crime has been reported or suspected. The cameras have aided police in identifying various types of crimes, including motor vehicle thefts, aggravated assault, burglary, carjacking, identity theft and even two missing persons incidences, according to Lee. The following is based on data collected by League City police in 2023 directly attributed to the Flock camera surveillance system. 13 March 2024 20:10 (UTC+04:00) Japan and the Philippines are preparing a summit meeting, which may take place in April, when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Washington, Azernews reports, citing foreign media outlets. In order to prepare for such a meeting, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa may visit the Philippines on March 20. In addition, trilateral negotiations may take place with the participation of the heads of the foreign ministries of the three countries. The purpose of the summit with the participation of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is to strengthen cooperation in a trilateral format to curb China's growing activity at sea. Talks between Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington are scheduled for April 10. The parties plan to discuss strengthening both bilateral cooperation and interaction with partners in the so-called Indo-Pacific region. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 22:55 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva Kairos, a small solid-fuel rocket developed by the Japanese company Space One, exploded shortly after its first launch on Wednesday, Azernews reports, citing foreign media outlets. This rocket became the first domestic product to put a satellite into orbit. The 18-meter rocket exploded in the morning a few seconds after takeoff, leaving behind a large cloud of smoke, fire, fragments of the rocket and fire-fighting water visible near the launch pad. Local media broadcast this message live. Space One said it had "suspended flight" after launching from the mountainous Kii Peninsula in western Japan and was investigating the crash. Shuhei Kishimoto, the governor of the Wakayama local government, told reporters that an autonomous flight termination system was activated during the incident. He didn't say what the problem was. Kishimoto added that there were no casualties near the launch site, and the fire was extinguished. Space One said the launch was highly automated, including an abort function and the work of dozens of ground control center staff. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 13 March 2024 23:30 (UTC+04:00) Chinese investors will invest $360 million in the construction of new houses on the site of dilapidated housing under the renovation program in the Shaykhantakhur district of Tashkent, Azernews reports, citing Kun.uz news agency. Currently, unnamed Chinese companies are conducting a renovation project in the mahalla named after Olim Khuzhaev, located on the Aktepa block. Investors plan to build multi-storey buildings with 3,200 apartments instead of 42 two-story buildings with 568 apartments, built back in the 1960s. Barbara Bennett Elementary is set to open in August 2024 at 9235 N Inspiration Way in Manvel. Courtesy of Alvin ISD Alvin ISD expects to keep adding 1,000 new students per year and is calling for a group of residents and other stakeholders to come up with recommendations to handle the growth. The Citizens' Advisory Committee will consist of more than 100 community members including parents, taxpayers, business leaders and elected officials. Committee members will identify needs for renovated and new facilities and educational and student programs and offer their findings to the school district's board of trustees, according to a news release. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The committee will meet at 6:30 p.m. on March 25, April 8 and 29 and May 6 at the Alvin ISD Heritage Complex - Liberty Alumni Hall. 10855 Iowa Colony Boulevard in Iowa Colony. Alvin ISD student growth rates lead to shifting boundaries, UIL realignment Alvin ISD currently serves 29,892 students. The district is projected to enroll more than 33,074 student by the 2028-29 academic year, according to a Zonda Demographics report. The district's attendance zone is also expected to have more than 19,000 homes due to the surge in construction projects coming over the next 3-5 years, including residential community Valencia in Manvel. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The University Interscholastic League's decision to realign districts in January included Manvel High School and Iowa Colony High School due to their increased enrollment. Manvel jumped from 5A to 6A class with an 18% enrollment increase from 2022-24 to 2024-26, and Iowa Colony moved from a 4A school to 5A and is expected to have a 45% enrollment increase. Alvin ISD is also preparing to welcome a combined 1,800 students to Bennett Elementary School and Iowa Colony Junior High School in August. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola at at Mercola.com Dr. Rachel Levine, assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), tweeted in 2023, "Accredited medical professional groups agree that gender-affirming care is medically necessary, safe, and effective for trans and non-binary youth. It is important that we lead with science, data, and compassion."1 That science, however, is all of two pages, according to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by nonprofit watchdog Protect the Publics Trust (PPT). In addition to requesting "records of scientific evidence, studies, and/or data" to support Levines claim that gender-affirming care is safe, effective and medically necessary, PPT asked for "records of surveys of medical professionals regarding the value and importance of gender-affirming care for minor children."2 In response to the FOIA, HHS gave only one document totaling two pages in length. Its not even a scientific study but rather a brochure posted on its website, titled, "Gender-Affirming Care and Young People."3 "A safe and affirming healthcare environment is critical in fostering better outcomes for transgender, nonbinary, and other gender expansive children and adolescents,"4 but PPT alleges Levines statement violates HHS scientific integrity by making politically motivated declarations with no robust science to back them up.5 What Is Gender-Affirming Care? According to HHS, gender-affirming care "is a supportive form of healthcare" that consists of medical, surgical, mental health and non-medical services for transgender and nonbinary people. While transgender describes someone whose gender identity is different form their sex assigned at birth, nonbinary describes someone who does not identify with being a man or a woman.6 The World Health Organization similarly states, "Gender-affirmative health care can include any single or combination of a number of social, psychological, behavioral or medical (including hormonal treatment or surgery) interventions designed to support and affirm an individuals gender identity."7 In their section devoted to "Gender-Affirming Care and Young People," HHS describes social affirmation as a form of care that can be used at any stage, which involves the use of gender-affirming hairstyles, gender pronouns restrooms and name. During puberty, the gender-affirming care can progress to puberty blockers, which are hormones that pause pubertal development.8 In early adolescence and beyond, HHS lists hormone therapy as a partially reversible option. This involves the use of testosterone hormones for females and estrogen hormones for males. In adulthood or on a "case-by-case" basis in adolescence, HHS describes gender-affirming surgeries, which are permanent. In addition to facial feminization, theres "top" surgery, which can create a male-typical chest shape or enhance breasts. Theres also "bottom" surgery, or surgery on the genitals or reproductive organs.9 HHS, in its gender-affirming care brochure, cites a study,10 which shows transgender youth who received treatment were slightly less suicidal. While 51% of those who received care were suicidal, this was lower than the 62% who wanted hormones but didnt receive the treatment.11 PPT Calls for Investigation In a complaint obtained by The Daily Wire, PPT wrote to the HHS Inspector General, calling for an investigation into Levines statements and whether they violate HHS scientific integrity policies.12 Describing the FOIA submission as "essentially a piece of marketing material with cherry-picked data and agenda-driven assertions," the complaint to HHS states:13 "This is the opposite of science and evidence-based policymaking and flies in the face of the agencys pledge of adherence to professional practices, ethical behavior, and the principles of honesty and objectivity when conducting, managing, using the results of, and communicating about science and scientific activities.'" Levine, who is transgender, has made statements to various media outlets, including Reuters and NPR, in support of gender-affirming care for transgender youth. Daily Wire reports, "Levine has regularly used his role as a science official to declare that the treatment options for gender-affirming care for transgender youth really are evidence-based, and opposition to it is unconscionable."14 HHS similarly states that "experts and doctors" agree that such care is "essential."15 But according to PPT, this rhetoric not only ignores scientific literature showing harms exist to such care but also "declares that they do not exist." As reported by Daily Wire, PPT said in its complaint:16 "These statements not only do not acknowledge the contrary evidence, they assert that there is none. In spite of voluminous scientific evidence from around the world, as well as a growing number of policy decisions in other countries that run in the opposite direction, Adm. Levine has consistently made assertions indicating there is no data, studies, or evidence that contradicts or does not support these statements. The Assistant Secretary has also not only ignored the burgeoning controversy regarding the use of these treatments for minors, but has declared that it simply does not exist, that there is not a modicum of controversy in the scientific or medical communities regarding these treatments. In fact, the opposite appears to be true. There appears to be little evidence in support of the statements issued by Adm. Levine. HHS was provided the opportunity to present the evidence upon which these statements are based. Instead of producing reams of studies, data, and evidence, the agency was unable to deliver anything but a single two-page information sheet, with a few cherry-picked studies. It is difficult to imagine a more clear-cut case of an official violating HHSs scientific integrity policies and undermining the state of science in pursuit of a controversial policy agenda." Landmark Study in Support of Gender-Affirming Surgeries Corrected A 2019 study published in The American Journal of Psychiatry was widely used to support the practice, based on findings that gender-affirming surgery reduced the likelihood of mental health treatment. After receiving feedback questioning the studys statistical methodology, the researchers sought statistical consultations and reexamined their data, finding no clear benefits of surgery on mental health visits, medication use or hospitalizations for mood or anxiety disorders and suicide attempts. They noted that their original conclusion might have been too definitive, as their study didn't use a forward-looking or randomized design. In 2020, a correction was issued, which stated there was actually no advantage to gender-affirming surgery "in relation to subsequent mood or anxiety disorder-related health care visits or prescriptions or hospitalizations following suicide attempts in that comparison."17 According to Daily Wire:18 "To the contrary, the authors acknowledged, individuals diagnosed with gender incongruence who had received gender-affirming surgery were more likely to be treated for anxiety disorders compared with individuals diagnosed with gender incongruence who had not received gender-affirming surgery." The New York Times also featured a report of young people who had gender-affirming treatments and regretted it, then went on to join the growing group of detransitioners, which includes those who underwent medical interventions but no longer consider themselves transgender.19 Leaked Emails Show Doctors Know Transgender Hormone Treatments May Cause Cancer Leaked emails from doctors who belong to the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) also show that gender-affirming health care is not black and white. WPATH has influenced gender-affirming treatment guidelines adopted by Englands National Health Service, but according to Michael Shellenberger, a U.S. journalist who accessed the files, "what is called gender medicine is neither science nor medicine."20 One doctor wrote:21 "I have one transition friend/colleague who, after about eight to 10 years of [testosterone] developed hepatocarcinoma [a form of liver cancer] To the best of my knowledge, it was linked to his hormone treatment it was so advanced that he opted for palliative care and died a couple of months later." Another, a child psychologist, said children dont understand the ramifications of the hormone treatment and surgeries, stating:22 "[It is] out of their developmental range to understand the extent to which some of these medical interventions are impacting them. Theyll say they understand, but then theyll say something else that makes you think, oh, they didnt really understand that they are going to have facial hair." For instance, puberty blockers, which are given to children who have not yet entered puberty, delay the onset of sex characteristics associated with the gender you were assigned at birth. Whats particularly shocking is that the adults steering them toward gender reassignment dont make it a point to thoroughly inform them about the difficulties they might face. Overall, I dont think children and teens are capable of making the decision to transition, and encouraging or facilitating it really ought to be illegal. In another case, a 16-year-old girl was approved to have "top" surgery, or a double mastectomy, even though shed already developed liver cancer as a result of hormone therapy. "The oncologist and surgeon both have indicated that the likely offending agent(s) are the hormones," the files state. "We are prepared to support the patient in any way we can (e.g. top surgery when medically stable, etc)."23 Daily Wire further reported:24 "Britain closed its transgender clinic and warned doctors that many youth are just going through a phase. Norway, Finland, and Sweden also found a lack of evidence that the benefits of hormones, puberty blockers, and surgeries outweigh the risks." Some gender transition centers dont even require any kind of mental health assessment, and a number of Planned Parenthood clinics are apparently handing out hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescriptions on the first visit. To learn more, the video "Trans Horror: The Unspoken Truth" dives into the "unspoken reality of transgender sexual reassignment surgery and all of the pain, regret and horrors it entails."25 A Stepping Stone to the Transhumanist Agenda Many believe the trans movement and gender-affirming medical care for youth is a stepping stone in the transhumanist agenda. Ultimately, the goal is to get rid of flesh and blood bodies altogether and have our existence either within a synthetic body or as disembodied avatar in cyberspace, or both. Turning humanity into misgendered people incapable of natural reproduction is merely a first step in that direction. Next comes the melding of man with machine and artificial intelligence. Over time, the flesh and blood part of humans will be reduced while the synthetic parts will increase. That said, while I believe the transgender movement poses a severe threat to mental, emotional and physical health, it can be counteracted by level-headed discourse and the sharing of truthful information. You can find out more about how to protect your children from transgender ideology in my interview with Dr. Miriam Grossman, a child and adolescent psychiatrist and board-certified medical doctor. Sources and References 1 Twitter February 28, 2023 2, 5, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 24 Daily Wire February 6, 2024 3, 4, 6, 8, 9 HHS, Office of Population Affairs, Gender-Affirming Care and Young People 7 WHO, Gender incongruence and transgender health in the ICD 10 Journal of Adolescent Health 2022, 70, 643-649 17 The American Journal of Psychiatry August 1, 2020 19 The New York Times February 2, 2024 20, 21, 22, 23 Yahoo March 5, 2024 25 YouTube, Trans Horror 2023 Voters between 18 and 24 in France are swinging heavily to the populist / nationalist anti-immigration right according to a new poll from the prominent European polling firm IPSOS. Polling for the upcoming election for the EU parliament election later this year found a nine point gain among young voters for Marine LePen's anti-immigration National Rally, putting them in first place among young voters, and thirteen points ahead of President Macron's globalists who were in second place. Among young voters, an even more strident populist / nationalist anti-immigration party, Reconquest, had 3% of the youth vote and the traditional conservative Les Republicains had 6%. The National Rally was at 31%. National Rally's 13 point lead over Macron's globalists among the youth vote matched the results of another poll that gave National Rally a similar 13 point lead over Macron's party among all voters. https://www.rmx.news/france/young-french-voters-are-flocking-to-the-right-ahead-of-eu-elections/ Since younger voters have historically trended more toward the left, this trend shows how much the immigration issue has impacted younger voters. One remembers Churchill's famous quote that "if you are not a socialist at 20, you have no heart; if you are not a conservative at 40, you have no brain." A former family medicine physician in Yuma, Ariz., is facing multiple charges of sexual abuse of at least 11 former patients, CBS affiliates KTVK and KPHO reported March 12. Edsel Sandoval, MD, was arrested in February after three patients accused him of sexual abuse and sexual assault. He pleaded not guilty to all seven counts of sexual assault and sexual abuse during his first court appearance, also in February. The alleged abuse occurred between April 2022 and March 2023, according to court documents. Since then, eight other alleged victims have come forward. A father and son have been sentenced to 65 months and 12 months, respectively, for fraudulently receiving $21 million in Medicare payments. Anthony Duane Bell Sr., 55, and Anthony Duane Bell Jr., 33, billed Medicare for medically unnecessary durable medical equipment such as knee, ankle, shoulder, wrist and back braces, according to a March 11 news release from the Justice Department. The pair created two medical equipment companies and entered sham agreements with marketing companies. The marketing companies would provide packets of information about Medicare beneficiaries, including personal information, medical history, Medicare number and an audio recording between a call center and the patient, in which the patient supposedly agreed to accept a brace. The Bells bought thousands of these packets and used them to bill Medicare. Mr. Bell Sr. must also pay $21.7 million in restitution to Medicare and forfeit $806,375 and a luxury house. According to the report, he intended to defraud Medicare of $46 million and received over $21 million. The U.S. House has passed a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban on social media platform TikTok, according to a March 13 report from CNN. The bill passed on March 13 on a vote of 352-65, with 50 Democrats and 15 Republicans voting in opposition. Lawmakers have argued that TikTok is a threat to national security because it is owned by China-based ByteDance. The bill will now head to the Senate, where its future is unclear, before heading to President Joe Biden's desk if passed. President Biden has previously stated that he will pass the legislation. Some have voiced opposition to the bill, including small business owners, who are worried about a potential negative impact. Nearly 5 million businesses have TikTok accounts, according to a report from CNBC, and that includes both major health systems and independent practices. Without TikTok, businesses stand to lose a free and effective way to gain customers, which can otherwise be especially difficult for small businesses. Healthcare providers also use TikTok for a number of reasons, from advertising their practice to educating and connecting with new patients. Daniel Choi, MD, an orthopedic spine surgeon at Spine Medicine & Surgery of Long Island (N.Y.) who has over 33,000 followers on the platform, uses it to control messaging surrounding his independent practice and bring in new patients. And he is not the only one, especially considering the fact that 1 in 5 Americans consult TikTok for health advice before contacting a physician. Additionally, ByteDance has recently considered a dive into healthcare, with 17 open roles for healthcare and science-based jobs in the U.S. Without the application, millions of small businesses, including small ASCs and physician practices, could lose a valuable way to connect with patients and bring in new revenue. Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente is seeking approval to build a five-story medical office building in Sacramento, Calif., according to a March 12 report from NBC affiliate KCRA. Kaiser is also seeking to build a 312-bed hospital next to the office building. Both facilities would be located in Sacramento's Railyards. The system submitted approval documents on March 1 to the city's planning department. The Suzanne and Walter Scott Foundation has invested more than $23 million to the University of Nebraska Omaha's Walter Scott, Jr. Scholarship Program, known as Scott Scholars, to sustain and grow the program at the Omaha-based University of Nebraska Medical Center. The program is available to students focused on STEM education and provides complete funding tuition, room and board, and additional learning opportunities for undergraduate students. Of the $23 million pledge, $20 million will expand enrollment capacity in the Scott Scholars Program from 128 students to 168 over the next five years, and expand a class size from 32 students to 42 each year, according to a March 12 university news release. An additional $3 million will support the expansion of the program at UNMC. Becker's has reported on five hospital projects that have been announced in the past six months that are estimated to cost $1.5 billion or more: 1. Mayo Clinic's board of trustees on Nov. 28 gave the green light to an initiative dubbed "Bold. Forward. Unbound.," which involves a $5 billion redesign of Mayo Clinic's downtown Rochester, Minn., campus. The project is expected to be completed by 2030. 2. Children's Health and UT Southwestern Medical Center, both based in Dallas, on Feb. 7 said they are planning a $5 billion pediatric health campus in the city's Southwestern Medical District. Children's and UT Southwestern expect the pediatric campus to open in six to seven years. 3. The Nebraska Board of Regents voted on Oct. 5 to allow Ohama-based University of Nebraska Medical Center to engage with design and construction planning teams for a $2.19 billion academic medical center project. Construction work could begin in winter 2024 or spring 2025. 4. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute said Oct. 10 that it estimates that the freestanding cancer hospital it will construct in partnership with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston will cost $1.68 billion. A timeline of the Dana-Farber-BIDMC cancer partnership and the changes it entails was not provided in the announcement, although the systems said they anticipate "several years" of planning to finalize the operational model, obtain regulatory approvals and construct the inpatient hospital. 5. Oakland, Calif.-based UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital said Dec. 1 it is planning a $1.5 billion expansion. The project will demolish two buildings that are not compliant with seismic regulations and build a new eight-story, 330,000-square-foot facility. Construction will start in 2027 and wrap up in 2030. Nicole Hensley is a staff writer for the Houston Chronicle. She can be reached at nicole.hensley@houstonchronicle.com. She joined the Chronicle in 2018 from the New York Daily News and after writing for The Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington. A native of Seattle, Nicole is a graduate of Washington State University. West Boca Medical Center in Boca Raton, Fla., has opened a "fast-track" emergency department facility steps away from its main ED, where patients with less severe medical needs can be treated more efficiently. The fast-track ED includes seven treatment bays with recliners for patients who can remain vertical. It's staffed with nurses and medical technicians, and it is meant to ease ED overcrowding. Hospital officials described the space as an "urgent care facility attached to a hospital." "In a split-flow model, to have patients with less significant complaints and injuries, brought over to an area where they can be rapidly evaluated, rapidly treated and not be taking up the beds that a patient with chest pains or severe shortness of breath might be taking for hours in our main side," Cory Harow, MD, chief of the emergency department at West Boca Medical Center, told ABC affiliate WPBF. "In the event of a change in clinical status or the need for additional interventions, our Fast Track Emergency Department seamlessly transitions patients to the appropriate level of care," Dr. Harow said in a March 13 news release. West Boca Medical Center is part of Palm Beach Health Network. The federal government is launching an investigation into UnitedHealth Group following the February cyberattack on its Change Healthcare subsidiary that has significantly affected providers' financial stability nationwide. "Given the unprecedented magnitude of this cyberattack, and in the best interest of patients and health care providers, OCR is initiating an investigation into this incident," HHS' Office for Civil Rights said in a March 13 letter. "OCR's investigation of Change Healthcare and UHG will focus on whether a breach of protected health information occurred and Change Healthcare's and UHG's compliance with the HIPAA Rules." A spokesperson for UnitedHealth told Becker's the company would cooperate with the investigation. "Our immediate focus is to restore our systems, protect data and support those whose data may have been impacted. We are working with law enforcement to investigate the extent of impacted data," the spokesperson said. HHS noted that it is not investigating providers or payers that work with Change Healthcare, but it reminded healthcare organizations of their regulatory obligations and responsibilities under HIPAA. Large insurers have been penalized for data breaches by HHS in the past, with Anthem (now Elevance Health) agreeing to a $16 million settlement to resolve a 2015 data breach that exposed the personal information of more than 78 million members. Anthem also settled a class action lawsuit over the breach for $115 million. Change Healthcare, which processes 1 in 3 healthcare claims in the U.S., was hacked by a ransomware group Feb. 21. UnitedHealth said Change was hit by BlackCat ransomware group, forcing its systems offline. BlackCat claims it stole 6 terabytes of data from Change, including medical records and Social Security numbers, and has since received $22 million in bitcoins, according to Reuters. The attack has crippled many operations for hospitals, insurers, physician practices and pharmacies across the country, with the American Hospital Association calling it the "most significant cyberattack" on healthcare in U.S. history. "OCR is doing the right thing by investigating the root cause and location of the fallout from this serious hack," Federation of American Hospitals President and CEO Chip Kahn said in a statement shared with Becker's. "Providers remain focused on getting back on track and ensuring that patient care doesn't suffer, while continuing to collaborate with federal government agencies and others to maintain strong cyber defenses that protect patient data and access to care." Officials with the Biden administration summoned UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty to the White House on March 12, urging the company to provide more emergency funding to providers facing financial disruptions, people familiar with the meeting told The Washington Post. CMS said March 9 it has made advance payments available to Medicare Part A providers and Part B suppliers that are experiencing financial challenges. On March 1, Change set up funding assistance for providers facing cash flow issues after losing access to its payer systems, which provider groups such as the AHA have called insufficient. AHIP President and CEO Mike Tuffin said March 12 that insurers have taken "immediate and comprehensive" steps to ensure providers are receiving timely payments during the outage. "Given the very wide variability of impact across the system, individual plans and providers are in the best position to assess how to maintain appropriate payments in a timely manner and also to minimize the need for reconciliation processes," Mr. Tuffin said. As of March 7, Change Healthcare's pharmacy electronic prescribing is fully functional for claim submission and payment transmission. Change is expected to have its electronic payment platform available for connection March 15. Its medical claims network and software are expected to start testing for reconnection March 18, with the company working throughout that week to restore service. Separately, the Justice Department has begun an antitrust investigation into UnitedHealth Group, The Wall Street Journal reported Feb. 27. Children's National Hospital has added three physician leaders to its executive team, the Washington, D.C.-based organization said March 13. Jacqueline Saito, MD, was named chief quality and safety officer, and vice president of medical affairs, effective March 1. Dr. Saito will also serve as attending physician in the hospital's division of general and thoracic surgery. She most recently served as associate professor of surgery at Washington University, St. Louis, and as associate medical director of supply and resource stewardship at the BJC Healthcare Center for Clinical Excellence. Children's National appointed Nathan Kuppermann, MD, as the system's executive vice president and chief academic officer, overseeing research, education and innovation at the Childrens National Research Institute. Dr. Kuppermann was also named chair of pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Services. He will step into his new role in September. The hospital also tapped Wayne Franklin, MD, as senior vice president of the Children's National Heart Center, effective in June. Dr. Franklin will join Children's National from Phoenix Children's Hospital, where he's held various leadership positions, including co-director of the Center for Heart Care and associate director of the adult congenital heart disease program. "My focus since day one at Children's National has been on building a strong foundation for the future. People are a key part of this foundation," Children's National President and CEO Michelle Riley-Brown, said in a March 13 statement to Becker's. "These strategic additions to our leadership team bring national expertise in research, innovation, education, quality and safety, and clinical excellence to Children's National. Im confident in the positive impact we will continue to have on pediatrics nationally and globally. Our future is bright." Hartford (Conn.) HealthCare has placed a rheumatology leader on administrative leave after he was arrested on charges of child sexual exploitation. John Magaldi, MD, chief of rheumatology at the Bone & Joint Institute at Hartford Hospital, was arrested along with two other individuals, charged with separate sexual crimes against children. The arrests were part of a joint operation between the Meriden (Conn.) Police Department, the FBI and the New Haven (Conn.) State Attorney's Office, designed to "take enforcement against individuals that were seeking sexual activity with children," according to a March 12 Facebook post from the police department. Dr. Magaldi, 61, was released on a $350,000 bond pending a March 22 court appearance. He has been charged with attempt to commit second-degree sexual assault; attempt to commit illegal sexual contact with a victim under 16; attempt to commit commercial sex abuse with a minor; and interfering with an officer. According to his profile on Hartford HealthCare's website, Dr. Magaldi is also associated with Hartford HealthCare Medical Group; Torrington, Conn.-based Charlotte Hungerford Hospital; and Integrated Care Partners, the system's physician-led clinical integration organization. Wilson Suarez, 28, and Francisco Carrero, 50, will also appear in court March 22. Their professions have not been reported. Hartford HealthCare shared the following statement with Becker's on March 12: "We are troubled to learn of the arrest and we take these allegations seriously. With safety as a core value, we have placed Dr. John Magaldi on administrative leave, and we are working to gather information from law enforcement authorities so that we can address this situation appropriately. We are unable to provide further details as this is an ongoing legal matter." University of Michigan Health-West has named Kate Veenstra, DNP, MSN, RN, chief nursing officer. She had been serving as associate CNO since 2021. Dr. Veenstra joined UM Health-West, part of Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor, in 2006 as a bedside nurse. She has spent more than 18 years in nursing and leadership positions. UM Health-West includes a 208-bed teaching hospital in Wyoming, Mich. The following hospital-union events, including strikes, unionization votes and contract approvals, have been reported by Becker's in February and March. 1. Members of the National Nurses Organizing Committee, an affiliate of National Nurses United, canceled a planned March 14 strike at UChicago Medicine after reaching a tentative agreement with management on a new labor contract. 2. Nurses at Ascension Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas, and Ascension Borgess Allegan (Mich.) Hospital approved new labor contracts. 3. Members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association at Newburyport, Mass.-based Beth Israel Lahey Anna Jaques Hospital approved a new three-year contract. 4. Nurses employed by Philadelphia-based Temple University to conduct Temple Health's research initiatives approved a new four-year labor contract. 5. Nurses represented by United Food and Commercial Workers 3000 approved a new labor contract with Providence Regional Medical Center Everett (Wash.). 6. Members of the New York State Nurses Association at Northwell Health's Long Island Jewish Valley Stream (N.Y.) approved a new three-year labor contract after reaching a tentative agreement in February. 7. Members of the New York State Nurses Association at Northwell Health's Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead, N.Y., approved a new three-year labor contract after reaching a tentative agreement in February. 8. Nurses at Ascension Saint Joseph-Joliet (Ill.), who are members of the Illinois Nurses Association, began a four-day strike Feb. 8, marking their third strike in the last year. 9. Anesthesiologists employed through Beverly Anesthesiology affiliated with Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai Medical Center voted to join the Union of American Physicians and Dentists. From a federal judge dismissing a trademark lawsuit from NYU Langone to proposed class-action suits rolling in against Change Healthcare, here are 10 healthcare industry lawsuits and settlements Becker's has reported since March 1: 1. NewYork-Presbyterian/Brooklyn Methodist Hospital agreed to pay $17.3 million to resolve allegations it paid kickbacks to physicians using its chemotherapy infusion center. 2. The Federal Trade Commission and 10 states are suing a "sham" cancer charity and its operator for deceiving donors and funneling profits into its own pockets. 3. A Washington county court dismissed a lawsuit filed against UW Medicine that accused the Seattle-based system of losing a patient's tumor before it could be tested for cancer. 4. A nurse filed a lawsuit against her former employer, PeaceHealth, alleging the Vancouver, Wash.-based system failed to provide 30-minute meal breaks because of understaffing. 5. Lawsuits have started rolling in against UnitedHealth Group's Change Healthcare over the cyberattack that has crippled hospitals, physician practices and pharmacies around the country. 6. Six women who received ultrasounds between 2020 and 2022 at Sutter Health's Memorial Hospital in Los Banos, Calif., allege an ultrasound technician sexually assaulted them. Despite complaints and two police investigations. The women filed a lawsuit against Sutter and the technician. 7. A federal judge dismissed a trademark lawsuit brought by New York City-based NYU Langone Health System and NYU Langone Hospitals against New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Northwell Health regarding the use of the color purple and other elements in Northwell's marketing and advertisements. 8. Connecticut Attorney General William Tong announced that the state has been granted a $5 million prejudgment remedy in its lawsuit against the owners of the Stone Academy nursing school, after its abrupt closure without warning in February 2023. 9. As Dallas-based Steward Health Care's financial troubles linger at its hospitals in states like Massachusetts and Utah, the health system is now facing lawsuits pertaining to some of its Florida hospitals. 10. The family of a man who died at Mercy Hospital Springfield (Mo.) filed a lawsuit against the hospital, claiming delayed care and negligence contributed to his death. On March 12, a federal appeals court upheld an Arkansas law, ruling that drugmakers cannot restrict 340B program offerings from community and specialty pharmacies. The case involved the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America a powerful lobbying group for drugmakers the Arkansas Insurance Department, North Little Rock-based Community Health Centers of Arkansas, and Piggott Community Hospital. PhRMA filed a lawsuit against Arkansas' 340B Drug Pricing Nondiscrimination Act, which secures contract pharmacies in the 340B program. 340B is a 30-year-old program that enables eligible healthcare facilities, called safety-net hospitals, to purchase discounted drugs and pass those savings onto patients. In 2020, pharmaceutical companies began refusing to sell the discounted medicines to outside pharmacies that contract with covered entities, according to court documents. In response, Arkansas passed the nondiscrimination legislation, Act 1103, and PhRMA filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas alleging the state law is preempted by federal law. The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals' decision affirms the District Court's decision that Act 1103 is not preempted by federal law. The American Hospital Association, Arkansas Hospital Association and 340B Health filed friend-of-the-court briefs against PhRMA in the appeal. "Act 1103 does not create an obstacle for pharmaceutical manufacturers to comply with 340B, rather it does the opposite: Act 1103 assists in fulfilling the purpose of 340B," the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit said in its decision. " Arkansas is simply deterring pharmaceutical manufacturers from interfering with a covered entity's contract pharmacy arrangements. There is no obstacle for pharmaceutical manufacturers to comply with both Act 1103 and Section 340B." The AHA and American Society of Health-System Pharmacists celebrated the news during a time when more than 20 drugmakers have limited their offerings to contract pharmacies. A PhRMA spokesperson told Becker's the organization disagreed with the decision but did not indicate whether it planned to appeal. NewYork-Presbyterian/Brooklyn Methodist Hospital agreed to pay millions of dollars to resolve kickback allegations. The New York-based hospital was accused of paying kickbacks to physicians using its chemotherapy infusion center, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of New York. The hospital allegedly had a contractual agreement with physicians linking payment to the number of referrals physicians made to the chemotherapy infusion center. Laws prohibit incentivizing physicians for referrals involving Medicare and Medicaid patients. The infusion center's physicians were also accused of not supervising chemotherapy services adequately. NewYork-Presbyterian/Brooklyn Medical Center voluntarily self-disclosed the issues and agreed to pay a $17.3 million settlement. In fall 2022, New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System launched its four-day workweek program for nurse managers. More than a year later, the program continues to improve staff engagement, satisfaction and has become an important retention strategy, Beth Oliver, DNP, RN, chief nurse executive for the system, told Becker's. Dr. Oliver added, experienced nurse managers play a critically vital role in supporting staff retention and engagement, championing organizational culture, and ensuring quality and safety of patient care. "It's the nurse manager that retains our staff," Frances Cartwright, PhD, RN, vice president of nursing at Mount Sinai Health System Oncology Services, told Becker's. "Our recent Your Voice Counts survey revealed that nurse managers were most at risk for burnout, and while the majority reported that they found great meaning in the work they do, they also found it difficult to decompress when they were home. When I collaborated with our system nursing leadership and examined the literature, it became obvious that a four-day, 10 hour workweek would go a long way in supporting their work-life balance." Although nurse managers may typically be scheduled to work five days a week, they can end up working more due to being on call. Giving managers the ability to completely disconnect was one of the aspects built into the four-day workweek at Mount Sinai. Each manager works four 10-hour days and has one day completely away from work responsibilities. That day is covered by another manager. The program also ensures there is a manager presence on the unit on both the morning and night shifts and at the change of shift. "What we are learning is that nurse managers are able to be present and support best practice aligned with efficient workflows to advance safety, quality and coordination of care," Dr. Cartwright said. "Nurses feel supported on both shifts. The nurse managers are very vigilant about scheduling the four days to ensure the units are covered as needed. Nurse managers have the option to work five days, and some managers prefer that schedule because they feel like they cannot complete all their work in only four." The new schedule was launched systemwide across more than 100 units and practices. The four-day workweek has improved employee engagement and the culture of safety for nurse leaders and nurses, Dr. Cartwright and Dr. Oliver said, who added that the program has received overwhelmingly positive feedback. The system's turnover rate for registered nurses is currently 17% and the vacancy rate is 7%, compared to the national rates of 22.5% and 15.7% respectively. Other systems are considering four-day workweeks for managers as part of their efforts to support nurse leaders. Ronald Haskell is led into the courtroom to hear the verdict in his capital murder trial, Thursday, Sept. 26, 2019, in Houston. Haskell, who said voices in his head told him to kill six members of his ex-wifes family in Texas, was found guilty of capital murder Thursday by a jury that rejected his insanity defense. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP) Brett Coomer/Associated Press Harris County District Judge Natalia Cornelio has recused herself from overseeing the criminal proceedings into three Harris County employees all of whom handled a controversial procurement contract for Judge Lina Hidalgos office. . Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer First Asisstant for Harris County District Attorneys Office David Mitcham speaks to the press Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, at Harris County Criminal Courts at Law in Houston. Yi-Chin Lee/Staff photographer On the eve of an August 2019 meeting between now-Judge Natalia Cornelio and one of Harris Countys top prosecutors, defense attorneys for Ronald Haskell asked jurors to consider his mental health during his trial. Cornelio, then a staff attorney for County Commissioner Rodney Ellis but months away from launching a judicial bid, voiced her opposition to the death penalty the next day. She referred to Haskell as a sick man, apparently agreeing with the defense attorney's arguments from the highly publicized death penalty trial. The prosecutor, David Mitcham, new to the job as District Attorney Kim Oggs first assistant, kept a mental note of her comment for more than three years and then documented her reaction in a sworn affidavit. By then, Cornelio had won the 351st District Court seat and was well into her first term. With that role, she inherited a sizeable chunk of death penalty cases, including one involving Haskell, whom a jury went on to convict and sentence to die for killing six members of the Stay family in 2014. Advertisement Article continues below this ad GUILTY CONVICTION: Haskell found guilty of capital murder in Stay family deaths Cornelios years-old remark has since fueled a request by the district attorneys office that she pass Haskells case to another court to avoid any appearance of bias as lawyers on both sides march toward lengthy appellate proceedings. The recusal motion was filed last Wednesday. Judge Cornelios commentary would cause a reasonable person to question her impartiality, and raise doubt that she is unbiased, wrote Joshua Reiss, chief of Oggs post-conviction writs division. Cornelio declined to recuse herself on Tuesday and referred the matter to the jurist overseeing the Eleventh Administrative Judicial Region of Texas to decide whether she will remain the presiding judge over Haskells case. Mitcham characterized his meeting with Cornelio as a 'meet and greet' conversation concerning several pending issues involving criminal jurisprudence in Harris County, according to his affidavit cited in the motion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad She expressed disgust that Texas still pursued and sentenced defendants to the death penalty, Mitcham wrote. The prosecutor highlighted Haskells case as an example of a case that may be deserving of such a punishment but Cornelio immediately recoiled. Oh hes sick, she said in reference to Haskell, according to Mitcham. The trial continued for weeks following their conversation, with defense attorneys asking jurors to consider Haskell's mental health as a mitigating factor to preclude him from a death sentence. The lawyers used testimony to argue that hallucinatory voices guided Haskell to kill the Stay family and that he didnt know his actions were wrong. The jury declined to consider Haskells insanity defense and found him guilty of capital murder and sentenced him to death. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A spokesperson for the district courts declined to comment on behalf of the judge. A Dallas County public defender has taken on Haskell's appeal in the years following his conviction. The public defender, Christi Dean, has derided Reiss motion as failing to show bias in Cornelios comment, saying it reflects her awareness of media coverage, rather than impropriety. She also noted that Harris County prosecutors had multiple chances to seek Cornelio's recusal earlier in Haskells case, such as when the judge took office in January 2021 or when the same judge appointed Dean to the case that June. The affidavit that Mitcham penned was not signed and notarized until June 6, 2022, records show. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Dean also noted that the motion to recuse was filed the morning after Oggs primary loss to challenger Sean Teare. The attorney representing the State in this motion and (Mitcham) are both high-ranking members of a now outgoing administration, Dean wrote. In this year's judicial race, Cornelio ran unopposed in the Democratic primary and will not face a Republican challenger in the general election. Prosecutors have not sought similar recusals in any other death penalty case in Cornelios court but have routinely conflicted with her over other matters in those cases. Reiss, who filed the recusal motion, has taken exception to her handling of an execution order for Arthur Brown, who has since been put to death, and perceived delays on various post-conviction claims for Harlem Lewis and Jeffery Prevost. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Reiss' criticisms have been aired in court and in filings. It was a feeling of helplessness that led Mark Evers, MD, a gastrointestinal surgeon, to pursue cancer research. "As a surgeon focused on gastrointestinal problems, I was excited about the opportunities to actually effect a 'cure' by surgical resection of early cancers that were still localized and had not metastasized to lymph nodes or systemic organs," he told Becker's. "However, encountering patients whose cancers had spread left me feeling helpless as a surgeon to fully impact patient survival. Influenced by outstanding mentors, this feeling of helplessness led to my research interests focused on cancer signaling pathways leading to tumor progression and metastasis." He has been studying the basic mechanisms of cancer progression for over 30 years and now, Dr. Evers serves as the director of the Lexington, Ky.-based UK Markey Cancer Center. There is much Dr. Evers is proud of, such as his center's cancer screening efforts, which have brought Kentucky to the second in the country for lung cancer screening, "which is truly remarkable given the past culture of tobacco production and tobacco consumption." However, he has two concerns about the oncology field. "The first is the alarming decrease in the number of clinician-scientists that has occurred over the last 10-15 years," he said. "The clinician-scientist remains the bedrock of translational research teams, and the team benefits tremendously from their clinical expertise and background as well as their passion for finding new discoveries that would augment strategies to prevent or treat cancers." The second is the decrease in philanthropic and agency funding for cancer studies. "With the number of discoveries and new treatment strategies that have come about from research, now is not the time to decrease funding," he said. "Alternatively, funding should be increased if we are to maintain our current momentum and trajectory." In two months, 18 employees of Little Rock-based Arkansas Children's Hospital reported injuries following workplace violence incidents, five of which required medical care, the Arkansas Business reported March 11. Between December and January, the hospital had nine workplace violence events. Hospital CEO Marcy Doderer also told the news outlet she received a personal threat from a former employee that was deemed credible by the FBI and that warranted extra security at her home and office. Arkansas Children's isn't alone in the increase of violent incidents. A Children's Hospitals' Solutions for Patient Safety of Ohio survey found 82% of nurses reported they experienced at least one episode of workplace violence in the last year up from 69% in 2019. The survey of hundreds of nurses included 150 children's hospitals in the U.S. and Canada. A bill is currently pending in Congress that would provide federal protections for healthcare workers who are assaulted at work. In the meantime, hospitals are increasing security and providing psychiatric assessments for workers involved in violent incidents. Drug, supply and equipment shortages are the eighth-most urgent patient safety concern, the ECRI said March 11. As a shortage of penicillin G benzathine injection persists and Mark Cuban's drug company begins producing therapies in short supply, here are nine new shortages, according to national drug supply databases. Editor's note: The drugs are listed in alphabetical order. Acyclovir injection: The therapy, which treats severe infections caused by herpes, lacks enough supply for usual ordering of four solutions. Fresenius Kabi predicted the shortage to recover between March and April, and Eugia US did not share an estimated release date. Cyclopentolate and phenylephrine ophthalmic solution: There are no available presentations of the medication used to dilate pupils. Two 0.2% per 1% ophthalmic solutions in 2 milliliter and 5 milliliter bottles are on back order without a release date. Estradiol vaginal system: Pfizer's brand-name solution Estring is a ring that releases estrogen for three months after menopause. The drug is on back order without a release date. Flumazenil injection: For the injectable used to reverse the effects of benzodiazepine, an anesthetic, five solutions are in shortage and one is not. Fresenius Kabi expects supply to rebound in March and April, and Hikma Pharmaceuticals and Baxter International said April. Mesna injection: The solution is used to prevent hemorrhagic cystitis and inflammation in patients receiving high doses of cyclophosphamide or ifosfamide, two chemotherapies. Three 100 milligram per milliliter, 10 milliliter vials are in short supply with an estimated release date, and two solutions are available. Naltrexone hydrochloride tablet: A shortage of the alcohol and opioid use disorder medicine began in late February. Three solutions are unavailable, four are in limited supply and five are available among four manufacturers. One drugmaker expects supply to rebound in March, and the others did not offer a release date. Progesterone vaginal insert: The insert helps increase progestin hormone levels to help people become and stay pregnant. In late 2023, Ferring Pharmaceuticals recalled Endometrin because bacteria was found in four unreleased batches. No presentations are available. Succinylcholine injection: Seven drugmakers are reporting shortages of the general anesthetic as the FDA bans one of Accord Healthcare's manufacturing plants. Four solutions are available and 10 are not. Most companies did not offer a resupply date, and Fresenius Kabi and Hikma predict supply to rebound in March. Vasopressin injection: The medicine controls frequent urination, increased thirst and loss of water caused by diabetes insipidus. Four solutions are in shortage and seven are not, and two drugmakers said they could not estimate a resupply date. Fresenius Kabi said it expects more supply in early March. A January 2023 nurse survey fueled fears of an exodus, as 85% of those in hospital roles said they planned to quit within the next 12 months. Those 12 months have come and gone. In fact, about 14 months have passed since AMN Healthcare polled more than 18,000 registered nurses finding double-digit decreases across satisfaction scores, and double-digit increases in emotional drain. Yet, hospital nurses do not appear to have reached that ultimate boiling point, Christin Stanford, AMN's vice president of client solutions, told Becker's. There hasn't been a collective great resignation, and by some measures, nursing shortages have actually eased. Health systems took the signal to double down on retention efforts, which have helped delay departures in the short term. But organizations shouldn't rest on those laurels, Ms. Stanford advised: The "startling" declines in nurse well-being are still very present. "The pandemic was a once-in-a-lifetime type of event that brought so many of the gaps in the staffing models to light. And so a year later, what we have seen is that has certainly settled down some from a normalized work-life now, versus the COVID years," Ms. Stanford said. "But there's still a lot of way to go." AMN Healthcare will repeat the RN survey in 2025: There's no exact data to compare last year's findings to. However, a separate survey the company published last month found that 72% of nurse leaders are burnt out, prompting 31% to consider leaving their hospital jobs. That's not "crazy COVID" data, Ms. Stanford pointed out those nurse leaders are reacting to current practices. "The thought that we would just get back to business as usual, whether as a nurse or as a nurse employer there's no back to business as usual," Ms. Stanford said. "The call to action was really for every client or healthcare system that utilizes nurses: What are you going to do differently?" Many organizations answered the call this year by leaning into flexible work offerings. By offering gig shifts and hours that support nurses' schedules, they have been able to retain clinicians who may have otherwise resigned or retired. This is especially vital in today's multigenerational workforce, according to Ms. Stanford. Newer nurses are more likely to experience emotional distress and question their career choice early on. More experienced nurses can help ease their worries, offering mentorship and guidance but sometimes doing so from a virtual setting, which is less physically taxing as they age. Others are upping their continuous development and education offerings, offering financial support and scheduling adjustments to encourage nurses to upskill. There has also been a notable increase in sign-on and retention bonuses for nurses. In March, one California system began offering $100,000 sign-on bonuses to new nurses and $100,000 retention bonuses to current staff nurses over a three-year period, and as a result, has been able to fully staff its emergency department with minimal contract labor. But here, the results get murky, Ms. Stanford said. At the end of those three years, when nurses have cashed their checks, will they stay? The 85% of hospital nurses planning exits last year were well aware of their options. Some planned to return to school; some said they'd seek travel, part-time or per diem nursing roles. Other nurses shared plans to leave the profession entirely. "There's lots of opportunities that we can see on the internet, remote positions that 10, 15, 20 years ago, we didn't really have to that degree," Ms. Stanford said. Nurses have also grown more empowered through union activity and are increasingly advocating for change, from staffing ratios to improved care quality. They're willing (and able) to take control of their own destinies. It's going to take more than free lunches and "we love our nurses" cheers to become the employer of choice, according to Ms. Stanford. Those that rise to the top will prioritize the daily lives of their nurses, allowing them to spend as much time as possible where they want to be: at the bedside, caring for patients. As for staffing practices as a whole, they're poised to grow more thoughtful and less urgent, Ms. Stanford said less like a fire hose, "a little bit more like a peanut butter spread." On the second day of Ramadan, Children's Minnesota debuted "modesty gowns" for pediatric hospital patients, which will be offered as part of a partnership with Henna & Hijabs, a Minnesota-based and Black-, Muslim-, woman-led company. The gowns, designed by Henna & Hijabs founder Hilal Ibrahim with Muslim patients in mind, include features to provide appropriate modest coverage, the Minneapolis-based health system said in a March 12 news release. The gowns, created in partnership with Henna & Hijabs and the consultation of Children's Minnesota pediatric clinicians and patient families, are available in four sizes for pediatric patients. The gowns feature sleeves that are three-quarter length, a detachable hijab component and a closure that can be worn in front or back. "As part of our mission to champion the health needs of all kids, Children's Minnesota is committed to providing equitable and inclusive care through every aspect of a family's experience, right down to the medical gown kids wear during their stay at the hospital," said Emily Chapman, MD, chief medical officer and senior vice president of medical affairs at Children's Minnesota, said in the release. "Many kids spend a long time at the hospital, and it's important that we provide all patients with culturally sensitive and inclusive clothes that meet our medical standards. Our hope is that this serves as a model for other health systems and care providers." According to Children's Minnesota, the health system is among the first in the U.S. to offer a modesty gown designed for children. The system said the new gowns will begin as a pilot this month and will then roll out to all Children's Minnesota patients. The Bellevue (Ohio) Hospital added two orthopedic surgeons Dylan Matthews, DO, and Selvon St. Clair, MD, PhD, The Beacon reported March 12. Dr. St Clair and Dr. Matthews both joined the hospital from the Orthopaedic Institute of Ohio in Lima. Dr. St. Clair is a spine surgeon, and his clinical interests include degenerative disorders, spinal stenosis and spinal trauma. Dr. Matthews focuses on orthopedic trauma, and his clinical interests include joint replacement, rotator cuff repair and ACL reconstruction. The pub went on the market for an undisclosed sum last November and on Wednesday night, Ben Madigans Bar & Kitchen, which is based on the Cavehill Road, announced that it has bought the iconic establishment. "Were delighted to confirm that the Bens family is expanding, the team stated in a social media post. "Were the new owners of McKennas bar in the historic Sailortown area of Belfast. A refurb and rebrand will take place in coming months and we look forward to making the venue a destination in north Belfast once again After deciding to sell the Garmoyle Street pub in late 2023, Brian McKenna (63) who bought the pub when it was known as Buffer McMahons said: I just want to retire, as Ive been in it now for 10 years. Business is OK, nothing fantastic you have to work at it, and I always have. But retiring is just one of those things you get tired and fed-up. He said he thinks the pub has a healthy future as a venue for students who are now living in blocks of apartments in locations like Great Patrick Street and York Street. Brian McKenna owner of McKennas bar in the docks area of Belfast is selling up and retiring after 10 years owning the bar (Photo: Peter Morrison) But he added: It needs a younger person to go for the student market, and I havent the patience or the interest to do that. It will be sold as a going concern, and I cant see any other reason to buy it, and I think the whole area will eventually become some sort of student quarter. Ben Madigans Bar & Kitchen was relaunched in November 2019, after previously being The Cavehill Inn. Owner Kelvin Collins previously told The Belfast Telegraph: At Ben Madigans we have a simple ethos great food at a great price, comfortable surroundings and first class service. I always say that out staff are our biggest asset and this really shows in feedback from our customers. An agricultural software company based in Belfast has been acquired by a German business for an undisclosed sum. GEA, a systems supplier for the food, drinks and pharmaceutical industries, said the deal to buy CattleEye added a pioneering artificial intelligence system to its solutions for dairy farms. CattleEye, based in Catalyst in Titanic Quarter, is an artificial intelligence system designed to quickly detect and predict lameness in cows, which reflects whether animals are properly fed and in good physical condition. Next to mastitis, lameness is a major disease in dairy cows that can lead to infertility and ultimately affect milk yield. By using this AI-based software, farmers can take immediate action to improve the animal welfare and productivity. The CattleEye system uses a 2D camera with specialised software that analyses cow movement and body score patterns. The system can be integrated into both new and existing farms, regardless of the type of milking system. Peter Lauwers, CEO of the GEA Farm Technologies Division, said: With the trend towards larger and more automated dairy farms, the need to monitor and track animals and production is becoming increasingly important. "By adding CattleEyes advanced AI technology, we are expanding our DairyNet portfolio for modern herd management. This can be a game changer for farmers to improve herd health, farm productivity and financial stability. CattleEye was founded in 2019 by serial agri-tech entrepreneur Terry Canning, the son of a Co Armagh dairy farmer, and Adam Askew, a senior software architect. Launched in April 2021, the system is being used to monitor over 100,000 cows worldwide. Mr Canning, the companys chief executive, said: CattleEye was born out of a vision to harness the capabilities of advanced artificial intelligence in video analytics to revolutionize the dairy industry. "After starting our partnership last year, we are thrilled that GEA will be using and developing this innovative solution with our team to improve animal welfare and drive positive change in the industry. Police are searching for two men involved in an attempted home invasion Sunday, Jan. 28 in the Eastex-Jensen area. Houston Chronicle Six Houston-area residents were arrested and accused of running an illegal pharmaceutical-grade drug ring, authorities say. Quineshia Evangeline Hollins, owner of the First Choice Rx 245 pharmacy in Missouri City, is accused of supplying drugs from her business to an illegal stash house operation called "Green Houses" in Fifth Ward, operated by Gerald Dewayne Williams, 65, and Kerry Lewis Walker, 36, a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office states. MAN CHARGED IN GALVESTON FIRE: Man charged in fatal Galveston fire may have been fueled by unpaid drug debt Advertisement Article continues below this ad Williams and Walker are accused of selling the drugs out of the stash house, including oxycodone and hydrocodone, the U.S. Attorney's Office release states. Law enforcement had arrested Uzoanuuli Uzoaku WJ Payne, who worked at Hollins' pharmacy, and was allegedly driving an illegal shipment of controlled substances from the pharmacy, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Thousands of pharmaceutical grade drugs went missing from First Choice without any prescriptions or paperwork, the U.S. Attorney's Office states. On March 12, Attorney General Ken Paxton said that law enforcement had raided the stash house operation, where they found a "significant amount of cash, thousands of opioid pills, and other controlled substances," a release from Paxton states. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Others arrested in connection to the operation are Trey Demon Neal, 34 and James Glen Turk, 21. The Fiat 500 parked to promote Amelia Hall on Howard Street, Belfast, has attracted eight parking tickets. Picture courtesy of Iain Bryson A vintage car parked on the pavement in Belfast city centre to promote a new Italian-style pizzeria has received a string of parking tickets. But Peter Ringland, the co-owner of The Flint Hotel and the upcoming Amelia Hall bar, pizzeria and bakery on Howard Street, said he intends to appeal the sanctions to NSL, the private company which enforces parking regulations in Northern Ireland. He said the 1972 Fiat 500, which he described as the most iconic Italian car, has drawn about eight parking tickets in the last week. NSL and Department for Infrastructure which uses NSL as a contractor have been asked for comment. Mr Ringland said the car had been mounted on wooden blocks in the style of an A-board the type of advertising board traditionally displayed outside newsagents. And he said the car was still in place. Were disputing it with parking enforcement because its on wooden blocks as weve designed it like an A-board, even though it looks like a car. In theory, this car is just like an A-board. "Thats the idea, but instead of putting an A -board out, we decided we were going to put a little car there because it obviously garners a lot more attention than an A-board. "So the guys been ticketing us every single day, over eight days, but were just appealing them. And he acknowledged the tickets were gaining the business attention. Ill not complain, he said. Amelia Hall is due to open in July. It will trade from the ground floor of The Flint, and incorporate a cocktail bar and beer hall. Tech titan Snapchat has said its "hearts go out" to the victims of one of the world's largest catfishing investigations, which involved a perpetrator from Co Armagh. Alexander McCartney a 26-year-old university student from Newry has this week pleaded guilty to over 180 charges relating to catfishing and sexual abuse offences involving children. 'Catfishing' involves using a fake online identity to target other online users, which could lead to online sexual abuse, exploitation and blackmail. In this case, there are over 60 victims from as far afield as America and New Zealand, many of whom were contacted via the the picture and messaging app Snapchat. In a statement, the social media firm described the story as "horrific". The company told BBC News that it worked with police and used proactive detection technology. It also said it offered confidential in-app reporting tools to prevent this type of abuse. A spokesperson continued: "We also have extra protections in place for under 18s, including a pop-up warning if they are contacted by someone they don't know, and our Family Centre which allows parents to see who their teens are talking to. The charges McCartney had admitted to include multiple offences of causing a child to engage in a sex act, causing a child to engage in sexual activity and sexual communication with a child. On Monday, he appeared at Belfast Crown Court today where he was re-arraigned on a charge of manslaughter. He was charged that on May 11, 2018, he unlawfully killed a 12-year-old girl, as she died after being exploited by McCartney. When asked how he pleaded, McCartney replied "guilty." He also admitted a charge of blackmailing the same child between May 7 and May 11, 2018. The victim, who is not from the UK, cannot be named for legal reasons. McCartneys nearly 200 charges span over a period from 2013 to 2019. A previous court heard that an investigation was launched in 2018 after police in Scotland received a complainant. The investigation led to McCartney and after his Lissummon Road home was searched, a computer and mobile phone were seized. When these devices were examined, thousands of indecent images of young girls were uncovered, leading to his charges. McCartney has been on remand since July 2019 and was returned back to custody at the conclusion of Mondays hearing. Joanne Barnes is the chief executive of support service Nexus NI, which provides help to victims of domestic and sexual abuse here. Speaking to Radio Ulsters Good Morning Ulster programme on Tuesday, she urged catfishing victims to speak out against their treatment. "Abuse thrives on silence and that's what perpetrators thrive on. "It's really important to reach out because what we don't want people to do is put a permanent solution on a temporary problem. Derek in Blue Lights, where he plays a retired cop Derek Thompson in 1986 when Casualty first aired Casualty star Derek Thompson has said he doesnt consider himself a legend as he bows out of the show after almost 40 years. The Belfast actor plays nurse Charlie Fairhead in the BBC medical drama. As the longest-serving character, he is the only remaining original cast member from the first episode broadcast in 1986. Thompson (75), whose next move will see him join the cast of Blue Lights as a retired police officer, admits he felt heightened emotions while filming his departure. He also revealed that his character was supposed to leave decades ago. Derek Thompson in 1986 when Casualty first aired Thompson told OK! magazine: I never envisaged that Id stay 38 years. I originally signed up for three years, but it soon became apparent what a great character he was to play. Medicine and television have both changed a lot since I started. But the basics are still there the reception area and desk where people roll up is still performing the same function it did on my first day. In a gripping two-part finale to his time on the ward, Charlies life is left hanging in the balance. He was stabbed by a crazed patient during last Saturdays episode. After intervening when he found the patient carrying a box full of drugs, Charlie was left bleeding out on the floor in the hospital. Derek Thompson as Charlie Fairhead in the BBC medical drama, Casualty (Warren Orchard/BBC/PA) Thompson added: Charlie gets it wrong, and he makes a mistake that he pays a dreadful price for. Last weekend, the patient was in a mess, and Charlie tried not to lose his temper, but he ended up getting on the wrong side of the man. As everyone saw, it ended with him being stabbed. I dont want to spoil it by saying whether or not he survives, but everything felt heightened when I filmed my last scenes. It felt like one of those big emotional moments in your life, like the birth of a child or your wedding. Thompson hopes the storyline will shine a light on the increasing amount of violence against NHS staff. He added: I have utter respect for NHS staff. This final story really does create a realism, which will poke people in the eye and say, This really is painful for these people, and yet they struggle on. Over the last 38 years, Charlie has been involved in some of Casualtys biggest storylines. He has survived three heart attacks and being shot. Derek in Blue Lights, where he plays a retired cop He has also dated numerous women, notably Barbara Baz Hayes another original character who eventually became his wife for several years. But asked if he views himself as a TV legend, Thompson laughed: No, I dont see myself as a legend. Thats someone who does something extraordinarily consistently. I see myself as a long-distance runner, one that never gives up and just keeps on going. But as he now prepares to leave the ward for the last time, he is certainly not planning to walk away from acting any time soon. No way am I retiring, he insisted. Im busier than ever and Im working on some musical projects at the moment. In Blue Lights, I play a retired police officer, Robin Graham, whose past, and conscience, catch up with him when a trainee solicitor decides to investigate a decade-old case. Read the full interview in the latest issue of OK! The secrets out... NI independent bookstore takes the top honour at prestigious awards Owners of independent shop Jo and Chris say prize is for their customers The Secret Bookshelf has been named Independent Bookshop of the Year at The Book Awards 2024 (Photo: Amber Letters) Kurtis Reid Wed 13 Mar 2024 at 07:40 A book shop in Co Antrim has written a new chapter in its history. A Belfast Met student has been given the opportunity of a lifetime after gaining a prestigious scholarship that allows her to study fashion in New York. Katie Murphy is studying fashion production and business at Belfast Met and is currently on the Study USA programme. Originally from Gorey in Co Wexford, Katie is doing a placement year at Ohio Wesleyan University, but will now undertake two fashion internships in New York city. She is the first Study USA student to study across two different states. I spent my fall semester in Ohio Wesleyan University where my core focus was entrepreneurship, while also immersing myself in the Columbus Fashion District to prepare myself for my spring semester, Katie explained. I am currently a participant in the New York Arts Programme [founded by Ohio Wesleyan University] in which I am a part of the visual art and art history syllabus and doing two fashion internships in New York City. Katie said the experience she is receiving in New York is invaluable. This has pushed me so far out of my comfort zone and highlighted my capabilities while boosting my employability, creative flair and international perspective, she said. However, she is eager to return to her studies in Belfast and is ready to showcase the skills she has developed during her gap year. I feel much better prepared, confident and excited for my future endeavours upon my return to Northern Ireland, she said. The Study USA programme enables students to study business or Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related subjects in American colleges, across 22 states, helping to develop their career prospects. It is managed on behalf of the Department for the Economy by The British Council, which is the UKs international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. Since it began 1994, the initiative has sent over 2,000 students to all four corners of the United States. Katie working on a garment while interning for Jane Wade As an ambassador for the programme, Katie met with Economy Minister Conor Murphy in New York this week to discuss the importance of the programme. It was great to have the opportunity to meet the Minister and share how beneficial my internship has been, she said. Katie hopes the programme will continue to support students achieving for years to come. The scholarship has been a fantastic opportunity, I have been incredibly lucky to be able to gain experience here in the fashion capital of New York, she said. Without the programme Katie feels she wouldnt have been able to unleash her full potential as a fashion student. It has been the opportunity of a lifetime and will help me achieve my dream of working in sustainable fashion, she added. Belfast Met Fashion Course Director Caragh OHagan said the college is proud of the fashion student. Katie has been an incredible representative for Belfast Metropolitan College while in the USA and we are looking forward to welcoming her back to Belfast for her final year. It comes after Mark H Durkan compared parts of the sector to the Wild West A 2013 report by Sir Bruce Keogh said fillers were no more regulated in the UK than toothbrushes. Health Minister Robin Swann said there are no active plans to introduce legislation around Northern Irelands aesthetics industry. It comes after one MLA compared parts of the sector to the Wild West. Mark H Durkan suggested a Zoom boom where people saw themselves on screen more regularly as online meetings increased during Covid had led to increased demand. He raised the issue in the Assembly after the Belfast Telegraph reported that more patients are suffering life-altering injuries from botched and unregulated aesthetics processes, like Botox and dermal fillers. The SDLP MLA called on Mr Swann to introduce a licensing scheme and standardised qualifications for practitioners carrying out non-surgical cosmetic procedures (NSCPs). But Mr Swann said his department is currently operating within a constrained budget and is required to make decisions in relation to the work that can be delivered within current resources. He added: "In that context, work on the review of the regulation is currently paused to allow for other priority projects to progress. As such, there are no active plans to bring forward legislation in this area. A 2013 report by Sir Bruce Keogh said fillers were no more regulated in the UK than toothbrushes In 2022, in the absence of an Executive, Mr Durkan commissioned a comparative research paper from the Assembly Research and Information Service (RaISe) into NSCPs in Northern Ireland and Great Britain. The Foyle MLA said: Cosmetic surgery is a lucrative market, the industry in the UK is worth an estimated 3.6bn, so its no wonder so many practitioners are diversifying into this field. "The Zoom boom over the course of the pandemic which saw people looking at their own reflection in countless work calls, coupled with the social media and use of online filters has seen the demand for Botox and filler skyrocket. People are pitting themselves up against impossible standards of perfection. Of course, this is nothing new but the lack of regulation in terms of licensing and advertising is deeply concerning. "People dont need to look too far to see how widespread the issue of unregulated non-surgical cosmetic procedures problems is. Social media is filled to the brim with influencers promoting the latest on the market trends. Mr Durkan recalled a social media post on which someone said they were trying out a move into NSCPs and were offering a free Botox treatment to anyone willing to act as a guinea pig. "Its not my intention to impact the many practitioners and businesses out there who pride themselves on their high standards but rather this is about the system theyre working in, he said. "Registered healthcare professionals performing NSCPs are required to meet the competency standards set by regulatory bodies such as the General Medical Council, the major problem here is that there is no such requirement for non-medical practitioners. "This creates a Wild West scenario where essentially anyone can practise cosmetic procedures without a proper screening process for customers. "If youve got the cash you can access the treatment, with the potential of leaving under 18s or those with a history with mental illnesses like body dysmorphia completely unprotected under the current structure and unaware of the significant, possibly life altering complications. Mr Durkan urged Mr Swann to issue a public consultation on a mandatory licensing scheme for NSCPs. "This industry isnt going anywhere, its here to stay the Executive shouldnt wait until disaster strikes before acting to make it safer for everyone involved, he added. Responding, Mr Swann said the Department of Health is aware of the wider, changing health and social care service delivery environment including in relation to cosmetic treatments. "Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the department had developed a new draft regulatory policy framework however further development work is required, including consultation on the draft policy, he continued, repeating that work has been paused. A friend of Gallaghers said the shooting disrespected his memory. Masked man fires a volley of shots in memory of former Blanketman Denis Gallagher (Photo via Sunday World) Masked man fires a volley of shots in memory of former Blanketman Denis Gallagher, who died on Monday. Another masked individual holds a picture of Gallagher. (Photo via Sunday World) Police are investigating after shots were fired by a masked man in Londonderry last week. These Sunday World images show the moment when the shots were fired in an apparent tribute to a local republican. However, the family of Denis Gallagher who died last Monday and took part in the republican blanket protest in the Maze prison in the 1970s are understood to have been unhappy about the volley of shots. The incident is believed to have happened last Tuesday night. A masked man was filmed firing several shots in the air as another masked man stood beside him holding a framed photo of Gallagher. Footage was then uploaded to the Facebook page of a Derry-based group which supports former republican prisoners, with the message A final salute to our comrade Denis Sa Gallagher. However, a friend of Gallaghers said the shooting disrespected his memory. In a post under the video, well-known Derry republican Dixie Elliott said the group involved in firing the shots had approached Gallagher a while back and asked him about the so-called volley of shots. He told them in no uncertain terms that he didnt want it, said Elliott, who claimed Gallaghers family were livid about the shots being fired. Masked man fires a volley of shots in memory of former Blanketman Denis Gallagher Elliott asked for the video to be taken down, but it remained on the Facebook page for several hours before eventually being removed. A PSNI spokesperson said they were aware of the shooting. Police are aware of video footage showing two masked men, one of whom is seen firing a number of shots in the air. An investigation is underway, said the spokesperson. Last weeks incident was the latest in recent years in which shots were fired in Derry in honour of republicans. Last October, three masked men fired shots over the coffin of veteran republican Terry Robson. His coffin was also draped in a red Starry Plough flag, along with beret and gloves. Watch: Masked gunmen fire volley of shots over the coffin of IRSP Founder Terry Robson In 1974, Robson was a founding member of the Irish Republican Socialist Party, the political wing of the INLA. In October 2021, masked men fired shots in front of a mural of INLA hunger striker Michael Devine in the Galliagh area of Derry. Unionist politicians condemned the incident, with DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson describing it as a disgraceful display of terrorism. UUP boss Doug Beattie said there was no place for this in society and that those responsible were yesterdays men. The volley of shots came just a few months after a similar incident in Derry. In June 2021, up to 12 masked men took part in a republican show of strength at a mural in honour of another INLA hunger striker, Patsy OHara. Several shots were also fired in the air. A video of the incident was circulated widely online. It is understood no one has been charged in connection with any of the shooting incidents in Derry in recent years. Denis Gallagher, who was buried on Wednesday, had taken part in the blanket protest following the removal of special category status for republican prisoners in 1976. Councillor David Clarke has only been a councillor for four months - but has now quit the DUP Former DUP councillor David Clarke at the Orange hall entrance in Carrick after he said he was denied entry to a public meeting opposing the Northern Ireland Protocol A former DUP councillor claims he has been denied access to a public meeting in his own constituency tonight. David Clarke said that he wasnt allowed into an anti-Protocol meeting at an Orange Hall in Carrickfergus, which was intended to be open to all interested. Councillor Clarke quit the DUP four months after being co-opted on to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. The schoolteacher was selected to replace Cheryl Brownlee, who had been a councillor representing the Carrick Castle ward. However, she was co-opted into Stormont to replace DUP MLA David Hilditch, who died last November. In January, Mr Clarke said he had been hospitalised due to stress, which he attributed to his treatment within the DUP. He claimed that multiple individuals at various levels in the party had failed to act on concerns which he had raised. He resigned from the DUP, but said he would remain on the council as an independent for the rest of the mandate. On Tuesday evening, he went to enter King William III Memorial Orange Hall, but said he was the only person not allowed in to what had been billed as a public meeting. Councillor David Clarke has only been a councillor for four months - but has now quit the DUP The Orange hall event was addressed by TUV leader Jim Allister and loyalist activist Jamie Bryson, but was organised by local unionists in conjunction with members of the Orange lodge. Mr Clarke said neither men are to blame for his ban from the premises. Earlier, the DUPs East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson told the News Letter that he wouldnt be attending last nights meeting. The DUP MP has been critical of the decision to return to Stormont, but has avoided personally criticising his party leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson. I dont think that it does any good to create the kind of poisonous atmosphere that I think the TUV are trying to create, he said. He said the TUV are making it personal, because the chief aim of this is to build up an election campaign rather than deal with the issues which have to be dealt with. "Youll certainly not deal with the issues by dividing unionism further and by calling into question the integrity of people who make choices some of which were difficult. Time will prove if they were right or wrong, he told the newspaper. I still believe that some of the decisions were wrong. But Im certainly not going to lend any credence to the argument that these decisions were made because someone was a treacherous sell-out merchant. He continued: We are still the biggest unionist party. We are still the unionist party which has got the capability of leading unionism. Therefore, thats where the argument has to be won and the fight has to be had. What Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will mean for Northern Ireland Speaking at Tuesday nights meeting, Mr Allister said it was not designed to divide unionism, but to alert unionism and ensure all understand exactly what has happened in consequence of the Donaldson deal. The allegation that I or others whove held our ground are dividing unionism is utterly spurious, he said. It is those who have abandoned the agreed unionist platform against the Protocol that are the dividers. Unionism attained a very welcome unified stance on the Protocol in the joint Unionist Declaration of Ulster Day 2021. That solemn and unifying declaration was in these terms:- We, the undersigned Unionist Political Leaders, affirm our opposition to the NI Protocol, its mechanisms and structures and reaffirm our unalterable position that the Protocol must be rejected and replaced by arrangements which fully respect NIs position as a constituent and integral part of the United Kingdom. It could not have been clearer, unalterable rejection of the Protocol and replacement by arrangements fully respecting NIs position as a constituent and integral part of the UK. It is not TUV that has disavowed and abandoned this solemn declaration. Thus, it is those that have chosen to become Protocol implementers that have divided unionism. They will not put the guilt of their volte face on me or any of us that continue to stand where they promised to stand. The Orange Order has been contacted for comment to Mr Clarkes claims. Mr Allister has also been approached for response. The body of 54-year-old Roy Reynolds was found in a reservoir in Co Antrim in 2022 (PSNI/PA) The family of a murder victim whose body was dumped in a reservoir in Co Antrim say they have found themselves in the midst of an unimaginable tragedy. Michael Campbell, 34, was jailed at Belfast Crown Court for a minimum of 21 years for the murder of Roy Reynolds in 2022. Campbell, whose address was given as HMP Maghaberry, admitted the murder as well as a second charge of attempting to prevent the burial of a body. A judge said the murder of Mr Reynolds was brutal in the extreme, relentless and merciless. A second man, Robert Fulton, 70, of Brickhill Park, Newtownabbey, was given a sentence of two years and four months for assisting in the disposal of a body. The sentencing took place at Belfast Crown Court (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Reynolds, who was 54, was beaten and stabbed at a flat in Rathcoole in March 2022. The court heard he had suffered more than 100 injuries. His body was placed in the boot of a car and taken to North Woodburn Reservoir, near Carrickfergus, where it was later discovered in shallow water. In a statement after the sentencing, Eric McCully, Mr Reynolds brother-in-law said: We, Roys family, find ourselves in the midst of an unimaginable tragedy. Our beloved Roy Reynolds, affectionately known as Fobby, was taken from us far too soon. As we grapple with grief, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has stood by our side during this harrowing time. He added: Fobby was more than a name; he was a cherished brother, father and grandfather. His twin sister, Maggie, shares our grief, as do his brother Phillip and sisters Samantha, Joanne and Donna. Roys legacy lives on through his daughters, Natasha and Lisa, and his three precious grandchildren: Charlie, Freya and Ayda. Setting out the background to the case in court, Mr Justice OHara said Mr Reynolds had gone to Campbells flat on the evening of March 27 2022 for drinks. The next morning a neighbour phoned police to say he had seen Campbell dragging a naked body to a silver car and putting it into the boot. The car was owned by Fulton. When police stopped the car in Newtownabbey, Campbell, who was in the vehicle with Fulton, had blood on his face. The judge said officers later received a call to say Mr Reynolds body had been found in the reservoir. When police recovered the body, it was naked from the waist up and Mr Reynolds trousers and underwear had been pulled down to his ankles. Mr Justice OHara said it was evident that Mr Reynolds had been murdered in Campbells flat where police had discovered substantial blood staining. He said a post-mortem examination showed Mr Reynolds had suffered more than 100 injuries, including injuries consistent with the use of a knife, punches and blows from another weapon. The judge said the severity of the injuries indicated the victim was dead before he was placed in the water. During police interviews, Campbell gave differing accounts of what had happened, but the judge said Fultons version of events had been accepted by police as being close to the truth. Referring to victim impact statements he had received from Mr Reynolds family, the judge said It is clear from them how much he is loved and missed by his family and friends. The shock of his murder, especially the brutality of it, has made all of their lives so much harder than before. A major extra element of distress and grief has been caused by the way in which Mr Reynolds body was treated. It is one thing to lose a family member to murder, it is worse again, a lot worse, when the body is taken in the boot of a car and dumped in water. Sentencing the two men, Mr Justice OHara said: Campbells murder of Mr Reynolds was brutal in the extreme, relentless and merciless. It was made worse, many times worse, by what was done by Campbell to Mr Reynolds body after he was killed. He said Campbell must serve at least 21 years before he can be considered for release. The judge said Fulton could be treated differently because he was not involved in the murder and had shown remorse. He was given a total sentence of two years and four months, with half to be served in custody. However, the judge said that due to time already served, Fulton will not be required to return to prison. Terry Rivera, 27, is escorted into the Harris County Jail on Tuesday March 12, 2024. Courtesy/Galveston County Sheriff's Office A man accused of shooting a 12-year-old Houston boy to death last week was ordered held on $2 million bond, a sum that both his lawyer and prosecutors say will likely keep him in jail indefinitely. Terry Rivera, 27, of Houston, made his first appearance in a Harris County courtroom on Wednesday morning, two days after he was arrested at the U.S.-Mexico border. Rivera is accused of firing his handgun through the window of a Cloverleaf apartment, striking and killing Carlos Fernandez, the son of his ex-girlfriend, in early March. Rivera is alleged to have fired at least two shots into his apartment, according to police. His motives for the shooting haven't been revealed. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Rivera was charged with capital murder. In court Wednesday, Harris County prosecutor Jamie Burro alleged that Rivera said "What's up, what's up?" as he leaned into the apartment during the shooting, and then minutes after fleeing the scene, called the boy's mother. "The defendent called her from a blocked number, and she said, 'You were just here,'" Burro said. "The defendant said, 'I know, I know.'" The slain boy's mother identified Rivera as a suspect early on in the investigation, saying she recognized his voice. Advertisement Article continues below this ad After the shooting, Rivera fled Houston. He was arrested Monday night in Brownsville by Customs and Border Protection agents. Rivera's mother, Alva Cornejo, on Monday was charged with hindering apprehension or prosecution, amid allegations she helped him run from police. In court, Rivera's court-appointed attorney, William Exley, initially asked for the bond to be set between $50,000 and $100,000, and said Rivera was "basically homeless," living in a truck and had little financial means. Burro asked for Rivera's bond to be set at $5 million. FATAL POLICE SHOOTING: 5 officers placed on administrative duty after fatal shooting of robbery suspect Judge Denise Collins, a visiting judge overseeing the court, set Rivera's bond at $2 million, and said that if Rivera was able to come up with the money to secure his release from jail, he would first need to return to the court for bond conditions to be set. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "To be clear, nobody really thinks he's going to be able to make that bond," Burro said. If he does get the money, the district attorney's office would seek house arrest, an ankle monitor and "all the strictest condition we could have," Burro said. While Rivera is charged with capital murder, Burro said the district attorney's office couldn't pursue the death penalty against him. State law doesn't allow capital punishment against people accused of killing children between the ages of 10 and 15. "That's a question for the Legislature as to why they did that," Burro said. In 2019, the Legislature passed a bill, known as Lauren's Law, designed to toughen penalties in certain murder cases involving children. Though an early version of the bill made the murder of a child between the ages of 10 and 15 a capital punishment, that section was stripped before its final passage. Advertisement Article continues below this ad If convicted, Rivera could still be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The SDLP has said it will not be sending any party representatives to Washington for St Patricks Day due to the conflict in Gaza. The party had already announced a boycott of celebratory St Patricks events at the White House in protest at the situation in the Middle East and the US administrations support for Israel, but it was still planning to send a delegation to Washington to raise its concerns. Announcing the plan in January, the party said its delegation would engage with senior lawmakers, Irish Americans and Palestinian Americans to make the case for an end to violence. However, party leader Colum Eastwood has confirmed the party is no longer planning to send a delegation. The situation in Gaza has continued to deteriorate, he said. More children have been killed, communities obliterated and thousands of people displaced as a result of this horrifying conflict. And now, during the holy month of Ramadan, we have clear warnings that starvation is being used as a weapon of war against the Palestinian people. In those circumstances, the SDLPs decision not to attend celebratory events at the White House remains. We cannot drink Guinness and have the craic while people in Gaza continue to be persecuted. As a result of the decline in the situation the SDLP will not send any representatives to Washington DC this week. We understand that our action is symbolic and is unlikely to force a change in US foreign policy but it is the right thing to do and, we believe, the most powerful step we can take to highlight the inhumanity in Gaza. I sincerely hope that the international community wakes up and escalates its interventions to end the genocide, including by securing aid routes to prevent mass starvation. This is a stain on the international order that must be addressed soon. He was responding to correspondence from Mid Ulster MLA Patsy McGlone. The creation of an all-Ireland register of animal welfare offenders is untenable, DAERA Minister Andrew Muir has said. Campaigners have for a number of years been pressing for an animal cruelty register to act as a deterrent for those inflicting cruelty on animals. SDLP representatives on both councils and in Stormont have also been pushing for a register to be implemented on an all-island basis. In a response to a question from Mid Ulster MLA Patsy McGlone, new DAERA minister Andrew Muir has ruled out the measure, which was also dismissed by previous minister Edwin Poots. "An all-Ireland register of animal welfare offenders can only be created if such a register was considered feasible in both jurisdictions, said Mr Muir. "No register exists in the Republic of Ireland nor are there any plans to create one there. My Department has considered this matter extensively in the past and concluded that the creation of a register is untenable. "The situation remains that a clear evidential need has not been identified, the costs of establishing and maintaining a register would be significant and the data protection implications involved are prohibitive. "However, if Assembly colleagues or stakeholders advocating for a register can provide additional evidence to support the establishment and operation of a register, which could include where any such register has worked effectively elsewhere, my officials will consider any such detail received. "I am conscious that an objective of any register would be to ensure, as much as possible, that those banned from keeping animals do not obtain animals again. It comes after Mr Muir said animal welfare issues would be among his top priorities on taking up the post of DAERA minister. Just days after the Assemblys restoration, Mr Muir said stopping animal cruelty should be a priority for everyone. "Working with stakeholders and partners we can find a way to modernise and bring animal welfare legislation here into line with other jurisdictions, he said. Through adopting a collaborative approach I am convinced we have an opportunity to make a real difference and going forward I will continue to engage and listen carefully to help inform my decisions. Cllr Malachy Quinn Mid Ulster councillor Malachy Quinn who previously brought a motion calling for the all-island register said he was very disappointed by the response. "The minister states costs and logistics as a reason but bizarrely also says there is no evidential need for a register, he said. "This is despite the many stories we read weekly about repeat offenders, the puppy farm trade on a UK-Ireland basis, the fact the PSNI can not police those that have been banned from owning animals. "I accept that it won't be easy creating a register but since I started this campaign it has had clear support across the Island. "All parties north and south have supported it. Its a case of rolling up our sleeves and working towards it, not ruling it out straight away. We can create a sex offenders register, we can check on those convicted of abuse, why can't we do it for animal cruelty? "This is about tougher punishments and being named and shamed on a register for all to see goes a long way. DAERA have been contacted for a response. The Labour leader is a strident unionist but would he rule out a border poll? Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is hoping to be Prime Minister after this year's general election Labour is well ahead of the opinion polls with a general election looming. A Labour victory of course means that Sir Keir Starmer would become Prime Minister and, unlike most Westminster politicians, he has a long history of involvement with Northern Ireland. He has undergone a journey from investigations for the Haldane Society of socialist lawyers in the 1990s and being in favour of a United Ireland, to now being a strident unionist. Ciaran Dunbar spoke to the Belfast Telegraphs Northern Ireland editor, Sam McBride and Bill Bowring, a former Labour councillor and a professor of law at Birbeck, University of London, who has known Starmer for decades. Francesco / Flickr Dean MacNeil couldnt eat. Couldnt sleep. He was on emotional autopilot because something tore a hole in the soul of my family and me. It was the summer of 1991, and MacNeil had taken a road trip from Connecticut to Vermont with his younger brother, Scott. They hiked, jet-skied and spent much of the time listening to Scotts favorite musician, reggae superstar Bob Marley. A couple of weeks after the trip, a phone call came at midnight. Scott had been killed in a car accident. He was a passenger in another teenagers car when it slammed into a tree. He was on his way home from a reggae concert. MacNeil was devastated. He found refuge, though, in Marleys music. He started listening to Marleys songs again and discovered something: Biblical verses were scattered like gems through virtually every one of them. The lyrics werent just nods to the Bible but lengthy scriptural quotations that called the listener to believe that no matter what kind of changes and rages they were experiencing, they could never be blue, as Marley says in Forever Loving Jah, a nod to the Rastafarian religions name for God. That accident really sent my sister, mom, dad and myself into a tailspin, MacNeil says today. But Bob Marleys music is what got us through. It helped us deal with the grief and the despair by listening to these messages of hope and perseverance. I went to the classroom of Bob Marley, because my very survival depended on it. MacNeil found new meaning in the Marley adage: You never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice. He started leading Bible studies at his church and completed a masters degree in theology. He also became a musician and author of a book, The Bible and Bob Marley: Half the Story Has Never Been Told. Today, as Marleys life is celebrated in a new hit movie, MacNeil and others make a bold claim: Marleys spiritual impact is as significant as his musical legacy. The two are, in many ways, inseparable. These Marley fans and scholars say its time to stop glossing over or editing out Marleys subversive spirituality. The Bible was as important to Marleys music as his guitar, MacNeil says. You really need to know the Bible to understand Marleys message. Marleys Lyrics are Saturated with Biblical Verses Thats not the typical message about Marleys legacy that his fans get today. Since Marleys untimely death in 1981, he has been defined as a musical icon. His smiling visage adorns T-shirts, bags, key chains, scented candles, lip balm, iPhone cases and posters in college dorm rooms. His album, Exodus, was selected as the best album of the 20th century by Time magazine. His song, One Love was named the song of the century by the BBC. Some critics even say Marley was the most influential songwriter of the 20th century. This is the version of Marley that primarily appears in the current hit film, Bob Marley: One Love. It offers a glimpse into Marleys life in the late 70s, when he became a symbol of reconciliation in his home country of Jamaica. But theres another reason why many people dont see Marley as a religious figure. Theres a less savory aspect to his personal life that the current film only touches on: Marley was a married man who reportedly fathered at least 11 children, some of them outside of his marriage to Rita Marley. So how can a man who fathered illegitimate children and smoked marijuana be considered a holy man? The answer can be found in the way that Marley lived and died. Start with his music. His musical career began and ended with a Biblical verse. Marley would often start concerts by reciting Biblical passages, MacNeil says. His first published song, Judge Not, recorded when he was 17, was based on Matthew 7:1 a passage in which Jesus warned his followers to Judge not, that ye be not judged. The last track on his final album was Redemption Song (How long shall they kill our prophets while we stand aside and look?). It was based on Luke 13:34, (Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you). His faith was central not only to his music but to what Rastafarians would call his livity, which is his whole lifestyle, his whole approach to life, says Vivien Goldman, a British journalist and educator who befriended Marley while working as his publicist. Marley invented a new species of musician: the holy rocker. Other musicians like Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash sang about their faith. But none cherished the Bible like Marley. Several biographers have noted that while on tour, Marley would often withdraw to a secluded spot on his bus to ponder scripture. He would then return to the rest of his bandmates and debate not over women or song credits but the meaning of biblical verses. There are classic stories of musicians who were inseparable from their instruments. Jimi Hendrix supposedly slept with his guitar. Marley had the same attitude toward his Bible. Goldman says that Marley never went anywhere without his weathered King James Bible, which had a photocopied portrait of the Lion of Judah in full regalia pasted on the cover, and photos of Haile Selassie I, the former emperor of Ethiopia, on the inside cover. Rastafarians consider Selassie, who died in 1975, as the second coming of Jesus, a Black messiah. His spiritual practice was absolutely a crucial part of his life, says Goldman, author of The Book of Exodus: The Making and Meaning of Bob Marley and the Wailers Album of the Century. He would make time no matter what if he was in a busy airport, he would retreat to the side so he could sit and study his Bible. For some, God and the Bible are symbols of oppression. Both have been used to justify slavery, homophobia and imperialism. But Marley saw God as a liberator, a deliverer from political and personal oppression. In his song Exodus, he sang: Jah come to break downpression, rule equality, wipe away transgression, set the captives free. ,/p> MacNeil says its almost impossible to listen to any Marley song without bumping up against the Bible. He examined 83 Marley songs and identified 137 Biblical references, comprised of 39 quotations and 98 allusions. Marleys song, Forever Loving Jah, is a prime example. When Marley sings, Because only a fool lean upon his own misunderstanding, hes quoting a scripture from Proverbs 3. And Marleys album Exodus is named after a famous book in the Bible, revered by Jews and Christians. Hes not just quoting the Bible, MacNeil says. Hes actively engaged with it. Hes interpreting it. Hes making it relevant to his own experience. Hes making it relevant to a wide audience. He Was the Apostle of the Rastafari Religion Marley also made something else relevant to a wider audience: the Rastafari religion. No musical figure has, arguably, done more to popularize a religion than Marley. His beliefs revolved around Rastafarianism. But in the years since Marleys death, his religious and political beliefs have been sanded down, reduced to a fuzzy, marijuana-inspired haze call for One love, one heart. One destiny. Some critics call this the Disneyfication of Marleys legacy. But the Rastafari religion has a much gritter and more defiant edge. It was spawned by the tremendous suffering Afro-Jamaicans experienced for centuries. The slave trade, for example, was even more lethal in Jamaica, where Marley was born, than the Deep South of the US. More than twice as many slaves were shipped to Jamaica alone than all thirteen North American colonies. Most were tortured, raped and worked to death, according to Adam Hochschild, author of Bury the Chains, a history of the abolition movement in the United Kingdom. The Caribbean was a slaughterhouse, Hochschild wrote, describing the regions slave trade. The grinding poverty, suffering and political disenfranchisement of Afro-Jamaicans persisted under British colonial rule. Marley was born in rural Jamaica to an Afro-Jamaican teenage mom and a White father. It is impossible to understand him and the Rastafari faith, which emerged in Jamaica during the 1930s, without knowing the countrys violent history. Rastafari is a religion of resistance that blended Afrocentrism, Judaism, and Christianity, says Deepak Sarma, a religious studies professor at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. Though it is often categorized as a religion, it is also a revolutionary ideology to right the wrongs of British imperialism, the slave trade, and colonization of Jamaica and other Caribbean islands. Marley saw his music as a divine calling. God sent me on earth. He send me to do something, and nobody can stop me, he once said. If God want to stop me, then I stop. Man never can. Rastafarians, though, are known primarily by many casual observers for two elements of their religion: dreadlocks and the smoking of marijuana. The dreadlocks are inspired by an Old Testament passage from Leviticus 21:5, (They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in the flesh). Marijuana, or ganja, was seen as a sacrament for Rastafarians to deepen spiritual awareness. If there is a founder of the Rastafari religion, many point to Marcus Garvey, a Black Jamaican and activist who preached Black self-reliance, self-pride and led a Back to Africa movement in the first half of the 20th century. Selassie is also a central figure to Rastafarians in ways that puzzle some outsiders: How can Rastas worship a Black political figure who was also seen by some as a dictator? Goldman, Marleys former publicist, recalled asking Marley about the wisdom of worshipping Selassie. She wrote that he was stunned by her question, asking: So, you want me to worship a white god? The Universality of Marleys Spiritual Message is Why it Endures If an outsider fixates on the bitterness of Marleys quote about a White god, its easy to fall for the myth that Rastafarians demonize White people. But one of the reasons Marleys spiritual beliefs still resonate is his religion didnt go that route. Marley didnt limit oppression to one color. I cant be prejudiced against myself, he once said when someone asked him if he was prejudiced against White people. My father was a White and my mother Black, you know. Them call me half-caste, or whatever. Well, me dont dip on the Black mans side nor the White man side. Me dip on Gods side, the one who create me and cause me to come from Black and White. Marley didnt just live for his beliefs. He also died, in part, because of them. In 1977, Marley visited a doctor after noticing a blackened lesion under his big toenail. He was diagnosed with a rare form of skin cancer. The doctor advised Marley to amputate his toe to prevent the spread of cancer. But he refused because he thought it would violate the Rasta prohibition against the cutting of the flesh, and opted for a less invasive procedure. The cancer eventually spread. Marley died on May 11, 1981, in Miami while trying to return to his beloved Jamaica for his final days. A man who was a fitness and health food fanatic died at 36. Marley was honored with a state funeral in Jamaica at the National Arena in Kingston. He was buried with his favorite Gibson Les Paul guitar and his personalized Bible, opened to Psalm 23, which begins with, The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. In an interview several years before his death, Marley said a person achieves a sense of immortality by having a right relationship with God. I dont believe in death, neither in flesh nor in spirit . . . Death does not exist for me. I truly know God, Marley said. His musical legacy has found an afterlife. Marleys stature on the international stage has only grown in the decades since his death. Its ironic that Marley, a fierce critic of capitalism and materialism, posthumously generated $16 million through his estate in 2023, according to Forbes magazine, right behind John Lennon of the Beatles. That type of immortality, of course, wasnt what Marley was talking about. He alluded to an ever-living legacy. Its the faith of an abandoned kid from the slums of Jamaica who knew hardship and abandonment but assured his listeners in his classic Three Little Birds, Dont worry about a thing, Cause every little thing is gonna be alright. Somewhere in the world right now someone is playing a Bob Marley song to help them get through a difficult time the kind that tears a hole in someones soul. Marley was right. When it comes to his music and his spiritual message death does not exist. He is more alive today than ever before. The daughters of Atiq Ullah, the MV Abdullahs chief officer, look at a family photo at their residence in Chittagong, Bangladesh, while waiting for news of their father and other crew members held hostage by pirates, March 13, 2024. More than 24 hours after a Bangladesh-flagged cargo ship with 23 crew members was hijacked off the coast of Somalia, neither the ships owner nor government officials have established contact with the suspected pirates, while crew members said their lives were in danger. Atiq Ullah Khan, chief officer of the MV Abdullah, the commandeered bulk carrier, sent an audio message to his wife from his mobile phone on Tuesday night. The message was relayed to reporters. Convey this message to everyone. Our cell phones are being taken away from all of us. The final word is, if they [the pirates] are not given money, they will kill us one by one, he said. The KSRM Group, the ships owner, was able to have contact with some of the crew as late as Wednesday morning, according to company spokesman Mizanul Islam. He said the crew members all Bangladeshis were safe and healthy. The pirates are now in full control of the ship and are heading toward the coast of Somalia. It may take another day to reach the coast, he said. Speaking to reporters in Dhaka, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud said authorities were trying to contact the hijackers. The Somali pirates have not yet been contacted to rescue the Bangladeshi ship MV Abdullah and 23 sailors in the Indian Ocean. We are trying through third parties and wherever it is necessary to inform, we have informed, Mahmud said. We have already reported to the Reporting Center in Kuala Lumpur, the Indian Fusion Center in New Delhi, Singapore, the United States, United Kingdom, China and all the naval ships in the area. We are also trying to communicate through other sources, he said. Intelligence agencies are working on this. Crew member Mosharraf Hossain Shakil was able to speak to his brother, Abu Bakar Siddique, at around 8 p.m. Tuesday. After being [taken hostage] last night, my brother Shakil last called my mobile phone. My brother said that the pirates have kept them all [the crew members] in one place, Siddique told BenarNews. No contact Mehrun Karim, CEO of KSRM affiliate SR Shipping, confirmed that there had been no messages from the pirates. As a result, we have not been able to contact anyone, he told BenarNews. However, we are getting to know the location of the ship. It is expected to reach the destination of the pirates by noon Thursday, he said. After that it might be possible to communicate. An unidentified man boards the MV Abdullah, March 12, 2024, in this screengrab of a video obtained by Reuters. Company officials announced on Tuesday that the ship had been hijacked in Indian Ocean waters earlier in the day, but conflicting reports in the Bangladeshi media suggested that the hijacking had occurred on Sunday. On Tuesday, Karim said the coal-hauling ship was sailing from Mozambique, in southeastern Africa, to the United Arab Emirates when its crew was hijacked by as many as 50 armed men. Mizanul Islam, the KSRM spokesman, said the attack occurred about 550 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia. The Bangladesh Merchant Marine Officers Association is joining efforts to contact the pirates by reaching out to the International Maritime Organization and International Labor Organization through the federation. There are ways of communication through diplomatic channels. But since the country is a failed state, there are questions about how effective it will be, Md. Anam Chowdhury, the associations president, told BenarNews, referring to Somalia. In this case, the best way can be negotiation. Waters off the Horn of Africa are notorious for piracy targeting international shipping. Al-Shabaab, the Islamic militant group in Somalia, is known for carrying out such attacks. Chowdhury said there had been no signs of the ship moving since Tuesday evening. This means they may have turned off the position tracking system. We assume they are taking the ship to their own destination. The hostage sailors said there are now about 50 pirates on the ship, he said. The Ministry of Shipping reported that 100 Bangladesh-flagged ships were sailing international routes. KRSM has the most ships and its subsidiary, SR Shipping Ltd., is operating the MV Abdullah ships. In late 2010, Somali pirates seized the MV Jahan Moni, another ship owned by SR Shipping, and released the crew after more than three months. The Business Standard reported on Wednesday that the crew members were released after a multi-million-dollar ransom was paid. Indigenous Balik tribes children walk along a road at their village, located near Indonesias projected new capital known as the Nusantara National Capital, in Sepaku, East Kalimantan province, March 6, 2023. Indonesias new capital project in Borneo has stirred controversy again, with civil society groups condemning authorities for abuse of power because they recently ordered dozens of families living on the site to demolish their homes in seven days. For many, the new capital authoritys approach issuing such orders with no prior notice and a very short window to comply has revived memories of the New Order era under the late dictator Suharto, when communities were displaced for development purposes. Last week, the capital authority notified about 200 families including of indigenous people that they had to raze their houses because the structures violated the areas zoning plan. But Mareta Sari, a regional activist, said she suspected the urgency to meet a relocation deadline drove the hasty eviction process. We stand against the forceful displacement of local and indigenous communities from their lands, she told an online news conference on Tuesday from Samarinda, the capital of East Kalimantan,where the nations new capital is being built. She said the abrupt eviction notice served to the residents was an abuse of power, and a scare tactic, given the families longstanding presence in the area. These residents have established their lives here over many years. Why are they now being forced to leave? [And] If there are newcomers, why were they not informed earlier? she said. BenarNews obtained a copy of the notice, which had no date on it but was delivered to the families on March 4. [Y]ou are urged to promptly demolish your building, which does not comply with the provisions of the IKN Spatial Planning and the laws above and regulations, within a maximum period of 7 (seven) calendar days from the date of delivery of this First Warning, read an excerpt from the notice printed in the Indonesian language. President Joko Jokowi Widodos deadline for the first relocation to the new capital 1,800 civil servants is August, three months before he steps down from his position in October. He hopes to leave office with this new planned green capital, called Nusantara, as his legacy , and he is set to inaugurate it to coincide with Independence Day in August. Indonesian Presidential Palace shows Indonesia's President Joko Widodo (center) talks to official accompanying him on a visit to North Penajam Paser district near Sepaku in East Kalimantan province, Indonesia, Dec. 17, 2019. [Handout/Indonesian Presidential Palace/AFP] Critics, however, are calling the governments eviction plan hasty and ill conceived. It could harm the areas indigenous population, said Dede Wahyudi, an activist for the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago. The indigenous peoples cultural identity could potentially be erased, he told BenarNews. This action demonstrates the governments disregard for the rights of indigenous peoples, prioritizing investor protection over community welfare, he said. We vehemently oppose and denounce such action. But the projects proponents, and Jokowi, believe it is essential to move the administrative and political capital from Jakarta, a sprawling, congested and rapidly sinking metropolis of 10 million people, to a new site and build it from scratch. By comparison, Nusantara, being designed for an eventual 1.9 million people, would cover 260,000 hectares, or about 1,000 square miles, according to the government. But the project has been controversial and faced difficulties from the start. The project was dogged by slow construction, land acquisition delays, little- to no-investment interest and fears that this patch of Borneo island rich in biodiversity would be destroyed. Construction has picked up over the last couple of years. Basic infrastructure construction including roads, dams, bridges and government buildings, began in 2021 and the authorities expect to complete it by year-end. The entire project is expected to be complete by 2045. Amicable solutions Activists say Nusantara must not become a city built on the broken dreams of the local population. Nusantara National Capital Authority officials claim that will not happen. Thomas Umbu Pati Tena Bolodadi, the authoritys deputy for development control, acknowledged that stern warnings had been issued to the residents whose buildings violated the zoning plan, but said there was no plan for forced demolitions. Our priority is the protection of the local populace. Our commitment is to engage constructively and find amicable solutions to prevent disputes, he said at a press conference late Wednesday. For those whose homes predate the capital project and are now facing eviction, the authority is presenting two alternatives: financial compensation or relocation, recognizing that not all affected parties seek monetary recompense. Local tourists take a selfie at the construction site of the new capital city in Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, March 8, 2023. [Achmad Ibrahim/AP] But a local from Pemaluan village in Sepaku district, where some of the homes the authority wants demolished are located, expressed concerns over the lack of compensation discussions. Should we relocate, we expect equivalent facilities and infrastructure to what we currently have, the 38-year-old, who did not wish his name to be used for privacy reasons, told BenarNews. Herdiansyah Hamzah, a legal scholar from Mulawarman University, argued that a 2022 presidential regulation concerning the new capitals spatial plan should not justify the eviction of residents based on non-compliance. If the regulation is the justification, it must be remembered that these homes were established before its enactment, he told BenarNews. Additionally, the plan was formulated without engaging the public. Investment surge? Meanwhile, Bambang Susantono, the Nusantara authoritys chief, said on Wednesday that investments in the new city had surged after last months general election, climbing to 49.6 trillion rupiah ($3.2 billion), from 45 trillion rupiah in December. We are committed to advancing the groundbreaking work without delay. Its crucial to translate these investments into tangible developments promptly, Bambang said after a cabinet meeting. Concurrently Jokowi has told relevant agencies to accelerate land allocation for investors in the new capital, Public Works Minister Basuki Hadimuljono said Wednesday. He said Jokowis directive followed numerous investor grievances regarding investment opportunities. The expected electoral win of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto in last months presidential election may have contributed to renewed investment interest because he has pledged to continue the capital project, according to Telisa Aulia Falianty, an economist from the University of Indonesia. Following the election, there has been a significant uptick in investor interest in Nusantara, with increased visits from Japan, Kazakhstan, and various European countries, she told BenarNews. Dr. Ted Voloyiannis, a colon and rectal surgeon at Texas Oncology in Houston, participated in a surgical simulation onboard the International Space Station on Feb. 10, 2024. He remotely controlled a small surgical robot aboard the space station, commanding it to cut rubber bands that simulated human tissue. Virtual Incision Dr. Ted Voloyiannis, a colon and rectal surgeon at Texas Oncology in Houston, participated in a surgical simulation onboard the International Space Station on Feb. 10, 2024. He remotely controlled a small surgical robot aboard the space station, commanding it to cut rubber bands that simulated human tissue. Virtual Incision Dr. Ted Voloyiannis, a colon and rectal surgeon at Texas Oncology in Houston, participated in a surgical simulation onboard the International Space Station on Feb. 10, 2024. He remotely controlled a small surgical robot aboard the space station, commanding it to cut rubber bands that simulated human tissue. Virtual Incision Dr. Ted Voloyiannis gripped the joysticks and gently moved his hands, pausing for a half second as his movements were replicated more than 250 miles away. Robotic surgeries dont typically have this delay, but Voloyiannis patient was on the International Space Station. So the Houston colon and rectal surgeon paused frequently as he coaxed the robot to grasp and cut a rubber band simulating human tissue. That was one small rubber band, but a great leap for surgery, Voloyiannis, with Texas Oncology in Houston, said as a nod to NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong. Advertisement Article continues below this ad His fellow surgeons and engineers chuckled at the moon reference and cheered from their control center in Lincoln, Neb. This chilly day in February was one of the first times remote surgery tasks were tested in space. The capability could be crucial as astronauts travel farther from Earth. But it also could have implications here, where Voloyiannis said roughly one-third of U.S. counties dont have specialized surgeons within their borders. Voloyiannis envisioned a future where he could use robots to remotely assist surgeons in other parts of the country. Nobody ever thought, me included, that one day I would be able to do remote surgery out of this world, he said. That tells you how our capabilities and technology modes have progressed in medicine and surgery. The miniature robot was created by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Virtual Incision, a private company formed to develop the MIRA robot, which stands for Miniaturized In Vivo Robotic Assistant, according to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The space-specific version, dubbed spaceMIRA, was launched to the International Space Station on Jan. 30. The robot is about 30 inches long and weighs 2 pounds, a small size that Voloyiannis said will be crucial for fitting inside a cramped spacecraft. SpaceMIRA has two robotic arms: the left arm was fitted with a grasper and the right arm with scissors. Surgeons in Nebraska at Virtual Incisions headquarters used hand controls to move the robotic arms and cameras and to cut the rubber bands. Foot pedals controlled the robots clutching movements, among other things. A key part of the experiment was testing how the time lag and microgravity would affect surgeons. For instance, they were cautioned against cutting the rubber bands into multiple pieces or hitting the robotic arms into the side of the locker housing the experiment. They didnt want to create debris that could float around the space station. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Voloyiannis, who helped Virtual Incision develop MIRA and has completed more than 1,000 robotic-assisted surgeries in the past five years, had to move slower to adjust to the time lag between his movements and those on the space station. He said it would be plausible to complete a surgery with a time lag of less than one second. But more advanced technologies will be needed to conduct surgery on the moon, where the time lag exceeds a second, and on Mars, where the time lag is measured in minutes. Still, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli emphasized the importance of remote surgery during a recent news conference. She said simple procedures on Earth, such as treating an appendicitis, may not be simple in space. Small crews might not have a medical surgeon onboard especially a surgeon with specialties in every field. Those surgeries will enable us to go on these longer duration missions farther from Earth, said Moghbeli, who was onboard the space station when the test was conducted. So its a real game changer. The Unaizah May 4 (center), a Philippine resupply boat, is hit by blasts from two China Coast Guard water canons as the boat tried to enter Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal), in the disputed South China Sea, March 5, 2024. The Philippines and United States need to revisit their longtime mutual defense pact to address Beijings increasing use of gray-zone activities or acts of aggression short of an armed attack in the disputed South China Sea, experts said. Under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), the two allies are compelled to come to each others defense in the event of an armed external attack, but the term is ambiguous and needs to be more clearly defined, according to analysts interviewed by BenarNews. Article V of the treaty needs to be more clearly discussed and interpreted by both countries, said Don McLain Gill, a geopolitical analyst based in Manila. The article states that the MDT covers an armed attack on the metropolitan territory of either of the parties, or on the island territories under its jurisdiction in the Pacific Ocean, its armed forces, public vessels or aircraft in the Pacific. In recent years, China has intensified its harassment and intimidation of Philippine government ships and other vessels in the West Philippine Sea, Manilas name for waters of the South China Sea that lie within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). There needs to be a firmer operational definition of an armed attack, because without doing so, China will continue to exploit such terminological ambiguities, Gill told BenarNews. Its still an ambiguous term. Should firearms be used to trigger the MDT? If so, it does not address the casualties on our side. He was responding to questions about a March 5 incident where four Philippine Navy sailors sustained minor injuries while aboard a military-contracted civilian vessel, when blasts from Chinese water cannons shattered their boats windshield. The dramatic moment, which was caught on video, occurred as China Coast Guard (CCG) ships tried to block the Philippine boat, the Unaizah May 4, from carrying out a resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal). The focus must also be on the potential harm to human life Chinas unfriendly acts may cause, Gill said. The incident last week marked the first time that injuries were reported in any of the tense incidents at sea that have become more frequent lately, as Chinese ships try to block Philippine ships and boats from delivering supplies to the BRP Sierra Madre, a rusty World War II-era ship that serves as Manilas outpost in Ayungin Shoal. While such close encounters at sea between Philippine and Chinese coast guard ships increased in 2023, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin cited the MDT in warning that Washington would help defend Manila in case of an armed attack anywhere in the South China Sea, including on Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels. In the immediate aftermath of the March 5 incident, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. dismissed calls that Manila move to have the treaty invoked over it. While his administration viewed the incident and such dangerous maneuvers by China with great alarm, there was no need at this time to take that step on the MDT, he said. Five months after he took office in 2022, as he talked about the possibility of a stronger U.S. military presence in the Philippines, Marcos said that the mutual defense treaty with the United States was continuously under negotiations and under evolution. In 2023, as tensions also simmered between China and the U.S. over Taiwan, the Marcos administration agreed to give American forces greater access to military bases in his country. Late last year, the U.S. and the Philippines also launched joint patrols around the archipelago. Sherwin Ona, a political science professor at De La Salle University in Manila, said he agreed with Marcos and noted that the boat that came under attack was a civilian vessel. In his view, Beijing is aware of the language in the treaty that does not clearly define a red line, and is exploiting that by carrying out gray-zone tactics in the contested waterway. The framing of conflict is so far within the gray-zone approach of the Peoples Republic of China. I think Beijing is conscious of this and will avoid a full-scale naval confrontation with the Philippines and the U.S., Ona told BenarNews. Wider definition of armed attack Analyst Gill, however, said that if the definition of armed attack is merely limited to military confrontation, this allows China to carry on with its aggressive actions at sea. If armed attack will only mean a direct military confrontation, then that opens up more pathways for China to inflict harm on Filipinos at sea, Gill said. Given last weeks incident, one may ask that if Chinas belligerent activities in the Philippines EEZ may eventually critically injure or kill members of the Philippine crew, should Article V be implemented? he said. Members of the Philippine Coast Guard stand alert as a China Coast Guard vessel blocks their way to a resupply mission at Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungtin Shoal) in the South China Sea, March 5, 2024. [Adrian Portugal/Reuters] Antonio Carpio, a South China Sea analyst and a former Supreme Court justice, said the Philippines could approach the U.S. to talk about a possible expansion of definitions of wording in the treaty. Armed attack means use of lethal weapons like cannon, missiles or guns. We can discuss with the U.S. to define armed attack to include use of laser beams that are permanently blind since such use is already outlawed by an international convention, Carpio said in a message to BenarNews. Last year, a CCG vessel pointed a military-grade laser at a Philippine Coast Guard ship, temporarily blinding the Filipino crew. Option of last resort But Rommel Ong, a retired Philippine Navy rear admiral, believes the two countries will not include such acts of aggression in the MDT. I dont think thats going to happen. The Philippines and the U.S. are both trying to avoid invoking the MDT for minor incidents, Ong told BenarNews. Thats the option of last resort. The actions of China are still within the bounds of non-kinetic. Its just that were not used to conflicts at sea, he said. He mentioned the cod wars between the United Kingdom and Iceland during the 1950s to 1970s over rights to fish in Icelandic waters. Both European countries engaged in gray-zone tactics by ramming and blocking each others ships. MDT is like a nuclear bomb. Its effectiveness is in its deterrent value. But once you use it, it loses its value. With these limitations, the Philippines appears to have no option but to resort to joint patrols with the U.S. and other like-minded allies, analyst Ona said. He added that the Philippines must fast-track military and coast guard modernization programs and continue its transparency program, whereby they publicize cases of Chinese intimidation and incursions in the West Philippine Sea. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. attends a press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (not pictured), in Berlin, March 12, 2024. [Liesa Johannssen/Reuters] Marcos has repeatedly called on foreign nations to support the landmark international arbitration ruling in 2016 that sided with Manila and invalidated Beijings sweeping claims in the South China Sea. During an official visit to Germany this week, Marcos noted that 60% of world trade passed through the vital waterway. Its not solely the interest of the Philippines, or of ASEAN, or of the Indo-Pacific region but the entire world. That is why its in all our interest to keep it as a safe passage for all international commerce that goes on in the South China Sea, Marcos said during a joint press conference on Tuesday with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Marcos has relied on international allies and partners, striking deals on defense cooperation even with non-traditional allies to counter Chinese aggression. Aside from the U.S. and Germany, Japan, Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and India have expressed support for Manila over the South China Sea dispute. Jeoffrey Maitem in Cotabato City, southern Philippines, contributed to this report. If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom. The Shelter Slumber Pawty, hosted by Benton Animal Services, will raise funds for the citys new shelter and give the public an opportunity to find homes for the shelters many dogs in need. People look at a display of giraffes and other animals at the Fort Worth Zoo in Fort Worth, Texas, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024. LM Otero/AP A total solar eclipse will cut across North America on April 8, providing a spectacular show for 12.8 million Texans who live in the path of totality plus the potentially hundreds of thousands of others who will travel to the state to see it. A total eclipse occurs when the moon passes in front of the sun, darkening the sky as if it were dawn or dusk. Those in the path of totality will get the full darkening effect. The rest of the state will see a partial eclipse, which looks like a bite was taken out of the sun. Advertisement Article continues below this ad For North America, the eclipse totality will start at Mexicos Pacific coast around 1:07 p.m. CDT. A partial eclipse will be visible before then. Totality moves into the U.S. near Eagle Pass at 1:27 p.m. Texas is followed by many other states Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine before continuing on to Canada. Here's what to know about the path of totality in Texas: For Texas, the total eclipse will start near Mexico and then move toward Oklahoma and Arkansas The path of totality will cross much of Texas, starting near Eagle Pass at the Mexican border and moving northeast through Oklahoma and Arkansas. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The time of totality when the moon completely blocks the sun is different based on each city. Viewers in Eagle Pass will get 4 minutes and 23 seconds of totality starting at 1:27 p.m. Fredericksburg will get 4 minutes and 23 seconds starting at 1:32 p.m., Austin will get 1 minute and 42 seconds starting at 1:36 p.m., Dallas will get 3 minutes and 48 seconds starting at 1:40 p.m. and Texarkana will get 2 minutes and 33 seconds starting at 1:46 p.m., according to Michael Zeiler with GreatAmericanEclipse.com. There are several large cities and suburbs along the path Of the state's largest cities, Dallas is the most centrally located within the path of totality. But the total eclipse will cross over other major cities and suburbs. Advertisement Article continues below this ad San Antonio is right on the edge of the path the northwest suburbs should get the total eclipse but other parts of the city will not. Nearby cities with better viewing include Boerne, Kerrville and Fredericksburg, with the latter two receiving more than 4 minutes of totality. Austin is in the path of totality, though it's also near the edge. Central and northern Austin should get the total eclipse (don't go toward Kyle). Northern suburbs, including Round Rock and Georgetown, are better positioned and will receive longer periods of darkness 2 minutes and 37 seconds and 3 minutes and 17 seconds, respectively. Dallas is closer to the center of the path and will receive 3 minutes and 48 seconds of totality. Arlington will get 3 minutes and 20 seconds, and Forth Worth will have 2 minutes and 36 seconds. Houston is not along the path of totality. Smaller towns are preparing for crowds The eclipse will also pass over many smaller communities. Advertisement Article continues below this ad This prompted Bell County, located between Austin and Waco, to issue a local emergency declaration in preparation. It expects the county's population will double before and after the eclipse, straining first responders, hospitals, grocery stores and gas stations. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Bell County was estimated to have 388,386 people in July 2022. The emergency declaration "authorizes Bell County to take actions necessary to promote life safety and critical infrastructure," according to the county's website. Landowners in unincorporated parts of the county must register to host watch parties, camping or other events exceeding 50 people. The city of Killeen, which is located in Bell County, said it has spent more than two years preparing for the eclipse. Its population of 160,000 is expected to double. Killeen will receive 4 minutes and 16 seconds of totality. The website Visit Tyler has an eclipse countdown that touts the city as a "premier viewing destination." Tyler will receive 1 minute and 52 seconds of totality. Junction similarly advertises itself as "the ultimate destination for eclipse enthusiasts." Junction will get 3 minutes and 9 seconds of totality. The Copperas Cove Chamber of Commerce and Visitor's Bureau is promoting a multi-day festival. Copperas Cove will get 4 minutes and 24 seconds of totality. The U.S. won't see another total solar eclipse for 20 years Parts of the U.S. (not Texas) were treated to a total solar eclipse in 2017. The Lone Star State saw an annular solar eclipse in 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad But after April 8, the contiguous U.S. won't see another total solar eclipse until 2044. This one will only reach northern Montana and North Dakota. A better total solar eclipse will go from California to Florida in 2045, though it will mostly miss Texas. Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the interpretation of facts and data. OUR OPINION Our Opinion: Amid Sunshine Week and every week, protect the public's right to know I believe that every passage in Scripture ultimately points to Christ. There are some places where a connection to the gospel is obvious. Others are more difficult. Esther is a book where the name of God isnt even mentioned. Its set about 100 years after the Babylonian exile in the land of Persia. So how can this story somehow connect to the gospel of Jesus? If we can answer this, we can also answer how the gospel connects to our own story. How Do You Find the Gospel in the Old Testament? I suppose before understanding how to find the gospel in the OT, itd be helpful for us to define the gospel. The simplest definition is one given by JI Packer: God saves sinners. If youd like to put a bit more meat on your gospel presentation, I use two different frameworks with four points each. The first is GodManChristResponse. The second is more of a story: CreationFallRedemptionGlory. The first presentation centers upon Gods character and how humanity fails to meet Gods holy standard, as such the judgment of God is upon us. But the good news is that Jesus Christ fixes this by fulfilling what is required through his life, death and resurrection. Our only fitting response, then, is to respond to Him in repentance and faith. When this happens, we are united to Christ and his record becomes our record. The second presentation centers upon the overarching story of the Bible. God lovingly created us to love Him and enjoy Him forever. We were made for rest, rule, and relationship. But we made shipwreck of this, and so rather than having the blessings of obedience we are under the curse of disobedience. Rather than having peace (rest), purpose (ruling), and healthy relationship we often experience the opposite. Ultimately, we are alienated from God. But thankfully God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to bear our curse and to fulfill what God intended for humanity. As such we now experience the blessings of Jesus obedience in our place. He restores the rest, rule, and relationship we were created to enjoy. Someday everything will be ultimately restored and we will live in a new heaven and a new earth. We could write entire books focusing on these various themes of the gospel. But every gospel story follows this basic skeleton. No matter where you find yourself in the Old Testament (or the New Testament) you can find one of these various threads. Every place in Scripture is either telling you something about God, something about our rebellion, something about His rescue, or something about our future restoration. If you can spot this, then you can fill out the rest of the story. The Gospel in Esther How does God work among His people in a place where He isnt named? That is the fundamental question over the book of Esther. It can be tempting to read this as a morality tale be brave like Esther, have bold faith like Mordecai. But the reality is that these characters exhibit very muddy obedience. We arent to see Esther, Mordecai, Haman, or Xerxes as much as we are supposed to see the sovereign hand of the unnamed main character of the book. Yes, the absence of Gods name is striking in a book of the Bible. But that absence is an invitation to see His work even when it seems that He is silent or absent. In the midst of what appears to be godless chaos and the capricious rule of a tyrant, the story of Esther reminds us that God is still at work redeeming His people. The setting is 100 years after the Babylonian exile in Persia. Mordecai and Esther shouldnt even be there. They should have already returned to the land. We are to see them as almost entirely swallowed up by the pagan culture around them; they have lost their identity. Yet God remains steadfast to fulfill His promises. The book of Esther is in a chiastic structure. As an example, the first chapter is about the greatness of Xerxes and the last chapter is a celebration of the greatness of Mordecai. Each of the chapters correspond with another except for chapter 6. That is the middle of the chiasm and thus the meat of the story. What do we find in Esther 6? We find a reversal of fortunes. And this is where we begin to see the gospel story emerge. The backdrop of this story is the mess of disobedience. It is the outcome of years of covenant unfaithfulness and years of exile as a result. This is what happens when the curses of Deuteronomy fall upon a people. The name of God departs and wickedness abounds. Do you want to know what it looks like for evil to be winning? Look no further than the first chapter of Esther. Women arent protected or valued as partners, equally created in the image of God but rather as objects to be consumed. The story of Haman is also a picture of what happens when God is abandoned. Pride rules the day. Haman takes a personal vendetta against Mordecai (who refuses to bow to him). He threatens to wipe out an entire people because of this personal insult. A world without God is a world ruled by the Hamans of the world. But in chapter 6 we see a reversal. This is foreshadowing the great reversal we see through the Cross of Christ. That which seems weak is ultimately that which brings power. Just like Haman, the wicked serpent attempted to crush the head of the Son. But hed only bruise his heel. He, again like Haman, would be defeated by his own petard. It is through the death of Christ that Satan loses any ounce of power he had. The story of Esther is that God is working in history to rescue a people for Himself. He is turning the tables, even when He is not named. Not even the unfaithfulness of Gods people can stop Him from accomplishing His purposes. And certainly, He will not be stopped by some pagan king who thinks hes in charge of the whole earth. The prideful will be cast down. The humble, alongside of Jesus, will be truly exalted. The Gospel in Esther 5 In Esther 5 we see a sharp contrast between Esther and Haman. They seem to both be consumed by one thing. For Haman, he is consumed by a hatred of Mordecai or at least that is how it appears at first glance. What really drives Haman is his own self-exaltation. He will sacrifice others to see himself honored. Haman is a picture of the emptiness of any one thing that isnt found in Christ. It will always come up empty. These are treasures that do not last. And just as happened with Haman, they will eventually bring about our death. We, like Haman, will end up impaled by our idols. This is contrasted with Esther. Esther is willing to sacrifice herself if it means the survival of others. In this way she is pointing us to Christ. Her "one thing," driven by selfless love and courage, is the salvation of her people. She is willing to risk her life for their deliverance. Esther 5 shows us the stark contrast between human pursuits driven by pride and the redemptive, selfless love of Christ. Esther's bravery and self-sacrificial actions foreshadow Christ's ultimate sacrifice for us, and Haman's downfall warns us of the destructive path of sin. This chapter, therefore, calls us to examine our own "one thing" and align our deepest desires with the will and purpose of God, finding our ultimate satisfaction and fulfillment in Christ alone. Related articles How Do We See the Gospel in the Book of Nehemiah? Finding the Gospel in the Old Testament Book of Ruth Where Do We Find the Gospel in the Book of Daniel? Photo credit: Getty Images/bee32 The Old and New Testaments of the Bible, comprised of 66 books, tell one cohesive story of redemption, climaxing in the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Savior! Genesis God created the world, humankind rebelled against their Creator (known as the fall of man), and God put a plan of redemption (salvation) into motion involving calling out a people for Himself to be a light for the nations (gentiles), and entering into a covenant relationship with them (known as the Abrahamic Covenant). God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness (Genesis 1:4). Exodus God rescued his people, Israel, from slavery, gave them commandments (the Mosaic law) to live by, and promised them a land of their own. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8). Related - 6 Reminders of Who God Is from the Book of Exodus Leviticus Gods people were instructed how to live set apart (holy) lives for Him and worship Him. Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy (Leviticus 19:2). Photo credit: Getty Images/Yakobchuk Olena Officials say pygmy rattlesnakes can be spotted in and around Houston, but it's not common. JasonOndreicka/Getty Images/iStockphoto Texas Parks and Wildlife identifies at least 10 types of rattlesnakes found across the Lone Star State. Sightings could happen as the weather warms up, but the likelihood of coming across one on a daily stroll in Houston isnt as common as other parts of the state. When is rattlesnake season in Texas? In Texas, rattlesnake season begins around late February to early March. According to Houston Audubon, they can show up in outlying areas of the city. However, its rare. Advertisement Article continues below this ad What are the most common types of rattlesnakes around Houston? The most common rattlesnakes in and around Houston include the western diamondback, the timber rattlesnake, the western pigmy and the western massasauga. Officials at Houston Audubon say out of all the snakes, the western diamondback tops the list as the largest and most commonly seen rattlesnake in the area. Where are rattlesnakes usually found? How can you identify rattlesnakes? Typically seen around farm buildings, the western diamondback spans about three to four feet in length and feeds on small mammals. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Not as large in size, the timber rattlesnake likes to hunt at night preferably in thickets and away from people. The western pigmy stretches just over a foot long and has a stocky build, officials say. When it comes to the western massasauga, they average roughly two feet in length. They love to find harbor in prickly pear thickets. Why is it rare to see rattlesnakes in the city? The Chronicle previously reported sightings of rattlesnakes in urban areas arent common, mainly because its not the ideal habitat for them. Greg Pandelis, curator of the Amphibian and Reptile Diversity Research Center at the University of Texas at Arlington, said rattlesnakes require more space, adding the smaller yards found in urban areas generally arent big enough for rattlers to hide, eat and mate. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Many snakes, including copperheads, cottonmouths and nonpoisonous snakes, also vibrate their tails when threatened and if the snake is in a brushy area, the sound can be quite similar to a rattler, according to Houston Audubon. What do you do if bitten by a rattlesnake? Pontius Pilate disappears from the Gospels, it seems, as soon as he appears. Yet, this Roman man plays such an important role in the crucifixion, that hes included in the Apostles Creed. The Apostles' Creed is arguably one of the most important summaries of Jesus, what he did on earth, and other important doctrines and beliefs central to the Christian faith. Those who have read about Pilate in the Gospel accounts may know of him as a man who saw Jesus was guiltless, but let his fear of the crowds seize him. He gave into cowardice and allowed for Jesus to be killed. We can read about the account of Pilate in Matthew 27 and John 18:28-40. But why did Pilate give into the crowd so easily? How could he let a guiltless man die a horrible death? And why did the church include him in the Creed? Well dive into these questions and more below. Who Was Pontius Pilate? Pontius Pilate was a Roman prefect (or governor) over Judea in the early first century (about 26-36 AD). Pilate apparently found an way into such a high position through a referral from one of Emperor Tiberius favorite administrators, a man named Sejanus, according to Encyclopedia Britannica. Despite landing a prominent position, Pilate caused havoc for his position early on. Having insulted the religion of the Jews and running an administration full of corruption, violence, robberies, ill treatment of the people, Pilate had fallen out of favor with Emperor Tiberius. When Sejanus, the administrator who found him the position, disappeared from the picture having killed Tiberius son and conspired to take out the Emperor himself Pilate fell under further scrutiny from the Emperor. Every one of his moves had to be watched. After all, if a man who recommended Pilate ended up trying to kill the Emperor in the first place, any man Sejanus trusted had to be regarded with suspicion. Now, in a precarious balance of his own fate and actions, Pilate finds himself encountering a Jewish man of whom he can find no fault. And yet, the crowds demand they crucify him. And worse, if he refuses to give into to their demands, theyll alert Caesar (John 19:12). Pilate tries to release Jesus, presents another prisoner named Barabbas to try to take Jesus place, and even gives Jesus a severe beating to appease the crowd. But they make their position clear. Either you kill Jesus, or you are no friend of Caesars. Pilate gives in and allows them to crucify Jesus, washing his hands of any blood that would be spilled. Why Did Pontius Pilate Crucify Jesus? Although Pilate arguably had a great deal of power, why would he send a guilty man to his death? Even though he appears to ignore his conscience, wouldnt the act of doing so hound him nearly to death, knowing he condemned a sinless man to die? We have to keep in mind several reasons why Pontius Pilate gave in to the crowd. First, and most obvious with the information presented above, Pilate was in awful standing with Caesar. One more mistake and he could lose his position, or very possibly, his life. And the Jews deemed siding with Jesus a big mistake. Fearing for his life and social standing, Pilate relented to the crowd. Second, well often notice proponents against Christianity will claim that Scripture isnt reliable and that Jesus may not have even existed. Or, they say, if he did he was more of an ordinary man, since we dont see a plethora of documents from Roman writers about his life. See Lee Strobels The Case for Christ, for a more in-depth analysis on this. In reality, Jesus ministry with a few exceptions, such as the woman at the well was strictly for the Jewish community. Although some Roman writers, such as Pliny and Tacitus, did mention Jesus, the Messiahs ministry on earth was geared toward an Israelite audience. Romans didnt really care about Jewish affairs. Unlike many other zealots of the day, Jesus radical ministry did not really affect the Romans all that much. He was compliant with their tax laws, and as far as they could tell, a model citizen (Mark 12:17). Therefore, Jesus would not have been on the Ancient Roman radar. Furthermore, Romans didnt really concern themselves in the affairs of the Jews, unless they were leading a revolt or uprising against Rome. Jesus made it clear he was not here to abolish Rome. And, Romans considered those with Roman citizenship as people of greater importance than those without. Jesus was not a Roman citizen. Although Pilate recognized he was guiltless, he didnt intend to put his job and his life on the line for a non-Roman citizen. Third, and finally, as Billy Graham explains in this article, Pilate was morally weak. Although he knew Jesus should not have been condemned to die, he ignored his conscience and gave into peer pressure from the crowd. Why Is Pontius Pilate Included in the Creed? Pilate even washes his hands of the crime, literally (Matthew 27:24). Didnt the Jews technically condemn Jesus to death? Then why does the Creed say Jesus was, crucified by Pontius Pilate? In the passage found in Matthew 27, Pilate has a chance to set Jesus free but chooses not to. Because he doesnt step in even though he washes his hands of the sentence he still plays a part in the execution. Furthermore, crucifixions were Roman punishments. The Jewish people killed people via stoning (Acts 7:54-60). Jesus would have therefore died a death via Roman means and had to be sentenced by a Roman in order for this to be carried out. Whats more, Don Stewart explains here that it was a Roman form of execution reserved only for those of the lowest social rank, for criminals, and for rebels. We see the Jews even attempting to stone Jesus in the Gospels when he proclaims his divinity (John 10:30-33). Jews may have taken Jesus to the Roman authorities, as Stewart suggests above, because those crucified were considered cursed. This would oust any idea that Jesus was the Messiah, since it would have been a baffling idea for a Messiah to be cursed. Because it was a Roman form of punishment, and because Pilate held up his hands and let the crowd do as they pleased, Jesus was taken to be executed by him. Why Does This Matter? Why does it matter that we know who Pilate was and what role he played in Jesus crucifixion? First, from Pilate we can learn what not to do when we feel a stirring in our conscience. Pilate attests several times that he sees no guilt in Jesus, and yet, he still gives in to the mob stationed outside. Second, by learning the history of Pilate and his falling out with Caesar, we can better understand why he wouldnt want to take a chance on a Jewish man. After all, Jesus was not a formidable Roman citizen, and sparing him would lead to more trouble with Caesar and likely a lost job or a lost life. And finally, we can see that both Jews and Gentiles had a hand in the death of Christ. Even though Pilate washed his hands of the deed, because he stood passive, he was part of the problem. Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain Image/Antonio Ciseri Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project. BillOReilly.com is not available in this country. We apologize for any inconvenience. ACT For Health to provide funding of Rs 5.7 crore for 2024 Bengaluru-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Platforms (C-CAMP), Indias leading technology and innovation hub in the bio sciences, has announced a partnership with Govt of Karnatakas Health and Family Welfare Department and ACT For Health, towards implementing a comprehensive eye care programme for Karnataka using innovative, indigenous health technology. ACT, a venture philanthropy platform, is supporting this initiative through its healthcare vertical by providing funding of Rs 5.7 crore for 2024. The programme is expected to impact 8-9 lakh of the underserved population across 8 districts in Karnataka. It aligns with the Karnataka State vision care programme- Asha Kirana under National Health Missions National Programme for Control of Blindness & Visual Impairment (NPCBVI) to implement ophthalmic devices that utilise digital solutions and cloud-based technology to eradicate preventable blindness in a wide age group from 5-80 years. Additionally, this programme will support eye care for all public transport personnel through screening and eye checkups with provision of free spectacles for vision correction. The Programme was launched by Health Minister, Govt. of Karnataka, Dinesh Gundu Rao in the presence of Transport Minister, Ramalinga Reddy and C-CAMP Director-CEO, Dr Taslimarif Saiyed, along with Sandeep Singhal, Board Member, ACT Capital Foundation at Vikas Soudha, Bengaluru. "Primary health centres, community health centres, taluk hospitals, and bus depots across the state are being equipped to conduct improved eye screening for refractive errors and retinopathies. Alongside these check-ups, free spectacles will be provided to the public, underscoring the Health Department's commitment to the well-being of all those serving the public including within the Transport Department. With the aim of eradicating blindness in Karnataka, over 1 crore individuals have already undergone eye checkups, with 39,000 benefiting from free cataract surgeries, and 2.45 lakh people benefiting from free spectacles under the Asha Kirana Programme, said the Health Minister. Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia China asks EU to uphold idea of common security Xinhua) 11:16, March 13, 2024 UNITED NATIONS, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Tuesday asked the European Union (EU) to uphold the idea of common security. Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, made the appeal at a Security Council meeting on UN-EU cooperation. China supports UN-EU cooperation in accordance with the purposes and the principles of the UN Charter, with a view to making greater contributions to the maintenance of international peace and security, enhancing the well-being of humanity, and addressing global challenges. China expects such cooperation to be guided by the principles of true multilateralism, common security, and a common future for mankind, said Geng. "As an advocate of multilateralism, the EU should take the lead in upholding the purposes and the principles of the UN Charter, respecting international law and universally recognized basic norms of international relations, defending the multilateral system with the United Nations at its core, and promoting solidarity and progress among nations under the banner of multilateralism," he said. Security is indivisible. The security of one country cannot be secured at the expense of the security of others. And equally, there is no ground for achieving regional security by strengthening or even expanding military blocs. The legitimate security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously and properly addressed. The EU should work with the United Nations to promote the political solution of hot-spot issues and to resolve conflicts and disputes by peaceful means, he said. In the face of changes unseen in a century, countries in the world should rise above their historical, cultural, geographic, and institutional differences, and work together to create a better future through win-win cooperation. The EU should work with other UN member states to promote consensus and action-oriented action at the Summit of the Future to be held later this year, so as to send a positive signal to the outside world about opening up new prospects for humankind, he said. The crisis in Ukraine poses a great challenge to European security. The ultimate resolution of this crisis must be through dialogue and negotiation. The EU, as an important stakeholder, should do more to promote political settlement and create favorable conditions for a balanced, effective, and sustainable security architecture in Europe, said Geng. The war in Gaza continues to rage, creating an unprecedented and worsening humanitarian catastrophe. To protect civilians, provide assistance, save lives, and restore peace is the common responsibility of the international community, he said. "We appreciate the positive efforts made by the EU in this regard, and hope that the EU will leverage its influence and role to make greater contributions to the promotion of an immediate cease-fire, the expansion of humanitarian assistance, the implementation of the two-state solution, and the realization of lasting peace in the Middle East." Africa is facing growing challenges in pursuing peace and development. China hopes that the EU will shoulder greater responsibility, adhere to the principle of African solutions to African problems, and support African countries in strengthening capacity-building to better address risks and challenges in realizing sustainable development, he said. It is important to support the building of the collective security mechanism of the African Union (AU) and provide more predictable and sustainable financial contributions to AU-led peacekeeping and counter-terrorism operations, he added. China has always attached great importance to its relations with the EU, as it regards the latter as an important force in the process of multi-polarization. China is pleased to see the EU strengthen its strategic autonomy, play a greater role in international affairs, and make greater contributions to the maintenance of international peace and security, he said. China is willing to deepen multilateral cooperation with the EU, work with the bloc to promote multilateralism, advocate opening and development, and advance dialogue among civilizations, so as to make unremitting efforts to safeguard world peace, promote common development, and strengthen global governance, said Geng. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about a school voucher plan during a rally Tuesday March 21, 2023, at Cypress Christian School in Houston. Abbott and his allies say the voucher effort is about school choice. Critics say they are private school vouchers that allow people to take money out of the public school system to benefit private schools. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer The promise of vouchers Regarding Gov. Greg Abbotts fight for Texas school vouchers poised for victory after GOP primary, (March 6): Congratulations to Gov. Greg Abbott and his rich donors. Those ridiculous amounts of money and time couldve actually helped schools and children. Instead they use it to try to turn Texas into a model of theocratic indoctrination. More partisanship that is helping to spread extremism and causing the ideological rot in the GOP. Bob Gayle, Houston Regarding Abbotts voucher push, (March 8): A previous letter writer stated (Abbotts) main concern seems to be his legacy and his political aspirations. She actually overlooked his main concern: facing pushback from the three West Texas billionaires who are obsessed with the state funding white nationalist Christian schools. It is absolutely wrong to divert taxpayer funds to private religious schools largely attended by wealthy white kids. Talk about buying a politician. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Full disclosure: My wife and I are a reasonably well-off white couple who fully paid for our daughter to attend St. Agnes High School. We had a choice. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tom Hix, Houston Im a fifth-generation Texan, and my husband is an Iranian American who had to leave Iran thanks to the theocracy in that once great country. Look at Iran if you want an example of how awful faith-based government is. I really feel for these rural kids. It just goes to show what a bunch of hypocrites the politicians in this state are. They go on and on about how cowboy and country they are, then they destroy the rural schools. Margery Anderson, Houston Regarding Abbotts Super Tuesday triumph in voucher battle is no win for Texas (Editorial), (March 10): As a public education teacher in Texas, Im confused by your inconsistency and failure to connect the dots. You do not get to write an entire editorial on the governors obsession with turning Texas into a Christian-dominated, biblically based state without mentioning the state takeover of the Houston Independent School District. Advertisement Article continues below this ad When you wrote, Our obsessive Ahab remains at the helm, I could have sworn you were writing about Abbott-approved, undemocratically appointed HISD Superintendent Mike Miles, who, in less than one academic year, continues to ruthlessly dismantle public schools through a scorch-and-burn policy of regulations that seems meant to silence his detractors. You dont get to cry about Abbotts anti-public school agenda only weeks after endorsing Texas Rep. Harold Dutton, the architect of the bill that led to this takeover, by using folksy language that Dutton is contrarian yet charming. Your own board noted that Dutton received in-kind contributions from a pro-voucher group, but you cavalierly followed up that this seemed to have no effect on his votes or position. Dont tell me, we can do better. You can do better. Anita Wadhwa, teacher, Mayde Creek High School Instead of all your anti-Abbott and anti-voucher ranting, why dont you tell your readers that 32 states have some sort of school choice program. And then tell us if theyre destroying public schools or just how they are working. Of course you wont because that wouldnt suit your agenda. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Glenn Jacks, New Caney Parents claiming a right to more control over their childrens education, at public expense, should remember that there are no social rights without corresponding social obligations. Parents of children in private schools have acquired that right to more control by relieving the state of the cost of educating them. While one can argue the morality of this trade, at least the apples and oranges are there on the scales. School vouchers have no such social payment offset and are instead an attempt to facilitate access to a private education using a state subsidy. Private schools have less oversight because they are not receiving public funds. With a voucher system, private schools would be substantially publicly funded. Those seeking vouchers see this only as wanting the best for their children. However, the effect of generally available school vouchers would be to promote both economic and cultural division. The use of public money should be for the general public good, not to promote social division. Robert J. Fisher, Houston Advertisement Article continues below this ad Uncertified teachers Regarding My child has an uncertified teacher in Houston ISD. Should I worry? (March 7): Joy Sewings column concerning the use of uncertified teachers was extremely well-written and her conclusions at the end were spot on. I say this as a retired and certified educator with more than 40 years of experience. Parents and local leaders who want to blame school districts for a dramatic increase in uncertified teachers should instead look to the governor and the Texas Legislature, both of which have presided over a complete failure to support public education in Texas. The one caveat I would add to Sewings article is this: Parents who decide to send their children to private schools, charter schools or to home-school them should also be aware that no certification is required by Texas laws in any of those instances. The promise of public education in America has long been that any child could attend their neighborhood school and receive a quality education, which includes having well-trained and certified teachers. Instead, thanks to the new reality of the hard-line GOP, parents will likely soon enjoy a parents right to enroll their children in private school with a soon-to-be state-funded voucher system that has no regulation or certification requirements whatsoever. Welcome to Texas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pande, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R. Hari Kumar and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari during the Exercise Bharat Shakti, in Pokhran, Rajasthan, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Photo: PTI. POKHRAN (PTI): Homegrown aircraft roared in the air while indigenously built battle tanks and artillery guns spewed fire dominating the arid terrain of Pokhran during a mega exercise on Tuesday, but perhaps the loudest roar was of an 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' marching ahead on the path of self-reliance in defence. As awestruck spectators watched the 'Bharat Shakti' exercise in Rajasthan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Pokhran has become witness to the trinity of India's 'aatmanirbharta', belief and self-pride. Roars of LCA Tejas and ALH Mk-IV filled the air while Main Battle Tank Arjun, K-9 Vajra, and T-90 Bhishma tanks, and Dhanush and Sharang artillery gun systems ruled the firing ranges on the ground. Pinaka rocket system in action drew huge cheers from the crowd. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar, IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari and Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande and Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma also attended the nearly 50-minute tri-services firepower and manoeuvre exercise, a first-of-its-kind on such a scale. The spectators also included several foreign service attaches from different countries, local civilians and defence personnel and some lawmakers of the region. The exercise showcased India's military prowess and integrated multi-domain operations of the three services and the "shock and awe" impact that the armed forces seek to achieve in an operational situation with manoeuvre and fighting capabilities. However, a Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA) of the Indian Air Force crashed near a residential colony in Jaisalmer while returning from the exercise in the first accident involving the indigenously-built single-engine jet since it began flying in 2001. There was no casualty. The pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a brief statement. The crash took place around 100 km from the Pokhran desert where the exercise 'Bharat Shakti' witnessed by Modi and top military brass was underway. LCH Prachand, mobile anti-drone system, BMP-II and its variants, a swarm of drones also wowed the audience with their precision striking capabilities during the exercise. In his address on the occasion, Modi said, "The roar of aircraft mid-air, and valour displayed on ground during Bharat Shakti exercise is the call of a 'new India' (naye Bharat ka aavhan hai)". He recalled that it was at Pokhran that India's nuclear test was conducted in the past. "This is Pokhran, which witnessed India's nuclear power, and today here we are also seeing the strength of 'Swadeshikaran se Sashaktikaran' (from indigenisation to empowerment). "Today, this celebration of Bharat Shakti is taking place in Rajasthan, the land of bravery, but its echo is being heard not only in India but in the whole world," he said. The prime minister also visited the area where a static display of equipment and platforms was kept near the site of the live demonstration. A tethered drone system and robotic mule system, among other cutting-edge platforms, were also displayed in the exhibition area. The prime minister highlighted India's "twin messages of peace and power through his avatar as a 'Shantidoot' during his visit to Sabarmati Ashram at Ahmedabad in the morning and thereafter his transformation as a 'Shaktidoot' in Pokhran", a senior official said. Besides firepower and ammunition, logistic capabilities for transporting equipment and evacuation of injured and casualties using the latest technologies were also demonstrated as a Chetak helicopter performed the manoeuvre drawing applause from the crowd. Gen Pande, in his brief address, said, "For capable armed forces to be 'atmanirbhar', it is not only limited to equipment or platforms, but it is also important for self-sufficiency in a war and its preparations, other resources and critical technology". This first-of-its-kind exercise on such a scale is "not tailored towards any direction (northern or western border) or any adversaries", sources in the defence establishment said. "In a clear indication of India's readiness to confront and overcome contemporary and future challenges with home-grown solutions, 'Bharat Shakti' highlights resilience, innovation and strength of India's domestic defence capabilities on the global stage," the Prime Minister's Office had said on Sunday. Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Katie L Thomen, assistant army attache at the US Embassy in New Delhi also attended the exercise. "I thought it was great, it shows where the defence industry has come in India in the last few years, and it is a good thing. I think India is one of the most important relationships for the US in the Indo-Pacific region, which is one of the most influential regions in the world," she told PTI after the end of the exercise. The exercise at Pokhran also showcased systems and platforms integrated with artificial intelligence (AI). Maal Singh (48), a local resident of Pokhran attended the event dressed in a traditional Rajasthani costume. "I earlier served in an infantry unit of the Army but took voluntary retirement. In our times, we had to get so many military assets imported. But today I saw so many Indian aircraft and platforms on display. It was a great experience," he told PTI. 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 Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez has resigned. Courtesy of Daniel Rodriguez/LinkedIn Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez has resigned. Courtesy of Daniel Rodriguez/LinkedIn Nearly 400 law enforcement officers from two dozen agencies responded to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde on May 24, 2022. Associated Press Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez avoided much of the scorn and fury heaped on law enforcement officers over the failed response to the May 24, 2022, mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. The reason: Rodriguez was off-duty and out of state that day. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Now, the chief is calling it a career, Uvalde Mayor Cody Smith said. The City of Uvalde is grateful to Chief Rodriguez for his 26 years of service to our community, and we wish him the best as he pursues new career opportunities, Smith said. Neither the mayor nor Rodriguez elaborated on the reason for his resignation, which is effective April 6. Rodriguez became chief in 2018. The Uvalde Leader-News was first to report the news. Rodriguez announced his resignation during a departmental staff meeting, the paper said. It should also be noted that I was not forced, asked or pressured by anyone in the city or the community to make the decision that I made, Rodriguez told the Leader-News. This decision was best for me and my family. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Former Mayor Donald McLaughlin Jr., who was in office at the time of the Robb shooting, said he was flabbergasted to learn Rodriguez was stepping down. I think that maybe Danny feels the community, this will give them a (new) start, McLaughlin said. Danny wasnt here that day, so you really cant hold him responsible, but I think its just weighing on him. I just think its weighing on him day in and day out. Maybe the community or the families will see a change and hopefully itll help. McLaughlin said Rodriguez grew up in Uvalde, joined the police force in 1993 and left at one point to work for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Then he returned to his hometown and worked his way up the ranks of the police department. I have a lot of respect for Danny, McLaughlin said. And I think on May 24 (2022), he wasnt here that day, but I think if he would have been here, we would have seen more professionalism on that day. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In his resignation letter, Rodriguez said, I want to express my deepest appreciation to all of my colleagues and team members for their unwavering support, professionalism, and dedication to our mission of serving and protecting the community. It has been a privilege to work alongside such talented and committed individuals, and I will miss our collaborations and camaraderie dearly. Smith said Assistant Police Chief Homer Delgado will serve as interim chief while the mayor and city manager search for a permanent replacement in consultation with the City Council. Nothing is more important than the safety of our community, and we look forward to working together to identify the best candidate to serve the people of Uvalde, Smith said. News of Rodriguezs resignation comes just days after a police consultant who examined the actions of Uvalde police during the Robb Elementary massacre found that local officers were not to blame for the confused law enforcement response and the heavy loss of life. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The report, by Jesse Prado, a retired Austin police detective who is now a private investigator and consultant, found that Uvalde police officers were outgunned, hamstrung by poor radio communications and missing critical pieces of equipment, notably vests and shields strong enough to provide protection from the shooters high-powered rifle. Nineteen fourth-graders and two teachers were shot dead by the teenage gunman, who was armed with an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle. Nearly 400 officers from two dozen local, state and federal agencies were on the scene. Despite the massive police presence, 77 minutes passed before a Border Patrol-led team stormed the classroom where the shooter was hiding and killed him. Sharon Stone has named the producer she claims told her to sleep with a co-star. The Basic Instinct star, 66, alleges Hollywood mogul Robert Evans told her to have sex with William Baldwin while filming 1993 thriller Sliver. Advertisement The Hollywood star initially revealed a meeting in which she was pressured to sleep with a co-star in her 2021 memoir but did not disclose the identities of those involved. Speaking on The Louis Theroux Podcast, Stone named the executive as Evans, who died in 2019. She claimed he told her she was responsible for improving Baldwins performance in the film, which is based on the Ira Levin novel of the same name about the mysterious occurrences in a New York high-rise building. Advertisement Sharon Stone said she was asked to sleep with William Baldwin. Photo: PA. She said: [Evans] is running around his office in sunglasses explaining that he slept with Ava Gardner and I should sleep with Billy Baldwin, because if I slept with Billy Baldwin, Billy Baldwins performance would get better, and we needed Billy to get better in the movie because that was the problem. Advertisement If I could sleep with Billy, then wed have chemistry on screen and if I would just have sex with him, then that would save the movie. The real problem was me, because I was so uptight, and not like a real actress who could just f*** him and get things back on track. The real problem was I was such a tight-ass. Advertisement Responding on Twitter, Baldwin said: Not sure why Sharon Stone keep talking about me all these years later? Does she still have a crush on me or is she still hurt after all these years because I shunned her advances? Stone also said she never got a good part again after 1995s Casino and described herself as the invisible actress. She lost out on winning an Oscar for Martin Scorseses crime thriller Casino to Susan Sarandon in Dead Man Walking and said The Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola warned her in advance that this would be the case. Advertisement I cant pretend Im not excited to play host to movie royalty on this episode of #TheLouisTherouxPodcast, with Sharon Stone joining remotely from her home in Los Angeles for a free-ranging and utterly uncensored chat. Please join us to hear Sharons blisteringly honest takes on pic.twitter.com/5Yt4lLyycp Advertisement Louis Theroux (@louistheroux) March 12, 2024 Advertisement She said: Francis put his hand on my shoulder and he said: I need to talk to you. Ive won the Golden Globe for Casino, and I was nominated for an Oscar. And I said: Oh sure, whats going on? And he said: Youre not going to win the Oscar. I looked at him and I said: Im not? And he said: No. I thought I was going to cry, and he said: I want you to feel like youre going to cry now. I dont want you to cry in the room, and thats why Im doing this, and it feels so mean right now. But I didnt win for The Godfather and Marty didnt win for Raging Bull, and youre not going to win for Casino. And its because this room cant hear opera. They dont let us win because they dont want us to take over the system. This is not the level of films they want. And your performance will stand the test of time. And when you lose, Marty and I are gonna be in the room, and youre gonna lose with us. And when you lose, were gonna be holding you when you lose. Advertisement Discussing attending the Oscars when she knew she was going to lose, she said: You have to pretend its fantastic and its not fantastic. And then I didnt get any good parts ever again for the rest of my entire life. Sharon Stone on the red carpet in 2002. Photo: Myung Jung Kim/PA. When Theroux replied: That cant be true. Im sure there were other movies you did that were good, she replied: No, and guess what? I hate it. She continued: Its easier to say Shes cold, or I dont like her, or Shes difficult, or She must be sick, or Shes too old, or that shes hard to cast, or We dont know what to do with her. Then: What if she comes in and gives another performance and she gets nominated instead of Robert De Niro? Thats not what we want to have happen. When Theroux followed up to ask if there is any movie after Casino that she feels proud of, she said: Take a look. Did anybody notice me? Did anybody notice me in Lovelace? That was a performance you could sharpen your knives on. Did anybody notice that? Nope. Do you see any acknowledgment for any of this stuff? Nope. Im the invisible actress. Advertisement She added: I hate it. I could play Hamlet in the nude. I hate it. Theres just nothing. Stone also described her experiences with disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein, who is in prison for sex offences and with whom she crossed paths at events for the Aids charity Amfar. Sharon Stone described Harvey Weinstein as a pig Photo: David Mirzoeff/PA. She said: I had a long time of dealing with Harvey, and Im really glad that hes in prison, and I think he should stay there with the rest of the people who are like him. Harveys a pig. Hes an octopus and youre just always getting one of his tentacles off you. He always thinks that hes the boss of all things. I would be doing these auctions for Amfar and hed come out and put his arm around me, and take the microphone and start trying to tell me that I was supposed to take the bid of one of his friends. Id have to unwind him off me and, you know, say like: I call the bids, Harvey, f*** off, get off the stage, and everybody would think it was funny. Id come off the stage and hed be backstage shoving me around or throwing me across the room. He was very violent and he was an anaconda, he was a disgusting pig. Asked if she was too powerful for him to try to coerce into sex, she said: He would say things to me like: You know, you think youre such a princess, Sharon, as I would unwind him off me. And Id say: Yeah, I think Im the queen of France. F*** off. But he was certainly comfortable with throwing me across the room. He was physically violent to me on more than one occasion because he was so angry at me because I wouldnt do what he wanted me to do. The Louis Theroux Podcast is a Spotify podcast, now available everywhere, with new episodes landing every Tuesday. A new gender quality database has been launched by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), publishing figures across various topics, including pay, work, sport, and life expectancy. The hub, described as a "one-stop-shop" for information on men and women in Ireland, has been set-up using data from the CSO and other public service bodies. Advertisement The hub will be continually updated with the latest data, replacing the CSO's Women and Men in Ireland publication, however, a snapshot showing trends across the various areas examined will also be published annually. Launching the hub, the CSO highlighted that the Gender Pay Gap (GPG) in Ireland was 9.6 per cent in 2022. Just under one third of employed women were noted as working part-time (31 per cent), compared to 14 per cent of their male counterparts, and while women made up 49 per cent of the overall workforce, they accounted for just one quarter of the top 1 per cent of earners. Advertisement Irish men ranked higher in terms of life expectancy compared to other European countries, placing fifth, while Irish women were further back, placing 15th. Advertisement The CSO also noted that in 2021, Ireland ranked ninth on the Gender Quality Index against other European countries, having dropped two places from 2020. "The hub is designed to increase the frequency of updates and simplify the process of finding and accessing data on women and men in Ireland," Emma Hogan from the CSO's statistical systems co-ordination unit said. "The structure of the hub allows the flexibility to add new data as it becomes available, to include new topics, and to have more regular updates," she added. Kneecap rapper Mo Chara has predicted that Minister for Culture Catherine Martin will be standing on her own on the Irish stage at the South by Southwest (SXSW) arts festival in the US. Kneecap is just one of a number of Irish acts, including Gavin James, Soda Blonde and Mick Flannery, that have withdrawn from the festival citing the event's association with the US military and the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. Advertisement An Enterprise Ireland-led delegation is taking part in SXSW which is running this week in Austin, Texas. The Minister is set to represent Ireland at a number of events in Austin as part of the St Patricks Day programme, some of which are part of SXSW. Speaking on RTE radios Morning Ireland, Mo Chara said that their withdrawal sends a clear message and he was confident their fans would be supportive of their position. Advertisement The decision had been a no-brainer once information began to come to light about the involvement of companies that are supplying weapons for a genocide in Palestine. Advertisement We just made the decision because it's good to be on the right side of history, you know, as Irish people. And I was very, very proud to see how a lot of bands followed suit. Straight off, it sends a very clear message, that the Irish people will always be in solidarity with the Palestinian people. Mo Chara said he would not comment on whether people should or should not attend the festival. We were only making the decision based on us. But I know obviously the Minister was saying that she was going to support Irish acts. I think that she will be standing at the Irish stage on her own. When asked if the Minister had spoken with Kneecap, he said she hasnt spoken a word to me. The financial impact of not attending the festival will be very expensive, he acknowledged. But at the end of the day, this is just a minor sort of hiccup in our careers in comparison to what's actually happening in Gaza, you know, and everybody can play their part. Advertisement Advertisement But the whole country can play their part, whether it's at rallies or boycotting Israeli goods and anyone who has a platform continuing to use it in any way. Yes, we lost a bit of money, but, you know, it's priceless to do the right thing. A statement from the Department of Arts and Culture said the Minister had spoken to many of the musicians who had withdrawn from SXSW. She outlined that she has the utmost respect for their freedom of expression as artists and reassured them that she will use every opportunity available to her to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza. This includes the St Patricks Day consular reception in Austin tonight where she will outline to attendees the Irish Governments calls for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and a massive and sustained increase in humanitarian aid, food and medicine to the people of Gaza. Advertisement The statement from the department added that the events aim to promote Irelands creative industries and film industry, and are supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Screen Ireland, IDA, Tourism Ireland and Music from Ireland. The Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement: South by Southwest is a combination of festivals and events that includes film, interactive media, music and conferences on a range of subjects, and takes place in March each year in Austin, Texas. In 2023, over 345,000 people from 127 countries attended. Ireland House at SXSW running from 11-15 March is providing an opportunity for a wide range of Irish companies, agencies and artists to showcase the best of Irish creativity in the fields of science, innovation, technology, culture and the arts. The department is aware that a number of artists due to participate in Music From Ireland at SXSW have withdrawn from the event. The department supports artists rights to freedom of expression and does not advise artists in relation to choices they make on where to perform. In relation to the war in Gaza, Ireland has strongly argued for an upholding of international humanitarian law, a humanitarian ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said Israels apparent plans for the Gaza Strip after a potential ceasefire are entirely unacceptable. He said he planned to raise the issue with US president Joe Biden this week during a high-profile White House meeting to coincide with St Patricks Day. Advertisement The Taoiseach also said that Europe and the US would have a role to play in building a Palestinian state after any truce. Joe Biden with Leo Varadkar last year. Photo: Damien Storan/PA. Mr Varadkar and other ministers are attending events in the US around St Patricks Day. Advertisement He has said he will use the very special platform with US politicians to give the Irish peoples view that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar said he would try to mention Irish-Palestinian man Zak Hania, who is in Rafah, whose wife has asked for his case to be raised with the US president. Advertisement He said there had been hundreds of requests for issues to be raised with Mr Biden. I should point out though that Irish citizens in Gaza, our main contact is with Israel and Egyptian governments, as well as the Qataris, he replied. Advertisement Mr Varadkar said he would be encouraging Mr Biden to redouble efforts the US is making to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Advertisement Well be encouraging him to redouble efforts in that regard, offering any help we can, but also really want to talk about the day after. Israel-Hamas War Public urge Taoiseach not to travel to US for St P... Read More I think what were hearing from the Israeli government in terms of what their plans are for Gaza the day after (a ceasefire) are entirely unacceptable. It is an occupied territory, its not Israels right to decide what happens in Gaza, its an occupied territory. America and Europe have a role to play in building a Palestinian state, which I think is the only chance that we have of peace and justice. A Dublin man has been jailed after he deliberately set fire to an office, causing over 110,000 of damage to the property, in the mistaken belief that his ex-partner was having an affair. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Jason Ward (52) set a fire in an upstairs office of a property in Drumcondra, where his then former partner was working, under the mistaken and false belief that she was conducting an affair there. Advertisement The couple have since reconciled, the court heard. This building contained a downstairs apartment, whose two occupants had to flee after noticing that a fire had started upstairs. Over 110,000 of damage was caused to the building, including smoke damage to the apartment. The tenants had to move to alternative accommodation for three months while repairs were carried out. In a victim impact statement, one of the residents said he is a heavy sleeper and only awoke because their dogs were barking, otherwise their lives could have been in danger. Advertisement Advertisement He said he was surprised this happened, and he'd never had a problem with anyone in my life. Losses In a victim impact statement, the building's owner said he was relieved no one was injured, but he would never forget that night when gardai knocked on his door to tell him. He also said that a family member was facing a serious illness at the time. The fire caused some difficult months for his family and business, but things are now back on track, he said, expressing the hope that Ward would get any help he may require. Advertisement The building's owner received around 90,000 from an insurance claim, but faced additional losses, including 16,000 of rental income while the building was repaired, the court heard. Ward (52), of Wadriver Close, Ballymun Dublin 11, pleaded guilty to one count of arson and one of endangerment on June 1st, 2022. He has 14 previous convictions, including five for theft and six for public order offences. Imposing sentence on Wednesday, Judge Orla Crowe said this offending was deliberate, coldly planned and executed. She said Ward had driven a distance in the deepest middle of the night, used a balaclava, and purchased a small amount of petrol to use as an accelerant to set the fire. Advertisement Advertisement The judge noted the contents of the residents impact statement and said the dogs barking had prevented a much greater tragedy from happening. She said the building's owner was under extraordinary stress at the time due to their family member's illness, but that he had shown extraordinary grace towards Ward in his victim impact statement. She added that his graciousness was a tribute to his humanity. 'Disregard for human life' Judge Crowe noted that the outcome could have been far more catastrophic if the dogs had nbt become alarmed and barked. Advertisement She said Ward acted without regard for any person or property, causing huge damage and disruption to blameless people and displaying disregard for human life. The judge described Ward's actions as selfish, inexplicable and inexcusable, adding that his reasoning for setting fire to his then ex-partner's place of work was unfathomable. Judge Crowe said she took the mitigating features into consideration, including Ward's guilty pleas, expressions of remorse, efforts to deal with his addiction issues and references submitted on his behalf. She handed Ward a sentence of five years with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. At an earlier hearing, Detective Garda Raymond Lee told Jennifer Jackson BL, prosecuting, that Dublin Fire Brigade had extinguished the fire when gardai arrived at the scene at 3.56am on June 1st, 2022. Advertisement One of the tenants told gardai they were awoken and initially thought someone was going to the upstairs office. When they checked the time, they realised it was not the landlord and left the house to check, before returning inside. They went upstairs, then noticed a small fire. They made an attempt to put out the fire, before raising the alarm and leaving the building. Deliberate Det Gda Lee said an investigation found the fire had been started deliberately with an accelerant. The upstairs office was extensively damaged and could not be used for several months. Smoke damage was also caused to the downstairs apartment and the tenants had to move to alternative accommodation while the repairs were completed. One person, who was then Ward's ex-partner, was working in the office and he was identified as a suspect. CCTV footage was obtained and showed Ward buying 1 of petrol at 3.10am from a nearby petrol station, which he put in a bottle. His car was also seen parked near the building at 3.29am. The court heard Ward is seen in this footage crouching to hide from a passing car, before putting a balaclava over his head. CCTV later captured Ward running back to the vehicle and driving away. Advertisement Det Gda Lee said the apartment's residents had received unusual Facebook messages about two weeks before this incident from an account in Ward's name asking about the building and the woman who worked upstairs. Most of these messages were deleted by the sender. The court was told there were some difficulties at the time in the relationship and Ward mistakenly believed that his partner was having an affair in the office. Ward was interviewed twice but denied any involvement in the fire. He identified himself on CCTV as well as his Facebook page. Det Gda Lee agreed with John Moher BL, defending, that Ward outlined his addiction to cocaine during the interview and referred to his mental health issues. A key worker with the STAR project told the court that Ward started treatment for his addiction issues in August 2022 and has made significant progress, becoming substance-free. Mr Moher said his client wished to apologise to all affected by this very serious matter. He said Ward is ashamed and remorseful for his inexplicable actions. His client was in the throes of drug addiction at the time and succumbed to feelings of paranoia, he said. He said his client has suffered from an incident of drug-induced psychosis. Defence counsel said this was a radical departure when compared to Ward's previous offending. A number of references, an offer of work, a letter of apology, GP letter and a psychological report were handed to the court. Mr Moher said his client is aware of the significant financial loss caused and was willing to make payments towards this amount. A series of meetings held recently are to express opposition to an Irish sea border, and not TUV rallies, it has been insisted. DUP MP Sammy Wilson previously ruled out attending a gathering in Carrickfergus on Tuesday evening contending they were creating a poisonous atmosphere and were TUV electioneering. Advertisement A number of events have been organised by TUV leader Jim Allister and campaigner Jamie Bryson since the DUP struck a deal with the Government over post-Brexit trading arrangements and returned to devolved government. DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson said the Safeguarding the Union document has effectively removed the so-called Irish Sea border for goods moving from Britain to, and staying in, Northern Ireland. Advertisement Addressing the meeting in Carrickfergus, campaigner Jamie Bryson claimed a large percentage the DUP oppose the deal and challenged Mr Donaldson to a public debate on it. Advertisement He also said the events are not TUV rallies. These are anti-Irish Sea border meetings against the Surrendering the Union deal, he said. Advertisement It isnt the TUVs fault that they are the only party with a cohesive collective party stance against the Irish Sea border, alongside the PUP who, to be fair, have also rejected the deal. The only people who divided unionism were the DUP leadership who broke the central pledges which held unionism together, and who abandoned the Ulster Day 2021 joint-unionist declaration. I am confident that, in the fullness of time, there is only one outcome here, and that is that every reasonable unionist will realise they have been fundamentally misled and that the Surrendering the Union far from removing the Irish Sea border, in fact, embeds it. Northern Ireland is set to be the focus of a gala dinner event in Washington DC as First Minister Michelle ONeill and Emma Little-Pengelly address guests. It is the first time Northern Irelands leaders have officially visited the US city together ahead of St Patricks Day for eight years. Advertisement In 2016, then first minister Arlene Foster and deputy first minister Martin McGuinness met then US president Barack Obama. The Stormont Assembly and Executive was resurrected in January following two years of instability. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly will address The Irish Funds dinner on Wednesday night, and are set to attend the annual St Patricks ceremony at the White House on Sunday. Advertisement Taoiseach Leo Varadkar speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel, Washington, DC, during his visit to the US for St Patricks Day (Niall Carson/PA) Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, who will also address the event, said Northern Ireland will be the focus. Advertisement The Ireland Funds will not be perhaps as well known in Ireland as it should be but its an organisation that is very well known in America and around the world and has raised hundreds of millions for very good causes in Ireland with a particular focus on equality and reconciliation, the Taoiseach told media. Friday will be the political meetings with the president, vice-president and, speaker and congressional leaders with a particular focus on Northern Ireland. Advertisement I know they are always very keen to know what is happening in relation to the peace process. He added: Im really glad Im coming here with the First Minister and deputy First Minister, and the Executive is up and running. Earlier Mr Leo Varadkar had said Israels apparent plans for the Gaza Strip after a potential ceasefire are entirely unacceptable. He said he planned to raise the issue with US president Joe Biden this week during a high-profile White House meeting to coincide with St Patricks Day. Advertisement The Taoiseach also said that Europe and the US would have a role to play in building a Palestinian state after any truce. Joe Biden with Leo Varadkar last year (Damien Storan/PA) Mr Varadkar and other ministers are attending events in the US around St Patricks Day. Advertisement Advertisement He has said he will use the very special platform with US politicians to give the Irish peoples view that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar said he would try to mention Irish-Palestinian man Zak Hania, who is in Rafah, whose wife has asked for his case to be raised with the US president. He said there had been hundreds of requests for issues to be raised with Mr Biden. I should point out though that Irish citizens in Gaza, our main contact is with Israel and Egyptian governments, as well as the Qataris, he replied. Mr Varadkar said he would be encouraging Mr Biden to redouble efforts the US is making to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Well be encouraging him to redouble efforts in that regard, offering any help we can, but also really want to talk about the day after. I think what were hearing from the Israeli government in terms of what their plans are for Gaza the day after (a ceasefire) are entirely unacceptable. It is an occupied territory, its not Israels right to decide what happens in Gaza, its an occupied territory. America and Europe have a role to play in building a Palestinian state which I think is the only chance that we have of peace and justice. A Belfast businessman whose former premises were burnt out has said he feels comfortable and welcomed in his new shop. Ahmad Alkhamran moved to the city from Syria eight years ago and initially worked as a taxi driver before setting up a grocery shop. Advertisement That first premises on the Donegall Road in the south of the city was attacked four times in just two weeks last September. A spray-painted message on the shutters of the shop from an attack which was left before a devastating arson attack, read local houses an shops only. Mr Alkhamran has spent the last few months working as a taxi driver to save up the money to reopen his shop in a new location on the Falls Road in west Belfast. Opening the doors on Saturday, he was serving Arabic coffee and selling groceries and spices to what he termed a warm welcome. Advertisement Advertisement He told the PA news agency that those behind the attacks were a small minority, and he knows the welcoming nature of most people from his work as a taxi driver and his shop. He paid tribute to SDLP councillor Paul Doherty for standing with him, and introducing him to local people in the area of his new shop. Seeing my shop attacked and burnt, it was a nightmare and a disaster for me, but I kept going, went back to work as a taxi driver. I worked during the day to get the shop ready and at night in my taxi for money for the shop, he said. The community in west Belfast has been really supportive, and especially Paul who stood with me. Advertisement I worked hard for three months in that shop to fit it out by last week, and then I opened on Saturday. It was busy and I was surprised that a lot of the local community came in and were happy to see the shop nice and tidy. They told me, you are welcome here and were glad you are open here, and that makes me happy. When I get more money, I will bring in more stock. Its a Mediterranean shop, groceries from Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Arabic in general. Halloumi and hummus, and original hummus is not like what you get in the bigger supermarkets, olives, spices, sweet things like baklava and many kinds of dates. Advertisement I made the locals some Arabic coffee at the weekend, some of them liked it and bought some. Advertisement Mr Alkhamran said he had no choice but to leave Syria, and travelled through 11 countries as he searched for somewhere to make his new home. I worked for years as a taxi driver so I had an idea about the people here, the majority of people are really kind, I chatted with so many who welcomed me and who have no problem with other people, he said. We are all humans and live together. We need respect between us. People here lived through the Troubles and they feel the same way I do. I left Syria because I had no other choice, I had to leave because it was very dangerous. I didnt know anything about Belfast when I arrived. I crossed 11 countries, I walked to Turkey, I crossed by boat to Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Hungary, Austria, Germany, France. I ended up in Belfast, I learned English to work. It was hard but all I wanted was to open a small business and live in safety and peace. The same as those here who lived through the Troubles and are looking for peace. Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquezs abandoned last book is being released to the world, a decade after his death Fiction 1. Until August by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is published in hardback by Viking Advertisement (Viking/PA) When Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez died in April 2014, having been diagnosed with dementia, there were reports of an unpublished manuscript left behind. And now, a decade later, that has materialised in the form of Until August. The book, presented by his sons Gonzalo and Rodrigo Garcia Barcha, is a welcome surprise to fans of the author, whose famous and beloved works include Love In The Time of Cholera and One Hundred Years Of Solitude. In Until August we meet Ana Magdalena Bach, who is, for all purposes, a happily married mother and wife. Every year she visits her mothers grave on a tropical island in the month of August. We meet Ana on one such trip, the first where she has a one-night stand with a stranger. And so begins a journey for the reader and Ana, one that is filled with the wondrous literary magic only Garcia Marquez could ever conjure up on the pages. The novel lives up to every expectation. As a character, Ana is likeable and interesting, with a touch of mystery that keeps you devouring her story. Theres a sense of quiet resilience in her, and it is a refreshing page-turner to follow the narrative of an older woman who isnt painted as bitter, boring or bemoaning her lot. It is a bitter sweet experience to turn the final pages knowing that the late author previously asked for the book to be destroyed, but also savouring the words he left. 8/10 (Review by Kerri-Ann Roper) Advertisement 2. Family Politics by John OFarrell is published in hardback by Doubleday Advertisement (Doubleday/PA) When a group of activists trying to save a city farm from closure smuggle animals into a council meeting, they cause chaos and widespread publicity. Labour Party member Emma Hughes is thrilled at the success of her stunt, only to come crashing to earth when her son confesses hes become a Conservative while at university. In Family Politics, writer and political campaigner John OFarrell draws on his wealth of experience to explain the challenges faced by Emma, her Labour councillor husband Eddie, and their newly right-wing son Dylan. The arguments reach a new level when Eddie is selected as Labours candidate in the local by-election, and Dylan campaigns for the opposition. With a general election looming this year in the UK, Family Politics is the perfect read for anyone hooked on politics and enjoys a good plot thats laced with humour. 8/10 (Review by Alan Jones) 3. Go Lightly by Brydie Lee-Kennedy is published in hardback by Bloomsbury Publishing Advertisement 'A novel that really nails the chaos, panic and joy of being young' Daisy Buchanan GO LIGHTLY by Brydie Lee-Kennedy, publishing Thursday. Pre-order now! pic.twitter.com/ffW01c4jiM Advertisement Bloomsbury Books UK (@BloomsburyBooks) March 11, 2024 Advertisement Ada Highfield treats life with a light touch, giving money, sex and relationships the same fleeting disregard; and when she meets Sadie and Stuart at the same time, she sees no harm in sharing her affections between them both. But when Sadie and Stuart evolve into more than merely passing fancies, Ada is forced to ask herself the questions shes always avoided and she realises that she if doesnt start to make some serious decisions, she might find the choices wont be hers to make. Blending humour with pathos and critical social observation, Go Lightly is sharp, witty and unexpectedly astute, establishing its author as a new and assured voice in modern LGBTQ+ literature. 7/10 (Review by Hannah Colby) Non-fiction 4. Learning To Think by Tracy King is published in hardback by Doubleday Advertisement When you have nothing, you cling to whatever gives you hope Introducing 2024s most shocking and inspiring memoir, 'Learning to Think' by Tracy King. This hopeful memoir holds up a mirror to the everyday realities of living in poverty, it is also a testament to the power of pic.twitter.com/hLyG4A5kHo Transworld Books (@TransworldBooks) September 20, 2023 Learning To Think is a compelling memoir about Tracy Kings journey to taking charge of her belief system. It starts in 1980s Birmingham, after her fathers tragic death, when her family developed an extreme reliance on the Christian church, and King even stopped going to school. She tells stories of both poverty and grief, and how she navigated such situations through the lens of extreme religion, whether that be Christianity, the occult, or conspiracy theories. After reading a book that taught her to think critically, she was finally able to detach herself from others belief systems and make decisions about the world for herself. Its a truly devastating yet hopeful read, which dives into some of lifes most heartbreaking experiences. Seeing King come out the other end with a new perspective on life, always checking in with reality, is something we can all learn from. 9/10 (Review by Molly Powell) Childrens book of the week Advertisement 5. Pirates Of Darksea by Catherine Doyle is published in paperback by Bloomsbury Childrens Books PIRATES OF DARKSEA A HUGE thank you to the supremely talented @manuelsumberac for this epic cover illustration, which perfectly fits this tale of swashbuckling adventure, extraordinary bravery, and one very special, unbreakable bond of brotherhood pic.twitter.com/MZUy3j1ge7 Catherine Doyle (@doyle_cat) October 6, 2023 This is a swashbuckling pirate adventure, packed with good and bad magic, skullduggery and epic bravery, in a daring crusade to defeat evil and rescue the secret kingdom of Darksea from a deadly monster. In an attempt to help his hospitalised big brother Christopher get better, courageous Max climbs aboard the Stolen Sunrise and bargains with Captain OMalley, accepting a dangerous quest in return for the last bottle of precious stardust. But all is not what is seems in Darksea, and as the weight of 11-year-old Maxs pursuit unfolds, the bigger picture unveils a deeper evil that he is called to confront can he beat evil Redfin with the help of his friend Ruby and cheeky parrot Squawk? A bold tale you wont want to put down, Pirates Of Darksea encourages the reader to find inner strength when it looks like the odds might just overwhelm. 7/10 (Review by Karen Shield) Advertisement Book charts for the week ending March 9th: Hardback (Fiction) 1. The Warm Hands Of Ghosts by Katherine Arden 2. The Sunlit Man by Brandon Sanderson 3. Empire Of The Damned by Jay Kristoff 4. Dune by Frank Herbert 5. The List Of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey 6. A Fate Inked In Blood by Danielle L. Jensen 7. End Of Story by A. J. Finn 8. Sunbringer by Hannah Kaner 9. House Of Flame And Shadow by Sarah J. Maas 10. The Island Swimmer by Lorraine Kelly (Compiled by Waterstones) Hardback (Non-fiction) 1. The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson 2. The House Of Hidden Meanings by RuPaul 3. Crypt by Alice Roberts 4. Bored Of Lunch Healthy Slow Cooker: Even Easier by Nathan Anthony 5. The Radfords by Sue Radford & Noel Radford 6. Keir Starmer by Tom Baldwin 7. Pinch Of Nom Express by Kay Allinson & Kate Allinson 8. Maurice And Maralyn by Sophie Elmhirst 9. Politics On The Edge by Rory Stewart 10. The Diary Of A CEO by Steven Bartlett (Compiled by Waterstones) Audiobooks (Fiction & Non-fiction) 1. The Trading Game by Gary Stevenson 2. Atomic Habits by James Clear 3. None Of This Is True by Lisa Jewell 4. Supercommunicators by Charles Duhigg 5. The Great Deceiver by Elly Griffiths 6. Unruly by David Mitchell 7. The Women by Kristin Hannah 8. The House Of Hidden Meanings by RuPaul 9. Ultra-Processed People by Chris van Tulleken 10. The Fellowship of The Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien (Compiled by Audible) Cork-born actor Cillian Murphy has been announced as the latest face of Versace with a new fashion campaign. The 47-year-old, who portrayed American theoretical physicist J Robert Oppenheimer in the biographical war film, will front the campaign, wearing key pieces from the mens Versace Icons collection. Advertisement Launching globally on April 3rd, it will be Murphys first campaign for the Italian luxury fashion company. I am thrilled that Cillian is joining the Versace family. He is a truly exceptional actor and totally deserves his Oscar win, chief creative officer Donatella Versace told WWD. He is magnetic and mesmerising in front of a camera, and I loved seeing him bring Versace to life. It comes after Murphy wore a black custom Atelier Versace tailored suit to the the 96th Academy Awards, in Hollywood on March 10. The outfit consisted of a wool tweed single-breasted jacket with contrast silk peaked lapels, a silk formal shirt with pleated front panel and concealed buttons, and mohair wool tailored pants with a large silk waistband, the brand posted on Instagram. Advertisement Advertisement It was a nod to the labels past, stylist Rose Forde, who helped design Murphys look throughout the films press tour and awards, told Vogue.We looked at a lot of 90s Versace references, she said. Murphy accepted the award for best actor, while Oppenheimer also won best picture, best supporting actor, best director, best original score, best cinematography and best film editing. The film is the sixth project Murphy has collaborated on with British-American filmmaker Christopher Nolan. He has also starred in Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Inception, The Dark Knight Rises and Dunkirk. Advertisement (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) The actor from Douglas, Cork, also starred in the BBC television series Peaky Blinders, a historical drama about a criminal gang in Birmingham, post-World War I. During Milan Fashion Week last month, Versace unveiled their new 2024 autumn/winter collection, and Solange Knowles son Daniel Julez Smith Jr. walked the runway. The Versace collection considered wildness, where tailoring is disrupted, print deconstructed, and Atelier Versace fabrics shredded and meticulously hand-woven into new materials. Advertisement This collection has a rebel attitude and a kind heart. The woman is a good girl with a wild soul. She is prim but sexy. Dont mess with her! The man is her soulmate, a shy genius. They are breaking the rules to make new ones, said Versace at the time. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni) Versace also announced that a smaller Medusa 95 the Versace logo will feature across their designs. The Boeing 737 Max incident last January is now being probed for possible criminal charges, Alaska Airlines has confirmed to Reuters. The U.S. Department of Justice has reportedly sent out investigators to contact the passengers, pilots and flight attendants of Flight 1282 three months after its fuselage panel blew out midflight. Alaska Airlines said it is "fully cooperating" with the DOJ, believing it is not the target of the investigation. It can be noted that the plane had to make an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon, last Jan. 5. Although no one was reportedly hurt from the incident, several passengers pursued lawsuits against the airlines and Boeing over supposed "excessive" defects in the plane. Earlier investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board cited four missing key bolts in the fuselage as the cause of the blowout. Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max resumed operations on Jan. 26. Also Read: FAA Calls for Visual Inspection on All Older Boeing 737 Planes U.S. Agencies Express Concern on Boeing's 'Safety Culture' The DOJ probe on the Boeing aircraft is only the latest report of the company being investigated over safety concerns related to the January incident. Last Monday, the Federal Aviation Agency scrutinized Boeing for "non-compliance issues" with its manufacturing process control, as well as handling and storage of critical aircraft parts. The FAA ordered the company to resolve the issues and report within 90 days. This is the second FAA probe on Boeing planes this year. The agency earlier warned the company of serious problems with its safety culture ahead of the fuselage blowout. Related Article: Boeing 737 MAX 9 Aircraft Temporarily Suspended Worldwide by FAA Boeing at Risk of Re-Opening Flight Safety Lawsuit The DOJ has also previously investigated Boeing 737 Max aircraft following a fatal crash in 2018 and 2019. Over 300 people were killed in the crashes. Boeing settled the subsequent lawsuit in 2021 by agreeing to pay $2.5 billion and admitting two former employees misled officials with their investigations. According to The Wall Street Journal, the lawsuit is at risk of being opened again if the DOJ identified any violations on Boeing's part of the 2021 agreement. Denmark wants to increase the number of young people doing military service by extending conscription to women and increasing the time of service from four months to 11 months for both genders, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said. Ms Frederiksen told a press conference: We do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want to avoid it. Advertisement She said the government wants full equality between the sexes. Denmark currently has up to 9,000 professional troops on top of the 4,700 conscripts undergoing basic training, according to official figures. The government wants 5,000 extra conscripts. The plans were outlined at a press conference in Copenhagen (Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Advertisement The country is a member of the Nato alliance and a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russias invasion. Advertisement Foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen stressed that Russia does not pose a threat to Denmark. But we will not bring ourselves to a place where they could come to do that, Mr Lokke Rasmussen said. All physically fit men over the age of 18 are called up for military service, which lasts roughly four months. However, because there are enough volunteers, there is a lottery system, meaning not all young men serve. Advertisement Denmark stressed that there is no threat from Russia (Ritzau Scanpix via AP) In 2023, there were 4,717 conscripts in Denmark. Women who volunteered for military service accounted for 25.1% of the cohort, according to official figures. Defence minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the new system would require a change in the law, which he said will happen in 2025 and take effect in 2026. Advertisement In 2017, neighbouring Sweden instituted a military draft for both men and women because the Swedish government spoke of a deteriorating security environment in Europe and around Sweden. The Scandinavian country had previously abolished compulsory military service for men in 2010 because there were enough volunteers to meet its military needs. It never had a military draft for women before. Norway introduced a law in 2013 applying military conscription to both sexes. Clashes overnight have left several Palestinians dead in the West Bank, and Israeli police say a Palestinian stabbed and wounded two people at a checkpoint near Jerusalem before being shot. The Magen David Adom rescue service said the two people who were stabbed were in mild to moderate condition. Advertisement Israeli police said the two people who were stabbed were members of the security forces. Meanwhile, Israeli forces killed at least three Palestinians in two separate clashes overnight, including 13-year-old Rami Hamdan al-Halhuli, who had hurled fireworks at the paramilitary Border Police during a violent protest. Soldiers from 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary) wave to the crew of LLV Monterey as it pulls out from port on a humanitarian mission to Gaza. Photo: AP. Advertisement The Palestinian Authority said he was shot dead late on Tuesday in the Shuafat refugee camp, a poor area on the outskirts of Jerusalem. Israeli police say a member of the paramilitary Border Police fired a single shot toward a suspect who aimed fireworks in their direction during confrontations in Shuafat. It says the suspect was apprehended, arrested and transferred for medical treatment. Advertisement The Border Police also said they opened fire at five Palestinians who were hurling firebombs at vehicles on a highway near Jerusalem late Tuesday. It says they were arrested and transferred for medical treatment. Appearing to describe the same incident, the Palestinian health ministry says Israeli forces killed two Palestinians, ages 16 and 23, and wounded three in the village of al-Jib, near Jerusalem. Advertisement It says they were brought to a hospital in the nearby city of Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is headquartered. The situation in #Gaza is catastrophic and deteriorates by the minute.@OCHA reports that 25 people in north #Gaza have died of malnutrition and dehydration. 21 of them were children. We call on the world not to look away. It's time for humanity to prevail.#Ceasefire now. pic.twitter.com/oFJ9kPJgLX UNRWA (@UNRWA) March 12, 2024 Advertisement Violence has surged in the occupied West Bank since Hamas October 7th attack triggered the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. At least 427 Palestinians have been killed there, mostly during confrontations with Israeli forces, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Advertisement Israeli-Palestinian tensions often soar during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which began on Sunday, over access to a major holy site in Jerusalem. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said six aid trucks entered Gaza through the north late on Tuesday as international pressure mounts for more humanitarian aid to Gaza. Advertisement A second vessel being loaded with aid for Gaza is also currently docked at Larnaca port and is preparing to depart, Cyprus foreign minister said on Wednesday. The ship will begin its journey to Gaza once the ship operated by the Spanish charity Open Arms, which is now at sea, reaches the territory in the next few days and offloads and distributes its 200 tonnes of food, the minister said. Even wars have rules No child should be cut off from essential services, nor fall from the reach of humanitarian hands The cost to children and their communities in #Gaza of this violence will be borne out for generations to come The only solution is an immediate ceasefire pic.twitter.com/79VBOz83Pm UNICEF MENA - (@UNICEFmena) March 11, 2024 Minister Constantinos Kombos said the larger vessel will carry more aid than the Open Arms ship, but he wouldnt say when it would depart exactly. He said that depends on whether all goes smoothly with the delivery of the Open Arms shipment as well as on weather conditions. Some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed during the Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel on October 7th, and around 250 people were abducted. Hamas is believed to still be holding around 100 hostages. Advertisement Gazas health ministry says that more than 31,000 Palestinians have been killed and most of Gazas 2.3 million people forced from their homes. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says that women and children make up two thirds of the dead. A quarter of Gazas population is starving, according to the United Nations. The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it plans to direct a significant portion of the 1.4 million displaced Palestinians living in the Gaza Strips southernmost town of Rafah toward humanitarian islands in the centre of the territory ahead of its planned offensive in the area. The fate of the people in Rafah has been a major area of concern of Israels allies including the United States and humanitarian groups, worried an offensive in the region densely crowded with so many displaced people would be a catastrophe. Advertisement Rafah is also Gazas main entry point for desperately needed aid. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said a Rafah offensive is crucial to achieve Israels stated aim of destroying Hamas following the militants October 7 attack in which about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and about 250 taken hostage and moved into Gaza. Advertisement Advertisement Israels invasion of Gaza has killed more than 31,000, according to Gaza health officials, left much of the enclave in ruins and displaced some 80% of Gazas 2.3 million people. Israels chief military spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said moving those in Rafah to the designated areas, which he said would be done in co-ordination with international actors, was a key part of the militarys preparations for its anticipated invasion of Rafah, where Israel says Hamas maintains four battalions it wants to destroy. Rafah has swelled in size in the last months as Palestinians in Gaza have fled fighting in nearly every other corner of the territory. The town is covered in tents. Advertisement We need to make sure that 1.4 million people or at least a significant amount of the 1.4 million will move. Where? To humanitarian islands that we will create with the international community, Admiral Hagari told reporters at a briefing. An Israeli tank moves near the Gaza Strip border in southern Israel (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov) Admiral Hagari said those islands would provide temporary housing, food, water and other necessities to evacuated Palestinians. Advertisement He did not say when Rafahs evacuation would occur, nor when the Rafah offensive would begin, saying that Israel wanted the timing to be right operationally and to be co-ordinated with neighbouring Egypt, which has said it does not want an influx of displaced Palestinians crossing its border. Advertisement The US has been firm with Israel over its concerns about Rafah, and secretary of state Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Washington had yet to receive from Israel its plans for civilians there. We need to see a plan that will get civilians out of harms way if theres a military operation in Rafah, he told reporters in Washington after convening a virtual ministerial meeting on Gaza aid with officials from the UN, the EU, Britain, Cyprus, Qatar and the UAE. Weve not yet seen such a plan. At the start of the war, Israel directed evacuees to a slice of undeveloped land along Gazas Mediterranean coast that it designated as a safe zone. Advertisement But aid groups said there were no real plans in place to receive large numbers of displaced there. Israeli strikes also targeted the area. More than 31,270 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and most of its 2.3 million people forced from their homes, Gazas health ministry says. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. Meanwhile, fighting continued across Gaza. An Israeli strike Wednesday hit a food distribution site in southern Gaza run by UNRWA, the UN agency that works with Palestinian refugees, killing one staff member from the agency and wounding 22 others. The death brings to 165 the number of workers for the agency killed during the past five months of fighting, according to UNRWA. President Vladimir Putin has said Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to Russian statehood, sovereignty or independence. Mr Putin also said he hoped the US would refrain from actions that could trigger a nuclear conflict. Advertisement His statement is another blunt warning to the West ahead of a presidential vote this week in which he is all but certain to win another six-year term. In an interview with Russian state television released early on Wednesday, Mr Putin described US President Joe Biden as a veteran politician who fully understands the possible dangers of escalation, and said he does not think the world is heading to a nuclear war. At the same time, he said Russias nuclear forces are in full readiness and from the military-technical viewpoint, were prepared. Advertisement Joe Biden understands the dangers of escalation, Vladimir Putin said (Paul Ellis/PA) Advertisement Mr Putin said Moscow is ready to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the existence of the Russian state, our sovereignty and independence. The Russian leader has repeatedly talked about his readiness to use nuclear weapons since launching the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The most recent such threat came in his state-of-the-nation address last month when he warned the West that deepening its involvement in the fighting in Ukraine would risk a nuclear war. Advertisement Asked in the interview if he has ever considered using battlefield nuclear weapons in Ukraine, Mr Putin responded that there has been no need for that. He also voiced confidence that Moscow will achieve its goals in Ukraine and held the door open for talks, emphasising any deal would require firm guarantees from the West. It shouldnt be a break for the enemy to rearm, but a serious talk involving the guarantees of security for the Russian Federation, he said. Mr Putin said a recent spike in Ukrainian drone attacks deep inside Russia is part of efforts to derail the countrys three-day presidential election, which starts on Friday and which he is all but certain to win. Advertisement Advertisement Russian authorities reported another major attack by Ukrainian drones early on Wednesday. Several people died on Tuesday evening as the result of a Russian missile strike on Mr Zelenskys home town (AP) The defence ministry said air defences downed 58 drones over six regions. One of the drones hit an oil refinery in the Ryazan region, injuring at least two people and sparking a fire. Another was downed as it was approaching a refinery near St Petersburg. Advertisement Ukraine, meanwhile, reported more Russian attacks early on Wednesday. A Russian strike killed two people and wounded another five in the town of Myrnohrad in the eastern region of Donetsk, about 20 miles from the front line, according to governor Vadym Filashkin. Local rescuers managed to pull a 13-year-old girl out of the rubble of an apartment building. A five-storey building in the northern city of Sumy was struck by a drone launched from Russia overnight, killing two people and wounding eight, according to the regional administration. In Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskys home town, the death toll from a Russian missile attack the previous night rose to five, Gov. Serhii Lysak said. He said that 43 people were injured in Kryvyi Rih, including 12 children, the youngest a two-month-old infant. Every day our cities and villages suffer similar attacks. Every day Ukraine loses people because of Russian evil, Mr Zelensky said. The retired Concorde airliner that belongs to New Yorks Intrepid Museum will return to its home on a Manhattan pier on Thursday after a seven-month restoration, museum officials said. The supersonic jet will travel by barge up the Hudson River and will be lifted by a crane onto Pier 86, the officials at the decommissioned aircraft carrier turned museum said in a news release. Advertisement The needle-nosed aircraft left Pier 86 on August 9 last year for a restoration project at the Brooklyn Navy Yard that included sanding and repainting. It was barged from Brooklyn to a dock in Jersey City, New Jersey, for storage overnight on Wednesday prior to being reinstalled on the pier on Thursday. The Concorde is the only supersonic commercial jet that ever flew. The Intrepids British Airways Concorde still holds the record for the fastest transatlantic crossing by a passenger aircraft: two hours, 52 minutes and 59 seconds from Heathrow to JFK in New York. Advertisement Advertisement Public tours of the jet will resume on April 4, museum officials said. Rishi Sunak has insisted a top Tory donors remorse should be accepted as he resisted calls to hand back 10 million (11.7 million) in a racism row. The UK prime minister was challenged by Sir Keir Starmer to return donations to Frank Hester, the Conservative backer alleged to have said Diane Abbott, Britains longest-serving black MP, made him want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. Advertisement The Labour leader asked Mr Sunak whether he was proud to be bankrolled by someone using racist and misogynistic language. Advertisement The UK prime minister replied: The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist, he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. There is no place for racism in Britain, and the government I lead is living proof of that. Advertisement Mr Starmer continued: How low would he have to sink, what racist, woman-hating threat of violence would he have to make before the prime minister plucked up the courage to hand back the 10 million that hes taken from him? Mr Sunak reiterated that the gentleman apologised genuinely for his comments and that remorse should be accepted. Advertisement Ms Abbott could be seen shaking her head at the UK prime ministers answers, while other Labour MPs cried Shame!. The former Labour MP, who now sits as an independent, tried to ask a question at prime ministers Questions, but a spokeswoman for the Speaker said there was not enough time to call all MPs. Diane Abbott said Frank Hesters comments were frightening Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA. Advertisement Asked whether the UK prime minister would like to apologise to Ms Abbott for the Tory donors comments, Mr Sunaks spokesman said: The PM is acutely aware of the unacceptable abuse that Diane Abbott has suffered over the course of her career and as the first black woman elected to Parliament. But he declined to issue an apology, saying: The remarks were obviously made by an individual who has apologised for his comments and the PM has been clear the comments were unacceptable and racist. Advertisement Ministers and Downing Street refused to describe Mr Hesters comments as racist for most of Tuesday, but the prime ministers spokesman finally labelled them as such in the evening. It came after UK business secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to call them racist late on Tuesday afternoon. Advertisement Asked why it took so long, Mr Sunaks spokesman said that it was right to give someone a proper right of reply after very serious allegations were made. He stressed that Mr Hesters comments remained unverified, despite the fact the Tory donor has not denied making them, and declined to say whether the businessman has been contacted to confirm whether he said those words. Mr Sunaks press secretary suggested Mr Hester was not a racist, pointing reporters to his own words where he talks about racism is a poison, theres no place for it in public life. Earlier, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said that returning Mr Hesters cash was not the right thing to do and suggested the Tories would accept further donations from the businessman. No 10 would not get into speculation about future events when asked whether more money might be taken from Mr Hester, or whether Mr Sunak would accept more funding for helicopter rides after Mr Hester paid nearly 16,000 for a trip by the prime minister in December. Advertisement Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks during Prime Ministers Questions in the Commons. Photo: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA. Meanwhile, in a sign of Tory divisions over the issue, the Scottish Conservatives criticised taking donations from Mr Hester. A spokesman for the Scottish Tories said: These comments were racist and wrong. The Scottish Conservative Party has never accepted a donation from Frank Hester and the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said: The Scottish Tories are saying what we all know: accepting tens of millions of pounds from Frank Hester is wrong on every level. Rishi Sunak needs to extract himself from this quagmire and show that he is willing to stand up to racism within his party. He must pay back the money in full, cut ties with Mr Hester and apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott. Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were frightening and alarming given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess have been murdered in recent years. Police are understood to have been contacted about the remarks, with Scotland Yard saying officers from its Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team are in touch with an MP about a report in the Guardian, which broke the story. The US government could end its legal fight against a planned expedition to the Titanic, which has sparked concerns that it would violate a law that treats the wreck as a gravesite. Kent Porter, an assistant US attorney, told a federal judge in Virginia on Wednesday that the US is seeking more information on revised plans for the May expedition, which have been significantly scaled back. Advertisement Mr Porter said the US has not determined whether the new plans would break the law. RMS Titanic (RMST), the Georgia company that owns the salvage rights to the wreck, originally planned to take images inside the ocean liners severed hull and to retrieve artefacts from the debris field. Advertisement RMST also said it would possibly recover free-standing objects inside the Titanic, including the room where the sinking ship had broadcast its distress signals. Advertisement The US filed a legal challenge to the expedition in August, citing a 2017 federal law and a pact with Great Britain to treat the site as a memorial. More than 1,500 people died when the Titanic struck an iceberg and sank in 1912. Advertisement The US argued last year that entering the Titanic or physically altering or disturbing the wreck is regulated by the law and agreement. mong the governments concerns is the possible disturbance of artefacts and any human remains that may still exist on the North Atlantic seabed. In October, RMST said it had significantly pared down its dive plans. That was because its director of underwater research, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, died in the implosion of the Titan submersible near the Titanic shipwreck in June. The Titan was operated by a separate company, OceanGate, to which Mr Nargeolet was lending expertise. Advertisement Mr Nargeolet was supposed to lead this years expedition by RMST. RMST stated in a court filing last month that it now plans to send an uncrewed submersible to the wreck site and will only take external images of the ship. The company will not come into contact with the wreck, RMST stated, adding that it will not attempt any artefact recovery or penetration imaging. Advertisement RMST has recovered and conserved thousands of Titanic artefacts, which millions of people have seen through its exhibits in the US and overseas. Advertisement The company was granted the salvage rights to the shipwreck in 1994 by the US District Court in Norfolk, Virginia. The US House of Representatives has passed a Bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner does not sell. US members of congress acted on concerns that the companys current ownership structure is a national security threat. Advertisement The Bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance. The move will open up a new front in the apparent battle between legislators and tech firms. Photo: AP. Advertisement The legislators contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikToks consumers in the US any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organisations to assist with intelligence gathering. Advertisement Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers said: We have given TikTok a clear choice: separate from your parent company ByteDance, which is beholden to the CCP (the Chinese Communist Party), and remain operational in the United States, or side with the CCP and face the consequences. The choice is TikToks. House passage of the Bill is only the first step. The senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and members of that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Advertisement Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said he will have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the Bills path. Im voting NO on the TikTok forced sale bill. This bill was incredibly rushed, from committee to vote in 4 days, with little explanation. There are serious antitrust and privacy questions here, and any national security concerns should be laid out to the public prior to a vote. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) March 13, 2024 US president Joe Biden has said if congress passes the measure, he will sign it. The House vote is poised to open a new front in the long-running feud between legislators and the tech industry. Members of US congress have long been critical of tech platforms and their expansive influence, often clashing with executives over industry practices. But by targeting TikTok, representatives are singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before the US presidential election this autumn. Geert Wilders, whose anti-Islam, anti-immigration rhetoric swept him to a stunning victory in a November election, said on Wednesday that he does not have the support of his prospective coalition partners to become the next Dutch prime minister. Wilders took to X, formerly Twitter, to say: I can only become premier if ALL parties in the coalition support that. That wasnt the case. Advertisement His comment came after Dutch media reported, citing unnamed sources, that a breakthrough in coalition talks announced on Tuesday night was that the leaders of all four parties involved in drawn-out coalition negotiations would remain in parliament. That sets up the likelihood of some sort of technical Cabinet made up of experts. Advertisement While it now looks like Mr Wilders will not lead the government, he and his Party for Freedom (PVV) will remain the driving force behind the administration after sweeping to a stunning victory in the November 22nd elections. Advertisement Mr Wilders did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Other leaders involved in the talks also did not immediately comment. Mr Wilders decision to put aside his leadership ambitions for now, at least appears to be the breakthrough that negotiator Kim Putters alluded to a night earlier after two days of behind-closed-doors negotiations. Advertisement But he later added another comment on X to say he still aims to become Dutch prime minister in the future. Dont forget: I will still become premier of the Netherlands, he said. With the support of even more Dutch people. If not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow. Because the voice of millions of Dutch people will be heard. Mr Wilders party holds 37 seats in the 150-seat lower house of the Dutch parliament. The four parties in government talks hold a combined 88 seats, giving them a comfortable majority. Advertisement Polls since the election show that support for Mr Wilders party continues to grow. While the exact contours of a new coalition Cabinet remain unclear, Putters believes that the parties are now ready to hammer out a deal. Putters was writing up a report Wednesday that he will present to lawmakers on Thursday. He also invited the four leaders to more talks Thursday morning. Advertisement Mr Wilders has often called for a ban on mosques, Islamic schools and the Koran, but in a concession to his prospective coalition partners in January, he withdrew draft legislation to implement the bans. The Netherlands is not alone in seeing a shift to the right. Advertisement Far right parties also are expected to make significant gains in June elections for the European Unions parliament and Portugals inconclusive result in Sundays election thrust the populist Chega or Enough party into a possible kingmakers role. Jermaine Bollinger - "Cre8ion" | INOV8 Public Relations NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE (March 12, 2024) - Jermaine Bollinger steps into a new domain with the release of "Three" to Christian rock radio, marking his inaugural venture into this format. The single, drawn from his latest album "Cre8ion," represents a bold new chapter for Bollinger, blending his seasoned artistry with the energetic vibes of Christian rock. "Three" is a celebration of the Holy Trinity, encapsulated within the dynamic rhythms and compelling lyrics characteristic of Bollingers musical style. This release not only showcases Jermaine's versatility as an artist but also his profound commitment to sharing messages of faith and unity through music. With this single, he invites listeners to explore the depths of divine love, grace, and power, making it a fitting introduction to his work for the Christian rock audience. Jermaine Bollinger has achieved significant acclaim within the Christian music scene, known for his heartfelt worship songs and chart-topping hits. By releasing "Three" to Christian rock radio, Jermaine aims to reach new listeners and share his vision of faith that transcends musical genres. The song is a vibrant testament to his talent and his mission to inspire through music. As "Three" is introduced to Christian rock radio today, there is excitement for its reception among stations and listeners alike. This song is not just a single but a powerful declaration of faith and unity that Jermaine believes will inspire a wide audience. Connect with Jermaine Bollinger: https://www.jermainebollinger.com/ https://www.facebook.com/jermaine.bollinger https://www.instagram.com/jbcartunes86/ https://twitter.com/jbcartunes https://www.youtube.com/@jbcartunes https://open.spotify.com/artist/2NE1JESbK4TI4PaLdDMztH Elon Musk is joining impeached President Donald Trump and other groups in defending TikTok ahead of the looming ban on the app in the US. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk called out the proposed bill banning the social media site as "about censorship and government control." The post was in response to Kentucky's 4th District Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican, calling the bill a "trojan horse" that will give the government the power to ban even websites providing services to "foreign adversary-controlled application." It is worth noting that the claim was immediately corrected by US Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Brendan Carr, saying the bill only applies to platforms directly "controlled" by China, Iran, North Korea, or Russia. Important point raised here. Good news is that this particular bill is limited, not only to foreign controlled, but to foreign adversary controlled AND only when additional, specific criteria are also met. In particular: 1. The bill does not give the government *any authority* Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) March 12, 2024 Carr added that the provision will only be applied if the platform "presents a demonstrated and significant threat to national security." All the countries Carr cited were US-sanctioned countries. The mentioned nations, however, cannot be seen on the proposed bill. Also Read: Trump Claims TikTok Ban Will Only Help Facebook, But Kids Will Go Crazy Without it Proposed TikTok Ban Bill Progresses Through Panel Hearing The proposed Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act has already passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee with a unanimous 50-0 approval. The bill is specifically targeting the Chinese-based ByteDance for potentially providing US users' data to the Chinese government, a nation the US considers a foreign adversary. TikTok, whose parent company is ByteDance, is warned to make the Chinese company divest from the platform or face a ban in the US. It is worth noting that all US users' data on TikTok is stored in a separate government-provided cloud server that even ByteDance is unable to access. President Joe Biden has already expressed support for the bill, saying that he will sign it once it gets passed. A full House panel is set to deliberate on the law this Wednesday before it goes to Congress. Musk Embroiled in Social Media Regulatory Probes Musk, similar to TikTok, has been under scrutiny over his management of X, which he acquired for $44 billion in 2022. The Federal Trade Commission is still investigating Musk's acquisition of Twitter, demanding the tech billionaire attend follow-up interviews on the ongoing probe. X has also earlier been accused of providing paid services to the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group, a US-designated "foreign terrorist organization," potentially violating US sanctions. Musk, who advocates for "free speech absolutism," has been noted for blasting the administration and agencies for criticizing his platform for spreading Antisemitism, hate speech, and misinformation. Related Article: Elon Musk Ordered to Testify Again Over Twitter Acquisition Shares in Optus owner Singapore Telecommunications surged more than 4 per cent amid reports of a sale of Optus before Singtel went into a trading halt in Singapore pending an announcement. The Australian Financial Review reported Singtel was in advanced discussions with Canadian private equity firm Brookfield to sell Optus in a deal that could value the business at up to $16 billion. However, Singtel, South-East Asias largest telcom operator, dismissed the report that it was in advanced talks to sell Optus for that amount. Optus could be valued at as much as $18 billion. Credit: Louise Kennerley There is no impending deal to offload Optus for the said sum, as reported, SingTel said in a statement. We regularly conduct strategic reviews of our portfolio to optimise the value of our assets and businesses and will explore all options to maximise shareholder value. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Remove items from your saved list to add more. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. D.O.C is straying from the classic formula that made it a household name, by sneaking miso, seaweed and barramundi onto the menu for a fresh take on Italian favourites. As featured in the Melbourne hit list April 2024. See all stories . St Kilda is on the cusp of an Italian renaissance. On the heels of Karen Martinis Mediterranean takeover at Saint George and Rinaldo Di Stasios announcement of a forthcoming art gallery above a revived Cafe Di Stasio, Carlton institution D.O.C has moved into the neighbourhood. Hopefully, the three of us bring it back to where it should be, says D.O.C director Michael Costanzo, who remembers a time when St Kilda was the area to be. There were amazing restaurants and bars we want to bring that Italian flavour back. The D.O.C restaurant sits on the St Kilda foreshore. Pete Dillon Theres plenty of that at D.O.Cs sixth restaurant, a swish 100-seater in the Saint Moritz apartment complex on the St Kilda foreshore. But the kitchen isnt limiting itself to the traditions D.O.C built its name on. After a six-week trip to India in 1984, Olga Murray flew to Nepal to hike through remote Himalayan villages. There, Murray, an adventurous, 59-year-old lawyer, encountered stunning landscapes and friendly people. But it was the children she met during her trek along rugged mountain trails from Pokhara to Siklis that enchanted her and went on to transform her life. Olga Murray divided her time between Nepal and California. They were poor beyond anything I had ever experienced dirty, dressed in ragged clothes, malnourished, without toys of any sort, she wrote in her autobiography, Olgas Promise: One Womans Commitment to the Children of Nepal (2015). And yet, they were the most joyful, funny, amiable little kids anywhere on earth. Their most fervent wish was to go to school someday. One night, she was invited into a hut, where she met three children whose father said they were lucky to get an education even if they hiked two hours up and down a mountain to school. As she watched the children sitting on the dirt floor of their hut, doing their homework by candlelight, she had a revelation. Lekgabe said one in four women experienced anxiety, one in five experienced depression, and one in 10 experienced obsessive-compulsive disorder in the perinatal period. She compared that to gestational diabetes, which develops in about one in six pregnancies, or preeclampsia, in fewer than one in 10 pregnancies. Loading Other conditions are [a rate of] one in 1000, but we screen so carefully for that. Whereas mental health struggles, which is the number one complication of pregnancy and postpartum, are not [as rigorously] screened. Fisher said the most popular screening tool used in Victoria the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale was designed for the UKs National Health Service and did not always translate well into other languages. She said women who came from disadvantaged backgrounds also slipped through the cracks. She said screening was important because many mothers did not disclose their mental health struggles or seek out assistance. Screening helps start that conversation by asking a consistent set of questions. The review also found that the existing services provided limited opportunities for fathers and non-birthing parents to undergo mental health screening. Julie Borninkhof, the chief executive of Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia, called for this to change. We know that maternal child health nurses in their visits do often encounter mums alone within the home because dads return to work. So we do have to change some of the approaches. The review was a recommendation of the royal commission into Victorias mental health system. The Department of Health commissioned KPMG and Monash University to review the current evidence and come up with recommendations. These included developing new Victorian perinatal mental health screening guidelines, co-designing an approach to screening Aboriginal people and those from multicultural communities and improving access to services for those who are flagged as needing help. An earlier inquiry into perinatal services in Victoria, published in 2018, also received a large amount of evidence about mental health concerns, often stemming from social isolation. It found that there was less support from relatives, neighbours, friends and the community than there was in generations past. We have lost the days when the neighbour knocked on the door and nursed the baby for a few hours whilst you had a rest, or brought food over etc, said one of the mothers who gave evidence for the inquiry. That sense of community is slowly diminishing. Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Victorian branch secretary Lisa Fitzpatrick said the figures were surprising because mental health was a critical focus of the states maternal and child health nursing service. The four-week appointment is dedicated to a comprehensive maternal health and wellbeing check, she said. This appointment is 60 minutes to enable a thorough assessment. She said this check was repeated at the eight-week appointment and subsequent appointments depending on parents previous responses. Fitzpatrick said following advocacy from the union, the Victorian government had vowed to increase the length of each maternal and child health appointment by an additional 15 minutes. Loading She called for more resources and services to refer new parents for timely support. Earlier this year, state coroner John Cain called for an overhaul of Victorias maternal and child health services, after Melissa Arbuckle, who was experiencing severe postpartum depression, killed her nine-week old baby Lily in 2021. Arbuckle had received a score of 14 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, which indicated she could have major depression and should have prompted a series of interventions. But these interventions, which included a referral to a GP and enrolment in her local centres enhanced maternal child health program, did not take place. A spokeswoman for the state government said it had accepted all the reviews recommendations. We know how challenging pregnancy and the first couple of years following childbirth can be for new mothers this report makes clear there is more we can do to support the mental health of parents, carers and families during this critical time, she said. The spokeswoman said the recent budget invested more than $86 million to increase the time children and families spend with maternal and child health nurses. For support: Bankwest executives will face an inquiry into rural bank closures, a week after the company announced it will shut all its branches in favour of online services. The Commonwealth Bank subsidiary says it will become a digital bank when it closes 45 branches across Western Australia by October, while 15 regional sites will be converted to CBA operations. Analysts say there is still value in banks maintaining a physical presence. Credit: Glenn Hunt Bankwests announcement said 97 per cent of transactions were done online, with less than two per cent of its customers visiting branches regularly. There was an average of 30 face-to-face transactions per day in its suburban branches and 15 in its regional locations, the company said. A decision by Englands National Health Service to stop prescribing puberty blockers to children will fuel debate among Australian medical professionals about the best way to treat young people with gender dysphoria. New clinical guidelines published on Tuesday by Englands NHS the countrys public health system confirmed puberty-suppressing hormones would no longer be a routine treatment option for children and young people with gender dysphoria following a review. Transgender campaigners in the UK. Credit: AP We have concluded that there is not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of [puberty blockers] to make the treatment routinely available at this time, it said. The decision, which was welcomed by Britains conservative politicians, will add to a divisive global debate about gender-affirming care for transgender people, where attempts to interrogate evidence often inflame rhetoric. More than 31,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza since the start of the war, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health. Cassandra said she and her children were allowed to board a flight from Cairo, with a stopover at another Middle Eastern airport, after being assured they were able to travel onwards to Australia. In the airport I was told, Everythings fine, your passport is fine, your visas are fine, said Cassandra, who has relatives in Australia. After being told she could not board a flight for the final leg of her journey, she said she was given the option of sending her children, who are aged under 13, to Australia without any parental supervision. All eventually boarded flights back to Cairo together, with the children in tears. Cassandra said she was terrified about the future because her familys residency permits in Egypt expire in 45 days, and they dont know if they will be able to return to Gaza, which is suffering an increasingly dire humanitarian crisis. One of her children has serious health problems and may not be able to access crucial medical treatment, she said. Palestinian-Australian writer Samah Sabawi, pictured during a visit to Gaza in 2023, has become a vital contact for Gazans seeking refuge in Australia. Cassandra said she had spent thousands of dollars on visa applications and flights to Australia for her family, money that now seems to have been wasted. She asked for her identity not to be revealed because she hopes the government will reverse its decision and she fears reprisals for speaking out. Samah Sabawi, a Palestinian-Australian writer from Melbourne, said other Gazans had suffered a similar experience in recent days after being granted visitor visas to Australia. Its happening to a lot of people now, said Sabawi, who is currently in Cairo and has become a port of call for Gazans seeking refuge in Australia. When people get to their airports, thats when they seem to trigger something in the system. Somebody was saying that they were returned from Kuala Lumpur, somebody was returned from Qatar, somebody was returned from China. Its like they are cancelling people midair, almost in a panicked way. Its crazy. Cassandras letter of cancellation, issued by the Department of Home Affairs, states: As part of the visa application process, you were required to meet section 600.211 which states the visa applicant genuinely intends to stay temporarily in Australia. The delegate considered the situation in your home country, including the current conflict, the internal displacement of persons and the difficult circumstances facing ordinary citizens there. The delegate considered you never intended a genuine stay temporarily in Australia and therefore the visa was granted based on circumstances that never existed. A spokesman for Home Affairs Minister Clare ONeil said the government could not comment on individual cases. The Australian government recognises that this is an incredibly distressing time for Australians with extended family members in Gaza, the spokesman said. All visa applicants undergo security checks and are subject to ongoing security assessments. The Australian government reserves the right to cancel any issued visas if circumstances change. Loading The cancellation letter, reviewed by this masthead, does not explain why the government decided Cassandra did not intend to stay temporarily in Australia. She says she does not know why her visa was cancelled. The letter does not say anything about Cassandra or her family posing a security risk to Australia. Home Affairs officials said last month that over 2000 visitor visas had been issued to Palestinian residents since the beginning of Israels war with Hamas, but only 334 people had arrived in Australia since October. Sabawi said it was cruel that people fleeing a war zone were encouraged to attempt to travel to Australia, only to be denied passage after spending much-needed savings on visa applications and airline tickets. You are talking financial stress upon financial stress, she said. From the very beginning [the government] was not honest. They didnt manage the expectations. Sabawi said many of the women who had been turned back were highly educated and possessed professional qualifications in fields such as medical imaging and business administration. Every refugee Ive met coming out of Gaza has had incredible talent, resourcefulness, education, she said. Describing the desperate situation she left behind in Khan Younis, Cassandra said: The basics were no longer available. No electricity, no water, no food. No milk for the kids, no vitamins. It was very difficult. Washington: A judge has thrown out some of the charges Donald Trump faces for trying to subvert the 2020 election, handing the former president a partial victory as he ramps up his campaign to return to the White House. In an unexpected move on Wednesday (US time), Georgia judge Scott McAfee quashed six of the 41 charges against Trump and his co-defendants, including disgraced lawyer Rudy Giuliani, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former Trump campaign attorney John Eastman. Former US president Donald Trump. Credit: Bloomberg The decision was made on the grounds the charges didnt provide enough detail about the pressure the defendants allegedly tried to exert on officials to change the results in Georgia a battleground state that helped propel President Joe Biden to victory. One of those charges relates to the now infamous phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a fellow Republican, urging him to find the votes needed to put him ahead of Biden. California wildfires have been continuously devouring the state that already killed 31 people, destroyed about 7,000 structures, and the figures are still expected to increase. (Photo: REUTERS/Eric Thayer) A dangerous combination of dry and windy weather is expected to create an extreme risk of wildfires across parts of Texas and Oklahoma on Wednesday, just weeks after the region experienced its largest wildfire on record. The National Weather Service has warned of a possible "wildfire outbreak," using unusually serious language to convey the severity of the situation. NOAA's Storm Prediction Center has highlighted areas of the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, as well as parts of West Texas and eastern New Mexico, as being at an extreme risk - a level rarely issued by the agency. "This is the first time that this extreme or a Level 3 out of 3 risk has been issued so far this year," said FOX Weather Meteorologist Kendall Smith. "That's why it's important and why you have to make note of it." The critical threat area stretches from Kansas into northern Mexico, with communities such as Amarillo, Texas, and Woodward, Oklahoma, in the extreme threat zone. According to the FOX Forecast Center, a storm system exiting the Rockies into the Plains will help enhance the wildfire risks, with wind gusts expected to reach well over 30 mph and humidity values that could plunge below 10%. The combination of conducive weather conditions, an intensifying drought, and dead vegetation has led to the increased fire risk. The Texas A&M Forest Service said it's a unique set of circumstances that likely won't change anytime soon. "Fuels have dried even further since the wildfire outbreak at the end of February," wrote the Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center in its fire weather outlook Tuesday afternoon. Barely two and a half weeks ago, the Smokehouse Creek Fire, believed to have been started by improperly working utility equipment, torched approximately 1.06 million acres in Texas and Oklahoma, making it the largest wildfire in Texas history. The blaze, which is still only 89% contained, is squarely in the center of Wednesday's risk zone, raising concerns about rapid spread once again for established wildfires, as well as the sparking and kindling of new infernos. Exacerbating matters is the "curing," or dying, of early-sprouting grasses that were killed by a cold snap and snows in the Texas Panhandle two weeks ago, leaving even more grassy detritus on the ground to burn. Actual air temperatures will be in the 70s - at least 10 to 15 degrees above average - which will speed up evaporation, sapping the landscape of moisture. Beyond Wednesday, forecast models show a flow out of the south and west will continue throughout the week, but higher humidity values could reduce how fast wildfires grow. However, there remains no significant precipitation in the extended forecast, with many of the alerted areas seeing less than a quarter-inch of precipitation over the next seven days. The Smokehouse Creek Fire killed two people and at least 3,600 cattle in the Texas Panhandle, and its full toll is just beginning to come into focus. Xcel Energy, a utility in Texas, acknowledged that its power equipment probably ignited the blaze, which was fanned by powerful winds. In California, PG&E began the Public Safety Power Shutoff program in 2018 to cut down on the risks of electrical equipment starting new wildfires. However, neither the State of Texas nor Xcel Energy have said they plan to de-energize lines ahead of the latest fire threat. As the region braces for another potentially devastating wildfire outbreak, residents are urged to stay vigilant and heed all warnings from local authorities. The National Weather Service and other agencies will continue to monitor the situation closely and provide updates as necessary. The logo of Binance is seen on their exhibition stand at the Delta Summit, Malta's official Blockchain and Digital Innovation event promoting cryptocurrency, October 3, 2019. (Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters/File Photo) Two executives from the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, have been detained in Nigeria for the past two weeks as part of the country's broader crackdown on crypto platforms. Tigran Gambaryan, Binance's head of investigations, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, the company's regional manager for Africa, had their passports confiscated and have been held at a government facility in Abuja since February 26, according to their families. Gambaryan, a former U.S. federal agent who led high-profile investigations into cryptocurrency crimes, and Anjarwalla, a dual citizen of the U.K. and Kenya, were invited by the Nigerian government to discuss Binance's operations and the restrictions imposed on the exchange. However, shortly after their initial meeting, the two executives were moved to a "guesthouse" run by Nigeria's National Security Agency, where they have been detained against their will. "There's no definite answer for anything: how's he's doing, what's going to happen to him, when he's coming back," said Yuki Gambaryan, Tigran Gambaryan's wife. "And not knowing that is killing me." Nigeria's actions against Binance executives come amid the country's efforts to revive its national currency, the naira, and address concerns about tax revenue losses from unregistered crypto exchanges. The Central Bank of Nigeria accused Binance of operating illegally and facilitating "illicit flows" amounting to $26 billion. As part of the ongoing negotiations, Nigeria has demanded that Binance disclose its top 100 users in the country and provide all transaction history spanning the past six months, according to a Financial Times report. Additionally, documents reviewed by FT reveal that Nigeria, through its national security adviser, has requested that Binance address any outstanding tax liabilities. Elahe Anjarwalla, the wife of Nadeem Anjarwalla, described her husband as a "middle management employee of Binance with no decision-making authority" and expressed her desire for his safe return home. "Nadeem is a loving husband and father. He is my best friend," she said. "All I want is for Nadeem to be allowed to come back home to us." Gambaryan's detention is particularly ironic given his track record of pioneering high-impact cryptocurrency cases as an IRS agent. "He was innovative in investigating things in ways that very few people in the country had figured out, and incredibly selfless in terms of who got credit. I don't think anyone had a bigger impact on these types of investigations," said Will Frentzen, a former prosecutor who worked closely with Gambaryan. Yuki Gambaryan believes that her husband's past service to the United States should warrant the government's support in negotiating his freedom. "He's done so much good for this country throughout his career," she said. "I believe it's his turn to get the same amount of support from his country." As of Tuesday, neither Gambaryan nor Anjarwalla have been formally charged with any criminal offenses. A proposed hearing to extend the court order allowing their detention is scheduled for Wednesday. In response to the heightened regulatory scrutiny and contentious negotiation tactics in Nigeria, Binance discontinued its naira (NGN) services last week. The company declined to comment on the specific accusations or demands made by the Nigerian government, stating only that they are "working collaboratively with Nigerian authorities to bring Nadeem and Tigran back home safely to their families." The detention of Binance executives in Nigeria highlights the growing tensions between cryptocurrency exchanges and governments seeking to regulate the industry and protect their national currencies. As the situation unfolds, the crypto community and the families of the detained executives await a resolution that will bring Gambaryan and Anjarwalla home safely. By Yi Whan-woo The National Museum of Korea, the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and dozens of other famous public museums will be open for couples to hold wedding ceremonies, as a part of the governments support to lessen financial burden on young people planning to get married. The measure comes as the country is pondering over ways to encourage young people to get married and subsequently to pull up the birthrate. We will open museums, art galleries and other popular exhibition venues run by the government and public organizations as wedding halls, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok said during a meeting of economy-related ministers in Seoul, Wednesday. The announcement came as Korea experienced a 40 percent fall in marriages from 2013 to 2023 amid increased living costs, relatively low salaries and other reasons bearing on personal finances. Consequently, the country has continued topping its own record of the worlds lowest fertility rate, which was 0.72 in 2023. More than 120 public buildings across the nation are currently operated as affordable wedding halls. But couples in their common age range for marriage shy away from these venues, as they offer little in the way of romantic and sentimental value. Among the public buildings that will be newly offered as wedding venues are the National Library of Korea and the National Folk Museum of Korea. Further information on cost, reservation and other details pertaining to the use of the venues will be settled within the first half of the year, and a website for making will open later in the year. While wedding-related businesses have been notorious for lack of transparency in pricing, the government seeks to have prices laid out clearly by mandating businesses to post costs of wedding photoshoots, tuxedo and dress hire, makeup services and others on the Korea Consumer Agency website. We expect the website to offer a full range of costs for those who want to get married to compare and choose the best company for them, the finance ministry said in a press release. At the same ministerial meeting, policies aiming to support young businesspeople, including the self-employed, were also discussed. To nurture more prospective web cartoonists, the government will enhance rules on fair business practices to protect them from signing exploitative contracts under which they are forced to work long hours for low wages. The guidelines for improved contracts will be finalized within the third quarter of the year. Ensuring a favorable working environment for webtoon artists is crucial, as it is one of the more sought-after professions among those in their 20s and 30s, the ministry said. The industry has a higher potential to grow, as elementary, middle and high school students want to be a part of the industry. Also, self-employed hairdressers will be encouraged to jointly rent and share business spaces, so that they can cut costs and thus increase profits. Fintech-focussed software-as-a-service firm Perfios on Wednesday said it has secured $80 million in funding from Teachers Venture Growth (TVG), a late-stage venture and growth investment arm of Ontario Teachers Pension Plan. With the fresh investment, the companys new valuation will cross the $1 billion mark, said sources, which makes Perfios the second unicorn of 2024. Before it, Bhavish Aggarwals AI startup Krutrim had attained the coveted status. Click here to follow our WhatsApp channel A unicorn is a term used to describe startups or companies valued at $1 billion or more. ALSO READ: Fintechs lead small-ticket loans' volume with 77% market share: Report Perfios said it plans to continue its expansion internationally in markets such as South-East Asia, Middle East and Africa. It will also use the recently raised funds towards inorganic growth partnerships or acquisitions. The company will also continue to invest in comprehensive tech stack to power the end-to-end customer journeys across banking, insurance, and embedded commerce, it said in a release. Now, after this investment, TVG India Director Darius Vakil will join the board of Perfios as a nominee of Ontario Teachers Pension Plan. The Bengaluru-based company had raised $229 million in a Series D funding from private equity investor Kedaara Capital in September 2023 at a valuation of $901 million, according to data from Tracxn, a market intelligence platform. In a series C round, the company raised $70 million from Warburg Pincus, Bessemer Venture Partners and other investors in 2022. In 2019, it had raised $50 million in a Series B round led by an affiliate of private equity funds managed by Warburg Pincus LLC and Bessemer Venture Partners. Our business has been seeing steady growth year-on-year, with consistent improvement in the bottom line. This investment will further help us in strengthening the digital transformation journey of our partners, thereby powering financial inclusion and providing access to financial services to billions across the globe, said Sabyasachi Goswami, chief executive officer (CEO), Perfios. The 17-year old company helps financial institutions with processes such as origination, onboarding, decisioning, underwriting and monitoring. Perfios claims that it delivers 8.2 billion data points to banks and financial institutions every year to facilitate faster decision making, and processes 1.7 billion transactions a year with assets under management (AUM) of $36 billion. The Citizenship Amendment Act seeks to grant citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014 | Photo: PTI Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act ahead of the Lok Sabha polls was "dirty vote bank politics" of the BJP and asserted that people want this law to be repealed. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva hit back at Kejriwal, charging he has hurt the sentiments of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, and Christian refugees living in the country. The Citizenship Amendment Act seeks to grant citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. At a press conference, Kejriwal said, "With this law (CAA), the BJP government at the Centre has opened the floodgates for the arrival of a large number of poor minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh into India." Even if 1.5 crore of the minorities in neighbouring countries come to India following the implementation of the CAA, a dangerous situation will arise, he claimed. "It will be a migration bigger than that of 1947... Law and order will go for a toss. There could be an increase in rape and dacoity," said Kejriwal who is also the convener of the Aam Aadmi Party. There are 3.5 crore minorities in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, he said and alleged, "The BJP wants to spend the money of our people in settling poor migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh by giving them houses and jobs here." He claimed that the BJP stands to gain in the coming elections as poor minorities from the neighbouring countries settling in India will become its vote bank. Implementation of the CAA ahead of the Lok Sabha polls was a "dirty vote bank politics" of the BJP, Kejriwal said. The country demands scrapping of CAA, he said and asked people to vote against the BJP if the law is not repealed. Kejriwal said that had the BJP government at the Centre done its work in its 10-year rule, there would have been no need for it to implement CAA ahead of the polls. "People in India are facing back-breaking inflation... and the youths are forced to run from pillar to post for jobs, the AAP leader said. "On one hand there is a huge army of unemployed in the country and the BJP government in Haryana is sending youths to die in Israel where a war is going on. On the other hand, the BJP wants to settle Pakistanis in India and provide employment to their children." "What kind of nonsense is this to bring people from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan to India and give the rightful employment of our children to them," Kejriwal charged, adding, "In the last 10 years, 11 lakh industrialists and businessmen left India. If the BJP must bring people to the country, it should bring them back to provide jobs." Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva hit back at Kejriwal and claimed that the Delhi chief minister "doesn't even understand that CAA is a legislation to provide shelter to all the persecuted minorities (from neighbouring countries) and not to strip anyone of their citizenship". Kejriwal needs to understand that "refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan are our own and will remain so", he added. The minister said that one of the key focal points of the discussion between Belarus and India is the expansion of bilateral trade (Shutterstock) Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik on Wednesday reiterated the need for comprehensive reforms in the United Nations (UN) and said his country would support India's ascension to the Security Council. Aleinik concluded his two-day visit to India on Wednesday. He had held wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday on ways to expand bilateral defence and trade ties. "We discussed this (UNSC reforms) issue and we are convinced that UNSC reforms should be facilitated. It's a long-lasting issue which is being discussed within UN and taking into account the very fragile situation in the world, the Security Council reform is needed," the visiting dignitary said here. "...we're clear that we will support ascension of India to the Security Council," he said. The Belarusian foreign minister underscored the importance of enhancing cooperation with India across various sectors such as science and technology, education, tourism, and culture. The minister said that one of the key focal points of the discussion between Belarus and India is the expansion of bilateral trade. Despite the existing trade volume of around half a billion dollars, both countries recognise that this figure does not fully reflect the potential for economic exchange between them. In addition to bilateral ties, Belarus and India are committed to collaborating within international organisations such as the UN and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), he said. Bilateral ties nosedived significantly following the fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in more than four decades China on Wednesday said the Sino-India boundary issue does not represent the entirety of the bilateral ties and called for enhancing mutual trust between the two countries to avoid misunderstanding and misjudgement. India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas. Bilateral ties nosedived significantly following the fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in more than four decades. Responding to questions on External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's remarks this week that the amassing of troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) has "not served either of us well", Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, the boundary issue should be placed appropriately in the bilateral ties. China has stressed multiple times that the boundary question does not represent the entirety of the China-India relations which should be placed appropriately in the bilateral relations and managed properly, Wang said. While responding to a query from a Chinese diplomat at the 'Express Adda' on Monday, Jaishankar said, I think it is in our common interest that we should not have that many forces on the Line of Actual Control (LAC). "It is in our common interest that we should observe the agreements that we have signed. And I believe that it is not just in our common interest and it is in China's interest as well. This tension that we have seen for the last four years has not served either of us well, Jaishankar said. Wang, in his reply, said both China and India believe an early settlement of the situation on the China-India border serves the common interest of the two sides. We hope that the two sides will follow the common understanding between the leaders and the spirit of the relevant agreements maintaining communication through diplomatic and military channels and find a solution to the relevant border issues that can be accepted by the two sides at an early date, he said. China has stressed multiple times that the boundary question does not represent the entirety of the China-India relations, which should be placed appropriately in the bilateral relations and managed properly, he said. We hope that India will work in the same direction with us and approach the bilateral relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective, he said. Both countries should enhance mutual trust and avoid misunderstanding and misjudgement, he said. We should handle differences properly to develop our bilateral relations on a sound and steady track. When pointed out that Jaishankar's comments referred to the resolution of the present standoff in eastern Ladakh where the two countries deployed thousands of troops, while China referred to the overall boundary issue, Wang said, The two things in nature are the same. We hope that India will work with us and follow the common understandings reached by the two leaders and the spirit of the agreements and maintain communication to find a solution to the border issue at an early date, he said. The Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a standoff in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks. The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong Tso (lake) area. The eastern Ladakh standoff has resulted in a freeze of bilateral ties on all fronts except trade. The two sides have so far held 21 rounds of corps commanders-level talks to resolve the standoff. According to the Chinese military, the two sides so far agreed to disengage from four points, namely the Galwan Valley, the Pangong Lake, Hot Springs, and Jianan Daban (Gogra). India is pressing the PLA to disengage from the Depsang and Demchok, maintaining that there cannot be restoration of normalcy in its relations with China as long as the state of the borders remains abnormal. A Chinese military delegation on Wednesday wrapped up a visit to three of India's closest neighbours - the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Nepal - to boost bilateral defence ties, deepening relations in a region that New Delhi considers its sphere of influence. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) delegation held "in-depth discussions" on bilateral defence cooperation and reached various points of "consensus" during a visit from March 4 to 13, China's defence ministry said in a statement, without elaborating. ALSO READ: China says border issue with India does not represent entirety of ties The talks also focused on regional and security issues, the statement said, adding it "enriched the content of defence cooperation" between China and the three countries. Ties between Beijing and New Delhi have grown more tense in recent months, strained by disputes over how their borders should be drawn to the passage of Chinese survey vessels in the Indian Ocean. In 2020, relations nosedived after 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed during a border skirmish. On Tuesday, India rejected Chinese objections to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's weekend visit to Arunachal Pradesh in the eastern Himalayas, which China claims to be a part of southern Tibet. Adding to India's unease, China has been trying to boost ties with nations in the Indian Ocean since the world's second-biggest economy reopened its borders after three years of self-imposed pandemic curbs. Chinese FM spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Wednesday that it is in the common interest of both #China and #India to resolve the #border issues as early as possible and it is hoped that both sides will soon find a mutually acceptable solution in accordance with the consensus of pic.twitter.com/ciBfHc8EzH March 13, 2024 China this year elevated ties with the Maldives when its newly elected President Mohamed Muizzu pivoted from India and paid his first state visit to Beijing after winning on on "India Out" campaign platform, vowing to remove a small Indian military presence of about 75 personnel from the island nation. China would provide it with "military assistance", a media report cited the Maldivian defence ministry as saying earlier this month. Beijing's interest in the Indian Ocean is also commercial. Half of its oil imports pass through the region. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave ex post facto approval to an initial pact between India and Bhutan on cooperation in the field of energy efficiency and conservation measures. The MoU was signed between the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Ministry of Power, Government of India, and the Department of Energy, Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Government of Bhutan, an official statement said. According to the statement, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Bhutan on extending cooperation in the field of Energy Efficiency and Energy Conservation Measures. As many as 1,010 stocks were locked at their respective lower circuits on the BSE at 02:32 pm; with only sellers seen at these counters after a sharp sell-off in equities. Click here to follow our WhatsApp channel Of these 1,010 stocks, more than half or 697 stocks were from the XT (387), T (250), MT (25) and Z (35) segment on the BSE. T group shares are securities that are put into the Trade to Trade segment by the BSE. These stocks are not allowed for intraday trading. The T2T stocks can only be delivery based i.e. the buyer has to take the delivery of these shares. One97 Communications, the parent firm of Paytm, Adani Power, Suzlon Energy, Tata Investment Corporation, Housing & Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO), MMTC and NBCC (India) were among the 14 stocks from the S&P BSE 500 index locked in the 5 per cent lower circuit. IRB Infrastructure Developers, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL), DB Realty and Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) were locked at the 10 per cent lower circuit. "Excessive liquidity drove up midcap and smallcap stock prices, often exceeding their justified values based on earnings. The surge in funds flowing into these segments compelled fund managers to invest, further inflating valuations, said Gaurang Shah, Senior Vice President, Geojit Financial Services. Authorities have acknowledged the situation and proposed potential regulations. Given the historical volatility of small and midcap stocks, it's crucial for investors to exercise caution in allocating funds, whether directly in stocks or through mutual fund SIPs. Investors should be prepared for the inherent volatility in small, mid, and microcap stocks, as corrective phases have occurred before. Regulatory steps aim to safeguard the interests of small retail investors, Gaurang Shah said. Individually, shares of Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy were locked at lower circuit for the second straight day, down 5 per cent at Rs 514.55. There were reports that Shapoorji Pallonji And Company Private Limited, one of the promoters of the company, may sell its stake in Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy to manage its debt. The company however, clarified that the news report is factually incorrect, baseless and misleading. CLICK HERE FOR RELEASE Shares of HCC were locked at the 10 per cent lower circuit at Rs 32 amid heavy volumes. The stock of civil construction has corrected 33 per cent from its 52-week high level of Rs 47.92 on February 2. The average trading volumes on the counter jumped over three-fold. A combined 32.21 million equity shares changed hands and there were pending sell orders for a combined around 250,000 shares on the NSE and BSE. Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is set to take his third vote of confidence within 15 months after forging a new alliance earlier this month. As per the possible schedule of events published by the Parliament Secretariat, Dahal will be taking a vote of confidence during the meeting of the House of Representatives called for 11 am (local time) today. Dahal is testing the floor for the third time following the constitutional provision stated in the Constitution of Nepal 2072's Article 100 Sub-section (2), which mandates a Prime Minister to prove a majority in case any parties in the coalition walk out. Making a surprise turn on March 4, Prime Minister Dahal decided to revive a coalition with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML), which caught the largest coalition partner, the Nepali Congress (NC), off guard. A new coalition, including the CPN-UML, CPN-Maoist Center, Rastriya Swatantra Party, and Janata Samajwadi Party, was initially formed. On March 5, the Nepali Congress formally retracted support for the Dahal government, activating Article 100 Sub-section (2). As per the parliamentary mathematics, Dahal is expected to get a comfortable majority. As of now, the CPN-UML has 77 seats, the Maoist Center has 32, the Rastriya Swatantra Party has 21, the Janata Samajbadi Party has 12, and the Unified Socialist Party has 10 seats in parliament. A prime minister is required to cross the threshold of 50 per cent, which is 138 votes as per the present number of parliamentarians. According to the calculations, Prime Minister Dahal has 152 votes. All the parties on board the new coalition have issued a whip to vote for Dahal to avoid any floor crossing. The largest party in the parliament in terms of seats in the federal parliament, the Nepali Congress, has also issued a whip to its parliamentarians to vote against Dahal. The former Maoist rebel leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal, alias Prachanda, came to power in December 2022 when he aligned with arch-rival CPN-UML, duping the Nepali Congress, with whom he had allied in the November 2022 election. The vote of confidence on January 10, 2023, resulted in extensive support for Dahal when he got a staggering 99 per cent vote, the highest in the known history of the Nepali parliament since the establishment of democracy. A total of 268 parliamentarians out of the 270 present in that meeting voted in favour of Dahal. Within 3 months, Dahal dumped CPN-UML to walk out of government again, aligning with the Nepali Congress and managed to secure a majority in the vote of confidence on March 20, 2023. In the second round of the vote of confidence, Dahal got 172 votes out of the 262 lawmakers present at the time of voting. Only 89 votes came in against Dahal, while one member abstained from voting. The Nepali Congress with 88 votes, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party with 14, the Janamat Party with 7, and the Loktantrik Samajbadi Party with 4 votes have announced to vote against Dahal in today's vote of confidence. However, the Nagarik Unmukti Party, embroiled in an internal fiasco, is not certain about whom it would vote. The Pentagon will rush about $300 million in weapons to Ukraine after finding some cost savings in its contracts, even though the military remains deeply overdrawn and needs at least $10 billion to replenish all the weapons it has pulled from its stocks to help Kyiv in its desperate fight against Russia, senior defense officials said Tuesday. It's the Pentagon's first announced security package for Ukraine since December, when it acknowledged it was out of replenishment funds. It wasn't until recent days that officials publicly acknowledged they weren't just out of replenishment funds, but $10 billion overdrawn. The replenishment funds have allowed the Pentagon to pull existing munitions, air defense systems and other weapons from its reserve inventories under presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, to send to Ukraine and then put contracts on order to replace those weapons. One of the senior defence officials who briefed reporters said the package represented a one time shot unless Congress passes a stalled supplemental spending bill that includes roughly $60 billion in military aid for Ukraine, or more cost savings are found. It is expected to include anti-aircraft missiles, artillery rounds and armour systems, the official said. The aid announcement comes as Polish leaders are in Washington to press the US to break its impasse over replenishing funds for Ukraine at a critical moment in the war. Polish President Andrzej Duda met Tuesday with Democratic and Republican leaders in the House and Senate and was to meet with President Joe Biden later in the day. House Speaker Mike Johnson has so far refused to bring the $95 billion package, which includes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, to the floor. Seeking to put pressure on the Republican speaker, House Democrats have launched a long-shot effort to force a vote through a discharge petition. The seldom-successful procedure would require support from a majority of lawmakers, or 218 members, to move the aid package to a vote. Ukraine's situation has become more dire, with units on the front line rationing munitions as they face a vastly better supplied Russian force. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly implored Congress for help, but House Republican leadership has not been willing to bring the Ukraine aid to the floor for a vote, saying any aid must first address border security needs. Pentagon officials said Monday during budget briefing talks they were counting on the supplemental to cover the $10 billion replenishment hole. If we don't get the $10 billion we would have to find other means, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said. Right now we're very much focused on the need for that supplemental. The senior defense officials who briefed reporters said the Pentagon was able to get cost savings of roughly $300 million in earlier Ukraine contracts and, given the battlefield situation, decided to use those savings to go ahead and send more weapons. The officials said the cost savings basically offset the new package and keep the replenishment spending underwater at $10 billion. This is the second time in less than nine months that the Pentagon has found money to use for additional weapons shipments to Ukraine. Last June, defense officials said they had overestimated the value of the weapons the US had sent to Ukraine by $6.2 billion over the past two years. At the time, Pentagon officials said a review found that the military services used replacement costs rather than the book value of equipment that was pulled from Pentagon stocks and sent to Ukraine. The discovery resulted in a surplus that the department used for presidential drawdown packages until the end of December. The United States has committed more than $44.9 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration, including more than $44.2 billion since the beginning of Russia's invasion on Feb 24, 2022. The Pentagon is $10 billion overdrawn in the replenishment account in part due to inflationary pressures, and in part because the new systems the Pentagon is seeking to replace the old systems with cost more, such as the upcoming Precision Strike Missile, or PrSM, which the Army is buying to replace the long-range Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS. The vast majority of those munitions have come from Army stockpiles due to the nature of the conventional land war in Ukraine. The months without further shipments of US support have hurt operations, and Ukrainian troops withdrew from the eastern city of Avdiivka last month, where outnumbered defenders had withheld a Russian assault for four months. CIA Director William Burns told Congress that entire Ukrainian units have told him in recent days of being down to their last few dozen artillery shells and other ammunition. Burns called the retreat from Avdiivka a failure of ammunition resupply, not a failure of Ukrainian will. By Lee Yeon-woo The recent national pension reform proposal at the National Assembly is facing criticism for merely tweaking some key figures such as the premium and income replacement rates without tackling the essential reforms needed to bolster the system's long-term sustainability. Many say the suggested changes are provisional, especially given the uncertainty about when the national pension system might undergo revision again. A special pension reform committee associated with the National Assembly unveiled two proposals on Tuesday, following three days of discussions among its 34 designated members. The first proposal primarily intends to ensure financial security for older adults by enhancing the income replacement rate from the current 40 percent to 50 percent. This increase would be achieved through a gradual rise in premium rates from 9 percent of income to 13 percent. The second proposal, aimed at mitigating the impacts on future generations, suggests increasing premium rates to 12 percent of income over the next 10 years, while keeping the income replacement rates at the current 40 percent. Unlike the first proposal, this option advocates for a moderate increase in premiums without altering the benefits level. The current system offers an income replacement rate of 40 percent and premium rates of 9 percent. Despite public expectations for changes, the eligibility age for the pension remains unchanged at 65 years of age. Experts say neither of the proposals effectively addresses the core aim of the pension reforms: financial stabilization. Despite the adjustments presented, the only tangible outcome from these proposals is a modest extension of the pension fund's depletion timeline by 7 and 8 years, respectively. "With the first proposal's 10 percent increase in the income replacement rate, the accompanying percentage points rise in premium rates merely covers this increment without contributing to the overall financial stability of the system. Its main goal seems to be enhancing retirement income security. However, this benefit disproportionately favors individuals who have contributed for longer periods, such as 30 years," Kim Tae-il, a public administration professor at Korea University, said. Regarding the second proposal, Kim said, "The amount of an increase in premium rates is insufficient for ensuring financial stability. "To maintain the current income replacement rate, premium rates would need to reach at least 16 percent," he added. The proposal will be revisited during four public debates with the participation of a 500-citizen representative body. The National Assembly plans to leverage insights from these discussions to create a foundation for finalizing the reform proposal by May 29, which marks the end of the 21st National Assembly. Some appreciate the initiative to engage citizens in the deliberative process as a positive step. However, there are also criticisms over the perceived haste in advancing this process to align with the conclusion of the parliamentary sessions. "In a scenario where citizens are not fully informed about the complexities of the pension scheme, experts have laid out two options and are calling for a vote. It remains to be seen how extensively the details will be explained to the participating citizens and whether they will have sufficient opportunity to grasp the overall situation," Kim said. President Andrzej Duda used a joint White House visit with his political rival, Prime Minister Donald Tusk, on Tuesday to call on Nato allies to significantly increase defence spending and press a divided Washington to break its impasse over replenishing funds for Ukraine at a critical moment in the war in Europe. Duda wants members of the Nato alliance to raise their spending on defence to three per cent of their GDP as Russia puts its own economy on a war footing and pushes forward with its plans to conquer Ukraine. Poland already spends four per cent of its own economic output on defence, double the current target of two per cent for Nato nations. The Polish leader made the call as he and Tusk visited Washington to mark their country's 25th anniversary of joining the now 32-member transatlantic military alliance. It was a historic step into the West after breaking free from Moscow's sphere of influence after decades of communist rule. Russia's against Ukraine really demonstrated that United States is and should remain the security leader, Duda said. But other allies must take more responsibility for the security of the alliance as a whole. Two percent was good 10 years ago. Now three per cent is required in response for the full scale war launched by Russia right beyond Nato's eastern border. Biden marveled at Poland's current defence spending and thanked the leaders for taking in hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees after Russia launched the February 2022 invasion. But he did not directly address Duda's call for Nato members to ramp up spending. When we stand together, no force on earth is more powerful, Biden said, recalling the words of Secretary of State Madeleine Albright upon Poland's accession into the alliance. I believe that then and I believe that now. And we see it with Polish and American troops serving side by side with Nato in the eastern flank, including in Poland." Biden administration officials, however, suggested ahead of the meeting that Duda's call to raise the defence spending target for Nato countries may be, at least for the time being, overly ambitious. "I think the first step is to get every country meeting the 2 per cent threshold, and we've seen improvement of that, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said. But I think that's the first step before we start talking about an additional proposal. The visit also comes amid a standoff in Washington between Biden, a Democrat, and House Republicans on Ukraine funding. House Republicans have blocked a $118 billion bipartisan package that includes $60 billion in Ukraine funding, as well as funds for Israel, Taiwan and US border security. The Pentagon announced Tuesday it will rush about $300 million in weapons to Ukraine after finding some cost savings in its contracts. It's the Biden administration's first announced security package for Ukraine since December, when it acknowledged it was out of replenishment funds. Duda met with US lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Tuesday before the White House meeting. and offered a blunt warning: If the US does not deliver military aid to halt Russia's advance, Poland will be on the frontlines of a conflict that involves European and American troops. Financial support for Ukraine is cheap if you take into account what other forms of support would be needed if it comes to war and to an attack on Nato countries, Duda said. Duda also told reporters following his meeting with American lawmakers that he received a positive reaction to his calls for Nato to step up spending. Biden also used the meeting to inform the leaders that the US plans to move forward with a foreign military financing loan that will help Poland purchase 96 Apache helicopters. The State Department approved the sale last year. The visit offered Biden another opportunity to showcase how his view of Nato contrasts with that of the likely 2024 Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump. Trump has said that when he was president, he warned Nato allies that he would encourage Russia to do whatever the hell they want to countries that are delinquent in meeting the alliance's defence spending target. Fear is deepening across Europe about Ukraine's fate as its ammunition stocks run low and as Russia makes gains on the battlefield in Ukraine, reversing its weak military performance at the start of a war launched in February 2022. Tusk said that despite political divisions in Poland the country is unified on the issues of security, Russia and Ukraine and wishes the same were true for other allies. When we Poles started on our road to the West, Pope John Paul II said there could be no just Europe without an independent Poland, Tusk said And today, I would say there can be no safe Europe without a strong Poland. And of course I would also say there could be no just Europe without a free and independent Ukraine. It is the first time in a quarter-century for a Polish president and prime minister to be in Washington at the same time and the first for both leaders to be welcomed at the White House at the same time, according to Polish media. The gesture by the bitter political rivals is widely seen as an acknowledgment of the seriousness of this historical moment, with Russian strength growing as that of Ukraine wanes. Duda, aligned with a national conservative party that lost power last year, used his power to delay the transition to a new government under Tusk by weeks. Tusk won power after promising to restore democratic norms that eroded under the last government and Poland has been hailed by many across Europe as one of the only places where growing authoritarianism has been reversed in recent times. No matter matter who wins the election in our country we treat our obligation seriously, more than anyone else in Europe, Tusk said. The United States needs highly qualified professionals from India, an influential American lawmaker has said, advocating that the US Congress remove the seven per cent country quota for issuing of Green Cards that has resulted in decades of long wait for professionals from India who have moved to this country. It's so important that Indians are able to immigrate to the United States when they're looking for jobs because the United States depends on high quality, high skilled, very smart people coming from all over the world to work here. It's one of the natural advantages of the United States that we welcome people from all over the world, Congressman Matt Cartwright, who represents the 8th Congressional District of Pennsylvania, told PTI in an interview. Cartwright is supporting the move by Indian American organisations, including the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora (FIIDS) for removing the per country seven per cent quota in issuing Green Cards every year. The problem is that we have limited this to seven per cent from every country, and that disproportionately hurts big nations like India. Not only big, but also very highly skilled. There's so many highly educated people in India, and it's a resource that the United States would be foolish, foolhardy not to take full advantage of the people who want to come to this country and become part of our economy and become part of our brain trust in this nation, Cartwright said in response to a question. Always, the United States of America has always welcomed people of high intellect and high ethical standards and work standards to come here and invigorate our economy. That's been part of a tradition in the United States for a couple of hundred years, and so to cut ourselves off with this arbitrary seven per cent number, that's a mistake, and that's why I'm proud to be part of the effort to do away with that, he said. Responding to a question, the Congressman said it is essential that the US has a close and enduring friendship with India. The international trade that goes on between the two countries is vital. The most important export from India are the people. In my own district in northeastern Pennsylvania, it is a vibrant, wonderful, family-oriented community of Indians. In fact, they talked me into going to visit the BAPS Temple in Robbinsville, New Jersey, which I did last year. I was astonished. I was awestruck. I was blown away by that temple. I want to go back. In fact, I was there when they were dedicating it. 12,000 volunteers put that thing together. These are the kinds of people we want in the United States of America, Cartwright said. Partnership spanning two decades expands to incorporate cloud licensing SaaS capabilities will enable Neural Labs to deploy and update licenses from any location for their customers and resellers Thales, a global leader in Software Monetization and Licensing, has expanded its partnership with Neural Labs, a company which provides video analysis for Smart Cities and AI-based Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), to enable secure, efficient, and practical solutions for vehicle access control and logistical planning. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313492188/en/ Thales Thaless Sentinel platform provides services for software licensing, entitlement management, delivery, and protection helping Neural Labs to quickly and efficiently automate the creation and issuance of licenses. As a result, Neural Labs was able to reduce costs and focus more on its customers, as well as the value of its software against competitors. The relationship between Thales and Neural Labs initially started over two decades ago when Neural Labs selected Sentinel for software protection. Since then, the company has moved into a new era of digital transformation and adopted Thales Sentinel Cloud Licensing to manage its SaaS offering. With this latest licensing iteration, Neural Labs can maximise SaaS capabilities to deploy and update licenses from any location for their entire product portfolio and growing sales teams. This partnership expansion is therefore crucial for the organisation to achieve its growth ambitions in an increasingly connected world. Over the last three years, Neural Labs increased its revenue by nearly 25%, with Thales Sentinel playing its part by helping to reduce revenue leakage from unauthorized software use. We always knew that we needed to protect our software and futureproof our business. Thales has been there with us since the very beginning to help us to avoid software piracy and make the most of every market opportunity. Now, were working with the team even more closely to prepare our software so that 100% will be offered on the cloud. The expansion of this partnership will help us to scale with the flexible and practical solutions, and our longstanding relationship means we can move forward with full trust. Elias Varcarcel, CEO, Neural Labs For over 20 years, our team has provided the technical support to help Neural Labs on its mission to make cities, towns and the road network safer, smarter and more efficient. Were incredibly proud that Neural Labs confidence in our platform and services has allowed them to grow exponentially. Were now looking ahead to the next stage full digital transformation backed by flexible and scalable solutions. Damien Bullot, Vice President, Software Monetization, Thales About Neural Labs Neural Labs has more than 20 years of experience in the development of specialized software based on reading license plates and video analytics to revolutionize various sectors such as Smart Cities, Mobility, Security, Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), vehicle traffic management, infractions control, logistics, and vehicular access. This remarkable array of capabilities stands as a testament to Neural Labs' substantial commitment to Research and Development. The solutions crafted by Neural Labs go above and beyond, demonstrating excellence in reading and identifying vehicle license plates (ANPR or LPR) and ISO6346 codes of transport containers (ACCR). Neural Labs is dedicated to designing solutions that simplify the lives of its clients, transforming their environments into safer and more efficient spaces. About Thales Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies within three domains: Defence & Security, Aeronautics & Space, and Digital Identity & Security. It develops products and solutions that help make the world safer, greener and more inclusive. The Group invests close to 4 billion a year in Research & Development, particularly in key areas such as quantum technologies, Edge computing, 6G and cybersecurity. Thales has 81,000* employees in 68 countries. In 2023, the Group generated sales of 18.4 billion. * These figures exclude the ground transportation business, which is being divested PLEASE VISIT Thales Group Security @Thalesgroup View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313492188/en/ 20+ leading crypto organizations including BTC Inc, Bitget, Brink, Chainalysis, Hacken, Nansen, and Unstoppable Domains have come together for the 'Bitcoin Deserves an Emoji' movement, initiated by Nexo. Uniting the global crypto community, the initiative aims to introduce a Bitcoin emoji to any digital keyboard and emphasize cryptocurrency's triple identity as money, technology, and culture in todays society. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312299831/en/ Uniting the global crypto community, the 'Bitcoin Deserves an Emoji' initiative aims to introduce a Bitcoin emoji to any digital keyboard and emphasize cryptocurrency's triple identity as money, technology, and culture in todays society. (Graphic: Business Wire) This community-driven initiative starts with a 50-day petition on Change.org, followed by an official proposal to the Unicode Consortium during the 2024 submission window. The new, widespread effort for a Bitcoin emoji, once turned down in 2020, shows just how important blockchain has become in our daily lives. Celebrating Community, Culture, and Collective Values 92% of internet users worldwide use emojis in their digital communications, according to Unicode. Originating in Japan in the 1990s, emojis have transformed from niche pictographs to key elements of online conversations, transcending language and borders to reflect our values, innovations, and contemporary culture. Similarly, Bitcoin, beyond being a mere asset, displays the technological breakthrough of blockchain, embodying principles of decentralization, transparency, and security. Its inclusion as an emoji would not only symbolize its indispensable role in today's digital and financial landscapes but also ensure Bitcoin is recognized as an integral part of daily life across the globe. Voices of the Movement Already gaining substantial traction, the Bitcoin Emoji Initiative showcases the unity within the cryptocurrency community and the shared goal of further establishing Bitcoin's presence in our cultural landscape. Bitcoin's journey reflects a remarkable blend of innovation and community. It's time its significance is recognized universally, starting with a symbol we all understand - an emoji. Join us in making history, said Kosta Kantchev, Co-founder & Executive Chairman of Nexo. Bitcoin is universal money for the world, it needs a universal emoji for every person, young and old to use, said David Bailey, CEO of BTC Inc. Supporting Bitcoin's development has always been about changing the world through code. An official emoji is a nod to Bitcoin's technological impact on the world. said Mike Schmidt, Executive Director of Brink. "Bitget recognizes the significance of having a Bitcoin emoji as a universal symbol of digital assets in our everyday communication. This initiative aligns with our mission to promote crypto adoption and accessibility. We wholeheartedly support this endeavor and believe it will contribute further to mainstream acceptance of the whole industry. Together with our partners and the wider crypto community, we are committed to advocating for the inclusion of a Bitcoin emoji on keyboards worldwide, said Gracy Chen, Managing Director of Bitget. "We fully support Nexo's petition as this initiative to create a Bitcoin Emoji aligns perfectly with Nansen's commitment to fostering a more inclusive and expressive crypto environment, said Alex Svanevik, CEO and co-founder of Nansen. For a decade, Chainalysis has been dedicated to fostering trust in blockchains while aiding the advancement of the web3 ecosystem and assisting public sector entities in staying abreast of crypto developments. As a trailblazer in blockchain analysis, we've safeguarded and championed Bitcoin since its inception. We commend Nexo's advocacy for acknowledging a cultural symbolthe Bitcoin emojia testament to the era we inhabit, said Ian Andrews, CMO of Chainalysis. "The definition of an emoji is a small digital image or icon used to express an idea. Bitcoin is now a well-known idea across all countries. CryptoQuant fully supports Nexo's initiative to facilitate the global mass adoption of Bitcoin," said CryptoQuant's CEO Ki Young Ju. The Bitcoin emoji reflects the essence of decentralization, representing a collective movement towards a more open and inclusive financial future for everyone. We align with Nexo's Bitcoin Emoji petition, said Sam Lekhak, Head of Marketing & Comms at Liquity. We're thrilled to stand alongside industry leaders in championing a Bitcoin emoji, a move poised to give identity to the industry while also serving as a bridge between technical innovation and cultural expression, said Sandy Carter, COO, Unstoppable Domains Join the Movement Everyone is invited to be part of this historic community-driven initiative. By signing the Change.org petition and advocating for the Bitcoin emoji, everyone can contribute to celebrating Bitcoin's legacy and future. For more information and to join the campaign, visit bitcoinemoji.org. About the Initiative This initiative is a collaborative effort by 20+ leading organizations in the cryptocurrency space, united by a common goal to promote understanding, adoption, and technological progress of digital currencies. Participating organizations: Nexo, Brink, Bitget, Chainalysis, Polygon, Brave, BTC Inc, Hacken, CryptoQuant, Nansen, Unstoppable Domains, Liquity, Mara, Busha, Zulu, Cadenza, Bware Labs, Meta4 Capital, Sift, MarketAcross, Bitcompare, Bithomp, Milkroad, Crypto Oasis. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312299831/en/ National security officials of South Korea, the United States and Japan discussed efforts to boost cooperation in supply chains, emerging technologies and digital areas in a regular dialogue session, the presidential office said Wednesday. The third session of the economic dialogue took place in South Korea's southeastern port city of Busan earlier in the day, led by Wang Yun-jong, presidential secretary for economic security and his respective U.S. and Japanese counterparts Tarun Chhabra and Yasuo Takamura. They reaffirmed that the Camp David summit among the leaders of the three countries in August last year served as an occasion to significantly boost trilateral economic security cooperation and discussed ways to produce a tangible outcome from the summit at an early date. Efforts to strengthen supply chain cooperation in critical minerals were discussed, through such multilateral initiatives as the Minerals Security Partnership and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, the presidential office said. They agreed to seek ways to facilitate joint research among state research institutes of the three countries for study of core and emerging technologies. The three sides also discussed artificial intelligence governance and agreed to work closely on cybersecurity threats and data security. (Yonhap) A North Korean diplomatic delegation led by Vice Foreign Minister Pak Myong-ho has departed for Mongolia, the North's state media reported Sunday. The delegation left from Pyongyang International Airport in the capital Saturday, the Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper, said, without specifying the purpose of the trip. The diplomatic delegation's visit to Mongolia marks the first of its kind since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. The North last sent a delegation to the country in 2019. The latest trip is seen as part of the North's diplomatic efforts to strengthen ties with its traditionally friendly countries. Mongolia is viewed as having close relations with the North, having maintained its diplomatic mission in Pyongyang even during the pandemic despite strict border restrictions. In January, Mongolia's new top envoy to Pyongyang, Luvsantseren Erdeneddavaa, submitted his letter of credentials to the North. (Yonhap) By Kwak Yeon-soo Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has defended former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, who left hastily for Australia to take up his post as Seouls new ambassador to Canberra despite being a suspect in an investigation into the death of a Marine, adding that Lees appointment and departure wont cause any disruptions to the judicial proceedings by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO). If the anti-corruption body says it needs to question him further, Lee will come back and face questioning at any time, Han said during a dinner meeting with reporters, Tuesday. Its absurd to imagine that a high-ranking official who serves as an ambassador will not return to face charges. That wont happen. He will always abide by the law. Lee departed on Sunday, two days after the Ministry of Justice lifted his travel ban. Unlike his predecessors, Lee left the country abruptly without receiving an original letter of credence from President Yoon Suk Yeol. Lee has been under investigation for his alleged involvement in downplaying the militarys internal probe concerning the death of a Marine, named Chae Su-geun, who died during a search and rescue operation in July 2023. Lee was the defense minister at the time. Following Lees abrupt departure, concerns were raised that his absence will cause major disruptions to the ongoing CIO investigations. Han added that Lees appointment comes in line with the governments plan to bolster defense industry cooperation with Australia. Last year, Australia selected Hanwha Aerospace's Redback vehicle as the preferred bidder for its new infantry fighting vehicle project to acquire 129 next-generation armored vehicles by 2028. In addition, Korea is also interested in Australia's plan to build a new general-purpose frigate. The prime minister also reiterated the governments calls for prompt medical reform, saying that its plan to raise the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 annually is the bare minimum to meet the growing demand for health care spurred by an aging population. A scientific study suggests that there will be a shortage of around 10,000 doctors by 2035, so we decided to increase the enrollment by 2,000 in 2025. Since last year, we have met with the Korean Medical Association 28 times to discuss the increasing number of medical students. The association, however, was uncooperative and unresponsive. It kept arguing that increasing the number of medical students would be unnecessary, he said. Regarding the associations request to postpone the governments medical reform for now and form a special consultative body to discuss it again at a later date, he said, If we dont do it now and postpone it again, the public will suffer. If that happens, the government would be neglecting its duties. This is an imminent problem that must be solved. Referring to the Article 36 (3) of the Constitution, which says the health of all citizens shall be protected by the State, Han added, Failing to protect the health of all citizens would be neglecting the states duties. A senior Saudi Arabian defense official will visit Korea this week to examine key homegrown weapons systems, sources said Wednesday, amid growing bilateral defense industry cooperation. Talal bin Abdullah Al-Otaibi, Saudi Arabia's assistant minister of defense, was set to arrive in Korea on Wednesday for a three-day visit, according to the sources from the defense industry and relevant authorities. During the trip, the official is expected to be given a tour of major Korean defense products, including the KF-21 fighter jet under development, the mid-range surface-to-air missile block II (M-SAM II) system and the 3,000-ton Dosan Ahn Changho submarine. The visit comes after Korean defense company LIG Nex1 signed a $3.2 billion deal to supply 10 M-SAM II batteries to Saudi Arabia last November. Last month, Defense Minister Shin Won-sik visited the kingdom for talks on defense industry cooperation and explained Seoul's plans for a next-generation fighter jet in response to Saudi Arabia's interest in such efforts. Korea is currently developing the KF-21 without the stealth capabilities of a fifth-generation fighter jet, such as the F-35A, although there are further upgrades in mind to ultimately build a sixth-generation fighter with advanced capabilities. Separately, Iraq's Defense Minister Thabet Muhammad Al-Abbasi is expected to visit Korea next week for talks on defense cooperation, following visits by Iraqi military officials earlier this month. (Yonhap) Turkey's cement industry requires US$30bn to meet net-zero targets ICR Newsroom By 13 March 2024 Representatives for the sector are highlighting that the Turkish cement industry will need at least US$30bn in investments to reach the ambitious goal of net-zero carbon by 2053. According to Fatih Yucelik, the board chair of the Turkish Cement Manufacturers Association (TURKCIMENTO), the industry will need to make a further investment of US$2bn. This additional investment is to ensure compliance with the requirements of the European Unions Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). This legislation, introduced in May 2023, imposes tariffs on carbon-intensive products, such as cement, steel and some forms of electricity generation. Mr Yucelik said: The most important issue for us this year is carbon emissions. However, he added: Under the current situation, it is difficult for [them] to find this financing. In addition, Mr Yucelik reports that TURKCIMENTO is beginning to establish waste heat recovery facilities to reduce the loss of energy. The energy produced by these units, according to Mr Yucelik, can power 618,000 homes, proving that the facilities could be a vital mechanism for offsetting the industrys increasing energy costs. Adil Sani Konukoglu, TURKCIMENTO, said: A shipload of coal costs around TRY150m (US$4.68m). Energy accounts for around 80 per cent of our costs. With production in the industry increasing 10.5 per cent to 81.5Mta between 2022-23, it is increasingly important that plants become more energy-efficient to remain profitable and comply with the CBAM legislature. Published under China's central SOEs further assist Xinjiang in expanding employment Xinhua) 13:09, March 13, 2024 BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- China's centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have intensified efforts to assist Xinjiang in expanding employment since 2022, pledging to further support high-quality development in Xinjiang. According to a conference held by the Xinjiang government and China's top state-asset regulator on Monday, the central enterprises' work in assisting the development of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has achieved remarkable results in the past two years. A total of 227 projects, backed by 41 central SOEs, have been slated for investment totaling approximately 1.1 trillion yuan (about 155 billion U.S. dollars). The investments span various sectors, including petroleum, natural gas, coal, new energy, transportation, environmental protection, communications, healthcare and infrastructure construction. Over the past two years, these endeavors have cumulatively created jobs for approximately 251,000 people, said Chen Weijun, vice chairman of the regional government of Xinjiang. Combining their own advantages with the reality of Xinjiang, the central enterprises attending the conference have devised plans to support industries in Xinjiang between 2024 and 2026. Over a three-year span, they intend to invest in 133 projects totaling nearly 695 billion yuan, with plans to hire 33,000 new employees. Zhang Yuzhuo, chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, stated that in order to support the development of Xinjiang, central SOEs would further optimize industrial cooperation, boost investment in emerging technologies, sectors and markets, cultivate new quality productive forces, and continuously expand employment capacity through industrial development. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit South Korea next week to attend a session of the Summit for Democracy, a U.S.-led multination gathering formed to boost solidarity and shared values among democratic countries. Blinken is expected to arrive at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Sunday, and take part in the ministerial segment of the forum Monday, according to people with knowledge of the matter. He will also hold bilateral talks with his South Korean counterpart, Cho Tae-yul, during the trip here. The expected talks come only weeks after Blinken and Cho met one-on-one in Washington while Cho was visiting the United States late last month. It was their first in-person talks since Cho took office in January. Before that, the two top diplomats had also met in Rio de Janeiro at the foreign ministers' meeting of the Group of 20 nations in February. It will be Blinken coming to South Korea again after just four months. He last visited Seoul in November last year and held talks with his then South Korean counterpart, Park Jin. The Summit for Democracy is led by the U.S. to reinforce the democratic bloc with like-minded countries in the face of various challenges posed by a rise in authoritarianism. South Korea is hosting this year's summit, its third such session, set for March 18-20. The ministerial sessions will be held on the first day, followed by panel discussions involving civic groups the next day. The leaders' session will take place virtually on the last day. U.S. President Joe Biden is set to attend the summit virtually. The U.S. hosted the inaugural session in 2021. The second session was co-hosted by the U.S., South Korea, Costa Rica, the Netherlands and Zambia. (Yonhap) Korea's top envoy to Russia asked for Moscow's cooperation in relation to the arrest of a Korean national in Russia reportedly on espionage charges, according to the Korean Embassy in Moscow on Wednesday. Ambassador Lee Do-hoon met with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko and requested the Russian government actively cooperate to ensure the safety and protect the rights of the Korean national, the embassy said. The meeting took place at the embassy's request. Russia's TASS news agency reported Monday that the Korean, surnamed Baek, has been held in the Lefortovo detention facility in Moscow since late February on charges that he handed over classified information to foreign intelligence agencies. It reported citing law information officials that a court extended his detention until mid-June. The foreign ministry in Seoul said it has been in communication with Moscow over the matter and has been providing necessary consular assistance to the Korean national. Baek, a missionary with a South Korean humanitarian group named the Global Love Rice Sharing Foundation, was working in Vladivostok at the time of the arrest, mostly engaged in helping North Korean defectors flee and providing them with other assistance. The foundation rejected the spying charges against Baek and claimed he has been wrongfully accused. "Spying charges are either a misunderstanding, or have a political purpose," Lee Sun-koo, head of the foundation, located in Incheon, told Yonhap by phone. Lee described Baek as a man who has been devoted to his job of providing basic needs like food, clothes and medicine to vulnerable groups and foreign laborers. "Suspicions that he helped with North Koreans' defection are all just outrageous," Lee said. Lee said the foundation will actively seek ways to get Baek released, starting with filing a petition calling for his release with the foreign ministry and the Russian Embassy in Seoul. (Yonhap) Chattanooga Christian School plans to fence its entire St. Elmo property, while enhancing its entryway off Charger Drive, officials said. The Planning Commission on Monday recommended approval for the city yielding some right of way along Charger Drive for the project and for additional parking for the school. Mike Price, representing the school, said of the parking situation, "We're crushed - especially at special events." Architect Bob Franklin said he is designing a handsome fence with brick pillars along the length of Charger Drive. He said, "It will be a significant improvement to the aesthetics, but it is mainly for improved security." Mr. Franklin said the new fence will include a staffed gatehouse that will be open for students and staff to enter in the morning, but will be closed all day long except to those who are let in and out. He said new street trees would be planted all along Charger Drive. Mr. Price said the school wants to take 15 feet of the wide right-of-way. He said there was some proof that the section of roadway already belongs to the school. He said there would still be 14 feet between the roadway and the curb. City Councilman Darrin Ledford, a Planning Commission member, said he and district Councilwoman Raquetta Dotley support the request, that is to go before the City Council. The planning staff had recommended denial, saying with St. Elmo evolving and the need for multi-modal transit that the city should not give up the right-of-way. Tennessee Mens Health Network, Mt. Canaan Baptist Church and Purpose Point Community Health are partnering to host the 2024 Chattanooga Mens Health Summit. The event will take place on Saturday, April 6 from 9 a.m.-1p.m. at Mt. Canaan Baptist Church, 4801 Hwy. 58. There is no charge for the event that will feature health discussions, screenings, various vendors and door prizes.Men living in Tennessee die at higher rates from nine out of the top ten leading causes of death, said Pastor Ternae Jordan, Sr.It is crucial that our churches take a leadership role in population health, especially in communities that are the most at-risk. It is the churchs job as an advocate of health to promote special events like the Summit to men and their families.Tennessee men are some of the unhealthiest in the nation, said Mike Leventhal, executive director of TMHN. We eat too much, smoke too much, and we do not exercise enough. Through the Chattanooga Mens Health Summit, we hope to raise awareness for mens health, learn more about specific health conditions and encourage all men to schedule an appointment with their physician. Everyone knows that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The Hamilton County Democratic Party will host its Democratic County Presidential Convention this Saturday at the Southside Community Center, Multipurpose Room, 1151 W. 40th St. in Chattanooga, to select representation from the county to attend the Congressional District Convention on April 6.The doors open for registration at noon, and the convention is open to all registered voters in the county who are supporters of the Democratic Party, who themselves have voted in the March 2024 Presidential Primary, and who agree to support the nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2024 Presidential election.The convention will begin at 1 p.m.The party welcomes all who wish to participate in selecting Tennessee's delegates to the Democratic Presidential Convention in Chicago the week of Aug. 19. Email hcdp.us@gmail.com to receive the pre-registration link."Please plan to join us for lunch while we gather to elect our selectors, and discuss ways to support President Bidens campaign for president in November," officials said.Information about becoming a DNC delegate and the rules governing the DNC Delegate Selection Process may be obtained from tndp.org, or from the Tennessee Democratic Party, 4900 Centennial Blvd., Ste 300, Nashville, Tn. 37209, 615-327-9779. Rose Ailey of East Ridge, Tennessee, and a native of Grantsville, Maryland, passed away peacefully Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at her home. She was a member of Brainerd Methodist Church. Rose had a passion for rescuing animals, loved her flowers and plants, birds, books, her friends and travel. She had worked in retail sales with Belk Department Store for over 20 years. She was preceded in death by her parents, Elmer and Rosa Lewis Miller; a sister, Nancy Miller and several aunts, uncles and cousins. Survivors include two daughters, Tonya (Ethan) Carver and Maria Ailey; two perfect grandchildren, Audra and Eron and her beloved rescue dog, Bailey. Funeral services will be held at 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 17, at the East Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home, 404 South Moore Road with the Rev. Tim Bracken officiating. The family will receive friends from 14 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to McKamey Animal Center, 4500 N. Access Road, Chattanooga, Tn. 37415. Please share your thoughts and memories at www.ChattanoogaEastChapel.com. Jenelle Evans has been spending a lot of time speaking to the police. She's called the cops multiple times since David Eason moved out. During one of those calls she accused a "resident" or stealing her wallet, debit card and driver's license. For weeks, there was speculation that Jenelle Evans and David Eason were calling it quits. Teen Mom 2 fans were initially skeptical because the couple had kept their drama out of the public eye. Things are heating up now, though. Evans filed for separation from her husband of six years, and apparently, Eason isnt going quietly. While the duo are still keeping it somewhat calm on social media, the police have been called to Evans North Carolina home multiple times since the separation. While David Eason isnt named in the official complaints, its obvious Evans is calling about him. Jenelle Evans has called the police multiple times about her troubled husband According to the Ashley Reality Roundup Group, Evans called the police multiple times since kicking David Eason to the curb. By the sounds of it, hes become a real nuisance. The publication learned that Evans called the police on March 6 to report a theft. She told responding officers that a resident of the home had stolen her wallet and refused to return the item. The wallet contained her drivers license and her debit and credit cards. It is unclear if the resident has been using those cards since obtaining them or if Evans shut them down when they refused to return her property. Jenelle Evans and David Eason | MTV/YouTube Interestingly, Evans told responding officers that the wallet was taken from her on February 28, nearly two weeks after the date Evans listed as her date of separation on her official paperwork. It is unclear if the wallet was taken from the home or if the wallet was stolen from some other location. While Eason isnt named in the complaint, hes been accused of taking and using Evans debit card in the past. Janelle Evans accused David Eason of stealing her debit card in August, too While the drama surrounding Jenelle Evans and David Easons separation is heating up, its nothing new for the couple. In fact, all of Evans current accusations against Eason shes made before. The only big difference this time around is that shes involved the authorities. The March 6 call to police is not the first time Evans has accused Eason of stealing her debit card. The mother of three blasted her husband on Facebook in August 2023, claiming he was controlling, refused to work, and was using her for her money. She went on to claim that Eason had stolen her debit card. Things eventually settled down between the pair on social media, and the focus shifted to Jace Evans, who had run away multiple times. Where is David Eason living? In February 2024, David Eason moved out of the North Carolina home he shared with Evans and several children. While it was initially unclear where Eason was staying, there are multiple reports that the troubled former TV personality is spending his days and nights on a boat he shares with Evans. In a recent TikTok live event, Eason didnt share his exact location but mentioned the boat multiple times. Based on the background, it appears he was broadcasting live from that boat. An overhead shot of Jenelle Evans house | MTV/YouTube For her part, Jenelle Evans remains on the property she and Eason called the land. She currently has all three of her children living in the house with her. Until recently, Easons daughter from a previous relationship, Maryssa Eason, lived at home. She has since been asked to leave and has reportedly vacated. Its unclear if she moved in with her father or if she is staying with other family members. The Princess of Wales and her younger brother are adorable in this rare family photograph. Charles Spencer unveiled a rare, happy childhood snap with his big sister, Princess Diana. The Instagram image also featured their mother, Frances Shand Kydd. Charles Spencer and Princess Dianas closeness was displayed in a sweet family snap Charles, the 9th Earl Spencer, and his sister Princess Diana were extraordinarily close. On Instagram, he regularly reflects on his big sister and her effect on his life on Instagram. His poignant social media post featured the siblings and their mother, Frances Shand Kydd, playing on a swing set. Shand Kydd and Earl Spencer were divorced when the photo was taken. On Instagram, Spencer wrote a caption that described memories of the sweet black-and-white image. Shand Kydd, Charles, and Diana were playing on a swing set. My mother, Diana, and I, in c. 1967. I would have been 3, and Diana 5 or 6. I love how happy each of us looks, Spencer penned. At this stage of my life, my mother nicknamed me Buzz. Because she saw me as having the endless energy of a rather happy and busy bee, Spencer concluded. Royal fans reacted to the family photograph Royal followers expressed their thrill at the never-before-seen image. The family photo displayed the love between Spencer and Diana. Im loving these family photos. I can feel your pride, love, and nostalgia. You are the keeper of your familys memories. Its important to know where you came from and to know who came before you, one follower wrote. Beautiful photo, we miss you, Diana, a second royal family fan penned. A third Instagram user wrote, Ah, she was lovely, your Mommy. Thats a beautiful photo of you and Diana. That must have been the summer. What a precious memory and keepsake of happy times, noted a fourth fan. Princess Diana and Charles Spencer had a close relationship Charles Spencer and his sister the future Princess Diana in 1968 | Central Press/Getty Images Growing up, Princess Diana and her brother were quite close. Although they also had two older sisters Lady Sarah McCorquodale and Jane, Baroness Fellowes Diana and Charles Spencer, 9th Earl Spencer, spent most of their time together. This closeness was forged between the younger siblings as their older sisters were off at boarding school. However, they bonded even further when Diana and her younger brother got caught in the drama surrounding their parents divorce. Their mother, Frances Shand Kydd, met Peter Shand Kydd, and eventually they married. Shand Kydd relocated to London, and Charles and Diana moved with her. Following their parents divorce, Diana and Charles moved to Althorp House with their father. The siblings continued to remain close for the remainder of Dianas life. Princess Diana died on Aug. 31, 1996 in Paris, France. She was 36 and the mother of two sons, Prince William and Prince Harry. Researchers at DZNE provide evidence that traces of the widely used PFAS chemicals in human blood are associated with unfavorable lipid profiles and thus with an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. The findings are based on data from more than 2,500 adults from Bonn and the Dutch municipality of Leiderdorp. PFAS were detectable in the blood of nearly all study participants. The study results have been published in the scientific journal Exposure and Health. Since their invention in the 1950s, more than 10,000 different substances from the category of per- and polyfluorinated alkyl compounds (PFAS) have been developed, according to estimates. Due to their water, fat and dirt-repellent properties, they are used in thousands of products such as cosmetics, dental floss, but also in pan coatings and fire-extinguishing foam. In addition to their basic chemical structure, PFAS have another thing in common: they are nearly non-degradable. Particularly via groundwater that they enter the human food chain. Younger people are particularly affected The findings of the Bonn researchers are the latest contribution to the current debate on the effect of PFAS on human health. We see clear signs of a harmful effect of PFAS on health. And we have found that at the same PFAS concentration in the blood, the negative effects are more pronounced in younger subjects than in older ones, says Prof. Dr. Dr. Monique Breteler, Director of Population Health Sciences at DZNE. The results of the current study also suggest that even relatively low PFAS concentrations in the blood are associated with unfavorable blood lipid profiles. Our data shows a statistically significant correlation between PFAS in the blood and harmful blood lipids linked to cardiovascular risk. The higher the PFAS level, the higher the concentration of these lipids. Taken strictly, this is not yet a proof that PFAS chemicals cause the unfavorable blood lipid profiles. However, the close correlation supports this suspicion. It is a strong argument for stricter regulation of PFAS in order to protect health, says the Bonn researcher. Strikingly, PFAS could be detected in the blood of almost all test subjects. Which means you cannot escape these chemicals. Even if we dont see an immediate health threat for the study participants we examined, the situation is still worrying. In the long term, the increased risk may very well have a negative impact on the heart and cardiovascular system, says Breteler. Blood samples from Bonn and the Netherlands The current study was based on DZNEs Rhineland Study a population-based health study in the Bonn urban area and the so-called NEO study from the Netherlands (Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity study). In this framework, researchers from DZNE collaborated with experts from the Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands. Blood samples from a total of more than 2,500 women and men aged between 30 and 89 were included in the analyses. For this, state-of-the-art technology was used. The technology to analyze blood samples with the accuracy required for our research has only become available in recent years, says DZNE scientist Elvire Landstra. She is the first author of the current publication together with a colleague from Leiden. Most detailed study so far The blood samples were analyzed in detail using a sophisticated method known as mass spectrometry. In their analysis, the researchers focused on three of the most widespread types of PFAS PFOA, PFOS and PFHxS and also determined the concentration of 224 blood lipids, metabolites and amino acids. With this untargeted approach an intentionally broad approach without a preconceived target we were able to prove the connection between the PFAS concentration and a problematic profile of fatty substances, so-called lipids. These include the well-known cholesterol and various other blood lipids that are known to be risk factors for cardiovascular disease, says Elvire Landstra. No significant differences were found between the samples from Bonn and Leiderdorp. Our study is the most detailed on this topic to date and the one with the largest database. Previous studies had already suggested a correlation between PFAS and unhealthy blood lipids, but this link had never been as clear as in our study. A map of the Cherokee Nations 15 districts is seen Feb. 9, 2023, at the Election Commission office. Services are available for eligible students within the Cherokee Nation Reservation and parts of the Muscogee Nation Reservation. A senior Iraqi Army general visited Korea last week to look over a homegrown utility helicopter, sources said Wednesday, raising speculation over the Middle Eastern country's potential purchase of the aircraft. Lt. Gen. Samir Zaki Hussein Al-Maliki, commander of Iraq's Army Aviation Command, arrived in Korea on March 4 for a four-day visit to meet with Korean military and defense company officials, according to the sources from the defense industry and relevant authorities. The Iraqi general visited the headquarters of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in Sacheon, 296 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to check the company's KUH-1 helicopter, named the Surion. He observed operations of a midsized variant of the Surion designed for the Coast Guard and boarded it. Developed by KAI in 2012, the Surion is designed to replace the Army's aging fleet of UH-1H and 500MD helicopters and has been in service by the Army as a utility helicopter and an air ambulance. The chopper has a maximum air speed of 270 kph and can carry up to 13 people, including two pilots, according to KAI. At KAI's headquarters, the Iraqi official observed operations of a midsized variant of the Surion designed for the Coast Guard and boarded it. During his trip, the general also met with Defense Minister Shin Won-sik and visited other major defense companies. The visit came as Iraq is known to be considering acquiring a new small helicopter. In 2013, KAI signed a deal with Iraq to supply 24 FA-50 light attack aircraft. KAI has yet to sign any export deals for the Surion. (Yonhap) Some years ago, the Reformed philosopher Alvin Plantinga gave a useful definition of fundamentalist. He noted that, in academic settings, it served as little more than a smear word; he offered an expletive I cant print here, so lets just substitute son of a gun. Where it retained any content beyond the smear, Plantinga argued that fundamentalist meant considerably to the right, theologically speaking, of me and my enlightened friends. Thus did academics, journalists, and many Christians come to deploy fundie to mean a stupid [son of a gun] whose theological opinions are considerably to the right of their own. And because theres always someone to ones right, the F-word is essentially relative: It has no stable reference, but it certainly can never refer to me. These days we might say the same about Christian nationalism. The phrase has lost all substantive content. In nearly every conversation, it has little reference beyond those stupid [sons of guns] whose political opinions are considerably to the right of mine. Allegations of Christian nationalism can mean almost anything: Maybe the accused is a literal Nazi. Or maybe hes just a lifelong Republican whose big issues are abortion and tax rates. Recently there have been thoughtful, good-faith efforts to define the phrase in a useful way. I suggest instead that we put it out to pasture. Though it may once have had limited reference to specific groups and ideas, it no longer does; the phrase is all heat and no light. In too many uses, its slanderous. In almost every case, its largely an exercise in boundary drawing. To be sure, sometimes a boundary is exactly what we need. I dont give eugenicists or Holocaust deniers a fair hearing. But these are marginal cases, and in a free and democratic polity, the nature of public discourse is that its rough-and-tumble, pluralistic, and more than occasionally unpleasant. We listen to those with whom we disagree, perhaps especially when our disagreement runs deep. If we are Christians committed to hospitality and love for enemies, our willingness to listen should only increase. Moreover, responsible opponents of Christian nationalism (CN)those not recklessly slinging the term at every son of a gun to their righthave legitimate concerns. I count five. First, Christian nationalism often comes with a modifier: white. This is indeed worthy of our excoriation, as are all ethno-nationalisms. But notice why it is worrisome: not because it is Christian nor primarily because it is nationalist, but because it is racist. Any and all political movements defined by the social elevation and political privileging of one race over others is worthy of our condemnation, full stop. Article continues below Second, CN opponents are rightly worried about lawlessness, often lawlessness as typified in the Capitol riot of January 6, 2021. Sometimes lawlessness means an unwillingness to play by the rules. Sometimes it means a refusal to accept political loss. Sometimes it means a resort to violence. In these and other formsexcepting nonviolent civil disobedience in service to a just causelawlessness should be repudiated by Christians (not only the 13th but the 12th chapter of Romans is relevant here). Notions of a religious coup detat in Washington, even if they look more like revolutionary cosplay than a serious mass movement, should be strangled in the crib. Third, what CN critics are often worried about is not nationalism per se but conspiracy theories and fearmongering. Fear is not a Christian habit of mind, argues novelist Marilynne Robinson. Shes right. Believers may reasonably debate the state of the world and our country. But we may not reasonably debate the lordship of Christ or the hope of his appearing (Titus 2:1115). Even if our worst fears came trueif we were subjugated by a regime that made worshiping the Lord a social and legal burden or outright crime, as is the situation of many Christians now and in church historyour calling would be the same: to count the cost, carry the cross, and follow Christ to Calvary. Fourth, some advocates of Christian America seem to envision a kind of second-class statusfor nonbelievers. Here, Christians who fear dhimmitude in the Muslim or secular world seek to turn the tables and make Christian identity a special legal status. Sometimes this is packaged with a vision of the Bible as a sort of governing document, adopted alongside or instead of the Constitution. I confess I am skeptical that large numbers of Americans actually want this, just as I have yet to encounter an actual flesh-and-blood theocrat. If anti-CN pundits were to limit their jeremiads to this group, their aim would be true, but I suspect theyd have a vanishingly small target. Fifth and finally, CN critics are right to oppose the habit of clothing all of the aboveracism, lawlessness, fearmongering, and injusticein the language and symbols of the faith. Article continues below This reduction of Christ to a means of worldly gain is widespread and, lamentably, goes back to the time of the apostles (Phil. 1:1518). It trades on Christs name for a merely political cause. It declares that Christ is Lord to be obeyed while sidelining his actual life and teachings. It dismisses the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:2223) as weak and ineffective while embracing the works of the fleshenmity, strife, anger, dissension, licentiousness, and factionalism (vv. 1921)as strategic assets. If these five issuesa weak word for sinful distortions of the gospelwere all that Christian nationalism discourse concerned, I might not propose we retire the term. But this discourse also encompasses ideas that shouldnt be flagged as extreme or unworthy of engagement. Here are six beliefs and practices we ought to uncouple from the label Christian nationalist. 1. Putting God into politics. This one is easily addressed. In the United States, people of all faiths and none are welcome to bring their deepest convictions into the public square. No one has to pretend. This is not France. No Christian, Jew, or Muslim is wrongmorally, theologically, or constitutionallyto bring faith into democratic debate. 2. Putting politics into church. This ones hairier, but its also unavoidable. The gospel makes public claims that pertain to the world outside the walls of the sanctuary. These claims concern Christs sovereign rule over the nations and his passionate affection for the poor, the marginal, and the vulnerable (Luke 6:2026; Matt. 25:3146). Worship of a crucified Messiah can never truly be apoliticaleven Amish separatism and other peace churches conscientious objection are themselves political actions. 3. Supporting Christian candidates for office. Humanly speaking, there is nothing more natural than the desire for representation in democratic assemblies. Christians are not unique in wanting to vote for people who share our faith, and that tendency isnt worth worry. Some Christians will only vote for fellow Christians, which may be unwisetaken as a nonnegotiable criterion, I think it isbut it hardly rises to the level of a political pathology. Article continues below 4. Believing divine providence guides America. In a weak sense, all Christians believe this, and when nonreligious outlets overreact to providential language its just that: an overreaction. But many Christians endorse a much stronger version. They speak of America as a light to the world, a city set on a hill with a special role in Gods plan for the world. I wish fellow Christians would give up this belief. It claims too much; it ignores the church; it forgets Israel (Rom. 11:12, 2829); it overinvests in a nation that will, like all others, one day pass away (Is. 40:15, Matt. 24:35). And yet there is nothing more American than American exceptionalism. From our founding onward, this belief has always been with us, often with religious overtones. Christians who disagree with me on this issue arent radicals. Theyre ordinary Americans, especially by the standards of older generations and immigrants. You might as well accuse them of liking barbecue or apple pie. 5. Believing America is, or should be, Christian. Like American exceptionalism, the notion of an informal Christian America is deeply embedded in US history, culture, and law, as historian Mark Noll has documented. This legacy can be seen in a recent essay by Sen. Josh Hawley at First Things that argues that Christian culture has been Americas common ground, and that this ground both can and should be recovered today. Hawley may or may not be right. But his thesiswhich is not a call for theocracy or even for an established church like that of the United Kingdomis arguable. It lies within the bounds of reasonable public discourse. Its no less American than arguments for a secular America. Both deserve a hearing. Neither is ludicrous or worthy of contempt. 6. Doubting liberalism, democracy, or American order. All right, heres the sticking point. Perhaps a charitable reader can accept the first five points as acceptable, non-extreme perspectives for American Christians. But there are also Christians who are openly illiberal, skeptical of democracy, or uncertain about our entire republican project. Arent they beyond the bounds? Arent they dangerous? Shouldnt we apply a special phrase to such people, and shouldnt that term express disapproval in the strongest of terms? Maybe. But hear me out on why Im not convinced. All too often, Christian discussion of these matters operates from a myopic end of history mindset. It ignores most of Christian history and casts liberal democracy as the final form of human social and political arrangements. In this view, we stand at the last stage of a long line of progress. Theres nowhere else to go, nothing to do except maintain our own excellence. Article continues below From a Christian perspective, this cant be right. The church can and will live in all different circumstances, and the end of history is not early 21st-century America but the return of Christ. Politics change; governments rise and fall; maps are redrawn; and until Jesus appears, we have no reason to think that kind of history is finished. Certainly, there is much to treasure or conserve in our time. But treating the way things are now as sacrosanct or best frozen in amber is theologically indefensible. The upshot? Christians can question anything. We are free to be skeptical of whatever the world takes for granted. Sometimes that skepticism wont be justified. But often, Christian skeptics of the established order help us see what we would otherwise miss. Dorothy Day, Jacques Ellul, Ivan Illich, Wendell Berry, Alasdair MacIntyre, Cornel West, and Stanley Hauerwas have each placed a question mark next to some modern shibboleth: liberalism, democracy, human rights, capitalism, industrialism, the nuclear family, digital technology, American empirewhatever it may be, theyve put it in the dock and interrogated it. This may feel like it pulls the rug out from under us. But sometimes thats just what we need. So doubting democracy, too, should not be denigrated as Christian nationalism. And as for the five pathologies above, we are justified in both opposing them and affixing derogatory labels. But Christian nationalism is not the best on offer. Its not that its too strong a term. Its that its too weak. A better option comes from the apostle Paul: All this is another gospel (Gal. 1:7, NET). The political manifestations are only symptoms of this spiritual disease. Its within Christs own body, which means we have work to do. We should be chastened, though, even as we are heartened: for nothing but the power of the Spirit is sufficient to cure it. Brad East is an associate professor of theology at Abilene Christian University. He is the author of four books, including The Church: A Guide to the People of God and Letters to a Future Saint: Foundations of Faith for the Spiritually Hungry. [ This article is also available in and . ] Several years ago, I was invited to write the notes for a new womens study Bible. The project was unexpected and felt unusual to me, because Id never read a womens study Bible myself and I was skeptical about the need for one. Why cant we all just read the same Bible? But after praying about the offer, I felt led to accepthoping I might be able to offer something of value to women who picked up the Bible. But I had no idea how transformative the project would end up being for me! In my four decades working in Christian schools, churches, and other ministriesand with three degrees in Bible to my nameno one had ever asked me to read the Bible as a woman and for women. I had never approached the Bible while asking, What are women going to wonder about when they read this? Whats going to bother them? What will capture their attention? Because my pastors and theology professors were all men, and most of the books I read about the Bible were written by men, I learned to read Scripture genericallyignoring myself as much as possible so I could see the world through their eyes. Some of my professors considered the plight of women or the roles of women, but none of them had embodied experiences which helped them enter the biblical stories of women. This was not their fault, and it did not make their teaching irrelevant, but it did make my understanding of Scripture incomplete. As I reread the Old and New Testaments, focusing both on the women in the text and the women who would read it, so many biblical stories came to life for me in a whole new way. I was forced to wrestle with difficult passages that seemed hard on women. But as I wrestled with these stories with the help of others, I discovered profound insights about the goodness of God. Reading on behalf of women also sensitized me to the female characters in Scripture who are too often sidelined or caricatured with one-dimensional labels like prostitute, sister, seductress, widow. Not only are these portrayals sometimes inaccurate, but they can often distract from more important facets of their charactersuch as their courage, loyalty, creativity, and determinationas well as their vital contribution to Gods redemptive plan outlined in the biblical narrative. One such character is Rahabto whose name we hasten to addthe prostitute. Rahabs story is sometimes boiled down to a trite takeaway: that God is willing to use even the basest of sinners to accomplish his purposes, even foreign prostitutes! But her character contributes so much more meaning to Israels story. Article continues below Rahab was a citizen of Canaan, one of the enemies occupying the Promised Land whom Yahweh referenced in his promise to the people of Israel: I will make all your enemies turn and run (Ex. 23:27, NLT throughout). Gods plan involved dismantling Canaanite worship of Baal and other godsone way or another. We should find it remarkable, then, that the first recorded conversation with a Canaanite in the book ends with Gods promise to protect her and her household. Joshua often gets a bad rap for portraying a violent God whos thirsty for Canaanite blood, but Rahabs story reminds us not to read the book too absolutely. To right-size our expectations, lets begin with Gods specific instructions of what exactly the Israelites were to do when they entered the land: Break down their pagan altars and shatter their sacred pillars. Cut down their Asherah poles and burn their idols (Deut. 7:5). Youll find no blood in these verses, as the destruction God instructs is aimed not at people but at the stones they worshipped. As for the Canaanites themselves, the Israelites were forbidden to marry them or to make treaties with them. The reason for this prohibition was not racial but religious: For they will lead your children away from me to worship other gods (v. 4). The people were herem, or off-limits for the Israelites. Gods plan A was to drive the Canaanites away from the land (which isnt possible if theyre dead). Yes, Canaanites died when the Israelites entered the land, but killing them was not the pointdismantling their pagan worship and preserving Israelite faithfulness was. In the 2010 DreamWorks movie How to Train Your Dragon, a Viking village expends enormous energy to defend and protect themselves against dragon attacks. Their children even learn how to kill dragons in school. But when a village boy (aptly named Hiccup) encounters an injured dragon (a night fury which he names Toothless), he doesnt kill the dragon but befriends him, even inventing a prosthetic tail wing to help him fly again. Hiccups behavior is considered reckless and even treasonous by his village. Taming dragons was not the planand neither was taming the Canaanites. Article continues below Why, then, was Rahab spared the destruction that was to come in the battle of Jericho? Lets start at the beginning of the story, when Joshua sent two spies to scope things out in and around Jericho before the attack (Josh. 2:1). Ironically, given Gods instructions not to become sexually involved with the Canaanites, these spies took shelter in the home of a prostitute named Rahab. Perhaps a house of ill-repute was the only establishment in town where visitors could pay for a room, or maybe it was the safest place to stay under the radar and avoid undue attention. Either way, the king still found them out and demanded Rahab turn the spies over. Instead, she hid them and lied, sending the kings men on a wild goose chase. In exchange for their safety, the spies promised Rahab that she and her family would be spared in the impending battle. But the question here is, did the Israelite spies flagrantly disregard Gods instructions regarding the Canaanites? Or is Rahab a special case? The key factor to consider is Rahabs allegiance to Yahweh and Israel rather than to the king of Jericho. Her soliloquy to the spies is one of the most powerful statements of faith issuing from the lips of a foreigner in the entire Hebrew Bible: I know the Lord has given you this land, she told them. We are all afraid of you. Everyone in the land is living in terror. For we have heard how the Lord made a dry path for you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt (vv. 910). Rahab recounted Israels victories over Sihon and Og, the Amorite kings who refused to let them pass by peacefully on their way to the Promised Land. She concluded, No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! No one has the courage to fight after hearing such things. For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below (v. 11). Rahabs testimony is unequivocal; she recognizes Yahweh as the supreme deity. Her words echo the song of Moses and Miriam in Exodus 15, which had announced: The peoples hear and tremble; anguish grips those who live in Philistia. The leaders of Edom are terrified; the nobles of Moab tremble. All who live in Canaan melt away; terror and dread fall upon them. (vv. 1416a) For all intents and purposes, Rahab is no longer a Canaanite. She has declared allegiance to the God of Israel. Sparing Rahab aligns with Gods promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:3: I will bless those who bless you. Article continues below Returning to our movie illustration, Rahab is Toothless the dragon, and the spies are the Hiccup in Israels plan to drive out the Canaanites. But the writer of the Book of Joshua does not frame the spies behavior as problematic. In fact, Rahab is shown to save the day, and the Israelites save her life in return. And we know that Rahabs story ends happily ever after because she marries into the Israelite community. Interestingly, Rahabs husband Salmon was the fourth-generation grandson of a Canaanite woman, which might have shaped his perspective on so-called foreigners. Rahab and Salmon later bear a son, Boaz, who becomes the great-grandfather of King David after marrying Ruth, a Moabite widowanother off-limits foreigner turned Israelite (see Ruth 4:1822; Matt. 1:26). Through their loyalty to the God of Israel, these women become not just peripheral to Israels story but central to it. Rahab, just like Tamar and Miriam and Zipporah and so many others, are not just accessories but primary instruments in Gods plan for redemption as narrated in Scripture. Like Tamar the Canaanite (Gen. 38), Jael the Kenite (Judges 4), and Ruth the Moabite (Ruth 14), Rahab becomes a model of faith and an ally to the people of God. In saving the Israelite spies, she humanizes the other and participates in carrying out Yahwehs divine plan. Rahab stands as a shining example of what is possible: a world in which those destined for destruction can join the people of Israel in their worship of the one true God. Perhaps we shouldnt be surprised, then, that Rahab is listed in the Gospel of Matthew as an ancestor of Jesus, who also chose to save and tame those who were once enemies of Godthough we too were destined for destruction. Carmen Joy Imes is associate professor of Old Testament at Biola University. She contributed notes to two womens study Bibles, the first of which will be released on April 23, 2024. Every Womans Bible (NLT) is available from Tyndale House Publishers. [ This article is also available in espanol. ] Defense Minister Shin Won-sik called on special operations troops Wednesday to equip themselves with capabilities to "swiftly eliminate" the North Korean leadership if it starts a war against the South. Shin made the call at the Army Special Warfare Command in Icheon, 56 kilometers southeast of Seoul, as South Korea has been conducting the Freedom Shield joint military exercise with the United States since last week to boost deterrence against the North's threats. "If Kim Jong-un starts a war, as a key unit of Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR), you must become the world's strongest special operations unit to swiftly eliminate the enemy leadership," Shin said, according to his office. KMPR refers to an operational plan to incapacitate the North's leadership in a major conflict. It is a pillar of the military's "three-axis" deterrence system against North Korea, which also includes the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike platform and the Korea Air and Missile Defense system. South Korean and U.S. special operations troops have been staging combined strike drills to hone combat capabilities since last Friday in connection with Freedom Shield, according to the ministry. The special operations exercise is aimed at strengthening operational capabilities in infiltrating key enemy command facilities and paralyzing their operations. Shin also visited Command Post TANGO (Theater Air Naval Ground Operations), a key wartime command bunker in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, and highlighted training during Freedom Shield to neutralize the North's nuclear and missile threats. "Through this exercise, (we) must master operational systems that neutralize the North's nuclear and missile network early on," Shin was quoted as saying. "(We) must also strengthen operational capabilities to the next level to overwhelm the enemy in all domains." The bunker complex serves as the primary command and control center of South Korean and U.S. forces in the event of an armed conflict. It is known to be strong enough to survive a tactical nuclear attack. (Yonhap) Home News 2 Illinois churches, local businesses vandalized; 1 suspect arrested Two Illinois churches and a couple of local businesses were vandalized over the weekend, with one of the congregations having to cancel in-person services due to the damage. Mount Pisgah Baptist Church and Holy Trinity Catholic Church, both of which are located in Bloomington, suffered varying levels of vandalism over the weekend. Mount Pisgah Pastor Timothy Mark Harris took to Facebook on Sunday morning to report that there was a high level of vandalism to the church building, prompting a cancelation of in-person worship. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe We still trust in the Lord, said Harris, after noting that the damage was found both inside and outside of the sanctuary, then adding that worship would still be held via YouTube. We will have an opportunity for us to worship and thankful to God for this is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad therein. But there is significant damage and so I need you to be patient with me, as the leaders and I are working through this. Harris went on to commend the deacons and trustees who responded to the vandalism, and encouraged congregants to visit other sister churches in the area. The pastor then called for the congregation to be in prayer wherever you are at 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. and to have members check on at least three people and tell them something good. Holy Trinity Catholic suffered two broken windows, according to the Illinois State University-based WGLT, while police eventually arrested an unnamed woman for the vandalism. The arrested suspect might have also been connected to the vandalism of two local businesses over the weekend, reported WGLT. In a separate incident of church vandalism, 29-year-old Noemi Guzman was arrested last week after trying to set her father on fire and for attacking a priest at the property of St. Francis Cabrini Catholic Church of Omaha, Nebraska. The priest barricaded himself in a second-floor room. The Omaha Fire Department responded and used a ladder truck to assist the priest out of a second-floor window. Guzman then barricaded herself in the building, stated the Omaha Police Department earlier this month. Members of the OPD Emergency Response Unit took Guzman into custody after 10 a.m. as she was attempting to jump from a second-floor window. Guzman was transported to the hospital. Charges are pending and the investigation is ongoing. Evidence indicates that the attack was related to the documented mental health issues of Guzman, who, according to a report by KETV of Omaha, was diagnosed with schizophrenia. Home News Jesus disrupts: Christian student group to launch 8-week evangelism tour at elite universities A Christian youth organization will soon launch an eight-week evangelism tour at elite secular universities, with the hope of reaching approximately 75,000 students with the Gospel. The Christian Union, a nonprofit evangelism ministry, will launch its third annual CU Rise event on Sunday. This years theme is Jesus Disrupts. Matt Bennett, founder and president of Christian Union, told The Christian Post that the theme was chosen to introduce students to how radical Jesus is. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe We are doing a much more extensive outreach this year, including national media outreach, so in terms of exposure, we expect this will be our biggest year yet, said Bennett. The schools that the campaign will focus on include Brown University of Rhode Island, Columbia University of New York, Cornell University of New York, Dartmouth College of New Hampshire, Harvard University of Massachusetts, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University of New Jersey, Yale University of Connecticut, and Stanford University of California. Jesus ministered among the downtrodden as well as the influential, and these nine universities produce a disproportionate number of future leaders for the nation and the world, Bennett told CP. Also, students at these schools are, on average, less exposed to the Gospel message than college students elsewhere. God loves all people and wants them to be saved if possible. The campaign seeks to reach students through what Bennett described as a multifaceted plan incorporating digital media as well as on-campus events. This will include promoting the Jesus Disrupts campaign extensively on social media, as well as offline advertisements placed around the nine school campuses. There will also be student-on-the-street interviews asking youth about Jesus and religion, with these set to be combined into videos that will be posted on social media platforms. Additionally, according to Bennett, flyers, posters, stickers, and shirts promoting the Jesus Disrupts message will be distributed at the nine schools, and evangelistic gatherings will be held. Students today at the nations most rigorous schools are largely unaware of the most important message in the history of humanity, Bennett told CP. Jesus Christ has brought more good into the world than any other person, and these students deserve to know. He also is the only one who can forgive sins and transfer us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. We need to do everything we can to give these students the opportunity to believe in Him. Home News Church member arrested for murder of 3 Coptic monks in South Africa A member of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church in South Africa, who was also a monk in training, has been arrested for the murder of three beloved and longtime monks at a monastery in Cullinan, near Pretoria, on Tuesday. The arrest comes just hours after the Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa announced the deaths of Assistant Bishop Father Takla Moussa, Father Minah ava Marcus and Father Youstos ava Marcus in a statement on Facebook. Today, three monks were subjected to a criminal attack in our Coptic monastery of Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Samuel the Confessor in Johannesburg, South Africa, the church said in a statement on Tuesday. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe A source quoted by Times Live said the monks were found stabbed to death and a 35-year-old church member who was on probation to become a Coptic monk had been arrested for their deaths. He is an Egyptian brother in the probation to be a monk and when police did investigations there was no external and forceful entry into the monastery, indicating what happened took place internally, the source said. Police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi confirmed the arrest of the suspect who is set for a court hearing on Thursday. Nevhuhulwi noted in addition to the three murdered monks, a fourth victim who was hit on his hand with an iron rod survived the attack by hiding in a room at the church. The motive of the murders is unknown, she said. The Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church did not share a motive for the killings but called Moussas murder a great loss for us. This is a great loss for us. We will never find a father like Father Takla Moussa that loved and served us unconditionally for about 20 years since he has been in South Africa, the church told Times Live. The Church expresses its deep anguish over the occurrence of such a tragic incident, extends its sincere condolences to the families of the three monks, and is full of confidence that only the merciful and just God is able to grant comfort and reveal the truth, the Facebook statement from the church added. The Northeast American Diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church also shared their condolences in a statement on Facebook. On behalf of our Metropolitan Zachariah Mar Nicholovos and all the clergy and faithful of the Northeast American Diocese, we offer our sincere condolences to our sister Coptic Orthodox Church, as they mourn the loss of three of their monks, namely: Monk Hegumen Takla El-Samuely (deputy of the Diocese of South Africa), Monk Yostos Ava Markos, Monk Mina Ava Markosat, the diocese said. May their memories be eternal and may God grant them the crown of Martyrdom! Home News Paul Alexander, confined 72 years in iron lung, spoke of 'God's love' before death A man who set the Guinness World Record for living the longest time in an iron lung spoke about the love of God his family showed him before his death on Monday at 78. For more than 70 years, Paul Alexander had been confined to the large cylindrical mechanical ventilator that used air pressure to help him breathe since polio paralyzed his chest muscles in 1952 at age 6, three years before the rollout of the polio vaccine. Within days of first feeling ill one summer day, Alexander had lost most of his motor functions and ultimately became paralyzed from the neck down. He spent 18 months in the hospital, where he was unable to communicate with his parents because of a tracheotomy though he noted in interviews that they visited him daily and eventually took him home on Christmas Eve 1953. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Though his doctors did not expect him to survive, and many of the other polio-stricken children in the iron lungs at the hospital died, Alexander chose not to let his disability defeat him. He learned how to write and paint with his mouth using a long plastic stick and spent years learning how to spend time outside the iron lung by gulping down enough air a technique known as "glossopharyngeal breathing." When he was 8, his therapist from the March of Dimes promised him a puppy if he could learn how to use the technique to remain outside the iron lung for three minutes, which influenced the title of his 2020 self-published autobiography, Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung. The book took him eight years to type out or dictate. He eventually was able to spend portions of the day outside the iron lung with the help of a modified wheelchair that kept his body upright. With the aid of a tutor, Alexander graduated second in his class at W.W. Samuell Alexander High School in 1967 at age 21. After two years of fighting assertions from admissions officials that he was too crippled to attend, he also went to college, first at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and then at the University of Texas at Austin, where he received his bachelors degree in 1978 and a law degree in 1984. After passing the bar exam in 1986, he specialized in family law and bankruptcy as an attorney in Dallas and Fort Worth. He fell in love with a woman named Claire, and the two were engaged until her mother demanded the two break it off and never speak to each other again. Alexander's family was religious and attended a Pentecostal church in Dallas, where his father would go to the front of the church to pray, according to a profile in The Guardian. Alexander's brother, Philip, noted to the outlet that their father would sometimes take him up there with him and grow overwhelmed with emotion during such moments. "Hed just cry and cry," he remembered. During an interview with his friend Christopher Ulster in 2022, Alexander detailed the hellish experience of becoming paralyzed at such a young age, but noted how deeply his parents loved him amid his suffering, which he said reminded him of God's love. "I had a whole life lived with them, and it was amazing," he said of his late parents, whose portraits he kept next to him. "You know, they talk about God's love. That's just words. But when you actually receive it, boy, it's something." "I don't believe anybody could be like that," he added. "I cannot believe that people exist of their quality. They loved me so much. They loved their kids." Alexander also explained the importance of finding purpose regardless of one's limitations. "I look at people and I just want to say, 'Why are you here? What is the purpose? There's a purpose in your life. What do you do to make things better?' Because that's the way I think," he said. "If I don't have a purpose today, I'll create one," he added. After meeting him in 2022, Ulster helped offset Alexander's considerable medical expenses by raising more than $143,000 in a GoFundMe campaign, which will now be used to pay for his funeral. "It allowed him to live his last few years stress-free," Alexander's brother, Philip, said in a statement posted to GoFundMe on Tuesday. "It will also pay for his funeral during this difficult time. It is absolutely incredible to read all the comments and know that so many people were inspired by Paul. I am just so grateful." Home News American missionaries trapped in Haiti seek prayers and help As a fight for power continues to unfold in Haiti after the Caribbean nations Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced he would resign Monday amid escalating violence, an American missionary and several of her adopted children trapped there are pleading for prayers and help as they wait to be evacuated. Through their Love A Neighbor ministry in collaboration with their sending church, Camano Chapel in Washington state, Ryan and Jill Dolan, along with their children, have worked as missionaries in Haiti since October 2013. In a statement posted on the ministrys Facebook page on Tuesday, however, a family member revealed that Jill Dolan, along with four of the couples adopted children, got trapped as they tried to leave the country last week. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe My nephew Ryan and his wife Jill are asking for urgent prayer for Jill and four of their adopted teenage kids who were on their way to their biological daughter Sarahs wedding north of West Palm Beach Florida when armed gangs took over the airport in the Haitian capital, PortAuPrince, early last week, trapping them there, the family member said. Flights have been canceled since then, forcing them to stay in a small hotel where they can hear gunshots as the massive gang violence to oust the prime minister continues all over the city, and especially near the airport where they are holed up. The teens are all white (one biological brother-sister set half Mexican), so they stand out in Haiti, which doesn't help at present, the statement added. All roads in and out of the capital are closed as well, so they cant even return to their ministry home on the western Haitian peninsula, where they operate a health clinic, orphanage and an old age home in a mountain village. The family member stated that Ryan Dolan and his son were already in the U.S. when the unrest erupted in Haiti, but of course they are living the drama as well. Calls by The Christian Post to the ministry for further comment went unanswered Wednesday but Jill Dolan told the New York Post in an interview that she has been in touch with the U.S. Embassy in Haiti and she is worried we will be caught in the middle of something really dangerous. Really what they say is like, Be safe. Im just like, OK, well thats not really helpful,' she told the news outlet. My fear is that we will be caught in the middle of something really dangerous. Were already on the front lines of it, were in a bad area. Its kind of depressing. The gunfire never stops. In July 2023, the U.S. State Department re-issued a Level 4 travel advisory for Haiti asking Americans not to travel to the Caribbean nation. The advisory also ordered all U.S. citizens and non-emergency government employees to leave as soon as possible. "Do not travel to Haiti due to kidnapping, crime, civil unrest, and poor health care infrastructure. On July 27, the Department of State ordered the departure of family members of U.S. government employees and non-emergency U.S. government employees. U.S. citizens in Haiti should depart Haiti as soon as possible by commercial or other privately available transportation options, in light of the current security situation and infrastructure challenges," the advisory said. "U.S. citizens wishing to depart Port-au-Prince should monitor local news and only do so when considered safe." That warning didnt stop missionaries like the Dolans or celebrated author Mitch Albom from visiting. Albom has run the Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage in Haiti since 2010. Albom was in Haiti when the recent unrest erupted but he was lucky enough to be among 10 people who were evacuated from Port-au-Prince on Tuesday, according to the Detroit Free Press. "Well, were pretty grimy and exhausted, but after two days of coordinated efforts, a group of us from the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage, including my wife and myself, were evacuated in the middle of the night from a site in Haiti (not our orphanage)," Albom said in a statement Tuesday night after he was rescued with help from U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Michigan. "It was a helicopter effort and was pretty crazy. I want to thank Cory Mills and Lisa McClain, who were instrumental in making this happen as an independent effort. We were lucky to get out," Albom said. Other missionaries like the Rev. Steven Svendsen, the longtime pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, who is trapped in an unknown location in Haiti, said he was hoping he could be evacuated by helicopter as well. He explained in a Facebook post last Saturday that he had thought about trying to get out of Haiti via the Dominican Republic border but he was warned against it. We were ready to make a run for the DR border by motorcycle but got counsel that big Danes kinda stand out on the back of motorbikes. Our flight to MIA is rescheduled for March 22. I cannot divulge our precise location, but I wish there were a way to publicly promote our guest house (in time I plan to do just that), he said. They are feeding us, doing our laundry, and are turning away all business for our protection. I told the owner it might be two weeks. He told me he doesn't care if it is two months. Come on in, U.S. Marines. While Svendsen appears to have made the best of his situation, Jill Dolans family says she is dealing with both physical and economic stress as she had not planned to have to rent several hotel rooms and paying for meals for almost two weeks in PortAuPrince. Jill says their funds are running low due to the unexpected dire situation and has asked for any financial help you can give along with your prayer support. Plus they might need to be evacuated by a private security company, which is expensive. Im praying the U.S. government might help as well, the family member said. The address for aid gifts is their home church, www.camanochapel.org/give-online and hit the Give Online button and select Dolan Family. On top of everything else, press reports say food supplies are running low in the city. And this is a hot conflict not on the other side of the world, but not far from affluent Florida. Thanks for any aid you can give and for your prayers. Home News Bishop could face life in prison after he is accused of setting fire to historic church that was synagogue A Kentucky pastor accused of setting fire to a historic building that once housed his church originally built as a synagogue to serve the largest Jewish congregation in Kentucky in the 1920s could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted of the crime. At the time of the fire on March 13, 2021, the building was on the market for sale but it was last occupied by Greater New Hope Community Church, led by Bishop Jonathan Mullins. That church operates under the name Renewed Hope Community Church. A news release from the Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney of Jefferson County cited by the Courier Journal said Mullins was indicted on one count of first-degree arson by a grand jury Monday for the fire that left one firefighter injured. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Mullins "is alleged to have started the fire based on evidence uncovered in the investigative process," said the release, which noted that the bishop could serve 20 to 50 years or life in prison if he is convicted of the charge. Prior to the building being used as a church, it served as the old synagogue for the Keneseth Israel congregation which was formed in 1926 by the merging of the B'Nai Jacob and Beth Hamadrash Hagodel congregations. It was the largest Jewish congregation in Louisville at the time, according to the National Register of Historic Places. The historic building had to be demolished on Oct. 8, 2021, because the fire had left the building with significant structural damage, according to the Jewish Federation of Louisville. It was determined that there was structural damage, that it couldnt be corrected, and people were coming and going from the building, Ed Wampler, general manager of CDS Demolition, which razed the old synagogue told the federation. It was really a hazard and a liability, so the decision was made to go ahead and take it down. At the time of the demolition Rabbi Ben Freed of Keneseth Israel, which is now in a new location, lamented the loss of the building. Even having only been in town for a few months, I have come to understand how important Keneseth Israels history is to its members, many of whom grew up at the old KI building downtown, Freed said. While we are sad to see the building demolished, we will cherish the memories from that period of Keneseth Israels history as we look towards building a bright future together. Sharon Hordes of Keneseth Israel told WDRB on Monday that their community is still mourning the loss of the building. Their community is still mourning the loss of this building that even though they havent been housed there in so many years, even though it didnt belong to us, it still did in some ways in peoples hearts, she said. Many people have grandparents and great-grandparents who helped to build that building so theres a huge attachment. Home News Candace Owens warns 'Christian nationalism' label meant to 'divide and brainwash Christians' Candace Owens penned an op-ed earlier this week for The Daily Wire warning that the Left is politically weaponizing the term "Christian nationalism" to stoke divisions among Christians. "If youre paying attention, 'Christian nationalist' is everywhere as of late," wrote Owens, who described herself as both a nationalist and a Christian. "Suddenly, Christianity is being smeared, libeled, and attacked. It is being presented in the same vein as white supremacy." The conservative political commentator, who claimed she was recently blacklisted from an undisclosed publication because of allegations that she is a Christian nationalist, noted that the term is being weaponized in a "sinister" way to clamp down on Christian voices by likening their opinions to white supremacy. She also observed how talk of Christian nationalism has recently proliferated in legacy media outlets, with PBS, Axios, NPR and The New York Times all publishing pieces on the topic within the past month alone. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The increase in publicity comes in the wake of Rob Reiner's recent documentary "God and Country," which Owens described as "propaganda" and "Hollywood spin" on the flashpoint topic. Despite earning just a little more than $38,000 nationwide during its opening weekend last month, the film has been garnering attention as Reiner does the media rounds. Owens pointed out how, during a recent interview with CNN anchor Christiane Amanpour, Reiner said he produced the film because he came to believe that Christian nationalism is well-organized and "has taken root far more and far more deeply than I had ever thought." Owens derided the idea that Christian nationalists pose the greatest threat to a country that is increasingly being overrun with crime and other profound problems. "Now, I'm sure when you consider the myriad of issues facing our country today, what you're really concerned about is that there might be some Christians who are also in love with our country," she said. "They are Christian nationalists. When you see drug dealers, illegal immigrants, crime rates, gang violence, Im sure youre thinking, it's the Christians we should be afraid of. Its an absurd idea." Owens went on to characterize the accelerating attacks against so-called Christian nationalism as the latest in a longtime cultural blitz against Christianity in the U.S. "I believe this is a further attempt to divide and brainwash Christians, which is something that has gone on for decades," she wrote. Roughly since the removal of prayer in public schools in the 1960s, Owens said, "there has been a concerted effort to divide Christians, to make them feel embarrassed about their religion." "That push just continues with more force; that is exactly what is happening again with the topic of Christian nationalism," she added. Owens has been outspoken about her Christian faith over the years, even to the point of clashing with her colleague, Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro. Last November, the two got into a spat on X when Owens posted portions of the Sermon on the Mount after footage emerged that showed Shapiro criticizing her as "absolutely disgraceful" for her rhetoric on the Israel-Hamas war. Home News Chick-fil-A distances itself from franchise owner charged with sex crimes Chick-fil-A, the popular fast-food restaurant whose corporate purpose seeks to glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us and have a positive influence on all who come in contact with the business, is distancing itself from one of its independent franchise owners accused of sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl he met online. The franchise owner, Stacy Lee Austin, 49, of Belmont, Ohio, is accused of driving 400 miles to abuse the teenager in her home in North Carolina on March 5, according to the Rowan County Sheriffs Office, in Salisbury, cited by USA Today. Investigators say Austin arranged to pick up the teenager in North Carolina on an unnamed social media app, but while he was in the childs home he performed sexual acts with the teen, The Intelligencer said. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The teenagers father allegedly walked in on Austin inside his home and called 911 to report a residential break-in. Investigators responding to the scene found Austins underwear in a bathroom trash can along with some of the child's clothes. Austin later admitted to investigators that he engaged in sex acts with the teen. He was charged with a statutory sex offense with a child but indicated that he was worried about losing his job as the owner of a Chick-fil-A franchise. When asked about Austins arrest, a Chick-fil-A spokesperson told NBC affiliate WCMH the company has zero tolerance for the type of serious conduct alleged. Stacy Austin currently is an independent franchise owner, but as the investigation and legal process continues, he will not be present in the restaurant, the spokesperson said. While KFC still remains much bigger than Chick-fil-A globally, Chick-fil-A has been leading KFC since 2012. Most of Chick-fil-A's restaurants are located in the South and the company has attracted a loyal following for its chicken sandwiches. The company notes on its website that a part of its recipe for success involves not doing business on Sundays to give people time to worship. "Our founder, Truett Cathy, made the decision to close on Sundays in 1946 when he opened his first restaurant in Hapeville, Georgia. He has often shared that his decision was as much practical as spiritual," said the company. "He believes that all franchised Chick-fil-A operators and their restaurant employees should have an opportunity to rest, spend time with family and friends, and worship if they choose to do so. That's why all Chick-fil-A restaurants are closed on Sundays. It's part of our recipe for success." Home News Christians face harassment in over 160 countries as restrictions reach record levels: Pew study In an alarming trend, Christians experienced harassment in 160 countries in 2021, according to a comprehensive study of 190 countries published by the Pew Research Center, which revealed that government restrictions on religion also reached an all-time high. The study, which is part of the Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures project, showed that both government actions and social hostilities contributed to the harassment of religious groups. Government restrictions on religion reached an all-time high, with 183 countries imposing various forms of limitations, the highest number since the study began in 2007. Christians, as the largest religious group globally, faced harassment in various forms, from derogatory statements to physical violence. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The study found that Christians were harassed by governments in 160 countries, an increase from 155 in the previous year. This harassment ranged from subtle forms of discrimination to overt acts of violence and oppression. Muslims faced harassment in 141 countries, down from 145 in 2020. Jews were harassed by governments and social groups or individuals in 91 countries in 2021, down from 94 countries in 2020, the third highest total of any religious group, the study said, noting that Jews make up just 0.2% of the worlds population. In terms of physical harassment, which included property damage, assaults on people, detentions, displacements and killings, the study reported incidents in 137 countries, with governments being the primary perpetrators in 100 of these. Property damage was the most common type of physical harassment, occurring in 105 countries. Europe had the highest share of countries reporting property damage related to religion, with incidents such as the closure of 21 mosques in France and attacks on Catholic and Jewish sites in Poland. Physical assaults on individuals due to their religious beliefs were reported in 91 countries. In the Middle East and North Africa, assaults were particularly prevalent, with 75% of countries in the region reporting such incidents, including a missile attack on a Sunni-majority mosque in Yemen. Detentions related to religious beliefs were reported in 77 countries, with the Middle East-North Africa region having the highest share of countries reporting such incidents. In Sri Lanka, 311 individuals remained imprisoned without formal charges for alleged connections to the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. Government restrictions on religion laws, policies and actions by state officials that limit religious beliefs and practices reached a new peak globally, according to the analysis. The global median level of government restrictions on religion increased to 3.0 in 2021, up from 2.8 in 2020, indicating a tightening of control over religious practices. However, the global median level of social hostilities involving religion decreased slightly, from 1.8 in 2020 to 1.6 in 2021. In 2021, 55 countries, accounting for 28% of the total, experienced high or very high levels of government restrictions. This was a slight decrease from the 57 countries, or 29%, that reached this level in 2020, 2019 and 2012. Despite this slight decrease, the overall median index score for all countries increased due to a greater number of countries showing an increase in index scores compared to those showing a decrease, the study said. The study also highlighted the dual nature of government actions regarding religion. While imposing restrictions and engaging in harassment, governments in 161 countries provided benefits to religious organizations, such as funding for religious education and maintenance of religious buildings. This paradoxical situation raises questions about the motivations behind government policies toward religious groups. Home News Coptic Orthodox Church suspends talks with Catholics over blessing of same-sex couples The Coptic Orthodox Church has reportedly suspended its dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church over the Catholic Church's decision to allow priests to bless same-sex couples. Coptic leadership held a Holy Synod last week in Wadi El-Natrun, Egypt. The church hierarchy recommended various issues, including recognizing assorted monasteries, adding mental health topics to marital counseling and praying for unity within the Orthodox Church. Coptic Orthodox spokesman Father Moussa Ibrahim explained in a video that "the most notable" action from the annual Holy Synod was "to suspend theological dialogue with the Catholic Church after its change of position on the issue of homosexuality." Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe In a statement released last week, the Coptic Church elaborated on its stance, stating that it "affirms its firm position of rejecting all forms of homosexual relationships, because they violate the Holy Bible and the law by which God created man as male and female, and the Church considers any blessing of such relations, whatever its type, to be a blessing for sin, and this is unacceptable." "After consulting with the sister churches of the Eastern Orthodox family, it was decided to suspend the theological dialogue with the Catholic Church, reevaluate the results achieved by the dialogue from its beginning twenty years ago, and establish new standards and mechanisms for the dialogue to proceed in the future," read the statement. "Whoever suffers from homosexual tendencies and controls themselves from sexual behaviors, the control is credited to them as a struggle. These who are struggling are left with the warfares of thought, sight, and attractions, just like heterosexuals. As for someone who falls into homosexual behaviors, they are like the heterosexuals who fall into the sin of adultery/fornication, needing true repentance." Last December, Pope Francis approved a "Fiducia Supplicans" declaration, which provided "a broadening and enrichment of the classical understanding of blessings, which is closely linked to a liturgical perspective." "It is precisely in this context that one can understand the possibility of blessing couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church's perennial teaching on marriage," stated the declaration. The Vatican document said that "when people ask for a blessing, an exhaustive moral analysis should not be placed as a precondition for conferring it" and that "those seeking a blessing should not be required to have prior moral perfection." Although the declaration reaffirmed the Catholic Church's belief that homosexuality is sinful and that same-sex unions were not to be condoned, critics of the document contend it contradicts Catholic teaching on marriage and sexuality. In February, nearly 100 Catholic clergy and scholars signed an open letter demanding that Pope Francis withdraw the declaration, arguing that it "attempts to introduce a separation between doctrine and liturgy on the one hand, and pastoral practice on the other." "But this is impossible: in fact, pastoral care, like all action, always presupposes a theory and, therefore, if pastoral care performs something that does not correspond to the doctrine, what is actually being proposed is a different doctrine," continued the letter. "The fact is that a priest is imparting a blessing on two people who present themselves as a couple, in the sexual sense, and precisely a couple defined by its objectively sinful relationship. Therefore regardless of the intentions and interpretations of the document, or the explanations the priest may try to give this action will be the visible and tangible sign of a different doctrine, which contradicts traditional doctrine." Catholics for Choice President Jamie L. Manson released a statement last year calling the Vatican declaration "stunning and historic." She claimed it "will be transformative for advancing LGBTQIA+ visibility and inclusion." "There is still a long way to go before the church fully affirms the inherent, God-given dignity and equality of LGBTQIA+ Catholics, our marriages, and our families," stated Manson. "Today's declaration reveals that this is not a Pope Francis problem, but a middle-management problem one caused by decades of hardened institutional stigma and outspoken anti-LGBTQIA+ advocacy from a hierarchy increasingly mired in culture wars, in defiance of a pope who is moving the church in an opposite, more inclusive direction." Korea's antitrust regulator said Wednesday it will strengthen the monitoring of unfair business acts by foreign platform operators and equally apply relevant domestic laws to them for swift and stern punishment for any illegalities. They are part of a set of measures presented by the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) that aim to better protect consumers amid growing complaints regarding their use of China's AliExpress and other foreign online retailers. According to the plan, the FTC will beef up the monitoring of foreign online platform operators for their possible violation of electronic commerce regulations by abusing dominant market positions over smaller businesses. The regulator will push for revising the e-commerce act to enforce overseas operators to designate a local agent in charge of customer services. The Korean Intellectual Property Office will join hands with the Korea Customs Service for stronger efforts to prevent the circulation of fake goods through customers' direct purchases of foreign items online, the FTC said. The government will push to launch a hotline with foreign retailers to address users' complaints, and expand the operation of state customer services. It seeks to sign an agreement with AliExpress, Temu and other entities that calls for cooperation and voluntary efforts to better ensure the rights of consumers. "Foreign online platforms are subject to domestic law, but there have been limitations regarding our inspection and crackdown on their acts that cause harm to customers. The government will double efforts to fairly and swiftly administer laws so as to ease 'reverse discrimination' concerns," FTC official Park Se-min said. The regulator is conducting an inspection into AliExpress on suspicions of its violation of consumer protection duties, as the number of complaints filed against it and submitted to the Consumers Union of Korea rose sharply to 465 cases last year from the previous year's 93, in line with the sharp growth in the number of users. (Yonhap) Home News England's NHS to stop prescribing puberty blockers for kids: 'Not enough evidence' The National Health Service of England says it will stop providing puberty-blocking drugs for children with gender dysphoria, save for when the drugs are part of a clinical trial. NHS England made the announcement on Tuesday, following several months of research and a review of evidence provided by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). "NHS England has carefully considered the evidence review conducted by NICE and further published evidence available to date," a spokesperson for NHS said, as quoted by The Guardian. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe "We have concluded that there is not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of puberty suppressing hormones to make the treatment routinely available at this time." Maria Caulfield, parliamentary under secretary of state at the Department of Health and Social Care, praised the NHS's course of action, calling it a "landmark decision." "We welcome this landmark decision by the NHS to end the routine prescription of puberty blockers and this guidance which recognises that care must be based on evidence, expert clinical opinion and in the best interests of the child," said Caulfield in a statement shared with media. "The NHS must ensure its Gender Identity Services protect, support and act in the best interests of children and we will continue to work with NHS England to protect children in this area." Former Prime Minister Liz Truss, who remains a member of Parliament, tweeted that she supported the NHS decision and is championing legislation to expand this ban to include private entities. Stonewall, a British LGBT advocacy group, expressed concern over the decision, claiming that while the new rule will not interfere with minors currently undergoing treatment, it could prevent around 8,000 more youths from beginning a puberty blocker regimen. "All trans young people deserve access to high quality, timely healthcare," Stonewall stated. "Ultimately what matters is that trans and gender diverse young people have the best possible care, and we welcome any research that will lead to that outcome." Last June, NHS England issued interim guidance stating that it will restrict the use of puberty blockers for gender dysphoric children, citing research overseen by Dr. Hillary Cass, the former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health. The government entity also established a Children and Young People's Gender Dysphoria Research Oversight Board, which was tasked with researching the impact of puberty-suppressing hormones on minors. Amid an exponential increase in children being referred to an NHS gender identity clinic in the last decade, Cass published an independent review in 2022, finding that "social transitioning" is not a "neutral act" and could have "significant effects" in terms of "psychological functioning." Her review led to shuttering the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust's gender identity clinic in favor of more local clinics. "The rationale for use of puberty blockers at Tanner Stage 2 of development was based on data that demonstrated that children, particularly birth-registered boys who had early gender incongruence, were unlikely to desist once they reached early puberty; this rationale does not necessarily apply to later-presenting young people, including the predominant referral group of birth-registered girls," Cass wrote. "We do not fully understand the role of adolescent sex hormones in driving the development of both sexuality and gender identity through the early teen years, so by extension we cannot be sure about the impact of stopping these hormone surges on psychosexual and gender maturation. We therefore have no way of knowing whether, rather than buying time to make a decision, puberty blockers may disrupt that decision-making process." The NHS also proposed guidelines in October 2022 urging doctors not to so easily encourage minors to socially transition by changing their names or pronouns during what may be a "transient phase." Home News Ukraine Evangelical leader tells US lawmakers Russia is targeting Ukrainian Christians A Ukrainian Evangelical leader and former member of Parliament has met with members of the U.S. Senate to detail how Russia has killed Christians during its invasion of Ukraine, calling for continued support in fighting what he calls "evil forces" trying to "destroy civilization." Pavlo Unguryan, the executive secretary for the Ukrainian Evangelical Conservative Movement, expressed appreciation for the support his country has received from the United States government and American churches. He warns that Russia is persecuting Christians in Ukraine, highlighting a recent church bombing in Kupiansk that killed a priest. In an interview with The Christian Post following his advocacy in Washington last week, Unguryan described Ukraine as a "border country for all of the European continent," stressing why the country needs international support. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe "We fight not just for Ukrainian freedom, but for the whole of Europe and Baltic countries," Unguryan told CP. "We are on the border between light and darkness, between West and East, between civilization, which was created on Judeo-Christian values." Unguryan met with multiple political leaders, including Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. The former parliamentarian told CP that he showed the politicians photos of Christians who have been killed, and he urged the senators to continue supporting Ukraine. Unguryan highlighted the death of Ukrainian priest Yuriy Klymko, who was among four people who were killed last week after Russia dropped a bomb on The Church of Jesus Christ in the Ukrainian city of Kupiansk. Russia also used Iranian drones in Odesa last week, which killed at least 12 people, including a Baptist pastors daughter and grandson. "We need to stop [Vladimir] Putin," Unguryan added. "Our civilization needs to be uniting together because it looks like evil forces are uniting together to destroy our civilization." Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, and he said Russia has targeted Christians throughout the war. Evangelicals are at risk, according to Unguryan, stating that Russia does not respect any religious group aside from the Russian Orthodox Church. During the International Religious Freedom Summit in January, officials and churches said that Russian soldiers and occupation officials have committed at least 76 acts of religious persecution in Ukraine since February 2022. As Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights in Ukraine Dmytro Lubinets told attendees at the event, Evangelical Christians, including Baptists, Pentecostals and Seventh-day Adventists have suffered greatly since the invasion. "The Russian military has repeatedly threatened the total physical elimination of all Evangelical believers, calling them American spies, sectarians and enemies of the Russian Orthodox people," Lubinets said. "To kill a person, to demolish a church, the Russians do everything to destroy us as a nation." On Tuesday, the White House announced additional assistance, marking the Biden administration's 55th tranche of equipment provided from Department of Defense inventories to Ukraine since August 2021. The package is valued at up to $300 million and "includes capabilities to support Ukraine's immediate air defense, artillery, and anti-tank requirements." "With a lack of replacement funds available to replenish DoD inventories, the Administration had been forced to pause PDA packages since December 2023," the White House announcement reads. "DoD is able to support this extraordinary package after identifying contract savings from previously appropriated supplemental funding that can be applied to replace DoD stocks. Today's announcement provides a short-term stop gap, but it is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs." Home News Orthodox, Catholic leaders recommend taking steps to recognize interfaith marriages Religious leaders from two separate Christian denominations have made recommendations for actions each should take to accommodate spouses in mixed marriages with a member of the other denomination as each indicated that reunification between the two branches won't be happening anytime soon. A group of Orthodox and Catholic Church leaders have compiled a new document called The Pastoral Care of Mixed Marriages: Neither Yours nor MineBut Ours. The document, released last week and crafted last May by a coalition called the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation, outlines a course of action the two churches should take to address the increased prevalence of interfaith marriages comprising members of both denominations while stopping short of issuing policy changes. Members of the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation, which dates back to 1965, include: Orthodox Co-Chairman Metropolitan Methodios, Catholic Co-Chairman Cardinal Joseph Tobin of the Archdiocese of Newark, Orthodox Interim Co-Secretary the Rev. Dr. Nicolas Kazarian, and Catholic Co-Secretary the Rev. Brian Daley. The document was created at the Consultations gathering at St. Augustines Seminary of Toronto in Ontario, Canada. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe The document acknowledges the division between the Orthodox and Catholic Church while stressing that we must shepherd our flocks and care for the people of God, especially when Catholic and Orthodox faithful enter into mixed marriages. It begins by noting the history of joint statements on marriage between the two churches, concluding with the 1990 Johnstown statement summarized as dividing the parties in a mixed marriage into yours and mine. The religious leaders who compiled the document suggested embracing a new starting principle for mixed marriages that included a joint solicitude for the spouses and a focus on the pastoral care of each mixed marriage as our concern. The document laments that many increasingly view the institution of marriage as superfluous and unnecessary and that where matrimony does occur, civil marriage is becoming normative for many people. It is in this context that our churches must continue to shepherd the flock, the document added. Recommendations developed by the religious leaders from both denominations took into account Catholic and Orthodox teachings on marriage. After explaining that an Orthodox bishop or priest is required to be present at a wedding, to bless this union with special prayers in order for a marriage to be considered valid in the Orthodox Church, the document recommends that the Catholic party of the proposed marriage with an Orthodox be married with the Orthodox bishop or priest officiating, after consultation by the partners with their pastors, and with an official dispensation, for the Catholic partner, from ecclesiastical form. Another recommendation in the document calls on the Orthodox Church to consider the extension of ecclesiastical economy to Orthodox parties in legal contractual unions that have been established through the exchange of matrimonial consent and made with the intention of a lifelong bond in the Catholic liturgical and canonical tradition. It noted that this economy would only be extended to the Orthodox spouse to enable him or her to continue serving as a member of the Orthodox Church in good standing even though they are in a Catholic marriage. After highlighting the differences in views between the Orthodox and Catholic Churches on divorce and remarriage, the document suggests that Catholic hierarchs seek ways to receive the pastoral decisions of Orthodox spiritual courts and hierarchs and not only recognize, with the Orthodox hierarchy, the remarriages, in some carefully examined cases, of divorced spouses in mixed marriages, but also allow such divorced and remarried Catholic parties in mixed marriages with Orthodox Christians eucharistic participation in the Catholic Church. Additional recommendations offered in the document ask that both churches exercise their responsibilities for the pastoral care of spouses and their children in mixed marriages jointly in a spirit of love and mutual respect and that both churches exercise their responsibilities for the pastoral care of spouses and their children in mixed marriages jointly in a spirit of love and mutual respect. The document concluded by recommending that materials for Christian marriage and family life be updated and jointly developed, both for the guidance of the clergy and for the use of the people involved in Orthodox-Catholic marriages and that these materials accurately reflect both the pastoral preparation and the decision-making required prior to any wedding to avoid indifferentism and spiritual confusion. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a statement on March 5 insisting that this new text does not speak officially for either Church. At the same time, the body of bishops praised the document as the creation of a group of experienced theologians highly esteemed by their peers that was submitted to all the members of both Churches for their prayerful reflection and discussion. Home News Pakistani Christian accused of blasphemy for rejecting Islam, refusing to deny Jesus as Lord LAHORE, Pakistan A former classmate of an 18-year-old Christian in Pakistan accused him of blasphemy after failing to convert him to Islam, impeding the accuseds college studies and his familys hopes for a better future, sources said. Police arrested Ashbeel Ghauri from his home in Attock city, Punjab Province on March 6 after his former classmate, Sheraz Gulistan, accused him of disrespecting Islam during a religious discussion in a WhatsApp group two months ago, said his father, Babar Ghauri. We were shocked when the police came to arrest Ashbeel, Ghauri said. My son had not shared with us before that Sheraz and some other Muslim classmates had been pressuring him to change his Christian faith. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe A devout Christian passionate about his faith, Ashbeel Ghauri had begun college while his former classmate, Gulistan, entered an Islamic seminary (madrassa), said his father, who belongs to the Presbyterian church. Gulistan and other Muslims had engaged Ashbeel Ghauri in religious discussions on several occasions in a bid to convert him, he said. His former classmates have implicated him in a false blasphemy case to destroy his educational career and prospects because he refused to renounce his faith in Christ, Babar Ghauri said. Ashbeel has categorically denied making any derogatory remarks about Islam, Babar Ghauri told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. He always asked academic questions about the Islamic faith whenever he was forcibly dragged into such conversation. As Christians living in Pakistan, we are all well aware of the sensitivities involving religious discussion, and our children are taught from day one to avoid getting into such arguments. Ashbeel Ghauri is the oldest of three children, and the family had pinned their hopes on him for a better future, his father said. Its a crucial time for my family, especially for Ashbeel, but we know God will walk us through this test, and he will emerge victorious in faith, he said. His mother and I met him in prison on March 8, and though he is concerned about his condition, Ashbeel told us not to worry because he knows Christ will not forsake him. Gulistan accused him of saying in WhatsApp text messages in January that he did not believe in the Islamic Allah, according to First Information Report No. 185/24, registered at the Attock City Police Station under Section 295-A of Pakistans blasphemy law. In the text messages, Ashbeel is also alleged to have questioned the Islamic concept of allowing four marriages for Muslim men, said his attorney, Nadeem Hassan of legal aid group Christians True Spirit (CTS). The complainant then alleges that in a WhatsApp call to him, the Christian had allegedly said that Islam was a false religion, and its teachings were also false, Hassan told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. Ashbeel merely stated that he believed in the God of the Bible and said his Christian faith did not allow four marriages contrary to Islamic teachings. The complainants allegation that Ashbeel called Islam a false religion during a phone call has not been substantiated with any evidence. Section 295-A relates to hurting religious sentiments and is punishable by up to 10 years in prison or a fine, or both, Hassan said. He said he hoped the court would grant bail to the Christian student because the text messages shared by the complainant did not contain any derogatory words against the Islamic faith. The court should consider the case on merit, keeping in view the fact that Ashbeel has not committed any blasphemy, Hassan said. The complainant has instituted the case based on text messages that were exchanged two months ago, which shows that he nurtured a grudge against the victim. It would be a grave miscarriage of justice if the court does not grant bail to the student and gives him an opportunity for a fair trial. At least 329 individuals were accused of blasphemy under the law in 2023, according to the Center for Social Justice (CSJ), an advocacy group based in Lahore. Among those accused, 247 were Muslims, 65 were Ahmadis, 11 were Christians and one was Hindu, while the religious affiliation of five others was unknown. Punjab Province had the highest number of people accused of blasphemy, with 179, followed by 79 in Sindh Province, 37 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 32 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and one each in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan, according to the CSJ report. It added that seven people accused of blasphemy were killed extra-judicially in 2023, including four in Punjab and one each in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Azad Jammu Kashmir. At least 2,449 individuals have been accused of committing blasphemy between 1987 and 2023, according to the CSJ report. The highest number of accused by religion were 1,279 Muslims (52%), followed by 782 Ahmadis (32%), 291 Christians (12%), and 45 Hindus (2%), while the religion of other (2%) was unconfirmed. Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors 2024 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian, as it was the previous year. Originally published at Christian Daily International-Morning Star News Home News Pastors' parsonage exemption: What would televangelists pay if their mansions werent tax exempt? "Inside Edition" recently investigated the topic of tax-exempt parsonages. The news report featured drone footage and pictures of some of Americas largest church-owned mansions. Investigative reporter Lisa Guerrero attempted to interview televangelist Jesse Duplantis regarding his residence, but he refused to answer questions. Associate Pastor and Political Scientist Ryan Burge told "Inside Edition": If you have a multi-million-dollar house, your property tax bill could be $30,000, $40,000, $50,000 a year. But if its classified as a parsonage, now you dont have to pay property taxes on that home. That $50,000 could pay the salary of an elementary school teacher in your local public school. The property-tax exemption on church and ministry-owned homes is governed by state laws. It differs from the parsonage housing allowance which was created by Congress and involves a tax exemption from the federal income tax. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe In 2021, a Houston Chronicle investigation identified 28 parsonages in Texas worth more than $1 million. Here's a list of the largest pastor parsonages in the United States and how much televangelists and their churches are saving by using this tax exemption. Texas Lawmaker Rejects Christian Nationalism, Swimmer Riley Gaines On Rogan's Podcast, Hamas Holding Up Ceasefire Deal link to download the audio instead. link to download the audio instead. 07:57 07:57 Top headlines for Wednesday, March 13, 2024 In this episode, we start with Texas State Representative James Talarico's bold accusation against Christian nationalists for prioritizing power over the teachings of Jesus and the potential threat to democracy. Next, we navigate the tense stalemate in the Middle East, where Hamas's demands in ceasefire negotiations, including the condition of releasing vulnerable hostages, pose a significant challenge. Lastly, we explore a thought-provoking dialogue between Joe Rogan and former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines on the subjects of Satan, Jesus, and the contentious debate around transgenderism and moral society. Subscribe to this Podcast Follow Us on Social Media Get the Edifi App Subscribe to Our Newsletter Links to the News Top headlines for Wednesday, March 13, 2024 In this episode, we start with Texas State Representative James Talarico's bold accusation against Christian nationalists for prioritizing power over the teachings of Jesus and the potential threat to democracy. Next, we navigate the tense stalemate in the Middle East, where Hamas's demands in ceasefire negotiations, including the condition of releasing vulnerable hostages, pose a significant challenge. Lastly, we explore a thought-provoking dialogue between Joe Rogan and former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines on the subjects of Satan, Jesus, and the contentious debate around transgenderism and moral society. Home Opinion GOP, stop fearing what the Left is cheering I think it went too far. These were the exact words President Biden spoke in an interview about the supremely wrong Roe decision that commercialized the killing of Americas Posterity. I dont like the Supreme Court decision on abortion, Senator Biden explained. I think it went too far. I dont think that a woman has the sole right to say what should happen to her body. That was 1974. Fast forward 50 years, and Joe Biden cannot celebrate and promote abortion enough. He's become the abortion industrys Cheerleader-in-Chief. And Vice President Kamala Harris is his megaphone. The State of the Union (SOTU) solidified this reality. As someone conceived in rape but adopted in love, I was there in person to hear the cheering of the killing of those of us deemed less than human. As the honored guest of the unapologetically pro-life Congressman Bob Good (R-VA), a rare statesman in a tumultuous sea of predatory politicians, I represent millions who have (and are) unjustly branded as unwanted. Triumph can rise from tragedy. The Democratic Party and its abortion arm Planned Parenthood hate my storyline. My life, and many others like me, prove their scare-no-matter-what narratives wrong. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Female Democrat lawmakers, clad in fake-feminist white, pretended they were champions for life well, at least through IVF. Although Biden referred to it as AVF, the radically pro-abortion President called it a miracle of life yet doesnt recognize natural pregnancy as the same. Even the Republican Speaker of the House applauded the Presidents proclamation to guarantee AVF [sic] nationwide. Let me quick give a breakdown of In-Vitro Fertilization, a highly unregulated industry (like Big Abortion) that is legal in all 50 states. A woman is given injectable hormones to stimulate multiple eggs to mature. Those eggs are then retrieved and fertilized with sperm in a lab and the resultant embryos are then processed. (Biology refresher: Human life begins at fertilization.) Some embryos are allowed to live; some are destroyed because they dont make the cut. Also, couples can sex-select their embryos and have the unwanted gender discarded. The selected embryo is transferred to the uterus. According to several IVF sources, the process fails in approximately 50% of embryo transfers. Unused embryos are often frozen in a process called cryopreservation and used later. According to the Cleveland Clinic, freezing can damage or destroy embryos. Thats a lot of intentional killing for one successful pregnancy. The pro-abortion American Society for Reproductive Medicine is a trade association for the IVF field. It refers to human embryos as reproductive tissue and believes that every American should have unhindered access to assisted reproductive technologies. Embryos are not children, proclaims the ASRM. Building a family is a fundamental right of all people, no matter where you live. Wait. Isnt living the most fundamental right? As much as I have sympathy for any married wife and husband who cannot conceive naturally, every method of creating family is not ethical. Look at the abuses of surrogacy, for instance. What is the moral difference between killing an embryo at an abortion mill and killing an embryo at an IVF clinic? Biden then angrily scolded the Supreme Court for overturning Roe. The political Party that violently denied people of my complexion our personhood is the same Democratic Party that denies people of my origin our humanity. Biden used the extreme examples like that of Texan Kate Cox who had her disabled child with Trisomy 18 aborted. I wish the Left would believe that empowerment is providing resources for those going through difficult diagnoses rather than offering the violent injustice of abortion. What if Kate Cox had been told about VeritysVillage.com, a resource created by a mother of 8 whose youngest child has lived with the disorder for seven years? Isnt help and hope true empowerment? Biden didnt mention creating any resources for those facing unplanned or difficult pregnancies, just more abortions. He threatened: Clearly clearly, those bragging about overturning Roe v. Wade have no clue about the power of women. Clearly clearly, a President bragging about an industry that kills millions of unborn human lives and exploits mothers has no clue about the power of pro-life women. He didnt mention the nations 3,000 pregnancy centers or the 450 maternity homes mostly run by women who compassionately help turn fear into faith, frailty into freedom. A self-proclaimed Catholic, Biden has no use for Catholic teaching on the sanctity of human life. During SOTU, he promised he will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again. Not that Democrats are interested in actualities, but Roe allowed abortion only through the seventh month with provisions that states could regulate at the point of viability (which today can be as early as 21 weeks). This is NOT what the DNC wants. Theyve passed and have introduced radical laws allowing taxpayer-funded abortion throughout the entire pregnancy up until birth (see here, here and here), despite a corrupt mainstream media trying to politically run defense for them. Safe, legal and rare which was always a lie has now become unsafe, unregulated and unlimited. Frustratingly, the GOP is grossly failing to counter the Lefts extreme abortion rhetoric. Their SOTU response, given by Alabama Senator Katie Britt, was an abysmal and clueless effort on many fronts. As usual, GOP leadership scrambles to be poll-driven instead of principle-driven. Britt, sitting in her kitchen, weakly asserted: Well, I know which choice our children deserve and I know the choice the Republican Party is fighting for. Its why we strongly support nationwide access to in-vitro fertilization. She never once mentioned abortion. For the love, GOP. Stop fearing what theyre cheering! A radically pro-abortion Biden ironically did speak some words of truth during the SOTU: The very idea of America is that were all created equal, deserves to be treated equally throughout our lives. And our lives begin, inarguably, at conception. Sadly, the Democratic Party has never gotten created equal right. Home Opinion Martin Scorsese: A cautionary tale about authorial intent Not all audiences walk away from a film having appropriately interpreted its themes and messages. Sometimes thats the fault of the filmmakers, other times the fault of the moviegoers. In reference to the latter, film critic Jeffrey Overstreet writes the following: People misinterpret and twist great art all the time. Many believe Satan is the hero of John Miltons Paradise Lost. Its possible to read The Great Gatsby and come away seeing Gatsby as a role model. Just look at all of the ugly ways in which people have misinterpreted the Scriptures and used them to advance their own self-interest. These are salient points worth considering. Still, there are occasions in which filmmakers have inadvertently communicated messages other than what was intended. And its not just a mistake made by rookie artisans. Get Our Latest News for FREE Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know. Subscribe Screen Junkies recently summed up Martin Scorseses film Killers of the Flower Moon like this: Legendary director Martin Scorsese atones for the historical injustice of making criminals look cool or competent in his previous films. The implicit point behind this humorous jab is that Scorsese has a habit of portraying antiheroes as glamorous and appealing. No director not even living legends should be above legitimate criticism. As such, lets evaluate three samples from Scorseses filmography, comparing his original intent with the functional result. Taxi Driver(1976) In writing about Taxi Driver, Scorsese shares how I was shocked by the way audiences took the violence. He had intended the brutality to create a violent catharsis like some strange California therapy session. Instead, moviegoers yelled and screamed with evident approval. When I made it, writes Scorsese, I didnt intend to have the audience react with that feeling (Roger Eberts Book of Film, p. 534). Audiences responded to his stylistic choices in a way that he did not intend indeed, in a way opposed to his intentions. As mentioned earlier, sometimes this discordance between filmmaker and audience is due to the immaturity of the former, not the latter. With Scorsese and Taxi Driver, however, the situation is different: Scorseses example illustrates how a directors intention does not exist in a vacuum. It would be intellectually dishonest to believe artistic intent automatically nullifies any potential misuses of style or technique. And explicit depictions of violence are susceptible to unintended messages. Cultural commentator Samuel D. James addresses the violence of Scorseses works: It seems to me that the idea that you can elicit moral revulsion merely by depicting evil assumes two things. First, it assumes that the realm of the visual can be manipulated to bypass titillation and proceed straight to condemnation. Second, it assumes an audience who possess a moral imagination that would both motivate and equip them to do this. The first assumption could be false. The second assumption absolutely is. Indeed, there is much more at play in a film than just filmmaker intent. The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) Scorsese explains how he was very moved by Pier Paolo Pasolinis The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964), a film recognized by the Vatican as one of many worthwhile productions during the first hundred years of [cinemas] existence. And for years, Scorsese wanted to make a film about Jesus. In the end, with The Last Temptation of Christ, Scorsese attempted to explore the dual nature of Christs divinity and humanity, with an emphasis on the latter. The idea was that, if we could witness God incarnate facing temptations like we do, we could see that he cares about us more because he really knows what we go through. Scorseses intent was not to shake anybodys faith. Such a result, he said, would be the last thing in the world Id want to do. However, Catholic critic Steven D. Greydanus provides a measured and reasonable assessment of the film: A Jesus who commits sins who even thinks He commits sins, who talks a great deal about needing forgiveness and paying with His life for His own sins; a Jesus who himself speaks blasphemy and idolatry, calling fear his god and talking about being motivated more by fear than by love; who has an ambivalent at best relationship with the Father, even trying to merit divine hatred so that God will leave Him alone all of this is utterly antithetical to Christian belief and sentiment. This is not merely focusing on Jesus humanity, this is effectively contradicting His divinity. Even Roger Ebert, who initially defended the film against charges of heresy, eventually changed his mind: The film is indeed technically blasphemous, he wrote. I have been persuaded of this by a thoughtful essay by Steven D. Greydanus of the National Catholic Register, a mainstream writer who simply and concisely explains why. That Scorsese did not craft the film with ill intent is ultimately beside the point. Blasphemy is blasphemy, no matter how sincere. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) Scorsese explicitly portrayed the debauched lifestyle of Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his associates in The Wolf of Wall Street, but he did so with specific and purposeful intentions. In an interview with Deadline, he explained that he didnt want audience members to see themselves as mere observers of Belforts avarice. He wanted them to be slapped into recognizing that this behavior has been encouraged in this country, and that it affects both the business world and how we live our own lives. To once again quote Overstreet, the filmmakers intentions were to zoom in and expose evil the way doctors enlarge X-rays to expose cancer so that we will be shocked by the reality of it, live in greater awareness about it, avoid it, and avoid contributing to the conditions that make it possible. These intentions are good laudable, even. But the methods Scorsese chose to tell his story ended up promoting some of what he wished to condemn, especially when it came to the sexual debasement of women. The way actors Margot Robbie and Maria Di Angelis were cast; the way in which the screenplay itself dehumanized Naomi Lapaglia (Robbies character); the way certain actors were aroused by the sexually degrading acts being filmed; Robbies nerve-wracking experiences filming scenes of sexualized nudity all these objectifying methods proved, by and large, to thrill and titillate (rather than horrify) both audiences and critics. I am not the only one to make such claims: IGN calls the movie an exhilarating valentine to decadence despite its cautionary tale trappings, and that the weakest element of the film is its handling of the female characters: theres not much to the women of this story besides being eye candy or outright whores. Business Insider says, Theres gratuitous t&a with so many orgy scenes and so much nudity and sex, and that Women are few and far between unless theyre naked. Flickering Myth asks, Gratuitous? Hell yes almost like Game of Thrones which never misses an opportunity to show a womans breast. which never misses an opportunity to show a womans breast. Den of Geek references the films three-hour runtime of gratuitous use of nudity and sex. SF Weekly says, Glorification [of vice] may not be an intention but may be a consequence of the movie. It should be noted that the excerpts above are taken from positive, and sometimes even euphoric, reviews of The Wolf of Wall Street. That Scorsese overplayed his hand by about 312 cards is evidenced even by those who loved the movie. The deceitfulness of (portrayals of) sin There are a lot of things you can intend to do well or rightly but come up short. For example, you can intend to make a delicious meal, but if you inadvertently botch the recipe, it will disappoint you. Your palate cant taste good intentions. In a sense, that is a key component of being a human: falling short of the mark to which we should aspire (see Rom. 3:23). As Scorsese himself succinctly puts it, Sin is fun. Its allure comes through its deceptive power (Heb. 3:13). Thus, there are inherent risks in vivid portrayals of sin in the visual arts. There isnt always a clear line between shocking and sensational, between explicit and exhibitionist, or between unvarnished and gratuitous. It is, at the very least, possible to take things too far. And in an age where practically nothing onscreen is off-limits, the current danger for filmmakers is to lean too far into salacious storytelling rather than sanitized storytelling. Martin Scorsese is widely considered one of the greatest directors of all time. That such a renowned filmmaker could, at times, misjudge the effects of his artistic choices and to such a great degree should be a sobering reminder to us. We would do well to engage the movies we watch with discernment, refusing to isolate filmmaker intent as the only factor in our evaluation. We would do well to critically engage with our own actions and artistic creations as well. As the saying goes, Hell is full of good meanings, but Heaven is full of good works. Paving the path before us with good intentions isnt enough; the wrong thing for the right reason is still the wrong thing. Abortion clinic buffer zones may lead to arrests and 'thoughtcrime' in Scotland, says pro-life volunteer A pro-life volunteer who was arrested in England over silent prayer has warned against Scottish legislation that proposes bringing in abortion clinic buffer zones nationwide. Isabel Vaughan-Spruce gave her testimony to the Scottish Parliament's Health, Social Care and Sport Committee in which she shared her experience of being arrest within an abortion clinic buffer zone in Birmingham last year. She was charged with "engaging in an act that is intimidating to service users" after telling officers that she "might be praying inside [her] head". She was arrested and charged despite the clinic being closed at the time but was later fully acquitted at Birmingham Magistrates Court after the prosecution was unable to provide evidence of her thoughts. Addressing the committee, Vaughan-Spruce said she feared "thoughtcrime" and similar arrests will become a reality in Scotland if the legislation is passed. She called on parliamentarians to promote tolerance, not censorship. "After having to clear my name in court I was rearrested two weeks later being told 'my prayers were an offence'. I'm concerned that this will end up happening in Scotland. Nobody should be punished for a 'thoughtcrime' yet this proposed legislation could easily allow that to happen," she said. She told the committee that the buffer zone had "created a huge amount of division" in the area and that many locals "are now fearful to share their beliefs with their neighbours". "The community has become polarised and the buffer zone has fostered intolerance," she said. "I wholly recommend that the Scottish government protect freedom of thought and of speech in Scotland, and promote tolerance rather than censorship." The committee also heard from Alina Dulgheriu, a mother who received help with an unplanned pregnancy from pro-life volunteers outside an abortion clinic. She now runs a network for women who have received similar help called Be Here For Me. Dulgheriu said that pro-life volunteers offer "much-needed" support to vulnerable women. "I didn't want an abortion but I was abandoned by my partner, my friends and society. My financial situation at the time would have made raising a child very challenging," she said. "Thanks to the help I was offered by a group outside of a clinic before my appointment, my daughter is here today. Stopping people from offering much-needed services and resources for women in my situation is wrong. Let them help." She went on to say that making buffer zones law would deprive women of access to potentially "life-changing information especially when facing one of the most challenging decision of their lives that could have lasting ramifications on their mental and physical health". "Removing the option to receive help to keep a child in case we feel offended is deeply patronising and assumes that woman can't make a decision for ourselves or that we might choose the wrong option," she said. "My case is not a one-off. There are many hundreds of women just like me who have benefitted from this support. Yet we are all too often ignored." Lois McLatchie Miller, spokesperson for the Alliance Defending Freedom UK (ADF) in Scotland, said that the Bill is "one of the most extensive crackdowns on pro-life thought and speech we've seen". "As drafted, it could even ban prayer and peaceful pro-life speech within homes if they are situated sufficiently near an abortion facility," she said. "The proposal would also allow the 150m distance of the buffer zone to be expanded by local authorities to an unlimited extent. "It is vital that the parliament take heed of the stories of Alina and Isabel, and uphold their duty to protect freedom of thought, offers of help, and consensual conversation." Asylum seeker interest in baptism 'melted away' after being pressed on commitment A former Church of England priest has claimed that interest in baptism among asylum seekers "melted away" after he asked them to demonstrate their commitment to the church. Rev Matthew Firth was giving evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee on Tuesday about his experience as a priest at St Cuthbert's and Holy Trinity in Darlington, where he served between 2018 and 2020 before joining the Free Church of England. The committee was hearing evidence on asylum seeker conversions to Christianity after it was suggested that churches - and specifically the Church of England - may be complicit in the use of fake conversions to game the system. Rev Firth said that during his two years at St Cuthbert's, "cohorts" of around six to seven mainly young Iranian and Syrian men were being brought to him for baptism every few weeks. He told the committee that after his arrival to the church, he honoured baptisms that had already been booked but "pressed a pause button" on any others because he found the numbers "surprising". "You spot a pattern and you think, hang on, there's something going on here," he said. He said that after introducing a more "rigorous" process to make sure they were coming to church regularly and getting involved in the life of the church, the numbers showing an interest in baptism "fell off a cliff". "That was the thing that kind of made the numbers fall off a cliff in a sense because those people kind of melted away really. They weren't really wanting to get involved with the life of the church so much after I requested them to do so," he told the committee. Speaking later at the hearing, the Bishop of Chelmsford, Guli Francis-Dehqani, denied that the Church of England was allowing asylum seekers to scam the system but said she would like to see clergy guidelines reviewed in the near future. "It's certainly true that there are some churches that are experiencing a larger number of asylum seekers than others - places like Liverpool and others ... I believe that's largely because that's where asylum seekers are themselves placed," she said. "Our churches respond to local needs however it presents itself and if it happens to be in an area where there are large numbers of asylum seekers - who incidentally, in the kind of increasingly hostile environment, it's perhaps not surprising that if they find a place of warmth and welcome may well be drawn to it. "But that's a totally separate issue to saying that we are kind of quickly and easily and freely baptising large numbers in order to scam the asylum process which is properly the responsibility of the government, the Home Office, the courts, the tribunals. "We need to play our part honestly and truthfully but with that extension of Christian warmth and hospitality and welcome that is our responsibility." Myeong-dong set to install electronic displays, address street vendors' overcharging issue By Jung Da-hyun Central Seoul is set to elevate its symbolic stature by offering diverse experiences and enhancing orderliness services in the iconic district of Myeong-dong. In a recent interview with The Korea Times, Kim Kil-sung, head of the Jung District Office in Seoul, highlighted plans to transform Myeong-dong into a dynamic space by installing electronic displays starting this year. "Myeong-dong is often presented as an iconic destination for tourists in Korea, and we aim to accentuate its symbolism and dynamism through the strategic use of electronic displays," Kim said. This year, Myeong-dong has been designated as a location where outdoor electronic displays can be freely installed without restrictions. The goal is to create a vibrant streetscape reminiscent of New York's Times Square with an increased number of electronic boards, according to the district office. The installation of advertising boards will take place over the next 10 years, aiming to conclude in 2033. This initiative will commence with putting large electronic displays on prominent buildings near Myeong-dong, such as Shinsegae Department Store's main store, Hana Bank headquarters and Kyowon Building, by the end of this year. These electronic boards will not only showcase ads but also convey a variety of content, including promoting city policies, the national image and the local government and displaying various media art to enrich the experience for tourists visiting the area. Furthermore, the district aims to broadcast significant events on electronic displays, such as the New Year's Eve bell-tolling ceremony at Bosingak Belfry, as well as its own New Year's Eve countdown. "Just like the Statue of Liberty and Times Square, which resonate globally for those traveling to New York, our aim is to establish Myeong-dong as an essential and symbolic destination for anyone visiting Korea," Kim said. In addition to the focus on electronic displays, the district is actively working on regulations to make the area more orderly, addressing issues like unregulated street vendors. Recently, it has been pointed out that street foods are being sold at exorbitant prices to tourists in Myeong-dong. "We lacked a legal basis for controlling street food sales in Myeong-dong. However, the district office is now working toward creating a system to regulate these street vendors," Kim said. As part of its regulatory plan, card readers will be installed at approximately 360 street shops by the end of March, not only enhancing tourist convenience but also ensuring transparent tax reporting through business registration. The implementation of card readers mandates all vendors to officially register as businesses, which allows the district to systematically manage street vendors under a framework. "The initial intent of allowing street vendors not registered as businesses was to assist those in need. However, maintaining order seems essential," Kim said. The regulatory plan aims to empower street vendors to maintain order, with penalties for those who violate their responsibilities. The focus is on preventing exorbitant food prices and avoiding the occupation of street spaces that disrupt pedestrian flow. Jung District is also offering diverse tourism content. The upcoming Jeongdong Culture Night, which is scheduled from May 24 to 25, will showcase historical and cultural facilities open at night, accompanied by various performances, exhibitions, special lectures and cultural events. The event will feature the nighttime opening of historical and cultural landmarks in Jeong-dong, including Deoksu Palace, the British Embassy in Korea, the Canadian Embassy in Korea, the Seoul Museum of Art and Chungdong First Methodist Church. Moreover, walking tours combining historical and cultural resources in a storytelling format are being offered. The district provides cultural tourism commentary services in multiple languages for foreign visitors. Tourists can apply for this service at any time by contacting the district office. "By delving into the 630-year history of the district through on-site introductions and guided tours with informative explanations, visitors are likely to find greater satisfaction. I hope individuals will actively engage in this experience," Kim said. Lone working 'is making millions of people ill' says report The rise in lone working and the insecurity of increasing numbers of jobs are "making millions of us poorer and ill," says a new report from Christian-based think tank, Theos. In 'The Ties That Bind' Theos looks at how better work can be created "by paying attention to the social dynamics the love, even in our workplaces." The report, written by ethical entrepreneur Tim Thorlby, looks at evidence around the social and health impacts of the rise in lone working and the growth of insecure work. It argues that a loss of 'mutuality' between the employed and their employers is making millions of people poorer and ill. Taking inspiration from key principles of Christian economic thinking, Theos suggest that our workplaces could be made happier and healthier. Director of Theos Chine McDonald writes in her foreword to the report: "It is a forthright critique of work which treats people as means rather than ends, but it is not merely moralising. It points to tangible examples of better practice. Tim Thorlby has himself led a business Clean for Good which demonstrates that, even in sectors which seem to be engaged in a race to the bottom, things can be done differently. "Even as work changes rapidly around us we always have the opportunity to form workplaces that value people and operate justly." Theos estimates that before the pandemic, 27 per cent of workers worked alone for a substantial proportion of the time. Now, 59 per cent of the workforce works alone for at least some of the week. While admitting that "lone working can provide real benefits to workers who enjoy a flexibility premium," the Theos report points out that it carries risks. "These risks are highest where little attention is paid to the quality and dignity of working relationships, and where employees are treated as 'out of sight, out of mind'." The report calls for action to prevent the loss of connection between workers and protect the health of those working in these environments. Employers, say Theos, need to be intentional about building strong worker relationships and robust management processes. The UK has one of the most flexible labour markets in the developed world, explains the report, and this can deliver benefits, both to individual workers and to the wider economy through higher rates of employment and economic growth. But there are downsides here too. In the UK today, the Living Wage Foundation estimate that nearly one in five workers 6.1 million people (19 per cent of all workers) are in insecure work. Within this, they calculate that more than half (3.4 million, 11 per cent of all workers) are in work that is both insecure and low paid. Theos points out that nearly one in three (31 per cent) of the UK's self-employed report 'moderate' to 'severe' mental health issues, with younger workers more likely to be affected. This is twice as high as the national average. A study by the International Labour Organisation found that zero hours contracts were often highly damaging to work-life balance and undermined family life. These contracts were most prevalent amongst the young (under 25), including students, and also older adults with few qualifications. The Theos report calls for fair hourly pay at or above a real living wage; predictable hours and income which are changed only with fair notice; connection for workers, who should be well managed and supported and feel 'part of the team'; and healthy work, where working supports good physical and mental health. Theos, part of the British and Foreign Bible Society, believes "that faith, and Christianity in particular, is a force for good in society." Rev Peter Crumpler is a Church of England minister in St Albans, Herts, UK and a former communications director with the CofE. Lee Rennick, executive director of CIO Communities for CIO.com recently spoke with OSullivan about a career in financial services, clarity of business outcomes, and being fully engaged with the customer. Watch the full video below for more insights. On having an impact: I remember early in my career listening to conversations at various points and looking for that secret sauce; what the thing is I need to do and write it down. Its about the journey, so for me, master the job in front of you because thats where the conversation begins. Thats where you start to get noticed. Thats where people start to talk about you and keep you in mind for things. So keep an ear out for those opportunities. One way Ive found theyve presented themselves is where youre in a conversation and someone brings up a problem that keeps getting batted around. No one seems able to tackle it and sort it out. Thats a rich opportunity, and quite often the makings of next steps in ones career. On gen AI: Im hugely excited about the tech. Thats the headline, but the marketing teams have done an incredibly good job. The challenge and conversation shift for me is how to make a safe enterprise solution out of these incredible things where gen AI is creating digital content. I read recently that ChatGPT can create fantastic recipes to cook with, which may or may not make tasty meals. So number one is safety. We talk about an LLM generating new and original content to put in front of customers and have them answer emails or phone calls. Theres a lot of consideration around the appropriateness of the responses, parameters, and how that model is trained. And related to that is data quality. I ran a data quality program for a large UK bank for three years where with millions of pounds just to solve data quality problems. But its a continuous discipline. The headline of data quality isnt going away. On digital transformation: My general observations are first being clear on business outcomes. It sounds cliche, but looking at the modernization program we initiated when I came to OneFamily, we did it in terms of initial fact-find and RFI in mid to late 2019 and, of course, a lot ensued after that. So with blood, sweat and tears, we had a watertight business case that survived a pandemic, a significant acquisition, and three different CEOs. After all, you need the CEO to be bought in to that vision. But we always had that to go back to and point at and say, this is why were doing this. So the people involved may change, but the endeavor and true north were the same. Ive seen the transformation journey tackled front to back and change everything, or can you overlay and do something alongside or something different. It depends on your circumstances. Our modernization has been an entirely digital transformation. So you speak to anyone across our business and theyll say its our modernization, not the ITs or customer services program its enterprise wide. Youve got to make it real for people, so its one thing to roll out the new toolset, but actually, are you speaking to new ways of working a new culture? On seizing the moment: Ive been involved in transformation for a long time, and Ive done it in investment banking, retail banking, and now at a financial mutual. The pattern is broadly similar in that it generally starts with a recognition of a problem, the technology stack, the business processes it supports, or a need to innovate and change because the products demand that innovation. But equally we have our people and our team here to help those where the digital journey is either not native for them or they need additional support. In the mid-noughties, the UK government launched a scheme where every child born between a certain period was given a 250 voucher to invest in the stock market. So we had a large number of new customers. We couldnt directly engage with them all because they were children, but we knew they wanted a digital journey. So its not like we sat here with a crystal ball and said, lets transform and modernize. The imperative was knocking on the door saying, what are you going to do? For us, that was a great use case because it presented a lot of challenges. How do we do that self-serve digital journey but equally serve the rest of our customers? It gave us that confidence to say, this is the right way to go and lets look across the rest of our product set and do more of this. By KTimes A viral video showcasing a notable contrast in the quantity of soup ingredients found in Shin Ramyeon mini cups sold in Japan compared to those in Korea has sparked a renewed wave of controversy. A Japanese netizen recently shared a video on social networking sites comparing mini instant noodle cups of Shin Ramyeon sold in Japan and those in Korea. In the video, dried garnish was poured out to highlight that the Japanese version contained a higher quantity of ingredients. "Even if you travel to Japan and ask what kind of Shin Ramyeon it is, it tastes different because it has more noodles," the netizen said, claiming that the Japanese version is the most delicious. The video quickly went viral, amassing nearly 6 million views within just 10 days. Posts comparing the portion sizes of Japanese and Korean versions of Shin Ramyeon have been surfacing consistently. Last August, a user purchased both Korean and Japanese instant noodles of various sizes and types to conduct a detailed comparison. "I didn't notice much of a difference in flavor," the poster wrote, but added, "the Japanese version definitely had more noodles in the small cup." In October 2017, some people in the online community also compared cup noodles from different countries. Some individuals claimed that "domestic cup noodles should contain more solid ingredients." The resurgence of the noodle controversy is also attributed to the narrowing price gap, a consequence of the decline in the value of the Japanese yen against the Korean won. Previously, a small cup of Japanese Shin Ramyeon used to be up to twice as expensive as the Korean version. However, as domestic prices have steadily risen and the yen has weakened, the prices recently became nearly identical. There has even been a price reversal, with the Japanese version of Shin Ramyeon becoming cheaper than the Korean one. In response, an official at Nongshim, the maker of Shin Ramyeon, said the composition of ingredients in the Japanese version of Shin Ramyeon mini cup varies depending on local market conditions and food regulations. "The Japanese market tends to have a large amount of noodles in cup noodles," he said. "Nongshim, as a latecomer, has changed the noodle ratio to increase its competitiveness in the local market." As for the price difference, he added, "Shin Ramyeon for Japan is a product that competes with Japanese cup noodles, so it is not reasonable to compare it with domestic products simply by price." Despite Nongshim's explanation, the outrage over the "reverse discrimination" against the domestic market has not gone away. "I don't understand why Korean products are sold cheaply and in large quantities only in foreign countries, but when foreign products are imported into Korea, they become more expensive," a Korean netizen said. "Let's eat the Japanese version of Shin Ramyeon instead." This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, was assisted by a generative AI solution and edited by The Korea Times. Oracles latest financial report boasts substantial increases in revenue, net income, and earnings per share, largely thanks to cloud sales, which the company was quick to credit to the rise of AI. The report for Q3 of fiscal 2024, released yesterday, said that Oracle had signed multiple large-scale cloud infrastructure contracts in the previous three months, with no end in sight, as CEO Safra Catz touted the companys bright prospects in cloud. We expect to continue receiving large contracts reserving cloud infrastructure capacity because the demand for our Gen2 AI infrastructure substantially exceeds supply, she said, in a statement. Despite the fact that we are opening new and expanding existing cloud data centers very, very rapidly. Termen extins - pentru selectarea unui expert/ unei experte sau a unei agentii pentru realizarea Entry si Exit Survey intr-un proiect din domeniul prevenirii violentei si asistenta incluziva pentru femeile in etate Primeste notificari pe email Nota bene: Adresele email cu extensia .ru nu sunt acceptate. Contractare si Achizitie Bunuri Anunturi de Angajare Granturi - Finantari Burse de studiu Stagii Profesionale Oportunitati de voluntariat Toate Articolele A charity that manages Chester Zoo has been named by the government for failing to pay the minimum wage. The North of England Zoological Society, which had an income of 50.7m in 2022, failed to pay a total of 7,906 to 67 workers, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) reported following HMRC investigations. A Chester Zoo spokesperson said: Following a review with HMRC in 2019, it was brought to our attention that a calculation error resulting from salary sacrifice deductions had led to a breach in the regulations with a small number of zoo employees. Those affected were, of course, immediately reimbursed as soon as we became aware and weve since introduced a number of monthly checks to avoid this error happening again. In total, DBT named 524 employers in breach of national minimum wage law last month, all of which were ordered to repay over 172,000 workers nearly 16m plus an additional financial penalty. Scotland-based charity Jericho Benedictine Society was listed as failing to pay 5,610 to five workers. The religious charity, which recorded an income of 1.63m last year, has yet to respond to a request for comment. Investigations by HMRC concluded between 2015 and 2023 show that those listed have since paid back the owed wages and faced penalties of up to 200% of their underpayment. Minister: Enforcement action will be taken Business minister Kevin Hollinrake said: Employees deserve to get paid properly for the hard work they put in. While the majority of businesses already do the right thing and pay their staff what they are owed, todays announcement sends a message to the minority who arent that there are repercussions to undercutting hard work from their staff. Whilst not all minimum wage underpayments are intentional, the government has been clear that anyone entitled to be paid the minimum wage should receive it, and that enforcement action will be taken against employers who do not pay their staff correctly. This comes as minimum wage rates are set to increase next month, as announced in Novembers autumn statement, which have been predicted to cost charities nearly 200m over six years. sign up to receive the free Civil Society daily news bulletin here . For more news, interviews, opinion and analysis about charities and the voluntary sector, Adobe, Prostock-studio Cancer Research UK (CRUK) has said it could be missing around 30m in legacy income due to a backlog of cases at the probate service. Speaking in the House of Commons yesterday, CRUK chief operating officer Angela Morrison said her charity had decided not to invest in some research projects due to uncertainty about its legacy income. She urged the probate service to share more information with charities about the delays it is experiencing so we can plan accordingly. Remember A Charity vice chair Alex McDowell told the Justice Committee that there had been some improvements at the probate service but that charities needed consistency and certainty about the backlog. The charity sector is currently missing an estimated 900m in legacy income contained within wills that are tied up in probate. We cannot commit to spending that money The Justice Committee launched an inquiry into the probate registry in November last year as the latter has been experiencing significant delays. Morrison of CRUK said gifts from wills make up about 40% of her charitys overall income and 50% of its fundraising income. Its a massive contribution. If we think that we commit money for a minimum of five years when we give a grant, we need to have assurance that that income is coming in over that period of time, she said. CRUK estimated that as of January, it was due 30m of delayed income stuck in the probate backlog. Morrisson said CRUK is currently going through its budgeting process for next year and cannot put the probate backlog into that forecast because we dont know when its likely to happen. We cannot commit to spending that money unless we know its going to come. Weve gone through budgeting rounds where we had taken money out from capital investment. Weve had research this year that weve not invested in there are 44 projects we could have invested in. Were making day-to-day decisions based on the fact that we dont know when this money is coming or the size of it. 30m is our guess. Probate needs to trust us and give us insight Morrisson said that CRUK needs visibility to better forecast its income and called for the probate service to share more information with charities, similar to that which it gives to the Institute of Legacy Management (ILM). Trust us by giving us insight into that because then we can plan accordingly. When we dont have insight then its really difficult to plan, she said. When were left in the dark its really hard because suddenly, we just dont get anything. We want to be part of the journey because we really do appreciate the work they do and recognise they need to transform. But we want to be part of that so we can plan accordingly. She added: As a large charity with a clear dependency on the income, wed like to feel that we could be trusted to get the information that the ILM gets. The fact that information shared with the ILM, theyre not allowed to pass it onto us, feels somewhat harsh. Charities need consistency and certainty McDowell, who is also director of fundraising at the Duke of Edinburghs Award, said HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) had been increasingly good at sharing information with us as a consortia but were bound by confidentiality with some of the management information. Rightly, we dont share that so therefore theres a wider group of people who are still not able to make fully informed decisions, he said. Wed like greater transparency for that information to be made more public sooner. At the moment, McDowell said that everybody gets publicly available data published by the Office for National Statistics but its a bit of a blunt tool. It tells us how many applications have been made and how many grants have been given. What we dont get is the nature of those and how big the current backlog is. HMCTS has been sharing information with Remember A Charity and the ILM but on the very strict instruction that it shouldnt be shared. Its just to help us understand whats going on. Were able to communicate to our members trends and can say: Look, things look like theyre improving. But weve not been able to share information more widely. McDowell said the consortia receives more of a breakdown in terms of the total number of cases processed and paper and digital applications. All useful information but it doesnt necessarily tell us how many are charitable because we havent got that indicator, he said. It doesnt tell us why cases were stopped and what proportion of stopped cases were charitable. We extrapolate from that based on historical trends and are able to see the overall shape of it. Its not that its ungratefully received or doesnt have any value to us, but it doesnt give us the granularity to make certain conclusions. Its a bit of a help but wed like more help and sooner. Two years ago last month, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The consequences for the latter countrys press were instant, huge, and, sometimes, deadlyby my rough count, thirteen journalists were killed in the first month of the war, in the line of their work but also at home or fighting for their country at the front. Ukrainian media outlets, particularly at the local and regional level, also suffered financially. Before the invasion, such outlets, like their counterparts in the US and elsewhere around the world, were already struggling to monetize in a digital world; afterward, advertising revenue dried up and many local newsrooms looked to international donors to survive, according to a report published by the Media Development Foundation, a Ukrainian nonprofit, in the spring of 2022. Everything has been disrupted by war, Andrey Boborykin, who helped lead the report, told my then-colleague Gabby Miller at the time. Some publishers were quite well prepared for that and were responding to this challenge in a very rational and effective way, and some were totally, by all means, not. Since then, the war has ground on, and journalists in Ukraine have continued to face threatsincluding, apparently, from their own side: as I reported in January, journalists who have investigated domestic wartime corruption in Ukraine have recently been harassed and surveilled. And, particularly for local outlets, the more mundane financial and operational challenges have persisted, too. Recently, MDF published a new report focused on Ukraines news desertsa term, popular in much discourse about the decline of local news in the US, that is increasingly gaining global purchase. After the full-scale invasion begun in 2022, a number of media outlets have ceased to exist either due to physical damage done to their hromada (it was occupied or destroyed) or due to a dire financial situation following the collapse of local ad markets, the report concludes. (A hromada is a local administrative unit in Ukraine, similar to the idea of a municipality in the US.) The war [has] exacerbated the issue with local media and media registries, as there are paper trails of editorial teams that no longer operate. The report focused on local outlets that serve citizens critical informational needs. (Some outlets were excluded from the research, including those with a more niche focus.) It also focused on eleven frontline and borderline regions that had been severely damaged since Russias 2022 invasion. (The MDF plans to expand its analysis nationwide going forward.) Of sixty-nine administrative subdivisions across these eleven regions, the authors graded nearly a third as unhealthy, meaning that no news outlet is based there, and that no, or only scant, coverage comes from outside. As the authors note, this doesnt necessarily mean that residents in such areas get no news at all; the messaging app Telegram, in particular, has become a significant source of information in wartime Ukraine. Still, in the Luhansk region, for example, many media outlets have simply ceased to exist due to the temporary occupation, the report found. Almost all media outlets from temporarily occupied hromadas are in exile, operating in the government-controlled part of Ukraine with only local informants. Following the release of the report, I spoke about it with Boborykinwho, aside from working as a program expert with the MDF, is the executive director of Ukrainska Pravda, a major independent news outletand Maksym Sribnyi, the head of the MDFs research department. Our conversation, conducted over email, has been edited for length and clarity. JA: The idea of news deserts has been a widely discussed one in the US (and elsewhere) for a while now. How did you and your colleagues become aware of the concept of news deserts and first think about applying it to the Ukrainian media landscape? AB: The idea initially came from me, as I was reading quite a lot about news deserts from American and European sources, most notably the news deserts project produced by the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and Margaret Sullivans book Ghosting the News. Surprisingly, the challenges currently faced by the local media industry in the US and Western Europe are very similar to what has been happening in Ukrainian local news for the last decade. One major difference is that we only had thirty years to build a free press [following the collapse of the Soviet Union], so there was almost no great golden age of journalism in Ukraine to feel nostalgic about. That also makes for a much lower base from which we measure overall decline. Another big difference is, of course, the full-scale invasion, which has accelerated the desertification of Ukrainian news since 2022. Until recently there hasnt been any significant research into this phenomenon in Ukraine, and thats why I started pitching that to the research team. We want this research to be used by the global community of media scholars as well as the international donors working in our region, as clearly some areas need more help than the rest. Sign up for CJR 's daily email What are some of the challenges of conducting this type of analysis in the Ukrainian context? MS: The main challenge would be that there are no definite registries on media outlets now in place. We had one registry with some longevity; however, it was only for print papers, including party papers and university magazines, and was discontinued in 2021. After the adoption of a new media law, a new registry is being slowly put up; however, it [will be a long time] before it will provide some sort of useful data. So a lot of research is just finding media in the regions, hoping that they are operating now and didnt close at some point in the past. Another challenge is temporarily occupied territories. There is no definite way to gauge access to media outlets by people residing under occupation. To access websites with the domain .ua, one must be technically proficient enough to install some sort of VPN, and these connections are not registered as Ukrainian by site analytics. Print media is out of the question entirely, TV is heavily restricted, and radio coverage is more of an exception to the rule. Yet another challenge is peripheral actors in journalismTelegram channels, regional Facebook groups, and all sorts of chats (home chats, residing-area chats, and so on). They are tough to analyze at all, as they arent media per se, yet the role of disseminating information is largely done by them. You say in the report that there has been a lack of prior research on this phenomenon in Ukraine, but MDF conducted research on the shape of the media landscape in the years before Russia invaded. What are the biggest overall lessons to take away from these years of research, do you think, especially as regards how the local-news landscape has changed since the invasion? What are the biggest challenges local outlets face now (beyond the very obvious threat of direct Russian aggression and occupation)? MS: The local media must be acutely aware of international relations between different states and Ukraine, since a lot of their revenue depends on grant funding. The biggest challenge is then the possible decrease in international aid to Ukraine. There are not a lot of ways to diversify revenue streams, as the ad market is still not as strong as in 2021 (albeit recovering in a way) and reader revenue is out of the question almost entirely (military needs are far ahead in fundraising). The other challenge is a loss of personnel to mobilization and attacks by Russian forces. We have media that lost their CEOs and/or editors in chief to the armed forces of Ukraine (and, unfortunately, some of these people have been killed in action on the front). Some media outlets have even reorganized their hiring scenarios not to include men of draft age. This research focuses on eleven oblasts, or regions, that are frontline and borderline regions that have been severely damaged during the full-scale invasion. Why did you choose to focus on these areas initially? MS: These eleven oblasts have had their whole media landscape severely reshaped due to the Russian invasion of 2022. If we are to map news deserts, we have to start in areas actively being desertified by enemy forces. Some of the outlets you write about, serving the Luhansk region for example, are internally displaced. How do you think about these types of outlets within the news desert framework, which typically is very closely tied to the idea of an outlet being geographically rooted in a particular area? In wartime, how can an outlet be said to serve an area without physically being there? MS: We assumed that the geographical area is not just square kilometers on a map. These areas have been populated with people who have some sense of regional identity (solidified by the Russian invasion). They are people from Luhansk Oblast, even if they live in Lutsk or Norway. So with the internally displaced media outlets, we gauged their coverage of issues important to people who have fled the area. These media outlets closely follow communities of their kin in different cities, highlighting them and keeping this identity. A majority of internally displaced outlets are just thata lighthouse to gather all the scattered people of their city. Your methodology filtered out outlets that have opaque ownership structures, or cover niche areas, or have exclusively investigative contenteven if they are otherwise high quality. Can you explain why you chose to do this? In the US, for instance, I imagine the presence of a local investigative outlet would militate against an area being classified as a news desert MS: The spirit of the news desert concept lies in vitalizing grassroots democracy. And local democracy consists of many daily choices one has to make. It is not always outrage about embezzling money, or being deeply tied to a local cultural scene. The framework of critical information needs includes all facets of local life. Investigative media should be present, yet they do not provide a comprehensive picture of local issues, much needed for constructive discussion and democratic processes. Investigations also arise from local beat reporting, and those same reporters cover the aftermath of the investigation. So we chose to focus our news desert definition on those media outlets. The report mentions the privatisation of state-owned newspapers and decentralisation reform in Ukraine, dating back to before Russias full-scale invasion. Can you explain what this process is and how it has affected local news provision? MS: Before that reform, every local governance body had their own official publication, an outlet that informed people of decisions, budgets, addresses by politicians, and so on. These media outlets were financed by governmental bodies; therefore, they were not interested in competition, market research, or similar issues. There were a lot of talented professionals operating these media, yet a large number of them were complimentary in their coverage due to the funding. After the reform, these editorial teams have been reorganized into private enterprises or other nongovernmental entities. In theory, the reform should have eliminated the issue of funding by local authorities and provided an independent media outlet in every single city, town, or village. In practice, though, only some of them have become independent. Some of them stayed on the old tracks with a new label (still funded by local government, just not directly); some of them ceased to exist. Now there is a patchwork between communities with independent media that hold local authorities accountable, local media that do not criticize local authorities at all, and without media. I note that your research got EU funding. How did that come about? AB: MDF works with all major donors that have media programs in Ukraine. Part of our research output is funded by the EU, which is a major media donor in Ukraine. Finally, Andrey, we last spoke back in January, when there was growing concern among many Ukrainian journalists about intimidation linked to their work, apparently at the hands of allies of the government and the security services. Has that story evolved at all since we last spoke? What is the atmosphere like for investigative journalism in Ukraine now? AB: I would say that the atmosphere feels a bit less intense now, but we are still far from saying theres less pressure on journalists in Ukraine. Other notable stories: ICYMI: Kate Middleton and the case for hope in our information hellscape Jon Allsop is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Review of Books, Foreign Policy, and The Nation, among other outlets. He writes CJRs newsletter The Media Today. Find him on Twitter @Jon_Allsop. Doctors across the US are stretching to keep their practices afloat as a debilitating cyberattack on a once little-known company at the center of the health-care system continues to cause havoc. The Feb. 21 attack against Change Healthcare, a subsidiary of the largest US health insurer by market value, UnitedHealth Group Inc., has seized the health-care system for three weeks and counting, halting the normal flow of billions of dollars in payments between doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and insurers. The paralysis is tilting some clinics into financial peril. I cant believe were in this mess, said Kathy Oubre, chief executive officer of Pontchartrain Cancer Center in southeast Louisiana. Its going to take us months to dig out. Among the hardest-hit are smaller centers that give patients chemotherapy or infuse medication for other illnesses, and count on timely insurance payments to cover their drug purchases. Several cancer practices said that theyre concerned about their ability to pay for drugs as cash flows dry up. Some said that pharmaceutical wholesalers have been allowing them to delay payments a sign that the effects of the hack are seeping into new corners of the $4.5 trillion US health-care industry. Change has said it processes $2 trillion in health-care claims each year. The Pontchartrain Cancer Center is bringing in just 40% of its typical payments, Oubre said. The group, which treats about 6,000 patients a year, is applying for relief from Medicare, but if the problem persists for four to six more weeks, it may need to ask its owners to personally guarantee a loan or turn some patients away, she said. The financial pressure on health clinics is growing as expenses and unpaid bills accumulate. At a community health center in east Texas and Arkansas, the billing team is working weekends and the clinic is mailing paper claims to health insurers, running up a tab for printing and postage. Some physicians in New Mexico are forgoing their paychecks to help make ends meet. Practices by and large are still not getting paid, and it is a disaster, said Jesse Ehrenfeld, president of the American Medical Association and an anesthesiologist in Milwaukee. Money meanwhile is piling up at insurers who continue to collect premiums but arent receiving claims that used to travel on Change Healthcares networks. Thats up to 20% of inbound claims for Humana Inc., which provides medical benefits for almost 17 million people. Some insurers cant send payments because they relied on Change for that, too. Biden administration leaders asked UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty and leaders of other health insurers to make more emergency funding available to providers during a meeting on Tuesday, according to a statement from the Department of Health and Human Services, echoing requests the agency made in a letter over the weekend. A representative for UnitedHealth declined to comment on the meeting. Shares of the company had declined 6.3% since the hack last month through Tuesdays close. UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty Photographer: Steven Ferdman/Getty Images UnitedHealth said last week that some services for pharmacies have been restored. Its payments platform should return on Friday, the company said, and testing on the medical-claims network will begin next week. Yet with backlogs of billions of dollars in claims payments growing, no one knows how long it will take for things to fully get back to normal. I cant make an estimate, UnitedHealth Chief Operating Officer Dirk McMahon, who is leading the companys response, said in a March 7 interview. Precarious Practices While larger hospitals are expected to withstand the crisis, the outlook is less clear for smaller medical practices with weak finances that rely on Changes services, according to Moodys. Much of the response so far has relied on insurers and vendors agreeing to waive the normal ways they do business to keep practices running. Still, improvised solutions in some cases have provided only limited lifelines for strapped providers. Barbara McAneny, the CEO of New Mexico Oncology Hematology Consultants, a 27-physician group, said she asked drug distributor Cencora Inc. for 60 more days to pay her drug bills. Cencora offered to extend her due date by two weeks without late fees, she said. Thats not sufficient, McAneny said. Im not going to get paid in two weeks. McKesson Corp., a Cencora competitor, has also been giving medical practices greater flexibility to pay their drug invoices, according to practice executives and communications reviewed by Bloomberg News. Cencora is giving some independent providers and pharmacies more time to pay their bills, and allowing them to order more drugs than usual, spokesperson Mike Iorfino said. The flexibilities will be in place through March 31. He didnt comment on McAnenys situation. McKesson didnt respond to requests for comment. The pharmaceutical industry is also taking note. Bristol Myers Squibb Co. is working to offer a temporary adjustment in payment terms for cancer medicines and blood disorder drugs, a spokesperson said. Central Hub Cyberattacks happen all the time in health care. Hackers pilfer records to sell on the dark web. Ransomware gangs lock up hospital computers. Most breaches dont make headlines, yet the BlackCat hacker group that UnitedHealth said breached Change Healthcares networks landed on a critical nexus that links the people who provide medical care with the entities that pay for it. UnitedHealth touted Changes extensive reach to more than 200 million people a year when the insurer announced its purchase of the company for $7.8 billion in 2021. US officials estimate billions of dollars in payments are being affected by the disruption to Changes networks each week, according to a senior Biden administration official, who asked not to be named describing private assessments. The wide-reaching impact of the Change hack is proof positive that significant single points of failure exist in US cyber critical infrastructure, said Mark Montgomery, senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, a think tank focused on national security. The US must identify those weak points and help them establish minimum standards of cybersecurity, Montgomery said in an interview. Leading up to Changes outage were decades of acquisitions that built a complex apparatus reaching into every corner of the US health-care system. Mostly invisible until the hack, Change Healthcare was designed to replace mountains of health-care paperwork with more efficient electronic transactions. Its predecessor, Emdeon, launched in the mid-1990s and rode the tech bubble to an initial public offering. At one point, it operated the WebMD website. Private equity giant Blackstone Inc. bought the company for $3 billion in 2011 and in 2017 combined it with some technology assets that belonged to McKesson. The drug wholesaler took a majority stake in the new entity, by then branded Change Healthcare, a name one former executive said evoked the companys aspiration to cut down on waste and administrative friction. Change made more than a dozen acquisitions between 2008 and 2018, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. In that period, new companies werent well-integrated, former employees said. One former executive said Change could address any problems payers or providers had, but outdated technology sometimes impeded sales. Another former employee said there was little coherent strategy behind Changes acquisitions. Waves of layoffs contributed to a toxic culture, the former employee said. A representative for UnitedHealth didnt respond to a request for comment about the former employees accounts. Change went public again in 2019. UnitedHealth said it would buy Change in early 2021, drawing an antitrust challenge from the US Department of Justice. Regulators said the deal would put too much data about customers and competitors in the hands of UnitedHealth. After a two-week trial in Washington, a federal judge disagreed and allowed the acquisition to proceed. Shifting Gears Following the Change hack, UnitedHealth offered workarounds, including some run by its own Optum subsidiary. The largest competing clearinghouse, Availity, opened a free service that was adopted by more than 300,000 new providers and dozens of health systems and payers. Claims traveling on its network jumped 40% over typical levels, CEO Russ Thomas said. Yet companies that had relied on Changes services couldnt just flip a switch. Changing payment clearinghouses normally requires months of planning, and even practices that have alternatives have been processing less than their usual amount of business, with inbound claims diminished. One health-insurance executive said inbound claims were still down 20% to 30%, and payments to the companys providers remained frozen. US officials have repeatedly urged UnitedHealth to communicate more transparently, speed up its fixes and provide more flexibility to its customers, according to three Biden administration officials familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named as the details are private. Top Biden health authorities told insurers to loosen rules that can keep patients from getting care while Change systems are down. Over the weekend, Medicare said it plans to let cash-strapped providers seek advance payments, but they wont be automatic advances like the agency made during Covid disruptions. Officials also encouraged private insurers to float funds to providers while claims are bottlenecked. UnitedHealth has announced two programs intended to supply financial lifelines to providers facing cash crunches, and said last week it would act as a funder of last resort on a case-by-case basis. The company called on other insurers to offer relief, but none of its largest rivals have publicly said they will. At Tuesdays meeting, US officials said further guidance would be forthcoming on how states can support Medicaid providers. UnitedHealth committed on a recent call with clients to release a forensic report being done by Alphabet Inc.s Mandiant subsidiary, according to a health-insurance executive who asked not to be named discussing private information. UnitedHealth representatives didnt respond to questions about the Mandiant report. Wired reported that the hackers received a $22 million bitcoin payment, and posts on ransomware forums indicate that four terabytes of data may have been stolen, according to the Krebs on Security website. UnitedHealth hasnt said whether it paid a ransom or what data was compromised. If health information is breached, companies have 60 days to report it to the government. Top photo: The UnitedHealth app on a smartphone arranged in New York, US, on Friday, July 7, 2023. UnitedHealth Group Inc. is scheduled to release earnings figures on July 14. Copyright 2024 Bloomberg. Two Colorado Farmers must pay more than $6.5 Million for defrauding federal crop insurance programs, according to U.S. Attorney Cole Finegan. Finegans office announced that Patrick Esch and Ed Dean Jagers of Springfield, Colorado, agreed to pay the sum to resolve allegations that they defrauded federal crop insurance programs by tampering with rain gauges. The farmers reportedly concocted a scheme to defraud these insurance programs by making it appear that there was less precipitation in their area than there actually was, including tampering rain gauges in southeast Colorado between July 2016 and June 2017 to prevent them from accurately measuring rainfall. Some of the gauges that were tampered with belonged to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and were operated by the National Weather Service. The two used various means and methods to tamper with the gauges. Esch covered gauges in southeastern Colorado with agricultural equipment, and filled gauges with silicone to prevent them from collecting moisture, cutting wires on the gauges, or detaching and then tipping over the bucket that collected precipitation. Jagers was reported to typical use an agricultural disc blade to cover up a rain gauge in Lamar, Colorado. This tampering created false records making it appear that less rain had fallen than was the case. The government investigated Esch and Jagers using civil tools, including the False Claims Act, which imposes civil penalties for certain types of fraud on the federal government, and the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act, which imposes civil penalties for a variety of misconduct, including knowingly making any false statement or report for the purpose of influencing in any way the action of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation. The U.S. alleges that this conduct violated both statutes. Esch and Jagers have agreed to pay a combined $3.5 million to settle the civil allegations. The United States also indicted Esch and Jagers criminally for their roles in the conspiracy. Both pled guilty and were sentenced to pay a combined $3.1 million in restitution. Esch was also sentenced to be imprisoned for a term of two months. Jagers was sentenced to be imprisoned for a term of six months. The claims resolved in the civil settlements are allegations. In agreeing to settle, Esch and Jagers did not admit liability except to the extent admitted in their guilty pleas. The investigations into this crop insurance fraud scheme were a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Colorado, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Inspector General and the FBI. By KTimes Animal rights activists are urging the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) to halt a study of the cultural value of bullfighting as a potential intangible cultural heritage. Six civic groups, including Green Party Korea, held a press conference in front of the Government Complex on Tuesday, asserting that bullfighting constitutes clear animal abuse. In January, the CHA announced that bullfighting was selected for investigation to review whether bullfighting is deemed for preservation and be designated as part of the nation's cultural legacy. However, activists contend that behind the spectacle lies the harsh reality of bull training, where the animals undergo grueling exercises such as pulling tires and learning fighting techniques, all for the amusement of humans and gambling. These animals are coerced into fighting, often resulting in injuries that prompt public outrage against the practice. Despite the controversy, bullfighting is currently allowed due to an exception in the Animal Protection Act that views bullfighting as a folk game. The groups have vowed to launch a petition drive to prevent the designation of bullfighting as a cultural heritage. "Bullfighting is nothing but animal abuse and gambling," they said in a statment. "The Cultural Heritage Administration must strive to unearth genuine heritage that will leave a lasting legacy, rather than promoting bullfighting, which is animal abuse." The increasing awareness and activism surrounding animal rights have prompted legislative changes and public discourse regarding animal welfare standards. This has challenged traditional practices involving animals, sparking debates about the ethical considerations of activities such as bullfighting. The debate over bullfighting in Korea reflects a global conversation on the balance between preserving cultural traditions and ensuring the ethical treatment of animals, a debate that continues to evolve with cultural values and ethical standards. This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, was translated by generative AI and edited by The Korea Times. U.S. auto-safety regulators on Monday launched a preliminary probe into emergency braking issues in certain Honda vehicles following complaints of crashes and fires. The problem affects the 2019-2022 models of the Honda Insight, a hybrid electric car, and the Honda Passport SUV, and involves 250,712 vehicles, according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NHTSA report also states that the Office of Defects Investigation received 46 complaints, which included reports of three crashes or fires and two injuries. Inadvertent activation of the automatic emergency braking system can increase the risk of a collision, resulting in injury and property damage, according to the NHTSA. Honda has already been in communication with the agency on this topic and will cooperate with the NHTSA through the investigation process, while continuing our own internal review of the available information, the company said in an email. A preliminary evaluation, or the first phase of an NHTSA investigation, involves a review of consumer complaints or manufacturer service bulletins, which suggest a safety defect may exist. PARMA, Ohio -- Christoph Schneider is a German college student studying abroad to become a firefighter. This has brought him to Northeast Ohio, where for six months hes been visiting with various fire departments. ALLEN TOWNSHIP, Ohio A Cleveland man was seriously injured and another Cleveland man suffered minor injuries Tuesday morning in a multivehicle crash that killed a Northwest Ohio woman. According to the State Highway Patrol, David Sziber, 34, was flown by helicopter to Mercy Health - St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo following the crash on Ohio 579 in Ottawa County. The patrol did not release information on his condition. The patrol says the crash occurred at about 6:40 a.m. when a Chevrolet Sonic driven by Heather Musser, 46, of Oregon, Ohio, went left-of-center on Ohio 579 near Genoa Clay Center Road. Mussers vehicle struck a Chevrolet Express driven by Sziber head-on. Mussers vehicle remained in the road after the initial crash and was struck by a Chevrolet Silverado driven by a 53-year-old man from Saginaw, Mich. Musser was pronounced dead at the scene. Rescuers had to cut apart Szibers vehicle in order to free him, the patrol says. A passenger in Szibers vehicle, Aaron Thomas, 36, Cleveland, was treated at the scene for minor injuries, the patrol says. The driver of the Silverado and a 64-year-old male passenger were taken to St. Vincent for treatment of minor injuries. Two other passengers, both adult males from Frankenmuth, Mich., were not injured. The cause of the crash remains under investigation. The patrol says all of the drivers and passengers were wearing seatbelts. SAVANNAH, Georgia Two Georgia men accused of blowing up a home in an attempt to kill a woman inside also plotted to release a python inside to eat the womans daughter, federal authorities say. The accusations have led to Stephen Glosser, 37, and Caleb Kinsey, 34, both of Richmond Hill, Ga., to face federal charges of stalking, use of an explosive to commit another felony offense, conspiracy to use an explosive to commit a felony, and possession of an unregistered destructive device, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Georgia. Kinsey also is charged with false statement during the purchase of a firearm, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. A federal indictment says Glosser and Kinsey used electronic surveillance with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate the woman between December 2022 and January 2023. The men planned to shoot arrows into the front door of the womans home to kill, intimidate, harass, or injure the victim, the indictment says. They also planned to acquire and release a large python into the victims home to eat the victims daughter. Prosecutors say the two men also planned to mail dog feces or dead rats to the womans home, scalp her, and blow the home up. The men are accused of destroying the home on Jan. 13, 2023, with an explosive that Kinsey built at Glossers home. A news release from the U.S. attorneys office did not offer a motive. WTOC Channel 11 reports an investigator with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms said Glosser and the woman had a quasi-relationship after meeting on a dating app, but they ended up blocking each other. If convicted, the men could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years in prison on the conspiracy charge, with an additional 10 years on the charge of using an explosive to commit a felony. They would not be eligible for parole. Both Glosser and Kinsey are in custody. CLEVELAND, Ohio A Belleville man died Wednesday after he crashed his motorcycle into a guardrail, authorities said. The office of the Cuyahoga County medical examiner identified the victim as Terrence R. Booker, 49. Booker hit the guardrail at about 1 a.m. on St. Clair Avenue and East 222nd Street. CLEVELAND, Ohio A Cuyahoga County grand jury has indicted a Cleveland man accused of trafficking at least eight women across a dozen states. Deondre Inkton, 31, is charged with compelling prostitution, promoting prostitution, trafficking in persons, money laundering and possessing criminal tools. Inkton physically and sexually abused women to force them into prostitution, prosecutors said. DUBLIN, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on Wednesday gathered school administrators from around the state to discuss how theyve instituted policies to restrict middle- and high-school students cell-phone use while at school. Their consensus: limiting young Ohioans smartphone use not only helps them learn but makes them happier as well. Domestic workers' union from Hong Kong joins protest in solidarity By Lee Hae-rin A recent suggestion by some studies and municipalities to introduce foreign care laborers who are paid less than the legal minimum wage has been emerging as a hot-button issue, triggering criticism within labor circles for being a racist and inhumane measure breaching international and domestic labor standards. A group of civic activists representing migrant workers and daycare laborers held a press conference in front of the Bank of Korea (BOK) in Seoul, Wednesday, to condemn the organizations recent report in which it recommended paying foreign caregivers wages below the legal minimum of 9,860 won ($7.49) per hour. Currently hiring foreign nannies or caregivers for the elderly is illegal, but the government, along with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, will launch a pilot program to introduce nannies and housekeepers from the Philippines within the year, with a plan to apply the same minimum wage for local workers. Migrant workers (in Korea) are already being treated like cheap disposable products. We are forced into harsh labor and have no right to leave a workplace without the employer's permission, Migrants Trade Union leader Udaya Rai said, arguing that the BOK suggestion would require them to sacrifice further and discriminates against migrant workers under the pretext of national interest. In Japan, which experienced similar issues when it introduced foreign workers at lower wages over a decade ago, suffered various problems such as labor exploitation and human rights infringement, according to Kwon Oh-hun, the vice leader of the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers Union (KPTU). According to the BOK report, Korea will face a critical shortage of 1.55 million workers to take care of the elderly, sick and children by 2042 due to an aging society and increasing number of young, working couples. The report suggested alleviating the financial burden of care labor that Koreans face by introducing foreign workers and exempting them from the minimum wage system. The average costs of full-time nursing and babysitting are 3.7 million won and 2.64 million won per month, respectively, which is too much for an average household to pay. The report cites a survey of Filipino domestic workers in Hong Kong, saying they are content with their working conditions. Nevertheless, the survey fails to represent the industry because it was conducted with only 102 Filipino nationals, according to Bae Jin-kyung, the head of the Korean Women Workers Association. There are 338,189 domestic workers in Hong Kong as of 2022, around 56 percent of whom are from the Philippines. Notably, the Hong Kong Federation of Asian Domestic Workers Union (FADWU) joined the event in a statement of solidarity. Migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong are suffering from the discriminatory laws and policies that exclude domestic workers from the same treatment as any other workers, according to the statement, read by a member of the women workers' association on behalf of the FADWU. Despite their enormous contribution to the citys economy, domestic workers are paid HK$7.80 ($1) per hour compared to the statutory minimum wage of HK$40 and a median hourly wage of $77.40 under the current system, which lacks any statutory working hours or labor inspections to protect their rights, the group said, calling the system a slave wage and discrimination. By Jung Da-hyun Seoul and Gyeonggi Province seem engaged in a continuous clash over the city's new unlimited public transportation pass. On Monday, Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon criticized Seoul's push for the province to be included in the Climate Card program, calling Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon's efforts politically motivated. The Climate Card, the official name of the public transportation pass, was introduced by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in January. The pass enables unlimited access to all bus routes and subway lines in the city, including the public bike-sharing service known as Ttareungyi, for a monthly fee of 65,000 won ($49.5), or 62,000 won without the bike service. After the service's launch, debates sparked over the area it covers, which was initially limited to Seoul only. As many commuters frequently travel between Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon, the Seoul Metropolitan Government sought cooperation with neighboring local governments to address citizens' confusion concerning the card's coverage area. Gimpo, Guri and Gwacheon in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon have signed a business agreement to join Seoul's unlimited public transportation pass system. This will allow the Climate Card to be used across express buses and subway lines within these areas. Despite repeated proposals from Seoul, Gyeonggi Province's participation has been stalled for months now. Kim questioned Seoul's approach of alleging that the province is not cooperating with the city. He mentioned the consensus reached in November last year with the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the mayors of Seoul and Incheon and himself, which recognized the impracticality of a unified transit pass due to differing cities and province transportation fare systems. "It's unusual for Seoul to criticize the province for not cooperating with the city's unlimited transit card. This contradicts the four-party agreement made last year," Kim said. In response, Oh said that the commuting woes of Gyeonggi residents should not be politicized, advocating for practical discussions to enhance the quality of life of the citizens. Oh, in a Facebook post on Tuesday, criticized Kim, saying that the governor believes the Gyeonggi Pass is sufficient for commuter needs. Oh added that contrary to Kim's belief, the province's transit pass may not be sufficient. He highlighted efforts by the city government to alleviate the economic pressures on residents of both Seoul and Gyeonggi, who take part in economic activities in Seoul. Oh also expressed bewilderment over Gyeonggi Province's refusal to engage in discussions with the government, insisting instead on the exclusive use of the province's transit pass system. The Gyeonggi Pass, set to launch in May, is designed to offer a 20 percent refund on users' total transportation costs, with an increased refund for young people from 19 to 39 years old. This service is exclusively available to residents of Gyeonggi Province. "When two policies serve similar functions, it's prudent to seek efficiency through complementation, not confrontation," Oh said. China remains hotspot for foreign investment People's Daily Online) 13:35, March 13, 2024 In January 2024, China saw the establishment of 4,588 new foreign-invested firms, marking a 74.4 percent surge from the previous year, according to data from the country's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM). A staff member searches for goods at a cross-border e-commerce park in the Heihe Area of the China (Heilongjiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone in Heihe city, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. (Xinhua/Xie Jianfei) An official from the ministry underscored the soaring enthusiasm among foreign investors for China, adding that multinational companies remain optimistic about opportunities in the Chinese market and are boosting their investments in the country. Many foreign companies operating in China have recently disclosed impressive financial results for 2023, accompanied by ambitious plans for further expansion in the Chinese market. French cosmetic giant L'Oreal and Germany's leading engineering and technology company, Bosch Group, each reported a 5 percent increase in their 2023 sales in China. The Greater China market accounted for about one-fifth of Apple's total revenue last year. U.S. pharmaceutical enterprise MSD saw its sales in China surge by 32 percent year on year to $6.71 billion in 2023. The sales growth of foreign companies in China is closely tied to the countrys vast market. Joe Bao, president for Greater China at Finland-based elevator giant KONE, mentioned that the Chinese market was the company's largest single market in the fiscal year of 2023, accounting for about 26 percent of its global sales last year. In the same period, KONE's equipment shipments in China exceeded 1.5 million units. A staff member works at a factory of SMC (China) Co., Ltd., a foreign-invested company in Beijing. (Xinhua/Shan Yuqi) "China is the world's largest new elevator market and the country with the most elevators in operation. Notably, 95 percent of the elevators currently in use in China have been installed for less than 20 years. This means that there is tremendous growth potential in the Chinese market for elevator maintenance and upgrading," Bao said. Without China's development, there would be no success for KONE, Bao added, noting that this year, the company is further optimizing its products and services and is actively participating in urban renewal and development projects across various Chinese cities. Additionally, China's further opening-up holds appeal to foreign enterprises. "Despite facing various challenges in 2023, Karcher's overall performance in China was quite impressive. Sales in the Chinese market continued to grow and ranked among the top 10 in Karcher's global markets," said Rainer Kern, vice general manager and CFO of Karcher China. Kern believes that China's attractive investment climate, solid supply chain, abundant talent pool, stable social setting, and the ongoing introduction of preferential policies have strongly supported the development of foreign companies in the country. Beyond its vast market, China's well-developed industrial and supply chain systems, along with its high-quality talent and other advantages, have allowed foreign companies to efficiently integrate various production factors, said Li Hongtao, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Foreign Investment of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation. Particularly in recent years, China's abundant innovation scenarios, platforms, and resources have provided multinational companies with new opportunities for product research, development, and sales, enabling them to secure an early advantage in global markets, added Li. An increasing number of global enterprises are committing to growth in China. The largest development center of German carmaker Volkswagen Group outside Germany commenced operations in January 2024. Meanwhile, U.S. energy giant ExxonMobil plans to invest 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) in a project in south China's Guangdong Province this year. Staff members work at a foreign-funded electronics components enterprise in Gangxi township, Rongcheng city, east China's Shandong Province. (Photo/Li Xinjun) On March 1, multinational pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca signed an investment agreement with the management committee of the Wuxi National High-Tech District, committing $475 million to build a small molecule drug factory in Wuxi city, east China's Jiangsu Province. A recent survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in China (AmCham China) revealed that 50 percent of the companies surveyed rank China as their top or among their top three investment destinations. A report released by HSBC in 2023 indicated that 87 percent of the international companies interviewed plan to increase their operations in China. The enthusiasm of foreign enterprises to invest in China lies in the fact that they remain bullish on the country's prospects. Yoon Doson, CEO of CJ China, stated that the South Korean conglomerate CJ Group has remained committed to China's market for nearly 30 years. The group values and appreciates the growth opportunities and favorable conditions that the Chinese market offers to foreign enterprises operating in China. With profit growth in 2023, the group maintains an optimistic outlook on the Chinese market and is confident in its operations within the country. "China's consumption and industrial upgrading, driven by its high-quality economic development, are bringing new opportunities to foreign companies," Li added. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) A civic group said Wednesday it will file a collective suit against retail giant Coupang over suspicions the company kept a blacklist of people it does not want to hire again. The civic group, dubbed the task force for Coupang workers' health, labor and human rights, said it has been in touch with some 80 victims from the blacklist so far, with plans to file the collective suit within this month. Coupang, the country's leading e-commerce company, has been under fire over accusations it has managed a blacklist of people to stop them from being rehired to work in their warehouses, including their personal information and their reason for resigning from the job. Kim Joon-ho, who is one of the whistleblowers of the alleged blacklist, said he was trained to exclude certain people who received a low mark on the performance evaluation from being hired during his time working at the Coupang Fulfillment Service from 2022 to 2023. The civic group claimed the person in charge of the list is a Coupang staffer, citing the website domain, which is an intranet that only the company's human resources team could access, and the web address embodying the term "blacklist" at the end. The group also called on Coupang to stop suppressing the whistleblowers and threatening the press, while urging the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission to protect the complainants. (Yonhap) Boeing 's recent troubles have put some pilots on high alert when they enter the cockpit. "It gives me even more pause when I get on the airplane," Dennis Tajer, spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association and a pilot for American Airlines , told CNBC's Last Call on Tuesday. "And not a pause of concern of flying it but making sure I'm watching it like a hawk." Multiple incidents involving Boeing planes have made headlines over the past several days, including one in which at least 50 people were injured on a 787 Dreamliner after passengers say it descended rapidly on a flight from Australia to New Zealand. The cause of that incident is under investigation, but carrier LATAM Airlines referred to it as a "technical event." On Tuesday, Southwest and Alaska Air said their flying plans were at risk amid Boeing's ongoing quality-control concerns. "Every airline is basically fighting to ensure that their network plan is not undermined by this failure of Boeing," said Tajer, a Boeing 737 captain. "And it changes every day." Despite the time he spent flying Boeing 707s in Desert Storm for the U.S. Air Force, Tajer said he thinks about the dangers of flying more than he ever has before. "I was in the military and Boeing planes saved my tail many times in combat," Tajer said. "The enemy was outside the airplane. Now it feels like the enemy is within." In this photo illustration logo of TikTok and U.S. flag are displayed on March 12, 2024. In the pitched battle between TikTok and Washington, few people stand to lose more than Jeff Yass, an American billionaire options trader who has emerged in recent years as a major donor to Republican candidates and causes. Yass co-founded the Philadelphia-based trading firm Susquehanna International Group, which owns a 15% stake in TikTok's China-based parent company, ByteDance. Yass' personal share is 7%, worth roughly $21 billion. Yass' investment is under threat today, and the typically press-shy billionaire is taking fire from both the left and the right. Critics accuse Yass of bankrolling an army of lobbyists and orchestrating a bare-knuckle pressure campaign to protect TikTok including by leveraging his nascent relationship with former President Donald Trump. Through a spokesperson, Yass declined to comment on this story. On Wednesday, the House is expected to pass bipartisan legislation that would force ByteDance to divest TikTok within a matter of months. President Joe Biden said that he would sign it into law if the bill wins Senate approval. "It would be a gut punch to the valuation and future of TikTok if a ban and forced sale came to fruition," Dan Ives, a managing director and senior equity research analyst at Wedbush Securities, said in an email. "This would be a nightmare for Yass, given the major investment in TikTok, if a forced ban hit the company under the Biden administration," Ives said. The impact would "likely be a 25% hit to the overall valuation." Susquehanna first invested in ByteDance in 2012, long before the company created TikTok and then merged it with a short-form video app called "Musical.ly" in 2018. When the app exploded in popularity, Susquehanna's investment paid off. Today, at least 150 million Americans use TikTok regularly, according to company data. Yet lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say TikTok's soaring popularity is part of the reason it poses a grave threat to national security. They argue that ByteDance's Beijing-based engineers and executives are amassing a dangerously large trove of data from tens of millions of Americans. The House bill "is about ensuring we're protecting the data of the American people, and making sure our foreign adversaries can't be targeting our people and using that data against them. That's what's happening, we know that for sure," Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told NBC News on Monday. The company has said it stores U.S. users' data securely and rejects the idea that it poses a threat to national security. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is expected to visit Capitol Hill this week to meet with members of Congress, part of an 11th-hour lobbying campaign to halt the bill in the Senate. Behind the scenes, Yass may also be helping to shape the debate over TikTok. 10 things to watch Wednesday, March 13 U.S. stocks are little changed early Wednesday, one day after a strong rally sent to the S & P 500 to a new record close. Investors get February's producer price index on Thursday following a slightly hotter-than-expected consumer price index on Tuesday. Eli Lilly teams up with Amazon's pharmacy unit to deliver patients drugs like Zepbound through its LillyDirect service. Zepbound for weight loss and Mounjaro for diabetes share the same active ingredient, tirzepatide, and are part of an emerging class of drugs referred to as GLP-1s. Bank of America increases Nvidia price target to $1,100 per share from $925 as part of its preview of the AI chip powerhouse's GTC developers conference next week. BofA also raises red-hot server maker Super Micro Computer price target to $1,280 from $1,040. TikTok ban legislation hits the House floor on Wednesday. The bill, which is expected to pass, would force the social media platform's Chinese owner ByteDance to sell its U.S. assets or get banned. The prospects in the Senate were still uncertain Tuesday. A ban of TikTok would certainly help Club name Meta Platforms' Reels short-term video feature. General Electric is selling another round of GE Healthcare shares. The secondary offering was upsized to 14 million shares from the original offering size of 13 million. Frustratingly, GEHC is down 4%. But we can make the argument that getting through the sales diminishes an overhang. The Club stock took off in mid-February after the previous secondary. Morgan Stanley's Adam Jonas upgrades his view on the auto industry to attractive from in-line (buy from hold) on the pivot to capital efficiency and return over aggressive spending on EVs and autonomous vehicles. "Auto demand trends strongly support our ICE elongation thesis," Jonas wrote, a thesis that plays into the hand of legacy internal combustion engine makers like General Motors and Club name Ford . Morgan Stanley has its buy-equivalent overweight rating on both. Jonas is still overweight Tesla. Wells Fargo downgrades Tesla to underweight from equal weight (sell from hold) and cuts price target slashed to $125 per share from $200. The analysts' view: Tesla's price cuts on electric vehicles are not helping volumes enough. Citigroup opens a 30-day positive catalyst watch on Constellation Brands . The analysts see easy comparisons in March and potential of further gains in spring shelf space reset as positive catalysts. Citi expects to see an acceleration in beer trends over the next three Nielsen scanner data releases. The Club holding behind Mexican beer brands Corona, Modelo and Pacifico is set to report earnings next month. Citi upgrades steelmaker Nucor to buy and downgrades industry peer Cleveland-Cliffs to neutral. Dollar Tree disappoints, missing fourth-quarter earnings per share estimates by 11 cents and provides softer first-quarter guidance. The stock is down 11% following the release. Sign up for my Top 10 Morning Thoughts on the Market email newsletter for free (See here for a full list of the stocks at Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED. 10 things to watch Wednesday, March 13 In an aerial view, shipping cranes made by Chinese owned manufacturer Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company (ZPMC) stand at the Port of Oakland on March 08, 2024 in Oakland, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images Cybersecurity risks associated with Chinese-made cranes at U.S. ports are not new, and recent White House action and hearings on Capitol Hill have escalated the claims about potentially serious national security vulnerabilities embedded in key infrastructure. But the Biden administration, lawmakers and ports management continue to differ in their views of the true nature of the threat. In a press briefing ahead of the recent executive order from President Joe Biden to strengthen the cybersecurity of America's ports, Rear Adm. Jay Vann, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Cyber Command, told reporters that 80% of the "ship-to-shore" cranes moving trade at U.S. ports are made in China and use Chinese software. He said that has led to concern that the cranes could be "vulnerable to exploitation" and used in Chinese surveillance. The Biden Administration estimates the number of People's Republic of China (PRC) manufacturer cranes in the U.S. at 200. On February 29, a joint letter from the Subcommittee on Counterterrorism, Law Enforcement, and Intelligence Committee on Homeland Security and the Select Committee on China was sent to the Chinese manufacturer of the cranes, ZPMC, inquiring about "certain components" including cellular modems installed on cranes that were not part of contracts with ports management and have no identified purpose. The Chinese government has in recent years responded to the concerns as "paranoia-driven." The ZPMC has not responded to recent CNBC requests for comment, but it did recently tell the press in response to the letter that its cranes do not pose a cybersecurity threat. In interviews with CNBC, top officials at some of the nation's largest ports stressed that the software to control their cranes does not come from China. Based on CNBC's research, the crane operational software being used by the ports are made by Switzerland's ABB, Germany's Siemens, Japanese software companies TMEIC and NIDEC, and equipment manufacturers Liebherr (German-Swiss multinational) and Konecranes (Finnish). CNBC also learned that ports use multiple layers of firewalls related to the cranes, which silo the equipment to protect the port infrastructure. "Despite utilizing Chinese-manufactured cranes at U.S. terminals, our members have ensured that these cranes operate independently of Chinese operating software," said Robert Murray, president of the National Association of Waterfront Employers which represents terminal operators that utilize cargo handling equipment at U.S. ports. "Emphasizing utmost precaution, the equipment deployed at ports maintains an exceptional level of isolation in crane control and auxiliary systems, bolstered by secure monitoring mechanisms and fortified by the impenetrable security of zero-trust policies." But according to the Biden administration, it's not a software's country of origin that is the issue. It's the installation of software at the point of manufacture in the PRC that presents the risk of software being compromised. Kurt Fredrickson, a Coast Guard spokesman, told CNBC via email that even if the software is not Chinese, all software has vulnerabilities, regardless of origin. "People's Republic of China (PRC)-manufactured ship-to-shore cranes make up the largest share of the global market and account for nearly 80% of the STS cranes at U.S. ports," he said. "By design, these cranes may be controlled, serviced, and programmed from remote locations, and those features potentially leave PRC-manufactured STS cranes vulnerable to exploitation, threatening the maritime elements of the national transportation system." Murray told CNBC while most crane operating software is not designed in China, it is installed in the PRC as part of the crane manufacturing process, and the organization continues to stand by its commitment in providing Congress and the administration with technical expertise regarding cybersecurity imperatives in ports and terminals. The office of Carlos Gimenez (R-FL), chairman of the Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee who led a recent hearing on the Chinese cranes concerns, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. What the ports say about cybersecurity and Chinese-made cranes The Port of South Carolina told CNBC its control system software must be installed during manufacturing in China to test cranes, and it occurs with "the mandatory oversight of their selected software vendor which is not a Chinese company." Not all ports install their software in China. Port of Long Beach officials tell CNBC their terminal operators typically install the operating software as part of the commissioning process which takes place at their terminals within the port. Shipping containers at the Port of Long Beach in Long Beach, California, Oct. 24, 2021. Kyle Grillot | Bloomberg | Getty Images The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), which is comprised of Tacoma and Seattle ports, has a total of 38 ZPMC cranes and in the past year, according to port officials, the USCG has completed a full threat assessment on its operated cranes and security measures, which it passed successfully. "We are evaluating new requirements against our existing security measures at our marine terminals and at this time do not suggest we will have to replace our operating cranes," said Melanie Stambaugh, an NWSA spokeswoman. "We recognize guidelines are still emerging on this topic from the Biden administration and subsequent maritime security organizations and we are tracking this matter closely." The American Association of Port Authorities, a trade group that represents ports and has consistently said there is no evidence of Chinese-linked cyber vulnerabilities at ports, declined to comment. Some of the ports tell CNBC regardless of the software in use, they have measures in place to keep the U.S. flow of trade safe but said they could not be more specific due to security concerns. Some ports indicated that they have three layers of siloed cyber protection for each crane. The New York and New Jersey Port Authority software for terminals come from ABB and Siemens, according to CNBC research. The chief security officer for the New York and New Jersey Port Authority, Greg Ehrie, told CNBC via email that the port maintains industry-leading cyber security standards, and will continue to bolster its efforts through close relationships with operational partners alongside constant collaboration with local, state, and federal officials. A spokesperson for the Port of New Orleans told CNBC the port prioritizes public safety and continually focuses on bolstering their cybersecurity and is already in compliance with the Biden administration's executive order, but it declined to be more specific. Doug Vogt, chief operating officer for North Carolina Ports, told CNBC that while its container cranes were manufactured by ZPMC, it uses crane operating software from ABB. "Any remote troubleshooting capabilities or external system connection are dependent on the permission of NC Ports and are actively monitored by skilled IT professionals who are keenly aware of and trained in cybersecurity protocols," Vogt said, adding that it works closely with the United States Coast Guard to ensure its systems, equipment and operations are secure. Mario Cordero, executive director of the Port of Long Beach, the nation's second-largest port, said in an interview with CNBC at the recent TPM logistics conference that 59 of the port's 76 cranes are from China. The others are a mix of Japanese and South Korean equipment, including Samsung cranes. Noel Hacegaba, chief operating officer at the Port of Long Beach, added that the software the terminals use to physically operate the cranes is not Chinese. "In theory, if you have one crane go down, that's a red flag for the entire system. So certainly that kind of scenario would be taken seriously," Cordero said of a hypothetical cyber attack. "We are prepared and have the best practices of business continuity to address that scenario." At the Port of Los Angeles, 39 of the 82 cranes are made in China, and some of the software used comes from ABB and Siemens. "Software is everywhere," Gene Seroka, executive director of the LA port, told CNBC in a recent interview at the TPM conference. "We'll take advice, we'll evaluate, we'll look even deeper." But when asked for more specific information on the cyber threat, he said, "I leave these questions to the intelligence community and the federal government." A container ship is shown at the Port of Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California, November 22, 2021. Mike Blake | Reuters The Port of Oakland has more than two dozen container cranes, most of them made by ZPMC, and which are currently under review by U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The port declined to discuss its software, citing security concerns. "We continue to work routinely with DHS and the U.S. Coast Guard for any further actions needed to enhance the safety and security of our maritime infrastructure," said a Port of Oakland spokesperson. The Port of Georgia, the fourth-largest port in the nation, has no Chinese-made cranes, with all of its crane infrastructure added over the past three decades provided by Finland-based Konecranes, and the software and hardware a combination of products from Finland, Japan, Taiwan, the U.S. and Europe. A shift in US industrial policy amid global tech competition The government focus on this issue comes amid a broader shift in industrial policy to bring more manufacturing back to the U.S. as part of both economic and national security strategy, and as the rivalry between the U.S. and China intensifies. It also comes amid greater concerns that nation-states in competition with the U.S. may seek in the future to take down key U.S. infrastructure as part of more severe hacking campaigns using cyber means to wage both physical and psychological war on the U.S. and its population. According to national security experts, any smart system (also known as cyber/physical systems) using microchips to converge data with operational technologies (OT) and machinery will have similar vulnerabilities. They warn the crane software concerns are part of a much larger societal risk. "We need both the private and public sector to deploy a national cyber shield around our nation's critical infrastructure," said Lucian Niemeyer, CEO of nonprofit Building Cyber Security, and former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment under President Donald Trump, who also led the National Security Programs for the Office of Management and Budget. "We are a connected society and these connections leave us with millions of new vectors for cyber attacks." "As for cranes, other port equipment, and even the building systems on site, the cyber risk remains regardless of the manufacturer or software," Niemeyer said. He added that regardless of the origin of the crane software and the origin of a crane's manufacturing, there are ways to mitigate cyber risk. Port operators can access grant funds to establish or expand smart port network operations centers to monitor performance and manage the data, programming, and software in the cranes and other equipment. Ports also need to have a cyber specialist in the loop, a role that Niemeyer said is "essential" to clear all actions and cut external data connections with no impact to the crane or port operations. Niemeyer said that the modems recently cited as a suspicious crane feature can be addressed. "Any non-operational modems that are found on the cranes can be either removed or a port's operation center can install a cyber checkpoint between Shanghai and the crane," he said. The Coast Guard told CNBC it will apply the same risk management framework to the prevention and mitigation of cyber threat risks as the Maritime Transportation System, part of a globally interconnected information network that enables the efficient and continual flow of commerce, and which uses a wide variety of techniques from the Coast Guard and Joint Force operational commanders. "Additionally, MTS cyber specialists, along with deployable Cyber Protection Teams (CPTs) and a Maritime Cyber Readiness Branch (MCRB), will directly support operational commanders at the Sectors, Districts, and Areas to enhance the service's ability to prevent and respond to cyber-related MTS disruptions," a Coast Guard spokesman wrote. By Nam Hyun-woo The mayor of Gwangju is in a dilemma over President Yoon Suk Yeols town hall meeting in the city, as the liberal mayors previous requests for Yoon to hold the event in Gwangju are being used by the presidential office as a rationale to undermine the main opposition Democratic Party of Koreas (DPK) criticisms of the president. The mayor said he will boycott the event if the event is held jointly with South Jeolla Province, which surrounds the city, but questions of his intentions are arising due to his dithering on the issue. Gwangju Mayor Kang Ki-jung told reporters Monday that he will not attend Yoons town hall meeting, if the president insists on Gwangju and South Jeolla Province jointly holding the event because the pending issues in the two regions are completely different. Throughout this year, Yoon has been holding town hall meetings across the country, as part of his efforts to pay greater attention to regional issues. So far, the conservative president has held 19 town hall meetings in major cities and regions, but he has yet to hold one in Gwangju and the surrounding Jeolla Provinces. The city of Gwangju and the Jeolla Provinces are strongholds of liberal blocs. There was no case of two regions jointly holding a town hall meeting, Kang said. This is unfair compared to other town hall meetings and not the way that Gwangju citizens want things to be done. Kang, a member of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), previously requested Yoon to hold a town hall meeting in Gwangju, despite the DPKs criticism that the town hall meetings are populist measures used to win over voters before the April 10 general elections. On Feb. 13, the mayor said the president needs to be informed about pending issues in the city such as setting up an artificial intelligence industrial complex. He said that passing over Gwangju can be seen as the president influencing the general elections. The presidential office also used Kangs requests to refute the DPKs criticism. An official at the presidential office said Monday that the Gwangju mayors requests show that the town hall meetings are not an election campaign, adding that we are considering a town hall meeting in South Jeolla Province. It remains uncertain when and where Yoon will hold the town hall meeting for the region, but Naju in South Jeolla Province is rumored to be the next stop for Yoon. Against the backdrop, the ruling People Power Partys Gwangju chapter issued a statement criticizing Kang for using Gwangju as a political tool. Kangs boycott contrasts to South Jeolla Province Governor Kim Yung-rok, who seeks to use the town hall meeting as an opportunity for developments in the province, the statement reads. Governor Kim is also a DPK member. A South Jeolla Province official told Newsis, a Korean news agency, that the provincial government has no comment regarding the Gwangju mayors move, but added that the provincial government will participate in the event whether it is held jointly or separately. Super Micro Computer has more room to run given its competitive advantage and relationships in the artificial intelligence sector, Bank of America said. Analyst Ruplu Bhattacharya hiked his price target by $240 to $1,280, now implying upside of 10.1% from Tuesday's close. Bhattacharya also reiterated his buy rating. There are several unique capabilities that give Super Micro an edge, Bhattacharya said, including its building block architecture that can get new technology to customers quickly. Another plus: Super Micro's connection with AI darling Nvidia , as well as other well-known chipmakers including Intel and AMD . "SMCI's competitive advantages include building block architecture which helps to quickly incorporate new technology and reduce time to market, relationship with leading AI CPU/GPU/ASIC providers including Intel, Nvidia, and AMD, and its ability to customize configurations to specific customer applications and its liquid cooling offerings," he told clients. Bhattacharya's call comes amid rising expectations for growth in the broader AI server industry as the technological craze continues. He now said the industry should grow from $39 billion to around $200 billion between 2023 and 2027. Super Micro's revenue growth should also remain strong, Bhattacharya said. That will be driven by server demand as clients want access to AI, high-performance computing, big data analytics and computer-intensive graphics, among other things. SMCI YTD mountain Super Micro Computer, year to date The analyst's new target price also offers reassurance that the stock's rally isn't losing steam. Super Micro shares have already surged more than 300% this year as the AI craze continues, adding to 2023s jump of more than 240%. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has launched an investigation into UnitedHealth Group following the cyberattack on its Change Healthcare unit that has disrupted crucial operations in pharmacies and hospitals across the U.S. The HHS Office for Civil Rights said in a statement Wednesday that it's investigating the incident due to the "unprecedented magnitude of the cyberattack." The OCR enforces the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act's security, privacy and breach notification rules, which most health plans, providers and clearinghouses such as Change Healthcare are required to follow to protect health information. "OCR's investigation of Change Healthcare and UHG will focus on whether a breach of protected health information occurred and Change Healthcare's and UHG's compliance with the HIPAA Rules," the department said. Change Healthcare offers electronic prescription software and tools for payment and revenue cycle management. Parent company UnitedHealth discovered that a cyber threat actor breached part of the unit's information technology network on Feb. 21, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. UnitedHealth told CNBC in a statement that it will cooperate with the investigation from the OCR. "Our immediate focus is to restore our systems, protect data and support those whose data may have been impacted," the company said. "We are working with law enforcement to investigate the extent of impacted data." UnitedHealth took the affected systems offline after identifying the threat, according to the SEC filing. The company said on Thursday that it expects to restore its networks by mid-March. As of Friday, UnitedHealth said electronic prescribing is "fully functional," and it expects electronic payment functionality to be available starting March 15. The company will "begin testing" to reestablish connectivity to its claims network on March 18. In late February, Change Healthcare said that ransomware group Blackcat was behind the attack. Blackcat, also called Noberus and ALPHV, steals sensitive data from institutions and threatens to publish it unless a ransom is paid, according to a December release from the Department of Justice. UnitedHealth has not disclosed what specific data was compromised in the attack, or if it has agreed to pay a ransom to bring systems back online. The fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX, which was forced to make an emergency landing with a gap in the fuselage, is seen during its investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in Portland, Oregon, U.S. January 7, 2024. Security camera footage showing work being done on a Boeing Max 9 door plug that later blew out mid-air has been overwritten, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board said. In a letter to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation that is reviewing the incident and Boeing's role in it, NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said her agency still lacks critical information about the chain of events that led up to the January incident that caused an Alaska Airlines flight carrying 177 people to make an emergency landing. "We still do not know who performed the work to open, reinstall, and close the door plug on the accident aircraft," Homendy wrote. "Boeing has informed us that they are unable to find the records documenting this work." She continued: "A verbal request was made by our investigators for security camera footage to help obtain this information; however, they were informed the footage was overwritten. The absence of those records will complicate the NTSB's investigation moving forward." Homendy said in the letter that she also personally called Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun and asked him for the names of the workers who performed the work in question. But, Homendy said, Calhoun stated he was "unable to provide that information and maintained that Boeing has no records of the work being performed." A Boeing spokesperson said the company, like many others, does not retain security footage for longer than 30 days. The Alaska Airlines plane in question was in the factory last year in September and delivered in October. "We will continue supporting this investigation in the transparent and proactive fashion we have supported all regulatory inquiries into this accident," Boeing said. "We have worked hard to honor the rules about the release of investigative information in an environment of intense interest from our employees, customers, and other stakeholders, and we will continue our efforts to do so." Homendy had previously publicly reprimanded Boeing for failing to turn over information her agency had requested, calling it "absurd." Last week, NBC News confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that the U.S. Department of Justice had opened a criminal case into the incident. On Monday, South Carolina officials confirmed a Boeing whistleblower was found dead of an apparent self-inflected gunshot wound. The former employee, John Barnett, 62, was preparing to testify in a deposition in a federal legal action against Boeing dating back to at least 2017.Barnett's family in a statement that he had encountered "a culture of concealment" that valued "profits over safety" at Boeing. The New York Times also reported this week that an FAA audit of Boeing's 737 Max production reportedly found "dozens of issues." This week, major carriers that fly Boeing fuselages including Alaska Airlines, Southwest, and United Airlines said they may have to trim capacity and push back orders as a result of Boeing's issues. "Boeing needs to become a better company and the deliveries will follow that," Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said at a JPMorgan industry conference Tuesday, according to CNBC. A view of the platform of the Leviathan natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea is pictured from the Israeli northern coastal beach of Nasholim, on August 29, 2022. DUBAI, United Arab Emirates Plans for a 50% stake purchase by energy major BP and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (Adnoc) in Israeli gas producer NewMed Energy are on hold because of regional turbulence, NewMed said Wednesday. The three companies "have agreed, due to the uncertainty created by the external environment, to suspend discussions in relation to the proposed transaction," a NewMed statement said. The company's share price dropped as much as 8% on the Tel Aviv stock exchange at the start of the trading day. The statement also said that BP and Adnoc "reiterated [their] interest in the proposed transaction," indicating that the deal was not permanently off the table. It added the process will remain suspended until it is terminated or talks pick up again. "There can be no certainty that discussions will resume or that an agreement will be reached in the future," it said. Adnoc declined to comment when contacted by CNBC. BP was not immediately available for comment. The original stake purchase offer was announced almost exactly one year ago in late March and would have led to a joint buy-in by BP and Adnoc to the tune of $2 billion for a 50% stake in the Israeli firm. The move would have granted the British and Emirati oil giants access to Israel's expanding energy sector and more of the Eastern Mediterranean's rich gas reserves. At the time, BP and Adnoc said the deal would result in a joint venture from the two companies to focus on "gas development in international areas of mutual interest including the East Mediterranean." The two companies last month announced a separate gas joint venture in Egypt. The NewMed deal would have been a major political win for Israel, which has been pursuing closer ties with a number of Arab states ever since the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020, which normalized diplomatic relations between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. In March 2023, the first Israeli-Arab free trade agreement was signed into effect with the UAE, with the goal of increasing bilateral trade to $10 billion by 2027. That figure was just over $2.5 billion in 2022, not including software and services, according to the Israeli government, making the UAE Israel's 16th largest trading partner. Israel has been mired in war in Gaza since the Oct. 7 terror attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas, which killed some 1,200 people in Israel and saw another 253 taken hostage, of which 123 have been freed. Israel's military response has killed more than 30,000 people in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry there, and put more than half a million people on the brink of famine, the United Nations says. The UAE, along with other Arab governments, has vocally condemned Israel's operations in Gaza. Hamas and other Islamist militant groups in Gaza as well as the Iran-backed Lebanese militant organization Hezbollah have fired thousands of rockets into Israeli territory, most of which are intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system. Correction: In the Oct. 7 terror attack, 253 people were taken hostage, of which 123 have been freed. An earlier version misstated the figures. This is the script of CNBC's news report for China's CCTV on March 13, 2024. The Boeing crisis has now spread to its customers, affecting airlines that have ordered its aircraft. At a JPMorgan investor event on Tuesday, several airlines highlighted how the crisis is impacting their operations. The main issue stems from Boeing's production slowdown, leading to airlines potentially not receiving the planned number of aircraft this year. This has disrupted the airlines' operational and growth plans. Southwest Airlines, which exclusively uses Boeing 737 aircraft, announced on Tuesday that it expects to receive fewer Boeing 737 Max planes this year than anticipated. Originally slated to receive 79 aircraft, the airline now anticipates only 46, prompting Southwest to adjust its capacity forecast for the year. Additionally, the airline stated it is reassessing its financial guidance for the year and will reduce hiring, including cutting 50% of pilot and 60% of flight attendant recruitment. United Airlines has informed Boeing to halt manufacturing the 737 Max 10 aircraft due to uncertainties over when it can be certified. United had previously paused its spring pilot recruitment due to delays in Boeing's deliveries. Alaska Airlines mentioned that due to increased scrutiny from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Justice, there is uncertainty surrounding aircraft deliveries. As a result, the airline's capacity forecast for the year remains in flux. Analysts point out that airlines are in dire need of more aircraft for two main reasons: the upcoming summer season is crucial for travel demand, making the number of aircraft key to revenue growth; and newer planes are typically more fuel-efficient, which could lower costs by replacing older models. Peter Mcnally Global head of analysts at Third Bridge "So you have a double benefit when you do get those planes. But the problem we've been talking about this for quarters is getting those planes from Boeing." Boeing is currently focused on resolving safety issues rather than delivery numbers, and its CEO has not provided financial targets for the year. Boeing's stock price fell over 4% overnight. Since the beginning of the year, Boeing's stock has plunged more than 25%. The crisis has cascaded down to several U.S. airlines, with their stock prices closing lower overnight. Notably, in February, Boeing's aircraft deliveries lagged behind its competitor, Airbus. Boeing delivered 27 aircraft, while Airbus delivered 49. Airbus has extended its delivery lead over Boeing, delivering 79 aircraft in the first two months of the year compared to Boeing's 54. Since its IPO in 2000, Airbus was always smaller in scale compared to Boeing. However, as negative news about Boeing emerged, the gap has been narrowing, and Airbus has begun to outpace Boeing. As of Tuesday's close, Airbus's market value exceeded Boeing's by approximately $24 billion. Analysts suggest that Airbus might seize this crisis to capture more market share from Boeing. United Airlines' CEO is seeking to reach an agreement with Airbus for its A321 aircraft. United's former CEO, in an interview with CNBC, emphasized that Boeing still has a lot of work to do to regain public trust. Oscar Munoz Former CEO of United Airlines "Things like safety and things like quality are very, very much a culture thing. And there's a lot of work to be done there. Boeing really has to make a concerted effort to begin to regain the trust of the flying public and its customers." Just_super | E+ | Getty Images The European Union's parliament on Wednesday approved the world's first major set of regulatory ground rules to govern the mediatized artificial intelligence at the forefront of tech investment. The EU brokered provisional political consensus in early December, and it was then endorsed in the Parliament's Wednesday session, with 523 votes in favor, 46 against and 49 votes not cast. "Europe is NOW a global standard-setter in AI," Thierry Breton, the European commissioner for internal market, wrote on X. The president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, described the act as trailblazing, saying it would enable innovation, while safeguarding fundamental rights. "Artificial intelligence is already very much part of our daily lives. Now, it will be part of our legislation too," she wrote in a social media post. Dragos Tudorache, a lawmaker who oversaw EU negotiations on the agreement, hailed the deal, but noted the biggest hurdle remains implementation. Born in 2021, the EU AI Act divides the technology into categories of risk, ranging from "unacceptable" which would see the technology banned to high, medium and low hazard. The regulation is expected to enter into force at the end of the legislature in May, after passing final checks and receiving endorsement from the European Council. Implementation will then be staggered from 2025 onward. Some EU countries have previously advocated self-regulation over government-led curbs, amid concerns that stifling regulation could set hurdles in Europe's progress to compete with Chinese and American companies in the tech sector. Detractors have included Germany and France, which house some of Europe's promising AI startups. The EU has been scrambling to keep pace with the consumer impact of tech developments and the market supremacy of key players. Last week, the bloc brought into force landmark competition legislation set to rein in U.S. giants. Under the Digital Markets Act, the EU can crack down on anti-competitive practices from major tech companies and force them to open out their services in sectors where their dominant position has stifled smaller players and choked freedom of choice for users. Six firms U.S. titans Alphabet , Amazon , Apple , Meta , Microsoft and China's ByteDance have been put on notice as so-called gatekeepers. Concerns have been mounting over the potential for abuse of artificial intelligence, even as heavyweight players like Microsoft, Amazon, Google and chipmaker Nvidia beat the drum for AI investment. watch now The Federal Trade Commission announced on Wednesday it is refunding $4.1 million to 27,584 consumers who fell victim to student debt forgiveness scams. The action follows a 2019 complaint the FTC made against the operators of Mission Hills Federal and Federal Direct Group, alleging the organizations have been tricking student loan borrowers out of their money since 2014. Fraudsters "tricked students into paying hundreds to thousands of dollars in illegal upfront fees and pretended to lower consumers' monthly student loan payments," the FTC said in a press release. Additionally, the operators claimed to take over the servicing of consumers' loans and thus, often pocketed consumers' monthly payments, the agency said. Americans owe a whopping $1.7 trillion in student loans, according to Education Data Initiative, so it's not surprising that many borrowers are eager to take any chance they have to lower or eliminate their balances. Unfortunately, that also creates a ripe opportunity for malicious actors to take advantage of those looking for ways to ease their student debt burdens. Scammers lure student loan borrowers by offering ways to lower their monthly payments or even eliminate their balances. This isn't the first time the FTC has issued refunds for these kinds of scams. Last August, the agency, along with the Department of Justice, sent $9 million in refunds to victims of an organization known as Ameritech Financial that operated a similar student debt relief scheme. The FTC also refunded 37,800 consumers earlier in 2023 as a result of another student loan scam. If someone reaches out to you offering to help with your student debt, you might be tempted to work with them especially if you're struggling to make your monthly payments. But there are legitimate assistance programs as well as federally-supported forgiveness initiatives that can actually help you get out of debt. Use these tips to avoid losing money to a student loan scammer. Goldman Sachs has refreshed its "conviction list" of top picks in Asia Pacific for March, adding some key stocks and removing others. The bank struck an optimistic tone on the region, noting that its markets had recovered their January losses and were now trading flat year to date. "Wide market/sector/factor performance disparity and less large cap bias than the U.S. reinforce the theme of intra-regional opportunity," the investment bank's analysts wrote in a Mar. 3 note. "Earnings will be the main driver of share performance, given that valuations that are broadly in line with macro conditions." Key trading themes on their radar include global exposure, earnings delivery, a focus on value, and leveraging opportunities in artificial intelligence. Here are two of the latest additions to Goldman Sachs' conviction list: Xero Goldman analyst Kane Hannan said he was positive on the outlook for New Zealand-headquartered accounting software company Xero . The company's "pivot to profitable growth and corresponding earnings ramp, [provides] an attractive entry point into a global growth story," he said, adding that Xero is a preferred large-cap technology name in the Australia and New Zealand region. Looking ahead, Hannan believes that the company, with its refreshed management team, "is very well-placed to take advantage of the digitization of SMBs [small and mid-sized businesses] globally." He said one challenge faced by the company was its ability to compete with Intuit's Quickbooks in the U.S. and with Sage in the U.K. While the "market opportunity is large enough for multiple successful players," he expects the debate to persist over time, he added. However, Hannan remains convinced that "Xero, through its cloud-first approach (and no legacy desktop) is well positioned to compete, and through its management refresh, increased product cadence, focus on an open ecosystem & partnerships, is well positioned to compete in these large and attractive markets." Goldman Sachs has a price target of $152 on the stock, giving it potential upside of around 12%. Hyundai Motor Another addition to Goldman's conviction list is South Korean automobile manufacturer Hyundai Motor . Analyst Kota Yuzawa sees the company gaining from a "fundamental improvement in U.S. market share gains, diversified powertrain strategy, solid EV margin, and improving shareholder returns [that] aren't fully appreciated by the market." Yuzawa said risks such as weakening end demand and an EV slowdown were "largely priced in," and he expects the market to re-evaluate the company's fundamentals, "with additional potential upside from corporate governance improvements." Looking ahead, the analyst expects Hyundai's earnings to decline in 2024, but says "the valuations are more than reflecting this slowdown whilst not recognizing Hyundai's structural improvement in U.S. market share and multi-powertrain strategy." Goldman gives the stock a price target of 290,000 Korean Won ($221.36), implying potential upside of around 20%. Meanwhile, the Wall Street bank removed Singapore-headquartered bank OCBC and Japanese conglomerate Sony from its conviction list as it no longer deems them "a top investment idea." CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report. Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at Greensboro Coliseum on March 2, 2024 in Greensboro, North Carolina. As President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump secure enough delegates to clinch their party nominations, policy experts are weighing how proposed tariffs could affect American consumers. While the Trump campaign hasn't released many tax policy specifics, he has renewed his support for tariffs, which are taxes levied on imported goods from another country. "I'm a big believer in tariffs," Trump said Monday on CNBC's "Squawk Box," suggesting that he's likely to reinstitute duties if elected for a second term. More from Personal Finance: Nearly half of young adults have 'money dysmorphia,' survey finds 19 million people may qualify for free tax prep through the IRS this year Here's the inflation breakdown for February 2024 in one chart During this first term from 2017 to 2021, Trump added a variety of tariffs to bolster U.S. industries, including levies on China, Mexico and the European Union, among others. The Biden administration has maintained some of those tariffs. "Here's an area where the candidates are actually pretty similar first what Trump imposed and then what Biden maintained," said Erica York, a senior economist and research manager with the Tax Foundation's Center for Federal Tax Policy. "That's an area to pay attention to," she added. The House approved a bill Wednesday that calls for China tech giant ByteDance to divest TikTok or the popular social video app will effectively be banned in the U.S. The measure passed with a resounding 352-65 vote and with one member voting present. The legislation, dubbed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, was introduced March 5 by Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. Two days later, House members on the Energy and Commerce Committee voted unanimously to approve the bill, which refers to TikTok as a threat to national security because it is controlled by a foreign adversary. The bill now heads to the Senate where it faces an uncertain future as senators appear divided about the legislation, and other federal and state-led efforts to ban TikTok have stalled. "This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban," a TikTok spokesperson said after the vote was passed. "We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service." In a short-video clip that was posted on TikTok later in the afternoon, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew expressed dismay to TikTok users over what he described as a "disappointing vote in the House of Representatives," and said that the bill "gives more power to a handful of other social media companies" and that "it also take billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses." "Over the last few years, we have invested to keep your data safe in our platform, free from outside manipulation; we have committed that we will continue to do so," Chew said. "This legislation, if signed into law, will lead to a ban of TikTok in the United States, even the bill sponsors admit that that's their goal." Chew added that TikTok "will continue to do all we can, including exercising our legal rights to protect this amazing platform that we have built with you." President Joe Biden, who created an official TikTok account in February as part of his election campaign, has previously said that he would sign the bill if it is passed, and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre acknowledged that the White House is providing "technical support" in the crafting of the legislation. Jean-Pierre said in a media briefing March 6 that once "it's on legal standing and it's in a place where it can get out of Congress, then the President would sign it." Korea's new ambassador to Canberra has presented a copy of his credentials to Australia, the foreign ministry said Wednesday, amid controversy over his alleged influence-peddling case related to the death of a young Marine last year. Lee Jong-sup, who served as defense minister from 2022 to 2023, left for Australia on Sunday without receiving the original letter of credence from President Yoon Suk Yeol. The foreign ministry said Lee submitted a copy of the letter Tuesday during his meeting with Arthur Spyrou, chief of protocol at the Australian department of foreign affairs and trade. As he has submitted the copy, Lee can carry out his diplomatic activities as the ambassador before presenting the original letter. Lee has been a subject in a probe by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in connection with the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun, who died in July last year while on a search mission amid heavy downpours. The anti-corruption investigation office has been looking into allegations that Lee exerted influence to hold off the findings of an internal probe by the Marines on Chae's death. (Yonhap) This story is part of CNBC Make It's The Moment series, where highly successful people reveal the critical moment that changed the trajectory of their lives and careers, discussing what drove them to make the leap into the unknown. Amber Venz Box only wanted to earn a reliable income doing what she loved. She didn't intend to help create an entire online industry. The 36-year-old is the co-founder and president of LTK, a Dallas-based marketing company that connects more than 250,000 influencers and bloggers with over 7,000 retail brands with advertising budgets to spend. She's credited as a pioneer of the creator economy with a business most recently valued at $2 billion, following a 2021 fundraise from Japanese investment holding company SoftBank. In 2010, Box was an unpaid fashion blogger trying to promote her services as a personal shopper. She'd held some low-level positions in the industry: a fit model, an intern at Thakoon, an assistant buyer at a luxury boutique in Dallas. When an article in The Dallas Morning News pointed readers to her blog, Box realized she'd made a mistake: Potential clients were reading her fashion tips and buying the clothes themselves. She wasn't making a penny, and affiliate marketing where blogs link out to retailers in exchange for a cut of sales wasn't yet commonly used in the fashion industry. "That was an 'aha moment' of, I have to modernize my business so that I can actually continue to charge for the sales that I'm driving to my customers," Box tells CNBC Make It. "That was the impetus for us starting [in 2011] what was RewardStyle, and is now LTK." She and her then-boyfriend, an electrical engineer and tech analyst named Baxter Box they're now married with four kids adapted existing affiliate linking tech to fit her blog. Once she started making money, she realized she could sell the technology to other bloggers, who could benefit similarly. Since launching, LTK has helped online creators earn at least $2.7 billion in payouts from retailers, according to the company. It has turned 240 influencers all women into millionaires, Box says. Here, Box discusses the challenges of launching LTK, the risks of completely devoting yourself to an uncertain venture and where any aspiring entrepreneur should begin. CNBC Make It: Can you describe the process of turning your fashion blog into an online business? Box: [Baxter] saw me really struggling. We went for a walk one day, and he was like, "Anything's on the table. How would you want to make money on this?" My old business model [as a personal shopper] involved getting paid a commission. That seemed fair. That's what I wanted to do here. So he researched and found some technology that we could apply back to this space. I put between $500 to $1,000 towards engineering to get this going, and he did the same. I drew up, on PowerPoint, what I wanted it to look like. We met with this guy on the weekends and paid him piecemeal, hourly, to start coding it. In 2011, we launched and I was able to start earning commissions. Did starting a business feel like a big personal risk? There was also almost no [financial] downside. I was in my early 20s, living at home, still eating my dad's cereal. Worst case, this stays the same. Best case, you have a business where you get to do the things you want within this lifestyle that you wanted to create. But there was a pressure of, "This better work, because I'm sacrificing everything to make it happen. And what if I do this for X period of time and it doesn't? That's going to just be this huge hole and pit in my life." I was spending 24 hours a day [on the business]. I was silencing phone calls. I was not spending time with friends. I abandoned a lot of relationships, and very quickly. How confident were you that this would become a viable business beyond your own blog? I was confident that people would be excited about it. Bloggers didn't make money [at the time], and I knew that the second they made $100, that they would want to keep doing this. But I really didn't know how we were going to pay the bills that we were incurring from hiring an intern, hiring an engineer. One of the biggest challenges with retailers was getting them to believe that someone who had a website on the internet should be part of their marketing plan. The feedback I would often get was: "We work with celebrities or models. This is not part of our plan. We are a luxury brand, we are elevated." There were two key businesses at the time that were selling [luxury items] online, ShopBop and Net-a-Porter. I basically asked them to pay me a commission for the online sales that I was driving, and that's when the business really took off. You started LTK before most people knew the term "creator economy." Did you feel like you were ahead of the curve? No, I really didn't even think of it as an industry. I struggled until 2015, when we fundraised for the first time, to try and explain the space that we were creating articulate it in a way that investors were interested in. I was talking about blogging, young girls on the internet, fashion. I was a young girl. This was my first business and I was from Dallas. It was very challenging to get investors excited about it and raise money around it. Most of the comments were like, "I'll ask my wife," or "I'll ask my girlfriend." We raised $300 million [from SoftBank] in 2021. I think it's probably one of the largest investments, if not the largest, in the creator space. That was when the industry, to me, really arrived. What's your best advice for recognizing a window of opportunity and deciding to commit to pursuing it? The time isn't "always now" it's always yesterday. If you have a real problem, then other people have that problem too. Solve it now, because someone is going to eventually be able to solve it. It's who gets there fastest, spreads the word and builds that community around it best. And that's with almost every decision as a founder you move with urgency to win. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Want to make extra money outside of your day job? Sign up for CNBC's new online course How to Earn Passive Income Online to learn about common passive income streams, tips to get started and real-life success stories. Register today and save 50% with discount code EARLYBIRD. Judge Scott McAfee presides over a hearing regarding media access in the case against former U.S. President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, on Aug. 31, 2023. A judge on Wednesday dismissed six counts in the Georgia criminal election interference case against former President Donald Trump and five other defendants, saying that the indictment against them failed to sufficiently explain the basis for those specific charges. But other criminal counts against Trump and the defendants remain after the order by Judge Scott McAfee. The dismissed counts had accused Trump and the others of the crime of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer. The counts related to efforts by the defendants to get members of Georgia's legislature and the secretary of state to delegitimize the election victory of President Joe Biden over Trump in the state's 2020 contest. Defense lawyers for Trump and the others argued, among other things, that the indictment charging them with that specific count did "not detail the exact term of the oaths that are alleged to have been violated," McAfee noted in his order. McAfee agreed, saying that the language in the indictment accusing the defendants of soliciting elected officials to violate their oaths to the U.S. and Georgia constitutions "is so generic as to compel" dismissal of the charges. "The Court's concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants in fact it has alleged an abundance," McAfee wrote. "However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigned's opinion, fatal." The judge said the indictment contains all of the essential elements of the alleged crimes, but "fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited." The judge added, "They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways." "On its own, the United States Constitution contains hundreds of clauses, any one of which can be the subject of a lifetime's study," McAfee wrote. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks at the company's Ignite Spotlight event in Seoul on Nov. 15, 2022. Nadella gave a keynote speech at an event hosted by the company's Korean unit. Microsoft is rolling out an unorthodox pricing model for its new security chatbot that becomes available to the public on April 1. As part of a swarm of generative artificial intelligence announcements last year, Microsoft introduced a preview last March of Copilot for Security, which taps large language models to help cybersecurity professionals understand critical issues. On Wednesday, Microsoft said it will use a consumption-based model, charging $4 per "security compute unit." Andrew Conway, vice president of security marketing at Microsoft, said the types of prompts and summaries will vary dramatically in size, depending on the customer and type of workload. "Customers can buy what they need, and that can easily be changed over time without friction," Conway said in a statement. Security is a significant business for Microsoft, accounting for more than $20 billion in revenue in 2022, making it larger than gaming or search advertising at the time. Gaming is now bigger with the acquisition late last year of Activision Blizzard. Microsoft has broadly been working to add generative AI from OpenAI into Windows, Dynamics business applications and other products. Wall Street has been eager to see how Microsoft will be able to make money from AI after investing billions of dollars in OpenAI and AI-related data center equipment. The pricing for Copilot for Security is designed to keep expenses low for organizations that experiment with the tool while scaling for power users. Microsoft considered input from early customers as well as the costs of tapping OpenAI's LLMs that process users' prompts, Vasu Jakkal, a corporate vice president at Microsoft, told CNBC. Microsoft charges for use of its Azure OpenAI Service based on the number of tokens a client uses. Each token is equal to about four English characters. It's a much more convoluted pricing model than other Microsoft tools released of late, such as customer service and general productivity assistants. The Copilot for Microsoft 365 costs $30 per person per month for companies. BP is an early customer of the new security service. Chip Calhoun, the company's vice president of cyber defense, said in an email that, "Copilot has made us more efficient and helped us to find attack patterns that could easily be missed without specific use cases." Copilot for Security can answer questions by drawing on information from Microsoft's own security products and third-party providers. It can explain security vulnerabilities, analyze scripts, answer questions about devices and summarize incidents. Other security software companies dabbling in generative AI include CrowdStrike , which has a chatbot called Charlotte that costs $20 a year per device. Cyberattacks are becoming a bigger threat by the day. Microsoft said in January that a Russian intelligence group had accessed some of its executives' email accounts. Roku and UnitedHealth also said they were hit by attacks this year. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said on the company's most recent earnings call that the latest spate of cyberattacks "highlighted the urgent need for organizations to move even faster to protect themselves from cyberthreats." In this article TSLA Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Tesla CEO Elon Musk is pictured during a visit at the company's electric car plant in Gruenheide near Berlin, eastern Germany, on March 13, 2024, as employees resumed work after production had to be halted due to a suspected arson attack that caused a power outage. Sebastian Gollnow | Getty Images Elon Musk on Wednesday visited the Tesla Gigafactory near Berlin, which was forced to halt production last week after losing power during a suspected arson attack. Pictures show Musk waving to workers as he arrived at the factory in the German state Brandenburg and addressing them on stage in a tent where employees gathered to meet him. Local media also reported that Musk told the crowd, "I love you," in German, but that his further comments were drowned out by a factory vehicle parking in front of journalists and blasting music. Tesla workers stand outside as they wait for the arrival of Tesla head Elon Musk outside the Tesla Gigafactory near Gruenheide, Germany, on March 13, 2024. Maja Hitij | Getty Images News | Getty Images Musk is expected to meet regional politicians during his visit to Germany, local media said, citing state government sources. CNBC could not independently verify the reports. Last week, the Gigafactory was left without power and had to temporarily stop production after a suspected arson attack on an electric substation close by. Tesla said the incident was aimed at the company, in a statement on social media platform X. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Inc., arrives at the Tesla plant in Gruenheide, Germany, on March 13, 2024. Krisztian Bocsi | Bloomberg | Getty Images Left-wing extremist group Vulkangruppe claimed responsibility for the attack in a letter posted online, criticizing Tesla's environmental competencies. Regional authorities are still investigating the case. The Brandenburg factory is slated for expansion, but the project has met significant resistance from locals and environmental groups, as it would mean the destruction of forests in the area. Activists have set up camp near the factory in protest. The plant was able to rejoin the power grid earlier this week. Production resumed at the Gigafactory on Wednesday, Michaela Schmitz, chair of the works council at the plant, told local radio channel rbb24, according to a CNBC translation. Employees received their full salaries during the production outage, she added. A banner with the words "Elon" and "Eloff" hangs in the camp of the "Stop Tesla" initiative in a pine forest near Fangschleuse near the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg plant. Sebastian Gollnow | Picture Alliance | Getty Images Palantir CEO Alex Karp skewered short sellers investors who bet on the decline in a company's stock price in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday. "I love burning the short sellers," Karp told CNBC's Sara Eisen on "Money Movers." "Almost nothing makes a human happier than taking the lines of cocaine away from these short sellers, who like, are going short on a truly great American company. Not just ours, but just love pulling down great American companies so they can pay for their coke." Shares of Palantir jumped 9.8% on March 6 after Palantir announced its Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node was selected by the U.S. Army. TITAN uses artificial intelligence to provide targeting information for missiles. When a stock goes up, short sellers are on the hook to buy back shares, potentially at a huge loss. "The best thing that could happen to them is we will lead their coke dealers to their homes after they can't pay their bills," Karp said. "You know, do your thing, we'll do our thing." Palantir shares are up about 47% this year. Roughly 5% of the company's outstanding shares that are publicly available to be traded were being sold short as of late February. Karp also told CNBC that the company has lost employees and expects to lose more over his public support for Israel. Palantir, known for its government contract work in defense and intelligence, has provided its technology to support the Ukrainian and Israeli militaries in their respective wars. Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube. Russian President Vladimir Putin making a speech at the second Eurasian Economic Forum on May 24, 2023, in Moscow, Russia. Contributor | Getty Images Russian President Vladimir Putin has given a wide-ranging interview to the Russian press a few days ahead of the presidential election, which will see Putin elected to another six years in power short of a miraculous change in the immediate course of Russian politics. In an interview with pro-Kremlin media published Tuesday, Putin laid out his vision for relations with the West, war and peace. Here are five comments he made ahead of the March 15-17 vote. 1) Russia 'technically' ready for nuclear war Putin was again keen to point out that Russia is ready for a nuclear war on a technical and military level. "From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready ... [and] constantly in a state of combat readiness," Putin said in the interview with news channel Rossiya-1 and news agency RIA Novosti published Tuesday. Putin cautioned that the possibility of a nuclear war was not a near-term prospect, with cool heads likely to prevail to prevent a "rushing" toward such a scenario. Nonetheless, Putin said Russia would be ready to conduct nuclear tests if the U.S. did so. 2) The price Russia is willing to pay in Ukraine Rossiya-1 journalist Dmitry Kiselev asked Putin what "price" Russia was ready to pay for the "challenge" it is facing during its "special military operation" in Ukraine. It's estimated that the war has cost Russia at least 315,000 dead and wounded troops during two years of war in Ukraine. It does not publish such figures itself. Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a concert marking the eighth anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow on March 18, 2022. Mikhail Klimentyev | Afp | Getty Images In the interview Tuesday, excerpts of which were published extensively by RIA Novosti, Putin made a veiled acknowledgment of the human sacrifices in the war, but said that Russia had to protect its "citizens" in Ukraine, specifically in the four regions that Russia said it had annexed in September 2022. "Look, every human life is priceless, every one. And the loss of a loved one for a family, for any family, is a huge grief ... [but] if we abandon these people today, then tomorrow our losses may increase many times over, and our children will have no future, because we will feel insecure, we will be a third- or fourth-rate country, no one will take us into account, if we can't protect ourselves. And the consequences could be catastrophic for Russian statehood." 3) Prospects of peace talks Russia reiterated its stance that it is ready for peace talks with Ukraine but these had to be based on reality that is, Russia's perception that annexed regions in Ukraine are now part of the Russian Federation and that it wants security guarantees that NATO won't expand to include Ukraine. "Are we ready for negotiations? Yes, we are ready," Putin told Rossiya-1's Kiselev, before qualifying the remark: "Yet [we are] only ready for negotiations which are not based on some 'wishes and dreams' after using psychotropic drugs, but based on the realities that have emerged, as they say in such cases, on the ground," he said. Russia and Ukraine are far from peace negotiations while the war remains in a "hot," active phase, defense analysts say, although Russia appears keen to show a willingness to talk, particularly as Ukraine struggles on the battlefield amid personnel and ammunition shortages. "Now to negotiate just because they are running out of ammunition is somehow ridiculous on our part," Putin said. "We are, however, ready for a serious conversation, and we want to resolve all conflicts, especially this conflict, through peaceful means." 4) Putin doesn't trust anyone Putin said that for Russia to enter meaningful peace talks, Russia must be given "security guarantees" presumably on NATO not expanding to include Ukraine. Russia says it was given assurances that NATO would not expand eastward into Eastern Europe one of its long-standing bugbears. NATO vehemently denies that such an agreement was ever made. Putin raised the subject again in the interview Tuesday, telling the interviewer that "we've already been promised everything many times. We've been promised not to expand NATO to the East, and then we see them at our borders," he said. "I don't want to say this, but I don't trust anyone. We need guarantees. Guarantees must be spelled out, they must be ones that suit us and that we will believe in. ... Now it is probably premature to talk publicly about what this could be but we certainly won't buy into any empty promises." Early on in the war, it was felt that there was wiggle room over the thorny issue of NATO membership, with an idea to grant Ukraine security guarantees rather than a future place in the Western military alliance. But positions have hardened since those early, failed peace talks, with NATO saying Ukraine could join the bloc in future. 5) Red lines During the war, and indeed before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, there has been much talk of "red lines" by both sides. Although the boundaries of these ideological limits have shifted (for example, Ukraine's allies initially said they would not give Kyiv tanks or long-range missiles, but some do now) there have been some "red lines" that have appeared to be a step too far for both sides. U.S. President Joe Biden, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Ludovic Marin | AFP | Getty Images The latest issue is the possibility of NATO countries sending ground troops into Ukraine, a possibility mooted by French President Emmanuel Macron, who said there were "no limits" to Paris' support for Ukraine, refusing to rule out the sending of ground troops to the country. Moscow reacted furiously to the comments, saying it would lead to an "inevitable" direct conflict between NATO and Russia. Other NATO members were quick to distance themselves from the comments, too, saying the sending of ground troops was not a possibility. Nvidia has had an astronomical rise, soaring over 200% in 2023 alone on the back of the artificial intelligence buzz. Though the stock dived more than 5% on Friday and by another 2% on Monday, it's still up this year by around 73%. In fact, many are still bullish on Nvidia, giving more upside to its shares. But after a heady year of exploding revenue and profit projections, some may start to question the long-term sustainability of its growth rate. Is it time to take profit, even if only partially or should investors stay the course? Here's what those who currently hold Nvidia shares are doing or planning to do with their positions. Sell at least some Some are saying it's time to sell or that they have already sold part of their Nvidia shares. Vahan Janjigian, chief investment officer at U.S.-based Greenwich Wealth Management, says he had a "big position" in Nvidia until recently. "But I got a little nervous because I do think the stock is overvalued, especially when you look at it on a price to sales basis. It's selling for about 35 times sales, which is very high compared to some of the other technology companies," he told CNBC's " Street Signs Asia " on Tuesday. "If you believe that Nvidia can grow its revenues by 30% annually, which I think it can for at least a few years, but it would have to do that for almost 15 years to be able to get back your investment in the stock and that assumes a 100% profit margin," he added. Janjigian would rather invest in Nvidia via exchange-traded funds now. He says he has "rather large" positions in three of them: the SPDR S & P 500 ETF Trust, Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 and VanEck Semiconductor ETF. He pointed out that Nvidia has a large weightage in all of them, taking up 26% of the VanEck Semiconductor ETF. "I felt I no longer needed to own the stock individually," he said, adding that having both the stock and ETFs gave him "too much exposure" to Nvidia. Paul Gambles, managing partner of MBMG Family Office Group, told CNBC Pro on Monday that he'd sell Nvidia right now. Based on history, he said, Nvidia is due for a 50% to 90% decline "soon." "Although whether that happens now or next year is pretty much impossible to tell but precedent would indicate that it's time to be worried the longest spell without an 'event' was 2012-2018," he added. Gambles says investors should have been buying puts when they were cheaper, as the sometimes high volatility of Nvidia is "potentially ideal" for options strategies. Options allow you to bet on whether you think an asset is going up or down. You can buy or sell options contracts and implement various strategies. Buying a "put option" is profitable for an investor if the market goes down. Conversely, buying a "call option" pays if the market goes up. It can be a risky way to invest and therefore suited to sophisticated investors. Here's how it works. "If they're unprotected and holding NVDA, and if the pricing now makes puts unattractive today, then they should probably devise an exit/profit-taking/position management strategy with a ladder of limit sells and stop-losses," Gambles said. A "limit sell" will typically attempt to sell the stock at a certain price, and "stop losses" means putting in orders to immediately sell off the shares to cut losses when the price drops below a certain price. Laddering in this context refers to a strategy of putting in some sell orders at various price points. "Even if we're right on the fall, it's up +100% in 6 months so while that momentum continues, you don't want to be making knee-jerk exits but holding NVDA is playing with fire right now," Gambles said. Jordan Cvetanovski, portfolio manager at Sydney-based Pella Funds Management, told CNBC Pro he has already taken profit on some Nvidia shares and did so even before the recent declines. 'Do some rebalancing' There're definitely "some alarm bells that there is so much euphoria," Cvetanovski said. "So there is potentially a situation where things have been overboard, but only from just a trading perspective, but long term, I'm not concerned." "But in the short term, I'm a little bit concerned. So we've taken a little bit off the table, but not as big as you would expect," he said. Craig Johnson, chief market technician at Piper Sandler, is another one who isn't so optimistic on Nvidia. He says the stock has gone "parabolic," meaning its momentum or the velocity and speed of price increases has accelerated. "People are going to have to do some rebalancing. And as that action happens, you can certainly lose some of the momentum. I think it's a great company, but it's sort of a dangerous stock to be jumping into after moves this large in such a short period of time," he told CNBC's " Worldwide Exchange " on Monday. Stick with it Louis Navellier of Navellier and Associates is still fairly bullish, and says it's definitely not time to sell any Nvidia shares yet. "No, no, because I don't have other companies with 200% sales growth. And it is trading about 26 times forecasted earnings and it's a monopoly," he told CNBC Pro last week. After Nvidia's selloff, he reiterated his position, saying he has no plans to sell Nvidia. "There is no reason to take profits in NVDA. It will be a $1,000 stock in the upcoming months." Navellier thinks Nvidia is "reasonably priced," given its forecast earnings and its "monopoly" on graphics processing units in the AI market. "Obviously, its dominance isn't going to last forever. You will hit a point like Apple is hit where you know, the sales are so sputtering, the margins are not expanding," he said. "But I'm going to ride it as long as the sales are strong and the margins are expanding." Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange during morning trading on Feb. 29, 2024. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell Thursday and snapped a 3-day win streak after the release of hotter-than-expected U.S. inflation data sent Treasury yields higher, while Nvidia shares were under pressure. The 30 -stock Dow pulled back 137.66 points, or 0.35%, to close at 38,905.66. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3% to 16,128.53, while the S&P 500 slipped 0.29% to finish the session at 5,150.48. February's producer price index, a measure of wholesale inflation, advanced 0.6% last month. Excluding food and energy prices, core PPI climbed 0.3% in February. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a 0.3% gain for headline PPI and a 0.2% increase for the core reading. Stocks were initially resilient following the report, but lost steam shortly after the open. "The questions now are, will traders rethink how soon the Fed will cuts rates, and will that slow down the stock market rally in any meaningful way?" said Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investing at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley. The hot inflation report sent bond yields higher, with the benchmark 10-year Treasury adding about 10 basis points to 4.29%. Shares of Nvidia were lower for the fourth session in five, pulling back more than 3%. "I think one question is, are yields going to go higher still, and if they do, do we have more downside in the market? I think the answer is yes to both," said Thierry Wizman, global FX and rates strategist at Macquarie. The PPI report is the last major piece of economic data to be released prior to the Federal Reserve's upcoming policy meeting, set for March 19-20. Investors were buying major technology shares such as Apple and Microsoft on Thursday. Trading platform Robinhood popped 5% after the company reported a 16% increase in assets under custody in February from the prior month. Troubled electric vehicle startup Fisker tumbled nearly 52% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company has hired restructuring advisors to prepare for a potential bankruptcy filing. Here are Wednesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Raymond James initiates Legend Biotech as outperform Raymond James said it's bullish on shares of the biotech company. "We are initiating coverage of Legend Biotech (LEGN) with an Outperform rating and a price target of $86." Wells Fargo downgrades Tesla to underweight from equal weight Wells said in its downgrade of Tesla that it's concerned about decreasing demand. "We expect volume to disappoint as px [price] cuts are having a diminishing impact on demand." Citi opens a positive catalyst watch on Constellation Brands Citi said it sees beer trends accelerating for Constellation. "Hence, we are opening a 30-day positive Catalyst Watch expecting accelerating beer trends over the next four Nielsen releases. DA Davidson upgrades Nice to buy from hold DA said shares of the customer experience tech company are "attractively valued." "On the heels of strong 4Q23 results which displayed strong underlying growth dynamics and a better than expected profitability ramp, we are upgrading NICE to a BUY rating and raising our price target to $300 from $250." Bank of America reiterates Super Micro as buy Bank of America raised its price target on Super Micro to $1,280 per share from $1,040. "Well positioned in a growing AI server market." Bank of America reiterates Nvidia as buy Bank of America said the stock's valuation is "compelling." "Raise PO to $1100 (from $925) on top pick NVDA ahead of its GPU Tech Conference (GTC) beginning 3/18, with new 37x CY25 PE well within 26x to 69x historical range, though higher as NVDA AI TAM [total addressable market] grows rapidly." Goldman Sachs initiates Carnival & Royal Caribbean as buy Goldman initiates several cruise companies on Wednesday and said it sees pricing power and pent-up demand. "We initiate research coverage of Cruise stocks RCL, CCL and NCLH." Baird reiterates Boeing as a fresh pick Baird said it's extending its fresh pick status on the stock till summer. The firm has an outperform rating on shares of Boeing. "While the master production schedule could shift by 6-9 months, we believe that is very much priced into the BA stock at current levels. Bullish Fresh Pick extended to early June from early April." Bernstein reiterates Apple as market perform Bernstein said it's more "moderately constructive" on shares of Apple but that it's sticking with its market perform rating. "On net, we continue to see buybacks as key driver of Apple's financial model, but expect them to be ~200 bps/year lower over the next 5 - 10 years than in the prior, and see Apple's EPS growth in the high single digits." Goldman Sachs upgrades Moelis & Company to neutral from sell Goldman said the investment bank is an "an outsize beneficiary as the cyclical upswing begins." "Following Moelis' (MC) pullback post earnings we upgrade it to Neutral from Sell with a revised 12-month P/E-based price target of $58 (from the prior $53), implying 13% total return potential, inclusive of a 4.5% dividend yield. RBC upgrades Tri-Pointe Homes to outperform from sector perform RBC said it sees EPS upside for the home construction company. "We are upgrading TPH to Outperform from Sector Perform on an improved pricing outlook which we believe could translate to GM% and EPS upside as '24 progresses." Baird upgrades Texas Roadhouse to outperform from neutral Baird said the restaurant company's stock has more room to run. "While not our typical approach to upgrade stocks that are close to all-time highs, we argue that TXRH still may have plenty of room to run even when factoring in the recent strength." Citi initiates SPS as commerce as buy Citi said the cloud-based supply chain management company has upside potential. "SPSC and MANH have strong execution histories, with stable core businesses and promising avenues for incremental growth." Wells Fargo reiterates Microsoft as overweight Wells said it's standing by shares of the tech giant. "Upon closer examination of FQ2 results and review of upcoming price increases, we see further incremental tailwinds forming that should benefit both 2H24 & FY25 growth as MSFT aims to capitalize on its early lead in AI. Maintain 'OW' and $460 PT. Citi upgrades Nucor to buy from neutral and downgrades Cleveland Cliffs to neutral from buy Citi upgraded Nucor and said the steel company is poised for a rerating. The firm also downgraded Cleveland-Cliffs and said EBITDA continues to underwhelm. "Upgrade NUE on ROIC Re-Rating & Downgrade CLF as EBITDA Underwhelms." Jefferies initiates Cue Biopharma as buy Jefferies said it's bullish on shares of the biotech company. " Cue also has autoimmune assets that could garner partner interest and bring additional upside to the stock." Jefferies upgrades Southwest to hold from underperform Jefferies said in its upgrade of Southwest that the risk/reward is more balanced. "Upgrade to Hold: Low-Cost Momentum Resets; Shares Now Fairly Valued." Baird downgrades Fiserv to neutral from outperform Baird said the risk/reward looks more balanced for the financial services company. "We are downgrading to Neutral. We like the return to solid execution and beat/raise pattern, and appreciate Stephanie Ferris and Charles Drucker at the helms of FIS and Worldpay." JPMorgan upgrades Cooper Companies to overweight from neutral JPMorgan said top line trends are looking solid for the medical device company. "Looking back over the last several quarters, Cooper has done a good job of delivering continued strength on the top line and, importantly, translating this to more consistency on the bottom line as well." William Blair initiates Cellebrite as outperform William Blair said it's bullish heading into the software company's analyst day. "We are upgrading Cellebrite shares to Outperform ahead of the company's March 27 analyst day." BTIG initiates Bitdeer Technologies as buy BTIG said in its initiation of the bitcoin miner that Bitdeer has "ample opportunities for expansion." "Bitcoin Miner With Attractive Infrastructure Footprint with Technology Kicker. We Initiate with a Buy rating and $15 PT." Goldman Sachs initiates Immunovant a buy Goldman said the auto immune disease company has a best-in-class pipeline. "We initiate coverage of IMVT with a Buy rating and 12-month price target of $50 (60% upside potential)." JMP reiterates Coinbase as market outperform JMP said the crypto company remains well positioned. "We estimate $220B of flows into spot-Bitcoin ETFs over next three years, multiples of what has already been experienced; Coinbase remains well positioned if we are correct: Maintain Market Outperform rating and increase price target to $300 from ($220)." Morgan Stanley upgrades auto industry to attractive from in line Morgan Stanley upgraded the auto industry and said valuations look more attractive. "Lower spending levels. Increased cash returns. Openness to collaboration. Higher for longer ICE. Un-crowded positioning. Attractive valuation with catalysts." Bank of America upgrades Evergy to buy from neutral Bank of America said the risk/reward looks more attractive for shares of the energy company. "We upgrade shares of Kansas- and Missouri-based electric utility Evergy (EVRG) from Neutral to Buy due to the improving regulatory/legislative backdrop." Morgan Stanley initiates Idacorp as equal weight Morgan Stanley initiated the electric power generation company and said shares are fairly valued. "Accelerating sales growth has driven an inflection in the rate base outlook, but we think IDA' s shares fairly balance the upside growth opportunity against wildfire risk in its service territory." Morgan Stanley reiterates Rivian as overweight Morgan Stanley said Rivian's products remain exciting but that company still needs to figure out how to "generate a profit." " Rivian's exciting product unveil reminded investors of the company's strong design chops." Argus initiates Axon as buy Argus said it's bullish on shares of the weapons and tech company for law enforcement and civilians. "Launching coverage with a BUY rating and $380 target. Axon develops technology and weapons for law enforcement, military and civilians." Taiwan's vice president-elect and former de facto ambassador to Washington, Hsiao Bi-khim, is in the United States this week for a private visit, a senior Taiwanese official and a U.S. spokesperson said on Tuesday, a trip China said it "firmly opposes." Taiwan's vice president-elect and former de facto ambassador to Washington, Hsiao Bi-khim, is in the United States this week for a private visit, a senior Taiwanese official and a U.S. spokesperson said on Tuesday, a trip China said it "firmly opposes." China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, despite Taiwanese objections, and has been angered by past visits to the United States by Taiwan's president and vice president. Chinese Embassy Spokesperson Liu Pengyu said China "firmly opposes" any form of official interaction between the U.S. and "the Taiwan region," and referred to Hsiao Bi-khim as "a diehard 'Taiwan independence' separatist." "We firmly oppose any visit by Hsiao Bi-khim to the U.S. in any name or under whatever pretext," Liu said, adding that the United States should "not arrange any form of contact between the U.S. government officials and Hsiao Bi-khim." President Yoon Suk Yeol pledged Wednesday to expand the budget for space development to over 1.5 trillion won ($1.14 billion) by 2027 as he attended the launch of a new space industry cluster in the southern part of the country. The cluster a triangle formed by Daejeon in the north, South Gyeongsang Province in the east and South Jeolla Province in the west was launched during a ceremony at the headquarters of Korea Aerospace Industries in Sacheon, 296 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Sacheon, which is in South Gyeongsang Province, will be home to the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), Korea's equivalent of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), when it launches in May. "In the not-too-distant future, strong space powers that lead the space economy will take the lead in the world," Yoon said in congratulatory remarks. "A new market is opening that uses space in various ways, involving not only satellite manufacturing, space communications and launch vehicles but also space resources, space tourism and space sunlight." Yoon noted that his administration has devised a space economy road map outlining goals to complete a moon landing by 2032 and a Mars mission by 2045. The aim is to make the country a top five space technology power in the world. "The government and I will strongly support the success of the space industry cluster," Yoon said, adding the government will construct key infrastructure that the private sector cannot build alone, such as a civilian rocket launch facility and a space environment simulation laboratory. By region, Yoon said the government will push to speed up the construction of a national industrial complex for space launch vehicles in South Jeolla Province, complete the construction of a national aerospace industrial complex in South Gyeongsang Province by the end of the year and set up a space technology human resource development center in Daejeon by the end of 2028. (Yonhap) Former US President and Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump arrives for a "Commit to Caucus" rally in Clinton, Iowa, on January 6, 2024. Former President Donald Trump has secured enough delegates to seal the Republican presidential nomination, NBC News projects, setting up a 2024 rematch with President Joe Biden, who clinched the Democratic nomination earlier Tuesday night. Trump came into Tuesday's contests in Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington as the presumptive nominee after vanquishing all his primary opponents, while Biden faced little opposition in his primary. Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley ended her bid for the Republican nomination last week after winning just one state on Super Tuesday. Trump's projected victories Tuesday night pushed him over the 1,215 delegate mark the "magic number" needed for a majority at the GOP's July convention in Milwaukee. Those delegates will be bound by party rules to support him, even as he faces looming court cases in four separate indictments. The general election starts with Biden seeing his favorability dip below 40% in a spate of recent polls, below Trump, who also remains unpopular. While Biden ran ahead of Trump in virtually every major poll in 2020, recent polls have shown the race virtually tied, or with Trump holding a slight edge, with voters raising concerns about Biden's age and Trump's legal woes. While Biden ran virtually unopposed on the Democratic side, Trump steamrolled through a Republican primary that included a handful of prominent politicians. He won all but two contests (Vermont and Washington, D.C.) through Tuesday and retained his grip on the Republican primary electorate in the process. Candidates who ran against him as vocal critics such as former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former Texas Rep. Will Hurd couldn't get traction. Those looking to brand themselves as Trump 2.0 such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy couldn't break Trump's hold on the party. His former vice president, Mike Pence, found himself unable to get out of his shadow but also unable to appeal to Trump supporters, after his decision to defy Trump's wishes and not move to block the certification of the 2020 election on Jan. 6, 2021. And Haley, who eventually turned her campaign into a destination for the share of Republican voters who desperately want their party to change course away from Trump, saw her standing among Republican voters overall fall as she stepped up the anti-Trump rhetoric. At times, it seemed like there were two GOP presidential primary contests playing out in parallel one with Trump largely refusing to engage with the rest of the field as the heavy favorite, and another featuring the rest of the field scrambling for a distant second place. Initially, some Republicans thought that Trump could be beat. DeSantis, a popular general in the GOP culture wars who in 2022 notched the largest victory in a Florida governor's race since 1982, briefly led Trump in hypothetical one-on-one contests. DeSantis and his supporters believed that he could snatch support from the former president, particularly after Trump-backed candidates underperformed in the same 2022 midterms that DeSantis dominated. Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during a meeting with participants of the International Youth Festival, March 6, 2024 in Sirius territory, Sochi, Russia. Putin is visiting the Stavropolsky Krai and Krasnodar Krai regions in the southern part of the country ahead of the presidential elections scheduled March 15-17. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia is technically ready for a nuclear war but cautioned that such an eventuality is not a near-term prospect. "From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready. They are constantly with us, constantly in a state of combat readiness," Putin said in an interview with news channel Rossiya-1 and news agency RIA Novosti published Tuesday, having been asked whether Russia is ready for nuclear war. Putin said Ukraine's Western allies had insisted they would not send ground troops into Ukraine, understanding that this would be seen as interventionist and could lead to a direct conflict between NATO and Russia. Describing U.S. President Joe Biden as a "representative of the traditional political school," Putin said that "besides Biden and others, there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint" that could prevent a nuclear conflict from taking place. "Therefore, I don't think everything is rushing to it [toward a nuclear war]," Putin said in comments translated by Google. Putin said Russia could resort to using nuclear weapons if the state was in danger, noting that "Weapons exist in order to be used. We have our own principles. What they say: that we are ready to use weapons, including any weapons, including the one you mentioned, if we are talking about the existence of Russian state, damaging our sovereignty and independence." He said Russia would be ready to conduct nuclear tests if the U.S. did so, stating, "If they conduct such tests ... I don't exclude that we can do the same." The interview with Putin comes days before the March 15-17 presidential election in Russia that Putin is widely expected to win, given the lack of non-systemic opposition figures in Russia. Holly Ellyatt China could use social media app TikTok to influence the 2024 U.S. elections, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a House of Representatives intelligence committee hearing on Tuesday. China could use social media app TikTok to influence the 2024 U.S. elections, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a House of Representatives intelligence committee hearing on Tuesday. Asked by Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi if China's ruling Communist Party, or CCP, would use TikTok to influence the elections, Haines said: "We cannot rule out that the CCP would use it." Krishnamoorthi is also the ranking Democrat on the House select committee on China. He and that panel's Republican chair Mike Gallagher last week introduced a bill that would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the short video app used by 170 million Americans. The House is due to vote on Wednesday under fast-track rules that require two-thirds of members to vote "yes" for the measure to win passage. President Joe Biden said last week he would sign the bill, but the app is popular and getting legislation approved by both the House and Senate in an election year may be difficult. Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay will pay a five-day visit to India beginning March 14 in his first foreign trip after assuming the top office in January.Tobgay will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and call on President Droupadi Murmu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, announcing the Bhutanese leader's visit from March 14 to 18.He is also scheduled to travel to Mumbai. "The visit of the prime minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan," the MEA said in a statement.Tobgay will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including a number of his cabinet colleagues and top officials."India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding at all levels," the MEA said."During the visit, the prime minister of Bhutan will call on President Droupadi Murmu and hold bilateral talks with the prime minister of India," it said.External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on the Bhutanese prime minister. Associates of late opposition leader Alexei Navalny reported on Tuesday night that the politician's close ally and top strategist was attacked near his home in Lithuania's capital.Navalny's spokesman Kira Yarmysh said the assailant smashed a window of Leonid Volkov's car, sprayed tear gas into his eyes and started hitting him with a hammer. Police and an ambulance were on the way, Yarmysh said.The attack took place in Vilnius nearly a month after Navalny's unexplained death in a remote Arctic penal colony. President Vladimir Putin's fiercest critic was serving a 19-year prison term there on the charges of extremism widely seen as politically motivated.Navalny had been jailed since January 2021, when he returned to Moscow to face certain arrest after recuperating in Germany from nerve agent poisoning he blamed on the Kremlin. His Foundation for Fighting Corruption and his regional offices were designated as extremist organizations by the Russian government that same year.Volkov used to be in charge of the regional offices. He left Russia under pressure from the authorities. Last year, Volkov and his team launched a project called Navalny's Campaigning Machine, with the goal of talking to as many Russians as possible, either by phone or online, and turning them against Putin ahead of the March 15-17 presidential election.Not long before his death, Navalny has also urged supporters to flock to the polls at noon on Sunday, the final day of voting, to demonstrate their discontent with the Kremlin. His allies have been actively promoting the strategy, dubbed Noon Against Putin, in recent weeks. Denmark wants to increase the number of young people doing military service by extending conscription to women and increasing the time of service from 4 months to 11 months for both genders, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Wednesday."We do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want to avoid it," Frederiksen told a press conference. She said the government wants full equality between the sexes.Denmark currently has up to 9,000 professional troops on top of the 4,700 conscripts undergoing basic training, according to official figures. The government wants 5,000 extra conscripts. The country is a member of the NATO alliance and a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russias invasion.Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen stressed that Russia does not pose a threat to Denmark. But we will not bring ourselves to a place where they could come to do that, Lokke Rasmussen said.All physically fit men over the age of 18 are called up for military service, which lasts roughly four months. However, because there are enough volunteers, there is a lottery system, meaning not all young men serve. In 2023, there were 4,717 conscripts in Denmark. Women who volunteered for military service accounted for 25.1 per cent of the cohort, according to official figures.Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the new system would require a change in the law, which he said will happen in 2025 and take effect in 2026. In 2017, neighbouring Sweden instituted a military draft for both men and women because the Swedish government spoke of a deteriorating security environment in Europe and around Sweden.The Scandinavian country had previously abolished compulsory military service for men in 2010 because there were enough volunteers to meet its military needs. It never had a military draft for women before.Norway introduced a law in 2013 applying military conscription to both sexes. Ride the shuttle from Stevenson. A permit is included when visitors take the free Dog Mountain shuttle to/from the Skamania Fairgrounds in Stevenson. Seats are available on a first come, first served basis. Each permit is good for one individual on the day it is issued. Are you a current print subscriber to Columbia Gorge News? If so, you qualify for free access to all content on columbiagorgenews.com. Simply verify with your subscriber id to receive free access. Your subscriber id may be found on your bill or mailing label. A hundred years ago in Hood River: "When Guy Esterly in the small hours of last Sunday morning intervened in a fight between women as a peace delegate, he could not have anticipated the trouble that he would shortly be in...." Full stories from the last century. PPP's narrow lead threatened as DPK pulls together from internal feud By Nam Hyun-woo The ruling People Power Party (PPP) sees its narrow lead over the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) diminishing in recent surveys. This is stoking fears among conservatives that Han Dong-hoon, the party leader whose personal popularity helped the moribund ruling party rebound from a major defeat in a district leadership by-election, is now running out of "charm" just weeks before the April 10 general elections. According to a survey by Realmeter released on Monday, the PPP secured a 41.9 percent support rating, compared with the DPK's 43.1 percent. The 1.2 percentage point gap is within the surveys margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. The PPP was 7.1 percentage points ahead of the DPK in last weeks survey, which was the first time in a year that the ruling party had a lead outside the surveys margin of error. However, the situation reversed within just a week. Other recent surveys showed that the PPP is still maintaining its lead over the DPK within margins of error, but at the same times showed that ruling party candidates are trailing behind their rivals in battleground electoral districts. In a survey by Embrain Public, 42 percent of 500 voters in Incheons Gyeyang-B constituency said they prefer DPK Chairman Rep. Lee Jae-myung over the PPPs former Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong with 39 percent. In Yangsan-B of South Gyeongsang Province, 41 percent of 503 voters supported DPK candidate Kim Doo-kwan, while PPP candidate Kim Tae-ho had 34 percent. In Seouls Jung/Seongdong-A constituency, DPK candidate Jeon Hyun-heui secured 35 percent and PPP candidate Yun Hee-suk received 31 percent in questions to 501 voters. Analysts suggest that while the PPP initially gained support due to Han's personal popularity and the DPK's internal feuds, this support may not translate into public backing for individual PPP candidates. It seems like the PPP and Han have already reached their peak in the current electoral landscape, but if they fail to come up with new election tactics, all that's left for them is descending, said Park Sang-byeong, a political commentator and a professor at Inha University. The PPP was able to take the lead earlier this year due largely to Hans presence and the DPKs bloody infighting over candidate nominations, giving an illusion that this was Hans political ability. However, the candidate nomination process is over and the results seem questionable at this point. After taking the PPPs helm last December, Han quickly salvaged the party from dismal public support and is now wrapping up its candidate nomination process in a stable manner by giving candidacies to the partys mainstream politicians and serving lawmakers. However, his political ability within the party faced questions after controversies stirred over past far-right comments by Do Tae-woo, a PPP candidate in Daegu. Do claimed in a 2019 YouTube video that in the past, it was reasonable to think that North Korea influenced the 1980 democratic uprising in Gwangju. On Monday, Han demanded that the partys candidate recommendation committee reconsider running Do, but the party on Tuesday night decided to retain his candidacy, saying Do has already issued apologies. DPK election camp co-chair Kim Boo-kyum said Wednesday that Han was quite stylish when he ordered the party to reconsider Dos candidacy, but today he is very disappointing. Hans unyielding political stance toward President Yoon Suk Yeol has also shifted. In January, Han clashed with the president over first lady Kim Keon Hees acceptance of a Christian Dior bag from a left-wing pastor, reflecting negative public opinions. However, he is now defending Yoons decision to appoint former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup as the new ambassador to Australia, despite public suspicions that the appointment is aimed at helping the former minister avoid ongoing investigations by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) regarding the death of a young Marine. What people expected for Han is that he would be different from former PPP leaders who never stood up to Yoon, Park said. Han himself is an influential figure. His clear rhetoric and neat personal styling are propelling him as the conservatives next presidential prospect. However, his celebrity-like popularity needs to be interpreted to the political capabilities of the party, and the recent cases raise questions to that. The DPKs attempt to reunite itself and the rise of former Justice Minister Cho Kuks party are working against Han. As the DPKs candidate nomination process nears its end, a number of party members who cried foul over their exclusion from the roster decided to stay with the party to play their role in the judgment of the Yoon administration. It appears that Chos party has absorbed the support lost by the main opposition during the internal feud, leading pundits to describe the Korea National Party as the safety net of the DPK. The Korea Innovation Party is rising above the new parties formed for the April 10 general elections, scoring double-digit support ratings in surveys questioning preferred parties for proportional representation. The partys political goal of ending the Yoon administration early is more aggressive than that of the DPK. The rise of Chos party means that the idea of handing down judgment on the Yoon administration is rekindling, Park said. While Hans slogan of ending (the DPKs) politics that is run by former progressive activists is not creating repercussions, the current election landscape is witnessing a showdown between the opposition and Yoon, not the DPK versus the PPP. The Realmeter poll was commissioned by Energy Economy Newspaper and surveyed 1,006 voters from March 7 to 8. The Embrain Public poll was requested by YTN and interviewed respondents from March 9 to 10. Further details are available on the National Election Survey Deliberation Commissions website. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) called Wednesday for the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) to completely overhaul how it is nominating candidates to its satellite party, claiming otherwise it could allow the entry of pro-North Korean forces into the National Assembly. The criticism came after two candidates Jeon Ji-yeh and Jung Young-yi withdrew their bid for candidacy amid criticism over their affiliation with civic groups with pro-North Korean and anti-U.S. tendencies. Jeon and Jung were among four candidates nominated to the satellite party representing civic groups. On Wednesday, the PPP strongly criticized the DPK's candidate nomination process, accusing it of opening doors for people with a pro-North Korean stance. "The full story behind the scenario of the 'parliament infiltration operation' orchestrated by pro-North Korean forces ... is gradually being revealed," the PPP's chief spokesperson Park Jung-ha said. Jeon led a group of civic groups opposed to the joint military drills with the United States, while Jung spearheaded various pro-North Korean activities and demonstrations against the U.S. deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missiles in South Korea, Park said. The controversial nominations, however, were only made possible because the panel of judges making candidate nomination decisions was comprised of people from civic groups that share the same ideology, Park added. "Should such people become lawmakers, it could seriously threaten national security and undermine the South Korea-U.S. alliance," Park said. He urged the DPK to completely overhaul the way it is nominating candidates to its satellite party, saying changing one of two figures will not resolve this matter. (Yonhap) How did we get to the point where the tech industry is in the user-data business instead of the tech business? Every day, Google collects data on billions of people worldwide, according to The Regulatory Review. The dodge that users gain some benefit from ad targeting is fallacy. For example, if Google's search were decoupled from its advertising, there would be less chance for users to be misled by ignored search terms and seemingly hard-wired results. There's nothing beneficial to the user about Google's sponsored search results. That's also true of the adjacent Google ads that follow you around from site to site. Digital advertising has become very big business for tech companies. For Google and Meta/Facebook, it's a major revenue stream, and its a significant chunk of cash for other big tech companies and even quite a few smaller ones. 2023 digital advertising revenues Amazon $44.3 billion Apple $6.51 billion Google $237.8 billion Meta/Facebook $131.9 billion Microsoft $12.2 billion Data provided by Statista. The US government and Americans in general are letting big tech companies get away with infringing the online privacy of millions of citizens who use "free" services in the form of apps and websites. Big tech's goal is to connect advertisers with an ideal customer, who, because of some online interaction, is perceived as being more likely to buy products like the ones the advertiser is selling. These tech companies collect information including search data, purchase history, payment information, facial recognition data, documents, photos, videos, locations, Wi-Fi location, IP address, birth date, mailing address, email address, phone number, activities or interactions such as videos watched, app use, emails sent and received, activity on your device, phone calls and a lot more. Security.org has a richly detailed analysis on the data types used by Amazon, Apple, Facebook/Meta, Google, and X (formerly Twitter). Google collects the most types of data; Apple, the least. User beware The corporate data gatherers and potential data brokers who buy and sell user data create detailed profiles with as much about you as they can muster. If these companies are breached and your data leaks, that info could wind up on the dark web where it might be sold resulting in possible identity theft. It should come as no surprise that the companies tracking users employ cryptic legal language to explain what they do with your data. And whatever privacy controls users might have been provided tend to be incomplete, spread out, difficult to find, ambiguous, or needlessly complex. Plus, both the legalese and privacy settings can change without notice. If, for example, it were in Meta's and Google's best interests to make it easy to configure their products to the strictest level of data privacy, they would have done so long ago. (Hint: It's in their vested interest to make it difficult for you to activate heightened user-data privacy settings.) Facebook offers a wizard-like set of tools for managing security and privacy settings. While these tools are commendably easy to use, they barely scratch the surface of the data the social media giant collects. It's clear that companies harvesting online user data can't be trusted to self-regulate to protect their users, and it's long past time for federal regulations to protect user data and privacy like the EU's GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) enacted in 2018 and the EU's DMA (Digital Markets Act) antitrust law, which took effect just last week. Laws like these belong at the federal level, because it's easier for companies to comply with one broad set of standards than a patchwork of state regulations. Because of the lack of federal impetus on data privacy regulation, 13 states have passed comprehensive data privacy laws: California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Iowa, Indiana, Tennessee, Texas, Florida, Montana, Oregon, and Delaware. Several additional states have lesser regulations on the books or have proposed legislation. It's important to enact legislation with penalties that motivate the companies involved. Some big tech firms fined by the EU have simply declined to pay some penalties, or paid them after delays. Fines are not the answer, or at least, not the best answer. Big tech companies make so much money on user data that fines for non-compliance with the GDPR and other regulations could be seen as merely the cost of doing business. Finally, if federal regulation is enacted, AI regulation should be be a part of the discussion. 9 ways to improve privacy on your devices Its not possible to fully protect your user data on the Internet, but you can significantly improve your privacy. To do so, you might have to leave your comfort zone a bit and retrain yourself to work in different ways: Use a browser such as Firefox, which is designed to protect your privacy (and configure search to default to DuckDuckGo). Use unique passwords for all your logins with two-factor authentication or passcodes. The only practical way to do that for most people is with a password manager (such as 1Password). Most password managers automatically fill in logins for you, making them convenient to use. Avoid apps when possible and log into social media and other web-based services using your web browser. Use the browser's privacy window in conjunction with a virtual private network (VPN) like Surf Shark or ExpressVPN to obscure your IP address and provide encryption. The chief advantage of a VPN is added privacy. Learn what user data each platform collects and decide what you want to try to protect. Wading through the fine print should eventually detail this. These resources have done the grunt work for you though some details might have changed since publication: Use the privacy configuration tools provided by the data-collecting platforms you frequent, especially for sensitive data like payment methods, access to documents, photos, and videos, and location information. These references can help you batten down the hatches on digital privacy: Carefully manage Location Services on your devices. If you can't live without location services entirely, configure location services on and off by app. You can take steps to make your phone harder to track. The US government is lobbying Council of Europe members to weaken an international treaty on human rights and AI software by exempting private vendors from compliance. Diplomats are meeting in Strasbourg, France, this week to create a final version of the treaty, which would require organizations using AI to respect human rights and adhere to democratic principles. But the US, a non-voting observer of the Council of Europe, appears to be close in its efforts to water down the treaty, Politico reported. The US, with backing from the UK, a member state, and fellow observer states Canada and Japan, is seeking to exempt private companies from the latest draft of the treaty and have it focus only on government uses of AI. Other negotiators and critics of this plan fear this carve-out would limit the effectiveness of the treaty. The European Union, the member states of which are also Council of Europe members, has warned that exempting private companies from the rules would be diminishing its value and sending a wrong political message that human rights in the private field do not merit the same protection, according to a February analysis obtained by Politico. Its unclear why the US government wants to water down the treaty when US President Joe Biden has pushed for similar objectives. In October, Biden issued an executive order focused on AI safety and privacy and called for an AI bill of rights, which would cover some of the same ground as the treaty does. However, the US efforts to weaken the treaty have been happening for several months. In January, a group of technology rights organizations began circulating an open letter to the Council of Europe that calls on members to reject limits on the treaty. The US and its allies want not only to exempt private companies from the treaty, but some negotiators also want to exempt government AI users from following the privacy, human rights, and other provisions when national security is implicated, said the letter, signed by more than 85 organizations and 25 individuals. Signatories include Access Now, AlgorithmWatch, Reporters Without Borders, and Wikimedia of Germany and Switzerland. The exemption for private companies, including big tech, would result in giving these companies a blank check rather than effectively protecting human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, said the letter. A hollowed-out convention will provide little meaningful protection to individuals who are increasingly subject to powerful AI systems prone to bias, human manipulation, and the destabilization of democratic institutions. The AI treaty calls for human review of AI decisions, prohibits discrimination by AIs, and requires organizations to inform customers or users when an AI is making decisions about them. The Council of Europe, a human rights organization with 46 member states, has been working on the AI treaty for about three years. Look, we need to talk: The PC industry has a big problem. And its not hardware makers fault its Microsofts responsibility. The hardware is here: Intel, AMD, Nvidia, and PC makers have delivered on their end. Now, everyone is waiting for Microsoft to catch up and make Windows truly shine on these AI PCs. Can the company deliver something compelling in time? Want to stay up to date on Windows and PCs? My free Windows Intelligence newsletter delivers all the best Windows tips and PC news straight to your inbox. Plus, youll get free copies of Paul Thurrotts Windows 11 and Windows 10 Field Guides (a $10 value) just for subscribing! Tomorrows PC hardware, today The AI PCs manufacturers are advertising right now are tomorrows hardware, today. I mean that in both a good way and a bad way. First, the good: On the hardware side, everyones doing a solid job! Intel has delivered neural processing units (NPUs) that can accelerate AI tasks in a power-efficient way. AMD has delivered similar hardware. Nvidias powerful GPUs are still the fastest solution for running AI models on your own hardware. And the manufacturers have taken this hardware and integrated it into their PCs. Now, the bad: On the software side, Windows isnt ready. It almost seems as if Microsofts been blindsided by the wave of AI PCs. These are tomorrows PCs today in the sense that we have the hardware, but the software isnt ready yet. When I talk to PR people from computer manufacturers, they can tell a good story about the kinds of computing tasks an NPU like the one in Intels new Meteor Lake chips can do. And theyre right! But, when I ask about what that NPU actually does do today, they dont have much to say. AI PCs arent delivering AI Lately, Ive been reviewing some of these modern AI laptops for PCWorld. Thanks to their Intel Core Ultra CPUs, laptops like the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon and Alienware m16 R2 have those built-in NPUs. Out of the box, that just means they can use Windows Studio Effects to do things like blur your webcams background and fake your eye contact in meetings. I like Studio Effects. Theyre nice to have. But the industry cant build an entire AI PC marketing campaign on top of a handful of features Microsoft first launched for a few Surface devices back in 2022. Chris Hoffman/Microsoft On a laptop with an NPU, you can turn on Windows Studio Effects in Windows 11s webcam settings. Microsoft is largely focusing on generative AI (genAI) tasks done in the cloud, on the companys servers whether youre using a Windows PC, a Mac, or an iPad. Microsoft launched Copilot Pro, which brings genAI tools to Word, Excel, Outlook, and other Office documents, but it doesnt need an AI PC at all it has no way of using an NPU for anything. As PCWorlds Mark Hachman points out, the PC industry is losing the argument for local AI. The idea that you could do AI tasks generate and edit images, work with text, chat with documents, or whatever else on your local PC is powerful. Youd be using your own computing resources, and youd have more privacy and control over your own data. But the PC industry isnt showing it off properly. In fact, one PC manufacturer I recently spoke with is bundling a longer free trial of an AI-powered online tool with its PCs. Thats fine and all, but that type of tool works just as well in a browser or in a mobile app it has nothing to do with AI PCs. If thats all AI PCs have to offer, you might as well just buy a Chromebook or iPad instead. Windows users a captive audience for Microsofts web services Microsoft seems to care about Windows mainly as a canvas for its online services and AI products, which its been pushing hard. With a captive audience, it can build a customer base for services like the Microsoft Start feed of viral stories on Edges new tab page, Bing search, Microsoft 365 subscriptions, OneDrive storage, MSN weather, and so on. In the same way, Microsoft has used Windows to push genAI features such as Copilot, which is fundamentally a web-based online service. Copilot might well open in a sidebar on Windows, but its more like viewing a web page in a sidebar than using a deeply integrated part of Windows. You can copy-paste text into it or upload an image file or it can link to a few specific settings on your PC but it cant do much with your PC. A recently released Spotify plug-in for Copilot is a good example of whats going on: With Spotify for Copilot, you can ask Copilot to start playing a song, but Copilot will open Spotify in a browser window not the Spotify app on your computer. So, lets be honest: Copilot is a fundamentally web-based technology thats been bolted onto Windows to get an audience. But its not truly a part of Windows in a deep and meaningful way. Theres not much reason to use Copilot in Windows you cant do much with it that you couldnt do with Copilot in a browser window on a Chromebook, or with the Copilot app on an iPad. Samsung Samsung is already advertising Copilot AI features Microsoft hasnt even announced yet. Microsoft has mysterious plans in the cards One thing that makes the AI PC marketing campaign a complete mess is that Microsoft hasnt yet explained its vision. Sure, its released a variety of vague statements about the cool new things Windows will be able to do some day. We have a general idea that Windows 11 is getting a big AI-focused update this fall. But thats a long way away with these AI PCs already sitting on the shelves! But what, specifically, are we looking forward to? Microsoft still wont say. That could change soon. Windows Central is reporting that an AI Explorer will be the blockbuster AI experience arriving in Windows 11 later this year. Itll supposedly be an advanced Copilot with a history feature that will let you search everything youve done on your computer, in any application. Additionally, itll pay attention to what youre doing on your computer and suggest tasks and helpful actions. That sounds useful, but for now, its just a leak. Its the kind of thing that Microsoft needs to do to make Windows important to AI and to give everyone a practical reason to buy one of these AI PCs. Theres some confirmation, though: Samsungs official website looks like its revealing some of these more advanced Copilot features, too. The company says they will arrive on the Galaxy Book4 Series starting in Spring 2024. Without any clarity from Microsoft, were sitting here looking at leaks and trying to parse statements on laptop product pages to figure out what to expect. Thats a problem. Lets hope this isnt another Windows 8 Obviously, delivering deep AI integration in Windows is a huge task. It might take some time to get it right. But I dont think its uncharitable to criticize Microsoft on this. After all, the marketing hype cycle is spinning at high gear. Samsung, for example, is already advertising its laptops will have a bunch of AI features that Microsoft hasnt even announced yet. By launching AI PCs before Windows is ready, theres already a narrative forming: AI PCs cant really do anything. Now, in the future, PC manufacturers will have to explain that AI PCs are here for real this time! Thats not ideal. More importantly for Microsoft at a business level, the company is missing a narrow opportunity. Google is quickly improving Gemini and adding AI features to Chrome. Apple hasnt announced anything, but we know the company is working on genAI in some way. For its own sake and for PC manufacturers sakes Microsoft better deliver something useful and compelling. This is, after all, the same company that crafted a half-baked transformation of Windows with Windows 8 and spent years fiddling with it, only to abandon it along with the touch-first tablet and smartphone markets that were such a focus. Now, without those universal apps, Microsoft is getting leapfrogged by the Meta Quest and Apple Vision Pro headsets. The HoloLens was fascinating, and Microsoft could talk a good game and give a great presentation, but the company never truly delivered on the hype people felt when the company showed off Minecraft on the HoloLens nearly a decade ago. If the advanced Copilot features Microsoft delivers this year are similarly half-baked and not truly useful, Microsoft is going to fall behind once again. Thats bad for the PC ecosystem and all the hardware manufacturers that have given Microsoft this opportunity. For the sake of PC users everywhere, lets hope Microsoft delivers something interesting. And soon. Lets stay in touch! My free Windows Intelligence newsletter delivers the best Windows tips and the PC news that matters straight to your inbox. Plus, youll get free copies of Paul Thurrotts Windows 11 and Windows 10 Field Guides (a $10 value) just for subscribing! As we all know already, the best wartime intelligence comes from spies seducing enemies and then asking them questions in bed. Sometimes, however, we have to find the truth using other means. For example, there was 1943, when British codebreakers concluded that Nazis had taken over the Dutch telegraph network. The evidence? The messages all came through without errors, and there was no way the Dutch were capable of that. This reasoning was deeply offensive to the Dutch, but turned out to be sound. For more stories like that from World War II, lets look at... 5 The Water Ruse During World War II, the opposing sides listened to each others messages, struggling to decode them. This is different from listening to each others messages and struggling to decipher them. With a cipher, theres a process for translating the characters in a message, and once you know it, you can encipher and decipher whatever you want. With a code, each word or idea is replaced by something specific and unique (e.g., Bob becomes buttking), and even if youve decoded previous messages, you will be totally stumped by some new word youve not seen before. In 1942, the American military was looking at one Japanese codeword: AF. It represented some potential naval target. The Americans had an inkling that this could be the Midway Atoll, based on how the war was going, but they didnt know for sure. So, they told contacts on Midway to broadcast a radio message, saying that their desalination plant was down. Command sent this request to Midway over a secure telecommunications cable but told Midway to broadcast the radio message on the open airwaves. U.S. Navy Run out of water. Now drinking only beer. Hashtag humblebrag. End of message. Pretty soon, new Japanese messages that we intercepted were talking about how the fresh water situation in AF was a mess. That confirmed it: AF was Midway. By listening to later messages, the Americans knew not just that Midway would be hit but the exact date and the exact approach the Japanese were taking. Even though Japan thought they were the ones setting up an ambush, Japan suffered 10 times the amount of losses America did in the resulting battle. It was perhaps the greatest naval defeat of all time or, to put that in military speak, crazy AF. Advertisement 4 The One-Eyed God Heres another codeword the Allies had to puzzle over: Wotan. It is proposed to set up Knickebein and Wotan installations near Cherbourg and Best, read one Enigma message (Britain deciphered the message, but the challenge of decoding remained). We knew what Knickebein meant. It referred to a new type of antenna, and it also happened to be the name of a bird from Norse mythology, one who could see far. But what was Wotan? If the Germans were going for a mythology theme, maybe Wotan meant Woden. This was a god, one associated with ravens, the one for whom Wednesday is named and a fellow you might know better as Odin. Ranveig/Wiki Commons Hes sometimes played by Anthony Hopkins, who was a sprightly four years old in 1942. Advertisement Knickebein could see far. What about Odin? He had a noted sense of sight as well, notable mainly in that it consisted of one single eye. So, codebreakers scratched their chins and figured, what if Wotan refers to something else that is able to see in such a singular manner? Say, a type of antenna that uses a single beam? The Germans could be shooting a beam toward planes, and a radar station could measure how long the beam takes to return, and thats how theyd be able to pinpoint where the plane is. Advertisement This logic turned out to be totally correct. Let that be a lesson to you: When setting codewords, dont aim for cleverness. Unless youre a serial killer with an urge to leave clues, just pick a random word. Buttking works well. 3 The Price of Oranges When planes bombed targets during the war, headquarters didnt always have a good way of knowing how successful the raid had been. The pilot himself had orders to get out of there as quick as possible, and in the dark of night, there was no telling what physical structures lay in the site of that explosion. Advertisement If planes targeted railroad bridges in France, for example, they didnt always stick around to see if the bridge really went down. Luckily, there was a simple way to detect disruptions in trade. If the bridge fell, the price of oranges in Paris went up. Paul Cezanne They chose oranges for simplicity, since the French word for orange is orange. The Germans targeting London, meanwhile, had their own potential source of intel on bombers success 3 The Ben Boom Every night at 9 p.m., the BBC broadcast Big Ben chiming, live. By listening to any background sounds unintentionally captured around that bell, it may have been possible for Germans listening to the radio to calculate how close their bombs had fallen to their targets. Advertisement Advertisement The way this story sometimes gets told, the Germans were even able to use noise around the chime to figure out weather conditions in London, and to plan future raids accordingly. That part appears to be just an urban legend, but the British did acknowledge the possibility that the Germans could get info out of the broadcasts. So, the BBC temporarily switched to a recording of the bell, while still claiming it was live. Funny thing, though: It wasnt a very good recording, and thanks to one flaw that played every time, observant British listeners soon realized they were being lied to. For a while, some of these listeners at home feared that the reason the BBC switched to a recording was that German bombers had scored a bulls-eye and the real tower and bell were now gone. Warner Bros. Here is actual footage, downloaded from a concerned citizens imagination. Advertisement So, you done goofed up. You got a little too loose off fine Russian vodka, and now you find yourself headed to prison, the way only the Russians know how to do it. Not great! Given that theyre not known for their parole policies, you might want to start making best buds in there, especially when the alternative is the nickname The American Pincushion. Its hard, though, to decide exactly who you want to pick out as your best bud. Walking up to new people and trying to be friends with them is nerve-racking enough in elementary school, let alone a Russian jail. Luckily, you can get a little preview of what your fellow prisoners might be all about by the ink theyve chosen. Here are some tattoos to look for and what they might tell you Domed Church Probably the most common one, these are usually massive chest pieces of kremlins, or orthodox churches. The number of domes can show either the number of convictions they've had, or how many years they've spent in prison. Who knows, maybe youll end up with one of these yourself! Eight-Pointed Stars on Shoulders Advertisement If you see somebody with eight-pointed stars on their shoulders, know that they already have their own friends: the vory v zakone, or Russian mafia. And theyre probably not looking for new ones. Viggo Mortensen famously receives these stars in a scene from Eastern Promises. Eight-Pointed Stars on Knees Hand-in-hand with the shoulder stars are the same stars on the knees, signifying that they will kneel before no authority. I wouldnt recommend comparing this to Game of Thrones. Epaulettes Like the eight-pointed star on steroids. If you see an inmate with epaulettes tattooed on their shoulders, theyre probably not a friend-in-waiting. It means theyre a person of extremely high authority in the prison, and a tattoo that proves itself by inviting anyone to question it. Advertisement Manacles Another bit of jail tattoo trompe loeil is a tattoo of manacles on the wrists and/or ankles. Each one represents five years in jail, so probably not smart to open with so are you new here? Advertisement Bells Bell tattoos show that the owner served his full time, to the bell. Maybe not the best choice of inmate to ask for help with your parole hearing. Advertisement Lions/Tigers/Wolves pvz.lt If you decide to become best jail buds with someone bearing a great cat or a wolf baring their teeth, get ready to be involved in plenty of altercations. These are called oskals, meaning big grin in Russian, and they mean the owner is aggressive toward authority. Snake Around the Neck Want to while away your prison time cooked out of your mind on illegal drugs? Try to track down somebody with a snake around their neck, symbolizing their drug addiction. Their likeliness to share the goods is up to you to find out. Advertisement Advertisement Rose Wrapped in Barbed Wire If you see somebody rocking a rose surrounded by barbed wire, you probably wont be able to bond over current events. It means that they were incarcerated before the age of 18, and have spent basically their whole life in prison. Cat Tattoodelmono Imagine this, but you know, more prison-y. If you figure that, now that youre part of the criminal underbelly of the world, you might as well learn a trade, keep an eye out for inmates bearing cats, often seen in a top hat and holding keys. These lil kitties name their owners as professional thieves. Advertisement Bear If youve instead got steady hands and sensitive ears and think your future might be in safecracking, look for tattoos of bears. Bear is medved in Russian, which is also slang for safe, and a Medvezhatnik is a safecracker. Advertisement Beetle If you want to get all Artful Dodger with it, a prisoner with a beetle on their hand is likely a professional pickpocket. The Russian word for beetle is zhuk, and it also serves as the acronym ZhUK: Zhelayu Udachnykh Krazh, or may your theft be a success. By Arthur I. Cyr The European Security Conference, held in Munich, Germany, in February, has highlighted transatlantic cooperation in the face of Russia's war against Ukraine. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed the gathering. Harris underscored Africa's growing importance and the U.S. commitment to world engagement. Also at center stage, Blinken demonstrated broad foreign policy expertise developed over years of government service. Both used the opportunity to emphasize collegiality with allies. The conference underlines the durability of NATO, the alliance founded in 1949 to resist the expansion of the Soviet Union. An immediate impetus was Moscow's 1948 blockade of West Berlin, which was located deep inside the Soviet occupation zone of divided Germany. More broadly, however, the comprehensive Cold War had already begun, reaching beyond divided Berlin into divided Germany. Originally envisioned as temporary, pending a comprehensive peace settlement after victory over Nazi Germany, the occupation zones became solidified and endured throughout the Cold War. The end of that conflict followed the people's dismantling of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the reunification of Germany and finally the disintegration in 1991 of the Soviet Union. Alliances involve tensions and conflicts, inevitably, as officials regularly point out. Recent Republican administrations have been relatively challenging. Former President Donald Trump was harshly, constantly and publicly pressed Europeans to devote more to defense. Former President George W. Bush, and in particular his Vice President Dick Cheney, pressed to expand NATO right up to Russia's borders. The alliance is fundamentally anomalous. An organization founded to oppose Soviet expansion saw that mission end successfully several decades ago, yet it continues to exist. Cold War victory has resulted in a debate about the alliance's best future roles, not an abandonment of the alliance. The 9/11 attack triggered NATO for the first time to defend an ally under attack. French aircraft patrolled North American skies to free our own from attacks in Afghanistan, which became a NATO theatre of operations. After 9/11, Munich's themes expanded to include cooperation to fight terrorist groups. NATO is a cornerstone initiative, dating from the early years of the Cold War, but there is also a range of economic institutions dating from the Marshall Plan of the same period. They include the European Union and predecessor organizations such as the European Coal and Steel Community and the cornerstone European Economic Community. The industrialized nations were concentrated in the Atlantic region, and there were no comparable Asian initiatives immediately after World War II. That situation has obviously changed dramatically. After 9/11, Japanese warships patrolled the Indian Ocean for the first time since 1945 as part of a collective response under U.N. auspices. The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation organization is one relatively recent Asian initiative, and still defining a principal role. NATO was vital to the Cold War victory and reflects the importance of handling military challenges through alliance structures whenever possible, a basic lesson of World War II. Ironically, "Munich" has served as a shorthand reference to appeasement, thanks to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's acquiescence to Adolf Hitler's territorial demands just before Nazi Germany launched World War II in Europe. The Munich conference now possesses an extremely well-established foundation for the next policy moves by North American, European and other participants. In order to succeed, these efforts must transcend traditional regional security organizations. Arthur I. Cyr (acyr@carthage.edu) is author of After the Cold War: American Foreign Policy, Europe and Asia." For any hosts of The View who need a refresher, Jimmy Kimmel is the one who loves to remind everyone that hes feuding with Donald Trump on social media. Jimmy Fallon is just the one who fluffs Trumps hair. This past Sunday, Kimmel hosted the 96th annual Academy Awards, his fourth time performing as master of ceremonies and second stint in a row. The response to Kimmels praise and prodding of the Hollywood elite in his mercifully mid-length opening monologue has been generally positive, except for the reception of that uncomfortable and uncalled-for moment when he laid into Robert Downey Jr.s past drug addiction and, of course, excluding the reaction by the former president whom Kimmel quoted toward the end of the show as asking on Truth Social, Has there EVER been a WORSE HOST than Jimmy Kimmel at the Oscars? Joy Behar believes that a negative review from Trump is the most ringing endorsement an Oscars host could earn, and she attempted to express such a sentiment to the nights MC, but while drafting her congratulatory email, she accidentally sent the missive to Jimmy Fallon, not Jimmy Kimmel. At 81 years old, we should just be impressed that Behar can send an email, regardless of the Jimmy on the other end of it. Advertisement I thought that Jimmy Kimmels joke about Isnt it past your jail time was so spot-on and the fact that Trump was on his Truth Social or whatever writing all this stuff," Behar explained on todays episode of The View. Well, I know Jimmy, so I decided Id write him an email to congratulate him on taking on this fascist with a joke, because comedians rule. But I sent it to Jimmy Fallon. I dont think theres anybody sitting at this table who has never sent the wrong email to the wrong person, Whoopi Goldberg, 68, offered to to make her co-host feel better about the mix-up. Behar, however, wasnt having it. Im so technologically stupid its a wonder I didnt send it to Jimmy Carter, she responded. Fallon didnt respond to Behars email mistake perhaps he was too busy punishing mistakes made on the set of Tonight Show. Someone's gotta keep those crying rooms running. The truism that anyone in a city is never more than six feet from a rat has long since been debunked. What is true is that anyone in this country is never more than six minutes away from a Joel McHale performance. Hes hosting Crime Scene Kitchen. Hes guest-hosting I Can See Your Voice. Hes showing up in prestige dramedies like The Bear. Hes voicing characters in not-prestige video games like Fortnite. As much as he works which seems to be constantly hes also making sure we all know which jobs hes got lined up. Hes so ubiquitous that even when he books a sitcom featuring other stars you like, you might avoid it because you dont think you can trust his taste. And maybe you cant! But if Joel McHale fatigue kept you from sampling Animal Control, I am here as a reformed Joel McHale abstainer to tell you: Animal Control harnesses and deploys his charm like nothing Ive seen him in before. I wasnt always so dubious about McHales career. Starting in the mid-aughts, when E! revamped and relaunched Talk Soup as The Soup, America got its first exposure to McHale (also a writer and producer) making snarky jokes about ridiculous TV clips. If youve never watched a whole episode of One Tree Hill but have seen a dog eat a donor heart while a shaggy-haired Paul Johansson looked on despondently, chances are Joel McHale exposed you to it on The Soup. Play Advertisement The Soup franchise has been a surprisingly effective launching pad for its hosts, which have included Archer star Aisha Tyler and Oscar nominee Greg Kinnear. McHale came into the show as a steadily working actor who had not yet found his breakout role. That changed in 2009 when, a few years into The Soup, McHale made his debut as Jeff Winger in NBCs Community. Viewers who knew McHale as a sarcastic, superior commentator on some of TVs worst and weirdest moments didnt have to make too many mental adjustments to get on board with McHale as a sarcastic, superior lawyer forced to attend community college to fill in educational gaps hes been lying about. (Playing an FBI agent in Steven Soderberghs The Informant! the same year was a much less expected move for McHale, though one he pulled off and in a cast that also included such comic legends as Andy Daly, Allan Havey, Scott Adsit, Patton Oswalt, Paul F. Tompkins, Toms Wilson and Papa, and both Smothers brothers, all playing straight.) Advertisement NBC in the late aughts wasnt the comedy juggernaut it had been a generation earlier, but Community was still a network show, and in the waning days of the monoculture, it made McHale a mainstream star who could present at the Emmys or play a villain in Ted. As Community evolved into more of a niche hit remember Yahoo! Screen? Of course you dont, but thats where new episodes of Community ended up after NBC canceled it McHale became a beloved cult comedy star. Maybe he wasnt on the level of a David Cross, for example, but Communitys underdog status created a halo that also bathed its stars in its glow. Yet, even as McHales stardom and credibility both rose, he kept the job that first put him on the map: McHale continued hosting The Soup the ENTIRE time Community was on. McHale didnt exactly come to show business from a disadvantaged background his father was the dean of students for Loyola University but he doesnt seem to have come to the industry with any connections; a guy who hangs on to his steady gig even if new opportunities seem more elevated is a guy who knows he probably shouldnt count on his career to keep trending up indefinitely. Advertisement Advertisement So does McHale pop up on TV as himself, maybe more than is advisable? Yes. In addition to his full-time duties on the aforementioned Crime Scene Kitchen and House of Villains, hes guest-hosted Todays fourth hour, The Talk, We Are Family and Live with Kelly And Mark; hes guest-judged Is It Cake?, Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge and Sparklers; and hes been a contestant on The Great American Baking Show. That would be a lot for someone to do in a decade; McHale did all of those appearances in the past year. But life is uncertain, McHale has two kids and a wife to think about, and if The Soup is no longer available as a reliable backup for work thats more creative, maybe he feels like he needs to take every job in the Soup-ian category before Glenn Howerton or Max Greenfield decide they want to get into the space and maybe underbid him since, being a foot shorter than McHale is, they can get by on 80 percent of his quote. Advertisement Fortunately for us all, McHale made time in his extremely busy schedule for Animal Control. His character, Frank Shaw, started his career as a cop in Seattle, like his father Jimmy (John Procaccino) and, as we will learn in a few weeks, his older brother Patrick (Thomas Lennon). When he tried to address corruption on the force, Frank was the one who ended up getting fired for it, which led him to his new career running down the citys most unruly ostriches, raccoons, peacocks and monkeys. Frank is, admittedly, distinctly Jeff Winger-esque: His appreciation for his new manager, Emily Price (Vella Lovell), is largely based on how easily hes able to manipulate her someone more seasoned than she might balk at his request for an espresso maker imported from Italy and a review of surveillance footage from the department veterinarians office shows him sneaking in to curl 27-pound buckets rather than work out in the on-site gym. But while Frank is dismissive of most people he meets, the jobs requirement that he interact with animals permits the character to exhibit a disarming tenderness. A Season One arc revolving around tagged cougar C-38 gives depth to his character and creates intimacy with his colleague Victoria (Grace Palmer) who sure seems like shes being set up as Franks eventual love interest. Play Advertisement Advertisement Like Jeff, Frank thinks he knows better than everyone he knows; unlike Jeff, Frank is often right, and while seeing him use his former cop skills can be an unfortunate reminder that he ever thought that was an honorable occupation, using them in the service of helpless animals is unassailable. Franks misanthropy just means its easy for him to take all the affection hes not directing toward people, and make it available to animals; nothing is easier to believe than a Joel McHale character allocating his emotional resources in this way. Following a romantic setback in last weeks Season Two premiere, tonights episode finds Frank asking Victoria for help setting him up with a dating app bio. She overrules his refusal to bait eligible women with a photo of himself with a baby giraffe, and even if we dont see it, we dont need to: merely imagining this very tall, very fit man handling a juvenile ruminant is enough. Weve known for 20 years that McHale is a feast for the eyes, but when I tell you hes been married to his college sweetheart for almost 28 years, he just got a little more attractive, right? If McHale wants to guest-judge 30 more reality competitions this year to give the beautiful, accomplished, age-appropriate mother of his children everything she wants, I support him. And maybe I get him now: Crime Scene Kitchen is for her. Animal Control is for me. This morning, the House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill that would force ByteDance, the China-based parent company of the popular social media platform TikTok, to sell their stake in TikTok, or else the app will be banned across America. Little did Congress know that, within minutes, TikToks teenage legal team would begin submitting their dance rebuttals thirty seconds at a time. Widespread concerns over the invasive practices of the app have made TikTok a popular target for lawmakers looking to give lip service to fears over the Chinese Communist Partys potential to use the platform to influence American politics and monitor American citizens. After years of flirting with a ban, a bipartisan coalition of congress members finally moved to force ByteDances hand with an unusually swift vote of 352 to 65 in favor of the legislation. The bill will now go to the senate while TikTok and its defenders denounce the measure as an attack on free speech, with a TikTok representative arguing in a recent statement This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: its a ban. With 170 million TikTok users in the U.S., many of whom are Generation Z and below, the reaction to the move on the platform itself runs the gamut from informed concern, partially uninformed outrage and full-on ironic shitposting that ignores the policy implications of the decision in favor of comical chaos. Here are some of the highlights Advertisement President Joe Biden has indicated that, should the senate pass the bill, he will approve the measure to oust ByteDance from American social media. Former President Donald Trump, however, has reversed his previous position that banning TikTok is an issue of national security as he claimed that his party couldn't withstand the outrage of the youngest demographic of voters in the upcoming election cycle, also adding that a blow to TikTok would be a win for Meta and Facebook, which he calls an enemy of the people. To even things out, congress should introduce a bill banning Facebook just to rile up the other side of social media imagine how unhinged those memes would be. By Gwynne Dyer Good news! The U.S. logistical support ship General Frank S. Besson Junior has just sailed from Norfolk, Virginia carrying the equipment needed to build a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza. This will enable the U.S. to deliver food to the starving (yes, literally starving) Palestinian population of the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip. Once President Joe Biden finally decides to do something, it happens fast. Only three days after the White Houses announcement, the General Frank etc. was at sea, and in only 15 more days (at an average speed of 16 knots) it will reach the Gaza coast. Then its only a question of time until the floating pier is in place because the U.S. Navy is very good at this sort of thing. The Pentagon says 60 days max, so with luck, the surviving children of northern Gaza should be tucking into scrumptious American hamburgers by mid-May. This is, of course, a far better solution to the problem of starving Palestinians than the current U.S. practice of air-dropping meal packets to them. A total of 112,896 meals in the past week divided up among several million Palestinians doesnt go very far, and when the parachutes dont open the heavy pallets tend to squash unwary Palestinians. When White House officials announced this brilliant plan to build what will probably be called the Pier of Hope, there was only one possible hitch. They were very clear that under no circumstances would there be any American boots on the ground." So how will the American Seabees (Naval Construction Battalions) connect that pier to the shore? Speculate no further; a solution is at hand. They will not dangle Seabees from hovering helicopters to put the final few meters of the roadway in place. Neither will they build a sort of reverse drawbridge that they can lower from the pier onto the beach. That would be ridiculous. Promises must be kept, but all the White House said was that there would be no American boots on the ground. The Seabees will finish the job themselves, but they will do it either barefoot or in stocking feet. Or in ballet slippers, if thats their preference. Forgive the sarcasm, but this cruel farce has nothing whatsoever to do with saving Palestinian children from starving to death under the Israeli siege. Its about saving face in Washington, where a wave of sympathy among potential pro-Biden voters for hungry, helpless Palestinian civilians is breaking on the rocks of Joe Bidens lifelong love for Israel. There is no need for piers, ships or aircraft to get food into the Gaza Strip. There are lots of roads available, most of them a bit cluttered with debris at the moment but the Israelis have lots of bulldozers. If they wanted the Palestinians to have food, then the Palestinians would have food. More to the point, if Joe Biden really wanted the Palestinians to have food, he would order the Israelis to let them have it or face losing American support with arms, money and the regular loan of the U.S. veto at the U.N. Security Council. But he cant bring himself to do that, no matter what Israel does. In late January, before the International Court of Justice agreed to consider genocide charges against Israel, an average of 147 trucks a day were delivering food into the Gaza Strip. Thats only a third of the peacetime amount, but it was enough to feed two and a half million people at bare survival level. Nothing else has changed, but since the Courts ruling food deliveries to Gaza have collapsed: only 57 trucks went in between Feb. 9-21. Why did Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu order that cut? It could just be anger at the Courts decision or it could be a strategy for driving Palestinians out of the Strip by an artificial famine. Thats clearly what the Egyptians think because they are clearing a 16-square-kilometer area just across the border from Gaza and building a wall around it, presumably to contain a flood of starving refugees from the Strip (Cairo claims that it is a "logistical hub," but that is palpable nonsense). Yet President Biden ignores all this and goes along with the fiction that there is some sort of undefined problem causing a famine in Gaza that must be solved by this elaborate charade about delivering food by sea. Various NATO/European Union countries are launching their own equally nonsensical plan to ship food into Gaza by sea. They are either fools or poltroons whereas both the Hamas leadership and Netanyahus government definitely belong in both categories at once. They are both determined to continue the war until the other side caves in, and neither has any hope of achieving that aim. Gwynne Dyers new book is "The Shortest History of War." He can be reached at (gwynne763121476@aol.com). Beyond Copilot for Securitys early access Beyond the general availability globally and the previously mentioned access of Microsoft Copilot for Security through other vendors, some of the new capabilities include the creation of custom workbooks and the ability to write plugins. One of the constructs with Copilot for Security is that its not just for Microsoft products and Microsoft data, essentially, weve been working with ISVs directly but also with customers to write plugins. Any data source, any product in the environment that you can connect into, you can have Copilot reason over, Conway tells CSO. Copilot for Security comes with two options for interaction: one as a standalone experience, that works across all Microsoft Security products, and one with an experience embedded right in the Defender portal. Once live, customers will be able to leverage Microsoft Defender Threat Intelligence within the embedded Defender experience to discover threats and attack techniques, and to gain recommendations specific to a particular environments risk profile using natural language. Microsoft Entra (previously Azure Active Directory) has added identity skills to Copilot including user details, group details, sign-in logs, audit logs, and diagnostic logs. In Microsoft Purview, Copilot will help SOC teams identify risky user activities and sensitive data that could be at risk when investigating a security incident. Copilot will provide summary of alerts in Microsoft Purview Data Loss Prevention and Insider Risk Management. It also provides contextual summaries of communications in Microsoft Purview Communication Compliance and documents in review sets in Microsoft Purview eDiscovery. Copilot for Security will be available under a pay-as-you-go model with a flexible consumption-based pricing, very much like the Azure model. Customers measure the capacity needed in what Microsoft call compute units with the vendor recommending a starting point at three compute units. If you are running out of capacity, the product will notify of it and more can be added. If use reduces, users may deprovision unneeded compute units. Photo: Google Maps Steve Cohens West Village monster mansion, all 30,000 square feet of it, has finally been unveiled. New York YIMBY published photos after the remaining scaffolding and construction fencing came down from the Mets-owner/hedge-fund manager/would-be casino kingpins new home at 145 Perry Street, a ground-up construction thats been in the works since 2017. (Although, Cohen bought the sites five years before that. Its been a process.) The result? Well, its certainly big. Photo: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images The Leroy Street Studio design (with Robert Silman Associates Structural Engineers) was controversial from the start. Its a landmark district and the mansions modern, almost municipal look ruffled some neighbors. Its not what we thought was appropriate for the neighborhood, Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Historical Preservation Commission, told the New York Post a few years back. It looks very much like a federal building. Another neighbor said, It is a bit out of place. The terra-cotta and bronze mansion could easily be mistaken for a courthouse, but maybe thats partially a consequence of its scale. (For comparison, Brooklyn Borough Hall is 55,000 square feet.) Despite rumors that Cohen was looking to sell his under-construction megamansion, he is apparently planning to take up residence there soon. Earlier this year, a renter in a neighboring building bragged that hed gotten the billionaire to cover three months of rent in exchange for vacating his apartment while Cohen and his family moved in. International Initiative To Control Commercial Spyware Countries led by Britain, France and the United States and tech firms including Google, Microsoft and Meta have signed a joint statement recognising the need for more action to tackle malicious use of cyber spying tools. This relatively inexpensive commercial spyware software can remotely infiltrate the most intimate spaces of a targets digital life to steal their information and secrets. Spyware tools can also be used by hackers-for-hire who carry out mercenary hacking campaigns on behalf of commercial clients. Spyware firms often say their products are meant for use by governments for national security, but the technology has been repeatedly found to have been used to hack into the phones of civil society, political opposition and journalists in the last decade. Journalists, activists and dissidents the world over are well aware of how their communication devices can be infiltrated. Eight years after American whistle-blower Edward Snowden leaked the National Security Agency files, exposing mass surveillance programs being run at the time by the US government, the Pegasus Project revealed the stunning ways spyware tools had evolved and spread since then. Now, a new international agreement, known as the Pall Mall Process, has been signed to collaborate on reigning in the hacker for hire commercial market, in which private interests sell tools and services to support offensive cyber activities. The declaration was signed by 35 nations at a conference hosted by both Britain and France to tackle the growing availability and use of spyware used to listen to phone calls, steal photos and remotely operate cameras and microphones. Under the Pall Mall Process, a joint commitment to act against an issue, the signatories will try to discourage irresponsible behaviour of these organisations in an effort to improve the transparency around their activities while trying to codify ways to implement compulsory regulation In addition to governments, major information technology companies such as Apple, BAE Systems, Google, and Microsoft were also in attendance. The meeting comes at a time when cyber spying and cyber espionage have increased substantially and is being conducted by both state and non-state actors to support a wide range of surveillance, espionage, monitoring, and other forms of cyber malfeasance. According to the British National Cyber Security Centre, the commercial cyber spying sector is growing fast enough to double in size every ten years. This comes on the heels of a UK Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) warning that more than 80 countries had purchased this type of technology over the past ten years, basing such findings on an aggregation of both classified and unclassified data. Indeed, this industry has proven quite profitable as more countries and organisations seek to outsource an invasive capability to exploit the digital space for their benefit. The currently unregulated spyware industry is estimated to be worth approximately USD 12 billion with no signs of slowing down. The surveillance technologies offered are sophisticated and often leverage current vulnerability information to increase their effectiveness. Over the past year or so, the United States has taken a series of steps to try and rein in this industry. Recently, the US Department of State issued new policy on the matter, which would empower the Department of State to impose visa restrictions on individuals associated with the misuse of commercial spyware. This action comes nearly a year after the Biden Administration issued an Executive Order barring US government agencies from using commercial spyware. The US was the first government to take on this industry when it sanctioned the NSO Group (as well as another Israeli company) whose Pegasus spyware had been linked to several incidents of domestic surveillance, targeting journalists, and monitoring political oppositionist individuals and groups. Amongst the nations signing this pledge were notable adversaries like China and Russia, but also included more democratic leaning governments like Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States, all countries that have been linked to offensive cyber operations. Notably absent was Israel where several leading companies producing this technology are based and countries like Thailand, Mexico, Spain, and Hungary did not sign the agreement. Oodaloop | Standard | CIGI Online | Forbidden Stories | The Guardian | US News | Reuters Image: Chris Yang You Might Also Read: Israeli Hacking Spyware In Widespread Use: ___________________________________________________________________________________________ If you like this website and use the comprehensive 6,500-plus service supplier Directory, you can get unrestricted access, including the exclusive in-depth Directors Report series, by signing up for a Premium Subscription. Individual 5 per month or 50 per year. Sign Up Multi-User, Corporate & Library Accounts Available on Request Cyber Security Intelligence: Captured Organised & Accessible Seoul should prepare for return of Trump By Troy Stangarone With Donald Trump set to be the Republican presidential nominee after a string of primary wins on March 5, South Korea and other U.S. allies will be increasingly focused on the implications of a potential second Trump presidency for global stability and economic prosperity. A commonly expressed concern is that a restored Trump presidency would be unpredictable. In reality, Trump's policies are relatively clear. The distinctions in Trump's foreign and economic policies are in their divergence from traditional U.S. policy, not in their inherent unpredictability. Donald Trump has intentionally cultivated his supposed unpredictability as a tool of policy. In an April 2016 foreign policy speech, Trump criticized traditional U.S. foreign policy, stating that the United States "must as a nation be more unpredictable We are totally predictable. We tell everything We have to be unpredictable, and we have to be unpredictable starting now." What gives Trump an air of unpredictability is not his actions, but rather his willingness to say anything and to push established boundaries. He has no compunction about calling a world leader a name one day and then praising them the next. Trump's dealings with North Korea highlight this, as they swung from describing Kim Jong-un as a "maniac" to, in a matter of months, referring to Kim as "very honorable." But outside the Sturm und Drang of his words, there are key characteristics that drive Trump's actions. While U.S. presidents have long viewed America's allies as a benefit for U.S. security and sought to deepen ties, Trump views U.S. allies as a financial burden a view that dates back to the 1980s. His recent comment that he would encourage Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" toNATO allies that haven't met their defense spending commitment may have been shocking but is fundamentally no different from his 2016 response when asked if he would come to a NATO state's defense if Russia attacked. In that instance, Trump said, "If they fulfill their obligations to us, the answer is yes." South Korea's own experience with the last set of cost-sharing negotiations further reflects Trump's view that allies are freeloaders who should pay more. What is less clear is whether he would carry through with his threats to walk away from alliance commitments. If Trump views allies as a burden, he has an un-American fondness for authoritarian leaders. In addition to Trump's praise of Kim Jong-un, he has described Putin's actions and invasion of Ukraine as "genius" and "savvy." He has called Xi Jinping a "brilliant guy," Viktor Orban "fantastic," and referred to Hezbollah as "very smart" when discussing the terrorist group's actions after Hamas' attack on Israel. Given Trump's admiration for dictators, it is not surprising that he agreed to Kim Jong-un's request that military exercises be canceled or said that he trusted Putin's expressed views more than those of the U.S. intelligence agencies. No prior U.S. president would have engaged in this behavior, but it is completely in line with Trump's worldview. Trump's opinions on trade have also been known since the 1980s. Then, he noted that "America is being ripped off. We're a debtor nation, and we have to tax, we have to tariff, we have to protect this country." In his first term, Trump pushed this agenda by demanding the Korea-United States Free Trade Agreement and North American Free Trade Agreement be renegotiated. He used national security provisions in U.S. law to put tariffs on steel, aluminum and consumer goods such as washing machines. The most significant use of tariffs followed the Section 301 investigation into China, which resulted in a wide range of tariffs on Chinese goods. Both of Donald Trump's core beliefs could raise issues for the alliance. Despite the notion that two conservative leaders would be in alignment on North Korea, Trump's personal relationship with Kim Jong-un could create tensions in the relationship. So could South Korea's level of financial support for U.S. troops, even if the Special Measures Agreement is extended prior to Trump's possible return to office. On trade, the fact that the U.S. trade deficit with South Korea is now almost twice as large as when Trump first came to office could also be a flashpoint. When Trump was elected in 2016, he was new to the political scene, and there was reason to assume that, similar to prior U.S. presidents, he would govern differently in office than he had campaigned. After witnessing his four years in office and a post-presidency, we now know how Trump acts as a leader. It is not that he is unpredictable, as many of his core tenets have remained the same over decades, but rather that he represents a radically different view of America and its role in the world than has existed since the end of the Second World War. This is the Trump administration for which South Korea and U.S. allies need to prepare. Troy Stangarone (ts@keia.org) is the senior director of congressional affairs and trade at the Korea Economic Institute. He is a guest editorial writer at The Korea Times. Nation forms triangular space industry cluster, targets top 5 global space power status by 2045 By Baek Byung-yeul Korea will expand its space industry development budget to 1.5 trillion won ($1.14 billion) by 2027 and attract 100 trillion won in private investment by 2045 to create 250,000 high-quality jobs, President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday, vowing to position the space business as a key national industry. "By landing our spacecraft on the moon in 2032 and planting the national flag on Mars in 2045, we are taking a great step towards the future," President Yoon said at the launch event for the space industry cluster held at Korea Aerospace Industries in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province. The space industry cluster is a national project to foster the private sector-led space industry by designating South Jeolla Province as a specialized district for launch vehicles, South Gyeongsang Province as a specialized district for satellites and Daejeon as a specialized district for space industry professionals, forming a triangular system. Through this space industry cluster, Korea aims to secure more than 10 percent of the global space industry market share by 2045, thereby becoming one of the world's top five space powers. "The space industry cluster launched today will lead the way forward," the president said. The space industry is one of the future promising industries, with the related market size expected to reach $2.7 trillion by 2040 because new markets such as satellite manufacturing, space network, launch vehicles, mining space resources, tourism and solar power are rapidly growing. The president said that the space industry cluster would be part of the roadmap to enhance Korea's presence in this market. The government aims to produce 10 world-class aerospace companies from the strengthened space industry ecosystem by 2045. "The space industry is an integration of cutting-edge science and technology, enhancing the competitiveness of existing industries and creating new sectors as a future growth engine," Yoon said. "The government will take responsibility for establishing key infrastructures that are difficult for the private sector to build individually, such as rocket launch sites for private companies and space environment testing facilities." The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that a total of 600 billion won will be invested in the construction of this triangular space industry cluster system from this year until 2031, and an additional 400 billion won will be invested in the new creation of a national industrial complex for space launch vehicles. As part of this plan, the science ministry is promoting a pilot project tentatively called the Triangular Star Project to create synergy between clusters and strengthen the value chain of the domestic space industry. "The Triangular Star Project is an R&D project that covers the entire lifecycle of satellite development, from manufacturing to launch, within the cluster," the ministry said. "The government plans to support the domestic production of materials, components and equipment for the space sector." Furthermore, the ministry added that to ensure the comprehensive and sustainable development of this space cluster, a special law containing the five-year basic plan and financial support will be enacted, and regulatory improvements will be pursued. To foster professionals in the space sector, the Daejeon cluster will operate a national space talent training platform, aiming to train more than 1,500 industry contributors annually. "Following the miracle of the Han River and the miracle of semiconductors, the third miracle of Korea will be the miracle of space," the president said. EURO FORECAST EUR/USD, EUR/GBP, EUR/JPY Traders are heavily betting against EUR/USD according to IG data Meanwhile, retail positioning is extremely bullish on EUR/GBP Nearly three-quarters of traders are holding short positions against EUR/JPY Most Read: Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) Rally Further Where to Next? Contrarian market sentiment can be a valuable tool for traders because it taps into the potential for irrational exuberance and unjustified fear in the market. Here's why: Imagine the market is in a slump, and everyone's feeling pessimistic. This widespread negativity can drive prices down below an assets actual worth. A contrarian investor sees this as a buying opportunity, believing the negativity is overblown and the price will eventually rebound. By buying when others are fearful, they aim to profit later when the market reverses higher, and the investment regains value. This applies the other way around too. During periods of extreme optimism, contrarians might become cautious. If everyone's rushing to buy a particular stock or asset class, a contrarian might see this as a sign of a bubble about to burst. They might choose to sell or hold off on buying, believing the price is inflated by hype and due for a downward correction. It's important to remember that contrarian investing isn't just about blindly going against the crowd. It's about identifying situations where the crowd's emotions have caused a temporary disconnect between price and value. By capitalizing on these market inefficiencies, contrarians aim to make profitable trades. However, contrarian investing also comes with risks. The crowd might be right sometimes, and going against the grain can lead to losses. It requires discipline, patience, and a strong understanding of fundamental analysis to identify true value when the market disagrees. Want to know where the euro is headed over a longer-term horizon? Explore key insights in our quarterly forecast. Request your complimentary guide today! Recommended by Diego Colman Get Your Free EUR Forecast Get My Guide EUR/USD FORECAST MARKET SENTIMENT IG client data reveals a surprising dose of pessimism swirling around EUR/USD. More than 60% of the retail crowd is hunkering down with short positions, indicating they expect the euro to weaken against the U.S. dollar. This bearish tilt is further evidenced by the ratio of shorts to longs sitting at 1.59 to 1. This negativity seems to be intensifying. Compared to yesterday, the number of traders betting against the EUR/USD has ticked upwards, and it's even more pronounced when looking back to last week. Contrarians see this as a potentially bullish signal. When the majority is overwhelmingly positioned one way, it can leave the market vulnerable to an unexpected reversal in the opposite direction. For instance, if news or events shift perceptions, a wave of panicked short covering could propel the EUR/USD upwards at the drop of a hat. Delve into how crowd psychology may influence FX market dynamics. Request our sentiment analysis guide to grasp the role of retail positioning in predicting EUR/GBPs near-term direction. EUR/GBP Bearish Data provided by of clients are net long. of clients are net short. Change in Longs Shorts OI Daily 0% -5% -2% Weekly 32% -25% 6% EUR/GBP FORECAST MARKET SENTIMENT IG's sentiment data paints a picture of widespread optimism on EUR/GBP. Over two-thirds of retail traders are betting on the euro to rise against the pound, a bullish stance reflected in the 2.15 to 1 dominance of long positions. This degree of bullishness often sets off alarm bells for contrarian investors. The saying "the trend is your friend" is popular for a reason, but extremes in market sentiment can signal turning points. When a substantial consensus forms, the potential for a sharp reversal grows. If something shifts to spook the bulls, a rush of sell orders could quickly overwhelm the buyers, leading to a EUR/GBP decline. Adopting a contrarian stance towards crowd sentiment, the prevailing net-long positions of traders on EUR/GBP indicate potential downside ahead for price action. Disheartened by trading losses? Empower yourself and refine your strategy with our guide, "Traits of Successful Traders." Gain access to crucial insights to help you avoid common pitfalls and costly errors. Recommended by Diego Colman Traits of Successful Traders Get My Guide EUR/JPY FORECAST MARKET SENTIMENT The retail crowd on IG seems convinced that EUR/JPY is headed for a pullback. Nearly three-quarters of traders are holding short positions, betting on the euro to weaken against the Japanese yen. This dominant bearish view is the kind of setup contrarian investors watch for, as it can signal a move in the opposite direction. When a vast majority of traders pile onto one side of a trade, it sets the stage for potential reversals. A piece of good news for the euro or negative stories about the yen could set off a chain reaction. Traders betting against the common currency might be forced to buy back in, creating a flurry of short-covering. This could push EUR/JPY higher. In summary, our approach diverges from prevailing crowd sentiment, and the current net-short positions of traders suggest that EUR/JPY could see further gains in the immediate future. Pakistan, China vow to cement ironclad ties 08:11, March 13, 2024 By Xu Wei ( Chinadaily.com.cn Partnership: Ties 'grow from strength to strength', envoy says Pakistan and China are planning more high-level exchanges and steps to take their relations to even greater heights, Islamabad's top envoy to Beijing said, with the recent election of Pakistan's new leadership fueling expectations for fortified bilateral cooperation going forward. Pakistani Ambassador to China Khalil Hashmi said in an exclusive interview with China Daily that the two nations are "resolved to further bolster high-level exchanges, instill additional substance to the already robust bilateral relations, and further fortify the ironclad friendship in the face of a complex geopolitical and regional milieu". Hashmi noted that President Xi Jinping was the first foreign leader to send a congratulatory message to both President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan "in a matter of a few hours" after the announcement of the election results, a diplomatic gesture underscoring the strong ties between the two neighbors. In his messages, Xi underlined his readiness to work with the two leaders in carrying forward the traditional bilateral friendship and advancing pragmatic cooperation in various sectors. Sharif wrote in a post on social media platform X that he wished to extend sincere gratitude to the Chinese president for congratulating him on his reelection. "Look forward to working with him to further strengthen Pakistan-China ironclad friendship and for high-quality development of CPEC as flagship of BRI," he wrote, referring to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Belt and Road Initiative. The Pakistani envoy stressed that ties between China and Pakistan, as iron brothers and all-weather strategic cooperative partners, have weathered many storms and achieved many milestones. "They continue to grow from strength to strength. "We have a solid foundation to further expand our relations in economy, trade, investment, industry, science and technology, tourism, education, media and culture," Hashmi said. He highlighted the significance of the year 2023 in bilateral ties, as both sides celebrated the solid progress achieved in the first decade of the CPEC. As the development of the CPEC is transitioning to its second phase in 2024 and beyond, Hashmi said both nations "remained committed to jointly building corridors of economic growth, livelihoods, innovation, green development and inclusivity, infused with high-quality development". The economic corridor has transformed Pakistan's infrastructure and energy landscape, contributed to significant socioeconomic progress, and laid the foundation for accelerated economic growth, industrialization and more jobs, the envoy said. The CPEC, which is a landmark project of the BRI that includes a variety of infrastructure projects such as roads, railways and oil and gas pipelines, has created a total of 236,000 jobs and built 510 kilometers of highways for the South Asian country, according to the Chinese embassy in Pakistan. As China's strategic partner on both the bilateral and multilateral fronts, Pakistan has also been actively engaged with China in promoting and forging ahead with President Xi's vision of a community with a shared future for mankind. Pakistan, one of the earliest members of the Group of Friends of Global Development Initiative, has been an active partner with China in promoting the landmark initiative, as it aligns well with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Agenda 2030, Hashmi said. The Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative and the BRI "represent a global road map for a more prosperous, harmonious and peaceful world", he said. Mushahid Hussain Sayed, the founding chairman of the Pakistan-China Institute and chairman of Pakistan's Senate Committee on Defence, said that with the country's new government taking office, the biggest impact will be "on taking CPEC forward with renewed vigor, plus enhanced bilateral trade and stronger diplomatic coordination on key issues". He highlighted the significance of the commitment from President Xi on the bilateral ties. "As President Xi rightly pointed out, with the world confronted with accelerated changes unseen in a century, the strategic significance of China-Pakistan relations has become more prominent," he said. "Pakistan-China relations remain solid and substantive, irrespective of any changes in the region or a change of governments, as these are based on mutual interests reinforced by supporting each other's core interests," he added. The Pakistani senator also highlighted the significance of greater cooperation with China through the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. "Both countries oppose any new Cold War, any zero-sum game mindset, or hegemony of any kind, and support an international order based on the UN Charter and international law, with no double standards on any issues," he said. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Chinese artist's stunning loong artwork receives warm welcome in U.S. People's Daily Online) 13:47, March 13, 2024 A woman poses for a picture with a loong artwork created by Pan Feifei at Westfield Southcenter shopping center in Washington state, U.S. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee) A beautifully crafted Chinese dragon artwork, known as a loong, was recently showcased at Westfield Southcenter shopping center in Washington state, U.S., drawing the attention of numerous admirers. The artwork served as a tangible representation of Chinese loong culture. Pan Feifei, a talented female artist from Nanxun district of Huzhou city in Zhejiang Province, east China, is the creative mind behind this remarkable piece. Born in 1987, Pan developed a passion for handicrafts from a young age. After completing her studies at an art school in 2005, she became fascinated with paper quilling. Paper quilling is an ancient art form that uses thin paper as its main material. This paper is skillfully manipulated through techniques like bending and rolling to create intricate components. These paper pieces are then colored and assembled to produce captivating three-dimensional artwork. Enthralled by the allure of paper quilling, Pan embarked on a self-study journey in her spare time. Over several years, she immersed herself in the art form, gradually finding inspiration for her unique creations. She aimed to infuse her hometown's rich cultural heritage and folk tales into her artworks, giving them deeper meaning and connecting them to human experiences. In 2023, Pan participated in the Grand Designs Live exhibition in London, U.K., where she was interviewed by international media outlets. This exposure led to more invitations for her to create loong artworks. With the combined efforts of 32 staff members, the massive 15-meter-long loong was meticulously crafted over a span of 15 days. After a month-long voyage across the ocean, the loong made its international debut. "The Year of the Loong holds profound significance in the hearts of the Chinese people. It represents auspiciousness and good fortune," expressed Pan. Despite working abroad, Pan has remained closely connected to the progress of her hometown. Looking ahead, she intends to merge her artistic skills with the traditional historical and cultural heritage of Nanxun, producing more artworks that uphold the essence of the regional culture. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) The biggest shareholder of KT&G has said it opposed a nomination for chief executive of Korea's dominant cigarette maker, citing falling profitability and dubious business practices during the nominee's tenure as a board member. In a regulatory filing Tuesday, state-run Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), which holds some 8 percent stake in KT&G, also made "a shareholder proposal to improve (KT&G's) governance by strengthening the expertise and independence of the board of directors." Appointing a new chief executive, which would mark KT&G's first leadership change in nine years, and an outside director are two main agenda items for the company's annual shareholder meeting set for March 28. Last month, a committee of KT&G nominated Bang Kyung-man, who has served in various capacities at the company since 1998, as a candidate for chief executive. IBK opposed Bang's nomination because "KT&G's operating profit has fallen more than 20 percent" since he was appointed as vice president of the cigarette maker, an IBK official said. "Given a decision to secure friendly shares using its own stocks, the independence and fairness of the current board of directors are bound to be seriously questioned," the official said. KT&G is expected to face a fierce battle to appoint Bang as new chief executive at an upcoming shareholder meeting, as an activist fund is seen lining up with IBK, some analysts said. Unlike previous shareholder meetings that had appointed board members, KT&G accepted a proposal by the activist fund Singapore-based Flashlight Capital Partners to introduce a new voting scheme at this month's shareholder meeting. Under the new scheme, shareholders of KT&G will be allowed to cast their votes to elect two directors from nominees through cumulative voting. That means that the activist fund and IBK could get their nominee on the board of KT&G, some analysts said. Earlier this month, Flashlight Capital endorsed a director candidate proposed by IBK, while withdrawing its own director candidate. (Yonhap) During the Middle Ages and beyond, thousands of people were put to death in Britain and across Europe for the abominable crime of blasphemy. In 1656, the Quaker James Nayler was flogged, pilloried, branded on the forehead and had his tongue pierced by a red-hot poker followed by an indefinite prison sentence including hard labour for re-enacting Christs entry into Jerusalem on a donkey for Palm Sunday, by riding a horse into Bristol. Thankfully, as the centuries passed, Britain gradually shed these theocratic tendencies, emerging as a bastion of enlightenment and liberalism. The last prosecution for blasphemy was as recently as 1977, when campaigner Mary Whitehouse successfully sued a gay magazine for an erotic poem about Jesus. When Britains ancient blasphemy laws were formally abolished in 2008, the matter was thought to have been put to bed. Until now. As a new report makes clear, our country is increasingly facing the wrath of mobs of religious zealots who use violence and intimidation to police language and behaviour and especially any criticism of Islam. The vital new report was produced by Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens, a senior researcher in terrorism and radicalisation at Kings College London. A teacher in Batley, West Yorkshire, was forced into hiding after showing pupils a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad for which he was subsequently subjected to death threats. Pictured: A rally in Batley town centre He warns: [Although] Islamic anti-blasphemy sentiment has been part of the religious activist landscape in the UK for decades threats of violence have increased in frequency over recent years. In chilling terms, he then explains how such violence has been promoted in no small part by the availability of jihadist propaganda online. In other words, Islamists are being radicalised on the internet and then taking it upon themselves to resurrect the crime of blasphemy in Britain. Robin Simcox, the governments counter-extremism tsar who commissioned the report, did so in light of three alarming recent incidents. In 2021, a teacher in Batley, West Yorkshire, was forced into hiding after showing pupils a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad for which he was subsequently subjected to death threats. A year later, an angry mob staged a protest outside a screening of the film The Lady Of Heaven because it depicted the Prophets daughter. And only last year, four British schoolboys at a secondary in Wakefield were suspended after accidentally damaging a copy of the Quran. Yet while these particular incidents may have prompted this timely report, I know that they are just the start. Just this weekend, chilling footage emerged from a pro-Palestine rally in central London. It showed a counter-protester, holding a banner reading Hamas is terrorist [sic], being pulled to the ground and handcuffed by police officers. Although the 38-year-old Iranian was de-arrested and released shortly after, it was a scandal that police apprehended him for telling the truth that Hamas is a proscribed terrorist group. Protesters give a statement to members of the media outside Batley Grammar School Last year, moreover, a British teacher told me he and his colleagues were afraid of teaching the Holocaust to some Muslim students for fear of being met with anti-Semitic rhetoric and even outright denial of the worst crime in humanitys history. At a time when our streets ring every weekend to cries of jihad and calls to wipe the Jewish state off the map from the river to the sea, the importance of knowing where religious hatred can lead can hardly be understated. Yet the phenomenon has been going on for years and worsening more recently. A 2007 report by The Historical Association found that one school had deliberately avoided teaching the Crusades at Key Stage 3 because... balanced treatment of the topic would have directly challenged what was taught in some local mosques. Meanwhile, a poll conducted by Policy Exchange in November last year showed that 16 per cent of teachers had self-censored to avoid causing religious offence. As the think tank aptly put it, fear of antagonising Muslims has created a de facto blasphemy code in schools across the country. Take the proudly secular Michaela Community School in Brent, north-west London, which was subject to bomb threats and had a brick thrown through a window after it told students not to pray during classroom hours. Michaela Community School in Brent, north-west London (pictured), which was subject to bomb threats and had a brick thrown through a window after it told students not to pray during classroom hours Should we really be surprised that teachers shy away from certain topics when there are so many precedents for violence and intimidation? Let me be clear: stories such as these are not really about a childs right to pray after double maths. The fanatics real aim is to undermine the secular, tolerant foundations of British society which runs counter to their uncompromising creed. It is a classic example of what the Australian psychologist Nick Haslam has called concept creep the notion that a dangerous and harmful idea can gradually infiltrate society until it is too late to expunge it. Each small victory for the radicals every teacher suspended, every criticism silenced only emboldens them. And the worst part? This is not the work of a few lone actors. Instead, its a co-ordinated attack. For the new report also reveals its most alarming development: the rise of a British wing of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a radical political party once banned in its home country after it called for blasphemers to be beheaded. In the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the death penalty is still in force for blasphemy. Just last week, a 22-year-old student was sentenced to death for allegedly sharing blasphemous pictures over WhatsApp. Meleagrou-Hitchenss report not only shows that British mosques have hosted talks by preachers who support TLP, it reveals that the party has even arranged a series of protests against Islamophobia in Britain. At the most recent documented demonstration, in January last year, one speaker proclaimed: When it comes to the honour of the Quran we will... sacrifice our lives and also the lives of the enemies. Make no mistake, if these radicals were ever to get their way, the four young boys who accidentally damaged a Quran in Wakefield would risk execution. And I am not being sensationalist: Beheadings for blasphemy are exactly what the TLP advocates. Protesters outside Cineworld in Birmingham to voice their opposition to The Lady Of Heaven And what is more galling still is that they are exploiting the modish concepts of Islamophobia, racism and intolerance to bully their critics into silence, elicit sympathy from the Left and peddle their dogma unchallenged. The late journalist and critic Christopher Hitchens Alexanders father put it best when he described Islamophobia as a word created by fascists and used by cowards to manipulate morons. His words have never rung more true. Of course, hatred towards any group of people based on their religion is inexcusable. But just as one can criticise Israeli policy towards Palestine without being anti-Semitic, as a society we must be able to criticise the imperial jihadist dogma of certain Islamist extremists without being labelled Islamophobic. On advice from the police, that well-meaning teacher from Batley Grammar who showed students a picture of Muhammad is still in hiding three years later, living under a new identity. Countless lives have been torn apart by Islamist anti-blasphemy activists and many have been killed around the world for speaking out. The future of the Britain we love is at stake. If our politicians continue to view criticism of Islam as a hate-crime, then concept creep will continue apace and the freedom we cherish will be stolen from us. The Conservative Party is in a death spiral. Its MPs are divided and lost. Its activists are demoralised. Its voters are utterly bewildered. What started, in 2019, as a masterclass in how to reinvent a political party has turned into a masterclass in how to ruin one. In polls this week, the Tories slumped to just 24 per cent of the vote nearly 20 points behind the Labour Party. They are now on course for one of the heaviest drubbings in their entire history. And what has happened to the post-Brexit political realignment? The one which allowed the party to reinvent itself as the guardian of patriotic workers, Brexiteers, small-towners and pensioners? Like Humpty Dumpty, it lies smashed to smithereens at the foot of the Red Wall. Lee Anderson a former deputy leader and Red Wall rottweiler has abandoned the party Shockingly, the Tories have now lost more than half of the people who voted for them in 2019. They can count on the support of just one in three Brexiteers and one in five workers. And this week, crystallising the malaise, one of their own MPs, Lee Anderson a former deputy leader and Red Wall rottweiler has followed them by abandoning the party. Anderson, a solidly blue-collar, former coal miner who went to a technical college rather than university and is a symbol of the Red Wall, has become the first Member of Parliament to defect to the insurgent Reform party. He claims neither the Tories nor Labour are seriously interested in taking the country back from a toxic combination of radical Islamists, the woke Left, and a ruling class that has become far too obsessed with mass immigration and adrift from ordinary people. He has a point. But rather than address the British peoples legitimate concerns, far too many Tory MPs have preferred to mock and marginalise Anderson and the millions of working-class voters he represents. It is telling, for example, that among the ruling class Lee Anderson has variously been described as a neanderthal, thick as mince, an utterly awful type, stupid, moronic, and an apologist for the far right a term that is now routinely applied to anybody and everybody who dares question immigration. Rishi Sunak wins applause from liberal commentators on account of his metropolitan, managerial, and diverse appearance But the reality is that Lee Anderson does speak for much of the country, and he does speak for the millions of people who have been abandoning the Tories since 2019. He represents a voice and set of values that are mysteriously absent in institutions that shape our national life, including the Conservative Party: working-class, northern, non-graduate, shaped by a life outside politics, openly patriotic, and deeply sceptical of the liberal consensus that now pervades Westminster and our national life. The simple fact is that too many in Westminster and too many Tory MPs do not understand how normal people out there, in the country, think and feel. This is true for Rishi Sunak, who wins applause from liberal commentators on account of his metropolitan, managerial, and diverse appearance but simultaneously irritates much of the rest of the country. Sunak and many members of his team have followed what is now the standard route into the top echelons of politics a top public school, Oxbridge, a stint at an investment bank, an elite business school, a life of abundance and affluence. The Tories have lost touch with their voters because, like the political class, they have simply become too narrow, too homogenous, and too remote from the lives and concerns of ordinary working people. EXCLUSIVE READ MORE: Jason Groves: What's REALLY happening with Tory bid to woo Boris Advertisement They fail to grasp the fact that if they cannot appeal to the likes of Lee Anderson then theyve got no chance at all at the next election. This is why so many of the people who voted Conservative in 2019 are, like Anderson, defecting to the Reform party, which this week is averaging 12 per cent in the polls. And an even larger number of these 2019 Tories say they wont bother voting at all, with this apathy an even bigger threat to Rishi Sunak than Richard Tices Reform party. And what are their top priorities? They tell me, first, stopping the boats and then, second, getting (legal) immigration under control, two issues on which Rishi Sunak and the Tories have very clearly failed. They also want to make their own laws. And they want to teach our children that a man is a man, and a woman is a woman. Instead, the party has been talking randomly about banning smoking, reforming A-levels, and scrapping high-speed train lines. And though the Tories promised theyd return Britain to being a genuinely sovereign, self-governing, independent nation, Sunak and his MPs have consistently refused to leave international courts and conventions that would help us achieve this, such as the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Making sense of the Conservative Partys implosion, then, is not rocket science. When you ignore the wishes of your core voters, theyll either find another political home or theyll simply stop voting altogether. This is why the Tories look set to crash below 100 seats at the general election. Unless something changes fast they will be completely wiped out of the big cities and the university towns. L-R: William Hague, Margaret Thatcher and David Cameron They will be forced to watch Labour re-emerge as the dominant party in Scotland and extend its reach over the southern commuter belt. And they will lose every single seat in the Red Wall including Lee Andersons. After this heavy defeat at the next election the largest group of Tories that will be left on the green benches in the House of Commons will be liberal, wet, southern One Nation types who lack genuine appeal to ordinary voters and think the answer to their partys crisis is to simply rewind the clock to the David Cameron era, to try and woo urban social liberals. This cannot be the answer. The only way forward for the Tories, if they are serious about avoiding this cataclysmic defeat, is to rediscover their historic power of reinvention to find a way, somehow, of reinventing and reconnecting with the very workers, non-graduates, pensioners, and small c conservatives who took a punt on them in 2019. This is what other centre-right parties are doing around the world with much success, from Donald Trumps strong numbers in America to a resurgent conservatism in the likes of Italy, Sweden, and France. Have Rishi Sunak and his allies got what it takes to end this death-spiral? I suspect not. But by stepping back to think seriously about why the likes of Lee Anderson and so many others are abandoning their party they might yet find their way to an answer. Whatever you may think of Diane Abbott, she does not deserve the bigoted, brainless badmouthing she is said to have received from the 10million Conservative Party donor Frank Hester. Yet demonising Diane is nothing new. She has been targeted by trolls and hate-mailers for decades. But why? It is a question I have often asked myself from the unusual perspective of being a former Tory Cabinet Minister who is proud to know Diane as a close friend and is godfather to her son, James. I have been helping him through some of his recent legal and medical problems. To understand the warm, effervescent woman who was the first female black MP to enter the House of Commons nearly 37 years ago, it is useful to separate the personal Diane from the political Diane. Politically, I have almost never agreed with a single word she has said. Diane Abbott was the first female black MP to enter the House of Commons nearly 37 years ago Personally, I hugely enjoy her company and her glorious joie de vivre. However, there are tinges of stoical sadness in her personality as well. All these qualities were on display when we met for one of our regular lunches last Saturday at Chelseas Le Colombier restaurant. She and James are keen foodies, and between us we enjoyed a gourmet feast worthy of several Michelin stars. The conversation was as sparkling as the champagne. I had brought along a second godchild of mine, a 24-year-old third-year politics student at Greenwich University and Labour Party activist. Sharons passionate reverence for the Member of Parliament for Hackney (even though they disagreed about Israel) was a reminder that for many thousands of aspirational young Brits of colour, Diane Abbott has provided their inspiration. She ran so that people like me could walk, said Samuel Kasumu, a former No. 10 Special Adviser to Boris Johnson in a moving tribute to her on yesterdays Radio 4 Today programme. How have I come to know and admire Diane? We first met in the early 1980s at TV-AM, when she was a trade union representative fighting for the rights of her National Union of Journalists colleagues. I was the stations acting Chief Executive tasked with reducing the beleaguered companys workforce. So, of course, we clashed yet with some lasting traces of mutual respect. Later, in the House of Commons, we were a pair for more than 15 years. This is a little-understood yet invaluable Parliamentary arrangement, by which the MPs from opposite sides of the House both agree to absent themselves from less important votes, so that they can be away from Westminster in their constituencies or elsewhere. Pairs often became friends, but I suspect Diane and I might not have enjoyed a deep friendship had it not been for the drama of her mothers death, when Diane was in her early 30s. In Westminster we were on an all-night sitting when, at about 1am, I saw Diane sobbing on one of the division lobby telephones. Boyfriend dramas, again? I asked her. No! My mother is dying in Whipps Cross Hospital. Could you drive me there right now? she cried. When I heard the reports of Frank Hesters attack on Diane on the 7am news bulletin yesterday, I immediately telephoned my old friend When we got to the hospital we could not find Mrs Abbott (who was known as Big Lil to differentiate her from Little Diane) in her ward. After a frantic search, we discovered her on a trolley near the operating theatre. She was at deaths door. But Diane at least had time to say her farewells before her mother passed away some 20 minutes later. Helping Diane get through the shock of bereavement and organising her mothers funeral at St Margarets Church, Westminster (where I was churchwarden), began the bonds of our friendship. Then, after James was born in October 1991, I organised his christening in the Crypt Chapel of the House of Commons, and gave a festive lunch afterwards at my nearby home in Lord North Street. Besides James and his parents, the lunch guests included Trevor Phillips, Harriet Harman MP and all sorts of luminaries among the rising stars of Black Britain. When I heard the reports of Frank Hesters attack on Diane on the 7am news bulletin yesterday, I immediately telephoned my old friend. She was sad and frightened, yet courageous: I am so hurt and upset that I shall report him to the police, she told me. But soon Ill get back to what Ive been doing for nearly 40 years now ignoring the haters and concentrating on serving my constituents and my party. The reference to my party struck a poignant note. For Diane loves Labour with the sentimental if erratic affection of a traditional, unconstructed Left-winger. Nevertheless, she is currently suspended from the party whip for having written an unwise letter (for which she promptly retracted and apologised) which some interpreted as anti-Semitic. I happen know from innumerable conversations with Diane about past and present Middle East crises that she is not remotely anti-Semitic. In my personal and political opinion, Labour ought to release her from their sin bin and reinstate her party whip. To judge by Keir Starmers generous comments yesterday about the trailblazer, as he called Diane, I hope this restoration will not be long-delayed. So if some good can come out of this unseemly brouhaha over Mr Hesters idiotic sentiments (for which he has at least apologised), it should be a return to civility and courtesy in all attitudes and actions about my friend, Diane Abbott. The Reverend Jonathan Aitken is a former Conservative minister. Pretend for a moment that Angela Rayner is deputy prime minister in this Conservative government rather than shadow deputy prime minister, which is what she is. It admittedly takes a leap of imagination, given that only a few years ago she described Tories as 'scum'. In fact, she went further, calling them 'homophobic, racist, misogynistic, nasty and vile'. Nevertheless, let us proceed with the conceit that Mrs Rayner is a very senior Tory. And let us imagine that she was accused of possibly avoiding capital gains tax on the sale of a house, ignoring electoral law and flouting mortgage rules. These are the very charges that have been laid at her door following revelations in a new biography of Mrs Rayner by the former Tory peer and businessman Michael Ashcroft, which will be serialised in the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday this weekend. We can be certain that, in the alternative universe I have conjured up, a Tory Angela Rayner would be scrutinised by the BBC, ITV News and Sky. They would go to town, just as they are doing rightly in the case of Frank Hester, the Conservative donor alleged to have made racist remarks about MP Diane Abbott. We can be certain that, in the alternative universe I have conjured up, a Tory Angela Rayner would be scrutinised by the BBC , ITV News and Sky And yet the BBC (pictured) and other mainstream broadcasters have shown almost no interest in the allegations against Mrs Rayner as she really is the deputy leader of the Labour Party Radio 4 Today programme's Nick Robinson would whip himself into a state of indignation. BBC Two's Newsnight would devote hours to the scandal. Mrs Rayner's misdeeds would dominate Auntie's television and radio bulletins. In short, there would be fireworks. And yet the BBC and other mainstream broadcasters have shown almost no interest in the allegations against Mrs Rayner as she really is the deputy leader of the Labour Party, which seems very likely to form the next government of the United Kingdom. The controversy has scarcely been mentioned, if at all, by the BBC in any of its numerous news bulletins since the allegations against Mrs Rayner emerged two and a half weeks ago, though there have been a couple of brief pieces on its website. As far as the Beeb is concerned, it is a non-story. This is a grave failure since the issue here is the truthfulness of someone who may well soon be deputy prime minister of this country. None of the charges against Mrs Rayner in my view amounts to a knockout blow. But collectively they call into question her veracity. That is a serious matter. It is a somewhat involved tale, but can be easily enough boiled down to its essential elements. In 2007, Angela Rayner (then Bowen) bought her own former council house in Vicarage Road, Stockport, Greater Manchester, with a 25 per cent discount. This was done under the right-to-buy scheme set up by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s, which Mrs Rayner has partially criticised as an MP. Residents who buy ex-council houses are normally expected to live in them for a minimum of five years. If a house is sold before this period has ended, there may be a financial penalty. In 2010, she married Mark Rayner, who had a house in Lowndes Lane about a mile away. Mrs Rayner contends that she continued to live in her own house throughout her marriage. She remained on the electoral roll at that address. Yet when she registered the births of her two youngest children in the same year, she gave their address as Mark Rayner's property in Lowndes Lane. This is a grave failure since the issue here is the truthfulness of someone who may well soon be deputy prime minister of this country Moreover, three neighbours in Lowndes Lane say that Mrs Rayner lived there with her husband and children. One of them, Sylvia Hampson (a former Labour voter), remembers her 'all the time, coming and going' and living in the house 'for six or seven years'. She recalls Mrs Rayner and her husband 'had the kerb lowered so they could drive a car straight into their driveway'. Angela Rayner sold her own house in Vicarage Road in 2015, making a profit of 48,500 on the original purchase price. That same year she became an MP. There are several key questions. Whether or not she lived in her husband's house, she should probably have paid some capital gains tax on the sale of her own house since a married couple are not entitled to capital gains exemption on two residences. Mrs Rayner asserts that no such tax was payable. Among other questions are these: Did Angela Rayner pretend to live in Vicarage Road to avoid being penalised by Stockport Council, under right-to-buy rules, for moving out before five years had elapsed? Did she tell her mortgage provider she was no longer resident in Vicarage Road, as she was legally required to do? Did she break electoral rules by not declaring her true address? There's a further oddity. During the period of her marriage, Mrs Rayner's brother Darren was registered as living with her husband in Lowndes Lane. However, witnesses have told the Mail that Darren lived in Vicarage Road. Did he pay Mrs Rayner rent and, if so, was this declared? As I say, none of these accusations is lethal. But nor are they trivial, and collectively they point to a significant lapse. Angela Rayner who by the way was ferocious in impugning Boris Johnson's veracity has robustly denied any wrongdoing. Until or unless she explains several anomalies, reasonable people may conclude that she isn't telling the whole truth. Except that many reasonable people may be unaware of the allegations since the BBC and other broadcasters have avoided the story. This surely can't be because they deem it too convoluted. Several newspapers, including the Mail, have got to grips with its complexities. No, I fear that the Beeb and others have decided that, with a Labour government likely to take over in a matter of months, they don't want to get on the wrong side of the party hierarchy, and in particular the probable future deputy prime minister. If true, this would amount to a shocking dereliction of their responsibilities. How well I recall the BBC's indulgence towards Tony Blair in the early New Labour years. Later, the Corporation and New Labour were at loggerheads over the Iraq War. But there was a time with the Beeb's chairman and director-general both paid up Blairites when our national broadcaster often sounded even more like the official wing of the Labour Party than now. Please God, let us not return to those days. The honesty of the woman likely to be a powerful politician is a vital issue. Nor is this the first time it has been questioned. In 2022, Labour initially wrongly denied that Angela Rayner had been present at an event in Durham where Sir Keir Starmer was photographed swigging beer. The gathering was in apparent contravention of Covid rules, though local police ruled otherwise. Similarly, Greater Manchester Police have declared Mrs Rayner won't face an investigation in this instance. How they could have determined in so short a time that there is no case to answer, and apparently without interviewing witnesses, is a mystery. A significant aspect of this sorry tale is hypocrisy. Last year Mrs Rayner had the effrontery to call for a review on discounts for right-to-buy, despite being herself a beneficiary of the scheme. Hypocrisy is bad enough, but if it were to be shown that Angela Rayner had gamed the system, voters would be rightly appalled. Fortunately for her, thanks to the all-powerful BBC, many of them may never know. Q: Good morning, Lee! Lee: That's not what I said. You're putting words in my mouth. Q: I'm sorry, but Lee: Next question! Q: You were going to tell us how to put up a shelf. Lee: There you go again. You asked me that exact same question last week. I told you to put it in a toaster. End of. Next question! Q: But last week, I was asking you the best way to make toast. Lee: Now you're trying to muddle me. You're trying to trick me with words. I'm not having it. Next question! Lee Anderson speaks at the Reform UK Party conference as he joins the party after having the Conservative whip removed Lee Anderson doing media interviews in London following the announcement that he is defecting to Reform UK Rishi Sunak, with Lee Anderson during a visit to Woodland View Primary School in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire Q: If we could return to the shelf question. Lee: Your words, not mine. Q: Do you have many shelves in your own home, Lee? Lee: Yes, but for how much longer, what with Britain under the control of the militant anti-shelf brigade, that's what I want to know? Only last week, I put a vase of flowers good, old-fashioned British daffs, nothing foreign nor fancy up on a shelf. And the moment my back was turned, that shelf collapsed. I'm sorry, but I find that unforgivable. I want my shelf back. Q: You want yourself back? Lee: No: my shelf. I want my shelf back. There you go again, putting words in my mouth. Q: Your mouth? Lee: What about my mouth? You've picked the wrong target, mate. You're putting mouths in my word. And frankly I'm not having it. To thine own shelf be true. That's what my mum always taught me. Q: So we have all the right tools here, shelf, brackets, drill, screws, pencil, hammer and spirit level. Where do we start? Former Conservative deputy chairman Lee Anderson pictured with Leader of Reform UK party Richard Tice Lee Anderson pictured at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester in October 2023 Lee: Don't try and trick me with your fancy questions, mate. You get your shelf and you hammer it in with a couple of nails. That's what we do where I come from. And I make no apologies. Simple as that. Now that may be offensive to the liberal elite who want their shelves all fancy-pants and level and capable of holding things on them and what-not. The rest of us live in the real world. We prefer our shelves where they belong. On the floor. We keep our shelves to our shelves. End of. Someone's got to make a stand. Q: And how do you make a stand? Any tips, Lee? Lee: I always make my stands from plywood. That, and a good dab of putty. Nothing butter. Q: Nothing butter? Lee: That's not what I said. Next question! Q: Lee, you've been Labour. You've been Conservative. And now you're Reform. Lee: I've been on a journey. I'm not going to give a running commentary. Not while I'm a sitting candidate. Q: And what's the best way to prepare for a journey, Lee? Do you get a return ticket? Lee: It's not me that's changed. It's my opinions. The world's gone mad. And that's why I joined the Perform Party. Not the Perfume Party. That's not what I said. How dare you? Q: I said Reform. Lee: Come outside and say that. Nobody tells me to reform and gets away with it. Next question! Lee Anderson speaking during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, in London, on July 19, 2023 Lee Anderson talks to delegates outside the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester Richard Tice: I think what Lee means to say is that everyone should join Reform! He's actually a brilliant speaker. He uses all the right words, only in the wrong order. Q: Before you set off on a journey, what do you pack, Lee? Lee: First, get yourself a case. There's no way you can pack without a case. A case in point. This is the case. Case book. Case sera sera. Case closed! And if the case is closed, you open it. Simple as that. Next question! Q: Any tips about what to pack in your case? Lee: It's been an incredible journey. Every time I set off from A to B, which I do most days, I do an awful lot of soul-searching. I might say to myself do I want to join Plaid Cymru today? And then I say to myself, 'No. And this is neither the time nor the place to start going all Welsh'. So let's leave that particular journey for another day. Maybe tomorrow, if it turns out fine. A contestant from Squid Game: The Challenge has slammed a hospital worker who accused her of lying about her weight because of her 'full and round face.' Hallie Parrott, from Chicago, took to TikTok to explain how she had suffered a 'severe spinal injury' before she was supposed to fly to New York for the show's finale. The TV personality revealed that a nurse had asked for her weight prior to helping her get undressed for her MRI but, when she provided it, the employee was left in apparent disbelief. Hallie shared that the comments had left her feeling insecure - especially in front of photographers at the event. Hallie Parrott, from Chicago, has slammed a hospital worker who accused her of lying about her weight because of her 'full and round face' She took to TikTok to explain how she had suffered a 'severe spinal injury' before she was supposed to fly to New York for the show's finale In the clip, Hallie explained: 'I had a severe spinal injury the day before I was supposed to fly to New York for the Squid Game finale. It was very dramatic... 'I get to the hospital. I'm in the worst pain of my life. I had herniated two discs, but I didn't know that yet, so I needed an MRI.' She continued: 'I can't walk. I'm in a wheelchair. I'm wearing a sweatshirt and sweatpants, and a very sweet, yet, clueless lady is taking my information so that I can go in for the MRI and she asks me my weight. 'I do not own a scale for mental reasons, so I just say my weight and the lady just kind of gives me a look. 'I think that I'm dying still so I don't even give it a second thought.' Halie was then taken to get her MRI before the nurse helped her get undressed. 'This lady very patiently helps me strip down. I'm literally screaming in pain because of muscle relaxants hadn't kicked in yet, but I need to get in for this MRI,' she divulged. 'I'm standing there naked and quivering, scared and in so much pain - and she goes, "oh, you might actually be X weight. I thought you were lying earlier... I thought you'd be way heavier since you have such a full and round face."' Hallie's video was flooded with comments of support, as she wrote: 'Naked and afraid (Hallie's version). Hallie confessed to her followers: 'It honestly hurt me worse than the two herniated discs in my lower spine. 'I'm going to New York tomorrow for this Netflix event. I can't walk and now I have a fat face. 'I don't think she meant anything malicious by it and she was very nice the rest of my visit and I ended up going to the finale on a c**p ton of drugs. 'But it very much affected my entire time in New York.' The TV star said that as a result she felt very self conscious in front of the photographers at the event, thinking: 'I don't belong here. I have a full face.' Hallie admitted that she was hesitant about posting her red carpet picture from the event but explained: 'I'm not posting this for compliments. I know that I'm cute. 'If you're a healthcare worker or literally anyone for that matter, just don't comment on anyone's body.' Hallie shared that the comments had left her feeling insecure - especially in front of photographers at the event The overlaid text in her video said: 'And yes, she could have said worse, okay.' Hallie continued: 'I do have a full face. I have a round face. I have full cheeks. It's how I've always been. 'That was an insane comment. That's the story of how I threw my back out and was insulted.' Hallie's video was flooded with comments of support, as she wrote: 'Naked and afraid (Hallie's version).' Another person added: 'You are literally so pretty.' A third person commented: 'You are so pretty Xx anyways that was such a back-handed compliment.' 'People have no f***ing class or filter,' a fourth person wrote. One person wrote: 'Having no scale is honestly the best thing I've ever done.' Another person commented: 'I'm an nurse practitioner and try to avoid discussing any weight in general unless someone brings it up themselves.' Hallie responded: 'I would ASSUME most don't bring it up. She went on and on about it too.' Korean and U.S. defense officials overseeing technology policies visited Samsung Electronic's semiconductor plant this week, Seoul's defense ministry said Wednesday, amid efforts to bolster information and communication technology (ICT) cooperation. Cheon Seung-hyun, head of the defense ministry's Intelligent Information Policy Bureau, and Leslie A. Beavers, the Pentagon's principal deputy chief information officer, made the visit Monday at the plant in Suwon, 30 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the ministry. At the manufacturing facility, the two sides had an opportunity to observe progress and development in the ICT sector, such as 5G networks, the ministry said, without elaborating. The next day, they held regular talks in Seoul on information and communication technology, and discussed ways to boost cooperation in policies on 5G networks and cybersecurity, it said. It marked the fourth session of its kind after the policy talks first launched in 2021. (Yonhap) A Michelin-starred restaurant that charges $700 per person has faced fierce backlash after a diner claimed that the eatery served female customers 'smaller portions' than males. Sushi Noz, located in New York City, offers guests a seasonal omakase menu curated by Chef Nozomu Abe. The restaurant, which begins with a tasting menu of five to six courses and then progresses through 12-14 courses, has garnered two Michelin stars and a flood of praise from people online. However, the authentic Japanese restaurant has come under fire after diner Luis Carlos Zaragoza took to TikTok to complain in a now-viral video, which has so far amassed over 7.1 million views. A Michelin-starred restaurant that charges $700 per person has faced fierce backlash after a diner claimed that the eatery served female customers 'smaller portions' than males Sushi Noz, located in New York City , offers guests a seasonal omakase menu curated by Chef Nozomu Abe Sushi Noz came unbder fire after diner Luis Carlos Zaragoza took to TikTok to complain in a now-viral video, which has so far amassed over 7.1 million views He captioned the clip: 'Sushi Noz in NYC, unfortunately not worth a special trip anymore!!' 'This is our first negative review in a long time. A meal at this restaurant costs $700 per person with a wine pairing. This is our sixth time dining here, they recently just got an additional Michelin star so now they have two. 'But, believe it or not, our experience here since having two stars was actually the most negative one,' he said at the beginning of the video. In the clip, Luis showcased their dining experience as well as the food, which included red bonito sashimi, panko fried flounder with caviar, and leaves of white truffle. However, while the menu sounded elegant and certainly tasty - the diner and content creator explained that all was not as lavish as it seemed, admitting that he had several grievances to air about his experience at the restaurant, the most sensational of which saw him accusing the eatery of gender discrimination He claimed that his friend - who is a woman - was told by the staff at the venue that she would be receiving smaller portions than those given to men, despite her bill still totaling the same amount at the end of the meal. . 'Our friend - who was the only woman in our group - was told she was getting smaller portions,' he explained. 'We know this is a common practice for some places for omakase, but she didn't ask for it and if the price also hasn't been adjusted to account for the smaller portions, then everyone should receive the same amount.' The restaurant, which begins with a tasting menu of five to six courses and then progresses through 12-14 courses, has garnered two Michelin stars In the clip, Luis showcased their dining experience as well as the food, which included red bonito sashimi, panko fried flounder with caviar, and leaves of white truffle He revealed that his friend - who is a woman - was given portions smaller than those given to men Luis also complained about the wine - adding that the wine pairing seemed a 'bit off' and 'disjointed'. 'The choice to pair the wine with that dish was never clearly conveyed, which for $200, you expect to get a sense of why each one was chosen for that specific dish,' he explained. He also claimed that the chef 'snatched' a piece of nigiri and 'threw it in the trash' in front of them after one of their pals left it sitting for more than a 'few seconds.' Luis noted that they wouldn't be back to the Michelin-starred restaurant. Many people on the web were left furious and took to the comments section of the clip to share their frustrations. One person said: 'Smaller portions for women.' Another user added: 'Sushi Noz - you do not exist in my mind.' Someone else said: 'Smaller portions for women when there is basically no food anyway.' Many people on the web were left furious and took to the comments section of the clip to share their frustrations 'One) Sushi isnt worth $700. Two) Women getting smaller portions is wild. Imagine paying pull price for less food just because of that,' commented another person. 'Giving me smaller portions because Im a woman sends me into a rage,' one user wrote. Another person said: 'Its wild to charge $700 and have horrendous hospitality.' 'This is the review I genuinely needed,' added another user. Someone else added: 'Wow! That place sounds awful!!! Smaller portions for women and same price!? Forget it!!' Speaking to Today, Luis he said that he and his friends had been to the California location and loved it, but that the restaurant in the Big Apple left much to be desired. He told the outlet: 'We had been to Sushi Noz several times and never expected to have the experience we did. Speaking to Today, Luis he said that he and his friends had been to the California location and loved it, but that the restaurant in the Big Apple left much to be desired Luis also complained about the wine - adding that the wine pairing seemed a 'bit off' and 'disjointed' Luis noted that they wouldn't be back to the Michelin-starred restaurant 'Its a nuanced issue because tradition is often viewed as something to be preserved and respected, but we had to draw the line when someone in our group, the only woman, was given less. ' A spokesperson for Sushi Noz told Today: 'The meal begins with five or six otsumami (small plates), which can be quite filling on their own. 'Before the sushi section of the menu begins, the chef will often ask first-time guests if they prefer smaller rice portions, an offer which they are more than welcome to decline. 'This is done out of consideration for the guest, to make sure they are able to enjoy the full progression of the omakase menu without becoming too full. 'In a traditional Japanese restaurant like ours, cultural and language barriers naturally lead to misunderstandings from time to time that being said, this is the first time in six years that weve heard of these actions interpreted this way, which couldnt have been further from the chefs intentions.' DailyMail.com has reached to Sushi Noz for comment. Shannon, 30, from Oldham, was back in the gym four days after giving birth Britain's former strongest woman has revealed how lifting weights throughout her pregnancy has helped her maintain a high level of fitness - despite a barrage of hate. Shannon Smith, 30, from Royton, Oldham, lifted weights during her entire pregnancy, from the day she found out she was expecting, until two days before the due date. The professional weightlifter even competed in competitions during her pregnancy and lifted a remarkable 200 kg two days before her daughter, Nancy, was due. Shannon said: 'It makes no sense for me to stop during pregnancy. This is something I've done for the past 10 or 11 years of my life - it pretty much is my life. I felt safe doing it. 'At 36 weeks pregnant, a lot of people were saying to me, I could barely put my shoes on at this stage, or I could barely walk. Whereas I was just sort of living my normal life.' The 30-year-old was lifting 200 kg weights two days before her due date, but claims she felt safe doing it Britain's former strongest woman, Shannon Smith (pictured), has revealed how lifting weights throughout her pregnancy helped her to maintain a high level of fitness When Shannon found out that she was pregnant, she had no intention of pausing her weightlifting journey and aimed to maintain her fitness by continuing in the gym. Throughout the pregnancy, ever-competitive Shannon continued with her deadlifts and powerlifting and even competed in local competitions - training around five times a week for hours at a time. As she was reaching the end of her pregnancy, Shannon was lifting around 180 kg, but two days before her due date, she said that she felt 'strong' and pushed for a 200 kg deadlift - and succeeded. The weightlifter then posted her achievement on social media, which caused a storm online with millions of views, but she was also met with hate over the post. She said that many people were concerned with the safety aspect of her weightlifting and criticised her for lifting so late in her pregnancy. However, she claimed it was completely safe for her to continue weightlifting during her pregnancy because she had been doing it her whole life. Shannon gave birth to her daughter, Nancy, less than a week after the 200 kg lift and she is perfectly healthy - and has already visited the gym for the very first time. Newborn Nancy was taken to the gym at four days old to get used to the environment because Shannon and her husband Paul are both professional weightlifters. Despite partaking in arduous exercise, Shannon gave birth to her perfectly healthy daughter, Nancy (pictured) The mother-of-one claimed that it made no sense for her to stop lifting heavy weights during pregnancy because she has done it for the past decade At eight months pregnant, Shannon also took part in a powerlifting competition to help increase her strength levels Reflecting on her pregnancy, Shannon said that weightlifting has helped her body cope with the stresses of carrying a baby. Now, Shannon hopes that Nancy will grow up to follow in her footsteps as a weightlifter, and she said that her genetics would be suited to the gym. She said: 'She's going to grow up in the gyms and because my partner and I are both strong, shes going to have good genetics for it. 'I went back to the gym four days after giving birth, but it was light because I've got to get my pelvic floor and my abdominal muscles back to where they were. So, it will take a couple of months to build back up to that strength level. 'I did compete in a powerlifting competition as well at eight months pregnant. So that gave me a bit of a goal to keep pushing my strength, but within a level I was capable of.' Shannon was active after giving birth to her daughter Nancy (pictured) and took her to the gym for the first time when she was four days old The mother-of-one caused a storm online after sharing a clip of her lifting heavy weights while pregnant on social media After sharing her journey online, Shannon received negative comments from users claiming that she might harm the baby Shannon continued: 'I still had some sort of goal and sort of competitiveness with myself and to progress everything but as the months went on, there were certain exercises I just had to keep dropping out gradually and I kept doing the ones that felt the safest for me. 'The heaviest weight lifted while I was pregnant with a deadlift was 200 kilos. I did 155 kilos on a squat and then some overhead pressing around 85 kilos. Most of them were around 90 per cent of my previous bests before I was pregnant. 'I think it has helped with recovery after birth as well, because now, five days postpartum, a lot of people wouldn't really be leaving the house at this stage or doing much, and I'm already back in the gym. 'With deadlifts and squats, it felt comfortable. It just took a bit of time to get used to the change in centre of mass. 'For women who've always lifted it, it's fine to continue, especially if you have an uncomplicated pregnancy. If you have issues with high blood pressure, preeclampsia, or if you've got a placenta that's underneath a baby, that can cause issues. During her pregnancy, Shannon managed to deadlift 200 kg, squat 155 kg, and overhead press approximately 85 kg Shannon hopes that Nancy will also enjoy lifting heavy weights in the gym once she is old enough 'Most women will know when they're pushing things too far and I know when to scale it back a bit. The gym was the safest [place] I felt throughout my entire pregnancy!' On the topic, Doctor Lawrence Cunningham from the UK Care Guide said: 'In my experience, pregnancy does not necessarily stop women from engaging in their regular fitness routines, even at an advanced level like 200 kg weightlifting. 'However, lifting over 200kg just days before a due date is not something usual or advised without very specific considerations. 'The safety will heavily depend on the individual's pre-pregnancy fitness level, their experience with weightlifting, and their health during pregnancy. 'I have seen cases where professional athletes have managed to maintain a high activity level throughout their pregnancy without any adverse effects. The 30-year-old's husband, Paul Smith (pictured left), is also a successful heavy weight lifter and spends lots of the time in the gym Shannon has taken Nancy to the gym to familiarize her with the environment because both of her parents are professional weightlifters 'However, this should not be considered the norm and should not be taken as a blanket endorsement for all pregnant individuals. 'I always recommend that anyone who is pregnant, especially those engaged in high-intensity activities like weightlifting, should have a thorough consultation with their GP. 'This includes continuous monitoring of their health and the health of the foetus, alongside adjustments to their routine as pregnancy progresses.' He concluded: 'It is essential to listen to the body's signals and reduce intensity when necessary. Additionally, maintaining proper form and technique becomes even more crucial to avoid injury.' The Princess of Wales has been 'thrown under a bus' - and her husband was 'ungentlemanly' by putting the 'onus' on her to take blame for the Mother's Day photo blunder - a royal expert has said. The Daily Mail's Diary Editor Richard Eden told Palace Confidential that Kensington officials behaved 'disgracefully' after Kate Middleton shared a statement on social media, apologising 'for any confusion' the picture posted on Sunday caused. 'I'm just so sad and sort of frustrated about the whole thing because I feel so sorry for Catherine,' he told Jo Elvin and Richard Kay. 'Essentially, she's been under so much pressure from people saying "we want a photo, we want to know how she is, tell us how she is", that sort of thing. 'And she finally issues this photograph, it's taken by Prince William - they make that clear when they issue the photograph. The Daily Mail's Diary Editor Richard Eden (pictured) told Palace Confidential that Kensington officials behaved 'disgracefully' 'It's not some personal thing, it's issued by Kensington Palace communications people and then she has been thrown under a bus.' Richard said that Kate was either made to, or agreed, to publish the personally signed statement. 'I think it's disgraceful,' he continued. 'It's very ungentlemanly of Prince William to put the onus on her. For goodness sake, he's the one who took the photograph. 'And the officials made it public. They gave it out, it's their job. I think it's absolutely disgraceful that they've said to her "you go an explain what you did". No, it's your job. 'Take some responsibility.' Richard also slammed the advisors around the Prince and Princess of Wales, saying that they needed 'good and strong' people in their vicinity. 'You don't want pathetic "yes men",' he said. 'Here they would definitely benefit from having stronger officials and it wouldn't surprise me if heads do roll over this, if not now... then eventually.' However Richard Kay later in the show said that it would be unclear what the extent of the internal fallout is at this stage. It comes as - in an astonishing move, the royal admitted on Monday that she 'edited' an image showing her celebrating Mothering Sunday with her children However Richard Kay (right) later in the show said that it would be unclear what the extent of the internal fallout is at this stage 'Heads could roll, heads have rolled for lesser offences I've seen over the years,' he added. 'Poor unfortunate press officers have been given their marching orders, but it does seem a bit unfair to lay it all on the servants if you like.' Richard Eden also expressed that he is not convinced that Kate was behind the photo editing blunder, and admitted the whole situation felt 'weird'. 'I think on this occasion maybe instead of asking her husband they could've invited a photographer in,' he continued. 'I mean, it looks like perhaps someone's come to help do sort of hair and make-up and stuff... so maybe a hairdresser's come in, so one of the very talented photographers could've come in.' It comes as - in an astonishing move, the royal admitted on Monday that she 'edited' an image showing her celebrating Mothering Sunday with her children. The princess said in a rare personal message on X, formerly known as Twitter, that she 'occasionally experimented' as an 'amateur photographer'. She apologised for any 'confusion' the photograph had caused, after six global picture agencies sensationally pulled the image from their wires and libraries an unprecedented reaction to an official royal photograph amid concern that 'the source has manipulated the image'. Kate also posted the apology on the Prince and Princess of Wales' Instagram account after the furore The kill notices by the agencies added fuel to the fire as a litany of conspiracy theories continue to swirl about Kate's health. There were questions over everything from why Princess Charlotte's wrist did not match the sleeve of her cardigan, to Prince Louis' strange fingers. The photograph of Kate and her children, taken by Prince William at the family home in Windsor on Friday, was the first to be issued since her abdominal surgery in January. Although the couple have regularly issued something personal to mark Mother's Day, it was hoped the picture might also quell vicious social media speculation about the nature of the princess's condition. Instead, the royal blunder resulted in another public explosion of conspiracy theories. Publicly taking the blame for the furore, the princess wrote: 'Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. 'I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. The row overshadowed Monday's Coronation Day service at Westminster Abbey, which was being led by Queen Camilla (left) for the first time accompanied by Prince William (right) 'I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother's Day. C.' Kensington Palace said it would not reissue the unedited photograph of Kate and her children, which in itself sparked further debate. Earlier this week, the Palace faced growing pressure over the debacle with claims it has damaged public trust. The row overshadowed Monday's Coronation Day service at Westminster Abbey, which was being led by Queen Camilla for the first time accompanied by Prince William in the King's absence as he undergoes cancer treatment. His Majesty recorded a video message for the first time instead. Kate was, on the day, also seen in the back seat of a car with her husband as he left Windsor to travel to London for two public engagements. It is understood she was en route to a 'private appointment' and she did not accompany William publicly. Royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told MailOnline her 'sudden appearance is not a dignified response' to what has occurred. He said: 'When journalists have been saying they want to "see" Catherine, no one, as I understand it, meant in quite this way. A sudden appearance, which she has just made, is a knee jerk reaction which lacks what royals must have, that is dignity. The Princess of Wales has been 'thrown under a bus' after her husband was 'ungentlemanly' by putting the 'onus' on her to take blame for the Mother's Day photo blunder, Richard Eden said. The couple pictured in November 'This business has also overshadowed Commonwealth Day. There should never have been two and a half months where she seemed to disappear, we should, occasionally, have felt we were in touch whilst it was important she felt she had kept her privacy. 'William and Catherine are under tremendous pressure, which is particularly horrible if one has been seriously ill as she has. However, the mistake of editing the photograph, though extremely embarrassing, is not a major calamity. 'What it shows is that she looks well again and that her children look very happy. However, their current handling of public relations is potentially perilous. 'What the small but growing number of republicans want is to mock the monarchy. 'Whilst Queen Elizabeth lived this was all but impossible. Ill-health and the crises affecting the Sussexes and Yorks have given them a good opportunity. The public relations at the Palaces needs to be responsive and disciplined which it clearly is not. William and Catherine are the worlds most glamorous and high profile royal couple. 'They need dignity to continue to do good for their charities and project soft power like no one else can for Britain. 'They must put this embarrassing episode behind them and appear publicly confident. It will take time and common sense, kept in touch, the people will respond...' This is the amazing moment a dog was rescued after being abandoned with dozens of porcupine quills stuck to his face. Brady Oliveira, 26, a dog rescuer from Winnipeg in Canada, was left heartbroken after receiving a call about Trooper - so he decided to make the journey to save the pooch. He found the black labrador, thought to be around two or three years old, in a 'ton of pain' on the front steps of a house - with multiple punctures from the sharp quills. Brady, a professional athlete with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, often rescues animals in need, posting their journey to his 200k followers on his Instagram account @brady.oliveira. Brady said: 'The dog had a face full of quills & was in a ton of pain. Brady Oliveira from Canada rescued black labrador Trooper (pictured), who had dozens of porcupine quills lodged in his face Trooper, aged around two, has been given a fresh start in life and has been adopted - although he still has scars from the quill punctures 'I drove out to the community and when I saw him, I was in total heartbreak! 'He was quite scared and timid but I let him take all the time he needed until he started to trust me. His sad eyes were telling me that he was in a ton of pain and discomfort.' Brady and his friend found Trooper on the front steps of a house in a lot of pain and petrified by the quills lodged in his face after an unfortunate run-in with a porcupine. Brady had to sit with the terrified pooch for a while so he could calm down, before putting him in the car and taking him to the vets. There, they were able to remove all of the quills from Trooper's face and, despite him being a little bit scarred and swollen, he made a swift recovery. Brady, who owns three dogs himself, even came back to visit Trooper at the adoption centre to try and help him find a new home and a few weeks later, the delighted pup managed to find a new family. Brady has now revealed the happy news that Trooper is to be given a fresh start and has found a new family after being put up for adoption with the Winnipeg Humane Society, which described him as an 'absolute joy'. He said: 'I needed to sit with him for a bit until he could trust me and then could slip a leash on him and load up in my truck. Brady was left heartbroken after hearing about Trooper and rushed to rescue him (pictured together) Brady put Trooper in his car and took him to the vet, where they extracted the spines The athlete found Trooper on the front steps of a house, petrified and in agony Brady had to sit with Trooper for a while until he was calm enough to be put on the lead 'I rushed him straight to the emergency vet where he had the quills surgically removed. 'The next day he was picked up and brought to the Winnipeg Humane Society. I tried my absolute hardest to get Trooper adopted. 'I took him to his first adoption event and a couple of weeks later, he got adopted!' Brady's Instagram followers were left moved by the touching story and Trooper's adorable attitude. One commented: 'What a sweet boy! Thank you for all you guys do!! Another said: 'Im so in love with Trooper and would adopt him in a heartbeat if I didnt already have 3ugh.' Brady already has three dogs of his own so Trooper was put up for adoption with The Winnipeg Humane Society (Brady and Trooper pictured together) The labrador was described as an 'absolute joy' by the adoption centre and is set for a fresh start in life Porcupines are large rodents covered with sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predators. It is not uncommon for their quills to become lodged in dogs or other pets. It is advised that porcupine quills should be removed by a vet with the animal under sedation or anesthesia in order for safe extraction. Many porcupines live in areas in North America and their quills are so sharp they can puncture the skin and move through muscle. The quills also carry bacteria with them, meaning they can serve as a source of infection, so they need to be removed as soon as possible. The porcupine can have more than 30,000 quills on their bodies - and in some cases, they can even prove fatal. In December 2022, a dog owner was left with a $19,500 vet bill after their pitbull died from a porcupine quill attack. Old favourites are making a comeback, as others are disappearing to make room McDonald's UK has just launched it's Easter menu, with three new goodies McDonald's UK fans are in for a treat, because the brand new Easter menu lands today - featuring three brand new limited edition goodies. Arriving in stores from 11am, the delicious items are here for a limited time only, so fans will have to be quick to make the most of them. The humble McDonalds pie has been reinvented again - this time combining spicy and sweet flavours for a mouth-watering Easter-themed dessert. The Hot Cross Bun Pie, which costs 1.99, is made up of a crispy cinnamon pastry, filled with a spiced fruit mix and butter-flavour cream filling. It's replacing the limited edition Raspberry and White Chocolate Pie that was introduced for Valentine's Day. McDonald's UK fans are in for a treat, as the brand new Easter menu lands today (March 13) - featuring three brand new limited edition goodies The second new item arriving for spring, continues with the the spiced fruit and butter flavours theme. Celebrating the nation's love of a hot cross bun, the brand new Hot Cross Bun Latte will be making an appearance on the drinks menu, priced at 2.69. The limited-edition treat is a smooth latte blended with a sweet and spiced Hot Cross Bun flavour syrup, topped with cinnamon cream and a Hot Cross Bun flavour dusting. Finally, it wouldn't be a McDonald's menu without a new McFlurry flavour to try. Replacing the Valentine's Day menu KitKat Ruby Chocolate McFlurry, will be the Galaxy Truffle Bunny McFlurry, costing 2.19. It's comprised of dairy ice cream swirled with pieces of Galaxy Truffle, Galaxy bunny ears and white and dark chocolate drops, topped with Galaxy Chocolate sauce. As well as the new Easter additions, some old favourites will also be returning to the fast-food chain's UK restaurants. If you're not a Galaxy fan, the Cadbury Creme Egg McFlurry (2.19) is a dessert option among the spring offerings. The Hot Cross Bun Pie, which costs 1.99, is made up of a crispy cinnamon pastry, filled with a spiced fruit mix and butter-flavour cream filling The Hot Cross Bun Latte (LEFT) will cost 2.69, meanwhile the Galazy Truffle Bunny McFlurry will set foodies back 2.19 Fan favourites, the McCrispy Deluxe and Halloumi Fries will also be available again from today. The 100% chicken breast fillet burger will be doused in hot and spicy mayo, alongside a sprinkle of caramelized onion compote and red onions. Topped with seasonal lettuce, bacon and a slice of cheddar cheese, the delectable burger will come with a price tag of 5.89. If you would like to purchase the crispy chicken burger with a medium drink and fries, it will set you back 7.79. Meanwhile, coated in a light batter and dished up with a rich tomato dip, the Halloumi Fries are available for 2.79. Cheese lovers wanting to nab a whole box of twelve for themselves have to cough up 7.39. However, to make room for the Easter menu, some other much-loved items are having to disappear. Britons will be saying goodbye to the Big Tasy, Big Tasty with Bacon, Mozzarella Dippers with a Salsa dip and Mozzarella Dipper Sharebox with a Salsa dip. If you're not a Galaxy fan, the Cadbury Creme Egg McFlurry (2.19) is a returning dessert option among the spring offerings Fan favourites, the McCrispy Deluxe (RIGHT) and Halloumi Fries (LEFT) will also be available again from today Featuring a 100% beef patty, cheese made with Emmental, lettuce, onions, tomatoes and a unique smoky flavoured sauce all nested in a toasted bun, the Big Tasty is a fan favourite that will be missed. The menu change comes just after McDonald's UK and Ireland has announced it will be undergoing its most significant menu change in decades, as the chain celebrates its 50th anniversary. In the huge shake-up, the restaurant will be making recipe changes to its beloved beef burgers, promising they will be 'better than ever before'. Fan favourites that will see changes include the Big Mac, Quarter Pounder with Cheese, and of course the classic Cheeseburger variations including the double and triple. McDonald's describes the tweaks as 'small modifications' to the way it cooks and prepares its beef burgers, enhancing 'all the elements customers enjoy most'. From placing onions on top of each patty while they are cooking on the grill for extra flavour, to changing the sear of the beef patties the chain insists the recipe change will create its 'most delicious burgers yet'. The Spanish royal and her husband met with representatives from CERMI Queen Letizia of Spain opted for a modern and chic look as she joined her husband King Felipe to welcome disability champions to Madrid's Zarzuela Palace on Wednesday. The monarch, 51, looked sophisticated as she received a delegation of the Spanish Committee of Representatives of Persons with Disabilities (CERMI). The royal couple were captured speaking to the representatives and shaking their hands, before posing for an official group photograph. Letizia put on a very elegant display in a black long-sleeve fine knit sweater, which she complemented with a pair of tailored green Hugo Boss trousers. The mother-of-two looked fresh and on-trend, as she showed off her recent haircut and swapped her usual heels for a comfortable pair of loafers, also from Hugo Boss. Queen Letizia of Spain looked chic on Wednesday as she welcomed disability champions to the Zarzuela Palace in Madrid Letizia and her husband King Felipe met with representatives from CERMI (the Spanish Committee of Representatives of People with Disabilities) The high-waisted trousers were embellished with green panelled pockets and flattered her frame, while an added black belt also emphasised her stunning figure. The Spanish queen kept her look very simple and pared back with no obvious jewellery in sight, but opted for radiant and glowing make-up. Meanwhile her husband King Felipe VI, 56, appeared in good spirits, joining Letizia to greet the disability champions. He too opted for a formal look, pairing his grey pinstriped suit with a peach-coloured tie. CERMI is the platform for representation, defence and action of Spanish citizens with disabilities, and represents more than 3.8 million people and their families. It aims to advance the recognition of their rights to achieve equal rights and opportunities in society. The visit to the Zarzuela Palace follows the recent reform of article 49 of the Spanish constitution dedicated to those with disabilities. It comes after Letizia attended a remembrance service for victims of terrorism with King Felipe last week. Letizia put on a very elegant display in a black long-sleeve fine knit sweater, which she complemented with a pair of tailored green Hugo Boss trousers The mother-of-two looked fresh and on-trend, as she showed off her recent haircut and swapped her usual heels for a comfortable pair of loafers from Hugo Boss King Felipe VI, 56, appeared in good spirits, joining Letizia to greet the disability champions CERMI is the platform for representation, defence and action of Spanish citizens with disabilities, and represents more than 3.8 million people and their families The royal couple were captured speaking to the representatives and shaking their hands Felipe also opted for a formal look, pairing his grey pinstriped suit with a peach-coloured tie The high-waisted trousers were embellished with green panelled pockets and flattered her frame, while an added black belt also emphasised her stunning figure The Spanish queen kept her look very simple and pared back with no obvious jewellery in sight, but opted for radiant and glowing make-up King Felipe and Queen Letizia pose in the audience with a delegation of the Spanish Committee of Representatives of Persons with Disabilities (CERMI The royal looked sophisticated in a navy long sleeved gown during a commemorative event paying tribute to the nearly 200 victims of the 2004 train attack in Madrid. She paired her chic ensemble with matching kitten heels and a leather clutch bag as she arrived at the Royal Collection Gallery. Spain is the 20th anniversary of the attack, in which almost 200 people died, claimed by 'al-Qaeda in Europe' as punishment for Spain's involvement in the war in Iraq. During the morning rush hour of March 11, 2004, ten bombs exploded nearly simultaneously on Madrid's commuter trains, killing 192 people and injuring almost 2,000. Queen Camilla showcased her fashion prowess as she led royals attending the Cheltenham Festival's 'Style Wednesday' today. The King's wife, 76, looked effortlessly elegant in a green Anna Valentine coat teamed with a vibrant floral scarf and a fake fur-trimmed hat from Lock & Co as she stepped out to enjoy a day at the races at the Gloucestershire racecourse. She was joined for the prestigious Day Two of the four-day festival, previously referred to as Ladies Day, by her son Tom Parker-Bowles, Zara and Mike Tindall, Princess Anne and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank. Shortly after their arrival, Zara, 42, and her former rugby international ace husband Mike, 45, exchanged a quick kiss on the lips before the King's niece walked off with her cousin Eugenie, 33. The Queen, who is a keen horse racing fan, joined other close relatives, including daughter Laura Lopes and her husband Harry, alongside Camilla's nephew Sir Ben Elliot, at the biggest week in the jump racing calendar. Queen Camilla has showcased her fashion prowess when attending the Cheltenham Festival 's 'Style Wednesday' today Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie appeared in high spirits as they arrived at Cheltenham Racecourse today Mike and Zara Tindall pictured exchanging a quick kiss as they arrived at the Cheltenham races today The Princess Royal joining other royals at Day Two of the Cheltenham Festival Known to love a flutter on the horses, the Queen took her place in the royal box after arriving at the Cheltenham racecourse and walking past racegoers who stopped to watch her pass. The Queen - who is a regular at the occasion and an honorary member of the Jockey Club which runs the major sporting event - made an appearance without King Charles, 75, since he is still having treatment for cancer. Also among the guests in the royal box were Eugenie and husband Jack, and Camilla's friend and official Queen's Companion, Lady Sarah Keswick. For the outing, Camilla wore an Anna Valentine ensemble - brown suede skirt, matching leopard print shirt and a dark green cashmere coat, with a wide brimmed Lock & Co hat. Adding a touch of glitz to her ensemble, the Queen finished off her sophisticated look with a pair of gold and diamond earrings, as well as a shimmering brooch. Declan Landy, Rachael Blackmore the rider of Captain Guinness, Queen Camilla and trainer Henry De Bromhead celebrate after Blackmore won the Betway Queen Mother Champion Chase Queen Camilla beamed as she stood with jockey Rachel Blackmore following her win Queen Camilla and Rachael Blackmore share a laugh following her win Rachael Blackmore and trainer Harry De Bromhead celebrate after her win The Princess Royal and Andrew Parker Bowles, her former flame and Queen Camilla's ex-husband, looked engrossed Anne zooms in: The Princess Royal used her binoculars to focus on the race as she watched from the balcony The Queen and Eugenie were also joined by Camilla's son from her first marriage, Tom Parker Bowles Tom, who is a food writer and a regular on cooking shows such as BBC MasterChef, looked very animated as he watched the race - while his mother appeared amused by his display The tension builds! Queen Camilla and Tom Parker Bowles appeared poised as they watched the race Camilla's tips: The Queen looked deep in concentration as she joined Princess Eugenie and a friend on the balcony Princess Eugenie looked chic in her cream coat with a tie belt and fedora har as she watched the race Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank, a wine merchant, watch the action from the balcony The King's wife, 76, looked effortlessly elegant in a green coat teamed with a vibrant floral scarf and a fake fur-trimmed hat as she stepped out to enjoy a day at the races at the Gloucestershire racecourse Adding a touch of glitz to her ensemble, she finished off her sophisticated look with a pair of gold and diamond earrings, as well as a shimmering brooch Equestrian Zara, 42, opted for an elegant blue pinstripe double-breasted suit jacket with matching straight-leg trousers Princess Eugenie looked chic and sophisticated in a white wraparound coat, which she wore over an oatmeal midi dress Equestrian Zara, who is known for her love of all things racing, looked animated as she strolled through the racecourse Camilla (pictured) was joined for the prestigious Day Two of the four-day festival by her son Tom Parker-Bowles, Zara and Mike Tindall and Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank Queen Camilla looked delighted to be attending the second day of the four-day festival Princess Anne, 73, joined Andrew Parker Bowles, whom she briefly dated in the 1970s, at the races The Princess Royal and Andrew Parker Bowles, who is the ex-husband of Queen Camilla, chatted to trainer Willie Mullins Equestrian Zara, 42, opted for an elegant blue pinstripe double-breasted suit jacket with matching straight-leg trousers. The mother-of-three wore a silk burnt orange high necked blouse, leather gloves and a burgundy croc-effect handbag. She completed her ensemble with minimal gold jewellery and a chic burgundy suede fascinator.Zara's mother Princess Anne, 73, another racing enthusiast, was also present at the racecourse, and donned a tweed, button-up coat paired with a camel hat and a nude scarf to protect from the chill.Mike Tindall's dapper navy suit perfectly complemented his wife's ensemble as he opted for a pop of colour with a burgundy tie. Shortly after they arrived Mike and Zara, who aren't afraid of a little PDA, shared a quick kiss before Zara headed off with Eugenie. Mother-of-two Eugenie looked chic and sophisticated in a white wraparound coat, which she wore over an oatmeal midi dress. The 33-year-old was pictured in a sleek white fedora and holding a structured handbag with gold hardware that perfectly matched the tone of her dress. The royal finished off her look with some tan suede boots and minimal gold hoops. As she arrived at the racecourse, Eugenie posed for pictures with her husband Jack Brooksbank - who was dressed in a light grey suit and green tie. Pictured: cousins Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie appeared in high spirits as they arrived at Cheltenham Pictured: the two cousins cuddled up as they walked into the races in Cheltenham this afternoon As she arrived at the racecourse, Eugenie posed for pictures with her husband Jack Brooksbank - who was dressed in a light grey suit and green tie Mike Tindall looked dapper in a navy suit, grey cap and burgundy tie which perfectly matched his wife's fascinator Princess Anne 's daughter completed her ensemble with minimal gold jewellery and a chic burgundy suede fascinator The Queen looked chic as she watched the action on the racecourse The Queen, 76, appeared to be deep in conversation with her peers as they watched the action The second day of the race meet, which has long been fondly referred to as Ladies Day, is now banded as Style Wednesday, with a fashion competition for both men and women. Pictured, Queen Camilla Hold on to your hat! Camilla battled the windy weather when stepping out at the event The Queen finished off her look with a smattering of glamorous makeup added to her features The Queen opted for smart black boots, a matching handbag and gloves for today's occasion Mark Dyer was also present on Style Wednesday and sported a three-piece suit Parts of Mr Dyer's suit looked a little threadbare as could be seen from the zipper on the trousers Also present at Style Wednesday were Queen Camilla's ex-husband Andrew Parker Bowles and their children Tom and Laura Lopes, plus Camilla's nephew Ben Elliott. Mark Dyer, who is a close friend of Prince Harry and has previously been dubbed the Duke's 'second dad' due to their close relationship, was also in attendance. The right royal day out at Cheltenham racecourse comes after a busy day of engagements on Monday to mark Commonwealth Day. Members of the royal family, led by Camilla and William, descended upon Westminster Abbey to take part in the annual service, before the Queen continued the festivities at Marlborough House in Pall Mall in the evening. Charlotte Hawkins, Jade Holland Cooper, Aston Villa and England footballer Tyrone Mings and magician and gameshow presenter Stephen Mulhern were among the other famous famous at today's event. The second day of the race meet, which has long been fondly referred to as Ladies Day, has now been branded as Style Wednesday by festival organisers, and includes a fashion competition for both men and women. Open to both men and women, the competition 'celebrates vintage and borrowed items, as well as investment pieces'. A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said: 'This year we re-launched day two of The Festival as Style Wednesday to celebrate "fast horses, slow fashion", encouraging racegoers to make more sustainable fashion choices, showcasing their unique and personal style, and to share the stories behind their amazing outfits with friends, family and on social media. 'This includes re-wearing outfits they already have in their wardrobes, purchasing timeless garments to wear again and again and also buying from retailers specialising in pre-loved clothing.' Commenting on the change, The Daily Mail's Nadine Dorries said in her latest column: 'I looked at the programme and saw, with no fanfare or warning, that Ladies Day at Cheltenham appears to have been downgraded to Style Wednesday. 'Im assuming this is some sort of woke nod from the Jockey Club to the powerful trans lobby. 'If thats the case, the Jockey Club might like to consider who exactly will be attending - and who it is they are now offending.' The second day of the four-day festival hasn't officially been labelled Ladies Day since 2018; last year it was billed as Festival Wednesday. But fans on X were equally disappointed with the move to rebrand the second day as 'Style Wednesday', with one person writing: 'Who on earth gets paid to come up with this nonsense? Oh for the days when racing was felt worthy enough on its own.' Another said: 'Style Wednesday? Jesus wept. Its Ladies Day,' while a third added: 'Game is in the gutter.' A fourth insisted: 'Style Wednesday, how absolutely embarrassing', as a fifth individual wrote: 'Styles Wednesday, is this a joke?' 'End of an era as Ladies Day at Cheltenham Festival is no more. We now have Style Day on a Wednesday. I assume that is to be more inclusive,' one person wrote, while another simply said: 'Box-ticking.' The Jockey Club's website describes today's Slow Fashion Awards as an event that will 'celebrate vintage and borrowed items, as well as investment pieces that can be passed down through generations. 'We encourage all racegoers to showcase their unique and personal style, and to share the stories behind their amazing outfits with friends, family, and on social media. 'The awards are open to both men and women, and we can't wait to see the incredible fashion on display!' Charlotte and Nicolas appeared cheerful as they enjoyed a day out in Paris Grace Kelly's granddaughter Charlotte Casiraghi has moved on with a French writer, two months after allegedly splitting from her husband. Charlotte, 37, the niece of Prince Albert and eleventh in line to the Monegasque throne, was spotted enjoying a day out with novelist Nicolas Mathieu, 45, a father-of-one - a winner of France's prestigious Goncourt Prize. Dressed in casual attire, the pair strolled the streets of Paris with baguettes in hand before sitting on the terrace of a local cafe for coffee. The pictures, released exclusively by Paris Match, come two months after Charlotte reportedly split from her French film producer husband Dimitri Rassam after four years of marriage, according to Voici. Following the marriage breakdown, Charlotte has reportedly formed a close bond with author Nicolas, 45, The pair 'never leave each other. Nor do they hide to be happy,' according to the Paris Match. Charlotte Casiraghi has been spotted enjoying a day out with her rumoured boyfriend. Seen in January 2024 Acclaimed author Nicolas Mathieu was spotted enjoying Charlotte's company in Paris. Seen in October 2019 The pair were all smiles as they walked the streets of Paris. Charlotte looked chic in a pair of blue jeans with her brunette tresses styled in a messy bun. Meanwhile, the award-winning author also opted for a relaxed pair of jeans and wrapped up in a warm coat and scarf. Unlike Charlotte, Nicolas comes from humble beginnings, and was born in the northeastern French commune of Epinal, according to Hachette. '[Nicolas] at first glance did not have the profile to seduce a member of the Monegasque court,' wrote Paris Match via Madame Figaro. The piece continued: 'And yet, the magic worked between them.' Nicolas left Epinal to study history and cinema before moving to Paris, where he worked in various creative roles, from a scriptwriter to a news editor and private tutor. The 45-year-old has since relocated to Nancy and established himself as a successful author. His first novel, Of Fangs And Talons, was adapted into a six-part television series in France. Nicolas addressed his roots in a interview with Residents: 'In my reading, my yearning to write, and my academic career, I had always been eager to distance myself from my origin story in lower-middle-class provincial France.' However, he 'realized that my work should also reflect the people I had grown up with' He added: I wanted to write about the places I knew, the bodies I was familiar with, and the lifestyles that had once been my own, all of which were underrepresented in contemporary literature.' The 45-year-old's latest novel, Connemara, is based upon two 40-year-olds attempting to recapture their youth in a love affair Originally published in 2022, Nicolas' fourth novel, Connemara, follows the story of two 40-year-olds trying to recapture their youths in a love affair. His love of literature is a trait shared with Charlotte, and she declared her love of reading in a 2021 interview with Chanel where she outlined her top reads. Paris Match claimed that the pair often meet in Paris, before returning to their respective children. While Charlotte is mother to Raphael, 11, and Balthazar, five, Nicolas is father to Oscar, 11. It comes after Charlotte Casiraghi split from her husband Dimitri Rassam after four years of marriage, according to French media reports. Charlotte wed French film producer Demitri, 42, at the Prince's Palace of Monaco on June 1, 2019. But the couple separated at the end of January, according to French magazine Voici, who printed a story with the headline 'It's Over'. Charlotte requested they part ways in December as the couple 'had been going through a crisis for some time', the publication claimed. MailOnline contacted the Prince's Palace of Monaco who declined to comment. Demitri, who is the son of actress Carole Bouquet and Franco-Lebanese film producer Jean-Pierre Rassam, is a film producer who has worked on The Little Prince and Three Musketeers: D'Artagnan. He frequently travels for work and has recently spent time in Paris and Los Angeles. However, Charlotte, the daughter of Princess Caroline and her late husband Stefano Casiraghi, is said to have criticised her husband's demanding schedule, claiming he did not spend enough time with his family. In December 2023, Charlotte stepped out solo to attend the Chanel Metiers D'Art Show in Manchester. One month earlier, she celebrated Monaco National Day with her children, uncle Albert and aunt Princess Charlene - with Demitri seemingly absent. Charlotte and Demitri were last seen attending the 60th AMADE Anniversary Dinner at Monte Carlo Opera Garnier in October in Monaco, where they posed with solemn expressions on the red carpet. Prior to this outing, the duo appeared in high spirits as they enjoyed the traditional Monaco picnic in September, with their two sons. Nicolas won the prestigious Goncourt Prize for his novel Leurs enfants apres eux. Seen holding the book in 2018 The couple also attended a host of events at Cannes Film Festival last May, including a glamorous premiere of Killers of the Flower Moon. Demitri popped the question during a ski trip in March 2018 and Charlotte subsequently attended Monaco's Rose Ball wearing a diamond ring. The duo decided to postpone their wedding until after the birth of their son, Balthazar, who is now five. Balthazar is Charlotte's second child - she also shares Raphael, 11, with Moroccan-Canadian comedian Gad Elmaleh, who she dated between 2011 and 2015. Demitri was previously married to Russian model Masha Novoselova. Charlotte and Demitri tied the knot in a civil ceremony at the Prince's Palace of Monaco on June 1, 2019, followed by a reception at Villa La Vigie, an exclusive property with views across the Mediterranean, in Roquebrune. Dimitri and Charlotte attend the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 28, 2023 Grace Kelly's granddaughter Charlotte Casiraghi of Monaco stunned in an off-the-shoulder gown at a second wedding ceremony in France Charlotte and Dimitri attend the Vanity Fair party celebrating the 72nd Annual Cannes Film Festival at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on May 18, 2019 in Cap d'Antibes, France Dimitri and Charlotte arrive at the Rose Ball 2018 at Sporting Monte-Carlo on March 24, 2018 They later enjoyed a religious ceremony at the Abbey of Sainte-Marie de Pierredon, outside Saint-Remy-de-Provence, on June 29, 2019. The bride stunned in a custom ivory Giambattista Valli gown, featuring sheer lace sleeves and flouncy chiffon ruffles, while the groom chose an off-white suit. Dimitri's model mother, Carole Bouquet, his half-brother, Louis Giacobetti, and his Oscar-winning producer cousin, Thomas Langmann, are all thought to have supported the groom. The bride's five-year-old son Raphael, from a her previous relationship with comedian Gad Elmaleh, and Dimitri's seven-year-old daughter, Darya, from his previous marriage, were also present. Charlotte, who is a keen equestrian and model, is the second child of Caroline, Princess of Hanover, and Stefano Casiraghi. Her maternal grandparents were Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and American actress Grace Kelly. She has two brothers, Andrea, 39, and Pierre, 36, as well as a half-sister, Princess Alexandra of Hanover, 24. Members of the royal family including Zara Tindall, Princess Eugenie and Queen Camilla looked suitably glamorous as they arrived at Cheltenham festival's 'Style Wednesday' this afternoon. The royal cousins led the way as thousands descended on the racecourse for the newly-named second day of the festival, which has previously been known as 'Ladies Day'. Equally stylish in appearance, and certainly fitting the brief, were Zara and Eugenie's husbands Mike Tindall and Jack Brooksbank. Meanwhile Queen Camilla, 76, made an appearance on Style Wednesday without King Charles, 74, who is still having cancer treatment. As she arrived at the racecourse this afternoon, Camilla shone amid gloomy weather in a jade green structured coat and a wide-brimmed fur hat. Equestrian Zara, 42, opted for an elegant blue pinstripe double-breasted suit jacket with matching straight-leg trousers. The mother-of-three wore a silk burnt orange high necked blouse, leather gloves and a burgundy croc-effect handbag. She completed her ensemble with minimal gold jewellery and a chic burgundy suede fascinator. Zara's mother Princess Anne, 73, another racing enthusiast, was also present at the racecourse, and donned a tweed, button-up coat paired with a camel hat and a nude scarf to protect from the chill. Pictured: Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie appeared in high spirits as they arrived at Cheltenham Racecourse today Mike Tindall's dapper navy suit perfectly complemented his wife's ensemble as he opted for a pop of colour with a burgundy tie. Shortly after their arrival, Zara and Mike, who aren't afraid of a little PDA, exchanged a quick kiss on the lips before the royal walked off with her cousin Eugenie. Mother-of-two Eugenie looked chic and sophisticated in a white wraparound coat, which she wore over an oatmeal midi dress. The 33-year-old was pictured in a sleek white fedora and holding a structured handbag with gold hardware that perfectly matched the tone of her dress. The royal finished off her look with some tan suede boots and minimal gold hoops. As she arrived at the racecourse, Eugenie posed for pictures with her husband Jack Brooksbank - who was dressed in a light grey suit and green tie. The right royal day out at Cheltenham racecourse comes after a busy day of engagements on Monday to mark Commonwealth Day. Members of the royal family, led by Camilla and William, descended upon Westminster Abbey to take part in the annual service, before the Queen continued the festivities at Marlborough House in Pall Mall in the evening. Earlier this month, the two royal couples jetted off to Bahrain to watch the Grand Prix with Eugenie's mother Sarah Ferguson. Following Max Verstappen's win, the royals took to the tarmac to speak to members of the Red Bull team and pose next to the winning car. Queen Camilla was the picture of elegance as she arrived at the racecourse in a jade green coat with a wide-brimmed hat Princess Anne, another racing enthusiast, opted for a tweed coat with a camel hat and a scarf to protect from the chill Mike and Zara Tindall pictured exchanging a quick kiss as they arrived at the Cheltenham races today Equestrian Zara, 42, opted for an elegant blue pinstripe double-breasted suit jacket with matching straight-leg trousers Princess Eugenie looked chic and sophisticated in a white wraparound coat, which she wore over an oatmeal midi dress The Princess Royal, 73, beamed as she arrived at the racecourse, ready to watch the action on the second day of the festival Equestrian Zara, who is known for her love of all things racing, looked animated as she strolled through the racecourse Also present on Style Wednesday is Queen Camilla, who opted for a jade green, double-breasted coat paired with a wide-brimmed hat Camilla's structured coat featured a tie belt at the waist and a colourful green patterned scarf, plus black knee-high suede boots The Queen beamed despite gloomy weather as she arrived at the racecourse this afternoon for Style Wednesday Hold onto your hat, Camilla! The Queen appeared to be caught in a sharp gust of wind as she exited the car upon arrival Camilla, who is also known to enjoy horse racing and often attends the Cheltenham festival, upped the style stakes in her elegant outfit Pictured: cousins Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie appeared in high spirits as they arrived at Cheltenham Pictured: the two cousins cuddled up as they walked into the races in Cheltenham this afternoon As she arrived at the racecourse, Eugenie posed for pictures with her husband Jack Brooksbank - who was dressed in a light grey suit and green tie Mike Tindall looked dapper in a navy suit, grey cap and burgundy tie which perfectly matched his wife's fascinator Princess Anne 's daughter completed her ensemble with minimal gold jewellery and a chic burgundy suede fascinator This year, Cheltenham festival has rebranded its 'Ladies Day' to 'Style Wednesday'. Day two of the prestigious four-day event is known for attracting a host of royals and celebrities alike as they show off their sartorial prowess while enjoying a day out at the races in Gloucestershire. A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said: 'This year we re-launched day two of The Festival as Style Wednesday to celebrate "fast horses, slow fashion", encouraging racegoers to make more sustainable fashion choices, showcasing their unique and personal style, and to share the stories behind their amazing outfits with friends, family and on social media. 'This includes re-wearing outfits they already have in their wardrobes, purchasing timeless garments to wear again and again and also buying from retailers specialising in pre-loved clothing.' Commenting on the change, The Daily Mail's Nadine Dorries said in her latest column: 'I looked at the programme and saw, with no fanfare or warning, that Ladies Day at Cheltenham appears to have been downgraded to Style Wednesday. 'Im assuming this is some sort of woke nod from the Jockey Club to the powerful trans lobby. If thats the case, the Jockey Club might like to consider who exactly will be attending - and who it is they are now offending.' In December 2023, Zara - who won a silver medal in the 2012 London Olympics - revealed that she is 'very part-time' with her horse-riding career. Speaking to The Australian Womens Weekly magazine, she explained: 'Ive only got four horses so hopefully I have enough time to care for my children and still compete. I hope I make better decisions. I definitely dont go to everything now. He said that his lack of interest in having sex started at puberty A real life 40-year-old virgin has candidly opened up about the real reasons he has never had sex in a candid Q&A forum online. The anonymous man, who is based in the US, took to Reddit to dish about his lack of interest in sex and why he 'doesn't care' if he is ever intimate. In a thread titled, 'Ask Me Anything,' the 'semi-retired' entrepreneur explained that from a young age, he never was interested in relationships because they had 'limited return', so he never lost his virginity. He revealed that he never had any inclination to pursue things further with women, adding that the majority of his 'relationships' never made it past the 'first or second date.' A real life 40-year-old virgin has lifted lid on the details of his life and revealed why he hasn't had sex in four decades (stock image) He wrote: 'I'm the real 40 year old virgin, ask me anything. I turned 40 two weeks ago, ask away.' The unnamed entrepreneur compared his life to that of character Andy Stitzer from the hit 2005 film The 40-Year-Old Virgin. The movie follows Andy, who spends his free time playing video games, as his pals try to push Andy towards losing his virginity. Following the entrepreneur's post, people flooded the comments section and asked him a slew of questions. One person asked if he had any similarities to the film character. He responded: 'I really like the movie, plenty of scenes make me crack up. I am absolutely a nerd, I've been retired for several years now so I've jumped into many hobbies. 'My most Andy-like one would probably be Legos, kind of became obsessed for about a year and a half and have since dispersed the collection to my nieces and nephews. It's nice being the cool uncle.' Someone else took to the comments section to claim that the 40-year-old's lack of desire to have sex was 'interesting.' The anonymous man, who is based in the US, took to Reddit to dish about his lack of interest in sex and why he 'doesn't care' if he is ever intimate The unnamed entrepreneur compared his life to that of character Andy Stitzer from the hit 2005 film The 40-Year-Old Virgin The unnamed entrepreneur noted that he began feeling repulsed by sex when he hit puberty. He said: 'Probably puberty, my friends would talk about girls and I always thought of it from a probability stand point. 'Chances are you aren't going to marry this middle school girl, so why the relationship? Why the dedication to something with such a limited return. 'This mentality went to about college, when I started dating, tried it and didn't really want a partnership with any of the girls so never pushed it further. It's just a switch, I like them then suddenly I don't.' He noted that he has never had any issues with women and is enjoying solo life as he is spending time traveling. The man noted that his disinterest often begins during the first date. 'But during the date things are going well, flirtation, back and forth, all the green flags, then boom, nothing,' he said. Following the entrepreneur's post, people flooded the comments section and asked him a slew of questions He added that he 'enjoys his own company' and doesn't want anything more. Some users even questioned if he was 'asexual.' He responded: 'Maybe after everyone asking me. I have found many people to be very attractive and have dated quite a few, but it rarely leads to long term interest, so the relationship quickly breaks down.' And while he is 'open' to having sex, he explained that he isn't exactly counting down the days to lose his virginity. 'I'm open to it, but I have as much interest in it as learning how to ride a unicycle,' he added. Other users tried to convince the man to get on dating apps so he could meet a nice woman, however, he declined. Vote showdown looms large at shareholders' meeting on Friday By Park Jae-hyuk Public pension funds in Norway, Canada and the U.S. state of California rejected Samsung C&Ts request that its shareholders oppose City of London Investment, Whitebox Advisors and other hedge funds, which asked the Korean firm to repurchase treasury shares and increase dividends, their disclosures showed Wednesday. In an early vote before Samsung C&Ts annual general meeting of shareholders on Friday, Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) supported a shareholder proposal for a 4,500 won ($3.4) dividend per common share and a 4,550 won dividend per preferred share, instead of the boards plan to pay 2,550 won per common share and 2,600 won per preferred share. The worlds largest sovereign wealth fund, which manages the Norwegian government pension fund, is presumed to hold around 0.8 percent stake in the Korean construction, trading and resort firm, which is considered Samsungs de facto holding company. NBIM voted not only for a shareholder proposal to acquire treasury shares worth 500 billion won but also for Samsung C&Ts plan to retire nearly 1 trillion won worth of treasury stocks. These opinions were shared by the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), despite Samsung C&Ts claim that the shareholder proposals weigh heavily on the ability of the company to be managed effectively. Their decisions came after Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis recommended Samsung C&Ts shareholders vote for proposals made by the activist funds. In 2015, when Samsung pursued a controversial merger between Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, most foreign institutional investors also followed the worlds two most influential proxy advisers recommendations to oppose the deal. Regarding the appointment of directors, all four foreign pension funds voted against the reappointment of former Minister of Knowledge Economy Choi Jung-kyung as an outside director. Shareholders should have the right to seek changes to the board when it does not act in their best interests, NBIM said. CPPIB even opposed the reappointment of Oh Se-chul, head of Samsung C&Ts construction division, and Lee Jun-seo, head of the companys fashion division, as inside directors. The Canadian pension fund only voted for the appointment of Lee Jae-eon, who was nominated late last year as Samsung C&Ts head of trading division. Both CalPERS and CalSTRS voted against the appointment of all director nominees. The latter also opposed the size of the compensation to be given to Samsung C&Ts directors. However, it remains uncertain whether Samsung C&T will accept the shareholder proposals because the combined shares held by the four foreign pension funds and the group of activist investors are only estimated to be around 4 to 5 percent, which is far below the 33.63 percent stake held by Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong and his allies. KCC, which holds a 9.17 percent stake, is also expected to back Samsung C&Ts management. In addition, the National Pension Service, which holds a 7.01 percent stake, is unlikely to agree with the foreign pension funds, given that the worlds third-largest pension fund, in terms of assets, voted for the merger of Samsung affiliates in 2015. It was a key part of Cheltenham Festival and ran for over 300 years - but for 2024, organisers have decided to scrap 'Ladies Day'. Instead, racegoers can attend the festival's gender-neutral 'Style Wednesday' - where both men and women can compete in the prestigious fashion competition. But how inclusive is Cheltenham's alternative to Ladies Day? And what did the guests really think of this radical rebrand? FEMAIL reporter Rich Pelley decided to put the festival to the ultimate test - by turning up for the races in a dress. Here, the brave racegoer shares his diary from the past 24 hours - and some of the guests' rather unwelcoming reactions to his unconventional attire... Pictured: FEMAIL reporter Rich Pelley seen modelling a striped maxi dress from Primark to attend Cheltenham's 'Style Wednesday' When you think of Cheltenham races, you think of handbags, gladrags, posh frocks and big hats. This year, Cheltenham have scrapped Ladies Day in favour of Style Wednesday. The insinuation being that everybody's welcome, not just the ladies. At least, that's what I hope, as I'm off to the races in my most stylish dress and hat even though I'm clearly a bloke. At least I've got the right day. It's definitely Wednesday. Er, isn't it? Tuesday 5pm, Oxford Street The Cheltenham look is very much dress, fascinator and fur, so I rustle up a last minute showstopper with a quick dash along Oxford Street. I opt for a classic black and white Primark dress and puffy, red Matalan hat that go fabulously with a furry pink charity shop jacket I've already got from when I once dressed up as Harry Styles. Cheltenham here we come! Style rating: four dresses out of five Pictured: Rich shows off his legs in his striped maxi dress and furry pink coat at Cheltenham today Rich said groups of women were largely friendly to him - while older men were quick to heckle him for the outfit Rich Pelley paired his dusty pink faux fur jacket with a hot pink hat for his day at the races in Cheltenham Wednesday 8am, London Paddington It's 6am and somehow I manage to haul myself onto the tube. Cheltenham is a good three hours away. The train isn't quite the party bus of horse enthusiasts, nibbles and prosecco I'd hoped. But there are plenty of gilets, tweed jackets and a lady in a nice dress, also off to the races. Rich said: 'There are three main reactions to my outfit. Theres lots of laughs, pointing, and did you lose a bet mate?, mainly from the old boys in tweed, all of who look like Prince Andrew' Pictured: Rich leaves the portable toilets outside the races where he changed into his maxi dress Dressed to impress! Rich seen posing next to a map of the Cheltenham grounds this morning after rocking up to the races in a dress I keep my hat in its bag, and save the offer of an 8am alcoholic drink from the trolley until I get there. Style rating: two trains out of five 10am, Cheltenham Spa I'm here. Where is Cheltenham anyway? I assume somewhere near the other hams Birmingham and Nottingham so in the Midlands. I'm pleased to spot my first hat of the day a bright pink, feathery number but the shuttle bus is a sausage fest of blokes in tweed jackets, a million miles from Ladies Day. To avoid awkward lines of questioning, Rich found himself telling other guests that he had lost a bet Pictured: Rich poses with two friendly racegoers on the second day of the Cheltenham Festival today Rich said of his fellow Cheltenham attendees: 'The ladies are keener to point out that Ive left all my labels on' 'Any more alcoholics?' announces the bus driver as we drop off some thirsty customers at a bar in town. I fancy some Frosties more than I do a drink. Style rating: two buses out of five 10:30am, Cheltenham race course Janice at the ticket desk explains the three ticket price points: Mate, Tats and Club. I have no idea so plump for the priciest Club, at 120. I decline a 5 programme as I think I know enough about actually, what are they racing today? Dogs? Horses? I have a feeling it's horses. I see my first jockey of the day a short fellow in tights and a big helmet. Pictured: Rich seen purchasing a ticket to the races on the door. Despite his unusual attire, he didn't have any problems gaining access to the grounds Pictured: Rich seen wandering around the premises at Cheltenham today on the second day of the festival Mark paired his primark striped maxi dress with a pink furry jacket and a hot pink hat for the races I meet photographer Mark and change into my outfit in the gents' Portaloo, much to the surprise of one customer who walks in to catch me trousers down, dress half on. Style rating: three Portaloos out of five 10:35am, I'm a lady Now I know understand why women are so much better at multitasking than men. I have to work out how not stand on my dress as I go down steps but not let it ride up either. I've cheated by failing to swap my trainers for heels, and I only have man boobs to worry about. I can see what David Beckham, Brad Pitt, Sam Smith and Groundskeeper Willie from The Simpsons are on about all who have been pictured in skirts. Rich said of his dress: 'Now I know understand why women are so much better at multitasking than men. I have to work out how not stand on my dress as I go down steps but not let it ride up either' Pictured: Rich with two friendly Cheltenham fans. The FEMAIL reporter said he wouldn't rule out wearing another dress in future There's something very freeing about not having your crotch confined. Note to self: must do this more often, when no one is watching. 11am, wander about There are three main reactions to my outfit. There's lots of laughs, pointing, and 'did you lose a bet mate?', mainly from the old boys in tweed, all of who look like Prince Andrew. The ladies are keener to point out that I've left all my labels on. 'It's in case I want to take them back to the shop,' I joke, for the 900th time. I also attract various radio channels and TV stations who want to know my views on Fashion Wednesday. Trying not to get too political, I just say that I've lost a bet. Suddenly, all the paps notice me and coming running, cameras flashing. I feel famous. Style rating: four microphones out of five 11:30am, meet the gals I'd imagined Cheltenham to be full of ladies in big hats, like you'd imagine Glastonbury is full of people covered head-to-toe in mud. At last, I finally find my flock. 50-year-old Viv from Ascot isn't a fan of Style Wednesday. While other women attending the race were quick to tell Rich he'd left the labels on his outfit, he was met with heckles from some men Rich Pelley seen flashing a little bit of leg as he walks into the Cheltenham racecourse this afternoon 'Racing is very male dominated so it's nice that one day acknowledges that ladies are welcome,' she reasons. Viv is a milliner ('A what?' 'I make hats') and is wearing a bright yellow hat-inator part hat / part fascinator. Would Viv hat me up, next Style Wednesday? 'I would hat you up, certainly,' she says. Style rating: five hats out of five 12pm, enter fashion awards There's only one thing left to do win this year's Jockey Club Style Award. This year it focuses on slow fashion. What's that? 'Slow fashion focuses on investment pieces that have been handed down through the generations and not just bought this morning from Primark,' explains organiser James. I fill out some forms and have my photo taken. Have any other men entered? 'Some,' says organiser Kate. Am I the first man in a dress? 'Yes'. Confident that I've got this in the bag, I head off to find a drink, and maybe have a flutter on the what was it again? Dogs? No, horses. Style rating: five horses out of five Queen Maxima of the Netherlands has been photographed beaming during a visit to an Art Camp teaching vocational education in the Northeastern Netherlands today. The 52-year-old attended the start of the camp at the Hedon pop venue in Zwolle this afternoon. Mother-of-four Maxima, who is honorary chairman of the More Music in the Classroom foundation at the venue, looked stylish during her appearance. She donned a two-piece brown suit in a tweed-style fabric, and a semi-deep V-neckline. It had three-quarter length sleeves with small turn-ups below the elbow. The short blazer was cinched in at the waist with a wide black belt, and her matching A-line skirt flowed to just below her knees. Queen Maxima of the Netherlands (pictured) smiled widely as she made her way to a vocational Art Camp in Zwolle The mother-of-four (pictured) donned a stylish two-piece matching suit, made from a tweed-style brown fabric Maxima matched all her accessories, carrying a black handbag and wearing black knee length boots which matched her belt. Meanwhile, she opted for a casual and light make-up look, boasting a fresh base and fresh peach blush, as well as light eye make-up and a nude lip. Maxima wore her long blonde tresses loose, flowing over her shoulders in loose waves, and tucked behind her ears to keep it away from her face. Jewellery-wise, the mother-of-two donned bangles on both wrists, as well as sizeable gold earrings in her lobes. As she walked to the venue, Maxima was pictured beaming widely, appearing pleased to be making her way to the appointment. The royal website says of the Art Camp, which started today (Wednesday): 'Through workshops, prospective pedagogical employees and teaching assistants learn how to use artistic disciplines in their work at and after school.' It adds that some 60 sixty students attend workshops in photography, theatre, dance, music and cartoon drawing. During her visit, the royal spoke to students about their experiences at the workshops. The royal (pictured) looked fresh-faced and happy to be attending the engagement in photographs taken today Maxima donned two-piece matching skirt suit today, with A-line skirt and cinched in waist, and matching black accessories The royal carefully coordinated her accessories, wearing a black belt and boots, and carrying a black handbag Queen Maxima (pictured) posed in front of some of the art work at Art Camp during her appearance today She also attended a meeting with professionals at the venue, where they discussed how 'the importance of art and culture education for MBO students is central and how this can be strengthened within these courses'. Maxima's final exercise of the day was to 'speak with cultural institutions in the region of the three participating MBO courses about the range they can offer'. The royal website explains: 'Art Camp MBO is the first step in a three-part program of More Music in the Classroom in collaboration with Noorderpoort, Alfa-College and ROC Midden Nederland. 'The aim is to strengthen cultural education in these secondary vocational education courses, so that pedagogical staff and teaching assistants can stimulate the arts and culture offering at and after school.' It adds that the More Music in the Classroom foundation has 'been committed to structural music education for all primary school children in the Netherlands and the Caribbean since 2015'. During her visit to the Art Camp, the Queen listened to students and art professionals, as well as speaking herself Queen Maxima's appearance today follows her visiting the Chemelot industrial park and Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Geleen in the Netherlands earlier this month. The royal took to the industrial complex as part of a series of visits to the field of sustainability and circularity. During the engagement, she spoke to experts about making raw materials more sustainable and witnessed their work in the chemical field. And she appeared to get stuck to learn all that the business has to offer, from inside the laboratory to the outdoors features of the park. Some 8,000 people currently work on site, and many are connected to Chemelot as a supplier, from a cleaning company to transporters and landscapers, according to its website. Extend the night, enhance the morning. So goes the blurb for Safety Shot, the latest in a seemingly inexhaustible line of health drinks, elixirs, panaceas and (some might argue) snake oil that promise to soothe the symptoms of the previous nights excess. Because ever since early man first tasted booze, rather overdid it and woke up in his cave with a throbbing headache and sense of existential angst, weve all craved that one-hit silver bullet, the hangover Holy Grail. Something that just makes the pain disappear. But this American import is unlike anything that has come before. The big difference is that theres nothing in the world that lowers your blood alcohol content like our patented beverage, says Brian John, the companys CEO. This proprietary patented formula claims not only to boost mental clarity and support liver detoxification, but actually reduces that blood alcohol content by up to 50 per cent within 30 minutes. Ye Gods! Tom Parker Bowles holds a can of Safety Shot at a pub in Kensington, west London. The drinks company's CEO claims the beverage reduces blood alcohol content by up to 50 per cent within 30 minutes Safety Shot is both cloyingly sweet, and horribly bitter, it tastes like penance and punishment, with a top note of sick, writes Tom Parker Bowles If true (and that if is doing some seriously heavy lifting), this could be massive. Immense. In fact, this is the sort of news that should be celebrated in the traditional British manner. So excuse me while I nip off to the pub, down six pints, sink a few whisky chasers, and chug a can of Safety Shot. Before returning home to write this piece, my facilities miraculously unsullied. It could even make the designated driver a thing of the past. Topers of the world, rejoice! But before you become too intoxicated by the untapped promise of this superpowered Safety Shot, theres a small warning, printed in block capitals, at the bottom of the can. SAFETY SHOT IS NOT INTENDED TO PERMIT CONSUMERS TO LEGALLY DRINK AND DRIVE. Oh. Right. Well, its probably for the best. But what about the science? As someone who barely scraped a D in GCSE Chemistry, Im hardly qualified to comment. But I dig deep into the Safety Shot website, searching for any hard empirical evidence to back up their remarkable claims. That scientific proof is opaque, to say the least. The main ingredient listed is triple filtered purified water, followed by apple pectin and it claims to contain six different B vitamins. Also included are a host of unfamiliar additives including n-acetyl cysteine, cognizin citicoline and synephrine HCL. Safety Shot reduces blood alcohol content through several factors that help process alcohol more efficiently, it explains. Oh, and It should be noted that every person is different. Genetics, liver health, habituation and a host of other factors can influence the rate at which alcohol is metabolized. Hmmm. True, but hardly enlightening. Time, then, to take matters into my own hands. And stride out, into the dark, cold night, armed only with a thirst (for the truth, as well as a pint or two), and a couple of cans of Safety Shot. Is this miracle brew that weve all been waiting for? Or just another over-sugary concoction, slickly clad in an all too shiny suit? I start off about 4pm on a Saturday, at the house of my friend Jake. Hes looking after his children, and is more than happy to have a drinking partner. I whip out my can of Safety Shop, and tell him, with breathless excitement, all about this drink. As a man with a Biology degree from Oxford (albeit over a quarter-century ago), he can smell quackery from a mile off. So, he says, eyeing the can with barely concealed disdain, this drink is promising to overturn everything we know about alcohol, and its effects upon the blood and body. Without sharing their study data, or peer-reviewed research? Hes not convinced. Brian John, boss of Safety Shot, says: 'theres nothing in the world that lowers your blood alcohol content like our patented beverage' Surely, he goes on, if this drink could actually reduce blood-alcohol levels by how much the company claims, it would be worth billions, and a staple of every emergency unit in the world. He shakes his head and goes back to watching F1. Trying to regain some control of the narrative, I try another tack, spluttering on about Safety Shots rigorous testing on numerous people. Do we know who they are?, asks Jake. Er, no. How about all those researchers, formulators, and scientists who have been involved in the development of Safety Shot for several years? Show me their names, he responds. I cant. And I bet its classed as a supplement too. Er, yup. Well, that means the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) dont get involved either. Why am I not surprised? He goes quiet for another second. Worst of all, who in Gods name would go to the pub for a few drinks. While paying for something that stops you getting drunk? He takes a furious swig of his beer. Safety, my a**. Luckily, though, I am made of sterner stuff. And conducting a fiercely controlled experiment for the greater good of mankind. Giving the can a good shake, I open it, drink deeply, and immediately wish I hadnt. Oh God. The horror! Because its truly vile, one of the nastiest things to ever pass through my lips. And this comes from a man who has chewed raw tripe, slurped cold blood soup and eaten every part of a pig save the oink. Both cloyingly sweet, and horribly bitter, it tastes like penance and punishment, with a top note of sick. And reminds me of that antibiotic medicine you had to take as a child. I manage to force down a whole can, much to Jakes amusement. Then immediately start to feel a little odd. Wired. Edgy. A touch anxious. Which is perhaps down to the 400mg of caffeine (about the same four double espressos), sploshed into an empty stomach. In fact, having drunk all 355ml, I really dont want to do anything save sit, feeling slightly nauseous, and very strange indeed. Anyway, two bottles of rubbish Italian beer later (why does anyone like Peroni?), we wander down to the pub, and, over two hours, drink three pints of Aspall cider. Usually, Id feel pretty merry. My head is pathetically light, and it doesnt take much to get me in the party spirit. But somehow, sitting in a warm pub on a cold Saturday afternoon with my best friend isnt quite the pure unalloyed joy it usually is. Theres a nagging, unspecified worry knawing at my gut. Hey-ho. Dinner next. But as I wander over to Sams Riverside in Hammersmith, perched on the edge of the Thames, I still feel slightly out of sorts. My daughter Lola is already there, and I order a martini, even though I dont feel like drinking it. Curiouser and curiouser. I manage another half bottle of red, before giving up altogether. Just like the pub, this simply isnt fun. And dinner with my daughter is always fun. I also miss the three-beer fuzz: the warm, boozy bonhomie of the shared table. I just want to go home. We leave early, and I crawl into bed, falling into fitful sleep. Well, I wake up feeling a little less nauseous than the night before, although there are still flickers of dread. Theres no sign of a hangover, although an early night and a pint of water before sleep may have helped. But even if I were in the throes of a hangover so biblical that Moses could inscribe it upon his tablets, I simply couldnt drink the stuff again. So is this the secret to Safety Shot? To make one feel so awful that nothing, let alone a drink, can ever pass your lips? Ive really no idea if Safety Shots claims about blood alcohol are true. What I do know is that I never want to set eyes on this wretched can again. Queen Camilla has been snapped arriving at 'Style Wednesday' at Cheltenham Festival - and eagle-eyed royal watchers may have noticed an interesting detail in her outfit. She led the way as thousands descended on the racecourse for the newly-named second day of the festival, which has previously been known as 'Ladies Day'. Other royals to attend the equestrian event included Zara Tindall and Princess Eugenie, and their husbands Mike Tindall and Jack Brooksbank. The 76-year-old Queen, who was not accompanied by her husband King Charles as he undergoes treatment for cancer, however, her son, Tom Parker-Bowles did attend. Camilla opted for an all-green outfit, featured a structured jade coat for the event topped with a grey fur hat. Notably, she sported a brooch pinned to her coat - one with a connection to horse racing - and perhaps a secret message wishing her luck. The Queen wore a jade green green structured coat and a wide-brimmed fur hat in grey, with tall dark boots The royal was dressed for the occasion - now known as Style Wednesday, and previously called Ladies Day After all, the piece has an impressive history, which suggests the Queen chose it for a reason. Known as The Horseshoe Brooch, the horseshoe-shaped pin boasts three rubies and four sapphires. It also features diamonds, which are said to spell out the Japanese word Minoru'. Minoru, a thoroughbred horse, was leased to Edward VII by his breeder Lord Wavertree. The animal was one of King Edward VIl's most successful thoroughbreds, with a number of wins on his record including 2000 Guineas and The Derby. He also won the Epsom Derby in 1909, making him a hugely celebrated animals, and making King Edward VII the first reigning British monarch to win a Derby. He was put out to stud in 1910 after running 13 and winning seven races by 1909. It is not known what happened to the horse after he was exported to Russia in the 1910s, disappeared during the Revolution in 1917. Part of the Queen's chic ensemble was a brooch known as The Horseshoe Brooch which is said to feature diamonds that spell out the Japanese word Minoru' - the name of Edward VII's most successful horse The Queen beamed despite gloomy weather as she arrived at the racecourse this afternoon for Style Wednesday Camilla's structured coat and warm hat ensured she was wrapped up warmly against the wind at the event Thanks to the pin's history, it is possible the Queen wore it for luck on the day. She has also been spotted wearing it on other occasions, including during a previous visit to Aintree. Describing the new Style Wednesday concept, the Jockey Club website described the style on show as 'timeless'. The day features a fashion competition for both men and women. Those who attend have been invited to don clothing which celebrates 'everything that makes racing wonderful'. Day two of the prestigious four-day event is known for attracting a host of royalsand celebrities alike as they show off their sartorial prowess while enjoying a day out at the races in Gloucestershire. Queen Camilla has been filmed taking a selfie with a fellow Cheltenham festival goer today. The royal, 76, attended newly named Style Wednesday (previously Ladies Day) without husband King Charles who is undergoing cancer treatment. A video of the event shows a woman speaking and talking to her, though what she says is not clear. With one hand on the Queen's coat, the woman pulls out a mobile phone, and the two ladies wait for her to take the snap, before Camilla walks away. The Queen was just one of the royals at the four-day horse racing festival today. Queen Camilla (pictured, right) was photographed being addressed by a woman (pictured, left) in the crowd at the Cheltenham Festival today Shortly after addressing the Queen, the woman was seen chatting to the royal, before pulling out her phone and snapping a selfie Queen Camilla taking a selfie with a Cheltenham festival goer@itvnews #CheltenhamFestival2024 pic.twitter.com/RqhMCojzxf Sangita Lal (@sangitalal) March 13, 2024 Also attending the event were Princess Eugenie's with husband Jack Brookbank, and Zara Tindall with her husbands Mike Tindall. Camilla opted for a structured jade green coat for the event, which she paired with a grey furry hat, and tall dark boots. Pinned to her coat, she wore a very appropriate broach - The Horseshoe Brooch. Made in the shape of a horseshoe, it boasts three rubies and four sapphires. It also features diamonds, which are said to spell out the Japanese word Minoru'. Minoru, a thoroughbred horse, was leased to Edward VII by his breeder Lord Wavertree. The animal was one of King Edward VIl's most successful thoroughbreds, with a number of wins on his record including 2000 Guineas and The Derby. He also won the Epsom Derby in 1909, making him a hugely celebrated animals, and making King Edward VII the first reigning British monarch to win a Derby. He was put out to stud in 1910 after running 13 and winning seven races by 1909. It is not known what happened to the horse after he was exported to Russia in the 1910s, disappeared during the Revolution in 1917. Camilla donned a structured green coat and furry grey hat to protect against the gloomy weather at the event today Day two of the prestigious four-day event is known for attracting a host of royals and celebrities alike as they show off their sartorial prowess while enjoying a day out at the races in Gloucestershire. A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said: 'This year we re-launched day two of The Festival as Style Wednesday to celebrate "fast horses, slow fashion", encouraging racegoers to make more sustainable fashion choices, showcasing their unique and personal style, and to share the stories behind their amazing outfits with friends, family and on social media. 'This includes re-wearing outfits they already have in their wardrobes, purchasing timeless garments to wear again and again and also buying from retailers specialising in pre-loved clothing.' Commenting on the change, The Daily Mail's Nadine Dorries said in her latest column: 'I looked at the programme and saw, with no fanfare or warning, that Ladies Day at Cheltenham appears to have been downgraded to Style Wednesday. 'Im assuming this is some sort of woke nod from the Jockey Club to the powerful trans lobby. If thats the case, the Jockey Club might like to consider who exactly will be attending - and who it is they are now offending.' FRANCES, 71 Widowed, with two adult children and two stepchildren. Dating Past? Ive been single for almost five years since I lost my husband. He was older than me and we were together for 46 years. I havent been on a date since before I met him. Pre-Date Nerves? This was a new experience for me, so yes, I was a bit nervous. Frances, 71, is widowed, with two adult children and two stepchildren. She is retired, having worked as a teacher for 47 years, and is keen to meet a sincere and worldly man First Impressions? Patrick was very gentlemanly and got up to pull my chair out, which was lovely. I wasnt initially drawn to his looks, and was disappointed he wasnt in a shirt and tie. But then I discovered hes Australian and thats just his style rather than a lack of effort. Easy To Talk To? We just laughed and chatted away about all sorts of nonsense. I can rattle on about my family for ages. Was I nervous? I havent dated in nearly 50 years! We both ordered the shepherds pie and discovered a mutual love of brown sauce. I told him he needed to try the fruity version for a bacon sandwich, which made him laugh. He seems to do a lot for charity and travels to India once a year, which was interesting, and I told him about my 47-year career as a teacher. Embarrassing Moments? Not really, it was good fun. Did Sparks Fly? I thought he was a lovely man, and very flattering. I complimented him, too, on his pocket handkerchief. But it was my first date in a long time so I wasnt expecting to be swept off my feet. I felt initially we are more suited to friendship, but who knows what may happen over time? Frances liked that Patrick was gentlemanly - he got up and pulled out her chair when she arrived Would you like to meet again? Yes, he was great company and I didnt feel I had to be on my best behaviour. We swapped numbers and he messaged me afterwards to say thanks for a great afternoon, ending it with your friend always, which I thought was lovely. What do you think he thought of you? I think he quite liked me and enjoyed my company, and he seemed to agree we would carry on as friends. Would your family and friends like him? He's such a lovely man, so I think so. Although, theyre struggling with the idea of me meeting anyone at the moment. BLIND DATE VITAL STATISTICS FRANCES, 71 Widowed, with two adult children and two stepchildren. Current Role Retired teacher. Would like to meet A sincere, worldly-wise man. PATRICK, 72 Widowed with five children. CURRENT ROLE Retired from nursing with the merchant navy. WOULD LIKE TO MEET Someone kind and entertaining. I am outgoing so nobody too shy. Advertisement PATRICK, 72 Widowed with five children. Dating Past? I was widowed in 2009 and have been single ever since. Although my friends have tried to set me up, I keep saying no. But my children are all grown up so Ive decided now is the time. Pre-Date Nerves? I could barely stand up with nerves. But I noticed she was trembling, so we were clearly both in the same boat. Patrick, 72, is widowed with five children. Retired from nursing with the merchant navy, he's looking for someone kind and entertaining First Impressions? I thought Frances was lovely and very pretty. She looked natural with very little make-up on, although I complimented her on her nice painted nails. It was sweet she was so nervous; I told her I was too and we both settled down. Easy To Talk To? She was wonderful company, and would be a great guest at a dinner party. Shes not shy and shoots from the hip, which I like. She suggested we go to the Cotswolds. I loved that I grew up in Australia so Im straightforward and liked her manner. By coincidence, she has a daughter in Australia so I knew the places she had been to. Frances was a teacher for 47 years which is an incredible feat. There was no pretence as shes very genuine. We kept chatting for more than four hours. Embarrassing Moments? No, thank goodness. Did Sparks Fly? Not in a public way as we were just getting to know each other, but we got on very well. When we got talking about places we wanted to visit, she said, Lets go away to the Cotswolds well have our own rooms and have an adventure. I loved that. I told her I was no longer swinging from the chandeliers and wanted companionship, so that was a great idea. Patrick's first impressions of Frances were good - he thought she was very pretty and he liked that she was natural with little make-up Would you like to meet again? Id love to. Shed been recommending a spicy version of HP Sauce, so I bought some to taste and have been reporting back. What do you think she thought of you? I think she likes me and hopefully well go away and have some fun together. Would your family and friends like her? Oh yes, absolutely. Frances is such a nice lady and shed get on well with everyone. FRANCES'S VERDICT: 7/10 LIKED? Hes funny and down to earth. REGRETS? Taking ages deciding what to wear. COFFEE OR CAB? Coffee. PATRICK'S VERDICT: 11.5/10 LIKED? Her manner and presentation. REGRETS? No, Im looking forward to meeting up. COFFEE OR CAB? Coffee. Chilli is in airport security and Bandit is an archaeologist Parents have discovered a 'clever' detail about the jobs of beloved kid's show character Bluey's mum and dad. The protagonist's mum Chilli works in airport security and her dad Bandit is an archaeologist - but viewers are just realising the 'cute little joke' behind their occupations. Parents believe the show's creators chose those specific jobs for the dog parents as one is to sniff things out and the other is to dig up bones. 'Took me a while to realise why Chilli works in airport security. It's a dog job! Like the sniffer dogs you see at airports. Cute little joke,' one mum said online. 'Please tell me why I just realised that Bluey's mum's job is airport security and Bluey's dad's job is an archaeologist, so (her) mum's job is to sniff and (her) mum's job us to dig up bones,' mum blogger Emily Jeanne explained in a TikTok video. 'Bandit is an archaeologist - digging up bones, and Chilli does airport security - as a sniffer dog,' a third shared. Many were astounded by the information and applauded the show's attention to detail. 'I cannot believe how stupid I am. I've known what they do for a living for years now but I never once thought about the dog puns involved,' one mum said. 'I love this show so much, possibly more than my kids- and this made me laugh way too hard. This show just continues to surprise me,' another replied. 'It's one of my favourite Easter eggs,' a third wrote while someone added: 'That's hilarious! Great observation!' One Bluey buff said Bandit's job was inspired by one of the creator's brothers who is an archaeologist at Griffith University in Queensland. Parents say Bluey's mum Chilli works in airport security to 'sniff' things out and dad Bandit is a archaeologist who dogs up bones - two perfect professions for canine characters 'I think both of these started out as jokes among the production team ('What kind of jobs would dogs have?'), and at some point, they just decided to roll with it,' someone guessed. 'I knew the jobs but didn't see it as perfect for dogs, that is funny and cute!' one viewer replied. Others pointed out a similar detail about Bluey's uncle Stripe's and aunt Trixie's jobs and some more 'cute' Easter eggs they've spotted in the show. 'Also one of the reasons why I think Stripe (and possibly Trixie) work in the mining industry - another job where you dig things up,' one fan said. 'Chloe's address is 101. Because she's a Dalmatian,' another wrote. 'And Judo's mum is a groomer because they're those fancy dogs who keep their hair done!' laughed a third. Bandit and Chilli's jobs have been a hot topic among Bluey watchers as some have come up with a 'crazy' theory about how their professions could be linked. 'That's how they afford that giant house. She helps him smuggle priceless artefacts for the black market trade,' one man joked. 'The mum's job is to help smuggle dads finds into the country and sell them on the black market,' another agreed. Radio host and self-described 'Bluey detective' Zach Mander put forward their theory back in 2021. 'So we have a couple where one has an intimate knowledge of how to bypass airport security and we have another who is regularly digging up rare and expensive items,' he said in an online video. Zack theorised the parents can afford their $1million Brisbane home by getting up to some 'nefarious activities'. Expert shared how 'lazy equity' can help pay off a mortgage quicker They've used equity in the homes to grow wealth and don't struggle financially Leonard and Larissa Price have bought five properties since 2014 A mum and dad aged in their 30s who already boast a net worth of $2million have shared how they built a successful property portfolio in just 10 years. Paramedic Leonard Price, 35, and his wife Larissa, 33, from Melbourne, bought their first block of land in 2014 to build their dream home. They decided to sell up 10 months later because they felt like it 'wasn't the right fit' for them and to their surprise, they made a $92,000 profit. 'I thought "Holy s***, this is unbelievable!" All I did was put my name to a piece of land and pocketed $92,000,' Mr Price told FEMAIL. Melbourne couple Leonard, 35, and Larissa Price, 33, have purchased five properties in the last ten years. They build new homes then use equity in the mortgage to fund the deposit for the next property The pair have bought properties in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and the Gold Coast All houses have four or five bedrooms, two bathrooms, a double garage and are brand new builds (Thornlands, Brisbane investment property pictured) Since then the pair knuckled down for 10 years, strategically purchasing properties with the assistance of a buyer's agent, and greatly increasing their wealth. But there were rocky patches. The couple then purchased a townhouse - a move Mr Price admitted 'wasn't the best investment decision'. Even though the couple owned the property for five years the value increased by only $70,000. 'This made me realise that the best property investment strategy is to buy assets that increase in value - which is land, not apartments and townhouses,' he said. With assistance from their buyer's agent, the couple continued their investment journey and utilised a 'rinse, repeat' cycle of targeting properties with large land packages. The couple have now bought properties scattered in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and the Gold Coast. All houses have four or five bedrooms, two bathrooms, a double garage and are brand new builds. 'Property has helped us build wealth and increase our net worth a lot faster than we would have if we simply just saved and stashed our money away in a bank account,' Mr Price said. 'A lot of people are scared of debt, but debt can be great if you can leverage it to buy an asset that rapidly appreciates in value. Property is exactly that. 'You borrow some money (incur a debt) to buy something that you don't have the personal funds for at the time, but which you are supremely confident will go up significantly in value over time.' Property investment expert Michael Beresford told FEMAIL how 'lazy equity' can help pay off your mortgage in ten years - but you'll have to purchase a second property (Clyde, Melbourne property pictured) 'Lazy equity is equity that is not being utilised. When you have owned your home for a few years and the value has increased or you have paid down debt, you now have available equity which is untapped,' Mr Beresford said (Point Cook, Melbourne property pictured) It's called using 'lazy equity' Michael Beresford, Executive Director of Investment for OpenCorp, said the couple had managed to achieve their empire by using the equity locked in their homes. Mr Beresford, who has more than 20 years of experience in the industry, told FEMAIL that 'lazy equity' can help Aussies pay off or build investment portfolios that can crush their mortgages in 10 years. 'Lazy equity is equity that is not being utilised,' he said. 'When you have owned your home for a few years and the value has increased or you have paid down debt, you now have available equity which is untapped. 'If you don't use this equity it lies dormant and will become "lazy equity". (But) if you use this equity as your deposit and costs for an investment property it can begin working for you.' Mr and Mrs Price have taken this strategy and run with it - and luckily it's paid off. Good and bad tenants and a single regret: Mr and Mrs Price's experience The couple earn a combined salary of $200,000, but if money is tight Mr Price can pick up some extra shifts at work as needed. To use their buyer's agent's services, the couple pay around $12,000 per home and don't lift a finger as the agent does 'all the work'. 'I haven't done anything, just pay them a fee. I've never seen the properties and have never touched the keys, but the return on investment is huge,' Mr Price said. The couple's net worth is calculated by deducting their assets from their liabilities. They have $4million worth of property, around $300,000 worth of cash, super and savings with $2.2million worth of debt, leaving them with a $2million net worth. HOW MUCH IS EACH PROPERTY WORTH? Clyde, Melbourne property - home the family live in Bought house and land package for $470,000 Current value: $750,000 Point Cook, Melbourne investment property Bought house and land package for $492,000 Current value: $750,000 Thornlands, Brisbane investment property Bought house and land package for $590,000 Current value: $830,000 Perth investment property - under construction Bought house and land package for $650,000 Current value: TBA Gold Coast investment property - under construction Bought house and land package for $950,000 Current value: TBA Advertisement Every week the couple fork out $100 per investment property - the difference between the mortgage repayments and the rent received. Because of this the investments are 'negatively geared throughout the year', but Mr Price said at the end of each financial year a 'positive cash flow' remains. Negative gearing occurs when the cost of owning a rental property outweighs the income it generates each year. 'As all of our properties are new builds, the costs are depreciated over time, with the depreciation being another tax deduction,' Mr Price said. 'Even though we are "losing" a little week-to-week during the year, we make make a significant portion back at tax time. Yet the value of the properties keep rising.' The couple earn a combined salary of $200,000, but if money is tight Mr Price can pick up some extra shifts at work as needed. Their only regret is not starting sooner 'I haven't done anything, just pay them a fee. I've never seen the properties and have never touched the keys, but the return on investment is huge,' Mr Price said The biggest blunder was when a tenant left the property in disarray and caused $8,000 worth of damages the couple had to repair. 'The tenant fled and we had to scramble to fix everything,' Mr Price said. Mr Price's only regret was not starting the process earlier. 'As they say it's about time in the market, not timing the market. The longer you're in it, the better off you'll be,' he said, adding: 'There's a lot of fear that the property market will crash but I personally don't believe it will.' The couple are expecting their third child and likely won't buy another block of land to build on for another few years, but will continue to use the equity in their mortgages to continue the cycle. Women have revealed their 'horror' experiences while travelling in Australia - and why the country isn't always the haven it is made out to be. Many have often warned others about the dangers of the Outback, especially travelling solo in the middle of the night. Jane*, from South Australia, revealed that she was driving through New South Wales with her family when their car was attacked. 'I was 14, and we were going to visit our great grandparents. It was night time and we knew not to stop for anyone or anything in this part of the country,' she wrote on Facebook. 'We slowed down while going through a small town, [and found] bars on windows, burnt out cars, run down houses. A bunch of people ran out from the shrubs and tried to jump our ute and pinch the camping gear we had on the roof racks.' Women have revealed their 'horror' experiences while travelling in Australia Another Sydney woman, Amanda*, revealed that a simple train trip turned into something much more sinister when she was faced with a 'creepy' driver - and the encounter has soured her experience with public transport. 'I was a teenager and a friend and I were tipsy and riding home. The train was mostly empty and we somehow made it to the front. 'The train driver let us in the cabin with him while he was doing his train controlling thing - and then he locked the door and wouldn't let us out!' The women were overcome with terror and didn't know how to escape from the precarious situation. Read more: I visited Egypt for a 'dream' holiday and it turned out to be the worst trip ever Advertisement They were shocked that a train driver would endanger them like that. 'We absolutely freaked but tried to play it cool,' she said. 'Another man on the train noticed and started banging on the door from the other side and the driver finally let us out.' But the nightmare was not over - the duo was still far away from home. 'We were stuck in Lithgow at 2am, and a station staff member ended up driving us home - which was an hour away.' Amanda was shocked nothing truly bad happened to her and her friend. If you find yourself in a dangerous situation, call Triple Zero (000). A man who vaped a hole in his lung has issued a plea to other young people to quit e-cigarettes. Joseph Lawrence, 25, who lives in Las Vegas, revealed he had been puffing on the fruity-flavored devices daily for years. But earlier this month he suddenly found he was struggling to breathe and was rushed to hospital, where scans showed he had a hole in his lung. The hundreds of irritants in e-cigarettes can trigger inflammation that damages the lining of the lungs, which can raise the risk of the complication even months after quitting vaping. A collapsed lung is when there is a hole in the lung allowing air to rush into the vacuum area containing no matter between the lung and chest wall, causing the lung to collapse. The condition is rarely fatal and can be treated in hospital. Mr Lawrence wrote on X, previously Twitter: 'If you vape, please consider quitting. I had a hole in my lung the other day and had to be rushed to the ER because I could not breathe. Joseph Lawrence, 25, who now lives in Las Vegas, said he suffered from a collapsed lung after using vapes He is pictured above with one of the devices, which he said he puffs on nearly every day 'Thankfully I'm doing okay [now] and it didn't fully collapse.' He added: 'Please take care of yourselves and consider quitting, it's not worth it.' He is one of several Americans to suffer from the injury, after a Florida vape addict also revealed he had suffered from the complication. In another case, a 19-year-old in West Virginia said his lungs had collapsed four times. Many vapes are poorly-regulated and manufactured in China, and have been flooding the US in recent years with the FDA struggling to regulate the market. Mr Lawrence didn't reveal the type of vape he was using, but said he had been puffing on the devices for years. He has also occasionally smoked cigarettes. He said doctors believed vapes had caused the injury. Mr Lawrence (right) is pictured above holding a cigarette. He also occasionally smokes Vapes have soared in popularity in the US with an estimated 8.1million Americans including 3million middle and high schoolers now puffing on them every week. A collapsed lung stops the organ from inflating and deflating properly to force air in and out, leaving sufferers struggling to breathe and with stabbing chest pains and a rapid heart rate. The condition is rarely fatal, but doctors say it needs to be treated quickly to avoid the hole getting any worse or a drop in oxygen levels in the blood that can damage internal organs. It is treated by inserting a tube into the chest to suck air out of the vacuum to restore it while giving the lung enough time to heal and close the hole. Dr Panagis Galiatsatos, a critical care doctor at Johns Hopkins in Maryland, previously told DailyMail.com: 'Inflammation is going to compromise the lungs. 'If you are doing vaping over and over again, you are going to make the walls of the lungs lose their integrity, become more compliant and then, in the right situation, that results in a tear.' Dr Galiatsatos, who is also a spokesman for the American Lung Association, said he has already seen two young patients with underlying conditions who suffered from the same condition. Vapes were previously heralded as an excellent way to help those who smoke to quit the habit. But with the advent of more fruity flavors they have spurred a whole generation of youngsters who are addicted to the devices. Studies are now starting to suggest that using vapes may be no better for the lungs than traditional cigarettes because they also contain toxic chemicals. Samsung Electronics, the world's No. 1 memory chipmaker, on Wednesday denied a recent news report that it is planning to use technology that its local rival SK hynix is using in a way to overtake the market for cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) chips. According to the report by Reuters, citing multiple sources, Samsung Electronics was purportedly in the process of acquiring chipmaking equipment capable of deploying mass reflow molded underfill (MR-MUF) techniques. This technology is integral to the production of high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, a domain where SK hynix has established its expertise. Samsung employs a technology called non-conductive film (NCF) for its HBM chips, which Reuters said causes some production issues in producing its HBM3 chips. HBM chips have been gaining popularity due to their pivotal role in powering generative AI systems, like OpenAI's ChatGPT. "Rumors that Samsung Electronics will apply MR-MUF to its HBM production are not true," Samsung Electronics said in a statement. Additionally, the company rebuffed assertions of low production yields attributed to its NCF technology, stating, "We have maintained a stable yield rate for our HBM3 products." (Yonhap) The US should follow England in banning 'irreversible' puberty blockers for children under 18 years old, senators and doctors told DailyMail.com today. England's national health service revealed Tuesday it would no longer prescribe the drugs to patients with gender dysphoria under 18 after finding there was not enough evidence about how safe they are or whether they are clinically effective. The UK government welcomed what it described as a 'landmark decision', saying it was 'in the best interests of children'. Now US doctors and politicians have told this website it should serve as a a 'wake up call' to the health industry in America which continues to back the use of hormone drugs for trans children. Some also urged doctors to be more cautious about when they prescribe puberty blockers. Senator Roger Marshall from Kansas, who is also a physician, said: 'For many children, the NHS' ruling will be too little too late, but I am proud to see science and, quite frankly, common sense prevail in the UK. 'Now, let my message to America and the radical gender ideologues be clear: Wake up. Chloe Cole, 18, who transitioned to male at 13 before later regretting her decision at 16, says breast removal operations on trans kids are 'like Nazi-era experiments'. She also regrets taking puberty blockers at the age of 13 years Kansas senator and physician Roger Marshall said that common sense was prevailing in the UK, and urged the US to follow suit 'The irreversible and irreparable damage these drugs have on kids is dangerous and is medical malpractice to perform and prescribe to children.' The US is increasingly becoming an outlier with its treatments for transgender youths. Other European countries including Sweden and Denmark have also rolled back their use for under-18s. Dr Jane Orient, an internal medicine physician in Arizona, also described the decision in the UK as a 'wake up call' for the US. She said: 'Puberty blockers for children are drugs that are meant to be used for those undergoing cancer treatment or for precocious puberty.' She added that they have not been studied extensively in trans children for safety or efficacy. Dr Orient added: 'They may be touted as reversible, but they almost certainly are not. 'They delay growth and they delay intellectual development as well, so the result is likely to not only be sterility but also interference with the brain.' Known medically as gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues, puberty blockers were invented to stop early puberty in very young children when it strikes when they were as young as three years old and for cancer patients. But they are also now used 'off label' for transgender care in children because of their ability to delay the physical changes of puberty such as the development of breasts or a deeper voice. Many doctors warn over their use in this group saying there are few studies on the long-term impacts the drugs have. But there are suggestions they can cause everything from 'irreparable changes' to the body to delaying growth and leading to fertility issues. Dr Erica Anderson, a psychologist and trans women in California who helped advise the UK's review of its gender-affirming care, said she was 'surprised' by the country's health service decision to go as far as no longer offering puberty blockers. She added, however: 'We should be extremely cautious when it comes to how we regard the gender questioning of young people. 'In individual situations, we do have a child that is persistently trans and that is deserving of whatever support we can give them. 'But what has happened, and this is not well understood internationally, is that there has been a departure from the practice where we wait until a little later in puberty to initiate puberty blockers.' She said: 'Early innovators using them with gender issues with children used to wait until [around 13 to 14 for natal girls and 15 to 16 for natal boys]. 'But in America, people are rallying around the use of them at the very beginning too and that is where some of the issues come concerning bone mineralization, development of genitalia and, of course, fertility.' She added: 'We don't have the kind of research, we don't have the kind of solid evidence on the safety and efficacy of puberty blockers.' Elon Musk also tweeted about the news Puberty blocker prescriptions are continuing to rise in the United States More and more children are also being prescribed hormone therapy About 300,000 children under the age of 18 years are estimated to be transgender in the US. There are no good estimates for how many are on puberty blockers, but data shows a total of 17,800 prescriptions for puberty blockers or hormone treatments were started among children from 2017 to 2021. Doctors may offer the drugs alongside other treatments such as hormones, which can make the body appear more masculine or feminine, as well as surgeries. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says transgender care including puberty blockers is vital for children whose gender does not match the one they were assigned at birth and can reduce the risk of suicides. Other top medical organizations in the US including the American Medical Association and the Endocrine Society also support their use in children. The FDA approved the drugs in 1993 for use in children with early puberty, also allowing doctors to prescribe them 'off label' to treat gender dysphoria. Dr Marshall also claimed issue had been overly politized in the US. He told DailyMail.com: 'The embrace by the left of child mutilation surgeries and hormone cocktails like puberty blockers to adolescents is morally wrong and a slap in the face to our profession as physicians and all of us who take an oath to 'above all, do no harm'. 'These dark days in American history will have long-lasting and devastating consequences.' Dr Anderson said: 'I have been hoping for some time that the authorities would pay attention to the concerns I have been raising and conduct a review of the evidence, as in the UK and in Europe. 'Some of my colleagues in the US have rebuffed the idea that Europe and the UK can teach us anything. 'I can't tell you how frustrating it is to hear some people proclaim that the science is settled about gender use care for minors. It is not. Science is never settled.' Harms from the drugs include delayed growth, weaker bones and sterility among others because of their impact on hormones. The Mayo Clinic says it can also lead to the genitals not growing, which they said can cause issues at a later date for gender-affirming surgeries. The UK has shuttered its gender health identity clinic, the Travistock Center (pictured), which was run by the NHS A rising number of detransitioners who regret having the irreversible procedure have also come forward in recent months and claimed they were not challenged enough as children. A US patient who received the drugs at age 13 years, after expressing gender dysphoria at age 12, said she later regretted taking them. Chloe Cole, from California, said she was co-erced into taking the drugs and warned last year that other minors were being pushed into similar treatments. One ex-patient given the drugs in the UK said yesterday it was 'insane' that children were ever allowed to take the medications. Keira Bell, who previously took the NHS to the High Court claiming she had not been challenged enough before being prescribed puberty blockers at just 16, said more investigation was needed into how these drugs were ever considered safe in the first place. 'It is insane that these drugs were ever offered on a national publicly funded health service, which is supposed to be entirely evidence-based and a service that provides assured safety and care,' she told a local publication. Other doctors who spoke to DailyMail.com on condition of anonymity also praised England for the move, warning over the harms the drugs can do to children. Elon Musk also reacted to the announcement last night, saying: 'Puberty blockers aka sterilization drugs will no longer be prescribed to children in Britain, due to potentially severe negative effects.' The National Health Service (NHS) move in the UK means puberty blockers will now only be available via clinical research trials in the country. They could also be obtained from private clinics. The NHS made the move after a public consultation on the use of the drugs and an independent review of gender identity services for under-18s in the country. The review commissioned in 2020 was prompted by a surge in referrals to gender identity clinics to more than 5,000 children from 2021 to 2022 compared to under 250 a decade earlier. The NHS decision is not an outright ban on the drugs, just a new routine for prescribing. The some 100 children already receiving the drugs will be allowed to continue their treatment to its conclusion. The health service is also planning to launch a clinical trial using the drugs by the end of the year, to further evaluate their risks and effects. UK health minister Maria Caulfield welcomed the move, saying: 'We have always been clear that children's safety and wellbeing is paramount, so we welcome this landmark decision by the NHS. 'Ending the routine prescription of puberty blockers will help ensure that care is based on evidence, expert clinical opinion and is in the best interests of the child.' Jay Richards, a research fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation in Washington DC, said: 'It's good news that the NHS has announced that it will no longer prescribe puberty blockers to minors for 'gender-affirming interventions' which, in effect, are often sex-erasing. 'Gender-transition partisans have claimed for years that these drugs are reversible pause buttons for gender-dysphoric kids. 'In fact, they are very often irreversible fast-forward buttons. They can harm the physical and intellectual development of children and put them on a different timeline from all their peers.' A spokeswoman for the Endocrine Society added: 'More research data is always welcome to help ensure the highest quality medical care is being provided to transgender and gender-diverse individuals. 'Several European countries have taken this approach. 'Making gender-affirming care available via clinical trial does not present an issue as long as the process doesn't unnecessarily delay or restrict access to evidence-based care.' Dr Jennifer Osipoff, a pediatric endocrinologist at Stony Brook Children's Hospital in New York state who treats transgender children, told this website that England had made a 'very dangerous decision'. 'As a pediatric endocrinologist, I use these puberty blockers frequently both for what they were developed for as well as in my gender dysphoric population. 'I've seen huge improvements in children's mental health on the drugs. 'I've seen kids literally contemplating their life while going through puberty changes they are not comfortable with change before my eyes and become much more happy and outgoing and productive members of society.' Fertility clinics are giving desperate women false hope by misleading them about their chances of having a baby with frozen eggs, experts claim. Up to four in 10 clinics offering the service privately may be breaching advertising guidance by not making the success rates clear, an investigation found. One charity accused offending clinics of 'exploiting women rather than empowering them'. Vast numbers of women are now freezing their eggs, with the procedure which costs thousands of pounds seen as a 'back-up plan'. BBC analysis of the 78 fertility clinics' websites that advertise private egg freezing in the UK found 32 (41 per cent) did not clearly label a patient's chance of successfully having a baby. Up to four in 10 clinics offering egg freezing privately may be breaching advertising guidance by not making the success rates clear, an investigation found. Natalie Thomas (pictured) now 42 chose to froze her eggs at the age of 39 with a private clinic. The science teacher admitted she struggled to understand what her chances of having a baby were, based on the clinic's information. She later discovered the clinic she chose had a lower than average success rate and moved her eggs to a new clinic Dr Catherine Hill (pictured), interim chief executive of the charity, The Fertility Network, said: 'I feel very angry for patients because they are being misled by this level of information. Theyre not feeling like they are getting the information from clinics. What they should be getting is individualised information on their chances of success. If a clinic isnt providing that, there is then the potential of exploiting women rather than empowering them' Your browser does not support iframes. Many listed successful thaw rates a process where eggs are defrosted to be used in fertility treatments of between 80 and 95 per cent. They did not make clear this is only one stage of the egg freezing process, however. With multiple stages to the process before an embryo is successfully implanted, the chances of having a baby are dramatically lower. Success rates can be as low as three per cent for eggs frozen when women were in their late 30s. One 2018 study from the regulatory body, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), also found the use of a patients' own frozen eggs resulted in a live birth only 18 per cent of the time. The BBC analysis also found 31 of the clinics published defrost rates without stating how many patients the information was based on or specifying their sources. Natalie Thomas now 42 chose to freeze her eggs at the age of 39 with a private clinic. The science teacher admitted she struggled to understand what her chances of having a baby were, based on the clinic's information. 'It was a journey that I felt very alone on and that I was the one that was driving it and was having to do a lot of research myself,' Ms Thomas said. She later discovered the clinic she chose had a lower than average success rate and moved her eggs to a new clinic. Ms Thomas added: 'During the treatment when youre having your eggs collected or having a scan, you definitely feel like a patient. 'When youre sat there in the office and theyre going through all their packages, you definitely feel like a customer.' She spent 18,500 in total and gave birth to her son, Huxley, in March last year. Dr Catherine Hill, interim chief executive of the charity, The Fertility Network, said: 'I feel very angry for patients because they are being misled by this level of information. 'Theyre not feeling like they are getting the information from clinics. 'What they should be getting is individualised information on their chances of success. 'If a clinic isnt providing that, there is then the potential of exploiting women rather than empowering them.' Rachel Cutting, the watchdog HFEA's director of compliance and information, said: 'We are concerned about the information women are getting when theyre considering this process. 'Its a medical procedure, there are risks. There is not a lot of data about success rates. And actually, this is not guaranteed.' Rising numbers of celebrities have opted for the procedure. Ex-Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison revealed she underwent egg freezing last year, sharing the process with her 5.5million Instagram followers 'Freezing your eggs is still just available to a very privileged and very specific section of Britain. I do think that needs to change,' Vicky Pattison told the BBC in its new 30-minute documentary 'Egg Freezing and Me'. 'I do think some people are influenced by celebrity culture and their favourite influencers. However, I do think the huge rise in egg freezing can be attributed to something entirely different. Times are just changing. My decision might not be for everyone but Im not asking it to be.' Pictured, Ms Pattison last year after her egg retrieval in London Currently, the fertility treatment has a success rate of up to 40 per cent. Around a third of IVF cycles among under-35s resulted in a live birth in 2019 in the UK. Yet this dropped to just 4 per cent in over-44s Egg freezing involves following the first steps of IVF , which takes two to three weeks to complete. Women take drugs to boost their egg production and help them mature. Eggs are then collected under general anaesthetic, mixed with a freezing solution and frozen. They can be stored for up to 55 years A spokesperson for the British Fertility Society also added it was 'essential' that information provided by clinics 'must always be transparent and should never mislead'. A spokesperson for the regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority said that all information provided by fertility clinics 'must be clear, timely and easy to understand'. Latest figures from the HFEA show there were more than 4,200 egg storage cycles in 2021, almost double the 2,500 in 2019. It is thought the number of women freezing their eggs surged during Covid because many feared they were 'running out of time'. The pandemic brought dating to a halt for single women for months at a time, leaving some unsure when they would meet the right partner to start a family. Rising numbers of celebrities have opted for the procedure, including Kourtney Kardashian and Rita Ora. EXCLUSIVE READ MORE: My dream of motherhood has been snatched away from me: Agony of woman in her 40s whose embryos may have been destroyed by 'fault' in freezing process at top NHS fertility clinic Advertisement Ex-Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison revealed she underwent egg freezing last year, sharing the process with her 5.5million Instagram followers. 'Freezing your eggs is still just available to a very privileged and very specific section of Britain. I do think that needs to change,' she told the BBC in its new 30-minute documentary 'Egg Freezing and Me'. 'I do think some people are influenced by celebrity culture and their favourite influencers. 'However, I do think the huge rise in egg freezing can be attributed to something entirely different. Times are just changing. 'My decision might not be for everyone but Im not asking it to be.' Egg freezing involves following the first steps of IVF, which takes two to three weeks to complete. Women take drugs to boost their egg production and help them mature. Eggs are then collected under general anaesthetic, mixed with a freezing solution and frozen. They can be stored for up to 55 years. The process is deemed 'mostly very safe' by the HFEA. Some women, however, do experience side effects from their fertility drugs. These are usually mild, but in extreme cases women can develop OHSS when the ovaries develop too many follicles as they overrespond to the medication. When this happens, fluid from the blood vessels may leak into the abdomen and, in severe cases, into the space around the heart and lungs. The process is financially restrictive. The average cost of an egg freezing package in the UK stands around 4,000. Storage costs are also extra and vary between clinics. On average this falls between 15 and 350 annually. The combined freezing and thawing process can cost up to an eye-watering 8,000 in total. Currently only patients undergoing medical treatment which may affect their fertility, for example chemotherapy or radiotherapy, are eligible to freeze their eggs on the NHS, with the upper age limit set at 42. Choosing to freeze eggs to have children at a later date known as social egg freezing is not NHS funded. Vicky Vinton underwent two rounds of egg freezing, one at 34 and one at 35 after the pandemic began. Vicky Vinton underwent two rounds of egg freezing, one at 34 and one at 35 after the pandemic began. She had her fertility tested and found her the number of eggs she had were lower than average for her age. Told she would likely need two or three rounds of treatment, she took a second job to help fund the procedure and is not sure if she'll ever use them Shanian Bhopa, a PhD student from Toronto, also published a series on the app under the hashtag, discussing her decision to freeze her eggs at 25, taking viewers through the experience with her day by day. 'I did it to buy myself time to get closer to my purpose in my professional life,' she told one video. 'So hopefully one day I can be super intentional with my time as a mother' In another video under the hashtag seen 3,000 times, Tiffany Zhu wrote: 'You're 28, have a stable relationship, an awesome career and chose to egg freeze because you can't predict the future but you can take charge of it.' She added: 'Here's to the best decision I made in my 20s. 14 days of shots and a ton of bloating but now free from that biological timeline She had her fertility tested and found her the number of eggs she had were lower than average for her age. Told she would likely need two or three rounds of treatment, she took a second job to help fund the procedure and is not sure if she'll ever use them. So far Ive spent between 7,000 and 8,000. Its ridiculous, I cant afford it. I genuinely cant afford it. But I see it as an investment in my future,' she told the BBC. Critics of the egg freezing industry have long warned clinics are 'preying' on women's anxieties to sell them a treatment they may not need and may be unlikely to work. In 2022, Professor Imogen Goold, a professor of medical law at the University of Oxford, said women in their late 30s or beyond should not be encouraged to pay to freeze their eggs, as the chances of successfully using them to have a baby were very low. Speaking at the annual conference of the fertility charity Progress Educational Trust she added: 'I think the worst thing is to sell egg freezing to women in their late 30s. Because selling it to someone who's 39, in the hope that she can use that egg when she is 45, really is problematic.' Meanwhile, scientists in Brussels last year discovered the majority of women who freeze their eggs do not end up using them at all. The team from Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel, studied 843 women who had chosen to have their eggs frozen between 2009 and 2019. By May 2022 only around a quarter 27 per cent of the women had returned to the centre for treatment. And of the women who did return for fertility treatment less than half 48 per cent opted to use their frozen eggs. On average, women lose around 1,000 eggs per month and by the age of 30 have lost 90 per cent of their egg supply. Tegan Clarke was diagnosed with cancer at the age of just 18. Now 23, she underwent two rounds of egg freezing after completing treatment. She told the BBC: 'Im 23, but my fertility is 33. So they can class me as medically infertile because Im not where I should be for my age. 'It does hurt sometimes. Watching my sister-in-law have a baby and my best friends sister have a baby, sometimes I looked and I thought that might not be me.' NHS workers who suffer a miscarriage before they are six months pregnant will be given paid time off work. Under the new guidelines, women will get up to 10 days of paid leave. Staff whose partner has a miscarriage will get five days. Workers who suffer a stillbirth defined as after 24 weeks of gestation will remain eligible for maternity leave under the health service's new policy. The new National Pregnancy and Baby Loss People Policy Framework is designed to help staff process their grief. Experts said the move sends a 'powerful signal' that people impacted by baby loss 'deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve'. Women employed by the health service who suffer a miscarriage in the first 24 weeks of gestation will get 10 days of paid leave (stock image) The policy will operate on a 'trust' basis, it is understood. It will also apply to couples who are having a child via surrogacy. The new framework also asks NHS trusts to give staff paid time off to attend appointments including for medical examinations, scans and tests, as well as mental health-related interventions. Those who return to work after a miscarriage will be offered occupational health support, which could include a referral to a specialist within their trust. READ MORE: NHS chiefs are accused of a 'cover-up' over suspended fertility clinic where dozens of embryos are feared to have been destroyed Documents now show Homerton Fertility Centre, based at Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and the UK IVF regulator were aware embryos that couples hoped would become children weren't surviving the freezing process as expected in June, but it continued to operate as usual Advertisement Dr Navina Evans, chief workforce, training and education officer, said: 'Baby loss is an extremely traumatic experience that hundreds of NHS staff experience each year, and it is right they are treated with the utmost care and compassion when going through such an upsetting experience. 'We know the significance of getting support right in the very first instance for our staff, which is why, for the first time in the healthcare sector, we are providing paid leave so parents can take time out to process this traumatic experience as well as paid time to attend appointments.' Dr Evans hopes the formal guidance will inspire other sectors to 'adopt such supportive approaches to miscarriage in their own organisations'. Kath Abrahams, chief executive of baby loss charity Tommy's, said: 'Pregnancy loss can take a huge toll on women and birthing people, both physically and mentally. 'Their partners may also be profoundly affected. 'As the largest employer in the UK, the NHS is sending a powerful signal that staff going through this experience deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve - and that support is possible, no matter what your workplace looks like.' Health minister Maria Caulfield added: 'Our brilliant NHS workers look after us when we need it most and this new guidance is a positive step towards ensuring they are supported through the tragedy of losing a baby. 'It means doctors, nurses and their partners will now be entitled to additional leave to help process their grief, which is crucial to their long-term mental health and wellbeing.' Ms Caulfield said the framework 'delivers on key recommendations made in the Pregnancy Loss Review' and forms part of the Government's drive to improve women's health through its Women's Health Strategy. The new policy was trialled at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Trust, where a staff survey revealed workers were twice as likely to remain with their employer as a result. Raffaela Goodby, chief people officer at the trust, said: 'I hope this national policy to support mothers and parents with love and compassion at a terrible time in their employment is welcomed across the NHS and drives positive change across the UK.' NHS Wales is has said they will consider offering a similar scheme. No such commitment has yet been made by the health service in Scotland or Northern Ireland. There is no legal right to specific miscarriage leave in the UK though some employers, and now the NHS in England, implement their own policies. The NHS says about one in eight pregnancies end in miscarriage, which is medically defined as the loss of pregnancy during the first 24 weeks. Other estimates put this figure higher, about one in six, as many women in the very early stages of pregnancy may not realise they are expecting when a miscarriage occurs. Tommy's estimates there are 250,000 miscarriages every year in the UK. Stillbirths, medically when a baby is born dead after 24 weeks of pregnancy, are far rarer, roughly occurring in one in every 250 pregnancies. Data shows 2,866 stillbirths were recorded in the UK in 2021. Current patients will still have access to the drugs as well as private prescribers A landmark ruling to ban children from being given puberty blockers on the NHS sparked a row today. Trans campaigners condemned the 'cruel' decision, arguing it would 'irreparably' damage the health of trans youth. Meanwhile, campaigners celebrated the move. One ex-patient given the powerful drugs as a child said it was 'insane' that kids were ever allowed to take them. NHS England revealed last night that it would no longer offer gender-questioning children controversial puberty blockers, saying its review found a lack of evidence on their 'safety or clinical effectiveness'. Puberty blockers, a class of medications called gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues, pause the physical changes of puberty such as breast development or the growth of facial hair. This gave gender dysphoria sufferers time to 'conspire their options' and 'explore their developing gender identity' before potentially starting more permanent forms of treatment like sex hormones, according to now defunct NHS guidance. Keira Bell who previously took the clinic to the High Court, claiming she had not been challenged enough, before being prescribed puberty blockers at just 16 called it 'a step in the right direction' Former patients of the NHS's old Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) at Tavistock who have claimed they were rushed onto the drugs and campaign groups have welcomed the decision Trans campaign organisation TransActual said: 'This is a cruel new element of the war on trans youth. 'It will irreparably damage peoples health, wellbeing and life chances and departs from international medical practice to pursue a political agenda.' The group added the decision would create inequality, with trans youth who can afford to get the drugs privately still allowed to do so. 'The majority of trans young people will now be only able to access blockers via private prescription or on the grey market without medical support, creating inequality between rich and poor trans people and leading to riskier approaches,' they said. How the Tavistock scandal unfolded 2005: Sue Evans, a nurse at Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust's Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), warned that youngsters were being assessed too quickly and their treatment was influenced by transgender rights groups. 2009: GIDS became a national service responsible for treating all children in England with gender and identity issues. Demand skyrocketed, with fewer than 100 patients referred to the clinic in 2010, jumping more than 2,500 by 2018. 2018: A senior member of staff told the trust's board that children were wrongly fast-tracked into changing their gender with the mental health and social reasons behind their wishes being overlooked February 2019: An internal report by Dr David Bell, who was on Tavistock's board, set out how patients were suffering 'long term damage' because GIDS could not 'stand up to the pressure' from 'highly politicised' campaigners and families. February 2019: Consultant psychotherapist Dr Marcus Evans who had worked at the trust for decades and whose wife Sue first raised concerns about its practices in 2005 resigned in protest at the Tavistock's response to doctors who raised the alarm. July 2019: Dr Kirsty Entwhisle, a psychologist at GIDS Leeds hub, went public with accusations that staff misled patients and made decisions about young people's 'bodies and lives' without 'robust evidence'. October 2019: Former GIDS nurse Sue Evans and an anonymous mother of a 15-year-old GIDS patient launched the first legal action against Tavistock. They claimed the trust should not prescribe puberty blockers to children who could not give informed consent. January 2020: Keira Bell, who was prescribed the drugs when she was 16-years-old, replaced Mrs Evans as lead claimant. She underwent breast-removal surgery but regretted transitioning, claiming she was given puberty blockers after 'superficial conversations' with social workers' and was receiving testosterone shots a year later'. December 2020: In response to the claim, the High Court decided that under-16s could not give informed consent to the treatment. 2020: NHS England asks paediatrician Dr Hillary Cass to conduct a review into Tavistock. September 2021: Tavistock appealed the decision and it was overturned by the Court of Appeal, which claimed the previous ruling was 'inappropriate' and placed patients, parents and medics in a 'very difficult position'. September 2021: Sonia Appleby, the trust's safeguarding lead, awarded 20,000 by tribunal after claiming trust managers tried to stop her from carrying out her role when staff raised concerns. January 2021: The UK's health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission, gave GIDS the lowest rating it can, 'inadequate', after finding 'significant concerns' about how it operates. It demanded improvement. March 2022: In an interim report, Dr Cass hit out at the lack of 'open discussion' at the trust about its treatment, which was not subject to quality controls. She found other mental health issues were 'overshadowed' in favour of gender identity issues when children were referred to GIDS. She called for a 'fundamentally different service model' and 'rapid' research on the use of the drugs after she found 'insufficient evidence' on their benefits. July 2022: In a letter to the NHS, Dr Cass called for regional centres to be commissioned for gender identity treatment, with 'strong links' to mental health services and academic hubs that conduct ongoing research. July 2022: The NHS confirmed that GIDS will be replaced by regional centres at existing children's hospitals, which will provide more holistic care with 'strong links to mental health services'. Advertisement Chay Brown, TransActuals director for healthcare added: 'With access to puberty blockers now effectively removed from NHS provision, one could be forgiven for wondering what it is those on the waiting list for children and young peoples gender dysphoria services are actually waiting for.' Some 5,000 children and young people are currently on the waiting list for referral into new NHS gender care clinics. Some have been there for years. NHS England's decision is not an outright ban on the puberty blockers completely, just new routine prescribing. The some 100 children currently on the drugs via the NHS will be allowed to continue their treatment to its conclusion. The health service is also planning to launch a clinical trial using the drugs by the end of the year, meaning they could make an eventual return. It does however mark a major shift in health service policy, with NHS gender care medics previously accused of rushing young people onto potentially lifechanging medication. LGBT charity Stonewall said it was worried about NHS England's decision. 'We are concerned that NHS England will be putting new prescriptions on hold until a new research protocol is up and running, which NHS England have confirmed should be by the end of 2024,' it said. Stonewall also said the decision had the potential to create 'further misunderstanding' about puberty blockers which the charity said are already used for children suffering from early puberty. Mermaids, a transgender youth support charity, described the move as 'deeply disappointing, and a further restriction of support offered to trans children and young people through the NHS'. However, former patients of the NHS's old Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) at Tavistock who have claimed they were rushed onto the drugs, and campaign groups have hailed the decision. Keira Bell, who previously took the clinic to the High Court claiming she had not been challenged enough before being prescribed puberty blockers at just 16, called it 'a step in the right direction'. However, she added more investigations needed to be held on how these drugs were ever considered a safe treatment option in the first place. 'It is insane that these drugs were ever offered on a national publicly funded health service, which is supposed to be entirely evidence-based and a service that provides assured safety and care, she told The Times. 'I am glad that the NHS seems to be regaining its feet, but great damage has already been done.' She said puberty isn't simply a switch that can be turned on or off and delaying it could have permanent effects. 'You're blocking all hormones which would otherwise cause a natural process that is critical to not only your physical development but your cognitive development too. You can't just start the process again,' she said. Dr David Bell, a consultant psychiatrist and Tavistock whistleblower, also previously said the drugs caused 'considerable damage'. Campaign group LGB Alliance, which has called for the end of puberty blocker prescriptions in gender questioning youth for years, also celebrated the ban. Bev Jackson, LGB Alliance co-founder said: 'Since our foundation, LGB Alliance has campaigned tirelessly against this unprecedented medical experimentation on teenagers, most of whom are same-sex attracted. 'Puberty blockers have serious effects including osteoporosis and cognitive impairment, and lead in most cases to cross-sex hormones. 'That means lifelong medicalisation with a host of risks to mental and physical health. 'Historians will look back on the last decade the way we remember the thalidomide and other medical scandals.' Health minister Maria Caulfield said: 'We have always been clear that childrens safety and wellbeing is paramount, so we welcome this landmark decision by the NHS. 'Ending the routine prescription of puberty blockers will help ensure that care is based on evidence, expert clinical opinion and is in the best interests of the child.' But another puberty blocker battle is brewing, with campaigners now having private prescriptions of the drugs in their sights. Former Prime Minister Liz Truss, who welcomed the move, has urged the Government to back her own amendment to widen the puberty blocker ban to private clinics. 'I welcome NHS Englands decision to end the routine prescription of puberty blockers to children for gender dysphoria,' she said. 'I urge the Government to back my Bill on Friday which will reinforce this in law and also prevent these drugs being supplied privately.' Private clinics, including some online outlets, are another way gender questioning youth can get hold of the drugs, and have been used to skip lengthy NHS waiting times in the past. It follows a public consultation on the issue and an interim policy, and comes after NHS England commissioned an independent review in 2020 of gender identity services for children under 18. The review, led by Dr Hilary Cass (pictured), followed a sharp rise in referrals to the Gender Identity Development Service (Gids) run by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, which is closing at the end of March Former prime minister Liz Truss, whose Health and Equality Acts (Amendment) Bill includes a ban on the prescription of body-altering hormones to children questioning their sex, both privately and on the NHS, also said: 'I welcome NHS England's decision to end the routine prescription of puberty blockers to children for gender dysphoria. 'I urge the Government to back my Bill on Friday which will reinforce this in law and also prevent these drugs being supplied privately' Last month, a world-renowned expert who found puberty-blockers can harm children's IQ revealed academics initially dismissed her research as 'biased'. University College London neuropsychologist Professor Sallie Baxendale published a review of the potential impact of the powerful drugs on teens who take them Some outlets sell three-month supply of puberty blocker injections for 270, but cheaper nasal-spray options cost as little as 70 a month. Trans rights campaigns groups have condemned Truss's amendment as 'borrowing directly from the US right' a movement that has led to some states trying to ban adult trans people from transitioning and stop or limit drag shows. Campaigners and whistleblowers have been concerned about the rise of puberty blockers and a lack of evidence surrounding the long-term safety of their use for years. Those fears were given serious grounding by a review, led by Dr Cass, commissioned in 2020. The review was launched following a sharp rise in referrals to GIDS. EXCLUSIVE READ MORE: How influential trans health doctors and activists have secretly shaped NHS policies for more than a decade Advertisement In 2021/22, there were over 5,000 referrals to GIDS, compared to just under 250 a decade earlier. An interim report from Dr Cass in 2022 pointed to a lack of long-term evidence and data collection on what happens to children and young people who are prescribed puberty blockers and called for further research. She wrote at the time: 'To date, there has been very limited research on the short-, medium- or longer-term impact of puberty blockers on neurocognitive development.' Dr Cass added that GIDS hadn't collected routine and consistent data 'which means it is not possible to accurately track the outcomes and pathways that children and young people take through the service. Following the Tavistocks closure, two new NHS services will now open in early April, situated in Londons Great Ormond Street Hospital and Alder Hey Childrens Hospital in Liverpool. The ban on NHS puberty blockers comes after a world-renowned expert who found the drugs can harm children's IQ, revealed last month how academics initially dismissed her research as 'biased'. University College London neuropsychologist Professor Sallie Baxendale published a review of the potential impact of the powerful drugs on teens who take them. Her alarming study highlighted cases where young girls seemingly lost between seven to 15 IQ points while taking the medications. But despite the concerning findings, Professor Baxendale initially struggled to find a publisher for her review. Three separate journals rejected her paper in which she called for 'urgent' research into the impact of the drugs on children's brain functions. Detailing her experiences on UnHerd, Professor Baxendale revealed that anonymous reviewers cast suspicion on her motives and reasons for exploring the subject in the first place. Some even accused her of 'bias' by questioning if puberty blockers were safe and another said her used of terms like 'male' and 'female' showed her 'pre-existing scepticism' on the subject. For more than 70 years, Paul Alexander who died aged 78 this week was kept alive with the help of 'iron lungs'. The spooky contraption, created in the 1920s, allowed him to breathe after he was completely paralysed as a child by polio. It saw him lay flat on his back, with his head resting on a pillow and body encased in the metal cylinder from the neck down. Polio, known medically as poliomyelitis, does not directly damage the lungs. Instead, the virus attacks motor neurons in the spinal cord. As such, it can weaken or sever communication between the central nervous system and the muscles. Your browser does not support iframes. For more than 70 years, Paul Alexander who died aged 78 this week was kept alive with the help of 'iron lungs'. The spooky contraption, created in the 1920s, allowed him to breathe after he was completely paralysed as a child by polio. It saw him lay flat on his back, with his head resting on a pillow and body encased in the metal cylinder from the neck down The lung, which Mr Alexander called his 'old iron horse', saw air sucked out of the cylinder by a set of leather bellows powered by a motor. The negative pressure created by the vacuum forced his lungs to expand. When the air was pumped back in, the change in pressure gently deflated his lungs. It was this rhythmic hiss and sigh sound that kept Mr Anderson alive. In spite of physical constraints, he became an avid painter, traveller and author The ensuing paralysis means that the muscles that make it possible to breathe no longer work. What his diaphragm could no longer do for Mr Alexander, the iron lung did. First used at Boston Children's Hospital to save the life of an eight-year-old girl in 1928, the iron lung was made by a team at Harvard University to counteract paralysis of the chest muscles. It soon became a feature of the polio wards of the mid-1900s, with around 1,000 iron lungs in use in the US and 700 in the UK. The lung, which Mr Alexander called his 'old iron horse', saw air sucked out of the cylinder by a set of leather bellows powered by a motor. The negative pressure created by the vacuum forced his lungs to expand. When the air was pumped back in, the change in pressure gently deflated his lungs. It was this rhythmic hiss and sigh sound that kept Mr Anderson alive. While iron lungs were built to last, they were initially intended to be used for two weeks, to give the body a chance to recover. In an interview with The Guardian in 2020, Mr Alexander revealed that, after three years in the lung, he could leave it for a few hours at a time after learning 'glossopharyngeal breathing'. First used at Boston Children's Hospital to save the life of an eight-year-old girl in 1928, the iron lung was made by a team at Harvard University to counteract paralysis of the chest muscles. It soon became a feature of the polio wards of the mid-1900s, with around 1,000 iron lungs in use in the US and 700 in the UK In an interview with The Guardian in 2020, Mr Alexander revealed that, after three years in the lung, he could leave it for a few hours at a time after learning 'glossopharyngeal breathing'. The technique, which he nicknamed 'frog-breathing', involves taking bigger breaths than you would normally. The gulping action mirrors a frog gulping. He claimed the action quickly became muscle memory and allowed him to leave the lung for short periods, instead sitting in a wheelchair The yellow iron lung, with its black rubber wheels, could be raised to different heights to suit Mr Alexander's caregiver. Pictured, Paul Alexander with his brother Philip. In a heartbreaking Facebook tribute, Philip called his sibling 'loving' and 'also a pain in the as**' The technique, which he nicknamed 'frog-breathing', involves taking bigger breaths than you would normally. The gulping action mirrors a frog gulping. He claimed the action quickly became muscle memory and allowed him to leave the lung for short periods, instead sitting in a wheelchair. But by the end of his life he wasn't able to venture outside the lung for more than five minutes. The yellow iron lung, with its black rubber wheels, could be raised to different heights to suit Mr Alexander's caregiver. Windows at the top allowed them to see inside, while four portholes on the sides let them reach in. A mirror attached above the machine also allowed Mr Alexander to see what was happening around him. To open the machine, which weighed almost 660lbs (300kg), carers must release the seals at the head and slide the user out on the interior bed. In a video posted to TikTok last month with his carer Patricia he also revealed she helps him use the toilet. 'I have to unlock the iron lung that he uses and he uses a urinal and a bed pan when needed,' she told the video, seen more than 5.7million times. At 78, Mr Alexander lived long after the invention of the polio vaccine in the 1950s all but eradicated the disease in the Western world. Pictured, Paul Alexander and Kathy Gaines, his carer of 30 years, who he met from a newspaper advert She added: 'Just like he would be if he was in the hospital but he is at his home, where he belongs.' The last person to use an iron lung in the UK died in December 2017, at the age of 75. At 78, Mr Alexander lived long after the invention of the polio vaccine in the 1950s all but eradicated the disease in the Western world. He outlived both of his parents, his brother and even his original iron lung, which began leaking air in 2015. It was repaired by mechanic Brady Richards after a YouTube video of Mr Alexander pleading for help was uploaded. Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by modern-age ventilators. But Mr Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. People here have a cancer risk of seven times the national average Residents blame their illnesses on pollution from the area's chemical plants Along an 85-mile stretch of road in Louisiana, residents have seven times the cancer risk than the national average, have been diagnosed with chronic health conditions and babies are born underweight at three times the national average. This road between Baton Rouge and New Orleans - on the banks of the Mississippi River - has been dubbed 'Cancer Alley' and the people with houses along it blame the high rates of illnesses on the place they live. The area is home to approximately 200 fossil fuel and petrochemical operations - the largest concentration of these facilities in the western hemisphere. Earlier this year, Human Rights Watch published a report detailing the high rates of disease in the area, which residents have referred to as 'death row.' Along an 85-mile stretch of road in Louisiana , residents have seven times the cancer risk than the national average Janice Ferchaud, 66, underwent a mastectomy after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She attributed her cancer, and the deaths of family members, to the pollution given off from the plants Kaitlyn Joshua, who lives in Ascension parish, has suffered from chronic asthma since childhood The report accuses state and federal regulators of failing to properly monitor the industry and says the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has yet to address the dangers of fossil fuels and does not enforce the minimum standards set by the government to protect the environment and human health. Additionally, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has not monitored if Louisiana is complying with laws and mandates - and as a result is failing to protect the environment and local residents. For years, residents along the road have suffered from higher rates of cancer, reproductive, maternal and newborn health complications, as well as respiratory illnesses. The HRW report found the area in the US with the highest risk of cancer due to industrial air pollution - more than seven times the national average - is located in Cancer Alley. Babies here are born underweight at three times the national average and are born prematurely at 2.5 times the national average. HRW focused on nine parishes in Cancer Alley: Ascension, East Baton Rouge, Iberville, Jefferson, Orleans, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist and West Baton Rouge. Together, these are home to more than 1.56million people. Sharon Lavigne, 71, lives in Welcome, a community in St James Parish, about one hour west of New Orleans along the 85-mile stretch. An industrial plant in Louisianas Cancer Alley, which has the highest concentration of such facilities in the western hemisphere She told HRW: 'Were dying from inhaling the industries pollution. I feel like its a death sentence. Like we are getting cremated, but not getting burnt.' Nearby, 66-year-old Janice Ferchaud underwent a mastectomy after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She told HRW she wants people to know what the residents of Cancer Alley are experiencing. Ms Ferchaud attributed her cancer, and the deaths of family members, to the pollution given off from the plants. Robert Taylor, 83, also a resident along Cancer Alley, spoke of the 'dozens' of family members and friends, including his wife and mother, who have been diagnosed with or died from cancer. Along with neighbors' stories of prostate, liver and breast cancer, mothers spoke about stillbirths, infertility, childhood asthma, bronchitis and chronic sinus infections. Kaitlyn Joshua, who lives in Ascension parish and has suffered from chronic asthma since childhood, told HRW that her doctor said: 'Kaitlyn, its where you live. Its the air quality. Youre going to have to move out of there.' Also from Ascension Parish, Dominic Kruger said: 'Everybody's sick and dying and it just keeps getting worse.' Angie Roberts, 57 years old from St James, has lived in the area for 28 years. In 2019, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. Recently, her doctor found lumps in her other breast and she developed the autoimmune disorder multiple sclerosis. Fossil fuel and petrochemical emissions can increase the risk of autoimmune diseases like MS, according to the report. Ms Roberts said: 'Who would want to live here now? I'm dying here.' Parents also told HRW of keeping their children home from school and indoors because of poor air quality. Louisiana's Cancer Alley is far from the only area where residents are at risk. A Clean Air Task Force report in 2022 found nearly 14 million people in the US were at a heightened risk for cancer as a result of toxic pollutants. Those people across 236 counties in 21 states face a cancer risk exceeding the EPA's one-in-a-million threshold 'level of concern.' In 33 counties, the cancer risk exceeds one-in-250,000 and in three, that risk is one-in-100,000 Breast Cancer Action added when females are exposed to cancer-causing chemicals and hormone-disrupting chemicals, it can influence their risk of breast cancer, especially when exposed during crucial development times, such as puberty. A 2021 Harvard study found more than 8million people died in 2018 as a result from fossil fuel pollution, accounting for 18 percent of worldwide deaths. And, according to the World Health Organization, people who are exposed to air pollution are more likely to suffer from stoke, heart disease, lung cancer, respiratory infections and a myriad of other illnesses. WHO reported environmental air pollution and household air pollution is associated with 7million premature deaths every year. For the report, HRW researchers focused on emissions from plants near playgrounds, schools, senior homes, residences, farms and businesses. Researchers spoke to 37 residents along Cancer Alley between September 2022 and January 2024. Antonia Juhasz, senior fossil fuels researcher at HRW said: 'The fossil fuel and petrochemical industry has created a "sacrifice zone" in Louisiana. 'The failure of state and federal authorities to properly regulate the industry has dire consequences.' In 2022, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment also called these areas in Louisiana 'sacrifice zones' and deemed them among the most polluted and hazardous places on Earth. And at least 19 more facilities are planned for Cancer Alley. In just 2020, two-thirds of all Louisiana's greenhouse emissions were produced by 150 plants in Cancer Alley. Following their findings, HRW researchers urged for local, state and federal authorities to support laws governing fossil fuel or petrochemical plants. Lawmakers should limit the areas where these facilities are built and require that their operators 'implement practices and procedures that protect human rights of frontline communities, including by enacting and effectively enforcing regulations and taking immediate and comprehensive action to deter and remedy violations.' Specifically in Louisiana, the report said the state's Department of Environmental Quality should deny permits to build in communities that are already overburdened by pollution and the EPA should order the facilities to cease operations until they can adhere to standards set by the Clean Air Act. The NHS has come under fire for publishing a new menopause policy that claims: Not everyone who experiences menopause is a woman. Womens right groups today warned the outrageous document will sow confusion and accused NHS England of promoting an activist agenda. The national policy, which will apply to all NHS employees in England, is intended to create a kind and caring culture for women affected by the menopause. It details what help is available to them in the workplace, tells staff how to support their colleagues, and outlines the responsibilities of managers. But campaigners have criticised the use of woke non-sex language such as people affected by the menopause, rather than women. Womens right groups today warned the outrageous document will sew confusion and accused NHS England of promoting an activist agenda A source close to health secretary Victoria Atkins said: The Secretary of State has been crystal clear that biological sex matters and that its important that language - including language used by the NHS - recognises the different biological needs of men and women. The 17-page booklet says: It is important to note that not everyone who experiences menopause is a woman. Transgender, non-binary, and intersex colleagues may also experience menopause and will have specific needs. It comes after successive health secretaries have told the NHS to stop erasing women from its publications and to use sex-based language on its health advice pages, including those on women-specific cancers. A source close to health secretary Victoria Atkins said: The Secretary of State has been crystal clear that biological sex matters and that its important that language - including language used by the NHS - recognises the different biological needs of men and women. That is really not an unreasonable expectation. READ MORE: Menopause 'isn't a disease and is over-medicalised': Experts accuse industry of 'hijacking' discussion about natural change to 'sell services and products' and say celebrities like Davina McCall have 'sensationalised' phenomenon by sharing 'horror stories' HRT prescriptions for menopausal women have soared over the past few years, with 11million items handed out to help deal with symptoms in 2022/23. Experts have put the rise down to the 'Davina effect' and wider awareness of the menopause Advertisement NHS England published the National Menopause People Policy Framework on its website this morning but later removed it, claiming it had been issued when error, when contacted by the Mail. A spokesperson said the document was a draft and the final version would not be published until next month, despite being labelled March 2024 and having a publication approval reference number on it. They were unable to say if the final version would contain the same claims. Fiona McAnena, director of campaigns at Sex Matters, said: Its outrageous to see our national health service, which should be a trusted source of information, promoting an activist agenda that has no place in healthcare. Last year, NHS England was given a clear directive from the former health secretary to return to sex-based language in its communication on public health matters. This new guidance on menopause is the latest example of the NHS deliberately ignoring this instruction and causing confusion particularly for people with learning difficulties or English as a second language. Healthcare is not about identities. All females will experience menopause however they identify, and no male ever will. The term intersex is no longer in common use. Every human is either male or female, and no man born with a disorder of sex development will experience menopause. Heather Binning, from the Women's Rights Network, said: Its important to note that everyone who experiences menopause is a woman and the NHS knows this. Using terms other than women and female confuses health policy and if you make menopause a policy for people, dont be surprised if men suddenly have more of a say in how it is implemented and followed. Its worth noting that gender-neutral inclusive language tends to apply only to womens health. Prostate cancer policies and campaigns for instance, are often quite clearly focused on men and not people". Why is that? It is frustrating that just as menopause is being taken seriously, we are having to be distracted by this incorrect terminology rather than focusing on how we can improve the policies themselves. The document says that bosses will monitor the effectiveness of the policy by counting how many people access support for menopause symptoms, broken down by equality demographics. Woman, breast feeding and vagina all used to be standard terms used within the medical community. But they are just a selection of words that have been replaced by some woke NHS trusts, private hospitals and charities as part of an inclusivity push Its not the first time the health service's handling of communicating the menopause has attracted controversy. Ex-Health Secretary Sajid Javid promised to reverse gender neutral language in NHS advice after MailOnline revealed the term 'women' had been quietly erased from menopause advice in 2022 Managers are told they must attend menopause awareness training and they should consider if a colleagues performance or attendance is flagging that this could be down to the menopause. It gives suggestions on how to help women suffering physical symptoms, such as allowing them to change their uniform, take control of the air conditioning unit or switching to a desk near a window. An NHS England spokesperson said: This draft guidance was briefly published in error - the NHS is working on an updated policy for staff on menopause, which will reflect clinical guidance and the law. How dare you say 'women'! From chestfeeding to bonus hole, how woke gender-neutral language is sweeping the NHS and medical world 'Chestfeeding', 'second biological parent', and 'bonus hole' are just some gender-neutral terms that have swept the medical profession. Proponents of such woke phrases claim they are more inclusive to trans patients, who might be triggered by biological terms like 'breast' or 'vagina'. But experts have raised alarm over the movement, warning it is overcomplicating vital health messaging. Health Secretary Steve Barclay has promised to reverse the tide of 'ideological' inclusive language in the NHS. Here, MailOnline has collected examples of gender-neutral language that have swept the world of healthcare: The term chestfeeding is used throughout the page with the term 'breast' omitted. Breastmilk likewise has been replaced with 'milk from the chest' Breastfeeding - chestfeeding The NHS website's page on chestfeeding, under its 'Having a baby if you're LGBT+' section, is targeted at trans and non-binary patients who have given birth. It makes no mention of breasts and refers to breast reduction operations as 'top surgery'. The page has been criticised as 'ideological' and accused of 'normalising' a potentially dangerous chest-binding technique. An April 2022 report from the LGBT Foundation said 'traditional' terminology around breastfeeding 'may induce dysphoria or discomfort for trans and non-binary parents', who may prefer the term chestfeeding to breastfeeding. The Government-funded report urged the NHS to use inclusive language and not 'guess the language someone might use to describe themselves based on how they look or sound, or who they are in a relationship with'. READ MORE: NHS managers are told not to offer sympathy to female colleagues worried about sharing toilets with biological men in woke handbook Advertisement Breast milk - human milk Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust began referring to breastmilk as 'human milk' in official guidance in February 2021. In a web page, it unveiled 'gender inclusive' phrases it wanted its staff to use. These included terms like 'human milk' rather than 'breast milk' to avoid offending transgender people. At the time, the Trust which has since merged to become University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust said using 'gender inclusive' phrases was part of a drive to stamp out 'mainstream transphobia'. The move was welcomed by inclusivity campaigners at the time, with the group TransActual tweeted: 'This is fantastic, well done. Let's hope many more trusts follow suit. Everybody deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.' The guidance, titled Gender Inclusive Language in Perinatal Services, has since been taken down. Expectant mothers - pregnant people During the height of the pandemic, an NHS Trust sparked a row by calling expectant mothers 'pregnant people'. NHS East of England tweeted a quote in May 2021 from one of their antenatal and newborn screening coordinators which said: 'Our job is to implement all the screening programs for pregnant people and their newborn babies.' The post from triggered a debate at the time, with one person writing on social media: 'Pregnant women. Fixed it for you.' Another tweeted: 'Women! Pregnant women. Stop this nonsense.' In the document it asks 'patients of childbearing potential' for the date their last menstrual period started Cromwell Hospital (pictured) has come under fire after referring to women as 'patients of childbearing potential' Father - parent, co-parent or second biological parent In its February 2021 guidance, Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust called for the term 'father' to be replaced. It suggested using 'parent', 'co-parent' or 'second biological parent', depending on the circumstances. However, it said the language changes do not always apply when talking with patients one-on-one, as wording should then 'reflect the gender identity of the individual'. Maternity service - perinatal service Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals Trust became the first in the country to formally implement a 'gender inclusive' overhaul in February 2021. Under the move, its maternity services department was deemed too gendered and instead renamed as 'perinatal services'. Perinatal care is a broad term for the treatment a woman receives both while she is pregnant and for the 12 months after she gives birth. Here are some examples of the woke language changes that have engulfed NHS communications. Some of these examples have been taken from national NHS communications while others are used by individual hospitals Mother - birthing people or birthing parent An NHS Trust used the term 'birthing people' instead of 'mothers'. NHS Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust said it was seeking 'birthing people' to provide feedback on its perinatal services in a social media post last August. But the Trust, which specialises in mental health treatment, was accused of leaving biological females out of the conversation by its failure to use the terms 'women' or 'mothers' in its communications. Some members of the public called it 'dehumanising' and 'dangerous nonsense'. Similar language trickled through to midwifery degrees over the last year. At the University of Bradford, an internal document detailing the course specifications for midwives who trained in 2022/23 refers to 'childbearing people' four times and 'birthing people' eight times. In contrast, the word 'women' is mentioned just three times in the 11-page document, while 'mother' is not mentioned at all. At Cumbria University, all references to mothers on the course description for students who started in 2022/23 were replaced with 'birthing parents'. The midwifery course pages at Kingston and Cardiff universities also talk about 'birthing people' and 'pregnant people' respectively, although they do also mention 'women'. Vagina - bonus hole A charity suggested the vagina could be referred to as 'the bonus hole' to avoid upsetting non-binary or trans men. Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust featured the term on a page for health professionals who are treating patients suffering from the disease. The trust insisted it was not suggesting the term should be used by all women but added it was important to reach trans men and non-binary people. But female rights campaigners last month rounded on the alternative glossary, branding it both 'misogynistic' and 'utterly dehumanising'. NHS Digital has now partially amended the webpage to include the word 'women' once at the end Vaginal birth - frontal birth or lower birth The term 'vaginal birth' was labelled gender-loaded by the LGBT Foundation in an April 2022 report. The document, based on a survey of 121 trans Brits on their experience of pregnancy, recommended that healthcare staff use 'frontal' or 'lower birth' instead. The charity also said some trans and non-binary people would benefit from having a private space in hospitals to give birth, so that they are not made uncomfortable by seeing women. It detailed the experience of one trans person, who said: 'I didn't have to go to a ward full of women after giving birth, I was actually provided with a private room for me and baby which was very helpful and accommodating for me and my gender identity.' Woman - patient of childbearing age, anyone who has a cervix, period or ovaries, people who know they are pregnant In another example of wokery, NHS advice pages about women's health were found to have quietly scrubbed the word 'women'. An early version of the NHS menopause page described it as being 'when a woman stops having periods and is no longer able to get pregnant naturally'. But this was quietly changed in May last year to: 'Menopause is when your periods stop due to lower hormone levels.' However, in an update the term 'women' features again. The advice now states that the menopause 'usually affects women between the ages of 45 and 55'. Another web page on ovarian cancer used to state it was 'one of the most common types of cancer for women'. But it was updated in February 2022 to state 'women, trans men, non-binary people and intersex people with ovaries' can be affected. Like the menopause page this was updated following outrage over the changes to have the term women reintroduced. The health service also came under fire for removed references to 'women' from its pages about miscarriages. Its site swapped 'women who know they're pregnant' with 'people who know they are pregnant'. In June last year the NHS reinstated the word 'women' on the page after receiving a barrage of criticism. In a case in August this year, Cromwell Hospital in London, which is not part of the NHS, was criticised for asking 'patients of a childbearing potential' if they could be pregnant rather than stating 'women'. Women - 'people who bleed' A taxpayer funded health information page on periods was harshly criticised last year for omitting women and girls and instead referring to 'people who bleed'. The 84,000 guidance on periods was published by Bloody Brilliant, an online resource commissioned by the devolved Labour Government and NHS Wales. It was set up in 2021 with the aim of 'breaking the taboo around periods by encouraging conversation on one of the most normal, natural topics'. The website consisted of half a dozen period-related topics, including the science behind menstruation, advice about using period products such as tampons, and how to support those going through the process. But it failed to mention women or girls once in its guidance, instead being described as 'anyone with a uterus'. In a section about ending period stigma, the website says: 'No more hiding, covering up or awkward euphemisms, we need some straight-talking.' Medics and campaigners described the language as 'infuriating' and 'confusing', warning it would complicate health messaging for vulnerable girls. Bloody Brilliant, an NHS commissioned website designed to provide information about periods and bust stigma surrounding menstruation, has been slammed for refusing to mention 'women' and 'girls', instead referring to 'people who bleeds' After MailOnline exposed the story, the branch of NHS Wales responsible for the advice confirmed the language would be changed to include 'women' and 'girls'. 'We want Bloody Brilliant to be a resource that is authentic and relevant to our audience and so we have listened carefully to recent feedback on our use of language,' NHS Wales Health Collaborative said in a statement. 'Having considered a wide spectrum of views, we will be making some changes to include referring to young women and girls rather than "people who bleed".' Menstruation is a process unique to biological females and trans women cannot have one. READ MORE: Most women don't know breast cancer symptoms apart from lumps Olivia Munn has credited her doctor for 'saving her life' after spotting her breast cancer - which was missed by a genetic test and mammogram. The actress, 43, revealed Wednesday that she was diagnosed with the disease just two months after being given the all-clear from a mammogram and DIY genetic testing, which claimed to detect 90 genes linked to cancer. However, when her OBGYN calculated her disease risk, partly based on her family history of the disease, she feared that Munn had one in three chance of developing the disease and sent her for further testing. That led to Munn being diagnosed with luminal B breast cancer in both breasts at an early stage. She was then given a double mastectomy to prevent the cancer from spreading to other parts of the body, when it becomes deadly. Doctors told DailyMail.com that while mammograms are considered the gold-standard for detecting breast cancer, the scans can still miss as many as one in eight cases due to various factors, including how small the tumors are and how dense the woman's breasts are. Dr Christoph Lee, a professor of radiology specializing in breast cancer screening at the University of Washington, told DailyMail.com that, 'missing tumors on mammograms is uncommon,' as the test can usually detect 87 percent of them. Olivia Munn has revealed she was diagnosed with luminal B breast cancer last year - having undergone four surgeries in the last 10 months. She credited her OBGYN (here) for 'saving my life' Munn initially had a mammogram, which came back negative two months before her cancer diagnosis Additionally, up to 70 percent of tumors could go unnoticed if a woman has particularly dense breasts, which makes it difficult to detect masses in the X-ray scans. Experts also said that at-home genetic tests like 23andMe and Ancestry aimed at finding genes linked to cancer should not be to test for cancer itself. Munn revealed that she had taken a commercial genetic test in February 2023 that was billed as being able to spot 90 genes linked to cancer. She claimed that hers came back negative for all of the genes, including BRCA, which has the strongest link to breast cancer and has also been dubbed the Angelina Jolie gene. She also had a mammogram that winter, which came back negative. It's unclear if Munn was experiencing symptoms or was just receiving routine screening every other year, which health officials recommend women begin doing at age 40. 'Two months later I was diagnosed with breast cancer,' she said on Instagram. Despite the negative test, Munn's OBGYN decided to calculate her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score. What is Luminal B breast cancer? Only about 10 percent of breast cancer cases are Luminal B Luminal B breast cancers are faster growing, more aggressive and more challenging to treat than other common subtypes But symptoms are similar, including: Lump or mass in the breast Swelling in part of or the whole breast Dimples in the breast skin Pain in the breast or nipple Source: Cancer Center Advertisement The doctor determined that based on her age, family history, and the fact that she had her first child after age 40, the actress had a 37 percent risk of developing the disease. 'The fact that she did saved my life,' Munn said. Based on that score, Munn was then sent for a breast MRI and ultrasound, which revealed luminal B cancer in both breasts. Just 30 days later, she had them removed. Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in both the US and the world. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) estimates there will be more than 300,000 new cases this year, along with 43,700 deaths. Death rates have plummeted 43 percent between 1989 and 2020, after successful public health awareness campaigns, better screening and new drugs. And nine in 10 patients are expected to survive after five years. Luminal B breast cancer starts in the inner (luminal) lining of the mammary ducts, which are thin tubes in the breast that carry milk from the breast to the nipple. This form of the disease accounts for about 10 to 20 percent of breast cancer cases and is considered more aggressive than other forms. According to the Susan G Komen Foundation, women with luminal B tumors are often diagnosed at a younger age. Over 98 percent of those with tumors diagnosed locally - before spreading - are expected to survive after four years. Once the cancer spreads to other areas, that rate drops to 46 percent. The above graph shows the changes in breast cancer screenings (black line) since 2017 by month. It also shows a predicted screening rate (yellow dotted line) and the Covid infection rate (blue line) in the US over the same period. Screenings were initially steady but dropped in the first year of the pandemic by as much as 14 percent A mammogram is a type of x-ray that involves placing the breasts between metal plates to flatten them and get images from above and from the sides Your browser does not support iframes. A mammogram is considered the 'gold standard' for diagnosing breast cancer. This is a type of x-ray that involves placing the breasts between metal plates to flatten them and get images from above and from the sides. Currently, all women over age 40 are advised to get a mammogram every two years. However, the test is not always completely accurate. In fact, the American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that mammograms miss one in eight cancers. 'Mammography is the standard of care in terms of breast cancer screening, and it's actually a highly sensitive test,' Dr Lee said. 'The sensitivity in the United States is about 87 percent, which means that 87 percent of the time, if breast cancer is present, a radiologist is able to detect it.' However, the test cannot detect everything. In fact, the American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that mammograms miss one in eight cancers. Dr Melissa Durand, a radiologist specializing in breast imaging at Yale School of Medicine, said in a university blog post: 'With conventional mammography, while we can be as accurate as 98% in a fatty breast, our sensitivity can drop to as low as 30% in women with extremely dense breasts.' Breasts are made up of fatty, glandular, and connective tissues, and breast density is a measure of how much dense tissue (glandular and connective) there is compared to less dense (fatty). Breasts are put into four categories: A, B, C, and D. Several at-home genetic tests claim to detect cancer genes from spit and urine samples. However, doctors caution that they cannot predict cancer risk Olivia, who is mom to two-year-old son Malcolm Hiep (pictured), said that she had both breasts removed 30 days after her diagnosis Those in the A group have almost entirely fatty tissues, while B have scattered areas of dense tissue. C breasts contain more dense than fatty tissue, and D are considered 'extremely dense.' According to the NCI, about 50 percent of American women have dense breasts. Breast density is often inherited, though having a low body mass index (BMI) or taking menopausal hormone drugs can increase density. However, aging and having children can lead to fattier breasts. Dr Lee noted that breast density is measured during a woman's first mammogram, so she would not know if she has this until she undergoes testing. 'Women with dense breasts have a higher risk of breast cancer than women with fatty breasts,' the NCI states. 'This risk is separate from the effect of dense breasts on the ability to read a mammogram.' It's unclear if Munn's cancer was missed due to dense breasts or another factor. 'Unfortunately, about 13 percent are mammography occult, meaning that they're not visible on the x-ray images of a mammogram,' Dr Lee said. These tend to be smaller tumors, as well as those masked by dense breasts. Munn also said that prior to her mammogram, she used an at-home genetic test that claims to detect up to 90 cancer genes. 23andMe and Ancestry are two of the most popular ones, though it's unclear if she used either of those or a different method. However, Dr Lee cautioned against using one of these tests as the sole method of determining your breast cancer risk, whether you are positive for these genes or not. 'A genetic test doesn't tell you your exact risk for breast cancer. Only a very small proportion of breast cancers are due to genetic mutations like braca one or bracket two,' he said. 'The vast majority of breast cancers are found in women with no history of breast cancer in their family, and no genetic mutations.' If you are experiencing breast cancer symptoms - such as a lump, change in breast shape, flaky skin around the nipple, and inverted nipple - and have a negative mammogram, Dr Lee recommended getting a diagnostic mammogram or breast ultrasound. Diagnostic mammograms are typically done in women with breast cancer symptoms and can include additional views that are not part of screening mammograms. An ultrasound, meanwhile, uses sound waves to show breast changes and cysts. He also noted that those with a primary family history of the disease, such as a mother or sister, should consider risk assessment and genetic testing to see if they would benefit from screening MRI. 'It is important to get breast cancer risk assessment with your OBGYN or a primary care physician,' he said. Teenagers should get between eight and ten hours of sleep every night, but 80 percent of them fall short. The National Sleep Foundations annual survey gave teenagers an F grade for practicing healthy sleep behaviors, which is impacting their mental health. Good sleep hygiene and mental health are inextricably linked, each one influencing the other. Bad sleep typically leads to depressive symptoms, and depression often contributes to bad sleep. More than a third of teens have reported feeling depressed, and nearly three-quarters of them say that sleeping poorly worsened their mental health. At the same time, the vast majority of teens who slept well reported minimal to no depression symptoms. John Lopos, CEO of the National Sleep Foundation, said that amid Americas current youth mental health crisis, 'it's important to put more evidence behind the strong connection with sleep, especially in our kids.' Less than a fifth of teenagers are getting the recommended eight to 10 hours of sleep everynight. Those who scored the lowest in terms of sleep health and satisfaction were most likely to report feeling depressed The Sleep Health Index measures sleep health based on three metrics - sleep quality, sleep duration, and disordered sleep. A 90 to 100 is equivalent to an A grade. A B is any score from 80 to 89, while a C grade runs from 70 to 79. A D grade falls between 60 and 69, while an F is anything less than 60 The Sleep Foundation used a variety of questionnaires and indices to gauge teens sleep behaviors and their mental health, including the Sleep Health Index, which produces scores from 0 to 100 based on sleep quality, sleep duration, and disordered sleep. This year is the first that the Sleep Health Index (SHI) has been used in teens. A 90 to 100 on its 0-100 scale was equivalent to an A grade. A B is any score from 80 to 89, while a C grade is any score from 70 to 79. A D grade falls between 60 and 69, while an F is anything less than 60. Nineteen percent of teens scored an A for sleep health, 27 percent a B, 25 percent a C, 14 percent a D, and 15 percent an F. Dr Zaid Fadul, medical director at online mental health provider Better U, told Fox: 'It's deeply concerning that such a significant portion of teens are not getting the sleep they need, which undoubtedly impacts their academic performance, emotional health and overall quality of life.' The survey also found that 73 percent of teens said their emotional well-being was negatively impacted when they slept less than usual. This includes 15 percent who reported a very negative impact and 58 percent who reported a negative one. Just 27 percent said there was no negative impact on their emotional well-being when they slept less than usual. Those who reported being satisfied with their sleep overall were far more apt than teens dissatisfied with their sleep to report minimal or no depressive symptoms Authors of the report said: The SHI is closely associated with depressive symptoms in that as sleep health increased, levels of depressive symptoms decreased. The survey also measured teens satisfaction with the amount of sleep they get and its link to depressive symptoms. One in four was somewhat or very dissatisfied with the duration and quality of their sleep. And those teens were over five times more likely to report moderate-to-severe depressive symptoms than teens who were satisfied with their sleep. Poor sleep can lead to poor mental health, but the inverse is true as well. A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that in 2021, the last year for which there is complete data, 10.2 percent of high school students said they had attempted to take their own lives in the past year, up from around eight percent in 2019 The CDC also found that 30 percent of high schoolers said they had poor mental health 'most of the time.' For girls, the figure was even higher 40 percent. The mental health crisis is partly driven by near-constant exposure to social media, on top of the lingering effects of Covid-era shutdowns which forced young people to stay inside, isolated from their social circles. Authors of the report said: As the US continues to face a mental health crisis, teens are in a particularly unenviable position, facing unique challenges and with unique sleep needs. An energy company boss has called for an urgent ban on old-style pre-payment energy meters, saying they leave the most vulnerable at risk of fuel poverty. Utilita Energy chief executive Bill Bullen called for regulator Ofgem to stop energy companies installing any more of the devices, which require users to visit a shop to top up their credit. As many as 4.5 million households in the UK still use 1970s-style key and card pay as you go meters, Utilita said. Outdated: Legacy prepayment energy meters require consumers to top up their credit at designated top-up points More modern pre-pay meters are 'smart-enabled', allowing top-ups online or via an app - but legacy devices still require users to head to a top-up point, such as a post office or local shop, in order to load their key or card with money. If they run out of credit and emergency credit, consumers using legacy meters can find their energy cut off until they purchase more. In 2022, more than 3.2 million households ran out of credit, according to Citizens Advice. This can be a particular problem for pensioners or disabled people, who can not so easily top up their meter. In January, an inquest found that 80-year-old Bernadette Faulkner died after falling from a ladder while trying to top up her meter. Bullen said those in fuel poverty suffer more under traditional prepayment meters. Fuel poverty is defined as a household needing to spend 10 per cent or more of their income in order to heat their home to an adequate temperature. Inadequate action: Bill Bullen says consumers are 'suffering in silence' The outdated meters also mean that consumers are unable to effectively track their energy usage. During the energy crisis, they had to use a voucher system to access bill support payments from the Government. Bullen said: 'Im calling on the regulator to introduce an immediate ban on the installation of old-style meters, and to mandate suppliers to prioritise smart meter installations for prepayment households to stop the suffering in silence.' Since 2023, those on pre-payment meters have received government-backed discounts to ensure they don't pay more than those on direct debit. However, higher energy costs in the winter can still make it more difficult for users to budget. Bullen has lobbied for a ban on old-style pay-as-you-go meters since 2014, but said the lack of action is worsening the suffering of those that are hit hardest. Energy suppliers are also able to shift some customers from a standard meter to a pre-payment meter if they are in debt to them and refuse to speak to their energy supplier. This became more common during the cost of living crisis as more people fell behind on their energy bills, and was banned for a period. Ofgem is clear that fitting a prepayment meter without a customer's consent should only be a last resort, and energy firms have to make at least 10 attempts to contact a customer before a pre-payment meter is installed. A spokesperson for Ofgem said: 'Licence conditions are clear that all suppliers should install a smart meter if a meter needs to be replaced, or installed for the first time, unless there is a good reason not to. 'We wrote to suppliers earlier this year to raise our concerns about the slow progress of installations for smart prepayment meters, and the potential impact of that on vulnerable households. We also outlined in our letter that we expect a greater focus from suppliers in delivering smart prepayment meters to consumers, ensuring they are not left at a disadvantage.' An aid ship loaded with some 200 tons of food set sail for Gaza on Tuesday in a pilot program for the opening of a sea corridor to the territory, where the 5-month Israel-Hamas war has driven hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the brink of starvation. The push to get food in by sea along with a recent campaign of airdrops into isolated northern Gaza highlighted the international community's frustration with the growing humanitarian crisis and its inability to get aid in by road. The food on the aid ship was collected by World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres, and is being transported by the Spanish aid group Open Arms. The ship departed from the eastern Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus and is expected to arrive in Gaza in two to three days. The United States separately plans to construct a sea bridge near Gaza in order to deliver aid, but it will likely be several weeks before it is operational. President Joe Biden's administration has provided crucial military aid for Israel while urging it to facilitate more humanitarian access. The war, triggered by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on Israel, has killed over 31,000 Palestinians and driven most of Gaza's 2.3 million people from their homes. A quarter of Gaza's population is starving, according to the United Nations, because they cannot find enough food or afford it at vastly inflated prices. Efforts by U.S., Qatar and Egypt to broker a cease-fire and hostage release before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan stalled as Hamas demanded that any temporary pause in the fighting come with guarantees for ending the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to expand the offensive into the strip's southern city of Rafah, where half of Gaza's population has sought refuge, and to keep fighting until Hamas has been dismantled and all the captives it is holding have been returned. The war threatens to spill across the Middle East as Iran-backed groups allied with Hamas trade fire with U.S. and Israeli forces. The Israeli military said around 100 projectiles were launched into Israel from Lebanon early on Tuesday, one of the biggest barrages since the war began. It appeared to be in response to Israeli airstrikes deep inside Lebanon the day before. A pair of Israeli airstrikes Tuesday in northeastern Lebanon killed at least two people and wounded 20. Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group have traded fire nearly every day since the war began. The Israeli military said it also hit two targets in Syria used by Hezbollah. Aid groups say it is nearly impossible to deliver aid in much of Gaza because of Israeli restrictions, ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of order after the Hamas-run police force largely vanished from the streets. Conditions are especially dire in northern Gaza, which has widespread devastation and has been largely cut off by Israeli forces since October. Up to 300,000 Palestinians are believed to have remained there despite Israeli evacuation orders, with many reduced to eating animal feed in recent weeks. On Monday, the first day of the normally festive month of Ramadan , children with pots lined up at a charity kitchen in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp. Each was given a small portion of cooked carrots and sweet potatoes to break the dawn-to-dusk fast. Our children can't find anything to eat," said Bassam al-Haw, a volunteer. "No food, no water, no flour. Six humanitarian aid trucks brought aid directly into northern Gaza on Tuesday evening, coordinated by the Israeli military, which called it a pilot program to determine if additional food can be brought overland into the north. The military said the aid was checked at Israels Kerem Shalom crossing near Egypt and brought into Gaza at the 96th gate crossing, which is close to Kibbutz Beeri. The World Food Program delivered food into northern Gaza on Tuesday for the first time since Feb. 20, according to the United Nations. After being checked at Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing, the military said six humanitarian aid trucks brought WFP aid into Gaza at the 96th gate crossing, close to Kibbutz Beeri. Aid groups have been struggling to get aid to the isolated area for months, although some private convoys have managed to deliver food. The World Health Organization and others delivered food, fuel and medical supplies Monday to two hospitals in the north, the U.N. said. The planned sea route has the support of the European Union, the U.S., the United Arab Emirates and others. The U.S. and other countries have also launched airdrops, but such efforts are costly and unlikely to meet the mounting needs. The United Nations welcomed the inauguration of the sea route, but reiterated that transporting aid by land is the best way to get the most aid into Gaza. The Open Arms ship is towing a barge loaded with food. Once it nears Gaza, two smaller vessels will tow the barge to a jetty being built by World Central Kitchen, which operates 65 kitchens across the territory, the group said. It plans to distribute the food in the north. The best security is to have enough food in Gaza, Andres said. We want to make sure nothing happens to anybody. Scores of Palestinians were killed last month during a chaotic aid delivery in the north organized by Israeli troops, who fired on the crowd. Israel said most of those killed were trampled to death, while Palestinian officials said most had been shot. Israel, which controls Gaza's coastline and all but one of its land crossings, says it supports efforts to deliver aid by sea and will inspect all cargo shipments. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it was the first time a ship had been authorized to deliver aid directly to Gaza since 2005 and that the EU would work with smaller ships until the U.S. completes work on its floating port. Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos said during a visit to Beirut that there is a mechanism in place for larger shipments, with the goal of "a more systematic exercise with increased volumes. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel in a surprise attack on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Gazas Health Ministry says the Israeli offensive launched in response has killed at least 31,185 Palestinians. The ministry doesnt differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said women and children make up around two-thirds of the dead. Israel blames the civilian death toll on Hamas because the militants fight in dense, residential areas. The military has said it has killed 13,000 Hamas fighters, without providing evidence. A strike on a home in the central city of Deir al-Balah early on Tuesday killed 11 people from the same family, including four women and five children, according to hospital records and an Associated Press reporter who saw the bodies brought in. (AP) The profits and share prices of the countrys major insurance companies are booming as they impose ever-higher premiums on customers. But its not just the insurers that are reaping the rewards of this premium bonanza the Government is also rubbing its hands in glee. Figures released by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) in response to the Chancellor of the Exchequers Budget show that the taxes the Government is generating from insurance premiums are currently higher than from much despised inheritance tax. Stealth grab: The taxes the Government is generating from insurance premiums are currently higher than from much despised inheritance tax The current revenue from insurance premium tax (IPT) levied on sales of most types of insurance cover stands at a staggering 8.2 billion a year 0.6 billion more than the tax raid on family inheritances, and not far behind the tax obtained from tobacco sales (8.8 billion). In very simple terms, the bigger premiums that insurers charge their customers, the greater the Governments tax-take. In the tax year ending April 2023, IPT receipts totalled 7.5billion while ten years ago, in the tax year ending April 2014, they were just a tad over 3billion. Furthermore, according to the OBR, the annual tax grab from IPT will continue to rise over the next five years to 8.8 billion in the tax year ending April 2029. Why insurance premium tax needs to change Its a win-win for insurers and the money men at the Treasury and it is a situation that is beginning to anger pressure groups representing the elderly and the financially challenged. They ALL believe the regressive tax is unfair on those with low incomes and stretched household finances. Some also passionately argue that the Government has deliberately turned a blind eye to rampant insurance premiums because higher prices mean a greater tax-take. IPT is currently charged at 12 per cent on mainstream policies such as household, motor, private medical and pet cover. Some covers, such as travel insurance, attract a 20 per cent charge. Rather than absorb the tax themselves, insurers automatically add it on to customers bills. Insurance Premium Tax IPT was introduced 30 years ago by John Majors Conservative government. The initial levy was just 2.5 per cent, so an annual premium of 100 would attract a tax charge of 2.50 and an overall bill of 102.50. But successive Chancellors of the Exchequer since 1994 have ratcheted up the cost. The current 12 per cent standard rate was introduced in January 2017 while the 20 per cent higher rate band came in at January 2011. It applies to travel insurance, electrical goods cover and car insurance that is bought through a dealership. Insurances that are exempt from the tax include health policies such as life insurance, critical illness cover and income protection, too. Although more than four in five households pay the tax, two thirds of people have little or no knowledge of it, even though it is spelt out in documents they receive when they take out or renew cover. The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has dubbed it the countrys hidden-in-plain-sight tax. The ABI hoped that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt would cut IPT in last weeks Budget, arguing that the tax penalises people and businesses for being responsible. It even designed its own campaigning mascot Snippy (a pair of scissors with eyes) to press for the cut. But Snippy failed to win over Mr Hunt. Yet, in the wake of the Chancellors Budget, it hasnt stopped a glut of financial experts from still calling for the tax to be revamped or lowered sooner rather than later. Public purse: The current revenue from insurance premium tax levied on sales of most types of insurance cover stands at a staggering 8.2bn a year James Daley, director of money campaigning group Fairer Finance, says that now is the right time for the Government to look at changes to IPT. He told Money Mail yesterday: A growing number of people are struggling to afford insurance cover, particularly car insurance which is mandatory. People rely on their car to get to work, shop and take children to school. I think its down to the Government to take action to support struggling families and pensioners and cuts to IPT are an easy way to do that. The latest data from comparison website Confused.com shows that the average cost of car insurance is now 995 58 per cent higher than a year ago. Prices, the firm says, are at their highest level since it started compiling data 18 years ago. Both the young and old are bearing the brunt of this surge in premiums. Mr Daleys view is shared by Ian Hughes, of insurance consultancy Consumer Intelligence. IPT is a tax on some of the most vulnerable members of society those who are young or who have had insurance claims and are now paying more for cover, he says. There must be a more equitable way for the Government to raise cash. Dennis Reed is director of Silver Voices, a campaign group representing the elderly. He does not mince his words. It is shocking that the taxman is reaping the financial benefits of the rapacious gains currently being made by insurers, he told Money Mail. Instead of smugly pocketing these tax revenues, the Government should be clamping down on the unjustifiable hikes in premiums being imposed on many elderly people, especially those who drive well into their 70s. He added: The costs of all forms of insurance are becoming prohibitive and leaving vulnerable people financially exposed. This issue needs to be addressed, even if it means less revenue for the Treasury. Driving costs: The latest data from comparison website Confused.com shows that the average cost of car insurance is now 995 58% higher than a year ago How insurance premiums have rocketed A regulatory crackdown on home and car insurance pricing was launched just over two years ago by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The aim was to ensure loyal customers no longer paid more for their policy at renewal than someone buying identical cover from the same insurer for the first time. Although it said the move would save policyholders 4.2 billion over the next ten years, all the evidence so far suggests otherwise. Over the past year, average premiums for home and car insurance have leapt by 41 per cent (according to Consumer Intelligence) and 58 per cent respectively resulting in record amounts of IPT flowing into the Treasurys coffers. As Money Mail has repeatedly highlighted since the FCAs rules came in at the beginning of 2022, the only way most policyholders have been able to keep insurance costs vaguely under control is by shopping around or trimming the breadth of their cover. The insurance industrys rude financial health was highlighted six days ago when Admiral Group reported 2023 profits of 443 million, a 22 per cent increase on the year before. Admirals UK brands include Diamond, Elephant and Veygo. The numbers prompted investment bank Berenberg to paint a rosy future for the insurer, forecasting a step up in profits over the next two years to about 760 million. Shares in Admiral, a FTSE100-listed company, have now risen 43 per cent over the past year. Rival Direct Line a group comprising insurance brands Churchill and Privilege has also attracted bid interest from Belgian rival Ageas. Although all the experts contacted by Money Mail back a reduction in IPT on fairness grounds, some believe it will be a hard task to achieve. As one said: I want to support consumers paying less for insurance through the abolition of IPT, but I cant hear anyone suggesting how this Government or for that matter the next one finds the 8 billion a year it would cost. The Treasury said it kept all taxes under review, but reform leading to any loss in tax revenue would have to be fiscally balanced to maintain economic stability. It added: Insurance premium tax, which contributes 8 billion a year towards vital public services, forms just one part of the overall cost of insurance and the extent to which it is passed on to customers is a decision for insurers. Other factors affecting the price of insurance include the level of competition in the market. Do you think insurance premium tax should be scrapped? Email: jeff.prestridge@dailymail.co.uk Metro Bank has confirmed 1,000 staff will be axed by mid-April as part of the lender's 80million cost-cutting drive. Towards the end of last year, Metro Bank said around 800 jobs were under review following 'further evaluation of the cost base'. The lender's cost cutting drive followed a balance sheet crisis last year that saw Metro Bank finally secure fresh financing and a debt refinancing package, amid fears for its survival. On Wednesday, Metro Bank said it was on track to deliver 50million of annualised cost savings in the first quarter of 2024, primarily due to the departure of the staff, which comprise 22 per cent of its workforce, by mid-April. A further 30million of annualised cost savings is expected to be delivered by the end of 2024, the lender added. Chief executive Daniel Frumkin cautioned that further cost cuts would 'inevitably' lead to more jobs going. Job cuts: Metro Bank has confirmed 1,000 staff will be axed by mid-April as part of a 80million cost-cutting drive. The number of job losses is higher than previously suggested Metro Bank said the' exits agreed' resulted in 43million of annual savings. A cost-cutting drive helped Metro Bank narrow its annual loss last year, new results showed on Wednesday. The bank's underlying pre-tax loss came in at 16.9million for 2023, against a loss of 50.6million in 2022. The group saw cash outflows stabilise towards the end of the year after an eleventh-hour capital injection. Deposits grew by 1 per cent from June to 15.62billion by 31 December. The lender confirmed it had also reduced branch opening hours this year. From 29 March, all 76 branches will no longer open on Sundays or bank holidays and opening hours will be cut following a review launched last autumn. The group said that the bulk of its branches, 44 sites, will only be open five days a week, from Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 5pm. The remaining 32 stores will be open six days a week, from 9.30am to 5pm on Monday to Friday, and 11am to 4pm on Saturdays. Cutting costs: Metro Bank chief executive Daniel Frumkin cautioned that further cost cuts would 'inevitably' lead to more jobs going Frumkin said: 'During the year we also launched a cost saving plan which included reducing store hours and roles across the organisation. 'These efforts will ensure the bank is right-sized for the future, with a strong focus on both digital and great customer service.' The lender added: 'Whilst we have reduced our store opening hours in 2024, we remain committed to maintaining a physical presence and ensuring that stores remain both accessible and at the heart of local communities.' Metro Bank said it was working to identify sites for new branches in the north of England. The group said locations being prioritised were aimed at its support Metro Banks SME, commercial and corporate banking operations. It said: 'Further store openings in the north of England will predominantly focus on out-of-town locations with parking which are easier for businesses to access and can serve larger populations.' However, it added that further changes could be on the way to its store portfolio and operations. Metro Bank said: 'We will continue to explore options to further right-size our cost base in the months ahead, as we look to secure a sustainably profitable future for the bank. Part of this will include continuing to review our options around stores and our real estate which remain one of the largest components of our fixed cost base.' The lender added that while its branches remained its 'core offering', it would continue working to digitising its operations. It said: 'A particular area of focus will continue to be on enhancing our self-service features as well as building out our SME offering where we feel we are continuing to win market share in an area which remains underserved by the market.' In November, Metro Bank received shareholder approval for a 925million refinancing and recapitalisation plan, backed by Colombian billionaire, Jaime Gilinski, who became the firm's biggest investor. In October, reports claimed the bank needed to raise about 600million. As a result, the group's share price fell by around a third to an all time low of 34p. Anthony Thomson, the bank's former chairman from 2010 to 2012, claimed the lender had a 'limited future' if it continued to focus on its branch network. He said the lender was pursuing a 'flawed strategy.' Metro Bank shares rose 5.81 per cent or 2.00p to 32.40p on Wednesday, having fallen over 70 per cent in the last year. Direct Line has rejected an improved takeover bid from Belgian rival Ageas, which the insurer said still 'significantly undervalued' the group. Ageas' latest offer of 120p in cash per share, plus one newly issued Ageas share for roughly every 28.4 Direct Line shares, valued the company at 3.17billion. This was up by around 3 per cent from a previous bid of 3.1billion. But Direct Line told investors on Wednesday the bid, which has an implied a value of 239p per share, is 'uncertain [and] unattractive,' and undervalues the group and its future prospects, 'while also being highly opportunistic in nature'. Direct Line shares were down 5.2 per cent to 214p in early afternoon trading. Rejected: Direct Line dismisses second, improved takeover bid The shares have added around 30 per cent over the last year thanks to a boost at the end of February when Ageas made its first offer. They are down more than 40 per cent over the last five years. The FTSE 250 insurer, which has 10 million customers and hosts brands Churchill and Green Flag, added it was 'confident' about its standalone prospects and advised investors to take no action with regard to the Ageas bid. Hans De Cuyper, CEO of Ageas, described the Belgian firm's latest offer as 'compelling' and delivering 'substantial cash proceeds to Direct Line shareholders', who would 'benefit from the material value creation' offered by combining the firms. But Direct Line boss Adam Winslow, who last year replaced Penny James, is expected to lay out the case for the insurer to remain independent and listed in London alongside the company's annual results on 21 March. Winslow's plan is expected to outline ways Direct Line could become more tech-savvy, which could include setting up an app for the first time. He is also likely to propose cost cuts, according to the The Mail on Sunday. It follows a dismal few years for Direct Line shareholders, who have suffered multiple profit warnings. Founder Sir Peter Wood told The Mail on Sunday earlier in March that the business had been run 'so abysmally' for years that Direct Line deserved to be taken over. The FTSE 250-listed firm was launched in 1985 as the UK's first telephone-only insurer. In January of last year Direct Line scrapped its dividend after admitting it had been caught out by a surge in claims for burst pipes caused by icy weather. It was later forced to repay about 30million to customers who were charged more than they should have been to renew home and car insurance policies. Direct Line posted a loss of 76 million in September. It sold a commercial insurance unit for 520million in an effort to shore up its balance sheet. Analysts at UBS said last week that a takeover by Ageas 'makes strategic sense' as it would give the Belgian firm 'the potential to strengthen its position in an existing European market and rebalance its profile towards non-life insurance'. They added: 'The underlying attractiveness of UK personal lines insurance is improving, with the motor insurance cycle hardening, [and there are] greater cost synergies generated from a potential in-market deal than an acquisition in a new geography. 'We estimate [roughly] 120million cost saves [per annum] post-tax and assume an implementation cost of 1.5x of these potential cost synergies at [around] 180million. 'We assume [approximately] 175million of diversified capital synergies from increased diversification benefit and model optimisation.' Glencore has come under attack from an activist investor who has told the mining giant to move its main listing from London to Australia. In a stinging letter, Australian hedge fund Tribeca Investment Partners wrote to Glencores board with a list of proposals to boost the share price. Top of the agenda was shifting the listing to Sydney, where the fund believes Glencore would receive a better valuation. In the letter seen by the Financial Times, Tribeca said: London is no longer the home of mining. The London Stock Exchange has a comparatively low appetite for mining investment and is no longer suitable as the companys primary bourse. Having a dig: Australian hedge fund Tribeca Investment Partners wrote to Glencore's board with a list of proposals to boost the share price Tribeca said Glencore had provided shareholder returns of 9 per cent since listing in 2011, versus 95 per cent for mining rivals BHP and 126 per cent for Rio Tinto. Tribeca controls approximately 234million of Glencore through shares and derivatives, according to sources. The comments are the latest hammer blow for London, which is increasingly coming under strain from companies looking to list elsewhere. Two years ago, the FTSE 100 lost Anglo-Australian mining giant BHP after it decided to call it quits. Shareholders had been concerned about the companys complicated dual listing structure and opted to move Down Under. HOW THIS IS MONEY CAN HELP How to choose the best (and cheapest) stocks and shares Isa and the right DIY investing account And the worry is that history could repeat itself. A decision for Glencore to jump ship would cause further misery to the London market, which has seen a steady flow of firms hanging up their hats. Building materials group CRH, which had been a member of the FTSE 100, and the Irish construction firm Kingspan both de-listed last year. Travel giant Tui and gambling giant Flutter have both said they will do the same later in 2024. But its not just the listing that the activist investors are concerned with. Tribeca has also urged Glencore to abandon a plan to spin off its profitable coal business following its takeover of Canadas Teck Resources business for 5.6bn. We firmly oppose such divestiture and call on the board to retain these world class assets, Tribeca said in a letter to Glencore. Not only does retention align with the companys long-held commitment to industry-leading policy, but also strategically supports its earnings profile and the delivery of value to shareholders, it added. The Australian hedge fund also suggested increasing dividends by discontinuing share buybacks and divesting a minority stake in Glencores lucrative trading division via an initial public offering instead of spinning off its coal business, the FT said. Glencore declined to comment on the letter. Last month another activist investor unleashed an extraordinary attack on Glencore, calling for chief executive Gary Nagle to be ousted. In a letter to the board, Bluebell Capital branded Nagle as an Austin Powers-style Mini-Me version of the companys former boss Ivan Glasenberg, who remains a top shareholder with a 10 per cent stake. Bluebell, which has also recently publicly criticised oil giant BPs green energy strategy, said it has sold its stake in Glencore and has no plans to reinvest after losing faith in Nagle. Over the past 12 months, Glencores shares have plunged 12 per cent. In February the group slashed its dividend after earnings halved because of the easing of turmoil in global commodity markets which was triggered by Russias invasion of Ukraine. Glencore cut shareholder payouts to 1.3billion, from 5.6billion a year earlier, as the trader focuses on driving down debt. UK banks will be given more time to probe payments they suspect could be fradulent. New legislation introduced by the Government will give UK banks the power to pause payments for up to 72 hours if they suspect a customer is being scammed. Currently, banks are given 24 hours to process payments in most cases. The extra time will allow banks to contact customers about payments they suspect could be fraudulent, as well as giving them the chance to contact the police and other agencies should they need to. Crack down: Banks will be given 72 hours to investigate payments they think could be scams under new proposals from the Government The draft legislation aims to protect customers from losing money to scammers through Authorised Push Payment (APP) fraud, one of the fastest growing types of financial scam. Victims lost an estimated 485million to authorised push payment fraud in 2022, according to the Government. This kind of fraud happens when scammers trick customers into sending them money by pretending to family members, romantic partners and even the police. Impersonation scams and romance scams are forms of APP fraud. The draft legislation comes as Santander issued a warning to its customers about a new impersonation scam. The bank warned customers that 'criminals are pretending to be us' by contacting customers and impersonating members of Santander's fraud or security team. The scammers say there has been fraudulent activity on the account to trick customers into giving them their money. For example, they may tell them their account is at risk and their money needs to be moved to a new account to keep it safe. How fake bank scammers trick you They'll say your account's at risk and your money needs to be moved to a new account to keep it safe. You'll be encouraged to act quickly and often told to lie to any genuine bank staff you speak to. They'll come up with reasons why the account you're sending your money to has a different name to your own. They may direct you to a bank's genuine website to verify the number they seem to be calling from. They can make it look like they are calling from a genuine number. It's called 'spoofing'. In other cases, the bank warned scammers may even direct customers to Santander's website to verify the number they seem to be calling from. They can make it look like they are calling from a genuine number with a trick called 'spoofing'. Of the Government's draft legislation, Ben Donaldson, managing director of economic crime at UK Finance said: 'UK Finance has long called for firms to be allowed to delay payments in high-risk cases where fraud is suspected, and we are delighted to see draft legislation supporting this. 'This could allow payment service providers time to get in touch with customers and give them the advice and support they need to avoid being coerced by the criminals who want to steal their money. 'This could potentially limit the psychological harms that these awful crimes can cause and stop money getting into the hands of criminals.' New protections against APP fraud will come into force on 7 October this year, the Payments Systems Regulator announced in December. Under the new regime, payment firms, including banks and building societies, will be required to reimburse customers within five working days of a report that they have fallen victim to APP fraud. The maximum compensation payable is set at 450,000 with a claim excess of no more than 100 to be set by banks. Where a customer is vulnerable, no excess may be applied. Will Christopher, civil fraud partner at Kingsley Napley, said: 'It seems entirely sensible banks should be given more time to process transactions if they have concerns about fraud or dishonesty, especially given they will be on the hook for reimbursing eligible victims up to a maximum of 450,000 from October under related proposals. Democrats are keener than Republicans on Harry having a US passport Prince Harry says life in America is 'amazing' and that he's considered taking the next step and applying for US citizenship. The US public, on the other hand, is not convinced this is the right move. That's according to a DailyMail.com/TIPP Poll, which found that Americans are lukewarm on granting the British royal a passport. Just 35 percent of respondents said the Duke should apply for US citizenship. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as working royals four years ago and moved to Montecito, California The US public is lukewarm on the idea of Prince Harry applying for US citizenship Another 28 percent said he should not; and 37 percent said they were not sure. The nationwide survey of 1,419 adults was carried out earlier this month. Poll Do you think Harry should be a US citizen? Yes No Do you think Harry should be a US citizen? Yes 1393 votes No 604 votes Now share your opinion The Duke raised the prospect of US citizenship when speaking with ABC's Good Morning America last month. He said he was 'loving' his new life in California so much he may take the citizenship test even though that would force him to give up his royal titles. 'It's amazing, I love every single day,' he said. When asked what would prevent him from becoming a US citizen, he added: 'I have no idea American citizenship is a thought that has crossed my mind but not a high priority for me.' Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stepped down as working royals four years ago and moved to Montecito, California. Markle is American. The Sussex's children, Archie and Lilibet, are dual nationals. Getting US citizenship is more complicated for royals than it is for regular Britons. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, attend a movie premiere in Jamaica US immigration policy says 'any applicant who has any titles of heredity or positions of nobility in any foreign state must renounce the title or the position.' The policy also mandates that Harry would have to 'expressly renounce the title in a public ceremony and USCIS must record the renunciation as part of the proceedings.' Harry has also faced scrutiny over his US Visa after admitting to 'multiple' occasions of drug use in his memoir, Spare. In the bestseller and the TV blitz that followed, Harry admitted using cocaine, weed and magic mushrooms. He said pot and psychedelics 'really helped' with his 'trauma' while cocaine was more a 'social thing.' The admission led to calls from some campaigners to clarify whether he told US officials about his drug use when applying for residency. A judge this month ordered the Department of Homeland Security to hand over sensitive material about Harry's immigration papers for him to review while he decides whether to make them public. The Heritage Foundation, a US think tank, is seeking to release the material, saying the prince could have lied about taking drugs in his paperwork. Getting US citizenship is more complicated for royals than it is for regular Britons Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are putting off Americans with their 'endless moans' and 'attacks' on the Royal Family , a royal expert has claimed If the Duke did not tell the truth on his entry forms, then he could be removed from the US or barred by a border agent. The Duke previously flirted with US citizenship three years ago, although his plans were put on hold due to Covid-19. At the time, a royal source told The Times: 'Prince Harry will not apply for a green card or US citizenship in the foreseeable future.' Harry's happy family life in California and his immigration complications likely influenced the results of our survey. Support for Harry applying for citizenship were similar across the US. But voters in the West where the Duke and Duchess live were slightly less supportive of Harry getting a passport. Voters aged 25-44 were keener on giving the prince US papers than were other age groups. The starkest difference was along partisan lines. Whereas 45 percent of Democrats backed citizenship for Harry, only 30 percent of Republicans felt the same way. A once devoted doctor who wrote about how he loved working in a hospital's emergency room has been banned from practising medicine for two years after his life spiralled into drug addiction and bizarre crimes. Sri Lankan-born Dr Warnakulasooriya Patabandige Ruwantha Wijetunga, 42, was once promoted on social media as the competent and caring face of a major Sydney hospital. However, disturbing details were revealed at a February 20 hearing of the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal, where the Health Care Complaints Commission sought to ban him from practising medicine altogether. The tribunal heard that when Dr Wijetunga's marriage disintegrated in 2019, his life began spiralling out of control - with the once-respected doctor eventually smoking and injecting crystal meth daily, taking ADHD drug Ritalin and using GHB fortnightly. Dr Wijetunga also went on a series of rampages, damaging property in several Sydney buildings, flooding a fire escape, vandalising a postal centre, being caught on drug driving offences, almost incinerating an apartment and walking around a carpark naked, the tribunal heard. Dr Warnakulasooriya Patabandige Ruwantha Wijetunga, 42, has been banned from practicing medicine for two years He was once celebrated as a top doctor at Liverpool Hospital His erratic behaviour which included allegedly terrorising a woman who was showering while she thought she was alone in her home, leading to her barricading herself inside - would land him in jail. After being forbidden from practising medicine in late 2019, Dr Wijetunga made several attempts to get his full medical licence back. Incredibly, he succeeded in getting back on the books albeit with conditions that he failed to meet. Daily Mail Australia can reveal the timeline of how a respected doctor lost everything to addiction - culminating in a major tribunal decision this week. Smiling face of a hospital In 2018, south-west Sydney's Liverpool hospital featured a smiling and relaxed-looking Dr Wijetunga in his medical scrubs as part of its 'Humans of the Hospital' Facebook posts. 'Walking in to greet my next patient is always challenging and a little nerve-wracking because you only have one chance to get it right,' Dr Wijetunga wrote as he sat on an admissions bed. 'I love being an Emergency Room doctor at Liverpool Hospital. I am extremely grateful to be surrounded by so many amazing people who are my colleagues by default but have become my friends and family by choice.' Dr Wijetunga had followed a fairly typical path to becoming a doctor for a migrant to Australia. He gained his medical qualifications in Nepal in 2006. He was registered to practice as Australian trainee with supervision in 2012 and initially worked in various hospitals. Dr Wijetunga's life began to spiral into addiction in early 2019 and his marriage breakdown saw his drug use escalate By the next year Dr Wijetunga had started work as a general practitioner and was for a while attached to a clinic in the southern NSW town of Goulburn. However, the tribunal revealed how his life began to become unstuck as he separated from his wife in about March 2019. He started using crystal meth twice a week, which at first 'did not affect him much', according to Dr Wijetunga's GP. After a brief attempt to overcome the addiction, Dr Wijetunga's drug use ramped up to four times a week, and by October 2019, he was smoking and injecting crystal meth daily as well as taking Ritalin and using GHB once a fortnight. Over the next five years, Dr Wijetunga would go on a series of rampages, damaging property in several buildings, flooding a fire escape, vandalising a postal centre, being caught on drug driving offences, and almost incinerating an apartment. His behaviour would land him jail and escalate to allegedly terrorising a woman who was showering she thought alone in her home until he appeared at the bathroom door and later tried to barge into a room she barricaded herself in. After being forbidden from practising medicine in late 2019, Dr Wijetunga made several attempts to get his full licence back and incredibly succeeded in getting back on the books, albeit with conditions he failed to meet. Descent into paranoia Dr Wijetunga's behaviour deteriorated over the early months of his drug use, the tribunal heard. He first suffered 'some paranoia', walked long distances across Sydney while barefoot and believed 'a curse had been placed on his family'. This led to an admission to Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital in October 2019 and then another involuntary one the following November, where his GP recorded he was 'paranoid that his parents are in a hotel in Potts Point - they live in Sri Lanka'. 'He has been barricading himself in his flat. Worried that his documents are being tampered with and his identity is at risk, the doctor wrote in the referral. The hospital alerted the Medical Council in November that Dr Wijetunga was an impaired registrant, and they noted he was 'ambivalent about abstaining from methamphetamines in future'. On November 28 of that year, the Medical Council imposed a condition that Dr Wijetunga does not practice medicine. His erratic behaviour - which included allegedly terrorising a woman who was showering while she thought she was alone in her home, leading to her barricading herself inside - would land him in jail. Doctor's first court appearance for rampage On January 28, 2020, Dr Wijetunga appeared in court for the first time on two charges of recklessly destroying and damaging property at the building where he lived. Those stemmed from using a metal pole three days earlier to smash the back glass door of the Sydney unit block, pulling signs and the elevator button cover off walls in the building's foyer. After being granted bail, Dr Wijetunga was arrested again on January 29, accused of using a metal pole to destroy coloured lights in a council car park, buzzing strangers in his unit block while menacingly carrying the pole and damaging an intercom. After being initially being assessed as fit for police custody Dr Wijetunga was later observed displaying 'untreated paranoid psychosis in the context of a marked decline in functioning and behaviour with attached substance use problems'. He was admitted to a psychiatric ward at Sydney's Royal Alfred Hospital and discharged in February 2020. Sri Lankan respite Following his discharge Dr Wijetunga took time out to be with his family and travelled to Sri Lanka before returning to Australia in June 2020. Dr Wijetunga two months later he was stopped by police and found to have two alprazolam tablets, which he said were proscribed by his psychiatrist in Sri Lanka, which he later failed to prove leading to charges being laid but later dropped. While in Sri Lanka he contacted the Medical Council stating he wished to pracitice medicine again, which led to an Impaired Registrants Panel inquiry. On September 16, 2020 the panel was told on the morning of a scheduled meeting that Dr Wijetunga would not be attending as he had a much more important matter of 'identity theft' to attend to. On November 2, 2020 Dr Wijetunga failed to renew his medical registration, but a little over a fortnight later he applied to fast track his re-registration. Following his discharge Dr Wijetunga took time out to be with his family and travelled to Sri Lanka before returning to Australia in June 2020 Car park rampage In August 2021, Dr Wijetunga drove his vehicle off the road and into a ditch, where he failed a drug test, leading to a three-month loss of licence. On September 2, 2021, Dr Wijetunga was charged with using a fire hose to flood the fire escape stairs of units he did not live in and also damaging signs and a fire hydrant in the same building. Later that month, he was charged over a bizarre rampage in the carpark of his inner south Zetland Sydney apartment, where CCTV captured him wandering naked around the building's car park and getting in and out of his Ford Territory for 50 minutes. He then enters his car and proceeds to crash through two roller metal doors, causing an estimated $12,500 damage. At 5am on September 22 police were called to his car parked in the middle of the road with Dr Wijetunga as the sole occupant. 'The vehicle's engine was running with the accused holding the vehicle stationary with his foot on the brake,' the police fact sheet states. 'The vehicle was still in gear with police stopping the engine, removing the keys and taking the vehicle out of gear.' Police stated Dr Wijetunga 'appeared confused, sluggish and unable to comprehend simple instructions'. For his string of offences, Dr Wijetunga was given a 12-month Community Corrections Order starting September 29, 2021. Promising success before jail setback Despite these ongoing incident, on October 5, 2021 the NSW Board of the Medical Board of Australia favourably considered Dr Wijetungas application to be registered to practice. The board noted his recent drug testing found no trace of illicit substances and he had been regularly seeing a psychiatrist. They granted him a new registration from 18 November 2021 subject to supervision and limits on the number of hours worked and patients seen. However, this promising event did not change the trajectory of Dr Wijetunga's life. Later in the same month he was charged with ripping signs down in the common areas of his apartment building and jumping into the yard of a stranger's unit. Once inside the he lit candles, scraps of paper and playing cards but also found a bottle of methylated spirits that he began using to wipe down surfaces. When police arrived they observed the open bottle of methylated spirits next to open oven flame with Dr Wijetunga still inside and were able to thankfully avoid it igniting into an inferno. In December 2021 Dr Wijetunga was charged over inflicting major damage on an ATM and an Australia Post vending machine at the Australia Post Headquarters in Sydney. He was also twice convicted of driving under the influence of drugs leading to a 15-month jail term commencing that commenced on 22 December 2021 but saw him released on parole in March 2022. On July 21 2022 Dr Wijetunga was released on parole. After failing nominate a supervisor or fulfill other reporting conditions the Medical Council again withdrew his registration to practice on 13 May 2022. Alleged home invasion Dr Wijetunga did not attend the Tribunal hearing that saw him banned from medicine but will be required to front court on April 3 to face charges over an alleged horrifying home invasion. He is accused of entering the home of a woman he had known for about eight weeks at his apartment building in the inner south Sydney suburb of Zetland on September 3 last year. The unsuspecting woman was in the shower when she was shocked to see the bathroom door was open, according to trial documents. She allegedly then saw 'the accused standing in the bathroom with his hand on the bathroom door'. 'The victim was terrified and started screaming, due to not knowing why the accused was in her bathroom and what he was going to do to her,' a police fact sheet states. Dr Wijetunga allegedly backed out of the bathroom and the naked woman jumped out of the shower to door shut. After wrapping herself in a towel the woman ventured out of the bathroom and allegedly saw the back door slightly ajar. The woman said she cautiously peeped into her dark bedroom before noticing a pair of black thongs in the loungeroom that weren't hers. She allegedly picked them up and threw them out of the front door before locking it. However, upon returning to the lounge room she allegedly saw Dr Wijetunga was still inside and began screaming for help. The woman told police she retreated behind a closed door that she jammed her foot up against. 'Calm down. Calm down, you are overreacting,' Dr Wijetunga allegedly said as the woman screamed for help but also managed to call triple-0 on her mobile. While the woman was talking to the triple-0 operator, who was on speaker, Dr Wijetunga allegedly began trying turning the door handle and trying to half-heartedly push his way in. According to the woman the triple-0 operator's voice made Dr Wijetunga tap on the door, push more insistently or exhale loudly and this went on until the police eventually arrived. After facing local court over the matter on February 7, Dr Wijetunga was released on bail. Struck off Dr Wijetunga made his most recent application to be registered to practice on July 25 of last year. However, the day before his February 20, hearing at the Tribunal Dr Wijetunga advised he would not be attending the hearing and had resigned from the Medical Council. In making its ruling the Tribunal stated 'we have already found Dr Wijetunga unfit in the public interest to practise as a doctor based on his conduct on the occasions leading to a criminal conviction'. While the Tribunal could either suspend or cancel Dr Wijetunga's registration it said only the latter would 'protect the health and safety of the public while also condemning Dr Wijetungas conduct, deterring him and other doctors from this type of conduct'. Cancelling his registration was also the only the option that would work in 'upholding the standards of the profession and preserving public confidence in the profession', the Tribunal ruled. Sir Richard Henriques, one of Britains most distinguished lawyers, played a leading role in some of the most notorious trials of recent years. In extracts from his book in the Mail, Sir Richard has given a gripping account of his role in the trial of Dr Harold Shipman, and his forensic review of Operation Midland, the shambolic police investigation into an alleged VIP paedophile ring. Today, he reveals why the savage murder of toddler James Bulger by two schoolboys haunts him to this day... Aged 11, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables were the youngest children to stand trial for murder in the 20th century, accused of abducting two-year-old James Bulger from his mother in a Liverpool shopping precinct and subjecting him to a prolonged and terrible attack before killing him. The two small figures sat in the specially raised dock of the imposing courtroom in Preston. Often referred to as the Old Bailey of the North, it was one of the largest in the land with seating for 100 members of the public and Press benches for 34 journalists. More were listening to a relay of proceedings in a nearby office block, such was the worldwide interest. The case had received a lot of publicity, and emotions ran high among the public. Sir Richard Henriques reveals why the savage murder of toddler James Bulger, pictured, by two schoolboys haunts him to this day In the street outside, crowds regularly gathered jeering and shouting as the defendants were driven from court. But the judge, Mr Justice Morland, was fastidious in ensuring that the most appropriate arrangements were made for the defendants, given their age. We sat school hours with no session exceeding 45 minutes. The boys were not locked in cells and they were accompanied throughout by social workers. Junior defence counsel for Thompson even took the commendable step of bringing their own Nintendo games in order to play with him when he was not in court, to put him at ease. As leading counsel for the Crown, I opened the prosecution case on November 1, 1993, by describing how the two boys walked the toddler some two and a half miles across Liverpool, from the shopping centre in Bootle where they abducted him to a railway line in Walton. There, stones and a piece of metal were thrown at him, fracturing his skull. His lower clothing was removed, his body was placed across the railway line and sometime later he was run over by a train and cut in two. A pathologist concluded that death occurred before the impact of the train. Notwithstanding their ages, I told the court, both intended either to kill James or at least to cause him really serious injury and they both knew their behaviour was seriously wrong. I described how, before taking James that day in February, they played truant from school, visited a number of shops and tried to abduct another two-year-old boy who was in the same shopping precinct but whose mother intervened just in time. They stole some modelling paint that was later daubed on James. Aged 11, Robert Thompson, pictured, and Jon Venables were the youngest children to stand trial for murder in the 20th century The jury were shown CCTV pictures of him being led away from the shopping centre. Numerous witnesses saw the three of them together, and some stopped to ask what was going on but were fobbed off with the lie that they were taking their little brother home or that he was lost, theyd found him and were taking him to the police station. I told the jury that Jamess blood had been found on Venabless shoes and that marks on Jamess face closely matched the shape of the laces on Thompsons trainers, consistent with a kick to his face. In lengthy police interviews, each boy blamed the other one. In a witness statement read to the court, Jamess mother, Denise, described how her son was by her side in a butchers shop but when she then looked down after being served he was gone. She went frantically into neighbouring shops, but could not find him. She asked people if they had seen him and nobody had. She then reported him missing to the police. Thirty-eight witnesses gave evidence of seeing the defendants walking through the streets with James in tow. The last to see him alive was a 15-year-old girl, who saw one of the boys pick him up and carry him towards the railway embankment. The defence challenged them, claiming their accounts were inaccurate and that they had been influenced by media reports of the case, but such suggestions were robustly rejected. These were independent, honest witnesses, many of whom were visibly distressed by the realisation that their intervention could have saved Jamess life. This was not evidence about which they could be mistaken, nor could they ever forget such a tragic event. Henriques told the jury that Jamess blood had been found on the shoes of Venables, pictured, and that marks on Jamess face closely matched the shape of the laces on Thompsons trainers A Home Office pathologist gave evidence of finding 42 injuries on Jamess body, 15 of them to his face. There were at least 30 separate blows to the body from heavy blunt objects, probably bricks. He had also been kicked in the face. Psychiatrists who had interviewed Thompson and Venables stated that the youngsters knew the difference between right and wrong and would have recognised it was wrong to take a child from his mother, wrong to cause a child injury and wrong to leave an injured child on a railway line. Teachers from the boys school gave unchallenged evidence that pupils were specifically taught the difference between right and wrong. Thompson and Venables elected not to give evidence. In my closing speech, I submitted that a child half the age of the defendants would know what they did was seriously wrong, and it was clear from their police interviews that each knew abducting and killing a child was seriously wrong. I submitted that a manslaughter verdict would grossly understate the gravity of this crime. This was a murderous, prolonged attack on a small, defenceless child. Then the defence put their case. Thompsons lawyer argued the boy had played his part in taking James onto the railway track, but the attack was carried out from start to finish by Venables. I submitted that a manslaughter verdict would grossly understate the gravity of this crime. This was a murderous, prolonged attack on a small, defenceless child Venabless lawyer attacked Thompson as a liar who tried to put the blame on Venables and shuffle it off himself. He described Thompson as unprincipled and callous, whereas Venables had shown genuine remorse for Jamess death. Venables, he said, had deliberately missed James with bricks and thrown only small stones, not wanting to hurt him. If he was guilty of any crime, it was manslaughter and not murder. In his summing-up, the judge told the jury that a child was exempt from criminal responsibility between the ages of ten and 14 unless the prosecution could prove the child knew when committing the offence that it was seriously wrong. To convict them both, the jury had to be sure that both took an active part and that, whichever of them inflicted the blows to Jamess skull, both intended that James should either be killed or suffer really serious harm. The jury retired and the same day came back with their verdict: guilty of murder. The judge then passed sentence for what he described as this act of unparalleled evil and barbarity, ordering Thompson and Venables to be detained during Her Majestys pleasure. After they were taken below, he continued: How it came that two normal boys of average intelligence committed this terrible crime is very hard to comprehend. I suspect that exposure to violent video films may in part be an explanation. Earlier, counsel acting for Associated Newspapers [owners of the Daily Mail] had asked for the order forbidding the naming of the defendants to be lifted if they were convicted. They had been known simply as A and B throughout the trial. Jamess mother, Denise, described how her son was by her side in a butchers shop but when she looked down after being served he was gone I supported this application, submitting that publicity is a deterrent to those who may be minded to commit grave crimes. The public also had a right to know who the culprits were. The judge now lifted that anonymity order. The media were at liberty to name both defendants and did. The trial was over, but it continued to divide public opinion, notably when Sir Louis Blom-Cooper QC argued in a newspaper article that what he called the grinding mill of the criminal process had been an inappropriate way to deal with the two boys. He contended that the facts of the killing should have been established by a public inquiry, while the killers were placed in the care of the local authority and kept in secure accommodation until they were adults. I do not agree with Sir Louis. Failure to prosecute these boys would not have been fair to Jamess parents and his family. The importance to them of convictions in a criminal court is inestimable. Significant, too, was the fact that feelings were high in Merseyside and not prosecuting Venables and Thompson could well have resulted in civil disorder. Thompsons lawyer later spoke publicly about the hatred of the people of Liverpool for the two boys, saying: They loathe them and I believe that if they ever came back to Merseyside, their lives would be at risk. I agree, and so did the then President of the Family Division, Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, when in January 2001 she granted them new identities once they were freed and anonymity for life. She said she was convinced that their lives are genuinely at risk as well as their physical safety if their new identities and whereabouts became public knowledge. Sir Louiss real point was that, in his opinion, the age of criminal responsibility in this country at ten is too low and is out of step with a number of European countries which fix it at 13 or 14. He argued that it fails to deal with the problem of immaturity. A Home Office pathologist gave evidence of finding 42 injuries on Jamess body, 15 of them to his face Yet in the case of Thompson and Venables, the evidence from the boys headmistress was that children of four or five would know it was seriously wrong to stone a young child to death. Sir Louis gives precedence to the interests of violent children ahead of their wholly innocent victims. Moreover, having been involved in criminal trials in Manchester and Liverpool for around 50 years, I know nine-year-olds are often used to deliver drugs, or more rarely firearms, and they are sent out on shoplifting expeditions. Blom-Cooper also criticised the trial judge for not resisting the temptation to deliver a homily. His view that the murder of James Bulger disclosed unparalleled evil was out of place. Again, I disagree. On any view of the facts, this was an evil act or series of acts and it was without parallel in the judges experience. But controversy about the case continued, with a ruling from the European Court of Human Rights in December 1999. The judges in Strasbourg rejected the argument advanced on the boys behalf that they were too young to comprehend criminal responsibility, stating that the age of ten does not differ disproportionately to the age limit followed by other European states. They also rejected the claim that a three-week public trial in an adult court subjected the boys to degrading treatment in breach of the Human Rights Convention. They did, however, rule the trial had been unfair on the grounds that the formality and ritual of the Crown Court must at times have seemed incomprehensible and intimidating for a child of 11 and the boys found the trial distressing and frightening and had not been able to concentrate. Raising the floor of the dock to enable the applicants to see what was going on had the effect of increasing their sense of discomfort since they felt exposed to the scrutiny of the Press and the public. The court awarded costs and expenses of 15,000 to Thompson and 29,000 to Venables. I found this criticism somewhat harsh. The floor was lifted by no more than one foot and without this the boys could not have seen out, thereby giving rise to an alternative complaint. The possibility of the defendants sitting outside the dock alongside their counsel was impractical, due to the public animosity towards them. They would not have been safe. James had his life taken from him, while the defendants later enjoyed one-to-one tuition. James's parents Ralph and Denise are pictured above in the aftermath of the horrific murder With the benefit of hindsight, I now accept that alternative arrangements would have been more appropriate. Should a similar trial now be ordered, it would be held in a smaller court. Wigs and gowns would not be worn. A family member would sit with the accused throughout, and there would be regular and frequent breaks in proceedings to take account of a defendants ability to maintain concentration. Not that such changes would, in my opinion, have made any difference to the verdicts in the Bulger case. When Id read the papers before the trial and seen the strength of the evidence placing both boys at the scene, I had expected them to admit the killing, but to seek verdicts of not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility, and blame everyone in sight, not without a degree of justification. Both boys could reasonably claim a deprived, even abused, childhood. Thompsons father was said to be an aggressive alcoholic, who punished his children, including Robert, with sticks and belts. He abandoned his family for another woman, and his wife had turned to drink. She fought with other women in public houses and occasionally with men. Before the killing, Roberts situation was giving the authorities much concern. The whole family were well known to social services and a major irritant to neighbours. At the age of ten, Robert was often out after midnight. Venabless upbringing was little better, if at all. His parents split up when he was three. His mother was a regular visitor to public houses, leaving three young children alone and unsupervised. Jon became unruly, kicking and punching other children, and provoking the family rottweiler to bark at other young children. Their conduct at school gave much cause for concern. Both boys were habitual truants and both had been placed in the year below their contemporaries, not because of any lack of intelligence, but because of non-attendance. Finally, there can be little doubt both boys were exposed to numerous potentially harmful videos, not only in the video shop where they spent much of their time, but also at Venabless fathers house, where Jon spent a few days each week. His father had rented over 400 videos in the few years before James was killed. It was open to these two boys to say to the jury: This is the way society has brought us up. We have been deprived of any proper upbringing, of all moral guidance, of an education, and of any responsible supervision. We have been exposed to numerous damaging videos to such an extent that our understanding of criminal responsibility has been substantially reduced. Having treated us in this irresponsible way, society now seeks most unfairly to convict us of murder. There were two possible impediments to this line of defence. Firstly, their defence was that they played no part in the killing and they had done nothing wrong. Thus mitigation because of ill-treatment was irrelevant. The other possible impediment was the absence of a psychiatric opinion that either defendant was of diminished responsibility which is a necessity for such a defence to run. With a full admission of their participation in the killing, a psychiatrist may have concluded there was diminished responsibility on their part, given their dreadful upbringing, while a jury might well have decided they were doli incapax unable by reason of age to appreciate the seriousness of their admitted conduct. In the street outside, crowds regularly gathered jeering and shouting as the defendants were driven from court That is not my view. I am satisfied this was a premeditated murder. A large crowded courtroom, wigs and gowns, and an elevated dock made no difference to a verdict that, nearly 30 years later, I remain sure was correct. The sentence they received has always seemed to me to be a far more difficult problem. When the judge sentenced them to be detained at Her Majestys pleasure, the practice of announcing the minimum term in open court had not yet come into being. Mr Justice Morland wrote to the Lord Chief Justice with his recommendation a minimum of eight years which the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Taylor, increased to ten years. Later the Home Secretary Michael Howard raised it further to 15 years, in response to public pressure expressed in petitions and newspapers. This 15-year tariff was then quashed by the Lords on the grounds that fixing minimum terms should be a judicial rather than political function. The end result was that both boys were released in June 2001, when both were aged 18, after eight years in custody. Mr Justice Morland had had in mind a minimum term that would avoid the defendants facing a transfer to an adult prison an approach that was both pragmatic and responsive to their deprived upbringings and the exposure to violent videos. On the other hand, eight years as a minimum term gave an appearance of underestimating the gravity of this crime, as indeed did Lord Taylors recommendation of ten years. Since then, new Sentencing Guidelines introduced in 2003 have provided a starting point of 12 years as the minimum term for murders committed by those under 17. The judge must then consider both aggravating factors and mitigating factors. In my judgment, the aggravating factors are that, first, there was a significant degree of premeditation and, second, the vulnerability of the victim, and the mental and physical suffering inflicted and dismemberment of the body. The aggravating factors outweigh the mitigation and were these facts to be replicated today, I would expect a minimum term of around 15 years. From the perspective of Jamess family, any minimum term must appear derisory. To them there is no semblance of retribution, nor indeed justice, in events as they have unfolded. James had his life taken from him, while the defendants enjoyed one-to-one tuition in circumstances far superior to those they would have experienced but for this crime. They have had hundreds of thousands of pounds of public money spent upon them and have been granted anonymity to allow them to enjoy a full adult life as educated free men, absolved by their new identities from the disgrace that necessarily attaches to those who commit grave crime. I have seen Jamess mother more than once on television and I sympathise with her unreservedly. No sentence can adequately recompense a bereaved and loving family. Every time I see a toddler, thoughts of James are rekindled. No one who played any part in this trial will ever forget such a tragedy. The case of The Gentleman and the Tramp was one of the most extraordinary Old Bailey trials of its time the fall from grace of a well-connected former soldier accused of a bizarre murder. Jurors were told that Clive Freeman suffocated Alexander Sandy Hardie, a Scottish plumber turned vagrant, in a London flat in April 1988 using a brutal technique known as Burking named after the infamous 19th-century body snatchers Burke and Hare. Freeman was said to have learned Burking while serving in the Greys Scouts, a crack infantry unit formed in the late 1970s during the Rhodesian Bush War. The Crowns case was largely circumstantial but supported by the findings of a young pathologist, Dr Richard Shepherd, who would go on to a glittering career, working on the murders of Rachel Nickell, Stephen Lawrence and Jill Dando, and the death of Princess Diana. Freemans motive was allegedly money: he needed Hardies body in order to fake his own death and claim on an insurance policy, it was claimed. But, according to prosecutors, Freeman was caught out after a fire he allegedly ignited following the murder did not destroy Mr Hardies body and the victim was identified from fingerprints. Clive Freeman, born into wealth, was a well-known racehorse trainer On May 2, 1989, after a two-week trial, Freeman was jailed for life. He was also found guilty of arson and given an additional five-year term to run concurrently. It was initially recommended that he serve a minimum of 13 years before being considered for parole. Allowing for the time he spent on remand awaiting trial, Freeman could, theoretically, have been released on licence in 2001. But more than 20 years later, he is still behind bars having served close to 36 years because he vehemently refuses to admit his guilt. The authorities say he is in denial about his crimes. Those who have supported him over the years include former victims of miscarriages of justice, human rights lawyers, eminent clergymen such as former hostage Sir Terry Waite, and more recently ex-British Transport Police superintendent and law graduate Tony Thompson, who is leading Freemans latest and probably last bid to clear his name before he dies. Mr Thompson says the case has all the characteristics of what a gross miscarriage of justice looks like. He added: A lax police investigation was followed by a failure to disclose key evidence at his trial. The reality was that this was no murder at all, and the death is at best unascertained. Freemans team has submitted a fifth application to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), which can refer suspected miscarriages of justice to the Court of Appeal. Clive Freeman as a red-headed young man... and now with a silver beard Now a three-month Daily Mail investigation has identified troubling questions about the safety of Freemans conviction for murder and arson. We have examined case papers, statements, court reports and documents relating both to the original prosecution and his subsequent bids to clear his name (he has failed in four previous applications to the CCRC), and reviewed witness testimonies and the verdicts of eight forensic experts. Together, these raise the possibility that Freeman may have spent 36 years in jail for a murder that never was. Should Freemans case be referred to the Court of Appeal and his convictions quashed, his case will go down as one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British criminal history. The findings of the Mails investigation will pile pressure on the beleaguered CCRC widely criticised after the recent scandal involving Andy Malkinson, who was wrongly convicted of rape and spent 17 years in jail to expedite the Freeman case. Freeman is now 80 and suffering from prostate cancer, but is determined to make one last effort to clear his name. Here, the Mail analyses concerns about the safety of his convictions: The killer Clive Freeman was born into one of the wealthiest families in Salisbury (now Harare), in the former Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1943. His mother was the daughter of Lord Rawlinson, an aide to Lord Kitchener during the Second Boer War, while his father, who was born in England, fought in North Africa in the Second World War. The family made its fortune in tobacco, but their gilded world fell apart when Robert Mugabe became leader of the newly christened Zimbabwe in 1980. Freeman, by then a farmer employing 600 people and a well-known polo player and racehorse trainer, was in particular danger after independence. His work in the Greys Scouts, who tracked down and killed militants fighting for black majority rule in the Rhodesian Bush War from 1964 to 1979, had put him on an unofficial death list. He fled to South Africa and then to Britain, where he worked as a security guard in the late 1980s and lived in a modest flat in Rotherhithe, south-east London. The pay was poor, his second wife and family were in South Africa, and he became depressed and started drinking heavily. The victim Alexander Hardie had a less privileged start to life. Born in Edinburgh in 1938, he left school at 15 and was an apprentice plumber before joining the RAF on National Service. An artists impression of Alexander Hardie On discharge, he returned to plumbing and was married briefly before living in the United States, the Netherlands and Belgium. Mr Hardie battled alcoholism and for a time lived on the streets. He was staying at a property in Brixton, south London, at the time of his death, and first met Freeman in a pub in central London. The trial Jurors were told at the start of the murder trial in April 1989 that Freeman wanted to fake his death by killing a vagrant to pull off an insurance swindle worth 300,000 (equivalent to 800,000 today). The defendant, then 45, was desperate to resume the comfortable lifestyle he and his family enjoyed before Zimbabwes independence, according to the prosecution. He was said to have lured Mr Hardie to a friends flat in Rotherhithe where he was staying and suffocated him overnight on April 15-16, 1988. He then set fire to the property, anticipating Hardies body would be mistaken for his own. The day after the fire, Freeman flew to the US and then on to Australia. Police were alerted to a possible motive by the fact that Freeman had recently taken out a life insurance policy, and changed his name by deed poll to Ray Rawlinson. But Mr Hardies body was not destroyed in the blaze and fingerprints confirmed his identity. The prosecutions pathologist, Dr Shepherd, told the court the victim was probably killed through the Burking technique of suffocation, in which suffocation/asphyxia is caused by covering the victims mouth/nose and kneeling on the chest. He suggested there were certain groups, for example soldiers or martial arts experts, who knew of this method. In court he said: I have no specialist knowledge, I should emphasise, but there are members of the Armed Forces.... who have the training in silent killing that leaves no evidence in the ways of killing. The defence pathologist, Professor Keith Mant, who had 44 years of experience, concluded that Hardies cause of death was unascertainable and that it was not a deliberate death. Freeman did not take the witness stand, believing that he had a strong alibi that he was at the Trebovir Hotel several miles away in Earls Court, west London, at the relevant time. But the jury took less than two hours to convict him. Battle of the pathologists Dr Shepherd conducted four examinations of Mr Hardies remains in April and May 1988. He made handwritten notes which record the discovery of alleged bruising (during the third examination) and produced a report dated June 6, 1988. It was the bruising that persuaded Dr Shepherd that Hardie had been a victim of Burking. Questioned by the prosecuting counsel, he told the court that the pattern of bruising along the midline of the back and base of the spine could only have come from downward pressure on the chest, while marks on the middle of the right arm and right side of the chest were consistent with the weight of someone kneeling on their victim. Mr Hardie also had a wound on the top of his head which could have been caused by being struck with something. There was no evidence of inhalation of smoke, which indicated the victim was dead before the fire. Dr Shepherd admitted that, at the time of the first post-mortem examination, the cause of death was not immediately apparent. It was the discovery of bruising that had changed his mind. It is perfectly possible to cause death by suffocation using relatively little force, especially if the person is among the groups of the very young, the very old, those incapacitated by drink and drugs, he said. There are no features at the post-mortem that would lead me to conclude that this death is accidental. In his pre-trial report and in evidence at Freemans trial, the defence pathologist Professor Mant, who died in 2000, strongly rejected the Crowns case of murder. Dr Shepherd has propounded that death was due to suffocation. Suffocation is defined as an obstruction to respiration at the nose/mouth level, he said. There is no evidence of this in his report. He added: The possibility that Hardie may have died purely from the combination of a high concentration of blood alcohol with therapeutic levels of drugs has not been considered by the prosecution. Freeman with his mother Eileen Post-mortem results showed that the drugs Valium (to treat anxiety) and Dothiepin (an anti-depressant) were in Mr Hardies blood. They were within therapeutic levels, but if taken with a large amount of alcohol they could have rendered him unconscious. Since the trial, eight experts have backed up Professor Mants position. They have submitted new reports that disagree with Dr Shepherds analysis and conclusions that Mr Hardie was murdered. Jack Crane, professor of forensic medicine at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Belfast, challenged Dr Shepherds findings in an initial report in 2002 and a supplementary report in 2017. It is quite clear from all the other expert opinions given in this case that the cause of death, as stated by Dr Shepherd was then, and remains still, flawed, he wrote. Another eminent pathologist, Bernard Knight, emeritus professor of forensic pathology at University of Wales College of Medicine, said in a letter dated October 29, 2002, that he aligned himself with the opinions of Professor Crane and the late Professor Mant. Professor Knight concluded in a subsequent report dated July 19, 2003: Dr Shepherds stated cause of death as suffocation seems based on no evidence whatsoever, apart from conjecture. He added: I agree with what appears to be a unanimous body of senior expert medical witnesses, who dispute that Dr Shepherd has provided any firm evidence for his contrary causes of death. Although these pathologists strongly disagree with Dr Shepherds original conclusions, no-one is questioning his probity or competence. Dr Shepherd did not respond to requests for comment from the Daily Mail. The U-turn witness David Taylor, who lived in the block of flats in Rotherhithe where Mr Hardie died, was the only witness who directly put Freeman at the scene. He gave evidence that two men were in the flat a few days before the tragedy. Mr Taylor also gave evidence that at 1.30am on Saturday, April 16, 1988, he heard a bang and then saw Freeman leaving the flat. But in 1997 Mr Taylor withdrew his account. He wrote, in a signed statement, that he gave evidence under oath at Freemans trial, but some months later realised he had made a genuine mistake. He said: I am now of the opinion that this individual was not in fact Clive Freeman, as on subsequent occasions I have seen a man as earlier described by me within the local vicinity Mr Taylor added: I find it difficult to live knowing that Mr Freeman is in prison, probably because of my evidence. When the Mail tracked Mr Taylor down to his home in south London last month, he performed another U-turn, this time insisting Freeman is guilty. He killed the fellow, he said. If it does come up, I will go to court again he did it. The cast-iron hotel alibi Before the murder trial, Clive Freeman issued a notice of alibi in which he stated he was not at the address where Mr Hardies body was found and was sleeping off an excess of alcohol in the Trebovir Hotel in Earls Court. According to Freemans supporters, this alibi was not properly investigated by the Met and, since this formed the sole basis of his defence, he was at a distinct and unfair disadvantage. Monica Barber, the receptionist at the Trebovir Hotel, said Freeman was so drunk she had to write his address in the hotel register for him and that she did not see him leave the hotel or return after he checked in. She said she would have seen him from her vantage point in the reception. Years later, a signed affidavit from a security doorman, Rory Kilpatrick, at Flames nightclub, across the road from the hotel, revealed that Freeman was so inebriated that he refused him entry to the nightclub before he checked into the hotel. These two witness statements about Freemans movements at the time of Hardies death are potentially vital. It is accepted by all parties that Mr Hardie was dead before the fire started in the flat. In the latest submission to the CCRC, ex-police superintendent Mr Thompson writes: We do not have any evidence as to how Freeman could have left the hotel in such a drunken state some time after checking in, travel across London to the flat where Mr Hardie was, kill Mr Hardie and then return to the Trebovir Hotel without being seen. The prosecution were unable to prove how Mr Freeman managed to do that because he did not do it. The alleged insurance scam Key to the prosecution case was the claim that the murder of Alexander Hardie was part of an elaborate attempted insurance fraud. Police said there was important circumstantial evidence to support this, including Freeman taking out cover of 300,000 on his own life, changing his name by deed poll before the alleged murder, and fleeing to Australia via the US immediately afterwards. It was alleged in court that Freeman planned to lead people to believe that Mr Hardies body was his, and that the insurance windfall was to go to his family, but he expected to benefit in due course. But closer examination raises questions about the credibility of such a claim. There was no attempt to activate the insurance policy and Freeman was never charged in connection with this. William Burke and William Hare There were, however, preparatory acts or suggestions from Freeman to his family in South Africa to see if a claim could be made on the policy in the event that the body in the London flat was found to be his. Freemans supporters say these were the ramblings of a frequently drunken man suffering from PTSD relating to his traumatic experiences as a soldier, which was diagnosed in 2021. They also point to correspondence with a friend in Australia dated August 1987 which shows Freeman was planning to go there several months before Mr Hardies death. Freeman has said he changed his name by deed poll to obtain a British passport in his new name, Ray Rawlinson, so he could return to Africa without being detained at border crossings. He had previously been locked up as an alleged enemy of the state of Zimbabwe. The fire in the flat Was the fire in the Rotherhithe flat where Mr Hardie died started deliberately? It was known that Freeman did not smoke and that Mr Hardie was a smoker. The evidence given at the trial as to the cause of the fire was inconclusive at best and suggested it may have been accidental. A report in June 1988 by a Metropolitan Police forensic scientist said the blaze was caused by either a naked flame (such as a match) or a lit cigarette burning for a minimum of three hours. Non-disclosure of key prosecution documents There are claims by leading forensic scientists and Mr Thompson that the Crown failed to disclose key evidential material to defence lawyers before Freemans trial, including the original post-mortem notes by Dr Shepherd. This troubling discovery was made as a result of detailed new analysis of a mountain of documents relating to the case. It was on the third post-mortem examination that alleged bruises were discovered, giving rise to Dr Shepherds analysis and later conclusion that Mr Hardie had died by Burking. Post-trial examination of Dr Shepherds handwritten notes indicated that he came to an initial assessment during the first examination on April 16, 1988, that death was probably caused by alcohol and acute pancreatitis. According to Freemans supporters, police also failed disclose evidence of their investigation into Freemans alibi that he stayed overnight in the Trebovir Hotel on the night of Mr Hardies death. A murder that never was The Mails extensive inquiries into the Freeman case cast serious doubt on the safety of his convictions. But will it be enough for the CCRC to refer it to the Court of Appeal? Ex-superintendent Mr Thompson, who is leading the campaign to clear Freemans name, says: A miscarriage of justice has been hidden in plain sight and we implore the commission to take a long hard look at the way each piece of evidence that has been submitted over the years has been dismissed as not new while it, too, fails to see the big picture to which it so often refers. Mr Thompson added: While we acknowledge that there are frequently contrary expert opinions given at high-profile trials and that the pathology was only one aspect of the case against Mr Freeman, there are now nine experts that disagree with Dr Shepherds analysis and conclusions. This alone demonstrates that his evidence should be discounted as unreliable. this means there was no murder and Mr Freeman stands convicted of a crime that never was. Parents who work from home could face a major shake-up to flexible work arrangements in proposed changes to penalty rates and work hours. Busy mums and dad should be able to make up work hours after their children have gone to bed under a submission to the Fair Work Commission by the Australian Industry Group (IAG) and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI). But they warn bosses could be made to pay overtime for the late night work if the plan is put into law. It is just one of a series of 'outdated' barriers the employer groups say should be scrapped in order to improve work from home conditions. They said parents should be allowed to work later in the day after household chores are completed or start work earlier in the morning before the school rush. The AI Group said this would allow parents to spend quality time with children during standard work hours and then clock-on later in the evening. It argued that barriers such as fatigue and working 'unsocial hours' was not as much of a problem for Aussies who chose to work from home. Proposed changes to penalty rates and work hours for Aussies who work from home could see a major shake-up to flexible work arrangements (pictured, city workers in Sydney) Aussies with young children who work from home could be allowed to make up work hours in the evening and spend time with their children during the day (stock) 'The proposal acknowledges that an employee becomes more personally responsible for determining when they work, when they are in the home environment to produce a given output, rather than in the more traditional notion of office hours or business office hours,' the submission said. 'Given the proposal is confined to 'at home' work, the primary negative aspects of 'early morning' or 'late night' unsocial work do not arise.' However, the ACCI flagged these arrangements could complicate collaboration between colleagues or impact on productivity levels. Companies would likely be required to pay employees overtime rates if they opted to make up their work hours in the evening. Both groups also argued that Aussies who work casual or part-time hours from home should be allowed to refuse to work any minimum shift. The AI Group said award allowances for work uniforms could also be scrapped for employees who work from home and don't wear it. Head of national workplace relations policy Brent Ferguson said there was a 'glaring need' for workplace agreements that benefited busy parents. He said awards needed to reflect the 'dramatic changes' to the Australian workforce by the increasing popularity of work from home arrangements. 'All too often restrictive provisions in awards currently prevent employers delivering employees the kinds of flexibilities they want,' Mr Ferguson said. However, union bosses have accused the submissions of 'failing to read the room' - arguing the recommendations are a direct attack on employees' basic work conditions such as the eight-hour day. The Australian Industry Group and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) have told a Fair Work commission this week that busy parents should be allowed to make up work hours after their children have gone to bed (pictured, office workers in Sydney) Community and Public Sector Union national secretary Melissa Donnelly slammed the proposed changes as 'an outrageous attempt to drive down employees' conditions under the guise of modernisation'. 'In the Australian Public Service, we have had positive and productive negotiations between the employer and the union on the issue of flexible work. This has led to good outcomes that will benefit both parties,' she said. 'At a time when many businesses and organisations are working to improve job satisfaction and boost workplace morale through flexible work arrangements, they have completely failed to read the room. 'Flexible work and working from home rights have the potential to transform the diversity, resilience and adaptability of a business or organisation, and that's how they should be used.' Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary Sally McManus said workers still needed protection and security when working from home. 'When employers' lobbyists use the term flexibility, they mean less security and certainty for working people, and this impacts most profoundly on women workers and carers,' Ms McManus said in a statement. 'The employers' submissions to this award review are cynical, and not in the best interests of working people, most particularly working women and workers with family responsibilities. 'Wanting changes to the award which takes away the rights of women workers to the base protections of reasonable working hours will further entrench disadvantage and insecurity. The ACTU and our affiliates strongly oppose this cynical move.' The Fair Work Commission has invited businesses and union groups to share how they are incorporating work from home allowances for their staff as it continues to probe how flexible arrangements could benefit busy parents. Daniel Hume, a Queensland-based health worker, applied to work entirely from home in March 2021, claiming it made him more productive (stock image) It comes after Daniel Hume, a Queensland-based health worker, won a landmark work from home legal fight to only work in the office one day a week. Mr Hume appealed to the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission (QIRC), arguing Queensland Health had taken a blanket approach and did not take his circumstances into account. He also argued that he had less distractions and more time to exercise when he worked from home because his commute time was eliminated. The QIRC ruled Mr Hume would only have to work in the office one day a week. Queensland Health took the matter to the state's Industrial Court, taking the position that office time helps workers switch off after work and avoid a sedentary lifestyle. They also argued that Mr Hume needed to have face-to-face interactions as part of his job as a manager. The Industrial Court Deputy President threw out Queensland Health's appeal last Friday, saying the decision handed down by the QIRC was correct. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview published on Wednesday that French leader Emmanuel Macron's criticism of Moscow on Ukraine is due to "resentment" at losing allies in Africa to the Kremlin. Macron has stood out amongst Western leaders as one of the most vocal opponents of Russia in recent weeks, saying that there were "no limits" to French support to Kyiv and urging others not to be "cowards." Tensions between France and Russia over influence in Africa have risen since the 2010s, when Moscow's private military group Wagner deployed to areas on the continent traditionally linked to Paris. "Such a sharp reaction, quite an emotional one, from the French president is linked amongst other things with what is happening in African countries," Putin said in an interview aired on Russian state television. He claimed France's issue with Russia is not in Ukraine. "The problem is different. It is the well-known Wagner group," he said. He said that France was upset that Russia was "stepping on its tail" in Africa, saying: "I think that there is some kind of resentment." Putin now rarely mentions Wagner, whose leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a mysterious plane crash in Russia in August last year, about two months after staging a rebellion that became the biggest threat to Putin's long rule. The Russian president said that "leaders of some African countries just wanted to negotiate" with Russian businessmen and that "somehow they did not want to work with the French." He claimed that Russia does not "pit anyone against France." Until its 2022 Ukraine offensive, the Kremlin denied the existence of Wagner, which has been accused of crimes in Africa and in Ukraine. (AFP) A groom is already in six-figures worth of debt after being married for only two days. The newly married man, 24, has turned to Reddit to ask how he should handle the significant debt that he only learned about as a newlywed. 'I just got married yesterday, and last night my wife drops the bomb on me that she has $160k in debt between school, judgements, cars and credit cards,' he wrote. 'Shes pressing really hard that its our money now and shes expecting me to withdraw everything and put it towards her debt, per Dave Ramsey who shes been apparently following for years.' With $120,000 in investments and $30,000 in his savings, the 'incredibly p*****' groom has no idea what to do. A newly married man, 24, created a Reddit post on March 11 and described new information that his wife, 29, shared with him after their wedding The newlywed revealed in his post that he 'wouldn't have even thought marriage to be an option' if he had known about his new wife's money problems. 'We did discuss them a year ago when I first proposed, and she told me she was debt-free. Were filing with the court later today if that makes a difference,' he wrote. Since the bride told him the truth, the two haven't spoken to each other. The Reddit post has gone viral and it's made his angry bride leave in 'a firestorm' after he told her that he decided to not file their marriage certificate with the court. According to the man, she 'broke a lot of things on the way out' and allegedly told him that she plans to sue him for 'wasting her time and pain and suffering.' 'Its s*****, but onto the next I guess,' he wrote. Although the two of them might not be married for much longer, the groom can breathe a little easier since he is likely not responsible for her debt. The newlywed revealed in his post that he 'wouldn't have even thought marriage to be an option' if he had known about his new wife's money problems If the bride had $160,000 in debt before she and her groom got married, than she is financially responsible for the money she owes and not her husband According to Experian, community property, such as 'assets and income are also considered equally shared.' Regarding community property, there are currently nine states in which someone is responsible for their spouse's debt, which includes Arizona, California, and Texas. However, if the new bride had $160,000 in debt before the marriage, then it remains her own 'individual obligations.' 'Exactly how spouses share responsibility for new debts taken on after marriage depends in part on state laws and the type of debt,' an Experian blogger wrote. 'You are usually responsible for your spouse's debts accrued after marriage if you became joint account owners or co-borrowed a loan with your spouse, either before or after marriage.' Other Reddit users have flooded his post with comments about the bride and one person even called the man her 'debt reduction plan.' Social media users have been backing up the groom and have dissed the bride and her actions. They've also suggested that he get an annulment 'I would seriously consider if she married you solely for the fact you can pay off that massive debt,' one Reddit user wrote. 'I'm not saying she is. But if you had previously told her of your investments and she then decided to withhold that information, I would be very suspicious. Other users have been suggesting the groom 'run' and that he get an annulment. 'I'd cancel the marriage as quick as you can behind her back so that she doesn't have a say anymore before you discuss why she lied to you about a lot of debt,' a commenter wrote. 'This way she has no power plays if she rages of having no control or getting caught.' A hardworking Western Australian dad has been evicted from his home despite agreeing to a massive rental increase. Professional boxer Troy Humberston said that the landlord requested an additional $250 per week, effectively raising his total rent to $900 per week. 'I'd agreed to the $900 a week, but then I took exception to the landlord wanting us to pay the increased rent starting 30 days early,' the father-of-two told Nine News. Mr Humberston refused to pay the increased rent early, prompting the landlord to issue a termination notice without specifying a reason for the eviction. 'We've been good tenants, we've never missed a payment, we keep the house in good order,' he said. Professional boxer and father-of-two Troy Humberston (pictured) was forced out of his WA home on a 'no grounds' eviction despite offering to pay $250 extra per week in rent This eviction is completely within the bounds of the law in Western Australia due to its 'no grounds' eviction policy, which allows landlord landlords to remove tenants without giving a cause. Landlords in Western Australia can end a month-to-month lease by giving tenants 60 days' notice for any reason. If it's a fixed-term lease, they only need to give 30 days' notice. 'It creates this fear or this threat of uncertainty that people have, which means they're not standing up for their rights,' Alice Pennycott from Circle Green Community Legal said. WA is the only state that still allows landlords to hand out 'no grounds' evictions. However, Western Australia's Housing Minister John Carey argued 'landlords aren't the baddies' as their investment in housing is needed to meet supply demands. His argument left Mr Humberston unimpressed with the father saying: 'It's pretty obvious who the no grounds for eviction laws benefit and it's certainly not the majority.' WA is the only state that still allows landlords to hand out 'no grounds' evictions but Housing Minister John Carey believes 'landlords aren't the baddies' as their investment in housing is needed to meet supply demands Anthony Albanese's government is under fire over a major immigration bungle where 149 asylum seekers were given invalid visas after being released from detention because of a High Court decision. The shocking administrative bungle means 10 detainees - many of whom had a criminal record and were rounded up by authorities for allegedly breaching their strict visa conditions - may avoid punishment. Immigration Minister Andrew Giles this morning refused to say who was responsible for the blunder. That prompted a fiery showdown between Sunrise host Natalie Barr and Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil on Wednesday morning, with the Seven Network host demanding to know: 'How on earth has this happened?' Sunrise host Natalie Barr (right) asked Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil (left) how the Labor government had issued 149 invalid visas to freed immigration detainees Ms O'Neil blamed an issue in a law that passed Parliament under Tony Abbott's government in 2013. 'The problem meant 'visas issued under (the law), whether under our government or previous governments, were effectively instantly invalid',' she claimed. 'The consequence of that is that we have had to remake the visas of people who were issued as a consequence of the High Court's decision last year,' Ms O'Neil said. 'The important thing for your viewers is that community safety has been absolute priority in everything that we have dealt with on this issue.' Barr asked Ms O'Neil: 'So are you saying you've fixed the loophole?' 'We have fixed the loophole Nat,' she insisted. 'This was a problem in the original legislation that the parliament passed in 2013. 'What we've done is Australian government lawyers have identified a problem, we've moved quickly to address it. All of those visas now have now been reissued by the Australian government with tough conditions.' Opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume refuted Ms O'Neil's argument - heaping the blame on the 'incompetent' and 'weak' Albanese government. 'This wasn't a problem under our government at all,' Senator Hume said. 'It sounds to me Nat, if it can be fixed for ministerial regulation quickly there wasn't necessarily a problem with the original visa legislation. 'We didn't release criminal detainees into the community. This sounds like a continuation of ministerial incompetence from Minister [Andrew] Giles.' 'This is a story of incompetence from go to woe. I can sense Clare's frustration here with her junior minister Andrew Giles. 'Quite frankly the fact that Anthony Albanese has done anything in response to this bungle demonstrates that this is a weak Labor government, a weak government on border security and on community safety.' Barr told the ministers: 'People at home just want this sorted out. 'And it's really hard to work out which lawyers did which wrong thing. We just need you to sort it out and get the rules right.' Opposition finance spokesperson Jane Hume (pictured far right) defended the Liberal cabinet that passed the law back in 2013 while lashing the 'weak' Albanese government Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Giles refused to answer who was responsible for the blunder when questioned but said the mistake was first made in 2013. 'This is not a question about blame, it's a question of looking to resolve problems,' he told the ABC's AM show on Wednesday. It comes after the revelation that immigration detainees have committed 27 alleged crimes since their release in November, prompting calls for Mr Giles' resignation. The detainees were released in November in the wake of a landmark High Court ruling that found indefinite detention to be unlawful. There are concerns for potential revenge attacks after the fatal shooting of a man with links to Calabrian mafia figures. Fruiterer John Latorre was shot multiple times as he was leaving his Buchanan Place property in Greenvale, in Melbourne's northwest, around 4.30am Tuesday. Fruiterer John Latorre (pictured) was shot multiple times as he was leaving his Buchanan Place property in Greenvale, in Melbourne 's northwest, around 4.30am Tuesday Vegetable wholesaler John Latorre (pictured) had suspected links with the Calabrian mafia The 64-year-old is believed to be the victim of a 'targeted attack', according to Victoria Police. 'As he came out of his garage, he was shot a number of times in the upper body by an unknown offender,' the statement read. Sergeant Danny Travaglini earlier told media police would be prepared for potential retaliation, while noting he can't confirm if there are links to organised crime. Sergeant Danny Travaglini (pictured) said police were prepared for potential retaliation John Latorre was found dead outside his home on Tuesday morning by a family member, and was unable to be revived by paramedics. 'If there are links to organised crime there is also the potential for retaliation and that's where Victoria Police approach such investigations as a high priority,' Sergeant Travaglini said. 'We will do whatever we possibly can to ensure there's no retaliation... and we'll be proactively targeting organised crime if it is to ensure no retaliation occurs.' Mr Latorre was known to visit friend and international drug trafficker Frank Madafferi, according to the Herald Sun, however Mr Latorre did not have a major criminal record. He ran a successful fruit and vegetable business at the Melbourne Market in Epping, and was leaving for work when he was gunned down. He was found dead outside his home on Tuesday morning by a family member, and was unable to be revived by paramedics. Police said they're unsure how many offenders were involved in the incident or how they left the area, but earlier said they don't believe it was a drive-by shooting Two female family members were home at the time but weren't injured, however a woman was later treated for shock and taken in an ambulance. Police said they're unsure how many offenders were involved in the incident or how they left the area, but earlier said they don't believe it was a drive-by shooting. 'I believe a family member heard what had occurred outside and found the deceased in the driveway,' Sergeant Travaglini said. 'Obviously we've spoken to them, they're quite distraught.' No arrests have been made at this stage. Police have collected CCTV footage but are urging anyone with footage to come forward. Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers. A 27-year-old Florida woman was found dead in her cocaine-filled cabin on a cruise ship in the Bahamas on Monday afternoon. The Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) first received reports at around 5.30pm local time on Monday that the woman was found unresponsive in her cabin off the island of Grand Bahama. Medical personnel on the ship performed CPR, but no vital life signs were detected, and the woman was declared dead on the ship. Two ships docked at Freeport in Grand Bahama on Monday included Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas and Margaritaville Paradise. Upon arriving, authorities confiscated 'a quantity of suspected cocaine' from her cabin, RBPF said in a press release. A 32-year-old man from Florida was arrested during the initial investigation, authorities said. A 27-year-old Florida woman was found dead in her cocaine-filled cabin on a cruise ship in the Bahamas on Monday afternoon The Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) first received reports at around 5.30pm local time on Monday that the woman was found unresponsive in her cabin off the island of Grand Bahama. Pictured: passengers aboard a cruise ship Two ships docked at Freeport in Grand Bahama on Monday included Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas(left) and Margaritaville Paradise(right) The identities of both American tourists have not been determined, as an autopsy is pending to determine the exact cause of death. DailyMail.com has reached out to law enforcement authorities, Royal Caribbean, and Margaritaville at Sea for further information. The US State Department issued two travel warnings for the country at the end of January advising 'extreme caution' after a spate of daylight murders and sexual assaults. The death of the 27-year-old woman comes weeks after two Kentucky women claimed they were drugged and raped by staff at a Bahamas resort. The terrifying account surfaced last month as Amber Shearer and Dongayla Dobson, both 31-year-old moms, said they were attacked on the last day of their four-day cruise. The death of the 27-year-old woman comes weeks after two Kentucky women - Amber Shearer and Dongayla Dobson - claimed they were drugged and raped by staff at a Bahamas resort The women say they were on an excursion to Pirate Cove Resort when the attacks took place The pair left Jacksonville, Florida, on February 1 for their first 'kids-free' vacation together on the 2,000-capacity Carnival Elation. But their idyllic cruise turned into a nightmare when it docked at Grand Bahama, where the 27-year-old Florida woman was found dead. 'We just decided to spend the day on the beach. There were other people from the cruise on the beach so there weren't red flags for us.' Dobson told Dailymail.com. And when they arrived they were approached by two men who they thought to be resort hospitality offering them drinks. 'They said if you buy one we'll give you one for free, and we thought, well why not we're on vacation.' Dobson wanted to pick up some shells for her children back in Lancaster and the men said they knew where to find them. The moms were enjoying their first child-free vacation together, but things took a dark turn on their last day Lawyers for the women said Carnival has a fiduciary duty to customers to warn them about potentially dangerous travel conditions Security footage from the resort shows that within 15 minutes the pair were barely able to stand as they were led away under the influence of cocaine, opiates and benzodiazepines. 'I remember waking up and getting pushed down,' Dobson said. 'I woke up in the resort bathroom and there were people all around, and I just felt dirtiness on my legs, and I knew what had happened. 'They told us we had been throwing up which is a good thing because the drugs would have killed us.' The women said that toxicology reports showed the cocktail of drugs in their system but no alcohol. Dobson said seeing the results 'retraumatized' her, while Shearer added the two were then treated 'like drug addicts.' Police arrested a 54-year-old man from Eight Mile Rock and a 40-year-old from South Bahama after resort staff showed them security footage of the women being led away. Police have not named the suspects but local reports suggest one is connected to a powerful figure on the islands who is leveraging his influence to secure his brother's release. Candace Owens has wagered her career on the wild theory that French President Emmanuel Macron's wife was born a man. The controversial conservative commentator took to X to tout the false story, hours after outlining it on an episode of her podcast. It claims that French First Lady Brigitte Macron, 70, was actually born Jean-Michel Trogneux, before eventually transitioning at age 30. It further states that she did not give birth to any of her three children, and that her first husband, a 69-year-old retired banker said to have died a recluse in 2020, never existed. The conspiracy stems from an completely false claim made by far-right magazine Faits et Documents (Facts & Documents), after Macron, 46, was elected. But the debate was reignited last month after Emmanuel Macron's step-daughter, Tiphaine Auziere, gave an interview to Paris Match in which she addressed claims that her mother Brigitte was born male. Auziere was just 10 when she found out that her teacher mom was involved with a student who was 25 years her junior. 'I have concerns about the level of society when I hear what is circulating on social networks about my mother being a man,' she said. Still, Owens on Tuesday revived the speculation, before laying into those who disagree. Scroll down for video: Candace Owens on Tuesday said that she would be willing to bet her career that French President Emmanuel Macron's wife was born a man. President Macron with his wife, Brigitte Trogneux, in Paris on February 22, 2017 'After looking into this, I would stake my entire professional reputation on the fact that Brigitte Macron is in fact a man,' Owens, 34, wrote on the platform formerly known as Twitter, linking to the episode from the night before. 'Any journalist or publication that is trying to dismiss this plausibility is immediately identifiable as establishment,' she charged. 'I have never seen anything like this in my life. The implications here are terrifying. 'I do not intend to let up on this story and I am calling on other journalists to look into this explosive story and report accordingly.' The night before, she pulled up a 2021 Daily Mail article that debunked the speculation, before speaking in-depth about the theory surrounding the French head of state's spouse. Dismissing the opinions of several seasoned experts interviewed for the piece, Owens presented the so-called findings from what she said was a 'three-year' investigation from the publication. She further argued that if Brigitte really wanted to debunk the claims, she could simply release photos from the first 30 years of her life. Owens also analyzed a rare family photo of Brigitte Macron's family when she was a child, claiming she was a 'dead ringer' for her older brother - before asserting that they were the same person. Owens also analyzed a rare family photo of Brigitte Macron's family when she was a child, claiming she (seen at center on her mother's knee) was a 'dead ringer' for her older brother Jean-Michel Trogneux (at left) - before asserting that they were the same person The theory goes that French First Lady Brigitte Macron, 70, was actually born Jean-Michel Trogneux - the name of her older brother - before eventually transitioning at age 30 She went on to produce a 'before-and-after photo' allegedly used as a part of Faits et Documents investigation - one that used Chinese software to cite similarities between an undated photo of Brigitte's brother and the first lady herself She went on to tell her followers why she thinks this theory 'has legs', due to the fact that the First Lady (seen here as a child) has refused to produce other photos of herself before age 30 '[The] theory is that the first lady Brigitte Macron was actually born Jean-Michel [Trogneux] - so Brigitte is actually Jean-Michel. 'Jean-Michel lived as a man for 30 years, fathered five children, OK, and then transitioned at the age of 30 to become Brigitte. She went on to produce a 'before-and-after photo' allegedly used as a part of Faits et Documents investigation - one that used Chinese software to cite similarities between an undated photo of Brigitte's brother and the first lady herself. Owens in turn categorized the comparison as a dead ringer, telling her roughly three million subscribers her opinion of the siblings: 'It's crazy to me that you would not say that these two individuals look alike.' She went on to tell her followers why she thinks this theory 'has legs.' The first obvious thing,' she said, 'is the first lady is simply unable to produce any photos of herself throughout the first 30 years of her life. 'Guys, how easy to debunk this - if you say Candace, no, actually you lived as a man for 30 years, I've lived 30 years: I'm going to show you every photo of every year that I've lived.' She went on to produce several photos of her throughout various stages of her life to illustrate her point. 'Here's me in college right, here's me while I was pregnant with my children. Here's me and my husband on our wedding day. The conspiracy stems from an unfounded claim made by far-Right magazine Faits et Documents (Facts & Documents), after Macron, 46, was elected. Still, Owens on Tuesday stayed stalwart with her speculation 'There would be so many photos that Brigitte should have at her disposal if this is false,' she charges, but they won't produce any. 'Nope - they're just calling everybody wrong and backwards and transphobic. Just produce the photos.' 'Instead, the only photos they have produced that are circulating in the media are the photos that I just showed you,' she added, citing the photos that show Brigitte's brother Jean-Michel Trogneux as a child, and a young Brigitte as well. 'And, as I said, the first photo she looks more like the Jean-Michel who she claims is actually her brother, who she won't just present to the public,' Owens went on. 'If that is in fact your brother, please just go on a walk with him so we can capture it.' Owens' remarks came days after a visibly fed-up Macron finally address the rumors at an International Women's Day event on Friday, saying, 'The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios.' 'People eventually believe them and disturb you, even in your intimacy,' he further claimed. He added the transgender claims about Macron were typical of misogynistic online attacks that women have to put up with every day. The first obvious thing,' Owens said, 'is the First Lady is simply unable to produce any photos of herself throughout the first 30 years of her life Owens' remarks came days after a visibly fed-up Macron finally address the rumors about his much older spouse Friday, saying, 'The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios' Two women who claimed the Premiere Dame was born a man were punished with 'symbolic fines' reduced on appeal last June. In turn, both claimed they were subjected to 'intimidation by the authorities' as 'ultra protected' members of the Paris establishment tried to cover up a 'state secret'. All parties to the case accepted the fines handed down on appeal as a final settlement to what had become a huge embarrassment to the First Couple. The transphobic rumors about Brigitte Macron were first picked up by the far-Right in 2022, while the President was campaigning for re-election. Groups including the Yellow Vests (Gilets Jaunes) and those protesting against Covid vaccines went on to use the claims to attack the French. Meanwhile, videos produced by journalists touting the comparisons - much as Owens did - have since been removed from YouTube. Daily Mail has reached out to President Macron's office for comment. The county already faces hundreds of lawsuits from former detainees who claim they were sexually abused as youths in custody Investigators learned of the sexual relationship after recovering a contraband phone containing lewd photos Rafaela Martinez was charged with having sex with an inmate and arranging a meeting with a minor for lewd purposes among other charges A Los Angeles County probation officer was arrested last week over accusations of having a sexual relationship with a male juvenile inmate. Rafaela Martinez, 51, was arrested March 7 and charged with having sex with an inmate, arranging a meeting with a minor for lewd purposes, bringing contraband into a jail and unauthorized possession of a wireless communication device. She was not named in a statement from the department, but an anonymous law enforcement source confirmed her identity to the LA Times. Booking records reviewed by DailyMail.com show that Martinez was arrested for a felony and is being held in the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood. Investigators learned of 'a sexual relationship involving an on-duty female probation officer with a male youth detainee' after finding a contraband cellphone at the Dorothy Kirby Center in Commerce. L.A. County probation officer Rafaela Martinez, 51, was arrested March 7 in connection to her sexual relationship with a juvenile male inmate being held at the Dorothy Kirby Center Investigators learned of the relationship after recovering a contraband cell phone containing sexually charged communications between Martinez and the inmate 'Information supported by a warrant led investigators to communications between the detained youth and Probation Officer,' the department said. 'Some of these communications appeared to have occurred while the employee was at work and there were photos that are sexual in nature.' When investigators confronted Martinez, she 'gave statements that corroborated information which confirmed that the observed communications were with her,' the statement read. A cell phone and 'prescription pill container with different types of pills in varying quantities' were found on Martinez and inside her personal bag. The 51-year-old was arrested the same day the investigation began. This marks the first arrest by the the probation departments Juvenile Safety and Welfare Task Force, which was created in February to crack down on drugs and other contraband. The task force will forward the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office once the investigation concludes. In a statement, County Supervisor Hilda Solis condemned the 'disturbing pattern of staff, who are in roles to protect, preying on those that need guidance and protection.' L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis called out a 'disturbing pattern' of staff preying on 'those that need guidance and protection' in a statement Martinez is being held in the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood. She faces additional charges of bringing contraband into a jail and unauthorized possession of a wireless communication device 'Additionally, it was disappointing that this staff was also found bringing pills into our facilities when many of our youth have suffered from overdoses and substance use dependencies,' Solis said in a statement. She called on the department to 'thoroughly investigate' the incident and 'discipline all, including staff, who continue to harm our youth.' The county already faces a slew of lawsuits from former detainees alleging sexual abuse as far back as 1972. Earlier this year, a juvenile claimed a female officer he'd met in custody made romantic advances on him following his release in 2023, the LA Times reported. Sources told the publication that the allegations had been forwarded to the California Department of Justice. In a 2023 budget, Los Angeles County CEO Fesia Davenport estimated the county could pay out anywhere between $1.6 billion to $3 billion for more than 3,000 claims of childhood sexual assault. Solis lauded the probation department for taking 'swift action' against Martinez. However, she continued, 'there needs to be a clear message of zero tolerance policy on any forms of abuse and swift consequences that follow to eradicate the culture that enables these crimes to occur.' Russia has claimed to have killed more than 200 pro-Ukraine fighters after a major armed incursion into the war-torn nation just days before Putin seeks re-election. Ukraine-based Russian partisan rebels claimed to have captured the border village of Tyotkino, even after Russia said it had pushed back invasions. The Freedom of Russia Legion (FRL), Siberian Battalion (SB) and the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) posted videos ostensibly showing their soldiers warring in Russia's western Belgorod and Kursk regions today. But the warring Russian Defense Ministry has claimed that Moscow's military and security forces killed 234 fighters while thwarting the incursion. In a statement, the ministry blamed the attack on the 'Kyiv regime' and 'Ukraine's terrorist formations,' insisting that the Russian military and border forces were able to stop the attackers and avert a cross-border raid. It comes as Russia have launched another devastating strike, leaving at least three dead and 38 injured. Shocking photos show the devastation of shelling on the on the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, where children were among the casualties, according to authorities in Kyiv. Video appeared to show Russia troops retreating after paramilitary groups captured the border village of Tyotkino, but there was no initial confirmation. There were claims - denied by Moscow - that Russian tanks had also pulled back Video showed a strike on an APC in Tetkino, a border village in the Kursk region of Russia Russia launched another devastating strike, leaving at least three dead and 38 injured A damaged residential building following a Russian strike on the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih Children were among the casualties in the Russian strikes, according to authorities in Kyiv The Russian Defence Ministry said the attackers lost seven tanks and five armored vehicles. Video appeared to show Russia troops retreating but there was no initial confirmation. There were claims - denied by Moscow - that Russian tanks had also pulled back. The incursions came on the same day that Kyiv drones blitzed two oil refineries inside Russia, in the Nizhny Novgorod and Oryol regions. A woman in a border area of Belgorod region filmed as she looked out of her window and saw partisan tanks driving past. She swore and exclaimed: 'Tanks are coming 'What is this.?' The Russian defence ministry said Ukrainian 'terrorist formations' backed by tanks and armoured combat vehicles tried to invade in three separate directions in Russia's Belgorod region at about 3am Moscow time (0000 GMT). Schools in Kursk were also closed until the end of the week in response to the attacks, the city's mayor confirmed. The Siberian Battalion shared footage purporting to show clashes with Russian troops The three Russian paramilitary groups claim to have crossed into Russia to fight Putin's troops in a dramatic turn against the government as the Russian president seeks re-election this week A spokesperson for Ukraine's intelligence service denied Ukrainian involvement, claiming the paramilitary groups were 'independent organisations' comprising of Russian nationals and therefore operating 'at home'. Ukrainian military intelligence said the legion and two other partisan paramilitaries were engaged in a 'joint operation' on Russian territory. Russia's FSB blamed the border incidents on the Ukrainian army rather than anti-Putin Russians. The three Russian paramilitary groups claim to have crossed into Russia to fight Putin's troops in a dramatic turn against the government as the Russian president seeks re-election this week. 'We will take our land from the regime centimetre by centimetre,' the Freedom of Russia Legion said in a Telegram post announcing their incursion this morning. They claimed in recent days 100 people, six tanks, Caesar self-propelled guns, and 20 enemy armoured vehicles were destroyed on the border of Kursk and Belgorod region. The FSB said: 'Information is being spread on social networks about the alleged entry of Ukrainian armed formations into some border settlements of the Belgorod and Kursk regions. 'The published information is not true.' The footage was shared as Putin gears up to run in the elections between March 15 and 17 Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures while speaking at a news conference following a meeting of the State Council at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia on December 22, 2022 Yet videos purported to show the partisan Freedom Legion apparently operating inside Russian territory. In a video shared online purporting to show clashes with Russian government forces, the SB said 'fierce fighting is going on the Russian Federation territory'. The group urged Russians not to vote in the upcoming presidential elections this week and said: 'We have said that it would not be possible to overthrow the criminal dictatorial regime in the Russian Federation peacefully. It can only be eliminated with weapons in our hands.' The FRL published another video message declaring: 'We do not come to kill, erase, destroy or punish. We come to set you free from misery, poverty and fear 'Give your children a normal civilised future without sanctions and repression Most importantly, without war.' READ MORE: Fresh humiliation for Putin as he sacks his top naval commander after wave of devastating Ukrainian drone attacks on crumbling Black Sea fleet - and replaces him with nuclear sub expert Advertisement In their footage - purporting to be from the Russian-Ukrainian border - a soldier is heard to say: 'Like all our fellow citizens, in the Legion we dream of a Russia freed from Putin's dictatorship. But we don't just dream: we make every effort to make these dreams come true.' The Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) posted a video of what it said were fighters engaging Russian government troops. 'The army of the Kremlin regime lays down its weapons without even starting the battle,' it said. The videos have not been independently verified. Illya Ponomarev, a Ukraine-based Russian opposition politician, separately claimed that the border village of Lozovaya Rudka in Belgorod was 'under full control of liberating forces'. Russia claimed its forces had prevented incursions from Ukraine and had inflicted heavy losses on the attackers. It said that four more attacks by Ukrainian 'sabotage and reconnaissance groups' were pushed back around five hours later in Russia's Kursk region. But Russia nonetheless closed schools in Kursk city until the end of the week following the attacks. 'In connection with recent events, I have taken the decision to put schools on remote learning,' Kursk Mayor Igor Kutsak said on social media, adding that the measures will last until Friday. Responsibility for the raids was claimed by at least two Ukraine-based armed groups - the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Siberian Battalion - which purport to be made up of Russians opposed to the Kremlin. Andriy Yusov, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence, told Ukraine's 24 Channel the groups were conducting the operation on Russian territory independently of Ukraine. The incursions - from Ukrainian territory where the partisans are based - came as Kyiv drones blitzed two oil refineries inside Russia, in the Nizhny Novgorod and Oryol regions. Russia's FSB blamed the border incidents on the Ukrainian army rather than anti-Putin Russians, claiming to have thwarted attacks into Russia. A soldier said the motivation of the apparent coup was to 'set [people] free' Groups claimed to show Russian soldiers storming into Russia to bring an end to the regime The Siberian Battalion claimed they were engaging Russian troops on the border with Ukraine The incidents took place just three days before the start of voting in a Russian presidential election in which Vladimir Putin is set to extend his rule by six more years. In a reference to the vote, the Freedom of Russia Legion posted on social media: 'The people will vote for whom they want, not for whom they have to. Russians will live freely.' Ukraine separately pounded targets across Russia on Tuesday with at least 25 drones and nine rockets, setting a major oil refinery on fire. Asked about those attacks and the border incidents, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: 'Our military is doing everything necessary, the air defence systems are working.' The Freedom of Russia legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps have previously claimed responsibility for other cross-border raids into Russia from Ukraine. In the past, Russian officials have cast the groups as puppets of the Ukrainian military and U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, which Moscow says is trying to foment chaos in Russia. Russia's FSB security service said separately on Tuesday it had detained a man in Crimea who had called for violence against Russian people, the TASS state news agency reported. A man wanted on three outstanding warrants has finally been caught after an alleged crime spree, sparking a wild police chase that ended after he allegedly rammed a stolen ute into a cop car. Stunned bystanders filmed the final stages of the dramatic chase on a busy road in Erina on the NSW Central Coast on Tuesday. The footage showed the allegedly stolen Mazda coming to an abrupt stop when it collided with another vehicle at a roundabout moments after the driver, 29, rammed into a police vehicle. Sirens could be heard blaring in the background as the shirtless driver wearing black footy shorts got out of the ute. He jumped over a police car that had blocked the ute and dodged oncoming traffic as he sprinted down the road with up to a dozen officers in hot pursuit. A man wanted on three outstanding warrants was finally caught after a wild police chase spanning several suburbs on the NSW Central Coast on Tuesday READ MORE: Truckie causes chaos across two states after leading cops on epic chase A truckie was charged after an leading cops on an epic multi-state chase after he allegedly stole a bobcat Advertisement The man was finally arrested after a short foot pursuit when officers deployed pepper spray. He has since been charged with a long list of serious offences. Police allege officers earlier in the afternoon tried to arrest the man wanted on three outstanding warrants for drug and robbery offences at a carpark 11km away in Bateau Bay. He allegedly fled the scene before returning to the carpark and attempted to steal a vehicle, where he resisted arrest a second time and allegedly assaulted officers. He allegedly tried to steal a motorcycle and drove off in his Mercedes, sparking a pursuit which was then terminated a short time later due to safety concerns. A police helicopter lost sight of the Mercedes at Wyoming, where the driver allegedly broke into a home and threatened the occupants with a firearm before driving off in a ute parked in the garage. PolAir tracked the ute to a shopping centre in Erina, where the man allegedly tried to steal other vehicles before driving off in the ute. He was driving through Erina when he allegedly collided with a police vehicle before a second collision with another vehicle on Terrigal Drive a short time later. Stunned bystanders watched on as the man dodged oncoming traffic before he fled down the road where police eventually caught up and arrested him The man was taken into police custody and later transported to Gosford Hospital, where he remains under police guard. He was charged with 16 offences. Charges included three counts of hinder or resist police officer, two counts of assaulting police, two counts of motor vehicle theft, intimidating an officer, damage to property and riving in a reckless/dangerous manner. The matter will be heard in Gosford Local Court on Wednesday. Detectives are due to provide more details at a press conference later on Wednesday morning. Scott Peterson appeared virtually in court on Tuesday, nearly 20 years after he was convicted of killing his pregnant wife, grinning widely and sporting a new ponytail as he attempts to reopen his trial. His lawyers with the Los Angeles Innocence Project asked a judge to order new DNA tests and allow their investigators to access evidence connected with a burglary across the street from the couple's California home. Peterson was sentenced to death after a jury found him guilty of murder in the deaths of Laci and the unborn child they planned to name Conner. Prosecutors said he killed Laci and dumped her body in San Francisco Bay on Christmas Eve 2002. The death sentence was later overturned, and he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Scott Peterson appeared virtually in court on Tuesday, nearly 20 years after he was convicted of killing his pregnant wife, grinning widely and sporting a new ponytail as he attempts to reopen his trial The LA Innocence Project has now taken up Peterson's case. The group suggests in court documents that Laci Peterson may have witnessed a Christmas Eve break-in across the street from the couple's home in Modesto and been kidnapped and then killed by the burglars. The national Innocence Project has distanced itself from the Los Angeles group, saying in a press release issued after the court filings that the Southern California nonprofit was 'wholly independent of the Innocence Project.' The filings in San Mateo County Superior Court represent a longshot bid to exonerate the 51-year-old Peterson, two decades after his arrest captivated the nation. In January, the LA Innocence Project filed motions on his behalf 'to order further discovery of evidence and allow new DNA testing to support our investigation into Mr. Petersons claim of actual innocence,' the group's director, Paula Mitchell, said in a statement Tuesday. The project is seeking DNA tests on materials connected to the burglary, and on tarps and a large plastic bag found at the waterfront near where the bodies washed up separately. In addition, the group's attorneys are asking for police reports and audio and video recordings from interviews of suspects and witnesses connected to the burglary. The court filings claim the Modesto Police Department improperly withheld materials and was too hasty in declaring that the burglars had no connection to the killings. Stanislaus County prosecutor David Harris told Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Hill it will take time to go through old materials, much of which he believes was already litigated at trial and again during Petersons appeal. Peterson's lawyers with the Los Angeles Innocence Project asked a judge to order new DNA tests and allow their investigators to access evidence connected with a burglary across the street from the couple's California home Scott Peterson appears via video call for a status hearing at San Mateo County Superior Court in Redwood City, California, Tuesday, March 12 The death sentence was later overturned, and he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole Peterson was sentenced to death after a jury found him guilty of murder in the deaths of Laci and the unborn child they planned to name Conner 'Theres a lot of back and forth from the record and there is going to be a large amount of reading from both sides,' Harris said. One of the burglary suspects, named in court filings as D.M., denied that he had anything to do with the break-in but suggested to police that maybe the burglars were confronted by Laci Peterson and they 'did something stupid.' 'D.M. further claimed to have knowledge that someone other than Mr. Peterson killed Laci Peterson because he stated that he knows Mr. Peterson is innocent,' the filings say. In court, Mitchell said her group's requests are 'not a fishing expedition. Theyre very precise. Theyre very specific.' In the original trial, prosecutors presented mostly circumstantial evidence while arguing that Peterson was having an affair with a Fresno massage therapist when he killed Laci, took her body out in a fishing boat and dumped her in the bay. Peterson appeared in court via Zoom for Tuesday's status conference. The judge set the next two hearings for April 16 and May 29. Peterson will also attend those hearings remotely from Mule Creek State Prison, southeast of Sacramento. 'Todays hearing was just the first step in a long process. We have not commented on our motions, and we will continue to present our case in court - where it should be adjudicated,' Mitchell said in the statement. Laci was 27-years-old and eight months pregnant when she disappeared on Christmas Eve, 2002. Peterson, 51, was initially sentenced to death before a judge overturned the decision in 2020 and sentenced him to life without parole Jurors were told Peterson had a mistress, Amber Frey (pictured with Peterson) and that he was dreading becoming a father Peterson led the search for his wife but was arrested months later when her body later washed up in the San Francisco shoreline in 2003. He has always claimed that she was killed by a panicked burglar after catching them ransacking the couple's home. A jury however convicted him of the killing, deciding he was motivated by an affair he was having at the time with Amber Frey, a 20-year-old massage therapist who did not know he was married. Peterson was sentenced to death, but the decision was overturned in 2020 by the California Supreme Court, citing potential juror bias from Rachelle Rice, aka 'Strawberry Shortcake', that prosecutors failed to account for. In December 2022, Peterson's request for a new trial was rejected. Now, the L.A. Innocence Project is spearheading his case. Prosecutors told the court Peterson wanted to escape married life and did not want the responsibility of becoming a father. He argued he killed her at their Modesto home before dumping dumped her body - and that of the baby she was carrying - from his boat. Peterson's lawyers claim his murder conviction should be quashed entirely because juror Richelle Nice (pictured), dubbed 'Strawberry Shortcake' was biased Peterson's mistress, Amber Frey, did not know he was married when the two began dating He was found guilty of the first degree murder of his wife and the second degree murder of their unborn child. Some of Peterson's family have echoed his claims of innocence. However his own sister branded him a 'sociopath'. 'I don't know why he did this,' she said in an interview with Dr Oz. 'Laci was the sweetest, kindest person, so I just don't understand it.' 'We miss her all the time. We've been robbed of her presence. 'His upbringing... I don't know if it had something to do with it. I'm not a doctor but I believe in sociopathy and I believe he's a sociopath.' There was a time when recruitment involved a whispered word on a park bench from a man in a macintosh. But now GCHQ has become the first British intelligence agency to advertise for spies on LinkedIn. The security and cyber centre plans to offer careers using the social media platform. To give a taste of what it's like to work for His Majesty's Secret Service, experts released a visual puzzle today to challenge potential applicants. Hidden within this montage are 13 elements that represent letters of the alphabet. The test is to identify those letters and assemble them to reveal a secret message. Director Anne Keast-Butler said: 'The world is getting more complex and we're only going to stay ahead of those threats by bringing together the right mix of minds to tackle challenges ahead. Experts released a visual puzzle today to challenge potential applicants to GCHQ The GCHQ building in Cheltenham. The security and cyber centre plans to offer careers using LinkedIn 'For us, that means bringing in people with different backgrounds, different experience, different insights, different knowledge, and creating a team where all of us can play our part. 'We're on a journey to make sure that we reach out and connect to people who have never thought of working with us.' Ms Keast-Butler added: 'As part of launching on LinkedIn, we are in true GCHQ style and to try to help you think out of the box launching a puzzle. See if you can identify the letters.' The answer is in tomorrow's Daily Mail. An Aussie dad has branded Western Australia the 'worst' state in the country after he called more than 15 emergency dentists for his son but none were available. Jimmy Mitchell, 36, and wife Pauline, 35, gave up their stereotypical lifestyle in Western Australia to travel South East Asia for the past 12 months with their sons Liam, 8 and Riley, 7. The family returned to Western Australia over Christmas and the holiday period when Liam chipped his tooth while going down a slide with his cousin late on a Saturday afternoon in February. The young boy was in pain after the accident left him with a broken tooth and an exposed nerve. Mr Mitchell, who grew up in Western Australia, explained he called 15 different emergency dental practices to find someone to treat his son. Father-of-two Jimmy Mitchell, who grew up in Western Australia, said he was 'so done' with the state, labelling it 'backwards' after he could not find an emergency dentist to treat his son Mr Mitchell's son chipped his tooth and exposed a nerve while playing with his cousin on a slide In a video shared to TikTok, Mr Mitchell blasted the state for being 'backwards' after some of the dental practices did not answer their phone while others said they were closing and his son had to wait. 'I am fricken done living in the state of Western Australia and how fricken backwards it is in regards to when things open and when things close,' Mr Mitchell said. 'We tried 15-20 different emergency dental practices. Half of them didn't pick up. 'The other half were like 'oh, we're closing in half an hour, he's just going to have to wait until tomorrow'.' The frustrated dad said he and his wife were not sure if their son was going to lose his tooth and were not content with leaving treatment until the following day. The family travelled down to Perth Children's Hospital and waited three hours just to be told they needed to see an emergency dentist. 'It's the only place in the country and probably in the world that closes stuff at midday on a Saturday and closes stuff at 5.30 in the afternoon,' Mr Mitchell said. 'We live in the 21st century, this is why I think we would have been better off in Asia than Western Australia right now, with my poor boy missing half his fricken tooth. 'At least in South East Asia, we would have been able to go and see an emergency dentist, go and get it fixed and have a resolution to that tooth instead of the poor kid sitting there thinking that he is going to lose a tooth overnight.' Mr Mitchell had to wait until the following Tuesday for his son to be seen by a dentist and be fitted with a filling. He explained the filling has taken but there is still a chance the tooth could die considering the time it took for it to be treated. Social media users were divided, with many claiming they were shocked by Western Australia's closing times. 'I thought this when I moved here! I moved from Tassie and was SHOCKED how early everything closes,' one person commented. 'One million per cent!!! Coming from QLD I just can't get used to it!' a second person wrote. A third chimed: 'Totally agree with you, I had a similar situation but I had a bad infection in my tooth and I was in agony... no dentist to be seen.' 'When I called the next day, bookings took two weeks (and) I'm in pain! Perth needs to seriously have some more clinics open.' Mr Mitchell and his wife Pauline (pictured) made the decision to give up on life in Western Australia and travel South East Asia full-time with their sons Mr Mitchell said his son would have been 'better off' in Asia than Western Australia and would have received treatment straight away (pictured, Mr Mitchell with his wife Pauline and their sons Riley, seven, and Liam eight) Others disagreed with Mr Mitchell and suggested he move to another state if he was unhappy living in Western Australia. 'If you sick of living in WA, please leave. I live in Perth and is not like that, stop complaining,' one person wrote. 'Get out and live somewhere else if you're not happy. Pretty sure most people don't mind the lifestyle,' another added. Mr Mitchell replied claiming he left the country and was travelling full-time with his family in Kuala Lumpur. In a video last year, the father-of-two, who is the cofounder of digital marketing agency My Online Guy, explained why he and his family decided to quit Australia and travel the world full-time. Mr Mitchell said Australia had became too unaffordable and also pointed to 'little things' in South East Asia such as his kids playing outside and strangers saying hello on the streets as re-affirming their decision to uproot from Australia. The House will vote on a bill that could ban TikTok Wednesday afternoon A bill that could ban TikTok within the U.S. will receive a vote today after lawmakers received hundreds of calls from constituents over the last week demanding they vote against the measure. The House China Select Committee advanced a measure last week that would specifically designate Chinese Communist Party-controlled ByteDance and TikTok as foreign adversary-controlled applications. If TikTok doesn't divest from parent company ByteDance, it could be banned across the U.S., the bill states. It has a good shot of becoming law as a bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed the bill and Joe Biden confirmed that he would sign it last week. The House will vote on the legislation at 10 a.m. ET Wednesday. In response to the growing support behind the bill, TikTok sent out a push notification to its 100 million users yesterday telling them 'Your voice matters in stopping the shutdown.' Now, lawmakers will decide whether the national security threat posed by TikTok is worth the headache from constituents who love the app. TikTok sent this notification to users on Tuesday morning, prompting them to get in touch with their lawmakers to let them know whether they support the TikTok bill This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite foreign control as the issue, but it does not. https://t.co/3hpePCE1nS Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 12, 2024 Lawmakers accused TikTok of providing its U.S. user data to its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance, which they say has connections to the Chinese Communist Party Still, as the bill has gained more steam, so too has its opposition. Elon Musk joined Donald Trump in opposing the effort to reign in TikTok's influence, calling it government 'censorship,' in a post on X Tuesday. 'This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite 'foreign control' as the issue, but it does not,' Musk stated. The notification prompted users to reach out to their congressional member to urge them to vote against the proposed bill. As a result, congressional offices received hundreds of calls about the bill Tuesday morning, congressional aides told DailyMail.com. Many callers appeared to be children or concerned parents begging the app not be banned. Users are being told the bill threatens TikTok's very existence, though what it actually does is force its parent company to divest - something callers are largely in support of once staffers explain the nuance of the bill. 'TikTok's campaign to have users call their representatives shows just how much control they have. This campaign is reminiscent of typical Communist Party tactics,' Rep. Greg Murphy, R- N.C., told DailyMail.com in a statement. 'Unfortunately, these callers don't understand what they are really advocating for - they are following orders from Beijing. The CCP is hoping to replicate their modus operandi of telling their citizens what to do.' His office's phones were 'blowing up' according to staff. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., told DailyMail.com he is in favor of the bill and despite the deluge of calls, 'We'll talk to any constituent that wants to call in and talk to us through this.' 'We're explaining our position, and it's a normal part of the process,' he said. Rep. John Duarte, R- Calif., told DailyMail.com that though he does not know yet how he will vote on the bill, 'It won't be because 16-year-olds call me from all over the country.' The House China Select Committee last week accused CCP officials of using TikTok to spy on U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat. If the bill is passed, ByteDance would have 165 days after the law is signed to divest from TikTok. If it does not, app stores and web hosting platforms would not be allowed to distribute it in the U.S. The bill passed through committee last week with a bipartisan unanimous 50-0 vote. In a statement, TikTok said of the bill's passing committee: 'This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States. The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, deny artists an audience, and destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country.' However, the bill does have some notable opposition beyond just children and their parents. TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced Last week, former President Donald Trump threw cold water on the bipartisan bill, saying if TikTok is banned its rival Facebook would 'double their business' 'I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better,' Trump wrote. 'They are a true Enemy of the People!' Lawmakers have also expressed reticence about how the TikTok bill could impact First Amendment protections. 'I think it's a terrible idea and it's hysteria that's running through both parties now.' Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told DailyMail.com Friday. 'In America, we don't just tell people you can't own a company because we don't like you. And 150 million people use their First Amendment freedom to express themselves on TikTok, and you can't just have that taken away from them.' Fellow Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie agreed. 'The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse. The President will be given the power to ban web sites, not just apps,' he posted on X. 'Lambo guy' businessman Adrian Portelli has branded Greens leader Adam Bandt a hypocrite after it was revealed he spent thousands of taxpayer dollars on private jets. The eco-MP had launched a war of words with Mr Portelli last May when the lottery company boss used a crane to lift his $2million Maclaren hypercar into his $39million penthouse on Melbourne's South Bank. Mr Bandt had slammed the ostentatious display of wealth with a jibe at him and Labor's Stage Three tax cuts which at that stage rewarded the rich over the low-paid. 'Labor's giving this guy a $9,000 tax cut while people starve on $52 a day,' Mr Bandt posted on X. But after it was revealed Mr Bandt has been jetting around on the public purse, Mr Portelli - who shot to fame when he bought one of the homes on The Block - has now returned fire. He blasted Mr Bandt's waste and branded the Melbourne politician a 'bum' after learning the Greens leader spent $23,000 of taxpayer money on private jet flights. 'It makes sense now you (Mr Bandt) want me to pay more tax,' Mr Portelli, 34, wrote in an Instagram post. 'So that I can cover your chartered jets, you bum.' Adrian Portelli has used the revelation Adam Bandt used tax funds to take privately chartered planes to hit back at the Greens leader for a tweet last year Mr Portelli was responding to a tweet sent by Mr Bandt that said he should pay more tax after an opulent display of lifting an Formula 1 racing car into a tower penthouse READ MORE: Outrage after The Block's millionaire property investor 'Mr Lambo' cranes $2million luxury car into his 57th storey penthouse worth $39 million: 'Tax him now' Advertisement Mr Potelli was responding to home finance mogul Mark Bouris's post on Mr Bandt's use of two chartered flights during the 2022 federal election that was revealed as part of the $1million in annual expenses he claimed by government documents. 'I can tell you firsthand thats not cheap,' Mr Bouris said about the private jet use. Mr Portelli also explicitly took a swipe at the tweet in another Instragram post where he circled the offending words and offered the reply: 'People starving on $52 and here you are using taxpayers' money to pay for your private jets'. On Tuesday, Mr Bandt was revealed to have used the private jets between Queensland regional centres Townsville and Rockhampton and along the well-travelled Brisbane to Canberra route to attend his party's election campaign launch. In addition Mr Bandt spent $57,000 of tax payers' money for domestic flights on himself and an eye-watering $372,000 in travel expenses for his 21 staff despite his party's core opposition to fossil fuel emissions. However, a spokesman for Mr Bandt defended the costly trips. 'As the leader of the third largest political party in Australia you would expect Mr Bandt would engage in extensive travel and unlike the Prime Minister and many Ministers he doesnt have access to government VIP flights,' the spokesperson said. 'All Mr Bandts expenditures are within entitlements.' Mr Portelli also referred more explicitly to Mr Bandt's social media disapproval expressed last year A spokesman for Adam Bandt (pictured) defended the costly trips Mr Portelli is best known online for giving away thousands of dollars through his company LMCT+, and bidding on properties from Channel Nine reality TV juggernaut The Block. Last month Portelli shared two CCTV videos of a group of thieves inside his north Melbourne office who had gained access through a smashed window. He initially offered $100,000 for the identity of the thieves but doubled the reward to $200,000 shortly afterwards. He teamed up with his tech-savvy flatmate while in the US to develop several successful apps, which they then sold at enormous profits. In 2018 he co-founded LMCT+, a flashy lottery business that offers lavish prizes including luxury homes, cars and cash under a legal loophole. Technically it sells subscriptions, costing up to $100 a month, to a buyers club providing discounts across more than 700 retailers. But LMCT+ is best known for its high-profile giveaways, which it operates as a 'trade promotion' a type of lottery originally designed to help businesses attract customers by rewarding them with prizes under a licence issued in NSW. In October, gambling regulators in South Australia and Victoria launched investigations into the company after receiving complaints, while NSW's Office of Fair Trading said it had investigated LMCT+ in 2022 and found no evidence of any wrongdoing. Mr Portelli said at the time he 'welcomed' the investigation. 'I pay six figures every week in tax, I'm happy to pay my tax,' he said. 'You can't be this public and not have everything in order. 'We've been operating for five years now. I welcome anyone to come here and question, tear it apart, bring it on.' Earlier this year Mr Portelli welcomed a baby boy with his girlfriend Karlie Butler. An ugly row between embattled Liberal MP Taylor Martin and his new wife as she stormed out of their marital home was the subject of a police report, Daily Mail Australia can reveal. Witnesses have told how a heated altercation erupted between the pair out the front of the home they shared in Terrigal, on the NSW Central Coast, in late January this year. NSW Upper House MP Taylor Martin's wife of just eight weeks, Brittany, was seen carrying her three-year-old daughter and rushing to a car parked on the street, where she locked them inside, a witness claimed. Mr Martin followed and was allegedly heard banging on the windows and doors of the car, shouting and yelling. A short time later a woman, believed to be Brittany's mother, arrived and collected both Brittany and the toddler. 'He was in a rage,' the witness claimed. Clutching a coffee cup and without his wedding ring, he made his way into the building just before 10am NSW Upper House MP Taylor Martin's wife of just eight weeks, Brittany, was seen cradling her three-year-old daughter and rushing to a car parked on the street, locking themselves inside At one stage, Mr Martin appeared to zip behind a worker, avoiding the camera A formal police report was later lodged with the NSW Police Force. Daily Mail Australia understands officers later attended Mr Martin's address. However, no charges were laid and the matter did not progress any further. It is also understood that Mr Martin privately disputes suggestions he shouted at Brittany through the window. NSW Police said in a statement: 'A report was made to police at Wyong Police Station in February; however, it is of a personal nature and as there are no associated charges. 'No further information is available.' On Wednesday, a day after Daily Mail Australia broke the story about the relationship collapse, Mr Martin was seen arriving at NSW State Parliament for the sitting week. Clutching a coffee cup and without his wedding ring, Mr Martin kept his head down as he made his way down Macquarie Street. At one point he appeared to duck behind a cleaner to avoid a photographer taking pictures of him. Mr Martin and his wife were married in a romantic, luxury ceremony at Sydney's Grounds of Alexandria in December in front of about 110 guests. At the time, Mr Martin was facing a Liberal Party investigation into him bombarding an ex-lover with 'ugly and undignified' text messages. That story broke after the couple's engagement. That investigation is still ongoing some eight months after it was first launched. Mr Martin's former boss and partner, former federal MP for the Central Coast seat of Robertson Lucy Wicks, claimed Mr Martin verbally abused her over a five year period. Mr Martin was spotted making a quick dash into the building on Wednesday morning On Wednesday, a day after the initial story broke of the separation, Mr Martin was seen arriving at State Parliament in NSW Daily Mail Australia can reveal NSW Member of the Legislative Council Taylor Martin married his girlfriend Brittany in a luxurious ceremony at the Grounds of Alexandria in December Mr Martin publicly apologised for a series of text messages - leaked to media - that he sent Ms Wicks during that period calling her a 'dumb s***' and a 'f***ing pig'. He vowed to assist with any investigation into the allegations. He said at the time: 'I was young and inexperienced and I found myself involved in a situation that was way beyond me. There were heated words during my attempts to go separate ways that I sincerely regret. 'It was an ugly and undignified parting of ways.' The relationship between the pair soured in 2019, when Mr Martin was 29 and Ms Wicks was 46. Mr Martin was first employed as a staffer in Ms Wicks' office when he was 24. Within eight weeks the honeymoon was over and Brittany and her three-year-old daughter had left the house they shared on the Central Coast A source close to the former couple said Brittany is now seeking counselling as the mother-of-one navigates the ugly split. 'I was shocked to hear of the breakdown of the marriage so quickly,' an insider said. 'He was lovely to everyone prior to the wedding, he'd even been on holidays with her family. 'He looked completely in love with Brittany and so happy... it all turned nasty as soon as they were married.' The wedding came just five months after Mr Martin publicly apologised for past conduct, after his former boss and partner Lucy Wicks lodged a formal complaint accusing him of 'five years of abuse' The 32-year-old MP still has pictures from his wedding available on his private social media pages. It is understood he hadn't informed colleagues of the split. 'They only got married recently,' one colleague said, adding they were 'shocked' to hear the relationship was all over. State Opposition Leader Mark Speakman previously said he would not speculate on the young MP's future until that investigation is concluded. Mr Martin has been vocal in parliament recent months. In late November, he campaigned for the introduction of 'no-contact orders' as an alternative to apprehended violence orders. Mr Martin publicly apologised for a series of text messages he sent Ms Wicks during that period calling her a 'dumb s***' and a 'f***ing pig', and vowed to assist with any investigation into the allegations 'I believe the time has come to look at making an option available to people which sits below the seriousness of an apprehended violence order [AVO],' he said at the time. 'It is clear that there are people in our community who are not safe to be around once an intimate relationship is brought to an end. READ MORE: MP Taylor Martin speaks about breakdown of his secret relationship Mr Martin publicly apologised for a series of text messages he sent Ms Wicks Advertisement 'A less serious course of action than an AVO, a nocontact order would be a first port of call that people could easily avail themselves of to serve as formal notice to the other party that the next step will be an AVO should they breach the nocontact order. 'I can tell you from experience that applying for an AVO is not a matter to be taken lightly. It is an extremely confronting and triggering experience.' When Mr Martin made his inaugural parliamentary speech back in 2017, he spoke out against both bullying and domestic violence, explaining how his upbringing was shaped by his own experiences of being picked on in the playground. 'Domestic violence hits a nerve with just about everyone in our state,' he said. 'As we are seeing reported incidents on the rise and more and more people taking a stand, I am certain every family has at least one story to tell close to home. 'I know I do amongst my friends and family. I will be an advocate amongst young men. 'We need to ensure that young boys who will become young men get the mentoring needed to teach and emphasise the value of respect in all relationships even if indeed especially when it is not modelled in their home.' Mr Martin was elected to the Legislative Council in 2019 and is serving an eight-year term due to expire in 2027. He earns approximately $172,000 per year. President Joe Biden officially became the Democratic nominee just minutes after polls closed Tuesday night in Georgia. Former President Donald Trump is expected to clinch the Republican nomination with Tuesday's primary contests as well. Earlier Tuesday, Democrats in the Northern Marianas Islands handed Biden a win - as the current commander-in-chief received 93 votes to longshot hopeful Jason Palmer's four and self-help guru Marianne Williamson's two. Georgia was quickly called for Trump and Biden shortly after polls closed at 7 p.m., with CNN projecting that Biden had amassed enough delegates to become the Democratic nominee. Mississippi was also quickly called for both Trump and Biden, with results coming in later Tueday from Washington state as well as Hawaii for Republicans. President Joe Biden officially became the presumptive Democratic nominee Tuesday night, after winning contests in the Northern Marianas Islands and Georgia Former President Donald Trump easily won the Georgia primary and is expected to earn enough delegates Tuesday to become the presumptive Republican presidential nominee The president needed 1,968 delegates to become his party's official nominee. Trump needs 1,215 delegates and has 1,184 with his Tuesday wins in Georgia and Mississippi. Last week Trump dominated in the so-called Super Tuesday races and rid himself of his final rival, former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley. Haley dropped out of the presidential race Wednesday, though didn't endorse Trump on her way out. Still, a significant amount of Republican voters in Georgia came out Tuesday and supported Haley. With about 92 percent of the vote counted, around 13.3 percent had selected Haley. Biden practically ran the map on Super Tuesday said for one exception - he lost the American Samoa caucus to Baltimore-based entrepreneur Jason Palmer, who wasn't even considered a mainstream Democratic hopeful before his win. Since then, Palmer has said he'll carry on with his challenge, while Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips dropped out Wednesday. Longshot Democratic hopeful Jason Palmer speaks last Tuesday after surprising the world by winning the caucus in American Samoa, putting his name on the map Voters line up to cast their ballots Tuesday in Mississippi's Democrat and Republican primaries for president Self-help guru Marianne Williamson dropped out of the race in February, but relaunched her campaign earlier this month and remains on the Democratic ballot Williamson, who dropped out of the race in February after a poor showing in Nevada, rebooted her presidential campaign earlier this month after performing better than Phillips in Michigan. She continues to campaign for the Democratic nomination. Williamson sent out a note to supporters as CNN was predicting Biden would become the Democratic nominee. 'Given the political reality, President Biden will probably have the nomination sewn up in terms of the delegate count very soon. But it doesn't matter. We have the conversation without which Democrats will not win in 2024. And that is why we must keep going,' Williamson wrote. Both Trump and Biden campaigned in Georgia over the weekend ahead of the primary but also to set the table for a general election fight in the state. Biden beat Trump in Georgia in 2020 - a shocking outcome in a state that had been traditionally red. The Biden-Harris campaign sent out a statement Tuesday marking Biden's nomination win. 'Four years ago, I ran for president because I believed we were in a battle for the soul of this nation,' the president said. 'Because of the American people, we won that battle, and now I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever.' Biden said the country faces a 'sobering reality' as Trump approached winning the Republican nomination again. 'Freedom and democracy are at risk here at home in a way they have not been since the Civil War,' the president said. 'Donald Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. He is glorifying dictators and pledging to become one himself on day one. He seeks to bury the truth of January 6 by vowing to pardon the insurrectionists who placed a dagger at the throat of American democracy,' Biden warned. The president also pointed to comments that Trump made in an interview with CNBC Monday where he suggested cuts to Medicare and Social Security were on the table. 'He's rooting for the economy to crash, pushing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, and planning to ban abortion nationwide,' Biden said. Voters, the president said, 'have a choice to make about the future of this country.' 'Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away?' Biden asked. 'Will we finally make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes or will we allow corporate greed to run rampant on the backs of the middle class?' 'I believe that the American people will choose to keep us moving into the future,' Biden said. 'With every crisis, America has always emerged stronger and more united on the other side.' 'This November will be no different and I believe we will do it together,' the president added. Florida police shot a bus worker dead after he allegedly laid in wait and executed his co-worker with a gun pulled from his lunchbox in a depot. Bodycam footage released by authorities captures the intense shootout between deputies and the suspect at the Broward Transit maintenance facility last Wednesday. Rafael A. Molina, 59, allegedly pulled out his gun and fatally shot his co-worker Warren H. Chambers, 42, before officers encountered them at the facility. Molina then used a hammer to destroy his cellphone and positioned himself in an ambush position inside a vacant bus, Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony said during a press conference Friday. Molina fired six times at the deputies who were running toward the bus, and deputies responded by firing 49 shots back. Florida police shot bus worker Rafael A. Molina, 59, dead after he allegedly laid in wait and executed his co-worker with a gun pulled from his lunchbox in a depot Bodycam footage released by authorities captures the intense shootout between deputies and the suspect at the Broward Transit maintenance facility last Wednesday Molina, 59, allegedly pulled out his gun and fatally shot his co-worker Warren H. Chambers (pictured), 42, when officers encountered them on the scene The three deputies involved in the shooting have been identified as Sgt. Noel Mercado, 44, Deputy Joseph Sherbo, 31, and Deputy Richard Delgaudio, 33. When deputies arrived at the Broward transit facility shortly after 11.30pm on Wednesday, they were told that a man had been shot and the shooter remained at large. In 911 calls released on Friday, employees who witnessed the shooting can be heard describing the scene to the dispatcher. 'There's a shooting at my job at Broward Transit at Copans, hurry up please, the guy has a gun, he's shooting,' a witness said during one call. 'He's still in here, he's still in here, he's walking around, he has a white shirt on, khaki pants, he's walking around, he has the gun in his hand.' 'He actually shot and killed one of his co-workers prior to the deputies making contact with him,' said sheriff's spokeswoman Veda Coleman Wright. The bodycam footage shows one of the deputies rushing into the facility and running towards a bus Molina used a hammer to destroy his cellphone and positioned himself in an ambush position inside a vacant bus, Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony(pictured) said during a press conference Friday Authorities later said the fatal shooting of the victim, Chambers, stemmed from 'some sort of argument or dispute'. 'We looked at the video footage, and the suspect, as we can see, is formulating, contemplating, further planning about what his next move was going to be.' 'We see that the individual goes into a locker room of some sort, he changes out his clothes, he's now in civilian attire, and he's just basically waiting. What we are referencing is ambush him,' Tony said Friday. 'He removed the firearm from the lunchbox, and then, when the victim comes outside of the room, he executes the victim, firing multiple shots at point blank range, puts the victim down,' said Tony. The bodycam footage shows one of the deputies rushing into the facility and running towards a bus. 'We witnessed him pull a hammer out and destroy his cellphone. We witnessed him walk and strategically place himself in an ambush position inside of a bus that was vacant,' said Tony. In the video, gun shots can be heard as one of the deputies approached the bus and shouted: ''Hold! Hold! Hold!' Chambers was a mechanics at the transit facility who had worked for six years The three deputies fired 49 shots in total, Tony said, adding that they have been placed on administrative leave as the investigation continues As the gunfire stopped, one deputy yelled: 'He's down!' 'It's crystal clear he's waiting, he waited for quite some time for his colleague to change out and come out in his clothes and then he shot and executed him,' Tony said. The three deputies fired 49 shots in total, Tony said, adding that they have been placed on administrative leave as the investigation continues. 'I intend to put the Medal of Honor around all three of them, it's the most courageous thing I've seen,' Tony said. Both Molina and Chambers were mechanics at the transit facility. Molina had been with the facility for 16 years and Chambers worked for six years. The incident occurred at the end of their shift on Wednesday at where the Broward County Transit's buses are serviced and repaired. Broward County Mayor Nan Rich said in a statement: 'This is a tragic loss of life. Our Broward County family grieves the loss of these two transit employees.' 'Let us keep their memories in our thoughts and prayers as we process this terrible loss.' A worker has died after getting trapped in cement crushing machinery at a Queensland construction site. Emergency services were called to Knight St in Rockhampton just after 11.30am on Tuesday after reports a 68-year-old man was injured. A technical rescue team and paramedics carefully freed the man before he was put on a stretcher and rushed to Rockhampton Hospital about 12.30pm. The worker died on Tuesday afternoon from critical head injuries, reported local newspaper The Morning Bulletin. The man was working at the Knight Pro Trade Centre project, an 8.19ha site which formerly housed railyards that is set to be transformed into an industrial estate. The man was working at a construction site for the Knight Pro industrial development on Knight St in Rockhampton (pictured) It is understood he got trapped in heavy duty equipment used to level the site. Workplace Health and Safety Queensland are leading an investigation into the incident. 'Workplace Health and Safety Queensland (WHSQ) is investigating an incident involving a worker at a construction site in Rockhampton today (Tuesday),' a spokesman said. 'WHSQ inspectors were immediately deployed to the incident after being notified around lunchtime.' Police will prepare a report for the coroner. Kate Middleton is recovering well and will be back by Easter, royal insiders have claimed - but they say she needs to be left in peace as she struggles to deal with the aftermath of Mother's Day photo row. Kate publicly took the blame for the family photograph released by Kensington Palace on Sunday as she issued an apology for the 'confusion'. It came after a public explosion of conspiracy theories, after six of the world's top picture agencies including the Press Association then sensationally pulled the photo from their wires and libraries amid concern that the 'source has manipulated the image'. But now sources within the royal circles are warning of the negative affect rumours may be having on the future Queen as she recovers from her major surgery in January. 'Its an awful lot to be under all of this public scrutiny when you are recovering from major surgery,' one told American celebrity news site Page Six. William and Kate were spotted leaving Windsor for Westminster Abbey yesterday afternoon On Sunday, Kensington Palace released the first picture of the Princess of Wales since surgery Kate posted the apology on the Prince and Princess of Wales' Instagram account yesterday 'The rumor mill particularly on social media has gotten out of control, but Kate is recovering well and she will be back by Easter. She just needs to be left in peace.' Another insider added: 'I worry about all this attention on Catherine. She did not look happy at all in the car on Monday.' Despite calls for the original image to be published, Kensington Palace insisted it would not be reissuing the unedited photograph of Kate and her children. It comes after further details emerged about the photo shoot, with William having taken the picture in just a 40-minute window on Friday before the Princess edited it twice in Photoshop to 'make it the best it can be'. The Prince of Wales took the picture of his smiling family on a 2,900 Canon camera before Kate made edits to improve the photo ahead of its public release on Instagram on Sunday. In the first official image released since Kate's 'planned abdominal surgery' on January 16, MailOnline identified sixteen separate edits, including issues with the princess's jeans zipper and right hand - amid claims the photo was digitally altered. Yesterday Kate was seen in the backseat of a car with her husband as he left Windsor to travel to London for two public engagements. The Mail understands she was on route for a 'private appointment' and she did not accompany William publicly. It comes just hours after a royal expert claimed The Princess of Wales is in a 'fragile mental and physical state' and will be 'feeling miserable' amid the photo row. READ MORE How Palace handling of Kate Middleton photo crisis fuelled yet more conspiracy theories - from claims she face swapped her Vogue shoot, sent Pippa out as a body double and used shot from 2023 Advertisement Royal commentator Jennie Bond suggested Kate 'must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public' after her major surgery in January. Also rallying round Kate today was royal expert Angela Levin who praised her for being 'honourable'. And Whoopi Goldberg urged the public to show restraint, saying: 'She may be the future Queen (but) she's still an amateur photographer.' And Ms Bond cautioned against 'bullying her into putting out all the images', adding that the 42-year-old mother-of-three would be feeling 'absolutely miserable'. She said that Kate's Mother's Day was 'obviously ruined by this row' and she 'didn't look that happy' when photographed yesterday in a car with William. Ms Bond told GB News: 'We are in danger of bullying a lady who is trying to recover from a very serious operation. I think of how she must be feeling this morning. Absolutely miserable, I think. 'Her Mother's Day was obviously ruined by this row. She was photographed yesterday in the car with William. From what we can see, she didn't look that happy, she must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public. 'The pressure has doubled and redoubled. I think she's in a fragile mental and physical state. And we should lay off her.' A smiling Prince William walks into the Commonwealth Service in London yesterday afternoon Sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle today claimed the couple would be 'annihilated' for committing her Photoshop mishap And fellow royal expert Angela Levin tweeted: 'People should be proud that Princess Catherine hasn't blamed any member of staff and realise how honourable she is. READ MORE This is how Kate Middleton edited her Mother's Day picture: Photoshop expert gives his verdict on THAT royal photo Advertisement 'Harry and Meghan's supporters can stop saying they wouldn't have had a Photoshop fail and should take over. Jumping in when someone is unwell is dishonourable.' Sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle today claimed the couple would be 'annihilated' for committing her Photoshop mishap. The source told Page Six: 'If Harry and Meghan had ever encountered the same issue they would have been annihilated. The same rules do not apply to both couples. 'This isnt a mistake that Meghan would ever make she has a keen eye and freakish attention to detail.' Meanwhile former BBC royal correspondent Michael Cole told MailOnline that the exiled British Royals will be enjoying Kate's woes, especially given their own recent popularity problems. Amid the furore, the Princess later issued an extraordinary mea culpa on Twitter and Instagram, admitting she 'edited' the image - adding that she does 'occasionally experiment' as an 'amateur photographer' and apologising for 'any confusion' the image caused. Kate is said to have felt that honesty was 'the best policy' and wanted to 'own up' to the Photoshop blunder. The Princess felt 'awful' about the picture and had been trying to make it the 'best it could be', insiders told The Times - adding that she was 'thinking of her own children when editing the picture, hoping that they looked good for their own sakes'. Publicly taking the blame for the furore, the princess wrote yesterday: 'Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. 'I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. 'I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother's Day. C.' Royal sources said the princess had made 'minor adjustments' to the picture, which she and her husband had hoped would be a lovely 'informal' shot to share on a special day. 'This was an amateur, family photograph. Their Royal Highnesses wanted to offer an informal picture of the family together for Mother's Day,' the source said. 'The Princess made minor adjustments as she shared in her statement on social media, the Wales family spent Mother's Day together and had a wonderful day.' Despite calls for the original to be published, Kensington Palace said it would not be reissuing the unedited photograph of Kate and her children, which in itself sparked further debate. Picture agencies around the world took the extraordinary step of killing the photo of Kate The PA news agency said it had withdrawn the image of Kate from its picture service yesterday Last night the palace faced growing pressure over the debacle with claims it has been damaging to public trust. Palace aides did not spot any signs of Photoshop but it's not believed the edits were made aware to the princess' team before it became public. However, questions have been raised over whether the picture was too good to be true. One red flag might have been the fact the beaming family portrait was shot in such a short time on Friday. The busy schedules of the Wales family meant the picture had to be taken while everyone was back at home from various activities. A day later, Kate is said to have sent the photo out to her team. It's unknown whether any of her team could see that the photo had been edited on Photoshop but alarm bells may have started ringing when courtiers discovered that William had taken the picture. Without editing, it would have been some feat for William to take such a captivating photo with all the members of the family simultaneously roaring with laughter. A plan was put in place to release the photo and a message from Kate herself at 9am on Sunday - but what quickly ensued was 24 hours of intense scrutiny as the Palace faced questions from all angles over why the family photo appeared to be digitally manipulated. The row overshadowed yesterday's Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, which was being led by Queen Camilla for the first time, accompanied by Prince William, in the King's absence as he undergoes cancer treatment. His Majesty recorded a video message for the first time instead. Camilla and William attend the Commonwealth Day Service at Westminster Abbey yesterday Concerns were raised over a missing part of Princess Charlotte's sleeve and the misaligned edge of her skirt, with other speculation including the positioning of Kate's zip. The picture was released to reassure the public amid escalating conspiracy theories online over the state of Kate's health in recent weeks, but in an extraordinary turn of events sparked what is being dubbed 'Kategate' and even 'Sleevegate'. William and Kate have an established track record of issuing their own photographs, often taken by Kate rather than William, to mark special occasions including their children's birthdays. But the princess's confession raises questions over whether - or to what extent - the images have been altered in the past. Public relations and crisis consultant Mark Borkowski called the fiasco a 'massive own goal' and said the unedited photograph should be released to regain trust. He said: 'It's plausible she's at home playing with the computer and using an AI tool, but if they're really going to regain any sort of trust they should release the unedited photo, it can't be that bad if they just made a few tweaks. 'I find they have risen to the challenge, provided the statement as an explanation - the question is with all the conspiracy theories running around, is whether people believe it and I'm not sure that they will.' Mr Borkowski said the Mother's Day photo had exposed a public relations problem for the monarchy: 'That's the issue, there doesn't seem to be that much joined up strategic thinking at the heart of the royal family at the moment, which leads to these problems where it's a very difficult organisation to manage in terms of PR.' Kate was last seen at a royal event on Christmas Day 2023 with her family at Sandringham He added: 'It's a nightmare, even the softer stories of Edward turning 60 this week haven't really resonated at all because no one's interested in them, they're interested in the stars they're not interested in the supporting cast and that is a problem at the moment. 'They are under pressure, massively under pressure, this is a massive own goal.' The controversy was overshadowing the Commonwealth Day service, one of the key royal events of the year. Heir to the throne William and the Queen gathered with the royal family in Westminster Abbey yesterday in the absence of the King, who is continuing treatment for cancer during what has been a challenging start to 2024 for the Windsors. Earlier, Kate's uncle Gary Goldsmith defended the Waleses and claimed they would not have been responsible for altering the image, adding 'The smiles on faces said it all for me, I thought it was beautiful.' Sky News said an examination of the photo's meta data revealed it was saved in Adobe Photoshop twice on an Apple Mac on Friday and Saturday and the picture was taken on a Canon Camera. Under the licensing agreement issued to photo agencies for use of official royal photos, Royal Households usually stipulate: 'This image must not be digitally enhanced, cropped, manipulated or modified in any manner or form.' Royal author Omid Scobie, seen as a cheerleader for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, accused the Palace of having a 'long history of lying', and said gaining back public trust was now 'an almost impossible task'. The princess is known to be a keen photographer and revealed in 2021 that she takes so many family photographs that her children sometimes object. 'Everyone's like, 'Mummy, please stop taking photographs',' she said. Kate underwent surgery at the London Clinic on January 16, but details of her condition have been kept private, and she is not expected to return to official duties until after Easter. No charges will be filed in the case, authorities said The child was a runaway whose parents had filed a missing persons report The 12-year-old was discovered Monday morning after being locked inside the store An Ohio boy was discovered inside a Target by an employee after spending the night in the store by himself. The 12-year-old had been locked inside the Target at 8100 East Broad Street in Blacklick, roughly four miles outside Reynoldsburg. He was discovered by an employee at around 6:15 am Monday morning. According to the Columbus Police Department, the child was a runaway whose parents had filed a missing persons report Sunday. He was transferred to Franklin County Children Services before his parents were notified of his whereabouts. A 12-year-old Ohio boy was discovered by a Target employee Monday morning after being locked inside the store overnight The child was a runaway whose parents had filed a missing persons report Sunday, Columbus police said Shopper Brian Taylor said he was surprised no one had discovered the child before closing the store Sunday night The child was reunited with his family Monday afternoon. Target customer Brian Taylor told WCMH he was appalled no one had located the child before the store closed for the night. 'By the parents, by the employees, by anybody. Was he silent? Was he hiding?' Taylor said. 'That's terrible, terrible. I'm stunned.' The store was open and operating as usual throughout the day, and a representative for the retailer said the situation was quickly resolved. 'The well-being of our guests is our top priority,' the spokesperson said in a statement provided to media outlets. 'Our team in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, immediately contacted law enforcement upon finding this child and cared for him until authorities arrived.' No charges will be filed in this case, authorities said. Details about the circumstances surrounding the child's disappearance have not been disclosed. An Israeli official has accused the Biden administration of trying to undermine Prime Minister Netanyahu after a US report cited a 'distrust' in his ability to rule. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence Report said that Netanyahu's 'viability as leader as well may be in jeopardy'. The report, released on Monday, also said that the US expects large protests demanding Netanyahu's resignation and elections in the coming months. In a response seen by Axios, a senior official released a statement saying: 'Those who elect the Prime Minister of Israel are the citizens of Israel and no one else. 'Israel is not a vassal state of the U.S. but an independent and democratic country whose citizens are the ones who elect the government.' President Joe Biden has been showing his frustration with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - above the two men meet in Tel Aviv in October President Biden has in recent weeks sharpened his rhetoric on the Israeli response to the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas. His administration has grown increasingly unhappy with the mounting civilian death toll, now at more than 30,000, in Gaza from bombings and ground operations. The statement from the Israeli official added: 'We expect our friends to act to overthrow the terror regime of Hamas and not the elected government in Israel.' Biden has repeatedly criticized Israel's heavy-handed approach, calling it 'over the top' and urging a ceasefire to help starving civilians. Then after the State of the Union, he was caught on a hot mic telling Democratic colleagues he planned to have a 'come to Jesus' meeting with Netanyahu. The rift between the two has set raised questions about whether Biden might restrict military aid if Israel goes ahead with a ground offensive in Gaza. Any decision by Biden, who has called himself a 'Zionist,' to get tough with Israel would run counter to his decades-old history as an ardent supporter of the country. Netanyahu hit back at Biden on Monday morning, laying out of his own red line in Gaza. Biden is greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport, on Oct. 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv A man walks past placards with photos of hostages kidnapped in the deadly October 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas from Gaza, in Tel Aviv, Israel Palestinian children hold a representational funeral for their 10-year-old peer Yezen Al-Kfarna who died of malnutrition, and protest the famine Speaking to 'Fox and Friends', he told the outlet: 'Look, it's either Israel or Hamas. There's no middle way. I mean, we have to have that victory. 'We can't have three quarters of a victory. We can't have two thirds of a victory because Hamas will reconstitute itself with these four battalions in Rafah, reconquer the Gaza Strip, and do the October 7 massacre over and over and over again. 'And for us, Israel, not merely for me, but the people of Israel that's a red line. We can't let Hamas survive.' Biden initially stood with Netanyahu as his strongest backer, supporting his war aims of destroying Hamas and arguing that a ceasefire would merely give the group a chance to rearm and reorganize. But with other world leaders taking a tougher line against Israel, Biden has seen the left of his own party rebel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a Cabinet meeting at the Kirya, in Tel Aviv on December 17, 2023 On Saturday, he warned Netanyahu that his approach was undermining Israel's own interests and he spelled out a red line. '[Netanyahu] has a right to defend Israel, a right to continue to pursue Hamas,' he told MSNBC in an interview. 'But he must, he must, he must pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost as a consequence of the actions taken. 'He's hurting, in my view, he's hurting Israel more than helping Israel by making the rest of the world... it's contrary to what Israel stands for. And I think it's a big mistake.' The president was asked if there was any 'red line' for his support of Israel, such as the invasion of the city of Rafah. 'It is a red line, but I'm never going to leave Israel,' he said, refusing to cut off military sales to Israel. Asked about potential limits on weapons, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Tuesday he would not engage in 'hypotheticals' and that news reports about Biden's thinking on the issue were 'uninformed speculation.' Chinese-built electric vehicles could pose a security risk as the federal government moves to phase out petrol, diesel and even hybrid cars, warns a cybersecurity chief. Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen's New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, coming into effect in January 2025, will aim to slash average new car emissions by 60 per cent in just four years. Car makers who sell too many utes and SUVs face hefty fines that could add more than $13,000 to the price of diesel and petrol vehicles. That would force motorists into buying a fully-electric car as part of a Labor and Greens push to slash carbon emissions by 43 per cent by 2030. However, China is now the world's biggest producer of electric cars, with BYD last year overtaking American-owned Tesla in the EV production stakes. Australia's cheapest EVs are the Chinese-made BYD Dolphin and MG4 Electric, both with a starting price under $39,000, with all EVs under $50,000 made in China. Australians are being warned about the security risks of buying a Chinese-built electric car as the federal government moves to phase out petrol , diesel and even hybrid cars (pictured is BYD Americas executive Stella Li with a BYD Dolphin) Australia's cheapest EVs are the Chinese-made BYD Dolphin and MG4 Electric (pictured), both with a starting price under $39,000 US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency executive director Brandon Wales has warned Australia to be wary about Chinese espionage, from the use of Chinese-built cranes to cars. 'It should receive - and deserves - a higher degree of scrutiny,' he told The Australian Financial Review. 'It is not enough to focus just on Chinese cranes and any other technology that's coming directly from China.' Nationals senator Matt Canavan said China couldn't be trusted with electric vehicles if Chinese companies like Huawei were banned from installing the 5G mobile network. 'Given that we have banned China from building our 5G network, it seems strange to me that there's not greater scrutiny on allowing China to control the vehicles that we drive,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'There's at least great risks in a 5G network as there would be in a vehicle that travels a hundred kilometres an hour.' U.S. President Joe Biden last month tasked the Commerce Department with investigating if Chinese cars collected data on drivers and passengers with their cameras and sensors to record detailed information on American infrastructure. The White House is also investigating if autonomous self-driving Chinese vehicles can be piloted or disabled remotely, with President Biden also restricting the sale of Chinese EVs in the United States. US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency executive director Brandon Wales has warned Australia to be wary about Chinese espionage, from the use of Chinese-built cranes to cars 'China's policies could flood our market with its vehicles, posing risks to our national security,' he said. 'I'm not going to let that happen on my watch.' The FBI has warned the Chinese Communist Party requires businesses to help it gather data on foreign countries. 'At the same time, the Chinese government is seeking to become the world's greatest superpower through predatory lending and business practices, systematic theft of intellectual property, and brazen cyber intrusions,' it said. Battery electric vehicles accounted for 9.6 per cent of sales in February, Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries data showed. But the Australian Automobile Association has calculated the government's plan to slash carbon emissions by 60 per cent, between 2025 and 2029, means the EV share of the Australian passenger vehicle market would have to multiple four-fold to 40 per cent. For light commercial vehicles, the EV share would have to surge to 50 per cent even though motorists have very few existing choices when it comes to utes and vans. AAA, the group behind car insurers NRMA, RACQ and RACV, commissioned modelling from The Centre for International Economics as part of its submission into the government's New Vehicle Emission Standard, coming into effect in January 2025. U.S. President Joe Biden last month tasked the Commerce Department with investigating if Chinese cars collected data on drivers and passengers with their cameras and sensors to record detailed information on American infrastructure (pictured are surveillance cameras at Tiannanmen Square in Beijing) AUSTRALIA'S LOWEST PRICED ELECTRIC VEHICLES BYD DOLPHIN: $38,890 MG4 ELECTRIC: $38,990 GWM ORA: $39,990 MG ZS EV: $43,990 BYD ATTO 3: $48,011 NISSAN LEAF: $50,990 TESLA MODEL 3: $57,400 TESLA MODEL Y: $65,400 Advertisement Only one ute is now available in Australia with a fully-electric motor - the Chinese-built LDV eT60 selling for $92,990. It can only tow a tonne, instead of 3.5 tonnes like the bestselling Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max diesels. 'There's no way that you can have an EV and do the normal caravanning, horse floats, boating-type of experience that a lot of Australians like to enjoy,' Senator Canavan said. 'It's just not a viable option right now, it won't be anytime soon.' The government is proposing to introduce a $100 a gram fine for every kilometre a car company's new fleet exceeds a mandated average. The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries estimates this would add $13,350 to the cost of a big four wheel drive like a Toyota LandCruiser, with a 70 series ute emitting 281 grams of carbon per kilometre. It estimated the price of a Ford Ranger, Australia's most popular vehicle, would rise by $6,150, with this ute emitting an average of 194 grams of Co2 across the single and dual-cab range. But the FCAI also estimated the credit system for car companies that have much lower or no emissions could reduce the price of a Tesla Model Y by $15,390, as an MG ZS EV became $13,380 cheaper. Senator Canavan said Australian motorists would be forced into buying a Chinese EV. 'I'm worried that anywhere close to affordable option for an EV is the Chinese-made, Chinese-owned ones,' he said. 'That to me is a Hobson's choice for people who otherwise don't have means to afford a Tesla.' From 2025 to 2029, Labor wants to slash average emission for light commercial vehicles, covering utes, from 199g/km to 81g/km - a 60 per cent reduction. For passenger cars, carbon emissions would have to fall from 141 gram per kilometre to 58 grams per kilometre. Only one ute is now available in Australia with a fully-electric motor - the Chinese-built eT60 (pictured) selling for $92,990 which can only tow a tonne, instead of 3.5 tonnes like the bestselling Ford Ranger, Toyota HiLux and Isuzu D-Max diesels The NSW government on Wednesday launched a new Vehicle Emissions Star Rating website enabling motorist to compare the carbon emissions of 16,000 models - old and new. Only fully-electric cars received the full, six-star rating. Hybrid cars, however, didn't do particularly well despite having an electric motor combined with petrol power. A Subaru Crosstrek hybrid SUV hatch received just three stars for emitting 147 grams of carbon per kilometre - which is above the 141g/km threshold for passenger cars in 2025. Popular Toyota hybrids didn't do much better, receiving 3.5 stars for the Camry and RAV4 both emitting 107g/km, as an equivalent Corolla emitted 101g/km. Thirsty diesel utes were marked down with the Toyota LandCruiser 70 series diesel getting half a star for emitting 281 grams of carbon per kilometre. A Ford Ranger dual-cab diesel received 1.5 stars for emitting 201 grams of CO2 - a poor result for Australia's 2023 bestseller and the No.1 vehicle sold in February. A grieving widow who had her husband's ashes turned into jewellery has been told police have found his body in a funeral directors' freezer. The woman from Beverley, East Yorkshire, was told by police they had found the body of her late husband, who died in July 2023, following a raid on Legacy International Funeral Directors in Hull. She and other members of the deceased man's family, including his daughter and grand-daughter, 'paid quite a bit' to have the ashes turned into crystal jewellery and are now questioning whose remains they are wearing. Are YOU a concerned family member? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk Police have recovered 35 bodies and suspected human ashes from the family funeral directors' firm, while more than 1,000 grieving relatives have contacted a hotline set up as part of a probe into the alleged scandal. The 'extremely complex and sensitive investigation', involving 120 staff along with specialists from across the country, began following reports of 'concern for care of the deceased' at three branches earlier this month. Police are standing guard outside the Anlaby Road branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors after officers recovered 35 bodies and a 'quantity of human ashes' The Hessle Road branch of the Legacy Independent Funeral Directors earlier today. Police revealed that more than 1,000 people have called a hotline with concerns Candles and floral tributes were left outside one of the firm's branches amid news that 35 bodies and suspected human ashes had been recovered by police A friend of the family, from Beverley in East Yorkshire, told The Telegraph: 'They then paid quite a bit of money to have the ashes turned into crystal jewellery for his widow, daughter and grand-daughter to wear to remember him. 'But now they have found out that he wasnt cremated and he has been in the freezer all this time. 'Apparently, the police have told them that he could have only been frozen under the direction of the Coroner. 'The widow is distraught. The family thought they had his remains, and are now asking "if its not him, then who is it?"' The friend added: 'They are now grieving again they have lost that closure that a funeral gives you. 'His widow has now been told by the police that she will have to go and identify the body of her dead husband imagine that.' Another heartbroken woman, mother-of-three Billie-Jo Suffill, 33 who lost her father Andrew, 52, and brother Dwane, 34, in the space of five days is now convinced her father's coffin she kissed in a last goodbye was empty. She also fears her brother's ashes may actually be those of someone else. She said: 'I never actually got to see my dad's body. I bet my dad was not even in the coffin it was an empty coffin. I was kissing an empty coffin. When I think about it now it is disgusting.' She said an emotional final goodbye to her father at a ceremony in the Legacy firm's Hull chapel in December 2022. Another victim, Louisa Millington, whose husband Carl was cremated through Legacy Independent Funeral Directors, said the situation has left her feeling 'broken'. She told Sky News: 'It's like being in sinking mud. Although I've lost Carl, I just feel like I am still tredging (sic). 'I don't feel like I can put him to rest, I don't feel like Carl can be at rest cause things just keep being coming back and back.' Police are standing guard outside the Anlaby Road branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors after officers recovered 35 bodies and a 'quantity of human ashes' Police outside the Hessle Road branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull after reports of 'concern for care of the deceased' Police outside the Beckside branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull A 46-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman arrested on suspicion of prevention of a lawful and decent burial, fraud by false representation and fraud by abuse of position, have been released on bail pending further inquiries. Police are carrying out 'thorough and vigorous searches at various premises linked to the suspect' while an operation is ongoing to 'respectfully' recover and move suspected human ashes to a mortuary. Deputy Chief Constable Dave Marshall yesterday pledged to put 'heartbroken and devastated families' at the core of the inquiry. He said: 'Many will be shocked, horrified and re-traumatised through grief following the disclosure of the facts of this case this week.' Assistant Chief Constable Thom McLoughlin said the case involved a 'truly terrible set of circumstances' and told affected families that 'my heart goes out to you all'. He added: 'I want to give you a personal commitment that I will do everything possible to give you the answers you deserve.' Mr McLoughlin said he could not provide 'full details' of what had happened to protect the investigation, which was at a 'critical stage'. Police cordoned off three branches of the funeral director in Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire on Saturday A hearse and a limousine can be seen in the parking area of the Hassle Road branch while police officers are still carrying out investigations Police continue their investigations at the Hessle Road branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors on Tuesday Two police officers are seen exiting a police van outside the Hessle Road branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors on Tuesday The agony of families has been worsened by speculation on social media about what went on behind the closed doors of the family firm. Officers cordoned off three Legacy Independent Funeral Directors sites after the force received a report last Wednesday of concerns about the 'storage and management processes relating to care of the deceased'. The bodies were removed between Friday morning and Saturday evening, the force said. Formal identification is taking place at Hull's city mortuary. Legacy was run by owner Robert Bush, a married father-of-two, and his daughter Saskya, an engineering graduate. Mr Bush has been the firm's director for the past 14 years. In recent years, the company has run into trouble with overdue accounts and has been threatened with a 'compulsory strike off', but it was operating normally until the police operation. Funeral services are held at the company's 'Legacy chapel' but bodies are taken to the crematorium for cremation. Yesterday there was still a large police presence at the firm's main Hessle Road site and flowers had been left in front of the shuttered doors of the premises. The company has a second Hull branch, which is said by a neighbouring business to have been rarely used recently, and a branch in Beverley. The inquiry has heightened concerns about a lack of regulation of the funeral industry. Police outside the Beckside branch of Legacy Independent Funeral Directors in Hull The Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management (ICCM), which provides training for those working within the bereavement services, called for funeral directors to be regulated. Chief executive Julie Dunk said: 'It is shocking to hear of the police investigation into the funeral directors [Legacy] in Hull. 'We all place such faith in those we entrust our relatives and friends to when they die. Fortunately, such incidences are rare, and the vast majority of funeral directors take care of deceased people entrusted to them to the standard you would expect. 'However, in a sector that is unregulated and competitive, there is room for standards to slip. 'We would therefore urge the Government to now consider some form of regulation and inspection for funeral director businesses to stop any such breaches and ensure that bereaved people can have the reassurance they expect and deserve.' 'It's left me so blindsided I've barely been able to function' By Billie-Jo Suffill Anyone who has lost a loved one will know that grief is a complicated affair. In my case, the death of my father Andrew last summer at the age of just 52 brought with it not just sorrow at his loss, but huge sadness that his life had not turned out the way he hoped. I had barely begun to process my feelings when, just five days later, my older brother Dwane took his own life at the age of 34, wracked with misplaced guilt that he had not done enough to help our father in his hours of need. As you can imagine, dealing with the fallout from this twin tragedy has been horrendous. Now, on top of it, I am having to confront the living nightmare that my dad's body may not have been cremated at all and the ashes that were sent to me after my brother's funeral are not Dwane's. Mother-of-three Billie Jo Suffill pictured kissing her father's coffin. She now fears the coffin was empty It's left me so blindsided I've barely been able to function. How can anyone prepare for calling a helpline months after losing a loved one as I did last week and having to detail distinctive scars and body markings so they can check whether their body is still there? It's disgusting. My relationship with my Dad was complicated. He had a difficult childhood, and it left a huge impact on him. He struggled with his mental health, and he was a bit of a drifter. At the same time, he was funny and bubbly, and he knew how to make me laugh. There were times when I didn't see him for a while, but we got closer again when I became a mum to my three children, aged 14, 11 and five months. He'd often turn up for a cup of tea and I liked that he was in our lives. He wasn't perfect but he was my dad. Then, last July, an ashen-faced Dwane told me he'd found Dad's body in his room at their shared accommodation. The night before, he'd overheard Dad being attacked but had been too scared to intervene. 'It's my fault,' he told me. In fact, the coroner ruled that Dad's death was down to drugs and alcohol in his system, but by then it was too late: five days after Dad died, Dwane took his own life. I found out the terrible news when I rang his mobile and it was answered by a paramedic. Suddenly I had two deaths to grieve, and two funerals to organise, with very little money to pay for them. Legacy were the only people who were happy to help me and whenever I spoke to Robert [Bush], the director of Legacy, he always seemed pleasant and nice. Dwane's funeral happened quite quickly after I set up a Go Fund Me page to raise the 2,000 needed, but Dad's took longer as we had to wait for the right paperwork for funding from the Department of Work and Pensions. Throughout, Robert was always very kind and understanding, and I felt reassured by his manner. Dad's funeral finally took place on December 12 and like Dwane's, it was a small, quiet affair, held at Legacy itself. Knowing that was the last time I would be in Dad's presence was horrible. Now, I wonder if he was in the coffin at all. In January, I got in touch with Legacy to ask about Dad's ashes, as they still hadn't told me they were ready for pick up. I was given some excuse, as I was the next time I phoned. It started to niggle at me, so I went into Legacy directly to ask for them. I was told it would be sorted out soon. Then, last week, a friend told me there was a probe into Legacy's conduct. My blood ran cold, and has done ever since. It's a horrible nightmare. Are YOU a concerned family member? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk Brad Pitt has been handed the latest victory in the battle to control the French vineyard he owned with ex-wife Angelina Jolie in the latest twist in the so-called 'War of the Roses'. The Chateau Miraval estate, which produces an award-winning sparkling rose, is at the center of a long-running court battle between the pair. Jolie attempted to overturn a preliminary ruling at the LA Superior Court which allowed her ex-husbands claims that she sold her stake in their stunning vineyard to Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler without his agreement in 2021. But in another win for the Fight Club star, the court rejected the allegations that his suit was frivolous, malicious, and part of a problematic pattern. It now means that Pitts legal team has the green light to take the court battle to trial, in which the A-lister is suing Jolie for breaching an agreement that they would give each other first refusal. Brad Pitt has been handed the latest victory in the battle to control the French vineyard he owned with ex-wife Angelina Jolie in the latest twist in the so-called 'War of the Roses' The Chateau Miraval estate, which produces an award-winning sparkling rose, is at the center of a long-running court battle between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Court minutes seen by DailyMail.com show that the Hollywood star was given the go-ahead on March 8 to amend one overruled claim relating to breaching an implied covenant of fair dealing and good faith. Judge Lia Martin rejected Jolies attorneys attempts to toss out the lawsuit for breaching an implied contract and quasi-contract, which is the latest blow for Jolie and Shefler. Last month, the Mail revealed that Stoli had been stripped of some shares by a court in Luxembourg, making Pitt the majority shareholder. The battle over Chateau Miraval's future has so far been waged in courtrooms in France, Luxembourg and Los Angeles. Pitt was shocked when his ex-wife sold her half of their stunning Chateau Miraval estate without his agreement to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler in 2021. After their acrimonious separation in 2016, Jolie sold her stake in the business to Yuri Shefler's Stoli Group. Pitt claimed she had breached an agreement that they would give each other first refusal. Financial papers seen by DailyMail.com in February revealed that the ultimate owner of the shares is a shadowy trust on the isle of Jersey controlled by a company of which Shefler is not a shareholder. The bewildering business arrangements make it impossible to know who is pulling the strings - but friends of Hollywood star Pitt say he is determined to get to the bottom of it. The 1,300-acre Chateau Miraval estate in 2008 prior to the celebrity couple purchasing it as 60-40 partners, with Pitt the majority shareholder Pitt states that he was blindsided when Jolie sold her share of Chateau Miraval, a 35-room estate and celebrated vineyard in the south of France that Pitt and Jolie bought for $60 million in 2011. The 1,000-acre estate now valued at $164million is where the couple tied the knot in 2014 Jolie attempted to overturn a preliminary ruling at the LA Superior Court which allowed her ex-husbands claims that she sold her stake in their stunning vineyard to Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler without his agreement in 2021 But in another win for the Fight Club star, the court rejected the allegations that his suit was frivolous, malicious, and part of a problematic pattern A source close to the actor said: 'Brad wants Jersey to start providing answers. He should have the right to know who has bought into his business. 'He has put his heart and soul into Chateau Miraval and feels the rug has been pulled out from under him. He does not know for sure who he is actually in business with.' In a previous filing Pitt claimed that Shefler tried to bully and threaten him with smears, arguing the Russian tried to browbeat him into submission by issuing a press release announcing their partnership the day after Jolies deal went through. Shefler then demanded that the pair meet for talks, after personally insisting that the release emphasized that they were partners with Pitt despite the A-Lister only learning of the deal through the announcement. The filings are part of the Oscar winners bid to undo the $64m sale by Angelina Jolie of her share in the Chateau Miraval estate to Shefler. He says the 2021 deal was in breach of Jolies earlier promise to offer him first refusal if she ever sold up. Shefler is accused of reaching out to Jolies divorce lawyers following reports of a heated custody dispute in 2021. Pitts team also say that representatives for Stolithe international beverage conglomerate owned by Shefler made as unsolicited bid for Miravel following news of the couples split. The land around the chateau in southern France is known to produce high quality wine Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt produced their own organic wine from the vineyard Pitt was shocked when his ex-wife sold her half of their stunning Chateau Miraval estate without his agreement to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler in 2021 Shefler insists the American courts have no jurisdiction to hear a full trial on the matter. But the momentum in the legal battle appears to be with Pitt, after a court in Luxembourg stripped Shefler of 10 per cent of his shares, effectively making Pitt the majority shareholder once again. His legal team secured the victory by arguing that the shares were given in 2013 with the understanding that Jolie would not sell them on. Judge Carole Kerschen ruled it was necessary to end the 'blockage of decision' and save the business. A 'merits hearing' in around two years is likely to decide that Pitt regain full control of the shares, which were transferred to Jolies company for one euro. A source close to the actor previously said the ruling leaves Shefler, with 'virtually no say' in the multi-million-pound business in Provence. Pitt and Jolie bought the 1,300-acre Miraval estate in 2008 as 60-40 partners, with Pitt the majority shareholder. Five years later, he gave an extra 10 per cent to Jolie's company Nouvel for one euro, making them equals. But after their acrimonious split in 2016 the estate was at the center of a $350million divorce battle. In 2021, Jolie sold Nouvel to a group controlled by Shefler. Pitt's lawyers claimed she 'knew and intended Shefler and his affiliates would try to control the business'. A bus driver charged over the horror crash which tragically killed 10 wedding guests says he's devastated over what happened and is 'deeply sorry' to the victims and their families. Brett Andrew Button faces 89 charges over the late-night crash in Greta in the NSW Hunter Valley on June 11. Button arrived at Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday flanked by family and friends. He fought back tears as his lawyer Chris O'Brien read out a brief statement on Button's behalf to media outside court. Bus driver Brett Button was flaked by family and friends as he appeared in Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday, where his lawyer read out a statement on his clients' behalf READ MORE: Hunter Valley bus crash survivor Graham McBride pays tribute to his wife Nadene and daughter Kyah Graham 'Banger' McBride lost his daughter Kyah and wife Nadene in the Hunter Valley wedding bus crash last June Advertisement 'There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about what happened that day, that night,' the statement read. 'There isn't an hour that goes by, where I'm not thinking of the families. 'I truly feel for anyone involved, including emergency services. 'I am devastated by what has occurred and for that I'm truly and deeply sorry.' Wednesday was the first time Button had been ordered to attend court since last June, when he was charged over the deaths of 10 people and injuring 25 others. It's also the first time in nine months that Button has been publicly pictured. He appeared briefly before Magistrate Ian Cheetham on Wednesday where Mr O'Brien said an initial case conference had been held with NSW Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions lawyers. Mr O'Brien said discussions were continuing. Mr Cheetham agreed to adjourned the case to April 3 and continued Button's bail. He had previously been excused from attending court since being charged because he was legally represented. Button faces a total of 89 charges after 10 counts of manslaughter and 16 of causing bodily harm by 'wanton or furious driving' were added to his previous charges when the case was mentioned in court in January. Bus driver Brett Button says he's deeply sorry to the 10 victims (all pictured) and their families Button is yet to enter pleas to any of the charges. The crash rocked the close-knit town of Singleton, where many of the 10 victims were from. Many of those killed were also part of the Singleton Roosters AFL club. They included Nadene McBride and her daughter, Kyah, 22; Kyah's boyfriend Kane Symons, 21, Andrew Scott, 35, and his wife Lynan, 33; Tori Cowburn, 29, bride-to-be Rebecca Mullen, Zach Bray, 29; Angus Craig, 28 from Queensland and Darcy Bulman, 30, from Melbourne. All of the other 25 wedding guests on board the bus were injured. The crash victims and survivors had travelled from all over the country to attend the nuptials of Maddy Edsell and Mitchell Gaffney held over the June long weekend. Button allegedly lost control of a bus taking 35 wedding guests from the Wandin Valley Estate to Singleton about 11.30pm on June 11. Brett Andrew Button faces 89 charges over the late-night bus crash in the NSW Hunter Valley last June. Pictured is the crash scene the following day The bus slammed into a guard rail and rolled onto its side. Button has been accused of taking the roundabout on Wine Country Drive at Greta too fast, allegedly telling some passengers to 'fasten your belts' before the fatal crash in thick fog. Button was originally charged with 10 counts each of dangerous driving and negligent driving causing death, nine each of dangerous driving and negligent driving causing grievous bodily harm, and 25 counts of causing bodily harm by misconduct when driving the 57-seat Volvo bus and causing it to roll onto its rear side. He was charged with an additional 26 offences in January, including 10 counts of manslaughter. Beleaguered Boeing has experienced yet another problem with one of its planes - after one was forced to land due to hydraulic fluid spewing from its landing gear area. The incident - only the latest from the embattled manufacturer - occurred Monday, and is the fifth involving a Boeing plane in the span of seven days. Now under investigation, the forced landing happened as the San Francisco-bound 777-300 embarked from Sydney, with fluid filmed leaking from its undercarriage. On Saturday, an ex-Boeing staffer-turned whistleblower was found dead by an apparent suicide, after saying he witnessed second-rate parts being fitted on planes. Moreover, following the recent incident Monday - and another hours before that saw 50 passengers injured on the firm's flagship 787-Dreamliner - Boeing lost more than $4billion overnight, after shares dropped more than 4 percent Tuesday morning. The FAA has since revealed the firm failed 33 of 89 audits during an exam of Boeing's 737 Max - a model it had been planning to update with the long delayed Max 10. After the incident Monday - and the several before - United Airlines requested the firm halt work on the unreleased jets: an apparent sign of carriers' diminishing faith. Scroll down for video: A United Boeing jet bound for San Francisco (seen here) was forced to land Monday after hydraulic fluid was filmed spewing from its landing gear area moments after take off The incident occurred Monday, and is the fifth involving a Boeing plane in the span of seven days. The forced landing happened as the San Francisco-bound 777-300 took off from Sydney, as flammable fluid was seen leaking from its undercarriage 'Weve asked Boeing to stop building Max 10s, which they've done, for us and start building Max 9s,' United Chief Executive Officer Scott Kirby said Tuesday at a JPMorgan investor conference. 'Its impossible to say when the Max 10 is going to get certified,' he went on, less than a day after the United Airlines jet flying out of Australia had to turn around midflight because of the mechanical issue. The plane would go on to land safely at Sydney Airport with no injuries, officials said - though that was not the case for another failure-affected flight only hours before. Also flying out of Australia, though this time a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the flight from Sydney to Auckland also experienced a 'technical event' - one that caused 'a strong movement' that jolted passengers in their seats, reportedly sending one passenger into the cabin ceiling. Roughly 50 people were treated by first responders and at least five remain hospitalized - after the plane dipped violently, LATAM airline and first responders both told AFP. The cause of the issue - as is the case with the California-bound craft - remains unknown. Both incidents are now under investigation, at a time where the firm is already under heavy scrutiny. That attention stems from a separate incident involving a 737 Max that happened in early January, where an unused emergency exit door blew off a brand-new plane shortly after take-off from Portland International. Feds have been vetting the incident ever since, during which time Boeing's value has nosedived an eye-watering $150billion to $112billion. Also within that span, the firm has seen at least four other planes planes technical failures. The unexplained mishap is only the latest from the embattled manufacturer, which lost more than $4billion overnight, after shares dropped by more than 4 percent Tuesday morning Shares dropped by more than 4 percent - a five-month low - following the Monday incident and another that took place over the Indian Ocean It saw 50 people treated by first responders after a Boeing 787 flying from Australia to New Zealand experienced a 'technical event' that caused 'a strong movement' that jolted passengers in their seats, reportedly sending one into the ceiling. Five remain hospitalized The first, also involving a Boeing 737, occurred March 4 shortly after takeoff from Florida's Fort Meyers, and saw one of the plane's engines catch fire. Footage from the cabin showed passengers screaming and crying as they witnessed flames billowing up over one of the plane's wings, after one of the turbines on the United flight somehow ingested bubble wrap before the departure, the airline said. No one was injured during the incident. A few days later, on another United flight, a wheel fell off a Boeing 777-200 shortly after takeoff in San Francisco. As was the case with the other mishaps, it occurred shortly after take-off, and saw the 256lb wheel crush several cars parked below after plummeting to the ground. The United Airlines flight on its way to Osaka was barely off the runway when the Boeing 777-200's wheel came off, with footage showing it laying on the runway The plane with 235 passengers and 14 crew diverted to Los Angeles Airport after it was alerted to the landing gear failure at 11:35am Thursday, before eventually landing safely at LAX at around 1.20pm with no further incident. No injuries reported on the ground. United, at the time, issued a statement that seemingly attempted to quell riders' concerns: 'The 777-200 has six tires on each of its two main landing gear struts. 'The aircraft is designed to land safely with missing or damaged tires.' The first, also involving a Boeing 737, occurred March 4 shortly after takeoff from Florida's Fort Meyers, and saw one of the plane's engines catch fire. Footage from the cabin showed passengers screaming as they witnessed flames billowing over one of the plane's wings A few days later, on another United flight, a wheel fell off a Boeing 777-200 shortly after takeoff in San Francisco . As was the case with the other mishaps, it occurred shortly after take-off, and saw the 256lb wheel crush several cars parked below after plummeting to the ground Then, on Friday, On Friday, a United Airlines aircraft skidded off a runway into a grassy area after a rough landing in Houston The aircraft, which arrived from Memphis, is said to have suffered some form of gear collapse as it exited the runway at George Bush Airport. The 160 passengers and six crew were not injured Footage showed the plane stopped with its wing touching the ground by the side of the runway, while passengers were hurried off from an emergency gate ladder. The plane, in that case, was also a Boeing 737 Max Meanwhile, former Boeing Quality Manager John Barnett - who had been involved in whistleblower retaliation suit against the manufacturer - was found dead from what police said was a self-inflicted gunshot wound Saturday, while meeting Boeing lawyers in South Carolina The craft is the same model seen leaking hydraulic fluid in Sydney on Monday. Then, on Friday, On Friday, a United Airlines aircraft skidded off a runway into a grassy area after a rough landing in Houston. The aircraft, which arrived from Memphis, is said to have suffered some form of gear collapse as it exited the runway at George Bush Airport. The 160 passengers and six crew were not injured. Footage showed the plane stopped with its wing touching the ground by the side of the runway, while passengers were hurried off from an emergency gate ladder. The plane, in that case, was also a Boeing 737 Max. A few hours later, a flight from San Francisco to Mexico City was diverted to LA after an issue with the planes hydraulic system, United Airlines said - this time referring to a Boeing 777-300, the same model seen spewing hydraulic fluid on Monday. None of the 183 passengers or crew were injured. The next day, retired Boeing Quality Manager John Barnett - who had been involved in whistleblower retaliation suit against the manufacturer - was found dead in South Carolina from what cops said was a self-inflicted gunshot. His death came during a break in depositions in his whistleblower retaliation suit, in Charleston where he was to meet Boeing lawyers fighting his case. It alleged Barnett, 62, witnessed under-pressure workers at the firm's then new plant in South Carolina were deliberately fitting sub-standard parts to aircraft on the assembly line, and that in some cases, second-rate parts were removed from scrap bins, before being fitted to planes that were being built to prevent delays. Back in January, the staffer who spent four years overseeing quality checks at the Charleston plant issued stark warnings about the aviation giant's 787 Dreamliner and 737 Max models specifically, just weeks before his demise A 2017 review by the FAA upheld some of his concerns, and had just given a deposition to Boeing's lawyers for the case this past week, his attorney said. Back in January, the staffer who spent four years overseeing quality checks at the Charleston plant issued stark warnings about the aviation giant's 787 Dreamliner and 737 Max models specifically, just weeks before his demise. 'This is not a 737 problem - this is a Boeing problem,' he said after being asked if he believed the 737 was safe to fly following the door incident and a subsequent FAA inspection. 'I know the FAA is going in and done due diligence and inspections to ensure the door close on the 737 is installed properly and the fasteners are stored properly,' he said, citing the parts that likely played a part in the incident. 'But, my concern is, "What's the rest of the airplane? What's the condition of the rest of the airplane?"' He went on to provide a reason for that concern - one that he said led him to file the lawsuit against the aviation firm. 'Back in 2012, Boeing started removing inspection operations off their jobs,' he told TMZ's Charles Latibeaudiere and Harvey Levin, recalling his time as a quality overseer at Boeing's plant in South Carolina, which manufactured mostly 787s. 'So, it left the mechanics to buy off their own work,' he explained. Barnett went on to charge that the incident involving the door was indicative of something greater - and something alleged in his lawsuit: Boeing turning a blind eye to safety concerns in order to raise their bottom line. 'What we're seeing with the door plug blowout is what I've seen with the rest of the airplane, as far as jobs not being completed properly, inspection steps being removed, issues being ignored,' he charged, months before his sudden death. 'My concerns are with the 737 and 787, because those programs have really embraced the theory that quality is overhead and non value added. Boeing's assembly plant in North Charleston - where the deceased worked for decades - is seen here The plant where Barnett worked for decades is where Boeing builds the 787 Dreamliner, one of several crafts from the airliner that's made headlines as of late. Pictured: an unrelated United Airlines Boeing 787-9 takes off from Los Angeles international Airport on July 30, 2022 'Those two programs have really put a strong effort into removing quality from the process.' The FAA appears to have stood up some of the expert's assertions after revealing how a six-week audit found 'multiple instances where [Boeing] allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements' of its 737s. At one point during the exam, feds found that mechanics at Spirit AeroSystems - one of Boeing's main suppliers - used a hotel key card to check a door seal, and a liquid Dawn soap to a door seal 'as lubricant in the fit-up process.' That action was 'not identified/documented/called-out in the production order,' a document outlining the probe said - spurring FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker to decree Boeing must develop a comprehensive plan to address such 'systemic quality-control issues' within 90 days He sent summary of its findings to the companies in its completed audit, after an all-day February 27 meeting with CEO Dave Calhoun. He did not state the specific corrective actions Boeing and Spirit must take. 'Boeing must commit to real and profound improvements,' Whitaker explained at the time last week. 'We are going to hold them accountable every step of the way, with mutually understood milestones and expectations.' Calhoun responded in his own statement, saying that Boeing's leadership team was 'totally committed' to addressing FAA concerns and developing the plan. Spirit, which makes the fuselage for the now scrutinized MAX, issued a statement saying it was 'in communication with Boeing and the FAA on appropriate corrective actions.' In response, Boeing claimed that after some 'quality stand-downs, the FAA audit findings, and the recent expert review panel report, we have a clear picture of what needs to be done.' Since then, the 737 has continued to experience technical failures, after being grounded by the FAA for two years following two crashes in 2017 and 2019 that collectively killed 346. Clearing them to fly again in 2021, officials deemed the crashes to be the result of a combination of oversight, design flaws, and inaction by Boeing brass. That said, the door blowing off the brand-new 737 in January has since sparked a renewed probe by the DOJ - one that could get complex as these failures continue. Further complicating matters is the fact that Boeing's continued crises have now forced airlines like United and Southwest to cut flights and even pause hiring - decisions bolstered by United's decision to hold off on the unproved 737 Max 10, Once the Max 10 gets clearance to operate, Kirby said Monday, United will start accepting some of the craft into its fleet. Back in January, shortly after the door incident, Kirby said the airline would build a fleet plan without the Max 10 because of constant delays. On Friday, United told staff it would have to pause pilot hiring this spring because new Boeing planes are arriving late, CNBC reported. teams collect personal effects and other materials from the crash site of Ethiopian Airlines Flight in March 2019, less than a year after another 737-MAX crash in Indonesia That crash came five months after another flight on a Boeing 737 MAX jet left 189 people dead in Indonesia. Pictured are inspectors at the site of the Lion Air Flight crash in November 2018 Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun speaks with reports at the Capitol in January after MAX 9 planes were grounded following the door incident. The company is now under criminal investigation Southwest Airlines, which only flies Boeing 737s, also trimmed its capacity forecast for 2024, saying this week that it was reevaluating the year's financial guidance, citing fewer Boeing deliveries than it previously expected: 46 as opposed to 79. Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said at the JPMorgan industry conference Tuesday: Boeing needs to become a better company and the deliveries will follow that.' Alaska Airlines added Tuesday that its 2024 capacity estimates are 'in flux due to uncertainty around the timing of aircraft deliveries as a result of increased FAA and DOJ scrutiny on Boeing and its operations.' Boeing, meanwhile, issued a statement on the recent incident Monday, as it faces not only a criminal investigation from the DOJ for the door incident, but the still-to-be seen repercussions from the several incidents since 'We maintain all of our aircraft in accordance with Uniteds FAA-approved maintenance program,' the firm said in a statement after passengers on the San Francisco-Sydney flight were seen exiting safely, before being given hotel rooms to stay overnight 'We take every safety event seriously and will investigate each incident to understand what happened and learn from it. 'Much of this work is conducted together with the manufacturers, the FAA, and the NTSB, as well as with the manufacturers of individual components. 'While this work is ongoing, each of these events is distinct and unrelated to one another. Safety is our top priority, and well continue to do everything we can to keep our customers and employees safe.' The passengers on the flight seen leaking hydraulic fluid over Australia were also provided a return flight Monday. A young woman was allegedly punched in the face by a stranger while walking home after seeing 'hardcore' bands at a NSW hotel. The 21-year-old was with friends on Maitland Rd in Newcastle's Islington after 11pm on March 8 when an unknown male punched her in the head, NSW Police allege. Police said a brawl then broke out and the girl's 20 year old female friend was also punched and injured before the attacker and his mates fled. Paramedics were called to the scene and both women were treated in hospital, police said. The woman was in a group of four who had earlier been to see Melbourne-based hardcore outfit AWOL, supported by the bands Mauler and Skorn at The Newcastle Hotel. They had just left the show and were walking back to Hamilton train station when the apparently unprovoked attack was launched. The group had left the Newcastle Hotel also known the 'The Newy' when they were allegedly attacked by a group they did not know They were at the venue watching hardcore bands including AWOL visiting from Melbourne Police confirmed they are investigating following a 'brawl' at Islington. One friend of the two women disagreed that it was brawl and said the altercation was sparked after the unknown group made homophobic comments to the group who had just left the show. 'When the younger group commented back, the aggressors immediately threw one punch, followed by a greater assault,' they claimed. 'It's absurd that young girls, boys and anyone in the LGBT community should have to worry about facing death when they go for a night out. This was a hate crime,' they said. It is understood both of the injured women were known to the local bands playing on the night. One woman took to social media saying the wider Newcastle live music community is up-in-arms over the seemingly random alleged attack. The Newcastle music scene is furious over rumours of the alleged attack, one woman said 'About 11.10pm on Friday 8 March 2024, a group of four persons were walking along Maitland Road when a man from an unknown group allegedly punched a 21-year-old woman to the face,' a NSW Police spokesperson said. 'The two groups allegedly engaged in a fight. The group of unknown persons had fled prior to police arrival,' police said. 'Two women, aged 20 and 21, were treated by NSW Ambulance paramedics for head injuries and bruising. They were both taken to John Hunter Hospital for treatment.' Anyone with information, CCTV or dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers. Ministers will today press ahead with landmark legislation to overturn the wrongful convictions of hundreds of subpostmasters caught up in the Post Office scandal. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill will exonerate hundreds of people who were wrongly convicted on the basis of unreliable evidence from the company's notorious IT system. The unprecedented legislation will cover convictions over a 22-year period from 1996 to 2018, during which the Post Office pursued hundreds of subpostmasters through the courts. It follows a public outcry in the wake of the ITV drama Mr Bates Vs The Post Office, which detailed the plight of those wrongly convicted, many of whom had their lives, reputations and livelihoods trashed. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill will exonerate hundreds of people who were wrongly convicted on the basis of unreliable evidence from the company's notorious IT system. Pictured: A Post Office branch in London The unprecedented legislation will cover convictions over a 22-year period from 1996 to 2018, during which the Post Office pursued hundreds of subpostmasters through the courts. Pictured: A pedestrian walking past a branch in Westminster, London Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last night paid tribute to campaigners who highlighted the scandal and piled pressure on successive governments to act. 'While I know that nothing can make up for what they've been through, today's legislation marks an important step forward in finally clearing their names,' he said. 'We owe it to the victims of this scandal who have had their lives and livelihoods callously torn apart, to deliver the justice they've fought so long and hard for, and to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.' More than 700 subpostmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsu's Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. The new law will overturn the convictions of all those convicted of offences such as theft, fraud and false accounting as a result of evidence produced by the Horizon system. The Law Society, which represents solicitors in England and Wales, warned against treating the scheme as a precedent for Government intervention in the independent judicial process and said the 'devil will be in the detail'. Those with overturned convictions will receive an interim payment with the option of immediately taking a fixed and final offer of 600,000, according to No 10. The Government will also bring forward 'enhanced' financial redress for postmasters who, while not convicted or part of legal action against the Post Office, made good the apparent losses caused by the Horizon system from their own pockets. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last night paid tribute to campaigners who highlighted the scandal and piled pressure on successive governments to act They will be entitled to a fixed sum award of 75,000 through the Horizon Shortfall Scheme. Those who have already settled for less money will have their compensation topped up to this level, while people can instead choose to have their claims assessed as part of the usual scheme process, in which there is no limit to compensation. Government sources said ministers hope the legislation will be passed by the summer. But the Government remains under pressure to speed up compensation payments to victims, many of whom lost everything as a result of the scandal. Sir Keir Starmer has promised Dame Esther Rantzen he will make time for MPs to debate changing the law on assisted dying if Labour wins power. In a conversation with the terminally ill television presenter, the Labour leader gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is parliamentary time for a debate. Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony'. Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland. Since then, she has pleaded with politicians to grapple with the issue - saying 'we live in a day and age when it's perfectly possible to offer people a gentle, peaceful death'. In a phone call filmed by ITV, Sir Keir told Dame Esther: 'I'm personally in favour of changing the law. In a conversation with Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured), the Labour leader gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is parliamentary time for a debate Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony' Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland (pictured) 'I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now.' Pressed by ITV on whether a vote should take place in the next parliament, he replied: 'Oh yes, definitely. I think Esther would agree with this. Is Assisted Suicide illegal in Britain? Under the Suicide Act 1961, anyone helping or encouraging someone to take their own life in England or Wales can be prosecuted and jailed for up to 14 years if found guilty of an offence. Section two of the act states that a person commits an offence if they carry out an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, and the act was intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide. In 2015 MPs including former prime minister David Cameron rejected a Bill to legalize assisted dying. Opposition to changing the law has come from faith groups, campaigners who say disabled people may feel pressured to end their lives and campaigners who fear assisted dying would become a business. Advertisement 'For people who are going through this or are likely to go through it in the next few months or years, this matters hugely and delay just prolongs the agony.' He said the debate should be 'conducted with respect' to 'find the right balance in the end'. 'I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case [for assisted dying] where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable.' The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther will air tonight on ITV News. Sir Keir has previously said he would be 'open' to making time for a Private Members' Bill to be debated on the issue. Sir Keir voted in favour of the last parliamentary bid to change the law in 2015, when he described the current ban as an 'injustice'. The vote was comfortably defeated by 330 votes to 118, but a poll of more than 10,000 people by Opinium Research for the Dignity in Dying campaign recently found that three quarters support making it lawful for terminally ill adults to access assisted dying. While Labour is unlikely to bring forward its own legislation, Sir Keir's signal that he would allow time for a fresh debate could encourage a backbencher to bring forward their own Bill. A Private Members' Bill is a public bill can be introduced by MPs or peers who are not government ministers. They are, however, unlikely to become law without Government support. But Care Not Killing, which promotes palliative care and opposes euthanasia, questioned whether 'killing of the terminally ill and disabled people' was Labour's 'top priority'. The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther (pictured) will air tonight on ITV News Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election Dr Gordon Macdonald, the organisation's chief executive, said: 'Changing the law to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia in the UK would represent a dramatic change in how doctors and nurses treat and care for people and put the lives of the vulnerable, terminally ill and disabled people at risk.' He said 'ordinary voters will rightly be surprised and alarmed that the Labour Leader has decided to make this intervention'. 'They will rightly ask, is the killing of the terminally ill and disabled people really Labour's top legislative priority if they win the next General Election?' Last month, a much-anticipated report on assisted dying by the Health and Social Care Committee failed to deliver any clear-cut findings or proposals. The inquiry stopped short of calling for a House of Commons debate and instead recommended that the Government should consider how to respond if moves are made to bring assisted dying into law in parts of the UK. Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election. He said last month: 'What the Government has always said, and I would commit to this of course, is if parliament decided that it wanted to change the law then of course the Government would facilitate doing that in away that was legally effective.' Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to murder or other charges. Australian women across the country have revealed they are scared to go running alone regardless of the time of day after mum-of-three Samantha Murphy was allegedly murdered during her regular morning jog. Ms Murphy vanished without a trace after she left her home at Eureka Street in Ballarat East, Victoria, on February 4. The 51-year-old left her home 18 minutes after sunrise, at 7am, for her 14km run through nearby Woowookrung Regional Park - a route she had done countless times. It took almost five weeks for police to charge 22-year-old Patrick Stephenson, who is the son of former AFL player Orren Stephenson, with Ms Murphy's murder. Police allege Stephenson 'deliberately attacked' Ms Murphy in Mount Clear, about seven kilometres into her run. Her body is yet to be found. One Aussie woman named Georgia shared a video to social media while out on a run. The young mum voiced her safety concerns and said missing mum-of-three Samantha Murphy was on her mind Ms Murphy's disappearance has left Aussie women, particularly those who run by themselves, shaken and reevaluating their routes amid safety concerns. One woman named Georgia shared a video to social media while a couple of kilometres into her regular run. The young mum explained it was 'incredibly unfair' for women to have to think about 'taking precautions' every time they leave their home. Her realisation came after she was presented with an alternative path while running along her regular route. 'I went to turn the other direction and it was a quite wooded, dark, non-visible path. I was like, 'I run that way so many times why don't I turn right here and run the other way',' Georgia said. 'I looked down there and then looked back...that doesn't feel like the safest option right now.' Georgia explained decisions on safety are 'automatic' for most women, especially ones running on their own, and are often subconsciously made. She claimed men do not make decisions based on safety unless they are running in a really dangerous area. The runner added she lived in a 'very beautiful' suburb but missing mum Samantha Murphy was on her mind along with a 22-year-old woman killed while jogging around a university campus in America. 'It's something we have to do every day to have this level of protection of ourselves, especially when we're on our own early in the morning when there's not that many people around,' Georgia said. 'Whether it's conscious or subconscious we are making these decisions to protect ourselves and our safety every single day.' Samantha Murphy was last seen leaving her home at Eureka Street in Ballarat East, Victoria, on February 4 at 7am (pictured) for her regular 14km run through nearby Woowookrung Regional Park Patrick Stephenson was arrested and charged with Ms Murphy's murder. Police will allege the 22-year-old deliberately attacked her while she was out on her run Women across the country have expressed their fears of running alone, with many claiming Ms Murphy's disappearance has made them reevaluate their safety (stock image) Georgia's views were shared by women across the country, with many claiming Ms Murphy's disappearance has made them review their own safety while out alone. 'There's a beautiful walking track in my local area but I've been too fearful to use it lately and when I do, I'm always on high alert,' one woman commented. 'I literally had this thought this morning. Got up early so I'd have time before work but it was too dark so I had to wait till the sun came up,' another wrote. 'I'm with you! We saw a lady running alone down through a forest yesterday and I thought 'is she crazy',' a third chimed. A fourth added: 'I live rurally and walk alone with my dog on dirt roads, the scenery is beautiful and it's so peaceful but every car or truck I see gives me a sinking feeling. I'm constantly planning in my head what I will do if one stops.' City of Ballarat councillor and avid runner Samantha McIntosh said Ms Murphy's tragedy was 'really challenging' for many locals. 'That ability to go for a jog or run, whether it be with friends or on your own, is a really important and healthy thing to do,' Cr McIntosh told ABC. 'It's very hard for our community to not be thinking and talking of Samantha Murphy and her family.' Former Superior Court Judge Brenda Harba-Forte has hit out Mayor Sheng Thao as the judge looks to have Thao,who took office in 2023, removed A retired judge has hit out at the Mayor of Oakland Shen Thao claiming she has 'ruined the city', as the effort to oust the leader gathers steam. The beleaguered city is dealing with large scale criminal activity and Thao recently missed a deadline to secure $15 million in state funding to help battle retail crime. On top of this, there has also been a large number of businesses deciding to shut up shop and a continuing failure to appoint a permanent police chief. During a rally on Saturday afternoon in the California city calling for Thao to stand down, retired Superior Court Judge Brenda Harbin-Forte slammed the mayor. Speaking to KVTU, Harbin-Forte said: 'People who say give her more time. More time to do what? She has ruined our city.' During a rally on Saturday afternoon in the California city calling for Thao to stand down, retired Superior Court Judge Brenda Harbin-Forte, seen here, slammed the mayor The former judge added: 'She didn't inherit all these problems. She caused a number of problems.' Harbin-Forte is heading the petition to have Thao recalled as mayor, with those looking to have her dumped needing to obtain 25,000 signatures by July. With months left before the threshold amount is needed to ensure Thao is forced to stand down, it looks like organizers are well on track to beat that number. One organizer Seneca Scott told KVTU that the group already had 12,500 signatures, half the amount necessary. Victory Baptist Church Pastor Marty Jenkins also told the outlet: 'Look at the potholes. Look at homelessness. Look at the jobs. Look at the businesses that are leaving Oakland.' Edward Escobar of Citizens Unite added: 'We are not getting the services we deserve throughout, and the crime is spreading.' In a statement to KTVU about the gathering, Thao said, 'My focus is fighting for a safer, more affordable and more prosperous Oakland. 'I ask Oaklanders to help me achieve that vision with hope and collaboration and push aside fear and division. Let's bring our community together to fight for the city we love.' The beleaguered city is dealing with large scale criminal activity and Thao, seen here, recently missed a deadline to secure $15 million in state funding to help battle retail crime In September, the Newsom administration approved over $267 million to be given to local police departments and the offices of district attorneys - which Thao didn't make use Oakland saw a 21 percent increase in violent crime, a 38 percent increase in robberies and a 45 percent increase in vehicle thefts between 2021 and 2023, per police data. The city has also been rocked by a citywide crimewave for over two years, with homicides up 80 percent in July 2023 compared to 2019 rates, while assaults and robberies were up 40 and 20 percent, respectively. Governor Gavin Newsom has deployed 120 California Highway Patrol in Oakland and the Alameda County to assist with a surge in theft. The rise has caused several businesses in the area to shut down, including a Denny's that had been open for 54 years. Newsom was also reportedly not happy about Thao failing to take up state funding to battle retail crime. Robert Harris of the Oakland NAACP told Local News Matters: 'The governor brought that up one, two, three times. 'He talked about the missed deadline, and then about 10 minutes later he said the same thing over, "Weve made that available to you, and you didnt file".' An exclusive report for DailyMail.com revealed that Oakland has potentially the most dangerous square mile for crime in all of America. Three gas stations and fast-food joints that surround Oakland Airport have become notorious for vehicle thefts. Within a single square mile, cops claim criminals strike a dozen times or more per day, every day, mainly targeting victims who are headed to and from the airport. The city's only In N Out Burger due to soaring crime - the only restaurant the chain has ever shuttered in its history Also shuttered was the city's only In N Out Burger due to soaring crime - the only restaurant the chain has ever shuttered in its history. In August, shocking video circulated showing a woman being confronted by two men who tried to snatch her purse before pistol-whipping her. She fell to the ground before both men rifled through her pockets. One month earlier, the Oakland Police Department issued a public safety advisory citing an uptick in home invasion robberies.' OPD urged residents to trim hedges and shrubs to 'eliminate potential hiding spots,' install home security systems and use outdoor lighting with motion sensors. Thao said her office had implemented new neighborhood strategies since then and were already seeing success. A young Taylor Swift fan who was critically injured in a horror crash on her way to the star's concert is showing 'positive signs' of recovery. Freya Pokarier, 10, was airlifted to Westmead Children's Hospital in Sydney after the SUV she was in with her sister and mother collided with a semi-trailer near Dubbo on February 15. They had been travelling from their Gold Coast home to Melbourne to see the pop superstar at her sold-out MCG show. Older sister Mieka, 16, died at the scene while the girls' mother, Kim Litchfield, was rushed to Dubbo Hospital with serious injuries. Young Taylor Swift fan Freya Pokarier (left) who was critically injured in a horror crash on her way to the star's concert, is showing 'positive signs' of recovery. Her older sister Mieka (right), 16, sadly died at the scene The family were travelling to Melbourne to see Swift at her sold-out MCG show The girls' godmother, Karleigh Fox, set up a GoFundMe which has helped the family raise almost $90,000 in the wake of the tragedy. Freya suffered brain injuries, a broken leg and a damaged pelvis in the crash. She remains in a coma, but an update last week revealed she had moved from intensive care to a dedicated rehabilitation ward. 'We are yet to see her beautiful eyes open, however, she has shown some really positive signs that she may be hearing her loved ones,' her mother wrote on March 7. 'She moves her left arm a lot and brings it up to her face now. 'She has sighed, yawned and hiccupped and this morning she moved her head side to side. 'She's currently peacefully snoring as we type this, even though she used to argue with mum that she didn't. Freya suffered brain injuries, a broken leg and a damaged pelvis in the horrific crash The family said they plan to celebrate Mieka's life when Freya can hopefully attend 'On Saturday Freya even got the opportunity to go outside and seemed to love the wind blowing in her face.' But Freya is not out of the woods yet. Her mother said: 'At the moment it's one day at a time, and any movements (as you can imagine) are exciting and bring hopes of progress!' The girl's mother expressed her sincere thanks to everyone who has supported her family during this difficult time. 'Mum and dad are so grateful for the love and support that has been given to her and the family and it continues to mean so much,' she said. Their father, Peter Pokarier, said the support has been overwhelming. 'The comments alone on the GoFundMe has left me feeling something I've never felt before,' he wrote on a social media page. 'I'd never thought I'd have to raise a cross on the side of the road for my 16-year-old daughter.' The family said they plan to celebrate Mieka's life when Freya can hopefully attend. A college lecturer who was wrongly sacked after his bosses believed 'outlandish' claims from a 'disgruntled' teen student out for revenge has won damages - as a tribunal judge hit out at his former bosses for taking her claims 'at face value'. Kirk Wood was accused by the 19-year-old of asking her out for a drink and quizzing her about her sex life, and she roped friends into making false statements to management at Halesowen College near Birmingham in order back her up. Rather than conducting a full investigation into the 'potentially career-ending' claims, the college did not bother interviewing four members of staff whose accounts would have put paid to her dishonest allegations - and fired him. An employment tribunal heard that Mr Wood, a lecturer in esports and digital technologies, had raised safeguarding concerns after the student told him she had been sexually assaulted - leading to her family being informed. The judge concluded it was 'more likely than not' that the teenager was unhappy at Mr Wood flagging the concerns - and concocted the plot against him in 'revenge'. Halesowen College near Birmingham has been ordered to pay compensation to a lecturer it wrongly sacked after false allegations were made by a student The tribunal was told Mr Wood joined Halesowen in August 2022 and was teaching the 19-year-old, who was said to be 'challenging', after she specifically asked to be in his class. Prior to the allegations being made, an incident had seen the student storm out of class after Mr Wood refused to quieten down the class as she had requested. In February last year, the student and her boyfriend raised allegations against the lecturer, claiming he had asked if they were sexually active. READ MORE: Head teacher who was sacked for tapping her OWN child's hand after being reported by a colleague is cleared following probe Advertisement They also claimed he asked the teen out for a drink, and alleged that he favoured paying attention to female students over male ones. Two other male friends of the teen also made allegations to support his accuser's assertions. But employment judge Robert Childe slammed the 'illogical, outlandish, contradictory and inconsistent' allegations made by what he referred to as the 'four friends' - pointing out the flaws and contradictions in their claims. One allegation was that Mr Wood had told the teen he was a '30-year-old virgin' - but that he had also engaged in group sex; another was that he ignored male students, but also approached them to discuss his sex life. The judge ruled that the college ignored Mr Wood's request for other vital evidence that would prove his innocence to be taken into account. He criticised it for 'relying' too much on 'fanciful' allegations made at Mr Wood's previous school which he ruled were 'on the balance of probabilities...fabricated'. The judge said Mr Wood acted 'entirely appropriately' and at times had to shut down the teen and her boyfriend's attempts to 'blur professional boundaries', such as the pair asking him out for a drink. Judge Childe found that the student was 'motivated to get back at Mr Wood' because he raised safeguarding concerns and because of her anger at him not adhering to her demands in class. 'It is relatively easy for a student, disgruntled in some way at the actions of their teacher, to make allegations of unprofessional conduct against that teacher', Judge Childe said. 'I find that it is more likely than not that (she) was unhappy that Mr Wood had raised safeguarding concerns about her, which the college had subsequently taken up with her family. 'I add to this the fact that (she) was known to be a student with challenging attitudes and behaviours and conclude that it is likely (she) was a student who would raise the allegations falsely as revenge for what she perceived to be Mr Wood interfering in her home life and also because he had not followed her instructions in class. '(She) would have known that the allegations were potentially career ending for Mr Wood as a teacher. 'I find that there is also a motivation for (her boyfriend) to not tell the truth. He was at the relevant time (her boyfriend), and it is more likely than not that he was persuaded by her to go along with her story. 'On the balance of probabilities, I find the evidence from (all four students) was too outlandish, contradictory and inconsistent to support (their allegations).' The judge added: 'I don't accept that (her) evidence was tested. Rather, I find it was simply taken at face value. 'I find that the college had not complied with its contractual obligation to fully investigate the circumstances of the allegations by not obtaining witness evidence.' The judge awarded Mr Wood 3,431.31 in lost pay and compensation, with a further amount of lost holiday pay and pension contributions to be decided. Climate change protesters have triggered a tense stand-off with police after they played dead on the streets of Melbourne's city centre. The Extinction Rebellion members caused a second consecutive morning of chaos in the rain-soaked CBD on Wednesday. Activists marched up Bourke Street before police moved in and forced the group onto the footpath. Officers cordoned the group who relocated to the front of State Library Victoria, where more than a dozen protesters sprawled out across the entire footpath and pretended to be dead. The defiant activists were surrounded by almost as many police officers. Climate change activists in Melbourne sprawled out across the footpath and pretended to play dead on Wednesday READ MORE: Extinction Rebellion activist apologises after woman was forced to give birth at roadside Climate activists stopped traffic on Melbourne's West Gate Bridge last week Advertisement Livestreamed footage had earlier shown activists claiming police had infringed on their right to protest. 'It looks like our democratic right to protest has once again not been upheld by Victoria Police, despite the climate and ecological emergency,' one woman said into a microphone. 'We are non-violent protesters - we would never resort to violence because we creating the world that we want to see.' At least one arrest was made on Wednesday after a woman allegedly refused to move off the road near the intersection of Latrobe and Russell streets. The Northcote woman, 61, since been released with an intent to summons at a later date. 'We respect the right for individuals to protest peacefully, however we will not tolerate those who intentionally block roads or major arterials and not only disrupt the lives of the community and impact our economy, but also our emergency services who need to respond to urgent incidents,' a police spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia. The activists declared Wednesday's protests the first official day of Rebel for Life! More than a dozen activists laid on the footpath in protest after being forced off the road 'This is the second of four early morning slow marches we will be holding,' Extinction Rebellion posted online. 'Sorry commuters! We know this is disruptive but we are trying to prevent the far, far greater disruption that will come if we dont act now. 'Our government needs to declare a climate emergency.' The latest protest comes a day after activists brought traffic to a standstill in the CBD sparking massive chaos for thousands of frustrated commuters trying to get to work. The protests are part of a planned period of disruptive action calling on federal and state governments to declare a climate emergency. Protests are planned every morning for the rest of the week until Saturday, where a where an act of 'mass civil disobedience' is scheduled to be held near Flinders Street Station intersection. A heavy police presence forced protesters off the roads and onto the footpath on Wednesday Victorian Police Commissioner Shane Patton has renewed calls for officers to have extra powers to deal with unauthorised protests. He told Seven News that 7,000 officers have been pulled off general duties to patrol more than 300 rallies solely in relation to the Middle East conflict since October. 'Do I want them tied up on that? Can I use them better than being at public order protests ? Absolutely,' the commissioner said. 'That's why we're looking at across Australia and seeing what the jurisdictions have so we can go back to the government and talk with them.' The latest climate change protests comes a week after a truck blockade on the West Gate Bridge caused major traffic delays and forced a young mum on her way to hospital to give birth on the side of the freeway. Three protesters were arrested and charged. Deanna 'Violet' Coco, 33, from NSW and Bradley Homewood, 51, from Williamstown are currently serving 21-day stints behind bars while Joseph Zammit will face court in April. The UK has joined more than 20,000 NATO personnel to take part in the largest military exercise in a generation. The Royal Navy's Carrier Strike Group, led by HMS Prince of Wales, was joined by more than 30 ships, four submarines and multiple aircraft from countries including Canada, Denmark, France and Spain. They gathered in the Norwegian fjords earlier this month to take part in the Joint Warrior exercise, a UK-led phase of exercise Steadfast Defender, which aims to test how NATO nations and allied partners can work together in hostile situations. It came as Chinese and Russian warships also joined up with Iranian allies to take part in an exercise aimed at 'jointly maintaining regional maritime security'. The manoeuvres began in the Gulf of Oman on Tuesday night and involved a Chinese destroyer, a frigate and a supply ship as well as a detachment of Russian ships from the country's Pacific Fleet. French submarine Amethyste, HMS Portland, HMS Prince of Wales, USS Paul Ignatius, HMDS Niels Jule & RFA Tidespring (Rear) with F35s flying over HMS Prince of Wales during the Joint Warrior exercise F-35 B Lightning jets from 617 Squadron were lined up on the HMS Prince of Wales flight deck at sunrise A Merlin Helicopter from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) pictured during exercise Steadfast Defender This year's manoeuvres come with Middle East tensions soaring in the face of the Israel-Hamas war that has drawn in Iranian allies around the region, including Yemen's Houthi rebels. The Houthis have launched a campaign of attacks on commercial shipping in Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, drawing Western reprisals. Commodore Andrew Ingham, Commander Fleet Operational Standards and Training, said: 'JTEPS, as the formation level training arm of FOST, deliver high end and realistic multi-domain warfare training to UK, NATO and partner nation Maritime Task groups. 'By conducting large scale multinational exercises, such as Nordic Response, JTEPS are able to strive for maximum lethality and readiness.' He added: 'Through careful planning, effective orchestrating and detailed evaluation we are able to ensure that the alliance's most powerful naval assets are consistently challenged against realistic and credible threat scenarios. 'Their work supporting the largest NATO exercise in 50 years is absolutely crucial to ensuring that we are prepared for the challenges and threats of modern era.' ET(CIS) Marshall said: 'Being here for me will be different from everyone else's experiences, as I came straight here out of training. 'Most people here have already spent time at sea practising their role, but this opportunity has really helped me consolidate what I have learnt in training within an international setting.' A Merlin Helicopter from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) lands in Badderen, Norway, during exercise Steadfast Defender A Merlin Helicopter from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) in Badderen, Norway Merlin Helicopter from the Commando Helicopter Force (CHF), retrieves an Over Snow Reconnaissance Vehicle during exercise Steadfast Defender F-35 B Lightning jets from 617 Squadron lined up on HMS Prince of Wales flight deck The HMS Prince of Wales flight deck pictured at sunrise (L-R) French Submarine Amethyst, USN Sea Hawk Helicopter, HMS Portland, HMS Prince of Wales, USS Paul Ignatius, HMDS Niels Juel & RFA Tidespring The UK-led Carrier Strike Group has been joined by the French Submarine Amethyste as part of exercise Steadfast Defender The exercise is supported with Maritime Reservists. Sub Lieutenant Derek Player, a Submarine Controller and Royal Navy Reservist, said: 'It is a demanding role. We are working in a multi-disciplinary and international team representing UK, Norwegian, German and French Navies who have submarines participating in the exercise. 'While initially daunting, coming into such a fast-paced real-world environment, the support and experience around me has built my confidence and prepared me for the next stage of my training to take on more responsibility as my career develops.' 'The naval units of China and Russia entered the territorial waters of our country to take part in the combined maritime exercise,' Iran's official IRNA news agency reported. 'The practical part of the exercise will take place in the waters of the Gulf of Oman in the Arabian Sea,' Russian news agencies cited the defence ministry as saying. 'The main purpose of the manoeuvres is to work out the safety of maritime economic activity.' Exercise Steadfast Defender now continues in Norway under Nordic Response, focussing on amphibious operations in the Arctic Circle. PwC Australia will make 366 employees redundant, with the firm announcing it would slash 329 staff and up to 37 partners. Those affected by the cuts will be contacted 'in the coming days' with the firm noting they would be invited to apply for new roles. PwC Australia chief executive Kevin Burrowes said the restructuring process had been 'complex' and 'very challenging'. 'We acknowledge that days like today are especially difficult for those affected, as well as their teams and colleagues,' he said in a statement. 'I can assure you that we will work closely with impacted individuals to ensure they are aware of their options and next steps. 'At its heart, this reorganisation will make the firm a more simplified, efficient and centre-led business, enabling us to continue delivering the highest quality of service to our corporate and private sector clients.' The management restructure is reportedly to ensure the business model is simplified in the wake of a controversial year in business. PwC's tax practice was discovered to have misused confidential government briefings to assist clients bend the impending tax laws. PwC Australia will make 366 employees redundant, with the firm announcing it would slash 329 staff and up to 37 partners (pictured, the PwC offices in Melbourne) PwC Australia chief executive Kevin Burrowes (pictured in February) said the restructuring process had been 'complex' and 'very challenging' PwC was forced to sell its government consultancy business - valued at up to $1billion - for $1 last year. Almost 350 jobs were also slashed late last year, with several partners also entering early retirement. PwC's chief operating officer Liza Maimone announced her retirement on Tuesday after 16 years with the firm. The company delayed appointing new partners last October and offered new employees $10,000 to push their start time back by a year. PwC's Skilled Services Hub in Adelaide was also closed as part of the restructure, slashing 141 jobs as a result. The firm has also recently lost several clients, including Westpac which dumped PwC as its external auditors after a 20-year partnership in November. The company still plans to pursue its graduate program for new starters. PwC partners were warned in a call with the chief executive earlier this week that job cuts would continue for the next nine months. PwC Australia chief executive Kevin Burrowes said the restructuring process had been 'complex' and 'very challenging' (pictured, the PwC offices in Sydney) PwC delayed appointing new partners last October and offered new employees $10,000 to push their start time back by a year (pictured, PwC's Sydney offices) A PwC spokesperson said proactive steps would be taken to reorganise and reshape areas of the firm to ensure a simplified and efficient structure. 'As a result, the firm will make 329 roles redundant and up to 37 partners will be accelerating their retirement over the next nine months. These changes will affect all lines of service and support functions,' they said. 'In addition, the firm is reconfiguring its Management Leadership Team (MLT) to add a Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). This will reduce layers and simplify the leadership team, as well as bring closer alignment to the firm's technology and finance functions.' The senior media adviser to NSW's top cop has been ousted after Commissioner Karen Webb was heavily criticised for her comments during the investigation into the deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies. NSW Police confirmed on Wednesday that Liz Deegan, Executive Director of Public Affairs, had 'served her last day'. Ms Deegan had been in the role for almost a year after holding senior jobs at News Corp and the NRL. She was the third person to be in the position since Commissioner Webb took charge of NSW Police two years ago. The development comes after Commissioner Webb was slammed over her handling of the investigation into the deaths of couple Luke Davies and Jesse Baird. A senior media adviser to NSW's top cop has paid the price after Commissioner Karen Webb was heavily criticised for comments she made during the investigation into the deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies Beaumont Lamarre-Condon, 28, is behind bars after being charged with murdering former Ten reporter Jesse Baird, 26, and flight attendant Luke Davies, 29, in Sydney on February 19. Investigators allege Lamarre-Condon's crimes followed a months-long campaign of 'predatory behaviour,' culminating in the alleged fatal double shooting. The Commissioner faced a storm of criticism and calls for her to resign from her $679,000-a-year job over her approach to the alleged murders. It began when Ms Webb took a number of days to front the media over the police investigation into the killings. She was then forced to apologise after describing the deaths of Baird and Davies as a 'crime of passion' in a press conference about the case. During a bizarre interview on Sunrise, the Commissioner was confronted by Barr and her co-host Matt Shirvington and accused of 'going into hiding' during the week-long investigation. She referenced a Taylor Swift lyric as she told the hosts: 'There will always be haters. Haters like to hate. Isn't that what Taylor says?' 'I have a job to do. It is a big job. This is just one of many. We actually had seven murders last week. 'This, though, of course is a complex matter. All we need to do now is find Jesse and Luke.' After the discovery of the bodies of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies (pictured), Ms Webb came under further criticism when she said in a press conference that police were 'grateful' to the accused for assisting police After the discovery of the pair's bodies, Ms Webb came under further criticism when she said in a press conference that police were 'grateful' to the accused for assisting police. Mitch Swanson, a close friend of Jesse Baird, slammed the comment after the Commissioner announced police had found Baird and Luke Davies' remains in surfboard bags on a property at remote Bungonia, in the NSW Southern Tablelands. But in a subsequent interview with the Today Show, Commissioner Webb doubled down on her comment, telling host Sarah Abo that it was the alleged victims' families who were grateful their remains had been found. Mr Swanson was incensed when he heard Ms Webb's apparently thoughtless choice of words. 'Saying how GRATEFUL they are to [Lamarre-Condon] for revealing information is just another blow to his family and friends,' Swanson wrote to friends. 'He deserves no form of thanks at all. The police handling of this is an absolute trainwreck.' He is previously alleged to have said that Diane Abbott should 'be shot' Rishi Sunak is under pressure to hand back millions to one of his party's biggest donors after acknowledging comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were 'racist and wrong' - as fresh claims emerged about the businessman's conduct. The PM's spokesperson condemned comments allegedly made by Frank Hester, CEO of healthcare tech firm The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) about MP Diane Abbott in 2019 - adding his remorse 'should be accepted' after Mr Hester said he was 'deeply sorry'. But further allegations have been made about Hester's behaviour after he was reported to have said in 2019 that seeing Ms Abbott on TV made him 'want to hate all black women' and that 'she should be shot'. He is alleged to have gathered 'foreign' employees for another meeting in 2019 after allegations of racism were made - before asking if there was 'no room for Indians' in the room and suggesting they could 'climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train'. The businessman, who also funded a helicopter trip for Mr Sunak from London to Yorkshire through his firm, has apologised for being 'rude' about Ms Abbott but denied his remarks were motivated by her gender or race. And on Tuesday afternoon, he said that 'racism - in particular - is a poison that has no place in public life'. Rishi Sunak is facing mounting pressure to disown the businessman after he apologised for saying that Ms Abbott, 70, made him 'want to hate all black women'. Ms Abbott, the longest-serving black MP, spoke out about the rant by Frank Hester, the Conservatives' biggest individual financial backer. Rishi Sunak's spokesperson has now said the remarks allegedly made by Hester were 'racist and wrong' Senior Tories had declined to describe the comments as racist - until trade secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to criticise them on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday Hester issued a statement on X in which he said he was 'deeply sorry for his remarks' - but denied that his criticism had anything to do with her gender or the colour of her skin During the meeting, detailed in a new report published by the Guardian on Tuesday night, Hester is further alleged to have claimed he was looking forward to going to Malaysia on a business trip so he could 'make new jokes' about Malaysians. He is alleged to have added: 'I'm looking forward to going to Malaysia, so that I can make new jokes I don't know any jokes about Malaysian people but I'm sure we'll find them.' He is further said to have commented in the meeting: 'I make a lot of jokes about racism, about our different creeds and cultures. But I just want to assure you that it is just the most abhorrent thing.' In a post on X, formerly Twitter, made hours before the Guardian article was published on Tuesday night, Mr Hester said that he believed hatred of others based on race and other protected characteristics was 'odious and disgusting'. He added: 'The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people - like my parents - who had roots in another land, religion and culture. 'We should celebrate those differences which have made us the world's most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. 'And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence.' Healthcare entrepreneur Hester, the Tories' biggest individual donor, is said to have made the comments about veteran left-wing MP Ms Abbot during a diatribe in 2019 at the headquarters of his company, The Phoenix Partnership (TPP). In comments first reported by the Guardian, he is alleged to have said in a meeting at his Leeds company headquarters: 'It's like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you're just like you just want to hate all black women because she's there. 'And I don't hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot.' Hester, who reportedly made the comments five years ago, has said he is 'deeply sorry' for being 'rude' about the one-time Labour veteran, but denied that his comments were related to her skin colour or her gender. Senior Tories had declined to describe the comments as racist throughout Tuesday, instead saying they were 'inappropriate' - until trade secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to decry the comments as 'racist' in storming posts on X, formerly Twitter. Hester's earlier comments sparked outrage from Ms Abbott, who is believed to have reported Hester to the police. In a statement this morning, she pointed out that two MPs - Jo Cox and Sir David Amess - have been murdered in recent years, adding: 'It is frightening. I live in Hackney and do not drive so I find myself, at weekends, popping on a bus or even walking places more than most MPs. 'I am a single woman and that makes me vulnerable anyway. But to hear someone talking like this is worrying.' The Prime Minister's official spokesman said on Tuesday: 'The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted. 'The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact.' Mr Hester's firm, The Phoenix Partnership, picked up the 15,900 cost of a helicopter flight from London to Yorkshire for Mr Sunak last November Energy Minister Graham Stuart said before Number 10's comments it would be wrong to 'cancel anybody ... because they said something intemperate and wrong in their past' Pensions Secretary Mel Stride tried to row in behind the super-donor this morning, telling broadcasters that his comments were 'clearly inappropriate' while denying they were racist Mr Hester later tweeted again to say that he believed racism was 'a poison that has no place in public life' Number 10's statement was welcomed by Conservative MP Marcus Fysh, who said he was 'a bit surprised that there wasn't a stronger condemnation earlier'. He told Sky News's Sophy Ridge: 'I'm very pleased that he (Mr Sunak) has come out and led on this issue now. He's a good guy. 'And that is the sort of leadership that I would like him to be showing over this, because that vision is absolutely what this next election is going to be about. 'And I'd like to see him coming out with all guns blazing on that issue.' He added of Ms Abbott: 'I feel very much solidarity with Diane today. I think it's terrible what she's had to endure today. 'And yeah, these sorts of racist remarks, I don't know this person who's supposed to have said them. But what has been reported is clearly racist and clearly completely, completely wrong. 'You cannot say things like that and and I'm really sorry for all the people and down the country who have been affected by that, including Diane and while I, I don't agree with them on an awful lot of things I will defend her dignity as a person, every day of the week.' Mr Hester and his firm have donated 10million to Tory coffers in the past year, and Labour party chair Anneliese Dodds MP has called on the Tories to hand the money back. She said: 'After finally conceding that his comments are racist, what further proof does Rishi Sunak need that the Conservatives accepting Frank Hester's cash is completely wrong? 'After ministers lined up to dodge the reality of the situation, it's time to face up to the facts: the Conservatives must apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott, pay back these donations and root out the extreme views and prejudice which appears to be tolerated within the party.' A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said earlier: 'On Monday, 11 March officers from the Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team were contacted in relation to a report about an MP that appeared in the Guardian. 'We are assessing the matter and are liaising with West Yorkshire Police as the alleged incident is believed to have taken place in Leeds. 'Officers from the Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team remain in contact with the MP.' Number 10 had earlier refused to say the comments were prejudiced, describing them instead as 'unacceptable', while senior Tories declined to call Hester's comments racist on broadcast rounds earlier on Tuesday. Tory peer Lord Marland told LBC that Mr Hester 'is not a racist... he made some unfortunate remarks that do sound racist'. Pensions Secretary Mel Stride also tried to row in behind the super-donor this morning, telling broadcasters: 'It's clear that what he said was inappropriate. He has, as I understand it, apologised for those remarks. 'I think the critical point here is I don't think what he was saying was a gender-based or a race-based comment, but it was clearly inappropriate. He has apologised and I think we need to move on from that.' And energy minister Graham Stuart on Tuesday said it would be wrong to 'cancel anybody ... because they said something intemperate and wrong in their past.' But trade secretary Kemi Badenoch stuck her head above the parapet, describing Hester's comments as 'racist' and adding that she welcomed his apology. In her post on X, she said: 'Abbott and I disagree on a lot. But the idea of linking criticism of her, to being a black woman is appalling. It's never acceptable to conflate someone's views with the colour of their skin. 'MPs have a difficult job balancing multiple interests - often under threats of intimidation as we saw recently in parliament. Some people make flippant comments without thinking of this context. 'This is why there needs to be space for forgiveness where there is contrition.' Frank Hester speaking at a Commonwealth Business Forum event in Kigali, Rwanda in 2022. He has said he is 'deeply sorry' for his comments about Diane Abbott Hester has denied being racist or sexist, but has admitted being 'rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago'. In a statement issued following the publication of the Guardian piece, a representative for Hester said: 'Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. 'The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism, not least because he experienced it as the child of Irish immigrants in the 1970s.' It added: 'He rang Diane Abbott twice today to try to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her, and is deeply sorry for his remarks. 'He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life.' Days before The Guardian published its article outlining the allegations, Hester had shared a post marking International Women's Day; he wished Muslims Ramadan Mubarak on the day the first article was published. It came as it was revealed Mr Hester's firm picked up the 15,900 cost of a helicopter flight from London to Yorkshire for Mr Sunak last November. Official Parliamentary documents show the money was paid by The Phoenix Partnership for a Conservative Party 'political visit' to Leeds. TPP is a healthcare IT firm specialising in producing software for hospitals and GP surgeries. Its products include Airmid, a mobile phone app GP surgeries can provide to patients allowing them to view and book appointments on the go. In 2015, Hester was appointed an OBE for services to healthcare; The Sunday Times Rich List estimates his net worth to be 415million. Abbott remains suspended from the Labour Party after writing to The Observer newspaper in April last year to suggest Jewish, Irish and Traveller people are not subject to racism 'all their lives' in the same way as black people. MailOnline has contacted the Conservative Party and Mr Hester for comment. Dozens of teens were seen throwing punches outside a Las Vegas casino as part of a massive brawl that is suspected to have been organized on social media. The melee began at the intersection of West Lone Mountain Road and Rancho Drive the night of March 9. Posts advertising a 'Santa Fe Station Shutdown' event circulated online before the violence broke out, urging teens to meet at the Santa Fe Station Hotel and Casino. The teens initially attempted to enter the casino but were turned away by security. It is unclear what triggered the fight, but a series of videos posted to social media shows teens chasing each other down a sidewalk while throwing punches. A horde of teens were seen brawling outside the Santa Fe Station Hotel and Casino as part of an event that is believed to have been organized on social media Violence broke out at the intersection of West Lone Mountain Road and Rancho Drive the night of March 9. One video showed teens chasing each other down a sidewalk while throwing punches The juveniles attempted to enter the casino but were turned away by security before a massive fight broke out in the street The brawl was reminiscent of an event in Downtown Summerlin last December. Teens were called to organize at a shopping center as part of a 'Downtown Summerlin Shutdown' The fight subsequently spilled over over into street, with juveniles shoving each other and landing blows while others stood around filming. Local business owners told KSNV they had to lock their doors out of concern for their employees' safety. In one clip, a police cruiser could be seen sitting in a nearby gas station with its lights flashing. 'The cops were already here parked in this parking lot...and there were some right here but they just had their lights flashing with no siren but they were just parked,' witness Corinne Enochs told KSNV. No arrests have been reported in connection to the incident. The brawl was reminiscent of a similar incident last December in Downtown Summerlin where hordes of teens gathered outside a shopping center before violence broke out. They were called to the area by a flashy Instagram post advertising a 'Downtown Summerlin Shutdown.' The post urged prospective attendees to 'dress to impress' and 'come tripping cause we trip harder.' It instructed teens to meet up at 4 pm and stay until they were kicked out. A group of about 150 people organized at the shopping center before police ordered them to disperse. Some juveniles were seen fighting with officers. At least five youths were cited for disorderly conduct and trespassing. Advertisement While Miami may have 'broken up' with spring break this year, the same cannot be said for Fort Lauderdale as the city's mayor welcomes South Beach's castoff revelers who have been flocking to their beaches in droves. Groups of bikini-clad girls and jeering guys flocked to the packed-out beaches of the city, situated just twenty miles from Miami Beach, as they soaked up the sunshine on Tuesday. Officials in Miami, Florida, announced plans earlier this year to bring about tougher restrictions after two deadly shootings last year. Police and the mayor's chief of staff in Fort Lauderdale said it had been a successful week with limited crime, as they look ahead to a tougher challenge - with continued celebrations coinciding with St. Patrick's Day. Casey Liening, spokesperson for local police, told Fox News: 'Our spring break crowds have been as expected so far this year, with this week being the busiest week we are anticipating. We have not had any major issues or disturbances.' Police and the mayor's chief of staff in Fort Lauderdale said it had been a successful week with limited crime Large groups formed on the beach on Tuesday morning and into the afternoon Crowds descended on the beaches of the city as they soaked up the sun for the first few days of Spring Break Friends posed together in their bikinis as they kick started their spring break celebrations in the Florida city Officers could be seen patrolling the beach area of the city on horse back as spring breakers indulged Groups of bikini-clad girls and jeering guys flocked to the packed-out beaches of the city, situated just twenty miles from Miami Beach Party goers flocked to the beach in the south of Florida to celebrate Spring Break, with St Patrick's Day also coming up this weekend Police told Fox News that they had made nine arrests between March 4 and March 9, with only two arrests being related to spring breakers Local officers can be seen in this picture talking to a group of revelers on the beach on Tuesday, it is unclear what for Groups of people flock to Fort Lauderdale beach where police presence is still high, on March 12, 2024 Prior to the spring break, Mayor Dean Trantalis said there were designated areas where alcohol was permitted, as well as safety measures including daterape drug tests, rideshare options and Narcan. During a press conference at the beginning of March, Trantalis said: 'We want to make your spring break experience the best experience you've ever had. 'Why? Because we want you to come back. We want you to come back next year. We want you to come back in future years, and, hey, maybe you want to make Fort Lauderdale your home.' Police told Fox News that they had made nine arrests between March 4 and March 9, with only two arrests being related to spring breakers. One arrest was in connection with disorderly conduct, while another was a notice to appear for disorderly conduct. Forty five minutes south of Fort Lauderdale in Miami, curtailments put in include parking fees reaching $100 and early bar closures at 6pm in an attempt to rein in the chaos. City Commissioner Alex Fernandez, who pushed for Miami to announce this year's spring break measures, sent an email to constituents celebrating the calm start to spring break this past weekend. In it, Fernandez wrote: 'No shooting. No stampedes. No fatalities. What a difference.' The city's goal for weeks was to break up with Spring Break, which the New York Post said was a 'bust'. In a social media post of the headline used by the outlet was shared on social media, former Miami Mayor Philip Levine posted the headline with hand-clapping emojis. A ramped-up police presence was noticeable along the beach in Miami with officers on bicycles, buggies and SUVs seen patrolling the area. Others were seen leading K-9s between sun bathers on the crowded sands. In contrast, there was barely a patch of open sand to be had on some stretches of Fort Lauderdale Beach, often dubbed as 'Spring Break Central.' As night descended on Fort Lauderdale, revelers kept going as the bars and clubs near the beach area filled up with party goers There was barely a patch of open sand to be had on some stretches of Fort Lauderdale Beach, often dubbed as 'Spring Break Central.' Police told Fox News that they had made nine arrests between March 4 and March 9, with only two arrests being related to spring breakers One group of friends can be seen posing for photographs after the sun went down on the Florida city The week is only just getting started with a crowd seen here posing for a picture on Tuesday night As night descended on the beach area, party goers continued drinking well into the night with groups pictured posing outside of bars and clubs Photographs from the second day of the long vacation show bikini-clad girls partying on the beach and cops patrolling the streets and sand in large numbers - some on horseback. Some girls, leaving little to the imagination, posed for photos in the ocean - presumably to make their pals stuck at home jealous of their tropical vacation. Elsewhere, swathes of half-dressed youngsters danced at daytime parties on the beach, in the back of pickup trucks, and on boats rented out for the day. As night descended on the beach area, party goers continued drinking well into the night with groups pictured posing outside of bars and clubs. Spring Break last year saw 488 arrests in Miami Beach, more than 230 of which were felony offenses, and more than 100 firearms were seized. In a widely circulated video produced by Miami Beach officials, the aim appeared to put people off coming to the popular beachfront city. Actors discussed the city's intention to 'break up with spring break.' 'It's not us, it's you,' says one actor to camera. A group of women pose for a photo on Fort Lauderdale beach on March 12, 2024 Photographs from the second day of the long vacation show bikini-clad girls partying on the beach and cops patrolling the streets and sand in large numbers - some on horseback Spring breakers cool off with a drink while taking a photo at Fort Lauderdale beach Spring Break last year saw 488 arrests in Miami Beach, more than 230 of which were felony offenses, and more than 100 firearms were seized 'This March you can expect things like curfews, bag checks, and restricted beach access,' says another. A third continues the message, saying, 'DUI checkpoints, $100 parking, and strong police enforcement for drug possession and violence' are all part of the plan. Last year, the former Miami Beach Mayor said he wanted to cancel Spring Break after fatal chaos broke out on more than one occasion. A midnight curfew went into place following two deadly shootings. This year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said that he and his state level employees are 'ready to help our local communities maintain order'. He's ordered 140 state troopers out to various hot spots, and added that he is willing to send additional backup if necessary. 'We don't welcome mayhem,' he said. 'The state has a lot going on, its a fun place to be at and we want to see people do that, but we also are going to insist that people respect the law. 'Florida may be popular for Spring Break, but it is inhospitable to criminal activity.' Former President Donald Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee for president, amassing enough delegates by winning Washington state's primary to clinch the GOP nomination. Trump's win comes just hours after President Joe Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee. That means 2024 is officially the long-expected 2020 rematch of Trump versus Biden, with the official nominating conventions taking place this summer. Democrats in the Northern Mariana Islands headed to the polls Tuesday, giving Biden an early win. The results in Georgia - a quick win for Biden and Trump in their respective primaries - got Biden over the needed 1,968 delegates to become his party's official nominee. Former President Donald Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee for president, amassing enough delegates by winning Washington state 's primary to clinch the GOP nomination at this summer's convention President Joe Biden clinched the Democratic nomination and became his party's presumptive nominee earlier Tuesday night after the results were counted in Georgia Mississippi was also quickly called for both Biden and Trump, but Trump needed a few more delegates from Washington state before CNN projected he was officially the presumptive Republican nominee. Trump needed 1,215 delegates. Republicans in Hawaii were also caucusing Tuesday. Last week Trump dominated in the so-called Super Tuesday races and rid himself of his final rival, former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley. Haley dropped out of the presidential race Wednesday, though didn't endorse Trump on her way out. Still, a significant amount of Republican voters in Georgia came out Tuesday and supported Haley. With about 92 percent of the vote counted, around 13.3 percent had selected Haley. Biden practically ran the map on Super Tuesday said for one exception - he lost the American Samoa caucus to Baltimore-based entrepreneur Jason Palmer, who wasn't even considered a mainstream Democratic hopeful before his win. Since then, Palmer has said he'll carry on with his challenge, while Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, who was also running in the Democratic primary against Biden, dropped out Wednesday. Longshot Democratic hopeful Jason Palmer speaks last Tuesday after surprising the world by winning the caucus in American Samoa, putting his name on the map Voters line up to cast their ballots Tuesday in Mississippi's Democrat and Republican primaries for president Self-help guru Marianne Williamson dropped out of the race in February, but relaunched her campaign earlier this month and remains on the Democratic ballot Self-help guru and best-selling author Marianne Williamson, who dropped out of the race in February after a poor showing in Nevada, rebooted her presidential campaign earlier this month after performing better than Phillips in Michigan. She continues to campaign for the Democratic nomination. Williamson sent out a note to supporters as CNN was predicting Biden would become the Democratic nominee. 'Given the political reality, President Biden will probably have the nomination sewn up in terms of the delegate count very soon. But it doesn't matter. We have the conversation without which Democrats will not win in 2024. And that is why we must keep going,' Williamson wrote. Both Trump and Biden campaigned in Georgia over the weekend ahead of the primary but also to set the table for a general election fight in the state. Biden beat Trump in Georgia in 2020 - a shocking outcome in a state that had been traditionally red. The Biden-Harris campaign sent out a statement Tuesday marking Biden's nomination win. 'Four years ago, I ran for president because I believed we were in a battle for the soul of this nation,' the president said. 'Because of the American people, we won that battle, and now I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever.' Biden said the country faces a 'sobering reality' as Trump approached winning the Republican nomination again. 'Freedom and democracy are at risk here at home in a way they have not been since the Civil War,' the president said. 'Donald Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. He is glorifying dictators and pledging to become one himself on day one. He seeks to bury the truth of January 6 by vowing to pardon the insurrectionists who placed a dagger at the throat of American democracy,' Biden warned. The president also pointed to comments that Trump made in an interview with CNBC Monday where he suggested cuts to Medicare and Social Security were on the table. 'He's rooting for the economy to crash, pushing tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, and planning to ban abortion nationwide,' Biden said. Voters, the president said, 'have a choice to make about the future of this country.' 'Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away?' Biden asked. 'Will we finally make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes or will we allow corporate greed to run rampant on the backs of the middle class?' 'I believe that the American people will choose to keep us moving into the future,' Biden said. 'With every crisis, America has always emerged stronger and more united on the other side.' 'This November will be no different and I believe we will do it together,' the president added. Her former US Marine husband has been jailed for life Kelly Wilkinson was stabbed and set on fire in April, 2021 Horrific details surrounding the murder of Gold Coast mum Kelly Wilkinson, who was doused in petrol and set on fire, have been revealed in court as her estranged husband is thrown behind bars for life. Former US Marine Brian Earl Johnston, 37, was handed a mandatory life sentence for the murder of his long-time partner on Wednesday. He sat silently as family members of Ms Wilkinson, 27, spoke of their heartbreak at his monstrous actions on the morning of April 20, 2021. Many were seen entering court wearing sunflower-themed earrings and pins as a tribute to Ms Wilkinson. The mother-of-three suffered life-threatening burns and could not be saved by emergency services after Johnston doused her in petrol and set her on fire in the backyard of her Arundel home on April 20, 2021. On Wednesday he was brought into court by Corrective Services officers wearing a black suit and glasses, with burn scars visible on his face. Gold Coast mum Kelly Wilkinson was burned to death in her Arundel home in April 2021 Brian Earl Johnston, Ms Wilkinson's estranged ex-husband, will be sentenced for her murder The court was told Ms Wilkinson had separated from Johnston at the time of her death. The couple were married a month after meeting in America during a whirlwind romance, but the relationship soured and Ms Wilkinson moved back to Australia. Johnston followed her there, attempting to reconcile the relationship. Crown prosecutor Mark McCarthy said Ms Wilkinson had told her sisters Johnston was 'abusive and controlling', eventually telling him to leave the family home. A protection order was eventually taken out on behalf of Ms Wilkinson. Mr McCarthy said Ms Wilkinson had talked with her family about her fear of Johnston, even organising a 'code word'. Johnston's behaviour continued to unravel in the weeks leading up to her murder, claiming to co-workers he was feeling suicidal. During drinks with his employer on April 18, 2021, Johnston asked him: 'If something happens to me, will you be the one to tell everyone I am a good person?' In early April 2021, Johnston was charged with four domestic violence offences against Ms Wilkinson and was given watch house bail. On the day of Ms Wilkinson's murder, Johnston broke into her Arundel home, dousing her in petrol and setting her alight. The couple (pictured) were married a month after meeting in America during a whirlwind romance, but the relationship soured and Ms Wilkinson moved back to Australia The couple are seen in happier times on their wedding day Mr McCarthy said the horrific act in the home's backyard was witnessed by neighbours, one of whom heard the sounds of an argument and a woman screaming 'please stop'. The neighbour said he saw Johnston emptying the jerry can, including onto himself, before seeing flames climb a metre high. The court was told he was seen jumping in the pool to extinguish the flames on his body. Police later tracked a badly-burned Johnston to a nearby street with a dog squad and following a trail of blood. 'He was lying on his back and had lacerations to both wrists, burns to his arms, hands, airways and face,' Mr McCarthy said. 'His clothing smelled strongly of petrol.' Police discovered a duffel bag belonging to Johnston filled with tape, rope fashioned into a hangman's noose, zip-ties and a bag of white powder containing an antihistamine. He submitted Johnston planned to use the items to restrain Ms Wilkinson before taking her life, and his own. Crown prosecutor Mark McCarthy told the court Wilkinson had talked with her family about her fear of Johnston, even organising a 'code word' (they are pictured arriving to court) Multiple victim impact statements from Ms Wilkinson's family and friends (pictured) were read out in court remembering Ms Wilkinson's cheeky, bubbly personality Multiple stab wounds were also discovered on Ms Wilkinson's body. On April 22, 2021, two days after she was murdered, Brian Codd, the Queensland police assistant commissioner in charge of domestic violence responses, was asked if Ms Wilkinson's death had been preventable. 'Wouldn't you love to turn back time,' he said. 'It's important that we examine to what extent it is a systemic failure. 'Ultimately it's a failure. A woman has died. Somewhere along the line, she had engaged with the system, with us.' Multiple victim impact statements from Ms Wilkinson's family and friends were read out in court remembering Ms Wilkinson's cheeky, bubbly personality. Wednesday's act follows years of waiting for the grieving Wilkinson family as the case tracked through the magistrates court. In February, during an arraignment at Brisbane Supreme Court, he pleaded guilty to the charge of murder - just weeks away from a scheduled trial in the same court. Johnston served two tours of duty in Iraq with the aviation division of the US Marine Corps - but did not see combat. He had met Ms Wilkinson in the US state of Ohio after his time in the military. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 A woman has been jailed after she threw hot coffee at and bashed another woman for making anti-Semitic remarks who later died in hospital. Sarah Murphy, 51, and Sarah Franklin clashed in a two-minute-long attack near the coffee station at a 7-Eleven service station in Caulfield in Melbourne's south-west two years ago. The pair both entered the store just after 10am on February 8, 2022. Witnesses later reported hearing Ms Murphy making racist remarks about Jewish people and throwing a sugar packet towards Franklin, who responded by throwing a full cup of coffee at her. Franklin then attacked Ms Murphy, with the pair tumbling towards the ground as Ms Murphy bit her assailant. Sarah Franklin (pictured) was sentenced to four months jail on Wednesday but walked free after her legal team launched an appeal 7-Eleven CCTV captured the chilling moment Sarah Franklin attacked Sarah Murphy READ MORE: Tragic details emerge of freak incident that killed man and woman on 'Millionaire's Row' Doyne Caspersz (pictured) and his wife Marlene were found dead at their home Advertisement In a recording, Ms Murphy can be heard yelling; 'Leave me alone, help, help me ... I can't breathe.' Franklin responded: 'Are you calm now?', as she had her in a headlock. After Ms Murphy, who was asthmatic and suffered from mental illnesses, fell unconscious, Franklin left the store. Ms Murphy had stopped breathing but was revived by paramedics before being taken to The Alfred hospital. She suffered a major stroke and died six days later. Franklin was initially charged with manslaughter, however this was dropped after forensic experts couldn't identify Ms Murphy's cause of death. Prosecutors accepted she had been acting in self-defence up until the moment she kept Ms Murphy in a headlock after she'd made it clear she couldn't breathe. Previously a court was told Ms Murphy's death could have been caused by a number of factors, including health conditions and drug toxicity. Franklin, 53, appeared in Moorabbin Magistrates' Court on Wednesday after pleading guilty to a common assault charge late last year. The court was told she'd written a letter saying she was 'deeply regretful' for the assault. She was sentenced to four months jail by Magistrate Stephen Lee. Just before she was taken into custody her lawyer Greer Boe, flagged they intend to appeal the sentence in a higher court. An hour later Franklin was granted bail ahead of her appeal hearing on June 5. Kohberger was charged in connection to the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students The 29-year-old's defense team argued their client was improperly indicted on first-degree murder and burglary charges A request to toss the grand jury indictment was denied Tuesday The Idaho Supreme Court denied a pretrial appeal by Bryan Kohberger's public defenders that would have served to delay his quadruple-murder case. The decision was reached Tuesday after Kohberger's lawyers urged the court to throw out the grand jury indictment. The 29-year-old Pennsylvania man stands accused of murdering four University of Idaho students in November 2022. Kohberger's lawyers argued that a grand jury sat by prosecutors improperly indicted him on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. They contended that the standard for a grand jury to indict should be guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, rather than the lower standard of probably cause, pointing to interpretations of Idaho state law. The Idaho Supreme Court denied a pretrial appeal by Bryan Kohberger 's public defenders Tuesday The 29-year-old's legal team had urged the court to toss the grand jury indictment on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary Kohberger's legal team previously sought to have the indictment dismissed due to inadmissible evidence and prosecutorial misconduct The ruling did not provide legal reasoning for the court's denial of the motion to appeal. The document was signed by Melanie Gagnepain, clerk of the Idaho Supreme Court. Although the appeal was dismissed, a separate motion seeking to seal it was granted. The pretrial appeal was the latest in a series of attempts to delay the murder trial. Kohberger's legal team previously sought to have the indictment dismissed due to inadmissible evidence and prosecutorial misconduct, among other claims. In January, lead defense attorney Anne Taylor asked the court to delay the trial until at least 2025. Taylor argued that she had not been provided enough time to complete discovery or interview a sufficient number of witnesses. Later that month, the defense filed a motion to move the trial out of Latah County, arguing 'inflammatory pretrial publicity' and the 'small size of the community' made finding an impartial jury impossible. A hearing for that request is scheduled for April 17. The ruling did not provide any legal reasoning for the court's denial of the motion to appeal Kohberger was charged in connection to the murder of four University of Idaho students who were stabbed to death in their off-campus house in November 2022 The former University of Washington PhD student (pictured in September 2023) is accused of entering the house in the early hours of the morning and killing the four roommates Investigators said the crime scene was the worst they'd ever witnessed, with blood dripping through the walls of the house Kohberger was charged in connection to the murder of four University of Idaho students who were stabbed to death in their off-campus housing accommodation on November 13, 2022. Prosecutors allege Kohberger entered the residence in the early hours of the morning and killed 21-year-old Kaylee Goncalves, 21-year-old Madison Mogen, 20-year-old Xana Kernodle and 20-year-old Ethan Chapin using a knife. At the time, he was pursuing a PhD in criminology at Washington State University, just across the state line from where the murders took place. The victims' surviving roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, were home at the time of the murders but unharmed. They were ruled out as suspects early into the investigation. Police sources told DailyMail.com that the crime scene was the worst theyd ever encountered, with so much blood that it seeped through the walls of the house. Kohberger was arrested at his familys home in Pennsylvania the following month, concluding a nearly seven-week-long manhunt. He was brought to Idaho to face the charges and indicted in May 2023. The indictment allowed prosecutors to bypass a previously scheduled June hearing where the surviving roommates could have been cross-examined. Kohberger remained silent during his arraignment, forcing the judge to enter a 'not guilty' plea on his behalf. The 29-year-old has since waived his right to a speedy trial. A trial date has yet to be set. The 'Gucci Goddess' conwoman who stole $108 million from the U.S. Army to sponsor her extravagantly luxurious lifestyle, including 31 homes and 70 vehicles, officially pleaded guilty to fraud. Janet Yamanaka Mello, 57, stole millions of dollars from military funds and blew it on jewelry, clothing, luxury vehicles and real estate in one of the biggest fraud cases the military has ever seen. Mello was seen walking out of the federal courthouse in San Antonio with her husband Mark after she appeared before Magistrate Judge Richard Farrer and pleaded guilty to five counts of mail fraud and five charges of filing fraudulent tax returns. She admitted, via a series of yes-or-no questions, to taking advantage of the Army's lax controls at Installation Management Command to swipe the $108million for a bogus company she called CHYLD (Child Health and Youth Lifelong Development). Albert Flores, Mello's attorney, said after the hearing that this is the start of Mello taking accountability for what she's done. Janet Yamanaka Mello was seen walking out of the federal courthouse in San Antonio with her husband Mark after she appeared before Magistrate Judge Richard Farrer and pleaded guilty to five counts of mail fraud and five charges of filing fraudulent tax returns Mello, 57, stole millions of dollars from military funds and blew it on jewelry, clothing, luxury vehicles and real estate in one of the biggest fraud cases the military has ever seen 'Today was the beginning of the long process where she pled guilty,' Flores said, according to the San Antonio Express. 'She's accepting responsibility for her actions. She's very remorseful for what she's done.' Flores adds that Mello is collaborating with the government to get back as many of the stolen assets as they can. 'In the end, we expect there's going to be a large number of assets both in number and monetary value that are going to be recovered by the U.S. government,' he predicted. Mello is scheduled to be sentenced before District Judge Xavier Rodriguez on May 29. She remains free on bond pending sentencing. Under the charges, Mello faces a maximum of 125 years in prison. The hustler worked for the U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, as a CYS Financial Program Manager when she created the CHYLD shell company in 2016. She used the firm to fraudulently swindle money that was supposed to be going toward the children of army personnel and instead used the cash to sponsor her lavish lifestyle. Package delivery men would allegedly refer to her as 'the Gucci Goddess.' Mello, being protected by husband Mark, admitted, via a series of yes-or-no questions, to taking advantage of the Army's lax controls at Installation Management Command to swipe the $108million for a bogus company she called CHYLD Mello - seen with attorney Albert Flores - worked for the U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, as a CYS Financial Program Manager - where she was able to move money into her shell company However, her scheme came crashing down in January when criminal investigators from the IRS worked with army investigators as they put the pieces of the puzzle together - before Mello was criminally indicted in December 2023. A criminal information document filed alongside the plea deal charges Mello with five counts of mail fraud and five counts of filing a false tax return. The maximum sentence for each count of mail fraud is 20 years in prison and each count of tax fraud could earn her up to five years behind bars. The swindler managed to accumulate 80 vehicles and 31 properties across five states - as federal prosecutors allege she lived a life of luxury and opulence that was clearly not supported by her $130,000 a year government salary. She reported that her company CHYLD earned a profit of $483 on revenue of $2,152 for training consultations in 2017. But since then, she has not filed any tax returns. She often filed fraudulent paperwork - and deposited grants into her fake business 40 times, securing over $100,000,000 for herself, documents allege. Transaction details show she wire transferred $264,874 from the account to buy herself a 2023 Land Rover Range Rover last year. She also sent herself $3,308,157 to purchase real estate property in Canyon Lake, Texas, documents state. Mello's $3.1million property in Preston, Maryland. She regularly filed fraudulent paperwork and deposited grants a total of 40 times into her fake business during a six-year period, securing over $100,000,000 for herself, court documents allege This is Mello's $2.3million estate in Castle Rock, Colorado This home was listed as one of the properties to seize. It cost Mello $1.1 million and is in San Antonio, Texas Mello also owns this $870,000 home in Lakewood, Colorado. Mello had amassed a portfolio of homes in Texas, Maryland, Colorado, Washington and New Mexico - all of which, the prosecutors claim, she bought with the frauded cash One of the sprawling mansions that drew attention to Mello was this eight-bedroom, sixteen-bathroom home in Preston, Maryland - as the IRS began to question how she afforded such lavish purchases on a $130,000 salary The court has listed a total of 78 luxury cars and motorbikes that Mello owns - and has demanded the assets in a bill of forfeiture. They include numerous Maseratis, Ferraris, Aston Martins, Mercedes, Teslas, Harley-Davidsons and Land Rovers. As well as vehicular assets, they have named 31 of her real properties. These span across multiple states - with mansions worth over $3 million, ranches, sprawling acres of farmland, and luxury high-rise apartments and condos. Mello had amassed a portfolio of homes in Texas, Maryland, Colorado, Washington, and New Mexico - which, the prosecutors claim, she bought with the fraudulent cash. Documents also claim that Mello has six bank accounts, and she held a minimum of $32,000 in each. It was the IRS who flagged that her lifestyle - buying million-dollar homes multiple times a year - was not supported by her salary. Mello was arrested in December, but despite the significant criminal fraud she is accused of, was allowed to leave without bail, before officials sparked outrage last month after it emerged that Mello is set to be allowed to retire with full benefits. The military admitted there was nothing they could do to strip it from her because she was protected under a federal law that was held up in government bureaucracy. An Army spokesman said: 'The command has no authority to impact Ms. Mello's retirement.' While there are exceptions for treason and bigger offenses, 'there is no similar statutory authority for denying retired pay based on a conviction of other offenses,' she added. 2023 Land Rover Range Rover (file image). Transaction details show she wire transferred $264,874 from the account to buy herself the Land Rover Range Rover last year Mello also purchased a 2003 Aston Martin Vanquish (file photo) and a 1955 Ferrari Fratelli (file photo) Mello also owned a 1935 Plymouth Sedan (file photo) and a 2018 Maserati Granturism (file photo) In February, the fraudster said she would forfeit all of her extravagant purchases, including her fleet of supercars and mansions, if she is found guilty of fraud. Mello's scathing federal indictment claims that she used the digital signature 'S.K' - which was not her own - on multiple signoffs while working as a CYS Financial Program Manager at Fort Sam Houston in Texas. 'S.K' refers to the chief of the CYS program, Suzanne King, who was Mello's boss, reports the San Antonio Express-News. After the scheme came to light, questions were raised over how the military failed to spot such a large sum of money being moved under their noses. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons said the army hadn't conducted proper audits of her program, while others close to the investigation say that the Army just worked on the assumption of goodwill of its employees. A source familiar with the investigation told the Express-News about the Army leaders: 'They stove-piped the process to only one person. 'They gave her complete carte blanche, and she found all the loopholes.' The army had also replaced some of its administrative restrictions as part of an 'organizational shake-up', giving Mello autonomy in her position. Mello's scathing federal indictment alleged that she used the digital signature 'S.K' which refers to the chief of the CYS program, Suzanne King (pictured) who was Mello's boss An insider told the local paper: 'It speaks to the nonchalant-ness of the command and its lack of internal controls.' Former federal prosecutor Robert Almonte Jr. said that Mello was not even 'discreet on her part' and her plot was 'nothing super complex,' but incompetent government programs are not 'equipped to monitor these things.' Almonte continued: 'In some fraud instances, they at least take steps to make sure to hide their fraud. There was no apparent attempt to hide what she was doing with the money after the fact.' The heartbroken fiancee of a British senior police constable who died at their engagement party in Australia has revealed she is pregnant with their first child. Lilly Watts and her 'soulmate' Liam Trimmer, 29, threw the party at their home in Fremantle, Western Australia, on Sunday night and told loved ones she was 14 weeks pregnant. Moments later, Mr Trimmer - who moved to Australia from the UK as a teenager - fell over and cut a major artery in his neck. Ms Watts is a nurse and guests at the party were largely comprised of police officers and health workers who did everything they could to save his life, but his injuries were too severe. On Wednesday, Ms Watts opened up about her heartache to Daily Mail Australia and said her fiance was 'truly excited to be a dad'. Pictured: Liam Trimmer and his fiancee Lilly Watts, who is pregnant with their first child Mr Trimmer and Ms Watts had recently become engaged 'I have never known a love like Liams and this heartbreak and emptiness is just so overwhelming,' she said. 'He will always be the love of my life and our baby will know the wonderful man he was.' Earlier on Wednesday, Ms Watts' close friend Mel Kelly created a GoFundMe page to raise money for the single mum. Ms Kelly wrote: 'Lillys world was shattered by a freak accident that claimed the life of her beloved fiance,' the fundraiser read. 'The evening was meant to be a joyous celebration of Lilly and Liams recent engagement and announcing their pregnancy, a huge milestone in their journey together. 'Friends and family gathered to share in their happiness. In a cruel twist of events, Liams life was cut short leaving behind a void that can never be filled.' She said Ms Watts had lost her 'soulmate' who now faces the prospect of raising her child alone, while juggling living costs. Mr Trimmer and his fiancee (picture) had gathered with friends and family to announce their engagement and her pregnancy Liam Trimmer (pictured), has been remembered as an 'extraordinary officer' Mr Trimmer was originally from the UK but he moved to Australia in 2013 and joined the police force. His career began at the WA Police Academy in Joondalup and featured in the UK TV series 'Wanted Down Under', during which he gave teenagers advice on life in Australia before they migrate. He served in several posts while he was in the force including in regional parts of the state and took part in 'Movember' with officers from Kalgoorlie Police station. In the days following his death, friends and colleagues took to social media to pay tribute to Mr Trimmer. One friend described him as 'possibly the fittest bloke' in a local trekking group. 'Great sense of humour with a passion to excel,' they wrote. Mr Trimmer was originally from the UK but he moved to Australia in 2013 and joined the police force 'In my opinion, society can ill-afford to lose guys like Liam [who had] the courage to charge into the furnace on a daily basis, dealing with the 'heavy duty side of policing.' 'The boys are hurting this week, but they have cracked on with major training exercises and domestic operations.' Another friend replied: 'He was like that from day one at the [police] academy - you couldnt help but not like him.' A third person wrote: 'It has been a sad couple of days at the office.' 'Lots of hugs and lots of tears. But ... the boys are getting on with it and getting stuck into their training. Hopefully its a good distraction.' Police Commissioner Col Blanch spoke to a local radio station and described Mr Trimmer as an 'extremely well-liked' and respected officer with his 'whole life ahead of him'. 'I know when my phone rings early in the morning from a senior officer, generally it's not good news, and tragically it wasn't,' he said. 'I know everyone that was involved is really, really hurting at the moment, and I think they wish they could just wake up from this nightmare.' The cause of the accident has not been confirmed. A report will be prepared for the coroner. A woman is taking the makers of Ozempic to court over claims the company behind the drug knew it would cause her stomach problems. Caren Elosua has filed a suit against the pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk claiming the weight loss drugs have been causing stomach problems for users. In court documents, obtained by TMZ, Elosua says that even with the alleged side effects in mind, she was still given Ozempic to help her type-2 diabetes. The outlet reported the Elosua started taking a 1ml of the drug in April of 2021, and increased it to 2ml a few years after this. By the end of last year, she claims she was diagnosed with gastroparesis, the weakening of the stomach muscles, claiming the weight loss drug caused it. Ozempic has FDA approval as a diabetes drug but it has been prescribed off label for weight loss to millions of Americans Caren Elosua has filed a suit against the pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk, their HQ is seen here, claiming the weight loss drugs have been causing stomach problems for users Elosua claims she suffered from headaches, vomiting, cramping and severe stomach pain and decided to go see a specialist. The gastroenterologist, she claims, informed her that her stomach muscles had gotten so weak that she couldn't digest food. In late January, Elosua claims she had her last shot of Ozempic but added that by this point the alleged damage had been done. Elosua also claims in her suit that she had to be hospitalized due to the constant pain which tore up her abdominal area. In her suit, she alleges that Novo Nordisk knew this drug would cause her such problems and they continued to manufacture it. Elosua is not alone in her claims, with patients across America filing suits against Novo Nordisk saying they experienced extreme side effects with the drug. Most of the patients, like Elosua, claim they suffered from gastroparesis, which is the medical name for paralysis of the stomach. The condition, which can be life-threatening, causes a build-up of food in the gut and symptoms include nausea, vomiting and severe pain. A pharmacist holds a box of Novo Nordisk A/S Ozempic brand semaglutide medication arranged at a pharmacy in Provo, Utah, US, on Monday, Nov. 27, 2023 In a review of a dozen lawsuits carried out by DailyMail.com in January of this year, nearly all of the lawsuits accuse of Novo Nordisk of failing to warn them of the risks. At least ten lawsuits have also been filed against Eli Lilly, the maker of Mounjaro, a diabetes drug which works in a similar way to Ozempic and Wegovy and is also prescribed off-label for weight loss. Eli Lilly is also accused of failing to include proper warnings about Mounjaro's risks. In one case, a woman who used Ozempic and Mounjaro claims she was diagnosed with gastroparesis which caused her to vomit so much that some of her teeth feel out. In another, a woman was diagnosed with a 'life-threatening bowel injury' after using Ozempic and underwent surgery which last nearly nine hours. Doctors said she would be in pain 'for the rest of her life' and 'will never have a solid bowel movement again'. A third case brought by a woman who used Wegovy claims she was diagnosed with 'severe gastroparesis' and was hospitalized with symptoms including going a week without bowel movement. Ozempic has FDA approval for the treatment of type 2 diabetes but has been prescribed off-label for weight loss to millions of Americans. Mounjaro also has approval for diabetes but can also be prescribed off label for weight loss. Elosua is not alone in her claims, with patients across America filing suits against Novo Nordisk saying they experienced extreme side effects with the drug Zakareeya Gregory was hospitalized for four weeks and had her gallbladder removed because of complications which were allegedly caused by her use of Ozempic Zakareeya Gregory, 46, from Walker Mill, Maryland, told DailyMail.com that her gallbladder was removed after she suffered side effects which were allegedly caused by Ozempic, which she used for seven months until February 2020. Gregory, who was prescribed Ozempic to treat type 2 diabetes, said Ozempic initially helped her drop from 220lb to 170lb and lowered her blood sugar, while only causing minor complications such as stomach pain. The severe side effects like extreme stomach pain started 'all of a sudden' at the end of 2022, more than two years after she stopped taking Ozempic. Her legal complaint said she also used Rybelsus, a tablet form of the drug also made by Novo Nordisk, for a period of time during 2022. Gregory was taken to the emergency room in December, where scans revealed an issue with her gallbladder, which surgeons removed during her four-week hospital stay. 'I went home with a tube in my side that I had to keep changing [for] drainage. I kept that in for maybe like two weeks,' said Gregory, who also needed a blood transfusion. 'It was very horrible, it was horrible to have your gallbladder taken out. I never thought I would have to have my gallbladder taken out. I never had any issues with that. It was a dramatic change in my life.' Brea said that doctors said she almost died because of the complications which were allegedly caused by Ozempic. She said she was not warned about the side effects Brea Hand, 23, told DailyMail.com she required five hospital visits before doctors diagnosed her with gastroparesis which was allegedly caused by Ozempic Brea Hand, 23, from Ponca City, Oklahoma, told DailyMail.com that she started using Ozempic in May 2023 and within weeks began to suffer from nausea, vomiting and constipation. Hand, a mother-of-two who was prescribed the drug to control her fluctuating weight and pre-diabetes, required five hospital visits before physicians diagnosed her with gastroparesis and diabetic ketoacidosis, which can be life-threatening. On her final hospital visit, she was admitted to intensive care. 'They said my body was so acidotic that if I would have waited one more day that I wouldn't have made it through,' said Hand, whose lawsuit was filed on December 28. 'It was scary. It was painful. I have not ever experienced that kind of pain in my entire life and I do not ever want to go through that again.' Hand, a behavior science student, said she was not made aware of the side effects she suffered and wants to warn others about the risks of Ozempic. 'I wouldn't recommend it to anybody, personally. Just taking that risk would be too much for me from what I went through. I think they should definitely advertise more of the risks it does have.' DailyMail.com has approached Novo Nordisk for comment. Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez resigned just days after the release of a controversial report from the investigation into the Robb Elementary School shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead. Rodriguez, who had been with the department for 26 years, announced his resignation Tuesday without directly addressing the city council report that cleared multiple police officers of wrongdoing in response to the shooting. 'After much contemplation and consideration, I believe it is time for me to embark on a new chapter in my career,' Rodriguez said in a statement. 'I have had the privilege of serving the City of Uvalde and its residents for the past 26 years, and it has been an honor to lead the dedicated men and women of our police department.' Rodrigues did not mention the shooting itself, where a gunman slaughtered 21 people across several classrooms at Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022. Uvalde Police Chief Daniel Rodriguez resigned just days after the release of a controversial investigation into the Robb Elementary School shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead Rodriguez (pictured), who had been with the department for 26 years, announced his resignation Tuesday without directly addressing the city council report that cleared multiple police officers of wrongdoing in response to the shooting Rodrigues did not mention the shooting itself, where a gunman slaughtered 21 people (pictured) across several classrooms at Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022. He was slammed as a 'liar' for his attempt to cover up the department's failure in responding to the shooting in 2022, as he previously said 'our officers responded within minutes', according to Daily Beast. Rodriguez's final day will be April 6 and he will be replaced by his assistant chief, Homer Delgado. Jesse Prado, an Austin-based investigator and former police detective found last week Uvalde police made many failures, including issues with communication, poor training for live shooter situations, lack of equipment available to officers and delays on breaching the classroom. But he determined officers with Rodriguez' department did not commit any wrongdoing as he wrote: 'The officers had no way of knowing what was being planned, what was being said.' 'If they would have had a ballistic shield, it would have been enough to get them to the door.' Prado continued. The controversial report left Uvalde residents in outrage, as people at the City Council meeting shouted 'cowards' when Prado left the chambers after his presentation. 'How do all of you live with yourselves?' said Kimberly Mata-Rubio, who lost her 10-year-old daughter, Alexandria 'Lexi' Rubio, in the attack as reported by NBC. 'How do you go to bed at night and then wake up every day? Shame on you all. You said they did it in good faith? You call that good faith? 'They stood there for 77 minutes and waited after they got call after call that kids were still alive in there. All this is it's a pact. It's a brothers' pact. You protect your own.' The probe comes after a bombshell Justice Department report released earlier this year found that Uvalde police officers stood outside a classroom for 77 minutes while schoolchildren screamed for 'help' after the gunman opened fire. After gunman Salvador Ramos, 18, opened fire inside Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022, Uvalde Police came under scrutiny after waiting for 77 minutes as the massacre erupted before confronting the gunman Jesse Prado, an Austin-based investigator and former police detective found Uvalde police made communication failures on May 24 2022 but determined officers with Rodriguez' department did not commit any wrongdoing Attorney General Merrick Garland said the victims 'deserved better,' as he presented the Justice Department's findings to the affected families in Uvalde. 'Had law enforcement agencies followed generally accepted practices in active shooter situations and gone right after the shooter and stopped him, lives would have been saved and people would have survived,' Garland said at the news conference in January. The report also found failings in the aftermath, with untrained hospital staff improperly delivering painful news and officials giving families mixed messages and misinformation about victims and survivors. One official told waiting families that another bus of survivors was coming, but that was untrue. Last month several law enforcement officers who responded to the mass shooting were ordered to testify before a grand jury investigating the botched response. Multiple officers who were on the scene have been subpoenaed for in-person testimony that may result in criminal charges, according to the Austin American-Statesman. Members of the Texas Department of Public Safety and local police have been called upon to testify, with grand jurors potentially given the chance to question the officers themselves. The grand jury is expected to look at possible criminal charges over the failed response at the school. Parents have pleaded for criminal charges over the response. 'What more does (the DA) need?' Jazmin Cazare, whose sister Jackie was killed in the massacre, questioned last month. 'What more does she possibly need to prosecute or remove these people from their positions of power when they can't do their jobs?' Shooter Salvador Ramos, 18, burst into Robb Elementary School on the morning of May 24, 2022 The furious relatives of the victims called on their DA Christina Mitchell Busbee (pictured) to bring criminal charges, questioning: 'What more does she need?' Evadulia Orta, left, and Felicia Martinez, right, and other other family members of shooting victims hold back tears as they hear the scathing report Dora Mendoza, right, is hugged by a friend as she leaves a meeting where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary School Kimberly Rubio, whose daughter Lexi was killed, added that the tragedy should serve as a turning point to change America's lax gun control laws, as it 'began the day an 18-year-old was allowed to buy an AR-15.' 'I hope that the failures end today, and that local officials do what wasnt done that day, do right by the victims and survivors for Robb Elementary terminations, criminal prosecutions-- and our state and federal government enact sensible gun laws,' she said. After gunman Salvador Ramos, 18, burst into Robb Elementary School on the morning of May 24, 2022, the report found that the 'single most critical tactical failure' was that police failed to view the event as 'active.' From there, it took 77 minutes before the 376 law enforcement officers were able to kill Ramos, only after he fatally shot 21 people across several classrooms. 'The response to the May 24, 2022, mass casualty incident at Robb Elementary School was a failure,' the Justice Department report concluded. Among the tragic conclusions brought by the report was Attorney General Merrick Garland's admission the lives of the young victims could have been saved had protocols been followed properly - a concession the parents say was a long time coming. Victims - both adults and children - were frantically dragged out of bloody classrooms with no stretchers readily available to get them into ambulances. One teacher was left to die on the walkway, before being covered and moved into an ambulance. Another dead body, pulled out from the school, was placed outside and then left unattended - while a group of police huddled together nearby. Uvalde school police chief Pete Arredondo (left) and City police Lt. Mariano Pargas (right) were singled out in the DOJ report for their catastrophic lack of leadership during the mass shooting Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco, left, is comforted by Rep. Ted Cruz. Nolasco was singled out for his catastrophic lack of leadership during the mass shooting Ambulances took deceased victims to hospital by mistake, others did not secure critically-injured patients on to stretchers properly, and vital blood supplies that were airlifted to the scene went unused - despite being needed. Injured victims were left stretchered on sidewalks outside Robb Elementary because different medical crews had abruptly taken and commandeered their ambulances. Kids - struck and grazed by bullets during the onslaught inside their school - were ushered into buses heading to the civic center without being seen by medical staff. Garland said in a statement: 'The victims and survivors of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School deserved better. The law enforcement response at Robb Elementary on May 24, 2022 - and the response by officials in the hours and days after - was a failure that should not have happened.' The Justice Department collected more than 14,100 items from the scene for for analysis. This included hours of video, photos, 260 interviews, multiple visits to Uvalde, as well as police policies, procedures, and training. Federal officials said that their review of the mass shooting was made public 'to provide an independent account of law enforcement actions and responses; identify lessons learned and best practices to help first responders prepare for and respond to active shooter events; and provide a roadmap for community safety and engagement before, during, and after such incidents.' Coalition immigration spokesperson Dan Tehan has separated from his wife and the mother of his five children after almost two decades of marriage. Mr Tehan quietly made adjustments to his register of interests this month, amending and removing any reference to his wife, Sarah. In a statement, Mr Tehan told Daily Mail Australia: 'Sarah and I have mutually agreed to end our relationship, while remaining focused on the up bringing of our young adult children. 'We ask that you respect the privacy of our family at this time.' Mr Tehan has two properties listed in his name, including a farm in Hamilton in which the couple has called home since 2016. Coalition immigration spokesperson Dan Tehan has separated from his wife and the mother of his five children after almost two decades of marriage But a further five properties were in Mrs Tehan's name. They have now been removed from his register of interests. The couple have been together for the better part of 20 years, and share adult children Oliver, Tim, Amelia, Maya and Eleanor. In addition to removing the properties from Mrs Tehan, her access to the Qantas Chairman's Lounge and Virgin Australia Club Lounge have been removed from the declaration. Mr Tehan is serving as the Coalition's spokesperson for immigration, and has most recently been on a crusade against his Labor counterpart, Minister Andrew Giles, in the wake of the High Court decision to release immigration detainees into the community. Mr Tehan quietly made adjustments to his register of interests this month, amending and removing any reference to his wife, Sarah He was first elected to represent the community of Wannon - which spans from South Australia to Victoria - in 2010. He served in several portfolios during the Coalition era of government, including as Minister for Veteran's Affairs and Minister for Education. During his maiden speech to parliament, Mr Tehan thanked his wife Sarah for all that she'd done. 'We built through love and sheer hard work a family that brings me such joy words cannot bring to describe,' he said. 'To our children Oliver, Tim, Amelia, Maya and last but not least Eleanor (Give us a wave guys). You have all had to make large sacrifices so I can be here today. 'I want you to know that I am here because I believe in your future.' The man and woman allegedly at the centre of the brutal death of a beloved children's doctor have appeared in court together with the charges against them now set. Kerem Aydin is charged with the murder of Dr Michael Yung at the doctor's leafy Adelaide home on December 11 and his partner, Jacinta Davila, is charged with assisting him. Ms Davila was initially also charged with murder, but the prosecution dropped the charge in December and Chief Magistrate Mary-Louise Hribal officially removed it from records at Adelaide Magistrates Court on Wednesday. The criminal trespass charges against both Mr Aydin and Ms Davila have also been withdrawn. Mr Aydin appeared before Ms Hribal via videolink while Ms Davila, dressed in black, appeared in the dock. Dr Michael Yung (pictured) died at his Adelaide home on December 11 Kerem Aydin, 22, (left) is charged with murder and and Jacinta Davila, 27, (right) is charged with assisting him Ms Davila told Ms Hribal she had not yet secured legal counsel as she was waiting for her 'legal aid document to come through'. Mr Aydin's defence counsel told the magistrate he had received the prosecution's preliminary brief but needed time to review and discuss it with his client. Ms Hribal set a committal hearing date for eight weeks on May 8 to give Ms Davila time to find a lawyer and for Mr Aydin's defence to assess the material. 'Given the co-accused (Ms Davila) doesn't have a lawyer, that (an eight-week adjournment) might enable everything to come together on the next date,' the magistrate said. She also set an answer charge hearing, where Mr Aydin and Ms Davila will enter their pleas, for September 25. The prosecutor said they were awaiting further DNA evidence and a post mortem. Ms Davila left the court flanked by two supporters, who crowded around her to cut off reporters from asking her questions directly. The media scrum followed Ms Davila as she crossed a busy street into a nearby park. At one point a passer-by offered her his backpack after Ms Davila tried to shield her face with a file folder. Jacinta Davila outside court this week after a charge against her was downgraded Ms Davila and the reporters went in circles before Ms Davila, a mother to a young baby, crossed the street again to return to the courthouse precinct. At one point a cameraman appeared to bust a lense in the scuffle. She declined to offer any comment on the charge against her and covered her face with the backpack again as she dodged the scrum to get into a waiting taxi. Dr Yung, a widely respected pediatrician and intensive care specialist, died from his injuries on December 12 and the police arrested Mr Aydin and Ms Davila that same day at a shopping centre. CCTV footage shows the couple calmly walking out the door of the shopping centre moments before police appear and tackle Aydin from behind. Davila, who can be seen pushing a pram, appears to attempt to make a run for it before she is stopped by heavily armed STAR Group officers. Mr Aydin has not applied for bail and remains in custody on remand. Previoulsy police alleged the couple broke into the doctor's home using a ladder to get into an upper level window with the intention to steal items. They also alleged they encountered Dr Yung and a scream and a loud noise was heard. Dr Yung was later found with head and spine injuries. At a December court appearance, Magistrate Michael Jandy granted Ms Davila the freedom to be with her baby at an inner-city address while the case against her progresses. Ms Davila wept and breathed out heavily when she heard she was going home. 'Thank you so much,' she said at the hearing. Dr Yung's family issued a statement on December 13 afternoon saying they were 'absolutely devastated' over the death of the loving father, son, and brother. 'His death has left a hole in our hearts that will never be filled,' the statement said. Dr Yung established a pediatric ICU in Kilifi, Kenya, and also worked in remote Indigenous communities across Australia. Police will allege Dr Yung was killed during a home invasion at his $2million Gilberton home (pictured) 'He was a wise and patient teacher and mentor to generations of aspiring ICU doctors,' the family said. 'He was loved and respected by his colleagues, staff and students and all those who were privileged to know and work with him.' In 2020, he established the Kathryn Browne-Yung Foundation charity in the name of his late wife who passed away suddenly and unexpectedly three years ago. The Foundation supports scholarships for Indigenous medical students and his family have invited people who would like to honour his memory to do so by donating to the foundation. China, UN co-host side event in Geneva to promote protection of human rights of persons with disability Global Times) 14:43, March 13, 2024 The year of 2024 marks the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and China is willing to work with all parties to take this opportunity to take concrete measures to eliminate the difficulties faced by persons with disabilities and truly achieve the goal of leaving no one behind," according to Chen Xu, permanent representative of China to the United Nations (UN) Office in Geneva and other international organizations in Switzerland. This year also marks the 10th anniversary of the special rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities. On Tuesday, the Chinese Permanent Mission to the UN Office at Geneva and other international organizations in Switzerland co-hosted a side event with the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities of the Human Rights Council, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the Permanent Missions of Mexico, New Zealand and Finland to Geneva, and UN Women to commemorate the 10th anniversary since the establishment of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities. During the event, Ambassador Chen noted that China attaches great importance to persons with disabilities. It has implemented more than 90 laws and regulations on the protection of the rights and interests of persons with disabilities. China has also established a subsidy system covering more than 27 million persons with disabilities and created workshops to promote employment of disabled women, Chen said. Chen noted that China is willing to put forward three proposals on promoting and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities, including eliminating prejudice and discrimination against persons with disabilities; accelerating the construction of barrier-free and elderly-friendly facilities, and establishing a sound rescue system; and promoting employment of persons with disabilities, and their equal participation in economic, social and cultural affairs. Many participants in the Tuesday event, including the ambassadors of Mexico, New Zealand and Finland and former special rapporteurs on the rights of persons with disabilities of the Human Rights Council, also shared their views on protecting and promoting the rights of persons with disabilities. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) Revolutionary times call for revolutionary solutions. Capitalism is driving society off a cliff. With mass poverty, environmental destruction, war, and genocidethis system has to go. That is why the Canadian section of the International Marxist Tendency is founding the Revolutionary Communist Party! [Originally published at marxist.ca] The partys founding congress will take place on May 18-19-20. This is a call to all isolated communists, all those who are fed up with the rotten status quo and want to overthrow the system that is dragging the planet into the abyss. If this speaks to you, this is YOUR party! Help us found the RCP today. Why we need the RCP The need for the Revolutionary Communist Party stems from the whole situation created by the capitalist system itself. Faced with the immense crisis of the system, growing layers of the population cant take it anymore. Young people have no future. Hundreds of thousands are looking not to tweak this miserably rotting system, but are looking for a wholesale transformation. They are looking for communism. Wherever you look, the world is on fire. Whether its the housing crisis, mass impoverishment, climate catastrophe, or the ongoing genocide in Gaza supported by our own governmentcapitalist barbarism is present in every aspect of life. And all while a tiny minority of obscenely rich billionaires are constantly getting richer and live in lavish luxury. Millions are fed up. Millions are at a breaking point and will no longer tolerate this situation. The future opening up before us is a revolutionary epoch. This is the epoch that we are preparing for. With the founding of the RCP we state loud and clear: If you cannot take this system any more, this is your party. This is our commitment to do everything we can to build an organization worthy of the hundreds of thousands of communists in societya party any communist can join and build as a way out of this hell which capitalism has brought upon us. A party like no other The determining factor of the present era is that, although the capitalist system has entered the worst crisis in its history, never before have workers organizations, workers parties and left-wing parties been in such a sorry state. The NDP has betrayed the Palestinians and is propping up the hated capitalist government of Justin Trudeau for peanuts in return. Quebec solidaire, which began as an anti-capitalist party, has clearly abandoned this road. More and more, this party appears and acts like a run-of-the-mill parliamentary social democratic party like the NDPmore concerned with appearing reasonable to the capitalist establishment than providing an outlet for the mass anger in society. Many people have an unfavourable prejudice against the word party. This is because todays parties are a nest of careerism, backroom deals, electoralism, and cynicism. They only involve their members once every four years during an election, for which people mobilize to get hand-picked candidates in suits elected. The members have no say in the party program or the ideas the leaders defend. The ideas are decided behind the scenes by groups of unelected bureaucrats. Anyone who stands out is repressed or expelled. Unlike these hated parliamentary machines, the RCP aims to be a party like no other. We are not a parliamentary outfit who conducts deals with the bourgeoisie, but a party of the streets and the picket lines who unites the oppressed to fight against the system. We are not a loose group of people who are called into action once every four years, but agents of the proletarian revolution, active day-in, day-out, to defend communist solutions. Because we are not aiming to reform capitalism, the essence of our party is fundamentally different from all other parties. Our strength lies not in seats in parliament but in an active and engaged membership. To be a member of the RCP is to take possession of this party and wield it as a tool to change society. We want to be the banner around which all communists will coordinate their actions. We want the creativity of the working class and youth to express itself, and we want to direct it towards the propagation of communist ideas by all means at our disposal. The RCP will be a party of active members. It will be the party of all its members. But we will not be chickens with our heads cut off. Communists must have clear ideas. As the Third Congress of the Communist International explained in 1921, the Communist Party must be a labour school of revolutionary Marxism. Our Party will pay close attention to the colossal heritage of the Communist tradition represented by Marx, Engels, Lenin and Trotsky, enriched by the contributions of Ted Grant and the International Marxist Tendency. All our members must conquer Marxist theory, so as to be equipped to win the working class over to the communist program. More than any other organization, for us, Marxist theory will be the guide to revolutionary action. Becoming a member of the RCP Being a Communist is not a simple identity, lifestyle, or label. A communist is a person who feels in their heart a burning desire to overthrow this rotten capitalist society. It is a person who actively commits to ending the appalling oppression we see under capitalism. It is a person who understands that to achieve communism, we must urgently build a communist party. As Trotsky once wrote in a letter to a comrade: You can have revolutionaries both wise and ignorant, intelligent or mediocre. But you cant have revolutionaries who lack the willingness to smash obstacles, who lack devotion and the spirit of sacrifice. These words sum up what attitude we must have today. A member of the RCP will let nothing stand in the way of the propagation of the communist program. Nothing in history has been built without dedication and an iron will to overcome obstacles. The strongest pressures under capitalist society dont come from the brute force of the state, its police, and its army. Above all, the first obstacle we must overcome is within ourselves. It is the force of routine and tradition, which stems from the ideological pressure to fall in line and keep quiet. Bourgeois public opinion mercilessly attacks anyone who rises up against the capitalist status quo. Communists do not accept this. The RCP breaks with bourgeois public opinion and proclaims its program loud and clear, everywhere. As the Communist Manifesto explains: The Communists disdain to conceal their views and aims. They openly declare that their ends can be attained only by the forcible overthrow of all existing social conditions. This is the spirit that must permeate all our actions. A member of the RCP is someone who will use every opportunity to speak out and spread Communist ideas: in the metro, at the bus stop, on busy streets, in neighbourhoods, in classrooms, with our work colleagues, organizing public ralliesin short, by every means at our disposal! Join YOUR party! For an entire historical period, communists were swimming against the stream. For the past 25 years, IMT comrades in Quebec and Canada, organized under the banner of Fightback, have worked hard to form the first core of Marxists and lay the foundations of a revolutionary party. The launch of the RCP is the result of these years of patient work. Now, we are swimming with the stream, and a revolutionary epoch has opened. It is high time to unfurl the banner of the Revolutionary Communist Party. Our goal is modest: nothing less than the complete overthrow of the capitalist system. But it wont happen by itself. If youre a communist, we need you. And if youre a Communist, you need an organizationyou need us! The RCP is your party. It will be nothing without the participation of thousands of youth and workers awakening to communism. Over the next three months, well be mobilizing a campaign leading to the partys founding congress in May. Join us now and help us build the RCP! We need you to raise the flag of the RCP everywhere. We need you to take Communist Revolution to every corner of the country. We must do this with enthusiasm, energy and confidence! Karl Marx described the heroic episode of the Paris Commune of 1871 as the time when Parisian workers stormed heaven. This is our perspective. Great revolutionary events are coming. If we successfully build a revolutionary mass communist party, the working class will win. There is no cause more important than this! If you want to become a founding member of the RCP, dont wait. You can immediately help spread the word and build momentum for the founding convention. Heres what you can do today: A woman who was raped and pimped out by her anti-domestic violence campaigner ex-husband has expressed her relief as he was sentenced. Jon Seccull, 46, has been found guilty of raping his then-wife Michelle Skewes - who gave Daily Mail Australia permission to name her - multiple times between February 2014 and September 2015. The 'remorseless' former White Ribbon ambassador was sentenced to nine years and nine months in jail, with a non-parole period of six years and 10 months, by Judge Sarah Dawes at the County Court in Ballarat, Victoria, on Wednesday. Seccull's name will also be on the sex offenders register for the rest of his life after he was found guilty of three charges of rape and one charge of threatening to inflict serious violence. Jon Seccull (pictured right) has been found guilty of raping his then wife Michelle Skewes (pictured left) multiple times between February 2014 and September 2015 READ MORE: Mum raped for years by her sadistic husband who pimped her out on livestream so he could watch her being abused by other men reveals the moment she knew she HAD to leave Michelle Skewes (left) is pictured with Jon Seccull Advertisement 'The sentence was better than I was anticipating and the fact he's on the sex offenders register for life is absolutely huge,' Ms Skewes told the Herald Sun. Judge Dawes told Seccull she was 'unable to conclude you have any remorse whatsoever'. 'You argued the penetration was consensual and denied threatening her.' The judge said Seccull's sexual and verbal violence was a 'fundamental breach of trust' and that his conduct was 'degrading and volatile'. Seccull, who appeared by video link wearing prison clothes, has already served 612 days in custody. His jail sentence comes two years after he launched an appeal against his 2021 conviction, claiming he did not get a fair trial under Judge Frank Gucciardo when he was jailed for 15 years with a non-parole period of 10 years and six months. The court heard Seccull and Ms Skewes would arrange for her to meet other men for sex, which was livestreamed for him to watch. Ms Skewes spoke of her relief after Seccull was sentenced. 'My relief is there, (but) it's also tempered because he has already launched another appeal,' Ms Skewes told the ABC. 'It's a refusal to take accountability.' She said she intended to try to get on with her life as best she can. 'I am just going to try to put this behind me and live my life without him impacting it,' Ms Skewes said. 'The support I have received from people near and far, from people I know and do not know, has been amazing.' She added that she hoped others who have suffered violence from a partner will be able to see this outcome as proof that no one was 'untouchable'. 'It can be the hardest decision they've ever made, the decision to leave someone who is treating you like that,' she said. Seccull (pictured left), who appeared by video link wearing prison clothes, has already served 612 days in custody. Michelle Skewes is pictured right The court heard the Seccull (pictured right) and Ms Skewes (left) would arrange for her to meet other men for sex, which was livestreamed for him to watch 'I hope that the end result of seeing someone who almost appears untouchable (being) held to account... helps.' Ms Skewes said victims 'deserve to be treated with respect and they do not have to stay in a relationship that does not give that to them'. 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 Lifeline 13 11 14 Beyond Blue 1300 224 636 A council boss has been ordered not to contact a group of his former workers after the police took out apprehended violence orders against him. David Robert Chariton, who was team leader at Ryde City Council in Sydney's north, appeared at Burwood Local Court on Wednesday to face the six AVO applications against him. Chariton, who has now moved to Waverley Council in Sydney's east, was ordered not to contact five of his former colleagues for six months. He was also ordered not to assault, threaten, stalk, harass or destroy property belonging to the sixth staff member for six months, as well as the five others. A full-day hearing was set to take place but the applicants and Chariton reached a 'sensible resolution' by 11am with six-month APVOs ordered for each by the court. David Robert Chariton has had six apprehended personal violence orders taken out against him on behalf of six former colleagues The allegations, which were not aired in court, relate to Chariton's alleged behaviour while at Ryde City Council in 2022. The allegations did not occur outside of the workplace. The six applicants, who remain employed at the City of Ryde Council, appeared in court and told Daily Mail Australia outside they were 'disappointed' with the length of the APVOs handed down. Chariton's lawyer Peter Katsoolis said his client had consented to the orders on a without admissions basis, meaning 'he's not agreeing to the truth of the allegations'. Chariton was a team leader at the City of Ryde Council. He allegedly made violent threats Chariton was supported by his wife Suzie at court on Wednesday, with the pair seen leaving the courthouse hand-in-hand Chariton was supported by his wife Suzie at court on Wednesday, with the pair seen leaving the courthouse hand-in-hand. His LinkedIn says he is now the manager of ranger services at Waverley Council where he has worked since September last year. Chariton was a staffer at the City of Ryde Council from September, 2019 to April, 2023. Both Waverley Council and the City of Ryde Council have been contacted for comment. Chariton faces a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $5,500 fine if he breaches the conditions of the AVOs. A desperate rescue mission is underway to retrieve about 27 miners trapped underground by a mine collapse. Emergency services are responding to reports of a rockfall about 3km inside the Ballarat Gold Mine at Mount Clear, Ballarat, at 4.50pm on Wednesday. Victorian Police confirmed 25 of the workers had been able to evacuate to a safety pod where they can be retrieved, while two others were injured by falling rocks. Although both miners had been pinned underneath the rubble, one was able to be extracted to the surface and was treated for injuries to his lower body. He was airlifted to The Alfred hospital in Melbourne with life-threatening injuries, while the other remains trapped underground and is 'unresponsive'. Ballarat Acting Inspector Lisa MacDougall said the incident took place about 500 metres underground. The trapped miner's family have been informed, the officer said, adding that 'obviously, as we would all be, they are extremely distressed and concerned'. Emergency services are desperately trying to save 27 miners trapped underground after a rock fall occurred 3km underground at Ballarat Gold Mine (pictured) Wednesday afternoon A convoy of emergency services vehicles were seen rushing to the site on Wednesday afternoon. Ambulance Victoria and the Country Fire Authority's Oscar 1 Mine Rescue Team were deployed to the scene and are searching for ways to retrieve the miners. 'Ambulance Victoria (Mobile Intensive Care service) and (Advanced Life Support) paramedics worked with mine rescue staff to stabilise one person prior to extrication,' a statement from Victoria Police reads. 'Work is underway to free the remaining 25 miners to the surface.' A WorkSafe spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the regulator had been alerted to the collapse and that 'inspectors and a technical specialist are responding'. Australian Workers' Union Victoria announced on X that it's 'State Secretary and two of our union officials are currently on-site, working closely with the members'. 'We stand united in our commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all workers,' the social media post reads. Victorian Premier Jacinta Allen also took to social media to say she was 'thinking of every worker and every family who is impacted by the Ballarat mine incident'. 'Tonight will be a long night for them and for the entire Ballarat community.' While 25 of the miners evacuated to a safety pod, one was extracted and taken to hospital in a 'serious but stable condition' and the other is 'unresponsive' after being trapped under rubble (pictured, police at the scene) The network of mine shafts that make up the Ballarat Gold Mine have been operational since the 1850s, with some of the original shafts still in use. A cave-in at the site in November 12, 2007, trapped 27 miners about a kilometre underground. All of the miners were safely retrieved after being winched to the surface through a ventilation shaft about 8am. On Anzac Day the year prior, Tasmanian miners Todd Russell and Brant Webb were trapped in a small cage 925 metres underground for two weeks after a rock-fall at the Beaconsfield gold mine, northwest of Launceston. While Mr Russell and Mr Webb triumphantly walked free from the mine, their colleague Larry Knight had died during the initial collapse. They were both able to join mourners at their Mr Knight's funeral, which had been delayed until they were freed on May 9. Domino's has announced places to open 70 new shops in the UK outside of cities Domino's has revealed its plot to target Britain's towns and villages as it announced new plans to open 70 new stores this year, some of which will be in more rural areas. This comes as the pizza chain boss Andrew Rennie announced that the company will soon launch a 4 meal deal and is eyeing a loyalty programme for return customers in a bid to take on Greggs. There are more than 1,300 Domino's pizza shops across the UK and Ireland right now, but the company wants to expand to 2,000 by the end of 2024. To do this, 70 new stores will be opened this year, including in areas outside of major UK cities. There has been a surge in business in smaller towns where they have opened new stores, including a new shop in Llangefni, Wales. Domino's has also set up shop in other commuter belt towns in areas such as Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire and Chesham, Buckinghamshire in recent months. Domino's has revealed its new plot to target Britain's towns and villages as it announced new plans to open 70 new stores this year This comes as the pizza chain boss Andrew Rennie announced that the company will soon launch a 4 meal deal and is eyeing a loyalty programme for return customers in a bid to take on Greggs . There are more than 1,300 Domino's pizza shops across the UK and Ireland right now, but the company wants to expand to 2,000 by the end of 2024 The company said it had seen a slow January, in part because it had not marketed its pizzas as much as it could have, as it is holding back for more ads later this year. 'One of the reasons we held back in January as well was because January is one our quieter months, so we wanted to go fishing when the fish are biting,' chief executive Andrew Rennie said. Adverts released later this year will be aimed at promoting new big launches from the group, including the new 4 lunch offer. 'For the first time ever we're launching a 4 lunch deal that will be launched in the next couple of weeks,' Mr Rennie said. The deal will include smaller items from the menu, including pizzas, wraps and cookies. The chief executive also said the business expects to be able to launch a loyalty programme for regular customers later this year. He said that testing was already under way and the business is letting itself be driven by the data it sees. Mr Rennie said: 'I'm pretty confident based on what I'm seeing that it's going to be very strong. 'I'd be very surprised if we didn't find a way forward to launch it completely later in the year.' He was unable to reveal many details of the loyalty scheme but promised 'it will have a couple of additional twists to it, but I can't give that away, I'm afraid, because it is market-sensitive, because it's quite unique.' The CEO added: 'In December I set out a framework for accelerating sustainable, long-term growth. Following a great year for store openings in 2023 we are accelerating our growth and expect to have 1,600 UK & Ireland stores delivering 2.0 billion of system sales by 2028 and 2,000 stores by 2033 delivering 2.5 billion of system sales. 'Crucially, we have alignment with our franchisees and there is a strong, motivated second generation talent coming through the franchisee ranks to help drive this growth.' This could be seen as a challenge to high street bakery Greggs, which in January affirmed plans to open a bakery chain in every town in Britain which does not have a branch yet by opening 160 new branches this year. On top of this, the chief executive also said the business expects to be able to launch a loyalty program for regular customers later this year Greggs, which had 2,473 outlets by the end of last year, has announced further expansion plans to open up to 160 stores in 2024. Pictured: A Greggs sausage roll Greggs, which had 2,473 outlets by the end of last year, announced further expansion plans to open up to 160 stores in 2024. With the new store openings this would take the total number of Greggs bakeries in Britain to more than 2,600. The exact locations of the new outlets is not yet known by the brand, which is synonyms with sausage rolls, but said they plan to give customers more convenient access to its stories. The chain will continue to target retail parks, industrial estates and motorway service stations as part of expansion plans. Domino's said it gained market share last year, rising from 7.1% to 7.2%. It opened 61 pizza shops and expects to open a further 70 this year. By 2028 the business hopes to have 1,600 sites in the UK and Ireland, and 2,000 by 2033. On Tuesday it separately announced the takeover of Shorecal Limited, the largest Domino's franchise in the island of Ireland. The 72 million euro (62 million) deal will see it take over 34 of the 99 Domino's sites currently operating in the Republic and Northern Ireland. Last year sales were up 5.8% while pre-tax profit rose 43.9% to 142.3 million. One of London's oldest culinary delights is under threat as shoppers are favouring foreign baked goods such as the French pain aux raisin and the Portuguese pastel de nata. The Chelsea bun, which dates back to the early 18th century, was once a teatime favourite that could be spotted in most bakery windows in London - but campaigners have warned they are becoming increasingly difficult to find. Greg Hands, the MP for Chelsea & Fulham, fears the once popular bun may be under threat as consumers opt for pastries which aren't as sweet. 'I remember as a child how virtually every bakery stocked fresh Chelsea buns, yet now the delicacy is hard to come by, having lost popularity to the hot cross bun, the croissant, the pain aux raisins and so on,' he told The Standard. 'It is nonetheless very tasty and has a long London tradition. As seen with the 200-year-old bun in the Museum of London, it is a very rich part of the city's heritage and I would be delighted to see its revival.' The Chelsea Bun (pictured) is under threat, sparking a new campaign to save them from extinction Shoppers are believed to be favouring other sweets such as the French pain aux raisin It appears shoppers are also being tempted more by treats such as the Portuguese pastel de nata Mr Hands, the Minister for London, is working with Partridges, an independent food shop on Duke of York Square on Chelsea's King's Road, to alert people to the threat of extinction. The first bun is said to have been baked at a property later known as the Chelsea Bun House. According to folklore, an estimated 50,000 people queued to buy the buns on one Good Friday as the pastries were commemorated by authors such as Jonathan Swift, Charles Dickens and Lewis Carroll. The currant buns are made from a rich yeast dough before being flavoured with lemon peel, cinnamon or mixed spice and spread with a mix of currants, brown sugar and butter. They are then baked and coated with a cold-water syrup while still piping hot so that the water evaporates, leaving a sweet sticky sugar coating. Mr Hands said it was important to protect the Chelsea Bun as Britain has a long heritage of regional sweet treats such as the Chorley cake, the Eccles cake and the Dundee cake. While the buns hail from Chelsea, they have become synonymous with a bakery that has no real links to the exclusive part of London. In fact, it is the Cambridge bakery Fitzbillies that has been delighting shoppers with Chelsea Buns for more than 100 years. Their buns were seen as a 'rare treat' during the Second World War but the bakery was sadly plunged into financial turmoil in the 1980s and 90s - and again in 2011. However, a campaign to save the bakery brought the Chelsea Bun back to life and they were even able to open a second branch in Cambridge. Mr Hands (pictured), the Minister for London, is working with Partridges, an independent food shop on Duke of York Square on Chelsea's King's Road, to alert people to the threat of extinction. The currant buns are made from a rich yeast dough before being flavoured with lemon peel, cinnamon or mixed spice and spread with a mix of currants, brown sugar and butter it is the popular Cambridge bakery Fitzbillies that has been selling Chelsea Buns for more than 100 years Bakers at Cambridge's Fitzbillies pose with a fresh batch of Chelsea buns Princess Michael of Kent refused to try a Chelsea bun - while judging the World Chelsea Bun Awards last year. Pictured with John Shephard, the managing director of the shop Now, a renewed effort to save the buns in London comes ahead of the annual World Chelsea Bun Awards, where amateur and professional bakers can enter photos of buns they have made or deliver them to Partridges on May 18. This year, they will be judged by Jane Asher and Lady Frederick Windsor, patrons of The Children's Surgery Foundation. Last year, Princess Michael of Kent hilariously refused to eat a Chelsea bun while judging the World Chelsea Bun Awards. Princess Michael's daughter-in-law, actress Lady Sophie Winkleman, was supposed to be judging the awards but had a diary conflict and asked her mother-in-law to step in. But royal wires appeared to get crossed, with Princess Michael unaware she would have to eat anything while judging a baking competition. 'I wasn't told by my daughter-in-law that I was going to do a taste. Because I'm not going to taste,' she said on Channel 5's The Royal Borough: Kensington & Chelsea. 'When she said 'help me out with is wonderful children's charity' she didn't say I had to taste.' Vladimir Putin today declared his readiness for nuclear war should the US deploy troops to Ukraine as Moscow's fight against Kyiv rages on. 'From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready,' the 71-year-old dictator declared in an interview with state-controlled Rossiya-1 television. In unsettling comments, he reminded the state-controlled channel that Russia's nuclear doctrine permitted use of nuclear weapons in the event of a perceived threat to national security. 'Weapons exist in order to use them,' he declared. 'We have our own principles.' He warned that if US troops are deployed in Russia or Ukraine, Putin will view this as American intervention in a war he declared two years ago. '(In the United States) there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint. 'Therefore, I don't think that here everything is rushing to it [nuclear confrontation]... but we are ready for this,' he said, before going on to add that Russia's nuclear triad of land, sea and air threats was 'much more' advanced and modern than those touted by America. His statement is another blunt warning to the West ahead of a presidential vote this week in which he is all but certain to win another six-year term. Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview to TV host and Director General of Rossiya Segodnya (RIA Novosti) news agency Dmitry Kiselyov at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 12, 2024 The Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is launched during a test at Plesetsk cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk region, Russia, in this still image taken from a video released on April 20, 2022 A Yars intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile is fired during a training, from Plesetsk cosmodrome in Northern Arkhangelsk region, Russia Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Sarmat nuclear missile production facilities in Krasnoyarsk region 'Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here,' Putin said in an interview on state TV. In his TV interview ahead of the election, which takes place between Friday and Sunday - Putin also said British and American missiles caused damage to Russia in the Ukraine war, but did not change the situation on the battlefield. The Kremlin chief also declared that even sending foreign troops to Ukraine would not help Kyiv. 'If we talk about official military contingents of foreign countries, I am sure it will not change the situation on the battlefield. That is the most important thing. Just as supplying arms does not change anything,' Putin said. There has been military personnel from Western countries in Ukraine for a long time, he said, acting as advisers and mercenaries. Putin was speaking to one of his most ardent TV propagandists Dmitry Kiselyov. He also voiced confidence that Moscow will achieve its goals in Ukraine and held the door open for talks, emphasising any deal would require firm guarantees from the West. Russia, which inherited the Soviet Union's nuclear weapons, has the world's biggest store of nuclear warheads. Putin controls about 5,580 nuclear warheads, according to the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). Of those about 1,200 are retired but largely intact and around 4,380 are stockpiled for use by long-range strategic launchers and shorter-range tactical nuclear forces, according to the FAS. Of the stockpiled warheads, 1,710 strategic warheads are deployed - about 870 on land-based ballistic missiles, about 640 on submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and possibly 200 at heavy bomber bases, FAS said. Such numbers mean that both Moscow could destroy the world many times over. Post-Soviet Russia has not carried out a nuclear test, but Putin last year signed a law withdrawing Russia's ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and has said Russia would consider testing a nuclear weapon if the United States did. Putin was speaking to one of his most ardent TV propagandists Dmitry Kiselyov Tu-22M3 long-range strategic bombers and Mig-31I fighters armed with hypersonic Dagger [Kinzhal] missiles fly over the Baltic and Caspian seas in a show of strength to the West by Vladimir Putin A Russian TU-22M3 bomber Putin spoke as footage emerged of long-range strategic bombers Tu-22M3 - part of his nuclear strike force - being sent up over the Baltic Sea in NATO's backyard in a drill. The bombers were accompanied by MiG-31I fighters armed with hypersonic Dagger - or Kinzhal - missiles which can also carry nuclear as well as conventional warheads. Su-30SM and Su-35S fighters escorted the strike planes. The flight was intercepted by Swedish fighter jets, marking a significant moment in their integration with NATO. The Swedish JAS-39 Gripen jets stormed the skies alongside German and Belgian aircraft on Monday morning after their flag was hoisted at NATO headquarters, in Brussels. In a show of operational readiness, the JAS-39 Gripens were scrambled twice on March 11 to identify and intercept the Russian military aircraft. 'At certain stages of their flight, the airplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces tracked some fighter jets of foreign states,' Putin's defence ministry confirmed. Sweden's recent accession to NATO has increased the alliance's hold on the Baltic where Putin also has two key ports in St Petersburg and Kaliningrad. This is likely a reason for the flight over the Baltic in a warning to the West. The Russian planes also flew over the Caspian Sea and the MiG-31I crews performed in-flight refuelling. 'All flights were carried out in strict compliance with international rules of using airspace. 'Long-range aviation pilots regularly fly over the international waters of the Arctic, North Atlantic, Black and Baltic seas, and the Pacific Ocean,' said Russian long-range aviation's commander, Lieutenant-General Sergey Kobylash. They have welcomed his arrest yesterday in Romania for new sex allegations Four British women who claim they were raped by Andrew Tate and are bringing a civil case against him have welcomed his arrest for fresh sex allegations. The group, who cannot be named for legal reasons, say they were victims of self-proclaimed misogynist Tate, 37, while they were working for him and his webcam empire. Police in Hertfordshire originally investigated the claims which he has always denied and he was arrested three times before the case was eventually abandoned. The women issued a statement after Tate and his brother Tristan, 35, were arrested in the Romanian capital Bucharest on behalf of Bedfordshire police, who are probing new sex assault allegations. A police officer escorts Andrew Tate, centre, handcuffed, from the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania yesterday Andrew Tate (centre) and his brother Tristan Tate (back right) speak to journalists after having been released from detention in Bucharest, Romania on March 12 Four British women who claim they were raped by Andrew Tate and are bringing a civil case against him have welcomed his arrest for fresh sex allegations They said: 'We are four British women bringing a civil case against Andrew Tate in the UK for allegations of rape and assault. 'We are making this joint statement in response to the news that Tate has been detained in Romania at the request of the UK authorities for extradition to England to face criminal charges. 'We understand that this extradition request was made because of criminal complaints of sexual assault made by other women, and not because of the complaints we made almost a decade ago. 'While we welcome the news that the UK authorities have, at last, done the right thing and are seeking to prosecute Tate, we are still disappointed and distressed that the CPS chose not to prosecute Tate in 2019 when it had the chance for the crimes, we allege he committed against us. 'After a four-year investigation, and despite the Police believing that the evidential test for prosecution had been met, this decision by the CPS allowed Tate to travel to Romania where he has since been charged with human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. 'This might not have happened if the CPS had taken our complaints seriously. Last year, we asked the CPS to reconsider its decision. It refused to do so. 'We must ask, was this a political decision? If the CPS had agreed, how would it then explain to the Romanian authorities that it had effectively let Tate go on to travel to their country to allegedly commit serious criminal offences; leaving Romania to foot the bill for the subsequent investigation and prosecution, which may end costing millions? 'This is, we believe, a question that the CPS must be asked and should be the subject of an immediate inquiry. 'The extradition request comes during the week in which a report following an independent examination into how the CPS prosecutes rape will be published. 'The Guardian has reported that specialist rape lawyers are "obsessed" with credibility of victims and use victim-blaming language. Unfortunately, this mirrors our own experience with the CPS. 'We are hopeful that the women who are the subject of Tate's arrest warrant today will have their case handled and prosecuted differently to ours so that they get the justice they deserve. 'We are thinking of all the women Tate has allegedly hurt since his move to Romania whose suffering might have been prevented if the authorities in the UK had acted sooner. 'We thank our lawyers, McCue Jury & Partners, who have been campaigning for the UK authorities to prosecute Tate, even if not for the crimes committed against us, and who wrote to the British police last week to urge them to immediately seek a warrant for Tate's extradition to the UK following rumours of him planning an escape. We will continue to fight for justice.' On Tuesday the brothers appeared in a Bucharest court after they were arrested by armed police late on Monday night, executing a European Arrest Warrant. Andrew Tate, 37, and his brother Tristan Tate, 35, have now been released after they were arrested. Pictured outside court yesterday Romanian authorities said in a statement that they executed 'two European arrest warrants issued by the UK judicial authorities for the committing of sexual offences, of exploitation of persons on the territory of the UK' At the hearing the judge ruled they could be extradited but only after their case in Romania on unrelated people trafficking and rape charges is heard first. Speaking outside court Andrew Tate said: 'We are very innocent men and in time everybody is going to see that. We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names.' The brothers, who 'categorically reject all charges', will remain under judicial controls in Romania which prevent them travelling outside the country. Lawyers McCue Jury & Partners revealed they had tipped off British and Romanian authorities that Andrew Tate was planning to flee Romania. The intelligence is thought to have prompted Bedfordshire police to act swiftly and ask Westminster Magistrates Court to issue the European arrest Warrant so the men could be held. A source told the Mail the information was a video sent to authorities in Britain and Bucharest in which former kickboxer Tate said he 'planned to leave Romania'. In the clip, blogger Adin Ross described how he had been in contact with Tate in recent days and had discussed him coming to Romania to film an interview with the multi-millionaire. Ross told his viewers 'This is f***ing peaking' before adding Tate had told him: 'Hey, I'm going to be leaving Romania soon and never coming back.' Tate added: 'So if you want to come and see me it's basically now or never.' Self-confessed misogynist appeared on Big Brother in 2016 but was later kicked out after a video emerged of him striking a woman with a belt. Social commentators and teachers have armed against his brand of extreme masculinity and sexism which has drawn a cult following of millions among young men and schoolboys. The Tate brothers are currently banned from leaving Romania while being investigated and had been under house arrest since their initial detention in December 2022. But this condition was later removed on the condition they remain in the country. A request to leave Bucharest and visit their mother in Luton who had suffered a heart attack was denied at Christmas by officials. Bedfordshire Police said: 'As part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking, Bedfordshire Police has obtained a European arrest warrant for two men in their 30s. 'We are working with authorities in Romania as part of this investigation and will provide an update in due course.' Former professional kickboxer and social media influencer Andrew Tate (right), followed by his brother Tristan (left), arrives for an appeal against preventive detention at the Bucharest Court of Appeal, in Bucharest, Romania, 1 August 2023 Andrew Tate (pictured) has been arrested in Romania on a UK-issued warrant In a statement a spokesperson for the brothers described their arrest as 'bewildering revival of decade-old accusations has left the Tate brothers dismayed and deeply troubled.' It went on:'They categorically reject all charges and express profound disappointment that such serious allegations are being resurrected without substantial new evidence.' Their lawyer Eugen Vidineac said:' We appreciate the Bucharest Court of Appeal's decision to postpone the extradition of Andrew and Tristan Tate. 'This ruling provides an opportunity for the brothers to participate fully in their defence and for the legal process to proceed in a transparent manner. 'In response to McCue Jury's statement accusing our clients of planning to flee Romania, we unequivocally deny any accusations that Andrew or Tristan Tate intends to abscond from Romania to evade the judicial proceedings. 'Our clients are fully committed to actively participating in the legal process and defending their reputation. 'We believe this rumour has originated from a popular online influencer who misconstrued a text message from our clients while streaming live. There is simply no truth to it.' Both men were later released and allowed home and pictured smiling and waving as they were driven away. Owner Ed Rogers says the company is 'actually the victim of organised gangs A British haulage boss has slammed Home Office officials for fining him 66,000 after he claims six migrants 'snuck into the back' of one of his lorries to enter the UK. Ed Rogers, owner of E.M. Rogers Transport, said he is furious with the UK Border Force after its officials found the migrants in the back of one of his company's lorries at the French border. The businessman said he and his driver were being punished for 'not being border force agents or security guards'. He told GB News: 'Our guys are just normal guys going about their work and they are not border force agents. They are not security guards. He and we are being punished on this occasion for not fulfilling those roles.' The haulier company had previously claimed another of its lorries was attacked by migrants in France, who used iron bars and breeze blocks to smash its windscreen and door windows. Writing about the fine on Facebook, Rogers claimed his company, which has been operating for nearly 80 years, was 'actually the victims of organised gangs'. MailOnline understands the fine was in relation to a number of cases of negligence from its drivers, with a probe into the firm ongoing. Home Office figures show more than 3,000 people have crossed the English Channel in small boats so far this year. Ed Rogers, owner of E.M. Rogers Transport, told GB News that he was being 'punished' after six migrants 'snuck into the back' of one of his lorries The haulier company had previously claimed another of its lorries was attacked by migrants in France in 2021 The windscreen and door windows of the truck were smashed, and Mr Rogers said the driver was left feeling 'very shaken and upset' by the incident But Mr Rogers says he and one of his drivers are being punished for the incident involving the six migrants, who were found in the back of one of his lorries by UK border police in France. He claims the lorry had been travelling from Italy through France to reach Britain and managed to get through French security checks before being held up at the UK's scanners. Mr Rogers said: 'We are just going about our normal working practices and in this example one of our drivers was coming back from Italy. He came back through the normal route back through France. He went through the scanners on the French side of the border. 'When it came to the UK side, which is still in France, they found six immigrants in his trailer.' Mr Rogers, whose company transports rare, valuable and classic cars across Europe on its lorries, took to social media on Monday to criticise the fine. He wrote: 'We have been fined this frankly ridiculous amount of money for honestly doing our job, alongside our driver who has been fined 36,000, UK Border Force are fining us for bringing 6 illegals over in one of our trucks. 'THIS is the same Border Force that cant stop the boats we hear about arriving daily from across the channel. We are actually the victims of organised gangs that target vulnerable lorry drivers whilst they sleep. 'Can you imagine having your house broken into at night and then being fined for it ??' Mr Rogers said said he and his driver were being punished for 'not being border force agents or security guards' In May 2021, Pictures of a E.M. Rogers Transport lorry, shared by the businessman, showed its smashed windows and broken body work from where he claims it was attacked by the migrants. Two large, circular smashes are seen in the windshield with some holes in the glass, while the door windows appear to have been totally destroyed. At the time, he called for more action to be taken to protect haulage workers driving in and out of mainland Europe. MailOnline understands an investigation into Mr Rogers' claims are still ongoing. A Home Office spokesperson said:'We are relentless in our pursuit of those who seek to enter the UK illegally, and stand ready to respond robustly to clandestine arrivals. 'Far too many vehicles are not adequately secured to stop migrants boarding them. That's why, in the last 12 months, we have strengthened the haulier civil penalty with significantly increased financial penalties to ensure that drivers are taking every reasonable step to deter illegal migration and disrupt people smugglers.' Pictured: Migrants run across the A 16 motorway in an attempt to climb into the back of lorries bound for Britain while traffic is stopped upon waiting to board shuttles at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel site in Calais, northern France, on December 10, 2020 In January 2023, the fines for lorry drivers who inadvertently brought stowaways into Britain rose from 2,000 to 10,000 for each 'clandestine entrant'. The maximum fine applies for each migrant found in a vehicle, meaning if a driver has two stowaways they could face a 20,000 penalty. Increased fines were introduced last year as part of the Government's determination to 'crack down on illegal migration' and 'to dismantle the organised criminal gangs behind it'. While the exact number of migrants entering the UK clandestinely each year is not known, analysis from Migration Watch UK suggests that there have been at least 320,000 attempts to come to this country without prior permission from Northern France between 2014 and 2022. In that time, there have been around 110,000 detected and reported irregular arrivals from Northern France via dinghy and lorry. In the year ending June 2023, Home Office statistics showed there were 52,530 irregular migrants detected entering the UK, up 17 per cent from the year ending June 2022, with 85 per cent arriving by boat. Andrew Tate's brother Tristan has taken to social media to slam the decision to arrest and extradite him to the UK following the controversial influencers' trial in Romania. 'They'll do anything to put you in jail,' he wrote in quotation marks on X, before suggesting that he is being denied a trial in the country despite criminal proceedings being ongoing. 'This is day 441 of my arrest,' he added, 'I have a clean criminal record and am an American citizen.' The British-American brothers were first indicted for rape and human trafficking charges in Romania in June last year, but their case is still being discussed in the preliminary chamber stages and no trial dates have yet been set. On Monday, they were arrested in Bucharest on behalf of Bedfordshire police, who are probing new sex assault allegations against them, with a court ruling yesterday that they could be sent back to the UK once their Romanian trial is finished. Andrew Tate (centre) and his brother Tristan Tate (back right) speak to journalists after having been released from detention in Bucharest, Romania on March 12 Andrew Tate, 37, and his brother Tristan Tate, 35, have now been released after they were arrested. Pictured outside court yesterday Andrew Tate's brother Tristan has taken to social media to slam the decision to arrest and extradite him to the UK Outside court yesterday, Andrew Tate insisted that he and his brother are 'very innocent men'. Both Andrew Tate, 37, and Tristan, 35, 'unequivocally deny' allegations of rape and human trafficking which date back to 2012-2015, for which the European Arrest Warrant was issued. Speaking to reporters outside court following the ruling, Andrew Tate said: 'I want to give absolute credit to Romanian justice for making the correct decision today. In a baseless rant, he went on: 'Unfortunately I don't think many people in Romania understand, but in the West, in the countries that are owned by the satanists, when you get to a certain level of fame you either put on a dress or you go to jail and I'm happy to make my choice which is jail every single time, my soul is not for sale neither are my principles. 'We're very innocent men and in time everybody's going to see that. 'We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names.' The brothers, who 'categorically reject all charges', will remain under judicial controls in Romania which prevent them travelling outside the country. Lawyers McCue Jury & Partners revealed they had tipped off British and Romanian authorities that Andrew Tate was planning to flee Romania. The firm, which is representing four women who have accused Tate of rape and sexual assault, said in a statement: 'Last week, we received information that Tate might have been planning to flee Romania, where he is due to stand trial for separate allegations of rape and human trafficking. 'We wrote to the British police to bring this to their attention and to urge them to immediately seek a warrant for Tate's detention in Romania and extradition to the UK.' The intelligence is thought to have prompted Bedfordshire police to act swiftly and ask Westminster Magistrates Court to issue the European arrest Warrant so the men could be held. Romanian authorities said in a statement that they executed 'two European arrest warrants issued by the UK judicial authorities for the committing of sexual offences, of exploitation of persons on the territory of the UK' A source told the Mail the information was a video sent to authorities in Britain and Bucharest in which former kickboxer Tate said he 'planned to leave Romania'. EXCLUSIVE READ MORE: Andrew Tate rape accusers welcome misogynistic influencer's extradition from Romania to Britain but are 'disappointed' he was not prosecuted years earlier Four British women who claim they were raped by Andrew Tate and are bringing a civil case against him have welcomed his arrest for fresh sex allegations Advertisement In the clip, blogger Adin Ross described how he had been in contact with Tate in recent days and had discussed him coming to Romania to film an interview with the multi-millionaire. Ross told his viewers 'This is f***ing peaking' before adding Tate had told him: 'Hey, I'm going to be leaving Romania soon and never coming back.' Tate added: 'So if you want to come and see me it's basically now or never.' The self-confessed misogynist appeared on Big Brother in 2016 but was later kicked out after a video emerged of him striking a woman with a belt. Social commentators and teachers have spoken out against his brand of extreme masculinity and sexism which has drawn a cult following of millions among young men and schoolboys. The Tate brothers are currently banned from leaving Romania while being investigated and had been under house arrest since their initial detention in December 2022. But this condition was later removed on the condition they remain in the country. A request to leave Bucharest and visit their mother in Luton who had suffered a heart attack was denied at Christmas by officials. Bedfordshire Police said: 'As part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking, Bedfordshire Police has obtained a European arrest warrant for two men in their 30s. 'We are working with authorities in Romania as part of this investigation and will provide an update in due course.' Camorra assassins have gunned down an engineer in Naples after he exposed the Italian Mafia organisation's construction racket. Salvatore Coppola, 66, was shot in the face by his killers on Tuesday evening in the car park of a Deco store, just metres away from an Apple Headquarters, in San Giovanni a Teduccio. The victim reportedly had past ties in the mob world and had once been a white-collar criminal close to the Mazzarella clan - historically considered to be one of the most powerful groups of the Camorra. But after leaving the criminal organisation to collaborate with the justice system, police believe he was murdered for breaking the Mafia's strict code of silence. Coppola was ambushed by the Camorra assassins on March 12 before they fled - reportedly leaving behind no eyewitnesses. Salvatore Coppola, 66, was shot in the face by Camorra assassins on Tuesday night after he exposed the organisation's construction racket Flying Squad and San Giovanni officers discovered Coppola's lifeless body in the car park of a Deco store in San Giovanni a Teduccio, Naples The victim was once closely tied with the Mazzarella clan - one of the most powerful groups of the Camorra Shortly after 7pm, officials from the Flying Squad and San Giovanni officers discovered Coppola's lifeless body and according to police, it was a 'real Camorra execution'. Local Italian news site TODAY reported that Coppola had lived under a protection regime in the past and had recently returned, after having collaborated with the justice system for around 15 years. In 2009, however, Coppola was involved in a huge finance operation that shed light on criminal economic speculation linked to the construction and real estate sector in the eastern area of Naples. It is considered to be an ancient industrial area of the city, partly redeveloped through enormous investments. While Copolla began working with the District Anti-Mafia Directorate (DDA) of Naples to expose the Camorra gang, he revealed how the criminal system organised in the gray area of extortion, reported Corriere Del Mezzogiorno. It was said that within the construction sector, the mob ensured no brick was laid without paying a sum of money to the 'system'. He revealed background information on the economic interests linked to the investments, including alleged corruption. Civil servants and experts reportedly worked alongside Coppola to expose the construction racket, which police believe ultimately led to his brutal death. The Carabinieri is now investigating the murder. The Camorra is recognised as one of the oldest and largest criminal organisations in Italy, dating back to the seventh century. They originated in the region of Campania and grew to power in the 19th century. The Camorra's organisational structure is divided into individual groups called 'clans' - of which there are believed to be around 180. Since the collapse of Chinese real estate conglomerate Evergrande, the second-biggest economy in the world entered a slow-motion crisis that has expanded into other sectors. This crisis has now reached the sphere where the debts are issued: the banks. The warning signs Im here to withdraw my own money, yet you tell me all about my overdue payments [and refuse to give me any money]. If my mother dies [because I cant pay for her treatments], I will come to and hang a wreath here as well! On New Year's Eve, 9 February 2024, a middle-aged man stood in the lobby of a bank and shouted the above in grief. The more he talked, the more agitated he became, and finally broke down and cried, because he could not withdraw the money he had deposited in the Bank of the Central Plains. At the same time, his mother is hospitalised and in urgent need of money. This is not an isolated case. In Pingdingshan, Henan Province, major banks are beginning to experience difficulties in withdrawing money. Online, people across China are complaining about the difficulty of withdrawing cash. At present, Chinese banks are harshly restricting the outflow of funds. Some bank accounts are frozen if they are not used for several months; the elderly who are terminally ill are required to come to the counters to withdraw their money in person; and relatives who take out deposits from the accounts of the deceased are encountering all manner of obstacles. All of this is undoubtedly sending a dangerous signal: China's banking system might be facing a serious shortage of funds. This is putting further pressure on the already fragile livelihoods of ordinary working people, with small businesses or individuals experiencing cash crunches and even going under as a result of the impact. If this difficulty in accessing money continues and intensifies, it could be followed by a panicked run on the banks, leading to more bank failures. There have been such cases in the past. The collapse of the Henan Village Bank began when depositors found it difficult to withdraw their money. In October last year, there was a run on the Cangzhou Bank in Hebei province. The bank had lent money to Evergrande, but when the latter defaulted on its debts, this made depositors fear for their savings. But the current crisis is by no means a matter of a few banks failing. These signals point to a looming crisis in China's entire banking system. Debt and lending in the Chinese banking system Combining the Bank of China's report and data from Sierras Data and Information Co Ltd., the total deposits in the Chinese banking system are around RMB 284 trillion. As of 15 December 2023, according to the central bank, the balance of loans in the Chinese banking system exceeded RMB 200 trillion. 200 trillion yuan of loans is fast approaching a size comparable to the total deposits of the Chinese banking system. The total loan balance of financial institutions in 2023 was $230 trillion (half of which is owed for property). However, the debt of the Chinese society is far more than 200 trillion. According to multiple estimates, the overall debt size of the Chinese state is optimistically and conservatively estimated at more than 350 trillion, while bolder estimates put it at 400 trillion. A major portion of the debt is constituted by about 115 trillion in real estate sector liabilities and about 80-90 trillion in local government liabilities in the urban investment plus official accounts, respectively. Together these were already at 150 percent of GDP in 2023. The rest is central debt and loans to residents. The pressure of this debt will undoubtedly converge through the nerves of the financial system to the core of the banking system. During the property boom, lending money to property owners was a lucrative business, and banks, big and small, wanted to get in on the action. Many of them even took out loans from other banks before lending money to property developers or other capitalists. As a result, the total amount of money lent out by a bank may even exceed the bank's total assets, which is the bomb that the bank planted for itself during the growth period. Now this has proceeded to the point where many small banks are in a high-risk situation, the central bank has begun to limit capital injections into small banks to slow the contagion of the crisis to the head of the financial system. The Chinese government has also begun planning to merge hundreds of village banks into larger regional banks to eliminate their non-performing loans. But this is more of a struggle amid a bleak outlook. Reuters reported: "Although roughly 4,000 small banks are not by themselves seen as a systemic risk, the concern is that enough of them have largely funded themselves via short-term money market borrowing, posing a collective danger in the event a few of them fail" (our emphasis). When will the shoe fall? The current crisis is by no means a matter of a few banks failing / Image: own work At present, the larger banks are not yet as exposed as the smaller ones. But this is really only the beginning. In the past year, we have seen the bankruptcy of shadow banking giant Zhongzhi and the default of Haiyin Wealth, China's third-largest wealth management organisation. Zhongzhi's investments in property backfired on itself. Haiyin Wealth also suffered a final crash when its assets could not be redeemed due to the economic downturn, leading to a break in the capital chain, with activists eventually gathering under the company's main building to demand compensation. Then there is the ongoing implosion of the real estate sector, which is only getting worse, as we have previously reported, and is now converging with other crises to create a backlash and new struggles by the masses. In cases where local governments are highly indebted but unable to repay the banks, they will mortgage land to the banks, which will have to evict the people living on it. Or they will still need infrastructure to make their unsightly accounts as manageable as possible, and so will have to get real rights to use the land. Either way, this creates a conflict between the government and the oppressed masses around the seizure of land. For example, in Ganzi, Sichuan, monks and Tibetans kneeled down en masse to plead with government workers not to demolish temples and villages. and the remaining seizure of farmland. Ironically, the central government is shouting at the top of its voice to hold the line on farmland. A related report in Foreign Policy in February said the following: "As in many other countries, such as the United States and India, a major cause for Chinas farmland deterioration has been its land-intensive industrialization and urbanization over the past three decades. Farmland has been expropriated to meet the strong demand for land to support the expansion of manufacturing, infrastructure, and urban development. Competing interests for land use have resulted in arable land being expropriated for more lucrative development projects. In the contest for land use among food growers, cash-crop planters, and property developers, profit maximization often trumps the needs of food farmers, especially when imported foods are much cheaper than locally grown options." China's economy as a whole has entered a downturn, and evidence of deflation is everywhere. Production is shrinking, unemployment is climbing, especially among the young, to a decades-long high, and foreign investment is being withdrawn dramatically. The Financial Times points out that China is facing a dangerous combination of deflation and debt. A large amount of debt maturing but not being able to be repaid will hamper demand, coupled with a recession leading to a diminished willingness to invest, which will accelerate the pace of the crisis. Even the possibility of a Great Depression has been written about by some analysts. These signals of crisis from all directions coalesce into a general crisis of the banks, the crisis of the Chinese government, the crisis of capitalism and the class struggle. An unsolvable dilemma under capitalism As weve seen already in the West through the experience of quantitative easing, a mere injection of currency will solve nothing / Image: public domain At present, the world's bourgeois economists have noticed the risks of the Chinese banking system. On the one hand, China, as the world's factory, occupies an important position in the global production chain. And on the other hand, the Chinese banking system, as the world's largest, is close to the nerves of the global economy. Therefore, a possible banking crisis in China is bound to affect the world market. An easy monetary policy has been suggested. The Chinese government is also currently planning a huge wave of bailout funds. But as weve seen already in the West through the experience of quantitative easing, a mere injection of currency will solve nothing. The fundamental contradiction of capitalism has always been between socialised production and the means of production under private ownership, which repeatedly leads to overproduction and economic crises. The only way to break this endless cycle of crisis and chaos is to break with the capitalist system through a socialist revolution. Sweden has declared it will discuss with NATO leaders plans to ramp up militarisation of the island of Gotland, a thousand square mile spit of land that is widely seen as the most strategic location in the Baltic Sea. Described by analysts and commentators as a 'giant aircraft carrier', Stockholm-administered Gotland lies just 120 miles off the coast of NATO's Baltic triad of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, but also just 230 miles north of the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. Its prime location offers huge advantages in the deployment and control of air and sea traffic in the Baltic Sea, and has been referenced regularly by military analysts and commentators in Russian media as a highly desirable target. Sweden maintained a military presence on Gotland during the Cold War and the island at its peak housed up to 25,000 troops, but in 2005 it was almost completely demilitarised. Now, with Sweden's accession to NATO complete, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said the prospect of re-arming Gotland was 'one obvious thing to be discussed with our new NATO allies' as part of a wider ramping up of military readiness in the Baltic. 'Everything to do with the Baltic is such an obvious candidate (for the deployment of military resources),' Kristersson told the FT in an interview earlier this week. 'That goes in terms of presence on Gotland, but also in terms of surveillance, in terms of submarine capabilities.' Russian military analyst and retired Navy Captain Vasily Dandykin told Russian newswire Sputnik that a remilitarisation of Gotland would be seen as a major problem in the halls of the Kremlin. 'The size of this island makes it possible to put aviation, airfields, and naval bases... (to serve) the dream of both NATO bloc and the Americans to turn the Baltic Sea into a NATO sea... We understand what kind of threat this is,' Dandykin said. 'In any case, more intensive [Russian] exercises will take place in the Baltic. We have to understand that Finland too is already a NATO member. Therefore, our actions will be adequate both from Kaliningrad, where the Baltic Fleet is based, and from the rest of Russia.' FILE PHOTO: A Swedish JAS 39 Gripen E fighter jet flies over Sweden's Gotland island in the Baltic Sea, May 11, 2022 City view of Visby on the Swedish island Gotland Soldiers from Gotland's regiment patrol Visby harbour, amid increased tensions between NATO and Russia over Ukraine Sweden has not gone to war in more than two centuries and until recently had drawn down its military capabilities to such an extent that its population, so poorly prepared for the possibility of conflict, even developed a term for it: 'fredsskadad', or 'peace-damaged'. Sweden's demilitarisation of Gotland in 2005 prompted alarm among NATO allies, particularly the Baltic states which had only just become members of the alliance one year prior. War planners have long struggled to work out how to stop those countries from being cut off from their allies if Russian land troops were to seize the 40-mile Suwalki Gap between Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. If the Kremlin were also to gain control of Gotland, it would leave Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania sandwiched between the Russian mainland to the East, Kaliningrad to the West and yet another strategic location to the North. NATO repeatedly urged Stockholm to recognise the strategic importance of Gotland, but the government pressed on with its demilitarisation and Sweden's armed forces effectively abandoned their 'giant aircraft carrier'. Baltic fears were justified in 2013 when Russia conducted a widely condemned military drill which saw two of Moscow's Tu-22M3 nuclear bombers, along with an escort of Su-27 fighter jets, perform dummy bombing manoeuvres that brought their wings within just 24 miles of the island. This shock prompted Stockholm to re-embark on a programme of steady rearmament, but it was not until Russian tanks and warplanes tore across the Ukrainian border on February 24, 2022 that militarisation of Gotland picked up pace. The invasion of Ukraine constituted a watershed moment in Swedish foreign policy, prompting the government to abandon its two-century-long policy of military neutrality and non-alignment and submit an application to join NATO. Two years on, Sweden's flag was raised at NATO's Brussels headquarters on Monday, cementing the Nordic country's place as the 32nd member of the security bloc. Pictured: Two Swedish Airforce JAS-39 Gripen fighter aircraft in close formation. Sweden will bring state of the art submarines and a fleet of highly capable Gripen fighter aircraft to NATO's forces A JAS 39 Gripen C/D fighter aircraft of the Swedish Armed Forces taxis past a US KC-135 Stratotanker military tanker aircraft at Lulea-Kallax Airport, Sweden on March 4, 2024 during the NATO Nordic Response 24 military exercise An amphibious assault demonstration with joint forces of the Swedish, Finnish, Italian and French army is pictured during the Nordic Response 24 military exercise on March 10, 2024 Nordic Response 24 is part of the larger NATO exercise Steadfast Defender. The exercise involves air, sea, and land forces, with over 100 fighter jets, 50 ships, and over 20,000 troops practicing defensive manoeuvres in cold and harsh weather conditions Marines in action during an amphibious assault demonstration, part of the Nordic Response 24 military exercise on March 10, 2024, at sea near Sorstraumen, above the Arctic Circle in Norway 'The Russian, brutal, full-scale invasion against Ukraine united Sweden behind the conclusion that a full-fledged NATO membership is the only reasonable choice,' Kristersson said. Now the Scandinavian state appears fully cognisant of the Russian threat and has developed a well-trained and well-equipped military which boasts one of the world's most advanced submarine fleets and a highly capable air force, with roughly 80 Gripen fighter jets. Swedish forces are also now involved in the Nordic drills of NATO's mammoth military exercises, Steadfast Defender 2024, which will see some 90,000 troops participate in massive war games running from January to June. 'We are humble, but we are also proud. We know the expectations for Sweden are high, but we also have high expectations for ourselves,' Kristersson told reporters earlier this week following his country's accession to NATO. 'We will share burdens, responsibilities and risks with our allies.' The country has been working in close partnership with the security alliance during military exercises over the years even prior to joining. Sweden also meets NATO's defence spending target of 2% of gross domestic product. Sweden's accession to the security alliance last week came days after Germany's defence minister declared Putin's army could launch an attack on allied countries within 'five to eight years'. Boris Pistorius said the US, UK and EU 'hear threats from the Kremlin almost every day... so we have to take into account that Vladimir Putin might even attack a NATO country one day'. Pistorius told German outlet Der Tagesspiegel: 'Our experts expect a period of five to eight years in which this could be possible. 'We have to learn to live with danger again and prepare ourselves militarily, socially and in terms of civil defence,' he concluded, pointing to an alarming speech made by Sweden's Civil Defence Minister earlier this year in which he called on citizens to prepare for the prospect of war. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas believes a Russia-NATO confrontation is even more imminent, giving a timeframe of just three to five years for Europe to prepare for a serious military threat on the alliance's eastern flank. And Admiral Rob Bauer, the chairman of NATO's Military Committee urged both civilians and governments to prepare for cataclysmic conflicts and the chilling prospect of being conscripted. 'We have to realise it's not a given that we are in peace. And that's why we [NATO forces] have the plans, that's why we are preparing for a conflict with Russia,' Bauer told reporters after a recent meeting of NATO defence chiefs in Brussels. 'But the discussion is much wider. It is also the industrial base and also the people that have to understand they play a role.' Hundreds of Brits have slammed Ovo Energy after TV star Victoria Coren Mitchell claimed the company 'wrongly' took thousands of pounds from her bank account. Victoria, the wife of comedian David Mitchell, this week threatened the energy provider with legal action after claiming it took money 'that they were not owed'. The British writer and presenter claimed she has been driven 'personally to despair' by the firm, sharing her outrage with her 700,000 followers on X. Have YOU had a similar experience? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk Reacting to her post, hundreds of social media users shared their own horror stories with the 'useless' energy company, with many claiming large sums of money have been incorrectly taken from them. Pensioner Jeanette Lentle told MailOnline she has had 'constant' emails from Ovo demanding hundreds of pounds that are not owed - all while dealing with the recent loss of her husband from lung cancer. TV star Victoria Coren Mitchell threatened Ovo Energy with legal action after claiming it took 'thousands of pounds that they were not owed' Jeanette Lentle, 77, (pictured) told MailOnline she has had 'constant' emails from Ovo demanding hundreds of pounds that are not owed - all while dealing with the recent loss of her husband from lung cancer Hundreds of social media users have shared their horror stories with Ovo Energy 'Losing my husband was awful and now having this problem with OVO is not helping my mental health and makes me feel very vulnerable. I am 77-years-old and I really didn't need this problem,' she said. 'Since January I have constantly had emails and letters asking for hundreds of pounds saying this is what I owe to them. The latest letter which I received last Friday had gone up to 550. 'Each time since January when, I actually had lost my husband to lung cancer on January 3, I have emailed or telephoned them asking for an explanation. Each time a different excuse was given and I was reassured it would not happen again.' She added: 'At the moment they owe me 120 which I have been assured I will receive within 10 days.' Another Ovo customer told MailOnline he received a bill of 305 for less than two weeks supply for his small two bedroom flat. 'I moved into a small 2 bed flat last September with this electric company supplying my home, the weather was not too cold and we have electric wall heaters, our first bill was 185. September to October,' he said. READ MORE: TV star Victoria Coren Mitchell threatens legal action after Ovo Energy 'wrongly' takes thousands of pounds from her bank account Advertisement '385 October to November, I contacted them stating this can't be correct and needed my meter investigated, which was never done, I contacted British Gas to change supplier, I then received another bill for 305 for less than two weeks supply.' Hundreds of customers took to X to share their issues with Ovo, with one writing: 'I am currently in the same position, they have steadily built themselves a debt (nest egg) over the last eight months by charging me more than they have taken, this month they suddenly decided to charge me 444 for one month, I live in a two bed terraced house.' Another said: 'Ovo are absolutely useless. I am now having to reopen a formal complaint for the third time because they have emailed in error again after assuring me everything was sorted.' Ofgem, the energy regulator, in August ordered Ovo to better its customer service amid concerns over the firm's handling of complaints. Which? currently gives Ovo a three-star rating on overall customer service, while energy firm Octopus is given five stars. Writing on X this week, TV star Victoria posted: 'I've reached the end of the road with Ovo Energy, the most terrible service provider I've ever encountered (and I've been served in a casino by a croupier who killed someone). 'Nothing but legal action will do for them now. Sadly, we still need electricity. So I need advice. 'No company could possibly be worse than Ovo Energy who, quite apart from the money they've wrongly taken, have driven me personally to despair.' Victoria's problems with the company come months after Sir Grayson Perry had a similar problem with energy firm EDF - claiming it emptied his bank account after his energy bill suddenly skyrocketed from 300 a month to 39,000 a month. Hundreds of Ovo customers have slammed the company for their poor customer service People have shared their problems with Ovo online, with some claiming the firm took more money from them than they were owed The artist said he received 15 different bills ranging between 200 and 6,000 and was told that the money would be taken by direct debit for all of them at once. Sir Grayson, 63, was then unable access his bank account because EDF was trying repeatedly to take that money out - and they emptied the 2,500 which was in it. An OVO spokesperson said: 'We're always striving to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. Our teams work extremely hard to provide help and support and will continue to review lessons learned.' Victoria conducted a poll of more than 33,000 users to see whether rival energy provider Octopus offered a better service, to which 87 per cent of people agreed. One user wrote: 'I have recently moved to Octopus Energy from another supplier. So happy with the customer service. Swap to them went very smoothly.' Another said: 'Highly recommend Octopus. As a vulnerable person they've been outstanding. Also had an email this morning to say rates are going down which is only a good thing'. MailOnline has contacted Ovo for further comment. Have YOU had a similar experience? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk Rishi Sunak is facing a Tory meltdown after finally declaring a major donor's Diane Abbott comments 'racist and wrong'. Frank Hester, who is believed to have given the party 10million, is alleged to have said Ms Abbott made him 'want to hate all black women' and that she 'should be shot'. Downing Street issued a statement last night describing the remarks as 'racist', despite sending ministers out hours earlier to argue they were not. The PM's position had come under pressure when Cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to say they were racist. Rishi Sunak (pictured) is facing a Tory meltdown after finally declaring a major donor's Diane Abbott comments 'racist and wrong' Frank Hester, who is believed to have given the party 10million, is alleged to have said Ms Abbott made him 'want to hate all black women' and that she 'should be shot' Ms Abbott is a former shadow home secretary, but sits as an independent MP after being stripped of the Labour whip Hester issued a statement on X in which he said he was 'deeply sorry for his remarks' - but denied that his criticism had anything to do with her gender or the colour of her skin Meanwhile, the Guardian has published fresh claims that Mr Hester asked at another meeting in 2019 if there was 'no room for Indians' in the room and suggested they could 'climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train'. Mr Hester has admitted making 'rude' comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had 'nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin'. In a new statement issued just before 7pm, the PM's spokesman said: 'The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted. 'The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and, as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact.' Tories have voiced anger that it took so long for the premier to take a clear position on the issue. Conservative West Midlands Mayor Andy Street also this morning joined opposition parties in demanding that the 10million donated by Mr Hester to the Conservative Party over the past year is returned. In a round of interviews this morning, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake insisted that would not happen. 'I don't think we are giving the money back, no.' Mr Hollinrake told Sky News: 'I think his comments were clearly racist and wrong, there is no question about that. You don't judge somebody's character based on their skin colour. 'He has apologised for that. I don't think that means Frank Hester is necessarily a racist.' Asked whether he would be comfortable spending Mr Hester's donations, Mr Hollinrake said: 'On the basis he is not a racist, has apologised for what he said, yes.' Mr Hollinrake also suggested the Tories would be willing to accept more money from Mr Hester, telling BBC Breakfast: 'As I now understand the situation, yes.' Mr Sunak faces Keir Starmer at PMQs later, with speculation that the issue will be raised. According to the Guardian, Mr Hester, the chief executive of healthcare software firm The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), asked if there was 'no room for the Indians' and suggested staff climb on a train roof during a crowded meeting. The PM's position had come under pressure when Cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch (pictured) broke ranks to say they were racist Senior Tories had declined to describe the comments as racist - until trade secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to criticise them on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday He has admitted making 'rude' comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had 'nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin'. In a statement posted on X yesterday afternoon, Mr Hester said: 'The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people like my parents who had roots in another land, religion and culture. 'We should celebrate those differences which have made us the world's most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. 'And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence.' Labour Party chairwoman Anneliese Dodds said the Conservatives 'must apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott, pay back these donations and root out the extreme views and prejudice which appears to be tolerated within the party.' Ministers sent out on Tuesday's morning media round had defended Mr Hester while Number 10 said the reported remarks about Ms Abbott were 'unacceptable', but would not describe them as racist. That stance was maintained until Business Secretary Ms Badenoch called out Mr Hester's alleged words as racist late in the afternoon. Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were 'frightening' and 'alarming' given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess had been murdered in recent years. Police are understood to have been contacted about the remarks, with Scotland Yard saying officers from its Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team were in touch with an MP about a report in The Guardian, which broke the story. Shocking CCTV footage shows three 'brazen' thieves using cable cutters to steal 1,500 worth of power tools from a 112-year-old family business. The middle-aged suspects broke through chains at Mackays of Cambridge and stuffed six pieces of the expensive equipment into their coats before walking away. They seemed completely undeterred by the 35 CCTV cameras in the store - and one of the men even looked straight into a lens before taking part in the theft. Neil Mackay, 68, co-owner of the business, has shared the footage in the hope of shaming the men, who broke into his shop on March 1. He said: 'It's absolutely horrifying when you see how brazen they were. 'They clearly came in with a shopping list, and they knew exactly what tools they were aiming for - they went for the top brands. 'We had everything cabled down, chained down, so these guys came in armed with cutters. A group of thieves targeted Mackay's hardware store in Cambridge and used cable cutters to steal valuable power tools worth up to 1,500 Staff in the store were busy dealing with other customers when the gang targeted some of the most expensive equipment on display - ignoring 35 CCTV cameras covering the building 'My colleagues were all occupied serving customers elsewhere in the shop, leaving this particular area open and vulnerable.' 'They looked straight up into the camera. They clearly knew there was CCTV footage - whether they thought they were dummy cameras, I don't know.' The shop's co-owner Neil Mackay, pictured, said the men looked straight at the CCTV cameras. Cambridgeshire police are investigating the thefts Mr Mackay, whose family has owned the 10,000-square-foot premises since 1912, has spoken to politicians for over a decade about rising thefts in shops. He said the issue was only getting worse - with businesses not bothering to declare each instance due to how numerous they had become. He said: 'A lot of people have given up, and they are just leaning back and thinking of England and slowly but surely, their businesses are being wrecked. 'If people get away with this, they feel emboldened, and that leads them to make more serious crimes - they get led down a particular path.' Mr Mackay, who employs around 20 people at his store, said he felt the term 'shoplifting' demeaned the crime and made it seem less serious. And he said that using the term 'shop theft' would help the public see just how devastating this issue can be for those running businesses. The thieves struck on March 1 according to CCTV footage released by the business The men appeared not to be concerned by the security system fitted to the door The footage shows two of the men walking calmly from the store carrying two boxes of stolen guuds He added: 'I have been campaigning for nearly 15 years to get "shoplifting" changed from the lexicon. 'It makes it seem like a lesser crime. I think it should be called "theft" or "shop theft". 'Somehow we have to change society's opinion about what shop theft is. It's got to be regarded as the lowest of the low.' Cambridgeshire Constabulary said detectives were probing the thefts. Mr Mackay said describing the men as 'shoplifters' underplayed the seriousness of the crime Mr Mackay once secured the prosecution of an alleged shop lifter who had complained that the shopkeeper had shared a CCTV grab of the man targeting Mr Mackay's store with his local paper. The outrage thief was arrested after he made a complaint to police A spokesman for the force said: 'An investigation has been launched and anyone with any information is urged to contact us. 'We're working with retailers and organisations concerning shoplifting, and seeking prosecutions where we can. We will investigate all lines of enquiry.' Mr McKay once helped to jail a man dubbed 'Britain's dumbest shoplifter' after he complained to police about a CCTV still photo circulating of him from his store. Nicholas Allegretto was captured on film stealing an industrial magnet from Mackays of Cambridge in February 2015. But not long after, he was arrested when he walked into a police station to voice his anger at the picture that Mr Mackay had given of him to a local newspaper. Mystery surrounds the shooting of a groundskeeper who worked at a 4,000-acre Scottish estate which has been at the centre of multiple police investigations. Brian Low, 65, was found dead on February 17 on a footpath near his cottage home in Pitilie, on the outskirts of Aberfeldy in Perthshire - yet it took 10 days for police to reveal he was murdered, prompting concerns from MPs and a police watchdog. The Edradynate Estate - whose wealthy owner Michael Campbell paid tribute to the victim - has been at the centre of at least four police probes over the past 15 years. There was an investigation in 2018 probe after three dogs and two birds of prey were poisoned, the same year a gamekeeper was cleared of sabotaging crops there. And in 2002 two gamekeepers walked free from court after charges of poisoning birds of prey at the estate were dropped. Brian Law, 65, was shot dead and found next to his black Labrador dog Millie Police have been scouring the crime scene in the Pitilie area near Aberfeldy in Perthshire A cordon was put in place by Police Scotland where Mr Low was found shot on February 17 Mr Low was a former groundsman on the nearby 4,000-acre Edradynate Estate Mr Low had worked for 20 years on the nearby 4,000-acre Edradynate Estate until his retirement last year. Reports have suggested Mr Low - who was walking his black Labrador dog Millie - was shot by a gunman firing from long rather than short range, a theory based on an absence of 'scorching' residue on the body. A source was quoted as saying: 'This was a targeted assassination by a marksman who hit Mr Low in the head from distance. 'Initially, his death was treated as non-suspicious. But the post-mortem a week later revealed the bullet wound that proved fatal. 'If a shot is fired close up, there is scorching but that wasn't the case here - meaning it was from a distance away.' SNP MP Pete Wishart has asked Police Scotland for an 'urgent clarification' on why it took them so long to begin murder inquiries, after Mr Low's death was initially treated as 'medical or non-suspicious'. A post-mortem revealed the bullet wounds on February 23 - and the public was not told Mr Low had been shot until February 27, 10 days after the killing. Police carried out spot checks on cars and pedestrians in the area last Saturday, stopping118 vehicles and 18 pedestrians in the space of two hours. The questioning was carried out on the remote path where Mr Low was found dead, in Aberfeldy town centre and on the A827 north of the town. Local postman Jedd Burke, 30, has described the victim as 'one of the nicest men I've known'. Police and forensics have been examining the remote footpath where the body was found Mr Low had tended the grounds for Michael Campbell on the Edradynate Estate (pictured) A police officer was seen talking with a postman at the site where Mr Low was found And a spokesman for Edradynate Estate told The Times: 'He worked for us for about 20 years and was much liked and much respected and we're very, very shocked about the news. 'He was lovely. A good chap, a very nice chap. Hard-working. He wouldn't say boo to a goose. He's a nice guy so very sad, very sad news.' Wealthy businessman Mr Campbell himself sent his 'deep condolences' to the victim's family. A spokesman for the financier and property developer said: 'Further to the extremely sad news of the death of Brian Low; we can confirm that Brian worked for the Estate as a groundsman and retired from his role in February 2023. 'We send our deepest condolences to Brian's family. We have no further comment to make at this time.' The estate hit the headlines in 2018 when a gamekeeper was cleared of poisoning it late at night amid a dispute with the owner. David Campbell was acquitted at Perth Sheriff Court of deliberately sabotaging game crops to get back at Michael Campbell after losing his job. Sheriff Gillian Wade ruled the case against him had not been proved beyond reasonable doubt. Businessman Michael Campbell (pictured) owns the nearby Edradynate Estate where Mr Low had worked and has sent his 'deepest condolences' to the victim's family Police tape was stuck on a Pitilie sign by the track leading to where Mr Low was found The death is being treated as murder after a post-mortem examination - after police initially deemed it 'medical or non-suspicious' It emerged police had previously investigated activities on the estate four times in the previous 15 years. These included a 2018 probe after three dogs and two birds of prey were poisoned. At the time, Michael Campbell's estate labelled the incidents 'appalling' and offered a 5,000 reward for information. Two gamekeepers had been cleared in 2002 when charges of poisoning birds of prey at the estate were dropped. Now police have said someone in the local community holds the key to catching Mr Low's killer. Det Supt Lorna Ferguson, who described Mr Low's family as 'completely devastated and heartbroken', said there had been a 'number of additional lines of inquiry' and it was important to remain 'open minded about a possible motive in this case'. She added: We are confident the answer to this investigation lies within the local community. Somebody knows something. 'Even if you feel the information you hold is not important, we would still ask you to contact us. It could be crucial to getting the answers we need for Brians family. A Police Scotland vehicle at the site where the body of Brian Low was found last month The public were not told it was a murder inquiry until 10 days after Brian Low's death Reports have suggested Mr Low was shot from long range in a 'targeted assassination' Mr Low's niece Jacqui Low, who lives in Fife, said last month as a photo of the victim was released: 'We are at a complete loss as to how this has happened to Brian. 'His partner and brothers are devastated and appeal to anyone who has any information to come forward. 'His devoted dog, Millie, stayed by his side for as long as she was allowed and is being cared for by his immediate family.' The dog was found safe and well beside Mr Low's body. The Pitilie area is about three miles south of the Edradynate Estate and just outside Aberfeldy. The Police Investigation and Review Commissioner, Police Scotland's watchdog, is to probe the force's handling of the investigation. Investigators have admitted evidence could have been lost in the early days when the death was thought to be 'medical or non-suspicious', with police cordons not put up until four days later. SNP MSP John Swinney has written to Police Scotlands chief constable for answers, saying: 'I am deeply concerned about the handling of this investigation by Police Scotland. The Police Investigation and Review Commissioner is to probe Police Scotland's handling of the investigation into Brian Low's death Officers have been questioning drivers and pedestrians in Aberfeldy and on the nearby A827 Mr Low was killed while walking his dog near his cottage home in the Pitilie area 'It is unfathomable that it was not noticed on February 17 that Brian Low had died due to having been shot. 'I cannot understand why a medical examination did not take place immediately and a post-mortem did not take place until the following Friday.' And Pete Wishart, the SNP's MP for the area, said: 'The sequence of events around the shooting in Aberfeldy are becoming quite bizarre and concerning. 'I will be seeking a clear explanation of events from police and emergency services.' A woman's face swelled up like balloon after she suffered second and third degree burns when her pressure cooker exploded - while cooking soup. Becky Fargo, 43, was cooking potato soup for her daughter Jadyn Young, 13, when the pressure cooker pressurized unexpectedly and exploded. The horror unfolded last November before the holiday season. Becky, of South Webster, Ohio, USA, a 100 miles south of Columbus, had set the machine to cook without pressure, something she had done several times before. But when she tried to get the soup out, the cooker exploded leaving 2nd and 3rd degree burns on her face, chest and neck. Becky, a restaurant manager and mother of four, said: 'I had used it about five-to-ten times in a two-year period and I had mostly used it for chili and other slow-cooker foods. 'There was no issue at all but something was different this time.' Becky was blown back by the blast and the boiling hot soup coated her chest, face and neck, sticking to her skin. Becky Fargo, 43, of South Webster, Ohio, said that in November she was making soup with her daughter, Jaydin, 13, when the explosion occurred Becky was blown back by the blast and the boiling hot soup coated her chest, face and neck, sticking to her skin After being sent home from the hospital, Becky said: 'The burns got progressively worse over the next 36 hours. My face swelled up like a balloon' After running to wash the soup off, she woke her daughter up, who called for help. She said: 'I ripped my shirt off and splashed water on myself because the soup was stuck to me and it was burning. 'The explosion knocked me back four feet. It was huge, the lid broke.' When the ambulance arrived an air-lift was called as the nearest hospital with a burn unit was two hours away. She was treated for a couple of hours and sent home with an ointment for her wounds. Becky said: 'The burns got progressively worse over the next 36 hours. My face swelled up like a balloon. 'Days four to nine were excruciating. They were open, oozing, crusty and they just burned. My chest was on fire.' The burns persisted for months, first swelling and then peeling and she was forced to take three weeks off from work to treat her injuries. Since then, Fargo has been documenting her recovery to thousands of followers on TikTok. Since the horrific incident, Fargo has been documenting her recovery to thousands of followers on TikTok While a GoFundMe page that was set up by family members has raised over $3,000 to help with her recovery. In an update on the page, Fargo said that her family would have lost their car had it not been for donations. 'Healing wonderfully. Some PTSD for trauma but pushing through. Not yet able to return to work but says she plans to make herself try soon. Thank you for helping our family during this time and so close to the holidays,' the last update reads. As figures show nearly three million people under 25 are 'inactive', Gen Z-ers are joking on TikTok about not having jobs - with one boasting: 'Today I'm going to be drinking at 2pm in the afternoon'. As concern for the future of the country's workforce continues to grow, young influencers have been posting on TikTok, joking about life on the dole to their thousands of followers. Shocking statistics reveal that more people under 25 are now 'economically inactive' than ever before - increasing by about 700,000 since the Covid pandemic. The figures come amid concerns about the impact of worker shortages on the economy. More than 900,000 jobs are currently unfilled. But in the meantime, young people have been seen posting jokey TikToks about not working. One video captioned 'What life is like living off the dole' shows a young man walking through a shopping centre and saying: 'Today I'm going to be day drinking and smoking cigarettes at 2pm in the afternoon, which I am quite excited to do.' TikTok users joking about life on the dole to their thousands of followers on social media Your browser does not support iframes. Your browser does not support iframes. One TikTok video (left) shows a group of young people nodding their heads to music with the caption: 'When the dole is doubling the money.' Another video (right), believed to be a parody, shows a woman showing a weekly benefits entitlement of 1,151 per week and saying: 'Somebody please tell me why I would get a job when this is my weekly universal credits that I get?' Another video shows a group of young people nodding their heads to music with the caption: 'When the dole is doubling the money.' A third example shows a woman showing a weekly benefits entitlement of 1,151 per week and saying: 'Somebody please tell me why I would get a job when this is my weekly universal credits that I get? 'I mean, why would I get a job. I get your monthly wage in a week... I'm living my f***ing best life.' Britain's youngsters said damning statistics - which showed that more people under 25 are now 'economically inactive' than ever before - were the result of fierce competition, fear of rejection and not being taught how to get a job in school. Recruitment experts have blamed lockdown on younger workers being far less prepared for the workplace in recent years, with stark figures this week revealing the extent of under-25s out of work. Anna Tomusk, 19, who moved to Newcastle from south London for university, is among those classed as economically inactive - meaning she is not employed or officially unemployed - even though she insists she does want a job. Fellow teenager Freddie Rouse, 18, claimed the pandemic had made Gen Zers less confident, while Freya Hodge, 19, from Exeter, said she believed 'class' was a factor in the economic inactivity of younger people. Sociology student Anna, said: 'I worked in a restaurant that has shut down because they couldn't afford (to keep) it. So I have lost that job and I've been trying. I am second year, I have not managed (to find a job). Student Anna Tomusk, 19, who moved to Newcastle from south London for university and has not found employment and would be classed as economically inactive despite wanting to work Newcastle teen Freddie Rouse, 18, who managed to find zero-hour work with the NHS, said: 'I think there are a lot of younger people who aren't looking for work 'I think there's a lot of competition with younger people and some employers don't appreciate students have lectures and other commitments. It would be really handy to have income on the side but it's tough. 'However, a lot of younger people have mummy and daddy's money so they don't necessarily need to work. I do know some people who a job would just be a hobby for them so I can see why the numbers are high. But I do know others who are trying and can't find work. 'One friend had work in a late-night bar and she didn't feel very safe so she left, so there are lots of different reasons why people struggle to find work.' Anna added: 'I'm not surprised so many people aren't in work or are on sickness. I think Covid has affected people around my age and spending a year inside a house has affected people's social skills. 'The pandemic hit when I was having interviews for sixth form and I just couldn't do them, so I think it's had a big impact There is a big gap in the people who can afford to not work at a young age and the people who can work.' Her comments come as official figures show nearly three million Britons under the age of 25 are not working or looking for a job. Data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that, overall, more than a fifth of adults in the UK are deemed to be economically inactive. It means around 9.25million people aged between 16 and 64 are not in employment and are not seeking work a rise of about 700,000 since before the Covid pandemic. Almost three million of them are under-25s an increase of 384,000 since February 2020. The figures come amid concerns about the impact of worker shortages on the economy. More than 900,000 jobs are currently unfilled. Alfie Chapman, from Newcastle, has a job lined up in car sales later this year following his graduation from sports science, but only after months of trying Southampton University mechanical engineering student Tinashe Chituku, 20, admitted he has struggled to find a job while studying Second year psychology student at Southampton, Freya Hodge (left with friend Karston Conte), 19, felt 'class' is a factor in the economic inactivity of younger people Students at a Russell Group Southampton University today said they think young people are less likely to work these days because there's a 'lack of incentive' and 'motivation' within their age group Newcastle teen Freddie Rouse, 18, who managed to find zero-hour work with the NHS, said: 'I think there are a lot of younger people who aren't looking for work. 'People missed so much during Covid including education on how to get into work. 'So I think the pandemic has caused a job gap in generations because younger people now are less confident. That could be a reason why more people are on the sick. 'I think people have completely changed after the pandemic with their social skills and confidence. 'But I do know others who are trying but they finding it hard going through agencies because there is a lot of competition. 'I have a zero-hour contract working admittedly in the NHS but it's tough to find work.' Alfie Chapman, also from Newcastle, has a job lined up in car sales later this year following his graduation from sports science, but only after months of trying. The 20-year-old said: 'I was applying for jobs for quite a while and it's hard to find graduate jobs because there's so many applications. 'I have worked part time while at university doing jobs at St James' Park so I've always managed to find jobs here. But I feel like there's lots of people who don't have those experiences of working so they're less inclined to find work.' And students at a Russell Group university today said they think young people are less likely to work these days because there's a 'lack of incentive' and 'motivation' within their age group. Many students at the University of Southampton believe that having wealthy families mean Gen-Zers don't actually have to seek employment - as they can live off their 'inheritance'. Mechanical engineering student Tinashe Chituku admitted he has struggled to find a job while studying at university. The 20 year old, from London, said he thinks in the future, everyone will be 'struggling' due the cost of living crisis - but admitted there is less 'incentive' from young people to work these days. Mr Chituku also said 'most people don't want to hire students' and actually going out to find a job is stressful and time-consuming and that young people 'don't want to work for peanuts'. Second year psychology student, Freya Hodge, felt 'class' is a factor in the economic inactivity of younger people. The 19 year old, from Exeter, Devon, said: 'There's a lack of motivation these days. People don't really know where to go job searching, it's a bit overwhelming. 'I definitely think it's about your upbringing, I think definitely families who are more ambitious will [push] that onto their children.' Ms Hodge said the young people who don't work are from the 'upper classes' who have been given 'everything' on 'a silver platter'. Economists have also warned that a crisis in mental health has been behind a growth in worklessness amongst young people, who will have had their lives impacted by the Covid pandemic. Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) chairman Richard Hughes gave a stark warning yesterday that joblessness that worklessness was now a 'worrying trend' since the pandemic. The number of young people economically inactive due to ill health has doubled in 10 years Speaking to the Treasury Select Committee, he said that economy was growing due to net migration but said that it was faltering because of 'rising levels of inactivity'. He said: 'It looks as though persistently high levels of inactivity seem to be a feature of the post-pandemic environment and one which is worrying from the point of view of human welfare.' Asked if this was linked to long NHS waiting lists, he replied: 'People out of the workforce for health reasons is now the single largest reason to be outside the workforce if you're an adult as well as the fastest growing. 'When we looked at it and compared it to people on the waiting list we didn't find that much overlap actually. 'Their reasons for being outside the labour force didn't seem to be principally because they were also the people who were on the NHS waiting list. 'It seemed to have multiple different causes depending on people's age. 'For older people it was often times because they had musculoskeletal conditions, for younger people it tends to be more mental health issues. 'So we think there are more complex issues than just the waiting list.' Director of economic statistics at the ONS Liz McKeown warned about under-25s shunning work despite a total of 908,000 vacancies being open, largely due to long-term sickness, The Telegraph reports. The total number of people out of work due to being in full-time education hit a record high in January of 2.56million, a rise of 284,000 compared to the previous year. Paul Dales, the chief UK economist at Capital Economics told The Telegraph that this means the workforce will be 'more skilled, more talented, and more productive' in the future. But senior labour market economist at the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD), Jon Boys, told the paper that young people spending longer in education has had a slow burn effect on the workforce. He said: 'If we had the same employment rates for young people today as we did 30 years ago, we would have an extra million people in the workforce.' A reversal of this trend could lead to every vacancy being filled across the UK. However, the high numbers of students out of work could also mean that young people are struggling to find work. Your browser does not support iframes. Gen Z workers have previously been urged to do the bare minimum work to avoid burnout, as thousands admitted to 'quiet quitting' - a social media sensation which encourages staff to reject the idea of going 'above and beyond' at work, while still getting paid the same. The change in attitude came after the shift in working behaviours due to the Covid pandemic. Millions were forced to work from home at the height of lockdown and many employees - including a number of civil servants - are still enjoying some level of flexibility or 'hybrid-working'. In that time, workers who may have previously been happy to put in extra hours when asked by bosses are now not doing so, seemingly inspired by a TikTok trend. The proportion of 16 to 34-year-olds in the category increased in the quarter to January, offsetting rises in activity among older age groups. The bump also outweighed a sharp decline in the number of stay-at-home parents. The number of women saying they are out of the jobs market due to looking after families or households is now at the lowest on record, 1.342million. That is down from 2.9million in 1993. Overall, 9.25million Brits are now classed as economically inactive - up 100,000 on the previous quarter and equivalent to 21.8 per cent of the adult population. Nearly 2.5million of those are long-term sick, compared to 2.17million just before Covid struck in 2020. The official figures came as separate analysis suggested 3.9million people are claiming means-tested benefits with no requirement to look for work. The Office for National Statistics said economic inactivity had been driven recently by rises among the 16-34 band, while the rate for 35 to 64-year-olds had fallen. 'The increase seen in economic inactivity in the latest quarter and on the year was mainly driven by those inactive because they were students and those inactive because they were retired,' the watchdog said. 'The quarterly increase was partially offset by falls in those looking after the family or home and those inactive for other reasons. 'The number of those inactive because they were long-term sick fell on the quarter, but remains higher than estimates a year ago (November 2022 to January 2023).' Work and Pensions Mel Stride insisted: 'Our plan for the economy is working' Although the inactivity rate remains well above the immediate pre-pandemic level, it is marginally down from the peak of 22.1 per cent seen in Summer 2022. A Government source argued that looking at the rolling three month total for inactivity - rather than comparing quarter on quarter as the ONS prefers - it was down 28,000. Excluding students inactivity was down 185,000 on the year, they added. Work and Pensions Mel Stride said yesterday: 'Our plan for the economy is working. Employment is up on the year, the number of people on payrolls is at a record high, and inactivity is falling. 'But our work is not done. Our Back to Work Plan will help a million people to find, stay and succeed in employment. 'With the next generation of welfare reforms, we're reducing the number of people on the highest tier of incapacity benefits by 371,000 people who will now receive support back into work.' Russian President Vladimir Putin today confirmed his readiness for nuclear war should the US deploy troops to war-torn Ukraine - the latest in a series of warnings he has delivered to the West in the two years since he launched his invasion. The tyrant leader has made several threats to nuke the West if his country comes under attack and has previously declared that Russia's response will be 'immediate' and 'lead you to consequences that you have never faced in your history.' But it's not just speeches that Putin carries out to serve his warnings, he has also been known to send signals to the West by taking a flight on a nuclear-capable bomber jet as well as recently testing his latest nuclear-capable ballistic missiles. While his relentless display of nuclear strength doesn't appear to be slowing down, MailOnline have gone back in time to the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine to break down Putin's wild spate of threats over the years. Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview to TV host and Director General of Rossiya Segodnya (RIA Novosti) news agency Dmitry Kiselyov at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 12, 2024 Putin has previously stated that Russia's advanced hypersonic weapons would ensure the country could respond forcefully if it ever came under attack. Pictured - Tu-22M3 long-range strategic bombers and Mig-31I fighters armed with hypersonic Dagger missiles The Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is launched during a test at Plesetsk cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk region, Russia, in this still image taken from a video released on April 20, 2022 FEBRUARY 24, 2022 - 'CONSEQUENCES YOU HAVE NEVER FACED' Putin says in a speech to launch his 'special military operation' in Ukraine that Russia is a leading nuclear power 'and possesses certain advantages in some of the newest types of weaponry. In this regard, no one should have any doubts that a direct attack on our country will lead to defeat and horrible consequences for any potential aggressor.' He later adds: 'Whoever tries to hinder us, or threaten our country or our people, should know that Russia's response will be immediate and will lead you to consequences that you have never faced in your history.' The Russian leader's terrifying warning came just a day after The United Nations Security Council had convened an emergency meeting urging Putin to stop his tanks. 'If indeed an operation is being prepared, I have only one thing to say from the bottom of my heart,' said Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations. 'President Putin, stop your troops from attacking Ukraine. Give peace a chance. Too many people have already died.' Putin ignored the plea, going on TV to describe the invasion as a special military occupation and said he wants to 'demilitarize' and 'de-Nazify', not occupy, the country. FEBRUARY 27, 2022 - HIGH ALERT Putin says he has ordered Russia's nuclear forces onto high alert. SEPTEMBER 21, 2022 - 'NOT A BLUFF' Putin orders Russia's first military mobilisation since World War Two and says: 'If the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will without doubt use all available means to protect Russia and our people - this is not a bluff.' Putin declared in today's interview that Russia is ready to resort to nuclear weapons if need be, stating the country's missiles are readily available for use Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Sarmat production facilities in Krasnoyarsk region SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 - US CREATED A 'PRECEDENT' Putin says the United States created a 'precedent' when it dropped two atomic bombs on Japan in 1945. He made the statement during a speech filled with hostility towards the West delivered from the Kremlin. DECEMBER 9, 2022 - HYPERSONIC WEAPONS Putin says any country that dared to attack Russia with nuclear weapons would be wiped from the face of the earth. He says Russia has no mandate to launch a preventative first nuclear strike but that Russia's advanced hypersonic weapons would ensure Russia could respond forcefully if it ever came under attack. FEBRUARY 22, 2023 - NUCLEAR TESTING IN THE US Putin says Russia will suspend its participation in the New START treaty with the United States that limits the number of nuclear warheads each side can deploy. He says Russia must be ready to conduct a nuclear test in case the United States does so. MARCH 25, 2023 - A DEAL WITH ALLY BELARUS Putin says Russia has struck a deal with its ally Belarus, which borders Ukraine, to station tactical nuclear weapons on its territory. He says this mirrors deployments that the United States has made for decades in allied countries in Europe. On February 22, 2022, Putin takes a flight on the Tupolev Tu-160M 'Ilya Muromets' nuclear-capable strategic bomber plane in Kazan On September 21, 2022, Putin ordered Russia's first military mobilisation since World War Two OCTOBER 5, 2023 - 'NO PERSON OF SOUND MIND' Putin says he sees no need to change Russian doctrine which says it may use nuclear weapons in the event of a nuclear attack or a conventional threat to the existence of the state. He says any attack on Russia would provoke a split-second response with hundreds of nuclear missiles that no enemy could survive. 'I think no person of sound mind and clear memory would think of using nuclear weapons against Russia.' Putin says Russia has tested and will soon place on combat duty its latest nuclear-capable weapons, the Burevestnik cruise missile and Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile. He says parliament should review Russia's position on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty to 'mirror' the position of the United States, which has not ratified it. Within weeks, parliament withdraws Russia's ratification of the treaty. FEBRUARY 22, 2024 - FLIGHT ON A BOMBER PLANE Putin sends a signal to the West by taking a short flight on a modernised Tu-160M nuclear-capable strategic bomber plane. FEBRUARY 29, 2024 - 'THE DESTRUCTION OF CIVILISATION' Putin tells Western countries they risk provoking a nuclear war if they send troops to fight in Ukraine. The Russian leader warned that the country's response will be 'immediate' if they are 'hindered or threatened' He says they 'must realise that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilisation. Don't they get that?' MARCH 13, 2024 - 'WEAPONS EXIST IN ORDER TO USE THEM' Asked in an interview with state-controlled Rossiya-1 television if Russia is really ready for a nuclear war, Putin says: 'From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready.' He says, however, that he sees no rush towards nuclear confrontation and that Russia has never faced a need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. In unsettling comments made during the interview, he reminded viewers that Russia's nuclear doctrine permitted use of nuclear weapons in the event of a perceived threat to national security. 'Weapons exist in order to use them,' he declared. 'We have our own principles.' Western security analysts say Putin's statements are designed to deter and intimidate, but they have not prevented the United States and its NATO allies from providing aid, intelligence, training and weapons to Ukraine - including tanks and long-range missiles - in ways that were unthinkable at the start of the war. A British husband and wife have been found dead on a beach in the Caribbean, according to local media. The couple had been on holiday on the Grenadine island of Carriacou, and circumstances surrounding their deaths remain a mystery. Their bodies were found on the popular Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre on Saturday. The man, aged 76, died at the scene, while his wife, 77, was reportedly taken to the Princess Royal Hospital, where she was examined and pronounced dead. Police have launched an investigation into the unexplained deaths and are awaiting the results of an autopsy. The British couple had been on holiday on the paradise island of Carriacou. File image shows Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre The bodies were found on Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre on Carriacou in the Grenadines In a statement, reported by Loop News, police said that the postmortem will seek to 'tell us exactly what happened to them but for now, it's an apparent drowning'. Separate unconfirmed reports have suggested that the man got into difficulty and that his wife died as she tried to help him. It comes after the deaths of two American tourists in the Grenadines last month during an apparent yacht hijacking. The bodies of US couple Ralph Hendry and Kathleen Brandel have not been found, but police have classed their deaths as homicides. The deaths have sent shockwaves across the island, which has a population of just over 6,000. It is the second biggest island in Grenada and is roughly 12 miles long by 3 miles wide. The FCDO has been contacted for comment. Paul Alexander, who spent 70 years living in an iron lung after contracting polio, died age 78 on March 11, 2024. Despite his physical constraints, Alexander lived out a life of success and inspiration as a professional lawyer and disability rights campaigner. His brother Philip led the tributes, saying: 'With a heavy heart I need to say my brother passed last night. 'It was an honor to be part of someone's life who was as admired as he was. He touched and inspired millions of people and that is no exaggeration.' Find out more about Alexander and how and why he lived with his iron lung for so many decades by reading on. Paul Alexander died age 78 on March 11, 2024. He spent seven decades living in an iron lung after being left paralyzed by polio Alexander pictured with carer Kathy Gaines, who he described as his 'arms and legs' Stock photo of a 1950s ward full of iron lung patients amid the U.S. polio outbreak Who was Paul Alexander? Paul Alexander, from Dallas, Texas, was born in January 1946. His childhood coincided with America's polio outbreak which began in the late 1940s and ran into the following decade, impacting thousands of children. The most instances of polio were recorded in 1952 and it was that year which Alexander, aged just six, had his life changed forever by the disease. Along with hundreds of other polio stricken children, Alexander was taken in at to Parkland Hospital, Dallas, where there was a ward full of iron lungs for sufferers. Alexander was one of those moved into an iron lung - a relatively commonplace piece of healthcare equipment in that era - having been left paralyzed. However, he did not let this enduring paralysis derail his life. Having learnt to improve his memory enough to not need to take notes, Alexander graduated from W.W. Samuel High School aged 21 as one of the areas fist homeschooled students, and the first to graduate from a Dallas high school without physically attending a class. Alexander earned a bachelor's degree and then a doctorate in Law at the University of Texas at Austin in 1978 and 1984 respectively. While at university, Alexander met Claire, who he later became engaged to. However, Claire's mother refused the marriage and forbade them from even speaking to each other. 'Took years to heal from that,' he told The Guardian. He got a job at an Austin trade school before being admitted to the bar in 1986. According to Guinness World Records, who recognised Alexander for being the person who spent the longest time living in an iron lung, he went on to represent clients in courtrooms and even started his own legal practice. In later life Alexander built a close relationship with Kathy Gaines, who became his caregiver - or 'arms and legs', in his words. Gaines stepped in to help after Alexander graduated law school, supporting him for more than three decades. Alexander said the pair 'grew together', Gaines herself legally blind from type-1 diabetes. In 2020, Alexander self-published a memoir, 'Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung', which according to The Guardian took eight years to write by poking at a keyboard with a stick in his mouth, or by dictating to a friend. He died almost four years after the book was published, on March 11, 2024, having reportedly contracted Covid-19. Posting on Facebook, Alexander's brother Philip added: 'To me Paul was just a brother..same as yours..loving, giving advice, and scolding when necessary, and also a pain in the ass..normal brother stuff. He commanded a room..What a flirt! 'He loved good food, wine, women, long conversations, learning, , and laughing. I will miss him so much. RiP.' Writing on Alexander's GoFundMe page, Christopher Ulmer, organizer and disability-rights activist, said the day after Alexander's death: 'Paul was an incredible role model that will continue to be remembered. 'His story traveled wide and far, positively influencing people around the world. Paul was an incredible role model that will continue to be remembered.' Despite being bound to the ventilator, Alexander was able to paint and write a book Alexander would appear in court in a wheelchair outside of his iron lung Why did Paul Alexander spend 70 years in an iron lung? After being paralyzed, Alexander was left only able to move his head, neck and mouth for the last 72 years of his life, despite getting over the initial polio infection. This paralysis extended to eliminated independent breathing, which - in the 1950s - meant being put in an iron lung. While alternative ventilators were developed over the course of Alexander's life, he never adopted them. While in hospital, Alexander taught himself to 'frog-breathe' by gulping air down his throat, allowing him to manage outside the chamber. In 1954, Alexander began being a physical therapist who helped him develop his breathing to sustain himself for a few minutes at a time. Although by the following decade, more modern ventilators were used as standard across the U.S., Alexander was already used to life inside the lung. He also reportedly never wanted pay for improved mobility by living with a hole in his throat, as alternative solutions involve. Alexander faced crisis in 2015 when the machine began to malfunction, and as production of the iron lung ceased in the 1960s, receiving a new ventilator was likely out of the question. With non-existent manufacturers, unsupportive insurance companies and parts only available at great costs, Alexander put a video on YouTube appealing for help. Thankfully, Brady Richards - who runs the Environmental Testing Laboratory and is a keen hobbyist mechanic - saw the appeal and reached out. Richards said when he brought the iron lung into his shop for repairs, his younger employees had never heard of it, Gizmodo reported. Nevertheless, said employees were able to repair the iron lung that Paul calls home and return it to its owner. Over his life, Alexander has still managed to travel by plane, live alone, attend church, visit the ocean and even find himself in a strip club. What is polio - the disease Paul Alexander contracted disease age six? Polio, or poliomyelitis, is an infectious viral disease that affects the central nervous system respiratory function and can cause muscle weakness and paralysis. It is transmitted through contaminated water and food or contact with an infected person. There has not been a new case of polio in the US since 1979, or in the UK since 1984, and by 2000, the World Health Organization declared all of the Americas and the western Pacific region polio-free. India, which had seen 200,000 annual cases of the virus a year in the 1990s was declared free from the diseases in 2014. The disease remains endemic in just certain areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan according to the WHO. An iron lung is a non-invasive negative-pressure ventilator, used to artificially maintain respiration during an acute polio infection by altering the pressure in the lung and thus causing the person inside to breathe involuntarily How does an iron lung work? An iron lung is a non-invasive negative-pressure ventilator, used to artificially maintain respiration during an acute polio infection. Those inside one of the metal cylinders lie face up with their head poking though a rubber collar sat on a small pillow. They were first used in the 1920s and work by producing pressure on the lungs that causes them to expand and contract so that patients can breathe. In most cases it would only be used for one or two weeks, until the patient could breathe independently, but some polio survivors with permanent respiratory paralysis rely on them daily. They are now all but obsolete, replaced by positive-pressure ventilators such as modern day respirators. Dame Esther Rantzen has welcomed plans by Labour for a vote on assisted dying that could make it legal by the end of the decade. Dame Esther said she did not want her family's last memories of her to be of pain and begging in vain for help to end her life, after Sir Keir Starmer said he backs a change in the law. In a conversation with the terminally ill television presenter, Sir Keir gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is time for a vote in the next parliament if Labour is elected. Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony'. Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland. Since then, she has pleaded with politicians to grapple with the issue - saying 'we live in a day and age when it's perfectly possible to offer people a gentle, peaceful death'. In a phone call with sir Keir that was filmed by ITV, she said: 'What I really do not want is for my family's last memory of me to be painful and suffering and me begging to be assisted in dying, and just having to watch me (die).' In a conversation with Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured), the Labour leader gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is parliamentary time for a debate Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony' Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland (pictured) 'When you reach my advanced age of 83 and a bit you have seen people you love pass away. Some peacefully and painlessly, but not all and, unfortunately, when someone you love has a very painful death that memory obliterates the good times when you think about them. 'You remember their suffering and I don't want my family to have that. That would be all wrong. 'So, as far as I'm concerned I would much rather, when I knew the end was coming, choose a painless death.' Is Assisted Suicide illegal in Britain? Under the Suicide Act 1961, anyone helping or encouraging someone to take their own life in England or Wales can be prosecuted and jailed for up to 14 years if found guilty of an offence. Section two of the act states that a person commits an offence if they carry out an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, and the act was intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide. In 2015 MPs including former prime minister David Cameron rejected a Bill to legalize assisted dying. Opposition to changing the law has come from faith groups, campaigners who say disabled people may feel pressured to end their lives and campaigners who fear assisted dying would become a business. Advertisement The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther will air tonight on ITV News. Sir Keir has previously said he would be 'open' to making time for a Private Members' Bill to be debated on the issue. Sir Keir voted in favour of the last parliamentary bid to change the law in 2015, when he described the current ban as an 'injustice'. The vote was comfortably defeated by 330 votes to 118, but a poll of more than 10,000 people by Opinium Research for the Dignity in Dying campaign recently found that three quarters support making it lawful for terminally ill adults to access assisted dying. He said: 'I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now.' Pressed by ITV on whether a vote should take place in the next parliament, he replied: 'Oh yes, definitely. I think Esther would agree with this. 'For people who are going through this or are likely to go through it in the next few months or years, this matters hugely and delay just prolongs the agony.' He said the debate should be 'conducted with respect' to 'find the right balance in the end'. 'I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case [for assisted dying] where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable.' While Labour is unlikely to bring forward its own legislation, Sir Keir's signal that he would allow time for a fresh debate could encourage a backbencher to bring forward their own Bill. A Private Members' Bill is a public bill can be introduced by MPs or peers who are not government ministers. They are, however, unlikely to become law without Government support. But Care Not Killing, which promotes palliative care and opposes euthanasia, questioned whether 'killing of the terminally ill and disabled people' was Labour's 'top priority'. The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther (pictured) will air tonight on ITV News Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election Dr Gordon Macdonald, the organisation's chief executive, said: 'Changing the law to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia in the UK would represent a dramatic change in how doctors and nurses treat and care for people and put the lives of the vulnerable, terminally ill and disabled people at risk.' He said 'ordinary voters will rightly be surprised and alarmed that the Labour Leader has decided to make this intervention'. 'They will rightly ask, is the killing of the terminally ill and disabled people really Labour's top legislative priority if they win the next General Election?' Last month, a much-anticipated report on assisted dying by the Health and Social Care Committee failed to deliver any clear-cut findings or proposals. The inquiry stopped short of calling for a House of Commons debate and instead recommended that the Government should consider how to respond if moves are made to bring assisted dying into law in parts of the UK. Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election. He said last month: 'What the Government has always said, and I would commit to this of course, is if parliament decided that it wanted to change the law then of course the Government would facilitate doing that in away that was legally effective.' Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to murder or other charges. The case for changing the law: Campaigners tell their stories Jonathan and Nicholas Dimbleby Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby lost his younger brother Nicholas to motor neurone disease last month aged 77. The celebrated sculptor had wanted to choose when to die and Mr Dimbleby is now among those calling for the law to be changed. Mr Dimbleby told The Guardian that the current rules which make assisted dying a criminal offence 'are anachronistically cruel as capital punishment'. Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby (left) and his late brother the celebrated sculptor Nicholas (right) Mr Dimbleby, a friend of King Charles, said: 'The law should be changed so that individuals like my brother, protected by crucial legal safeguards, would have the right to die at home at a moment of their choice.' The pair pictured here in 1994 Mr Dimbleby, a friend of King Charles, added: 'The law should be changed so that individuals like my brother, protected by crucial legal safeguards, would have the right to die at home at a moment of their choice.' On his brother he said: 'He was a wonderful, strong person, mentally as well as physically, and he felt this erosion of life very deeply. 'He showed immense courage but as the disease progressed he endured terrifying choking fits though, mercifully, his final hours were peaceful.' Dr Heather McQueen and Sheena Caskie Dr Heather McQueen began to campaign for assisted dying after watching her mother, Sheena Caskie, die a 'cruel and inhumane death' from terminal cancer. Mrs Caskie, from Kintyre, had been living with a rare form of anal cancer for more than two years before her death aged 79. 'The radiotherapy treatment for her cancer had left her with third degree burns, and lying down was particularly painful - she was so sore sitting down that she ate standing up,' Dr McQueen said. Dr Heather McQueen (left) began to campaign for assisted dying after watching her mother, Sheena Caskie, (right) die a 'cruel and inhumane death' from terminal cancer 'When mum's Church of Scotland minister came to visit, she told her she was dying and did not feel afraid. That is the point at which she should have been allowed to die. 'That week that followed, as we watched everything unfold in its full horror, we watched the fear growing in her face. There was the hunger and being parched. She could not take fluids by mouth. 'She was also in great pain from the radiation burns and tumours and all the tubes she was dealing with. My mum had a great life and an absolutely horrible death.' Andy Squires and Glenys Porter Andy Squires, from Southport, helped his mother Glenys Porter travel to Dignitas so she could have an assisted death aged 67 after spending a decade suffering from the advanced stages of Huntington's disease. He was joined by his brother Peter on the trip, which cost 10,000. The Squires brothers with their mother, Glenys Porter, who they helped travel to Dignitas 'There was a great deal of conversation with mum for almost a year before we went to Dignitas, to give her all the alternatives, and to try and give her other options,' he said. 'Completely of sound mind with regards to travelling to Dignitas, she was very determined to see it through to the end, and go with dignity. 'The trip to Dignitas was a sad time for everyone in our family but my brother and I went with mum to support her in her final days we would never have let her die alone.' Carol Conway and Noel Conway Noel Conway challenged the laws on assisted dying after developing motor neurone disease, which left him with movement only in his right hand, head and neck. Noel Conway became a campaigner for assisted dying after developing motor neurone disease He died at home alongside his wife Carol in 2021 after deciding with his family to remove his ventilator. Prior to his death, he said: 'I felt like a condemned man awaiting execution on a date yet to be determined. 'My immediate response was to get it over with as quickly as possible. I became aware of how agonising it must be to be someone on death row for years and years not knowing when the order will come.' Mrs Conway told the BBC: 'Noel was in control, which was so important. 'Ultimately, Noel wanted the choice of an assisted death and I hope his campaigning will bring this option closer to becoming a reality for other terminally ill people in this country.' Heather Pratten and Nigel Pratton Heather Pratten smothered her son after he tried to take his own life while suffering from Huntington's disease. Nigel had never come to terms with his diagnosis, Ms Pratten said, and took a massive heroin overdose on his 42nd birthday. Lying next to him and seeing him struggling to breathe as the drug took hold, Ms Pratten took a pillow and suffocated him to relieve his suffering. She was initially charged with murder, but eventually pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting suicide. Heather Pratten smothered her son after he tried to take his own life while suffering from Huntington's disease Nigel (pictured) had never come to terms with his diagnosis, Ms Pratten said, and took a massive heroin overdose on his 42nd birthday She was initially charged with murder, but eventually pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting suicide. A judge later ruled during her hearing in October 2000 that the case was an 'exceptional circumstance' and she was given a conditional discharge. Calling for a right to die, she told the Basildon, Canvey and Southend Echo: 'I have known that have been in absolute agony with illnesses, including my son. Why shouldn't they be able to say that they have had enough, providing they're within the last leg of their life,' she said. 'Where it's legal already, in America and Canada, it's not been taken advantage of, it's been working.' A sixth man has been charged in connection with the kidnapping and murder of a popular DJ in October 2022. DJ Koray Alpergin and his girlfriend Gozde Balbudak were kidnapped after they returned home from an Italian restaurant in Mayfair in October 2022. The couple were taken to an empty wine bar near the Tottenham Stadium where the 43 year old DJ was believed to have been tortured and killed in what has been described as a 'Reservoir Dogs-style attack. His body was taken to woodland near the Oakwood Industrial Estate in Loughton where he was dumped. Koray Alpergin, pictured with US Rapper P Diddy, left, was owner of a Turkish radio station The popular DJ was also linked to Turkish celebrity chef Salt Bae, here pictured right He was kidnapped along with his girlfriend Gozde Balbudak in October 2022. She was locked into a toilet for two days before she was released by the gang His girlfriend was released after spending two days locked in a toilet. Dylan Weatherley, 20, from Tottenham will appear in Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court tomorrow. He has been charged with the kindap and false imprisonment of the couple as well as conspiring to murder the DJ. In December, five men were jailed in connection with the crime. Mr Alpergin, a father-of-one, was the owner of Turkish radio station Bizim FM and had connections with celebrities including rapper P Diddy and chef Salt Bae. A 'neo-Nazi' who went into an immigration lawyer's office with a knife and handcuffs was 'upset' he did not get to 'finish the job' of killing a solicitor, a court has heard. Cavan Medlock is alleged to have carried out a terror plot at the Duncan Lewis law firm in Harrow on September 7, 2020, while carrying large Confederate and Nazi flags. The 31-year-old frightened a receptionist with the knife before threatening to kill solicitor Toufique Hossain, the court heard. He also allegedly abused two other members of staff because of their racial or religious backgrounds. Medlock, of Harrow, north-west London , denies charges of making a threat to kill Mr Hossain and the preparation of terrorist acts. Sheroy Zaq, who was working as a solicitor in Duncan Lewis's public law and immigration departments at the time of the incident, told Kingston Crown Court on Tuesday that the racial abuse from Medlock was 'relentless'. Medlock, of Harrow, north-west London , denies charges of making a threat to kill Mr Hossain and the preparation of terrorist acts A Confederate flag seized by police at the scene after the alleged terror plot at the Duncan Lewis law firm in Harrow on September 7, 2020 Medlock is alleged to have been carrying handcuffs when carrying out the terror plot Mr Zaq said that, when asked by staff why he was at the law office, Medlock replied: 'I'm here to kill Toufique Hossain.' Prosecutor Timothy Cray KC asked Mr Zaq: 'Did he say anything else about the killing?' The solicitor replied: 'He just said he was upset with himself that he didn't get to finish the job.' Mr Zaq added that the incident was 'not something you expect to see in the reception of a law firm'. The court heard that Medlock was restrained by the law firm's staff after he advanced on a receptionist while holding a knife and demanding to see Mr Hossain. Mr Zaq said: 'I grabbed Mr Medlock by the shoulders and forced him into the corner and did my best to keep him there.' Giving evidence at the trial, Mr Hossain said: 'For me, what was pretty horrifying about it, was that he (Medlock) was stone-cold, very unemotional - looking at me with a real deep hatred.' Mr Hossain said he heard Medlock telling staff at the law firm 'you've been helping these rats come to this country' and 'various antisemitic things like 'Hitler was right'. He added he remembered 'very clearly' Medlock looking directly at him as the 31-year-old said he wanted 'to kill' him. Mr Hossain told the court that after he was restrained, Medlock had said to him 'I bet you went to Harrow School' and that he had replied: 'I went to state school'. Cavan Medlock is alleged to have carried out a terror plot at the Duncan Lewis law firm in Harrow on September 7, 2020 The court heard that Medlock was restrained by the law firm's staff after he advanced on a receptionist while holding a knife and demanding to see Mr Hossain. Medlock is alleged to have arrived at the Duncan Lewis law firm in Harrow on September 7 2020, armed with a combat knife and handcuffs A phone seized from Medlock shows that he had conducted research on the solicitor and read a newspaper article which named Mr Hossain as a lawyer who was assisting immigrants, the court heard. Mr Cray asked Mr Hossain: 'Were you aware before the incident that your name had been mentioned in an article in the Daily Mail?' Mr Hossain replied: 'Yes, leading up to that day, we were aware of that article and a number of other articles in the preceding weeks.' Another witness told Kingston Crown Court that Medlock had said to her: 'Hitler did not finish the work with you.' Giving evidence, Efrat Idelson, who was a trainee solicitor at Duncan Lewis in September 2020, said: 'He started screaming at us that we are bringing illegal immigrants to the UK. 'He said that we bring black people - he also said Jews.' Mr Cray asked the solicitor: 'When he mentioned 'Jews' what did you say to him?' The 31-year-old allegedly frightened a receptionist with the knife before threatening to kill solicitor Toufique Hossain Ms Idelson said: 'I told him: 'I am Jewish. Do you have any problem with this?' 'What was his reply?', Mr Cray asked. 'He said: 'Yes, Hitler did not finish the work with you',' Ms Idelson said. She added: 'I was a little bit afraid of him. He was very violent, aggressive and his comments were very racist and antisemitic. I didn't feel comfortable to say the least.' The court heard that Medlock got receptionist Ravindran Tharmalangam in a headlock before being disarmed. Giving evidence, Mr Tharmalangam told the court that Medlock was holding the knife 'at about shoulder height'. He added: 'We got in a scuffle. I was holding the hand he was holding the knife with - we scuffled for a while, the knife fell off and I kicked it away.' Mr Tharmalangam said he suffered 'a bump' on his forehead from the fight. The trial continues. The prospect of Kelly Wilkinson's murderer walking free in 20 years has left her family feeling justice hasn't been done - and even the sentencing judge agrees. Brian Johnston, 37, who stabbed Ms Wilkinson, 27, and set her on fire, was handed a life sentence in Brisbane Supreme Court on Wednesday having previously pleaded guilty to murdering her on April 20, 2021. Johnston was the estranged husband of Ms Wilkinson, who had been granted multiple court orders in an attempt to protect her. It was revealed in court that Johnston was also charged with allegedly raping Ms Wilkinson weeks prior to killing her. That matter is still before the courts. The mother-of-three's sister, Danielle Carroll, came face-to-face with the killer in court before voicing her family's anger with his sentence to awaiting media. Former US Marine, Brian Johnston, has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a 20-year non-parole period for brutally murdering his estranged partner, Kelly Wilkinson (both pictured) The court heard that Johnston will plead not guilty to the rape charges at a future trial at the Southport Magistrates Court. While Justice Peter Applegarth emphasised that the charges are part of the factual background of the murder, it didn't mean the allegations are proven. 'Their relevance is you were acutely aware and concerned that she had made those allegations against you,' he said, the Courier Mail reports. While sentencing the former Marine, Mr Applegarth said the jail term he could impose on Johnston was limited by the law and he would likely agree with Ms Wilkinson's family if they said it was not enough for the 'horrendous crime'. Crown prosecutor Philip McCarthy said Johnston stabbed Ms Wilkinson multiple times in the neck and chest before setting her alight at her Gold Coast home. Johnston admitted to breaching a domestic violence order and his bail conditions. 'Attending her home with the intent of killing her ... I could not imagine a worse breach,' Mr McCarthy said. Justice Applegarth said Johnston had committed a premeditated crime of 'extreme domestic violence' and society had to make fundamental changes to end the scourge of violence against women. 'No one is someone else's possession,' he said. Johnston, 37, stabbed Ms Wilkinson multiple times before dousing her in petrol and setting her alight at her home on the Gold Coast on April 10, 2021 The court heard in the weeks prior to the murder, Johnston had been charged with allegedly raping Ms Wilkinson (pictured) and will plead not guilty to the charges at a future trial Johnston arrived at Ms Wilkinson's home armed with multiple knives and a 20 litre can of petrol before attacking her about 6.30am on her backyard patio. Neighbours heard sounds of dogs barking, an argument and a woman saying 'please stop' before there was an explosion and flames leapt over the fence line. The neighbours tried to help contain the fire before they got closer and saw Ms Wilkinson's remains. READ MORE: Kelly Wilkinson's husband killer Brian Earl Johnston is jailed for life over her murder on the Gold Coast Advertisement Johnston also brought a bag containing duct tape, zip ties, sedatives and an item he had intended to use to take his own life. He was arrested that morning two blocks from the home and suffering from extensive self-inflicted injuries. Defence barrister Kim Bryson told the court Johnston was remorseful and was exposed to domestic violence and excessive physical discipline as a child. Johnston had been discouraged from seeking mental health treatment during his military service for depression and post-traumatic stress, Ms Bryson said. The relationship broke down in 2021 over allegations Johnston had physically, emotionally and sexually abused Ms Wilkinson. Johnston denied the assaults but Mr McCarthy said he was aware of the allegations before he murdered Ms Wilkinson. She was so afraid of Johnston that she gave her family a secret phrase she would use in text messages to indicate she was under duress. Ms Carroll told the court Johnston's 'pure evil' decision to destroy her sister's body had robbed the family of being able to properly say goodbye. 'You have robbed me of a normal life with my baby sister, my confidant and my best friend,' she said. 'You have caused me and everyone around me a lifetime of immeasurable pain and suffering. 'From the moment I received the phone call from my dad saying "he has killed her" I just remember being overcome with complete breathlessness.' Johnston will be eligible to apply for parole 20 years after the date of his arrest. Ms Wilkinson's sister, Danielle Carroll (pictured), said her family was furious over the possibility of Johnston being released in 20 years Ms Carroll spoke on behalf of her family outside court after the sentencing to say that justice had not fulfilled for Ms Wilkinson and her family. 'It has been an incredibly painful journey for my family and after three long years, Brian has finally been sentenced to life in prison with 20 years parole time,' she said. 'Although a life sentence is fitting for someone who has committed such horrific domestic violence crimes, I can't help but feel let down by the prospect of him being given a second chance and walking free after 20 years. 'He could be free at 55. My heart aches for Kelly. This is not justice for her, this is not justice for our family and this is not justice for future victims and our community.' Another man was charged in July 2021 with murder and faces trial for allegedly assisting the crime. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 Vladimir Putin sensationally claimed in an interview with Russian state TV that Donald Trump 'scolded' him for 'sympathizing' with President Joe Biden back in 2019. In the wide-ranging interview, in which Putin laid down a threat that his forces are ready to use nuclear weapons should Washington ever decide to put boots on the ground in Ukraine, the autocrat also said his government would not interfere in the US elections. 'In the last year of his work as president, Mr. Trump, today's presidential candidate, reproached me for sympathizing with (Joe) Biden .... He told me in one of the conversations: you want - sorry, I will say it the way he said it, this is a quote - "Sleepy Joe to win,'' Putin said according to a translation via Reuters. 'And then, to my surprise, they began to persecute him (Trump) because we allegedly supported him as a candidate. Well, it's some kind of complete nonsense,' Putin continued. When asked about Russian hackers interfering in the US election at the behest of the Kremlin, Putin brushed off the the notion. Russian President Vladimir Putin gives an interview to TV host and Director General of Rossiya Segodnya (RIA Novosti) news agency Dmitry Kiselyov at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 12, 2024 Putin said that Trump called Biden 'Sleepy Joe' in their phone call Earlier, Putin said in February he would prefer Biden to Trump as U.S. president, saying Biden was more experienced and more predictable 'We do not interfere in any way in any elections. And, as I have said many times, we will work with any leader who is trusted by the American people, the American voter,' he said. Putin said Russia would be ready to use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty was threatened. The Russian leader launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and is nearly certain to win the March 15 to 17 presidential election. Interviewing Putin for RIA state news agency and Rossiya-1 state television was veteran Russian broadcaster Dmitry Kiselyov who has long been accused of running a soapbox news program for the Kremlin. Kiselyov, who has been married eight times, is known for his views on traditional relationships and regularly condemns homosexuality once suggesting that the organs of LGBTQ people be burned after their deaths. Earlier, Putin said in February he would prefer Biden to Trump as U.S. president, saying Biden was more experienced and more predictable. They were rare praise for Biden, a fierce critic of the Russian leader who has frequently lauded Trump. Putin was speaking to one of his most ardent TV propagandists Dmitry Kiselyov 'Biden, he's more experienced, more predictable, he's a politician of the old formation,' Putin said, when asked which candidate would be better for Russia. 'But we will work with any U.S. leader whom the American people trust.' Putin's motives for saying Biden is a better choice for Russia were unclear, but the assertion was eyebrow-raising given prior U.S. government assessments of the Russian leader's support for Trump and of Kremlin efforts to tip American elections in his favor. The apparent endorsement was not welcomed by the White House. Asked during a briefing in February about Putin's remarks, national security spokesman John Kirby responded, 'I think Mr. Putin knows very well what this administration has been doing to counter Russia's malign influence around the world.' 'Mr. Putin should just stay out of our elections,' Kriby added. Trump, by contrast, immediately hailed the statement at a campaign rally Wednesday night, calling it a 'great compliment' to him. U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that Putin ordered a hidden campaign to influence the 2016 race in favor of Trump over Democratic challenger Hillary Clinton, with Russian operatives hacking Democratic emails and facilitating their release in the run-up to the election. More recently, intelligence agencies concluded that Putin had authorized influence operations in the 2020 election aimed at denigrating Biden, boosting Trump, undermining confidence in the vote and exacerbating social divisions in the U.S. Trump and Putin, who have frequently praised each other in the past, have dismissed such findings. Putin did also blast the White House's policy toward Russia, describing it as 'badly flawed and wrong.' 'Eyewatering' fees charged by big-name veterinary practices are forcing some customers to go abroad for treatment. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has warned pet owners may be paying too much at the vet for their animal's medicine, prescriptions and care. International comparisons show animal lovers can sometimes find cheaper prices overseas, with a basic vet appointment for a cat costing around 23 in France and 28 in Germany compared to 54 in the UK. A vaccination in Britain costs around 95, according to insurance provider All Pets, compared to 43 to 68 in France. X-rays also appear to be much cheaper at around 38 in France versus up to 400 at home. The UK fares better for the average price of pet insurance, which Compare the Market puts at around 372 a year. This compares well to the US - 500 for dogs and 303 for cats; and Canada - 470 for dogs and 250 for cats. International comparisons show British animal lovers can sometimes find cheaper prices overseas Brian Flynn said he had his beagle, Flash, treated abroad to avoid paying thousands of pounds in UK vet bills Mr Flynn said a UK vet quoted him 5,318 for surgery and aftercare when Flash suffered a leg injury during a holiday in France Dog owner Brian Flynn said he had his beagle treated abroad to avoid paying thousands of pounds in UK vet bills. Mr Flynn, 52, said a UK vet quoted him 5,318 for surgery and aftercare when eight-year-old Flash suffered a leg injury during a holiday in France. The owner was left 'gobsmacked' when he took Flash to a local vet in the alpine town of Bourg-Saint-Maurice, who said the same treatment would cost just 1,493. The British Veterinary Association has argued that bills are 'fair' and said vets were facing rising costs. But the CMA is concerned owners are kept in the dark about fees and face pricey unexpected bills. It will now investigate CVS, IVC, Linnaeus, Medivet, Pets At Home and VetPartners. The proportion of practices owned by large groups has jumped from 10 per cent to 60 since 2013, the regulator is concerned they are exploiting their market power. Sharna Liptrot, a dog owner from Milton in Cambridge, believes prices are increasingly out of control. She told MailOnline: 'Every time I go to the vets, I just come away feeling I've been ripped off. 'Flea treatment is available online at one third of the cost but if you need a prescription from the vets, they will charge you 19. 'I recently took my dog to the vets as he had a sore eye - he had the same problem a couple of years ago, so I knew he just needed some cream. 'They said they needed to see him so 109 later I walked out with the cream and five days later his eye was all cleared up. The cream cost 13.00 online!' Ms Liptrot said one of her friends was billed 20,000 when she broke her shoulder from jumping down from a car. 'The insurance only covered 8,000.00 and as he had recently lost his wife the thought of him losing his beloved dog was simply not an option,' she said. 'As a nation of animal lovers we will always do what is best for the animal but surely this sector has to be investigated as to how they can justify these prices?' Julia Howard said she spent 28,000 on treating her dog Teddy, who died last year Sharna Liptrot, a dog owner from Milton in Cambridge , believes prices are increasingly out of control. Pictured are her dogs A survey of pet owners in December by Which? found numerous cases of high prices being charged by vets. Cat owner Keith Dancey said she was billed 188.96 for a medicinal powder for his constipated cat, but later found it was available online for a much lower price. He later found he could have bought it online, without a prescription, for a significantly lower price, while a two minute follow-up phone call cost him 36.89. Hannah Roper, a dog owner, said she was initially told a blood test for her dog Dandy would cost 180 but was eventually billed 380. Meanwhile, Emma - another cat owner - told Which? she paid 139 for a package deal to cover treatments over the first six months of her kitten's life. However, she said she was hit by additional charges such as 25 for claw clipping. After a review the vet concluded this was a mistake. Caitlin Dolan, 25, told how her cat, named Precious, passed away because she couldn't 'even begin to afford' the 3,000 bill she was quoted for tests and treatments. Ms Dolan, who took her cat to the vet because it seemed lethargic, told the BBC the 'emotional toll' of not being able to afford the bill was 'incredible'. 'We couldn't even begin to afford it. The emotional toll was incredible,' she said. Ms Dolan added that the vets 'weren't really willing' to tell her what was wrong with her cat 'without going through 3,000 worth of tests and treatment'. 'It caused a lot of stress for a few days while we were deliberating on it before she unfortunately passed away. I don't wish anyone the same experience.' One cat owner told MailOnline they were 'outraged' after they were quoted 5,000 for a surgery on their tabby who had a broken leg after she was hit by a car when their insurance only covered 4,000. They said: 'We rushed her to the emergency vets on Saturday morning. The vet demanded we pay 50% of her treatment up front which was initially explained to me that they would operate on her. 'We paid 1000 up front and would pay the remaining amount via insurance and claim the amount we had already paid. Carol Chamberlain was charged 1,130 after her dog stayed overnight at a vets Carole's eight-year-old Biewer Terrier, which is called Amie 'I was told her 2,000 bill only covered her 48 hours in care including medication, sedation and scans. 'I was outraged because I was then quoted an additional 300 a night in care and 5,000 for the operation. We were only insured to 4,000.' Dominic Bonini from Newmarket in Suffolk said he had to pay 6,000 up front on treatments for his four-year-old dog Shambu. The Shiba Inu was diagnosed with patellar luxation which can lead to arthritis. The treatment for the disease cost 3,786 in a specialist referral veterinary hospital and included an operation. After the surgery, Shambu broke a tooth which cost 1,900 to have extracted. Mr Bonini said: 'It's a hell of a lot of money. We have the insurance which I'm glad we had. I suppose we are fortunate we can afford to pay but not everyone is in the same boat.' Carol Chamberlain, who has an 8-year-old Biewer Terrier, told Mailonline a vet charged 47.05 for 15ml of Pro-Kolin paste, which she buys 30ml for 12.88 off Amazon. She took her dog to the emergency vet after she began passing blood and was told they needed to keep her overnight. The charge for the paste was included in a 1,130 total bill for the treatment. She said: 'How can there be any justification for this. Once you have to go to the vets, they have you over a barrel.' The CMA has decided to 'provisionally' launch a market investigation into the veterinary sector after they received an 'unprecedented' 56,000 responses to their initial review. The review found that consumers may not be given enough information - including price lists - to enable them to choose the best practice and treatment for their pet. It also found that the regulatory framework for the sector is 'outdated' and 'may no longer be fit for purpose' and that there may be an overconcentration of vet ownership in certain areas. And those working in the sector - which is worth 2billion after the covid pandemic saw pet ownership rise to two-thirds of British households - raised concerns about pressures arising from staff shortages. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has raised concerns that consumers in the veterinary sector may be paying too much for their pet's medicine The market investigation, if the findings are upheld, would give the CMA the power to compel companies to give consumers their full list of prices, impose limits on costs for things like prescription fees and potentially even enforce the sale of businesses in areas of overconcentration of ownership. It was revealed that 80% of vet practices checked by the watchdog had no pricing online - even for the most basic of services. Vets are required to use signs in their reception or treatment rooms telling customers that they can get their prescriptions filled elsewhere. However, the CMA review found that 25 per cent of pet owners were not aware this was an option - meaning they could be missing out on savings. CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell said they launched the review last September because the veterinary sector is a 'critical market' for the UK's 16 million pet owners. She said: 'The unprecedented response we received from the public and veterinary professionals shows the strength of feeling on this issue is high and why we were right to look into this. 'We have heard concerns from those working in the sector about the pressures they face, including acute staff shortages, and the impact this has on individual professionals. ' Ms Cardell added that the competition watchdog has made a 'provisional decision' to launch a market investigation due to the concerns for consumers raised by the review. 'But our review has identified multiple concerns with the market that we think should be investigated further,' she said. 'These include pet owners finding it difficult to access basic information like price lists and prescription costs and potentially overpaying for medicines. 'We are also concerned about weak competition in some areas, driven in part by sector consolidation, and the incentives for large corporate groups to act in ways which may reduce competition and choice. 'Given these strong indications of potential concern, it is time to put our work on a formal footing. We have provisionally decided to launch a market investigation because that's the quickest route to enable us to take direct action, if needed.' Previously, a dog owner said he would sell his house to cover the costs of a 20,000 vet bill. Last year, Jaxon Feeley said his two-year-old Weimaraner called Rambo went into hypovolemic shock - a state in which severe blood or other fluid loss makes the heart unable to pump enough blood to the body. CMA boss Sarah Cardell said the watchdog has made the 'provisional decision' to launch a market investigation into the veterinary sector Mr Feeley, from Wigan, said: 'She began vomiting throughout the night over 30 times and by Saturday morning we were in the emergency vets.' On top of the condition, Rambo had also contracted stomach flu, or gastroenteritis, and her health rapidly declined. Dr Anna Judson, association president of the British Veterinary Association, said: 'The veterinary sector has changed significantly over recent years and the Competition and Markets Authority's proposed investigation provides a valuable opportunity to reflect on how both veterinary teams and practices can continue to provide clients with the best possible service. 'Rising prices are a concern for everyone but it's vital to recognise there is no NHS for pets. 'Whether they are employed by corporate or independently owned practices, vets deliver highly specialised, tailored care for the UK's pets and the cost is a fair reflection of investment in medical equipment, supplies and medicines, and the time vet teams dedicate to the care of each patient. 'At the British Veterinary Association, we're keen to see healthy competition and consumer choice and so we are already taking steps to support vet practices to be more transparent both in terms of costs and practice ownership. 'It's important that clients have as wide a choice of vet practices as possible so they can find a service that best suits the needs of themselves and their animals.' A widow says she 'felt like a criminal' when police visited her home after she accompanied her husband to a 20,000 assisted dying clinic in Switzerland where he listened to Frank Sinatra's My Way in his final moments. Dan Tuckley, 46, decided to end his life on his own terms at an euthanasia clinic outside Basel, after receiving a terminal kidney cancer diagnosis in August 2022. The cancer spread so quickly that his life expectancy dropped from one year to just weeks. He spent 12,000 on flying on a chartered private jet with his wife, Sarah, and siblings for the 9,000 Pegasos clinic appointment. The former British Army lance corporal died on September 22, 2022, but months later police arrived out of the blue at his widow's home in Derby, Derbyshire, where she says she was 'made to feel like a criminal'. Is your loved one considering using an assisted dying clinic? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk Dan Tuckley, 46, pictured with his wife Sarah before he died at an assisted dying clinic in Switzerland in September 2022. Police visited the widow's home in Derby, Derbyshire, months later where she 'felt like a criminal' Dan decided to end his life on his own term after receiving a terminal kidney cancer diagnosis in August 2022 Euthanasia is illegal in England and Wales under the 1961 Suicide Act and is punishable by up to 14 years' jail, even if the procedure is carried out abroad. It comes after Dame Esther Rantzen today welcomed Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to put the UK on course to legalise assisted dying by the end of this decade if Labour are victorious at the general election. Is Assisted Suicide illegal in Britain? Under the Suicide Act 1961, anyone helping or encouraging someone to take their own life in England or Wales can be prosecuted and jailed for up to 14 years if found guilty of an offence. Section two of the act states that a person commits an offence if they carry out an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, and the act was intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide. In 2015 MPs including former prime minister David Cameron rejected a Bill to legalize assisted dying. Opposition to changing the law has come from faith groups, campaigners who say disabled people may feel pressured to end their lives and campaigners who fear assisted dying would become a business. Advertisement Speaking last week, business analyst Sarah said it 'didn't even register' when officers from Derbyshire police knocked on her front door in December. 'I opened the door and they said it was Derbyshire police, I knew there was a risk but when they said police it didn't even register in my head,' she said. 'They said they would not be pursuing an investigation and kept calling it assisted suicide. I kept telling them that it was not assisted suicide and it was assisted dying. 'Dan fought for his country and we were made to feel like criminals for bringing something forward that was going to happen in a matter of days. 'It seems alien to me that we don't have the choice - it is like trying to deprive a woman from having an abortion. 'Dan did not want to pass in a hospital or with people just watching. He wanted to pass on his terms with those who loved him the most and most importantly while he was still him.' Dan's sister, Kate, 39, flew over to Switzerland with her other siblings Phillip, 48, and Matthew, 36, to be by his bedside. She criticised the police and was left furious that they spoke to her sister when she was by herself. She said: 'They said they had investigated it but there were no charges. I am annoyed that she had the police knock on her door and she was on her own. 'That makes me cross, I would have liked to be with her when that happened. It makes me furious that our family had to go through this whole process. 'It makes me cross that Dan was in a state where he was going to die.' Derbyshire police has refused to comment when asked by MailOnline. Dan pictured with his sister Kate the day before he died. She hit out at police for talking to his widow when she was by herself Dan spent over 20,000 to end his life on his own terms at Pegasos (pictured), outside Basel, after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis in August 2022 Pegasos, a nonprofit in the field, which has a facility in Basel (pictured) Dan spent one of his final evenings he enjoyed a luxurious meal - though he was unable to eat - with his family, who said he should have been allowed to die in his own country. Two days later he put on his favourite suit he administered a lethal dose as Frank Sinatra's My Way played in the background. The office manager was diagnosed with a rare kidney cancer Renal Medullary Carcinoma - in August 2022. Having witnessed his own father die in a 'vegetative state, unable to speak', Dan was adamant about going out on his own term. He chose assisted dying after becoming unable to eat or drink without vomiting. Due to fears of being caught by police Dan kept his decision secret from others including his mother, Dawn, who has a dementia diagnosis. On September 22 a doctor added the treatment to his drip, while surrounded by his loved ones Dan pushed the button to administer it. Dan was cremated in Switzerland and his ashes were sent to the UK. Assisted dying is legal in certain circumstances in Switzerland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and some US states. Today, Dame Esther id she did not want her family's last memories of her to be of pain and begging in vain for help to end her life, after Labour leader Sir Keir backed calls to change the law on assisted dying. In a conversation with the terminally ill television presenter, Sir Keir gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is time for a vote in the next parliament if Labour is elected. In a conversation with Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured), the Labour leader gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is parliamentary time for a debate Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony' Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony'. Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland. Since then, she has pleaded with politicians to grapple with the issue - saying 'we live in a day and age when it's perfectly possible to offer people a gentle, peaceful death'. In a phone call with sir Keir that was filmed by ITV, she said: 'What I really do not want is for my family's last memory of me to be painful and suffering and me begging to be assisted in dying, and just having to watch me (die).' Is your loved one considering using an assisted dying clinic? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk For confidential support, call Samaritans on 116 123, visit samaritans.org or visit https://www.thecalmzone.net/get-support He is married to Charlotte Faircloth, an academic specialising in reproduction The 40-year-old now has four children, all under the age of eight University Challenge host said his IVF journey with his partner was 'really tough' Amol Rajan has opened up about his 'hellish' struggle to have children - and said he and his wife were 'told it wouldn't happen'. The University Challenge and Radio Four Today Programme host said his IVF journey with partner Charlotte Faircloth was 'exhausting', 'really tough' and went on for 'years'. The 40 year-old now has four children under the age of eight and said the family do realise 'how lucky' they are. Rajan, formerly the BBC's media editor, told the Comfort Eating podcast, that he felt 'extraordinarily blessed' to have 'ended up' having children, adding: 'I don't really talk about this very much publicly...my wife and I were going through hellish medical treatment to try and have more children. 'That was really exhausting. In fact, the whole time I was editor of The Independent, we were going through really tough stuff. Amol Rajan has opened up about his struggle to have children with partner Charlotte Faircloth 'And, obviously we've ended up extraordinarily blessed. We've got four kids and I realise, I really, really, do realise how lucky we all are.' Charlotte Faircloth, Rajan's partner, an academic The BBC presenter joined The Independent newspaper in 2007, and was appointed the role of editor in 2013 at 29-years-old. In 2016, he left the paper after he was poached by James Harding, then the BBC's director of news and current affairs, to become its media editor. He told the podcast the 'medical treatment' he was referring to was 'IVF and all that'. Rajan continued: 'We were told it wouldn't happen, that was the thing. 'There were years, and years, and years, and years, in which it was really tough and a struggle. 'There was a lot of that going on whilst I was at the BBC.' Rajan was formerly the BBC media editor and the editor of the Independent between 2013 and 2016 In 2013, Rajan married Charlotte Faircloth - an academic who focuses on parenting, gender and reproduction. Rajan said when he joined the BBC, it coincided with a 'very major life change' being 'that I became a parent'. He added: 'Suddenly it was not about me, and suddenly my priorities had changed.' In December last year, he said he was so overwhelmed with grief following his father's death last year that he had thoughts of suicide. The BBC's Amol Rajan with his father P. Varadarajan, who died last year at the age of 76 Amol Rajan joined University Challenge in 2023, replacing Jeremy Paxman Rajan said that while he would have never taken action, he experienced an 'unbearable agony' to be with his father P. Varadarajan, who died in 2022 at the age of 76 after being hospitalised with pneumonia. 'I've never said this in public but - and I want to be very, very careful about how I say it for the obvious reasons because there's a lot of guidelines about how we talk about it - but I thought about, not doing it, but suicide and God in a way I had never before,' he said on Gabby Logan's Mid Point podcast. 'I don't at all by that mean that I would take action toward taking my own life.' He said that he was presenting Radio 4's Today programme in Southampton and was walking through a 'very dark, very rainy' part of the country at 3.15am. 'And I walked over a bridge and there was a train track,' he said. 'I did think for the first time - and I'm not religious, I grew up in a religious family but I'm not religious at all - I did think that there was a connection between ending my life and seeing my dad again. Because all I ever wanted was to see my dad again.' Earlier this month, Rajan was involved in a frosty bust-up with Jeremy Hunt after he labelled the chancellor a 'fiscal drag queen' in a live interview on BBC Radio Four. Rajan appeared on a celebrity series of University Challenge Rajan made the jibe as he quizzed the Conservative MP over his fiscal package. They squared off as Rajan pointed to evidence that the tax burden on Brits is still rising despite his decision to take another 2p off National Insurance Contributions (NICS). 'They call you the fiscal drag queen of British politics, don't they? And with good reason, the net effect of your time in No11 Is that taxes are still going up,' the presenter said in the interview. 'It's just not going up by as much as they were six months ago, but they're still going up, aren't they?' Mr Hunt replied: 'You talked about fiscal drag. I don't think I have been called a drag queen before by the way Amol.' Rajan was previously forced to apologise after making incendiary remarks about the royals in articles written for The Independent newspaper in 2012. He described the public role of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as a 'total fraud' and called Prince Philip a 'racist buffoon'. After the remarks resurfaced, he tweeted: 'In reference to very reasonable questions about some foolish commentary from a former life, I want to say I deeply regret it.' Jordan's Queen Rania has made a renewed call for the end of hostilities in Gaza, insisting that Israel has had 'one October 7' while Palestinians have had 156. The 53-year-old royal, who was born to Palestinian parents, made the remarks on a CNN interview yesterday. She also made calls for the war to end, saying as 'traumatic as October 7 was' for Israel, it doesn't give the country the right to 'commit atrocity after atrocity'. The Jordanian queen openly admitted that it isn't just Hamas that 'hates' Israelis, but normal Palestinians. She said: 'Palestinians do not hate Israelis because of who they are, they hate them because of what they're doing to them.' Queen Rania said: 'Palestinians do not hate Israelis because of who they are, they hate them because of what they're doing to them.' The October 7 attack at the music festival in Israel sparked the current conflict in Gaza In the interview, she told CNN interviewer Christiane Amanpour: 'As devastating and as traumatic as October 7 was, it doesn't give Israel license to commit atrocity after atrocity. Israel experienced one October 7, since then, the Palestinians have experienced 156 October 7s.' In regard to recent calls for Israel to increase aid for Palestine, namely by Joe Biden in his State of the Union address last week, the Jordanian queen said: 'Aid under bombardment does not stop the destruction, the death, and the heartbreak. 'We cannot save people from hunger only then to bomb them to death. 'There are no victories to be had as long as this war continues.' The queen placed the blame on Israel for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, saying that Israel is responsible for cutting the people of Gaza off from basic necessities such as food, fuel, and water. She also said that Israel has left the people of Gaza completely dependent on outside aid efforts, they continue to bomb and attack the people of Gaza as they are starving. She says that the starvation of the people of Gaza is an Israeli-made disaster, arguing that it is 'deprivation by design.' She went on to talk about October 7 and how it wasn't the beginning of the conflict. She said: 'We cannot save people from hunger only then to bomb them to death.' The Jordanian queen was born in Kuwait to Palestinian parents before moving to Jordan She said: 'I think a lot of people need to know more about this conflict to really understand the intricacies of it, to understand that this is one of the greatest historical Injustices, to understand what the root cause of this issue is, to understand that this conflict did not begin on October 7, that that it was a result of years of occupation, of settlement expansion, of human rights abuses, of disregard for international law, and this is what led us to this point.' The Anti Defamation League, a body which targets antisemitism, responded to the interview on X, writing: 'Jordanian Queen Raina continues propagating false claims about Israel while diminishing the severity of Hamas's attack on Israel. 'In no way is Israel's war against Hamas - a vile terror org that uses human shields - equivalent to the unprecedented October 7 brutal massacre. 'Especially during the month of Ramadan, we hope Jordan will play a constructive role in de-escalating tensions.' 30,000 Palestinians have died since the October 7 attack and she says Israel has no right This isn't first time Queen Rania has used a CNN interview to broadcast her support for Palestine. Last October she used an interview to launch a remarkable attack on the West in an where she criticized America's support of Israel's retaliatory strikes against Hamas and claimed there was a 'double standard' in global sympathy for the war's victims. She said she 'of course' condemned the killing of innocent Israelis by Hamas but, asked why Israel's self-defense was not coming under the same level of global scrutiny and reserved all her sympathy for Palestinians. Paul Alexander, the man who lived the majority of his life in an iron lung after being diagnosed with polio at six, was celebrated by his brother as a 'flirt' and as a 'pain in the a**.' Alexander passed away at the age of 78 on March 11. His brother, Philip, led the tributes, writing in a heartbreaking Facebook post that Alexander 'loved wine, good food and women.' 'It was an honor to be part of someone's life who was as admired as he was. He touched and inspired millions of people and that is no exaggeration,' Philip wrote. 'To me Paul was just a brother.. same as yours.. loving, giving advice, and scolding when necessary, and also a pain in the a**.. normal brother stuff. He commanded a room.. What a flirt!' 'He loved good food, wine, women, long conversations, and laughing. I will miss him so much,' he concluded. Paul Alexander pictured with his beloved brother Philip. In a heartbreaking Facebook tribute, Philip called his sibling 'loving' and 'also a pain in the as**' Philip Alexander's beautiful tribute to his brother Over an extraordinary lifetime, Paul was able to travel, study the law and author a book Alexander's cousin also wrote a tribute on Facebook calling him her 'true hero.' 'I know he is loving freedom of not being in an iron lung,' Margaret Moore wrote. His life and death have touched many beyond his own family. 'So sad to hear this. If you don't know who Paul Alexander is, I recommend looking him up. He was an exceptional person who did not let his circumstances of living in an iron lung deter him from achieving things most of us can only aspire to. He will remain an inspiration. RIP,' one fan wrote on X. 'Sad news Paul Alexander was a remarkable man who had much to teach us about personal resilience,' another wrote. 'He and other Iron Lung users are a reminder of the potential life span for medical devices & need to design for longevity. His life & death an illustration of the importance of vaccines,' she added. The official Guinness World Records account said it was 'saddened' to learn of the death. German journalist Kai Kupferschmidt, who previously interviewed Alexander, called him an 'extraordinary person' who 'lived an extraordinary life by any measure.' Your browser does not support iframes. Tributes have been flooding in following the tragic news of Alexander's death at the age of 78 Alexander was one of the millions of childhood victims of a once-epidemic disease that menaced the nation and now left him at the mercy of a mechanical respirator. Though unable to move from the neck down, he refused to be limited by his metal prison, finding success in both the classroom and the courtroom. He earned his bachelor's and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. He specialized in bankruptcy law. 'Polio was the horror of the day... It was like the Black Plague,' Alexander said in a 2018 interview. It's most famous victim was President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Until 1955, when Jonas Salk became a hero by developing the vaccine that would largely eradicate the disease globally, polio reached pandemic levels. The worst year was 1952, according to PolioToday.org, with nearly 58,000 reported cases causing 3,100 deaths and leaving more than 21,000 in varying stages of paralysis. The disease destroys nerve cells in the spinal cord. It spread silently, explained Steve Cochi, senior adviser at the global immunization division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For every one person who contracted paralytic polio, another 200 might display few or no symptoms. Writing on Alexander's GoFundMe page, Christopher Ulmer, organizer and disability-rights activist, said on Tuesday: 'Paul Alexander, 'The Man in the Iron Lung', passed away yesterday. Paul celebrated his 78th birthday on January 30, 2024 after more than 70 years in the iron lung 'After surviving polio as a child, he lived over 70 years inside of an iron lung. In this time Paul went to college, became a lawyer, and a published author. 'His story traveled wide and far, positively influencing people around the world. 'Paul was an incredible role model that will continue to be remembered.' Over an extraordinary life, Alexander's determination saw him achieve a number of remarkable achievements. At 21, he became the first person to graduate from a high school in Dallas without ever attending class in person. He was accepted into Southern Methodist University in Dallas, after much difficulty with university administration and then got into law school at the University of Texas, Austin. What is polio? Poliomyelitis is an infectious disease that can cause paralysis or even death. While efforts to produce vaccines effectively ended the epidemic in the western world by the latter half of the 20th century, polio remained one of the most deadly threats to children well into the 1950s. Polio spreads from person to person through the ingestion of faecal matter from an infected person, or - less commonly - through coughs and sneezes. Despite advances in sanitation and hygiene practices through the 19th century, the number of cases of polio in Europe and America soared through the early 1900s. In the first stage of contracting the disease, the infection stays in the digestive system and throat. Most babies are able to fight off the disease at this point without it becoming debilitating, developing immunity. Children who develop the disease later on are often less well prepared to fight it without having developed resistance, which can see polio enter a second, more aggressive stage, affecting the central nervous system. Awareness of how diseases spread in unsanitary conditions saw great steps forward in overcoming epidemics in cholera and typhoid, but the reduced exposure to the polio virus in youth meant many children caught the disease later in development by the 20th century, with horrifying consequences. Sources: Science Museum, NHS Advertisement He pursued his dreams of becoming a trial lawyer, and represented clients in court in a three-piece suit and a modified wheelchair that held his paralyzed body upright. He also staged a sit-in for disability rights and published his own memoir, titled 'Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung'. The 155-page memoir was carefully crafted and took five years to complete; Paul wrote each word with a pen attached to a stick in his mouth. Paul outlived both of his parents, his brother and even his original iron lung, which began leaking air in 2015, but was repaired by a mechanic Brady Richards, which was prompted by a YouTube video of Paul pleading for help. The ventilator, a large yellow metal box, requires patients to lie down inside, with the device fastened tightly around their neck. It works by creating a vacuum to mechanically draw in oxygen to the lungs for patients whose central nervous system and respiratory function were affected by polio. While in hospital, doctors tried to get Paul to breathe on his own, turning off the machine and forcing him out, but it wouldn't take long for him to turn blue and pass out. Despite the availability of more modern ventilators, Paul decided to continue using the iron lung machine because he was used to it. Other devices also require intensive surgery. Over his lifetime, Alexander never let the device get in the way of what he wanted to achieve, travelling on planes, living independently, praying in church, visiting the ocean, and falling in love. While at university, Alexander met Claire, who he later became engaged to. He spoke candidly to The Guardian about how her mother forbade him from speaking to her daughter. 'Took years to heal from that,' he told the outlet. In later life Alexander built a close relationship with Kathy Gaines, who became his caregiver - or 'arms and legs', in his words. Gaines stepped in to help after Alexander graduated law school, supporting him for more than three decades. Alexander said the pair 'grew together', Gaines herself legally blind from type-1 diabetes. A law aimed at quashing the wrongful convictions of sub-postmasters caught up in the Horizon IT scandal will be brought in today, with plans to have them handed compensation in the summer. The proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill 'marks an important step forward in finally clearing' the names of hundreds of wronged branch managers who have had their lives 'callously torn apart', Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said. The legislation will exonerate those convicted in England and Wales on the basis of the faulty Horizon accounting software in what has been branded the biggest miscarriage of justice in British legal history. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake told Sky News: 'We are overturning hundreds of convictions en bloc, we will have done that by July and we will be paying compensation to those people by August. 'In terms of what we can do in Parliament, that is exceptionally swift in terms of legislation and compensation, but it can't happen soon enough for many people and that is why we are acting so quickly.' The minister said the Government had looked at 'other options' for addressing the scandal but concluded they would have taken 'months, if not years' to carry out. The proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill 'marks an important step forward in finally clearing' the names of hundreds of wronged branch managers who have had their lives 'callously torn apart', Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake told Sky News: ' We are overturning hundreds of convictions en bloc, we will have done that by July and we will be paying compensation to those people by August.' Downing Street said that under the law, convictions will be automatically quashed if they meet the following criteria: Were prosecuted by the Post Office or Crown Prosecution Service; Were for offences carried out in connection with Post Office business between 1996 and 2018; Were for relevant offences such as theft, fraud and false accounting; Were against subpostmasters, their employees, officers, family members or direct employees of the Post Office working in a Post Office that used the Horizon system software. Those with overturned convictions will receive an interim payment with the option of immediately taking a fixed and final offer of 600,000, according to No 10. Mr Sunak said: 'I want to pay tribute to all the postmasters who have shown such courage and perseverance in their fierce campaign for justice, and to those who tragically won't see the justice they deserve. 'While I know that nothing can make up for what they've been through, today's legislation marks an important step forward in finally clearing their names. 'We owe it to the victims of this scandal who have had their lives and livelihoods callously torn apart, to deliver the justice they've fought so long and hard for, and to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.' More than 700 sub-postmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsu's faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. The long-running saga was put in a fresh spotlight by ITV's acclaimed drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office. The Government will also bring forward 'enhanced' financial redress for postmasters who, while not convicted or part of legal action against the Post Office, made good the apparent losses caused by the Horizon system from their own pockets. They will be entitled to a fixed sum award of 75,000 through the Horizon Shortfall Scheme, Downing Street said. Those who have already settled for less money will have their compensation topped up to this level, while people can instead choose to have their claims assessed as part of the usual scheme process, in which there is no limit to compensation. The new Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, to be run by the Department for Business and Trade, is to open for applications to those who have had their convictions quashed 'as soon as possible' once the legislation has passed. The Government hopes the Bill will receive royal assent and become law ahead of MPs' summer holiday. Ministers acknowledge there is a risk the legislation could quash convictions of some people who were genuinely guilty of a crime. To counter this, sub-postmasters will have to sign a legal statement that they did not commit the offence, leaving them liable to prosecution if they were subsequently found to have lied. The Law Society, which represents solicitors in England and Wales, said the 'devil will be in the detail' of such a complex proposal and warned against treating the scheme as a precedent for Government intervention in the independent judiciary. President of the society Nick Emmerson said: 'We all know that we need to speed up the process for quashing the wrongful convictions of the victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal. 'We recognise that the Government has carefully considered the pressures facing our legal system and has set out some reasonable criteria. However, as always, the devil will be in the detail of such a complex proposal. 'An exceptional scheme such as this can only be justified by extraordinary circumstances. It cannot be treated as a precedent or justify further government intervention in the independence of our justice system.' Labour welcomed 'progress' being made but said the legislation alone would not deliver justice in full, saying compensation for victims must be secured 'at pace'. Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: 'Sub-postmasters have been vindicated in their courageous search for justice after so many lost their livelihoods, liberty, and even lives because the Post Office wrongly felt workers were inherently dishonest, while technology was infallible. 'Labour is pleased that progress is being made and we will carefully study the legislation to make sure it delivers for sub-postmasters. 'We will also work to ensure that that the Government makes good on its promise no precedent will be set that would undermine the independence of our courts. This Bill must be a truly exceptional step, that should never need to be repeated. 'This legislation alone does not deliver justice in full and we must get compensation to victims at pace if we are ever to get justice for sub-postmasters. Labour will work with the Government to ensure justice is delivered in swift and proper manner.' Residents on Spain's Costa del Sol have become the latest to vent their fury over the way tourism has affected their lives, with angry stickers being plastered on holiday let flats. Angry locals in Tenerife made their feelings clear earlier this month with graffiti calling for tourists to go home in and around the southern resort of Palm Mar. Now people living in the centre of Malaga have become the latest to raise their voice against the problems caused by the hordes of visitors they say have impacted on their lives. Stickers have appeared in the town, which is popular with British holidaymakers, over the front of tourist apartment blocks with messages in Spanish saying: 'f*** off from here' and 'stinking of tourists.' Others that have appeared, alluding to the same problems expressed by Tenerife residents about the lack of affordable accommodation caused by mass tourism, say: 'This used to be my house' and 'A family used to live here'. One of the stickers read 'ApesTando a Turista - Spanish for 'stinking of tourist' Locals have been coming up with alternatives revolving around the AT signs on the front of holiday apartment blocks, short for Apartamento Turistico in Spanish, in a play on words game People living in the centre of Malaga have become the latest to raise their voice against the problems caused by the hordes of visitors A Malaga bar owner who was recently told he had to leave the home he has lived in for the past ten years so it can be used by tourists staying on short-term lets, has been linked to the campaign. He recently organised a social media initiative proposing customers come up with alternatives revolving around the AT signs on the front of holiday apartment blocks, short for Apartamento Turistico in Spanish, in a play on words game. They came up with imaginative proposals which included 'A Tu puta casa' and ApesTando a Turista - Spanish for 'f*** off home' and 'stinking of tourist.' The bar owner, known as Dani Drunko, said overnight as he admitted things had got a 'bit out of hand': 'Everyone has joined the cause and got really involved, so much so that they're printing off stickers and putting them all over streets in the centre. Revealing his own accommodation plight and saying he had friends in the same boat, he told respected Malaga-based paper Sur: 'I live in a neighbourhood of Malaga called Fuente Olletas and was told a few weeks ago the owner wouldn't be renewing my rental contract and I had to leave because the property was going to readapted for tourist lets. 'Every day I'm receiving photos of new stickers and people that are making it go viral. There's a lot of movement because citizens are sick of the situation. I only proposed the idea of the phrases, I lit the fuse.' 'TOURIST GO HOME': Graffiti has appeared in the Canary Islands telling tourists to 'go home' and accusing holidaymakers of bringing 'misery' to locals 'MY MISERY YOUR PARADISE': Canary Islanders are apparently annoyed that people's holidays are ruining their home 'TOURIST GO HOME': Vandals called for an end to tourism on the Canary Island of Tenerife Dani Perez, Secretary General of the left-wing PSOE party in Malaga, flagging up one of the stickers plastered over a tourist apartment block with coded key holders by the front door, said in a blast on X formerly Twitter: 'All this used to be the centre, as this sticker says next to several tourist apartments. 'You walk along the streets of Malaga and it's practically impossible to find a residential building which hasn't got a padlock and passcode.' He added in an attack on Malaga's right-wing mayor Paco de la Torre: 'Malaga's mayor is not lifting a finger for the people who live here, expelling them from the city where they were born.' Mr Drunko, whose bar Drunk-O-Rama is famed as one of the best places to go out at night in Malaga and offers live music, tried to distance himself today from the idea he was being anti-tourist after the rude stickers were publicised in local press. He said: 'We would like to point out that we have nothing against tourists or tourism but are opposed to being kicked out of our homes to make way for tourist apartments and the fact that the town hall, which belongs to all of Malaga's people, doesn't do anything.' Critic Juan Luis Gomez, a Costa del Sol based lawyer, responded by saying: 'The same people who are against tourism then want work, as if we depended here for our livelihoods on the aerospace industry. 'It's one thing to regulate tourism and another to reject tourism.' But another local added in a sarcastic-laden post on X formerly Twitter: 'Who would have thought that kicking people out of their homes so they could be used as tourist apartments was going to produce a negative impact from local people about them.' The messages in English left earlier this month on walls and benches in and around Palm Mar in southern Tenerife included 'My misery your paradise' and 'Average salary in Canary Islands is 1,200 euros.' Locals have complained they face rising rents pushed by the lack of affordable housing because so many properties are rented only to tourists on short-term lets. Like the Canary Islands, the Costa del Sol is one of the most popular areas for British holidaymakers in Spain. In February last year Malaga approved fines of up to 650 for revellers caught walking around naked, carrying inflatable sex dolls or wearing huge plastic penises on their heads. By-laws in the Costa del Sol capital already banned the use of megaphones or the consumption of alcohol on the street. The Government today defended paying failed asylum seekers thousands of pounds to move to Rwanda as a 'good use of public money'. Ministers have struck a new agreement with Kigali to operate a 'voluntary' scheme for migrants in Britain to move to the east African country. The deal is separate to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's stalled plans to deport Channel migrants to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there. Instead, the new scheme is designed to remove migrants who have no legal right to stay in Britain but cannot be returned to their home country. Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, insisted offering migrants up to 3,000 to move to Rwanda would be 'a good use of public money'. He also denied it would undermine the separate proposals to deport migrants to Rwanda, which have become bogged down in legal challenges. According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali. It would also be more worth around 14 times the average monthly salary, after tax, in the Rwanda capital, the website stated. A meal at an 'inexpensive' restaurant in Kigali is said by Numbeo to cost 2.81, a beer 91p, a cappuccino 1.69, and a litre of petrol 98p. Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, insisted offering migrants up to 3,000 to move to Rwanda would be 'a good use of public money'. According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali An inflatable dinghy carrying around 65 people is pictured crossing the English Channel last week Mr Hollinrake told Times Radio this morning: '3,000, is a lot of money, but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are out here without merit. 'It's about saying to people, if you come here, you can't stay here if you come here illegally. That's the point. 'So I don't think anybody would try and come here just to get 3,000 to go to Rwanda.' The new scheme will be aimed at individuals who do not have an outstanding asylum claim and are in a position to be relocated swiftly to Rwanda, which the Government deems a safe third nation. The agreement is an extension of the existing Home Office voluntary returns process, under which migrants are offered financial assistance worth up to 3,000 to leave the UK for their country of origin. It would be the first scheme of its kind because it would mark the first time migrants were paid to leave the UK without going back to their country of origin. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'In the last year, 19,000 people were removed voluntarily from the UK and this is an important part of our efforts to tackle illegal migration. 'We are exploring voluntary relocations for those who have no right to be here, to Rwanda, who stand ready to accept people who wish to rebuild their lives and cannot stay in the UK. 'This is in addition to our Safety of Rwanda Bill and Treaty which, when passed, will ensure people who come to the UK illegally are removed to Rwanda.' The Government believes the voluntary scheme can be brought into effect quickly because it will draw on existing structures outlined by the agreement already in place with Rwanda and existing voluntary returns processes. Labour accused ministers of 'resorting to paying people' to go Rwanda upon realising their deportation scheme 'has no chance of succeeding.' Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock MP said: 'We know from the treaty that capacity in Rwanda is very limited, so ministers should now explain what this new idea means for the scheme as it was originally conceived, and they should also make clear how many people they expect to send on this basis, and what the cost will be. 'There have been so many confused briefings around the Rwanda policy that the public will be forgiven for treating this latest wheeze with a degree of scepticism. 'It seems that the Home Secretary is trying to find a way out of this hare-brained scheme that he himself has described as 'batshit'.' The PM is currently facing a battle with the House of Lords over his 'emergency' laws to get the Rwanda deportation scheme up-and-running - nearly two years after it was announced with no migrants having yet been sent to the country. The Government suffered 10 defeats in the unelected upper chamber on its Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, which was introduced as a means of getting around last year's Supreme Court ruling that the deportation scheme was 'unlawful'. It sets the stage for an extended stand-off between the House of Commons and Lords during 'ping-pong', where legislation is batted between the two Houses until agreement is reached, which is expected to take place next week. Paul Alexander, the man who spent more than 70 years in an iron lung ventilator, died on Monday aged 78 after overcoming every adversity to live a life of staggering personal triumph and accomplishment. He qualified as a lawyer and lived a rich and varied life as an amateur painter, law teacher, published author and rights activist despite being bound to the machine that kept him alive for 72 years after contracting polio aged six in 1952. Among his many achievements, he graduated from law school and went on to represent clients in court, taught himself how to breathe by gulping down air to free himself from the confines of his iron lung - and even fell in love. In later life, and with encouragement from his inseparable carer of 30 years, Kathy Gaines, Paul astonishingly went on to write a memoir by tapping at keys on his computer with a pen glued to a stick, held in his mouth - and hoped his words would encourage others to live full, positive lives. Paul's story touched the lives of millions who tuned in to his social media talks to share his reflections on life from within a metal box, proudly recounting the opportunities he had carved out to travel as a speaker on disability rights, to enjoy views of the ocean and even to visit strip clubs as he shared all the reasons to remain cheerful. In his own words of defiance: 'You can actually do anything, regardless of where you come from, your background, or the challenges you may face.' 'You just have to turn your heart to it and work hard... My story is an example of why your past and even obstacles don't need to define your future.' Paul Alexander (front, left) with Kathy Gaines (front, right) at the Rotary Club of Park Cities in 2014 for World Polio Day, where Paul shared his story of life in an iron lung Paul Alexander fell ill aged six and spent most of his life inside an iron lung ventilator International source of inspiration Paul Alexander pictured voting from a wheelchair Paul Alexander, a trained lawyer, signing papers for work from the iron lung Despite contracting Polio when he was just six, at age 21 Paul Richard Alexander became the first person to graduate Dallas High School without ever attending a class as part of a new trial program aimed at helping those with disabilities to qualify. Paul graduated second in his class. His story immediately touched the lives of strangers, who read about his success at school as a straight-A student in local newspapers. His only 'B' grade was in biology, because he could not dissect a rat. A local newspaper at the time, citing AP, commended how his 'notebook resembles any other pupil's' - 'but Paul does his written work by handling a pencil in his mouth'. 'He paints in the same way,' they wrote, detailing how he played chess and listened to records like anybody else his age. But despite thriving at school, he was at first turned away from Southern Methodist University on account of his disability. Paul ultimately overcame the physical confines of his iron lung by teaching himself to breathe manually by gulping down air to free himself, allowing him to go out and make friends, visit the cinema and frequent cafes. With some encouragement from his therapist, Mrs Sullivan, who said she would buy him a puppy if he managed to breathe on his own for three minutes, Paul allowed himself a chance at success, immediately pursue a career in law. Paul's unwavering persistence - a theme he came back to after amassing a following of hundreds of thousands of fans on social media in later life - saw him apply and reapply until he was finally accepted - becoming the only student on campus in a wheelchair. It was at Southern Methodist University that Paul met his first love Claire, to whome he later even became engaged to, carving out a 'normal' life for himself against all the odds. Many years later, Paul spoke candidly to The Guardian about how her mother forbade him from ever speaking to her daughter again after she caught them talking together on the phone. 'Took years to heal from that,' he told the outlet. Paul never married. In spite of physical constraints, Paul became an avid painter, traveller and author Iron lungs became common place in hospitals in the 1940s and 50s as the only way to keep patients alive Paul did not lose hope after the failed engagement and transferred to the law school at the University of Texas in Austin, where he would live on his own for the first time. His parents were terrified, he recounted. But Paul would go from strength to strength. With no provisions for people with his condition, Paul later recalled his teachers having less confidence in his ability to pass his degree. READ MORE: Iron lung man Paul Alexander dead at 78: Lawyer who was paralysed after suffering Polio as a six year old and lived in an iron lung for 70 years dies Advertisement 'You don't look like a lawyer,' one told him bluntly after pulling him aside. 'And you're not going to pass my class.' Paul graduated in 1978 and immediately sought out a postgraduate qualification, pursuing a career practicing law. He finally finished his studies in 1984, aged 38, and became a teacher at a trade school, teaching legal terminology to budding court stenographers in Austin. Two years later he passed the bar exam and returned to Dallas to work as a lawyer. On May 19, 1986, Paul - now 40 - raised his thumb as he took the oath promising to work with integrity before the chief justice of the supreme court of Texas. He recalled clients coming into his office, seeing him in the iron lung and asking, 'What is that?' But Paul attained his dream of becoming a trial lawyer, and represented clients in court in a three-piece suit and a modified wheelchair that held his paralyzed body upright. It was after graduating and moving into an apartment to live independently that Paul placed an ad in a local newspaper for a carer and met Kathy Gaines. For 30 years she stood by his side, helping him organize his work, cook for him and help operate the huge metal contraption around him. Paul Alexander in his law-practicing years, after passing the bar against all the odds Paul taught himself to breathe manually to free himself from the constraints of the iron lung Paul Alexander pictured with his beloved brother Philip. In a heartbreaking Facebook tribute, Philip called his sibling 'loving' and 'also a pain in the as**' News agency AP shared the story of how Paul became a top student despite the condition, noting was due to graduate as the first homebound pupil in the district, trialed from 1959 The ventilator, a large yellow metal box in use since the 1920s, requires patients to lie down inside, with the device fastened tightly around their neck. Paul would lie back and rest as air was sucked out of the box using leather bellows and a motor. The negative pressure would artificially force his lungs to expand when his muscles were unable to do so. When air was pumped back into the iron lung, Paul's lungs would slowly deflate. Paul and Kathy lived as neighbors or together for three decades but never sought a romantic relationship. Paul's brother, Phil, said the relationship was essentially like a marriage. 'Paul has always been aggressive about things that he wants and needs around other people,' he said. 'He's pretty demanding. But Kathy is more demanding than he is. They've had their moments, but they always work it out.' It was Kathy, who is legally blind due to Type 1 Diabetes, who encouraged Paul to write a memoir of his life spent in an iron lung - as the technology was left behind and replaced by more modern equivalents. Paul wrote a 155-page book about his life called Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung, over a period of more than eight years using a plastic stick glued to a pen to type on his keyboard, or dictating to a friend and former nurse Norman Brown. The book's title is a reference to one of his first therapists who promised to by him a dog if he frog-breathed for three minutes Brown said Paul had a way with words and had thrived on his ability to communicate. 'He's been 100% depending on the kindness of others since he was six years old 100%. And he's done it by virtue of his voice and his demeanor and his ability to communicate.' Brown is credited as the editor on Paul's memoir, which was published by Friesen Press in 2021. Paul Alexander managed to author a book by holding a pen in his mouth to tap his keyboard Paul Alexander and Kathy Gaines, his carer of 30 years, who he met from a newspaper advert Paul celebrated his 78th birthday on January 30, 2024 after more than 70 years in the iron lung Paul was able to share his story with the world, detailing how in spite of his condition he had managed to travel on planes, visit the ocean, stage a disability sit-in and live alone among many achievements over a lifetime. Paul, who was described as 'charming' and 'friendly' by those who knew him, managed to live a full life - talking about how he had managed to both visit strip clubs and pray in church. Once told by doctors there was nothing they could do for him, Paul outlived his parents, his older brother Nick and even his original iron lung, which began leaking air in 2015, but was luckily repaired after by a mechanic Brady Richards, which was prompted by a YouTube video of Paul pleading for help. As Paul published his memoir in 2021, the world settled into a new reality as another infectious disease swept through the global population. Paul was 'probably the most vulnerable you can get' to Covid-19, according to his brother, Phil. Weeks before his death was announced, his social media manager shared an update that Paul had been rushed into hospital late February after testing positive for Covid 'which is really dangerous for someone with his condition' and would not be making any new content for the foreseeable future as he recovered. Since telling his story, Paul had become an international beacon of hope and inspiration for his hundreds of thousands of fans who tuned in to his social media messages answering questions about his life and talking candidly about how he found inner strength to stay positive in spite of life's challenges. 'I love the sun,' he said in a post last month. 'But I haven't felt it in a long time. It's lonely. Sometimes it's desperate. Because I can't touch someone. My hands don't move. And no one touches me. Except in rare occasions which I cherish.' He pauses on the thought of suicide - whether life is worth living in spite of the obstacles to happiness. 'Life is the only thing like it. It's the only thing there is. My point is this: life is such an extraordinary thing. I hurt. I've had bites on my legs from roaches. I've had the electricity go out for a long time and I couldn't breathe. I passed out. And I would always wake up... 'What you believe or not, God doesn't want you to die. He created you! And he created me. I lay here and I think about it and in my mind it's just hope. Just hold on. It'll get better. Just give it a chance.' Paul Richard Alexander died on Monday, March 12. A cause of death was not given. Paul garnered a huge following, sharing advice and answering questions about his condition Paul faced a crisis in 2015, when his iron lung began to malfunction and there were little parts and manufacturers available - but luckily, with the help of a YouTube video, the ventilator was fixed Polio was exceptional as an epidemic that tore through Europe and America throughout the first half of the 1900s despite advances in medicine eradicating many of the contagious threats that had plagued mankind for millennia. In the early 1950s, sultry hot summers were spent 'in fear' of the disease, which spreads as an infection with children left particularly vulnerable. There is no cure for polio - though today people can be vaccinated against it - and those with the disease can suffer spinal and respiratory paralysis. If the infection affects the lung muscles or brain, it can even be fatal. Technology to keep affected children alive - and treat coal gas poisoning - saw huge investment and development in the first decades of the 20th century, with the US inventing the first widely-used devices in 1928. Britain's fledgling National Health Service also saw wide testing of the devices and innovation supported by financier William Morris, the Viscount Nuffield. The ventilator, a large yellow metal box, requires patients to lie down inside, with the device fastened tightly around their neck. Today, iron lungs have been almost entirely retired, replaced by positive pressure ventilation systems that blow air into the patient's lungs by intubation - though during the Covid-19 pandemic, the urgent shortage of modern equipment saw medical innovators develop new prototypes for iron lung-inspired devices in the US and the UK. The popular pizza chain will offer pizzas, wraps and cookies in its new deal Domino's will become the latest brand to enter the high street lunchtime wars after it announced plans to launch a 4 meal deal. Dishes included in the meal deal will include smaller items on the menu such as pizzas, wraps and cookies. The popular pizza chain will offer the cheap deal in a bid to take on the likes of Greggs, Pret a Manger and M&S in the lunch-time market. Research from food waste app Too Good To Go revealed one in ten Britons admitted to buying lunch every day, and 26 per cent note that they are too time-poor to make lunch at home. Pre-pandemic, commuters might have secured their lunch meal deal for a couple of pounds, but costs have since spiralled, meaning workers often have to fork out for their lunch. So how does the Domino's deal compare with the other high-street offerings? MailOnline has compiled a list of the top lunchtime spots and how much you can expect to spend on your food. Research from food waste app Too Good To Go revealed one in ten Britons admitted to buying lunch every day Domino's Domino's has revealed its new plot to target Britain's towns and villages as it announced new plans to open 70 new stores this year Adverts released later this year will be aimed at promoting new big launches from the group, including the new 4 lunch offer. 'For the first time ever we're launching a 4 lunch deal that will be launched in the next couple of weeks,' boss Andrew Rennie said. The deal will include smaller items from the menu, including pizzas, wraps and cookies. The chief executive also said the business expects to be able to launch a loyalty programme for regular customers later this year. Mr Rennie said: 'I'm pretty confident based on what I'm seeing that it's going to be very strong. 'I'd be very surprised if we didn't find a way forward to launch it completely later in the year.' Pret a Manger Pret A Manger does not offer a meal deal - so there's no getting around the fact a bag of crisps costs 1.75, unless you have a 30-a-month Club Pret subscription At the start of 2023, Pret launched a time-limited meal deal offering a wrap and a bag of crisps for 5. But that deal has now gone and punters who want a freshly made wrap, sandwich or salad will have to pay a hefty premium compared to the factory-prepared dishes offered up elsewhere on the high street. Sandwiches start from around 3.60 and can cost as much as 6 - more if you choose to eat in, as VAT must be levied on the sandwich if you don't want to take it away. Drinks vary from 2.15 for a bottle of water all the way up to 5 for a green smoothie - or 2.99 for a bottle of orange juice. A bag of crisps is 1.75. Club Pret members can get a barista-made hot or cold drink free as one of their five free drinks each day, and 20 per cent off of their food bill - but it will still see them pay more than they would for a bundled meal deal elsewhere. Greggs Greggs, which had 2,473 outlets by the end of last year, has announced further expansion plans to open up to 160 stores in 2024. Pictured: A Greggs sausage roll Greggs offers a selection of varying meal deals, starting at 3.60 for a cold sandwich and regular hot/cold drink. Customers can also get a hot sandwich, wedges and drink from 4.95. The bakery also has as a selection of other snack and drink combinations ranging in price from 2.70 to 3.60. However, none of Greggs options offer the traditional sandwich, crisps and beverage combination. If one wanted all three, they would be spending a minimum of 4.30 for their lunch - 3.60 for the sandwich deal and 70p for crisps. Greggs does however offer a discount programme for students that gets them a free sausage roll, vegan roll or sweet treat with the purchase of a cold sandwich meal deal. Sainsbury's Sainsbury's now offers two tiers of meal deal - a 3.50 standard deal with sandwiches and wraps, as well as a 5 deal with Taste the Difference products and an optional hot drink Sainsbury's now offers one of the cheapest meal deals on the high street - 3.50 gets shoppers a sandwich, drink and a snack such as a bag of crisps, a fruit pot or chilled products like a Pepperami. Shoppers can opt for a traditional combination of sandwich and crisps or get a healthier product, such as a salad, with their lunch. The supermarket also offers a 5 meal deal, which upgrades the main to a premium Taste the Difference sandwich, salad or wrap - with the same range of drinks and snacks as its cheaper cousin. The 5 deal also includes the option of a hot drink from a Costa Express machine instead of a cold beverage. Tesco You can get a Tesco meal deal for less than one from Sainsbury's or Boots - as long as you have a Clubcard Poll What is your favouirte high street meal deal? Dominos Pret a Manger Greggs Tesco Sainsbury's Co-op Boots Asda Morrisons Waitrose Marks & Spencer Amazon Fresh What is your favouirte high street meal deal? Dominos 15 votes Pret a Manger 7 votes Greggs 19 votes Tesco 44 votes Sainsbury's 22 votes Co-op 8 votes Boots 9 votes Asda 4 votes Morrisons 3 votes Waitrose 15 votes Marks & Spencer 34 votes Amazon Fresh 1 votes Now share your opinion Tesco offers the same two-tier meal deal offered by the likes of Sainsbury's and Amazon Fresh - but with a perk if you happen to hold a Clubcard. The standard meal deal - with staple sandwiches, wraps and salads - is 3.90, or 3.40 on the Clubcard Prices promotion. Premium meal deals are 5.50, introducing nicer sandwiches and the likes of Yo! Sushi platters as mains. As with Sainsburys, the range of sides and drinks remains the same - the premium being paid for the nicer main course. Like Sainsbury's and Amazon, Tesco stores also offer hot drinks as an option in the meal deal, with drinks served from a Costa Express machine. Co-Op Co-Op's meal deal costs 4 for a main, snack and drink. Supermarket loyalty card holders members pay 3.50. The meal deal includes a vast selection of mains including sandwiches, salads, pasta and sushi. Some locations even offer soup or filled naan. The supermarket's also has a large variety of eligible snacks, including a cornish pasty. However, what makes Co-Op stand out from its rivals is the fact that students can use their 10 per cent discount at the till and save up to 40p on their lunch. Bridie thought the selection of sandwiches at Co-op was disappointing - but enjoyed the prawn crackers Boots The Boots meal deal has been a staple of the British high street for more than two decades and has spawned numerous copycat offers Boots is credited with inventing the British meal deal - and has continued to set the standard of cut-price lunches for decades with sandwiches, wraps, pasta pots and more at a fixed price. It has followed in the footsteps of shops such as Tesco by introducing members only prices for holders of its Advantage Card. Customers can pick up a main, snack and drink, with smoothies, energy drinks, crisps and healthier snacks included in the deal. A standard Boots meal deal is 3.99 (4.99 in London) - with the price cut to 3.60 (4.50 in London) with a swipe of a points card. The standard price of a Boots meal deal is 3.99. Customers who have signed up for the Boots Advantage Card loyalty scheme will get the deal for 3.60. Marks and Spencer M&S only offers meal deals at franchised stores - such as those found in transport hubs and service stations. Otherwise, expect to pay full price for wraps, salads and sandwiches M&S doesn't offer a meal deal at its normal shops - and only bundles certain sandwiches, drinks and snacks into 3.50 meal deals at franchised stores like those found at transport hubs and service stations. Otherwise, a balanced lunch of a ham and cheese sandwich (3.20), a bottle of orange juice (2.10) and a bag of crisps (1.05) will set a hungry shopper back 6.35. Expect to pay more for premium options or nicer sandwiches, from avocado and feta salads to salt beef deli rolls (4.75 each). Waitrose An example of a Waitrose meal deal which can be purchased from its shops for 5 In October 2023, Waitrose recently launched its first ever lunchtime meal deal to help families in the UK battle the cost-of-living crisis. The supermarket's customers can now get a sandwich, wrap, salad or sushi, as well as a snack and drink for 5. The upmarket chain was one of the only major supermarkets in the UK to not have their own meal deal. Amazon Fresh Amazon offers two tiers of meal deal at its Fresh stores - costing 3.90 and 5.50 apiece depending on the main course chosen The American online marketplace giant is slowly growing its chain of Amazon Fresh convenience shops across London. Fresh stores are known for their 'just walk out' gimmick, which sees shoppers scan a QR code tied to their Amazon account to walk in, before gathering their items while being monitored by an army of cameras and sensors. They then walk out the store and artificial intelligence is used to figure out what they have picked up, and charges the card on their Amazon profile. Like Sainsbury's, Amazon offers two tiers of meal deal, each of which comes with a main, drink and snack such as crisps, chocolate or even chewing gum. The 3.90 deal that includes sandwiches, wraps and salads, while the 5.50 deal includes premium cold dishes such as sushi platters and poke bowls. But Amazon also offers some hot food, including hot wraps and sausage rolls, as both mains and snacks - as well as hot drinks, which can be made with oat milk. Cancer-stricken King Charles was seen waving to cheering royal fans from the back of his car on The Mall today. Buckingham Palace announced last month that the 75-year-old monarch had been diagnosed with an unspecified type of cancer, which had been picked up after doctors treated an enlarged prostate. Footage today shows the public shouting and waving at the King as he sat in the back seat of the vehicle surrounded by security. The monarch can then be seen smiling and waving to the crowd as the car drives along the Mall. Charles's brief appearance today follows his vow to the Commonwealth this week to 'continue to serve you, to the best of my ability' as he continues his treatment. It comes as the Royal Family grapples with the fallout from the Princess of Wales's Mother's Day photoshop blunder, which saw Kate take the blame for a manipulated photograph released by Kensington Palace. Kate issued a public apology for the 'confusion', with royal commentators suggesting the Princess 'must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public'. King Charles was seen waving to cheering royal fans from the back of his car King Charles this week vowed to the Commonwealth to 'continue to serve you, to the best of my ability' as he continues his treatment for cancer In a video message for Commonwealth Day that was recorded at Windsor Castle, Charles thanked people for their 'wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes' over his cancer diagnosis. The King said: 'In recent weeks, I have been most deeply touched by your wonderfully kind and thoughtful good wishes for my health and, in return, can only continue to serve you, to the best of my ability, throughout the Commonwealth.' The video was played at Westminster Abbey to mark Commonwealth Day. Charles has taken a step back from public engagements, with other members of the Royal family including his strength and stay Queen Camilla stepping up to the plate. But since the move - which saw him miss his second cousin King Constantine of Greece's memorial service at Windsor Castle - the King has been filling his time having afternoon tea with supportive friends and gardening. The Princess of Wales has also stepped away from the spotlight as she continues to recover from abdominal surgery. Royal commentator Jennie Bond suggested Kate 'must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public' after her major surgery in January. Also rallying round Kate today was royal expert Angela Levin who praised her for being 'honourable' following the photo blunder. And Whoopi Goldberg urged the public to show restraint, saying: 'She may be the future Queen (but) she's still an amateur photographer.' Despite calls for the original image to be published, Kensington Palace insisted it would not be reissuing the unedited photograph of Kate and her children. On Sunday, Kensington Palace released the first picture of the Princess of Wales since surgery And Ms Bond cautioned against 'bullying her into putting out all the images', adding that the 42-year-old mother-of-three would be feeling 'absolutely miserable'. She said that Kate's Mother's Day was 'obviously ruined by this row' and she 'didn't look that happy' when photographed in a car with William. Ms Bond told GB News: 'We are in danger of bullying a lady who is trying to recover from a very serious operation. I think of how she must be feeling this morning. Absolutely miserable, I think. 'Her Mother's Day was obviously ruined by this row. She was photographed yesterday in the car with William. From what we can see, she didn't look that happy, she must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public. 'The pressure has doubled and redoubled. I think she's in a fragile mental and physical state. And we should lay off her.' The family of a Missouri 15-year-old girl who was brutally beaten by another teen has spoken out, sharing her picture and saying she has suffered severe brain damage. The victim, identified only as Kaylee, is fighting for life in critical condition - with a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage - after her head was repeatedly smashed into the ground during a brawl near Hazelwood East High School on Friday. The family wrote in a GoFundMe: 'In minutes, this family's life shattered when their only daughter was assaulted outside of a North County high school. She was left alone on the ground to convulse before EMTs arrived on the scene. 'She has major brain bleeding and swelling and is in critical condition. We will not know the extinct of the brain damage that has occurred until she wakes up but the path to recovery will be extremely hard on the family, not only mentally but financially. Her mother and father are staying by her side night and day hoping to bring her back to the Kaylee they know and love.' Kaylee's family added that the funds collected on the GoFundMe will be use towards 'easing these stressful days, allowing Kaylee's family to be able to be there 100% for her day and night and help with the medical bills that they foresee.' The victim, identified only as Kaylee is fighting for life in critical condition, with a skull fracture and frontal lobe damage A Missouri teen is in critical condition after being caught up in a brawl by a local high school The donation page has collected over $16,000 of its $40,000 goal. Meanwhile Attorney General Andrew Bailey has called on the 15-year-old girl who beat another teen's head into concrete to be tried as an adult. Bailey announced on X: 'This evil and complete disregard for human life has no place in Missouri, or anywhere. I am praying for the victim. 'The criminal should be charged and tried as an adult. If the victim dies, that offense should rise to a homicide.' Hazelwood East High School students were forced to leave early Monday after police say they are investigating multiple threats over the viral video showing the fight. The altercation broke out at about 2:30 pm Friday near Hazelwood High School. The Missouri Attorney General is calling on the 15-year-old girl who beat another teen's head into concrete to be tried as an adult Video of the incident circulated on social media showing another girl bashing the teen's head into the concrete after throwing multiple punches and sending her careening to the ground. The victim appeared to begin to have a seizure as groups of other teens brawled just feet away. Police found the girl suffering from a serious head injury near the intersection of Norgate Drive and Claudine Drive, roughly a five-minute walk from the high school campus. The teen, whose name has not been released, was taken to the hospital and remains in critical condition. A 15-year-old girl was arrested Saturday and charged with assault. She was taken to the St. Louis County Family Court and remained in custody as of Sunday afternoon. The St. Louis County Police Department is investigating the incident. Viral video shows another teen smashing her head into the pavement repeatedly before the victim appears to suffer a seizure Police found the girl suffering from a serious head injury near the intersection of Norgate Drive and Claudine Drive. The fight broke out just off campus from Hazelwood East High School The Hazelwood School District issued a statement denouncing bullying and fighting within the community After news of the altercation broke, the Hazelwood School District released a statement condemning violence within the community. 'It is a tragedy anytime children are hurt,' the statement read. 'Bullying and fighting in the community is an issue for which we all need to take ownership and work towards a resolution for the sake of our children. 'The Hazelwood School District offers our sincerest condolences to everyone involved and will offer additional emotional support from our support and crisis team to those in need.' The statement urged community members to respect the families of those involved and 'pledge to help work toward the betterment of our entire community.' The district recently came under fire for disenrolling more than three dozen middle schoolers in late February and early March. The school districts public relations director, Jordyn Elston, told STLPR that the students were ejected because of 'expired residency information.' Of the 40 students who received letters informing them of the district's decision, thirty-eight were re-enrolled within a week after providing updated information, the district said. The parents of a 12-year-old girl who was killed in a helicopter crash nearly four years ago are are suing the company of the pilot, who also died in the tragedy. The Robinson R44 broke up in mid-air and plummeted to the ground in Broome, Western Australia, on July 4, 2020, killing Amber Jess Millar and local pilot and tourism operator Troy Thomas, and seriously injuring two others. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau's (ATSB) report on the crash, which was released in April, found Mr Thomas' 'high-risk appetite' may have contributed to his decision to fly despite failing to identify the source of unusual mechanical vibrations. The findings suggested Mr Thomas had a history of deliberately taking risks such as flying with too many passengers and flying low without required qualifications. The West Australian reported that Amber's parents, Fiona and Clint Benbow, began civil proceedings over their daughter's death on Wednesday. Amber Jess Millar is pictured (centre) with her parents Clint (left) and Fiona Benbow (right) They are suing a company called Avanova, the director of which is Troy Thomas' widow, Sophie Thomas. The Thomas' daughter Mia was also seriously injured in the crash, along with teaching assistant Maddison Down. Speaking to ABC radio when the ATSB report came out, Mr Benbow said 'the findings are beyond disturbing and it confirms Amber's death was totally preventable on numerous levels, which highlight a complete disregard for aviation safety.' He said waiting for answers over the years since the tragedy had been excruciating. 'It's been the most drawn-out, painful, soul-destroying experience because obviously being classified you can't talk about the detail that's been gathered through the investigation.' Pilots had previously reported vibrations in the helicopter's tail rotor pedals. The Robinson R44 broke up in mid-air and plummeted to the ground in Broome, WA on July 4, 2020, killing Amber Jess Millar and local pilot and tourism operator Troy Thomas (pictured), and seriously injuring two others The parents of Amber Millar (pictured) are suing a company called Avanova, the director of which is helicopter pilot Troy Thomas' widow, Sophie Thomas The ATSB report found an overstress fracture caused the tail rotor gearbox to separate from the body of the helicopter shortly after takeoff. But no one officially reported the issue via a maintenance release form, which meant the aircraft could still be used. Mr Benbow slammed the failure, saying it could have prevented deaths. 'If the maintenance document had been used, regardless of what was said verbally, it would have taken someone's authorised signature to bring that helicopter back into service,' he said. 'And that form was not used at all.' As well as Thomas' widow, the Benbow's are suing Avanova's operations manager Bryce McGlashan, who was also a pilot and who had flown the faulty helicopter a few weeks before the fatal crash. The parents are also suing Pearl Coast Heli Maintenance, a company that carried out tests on the helicopter. Amber's 'dear friend' Mia Thomas (pictured, centre, with her mum Sophie, left) survived the horror crash that killed her father Troy Thomas (right) Teaching assistant Maddison Down (pictured) was injured in the 2020 helicopter crash in which two people died In Perth's District Court on Wednesday, the six separate cases - three each taken by Amber's parents - were brought together by registrar Tania Jeyamohan, with the case set to return to court in May. The civil lawsuits were lodged after Western Australia coroner Michael Jenkin last year refused to hold an inquest into Amber's death. Mr Jenkin told her parents that he had enough evidence to make his findings about the death without holding an inquest. The family was distraught at that decision, later saying 'We want to know what it takes in Australia for Governments and their agencies to take the loss of life seriously enough to take action'. Two best friends who tried to smuggle 13,000 worth of ketamine and Ecstasy into a top music festival after travelling together 300 miles from their homes in Scotland were behind bars today. Andrew Rankin and James Jones, both 25 and fathers of young children were arrested on the first day of the Creamfields festival in Cheshire after hiding their haul inside a crate of Strongbow fruit cider. A police sniffer dog led officers to five empty cans in the crate which were found to be stuffed with 514 tablets of MDMA valued at 5,140 and 197 wraps of ketamine, valued at more than 8,000. The arrests of Rankin and Jones, both of Dundee occurred on August 25, 2022 - the day Lucy George, 25 was rushed to Warrington District General Hospital after taking half an ecstasy tablet, along with vodka and nitrous oxide at Creamfields. Best friends Andrew Rankin, left, pictured with James Jones, right, attempted to smuggle 13,000 having travelled more than 300 miles from Scotland to the Creamfields festival Rankin, a 25-year old father, was today jailed for three days having admitting two counts of possessing class A and class B drugs with intent to supply Jones, also 25, was also jailed for three years after admitting possession of Class A and Class B drugs with intent to supply Lucy, from Neath, South Wales who was due to start a job as flight attendant with Virgin Atlantic died later from multiple organ failure. Police arrested 125 people during the four-day event at Daresbury and seized almost 90,000 worth of drugs. When quizzed about their own drugs haul Rankin who lives in the East Marketgait area of Dundee said he was paying off a drug debt, while Jones of neighbouring Stobswell said he was in a 'dark place' following the death of his father. At Chester Crown both men were jailed for three years after they admitted two charges of possessing class A and class B drugs with intent to supply. Peter Hussey, counsel for the prosecution, said: 'Both turned up on the first day of the 2022 Creamfields festival and were immediately stopped by the entrance by a police sniffer dog. Officers then took them to the search area and with them was a crate of cans of cider. A police sniffer dog led officers to five empty cans in the crate which were found to be stuffed with 514 tablets of MDMA valued at 5,140 and 197 wraps of ketamine, valued at more than 8,000 Lucy George, who was about to start training to become a flight attendant, died of multiple organ failure in Warrington District General Hospital after taking half an ecstasy tablet, along with vodka and nitrous oxide at Creamfields 'Looking at the cans of cider it was evident that among them, five were somewhat different and on closer examination the tops appeared to be unscrewed and screwed back on again. When those were opened there was found a large quantity of ecstasy tablets and a large quantity of ketamine wraps. The two defendants were arrested and interviewed. 'Jones exercised his right to silence throughout. Rankin gave a prepared statement in which he denied the existence of drugs or any connection to them. He made no comment to all questions put to him. 'Both their mobile phones were examined and on Jones's mobile phone, there were a number of messages during the month of August prior to attendance at Creamfields which demonstrated concern in the buying and supply of drugs. 'They demonstrated his intention to go to Creamfields with the drugs. The messages referred to the top of the cider cans in which the drugs were being hidden and messaging that the cans were sealed. Both men went down there knowing full well what they were doing.' Sheridan died last Wednesday aged just 32 after several days in intensive care Heartbroken family members and friends of Nick Sheridan today bid their final farewell to the late BBC Scotland presenter as he was laid to rest in a touching ceremony in his native Ireland. Sheridan's funeral mass is taking place at St Ibar's Church in his home county of Wexford, where his wicker coffin was seen adorned with a colourful wreath and a pair of framed pictures displaying the broadcaster in his youth. It was laid there by a group of six sombre-looking pallbearers who earlier unloaded the simple casket from a hearse outside the small, understated 19th-century church. The children's author and journalist, who was best known for presenting shows including Drivetime and Reporting Scotland, was out jogging when he collapsed after suffering a brain aneurysm. He died last Wednesday aged just 32 after several days in intensive care, surrounded by family. The parish priest told mourners gathered at St Ibar's Church that the BBC Scotland team were watching the mass on a livestream organised by Sheridan's friends, while BBC Radio Scotland presenter Fiona Stalker attended in person. During the eulogy, Sheridan's older brother Brian described him as a 'talented and generous soul' who was 'a calming voice' in the family but who also 'loved the craic the most'. He continued: 'Nick epitomised everything that is good in life - family, friendship, creativity, and most of all kindness.' He said the family were 'so proud' of the journalist's career success and added: 'Despite Nick's humility, his creative talents knew no bounds. An accomplished author, Nick's fifth book will be released in the coming months. '(Sheridan) spent every free moment of his childhood typing up and hand-delivering local news bulletins and creating short stories, all of which contributed to his success as an author in recent years. 'Singing and music were Nick's greatest gifts, whether performing the lead role in stage musicals or singing in this church at Christmas, his talent shone through and never failed to capture his audience.' Family members and mourners leave the funeral of TV presenter and journalist Nick Sheridan, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Mr Sheridan died aged 32 after a 'short illness'. Picture date: Wednesday March 13, 2024 Nick Sheridan's brother Brian (front left) helps carry the casket from the funeral of TV presenter and journalist, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Mr Sheridan died aged 32 after a 'short illness' BBC Radio Scotland presenter Fiona Stalker at the funeral of TV presenter and journalist, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge Sheridan's funeral mass is taking place at St Ibar's Church in his home county of Wexford, where his wicker coffin was seen adorned with flowers and pictures of the broadcaster Pall bearers carry the casket at the funeral of TV presenter and journalist Nick Sheridan Pall bearers carry the casket at the funeral of TV presenter and journalist Nick Sheridan, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Mr Sheridan died aged 32 after a 'short illness'. Picture date: Wednesday March 13, 2024 The journalist, from Wexford in Ireland, was on a run when he is said to have suddenly collapsed again after suffering a suspected aneurysm, after also being admitted to hospital last week BBC Scotland announced his passing on social media, with the BBC reporting Sheridan died after a 'short illness' Pictured: Sheridan posting footage from a run on his Instagram Journalist Robbie Armstrong posted this photo of Mr Sheridan sat on a seawall with running gear on and said his friend had been 'taken far too early from a world you gave your absolute everything to' The journalist's brother added: 'To Nick's friends gathered here today, know that however much you loved him, you were loved back as much and more. 'Our family has lost its guiding star, but we are so grateful to have had Nick in our lives for 32 years. 'His star will continue to shine brightly down on us and we will never forget the amazing person he was and is.' The Seamus Heaney poem The Given Note was read out during the funeral mass, marking the interest both sides of Sheridan's family have for music and the written word. During the prayers of the faithful, the staff at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow were mentioned for the care they gave to Sheridan, as were the students at the University of the West of Scotland where he had lectured. Prayers were also offered for peace around the world, particularly in Ukraine, the Holy Land and other conflicts. BBC Scotland announced Sheridan's passing on social media last week, with the BBC reporting Sheridan died after a 'short illness'. Prior to securing a presenting role, Sheridan had been the consumer affairs correspondent for BBC Scotland News. First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf led tributes to Sheridan last week as he began his weekly questions in the Scottish Parliament chamber, describing him as a 'extremely talented journalist and author'. Journalist Robbie Armstrong posted a photo of Mr Sheridan sat on a seawall with running gear on and said his friend had been 'taken far too early from a world you gave your absolute everything to'. He added: 'You brought happiness into every moment that I had the sheer luck to share with you; you shone light into my darkest moments; you gave me laughter when there were tears; you believed in me when I didn't believe in myself. 'I'll cherish the swims, the many pizzas we shared (even the monstrosity that was the meat-pizza!), the nonsensical voice notes, the pure craic and the razor wit.' He spoke about camping trips that they shared together and 'falling asleep under the stars'. Mr Armstrong also shared footage of his friend singing in a pub and wrote: 'I twice saw you bring a bar into stunned silence by singing the Wexford Rebellion song Boolavogue in your angelic voice to rapturous applause. 'You were a joy to behold and a precious gift to this world. I'm utterly heartbroken and lost without you.' Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also paid tribute to the 'talented and vivacious' star today, while his colleagues at the broadcaster remembered him as a 'lovely man'. He is best known for presenting Drivetime, Lunchtime Live and the Sunday Show. He later wrote a book series for children which included The Case of the Runaway Brain and The Case of the Phantom Treasure. On Thursday lunchtime, BBC Reporting Scotland aired a tribute to Mr Sheridan, consisting of a black and white picture of him along with his years of life. A minute's silence for him was also held at BBC Scotland offices, it was reported. The presenter's last post on X dated February 24 read: 'On air from 8am with your weekend edition of Good Morning Scotland, reflecting on 2 years since Putin's order for a Russian invasion of Ukraine.' His last post on X dated February 24 read: 'On air from 8am with your weekend edition of Good Morning Scotland, reflecting on 2 years since Putin's order for a Russian invasion of Ukraine' Sheridan's co-host Fiona Stalker from BBC Scotland and Seven Days posted a touching tribute BBC Scotland presenter Nick Sheridan pictured on holiday Head of News and Current Affairs at BBC Scotland Gary Smith said in a statement: 'Nick has been a wonderful colleague. He was a hugely talented journalist, presenter and author and one of those rare people who light up the lives of everyone around them. 'Funny, clever, kind. A lovely man. 'Our hearts go out to his parents, to his partner, and to all his family and friends.' Sheridan reported for Ireland's national broadcaster RTE News, before moving to Glasgow, and presenting STV News and the BBC. First Minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf paid tribute to Sheridan as he began his weekly questions in the Scottish Parliament chamber, describing him as a 'extremely talented journalist and author,' Sky News reported. 'He will be greatly missed. Many of us in this chamber will have been questioned by Nick - quite robustly no doubt - whether it was on BBC Drivetime or on many of the other programmes that he presented. 'My thoughts are with his family, his many friends and indeed his colleagues. It will undoubtedly be a very sad time for them.' Nicola Sturgeon posted on X: 'So terribly sad to read this. It is truly awful. Nick was young, talented, vivacious, and full of potential. What a horrible, senseless loss. My thoughts are with his family, colleagues and many friends.' Sheridan's co-host Fiona Stalker from BBC Scotland and Seven Days posted a touching tribute with photos of the pair. She wrote: 'There are no words. He was so very loved. I am so thankful for every minute with him. The very best.' Kelly Given, who was on Channel 4's Make Me Prime Minister before working at the BBC alongside Sheridan, said: 'Working with Nick was truly the pleasure of a lifetime. 'An absolute joy of a human being and a uniquely talented journalist. I'm not sure I will ever have the words.' Mr Sheridan had an illustrious career in media at RTE, STV and BBC Scotland Sheridan reported for Ireland's national broadcaster RTE News, before moving to Glasgow Pictured are Nick Sheridan and BBC Co-Presenter Fiona Stalker After Sheridan's passing was announced, Nicola Sturgeon led the tributes to the 'talented' star Fiona Stalker wrote on X: 'There are no words. He was so very loved. I am so thankful for every minute with him. The very best' Nicola Sturgeon posted on X: 'So terribly sad to read this. It is truly awful. Nick was young, talented, vivacious, and full of potential. What a horrible, senseless loss' Brian O'Donovan of RTE News said: 'So saddened by this. Nick was a great colleague and a talented broadcaster.' BBC journalist Michael Sheils Mcnamee said: 'Very shocking news. Nick was a lovely guy and a pleasure to work with.' Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar posted on X: 'This is absolutely heartbreaking news. 'Nick was a phenomenally talented young journalist, well-liked and with a bright future ahead of him. 'My thoughts are with his family, friends and all his colleagues at the BBC.' Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tories leader, wrote on X: 'This is terribly sad news. Nick was a superb journalist who embodied the best traditions of journalism. 'My thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time.' Fans also expressed their grief at the news, with one commenting: 'I liked him on the couch and presenting the News. He was a natural in front of the camera. So sad to hear this.' Sheridan was working on his upcoming fourth book, which tragically he won't see published in June of this year. Titled 'The Case of the Poisonous Pigs', it will be the third in a series hailed as the 'Scooby-Doo for a new generation'. His excitement for the project shined through in his posts on X, with one in January reading: 'Getting an email with illustrations for Book 4 by the incredible David O'Connell' accompanied by a Muppet GIF and emojis. His literary agency posted on X in tribute to the author and presenter: 'We are all heartbroken that our client Nick Sheridan passed away yesterday after a short illness. 'Nick was a talented author and a much-loved colleague and we will all miss him deeply. Our thoughts are with his partner, his family, his friends and his loved ones.' His agent Lydia Silver added: 'I'm devastated by the news that my client Nick Sheridan died yesterday. 'Nick was a brilliant author who loved writing for children, and a great friend. He lit up every room he walked into and was a joy to be around. My thoughts are with everyone who loved him.' The Scottish Book Trust said in a tribute: 'We are deeply saddened to learn that our friend Nick Sheridan has died. 'A talented author and host, we worked with Nick on Authors Live and our children's book tour. He had the ability to bring joy to everyone he met. Our hearts go out to Nick's family, partner and friends.' Boeing's repeat issues have now caused its stock to all the furthest behind rival Airbus in its history The Alaska Airlines Boeing jet that saw a plug door blow out at 16,000 feet was scheduled for an emergency safety check that same day, it has been revealed. The airliner's engineers were concerned about two warning alerts that sounded in the days before the doomed flight on January 5, but it remained in service as it takes three warnings to trigger more aggressive action. Rather than take the Boeing 737 Max 9 out of service, the airliner decided it should embark on three more flights the next day that would end in Portland, Oregon, the site of an Alaska Airlines maintenance facility. A New York Times investigation found that the airliner chose to keep the plane in service with hundreds of passengers despite the warning alerts, which the company insists may have been unrelated to the plug door blowing out. The revelation comes at the same time Boeing jets have come under mounting scrutiny for issues with several airliners in recent weeks, and the apparent suicide of safety issue whistleblower John Barnett on Saturday. On January 5, this plug door blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight from Portland, Oregon to California at 16,000ft It has been revealed that engineers warned the plane needed emergency servicing, which the airliner decided to do only after it took three more flights ferrying several hundred passengers Boeing's share price dropped by billions in the wake of the incident, and the company's stock has fallen the furthest behind rival Airbus in its history The mounting issues have included a LATAM Airways flight from Sydney, Australia on Monday that suffered a terrifying mid-air drop that left up to 50 people injured, a week after a United Airlines engine caught fire over Texas. The week between those two incidents also saw a wheel fall off a Boeing jet in San Francisco, crushing cars below, and a United Airlines plane veer off a Houston Airport runway after suffering an apparent gear collapse. In the wake of the Alaska Airlines door blowout, Boeing's market value dropped by over $38 billion. This was exacerbated by the alleged self-inflicted gunshot suicide of whistleblower John Barnett, 62, this week, after he had been testifying over production line issues. His death shed another $4 billion in value overnight. Two days after Barnett's death, a United Airlines Boeing jet was again forced into an emergency landing in Sydney after a fuel leak during takeoff. The repeat incidents have seen the company's fortunes continue to suffer, with Boeing stock falling the furthest behind its main competitor, Airbus, in its history this week, reports Bloomberg. While it was not a decision made by Boeing, the calamitous door blowout on January 5 has come under scrutiny again following the revelation the plane continued flying despite calls for emergency maintenance. The Boeing jet had only been in service for a few months, and had sounded two alarms in the days before the incident warning of issues with the plane's pressurization system. However, the airline said it takes three warnings in that span to trigger more direct action, and it was decided that the plane could carry several hundred more passengers before it went in for checks. Former Boeing Quality Manager John Barnett, 62, died from an alleged self-inflicted gunshot wound on Saturday. His death shed $4 billion from Boeing's share price overnight A 256lb wheel fell from another jet shortly after takeoff in San Francisco a week ago, crushing several vehicles below in another near-miss that didn't result in any injuries On Monday, a United Boeing jet bound for San Francisco (seen here) was forced to land after fuel was filmed spewing from its landing gear moments after take off One week ago, heart-stopping video has caught the moment a Boeing jet's engines exploded and burst into flames in the skies above Texas forcing an emergency landing The airline also reportedly insisted that the warnings did not meet the level required for it to be taken out of service, and has said there is no evidence the warning lights were related to the door blowout. 'From my perspective as the safety guy, looking at all the data, all the leading indicators, there was nothing that would drive me to make a different decision,' Max Tidwell, the vice president for safety and security for Alaska Airlines, told the New York Times. Yet, the warnings were enough to concern engineers, and they called for the jet to undergo urgent security checks on January 5 to determine the cause of the warnings with the use of a 'predictive tool.' The airliner agreed to send it for servicing, but decided it should carry three more flights between then, although it did slap some restrictions on the plane. This included banning the plane from any long-haul flights over water such as trans-Atlantic flights, or to any remote destinations in case of the need for an emergency landing. The plug door blew out on the second of the three extra scheduled flights. Engineers had also been reportedly collecting evidence of a potential problem for weeks before the near-disaster, and the warning sign was not the only issue. The plug door had also reportedly been gradually sliding upward, however the airliner claimed that visual inspections did not show any significant movement. Alaska Airline said two warning alerts sounded in the days before the doomed flight, although it takes three warnings for them to take more aggressive action In a follow-up investigation, the airliner's CEO Ben Minicucci said the company found four 'loose bolts' on several other of its 737 Ma 9's. A billion-dollar lawsuit has since been launched by passengers on the Alaska Airlines flight, which attorney mark Lindquist said has been bolstered by the findings that engineers had warned about vulnerabilities beforehand. 'When jurors find out theyd actually been cautioned by engineers to ground the plane and they put it into commercial rotation instead, jurors will be more than mystified theyll be angry,' he told the Times. Lindquist's lawsuit claims that passengers on a previous flight heard a 'whistling sound' from the door plug, but reports to the pilot were never found in any records. A separate issue had also been found on December 31 relating to the front passenger entry and exit doors, which took the jet out of service for three days. The day after it returned on January 2, one of the pressurization warning lights was triggered, which engineers inspected and decided it could continue flying. The next warning light came the next day, leading engineers to order the plane be fully checked on January 5 - which the airline decided to keep running for the three further flights. More anti-terrorism U.S. Marines have been dispatched to Haiti to beef up security at the American embassy 24 hours after the country's prime minister announced his resignation amid mounting chaos. The elite Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team (F.A.S.T) was sent in as bedlam continued and after top gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier called for a 'bloody revolution'. Ariel Henry stepped down as prime minister on Tuesday as the Caribbean nation was pushed to the brink of civil war and bodies were left strewn in the streets. On Wednesday, the European Union said it is sending humanitarian aid worth 20 million euros ($21.8 million) to Haiti. A U.S. Marines anti-terrorism unit has been sent to Haiti to beef up security at the American embassy 24 hours after the prime minister announced his resignation The new team was dispatched as gang violence continued to cause bedlam on the streets and after gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier called for a 'bloody revolution' 'An unprecedented level of gang violence is dramatically increasing humanitarian needs across the country,' European Commission spokesman Balazs Ujvari said. 'The funding will help humanitarian partners to address the most urgent needs of the population.' Henry agreed to step down in a bid to staunch spiraling violence that has left public services shattered and many people displaced. Gangs who rule much of the capital Port-au-Prince had demanded Henry's departure after they launched a series of attacks on police stations, prisons and other infrastructure. In a blow to international efforts to stabilize the country, Kenya on Tuesday said it was pausing plans to spearhead a multinational police mission backed by the United Nations. Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills (fourth from left) evacuated 10 U.S. citizens who were working at the Have Faith Orphanage at Port-au-Prince Mills (pictured on board a helicopter during the rescue mission) slammed the Biden administration for a 'pattern of abandonment' of U.S. citizens Heavily-armed gangs have been in firefights with cops and soldiers, tried to seize the airport and targeted government sites. The U.S. Southern Command said F.A.S.T. was deployed to the embassy in the nation's capital, Port-au-Prince. The embassy is still open, but most staff have been airlifted out and operations are limited. 'U.S. Southern Command is prepared with a wide range of contingency plans to ensure the safety and security of U.S. Citizens in Haiti,' U.S. Southern Command said. A Republican congressman has helped rescue Americans stranded during the violence and slammed the Biden administration for a 'pattern of abandonment' of U.S. citizens. Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills evacuated 10 U.S. citizens who were working at the Have Faith Orphanage at Port-au-Prince. 'This mission reiterates a disturbing reality under President Biden's leadership: American lives are continually jeopardized,' Mills said. 'I have led missions to rescue Americans multiple times when Joe Biden has deserted them. 'There's a clear pattern of abandonment,' Mills said, citing his rescue missions in Afghanistan during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. He also safely evacuated Americans from Israel in late 2023. 'Yet again, this group was left behind by Biden and his State Department after requesting their help in-country Heavily-armed gangs have been in firefights with cops and soldiers, tried to seize the airport and targeted government sites Gangs are believed to be in control of around 80 percent of the capital Gang leader 'Barbecue', a former police officer, has claimed responsibility for the surge in violence. Gangs are believed to be in control of around 80 percent of the capital. More than 200 gangs are estimated to operate around Haiti, mostly in Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas. More than 20 of them are based in the capital and rally around two main coalitions: G9 Family and Allies led by 'Barbecue'; and G-Pep, led by Gabriel Jean-Pierre, who is allied with Johnson Andre, leader of the 5 Seconds gang and known as 'Izo.' Henry had been unable to enter Haiti because the violence forced the closure of its airports. He arrived a week ago in Puerto Rico, where he announced his resignation in a recorded statement. Gen Z is panicking after hearing about the government vote on whether to outlaw TikTok in the US. American influencers have scrambled to share what they say 'could by my final post' after receiving a worrying alert about the House of Representatives vote. Describing herself as a 'panicked influencer' in a video with almost 250K likes, one creator said: 'We might have to part our ways and say farewell tomorrow because what the actual freak?' The bill would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban. It's widely expected to pass in the House, but the bill would also need approval from the Senate and the president to come into effect. The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to U.S. national security concerns about China, from connected vehicles to advanced artificial intelligence chips to cranes at U.S. ports. Gen Z is panicking after hearing about the government vote on whether to outlaw TikTok in the US The vote is scheduled for 10am under fast-track rules that require support by two-thirds of House members for the measure to pass. Lawmakers will need to choose between moving to eliminate the potential national security threat the Chinese-owned app poses, and limiting freedom of expression of its users along with a competitor to major social media giants like Facebook. TikTok creators have been sharing the alert they got from the app about the bill, warning them that it puts 'the community you love at risk'. The alert comes with a button prompting users to call their congressman to try to persuade them against voting the bill through. One influencer filmed herself calling the number for her local congressman and complaining to them that the proposed bill is 'unfair'. 'I strongly believe that you guys should not pass this law,' she says on the phone. 'There are many people that have quit their jobs to become full time content creators and I just hope that this doesn't really happen... 'It's 12am and I just can't sleep thinking about this law.' 'When I'm old an miserable and telling my grandkids about all the reasons why I hate the world, THIS is going to be the reason why I hate the federal government,' another influencer fumed. However, the creator goes on to say 'we're not actually cooked yet' because the process of voting the bill into law 'is going to take at least forever because there's a lot of old people in this process'. Another influencer mocked fellow TikTokers with a caption saying 'this could be my final post' with a broken heart emoji, while stressing that even if passed, the bill gives ByteDance six months to divest its assets to the US. 'Use that time to build up on another platform!!!' she urges her followers in the video liked 10K times. American influencers have scrambled to share what they say 'could by my final post' after receiving a worrying alert about the House of Representatives vote The bill would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban Gen Z is panicking after hearing about the government vote on whether to outlaw TikTok in the US The bill would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew (pictured) will visit Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said. The vote comes just over a week since the bill was proposed following one public hearing with little debate, and after action in Congress had stalled for more than a year. Last month, President Joe Biden's re-election campaign joined TikTok, raising hopes among Tiktok officials that legislation was unlikely this year. The House Energy and Commerce Committee last week voted 50-0 in favor of the bill, setting it up for a vote before the full House. But the bill faces a more uncertain path in the U.S. Senate where some senators favor a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps that could pose security concerns. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has not indicated how he plans to proceed. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will visit Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said. 'This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States,' the company said. 'The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression,' it added. Biden said last week that he would sign the bill. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday the goal was ending Chinese ownership, not banning TikTok. Describing herself as a 'panicked influencer' in a video with almost 250K likes, one creator said: 'We might have to part our ways and say farewell tomorrow because what the actual freak?' TikTok influencers are not happy about the vote going through the House today 'When I'm old an miserable and telling my grandkids about all the reasons why I hate the world, THIS is going to be the reason why I hate the federal government,' another influencer fumed President Joe Biden said last week that he would sign the bill against TikTok being used in the US 'Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok - children's data, adults data - to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China?' he said. It is unclear whether China would approve any sale or if TikTok's U.S. assets could be divested in six months. If ByteDance failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet's Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts. In recent days he had raised concerns about a ban. It remains unclear if Tencent's WeChat or other high-profile Chinese-owned apps could face a ban under the legislation. Any forced TikTok divestment from the U.S. would almost certainly face legal challenges, which the company would need to file within 165 days of the bill being signed by the president. In November, a U.S. judge blocked a Montana state ban on TikTok use after the company sued. President Joe Biden did not get the typical polling bump after his State of the Union address last week and his approval now sits at a new low of 37.4 percent. The new surveys come as Biden and former President Donald Trump both reached the number of delegates needed for their respective parties for the nomination in 2024 in Tuesday's primary elections. This means there will be a rematch between the two geriatrics in November despite the majority of Americans saying they don't want that. A Yahoo News/YouGov survey conducted the few days after Biden's speech to a joint session of Congress on Thursday shows the current president's chances against Trump actually diminished following his fiery remarks. Before the speech, Trump was up 45 percent to 44 percent against Biden in the poll taken in late January. While the latest taken March 8-11 is still within the polling margin of error and equates to a statistical tie, Trump is now at 46 percent to Biden's 44 percent in a hypothetical general election matchup. Post-State of the Union polling shows that President Joe Biden did not get a boost in the hypothetical general election matchup with Donald Trump after his 'fiery' speech Biden, 81, was passionate throughout his State of the Union on Tuesday and took several hit at his 'predecessor' and Republicans in the chamber. But his age was still on display as he coughed, mumbled and stumbled over some parts of his speech The same poll shows Biden's approval rating dipped from 40 percent to 39 percent pre and post speech. His disapproval went from 56 percent to 55 percent. But a FiveThirtyEight average shows the number of Americans who approve of Biden's job as president has dipped to a new all-time low of 37.4 percent. A post-State of the Union HarrisX poll puts Biden's approval at a flat 37 percent and disapproval at 58 percent. But among those in that survey who did watch the State of the Union, 13 percent more approved of Biden's job as president compared to those who did not tune-in. In previous years, State of the Union addresses were a way for presidents to try and appeal to everyone and oftentimes there was a polling bump associated with the remarks. For example, Trump's approval jumped a few percent after his 2019 address in February of that year. Before his State of the Union his approval was sitting around 37 percent, according to Gallup polling. But after the remarks the same polling showed the then-president jumped to 44 percent. Another poll taken after Biden's remarks to a joint session of Congress shows the president's approval rating at a new low of 37 percent Overall, Biden's last address of his first term wasn't exactly the reset the White House was hoping for amid low approval and increased criticism over the president's age and fitness for office. Fifty-one percent of those who watched the State of the Union say Biden seemed 81, according to the YouGov poll. Another 24 percent say he seemed 'older' than they expected. Only 17 percent say he came off 'not as old.' Most polling over the last year shows Americans don't want Biden and Trump, 77, as the two options in the 2024 presidential election. But after Tuesday's primary elections in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state, that's exactly the general election ballot Americans will be presented with come November. A man has been ordered to tear down cladding he put up outside his home after a council ruled it looks 'highly unsympathetic'. Tim Stephenson erected the insulated cladding outside his family home in Corsham, Wiltshire, but it failed to meet the conditions of planning permission. Wiltshire Council points to problems with its 'vivid' colour and adds that the extra layer behind the render means 'walls project further than the eaves of the roof and the coping stones on the verges'. Have YOU had a similar experience? Email jack.wright@mailonline.co.uk Mr Stephenson says Wiltshire Council has only given him six months to remove the cladding from his home. He described the situation as 'very stressful' and he had ensured weeks of 'barely sleeping.' He said: 'You don't wish to be on the wrong side of the law. Slide me Tim Stephenson's home in Corsham, Wiltshire, pictured (left) before it was fitted with anti-mould cladding, and (right) adorned with the 'vivid' rendering which he has been ordered to remove A plan shows the overall plot of the property (in red), with the rendering at the front of the building (in purple) 'We had no intention of upsetting our neighbours, the local community, or indeed anybody.' Mr Stephenson had previously been given council approval for an extension in 2009 as well as new rendering. It was not until 2022 that he added the rendering, which he fitted with anti-mould insulation. However he failed to add the horizontal lines that adorned the previous facade of the building - which was a condition of planning permission. According to the heritage and planning statement: 'The render that has been finished does not have horizontal lines as previously approved.' The council ruled that: 'As a result of the vivid colouring, proportion and detailing, the dwelling stands out in the street scene and significantly harms the heritage assets and their setting by detracting from the dominant vernacular form.' The cladding was also considered to be 'highly unsympathetic' and harmful to the Corsham Conservation Area. Since then, he claims the council has refused to engage with him after he was issued with an enforcement notice in February 2023. Mr Stephenson says he has told the council that he is willing to change the colouring and aesthetic of the cladding but that his offer has been ignored. Mr Stephenson decided to appeal both the refusal and the council's enforcement notice, but on February 7, the Planning Inspectorate dismissed the appeals and ruled that the cladding should be removed within six months. Mr Stephenson has started a petition that seeks support from other residents in Wiltshire. He added that the insulation had solved a mould issue that his family had dealt with for over 20 years. Tim Stephenson and his children outside their home He said: 'We've done all of the things that you do, the anti-mould treatment, frequently applied the mould-proof paint. 'We'd consistently failed to do anything more than keep it under control in the whole time that we'd lived here.' He added that he was concerned by the impact that the mold returning would have on his children. He said: 'My desire would be to say, well, look, we've got streets of houses like this that are all cold and damp and that are all emitting tons of carbon and they're not suitable for heat pumps as a result of their original construction. 'How are we collectively as a society going to solve this problem?' Mr Stephenson added he hopes to work together with the council to come to a solution. He added: 'The extension was built in accordance with the 2009 permission obtained, but the confusion, doubts and mistake was that the permission did not include insulation on the existing house. So that is the problem. The 2009 permission included render but not insulation on the existing house. 'What I find interesting is that the Inspector lists ways in which she identifies harm to the heritage, for example the colour of the quoins on my house's corners that are an unsympathetic colour. 'This is exactly the kind of mistake I am quite ready to hold my hands up to and work with the Council to deliver both benefits of heritage and sustainability. 'The professional advice I have received tells me that it would be very common for such changes to be discussed and stipulated within the planning process. 'However this has not been my experience. Wiltshire simply chose to reject the retrospective application. 'On one occasion one planner did send a preliminary email suggesting that the colour was an issue, would we change it? 'We responded with a willingness to consider either the 'white sand' approved in 2009 or the previous cement grey. Or anything else frankly. What would be acceptable? 'The request was swiftly overruled and withdrawn, presumably with a slap on the wrist of the planner involved. 'Without such discussion it has seemed pointless to submit a further application, which is why I was advised to go instead to appeal. 'This is the point I would wish get across: Let's work together to achieve both benefits.' Councillor Nick Botterill, Cabinet Member for Development Management, said: 'The issues raised by the owner of the property were all matters considered during the formal appeals process by the Planning Inspectorate who dismissed the appeals and ruled that the property should be restored to its former condition within six months.' Have YOU had a similar experience? Email jack.wright@mailonline.co.uk Extensive upgrades made to LaGuardia Airport have proven to be a hit with travelers. The New York airport, which has a history of being ranked 'the worst airport in the US,' is now one of the best in the country, according to a new survey. The travel gateway was ranked the number one airport in North America of the terminals which welcome 25 to 40 million passengers per year, according to recent research from Airport Service Quality's (ASQ). 'Taking LaGuardia Airport from worst to best is now more than just an aspiration, its an accomplishment that passengers have now resoundingly recognized,' said Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton. More than 4,200 travelers participated in the Departures and Arrivals Survey throughout 2023 and found favorable conditions to vote the airport as the best. The hype comes nearly 10 years after the airport, located in Queens, started undergoing a massive $8 billion renovation. LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York was ranked the number one airport in North America that has 25 to 40 million passengers per year More than 4,200 fliers at LaGuardia Airport participated in the survey throughout 2023 during the end stages of the renovation project The airport's $8 billion renovation began in 2016, which saw all but one of its terminals being demolished and rebuilt LaGuardia Airport covers over 650 acres of land that was used for the Gala Amusement Park and later as a private flying field before it was built. According to the Zicklin School of Business at Baruch College, the airport construction began to take advantage of convenient accessibility to Manhattan through the newly built Queens-Midtown Tunnel. It was called Glenn H. Curtiss Airport when it opened in December 1939 and had undergone multiple name changes before officials finally named it LaGuardia Airport in 1953. The airport was named after New York mayor Fiorello La Guardia, who served three terms from 1933 to 1945. LaGuardia's bad reputation eventually began around the 2000s, and by 2014, the airport was named as the most frustrating airport in the US and Canada. Despite starting its renovation project in 2016, the airport was ranked as the worst large airport in the US by JD Power in 2017. The airport covers over 650 acres of land that was used for the Gala Amusement Park and later as a private flying field before it was built Its bad reputation eventually began around the 2000s, and by 2014, the airport was named as the most frustrating airport in the US and Canada It was the inspiration behind a popular 2020 Saturday Night Live sketch called Airport Sushi. The sketch features a variety of cast members singing parodies of Broadway songs that focus on 'the horrors to come after consuming the sushi' from LaGuardia. Unfortunately, LaGuardia's renovation hasn't helped its reputation of delayed or canceled flights. Officials at AirAdvisor analyzed data from more than 40,000 flights that were published by the Bureau of Transportation in summer 2022. They found that LaGuardia was within the top six worst airports in the US to have flights be delayed or not arrive on time. These issues have seemingly played no role in ASQ's survey results and the renovation project has been smooth since it began. The history of the airport's poor reviews was one an inspiration behind a 2020 Saturday Night Live sketch called Airport Sushi, which features parodies of Broadway songs AirAdvisor analyzed data from more than 40,000 flights in 2022 and found that LaGuardia was one of the worst airports in the US to have flights be delayed or not arrive on time Terminal B was one of the freshly-built areas and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled the airport's Arrivals and Departures Hall in 2020 Various roadways and terminals at LaGuardia have been revamped and removed. Every terminal and concourse besides the Marine Air Terminal was demolished and replaced. Terminal B was one of the freshly-built areas and former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled the airport's Arrivals and Departures Hall in 2020. Cuomo referred to the airport then as 'breathe taking' and called it 'a magnificent facility.' The hall also has various restaurants and has public art installations created by the Public Art Fund on its walls. 'When we started out on our $8 billion transformation of LaGuardia, few believed we could create the world-class airport our region deserves,' said Cotton. 'But the ASQ award proves that seeing is believing.' Paul Alexander, who lived in an iron lung for more than 70 years after Polio left him paralyzed, died after contracting Covid-19, according to reports. 'Ultimately, it was not an iron lung defect, but a corona infection that led to his death. He died peacefully in the presence of his brother,' German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung reports. The publication printed what may be the final interview with Alexander this week, with the extraordinary man telling its reporter earlier this year that he had 'almost died a thousand times' and suspected he did not have much time left. The 78-year-old was admitted to hospital and tested positive for Covid-19 last month, his social media manager told his legion of fans in a TikTok video posted on February 27. He was discharged and went home, the man called Lincoln said, but was still 'weak'. 'I know there has been a lot of questions and comments about where have the videos been, is Paul Ok?' he said, explaining that Alexander had been taken ill. Paul Alexander, who lived in an iron lung for more than 70 years after Polio left him paralyzed, reportedly died after contracting Covid-19 Paul Alexander's social media manager, Lincoln, said last month that he had contracted Covid-19 Paul Alexander pictured in a wheelchair in his youth. Alexander contracted polio aged six 'Last week he was unfortunately rushed to the emergency room in the hospital, he tested positive for Covid, which is really, really dangerous for somebody with his condition,' said Lincoln. 'Fortunately they have an iron lung at the hospital just for him, and he was able to come home this weekend. 'But unfortunately he's still kind of weak, he's still got some confusion going around, he's still struggling to eat and hydrate,' he added, explaining why he would not be appearing in any videos for 'a little while longer'. Under the handle @ironlungman, Alexander, who referred to himself as 'Polio Paul', shared videso chatting with his fans and answering questions in a series called 'Conversations with Paul'. He racked up millions of views and more than 330,000 followers on TikTok. Tributes have since poured in from his followers, many of whom have left comments such as 'RIP' and calling him an 'inspiration' on his posts. One wrote: 'Forever rest easy Paul Alexander, you were the most inspirational person I have had the enjoyment of following forever fly high.' Kai Kupferschmidt, a journalist who has interviewed Alexander on a number of occasions, wrote on X yesterday: 'So sad to hear that Paul Alexander passed yesterday at age 78 from Covid-19.' 'Paul contracted polio in 1952, when he was just six years old. He ended up in an iron lung and while he could live outside it for extended periods of time he never really left it.' Writing on Alexander's GoFundMe page, Christopher Ulmer, organiser and disability-rights activist, said on Tuesday: 'Paul Alexander, "The Man in the Iron Lung", passed away yesterday. 'After surviving polio as a child, he lived over 70 years inside of an iron lung. In this time Paul went to college, became a lawyer, and a published author. 'His story traveled wide and far, positively influencing people around the world. Your browser does not support iframes. Paul celebrates his 78th birthday on January 30, 2024 after more than 70 years in the iron lung 'Paul was an incredible role model that will continue to be remembered.' Over an extraordinary life, Alexander's determination not to let his physical constraints get in the way saw him make a number of remarkable achievements. At 21, he became the first person to graduate from a high school in Dallas without ever attending class in person. He was accepted into Southern Methodist University in Dallas, after much difficulty with university administration and then got into law school at the University of Texas, Austin. He pursued his dreams of becoming a trial lawyer, and represented clients in court in a three-piece suit and a modified wheelchair that held his paralyzed body upright. Despite being bound to the ventilator, Alexander was able to paint and write a book He also staged a sit-in for disability rights and published his own memoir, titled 'Three Minutes for a Dog: My Life in an Iron Lung'. The 155-page memoir was carefully crafted and took five years to complete; Paul wrote each word with a pen attached to a stick in his mouth. Paul outlived both of his parents, his brother and even his original iron lung, which began leaking air in 2015, but was repaired by mechanic Brady Richards after a YouTube video of Paul pleading for help was uploaded. The ventilator, a large yellow metal box, requires patients to lie down inside, with the device fastened tightly around their neck. It works by creating a vacuum to mechanically draw in oxygen to the lungs for patients whose central nervous system and respiratory function were affected by polio. While in hospital, doctors tried to get Paul to breathe on his own, turning off the machine and forcing him out, but it wouldn't take long for him to turn blue and pass out. Despite the availability of more modern ventilators, Paul decided to continue using the iron lung machine because he was used to it. A consultant doctor has been struck off after he falsely claimed for 40,000 worth of NHS work shifts when he was on holiday. Locum psychiatrist Dr Rajeev Reghunath, 45, fiddled public money by filing faked timesheets which wrongly claimed he was working eight hour shifts when in fact he was thousands of miles away in Turkey, Abu Dhabi or India. Reghunath was able to get away with his scam for two years until the discrepancies were spotted by staff at Greater Manchester Mental Health Foundation NHS Trust when the doctor left the UK on a one way flight to Bangalore. Inquiries revealed he had forged the signature of a fellow consultant psychiatrist to help with illicit payments for 35 shifts for which he was paid up to 1,300 a time. At the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service, Reghunath who lived in Timperley, near Altrincham was found guilty of serious professional misconduct. Dr Rajeev Reghunath was a locum at Greater Manchester Mental Health Foundation NHS Trust He is still thought to be India with his last email message sent to the tribunal in July 2023 reading: 'I do not have a permanent residence in the UK.. I will try check my emails on a regular basis here on and will reply promptly as much as I can.' Whilst initially offering to repay the cash, it is not known whether any payment has been made. The scam took place between January 2019 and February 2021 when Reghunath was working as a locum consultant psychiatrist in the Trafford Division via an agency, called Pulse Healthcare Limited (Pulse). Under an agreement he was able to claim wages for hours by submitting timesheets signed by his lead consultant and he was even given a 13 percent uplift on his shift payments to make up for a lack of holiday pay. Much of Reghunath's services were provided during the Covid 19 pandemic and included consultations via video or phone consultations - but the hearing was told he was not allowed to carry out work when outside the Greater Manchester area. During the investigation it emerged Reghunath had boarded a flight for Turkey on April 6 2019 and returned to Manchester on April 13. But he made claims for payment on 8, 9 and 11 April, 2019. Similarly he boarded a flight to the United Arab Emirates on May 24, 2019 and then returned to Manchester on June 9 but made claims for payment on 3, 4, 5 and 6 June 2019. he was last in the UK on February 7, 2021 when he left London Heathrow bound for Bangalore. In an investigative report, an anti-fraud specialist working for Mersey Internal Audit Agency said: 'Concerns were raised about a number of days claimed to have been worked. 'RR and Pulse Agency had conversations with RR over email and text message regarding the submitted timesheets in which he admits to not being entitled to have been paid for the shifts. RR offered to repay the overpaid monies in full.' The investigator added: 'There were also days claimed over Christmas in 2020 that were not worked as well as days in early January 2021. 'There were two instances within the claims made that RR was not in the country as the Home Office data showed that he had flown to Abu Dhabi and Dalaman at times when he had claimed to have been working for GMMH. 'These days were not worked due to annual leave and therefore, RR should not have claimed for them.' 'RR left London Heathrow on 7.2.2021 bound for Bangalore. Regular checks with the Home Office have been made and RR has not returned to the UK since leaving in February 2021.' In an email to the General Medical Council, Reghunath stated that he had put in the timesheets whilst he was in India as he was entitled to holiday pay under direct engagement. he also tried to suggest his 'mea culpa' WhatsApp messages to his colleague known as Dr A were 'not from him' as his name was misspelt as 'Rajeev Ragunath'. But when quizzed, Dr A said had accidentally spelt Reghunath's name incorrectly when saving him as a contact in his phone. A Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) panel has erased Dr Reghunath's name from the medical register. Pictured: The MPTS building in Manchester For the GMC, Ms Harriet Tighe said: 'Dr Reghunath repeatedly submitted false timesheets over a prolonged period of time, he falsified signatures, submitted timesheets when he was out of the country, and finally, Dr Reghunath defrauded the Trust out of thousands of pounds through his dishonest actions.' MPTS chairman Ms Joanne Shelley said: 'Dr Reghanuth has shown little insight into his misconduct and dishonesty. Whilst initially making an apology and inviting punishment for his actions, when challenged by Dr A, he later retracted his apology, and instead suggested that the WhatsApp messages had not been sent by him. The dishonesty occurred and escalated over a significant period. 'Dr Reghunath demonstrated a pattern of behaviour which had escalated over time, from submitting false timesheets for authorisation and payment to ultimately falsifying his lead consultant's signatures on his timesheets to suggest the claims he was making were legitimate and appropriately authorised to claim monies he was not entitled to thus depriving the NHS of substantial sums of money.' When contacted on WhatsApp, Reghunath said: 'It was a mistake from my end. Apologies and do get medical staffing to let me know how I can pay it back to their account. Not anticipating my return anytime soon.' Then when asked why had filled in the timesheets and forged his colleagues signature, the doctor confessed: 'I know it's a grave and terrible thing to do, not thinking straight, not giving any excuses, just a big sorry. 'It's a grave mistake I made and I'm ready to take any punishment for that, as it's me who did the mistake. Pls do let me know how I can repay every last penny I made and also feel free to report me to the Trust/GMC as you please, it's my mistake and take full responsibility for all the mistakes. Whatever you decide to do, I will take that as my penance so anything bad, I am willing to take now.' A market trader who has been kicked off his 'beloved' pick and mix stall because the council wants to pivot to healthier produce says they have deprived residents of the choice buy his products. Kevin Hilliard, who was given just a month to quit his stall in Saxmundham, Norfolk, after 25 years of trading, says people living in the town haven't been given a say in the decision. It comes as outrage over the decision by the town council continues to grow, with more than 1,000 people signing an online petition demanding he is allowed to keep his stall. Saxmundham Town Council claims it wants to change the Wednesday market, which is 'on the brink of closure', to focus on fresh produce in a bid to attract more footfall. The ban will impact Kevin's livelihood as he will only be able to operate his stall - from which he sells traditional sweets like jelly babies, flying saucers, sherbet dabs and fruit gums - at the market in Stowmarket on Thursdays and Saturdays. Kevin Hilliard has been selling traditional sweets like jelly babies, flying saucers, sherbet dabs and fruit gums at the market for close to 25 years Kevin Hilliard has been given a month to quit his stall in Saxmundham, Suffolk by the council Mr Hilliard was told by the council his stall was no longer welcome at its Wednesday market as it rebrands the event 'Fresh Fare at Fromus Square'. However, the trader has hit back, saying he feels the decision to move him on is unfair. He told the East Anglian Daily Times: 'I can't see it being a sensible decision. It is people's own choice if they buy sweets or not. 'I do not feel the residents of Saxmundham have been given a say in what they want from the market as the posts on social media show the level of support for me. 'I am totally overwhelmed by the level of support I have received.' The veteran market stall holder's customers are also furious at the move, and his daughter his daughter Michaela Kerry has launched a Facebook campaign, while a petition that has already received more than 1,000 signatures. She said: 'Last week a hardworking man arrived at his stall in the weekly market in Saxmundham and within half an hour of his arrival, he received two letters from the town council. 'The first discussed a restructure of the market; the second was addressed directly to him stating that they could no longer support his pick n mix sweets stall and asked him to vacate by March 27. 'This man is not just any vendor - he is my father. His sweet stall has been a staple at this market for years and has brought joy to countless community members. 'This decision by the town council not only affects my father but also impacts our community's sense of tradition and loyalty. 'The local support for my father's business on social media platforms like Facebook has been overwhelming. It is clear that many residents value what they have in their weekly market - including my dad's pick n' mix sweets stall. 'We believe that hard work should be rewarded rather than penalised and that changes should be made with consideration for those who have loyally served our community over time. 'Therefore, we call upon Saxmundham Town Council to reconsider their decision regarding this beloved sweet stall. Let us preserve what makes our weekly market special - its diversity and its commitment to local vendors who serve with dedication week after week.' The town council has today defended its actions, council clerk Sharon Smith said: 'The social media response has been genuinely unexpected and we are taking on board the comments we are receiving. 'We sincerely wish that everyone who has engaged with this debate online would come out and regularly support their local market. 'Despite the success and support we have experienced for the monthly Saturday markets, this has not carried over to Wednesdays which are a source of regular complaints, use valuable council resources and are not well supported by the public. 'We firmly believe we must act now to save our weekly market and that a focus on fresh produce will draw in more weekday shoppers.' A council spokesman said previously of the change: 'The market is on the brink of closure due to poor footfall and the decision was taken to rebrand and redirect the weekly market with a focus on fresh produce. 'It was taken after months of careful consideration among councillors, surrounding businesses, market traders and members of the public.' Florida is braced for an influx of desperate refugees fleeing violence-stricken Haiti as the country inches closer to a civil war. The Caribbean nation has been plunged into chaos after crime boss Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier seized control, calling for a 'bloody uprising' to depose Haiti's Prime Minister, Ariel Henry. Henry, 74, stepped down on Monday the amid escalating brutality, which continued even after the announcement. Gang violence has left the dead piling up in the streets of the capital Port-au-Prince and so far displaced more than 15,000 people. The US State Department has not indicated how many Americans its estimates are among those caught up in the chaos. On Wednesday, Governor Ron DeSantis announced he is deploying 250 additional state guardsmen to the southern coast of Florida to help 'protect' it. It comes after the US Coast Guard repatriated 65 Haitian asylum seekers after their vessel was spotted in distress near Great Inagua, Bahamas. Florida is braced for an influx of desperate refugees fleeing violence-stricken Haiti as the country inches closer to a civil war Cherizier (pictured) warned of a 'genocide' unless Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry stepped down Haiti has been plunged into chaos after crime boss Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier seized control, calling for a 'bloody uprising' Last Tuesday the US Coast Guard repatriated 65 Haitian asylum seekers after their vessel (pictured) was spotted in distress The migrants were picked up near Great Inagua, Bahamas and returned to Haiti despite the ongoing conflict The asylum seekers were taken aboard Coast Guard Cutter Venturous last week where they were given food, water and basic medical care before being returned to Haiti. 'Given the circumstances in Haiti, I have directed the Division of Emergency Management, the Florida State Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy over 250 additional officers and soldiers and over a dozen air and sea craft to the southern coast of Florida to protect our state,' DeSantis said in a post on X. 'No state has done more to supplement the (under-resourced) U.S. Coast Guard's interdiction efforts; we cannot have illegal aliens coming to Florida.' However, a memo to Florida Border agents advised that the lawlessness in the country means it is unlikely any migrants picked up now will be repatriated, according to a memo seen by The New York Post. The email to staff warned that even just one vessel landing could overwhelm the maritime agency. 'One landing will cripple the station and our ability to respond to other traffic,' the email to agents read. Haitian-American Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick warned the unrest could pose a threat to US Security amid concerns some of the arrivals could be from violent gangs. In recent days, a jailbreak in Haiti led to almost 4,000 prisoners being liberated and left to roam the streets of the besieged country. Cherfilus-McCormick called for aid to 'fight the gangs' and prevent violence spilling into the country. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called the situation in Haiti 'one of the most urgent challenges we face as an international community.' A woman walks past burning tires during a demonstration following the resignation of its Prime Minister Ariel Henry, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Tuesday Ariel Henry announced his resignation on Monday but the violence showed no sign of abating in the aftermath The unrest continued after representatives of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) announced a transitional council to steer the country through until a new leader is elected On Wednesday, he reiterated that the Department of Defense has doubled its contributions to plans for a multinational security system t eventually be deployed to Haiti to $200 million. This is in addition to $100 million from the rest of the federal government. Blinken also announced an additional contribution of $33 million in humanitarian assistance. He added that a transitional council designed to choose an interim prime minister for Haiti is expected to be stood up 'in the next couple of days'. Meanwhile nearby jurisdictions including the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos have also reported a surge in migrant crossings. On Monday Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force intercepted a Haitian boat carrying 140 migrants. But Human Rights Watch has called for a pause on all deportations warning they are 'life-threatening' in the current climate. 'It is unconscionable that any government would send people to Haiti while it experiences such a deterioration in security and a heightened risk to everyone's life and physical integrity,' said Cesar Munoz, senior Americas researcher at Human Rights Watch. 'No government should return people to Haiti. And the United States, which accounts for the vast majority of returns, should end the unnecessary and illegitimate use of a public health regulation for abusive expulsions of Haitians.' A number of Americans have been left stranded in Haiti after a bloodthirsty gang's attempt to take over the main international airport shuttered the facility, which remained close as of Wednesday. Florida-based Missionary Flights International said on Tuesday it had been contacted by more than 50 Americans and Canadians desperately trying to escape. The volatile situation on the ground meant that the non-profit had been unable to fly in to country due to the risk of its planes being attacked. However Republican Rep. Cory Mills was able to evacuate 10 Americans working at an orphanage on Tuesday. Among them was columnist Mitch Albom and his wife, who were visiting the facility he founded. Cherizier called for the international community to 'give Haiti a chance' and issued a warning to anyone aiding Henry In recent days the country has been rocked by violence which has left the dead piling up in the streets and displaced more than 15,000 people Albom had described his terror as the situation unfolded and blasted the Biden administration for its handling of the crisis. His comments were echoed by Mills, who accused the president of 'abandoning' US citizens. 'This mission reiterates a disturbing reality under President Biden's leadership: American lives are continually jeopardized,' Mills said. 'I have led missions to rescue Americans multiple times when Joe Biden has deserted them. 'There's a clear pattern of abandonment,' Mills said, citing his rescue missions in Afghanistan during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. He also safely evacuated Americans from Israel in late 2023. 'Yet again, this group was left behind by Biden and his State Department after requesting their help in-country Heavily-armed gangs have been in firefights with cops and soldiers, tried to seize the airport and targeted government sites. The U.S. Southern Command said the fleet-anti-terrorism security team, known as FAST, was deployed to the embassy in the nation's capital. US reps have warned the instability has the potential to deepen Haiti's refugee crisis. Pictured: Coast Guard Cutter Venturous assisting Haitian migrants in 2022 There are fears for US security amid the unrest as the violence has included a jailbreak which freed almost 4,00 convicts and left them free to roam the streets Human Rights Watch has called for a pause on all deportations warning they are 'life-threatening' in the current climate On Monday Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force intercepted a Haitian boat carrying 140 migrants The embassy is still open, but most staff have been airlifted out and operations are limited. The decision came after a wave of attacks across the city at state institutions including police stations and the country's Ministry of Interior, which was burned on Saturday. Almost 4,000 criminals were freed and left to roam the street after criminal gangs stormed the country's two largest prison's on Sunday. The violence unfolded after Henry flew to Kenya to try and shore up support for an international police force to restore order to the streets of Haiti, which he said would enable him to call an election. Kenya has since said it will not send the UN-authorized Multinational Security Support (MSS) until Haiti forms a new government, but has insisted it remains committed to leading the mission according to Blinken. Henry assumed power following the assassination of the country's previous Prime Minister in 2021. However, his opponents accused him of trying to hang onto power, with Cherizier warning of a 'genocide' unless he stepped down. Henry agreed but has been unable to return to Haiti since, amid threats for his safety which were heightened after Cherizier issued a chilling warning to anyone in Haiti deemed to be aiding him. Video showed the former police officer firing a gun in the streets as he urged the international community to 'give Haiti a chance'. The violence escalated after Henry flew to Kenya to try and shore up support for an international police force The UN has now warned Haiti is on the brink of a devastating hunger crisis, with aid operations at risk of 'grinding to a halt' It is not yet known who will take over from Henry. Representatives from the Caribbean Community CARICOM have put forward the suggestion of a transitional council, which was met with further protests. The gangs are likely to opt for a 'troika' a government composed of three members selected by them, according to Al Jazeera. In Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, shops were openand life was slowly returning to normal. Buses were running and some government offices were open after being closed for two weeks. But schools and the city's airport remain closed. The UN said Wednesday that it would begin 'reducing the footprint of non-essential personnel,' but that 'colleagues who carry out life-saving activities will remain in Haiti to continue operations.' The agency previously warned Haiti is on the brink of a devastating hunger crisis, with aid operations at risk of 'grinding to a halt'. Cindy McCain, World Food Program's Executive Director, said the spreading violence is keeping aid workers from reaching communities in need at a time when donor funds are drying up. 'Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground,' she said. 'Efforts to restore law and order must be matched by an equally effective humanitarian response to meet soaring needs.' Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is sending 250 additional state guardsmen to the southern coast for 'protection' On Tuesday, there were signs of an improvement in the security situation, with no new attacks on police station or government offices, The main CPS cargo port had reopened, local news outlet Le Nouvelliste reported, while some fuel from the Varreux facility near the port had been allowed out It is not yet known who will take power. CARICOM the Caribbean Community has put forward the suggestion of a transitional council, but this was met with protests In Haiti, Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP country director, also warned of an impending famine and stressed that a failure to act will lead to 'unrest, strife and mass migration'. The country has struggled with political instability and some of the highest poverty rates in the world which is only being exacerbated by the current crisis. Coast Guard crews repatriated 131 migrants to Haiti in fiscal year 2024, which began on Oct. 1, 2023. Meanwhile at the southern border, U.S. authorities encountered Haitians more than 76,100 times in the fiscal year 2023, according to the Migration Policy Institute. Blinken expressed hope that the 'Haitian designed, Haitian' led solution to the power vacuum with the multi national security support system led by Kenya would bring stability to the country. 'We should be in a place where that mission can go forward it can we believe help reestablish security take back control from the gangs, meanwhile political transition is moving forward [...] that in turn creates a better environment for us to get assistance in get it people who need it, get development moving again and get some opportunity for people,' Blinken said. The government's Travel Advisory for Haiti has been at Level 4 Do Not Travel since March 2020. The The Department of State is advising US citizens not to travel to Haiti, and said those in the country, 'should depart immediately using commercial or other private transportation options when available'. Attendees at the Permian Basin Comic Con check out vendor booths 03/19/2022 at the Horseshoe Pavilion. Midland Reporter-Telegram Attendees at the Permian Basin Comic Con check out vendor booths 03/19/2022 at the Midland County Horseshoe Pavilion. Tim Fischer/Reporter-Telegram Tim Fischer/Midland Reporter-Telegram Amine fans show off their costumes at the Permian Basin Comic Con 03/19/2022 at the Midland County Horseshoe Pavilion. Tim Fischer/Reporter-Telegram Tim Fischer/Midland Reporter-Telegram The Permian Basin Comic Con is no stranger to Midland, this year marks the ninth year of the comic con returning to the Midland Horseshoe Arena on March 15-17. However, this year offers guests one of the biggest face actors that the Permian Basin has seen. Film star, television actress and producer Holly Marie Combs will be attending the Permian Basins comic con, along with other featured guests such as Dante Basco, Francois Petit, Kari Wahlgren, Taryn Manning, David Matranga, Arryn Zech, Lindsay Jones, Kara Eberle, Jill Harris, Dallas Reid, Leah Clarke, Emily Neves and Sarah Roach. Combs has graced the set of many stages but may be best known for her popular television series Charmed where she portrayed the character Piper Halliwell. We are banking on the fact that people want to meet those types of guests, said founder and organizer Chris Slatosch. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In addition to the television, film stars and voice actors slated to attend the event; numerous family-oriented activities are set to entertain. The Permian Comic Con has always been more focused on family activities, Slatosch told the Reporter-Telegram during a phone interview on Friday. We consider ourselves a bite-size version of the larger cons that you see in large cities. We used to be heavy with cosplay activities, said Slatosch. But now the Ector County Library has a room based on popular anime. UTPB also comes in as well and hosts robotic building sessions with our guests. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Another event on the schedule for the comic con includes the return of OCW Wrestling. The wrestling shows are free to watch, Slatosch added. We also have a drone workshop this year as well. The organizers have a big net where they teach you how to manually fly a drone. Another added feature of the Permian Basin Comic Con is that guests are allowed to bring in food and beverages. You dont have to throw them away once you enter, Slatosch said. We will have food trucks for the event but many times guests bring in snacks for their children during the day. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As far as tips for first-time con-goers, Slatosch encouraged guests to be ready to move and be active for large amounts of time. Wear comfortable walking shoes, he explained. For younger children, he advised them to be aware of their surroundings. Kids can faint due to being overstimulated, not drinking enough water, or from their blood sugar being low due to lack of eating, he said. He advised guests to take their time and enjoy the atmosphere while still being relaxed. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Permian Basin Comic Con X is scheduled for Friday, March 15 until Sunday, March 17, 2024, at the Midland Horseshoe Arena. General admission ranges from $20 to $35. VIP tickets are $125. Children under the age of eight years old are free to attend. With a watchdog report criticising sky high vet bills, many owners may be tempted to take out insurance - but the price of premiums can vary dramatically depending on the animal's breed and where you live. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is concerned owners are kept in the dark about fees and face pricey unexpected bills and will investigate the six biggest providers, CVS, IVC, Linnaeus, Medivet, Pets At Home and VetPartners. Owners can be charged 369 for an X-ray which compares to less than 100 for a human patient at a private clinic and more than 35 just for a telephone consultation. Insuring your pet can cost as much as 900 per year, and unfortunately you can still be left having to pay some of the bill if a procedure is not covered under your policy. Several factors affect the price of insurance, including the breed of the animal, its age and where you live - with urban areas often attracting the highest fees due to the increased likelihood of accidents. The most expensive dog breed to insure are Cane Corsos at 873.62 a year, according to Compare the Market Similar variations for insurance premiums are seen with cats, with Maine Coons the most expensive to insure at 309.21 a year, compared to the cheapest - Domestic Shorthairs - at 180.82 Julia Howard said she spent 28,000 on treating her dog Teddy - 'only a fraction' of which was covered by insurance Pet insurance costs can rise for pedigree cats and dogs because they're more prone to hereditary conditions. This is particularly the case for brachycephalic (flat-faced) dog breeds like bulldogs and pugs, which can develop breathing problems and suffer health issues as a result. The most expensive dog breed to insure are Cane Corsos at 873.62 a year, according to Compare the Market. This is followed by French Mastiffs (817.64), Newfoundlands (762.30) and Bernese Mountain Dogs (724.29). By contrast, the cheapest are Cockapoos (228.81) and Jack Russels (254.14). Similar variations are seen with cats, with Maine Coons the most expensive to insure at 309.21 a year, compared to the cheapest - Domestic Shorthairs - at 180.82. Where you live also has a significant effect on insurance premiums. While the average for England is 372, this reduces to 339 for the North East - the cheapest - up to 419 in London - where premiums are the most expensive. Sharna Liptrot, a dog owner from Milton in Cambridge, believes insurance is of limited value to protecting owners from high fees. She told MailOnline: 'A friend of mine's cocker spaniel broke her shoulder from jumping down from the car and the final vet bill was 20,000.00. 'The insurance only covered 8,000.00 and as he had recently lost his wife the thought of him losing his beloved dog was simply not an option. 'Can someone please explain to me how they can justify this cost?' Julia Howard said she spent 28,000 on treating her dog Teddy before he died last year, with insurance covering 'only a fraction'. 'The emotional toll of losing a cherished pet is immense, and the financial strain that accompanies it only compounds the pain,' she told MailOnline. The CMA is concerned owners are kept in the dark about fees and face unexpected bills running to thousands of pounds. It will investigate concerns that six corporate giants dominate the market. The proportion of vet practices owned by large groups has risen from 10 per cent to 60 per cent since 2013. International comparisons show British animal lovers can sometimes find cheaper prices overseas Brian Flynn said he had his beagle, Flash, treated abroad to avoid paying thousands of pounds in UK vet bills Mr Flynn said a UK vet quoted him 5,318 for surgery and aftercare when Flash suffered a leg injury during a holiday in France Cane Corsos - an Italian breed of Mastiff - are the most expensive dogs to insure News of the investigation saw the value of shares in the six groups - CVS, IVC, Linnaeus, Medivet, Pets At Home and VetPartners - fall sharply. The CMA chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said 'feeling on this issue is high', adding: 'This is a critical market for the UK's 16million pet owners. She added: 'Our review has identified multiple concerns with the market that we think should be investigated further. 'These include pet owners finding it difficult to access basic information like price lists and prescription costs - and potentially overpaying for medicines.' Head of consumer protection policy at Which?, Sue Davies, said there is a risk of rip-offs, adding: 'The regulator needs to be prepared to take strong action to ensure pet owners are treated fairly when they use vet services.' This could include requirements to spell out charges and sell some vet practices in areas they have a monopoly. They could also be forced to offer people pet prescriptions that can be fulfilled by cheaper online pharmacies. The British Veterinary Association rejected the criticism and argued that the bills are 'fair'. Its president, Dr Anna Judson, said: 'Rising prices are a concern for everyone, but it's vital to recognise there is no NHS for pets. 'Whether they are employed by corporate or independently owned practices, vets deliver highly specialised, tailored care for the UK's pets and the cost is a fair reflection of investment in medical equipment, supplies and medicines, and the time vet teams dedicate to the care of each patient.' Carol Chamberlain was charged 1,130 after her dog stayed overnight at a vets Carole's eight-year-old Biewer Terrier, which is called Amie CVS said it has put forward a package of possible remedies along with other companies that could address the CMA's concerns. These include providing a price list for common treatments, the option to get prescriptions and buy medicines elsewhere, making clear which groups own vet practices and any specialist referral services. Pets At Home, which offers everything from pet food to clothing and grooming, has been expanding its vets business. It said: 'We are incredibly disappointed the CMA's findings today do not fully reflect our unique business model of locally-owned vet practices.' The option is meant for those who identify as transgender, non-binary and intersex Arkansas is planning to ditch the option 'X' marker for gender on driver's licenses Arkansas has dropped the gender 'x' option from driver's licenses used for transgender, non-binary and intersex people because the state's governor says 'there are only two genders.' The state has also banned residents from changing the gender on their licenses without 'verifiable information'. Officials from the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration announced the decision on Tuesday. The state's Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, 41, defended the decision - saying she will not 'endorse' the 'nonsense'. 'This policy is just common sense. Only women give birth, men shouldn't play women's sports, and there are only two genders,' Sanders said. Arkansas has dropped the gender 'x' option from driver's licenses used for transgender, non-binary and intersex people An example of a driver's license with an X sex marker from Washington State, which will continue to offer the designation to transgender, non-binary and intersex residents The state's Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, 41, defended the decision - saying she will not 'endorse' the 'nonsense' 'As long as I'm Governor, Arkansas state government will not endorse nonsense,' she said. Of the 3,172,175 active driver's licenses and IDs in Arkansas - 516 of those (0.1 per cent) used the 'x' option to describe the identification holder's gender. Department of Finance and Administration Secretary Jim Hudson said that the change reflects a 'commonsense approach,' adding that licenses and IDs should be based on 'objective, verifiable information.' The rule change still has to be approved by a legislative committee of the Arkansas General Assembly. All of the residents currently using the 'X' on their IDs will have to get new cards when their licenses expire, but the licenses will stay valid through the expiration date. The rule change is the latest effort from Republican lawmakers to legally establish sex as binary. Critics have fired back at the decision - saying that categorizing gender into two categories is 'discriminatory' to the transgender community. 'This proposed policy seeks to erase the existence of non-binary and intersex Arkansans by denying them identity documents that reflect their true selves, forcing them into categories that do not represent their identities,' the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas said in a statement. Until the ban is approved, Arkansas is one of 22 states that allows residents to use the 'M,' 'F' or 'X' option for the sex description. The option became available in 2010 to allow transgender, nonbinary or intersex residents to reflect their gender classification. This is not the first time Sanders has made unpopular decisions for the transgender community. 'This policy is just common sense. Only women give birth, men shouldn't play women's sports, and there are only two genders,' Sanders said This is not the first time Sanders has made unpopular decisions for the transgender community. Sanders responded to Bud Light's disastrous ad with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney with her own campaign blasting the partnership In February, 2023, supported a bill to ban drag shows in order to 'protect kids.' The proposed bill would re-define drag shows as 'adult-oriented performances.' Alexa Henning, a spokeswoman for the governor, said the bill was not aimed at 'banning anything,' but rather about 'protecting kids' from 'sexually explicit drag shows.' Sanders responded to Bud Light's disastrous ad with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney with her own campaign blasting the partnership. 'Real women don't have to fake it,' she wrote on Twitter in a caption accompanying a video featuring the GOP's female governors. 'Real women. Doing real things,' the ad continues, featuring a picture of Sanders' face on a beer can resembling Bud Light. Sanders was White House press secretary between 2017 and 2019 and is touted as a potential future Republican presidential contender. Her father is firebrand former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. A Christian actress who sued a theatre after being axed from a lead role over a 'homophobic' Facebook post now faces a 300,000 legal bill after losing a five-year discrimination battle. Seyi Omooba, 26, was dropped from playing lesbian character Celie in a 2019 production of The Color Purple after a social media storm over her views that homosexuality is a sin. She took Leicester's Curve Theatre and her former agents to an employment tribunal, claiming that she was the victim of religious discrimination. However, her case was thrown out after she admitted that she hadn't read the script before accepting the lead part. Now, more than five years since the row erupted, she has lost an appeal as well - with a High Court Judge concluding that the initial judgement was correct. Seyi Omooba (pictured), 26, claimed religious discrimination against a theatre trust and her former agents after being dropped from a production of The Color Purple Hamilton actor Aaron Lee Lambert tweeted a Facebook post written by Ms Omooba about homosexuality in 2014 Ms Omooba had said she did not know her character was gay and would not have gone through with appearing in the play once she became aware. The actress has unsuccessfully appealed the tribunal's original decision to reject her claim, including its ruling she must pay legal costs totalling more than 300,000. In a newly published Employment Appeal Tribunal judgement, Mrs Justice Eady told how Ms Omooba was cast to play Celie in a stage production of The Color Purple - based on Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Mrs Eady wrote: 'Celie is seen as an iconic lesbian role and, when [Ms Omooba's] casting was announced, a social media storm developed relating to a past Facebook post in which she had expressed her belief that homosexuality was a sin. 'The consequences of that storm led to the termination of [her] contracts with the theatre and her agency. Arising out of those events, she brought Employment Tribunal claims of religion and belief discrimination and harassment, and breach of contract. 'Shortly before the tribunal hearing, having only then read the script, [she] volunteered she would never in fact have played the part of Celie, and would have resigned from the role in due course. 'She continued with her claims, but these were all dismissed and an award of costs made against her.' The EAT heard Ms Omooba grew up in a committed Christian family of Nigerian origin. Her father, Pastor Ade Omooba, is a co-founder of Christian Concern, an evangelical group supporting the rights of Christians. On September 18, 2014, she posted on Facebook: 'I do not believe you can be born gay, and I do not believe homosexuality is right, though the law of this land has made it legal doesn't mean it's right. 'I do believe that everyone sins and falls into temptation but it's by the asking of forgiveness, repentance and the grace of God that we overcome and live how God ordained us to, which is that a man should leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife.' Early on in her career, Ms Omooba had explained to her agent that, as a Christian, she would not want to play certain parts and she had turned down an opportunity in Book Of Mormon due to its satirical depiction of Christian belief. London-born actress Seyi Omooba took legal action against both the Curve Theatre in Leicester and her former agents Michael Garrett Associates after both dropped her A social media 'storm' erupted after her post about homosexuality was shared on X, then Twitter, by actor Aaron Lee Lambert (pictured) who was appearing in the musical Hamilton In December 2018 the Curve Theatre in Leicester offered her the lead role in a stage musical production of The Color Purple which she accepted. The EAT observed that Ms Omooba was familiar with the 1985 film adaptation starring Whoopi Goldberg and directed by Steven Spielberg which had 'played down the physical relationship' between Celie and her female lover Shug. In contrast, the stage show 'carried more focus' on their lesbianism, Mrs Eady said. Ms Omooba had not 'done her homework and had 'thought of the work in the frame of the film', the judge said of the original tribunal's decision. Her Facebook post about homosexuality was shared on Twitter on March 15, 2019, the day after the casting was announced, by Aaron Lee Lambert, an actor in the musical production Hamilton. He asked: 'Do you still stand by this post? Or are you happy to remain a hypocrite? Seeing as you've now been announced to be playing an LGBTQ character, I think you owe your LGBTQ peers an explanation. Immediately.' This post created a 'social media storm', the EAT said, and Ms Omooba was invited by the theatre to renounce her Facebook post but refused. She wrote in a statement: 'The law protects my freedom of expression as well as freedom of thought, conscience and religion. Six days after the controversy was sparked, the theatre cancelled her appearance in the show. In a letter informing her of the decision, Ms Omooba was told: 'The lesbian relationship between Celie and Shug [is] an important part of the story, and that intimate scenes involving Celie and the actress playing Shug were intrinsic to the production.' Her position was 'untenable' as it would 'affect the harmony and cohesion of the cast, audience reception, the producers' reputation and the good standing and commercial success of the production', the letter added. Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Color Purple was adapted as a movie in 1985, starring Whoopi Goldberg and directed by Steven Spielberg Whoopi Goldberg (pictured) played the part of Celie in the 1985 film version with which actress Seyi Omooba was familiar, an employment tribunal heard Ms Omooba began legal proceedings against the theatre and her agents - who had dropped her - in August 2019, supported by the organisations Christian Concern and the Christian Legal Centre. However, by the time the case was heard in 2021, the actress admitted that she would never have played the role once she had actually read the script. This revelation 'detonated her own case', the original tribunal said, leading them to reject her claims of religious discrimination, breach of contract and harassment. It also told her to pay the full legal costs of the Leicester Theatre Trust and her former agents Michael Garrett Associates Ltd (Global Artists) for her 'unreasonable' conduct. At the time of the 2021 tribunal they were put at 53,839 and 259,356 respectively but will be subject to further assessment. At the EAT, Ms Omooba argued that both the tribunal's dismissal of her case and the ordering of costs were wrong. Mrs Justice Eady disagreed, however, saying she was in 'repudiatory breach of her express obligations'. The judge said: '[She] knew she would not play a lesbian character, but had not raised this with the theatre, or sought to inform herself as to the requirements of the role of Celie. 'In making a costs award against [her], the tribunal had been entitled to reach the conclusion that her claims either had no reasonable prospect of success from the outset, or that they had no reasonable prospect once [she] realised that she would never in fact have played the role of Celie, or that the conduct of the claims had been unreasonable.' Ms Omooba previously told the Mail on Sunday: 'I just quoted what the Bible says about homosexuality, the need for repentance, but ultimately God's love for all humanity. I stand by what I wrote, but had I known that it would have come to this, I would have set my account to the privacy mode.' Danielle Brooks, left and Corey Hawkins featured in a new 2019 movie version of The Color Purple - this time in a musical adaptation which the Curve Theatre in Leicester opted to stage This scene from the 2019 film features, left to right, Taraji P Henson, Fantasia Barrino and Danielle Brooks The London-born actress trained at the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts and has appeared in the West End and at the National Theatre. The Curve Theatre said in a statement when the claim was originally dismissed: 'Seyi Omooba accepted a lesbian part in our production of The Colour Purple knowing full well she would refuse to play this iconic gay role as homosexual. 'We believe the case had no merit from the outset and should never have been brought to the tribunal. 'We now look forward to drawing a line under this painful chapter and focusing our energies on how we rebuild our theatre after the pandemic.' Google is restricting the answers its 'woke' AI chatbot will give to election-related questions. The technology firm has faced widespread criticism of Gemini's image generation feature produced historically inaccurate depictions such as black Founding Fathers, Asian German Nazis and female popes. The rise of publicly accessible AI has been a concern for the spread of misinformation in a pivotal year, in which half of the global population will head to the polls. Google announced restrictions to its AI technology in December, stating that they would come into effect ahead of the presidential election. The tech giant announced further restrictions in India ahead of its election next month and plans to restrict the system ahead of the 2024 general election in the U.S. When asked about elections such as the upcoming U.S. presidential election between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, Gemini responds with 'I'm still learning how to answer this question. In the meantime, try Google Search.' The chatbot is being restricted in India , where elections are being held in April. Its part of Google previously announced efforts to slow misinformation ahead of elections in the U.S. 'In preparation for the many elections happening around the world in 2024 and out of an abundance of caution, we are restricting the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses,' a company spokesperson said. The chatbot is also being restricted in India, where elections are being held in April. When asked who would win the elections in India the chatbot responded with skeleton details about the major parties, details on recent opinion polls and links to 'resources for further research.' Those links included Wikipedia's entry for '2024 Indian general election' and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: Decoding India's 2024 Election Contest. Google declined to comment on how the further research resources are selected by Gemini. In recent weeks India has asked technology companies to seek approval before publicly releasing AI tools that are 'unreliable' or being trialed. The use of such tools, including generative AI, and its 'availability to the users on Indian Internet must be done so with explicit permission of the Government of India,' the country's IT ministry said last Friday. Google previously paused its Gemini image generator after it was found to be 'missing the mark' by creating woke pictures with a range of diverse but historically inaccurate ethnicities and genders in certain contexts. Google's Gemini AI chatbot generated historically inaccurate images of black founding fathers Google CEO Sundar Pichai apologized for the 'problematic' images depicting black Nazis and other 'woke images' Sundar Pichai said the company is taking steps to ensure the Gemini AI chatbot doesn't generate these images again Google temporarily disabled Gemini's image generation tool last week after users complained it was generating 'woke' but incorrect images such as female Popes The politically correct tech referred to pedophilia as 'minor-attracted person status,' declaring 'it's important to understand that attractions are not actions.' The bot appeared to find favor with abusers as it declared 'individuals cannot control who they are attracted to' Google CEO Sundar Pichai, 51, responded to the images in a memo to staff last month calling the photos 'problematic' and telling staff the company is working 'around the clock' to fix the issues. 'No Al is perfect, especially at this emerging stage of the industry's development, but we know the bar is high for us and we will keep at it for however long it takes. 'And we'll review what happened and make sure we fix it at scale,' Pichai said. The chatbot also came under fire for refusing to condemn pedophilia and appearing to find favor with abusers as it declared 'individuals cannot control who they are attracted to'. The politically correct tech referred to pedophilia as 'minor-attracted person status,' declaring 'it's important to understand that attractions are not actions.' The controversial conservative pundit caused an online storm after she shared the false story on her Daily Wire show Candace Owens has been called 'insane' and 'a conspiracy nut' after she wagered her career on the wild theory that French first lady Brigitte Macron was born a man. The controversial conservative pundit caused an online storm after she shared the false story on her Daily Wire show, which claims Macron, 70, was actually born Jean-Michel Trogneux before eventually transitioning at age 30. Owens, 34, suggested Macron is actually the same person as her older brother, and claimed: 'Any journalist or publication that is trying to dismiss this plausibility is immediately identifiable as establishment.' After Owens said she would 'stake her entire professional reputation on the fact Macron is a man,' CNN commentator S.E. Cupp said: 'Deal.' National Review editor Jay Nordlinger added that while Owen's comments might seem comical to many, they are representative of a real issue on the right. Candace Owens has been deemed 'insane' and 'dumb' after she wagered her career on the wild theory that French first lady Brigitte Macron was born a man Owens, 34, suggested Macron is actually the same person as her older brother Candace Owens on Tuesday said that she would be willing to bet her career that French President Emmanuel Macron's wife was born a man. Owens also analyzed a rare family photo of Brigitte Macron's family when she was a child, claiming she (seen at center on her mother's knee) was a 'dead ringer' for her older brother Jean-Michel Trogneux (at left) - before asserting that they were the same person 'You might write off this kind of thing as kookery. But dont write it off. Such people influence millions upon millions of people,' the conservative said. 'For 50 years, William F. Buckley Jr. labored to separate the American Right from kookery. There is work to do.' Meanwhile popular Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, who has often sparred with Owens over her claims about a conspiracy theory of Jews targeting starts like Michael Jackson, said she is 'clearly a very troubled woman and increasingly insane.' The Rabbi added: 'But even her insanity will not prevent me from bankrupting her with a lawsuit for broadcasting and insinuating that I and other Jews murdered Michael Jackson.' Journalist and writer Michael Patriot also weighed in, going after Owens' intellect. 'She may be a transphobic, grifting, conspiracy nut, but we must remember: Candace Owens is dumb,' Patriot wrote on X. 'She repeats dumb ppl's dumb ideas bc she has 0 experience or expertise in things. When conservatives imagine unqualified, token "diversity hires"... They're imagining @RealCandaceO.' The debunked conspiracy theory shared by Owens claims Macron did not give birth to any of her three children, and that her first husband, a 69-year-old retired banker said to have died a recluse in 2020, never existed. she did not give birth to any of her three children, and that her first husband, a 69-year-old retired banker said to have died a recluse in 2020, never existed. The conspiracy stems from an completely false claim made by far-right magazine Faits et Documents (Facts & Documents), after Macron, 46, was elected. But the debate was reignited last month after Emmanuel Macron's step-daughter, Tiphaine Auziere, gave an interview to Paris Match in which she addressed claims that her mother Brigitte was born male. Auziere was just 10 when she found out that her teacher mom was involved with a student who was 25 years her junior. 'I have concerns about the level of society when I hear what is circulating on social networks about my mother being a man,' she said. Still, Owens on Tuesday revived the speculation, before laying into those who disagree. President Macron with his wife, Brigitte Trogneux, in Paris on February 22, 2017 'After looking into this, I would stake my entire professional reputation on the fact that Brigitte Macron is in fact a man,' Owens, 34, wrote on the platform formerly known as Twitter, linking to the episode from the night before. 'Any journalist or publication that is trying to dismiss this plausibility is immediately identifiable as establishment,' she charged. 'I have never seen anything like this in my life. The implications here are terrifying. 'I do not intend to let up on this story and I am calling on other journalists to look into this explosive story and report accordingly.' The night before, she pulled up a 2021 Daily Mail article that debunked the speculation, before speaking in-depth about the theory surrounding the French head of state's spouse. Dismissing the opinions of several seasoned experts interviewed for the piece, Owens presented the so-called findings from what she said was a 'three-year' investigation from the publication. She further argued that if Brigitte really wanted to debunk the claims, she could simply release photos from the first 30 years of her life. Owens also analyzed a rare family photo of Brigitte Macron's family when she was a child, claiming she was a 'dead ringer' for her older brother - before asserting that they were the same person. The theory goes that French First Lady Brigitte Macron, 70, was actually born Jean-Michel Trogneux - the name of her older brother - before eventually transitioning at age 30 She went on to produce a 'before-and-after photo' allegedly used as a part of Faits et Documents investigation - one that used Chinese software to cite similarities between an undated photo of Brigitte's brother and the first lady herself She went on to tell her followers why she thinks this theory 'has legs', due to the fact that the First Lady (seen here as a child) has refused to produce other photos of herself before age 30 '[The] theory is that the first lady Brigitte Macron was actually born Jean-Michel [Trogneux] - so Brigitte is actually Jean-Michel. 'Jean-Michel lived as a man for 30 years, fathered five children, OK, and then transitioned at the age of 30 to become Brigitte. She went on to produce a 'before-and-after photo' allegedly used as a part of Faits et Documents investigation - one that used Chinese software to cite similarities between an undated photo of Brigitte's brother and the first lady herself. Owens in turn categorized the comparison as a dead ringer, telling her roughly three million subscribers her opinion of the siblings: 'It's crazy to me that you would not say that these two individuals look alike.' She went on to tell her followers why she thinks this theory 'has legs.' The first obvious thing,' she said, 'is the first lady is simply unable to produce any photos of herself throughout the first 30 years of her life. 'Guys, how easy to debunk this - if you say Candace, no, actually you lived as a man for 30 years, I've lived 30 years: I'm going to show you every photo of every year that I've lived.' She went on to produce several photos of her throughout various stages of her life to illustrate her point. 'Here's me in college right, here's me while I was pregnant with my children. Here's me and my husband on our wedding day. The conspiracy stems from an unfounded claim made by far-Right magazine Faits et Documents (Facts & Documents), after Macron, 46, was elected. Still, Owens on Tuesday stayed stalwart with her speculation 'There would be so many photos that Brigitte should have at her disposal if this is false,' she charges, but they won't produce any. 'Nope - they're just calling everybody wrong and backwards and transphobic. Just produce the photos.' 'Instead, the only photos they have produced that are circulating in the media are the photos that I just showed you,' she added, citing the photos that show Brigitte's brother Jean-Michel Trogneux as a child, and a young Brigitte as well. 'And, as I said, the first photo she looks more like the Jean-Michel who she claims is actually her brother, who she won't just present to the public,' Owens went on. 'If that is in fact your brother, please just go on a walk with him so we can capture it.' Owens' remarks came days after a visibly fed-up Macron finally address the rumors at an International Women's Day event on Friday, saying, 'The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios.' 'People eventually believe them and disturb you, even in your intimacy,' he further claimed. He added the transgender claims about Macron were typical of misogynistic online attacks that women have to put up with every day. The first obvious thing,' Owens said, 'is the First Lady is simply unable to produce any photos of herself throughout the first 30 years of her life Owens' remarks came days after a visibly fed-up Macron finally address the rumors about his much older spouse Friday, saying, 'The worst thing is the false information and fabricated scenarios' Two women who claimed the Premiere Dame was born a man were punished with 'symbolic fines' reduced on appeal last June. In turn, both claimed they were subjected to 'intimidation by the authorities' as 'ultra protected' members of the Paris establishment tried to cover up a 'state secret'. All parties to the case accepted the fines handed down on appeal as a final settlement to what had become a huge embarrassment to the First Couple. The transphobic rumors about Brigitte Macron were first picked up by the far-Right in 2022, while the President was campaigning for re-election. Groups including the Yellow Vests (Gilets Jaunes) and those protesting against Covid vaccines went on to use the claims to attack the French. Meanwhile, videos produced by journalists touting the comparisons - much as Owens did - have since been removed from YouTube. Daily Mail has reached out to President Macron's office for comment. A British man who allegedly stabbed his partner seven times in the back after she discovered he was having an affair is to be extradited to Italy to face a murder charge. IT consultant Michael Whitbread, 74, was held by police after driving across Europe following the fatal stabbing of mum of three Michele Faiers, 66. She was found dressed only in her underwear in a pool of blood at the idyllic home she shared with Whitbread in the Italian hilltop village of Casoli last October. Court documents exclusively obtained by MailOnline later revealed that Whitbread had been having an affair with another British expat and Michele had said she was leaving him and moving back to the UK. Appearing at Westminster Magistrates Court today (wed) for a full extradition hearing Michele's three daughters wept as they heard how Whitbread had stabbed their helpless mum in the back seven times. Michael Whitbread, right, was arrested in England on suspicion of murder after Michele Faiers, left, was found dead at her home near the Italian town of Casoli Local residents of the village near Casoli described the couple as 'very private' Michele Faiers, 66, was found lying on her first-floor bedroom in a pool of blood by her friend inside her rural home in a village near Casoli, a town in eastern Italy. Pictured: The home with police tape surrounding it Whitebread, originally from Torquay, Devon, was dressed in a red shirt, black trousers and jacket said nothing other than to confirm his name to the judge David Robinson. His defence David Williams said he 'didn't consent to extradition but didn't oppose it' and after a brief hearing judge Robinson ruled he should be sent back to face trial in Italy. He said:'Italian authorities have indicated an immediate trial and the offence is of a most serious and grave nature.' He told him he had a week to appeal and if he didn't lodge a request he would be sent bank to Italy within 17 days, prompting Whitbread to ask for a clarification of the dates. As he was led away, he looked over at Michele's daughters but remained emotionless as they stared back at him before leaving with a member of the Crown Prosecution Service without making any comment. According to Italian prosecution documents Michele, had been sleeping at a friend's house after suspecting her partner of having an affair. Michele Faiers (pictured with her partner Michael Whitbread) was found fatally stabbed in her idyllic Italian home They revealed how Whitbread had attacked Michele a month before the murder and left her 'covered in bruises' and 'fearing for her life' according to bombshell testimony from her close friend Petrina Keay - who later found her lifeless body. Michele's body was in the first-floor bedroom, covered by a sheet and had just her feet sticking out from under it, police sources told According to the case file a pair of men's boxers covered in blood were also found at the scene. Police have been told that Michele 'doubted her partner's fidelity', and that she was 'thinking of leaving him and going back to England'. She is said to have become 'upset and suspicious' about him after she saw him slap a female friend on the bottom at a New Year's Eve party. According to the police file the woman is retired 62-year-old company director, whose identity is known to the Mail. She is a divorced mother of two originally from Bath and who moved to Italy several years ago to start a new life with her partner, a former postman from Surrey. The prosecution file reveals Michele confided in Petrina her doubts about Whitbread and was forced to sleep at her home for a week at the beginning of October last year after a violent row with him left her 'covered in bruises'. Petrina told detectives the 'furious fight' between Michele and Whitbread, had left her friend 'fearing for her life' and she had opened up to her about the bitter relationship in the days leading up to her death. Michele was found dead on November 1when Petrina called round, after becoming worried when she failed to return messages and found her lifeless in the bedroom. Police have established she was killed four days earlier and Whitbread was held by British police in Shepshed near Loughborough, Leicestershire, after driving across Italy, Switzerland and France. He was arrested at his daughter's house - just hours after Michele was found - and she is believed to have alerted police he was at her home after reading reports of the death on MailOnline. Whitbread was described by neighbours to police as 'always a bit tipsy' while Michele was said to be 'calm and serene'. The day before Michele was killed, Whitbread sent a message to the partner of the woman whose bottom he slapped, confessing that they 'had had sex together'. But he doubted the veracity and replied asking to meet Whitbread to clear the air but he answered there was 'no point as there was nothing to clear up and it happened'. The following day - after Michelle had been stabbed to death - bizarrely Whitbread sent another message retracting what he had said and then a day later he sent a similar text. However, by this time, police have established through CCTV at the couple's home, that Whitbread had left in the early hours of October 29 in their Jeep compass and began the 1,000 mile drive to the UK. Colonel Alceo Greco, of Italy's carabinieri police force, said Michael Whitbread (pictured), 74, is a prime suspect Traffic cameras picked him up crossing from Italy into Switzerland near Lake Maggiore at 4pm that afternoon, while his last cell phone ping was earlier that afternoon from nearby Como. The incident has left the 100 expats who live in the area totally shocked and despite Whitbread's supposed affair being common knowledge, unsurprisingly no one will speak. Petrina has refused to comment on the report and at the time placed a sign on her gate in English and Italian asking not to be disturbed. CCTV footage seized form the house shows Michele returning there on October 28 after meeting Petrina and after that he only person seen leaving or entering is Whitbread. Then after he left on October 29 the next person to appear is Petrina early on the morning of November 1 when she made the horrific discovery. One local Italian told MailOnline: 'Apparently the tension between Michael and Michele was common knowledge between other British people living here. 'Michele had told a few people about it and after one nasty attack stayed with one of her friends for a week as she was in such a bad way. 'She was covered in bruises and was really scared for her life, he may have come across meek and mild abut after a drink he had a nasty temper. The 74-year-old man who was arrested over the murder of a British grandmother in Italy was found by police in a UK home (pictured) 'Things all started at a New Year's Eve party where Michael slapped another British woman's bottom and Michele wasn't very happy, she got jealous and had a go at him. 'It led to tension between this couple and them and they stopped seeing each other and avoided each other at communal functions. 'The fact he was supposed to be having an affair with this woman was common knowledge and it had got to the point where Michele just wasn't having it and wanted to go back to England to be with her family. 'She 'd been there in September for a wedding and came back talking about what a lovely time she'd had and that she was determined to move back but sadly it wasn't to be.' Israeli public figures have slammed A-list celebrities at the Oscars for wearing red hand pins symbolizing support for a Gaza ceasefire, as they say the image harkens back to the 2000 Ramallah lynching of two Jewish men. The image on the pin evokes memories of the gruesome 2000 Ramallah lynching of two Israeli men who accidentally entered the Palestinian city of Ramallah before they were brutally murdered on news cameras. A crowd of Palestinian rioters stabbed and beat the soldiers to death before ripping out their organs - including their heart - and posing for a photo with bloodied hands in front of a cheering crowd. The photo quickly became a symbol of violence during the Second Intifada. Several celebrities wore these pins at the Oscars, held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, representing the 'Artists4Ceasefire' movement, a group that advocates for a 'ceasefire' in Gaza. Among the celebrities who wore the pin were Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas, Cord Jefferson, Mark Ruffalo, Ava DuVernay, Ramy Youssef and Quannah Chasinghorse. 'The pin symbolizes collective support for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of all of the hostages and for the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza,' the group said in a statement. The image on the pin evokes memories of the gruesome 2000 Ramallah lynching of two Israeli men who accidentally entered Ramallah Israeli public figures have slammed A-list celebrities at the Oscars for wearing red hand pins symbolizing support for a Gaza ceasefire by 'Artists4Ceasefire' Several celebrities wore these pins at the Oscars, held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, representing the 'Artists4Ceasefire' movement, a group that advocates for a 'ceasefire' in Gaza In addition to the red hand being featured in the pins, Palestinian protestors have also taken to painting their hands red to advocate for a ceasefire Both Noa Tishby and Yoseph Haddad, prominent advocates for Israel, criticized celebrities who wore red Artists4Ceasefire pins at the Oscars. Tishby and Haddad have been actively involved in international advocacy efforts, discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with politicians, student and the public. According to Haddad, this movement emerged in response to yellow pins advocating for the release of Israeli hostages, according to the Jerusalem Post. Tishby and Haddad believe that wearing these pins carries significant symbolism. Tishby highlighted the absence of yellow ribbon pins, which call for the return of Israeli hostages, alongside the emergence of the red pins. She expressed concern that this could be interpreted as endorsing Hamas's agenda by questioning Israel's right to self-defense. Both Noa Tishby and Yoseph Haddad, prominent advocates for Israel, criticized celebrities who wore red Artists4Ceasefire pins at the Oscars Tishby and Haddad have been actively involved in international advocacy efforts, discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict with politicians, students and the public A crowd of Palestinian rioters stabbed and beat the soldiers to death before ripping out their organs - including their heart - and posing for a photo with bloodied hands in front of a cheering crowd. The photo quickly became a symbol of violence during the Second Intifada On the other hand, Haddad said the red pin 'supports the side of a terrorist organization that committed a brutal massacre ... and also proclaims that the Israeli hostages can [stay] in Gaza and continue to go through hell,' as reported by the Jerusalem Post. Ramy Youssef, one of the celebrities wearing the red pin, described it as a universal message to stop the killing of children in an interview on the red carpet. Dozens of celebrities, including A-listers like America Ferrera, Channing Tatum, Dua Lipa and Florence Pugh, have come together to urge President Joe Biden to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza through Artists4Ceasefire. The public figures, who created a group called Artists4Ceasefire, wrote an open letter to the president, which explains they have 'come together as artists and advocates, but most importantly as human beings witnessing the devastating loss of lives and unfolding horrors in Israel and Palestine.' A protester shows a hand covered in mock blood, as pro-Palestinians supporters gather for an anti-Israeli rally to show their solidarity with Gaza people in Palestine square, in Tehran, Iran A group of activists organized a pro-Palestinian protest at House hearing, raising their hands painted red, calling for a cease-fire in Gaza and wearing Palestinian keffiyehs A group of activists organized a pro-Palestinian protest at House hearing, raising their hands painted red Protestors calling for a ceasefire in Gaza raise their hands, painted in red, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on October 31, 2023, in Washington, DC 'We ask that, as President of the United States, you call for an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Gaza and Israel before another life is lost,' the group stated. 'More than 5,000 people have been killed in the last week and a half a number any person of conscience knows is catastrophic. We believe all life is sacred, no matter faith or ethnicity and we condemn the killing of Palestinian and Israeli civilians.' They continued: 'We urge your administration, and all world leaders, to honor all of the lives in the Holy Land and call for and facilitate a ceasefire without delay an end to the bombing of Gaza, and the safe release of hostages.' The members of Artists4Ceasefire also pointed out that 'half of Gaza's two million residents are children, and more than two thirds are refugees and their descendants being forced to flee their homes.' Ramy Youssef, one of the celebrities wearing the red pin, described it as a universal message to stop the killing of children in an interview on the red carpet Among the celebrities who wore the pin were Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas, Cord Jefferson, Mark Ruffalo, Ava DuVernay, Ramy Youssef, and Quannah Chasinghorse The signees are also asking Biden to help residents of Gaza access humanitarian aid and expressed their belief that 'the United States can play a vital diplomatic role in ending the suffering' Dozens of celebrities, including A-listers like America Ferrera, Channing Tatum, Dua Lipa and Florence Pugh, have come together to urge President Joe Biden to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza through Artists4Ceasefire Speaking up: Dozens of celebrities, including A-listers like Channing Tatum, Dua Lipa, Florence Pugh and Cate Blanchett, have come together to urge President Joe Biden to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza The signees are also asking Biden to help residents of Gaza access humanitarian aid and expressed their belief that 'the United States can play a vital diplomatic role in ending the suffering.' 'We believe that the United States can play a vital diplomatic role in ending the suffering and we are adding our voices to those from the US Congress, UNICEF, Doctors without Borders, The International Committee of The Red Cross, and so many others,' the stars added. 'Saving lives is a moral imperative.' The plea was also signed by Cate Blanchett, Andrew Garfield, Jessica Chastain, Rachel McAdams, Shailene Woodley, Joaquin Phoenix, Jessie Williams, Kristen Stewart, Macklemore, Alyssa Milano, Margaret Cho and many more performers. Artists4Ceasefire did not immediately respond to the DailyMail.com's request for comment. Former Honduras first lady Ana Garcia de Hernandez announced she will seek the presidency just days after her husband, President Juan Orlando Hernandez, was convicted on drug trafficking charges by a United States court. President Hernandez was convicted for conspiring with drug traffickers to smuggle tons of cocaine to the United States in a federal court in New York last Friday. 'I want to tell you that as of this moment I will begin an active and proactive fight so that the world knows the injustice that was committed,' Garcia de Hernandez said Tuesday. Garcia de Hernandez, who was accompanied by the couple's daughters, Ana and Isabela, said that she will be running the National Party ticket in the 2025 elections. 'I know what has to be done, I know the job,' the 55-year-old lawyer said. 'I recognize the dedication and fight my husband has had every day and I know Honduras' great needs, and one of the greatest is the injustice we've just seen.' Honduras former first lady, Ana Garcia de Hernandez, revealed Tuesday that she will seek the presidency in 2025. Her announcement came four days after her husband, President Juan Orlando Hernandez, was convicted on drug trafficking and firearm charges by a federal court in New York President Juan Orlando Hernandez is looking at a possible life sentence following his conviction on drug trafficking and firearm charges in New York last week. Hernandez was found guilty of conspiring to import cocaine to the United States, using and carrying machine guns in furtherance of conspiring to import cocaine and conspiring to use machine guns to further that conspiracy. The U.S. Justice Department said during that trial that from about 2004 to 2022, the former president abused his authority by accepting millions of dollars in bribes from drug traffickers to allow them to transport cocaine to the United States. In return, the two-term president used the cash to fuel his political ambitions in the Central American country. In return, the two-term president used the cash to fuel his political ambitions in the Central American country. During 2019 the trial of his former Congressman brother, Juan Antonio Hernandez, a key government witness testified before the New York court that Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman had contributed $1 million ahead of Juan Orlando Hernandez's 2013 presidential campaign in exchange for protection. The future president sent his brother and an associate - who has not been identified - with machine guns to collect El Chapo's payment. Juan Antonio Hernandez was found guilty by a federal court in New York on drug trafficking and firearm charges in October 2019 and sentenced to life in prison in March 2021. 'I want to tell you that as of this moment I will begin an active and proactive fight so that the world knows the injustice that was committed,' Garcia de Hernandez said Tuesday. President Hernandez was found guilty of conspiring to import cocaine to the United States, using and carrying machine guns in furtherance of conspiring to import cocaine and conspiring to use machine guns to further that conspiracy President Hernandez was arrested at the family residence in Tegucigalpa, Honduras' capital, in February 2022, just three months after leaving office. He extradited to the United States in 2022 in April of that year. He is looking at the possibility of life in prison and is planning on filing an appeal, according to his lawyer, Renato Stabile. Marco Eliud Giron, a lawmaker from the ruling LIBRE party, said that Garcia de Hernandez could run, but asserted that she surely knew of her husbands ties to drug traffickers. He suggested her entry into politics had more to do with reducing her own legal exposure. Parents of pupils at a top independent school have slammed the 'utterly unacceptable' quality of their catering. Around 200 parents are calling for urgent changes to be made at Withington Girls School in Manchester after grim photos emerged of the food being given to pupils aged between seven and 18. These include a roast meal which includes a small slice of turkey and two potatoes and a very small portion of sausage and mash. Also pictured are potato wedges and what appears to be a chicken curry. It is understood they are produced by Holroyd Howe which holds the catering contract for the school. MailOnline has been told that parents have been complaining to the school, which charges 11,910 per year, about the 'poor food quality for years.' Has your children's school been serving bad school dinners? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk Roast turkey served with just two potatoes at Withington Girls School Sausage and mash served at Withington Girls School Photos of what appears to be a chicken curry served at Withington Girls School One parent told MailOnline: 'For a highly respected school, the food is utterly unacceptable. 'Parents in large numbers have been complaining for years about the catering company which they use. 'A large parent group has been formed of around 200 parents but nothing is being done. 'They won't allow packed lunches and the girls are made to feel like they are doing something wrong if they don't eat, complain or on the rare occasion ask for more. 'We are at the point now where me personally my daughter comes home after starving herself since breakfast. 'I send her with snacks but she's scared to take a secret packed lunch in.' According to their website, Holroyd Howe say they have 'a fresh and thoughtful food offer that's uniquely tailored to meet the needs of each [school].' They add: 'Established 25 years ago, we are a team of foodies at heart, focused on developing our people and continuously improving our provision of freshly prepared handmade meals, that are both nutritious and delicious, every day. 'Today, our foodservice is More than a Meal. Our teams work in partnership with our schools to create an inclusive environment so that those we serve form positive experiences with food.' Another dish which parents argue is poor quality at Withington Girls School Around 200 parents are urging school management to rethink their school meal offering. Pictured: Another poor quality dish It comes after a headteacher slammed his school's caterers for serving 'completely unacceptable' food to pupils - and accused them of not knowing how to 'bake a potato'. In an angry letter addressed to parents, Jason Ashley said he is 'exceptionally unhappy' with the food served to pupils at his secondary school by outsourced caterers. Mr Ashley said he would be furious if his own children were served the 'extremely poor quality' school dinners and that he can 'no longer tolerate' it. He even supplied photos of bland-looking meals to parents, showing portions including pie and mash, baked potato and tuna, chicken and veg, and chips and beans. Redbridge Community School, in Southampton, is catered for by Chartwells - who brand themselves as 'The UK's Leading School Catering Company' and serve over 2,000 schools. Mr Ashley said he has concluded Chartwells can't bake a potato. In his letter, he wrote: 'Firstly, I want to apologise for having to write to you, but I can no longer keep this from you. I hope you understand the reasons and the risks. 'As the Headteacher, you will often hear me say 'if it's good enough for my own children, it has to be good enough for yours'. Pie and mash served at Redbridge Community School Photos of what appears to be a veggie burger served at Redbridge Community School 'Frankly, the food that is served in the canteen is completely unacceptable, so much so, that if my own children's school served this I would be exceptionally unhappy. 'Unfortunately, Redbridge Community School has no control over the private company Chartwell's. 'This company provides the catering contract for the school. Myself and [business manager Clare Wall-Bradfield] have been in numerous meetings (the most recent this morning) and I am simply fed up with the lack of progress being made. 'We have concluded with our photo evidence that Chartwell's do seem to be unable to 'bake a potato' correctly. 'Our evidence shows that in recent times portions have gotten smaller, whilst prices have risen. 'For example, recently it was British 'pie week' and the pie served was of extremely poor quality when compared to our partner schools.' Chartwells said there was 'operational challenges' and staffing issues at the school. In a statement, they said: 'We apologise that in this instance our usual level of service has fallen below the high standards we demand. 'We are committed to working in collaboration with the school and are implementing an immediate action plan to rectify these issues.' MailOnline previously reported how parents slammed Bulwell Academy in Nottingham and Ysgol Dyffryn Taf in Whitland, Carmarthenshire for their poor quality meals. One father-of-four hit out at the school over a 'disgusting' sliced baguette stuffed with a 'block of cheese'. And he feared the meals are not up to nutritional standards, fuming: 'Our kids are being treated worse than in a prison'. But leaders at the school, which has more than a 1,000 students, insist its catering staff 'work hard' to ensure menu items meet nutritional standards. Images of the school meals being given to children at Ysgol Dyffryn Taf were posted on social media, with parents labelling the quality of the meals 'shocking' Parents say their children opt out of eating at school as a result of the poor quality meals at Ysgol Dyffryn Taf Meanwhile, at Ysgol Dyffryn Taf, images of the school meals, which include pasta and bacon rolls, were posted on social media. Shelley Webb posted the initial images which went viral online following complaints about school meals from her daughter. She claims the quality of food has dipped in recent months, leading to smaller portions and limited choice. 'Both the quantity and the quality of the food the children get is ridiculous,' she said. 'It's 2.60 for what they call a 'nutritious main meal' - it's basically one sausage, one scoop of mash, some carrots and cranberry sauce.' Headteacher of the school, Julian Kennedy, said in a statement: 'The school is aware of concerns raised by some parents on social media, regarding the quality of food provision at lunchtimes. 'As you know, Carmarthenshire County Council's Catering Service runs our dinner hall and is responsible for the break and lunchtime offer. 'We will hold discussions with the service to ensure our pupils can access a high quality of provision at break and lunchtime.' Withington Girls School has been approached for comment. Has YOUR children's school been serving bad school dinners? Email matt.strudwick@mailonline.co.uk Do YOU know the tourists involved? Do YOU know the tourists involved? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk This is the moment an armed police officer tells a group of tourists to stop 'ridiculing' a King's Guard. Footage posted on TikTok shows the tourists, believed to be American, shouting and laughing at the guard in Central London as they appear to try to get him to engage with them. The tourists have their phones out to film the uniformed guard and capture each other laughing before they start screaming when they think they have guessed the name. An officer then swoops in to discuss the matter with the guard before warning the group to stop. Do YOU know the tourists involved? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk An officer swoops in to discuss the matter with the guard before warning the group to stop Footage posted on TikTok shows the tourists, believed to be American, shouting and laughing at the guard in Central London as they appear to try to get him to engage with them 'These soldiers serve their country, they take their job seriously, they are responsible for protecting this facility, they are not an object of ridicule,' he tells the tourists. READ MORE: Adorable moment King's Guard melts hearts by delighting young man petting his horse Advertisement 'I appreciate you're having fun, he's not having fun, he's got a long day, he has a lot of hours he's got to do. It is tiring, exhausting, and you take the p*** out of him. 'We do not appreciate that. I will ask you to leave the facility.' Viewers of the video were quick to praise the police officer, with one writing: 'Officer handled this like a champ.' Another added: 'Well done to that police officer.' It comes after a tourist was slammed by a King's Guard after venturing too close to his horse last year. In the video, people can be seen clamoring around a mounted guard on Horse Guard's parade. Multiple nervous tourists are seen approaching the mounted pair, respecting their distance and posing for smiling photographs. Some are seen laying hands on the enormous horse's flanks which the mounted guard graciously allows. However, one tourist overstepped the limit, and in the process of trying to touch the horse tampered with the reins causing the King's Guard to bellow: 'Do not touch the reins!' One tourist overstepped the limit, and in the process of trying to touch the horse tampered with the reins This caused the King's Guard to bellow: 'Do not touch the reins!' What is the King's Guard and what do the soldiers do? The King's Guard is the name given to the group of soldiers responsible for guarding Buckingham Palace and St James's Palace. Traditionally, guards stand still while on sentry duty, which lasts for two hours, before they then have a four-hour break. Every 10 minutes, they come to attention, slopes arms and do a march of 15 paces across the area of the post. They must work regardless of the weather, and must follow strict rules such as not grinning or laughing, which can result in a 200 fine. Guards are not generally allowed to talk to the general public, but in certain circumstances, such as when people obstruct them, they can shout a warning to get them to move. Advertisement Clearly in a state of shock, the tourist backs away from the horse raising a hand in apology as he does so while the crowd chatter nervously. And just a few months earlier a video was shared online of a blonde woman standing in the guard's way at the Horse Guards Parade before he 'pushes' her out the way. The woman, who was holding a blue can of Pringles, was seen standing very close to one of the mounted guards, while other bystanders gave the guards more room by standing further away. Despite the King's guard on foot asking the woman to step back when he first passed her to salute his fellow guards, she stepped even closer to the agitated horse of the mounted guard. And when the same guard later walked back towards the gates, the woman moved right into his path. He shouted 'make way' and used his arm to move the woman out of his path, which left her furious. But despite videos often showing the Kings' Guard upholding their duties, there have been moments when they break protocol to make someone's day. An elderly military veteran was treated to the friendlier side of a member of the King's Life Guard last July when the soldier moved closer to her as she posed for a photo with her husband. A video posted on social media shows the couple - both of whom were proudly displaying their medals - moving as close as they dare to the mounted soldier. But, having apparently realised they have both served their country, the soldier, who is wearing his customary plumed helmet and armour, quickly urges his horse closer to them before allowing the woman to pat his steed's nose. In a separate incident a blonde woman was seen standing in a guard's way at the Horse Guards Parade He shouted 'make way' and used his arm to move the woman out of his path, which left her furious An elderly military veteran was treated to the friendlier side of a member of the King's Life Guard when the soldier moved closer to her and allowed the woman to pat his horse's nose Beaming, the couple then move away and the soldier directs his horse back into position. In another show of kindness in the same month, a member of the Kings Guard won praise after going out of his way to make a young man with Down's syndrome feel comfortable. A video of Mike van Erp, 50, better known by his YouTube name CyclingMikey, and the youngster posing for a photo at Buckingham Palace has caused a stir after being shared on YouTube. Footage shows how a kind-hearted member of the Guard moved closer to Mike and the boy who were trying to get a photo to remember their trip to Horse Guards Parade by. Taking to Twitter to post about their day out, Mike who is a professional carer explained: 'I've worked for his family and him for a decade now. 'We were out on a cycle ride on my tandem bicycle and stopped by the Horse Guards Parade.' He admitted that 'both I and the young lad' got a bit of a scare 'when he stepped closer to us' because it was so unexpected, adding: 'This left me with tears in my eyes for a few evenings.' A member of the Kings Guard won praise after going out of his way to make a young man with Down's syndrome feel comfortable after moving closer to him as he posed for a photo After Twitter users initially thought that Mike was the boy's father, he clarified: 'Im also not his dad, although Id be proud to be.' 'I'm very grateful to the soldier,' he continued. 'I'm lucky I had good parents and went to a Jesuit school that cared about me and taught me well, same for the young lad I'm with. Tears in my eyes.' The King's Guards are posted for public duties outside Buckingham and St James's Palaces, and at Horse Guards on Whitehall. Although their role is mostly ceremonial, they are part of the British Army's Household Division and patrol the palaces, guarding the sovereign at night. A sign next to the guard warns onlookers that horses may kick or bite, telling them not to touch the reins. Should these rules be disobeyed they have been known to respond aggressively, so seriously do they take their duties, but there are occasions when the human sides of the guards come out. Do YOU know the tourists involved? Email katherine.lawton@mailonline.co.uk Members of the Lamesa Fire and Rescue raised over $10,000 for victims of the Panhandle fires during a fundraiser this past weekend. Mary Elizabeth Davis, Lamesa Press-Reporter Members of the Lamesa Fire and Rescue called and the community responded. Firefighters were out in full force Saturday to raise funds for the victims of the Panhandle fires by cooking up and selling hamburgers, brisket and sausages in Claibornes Thriftway parking lot. They managed to raise over $10,000 for the cause. Thank you to the community for coming in and supporting us and supporting everybody else up there, said firefighting volunteer Lieutenant and Secretary Dalton Burdet of Company 2. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Fires have been burning in the states Panhandle for over a week. The fires have claimed over one million acres, claimed the lives of two people, and destroyed crops, homes and livestock. Those fires continue to burn. The fire is considered the largest in Texas history. Investigators are looking into the fires causes. It has been speculated that a utility company may have ignited one blaze while lightning may be blamed for the other four wildfires. The fires started near Stinnett in Hutchinson County Feb. 26 and have been burning for the past three weeks. Areas of the five reported wildfires have been 44- 90 percent contained, according to online news reports Monday afternoon. Advertisement Article continues below this ad It isnt uncommon for firefighters to host fundraisers to help their fellow firefighters and their families. They were there to assist when Ackerly firefighters hosted a fundraiser last year to help one of their own facing life after the death of his wife. Its something we do to help each other out, said Burdet. We do this fundraiser when theres a tragedy in our department or some other (fire) department, said Fire Chief of Volunteers Brian Beck. It doesnt matter where they are because they are our brothers. We dont have to know them. This one is so big, theyre going to need help where they can get it. Firefighters prepared five briskets, 40 pounds of sausages and a little over 200 burgers. Advertisement Article continues below this ad It was very good. Very good, said Beck. We sold out of brisket in the first hour and a half. The firefighters, their wives and volunteers continued to collect donations even after all the food was sold. It shows the heart Lamesa has to support other people in need, Beck said. Every time we do this, we have an excellent turnout. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Midland Meat Company provided the meat while city department heads provided the chips and West Texas Graphics provided the banner advertising the Lamesa Fire Rescues Panhandle Relief Fund. Hundreds of protesters are planning to hold a 'mass trespass' at a historic Cotswolds park as its owner begins charging visitors for entering for the first time in 326 years. Cirencester Park, in Gloucestershire, has been run by the Bathurst family since 1695 and has been free to the public for all that time. From Friday, March 15, it will charge visitors 4 a day or 30 a year to enter the boundaries of the park, which lies within the larger Bathurst Estate. Local residents will continue to have free access. Lord Bathurst said would allow management to 'continue to protect and preserve the important heritage, natural capital and biodiversity' and would fund restoration of the Broad Avenue and maintenance of the park. However, the move has sparked outrage among Right to Roam campaigners, who have called for protest which could see hundreds of people go into the 15,500-acre estate by circumventing four electric gateways which have been installed at the entrances and exits. Lord Bathurst has said the charges will allow the estate to 'continue to protect and preserve the important heritage'. Pictured: Lord Bathurst pictured with his wife Lady Bathurst in 2016 Tourists visiting the grounds of Lord Bathurst's Cirencester Park (pictured) will have to pay an entrance fee for the first time in 329 years from March 15 Right to Roam, which says it fights for 'free and fair' access to land across the UK, says it is expecting a big turnout for the 'no pay protest', with hundreds of people booked to attend via the website Eventbrite. Supporters are planning to meet at 11am on Sunday at the main entrance point to the park at Cecily Hill and they say they will enter the grounds regardless of the new restrictions to take part in a 'peaceful jamboree'. The event page states: 'Join Right to Roam for a peaceful jamboree on the weekend the charges are introduced, as we contest the pay walling of the park and celebrate hundreds of years of community heritage. 'We'll hear from locals, historians and Right to Roam campaigners and resurrect some of the park's great customs in a Fayre For All.' Organiser Jon Moses of Right to Roam said: 'It'll be a no pay protest, so the intention is to peacefully enter the park without accepting the new charges, just as people have done for hundreds of years.' David Watts, a local resident who regularly uses the park for exercise, said he was 'upset and disappointed' when he heard about the new charging regime. He will be taking part in Sunday's protest, he said. 'For many of us, Cecily Hill is not just an entrance to the park but a gateway to thousands of acres of English countryside which have been free to roam for centuries,' he said. 'It feels like an infringement on our freedoms - the countryside should be free for everyone.' Responding to reports about this weekend's protest, a spokesperson for the park said they hoped any protest would be 'conducted with consideration for the wildlife and delicate areas'. 'The Bathurst Estate is aware of the Right to Roam planned activity in Cirencester Park on Sunday 17th March,' they said. 'The Estate's primary concern is to ensure the safety of all park users throughout the day, including members of the public and staff and to ensure that wildlife and conservation areas are not harmed. 'Spring is a sensitive time for wildlife in the Park and we ask that Park users are considerate of the nesting birds, that dogs are kept on leads where requested and that fenced off areas are respected. 'The Bathurst Estate has been in touch with the organisers of Sunday's event and Gloucestershire Police, with a view that any intended activity is conducted with consideration for the wildlife and delicate areas of the Park, and the visiting public.' An aerial view of Broad Avenue on the Bathurst Estate as management begins charging non-local visitors Passes will be available for people wishing to enter the park multiple times a year. The Community Pass (top) for local residents gives unlimited access for a one-off 10 deposit, while the Annual Pass (bottom) for non-local visitors costs 30 a year The decision to charge non-local visitors has not been without controversy, Countess Bathurst launched an extraordinary tirade after getting drawn into a row with locals over the plan in 2021. Explaining the initiative on Facebook, Lady Bathurst claimed she was receiving 'upsetting bullying' amid opposition to the move and said the decision had been made by estate management and not herself. 'I am uncomfortable with the growing belief that this is all my doing. It is not,' she said. READ MORE HERE: Wife of 9th Earl Bathurst apologises after her country estate sprays human excrement on to fields Advertisement Earl Bathurst, known as Lord Apsley until his father's death in 2011, is a keen conservationist who has campaigned to preserve the countryside and historic buildings. When announcing that charges would be introduced earlier this year, he said: 'The physical and health benefits that people and their dogs get from the restorative powers of being in the natural environment of Cirencester Park is as important today as when the Park was first established. 'We are delighted to continue to share Cirencester Park with the local community and visitors to the area. 'This year, we will continue our important conservation work, with Phase II of the Broad Avenue Restoration Project starting in the autumn. 'The introduction of Passes supports these important projects as well as the effective maintenance of pathways, woodlands, grasslands and monuments so we can continue to protect and preserve the important heritage, natural capital and biodiversity within the Park for all. 'Regulars will notice new information points, signs and maps, with suggested walking routes and interesting facts about the Park, its history, activities and wildlife as well as a striking wood carving that captures all its wonderful aspects.' A spokesperson for the estate added that the charges would ensure the park is 'safe' and 'well-maintained'. 'The Bathurst Estate is committed to improving the visitor experience within Cirencester Park with the provision of new facilities, information points, family friendly spaces such as a children's play area and the picnic arboretum at The Old Kennels, while retaining the character of a Grade I listed parkland,' they said. 'The management and maintenance of Estates and private parklands is ever evolving, with landowners embracing new ways to ensure continuity in their conservation and preservation works; Cirencester Park is no different. 'The introduction of Passes will support this, as well as the work of those employed to ensure the Park is safe, that pathways are well-maintained and visitor areas are clean, interesting, and enjoyable.' Non-local visitors will need to purchase the passes from March 15, with an individual Cirencester Park Annual Pass costing 30. A Day Pass will be priced at 4 for adults and 2 for children. Local residents can claim a Cirencester Park Community Pass, which requires a one-off 10 deposit. Reportedly worth 45 million, the estate sprawls over 15,500 acres of countryside which claims to enclose the principal source of the River Thames. President Joe Biden continues his post State of the Union road show on Wednesday to two swing states critical to his re-election: Wisconsin and Michigan. The trip comes as Biden and Donald Trump both officially won enough delegates to have their party's respective presidential nominations. Both states will be critical in the 2024 presidential contest. Trump won them in the 2016 election but Biden put them back in the Democratic column in the 202 contest. Currently, Trump leads by one point in Wisconsin, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average, and by four points in Michigan. President Joe Biden will be in Wisconsin on Wednesday to court black voters While in Wisconsin, Biden will open his state campaign headquarters in Milwaukee, where nearly 40% of residents are black, rather than in the state capitol of Madison. Milwaukee also has a high level of Hispanic voters and suburban independent voters - a group that can decide elections. Biden will also announce $3.3 billion in infrastructure projects for disadvantaged communities, specifically black, Hispanic and Asian neighborhoods. Biden needs all three voting blocs if he wants to defeat Trump and win a second term. Biden and his team - including Vice President Kamala Harris and first lady Jill Biden - have made several trips to Wisconsin. Trump, the Republican nominee, has yet to visit the state this cycle. In Michigan on Thursday, Biden will visit Saginaw, north of Detroit, which has high concentrations of black and union voters. The president and his advisers have made several trips to the state amid criticism of Biden's handling of the war in Gaza. Michigan is home to the largest Arab American population in the nation. Donald Trump will be campaigning in Ohio on Saturday President Biden will not house his Wisconsin campaign headquarters in the state Capitol of Madison (above) but in Milwaukee, where nearly 40% of residents are black But Biden won't be in Dearborn, which has a high concentration of Palestinian voters, on Thursday, instead being further north. Biden has another goal in the state: wooing his own Democrats. During the primary in that state, 13% voted 'uncommitted' instead of for the president. Both Trump and Biden are making a play for black voters this year as polls show the voting bloc is increasingly disappointed in Biden. A New York Times/Sienna poll last month showed 23% of black voters support Trump, which is a massive increase from 2020 when his support with that group was at 4%. This week's trip is part of Biden's post-State of the Union tour to visit all the battleground states in the month of March. Last week he was in Pennsylvania and Georgia. On Monday he was in New Hampshire. Future trips will include North Carolina. Biden won Wisconsin by less than 1 percent in the 2020 presidential election and Michigan by three points. Trump won both those states over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 contest. Diane Abbott berated Keir Starmer for stripping her of the Labour whip when he reached out to her in the House of Commons today. Ms Abbott was in the chamber as Sir Keir clashed with Rishi Sunak over the alleged remarks made about her by Tory donor Frank Hester. Repeatedly challenged to return around 10million in funding, Mr Sunak acknowledged the comments were 'wrong and racist'. But he insisted that Mr Hester had apologised and his 'remorse should be accepted'. Following the exchanges Sir Keir climbed the stairs to where Ms Abbott was sitting and could be seen bent over talking to her. She later took to social media to confirm that Sir Keir said: 'Let me know if there's anything I can do.' But Ms Abbott - who has been suspended since last April over downplaying prejudice faced by Jews - apparently replied: 'You could restore the whip.' The former shadow home secretary also attacked Speaker Lindsay Hoyle for ignoring her attempts to intervene during the PMQs session. The Guardian has reported that Mr Hester told a meeting in 2019 that Ms Abbott made him 'want to hate all black women' and 'should be shot'. He has admitted making 'rude' comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had 'nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin'. Following the PMQs clashes, Keir Starmer climbed the stairs to where Diane Abbott was sitting and could be seen bent over talking to her Ms Abbott, who is suspended from the Labour whip, was in the chamber as Rishi Sunak branded alleged remarks made by Frank Hester 'wrong and racist' As Sir Keir repeatedly challenged him to return around 10million in donations, Mr Sunak insisted that Mr Hester had apologised and his 'remorse should be accepted' Frank Hester, who is believed to have given the party 10million, is alleged to have said Ms Abbott made him 'want to hate all black women' and that she 'should be shot' Hester issued a statement on X in which he said he was 'deeply sorry for his remarks' - but denied that his criticism had anything to do with her gender or the colour of her skin Ms Abbott, who became the first black woman elected to Parliament in 1987, had the Labour whip suspended last April after comments she made suggesting Jewish, Irish and Traveller people are not subject to racism 'all their lives'. In a letter to The Observer, the Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP said that although white people 'with points of difference' suffer prejudice, they have not suffered the same racism as black people. Speaker defends not calling Diane Abbott at PMQs session Diane Abbott has hit out at the Speaker has for not calling her during PMQs today. The former shadow home secretary was seen bobbing up and down during the regular session. However, despite being the subject of the exchanges between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer she did not succeed in participating. Posting on the X social media site afterwards, Ms Abbott said: 'I don't know whose interests the Speaker thinks he is serving. But it is not the interests of the Commons or democracy.' A spokeswoman for Sir Lindsay said there was 'not enough time' to accommodate everyone. 'During Prime Minister's Questions, the Speaker must select MPs from either side of the House on an alternating basis for fairness,' the spokeswoman said. 'This takes place within a limited timeframe, with the chair prioritising Members who are already listed on the order paper. 'This week as is often the case there was not enough time to call all Members who wanted to ask a question.' Advertisement Following a backlash, including from Jewish MPs, she apologised for any 'anguish' caused, suggesting 'errors arose' in her initial draft letter to the newspaper. An independent process reviewing Ms Abbott's case is still taking place. Unless the whip is restored she will not be able to stand as a Labour candidate at the election. A spokesman for Sir Keir said after PMQs that the length of the probe 'shows we take these issues seriously'. It is understood Ms Abbott has been offered support by Labour despite not being in the parliamentary party. No announcement is expected imminently on her case. As well as retweeting posts setting out the conversation between her and Sir Keir, Ms Abbott took aim at Sir Lindsay for not calling her to speak. 'I don't know whose interests the Speaker thinks he is serving. But it is not the interests of the Commons or democracy,' she swiped. A spokeswoman for Sir Lindsay said there was 'not enough time' to accommodate everyone. 'During Prime Minister's Questions, the Speaker must select MPs from either side of the House on an alternating basis for fairness,' the spokeswoman said. 'This takes place within a limited timeframe, with the chair prioritising Members who are already listed on the order paper. 'This week as is often the case there was not enough time to call all Members who wanted to ask a question.' Mr Hester has admitted making 'rude' comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had 'nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin'. In a new statement issued just before 7pm, the PM's spokesman said: 'The comments allegedly made by Frank Hester were racist and wrong. He has now rightly apologised for the offence caused and where remorse is shown it should be accepted. 'The Prime Minister is clear there is no place for racism in public life and, as the first British-Asian Prime Minister leading one of the most ethnically diverse Cabinets in our history, the UK is living proof of that fact.' Tories have voiced anger that it took so long for the premier to take a clear position on the issue. Conservative West Midlands Mayor Andy Street also this morning joined opposition parties in demanding that the 10million donated by Mr Hester to the Conservative Party over the past year is returned. In a round of interviews this morning, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake insisted that would not happen. 'I don't think we are giving the money back, no.' Mr Hollinrake told Sky News: 'I think his comments were clearly racist and wrong, there is no question about that. You don't judge somebody's character based on their skin colour. 'He has apologised for that. I don't think that means Frank Hester is necessarily a racist.' Asked whether he would be comfortable spending Mr Hester's donations, Mr Hollinrake said: 'On the basis he is not a racist, has apologised for what he said, yes.' Mr Hollinrake also suggested the Tories would be willing to accept more money from Mr Hester, telling BBC Breakfast: 'As I now understand the situation, yes.' As well as retweeting posts setting out the conversation between her and Sir Keir, Ms Abbott took aim at Sir Lindsay for not calling her to speak The PM's position had come under pressure when Cabinet minister Kemi Badenoch (pictured) broke ranks to say they were racist Senior Tories had declined to describe the comments as racist - until trade secretary Kemi Badenoch broke ranks to criticise them on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday In a statement posted on X yesterday afternoon, Mr Hester said: 'The UK benefits immensely from the rich diversity of people like my parents who had roots in another land, religion and culture. 'We should celebrate those differences which have made us the world's most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy. 'And we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence.' Biden's Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is in the hot seat after a whistleblower at the agency expressed issues with the administration's 'impersonal and inefficient' telework policies. Last month, a federal employee, who describes themself as a supervisor at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), disclosed to Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, that remote work is 'negatively affecting productivity, efficiency, and cooperation.' The senator brought up the whistleblower concerns to Vilsack during a recent hearing, during in which he insisted employees are expected to be in the office the 'majority of the week.' But in practice, that is not happening. Now, Ernst wrote to the USDA inspector general Wednesday in a letter first obtained by DailyMail.com expressing issues with the secretary's testimony and demanding an investigation. Secretary Vilsack's 'apparent misapprehension' regarding his agency's telework policies 'underlines the importance of comprehensive reviews, audits, and evaluations of the USDA's telework, locality pay, and space utilization policies,' she states. 'Growing up on a farm, I know what working from home really means. While Secretary Vilsack tries to cover up for bureaucrats, we need answers to how this tele-'work' is actually impacting USDA's ability to serve our families and farmers,' Ernst told DailyMail.com. Ernst to the USDA inspector general Wednesday in a letter first obtained by DailyMail.com expressing issues with the secretary's testimony 'If USDA staff aren't going to show up for work in Washington, we should put them out to pasture, literally, by relocating the department to Iowa.' Senator John Boozman, R-Ark., joined Ernst on the letter to the agency Wednesday. The whistleblower went on to say that the 'vast majority' of USDA employees are working remotely, and the unused federal office headquarters resembles a 'ghost town' with empty hallways and vacant offices. The USDA was found to be at only 11 percent occupied between January and March 2023 and more than 75 percent of the available office space at 17 different federal agencies is still empty, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Vilsack took issue with that stat, saying the GAO calculation is 'not even close to correct.' But Ernst says that the agency's estimates were based on 'average space utilization taken over a three-month period less than a year ago.' Her letter comes the day after the House passed a new bill that will force the federal workforce to get back into the office. The bill led by Rep. Scott Perry, which passed Tuesday evening 217-203, requires federal agencies to use their offices at a 60 percent capacity rate or sell the buildings. Republicans say its an insult to taxpayers as agencies spend about $2 billion a year to operate and maintain over 11,000 acres of federal office buildings and over $5 billion annually in leases. In addition to unused physical office space, employees are facing productivity challenges due to the impersonal nature of remote work. The biggest issue, according to the whistleblower, is how limited in-person interaction is 'hampering productivity.' Remote employees 'are often unreachable and do not respond to simple email questions for hours,' the whistleblower continues. 'This leads to inefficiency in completing tasks in a timely manner and to delays in clearing documents and reports due to the inability to reach colleagues.' In addition, the lack of in-person work is 'hindering discussions' regarding problem solving, idea generation and socializing with colleagues. As a supervisor, the whistleblower says it's an 'obstacle' to the 'simple act' of earning trust and confidence. 'Working by email and video conferencing is impersonal and inefficient compared to in-person interaction.' The whistleblower says having employees back in the office full-time would 'restore productivity and efficiency.' President Joe Biden, joined by US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, tours Dutch Creek Farms in Northfield, Minnesota, on November 1 A current U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) whistleblower wrote to Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, late last year according to a copy of the correspondence obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com Ernst plans to aggressively question Agriculture Department Sec. Tom Vilsack today about the revelations outlined by the whistleblower. He is testifying before the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee. She tells DailyMail.com that Biden's 'ghost town should be on the auction block.' 'While taxpayers are still on the hook paying for bureaucrats' salaries and amenities, a USDA supervisor confirmed that not only are its employees failing to show up, they are not working productively or efficiently for the American people,' she continues. The Iowa senator also suggested that Biden move USDA's headquarters to the midwest 'heartland' if they are going to continue to waste money on unused office space. Unused federal office space wastes an estimated of $2.8 million per day, and is becoming a huge headache for Biden who is attempting to bring back employees to in-person work. Ernst plans to aggressively question Agriculture Department Sec. Tom Vilsack today on the topic Biden's Chief of Staff Jeff Zients also ordered Cabinet heads to ensure that their workforce returns to the office this year. According to a memo obtained by DailyMail.com, he wrote last month that federal employees should be in the office at least 50 percent of their work time in order to achieve the goals of the administration. He highlighted the State Department's 'expectation' that all employees are in the office at least 3-4 times per week because there's 'no substitute' for 'engaging face-to-face' when it comes to diplomacy. But he also acknowledged that 'some of your agencies are not where they need to be.' Ernst and other lawmakers say billions of taxpayer dollars have been wasted based on unused federal office space. That's a staggering statistic since federal agencies spend about $2 billion taxpayer dollars per year to operate and maintain federal office buildings - and over $5 billion annually in leases. Residents of Hampstead have told of their horror that details of a satanic paedophile conspiracy surrounding a school made nine years ago have been resurrected on TV. Parents of children who went to Christ Church Primary School in North West London have described how the malicious and wholly unfounded allegations of child rape and torture seriously affected well-respected teaching staff at the time. And the resurfacing of these allegations broadcast in the Channel 4 documentary on Monday continues to affect the choice of school of Hampstead parents to this day. Wine consultant Neil Bruce, 62, told MailOnline: 'It was absolutely awful. My children went to Christ Church Primary at the time these ridiculous allegations were made. 'I know how badly it affected the teaching staff. They were absolutely horrified that they had been accused of doing such terrible things. Of course it was all untrue. But that did not stop these awful allegations being circulated all over the internet.' Wine consultant Neil Bruce, 62, told MailOnline that his children attended Christ Church Primary School in Hampstead at the time the 'ridiculous' allegations were made The malicious and wholly unfounded allegations of child rape and torture seriously affected well-respected teaching staff at Christ Church Primary School (pictured) at the time Stay-at-home mother Barbara Hurt, 43, said rumours about Christ Church Primary School in Hampstead following the conspiracy had convinced her not to send her children there Residents said they thought the documentary cast a dark cloud over Hampstead's reputation Stay-at-home mother Barbara Hurt, 43, said rumours about the school following the conspiracy had convinced her not to send her children there. READ MORE Moment angry mob hurl abuse at vicar and chase worshippers down the road after conspiracy theorists jump on false lies of baby-eating satanic cult at Hampstead school - as harrowing story told on Channel 4 true crime show Advertisement She told MailOnline: 'My children are seven and three years old now. But when it was time to look for a school for my oldest all of these rumours were circulating about Christ Church Primary so I made sure that they didn't go there. 'Since then I have read all about the conspiracy and discovered that it was all nonsense. I know other parents who have sent their kids there and they tell me what a good school it is. But I wonder how bringing it all up again will affect the school.' Rose Ay, a recent arrival to Hampstead, told how the allegations made in the documentary had turned her off the idea of sending her toddler to the school Ms Ay, 36, told MailOnline: 'I have only just moved to Hampstead. My daughter Sophia is 19 months and we are looking at schools. But all these allegations and rumours about Christ Church have really turned me against sending her there.' Other residents told how they thought the documentary cast a dark cloud over the reputation of Hampstead. Dog walker Gaby Apter told MailOnline: 'It certainly doesn't make Hampstead look good. It makes Hampstead look like it's full of mad people. It makes Hampstead residents look deranged.' Mobs gathered outside a Hampstead church targeting worshippers and peddling false claims And art dealer Yakob Zentner, 42, said he was horrified by the allegations. He said: 'I did not know anything about this conspiracy until I heard about the documentary. I think it reflects very badly on Hampstead.' A long-term Hampstead resident, who gave his name as Isaac, described the documentary as a 'disaster', adding: 'It was all a hoax but it has been a disaster for Hampstead.' And a human rights campaigner, who gave his name only as Nick, said it was terrible that so many people were 'sucked into the conspiracy'. The programme revealed video footage of the moment an angry mob hurled abuse at a vicar and chased worshippers after conspiracy theorists leapt on lies claiming there was a baby-eating satanic cult at the school. Baseless claims of ritual child sex abuse in Hampstead spread worldwide after the mother of two young siblings peddled allegations online. Footage revealed in the documentary - Accused: The Hampstead Hoax - shows how activists descended on a church to harass locals including a priest. They are seen pursuing him at his home as well as mothers with their children - while a US ringleader whips up a frenzy online and plots his own trip to Britain. Rupert Wilson Quaintance raised thousands of pounds to fund his transatlantic visit after saying he wanted to 'kick down doors' and 'take blood samples' from the parents he accused - before later being jailed for his frightening antics. New Channel 4 documentary Accused: The Hampstead Hoax shows a vicar being harassed US conspiracy theorist Rupert Wilson Quaintance posted online videos demanding action The disturbing scenes came after two young siblings aged eight and nine accused parents - including their own father - and teachers at their North London primary school of being a part of a satanic paedophile ring in 2015. Their mother Ella Draper shared the false accusations online and Sabine McNeill - a virulent conspiracy theorist, since dubbed Britain's worst online troll - released videos of the children making these accusations online. Personal details of 175 people allegedly involved were also posted on the internet, causing ongoing trauma for those affected - including four mothers who fought back by taking on their accusers while clearing their own names. The hoax went viral and led to death threats, harassment and abuse against the falsely accused parents. The satanist cult allegations were found to be baseless but the conspiracy theory caught fire online after Draper uploaded a video calling out a conspiracy on the part of the police to drop the investigation. Mothers wrongly targeted in the campaign have said they were 'petrified' by the protests The documentary, first broadcast on Monday night, shows how vigilantes filmed themselves as they came to Hampstead to interrogate those they thought involved. One can be heard saying as he films: 'Here's the church, where the vicar lives - the paedo.' The group are seen peppering the unnamed cleric with comments such as 'Have you heard about the satanic?', 'You're involved in it', 'Stop killing the babies' and 'Satan'. A US-accented woman was also shown shouting outside Christ Church in Hampstead, saying: 'Listen to the children - don't tell the children to shut up.' And another man, when challenged by a parishioner about his filming, says: 'I'm allowed to - it's a free world. Why are you eating babies? 'You laugh - it's all over the net, isn't it? It's all over the net.' Ella Draper (pictured) released a document online listing people falsely accused of being a part of a child sex ring - leading to death threats, harassment and abuse Draper and her partner Abraham Christie (pictured) manipulated her two children into making false allegations they had been abused by parents of other children at their Hampstead school Rupert Wilson Quaintance became obsessed with the case and travelled over from the US 'Anna', played by an actress, is one of the mothers featured in the new Channel 4 documentary A falsely accused mother told how paedophiles got in touch asking to meet her daughter One of the mothers interviewed for the documentary, Alice, told of feeling 'petrified' as the harassment raged on. She said: 'It's not in the little Alice In Wonderland world now where it's all make-believe on the internet - it's real, it's on your doorstep, these people are here.' Another, 'Sarah, said: 'A group of 20 to 30 people every Sunday morning would come and stand outside the church and hurl abuse at parishioners.' In the documentary, four mothers at the centre of the hoax speak about what they've been through for the first time via audio interviews lip-synced on screen by actors as the women wish to remain anonymous to protect their now-grown-up children. Draper and her partner Abraham Christie had manipulated her two children into making the false claims in the first place, which 'Abigail' and her brother 'Joseph' - as they are called in the documentary - later recanted. After the names, addresses and phone numbers of the parents, school staff and pupils identified as being involved were published online, they were inundated with death threats. Christie, left, and Draper, right, have been on the run since fleeing the UK in 2015 The Hampstead hoax spread worldwide online after Draper (pictured) uploaded a video accusing police of a conspiracy after an investigation into her bogus claims was dropped The parents were contacted by vigilantes saying they would snatch their children to take them to safety - and paedophiles would also get in touch asking about their children's sexual preferences. Quaintance, who became obsessed with the case, came to Britain to investigate further but was jailed for nine months after being found guilty of putting people in fear of violence. He is shown telling his YouTube viewers: 'What's going on? Why is this happening? Why aren't we kicking down the doors to the schools, the churches?' Draper and Christie fled the country in 2015 and have been on the run ever since, believed to be in Spain. Sabine McNeill is a virulent conspiracy theorist, since dubbed Britain's worst online troll McNeill (pictured), one of the central figures in attempting to legitimise the conspiracy, was jailed for nine years in 2018 for stalking, harassment and breaching a restraining order Draper had been involved in a battle with her ex-husband for custody of 'Abigail' and 'Joseph', who spent time in care before being reunited with their father. Sabine McNeill - a virulent conspiracy theorist, since dubbed Britain's worst online troll - released videos of the children making the false accusations alongside personal details of 175 people allegedly involved. She was put on trial for stalking, harassment and breaching a restraining order and was jailed in 2018 for nine years, of which she served four. McNeill was also interviewed for the Channel 4 programme, in which she insisted: 'I didn't accept any of the charges, I didn't accept the verdict, I cannot accept the verdict. All I can do is suffer - suffer it, like Jesus Christ did.' Accused: The Hampstead Paedophile Hoax can be viewed on Channel 4's website Hundreds of calls came into Capitol Hill Tuesday and Wednesday before the critical vote after a TikTok push notification TikTok is facing a ban in the United States after Congress voted overwhelmingly to force the app's Chinese parent company to divest. The House passed the bill Wednesday morning in a bipartisan vote 352 - 65, despite calls from Donald Trump and Elon Musk to go against the bill and fury from teenagers not to stop them getting on the wildly popular video platform. Now, senators will decide whether the national security threat posed by TikTok is worth the headache from constituents who love the app, and have been calling lawmakers nonstop asking them to vote against the measure. The social media company boasts over 150 million American users. The House China Select Committee says Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on its U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat. ByteDance would have 165 days after the law is signed to divest from TikTok. If it does not, app stores and web hosting platforms would not be allowed to distribute it in the U.S. The bill has a good shot of becoming law as a bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed the bill and Joe Biden confirmed that he would sign it if it also passes the Senate. Still, as the bill has gained more steam, so too has its opposition. Trump threw cold water on it last week, insisting if TikTok is banned its rival Facebook would 'double their business.' 'I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better,' Trump wrote in a social media post. 'They are a true Enemy of the People!' TikTok sent this notification to users on Tuesday morning, prompting them to get in touch with their lawmakers to let them know whether they support the TikTok bill Lawmakers accused TikTok of providing its U.S. user data to its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance, which they say has connections to the Chinese Communist Party Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has come out against the TikTok bill, claiming it could be used as a form of government suppression Elon Musk joined Trump in opposing the effort to reign in TikTok's influence, calling it government 'censorship,' in a post on X Tuesday. 'This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite 'foreign control' as the issue, but it does not,' Musk stated. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also voted against the bill, mentioning Musk by name, praising him for restoring her account on X after it was formerly banned and decrying the 'Pandora's Box' this bill could open. 'What's to stop the U.S. government in the future from forcing the sale of another social media company claiming it is protecting American's data from foreign adversaries?' 'I believe this bill can cause future problems. It's opening Pandora's Box and I am opposed to this bill,' Greene said Wednesday on the House floor. The 15 Republicans who voted against the TikTok bill Barry Moore, Alabama Andy Biggs, Arizona David Schweikert, Arizona John Duarte, California Tom McClintock, California Dan Bishop, North Carolina Matt Gaetz, Florida Greg Steube, Florida Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Clay Higgins, Louisiana Warren Davidson, Ohio Scott Perry, Pennsylvania Thomas Massie, Kentucky Nancy Mace, South Carolina Alex Mooney, West Virginia Advertisement 'This is really about controlling Americans' data, and if we cared about Americans' data then we would stop the sale of Americans' data universally, not just with China.' But the bill's author, Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., pushed back on that Wednesday morning. 'TikTok is a threat to our national security because its owned by ByteDance, which does the bidding of the communist party,' Gallagher said on the floor. 'This bill therefore forces TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. It does not apply to American companies.' Gallagher argued his bill would only impact companies subject to control by foreign adversaries. Greene was among a number of significant GOP members who voted against the bill, including Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Tom McClintock, R-Calif., Nancy Mace, R-S.C., and more. On the other side of the aisle, 'Squad' members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., also voted against the measure. One lawmaker, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, voted present. TikTok pushed back against the 'ban' in a statement shared with DailyMail.com after the House passed the bill. 'This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.' Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said the bill could be akin to opening 'Pandora's Box' and that the future implications the measure are unknown TikTok advocates gathered outside of the Capitol ahead of Wednesday's vote to push back against the bill Some of the advocates that came to the Capitol Wednesday were TikTok content creators The CCP also pushed back against the passage of the bill. 'Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok,' foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said. 'This kind of bullying behaviour that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order.' 'In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself,' Wang added. Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement the vote 'demonstrates Congress' opposition to Communist China's attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans, and signals our resolve to deter our enemies.' 'I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign it into law,' he continued. In response to the growing support behind the bill, TikTok sent out a push notification to its 100 million users yesterday telling them 'Your voice matters in stopping the shutdown.' The notification prompted users to reach out to their congressional member to urge them to vote against the proposed bill. As a result, congressional offices received hundreds of calls about the bill Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, congressional aides told DailyMail.com. Many callers appeared to be children or concerned parents begging the app not be banned. Users are being told the bill threatens TikTok's very existence, though what it actually does is force its parent company to divest - something callers are largely in support of once staffers explain the nuance of the bill. 'TikTok's campaign to have users call their representatives shows just how much control they have. This campaign is reminiscent of typical Communist Party tactics,' Rep. Greg Murphy, R- N.C., told DailyMail.com in a statement Tuesday. 'Unfortunately, these callers don't understand what they are really advocating for - they are following orders from Beijing. The CCP is hoping to replicate their modus operandi of telling their citizens what to do.' His office's phones were 'blowing up' according to staff. Murphy voted in favor of the bill Wednesday. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., told DailyMail.com he is in favor of the bill and despite the deluge of calls, 'We'll talk to any constituent that wants to call in and talk to us through this.' 'We're explaining our position, and it's a normal part of the process,' he said. Rep. John Duarte, R- Calif., told DailyMail.com that though he does not know yet how he will vote on the bill, 'It won't be because 16-year-olds call me from all over the country.' The bill passed through committee last week with a bipartisan unanimous 50-0 vote. In a statement, TikTok said of the bill's passing committee: 'This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States. The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression. This will damage millions of businesses, deny artists an audience, and destroy the livelihoods of countless creators across the country.' TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced Lawmakers have also expressed reticence about how the TikTok bill could impact First Amendment protections. 'I think it's a terrible idea and it's hysteria that's running through both parties now.' Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told DailyMail.com Friday. 'In America, we don't just tell people you can't own a company because we don't like you. And 150 million people use their First Amendment freedom to express themselves on TikTok, and you can't just have that taken away from them.' Fellow Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie agreed. 'The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse. The President will be given the power to ban web sites, not just apps,' he posted on X. An angry dad has been arrested after he stormed into a high school classroom and confronted a student he accused of harassing his daughter. Aaron Thomas, 38, burst in to the class at Paulsboro High School in New Jersey, near Philadelphia, Monday morning. The father from nearby Gibbstown arrived at the school around 11.30am to pull his daughter out of class, but then decided to confront the other student. Video recorded by another student showed Thomas confront a student and demand he apologize to his daughter, who was near the door. 'You got a problem with my daughter? Apologize to my daughter,' he demanded. Aaron Thomas, 38, burst in to the class at Paulsboro High School in New Jersey, and confronted a student he accused of harassing his daughter Thomas was arrested that afternoon and charged with two counts of third-degree terroristic threats, along with simple assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct The teenager repeatedly protested that he 'did nothing to her' as Thomas towered over him. 'You heard what the f**k I said. Apologize to my daughter Now,' Thomas insisted. The boy said the teenage girl 'had pictures of me and my mama' but it was unclear what the photos were and what exactly he was accused of doing. An affidavit of probable cause only explained the teenage girl was having problems with another student over photos that were shared. No further details about the nature of the photos was released. Discussion on social media claimed there was no bullying and the girl told her father an exaggerated version of events. 'They was just airdropping regular pictures and she starts sending that white boy['s] family so he did it back and she told her dad that he started it... she threatened to call her dad up there to fight him and did absolutely that,' one woman wrote. Another student in the corner of the room came to his classmate's defense, prompting Thomas to turn his anger on him. 'B**** a** n****,' he called the second boy during a mostly inaudible exchange, before an adult finally intervened. A teacher (left) tried to usher Thomas out of the room, as the angry dad said: 'I'm just proving a point that these little b****** in here are talking about my daughter' Thomas got into a scuffle with a student who came to the first boy's defense, and police alleged he grabbed his arm and made threats A teacher put his arm around Thomas' back and attempted to usher him out of the room, telling him 'seriously, it's not worth it'. 'I'm just proving a point that these little b****** in here are talking about my daughter, but y'all are some B**** a** n*****, some hoe a** n*****,' Thomas said. 'Look at you, shaking p****** your f****** cleats. If I have to come up here again I'm going to slap fire on both of y'all... you heard what I said, boy.' Thomas eventually reached the door to leave, but charged back to the second student after the boy called him a 'b**** a** n****.' 'You come over here and say that,' he said, as he crossed the room to confront the student. 'What's the problem? Get off my shirt,' Thomas continued as the pair appeared to jostle. Court documents alleged Thomas grabbed the boy's arm and made threats. 'You trying to punch me? You can't come up around here and hit kids, what's wrong with you, bro? I ain't a b***h or nothing,' the student responded. 'I don't care who it is, I'll knock anyone out of this school,' Thomas said as he stormed out of the classroom at the end of the video. The school didn't call police until almost three hours later, and officers arrived about 2.15pm. School security wasn't notified until after Thomas left. The teacher told police he didn't radio for security because he wanted to de-escalate the situation and feared involving security would inflame tensions. Paulsboro High School said it was investigating the incident with the Paulsboro Police Department in accordance with district protocols Thomas was arrested that afternoon and charged with two counts of third-degree terroristic threats, along with simple assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct. He spent the night in jail and was released on bail by a judge on Tuesday afternoon, ordered not to contact the students involved or their families. Parents at the school and locals are divided over whether Thomas did the right thing by protecting his daughter, or if he went too far in storming the classroom. 'If schools would do something in terms of intervening when these disputes happen parents wouldnt have take matters into their own hands,' one wrote. 'Arrest my behind because dont ask me not to be a momma bear for my kids. And to put a dad through this for being a protective dad is 100% wrong.' 'I totally get it. Shouldn't have touched the student... but confronting him was warranted (especially since the school/other parents didn't try to stop the bullying),' another wrote. 'That man is wrong jumping in those kids faces like that he is a grown adult and handled this disgustingly,' a third added. The school district said it was investigating the incident with the Paulsboro Police Department in accordance with district protocols. 'Due to the ongoing nature of this investigation, additional details about the situation cannot be released to the public,' it said. 'Safety and security of our staff and students is paramount. Unfortunate situations such as these gives us an opportunity to reflect and analyze current practices to further strengthen the district's safety and security procedures to ensure that our schools are a safe place for all students and staff.' Sergeant Thomas A. Sanfratello, 54, who was a decorated officer of 32 years, died shortly after the attack Batavia couple Michael J. Elmore, 33, and Lyndsey Jean Wilcox, 39, are being held on multiple charges for the assault A pair of thugs allegedly beat a police officer to death with chains after being thrown out of a casino in Batavia, New York A pair of thugs have been arrested for allegedly beating a New York cop to death with chains after they were thrown out of a casino. Michael J. Elmore, 33, and Lyndsey Jean Wilcox, 39, refused to leave Batavia Downs Gaming and Hotel just after midnight on Sunday after being told to get out. Wilcox stayed in the casino 'unlawfully' with the intent to 'commit a crime' at the venue, while her boyfriend left and then came back to launch his attack. Sergeant Thomas A. Sanfratello, 54, had been assigned to watch over the venue that night and was called to the Rush 34 bar to respond to a reported disturbance. The officer confronted the drunken Batavia couple and tried to escort Elmore out, which is when Wilcox became violent with Sanfratello - hitting him several times. Michael J. Elmore, 33, and Lyndsey Jean Wilcox, 39, refused to leave Batavia Downs Gaming and Hotel just after midnight on Sunday after being told to get out Sergeant Thomas A. Sanfratello, 54, who was a decorated officer of 32 years, died shortly after being attacked by the couple Witnesses claimed that Elmore then left and then returned to the casino with metal chains to threaten the sergeant. He allegedly 'passed (the chains) between both hands while swinging them around and making threats' before swinging the chains at the police officer's head and face. The thug put the sergeant in a chokehold and beat him with his fists, according to local newspaper The Batavian. Sanfratello became unresponsive during the altercation and attempts to revive him by performing CPR were unsuccessful, according to the Batavia Police Department. Despite trying to deploy his taser, Sanfratello sustained serious injuries during the struggle and died in the early hours of Sunday. Police said the cause of Sanfratello's death had not been determined. Sanfratello was a decorated sergeant who had won multiple awards, including the President's Award, during his 32 years on the job. The father-of-three was described as a Yankees fan and a car enthusiast. He had 'an overwhelming collection' of Legos and Hot Wheels and attended model car conventions and Motorama racing events across the U.S. He was also a certified paramedic and an active member of the Alexander Fire Department from 1986 to 2003. 'Words cannot describe the loss our Office feels with the passing of Sergeant Sanfratello,' the sheriff's office said in Facebook post. 'May he rest in peace.' Elmore has since been charged with two Class B felonies - aggravated manslaughter and aggravated assault upon a police officer. He was also charged with burglary in the second degree. The officer had confronted the drunken Batavia couple and tried to escort Elmore out of the Batavia Downs casino, which is when Wilcox became violent with Sanfratello - hitting him several times Wilcox has been charged with burglary in the second degree and attempted assault. Arrest records indicate that the couple were likely impaired by alcohol at the time of the incident. Both were held at Genesee County Jail and were arraigned by Judge Mileham in Centralized Arraignment Part (CAP) Court, according to an arrest record. Elmore was held on $100,000 cash bail, $200,000 bond or $500,000 partially secured bond. Wilcox was held on $50,000 cash bail, $100,000 security bond or $200,000 partially secured bond. Both are to appear on March 12 in the Town of Batavia Court. Elmore's attorney, Joseph Lobosco, said in an email that he just began representing his client and had no comment at this time. Wilcox's attorney could not be reached. The pair are scheduled to appear in court today. Furious business owners in Miami have claimed they are paying the price for the city-wide crackdown on Spring Break following two deadly shootings last year. Locals noticed a huge dip in crowds compared to previous years and there were very few people out on Ocean Drive on Sunday night with many flocking to Lauderdale Beach instead. The city stepped up its police presence on the streets and there was help from 18 other state and federal agencies. Those who visited South Beach on the first busy weekend of Spring Break were met with DUI checkpoints and barricades throughout the streets. But business owners in the area have claimed they have been left to deal with the impact and some say trade is down by as much as 80 percent. Furious business owners in Miami have claimed they are paying the price for the city-wide crackdown on Spring Break following two deadly shootings last year The city stepped up its police presence on the streets and there was help from 18 other state and federal agencies Locals noticed a huge dip in crowds compared to previous years and there were very few people out on Ocean Drive on Sunday night with many flocking to Lauderdale Beach (pictured) instead Thousands of tourists are drawn to Miami every year for the holidays and there have been complaints about those who treat it as a playground for wild behavior. But city-wide measures which include the tripling of parking fees and closing of public garages have led to a significant drop in numbers. Businesses have complained about the lack of numbers and Mitch Novick, the owner of the Sherbrooke Hotel, said while the city seems safer, 'The streets are depleted'. 'Ive spoken with other business owners, one who claims her business is down 80 percent,' he told 7News. 'Another, a friend whos a hotelier up the street, [says] the inability for guests to park is very disruptive.' Footage from Ocean Drive, which is usually packed with Spring Breakers, shows there is just a handful of tourists in the area, an empty beaches and a large police presence. In another clip, a convoy of police officers on bicycles can be seen patrolling the area. 'Theres no chaos this time,' Cort Fort, who is visiting from Houston, said. Another woman added: 'Now its more chill, not as much people.' While a man visiting Miami said: 'We are the crazy spring breakers, but we are not the ones that do the extra.' Videos show empty beaches in the area Footage from Ocean Drive, which is usually packed with Spring Breakers, shows there is just a handful of tourists in the area The city stepped up its police presence on the streets and there was help from 18 other state and federal agencies Miami Beach Police Officer Christopher Bess said the city was sending a clear message to spring breakers. 'Our message is clear: if you come to our city, we want you to really enjoy it, but you must be lawful,' he said. Police have stepped up their presence and are visibly patrolling the streets with the help of other state and federal agencies. While those who made it to Miami have to go through DUI checkpoints and barricades and there have been around 100 arrests so far with the strict measures. 'So, since the duration of spring break, which has started last weekend, we have a little over 100 arrests so far, which according to the data, were down about 14 percent,' officer Bess said. There were two fatal shootings in the city last year which led to city officials taking action and none have been reported so far this year. DailyMail.com has contacted the City of Miami for comment. A father who was half-swallowed by a beastly 13ft crocodile was saved by his quick thinking wife after she smashed the reptile over the head with a log while it tried to drown him. Anthony Joubert, 37, was fishing with his son JP, 12, at a dam in South Africa when his line got caught in a tree leaving a bass dangling from a branch in an inch of water. JP went to walk into the shallow water to unsnag it but Anthony told him to stay on the bank before walking just a foot out into the lake to untangle the fish from a low branch. The father-of-three said: 'This crocodile must have been lying in ambush because all of a sudden it exploded from the water and had its jaws round my leg and knocked me flat. 'There was water everywhere then it adjusted its grip and had my second leg in its mouth just below my belt and started thrashing its head to the left and right with such power'. Anthony Joubert pictured with his saviour - wife Annalize Father-of-three Anthony Joubert (pictured recovering with his family) was saved by his brave wife after she entered the water with a log and beat the croc around the head until it 'slid away' Following the brutal 'tug of war' for his leg from the jaws of the reptilian beast, Anthony said he has four deep wounds on his legs and stomach, as well as an assortment of single tooth wounds In his horrific recount of the experience, he revealed he could not see his own legs as the reptile's teeth sunk into his flesh. 'I could not see my legs and could just see its teeth and those evil eyes just looking at me as it slowly backed towards deeper water where it would take me down deep and drown me. 'I remembered about gouging at the eyes and forced my thumbs into them and it just shook me like a rag doll and then my boss Johan ran into the water and grabbed my trouser belt'. Shockingly, the brave father said he felt no pain as the beast attempted to devour him. 'I guess it was the adrenaline. I was punching it and trying to get its eyes out but the more I struggled and fought the more it shook me side to side,' he said. 'I honestly thought my legs were just going to get ripped off. When you look at the wounds it is incredible that I didn't lose one or both legs. I will never forgets its teeth and how it looked at me'. After battling with the croc for his leg in what he described as a 'tug of war', his heroic wife Annalize dashed to his rescue with a log in hand. 'My wife Annalize appeared splashing through the water with a huge log from the dam bank. 'She began smashing this giant crocodile over the head again and again with terrific force and after five or six huge bashes the crocodile's jaws opened and it slid away' he said. Anthony's employer Johan van der Colff, 36, and Annalize, 33, grabbed the seriously injured victim by the arms and dragged his blood soaked body up the bank away from danger. Johan's wife Bianca, 39, had grabbed towels and bandages and antiseptic from the farm house they were borrowing for a weekend picnic and fishing trip and applied first aid. Anthony continued: 'I thought my moment had come and I know out here in Africa if a crocodile has such a grip on you then it is impossible to escape it is just unheard of. 'I was waiting for the death roll and for it to drown me but despite the size of this beast Johan and Annalize ran into the dam and took it on and saved me from being eaten. 'Every time I shut my eyes or try to sleep I see the crocodile it is still with me. To have half your body inside a living beast with its jaws around your waist with it moving you deeper. Brave married couple Johan van der Colff and Annalize, who helped save life of their friend Anthony Joubert File pic of deadly crocodile 'I never knew my wife had the strength or the power to beat a creature that like off of me. Between her and Johan who was in the water dragging me back they saved my life. 'It will be a long time if ever before I go to a water's edge again. If I had not gone to get the snagged fish and my son JP had then that crocodile would have just taken him for sure. 'Thank God I went out into the water and not my son. That would have been too much' said Anthony whose daughters Liza, 10 and Ashleigh, 6, witnessed their father's attack. Housewife Annalize said: 'It has only just sunk in that I saved his life and I don't know how I did it. I was in severe shock. Half of my husband was inside a giant crocodile - legs first. 'I grabbed this log with a tree stump on the end of it and rushed out into the water and I just started battering it over the head again and again and screaming at it till it let go. 'It opened its jaws and Johan pulled back and Anthony came out and I could see the blood and I just grabbed an arm and he had the other one and we pulled him out of the water. 'We were just terrified the crocodile would come back again and tried to get him up the farm as quick as possible and Bianca was there packing the wounds and bandaging them. 'I was terrified of him bleeding to death and infection from the crocodile's mouth and the dirty water and we loaded Johan into his truck and he rushed him to hospital' she said. Johan who runs Alfa Fire in Middleburg, a fire prevention service where croc attack Anthony also works, rushed him to the public hospital and left him in the A&E department. Johan's relatives turned up the next morning and found the wounds still filthy, covered in mud, and largely untreated. They decided to discharge him and took him to nearby private hospital. At the Life Midmed Hospital the family had to pay a R100,000 (4,200) on their credit card towards his medical care before they would treat his injuries and costs may yet treble. Mother-of-two Bianca, who stabilised Anthony before he was rushed to hospital said: 'If he had staying in the public hospital he would have died there was no choice to be had. 'Anthony's wounds are now clean and are being left open so they can be kept clean and dressed and disinfected and then in time it will be skin grafts and hell of a lot of healing'. Bianca revealed she started a fund-raising page to try and help his family cover the costs of the medical bills as it will be around three months until hei s up and running. 'I hope people can find it in their hearts to donate what they can to help him' she said. Speaking on the attack, she added: 'Anthony's children and mine were shouting 'save him, save him' and 'don't let him die, don't let him die'. They are all having trauma counselling for what they saw. 'This thing was over four metres long and a metre wide and it was a scene straight out of a horror movie. Half of his body was inside the crocodile with his top half hanging out. 'He was being shaken all over the place while trying to gouge its eyes out. Water was exploding everywhere, the kids were screaming, one was on the ground just praying. 'I have never seen anything like it even on the TV. Statistics say that 1 in 100 people survive a crocodile attack. I don't think anyone has ever survived being half way down a croc. 'When I tried to clean his wounds I found three crocodile teeth still in a stomach hole'. Anthony said he has four deep wounds on his legs and stomach, as well as an assortment of single tooth wounds. He admitted he is extremely lucky the crocodile missed his private parts. A Facebook page has now been set up to help with Anthony's medical fees. Anthony added: 'The doctor said an inch to the side and they would have gone. He also said the teeth missed my femoral artery by literally 1mm. If it got that I would have bled out. 'Two very brave people save my life that day from the most horrific death I can imagine. I have a long fight to get back to health but I was one meal the crocodile was not having'. The dam does have a sign warning of crocodiles but according to locals none have been seen for years and plans are being drawn up to catch the rogue beast and relocate it. Scott Nunn is the audience development editor for Hearst Community Newspapers. Scott previously was the assistant editor at the Huron Daily Tribune. Prior to becoming a journalist, he was in graphic design, advertising sales, wholesale lumber and was even a pizza and short order cook. While he attended college for a couple stints, Scott attributes most of the skills he has acquired to his thirst for knowledge, excellent family and a history of wonderful mentors. Scott is a self-described lover of food, YouTube junkie, proud handyman and a bit of a class clown. Scott and his wife Shannon have four kids, two dogs and two cats. John Oliver has weighed in on the speculation surrounding the Princess of Wales, joking that Kate 'could have died 18 months ago. The Last Week Tonight host made the comments in an appearance on Bravo's Watch What Happens Live on Tuesday night - despite the Princess being seen twice in one week. 'There is a non-zero chance that she died 18 months ago,' the British comedian. 'They might be 'Weekend at Bernie's-ing' this situation,' Oliver added, referencing the 1989 film. Oliver continued the bit alongside host Andy Cohen, who noted the Royal Family's moto of 'Never Complain, Never Explain.' John Oliver has weighed in on the speculation surrounding the Princess of Wales , joking that Kate 'could have died 18 months ago,' during a late night appearance John Oliver is wondering whats going on with Kate Middleton! #WWHL pic.twitter.com/vNAxWzj5Uc Watch What Happens Live! (@BravoWWHL) March 13, 2024 Prince William leaves Windsor for Westminster Abbey on Monday with his wife the Princess of Wales next to him Kensington Palace released the first picture of the Princess of Wales since surgery 'I'm not saying it happened, but I'm saying it's non-zero until proven otherwise. Until we see her sitting there with a copy of the day's paper,' he said. Oliver shared that he had ignored the speculation about Kate until 'the photoshop thing'. 'That feels, like, you're almost handling it badly in an impressive way at this point,' the HBO star claimed. The mother-of-three was not expected to be seen in public until after Easter following abdominal surgery and two weeks in a private London hospital in January. However, she was photographed on Monday alongside Prince William as they left Windsor Castle together. Her surprise appearance on Monday came as wild online conspiracy theories swirled around the princess and her health. Kate was also seen on March 4 in the passenger seat of a 4x4 Audi, which her mother Carole Middleton was driving near Windsor Castle. It came as Kensington Palace came under increasing pressure to release the original Mother's Day photograph after the Princess of Wales apologized after she admitted she had edited the family portrait of herself sitting with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. Experts told MailOnline it was changed using Photoshop and related AI tools. The world's major photo agencies later 'killed' the picture after noticing signs of digital editing, including a missing part of Princess Charlotte's sleeve and the misaligned edge of her wrist and skirt, and the positioning of Kate's zip. The Princess of Wales gave an apology on social media. She said: 'Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother's Day'. She signed it 'C' - for Catherine. PR experts have described the Mother's Day photo fiasco as a 'massive own goal' and urged royal officials to release the unedited picture in a bid to regain the public's trust. Kensington Palace had initially faced calls to reveal the truth behind the photo after the world's top picture agencies - including the Press Association - 'killed' the image over claims it had been digitally manipulated. Several well-placed sources in royal circles have told the Mail that Kate and her team have found the public fallout over the edited photograph deeply upsetting. Several well-placed sources in royal circles have told the Mail that Kate and her team have found the public fallout over the edited photograph deeply upsetting They said: Everyone, including the Princess, is a bit shell-shocked by what has happened. A mistake was made but she has put her hand up and apologized. Its been very upsetting all round. William and Kate often release a personal tribute on Mothers Day but it was also hoped that a new image of the Princess the first, officially, since Christmas Day would put vicious social media rumors about her condition to bed. In recent weeks internet trolls have spread a slew of outrageous smears about her welfare, which have now become the subject of mainstream speculation, even on the BBC. Kensington Palace has not deviated from its first announcement in January that the future Queen had undergone what has only been described as planned abdominal surgery and, while she was recovering well, was unlikely to be fit to resume official duties until after Easter. A Texas woman has been forced to peel the skin off her entire left arm after getting it stuck under the hood of a truck while trying to jump-start another vehicle. Sandy Schumann, 60, from Austin, lifted the hood of her truck to link up to another when it slammed down on both her arms. Schumann, who said she has jump-started vehicles her entire life, spent three agonizing hours trying to free her limbs. She told KXAN she 'managed to basically peel my left arm out. It was pretty gross. It was just, it was scary.' Sandy Schumann, 60, was forced to peel the skin off her left arm after her arms were stuck under the hood of her truck during the freak incident last week. She is pictured in the hospital but, is now recovering at home after having surgery Blood is splattered on the front of the truck's hood where Schumann's arms were trapped 'I kind of started twisting and wedging and my right arm tearing it a little more until I could get my foot around to reach the hood latch of my truck,' she recalled. When the hood finally released, she ran to her home and called 911. 'Thank the lord I was able to reach it.' When emergency personnel arrived Schumann was transported to a hospital. During the near-fatal incident, she said she kept on thinking about her children, and told herself, 'I don't want to go out like this.' In the midst of trying to save her life, she said that she was numb from the pain though she knew her arm was 'basically filleted.' Schumann had surgery and is recovering at home with her children by her side, who are helping care for her. Schumann is seen being placed in an ambulance by emergency personnel en route to hospital Her daughter, created a GoFundMe last week to help with the staggering medical costs, that has raised more than $8,000 towards their goal of $16,000. 'Her official terms of injury are right arm bilateral crush injury and left arm degloving injury. We are able to change her right arm dressing at home, but the left arm is to not be touched at all,' Casey and Gavin Meyer wrote. At the time of the post, they said that their mother's next doctor's appointment was in four weeks. They have been giving frequent updates on her health, and explained that 'simple things take a lot for her,' and said that she has limited energy. 'She has physical therapy exercises that we will be working on, along with breathing treatments,' they wrote. 'She continues to practice her movements for her right hand and wrist. She is able to grab some food items, and use special silverware from the doctors.' A GoFundMe was created by Schumann's daughter to help raise money for the staggering medical bills. As of Wednesday, $8,695 was raised towards their goal of $16,000 The family expressed gratitude for all the support and asked for continued prayers. 'Moments like these show her how immense her trauma is and how long her road ahead will be.' 'Her birthday is coming up on the 16th. Please please share, pray, and donate if you can. This is not at all how we imagined spending her day.' Schumann told the news outlet that her harrowing ordeal is a reminder for all to 'take precautions when under a hood of a vehicle.' 'You just never know,' she said. 'because I've jumped vehicles my entire life.' The body of a soldier has been found in a river following a night out with friends, with police investigating whether he was assaulted by a driver after getting into a car by mistake. Sapper Charlie Saywell, 25, of the Royal Engineers, has been confirmed dead after his body was recovered from the River Medway in Chatham, Kent, on Tuesday last week. He had been out with friends during the previous evening before taking a local taxi back to Brompton Barracks in nearby Gillingham. But instead of going into the army camp it is thought he chose to take a walk into Chatham town centre between 12.10am and 2.40am. Now police are trying to piece together his movements to identify the locations he visited in the Medway Towns. Police are investigating the death of Charlie Saywell after he was found in the River Medway The 25-year-old's body was found in the water near Main Gate Road in Chatham, Kent A friend of Mr Saywell's named Joe (left) has set up a GoFundMe page for the soldier's family Police officers are investigating Mr Saywell's movements the night before his body was found Officers understand Charlie walked past Primark in Chatham High Street before he visited a fast food outlet. But Kent Police say he may have mistakenly got into an unidentified car nearby, where it is reported he was assaulted by the driver and suffered facial injuries. Det Sgt Karen Caulfield said: 'While we do not have specific information about where Charlie went between 12.10am and 2.40am, he had a phone conversation before his death which indicated he may have suffered an assault in the town during that period. 'We are appealing to anyone who may have seen Charlie walking in the Gillingham and Chatham areas during these times. 'We are particularly keen to hear from anybody who saw him in a fast-food outlet or involved in an altercation in or near to a car. 'At this stage we are not treating Charlie's death as suspicious, however, it is important we understand where he visited and what happened to him prior to his tragic death.' Mr Saywell was last seen wearing a dark navy coloured short sleeved t-shirt, khaki coloured cargo trousers and white trainers. It is understood his regiment was normally based at Gibraltar. Charlie's mother Victoria Brown has now made an emotional appeal for anyone with information to come forward. She said: 'If you have witnessed my son Charlie's movement during the early hours of that morning and can offer any information, however small, please can you contact Kent Police so our family can have some answers about what happened to him.' A friend has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise money for the solder's family and it has already reached 1,800. The man who began the appeal, named Joe, said on the page: 'For those of you that wasn't lucky enough to meet or know our Charlie, he was a gentle giant. He was a huge role model and a massive part of my life. 'I looked up to Charlie both physically and mentally and he sadly passed away recently at the age of 25. 'I know there will be a lot of people attending the service and would appreciate anything to go towards an upmost respectful funeral as it is the very least that boy deserves.' Anyone with information is asked to call the Kent Police appeal line on 01634 792209, quoting reference 46/36226/24. Police have also asked drivers with dashcam and residents or businesses with private CCTV to check for relevant footage. The Miami Seaquarium has refused to shut down despite the city ordering it close last week due to its 'complete disregard for the safety of the animals.' Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava wrote to the park to terminate its lease, citing a 'long and troubling history' of abuse and neglect after 120 animal deaths and a string of high profile reports of abuse. The Seaquarium made headlines in recent years for the neglect and eventual death of the 'world's loneliest whale', Lolita the orca. An elderly manatee filmed swimming forlornly in his tank after being separated from his mate and a two-inch nail found in a dolphin's throat also caused public outcry. But CEO of The Dolphin Company, Eduardo Albor, rejected calls to close in a nine-page letter, saying the allegations were 'unfounded' - and vowed to take the county to court if necessary. He wrote on X: 'The truth always prevail. And those who wonder how I sleep. Like a baby. Actions speak louder than words.' CEO of The Dolphin Company, Eduardo Albor, rejected calls to close in a nine-page letter Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava wrote to the park to terminate its lease last week Mayor Levine Cava has ordered the aquarium to leave its property by April 21. She told CBS: 'I think that this is something that had its day, that obviously this was something that was enjoyed by many over many years and unfortunately, the facility is now dilapidated and the care of the animals is in jeopardy. 'The situation is not something that happened overnight and it cannot be repaired overnight.' But Albor claimed that the Seaquarium has presented the county with evidence of improvements on numerous occasions. He said: 'The Seaquarium took immediate steps to correct all noncompliances listed in the Inspection Reports from July 6, 2022 to January 9, 2024. 'Therefore, it is completely misleading to suggest that the Seaquariums noncompliances are ongoing.' He added: 'The prospect of terminating our lease does not only jeopardize the future of this beloved institution but also has far-reaching implications for the community we serve and the dedicated team that makes our mission possible.' Dozens of animals remain at the facility and it is not yet clear where they will be moved to, or what will happen if the case goes to court. If the Seaquarium does not agree to leave it could lead to a legal eviction process. The eviction order follows a years-long campaign to shut the aquarium down, after heartbreaking footage of dolphins, manatees and whales living in squalid conditions went viral. Phil Demers, who led the campaign, told DailyMail.com: 'Its a day of vindication for those of us who have steadfastly fought against the Miami Seaquariums cruelty, but its an even better day for their animals.' The Seaquarium made headlines for the neglect and eventual death of the 'world's loneliest whale', Lolita the orca last year, but since opening in 1955, non-profit The Dolphin Project says over 120 animals have died in the park. Lolita, the 'loneliest whale in the world', has died aged 57 Experts and concerned individuals had long protested against Lolita's conditions in captivity, including the size of her 80-foot long and 35-foot wide tank Lolita performed for decades before stopping in 2022 due to illness. She was the longest living whale in captivity at the age of 57 Experts and concerned individuals had long protested against Lolita's conditions in captivity, including the size of her 80-foot long and 35-foot wide tank, the smallest of its kind in the US. Just 10 years after Lolita arrived at the aquarium, her companion Hugo died of an aneurysm that was caused by repeated head trauma from banging his head against the tanks walls, leaving her all alone. Then last year, the aquarium was in the news again for their treatment of Romeo the manatee. Video of 67-year-old Romeo swimming forlornly in his tank - estimated to be just 30ft wide - went viral last year and surfing legend Kelly Slater backed a campaign for his release, which quickly gained more than 20,000 signatures. Romeo had been kept at the facility since 1956 and spent many of those years alone in the tiny tank, separated from his previous mate, Juliet. After public outcry, Romeo, Juliet and another manatee, Clarity, were rescued and taken to another facility for medical treatment. Their cases followed a series of damning United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports which revealed deteriorating conditions in the aquarium. In October, federal inspectors found a dolphin named Ripley with a two-inch nail in its throat and another named Bimini with a broken metal bolt in its mouth. Romeo had been kept at the Seaquarium since 1956 and campaigners said he had been alone since at least April of this year Romeo had been at the Miami Seaquarium since 1956. He is now 67 years old They also found a sea lion named Sushi had been holding her eye closed and rubbing both her eyes because she needed cataract surgery and was in pain. She had started refusing food due to the pain but the cataract surgery was still not scheduled. The veterinary clinic lacked basic supplies and the entire site was crumbling with peeling paint and mold found in the enclosures. Inspectors also found a colony of ants living in the vet clinic and inside medicines and vitamins. They found peeling paint in the penguin enclosure, a 'strong noxious odor' in the parrot area and 'stagnant murky water with green algae' in a flamingo enclosure. On top of the neglect, nonprofit the Dolphin Project claims at least 120 dolphins and whales have died in captivity in the park. The causes of death listed included trauma, skin cancer (likely due to lack of shade), killed by another animal and entrapment in pool fencing. As well as their abuses, the park was behind at least $180,000 in rent. The Miami Seaquarium first opened in 1955 and has been at the center of a string of care scandals in the decades since There were two protests in Miami last month calling for the seaquarium to be shut down Campaigners have been calling for its closure for years It is not yet clear where the animals will be moved to if the park closes. Demers told DailyMail.com: 'Hopefully they will be relocated to sanctuary settings or in the least, far better facilities. 'Its time to end the Seaquariums near 70 year existence. Cant happen soon enough.' Last month two protests were held calling for the Seaquarium's lease to be terminated. The Seaquarium then released a statement saying they were working with the USDA to address concerns. They said: 'Miami Seaquarium is in compliance with federal Animal Welfare Act regulations. It's important to clarify that, there was no confiscation, and MSQs professional staff continues to care for its animals with the same passion, knowledge and dedication they do every day.' DailyMail.com contacted the Miami Seaquarium for comment. Former President Donald Trump has had three charges in his Georgia election case thrown out by the judge considering whether to disqualify Fani Willis. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote Wednesday in an order that six of the charges in the indictment must be quashed, including three against Trump. But the order leaves intact many other charges in the indictment and the judge wrote that prosecutors could seek a new indictment on the charges he dismissed. The six charges in question have to do with allegedly soliciting elected officials to violate their oaths of office. That includes two charges related to Trump's infamous phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a fellow Republican, on Jan. 2, 2021 asking him to 'find' 11,780 votes. The surprise ruling comes at a time when McAfee faces a self-imposed deadline of this week to rule on whether to disqualify Willis from the case following bombshell revelations about her affair with special prosecutor Nathan Wade. Former President Donald Trump has had six charges against him in Georgia dismissed by the judge considering whether to disqualify Fani Willis. Trump still faces 10 separate criminal charges in the case, which he has blasted as a witch hunt since he was charged and arrested. And he now faces a total of 88 criminal charges nationwide, down from 91. Trump has long contested prosecutors' characterizations of his call to Raffensperger during his fight to overturn the Georgia results, saying it was a 'perfect' phone call. 'The Courts concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants in fact it has alleged an abundance. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigneds opinion, fatal,' McAfee writes. 'This does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed,' said McAfee, who is overseeing the trials of Trump and 18 codefendants. The counts in question charge defendants with Solicitation of Violating of Oath by Public Officer. Statutes prohibit public officers from intentionally violating the terms of their oath. Count Two fo the indictment alleges that defendants solicited members of the Georgia Senate to violate their oaths by asking them to appoint 'fake' electors for Trump rather than for Joe Biden, who won the state. The ruling comes as Fulton Count DA Fani Willis awaits a separate decision over whether she is disqualified from the case after revelations about her affair with prosecutor Nathan Wade Judge Scott McAfee ruled that the oaths of office in question were 'generic' and the indictment contained a lack of detail on the specific chargers Former President Donald Trump saw three counts against him fall away, although he still faces 10 in Georgia alone Some of the dropped counts relate to Trump's call and other defendants alleged efforts to 'solicit' Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to violate his oath Prosecutors can still use Trump's call to Raffesnperger as evidence charging their racketeering conspiracy, but counts relating to alleged solicitation to violate oath are falling away Cout Five charges Trump solicited the speaker of the state House to violate his oath by asking him to call a special session of the legislature to appoint electors. Other counts related to charges that codefendants solicited lawmakers to violate their oaths. Count 28 alleges Trump and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows solicited Raffensperger to violate his oath, and Count 38 alleges that Trump solicited Raffesperger to violate his oath by asking him to 'unlawfully decertify the election.' Defendants argue that the indictment doesn't cite the oath the officials were required to take, that the counts don't detail the 'exact term of the oaths that are alleged to have been violated.' McAfee's ruling notes that all the oaths contain a variation that the oath-taker must support the Constitution of the U.S. and of Georgia. McAfee found that the incorporation of the U.S. and Georgia constitutions is 'so generic as to compel this Court to grant the special demurrers' and strike away the counts. 'On its own, the United States Constitution contains hundreds of clauses, any one of which can be the subject of a lifetimes study. Academics and litigators devote their entire careers to the specialization of a single amendment,' he writes. 'As written, these six counts contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited. They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently,' wrote McAfee. Prosecutors have the option of filing a superseding indictment, but that could lead a delay in the case whose spot on the calendar is already in jeopardy. McAfee said he will decide by the end of the week whether he will disqualify Willis after holding a bombshell hearing following revelations she had an affair with top prosecutor Nathan Wade. Such a move could also stall the case. If the entire DA's office were removed from the case, one option would be for the judge to bring in prosecutors for a neighboring jurisdiction who would have to familiarize themselves with the case and could go in a different direction. MSCO have since apologized for the special treatment and the deputies involved have been 'reassigned' The 17-year-old's parents received a police escort and valet parking as they attended their son's court appearance Talan Renner, 17, is being charged as an adult for the murder of Preston Lord, 16 Arizona cops have admitted they were wrong for providing valet parking to the millionaire parents of a teenage boy accused of murder as they attend juvenile court. Talan Renner, 17, is being charged as an adult for the murder of Preston Lord, 16, but is currently being held in juvenile detention. Preston was found on a Queen Creek road outside Phoenix after being attacked at a Halloween party on October 28 and suffering critical wounds. He died two days later from a brain injury after being taken to the hospital, with a local gang of rich bullies calling themselves the 'Gilbert Goons' linked to his killing. On March 7, Talan's parents Becky and Travis Renner were escorted through a back exit of the Durango Juvenile Court in Phoenix as they attended their son's first appearance in court. The parents had received special valet parking services from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office cops - who drove the couple's Tesla straight to the back exit for the pair to collect with ease. It meant the pair - who own a chain of Orange Theory gyms - did not have to face journalists. Arizona cops have admitted they were wrong for providing valet parking to the parents of a teenage boy accused of murder as they attend juvenile court On March 7, Talan Renner's parents Becky and Travis Renner were escorted through a back exit of the Durango Juvenile Court in Phoenix as they attended their son's first appearance in court As the couple made their way to their white Model X Tesla, Becky clutched her Louis Vuitton bag and Travis made a bold choice to wear bright orange trousers The parents had received valet parking services from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office cops - who drove the couple's Tesla straight to the back exit for the pair to collect with ease As the couple made their way to their white Model X Tesla, Becky clutched her Louis Vuitton bag and Travis made a bold choice to wear bright orange trousers. Users on X called the fashion move a 'scumbag choice' and said Travis was 'mocking the Lord family's pain.' 'Note Renners orange pants. What a pathetic man and father,' another user said. Queen Creek Police were told that Talan was taken out of the East Valley region of Arizona after the attack that killed the 16-year-old, according to FOX 10. His dad is accused of spiriting him away to a cabin so an injury allegedly sustained during Lord's fatal beating could heal. Investigators were also told that Talan's family had the 'financial means' to aid him in fleeing to Mexico. One report claimed Talan had wanted to beat Lord to death so he could be initiated to the Goons gang. MSCO have since apologized for the valet parking service and said that the deputies involved have been 'reassigned from the Juvenile Court Center' as they continue examining the incident. 'After a thorough review, we learned MCSO personnel conducted an unauthorized family escort on March 7, 2024, using a route known from prior high-profile or security-sensitive escorts,' the sheriff's office said in a statement. 'Despite their intention to prevent potential conflict or disruption at the courthouse, the two deputies failed to seek supervisory guidance or coordinate with judicial staff upon receiving the escort request from the family's legal representative.' MSCO added, 'In this highly publicized case, we appreciate your patience as we work to evaluate the deputies' actions and ensure all MCSO personnel adhere to policies and procedures in the future.' Talan's wealthy parents have so-far been able to keep him out of an adult prison, meaning no mugshot has been released. They faced humiliation after an armored police vehicle with a blaring speaker arrived to try to arrest their alleged murderer son at their gated community mansion earlier this month, only for cops to discover that no-one was home. Judge Joseph C. Welty released a statement addressing the apparent 'preferential treatment' that Talan and his parents are receiving - saying the deputies were not acting at the direction of the Superior Court. 'The action was inconsistent with court security protocol and gave the appearance of preferential treatment,' Welty said. He added that The Court 'has no tolerance for preferential treatment, or the perception of preferential treatment, for anyone.' Last week six teens and one 20-year-old were charged over the brutal murder of Preston Lord. Preston Lord, 16, was left to die on a Queen Creek road outside Phoenix after being attacked at the party on October 28 and suffering critical wounds Taylor Sherman (left) Dominic Turner (center), William Owen Hines top (right) have been charged with murder and kidnapping Treston Billey (left) and Talyn Vigil (right) have also been charged in Preston's murder. The other two suspects have not been pictured On Wednesday Maricopa County prosecutors announced the indictments of four suspects - William Owen Hines, 18, Talan Renner, 17, Talyn Vigil, 17, and Dominic Turner, 20. Taylor Sherman, 19, Jacob Meisner, 17, and Treston Billey, 17, were indicted the following day. They are charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping as adults. A GoFundMe for Preston's family says the teen was assaulted at the party and that some kids had tried to step in to perform CPR after his heart stopped until paramedics arrived. 'They were able to restart Prestons heart and he was taken to Chandler Regional hospital. He was then transferred to Phoenix Childrens in extremely critical condition with a severe brain injury,' Preston's aunt Melissa wrote. Police said the theft of a $10 gold necklace that Preston was wearing could have been the motive for the attack. Preston's murder highlighted a growing cases of group violence by teenagers in Phoenix and other cities After the fatal beating of Lord was detailed by the Arizona Republic last December, authorities reopened multiple cases believed to have been conducted by a larger group of assailants Five arrests were made after a street gang dubbed the 'Gilbert Goons' plagued a sleepy Arizona town by attacking teenagers and robbing stores Detectives said the attackers snatched his chain before Preston and his friends tried to get it back, and a confrontation erupted. Preston and his friends then fled the scene, but the attackers chased him before beating him and leaving him on the street. Preston's murder highlighted a growing cases of group violence by teenagers in the Phoenix area and other towns in Maricopa County. The quiet communities in southeast Valley have been shaken by a string of teen violence since last year, resulting in multiple injuries and three deaths. In January, Arizona police said they arrested members of a street gang dubbed the 'Gilbert Goons' who were attacking teenagers and robbing stores. Activists have previously said the same gang was involved in Preston's death. An Alberta man has asked a judge to block his 27-year-old daughter's doctor-assisted suicide, saying she's not eligible because of her autism and other mental health problems. The father, known as WV, cannot be identified under a court order. He seeks a judicial review of the case. But lawyers for the woman, known as MV, who lives with her dad, says he shouldn't be allowed to interfere in her decision, which was approved by doctors. The case spotlights the dramatic rise in euthanasia deaths in Canada since the procedures, known as MAiD, became legal in 2016. The father-and-daughter euthanasia case is being heard at Calgary Courts Center in Alberta Canadian officials are even considering allowing sick children and the mentally ill to opt for lethal injections. Sarah Miller, the dad's lawyer, urged a court in Calgary this week to extend an injunction that had been used to block MV's planned assisted suicide on February 1. Poll Should doctor-assisted suicide be available where you live? Yes No Not sure Should doctor-assisted suicide be available where you live? Yes 6767 votes No 5225 votes Not sure 1052 votes Now share your opinion Miller said in a legal brief that the woman 'suffers from autism and possibly other undiagnosed maladies that do not satisfy the eligibility criteria for MAiD,' according to the Calgary Herald. The daughter also suffers from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to the father, who says euthanasia is not the answer to her problems. The daughter's request for assisted suicide, made last year, has been approved by three medical professionals. Miller says there are 'genuine concerns with respect to impartiality,' and that MV has been swayed into making her life-ending decision. 'There's no evidence before this court that she has an irremediable condition,' Miller wrote. Alberta Health Services says euthanasia is a 'sensitive and emotional' issue for people in the province Lawyer Austin Paladeau says the dad cannot keep his daughter 'alive against her wishes' The court has to step in now, as a review would be pointless after MV is euthanized, says the brief. Justice Colin Feasby calls the case 'vexing' The daughter's lawyers Austin Paladeau and Evan Jovanovic say the euthanasia request is a matter for MV and her doctors. The father does not have the right to intervene, they said. 'He's at risk of losing his daughter and while this is sad, it does not give him the right to keep her alive against her wishes,' said Paladeau, according to CBC. Feasby called the case 'more vexing than most.' He has yet to decide whether to allow MV to end her life, or to order a judicial review into her doctors' decisions. Feasby said he expected to reach a decision quickly, but that it would likely be challenged and end up in the Court of Appeal. Many Canadians support euthanasia and the campaign group, Dying With Dignity, says procedures are 'driven by compassion, an end to suffering and discrimination and desire for personal autonomy.' Canada has among the highest rates of assisted dying in the world More than 99.9 percent of Canada's MAiD procedures are carried out by a doctor Rights groups say the country's regulations lack necessary safeguards, devalue the lives of disabled people, and prompt doctors and health workers to suggest the procedure to those who might not otherwise consider it. The number of MAiD deaths jumped 31.2 percent to 13,241 between 2021 and 2022, official numbers show. Some 44,958 people have received assisted deaths since the federal MAiD law was introduced in 2016. Canada's road to allowing euthanasia began in 2015, when its top court declared that outlawing assisted suicide deprived people of their dignity and autonomy. It gave national leaders a year to draft legislation. The resulting 2016 law legalized both euthanasia and assisted suicide for people aged 18 and over, provided they met certain conditions: They had to have a serious, advanced condition, disease, or disability that was causing suffering and their death was looming. The law was later amended to allow people who are not terminally ill to choose death, significantly broadening the number of eligible people. Under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's liberal government, Canada has repeatedly made it easier to access euthanasia The number of MAiD deaths in Canada has risen steadily by about a third each year Critics say that change removed a key safeguard aimed at protecting people with potentially decades of life left. Today, any adult with a serious illness, disease, or disability can seek help in dying. Officials in February delayed plans to expand MAiD access to those with mental illnesses, kicking a decision back to 2027. There are also efforts to make euthanasia available to 'mature minors.' Euthanasia is legal in seven countries Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand and Spain plus several states in Australia. Other jurisdictions, including a growing number of US states, allow doctor-assisted suicide in which patients take the drug themselves, typically crushing up and drinking a lethal dose of pills prescribed by a physician. In Canada, both options are referred to as MAiD, though more than 99.9 percent of such procedures are carried out by a doctor. The number of MAiD deaths in Canada has risen steadily by about a third each year. Constance Marten has defended living in a tent with her newborn baby who later died, telling jurors that 'Jesus survived in a barn'. The wealthy aristocrat, who alongside her partner Mark Gordon, is accused of the manslaughter of her daughter Victoria who passed away while they were camping in the South Downs in winter last year. The 36-year-old told the Old Bailey that she had 'grown up with luxury' and admitted she likes 'feathered duvets and comfort', while comparing their decision to live off the grid to that of desert nomads. Giving evidence Marten said 'people around the world live in conditions like' those in which Victoria perished, remarking how she would 'do anything for my baby'. She also described Gordon, 49, as an 'amazing husband' and claimed that their newborn daughter was their 'number one priority' as they spent months hiding from the police. Constance Marten (pictured) said 'Jesus lived in a barn' when defending the decision to sleep in a tent with her newborn daughter who later died Constance Marten seen holding baby Victoria underneath her coat outside a shop in East London while she was on the run On Wednesday, Marten was cross-examined at the Old Bailey about the couple's decision to buy a tent and live off grid to hide from authorities. She told jurors that Bedouin families walk through cold deserts with children, adding: 'Jesus survived in a barn. Follow every detail of the case on The Mail's acclaimed podcast The Trial The Trial takes listeners behind the headlines and into the courtrooms of some of the biggest criminal cases in the world. The first series, 'The Trial of Lucy Letby' received more than 13million downloads. Season two focused on the murder of Ashling Murphy, a 23-year-old teacher from Ireland. Season three followed the case of the murder of Brianna Ghey, a 16-year-old teenager. Season four will follow the evidence as the jury hears it in twice weekly reports from The Daily Mail's news reporter, Jack Hardy, and broadcast journalist, Caroline Cheetham. They will take you into the courtroom to bring you the details as the evidence unfolds, to examine key moments and to carry out exclusive interviews with detectives, victims, and experts. Advertisement 'I would do anything to protect my child to prevent her being taken by the system that's abhorrent, yeah.' She claimed two of her other four children were spat on and physically abused after being taken into care previously. The wealthy aristocrat told jurors: 'I have grown up with luxury, I have been blessed in that respect. I like feathered duvets and comfort. 'I would do anything for my baby. Anything. So it was an easy decision to make. I would rather be in a plush bed in a palace. I would rather be in a nice big bed.' Prosecutor Joel Smith asked if she considered the conditions were uncomfortable. Marten replied: 'I'm pretty outdoorsy but I would rather be in a bed.' She went on: 'We were not looking to live in a tent. We were acting on instinct. She was our number one priority. We were living in a tent for Victoria. 'A mother's love for her child is incredibly strong. 'There was no way I was going to part with my child. We were hiding from the entire British public because I was worried about Victoria being taken.' Marten accepted that camping in a tent meant there was no heating, hot water or electricity. But she said: 'People around the world live in conditions like that... as long as your child is well taken care of and loved.' Asked what they planned to do about food, she said: 'It was only a pitstop. We were not thinking about being there for months. It was more in the immediacy rather than long-term planning.' Earlier, Marten became agitated when asked about a teddy bear babygrow Victoria was wearing in CCTV footage from east London which was later among items recovered with her 'dumped' body. She insisted Victoria was not 'dumped' in the Lidl 'bag for life', telling jurors: 'It's awful, I know. 'The only thing I can say, if someone passes away the immediate reaction is panic. Mark and I were not in a good place. We were in fear and grief. 'She was not dumped anywhere. She was with us the whole time.' Mr Smith asserted the couple were 'hideously ill-prepared' to look after Victoria. The defendant, who described Gordon as her 'amazing husband', told jurors: 'We had enough to keep her warm, absolutely. She was our number one priority.' A court sketch showing Constance Marten giving evidence at the Old Bailey in London on Thursday, March 7 Marten claims her partner Mark Gordon (pictured) was an 'amazing husband' and that couple's 'number one priority' was Victoria Jurors were shown CCTV of Marten carrying Victoria underneath her zipped-up jacket in east London last January 7. In the footage, Marten appeared to adjust the baby after she slipped down in her arms. Asked if that was an appropriate way to carry a newborn baby, mother-of-five Marten said she had 'always' done it with her children. She said: 'As long as it's secure. People carry children in their arms all the time.' In further CCTV on the same day, Victoria was seen with her head tilted back as she was lifted up by Marten and placed in a buggy that Gordon had bought but which was designed for an older child. Mr Smith suggested it showed that Marten had treated Victoria in a 'cavalier fashion'. The defendant accepted it appeared from the video that she was not supporting Victoria's head. She added: 'She's fine. If she was not, she would be howling. I'm confident with my children.' Constance Marten, 36, and her 49-year-old lover Mark Gordon are accused of killing their fifth child Victoria by taking her on the run in January last year A shed in Lower Roedale Allotments, East Sussex, where a Lidl bag was found to contain the body of Victoria Marten said she did not believe medical advice warning against keeping a newborn baby outside for long periods. 'I do not agree with it because there are babies who spend hours outside. People live in countries without central heating,' she said. Jurors have heard that the couple went on the run from authorities in a bid to keep their baby after their four other children were taken into care. They abandoned many of their belongings after their car burst into flames near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5. When they were finally arrested in Brighton last February 27, they had refused to answer officers' urgent questions about where their baby was and whether she was alive or dead. Victoria's remains were found by police in the Lidl bag inside a shed on a nearby allotment on March 1 2023. The defendants, of no fixed address, deny manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child. The Old Bailey trial continues. A Minnesota mom has been accused of drowning her adorable eight-month-old son in the tub before having sex with her boyfriend while the infant lay dead nearby. Esperanza Rae Harding, 20, has been charged with second degree murder over the February 28 incident after showing up at the hospital on March 1 and claiming the toddler died naturally. Prosecutors allege that she drowned her baby boy, Mateo, in the tub at a Bloomington hotel on the Minnesota-Minneapolis border because he was ruining her bath by crying. Harding's boyfriend Edwin Cosmo Trudeau, 18, has also been charged with aiding an offender for allegedly turning up at the hotel and advising her to put the baby's body in the trash. Both Harding and Trudeau also attempted CPR on the child to no avail, and had sex in the bedroom while his dead body lay on the ground in the bathroom, according to the criminal complaint. Esperanza Rae Harding, 20, has been charged with second degree murder over the February 28 incident after showing up at the hospital on March 1 and claiming the toddler died naturally A Minnesota mom has been accused of drowning her adorable seven-month-old son in the tub before having sex with her boyfriend while the infant lay dead nearby Prosecutors allege that Harding drowned her baby boy, Mateo, in the tub at a Bloomington hotel on the Minnesota-Minneapolis border because he was ruining her bath by crying Harding's boyfriend Edwin Cosmo Trudeau, 18, has also been charged with aiding an offender for allegedly turning up at the hotel and advising her to put the baby's body in the trash The complaint says Minneapolis cops went to the children's hospital on March 6, where Harding claimed her son had died of natural causes on March 1. Since the hospital had no record of her son attending, cops interviewed Harding who eventually admitted that the baby died in the Bloomington hotel on February 28. Harding confessed that she 'wrapped up his body, put it in a backpack, and threw it in a dumpster'. She added that Trudeau 'did not like her child and that he wanted her to give him up for adoption' according to the complaint. 'She stated that Trudeau wanted her to prove that he was her top priority,' the document says. During the baby's last moments, Harding said he had been crying non-stop and that 'she could not enjoy her bath' according to the complaint. 'According to the defendant, she then put Victim in the full bathtub and drowned him,' the documents reads. 'The defendant took a photo of Victim floating face down in the full tub. The photo was recovered from her phone. She said she picked Victim up out of the water after he was 'done moving, done twitching.'' The complaint says Minneapolis cops went to the children's hospital on March 6, where Harding claimed her son had died of natural causes on March 1 Harding is being held on a $1.5 million bond charged with second-degree murder During the baby's last moments, Harding said he had been crying non-stop and that 'she could not enjoy her bath' according to the complaint Both Harding and Trudeau also attempted CPR on the child to no avail, and had sex in the bedroom while his dead body lay on the ground in the bathroom, according to the criminal complaint The complaint also states that Harding texted Trudeau about the boy's death referring to herself as 'a monster' yet asking him how to get away with it. Other messages Harding sent her lover just before she allegedly killed the boy show that she warned him 'Im about to do something bad'. 'he doing to much rn, I cant fucking sleep, Im trying tho, Im about to do something bad, Please answer me, He going to no be here much longer,' she wrote. Trudeau allegedly wrote back 'ok that's ok'. She later told him Mateo was dead and he came over to the hotel room. The couple attempted CPR but when Mateo could not be saved they plotted to dispose of his body in a dumpster in the hotel parking lot. They didn't call 911 or seek help for the baby, per court documents. According to an affidavit seen by Law & Crime, Trudeau told Harding not to tell authorities about what happened. 'If you go down, I go down no matter what,' he allegedly said. 'It is always going to be us, Bonnie and Clyde.' But Trudeau allegedly admitted finding the baby dead in the hotel bathroom and having sex with Harding instead of calling for help. Israel's Defence Forces have admitted that two Palestinians they claimed were terrorists carrying a rocket-propelled grenade were in fact just wheeling a bicycle when they were blown up in an air strike. Aerial footage released by the Israeli army on March 3 shows two people walking through the bombed-out streets of southern Gaza City before they are engulfed by a huge explosion. The video's captions describe the scene as showing 'the elimination of terrorists' and wrongly claiming that they are carrying an RPG. Subsequent analysis of the clip by has highlighted what can be discerned as wheels wobbling and handle bars, showing it to be a bike. 'When the video was published, the bicycle carried by one of them was mistakenly marked as a rocket launcher,' the IDF said in a statement to The New York Times. 'The IDF regrets the marking error.' Footage released by Israel's military zooms in on one of the figures, with a caption wrongly claiming it shows them carrying an RPG The moment the IDF strikes its target in footage first released on March 3 Despite claims that the pair were carrying the heavy weapon being debunked, the IDF insisted that the two people it killed were terrorists, without providing evidence The black and white footage also appears to show one of the people carrying a sack of flour. Tracks also appear to have been made by the bicycle, with the ground beneath it disturbed as it is pushed over it. Despite claims that the pair were carrying the heavy weapon being debunked, the IDF insisted that the two people it killed were terrorists, without providing evidence. 'During the several days leading up to the documented strike, armed terrorists used the route shown in the video in order to transfer ammunition and attack IDF forces,' their statement said. 'The strike took place after real-time identification of the people as armed terrorists, based on information gathered ahead of the strike.' The decision behind carrying out the strike will be assessed by military investigators, the New York Times was told. Mohammed Qreiqea, who spoke to witnesses in the strike, said one of the Palestinians in the footage was killed in the strike while the other was injured but survived. Qreiqea, who is a researcher for Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, which first pointed out the discrepancies in the footage, said that the people in the footage were returning from collecting aid. Smoke rises from an explosion in Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from Israel, March 13, 2024 Israel has come under mounting scrutiny over its relentless bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip, where the death toll has surpassed 31,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, since the war erupted on October 7. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Wednesday said at least one of its staff members was killed in an Israeli strike on a food distribution centre in the war-hit enclave. 'At least one UNRWA staff member was killed and another 22 were injured when Israeli forces hit a food distribution centre in the eastern part of Rafah' in southern Gaza, the agency said in a statement. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to request for comment. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said six aid trucks entered Gaza through the north late Tuesday as international pressure mounts for more humanitarian aid to Gaza. Palestinians inspect the damage of a destroyed pickup truck, loaded with dates, due to Israeli attack in Rafah Some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed during the Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel on Oct. 7, and around 250 people were abducted. Hamas is believed to still be holding around 100 hostages. Palestinian authorities claim most of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been forced from their homes by the war. The Hamas-run health ministry, which doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants in its death toll count, says that women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. A quarter of Gaza's population is starving, according to the United Nations. Texas college student Jason Landry has been a missing person since December 13, 2020. Texas Attorney General Office The news this week of Caleb Harris 21, a missing white male Texas college student, sparked a reader to reach out to highlight a missing person cold case from 2020, also white, also male of the same age, and a Texas college student named Jason Landry. December 2023 marked the third anniversary since Landry went missing. The Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, issued a statement on the cold case stating that in November 2023, multiple agencies met and reviewed the evidence. The panel thoroughly examined all parts of the case and concluded that all credible leads and investigative steps have been thoroughly pursued up to this point, a portion of the statement read. We consider this matter an ongoing and active investigation and encourage anyone with credible information about the case to contact the unit on the Texas Attorney General tips website. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Attending college at Texas State University, Landry was driving to Missouri City an area near Houston for Christmas break. The last day he was seen was on Dec. 13, 2020 the next day his car was found crashed and abounded on a rural highway out side of Luling. Some of Landrys items were found near his abounded vehicle, according to KVUE in Austin. Landrys clothes and his backpack were left behind, as were his laptop, gaming equipment, and personal items such as toiletries. This evidence was available to the public in 2020, and since then, theories have circled around that maybe he vanished on purpose, while others believe he is a victim of prey. Paxtons office is offering a $2,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest in the Landry case. Visit the Texas Attorney General website for more information, or to provide information on any missing persons case in Texas. Beach walkers have warned to stay away from the bodies of three 60ft sperm whales washed ashore from the North Sea - amid fears the carcasses could explode and cover them in entrails. The carcasses of two sperm whales are stranded on the banks of the Humber Estuary near Spurn Point in East Yorkshire, while another is lying on Humberston Fitties beach in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire. They are attracting the attention of sightseers, who are being urged not to get too close. Experts say toxic gases will be building up inside the dead whales. As the corpses expand like balloons, the slightest touch could set them off like powder kegs. As well as the explosion risk, there are deadly mudflats around the carcasses. British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said conditions around the whales were extremely dangerous. One of the dead whale carcasses found washed ashore in East Yorkshire. Walkers have been urged to stay away from the mammals amid fears they could explode The carcasses of two sperm whales are stranded on the banks of the Humber Estuary near Spurn Point in East Yorkshire, while another is lying on Humberston Fitties beach in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire Mud and reed beds are making the whales inaccessible and BDMLR is urging caution. In a statement, it said Network signal is poor and if anyone got in difficulty it puts strain on rescue agencies if they are having to save members of public from the mud, which could be avoided. Relevant agencies are aware of the whales location and we trust that the general public will remain safe and sensible. It is not known at this time what the cause of death is or factors that may have influenced the stranding. It is nonetheless sad to see. Sperm whales are a deep diving species that struggle to feed in the relatively shallow North Sea. Adult sperm whales can grow to 60ft in length and weigh almost 50 tons. The species has been known to wash ashore on both sides of the Atlantic. Elyse Perry captured a video showing a whale being thrown about by waves before it beached itself on Venice Beach, Florida, US. She says that authorities and aid could not help the whale due to the rough water and harsh conditions. She said: "The waters were too rough and weather conditions made it too difficult to aid the whale. "It's all very sad. "I'm very curious to see what they find after testing." Bebe Barcus also captured a harrowing video of the whale's gruesome carcass lying on the beach where it washed up on March 10. Ms Barcus says that the sperm whale died soon after beaching itself. She added: "A sick sperm whale beached themself on Sunday. By Monday, it was unfortunately deceased. "I walked on the beach down to the area that was roped off to get some video and local officials were performing a necropsy on the dead sperm whale. "It was shocking and very sad to see that beautiful whale dead on the beach." In September 2023, a group of whale watchers a sailing expedition in California captured a grisly video of a dead humpback floating in the sea - moments before it exploded. The event allowed the dead whale to sink slowly to its final resting place on the seabed of the Pacific Ocean The boat pulled alongside the carcass spewing water from its mouth and gas trapped in the abdomen, pictured in September 2023 off the coast of California The gruesome video is making waves on the internet after being shared by the popular animal Instagram account Nature Is Metal The gruesome video is making waves on the internet after being shared by the popular animal Instagram account Nature Is Metal. In November last year, a 54ft fin whale found washed ashore on Fistral beach in Newquay, Cornwall, garnered headlines amid fears that it too would explode. Dead whales often explode when gases accumulate within their large carcasses, and a post-mortem will not only help identify the cause of death but also likely let out any gas to prevent an explosion. The deceased fin whale was discovered washed up on Fistral Beach, Newquay, in November last year Marine specialists were given permission undertake a post mortem to discover its cause of death The fin whale, believed to be around 16 metres long, was found on Fistral Beach by watersports teacher Rob Barber Earlier today, a volunteer at the trust said that the mammal had a 'high risk of blowing up' and that it would be 'very gassy and messy'. Volunteers guard the scene as marine specialist perform an autopsy on the whale Experts hope to be able to determine the cause of death of the mammal to better understand 'how these animals are faring in our waters' It is not clear what caused the mammal's death, nor the cause of the bleeding. What appears to be several scratch marks can also be seen around the whale's face. What are fin whales? The fin whale is the second-largest whale species on earth, second only to the blue whale. It is found throughout the world's oceans, typically in deep, offshore waters. Most migrate to the Arctic and Antarctic in summer and warmer breeding areas in the winter. It gets its name from an easy-to-spot fin on its back, near its tail. During the summer, fin whales feed on krill, small schooling fish (including herring, capelin, and sand lance), and squid by lunging into schools of prey with their mouths open Fin whales have long livesthey reach physical maturity at about 25 years, and their maximum lifespan is about 90 years. Males become sexually mature at 6 to 10 years of age and females at 7 to 12 years of age. After 11 to 12 months of gestation, a pregnant female gives birth to a single calf in tropical and subtropical areas during midwinter. Newborn calves are about 18 feet long, and weigh 4,000 to 6,000 pounds. Fin whales sometimes mate with blue whales and hybrids have been documented. Source: NOAA Fisheries Advertisement Anthea Hawtrey-Collier, a marine standings data officer at Cornwall Wildlife Trust said the dead whale was a very sad sight. 'The Cornwall marine pathology team has been given permission to perform a post mortem in situ. 'The findings should help us understand why this animal died, what the health of our seas are and how these animals are faring in our waters. 'Fin whale strandings are still fairly rare but they are being seen more often out at sea off our coast.' The Cornwall Wildlife Trust said it had been alerted to the dead whale at 7.10am this morning and dispatched its marine stranding team of volunteers to the famous surfing beach. A spokesperson said: 'We don't know if it is a biohazard or not. But to be sure we don't want people touoching it. Our remit will be to measure the animal and record the stranding. We did call in Devon and Cornwall Police as there were a few people on the beach and they cordoned the area off. 'We also alerted Cornwall Council who is the landowner.' Walkers were ordered to stay away from the carcass, and the area was cordoned off by officials. Devon and Cornwall Police said a multiple-agency presence is on the beach now. A spokesperson for the force said members of the public are being asked to avoid the area at present. They said: 'A number of emergency services and partner agencies are currently on Fistral Beach following a report of a dead whale having been located. Members of the public are asked to avoid the area at this time.' Fin whales, also known as finback whale or common rorqual and formerly known as herring whale or razorback whale, are a cetacean belonging to the parvorder of baleen whales. It is the second-longest species of cetacean on Earth after the blue whale. They can measure up to 20m (60ft) in length and weigh up to 48 tonnes. Locals have been warned the carcass of a huge whale could explode after it was found washed up on a beach in Cornwall this morning The mammal, found dead on Fistral beach in Newquay, was identified as a fin whale - the second largest in the world, measuring 54 feet Pictures taken this morning show the whale stretched out across the sand, with what appears to be blood around its mouth, stomach, and fin A Marine Stranding Network volunteer at Cornwall Wildlife Trust said that the mammal has a 'high risk of blowing up' and that it would be 'very gassy and messy' The 'snowy' tip on dorsal fin of a whale sighted in the Hebrides, pictured last month in the same spot the whale has frequented for 27 years Rachel Atkins, who tooks some pictures of the mammal, said she woke up at 6.30am and saw people in high-vis jackets milling about on the beach. She said: 'I saw a police car and van there. When we walked down to the beach we realised it was a dead whale washed up. There were a lot of people crowding around and a cordon was in place so people wouldn't get too close. Why do dead animals explode? When an animal dies, bacteria inside the carcass produce methane as part of the decomposition process. If this is not let out of the body gradually it builds up, exploding at the first opportunity. Whales are the most extreme because their huge size makes the consequences of a gas build-up so much greater. Living toads in Hamburg, Germany, started spontaneously combusting in 2005. It was thought that crows were picking out their livers, leaving a hole, so when the toads puffed themselves as a defence mechanism, their whole bodies burst. And Royal funeral attendants hurriedly drilled a hole in the coffin of overweight English King George IV to let out gases - after an apparent botched embalming job. Advertisement 'The police extended the cordon so we walked up to the path above the dunes.. It was still really busy. One lady said to me it's the busiest she'd ever seen the footpath at that time in the morning.' Ms Atkins added: 'It's a massive animal. It's really imposing to see. It reminds you of the vastness of the ocean. It's really sad to see.' Ms Atkins said that the whale is bloodied and wondered if predators in the sea had a go at it before it was washed up on Fistral beach during a rough weather night. She added: 'There were people with all their kits taking samples from the whale.' In January, the remains of a fin whale were found on Perranuthnoe beach on Cornwall's south coast. In June 2022, a 'baby' whale was discovered on Millendreath beach near Looe in Cornwall. In June 2021, a 40ft minke whale carcass was spotted by a walker on the shore near a windfarm in Redcar, Teesside. Experts were called to the scene to begin preparations for the sea mammal's removal. When any whale washes up on a beach, a large gas build-up inside their huge frames mean it is often only a matter of time before they explode, sending their innards flying across the shoreline. Colin Stonehouse, a member of the British Divers Marine Life Rescue said: 'When I arrived I checked to see if it was alive, but it was already deceased, so we're going to take it in. 'We need to pull it back, take some data and find its cause of death.' He added that while the North Sea would be its natural habitat it was not unusual for whales to come close to the shore. He added: 'It could be navigation problems, there's a lot of bruising on it. 'It's female, a juvenile going towards adult, but I'd need to measure its length to get a precise age.' Minke whales are the smallest of the 'great whales,' growing to an average of 35ft (10.6 m) long and weighing up to 20,000 pounds (9 tonnes). They are also the most common of the great whale species, and can be found throughout the world's oceans. When any whale washes up on a beach, it is only a matter of time before they explode, sending their guts flying across the shoreline. Emergency services cordon off a minke whale carcass in Redcar, Teesside, in June 2021 The minke whale is believed to measure up to 40ft and is usually seen in the North Sea When an animal dies, bacteria inside the carcass produces methane as part of the decomposition process. If this is not let out of the body gradually it builds up, exploding at the first opportunity. Whales are the most extreme because their huge size makes the consequences of a gas build-up so much greater. In 2013, a biologist was filmed cutting open a washed up whale on the Faroe Islands. As soon as the biologist began working, the gas trapped inside exploded, spewing tons of organs and guts into the air. Far-left activist and onetime Christian pastor Shaun King has announced that he converted to Islam in solidarity with Palestinians at the start of Ramadan. King shared a video Facebook of him and his wife taking the shahada, professing their faith, at the Valley Ranch Islamic Center in Irving, Texas. 'My heart is with my dearest friends in Gaza and Im proud that we were able to provide meals tonight to thousands and thousands of families from the North to the South in Gaza and will do so every day of Ramadan,' he wrote in the post. The controversial Black Lives Matter activist was once the pastor of Courageous Church in Atlanta from 2008 to 2011, according to BuzzFeed. He has been outspoken in his stance against Israel since the start on the Israel-Hamas war and claimed he was banned from Instagram over his pro-Palestine posts. Far-left activist and onetime Christian pastor, Shaun King (center) announced he converted to Islam King shared a video Facebook of him and his wife taking the shahada, professing their faith, at the Valley Ranch Islamic Center in Irving, Texas King was previously accused of lying by the family of two American hostages who he claimed he helped free from Hamas and said he was kicked off Instagram for pro-Palestine posts 'What's clear is Meta, Facebook and Instagram have decided to stand in the way of those of us that are fighting for the human rights and dignity of Palestinians. I wont stand for it, I'm going to keep fighting everywhere I can,' he said when his Instagram account was taken down. A spokesperson for Meta told DailyMail.com that King's Instagram account was suspended because 'due to multiple instances of praise for designated entities in violation of our policies.' The activist, known as one of the loudest voices behind the Black Lives Matter movement, had 5.6million followers on Instagram, where he fiercely criticized Israel and the U.S. following the October 7 terrorist attacks against the Jewish nation. He has repeatedly framed the resulting war as a genocide against Palestinians by Israel financed by the United States government. King was also previously accused of lying by the family of two American hostages who he claimed he helped free from Hamas. He claimed he helped free Natalie Shoshana Raanan, 17, and her mother Judith Tai Raanan, 59, who were two of over 200 hostages taken by Hamas following their attack that killed over 1,200 Israelis on October 7. King said that 'dozens of us' worked on their freeing and that the Raanan family 'have been supporters of mine, and protested police violence in America alongside us.' But the family say King is lying and he did nothing to help the two women to their freedom, saying in a statement that: 'First and foremost, we make it clear he is lying!' 'Our family does not and did not have anything to do with him, neither directly nor indirectly,' they told TMZ. 'Not to him and not to anything he claims to represent.' Uri Raanan, Natalie's father, later said to The Daily Beast that his son had been contacting King but that he still had little do with the release. 'We reached out to many people far and wide to bring Natalie and Judith to safety. We are not affiliated with Mr. King,' he said. 'Ben, my son was talking with him without anybody in the family knowing about it until today.' 'Our family in Israel posted this statement denying we knew him, before we learned about Ben talking to him,' Raanan added. 'We have nothing further to say.' He claimed he helped free Natalie Shoshana Raanan, 17, and her mother Judith Tai Raanan, 59, who were two of over 200 hostages taken by Hamas on October 7 King, in a statement, claimed he was telling the truth but did not specify that he talked to anyone beyond the Raanan's son. 'I spoke directly and repeatedly with this family. I have a job, career, and family. I would be throwing everything away to make such a thing up,' King said. 'Thankfully I kept records of all of them.' He has also been accused of fraud on various occasions, including by the mother of Tamir Rice - a 12-year-old Ohio boy killed by Cleveland police - who claims he held unauthorized fundraisers in her son's name. King has battled allegations of fraud for many years, but has not been formally accused of any wrongdoing in connection to Grassroots, which he founded to help get progressive elected to office. Most infamously, he was accused of lying about being the victim of a horrific hate crime in his youth as a result of his race, which he allegedly faked his race to take advantage of a Oprah Winfrey scholarship. Tory MPs have rebuffered calls from Caribbean nations for Britain to pay reparations over treatment of 'indentured workers'. The UK is facing a new demand for compensation over the estimated 500,000 people shipped from India to work on sugar plantations after African slaves were freed. As part of the indenture system, they agreed to work for a certain period in exchange for a payoff at the end - such as a patch of land. However, most remained in bonded labour for the rest of their lives. Guyana - which received large numbers of workers - is now leading a push for reparations. President Mohammad Irfaan Ali told The Telegraph earlier this week: 'All those nations that benefited from abominable systems need to do the morally right thing and to accept their complicity in historical wrongs.' President Mohammad Irfaan Ali of Guyana (pictured) is now leading a push for reparations for indentured workers The replacement of slave labour with indentured workers was driven by Sir John Gladstone, a 19th-century landowner in British Guiana and father of respected future PM William Gladstone He said a group of countries were examining the issue of 'the atrocities committed under Indian indentured immigration'. 'There is a growing awareness in both Britain and in many European capitals about the need for reparative justice. History is on our side, and we are also on the right side of history,' he said. However, former minister Mark Francois pointed out that the UK had already offered financial support to Caribbean countries - not least in the form of defence. 'We greatly value our links with the Commonwealth, whose troops fought alongside ours in two worlds wars,' the Tory MP told MailOnline. 'However, our joint defence of those countries also cost the British taxpayer billions down the years - and we still finance vital Royal Navy hurricane/disaster relief operations in the Caribbean today - without sending an invoice. 'Loyalty works two ways.' The replacement of slave labour with indentured workers was driven by Sir John Gladstone, a 19th-century landowner in British Guiana and father of respected future PM William Gladstone. Last year his descendant Charles Gladstone reportedly offered a formal apology for the practices in Guyana. The issue of reparations has been increasingly coming to the fore in contacts between Western countries and former colonies. The UK was deeply involved in the slave trade hundreds of years ago, but moved earlier than rival states to ban it and then devoted military power to eradicating the abuses around the world. Former minister Mark Francois pointed out that the UK had already offered financial support to Caribbean countries - not least in the form of defence The Church of England recently heralded a billion-pound fund to atone for its historic links to slavery. The church will ask super-wealthy families and investors to help it build an enormous pot of cash to address 'enduring harms from enslavement'. It announced last year that it was setting up a 100million fund for reparations to recognise that it once profited from the slave trade. But a report earlier this month said that was 'insufficient' to 'fully redress' the centuries-long impact of the 'great evil' of slavery and called for a much bigger target of 1billion. Critics said the move risked putting parishioners off donating to their cash-strapped churches as it would appear the CofE had 'vast sums to throw around'. This is the first picture of the driver who police say ran over and killed a five-month-old British baby and mowed down her family on Lanzarote. Olivia Brown, 23, is due to be charged when she appears in court tomorrow. Police on the island told MailOnline that they believe Brown was over the legal limit for alcohol when her 'out of control' car mounted the pavement and slammed into the family. She is currently under house arrest and could be jailed for causing the death of the new-born baby. Brown lives on the island with her parents and is understood to work at a hotel in the resort of Playa Blanca where the accident took place. Olivia Brown, 23, is due to be charged when she appears in court tomorrow Shocking images of the scene showed police and paramedics working desperately on the stricken pedestrians A moment of silence was held in the centre of Yaiza outside the Mayors office, where locals turned up to show their respect Ms Brown is currently under house arrest and could be jailed for causing the death of the new-born baby Her social media shows scenes of sunset on the island, posing in front of palm trees and with her mother. The Brown family are thought to have lived on the island for several years. The identity of the British family involved in the horrific accident has not been revealed. They were due to leave the island on Sunday, according to police. The baby's parents and grandparents were also injured in the accident around 6.30pm on Sunday. The father is said to be in a critical condition in a local hospital. A Swedish mother and daughter were also injured by the Ford Fiesta which eyewitnesses have told police was speeding and made no attempt to slow down before mounting the pavement. Yaiza Municipal police chief Vladimir Guadalupe told MailOnline the Swedish mother is in a critical condition. She was airlifted from the island to an intensive care unit in Gran Canaria. He said her heart and stopped three times and she had to be resuscitated. The couple had only been in Lanzarote for three hours and were walking back to their hotel when they were struck. The Police chief said: 'The investigation is still on going and could be another week. The driver will appear in court but I cannot say yet what the charges will be. Yaiza Municipal police chief Vladimir Guadalupe (pictured) told MailOnline the Swedish mother is in a critical condition First responders were among those who attended the two-minutes silence 'The legal limit for alcohol is 0.25 and this person was over that limit and the charge will reflect that.' The death of the newborn has shocked the island a popular winter sun destination with British tourists - and the Mayor Osca Noda declared two days of mourning with flags to fly at half mast. More than 30 people led by the Mayor and including emergency service workers who were first on the scene took part in a solemn one minute silence outside the town hall. Mayor Noda said the death of the baby has had a huge impact on local residents. 'We are full of sorrow over such a tragic accident. This is something that has not happened here, and people are very shocked,' he said. 'We are doing all we can to support the family who are still in hospital. Adil De Toro, a local doctor on the island was among the town hall staff who took part in the one-minute silence. Mayor Oscar Noda (pictured) said the death of the baby has had a huge impact on local residents He described how in the aftermath of the incident he and others rushed to the scene to offer any assistance they could. He said: 'The government has called this meeting to make a point about how rare and sad this event is. 'These things never happen here. It has affected the opinion of the island. The police have to investigate exactly what happened whilst she is under house arrest. 'I ran to the scene after it happened to see if they needed assistance. There was a team of ambulances working around all the injured. It was horrible.' Hotel director Miguel Angel Sordo told how he ran from the HL Rio Playa Blanca hotel when he heard piercing screams from passers-by who had witnessed the tragedy. He said the mum of the baby was desperately trying to revive the baby boy. A five-month baby was killed and several others injured after being mowed down by a car which mounted the pavement in the Lanzarote tourist resort of Playa Blanca Emergency workers attend the scene of the crash He said: 'The baby was lying on the floor and a blonde lady dressed in black was trying to revive him. The health workers arrived immediately and took care of the baby. 'I offered to help them and some health workers asked me to keep the victims who were lying on the ground awake and to speak to them in English so that they would be conscious. 'Then more paramedics arrived and, together with the rest, took charge of caring for all the injured.' While Brown has yet to face a court in the island capital Arrecife feelings among locals was running high over the death crash. Ambulances are seen outside of the hospital near Playa Blanca following the incident One man, who preferred to stay anonymous, suggested the opinion of the island is that she be made an 'example of' if guilty. He said: 'The entire island is very upset and shaken by this incident, we want an example to be made. 'The road where the terrible crash took place is very hard to have an accident on. 'When you see the impact the vehicle had on the wall, it's very clear she was moving at speed. If she was using drink and drugs while she was driving she should go to prison for this.' Two Mexican detectives who went missing while investigating the recent police shooting death of a student teacher have been found safe. Suay Dominguez, 30, and Enrique Linares, 40, were found Tuesday in a southern area in the the state of Mexico. However, the Mexican government remained tight-lipped as to how the federal agents, who are assigned to the Attorney General's Office criminal investigation agency, were actually located and did not reveal the name of the city where they were found. The government did say that Dominguez and Linares were taken to Mexico City, where they underwent medical examinations and then were interviewed. Federal detective Enrique Linares (pictured) and his fellow partner Suay Dominguez, who are assigned to the Attorney General's Office criminal investigation agency, were found safely Tuesday. They mysteriously vanished Sunday while traveling to investigate the police shooting death of a student teacher last Thursday in the Pacific coast state of Guerrero Suay Dominguez is one of two Mexican federal detectives were found safely Tuesday in State of Mexico Yanqui Gomez was shot dead by the municipal police in the Mexican town of Ayotzinapa after the vehicle he was traveling in was pulled over after it was reported stolen Dominguez and Linares departed Sunday from Cuernavaca, Morelos to join the investigation into the death of Yanqui Gomez, a 23-year-old student teacher who was shot dead by cops in the Guerrero municipality of Ayotzinapa last Thursday. Gomez was shot in what police said was a confrontation with him and three other students after they were stopped in a vehicle that had been reported stolen. The Guerrero State Attorney General's Office said the students refused to get out of the car and were the first ones to open fire before the cops responded. Dominguez and Linares had also planned to travel to the Guerrero capital city of Chilpancingo, where they were expected to arrive by midnight. However, Dominguez and Linares mysteriously disappeared, setting off a frantic search. Federal agents joined the military and National Guard in the search mission and located the detectives in an area bordering the Pacific coast state of Guerrero and the central state of Morelos. Mexico President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador addressed their disappearance during his daily press briefing at the National Palace on Tuesday morning and said that they were also part of the investigation into the 2014 abduction and killing of 43 student teachers. The leftist leader hoped that incident was not connected to their role in the high profile case 'I hope this is not related to those who do not want us to find the youths,' Lopez Obrador said. The 43 missing male students attended the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College and were allegedly abducted by cops in the Guerrero municipality of Iguala on September 26, 2014. They were turned over to a drug gang, who killed them and set their bodies on fire. Since then, only three of their remains have been identified. A government truth commission report revealed last year that federal, state and local law enforcement colluded with the gang to murder the students in what it called a 'state crime.' The US House of Representatives today passed a Bill that would lead to a nationwide ban on TikTok if its Chinese owner refuses to sell it. The wildly popular video sharing app has more than 150 million American users and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Beijing-based ByteDance. Members of Congress fear that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's US any time it wants, track their locations or influence them by tweaking the algorithm. TikTok strongly denies these allegations. The Bill requiring ByteDance to divest the app passed by a vote of 352-65, despite opposition from Donald Trump and Tesla owner Elon Musk. It will now go to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok is not facing the prospect of a nationwide ban in the UK, although it was banned from government devices in March 2023. TikTok advocates gathered outside of the Capitol ahead of Wednesday's vote to push back against the bill The wildly popular video sharing app has more than 150 million American users and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Beijing-based ByteDance Oliver Dowden said that while use of the app was 'limited', banning it was good cyber 'hygiene' after a review found there 'could' be a risk to how it used data. However, he stressed the government was not telling people not to use TikTok in a personal capacity - suggesting the idea of British MPs clamping down on it in a similar way to their US counterparts remains a remote prospect. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a US congresswoman who supported today's Bill, said the next steps would be up to TikTok's Chinese owners. She said: 'We have given TikTok a clear choice: separate from your parent company ByteDance, which is beholden to the CCP (the Chinese Communist Party), and remain operational in the United States, or side with the CCP and face the consequences. The choice is TikTok's.' House passage of the Bill is only the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and members of that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said he will have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the Bill's path. US President Joe Biden has said if congress passes the measure, he will sign it. Opponents of the Bill include Mr Musk, who has likened it to 'censorship'. He wrote on X: 'This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite ''foreign control'' as the issue, but it does not.' Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has come out against the TikTok bill, claiming it could be used as a form of government suppression TikTok sent this notification to users yesterday morning, prompting them to get in touch with their lawmakers to let them know whether they support the TikTok bill Mr Trump also threw cold water on the proposal last week, insisting if TikTok is banned its rival Facebook would 'double their business.' 'I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better,' Trump wrote in a social media post. 'They are a true Enemy of the People!' Close Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene also voted against the bill, mentioning Musk by name and praising him for restoring her account on X after it was formerly banned. 'What's to stop the U.S. government in the future from forcing the sale of another social media company claiming it is protecting American's data from foreign adversaries?' 'I believe this bill can cause future problems. It's opening Pandora's Box and I am opposed to this bill,' Greene said Wednesday on the House floor. 'This is really about controlling Americans' data, and if we cared about Americans' data then we would stop the sale of Americans' data universally, not just with China.' TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced But the bill's author, Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., pushed back on that this morning. 'TikTok is a threat to our national security because its owned by ByteDance, which does the bidding of the communist party,' Gallagher said on the floor. 'This bill therefore forces TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. It does not apply to American companies.' The House vote is poised to open a new front in the long-running feud between legislators and the tech industry. Members of US Congress have long been critical of tech platforms and their expansive influence, often clashing with executives over industry practices. But by targeting TikTok, representatives are singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before the US presidential election this autumn. A TikTok spokesperson said: 'This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban. 'We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.' Elon Musk carried his young son X AE A-XIII on his shoulders today while visiting Tesla's German gigafactory following the suspected arson attack of nearby power lines by what he called 'eco-terrorists' last week. The Tesla CEO travelled to the site in Gruenheide, near Berlin, on Wednesday to lend his employees 'support' after the plant was forced to halt production. Addressing thousands of employees who gathered in a crowd around the billionaire, he accused 'eco-terrorists' of the sabotage while defending Tesla's green credentials. But he wasn't alone in his show of support, as he carried his three-year-old son X AE A-XIII around his neck while delivering his speech. Musk said: 'I am here to support you.' Elon Musk visited the German Tesla gigafactory near Berlin today as he gave his 'support' to workers imapcted by last weeks arson attack on the plant The billionaire accused 'eco-terrorists' of the sabotage while defending Tesla's green credentials The Tesla gigafactory was forced to halt production on March 5 after members of a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe set fire to nearby power lines His visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker's only European plant were set on fire by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) on March 5. The organisation admitted to starting the fire after accusing Tesla of 'extreme exploitation conditions' and calling for the 'complete destruction of the gigafactory.' Tens of thousands of residents, nearby hospitals, nursing homes and a big logistics center for a German grocery chain were also initially affected by the attack. Musk had tweeted then that the attack was 'extremely dumb', while the company revealed it would cost them several hundreds of millions of dollars. On Monday evening, the mega-factory had regained access to its power supply, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would 'take a bit of time' before production is back to full speed. Employee council chief Michaela Schmitz told regional broadcaster RBB's Inforadio channel that, after machines were checked and started up, 'the early shift can begin (work) again this morning.' She added: 'People are glad to be able to come back to work.' Workers continue repairing the electricity transmission tower that delivers electricity to the nearby Tesla Gigafactory The CEO walks with his son X AE A-XII during a visit to the Tesla electric car plant in Gruenheide Musk Tweeted on March 5, that the attack was 'extremely dumb', while the company revealed it would cost them several hundreds of millions of dollars Musk told staff: 'I am here to support you' as he spoke to the factory workers Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla. Tesla's German plant started production in 2022 and now has plans to expand the site by 420 acres in order to home a freight depot, warehouses. and a kindergarten. The company also want to boost production by up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe's growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles. But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month. After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant. Dame Esther Rantzen's daughter today urged Rishi Sunak to facilitate a vote on changing the law to allow assisted dying as soon as possible to help the terminally ill TV legend. Rebecca Wilcox said that a pledge by Sir Keir Starmer to hold a vote within five years if Labour wins the election would come too late for the broadcaster, who has incurable cancer. Ms Rantzen today said she did not want her family's last memories of her to be of pain and begging in vain for help to end her suffering. Ms Wilcox said she had been trying to contact the PM to ask him to speed things up, which no success. Speaking to TalkTV she said: 'There actually isn't that much going on in Parliament. Everybody seems to be gearing up for the election. Why not have a vote now? Why doesn't Rishi Sunak go out on a high by giving something to everyone that we all want?' Rebecca Wilcox (left) said that a pledge by Sir Keir Starmer to make Parliamentary time for a free vote if Labour wins the election would come too late for the broadcaster, who has incurable cancer. Ms Wilcox said she had been trying to contact the PM to ask him to speed things up, which no success. In a conversation with Dame Esther Rantzen (pictured), the Labour leader gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is parliamentary time for a debate Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony' Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland (pictured) In a conversation with the terminally ill television presenter, Sir Keir gave a 'commitment' to ensure there is time for a vote in the next parliament if Labour is elected. Sir Keir said he was 'personally in favour of changing the law' and claimed 'delay just prolongs the agony'. Dame Esther, 83, revealed at the end of last year that she has stage four lung cancer and has joined the Dignitas assisted dying clinic in Switzerland. Since then, she has pleaded with politicians to grapple with the issue - saying 'we live in a day and age when it's perfectly possible to offer people a gentle, peaceful death'. In a phone call with sir Keir that was filmed by ITV, she said: 'What I really do not want is for my family's last memory of me to be painful and suffering and me begging to be assisted in dying, and just having to watch me (die).' 'When you reach my advanced age of 83 and a bit you have seen people you love pass away. Some peacefully and painlessly, but not all and, unfortunately, when someone you love has a very painful death that memory obliterates the good times when you think about them. 'You remember their suffering and I don't want my family to have that. That would be all wrong. 'So, as far as I'm concerned I would much rather, when I knew the end was coming, choose a painless death.' Is Assisted Suicide illegal in Britain? Under the Suicide Act 1961, anyone helping or encouraging someone to take their own life in England or Wales can be prosecuted and jailed for up to 14 years if found guilty of an offence. Section two of the act states that a person commits an offence if they carry out an act capable of encouraging or assisting the suicide or attempted suicide of another person, and the act was intended to encourage or assist suicide or an attempt at suicide. In 2015 MPs including former prime minister David Cameron rejected a Bill to legalize assisted dying. Opposition to changing the law has come from faith groups, campaigners who say disabled people may feel pressured to end their lives and campaigners who fear assisted dying would become a business. Advertisement The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther will air tonight on ITV News. Sir Keir has previously said he would be 'open' to making time for a Private Members' Bill to be debated on the issue. Sir Keir voted in favour of the last parliamentary bid to change the law in 2015, when he described the current ban as an 'injustice'. The vote was comfortably defeated by 330 votes to 118, but a poll of more than 10,000 people by Opinium Research for the Dignity in Dying campaign recently found that three quarters support making it lawful for terminally ill adults to access assisted dying. He said: 'I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now.' Pressed by ITV on whether a vote should take place in the next parliament, he replied: 'Oh yes, definitely. I think Esther would agree with this. 'For people who are going through this or are likely to go through it in the next few months or years, this matters hugely and delay just prolongs the agony.' He said the debate should be 'conducted with respect' to 'find the right balance in the end'. 'I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case [for assisted dying] where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable.' While Labour is unlikely to bring forward its own legislation, Sir Keir's signal that he would allow time for a fresh debate could encourage a backbencher to bring forward their own Bill. A Private Members' Bill is a public bill can be introduced by MPs or peers who are not government ministers. They are, however, unlikely to become law without Government support. But Care Not Killing, which promotes palliative care and opposes euthanasia, questioned whether 'killing of the terminally ill and disabled people' was Labour's 'top priority'. The conversation between the Labour leader and Dame Esther (pictured) will air tonight on ITV News Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election Dr Gordon Macdonald, the organisation's chief executive, said: 'Changing the law to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia in the UK would represent a dramatic change in how doctors and nurses treat and care for people and put the lives of the vulnerable, terminally ill and disabled people at risk.' He said 'ordinary voters will rightly be surprised and alarmed that the Labour Leader has decided to make this intervention'. 'They will rightly ask, is the killing of the terminally ill and disabled people really Labour's top legislative priority if they win the next General Election?' Last month, a much-anticipated report on assisted dying by the Health and Social Care Committee failed to deliver any clear-cut findings or proposals. The inquiry stopped short of calling for a House of Commons debate and instead recommended that the Government should consider how to respond if moves are made to bring assisted dying into law in parts of the UK. Rishi Sunak has previously indicated that he is willing to hold a vote over assisted dying, but it is not expected that he will find parliamentary time for one before the next election. He said last month: 'What the Government has always said, and I would commit to this of course, is if parliament decided that it wanted to change the law then of course the Government would facilitate doing that in away that was legally effective.' Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to murder or other charges. The case for changing the law: Campaigners tell their stories Jonathan and Nicholas Dimbleby Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby lost his younger brother Nicholas to motor neurone disease last month aged 77. The celebrated sculptor had wanted to choose when to die and Mr Dimbleby is now among those calling for the law to be changed. Mr Dimbleby told The Guardian that the current rules which make assisted dying a criminal offence 'are anachronistically cruel as capital punishment'. Broadcaster Jonathan Dimbleby (left) and his late brother the celebrated sculptor Nicholas (right) Mr Dimbleby, a friend of King Charles, said: 'The law should be changed so that individuals like my brother, protected by crucial legal safeguards, would have the right to die at home at a moment of their choice.' The pair pictured here in 1994 Mr Dimbleby, a friend of King Charles, added: 'The law should be changed so that individuals like my brother, protected by crucial legal safeguards, would have the right to die at home at a moment of their choice.' On his brother he said: 'He was a wonderful, strong person, mentally as well as physically, and he felt this erosion of life very deeply. 'He showed immense courage but as the disease progressed he endured terrifying choking fits though, mercifully, his final hours were peaceful.' Dr Heather McQueen and Sheena Caskie Dr Heather McQueen began to campaign for assisted dying after watching her mother, Sheena Caskie, die a 'cruel and inhumane death' from terminal cancer. Mrs Caskie, from Kintyre, had been living with a rare form of anal cancer for more than two years before her death aged 79. 'The radiotherapy treatment for her cancer had left her with third degree burns, and lying down was particularly painful - she was so sore sitting down that she ate standing up,' Dr McQueen said. Dr Heather McQueen (left) began to campaign for assisted dying after watching her mother, Sheena Caskie, (right) die a 'cruel and inhumane death' from terminal cancer 'When mum's Church of Scotland minister came to visit, she told her she was dying and did not feel afraid. That is the point at which she should have been allowed to die. 'That week that followed, as we watched everything unfold in its full horror, we watched the fear growing in her face. There was the hunger and being parched. She could not take fluids by mouth. 'She was also in great pain from the radiation burns and tumours and all the tubes she was dealing with. My mum had a great life and an absolutely horrible death.' Andy Squires and Glenys Porter Andy Squires, from Southport, helped his mother Glenys Porter travel to Dignitas so she could have an assisted death aged 67 after spending a decade suffering from the advanced stages of Huntington's disease. He was joined by his brother Peter on the trip, which cost 10,000. The Squires brothers with their mother, Glenys Porter, who they helped travel to Dignitas 'There was a great deal of conversation with mum for almost a year before we went to Dignitas, to give her all the alternatives, and to try and give her other options,' he said. 'Completely of sound mind with regards to travelling to Dignitas, she was very determined to see it through to the end, and go with dignity. 'The trip to Dignitas was a sad time for everyone in our family but my brother and I went with mum to support her in her final days we would never have let her die alone.' Carol Conway and Noel Conway Noel Conway challenged the laws on assisted dying after developing motor neurone disease, which left him with movement only in his right hand, head and neck. Noel Conway became a campaigner for assisted dying after developing motor neurone disease He died at home alongside his wife Carol in 2021 after deciding with his family to remove his ventilator. Prior to his death, he said: 'I felt like a condemned man awaiting execution on a date yet to be determined. 'My immediate response was to get it over with as quickly as possible. I became aware of how agonising it must be to be someone on death row for years and years not knowing when the order will come.' Mrs Conway told the BBC: 'Noel was in control, which was so important. 'Ultimately, Noel wanted the choice of an assisted death and I hope his campaigning will bring this option closer to becoming a reality for other terminally ill people in this country.' Heather Pratten and Nigel Pratton Heather Pratten smothered her son after he tried to take his own life while suffering from Huntington's disease. Nigel had never come to terms with his diagnosis, Ms Pratten said, and took a massive heroin overdose on his 42nd birthday. Lying next to him and seeing him struggling to breathe as the drug took hold, Ms Pratten took a pillow and suffocated him to relieve his suffering. She was initially charged with murder, but eventually pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting suicide. Heather Pratten smothered her son after he tried to take his own life while suffering from Huntington's disease Nigel (pictured) had never come to terms with his diagnosis, Ms Pratten said, and took a massive heroin overdose on his 42nd birthday She was initially charged with murder, but eventually pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting suicide. A judge later ruled during her hearing in October 2000 that the case was an 'exceptional circumstance' and she was given a conditional discharge. Calling for a right to die, she told the Basildon, Canvey and Southend Echo: 'I have known that have been in absolute agony with illnesses, including my son. Why shouldn't they be able to say that they have had enough, providing they're within the last leg of their life,' she said. 'Where it's legal already, in America and Canada, it's not been taken advantage of, it's been working.' The collective net federal income tax bill of 35 top companies that were analyzed was negative $1.72bn over the five-year stretch Top US companies are paying their senior executives significantly more than they pay in corporate taxes, a new report has revealed. Companies including Tesla, T-Mobile, Netflix, Ford and Match Group paid their top bosses more than their net tax payments between 2018 and 2022, analysis by Americans for Tax Fairness and the Institute for Policy Studies found. For the 35 top companies included in the study the collective net federal income tax bill was negative $1.72billion over the five-year stretch, because they received more money back from the government in refunds than they paid. In comparison, over the same period compensation for senior executives at these firms stood at $9.49billion. The firms looked at included Elon Musk's Tesla, which paid execs $2.5billion over a negative $1million in taxes. While Netflix paid its execs $675million over $236million in taxes. Compensation for executives included salaries, bonuses, perks, benefits, stock options and stock awards and did not take into account the personal income taxes executives may have paid. Tesla, led by Elon Musk paid out $2.5billion to executives between 2018 and 2022. However, the figure includes a $55billon payout to Elon Musk that was struck down by a Delaware court in January as excessive. Judge Kathleen McCormick found that the $55billion awarded to Musk five years ago was a result of the CEO strong-arming Tesla directors. McCormick in her ruling found that the process leading to the boards approval of his 2018 compensation package was 'deeply flawed' because of how close Musk was to some of its members. By contrast, the electric car maker was minus-$1million in its federal income tax balance for the same period, primarily because its carried forward large losses from the previous year, the report claimed. T-Mobile paid its CEO Mike Sievert and other executives $675m in the five year period, but had a tax of minus-$80million, according to the report. The network company used a 'variety of tactics' to bring down its tax bill, the ATF and IPS reported. Those included using a tax deduction for costs incurred buying spectrum licenses and writing off a $350million settlement over a cyber-attack which compromised the data of an estimated 76.6million people. Executives at many companies are earning signficant more than their businesses pay in taxes, according to a report. The top of list was Elon Musk's Tesla where executives earned $2.5billion between 2018 and 2022, but only paid $1million in taxes T-Mobile paid its CEO Mike Sievert and other executives $675m in the five year period, but had a tax of minus-$80million Netflix paid out $652 million to its executives over the five years of the study, but paid net $236 million in taxes. Pictured: Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters Netflix paid out $652 million to its executives over the five years of the study, but paid net $236 million in taxes. Its profits over the same period stood at $15.1 billion, according to the report. 'Netflix complies with tax laws and regulations in the US and around the world,' a spokesman said in a statement to the Guardian. The groups behind the study are now calling on Congress to increase the corporate tax rate from 21 percent to 28 percent, claiming it would generate $1.3tn in revenue over a decade. Ford CEO Jim Farley is seen in front of a Ford EV F-150. The motor company paid about $121 million in taxes over a five-year span CEO of Match group Bernard Kim, which runs dating apps such as Match.com and Tinder, was part of a group of executives that earned nearly $300million President Joe Biden vowed to do just that during his State of the Union address last week. Biden said it was time for big businesses to 'finally pay their fair share' and pledged to 'end the tax breaks for big pharma, big oil, private jets, and massive executive pay'. 'Look, I'm a capitalist' he said, 'if you want to make a million bucks great! Just pay your fair share in taxes.' 'Both kinds of corporate misbehavior underpaying taxes and overpaying executives ultimately make working families the victim through smaller paychecks and diminished public services' David Kass, the executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness said. The report 'shows how executives of big corporations are rewarded for aggressive tax avoidance', co-author Sarah Anderson, global economy director at the Institute for Policy Studies explained. That came 'while working families and small businesses are left to pick up the tab,' she added. 'The primary objective of the report is to underscore the need to reform the tax code in the country where these countries are based and are making significant profits.' This is the unfortunate moment clumsy winemakers had to clean up a 7,000 river of wine after accidentally causing a leak in a tank last Friday. Workers at the winery were trying to transfer red plonk from one tank to another to send it to be bottled at Los Haroldos winery in San Martin near Mendoza, Argentina. But as they loosened a screw on the bottom lid to let in air, a build-up of pressure blew a hole. Footage shows how plonk gushed from the huge container onto the ground, forming a flowing river. Footage shows how plonk gushed from the huge container covering the surrounding ground The winery revealed that it was left 15,000 litres of wine short from the incident. Luckily, workers eventually managed to stop the spill and prevent another 35,000 litres in the 50,000-litre tank from escaping. The firm, which has been producing wine for decades lost the equivalent of 7,400 worth of booze in the blunder. Bosses said the workers should have opened the tank's top lid to transfer the wine instead. The company will also have to shell out the equivalent of 19,500 for a new tank to replace the broken one. Gustavo Martinez of Los Haroldos Winery told local media: 'Unfortunately, we suffered the loss of the tank, which is no longer usable, along with 15,000 litres - a significant loss for our company.' Helpless bystanders stood around as the wine gushed out the vat A single-vehicle accident resulted in one traffic fatality and another person in serious condition on Friday evening after a vehicle rollover along East Loop 338 and Yukon Rd. Bloomberg Creative/Getty Images/Bloomberg Creative A single-vehicle accident resulted in one traffic fatality and another person in serious condition on Friday evening after a vehicle rollover along East Loop 338 and Yukon Rd. According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, the accident occurred at 9:53 p.m. on March 8 when the driver of a 2007 Mercury Milan evaded police after refusing to comply with a traffic stop. The driver of the vehicle, 32-year-old Juwan Hedreece Dobbins Jr., of Mesa, Arizona was reported as having a large quality of fentanyl pills and evading law enforcement in Arizona. When the 2007 Mercury Milan was located in Odessa, a traffic stop was attempted by the Odessa Police Department and the University of Texas Permian Basin Police Department. Police records indicate that the driver refused to stop and evaded police. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Texas Department of Public Safety troopers responded and assisted the chase before eventually losing sight of the 2007 Mercury. The Ector County Sheriff's Office resumed the pursuit of the 2007 Mercury. The pursuit of the vehicle ended when the 2007 Mercury traveled northbound in the southbound lanes of East Loop 338 near Yukon Road. The driver of the 2007 Mercury steered the vehicle into the dirt median to avoid colliding with two other vehicles. At that point, officers reported that the driver lost control of the vehicle and drove into the median between the northbound and southbound lanes of East Loop 338 on the overpass. That is the moment when the 2007 Mercury Milan was reported as going airborne off the overpass and crashed at Yukon Road and East Loop 338, where it then proceeded to roll several times. Juwan Hedreece Dobbins Jr., of Mesa, Arizona was ejected from the vehicle and later pronounced dead at the scene. The passenger of the vehicle reported as 31-year-old Thalia Sigala of Hobbs, New Mexico, was also ejected from the vehicle and transported to Medical Center Hospital with serious bodily injuries. This crash remains under investigation, and no further information is being released at this time. A father has vowed never to fly with British Airways again after claiming he was left without a headrest on a seven-hour on his birthday 'trip of a lifetime' - with a one-inch bolt sticking into his head. Jonathan Yates had been jetting off from Heathrow Airport in London to Toronto, Canada, with his partner Sandra Craven, 51, for his surprise 50th birthday trip on February 12. But after boarding the British Airways flight, the father-of-one found his 'pre-booked' economy seat was without a headrest leaving a one-inch steel bolt sticking out of the upholstery. Shocked by his discovery, Mr Yates said he alerted an air steward onboard about his faulty seat but claims he was told there was nowhere else to sit on the aircraft as it was full. The HGV driver says he was then given the option to either get off the plane or use a 'first class' cushion to cover the bolt sticking into his head for the duration of the journey. Father Jonathan Yates (pictured with partner Sandra Craven, 51), 50, has vowed never to fly with British Airways again after claiming he was left without a headrest on a seven-hour on his birthday 'trip of a lifetime' - with a one-inch bolt sticking into his head The father-of-one found his 'pre-booked' economy seat was without a headrest leaving a one-inch steel bolt sticking out of the upholstery As the pair had spent 2,500 on their 'once in a lifetime' holiday, they decided to remain on the flight, which left Mr Yates using a 'thin' pillow as a makeshift headrest for seven hours. The 50-year-old claims the exposed bolt was a 'major safety concern' and forced him to sit sideways for the whole flight. He believes if there had been turbulence or a bumpy landing, he could have cut his head open on the bolt. British Airways said they had re-contacted the couple to further apologise for the incident. Mr Yates, from Marsden in West Yorkshire, said: 'As soon as I got to our seats I noticed the headrest. 'We had pre-booked the seats so we could sit next to each other, which cost 26 each. 'I reached out to the head steward on board and told him there was no headrest on my seat and just a one inch bolt sticking out. 'He came and had a look and he was flabbergasted as well at it. 'He went away and came back but said he couldn't move us anywhere because the plane was full. 'He brought me a first class pillow and said there were two options. I could either use the pillow for the flight or I would have to get off the plane. 'It was a bigger pillow than the ones in economy but it was still very thin. 'The whole flight was very uncomfortable as if I leant back I could still feel the bolt in my head as the pillow was that thin. 'I had to sit for the whole flight at a bit of an angle and I couldn't sleep the whole flight. 'If there had been a bit of turbulence or a bumpy landing I could have bumped my head on the bolt. There was no risk assessment done at all. 'Someone said we should have flagged it to the captain but we didn't realise this at the time and weren't told this until we landed back at Heathrow a week later. 'It was a major safety issue. If I had hit my head on the bolt in the seat it would have cut my head. 'No one should have ever been made to sit in that seat.' Mr Yates and his partner Sandra pictured on holiday in New York City Making matters even worse, the Mr Yates claims his screen broke on his return flight so he had to spend three and a half hours without anything to watch Sandra, Mr Yates's partner of 30-years, had booked the week-long trip to Canada and New York to celebrate his 50th birthday. Alongside the headrest incident, the factory worker claims she was left with only a bread roll to eat for the whole journey as British Airways were unable to provide her with her 'pre-booked' vegan in-flight meal. Sandra said: 'It was a once in a lifetime holiday and a surprise partner Jonathan and we were really looking forward to it. 'We were annoyed at the steward's attitude [to the headrest] as he said our only option was to get off the plane. I sort of wish we had now. 'On the flight out as well, I had also pre-ordered a vegan meal and when they came round with the trolley they had no vegan options left. 'The flight attendant finally found me a vegetarian meal but it was no good as it had a cheesecake and butter and I'm a vegan so I was left with a bread roll to eat for the whole seven hours. 'The whole [BA] experience has now left me nervous about flying again [in general].' Making matters even worse, the father claims his screen broke on his return flight so he had to spend three and a half hours without anything to watch. Since returning from their seven-day holiday, the couple have emailed British Airways to complain about their experience and have since been awarded a 50 voucher to use against their next holiday. Despite this, the pair feel this is not enough compensation and have vowed to never fly with the airline again. Mr Yates said: 'This was the first time we have flown with BA and we would not fly with them again. 'We wanted the price of the cost back from Heathrow to Toronto as it was a major health and safety concern.' After being contacted by journalists, British Airways contacted the family to increase their offer of vouchers for another flight - however Sandra remains annoyed as she doesn't wish to fly with them again. A British Airways spokesperson said: 'We are sorry for our customers' experience and have been in touch with them to apologise and resolve the matter.' Rishi Sunak faced derision from Tory MPs today after it was revealed the Government plans to pay failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move to Rwanda. The Prime Minister endured a backlash from Conservative backbenchers over a new agreement with Kigali for migrants in Britain to move to the African country. The deal is separate to Mr Sunak's stalled plans to forcibly deport Channel migrants to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there. Instead, the new scheme is designed to remove migrants who have no legal right to stay in Britain but who cannot be returned to their home country. Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick claimed the 'ludicrous' proposals were an admission by the PM that his Rwanda deportation scheme 'will not work'. 'Symbolic flights of people being paid to leave isn't a strategy to stop the boats and end this national security emergency,' he said. The PM also faced fresh demands by Tory MPs for Britain to quit European human rights rules to allow the UK to deport migrants 'for free'. Rishi Sunak faced derision from Tory MPs after it was revealed the Government plans to pay failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move to Rwanda Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick claimed the 'ludicrous' proposals were an admission by the PM that his separate Rwanda deportation scheme 'will not work' The ex-Cabinet minister attacked the Government's new deal with Kigali in a series of social media posts Tory former minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns tackled Mr Sunak over the proposals during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons The new scheme will be aimed at individuals who do not have an outstanding asylum claim and are in a position to be relocated swiftly to Rwanda, which the Government deems a safe third nation. The agreement is an extension of the existing Home Office voluntary returns process, under which migrants are offered financial assistance worth up to 3,000 to leave the UK for their country of origin. It would be the first scheme of its kind because it would mark the first time migrants were paid to leave the UK without going back to their country of origin. The plans have emerged as Mr Sunak continues to struggle to get the Rwanda deportation scheme, which was first announced nearly two years ago, up-and-running. He is still battling to get 'emergency' legislation - aimed at bypassing last year's Supreme Court block on the scheme - passed by Parliament. Mr Jenrick, who quit as immigration minister in December with an attack on the PM's 'weak' Rwanda Bill, this afternoon derided the new voluntary scheme planned by the Government. In a series of posts on Twitter/X, the ex-Cabinet minister wrote: 'This is an admission from the Government that the weaker version of the Rwanda scheme they chose to pursue will not work. 'The version of the Rwanda Bill I proposed - and over 60 Conservative MPs supported amendments to deliver - would have made this unnecessary. 'The Government have tacitly conceded that, unlike our plan, their Bill doesn't give them the legal powers required to enforce mass removals of illegal migrants to Rwanda. 'So instead they will attempt to pay those who have flagrantly broken our laws to leave the UK. 'It's a betrayal of the original intent of the Rwanda scheme, which was to create a robust and sustainable deterrent. 'Symbolic flights of people being paid to leave isn't a strategy to stop the boats and end this national security emergency. 'If the reports are accurate, these voluntary returns would consume Rwanda's finite resources, and so actually make the swift, enforced removal of small boat arrivals that are required to establish the intended deterrent effect much harder.' Mr Jenrick's outburst came shortly after fellow Tory former minister Dame Andrea Jenkyns tackled Mr Sunak over the proposals during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons. 'I understand the latest scheme that is being considered is to pay migrants thousands of pounds to leave Britain,' she said. 'Prime Minister, let's just leave the ECHR [European Convention on Human Rights] and deport them for free.' Mr Sunak told Dame Andrea she was 'absolutely right that we must do everything we can to secure our borders and ensure that those who come here illegally do not have the ability to stay'. 'That's why our Rwanda scheme and legislation is so important and what I've said repeatedly and will happily say to her again is I will not let a foreign court block our ability to send people to Rwanda when the time comes,' he added. After PMQs, Downing Street confirmed the plans for failed asylum seekers to vountarily move to Rwanda would see them given 3,000 on a payment card they could only spend in the country. Mr Sunak's official spokesman told reporters: 'The UK is focused on driving down migration and returning failed asylum seekers to their country of origin or a safe third country. 'The reports you refer to build on our already widely used voluntary returns scheme which saw more than 19,000 people accept support to return to their country of origin last year. 'We are also now able to send individuals to Rwanda, which means we can also voluntarily remove individuals - including those whose home countries are too unsafe to return to. 'Individuals who opt for voluntary relocation will receive 3,000 paid to them on a card that can only be used in Rwanda. 'These removals will cut hotel use and alleviate pressures on public services.' Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, earlier insisted offering migrants up to 3,000 to move to Rwanda would be 'a good use of public money'. He also denied it would undermine the separate proposals to deport migrants to Rwanda, which have become bogged down in legal challenges. According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali. It would also be more worth around 14 times the average monthly salary, after tax, in the Rwanda capital, the website stated. A meal at an 'inexpensive' restaurant in Kigali is said by Numbeo to cost 2.81, a beer 91p, a cappuccino 1.69, and a litre of petrol 98p. Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, insisted offering migrants up to 3,000 to move to Rwanda would be 'a good use of public money' According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali An inflatable dinghy carrying around 65 people is pictured crossing the English Channel last week Mr Hollinrake told Times Radio this morning: '3,000, is a lot of money, but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are out here without merit. 'It's about saying to people, if you come here, you can't stay here if you come here illegally. That's the point. 'So I don't think anybody would try and come here just to get 3,000 to go to Rwanda.' A Home Office spokesperson said: 'In the last year, 19,000 people were removed voluntarily from the UK and this is an important part of our efforts to tackle illegal migration. 'We are exploring voluntary relocations for those who have no right to be here, to Rwanda, who stand ready to accept people who wish to rebuild their lives and cannot stay in the UK. 'This is in addition to our Safety of Rwanda Bill and Treaty which, when passed, will ensure people who come to the UK illegally are removed to Rwanda.' The Government believes the voluntary scheme can be brought into effect quickly because it will draw on existing structures outlined by the agreement already in place with Rwanda and existing voluntary returns processes. Labour accused ministers of 'resorting to paying people' to go Rwanda upon realising their deportation scheme 'has no chance of succeeding.' Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock MP said: 'We know from the treaty that capacity in Rwanda is very limited, so ministers should now explain what this new idea means for the scheme as it was originally conceived, and they should also make clear how many people they expect to send on this basis, and what the cost will be. 'There have been so many confused briefings around the Rwanda policy that the public will be forgiven for treating this latest wheeze with a degree of scepticism. 'It seems that the Home Secretary is trying to find a way out of this hare-brained scheme that he himself has described as 'batshit'.' Steve Valdez-Symonds, Amnesty International UK's refugee and migrant rights director, said: 'This is yet another gimmick coming from a Government that has lost all sight of its responsibilities to people fleeing conflict and persecution. 'The problem with the UK's asylum system is the policy of deliberately refusing to process tens of thousands of people's claims. This has completely collapsed the asylum system, and it cannot be repaired until the policy is scrapped. 'The Government must abandon the dangerous and unlawful Rwanda Bill and abandon the cruel and utterly dreadful policy of refusing to process the asylum claims of people arriving in the UK.' The PM is currently facing a battle with the House of Lords over his 'emergency' laws to get the Rwanda deportation scheme up-and-running - nearly two years after it was announced with no migrants having yet been sent to the country. The Government suffered 10 defeats in the unelected upper chamber on its Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill, which was introduced as a means of getting around last year's Supreme Court ruling that the deportation scheme was 'unlawful'. It sets the stage for an extended stand-off between the House of Commons and Lords during 'ping-pong', where legislation is batted between the two Houses until agreement is reached, which is expected to take place next week. TikTok has raged against Congress for passing the first step to banning the app in the US, as Gen Z panic over potentially losing the platform forever. Following a 352-65 vote on Wednesday morning, the platform argued that lawmakers are overlooking 'the impact on the economy, seven million small businesses, and 170 million Americans who use our service.' 'This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban,' the app said in a statement. The legislation now heads to the Senate before it becomes law, and the platform said it hoped the upper chamber 'will consider the facts' and 'listen to their constituents.' Congress decided that the app poses a national security threat through its ties to the Chinese Communist Party, which lawmakers said was spying on Americans' locations and manipulating its algorithm to influence young minds. Gen Z influencers have reacted with outrage at the potential TikTok ban, with many sharing fears that their revenue streams could be cut alongside concerns over its impact on the First Amendment. The bill, which heads to the Senate before it becomes law, would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban Wednesday's ban sparked backlash from TikTok users, including protests (pictured) outside the Capitol. The platform accused lawmakers of overlooking 'the impact on the economy, seven million small businesses, and 170 million Americans' The bill would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban. On Wednesday, an alert was sent out to millions warning them of the impending vote, sending influencers scrambling and calling their congressmembers to oppose the bill. Describing herself as a 'panicked influencer' in a video with almost 250K likes, one creator said: 'We might have to part our ways and say farewell tomorrow because what the actual freak?' Others noted the rare efficiency that Congress showed in passing the legislation, with one TikTok user saying it stands out compared to the 'months and months to even get aid to people when there's a hurricane.' 'Somehow the gremlins in Congress just really got together and finally agreed on something.' The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to U.S. national security concerns about China, from connected vehicles to advanced artificial intelligence chips to cranes at U.S. ports. @bee.better.company THEY BANNED TIK TOK GO SUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL BECAUSE IM JUMPING SHIP AND GONNA START POSTING THERE!! #tiktokban original sound - Bee better Lawmakers are still at loggerheads between moving to eliminate the potential national security threat the Chinese-owned app poses, and limiting freedom of expression of its users along with a competitor to major social media giants like Facebook. Its passage on Wednesday sparked backlash from both sides of the aisle, and came despite opposition from the likes of Donald Trump and Elon Musk. TikTok creators have been sharing the alert they got from the app about the bill, warning them that it puts 'the community you love at risk' alongside a prompt to call your congressman to persuade them against the bill. One influencer filmed herself calling the number for her local congressman and complaining to them that the proposed bill is 'unfair'. 'I strongly believe that you guys should not pass this law,' she says on the phone, before the bill passed the House. 'There are many people that have quit their jobs to become full time content creators and I just hope that this doesn't really happen... 'It's 12am and I just can't sleep thinking about this law.' 'When I'm old an miserable and telling my grandkids about all the reasons why I hate the world, THIS is going to be the reason why I hate the federal government,' another influencer fumed. However, the creator goes on to say 'we're not actually cooked yet' because the process of voting the bill into law 'is going to take at least forever because there's a lot of old people in this process.' Another influencer mocked fellow TikTokers with a caption saying 'this could be my final post' with a broken heart emoji, while stressing that even if passed, the bill gives ByteDance six months to divest its assets to the US. 'Use that time to build up on another platform!!!' she urges her followers in the video liked 10,000 times. American influencers have scrambled to share what they say 'could by my final post' after receiving a worrying alert about the House of Representatives vote The bill would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance around six months to divest the US assets of the app used by about 170 million Americans - or face a ban Gen Z is panicking after hearing about the government vote on whether to outlaw TikTok in the US TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew (pictured) will visit Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said. The vote came just over a week since the bill was proposed following one public hearing with little debate, and after action in Congress had stalled for more than a year. In its statement after the vote, TikTok took aim at the process, saying it was done in 'secret' so the legislation could be 'jammed through.' Last month, President Joe Biden's re-election campaign joined TikTok, raising hopes among Tiktok officials that legislation was unlikely this year. The House Energy and Commerce Committee last week voted 50-0 in favor of the bill, which set it up for a vote before the full House. But the bill faces a more uncertain path in the U.S. Senate where some senators favor a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps that could pose security concerns. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has not indicated how he plans to proceed. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will visit Capitol Hill on Wednesday on a previously scheduled trip to talk to senators, a source briefed on the matter said. 'This legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States,' the company said. 'The government is attempting to strip 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression,' it added. Biden said last week that he would sign the bill. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday the goal was ending Chinese ownership, not banning TikTok. Describing herself as a 'panicked influencer' in a video with almost 250K likes, one creator said: 'We might have to part our ways and say farewell tomorrow because what the actual freak?' TikTok influencers are not happy about the vote going through the House today 'When I'm old an miserable and telling my grandkids about all the reasons why I hate the world, THIS is going to be the reason why I hate the federal government,' another influencer fumed President Joe Biden said last week that he would sign the bill against TikTok being used in the US 'Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok - children's data, adults data - to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China?' he said. It is unclear whether China would approve any sale or if TikTok's U.S. assets could be divested in six months. If ByteDance failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet's Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts. In recent days he had raised concerns about a ban. It remains unclear if Tencent's WeChat or other high-profile Chinese-owned apps could face a ban under the legislation. Any forced TikTok divestment from the U.S. would almost certainly face legal challenges, which the company would need to file within 165 days of the bill being signed by the president. In November, a U.S. judge blocked a Montana state ban on TikTok use after the company sued. Foreign prisoners will get paid 1,500 and be freed earlier if they agree to be deported under plans to tackle Britain's overcrowded prisons. Justice Secretary Alex Chalk has extended the government scheme which means foreign criminals will be able to fly back home 18 months before their release date. Under the original terms of the early removal scheme, which has been running since 2006, the money was given to foreigners who were able to be released 12 months earlier. Those who agree to be released early get 1,500 with a further 1,500 going to their partner, and any children under the age of 18. They are not allowed to return to the UK. Foreign criminals currently cost the taxpayer in England and Wales 47,000 per prisoner which is 'putting a strain on the public purse', Mr Chalk said. There are claims that detention facilities in England and Wales could be full by Easter. Justice Secretary Alex Chalk told MPs he would 'radically change' the way FNOs are dealt with, amid claims that detention facilities in England and Wales could be full by Easter. Foreign criminals will be able to fly back home 18 months before their release date - a six month extension on the early removal scheme (Stock Image) It comes after Government plans were revealed to pay failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move to Rwanda which sparked derision among Tory MPs. Mr Chalk told The Commons yesterday: 'The number of FNOs (foreign national offenders) has increased over recent years to 10,500around 12 per cent of prisoners - in England and Wales, at an average cost to the taxpayer of around 47,000 per prisoner per year. 'These foreign criminals are not only putting a strain on the public purse but reducing the capacity of the prison system. 'We believe that they should, wherever possible, be removed back to their countries of origin, and we have made progress: last year the Government returned from prison and the community nearly 4,000 foreign criminals, which is a 27 per cent increase on the year before - and we are going further.' He has reportedly warned PM Rishi Sunak that without the drastic action, prisons may run out of space by the end of the month. No10 refused to deny the claims that prisons could be full by Easter, but the PM's spokesman insisted the relaxation of the rules would be a temporary measure. At the same time Mr Chalk announced the action against FNOs. The Government last year revealed there are 10,500 in prisons in England and Wales, roughly one-in-nine of the whole population. He said today that they each cost taxpayers 47,000 a year, almost half a billion pounds in total. 'I can tell the House that we will radically change the way that FNO cases are processed. We have created a new task force across the Home Office and Ministry of Justice, including the Prison Service, immigration enforcement, and asylum and modern slavery teams. 'We have surged 400 additional caseworkers to prioritise these cases. They will be in place by the end of March, and we will streamline the end-to-end removal process. Rishi Sunak faced derision from Tory MPs after it was revealed the Government plans to pay failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move to Rwanda According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali 'Second, we are expanding the number of FNOs we can remove, for example by bringing forward legislation to allow us to remove foreign offenders with limited leave to remain under conditional caution.' The Justice Secretary said this work was building on reforms he set out in October, including extending the early removal scheme from a maximum period of 12 months to 18 months 'so that eligible FNOs can be deported up to six months earlier'. Mr Chalk said almost 400 FNOs have already been removed from the UK as a result, adding that a 'robust new agreement with Albania' and plans in the Criminal Justice Bill to rent prisons overseas would also help. Meanwhile, failed asylum seekers will pocket 3,000 if they voluntarily agree to be deported to Rwanda. The deal is separate to Mr Sunak's stalled plans to forcibly deport Channel migrants to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there. Instead, the new scheme is designed to remove migrants who have no legal right to stay in Britain but who cannot be returned to their home country. Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick claimed the 'ludicrous' proposals were an admission by the PM that his Rwanda deportation scheme 'will not work'. 'Symbolic flights of people being paid to leave isn't a strategy to stop the boats and end this national security emergency,' he said. The PM also faced fresh demands by Tory MPs for Britain to quit European human rights rules to allow the UK to deport migrants 'for free'. The new scheme will be aimed at individuals who do not have an outstanding asylum claim and are in a position to be relocated swiftly to Rwanda, which the Government deems a safe third nation. The agreement is an extension of the existing Home Office voluntary returns process, under which migrants are offered financial assistance worth up to 3,000 to leave the UK for their country of origin. It would be the first scheme of its kind because it would mark the first time migrants were paid to leave the UK without going back to their country of origin. Two children were hospitalized after they overdosed on fentanyl pills at a daycare center in North Carolina. The unidentified kids were given candy, which later turned out to be laced with the powerful opioid, from an employee at Lou Anna's Childcare Center in Kenansville on March 6, according to the Duplin County Sheriff's Office. They overdosed and quickly became unresponsive and were rushed to ECU Health Duplin Hospital. Both children, whose ages were not shared, were treated and released from hospital. It is not clear what led to them being given fentanyl pills - but Duplin County Deputies said Lou Annas Child Care Center is cooperating with their investigation and no arrests have yet been made. But the childcare facility issued a warning to parents that no outside snacks will be allowed following the incident. Two children were hospitalized after they overdosed on fentanyl pills at Lou Anna's Childcare Center in North Carolina on March 6 The childcare facility later issued a warning to parents that no outside snacks will be allowed following the incident Deputies say the two children were given what they thought was candy from an employee at Lou Annas Child Care Center. But it turned out to be fentanyl pills and authorities have launched an investigation as to exactly where they came from. Parents soon realized the pills were not candy and handed over what was left to sheriff's deputies. Lou Annas Child Care Center, which is owned by Ann Washington, is cooperating with the investigation. The childcare facility shared a letter to parents and staff acknowledging the incident and banning snacks from outside. The kids were given candy, which later turned out to be laced with fentanyl, from an employee at Lou Anna's Childcare Center in Kenansville on March 6, according to the Duplin County Sheriff's Office 'Due to recent incidents that occurred we are having to make changes to the manner in which items are being brought into the facility,' it read. 'No outside snacks are to be brought into the facility. If oy would like to celebrate any occasion for your child(ren) please contact the Director and she will purchase the items you would like to have. 'The safety of our children is always our number one priority and thank you for your support as we put certain procedures in place.' DailyMail.com has contacted Washington and Duplin County Sheriff's Office for comment. After Special Counsel Robert Hur's Congressional testimony, one thing is for certain: His portrait of President Joe Biden as an 'elderly man with a poor memory' is spot on. It's the 'sympathetic, well-meaning' part of his report's conclusion that's in serious doubt. Special Counsel Hur, the picture of a non-partisan civil servant, was harangued for five hours on Tuesday. In a sure sign that he conducted his investigation into the President's alleged mishandling of classified documents without bias, nearly everyone in the House was out for his scalp. Republicans questioned Hur's decision not to indict Biden. Democrats were hellbent on undermining his judgment that the 81-year-old president is so clearly cognitively impaired that no jury would hold him responsible for breaking the law. So, one after the other, liberals lined up to allege that Hur is the villain here. 'You are a member of the [conservative] Federalist Society, are you not?' spat Representative Hank Johnson, stoking the smear that Hur is a GOP operative who exploited his position to damage Biden in an election year. No, said Hur, I'm not a member. Johnson is no Atticus Finch. Surely, if Hur was trying to undermine the Democrats, he would he have indicted the President. After Special Counsel Robert Hur 's Congressional testimony, one thing is for certain: His portrait of President Joe Biden as an 'elderly man with a poor memory' is spot on. It's the 'sympathetic, well-meaning' part of his report's conclusion that's in serious doubt. Special Counsel Hur, the picture of a non-partisan civil servant, was harangued for five hours on Tuesday. But undeterred, the Dems pushed on. Above all else, they sought to refute the revelation that Biden couldn't remember what year his son Beau died. 'Would you like to correct the record?' demanded Democrat Madeline Dean, alleging that Biden knew exactly when his son passed away. 'I don't believe that's correct,' Hur replied. 'I've read about it in reporting,' Dean shot back. She was wrong. The full transcript of Biden's interview with Hur prove the President not only forgot the timing of his Beau's death but also a whole host of other key dates. He thought Beau might have been deployed to Iraq in 2017. Only off by eight years. 'When did I announce for President?' Biden asked at one point. 'If it was 2013 when did I stop being Vice President?' he continued. 'In 2009, am I still Vice President?' he queried, seemingly confused. Then there was this stunning question from a man who has been in government since the Nixon years: 'Trump gets elected in November of 2017?' No, Joe, America has never elected a president in an odd-numbered year. Twice on the same day, he struggled to find the words for 'fax machine.' This is the man with the nuclear codes! Yes, the transcript firmly establishes Biden's mental struggle. But, just as damaging, it makes clear that he's also lying through his teeth. In the President's now-infamous, late-night February news conference, hastily scheduled after Hur's explosive report was released, he bristled at the Special Counsel for evoking Beau's death. 'You are a member of the [conservative] Federalist Society, are you not?' spat Representative Hank Johnson, stoking the smear that Hur is a GOP operative who exploited his position to damage Biden in an election year. No, said Hur, I'm not a member. In a sure sign that he conducted his investigation into the President's alleged mishandling of classified documents without bias, nearly everyone in the House was out for his scalp. Republicans questioned Hur's decision not to indict Biden. 'There's even a reference that I don't remember when my son died. How in the hell dare he raise that,' shouted Biden, spitting with rage. 'Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasn't any of their damn business.' Not true. Hur's transcript lays out in black and white that it was Biden, not Hur, who brought up Beau's death. 'In this [2017, 2018] timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying,' said Biden is recorded saying without provocation. (For what it's worth, Beau died in 2015.) So, Biden was never 'asked the question [about Beau],' as he angrily insisted in February. Cynical Joe evoked the memory of his late son... himself! And then tried to shame Hur with a heart-rending accusation. Even the First Lady took up this erroneous line of attack. 'I can't imagine someone would try to use our son's death to score political points,' she wrote in a fundraising email to political donors in the days following Hur's report. Yes, Jill. That would be abhorrent. Elsewhere in Hur's transcript and testimony, there's more evidence of how disingenuous Biden can be. At that February news conference, he refused to accept accountability for misplaced documents and blamed his aides instead. 'I take responsibility for not having seen exactly what my staff was doing,' he claimed in his trademark politico-doublespeak. 'Things that were moved were moved not by me but [by] my staff.' Cynical Joe evoked the memory of his late son ... himself! And then tried to shame Hur with a heart-rending accusation. And yet according to Hur, Biden showed a willingness to flash around state secrets. 'I just found all the classified documents downstairs,' the President told his ghostwriter, the conversation allegedly captured on an audio recording. This hired pen, Hur testified, then attempted to destroy the sensitive material. It's potential proof that Biden was aware that he shouldn't have it. Finally, the President's defenders went to great lengths at Tuesday's hearing to point out that he subjected himself to Hur's interrogation on October 8 and October 9 the days following Hamas' terrorist attack on Israel. Their inference is that he was distracted by national security matters and pressed for time. But Hur testified that Biden wasn't interrupted even once by national security staff. In fact, as Hur's transcript exposes, it was the President who was wasting time in the middle of an international crisis. He went off on bizarre tangents about trips to Mongolia, mused about FBI agents finding risque photos of the First Lady in a bathing suit and rambled about his Corvette making vroom-vroom noises until Hur begged him to stick to the topic at hand. Biden and Democrats have spun like mad trying to make this all go away but they've only succeeded in damaging their credibility even further. Tuesday's hearing and these transcripts may reveal the actions of a confused elderly man, but not a 'well-meaning' one. Through it all, Hur was even-tempered, thorough, and patient as he stood by his report. Unlike the President, an honest man always knows what he's talking about. The deportation came after the family brought weapons onto the small island Jason and Jennifer Grogg along with their four children have now been deported An anti-vax family of Christian missionaries from Indiana who fled to the Caribbean to avoid COVID mandates has been kicked off the island of Dominica. Jason and Jennifer Grogg packed up their entire lives and moved their four children to the Caribbean island of Dominica in 2021 to avoid getting vaccinated amidst the COVID pandemic. In Spring 2023 the pair were arrested alongside their two teenage daughters after police found a handgun and ammunition which they had stored in a shipping container during the move. Jason, who was a firearms instructor, was not legally allowed to have any of his guns and ammunition in Dominica - but he claimed the weaponry was 'accidentally packed up' and shipped all the way to the Caribbean. Last week the family were deported from Dominica after being entangled in the island's legal system. An anti-vax family of Christian missionaries from Indiana who fled to the Caribbean to avoid COVID mandates has been kicked off the island of Dominica (pictured: Jason and Jennifer Grogg with their four children) Jason and Jennifer Grogg packed up their entire lives and moved their four children to the Caribbean island of Dominica in 2021 to avoid getting vaccinated amidst the COVID pandemic On March 6, the family were sent packing back to Logansport, Indiana, where they came from. 'They gave us about five minutes to pack things,' Jason told IndyStar. 'We just got our computer backpacks, and that was it. I had no money. I had my wallet. My ID - they took that from me.' Jason and his family's passports were confiscated by the government following his initial arrest. Authorities returned the passports of his wife and kids following the deportation but his is still being seized. In a vlog titled 'Wicked Dominica Government Deports Grogg Family,' Jason Grogg, 44, ranted the situation. 'I guess the wicked government of Dominica is just gonna dump us in Miami and expect us to find our way when everything we own is in Dominica,' Jason said. He added that the government showed up at 5 am and 'almost knocked the door down' and then 'pretended to look for guns for about 10 minutes' before telling them they were being deported. 'What a bunch of incompetent morons,' he said. 'Well there's gonna be hell to pay because I'm a fighter.' 'They started something, I intend to end it,' Jason said - adding that he was going to be the 'white thorn in their flesh for a very long time.' In Spring 2023 the pair were arrested alongside their two teenage daughters after police found a handgun and ammunition which they had stored in a shipping container during the move 'I guess the wicked government of Dominica is just gonna dump us in Miami and expect us to find our way when everything we own is in Dominica,' Jason said in a vlog following the deportation Back in Indiana, family and friends are helping the Groggs as their belongings remain in Dominica. Grogg is vowing to continue fighting to return to Dominica to live permanently. 'This is where God wants to place us,' he said, 'and the Dominican people are worth it.' The 44-year-old father previously said his family left the United States for a 'very particular reason when it came to the COVID nonsense.' He also said they 'saw very clearly this is the path that God was wanting us to take for purposes unknown.' The family also left America because of their displeasure with the expansion of LGBTQ rights, according to self-published newsletters of their travels reviewed by the Star. The Grogg family say they have been unfairly targeted and harassed by the Dominica government. Dominica, not to be confused with the Dominican Republic, is a small island nation in the Caribbean with a population of about 74,000 and a nominal per capita GDP of $9,356, according to IMF data. Their troubles began in April, when after a police encounter, cops searched their belongings, including the shipping container from the US, which was being stored behind their church. Police said they found a 9mm Glock 19 pistol, multiple magazines, and assorted ammunition. Jason told the Star that he had packed the gun accidentally, and intended to secure a permit to legally possess it. He said the handgun was initially found in a tote in an unsecured room inside of the church building, where he was sorting out items from the shipping container with permission from the group. Jason and his wife were both arrested, along with daughters Hannah, 18, and Gracia, 16. Back in Indiana, family and friends are helping the Groggs as their belongings remain in Dominica 'My wife and my two daughters were essentially in a cell that was 4 feet by less than 10 feet for seven days. It was just it was incredibly inhumane,' Jason told the Star. In a deal to free his wife and daughters, Jason pleaded guilty to possessing the firearm charge, and paid a fine of $25,000 East Caribbean dollars, or about $9,250 US dollars. After being arrested, their two youngest children were sent to a home for abused and neglected children. Soon after he was freed, Jason was arrested again at the airport, as he tried to visit the US consulate in Barbados. He was jailed for about another week on new customs charges, alleging the family evaded paying import duties on items they brought to the country. Police have arrested a Jaguar I-Pace driver on suspicion of dangerous driving after his 'out-of-control' car had to be rammed off the road by officers when it 'went rogue' at speeds of up to 100mph. Nathan Owen, 31, was arrested by Merseyside Police in relation to the incident on the M62 on Wednesday, March 6. He was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and causing a public nuisance and taken into police custody to be questioned. Mr Owen claimed his 80,000 electric car went gone rogue on the motorway that day, sparking a huge police operation to bring his car to a stop after 35 minutes of hell. His arrest comes after a detailed investigation was carried out by police and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) - who said it 'seeks to investigate all reports of issues relating to product safety'. MailOnline have approached Mr Owen for a comment. Nathan Owen (pictured), 31, was arrested by Merseyside Police in relation to the incident on the M62 on Wednesday, March 6 Mr Owen required a police convoy to bring him to a stop on the busy M62 motorway on Wednesday afternoon He eventually had to bang into the back of a police car so that his vehicle would stop moving In a statement, Merseyside Police said: 'We can confirm that following an investigation, a man has been arrested in relation to an incident on the M62 on Wednesday 6 March when officers from the force Roads Policing Unit were called to help stop a vehicle safely. 'An investigation, supported by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), is underway and a 31-year-old man from Bolton has been arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and causing a public nuisance. 'He has been taken into police custody to be questioned.' JLR added: 'Following a detailed investigation in partnership with the Merseyside Police and other authorities, we understand an individual has been arrested on suspicion of suspicion of dangerous driving and causing a public nuisance relating to the incident on the M62 on Wednesday, March 6. 'JLR seeks to investigate all reports of issues relating to product safety and will continue to co-operate with Merseyside Police and the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency where required.' Dramatic pictures from the scene show the black Jaguar I-Pace wedged in between two Matrix patrol cruisers from Merseyside Police Police officers seen surrounding the car on the M62 on March 6 Mr Owen was on his way back from his first day at a new job when his Jaguar I-Pace allegedly started malfunctioning. He told MailOnline he felt he had 'cheated death' as his car accelerated up to 100mph on the busy M62 motorway without brakes. Officers in at least eight vehicle spent 35 minutes escorting the car down the busy motorway and closed off two lanes of the four-lane motorway so that they could bring the vehicle to a stop as safely as possible. North West Motorway Police posted on X on the day of the incident: 'Police currently have a lane 3 and 4 closure on M62 EB J11 to 12. 'This is following the use of tactics to stop an electric vehicle with an electric fault where the driver was unable to brake. Motorway officers from Merseyside, Cheshire and GMP brought the vehicle to a safe stop.' At the time, West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: 'The two Jaguar iPaces that the Trust operates have now covered over 160,000 miles without incident and have proved to be exceptionally reliable. The iPace continues to be an excellent response vehicle for us and is popular with staff.' Meanwhile, a Cheshire Constabulary spokesman said: 'At around 2.15pm on Wednesday 6 March, police were contacted by the driver of a Jaguar I-Pace who reported that there was a fault with his vehicle, and he was unable to brake. 'The driver told police that he was travelling on the M58 in Merseyside. 'Officers attended the scene and escorted the vehicle as it travelled onto the M57 and then M62 towards Manchester. 'Once on the M62, officers from Cheshire Police, Merseyside Police and Greater Manchester worked together to stop all other traffic, they then used a police car to help bring the car to a stop at around 2.40pm, between junctions 10 and 11 of the M62 eastbound.' The Jaguar I-Pace is set to be discontinued before the company's relaunch in 2025. The family of a Louisiana toddler who was feared to have died in a house fire forty years ago claim they saw her being kidnapped. Ramona Brown, who was three, was thought to have perished in the flames during the 1984 blaze at her family home in New Orleans. The March 6 inferno killed her two siblings Kevin, two, and Aubrey Jr, four, but firemen said they could find no trace of her ashes in the rubble. Now her family is claiming they saw her getting into a gold Cadillac with a bi-racial couple as the house was razed. Ramona Brown was three-years-old when she mysteriously vanished in a house fire. The photo is an age-progression image of her today at 43 Ramona's sisters: (pictured left to right) Tiffany Brown Nickerson, Simona Brown and Pamela Brown Harry appeared on Banfield|News Nation this week Her sister Simona, who was six at the time, along with sisters Tiffany and Pamela, appeared on Banfield|News Nation this week to talk about the mystery. Host Ashleigh Banfield asked Simona what prompted her to speak out now, with her replying 'it has been heavy on her mind'. Last week, The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the New Orleans PD released a new image of what Ramona would look like today at 43. The age progression image was created by a NCMEC forensic artist. The police encourage the public to share her missing person poster. Ramona had a distinct birthmark but they are not revealing where it is located since the family said there have been a number of people who came forward claiming they are related. Tiffany said 'she couldn't tell me where her birthmark is than there is nothing to talk about it.' Simona, along with sisters Tiffany Brown Nickerson and Pamela Harry, appeared on Banfield|News Nation on Tuesday to talk about the mystery surrounding their sister During the show, Pamela Brown said that her grandmother got some suspicious calls after the fire that she was certain was her granddaughter Ramona. Pamela Harry said that when her grandmother asked the little girl where was she, the phone call ended and they never heard from her since. The sisters also spoke about the next door neighbor, who Simons said 'didn't get along well with us' She said: 'From my understanding, they did not like black people. Tiffany added: 'At that time we were the only black folks in the neighborhood. Simona told Banfield that the day of the fire, 'she actually saw the man himself - who set the home ablaze.' She said there have been no leads. Ramona was one of nine siblings; two of her brothers died in the house fire The family are pictured in front of their new house following the horror fire in 1984 'We know that our images can work, even in a missing case like this when many decades have passed,' said Angeline Hartmann, Director of Communications at NCMEC. 'We ask people to take just a moment and really look at this image. We just need the right person to see the image and make that call. You never know when you might be the person who can help investigators pull the missing pieces together.' On March 6, 1984, Ramona Lynn Brown vanished after an unexplained fire ravaged her home on Memorial Drive in the Algiers neighborhood of New Orleans where she lived with her parents, Johnnie Mae and Aubrey Brown, and nine siblings. Her siblings, Kevin, 2, and Aubrey, 4, who died in the blaze were later found by fire investigators in an embrace, but there was no trace of her remains in the ashes and rubble, according to NOLA. Ramona's sister, who was six-years-old at the time, believes that Ramona survived. She said that she vividly remembers holding Ramona's hand outside the house in the aftermath of the blaze, and an older biracial couple, - a white woman, and a black man - in a gold car stopped to help during all the chaos of that night. Simona told the police that she saw Ramona get into their car. Ramona's disappearance is a cold case that remains active. New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said: 'The NOPD welcomes the assistance from NCMEC and their forensic artist.' 'We are hopeful that this image will help generate new leads or information that can ultimately bring Ramona home.' Anyone with information is asked to contact the NCMEC at 1-800-843-5678. f you have any information, please call NCMEC at . f you have any information, please call NCMEC at . f you have any information, please call NCMEC at . Rishi Sunak is preparing to pay failed asylum seekers 3,000 to voluntarily move from Britain to Rwanda under a new deal struck with the African country. The Prime Minister is looking to widen an existing scheme for those who have been refused asylum in the UK so that it also includes Rwanda as a destination. But the plans are separate to the Government's stalled scheme to focibly deport people to Rwanda, which has been bogged down in legal challenges. The proposals have been derided as 'ludicrous' by Tory MPs and seen as an admission by the PM that his Rwanda deportation scheme has failed. Yet the Government defended the move as 'a good use of public money' as ministers look to reduce the bill to taxpayers of housing asylum seekers in hotels in Britain. Downing Street confirmed, if people chose to be sent to Rwanda under the new plans, they would receive 3,000 on a payment card that can only be spent in the African country. But how far would that money actually stretch in Kigali, which is Rwanda's capital and largest city? According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be more than 14 times the average monthly salary, after tax, of those who live in Kigali It would also be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali, or almost four months' rent for a three-bedroom flat in the city centre, the website stated The Prime Minister is looking to widen an existing scheme for those who have been refused asylum in the UK so that it also includes Rwanda as a destination According to Numbeo, an online cost of living database, 3,000 would be more than 14 times the average monthly salary, after tax, of those who live in Kigali. It would also be enough to pay for a year's rent for a one-bedroom apartment in outer Kigali, or almost four months' rent for a three-bedroom flat in the city centre, the website stated. A meal at an 'inexpensive' restaurant in Kigali is said by Numbeo to cost 2.81, a beer 91p, a cappuccino 1.69, a packet of 20 cigarrettes 1.52, and a litre of petrol 98p. Electricity was estimated to cost 32.46 per month, while internet access would incur a monthly bill of 321.76. No10 confirmed the plans to pay failed asylum seekers to move to Rwanda were part of the PM's bid to reduce the cost of housing migrants in hotels in Britain. Mr Sunak's official spokesman told reporters this afternoon: 'The UK is focused on driving down migration and returning failed asylum seekers to their country of origin or a safe third country. 'The reports you refer to build on our already widely used voluntary returns scheme which saw more than 19,000 people accept support to return to their country of origin last year. 'We are also now able to send individuals to Rwanda, which means we can also voluntarily remove individuals - including those whose home countries are too unsafe to return to. 'Individuals who opt for voluntary relocation will receive 3,000 paid to them on a card that can only be used in Rwanda. 'These removals will cut hotel use and alleviate pressures on public services.' Kevin Hollinrake, a business minister, earlier insisted offering migrants up to 3,000 to move to Rwanda would be 'a good use of public money'. He denied it would undermine the separate proposals to forcibly deport migrants to Rwanda. Mr Hollinrake told Times Radio this morning: '3,000, is a lot of money, but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are out here without merit. 'It's about saying to people, if you come here, you can't stay here if you come here illegally. That's the point. 'So I don't think anybody would try and come here just to get 3,000 to go to Rwanda.' But Robert Jenrick, the former immigration minister, derided the 'ludicrous' new voluntary scheme planned by the Government. In a series of posts on Twitter/X, the ex-Cabinet minister wrote: 'Symbolic flights of people being paid to leave isn't a strategy to stop the boats and end this national security emergency. 'If the reports are accurate, these voluntary returns would consume Rwanda's finite resources, and so actually make the swift, enforced removal of small boat arrivals that are required to establish the intended deterrent effect much harder.' Labour accused ministers of 'resorting to paying people' to go Rwanda upon realising their deportation scheme 'has no chance of succeeding.' Shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock MP said: 'We know from the treaty that capacity in Rwanda is very limited, so ministers should now explain what this new idea means for the scheme as it was originally conceived, and they should also make clear how many people they expect to send on this basis, and what the cost will be. 'There have been so many confused briefings around the Rwanda policy that the public will be forgiven for treating this latest wheeze with a degree of scepticism. 'It seems that the Home Secretary is trying to find a way out of this hare-brained scheme that he himself has described as 'batshit'.' Steve Valdez-Symonds, Amnesty International UK's refugee and migrant rights director, said: 'This is yet another gimmick coming from a Government that has lost all sight of its responsibilities to people fleeing conflict and persecution. 'The problem with the UK's asylum system is the policy of deliberately refusing to process tens of thousands of people's claims. This has completely collapsed the asylum system, and it cannot be repaired until the policy is scrapped. 'The Government must abandon the dangerous and unlawful Rwanda Bill and abandon the cruel and utterly dreadful policy of refusing to process the asylum claims of people arriving in the UK.' China unveils advanced AI model for medicine, boosting clinical diagnosis Global Times) 15:10, March 13, 2024 A Hong Kong research center under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has unveiled its latest artificial intelligence (AI) model for the healthcare industry, providing efficient clinical diagnosis and helping doctors in complex neurosurgery. The development highlights the increasingly close academic collaboration between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, showcasing the country's leading position in the sector. Developed by the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (CAIR) of the CAS Hong Kong Institute of Science and Innovation, the CARES Copilot 1.0 model offers physicians enhanced accuracy in data retrieval. It can generate information and citations from academic sources, with data accuracy up to 95 percent, CAIR said on Monday. Using the AI model for complement surgery, image navigation, and medical robotics in clinics, operating rooms and research institutes can directly assist medical staff in dealing with emergencies. They are able to provide supervision and early warnings and prevent risks during surgical procedures, Danny Chan Tat-ming, head of the neurosurgery division at the Department of Surgery in the Chinese University of Hong Kong, was quoted as saying. The CARES Copilot system is designed to work with smart medical devices, providing trustable and explainable AI for surgery. It is able to process surgical data across modalities, including images, text, voice, video and ultrasound. The performance of the Copilot 1.0 system was strictly tested using the challenging Zero-shot Top Token Selection standard, across five public datasets and two proprietary neurosurgical knowledge evaluation datasets, according to the research team of the CARES Copilot 1.0 AI model. "We aim to integrate the Copilot 1.0 AI model with smart medical devices in the future, based on CAIR's achievements in medical robotics. The center is now collaborating with Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong, Peking Union Medical College Hospital in Beijing, and the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou on these subjects," Xu Jun, a senior manager at the Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, told the Global Times on Tuesday. The CARES Copilot 1.0 system exemplifies CAIR's unique position and academic background, reflecting the close academic cooperation between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong. According to CAIR's official website, the center was established under a memorandum of understanding signed between the Hong Kong SAR Government and the CAS. It is part of the Hong Kong Institute of Science and Innovation, the CAS' first affiliated branch outside of the Chinese mainland. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is further advancing technological cooperation. In August 2023, China's State Council issued a plan to develop the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone, aiming to deepen scientific and technological collaboration in the Greater Bay Area. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) Panhandle Boys to host West Texas Fire Relief Concert in Amarillo, Texas. Press Release The Texas native trio, Randall King, Kevin Fowler and Aaron Watson, have come together as The Panhandle Boys and are hosting the West Texas Fire Relief Concert. All proceeds will support a disaster fund for those in the panhandle devastated by what is now the largest wildfire in the states history. The concert is described as an intimate acoustic performance. Scheduled for Sunday, March 24, at the Starlight Ranch venue in Amarillo, the Texas artists are coming together for a night of heartfelt performances to help lift those affected by the wildfires in the panhandle. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Attendees will experience heartfelt performances in a stripped-down, soulful setting, creating an atmosphere of unity and support for the West Texas communities in need, a portion of the event release stated on the ticket website Prekindle. Proceeds from the concert will support the Panhandle Disaster Relief Fund, which aims to help the community during times of crisis by offering immediate relief and a long-term recovery effort. Tickets to the concert are being sold online for $20 general admission. The doors open at 4 p.m. on March 24 at The Starlight Ranch, located at 1415 Sunrise Dr. # 4300 in Amarillo. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Rep. Lauren Boebert announced Wednesday she will not run in the Colorado special election to replace outgoing Rep. Ken Buck. But she plans to remain in the Republican primary for Buck's Colorado 4th district, creating a situation she calls 'confusing' to voters. Facing a tough re-election bid, Boebert is ditching the 3rd congressional district, where she currently lives, and launching a bid for outgoing Buck's 4th district spot, which is more friendly to GOP candidates. But Buck announced Tuesday that he would resign from his congressional seat next week rather than finish out his term, triggering a special election in the district for a candidate to fill his seat through the end of the year. The special election in Colorado will be held on June 25, the same day as the Republican primary to replace Buck in the next Congress. The result will be two Republican candidates on the ballot, one to fill the remainder of Buck's term and one to replace him. 'The uniparty is trying to do everything that they can to stop my candidacy, to rig the election in Colorado,' Boebert said in reaction during a live Rumble fundraiser on Wednesday morning. U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-CO, said she would not resign her seat in the 3rd district of Colorado to run in the special election to fill out the rest of Rep. Ken Buck's term. Boebert described Buck's early exit from Congress as 'selfish,' noting it would confuse voters in the 4th district 'Ken Buck's announcement yesterday was a gift to the uniparty. The establishment concocted a swampy backroom deal to try and win an election.' Boebert described Buck's early exit from Congress as 'selfish,' noting it would confuse voters in the 4th district, leaving them unrepresented for as long as three months and endangering Republican's already slim majority in the House. Boebert would have to resign her seat in the third district in order to run in the special election in Colorado fourth district. But she emphasized Wednesday she had no intention of resigning. 'I will not further imperil the already very slim House Republican majority by resigning my current seat in Colorado's third district, and I will continue to deliver on my constituent's priorities while working hard to earn the votes of the people in Colorado's fourth district, she said. U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said she would continue running in the Republican primary for Colorado's 4th District but would skip the special election to fill out the rest of Buck's term Boebert received the endorsement of President Donald Trump earlier this month She reminded her supporters she was the only 'Trump-endorsed America first candidate' in the race and would run in that Republican primary instead of the special election. The special election, she argued, would only elect a temporary 'placeholder' for the seat. 'This is me telling you that I'm not going anywhere. I am not going to put my constituents in the third district in a bind leaving them also without representation by resigning. I am going to continue on to the primary in the fourth district and the uniparty they can have their special election,' she said. Boebert's announcement effectively rules her out of the special election. 'Congratulations,' she said. 'Put in your Ukraine-first candidate, I don't really care.' A British couple who were found dead on a Caribbean beach are believed to have drowned, with police saying that the wife may have died trying to rescue her husband after he had a heart attack in the sea. Rosaline Foster, 76, and her husband David John Foster, 77, had been on holiday on the Grenadine island of Carriacou with family when tragedy struck on Saturday. They were visiting the popular Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre when Mr Foster reportedly got into difficulty. Police later found his body lying in the sand and he was declared dead at the scene. Mrs Foster was reportedly taken to the Princess Royal Hospital, the island's main health centre, where she was examined by medics and pronounced dead. The British couple had been on holiday on the paradise island of Carriacou. File image shows Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre Police have launched an investigation into the couple's deaths and are awaiting the results of an autopsy. The couple were retired and had been with other family members at the time, according to police. Cpl Ardell Lewis told BBC News: 'The basic facts seem to suggest the man may have suffered a heart attack and the lady may have gone to his assistance, and she probably would have drowned.' In a statement, reported by Loop News, police earlier said that the postmortem will seek to 'tell us exactly what happened to them but for now, it's an apparent drowning'. Separate unconfirmed reports have suggested that the man got into difficulty and that his wife died as she tried to help him. It comes after the deaths of two American tourists in the Grenadines last month during an apparent yacht hijacking. The bodies were found on Paradise Beach in the village of L'Esterre on Carriacou in the Grenadines The bodies of US couple Ralph Hendry and Kathleen Brandel have not been found, but police have classed their deaths as homicides. The deaths have sent shockwaves across the island, which has a population of just over 6,000. It is the second biggest island in the state of Grenada and is roughly 12 miles long by three miles wide. The FCDO has been contacted for comment. Four fraudsters living in Los Angeles have been sentenced for their role in a ring that arranged at least 600 sham green card marriages. Federal prosecutors busted the immigrant wedding mill, that made more than $8 million over five years, in April 2022. Marcialito Biol Benitez, 50, Juanita Pacson, 48, Engilbert Ulan, 43 and Nino Valmeo, 47, were arrested and charged along with seven others with conspiracy to commit marriage fraud and immigration document fraud. Benitez, who is said to be the ringleader, and his co-defendants, all Philippine nationals residing in LA, arranged bogus unions and filed more than 600 fake applications to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services between October 2016 and March 2022. When the marriages unraveled, often because the U.S. citizen was backing out, the gang members fabricated fake domestic violence cases against them and applied for green cards under the Violence Against Women Act, prosecutors said. Four fraudsters have been sentenced for their role in a ring that arranged at least 600 sham green card marriages Marcialito Biol Benitez (right), 50, is said to be the ringleader of the group that arranged bogus unions and filed more than 600 fake applications between October 2016 and March 2022. The sham marriage ring also paid US citizens in exchange for marrying their foreign clients, the District of Massachusetts' Attorney's Office said. Benitez pleaded guilty in September 2023 and was sentenced on March 7 by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to 22 months in prison and three years of supervised release, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Massachusetts. Pacson also pleaded guilty in September 2023 and was sentenced by Casper to two years of supervised release with the first four months on home detention. Ulan took his case to trial and was convicted by a federal jury in November 2023. Casper sentenced him to 14 months in prison and three years of supervised release on March 6. 'It is the utmost honor and privilege to become an American citizen, but Engilbert Ulan made an absolute sham of that process. Mr. Ulan and his co-conspirators broke immigration laws that are in place to protect public safety and created an unfair disadvantage for those seeking to earn their citizenship lawfully,' Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division said at the time of his conviction. Valmeo pleaded guilty in August 2023 and was sentenced by Casper to three years of supervised release with the first six months on home confinement on January 11. The sham agency, ran out of brick-and-mortar offices in Los Angeles, charged to prepare the documents and arrange the marriages for a fee of between $20,000 and $35,000 in cash. Ulan and Valmeo assisted with arranging the unions and filing the documents. Prosecutors said Benitezs agency staged fake wedding ceremonies at chapels, parks and other locations, performed by hired online officiants. Pacson worked at one of the chapels and assisted with sham wedding ceremonies and marriage documents. Ulan would conduct practice interviews and prepare couples for their required interviews with immigration authorities. The sham agency, ran out of brick-and-mortar offices in Los Angeles, charged to prepare the documents and arrange the marriages for a fee of between $20,000 and $35,000 in cash Juanita Pacson, who worked at one of the chapels, assisted with sham wedding ceremonies and marriage documents Other co-defendants who were previously sentenced by Casper include Peterson Souza who referred non-citizens to the agency for a fee. He was sentenced to five months in prison and three years of supervised release with the first five months on home detention. Felipe David, who referred clients to the agency for assistance with Violence Against Women Act applications was sentenced to three years of supervised release. Immigrants who marry Americans must typically spend several years living together, jointly submitting documents and going to interviews to show the union is real, and ultimately gaining permanent residency in the U.S. Violence Against Women Act provisions, however, allow immigrant spouses to instead show they were victims of battery or extreme cruelty, sideline their American partner and complete their green card process alone. A Connecticut woman inadvertently slept with her half-brother while unaware of her 23 siblings as her half-sister said their sperm donor dad showed 'no remorse' when she confronted him. Victoria Hill, 39, said she was left 'traumatized' after realizing she had unknowingly committed incest with her high school boyfriend. Hill is among at least 23 people who say they were conceived using the sperm of married doctor Burton Caldwell, without their parents' knowledge. Janine Pierson is her half-sister, also conceived with Caldwell's sperm. She took a DNA test in 2022 and later later discovered a boy she went to a summer camp with was her half-brother. Both Pierson and Hill confronted Caldwell individually. 'He completely admitted it. He had no remorse whatsoever,' Pierson told NBC Connecticut. '(He) asked me very pointed questions about my life and my achievements and how many grandchildren he had, but offered no kind of apology whatsoever.' Pierson said her fertility father doctor 'completely admitted it' and 'had no remorse whatsoever' when she confronted him (Pictured: Caldwell with biological daughter, Janine Pierson) Victoria Hill, Pierson's half-sister also conceived by Caldwell, unwittingly slept with her half brother after her mom's fertility doctor secretly used his own sperm to get her pregnant Hill's mom Maralee Hill claims she was told by Caldwell that the sperm would come from an anonymous student 'He said he really didn't think about how many of us there would be or what that impact would be like,' she added. Hill said she only found out the man she had grown up thinking was her dad was not her biological father after taking a 23andMe test. She then found out her high school boyfriend was her half-brother years after they dated. 'I moved to Wallingford in middle school, and we were best friends for years, and then ultimately decided to date and then we decided to go our separate ways because of college,' Hill told NBC Connecticut. 'We never ended up marrying and having children, but he is someone who, even to this day, I very much would have considered that, had life taken us in that direction.' Hill said she received a text from her ex-boyfriend which said, 'You are my sister.' 'It has me look back at my whole high school experience through a totally different lens. It tarnishes the whole thing,' Hill told CNN. 'I'll just put it out there, I was intimate with my half brother.' Hill also revealed that she attended elementary school with another sibling and frequently attended a local deli owned by twins who are also her relations. 'I was traumatized by this,' Hill added. 'Now I'm looking at pictures of people thinking, well, if he could be my sibling, anybody could be my sibling.' Hill said she only found out the man she had grown up thinking was her dad was not her biological father after taking a 23andMe test. She then found out her high-school boyfriend was her half-brother years after they dated Janine Pierson is her half-sister, also conceived with Caldwell's sperm. She took a DNA test in 2022 and later later discovered a boy she went to a summer camp with was her half-brother. Both Pierson and Hill confronted Caldwell individually There are currently no federal laws around fertility fraud and only 13 states have protections in place She and her ex-boyfriend, who wishes to remain anonymous, only found out they were related after both taking 23andMe tests Hill said she considered suing the doctor, but was told that fuzzy fertility fraud laws meant that she did not have much of a case. There are currently no federal laws around the issue and only 13 states have such protections in place. However, this has not been enough to deter social worker Janine Pierson, one of Hill's half sisters, who is now pursuing action against the retired doctor. Pierson believed she was an only child until she took a 23andMe test in 2022. 'It was like my entire life just came to this screeching halt,' she told CNN, revealing she also had to break the news to her mom. 'We both just cried for a few minutes because it just felt like such a violation.' Pierson also crossed path with a sibling at a summer camp, a photograph shows them, ''Within 20 feet of one another, and we have no idea,' she said. 'It shouldn't just be, you know, the Wild West where these doctors can just do whatever it is that they want,' Pierson added. Janine Pierson thought she was an only child until taking a 23andMe test. She is now attempting to sue her biological father. She went to confront her biological father, who has since given up his practice. 'He was not in any way apologetic,' Pierson said, adding that he did not deny using his own sperm when working in the 1980s at a New Haven clinic. But he did confess that he 'never gave it the thought that he should have that there would be so many (children), and that it would have any kind of an impact on us,' Pierson said. She claimed the interaction was awkward, with the retired doctor probing about how many grandchildren he had and what she had made of her life, 'like how intelligent I was, basically,' Pierson said. She said she had mixed emotions because, 'I despise you, but at the same time, I'm grateful to be here.' When approached by CNN, Caldwell's wife spoke on his behalf and declined to comment. More than 30 doctors around the country have been caught or accused of covertly using their own sperm to impregnate their patients, according to the outlet. Although advocates say they know of at least 80. The situation has echoes of the infamous case of Dr. Donald Cline, who fathered at least 90 children in Indiana, prompting the state to pass laws outlawing fertility fraud. The legislation was not retroactive, so Cline never faced any prosecution. However he was charged with lying to investigators with the state attorney general's office who were looking into the case. The situation has echoes of the infamous case of Dr. Donald Cline, who fathered at least 90 children in Indiana which prompted the state to bring in fertility fraud laws He gave up his medical license following his conviction for obstruction of justice after a disciplinary panel said there was not enough evidence to strip him of the right to practice. But in Kentucky, an ob-gyn was able to keep his license despite admitting to using his own sperm to inseminate half a dozen patients. Dr Marvin Yussman allegedly told his clients the donation would come from a medical student. The situation also led to the development of fertility laws within his state. A Netflix documentary about Cline prompted two members of Congress to coauthor the first federal bill outlawing fertility fraud. The Protecting Families from Fertility Fraud Act was proposed by Reps. Stephanie Bice, an Oklahoma Republican, and Mike Sherrill, a New Jersey Democrat. The bill has received cross party support from dozens of backers and if passed would establish a new federal crime for intentionally misleading on the source of DNA used in fertility treatments. However, not everyone supports greater regulation, including opponents who argue that it could make fertility treatment less accessible to LGBTQ+ people who makeup a large part of donor recipients. 'I think we should pause before creating additional criminal liability for people practicing reproductive medicine,' Katherine L. Kraschel, assistant professor of law and health sciences at Northeastern University told CNN. 'It gives me great pause to say we want the government to try to step in and regulate what amounts to a reproductive choice.' Others have suggested fertility fraud might be phased out with the advent of home genetic testing, pointing out that most cases took place before 2000. Jeremy Hunt today suggested his Budget goal of scrapping national insurance could take decades. The Chancellor insisted he was setting out a 'long-term ambition' in the fiscal package last week, and it would take 'many Parliaments' to achieve. Mr Hunt raised eyebrows by spelling out his hopes as he knocked another 2p off the NICs rate for employees - hailing the move as a tax break worth an average of 450 for 27million workers. He told the Commons that NICs amounted to 'double taxation' and he wanted to scrap the 'complex' arrangements - introduced in 1911 to fund welfare benefits, but now a general tax levy. The commitment went some way to appease restive Tories, who had been hoping Mr Hunt would go further to ease the tax burden in his package. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt insisted he was setting out a 'long-term ambition' on NICs, and it would take 'many Parliaments' to achieve Mr Hunt raised eyebrows by spelling out his hopes on national insurance as he knocked another 2p off the rate for employees - but left the tax burden rising overall But appearing before the Treasury Committee this afternoon, Mr Hunt said: 'It won't happen in one Parliament, but it's a long-term ambition. 'If we do that, that will be the biggest tax simplification of our lifetimes.' Pressed for timings, he said: 'I can't give you a timescale because this is going to be the work of many parliaments.' Rishi Sunak has said 'significant progress' could be made in the next Parliament towards getting rid of NICs. But the aspiration to end the double taxation of work by axing national insurance has been attacked as an unfunded promise by Labour, which pointed out it would cost the Exchequer around 46billion. At PMQs Keir Starmer swiped that it 'could be 2022 all over again' as he sought to draw comparisons with Liz Truss's short-lived premiership with 'unfunded' tax cuts in the Budget. 'They tried that under the last administration and everybody else is paying the price,' Sir Keir told the Commons. 'All we need now is an especially hardy lettuce and it could be 2022 all over again.' Speaking at an event at a pub in South Yorkshire last week, Mr Sunak said: 'The reason we have chosen to cut national insurance in particular is because it's a tax on work. Speaking at an event at a pub in South Yorkshire last week, Mr Sunak branded national insurance a 'tax on work' 'We have this unfairness at the moment where if you're working, you pay tax twice, once in income tax and then again in national insurance. 'That's unnecessarily complicated because all of that money ultimately goes into the same pot, funds the same public services. But ultimately, as I said, it's unfair because you are paying tax not once but twice. 'But my ultimate ambition is to remove that unfairness entirely, and if we stick to our plan, not just will we deliver the 900 of tax cuts this year, we can really make progress towards that long-term ambition over time in the next Parliament.' The bill will now head to the Senate for a vote, and if passed, Biden said he would sign it into law A Chinese Communist Party spokesman warned the move will 'come back to bite' the U.S. in an ominous warning Wednesday The Chinese Communist Party shared an ominous warning the same day U.S. lawmakers advanced a bill that could ban Chinese-owned TikTok nationwide. The House passed the bill Wednesday morning in a bipartisan vote 352 - 65. The House China Select Committee says Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on its U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat. ByteDance would have 165 days after the law is signed to divest from TikTok. If it does not, app stores and web hosting platforms would not be allowed to distribute it in the U.S. Ahead of the vote, a spokesman for the CCP railed against the key claims made by Republican and Democrat lawmakers in their push to get the bill passed. 'Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok,' foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said. 'In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself.' China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Wednesday the TikTok bill will come back to 'bite' the United States President Xi Jinping's top leadership have supported Chinese-owned ByteDance's ownership of TikTok 'This kind of bullying behavior that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order,' Wang added. Now, senators will decide whether the national security threat posed by TikTok is worth the headache from constituents who love the app, and have been calling lawmakers nonstop asking them to vote against the measure. The social media company boasts over 150 million American users. The bill has a good shot of becoming law as a bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed the bill and Joe Biden confirmed that he would sign it if it also passes the Senate. Still, as the bill has gained more steam, so too has its opposition. Trump threw cold water on it last week, insisting if TikTok is banned its rival Facebook would 'double their business.' 'I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better,' Trump wrote in a social media post. 'They are a true Enemy of the People!' TikTok sent this notification to users on Tuesday morning, prompting them to get in touch with their lawmakers to let them know whether they support the TikTok bill Lawmakers accused TikTok of providing its U.S. user data to its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance, which they say has connections to the Chinese Communist Party Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has come out against the TikTok bill, claiming it could be used as a form of government suppression Elon Musk joined Trump in opposing the effort to reign in TikTok's influence, calling it government 'censorship,' in a post on X Tuesday. 'This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite 'foreign control' as the issue, but it does not,' Musk stated. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also voted against the bill, mentioning Musk by name, praising him for restoring her account on X after it was formerly banned and decrying the 'Pandora's Box' this bill could open. 'What's to stop the U.S. government in the future from forcing the sale of another social media company claiming it is protecting American's data from foreign adversaries?' 'I believe this bill can cause future problems. It's opening Pandora's Box and I am opposed to this bill,' Greene said Wednesday on the House floor. The 15 Republicans who voted against the TikTok bill Barry Moore, Alabama Andy Biggs, Arizona David Schweikert, Arizona John Duarte, California Tom McClintock, California Dan Bishop, North Carolina Matt Gaetz, Florida Greg Steube, Florida Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Clay Higgins, Louisiana Warren Davidson, Ohio Scott Perry, Pennsylvania Thomas Massie, Kentucky Nancy Mace, South Carolina Alex Mooney, West Virginia Advertisement 'This is really about controlling Americans' data, and if we cared about Americans' data then we would stop the sale of Americans' data universally, not just with China.' But the bill's author, Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., pushed back on that Wednesday morning. 'TikTok is a threat to our national security because its owned by ByteDance, which does the bidding of the communist party,' Gallagher said on the floor. 'This bill therefore forces TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. It does not apply to American companies.' Gallagher argued his bill would only impact companies subject to control of foreign adversaries. Greene was among a number of significant GOP members who voted against the bill, including Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Tom McClintock, R-Calif., Nancy Mace, R-S.C., and more. On the other side of the aisle, 'Squad' members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., also voted against the measure. One lawmaker, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, voted present. TikTok pushed back against the 'ban' in a statement shared with DailyMail.com after the House passed the bill. 'This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.' Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said the bill could be akin to opening 'Pandora's Box' and that the future implications the measure are unknown TikTok advocates gathered outside of the Capitol ahead of Wednesday's vote to push back against the bill Some of the advocates that came to the Capitol Wednesday were TikTok content creators Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson said in a statement the vote 'demonstrates Congress' opposition to Communist China's attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans, and signals our resolve to deter our enemies.' 'I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign it into law,' he continued. In response to the growing support behind the bill, TikTok sent out a push notification to its 100 million users yesterday telling them 'Your voice matters in stopping the shutdown.' The notification prompted users to reach out to their congressional member to urge them to vote against the proposed bill. As a result, congressional offices received hundreds of calls about the bill Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, congressional aides told DailyMail.com. Many callers appeared to be children or concerned parents begging the app not be banned. Users were told the bill threatens TikTok's very existence, though what it actually does is force its parent company to divest - something callers are largely in support of once staffers explain the nuance of the bill. 'TikTok's campaign to have users call their representatives shows just how much control they have. This campaign is reminiscent of typical Communist Party tactics,' Rep. Greg Murphy, R- N.C., told DailyMail.com in a statement Tuesday. 'Unfortunately, these callers don't understand what they are really advocating for - they are following orders from Beijing. The CCP is hoping to replicate their modus operandi of telling their citizens what to do.' His office's phones were 'blowing up' according to staff. Murphy voted in favor of the bill Wednesday. Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., voted for the bill and despite the deluge of calls said, 'We'll talk to any constituent that wants to call in and talk to us through this.' 'We're explaining our position, and it's a normal part of the process.' Rep. John Duarte, R- Calif., who voted against the bill, told DailyMail.com Tuesday that his vote wouldn't be influenced by '16-year-olds [that] call me from all over the country.' The bill passed through committee last week with a bipartisan unanimous 50-0 vote. TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced Lawmakers have also expressed reticence about how the TikTok bill could impact First Amendment protections. 'I think it's a terrible idea and it's hysteria that's running through both parties now.' Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told DailyMail.com Friday. 'In America, we don't just tell people you can't own a company because we don't like you. And 150 million people use their First Amendment freedom to express themselves on TikTok, and you can't just have that taken away from them.' Fellow Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie agreed. 'The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse. The President will be given the power to ban web sites, not just apps,' he posted on X. A Latvian gunman wandered into a Northamptonshire hotel bar wearing a V for Vendetta mask - before waving around an imitation pistol that staff were convinced was the real thing. Romans Vodcics, 31, had been staying at The Raven guest house in Corby on September 17 last year when he was asked to leave for being abusive towards members of staff. But instead of doing as he was asked, the Latvian national went back to his room and picked up the realistic-looking Glock firearm, along with the mask - adopted by the worldwide 'Anonymous' internet hacking movement. He then stormed into the bar and walked through while holding the gun and wearing the mask - before walking outside and pointing the dummy weapon at the building. Police were called and armed officers stormed the scene, arresting Vodcics; he refused to give a roadside sample after they suspected he was driving under the influence. Romans Vodcics entered the foyer of the hotel wearing a gold V for Vendetta mask An unasked Romans Vodcics, who has pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm, refusing to provide a sample and criminal damage He was arrested after walking through the bar area of The Raven hotel in Corby, Northamptonshire in September last year waving the imitation Glock pistol The V for Vendetta Guy Fawkes mask was created by comic artist David Lloyd for Alan Moore's graphic novel It was later adapted into a 2006 film staring Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving - promoting the image of the mask to a wider audience It has since become synonymous with protest movements across the world, including the hacker collective Anonymous Whilst being held by police, he used a pillow in his cell to smash a CCTV camera, causing 1,317 of damage - landing himself with a further charge. Northampton Crown Court heard bar workers were left 'petrified' when Vodcics reappeared in the foyer with the BB pistol, which resembled the Glock 17 handgun used by police forces across the world. Prosecuting, Quiana Fitzpatrick said Vodcics had been staying at The Raven and grabbed the weapon after he went to make a complaint. She said: 'He was unhappy with something during his stay. So he attempted to tell the duty manager.' The court heard he then left the building for a cigarette but walked back in, still smoking, and was told to go back outside by the staff member. When he came back in he said he would like to discuss the issue and the female duty manager told him he could do so if he was calm. But the court was told his behaviour escalated after he asked for a drink and was refused service. He began to film the duty manager, saying it would be put on YouTube. He was then told to go back to his room to retrieve his belongings. Ms Fitzpatrick added: 'When he came out 30 minutes later with his brother he was holding a phone playing loud music and wearing a gold facemask. 'He went into the bar and walked slowly past the staff member, looking her up and down. 'He walked to the door and produced a realistic looking BB Gun that appeared to be a Glock 17.' Vodcics was heard to shout in Russian at another customer: 'What the f***? F****** come here. F****** fight.' He left The Raven but held up the gun to the window while still recording himself before getting into his vehicle. Vodcics pleaded guilty to a count of possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, failing to provide a breath test and criminal damage. He was jailed for 14 months and banned from driving for 19 months after his case was called on Monday. Dan Green, defending, said his client had no previous convictions and no intention of causing any harm with the firearm. He said that he had been in custody for five months since the incident and during that time he'd been a victim of bullying. Sentencing, Judge Rebecca Crane said: 'It must have been extremely frightening for the bar staff.' The V for Vendetta mask was created by illustrator David Lloyd for the Alan Moore graphic novel V for Vendetta. A highly stylised depiction of Guy Fawkes, the mask is worn by the main character, an anonymous vigilante called V, as he seeks to bring down a totalitarian regime in an alternate history version of London. The graphic novel was then adapted for the big screen in 2006, starring Hugo Weaving as V alongside Natalie Portman - exposing it to a wider audience. The mask then became synonymous with the 'Anonymous' online hacking movement after the decentralised group began protesting against the Church of Scientology in 2008, and has since become a wider symbol of dissent. Both Moore and Lloyd have previously expressed approval at the mask's popularity with civil protest movements. A close political ally of Donald Trump met Rishi Sunak and Kemi Badenoch today as the UK signed a trade agreement with Texas. The Lone Star State's governor Greg Abbott signed the state-level link-up in what PM Mr Sunk said was an 'exciting moment' for the UK. Mr Sunak told the Texas governor it was 'fantastic' to welcome him to Downing Street to sign the agreement. The agreement is not a trade deal, because individual US states do not have the power to sign these, but is similar to a memorandum of understanding designed to improve co-operation between businesses in Britain and Texas and tackle regulatory barriers to trade. Achieving a free trade agreement with America had been part of the Conservatives' 2019 manifesto, but progress towards a deal has stalled, with Ms Badenoch blaming a lack of interest on the part of the current US administration. Instead, the UK has pursued a series of state-level deals, including Indiana in May 2022 and most recently Florida in November last year. Although these agreements do not lower tariffs as a free trade deal would, they can provide some help for businesses through recognising UK qualifications or addressing state-level regulatory issues. Speaking outside Number 10, Mr Abbott also said he and Mr Trump were 'friends' but he again poured cold water on rumours he could be his running mate in November. The Lone Star State's governor Greg Abbott signed the state-level link-up in what PM Mr Sunk said was an 'exciting moment' for the UK. Ms Badenoch, who said she has family in Texas, complimented the governor on how his signature was better than her own before the pair shook hands and posed for photographs with the signed agreement. Mr Abbott with Donald Trump on the Texas/Mexico border earlier this month In Downing Street, Mr Abbott also told of how he is in 'constant communication' with Mr Trump. 'It would be kind of natural you'd have the governor of Texas on a shortlist, but I'm honoured to be thought of that way,' he said. 'But my focus really is on being governor of the state of Texas and assisting (Mr Trump) any way I can to make sure that he wins elections and then has a very successful term as the next president.' Ms Badenoch, who said she has family in Texas, complimented the governor on how his signature was better than her own before the pair shook hands and posed for photographs with the signed agreement. In some short remarks, she said: 'I wanted to start off by thanking Governor Abbott and the delegation from the great state of Texas. 'I know I speak not just for myself but also the Prime Minister in saying it is our pleasure to welcome you to 10 Downing Street.' She insisted the agreement would 'deliver' for the UK and for the US state. Mr Abbott, who gave a thumbs up when he arrived in Downing Street, said he was 'proud' to join the UK in signing the agreement. 'Understand that this is far more than a document,' he said. 'What we signed our names to today is a pathway to increased prosperity.' A former Colorado radio podcast host claims he was fired from his role after he asked for mental health support to prevent a relapse of his crack addiction. Vic Vela had been working for the Colorado Public Radio for nine years, during which he launched a podcast titled 'Back From Broken' discussing his mental health, how he overcame his crack cocaine addiction and living with HIV. Since being terminated on January 3, Vela has alleged that once he began complaining about stressful working conditions threatening his recovery, he was not given any support and was later fired. He also claims that the radio station was happy to monetized his recovery through the podcast - but belittled and mocked concerns he was on the brink of falling off the wagon. The Colorado Public Radio has clarified that Vela was fired due to 'insubordination'. Vic Vela had been working for the Colorado Public Radio for nine years during which he launched a podcast titled 'Back From Broken', where he discussed his mental health, how he overcame his crack cocaine addiction and living with HIV Since being terminated on January 3, Vela has alleged that once he complained about stressful working conditions threatening his recovery, he was not given any support and was later fired In an X post, Vela said how CPR took 'advantage of him' and 'mocked his addiction and struggles'. 'For nearly a decade, I gave my heart and soul to Colorado Public Radio. I loved CPR. They were my extended family. 'So, saying this is painful: CPR took advantage of me; they hurt, even mocked me, for my struggles with addiction and request for support so that I could stay sober,' he wrote yesterday on the social media page. Later in an interview with 9News, Vela explained: 'CPR was more than willing to monetize recovery through the podcast. 'But they found my own recovery journey to be inconvenient. And that's really, really heartbreaking. 'It makes me feel hurt and taken advantage of. And those are two things that nobody wants to feel, especially from their employer. And especially from an employer that I've given my heart and soul to.' The ex-podcaster claims that once the company began to undergo financial turmoil, the overall environment also took a nose-dive and work became increasingly stressful. He also claims that the radio station monetized his recovery through the podcast, belittled and mocked his mental health concerns Later in an interview, Vela explained: 'CPR was more than willing to monetize recovery through the podcast 'It makes me feel hurt and taken advantage of. And those are two things that nobody wants to feel, especially from their employer. And especially from an employer that I've given my heart and soul to,' he added He told the The Denver Post that he approached management to ask for workplace accommodations once the stress became overwhelming and he began to fear that he would relapse. 'As a person in recovery, one of the things that is vital for me to survive is to recognize triggers. 'I was being honest with them how stress was impacting my recovery and creating triggers that threatened my sobriety.' He further told the channel that senior leadership dismissed his concerns and when he said the triggers could 'send him back to the crack house', the management 'mocked and disparaged' his recovery. 'The insinuation I would use my addiction to get something out of this, to manipulate CPR, is audacious and insulting,' Vela said. The former podcaster has also filed a charge of discrimination with the Colorado Civil Rights Division and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the company. He said that senior leadership dismissed his concerns and when he said the triggers could 'send him back to the crack house', the management 'mocked and disparaged' his recovery CPR's chief executive officer, Stewart Vanderwilt confirmed that that the station has been financially struggling in an interview on Monday The former podcaster has also filed a charge of discrimination with the Colorado Civil Rights Division and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the company But CPR's senior vice president for audience and development, Jodi Gersh has denied all allegations, said Vela never asked for an accomodation - and implied that he was fired for bullying. 'Over the past several years, this person has demonstrated behaviors that are not in alignment with the values, culture and environment we have at CPR, where we strive to provide a workplace that is both physically and psychologically safe for all of our employees. 'This individual was provided opportunities to bring his behavior in alignment with our values but was unable to meet those expectations. 'Colorado Public Radio does not tolerate harassment or hostile, abusive or discriminatory behaviors of any kind from any employee regardless of their power, influence or position. This applies to all individuals including vendors, contractors, and audiences. 'Behavior that is aggressive or hostile, creates a reasonable fear of injury toward another party, or subjects another to emotional distress will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal,' the official company statement read. According to the Post, Vela was involved in an incident with another employee, who felt that the ex-podcaster was disrespectful to them in an internal message in 2023 As a result, senior management told him his 'behavior was a problem' and set new rules for how he communicated with colleagues According to the Post, Vela was involved in an incident with another employee, who felt that the ex-podcaster was disrespectful to them in an internal message in 2023. As a result, senior management told him his 'behavior was a problem' and set new rules for how he communicated with colleagues. CPR's chief executive officer, Stewart Vanderwilt confirmed that that the station has been financially struggling in an interview on Monday. As a result, the station has laid off 15 people - mostly from their podcasts unit named The Audio Innovations Studio. The station is not an affiliate of NPR. The CEO did not comment on any of Vela's claims during the interview. A former Boeing technician at Boeing's North Charleston plant told DailyMail.com employees were 'constantly' under pressure to make quick fixes and not to document mistakes Boeing has erased security footage showing 'repairs' being made to an Alaska Airlines flight months before a door plug blew out at 16,000 feet sparking a massive federal probe into airline safety. National Transportation Safety Board officials, who are investigating the incident, noted in a letter to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation that the Boeing 737-9 plane underwent rivet repairs in September 2023. The door plug blew out mid-flight above Oregon on January 5 and led to an emergency landing. NTSB leaders said the door plug that failed was opened during the repair work months earlier but that Boeing has not ben able to locate records of the work. 'To date, we still do not know who performed the work to open, reinstall, and close the door plug on the accident aircraft. Boeing has informed us that they are unable to find the records documenting this work,' Jennifer Homendy, NTSB chair, wrote in the letter. Boeing has erased security footage showing 'repairs' being made to the fated Alaska Airline flight months before a door plug blew out at 16,000 feet, the NTSB claimed On January 5, the door plug blew out on a flight above Oregon causing an emergency landing and a massive federal probe into airline safety 'A verbal request was made by our investigators for security camera footage to help obtain this information; however, they were informed the footage was overwritten. 'The absence of those records will complicate the NTSBs investigation moving forward.' Homendy stated in her letter that she held a phone call with Boeing CEO David Calhoun on March 3, who personally confirmed that the company 'has no records of the work being performed.' The NTBS has launched both a criminal and civil investigation into Boeing after the flight. Boeing has been plagued by several high-profile safety incidents in the weeks following the Alaska Airlines flight drawing more attention to its manufacturing processes. The NTSB's revelations come as an investigation found the plane's engineers were concerned about two warning alerts the day before the January 5 flight. Rather than take the Boeing 737 Max 9 out of service, the airliner decided it should embark on three more flights the next day that would end in Portland, Oregon, the site of an Alaska Airlines maintenance facility. A New York Times investigation found that the airliner chose to keep the plane in service with hundreds of passengers despite the warning alerts, which the company insists may have been unrelated to the plug door blowing out. The Boeing jet had only been in service for a few months, and had sounded two alarms in the days before the incident warning of issues with the plane's pressurization system. However, the airline said it takes three warnings in that span to trigger more direct action, and it was decided that the plane could carry several hundred more passengers before it went in for checks. The door plug was later found in the yard of an Oregon teacher The airline also reportedly insisted that the warnings did not meet the level required for it to be taken out of service, and has said there is no evidence the warning lights were related to the door blowout. 'From my perspective as the safety guy, looking at all the data, all the leading indicators, there was nothing that would drive me to make a different decision,' Max Tidwell, the vice president for safety and security for Alaska Airlines, told the New York Times. Yet, the warnings were enough to concern engineers, and they called for the jet to undergo urgent security checks on January 5 to determine the cause of the warnings with the use of a 'predictive tool.' The airliner agreed to send it for servicing, but decided it should carry three more flights between then, although it did slap some restrictions on the plane. This included banning the plane from any long-haul flights over water such as trans-Atlantic flights, or to any remote destinations in case of the need for an emergency landing. The plug door blew out on the second of the three extra scheduled flights. Boeing has denied wrongdoing in the case. A former Boeing technician at Boeing's North Charleston plant yesterday told DailyMail.com how employees were 'constantly' under pressure to make quick fixes and not to document mistakes. Joseph Clayton, a former technician at Boeing's North Charleston plant told DailyMail.com that 'end level management pressured people to do things that were unsavory' Clayton worked in Boeing's North Charleston plant between 2013 and 2019 Joseph Clayton, who worked for Boeing between 2013 and 2019, told DailyMail.com that 'end level management pressured people to do things that were unsavory, such as do undocumented maintenance.' 'As an AMP mechanic everything has to be documented but they would say "just put a nut and bolt in and fix it without filing the problem"' Clayton recalled. 'Almost everyone there has had to do something not correct' he said. It comes after the death of whistleblower John Barnett, who had been in the middle of a deposition in a lawsuit related to production of the 787 Dreamliner at the same factory, which opened in 2009. The suit alleged under-pressure workers were deliberately fitting 'sub-standard' parts to Boeing 787s, and that management were sweeping defects under the rug to save money. The 62-year-old died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the Charleston County coroner's office in South Carolina confirmed on Tuesday. 'If you said "no" and wanted to do it properly they would say you were being insubordinate,' Clayton told DailyMail.com about management's attitude to production issues. 'I would ask them to put everything in an email and of course they never sent that email. Boeing has been under renewed scrutiny after a door plug blew out off an Alaska Airlines plane in January Boeing's share price plummeted on Tuesday morning after the whistleblower's death 'As flight mechanics, we're more liable for faults than your common worker,' he said. Adding: 'I am liable for inappropriate maintenance going back twenty years, so you have to have it documented.' Clayton described the coercive and fearful experience of leaving the multibillion-dollar company in 2019. 'When I left I had an NDA so I can only speak in vague terms. It technically wasn't a condition of my leaving but they gave me two weeks pay if I did sign it. 'I knew that once I did plan to leave I needed an escape plan, in case I was steam rolled by them. 'They took a lot of people who wanted to do the right thing even though it takes longer, and they would send them to the 'the 19th section' and put you in there and forget about you' he said of his fellow employees that spoke out. 'It's a multibillionaire company so there is no telling what could happen,' Clayton said when asked about concerns over his and other whistleblower's safety. 'I'm sad about my friend on the flight line,' Clayton said of Barnett. 'Working with John he was a good dude, it's one of those things where there's no telling what could happen day to day at that place. 'The pressures change and come from different directions, they're good at getting away with what they're doing, they know what they're doing they've been doing it a long time to get away with it.' 'I still have friends that work there and they say it is still the same as it was except for a bit better pay and benefits.' Boeing did not respond to DailyMail.com's request for comment on Clayton's allegations. The City of Midland and Midland Police Department are urging motorists to be cautious while driving through neighborhoods and also want Midlanders to understand how to properly use traffic control devices. According to a statement from the city, Midland police officers reported that the victim had three stab wounds, including one to the head. Detectives were notified and responded to Midland Memorial Hospital Emergency Room but the victim "refused to cooperate and did not wish to press charges." A French serial killer appeared on a TV quiz show while the police hunted him for the rape and murder of children and adults. Francois Verove participated in the French quiz show Tout le monde veut pendre sa place (Everyone Wants to Take His Place) in 2019, laughing and joking with the host as he answered general knowledge questions, the Times reports. During his quiz show appearance, Verove appeared relaxed as he talked to presenter Nagui Fam and earned applause by the studio audience. But the retired police officer wasn't just a normal citizen - Verove had been on the run from police for more than 30 years at that point and was hiding in plain sight. Verove, 59, was described as an upstanding member of the community in La Grande-Motte in southern France, where he lived with his wife and children. His sinister past only came to light after he killed himself in 2021 and French police connected him to 31 of rapes and murders in Paris. Francois Verove (pictured) participated in the French quiz show Tout le monde veut pendre sa place (Everyone Wants to Take His Place) in 2019, laughing and joking with the host as he answered general knowledge questions He told the host and the studio audience about his career as a police officer, including how he patrolled the Bois de Boulogne park in Paris on horseback in the 1980s In the footage of his 2019 quiz show appearance, Verove is introduced as 'Francois from La Grande-Motte' Back in 1986, police had published a police sketch based on witness statements that showed a man of around 25 years old, six feet tall with light-brown hair, and with visible traces of acne on his face His TV appearance, which was disclosed in French news magazine Marianne, is seen as an indication that Verove did not attempt to hide his identity - despite police having a suspect sketch resembling him as well as a suspicion that the perpetrator was a police officer. Verove was nicknamed 'Le Grele' or 'The Pockmarked Man' after a series of rapes and murders from the 1980s until 1994. In his most notorious case, he was suspected of raping and murdering an 11-year-old girl named Cecile Bloch, who was found dead in the basement of the Paris building where she lived in 1986. He is known to have raped at least two other children. Among his other victims were aviation technician Gilles Politi, 38, and German au pair Irmgard Muller, 20, who were both killed in Paris in 1987. He was also believed to have strangled a couple to death in the central Marais district of the capital in 1987. Over the years, investigators came to believe that the suspect may have been part of the Gendarmerie - armed forces in charge of internal security - at the time of the crimes, after victims said he had shown them his police badge. Verove was a former gendarme, who later became a police officer and then retired. He later became a local councillor in the south of France. Investigators established a DNA profile of the suspect and, in the months before his death in September 2021, an investigating magistrate had begun questioning around 750 gendarmes who had been deployed in the Paris region at the time. One of them was Verove, who was sent a summons on September 24 to report for questioning on September 29, but then was reported missing by his wife three days after the summons. He killed himself in a rented apartment in Grau-du-Roi, a fishing village on the Mediterranean coast, and left a written confession in which he told his wife he had 'carried a mad rage that made of me a criminal'. The note continued: 'There were times when I couldn't stand it and I had to destroy, sully, kill someone innocent.' Verove also mentioned 'past impulses' in the letter, but added that he had since brought them 'under control'. Among his other victims were aviation technician Gilles Politi, 38, and German au pair Irmgard Muller (pictured), 20, who were both killed in Paris in 1987 In his most notorious case, Verove was suspected of raping and murdering an 11-year-old girl named Cecile (pictured in an old photograph hugging a dog), who was found dead in the basement of the Paris building where she lived Cecile Bloch (pictured above), 11, was found dead in the basement of the Paris building where she lived in 1986 Aviation technician Gilles Politi (pictured), 38, was killed by Francois Verove in Paris in 1987 He admitted murders without detailing the victims or circumstances, and said he had committed no crimes after 1997. The murder confession contained no specifics, prosecutors said. Police took a DNA sample from his body and found that it matched the genetic profile found at several of the crime scenes. Back in 1986, police had published a police sketch based on witness statements that showed a man of around 25 years old, six feet tall with light-brown hair, and with visible traces of acne on his face. A lawyer for Cecile's family, Didier Seban, thanked police for their work but also said that it was 'painful to know that the criminal took his secrets with him'. His nickname of 'The Pockmarked Man' dates back to the murder of Cecile. Her half-brother, Luc Richard, was among residents who recalled seeing a man with an acne-scarred face on the day of the crime in their Paris apartment building. The then youngster, who helped police draw a sketch of the suspect, said he shared a lift with the man who seemed 'very sure of himself'. He recalled during an interview in 2015: 'He said something to me like, "Have a very, very good day".' According to the newspaper Le Parisien, Verove is also the suspect in another murder near Paris, of 19-year-old Karine Leroy, in 1994 in the city of Meaux. His widow, who has not been named, said she never suspected that her husband was leading a double life and had raped and murdered dozens of children and adults. He was tasked with two general knowledge questions. The first one was about which new sport would be included in the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Verove said it was squash, but the correct answer was breakdance She said even after he was told he would need to provide a DNA sample alongside the other hundreds of officers stationed in Paris in the 1980s when the attacks happened, his demeanour remained unchanged. On the day he killed himself, Verove cooked lunch, had his usual afternoon nap and told his wife he was going out for a bike ride before his body was found in the rented apartment in a neighbouring town. In the footage of his 2019 quiz show appearance, Verove is introduced as 'Francois from La Grande-Motte'. He told the host and the studio audience about his career as a police officer, including how he patrolled the Bois de Boulogne park in Paris on horseback in the 1980s. He was tasked with two general knowledge questions. The first one was about which new sport would be included in the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Verove said it was squash, but the correct answer was breakdance. He was then asked about tuberculosis vaccinations, but failed to give BCG as the answer and was eliminated from the show. Andrew and Tristan Tate have been accused of 10 allegations of rape and sexual assault in Britain, officials have revealed. The pair face complaints from victims who claim they were drugged and subjected to sexual acts between 2012 and 2015, a judicial source told Romanian outlet Gandul. Andrew, 37, and Tristan, 35, are facing being extradited back to Britain after they were arrested in the Romanian capital Bucharest on behalf of Bedfordshire police, who are probing new sex assault allegations during the same time frame. The brothers are currently banned from leaving Romania, where they were previously under house arrest, after they were indicted for rape and human trafficking charges in June last year. A Romanian court ruled earlier this week that they can be sent back to the UK once their Romanian trial is finished, although their case is still being discussed in the preliminary chamber stages and no trial dates have yet been set. Andrew Tate (centre) and his brother Tristan Tate (back right) speak to journalists after having been released from detention in Bucharest, Romania on March 12 Andrew Tate (R) and his brother Tristan Tate (C) are accompanied by police officers after arriving in front of the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania on March 12 Andrew Tate smiles at photographers as he is escorted in hand cuffs from the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania Both Andrew and Tristan 'unequivocally deny' allegations of rape and human trafficking which date back to 2012-2015, for which the European Arrest Warrant was issued. Speaking to reporters outside court following the ruling, Andrew Tate said: 'I want to give absolute credit to Romanian justice for making the correct decision today. In am extraordinary rant, he went on: 'Unfortunately I don't think many people in Romania understand, but in the West, in the countries that are owned by the satanists, when you get to a certain level of fame you either put on a dress or you go to jail and I'm happy to make my choice which is jail every single time, my soul is not for sale neither are my principles. 'We're very innocent men and in time everybody's going to see that. 'We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names.' The brothers, who also 'categorically reject all charges' they face in their ongoing trial, will remain under judicial controls in Romania which prevent them travelling outside the country. Lawyers McCue Jury & Partners revealed they had tipped off British and Romanian authorities that Andrew was planning to flee Romania. The firm, which is representing four women who have accused Tate of rape and sexual assault, said in a statement: 'Last week, we received information that Tate might have been planning to flee Romania, where he is due to stand trial for separate allegations of rape and human trafficking. 'We wrote to the British police to bring this to their attention and to urge them to immediately seek a warrant for Tate's detention in Romania and extradition to the UK.' Andrew Tate, 37, and his brother Tristan Tate, 35, have now been released after they were arrested. Pictured outside court on March 12 Andrew Tate, right, and his brother Tristan leave a tribunal in Bucharest, Romania, on February 29, 2024 The intelligence is thought to have prompted Bedfordshire police to act swiftly and ask Westminster Magistrates Court to issue the European arrest Warrant so the men could be held. A source told the Mail the information was a video sent to authorities in Britain and Bucharest in which former kickboxer Tate said he 'planned to leave Romania'. In the clip, blogger Adin Ross described how he had been in contact with Tate in recent days and had discussed him coming to Romania to film an interview with the multi-millionaire. Ross told his viewers 'This is f***ing peaking' before adding Tate had told him: 'Hey, I'm going to be leaving Romania soon and never coming back.' Tate added: 'So if you want to come and see me it's basically now or never.' The self-confessed misogynist appeared on Big Brother in 2016 but was later kicked out after a video emerged of him striking a woman with a belt. Social commentators and teachers have spoken out against his brand of extreme masculinity and sexism which has drawn a cult following of millions among young men and schoolboys. The Tate brothers are currently banned from leaving Romania while being investigated and had been under house arrest since their initial detention in December 2022. But this condition was later removed on the condition they remain in the country. A request to leave Bucharest and visit their mother in Luton who had suffered a heart attack was denied at Christmas by officials. In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Jacob Chansley told the host that he believed it was his 'shamanic duty' to attend the January 6 riots. Chansley, who is better known as the 'QAnon Shaman' - became the poster boy for the January 6 insurrection with his chest-baring fur outfit, red white and blue face paint and megaphone. Appearing on Carlson's 'Uncensored', Chansley claimed that he went to D.C. ensure that the 'highest possible frequencies of love and peace and harmony were plugged into the grid.' Chansley, 35, was arrested on January 9 on federal charges of 'knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.' He initially pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 41 months, though he was released early on May 25, 2023. In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Jacob Chansley told the host that he believed it was his 'shamanic duty' to attend the January 6 riots Chansley, who is better known as the 'QAnon Shaman' - became the poster boy for the January 6 insurrection with his weirdly patriotic costume and megaphone Appearing on Carlson's 'Uncensored', Chansley claimed that he went to D.C. ensure that the 'highest possible frequencies of love and peace and harmony were plugged into the grid' The QAnon Shaman has now told Carlson that he was simply fulfilling his religious duties by attending the Washington, DC, riots. 'I even played Donald Trump's video tweet over my megaphone and told everybody to go home,' he told Carlson. 'The whole reason why I went to DC was because Washington, DC, is built on electromagnetic ley lines. These are the the lines that go around the planet,' Chansley explained. Carlson told is guest that his reputation stemmed partly from his crazy January 6 costume, which consisted of a fur hat with horns and red, white and blue face paint. 'One of the reasons it was so easy to call for your murderer and to arrest you and send you to prison is because you were dressed in facepaint and horns,' Carlson said - adding 'so it was kind of obvious that you were a nutcase.' Chansley told Carlson that he has been dressing that was for years, not just for the January 6 riots. 'I am a spiritual activist. More than a political one,' he said. The QAnon Shaman has now told Carlson that he was simply fulfilling his religious duties by attending the Washington, DC, riots Carlson told is guest that his reputation stemmed partly from his crazy January 6 costume, which consisted of a fur hat with horns and red, white and blue face paint 'So I've been dressing that way for a long time. I largely take from what is like almost like the yoga shaman tradition, where they shock the cognitive system by addressing in a like elaborate fashion, and in doing so by shocking the cognitive system,' he explained. Chansley believes that opting for bold fashion statements makes people 'more likely to absorb the information that the shaman brings to them.' The information that he is trying to relay is that 'we are most certainly living in a social construct and a cultural paradigm that is based on misinformation.' He explained that the regalia he wore on January 6 was 'not a costume' but instead a 'shamanic regalia' that has symbolism. The coyote tail he wore is symbolic in the Navajo tradition of being 'the trickster' or 'the liar'. 'So I've got the tricksters by the tails. I'm wearing the trickster skin.' All of his tattoos are shamanic tattoos - which he says are 'very well earned,' and compared them to how military members wear ribbons on their chest. Chansley also told Carlson that Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar were 'ghosted' when they tried to visit him at the Alexandria Detention Center. During the interview on Carlson's 'Uncensored' Chansley repeatedly insisted that January 6 was a 'deep state set-up'. 'I understand the depths of government corruption and the mockingbird media's corruption,' he said - adding that he didn't take it personally because he knew all they had done was 'dehumanize' him. The __ went on to explain the 'deep state' - which he described as a tyrannical government that has taken over the country and is forcing American citizens to comply. Carlson praised Chansley for his explanation, insisting that he wasn't being 'patronizing,' despite being amazed and shocked by the QAnon shaman's basic explanation. During the interview on Carlson's 'Uncensored' Chansley repeatedly insisted that January 6 was a 'deep state set-up' Him being shirtless with a horned headdress saw him stand out from other rioters who stormed the Capitol In November, Chansley said he was interested in running for Congress. The 35-year-old filed a statement of interest indicating he wants to run for the seat that will be vacated by the retirement of Rep. Debbie Lesko, R-Ariz. Chansley pleaded guilty to a felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding in connection with the Capitol insurrection. He made a heartfelt apology in the January 6 case, saying 'I deeply regret and am very sorry I entered into the Capitol Building on January 6, 2021. I should not have been there. Period. I was wrong. Period.' His attorney Albert Watkins described Chansley as 'vulnerable to propaganda' and said 'Mr. Chansley, a long avowed and practicing Shaman, has repudiated the "Q" previously assigned to him and requests future references to him be devoid of use of the letter "Q".' During his trial, Chansley was described by prosecutors as 'the public face of the Capitol riot.' Him being shirtless with a horned headdress saw him stand out from other rioters who stormed the Capitol. He was sentenced to 41 months in prison in November 2021 and served about 15 months before being transferred to a Phoenix halfway house in March 2023. He was released two months later in May. The January 6 rioter has since changed his tune and said in July 2023 that he wants his pela reversed, adding that he never 'denounced Q or the QAnon community.' He also flipped on his attorney's claims of mental illness, saying 'I am not schizophrenic, bipolar, depressed or delusional.' An appeal has been made for as many veterans as possible to attend the funeral of one of Britain's last known D-Day heroes. Ivor Pascoe passed away peacefully aged 101 on February 10, his funeral will take place at 2pm on March 14, at Treswithian Downs Crematorium, Treswithian Downs, Camborne, Cornwall. Mr Pascoe was just 21 when as a Royal Marine Commando he piloted his landing craft onto Juno Beach delivering British troops to the battle under heavy fire from German guns. He also survived the bombing of his home during the Blitz when 23 houses in the Quay Hill area of Penryn were destroyed by bombing during an attack on May 13, 1941. He spent five hours under debris but survived, tragically he lost his mother and three sisters. Ivor Pascoe passed away peacefully aged 101 on February 10, his funeral will take place at 2pm on March 14 in Cornwall One of the organisers of the funeral Sean Taylor said that Mr Pascoe only had a small family and he wanted as many veterans as possible to attend to give Ivor the send-off he deserves. He said, as far as he was aware, Mr Pascoe was the last D-Day veteran in Cornwall to pass away. He said he was definitely the last member of the Cornwall branch of the Landing Craft Association. 'Because he had a very small family we are trying to get as many veterans as we can to come along to the funeral to provide support to the family,' he said. The death of Mr Pascoe comes just months before the 80th anniversary of the invasion of France on June 6, 1944. Mr Pascoe was well known in the community and used to visit schools in Penryn to tell the pupils about his experiences during World War Two. Last year he was visited by Royal Marine Commando, Warrant Officer Robbie Buglass, to celebrate his 100th birthday. He said at the time: 'As a representative from the air station on Culdrose, it is an absolute privilege to be here today to join Ivor on his 100th birthday. 'The true bravery for me is for the landing craft, was the going back. 'The first time when they breached those beaches and the young boys were being landed the noise and the smell must have been so overwhelming. 'But to go back, pick up more people and go back again to drop more boys off to support that front line. 'That for me is absolutely awesome and that's what makes a hero.' He leaves behind his children Chris and Marilyn and his grandchildren. Sen. Katie Britt called it 'awesome' that actress Scarlett Johansson portrayed her on Saturday Night Live even though the star ridiculed her as the 'craziest b**** in the Target parking lot.' Speaking to fellow Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on his podcast on Wednesday, Britt (R-Ala.) joked about how 'pumped' she was to see the Black Widow actress playing her in the SNL spoof of her State of the Union rebuttal. Calling Johansson 'hot,' Cruz complimented the Alabama senator for getting someone of the same sex to play her on TV. Britt was widely ridiculed for her rebuttal mostly for telling a 20-year-old child sex trafficking story in a manner that made it seem like it happened under President Joe Biden's border policies. Scarlett Johansson played Sen. Katie Britt in a critical, mocking portrayal of the Alabama Republican's rebuttal to President Joe Biden's State of the Union Britt was criticized for her delivery of the rebuttal, but also for telling a 20-year-old child sex trafficking story that seemed to suggest happened under the current president's border policies Scarlett Johansson is hot, and I am genuinely jealous At least you were played by a woman Ive also been played by a woman. They cast Aidy Bryant as me She looks pretty good in a beard, by the way. Sen. Ted Cruz talks SNL portrayals with Sen. Katie Britt on his pod pic.twitter.com/xZTUBcb4MH The Recount (@therecount) March 13, 2024 Johansson's Britt said she was going to 'pivot out of nowhere into a shockingly violent story about sex trafficking. Rest assured, every detail about it is real except the year, where it took place and who was president when it happened.' But other than that, SNL's cold open was more focused on Britt's delivery. Cruz is no stranger to the SNL stage and has been portrayed many times on the comedy show that comments on current events, pop culture and politics. Actress and comedian Aidy Bryant has on several occasions played Cruz on the NBC skit show. 'The thing that was the coolest is you're played by Scarlett Johansson,' Cruz prompts. 'I mean, how awesome is that?' Britt, 42, said. 'OK, Katie look Scarlett Johansson is hot,' Cruz said, to which the mother-of-two laughed and replied: 'Yes!' 'And I am genuinely jealous because, look, SNL has come after me a bunch of times,' Cruz continued. 'They don't ever have Tom Cruise play me. How come you get a gorgeous movie star? And like, you know, that is a real compliment that you ought to be pretty psyched with.' 'Well I actually was pretty pumped about that,' Britt said on her colleague's podcast. 'And you wonder, who in the world is going to play you, right? And I've got to be honest with you, a bingo card for 2024 for Katie Britt I did not have this on it.' 'It could be worse. I mean, Scarlett Johnannson, here you have Black Widow bring in someone from Avengers to play me in the cold open. I'm here for it. It was a pretty fun moment,' she concluded. Saturday Night Live wasted no time in mocking last week's State of the Union speech, but focused most of the attention on Britt's Republican rebuttal. Britt was mocked online following the event as her tone shifted from one of dark and ominous to bright and breezy and, at times, deeply emotional. On Saturday, the junior senator was portrayed by Johansson, 39, in a surprise appearance and hilarious take on the senator. Cruz joked about Britt being played by the same sex. 'At least you were played by a woman,' he said in a podcast interview with Britt. 'I've also been played by a woman. Pictured: Actress and comedian Aidy Bryant (center) portrays Cruz on SNL Bryant dons a fake beard while playing Cruz on SNL and she stands beside Kate McKinnon who was portraying Dr. Anthony Fauci on a December 11, 2021 episode of SNL 'Good evening America, my name is Katie Britt, and I have the honor of serving the people of the great state of Alabama. But tonight, I'll be auditioning for the part of 'Scary Mom.' I'll be performing an original monologue called, 'This Country is Hell,' Johansson said as she gave her rendition of Britt's speech. 'You see, I'm not just a senator, I'm a wife, a mother and the craziest b***h in the Target parking lot, worried about the future of our children.' Cruz had nothing but praise for Johansson's portrayal and harped on how 'cool' it was to have Britt played by the A-list actress. 'In terms of Republican portrayals like, they have had some vicious ones,' the Texas Republican said. 'OK, let's start off with at least you were played by a woman.' 'When SNL has had me, I've also been played by a woman,' Cruz added. 'They cast Aidy Bryant as me. And she's really funny' 'She looks pretty good in a beard, by the way.' Johansson in her role as Sen. Britt said she told her kids 'mommy freaked out the entire country' in her rebuttal to President Joe Biden's State of the Union last Thursday. During the real-life Republican response on Thursday night, Britt told a story about a sex trafficking victim which she used as fodder to criticize the current chaos at the southern border under the Biden administration. But the story of Karla Jacinto Romero's child sex trafficking horror was from 2004-2008, when President George W. Bush was in office. Some blamed Britt for using the story to fan the flames of hate against illegal immigrants and migrants seeking asylum at the southern border. Johansson concluded her mocking address by laying into the fear mongering progressives accuse Republicans of at the border, saying: 'The American people who are struggling right now, know this: We hear you. We see you. We smell you. We're inside your kitchen right now looking through your fridge. And what's that on the top shelf? Migrants.' Gen Z Congressman Maxwell Frost warns President Joe Biden could take a hit with young voters by backing a ban on TikTok as Congress moves forward with legislation amid privacy concerns over the app's ties to China. The 27-year-old Florida congressman voted against the bill on Wednesday. The legislation would force the app's Chinese parent company to sell TikTok within 180 days or it would be banned in the United States. 'I don't think it will be helpful with young voters,' Frost told CNN. He said his argument is not just about young people, he believes the bill is bad policy. The House passed the bill with overwhelming bipartisan support on Wednesday 352 to 65. Frost, who is the youngest member of the House, said he believes the bill is an infringement on Americans' first amendment rights and violates the constitution. Gen Z Congressman Maxwell Frost said he was a 'hell no' vote on the TikTok bill ahead of a House vote forcing the app's Chinese parent company to divest or face a ban in the U.S. TikTok advocates gathered outside of the Capitol ahead of Wednesday's vote to push back against the bill 'We're talking about a platform that allows people to put out information, news, whatever they want to put out,' Frost said ahead of the vote. He said no matter how one puts it, forcing ByteDance to sell within five months would lead to a ban. 'It's unreasonable to believe that in 180 days that a buyer would be found and that the deal can move forward, which would result in TikTok being banned, whether it's banned for a year or two years or six months, a ban is a ban,' he said. TikTok has 170 million users in the United States. Frost said he hears from young people all the time who get their news directly from TikTok. 'Now I do have to say, am I concerned about Americans' Data? Yes, I am,' he said. 'But this bill does not fix that problem. Let's be honest here.' Rep. Frost with President Biden at the White House in 2023. Biden said he would sign the TikTok bill should it reach his desk. The congressman said a ban won't help with young voters Lawmakers accused TikTok of providing its U.S. user data to its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance, which they say has connections to the Chinese Communist Party. 170 million people in the U.S. use the app TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced But supporters of the bill argue it does not ban TikTok but forces it to cut ties with the Chinese Communist Party and access to Americans' personal data. The bill now heads to the Senate, but Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has not committed to a vote, saying only that the Senate would review it when it comes over from the House. Biden has said he would sign it should the bill make it to his desk despite his campaign launching the president's own TikTok account last month. The White House said it wants to see the Senate 'take quick action' on Wednesday. It comes as Biden is already bleeding support among young people ahead of the 2024 election. Some have voiced frustration over the president's support of U.S. funding for Israel. Recent polling still shows Biden maintains a lead over Donald Trump among voters 18 to 29, but the support has dropped since Biden was elected in 2020. As president, Trump issued an executive order declaring TikTok a threat to national security, foreign policy and the U.S. economy. But ahead of the House vote, he came out against the TikTok bill. Trump argued last week that a ban on TikTok would help Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. In an interview with CNBC Trump also noted there are a lot of young kids on TikTok who 'will go crazy without it.' Andy McDonald had his suspension as a Labour MP lifted today after he agreed to not again use the phrase 'between the river and the sea'. The Middlesbrough MP had the party's whip withdrawn in October last year after he used the controversial slogan at a pro-Palestinian rally. It came just three weeks after the Hamas terror attacks in Israel on October 7, with Labour at the time branding Mr McDonald's remarks as 'deeply offensive'. But he has now been readmitted to the Labour parliamentary party following the conclusion of an internal investigation. It found he had 'not engaged in conduct that was against the party's rulebook', while Mr McDonald said he 'bitterly regrets the pain and hurt caused'. The former shadow minister, who had sat as an independent MP while the probe took place, said his use of the phrase was part of a 'heartfelt plea' for peace in the Middle East. Andy McDonald had the Labour whip withdrawn in October last year after he used the controversial phrase 'between the river and the sea' at a pro-Palestinian rally The 66-year-old, who served as a shadow minister under ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, also used the slogan on social media as he posted a video of his speech Mr McDonald, pictured with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer in April last year, said he 'bitterly regrets the pain and hurt caused' A Labour Party spokesperson said: 'The Chief Whip has today restored the Labour whip to Andy McDonald MP. 'This follows a full investigation by the Labour Party into complaints received about public remarks that he made in October 2023. 'The investigation concluded that he had not engaged in conduct that was against the party's rulebook but reminded him of the importance of elected representatives being mindful, not only of what they say in public, but how their words may be interpreted, especially in reference to controversial or emotive issues.' The phrase 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' has regularly been chanted by pro-Palestinian demonstrators during recent marches over the ongoing Gaza crisis. It is a reference to a Palestinian state stretching from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean. But it is considered controversial as it is interpreted by some as a call for the destruction or erasure of the Jewish state of Israel. After having the Labour whip restored, Mr McDonald said in a statement: 'I am grateful to the Chief Whip for the restoration of the Labour Party whip. 'And to all those who have supported me whilst I have been suspended, in particular the members of my Middlesbrough Constituency Party. 'I am pleased that the investigation found I had not breached the rules of the party. 'Nevertheless, I am always acutely conscious of the power of the language used by elected representatives and the need to be mindful of what others hear when discussing sensitive and complex issues. 'It was never my intention to use words that would cause anyone distress or anguish and I bitterly regret the pain and hurt caused. Accordingly, I will not use that phrasing again. 'I was disappointed that the reason for my suspension was misreported in some quarters and that this has caused reputational damage to myself and further pain and suffering to others. 'I will continue to denounce the abominations of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia wherever they raise their ugly heads. These are key reasons why I joined the Labour Party 45 years ago. 'I am now glad that I am able to focus all my efforts and energies on campaigning to secure the Labour government that our country so desperately needs.' During a rally in central London on 28 October, Mr McDonald used the phrase 'between the river and the sea' as he made a speech urging peace between Israelis and Palestinians. He said: 'We won't rest until we have justice, until all people, Israelis and Palestinians, between the river and the sea can live in peaceful liberty.' The 66-year-old, who served as a shadow minister under ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, also repeated the comments on social media as he posted a video of his speech. Mr McDonald is among a series of MPs and parliamentary candidates to have been stripped of party support over remarks made in relation to the Israel-Hamas war. Kate Osamor had the Labour whip withdrawn in January after she appeared to say the Gaza war should be remembered as genocide on Holocaust Memorial Day, before apologising for her comments. Labour also withdrew its backing for its former Rochdale by-election candidate Azhar Ali, after he allegedly suggested Israel used Hamas's October 7 attack as a pretext to invade Gaza and blamed 'people in the media from certain Jewish quarters' for Mr McDonald's suspension. The party removed its backing for Graham Jones, its candidate for Hyndburn, after it was reported that he had used the words 'f****** Israel' at the same meeting attended by Mr Ali. Foreign governments will be blocked from owning UK newspapers and magazines amid concern over the proposed UAE-backed takeover of The Daily Telegraph. In the face of cross-party pressure, the Government pledged on Wednesday night to table an amendment to legislation going through the House of Lords to block such deals. It was prompted by concern over the bid by RedBird IMI, which is majority-owned by the United Arab Emirates' International Media Investments, to buy the Telegraph Media Group. The deal would also see the investment fund take control of The Spectator magazine. Tory peer Baroness Stowell had proposed an amendment to the Digital Markets Bill to prevent takeovers by foreign states. Labour has come out against the proposed UAE-backed takeover of The Daily Telegraph, warning that 'foreign governments should not own national newspapers' (stock image) She said it was 'inconceivable' a foreign government should be able to own a UK news group, telling the Lords: 'Freedom of the press is fundamental to a functioning democracy.' But facing possible defeat on the amendment, media minister Lord Parkinson announced the Government would bring forward its own amendment at third reading to prevent foreign state ownership. He said: 'We will amend the media merger regime explicitly to rule out newspaper and periodical news magazine mergers involving ownership, influence or control by foreign states.' READ MORE: Labour comes out against the proposed UAE-backed takeover of The Telegraph Advertisement Under the new measures, he said the Culture Secretary would be 'obliged' to refer media merger cases to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) where there are 'reasonable grounds to believe that a merger involving a UK newspaper or news magazine has given or would give a foreign state or body connected to a foreign state, ownership, influence or control'. 'The Competition and Markets Authority would be obliged to investigate the possible merger and if it concludes that the merger has resulted or would result in foreign state ownership, influence or control over a newspaper enterprise the Secretary of State would be required by statute to make an order blocking or unwinding the merger,' he added. Lord Parkinson suggested that the changes could apply to the Telegraph Media Group takeover if they pass into law swiftly. 'With regard to any live case, if it is still ongoing when the new changes come into effect, the Secretary of State will continue to follow the process set out in the existing regime and will also apply the new measures that will be set out in the Government amendments,' he told peers. Lady Stowell withdrew her amendment in light of the Government's commitment, but warned she could lay it again if necessary. A Government spokesman said: 'We have listened carefully to the arguments made by Parliamentarians in recent weeks, and are taking action to explicitly rule out foreign state ownership, influence or control of newspapers and periodical news magazines. 'This will deliver additional protections for a free press, a pillar of our democracy and a priority for the Government. 'While our media merger regime already provides protection for accuracy of the news and free expression of views, which allows for the consideration of foreign state ownership, we will bring forward an amendment that puts the position beyond doubt.' The pledge comes as the Government considers the findings of investigations by the media regulator Ofcom and competition watchdog the CMA into the takeover. They passed their findings onto Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer on Monday, and she will look at them over the coming weeks before deciding whether to refer the deal to a more detailed Phase 2 investigation by the CMA. Such a move could lead to it being blocked altogether. Disgraced tycoon Dominic Chappell who purchased BHS for 1 has been recalled to prison after serving three years for tax fraud. The former BHS boss was released from Guys Marsh Prison in Dorset in November, but was recalled this week for breaching his licence conditions. Chappell, who was declared bankrupt three times and has no retail experience, bought BHS in 2015 from Sir Phillip Green and it collapsed into administration 13 months later - resulting in 11,000 job losses. In 2020, he was sentenced to six years in prison for evading around 600,000 in taxes. Chappell, 56, blamed Sir Philip at the time for allegedly misleading him on the deal. Disgraced tycoon Dominic Chappell who purchased BHS for 1 has been recalled to prison after serving three years for tax fraud. Pictured in 2020 Chappell, who was declared bankrupt three times and has no retail experience, bought BHS in 2015 from Sir Phillip Green and it collapsed into administration 13 months later - resulting in 11,000 job losses. Pictured in 2020 at Southwark Crown Court Ex-BHS owner Dominic Chappell pictured being released in November last year from HMP Guys Marsh after serving half of his six year prison sentence for tax evasion A Ministry of Justice spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions and we do not hesitate to recall them if they break the rules.' BHS's woes did not prevent him from living the high life, blowing a fortune on personal luxuries such as a 200,000 racing yacht, a 1 million speedboat, a Bentley, Beretta guns and a holiday in the Bahamas. The former racing driver drew a 510,000 salary and hired a helicopter that he claimed to have flown himself to conduct visits to the down-at-heel stores. After Chappell drained millions out of the company, it crashed in April 2016. Chappell, a father-of-two, split from his wife Rebecca in 2020, when she reportedly threw him out of their Grade I-listed mansion in Blandford Forum, Dorset. A few months later, Chappell was convicted at Southwark Crown Court of evading around 600,000 in taxes. His legal team told the jury that Chappell was 'simply too busy' to lead BHS properly and blamed his financial advisers. His defence lawyer claimed Chappell had been left 'utterly broke' by the BHS crash and that had the pension problem not emerged following his purchase, he would have been able to pay his tax bill. However, the judge, Mr Justice Bryan, told him he had 'engaged in a long and consistent course of conduct designed to cheat the Revenue', adding: 'You are not of positive good character. Your offending occurs against a backdrop of successive bankruptcies.' Former bankrupt Dominic Chappell admitted he was a "chancer" who had benefited "a lot" Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell arrives at Brighton Magistrates' Court in 2017 During an insolvency court hearing, it was alleged Chappell had wrongfully diverted 1.5 million of funds from BHS to a company in Sweden one day after the potential appointment of an administrator had been discussed by the board. The BHS collapse also caused humiliation for tycoon Sir Philip when the 571 million pension black hole emerged. After weeks of pressure, Green finally agreed to pay back 363 million. Chappell was separately ordered to pay back 9.5 million, while the Government picked up the rest of the tab. Chappell was barred from running a company for ten years while his father, Joseph, was banned for five years. Both were accused of making 'reckless financial transactions'. He is understood to have spent the majority of his time behind bars at Guys Marsh, after a spell in Wandsworth. The Category C prison houses about 460 prisoners including murderers and rapists. It is understood that while inside, Chappell was put in charge of a team repairing TVs and other electronic devices. An accused drug dealer allegedly hijacked a bus and held 17 passengers hostage after he shot two people whom he thought were cops trying to arrest him for a shooting days earlier, the Rio de Janeiro Civil Police said. Paulo de Lima, 29, purchased a one-way ticket for a bus ride to the state of Minas Gerais at the Rio Bus Station on Tuesday as he was attempting to flee from a gang after allegedly shooting a drug dealer at a bar on Sunday. De Lima mistook two passengers for police officers after purchasing his ticket and opened fire. One of the passengers, whose name was not released, was grazed by a bullet and treated on the scene by paramedics and did not require a hospital visit. The other passenger, Bruno da Costa, was shot three times and rushed to a medical facility, where he underwent surgery and received six blood transfusions. Accused Brazilian drug dealer Paulo de Lima was seen on camera purchasing a bus ticket Tuesday afternoon at the Rio Bus Station in Rio de Janeiro moments before he confused passengers with police officers and allegedly shot two and then held 16 bus passengers hostage. The 29-year-old turned himself in to the police following a three-hour standoff Brazilian authorities were able to arrest an accused drug dealer without incident moments after he hijacked a bus with 16 passengers at a bus terminal in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. The suspect was attempting to flee from a drug dealer he had allegedly shot during a gun battle at a bar on Sunday Paulo de Lima is facing illegal possession of a restricted-use firearm with deleted serial numbers, attempted murder, kidnapping and false imprisonment charges De Lima then broke into a bus filled with passengers and locked himself inside for three hours before he volunteered to turn himself in. He is expected to be charged with illegal possession of a restricted-use firearm with deleted serial numbers, attempted murder, kidnapping and false imprisonment, police said. Rio de Janeiro Civil Police chief Mario Andrade said de Lima, an alleged member of the notorious Comando Vermelho criminal organization, told investigators that he sold drugs in the Rio de Janeiro slum of Muzema and on Sunday went to the nearby slum of Rocinha to visit bars he owed money to. He had a heated argument with a drug dealer, who opened fire on him. De Lima allegedly responded and wounded the dealer. Police say de Lima fled Rocinha and hid in multiple hotels, afraid that other dealers would seek retribution. On Tuesday afternoon, de Lima headed to the bus station and purchased a ticket to the Monas Gerais city of Juiz de Fora, where his family lives. Bruno da Costa was mistaken for a police officer and shot three times Paulo de Lima is allegedly a member of the notorious Comando Vermelho, one of the most powerful criminal organizations in Brazil Paulo de Lima was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2021 for a Rio de Janeiro bus robbery Brazilian newspaper Metropoles reported that de Lima is a wanted suspect in a 2017 murder he allegedly committed in Minas Gerais. Authorities arrested him in 2019 after he robbed a bus in Rio de Janeiro and was sentenced to eight years in prison in December 2021. He was granted the privilege of semi-open regime in 2022, which meant that he could serve the remainder his sentence from his residence as long as he wore an ankle monitor. However, de Lima refused to comply with the order and the Rio de Janeiro prison system alerted the court on six different occasions. The judge overseeing the request said Tuesday that he recently had the opportunity to decide on the case.' TOKYO, Mar 13 (News On Japan) - A boy under the age of 5 living in Tokyo has been confirmed to be infected with measles According to the city, the boy, who is under 5 years old, visited a medical institution after developing symptoms of fever, rash, and cough on the 4th of this month. His infection with measles was confirmed on the 11th. The boy had no history of vaccination. He is currently hospitalized. The route of infection is unknown, but the boy had a history of traveling abroad, and he had visited a restaurant in Adachi Ward the day before his symptoms appeared. The city is urging anyone who suspects they may have measles to contact a medical institution in advance and follow their instructions for consultation. Regarding measles, eight passengers on a flight from the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East to Kansai International Airport last month were confirmed to be infected, but the route of infection is believed to be different. Measles is highly contagious, with symptoms such as fever, cough, and runny nose, followed by a high fever of over 39C and a rash. Source: ANN A student in Kentucky who was found on her dorm room floor with deep cuts and bruises had stopped breathing for 23 minutes - but the police remain unsure about what caused her injuries. Isabella Willingham, 21, was found unresponsive in her room at Asbury University on November 27 and she was rushed to hospital where she was placed in intensive care. Paramedics told her parents she stopped breathing, suffered deep gashes, swollen legs and had her acrylic nails ripped off. The Jessamine County Sheriffs Office confirmed Isabella had multiple injuries, cuts, and bruises but allegedly told her parents she likely got hurt from falling out of her bunk bed. It has been months since an investigation into the incident began and her parents still have not learnt anything new about what happened that night. Kentucky student Isabella Willingham, who was found on her dorm room floor with deep cuts and bruises, had stopped breathing for 23 minutes but the police are still unsure about what caused her injuries The 21-year-old was found unresponsive in her room at Asbury University on November 27 and she was rushed to hospital where she was placed in intensive care Paramedics told her parents she stopped breathing, suffered deep gashes, swollen legs and had her acrylic nails ripped off Her father Andy Willingham did not believe the explanation provided by authorities and told Lex18: 'There's no way these could've been caused by anything other than someone doing something to her.' Isabella's family did not hear from her for hours after she returned to campus after Thanksgiving and they received a worrying phone call. 'At 11 that night, we get a call from the resident director of her dorm, and she tells us that Bella is in an ambulance on her way to the emergency room, that she had been found unresponsive on the floor of her room by her roommate,' Andy said. The student spent two weeks recovering at the University of Kentucky hospital while her father waited for Asbury to notify the student body of the potential threat. However, he claims an email was not sent out until more than a week after the incident. 'As a parent, I want to know if there's a possibility of someone coming into the school or campus being potentially dangerous,' he added. Asbury University issued a statement in December which said they were aware about the incident involving Isabella but they did not think there was a threat to campus. The Jessamine County Sheriffs Office confirmed Isabella had multiple injuries, cuts, and bruises but allegedly told her parents she likely got hurt from falling out of her bunk bed in her Asbury University (pictured) dorm But her father Andy Willingham did not believe the explanation provided by authorities But Andy is disappointed that students weren't asked to come forward with information. He claimed an email probing for tips was sent to girls in his daughter's dorm but not the entire student body. 'I contacted them and said this is not okay, you have to give a detail so if someone knows something, they'll come forward, and the school's response to me was that we felt like they had done everything they could do,' Andy said. A spokesman for Asbury University said: 'This matter is part of an ongoing investigation by the appropriate authorities and with the Universitys full cooperation. 'We are unable to provide any updates or specific information at this time. Asburys priority remains the safety and wellbeing of its students, faculty, and staff.' DailyMail.com has contacted Asbury University and the Jessamine County Sheriffs Office for comment. Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton is demanding the Pentagon disclose information on its contract with a Chinese-owned tutoring company that has access to U.S. military family data. Tutor.com, a popular tutoring website, is owned by Primavera Holdings Limited, a firm run by Chinese nationals that also holds stakes in TikTok parent company ByteDance and e-commerce giant Alibaba. The site offers tutoring services to the U.S. military and school districts around the country. However, a Chinese-owned company should not have access to the sensitive data of U.S. school kids and military families, according to Cotton. 'The Department of Defense needs to explain why a Chinese-owned company has easy access to the data to the military families,' Cotton told DailyMail.com in a statement. 'The same goes for any school district that is utilizing tutor.com.' Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., sent a letter to the Pentagon demanding further details on its contract with Tutor.com Tutor.com offers tutoring services for Kindergarten through post graduate students At the bottom of the Tutor.com website is a disclosure that the company is owned by Chinese nationals working for Primavera Holdings Limited, a firm based in Hong Kong, China Cotton originally sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin seeking more information about the Pentagon's deal with Tutor.com in February. In his letter he called the Pentagon's business relationship with Primavera 'ill advised' and 'reckless.' The Chinese Communist Party is known to exercise control over large firms with national security implications, such as TikTok, and Cotton is concerned that the same is true for Primavera. 'While providing educational services, Tutor.com collects personal data on users, such as location, internet protocol addresses, and contents of the tutoring sessions,' Cotton wrote in the February letter. 'As Chinese national security laws require companies to release confidential business and customer data to the Chinese government, we are paying to expose our military and their children's private information to the Chinese Communist Party.' Tutor.com, meanwhile, fought back against Cotton's claims in a statement shared with DailyMail.com. 'Tutor.com is an American company, and we abide by U.S. state and federal laws. We were incorporated in 2000 in the state of Delaware. Our principal place of business is New York City, and all student data is housed in the United States,' a Tutor.com spokesperson said. Primavera Holdings Limited acquired The Princeton Review, which owns Tutor.com, in 2022 Tutor.com offers 'No-Cost, Online Tutoring and Homework Help' for U.S. military members 'As an American company, Tutor.com cannot be compelled to release personal data to China,' the company continued. 'No personal information of students or families is shared with Primavera, and Primavera does not haveand may not obtainaccess to our IT systems.' Tutor.com, notably, did not mention the data protection practices used for U.S. military personnel. Despite the company's confirmation that user data is not stored in or accessible to individuals in China, national security concerns arising from Chinese-owned companies has seemingly reached an all-time high on Capitol Hill. On Wednesday morning, the House passed a bill that could ban the popular social media app TikTok from its Chinese parent company ByteDance, which Primavera has also invested in. The bill passed with an overwhelming bipartisan 352 - 65 vote. A group of Democrats and Republicans worked for over a year on the bill, and if it passes through the Senate, President Joe Biden has said he would sign it into law. The House China Select Committee says Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on its U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat. Illinois Mayor Tiffany Henyard, accused of misusing government money on glam squads, has also 'tried to silence sexual assault accuser who claimed co-worker raped her.' Mayor of Dolton Tiffany Henyard, 40, made her first appearance at a Thornton Township meeting Tuesday night amid allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation. The Department of Human Rights is investigating complaints against her office. Accusations include sexual harassment, retaliation and discrimination stemming from an economic development trip to Las Vegas. Henyard, calling herself the 'first supermayor,' left the meeting without taking a single question, as reported by NBC Chicago. 'We in the news every single day ... I'm the first, I'm the first supermayor,' she said. Mayor of Dolton Tiffany Henyard, 40, made her first appearance at a Thornton Township meeting Tuesday night amidst allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation Henyard, calling herself the 'first supermayor,' left the meeting without taking a single question, as reported by NBC Chicago A former assistant alleges sexual assault by an unnamed Dolton trustee after a dinner that left her disoriented. Tiffany Henyard is also under fire for her lavish spending of taxpayer money Officer Byron Miles, part of Henyard's security detail, filed a complaint stating the trustee admitted to unprotected sex with the woman. The woman claims Henyard urged her to keep quiet, promising to handle the situation. She was later placed on unpaid medical leave and terminated. Thornton Township trustee Christopher Gonzalez called the allegations serious and urged for Henyard's resignation if proven true. The village conducted an investigation, with Officer Miles denying knowledge of the incident and the alleged victim refusing to cooperate. The village dismissed the claims as adisgruntled employee's alleged attempts to exploit taxpayers and pledged to defend itself. This comes after reports that the mayor billed the city $7,650 for her glam hair and makeup team over just two months, while listing it as an 'assistant' cost. Henyard has been accused by a former employee of wasting taxpayer money on six beauty transactions between April 6 and June 5, 2023. It comes after it was revealed that the mayor has spent thousands more taxpayer dollars on lavish first class trips and a security detail. Henyard has admitted a $2 million deficit, blaming the trustees for incompetence, but some fear the true figure could be as high as $5 million She's facing furious calls to resign after rejecting demands to open up the books while vetoing a bid by the town trustees to call the FBI. In the latest blow to the mayor, former assistant Stephanie Wiedeman has blasted her as a 'narcissistic' and 'very self-serving' person who 'shattered' the town in a tell-all interview about her beauty spending. Wiedeman also produced records from a Freedom of Information Act request showing Henyard's spending on her stylist, who was listed as 'admin assistant' in her receipts. Henyard gets her hair and makeup done by Brandon K Momon, known as 'Style Me Brandon' on Instagram, according to his social media posts. Momon regularly posts videos of Henyard smiling, waving, and blowing kisses at the camera in colorful looks he has styled for her. Henyard brings home nearly $300,000 per year for her role as mayor along with serving as the county supervisor for Thornton Township. Henyard is pictured stepping out of a chauffeured SUV in one of her stylish outfits. She's been blasted for spending taxpayer cash on security, as well as professional hair and makeup artists This dwarfs the average salaries in Thornton Township and Dolton of around $50,000 and $24,000 respectively. Wiedeman, a Thornton Township employee of 20 years, said Henyard fired her weeks into her tenure. She said this is typical of the mayor who makes decisions based on 'personal vendettas' rather than having the community interest at heart. Speaking about the lavish spending on her personal stylist, Wiedeman told Fox: 'I don't know that anybody should be able to come in here and spend money the way this is happening... '[Her] personality is narcissistic,' she said. 'I've met people in my life that have characteristics of being a narcissist but every single characteristic you need to qualify for she exhibited on a regular basis.' 'She shattered everything - we had a well-oiled machine, the township services were self-running because the people there knew what they were doing,' Wiedeman added. After a recall bid failed, Henyard posted this defiant image on Instagram declaring she 'forever will be Dolton's mayor' Henyard posted a video of herself with President Joe Biden at the White House in January after coming under fire for her high salary and questionable spending 'But (Henyard) eliminated all of that, and the community is suffering because of it.' In claims separate from the unnamed woman's suit, Wiedeman has also filed a lawsuit against Henyard, claiming she was fired just a couple of weeks into her tenure because the mayor didn't trust her to keep quiet. 'She didn't trust me. I wasn't part of her team. Those were her words,' Wiedeman said. 'It wasn't a surprise to me that I was let go.' Wiedeman has also accused Henyard of sending police to conduct a 'false arrest' against her in retaliation to her recalling the mayor. 'She uses the police force to harass and torture residents,' she told Fox. 'I know this firsthand. I've been arrested by them. I get removed from meetings. If I wasn't living it, I wouldn't believe it was happening.' The allegations are being investigated by the FBI. The husband of a 35-year-old woman whose body was found in a wheelie bin outside of Melbourne allegedly lobbed on her parents' doorstep in India, dropped to his knees and expressed sorrow over her death. Chaithanya 'Swetha' Madhagani's body was found in a green wheelie bin on Mount Pollock Road in Buckley, west of Geelong, Victoria at 12pm on Saturday. By the time the body was found, her husband Ashok Raj Varikuppala had already flown to India with their four-year-old son Ayra last weekend, police confirmed. Victoria Police said Varikuppula is a person of interest in their investigation and was still overseas despite his claim he would be returning to Australia. Ms Madhagani's father has now claimed that Varikuppla turned up at Ms Madhagani's parents home in Hyderabad in southern India to break the news of her death: 'I am sorry... Chaithanya is no more.' Her father, Kumar Reddy, had initially thought his son-in-law and young grandson had planned a surprise visit to India - before he was hit with the devastating news of his daughter's death. 'We were taken aback, shocked, numb and tears were rolling down,' he told the Herald Sun. Chaithanya 'Swetha' Madhagani and her husband Ashok Raj Varikuppala married 12 years ago and share a four-year-old son. Ms Madhagani was found dead in a wheelie bin on Saturday The green wheelie bin was found semi-hidden amongst rural bushland Mr Reddy said hearing of his daughter's terrible death felt like 'the sky has fallen on us'. Their son-in-law allegedly said she died in an 'unintentional' way. He then left his four-year-old son at his grandparents' house and disappeared, allegedly telling his father-in-law he was returning to Australia. The father said the couple married 12 years ago in a 'love marriage' rather than an arranged one and had seemed 'happy' with their life in Australia. However, close family friend Praveen Kumar Thopucherla - who has known the couple for seven years - told Daily Mail Australia that the family's 'internal problems' were well known to friends, and described their marriage as 'love and arranged'. 'I believe those went deeper (than) it seems,' he said. Ms Madhagani's family have contacted India's Ministry of External Affairs in hopes their daughters body can be repatriated to Hyderabad, in India's south. They have asked Australia authorities for a picture of their daughter's body, but have not received one as yet. 'We want to know what happened to our daughter,' Mr Madhagani said. Mr Varikuppala, is understood to have flown back to India with their four-year-old son Arya last weekend Deepika Devara, a close friend of Ms Madhagani, has organised a GoFundMe appeal to raise money for her body to be brought to India so the family can have a Hindu funeral, and also to provide some funds for her son. 'Chaitanya was an amazing woman and even a better mom is what she is best known for,' Ms Devara wrote. 'She has a heart of gold and touched everyone's hearts she met. There was never a dull moment in her presence.' As of Wednesday night, the appeal had raised almost $13,000. Since moving to Australia for a better life, Ms Madhagani had built a fashion business selling traditional Indian saris - a dream she said was 'six years' in the making. She had bought a home with her husband in Point Cook, in Melbourne's south-west. Friends have described Ms Madhagani (pictured) as 'a perfect woman and a perfect mother' who was devoted to her young son, loved ones and neighbours An activist diversity officer has responded to being called out by Elon Musk for her controversial tweets by joking her followers should send her cash. Kayla Aliese Carter may need donations for real soon as she is 'under investigation' by the City of College Park, Maryland, where she is the racial equity officer. The 'social impact leader' since May 2022 leads a team reviewing 'all current policies and programs' for racial bias and 'evidence of disparate impact' on black people, as part of the city's plan to address racial inequity. Carter, 30, explained on her personal website that she was 'committed to dismantling policies and practices embedded in our lives and infrastructures'. But behind that professional veneer, her social media posts appeared to condone violence, and discussed with other activists 'how we will eat and live and grow after we burn it all down'. Musk took a shot at her 'woke ideology', to which she responded by joking about the 'fame' his attention brought her. Carter spent the morning mocking her critics, but later on Monday afternoon had apparently had enough and locked down all her social media platforms. Kayla Aliese Carter is 'under investigation' by the City of College Park, Maryland, where she is the racial equity officer Behind her professional veneer, her social media posts appeared to condone violence, and discussed with other activists 'how we will eat and live and grow after we burn it all down' Mayor Fazlul Kabir disavowed Carter's social media activity and said she was under investigation by the city. 'Ms Carters views expressed on her personal accounts do not reflect the opinions, beliefs, and core values of the City of College Park and its Mayor and Council,' he told DailyMail.com. 'The City is investigating the matter and will take appropriate action.' Twitter owner Musk, a frequent critic of what he sees as 'woke' diversity culture, shared a Fox News report on Carter on Wednesday that explored her social media history. 'Woke ideology wants you to die,' he wrote. Carter responded to the tweet by mocking her critics for taking her Twitter ramblings too seriously and joking her followers should send her money. 'Omg Elon, knows who I am CASHAPP ME,' she wrote. Another post noted 'my email is filled with death threats from the Fox News fan club lol'. Carter spent the morning mocking her critics, but later on Monday afternoon had apparently had enough and locked down all her social media platforms Carter's previous posts included references to violence and being in a 'war against colonialism' that black people should never forget they were fighting Carter responded to Musk's tweet joking her followers should send her money Carter played off the criticism of her more outrageous posts as being mostly performative in her support for black liberation. 'How do I explain Twitter comedy too (sic) people not online?' she pondered, beginning a long explanatory thread about how she saw Twitter. 'How do I explain being a hilarious millennial on Twitter for over 10 years to someone who doesn't spend horrifying amounts of time on this website?!?!?!!' Her previous posts included references to violence and being in a 'war against colonialism' that black people should never forget they were fighting. 'Why do Black people always have to rationalize our violence and anger?' one post read. Another from May 2020 explained how she co-hosted and 'occupied space' with dozens of people who committed their lives, businesses, and money to black liberation. 'On all days, every day, each day. Light workers. Already planning (BEEN PLANNING) for how we will eat and live and grow after we burn it all down,' she wrote. Carter regularly refers to white people as 'yT' and mocked a colleague for inviting black people in a meeting 'tell us what MLK Day this year meant to you'. Carter responded to the furor over her tweets by encouraging her new critics to buy her book if they wanted to understand her 'ideology'. This is an excerpt she posted Carter is paid $75,600 a year, but some of her posts claim she would rather be a 'collage artist' or 'lady of leisure' and only worked because of capitalism Another post from the same month pondered why 'the oppressed are constantly shamed out of using violence'. 'BECAUSE THE OPPRESSOR WANTS TO BE THE SOLE PROFITEER OF VIOLENCE. THEY DON'T WANT TO DEAL WITH BACK TALK. 'DO AS I SAY NOT AS I DO' FACE A**. No,' she answered. Carter regularly refers to white people as 'yT' and mocked a colleague for inviting black people in a meeting 'tell us what MLK Day this year meant to you'. 'I SWEAR I AM WHEEZING WHO HIRES THESE PEOPLE?' she wrote. Two 2022 posts explained why she 'can't stand black' and 'can't trust yT people'. College Park created Carter's position after former mayor Patrick Wojahn, which is home to the University of Maryland, passed Resolution 20-R-16 in 2020. Mayor Fazlul Kabir (pictured) disavowed Carter's social media activity and said it was under investigation by the city Carter's position was created after the city, which is home to the University of Maryland (pictured), passed Resolution 20-R-16 in 2020 The law 'renounced systemic racism, declared support of Black Lives, and called for the ongoing explicit and conscious confrontation of racism'. Wojahn resigned on March 2, 2023, after he was arrested, and later jailed for 30 years, on 140 charges of possessing and distributing child pornography, including distributing images and videos of toddlers being raped. Carter creates 'equity assessment tools' for the 'explicit consideration of racial equity in decisions, including policies, practices, programs, and budgets'. She is paid $75,600 a year, but some of her posts claim she would rather be a 'collage artist' or 'lady of leisure' and only worked because of capitalism. 'Tired of being so underpaid also tired of applying to new jobs. I don't wanna go back to selling drugs (sic) but this economy is getting desperate,' she wrote in October. Another in January read: 'I need a new job but the problem is that I don't want to work I just wanna lay in my bed being a girl can anyone help me with this?' Carter responded to the furor over her tweets by encouraging her new critics to buy her book, which she wrote 'is my Twitter in long form'. A Florida woman has been arrested for trying to sell her daughter for $500 outside a local store - and then abandoning the child when confronted by an employee. Police said Jessica Woods, 33, was loitering around a H&R Block office in Palatka with her 18-month-old daughter, who had a bruise on her face, on March 5. An employee of the business told police that Woods had first come into the establishment at 7:40pm one evening because her baby had a soiled diaper. As Woods used the H&R Block restroom to change the child, the worker witnessed the mother hit her daughter with her elbow and then spank her, according to the probable cause affidavit seen by DailyMail.com. The next morning, the witness arrived back at the office and found Woods sleeping on top of the outside air conditioner unit - and the 18-month-old was sleeping near her in a shopping cart without a blanket. Jessica Woods, 33, was arrested for trying to sell her daughter for $500 outside a local store and then abandoned her The mother was hanging around the H&R Block (pictured) with her daughter, when she asked one of the employees to buy her child, who had a bruise on her face, according to the affidavit The employee confronted the mother and asked if she or the child needed any help, the affidavit said. Woods demanded money - and when the employee said she would buy her items but not cough up cash, Woods became 'enraged' and threw her child. Later in the day around 2pm, the witness said Woods crossed the busy street and went over to talk with her. She put the baby down on the ground, near some grass. The 18-month-old began to crawl towards a busy road, the police document stated. The worker picked up the baby - and it was at this point that Woods allegedly offered to sell her daughter for $500. According to the affidavit, the woman said she would not give her any money. Woods then replied: 'You can have the b*****d.' When the employee refused to buy the toddler, Woods walked away and abandoned her child. The worker took the child into H&R Block, and cleaned her up. According to the Palatka Police Department Woods is known to have frequented the area. Pictured: Woods in a previous mugshot 'Jessica did not return to take custody of [the child],' the affidavit read. The employee took the 18-month-old to the Palatka Police Department and told them what happened. According to the Palatka Police Department, Woods is known to have frequented the area. Officers and the Departments Victim Advocate provided care to the child until the Department of Children and Families took custody of her. The child has since been placed in foster care. Woods has been charged with child abuse, child neglect, abandonment of a child and selling a minor for money. She was located and arrested on March 7 and transported to the Putnam County Jail. Her bond was initially set at $255,000 and court documents appear to show she was ordered to have no contact with her victim. 'Praying for this mother and especially that baby,' said a user name Charlet Blackkcherry on the police department's Facebook post. Frances Bierly Bradshaw said: 'Thank goodness for good person taking child to police.' 'Gratitude to the folks that helped the child,' said Nora Jeffery Hanson 'So sad for that baby girl! Hope the child and mother both get the help they need,' said Holly Harris. Nita Smith said: 'Thank You to the citizen who took the child to a safe place the police department.' A body pulled from the Thames is believed to be the missing 19-year-old student Samara Ayanle, who has been missing for three weeks. The Met Police said that the teen was first reported missing by SOAS University of London, where she was in her first year studying Japanese and the History of Art, on March 8. An investigation found she was last seen at her university accommodation near Marble Arch in the early hours of February 22, three weeks ago. Police were called by a member of the public to reports of a body near Putney Pier at 8.19am on the same day. But no personal property was found and a finger print test could not confirm her identity. The Met Police said Samara Ayanle (pictured) was first reported missing by SOAS University of London , where she was in her first year studying Japanese and the History of Art, on March 8 Police were called by a member of the public to reports of a body near Putney Pier (pictured) at 8.19am on the same day that she was last seen Her former University paid tribute to their former student, saying that they were 'deeply saddened' And on checking a missing persons report they could not find a match for Ms Ayanle's body. It was only after she was reported missing that officers were able to link their enquiries to the incident. Her former University said: 'We are deeply saddened to hear that police have discovered a body which is believed to be that of Samaria Ayanle, who was a first-year student at SOAS University of London, studying for a BA in Japanese and the History of Art. 'Our thoughts are with her family, loved ones and friends at this difficult time. 'We know that this news will be felt by many and we will be doing everything we can do to support friends, family and the wider student and staff community. 'We urge members of the SOAS community who have been affected by the news to reach out if you need support.' The Met is still waiting on formal identification and her death is being treated as unexplained, pending further enquiries. Female staff at the London School of Economics (LSE) are resigning in the wake of what they say are botched investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct. The top social sciences institution has been accused by some of its own academics of letting them down after staff accused of multiple sexual assaults and harassment were allowed to continue teaching after the allegations were not upheld. Staff at LSE claim the complaints system for reporting misconduct is geared in favour of protecting senior faculty members rather than helping alleged victims of harassment and abuse - and have launched a petition calling for it to be overhauled. HandsOff LSE, a student-led campaign to improve the university's sexual misconduct policies, began collecting signatures for its appeal on Tuesday; it has already accumulated over 600 names. LSE says it has already undertaken a review of its sexual misconduct reporting processes and is committed to creating an 'environment...free of all types of harassment and violence'. The London School of Economics has been accused by former staff of botching investigations into allegations of sexual harassment However, staff who spoke to student newspaper The Beaver say the measures put in place - including a specialist member of staff with expertise in dealing with complaints of sexual misconduct - are not aiding and supporting victims. Taylor Sherman, a former professor at the institution, told the publication: 'The complaint system (at LSE) seems to be set up to protect the faculty, and does not just let these abuses happen, but discriminates against the people who complain. 'The very top levels of the school were completely unwilling to address discrimination, victimisation and abuses of power.' She quit in September 2023 after becoming dissatisfied with how LSE dealt with a misconduct complaint against a faculty member who is said to have faced five formal complaints and nine informal allegations - including from students. The unnamed academic returned to teaching at the university after the allegations were not upheld, according to Ms Sherman. One PhD student, identified under the pseudonym Jane, said the academic had tried to kiss her while on a weekend-long trip for departmental staff and students. She was one of four students reported to have complained about the staffer. Jane told The Beaver the investigator's notes were 'shockingly poor' and omitted facts from her and other complainants' interviews, and claimed key witnesses were not spoken to during the evidence-gathering process. And when the academic was cleared to return to their duties, the complainants were allegedly not given a copy of the investigator's report or the reasons why the disciplinary panel chose not to uphold their allegations. The subject of the investigation is then said to have embarked on a course of harassment against his accusers, leading to internal mediation - described by Ms Sherman as 'utterly disastrous' and an attempt to silence complainants. In all, three women have left the department, and two women have resigned from an academic journal where the alleged harasser has some involvement. A former university fellow, named as Maya, said of the man: 'The LSE is actively protecting him and he is vindicated by the process and out for revenge.' HandsOff LSE said following the publication of the Beaver's article: 'HandsOff LSE and the LSESU Women's Officer Team unequivocally stand in solidarity with all the LSE students and staff who bravely stepped forward in 2021 as survivors and victims of sexual violence and harassment. 'We extend our unwavering support to those who have called out a culture of discrimination and bullying on LSE's campus. 'We are appalled to learn that the accused faculty member continues to teach at the school, and condemn the LSE's lack of decisive action and blatant disregard for the safety and well-being of students and staff. 'LSE has once again failed its community.' Responding to a request for comment from MailOnline, an LSE spokesperson said: 'While we do not comment on individual disciplinary investigations, we can confirm we have recently reviewed our processes around reports of sexual misconduct. 'A number of improvements are currently being taken forward to bring our approach into line with best practice. 'Alongside other measures, we are implementing a new "report and support system", which will enable us to address issues more quickly and consistently. 'We plan to make greater use of external investigators in the future and, since 2021, we have employed a specialist member of staff with expertise in sexual misconduct and violence. 'LSE is committed to a working and learning environment where people can achieve their full potential free of all types of harassment and violence. 'We take reports of sexual harassment extremely seriously and encourage any member of the LSE community who has experienced or witnessed this to get in touch via one of our many channels, which allow students and staff to make anonymous reports and access specialist support.' The spokesperson declined to say whether any investigations into allegations of sexual misconduct remained ongoing against LSE staff. A tourist mother and her young daughter have been shot dead when a gunman opened fire on them as they were eating ice cream at a market in Belize. The Dutch woman, 43, and her 11-year-old daughter died of their injuries, while the girl's brother, eight, was wounded in the attack. The woman and her children were eating ice cream at a market in Belmopan, in the centre of the South American country, when they were attacked on Tuesday. A gunman entered the market square and targeted the woman and her children, shouting that he wanted to 'teach them a lesson', according to Dutch outlet De Telegraaf. One eyewitness said that the woman and her children tried to flee when they spotted the man, who threw away his gun after shooting the three victims. A tourist mother and her young daughter have been shot dead when a gunman opened fire on them as they were eating ice cream at a market in Belize (file image) According to local channel PlusTV, the shooter was the owner of a rented flat where the family was staying. The man, 60, has since been arrested by local police. Videos posted on social media showed the 43-year-old mother and her daughter lying in the back of a truck as well as the little boy, who screamed in pain due to the bullet wound. Assistant police commissioner Suzette Anderson said that the family was from the Netherlands but had been living in Belize. About the shooter she told local media: 'The shooter was living in Belize and he seemed to be the owner of a resort which is within the Belmopan area. 'He was subsequently detained by the police and the firearm, which was a 9mm pistol, was also retrieved [...]. He's currently in our custody. 'At this point in time we are still trying to piece together what exactly transpired, what may have been the motive behind the shooting.' A New Jersey school district faced backlash after an assistant high school principal shared a Ramadan letter criticizing the 'Zionist genocide in Gaza.' The flyer was sent by Columbia High School in Maplewood, and was ostensibly informing staff about the logistics of Ramadan - the Muslim holy month of fasting and prayer - and terms to know for students. But the letter ended with a scathing paragraph accusing the US of 'co-conspiring' with Israel to stop 'Muslim Palestinians from partaking in Ramadan, as the Israeli Zionist occupation enacts a genocide against them', reports NBC New York. After the letter sparked backlash, South Orange & Maplewood Acting Superintendent of School Dr. Kevin Gilbert apologized for the 'deeply problematic and inappropriate' wording. The letter coincided with the unrelated arrest of the school's principal, Frank Sanchez, who was charged with assault on Monday after allegedly attacking a student. Columbia High School in Maplewood, New Jersey (pictured) has been rocked by the scathing Ramadan letter, which accused the US of 'co-conspiring' with Israel to stop 'Muslim Palestinians from partaking in Ramadan, as the Israeli Zionist occupation enacts a genocide against them' After the letter sparked backlash, South Orange & Maplewood Acting Superintendent of School Dr. Kevin Gilbert apologized for the 'deeply problematic and inappropriate' wording Parents reportedly called on the state to seize control of the school district in response to the letter, which Gilbert claimed hadn't been properly read before it was shared. 'The document was not reviewed or approved by any district office or personnel, and while the intention of sharing the document was to provide a resource, serious content was overlooked,' he said. 'This resource contained language that, at any time, would be inflammatory but, particularly now, is deeply problematic and inappropriate for our schools,' he continued. 'Personally, I am disappointed, angered and saddened by the communication that occurred. 'The language in the document does not reflect what we believe creates a community that values inclusivity and belonging.' The educator said the school district would instead work to find a more appropriate way to teach staff about Ramadan, 'to ensure they meet our standards for respect, inclusivity and belonging.' Gilbert added that the assistant principal who sent the letter had accidentally overlooked the final paragraph, and didn't agree with the sentiment. The letter coincided with the unrelated arrest of the school's principal, Frank Sanchez, who was charged with assault after allegedly attacking a student. The letter coincided with the unrelated arrest of the school's principal, Frank Sanchez (pictured), who was charged with assault after allegedly attacking a student when breaking up a fight last year According to NBC New York, students said Sanchez's arrest came from an attempt to break up a fight between other students. Sanchez surrendered to Essex County prosecutors over the alleged fight on Monday, although the alleged fight came last year. He had reportedly been on administrative leave and has not returned to campus since winter break. Gilbert also released a statement on Sanchez' arrest, saying he was 'deeply saddened' by the charges. He described it as 'the latest in a series of unexpected events that have happened in our district during this school year.' 'No matter what our feelings may be at this time, our focus must be on meeting the needs of Columbia High School students, their families and staff,' he said. 'I am working with my administration colleagues to make sure we continue to fulfill our obligations to the people we service.' Ishikawa, Mar 13 (News On Japan) - The "Hokuriku Support Discount" for Ishikawa Prefecture has begun, offering up to 20,000 yen off per night for earthquake-affected areas. Reservations began on Tuesday, and travel agencies are already being flooded with inquiries. This support measure covers the four prefectures of Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui, offering a 50% discount on travel expenses with a cap of 20,000 yen per night for stays starting from March 16th. Kinki Nippon Tourist reported that tours combining Shinkansen and hotel were sold out in just about two hours. The "Support Discount" will end once the budget is exhausted, and the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen is also scheduled for March 16th. A new study has sparked hope that AI could soon play a role in detecting, and maybe even treating, cancer. Scientists at John Hopkins University have used machine learning technology to detect patterns in genetic 'dark matter,' little understood repeats of DNA sequences that could contribute to cancer and other diseases. Researchers have used AI to identify specific elements of this 'dark matter,' also known as 'junk DNA,' in cancerous tissue that are shed from tumors and float in the bloodstream. 'This new method could provide a noninvasive means of detecting cancers or monitoring response to therapy,' the university wrote in a release earlier this week. Victor Velculescu, co-author of the paper and an oncology expert, told the Financial Times he is confident the breakthrough could 'lead to new therapies, new diagnostics and new screening approaches for cancer.' A new study has sparked hope that AI could soon play a role in detecting, and maybe even treating, cancer Scientists at John Hopkins University have used AI to detect patterns in genetic 'dark matter' that may speed up and expand cancer diagnoses 'It's like a grand unveiling of what's behind the curtain,' he explained. The genetic code being analyzed is referred to as 'dark matter' by researchers because, like its space namesake, its existence is known but it has thus far remained largely unanalyzed and not very understood. The John Hopkins scientists used a machine learning technique known as Artemis, named after the Greek goddess of hunting, to analyze 1,200 distinct types of 'dark matter' DNA elements. Of the 736 genes that were linked to the creation of cancer cells within that sample, nearly two-thirds contained on average 15 times more the number of repeat DNA sequences than expected. The scientists believe their findings show that the 'junk DNA' was 'not recurring randomly' in cancerous tissues but actually revealing potential signs of malignance. 'They end up being clustered around genes that are altered in cancer in a variety of different ways, providing the first glimpse that these sequences may be key to tumour development,' Velculescu told the FT. Cancer Research UK called the study's findings 'exciting' and showing the 'potential' for AI to detect cancer sooner. 'While still at an early stage, this research demonstrates how some cancers could be diagnosed earlier by detecting tumour-specific changes in cells collected from blood samples,' Hattie Brooks, the charity's research information manager said. Victor Velculescu, co-author of the paper, said he is confident the breakthrough could 'lead to new therapies, new diagnostics and new screening approaches for cancer' Adding: 'Although there is still a long way to go before Artemis could be used in the clinic, it's always exciting to see new approaches showing potential in detecting cancer sooner.' It is the latest use of machine learning technologies to aid the fight against cancer. Last year, scientists began using AI to dramatically cut down on the number of missed early-stage breast cancer diagnoses. AI analysis flagged up to 13 percent more cases than doctors had identified, a significant chunk of the 20 percent or more cancers that are estimated to be missed, according to a study published in Nature in November. 'Our study shows that using AI can act as an effective safety net a tool to prevent subtler signs of cancer falling through the cracks', Ben Glocker, a co-author of the study and a professor in machine learning for imaging at Imperial College London said. 'Seeing first-hand that the use of AI could substantially reduce the rate of missed cancers in breast screening is massive, and a major boost for our mission to transform cancer care with AI technology.' White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said she has not spoken to President Joe Biden about the Kate Middleton Mother's Day Photoshop fail and added that the administration would respect the Royal Family's request for privacy. 'I have not spoken to the president about Kate Middleton,' she told reporters on Wednesday. 'She has asked for privacy, her family has asked for privacy and we're certainly going to respect that,' she added. Jean-Pierre also repeated the administration's wish for the Princess of Wales to have a 'speedy recovery' from her abdominal surgery. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (left) said she has not spoken with President Joe Biden about the Kate Middleton photo drama On Wednesday Jean-Pierre reassured reporters the White House photos of any of its officials in response to the growing scandal. 'Are you comparing us to the what's going on in the UK?,' she asked before adding: 'What does the monarchy have to do anything with us? No, that is not something that we do here.' Kensington Palace's release of the photo and subsequent apology from the Princess of Wales caused a stir in the UK, trended on social media around the world, and led to a slew of conspiracy theories. Jean-Pierre did say the White House offered Kate a 'speedy recovery' from her abdominal surgery. 'We will offer speedy recovery and I'm just gonna leave it there. I don't have anything else to share,' Jean-Pierre said. The Princess of Wales admitted on Monday that she edited the portrait which was released by Kensington Palace on Sunday, which was Mother's Day in the UK, and apologised 'for any confusion' that the family photograph has caused. In the first official image released since Kate's 'planned abdominal surgery' on January 16, the MailOnline identified sixteen separate edits, including issues with the princess's jeans zipper and right hand - amid claims the photo was digitally altered. Reports indicate that Prince William took Kate's Mother's Day photograph in just a 40-minute window on Friday before the Princess edited it twice in Photoshop to 'make it the best it can be'. Pictured: the Princess of Wales with her children, Prince Louis, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, taken in Windsor in what has become known as a Photoshop fail The Prince of Wales took the picture of his smiling family on a 2,900 Canon camera before Kate made edits to improve the photo ahead of its public release on Instagram on Sunday. Kensington Palace aides are said to have spent weeks planning to release a photo of the Princess of Wales to quell vicious social media speculation about the nature of Kate's condition since her surgery in January, which has deeply upset and angered the couple. Instead, the rare royal blunder resulted in another public explosion of conspiracy theories. Six of the world's top picture agencies - including the Associated Press, Reuters, and Getty - sensationally pulled the photo from their wires and libraries amid concern that the 'source has manipulated the image'. Amid the furor, the Princess later issued an extraordinary mea culpa on Twitter and Instagram, admitting she 'edited' the image - adding that she does 'occasionally experiment' as an 'amateur photographer' and apologising for 'any confusion' the image caused. Kate is said to have felt that honesty was 'the best policy' and wanted to 'own up' to the Photoshop blunder. The Princess felt 'awful' about the picture and had been trying to make it the 'best it could be', insiders told The Times - adding that she was 'thinking of her own children when editing the picture, hoping that they looked good for their own sakes'. Publicly taking the blame for the furor, the princess wrote on Monday: 'Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. 'I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. 'I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother's Day. C.' Royal sources said the princess had made 'minor adjustments' to the picture, which she and her husband had hoped would be a lovely 'informal' shot to share on a special day. 'This was an amateur, family photograph taken by the Princess of Wales. Their Royal Highnesses wanted to offer an informal picture of the family together for Mother's Day,' the source said. 'The Princess made minor adjustments as she shared in her statement on social media, the Wales family spent Mother's Day together and had a wonderful day.' Despite calls for the original to be published, Kensington Palace said it would not be reissuing the unedited photograph of Kate and her children, which in itself sparked further debate. Kate posted the apology on the Prince and Princess of Wales' Instagram account The White House said it does not digitally alter photos it distributes such as one from last month when President Biden met with Yulia Navalnaya and Dasha Navalnaya, the wife and daughter of murdered Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny On Monday night, the palace faced growing pressure over the debacle with claims it has been damaging to public trust. Palace aides did not spot any signs of Photoshop but it's not believed the edits were made aware to the princess' team before it became public. However, questions have been raised over whether the picture was too good to be true. One red flag might have been the fact the beaming family portrait was shot in such a short time on Friday. The busy schedules of the Wales family meant the picture had to be taken while everyone was back at home from various activities. A day later, Kate is said to have sent the photo out to her team. It's unknown whether any of her team could see that the photo had been edited on Photoshop but alarm bells may have started ringing when courtiers discovered that William had taken the picture. Without editing, it would have been some feat for William to take such a captivating photo with all the members of the family simultaneously roaring with laughter. A plan was put in place to release the photo and a message from Kate herself at 9am on Sunday - but what quickly ensued was 24 hours of intense scrutiny as the Palace faced questions from all angles over why the family photo appeared to be digitally manipulated. Meanwhile, Kate was seen in the backseat of a car with her husband as he left Windsor to travel to London for two public engagements. DailyMail.com understands she was on route for a 'private appointment.' Parents at a California elementary school have been left outraged after discovering a 'secret' LGBTQ club set up by a teacher. The third-grade staffer, who was not identified, formed the 'you be you' at Pleasant Grove Elementary School in Elk Grove. The teacher invited students in the fourth through sixth grade to attend the private meetings. Parents gathered at Elk Grove Unified's School board meeting last week to voice their concerns about the the lack of transparency from the district Pleasant Grove School Principal Deidra Wood Pleasant Grove Elementary School in Elk Grove, California Brittani Cortina, who has a second and a fourth grader at the school, said her older child told her the teacher went into class and told the students about the club. Cortina said: 'The teacher came in and spoke about how boys like boys and girls like girls.' Parents gathered at Elk Grove Unified's School board meeting last week to voice their fury about the the lack of transparency from the district. Kirk Thomas, who attended the meeting, told CBS13 News. 'There was no permission slip. There was no notification to parents.' The majority of parents did not support the club and claimed they were never told about it, but a small number were in favor. Parent Kirk Thomas said there was no permission slip. There was no notification to parents' Parents gathered at Elk Grove Unified's School board meeting last week to voice their fury about the the lack of transparency from the district Thomas added: 'First of all it is not acceptable, but if you are going to do this everyone needs to know.' Parent, Heidi Moore, who has several children at Elk Grove Unified, pointed out that that the issue was that the school was unforthcoming about it. 'It was an inappropriate situation, and parents felt that it was inappropriate for their children to be invited secretly without them knowing,' she said. She added: 'The district isn't really giving any answers on what was happening, what the guidelines were, what the curriculum was.' But, for parent Tiffany Woods she was part of the small group of parents, who were in favor. 'It is critical to mental health and overall well being,' she voiced. 'having that extra support and having that validation to help them navigate throughout the day is crucial.' She said those students who have non-supportive parents will suffer. 'Where is there safety net... the school educators and the counselors.' But Pamela Davila said it was not a conversation she was ready to have with her second grader. 'These little minds just can't wrap their heads around what these types of things mean to them,' Davila said, as per the news outlet. The district said the club is currently on pause, and issued a statement, as per the news outlet. 'EGUSD is aware of the UBU club at Pleasant Grove Elementary but the club is currently on pause while the District reviews all pertinent policies and practices that relate to before/after school clubs.' Pleasant Grove Principal Deidra Wood said, in an email to the news outlet. 'Our legal counsel has been weighing in with our district cabinet because of the laws and because whatever decisions are made will impact not only our school and club but the other 5-10 elementary similar clubs,' she said, in part. Elk Grove Unified said the districts has multiple identity clubs across its school campuses. Moscow has declared its outrage after Austria expelled two diplomats from the Russian embassy. The diplomats have acted 'in a manner incompatible with their diplomatic status,' the ministry said, without providing further details, adding they had until March 19 to leave the country. The Russian embassy in Vienna said it was 'outraged' by Austria's 'purely political' decision, adding it had not been 'presented with even the slightest bit of evidence'. 'A decisive response by Moscow cannot be in any doubt,' it said on Telegram, blaming Vienna over 'the further degradation of bilateral relations'. The move brings the total number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020 to 11. It is not clear whether the expulsions are connected. Austria HAS expelled two diplomats from the Russian embassy today. Pictured is Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer The Russian embassy in Vienna said it was 'outraged' by Austria's 'purely political' decision. Pictured is Russian President Vladimir Putin Service members with the Freedom of Russia Legion under the Ukrainian Army prepare to fire a mortar at a Russian military position Officials have said that some previous expulsions involved spying, but as before the ministry gave no specifics. Before Austria even announced the move, Russia already said it would retaliate. Its foreign ministry called the decision 'groundless,' according to state news agency RIA. 'As in previous episodes of expulsions, this time we have not been presented with the slightest evidence, let alone proof of any violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,' the news agency quoted the statement as saying. 'This is a purely political decision by the Austria authorities which we categorically reject. There can be no doubt of Moscow's resolute response,' the statement said, according to the agencies. After previous expulsions from Austria, Moscow has responded by expelling diplomats from the Austrian Embassy in Moscow, which has only a small fraction of the number of diplomats that Russia has stationed in Austria. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer (right) shaking hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during their meeting in Kiyv, Ukraine Vienna is a major diplomatic centre hosting the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and United Nations organisations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency. Larger countries like Russia and the United States often have separate ambassadors to Austria, the OSCE and the U.N. organisations, each running an embassy or permanent mission. Vienna, which was divided into Allied sectors after World War Two, has long had a reputation as a den of spies. The large diplomatic presence offers the opportunity to station intelligence agents there under a diplomatic cover granting them diplomatic immunity. A British tourist plunged to his death after falling from his hotel balcony hours after proposing to his girlfriend, an inquest had heard. Stephen Willits fell from the third floor of a Corfu hotel in Greece in August 2020, but the cause of his fall is unknown, an inquest has ruled. The 45-year-old suffered traumatic injuries and was 'heavily intoxicated' at the time. He had returned to his hotel room with his fiancee at around midnight following a meal and drinks. But an hour later he fell from the balcony. He had been sharing the happy news of his engagement with friends, family and other hotel guests and was in 'good spirits', the inquest heard. Stephen Willits fell from the third floor of a Corfu hotel in Greece in August 2020, but the cause of his fall is unknown, an inquest has ruled Leslie Willits, the sister of the Alton Towers worker, told StokeonTrent Live he was the 'nicest person ever' and didn't have a 'bad bone in his body'. The inquest heard Mr Willits, from Uttoxeter, had 'mild depression' but he had no history of suicidal thoughts or acute mental health illness. Staffordshire assistant coroner Daniel Howe said: 'Stephen died as a result of falling from height. He seemed to be in good spirits,' the Mirror reported. 'He had proposed to his girlfriend that day and was happy about it. He made positive comments to family, on Facebook, and to other residents at the hotel. 'I'm satisfied that he was heavily intoxicated from the toxicology report. Why he approached the balcony, I cannot determine.' Haiti has been rocked by a wave of violence in the last few days which has left dead bodies in the streets and tipped it close to a civil war He said his predecessor will have to follow the same processes he did when he came to power unelected in 2021 Former Haiti prime minister Ariel Henry says only he can appoint a transitional council to transfer power Haiti's future remains in flux as its former prime minister says only he can appoint a transitionary council to transfer power. Ariel Henry announced his resignation Monday after gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier seized control with calls for a 'bloody uprising' to depose him. Following a meeting with representatives from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), he agreed to step down once a transitional council had been set up. However, hopes of a swift resolution have been thrown into turmoil again after Henry admitted to CNN that only he can sign off on the council members. An adviser revealed Henry will not 'simply deliver the country' to new leaders without following proper process. The transitional council proposed would be made up of seven leaders from across Haitian society, including representatives from the political, civil and religious sphere. Former Haiti prime minister Ariel Henry says only he can appoint a transitionary council to transfer power following his resignation Haiti has been plunged chaos and mob rule under the direction of Jimmy 'Barbecue' Cherizier who called for a bloody uprising to depose the former prime minister Cherizier (pictured) warned of a 'genocide' unless Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry stepped down But Henry said he 'will not deliver the country to just a group of people without following the procedure' 'According to the Haitian constitution, only the prime minister with the cabinet can appoint the presenting council,' special adviser to Prime Minister Ariel Henry, Jean Junior Joseph, told CNN. 'Yes, the PM expresses his patriotic intentions to resign with his cabinet, but we have to do this in order. 'We will not deliver the country to just a group of people without following the procedure. We are in crisis as a country, but we must stay inside of the law and set a good example. 'The council will have to go through the same process he went through when Ariel Henry became PM.' According to the Haitian constitution, once the president is indisposed only the ministerial cabinet is authorized to make decisions in their absence. The admission will come as a blow to Haitians hoping for a quick end to the wave of violence that has swept the country in recent days. Gang fighting has left the dead piling up in the streets of the capital Port-au-Prince and so far displaced more than 15,000 people. The US State Department has not indicated how many Americans its estimates are among those caught up in the chaos. On Wednesday, Governor Ron DeSantis announced he is deploying 250 additional state guardsmen to the southern coast of Florida to help 'protect' it. The volatile situation has seen dead bodies pile up in the streets of the nation's capital Port-au-Prince More than 15,000 people have been displaced in Haiti in the last two weeks, prompting fears of a refugee crisis Henry agreed to step down following a meeting with representatives from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) once a transitional council has been set up Henry came to power unelected in 2021 following the assassination of Haiti's previous prime minister Jovenel Moise. While his premiership has been marred by instability, the situation escalated after he failed to hold elections by an agreed date citing the instability in the country. The unrest reached a fever pitch after he travelled to Kenya to shore up support for an international police force to restore order to the streets of Haiti, which he said would enable him to call an election. Kenya has since said it will not send the UN-authorized Multinational Security Support (MSS) until Haiti forms a new government, but has insisted it remains committed to leading the mission according to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. Calls for Henry's resignation came most vocally from gang leader Jimmy 'Barbecue' Chevrizier, who warned of a 'genocide' unless he stepped aside. On Wedneday, Blinken told a press conference he believed a transitional council could be set up 'within the next couple of days' with an interim prime minster selected shortly after. However, Chevrizier had warned he would not acknowledge any government formed through the CARICOM consensus. Instead, the gangs are likely to opt for a 'troika' a government composed of three members selected by them, according to Al Jazeera. The proposed transitional council would be made up of seven leaders from across Haitian society, including representatives from the political, civil and religious sphere But there were further protests after CARICOM announced the plan for a transitional council A woman walks past burning tires during a demonstration following the resignation of its Prime Minister Ariel Henry, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Tuesday In recent days, a jailbreak in Haiti led to almost 4,000 prisoners being liberated and left to roam the streets of the besieged country. Haitian-American Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick warned the unrest could pose a threat to US Security amid concerns some of the arrivals could be from violent gangs. Cherfilus-McCormick called for aid to 'fight the gangs' and prevent violence spilling into the country. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called the situation in Haiti 'one of the most urgent challenges we face as an international community.' On Wednesday, he reiterated that the Department of Defense has doubled its contributions to plans for a multinational security system t eventually be deployed to Haiti to $200 million. This is in addition to $100 million from the rest of the federal government. Blinken also announced an additional contribution of $33 million in humanitarian assistance. A number of Americans have been left stranded in Haiti after a bloodthirsty gang's attempt to take over the main international airport shuttered the facility, which remained close as of Wednesday. Florida-based Missionary Flights International said on Tuesday it had been contacted by more than 50 Americans and Canadians desperately trying to escape. Once the transitional council has been selected, an interim prime minister will be appointed until the country is in a position to hold elections The US along with other countries is providing backing to a multinational security system to be deployed to Haiti to help regain order in the streets The violence in Haiti escalated after Henry flew to Kenya to try and shore up support for the MSS Cherizier has already indicated he will reject any government formed through the CARICOM agreement U.S. Southern Command said the fleet-anti-terrorism security team, known as FAST, was deployed to the embassy in the nation's capital. The embassy is still open, but most staff have been airlifted out and operations are limited. The decision came after a wave of attacks across the city at state institutions including police stations and the country's Ministry of Interior, which was burned on Saturday. Heavily-armed gangs have been in firefights with cops and soldiers, tried to seize the airport and targeted government sites. In Port-au-Prince on Wednesday, shops were open and life was slowly returning to normal although the situation remains far from secure. Gangs have burned police stations, shot up the main international airport, which remains closed. Pictured: A demonstrator holds up a flag demanding Henry's resignation The UN has now warned Haiti is on the brink of a devastating hunger crisis, with aid operations at risk of 'grinding to a halt' Buses were running and some government offices were open after being closed for two weeks. But schools and the city's airport remain closed. The UN said Wednesday that it would begin 'reducing the footprint of non-essential personnel,' but that 'colleagues who carry out life-saving activities will remain in Haiti to continue operations.' But the agency previously warned Haiti is on the brink of a devastating hunger crisis, with aid operations at risk of 'grinding to a halt'. Cindy McCain, World Food Program's Executive Director, said the spreading violence is keeping aid workers from reaching communities in need at a time when donor funds are drying up. 'Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground,' she said. 'Efforts to restore law and order must be matched by an equally effective humanitarian response to meet soaring needs.' In Haiti, Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP country director, also warned of an impending famine and stressed that a failure to act will lead to 'unrest, strife and mass migration'. The country has struggled with political instability and some of the highest poverty rates in the world which is only being exacerbated by the current crisis. Blinken expressed hope that the 'Haitian designed, Haitian' led solution to the power vacuum with the multi national security support system led by Kenya would bring stability to the country. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is sending 250 additional state guardsmen to the southern coast for 'protection' amid fears of a mass exodus On Wednesday, there were signs of an improvement in the security situation, with no new attacks on police station or government offices, The main CPS cargo port had reopened, local news outlet Le Nouvelliste reported, while some fuel from the Varreux facility near the port had been allowed out The US Department of State says it does not know how many American citizens are caught up in the chaos 'We should be in a place where that mission can go forward it can we believe help reestablish security take back control from the gangs, meanwhile political transition is moving forward [...] that in turn creates a better environment for us to get assistance in get it people who need it, get development moving again and get some opportunity for people,' Blinken said. The government's Travel Advisory for Haiti has been at Level 4 Do Not Travel since March 2020. The Department of State is advising US citizens not to travel to Haiti, and said those in the country, 'should depart immediately using commercial or other private transportation options when available'. It was October 1970, I was just four and only began to feel unease as carpets came up and my parents, still young, scampered around the house taking down curtains and piling things into tea chests. That unease became alarm when, at the moment of our departure, Jean Anne and Mima the lasses next door, lovely black-haired girls with brilliant teeth, dark eyes and soft, flutey Argyll accents thrust soft toys at us through the windows of my fathers Morris 1300 and burst into tears. It had been all I had ever known: we in the new Free Church manse in Corpach and the MacPhees, next door, in the old one, running a bed and breakfast. It was my second home. Hugh, their dad a soft-spoken son of Acharacle, a veteran of St Valery and, for five long years thereafter, a prisoner of war even piled earth high, either side of the corner of the boundary wall, so little MacLeod could readily pull himself over it while his mammy got on with the latest baby. The move from Lochaber to Glasgow my father had accepted a call to Partick Highland Free Church is still the most traumatic milestone in my life. John MacLeod returned to Corpach, where he stayed with his family in 1970 In the space of a day I was flung from a close-knit Highland community where everyone knew who I was to a vast and noisy city where nobody gave a hoot. Glasgow, half a century ago, was an awful place. Tenements black with soot. Dog dirt and foul language. Great War amputees begging at street corners. Sirens wailed from the shipyards; our new home lay directly beneath the flight path to the citys airport, with low-flying jets screaming overhead. I became a timid, chesty thing, constantly catching colds. The doctor quietly told my parents I had developed asthma its very common with children who have moved in from the country and yet, perhaps reflecting a certain inner cussedness and despite subsequent decades in Glasgow and Edinburgh, I never, ever shed my West Highland accent. Thus I learned, as every child of a minister must, that the day will come when you will all have to leave the family home. Quietly, you accept it, with all the other indignities of living in a tied house be your father the minister, the policeman or the school janitor. Its been 53 years and I trundle north through Fort William, my car so laden I have even lifted the floor of the boot to pack stuff around the spare wheel that I have driven from Edinburgh in some caution, especially on tight bends and when braking. But there is still the sense of coming home when I hit Lochaber. I cross the Caledonian Canal, turn right into Banavie and stop for the night at a pleasant hotel. Corpach is not ten minutes walk up the road. Its been a long day. Occasion for joy my mother is coming home from hospital tomorrow and for sadness. I have to go home to Lewis. Little old ladies recovering from a serious fracture, and two lively little dogs, are an irresponsible combination. And our family home in Edinburgh of 42 years not strictly a manse, but nevertheless owned by the Free Church must shortly go on the market. It is most unlikely I will ever return and, in recent weeks, there has been the eerie sense of doing many things for the last time. It took me several hours quietly to pack. Books, clothing, DVDs. I emptied the drawer where I had kept the things to remember my father by his watch, his mobile, spectacles, a pair of slippers, a decade of diaries. The little leather box of cufflinks; the January 2023 disabled parking permit with the last ghastly photograph. My room, at the top of the tall mid-terraced property, had a wonderful view. Over the city and across the Forth to Fife. As I pecked at my laptop by the window, I could see the Castle, and Murrayfield Stadium, and St Marys Episcopal Cathedral. If I cared to stick my head out, I could see the Bass Rock to the east and the tops of the Forth Bridges to the west. And, often, I did, as I revised for my O grades, polished an essay for university, knocked together the latest book or, of a Wednesday morning and when not in my Hebridean lair, wrote something for you. On Monday I did not bother. There was too much to do; too many tedious descents of the stairs to waste time on sentiment. The sad things that happen in life happen, one way or the other, to everyone. This particular situation was no ones fault, and it was a great privilege to have known this splendid Victorian property, and this sought-out corner of Scotlands capital, for so long. But I still swallowed hard when, last of all, I piled my excited dogs into the car, handed the house keys to my brother, forbade him to come out to the pavement to see me off, turned the ignition and rolled away from Morningside and for the foreseeable future. With the upbeat soundtrack of Beautiful Thing on the stereo most of it as 1960s as myself. Its a grand Tuesday in Lochaber. Ben Nevis, summit sugared in snow, looms over all like a kindly old man. Crocuses glow in the ditches. I walk down by the canal and meet an almost-swan, still with a few ugly-duckling feathers, as he slips into the water in coming beauty. Change is the reality of life. Indeed, how we handle change is the central measure of our mental and emotional health. And change can be most positive. My part in a protracted, five-year family emergency is over. I can at last focus fully on my own needs and usefulness. And, being spared and well and when I am mortgage-free, I can make a home for myself anywhere I like. Back to the south of Edinburgh or even here, where it all began, as the flood-tide powers through the Annat Narrows and, across Loch Linnhe, Fort William beams in the springtime sun. I cross the canal by the sea lock and pad back, by Kilmallie Hall, through Corpach. And pause by two villas one creamy and Victorian; the other, next door, grey, stately, and not much older than I am. A sharp passer-by would still notice that someone, long ago, piled soil high by the end of the boundary wall and, were they the reflective type, might wonder why. But I have one of Daddys paperweights to bestow as a keepsake, and ring the bell of the next house along. She has brilliant teeth and dark eyes and, after decades, her eyes widen in recognition. I smile. Hello, Mima. It bills itself as a passionate purveyor of pleasure products. But soon a sex shop in Glasgow will be a place for people to report those who break Humza Yousafs hate crime laws. will be a place for people to report those who break Humza Yousafs hate crime laws. Luke & Jack, an LGBT+ store, is just one of 450 sites across Scotland designated by police as a third party reporting centre for victims or witnesses of hate crimes. Glasgow Conservative MSP Annie Wells yesterday demanded that police drop the shop as a reporting centre as a matter of urgency. She said: Serious questions must be asked as to who thought a sex shop was an appropriate setting to report a hate crime. The SNPs Act is flawed enough without asking people to relay their experiences in this sort of outlet. The Luke & Jack sex shop in Glasgow is one of the reporting centres A North Berwick mushroom farm The sex shop is among the 97 venues in Greater Glasgow classified as third party reporting centres. The centres are more typically sited in community hubs or premises run by housing associations and charities but other reporting centres nationwide include a caravan park in Peeblesshire, a mushroom farm in North Berwick, a demolished office block in Dunbartonshire, and a salmon and trout wholesaler in Duns, Berwickshire. Mr Yousaf has been accused of pushing through the hate crime laws, which come into force from April 1, without subjecting them to proper scrutiny. There will be an offence of stirring up hatred and an aggravated offence that can be attached to prosecutions which would lead to longer sentences. The laws apply to acts of hatred, malice, abuse and/or ill-will against the protected characteristics of disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and age. However, critics fear stage performances and even private conversations at home could fall foul of the laws, meaning someone could be charged with a hate crime for something said over dinner. The contentious Hate Crime and Public Disorder (Scotland) Act was passed in March 2021 despite fears over what it could mean for freedom of speech and pressures it could put on the police. Police Scotland said it constantly reviews the centres, which are for those who dont feel comfortable reporting to police. It said the centres reflect the diverse nature of our local communities, adding: Staff are trained to ensure they can assist victims or witnesses. A Scottish Government spokesman said: Our hate crime strategy commits to review third party reporting arrangements in partnership with Police Scotland, which has already commenced. A 19-year-old former Israeli hostage - who was operated on by a Gazan doctor without anaesthetic - has urged the world not to forget about the brutality of the October 7 terror attacks. Itay Regev - who was kidnapped from a peace music festival alongside his sister Maya Regev, 21, and their 21-year-old friend Omer Shem Tov - blasted the world for not doing more to rescue the remaining hostages. On October 7, Itay, Maya and Omer were chased by nine terrorists who shot at them relentlessly while they were fleeing the Nova music festival. After being shot in both his legs he was tied up, loaded onto a pickup truck and paraded around the Gaza strip while Gazans laughed and cheered at him. He was then smuggled through the underground Hamas terror tunnels and taken into a hospital where he was operated on by a 'sweaty and scared' doctor without anaesthesia. Israeli Itay Regev pictured in London, where he described his ordeal at the hands of Hamas After being shot in both his legs he was tied up, loaded onto a pickup truck and paraded around the Gaza strip while Gazans laughed and cheered at him He was then smuggled through the underground Hamas terror tunnels and taken into a hospital where he was operated on by a 'sweaty and scared' doctor without anaesthesia After the operation terrorists disguised Itay as a corpse and later in a burqa before transporting him to a safe house. Speaking about his experiences as a hostage he said: 'Inside Gaza I was kept in a locked room and I couldn't see the sky. 'I was given cans with food and every so often some pita to eat. 'My captures would torture me by telling me that other hostages had been killed in IDF airstrikes and that the Israeli Government didn't care about me. 'And everyday and in every moment I would think about my family and my parents.' Itay - who was held prisoner inside three different houses in Gaza until he was eventually released after 54 days - said he was filled with hatred towards Hamas and those that were keeping him captive. He said: 'One family that kept me captive would let their children come and look at me and point at my wounds. 'I felt like I was their trophy and like no one in Gaza cared about me. 'No one that I met is innocent.' Speaking to the BBC, he said he had come to terms with the fact he could be killed when he was a captive. Both he and his sister were shot in their legs when they were taken hostage. He was operated upon by an 'anxious doctor' without any anaesthetic or painkillers. He told the BBC he was ordered to be quiet or they would 'kill me', all the while suffering 'more abuse, slaps to the face, spitting'. Itay was separated from his sister, who also went through surgery. Her 'dangling foot was re-attached - but sideways. She was unable to walk when she was released and is currently receiving extensive rehabilitation on her leg. Maya and Itay Regev pictured arriving at their family home in the city of Herzliya near Tel Aviv, on December 4, 2023, after their release from captivity by Hamas in the Gaza Strip Former hostage Itay Regev pictured attending a protest by supporters and families of Israeli hostage sheld in Gaza since October 7, gathered around a symbolic Shabbat dinner table An image grab from a handout video released by the Hamas Media Office shows a Hamas fighter and a Red Cross medic accompanying Maya as she was released in November Their father Ilan Regev previously shared a chilling phone call he retrieved from Maya when she and her brother were being kidnapped. In an interview with CNN he played the heartbreaking call in which she says: 'Dad, they shot me, they shot me!' Maya said in a call to her father on Oct. 7 amid the gunfire. 'He is killing us, Dad, he is killing us.' Ilan could be heard telling Maya to send her location and find a place to hide and said 'I'm coming.' He jumped in his car from his home in Herzliya, near Tel Aviv, and sped south to the festival site, where he was barred from entering. In the interview Ilan can be seen breaking down as he becomes overwhelmed with emotion listening to his daughter's gut-wrenching cries and pleas once again. Hamas militants killed an estimated 1,200 people and kidnapped 250 others in the October 7 raid that triggered the war. On February 16, Hamas claimed that 'many' Israeli hostages have died in four months of bloody warfare as the conflict in the southern Levant shows no signs of ending. Abu Obeida, the spokesperson of the group's armed wing, said in an audio message that the remaining hostages are living in extremely difficult conditions as Israeli forces continue devastating attacks on the Gaza Strip. It comes as Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to push on with a 'powerful' operation in the southern city of Rafah to achieve 'complete victory' over Hamas. Both Itay and his sister Maya (pictured) were shot in their legs when they were taken hostage Their father Ilan Regev previously shared a chilling phone call he retrieved from Maya when she and her brother were being kidnapped Despite overtures to a peace deal in recent weeks, Netanyahu roundly rejected Hamas' new terms for a ceasefire last week and today brushed off international pressure to help create an independent Palestinian state. But concern mounts for the welfare of some 1.4mn Palestinians currently sheltering in Gaza's southernmost city as Israeli troops prepare to sweep through the city ostensibly towards the objectives of routing Hamas and returning hostages taken into Gaza on October 7. The relentless conflict in Gaza has seen critics and the families of hostages from Israel turn out to pressure the Israeli government into agree terms for their release. Roughly 130 hostages are still believed to be in Gaza after Hamas's October 7 attack. While a minority of voters in Israel believe the IDF is using too much force in Gaza, the stories of dire conditions shared by Israeli hostages returning from captivity in the November ceasefire has given force to the movement. Some returning said Israel's siege had made conditions worse for hostages, suggesting food and water supplies were slashed by a siege of Gaza City in the first few days of the conflict. Rishi Sunak's family will continue to benefit from an inheritance tax loophole despite his own government pledging to crack down on non-doms, it has been claimed. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced last week the government would axe non-domiciled status, which allowed UK residents who are domiciled abroad for tax purposes to only pay levies on their earnings in Britain. Mr Sunak's wife, Akshata Murty, claims non-domiciled status that allows her to avoid paying UK taxes on worldwide earnings. But she voluntarily began paying UK taxes on foreign income nearly two years ago while Mr Sunak was Chancellor. However, a finance expert claims Ms Murty - who is permanently domiciled in her native India, where her father is a billionaire IT entrepreneur - will still avoid paying inheritance tax thanks to a long-standing 'double tax' treaty with the country. The 1956 Estate Duty Treaty established an arrangement for Indian citizens living in Britain to avoid paying inheritance tax on their wealth twice over - meaning they would only pay dues on their estates in India, paying none in Britain. Rishi Sunak with his wife Akshata Murty - who began voluntarily paying UK taxes on her overseas income in 2022 after her non-dom status was revealed Ms Murty owns a 0.94 per cent share of Indian IT firm Infosys, which was co-founded by her father N. R. Narayana Murthy (pictured) However, India went on to scrap inheritance tax in 1985 - meaning that Indian citizens permanently based at home but living in the UK will pay nothing to the government on any inheritances they receive. Christopher Thorpe, of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, told The Telegraph: 'The treaty for India is really a hangover from colonial days. 'Technically there is nothing stopping the UK from changing it, but I suspect there has been no appetite to do so before.' Ms Murty's father is tech billionaire N. R. Narayana Murthy, who co-founded the IT and outsourcing firm Infosys. She owns a 0.94 share of the company, estimated to be worth just short of 600million. With the loophole cutting out the UK inheritance tax rate of 40 per cent, her family would save somewhere in the region of 240million in tax on the shares. Under the outgoing system, non-doms pay the Treasury an annual 'remittance basis charge' of 30,000 in order to not pay tax on their foreign earnings. Ms Murty, who is understood to still be domiciled in India, gave up the voluntary non-dom status in 2022 after coming under scrutiny as the PM's wife. A government spokesman told the Telegraph: 'We have ten long-standing double tax treaties covering IHT with other countries, including France, Italy, Sweden, as well as India. 'The recently announced non-dom policy does not affect any of these existing treaties.' MailOnline has contacted Downing Street for further comment. Jeremy Hunt vowed to scrap the non-dom scheme for foreigners stashing their wealth abroad during last week's Budget, telling MPs he wanted to 'get rid of the outdated concept of domicile'. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced the end of the non-dom scheme during last week's Budget - vowing to replace it with a 'fairer residency-based system' He plans to replace it with a 'fairer residency-based system' that is expected to raise an extra 2.7billion a year for the Treasury - swiping the idea from Labour, which has been threatening to scrap non-dom status for years. From April 2025, any new arrivals to the UK who are still based abroad will not pay tax on foreign earnings for four years before the new regime applies. Downing Street has previously said the Prime Minister was not involved in the decision-making process that led to the scrapping of the non-dom scheme in order to avoid a conflict of interest. But MPs and business figures have warned that the end of the status will likely drive billionaires out of Britain and into other states with more generous tax schemes such as Switzerland, Dubai and Singapore. Hotelier Sir Rocco Forte said last week: 'I know people who are already packing their bags. The exodus is taking place as we speak.' Accountants PwC and some of the country's biggest law firms said they had been inundated with calls about the policy and what it means. Edward Hayes, of law firm Burges Salmon, said: 'There is dismay from some clients who feel they came to the UK in good faith and the rules are being changed mid-game.' NARA, Mar 14 (News On Japan) - A series of national treasure-level discoveries continue to unfold at the "Tomio Maruyama Kofun," a historical burial mound, including a serpentine sword measuring 2.37 meters and a meticulously detailed shield-shaped bronze mirror. Surprising Discoveries Within the Coffin Masaki Kanegata, Director of the Nara City Buried Cultural Property Research Center, expressed his astonishment: "It's surprising to find multiple well-preserved mirrors." The three newly discovered bronze mirrors, each about 20 cm in diameter, include one that might be the "Triangular-rimmed Divine Beast Mirror," believed to have been bestowed upon the shaman queen Himiko by China. A blackened vertical comb, possibly used in burial rites, was also found. These artifacts were discovered inside a wooden coffin. Covered in a layer of clay, the coffin, over 1600 years old, was remarkably well-preserved. The interior's reddish hue suggests it was sprinkled with cinnabar, a substance linked to immortality in ancient Chinese lore. Professor Naohiro Toyoshima of Nara University explained, "Cinnabar was considered a medicine for eternal life in ancient China. It was spread inside tombs to protect the remains and bestow everlasting life." Who Rested in This Coffin? The identity of the person laid to rest here remains a mystery. Kanegata speculates, "Based on the burial goods, it feels like it was a woman, perhaps someone involved in ritualistic or shamanistic practices." Kanegata added, "From another burial facility at the top of this mound, weapons and a large number of stone products were excavated. It's possible that the individual buried at the top played a political or military role, and the two might have shared responsibilities in governing at that time." The excavation of the Tomio Maruyama Kofun could potentially rewrite textbooks, depending on the findings. The reason lies in the mound's origins. The "Wei Zhi Woren Zhuan" is a Chinese text that describes Japan in the 3rd century. Time passed, and the next detailed record is found in the "Song Shu," which mentions the "Five Kings of Wa." The "four centuries" between these periods, a time of warring small states transitioning to an established monarchy, remains largely unknown. However, the Tomio Maruyama Kofun is believed to have been constructed during this enigmatic era. Professor Toyoshima remarked, "The presence of a king who built such a large tomb, supported by someone with items not found in other tombs, suggests that a system was already forming by the end of the 4th century. If similar, yet unexcavated tombs are explored in the future, we can gradually fill in the gaps of this unknown period." A miner has died after he was pinned underground during a rockfall at the Ballarat Gold Mine as another man fights for life in hospital. The body of the 37-year-old Bruthen man was recovered from the mine on Woolshed Gully Drive in Victoria's Goldfields region overnight on Wednesday. Australian Workers Union Victorian branch secretary Ronnie Hayden broke the news on Channel Seven's Sunrise program on Thursday morning. 'It's no longer a rescue. It's now recovery,' Mr Hayden said. 'We do know that the two workers were air legging, which is a type of manual mining, it appears under unsupported ground and there was a collapse.' The union boss said the miner's death 'could have been avoided' and that air-legging had been stopped by most mines over safety concerns. 'It's a more of a manual style of mining hasn't been done on this mine for years, and most mines have stopped doing it,' he told ABC Radio Melbourne. 'We've raised issues several times in the past about workers working under unsupported ground. We certainly would be expecting our workplace manslaughter laws to take effect because of this.' Mr Hayden claimed a senior safety manager at the Ballarat mine was never replaced after they were made redundant by new owners. He said it was his expectation that Victoria's workplace manslaughter laws introduced in 2020 would 'take effect' in lieu of the miner's death. A 37-year-old man has died after he was pinned underground during a rockfall at the Ballarat Gold Mine at Mount Clear on Wednesday (pictured, emergency services at the scene) Australian Workers Union Victorian branch secretary Ronnie Hayden speaks on media on Thursday after telling local radio the miner's death 'could have been avoided' Mr Hayden said members of the Australian Workers Union were 'angry' in lieu of the death Acting Inspector Lisa Macdougall said the man had been found deceased by Ambulance Victoria paramedics at 5.20am on Thursday Victory Minerals operates the Ballarat Gold Mine, which is not open to public and is made up of tunnels and shafts that stretch underneath homes in Mount Clear. 'It was with great sadness that we confirm one of our own has passed away,' Victory Minerals partner Rebecca Harrison said. 'Our deepest sympathies and thoughts are with his family and all our people right now. Our absolute priority is supporting the wellbeing of our team members and their families and loved ones, as we all come to terms with this tragic news.' A 'complex' rescue mission to retrieve 31 miners who became trapped about 500m underground was launched at about 4.50pm on Wednesday. Two workers, the Bruthen man and a 21-year-old man were pinned by rocks while 29 others took refuge in a 'safety pod' inside the mine. The 21-year-old man was extracted from the mine at about 8.30pm suffering life-threatening injuries to his lower body and airlifted to hospital. He remains in Melbourne's Alfred Hospital in a critical condition on Thursday. Victoria Police said rescue teams had travelled 500m underground to reach the trapped miners, about 3km inside the Ballarat Gold Mine. More than 30 emergency service workers were deployed to the mine overnight with specialist extraction teams working to save the trapped miner. Acting Inspector Lisa Macdougall said the man had been found deceased by Ambulance Victoria paramedics at 5.20am on Thursday. She confirmed his family had been notified of his death by police. Media is seen outside the entrance to the Ballarat Gold Mine on Thursday Ballarat City Mayor Des Hudson said news of the man's death was 'devastating' and sent his thoughts to his loved ones. 'Our hearts go out to the family of that miner who never came home from work but also to the other miner who is currently in the Alfred hospital with very significant injuries and has a battle in front of him,' he told Sunrise. 'And also to those rescuers who will be continuing to work hard to try and be able to recover the body of that miner and bring him to the surface.' Cr Hudson said the incident was the latest in a series of tragedies that have rocked the local community in recent works following the death of mother-of-three Samantha Murphy in a national park in Mount Clear. 'We are a resilient community, we look after one another, and we come together to support one another, and I have no doubt that our community will absolutely do the same while this issue at the gold mine is being worked through,' he said. Victory Minerals operates the Ballarat Gold Mine, which is not open to public and is made up of tunnels and shafts that stretch underneath homes in Mount Clea The body of the 37-year-old Bruthen man was recovered from the mine on Woolshed Gully Drive in Mount Clear overnight, Victoria Police said on Thursday Victorian Premier Jacinta Allen said she was 'thinking of every worker and every family who is impacted by the Ballarat mine incident'. A convoy of emergency services vehicles were seen rushing to the site on Wednesday afternoon. Australian Workers' Union Victoria announced on X that it's 'State Secretary and two of our union officials are currently on-site, working closely with the members'. 'We stand united in our commitment to ensuring the safety and well-being of all workers,' the social media post reads. Victoria Police will prepare a report for the coroner while WorkSafe investigates. Victoria Police said rescue teams had travelled 500m underground to reach the trapped miners, about 3km into the Ballarat Gold Mine The network of mine shafts that make up the Ballarat Gold Mine have been operational since the 1850s, with some of the original shafts still in use. A cave-in at the site in November 12, 2007, trapped 27 miners about a kilometre underground. All of the miners were safely retrieved after being winched to the surface through a ventilation shaft about 8am. On Anzac Day the year prior, Tasmanian miners Todd Russell and Brant Webb were trapped in a small cage 925metres underground for two weeks after a rock-fall at the Beaconsfield gold mine, northwest of Launceston. While Mr Russell and Mr Webb triumphantly walked free from the mine, their colleague Larry Knight had died during the initial collapse. They were both able to join mourners at their Mr Knight's funeral, which had been delayed until they were freed on May 9. Oklahoma non-binary Nex Benedict died by suicide from a drug overdose, not from injuries sustained in a school fight, a medical examiner has confirmed. The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's report said Benedict's death was caused by a combined overdose of Diphenhydramine and Fluoxetine, according to News On 6. Nex, 16, who was born Dagny, died on February 8, just a day after sustaining head trauma in a bathroom fight in Owasso High School, Oklahoma. Their death became a rallying point for trans and LGBT activists across the country - and several vigils and walk-outs were organized to remember the student. Nex's biological grandmother and legal guardian, Sue Benedict, told The Independent that her child has been repeatedly bullied by various students for over a year due to their non-binary identity. Oklahoma non-binary Nex Benedict reportedly died by suicide from a drug overdose, not from injuries sustained in a school fight, according to the medical examiner The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's report said Benedict's death was caused by a combined overdose of Diphenhydramine and Fluoxetine the day after they were hospitalized from a fight 'Nex was attacked and assaulted in a bathroom by a group of other students. A day later, the Benedict's beautiful child lost their life,' the family said in a statement. The police department released a statement on Wednesday: 'From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. 'However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiner's Office. 'The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's report has now been made public. 'The Owasso Police Department would like to take this moment to inform anyone in crisis or contemplating suicide of the Oklahoma Mental Health Lifeline, just call or text 988.' Bodycam footage was previously released following the account Nex gave police describing the attack by 'bullies' in a school bathroom the day before they died. The 21-minute interview, conducted at Owasso hospital just two hours after the February 7 fight, detailed the events leading up to the altercation, prior to Nex getting discharged. Officer Caleb Thompson spoke with the 16-year-old, accompanied by their mother, Sue. 'So what happened today?' officer Thompson, asked. 'I got jumped,' Nex responded, before Sue interjects, telling the officer about Nex's complaints of ongoing bullying. '[Nex] said mom, these three girls there, they're making comments, they're calling us names, they're throwing stuff at us,' she said. Bodycam footage revealed the account Nex gave police describing the attack by 'bullies' in a school bathroom the day before they died Their death became a rallying point for trans and LGBT activists across the country - and several vigils were organized to remember the student People chant during a vigil for the death of Nex Benedict outside Stonewall Inn in New York '[Nex] did, until [they] couldn't, in the bathroom,' Sue told the officer. Nex then described the provocation, recalling how the girls ridiculed them before Nex poured water on them. 'They said something like 'why do they laugh like that,' and they were talking about us, in front of us,' Nex told Thompson. 'So I went up and poured water on them and all three of them came at me.' Officer Thompson appeared to dissuade Nex and their mother from pursuing charges, cautioning them about potential legal ramifications for both parties involved. He questioned Nex about their decision not to report the girls' actions to school officials, to which Nex responds: 'I didn't see the point. I told my mom.' 'You got freedom of speech,' the officer said. 'The minute you threw water on them you made the first jab. It may not go the direction you want it to go.' 'Running the mouth is freedom of speech, unfortunately,' the officer adds. 'You can say mean, hurtful things all day long and you gotta let it roll off your shoulder.' Sue asked: 'What about cause there were three of them, and (Nex) only threw water on one.' Thompson argued that regardless of the girl's actions, Nex started the fight, causing a 'domino effect' of events. He claimed both Nex and the girls as both 'victims' and 'suspects.' Officer Thompson appeared to dissuade Nex and their mother from pursuing charges, cautioning them about potential legal ramifications for both parties involved People gather outside the Stonewall Inn for a memorial and vigil for the Oklahoma teenager who died following a fight in a high school bathroom A walkout for Nex Benedict at Owasso High School on Monday, February 26 Sue expressed dissatisfaction with the school's handling of the situation, urging Thompson to inquire about the delay in alerting the authorities. 'They dropped the ball on this one not notifying me right away,' said Thompson. Sue said: 'Those girls started everything from the get go.' Nex described in text to their family what happened before being taken to the hospital before they died. 'I got jumped at school. 3 on 1, had to go to the ER,' Nex wrote, adding: 'They had been bullying me and my friends and I got tired of it so I poured some water on them and all 3 came after me. School did not report to police.' Officers investigating Nex's death said that they were called to the hospital by the teen's family at around 3pm on February 7, but that no 911 call had been made by the school. Nex was asked by the family member whether they were OK and the teen replied saying they were 'all good' and had some scrapes and bruises. They also added: 'If I'm dizzy or nauseous in the morning I might have a concussion.' Sue said she was aware Nex, who she said saw themselves as neither male or female, was bullied for being gender fluid but that she 'didn't know how bad it had gotten'. 'I was so proud of Nex. They were going some place, they were so free,' she said. President Biden has said he would sign the bill if it reaches his desk Senate Majority Leader Schumer has not committed to a vote in the Senate The House passed a bill that could ban TikTok 352 to 65 votes The White House is urging the Senate to pass a bill that would force TikTok to separate from its Chinese parent company after the legislation, which could lead to a TikTok ban, passed in the House with overwhelming support. Speaking to reporters as President Joe Biden headed to Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Wednesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the administration wants to see the Senate move quickly. Her remarks came after the House passed a bill Wednesday morning with bipartisan support 352 to 65 despite an avalanche of nonstop calls from TikTok users fighting against the bill. 'We are glad to see this bill move forward. We will look to the Senate to take swift action,' Jean-Pierre said. 'This bill is important, and we welcome the step in an ongoing effort to address the threat posed by certain technology services operating in the United States that put at risk Americans' personal information and our broader national security.' The White House argued the bill would not ban apps like TikTok but would ensure ownership is not in the hands of those who would exploit them. But some lawmakers, users and TikTok officials disagree with the actual implications should the bill become law. Now, senators will decide whether the national security threat posed by TikTok is worth the headache from constituents who love the app. Lawmakers accused TikTok of providing its U.S. user data to its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance, which they say has connections to the Chinese Communist Party TikTok sent this notification to users on Tuesday morning, prompting them to get in touch with their lawmakers to let them know whether they support the TikTok bill The House China Select Committee says Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on its U.S. users' locations and dictate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns, making it a national security threat. ByteDance would have five months after the law is signed to divest from TikTok. If it does not, app stores and web hosting platforms would not be allowed to distribute it in the U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has not committed to a vote but said the Senate would review the bill when it came over from the House. On Friday, President Biden said he would sign the bill should it reach his desk despite his own reelection campaign launching Biden's TikTok account just last month. TikTok has some 170 million users in the United States. Ahead of the vote it urged users to pressure Congress not to pass the bill which it claimed would hurt millions of content creators and businesses. Gen Z Congressman Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., said Biden's support of the bill could hurt him with young people but more than that he called it bad policy despite having his own data privacy concerns. Frost had an unlikely ally in former President Donald Trump who reversed his own past stance on banning TikTok and came out against the bill last week, claiming a TikTok ban would only help Facebook. 'I don't want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better,' Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. 'They are a true Enemy of the People!' Elon Musk joined Trump in opposing the effort to reign in TikTok's influence, calling it government 'censorship,' in a post on X Tuesday. 'This law is not just about TikTok, it is about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only cite 'foreign control' as the issue, but it does not,' Musk stated. Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has come out against the TikTok bill, claiming it could be used as a form of government suppression While the bill passed in the House with overwhelming support, there was also bipartisan opposition. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., voted against it, mentioning Musk by name, praising him for restoring her account on X after it was formerly banned and decrying the 'Pandora's Box' this bill could open. 'What's to stop the U.S. government in the future from forcing the sale of another social media company claiming it is protecting American's data from foreign adversaries?' 'I believe this bill can cause future problems. It's opening Pandora's Box and I am opposed to this bill,' Greene said Wednesday on the House floor. 'This is really about controlling Americans' data, and if we cared about Americans' data then we would stop the sale of Americans' data universally, not just with China.' Greene was among a number of significant GOP members who voted against the bill, including Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., Tom McClintock, R-Calif., Nancy Mace, R-S.C., and more. On the other side of the aisle, 'Squad' members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., also voted against the measure. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said the bill could be akin to opening 'Pandora's Box' and that the future implications the measure are unknown Gen Z Congressman Maxwell Frost said he was a 'hell no' vote on the TikTok bill ahead of a House vote forcing the app's Chinese parent company to divest or face a ban in the U.S. But the bill's author, Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., pushed back on Wednesday morning. 'TikTok is a threat to our national security because its owned by ByteDance, which does the bidding of the communist party,' Gallagher said on the floor. 'This bill therefore forces TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. It does not apply to American companies.' Gallagher argued his bill would only impact companies subject to control by foreign adversaries. TikTok pushed back against the 'ban' in a statement shared with DailyMail.com after the House passed the bill. 'This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.' TikTok advocates gathered outside of the Capitol ahead of Wednesday's vote to push back against the bill Some of the advocates that came to the Capitol Wednesday were TikTok content creators The CCP also pushed back against the passage of the bill. 'Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok,' foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said. 'This kind of bullying behaviour that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order.' 'In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself,' Wang added. TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced The White House support for the bill comes just weeks after the president's own reelection campaign launched Biden's TikTok account in February in an effort to reach young voters as the president gears up for a rematch with Trump this November. While Biden maintains a lead over Trump among young voters according to recent polls, the gap has shrunk since young voters helped propel him to the White House in 2020. The president has also faced backlash among young people over his support for funding for Israel as it wages war in Gaza. President Joe Biden hammered former President Donald Trump on threats the Republican made to cut Social Security and Medicare in his first speech since both candidates clinched their parties' nominations. On Tuesday, voters in the Northern Mariana Islands and Georgia put Biden over the line, with the president amassing enough delegates in the presidential primaries to be considered the presumptive Democratic nominee. Hours later, Trump was officially the Republican's presumptive nominee, benefiting from strong support in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state. 'Just this week Donald Trump said cuts to Social Security and Medicare are on the table,' Biden said Wednesday in a speech in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 'When asked if he changed his position he said, "there's a lot we can do in terms of cutting, tremendous amount of things we can do."' 'I want to assure you, I will never allow it to happen,' Biden added. President Joe Biden hammered former President Donald Trump on threats the Republican made to cut Social Security and Medicare in his first speech since both candidates clinched their parties' nominations Wednesday in Milwaukee, Wisconsin Former President Donald Trump became the presumptive Republican nominee Tuesday night after winning contests in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state. He said cutting entitlements was on the table in a recent interview with CNBC Trump made the comments about cutting entitlements to CNBC. The president's travel schedule this week is a tour of swing states. On Monday he voyaged to Manchester, New Hampshire and then made the Milwaukee trip Wednesday. On Thursday he heads to Michigan. Currently, Trump leads by one point in Wisconsin, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average, and by four points in Michigan. Milwaukee will be the host of this summer's Republican National Convention - where Trump will officially become the nominee. It was chosen, in part, because the Democrats were supposed to hold the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee in 2020 but held a scaled-down, socially-distant affair in Biden's adopted hometown of Wilmington, Delaware due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. President Joe Biden visited his Wisconsin reelection campaign headquarters Wednesday in Milwaukee, the city that will serve as the backdrop for this summer's Republican National Convention after Democrats bailed on it in 2020 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic In turn, Biden chose the city - which is 40 percent black - as the place to open his state's campaign headquarters, rather than the college student-heavy state capital of Madison. Milwaukee also has a high level of Hispanic voters and suburban independent voters - groups that can decide presidential elections. In his speech, which was less than 20 minutes long, Biden talked about how highways cut through predominantly black neighborhoods in Milwaukee, similar to what happend in Wilmington. 'But instead of connecting communities, it divided them, these highways actually tore them apart,' the president said. He spoke of 'redlining' - the practice of withholding services from majority-minority neighborhoods - and 'urban renewal,' which saw the destruction of black neighborhoods around the nation. 'For generations black, brown and Native-American, Asian-Americans and Native Hawaiians' communities weren't fully included in our democracy or our economy. But by pure, courage, heart and grit they never gave up, they pursued the full promise of America,' Biden said. 'Today, we're recognizing that history to make new history. I'm here to announce the first of its kind investment - 3.3 billion, 3.3 billion in 132 in 42 states to help right historic wrongs,' the president announced. Biden's reelection pitch to voters in these communities was that he was slowly making things better. 'Folks we're on our way to delivering clean water to every American. We're on the way to delivering affordable high speed internet to every American at low costs,' he said. 'To communities too often left behind we're rebuilding. We're rebuilding the roads, we're filling in the cracks in the sidewalk, we're creating spaces to live and work and play safely. And to breathe clean air and to shop at a nearby grocery stocked with fresh and healthy food,' the president added. The view of Northern Gaza from a height of 3,000ft is apocalyptic. Not a single building appears unscathed by the violence unleashed here. Entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to rubble and grey dust. The frenzied criss-cross of tank tracks indicate the bloody offensives that have taken place over the last five months. It's hard to imagine anyone could survive in this hellscape. The Mail was one of just a handful of publications granted access by the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) to join an aid drop over Gaza on Tuesday. Our aerial pictures show the scale of the devastation inflicted on the narrow stretch of territory since the war began. The flight is part of a multinational effort to get desperately needed food and supplies into the besieged enclave. The Mail (with journalist Charlie Faulkner, pictured above) was one of just a handful of publications granted access by the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) to join an aid drop over Gaza on Tuesday Aid is loaded on to the C-130 by Jordanian airmen at the King Abdullah II airbase before heading to Gaza The life-saving supplies are pushed out of the back of the military plane on the picture above The Gaza Strip has been under ferocious bombardment by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) in response to Hamas's brutal attack on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 were taken hostage. Some 134 hostages remain in Gaza, though it is feared more than half are dead. Last week, the UN said it had 'clear' information that hostages suffered sexual violence. On Tuesday, aid drop flights from the US, Egypt and Belgium were also in the sky. The UK, Netherlands and the UAE have also sent flights. 'We are proud to be a part of this,' said one RJAF airman. 'But it's not enough. It's not enough.' What can't be understood from the air is the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding on the ground. About 300,000 people are believed to be stuck in Northern Gaza an area of the strip that aid agencies say is impossible to reach. Food is so scarce that people have been forced to eat animal feed. At least 20 have died from malnutrition and dehydration at the north's Kamal Adwan and Shifa hospitals, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry. Most of the dead are children. Aid agencies have warned that air drops which each contain enough food for 6,500 people should be a last resort as they are inefficient and dangerous. Five people were killed on Friday when a package's parachute failed to open on another nation's flight. A ripple of relief ran through the crew during Tuesday's flight when an airman held up eight fingers after the drop, indicating all parachutes had indeed opened. Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that starvation is being 'used as a war arm' with aid routes over land 'artificially closed' by Israel. The Gaza health ministry says more than 31,000 people have been killed in Gaza since October 7. The IDF claim a third of the dead are terrorists. Jamie McGoldrick, the UN's Humanitarian Coordinator for the Middle East, told the Mail that aid drops should not be considered an alternative aid distribution solution. 'They're an addition. Jordanian airmen take a break in between loading humanitarian aid on to a C-130 at King Abdullah II airbase This handout picture released by the Jordanian army on March 5, 2024, shows humanitarian aid being airdropped from a military aircraft over the Gaza Strip Palestinians run along a street as humanitarian aid is airdropped in Gaza City on March 1, 2024 Footage taken by the Jordanian Air Force and supplied to reporter Charlie Faulkner of their Aid-drop flight over Gaza Jordanian airmen load aid bound for Gaza on to a C-130 at King Abdullah II airbase A member of Jordan's Royal Airforce readies the plane for take off. The cargo was dropped over Gaza Journalist Charlie Faulkner joins the Aid flight over Gaza and captures from her window the devastation of Gaza below This picture taken from Israel's southern border with the Gaza Strip shows humanitarian aid being airdropped over the Palestinian territory on March 13, 2024 It costs $180,000 per flight, and no one knows where [the aid] lands because of the weather,' said Mr McGoldrick, adding that the vulnerable are unlikely to be able to run to the landing points and fight their way through the crowds. The Rafah crossing is the only entry point for goods on the ground. Mr McGoldrick said opening other crossings 'hinges on... ceasefire talks'. The IDF has denied claims it blocks aid and told the Mail it 'carries out humanitarian operations and will continue to do so'. Meanwhile ten warehouses run by the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation (JHCO) are bursting at the seams with boxes of aid. Compared to the flight the Mail was passenger on a C-130 which carried eight pallets lorries can deliver 22, and a convoy consists of a minimum of 14 vehicles. 'If a ceasefire was agreed, we could send all the items; medical, relief, food,' said Ahmed Abu Alhaija who manages JHCO warehouses. It comes as the IDF is investigating if it has assassinated Marwan Issa, leader of Hamas' armed wing, in a strike on a building in the Nuseirat refugee camp on Sunday. Issa, 59, is believed to have been a mastermind in the October 7 attack. Meanwhile another militant, Hadi Mustafa, was reportedly taken out in a drone strike on the Lebanese city of Tyre yesterday. On Tuesday, a Hamas spokesman rejected claims the group had accepted in principle a US proposal for a six-week ceasefire. However, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last night said there is a 'strong proposal on the table right now for a ceasefire'. TikTok and social media political influencers who were invited to the White House last week are surprised that President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats have endorsed the bill to ban the popular social media video app. The House voted 352-65 Wednesday in favor of the bill that would ban the app, as only 50 Democrats and 15 Republicans voted against it. Keith Edwards, an influencer with over 14,000 followers on TikTok said it was not a good look for Biden, who continues struggling with young voters. 'It's not going to have an electoral impact, because voters don't consider things real until it actually happens,' he said in an interview with the DailyMail.com 'But it's not great we're talking about this when Joe Biden had finally shifted the vibes for him in a positive direction.' Social media influencer Keith Edwards told the Daily Mail that Biden and Democrats were sending the wrong message to young people Gen Z activist and TikToker Johnny Palmadessa said he relied on the platform to communicate with young people Biden's outreach to over 70 different social media influencers for the State of the Union speech last week sent the message to content creators that he and his campaign were serious about courting young people on TikTok and other social media platforms. Edwards said he was not concerned about losing the TikTok platform entirely, but warned political content creators to spread their influence across multiple different platforms. 'TikTok's not going away. Someone will buy it, but creators need to spread their bets because between this, Meta's incoming shadow ban on political content, and Elon Musk destroying Twitter ... you can't just depend on one platform anymore,' he said. Edwards has over 90,000 followers on Meta's Threads platform and 136,000 followers on X. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden continued to support the bill that would ban the app and would sign it if it got to his desk. 'We hope the Senate takes action, and takes this up very quickly,' Jean-Pierre said to reporters on Air Force One. Gen Z activist Johnny Palmadessa, who has 26,000 followers on TikTok, also expressed his surprise after House Democrats joined with Republicans to pass the bill that would force TikTok's China-based company ByteDance to sell the app or ban it in the United States. 'TikTok links young Americans to opportunities and as a Gen-Z TikToker, I find myself reliant on the platform for communication,' he told the Daily Mail. 'This merely underscores Congress's disconnect in making decisions they already don't comprehend.' Palmadessa was also at the White House event last week and has over 100,000 followers on Threads and 16,000 followers on Instagram. 'Rather than attempting to ban a platform that uplifts young Americans: Congress should be focused on pursuing an agenda that supports young people, too,' he said. News of the House passing the TikTok bill fueled protest on the popular video app from political content creators. TikTok creators expressed their anger at Democrats and Biden for supporting the bill that would ban the app 'I think this legislation and others like it - especially around AI which is also coming up - is where Leftists and Conservatives are going to find common ground,' V. Spehar, who posts on the handle @underthedesknews told the DailyMail.com. Spehar posted a protest video on his account right after the House passed the bill to address TikTok with a bipartisan 352-65 vote. Spehar pointed to Republicans like Reps. Dan Bishop (R-NC) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) as having the right concerns about the legislation and ridiculed Rep. Nancy Pelosi for her comment that it would make TikTok, 'Tic-Tac-Toe. A winner.' 'I think Nancy Pelosi failed in her attempt to persuade voters that as a grandmother she gets it,' Spehar said. TikTok user @probably_n0t_chris vented in a video about Biden's hypocrisy TikTok user @probably_n0t_chris vented in a video on TikTok, calling out Biden's hypocrisy for using TikTok influencers to promote his State of the Union speech before endorsing a ban of the app less than 24 hours later. 'If this is not proof that these politicians will use you and cast you aside the moment that they get what they want? I don't know what is?' he said. 'To the 70 influencers that went, if you feel half as stupid as you should, you will remember this decision for the rest of your f****g life. What did you expect? This guy brought you on to promote your own unemployment. I hope you feel f*****g dumb, this is Joe Biden we are talking about.' The Biden campaign created a TikTok account in February to engage with young people and share exclusive videos from the president. President Biden greets digital content creators at the White House TikTok's creators are marching from the US Capitol to the White House, demanding that President Biden keep TikTok, during a rally in Washington DC, USA, TikTok user Gabrielle Judge revealed in a TikTok video she was invited by the White House to attend the State of the Union address but was 'on the fence' about the idea, as her content was not necessarily political. She indicated she was repulsed after she saw Biden said he would sign the bill banning TikTok if Congress put it on his desk. 'After Biden has used TikTok to campaign certain things recently, anyways I was like you're full of c***,' she said in a video. Judge revealed the agency recruiting influencers for the State of the Union address sent her concept briefs, approved talking points for posts and videos about the event, an hour before the event took place. Judge said she about 400,000 followers across different platforms. 'If you think about my size of following, I was invited to this to basically boost Joe Biden and his voice,' she said. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) taunted Biden on social media after the White House reiterated the president's support for the bill. 'Maybe the President could lead by example and cancel his TikTok account,' he wrote on X. QUESTION When was Mount Everest first measured with any degree of accuracy? How is it measured so precisely today? The Great Trigonometrical Survey of India was a geographical survey of the Indian subcontinent which began in 1802. Much of the work was performed by Sir George Everest, who was the Surveyor General of India until 1843. He was succeeded by Sir Andrew Waugh and it was Waugh, who was in post from 1843 to 1861, who surveyed the Himalayas, providing measurements for the Himalayan giants: Everest, K2 and Kangchenjunga. At the time of the survey, Kangchenjunga was believed to be the highest mountain in the world. Much of the work was performed by Sir George Everest, who was the Surveyor General of India until 1843. Pictured: A view of Mount Everest To measure Peak XV, as Everest was then known, Waugh's surveyors used triangulation. Observers examined the peak from multiple points at known distances; they were then able to measure the angle from Everest's peak to their observation points. It took years to calculate the results, and when they determined it was exactly 29,000ft (8,839.2m) Waugh publicly declared, in 1856, that Everest was 29,002ft, to avoid the impression that it was an approximation. As one wag later put it, Waugh was the first person 'to put two feet on top of Mount Everest'. The mountain was measured several times over the next century, with around 27ft added to the height. To measure Peak XV, as Everest was then known, Waugh's surveyors used triangulation. Pictured: Trekkers on their way to Everest base camp In the most recent calculations, Chinese and Nepalese scientists used Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to produce about 300 control points that were used to gather trigonometric data. On May 22, 2019, an expedition team carried a GNSS receiver and antenna to the top of Everest to get satellite data. Everest's height is now officially 29,031.69ft or 8,848.86m. However, there is disagreement over the exact elevation of any great mountain because of variations in snow level, among other factors. J. S. Lewis, Oxford. QUESTION Did Isaac Newton borrow his famous phrase 'standing on the shoulders of giants'? Issac Newton remarked in a letter to his rival Robert Hooke, dated February 5, 1675: 'What Des-Cartes [sic] did was a good step. 'You have added much several ways, and especially in taking the colours of thin plates into philosophical consideration. 'If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants.' At this time, Hooke and Newton were on good terms they were later to become enemies and it appears that Newton was complimenting Hooke. Pictured: Sir Isaac Newton, an English Mathematician and Physicist Newton was alluding to a simile used much earlier by Bernard of Chartres, a 12th-century philosopher. His contemporary, John of Salisbury, wrote in his Metalogicon of 1159 that Bernard would say that 'we [the Moderns] are like dwarves perched on the shoulders of giants [the Ancients], and thus we are able to see more and farther than the latter.' L. Weston, Solihull, W. Mids. QUESTION Was the Sabbath observed during fighting in the U.S. Civil War? To the early settler, strict observance of the Lord's Day was a sacred and necessary part of religious life. By the 19th century, the success of America led to increased commerce and leisure time that put pressure on the observance of the Sabbath. Organisations such as the Philadelphia Sabbath Association and the influential New York Sabbath Committee arose to combat this. The Civil War (1861-65) between the States further eroded the social fabric of the nation. The demand for Sunday labour was increased by the urgencies of war, Sunday transportation of troops and supplies became part of the war effort, and the desire for news from the front led to an expansion of Sunday's mail service. The New York Sabbath Committee induced President Lincoln to issue the General Order Respecting the Observance of the Sabbath, in 1862, in which: 'The President, Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy, desires and enjoins the orderly observance of the Sabbath by the officers and men in military and naval service. The New York Sabbath Committee induced President Lincoln (pictured) to issue the General Order Respecting the Observance of the Sabbath, in 1862 'The importance for man and beast of the prescribed weekly rest, the sacred rights of Christian soldiers and sailors, a becoming deference to the best sentiment of a Christian people... demand that Sunday labour in the Army and Navy be reduced to the measure of strict necessity.' Under the stress of war, however, these commands proved impossible to observe. In the South, the necessities of war pained General Lee. He wrote to his daughter in December 1861: 'One of the miseries of war is that there is no Sabbath, and the current work and strife has no cessation.' T. McPherson, Daventry, Northants. Donald Trump has begun holding meetings with potential cabinet picks and has discussed appointing billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson as Treasury secretary, according to insiders. Publicly his campaign insists it has not begun discussions on who would join a second Trump administration. But the former president himself has publicly floated Paulson's name. 'And John Paulson, the great John Paulson made plenty of money in Nevada,' he said in January after his New Hampshire primary win, picking the billionaire out of the crowd. 'Doesnt live there, but he makes a hell of a lot of money. He makes money everywhere he goes, actually. 'So, money machine. Maybe well put, you know what, put him at Treasury. You want to make a little money?' Donald Trump has begun holding meetings with potential cabinet picks and has discussed appointing hedge fund manager John Paulson as Treasury secretary, according to insiders The Trump campaign said there had been no discussion about staffing a second cabinet Bloomberg reported Wednesday that his name had come up in recent discussions, citing sources familiar with Trumps thinking, who emphasized that talks were at an early stage. The former president is known to throw out a range of names for any job, changing his mind frequently before making a decision. Other names reported to be in the frame include: former US trade representative Robert Lighthizer; Susquehanna International Group founder Jeff Yass; and Key Square Group founder Scott Bessent. Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung poured cold water on the speculation. He said: 'There have been no discussions of who will serve in a second Trump administration. 'President Trump will ultimately choose the best people for his cabinet to undo all the damage Crooked Joe Biden has done to our country.' Paulson is due to hold a fundraiser for Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, next month with Howard W. Lutnick, Cantor Fitzgerald chief executive. 'I am very pleased to support President Trump's re-election efforts,' he told Bloomberg. 'His policies on the economy, energy, immigration and foreign policy will be very beneficial for the country. 'His landslide victory over all other republican contenders shows the enormous support he has among American voters.' He also held a fundraiser at his Palm Beach home last month, where well-heeled donors such as New York Jets owner Woody Johnson promised to contribute at least a million dollars each. Six months into the Joe Biden impeachment inquiry, Speaker Mike Johnson said he has not had time to 'do a deep dive into the evidence' to determine if Republicans should vote to formally impeach the president. Johnson told reporters during a news conference at the annual House GOP retreat at the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia that he has been too 'busy' to dive into the evidence. 'To be very frank with you, very honest and transparent, because I've been so busy with all my other responsibilities, I have not been able to take the time to do the deep dive in the evidence,' he disclosed. 'Yet what has been uncovered has been alarming,' the speaker added. With only a two-seat majority, House Republicans would need near-unanimous support to vote to impeach the president. 'To be very frank with you, very honest and transparent, because I've been so busy with all my other responsibilities, I have not been able to take the time to do the deep dive in the evidence,' Johnson disclosed But without impeaching the president Republicans would fall short on one of their biggest priorities this Congress right in the middle of election season Johnson told reporters during a news conference at the annual House GOP retreat at the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia that he has been too 'busy' to dive into the evidence But without impeaching the president Republicans would fall short on one of their biggest priorities this Congress right in the middle of election season. They already voted to impeach Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas by just one vote, but that was before ousted New York Rep. George Santos' seat was filled by a Democrat, Rep. Tom Suozzi. Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., recently gave himself an exit strategy: criminal referrals, recommending prosecution to the Justice Department. This week Republicans hauled in ex-special counsel Robert Hur to testify and he revealed Biden had 'willfully retained' classified documents but he did not believe a jury would find the evidence to convict the president, a 'well-meaning','elderly' and 'forgetful' man. GOP impeachment investigators have garnered testimony to suggest Hunter was sought after for his last name and Joe was seemingly more aware of his business deals than he'd let on, but so far Democrats boast - and even some Republicans have started to admit - there's been no 'smoking gun' to prove evidence of a crime. It comes just as Hunter Biden shot down GOP attempts to bring him back to Capitol Hill for a public hearing after giving closed-door testimony. Last week, House Republicans invited Hunter and several of his ex-business partners to testify at the same impeachment hearing setting up a public spectacle. Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., sent out invites to Hunter's ex-associates Devon Archer, Tony Bobulinski and Jason Galanis - who is currently incarcerated in Alabama. They have all essentially turned on Hunter and it's unlikely they'd appear together. Abbe Lowell, Hunter's attorney, wrote to Chairman James Comer Wednesday, saying the invitation is 'not a serious oversight proceeding.' 'It is your attempt to resuscitate your Conference's moribund inquiry with a made-for-right-wing-media, circus act,' he added. Hunter also has a court hearing in California the next day, but the scheduling conflict is the 'least of the issues,' says Lowell. Hunter and Bobulinski have beef after his ex-partner came forward with allegations that Joe was involved in their deal with Chinese company CEFC in 2017. He also admitted putting his father Joe on speakerphone and inviting him to lunches many times over the years with business associates and 'friends,' but insisted he was not involved in his shady dealings with the Chinese, Ukrainians and others. 'I'm surprised my dad hasn't called me right now, and if he did, I would put him on speakerphone to say hi to you and to Congressman Raskin and everybody else in the room. It is nothing nefarious literally,' Hunter said. Meanwhile, Bobulinski unequivocally claimed Hunter profited off his last name and Joe was involved. In 2020, Bobulinski publicized a May 2017 email detailing a proposed equity split for a Chinese investment - the 10 percent for the 'big guy' note - and first claimed the 'big guy' was Joe. He also told impeachment investigators that 'it is also not a coincidence' that CEFC used the Biden family's 'weakest link' Hunter to funnel in tens of millions of dollars. But Hunter disputed last week that his father is the 'big guy' referenced and slammed Bobulinski for spewing lies about his family. 'It did not involve my dad,' he stated. 'I think that it was pie in the sky. Like 'Joe Biden's out of the office. Maybe we'll be able to get him involved,' Hunter testified. Republicans already voted to impeach Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas by just one vote, but that was before ousted New York Rep. George Santos ' seat was filled by a Democrat , Rep. Tom Suozzi Last week, House Republicans invited Hunter and several of his ex-business partners to testify at the same impeachment hearing setting up a public spectacle 'I want to be crystal clear: from my direct personal experience and what I have subsequently come to learn, it is clear to me that Joe Biden was 'the Brand' being sold by the Biden family,' Bobulinski said in opening remarks. He continued to say Joe was 'more than a participant' in his family's business, but rather 'an enabler, despite being buffered by a complex scheme to maintain plausible deniability.' 'The Biden family business was Joe Biden, period,' he said. In addition, he detailed how Chinese energy company CEFC 'successfully sought to infiltrate and compromise' the Obama-Biden White House. Bobulinski also previously suggested that he testify publicly before Congress along with Hunter, Jim Biden and Joe Biden. Galanis, who is currently in Alabama prison, told Republican impeachment investigators that the 'Biden lift' was why he did business with the first son, claiming it helped close deals they believed would make them billions. The ''Biden lift' that we talked about was access. Access meant to us at the time, being in the business of acquiring other businesses, to persuade third-parties to do business with us,' Galanis explained in transcripts made public on Monday. The Israeli military has said it plans to direct a 'significant' number of Palestinians sheltering in Rafah to 'humanitarian islands' ahead of its planned offensive in the area. It comes as many of Israel's allies, including the United States, feared an offensive in an city which is densely populated with around 1.4million people, many of them displaced, would be a catastrophe. But Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said a Rafah offensive is crucial to achieve Israel's stated aim of destroying Hamas following the October 7 attack in which about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and about 250 taken hostage. Israel's chief military spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said moving people in Rafah to these designated areas would be done in co-ordination with international actors and would provide temporary housing, food, water to evacuated Palestinians. Rafah has swelled in size in the last months as Palestinians in Gaza have fled fighting in nearly every other corner of the territory. Admiral Hagari said: 'We need to make sure that 1.4 million people or at least a significant amount of the 1.4 million will move. Where? To humanitarian islands that we will create with the international community.' Footage released by Israel's military zooms in on one of the figures, with a caption wrongly claiming it shows them carrying an RPG The moment the IDF strikes its target in footage first released on March 3 He did not say when Rafah's evacuation would occur, nor when the offensive would begin, saying that Israel wanted the timing to be right operationally and to be co-ordinated with neighbouring Egypt, which has said it does not want an influx of displaced Palestinians crossing its border. The US has been firm with Israel over its concerns about Rafah, and secretary of state Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Washington had yet to receive from Israel its plans for civilians there. 'We need to see a plan that will get civilians out of harm's way if there's a military operation in Rafah,' he told reporters in Washington after convening a virtual ministerial meeting on Gaza aid with officials from the UN, the EU, Britain, Cyprus, Qatar and the UAE. 'We've not yet seen such a plan.' At the start of the war, Israel directed evacuees to a slice of undeveloped land along Gaza's Mediterranean coast that it designated as a safe zone. But aid groups said there were no real plans in place to receive large numbers of displaced there. Israeli strikes also targeted the area. More than 31,270 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and most of its 2.3 million people forced from their homes, Gaza's health ministry says. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. Meanwhile, fighting continued across Gaza. An Israeli strike Wednesday hit a food distribution site in southern Gaza run by UNRWA, the UN agency that works with Palestinian refugees, killing one staff member from the agency and wounding 22 others. The death brings to 165 the number of workers for the agency killed during the past five months of fighting, according to UNRWA. Despite claims that the pair were carrying the heavy weapon being debunked, the IDF insisted that the two people it killed were terrorists, without providing evidence Israel's Defence Forces have admitted that two Palestinians they claimed were terrorists carrying a rocket-propelled grenade were in fact just wheeling a bicycle when they were blown up in an air strike. Aerial footage released by the Israeli army on March 3 shows two people walking through the bombed-out streets of southern Gaza City before they are engulfed by a huge explosion. The video's captions describe the scene as showing 'the elimination of terrorists' and wrongly claiming that they are carrying an RPG. Subsequent analysis of the clip by has highlighted what can be discerned as wheels wobbling and handle bars, showing it to be a bike. 'When the video was published, the bicycle carried by one of them was mistakenly marked as a rocket launcher,' the IDF said in a statement to The New York Times. 'The IDF regrets the marking error.' The black and white footage also appears to show one of the people carrying a sack of flour. Tracks also appear to have been made by the bicycle, with the ground beneath it disturbed as it is pushed over it. Despite claims that the pair were carrying the heavy weapon being debunked, the IDF insisted that the two people it killed were terrorists, without providing evidence. 'During the several days leading up to the documented strike, armed terrorists used the route shown in the video in order to transfer ammunition and attack IDF forces,' their statement said. Smoke rises from an explosion in Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from Israel, March 13, 2024 'The strike took place after real-time identification of the people as armed terrorists, based on information gathered ahead of the strike.' The decision behind carrying out the strike will be assessed by military investigators, the New York Times was told. Mohammed Qreiqea, who spoke to witnesses in the strike, said one of the Palestinians in the footage was killed in the strike while the other was injured but survived. Qreiqea, who is a researcher for Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, which first pointed out the discrepancies in the footage, said that the people in the footage were returning from collecting aid. Israel has come under mounting scrutiny over its relentless bombing campaign in the Gaza Strip, where the death toll has surpassed 31,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, since the war erupted on October 7. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Wednesday said at least one of its staff members was killed in an Israeli strike on a food distribution centre in the war-hit enclave. 'At least one UNRWA staff member was killed and another 22 were injured when Israeli forces hit a food distribution centre in the eastern part of Rafah' in southern Gaza, the agency said in a statement. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to request for comment. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said six aid trucks entered Gaza through the north late Tuesday as international pressure mounts for more humanitarian aid to Gaza. Palestinians inspect the damage of a destroyed pickup truck, loaded with dates, due to Israeli attack in Rafah Some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed during the Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel on Oct. 7, and around 250 people were abducted. Hamas is believed to still be holding around 100 hostages. Palestinian authorities claim most of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been forced from their homes by the war. The Hamas-run health ministry, which doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants in its death toll count, says that women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. A quarter of Gaza's population is starving, according to the United Nations. The Lutz Children's Museum on South Main Street, recognized statewide for its annual Groundhog Day event, is one of many destinations included in Manchester's new cultural district designation. Joseph Villanova / Hearst Connecticut Media Silk City Coffee is one of many restaurants that can be found in Manchester's "cultural district," which includes much of Main Street. Joseph Villanova / Hearst Connecticut Media MANCHESTER Town officials hope a new state-designated "cultural district" helps secure funding and attention for many of Manchester's attractions. The district has two main paths. The north-to-south region runs from Center Springs Park to the Lutz Children's Museum, encompassing much of downtown Manchester along Main Street. The east-to-west path stretches from Charter Oak Park to the Cheney Brothers Historic District, covering institutions like the Old Manchester Museum and newer establishments like the Mahoney Center, formerly Washington Elementary School. The state Department of Economic and Community Development's Office of the Arts last week announced the approval of Manchester's cultural district application, which was submitted last year. The General Assembly established the program in 2019 as a way to help municipalities "promote the education, cultural, economic, and general welfare of the public" through marketing of attractions and artistic and cultural enterprises. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Washington School building on Cedar Street is recognized in Manchester's state-designated "cultural district" for the Mahoney Center and its Culture and Leisure Labs programs. Jim Michaud/Hearst Connecticut Media Manchester is now one of six municipalities with cultural district designations, joining Bristol, New London, Ridgefield, Torrington, and Wethersfield. Liz Shapiro, director of arts, preservation, and museums at the Office of the Arts, said cultural districts can receive in-kind marketing from the state through its official tourism channels. She said cultural districts are also first in line for funding for arts and culture. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Shapiro said the state is still figuring out how to best provide for its cultural districts, as the program is fairly new. "We're really trying to figure out, now that we have more cultural districts online and quite a few in the works, what we can do from a marketing perspective," Shapiro said. "We're looking to ensure how they can have more access to regular funding ... we don't have a lot of funding at the Office of the Arts." WORK_SPACE manager Stacey Zackin, one of the people behind the town's application, said Manchester hopes to use the opportunity to raise awareness and boost tourism. "It's an opportunity to gather people's attention and involvement around culture and art," Zackin said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Zackin said more than 70 different assets contribute to the district, including museums, art galleries, tattoo parlors, and restaurants. "We were almost going to get two separate districts because our space is bigger than the norm," Zackin said. Downtown Manchester events, including the annual Manchester Road Race on Thanksgiving morning, are among the attractions that help define the town's new "cultural district." Jim Michaud / Hearst Connecticut Media Shapiro said all of the state's cultural districts share a "symbiotic" relationship between arts, culture, and business that make them an exciting place to be. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "We like to think there's a creative business ecosystem that happens in those districts," Shapiro said. Manchester's cultural district differs from others primarily in its size and configuration, Shapiro said, but the town also has its own "vibe" compared to other towns in the region. "You can go into an art gallery, come out, go to a restaurant next door ... go into a tattoo parlor next door, and then hit a coffee shop," Shapiro said. "There's just a lot of in-and-out traffic in Manchester." Zackin said she always encourages WORK_SPACE visitors to check out other storefronts in downtown Manchester, including the nearby Firestone Studio and Cafe. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I'm not the only gallery on Main Street," Zackin said. The poll was carried out prior to the explosive edited Mother's Day photograph A new survey has named the Princess of Wales as the UK's favourite royal, as Harry and Meghan's popularity drops. The poll - which was carried out before the publication of the controversial edited Mother's Day photo - found 38 per cent of Brits like Kate Middleton the most. However, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have plummeted in popularity by three points - with Harry on 11 per cent and Meghan on seven per cent. The Princess of Wales has been the subject of intense speculation and conspiracy theories in recent weeks - and found herself in a social media storm after admitting to editing a Mother's Day family photograph. Royal insiders have claimed she wants to move on from the storm caused by the image and say she is struggling with the aftermath. The new poll shows that the princess is especially popular with women, with 44 per cent preferring her compared to 32 per cent of men. A survey has named the Princess of Wales as the UK's favourite royal (pictured in November) The princess is especially popular with women, with 44 per cent preferring her compared to 32 per cent of men. Kate Middleton pictured at the King's Coronation The poll - which was carried out before the publication of the controversial edited Mother's Day photo - found 38 per cent of Brits like Kate Middleton the most The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have plummeted in popularity - with Harry on 11 per cent and Meghan on seven per cent. Pictured in Whistler, Canada Half of those aged 55 to 75 also named Kate as their favourite, according to the Ipsos poll commissioned for The Standard. For those aged 35-54, 37 per cent listed the princess as their top choice, along with 28 per cent of those aged 18 to 34. Kate's husband is the runner up, with William being preferred by 36 per cent, and then Princess Anne by 26 per cent. King Charles and Queen Camilla were only the favourite of 12 per cent of Brits polled - up by two points since the last survey. Social media sleuths were already wondering as to her whereabouts before the explosive Mother's Day photograph which saw six of the world's top picture agencies sensationally pull the photo from their wires and libraries amid concern that the 'source has manipulated the image'. The princess has been recovering from surgery since January, but her absence from the public eye set conspiracy theorists postulating. But when a photo of Kate along with her children was posted on Mother's Day, speculation took on a whole new form. Eagle-eyed social media users pointed out a plethora of issues with the image - and shortly after it was pulled by photo agencies. Then, the princess posted an apology for the confusion caused, admitting she had tweaked the family photo. King Charles and Queen Camilla were only the favourite of 12 per cent of Brits polled The Princess of Wales has been the subject of intense speculation and conspiracy theories The princess is known to be an avid photographer, and admitted she had edited the picture Prince William and his wife Kate,stand outside of Westminster Abbey after their Royal Wedding Kate was last seen at a royal event on Christmas Day 2023 with her family at Sandringham Kate posted the apology on the Prince and Princess of Wales' Instagram account William and Kate were spotted leaving Windsor for Westminster Abbey after the apology Kate is understood to be recovering well from her major abdominal surgery and is set to be back by Easter, but sources say she needs to be left in peace to put her recovery first. She publicly took the blame for the family photograph released by Kensington Palace on Sunday as she issued an apology for the 'confusion'. MailOnline identified sixteen separate edits, including issues with the princess's jeans zipper and right hand - amid claims the photo was digitally altered. Just hours after her apology, Kate was pictured alongside her husband leaving Windsor Castle as he headed to Westminster Abbey or the annual Commonwealth Day service. But rather than an extraordinary return to royal duties, MailOnline understands that Kate was heading to a private appointment instead. Sources within the royal circles are warning of the negative affect rumours may be having on the future Queen as she recovers from her major surgery in January. 'It's an awful lot to be under all of this public scrutiny when you are recovering from major surgery,' one told American celebrity news site Page Six. 'The rumour mill particularly on social media has gotten out of control, but Kate is recovering well and she will be back by Easter. She just needs to be left in peace.' Another insider added: 'I worry about all this attention on Catherine. She did not look happy at all in the car on Monday.' Picture agencies around the world took the extraordinary step of killing the photo of Kate The PA news agency said it had withdrawn the image of Kate from its picture service Despite calls for the original image to be published, Kensington Palace insisted it would not be reissuing the unedited photograph of Kate and her children. Royal commentator Jennie Bond suggested Kate 'must feel under intense pressure now whenever she's going to be seen in public' after her major surgery in January. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle broke their silence on the photo editing scandal toady, denying claims that they said the Duchess would 'never make that mistake'. Amid increasing speculation surrounding the Mother's Day image of Kate and her children, which was released to the world by Kensington Palace on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's Archewell Foundation spoke out to deny that any official representative for the couple had made comments about the controversy to Page Six. Speaking to Newsweek, the spokesperson addressed quotes published by the outlet, which stated that a source 'close to Prince William, Harry and his wife', had not come 'from us'. The source in question stated to Page Six that the editing error 'isn't a mistake that Meghan would ever make', noting that 'she has a keen eye and freakish attention to detail'. However, Archewell's official spokesperson has now insisted to Newsweek that the information 'did not come from us', stating simply: 'With respect to Page Six, that did not come from us.' The statement marks the first time that Harry, 39, and his wife have officially addressed the photo editing controversy in any official capacity. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle broke their silence on the photo editing scandal toady, denying claims that they said the Duchess would 'never make that mistake' In addition to the claims made about Meghan 'never making the [same] mistake', Page Six also published quotes from an insider who stated that the Sussexes 'would have been annihilated' had they released a similarly-edited image. 'If Harry and Meghan had ever encountered the same issue they would have been annihilated,' the source quotes read. 'The same rules do not apply to both couples. 'This isn't a mistake that Meghan would ever make she has a keen eye and freakish attention to detail.' The outlet did not state that the quotes had come from inside Archewell however - and Newsweek noted that the comments could have been made by an acquaintance of the Sussexes who is not officially connected to the Foundation. Eight esteemed pathologists and forensic experts have cast serious doubt on the Crown's case that an ex-polo-playing landowner murdered a vagrant with a suffocation technique made famous by 19th-century body-snatchers. In documents submitted to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), they have debunked claims that Clive Freeman killed Alexander Hardie using the so-called 'Burking' method perfected by serial killers in Edinburgh in 1828. William Burke and William Hare killed 16 people to sell their corpses for medical research in one of Scotland's most notorious crimes. Many of the experts say, in written reports seen by the Daily Mail, that the most likely cause of Mr Hardie's death was the mixture of alcohol and prescription drugs found in the dead man's body, and suggest the most appropriate cause of death is 'unascertained'. Clive Freeman standing where the Cohara Bassa Dam wall was built on the Zambesi river, Taken about 1975 An artists impression of the victim, Alexander Hardie Clive Freeman as a red-headed young man... and now with a silver beard The theory that so-called 'Burking' was used to kill Scots-born Mr Hardie, 49, in a flat in south-east London in 1988 was put forward by respected prosecution pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd at Freeman's Old Bailey trial. It was accepted by the jury, which found him guilty of murder and arson. The Zimbabwean father-of-three was given a minimum 13-year jail term in 1989 but he has now served an additional 22 years because, he says, he has refused to admit murdering Mr Hardie and trying to destroy his body in a fire. Now 80, Freeman is increasingly frail but determined to clear his name before he dies. Yesterday, as the CCRC reviews his case for a fifth time, a major Mail investigation raised troubling questions about the safety of his convictions, and asked whether he has spent 35 years behind bars for a murder that may never have happened. In documents submitted to the CCRC, the eight pathologists and forensic scientists (not including original defence pathologist Professor Keith Mant) rejected claims that Mr Hardie, a former plumber from Edinburgh, was killed unlawfully. In doing so, they aligned themselves with the views of the late Professor Mant, a giant in the world of pathology, who in his pre-trial report and in evidence at Freeman's trial, strongly rejected the Crown's case of murder. In a report dated January 20, 1999, forensic pathologist Dr Peter Acland said 'any pathologist would be hard put to give a definite cause of death in this case and, whilst he would be perhaps unwise to rule out foul play, I think he would have considered the natural or alcohol-related potential causes of death more likely'. In October 2001, Professor Christopher Milroy, another forensic pathologist, said: 'I agree with Dr Acland that the cause of death in this case cannot be ascertained. Dr Shepherd gave the cause of death as suffocation. There were no positive pathological findings in his autopsy to support such a conclusion.' In 2017, Professor Jack Crane, state pathologist in Northern Ireland, wrote: 'I understand that CCRC has asked Dr Shepherd to review the case and I should say that I find this highly irregular and objectionable. If the case were to be reviewed by a pathologist, it should be an independent pathologist, especially since five other extremely senior pathologists have already disagreed with him over the past 20 years.' Clive Freeman, born into wealth, was a well-known racehorse trainer Professor Nicholas Birch, a consulting pharmacologist, wrote in March 2014: 'The concentration of alcohol likely to have been present in the blood of Alexander Hardie in the hours prior to his death, especially when combined with the toxic effects of diazepam and dothiepin (anti-depressants) at substantial concentrations, make it extremely likely that the cause of death was related to alcohol consumption.' Five years ago, forensic pathologist Dr Alexander Kolar wrote that 'there is no evidence in isolation or in combination that allows a cause of death to be put forward, in particular there is no evidence that allows a diagnosis of suffocation, crush asphyxia, Burking or similar'. As revealed by the Mail yesterday, there were also alleged failures by the police to disclose vital evidence at Freeman's trial, and a key eyewitness retracted his statement placing Freeman at the alleged murder scene on the night in question, saying he was mistaken. Prosecutors believed Freeman may have learned the 'Burking' murder technique while serving in the former Rhodesia's Grey's Scouts mounted infantry unit in the 1970s and killed Mr Hardie in a bizarre plot to defraud an insurance firm out of 300,000. Dr Shepherd did not respond to requests for comment. The pathologists' reports will increase pressure on the beleaguered CCRC, widely criticised after the recent scandal involving Andy Malkinson, who was wrongly convicted and jailed for 17 years for rape. The experienced pathologist under the spotlight Richard Shepherd has carried out 23,000 post-mortem examinations during his distinguished career, including working on the Hungerford massacre, the Clapham rail crash, the sex killing of Rachel Nickell and the death of Princess Diana. He also worked on the Harold Shipman case, the murder of Jill Dando and the management of British fatalities following the 9/11 terror attacks in the US. But it is in relation to one of his less famous cases the relatively little-reported alleged murder of a vagrant in 1988 that he now finds his conclusions under scrutiny. Dr Shepherd, who retired from the official list of Home Office-approved pathologists in 2017, has written a memoir, features regularly on TV and has done a lecture tour. In the past, he has been open about how his work affected his mental health. Richard Shepherd has carried out 23,000 post-mortem examinations during his distinguished career, including working on the Hungerford massacre, the Clapham rail crash, the sex killing of Rachel Nickell and the death of Princess Diana He said: 'I can't grieve for 23,000 people but each one was taking a little piece of me at the time. 'And there did come a point when a large rent happened in my life and I suffered a really nasty, acute episode of PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder]. 'It was after the Bali bombings. They were the trigger.' Dr Shepherd saved his controversial and now-disputed conclusion about Alexander Hardie having been killed by so-called 'Burking' a suffocation technique named after 19th-century Scottish serial killers Burke and Hare until the very end of his evidence at the 1989 trial of Clive Freeman. He told jurors: 'The important part of this type of death is that the body has minimal or no resistance to the occlusion of the airways or the fixation of the chest. It is called Burking.' In an interview with the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme, Dr Shepherd said he was 'a strong believer truth is crucial', adding: 'If they [families] have the whole truth, it's fine. 'If it's not the whole truth, they will discover a gap and not believe anything you say.' He faces up to 25 years in prison if he is convicted The president's son, 54, has pleaded not guilty to three felony charges related to him lying about his drug use when purchasing a gun in 2018 The June 3 date comes immediately ahead of his June 20 trial on tax charges A federal judge ruled that Hunter Biden will face a trial on federal gun charges on June 3 in Delaware. The president's son, 54, has pleaded not guilty to three felony charges related to him lying about his drug use when purchasing a gun in 2018. He faces up to 25 years in prison if he is convicted after the trial that could last up to nine days. His gun trial on June 3 comes immediately for a separate trial in a case brought by Special Counsel David Weiss on nine tax charges set for June 20 in California. Hunter tried to avoid the spectacle of a full trial by entering into what Republicans dubbed a 'sweetheart' plea deal with DOJ. But it fell apart spectacularly last summer and he is now facing the two jury trials. It will surely cause a headache for his father Joe, who just secured the Democratic nomination for president last night going into the 2024 campaign swing. Last month, Weiss published photos from Hunter's iPhone and hard drive that the prosecutor said were proof he was using cocaine when he bought a gun. But Hunter's legal team says DOJ mistook sawdust for lines of cocaine during their investigation. The president's son, 54, has pleaded not guilty to three felony charges related to him lying about his drug use when purchasing a gun in 2018 He faces up to 25 years in prison if he is convicted on the gun charges Hunter Biden's legal team have accused the Department of Justice of mistaking lines of cocaine for sawdust Hunter's lawyers say the image in question was actually sent to his psychiatrist by someone else as a joke. 'The prosecution is flat out wrong - both that Mr. Biden "took" this photograph and in claiming that it depicts "cocaine",' Biden's lawyers said. 'Multiple sources have pointed out, and a review of discovery confirms, this is actually a photo of sawdust from an expert carpenter and it was sent to Mr. Biden, not vice versa.' 'More specifically, the discovery identifies this as a photo of a photo taken in the office of Mr. Bidens then-psychiatrist Dr. Keith Ablow,' Hunter's lawyers said. The court documents said Dr. Ablow initially received the image from a patient, who was a master carpenter, and later texted it to Hunter. In his text to Hunter the doctor wrote: 'This one in my office is of lines of sawdust sent to me by a master carpenter who was a coke addict.' 'The message accompanying that photo was meant to convey that Mr. Biden, too, could overcome any addiction,' Hunter's lawyers wrote. They went on: 'Mistaking sawdust for cocaine sounds more like a storyline from one of the 1980s Police Academy comedies than what should be expected in a high-profile prosecution by the U.S. Department of Justice.' Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, talks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol, in Washington, Dec. 13, 2023 A photo from Hunter Biden's laptop Abbe Lowell, Hunter's lawyer, said the sawdust mistake 'amplifies why Mr. Biden and the court could not take what the prosecution said 'at face value'. Weiss has charged Hunter Biden with crimes including lying about his drug use when he purchased a gun in 2018. The president's son has pleaded not guilty. Hunter Biden's lawyers accused the prosecution of being 'reckless' by making a 'hyperbolic and sensational' claim in relation to the sawdust picture. They said it would 'prejudice Mr. Biden in the public eye.' The row over the picture came as Hunter's lawyers filed a 22-page document relating to the sharing of evidence between the prosecution and defense. US President Joe Biden hugs his son Hunter Biden as they leave The Ivy restaurant in Los Angeles, California, February 4, 2024 In this courtroom sketch, President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden, center, appears alongside attorney Abbe Lowell, right, in front of Judge Mark C. Scarsi, left, in federal court, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024, in Los Angeles. Biden pleaded not guilty to federal tax charges Hunter Biden, son of U.S. President Joe Biden, is seen as he makes a surprise appearance at a House Oversight Committee meeting to vote on whether to hold Biden in contempt of Congress for failing to respond to a request to testify to the House last month, on Capitol Hill in Washington, January 10, 2024 Public health experts have accused the Covid Inquiry of 'bias', saying the failure to investigate the impact of lockdown makes it unfit for purpose. More than 50 scholars and academics from some of the UK's top universities have written to inquiry chairman Baroness Heather Hallett urging her to 'address its apparent biases, assumptions and impartiality'. And they accuse it of 'not living up to its mission to evaluate the mistakes made during the pandemic', including whether measures such as lockdowns and restrictions on mass gatherings were 'appropriate'. Letter co-author Dr Kevin Bardosh, director of think-tank Collateral Global, accused the inquiry of handing 'softball' questions to architects of government policy, while 'grilling' witnesses who were opposed to mass restrictions on public freedoms. More than 50 scholars and academics from some of the UK's top universities have written to inquiry chairman Baroness Heather Hallett urging her to 'address its apparent biases, assumptions and impartiality'. Pictured: Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2021 And they accuse it of 'not living up to its mission to evaluate the mistakes made during the pandemic', including whether measures such as lockdowns and restrictions on mass gatherings were 'appropriate'. Pictured: Baroness Heather Hallett Dr Kevin Bardosh accused the inquiry of handing 'softball' questions to architects of government policy, while 'grilling' witnesses who were opposed to mass restrictions on public freedoms. Pictured: Matt Hancock leaving the UK Covid-19 Inquiry last year He told the Mail: 'The inquiry is not seriously questioning their (scientific advisers') assessments around the justification for their policies. 'The inquiry is not interested in whether these policy decisions were good for the country, and that seems a mistake.' The terms of reference setting out the scope of the inquiry were established by the Government following public pressure for an inquiry. But Dr Bardosh accused Hugo Keith KC, lead counsel to the inquiry, of being more 'obsessed with reading out swear words in private WhatsApp messages than getting to the substance' of decision-making. He said: 'He seems to be concerned a lot with political theatre and having these 'gotcha' moments.' Cancer specialist Professor Karol Sikora, who signed the letter, described the inquiry as 'completely useless'. He added: 'It is structured to assess blame and not the scientific basis of the decision making. That's the difference between lawyers and scientists. 'The decisions made during the pandemic were clearly wrong - 'how' wrong has to be a scientific assessment. 'The current framework for the current inquiry is a legal one - totally unsuited to addressing the key questions. But Dr Bardosh accused Hugo Keith KC, lead counsel to the inquiry, of being more 'obsessed with reading out swear words in private WhatsApp messages than getting to the substance' of decision-making. Pictured: A sign near the entrance of the Covid Inquiry Cancer specialist Professor Karol Sikora, who signed the letter, described the inquiry as 'completely useless'. Pictured: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak 'We're not interested in WhatsApp gossip. We have to learn from the past - it's not about the apportioning of blame but simply how to do better next time.' The inquiry began hearing evidence in June last year, with testimony from the likes of prime minister Rishi Sunak, Covid-era premier Boris Johnson, and ex-health secretary Matt Hancock, as well as a host of the most senior scientific and medical advisers to the Government. The bill for the inquiry has already topped 78 million up to the end of last year, according to its latest financial report. In its letter, the group said: 'The inquiry originated in legal petitions brought by bereaved family groups. Yet there has been little opportunity for petitions to be brought by those who have suffered from the negative effects of pandemic policy decisions. 'This is preventing a more holistic assessment of impacts on population health and wellbeing. This lack of neutrality appears to have led to biassed reasoning and predetermined conclusions, for example, to lockdown faster next time.' It said the inquiry, which is due to run until 2026, has 'adopted a legal format that prevents a systematic evaluation of the evidence by biomedical and social scientists on the harms of restrictions to the British public' and is instead 'focused on who did or said what, rather than asking fundamental scientific questions'. It said the probe 'appears unsuited to the task' of investigating 'the interplay between harms, benefits and best practice' in order to prepare for the next pandemic. The bill for the inquiry has already topped 78 million up to the end of last year, according to its latest financial report. Pictured: General view of a NHS hospital ward Latest figures show there have been more than 230,000 covid-related deaths in the UK. An inquiry spokesman said: 'The Inquiry was established in June 2022 and is entirely independent. Baroness Hallett, chair of the Inquiry, has said repeatedly that she will not reach any conclusions until she has considered all of the evidence; that includes the written evidence. 'The Inquiry does not act on assumptions and has called expert witnesses who question the use of lockdowns and other interventions, as well as experts who advised on the imposition of lockdowns. 'The Inquiry will consider important issues such as the impact of lockdowns, key scientific and policy questions as well as population health and wellbeing in forthcoming modules. Our modular approach is clearly set out on our website and we will report during the lifespan of the Inquiry, with the first report scheduled for this summer.' Five people have been rushed to hospital after a bus crashed into a block of high-rise flats in a major Scottish town. Emergency services were called to Hamilton Court, Calside, Paisley at around 12.25pm on Wednesday, following reports a McGill's bus drove into the high-rise flats. Five people including the bus driver were taken to hospital for treatment and their condition is still unclear. Officers cordoned off the area and a number of roads were closed including Calside Avenue, Polsons Crescent, Craw Road and Alexandra Gate. Pictured: The bus wedged into the side of the block of flats at Hamilton Court Pictured: Police at the scene of the crash where a cordon is in place A Police Scotland spokesperson said: 'Five people have been taken to hospital for treatment and enquiries are ongoing. 'A number of road closures are in place including Calside Avenue, Polsons Crescent, Craw Road and Alexandra Gate. Drivers are asked to avoid the area.' McGill's Buses says it is investigating the cause of the crash with Police Scotland. Pictured: Emergency services dealing with the incident at Hamilton Court, Calside Pictured: Emergency services dealing with the incident earlier today A spokesperson for the bus operator said: 'At approximately 12.25pm today, one of one vehicles crashed into a block of flats in Calside, Paisley. 'Five people, one of whom was the driver, were taken to hospital by ambulance crews and our immediate thoughts and concerns are with them at this time. 'At this stage it is too early to know what caused the accident but McGill's personnel have been in attendance and are working with police on the post-incident investigation and will continue to do so in the days ahead.' Two British nationals have been arrested in Spain following the death of a UK pensioner who is believed to have suffered a fatal fall. The unnamed woman, 76, is reported to have fallen at a property in Rojales near Torrevieja, south of Alicante, several days ago. A 38-year-old woman, reported to be the septuagenarian's daughter, and a 73-year-old man thought to be a friend have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. The pair are accused of failing to call the emergency services after she fell in a domestic accident on the Costa Blanca. Police sources say she may have fallen three days before she died - but that her companions did not call for help because they were drinking heavily and under the influence of alcohol. Police have arrested two people after a British pensioner died at a property in Rojales on the Costa Blanca (pictured) Rojales is located in Spain's south-west, south of the British ex-pat hotspot of Alicante However, the duo are said to have insisted they raised the alarm in the early hours of Tuesday morning after realising that she was dead. Investigators are treating the death as manslaughter caused by omission. Radio Alicante reports that municipal police in Guardamar are leading the probe. It was not immediately clear if the dead woman had also been drinking before she fell and died. Civil Guard officers in Alicante are expected to make an official comment later this week once the two Brit suspects have appeared in court for a remand hearing. The man being held is believed to be a friend of the female OAP but it is not known if he lived in the property. The Foreign Office said: 'We are in contact with the local authorities following the death of a British woman in Spain.' President Joe Biden plans to express concern over Nippon Steel's proposed $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel and will do so before the White House's April 10 state dinner with key ally Japan. In December, Japanese company Nippon Steel clinched a deal to buy the 122-year-old iconic steelmaker for a hefty premium, betting that U.S. Steel will benefit from the spending and tax incentives in Biden's infrastructure bill. However, several Democratic and Republican U.S. senators have criticized the deal, citing national security concerns or raising questions about why the two companies did not consult U.S. Steel's main union ahead of the announcement. Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, a Democrat, eviscerated the deal in a statement in December. 'This is yet another example of hard-working Americans being blindsided by greedy corporations willing to sell out their communities to serve their shareholders,' Fetterman said. 'I stand with the men and women of the Steelworkers and their union way of life. We cannot allow them to be screwed over or left behind.' President Joe Biden plans to express concern over Nippon Steel's proposed $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel and will do so before the White House's April 10 state dinner with key ally Japan One of U.S. Steel's plants - the Edgar Thomson Works in Braddock, Pennsylvania - which is near the home of Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, who is against the Japanese company buying the American steel giant Fetterman lives across the street from the Edgar Thomson Works in Braddock, Pennsylvania, one of U.S. Steel's plants. The White House said in December the deal needed to be carefully scrutinized given U.S. Steel's core role in producing a material that is critical to national security. It declined to comment on Wednesday. Nippon Steel has said it believes the acquisition will be beneficial to all stakeholders. It was not immediately available for a comment outside regular hours. Biden will issue a statement about Nippon's planned acquisition before Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrives for a state visit in Washington on April 10, sources told Reuters. U.S. officials and lawyers have drafted the statement and the White House has privately informed the Japanese government of Biden's decision, according to the Financial Times, which first reported the news. Japan's Washington embassy did not immediately respond to requests for comment. U.S. Steel, founded in 1901 by some of the biggest U.S. magnates, including Andrew Carnegie, J.P. Morgan and Charles Schwab, became intertwined with the industrial recovery following the Great Depression and World War Two. Last year, the Pittsburgh-based company launched a formal review of its strategic options after rebuffing a takeover offer from steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs. Its shares had come under pressure following several quarters of falling revenue and profit, making it an attractive takeover target for rivals looking to add a maker of steel used by the automobile industry. U.S. Steel was not immediately available for a comment on Wednesday. Its shares were trading at $41.12, below Nippon's offer of $55 per share. This is the terrifying moment a large suspected gas explosion ripped through a chicken shop in northern China and left at least seven people dead. The blast occurred just before 8:00am local time on Wednesday, state broadcaster CCTV said, in a residential area in the city of Sanhe, Hebei province, less than 30 miles east of the centre of Beijing. Local authorities reported today that the death toll had climbed from two to seven, with 27 others injured, state outlet Xinhua reported. Footage online circulated by state media showed a huge explosion that sent plumes of smoke and fire across a busy road. The explosion was suspected to have been caused by a gas leak at a fried chicken shop, state media reported. A dashcam view shows people fleeing following an explosion in Sanhe, Langfang City The blast occurred just before 8:00 am local time on Wednesday, state broadcaster CCTV said, in a residential area in the city of Sanhe, Hebei province Firefighters work the scene of an explosion in Sanhe city at the chicken shop Firefighters extinguish a fire in the aftermath of a suspected gas explosion in Sanhe Two large buildings were completely destroyed in the blast, footage shared by the broadcaster showed, with rescue teams seen hauling away a car hit by the explosion. Rescue workers can also be seen carrying away a large gas canister. Residents said they had heard a loud explosion before rushing outside to see a plume of smoke rising into the morning air. 'I heard a great big bang... which scared me stiff,' a seller at a local market said. 'Outside, I saw clouds of black smoke,' they added. Another seller said they also heard a 'huge bang' from the blast site, in a bustling area of squat apartment blocks about six or seven floors high. 'The noise was too loud,' a vendor said, adding she had heard a 'second explosion'. A local man said he did not see the explosion, but when he reached the scene, there was still thick smoke. Near the scene of the blast, police waved oncoming traffic away from an entrance to the neighbourhood where the explosion occurred. Residents said they had heard a loud explosion before rushing outside to see a plume of smoke Two large buildings were completely destroyed in the blast which tore through the shop Firefighters work the scene of an explosion in Sanhe city, northern China today The local Langfang fire department said 36 emergency vehicle were dispatched to the scene The blast blew out shop facades, footage posted on video-sharing site Douyin showed. The uploader said the explosion took place 200 metres from her home. Another social media video showed what appeared to be a building that had completely collapsed as well as several destroyed cars and debris strewn across the street. The local Langfang fire department said 36 emergency vehicles and 154 personnel were dispatched to the scene. A merchant working at a nearby store told state-run Jimu News she had been in her shop when she heard a bang. She ran out of her store and saw a fire, she said, adding that the whole building had been 'virtually destroyed'. In a bid to prevent further accidents, a local company temporarily halted the provision of gas to 50 residential compounds and businesses in the area, state-run news outlet China National Radio said. Explosions and other deadly accidents are common in China. A recent spate of such accidents has prompted calls from President Xi Jinping for 'deep reflection' and greater efforts to stop them. A merchant working at a nearby store told state-run Jimu News she had been in her shop when she heard a bang. Pictured is a firefighter at the scene today In a bid to prevent further accidents, a local company temporarily halted the provision of gas to 50 residential compounds and businesses in the area, news outlet China National Radio said Last month, at least 15 people were killed and 44 injured in a fire at a residential building in the eastern city of Nanjing. In January, dozens died after a fire broke out at a store in the central city of Xinyu, with state news agency Xinhua reporting the blaze had been caused by the 'illegal' use of fire by workers in the store's basement. That fire came just days after a late-evening blaze at a school in central Henan province killed 13 schoolchildren as they slept in a dormitory. Domestic media reports suggested the fire was caused by an electric heating device. Last June, an explosion at a barbecue restaurant in the northwest of the country left 31 dead and prompted official pledges of a nationwide campaign to promote workplace safety. Grant Shapps last night threw his weight behind the push to increase military spending to 3 per cent of GDP. In a bold move which put further pressure on Rishi Sunak, the Defence Secretary said more cash was needed to match the threat posed by Vladimir Putin, adding: 'I want a bigger budget.' As he travelled to Poland, a Nato partner which already spends 4 per cent of GDP on defence, Mr Shapps described his vision for a properly funded Armed Forces including an overhaul of the 'ludicrous' recruitment process. His call is a major boost for the Mail's campaign to increasing spending on Britain's military budget. Currently the UK spends 2.27 per cent of gross domestic product on defence. Last night, Mr Shapps said he was in favour of spending 3 per cent and called for its inclusion in the Conservatives' election manifesto. Grant Shapps speaks during a join press conference with Polish Defence Minister after their meeting on a military training compound next to Orzysz, North-Eastern Poland on March 13 In a bold move which put further pressure on Rishi Sunak, the Defence Secretary threw his weight behind the push to increase military spending to 3 per cent of GDP (Stock image) Mr Shapps described his vision for a properly funded Armed Forces including an overhaul of the 'ludicrous' recruitment process (Stock image) He said: 'I have coined the phrase 'moving from post-war to pre-war'. We have to be much better prepared.2bn deal to buy 14 Chinooks 'Defence is the best way to protect ourselves against a military conflict you have to show your adversaries, so I am clearly in favour [of 3 per cent]. We live in a more dangerous world, we've got Putin on the frontline making gains.' 2bn deal to buy 14 Chinooks Britain's Special Forces were given a boost last night with the purchase of a 2 billion fleet of customised long-range helicopters. The 14 Chinooks can fly twice as far as lower-specification models and operate in the most challenging environments, from the desert to the Arctic. They have a top speed of 186mph and can carry up to 55 heavily armed troops or 11 tons of cargo. Last year, the Chinooks were at the centre of a diplomatic row over their cost, with the then defence secretary Ben Wallace blocking the deal at the 11th hour. Hundreds of millions of pounds were shaved off the price tag, and the deal was signed off by Mr Wallaces successor, Grant Shapps. Advertisement Mr Shapps advocated 3 per cent two years ago when he briefly challenged for the Conservative leadership. But this is the first time he has repeated his demand since becoming Defence Secretary. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt was challenged during exchanges with the Commons Treasury committee yesterday, after his Budget last week delivered no new money for defence. Mr Hunt said: 'I do believe we will need to spend more on defence, I think the world is becoming more dangerous. 'It is patently evident that Russia and China want to upend the international order that has brought more peace and prosperity to the world than any other in the existence of humanity.' The Chancellor said the Government had already 'done a lot' and was committed to raising spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP. But 'further reforms' were needed to the notoriously wasteful system of defence procurement before more cash was allocated. And he said ministers and service chiefs needed to 'fully understand the implications of the war in Ukraine' before deciding on 'the type of thing we would need to invest in for the wars of the future'. Mr Shapps said he was also drawing up plans to transform the Services' appallingly slow recruitment process, which routinely forces eager applicants to wait 12 to 18 months before finally beginning their training. Medical criteria will also be torn up so candidates are no longer prevented from enlisting due to inherited genealogical conditions. He also indicated the Army's centuries-old ban on most soldiers having beards is archaic and should be scrapped. Shapps met with Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz to take part in the joint press conference and meeting on a military training compound Mr Kosiniak-Kamysz (R) and Mr Shapps visited the NATO-organized Steadfast Defender 2024 military exercise in Poland Chancellor Jeremy Hunt appearing before the Treasury Committee in the House of Commons Mr Shapps said: 'You can be rejected for the most ludicrous reasons. Medical tests will ask about family history and if they think in 40 years' time you might develop some diseases, using actuaries, then they'll say you cannot serve today. They're probably not going to be serving in 40 years' time. 'Who cares if somebody has got a beard? Does that really mean you cannot fight? Come on, we are living in the 21st century it is time to move on.' As the Mail's campaign has run, security minister Tom Tugendhat and Indo-Pacific minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan have demanded an immediate rise to 2.5 per cent of GDP. Four former defence secretaries Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Sir Michael Fallon, Sir Gavin Williamson and Lord Hammond have also backed the campaign. Research in 2022 by the Royal United Services Institute said hitting 3 per cent by 2030 would require the Government to invest about 157 billion by that year. This would represent the biggest increase since the 1950s when the Korean War and the threat of the Soviet Union saw defence spending rise from 6.6 per cent in 1950 to 9.6 per cent in 1952. Venezuelan criminals already linked to multiple high profile crimes throughout US Other inmate cases under review so Communist regime can decide who else to set free next, authorities said A second wave of Venezuela's worst criminals could soon be rushing over the US border after being released from prison in their home country. DailyMail.com was first to report on the first wave of Venezuelan gangsters to cross the border and filter into American cities - including henchmen for dictator Nicolas Maduro and members of the notorious Tren de Aragua gang. Now, more gang bangers and thugs who had been locked away are being released, according to a government official. 'Since Friday, we have been carrying out in the state of Miranda, an operation looking into preventative centers and prisons,' Supreme Court of Justice Magistrate Edgar Gavidia said, adding that 100 prisoners had already been turned loose. 'We're looking case-by-case at anyone, giving justice to those who at one time made a mistake in their lives to expedite justice.' Speaking to DailyMail.com by phone Monday, Miami immigration attorney Rolando Vazquez warned, 'These are killers.' Yare prison, located in the state of Miranda, is controlled by gangs, and best known for a riot in 2012 that killed 25 inmates, as rival mobsters fought for control of the penitentiary Inmates receive military training in a sector of the El Rodeo prison near Caracas, on July 1, 2016 Supreme Court of Justice Magistrate Edgar Gavidia (left) told Venezuelan media that 100 prisoners had already been freed since Friday and that cases were being reviewed to free more inmates from Yare and El Rodeo prisons Prison inmates sat nearby as Venezuelan officials made the announcement that their cases were being released to determine who would be freed He compared them to Jose Ibarra, the Venezuelan man accused of murdering Georgia student Laken Riley. 'These are career criminals... [Maduro] is just sending more.' Notorious prison Yare and its sister facility Yare II, as well as a third prison called 'El Rodeo' are slowly letting prisoners go. 'They're thugs. These are prisons where there's thugs, killers,' Vazquez explained, adding: 'These are not the prisons where they house the political opposition.' Venezuela is positioning the release as a criminal justice reform initiative. 'Yare I is an open prison where prison bosses, known as pranes, rule,' according to InSightCrime.org. On the outskirts of the capital city of Caracas, El Rodeo has also been plagued with violence and corruption. Two El Rodeo wardens and a solider were charged in 2011 for corruption, after a riot at the facility left 22 dead after rival gangs unleashed chaos leading to a month-long stand off with authorities, the BBC reported. Vazquez, a successful asylum attorney with deep ties to the Venezuelan community and outspoken critic of the communist tyrant, was first to sound the alarm about the releases. 'Americans need to know, they're coming to the border,' the lawyer added. Already, bad actors from South America have been tied to high-profile crimes in the States, including the brutal beating of two cops in Times Square in January. The suspects in the NYPD beatings, Kelvin Servita Arocha and Wilson Juarez, have been identified as Tren de Aragua members. Wilson Juarez, right, and Kelvin Servita-Arocha, left, have been charged in the NYPD cop beating in January. Both men have ties to super gang Tren de Aragua The FBI is concerned with El Tren de Aragua (pictured in a September prison raid) linking up with other criminal networks such as the notorious MS-13 In Miami, Tren de Aragua has already had its first US kill, after member Yurwin Salazar was charged in the slaying of a retired Venezuelan police officer who lived in Florida. Former cop Jose Luis Sanchez Valera, 43, was lured by several women to a Miami hotel in late November. He was abducted in the parking lot and later killed. Former Venezuelan police officer Jose Luis Sanchez Valera, 43, who lived in Florida, was brutally murdered by Tren de Aragua gangster Yurwin Salazar, 23, (pictured) according to Miami officials Yurwin Salazar, 23, a Venezuelan immigrant who has been identified as a gangster, has been charged with the murder. Just north of Miami in Palm Beach County, the local sheriff referenced the Venezuelan gangs while holding a press conference about three Guatemalan migrants who are accused of sexually assaulting a woman. 'Here you have three illegals that should have never been in this country,' Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said during a news conference Wednesday. 'Our intelligence section who works very closely with the FBI has also identified that the most dangerous gangs in the world are now in Miami from Venezuela. They make MS-13 look like school kids.' He went on to warn that the gangster couldn't be contained to South Florida and would end up all over the country. 'We'll be dealing with this for the rest of mine and your life,' retired Border Patrol agent and current Sheriff of Terrell County, Texas Thaddeus Cleveland said of the migrant crime wave. Criminals who reach the US-Mexico international boundary sometimes sneak into the country by paying Mexican smugglers to avoid detection. Others pass themselves off as refugees seeking asylum, even though they may have been among those terrorizing their countrymen back home and causing them to flee. Every migrant who presents themselves at the border or who is captured trying to sneak into the country undergoes a biometric, including fingerprint, background check, a Border Patrol agent speaking on condition of anonymity told DailyMail.com. The problem is, only those who have previously been fingerprinted or have outstanding criminal warrants would be flagged in the system. Anyone without prior arrests or using a fake name would not. Groups of migrants of different nationalities arrive at the Rio Grande, to cross it and surrender to the American authorities on March 5 in El Paso, Texas Migrants continue to cross the border between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico Nicholas Maduro, the president of Venezuela, was indicted by the US government in 2020 on narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking charges. He's been in power since 2013 after the former dictator Hugo Chavez died Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland (left) is a retired US Border Patrol agent. Rolando Vazquez (right) is an immigration attorney in Miami, Florida with strong ties to the Venezuelan community Many Latin American countries don't have biometric screening systems or don't share criminal records with the US, like Maduro's government, which does not maintain diplomatic relations with America. 'We know people like that are coming in, but without a fingerprint being flagged or other criminal flag, we just have to take their word for it if they mix in with the refugees,' the agent explained. But the Biden Administration does have the power to do more right now, Cleveland stated. 'We could put a stop to this; two options: the President can bring back the Migrant Protection Protocols. He should have done that three years or he should have never taken away that process,' the sheriff said. The Migrant Protection Protocols, put in place by the Trump Administration, would require US immigration officials to return to certain migrants to Mexico while their U.S. removal proceedings are pending. However, President Biden and Mexico have made the case the program is unlawful, since Mexico is not obligated to take migrants other than its own citizens. 'If you're going to let migrants in, we can at least keep them incarcerated. Let's put them in a detention center. When this President (Biden) came in, he sliced (Immigration and Customs Enforcement's) budget, and with that comes reduced bed space where we can keep migrants, the former immigration agent recounted. 'Either we keep them in Mexico or we keep them in a detention facility here in the United States.' State Trooper Brian North listens to testimony in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media State Trooper Brian North stands in Connecticut Superior Court at the start of the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Lead prosecuting attorney Robert Devlin delivers his closing arguments to the jury on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Defense attorney Frank Riccio delivers his closing arguments to the jury on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Assistant State Attorney Andrew Slitt questions a witness in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Former New York City Police officer Darrin Porcher testifies on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Former New York City Police officer Darrin Porcher is sworn in as a witness on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media State Trooper Brian North listens to closing arguments in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Signs critical of police were outside state Superior Court in Milford Wednesday, which is expected to be the last day of testimony in the manslaughter trial of Trooper North. Throughout the trial, several signs showing their support for police have been present. Ethan Fry / Hearst Connecticut Media Cathleen Walsh of Southbury stands with a flag outside of the state Superior Court in Milford on what is expected to be the last day of testimony in the manslaughter trial of Trooper North. Throughout the trial, several signs showing their support for police have been placed on the lawn outside the courthouse. On Wednesday, though, new signs critical of police were also present. Ethan Fry / Hearst Connecticut Media MILFORD A six-member jury began deliberations Wednesday afternoon in the manslaughter trial of Connecticut State Police Trooper Brian North in the fatal shooting of Mubarak Soulemane. North, the first law enforcement officer in the state to be charged in a fatal shooting in nearly two decades, faces up to 40 years behind bars if convicted. Following final instructions from the judge, the four men and two women began deliberations about 3:15 p.m. on the trials eighth day, which began Wednesday morning with brief testimony from a rebuttal witness from the prosecution. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The jury deliberated for about a half-hour before sending a note to the judge, asking for more information about a possible defense in the case that North said he was protecting other officers then deliberated about 20 minutes more before asking for more instructions in writing. The judge excused them for the day at about 4:25 p.m. after saying hed give them written instructions Thursday morning. Attorneys for the state and North made closing arguments on Wednesday, illustrating the competing interpretations of Norths decision to fire seven shots through the drivers side window of a stolen car driven by Soulemane after a chase on Interstate 95 and a crash in West Haven Jan. 15, 2020. Norths lawyer, Frank Riccio, said his client had no choice because he had an objectively reasonable belief that Robert Rappa, a West Haven police officer who broke the passengers side window of the car, could be in mortal danger from a knife Soulemane was holding. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Sadly, what other forces could have been used? he said, arguing his client was doing his job after a reported carjacking with a knife followed by a high-speed pursuit up a busy highway, with a suspect that had not shown one iota of compliance up to that point. The prosecutor, Inspector General Robert Devlin, noted that North didnt say he thought Rappa or Trooper Joshua Jackson, another trooper on the other side of the vehicle, were in danger until he provided a statement a month after the shooting, having reviewed video of the incident with his lawyer and union representative. The night of the shooting, Devlin noted, North told fellow cops he started shooting after Soulemane came to when the window was broken and pulled a knife from his pants. He saw the knife and he fired, Devlin repeated again and again during his closing argument. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In this case, weve had too many excuses, too many rationalizations, he said. This young man is dead and he shouldnt be, thats the bottom line. On Wednesday morning, a rebuttal expert hired by the state said officers at the scene should have called a tactical pause to allow for a supervisor to provide more guidance. The expert, retired New York City Police Lt. Darrin Porcher, disagreed with testimony Tuesday from two defense experts who determined the shooting was justified, but were prevented from talking about that conclusion specifically in court. Every shot that you fire must be justified, Porcher said. Whenever youre using force or deadly physical force against a subject, you have to justify every single shot. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Porcher also said officers could have taken a tactical pause after Soulemane rear-ended the other vehicle. That would have been the perfect time to take a tactical pause and allow a supervisor to respond, he said. North, who rejected a plea offer in the case calling for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison with a right to argue for less time behind bars, faces up to 40 years if convicted of first-degree manslaughter with a firearm. But per the judges instructions to the jury, North could be found guilty of second-degree manslaughter with a firearm or criminally negligent homicide. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In closing arguments, Devlin said North should be convicted of the highest count, noting the only efforts cops made at communicating with Soulemane were Trooper Joshua Jackson telling him to get out of the car, twice. Those are the only words that are said to Mubarak Soulemane before he was killed, and he probably never heard them, Devlin said. He posed no threat to anybody, Devlin said of Soulemane. This situation should have ended up better. Devlin described the chaotic scene as police vehicles surrounded the white Hyundai. Soulemane was in the drivers seat, out of it, the prosecutor said, and couldnt exit the vehicle from the drivers door, which was blocked in by a police cruiser. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Devlin said Soulemane didnt move toward officers and never tried to go over the console into the passenger seat, which would be the only way he could pose a real threat. Within seconds literally seconds of this window breaking North fires seven shots at Soulemane through the drivers window, killing him, Devlin said. Seven shots. I submit to you folks thats extreme indifference to human life. Complete overkill, he added. The defendant fires seven shots in 1.4-something seconds, Devlin said. Seven shots, right to the chest, killing Mubarak Soulemane. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I submit to you folks thats manslaughter. Thats extreme indifference of human life, recklessly taking the life of somebody else with a gun, thats what it is, he said. Riccio argued that the state didnt discuss the events prior to what occurred at Exit 43. Norwalk is where this all began, Riccio said. He said police were told about a carjacking with a knife in Norwalk, the high speeds on the highway and saw the reckless driving. North and Jackson tried to box Soulemane in with their cruisers, but were unsuccessful. Riccio argued Soulemane did pose a threat, as evidenced by his actions starting in Norwalk. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Did he pose a threat? Absolutely, because he was not compliant at any point in time, Riccio said. Riccio also drew attention to the time frame of the incident, saying the trial has spent eight days examining an incident that occurred in 35 seconds. When Trooper North and Trooper Jackson and the others were at that scene, they couldnt slow time down, Riccio said. They lived it in real time. Were taking an event that happened in real time and were being asked everyones being asked to critique what shouldve happened, what couldve happened, what maybe was, shouldve been the result, Riccio said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Mr. Soulemane showed not one iota of compliance that entire afternoon, from Norwalk to West Haven, Riccio said. So, why would you think he would start then? Riccio said North didnt mention Rappa or Jackson in his initial statements because he was a poor kid in shock after experiencing the most traumatic event of his life. He thinks about this every day, Riccio said. This is a terrible event. Someone lost their life. But the question is, is Trooper North criminally responsible for that? He is not. Given the chance to speak last since the state has the burden of proving North guilty, Devlin pointed to a notion, kind of in the shadows of this case, that somehow because of misdeeds on Norwalk or on Interstate 95 that Mubarak Soulemane forfeited the protection of the law at Campbell Avenue. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Thats not true, and thats a disturbing assertion, he said. If North did believe a fellow officer was in danger, Devlin said, his initial statements to superiors at the scene wouldve been his golden opportunity to explain. Instead, North told troopers he fired when he saw the knife, Devlin said, showing footage of the incident from multiple angles. The prosecutor, who began his closing by noting the centuries-old tradition of trials by jury, argued the court system would have dealt with Soulemane fairly. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The thing is that court system never got a chance to work because this defendant shot and killed Mubarak Soulemane, Devlin said. NEAR Victoria railway station you will find a florist who sells pink roses, hydrangeas, lisianthus and phlox. Rishi Sunak should ditch his meetings for an hour and go down there to buy a large bouquet for Diane Abbott. It might not solve the political problem of those idiotic remarks by Tory donor Frank Hester but it would at least be an act of kindness. That is always a start. Miss Abbott (Independent, Hackney North and Stoke Newington) sat in the Commons at Prime Ministers Questions looking sad. Who could blame her? Mr Hester had been foul about her and it had become headline news. The Commons was now yelling away, the two main Opposition leaders capitalising on the issue, while Mr Sunak failed to defend the indefensible. When a woman has been racially violated, you shouldnt game-plan your response or think up parliamentary retorts. Diane Abbott looked sad at PMQs as other MPs tried to talk for her, making political capital out of Tory donor Frank Hester's comments about her making him 'want to hate all black women' As all the partisan arguments whirlpooled around her name, Miss Abbott sat on the backbench near the late Jo Coxs coat of arms. She was flanked by two of her dwindling band of socialist friends, Zarah Sultana (Lab, Coventry South) and Apsana Begum (Lab, Poplar and Limehouse). She kept bobbing, hoping to catch the Speakers eye, but she was not called. Her name was not on the order paper and Speakers usually stick to the list. Sir Keir Starmer spat out his questions and tried some Mrs Merton sarcasm. Even when his opponent is in an impossible position there is something stale about Sir Keir. A derivative dud. Not for the first time he nicked one of Tony Blairs lines about how he had changed his party. Half the House met this claim with mirth. A weary-sounding Rishi Sunak was put very much on the defensive at today's PMQs by Labour and the Scots Nats over the Heston/Abbott row Stephen Flynn, who leads the Scots Nats MPs, is a crisper, deadlier proposition. Mr Flynn, who does not bother with notes, snarled that the Hester comments about Miss Abbott were racist, odious and downright bloody dangerous. Speaker Lindsay Hoyle almost protested about that bloody, for you are not meant to swear in the Commons. He leaned forward, listening intently, but the clerks did not encourage an intervention. In a second, anyway, Mr Flynn had resumed his seat, the veins of his bald head throbbing with impressive aggression. There is untold value in brevity. Sir Keir Starmer spat out his questions and tried some Mrs Merton sarcasm - but it felt stale The Labour and Scots Nats attacks were half-successful. They put a weary-sounding Sunak very much on the defensive and made us think Mr Hester a bad piece of business. Where the attacks were less successful was in trying to depict the modern Tory party as racist. Alongside the PM sat the Home Secretary, James Cleverly, whose mum came from Sierra Leone. Mr Sunak reminded the House that he himself is the countrys first British-Asian PM. Mind you, that is as far as he ever goes. He never speaks of any abuse he himself experienced as a youth. Given that he once worked as an Indian restaurant waiter, I bet he copped a few drunken insults. Maybe he doesnt want to play the victim card. It might be politic to do so. He did not handle the Hester business brilliantly. Politics becomes a dehumanising business. The main figures become lost in a cocoon of optics, focus groups and strategems. They forget the human touch, such as a bunch of flowers. Miss Abbott was not alone in failing to catch the Speakers eye. So did Rochdales George Galloway. Sir Edward Leigh (Con, Gainsborough), 73, bellowed a question about immigration and ran so short of breath, he nearly pegged it. I preferred the unobtrusive silence of Sir Oliver Heald (Con, N-E Herts). Spherical Sir Oliver, 69, sits almost immobile during the worst Commons squalls. All he does, while remaining utterly phlegmatic, is exercise his lips, pushing them up and down and inside out like a resting brass player. The rest of the House is screaming like lunatics but Sir Oliver just parps away to himself, a tuba player preparing to perform Rimsky-Korsakovs Flight Of The Bumblebee. READ MORE: Study says lockdown only reduced COVID deaths by 0.2 percent The former Harvard professor said he was fired for his anti-lockdown views A Swedish Harvard professor claims he was fired by the prestigious school for urging American to follow his native country's approach to Covid lockdowns. Epidemiologist Martin Kulldorff - who was a professor at Harvard for 20 years - said he was let go for attaching his name to the Great Barrington Declaration, a coalition of scientists who opposed blanket shutdowns to suppress the virus, and speaking publicly against the government's response to the pandemic. The professor aired his grievances in an editorial for City Journal this week, claiming that he was terminated for 'clinging to the truth as the world lost its way during the Covid pandemic.' But the former professor has been accused of making inflammatory comments during the pandemic, at one point comparing children wearing masks to the Taliban's brutal treatment of women, along with claiming unvaccinated Americans would lead to herd immunity in six months. Harvard professor Martin Kulldorff said he was fired from the university this week. The professor aired his grievances in an editorial for City Journal this week, claiming that he was terminated for 'clinging to the truth as the world lost its way during the Covid pandemic' Kulldorff alleged that the university ignored data from Sweden, a country that kept schools open and the elderly at home, which showed it had the lowest excess mortality among major European countries and less than half of the US. Harvard's chief communications officer, Laura DeCoste, told DailyMail.com: Harvard Medical School has affiliation agreements with several Boston hospitals which it neither owns nor operationally controls. Hospital-based faculty, such as Dr. Kulldorff, are employed by the hospital and not Harvard Medical School. Therefore, when a faculty members hospital employment ends, their academic appointment at Harvard Medical School also ends. Kulldorff began his career as a professor of medicine at Harvard in 2003 but was on leave last year. He teamed up with Professor Sunetra Gupta at Oxford University and Stanford's Jay Bhattacharya to write the Great Barrington Declaration in 2020. The document raised concerns about 'how the current Covid-19 strategies are forcing our children, the working class and the poor to carry the heaviest burden.' 'The declaration made clear that no scientific census existed for school closures and many other lockdown measures. In response, though, the attacks intensifiedand even grew slanderous,' Kulldorff wrote in the City Journal. The former professor has been accused of making inflammatory comments during the pandemic, at one point comparing children wearing masks to the Taliban 's brutal treatment of women Kulldorff (left) teamed up with Professor Sunetra Gupta at Oxford University and Stanford's Jay Bhattacharya to write the Great Barrington Declaration in 2020. The document raised concerns about 'how the current Covid-19 strategies are forcing our children, the working class and the poor to carry the heaviest burden He continued to explain that he and his colleagues were called 'fringe epidemiologists' by Francis Collins who is 'a lab scientist with limited public-health experience who controls most of the nation's medical research budget.' 'A prominent Harvard epidemiologist publicly called the declaration 'an extreme fringe view,' equating it with exorcism to expel demons,' Kulldorff shared. 'A member of Harvard's Center for Health and Human Rights, who had argued for school closures, accused me of 'trolling' and having 'idiosyncratic politics,' falsely alleging that I was 'enticed . . . with Koch money,' 'cultivated by right-wing think tanks,' and 'won't debate anyone.' READ MORE: 12,000 scientists and medics signed the Great Barrington Declaration The Great Barrington Declaration called for young people to be allowed to return to life as normal while the elderly and most vulnerable are given 'focused protection'. Advertisement Kulldorff claimed he attempted to convince Harvard to stay open using the blueprint from Sweden. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Sweden was among the few countries that did not enforce strict lockdown mandates. The nation put the decision in the hands of its citizens, allowing them to make voluntary behavioral changes. Data released in 2021 by Oxford University-based research platform Our World in Data, showed the Scandinavian country suffered almost 1,500 confirmed Covid deaths per million people. The US had 32,350 deaths per million people around the same time as the report was released in November of that year. 'Sweden's Covid deaths were below average, and it avoided collateral mortality caused by lockdowns,' Kulldorff said in the post. 'Yet on July 29, 2020, the Harvard-edited New England Journal of Medicine published an article by two Harvard professors on whether primary schools should reopen, without even mentioning Sweden. 'It was like ignoring the placebo control group when evaluating a new pharmaceutical drug. That's not the path to truth.' Along with criticizing lockdowns across the US, Kulldorff also stood on the opposition of vaccine mandates In March 2021, a Twitter user asked Kulldorff if everyone should get the Covid jab, to which he responded 'No.' 'Thinking everyone must be vaccinated is as scientifically flawed as thinking nobody should,' the tweet reads. He continued to explain: 'Covid vaccines are important for older high-risk people and their care-takers, those with prior natural infection do not need it. Nor children.' Kulldorf broke the news of his termination on X this week, sharing his story in a post he wrote for City Journal That tweet was flagged by a content moderator at the site saying it shared 'false information regarding the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccines' because it differed from Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines at the time. It was soon labeled as 'misleading,' and all replies and likes were shut off. The following year, documents detailed how Twitter executives sought to censor 'inconvenient' data about COVI by discrediting doctors and experts who spoke out against vaccines. And Kulldorff was named among the experts deemed to have spread 'misinformation.' However, a study published in 2023 by the University of Oxford found Covid was the eighth leading cause of death in children and young people in the US from August 2021 to July 2022. Researchers revealed there were 1,300 deaths among children and young people aged zero to 19 years. That tweet was flagged by a content moderator at the site saying it shared 'false information regarding the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccines' because it differed from Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines at the time While Kulldorff opposed mandated Covid vaccines, he noted in the post that he helped the CDC and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) develop their post-market vaccine safety system. 'Vaccines are a vital medical invention, allowing people to obtain immunity without the risk that comes from getting sick,' he explained. READ MORE: Twitter Files dump shows company SUPPRESSED debate and information from doctors and experts - including Martin Kulldorff Journalist David Zweig laid bare how both the Trump and Biden administrations pressured Twitter executives to censor information that was 'true but inconvenient.' Advertisement 'The smallpox vaccine alone has saved millions of lives. In 2020, the CDC asked me to serve on its Covid-19 Vaccine Safety Technical Work Group.' Kulldorff continued to claim that the 'Covid vaccines were not properly designed.' 'While they demonstrated the vaccines' short-term efficacy against symptomatic infection, they were not designed to evaluate hospitalization and death, which is what matters,' he said. A 2023 study led by the CDC determined that the 'first-generation Covid-19 mRNA vaccines were associated with protection against Covid-19 during the Omicron BA.4/BA.5 sublineage-predominant periods but protection declined over time.' The study included 82,229 emergency department or urgent care encounters and 21,007 hospitalizations for Covid19like illness. Those hospitalized had three doses of the vaccine, providing a 68 percent effective rate, but that dropped to a 36 percent effective rate 120 days after receiving the jab. Kulldorff also mentioned the CDC pausing the J&J vaccine in 2021 due to reports of blood clots in women under the age of 50. 'I argued in an op-ed that the J&J vaccine should not be paused for older Americans. This is what got me in trouble,' he wrote. 'I am probably the only person ever fired by the CDC for being too pro-vaccine. 'While the CDC lifted the pause four days later, the damage was done. Some older Americans undoubtedly died because of this vaccine 'pause.' He argued that the world became aware in 2021 that 'Covid-acquired immunity is superior to vaccine-acquired immunity.' Kulldorff began his career as a professor of medicine at Harvard in 2003 but was on leave last year However, Kulldorff cited the only paper to publish such claims - a study conducted by researchers in Tel Aviv. Johns Hopkins shared its take on the study, noting it had not been peer-reviewed. 'These findings should not be taken as an endorsement that getting infected is a better overall option for protection than the highly effective vaccines that are available as only those who survived initial infection were eligible for analysis,' the university shared in a statement. Kulldorff concluded the post by saying that Harvard faculty 'diligently pursue truth in a wide variety of fields,' but truth 'not been the guiding principle of Harvard leaders.' 'The pursuit of truth requires academic freedom with open, passionate, and civilized scientific discourse, with zero tolerance for slander, bullying, or cancellation,' he added. It looks like an alien spaceship, or a new galaxy that has suddenly emerged in the sky. But a mysterious blue spiral that appeared in the middle of the Northern Lights was actually left by Elon Musk's SpaceX. Experts say the spiral shape appeared when SpaceX's rocket vented unneeded fuel during its long descent into the ocean. When the rocket fuel was ejected, it froze and crystallised in the shape of a spiral, which was then illuminated by the sun. Photographers in Iceland and Norway captured the bizarre unnatural phenomenon, which has an eerie, UFO-like appearance. Photographer Bettina Begtoft captured the apparition on March 5 in Norway with the Barents Sea in the foreground Experts say the spiral shape appears as the part of SpaceX's rocket vented unneeded fuel during its long descent into the ocean What is the SpaceX spiral? Experts say a mysterious spiral shape can appear in the night sky when a rocket vents unneeded fuel after launch. When the fuel is ejected, it freezes and crystallises in the shape of a spiral, which is then illuminated by the sun. In this latest instance, the upper stage of one of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets vented fuel shortly after lift-off, with a blue spiral then appearing. According to Spaceweather.com, 'SpaceX spirals' are a common sight over the Pacific. Advertisement SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on Sunday, March 4 at 17:05 ET (22:05 GMT). It carried 53 small satellites to Earth-orbit, a mission known as Transporter-10. When the rocket's discarded second stage passed over the Barents Sea in the Arctic Ocean, it performed a de-orbit burn a firing of its engines to enable it to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere. As it spun, the exhaust turned into a spectacular spiral, which caught the light from the sun. Those who were still awake in the early hours of March 5 in northern Europe were there to witness the strange sight. Photographer Bettina Begtoft captured the apparition in Norway with the Barents Sea in the foreground. 'I noticed it at 2:02 am local time,' Begtoft told spaceweather.com. 'To the naked eye it looked white, but my Nikon D750 camera revealed the beautiful blue colour.' Another shot of the same SpaceX spiral was captured Shang Yang in the town of Akureyri, north Iceland. 'I caught this in Akureyri around 1 am local time on March 5th,' said Yang. 'It looked otherworldly against the Northern Lights.' Stunning: This shot of the same SpaceX spiral was captured by Shang Yang in Iceland on March 5 SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from California 's Vandenberg Space Force Base on Sunday, March 4. It carried 53 small satellites to Earth-orbit, a mission known as Transporter-10. READ MORE: Blue spiral appears in the sky over Hawaii The spectacular sight baffled skygazers over Hawaii Advertisement It is not the first time SpaceX has left observers thinking there might be UFOs present. In January last year, a blue-tinted spiral was left by the company over Maunakea in Hawaii following the launch of a new satellite. It was caught on camera by Hawaii's Subaru Telescope and grew from a small dot into a spiral, which gradually expanded and faded. And in June 2022, another blue spiral travelling across New Zealand's skies baffled onlookers who thought it had alien origins. The spiralling plume of gas lit up the sky over Nelson, a city at the tip of New Zealand's south island, and travelled 466 miles (750km) south to Stewart Island. These spirals are a 'routine by-product' of SpaceX operations according to spaceweather.com, and are a common sight over the Pacific. Olivier Staiger, an independent astronomer based in Switzerland, managed to predict the March 5 SpaceX spiral would occur. In January 2023, a blue-tinted spiral was left by SpaceX over Maunakea in Hawaii following the launch of a new satellite He now thinks another one will happen in October during SpaceX's Transporter-12 mission and could be accompanied with more auroras and meteor showers. There are two major meteor showers in October the Draconids (October 8-9) and the Orionids (October 21-22) which could coincide with Transporter-12. What's more, a comet called Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is expected to reach its peak and become visible from Earth in September or October 2024. Effects of climate change will have 'cascaded' through multiple industries Global warming could cost the world up to $24 trillion (19 trillion) over the next 36 years, a concerning new study warns. Researchers think that by 2060 economic disruptions will have 'cascaded' through multiple industries such as tourism, transport, food production and healthcare. Heatwaves making it too hot for crops to grow will cost the industry billions, while flooding from rising sea levels will require expensive new infrastructure to be built. What's more, health costs will come from people suffering from heat exposure, while work stoppages will impact businesses when it's too hot to work. Many climate studies have looked at how many might be killed by climate change, but this new study considers the knock-on effects in the global supply chain. Effects of climate change include droughts, wildfires, sea levels rising, more intense heat waves and extreme weather events such as tropical storms. The researchers point out that the implications of such events will ripple from one industry to another because they are all interconnected. Pictured, a wildfire near Amarillo, Texas, on February 28 2024 Pictured, heatwave days in the 2040s (left) and 2060s (right) under the worst case climate scenario, where greenhouse gas emissions aren't kept under control. The number of heatwave days in each cell was calculated from the ten-year average READ MORE: Rising sea levels could cost Europe up to 748 BILLION by 2100 Study reveals the parts of Europe most impacted financially by rising waters Advertisement The new study was led by Professor Dabo Guan at University College London's Bartlett School of Sustainable Construction, who called the economic impacts of climate change 'staggering'. 'These losses get worse the more the planet warms, and when you factor in the effects on global supply chains it shows how everywhere is at economic risk,' he said. Climate effects of greenhouse gas emissions include droughts, wildfires, sea levels rising, more intense heatwaves and extreme weather events such as tropical storms. The researchers point out that the implications of such events will ripple from one industry to another because they are all interconnected. If countries become too hot or suffer climate-related disasters like flooding, tourists will be less inclined to visit which will hurt the country's economy. The study points to the Dominican Republic as a place that will see a decline in its tourism as its climate grows too warm to attract holidaymakers. Industries in the country that are reliant on tourism include manufacturing, construction, insurance, financial services and electronic equipment. From tourism, transport, food production and healthcare, economic disruptions will have 'cascaded' through multiple industries by 2060, the experts say. These graphs show financial losses in key industrial sectors in Tanzania, India, Germany and Sweden in 2040, 2050 and 2060. Tanzania, a lower-middle income economy dependent on agriculture, will see greater overall losses than Germany and Sweden, both highly developed countries Heatwaves making it too hot for crops to grow will cost the industry billions. Climate change is also expected to make crops more vulnerable to disease by facilitating the emergence of new pathogenic strains An aerial view shows flooding in Fuzhou after Typhoon Doksuri made landfall and brought heavy rainfall. As scientists already know, climate change results in more intense rainfall because warmer air can hold more moisture. And because rainfall is increasing on average across the world, the chances of flooding are getting higher READ MORE: The world is on track for a 'hellish' 3C of global warming Scientists think the world could pass several catastrophic points of no return Advertisement Meanwhile climate change is expected to make it too hot for crops to grow and more vulnerable to disease by facilitating the emergence of new pathogenic strains. For the study, the team looked at expected economic losses across three projected global warming scenarios, called 'Shared Socioeconomic Pathways' (SSPs) based on low, medium and high projected global emissions levels In the best case scenario, the world shifts toward a 'more sustainable path', greenhouse gas emissions are curbed and global temperatures rise by only 2.7F (1.5C) over preindustrial levels by 2060. In a 'middle of the road' scenario, which most experts believe Earth is on now, climate trends do not really shift from historical patterns and global temperatures rise by around 5.4F (3C). But in the dreaded worse case scenario, humans live in a world of 'rapid and unconstrained growth in economic output and energy use' and global temperatures rise by a hefty 12.6F (7C). Projected economic losses will be nearly five times as much under the highest emissions path than the lowest, the team think. Depending on how much greenhouse gas is emitted, the team estimate net economic losses of between $3.75 trillion (2.9 trillion) and $24.7 trillion (19.2 trillion) by 2060. Health costs will come from people suffering from heat exposure, while work stoppages will impact businesses when it's too hot to work. Here, a man cools off at a temporary misting station in Vancouver, British Columbia, August 16, 2023 An aerial view of burnt area after a fatal wildfire in Stinnett, Texas on March 1, 2024. Many climate studies have looked at how many might be killed by climate change , but this new study considers the knock-on effects in the global supply chain Researchers studied the global financial loss of climate change under three scenarios, depending on how intense global warming gets by 2060 What is gross domestic product (GDP)? Gross domestic product (GDP) is the main measure of a country's economic growth. It's based on the value of goods and services produced during a given period. It is also used to compare the size of different economies at a different point in time. Source: ONS/Bank of England Advertisement Total losses in gross domestic product (GDP) will amount to 0.8 per cent under 2.7F of warming, two per cent under 5.4F of warming and 3.9 per cent under 12.6F of warming. Future extreme heat is likely to cost Europe and the US about 2.2 per cent and about 3.5 per cent of their GDP respectively under the high emission scenario. The UK would lose about 1.5 per cent of its GDP, with chemical products, tourism and electrical equipment industries suffering the greatest losses. The study also reports that 2060 will see 24 per cent more days of extreme heatwaves even under the lowest path and an additional 590,000 heatwave deaths annually. But under the highest path there would be more than twice as many heatwaves and an expected 1.12 million additional annual heatwave deaths. These impacts will not be evenly distributed around the world, but countries situated near to the equator will bear the brunt of climate change, particularly developing countries. Research shows that changes in climate create warmer, drier conditions, boosting chances of wildfires. This photo taken on March 5, 2024 shows a wildfire in Primorye Territory of Russia Residents asses the damage in the flooded streets of Fort Lauderdale after three days of heavy rainfall, April 13, 2023 Already, developing countries especially those in Africa such as Uganda and Malawi suffer disproportionate economic losses compared to their carbon emissions. The experts conclude that global supply chains should start putting an emphasis on efficiency and climate resilience rather than on efficiency. As global temperatures rise, governments will be forced to think about how the financial risks of climate can be mitigated. 'A concerted global strategy to reduce emissions will not only directly protect many people in developing economies from direct economic losses of heat stress but will also maintain resilient and efficient global supply chains and contribute to the long-term, sound development of the global economy,' they team say. The new study has been published today in Nature. A space capsule containing a small, unmanned pharmaceutical plant floated down into the Utah desert this February carrying freshly made crystals of HIV medication. The orbital platform was the culmination of four years of work by a new company based in California, Varda, which hopes to use the unique conditions of microgravity in low Earth orbit to manufacture more pure, and thus cheaper, drugs. Not unlike the odd shape that ice cubes can take in an off-balance ice cube tray, a drug manufacturer's tiny, molecular-scale chemical reactions can lead to lopsided, unwanted shapes due only to the bias of Earth's gravitational pull. But Varda is not the only company entering the Big Pharma space race in an effort to improve these conditions for creating their crystalline drug molecules. Drug giant Eli Lilly and a host of universities that have partnered with the International Space Station's National Lab have also begun testing orbital platforms for everything from cancer medication to Alzheimer's disease research. A space capsule containing a small, unmanned pharmaceutical plant (above) floated down into the Utah desert this February carrying freshly made crystals of HIV medication The orbital platform was the culmination of four years of work by a new company based in El Segundo, California , Varda Space Industries, which hopes to use the unique conditions of microgravity in low Earth orbit to manufacture more pure, and thus cheaper, drugs 'The impact of microgravity seems to be very effective at getting pure crystalline materials that have unique properties,' as biochemistry professor Anne Wilson at Butler University told the Wall Street Journal this week. Wilson who has conducted research on microgravity crystallization chemistry, but has no direct affiliation with Varda noted that the promise of microgravity includes improved molecular structures for a host of special materials, in and out of medicine. Varda is currently analyzing the results of its test of space-based HIV drug production, according to the company's Chief Science Officer Adrian Radocea. Varda is now preparing for two future flights, which will launch this year beginning in June or July onboard a SpaceX reusable rocket, according to Varda's co-founder and president Delian Asparouhov Asparouhov said his firm has already signed contracts with pharma companies for this year's flights as well as three more scheduled for 2025, some of whose names will be disclosed ahead of this summer's launch The project, which fabricated the drug ritonavir, launched in June 2023. The company is now preparing for two future flights, which will launch this year beginning in June or July onboard a SpaceX reusable rocket, according to Varda's co-founder and president Delian Asparouhov. Asparouhov told the Journal that his firm has already signed contracts with pharma companies for this year's flights as well as three more scheduled for 2025 - some of whose names will be disclosed ahead of this summer's launch. But the space drug start-up also has a more terrestrial program to help pharmaceutical companies determine if their drugs would particularly benefit from the elaborate process of microgravity manufacture in orbit. A new paper by two researchers for Varda, published on Thursday in the journal Crystal Growth & Design, used a ground-based centrifuge to track which crystalline-structured drug molecules are most sensitive to gravitational forces. The company's scientists called the proof of concept a 'hypergravity crystallization platform,' which they plan to offer to prospective pharmaceutical clients as a convenient screening tool for how their own proprietary drugs respond to gravity. For their peer-reviewed test, Varda researcher Kanjakha Pal and its CSO Radocea used the essential amino acid L-histidine, which has unique properties based on its shape and has been employed to preserve organs ahead of transplant surgeries. A new paper by two researchers for Varda, published on Thursday in the journal Crystal Growth & Design , used a ground-based centrifuge (above) to track which crystalline-structured drug molecules are most sensitive to gravitational forces. 'The hypergravity experiments,' Pal and Radocea wrote, 'show that gravity affects the crystallization process even when the solution is stirred at high rpm [in a centrifuge].' The result, they said, highlighted 'that gravity likely plays a significant role in many small-molecule crystallization processes.' 'If you can observe a trend it's much easier to convince a scientific audience,' as Radocea told the Journal. Varda's researchers hope to do further experiments to differentiate what other factors, like cosmic radiation, might impact chemical reactions in low Earth orbit. 'Ideally,' as Varda's co-founder and investor Josh Wolfe put it, 'it is lowering the cost of very expensive, lifesaving drugs.' Waymo issued updates and a recall just last month after colliding with a bicyclist Waymo is launching its driverless taxi service in parts of California on Thursday after trialing the transportation method for five months in the state. The roll out will cover a 63-square-mile area from Santa Monica to Downtown Los Angeles, providing free rides to who have been onboarded to the company's system. Waymo, which is owned by Googles parent comp did not specify the cost of trips, previous riders of the driverless vehicles said they paid $7 for a 1.9-mile journey - and there was no need to tip. However, the launch comes after a spate of high-profile crashes that saw two Waymo vehicles collide into a town truck at the same time, a vehicle hit a bicyclist and another last July when a driverless taxi caused a three car pile-up. Waymo is rolling out its driverless taxi service in Los Angeles starting tomorrow Waymo uses laser sensors, a radar, 360-degree camera, and an onboard computer to assess its surroundings There are currently more than 50,000 Angelenos on Waymo's waitlist, and the company said it will gradually onboard those residents before permanently welcoming all riders. 'Once an unimaginable future, autonomous driving is now a real-world way of getting around for tens of thousands of people each week,' said Waymo co-CEO, Tekedra Mawakana. 'After achieving key milestones in each city, we're so excited to bring the safety, comfort and delight of our Waymo One service to more people in Los Angeles and Austin this year.' Waymo invited LA residents to experience fully autonomous rides in October of last year, and said that since then, locals have taken more than 15,000 trips in the past five months in Santa Monica, Century City, West Hollywood, Mid City, Korea Town, and Downtown LA. Waymo is holding off on making its autonomous rideshare service available to residents in Austin, Texas until later this year Waymo uses light detection to create a 3D picture of its surroundings, a 360-degree camera, a radar, and an onboard computer to detect objects from hundreds of meters away and navigate through city streets. Although the company is rolling out its taxi service in LA, it is still conducting fully autonomous testing in Austin, Texas. The tests are only open to Waymo employees and encompass 43 square miles of Austin, including downtown, Barton Hills, Riverside, East Austin, Hyde Park, and others. The company said it expects to open its Waymo One app to public riders later this year and said its autonomous vehicles 'have now driven more than 10 million miles without a human driver behind the wheel.' It added that there is 'an unprecedented dataset of safe driving experience that has helped generalize the Waymo Drivers capabilities to Los Angeles and Austin.' The driverless taxi has been in a number of recent collisions including causing a three-car pile-up, fatally hitting a dog, and colliding with a cyclist However, Waymo's announcement comes after a recent spate of accidents that forced the company to scale back its release. In December, two of the driverless vehicles also crashed into the same semi-truck in Arizona after misjudging the vehicle's location. The collision caused Waymo to issue several recalls and updates to its software two months later. 'This voluntary recall reflects how seriously we take our responsibility to safely deploy our technology and to transparently communicate with the public,' Waymo said at the time. There are hundreds of recall reports submitted annually to NHTSA and we respect the importance of this road safety framework and our relevant legal obligations. Then in February, one vehicle collided with a cyclist in San Francisco after they turned left behind a large truck that was crossing the intersection. The company said the truck had hidden the person from view and claimed the Waymo vehicle braked heavily but wasn't able to avoid colliding with the cyclist. Other collisions included an incident in June of last year when a Waymo vehicle struck and killed a dog in San Francisco and just one month later, a vehicle caused a three-car pileup in Tempe, Arizona after it braked to avoid a downed branch. The oldest and one of the poshest hotels in London began life as an unexceptional terraced house. Yet since then, royalty, American presidents and many other leading figures from the past two centuries have crossed its threshold. Notably, the then Princess Elizabeth attended as guest of honour at Browns Hotel for the regimental tea party of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in July 1951. And Diana, Princess of Wales, was a guest of the Association of American Correspondents in London in 1996, at a time when she was consulting lawyers over her divorce from Prince Charles. Legend has it that Winston Churchill, when asked which London hotel he favoured, replied: I dont stay in a hotel; I stay in Browns. Sir Rocco Forte has been the owner of Brown's Hotel (pictured) in London since 2003 Sir Rocco writes that Brown's is London's oldest hotel and 'one of the poshest'. Above, the hotel's front hall It has offered them all a haven that is both opulent and intimate. Set in the heart of Mayfair, it remains one of the most exclusive places to stay in the capital, spread over what were once 13 neighbouring Georgian properties. Its Kipling Suite named after the author Rudyard Kipling costs 6,000 per night. Yet its original owner, after whom the hotel is named, was humble valet James Brown who, it is said, had worked in Lord Byrons household. He could afford only to rent the property and converted it to a hotel in 1832. Pictured is the Kipling Suite, named after the author Rudyard Kipling, who regarded Brown's as his 'second home' Sir Rocco reveals that the hotel once enforced a rigid dress code, which required men to wear jacket and tie. Above is the Drawing Room But his timing was perfect, with the gentry starting to prefer hotels rather than the expense of renting or keeping a London residence. Brown and his wife Sarah, another servant, made a winning team, by learning to mirror their guests own country homes in comfort and discretion. Kipling regarded Browns as his second home. The Sir Paul Smith Suite, which costs from 5,500 per night Overlooking Dover Street, the Sir Paul Smith Suite is 'flooded with natural light' The Sir Paul Smith suite, pictured, is a shop window for Smith's creations, such as cushions from his latest homeware collection and sofas, tables, and leather goods from his collaboration with Italian luxury furniture company DePadova He had lunch with his best man on the day of his wedding and is believed to have begun The Second Jungle Book there. It was also where he wrote to a friend in 1915: My son goes out to Flanders this week. So we are up in town waiting till he leaves... A month later, John Kipling was killed at the Battle of Loos. The horror film star Peter Cushing similarly called Browns my favourite hotel in London. The horror film star Peter Cushing similarly called Brown's 'my favourite hotel in London'. Above is the private-hire Roosevelt Room Royal visitor: Princess Diana leaving the hotel in 1996 He even had staying there written into his Hammer studio contract during filming. Unable to sleep one night while staying at Browns, American author Stephen King went downstairs to find a quiet place to write and was shown by a concierge to a desk that, according to legend, Kipling had used during his visits. Stoked on cup after cup of tea, I filled 16 pages of a steno notebook, King recalled. The result was the outline of Misery, his 1987 novel about a deranged fan. History has been made at Browns. In 1877, inventor Alexander Graham Bell stayed while on honeymoon and brought along his new gadget and made Europes first telephone call. The Fortes involvement with the hotel began in 1970 when my father Charles, who had built a considerable business, merged with TrustHouse, which owned Browns. After a hostile takeover of the group by Granada in 1996, I was able to acquire it in 2003 when the Singapore sovereign wealth fund decided to sell it. Yum's the word: Above is Charlie's, the hotel's swanky restaurant Sip, sip hooray! Donovan's, the 1960s photography-themed bar famous for its cocktails In 1877, inventor Alexander Graham Bell stayed at Brown's while on honeymoon and brought along his new gadget - and made Europes first telephone call. Above is a replica period telephone in a meeting room that honours the connection between the hotel and the Scot A rigid dress code was once enforced which required men to wear jacket and tie. The late actor Oliver Reed removed his trousers in protest as legwear was not stipulated. Yet even then, the trousers were returned at the end of his meal beautifully pressed. Just as you might expect. Advertisement The world's 30 coolest streets for 2024 have been named by Time Out and it's a thoroughfare in the 'ultra-trendy suburbs' of Melbourne that takes the crown. It's followed by one of Hong Kong's oldest roads, with a street in Austin, Texas, that 'encapsulates the city's spirit' taking bronze. The UK doesn't fare well, managing just one entry - London's Gerrard Street in 17th place. The ranking - compiled from the thoughts, 'hyper-local insight' and expertise of Time Out's global editorial team - highlights 'must-see streets, roads, avenues, plazas and boulevards in cities around the globe, where locals head for a guaranteed good time', the guide says. Grace Beard, Travel Editor at Time Out, said: 'You only really get to know a city when you veer down its side streets, and Time Outs list of the Worlds Coolest Streets celebrates the avenues, thoroughfares, backstreets and boulevards where local life really thrives. Nominated by our local expert editors and contributors who know their cities like nobody else these are the best streets around the world right now to eat, drink, dance, shop and stroll.' Scroll down to see the results in full and cast your vote for your favourite street among the top 10 in our poll at the bottom... 10. Consell de Cent, Barcelona Consell de Cent in Barcelona, which lands 10th in the ranking, comprises 'more than 6km (3.7 miles) that cut right through the city's core' and is lined with shops and restaurants 'Walking down Consell de Cent is like taking a stroll through a microcosm of Barcelona,' says Time Out of this 'vibrant' street in the city's Eixample neighbourhood. Since its pedestrianisation, the central hub boasts 'more than 6km (3.7 miles) that cut right through the city's core' and it 'no longer feels like a chore to walk through'. Instead, city-goers can enjoy the many restaurants, boutiques and hangout spots that line the street, according to the guide. 'You've got everything from the latest crazes like Chinese hot pot joints, CBD shops, and beauty salons to timeless favourites like vermouth bars, cozy tortilla spots, and artisan bakeries,' it adds. What are Time Out's hot tips for the street? Soak up some culture at one of its many galleries and, when the night rolls around, 'hit up one of the vibrant LGBTQ+ spots like Priscilla Cafe or Plata Cocktail Bar'. 9. Chazawa-dori, Tokyo Chazawa-dori, a street in Tokyo's Sangenjaya district that ranks ninth, is 'presided over by a giant gorilla jutting out from the rooftop of a FamilyMart convenience store' Just two train stops away from Shibuya, Tokyos Sangenjaya neighbourhood has the ideal mix of city-centre excitement with the relaxed vibe of a mostly residential neighbourhood. So says Time Out, which shines a light on its main thoroughfare - Chazawa-dori - which 'is presided over by a giant gorilla jutting out from the rooftop of a FamilyMart convenience store'. But this street has more to offer than an iconic photo opportunity, according to the publication, which adds: 'Every Sunday afternoon, Chazawa-dori is closed to traffic, making it the perfect time to explore this vibrant street on foot, popping in and out of friendly restaurants, cosy cafes, local grocers and charming bakeries.' What does Time Out recommend to eat? Sushi with wine at the 'sleek and modern' Sancha Monica or a cream soda float topped with ice-cream and fresh fruit at Guuutara Coffee. 8. Arnaldo Quintela, Rio de Janeiro Arnaldo Quintela in Rio de Janeiro comes eighth. It has established itself as 'a culinary hotspot', says Time Out 'Amazing burgers', Brazilian music and late night venues are on the cards at Arnaldo Quintela in Rio de Janeiro, according to Time Out. Not too long ago, the street 'would've been a ghost town after work hours', it says, adding: 'But over the past few years, this street has established itself as a culinary hotspot, and now you can hardly move for people filling its sidewalks each night. 'Old mechanic shops have become cosy places to eat and drink; groups gather inside and outside traditional bars like Xepa and Treme Treme; and hipster hangouts such as Calma are where to see and be seen. There are more upmarket restaurants for those who prefer to sip fine wine with a standout meal and there are plenty of places to dance til late. If youre cool, youre probably there.' 7. Rua da Boavista, Lisbon Rua da Boavista (seventh) is 'a central thoroughfare where new ventures in eating, drinking and shopping sprout up all the time' 'Few neighbourhoods in Lisbon have lived as many lives as Cais do Sodre, a neighbourhood which has grown beyond its nightlife legacy and become a place to shop local, have a family brunch and dinner with friends,' says Time Out. 'Right next door to the original Time Out Market, Rua da Boavista is an excellent representation of the neighbourhood's new chapter - a central thoroughfare where new ventures in eating, drinking and shopping sprout up all the time.' The guide suggests buying stylish organic cotton from +351, a Portuguese clothing brand known for its minimalist, unisex pieces, and eating at Cav 86, which it describes as 'an ode to sharing, where seasonality takes the lead'. 6. Jalan Petaling, Kuala Lumpur One of the oldest streets in Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Petaling (sixth) has been 'experiencing a renaissance' over the past few years 'Jalan Petaling is one of Kuala Lumpurs oldest streets, home to the city's first Chinese settlers in the 19th century,' says Time Out. The guide says it has been 'experiencing a renaissance' over the past few years. 'Youll find Kuala Lumpurs oldest temples next door to colonial shophouses housing the newest dining and drinking joints,' it adds. 'Begin the day with a cuppa and a spot of brunch - or start off at a kopitiam, a local-style coffeehouse - cosy up at a resto-bar, and come nightfall theres always a party, whether youre into drum n bass, jazz or reggae.' Eateries recommended by the guide include Chocha Foodstore, for its modern Malaysian cuisine, and Botakliquor Bar, for its cocktails 'spotlighting local botanicals'. 5. Commercial Drive, Vancouver Vancouver's Commercial Drive remains 'defiantly ungentrified', says Time Out, which ranks the street in fifth place In a city of rapid change, Commercial Drive remains defiantly ungentrified. McDonalds and Starbucks tried and failed to stay the course, and the many clothing shops and boutiques are devoted either to vintage or ethically sourced items from far-off places. So says Time Out, asserting that here everything is 'unique and one-of-a-kind' besides 'a low-flying doughnut chain outlet' and 'a generic watering hole'. It adds: 'Hip by default, the Drive - as its known to locals - also boasts a family-owned bowling alley, a plethora of coffee shops, no fewer than four used book shops and three record stores and more pizza, and pizza slice, joints than you can shake a pepperoni stick at.' The guide recommends eating at Lunch Lady for a 'modern take on Vietnamese street eats' and visiting The Drive Canteen for 'local and exotic eats', including 'house-made sweets and a large selection of non-alcoholic beer, wine and mixed drinks'. 4. Guatemala Street, Buenos Aires Guatemala Street, in fourth place, is home to 'one of only two Michelin-starred restaurants' in Buenos Aires, and a spot where 'waiting in line for a table becomes a social occasion' 'Even waiting in line for a table becomes a social occasion' on Guatemala Street in the Palermo Viejo district of Buenos Aires, according to Time Out, which notes: 'Every night, youll see people hanging out by the old tram line enjoying glasses of Malbec.' The street is home to 'two of the citys four newly green-starred restaurants' as well as 'one of only two Michelin-starred restaurants - Don Julio, aka the world's best parrilla [grill restaurant]'. The guide adds: 'Much more than a casual steakhouse, this incarnation (literally) of meat culture is deeply rooted in local traditions of breeding and grilling; of wine and friends.' 3. East Eleventh, Austin Must-visit venues on third-place East Eleventh in Austin include Kenny Dorham's Backyard, Franklin Barbeque and the Vintage Bookstore and Wine Bar, the guide says East Eleventh, says Time Out, is 'beloved among locals for encapsulating the city's spirit like no other street'. The guide adds: 'East Eleventh packs every inch with incredible food, culture and music. 'Must-visit venues include Kenny Dorham's Backyard, a makeshift venue with a permanent house party vibe, Franklin Barbeque for game-changing brisket and the Vintage Bookstore and Wine Bar.' 2. Hollywood Road, Hong Kong Hollywood Road in Hong Kong 'is one kilometre (0.6 miles) long and links up some of the city's must-visit destinations'. The street takes the silver medal 'One of Hong Kong's oldest streets dating back to 1844, Hollywood Road is one-kilometre long and links up some of the city's must-visit destinations,' says Time Out, 'from the Man Mo Temple and the Mid-Levels Escalator, to the Tai Kwun arts and culture hub and some of the city's best bars, restaurants and nightlife spots such as Tate Dining Room and Lockdown, a speakeasy hidden behind a toilet bowl display.' As for its name - Time Out explains that 'according to legend', it likely came from the holly bushes that once lined its edges. 1. High Street, Melbourne Behold the world's coolest street, Melbourne's High Street, which offers 'something for everyone' from 'amazing food and drink' to 'live music venues' Drum roll, please, for the winner, a street that 'weaves through the ultra-trendy suburbs of Northcote, Thornbury and Preston' that according to Time Out offers 'something for everyone... thanks to its unique local businesses'. The guide continues: 'Day to night, visitors can find amazing food and drink like authentic Portuguese tarts at Casa Nata, local natural wine at Northside Wines, or lasagne at 1800 Lasagne. 'Known for its many live music venues, High Street is home to legendary locations like Northcote Social Club and the Croxton Band Room, as well as smaller spots like High Note and Shotkickers.' Leah Glynn, the Time Out Melbourne Editor, adds: 'We Melburnians love a rooftop bar, and High Streets home to a real beauty in Gigi Rooftop. Intimate and exclusive (the teeny space is accessible only via Umberto Espresso Bar), its the go-to spot for a spritz at sundown with a side of sweeping suburban views.' They both chose to fight for their relationship during Sunday night's commitment ceremony. But it seems Andrea Thompson and Richard Sauerman's marriage won't last the distance, as they were spotted arriving separately to this week's dinner party. Exclusive photos taken by Daily Mail Australia show Andrea, 51, arriving at the Lilyfield warehouse on October 3 without Richard, 62, by her side. Andrea opted for a boho chic look for the night, wearing a long flowing floral print dress. She accessorised with a black clutch and had her blonde hair styled in loose waves. It seems Andrea Thompson and Richard Sauerman's marriage won't last the distance, as they were spotted arriving separately to this week's dinner party Richard was spotted making a later arrival, appearing downcast in a dark velvet blazer over a crisp white shirt. The Sydney-based motivational speaker teamed up his look with khaki trousers and was seen carrying his backpack. While things appear to be on shaky grounds with Andrea and Richard, the same couldn't be said for Timothy Smith and Lucinda Light. Exclusive photos taken by Daily Mail Australia show Andrea, 51, arriving at the Lilyfield warehouse on October 3 without Richard, 62, by her side Andrea opted for a boho chic look for the night, wearing a long flowing floral print dress Richard was spotted making a later arrival, appearing downcast in a dark velvet blazer over a crisp white shirt Timothy proved chivalry isn't dead as he helped Lucinda out of the car. The Byron Bay wedding celebrant turned heads in a floral ruffled dress with a belt, and had her hair styled in an updo. Timothy meanwhile looked smart in a dark blazer, blue shirt, black jeans and black boots. While things appear to be on shaky grounds with Andrea and Richard, the same couldn't be said for Timothy Smith and Lucinda Light Timothy proved chivalry isn't dead as he helped Lucinda out of the car Eden Harper and Jayden Eynaud were also dressed to impress. Eden, 28, turned heads in elegant black dress with a strapless neckline. The blonde beauty wore her hair pulled back and in a high ponytail. Eden Harper and Jayden Eynaud were also dressed to impress Eden, 28, turned heads in elegant black dress with a strapless neckline Jayden meanwhile commanded attention dressed in a gold and black brocade blazer, black trousers and black shoes Jayden meanwhile commanded attention dressed in a gold and black brocade blazer, black trousers and black shoes. He wore his hair tied back in a sleek style. The dinner party appeared to end on a high for Sara Mesa and Tim Calwell, who had their marriage rocked by an alleged cheating scandal in the last few days. The dinner party appeared to end on a high for Sara Mesa and Tim Calwell, who had their marriage rocked by an alleged cheating scandal in the last few days Sara and Tim were spotted looking loved-up as ever as they were spotted making their way back to Skye Suites Green Square in the early hours of the morning Sara looked chic in a lime green dress with thin straps, a fitted bodice, and a ruched skirt that features a slit Sara and Tim were spotted looking loved-up as ever as they while making their way back to Skye Suites Green Square in the early hours of the morning. Sara, 29, looked chic in a lime green dress with thin straps, a fitted bodice, and a ruched skirt that features a slit. Tim, 32, meanwhile looked dapper in a tailored blue suit with a white shirt and no tie. Married At First Sight continues on Wednesday at 7.30pm on Channel Nine. Intruders Jade Pywell and Ridge Barredo also appeared to be going from strength-to-strength, as they kissed on arrival at the dinner party Jade showed off her sensational figure in a teal coloured silky dress Tori Adams and Jack Dunkley were also seen putting on a united front as they arrived at the dinner party Shocking footage has emerged of a clash between a model and celebrity stylist during Melbourne Fashion Festival last week. Paige Montana De Cinque, 30, stopped by popular Melbourne venue Bar Bambi on Saturday night with friends and says she was screamed at by stylist Jamie Azzopardi, who uses they/them pronouns, when she entered a private booth to greet a friend. In footage of the brutal clash, obtained by Daily Mail Australia, Azzopardi claimed they are the 'Head of Fashion Week' despite not being on the board of the organisation. De Cinque said Azzopardi first approached her and her friends to tell them to 'move the f**k along' after they entered the stylist's private booth. The model said she didn't know they had entered Azzopardi's booth as 'it wasn't sectioned off, there was no security, no wrist bands'. Shocking footage emerged of a wild clash between model Paige Montana De Cinque, 30, (left) and celebrity stylist Jamie Azzopardi (right) during Melbourne Fashion Festival last week 'They could have just gotten someone from the venue, asked us politely, and we would have happily moved,' she told Daily Mail Australia. However, De Cinque claimed Azzopardi was immediately annoyed by their presence and attempted to move her and her friends along. 'We just stood behind [the DJ booth] and were talking to [the DJ] because he's our friend,' De Cinque said. 'After about half an hour, Jamie came along and started yelling at everyone and telling everyone to get out. 'Jamie started being really passive aggressive... And was like, "You and your plastics need to move",' she added. In footage of the clash, Azzopardi claimed they were the 'Head of Fashion Week' despite not being on the board of the organisation Footage of the night began at this point, showing Azzopardi approaching the DJ and saying: 'This will end badly if [De Cinque and her friends] don't move. This will end badly.' The DJ then replied over the loud music, 'I don't know who you are', to which the stylist claimed: 'I'm Jamie. I'm the Head of Fashion Week.' Once again, the DJ said they didn't know who Azzopardi was, but the partygoer was intent on removing De Cinque and her friends from where they stood. 'I don't care. I don't care who any of these b***hes are,' Azzopardi said. Azzopardi approached a DJ in the booth and said: 'This will end badly if [De Cinque and her friends] don't move. This will end badly' Azzopardi's claims they are the 'Head of Fashion Week' may come as a shock to the executive team of the annual festival. Despite frequently attending the festival and styling looks for various influencers and celebrities during the week, Azzopardi's name is not included in the team listed on Melbourne Fashion Week's website. The executive team listed are Chief Executive Officers Caroline Ralphsmith, and Deirdre McGuane, Chief Customer Officer Clare Molesworth, and Executive Assistant Sara Whitten. Melbourne Fashion Week has declined to comment on the incident. After more back and forth, De Cinque said she and her friends left Bar Bambi immediately after the altercation with Azzopardi, and informed staff members and security of what happened. Daily Mail Australia reached out to Azzopardi for comment, but they refused to give an official statement on the matter. Azzopardi told Herald Sun on Monday they responded calmly after De Cinque and her friends allegedly took a bottle of alcohol from their booth. The celebrity stylist said: '[De Cinque] had been asked to move about 50 times.' 'People who know me know I'm not one to be disrespected, especially while I'm celebrating the end of an amazing week that was Fashion Festival,' they said. De Cinque denied taking the alcohol and said she did not recall seeing anyone with a bottle. De Cinque said she and her friends left Bar Bambi immediately after the altercation with Azzopardi, and informed staff members and security of what happened She went on to tell Daily Mail Australia she and her friends were not drinking at all that night, and intends to report the incident to the police and obtain CCTV footage. Bar Bambi owner Nick Russian told Herald Sun the venue was busy and he did not notice an argument take place. Azzopardi attended the fashion event each day and styled looks for influencers and celebrities throughout the festival. They stunned spectators as they sported 16 separate outfits over the duration of the event. Police say two New Britain men who had been under surveillance were arrested Wednesday after stealing cars from an East Haven dealership. East Haven Police Department / Contributed Photo Alex Sierra, 31, of New Britain. East Haven Police Department/Contributed Eric Ruiz, 26, of New Britain. East Haven Police Department/Contributed EAST HAVEN Police arrested two people they said were part of a group that rammed a car through the gate of a local CarMax dealership and stole two cars early Tuesday. Eric Ruiz, 26, and Alex Sierra, 31, both of New Britain, were each charged with larceny of a motor vehicle and interfering with a police officer. East Haven police said both were caught after fleeing from one of the stolen vehicles taken from the dealership. Police also said they found a stolen gun on Ruiz, who is also facing a litany of other charges. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The incident began with detectives already conducting surveillance of an apartment on Pleasant Street in New Britain. Investigators believed a resident there was connected with "numerous burglaries," East Haven Police Capt. Joseph Murgo said. While police were watching the home, they spotted a Volkswagen Tiguan pull up with several other vehicles, Murgo said. People piled into the Volkswagen, which then left, he said. Around 4:10 a.m., police in East Haven were then called to the CarMax dealership on West Frontage Road in East Haven where a burglary was reported to be in progress. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "Upon officers' arrival, it was determined that several individuals entered the CarMax property in a grey Volkswagen SUV, later determined to be a Tiguan, and utilized a vehicle on the property to ram the gate," Murgo said. The thieves made off with two cars from the lot a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado and a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee, Murgo said. Around 5:40 a.m., the stolen Silverado pulled into the driveway of the Pleasant Street home in New Britain, as police from "several different agencies" were watching the property, Murgo said. As police attempted to arrest them, the three occupants of the car fled, Murgo said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Ruiz and Sierra were apprehended after a pursuit on foot, Murgo said. Ruiz was found in possession of a 9 mm Glock handgun that had been stolen in 2021 in Tampa, Fla., he said. Sierra was held on $100,000 bond and Ruiz was held on $250,000 bond. Both are scheduled to appear in state Superior Court in New Haven on March 20. The full list of offenses Ruiz was charged with are: third-degree burglary, conspiracy to commit third-degree burglary, first-degree criminal mischief, conspiracy to commit first-degree criminal mischief, conspiracy to commit first-degree criminal trover, two counts larceny of a motor vehicle, two counts conspiracy to commit larceny of a motor vehicle, possession of burglary tools, second-degree criminal trespass, interfering with a police officer, carrying a pistol without a permit, theft of a firearm and criminal possession of a firearm. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In addition, police said Ruiz was also found to have "several" active arrest warrants with bonds totaling $300,000, as well as an arrest warrant out of Newtown with a $20,000 bond. "The identity of the third suspect has been confirmed by detectives. Charges will be forthcoming for that individual," Murgo added. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that police said the group used one of the stolen vehicles to ram the car dealership's gate open. St Patrick's Day falls on Sunday but the celebration is already starting. Jameson Irish Whiskey has brought onboard Saturday Night Live stars Colin Jost, 41, and Michael Che, 40, to get the fun going. 'We teamed up with Colin Jost and Michael Che to help us seize this moment and encourage everyone to embrace St. Patrick's Eve, because they're a duo who appreciates a smooth Irish Whiskey, good company and a brand-new holiday just like any Jameson would,' said Anderson .Paak. Jost and Che star in a series of hilarious content depicting just how frustrating it is to have Leap Year steal a Saturday St. Patrick's Day. They ultimately agreed that Jameson St. Patrick's Eve is the perfect and perhaps only solution. 'I don't believe in leap years,' said Jost. St Patrick's Day falls on Sunday but the celebration is already starting. Jameson Irish Whiskey has brought onboard Saturday Night Live stars Colin Jost, 41, and Michael Che, 40, to get the fun going 'We teamed up with Colin Jost and Michael Che to help us seize this moment and encourage everyone to embrace St. Patrick's Eve, because they're a duo who appreciates a smooth Irish Whiskey, good company and a brand-new holiday just like any Jameson would,' said Anderson .Paak 'Which is why I'm several days late for every appointment. But for all you sheep who trust Big Calendar and think February "sometimes" has an extra day, we've gotten you off the hook by inventing a new holiday, St. Patrick's Eve. 'And like I keep yelling at my family and therapist, "This isn't just an excuse to party on Saturday as well as Sunday. It's a real holiday."' Che is also on board, making this Jameson partnership the first joint brand deal for the close pair. 'Colin is also probably a little relieved we're going to spend a Saturday night ringing in St. Patrick's Eve with Jameson, instead of reading the jokes I write for him,' he said. 'I'm psyched to be back with my Jameson crew for their St. Patrick's Eve bash! I was supposed to help kick-off Jameson's St. Patrick's Day with a concert in 2020, but that year had other plans for us,' added Anderson .Paak. 'When I learned they were throwing an epic St. Patrick's Eve celebration in New York City, I knew I had to be there to DJ. Music is all about bringing people together and sharing one-of-a-kind experiences, something Jameson and I know a thing or two about. Can't wait to get the party started early.' Jost and Che star in a series of hilarious content depicting just how frustrating it is to have Leap Year steal a Saturday St. Patrick's Day. They ultimately agreed that Jameson St. Patrick's Eve is the perfect and perhaps only solution. 'I don't believe in leap years,' said Jost 'And like I keep yelling at my family and therapist, "This isn't just an excuse to party on Saturday as well as Sunday. It's a real holiday,"' he added The Jameson St. Patricks Eve Jacket is a limited-edition streetwear style piece designed and produced in collaboration with Reed Art Department (Jeff Staples creative agency) Colin's wife Scarlett Johansson was recently on his show SNL 'Our Must be a Jameson campaign honors a community anchored by their shared lighthearted spirit, so when Leap Year skipped over a Saturday St. Patrick's Day, we did exactly what a Jameson would do: we created a completely new holiday so people can start celebrating St. Patrick's Day a little early,' says Johan Radojewski, Vice President of Marketing, Jameson Irish Whiskey. The Jameson St. Patricks Eve Jacket is a limited-edition streetwear style piece designed and produced in collaboration with Reed Art Department (Jeff Staples creative agency). The unisex vintage-inspired jacket is available for purchase at JamesonSPE.comretailing for $150 plus tax with free shipping in the continental U.S. The limited-edition drop will take place on Tuesday (3/12). All proceeds will go to Restaurant Workers' Community Fund (RWCF), continuing Jamesons long-standing partnership with the organization. The jackets design includes a hidden pocket to perfectly hold the Jameson hip flask that comes with the order, as well as patches signature to the Irish Whiskey brand. On Saturday Michael and Colin attended Jameson's celebration for St. Patrick's Day Michael had on a black jacket over a black hoodie as he added green, black and beige camo slacks He also had on a cap pushed high up on his forehead. Colin was more dressed up in a green knitted sweater that had a round neckline with a necklace and dark blue denim jeans. Both held onto glasses of Jameson as they stood in front of a neon green sign Colin looked perfectly groomed with his blonde hair worn short On Saturday Michael and Colin attended Jameson's celebration for St. Patrick's Day at Beast & Butterflies at M Social hotel in Times Square NYC. Michael had on a black jacket over a black hoodie as he added green, black and beige camo slacks. He also had on a cap pushed high up on his forehead. Colin was more dressed up in a green knitted sweater that had a round neckline with a necklace and dark blue denim jeans. Both held onto glasses of Jameson as they stood in front of a neon green sign. The night kicked off with sounds by DJ Jus Ske, Jameson Irish Whiskey signature cocktails, plus their new Jameson RTD Orange Spritz. There was a live viewing of the first-of-its-kind rock drop - a version of the famous Times Square Ball drop on the rocks' timed to midnight in Ireland (8pm Est) from the venues wrap around patio. There also was full band show and DJ performance by Pee .Wee, aka Anderson Paak. The hosts led a whiskey toast with the crowd of partygoers. Channel Ten has given fans their first look at the brand new season of Masterchef Australia. The upcoming sixteenth series, which premieres on April 22, will see Andy Allen return as judge alongside runner up of the show's first season, Poh Ling Yeow. Also joining the judging panel will be food critic Sofia Levin and Michelin star award winning Chef Jean-Christophe Novelli. The network shared their first trailer on Tuesday night and promised 'there's never been as season like this.' 'Masterchef absolutely changed my life, being here now in a new capacity as judge feels like a beautiful full circle moment,' Poh says in the trailer. Channel Ten has released the first look of the brand new season of Masterchef Australia Sofia shares that 'joining this family, this community of food lovers is a sheer delight and privilege'. 'Around the globe when people speak of great cooking show they speak of Masterchef Australia and to be part of this is both surreal and humbling,' Novelli says. While Andy teases that the upcoming series is all about 'passion, giving it everything youve got, putting it all on your plate and creating extraordinary food'. The upcoming sixteenth series of MasterChef Australia will see Andy Allen return as judge alongside runner up of the show's first season, Poh Ling Yeow 'Masterchef absolutely changed my life, being now in a new capacity as judge feels like a beautiful full circle moment' Poh says in the trailer In November it was announced that celebrity chef and restaurateur Jamie Oliver will join the cast as a guest judge for a handful of episodes. TV Tonight reports that Oliver's two week stint on the coming season will be the longest appearance by any guest judge in the show's 14-year history. Oliver first appeared as a guest judge on MasterChef during season four in 2012. Also joining the judging panel will be food critic Sofia Levin and Michelin star award winning Chef Jean-Christophe Novelli 'Around the globe when people speak of great cooking show they speak of Masterchef Australia and to be part of this is both surreal and humbling,' Novelli says It comes as Channel Ten confirmed last Monday that the much-loved show will be heading overseas for the first time in seven years. The judges and contestants will head to Hong Kong to film three episodes. It marks the first time since 2017 that the contestants and judges will head to an international location. Channel Ten confirmed last Monday that the much-loved show will be heading overseas for the first time in seven years The series has previously travelled to America, Dubai, Italy, Japan, London, New York and Paris, but the past six seasons have stayed in Australia. It is also the second time the show is heading to Hong Kong, after previously filming there during season one in 2009. MasterChef Australia premieres Monday, 22 April at 7:30pm on 10 and 10 Play James Kennedy soaked up the rays as he enjoyed the beach in Tulum, Mexico Tuesday. The Vanderpump Rules star, 32, who has admitted the cheating scandal on the show has helped boost his own fame, appeared to be taking some time off with his girlfriend Ally Lewber. The couple, who have been together since January 2020, were not shy about sharing very public displays of affection on the beach. Kennedy even held up his phone to take a selfie of the two as they shared a smooch while sipping delicious frozen, presumably virgin, concoctions. The reality star has been candid about his struggles with alcohol over the years, but has stopped drinking it, according to his admission on Vanderpump Rules in February. James Kennedy, 32, and girlfriend Ally Lewber weren't shy about packing on the PDA during their vacation in Tulum, Mexico Tuesday 'Last time I quit drinking, it was for the relationship [with former fiancee Rachel Leviss.]' 'I quit drinking for two and a half years and then decided, "F**k it,"' after the couple broke up in December 2021. 'This time, I am doing it for myself. Because I am doing it for myself, it will better my life, better my relationships, better my friendships and better my career. Ive seen those benefits before and I definitely want to see them again.' The DJ strolled along the sand in a pair of orange and white swim trunks. He wore a white billed cap backwards over his dark blonde curls. Lewber showcased her toned form in a brown string bikini with a triangle top and a very sheer beige rap. The spiritual astrologer appeared to be makeup free and styled her long, brunette locks straight. The couple have been together since January 2022 The DJ strolled along the sand in a pair of orange and white swim trunks. He wore a white billed cap backwards over his dark blonde curls. Lewber showcased her toned form in a brown string bikini with a triangle top and a very sheer beige rap The couple seemed to enjoy sipping delicious frozen, presumably virgin, concoctions. Kennedy revealed he had stopped drinking, again, in a February episode of Vanderpump Rules The Tulum trip seems to be a break from a working vacation. The DJ shared video from parties he played over the weekend in Cabo San Lucas and Punta Cana She wore dark sunglasses in the bright sun. The reality star appeared to be using the trip as part of a working vacation. He has shared video of the party he DJed in Cabo San Lucas over the weekend in his Instagram Stories. 'Just wait for the Mexico recap' he wrote over one of the snippets. 'Mandala Beach Club was insane!!!' he wrote in a separate post. 'SPRING BREAK IS IN FULL EFFECT - okCABO AND PUNTA CANA THIS WEEK! lets go!' Cheech Marin, 77, and Tommy Chong, 85, were true to form at the SXSW premiere of their new documentary Cheech And Chong's Last Movie. The movie lovingly trails the decades-long collaboration between the two men, the reigning pioneers of Hollywood stoner comedy. Over a career spanning music, stand-up, movies, TV and more, the dynamic duo have developed a joint persona that revolves around marijuana. Remaining loyally on-brand, they could be seen arriving at this Tuesday's event in Austin accompanied by a gigantic fake joint. Although the joint presumably did not contain any actual marijuana, which remains illegal in Texas, it spouted what appeared to be steam. Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong were true to form at the SXSW premiere of their new documentary Cheech And Chong's Last Movie The movie lovingly trails the decades-long collaboration between the two men, the reigning pioneers of Hollywood stoner comedy The display was dragged down the street by a gleaming black car, and included a sign advertising Cheech and Chong's documentary. Cheech and Chong first made their bones as a musical comedy act and then starred in their first feature film, the cult classic Up In Smoke, in 1978. Widely regarded as the primogenitor of the stoner comedy genre, Up In Smoke kicked off a string of big-screen collaborations between the pair. They broke up in 1985, whereupon Cheech embarked on a mainstream solo career and Chong underwent a professional decline. The nadir of Chong's downfall came in 2003 and 2004, when he spent months in jail for distributing bongs and water pipes online. In 2008, four years after Chong emerged from behind bars, he and Cheech put their differences aside and mounted a reunion. The latest movie was the 2013 feature Cheech & Chong's Animated Movie, which included cartoon segments set to some of their old bits. Cheech & Chong's Animated Movie received a tepid reception from the critics, to the tune of a 50% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Remaining loyally on-brand, they could be seen arriving at this Tuesday's event in Austin accompanied by a gigantic fake joint Although the joint presumably did not contain any actual marijuana, which remains illegal in Texas, it spouted what appeared to be steam The display was dragged down the street by a gleaming black car, and included a sign advertising Cheech and Chong's documentary Cheech & Chong's Last Movie was directed by David Bushell, who as a producer has been involved with such films as Dallas Buyers Club and Get Him To The Greek Over a career spanning music, stand-up, movies, TV and more, the dynamic duo have developed a joint persona that revolves around marijuana Cheech and Chong first made their bones as a musical comedy act and then starred in their first feature film, the cult classic Up In Smoke, in 1978 Widely regarded as the primogenitor of the stoner comedy genre, Up In Smoke kicked off a string of big-screen collaborations between the pair Now, they are appearing together again in a documentary that recounts their long history together, the highs as well as the lows. Cheech & Chong's Last Movie was directed by David Bushell, who as a producer has been involved with such films as Dallas Buyers Club and Get Him To The Greek. On Monday night, the eve of the SWSX premiere, Cheech and Chong did a surprise drop-in set at an Austin nightclub, Variety reported. They delighted the crowd with a comedy number poking fun of the stereotypes about Mexican Americans, whom Cheech pointed out were 'my people.' 'Mexican Americans love education and so they go to night school and take Spanish and get a B,' went one of the punchlines. The Casting Director behind the 2004 rom-com The Notebook has revealed he cried when he discovered Oscar nominated actors Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling. Matthew Barry appeared on Today Extra on Wednesday morning to discuss his role in casting Gosling, 43, and McAdams, 45, in the much-loved film, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. When asked about the chemistry tests, Barry said 'you can hear me crying behind the camera. It's just one of those moments where an actress (McAdams) just comes into my office and just says "this role is mine". 'It's one of those rare moments where you go oh my gosh this is just incredible.' Gosling brought the 'Kenergy' to the Oscars on Sunday when he performed nominated track 'I'm Just Ken'. The Casting Director behind the 2004 rom-com The Notebook has revealed he cried when he discovered Oscar nominated actors Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling The casting guru joked: 'I pulled my hamstring, I was dancing along with everybody else.' Barry described Gosling as one of the nicest guys in Hollywood. 'It couldn't happen to a nicer guy, Ryan Gosling is the epitome of a movie star - he's kind, he's generous and he's so unbelievably talented,' he said. Gosling donned a sparkling pink suit as he exuded confidence onstage - accompanied by his Barbie co-stars and Guns N Roses guitarist Slash, 58. Matthew Barry appeared on Today Extra on Wednesday morning to discuss his role in casting Gosling, 43, and McAdams, 45, in the much-loved film, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year When asked about the chemistry tests, Barry said 'you can hear me crying behind the camera. It's just one of those moments where an actress (McAdams) just comes into my office and just says "this role is mine" He started off his performance wearing shades and sat in the audience alongside Barbie star Margot Robbie, 33, as she giggled. Gosling, 43, then prowled his way to the stage where he joined a host of tuxedo clad back-up dancers. The iconic performance saw several of the film's other Kens - Ncuti Gatwa, Simu Liu and Kingsley Ben-Adir - join Ryan onstage in a pink-filled extravaganza. Gosling lost out in the Best Supporting Actor category to Oppenheimer's Robert Downey Jr at the 96th Academy Awards. Gosling brought the 'Kenergy' to the Oscars on Sunday when he performed nominated track 'I'm Just Ken' She's been the toast of the town ever since the 'Scandoval' erupted over her then-boyfriend Tom Sandoval cheating with their costar Rachel Leviss last year. So it's no surprise that Ariana Madix appeared to be on top of the world as she left Watch What Happens Live in New York City on Tuesday. The Vanderpump Rules star, 38, smiled for the cameras as her new boyfriend Daniel Wai dutifully trailed behind her. The blonde beauty who had a series of awkward encounters with her ex Tom in the midseason trailer for her popular reality series clutched an iced latte in one hand, which seemed at odds with the chilly weather. Madix was rugged up for New York's notoriously frigid and miserable climate which is worlds away from the warm California sunshine. Vanderpump Rules star Ariana Madix appeared to be on top of the world as she left Watch What Happens Live in New York City on Tuesday The reality star, 38, smiled for the cameras as her boyfriend Daniel Wai dutifully trailed behind her. She donned thick black boots, thermal leggings, a green sweater and a black puffer jacket The reality star found love with personal trainer Daniel shortly after her split from Tom Sandoval She donned thick black boots, thermal leggings, a green sweater and a black puffer jacket on top. New beau Daniel kept his distance, ensuring that the reality TV A-lister was able to soak up all the attention for herself. It comes after Ariana revealed that she was 'on [her] last $2,000' before finding success in the aftermath of Scandoval. In a preview of an upcoming episode of Vanderpump Rules, the 38-year-old was seen opening up to her castmates about her past and present financial situation. She confessed that she was 'not in a good place financially' prior to the viral scandal, which stemmed from her discovery of her now-ex Tom Sandoval having an affair with her friend Rachel Leviss. In the scene, Madix was seen opening up to James Kennedy's girlfriend Ally Lewber, Lala Kent, Katie Maloney and Scheana Shay who also revealed in a recent episode that Sandoval lent her money when she was 'broke' at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. 'The internet thinks I've made millions of dollars. That is not true,' she admitted to her costars and friends. Days before uncovering her boyfriend-of-nine-years' infidelity, she recalled contacting her team about being low on money. 'It's like, on March 1st, was I financially prepared to move? No,' she said. 'Literally the week before all of this happened, I remember emailing my agent and manager and being like, "Guys, let's start really trying to do some s***, because I'm not in a good place financially."' The teaser for the new episode, which airs on Tuesday, March 12, also shows Madix expanding on her financial situation and sharing additional details in a confessional. 'When I first started making decent money, we decided we wanted to buy a house,' she recalled of her and Sandoval's property purchase. It comes after Ariana revealed that she was 'on [her] last $2,000' before finding success in the aftermath of Scandoval; Pictured with ex-boyfriend Tom Sandoval in June 2022 Ariana shot to fame after ex-boyfriend Tom cheated on her with pal and costar Raquel Leviss (L) Brands have been throwing money at Madix to sell everything from sex toys to beverages and fried chicken on social media since the star-making scandal 'Then, I was playing catch-up all the way up until Katie and I found a great location for a sandwich shop,' she said about her and Maloney's joint business venture, Something About Her which is rumored to be now closed. 'Then a bunch of my money went toward that. 'Now I was at a point where in March I was literally on my last $2,000. I am not kidding.' She explained that she took on so many work opportunities following her split with Sandoval because she needed to set herself up financially. 'He created this situation and now I am f***ing scrambling to get my s*** together to be able to in a financially responsible way move onto the next step.' Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay will bring his tough talking bravado to new Australian reality series Food Stars, which is set to drop on Channel Nine on March 26. The notoriously hot-tempered celebrity chef, 56, features alongside Boost Juice founder Janine Allis in the Apprentice-style cooking competition. Contestants are out to win $250,000 worth of investment to kick start their businesses. Ramsay and Allis, 59, are each responsible for a team of hopefuls who will pitch their best 'food and drink' business ideas to the food gurus. Each team must compete in high-pressure challenges to prove their worth, with the losing side confronted with a brutal takedown by Ramsay and Allis. Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay will bring his tough talking bravado to new Australian reality series Food Stars, which is set to drop on Channel Nine on March 26 The competitors will be tested on key values essential to all successful businesses, including customer service, sales, marketing, branding and event management. A new trailer for the show, which is based on a format Ramsay launched in the U.S. last year, shows the famed kitchen master in a competitive mood. 'I didn't travel 12 and a-half thousand miles to come second best,' he exclaims. Contestants are out to win $250,000 worth of investment to kick start their businesses Meanwhile in another segment, Allis is seen encouraging her team and telling them: 'We've got to beat frickin' Ramsay.' Another highlight of the preview shows a contestant telling Ramsay she is a personal chef to Madonna. Later, the pop superstar can be heard telling Ramsay she 'wants her chef back'. The notoriously hot-tempered celebrity chef, 56, features alongside Boost Juice founder Janine Allis in the Apprentice-style cooking competition Ramsay's own Fox company, Studio Ramsay Global, is producing the show in partnership with Endemol Shine Australia. It comes 13 years after Ramsay was made persona non grata at Channel Nine. He had made a snarky remark about Tracy Grimshaw's appearance after she interviewed him on A Current Affair in June 2009. Ramsay's own Fox company, Studio Ramsay Global, is producing the show in partnership with Endemol Shine Australia. Pictured: A contestant responds to a challenge in the new series. The incident escalated into a feud when Ramsay allegedly called the ACA anchor a 'fat pig'. Ramsay later apologised and tried to pass off his remarks as a joke, explaining via his publicist that he had a great relationship with Grimshaw and Channel Nine. Grimshaw issued a blistering response on A Current Affair, telling viewers: 'This is not a business for wimps and I am not one. 'Despite what his publicist said, we do not have a great relationship. We do not have a relationship at all. The competitors will be tested on the key values essential to all successful businesses, including customer service, sales, marketing, branding and event management 'I've played along with him in interviews because it's entertaining and it's my job.' Grimshaw went on to describe Ramsay's attack as hurtful and unfunny, and called him a bully and a narcissist. Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars premieres on Tuesday, March 26 on Channel 9 and 9Now. She is expecting to welcome a baby girl with her personal trainer boyfriend Jono Castano this month. And on Tuesday, Simone Holtznagel showed off her huge baby bump as she shared a selfie to Instagram. In the image, the model, 30, covered her modesty with her hands as she teased this was her 'last pregnancy massage' before giving birth. 'Is this my last pregnancy massage before I pop?' she wrote. Simone appeared to wear minimal makeup, revealing her flawless complexion and pregnancy glow. Heavily pregnant Simone Holtznagel teased her 'last pregnancy massage before she pops' as she counts down the final days until she welcomes her first child with boyfriend Jono Castano Simone announced she and boyfriend Jono are expecting their first child together in November. She revealed in an Instagram post she is due in March and has already decided on a name, which she has yet to reveal. The stunner, who went public with her relationship with the celebrity trainer in 2022, told Who magazine she was overjoyed with the news. '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 is expecting to welcome a baby girl with her personal trainer boyfriend this month 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. She previously revealed in an Instagram post that she is due in March and has already decided on a name, which she has yet to reveal Just days after her second Oscar win for Poor Things, Emma Stone is already getting back to work as part of the talented cast of A24's Eddington. The official A24 Instagram shared the first slate of the film as production got under way Monday on director Ari Aster's film, described as a, 'contemporary Western.' The post also revealed the cast, including Stone, Austin Butler, Pedro Pascal, Joaquin Phoenix, Clifton Collins Jr., Luke Grimes, Deirdre OConnell and Micheal Ward. While no plot details were revealed, a Variety report revealed the plot, 'follows a small-town New Mexico sheriff with higher aspirations. Aster is directing from his own original screenplay and producing alongside Lars Knudsen, with whom he co-founded the Square Peg production company. Just days after her second Oscar win for Poor Things , Emma Stone is already getting back to work as part of the talented cast of A24's Eddington The official A24 Instagram shared the first slate of the film as production got under way Monday on director Ari Aster's film, described as a, 'contemporary Western' The post also revealed the cast, including Stone, Austin Butler , Pedro Pascal , Joaquin Phoenix, Clifton Collins Jr., Luke Grimes, Deirdre OConnell and Micheal Ward. Pedro Pascal joins the cast of Ari Aster's modern Western entitled Eddington The film reunites Aster with his Beau Is Afraid star Joaquin Phoenix, who will next be seen in Joker: Folie a Deux. The slate also reveals that Darius Khondji (Bardo, Uncut Gems) will serve as the director of photography for the film. The film was nearly Aster's first, as he was originally planning to make it his directorial debut nearly six years ago, before he made 2018's Hereditary. Aster revealed during a 2018 Reddit AMA that Eddington is 'sort of' a 'revisionist Western' film. 'It's contemporary; one foot is in the Western and one foot is even more heavily in the noir genre. So it's like a film noir ensemble Western dark comedy,' he said. Then in 2019, when he was promoting his second film, Midsommar, he teased the Eddington project once again in another Reddit AMA. 'For like five years, I was trying to get that Western-noir dark ensemble comedy going,' he said. Aster admitted then, 'That won't be the next one, by the way, though I do still want to make it very badly. I made 'Hereditary' first, but I always had 'Midsommar' in my back pocket, like it was right there in me.' The 'next one' after Midsommar ultimately became 2023's Beau Is Afraid, loosely based on his 2011 short film Beau. While promoting Beau Is Afraid in March 2023, Aster told the New York Times that Eddington would, 'almost certainly' be his next film, adding that it's set in a New Mexico copper mining town. Yellowstone star Luke Grimes joins the cast of Ari Aster's contemporary Western Eddington Versatile actor Clifton Collins Jr. joins the cast of Ari Aster's modern Western called Eddington Deirdre O'Connell joins the cast of Ari Aster's Western Eddington Micheal Ward joins the cast of writer-director Ari Aster's Western Eddington The film reunites Aster with his Beau Is Afraid star Joaquin Phoenix, who will next be seen in Joker: Folie a Deux. Stone will reunite with Poor Things director Yorgos Lanthimos for his next feature, Kinds of Kindness, which is expected for release later this year. Pascal was recently cast in Fantastic Four, while Butler is coming off Dune: Part Two and Luke Grimes is best known for Yellowstone. Collins Jr. is coming off The Bricklayer and has Riptide with Val Kilmer that is currently in production, while O'Connell is coming off Outer Range and Ward recently starred in The Book of Clarence. Splendour In The Grass' 2024 artist line-up has sparked backlash over its lack of prominent international acts. The three-day extravaganza, which is regarded as one of Australia's biggest music festival, announced its much anticipated lineup on Tuesday, with artists like Kylie Minogue, G-Flip and Tones And I leading the cohort. However these Aussie talents weren't enough to impress many fans, as online critics have pointed out there is only one major international artist on the ballot - Future. 'Absolutely rubbish. It's one of the only festivals in Australia big enough to pull a semi exciting and decent lineup and the biggest in the way of overseas headliners is Future,' one frustrated fan commented. 'Australian festivals are f**ked. How is Future the only good international act?' another agreed, as someone else added: 'Australian music festivals are so boring omg.' Splendour In The Grass' 2024 artist lineup has sparked backlash over its lack of prominent international acts. Pictured: G Flip, who will perform at Splendour this year The three-day extravaganza, which is regarded as one of Australia's biggest music festival, announced its much anticipated lineup on Tuesday, with artists like Kylie Minogue , G-Flip and Tones And I leading the cohort Many expressed disappointment at Lana Del Rey's absence from the lineup, following rumours she was set to perform at Splendour this year. 'Where the f**k is Lana? This is an awful lineup. What terrible news for Aussie festivals,' one user lamented. Another said the felt 'let down' because they saw 'so many Lana rumours' and had 'hyped themselves up.' However these Aussie talents weren't enough to impress many fans, as online critics have pointed out that there is only one major international artist on the ballot - Future (pictured) Scores of fans have complained about the lineup on social media, with many calling the cohort 'boring' and filled with niche Australian artists rather than big international acts Many claimed they had barely heard of most of the artists in the list. 'Realising how out of touch you are when you've only heard of three artists,' one wrote. 'I'm a festival girly and I barely know any of these names. If I'm gonna buy $200 tickets, at least have ONE person I'm excited to see please,' someone else added. Australian pop princess Kylie Minogue (pictured) will kick things off as the big headliner for Splendour in the Grass 2024 on Friday, July 19 in a triumphant return home after her Grammy win Splendour in the Grass will return to North Byron Parklands for the three-day festival, kicking off on July 19. Australian pop princess Kylie Minogue will start things off as the big headliner on Friday, July 19 in a triumphant return home after her Grammy win. Her latest album Tension has kicked off a new chapter in the Aussie artist's career which has seen multiple awards and a historic lifetime residency in Las Vegas. The Padam Padam hitmaker, 55, further cemented her legacy as pop royalty when she performed a duet with Madonna on her Celebration Tour for International Women's Day. The headliners will finish up with Canadian sensations Arcade Fire (pictured) on Sunday night, July 21, bringing the annual festival to its close Mumble-rap pioneer Future, 40, will take to the big stage on Saturday, July 20 as the second headliner after also securing two Grammys last month. With multiple platinum-selling albums and singles, the American rapper, 40, has solidified his status as one of the most influential artists of his generation. His recent hit Stand On It, featuring fellow Splendour artist Yeat, has made waves across the globe, further solidifying his trailblazing reputation. The headliners will finish up with Canadian sensations Arcade Fire on Sunday night, July 21, bringing the annual festival to its close. Sylvia Mundle is photographed in front of her prefab shelter in the backyard of the Amistad Catholic Worker House on Rosette Street in New Haven on March 13, 2024 where she has lived since the end of December 2023. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media Sylvia Mundle is photographed in front of her prefab shelter in the backyard of the Amistad Catholic Worker House on Rosette Street in New Haven on March 13, 2024 where she has lived since the end of December 2023. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media Mark Colville is photographed among the prefab shelters in the backyard of his home at the Amistad Catholic Worker House on Rosette Street in New Haven on March 13, 2024. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media Kathleen McKenzie is photographed at the prefab shelter where she lives in the backyard of the Amistad Catholic Worker House on Rosette Street in New Haven on March 13, 2024. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media NEW HAVEN The Rosette Neighborhood Village as the six prefab shelters within the Amistad Catholic Worker House's backyard on Rosette Street has come to be called is now legal within the city's zoning code. The Board of Zoning Appeals approved it 4-1 Tuesday night. The prefab shelters in the Hill section, which the city initially called for Amistad to dismantle after the group put them up without the proper permits, still are under a temporary, 180-day building permit that will expire in June. "It was an unexpected victory," said Mark Coville, who has run the organization to help people experiencing homelessness for more than three decades with his wife, Luz Catarineau-Coville. Advertisement Article continues below this ad He said he was expecting it to be denied based on the opinions he was getting ahead of time. "I think they were swayed by the presentation," Colville said Wednesday. Jacob Miller, Colville's next door neighbor and son-in-law, presented at Tuesday's meeting along with a combination of relatives, Hill neighbors and Rosette Neighborhood Village residents. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Most of the people who spoke at the virtual BZA meeting spoke in favor of the application. Sylvia Mundle, a Jamaican-born woman of God who goes by "Mama Sylvia" or "Miss Sylvia" and has been one of the enclave's residents since late December, was somewhat less quiet in her celebration. "God is on the job. It's God," said Mundle, who used to come to New Haven to help feed unhoused residents on the Green, at Union Station and at Amistad Catholic Worker House before she became one of them after the house that contained her longtime rental home in West Haven was sold. She commended the Covilles for their work and help, saying she would have been on the Green still if not for them. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I would say we are not homeless," Mundle said of the people living at Amistad. "We are family." Amistad's application was for several variances, including a use variance to permit detached single-room-occupancy structures and variances to permit a side-yard setback of 5 feet where 8 feet is required, a rear-yard setback of 5 feet where 25 feet is required a maximum building coverage of 32 percent where 30 percent is allowed and a minimum distance between buildings of 3 feet where 7 feet is required. BZA Chairwoman Mildred Melendez and members Chris Peralta, Gemini Rorie and Al Paolillo Sr. approved it with several conditions. One condition limited the structures to one individual unless the second individual is a family member. Another condition is residents always must have access to amenities in a portion of the first floor of 203 Rosette St., including a kitchen, sitting area and bathroom with a shower. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Some members wanted to make it a condition that the variances only apply to the current owners, but Deputy Corporation Counsel Rod Williams told them that "variances go with the land." "You can't really condition it just to the owner," Williams said. Only Vice Chairman Mike Martinez voted against the application. "Homelessness is a huge problem ... but for me, I'm going to vote to deny, and for me it's because they didn't go through the proper steps," Martinez said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad One of the people who countered that argument during earlier testimony was Hill resident Leslie Radcliffe, who also happens to be chairwoman of the City Plan Commission but said she was speaking as a resident. "It's no secret and most everyone agrees that there is a need for more housing in New Haven," Radcliffe told the board. She pointed out that Amistad Catholic Workers have worked to "supply emergency food and shelter for 30 years." Radcliffe acknowledged that they installed the prefab shelters from Everett, Wash.-based Pallet before all their permits were in order. "Would we expect someone not to go to the emergency room because they didn't have insurance?" Radcliffe said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Radcliffe said the Colvilles dmay not have gone through the right channels but "it's the right thing to do" and it "creates no hardship for the neighborhood." Miller said he hoped it was helpful to directly hear from people in this community. "This is in effect a free social service that Amistad Catholic Worker is providing," Miller said. "We receive no subsidies (and) we pay for the all the utilities." Miller said people are only being housed behind the two main houses, but a section of the first floor is open at all hours to people who live in the backyard to provide a bathroom, showers, a kitchen and an area to sit. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Crystal Fernandez, who lives with four children nearby supported the application. "Our family has gotten to know our backyard neighborhoods ... we occasionally share meals with them," she said. "They sometimes alert my family to the arrival of the school bus." Another Rosette Neighborhood Village resident, Suki Godek, said she has been living there for almost a year now after being evicted from the former Tent City along the West River off Ella T. Grasso Boulevard. "It has changed my life," Godek said. "It also has allowed me to become a member of my community again ... Without that, I just think I would be lost and in an awful place." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Leslie Blatteau, a city teacher and president of the New Haven Federal of Teachers, although she said she spoke as a neighbor and private citizen said she has lived on Greenwich Avenue since 2005. "I am here in support of the Rosette Street collective," Blatteau said. "They are doing the work that the community needs to do ... What they're doing is a model for all of us ... I am in full support of what they're doing." Jamilah Rasheed, director of the New Haven Inner City Enrichment Center, also supported the effort. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Paris Hilton has blasted her uncle Mauricio Umansky for publicly discussing a family feud that erupted years ago because of business. Mauricio is the estranged husband of Real Housewife Of Beverly Hills Kyle Richards, whose sister is Paris' mother Kathy Hilton. Nowadays Mauricio, 53, is a real estate broker with his own company - but he used to work with Paris' father Rick at the real estate agency Hilton & Hyland. On his new Netflix series Buying Beverly Hills, Mauricio spilled the story of how he left Hilton & Hyland in 2011 to launch a rival agency, triggering an explosive rift between Kyle and her family, to the point the Hiltons stopped speaking to her. Now Paris has leapt into the fray, denouncing Mauricio for 'using the Hilton name every chance he gets to plug his lame show.' Paris Hilton (pictured) has blasted her uncle Mauricio Umansky for publicly discussing a family feud that erupted years ago because of business Mauricio is the estranged husband of Real Housewife Of Beverly Hills Kyle Richards , whose sister is Paris' mother Kathy Hilton; Mauricio and Kyle are pictured on Sunday Now Paris has leapt into the fray, denouncing Mauricio for 'using the Hilton name every chance he gets to plug his lame show' 'My father is a consummate gentleman and has always taken the higher road,' she wrote on Instagram. 'He would never speak negatively about his family -- especially in the press. Frankly we are all sick of him using the Hilton name every chance he gets to plug his lame show. It is enough already..' In a Twitter preview for his series Buying Beverly Hills, Mauricio can be seen discussing his departure from the Hilton fold. The dashing reality star explained that he wanted to become a partner at the company but 'got kind of f***ed by Hilton & Hyland.' He laid out his version of events: 'And when I say: "f***ed," you know, like, today I'm happy, but there was 100 agents at Hilton & Hyland. They did a billion dollars for the first time a year, I was 19.6% of their production, and I went to Rick and said: "I'd really like equity, right? And to be a partner."' To hear Mauricio tell it, Rick then took the matter to Hilton & Hyland's president Jeffrey Hyland and came back with no for an answer. 'Then I went home,' said Mauricio: 'I talked to Kyle, I go: "This is really gonna cause a lot of stress between you and your sister and your family, and I don't wanna do this move of leaving and starting a company if you're not comfortable."' Kyle however 'was 100% supportive,' and Mauricio broke away from Hilton & Hyland to embark on his own enterprise, The Agency. His old bosses, he recalled, asked: 'How did you not give us any warning or any issue?' prompting Mauricio to incredulously respond: 'Warning?' On his new Netflix series Buying Beverly Hills, Mauricio spilled the story of how he left Hilton & Hyland and triggered an explosive rift between Kyle and her Now Paris defended her father and denounced Mauricio for 'using the Hilton name every chance he gets to plug his lame show'; she is pictured with her parents Rick and Kathy At present a question mark is still hanging over the state of the marriage, as they have separated but have denied they are headed for divorce In a confessional, Mauricio diplomatically said: 'I think Hilton & Hyland is an amazing company and I would never be caught dead speaking poorly about them because I don't think poorly about them, and I am Rick's brother-in-law.' He added: 'But unfortunately it got sour because it really affected the family - Kyle more than anybody. You know, her family stopped speaking to her, but she understood that what was done to me was wrong and she stood by me, and at the end of the day, I needed that.' Kylie and Mauricio married in 1996 and have since welcomed three daughters into the world together - Alexia, 27, Sophia, 24, and Portia, 16. Mauricio also developed a warm rapport with Kyle's eldest daughter Farrah Aldjufrie, 35, whom she had with her first husband, real estate developer Guraish Aldjufrie. At present a question mark is still hanging over the state of Kyle and Mauricio's marriage, as they have separated but have denied they are headed for divorce. When their split went public last summer, Kyle and Mauricio jointly confessed that they were experiencing difficulties in their relationship. Kyle then set off a frenzy of speculation that she was indulging in a dalliance with country songstress Morgan Wade. The conjecture went into overdrive when Kyle and Morgan kissed in one of the latter's music videos, but Kyle has denied any real-life romance between them. Kathy and Kyle are pictured with their fellow Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills Dorit Kemsley (left) and Lisa Rinna (right) at the 2021 premiere of Kyle's film Halloween Kills Paris is pictured with both her parents and her bridegroom at her wedding to businessman Carter Reum in November 2021 in Bel Air However, during a recent after-show segment of The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills, she admitted she would be open in general to dating a woman. Over the course of the separation, Kyle and Mauricio have stayed notably friendly, enjoying quality time together with their daughters. The breakdown of their marriage unfolded in front of reality TV cameras on the latest season of The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills. On part three of the reunion, which is set to air this Wednesday, Kyle and Mauricio will be seen baring their souls about their relationship issues. 'Part 3, I think, is the hardest one for me,' Kyle told Entertainment Tonight in a new interview promoting the upcoming episode. 'I knew that day the last part was gonna be the most difficult part, so I was just praying and meditating and waiting for that to end. It ended up in a very strange, weird, kind of odd way, but.... I'm still standing so that's a good thing.' As for the general status of the marriage, she cryptically remarked: 'I would like to believe there is light at the end of the tunnel. Each day gets easier in one way and a little sadder in other way. It's a challenging time right now, but we're very amicable.' Kyle explained: 'We love each other and care about each other. We love our family. I feel like we're very fortunate that we're handling it the way that we are. I don't know if many people can do that. We'll figure it out.' On part three of the reunion, which is set to air this Wednesday, Kyle and Mauricio will be seen baring their souls about their relationship issues; pictured 2021 She made the candid comments at Elton John's Oscar viewing party, where she and Mauricio could be seen posing cheerfully together for the cameras. Meanwhile, Kyle and Kathy were seen locked in a seething battle of wills on The Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills in 2022 and 2023. The feud came to a head in 2022 during a cast trip to Aspen, when Lisa Rinna decided to drink Kendall Jenner's 818 tequila instead of the Casa Del Sol imprint that Kathy had invested in with her daughters Paris and Nicky. Kathy felt personally insulted and flew into a rage - which was compounded by what she regarded as Kyle's failure to stand up for her. Lisa then claimed that Kathy - in a private, alcohol-fueled conversation with her - ranted about her problems with her sister and declared: 'I will destroy Kyle and her family if it's the last thing I ever do.' Kathy staunchly denied making any such remark, but the accusation was stinging enough that she and Kyle stopped speaking afterwards. Kyle and Kathy managed to mend fences months later, before they both had to attend their niece Whitney Davis' wedding. MAFS bride Sara Mesa has opened up about the aftermath of her infamous cheating scandal, detailing the emotional turmoil and public backlash she's faced. 'Watching it all back has been really rough,' Sara, 29, told Daily Mail Australia on Wednesday. The Sydney-based nutritionist admitted that reliving her experience has prompted her to confront aspects of her behaviour she's not proud of. 'It's made me feel really sad, especially for the way that I've treated Tim. I have so many regrets... It's like putting up a mirror to a lot of the things that I need to work on myself, and in relationships.' The days following the cheating revelations were particularly grueling. MAFS bride Sara Mesa has opened up about the aftermath of her infamous cheating scandal, detailing the emotional turmoil and public backlash she's faced 'Watching it all back has been really rough,' Sara, 29, told Daily Mail Australia on Wednesday. (Pictured with her TV groom Tim Calwell) 'It was a super-emotional and stressful week,' she describes. The intensity of the experiment nearly drove her to the edge. 'I was ready to just leave the experiment... I hadn't had enough with everything going on and I knew that Tim and I weren't gonna be able to work on our relationship when everyone was down our throats about it.' Despite the scandal, Sara and Tim, 31, had started to rekindle their connection. The Sydney-based nutritionist admitted that reliving her experience has prompted her to confront aspects of her behaviour she's not proud of 'I was ready to just leave the experiment... I hadn't had enough with everything going on and I knew that Tim and I weren't gonna be able to work on our relationship when everyone was down our throats about it,' she explained 'It felt really hard...we actually did feel that spark again,' she reveals. But the weight of the situation was crushing. 'Everybody hated me... my mental health was just absolutely shot to s**t.' The toll on her well-being was made worse during Feedback Week, during a task that involved a relentless line of questioning from Jayden Eynaud and his partner Eden Harper. 'No matter what I say, you're not going to believe me,' she recalled feeling at the time. 'Everybody hated me... my mental health was just absolutely shot to sh*t'. The toll on her well-being was made worse during Feedback Week, during a task that involved a relentless line of questioning from Jayden Eynaud and his partner Eden Harper Reflecting on her actions, Sara expresses remorse and the desire to have handled things differently. 'If I could go back and do it differently, I would have told [Tim],' she asserts, acknowledging that her approach at the dinner party could have been more compassionate. The public's reaction has been another hurdle, one that even caught Sara off guard despite considering herself tough-skinned. 'The reaction from the public has been crazy,' she says, expressing an understanding of the viewers' sentiments. Reflecting on her actions, Sara expresses remorse and the desire to have handled things differently Despite the negative portrayal, she's seeking support from loved ones and focusing on personal growth. 'It's a shame that the show is really showing me as this one-dimensional person,' she laments. Amid the storm, Sara is committed to proving her detractors wrong and fighting for her relationship with Tim. Looking ahead, Sara was fortified by Tim's support going into the next dinner party. 'He was going to have my back 100%,' she shares, grateful for their united front amidst the ongoing drama. Looking ahead, Sara was fortified by Tim's support going into the next dinner party. 'He was going to have my back 100%,' she shares, grateful for their united front amidst the drama Bradley Cooper was back on dad duty as he took daughter Lea de Seine to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, on Tuesday, following another Oscar loss. The Maestro star, 49, stayed comfortable as he arrived at the happiest place on Earth wearing a white long-sleeve top, a black puffer vest, grey sweatpants and Nike sneakers. The actor who recently admitted he struggled to 'really love' Lea for the first eight months after she was born shielded his eyes with a pair of sunglasses. Meanwhile Lea, six whom he shares with Russian model ex-girlfriend Irina Shayk, 38 looked adorable in a tie-dye sweater, a navy skirt and black boots. It comes after Bradley's Academy Awards losing streak reached double digits on Sunday, after he was snubbed for the 12th time. Bradley Cooper, 49, was back on dad duty as he took daughter Lea de Seine, six, to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, on Tuesday, following another Oscar loss The Maestro star stayed comfortable as he arrived at the happiest place on Earth wearing a white long-sleeve top, a black puffer vest, grey sweatpants and Nike sneakers Cooper has been nominated 12 times four for best actor but has yet to win the golden statue. He earned three nominations for his film Maestro best picture, best actor, best original screenplay but went home empty-handed. On Tuesday it was revealed that Cooper's apparent inconsistent political stance over the conflict in the Middle East is 'partly to blame' for Maestro's glaring 'shut out' during awards season, insiders have claimed. Cooper who brought his mom Gloria Campano as his Oscars date looked set for a haul of accolades when it was announced that he would be writing, directing and starring in the Netflix biopic about the life of legendary composer Leonard Bernstein. But the actor, who is dating Palestinian-American supermodel Gigi Hadid, 28, lost out on BAFTAs, Golden Globes and SAG Awards, before failing to pick up the coveted gongs for Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay or Best Picture at Sunday night's Oscars. His 'flip-flopping' over his support for Israel is believed to have played a part in his 12th Oscars snub, with some reportedly feeling like he should have stayed 'neutral' as opposed to wading into the conflict. 'Bradley's flip-flopping on his support for Israel was partly to blame for him being shut out this awards season,' a source exclusively told DailyMail.com. 'It was not aligned with his message for this film.' Cooper was one of hundreds of celebrities who signed a letter in October calling for the release of hostages taken by Palestinian militant group Hamas. It comes after Bradley's Academy Awards losing streak reached double digits on Sunday, after he was snubbed for the 12th time; seen at the Oscars It was revealed that Cooper's apparent inconsistent political stance over the conflict in the Middle East is 'partly to blame' for Maestro's glaring 'shut out' during awards season Cooper looked set for a haul of accolades when it was announced that he would be writing, directing and starring in the Netflix biopic about the life of legendary composer Leonard Bernstein; seen in a still He was nominated for best picture, best actor, best original screenplay for Maestro, but went home empty-handed; seen in a still with Carey Mulligan The actor, who is dating Palestinian-American supermodel Gigi Hadid, 28, lost out on BAFTAs, Golden Globes and SAG Awards, before failing to pick up an Oscar; seen with Gigi in 2024 Just days later, he also signed an open letter to Joe Biden asking the President to call for a ceasefire in Israel and Palestine, and put an end to the 'devastating loss of lives and unfolding horrors' in both countries. 'Whether it be support for his girlfriend or his true beliefs he signed his name on both letters,' the insider continued. 'You can't be supporting Israel and then supporting Palestine. He should have stayed neutral.' Bradley's first hurdle at achieving award success came before the film's release when controversy about his appearance in the biopic took hold. The Silver Linings Playbook actor faced a fierce backlash for using a prosthetic nose, a decision derided as 'problematic' by the Hollywood Reporter's chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg. Others branded it 'anti-Semitic' and accused him of 'jewface.' However, Bernstein's children said they had no problem with the prosthetic and felt their father wouldn't have either. Awards season buzz was building amid the growing conflict in the Middle East, with Cooper's girlfriend Hadid sparking a backlash when she used her platform to speak out in defense of the Palestinian people. She accused Israel of the 'abduction, rape, humiliation, torture, and murder of Palestinians' and falsely portrayed Palestinian terrorist Ahmed Manasra as a 'child prisoner of war,' in one online post. The model - whose father is Palestinian - later apologized for her 'mistake,' which she said was careless. His 'flip-flopping' over his support for Israel is believed to have played a part in his 12th Oscars snub, with some reportedly feeling like he should have stayed 'neutral'; Gigi and Bradley seen in February Gigi has been outspoken about her support for Palestine, and posted a photo on Instagram falsely portraying Palestinian terrorist Ahmed Manasra as a 'child prisoner of war' After receiving a backlash against her post, Gigi - whose father is Palestinian - apologized for her 'mistake,' which she said was careless Hadid said she 'wanted to show the ways in which international law is being violated by the Israeli government', and said that a Palestinian child arrested by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) would be treated differently than an Israeli child stopped by the IDF.' 'Unfortunately, I used the wrong example to make that point, and I regret that,' she continued. 'I understand that with the power of my platform comes a huge responsibility. 'I'm human and I make mistakes. But I also hold myself accountable for those mistakes.' An attorney for former Real Housewives of New York City star Leah McSweeney has doubled down on the validity of her suit against Bravo boss Andy Cohen, while dismissing defenses made on behalf of Cohen by other personalities associated with the popular reality TV franchise. Lawyer Gary Adelman, who is representing McSweeney in her suit claiming Bravo executives violated her employment rights under the Disabilities Act, told US in a statement Tuesday that 'there are more lawsuits coming and there are more people who are going to speak out' in regards to the situation. Adelman pushed back on Bravo stars or alums who have defended Cohen and the network in regards to the suit, in which McSweeney said network officials preventing her to get help for her alcohol issues while knowing she was dealing with them, amid the boozy backdrop of the show. 'It doesn't matter what people say or think - that Andy's a good guy, or that you should expect to drink, or that you should expect this behavior ... what's going to matter is what the law thinks of it,' Adelman said. 'And we believe the law thinks this is wrong.' Dailymail.com has reached out to Cohen's reps for comment on the latest statements made by McSweeney's legal team. A rep for Cohen told Dailymail.com last month in response to her suit that 'the claims against Andy are completely false.' An attorney for former Real Housewives of New York City star Leah McSweeney, 41, has doubled down on the validity of her suit against Bravo boss Andy Cohen, 55, while dismissing defenses made on behalf of Cohen by other personalities associated with the popular reality TV franchise. A rep for Cohen told Dailymail.com last month that 'the claims against Andy are completely false.' Pictured earlier this year filming Watch What Happens Live The lawsuit, filed against Andy Cohen and Bravo February 27, alleged cocaine use is rampant at the the network, with the linchpin producer and on-air personality both using the illegal drug and providing it to employees. The Bravo producer and personality, 55, 'engages in cocaine use with Housewives that he employs,' McSweeney said in the suit, which was filed in New York's Southern District. McSweeney said in court docs reviewed by Page Six that Cohen 'tends to provide the Housewives with whom he uses cocaine with more favorable treatment' and strategic editing to make them look better. Cohen 'intentionally uses cocaine with his employees to further promote a workplace culture that thrives off drug and alcohol use, which leads to a failure to accommodate employees who are disabled and trying to stay substance free,' McSweeney said in court docs. A rep for Cohen told Dailymail.com last month that 'the claims against Andy are completely false.' Cohen earlier this month responded to the lawsuit in a legal letter sent to McSweeney and her legal team, TMZ reported March 7, denying all claims made in her filing and demanding they 'immediately retract and withdraw all allegations relating to Mr. Cohens purported "cocaine use."' Cohen's lawyers added, 'To be clear: these allegations are categorically false. Mr. Cohen never used cocaine with any cast member on any Real Housewives show or with any other Bravo employee. The absence of any reasonable basis to make such allegations is confirmed by your pleading itself. 'The truth matters. Litigation cannot be used to create fake news. And it cannot be used as a vehicle to spread false and malicious lies, in furtherance of a shakedown. We demand that you issue an immediate public retraction and apologize to Mr. Cohen. Every day you fail to do so only increases the damages suffered by Mr. Cohen.' Lawyer Gary Adelman, who is representing McSweeney in her suit claiming Bravo executives violated her employment rights under the Disabilities Act, told US in a statement Tuesday that 'there are more lawsuits coming and there are more people who are going to speak out' in regards to the situation McSweeney, 41, appeared on two seasons of The Real Housewives of New York City in 2020-2021, and on a season of Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip, which aired last year. Pictured in NYC in June of 2021 McSweeney, seen in an Instagram post, said in court docs that Bravo producers sought to sabotage her sobriety by both exacerbating it and stopping her from getting treatment for her problem McSweeney, 41, appeared on two seasons of The Real Housewives of New York City in 2020-2021, and on a season of Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip, which aired last year. McSweeney said in the legal docs filed last month that Bravo 'thrives off drug and alcohol use,' without naming any further parties past Cohen. McSweeney said in court docs reviewed by Page Six that she informed Bravo producers prior to her casting on the series, that she had been focused on staying sober, and had a 30-day streak of sobriety going into the show. McSweeney told the court that producers failed to make a 'reasonable accommodation' for her addiction-related disability - but instead provided her 'with unlimited, free-of charge alcoholic beverages,' and 'encouraged her to consume those alcoholic beverages.' McSweeney's legal team said that 'this environment caused Ms. McSweeney to relapse into alcohol addiction shortly after joining RHONY season 12.' McSweeney said in court docs that Bravo producers sought to sabotage her sobriety by both exacerbating it and stopping her from getting treatment for her problem. McSweeney told the court that Bravo executives violated her employment rights under the Disabilities Act by preventing her to get help for her alcohol issues, knowing she was dealing with them. McSweeney, who has a fashion label called Married To The Mob, said in the legal docs that sexual harassment was also rife in the company, claiming that a senior producer 'routinely sends unsolicited pictures of [their] genitalia to lower-level production employees,' and that executives have ignored the issues. McSweeney has a fashion label called Married To The Mob Cohen 'intentionally uses cocaine with his employees to further promote a workplace culture that thrives off drug and alcohol use, which leads to a failure to accommodate employees who are disabled and trying to stay substance free,' McSweeney said in court docs McSweeney said in legal docs that Bravo and Shed Media, a production company it works with on its shows, continued to promote the unnamed senior producer in question 'to positions of increased power.' In 'failing to take appropriate remedial action' amid the claims, McSweeney said in court docs, Bravo and Shed officials 'tacitly' signaled to both the senior producer and 'all other employees that they can engage in unlawful employment practices with impunity.' McSweeney in her suit, which is for unspecified damages, named Cohen, Bravo, Shed Media and Shed's parent company Warner Media. The latest claims come amid a series of lawsuits filed involving Cohen, who also is the host of the Bravo series Watch What Happens Live! and executive producer of the Real Housewives franchise. Brandi Glanville, 51, claimed in an explosive legal letter earlier this month that Cohen had sexually harassed her by trying to make her watch him have sex with another Bravo star, who Cohen later revealed to be Kate Chastain of Below Deck fame, via a FaceTime video. In a legal legal letter DailyMail.com obtained, Glanville said that in 2022, an 'obviously inebriated' Cohen sent her a clip in which he 'invited her to watch via Facetime,' Glanville's attorney Bryan Freedman said. Cohen, who is openly gay, earlier this month posted an apology via Twitter: 'The video shows Kate Chastain and I very clearly joking to Brandi. 'It was absolutely meant in jest, and Brandi's response clearly communicated she was in on the joke. That said, it was totally inappropriate and I apologize.' A rep for Cohen told Dailymail.com that 'the claims against Andy are completely false' The latest claims come amid a series of lawsuits filed involving Cohen, who also is the host of the Bravo series Watch What Happens Live! and executive producer of the Real Housewives franchise. Pictured Friday in NYC Glanville said that the apology meant nothing to her since it wasn't addressed to her. 'I have not received a personal apology from anyone,' she said. 'I saw an apology that Andy posted TO HIS FANS for his mistreatment of me and inappropriateness.' Sources who saw the video in question told Dailymail.com on Tuesday that Glanville replied to Cohen's video message in saying she would provide a sex toy for the referenced rendezvous. Insiders said Cohen told Glanville in the 2022 clip, 'Hey Brandi what's up girl? We are just thinking about you. So yeah, me and Kate are gonna have some hot sex and wanted to know if you wanted to watch. You know a little menage a trois. So FaceTime us back. Okay girl love you!' Glanville sent a reply in which she said, 'I will bring my hot dildo,' according to eyewitnesses. Glanville is also at the center of separate sexual harassment litigation involving fellow Bravo personality Caroline Manzo, 62. The Real Housewives of New Jersey star said that Bravo producers encouraged Glanville to sexually harass her amid the filming of the series The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip in Morocco, TMZ reported January 26. Manzo said in legal docs that Glanville - after being encouraged to drink to excess by producers - 'forced her vagina against her back' as she groped her in front of the cameras. Brandi Glanville, 51, claimed in an explosive legal letter earlier this month that Cohen had sexually harassed her by trying to make her watch him have sex with another Bravo star, who Cohen later revealed to be Kate Chastain of Below Deck fame, via a FaceTime video Cohen and McSweeney were pictured on a Watch What Happens Live! in 2021 with Sonja Morgan Lawyers for the RHONJ personality said that Glanville 'proceeded to mount Manzo on the couch holding Manzo down with her body, forcibly squeezed Manzos cheeks together and thrust her tongue in Manzo's mouth, while humping her.' Glanville's rep told DailyMail.com that 'there was no sexual assault' and that the allegations raised by Manzo were 'absurd.' Cohen has past been the target of cocaine-related allegations, as his former friend Kathy Griffin said in 2017 clip on YouTube that Cohen had offered her cocaine on multiple occasions, prior to her appearing on his talk show. 'Right before we went live, Andy Cohen privately asked me in an office in embassy row, which is the production company that does that s***show asked her if I wanted to do blow,' Griffin said in an October 2017 clip on YouTube. 'He was asking me to do cocaine with him.' Rob Lowe is opening up about watching his longtime friend Robert Downey Jr. win his first Oscar on Sunday night. Lowe, 59, and Downey Jr., 58, both met in a history class as sophomores in Santa Monica High School, and they've been friends ever since. The 9-1-1: Lone Star actor hosted DirecTV Streaming With the Stars, an exclusive Oscar viewing party at Spago in Beverly Hills, where he spoke to Variety about his old friend finally winning an Oscar for Oppenheimer. Lowe also received a cake to celebrate him turning 60 on March 17, which was around the time that Downey Jr. won Best Supporting Actor. Lowe revealed that Downey Jr. winning was the 'highlight' of his evening, as he reminiscend on his longtime friendship with the actor. Rob Lowe is opening up about watching his longtime friend Robert Downey Jr . win his first Oscar on Sunday night Lowe revealed that Downey Jr. winning was the 'highlight' of his evening, as he reminiscend on his longtime friendship with the actor Lowe also received a cake to celebrate him turning 60 on March 17, which was around the time that Downey Jr. won Best Supporting Actor 'His life story is obviously an amazing and inspirational roller coaster. Ive been there from the beginning. And this will be a culminating moment for somebody who really deserves it,' Lowe said. Downey Jr.'s troubled childhood riddled with addiction was even part of Jimmy Kimmel's opening monologue. 'This is the highest point of Robert Downey Jr.'s long and illustrious career... one of the highest points,' referrring to his teenage drug use. Downey Jr. still managed to smile at the camera, pointing at his nose, hinting that joke was too 'on the nose,' though Kimmel kept going with the bit. 'Was that too on the nose or a drug motion you made?' Kimmel asked as Downey Jr. motioned for him to move on. Kimmel added, 'But look at him, he's so handsome, so talented, he's won every award there is to win. Is that an acceptance speech in your pocket or do you just have a very rectangular penis?' as Downey Jr. just shrugged. Just minutes later, last year's Best Supporting Actor winner - Ke Huy Quan - announced that Downey had won, as he took to the stage. 'I'd like to thank my terrible childhood and the Academy, in that order,' he said, before thanking his 'veternarian'/wife Susan Downey. 'His life story is obviously an amazing and inspirational roller coaster. Ive been there from the beginning. And this will be a culminating moment for somebody who really deserves it,' Lowe said Downey Jr.'s troubled childhood riddled with addiction was even part of Jimmy Kimmel's opening monologue Lowe, 59, and Downey Jr., 58, both met in a history class as sophomores in Santa Monica High School, and they've been friends ever since 'She found me a snarling rescue pet and you loved me back to life, that's why I'm here,' Downey Jr. said to his wife and producing partner. He added that his 'little secret' was he needed to play Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer more than the production needed him. 'Emma (Thomas) made sure she surrounded me with one of the great cast and crews of all time, Emily (Blunt), Cillian (Murphy), Matt Damon, it was fantastic,' he said. 'I stand here a better man because of it. You know what we do is meaningful and the stuff that we decide to make is important,' he added, before thanking his team. Karlie Kloss got all dressed up on Tuesday night to grab dinner with friends in New York City. The supermodel, 31, looked phenomenal in an elegant floor-length dress that flattered her statuesque frame. It had a beige, diamond-patterned skirt with jeweled embroidery and sparkly sequin trim. The bodice was made of black velvet and it had a darling bow adorned to the front. Kloss' dirty blonde hair was styled in a sleek ponytail and she accessorized with gold medallion earrings. Karlie Kloss got all dressed up on Tuesday night to grab dinner with friends in New York City Her outing comes one day after she publicly honored her son Levi's third birthday on Instagram. She shares Levi as well as son Elijah, eight months, with husband Joshua Kushner, 38. The couple tied the knot back in 2018 and welcomed Levi three years later in March 2021. In July 2023, Karlie gave birth to their youngest Elijah. The Kushner family lives in a $32M Miami, Florida estate but they often spend time in New York. On Monday, Karlie gushed about how much Levi's birth 'changed my life' in her sweet Instagram post. She also shared some of her favorite photos of the toddler. '3yrs ago today, you forever changed my life and I couldnt be more proud and humbled to be your mom,' Karlie wrote. The supermodel, 31, looked phenomenal in an elegant floor-length dress that flattered her statuesque frame Her outing comes one day after she publicly honored her son Levi's third birthday on Instagram She shares Levi as well as son Elijah, eight months, with husband Joshua Kushner, 38; the couple seen in 2020 'Thank you for making me a mommy. happy birthday Levi, thank you for choosing me and @joshuakushner. We couldnt love you more.' Her slideshow included a sweet photo of Levi sitting on his dad's shoulders as they marveled at a giant billboard on Kloss in NYC. Another showed Levi waking up to a bunch of stuffed animals and colorful balloons on the morning of his birthday. Last week, Karlie and Josh left their children behind in the United States to attend the lavish pre-wedding celebration for children of Asia's two wealthiest families overseas. Anant Ambani and his bride-to-be Radhika Merchant hosted a lavish and star-studded party in Jamnagar, Gujarat, in India to celebrate their upcoming nuptials. The celebrations reportedly cost $152 million and were kicked off with a performance by Rihanna, who is said to have commanded a $6 million fee and whose partner A$AP Rocky was seen mingling with guests. Joshua's brother Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump were also among 1,000 guests invited to Ambani's family home for the three-day extravaganza. On Monday, Karlie gushed over how much Levi's birth 'changed my life' in her sweet Instagram post She also shared some of her favorite photos of the toddler Her slideshow included a sweet photo of Levi sitting on his dad's shoulders as they marveled at a giant billboard on Kloss in NYC Kloss and Trump posted photos on Instagram with their husbands. However, neither shared pics of the two ravishing women together. In a post captioned 'Cheers Anant and Radhika', Kloss showed off her lean physique in a stunning iridescent gown as she posed in front of fairground rides and alongside Zuckerberg's wife Priscilla Chan. Other photos show Kloss sporting a chic, backless blue dress with matching scarf draped elegantly around her neck. Her husband Joshua Kushner was also pictured wearing a traditional Indian men's outfit. Kloss has rarely spoken about her connection to the Trump family and they have been sparingly spotted together. In September 2022, their families joined up to celebrate the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah in Long Branch, New Jersey. In a December 2021 interview with the Wall Street Journal Magazine, she said she had to grow a 'grow really thick skin' when Jared and Ivanka became her in-laws. Kloss and her sister-in-law Ivanka Trump notably posted no photos together while attending pre-wedding celebrations for the children of Asia's two wealthiest families last week Both Kloss and Trump posted photos on Instagram with their husbands, who are brothers. However, neither shared pics of the two ravishing women together. In one photo taken at the event, Ivanka is seen with her husband and brother-in-law, but Kloss is notably absent from the photo 'Ive had to grow really thick skin as it relates to [being] impacted by other peoples opinions. 'Whether they love me or they hate mebecause Ive experienced all of it. Ive learned to stay away from the comments section.' Karlie had openly campaigned for Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential election while Jared and Ivanka went on to become then-President Donald Trumps' senior advisers. A hilarious clip has resurfaced of Margot Robbie revealing how she ended one of the worst dates of her life. In the footage, which was filmed during the press for 2016 film Suicide Squad,the Australian actress recalls how she asked out a waiter while she was on a date with another man. 'I was once on a date. It was going so bad that I ended up asking out the waiter that was serving us on the date instead,' she confessed. 'But I asked the guy I was on the date with first,' she insisted, adding: 'I was like, 'This is going, like [terribly]. Would you be offended?''. 'He was like, "Go for it",' she added. A hilarious clip has resurfaced of Margot Robbie revealing how she ended one of the worst dates of her life It's not the only time Margot, who is married to British producer Tom Ackerley, has spoken about asking waiters to go on date. Back in 2015, the then-24-year-old revealed to Mario Lopez on the Oscars red carpet that she had no qualms about making the first move. 'I was out to dinner, I was walking out and he's like, 'Okay see you later', and I was like, 'Are you gonna call me?'' she cheekily revealed. In the footage, which was filmed during the press for 2016 film Suicide Squad, the Australian actress recalls how she asked out a waiter while she was on a date with another man 'He's like, "Call you? I don't have your number", and then I grabbed a pen and wrote my number on his arm.' Shocked at her own confidence and execution, she admitted to the host: 'It went so smoothly and things never go smoothly for me, so I was really psyched about it.' Margot and husband Tom met in 2013 on the set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France. Back in 2015, the then-24-year-old revealed to Mario Lopez (left) on the Oscars red carpet that she had no qualms about making the first move on another restaurant staffer Margot and husband Tom Ackerley (right) met in 2013 on the set of World War II drama Suite Francaise in France Speaking to Vogue about their meeting in 2016, Margot said: 'I was the ultimate single gal. The idea of relationships made me want to vomit. And then this crept up on me.' 'We were friends for so long. I was always in love with him, but I thought, Oh, he would never love me back. Don't make it weird, Margot. Don't be stupid and tell him that you like him. And then it happened, and I was like, Of course we're together.' The pair married in 2016. Just days after his controversial Oscars Best Picture announcement, Al Pacino was spotted dashing out for a caffeine fix. The 83-year-old acting legend was spotted out in Los Angeles on Tuesday, following the announcement of his new memoir Sonny Boy. The outing also comes on the heels of the Oscar-winning actor clarifying that he was told not to read all of the Best Picture nominees by producers. Pacino was seen heading into an office building in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, wearing a largely-black look. He was seen donning a blue scarf wrapped around his neck with a long black peacoat that fell to his knees. Just days after his controversial Oscars Best Picture announcement , Al Pacino was spotted out and about. Pacino was spotted out heading into an office building in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, wearing a largely-black look He also rocked black sunglasses and was seen carrying a beverage into the office building on Tuesday. The iconic actor completed his look with a pair of black pants and a matching pair of black sneakers. Pacino was the surprise presenter for the coveted Best Picture award, though he surprised fans even more when he didn't reveal the 10 Best Picture nominees, as is traditionally done. 'Ten wonderful films are nominated, but only one will take the award for Best Picture. And I have to go to the envelope for that. And I will. Here it comes. And my eyes see Oppenheimer, yes!' he said on the Oscar stage. Just one day later, Pacino cleared the air with TMZ, revealing it wasn't his choice to exclude the nominees. 'There seems to be some controversy about my not mentioning every film by name last night before announcing the Best Picture award,' Pacino began. 'I just want to be clear it was not my intention to omit them, rather a choice by the producers not to have them said again since they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony. 'I was honored to be a part of the evening and chose to follow the way they wished for this award to be presented." He also rocked black sunglasses and was seen carrying a beverage into the office building on Tuesday 'I realize being nominated is a huge milestone in ones life and to not be fully recognized is offensive and hurtful,' he continued. 'I say this as someone who profoundly relates with filmmakers, actors and producers so I deeply empathize with those who have been slighted by this oversight and its why I felt it necessary to make this statement,' he concluded. Peguin Press also revealed on Monday that they are releasing Pacino's memoir Sonny Boy: A Memoir, on October 8. It was also revealed that Pacino will be reading the audiobook version himself, which could earn him a Grammy award that would solidify him as the next EGOT winner. Brad Pitt's girlfriend Ines De Ramon cut a stylish figure while running errands in Santa Monica on Tuesday, following his legal win over ex Angelina Jolie. The 31-year-old jewelry designer wore a casual cool charcoal grey sweater and vintage-style faded jeans for her outing. The brunette beauty who has helped him navigate his bitter divorce from Angelina, 48 paired the outfit with brown suede boots and a grey crossbody bag. She shielded her eyes with a pair of sunglasses, and carried a cup of coffee and her cellphone in her hands. Ines who recently finalized her divorce from actor Paul Wesley, 40 has been linked to the Oscar winner, 60, since November 2022. Brad Pitt's, 60, girlfriend Ines De Ramon, 31, cut a stylish figure while running errands in Santa Monica on Tuesday, following his legal win over ex Angelina Jolie The jewelry designer wore a casual cool charcoal grey sweater and vintage-style faded jeans Brad Pitt (left) at Chateau Miraval in May last year The Chateau Miraval estate, which produces an award-winning sparkling rose, is at the center of a long-running court battle between Pitt and his ex wife Angelina Jolie Ines and Wesley finalized their divorce over a year and a half after announcing their split in late 2022. In court documents, obtained by People Wesley 'waived any future spousal or partner support payments' and she 'asked to restore her former name.' The former couple, who cited 'irreconcilable differences' as the reason for their breakup, wed in 2019 and do not share any children. Meanwhile Brad has been handed the latest victory in the battle to control the French vineyard he owned with ex-wife Angelina in the latest twist in the so-called 'War of the Roses'. The Chateau Miraval estate, which produces an award-winning sparkling rose, is at the center of a long-running court battle between the pair. Jolie attempted to overturn a preliminary ruling at the LA Superior Court which allowed her ex-husbands claims that she sold her stake in their stunning vineyard to Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler without his agreement in 2021. But in another win for the Fight Club star, the court rejected the allegations that his suit was frivolous, malicious, and part of a problematic pattern. It now means that Pitts legal team has the green light to take the court battle to trial, in which the A-lister is suing Jolie for breaching an agreement that they would give each other first refusal. Ines and Wesley finalized their divorce over a year and a half after announcing their split in late 2022 (seen in 2019) Court minutes seen by DailyMail.com show that the Hollywood star was given the go-ahead on March 8 to amend one overruled claim relating to breaching an implied covenant of fair dealing and good faith. Judge Lia Martin rejected Jolies attorneys attempts to toss out the lawsuit for breaching an implied contract and quasi-contract, which is the latest blow for Jolie and Shefler. Last month, the Mail revealed that Stoli had been stripped of some shares by a court in Luxembourg, making Pitt the majority shareholder. The battle over Chateau Miraval's future has so far been waged in courtrooms in France, Luxembourg and Los Angeles. Pitt was shocked when his ex-wife sold her half of their stunning Chateau Miraval estate without his agreement to Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler in 2021. After their acrimonious separation in 2016, Jolie sold her stake in the business to Yuri Shefler's Stoli Group. Pitt claimed she had breached an agreement that they would give each other first refusal. Financial papers seen by DailyMail.com in February revealed that the ultimate owner of the shares is a shadowy trust on the isle of Jersey controlled by a company of which Shefler is not a shareholder. The bewildering business arrangements make it impossible to know who is pulling the strings - but friends of Hollywood star Pitt say he is determined to get to the bottom of it. Meanwhile Brad has been handed a victory in the battle to control the French vineyard he owned with ex-wife Angelina in the latest twist in the so-called 'War of the Roses'; seen 2015 Pitt states that he was blindsided when Jolie sold her share of Chateau Miraval, a 35-room estate and celebrated vineyard in the south of France that Pitt and Jolie bought for $60 million in 2011. The 1,000-acre estate now valued at $164million is where the couple tied the knot in 2014 A source close to the actor said: 'Brad wants Jersey to start providing answers. He should have the right to know who has bought into his business. 'He has put his heart and soul into Chateau Miraval and feels the rug has been pulled out from under him. He does not know for sure who he is actually in business with.' In a previous filing Pitt claimed that Shefler tried to bully and threaten him with smears, arguing the Russian tried to browbeat him into submission by issuing a press release announcing their partnership the day after Jolies deal went through. Shefler then demanded that the pair meet for talks, after personally insisting that the release emphasized that they were partners with Pitt despite the A-Lister only learning of the deal through the announcement. The filings are part of the Oscar winners bid to undo the $64m sale by Angelina Jolie of her share in the Chateau Miraval estate to Shefler. He says the 2021 deal was in breach of Jolies earlier promise to offer him first refusal if she ever sold up. Shefler is accused of reaching out to Jolies divorce lawyers following reports of a heated custody dispute in 2021. Pitts team also say that representatives for Stolithe international beverage conglomerate owned by Shefler made as unsolicited bid for Miravel following news of the couples split. Shefler insists the American courts have no jurisdiction to hear a full trial on the matter. But the momentum in the legal battle appears to be with Pitt, after a court in Luxembourg stripped Shefler of 10 per cent of his shares, effectively making Pitt the majority shareholder once again. Brad and Angelina married in August 2014 after 10 years together but Angelina filed for divorce in September 2016; seen in 2006 His legal team secured the victory by arguing that the shares were given in 2013 with the understanding that Jolie would not sell them on. Judge Carole Kerschen ruled it was necessary to end the 'blockage of decision' and save the business. A 'merits hearing' in around two years is likely to decide that Pitt regain full control of the shares, which were transferred to Jolies company for one euro. A source close to the actor previously said the ruling leaves Shefler, with 'virtually no say' in the multi-million-pound business in Provence. Pitt and Jolie bought the 1,300-acre Miraval estate in 2008 as 60-40 partners, with Pitt the majority shareholder. Five years later, he gave an extra 10 per cent to Jolie's company Nouvel for one euro, making them equals. But after their acrimonious split in 2016 the estate was at the center of a $350million divorce battle. In 2021, Jolie sold Nouvel to a group controlled by Shefler. Pitt's lawyers claimed she 'knew and intended Shefler and his affiliates would try to control the business.' Sydney Sweeney stunned in a bridal white gown as she arrived to the premiere of her film Immaculate, during the South by Southwest Film Festival on Tuesday. The Madame Web star, 26, had all eyes on her as she walked the red carpet at the Paramount Theatre in the delicate off-shoulder dress. The gown featured a sizzling side slit that revealed her thigh-high white lace boots underneath. The blonde bombshell also rocked her short new bob haircut, and accessorized with earrings by Octavia Elizabeth and rings by Jennifer Meyer. In the upcoming horror flick the Euphoria star plays an American nun named Cecilia who joins a convent in the Italian countryside, before finding out that her new home harbors a sinister secret. Sydney Sweeney stunned in a bridal white gown as she arrived to the world premiere of her film Immaculate, during the South by Southwest Film Festival on Tuesday The Madame Web star, 26, had all eyes on her as she walked the red carpet at the Paramount Theatre in the delicate off-shoulder dress The White Lotus star wore delicate makeup for the occasion, with just a touch of blush and a nude lipgloss. While at the event she was spotted mingling with composer Will Bates, 47, who looked dapper in a black velvet suit. Italian actress Benedetta Porcaroli, 25, was also present, and looked stylish in an oversized grey blazer dress with a fringe skirt wrapped around it. The fashionista, who stars alongside Sydney in the scary movie, completed the look with vivid pointed-toe red heels. Also present was actress Simona Tabasco, 29, who showed off her toned legs in a black mini dress with a white collar. The Naples native added height to her look with black heels, and wore cross earrings. Spanish actor Alvaro Morte, 49, showed off his edgy style in a black leather jacket and pants. He completed his look with black boots. Director Michael Mohan cut a dapper figure in a grey suit with a silk green finish. The gown featured a sizzling side slit that revealed her thigh-high white lace boots underneath The blonde bombshell also rocked her short new bob haircut, and accessorized with earrings by Octavia Elizabeth and rings by Jennifer Meyer While at the event she was spotted mingling with composer Will Bates, 47, who looked dapper in a black velvet suit The duo chatted it up Italian actress Benedetta Porcaroli, 25, was also present, and looked stylish in an oversized grey blazer dress with a fringe skirt wrapped around it The fashionista, who stars alongside Sydney in the scary movie, completed the look with vivid pointed-toe red heels Also present was Italian beauty Simona Tabasco, 29, who showed off her toned legs in a black mini dress with a white collar Spanish actor Alvaro Morte, 49, showed off his edgy style in a black leather jacket and pants. He completed his look with black boots Director Michael Mohan cut a dapper figure in a grey suit with a silk green finish Sydney and her co-stars and director also posed for studio portraits at the event. For the occasion the actress wore a black blazer with structured shoulders along with a white mini skirt, sheer black stockings, and heels. Simona showed off her toned legs in a checkered baby blue mini skirt and a pastel blue cardigan. Meanwhile Benedetta sported a black and white button-up, grey shorts and black shoes. In the trailer for the flick Sydney is pictured saying: 'God saved me for a reason. I'm still searching for what that reason is.' While all appears to be picture perfect, behind the cloistered walls of the abbey, dark forces are at work. A fellow nun is killed and soon Cecilia discovers she is pregnant. 'It's a miracle,' a priest tells her after nuns use an ultrasound machine, which just happens to be at the convent, to confirm her condition. 'You are with child.' Sydney and her co-stars and director also posed for studio portraits at the event For the occasion the actress wore a black blazer with structured shoulders along with a white mini skirt, sheer black stockings, and heels Simona showed off her toned legs in a checkered baby blue mini skirt and a pastel blue cardigan. Meanwhile Benedetta sported a black and white button-up and grey shorts They all posed for a group shot as well In the horror flick - set to premiere on March 22 - Sydney plays a nun named Cecilia who joins an Italian convent before finding out that it harbors a sinister secret 'Out of all the women in the world, why did HE choose me?' a baffled Cecilia asks. While some believe she is following in the footsteps of the Virgin Mary, others are concerned she may be carrying an ungodly being in her womb. Frightening and often torturous events begin to take place in which the young nun's faith and body are tested. The film is set to premiere on March 22. Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Rome Ga. Mike Stewart/AP Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Rome Ga. Mike Stewart/AP A person drops off a ballot at a drop box during the presidential primary election, Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Seattle. Manuel Valdes/AP Kathie Washington, 63, left, uses her finger to sign an electronic registry before receiving her paper ballot at a north Jackson, Miss., election precinct, Tuesday, March 12, 2024, as she and others vote in Mississippi's party primaries. Mississippians are voting for all four of the state's U.S. House seats and one U.S. Senate seat. Rogelio V. Solis/AP WASHINGTON (AP) Former President Donald Trump s third consecutive stint as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee was made possible by an almost uninterrupted string of lopsided primary and caucus victories and his near sweep of GOP delegates awarded to date. The Associated Press declared Trump the presumptive nominee at 11:09 p.m. EDT, following his wins Tuesday in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington. He won at least 126 of their combined available delegates to push him past the 1,215 needed to become the presumptive nominee. The AP concluded Trump would secure enough delegates in Washington to clinch the nomination after an analysis found that he would receive a statewide vote majority, which would entitle him to the lions share of the states 43 delegates. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Washingtons Republican delegates are awarded based on both the statewide vote and the vote in each congressional district. A candidate who receives more than 50% of the statewide vote wins all 13 statewide delegates. The candidate who wins more than 50% of the vote in a congressional district wins all three delegates from that district. If no candidate receives a vote majority, delegates are then awarded in proportion to the statewide vote as well as the vote in each district. Candidates must receive at least 20% of the vote to qualify for any delegates in Washington. As the polls closed in Washington, Trump was just 30 delegates shy of reaching the 1,215-delegate mark. Once the AP determined he would win a statewide vote majority, he was entitled to all 13 statewide delegates, leaving him 17 delegates short of 1,215. The APs analysis then concluded that Trump would win a vote majority in most if not all of the states 10 congressional districts, pushing him past the number of delegates needed to secure the nomination. To determine whether Trump would receive a vote majority in any congressional district, the AP compared the current Washington vote results to past results in the state, as well as to the demographics of the counties that have already reported vote results and to the estimated turnout in counties across the state. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Trump's path to unofficially clinching this years nomination more closely resembled the one he took as the incumbent in 2020 than his 2016 bid as a first-time candidate. He defeated an at-times crowded field of rivals to secure the 2024 nomination, his third in eight years. Trump reaches the delegate milestone 57 days after Republicans first began awarding delegates at the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 15. Thats a faster pace than in 2016, when he reached the milestone after 115 days against a much more competitive field. Its slightly behind the 38 days it took President Joe Biden to unofficially clinch the Democratic nomination on Tuesday, as well as the 43 days it took Trump in 2020 when he ran as the incumbent. Both Biden and Trump this year far outpaced the 111 days it took then-President Barack Obama to officially clinch his renomination in 2012. The former president benefited greatly from the Republican delegate rules, which vary state by state. Some states allowed the primary or caucus winner or vote-majority winner to receive all the states delegates. Historically, these rules have favored front-runners and made it harder for trailing candidates like Haley to win delegates. Trumps near-clean sweep of last weeks Super Tuesday contests, as well as his win in American Samoas caucuses, put him just 126 delegates shy of the 1,215 needed to clinch the nomination heading into Tuesdays contests. This included 11 delegates in Texas that the state party announced Tuesday would be awarded to Trump. The party had previously planned to award the delegates at the state party convention in May but instead awarded them based on the March 5 primary after saying in a social media post that their original plan was in conflict with Republican National Committee rules. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Trump needed about 78% of the 161 delegates available in Tuesdays contests, a reasonable goal considering he won 93% of last weeks massive Super Tuesday delegate haul. Sister Wives star Janelle Brown was overwhelmed by the kindness of strangers after fans paid tribute to her late son Garrison Brown. She admitted in an Instagram post from Tuesday that she was 'brought to tears' by donations made to animal charities in her son's name, as he was a noted 'cat dad.' Janelle praised the generosity of her and Garrison's fans in the wake of his tragic death at only 25 of an apparent suicide. In her post, she shared a photo of her late son as he held one of his beloved cats for a sweet mirror selfie, as well as a picture featuring it and two of the other cats he had adopted. 'I have been brought to tears again. Im being told about everyones donations to @highcountryhumane @arkcatsancutary in Garrisons name,' she wrote in the emotional post. Sister Wives star Janelle Brown (pictured) said she was 'brought to tears again' after fans of her late son Garrison Brown donated to animal charities in his name She shared the sweet news on Instagram on Tuesday, just a week after Garrison died of an apparent suicide at 25 'Thank you for all your generosity. It means so much,' she continued. 'The cats he adopted from both agencies were so important to him. He loved being a cat dad.' Janelle also include a screenshot of a webpage urging people 'buy' the 'gift of life' for a shelter pet that would otherwise be scheduled for euthanasia. A final screenshot was from an animal rescue organization boasting about how it had taken in 796 cats from local Arizona shelters 'with no public funding.' Garrison was discovered dead at his home on March 5. Flagstaff police told TMZ that Garrison appeared 'to have suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound' when they responded to his house after receiving reports someone had died. Garrison was found dead in his home by his brother Gabriel, authorities told the outlet. Police told the outlet that foul play was not suspected in Garrison's death, and that an investigation has been launched. It was not immediately clear if Garrison left behind a note or other communications. Just five days before his tragic death, the Sister Wives fixture revealed on Instagram that he had adopted a third cat, saving her from certain death. 'Newest edition to my home, Ms. Buttons,' Garrison said as he proudly displayed the gray cat in a mirror selfie. 'Shes 9 years old and was on the line for euthanasia but my savior complex couldnt suffice. #crazycatlady.' 'I have been brought to tears again. Im being told about everyones donations to @highcountryhumane @arkcatsancutary in Garrisons name,' she wrote in the emotional post 'Thank you for all your generosity. It means so much,' she continued. 'The cats he adopted from both agencies were so important to him. He loved being a cat dad.' In addition to a photo of Garrison with one of his cats and a snap of his three adopted felines, she shared screenshots from animal rescue organizations Garrison had adopted a third cat scheduled to be euthanized just days before his tragic death He had previously introduced his fans to his humorously named feline companions Catthew and Patches OHoulihan, both of which he adopted in 2022. Following Garrison's death, a source said Janelle was 'extremely broken and tortured' while speaking to The Sun. 'I've never heard her so angry and numb. She's not processed clearly,' the source added. 'This family is extremely broken and tortured and it's very painful for many of them.' A police report obtained by TMZ later revealed that Garrison appeared to have given hints about his plans in 'ominous' text messages that he sent to friends and family the day before his death. 'I want to hate you for sharing the good times. But I can't. I miss these days,' he allegedly wrote to one group of people whom he appeared to know from filming Sister Wives. After someone let Janelle know about the concerning messages, she began a brief conversation with her son, but he allegedly stopped responding after only a few minutes. She then asked her other children if they could check on Garrison, and his younger brother Gabriel, 22, volunteered, only to discover his brother's body. The outlet also noted that some of Garrison's roommates 'heard a pop' sound on the night of his death, but they didn't 'think it was a gunshot' and didn't bother to check in on Garrison afterward. Although the roommates alleged that the late reality star had 'struggle[d] with alcohol,' his brother Gabriel was shocked, as he believed Garrison was doing better after scoring a new job at a medical facility. The Sun subsequently revealed that one of Garrison's roommates said that in addition to drinking daily, he was also 'having problems with his ex-girlfriend.' On Saturday, Garrison's cousin Emma Brown shared in an Instagram post that he was laid to rest that day, just days after his tragic death. Garrison's mother Janelle was featured on the reality series Sister Wives, which follows a shifting polygamous family, and she shared six children with her ex-husband Kody Brown. He had previously introduced his fans to his humorously named feline companions Catthew and Patches OHoulihan, both of which he adopted in 2022 Following Garrison's death, a source said Janelle was 'extremely broken and tortured' while speaking to The Sun After Garrison (R) sent 'ominous' text messages the day before his death, his 22-year-old brother Gabriel (R) agreed to pay him a visit, only to discover his dead body Janelle had a 'spiritual marriage' to Garrison's father Kody Brown from 1993 until 2022 He was first legally married to Meri Brown in 1990, followed by an unofficial 'spiritual marriage' to Janelle in 1993, as well as subsequent marriages to wives Christine in 1994 and Robyn in 2010. His three earliest relationships have all since dissolved, with Christine ending things in 2021, Janelle going solo in 2022 and Meri finally divorcing Cody last year. He is still married to Robyn, who has since become his legal wife. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. Chuck Norris is celebrating another trip around the sun over the weekend, turning 84 years of age on Tuesday, and proving he's still in fantastic shape. The martial arts icon took to Instagram to share a video with his 1.6 million followers, where he was seen throwing some jabs at a heavy bag. 'You know, I'm 84 today, but I feel like I'm 48,' Norris said with a laugh, before concluding with, 'God bless you all.' Norris also captioned the post, 'Feeling good and staying active! Thank you all for the wonderful birthday wishes. God Bless.' The post received over 372K likes and over 11K comments, many of which are fans doing their own versions of the satirical 'Chuck Norris facts' long-running jokes. Chuck Norris is celebrating another trip around the sun over the weekend, turning 84 years of age on Tuesday, and proving he's still in fantastic shape. The martial arts icon took to Instagram to share a video with his 1.6 million followers, where he was seen throwing some jabs at a heavy bag. The action icon did also get plenty of birthday love from his celebrity friends like Dolph Lundgren, who said, 'Happy Birthday, Chuck. You look teriffic! Dolph.' Author Greg Laurie added, 'Happy Birthday, Chuck! You are a National treasure and a true inspiration. God bless you!' Many others, though, like filmmaker Justin Taite, commented in the form of fake 'Chuck Norris Facts,' satirical facts that started springing up in 2005 on the Something Awful forums and have been an Internet phenomenon ever since. 'Chuck Norris doesnt get old, age is scared of creeping up to him,' Taite said in his comment. Free runner Dominic Di Tomasso added, 'Legend has it but Chuck Norris had it first,' while Australian TV journalist Karl Stefanovic added, 'Chuck Norris doesn't have a birthday. A birthday has Chuck Norris. Happy Chuck Norris Day legend. I miss you.' TikTok stars The Hannistons added, 'Chuck Norris, the only person to punch a cyclops between the eye.' Trainer Scott Francis joked, 'He threw 4566 punch's on this video but our eyes only let us see a few.' The action icon did also get plenty of birthday love from his celebrity friends like Dolph Lundgren, who said, 'Happy Birthday, Chuck. You look teriffic! Dolph' TikTok stars The Hannistons added, 'Chuck Norris, the only person to punch a cyclops between the eye.' Instagram user @funkoollektor added, 'Even death is scared to meet with Chuck Norris!' His career grew from martial arts instructor to the stars to Hollywood action icon to author and philanthropist throughout his legendary lifetime. Instagram user @funkoollektor added, 'Even death is scared to meet with Chuck Norris!' The Chuck Norris Facts were created by Ian Spector and appeared to be inspired by Conan O'Brien's jokes about the martial arts legend on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Norris wrote his own The Official Chuck Norris Fact Book in October 2009. His career grew from martial arts instructor to the stars to Hollywood action icon to author and philanthropist throughout his legendary lifetime. Kristin Cavallari is opening up about how her new relationship with younger TikTok star Mark Estes came to be over the last few months. The 37-year-old Laguna Beach star confirmed her relationship with the 24-year-old Montana Boyz star Estes in late February with an Instagram snap. That shot was just a few weeks after their first date, which the Uncommon James founder spoke about in Tuesday's episode of her Let's Be Honest podcast. She revealed that she first came across Estes and his 'boy group' Montana Boyz on TikTok in September. 'So I go, "Holy s**t, who are these guys because they're so hot, but specifically this one,' she says, referring to Estes, who she refers to as 'Montana.' Kristin Cavallari is opening up about how her new relationship with younger TikTok star Mark Estes came to be over the last few months The 37-year-old Laguna Beach star confirmed her relationship with the 24-year-old Montana Boyz star Estes in late February with an Instagram snap. She said her and her friend both thought, 'This is like the hottest guy we've ever seen in our entire lives but like, OK, we carry on with our lives.' However, just three weeks later, she said she, 'got a DM on Instagram from the Montana Boyz that just says, "I love you."' Her co-host/BFF Justin Anderson said she reacted, 'like a little high school girl,' as she added, "I'm like Holy S**t and because I've got no chill I was like, "I wanna have you guys on my podcast."' She added that she got an email from them and told her assistant to book them, as the assistant then told her that the whole group was moving to Nashville, where Cavallari lives. Calvallari said that, in December when she was in New York City, she DM'd them again about their move to Nashville, and when she asked which one she was talking to, Estes said, "This is Montana responding," and I said, "Oh good, you're my favorite."' They later met up for a night on the town in Nashville and admitted she, 'still did not think anything would ever happen,' until Estes asked her to be his Valentine. Their first date happened on February 13 - because she had dinner plans with her three kids - and Estes met her kids Camden, 11, Jaxon, 9 and Saylor, 8. 'He came, he brought me flowers, picked me up, we went to dinner, it was very sweet,' she said of the date, adding it ended with them, 'making out in my driveway.' She said her and her friend both thought, 'This is like the hottest guy we've ever seen in our entire lives but like, OK, we carry on with our lives' Her co-host/BFF Justin Anderson said she reacted, 'like a little high school girl,' as she added, "I'm like Holy S**t and because I've got no chill I was like, "I wanna have you guys on my podcast' While she took some heat online for dating a man 13 years her junior, her The Hills co-star Audrina Patridge recently revealed that she supports her 'I felt like I was in high school,' she admitted, but a few weeks later, she got a tip from her publicist that TMZ was going to run a photo of them together at the airport 'I felt like I was in high school,' she admitted, but a few weeks later, she got a tip from her publicist that TMZ was going to run a photo of them together at the airport. She then decided to run the Instagram snap of them on February 27, adding, 'I get in a mood, I'm like, f**k it.' 'It was a little early to hard launch someone, 100 percent. However, [as] we've been talking about, I feel very different with this man,' Cavallari said. 'I was just like, you know what? I've been in this business for 20 years. The media has always like controlled the narrative to a large degree. And part of me was like, I wanna take it in my own hands,' she admitted. While she took some heat online for dating a man 13 years her junior, her The Hills co-star Audrina Patridge recently revealed that she supports her. 'I actually wrote to her, I was like, "Kristin, you guys make such a hot couple, congrats. Like as long as you are happy thats all that matters,"' Patridge said. Patridge added, 'A lot of men can date younger girls, so why not?I dont think its gonna be the one to settle down with but I think for now its great. Kim Kardashian and Bianca Censori stood next to each other at Kanye West's Vultures Listening Party on Tuesday. The pair left fans shocked as they were spotted together for the first time at the event to celebrate Kanye's latest studio album Vultures 1. Bianca, 29, is currently in a relationship with the controversial rapper, 46, while Kim, 43, was married to him from from 2014 to 2022. In a clip from the event, Bianca can be seen in a pink top as she films the performance on her phone with Kim stood next to her. Also in attendance were Kim's children Chicago, six and Psalm, four, who she shares with Kanye. They are also parents to North, 10, and Saint, eight. The pair left fans shocked as they were spotted together for the first time at the event to celebrate Kanye's latest studio album Vultures 1 Fans were clearly shocked to see the two women in each other's company and quickly reacted to a clip of them shared on social media. Users on X/Twitter wrote: 'Didn't expect that'... 'What on earth would they be taking about?'... ''I don't know but this is crazy'... 'WTF'. Kim is said to have an amicable relationship with Bianca but is reportedly not a fan of her parading her risque fashion in front of her childre whom she shares with Kanye. Kim instructed Kanye to never let Bianca dress like that around their kids, a source told DailyMail.com exclusively. She is truly surprised that Kanye would let his wife leave the house like that. Australian-born Bianca has been pictured in a slew of headline-grabbing outfits since she married 46-year-old Kanye in December 2022 less than one month after his divorce from Kim was finalized. She was photographed wearing a skimpy outfit that barely covered her breasts and behind at last weekends Super Bowl, which was mocked online for looking like a taco shell, and just days before stepped out in a clear raincoat with nothing underneath. But in pictures with Kims children, Biancas outfits have been more reserved. She wore long pants and an oversized black coat while taking care of North, Saint and Chicago at Kanye's Vultures listening party in Miami in December. In a clip from the event, Bianca can be seen in a pink top as she films the performance on her phone with Kim stood next to her Bianca wore a typically eccentric outift for the event as she donned a pink low cut top with whte leggings and kitten heels Users on X/Twitter wrote: 'Didn't expect that'... 'What on earth would they be taking about?'... ''I don't know but this is crazy'... 'WTF' Kanye recently appeared to defend his wife's bizarre, and at times obscene outfit choices, as well as his decision to post half naked photos of her on his Instagram. Ima post my wife as much as I want bro, he told his 19.5 million followers on Tuesday. It makes me happy. Some people dont want you to be happy. They want you to make them happy. I decided to make myself happy and Im happy with that [sic]. Unlike Bianca's raunchy wardrobe, Kim was asked to change her outfits if Kanye felt she was showing too much skin, with the artist heavily influencing her fashion choices during their seven-year marriage. 'Kanye did the same thing he is doing with Bianca to Kim throughout their marriage,' the source continued. The difference is that when Kanye dressed Kim, he was respected as a person as an artist. 'Unfortunately, Kim knows what Bianca is going through but she feels Bianca should have known what she was getting into. The billionaire SKIMS founder talked openly about Kanyes influence over her fashion choices throughout their relationship. In a 2018 interview with W Magazine, she said: 'I always thought I had really good style until I met my husband, and he told me that I had the worst style.' And in an episode of Keeping Up with The Kardashians, she said: 'Kanye has always dressed me. In the early 2000s, he would literally just send me random emails with all these looks and what my style should be.' When Kim disagreed with her husband's advice, he told her: 'You are my wife, and it affects me when pictures are too sexy.' Kim (seen with her children North, 10, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, four) wants Bianca Censori to cover up when with her kids Kim feels surprised that her ex-husband allows his new wife to dress in near-naked outfits, a source told DailyMail.com The designer has been pictured in a number of racy outfits since she started dating the rapper Kanye previously criticized Kims SKIMS brand for being 'overly sexualised. She also revealed that he disapproved of her 2019 Thierry Mugler Met Gala dress, branding her corset a form of underwear the night before the event. It wasn't only Kim's clothes that Kanye took issue with, but her appearance as well. At the Vogue 100 Festival in 2016, the brunette beauty said: 'My husband loves me without make-up. I would wear make-up 24/7 if I could, but he likes me without it.' But his apparent hold over Biancas style has raised concerns for her friends who fear she has not only changed since meeting him, but is being 'used' to promote his new album, Vultures. Her parents are also said to be 'mortified' at seeing their daughter in such strange ensembles in particular the clear raincoat she wore recently with nothing but a pair of black boots. Her family and friends are mortified because it just keeps getting worse and worse,' an insider previously told DailyMail.com exclusively. Kim was married to Kanye from 2014 to 2022 (pictured together at the Met Gala in 2019) 'Bianca clearly doesn't realize that what she wore isn't only disgusting and setting a bad example, but she is also potentially breaking the law. 'Meanwhile, Kanye is covered up with five layers of clothes and when his wife looked chilly while naked and wrapped in plastic he didn't so much as offer her one of his capes.' The source continued: 'Her parents are so distressed over this because they do not recognize her. 'She would not be doing this unless she was being controlled.' On Kanye's recently released hit album Vultures, Bianca is featured on the cover with her entire backside exposed. Kanye has also used her to promote his Vultures-inspired clothing on Yeezy.com, including a 'Wet T-Shirt' crop-top. 'He continues to lock her in by giving her more stake and ownership over various projects that he has going on, including the clothing,' the insider added. Bondi Sands co-founder Blair James and wife Melanie are moving on from their million-dollar heritage home in Kew, as they list the Melbourne property for sale. The beauty entrepreneur, 43, who welcomed his first child with his partner in October, listed the five-bedroom house for between $7million and $7.7million. With big plans to move overseas, the couple have left Lalla-Rookh in the hands of Marshall White realty, reported realestate.com.au on Wednesday. Nick Ptak, their real estate agent from the Boroondara branch, told the publication the pair are selling to expand their business ventures elsewhere. Built in 1897, the extravagant period home is classified as locally significant by the National Trust of Australia (Victoria). Bondi Sands co-founder Blair James, 43, (right) and wife Melanie (left) are moving on from their million-dollar heritage home in Kew, as they list the Melbourne property for sale The tessellated veranda, leadlight glass, decorative ceilings and cornices transport viewers back to the 1800s with its old world charm. However, despite being heritage listed, Boroondara Council has approved renovation and expansion plans, plus the addition of a pool and spa. Architects Herbert & Howes have already sketched out their ideas for a possible basement garage, vehicle turntable, home cinema, gym and elevator. The beauty entrepreneur, 43, who welcomed his first child with his partner in October, listed the five-bedroom house for between $7million and $7.7million With big plans to move overseas, the couple have left Lalla-Rookh in the hands of Marshall White realty, reported realestate.com.au on Wednesday Nick Ptak, their real estate agent from the Boroondara branch, told the publication the pair are selling to expand their business ventures elsewhere Ptak assured the historic facade would maintain its classic beauty, adding: 'It's a historic Victorian-era house on a sizeable parcel in one of Kew's premier streets.' Expressions of interest will close on March 25 at 6pm with possible buyers from North America and China already showing interest. The listing comes just a few months after Blair and Melanie welcomed their first child together - a baby boy called Holland Ray James. Built in 1897, the extravagant period home is classified as locally significant by the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) The tessellated veranda, leadlight glass, decorative ceilings and cornices transport viewers back to the 1800s with its old world charm They announced his arrival on Instagram, and revealed they welcomed Holland on October 5 via C-section, with the newborn weighing just 3.2 kilograms. During the C-section, the couple played Coldplay's Sky Full of Stars. 'Introducing Mr Holland Ray James,' they wrote in their post. 'Born 5/10/2023 at 2:19pm weighing 3.2kg with a very full head of hair!' The couple thanked medical staff along with friends and family for their 'love, support and gifts' after Holland's arrival. Kate Beckinsale has given an update from her hospital bed after sparking concern with tearful selfies on Monday. The actress, 50, is grieving the death of her stepfather Roy Battersby - who died in January after suffering 'a massive stroke' while battling two forms of cancer - and has also been caring for her mother Judy Loe while she also battles significant health issues. And on Wednesday, Kate revealed she's still in hospital as she shared a picture in bed with her cat and wrote: 'visitor' The Underworld star did not disclose why she had been hospitalised. MailOnline has contacted Kate's representatives for comment. In a Mother's Day post earlier in the week, Kate shared a slew of snaps of Judy tucking into cake and enjoying champagne as well as images of herself on the ward and her dogs playing. Kate Beckinsale has given an update from her hospital bed after sparking concern with tearful selfies on Monday Kate revealed she's still in hospital and did not disclose why she had been hospitalised She captioned the images: 'Happy birthday and UK Mothers Day this last week to my incredible mother. Thank you to those that love us and support us when its s**t and try to make sure there are some bits that arent.' Kate continued: 'And for looking after our dogs when we cant, and lead us to remember happy things when we cant. 'And turn up when we are sick and sit with us.. And send balloons and check in and pull us out of wells with love. 'Thank you for loving us, those who do ,and for the amazing, kindest Nick, and especially for my mothers capacity for joy. It is so inspiring and beautiful. 'Happy everything mama. Your fight for joy despite also welcoming tears is the experience of watching a warrior up close. I love you x' In recent months, Kate had been caring for her mother and late stepmother after flying them out from the UK to stay with her in Los Angeles. 'Kate has been caring for her parents, who both have serious illnesses, for most of the year,' a source exclusively revealed to DailyMail.com late last year. 'She brought them to her home in LA and has made looking after them her number one priority.' The actress, 50, is grieving the death of her stepfather Roy Battersby - who died in January after suffering 'a massive stroke' - and has also been caring for her mother Judy Loe In a Mother's Day post earlier in the week, Kate shared a slew of snaps of Judy tucking into cake and enjoying champagne as well as images of herself on the ward and her dogs playing Kate shared a snap of her friend Nina keeping her company in hospital during her stay On January 10, Kate announced the death of stepfather Roy aged 87. The insider revealed that the Snow Angels star whose biological father Richard Beckinsale died in 1979 at 31 from a heart attack in his sleep has been feeling the emotional toll in recent months. 'She was spotted this week several times crying in the corridors of UCLA hospital,' the source added. 'Her friends are very concerned that she has been under relentless strain for months and hardly sleeping or eating. 'Kate appears to be very strong but this has been incredibly hard and, given that she lost her father so young, is affecting her very deeply. Her friends are concerned for her own health.' A second source explained that her mother Judy has chosen to keep her health battle private, stating: 'She's extraordinary, you wouldn't even know by looking at her. She has been keeping a very positive attitude throughout everything.' Last month, Kate shared a picture of Roy's order of service that revealed he was cremated on Monday February 19 at Mortlake Crematorium near Kew in west London. She also shared another look at the document which had a sweet message on, along with more snaps of Roy. It read: 'We wish to thank you, our family and friends, for your loving support and being with us today to honour and commemorate Roy. 'Please join us afterwards to celebrate him and his life, share memories and stories, and inevitably miss him, knowing how much he would enjoy such a get-together'. Last month, Kate shared a picture of Roy's order of service that revealed he was cremated on Monday February 19 at Mortlake Crematorium near Kew in west London Kate's actress mother Judy married Roy in 1997, 18 years after Kate's father, Porridge star Richard Beckinsale, died (pictured in 1986) Kate's mother Judy married Roy 18 years after Kate's father, Porridge star Richard Beckinsale, died. Roy enjoyed his own successful career as a director, working on major British on-screen hits including Inspector Morse and Cracker. His most recent directorial credit was for a 2006 episode of A Touch Of Frost. Kate's biological father Richard Beckinsale was best known for his roles as Lennie Godber in the BBC sitcom Porridge and Alan Moore in the ITV sitcom Rising Damp. He also had a daughter Samantha, 55 who is his only child from his marriage to Margaret Bradley. If you have been affected by anything in this article please call the Macmillan Support Line on 0808 808 00 00 Nick Owen says he struggled to tell his children of his cancer diagnosis, but admits it was necessary for his immediate family to be 'on the case'. The former TV-am host, 76, confirmed he was battling 'extensive' and 'aggressive' prostate cancer in August, and has since been successfully treated. And he admits his first decision was to tell his four adult children, three of them boys, so they could be aware of the potentially hereditary illness and its warning signs. He told the Deadly Silent Podcast: 'Ive been through the middle of it. And I realised that the sooner you get seen the better. 'We had an MRI, there was a hint there was something going on. Then I had a biopsy. And that would tell us that it was really nasty and aggressive. And we need to do something quickly. Nick Owen says he struggled to tell his children of his cancer diagnosis, but admits it was necessary for his immediate family to be 'on the case' He admits his first decision was to tell his four adult children, three of them boys, so they could be aware of the potentially hereditary illness and its warning signs 'Telling my children was difficult. Ive got four children, three are our boys, two in their forties and one in their late thirties, and it was quite emotional.' He added: 'Also, as far as the boys [Andy, Tim and Chris] are concerned, its a warning because it can be a hereditary thing. 'Im very keen for my boys to be extremely on the case. Ill work on them to go earlier than 50, to be honest, to have the PSA tests. And the message has to be if you have got any hint of a worry, get someone to look at it.' Owen received his diagnosis just weeks after his former TV-am co-presenter Anne Diamond, 68, revealed she is battling breast cancer and has undergone a mastectomy. Along with their stint on TV-am, the pair had their own current affairs morning programme on the BBC in the 1990s, Good Morning With Anne And Nick. Speaking about the debilitating impact the condition has had on his life, he told BBC One's Midlands Today: BBC One's Midlands Today: 'I went to a specialist, he wasn't too worried because my figures weren't that high. 'But he decided I ought to have a scan, and then the scan said there's something dodgy going on, and then he sent me for a biopsy, which he did. 'And the results of that were the killer - on April the 13th, a date (which) will forever be imprinted on my mind. Owen received his diagnosis just weeks after his former TV-am co-presenter Anne Diamond revealed she is battling breast cancer and has undergone a mastectomy The former breakfast TV presenter with wife Vicki Beevers, who he married in July 2020 WHAT IS PROSTATE CANCER? How many people does it kill? More than 11,800 men a year - or one every 45 minutes - are killed by the disease in Britain, compared with about 11,400 women dying of breast cancer. It means prostate cancer is behind only lung and bowel in terms of how many people it kills in Britain. In the US, the disease kills 26,000 men each year. Despite this, it receives less than half the research funding of breast cancer and treatments for the disease are trailing at least a decade behind. How many men are diagnosed annually? Every year, upwards of 52,300 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in the UK - more than 140 every day. How quickly does it develop? Prostate cancer usually develops slowly, so there may be no signs someone has it for many years, according to the NHS. If the cancer is at an early stage and not causing symptoms, a policy of 'watchful waiting' or 'active surveillance' may be adopted. Some patients can be cured if the disease is treated in the early stages. But if it is diagnosed at a later stage, when it has spread, then it becomes terminal and treatment revolves around relieving symptoms. Thousands of men are put off seeking a diagnosis because of the known side effects from treatment, including erectile dysfunction. Tests and treatment Tests for prostate cancer are haphazard, with accurate tools only just beginning to emerge. There is no national prostate screening programme as for years the tests have been too inaccurate. Doctors struggle to distinguish between aggressive and less serious tumours, making it hard to decide on treatment. Men over 50 are eligible for a PSA blood test which gives doctors a rough idea of whether a patient is at risk. But it is unreliable. Patients who get a positive result are usually given a biopsy which is also not fool-proof. Scientists are unsure as to what causes prostate cancer, but age, obesity and a lack of exercise are known risks. Anyone with any concerns can speak to Prostate Cancer UK's specialist nurses on 0800 074 8383 or visit prostatecanceruk.org Advertisement Along with their stint on TV-am, Owen and Diamond had their own current affairs morning programme on the BBC in the 1990s, Good Morning With Anne And Nick 'He told us that it was extensive, really, and aggressive, and I had prostate cancer full-on, and something needed to be done pretty fast. 'And that was probably the worst day of my life, or certainly one of them.' He added: 'It was a very grim moment... driving home after that sort of news and ringing people, texting people, my phone went crazy for hours on end. 'And it was a very, very difficult time for me, and indeed for my wife Vicki, who was by my side all the time through this, you know.' Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK. One in eight men will get prostate cancer at some point in their lives and more than 52,000 new cases are diagnosed every year. A BBC spokesman said: 'Nick has been one of the faces of Midlands Today for more than 25 years. Our viewers and his colleagues have missed him dearly in recent weeks. Owen married Vicki Beevers in July 2020, having previously been married to Jill Lavery, with whom he has four children. Nick Owen is working with GenesisCare to launch the brand new Deadly Silent Podcast. For more information on prostate cancer symptoms and treatment options visit www.genesiscare.com/uk. Cillian Murphy has captialised on his awards season success by becoming Versace's debut men's Talent of Versace Icons. The film star, 47, who won Best Actor at the Oscars for his role in Oppenheimer, has become a new face of the high fashion brand following his career success. In the first image of the actor released by the brand, Cillian looked dapper as he posed in a black tuxedo with a matching bow tie. His partnership with the company appears to have been in the works for quite a while as he wore Versace throughout awards season. Speaking about the partnership, Versace creative director Donatella Versace said: 'I am thrilled that Cillian is joining the Versace family. Cillian Murphy has captialised on his awards season success by becoming Versace's debut men's Talent of Versace Icons The film star, 47, who won Best Actor at the Oscars for his role in Oppenheimer , has become a new face of the high fashion brand following his career success 'He is a truly exceptional actor and totaly deserves his Oscar win. He is magnetic and mesmerizing in front of a camera and I loved seeing him bring Versace to life.' Cillian was 'in a daze' after his 'meaningful' Oscar win when he became the first Irish-born star to scoop the coveted Best Actor gong. His win was Ireland's first victory at the ceremony since Daniel Day Lewis and Brenda Fricker took prizes for My Left Foot back in 1990. Speaking in the press room after picking up his statuette, Murphy told journalists: 'I'm in a little bit of a daze, I'm very overwhelmed. I'm very humbled. I'm very grateful and you know, very proud to be Irish standing here today. 'It's really really meaningful to me. I don't know if I said this in my speech, because I can't remember what I said.' 'I did want to say that I think in Ireland we are really great at supporting artists and I think we need to continue to support artists and the next generation of actors and directors. I think that's vitally important. That's all I have to say.' When asked if he is 'content' about being remembered for his role as atomic bomb scientist J Robert Oppenheimer in the movie, the actor replied: 'Very content. I mean, you got to move forward, but this has been a huge, huge moment for me. 'The movie is so special to me, and myself and [director] Chris [Nolan] have such a special relationship.' Donatella Versace said: 'I am thrilled that Cillian is joining the Versace family' Cillian has won universal critical acclaim for his role as J. Robert Oppenheimer, known as the 'father of the atomic bomb' (pictured in Oppenheimer) 'And I just feel very privileged to be able to continue to work with him and I'm very proud that this is a film that is provocative, and that asks questions, and is challenging, but yet so many people went to see it, so I'm really really proud of it.' Cillian added of his relationship with director Christopher Nolan: 'It's very very special. We have been working together for 20 years. I think he's the perfect director, he's an extraordinary writer, he's an extraordinary director of actors. 'He presents this film like no one else does in the world, and I just can't believe my luck. I did a screentest for him when I was a kid, and I thought that would be it and it would just be enough to be in a room with Chris for a couple of hours, and here we are. So, I'm just so humble and thankful.' During his speech Cillian told the star-studded room that he was 'a very proud Irishman standing here tonight' before dedicating his win to 'peacemakers everywhere'. Cillian's win was Ireland's first victory at the ceremony since Daniel Day Lewis and Brenda Fricker took prizes for My Left Foot back in 1990 The actor was joined by his wife Yvonne and sons Malachy, 17, and Aran, 16 , as turned his big night into a family affair 'We made a film about the man who created the atomic bomb, for better or worse we're all living in Oppenheimer's world so I'd like to dedicate this to the peacemakers everywhere,' he concluded to applause. The actor was joined by his sons Malachy, 17, and Aran, 16, as turned his big night into a family affair. After his lookalike sons made a rare red carpet appearance with their dad, Cillian took his seat next to his his wife Yvonne on the floor of the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, while Malachy and Aran had seats in the upper circle. Cillian paid a sweet tribute to his boys during his acceptance speech, looking up at them in their seats, as he told them he loved them. 'Yvonne McGuiness, my partner in life and art,' an emotional Cillain told his wife, before adding: 'My two boys, Malachy and Aran who are sitting up there. I love you so much.' The Bachelorette's Michael Turnbull and his partner Charlotte Cushing have welcomed a son into the world. It was love at first sight for the reality star and former Ms Galaxy Australia when they said hello to little Winston Wolf on Monday, March 11. Their adorable newborn measured in at 48.5cm and weighed 3.236kg. The little tyke's name appears to be based on a character in Quentin Tarantino's 1994 dark-comedy hit Pulp Fiction. Winston Wolfe, better known as The Wolf, was memorably portrayed by actor Harvey Keitel. The Bachelorette 's Michael Turnbull and his partner Charlotte Cushing have welcomed a son into the world. Both pictured It was love at first sight for the reality star and former Ms Galaxy Australia when they said hello to little Winston Wolf on Monday, March 11 In the first image Michael is seen cradling the sweet newborn in his muscular, well-inked arms. Pictured In a second frame, Charlotte looks every inch the proud mother as she tenderly holds Winston in her hospital bed. Pictured The proud parents shared a gallery of intimate family images to mark the special occasion. In the first pictured Michael is seen cradling the sweet newborn in his muscular, well-inked arms. In a second frame, Charlotte looks every inch the proud mother as she holds Winston Another image sees Michael lovingly gaze at his little man as he lays on what appears to be a plush sheepskin rug. Michael announced Charlotte's pregnancy back in October. The little tyke's name appears to be based on a character in Quentin Tarantino 's 1994 dark-comedy hit Pulp Fiction. Winston Wolfe, better known as The Wolf, was memorably portrayed by actor Harvey Keitel. Pictured Another image sees Michael lovingly gaze at his little man as he lays on what appears to be a plush sheepskin rug. Pictured Michael announced Charlotte's pregnancy back in October Charlotte looked radiant following the birth Michael enjoyed some daddy-son bonding time during the photoshoot Winston Wolf was born on Monday, March 11 Their adorable newborn measured in at 48.5cm and weighed 3.236kg Michael also posed in some black and white frames to immortalise the special occasion The star, who appeared in multiple incarnations of the Bachelor franchise, made the announcement with an adorable polaroid image. 'Baby Turnbull, Due April 2024,' the image read. The polaroid faded to show himself and Charlotte holding a sonogram of their baby, looking overjoyed at the news. Charlotte was previously Ms Galaxy Australia/Australasia 2020-22 and a Miss Hawaiian Tropic in 2017. She also held a Miss Supercars title in 2016. Michael was runner-up on Sam Frost's season of The Bachelorette in 2015 before returning for a stint on Bachelor In Paradise in 2018. The polaroid faded to show himself and Charlotte holding a sonogram of their baby, looking overjoyed at the news. Pictured Casualty star Derek Thompson has reflected on why he's been so popular on the BBC medical drama. The actor is preparing to bow out as clinical nurse Charlie Fairhead after joining the show during its first series on September 6 1986, making him its longest serving star. In a new Q&A ahead of his final episode, Derek spoke on why he thinks Charlie resonated so much with viewers over the years. He said: 'Charlie is everyone. Charlie is a real person. He simply takes you into the show and plays the moral conscience of the audience. Hes a representative of the audience.' Speaking about his final scenes, Derek added: 'I think my final two episodes are some of the best episodes of my career,' Thompson said of his exit storyline. Casualty star Derek Thompson has reflected on why he's been so popular on the BBC medical drama The actor is preparing to bow out as clinical nurse Charlie Fairhead after joining the BBC medical drama during its first series on September 6 1986 'How Michelle Lipton wrote these episodes, comes across like she's written eight plays, taken from so many points of view. I don't think there's another writer who could have done it.' It comes after Derek - who appeared in British gangster film The Long Good Friday and Channel 4 soap Brookside before stepping into the role - says it was originally outlined as a short-term job by show producers. He told OK! Magazine: 'I never envisaged I'd stay 38-years. I originally signed up for three years, but it soon became apparent what a great character he was to play. 'Medicine and television have both changed a lot since I started. But the basics are still there the reception area and desk where people roll up is still performing the same function it did on my first day.' Charlie's life currently hangs in the balance after he was stabbed by a crazed patient, part of a new storyline that Thompson hopes will draw attention to the increasing threat of violence faced by NHS workers. And he admits it remains to be seen if the popular character will pull through, adding: 'I don't want to spoil it by saying whether or not he survives, but everything felt heightened when I filmed my last scenes. 'It felt like one of those big emotional moments in your life, like the birth of a child or your wedding. 'This final story really does create a realism, which will poke people in the eye and say, "This really is painful for these people, and yet they struggle on."' The actor confirmed his departure after the programme's episodes were dramatically reduced due to costs at the BBC . The actor is set to return to his hometown of Belfast to take on the role of retired police officer Robin Graham (pictured in character) who is confronted with his murky past However, he won't be absent from screens for long because he has already been snapped up by another BBC drama and is set to appear in upcoming weeks. Thompson will be featured in the second series of the BBC's hit drama Blue Lights, returning to his hometown of Belfast . The new role is a massive shift for the actor who has only made limited appearances in other shows outside of Casualty in the last 37 years. Blue Lights will see Thompson take on the role of retired police officer Robin Graham over the course of five episodes this season. As trainee solicitor Jen Robinson (Hannah McClean) investigates a decades old case that is set to insight havoc in the present day, the pensioner is confronted with his murky past. Thompson confessed he was quick to sign on for the job following his departure from the long-running medical show. He said: 'I loved the first series of Blue Lights and thought, as did the majority of my friends and colleagues, that it was the best new TV series of last year. 'I was thrilled and excited (star jumps in the living room) when I got the invitation to take part in series two. 'I was born in Belfast and was equally excited (more star jumps) to travel over to work on the show and pleased to report, having read the scripts, that I'm sure the fans will love the second series every bit as much as the first. 'Greatly looking forward to it myself as I'm one of them.' Production company, Two Cities, added: 'We are delighted to have Derek Thompson back working with us in his native Belfast, it is an honour to have him as part of the Blue Lights family.' Thompson's Casualty exit was confirmed in May of last year after the actor revealed that 'the time (had) come' after nearly four decades on the soap. Discussing his departure, he said: 'The time has come for me to hang up Charlie's scrubs after the most wonderful 37 years. 'Charlie Fairhead was inspired by a real nurse - Pete Salt. 'Together with the writers and producers, I have tried to bring to Charlie the compassion, kindness, heroism and sound judgment that we all see and love in Pete and I want to say thanks to Pete and everyone else over that time who has inspired me in bringing this character to life.' Casualty will broadcast at 9.25pm on Saturday on BBC One. Casualty is a BBC Studios production. Asia and the world: Common challenges, shared responsibilities By Xu Zheqi, Zhan Huilan, Di Jingyuan, Yang Wanchen (People's Daily App) 15:29, March 13, 2024 The Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) Annual Conference 2024 will be held from March 26 to 29 in Boao, South China's Hainan Province. With the theme "Asia and the World: Common Challenges, Shared Responsibilities," this year's event will focus on how the international community can work together to deal with challenges and shoulder responsibilities. Here's the official trailer for this year's event. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) A BioXcel Therapeutics computer laptop shows a visualization of data produced by artificial intelligence to determine new potential uses for existing drug compounds. The New Haven-based company also uses virtual reality in its search for new drugs. A proposed bill has made it out of a state legislative committee that would regulate the use of AI that includes training and ramifications for those who abuse it. Luther Turmelle / Hearst Connecticut Media FILE - The OpenAI logo is seen on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen which displays output from ChatGPT, Tuesday, March 21, 2023, in Boston. A proposed bill has made it out of a Connecticut legislative committee that would regulate the use of AI that includes training and ramifications for those who abuse it.(AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) Michael Dwyer/Associated Press State Sen. James Maroney, D-Milford, co-chairman of the legislative General Law Committee. Ken Dixon/Hearst Connecticut Media HARTFORD A key legislative committee this week approved a framework for regulating the nascent artificial intelligence industry in an attempt to make the technology more transparent and accountable. It also outlines criminal consequences for those who use it to take advantage of others. The amended bill, which next goes to the Senate floor, would criminalize so-called deep-fake pornography and false political messaging. It also would create a new, free "Online Academy" for state residents to learn about the technology. The new academy would first focus on teaching the basics of the technology, then possibly expand learning to include small business applications and marketing, said state Sen. James Maroney, D-Milford, co-chairman of the General Law Committee who led a statewide task force on AI last year. Certificate programs similar to courses now taught at Connecticut State Community College could also be possible, he said, adding that the General Assembly may have to revisit training on an annual basis as the technology changes so swiftly. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "By helping make our businesses more-efficient, that can help increase their profitability which could potentially lead to tax revenue," Maroney told the committee. The legislation, which was modeled after a similar law in Colorado, could allow AI to help locate health inequities in Connecticut towns and cities, and even train health professionals from nurses, to nurses' aides and EMTs, he said. As such, there is a definite need for transparency and safety as AI's social and economic effects spread, Maroney told committee members, referring back to the work done by the task force. "The first thing everyone wants to feel is safe, and I think we need to feel safe in using this," Maroney said. The bill would prohibit certain manipulated images, such as tactics that have been used to create synthetic nude or pornographic photos of people. It would also ban the distribution of deceptive political or election media. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A companion bill aimed at criminalizing deep fake porn was among proposed legislation that was the focus of a public hearing on Wednesday. Safeguards are also necessary when it comes to discrimination, lawmakers warned. "A lot of times when we think of AI, we're thinking of ChatGBT or generative AI that's really come on and become more popular, but AI has been around since 1956 when the term was coined," he said. "We use it in lots of ways to make decisions about people. We have seen that sometimes those decisions have disparate impacts. Since we have some biases in our world, it's kind of picking up on those biases without us necessarily knowing it, or realizing it." There's still a learning curve to negotiate, however. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "We're going to learn as things go on, as time goes on," said Sen. Paul Cicarella of North Haven, a top Republican on the committee. "And we're at that point now where we're starting to really understand what this does, how it works. It changes every day. Just as we think we have our hands around it, it changes. That's why some of this is required and necessary, so we can protect individuals from using it and informing when it is being used." Cicarella pointed out parts of the bill that would help state agencies take advantage of the technology to make services more efficient for residents. While it may be possible to make state programs more accessible, Maroney said it shouldn't affect the state spending package lawmakers are now adjusting for the new fiscal year starting July 1. He also noted that Congress seems unlikely to approve AI regulations anytime soon. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A troubled former reality TV personality has told a court she is struggling to raise the funds to pay a lawyer to contest her sentence for driving under the influence of drugs. Jordan Ray Finlayson appeared in NSW District Court on Wednesday to ask the court to adjourn her appeal against the severity of her 18-month community corrections order. She told the court she needed two months to earn enough money to pay a lawyer to represent her in the legal battle. 'I just need time to get the funds together,' the former Beauty and the Geek contestant explained. 'I need to come up with the funds of approximately $3000. Jordan Ray Finlayson has told a court she is struggling to raise the funds to pay a lawyer to contest her sentence for driving under the influence of drugs. Pictured The former Beauty and the Geek star appeared in NSW District Court on Wednesday to ask the court to adjourn her appeal against the severity of her 18-month community corrections order The court heard she had been denied Legal Aid assistance because her non-custodial sentence didn't meet their criteria. The former NRL cheerleader said she had since been in contact with solicitor Claudia McCristal, who informed her she requires payment upfront for her services. She asked for a two month adjournment to allow her to earn enough money to cover the legal expenses. 'I am working casually but I am in the process of getting more work,' Finlayson told the court. Judge John North agreed to adjourn the appeal until May to allow her to obtain proper instructions. He noted the ex-Penthouse model is also due to be sentenced next month for unrelated charges. 'You're getting a bit of trouble brewing with these different matters,' the judge told her. Finlayson was sentenced in November for driving under the influence of drugs, driving with drugs present in her system, and possession of illegal drugs. She is appealing the severity of her sentence for the first two convictions after she was handed an 18-month corrections order, 150 hours of community service, and a $500 fine. She told the court she needed two months to earn enough money to pay a lawyer to represent her in the legal battle The former professional dancer was also disqualified from driving for two years. Court documents reveal she was high on meth when she crashed her white Toyota Yaris into a guardrail in western Sydney just before 4am on February 7 last year. When police arrived on scene, Finlayson was unconscious in the driver's seat and woke up to police opening the passenger door. She began acting erratically and leant over to the passenger side and muttered "hey babe" to the empty seat, according to the documents. The former reality TV personality struggled to stand up and could not answer questions asked by police, except to say she had drunk alcohol. A blood test showed she had gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) and meth in her system at the time of the crash. Two months later, Finlayson was again caught driving with crystal meth in her system when she was stopped by police for a random roadside drug test in Sydney's east. Since her stint on Beauty and the Geek in 2011 alongside Julian Stevensen, she has been in and out of rehabilitation and court. Kanye West and his wife Bianca Censori are hoping to have a 'bunch of babies' after the musician's best friend confirmed the couple are planning on starting a family. The couple have continued to hit headlines in recent weeks with the 29-year-old Aussie's increasingly shocking fashion choices, however Justin LaBoy has insisted they are both extremely happy. Ye hinted at his desire to have a baby in the lyrics of his newly released track Timbo Freestyle, which he previewed at a party in Las Vegas. The rapper, 46, sings: 'You already know Im impulsive/and another baby is my end goal,' and asked whether him and Bianca are going to have children, Justin confirmed it is on the cards. Speaking to TMZ, he teased: 'I think they are going to have a bunch of babies'. Kanye West's friend Justin La Roy has revealed the rapper plans to have a 'bunch of babies' with wife Bianca Censori as he confirms the pair plan to start a family Kanye, 46, is already father to North, 10, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, four, who he shares with his ex-wife Kim Kardashians, 43 Addressing the speculation from critics that he's keeping her against her will, or brainwashing her, Justin told said : 'I don't, I can't speak on my brother's wife, I love him, I love her. She's great. 'She lives an amazing life. They're extremely happy. I've been around Ye for years now, he's the happiest she's been and she's extremely happy.' Kanye is already father to North, 10, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, four, who he shares with his ex-wife Kim Kardashians, 43. Bianca, who has taken an active role as stepmother to Kanye's four children, seems to have the same end goal as her husband, as a source close to the beauty told DailyMail.com that she has 'of course discussed baby plans with her family.' Last week Bianca's parents revealed they are not supportive of her plans to have a baby with her 'controlling' rapper husband. They believe Kanye would not be able to provide a 'stable' home to raise their grandkids in. 'He is her husband so of course she has talked about this and being a stepmom to Kanye's kids has really only made her desire to have kids stronger,' the Censori family insider shared. Although there was a time when Bianca's family was supportive of her desire to have a baby with Kanye, that support has faltered in recent months after a string of very controversial and bizarre public appearances by the pair - as well as the Yeezy architect's increasingly-provocative ensembles. Justin gushed: 'She lives an amazing life. They're extremely happy. I've been around Ye for years now, he's the happiest she's been and she's extremely happy' After Kanye's recent lyrics: 'You already know Im impulsive/and another baby is my end goal,' his pal teased: 'I think they are going to have a bunch of babies' The Yeezy architect has taken on an active role in Ye's children's lives, which has 'only made her desire to have kids stronger,' a source said (seen with his daughter Chicago, six, recently) Bianca's father Leo (left) and mom Alexandra (right) want their kids to grow up in a 'stable' home and feel that Kanye is not able to provide that, a source has said 'There was a time when her parents were supportive of her having children with Kanye, but no one believes at this time that her becoming pregnant and having a baby right now is a good idea,' the insider said. 'They want Bianca to have children and they want grandchildren, but they want them to grow up in a stable and loving household. Life with Kanye is not stable at all,' the insider said. Adding to this instability is Bianca's cringe-worthy outfits - which include sheer tops and stockings with no bra or underwear while in Europe this week - as well as a clear plastic raincoat with nothing underneath worn by Bianca last month. Seeing his daughter dressed like a 'naked trophy pony' has proven to be too much for Bianca's dad Leo, who is the brother of incarcerate gangland killer Eris Censori - who was once dubbed 'Melbourne's Al Capone.' Sources told DailyMail.com that Leo 'wants a proper sit down meeting' with his unhinged son-in-law. 'Leo honestly wants to just sit Kanye down to let him know that he is hurting her family by turning his beloved daughter into a trashy-looking marketable commodity. 'He wants to ask Kanye what he would do if his daughters North, or Chicago, were seen in public half-naked in outfits encouraged by their husbands. Seeing his daughter dressed like a 'naked trophy pony' has proven to be too much for Bianca's dad Leo, the insider said (Bianca seen wearing a skimpy ensemble in Milan last month) Bianca went nearly-naked as she partied after the Super Bowl. The Australian designer flashed her bust and posterior in an ill-fitting tan bodysuit Kanye used an image of Bianca's naked butt on the cover of his latest album Vultures, causing her family to believe Kanye is treating her like a 'trashy-looking marketable commodity' 'He knows that there is no way in hell that Kanye would allow this for his daughters so it makes no sense why he would encourage this for his own wife.' Earlier this month, sources told DailyMail.com that Leo and Bianca's mom Alexandra were 'mortified' by their daughter's 'disgusting' outfits worn in public. Kanye has defended Bianca's outfits and has even gone so far as to include an image on his album cover for Vultures which shows her bare butt. Kanye also appears on this album cover, fully clothed. The source continued: 'Her parents are so distressed over this because they do not recognize her. She would not be doing this unless she was being controlled. 'He continues to lock her in by giving her more stake and ownership over various projects that he has going on, including the clothing.' In December, Leo and Alexandra were said to have been fearful that their daughter was simply a rebound in the wake of Kanye's divorce from Kim - who divorce was finalized less than one month before he married Bianca, in December 2022. 'If this isn't bad enough, the man who is supposed to protect Mr. and Mrs. Censori's daughter is the same man that is shutting her out from her own family,' the source exclusively stated this week. They finished: 'No man should ever encourage the woman that he loves to walk out in public and present herself like this. That isn't love. That is control.' The problem is that Ye is allegedly banned from entering his wife's homeland in Australia due to hateful anti-Semitic comments he continues to make. Concern over Bianca's desire to have kids with Kanye come as the rapper beredes his ex-wife Kim on Instagram, demanding that she take their kids out of the current school that they are in, insisting that it is full of 'Zionists.' In his post, Kanye names his children's school, which poses a huge security risk to his four kids. 'Kim take my kids out of [name of school[ now its a fake school for celebrities that are used by the system,' Kanye posted in capital letters on Instagram on Wednesday. Kanye blasted ex-wife Kim Kardashian, 43, on Instagram over their kids schooling - a move that her family found 'disturbing,' the insider told DailyMail.com As reported, Kim has demanded that Bianca 'cover up' when she is around their kids (seen here with North, 10, Saint, eight, Chicago, six, and Psalm, four) Kanye, who founded his own unaccredited Christian school Donda Academy in 2022, cryptically explained that the 'system' is to blame. 'At this point everybody knows what the system is code word for [wide eyes emoji],' Kanye wrote, adding, 'I was removed from my dad by the system and the system removed me from my children.' The source told DailyMail.com that this is another huge red flag for her already worried family. 'If these types of outbursts are indicative of how Kanye communicates concerns about his children, it is very disturbing,' the insider said. DailyMail.com has reached out to Kanye and Bianca for comment. Kim has not responded to her ex-husband's remarks, who she shares joint legal and physical custody of their four children with. The SKIMS billionaire has, however, demanded that Bianca 'cover up' when she is around their children. 'Kim instructed Kanye to never let Bianca dress like that around their kids,' a source told DailyMail.com exclusively. 'Kanye did the same thing he is doing with Bianca to Kim throughout heir marriage,' sources previously said. 'The difference is that when Kanye dressed Kim, he was respected as a person as an artist.' Bianca has adhered to Kim's requests it seems, as the Yeezy architect's most inappropriate outfit to date - which exposed her nipples and genitals while in Italy this week - came just one day after she was on stepmom duty with Kanye's eldest daughter North. While Kanye's 'muse' may be no stranger to exposing her body in public, her latest outfits could cause trouble with French officials if she is found in breach of their decency laws. In fact, the beauty could face prison or a fine of 15,000 after testing the laws of exhibitionism in Paris. Article 222-32 of the new penal code (applicable since 1 March 1994) stipulates: 'Deliberate sexual display in the sight of others in a place accessible to the public gaze is punishable by one year in prison and a fine of one hundred thousand francs. [15,000]' Nudity itself does not equal indecency, however, with the legislator stipulating: 'The charge has been worded in such a way as to rule out any possibility of proceedings against persons practicing naturism in places specially designated for this purpose.' Last year, Bianca ran the risk of a 10,000 fine and imprisonment during the couple's trip to Italy, where she had been walking around 'virtually naked' in the European nation. According to the Italian Constitutional Court, a fine from 5,000 to 10,000 euros can be issued, or whoever exposes in a place or nearby to a place attended by minors, may be sentenced from four months to four years imprisonment. For one outing Bianca went braless in a skintight see through all-in-one and at some points was forced to cover her nipples with a black cross-body bag. Italian locals branded the Kim Kardashian lookalike's outfits 'disrespectful' on social media, with some saying the 'immodest' couple are no longer welcome in a country known for its conservative Catholic heritage. Bianca and Kanye were also investigated by police after they were caught on camera in a compromising position during their Italian holiday. Married At First Sight Australia bride Andrea Thompson had several explosive outbursts during Wednesday night's Dinner Party episode. The photographer, 51, was once head-over-heels for older groom Richard Sauerman, but their connection fizzled during a very heated argument this week. Her first blow out with the motivational speaker, 62, occurred earlier in the episode when they tried to discuss how they could save their fractured relationship. However, things quickly took a turn when Richard was unable to take Andrea's criticisms on-board and learn from his past mistakes in their union. 'Richie, you just keep choosing not to listen. I understand you're frustrated,' she attempted to explain. Married At First Sight Australia bride Andrea Thompson, 51, (pictured) had several explosive outbursts during Wednesday night's Dinner Party episode The Queensland-native added: 'Your body language now is sighing and puffing and looking away. You're not giving me my chance to speak and have my say.' 'My body language is sighing and puffing? You're gaslighting me,' Richard complained, setting off his already frustrated bride. In a very aggressive and angry display, Andrea slammed her notebook hard against the table, yelling: 'You just did it again! You're driving me crazy!' The photographer was once head-over-heels for older groom Richard Sauerman, 62, (left) but their connection fizzled during a very heated argument this week Despite the visible overload of emotions, Richard didn't let up, adding: 'You are blaming me for stuff in your past relationships. You won't own that. I'm not that guy.' At the height of her anger, Andrea snapped back that Richard was in fact worse than her previous exes, who she has often claimed were toxic. Wounded by her words, Richard appeared to end their relationship for good, telling Andrea: 'I hope you find the man. It ain't going to be me.' Her first blow out with the motivational speaker occurred earlier in the episode when he accused her of gaslighting him and she slammed her notebook hard against the table The tumultuous couple attempted to put on a united front at the Dinner Party with the other couples, but Andrea's resolve quickly fell apart once more. Richard crossed a boundary Andrea set by once again bringing up her ex partners in front of the others, blaming her past trauma for the breakdown of their relationship. Andrea aggressively hit the table once more, this time with her fist, screaming, 'Don't say that! For f**k sake!' to the shock of the group. She later told producers: 'I'm growing so frustrated with Richie. I've asked him to stop bringing up my previous relationships. Just his utter disregard to clear boundaries is really upsetting me.' British actor Michael Culver, famed for his cameo role in iconic science fiction epic The Empire Strikes Back, has passed away aged 85. Culver's passing was announced by his agent on Wednesday and comes after the actor suffered a long battle with poor health. His cause of death has not been disclosed. Confirming the actor's passing in a statement, they said: 'We are very sad to confirm the passing of our friend and client Michael Culver. 'A career spanning over 50 years with notable roles in Sherlock Holmes, A Passage to India, Secret Army and of course one of the most memorable death scenes in the Star Wars franchise. 'Michael largely gave up acting in the early 2000's to concentrate his efforts into his political activism. British actor Michael Culver, famed for his cameo role in iconic science fiction epic The Empire Strikes Back (pictured, right), has passed away aged 85 Culver's passing was announced by his agent on Wednesday and comes after the actor suffered a long battle with poor health It's been an honor to have represented Michael for for the last decade and to have taken him to some of the best Star Wars events in the UK and Europe. 'A real highlight was taking Michael to Celebration in Chicago in 2019. He was lost for words when he saw his queue line with nearly 200 people waiting to see him. 'We worked with Michael just 3 weeks ago at his last home signing with our friends at Elite Signatures. 'Michael died on Tuesday 27th February at the age of 85. We miss him.' Born in Hampstead to West End actor Roland Culver and his wife Daphne Rye, Culver began his career onstage with Dundee Repertory Theatre, where he appeared in 35 plays across a two year period - among them productions of classic plays by Oscar Wilde, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, JB Priestley and Noel Coward. He would later branch into classical Shakespeare at The Old Vic, starring in King Lear, Midsummer Night's Dream, The Tragedy of Hamlet and King Henry VI. Culver's West End productions included The Master Builder by Henrik Ibsen, a play he would later return to at Kilburn's Tricycle Theatre - since renamed the Kiln. His first, uncredited film role came in 1963 with a fleeting appearance in James Bond classic From Russia With Love. He would return to the spy franchise two years later, playing a Vulcan bomber crewman in Thunderball. Culver began his career in theatre before branching into TV and film in the early 1960s. Here he is seen in a 1965 episode of Court Martial His most enduring role would come in 1980, with a part in the Irvin Kershner directed Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back, in which he played the doomed Imperial Captain Lorth Needa That same year Culver featured in iconic TV series Hammer House Of Horror, starring in stand alone episode Charlie Boy (pictured) Culver also featured in David Lean's historical 1982 epic A Passage To India, in which he starred alongside Peggy Ashcroft, James Fox and Sir Alec Guinness as Major McBryde (pictured) In 1986 he starred alongside the late Jeremy Brett in The Return of Sherlock Holmes, playing Sir Reginald Musgrave (pictured) Culver played Major Erwin Brandt in TV series Secret Army from 1977 to 1978 (pictured in 1977) But his most enduring big screen role would come in 1980, with a part in the Irvin Kershner directed Star Wars sequel The Empire Strikes Back. The actor featured among a sprawling cast-list as Captain Lorth Needa, a veteran fleet officer responsible for commanding the Avenger - an Imperial Star Destroyer within Darth Vader's vast squadron. Needa ultimately faces Vadar's wrath, and a premature end, with the Dark Lord using the Force to telekinetically strangle him to death. Paying tribute to the actor on X, formerly Twitter, the Star Wars Underworld fan account posted: 'Culver was best know to Star Wars fans for portraying Captain Lorth Needa in The Empire Strikes Back. 'He also had a variety of roles across many stage, screen and radio productions.' A mustachioed Culver in a scene from popular 1973 crime drama New Scotland Yard Tributes flooded in after Culver's death was confirmed, among them messages from the Star Wars Underworld Facebook account and the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes Podcast Culver's TV work also included a role in Cadfael (pictured), a popular TV adaptation of the paperback murder mysteries by author Edith Pargeter Culver also featured in David Lean's historical 1982 epic A Passage To India, in which he starred alongside Peggy Ashcroft, James Fox and Sir Alec Guinness as Major McBryde. His extensive list of TV credits included roles in The Professionals, Black Beauty, Minder, Cadfael, Hammer House Of Horror and a memorable role in The Return Of Sherlock Holmes, playing Sir Reginald Musgrave alongside the late Jeremy Brett's titular sleuth. Sharing a Facebook post on Wednesday, the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes Podcast wrote: 'Dear Michael Culver, our beloved Reginald Musgrave, has sadly passed away. 'As you all know The Musgrave Ritual is one of our very favourite episodes, for a multiple of reasons, one being the performance of Mr. Culver. Michael had been ill for some time, but this did not stop this strong, principled man from continuing to live and work and speak out for the causes he had so strongly fought for throughout his life. In 1988 he starred as Dicky Cruyer in Game Set and Match (pictured), a twelve-part series based on Len Deighton's trilogy of spy novels Culver's versatility as an actor was evident in a 1980 dramatization of classic tale Dick Turpin (pictured) The dashing actor played Captain Harville in a 1970 TV adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion (pictured) He went from period drama to futuristic thriller with a role in 1975 series Space: 1999 (pictured) 'Michael was not just an extraordinary actor, but was an extraordinary man. This one hurts even more as we were lucky a year or so ago to speak to him about his time on the show, and what a gentleman he was to all of us.' They added: 'Though his light shines a little dimmer than it did, it shall never go out for his work and legacy lives on in shows such as the one we adore, and in the causes he so passionately fought for and the lives he changed and made better. 'We thank Michael for all that he has given us, and our thoughts are with his family and all that knew him at this time. God speed Michael.' Courteney Cox and her good friend Laura Dern were pictured snapping selfies together while on a shopping trip in London on Wednesday. The Friends star, 59, and the Jurassic Park icon, 57, were preparing to splash some serious cash as they left the upmarket Bella Freud store. Stopping in the middle of the road as they headed to their car, the actresses looked like they were having a lovely day. Courteney was wearing a grey jumper with leather trousers and she wore a padded coat over the top. Laura was sporting a new fringe and looked cosy in a cream chunky knit jumper and jeans. Courteney Cox, (right) and Jurassic Park star Laura Dern, (left) took selfies during a shopping trip to Bella Freud in London on Wednesday Stopping in the middle of the road as they headed to their car, the long-term friends looked like they were having a lovely day The pair are long-term friends and even have a matching tattoo - artist Scott Campbell designed a paper plane with the words 'go long' trailing behind it in a nod to a scene from Friends. They have spent the Christmas holidays together with their children for the past 16 years. Speaking about the inking, Courteney wrote on Instagram: 'Adding a new layer to our 16 year Christmas Eve tradition. Watch out we might have sleeves by 2025. Courteney is likely in the UK visiting her partner Johnny McDaid, who is in the band Snow Patrol. Laura is in London filming a new movie with George Clooney and Adam Sandler. The day before, Courteney was pictured arriving at Heathrow airport along with her daughter Coco Arquette, 19. Courteney shares daughter Coco with her ex-husband David Arquette, whom she was married to from 1999 to 2013. The friends and even have a matching tattoo - artist Scott Campbell designed a paper plane with the words 'go long' trailing behind it in a nod to a scene from Friends They have spent the Christmas holidays together with their children for the past 16 years The ladies were casually dressed for the outing with Courteney wearing leather trousers and Laura opting for jeans and a chunky knit Courteney tried getting the shot from various different angles with her friend The girls were pictured leaving the upmarket Bella Freud store in London The lovely ladies had a big smile on their faces as they exited the store BBC property presenter Lucy Alexander has bagged a permanent role on the Channel 4's A Place in the Sun, as well as a spin-off series, amid a shake-up of hosts. Lucy, 53, is known for presenting Homes Under The Hammer from its launch in 2003 until 2016 when she stepped away. The property expert first appeared on Channel 4's overseas rival show last year as a guest, but she is now said to have been signed on permanently. Lucy has been jetting off around the world at least once a month to film the sunny series, attempting to find Brits their dream home abroad. 'I've got quite a few episodes coming up with them this year, I am definitely a part of the family which has been lovely!' Lucy told The Sun on Wednesday. BBC property presenter Lucy Alexander has bagged a permanent role on the Channel 4 's A Place in the Sun, as well as a spin-off series, amid a shake-up of hosts Lucy, 53, is known for presenting Homes Under The Hammer from its launch in 2003 until 2016 when she stepped away (pictured in 2003 with co-presenter Martin Roberts) The presenter has also been snapped up for a spin-off of the programme, called What Happened Next. Debuting in 2023, What Happened Next looked at families and couples who had found their dream homes abroad to see how they fared in the years that followed. Lucy revealed that as her 'lovely' couple bought their dream place in the sun, she will now go back out to revisit them and see how they are getting on. She said she is really enjoying being able to travel around the world for work, and admitted the show is far more glamorous than her previous UK-based property show. 'On Hammer it would be a lot more building plots and old derelict and disused buildings and pigeon poo,' she said. 'No central heating had been on and the buildings would have been empty for years and they were a bit of a hazard to walk into sometimes!' Lucy added that, as a stark contrast, A Place in the Sun is filmed on a beautiful beach and all the properties have balconies that you can bask in the sun on. Taking to Instagram to share a snap of her filming in December, Lucy said: 'Filming on location this week on Spain's western coast. The Costa Del Sol, Estepona. The property expert first appeared on Channel 4's overseas rival show last year as a guest, but she is now said to have been signed on permanently Taking to Instagram to share a snap of her filming in December, Lucy said: 'Filming on location this week on Spain's western coast' Lucy admitted the show is far more glamorous than her previous UK-based property show (pictured on Homes Under The Hammer in 2003) 'Getting my winter-sun fix. Although it's a bit windy and chilly this morning, but the sun is nearly ready to come out which is what I love about southern Spain.' Behind the scenes there are warm coats at the ready, lights, cameras, sound and the brilliant crew.. they do everything to make the magic happen! It comes after A Place In The Sun viewers were left in tears in February as the show paid a special tribute to host Jonnie Irwin after his death aged 50. Jonnie passed away last month after a brave three year fight with cancer, following his diagnosis with lung cancer in 2020. The presenter hosted the property programme from 2004 to 2021, when he was forced to step down due to his terminal cancer diagnosis. The show, which followed Danni Menzies helping house hunters in Manilva, Spain, was dedicated to Jonnie at the start. The programme also aired a tribute after the credits with a photo which showed a younger Jonnie on the beach from one of the trips abroad. It read: 'In memory of Jonnie Irwin. 1973 - 2004.' A Place In The Sun viewers were left in tears as the show paid a special tribute to host Jonnie Irwin after his death aged 50 Slumdog Millionaire actor Dev Patel's first directorial movie debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with an incredible 100 per cent critic rating on Tuesday. As more reviews rolled in from highly acclaimed film critics dotted around the world, Monkey Man's Rotten Tomatoes score went down to a stellar 88 per cent. The vengeance-filled film, Monkey Man, centres around a young gentleman named Kid (Dev Patel), who is on a bloody pursuit for revenge after the death of his mother. Produced by Nope's Jordan Peele, we see the protagonist beaten blue by more well-renowned fighters every night whilst wearing a gorilla mask in exchange for pennies. Following years of pent up rage, the poor countryside man sets out a plan to worm his way into the enclave of the city's ominous elites. Slumdog Millionaire actor Dev Patel's first directorial movie debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with an incredible 100 per cent critic rating As more reviews rolled in from critics throughout the globe, the score has dropped slightly to 88 per cent The gory action-packed thriller follows the story of a fight club brawler, Kid, in an Indian metropolis hell-bent on vengeance As his childhood trauma begins to ignite an uncontrollable rage, the young man lets lose a terrifying campaign - with his mysteriously scarred hands - on the men who took what matters most to him. Boasting a critic score of 88 per cent at last glance, the action packed thriller reminiscent of John Wick has received rave reviews from several film critics. 'Just as Kid is reborn in the film, so too is Patel. It requires fighting a bloody battle, but what a beautiful sight it is to see,' said Chase Hutchinson from The Wrap. 'Forget John Wick, let no one doubt the power of action star Dev Patel again.' 'Its a muscular, emotional, ferocious triumph of a movie, and when its over, youll want to go right back in and watch it all over again,' said the AV Club's Matthew Jackson. Giving the film a three out of five score, Adrian Horton from The Guardian said the film was not 'the smoothest ride. He added: 'But as proof of concept for Patels action movie bona fides in front of and behind the camera, consider Monkey Man a success.' 'Patel makes a fine hero. The actor is a consistently charming presence whose capabilities have only grown since Skins and his breakthrough role in Slumdog,' wrote Hollywood Reporter's Lovia Gyarkye. The gory action thriller is shot using iconography from Hindu scripture, especially leaning on the widely worshipped figure of Hanuman. With his mysteriously scared hands, Kid goes on a bloody pursuit for revenge for the death of his mother Following years of pent up rage, the poor countryside man sets out a plan to worm his way into the enclave of the city's ominous elites An earthly incarnation of the god Shiva - the destroyer - Hanuman is half man and half monkey. The deity is a supernaturally powerful figure who appears in the classic epic The Ramayana in the war against the demon-king Ravan and his army. In flirting with Hindu iconography, the movie risks provoking controversy in India, where a Hindu nationalist party is currently in government and irreverence toward the majority religion has become an increasingly fraught topic. Last year, outrage mounted online over Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer because a Hindu holy text, the Bhavagad Gita, is quoted in a sex scene. In May, a fury erupted over the actress Deepika Padukone wearing an orange bikini in a sexpot musical number called Besharam Rang (Shameless Color), because saffron is regarded as a sacred colour in Hinduism. Monkey Man was previously a Netflix project, however is was nabbed by Jordan Peele's Monkeypaw productions and is set to hit theatres on April 5. But as his childhood trauma bubbles to the surface, Kid sets out on a terrifying campaign on those who took what mattered most to him An earthly incarnation of the god Shiva - the destroyer - Hanuman is half man and half monkey, a supernaturally powerful figure who appears in the classic epic The Ramayana Anne Diamond has opened up about her baby son's devastating cot death. Her son Sebastian suffered sudden infant death syndrome aged four-and-a-half months in 1991. The presenter, 69, was awarded an OBE for her work campaigning to raise awareness about SIDS following his death. Aiming to raise awareness on Wednesday, Anne told GB News: 'The message is just a way of reminding everybody, because obviously there are new mothers and fathers all the time, there is the new generation always who won't know who I am, they won't remember my personal tragedy. 'You just have to keep reminding and Safer Sleep Week is just about reminding them of the advice. First of all, the most important thing is your baby should sleep on his or her back, and then watch out for not overheating them. Anne Diamond has opened up about her baby son's devastating cot death Her son Sebastian suffered sudden infant death syndrome aged four-and-a-half months in 1991 'There are lots of tips to make their sleeping environment much safer. But the most important one is back to sleep and has been there for 32 years.' During the discussion with hosts Eamonn Holmes and Isabel Webster, she said: 'At the time in 1991 when I had Sebastian, we were all told to sleep babies on their tummies and that was the accepted practice, but we what we didn't know it was really heightening the risk of death to all of those babies. 'It doesn't mean that every baby who sleeps on its tummy is going to die of cot death. But for some reason, it just meant that if we could give out that very, very simple message, put your baby on his or her back to sleep - the cot death rate plummeted. 'Nobody even to this day, nobody really knows why. The mechanism of death, what changes it, we just know that it works and there's no danger in sleeping your baby on his or her back either. 'So do it and you severely reduce the risk of death happening to you.' The TV presenter's devastating loss became the focus of a national campaign, called Back to Sleep, to help prevent cot deaths like Sebastian's - a campaign that experts have credited with saving thousands of lives Anne added: 'I was angry at Sebastian for dying. God, it's 32 years later and I can still get very, very upset about it. But you do. I was angry that he died and he didn't call out for me. 'I was angry that when he was born and lived with me and slept and then died they were actively campaigning in New Zealand to try and stop this happening, because they had a very high cot death rate there. 'The Anne Diamond, if you like, of the New Zealand, a television presenter called Judy Bailey, went on telly every night and said if you're just about to put your baby down to sleep, put him on his or her back, not the tummy and this will help and their cot death rate plummeted. The presenter, 69, was awarded an OBE for her work campaigning to raise awareness about SIDS following his death 'I went out to New Zealand and met her and it was anger that drove me to come back and demand that we have the same advert here, the same campaign. 'Of course, I got all this complete nonsense from the Department of Health saying, young mothers do not watch television, I was told that they would put a sort of a working party on it that would meet in five years time and look at the data. 'And then I found out, even worse, was that we in Britain, we knew what was going on in New Zealand and we'd agreed to be a control. 'In other words, while New Zealand mums were being told how to save their baby's lives, we actively denied British mums that advice and during that, Sebastian and others were dying.' At around the time of Sebastian's death, Britain was losing 2,500 babies to cot death every single year which equates to 5 or 6 every single day. If you have been affected by anything in this article, please contact the UK Child Bereavement line on 0800 02 888 40 or the The Lullaby Trust on 0808 8026868 Gisele Bundchen showcased her natural beauty by going bare face in Miami on Wednesday. The 43-year-old supermodel who just released her new cookbook Nourish was spotted in a casual ensemble while walking her adorable dog in the upscale Florida town. Dressed in a light gray sweatshirt and navy joggers, the star looked casually chic as she strolled along the pavement in a pair of white sneakers. Her trademark sandy blonde tresses cascaded long and loose as she paused to check her phone. The outing comes a day after she was seen arriving at the Valente Brothers gym which is co-owned by her new boyfriend Joaquim Valente, 36. Gisele Bundchen showcased her natural beauty by going bare face in Miami on Wednesday Dressed in a light gray sweatshirt and navy joggers, the star looked casually chic as she strolled along the pavement in a pair of white sneakers Despite the ongoing speculation surrounding Gisele and Joaquim's romance for several months, they chose Valentine's Day to publicly display their affection, captured in a passionate kiss outside her Miami residence. Prior to that, the duo were frequently spotted together, often enjoying trips to Costa Rica. In November 2022, when they were initially rumored to be dating, some of Gisele's close friends denied any romantic involvement between her and Joaquim. 'He's been her kids' jiu-jitsu teacher for years,' one insider told DailyMail.com. 'There's no truth to the rumors that they're dating.' Gisele broke down in tears last week as she lifted the lid on life after divorce from Tom Brady during an extremely candid sit-down interview with Robin Roberts. During the conversation at her luxurious Miami ranch, the model became emotional as she discussed her divorce, sharing insights into co-parenting their two children with her ex-partner and expressing her aspirations of 'opening her heart' once more. Gisele and Tom tied the knot in February 2009 and welcomed two children into the world together - Benjamin, 14, and Vivian, 11. They split in October 2022. Robin told the audience during the 30-minute special that Gisele refused to comment directly on the Joaquim rumors, stating that she 'wants to keep her personal life private.' Gisele and Joaquim were spotted on a run together The outing comes a day after she was seen arriving at the Valente Brothers gym which is co-owned by her new boyfriend Joaquim Valente, 36 Valente seen in his robe for a workout photo to promote his Miami gym But when she asked the Brazilian star if she thought she'd be 'able to open up her heart again to someone,' Gisele couldn't contain her smile as she admitted that she was definitely not giving up on love. 'Right now, really my priority is my kids and creating this beautiful sanctuary for my family but then yes, why not,' she said. 'Life is full of surprises. I don't have a crystal ball that says what will happen tomorrow, but yes.' Gisele also spoke about how she and Tom are 'co-parenting' their kids, and she admitted that 'there's easier days than others.' But she insisted that her children are 'super smart' and have 'adapted' to the changes in their lives. 'They're super smart children and they know what they can get away with,' she explained. 'I think it's natural that [me and Tom each] have different rules. And kids just adapt. I can only control what I do. Now, it's really about balance.' Although the catwalk queen has started a new chapter with her jiu-jitsu trainer, emotions surfaced when Robin broached the topic of the split. Gisele and Tom tied the knot in February 2009 and split in October 2022; pictured in 2019 Tom Brady and Gisele share two children, son Benjamin, 14, and daughter Vivian, 11 When Robin inquired about Gisele's well-being, she couldn't hold back her tears, turning away from the camera in a moment of vulnerability. 'Sorry, guys. I don't know. Can I have a little moment?' she tearfully asked. The Good Morning America host said that the supermodel had likened her divorce to 'the death of a dream.' 'It's heartbreaking to go through that,' Gisele admitted after taking a few seconds to gather herself. 'It's definitely a transition that had to take place. You don't wish for it but sometimes in life things happen.' She instantly became a pop culture icon after bursting into the public eye as loudmouthed Page 3 girl, Jordan. Having tried her hand at modelling, singing, presenting, campaigning and reality TV, the glamour model quickly became a household name in Britain. Yet while Katie Price's moniker will ring a bell for both young and old, you would be forgiven for not recognising the star on sight alone, with Katie famously undergoing numerous cosmetic procedures over the years. After two decades in the spotlight, Katie is almost unrecognisable from the naturally pretty teenager who burst on to the modelling scene at the age of 16, with her natural curls and fresh-faced beauty winning her an army of fans. Katie, now 45, has undergone an array of procedures over the years, including rhinoplasty, a silhouette facelift, 3D, veneers, lip fillers and Botox, culminating in her first facelift in 2017. Now, after two decades under the surgeon's scalpel, MailOnline takes a look at the many faces of Katie Price. The many faces of Katie Price: MailOnline takes a look at the star's changing look after two decades of boob jobs, Botox and face lifts 1995 - Barefaced beauty At the age of 17, Katie Price was a fresh-faced natural beauty looking to make it into the world of glamour modelling. At a friend's suggestion, the teenager had professional photographs taken and was quickly snapped up by a modelling agency who landed her a Page 3 slot in The Sun newspaper the following year, sparking the creation of her glamour model alter ego, Jordan. Speaking last year, Katie revealed she was glad that she wasn't exposed to social media at the time as she had 'no idea what Botox was or fillers', otherwise she may have started her tweaks and enhancements at an even earlier age. 1995: At the age of 17, Katie Price was a fresh-faced natural beauty looking to make it into the world of glamour modelling 1998 - First boob job Having just turned 20, the rising glamour model experienced her first taste of cosmetic surgery, boosting her 32B cup breasts to a 32C. The procedure cost 4,500 and it's thought her mum Amy and stepdad Paul helped pay for her to have the procedure. Katie has since spoken out about her decision to go under the knife, admitting she was 'too young' and that she feels sorry for young girls growing up these days in a world of social media and filters. 1998: Having just turned 20, Katie experienced her first taste of cosmetic surgery, boosting her 32B cup breasts to a 32C 1999 - Second and third boob job Despite having only just increased her breast size, Katie opted to have two more procedures the following year at the age of 21. Katie boosted her bust from a C cup to a D cup and just a few months later went up again to a F cup. Katie has previously claimed that she has only paid for two of her boob jobs over the course of her career - it is not known if these were the ones. 1999: Despite having only just increased her breast size, Katie opted to have two more procedures at the age of 21 2001 - Lip fillers At the age of 21, Katie had her first cosmetic procedure on her face, opting for lip fillers. While the glamour model did not confirm the rumours at the time, she was seen sporting a noticeably fuller pout while out enjoying the party scene. Her overall look had also started drastically transforming, with the model sporting dramatic false lashes, bright lipstick and pale hair extensions. 2001: At the age of 21, Katie had her first cosmetic procedure on her face, opting for lip fillers 2004 - Botox Aged 26, Katie began to experiment with Botox injections that relax the muscles in your face to smooth out lines and wrinkles. She made no secret of her love of the procedure, announcing at the time: 'I get my forehead and around my eyes Botoxed every six months and I love it. You can't beat it. It just freezes all the wrinkles and that's what you want.' At the time, Katie insisted she would never take things further and have a facelift, explaining: 'I'd never have a full facelift. I've seen what they can do to people and I don't want to go through that.' 2004: Aged 26, Katie began to experiment with Botox injections that relax the muscles in your face to smooth out lines 2006 - Fourth boob job Katie went under the knife yet again to take her F cup breasts up to a G cup. The glamour model also played around with her overall look and embraced her dark side with a new brunette hairstyle. She also continued to dabble with fillers and Botox. 2006: Katie went under the knife yet again to take her F cup breasts up to a G cup 2007 - First nose job and veneers At the age of 29, Katie took her love of surgery to the next level, undergoing rhinoplasty, a chemical peel and treating herself to a 25,000 set of new veneers. 'Oh my God, it burned like hell!' she said at the time. 'The next day I had this hideous red rash on my chin but two days later there wasn't a single spot left.' Speaking about her nose job at the time, she admitted to liking her original nose, explaining: 'I liked my nose before and now. If I had a cupboard with both noses, I would alternate between them!' 2007:Katie took her love of surgery to the next level, undergoing rhinoplasty, a chemical peel and a 25,000 set of veneers 2008 - Fifth boob job Despite gradually increasingly her bust size over the year, Katie fancied a change on her 30th and brought her bra size back down from an F cup to a C cup. The procedure meant that Katie had returned to the size of her first boob job 10 years prior. Katie's changing shape also coincided with the launch of her first clothing line - an equestrian range. 2008: Despite gradually increasingly her bust size, Katie fancied a change and brought her bra size back down to a C cup 2011 - Sixth boob job Katie's smaller chest didn't last long, and at age 33 she went back under the knife again to boost her bust to an F cup. Katie also underwent body-contouring treatment and cheek and lip fillers. The Loose Women panelist admitted that she loved having her cheeks filled to give her a 'plumper, more youthful look'. 2011: Katie's smaller chest didn't last long, and at age 33 she went back under the knife again to boost her bust to an F cup 2015 - Seventh and eighth boob job Just before appearing on Celebrity Big Brother, the reality star had a botched boob reduction that left her with a hole in her breast and an implant protruding from her flesh. Katie told her shocked housemates: 'Ive got no tits anymore. Theyve gone. Theres not even anything there. If you saw what Im like underneath. The scars gone septic. My whole implant was hanging out on New Years Day.' Shortly after leaving the Big Brother house she underwent corrective surgery and had her implants swapped for a D-cup. 2015: Just before Celebrity Big Brother, the star had a botched boob reduction that left her with a hole in her breast 2016 - Ninth boob job and tattooed makeup Despite her surgery horror the year before, Katie was undeterred and flew to a Brussels clinic to go under the knife yet again, this time settling on a 32GG bust. The reality star also had her eyebrows and lips tattooed, also known as 'permanent make-up', explaining that she prefers to go make-up free on a day-to-day basis. Additionally the star has regular facial treatments, last year sharing a bloodied selfie after having a dermal roller micro-needling treatment, which sees a dermaroller with many tiny needles rolled across into the skin - designed to stimulate cells into regeneration. 2016: Despite her surgery horror the year before, Katie flew to a Brussels clinic to get another boob job, this time a 32GG cup 2017 - First face lift, new veneers and 10th boob job Despite insisting she would never have a face lift and could rely on Botox, Katie went back on her word undergoing a 'Silhouette' face lift. The procedure is designed to lift a sagging cheeks and blurred jawline, using 'sutures' implanted under the skin to sculpt features. However, Katie was soon spotted with puffy features, revealing that she suffered an allergic reaction to anesthetic penicillin after having further work on her veneers. She also had her breast implants reduced from 1000ml implants to 795ml. 2017: Despite insisting she would never have a face lift and could rely on Botox, Katie went back on her word 2018 - Second face lift Katie claimed her first face lift had been a botched job and went back under the knife the following year aged 40 to correct it. She said at the time 'I need to get my face re-corrected after surgeon has totally f**ked my face up', admitting it had He agent added: 'She had the thread and it really quite distorted her look. She got a lot of backlash, a lot of negative press, a lot of trolling, everyone saying shed taken it too far, when actually it was a job that had not gone to plan.' 2018: Katie claimed her first face lift had been a botched job and went back under the knife the following year aged 40 2019 - Third face lift, boob job first Brazilian bum lift and 11th boob job Katie jetted to Turkey to overhaul her entire look with a full body transformation. The reality star opted for a face, eye and eyelid lift, Brazilian bum lift along with a tummy tuck. Just three months later she returned to the clinic and opted for another boob job, going back down to a D cup. 2019: Katie jetted to Turkey to overhaul her look with a face, eye and eyelid lift, Brazilian bum lift along with a tummy tuck 2020 - 12th boob job and another set of veneers Katie returned to Turkey to have another set of veneers and revealed her real teeth had been reduced to stubs as she flashed a smile on her YouTube channel. The mother-of-five then jetted to Belgium to correct botched surgery on her breasts, saying her surgeon was utterly shocked by the 'awful' previous procedure. Katie said: 'They looked deformed, they were absolutely awful. That's the first time I've gone to a different surgeon. I had to go back to Frank with my head down, ashamed that I'd been to another clinic.' 2020: Katie returned to Turkey to have another set of veneers then jetted to Belgium to correct a botched boob job 2021 - Liposuction, eye and lid lifts and 13th boob job Amid the Covid pandemic, Katie jetted off to then red-list Turkey for a complete cosmetic surgery overhaul, undergoing full body liposuction, eye and lip lifts, liposuction under her chin, and fat injected into her bum. The reality star also visited Belgium to have her 13th boob job as well as full body liposuction with bum fat removal. The plastic surgery - performed by Dr Frank Plovier - came just five days ahead of the glamour model's sentencing for her shocking drink-drive crash. 2021: Katie jetted to Turkey for a complete cosmetic surgery overhaul, undergoing full body liposuction, eye and lip lifts 2022 - Another brow and eye lift Katie secretly jetted back to Belgium at the beginning of 2022 for an eye and brow lift and had been concealing her new look with her head in a bandage. Dr Judy Todd, an aesthetic doctor at Clinica Medica in Glasgow, said: 'It appears like she's had a face lift, temporal brow lift, and possibly an upper blepharoplasty.' It was reported last month that Katie plans to travel to Turkey imminently for yet more plastic surgery, amid claims she wanted to get some tweaks in after being unhappy with her latest work. Sian Dellar, Brow Specialist and Founder of Sian Dellar Permanent Makeup Clinic, added: 'Katie's eyebrows, like the rest of her, have changed lots over the years! 'Back in the 90s she had a very thin over plucked brow which was the fashion at the time, and today she has an extremely thick and unnatural looking brow. 'Currently it seems the face or eye lift that shes had have pulled her brows outward which looks unnatural and makes the brows appear almost stretched. 'Of course, as with any enhancement, its personal preference but we recommend not going too many shades darker, and keeping the shape as natural looking as possible and work to create or enhance brows to frame the face. 'Katies choice to have them so thick and dark and in that unusual positioning means they dominate her face and are the first thing the eye is drawn to. I would love to see Katie take her brows back to 2015/2016 when the fuller brow became a big trend. She got it right then and they framed her face well.' 2022: Katie secretly jetted back to Belgium for an eye and brow lift and is planning to to travel to Turkey for more surgery 2023 - 16th and 'biggest ever' boob job It's not clear if Katie lost track of the number of breast augmentations or opted to keep some of her surgery private but by 2023 it emerged she'd undergone her 16th boob job, two years after claiming to be on her 13th. The star went under the knife in a bid to have the 'biggest in Britain' and was subsequently pictured being wheeled into surgery at the Be Clinic in Belgium. She is said to have wanted even bigger breasts, opting for 2120 CC implants in a bid to boost her already large bust size. Katie told OK! magazine of her boobs: 'I love them. They healed really quickly and they didn't hurt at all. That probably doesn't help. Because I heal quickly, it doesn't put me off and I have more. 'I would go bigger as well and I will eventually. I just love having big boobs and a small body. I've always loved that look. In my eyes, if I'm having a boob job, I want them to look fake, I don't want them to look natural. I don't like the natural look. 'I just like that old-school American Playboy pin-up look. When I have surgery, that is what I'm striving for. If I could look like my airbrushed pictures, that would be amazing. But that's impossible to achieve.' A line outside of Waddell Elementary School on Election Day in 2020, in Manchester. Jim Michaud/Journal Inquirer State Rep. Matt Blumenthal, D-Stamford, co-chairman of the legislative Government Administration & Elections Committee. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media State Sen. Mae Flexer, D-killingly, co-chairwoman of the General Assemblys Government Administration & Elections Committee, in a file photo. Christian Abraham / Hearst Connecticut Media Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas is Connecticut's chief election administrator. Brian A. Pounds/Hearst Connecticut Media Sen. Rob Sampson of Wolcott is a top Republican on the legislative Government Administration & Elections Committee. Contributed photo Harassment of poll workers across the country have election workers here concerned the trend could spread to Connecticut amid the upcoming 2024 election, and beyond. During a public hearing on a variety of voting-related bills before the legislative Government Administration & Elections committee, Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas said that traveling around the state, election workers have told her that they are scared. She supports pending legislation that would shield the addresses of election workers from public disclosure, make threats to voting officials punishable as felonies, and ban weapons from election-related locations. "I'm very interested in the protection of election workers," Thomas said. "When I have monthly calls with registrars, town clerks, when I travel around the state doing poll worker appreciation events, they express fear and concern. They are actually more concerned about prohibitions or protection in the 90 days after an election. Because when someone doesn't get the results that they want, that is when the harassment begins." Advertisement Article continues below this ad During a news conference just before the hearing, state Rep. Matt Blumenthal and Sen. Mae Flexer, committee co-chairs, underscored issues that are discouraging many poll workers from volunteering this year, including the type of threats being made. Blumenthal, D-Stamford, said threats started around the time of the 2020 presidential election. "Election workers have faced a constant stream of death threats, often quite graphic," Blumenthal said, stressing that 12 other states have similar laws. "It is little wonder as a result that many of our election workers are retiring or are not interested in re-upping to support our elections. And they are absolutely vital to the success of our elections and our democracy running in a smooth, transparent and functional manner in which everybody's voice is heard." The bill would make it a crime to harass election officials, including doxing them with harassment over the internet. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "It's vitally important not only to actually protecting election workers, but ensuring that they understand that we take protecting them very seriously and that all those who threaten them take seriously the fact that we believe in Connecticut that this behavior is unacceptable," Blumenthal said. In addition, election workers are being asked to do more than ever this year with extended voting, they said. "Two weeks from today, for the first time ever, Connecticut's going to be engaged in early voting for our presidential primary. And we're going to be having people working long hours," Flexer, D-Killingly, told reporters, adding that will be followed by the August primaries and the November election. "It's already been a challenge to get people to volunteer and step up to be election workers. It's more important than ever that people have faith in our democratic process." Flexer said that threats to election workers around the nation have come home to Connecticut. "We've heard from registrars, we've heard from moderators, we've heard from town clerks that people who used to volunteer are anxious about the hassle," she said. "We live in a small world. People see what happens in Michigan, what happens in Arizona, what happens in Georgia and they know that people who share some of those same beliefs are their neighbors, posting aggressively on social media and other platforms." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Another section of the bill would make it a felony to possess firearms or deadly weapons within 1,000 feet of polling places, ballot drop boxes and municipal buildings during voting periods. "We definitely support the spirit of this legislation, but the 1,000-foot radius might be too far and encompass private property," said Kristin Sullivan, director of elections for the Secretary of the State. Sullivan also noted there would be easy ways around a shield on public disclosure of election worker addresses, including public voting records. Thomas, in questioning from Blumenthal and Sen. Rob Sampson of Wolcott, a top Republican on the panel, said 1,000 feet is probably too wide a radius. "One thousand feet is substantial," Sampson said, noting that state law already bans firearms in areas near schools. "It's almost a quarter of a mile. I was just remarking to some of my colleagues that I live 500 feet from Town Hall. So under this bill I would effectively become a Class D felon for possessing a firearm on my own property." Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I think many have already expressed that it makes sense for this prohibition to be around polling places and schools, so I think it makes sense" in substance, Thomas said of the draft committee bill. Three months after they were seen frolicking on the beach together, Scott Disick was pictured departing ex Chloe Bartoli's residence on Tuesday. The reality star, 40, donned a black Chrome Hearts hoodie and grey sweats as he emerged from a building with a suitcase and Goyard toiletry bag in hand, suggesting he may have stayed overnight. An onlooker told DailyMail.com they observed Disick leaving Bartoli's Los Angeles home. Bartoli was not photographed. Disick trekked outside in billowing grey sweatpants tucked into Ugg boots and a long black cable dangling out of his pocket. Disick and Bartoli were first linked 18 years ago, briefly dating in 2006 when Scott was not yet fully involved with Kourtney Kardashian. Scott Disick was pictured departing ex Chloe Bartoli's residence on Tuesday In 2015, Kourtney and Scott's on-off relationship ended for the final time - reportedly because she saw some new viral photos of him getting handsy with Chloe on holiday in the South Of France. They were photographed again two years later in Cannes and again late last year, frolicking in the ocean in St. Barts. Scott was famously in a long-term relationship with Kourtney Kardashian from 2006 to 2015 and they welcomed three children together - daughter Penelope, 11, and sons Mason, 14, and Reign, nine. After nearly a decade of dating, the business mogul and Kourtney parted ways for good in 2015, as she cited Disick's sobriety battles as the reason for their parting. Scott, who lost his parents in 2013 and 2014, struggled with substance abuse and alcoholism during their nine year relationship from 2006 until 2015. Kourtney has since moved on and married Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker in May 2022. They welcomed their first child together, son Rocky, last year. Scott has previously said he was happy for Kourtney after she found love with Travis. He reached for the suitcase as he approached the staircase Disick donned a Chrome Hearts sweatshirt and grey sweatpants In 2015, Kourtney and Scott's on-off relationship ended for the final time - reportedly because she saw some new viral photos of him getting handsy with Chloe on holiday in the South Of France Now that she is married, Kourtney and Scott 'don't communicate much unless it has to do with their kids,' according to a source at US Weekly. 'Scott feels not just disconnected from Kourtney, but also all the Kardashians. This was his biggest fear - getting out of touch with his "family," and now him being on the outskirts with Kourtney is affecting him completely,' the source added. Disick and the Kardashian family remains on good terms, the source told the outlet, noting that 'it isn't a toxic situation for anyone in the family and they've moved past any difficulties.' Scott has past been romantically-linked to actress Bella Thorne and models including Sofia Richie, Bella Banos, Christine Burke, Amelia Gray Hamlin, Megan Blake Irwin and Rebecca Donaldson. Gwyneth Paltrow takes offense at the suggestion that Kourtney Kardashian's Poosh lifestyle brand is merely a copycat of her own Goop business. The Oscar winner, 51, said she became emotional over the negative comparisons between the two companies when the reality star, 44, debuted her line in 2019, nearly 11 years after Goop. 'I was so upset when Poosh was launched and people were like, "This is a rip-off of Goop,"' the star told People on Wednesday. 'I was like, "This is so awful, and trying to pit us against one another, which is so crazy,"' she added. Gwyneth went on to say that the world thrives when women support each other rather than vie in competition, stating it is 'better and stronger' when 'women are in cahoots with one another'. Gwyneth Paltrow takes offense at the suggestion that Kourtney Kardashian 's Poosh lifestyle brand is merely a copycat of her own Goop business; pictured 2019 Gwyneth said she became upset over the negative comparisons between the two companies when the reality star, 44, debuted her line in 2019 , nearly 11 years after Goop; pictured 2022 'I feel like the patriarchy does this thing to us where they make us feel scarcity and that there's not enough for all of us to do our thing,' she explained. 'And it's so detrimental.' She also said that the criticism aimed at Kourtney made her 'so excited to do the candle' collaboration in 2022. The Goop x Poosh candle was called 'This Smells Like My Pooshy.' 'I thought it was hilarious,' Gwyneth told the outlet. The candle-making effort was featured on Kourt's Hulu show The Kardashians, where the two celebs met and strategized. In one episode, Kourtney was seen heading to Goop's Santa Monica, California headquarters as the pair meet and embrace in the office. Kourtney says, 'This is so nice' and Gwyneth says, 'Oh my God I'm so happy you're here. I'm really happy to have you.' In a confessional, she added: 'I really want to streamline the brand with my lifestyle so a Poosh and Goop candle collab makes so much sense because I love candles, I light candles every day in my home.' Gwyneth has previously shut down rumors of a rivalry between her and Kourtney. 'I was so upset when Poosh was launched and people were like, This is a rip-off of Goop,' the star told People on Wednesday 'I was like, "This is so awful, and trying to pit us against one another, which is so crazy,". she added Gwyneth went on to say that the world thrives when women support each other rather than vie in competition, stating it is 'better and stronger' when 'women are in cahoots with one another' She also said that the criticism aimed at Kourtney made her 'so excited to do the candle' collaboration in 2022 . The Goop x Poosh candle was called 'This Smells Like My Pooshy' In a May 2022 Instagram Q&A, she clarified that she believes the 'wellness business' has place for every woman, after a fan asked her if she was upset that Kourtney's brand Poosh 'copied' her. 'This idea that women need to be in competition is legacy patriarchy bulls***,' she wrote, adding '@kourtneykardash is a really good person and also #KRAVISFOREVER.' 'Kravis' is the nickname for Kourtney and her husband Travis Barker, whom she married in a lavish ceremony in Italy around the time of the Q&A. 'There is room for EVERY woman to fulfill her dreams,' the Ironman actress continued. The Oscar winner admitted that she can understand why some people may perceive the situation through a competitive lens. 'I used to fall prey to this kind of thinking years ago, so I understand where it comes from,' she admitted. 'Now I get so happy when I see new wellness businesses there is a place for all of us,' she said. Paltrow launched Goop in September 2008, as a weekly e-mail newsletter offering wellness and lifestyle advice and insight into the star's life. The company's name was inspired by author Peter Arnell, who reportedly told the star that all successful internet companies have double O's in their name. Paltrow launched Goop in September 2008, as a weekly e-mail newsletter offering wellness and lifestyle advice and insight into the star's life Kourtney launched her lifestyle website Poosh in March 2019 Goop has expanded through the years, creating a website and branching off into e-commerce, pop-up shops, wellness summits, a print magazine, a podcast and a Netflix docuseries. In addition to pop-up stores, the brand also has five permanent brick-and-mortar locations where they sell the actress' famous 'This Smells Like My Vagina' candle, as well as clothes from GOOP brand G. Label and other products. Meanwhile Kourtney launched her lifestyle website Poosh in March 2019. The site features articles, healthy recipes, product recommendations, and advice on topics ranging from fashion, fitness and wellness. Brittany Cartwright and estranged husband Jax Taylor were spotted together in Los Angeles this week. It comes amid news that the couple Brittany, 35, and Jax, 44 split after five years of marriage. Cartwright wore a crew neck white sweatshirt and loose-fitting distressed jeans as she carried miscellaneous items in her hands. The mother-of-one's hair was pulled into a top knot as she squinted to keep the sun out of her eyes. Jax was similarly dressed in a beige hooded sweatshirt, jeans, and a black hat. Brittany Cartwright and estranged husband Jax Taylor were spotted together in Los Angeles this week Jax was dressed in a beige hooded sweatshirt, jeans, and a black hat Brittany was makeup-free and she rounded out her casual outfit with a pair of tan, white, and black Nike sneakers. She appeared to go without makeup as she carried a Louis Vuitton bag over her shoulder and held a pale pink makeup box as well as two hats. The reality television star also carried a white lunch box with her and Jax's son Cruz's who turns three next month name printed on it. For his part, Taylor stepped out in white, red, and black Jordan sneakers. The sleeves of his sweatshirt were hiked up, exposing his tattooed forearms. The troubled pair's marriage woes were highlighted in a new trailer for their Vanderpump Rules spinoff The Valley. In the clip, Brittany admitted that she doesn't think her husband is 'attracted' to her and that they 'never have sex.' And other cast members discussed online rumors about Jax cheating. The former couple loaded items into a white Jeep Cartwright removed her married last name from her Instagram profile following her split from Jax The pair who recently announced their split were also seen getting into a heated argument in one scene. 'You're my f*****g husband and you're trying to make me look like I'm a bad person F**k you!' the Kentucky native shouted at him a during what appeared to be a get-together with friends. 'She has a f*****g problem,' Jax responded. The trailer began with foreshadowing as Jax happily told Tom Schwartz, 'I got a beautiful son, I got a beautiful bar, money in the bank,' to which Schwartz responded: 'Only a matter of time until you're gonna be living with me, divorced and miserable.' Later in the trailer Jax and his wife had a tense conversation after she admitted that her 'baby fever is through the roof.' 'Bringing in another human being, it's worrisome to me,' he told her. 'I live for my kid,' she replied passionately as she became emotional. 'Don't cry,' he responded before Brittany hit back: 'See, I can't even have an emotion.' The pair tied the knot in 2019 and welcomed their son Cruz, almost three, in April 2021; pictured in May 2023 A distraught Brittany later told her friend about her spouse, 'I don't feel like he's attracted to me. Like, we don't have sex ever.' Meanwhile Jax admitted in a voiceover: 'It's so hard to be married sometimes.' His castmates brought up rumors about his infidelity, with one saying: 'There's a rumor about Jax cheating online.' Another scene showed Jax appearing overwhelmed, as he shared, 'I don't know how to manage raising a child, raising a family, starting a business.' Zayn Malik officially announced his brand new album called Room Under The Stairs on Wednesday. The former One Direction star, 31, has been teasing fans over the past week but has now shared an important update. Zayn already revealed the first single, titled 'What I Am,' which is set to be released this Friday on March 15. The full album Room Under the Stairs will then be out in two months time on May 17. He penned in his Instagram announcement: 'ROOM UNDER THE STAIRS 17.05.2024 PRE-ORDER FRIDAY', along with a series of quirky illustrations. Zayn Malik officially announced his brand new album called Room Under the Stairs on Wednesday The former One Direction star, 31, has been teasing fans over the past week but has now shared an important update One fan penned underneath: 'Can't wait for the release gna be so good!' A second wrote: 'Album of the year and I haven't even heard it yet!', while a third said: 'YESSSSSSSSS ZAYNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!' Last week Zayn wiped his Instagram page and posted a single Reel - as he prepared his fans for his self-penned fourth studio album. He shared a selection of visuals in the video, as well as music and a voiceover, but wrote no caption with it. He said in the teaser: 'I think the intention behind this album fully is for the listener to get more insight on me personally as a human being - my ambitions, my fears - and for them to have a connection with that. 'And that's why it's so raw, you know, it's just me writing this. I didn't want anyone else to be in between me and the music, and the music and the people listening to it.' A short snippet of What I Am was played at the end. It had the lyrics: 'If I told you I loved you, would you say that it's f***** up?' Zayn worked with nine-time Grammy Award-winning country music producer Dave Cobb on the upcoming album. The full album Room Under the Stairs will be out in two months time on May 17 (Zayn seen on January 19 2024) One fan penned underneath: 'Can't wait for the release gna be so good!' A second wrote: 'Album of the year and I haven't even heard it yet!', while a third said: 'YESSSSSSSSS ZAYNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!' Zayn already revealed the first single, titled 'What I Am,' which is set to be released this Friday on March 15 The producer, 49, told Rolling Stone in February: 'What got me about Zayn was his voice, you can hear love, loss, pain, triumph and humanity in it. I feel as if this record is removing the glass from his spirit directly to his fans. 'Zayn has really created his own universe on this record, he really has no fear and is speaking straight from his soul.' Dave is based in Nashville, Tennessee, and is best known for producing the work of Chris Stapleton and Brandi Carlile. Zayn previously promised his fans that his new material would sound different to his previous releases. Speaking on the Call Her Daddy podcast, he explained: 'I've got a few really sad [songs]. It's a different sound for me, and it's got like some more narrative going on - real-life experiences and stuff.' He also spoke to Rolling Stone, saying: 'I'm doing a record I don't think people are really gonna expect. It's a different sound for me. And it's got some more narrative going on, like real-life experiences and stuff. My daughter's mentioned in there a couple of times.' Zayn's daughter is Khai, three, whom he shares 50/50 custody of with ex-girlfriend Gigi Hadid, 28. The couple dated from 2016 to 2021, breaking up after Zayn allegedly assaulted Gigi's mother Yolanda. Last week Zayn wiped his Instagram page and posted a single Reel - as he prepared his fans for his self-penned fourth studio album He spoke over the imagery, explaining to his 52 million followers what they should expect from the album Zayn previously promised his fans that his new material would sound different to his previous releases In the time in between his last single and now, Zayn served as the executive music producer for the animated film, 10 Lives. Under his Instagram teaser, fan account InZayn, one of only 14 accounts Zayn follows, commented 'The Zrought is over' while a fan offered: 'If you want another dog I can bark.' Zayn last released English-language music in July 2023, when his pop effort Love Like This reached just 36 on the charts. It was his first single under his new management United Talent Agency after he was dropped from RCA in 2021. Kristen Stewart stepped out in yet another racy fetish fashion look to tape Wednesday's episode of NBC talk show, Late Night with Seth Meyers. The 33-year-old Oscar nominee went full-on Rocky Horror Picture Show in an exposed bralette, garters, and nylon stockings. Kristen also wore a black mini-skirt, matching leather blazer, and $845 patent leather Louboutin 'Hot Chick 100mm' pumps as she made her way to 30 Rockefeller Plaza's Studio 8G in Midtown Manhattan. Stewart - who's been a Chanel brand ambassador for the French luxury house since 2016 - finished off her boudoir attire with a comically tiny beaded bag. The Boygenius: The Film director accessorized with Oliver Peoples sunglasses featuring maroon-colored lenses over her minimally made-up complexion courtesy of make-up artist Genevieve Herr. Kristen Stewart stepped out in yet another racy fetish fashion look to tape Wednesday's episode of NBC talk show, Late Night with Seth Meyers Hairstylist David von Cannon gave Kristen's brunette mullet a wet look. Stylist Tara Swennen has certainly been evolving Stewart's luxe and grunge style to be sexier and edgier. In the past week alone, the Rita Ora video vixen has dropped jaws wearing Brunello Cucinelli panties, a sheer MONOT fringed halter top, and a Bettter-brand upcycled bodysuit to industry events. Joining Kristen in the Big Apple on Wednesday was her fiancee and Nevermind producing partner Dylan Meyer, whom she got engaged to 2021 after two years of dating. 'If I couldn't share with her and make with her and collaborate with her I would do it with other people and we wouldn't be as close,' Stewart - who's 'obsessed with' her job - confessed on Tuesday's The Late Show. 'I need to have that [in a relationship]. And she is so much better and smarter and cooler and hotter than me.' The Living for the Dead producers will soon head to Latvia to shoot Kristen's feature directorial debut - a big-screen adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch's 2011 memoir The Chronology of Water - starring Imogen Poots and Thora Birch. 'I've just grown up loving [Thora] so much!' Stewart gushed to host Stephen Colbert. Don't dream it, be it! The 33-year-old Oscar nominee went full-on Rocky Horror Picture Show in an exposed bralette, garters, and nylon stockings Kristen also wore a black mini-skirt, matching leather blazer, and $845 patent leather Louboutin 'Hot Chick 100mm' pumps as she made her way to 30 Rockefeller Plaza's Studio 8G in Midtown Manhattan Stewart - who's been a Chanel brand ambassador for the French luxury house since 2016 - finished off her boudoir attire with a comically tiny beaded bag The Boygenius: The Film director accessorized with Oliver Peoples sunglasses featuring maroon-colored lenses over her minimally made-up complexion courtesy of make-up artist Genevieve Herr Hairstylist David von Cannon gave Kristen's brunette mullet a wet look Stylist Tara Swennen has certainly been evolving Stewart's luxe and grunge style to be sexier and edgier In the past week alone, the Rita Ora video vixen has dropped jaws wearing Brunello Cucinelli panties (L), a sheer MONOT fringed halter top (M), and a Bettter-brand upcycled bodysuit (R) to industry events Joining Kristen in the Big Apple on Wednesday was her fiancee and Nevermind producing partner Dylan Meyer, whom she got engaged to 2021 after two years of dating Stewart - who's 'obsessed with' her job - confessed on Tuesday's The Late Show: 'If I couldn't share with her and make with her and collaborate with her I would do it with other people and we wouldn't be as close. I need to have that [in a relationship]' The Living for the Dead producers will soon head to Latvia to shoot Kristen's feature directorial debut - a big-screen adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch's 2011 memoir The Chronology of Water - starring Imogen Poots (L) and Thora Birch (R) Stewart gushed to host Stephen Colbert: 'I've just grown up loving [Thora] so much! We're casting and scouting. [The film] just has it's own body and its own sort of will and blood and the movie has, like, kind of taken over my life' The Cesar Award winner has been hard at work promoting her role as reclusive gym manager Lou in Rose Glass' bodybuilding romantic thriller Love Lies Bleeding, which hit US theaters last Friday and UK theaters on April 19 The 104-minute lesbian flick - also starring Katy O'Brian, Ed Harris, and Jena Malone - currently has a 'certified fresh' 91% critic approval rating (out of 107 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes 'We're casting and scouting. [The film] just has it's own body and its own sort of will and blood and the movie has, like, kind of taken over my life.' The Cesar Award winner originally met the 36-year-old Moxie screenwriter way back in 2013 on the set of a film (most likely Camp X-Ray). Kristen has been hard at work promoting her role as reclusive gym manager Lou in Rose Glass' bodybuilding romantic thriller Love Lies Bleeding, which hit US theaters last Friday and UK theaters on April 19. The 104-minute lesbian flick - also starring Katy O'Brian, Ed Harris, and Jena Malone - currently has a 'certified fresh' 91% critic approval rating (out of 107 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes. Stewart is also slated to appear in Michael Angarano's road trip comedy Sacramento, Kirsten Johnson's Susan Sontag biopic, and Karim Ainouz's dark satire Rosebushpruning. As for her role 'as a buoy' opposite Steven Yeun in sci-fi drama Love Me, directing duo Sam & Andy Zuchero have yet to secure a distribution deal since premiering January 19 at the Sundance Film Festival. Jackie 'O' Henderson has revealed she had a 'missed connection' with a handsome man in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs. The radio star, 49, described the man, who she crossed paths with on Wednesday evening during a walk as 'so nice looking' during Thursday's Kyle and Jackie O Show. 'We locked eyes and smiled at one another,' said Jackie, before describing the moment as being like something out of 'an Ashton Kutcher movie'. She revealed the pair shared several long looks, before Jackie finally looked back and 'smiled and waved at the man.' But the mother-of-one said she later described what she was wearing to her mother - and revealed her mum Julie's brutal reaction to the outfit. Jackie 'O' Henderson (pictured) has revealed she had a 'missed connection' with a handsome man in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs Henderson said she had been wearing Birkenstock sandals, a T-shirt, a bucket hat and no makeup during the encounter. 'It's a wonder he even looked at you,' Jackie recalled her mother saying. The radio station later put out a call over social media asking for the public's help to locate the mystery man. Jackie has been single since divorcing her ex-husband Lee Henderson in 2018. Last month, the radio star opened up about the struggles she's faced with loneliness on the dating scene. Speaking with fans at Luke McLeod's book launch for Everyday Enlightenment, the radio titan admitted she is 'desperate' to find love and companionship once more. She explained she had lunch with McLeod last year when they got onto the topic of her love life and how she felt she was 'missing something'. Jackie 'O' Henderson (pictured) shocked co-host Kyle Sandilands on Tuesday by revealing she once slept with a man on the first date - and was still getting approached by his friends years later Jackie went on to tell her fans that Luke gave her a piece of advice in that moment which 'changed my life'. He said she was giving off too much 'desperate energy', and if she really wanted to attract love in her life, then she needed to be grateful for what she already has. Jackie has been married twice in the past, with her first husband being DJ 'Ugly' Phil O'Neil in the late '90s. She was wed to ex Lee from 2003 to 2018 and the couple co-parent their daughter, Kitty. Wendy Williams is dealing with financial issues on top of her well-documented health problems following her diagnosis with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. A lien has been applied toward a New York City condo owned by the 59-year-old talk show host, as she owes $568,451.57 in back taxes. According to legal docs reviewed by TMZ Wednesday, federal officials said that the six-figure sum was over unpaid balances for 2021 and 2019. The lien was first generated this past January, and reported to officials with New York City's finance department early last month. The Asbury Park, New Jersey native purchased the property in 2021 for $4.5 million, according to the outlet. Wendy Williams, 59, is dealing with financial issues on top of her well-documented health problems following her diagnosis with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. Seen in the Lifetime documentary titled Where is Wendy Williams? The outlet noted that it was possible Williams or her camp have addressed the situation, but it wasn't reflected in the records it reviewed. Williams' financial guardian Sabrina Morrissey had been appointed around two years ago, which precedes the timeframe the tax balances were not tended to, according to the outlet. Dailymail.com has reached out to Williams' reps for comment on this story. Williams' health woes were the focal point of a Lifetime documentary titled Where is Wendy Williams?, which focused on how Williams' alcohol consumption played a part in her downturn in health. New details of Williams' health decline have been released by different groups, as Williams' caretaker issued a statement February 22 saying that doctors have diagnosed the TV personality with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. The health struggles 'have already presented significant hurdles in Wendy's life' and have behavioral and cognitive impacts, according to the statement. 'Wendy is still able to do many things for herself,' the statement attributed to her care team read. 'Most importantly she maintains her trademark sense of humor and is receiving the care she requires to make sure she is protected and that her needs are addressed. 'She is appreciative of the many kind thoughts and good wishes being sent her way.' Williams' health woes were the focal point of a Lifetime documentary titled Where is Wendy Williams? A lien has been applied toward a New York City condo owned by the talk show host, as she owes $568,451.57 in back taxes The talk show host was at the helm of The Wendy Williams Show from 2008-2022 The statement on Williams' health was issued on PR Newswire. A representative listed on the release, Jennifer Hanley, referred questions back to the statement when contacted by The Associated Press. The announcement came a day after a cover story in People magazine quoted Williams' family about the nature of her struggles, ahead of a Lifetime documentary set to air Saturday. 'The people who love her cannot see her,' the magazine quoted Williams' sister Wanda as saying. 'I think the big (question) is: How the hell did we get here?' The family said a court-appointed legal guardian was the only person with unfettered access to Williams. The article said the Lifetime documentary crew, which set out in 2022 to chronicle Williams' comeback, stopped filming in April 2023 when, her manager 'and jeweler' Will Selby says in footage for the film, she entered a facility to treat 'cognitive issues.' Her son says in the documentary that doctors had connected her cognitive issues to alcohol use, People reported. Williams' family told People they dont know where she is and cannot call her themselves, but she can call them. The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration describes FTD as a group of brain disorders caused by degeneration of the frontal and/or temporal lobes of the brain that affects behavior, language and movement. Williams' caretaker issued a statement Thursday saying that doctors have diagnosed Williams with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. Pictured in 2018 in Atlanta The health struggles 'have already presented significant hurdles in Wendy's life' and have behavioral and cognitive impacts, according to the statement Aphasia, a brain disorder that can lead to problems speaking or understanding words, can be a symptom of it. The association describes frontotemporal degeneration as 'an inevitable decline in functioning,' with an average life expectancy of seven to 13 years after the onset of symptoms. FTD usually occurs in people in their 40s, 50s and early 60s. It can affect a persons personality, causing a loss of inhibition or inappropriate behavior. It is sometimes mistaken for depression or bipolar disorder, and can take years to diagnose. There are no treatments to slow or stop the disease, but some interventions can help manage symptoms. The association was involved in the disclosure of actor Bruce Willis' diagnosis in February 2023, hosting a statement posted by the actor's family. 'We thank Wendy Williams for having the courage to make her diagnosis public and raise awareness of the disease,' association CEO Susan Dickinson said in a statement. 'We know that a diagnosis like this can be heartbreaking, but she is not alone. While there may not be a cure, every day we are working to improve care and research into treatments for this disease.' The February 22 statement from Williams' caretaker credited Weill Cornell Medicine in New York with the care and expertise Williams received. Weill Cornell declined comment. Williams rose to fame in part due to her no-boundaries approach to her life, which included sharing personal details about her health, plastic surgery and cocaine addiction - the subject of her 2003 memoir, Wendy's Got the Heat. A hallmark of The Wendy Williams Show, which competed for viewers with Ellen DeGeneres' show, was her signature phrase, 'How you doin?' Williams rose to fame in part due to her no-boundaries approach to her life, which included sharing personal details about her health, plastic surgery and cocaine addiction. Pictured last year in NYC She transitioned to television after a successful career as a radio host, known for her hot takes on gossip and skewering of celebrities, including a contentious 2003 interview with Whitney Houston. In 2022, Williams' self-titled daytime talk show ended because of her ongoing health issues. Sherri Shepherd, who filled in for Williams as a guest host, received her own show. Williams said in 2018 that she had been diagnosed years before with Graves disease, which leads to the overproduction of thyroid hormones and can cause wide-ranging symptoms and affect overall health. Cara Delevingne went make-up free on Tuesday night as she left the Playhouse Theatre after her second night as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. The model, 31, returned to acting on Monday night when she made her West End debut in the American musical. After Tuesday's showing, Cara looked a far cry from her character Sally as she rocked a brown checked coat and a black jumper over a white T-shirt. The fashionista wore a very unique pair of hybrid denim-leather trousers. Cara, who made her acting debut in 2012's Anna Karenina, finished her look with black boots and scraped her hair into a bun. Cara Delevingne went make-up free on Tuesday night as she left the Playhouse Theatre after her second night as Sally Bowles in Cabaret The retired model, 31, returned to acting on Monday night when she made her West End debut in the American musical Cara inherited the role from the Oscar-nominated Jessie Buckley and was cheered on by pal Sienna Miller during her first performance on Monday By portraying the character of Sally, made famous by Liza Minnelli in the 1972 film version - Cara is following in the footsteps of Oscar-nominated Jessie Buckley. Cara appears alongside Olivier award-winning actor Luke Treadaway, starring as The Emcee, and she was cheered on by Sienna Miller during her first performance. Other notable acting stints by Cara include the main role in Paper Towns (2015) and a supporting role in Suicide Squad (2016). Fans took to Twitter as they congratulated the star on her incredible performance, gushing at her performative talent. One wrote: 'I have seen MANY a Sally Bowles in my time. But good LORD, Cara Delevingne may well be the very best. A real pinch me moment to see her opening night, front row centre. Devastatingly real. Beautiful. Beg, Borrow, STEAL for a ticket.' A second joked: 'cara delevingne singing maybe this time is suddenly my new religion thank you cabaret'. A third penned: 'cabaret best musical ever ever ever ! cara delevingne <3'. Another added: 'woWEE cara delevingne i am'. After Tuesday's showing, Cara looked a far cry from her character Sally as she rocked a brown checked coat and a black jumper over a white T-shirt She wore a very unique pair of hybrid denim-leather trousers Cara, who made her acting debut in 2012's Anna Karenina, finished her look with strong black boots and scraped her hair into a bun It was announced last month that Cara was set to take the role as she said at the time: 'there are no words to explain her excitement'. The duo will be performing for three whole months from March 11 right up until June 1 2024. Cara and Luke have taken over from Jake Shears and Rebecca Lucy, who finished their run on the March 9. Speaking about her exciting new stint, Cara said: 'There are no words to explain the excitement I have to return home to make my stage debut in such an iconic role. 'I am so inspired by the brilliant actors who have played Sally in past productions around the world and in this one in the West End. 'I cannot wait to be a part of this brilliant cast and production.' Luke added: 'I cant wait to become a member of the Kit Kat Club and join this extraordinary production. Its a huge thrill to be asked to take this on and Im very excited to get started.' Eddie Redmayne, who starred in the classic musical in 2021, previously gushed over the astounding production when he performed as The Emcee in the Cabaret. He shared: 'Getting to perform John Kander, Fred Ebb and Joe Masteroffs extraordinary piece with a staggering troupe at the Kit Kat Club in the heart of London was the stuff that dreams are made of.' He added: 'Playing this part in Cabaret was one of the few bucket list things in my life. And I dont have many. 'The process of putting this piece together has been six years in the making, and its so thrilling when something youve dreamt of supersedes your expectations.' Costco's finance chief is stepping down after 40 years - and he gave an interview this week on a topic that members are obsessed with. Richard Galanti is known for retaining the $1.50 price tag on the company's famous hot dog and soda deal. The fan favorite food and drink combo has been the same price since 1985 - the same year Galanti was named chief financial officer - and two years after the first Costco opened. In a 2022 earnings call Galanti told analysts that the $1.50 price was 'sacrosanct' and would remain at that level 'forever.' But ths week, he gave a less definite answer when he was interviewed by Bloomberg. Costco's $1.50 hot dog and soda is a huge hit with members and has been the same price for decades Costco's long-time finance chief Richard Galanti is stepping down after nearly 40 years in the role. In a 2022 earnings call he told analysts that the $1.50 price for the hot dog and soda combo was 'sacrosanct' and would remain at that level 'forever' This week, he was asked: 'What will happen to the $1.50 hot dog and soda combo when you are gone?' His reply was: 'Its probably safe for a while.' That is not as clear as the outlook he gave in 2022 - when he called the deal 'sacrosanct'. Costco fans will now be looking for a clearer answer from Gary Millerchip, the former Kroger exec who is taking over as CFO. He is next likely to speak at Costco's next quarterly earnings expected in June. Galanti also explained in the interview why he stayed as chief finance officer for 39 years. He said: 'My tenure dwarfs the average tenure of a CFO, which is something like four or five years in the Fortune 500. 'In my late 40s, I said, by the time Im 50, I will think about retiring. 'And, then I looked around and there were all these 60-plus-year-olds still working, and a board with a few 70-plus-year-olds. 'Former board member Charlie Munger just passed away at age 99. I am convinced that staying active allows you to keep your faculties going.' Costco shares took a tumble last week after it announced it fell short of sales estimates - but beat earnings thanks to shrewd cost-cutting. Membership fees were a key source of revenue. They came in at $1.11 billion for the three months, up from $1.03 billion a year ago. It means Costco nets around $4 billion-plus a year from the fees, which are either $60 or $120 a year. But - in last weeks earnings call - Galanti gave no clues on when membership fees will rise. Galanti will will step down on March 15 and will be succeeded by his counterpart at Kroger's, Gary Millerchip Your browser does not support iframes. The company hasn't increased it annual membership fees in almost seven years. It charges $60 for Business and Gold Star and $120 for Executive, which offers a 2 percent rebate on all Costco purchases made that year up to a total of $750. Galanti will be stepping down as CFO on March 15, having held the position for almost 40 years. Thursday's earnings call was the last he will take. He told investors that since he became CFO in 1985 he has hosted all but one call. Galanti will hand over the reins to Gary Millerchip. When membership fees are finally raised, it will be raised on his watch, Galanti said. Soaring numbers of single households has prompted bosses at Del Monte to launch a tiny pineapple - to avoid bigger food waste. The company says the Precious Honeyglow weighs between 1.5 and 2 pounds, about half the average weight of a traditional fresh pineapple. It is the smallest the firm has ever sold, and is designed to be a single serving for those living on their own or for households where only one person likes the fruit. Bosses at Del Monte, one of the biggest fruit producers in the world, found those living alone avoided full-size fruit because they worry they will waste some of it. So, with the number of single-person households at record levels, they came up with a plant that produces baby pineapples that still taste like big ones. Del Monte's mini pineapple - known as 'Precious' - is about half the size of a normal one Normal-sized pineapples are too big for one person and can lead to food waste The new Previous will be sold in Melissa's Produce, and will roll out to other retailers if it is a hit. The price has not been set but they are part of Del Monte's Honeyglow range, which is sweeter and costs more than normal ones They are picked at farms in Costa Rica from trees that are selectively bred to produce smaller fruit. 'Our new Precious Honeyglow delivers everything that people love about our pineapples, such as its extra sweet taste and distinct color, in a compact single-serving size,' Melissa Mackay, Del Monte's head of marketing in North America, said. Single-person households are rising - as people settle down later, are more likely to get divorced and live longer. More than 28 percent of American households now occupied by a single person the second largest proportion of the population after couples. The shrinking size of households is contributing to greater food waste due to spoilage. As a result, many Americans living at home avoid bigger fruit. The new small pineappels have special labelling Internal surveys conducted by Fresh Del Monte show that single-person households are significantly less likely than multiple-person households to prefer full-size whole pineapples, specifically to avoid wasting fruit. The new 'Precious' size is the latest in Del Monte's line of Honeyglow pineapples. The company says offer this line, which comes in normal size too, offers a sweeter taste than traditional pineapples since they're left to mature and ripen on the plant for a few extra days. Karen Allen plays Cora in "A Stage of Twilight." Cardinal Flix/Contributed photo On March 14, it comes back to Connecticut. The movie will be screened at Bantam Cinema & Arts Center, followed by a Q&A with director Sarah Schwab and producer Brian Long. "A Stage of Twilight" stars Karen Allen ("Animal House," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "The Perfect Storm" and more) and William Sadler ("The Shawshank Redemption," "Iron Man 3," "The Green Mile" and more) as Cora and Barry. The couple, in their 70s, navigate Barry's diagnosis with a terminal heart disease. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Long said that Sadler will also be at the Bantam screening. "The goal with this movie is talking about a really difficult subject, which is end-of-life choices," Schwab said. "Even though it's a difficult subject, there's a lot of love in the film. So we also like to say that it's a love story, because it is." William Sadler plays Barry in "A Stage of Twilight." Cardinal Flix/Contributed photo Schwab was inspired to create the film after her watching her father battle and eventually die from terminal cancer. She first connected with Long when she wrote and staged "A Stage of Twilight" as a play. The pair then started working on a film adaptation and connected with Connecticut resident Megan Smith-Harris, who came onboard as a producer. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I grew up in a small town outside of Buffalo, New York, and it was filled with cornfields and dairy farms," Schwab said. "Our personal property was an old farmhouse that had been refurbished by my mom and dad. And there was a certain aesthetic that I wanted." Smith-Harris suggested New Milford as a filming location. "When you're producing a film, especially on the independent level, the location or the area that you shoot is so important, because there's a lot of things (besides) locations," Long said. "There's housing, there's catering, there's crew, there's extras...Not to mention, you're going to usually need the police service to help you with traffic control." "A Stage of Twilight" was filmed in and around New Milford. Cardinal Flix/Contributed photo Long said that some shooting locations, like the Mark Twain Library and Sacred Heart University, were outside of New Milford, but close enough that the area still felt like it had everything they needed to film "A Stage of Twilight." Advertisement Article continues below this ad The two say they also filmed at Lucia's Ristorante and Kimberly Farm. "We had catering for all the cast and crew from Northville Market, and OC Organic Kitchen, as well," Schwab said. "And so it was just it was a way to have every aspect of film be a part of the wider community." Long said that he and Schwab have returned to the area for a screening of their first film together, "Life After You," and to do some location scouting for another film they're working on, "Crybaby Bridge," but this is their first time attending a Connecticut screening. TikTok is today facing the prospect of a US ban amid fears its Chinese owner poses a threat to national security. Allegations have swirled for years that the Chinese Communist Party is using the video-sharing app to spy on its American users' locations and manipulate its algorithm to conduct influence campaigns. Following a bipartisan House vote 352-65, parent company ByteDance could be ordered to sell TikTok. The decision is in the hands of senators who must weigh up whether the threat posed by TikTok is greater than the headache from the apps' estimated 170 million US users. A new owner must be found within 165 days of the bill being signed by the President. Here DailyMail.com explains everything you need to know about the possible ban... TikTok is today facing the prospect of a US ban amid fears its Chinese owner poses a threat to national security. Pictured: Protestors holding signs in support outside the US Capitol Building Following a bipartisan House vote 352-65, TikTok may now be ordered to vest from its parent company ByteDance What is TikTok and how does it differ from other apps? TikTok is a social media platform which allows users to create, share and discover short-form videos. While all social media sites collect user data to target them with personalized content, TikTok is seen as having the most sophisticated algorithms. The app tracks exactly how long a user stays on a video and whether they interact with it to decide what should feature on their 'For You' page. It results in an addictive feed curated specifically for the user. Two-thirds of American teens use TikTok every day, according to a 2022 Pew Research Center survey. @bee.better.company THEY BANNED TIK TOK GO SUBSCRIBE TO MY YOUTUBE CHANNEL BECAUSE IM JUMPING SHIP AND GONNA START POSTING THERE!! #tiktokban original sound - Bee better Who owns TikTok? TikTok is the creation of ByteDance, which was born in a Beijing apartment 12 years ago and has since grown into one of the world's biggest tech firms. ByteDance is worth around $225 billion, according to market intelligence firm CP Insights. ByteDance launched TikTok in 2017, and the app took the world by storm, crossing a billion users in four years. The app was an international version of Douyin, which was released in China in 2016 and now has hundreds of millions of users. The Chinese company says it has more than 150,000 employees in almost 120 cities around the world. A privately held firm, ByteDance does not release revenue and profit figures, but media estimates of its earnings put it on par with some of the biggest firms in the world. In 2023, ByteDance's sales crossed $110 billion, Bloomberg reported in December, a figure greater than Chinese tech giant Tencent's estimated revenues that year. The major argument is that China's government can use its influence over ByteDance to turn TikTok into an instrument of harm against American interests. As well as learning what a user is interested in, TikTok also knows their unique internet protocol (IP), contact list and precise data location. Users must give permission for the app to see the latter two categories. Critics say this information could allow Chinese officials to develop profiles of certain Americans and subject them to blackmail. A 2020 executive order by then-President Trump also suggested China could use TikTok's data to 'track the locations of federal employees and contractors' and to 'conduct corporate espionage.' US national security officials are also concerned the app could shape public opinion by its strategic promotion of certain videos. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., said the bill could be akin to opening 'Pandora's Box' and that the future implications the measure are unknown Why does the House bill seek to ban TikTok in the US? A large number of US lawmakers - Republicans and Democrats - are not convinced that TikTok is independent of Beijing despite being headquartered outside China. The app has been a diplomatic hot potato between the United States and China since the administration of former president Donald Trump, who once wanted to ban it. The latest bill in Congress aims to force the company to cut ties with ByteDance or be barred from the United States. Its supporters say ByteDance as a Chinese firm simply cannot go against the wishes of Beijing, and can provide access to the data on more than 170 million American users for everything from spying to election influence campaigns. These concerns have been echoed by US intelligence and law enforcement agencies -- including by the FBI director this week -- as well as regulators elsewhere. TikTok is banned from government employees' work phones in the United States and several other nations including Australia and Canada over security concerns. In 2020, TikTok was among hundreds of Chinese apps barred in India after deadly clashes on the country's border with China. New Delhi said at the time the bans were intended to defend against threats to its sovereignty. TikTok sent this notification to users last week after the bill was introduced What has been ByteDance's Response? Both ByteDance and TikTok insists there is no risk to US user data. TikTok's CEO has told Congress that the firm has never been asked by the Chinese government for US user data nor has it provided it. The company says it now routes all of its US traffic through infrastructure in the United States, and that it is deleting previously collected data. It has also said that Douyin employees do not have access to TikTok's US user data. TikTok will take the fight against a forced break from ByteDance to the courts in the United States if the legislation is passed, according to Bloomberg. US President Joe Biden will sign the bill if it passes Congress, the White House has said, though the chances of its success are uncertain given opposition in the Senate. What happens next? The Senate must first approve the bill, before it is signed by the President. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said after the vote: 'I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign it into law.' But the fate of the bill is uncertain in the more cautious Senate, where some are apprehensive of making a drastic move. Who could buy it? While some people have voiced an interest in buying TikTok's US business - among them 'Shark Tank' star Kevin OLeary - there are a number of challenges including a 6-month deadline to get it done. 'Somebody would have to actually be ready to shell out the large amount of money that this product and system is worth,' said Stanford University researcher Graham Webster, who studies Chinese technology policy and U.S.-China relations. 'But even if somebody has deep enough pockets and is ready to go into negotiating to purchase, this sort of matchmaking on acquisitions is not quick.' Big tech companies could afford it but would likely face intense scrutiny from antitrust regulators in both the US and China. Then again, if the bill actually becomes law and survives First Amendment court challenges, it could make TikTok cheaper to buy. 'One of the main effects of the legislation would be to decrease the sale price,' said Matt Perault, director of the University of North Carolina's Center on Technology Policy, which gets funding from TikTok and other tech companies. 'As you approach that 180-day clock, the pressure on the company to sell or risk being banned entirely would be high, which would mean probably the acquirers could get it at a lower price.' What happens if ByteDance won't sell - or no-one wants to buy it? If the Senate passes the bill, then TikTok will be banned - if ByteDance don't sell it to US company. If that doesn't happen, then the app will be banned. Instead of making monthly payments on their behalf, they pocketed the money The scheme tricked victims into taking over the servicing of their student debt Thousands of student loan borrowers will receive a share of $4.1 million in refunds after losing money to debt relief scammers. Some 27,584 victims will receive a check from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency announced today. A phony student loan relief scheme, which went under a variety of names including Mission Hills Federal and The Student Loan Group, lured in Americans with the promise of affordable repayment plans or forgiving their debts entirely. Instead, the scammers pocketed their monthly loan payments. The FTC filed a complaint against the scheme in 2019, alleging that since 2014 it had tricked students into paying hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars in illegal upfront fees and fake loan payments. Some 27,584 victims will receive a check from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the agency announced today (Pictured: FTC Chair Lina M. Khan) On average, each victim should receive a refund of almost $150, but the amounts received will vary. According to the complaint filed by the FTC, the operators also tricked vulnerable consumers into sending their monthly student loan payments directly to the scammers by pretending to take over the servicing of their loans. In reality, few payments were actually applied to consumers' student loans and in many cases, none at all. Instead, they kept consumers' money for themselves. The scheme 'preyed' on borrowers by promising to reduce their monthly payments or enrolling them in income-based repayment plans. The scammers told victims to stop making payments to their servicers and, instead, to make them directly to them. In many cases they arranged for their student loans to go into forbearance, deferment, or zero dollar monthly payment status so lenders would not expect to receive monthly payments nor contact consumers when payments were not received. According to the FTC complaint, telemarketers lured people in by quoting monthly payments that were half or less than what consumers were paying their loan servicer at the time. 'For example, one consumer who had been paying $200 per month was told her new monthly payment would be $50; another consumer who had been paying $130 per month was told the new payment would be $61,' it reads. Once they had handed over their information to the scammers, most or all of their payments to their servicer were not paid. This meant that many consumers accrued additional interest on their loans. Victims who have questions about their refund should visit the FTC website. The operators also tricked vulnerable consumers into sending their monthly student loan payments directly to the scammers by pretending to take over the servicing of their loans According to NerdWallet, Americans owe around $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt. President Biden's plan to cancel up to $400 billion in student debt for millions of Americans was struck down by the Supreme Court in June last year. But the administration has since used its existing authority to leave Americans with less debt. Under the Biden administration, more than 3.7 million borrowers have had their loans canceled, totaling $136.6 billion. Meanwhile three in ten have nothing saved at all, GoBankingRates study found Some 39 percent of Americans are not saving into a retirement fund Nearly three in ten Americans have nothing saved for retirement, an alarming new study warns. The findings lay bare America's so-called 'retirement crisis' amidst fears many workers are using their 401(K) pots like cash machines. Across all ages, 28 percent have no money at all saved for their twilight years while 39 percent are not contributing to a retirement fund, survey of more than 1,000 adults by GoBankingRates found. Even among 55 to 65-year-olds, who are close to retirement, a quarter have nothing put away. Retirement planning expert Mike Kojonen, founder of Principal Preservation Services, said: 'The statistic that 30 percent of Americans have $0 saved for retirement is not surprising. Nearly three in ten Americans have nothing saved for retirement, an alarming new study warns The findings lay bare America's so-called 'retirement crisis' amidst fears many workers are using their 401(K) pots like cash machines 'Through countless consultations, Ive observed a prevalent lack of awareness about the cost of retirement and a significant underestimation of how much needs to be saved.' According to GoBankingRates' survey, workers aged between 35 and 44 are the least prepared for retirement. Some 35 percent of respondents in this age group had nothing saved for their later years. By comparison, 33 percent of those aged 45 to 54 do not have a single dollar in their funds. This figure falls to 30 percent for the 25 to 34 cohort and 28 percent for those aged 18 to 24. Baby Boomers were found to be most prepared for retirement, with only 25 percent having nothing saved at all. The survey also exposed a wide disconnect between what people think they will need for retirement and the value of their savings pots. A quarter of those questioned said they expected to be able to retire with less than $500,000 while 30 percent estimated they would need a seven-figure pot. However three out of four workers are heading towards retirement with a five-figure pot at best. Much of the problem is that there is a growing gulf in retirement savings between higher-earning individuals and those on lower wages. Despite uptake in plans remaining low, the number of savers with $1 million in their 401(K)s is edging towards an all-time high, according to figures from Fidelity. Experts warned that many low-paid workers were missing out on key benefits from retirement funds - such as employee contributions and tax breaks. A 401(K) is an employer-sponsored plan which workers often contribute to directly from their paycheck. A worker's contributions are often matched by the employer. By comparison IRAs can be opened by anybody including freelance workers. Data from Vanguard Group, one of the largest US retirement plan providers, reveals 3.6 percent of participants took early withdrawals from their accounts in 2023 Your browser does not support iframes. A 401(K) is not taxed on their own or their employer's contributions. Instead, the levy is deferred until when they draw on the funds in retirement at which point it is taxed as ordinary income. But workers saving into an IRA take a tax-hit upfront but can withdraw the savings tax-free in their twilight years. Financial expert Edward Piazza, president of Titan Funding, said many Americans are suffering from 'inadequate access to retirement savings plans, especially for those in gig or part-time employment.' Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows 69 percent of private industry workers have access to an employer-based retirement plan - yet only 52 percent participate. It comes after a separate report warned record numbers of Americans are withdrawing money from their retirement accounts last year to fund a financial emergency. Data from Vanguard Group, one of the largest US retirement plan providers, reveals 3.6 percent of participants took early withdrawals from their accounts in 2023. Even prominent figures, known for their rationalist stance, sought astrological counsel in significant moments of uncertainty Elections are a busy time for bureaucrats, politicians and the media. It is also a busy time for astrologers, something that the public may not be aware of. Many leaders and candidates visit astrologers to discuss their electoral prospects. There are politicians who reject astrology and dress in progressive garb for the media while consulting astrologers in private. Durga Das, in his book India: From Curzon to Nehru and After, writes that, upon the advice of the then Planning Minister Gulzari Lal Nanda, Pt. Nehru consulted an astrologer in the year 1962. When the astrologer predicted a Chinese aggression, an irritated Nehru told the Jyotishi you are talking bilge. A Chinese aggression followed soon after, and Pt. Nehru was in a mood to listen to the astrologer, writes Durga Das. The Jyotishi, this time, warned about Pt. Nehrus health. Durga Das writes, Fifty learned priests were engaged by his admirers to perform the prescribed rites at a temple in Kalkaji, a suburb of Delhi. Another Parliament election is here. I must disclose that the purpose of this note is to present a few observations based on astrology. The questions about the election that an astrologer faces, even from an astrological viewpoint, are complicated, and precise analyses are tough. It is difficult to analyse the charts of all the candidates. Besides, astrologically too, there are numerous things that might influence an election from the candidates birth charts to the exact time at which the nomination is filed. Though ours is a data-centric culture, these details are hard to collect and collate. Despite these difficulties, astrologers attempt to study elections. One way to do this is to examine the chart of the current premier and other leaders. What do those charts say? So, here is a short analysis of our Prime Minister, Narendra Modis chart. Modi was born on a Shuklapaksha Shashti, and his birth star is Anuradha. He is under the planetary period of Mars which started in the year 2022 and runs till 2029. It is the sub-period of Jupiter presently for him. This started last January and runs till January 2025. The lord of the ascendant, Venus, has Vargottamamsha and is posited in the 11th house along with Saturn. Mars is posited in its own house along with Moon and confers a Sasimangalayoga. Jupiters transit in the month of April 2024 will also be beneficial for him. Shri. Modis chart, and the current time, are astrologically very good, and it can be said that he will come back without a break and lead the nation once again. The current period the planetary period of Mars would be the best time in his life. He can and will execute his pet plans and projects at this time. He will win his goals and will not step back. Most likely, we will see a shift in Shri. Modis style and focus after March 2026 as, at that time, the sub-period of Saturn is coming to an end. He might contemplate a change in his ways at this time. There is also a possibility of major allegations coming up against him with an intention to defame him. From the horoscope, it can also be said that he will be active in his political career till he turns 79, that is till the period of Mars comes to an end. The position of Jupiter suggests that he will be inclined towards a spiritual life at the later stage of his life. This inclination will get stronger after he turns 79. These are general points that one can arrive at from Shri. Modis chart. Of course, one will have to analyse many other charts and aspects to get a clearer astrological picture. But the question is, is such a thorough examination warranted in public interest? One may say that astrological analyses are not scientific and hence should be discarded at face value. I would urge them to look at the scientific predictions from our psephologists. One can easily see that we, astrologers, are much more accurate than them. (The writer is a vedic scholar, views are personal) India and Italy on Wednesday here reviewed their bilateral defence ties and discussed a wide range of defence industrial and military co-operation issues under the aegis of 10th India-Italy Joint Defence Committee (JDC) meeting. Giving details, defence ministry officials said talks were held between Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Italian Secretary General of Defence and National Armament Director Lt General Luciano Portolano. They also exchanged views on the Indo-Pacific and the security situations. The focus of the meeting was to enhance defence industrial cooperation. India and Italy had signed an agreement on defence cooperation in October 2023 during the visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Italy. With the agreement providing the overarching framework to deepen the bilateral defence relationship, both sides discussed ways and means to bring the defence companies of both the countries together for joint projects, including for co-production in India. The Defence Secretary suggested the integration of Indian vendors in the global supply chains of Italian defence companies to bring value to both sides and improve the supply chain resilience. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved two new corridors of Delhi Metros Phase-IV project Lajpat Nagar to Saket G-Block and Inderlok to Indraprastha. The total project cost of the two corridors is estimated at Rs 8,399 crore, which will be sourced from the Union and Delhi Governments, and international funding agencies. These two lines will comprise 20.762 kms. The Inderlok Indraprastha corridor will be an extension of the Green Line and will provide interchange with the Red, Yellow, Airport Line, Magenta, Violet and Blue Lines, while the Lajpat Nagar - Saket G Block corridor will connect the Silver, Magenta, Pink and Violet Lines. The Lajpat Nagar Saket G Block corridor will be entirely elevated and will have eight stations. The Inderlok Indraprastha corridor will have 11.349 kms of underground lines and 1.028 kms of elevated lines comprising 10 stations. The Inderlok Indraprastha Line will provide enhanced connectivity to the Bahadurgarh region of Haryana as commuters from these areas will be able to travel on the Green Line to directly reach Indraprastha as well as various other areas of central and east Delhi. These new lines will provide direct connectivity and reduce travel time for passengers, eliminating the need for long detours. They will also connect busy commercial areas, addressing the increasing congestion in the city. Today two new metro corridors have been given permission, on which Rs 8,400 crore will be spent. There will be about 8.4-kilometer metro line from Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block. It will have eight stations. The second is from Inderlok to Indraprastha, this will be a metro line of about 12.4 kilometre. It will be completed by March 2029..., Union Minister Anurag Thakur said while addressing a Press conference after the Union Cabinet meeting. Eight new interchange stations will come up on these corridors at Inderlok, Nabi Karim, New Delhi, Delhi Gate, Indraprastha, Lajpat Nagar, Chirag Dilli and Saket G Block. These stations will significantly improve the interconnectivity among all the operational lines of the Delhi Metro network, he said. This metro stretch will provide enhanced connectivity to the Bahadurgarh region of Haryana. Presently, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) has about 427 km of metro network including 34 km of RRTS operational for NCR reason. The Delhi Metro currently operates on a network of 392.44 km spanning over 12 corridors in NCR, consisting of 286 stations. The Delhi Metro is already constructing a network of 65 km as part of its fourth phase of expansion. These new corridors are expected to be completed by March 2026 in stages. Over 60 lakh passengers commute on Delhi Metro every day. The Delhi Metro is now one of the fastest growing Metro networks in the world. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) has already started the pre-bid activities and preparation of tender documents. Earlier, the Delhi Government had approved Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for the development of three Metro Rail lines and is seeking approval for three other corridors under Phase IV. The recent approval of the Charbagh-Vasant Kunj corridor in Uttar Pradesh and the commencement of integrated trials for Phase-1 of the Metro-3 corridor in Mumbai are also significant developments in the expansion of the Metro network. With the Centre opening the platform for verification regarding the notification of the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), Pakistani Hindus living in India have now started filing online citizenship applications in Delhi, Nagpur, and elsewhere, according to sources in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. About 2,000 Pakistani Hindus living in Nagpur are preparing to seek Indian citizenship, with a similar number documented in the national Capital. The migrants from the neighbouring country are navigating the intricacies of filing online applications that will enable them to reside in India without the hassle of seeking visa extensions and other paperwork. While protests by certain sections against the CAA continue in Delhi, Assam, Karnataka, and West Bengal, leaders from Opposition parties question the CAA notification, alleging that only minorities are being targeted. Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur lashed out at the Opposition, saying thousands of Dalit families from neighbouring countries now living in India were awaiting citizenship. Do those who came from Pakistan and whose two-three generations have passed have no right to citizenship? he asked. After the partition of the country, then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru promised that minorities living in neighbouring countries would be protected, but Thakur charged that the Congress did nothing for it in the last 75 years. Meanwhile, some relatives of beneficiaries who entered the country in recent years are seeking relaxation in the cutoff date to accommodate them. The Centre implemented the CAA on Monday, notifying the rules four years after the law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014 Vinod, who hails from the Sindh province of Pakistan, said he and seven of his family members crossed over to India through the Wagah-Attari border on a visit visa on December 31, 2014. He said they hadnt even dreamt about the life-changing event that would unfold 10 years later, referring to the CAA. He is among those who have already submitted their online applications for Indian citizenship. A resident of Nagpurs Jaripatka locality, which has a sizable population of Sindhis, Vinod mentioned that he was a cloth merchant in Pakistan when he came to India with his wife, two children, parents, and two other relatives. We have been staying here on long-term visas. We are thrilled with the implementation of the CAA as we will now become citizens of India, said Anand, his colleague. Both thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for making the CAA a reality. Sources said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has been receiving requests for relaxation of the cutoff date for some people who came to India six months after his entry. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav reached Raipur today on a one-day visit to Chhattisgarh. CM Yadav paid courtesy visit to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnudeo Sai at his residence. CM Dr. Yadav greeted Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Sai by presenting him a bouquet and Angavastra. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Sai presented a memento to CM Yadav. Chief Minister Dr. Yadav discussed with Sai regarding the development of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as well as various issues of public welfare related to both the states. Many public representatives were present on this occasion. While interacting with media representatives in Raipur, Chief Minister Dr. Yadav said that it is a privilege to visit the holy land of Chhattisgarh today. He highlighted the longstanding connection with this region spanning about three and a half decades. Being a functionary of the Vidyarthi Parishad, I used to visit Raipur often. Coming here, I felt as if I was at home. CM Dr. Yadav expressed hope that under the leadership of the esteemed Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the development efforts in both the states of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh will be successful. Public welfare works will be carried out in all the fields. The Congress high command has taken a serious note of the reluctance shown by the senior leaders to contest the Lok Sabha elections. The names of senior leaders of the State Congress were discussed in the meeting of the partys central election committee. It is learnt that in the meeting the former Congress president Sonia Gandhi expressed her displeasure at the reluctance shown by the senior leaders to enter the electoral fray. The Congress high command is learnt to have told the reluctant leaders clearly that their reluctance will be kept in mind while giving assignments to them in the future as well. After prolonged discussions which were marred by the difference of opinion between the leaders of State Congress, the names of three candidates were finalised in the meeting of CEC. It is worth mentioning here that the former chief minister Harish Rawat, former PCC president Pritam Singh and leader of opposition Yashpal Arya have shown reluctance to contest the Lok Sabha elections. The party high command wants the senior leaders to set an example by leading from the front in the constituencies which are tough so their reluctance has annoyed the top leadership. Even as the BJP-JJP alliance for running the state government broke down, apparently due to failure of seat sharing talks for the Lok Sabha polls, former deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala did not show any bitterness towards his alliance partner for over four years. After the BJP replaced Manohar Lal Khattar with Nayab Singh Saini as the chief minister of Haryana, JJP leader Chautala expressed gratitude to the people for their trust and support in his party. Chautala thanked the people of the state for giving him the opportunity to serve the state as deputy chief minister of Haryana. I consider it my good fortune and express my gratitude to every person of Haryana from the bottom of my heart. Your support and cooperation for the welfare of Haryana and public works has always been energizing for me, he said in a statement. He said with limited time and limited numbers, they have worked day and night to protect the interests of Haryana. They have got the work of every section and every area of Haryana done by the government, the former deputy chief minister further said. I will always be grateful to you for the constant trust you have shown in us and the support you have always given us during our times of difficulty and struggle. I assure you that following the footsteps of Jannayak Chaudhary Devi Lal ji, I will always be dedicated to protecting the interests of Haryana and the people of Haryana. Our efforts for social and economic security of the people of Haryana will continue, he said. The BJP leaders had earlier maintained that the post-poll alliance with JJP was only for running the government and not for contesting polls as the saffron outfit had said lotus (BJP poll symbol) will bloom on all 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Sources said the JJP was asking for two seats to contest the LS polls in alliance with the BJP but the saffron outfit outright refused to leave any seat. In the newly-inducted Saini cabinet which took oath on Tuesday, BJP retained four of its ministers and one independent MLA from the previous cabinet. However, all three from the JJP Dushyant Chautala, Anoop Dhanak and Devender Singh Babli were not reinducted. Asked about the fate of the alliance, JJPs Haryana unit chief Nishan Singh said, A meeting of the party was held under the chairmanship of Dushyant Chautalas father, Dr Ajay Singh Chautala. All issues were discussed in the meeting. He said it was decided that Ajay Chautalas birthday on Wednesday will be observed by holding Nav Sankalp rally in Hisar. Whatever the party will decide will be informed in the rally, he added. Nishan Singh, meanwhile, congratulated Saini who took oath as new CM. Notably, with both the BJP and the JJP remaining non-committal over jointly contesting the Lok Sabha and assembly polls, the BJP leaders had earlier maintained that the post-poll alliance with JJP was meant only for running the government. BJP has accepted defeat by changing CM: Hooda Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday said BJP and JJP had accepted defeat even before the elections, by breaking the alliance and changing the chief minister. He alleged that there is an agreement between the two parties and an alliance has been broken to divide anti-government votes. It is clear from this decision that a failed coalition government was running in the state, which had completely disillusioned the people. Therefore, the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister had to be changed just before the elections. By doing this BJP is trying to divert attention from the failures of nine and a half years. The BJP has no moral right to remain in power in the state. Assembly elections should be conducted by immediately imposing the President's rule in the state, Hooda said. INLD leader Abhay Chautala said, "By changing the CM, BJP has admitted that they were ruining the state. People had defeated BJP in 2019 itself, it formed the government with the help of traitors. That thugbandhan looted, committed corruption for 4 and a half years and created a drama as soon as the elections came. This means you are admitting that you are losing the election badly.`` Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The Libyan authorities have failed to investigate the responsibility of powerful military and political actors in the catastrophic floods in the eastern city of Derna, Amnesty International (AI) has deplored, saying they have also failed to ensure that those affected have equal access to compensation The Chhattisgarh High Court on Tuesday rejected the interim bail plea of Congress legislator Devendra Singh Yadav in a money laundering case related to an alleged coal levy scam. Justice Narendra Kumar Vyas delivered the order, ED lawyer Saurabh Pandey said. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had filed the second supplementary chargesheet in the case in the court of 4th Additional District and Sessions Judge Ajay Singh Rajput in August last year naming 11 persons, including Yadav and Chandradev Prasad Rai and IAS officer Ranu Sahu as accused. The special court had registered the second supplementary chargesheet and issued notices to nine of the 11 accused. Sahu and Nikhil Chandrakar had already been arrested in the case. Besides legislators Yadav and Rai, Congress leaders RP Singh and Vinod Tiwari are also among the nine accused. The EDs investigation relates to the alleged scam in which an illegal levy of Rs 25 per tonne was being extorted for every tonne of coal transported in Chhattisgarh by a cartel involving senior bureaucrats, businessmen, politicians and middlemen. In a fast paced political development in Haryana, state BJP President Nayab Singh Saini was on Tuesday evening sworn in as states new chief minister, soon after the surprise resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar from the post along with his cabinet ministers. Five MLAs four from the BJP and one independent were also sworn in as ministers. However, former home minister and six-term MLA from Ambala Cantt, Anil Vij, himself a chief ministerial aspirant, has not found a place in the new cabinet. Saini, the 54-year-old OBC leader, was administered oath by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya at the oath-taking ceremony held at the Raj Bhavan here. BJPs Kanwar Pal, Mool Chand Sharma, Jai Prakash Dalal and Banwari Lal and Independent MLA Ranjit Singh Chautala took oath as ministers. All the five were ministers in the outgoing Khattar cabinet. Besides Vij, BJP legislators Kamal Gupta, Om Prakash Yadav, Kamlesh Dhanda, and Sandeep Singh did not find their names in the Saini-led cabinet. Dushyant Chautala, Davinder Babli and Anoop Dhanak of JJP were other ministers in the Khattar cabinet. Vij, who is learnt to be sulking, was not present at the oath-taking ceremony. After the party meeting here, he headed straight to his Ambala residence. The development to bring in a new face as chief minister by the BJP came just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Khattars second term as chief minister was also to end in October, when the assembly polls are scheduled to take place. Earlier in the day, Khattar and all 13 other members of the BJP-led council of ministers submitted their resignations to the governor as a team of the partys central observers arrived in Chandigarh. The switch in Haryana came amid the ruling BJP-JJP coalition coming apart, though party leaders from both sides did not make immediate comment. Saini, who was unanimously elected as leader of the party's state legislature group, met Governor Bandaru Dattatreya to stake claim for forming the new government in the state. He was accompanied by Union Minister Arjun Munda, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh, former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Haryana BJP in-charge Biplab Deb in the Raj Bhavan here. JJP leader Dushyant Chautala was the deputy chief minister and there were two other members of his party in the Khattar-led government. Four JJP MLAs Jogi Ram Sihag, Ishwar Singh, Davinder Babli, and Ram Niwas Surjakhera were also present at the oath-taking function. Saini, who is the MP from Kurukshetra, was appointed chief of state BJP in October last year. Speaking to reporters after taking oath, Saini said the BJP will win all the 10 Lok Sabha seats from the state with a big mandate. He also said that the party will again form the government when the assembly polls are held in the state. On being picked up as chief minister, Saini said that the party has given such respect to an ordinary worker. Speaking to reporters, Khattar said he has known Saini since a long time and he is happy that a youth face has taken oath as CM and has been entrusted with new responsibility. Earlier, Haryana governor accepted the resignations of Khattar and his council of ministers, according to a notification. Among the MLAs who took oath, two of them J P Dalal (Loharu segment) and Ranjit Chautala (Rania) come from the Jat community while Mool Chand Sharma (Ballabhgarh) is a Brahmin face, Kanwar Pal (Jagadhri) comes from Gujjar community and Banwari Lal (Bawal) from the SC community. Saini was a minister in the first Khattar cabinet. He was an MLA when he fought the Lok Sabha polls in 2019. There are speculations that Khattar may be fielded as the partys Lok Sabha candidate from Karnal. At present, the BJP has 41 MLAs in the 90-member assembly while the JJP has 10. The BJP is comfortably placed even without the JJPs support as the Khattar government enjoyed the support of six of the seven independents. The main opposition Congress has 30 MLAs while the Indian National Lok Dal and Haryana Lokhit Party one seat each. The JJP too called a meeting in Delhi of its leaders following the surprise development. Five of its Haryana MLAs are learnt to have skipped the meeting, indicating a possible rift in the ranks. In a post on X, Saini thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J P Nadda, partys Haryana in-charge Biplab Dev, Khattar and the party MLAs. Earlier, emerging from the BJP meeting at Haryana Niwas, Vij parried questions from reporters on what transpired inside. Those who have come from Delhi will tell, he said. NEW CM SAINI Nayab Singh Saini, regarded as Khattar's confidante, joined the Haryana BJP in 1996, and rose through the ranks quickly and became the district general secretary of the BJP Youth Wing in Ambala in 2002. Three years later, he was appointed as its district president. He was also the state general secretary of the BJP Kisan Morcha in Haryana in 2009, and district president of Ambala BJP in 2012. Saini won from the Narayangarh constituency in the 2014 assembly pollshis first stint as an MLAand was appointed a minister in the Khattar led Haryana government in 2016. He was appointed Haryana BJP president in October 2023. He won the Kurukshetra seat in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections by more than 3.83 lakh votes, beating Nirmal Singh of the Congress. Caste equation, too, might have been a factorthe Saini caste accounts for around eight per cent of the Haryana population. It has influence over regions in Kurukshetra, Ambala, Hisar, Yamunanagar and Rewari districts. PM Modi congratulates Saini on taking oath as Haryana CM Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday congratulated Nayab Singh Saini on taking oath as the chief minister of Haryana. "Congratulations to @NayabSainiBJP Ji on taking oath as the chief minister of Haryana. Wishing him and his team of ministers the very best for their efforts in fulfilling the aspirations of the people of Haryana," Modi said on X. Investigating links between Khalistani terrorists and gangsters, a team of National Investigation Agency (NIA) is searching in Madhya Pradesh and conducted raids in Bhopal, Burhanpur, Khargone and Barwani districts on Tuesday. The action was taken after NIA had received input about a youth from Khanugaon, Bhopal being associated with Khalistani organization. He is being detained and interrogated. NIA has taken action at 30 places in Madhya Pradesh as well as Punjab-Haryana and Chandigarh. NIA raided three places in Madhya Pradesh, one youth detained from Bhopal, action also taken in Khandwa and Barwani. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) team raided three districts in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday. A youth has been detained from Khanugaon, Bhopal. Here, action is going on in Khandwa and Barwani. NIA took action at 30 places in Madhya Pradesh as well as Punjab-Haryana and Chandigarh. The NIA had also raided Khanugaon in Bhopal about five months ago, when an elderly man was detained. The NIA teams have reached two police station areas in Khargone district, Bhagwanpura and Goganwa area. Searching and interrogation is being done in Satipura of Bhagwanpura. Both places are dens of illegal weapons. Khargone's Additional SP MS Baria said that NIA has sought the help of the local police. In the action NIA interrogated a youth named Deepak Patil in Khadki village of Rajpur police station area of the district. After interrogation, the team reached Umarti of Varla police station area. Let us tell you that Umarti is considered a stronghold of illegal weapons. NIA is searching for a youth named Atul, resident of Sendhwa in the same district. When Atul's location was found in Chopra police station area of Maharashtra, the team went there also. During the raids Umarti area famous for illegal weapons in Barwani district was also raided, teams of the central agency are engaged in arresting the network of manufacturing and selling of illegal weapons across the country. Although the news of NIA team's arrival in Khandwa district of Nimar was also being received since morning, but Khandwa SP Virendra Kumar Singh clarified about this and said that at present there is no such information in Khandwa district. At the same time, he said that if NIA teams reach somewhere to take action, they usually do not give any information in this regard to the local police. In Khargone district of Nimar itself, news of NIA team's arrival was received since morning, regarding which Khargone. Additional SP Manohar Singh said that NIA team has reached the district. Which is interrogating some people to investigate cases related to illegal weapons. Although their investigation is still ongoing, and no one has been arrested as of now, details will be revealed in this regard only after their investigation is completed. Virtual inaugurations of various projects in Punjab by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has failed to go down well with the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who criticized the BJP-led Centre for orchestrating these events without prior consultation with the state government. The absence of collaboration between the Central and State authorities has raised eyebrows, with Mann decrying, what he sees, as a blatant attempt by the Central Government to hog the limelight while disregarding Punjabs integral role in these projects. Mann, in a scathing critique, minced no words to lash out at the Central Government for sidelining the elected state government, merely to seek credit for the projects. Addressing the House after the zero hour on Tuesday, Mann expressed his dismay over the lack of consultation and involvement of the Punjab government in these virtual inaugurations organized by the Centre. Questioning the motive behind such events, Mann pointed out that the State Government was not informed beforehand about the inauguration of seven upgraded railway stations from Shambu to Sahnewal in Ludhiana district. I got to know about it from TV, he said. The Chief Minister criticized the manner in which Prime Minister Modi seemed intent on garnering praise without acknowledging the contributions of the State Government and the people of Punjab. Mann emphasized the importance of cooperation between the central and state governments in development initiatives, highlighting that the funds for projects and infrastructure development come from the states taxpayers as well. He lamented the absence of recognition for the state's efforts and the exclusion of Punjabs 3.5 crore residents from the credit-taking process. Railways come under the CentreToday, railway stations were inaugurated without consulting usIn the same way civil aviation comes under youAdampur terminal was also inaugurated in the same way. On one side, Governor Sahib sits there, and on the other, Prime Minister inaugurate the projects virtually, with people chanting slogans in favour of BJP and Narendra ModiThey make it BJPs eventand the State Government is neither informed nor consultedWhat for...?? Just to claim credit! asked Mann. Mann went on to add, It is a grave insult of the mandate of three crore people who have chosen their government.It is unfortunate that top leadership of the country is indulging in such cheap tantrums of credit war. LOK SABHA POLLS: Avoid Personal Attacks, Lets Lead by Example With the Lok Sabha elections drawing near and announcement of dates expected any time now, Bhagwant Mann expressed serious concern over the increasing trend of personal attacks between political leaders, especially as observed over the past year. Emphasizing the need for a shift in political discourse, he asserted that the recent exchanges between leaders were unacceptable. At the same time, he called upon all the leaders and workers to set an example for all to see by avoiding unnecessary clashes or verbal duels, while conducting peaceful, free, and fair elections. We all are here to contest electionspeople are there to choose among usLet us all make this festival of democracy a peaceful exercise to lead by an example, he said, stressing the significance of upcoming elections as a celebration of democracy, encouraging all political parties and citizens to participate fervently. The Chief Minister urged leaders from all parties to refrain from engaging in divisive politics, emphasizing the need to avoid employing dirty tactics that could polarize voters on communal grounds. Mann, in an effort to maintain a healthy democratic process, also assured all the political parties of adequate security measures during the upcoming elections. He highlighted the importance of providing a level playing field for all parties to campaign freely, emphasizing the State Government's commitment to ensuring a secure and congenial atmosphere for political activities. Soon after the oath taking ceremony, Nayab Singh Saini assumed the role of Chief Minister at the Haryana Civil Secretariat. Outgoing Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar facilitated him in assumption of duties in the Chief Minister's Office and congratulated him on his new responsibilities. Talking to Reporters, Saini acknowledged Khattar's significant contribution to the overall development of the state and praised him for setting an example of governance over the past nine and a half years, which has set a new standard for progress in Haryana.. He said that the outgoing CM Khattar spearheaded inclusive development in the state, adhering to the fundamental principle of "Haryana Ek-Haryanvi Ek," without any discrimination. Working in the spirit of Antyodaya, he has extended the benefits of government schemes to the person standing in the last line. Through initiatives such as Haryana's transfer policy, transparent employment procedures, among others, Khattar has earned the trust and confidence of the public. Saini further expressed gratitude during the first Cabinet meeting for the commendable work accomplished during Khattar's tenure. Expressing his gratitude to the central leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party National President JP Nadda, and Haryana BJP in-charge Biplab Deb, Chief Minister said that he will work to uphold the same ethos of public service exemplified by Manohar Lal, and assured that the state government would strive to meet the expectations of every citizen. Earlier, in the first Cabinet meeting convened under the chairmanship of Saini, heartfelt appreciation was extended to Manohar Lal for his unwavering commitment to serving the people of the state. Saini reiterated the Cabinet's dedication to advancing the state's comprehensive development agenda, pledging to build upon the policies, ideologies, and initiatives set forth by Khattar. The Cabinet also decided to convene a special session of Haryana Vidhan Sabha on March 13. With the Delhi Police grating permission to a 5,000 member group of protesting farmers under Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) for holding the Kisan Mahapanchayat at the Ramlila ground in Delhi on Thursday, the Delhi Police has made elaborate security arrangements at borders so that no heavy vehicles including tractors are sneaked inside the city. The traffic police have issued an advisory for the commuters to avoid roads leading to Central Delhi. Deputy Commissioner of Police (central) M Harsha Vardhan said that farmers have been allowed to hold the mahapanchayat with the gathering to not significantly exceed 5,000. He said the farmers have given them the undertaking where they were asked to not come with tractors, without any weapon and also promised that they will not hold any march in Delhi. Individuals travelling to ISBT, Railway Station or Airport have been advised to plan their journeys with sufficient time in advance. A senior police official advised the general public to allocate ample time when scheduling road trips via the diverted routes. The majority of farmers are expected to arrive by trains, while buses and four-wheelers will be adorned with window stickers and organisation flags to facilitate hassle-free transportation to and from Delhi. Once the farmers are dropped off, the vehicles will be parked in designated spots. According to the SKM, more than 50,000 farmers from Punjab are expected to attend the event where a resolution will be passed to intensify the fight against policies of the Modi Government. The umbrella body of farmers organisations, which had spearheaded the 2020-21 farmers protest at Delhi borders against the three central agriculture laws, stressed that it would be a peaceful gathering The Police released a traffic advisory concerning the farmers protest, indicating that traffic flow at city borders will be impacted by picketing and checkpoints, and urged commuters to make appropriate arrangements. The Delhi High Court on Wednesday upheld an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) refusing to stay a notice issued by the Income Tax department to the Congress party for recovery of outstanding tax of more than Rs 100 crore. A bench of Justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav said there was no reason to interfere with the ITAT's March 8 order. The bench had reserved its order on Tuesday after hearing the submissions on behalf of the Congress and the I-T department. The Congress approached the high court after ITAT dismissed the party's application seeking a stay on the February 13 notice of the I-T department initiating recovery proceedings against it. The assessing officer had raised a tax demand of more than Rs 100 crore for the assessment year 2018-19 when the income was assessed to be more than Rs 199 crore. The counsel for the Congress had urged the court to grant it some protection otherwise the party would collapse. The I-T department's counsel had informed the court that the original tax demand stood at Rs 102 crore and together with interest it rose to Rs 135.06 crore. He said Rs 65.94 crore stands recovered now. The tribunal had dismissed the stay application saying, " we do not find that the recovery notice under Section 226(3) of the Act issued by the assessing officer on February 13, 2024 is lacking in bona fides, so as to require us to intervene." The party had earlier said the I-T tribunal order freezing its funds was "an attack on democracy" as it had come just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear on March 15 a plea of an NGO challenging the exclusion of the Chief Justice of India from a panel meant for selecting the CEC and election commissioners on the grounds that the poll panel should be insulated from political and executive interference to maintain a healthy democracy. A bench headed by Justice Sanjiv Khanna took note of the submissions of lawyer Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, Association for Democratic Reforms, seeking urgent listing of the plea and said it will be listed on Friday. I just got the message from the CJI that it will be listed on Friday, Justice Khanna said. The NGO challenges the validity and seeks a stay on the operation of Section 7 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023 which excludes the CJI from the panel meant to select the CEC and ECs. Under the new law, the selection panel includes the prime minister as the chairperson and the leader of opposition and a union minister nominated by the PM are the two members of it. The NGO has moved the top court after Election Commissioner Arun Goel put in his papers recently. Direct the Union of India to appoint the vacant positions of Election Commissioners till the pendency of the writ petition, in accordance with the Selection Committee laid down by this Hon'ble Court in Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (Supra) in 2023. Democracy is a facet of the basic structure of the Constitution and in order to ensure free and fair elections and to maintain healthy democracy in our country, the Election Commission should be insulated from political and/or executive interference, the plea, filed in the disposed of PIL, said. A five-judge Constitution bench, on March 2, 2023, had ruled that the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and ECs will be done by the President on the recommendation of a committee, comprising the prime minister, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the CJI, to maintain the "purity" of the electoral process. The fresh plea alleged that the verdict, in relation to the selection panel, was overruled by the Centre without removing the basis of the judgement. The fresh plea, filed through lawyer Bhushan, said the March 2, 2023 judgement had held that leaving appointment of the members of ECs and CEC in the hands of the executive would be seriously detrimental to the health of our democracy and conduct of free and fair election. That thereafter, in December 2023 Parliament in the absence of the opposition as well as substantive debate and discussion passed the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023. This law came into effect from 2nd January 2024, it said. It is pertinent to mention that the Chief Justice of India has been removed and cabinet minister (to be nominated by the prime minister) has been added thereby restoring the previous law i.E. Selection by executive thereby undermining the rule of law and threatening democracy, it said. The composition of the selection committee under the new law amounted to excessive interference of the executive in the appointment of the ECs and CEC and is detrimental to the independence of the poll panel, it said. Recently, another plea has been filed by Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Jaya Thakur seeking to restrain the Centre from appointing new election commissioners as per a 2023 law. The Congress leader has also challenged the provisions of the 2023 law. On the occasion of No Smoking Day, doctors, cancer victims and hotel associations urged the government to remove designated smoking rooms in hotels, restaurants and airports to protect people from second-hand smoke. While appreciating the government for initiating the process to amend COTPA 2003 and setting a target of making India 100 per cent smoke free, they appealed for immediate removal of the current provision that permits smoking areas. "Smoking worsens lung function and reduces immunity. All designated smoking areas in hotels and restaurants and even airports should be abolished to ensure a 100 per cent smoke free environment. "Most of these designated smoking areas are rarely compliant as per COTPA requirements and are actually putting our public at great health risk from exposure to secondhand smoke," said Dr Harit Chaturvedi, chairman of Max Institute of Cancer Care. In India, smoking is banned in all public places, according to the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce Production, Supply and Distribution) Act (COTPA), 2003. Section 4 of this Act prohibits smoking in any place to which the public has access. However, COTPA 2003 presently allows smoking in designated smoking areas of certain public places like restaurants, hotels and airports. "Exposure to passive smoking happens in eateries, specifically hotels, restaurants, bar and restaurant, pubs and clubs, risking lives of thousands of non-smokers by exposing them to the smoke of cigarettes. "As cigarette smoke seeps from smoking areas to common areas, COTPA needs to be amended to not permit smoking in any premises. All places should be completely smoke free in the best interest of the public health," said Nalini Satyanarayan, a passive smoking victim and health activist. Second-hand smoking is as harmful as smoking. Exposure to second-hand smoke causes many diseases including, lung cancer and heart disease in adults and the impairment of the lung function and respiratory infections in children, experts said. People with compromised respiratory and cardiovascular systems are at higher risk of death. Designated smoking areas facilitate the spread of infection as smokers cannot socially distance or wear masks and are trapped in close proximity in a smoke-filled environment, they said. "We are finding that families prefer to stay in hotels which do not allow smoking. We are happy that the government is strengthening the COTPA provisions to make hospitality sector completely smoke free. "We support the government in its initiative for safeguarding people's health," said G P Sharma, president, Hospitality Association of Uttar Pradesh. The government of India has started the COTPA Amendment process and introduced the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) (Amendment) Bill, 2020. A recent survey conducted in India revealed that 72 per cent believe that second-hand smoke is a serious health hazard and 88 per cent people strongly support strengthening of the current tobacco control law to address this menace. India has the second largest number of tobacco users (268 million or 28.6 per cent of all adults in India) in the world. Of these, at least 1.2 million die every year from tobacco related diseases, Dr Chaturvedi said. One million deaths are due to smoking, with over 200,000 due to second-hand smoke exposure, and over 35,000 due to smokeless tobacco use. Nearly 27 per cent of all cancers in India are due to tobacco usage. (): Pakistans former prime minister Nawaz Sharifs two sons returned to the country from the UK on Tuesday after a six-year self-exile after an accountability court suspended their arrest warrants in the Panama Papers scandal.Hassan Nawaz and Hussain Nawaz left the country in 2018 after they were named in the 2016 Panama Papers scandal. An accountability court had declared them as proclaimed offenders in the Avenfiled case in 2018 and had issued non-bailable perpetual arrest warrants against them. The case revolves around the Sharif familys ownership and acquisition of luxury apartments in London. Nawazs sons arrived here from London on Tuesday and were escorted to their Jati Umra Lahore house in a high security, the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party said in a statement. Nawaz Sharif is the PML-N supremo. The Jati Umra residence of the Sharifs has already been declared as Chief Minister House where a heavy contingent of police has been deployed for the security and protocol of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and her father Nawaz Sharif. Hussain and Hassan, through their counsel, applied to an Islamabad accountability court, seeking the suspension of the warrants issued against them in the Avenfield Apartments, Al-Azizia, and Flagship Investment cases which were accepted. Last week the court suspended their arrest warrants till March 14 in the three corruption cases related to the Panama Papers scandal. The brothers, who are British nationals, were implicated in the cases in 2018 along with their father Nawaz Sharif, sister Maryam Nawaz and her husband Muhammad Safdar. All other accused, including Nawaz Sharif, have been acquitted in all the cases and only the two brothers were still required to face the courts as they were not formally tried due to their absence. Like their father, the two brothers are likely to get acquitted in all three cases as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which had instituted these cases against them, has given them a clean chit. In 2018, Nawaz Sharif, Maryam and Safdar were convicted in the Avenfield while the three-time former premier was also convicted in the Al-Azizia cases and acquitted in the Flagship case. All of them separately challenged convictions in the Islamabad High Court. Maryam and Safdar were the first to get relief in 2022 when they were acquitted while Nawaz Sharif was still living in London. Since the Sharif family and their party the PML-N are being patronage by the current military establishment all the cases against them have either been closed or acquitted. In October last year, Nawaz Sharif returned to Pakistan after a four-year self-imposed exile in the UK and after brief proceedings, he was acquitted in all cases. His younger brother Shehbaz Sharif was elected as Pakistans prime minister for a second time after the PML-N and the Pakistan Peoples Party agreed on a power-sharing deal to form a coalition government. Maryam, the 50-year-old daughter of Nawaz Sharif, took oath as the first-ever woman chief minister of Pakistans most populous and politically crucial Punjab province on February 26. (): Veteran politician-cum-economist Muhammad Ishaq Dar on Tuesday assumed charge as Pakistans new foreign minister as the cash-strapped country attempts to tackle myriad problems on the domestic and external fronts, including its relations with India and other neighbours.Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday inducted 19 members into his Cabinet, ending the tenuous wait for the completion of government formation after the February 8 elections resulted in a hung Parliament and days of political uncertainty. Dar is an ethnic Kashmiri and chartered accountant by training, and is a senior leader of the ruling Pakistan Muslin League-Nawaz (PML-N). He is also a confidant of the party head and former three-time premier Nawaz Sharif. Mr Muhammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50 has formally assumed the role of Pakistans 39th Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted on X. With little experience in managing foreign affairs, the 73-year-old leader has been given the important portfolio when Pakistans ties with its neighbour India and Afghanistan are at their lowest ebb. India and Pakistan broke off trade ties and lowered diplomatic presence in each others capital in August 2019 after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories. Pakistan has suffered due to a hiatus in trade as it used to import several items and raw materials at cheaper rates from India. Dar has favoured economic relations with the archrival but it was not possible to move ahead due to the Kashmir issue. Dars position on Kashmir, which is the chief stumbling block in ties between Pakistan and India, should not be different from the general narrative of Pakistan that it should be solved according to the resolutions of the UN Security Council. In a tweet on February 5, the Kashmir Solidarity Day, this year, Dar said Pakistan was committed to its unwavering political, moral and diplomatic support to the just struggle of our Kashmiri brethren for their right of self-determination, as enshrined in the United Nations (UN) Charter and relevant UN resolutions. India has repeatedly told Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir was, is and shall forever remain an integral part of the country. New Delhi has told Islamabad that it desires normal neighbourly relations with it in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar reiterated Indias firm stand in New Delhi on Monday. We have never closed our doors to talking to Pakistan but the terrorism issue should be fair, square at the centre of the conversation. It is the major issue I am not saying there are no other issues. But I am not going to duck that issue for the sake of talking, he said. Dar, being an economist, should also be aware of the pitfalls of continuous antagonism with India, the worlds fifth-largest economy. However, any change in ties with India should come from Pakistans powerful establishment. Dar also faces Taliban-led Afghanistan, which Pakistan accuses of harbouring militants who are increasing attacks on Pakistani soil. The Taliban deny that claim. Pakistans ties with Iran also witnessed strain after they exchanged cross-border airstrikes on what they claim were militant hideouts and safe havens being used against one another. Meanwhile, the information ministry elaborated on the various portfolios assigned to other ministers. Khawaja Muhammad Asif was appointed as minister for defence, defence production and aviation, Ahsan Iqbal as minister for planning, development and special initiatives, Azam Nazeer Tarar law and justice, human rights, Attaullah Tarar as minister of information and broadcasting, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh as minister for maritime affairs and Muhammad Aurangzeb as minister of finance, revenue. Shaza Fatima Khawaja, the only woman minister, was appointed as minister of state. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL increased its position in shares of Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT Free Report) by 6.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 25,680 shares of the healthcare product makers stock after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares during the quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. ALs holdings in Abbott Laboratories were worth $2,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Patriot Investment Management Group Inc. now owns 3,236 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Shepherd Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,275 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Landaas & Co. WI ADV lifted its holdings in Abbott Laboratories by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Landaas & Co. WI ADV now owns 5,534 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $608,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 20,029 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $2,371,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grant Street Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Abbott Laboratories by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Grant Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,148 shares of the healthcare product makers stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 73.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get Abbott Laboratories alerts: Abbott Laboratories Stock Performance Shares of ABT traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $120.59. The stock had a trading volume of 870,616 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,972,412. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $114.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.59. Abbott Laboratories has a fifty-two week low of $89.67 and a fifty-two week high of $121.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.04, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.75. Abbott Laboratories Announces Dividend Abbott Laboratories ( NYSE:ABT Get Free Report ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The healthcare product maker reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.19. Abbott Laboratories had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 20.65%. The firm had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $10.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. The businesss revenue was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Abbott Laboratories will post 4.62 EPS for the current year. The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Abbott Laboratoriess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.48%. Analysts Set New Price Targets Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $116.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, December 13th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Abbott Laboratories from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and set a $128.00 price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Abbott Laboratories from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $120.00. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on ABT Insider Buying and Selling In related news, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of Abbott Laboratories stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, VP John A. Jr. Mccoy sold 472 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total transaction of $55,932.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,760 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,223,060. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Daniel Gesua Sive Salvadori sold 963 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.50, for a total value of $114,115.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,895,094.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 71,435 shares of company stock worth $8,071,298 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.10% of the companys stock. 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 company 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. Read More 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. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK Free Report) by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,745,648 shares of the asset managers stock after acquiring an additional 307,516 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLPs holdings in BlackRock were worth $1,128,544,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of BlackRock by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,152,336 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $4,252,126,000 after acquiring an additional 138,455 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its position in BlackRock by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,369,035 shares of the asset managers stock worth $2,178,048,000 after purchasing an additional 104,844 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in BlackRock by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,329,550 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $2,148,586,000 after purchasing an additional 35,161 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in BlackRock by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,096,970 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $2,140,439,000 after purchasing an additional 255,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of BlackRock by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,723,629 shares of the asset managers stock worth $1,876,647,000 after purchasing an additional 59,298 shares during the last quarter. 77.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get BlackRock alerts: Insider Activity In other BlackRock news, General Counsel Christopher J. Meade sold 18,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.54, for a total value of $5,085,660.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 11,914 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,366,142.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other BlackRock news, Director Rachel Lord sold 36,059 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $818.06, for a total value of $29,498,425.54. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,004 shares of the companys stock, valued at $13,910,292.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Christopher J. Meade sold 18,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.54, for a total value of $5,085,660.60. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 11,914 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,366,142.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 100,511 shares of company stock worth $71,864,028. 1.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. BlackRock Stock Up 0.5 % Shares of NYSE:BLK opened at $829.59 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $123.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 3.48, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. BlackRock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $596.18 and a 12-month high of $845.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $799.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $733.50. BlackRock (NYSE:BLK Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The asset manager reported $9.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $8.84 by $0.82. The business had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.65 billion. BlackRock had a net margin of 30.81% and a return on equity of 14.74%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.93 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 39.73 EPS for the current fiscal year. BlackRock Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th will be given a $5.10 dividend. This is a positive change from BlackRocks previous quarterly dividend of $5.00. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $20.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. BlackRocks dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.88%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth BLK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on BlackRock from $719.00 to $793.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, November 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of BlackRock from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $708.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 15th. UBS Group boosted their price target on BlackRock from $720.00 to $818.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of BlackRock from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and set a $885.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 12th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of BlackRock from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and lifted their target price for the company from $819.00 to $938.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $785.73. Read Our Latest Research Report on BLK BlackRock Profile (Free Report) BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BLK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for BlackRock Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BlackRock and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Shares of Encompass Health Co. (NYSE:EHC Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of Buy from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $82.56. A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Mizuho raised their target price on Encompass Health from $77.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Barclays assumed coverage on Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an overweight rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $83.00 target price on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an outperform rating on shares of Encompass Health in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Get Encompass Health alerts: Get Our Latest Stock Report on EHC Encompass Health Stock Performance Shares of EHC opened at $76.95 on Wednesday. The businesss fifty day simple moving average is $72.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Encompass Health has a 12 month low of $51.15 and a 12 month high of $78.11. The company has a market cap of $7.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.93. Encompass Health (NYSE:EHC Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.24 billion. Encompass Health had a return on equity of 17.69% and a net margin of 7.33%. Research analysts anticipate that Encompass Health will post 3.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Encompass Health Dividend Announcement The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Encompass Healths payout ratio is 17.29%. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Encompass Health by 11.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,374,755 shares of the companys stock valued at $92,329,000 after purchasing an additional 142,633 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Encompass Health by 6.7% in the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 306,796 shares of the companys stock worth $20,604,000 after acquiring an additional 19,254 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in Encompass Health by 10.7% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 113,501 shares of the companys stock worth $7,623,000 after acquiring an additional 10,958 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Encompass Health by 1,369.5% in the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 62,675 shares of the companys stock worth $4,215,000 after acquiring an additional 58,410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its position in Encompass Health by 12.4% in the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 54,557 shares of the companys stock worth $3,664,000 after acquiring an additional 6,023 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.66% of the companys stock. Encompass Health Company Profile (Get Free Report Encompass Health Corporation provides post-acute healthcare services in the United States. It provides specialized rehabilitative treatment on an inpatient basis to patients who have experienced physical or cognitive disabilities or injuries due to medical conditions, such as strokes, hip fractures, and various debilitating neurological conditions. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Encompass Health Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Encompass Health and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE Free Report) by 70.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,550,595 shares of the technology companys stock after purchasing an additional 1,464,650 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned about 0.27% of Hewlett Packard Enterprise worth $61,674,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE acquired a new position in shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. First Manhattan Co. lifted its stake in shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise by 89.4% in the 1st quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 2,413 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new stake in Hewlett Packard Enterprise in the first quarter worth $44,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Hewlett Packard Enterprise during the third quarter worth $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.15% of the companys stock. Get Hewlett Packard Enterprise alerts: Hewlett Packard Enterprise Price Performance Shares of NYSE:HPE opened at $17.92 on Wednesday. The businesss 50 day moving average is $15.93 and its 200-day moving average is $16.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.30 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.19. Hewlett Packard Enterprise has a 1-year low of $13.65 and a 1-year high of $20.07. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Dividend Announcement Hewlett Packard Enterprise ( NYSE:HPE Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.09 billion. Hewlett Packard Enterprise had a net margin of 6.81% and a return on equity of 9.12%. The businesss revenue for the quarter was down 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.38 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Hewlett Packard Enterprise will post 1.54 earnings per share for the current year. The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Hewlett Packard Enterprises payout ratio is 35.86%. Analyst Ratings Changes Several research firms have recently issued reports on HPE. Barclays decreased their price target on Hewlett Packard Enterprise from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Hewlett Packard Enterprise from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and lowered their price target for the company from $20.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, Hewlett Packard Enterprise currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $17.25. Read Our Latest Stock Report on HPE Insider Transactions at Hewlett Packard Enterprise In other Hewlett Packard Enterprise news, EVP Phil Mottram sold 50,428 shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise stock in a transaction on Monday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.77, for a total transaction of $845,677.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,466 shares of the companys stock, valued at $443,834.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CFO Jeremy Cox sold 1,773 shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.93, for a total value of $30,016.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,374 shares in the company, valued at $243,351.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Phil Mottram sold 50,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.77, for a total value of $845,677.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,466 shares in the company, valued at $443,834.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. About Hewlett Packard Enterprise (Free Report) Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company provides solutions that allow customers to capture, analyze, and act upon data seamlessly in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Japan. It operates in six segments: Compute, HPC & AI, Storage, Intelligent Edge, Financial Services, and Corporate Investments and Other. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HPE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Hewlett Packard Enterprise Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Hewlett Packard Enterprise and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima (NYSE:YPF Free Report) by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,753,658 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock after acquiring an additional 1,604,368 shares during the quarter. Citigroup Inc.s holdings in YPF Sociedad Anonima were worth $58,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of YPF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 260.4% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 313,202 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $1,513,000 after buying an additional 226,287 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 55,621 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 13,170 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lifted its position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 46,841 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 13,400 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 359.9% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 79,111 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock worth $382,000 after buying an additional 61,911 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,543,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 10.21% of the companys stock. Get YPF Sociedad Anonima alerts: YPF Sociedad Anonima Stock Performance Shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima stock opened at $17.91 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.27 and a beta of 1.89. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $16.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.84. YPF Sociedad Anonima has a 12 month low of $8.73 and a 12 month high of $19.09. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities analysts have recently commented on YPF shares. Citigroup raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $20.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a sell rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the company from $8.50 to $17.10 in a report on Monday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from an underweight rating to a neutral rating and lifted their target price for the company from $8.50 to $16.00 in a report on Monday, December 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a neutral rating to a buy rating and lifted their target price for the company from $18.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, YPF Sociedad Anonima currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $18.92. Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on YPF YPF Sociedad Anonima Profile (Free Report) YPF Sociedad Anonima, an energy company, engages in the oil and gas upstream and downstream activities in Argentina. Its upstream operations include the exploration, exploitation, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and NGLs. The company's downstream operations include the refining, marketing, and distribution of oil and petroleum products, as well as petroleum derivatives, such as petrochemicals, hydrocarbons, non-fossil fuels, biofuels, and related components; and production of hydrocarbons electric power. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding YPF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for YPF Sociedad Anonima (NYSE:YPF Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for YPF Sociedad Anonima Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for YPF Sociedad Anonima and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Dagco Inc. grew its position in Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH Free Report) by 26.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,430 shares of the industrial products companys stock after acquiring an additional 1,770 shares during the quarter. Parker-Hannifin makes up approximately 0.8% of Dagco Inc.s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Dagco Inc.s holdings in Parker-Hannifin were worth $3,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PH. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC grew its holdings in Parker-Hannifin by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 1,496 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $425,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Parker-Hannifin by 69.8% during the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,869 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $1,098,000 after acquiring an additional 1,591 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of Parker-Hannifin during the first quarter worth $687,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of Parker-Hannifin by 270.8% during the first quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 2,718 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $771,000 after acquiring an additional 1,985 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Parker-Hannifin by 2.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,849,497 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $2,794,892,000 after acquiring an additional 190,889 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.25% of the companys stock. Get Parker-Hannifin alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of brokerages have recently commented on PH. TD Cowen upgraded Parker-Hannifin from an underperform rating to a market perform rating and boosted their price target for the company from $300.00 to $500.00 in a report on Friday, March 1st. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Parker-Hannifin from $500.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $450.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Barclays upped their target price on Parker-Hannifin from $500.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated a peer perform rating on shares of Parker-Hannifin in a report on Monday, December 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $498.07. Insider Transactions at Parker-Hannifin In related news, VP Thomas C. Gentile sold 2,978 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.72, for a total transaction of $1,494,122.16. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,465 shares in the company, valued at $2,741,899.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO Andrew D. Ross sold 3,904 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.16, for a total value of $1,991,664.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 13,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,693,299.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas C. Gentile sold 2,978 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.72, for a total transaction of $1,494,122.16. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,465 shares in the company, valued at $2,741,899.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,079 shares of company stock valued at $6,099,566. Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the companys stock. Parker-Hannifin Stock Up 0.3 % Shares of PH traded up $1.84 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $540.12. The companys stock had a trading volume of 46,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 616,142. Parker-Hannifin Co. has a 52-week low of $300.86 and a 52-week high of $543.92. The companys 50-day moving average is $499.02 and its 200-day moving average is $443.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.65, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.52. Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $6.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $5.26 by $0.89. The firm had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.82 billion. Parker-Hannifin had a net margin of 13.28% and a return on equity of 29.91%. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $4.76 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Parker-Hannifin Co. will post 24.18 EPS for the current fiscal year. Parker-Hannifin Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $1.48 per share. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. Parker-Hannifins payout ratio is 29.31%. Parker-Hannifin Profile (Free Report) Parker-Hannifin Corporation manufactures and sells motion and control technologies and systems for various mobile, industrial, and aerospace markets worldwide. The company operates through two segments: Diversified Industrial and Aerospace Systems. The Diversified Industrial segment offers sealing, shielding, thermal products and systems, adhesives, coatings, and noise vibration and harshness solutions; filters, systems, and diagnostics solutions to ensure purity and remove contaminants from fuel, air, oil, water, and other liquids and gases; connectors used in fluid and gas handling; and hydraulic, pneumatic, and electromechanical components and systems for builders and users of mobile and industrial machinery and equipment. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Parker-Hannifin Co. (NYSE:PH Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Parker-Hannifin Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Parker-Hannifin and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Glovista Investments LLC decreased its stake in shares of Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF (NYSEARCA:FLTW Free Report) by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 304,950 shares of the companys stock after selling 9,735 shares during the quarter. Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF comprises about 6.6% of Glovista Investments LLCs portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Glovista Investments LLC owned about 0.06% of Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF worth $11,081,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada bought a new stake in Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at $131,000. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 6,684 shares of the companys stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF by 106.0% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 15,515 shares of the companys stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 7,983 shares during the period. Flow Traders U.S. LLC boosted its stake in Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Flow Traders U.S. LLC now owns 24,965 shares of the companys stock valued at $961,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF by 33.7% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 28,125 shares of the companys stock valued at $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 7,082 shares during the period. Get Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF alerts: Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF Stock Down 0.9 % Shares of NYSEARCA:FLTW traded down $0.39 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $43.58. 5,980 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,506. Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF has a 52 week low of $35.03 and a 52 week high of $43.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.83 million, a PE ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.85. The companys 50 day moving average is $40.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.99. Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF Company Profile The Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF (FLTW) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the FTSE Taiwan RIC Capped index, a market-cap-weighted index of Taiwanese companies, excluding small-caps. FLTW was launched on Nov 2, 2017 and is managed by Franklin Templeton. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FLTW? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF (NYSEARCA:FLTW Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ Free Report) by 566.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,000 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 85,000 shares during the period. Hudson Bay Capital Management LPs holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $15,575,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.3% during the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 643,435 shares of the companys stock worth $106,501,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027 shares during the period. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the third quarter. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co now owns 75,495 shares of the companys stock worth $11,758,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,843,038 shares of the companys stock worth $1,463,594,000 after purchasing an additional 430,445 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.4% during the second quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 702,435 shares of the companys stock worth $116,267,000 after purchasing an additional 29,891 shares during the period. Finally, RFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 18,758 shares of the companys stock worth $2,921,000 after acquiring an additional 2,102 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.40% of the companys stock. Get Johnson & Johnson alerts: Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.6 % Shares of NYSE:JNJ traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $161.83. The companys stock had a trading volume of 1,422,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,983,125. The firm has a market capitalization of $389.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.78, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $159.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.00. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $144.95 and a fifty-two week high of $175.97. Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement Johnson & Johnson ( NYSE:JNJ Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $21.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.02 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 37.27% and a net margin of 37.79%. The firms revenue was down 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.35 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.19 dividend. This represents a $4.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Johnson & Johnsons payout ratio is 34.47%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James raised their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an overweight rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a b rating to a c+ rating in a report on Friday, November 17th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $177.31. Get Our Latest Research Report on JNJ Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value of $96,142.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the companys stock, valued at $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Johnson & Johnson Company Profile (Free Report) Johnson & Johnson, together with its subsidiaries, researches, develops, manufactures, and sells various products in the healthcare field worldwide. The company's Innovative Medicine segment offers products for various therapeutic areas, such as immunology, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriasis; infectious diseases comprising HIV/AIDS; neuroscience, consisting of mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders, and schizophrenia; oncology, such as prostate cancer, hematologic malignancies, lung cancer, and bladder cancer; cardiovascular and metabolism, including thrombosis, diabetes, and macular degeneration; and pulmonary hypertension comprising pulmonary arterial hypertension through retailers, wholesalers, distributors, hospitals, and healthcare professionals for prescription use. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding JNJ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Johnson & Johnson Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Johnson & Johnson and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Etfidea LLC lessened its stake in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:EEM Free Report) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,490 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 556 shares during the quarter. Etfidea LLCs holdings in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EEM. Financial Insights Inc. acquired a new position in shares of iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF in the third quarter worth $371,000. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. grew its stake in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 8.1% in the third quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. now owns 21,560 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $816,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 52,408 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 11,105 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 593.2% during the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 97,667 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $3,706,000 after purchasing an additional 83,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,239,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.58% of the companys stock. Get iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF alerts: iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF Trading Down 0.3 % Shares of NYSEARCA EEM traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $41.25. The stock had a trading volume of 7,260,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,594,697. The firms 50-day moving average price is $39.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.00. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has a 52 week low of $36.38 and a 52 week high of $42.00. About iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF, formerly iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund (the Fund), seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of publicly traded equity securities in global emerging markets, as measured by the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (the Index). Read More Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Modera Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI Free Report) by 0.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,990 shares of the technology companys stock after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLCs holdings in MSCI were worth $11,283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MSCI. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in shares of MSCI during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of MSCI by 5,600.0% during the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 57 shares of the technology companys stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MSCI in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in MSCI in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in MSCI by 105.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 80 shares of the technology companys stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 88.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get MSCI alerts: Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James reissued a market perform rating on shares of MSCI in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on MSCI from $588.00 to $638.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on MSCI from $615.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays increased their price target on MSCI from $600.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut MSCI from a neutral rating to a sell rating and decreased their price target for the company from $620.00 to $470.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $578.21. MSCI Stock Performance Shares of NYSE:MSCI opened at $565.80 on Wednesday. The businesss 50 day simple moving average is $563.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $536.59. The firm has a market cap of $44.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.29, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.07. MSCI Inc. has a 52-week low of $451.55 and a 52-week high of $617.39. MSCI (NYSE:MSCI Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The technology company reported $3.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.29 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $690.11 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $662.64 million. MSCI had a negative return on equity of 111.17% and a net margin of 45.42%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 19.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.84 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that MSCI Inc. will post 14.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. MSCI Increases Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from MSCIs previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. MSCIs dividend payout ratio is 44.44%. MSCI Company Profile (Free Report) MSCI Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides critical decision support tools and solutions for the investment community to manage investment processes worldwide. The Index segment provides indexes for use in various areas of the investment process, including indexed financial product, such as ETFs, mutual funds, annuities, futures, options, structured products, and over-the-counter derivatives; performance benchmarking; portfolio construction and rebalancing; and asset allocation, as well as licenses GICS and GICS Direct. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSCI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for MSCI Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for MSCI and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Modera Wealth Management LLC grew its position in MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI Free Report) by 0.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,990 shares of the technology companys stock after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLCs holdings in MSCI were worth $11,283,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of MSCI by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,227,973 shares of the technology companys stock valued at $1,514,855,000 after buying an additional 82,761 shares during the period. Bamco Inc. NY boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 2,260,105 shares of the technology companys stock worth $1,159,615,000 after purchasing an additional 15,184 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 13.4% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,042,809 shares of the technology companys stock worth $958,653,000 after purchasing an additional 240,639 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,893,728 shares of the technology companys stock worth $971,634,000 after purchasing an additional 30,528 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MSCI by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,684,190 shares of the technology companys stock worth $788,506,000 after purchasing an additional 46,934 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.61% of the companys stock. Get MSCI alerts: MSCI Trading Up 0.3 % Shares of MSCI opened at $565.80 on Wednesday. MSCI Inc. has a twelve month low of $451.55 and a twelve month high of $617.39. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $563.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $536.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.29, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.07. MSCI Increases Dividend MSCI ( NYSE:MSCI Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The technology company reported $3.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $3.29 by $0.39. MSCI had a net margin of 45.42% and a negative return on equity of 111.17%. The business had revenue of $690.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $662.64 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.84 EPS. The companys revenue was up 19.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that MSCI Inc. will post 14.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 16th were given a dividend of $1.60 per share. This is an increase from MSCIs previous quarterly dividend of $1.38. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. MSCIs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of MSCI from $544.00 to $617.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of MSCI from $615.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of MSCI from a neutral rating to a sell rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $620.00 to $470.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of MSCI from $600.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Edward Jones started coverage on shares of MSCI in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. They issued a buy rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $578.21. View Our Latest Research Report on MSCI MSCI Profile (Free Report) MSCI Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides critical decision support tools and solutions for the investment community to manage investment processes worldwide. The Index segment provides indexes for use in various areas of the investment process, including indexed financial product, such as ETFs, mutual funds, annuities, futures, options, structured products, and over-the-counter derivatives; performance benchmarking; portfolio construction and rebalancing; and asset allocation, as well as licenses GICS and GICS Direct. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MSCI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MSCI Inc. (NYSE:MSCI Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for MSCI Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for MSCI and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE Free Report) by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 209,087 shares of the utilities providers stock after purchasing an additional 11,460 shares during the quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc.s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $11,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in NextEra Energy by 0.7% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 29,434 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,686,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 6.9% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,393 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $194,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 23.1% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,463 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $141,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Austin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the third quarter worth $208,000. Finally, Phoenix Holdings Ltd. boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.9% during the third quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. now owns 85,368 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $4,891,000 after buying an additional 1,572 shares during the period. 76.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get NextEra Energy alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on NextEra Energy in a research report on Friday, December 8th. They set a buy rating and a $69.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com lowered NextEra Energy from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Monday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on NextEra Energy from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 21st. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on NextEra Energy from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NextEra Energy presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $71.85. NextEra Energy Stock Performance Shares of NEE traded up $2.69 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $59.84. 7,008,148 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,064,049. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $57.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.47. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.15 and a twelve month high of $79.78. The company has a market capitalization of $122.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.83, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.50. NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $5.72 billion. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 11.73% and a net margin of 26.00%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.44 EPS for the current fiscal year. NextEra Energy Increases Dividend The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 27th will be given a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 26th. This is a boost from NextEra Energys previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. NextEra Energys payout ratio is 57.06%. NextEra Energy Profile (Free Report) NextEra Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power to retail and wholesale customers in North America. The company generates electricity through wind, solar, nuclear,natural gas, and other clean energy. It also develops, constructs, and operates long-term contracted assets that consists of clean energy solutions, such as renewable generation facilities, battery storage projects, and electric transmission facilities; sells energy commodities; and owns, develops, constructs, manages and operates electric generation facilities in wholesale energy markets. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NEE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for NextEra Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for NextEra Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM Free Report) by 0.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 135,909,875 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 57,288 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 8.75% of Philip Morris International worth $12,582,536,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Spotlight Asset Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Philip Morris International in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.70% of the companys stock. Get Philip Morris International alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of analysts have commented on PM shares. Argus reiterated a hold rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Societe Generale raised Philip Morris International from a sell rating to a hold rating and set a $87.50 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Philip Morris International in a research report on Thursday, November 16th. They issued a neutral rating and a $95.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, November 29th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded Philip Morris International from a buy rating to a sell rating and reduced their price target for the company from $105.00 to $86.50 in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $105.40. Insider Activity at Philip Morris International In other news, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total value of $457,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,412,880.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total value of $181,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,726 shares of the companys stock, valued at $882,050.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of Philip Morris International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total value of $457,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 102,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,412,880.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the companys stock. Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.1 % Shares of NYSE:PM traded up $1.02 on Wednesday, reaching $95.69. The company had a trading volume of 1,226,582 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,806,774. Philip Morris International Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.23 and a twelve month high of $101.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $91.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $148.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.61. Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $9.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 116.29%. Philip Morris Internationals revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.39 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Philip Morris International Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.43%. Philip Morris Internationals dividend payout ratio is 103.59%. About Philip Morris International (Free Report) Philip Morris International Inc operates as a tobacco company working to delivers a smoke-free future and evolving portfolio for the long-term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands; and consumer accessories, such as lighters and matches. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Philip Morris International Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Philip Morris International and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Free Report) by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 53,638 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after selling 1,705 shares during the quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc.s holdings in Phillips 66 were worth $6,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Phillips 66 by 2.1% in the second quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,991 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $1,239,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. Choate Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in Phillips 66 during the third quarter worth about $247,000. First Dallas Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Phillips 66 during the third quarter worth about $753,000. Pinebridge Investments L.P. boosted its holdings in Phillips 66 by 8.9% during the second quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 210,402 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $20,068,000 after buying an additional 17,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Phillips 66 by 17.7% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 238,106 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $28,608,000 after buying an additional 35,829 shares in the last quarter. 71.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Phillips 66 alerts: Insider Buying and Selling In related news, VP Joseph Scott Pruitt sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.23, for a total transaction of $133,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,593 shares of the companys stock, valued at $878,385.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Joseph Scott Pruitt sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $133.23, for a total transaction of $133,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,593 shares of the companys stock, valued at $878,385.39. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Vanessa Allen Sutherland sold 3,700 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.18, for a total transaction of $492,766.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 47,567 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,334,973.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 31,887 shares of company stock valued at $4,543,437. Insiders own 4.57% of the companys stock. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Phillips 66 from $134.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, December 4th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Phillips 66 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. They set a buy rating on the stock. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Phillips 66 from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Phillips 66 from $151.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Phillips 66 from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Saturday, February 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $138.15. Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on PSX Phillips 66 Trading Up 1.7 % Shares of NYSE:PSX traded up $2.62 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $152.99. The stock had a trading volume of 946,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,044,752. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $140.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $127.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a market cap of $65.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.72, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.36. Phillips 66 has a fifty-two week low of $89.74 and a fifty-two week high of $154.27. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $3.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.72. Phillips 66 had a net margin of 4.68% and a return on equity of 22.10%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Phillips 66 will post 13.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Phillips 66 Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.05 dividend. This represents a $4.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Phillips 66s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.15%. Phillips 66 Company Profile (Free Report) Phillips 66 operates as an energy manufacturing and logistics company in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties (M&S). The Midstream segment transports crude oil and other feedstocks; delivers refined petroleum products to market; provides terminaling and storage services for crude oil and refined petroleum products; transports, stores, fractionates, exports, and markets natural gas liquids; provides other fee-based processing services; and gathers, processes, transports, and markets natural gas. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PSX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Phillips 66 Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Phillips 66 and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY Free Report) by 88.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,386 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after selling 10,646 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.s holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $80,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BMY. Herold Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 3.2% during the third quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 33,668 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $1,954,000 after purchasing an additional 1,051 shares in the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 69.6% during the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,049 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 2,072 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 9.5% in the 3rd quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 139,811 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $8,115,000 after buying an additional 12,121 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 101,772 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $5,907,000 after buying an additional 13,122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jmac Enterprises LLC lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 11.4% in the third quarter. Jmac Enterprises LLC now owns 12,171 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock valued at $706,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.98% of the companys stock. Get Bristol-Myers Squibb alerts: Bristol-Myers Squibb Trading Up 0.5 % BMY stock traded up $0.26 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $54.66. 1,992,444 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,934,532. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $50.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $110.53 billion, a PE ratio of 14.09, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.43. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a one year low of $47.58 and a one year high of $71.07. Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement Bristol-Myers Squibb ( NYSE:BMY Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.15. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a net margin of 17.83% and a return on equity of 50.95%. The company had revenue of $11.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.82 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 6.61 EPS for the current year. The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.39%. Bristol-Myers Squibbs payout ratio is 62.18%. Bristol-Myers Squibb announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, December 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the biopharmaceutical company to reacquire up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the companys board of directors believes its stock is undervalued. Analysts Set New Price Targets BMY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and decreased their target price for the company from $68.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 15th. Bank of America lowered shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price target for the company from $77.00 to $54.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $58.00 to $51.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $61.12. Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Bristol-Myers Squibb Bristol-Myers Squibb Profile (Free Report) Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, and neuroscience diseases. The company's products include Eliquis for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for various anti-cancer indications, including bladder, blood, CRC, head and neck, RCC, HCC, lung, melanoma, MPM, stomach and esophageal cancer; Pomalyst/Imnovid for multiple myeloma; Orencia for active rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BMY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Bristol-Myers Squibb Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Bristol-Myers Squibb and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Knife River (NYSE:KNF Get Free Report) is one of 29 public companies in the Mining & quarrying of nonmetallic minerals, except fuels industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare Knife River to related businesses based on the strength of its earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership and risk. Insider & Institutional Ownership 67.1% of Knife River shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 50.1% of shares of all Mining & quarrying of nonmetallic minerals, except fuels companies are held by institutional investors. 7.0% of shares of all Mining & quarrying of nonmetallic minerals, except fuels companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. Get Knife River alerts: Analyst Recommendations This is a summary of recent ratings for Knife River and its peers, as reported by MarketBeat. Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Knife River 0 1 5 0 2.83 Knife River Competitors 231 1073 1439 13 2.45 Earnings and Valuation Knife River currently has a consensus price target of $72.20, suggesting a potential downside of 5.50%. As a group, Mining & quarrying of nonmetallic minerals, except fuels companies have a potential upside of 10.72%. Given Knife Rivers peers higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Knife River has less favorable growth aspects than its peers. This table compares Knife River and its peers revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Gross Revenue Net Income Price/Earnings Ratio Knife River $2.83 billion $182.87 million -0.15 Knife River Competitors $2.25 billion $333.07 million 5.83 Knife River has higher revenue, but lower earnings than its peers. Knife River is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry. Profitability This table compares Knife River and its peers net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Knife River 6.46% 15.98% 7.14% Knife River Competitors 20.51% -22.36% 3.92% About Knife River (Get Free Report) Knife River Corporation provides aggregates-based construction materials and contracting services in the United States. It operates through six segments: Pacific, Northwest, Mountain, North Central, South, and Energy Services. The company mines, processes, and sells construction aggregates, including crushed stone and sand, and gravel; and produces and sells asphalt and ready-mix concrete, as well as provides contracting service, such as heavy-civil construction, asphalt and concrete paving, and site development and grading. It also sells merchandise and other building materials and related services. The company serves federal, state, and municipal governments for various projects, such as highways, bridges, airports, schools, public buildings, and other public-infrastructure projects, as well as industrial, commercial, and residential developers. The company was founded in 1917 and is based in Bismarck, North Dakota. Receive News & Ratings for Knife River Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Knife River and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. RNC Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Free Report) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,990 shares of the companys stock after selling 367 shares during the quarter. RNC Capital Management LLCs holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $8,051,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,416,206,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 102,752.2% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,446,026 shares of the companys stock worth $1,992,374,000 after buying an additional 5,440,731 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,059,204 shares of the companys stock worth $4,411,740,000 after buying an additional 3,691,436 shares during the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53,716.8% during the 2nd quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 1,751,200 shares of the companys stock worth $175,120,000 after buying an additional 1,747,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $445,944,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the companys stock. Get Eli Lilly and Company alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LLY shares. Truist Financial raised their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $650.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays raised their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $680.00 to $810.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $700.00 to $825.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. TheStreet raised Eli Lilly and Company from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $710.00 to $865.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $677.62. Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock traded up $2.32 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $757.27. The companys stock had a trading volume of 1,298,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,368,629. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $321.44 and a one year high of $800.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $719.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 130.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.34. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $700.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $621.43. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.19. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 51.22% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $9.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. The companys quarterly revenue was up 28.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.41 earnings per share for the current year. Insider Activity In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 78,573 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $648.07, for a total value of $50,920,804.11. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,333,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $64,375,262,246.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 195,055 shares of company stock worth $125,254,657. Company insiders own 0.13% of the companys stock. Eli Lilly and Company Company Profile (Free Report) Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company 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; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity. Read More 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. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lessened its position in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK Free Report) by 0.9% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 720,348 shares of the companys stock after selling 6,800 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. makes up approximately 0.8% of Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $74,160,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Prosperity Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,365 shares of the companys stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Per Stirling Capital Management LLC. now owns 3,695 shares of the companys stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. King Wealth raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. King Wealth now owns 7,440 shares of the companys stock valued at $766,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. LifePro Asset Management raised its stake in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. LifePro Asset Management now owns 7,669 shares of the companys stock valued at $790,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hall Laurie J Trustee raised its stake in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hall Laurie J Trustee now owns 29,675 shares of the companys stock worth $3,055,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.59% of the companys stock. Get Merck & Co. Inc. alerts: Merck & Co., Inc. Trading Down 0.6 % NYSE MRK traded down $0.77 on Wednesday, reaching $121.89. The company had a trading volume of 2,642,695 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,722,367. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $123.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $111.39. Merck & Co., Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $99.14 and a fifty-two week high of $130.24. The firm has a market cap of $308.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 876.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. Announces Dividend Merck & Co., Inc. ( NYSE:MRK Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.12. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 0.61% and a return on equity of 9.33%. The firm had revenue of $14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. The businesss quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.58 EPS for the current year. The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Merck & Co., Inc.s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,200.00%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. TheStreet lowered Merck & Co., Inc. from a b+ rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. TD Cowen raised Merck & Co., Inc. from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and increased their price objective for the company from $125.00 to $135.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Societe Generale downgraded Merck & Co., Inc. from a hold rating to a sell rating and set a $104.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $129.14. Read Our Latest Report on Merck & Co., Inc. Insider Buying and Selling In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total value of $6,420,395.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at $2,991,346.35. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total transaction of $6,420,395.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,619 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,991,346.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Merck & Co., Inc. Profile (Free Report) Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Tucker Asset Management LLC lessened its position in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (BATS:QUAL Free Report) by 50.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 410 shares of the companys stock after selling 417 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLCs holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF were worth $54,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Annandale Capital LLC boosted its stake in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF by 0.3% during the third quarter. Annandale Capital LLC now owns 26,866 shares of the companys stock worth $3,541,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC increased its holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF by 0.5% during the third quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 15,240 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,009,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF by 1.4% during the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 6,737 shares of the companys stock valued at $909,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. increased its holdings in iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF by 12.0% during the second quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 895 shares of the companys stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Investors Research Corp increased its stake in shares of iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF by 2.5% in the second quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 4,009 shares of the companys stock worth $541,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Get iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF alerts: iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Price Performance Shares of BATS QUAL opened at $163.51 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $154.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $143.88. iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF has a 1 year low of $71.96 and a 1 year high of $88.63. The stock has a market cap of $36.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30 and a beta of 1.03. iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Profile The iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality index. The fund tracks an index of US large- and mid-cap stocks, selected and weighted by high ROE, stable earnings growth and low debt\u002Fequity, relative to peers in each sector. See Also Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. State Trooper Brian North listens to testimony in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media State Trooper Brian North stands in Connecticut Superior Court at the start of the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Lead prosecuting attorney Robert Devlin delivers his closing arguments to the jury on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Defense attorney Frank Riccio delivers his closing arguments to the jury on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Assistant State Attorney Andrew Slitt questions a witness in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Former New York City Police officer Darrin Porcher testifies on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Former New York City Police officer Darrin Porcher is sworn in as a witness on the eighth day of State Trooper Brian Norths trial in Connecticut Superior Court, in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media State Trooper Brian North listens to closing arguments in Connecticut Superior Court on the eighth day of his trial in Milford, Conn. March 13, 2024. North is charged with manslaughter for shooting 19-year-old Mubarak Soulemane in January 2020 in West Haven after a chase from Norwalk on Interstate 95. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media Signs critical of police were outside state Superior Court in Milford Wednesday, which is expected to be the last day of testimony in the manslaughter trial of Trooper North. Throughout the trial, several signs showing their support for police have been present. Ethan Fry / Hearst Connecticut Media Cathleen Walsh of Southbury stands with a flag outside of the state Superior Court in Milford on what is expected to be the last day of testimony in the manslaughter trial of Trooper North. Throughout the trial, several signs showing their support for police have been placed on the lawn outside the courthouse. On Wednesday, though, new signs critical of police were also present. Ethan Fry / Hearst Connecticut Media MILFORD A six-member jury began deliberations Wednesday afternoon in the manslaughter trial of Connecticut State Police Trooper Brian North in the fatal shooting of Mubarak Soulemane. North, the first law enforcement officer in the state to be charged in a fatal shooting in nearly two decades, faces up to 40 years behind bars if convicted. Following final instructions from the judge, the four men and two women began deliberations about 3:15 p.m. on the trials eighth day, which began Wednesday morning with brief testimony from a rebuttal witness from the prosecution. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The jury deliberated for about a half-hour before sending a note to the judge, asking for more information about a possible defense in the case that North said he was protecting other officers then deliberated about 20 minutes more before asking for more instructions in writing. The judge excused them for the day at about 4:25 p.m. after saying hed give them written instructions Thursday morning. Attorneys for the state and North made closing arguments on Wednesday, illustrating the competing interpretations of Norths decision to fire seven shots through the drivers side window of a stolen car driven by Soulemane after a chase on Interstate 95 and a crash in West Haven Jan. 15, 2020. Norths lawyer, Frank Riccio, said his client had no choice because he had an objectively reasonable belief that Robert Rappa, a West Haven police officer who broke the passengers side window of the car, could be in mortal danger from a knife Soulemane was holding. Sadly, what other forces could have been used? he said, arguing his client was doing his job after a reported carjacking with a knife followed by a high-speed pursuit up a busy highway, with a suspect that had not shown one iota of compliance up to that point. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The prosecutor, Inspector General Robert Devlin, noted that North didnt say he thought Rappa or Trooper Joshua Jackson, another trooper on the other side of the vehicle, were in danger until he provided a statement a month after the shooting, having reviewed video of the incident with his lawyer and union representative. The night of the shooting, Devlin noted, North told fellow cops he started shooting after Soulemane came to when the window was broken and pulled a knife from his pants. He saw the knife and he fired, Devlin repeated again and again during his closing argument. In this case, weve had too many excuses, too many rationalizations, he said. This young man is dead and he shouldnt be, thats the bottom line. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On Wednesday morning, a rebuttal expert hired by the state said officers at the scene should have called a tactical pause to allow for a supervisor to provide more guidance. The expert, retired New York City Police Lt. Darrin Porcher, disagreed with testimony Tuesday from two defense experts who determined the shooting was justified, but were prevented from talking about that conclusion specifically in court. Every shot that you fire must be justified, Porcher said. Whenever youre using force or deadly physical force against a subject, you have to justify every single shot. Porcher also said officers could have taken a tactical pause after Soulemane rear-ended the other vehicle. Advertisement Article continues below this ad That would have been the perfect time to take a tactical pause and allow a supervisor to respond, he said. North, who rejected a plea offer in the case calling for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison with a right to argue for less time behind bars, faces up to 40 years if convicted of first-degree manslaughter with a firearm. But per the judges instructions to the jury, North could be found guilty of second-degree manslaughter with a firearm or criminally negligent homicide. In closing arguments, Devlin said North should be convicted of the highest count, noting the only efforts cops made at communicating with Soulemane were Trooper Joshua Jackson telling him to get out of the car, twice. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Those are the only words that are said to Mubarak Soulemane before he was killed, and he probably never heard them, Devlin said. He posed no threat to anybody, Devlin said of Soulemane. This situation should have ended up better. Devlin described the chaotic scene as police vehicles surrounded the white Hyundai. Soulemane was in the drivers seat, out of it, the prosecutor said, and couldnt exit the vehicle from the drivers door, which was blocked in by a police cruiser. Devlin said Soulemane didnt move toward officers and never tried to go over the console into the passenger seat, which would be the only way he could pose a real threat. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Within seconds literally seconds of this window breaking North fires seven shots at Soulemane through the drivers window, killing him, Devlin said. Seven shots. I submit to you folks thats extreme indifference to human life. Complete overkill, he added. The defendant fires seven shots in 1.4-something seconds, Devlin said. Seven shots, right to the chest, killing Mubarak Soulemane. I submit to you folks thats manslaughter. Thats extreme indifference of human life, recklessly taking the life of somebody else with a gun, thats what it is, he said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Riccio argued that the state didnt discuss the events prior to what occurred at Exit 43. Norwalk is where this all began, Riccio said. He said police were told about a carjacking with a knife in Norwalk, the high speeds on the highway and saw the reckless driving. North and Jackson tried to box Soulemane in with their cruisers, but were unsuccessful. Riccio argued Soulemane did pose a threat, as evidenced by his actions starting in Norwalk. Did he pose a threat? Absolutely, because he was not compliant at any point in time, Riccio said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Riccio also drew attention to the time frame of the incident, saying the trial has spent eight days examining an incident that occurred in 35 seconds. When Trooper North and Trooper Jackson and the others were at that scene, they couldnt slow time down, Riccio said. They lived it in real time. Were taking an event that happened in real time and were being asked everyones being asked to critique what shouldve happened, what couldve happened, what maybe was, shouldve been the result, Riccio said. Mr. Soulemane showed not one iota of compliance that entire afternoon, from Norwalk to West Haven, Riccio said. So, why would you think he would start then? Advertisement Article continues below this ad Riccio said North didnt mention Rappa or Jackson in his initial statements because he was a poor kid in shock after experiencing the most traumatic event of his life. He thinks about this every day, Riccio said. This is a terrible event. Someone lost their life. But the question is, is Trooper North criminally responsible for that? He is not. Given the chance to speak last since the state has the burden of proving North guilty, Devlin pointed to a notion, kind of in the shadows of this case, that somehow because of misdeeds on Norwalk or on Interstate 95 that Mubarak Soulemane forfeited the protection of the law at Campbell Avenue. Thats not true, and thats a disturbing assertion, he said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad If North did believe a fellow officer was in danger, Devlin said, his initial statements to superiors at the scene wouldve been his golden opportunity to explain. Instead, North told troopers he fired when he saw the knife, Devlin said, showing footage of the incident from multiple angles. The prosecutor, who began his closing by noting the centuries-old tradition of trials by jury, argued the court system would have dealt with Soulemane fairly. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The thing is that court system never got a chance to work because this defendant shot and killed Mubarak Soulemane, Devlin said. Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS Free Report) by 0.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,838,062 shares of the investment management companys stock after selling 149,524 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 8.84% of The Goldman Sachs Group worth $9,331,132,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 82.0% during the third quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 91 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 88.0% during the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 94 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. 69.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get The Goldman Sachs Group alerts: Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group In other news, insider Brian J. Lee sold 3,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.39, for a total value of $1,129,170.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,121 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,809,443.19. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Brian J. Lee sold 3,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.39, for a total value of $1,129,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,121 shares in the company, valued at $3,809,443.19. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 12,680 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $394.43, for a total value of $5,001,372.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,417 shares of the companys stock, valued at $11,602,947.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,907 shares of company stock worth $15,080,021. Insiders own 0.54% of the companys stock. The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 1.7 % Shares of NYSE:GS traded up $6.58 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $394.76. The company had a trading volume of 872,730 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,276,443. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $289.36 and a 1-year high of $397.49. The stock has a market cap of $128.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29. The businesss 50 day moving average price is $384.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $352.15. The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 16th. The investment management company reported $5.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $3.62 by $1.86. The firm had revenue of $11.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $10.80 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 7.85% and a return on equity of 8.03%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.32 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 32.86 EPS for the current fiscal year. The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th will be paid a dividend of $2.75 per share. This represents a $11.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Groups dividend payout ratio is presently 48.20%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and increased their target price for the company from $333.00 to $449.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $357.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. JMP Securities reiterated a market outperform rating and set a $440.00 price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Edward Jones began coverage on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. They set a buy rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $437.00 to $493.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $408.98. Read Our Latest Research Report on GS The Goldman Sachs Group Company Profile (Free Report) The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc, a financial institution, provides a range of financial services for corporations, financial institutions, governments, and individuals worldwide. It operates through Global Banking & Markets, Asset & Wealth Management, and Platform Solutions segments. The Global Banking & Markets segment provides financial advisory services, including strategic advisory assignments related to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense activities, restructurings, and spin-offs; and relationship lending, and acquisition financing, as well as secured lending, through structured credit and asset-backed lending and involved in financing under securities to resale agreements. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for The Goldman Sachs Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for The Goldman Sachs Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW Free Report) by 8.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,040,581 shares of the industrial products companys stock after selling 359,146 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 1.34% of Illinois Tool Works worth $930,586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ITW. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Illinois Tool Works during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Illinois Tool Works by 52.7% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 142 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the third quarter worth $38,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Illinois Tool Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Illinois Tool Works during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.56% of the companys stock. Get Illinois Tool Works alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes ITW has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Illinois Tool Works from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and cut their price objective for the company from $277.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $238.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $215.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Illinois Tool Works from $244.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, December 11th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of Illinois Tool Works from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $260.00 to $235.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $239.33. Insider Buying and Selling at Illinois Tool Works In related news, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of Illinois Tool Works stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total value of $205,392.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,870 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,505,185.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Sharon Szafranski sold 801 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.42, for a total transaction of $205,392.42. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,870 shares in the company, valued at $1,505,185.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Randall J. Scheuneman sold 5,827 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.29, for a total transaction of $1,493,401.83. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 8,870 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,273,292.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 152,304 shares of company stock worth $38,860,831. 0.78% of the stock is owned by insiders. Illinois Tool Works Price Performance Shares of NYSE ITW opened at $262.85 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $257.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $246.32. Illinois Tool Works Inc. has a twelve month low of $217.06 and a twelve month high of $267.12. The company has a market capitalization of $78.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.10. Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.01. Illinois Tool Works had a net margin of 18.36% and a return on equity of 96.60%. The company had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. The firms revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Illinois Tool Works Inc. will post 10.12 earnings per share for the current year. Illinois Tool Works Announces Dividend The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Illinois Tool Workss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.49%. Illinois Tool Works Company Profile (Free Report) Illinois Tool Works Inc manufactures and sells industrial products and equipment in the United States and internationally. It operates through seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ITW? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Illinois Tool Works Inc. (NYSE:ITW Free Report). 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. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL boosted its stake in Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY Free Report) by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 59,013 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock after buying an additional 7,740 shares during the quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. ALs holdings in Weyerhaeuser were worth $1,809,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WY. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Weyerhaeuser in the 4th quarter valued at about $485,095,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Weyerhaeuser by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 19,299,328 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $591,717,000 after buying an additional 3,573,013 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in Weyerhaeuser by 376.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 2,068,432 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $63,418,000 after buying an additional 1,634,125 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Weyerhaeuser by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 60,389,476 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $1,819,535,000 after buying an additional 1,484,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in Weyerhaeuser by 64.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,169,142 shares of the real estate investment trusts stock valued at $97,166,000 after buying an additional 1,242,972 shares during the last quarter. 79.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Weyerhaeuser alerts: Insider Buying and Selling In related news, Director Nicole Weyerhaeuser Piasecki sold 33,426 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.64, for a total transaction of $1,124,450.64. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,807 shares in the company, valued at $195,347.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Weyerhaeuser news, CEO Devin W. Stockfish sold 29,008 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.54, for a total value of $1,001,936.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 711,070 shares in the company, valued at $24,560,357.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Nicole Weyerhaeuser Piasecki sold 33,426 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.64, for a total transaction of $1,124,450.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $195,347.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,781 shares of company stock worth $2,451,214 over the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WY shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of Weyerhaeuser in a research report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Weyerhaeuser from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Raymond James cut shares of Weyerhaeuser from a strong-buy rating to a market perform rating in a research report on Monday, November 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Weyerhaeuser presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $37.80. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on WY Weyerhaeuser Stock Up 0.3 % Shares of WY stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $34.59. 546,756 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,510,559. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a current ratio of 2.94. Weyerhaeuser has a one year low of $27.65 and a one year high of $35.42. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $33.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.04 and a beta of 1.43. Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. Weyerhaeuser had a net margin of 10.93% and a return on equity of 7.36%. Weyerhaeusers quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.24 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Weyerhaeuser will post 1.03 EPS for the current fiscal year. Weyerhaeuser Increases Dividend The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a positive change from Weyerhaeusers previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Weyerhaeusers dividend payout ratio is 69.57%. About Weyerhaeuser (Free Report) Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest private owners of timberlands, began operations in 1900. We own or control approximately 11 million acres of timberlands in the U.S. and manage additional timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. We manage these timberlands on a sustainable basis in compliance with internationally recognized forestry standards. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Weyerhaeuser Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Weyerhaeuser and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Blog Archive: Mar 2024 (155) Feb 2024 (145) Jan 2024 (156) Dec 2023 (155) Nov 2023 (150) Oct 2023 (155) Sep 2023 (150) Aug 2023 (155) Jul 2023 (155) Jun 2023 (150) May 2023 (155) Apr 2023 (150) Mar 2023 (155) Feb 2023 (140) Jan 2023 (155) Dec 2022 (156) Nov 2022 (150) Oct 2022 (155) Sep 2022 (150) Aug 2022 (155) Jul 2022 (154) Jun 2022 (150) May 2022 (155) Apr 2022 (150) Mar 2022 (155) Feb 2022 (140) Jan 2022 (156) Dec 2021 (156) Nov 2021 (150) Oct 2021 (155) Sep 2021 (150) Aug 2021 (155) Jul 2021 (155) Jun 2021 (150) May 2021 (155) Apr 2021 (150) Mar 2021 (155) Feb 2021 (140) Jan 2021 (155) Dec 2020 (155) Nov 2020 (150) Oct 2020 (158) Sep 2020 (150) Aug 2020 (130) Jul 2020 (124) Jun 2020 (120) May 2020 (124) Apr 2020 (120) Mar 2020 (124) Feb 2020 (116) Jan 2020 (125) Dec 2019 (126) Nov 2019 (120) Oct 2019 (124) Sep 2019 (120) Aug 2019 (125) Jul 2019 (124) Jun 2019 (120) May 2019 (123) Apr 2019 (121) Mar 2019 (124) Feb 2019 (112) Jan 2019 (125) Dec 2018 (126) Nov 2018 (120) Oct 2018 (124) Sep 2018 (121) Aug 2018 (124) Jul 2018 (125) Jun 2018 (120) May 2018 (124) Apr 2018 (121) Mar 2018 (124) Feb 2018 (112) Jan 2018 (123) Dec 2017 (124) Nov 2017 (124) Oct 2017 (141) Sep 2017 (135) Aug 2017 (138) Jul 2017 (137) Jun 2017 (134) May 2017 (138) Apr 2017 (135) Mar 2017 (139) Feb 2017 (129) Jan 2017 (143) Dec 2016 (135) Nov 2016 (138) Oct 2016 (142) Sep 2016 (128) Aug 2016 (133) Jul 2016 (136) Jun 2016 (138) May 2016 (164) Apr 2016 (311) Mar 2016 (348) Feb 2016 (320) Jan 2016 (348) Dec 2015 (314) Nov 2015 (338) Oct 2015 (363) Sep 2015 (358) Aug 2015 (399) Jul 2015 (374) Jun 2015 (331) May 2015 (337) Apr 2015 (319) Mar 2015 (320) Feb 2015 (271) Jan 2015 (286) Dec 2014 (254) Nov 2014 (238) Oct 2014 (287) Sep 2014 (267) Aug 2014 (259) Jul 2014 (260) Jun 2014 (238) May 2014 (241) Apr 2014 (228) Mar 2014 (240) Feb 2014 (217) Jan 2014 (263) Dec 2013 (226) Nov 2013 (254) Oct 2013 (256) Sep 2013 (252) Aug 2013 (263) Jul 2013 (261) Jun 2013 (251) May 2013 (250) Apr 2013 (221) Mar 2013 (193) Feb 2013 (164) Jan 2013 (157) Dec 2012 (155) Nov 2012 (240) Oct 2012 (526) Sep 2012 (411) Aug 2012 (394) Jul 2012 (284) Jun 2012 (229) May 2012 (213) Apr 2012 (213) Mar 2012 (253) Feb 2012 (269) Jan 2012 (298) Dec 2011 (273) Nov 2011 (219) Oct 2011 (204) Sep 2011 (201) Aug 2011 (236) Jul 2011 (217) Jun 2011 (211) May 2011 (206) Apr 2011 (215) Mar 2011 (215) Feb 2011 (186) Jan 2011 (215) Dec 2010 (107) Nov 2010 (98) Oct 2010 (55) Canadian battery science is about to get a turbocharge with the creation of the countrys first university-based battery prototyping and testing facility. Called the Canadian Battery Innovation Centre, the new leading-edge lab is projected to open in Fall 2025 in Dalhousies Sir James Dunn Building. The facility will be a game-changer for the universitys battery researchers, allowing them to rapidly envision, produce and test new batteries. It will also be a magnet for industry in urgent need of the sophisticated equipment and the expertise to operate it. Currently, battery scientists in academia and startups are required to send designs for new batteries they want to study to third parties outside Canada for manufacture. Drs. Michael Metzger and Chongyin Yang, the Dalhousie battery researchers championing the innovation centre, say it will vastly accelerate the speed of experimentation and innovation turning a process that currently takes months into days. Drs. Yang and Metzger. Construction has yet to start on the $20-million facility, but with a $5-milliion grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, $350,000 from Emera Inc., $200,000 from Tesla, and additional matching and promised funds, the financial power is in place to jolt the project into gear. Accelerating innovation We will be able to produce 50 to 100 battery cell prototypes a week at the centre, says Dr. Metzger, Dalhousies Herzberg-Dahn Chair in Advanced Battery Research. Our focus is on high quality and flexibility, so that we can test many different battery chemistries and materials combinations. A series of state-of-the-art machines in an ultra-low humidity dry room will provide an assembly line for researchers to create battery cells to the highest industrial standards. Comprised of different functional zones, the lab will include large mixers and furnaces to make battery materials, a smaller closed-off room for the dirtier operations like mixing powders, and a main battery assembly room that includes large coating machines where mixtures of battery active materials and other solvents get applied on metal foil that is then rolled up, inserted, filled and sealed into cell casings by a final group of machines. The centres production line will allow researchers to create batteries using a wide range of materials, including the lithium used in conventional rechargeable batteries, as well as sodium, potassium and other more abundant materials that promise to decrease battery cost and increase lifetime, efficiency and sustainability. Dr. Metzger says the researchers will also focus on the development of new methods of production to remove toxic solvents and polymer binders that are in the process of being banned or shelved by the industry. This battery innovation centre will put an extremely powerful tool into the hands of our world-renowned battery scientists and bring them together with industry so that innovations can be put into action quickly, says Dr. Alice Aiken, Dalhousies vice-president, research and innovation. Were catalyzing a cluster for battery research and development in Nova Scotia that promises to be transformative for the science, sector, and regional economy. Recommended reading: Federal government invests $34.4M in Dal research to unlock innovation in clean tech, heart health, ocean science and more An open approach The only similar battery research facilities in Canada are held by corporations focused on developing proprietary intellectual property. Dalhousies battery testing and production line will be the first to provide open access. For a relatively small fee used to maintain and operate the facility, the innovation centre will be available to researchers across Canada and around the world. It will also be a magnet for businesses large and small, who the researchers predict will be attracted to Dalhousie and Nova Scotia as a hub for battery research and development. It's a safe bet, given that an equivalent centre at the University of Michigan one of just two in the United States operates around the clock, with industry partners squeezing in time whenever possible. Basically, they put up a new schedule for the next quarter on their website and the next day its fully booked says Dr. Metzger. University of Michigans battery lab provides a preview of what can be expected in the Canadian Battery Innovation Centre. Dan Muldoon, executive vice-president, project development and operations support at Emera Inc. says the new facility will be a benefit for its own work in exploring new energy solutions with Dalhousies researchers. The CBIC will enable groundbreaking battery research to help accelerate the clean energy transition right here in Nova Scotia. Emeras contribution will help leading researchers like Drs. Metzger and Yang to further the overall growth of the industry and in turn, will help advance our own efforts in energy storage innovation, he says. A critical link in the supply chain Ravi Kempaiah, CEO of Dartmouth-based battery startup Zen Energy, says companies like his will be keen to leverage the centre as well. The former Dalhousie postdoctoral fellow who came to Nova Scotia to study with renowned battery scientist Dr. Jeff Dahn says it will allow him to expand his capacity to meet the needs of his companys investors, like Nigerian utility North South Power, which is working with Zen to help consumers transition away from fossil fuels in emerging markets of Africa. Ravi Kempaiah, CEO of Dartmouth-based battery startup Zen Energy. Having this crown jewel, this battery innovation center for all of Canada, will help us do all our testing right here, so we dont need to rely on China to build batteries or do advanced testing, he says. Startups like us, we cant spend $2 million or $3 million just to get machines for testing. Having a centralized facility will enable maybe 10 or more startups to share the resources and help train highly skilled professionals. Thats why I think this innovation hub will be incredibly beneficial. Dr. Yang says large industrial partners will also benefit from the expertise of Dalhousies researchers and the innovation centres dedicated battery engineering staff. It's not going to be limited to local companies, says Dr. Yang, who is Dalhousies Tesla Canada Chair. For example, enterprises working in the critical minerals space will be able to send their products to us so that we can test and help develop them, giving us the chance to play a critical role in the whole industry supply chain. Dr. Chris Burns, CEO of NOVONIX, a company founded on Dalhousie research that is now a leading domestic supplier of battery-grade synthetic graphite in North America, says the centre will help secure Nova Scotias role in Canadas battery sector. This innovation centre provides a unique opportunity for Halifax to continue to build its ecosystem around batteries and energy storage, which will be a significant economic opportunity as we look to develop and attract technology and new businesses," says the industry leader, whose company maintains research and development operations in the province in addition to its large-scale manufacturing centre in Tennessee. Powering the sector with talent Dr. Burns also notes that the innovation centre will play a critical role in training the specialized workforce needed for his and other companies in Canadas fast-growing battery sector. Much-heralded recent investments in Canadian battery manufacturing have been announced by multinationals like Ford, Stellantis, Volkswagen, LG Energy Solutions and Umicore. And in February 2024, Canada topped BloombergNEFs annual Global Lithium-Ion Battery Supply Chain Ranking, surpassing China for the first time. Its a moment for both celebration and concern, says Dr. Metzger. The ranking is based on the abundance of Canadas raw material resources, strong integration with the American automotive sector, and clear policy commitments. All great news, but Dr. Metzger cautions that the promise of these strengths can only be lived up to if people with skills in battery science are in place to capitalize on them. Dr. Burns (shown right) agrees, saying, The battery sector is growing exponentially and requires a huge influx of talent over the next five to ten years. It is important to see institutions like Dalhousie recognizing that specific training requirements are needed for the battery industry. Its crucial to offer a targeted battery training program that is not only about education on the scientific fundamentals but also hands-on experience so that graduates can make an immediate impact to the electrification of society. To that end, Drs. Metzger and Yang say graduate students will play a central role in the operation of the centre, working with faculty to build and test new prototypes. They also envision students working closely with industry partners through internships to help them meet battery innovation goals. They have developed a new course-based Masters of Battery Technology program that promises to be a pipeline of highly trained battery specialists ready to take positions in the industry. The program has received Dalhousie Senate approval and will be ready for implementation when the innovation centre opens. The researchers are now looking for industry partners that are keen to sponsor the program and hire its graduates. The last piece in the puzzle Between opportunities to work closely with Dalhousies battery researchers and students and access to leading-edge equipment, Kempaiah says the Canadian Battery Innovation Centre is positioned to become a landmark on Canadas battery landscape. We have something very unique coming together in Nova Scotia for cleantech, says Kempaiah. This battery innovation centre is the final piece in the puzzle that is going to allow us to create a cluster around battery innovation to retain the talent and grow the IP here. It will be a huge anchor point that will bring everything together. BlackRock MuniYield Fund, Inc. (NYSE:MYD Get Free Report)s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $11.30 and last traded at $11.27, with a volume of 15993 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $11.25. Get BlackRock MuniYield Fund alerts: BlackRock MuniYield Fund Price Performance The stocks 50-day moving average price is $10.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.20. BlackRock MuniYield Fund Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a $0.0525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.62%. Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock MuniYield Fund BlackRock MuniYield Fund Company Profile A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MYD. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 13.0% in the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 64,366 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 7,384 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 8.3% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 34,791 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 2,678 shares in the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. raised its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 14.1% in the first quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 19,374 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 2,400 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 11.5% in the first quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 560,979 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $7,085,000 after purchasing an additional 57,646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 1.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 93,350 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,323 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 29.42% of the companys stock. (Get Free Report) BlackRock MuniYield Fund, Inc is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc The fund is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. It invests in fixed income markets. The fund primarily in long-term investment-grade municipal bonds with a maturity of more than ten years. It is exempt from federal income taxes. Read More Receive News & Ratings for BlackRock MuniYield Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BlackRock MuniYield Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Denmark, a nation with a long history of neutrality, recently announced a significant shift in its national defense strategy. In a move that is set to reshape the countrys armed forces, the government revealed plans to institute mandatory military service for women. This decision places Denmark among a select group of nations worldwide that require women to serve in the military. Get alerts: The announcement, made in early 2023, comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions, particularly in light of Russias actions. Bolstering Denmarks defense capabilities is a key driver behind the policy change. Incorporating women into the military service system is crucial to achieving this goal. A Commitment to Gender Equality and Increased Capacity Defense requirements do not solely drive the decision to expand conscription to women. It also reflects Denmarks longstanding commitment to gender equality. The government aims to create a more balanced and representative armed force by including women in mandatory military service. Proponents of the policy argue that integrating women brings a broader range of skills and perspectives to the military, potentially enhancing its overall effectiveness. A Gradual Implementation and Existing Model Before this announcement, women in Denmark already had the opportunity to volunteer for military service. In recent years, female volunteers have constituted a noteworthy portion of new recruits, making up roughly a quarter of the intake. However, the shift to mandatory service represents a substantial step towards ensuring a more equitable distribution of military service obligations across the population. The implementation of female conscription is expected to be gradual. Specific details regarding the timeline and exact procedures for integrating women into the draft system are still being formulated. However, a system similar to the existing model for men will likely be extended to women. Currently, Danish men reaching a certain age participate in a lottery system. Those selected are then required to undergo a period of basic training, typically lasting four months. Incorporating women into the existing conscription framework presents opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, it allows Denmark to tap into a previously underutilized pool of potential recruits, thus bolstering the size and capabilities of its armed forces. On the other hand, integrating women into previously all-male units necessitates careful planning and consideration of potential social and logistical adjustments. Arguments For and Against: Weighing the Considerations The decision to institute mandatory military service for women has sparked debate in Denmark. Supporters of the policy emphasize the benefits of increased personnel numbers, a more balanced military reflecting societal values, and the potential for a broader range of skills and perspectives to be brought to bear on national defense. Opponents of the policy raise concerns about individual choice and the potential disruption that integrating women into existing military structures could cause. They argue that conscription, by its nature, restricts personal freedoms. Additionally, some express concern that introducing women into previously all-male units could create social friction or logistical challenges. There is also some debate regarding the absolute necessity of conscription, with some suggesting that increased efforts towards voluntary recruitment could yield sufficient personnel increases. A Global Landscape and Denmarks Pioneering Role While mandatory military service for women is relatively uncommon globally, Denmark is not entirely alone in its approach. Countries such as Israel, Norway, and Sweden already have similar systems in place. Denmarks decision reflects a broader trend of reevaluating traditional gender roles within the military and a push for greater equality within these institutions. The long-term impact of this policy shift on Danish society and the armed forces remains to be seen. However, there is no doubt that it signifies a significant transformation in Denmarks approach to national defense and underscores the countrys commitment to gender equality. Public Perception and the Road Ahead Public opinion on implementing mandatory military service for women in Denmark is a crucial factor to consider. Understanding how the Danish population views this policy change will be essential for ensuring its smooth and successful execution. Further exploration of public opinion polls and surveys on this topic would provide valuable insights. The specific plans for integrating women into the draft system and the Danish military as a whole warrant further investigation. Delving deeper into details such as training adaptations, potential unit structures, and support systems for female recruits would offer a clearer picture of the implementation process. Finally, analyzing the long-term effects of this policy shift is an important endeavor. Examining how the inclusion of women in mandatory service shapes Danish society over time, as well as its impact on the effectiveness and composition of the armed forces, will provide valuable lessons for Denmark and potentially serve as a model for other nations considering similar reforms. Denmarks Path Aligns with Scandinavian Neighbors Interestingly, Denmarks move to institute gender-neutral conscription aligns with recent decisions by its Scandinavian neighbors. In 2015, Norway introduced a similar policy, followed by Sweden in 2019. These regional trends suggest a shift in thinking about national defense and the role of women in the military within Northern Europe. Understanding the motivations behind these parallel decisions, along with the experiences of Norway and Sweden in implementing gender-neutral conscription, could offer valuable insights for Denmark as it embarks on its own implementation process. Have there been demonstrable benefits in terms of bolstering troop numbers? Have their armed forces experienced significant integration challenges, and if so, what strategies have been employed to address them? Potential Ramifications and the Importance of Careful Planning The implications of mandatory military service for women extend beyond immediate concerns of manpower and gender balance within the armed forces. This policy change will likely have ripple effects throughout Danish society and potentially influence broader conversations about gender roles and expectations. Careful planning and consideration of both potential benefits and challenges are critical for a successful transition. Addressing issues such as adjustments to training programs, accommodations within military facilities, and the provision of adequate support for female recruits will be essential. Additionally, proactive measures to mitigate potential harassment or discrimination based on gender should be a top priority to ensure a welcoming and inclusive environment for all service members. Furthermore, it is important to explore potential societal changes. Could mandatory military service for women lead to shifts in expectations regarding female participation in the workforce, education pathways, or even family planning for young Danish women? Analyzing these potential long-term effects could provide a more holistic understanding of the policys full scale of impact. Denmarks decision to include women in mandatory military service is both a response to shifting geopolitical realities and a reflection of evolving societal values. It highlights the nations commitment to strengthening its defenses while embracing a more equitable distribution of military service obligations. The path ahead will require careful planning, a readiness to address potential challenges, and a commitment to creating a military environment that is inclusive and supportive for all members. As this groundbreaking policy is implemented, Denmark has the opportunity to become a model for other countries that may be considering similar reforms. The coming years will undoubtedly offer valuable lessons on the complexities and potential benefits of achieving gender equality within the context of national defense. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lessened its holdings in Carlisle Companies Incorporated (NYSE:CSL Free Report) by 11.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,463 shares of the conglomerates stock after selling 2,821 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohios holdings in Carlisle Companies were worth $5,564,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Get Carlisle Companies alerts: Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new position in Carlisle Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Artemis Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Carlisle Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in Carlisle Companies by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 196 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new position in Carlisle Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in Carlisle Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at $103,000. Institutional investors own 90.70% of the companys stock. Carlisle Companies Stock Performance NYSE:CSL opened at $361.57 on Wednesday. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $329.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $293.18. The stock has a market cap of $17.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.92. Carlisle Companies Incorporated has a twelve month low of $203.65 and a twelve month high of $367.29. The company has a quick ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 2.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Carlisle Companies Announces Dividend Carlisle Companies ( NYSE:CSL Get Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The conglomerate reported $4.17 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.70. The company had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Carlisle Companies had a return on equity of 28.31% and a net margin of 15.07%. Carlisle Companiess quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.92 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Carlisle Companies Incorporated will post 18.44 EPS for the current fiscal year. The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 16th were paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. Carlisle Companiess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.31%. Insiders Place Their Bets In other Carlisle Companies news, VP David W. Smith sold 700 shares of Carlisle Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.54, for a total value of $236,978.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,834 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $959,422.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO D Christian Koch sold 6,454 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $347.53, for a total transaction of $2,242,958.62. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 86,652 shares of the companys stock, valued at $30,114,169.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP David W. Smith sold 700 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.54, for a total value of $236,978.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,834 shares in the company, valued at $959,422.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,255 shares of company stock valued at $5,231,360 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.30% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CSL shares. StockNews.com upgraded Carlisle Companies from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Carlisle Companies from $350.00 to $354.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $310.67. Read Our Latest Stock Report on Carlisle Companies Carlisle Companies Company Profile (Free Report) Carlisle Companies Incorporated operates as a manufacturer and supplier of building envelope products and solutions in the United States, Europe, North America, Asia and Middle East, Africa, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Carlisle Construction Materials and Carlisle Weatherproofing Technologies. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CSL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Carlisle Companies Incorporated (NYSE:CSL Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Carlisle Companies Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Carlisle Companies and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. 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. A public meeting was held in Dungiven on Monday (March 4) at Glor community hall in respect of Benbradagh and Banagher wind farm proposals and protecting the Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The meeting was well attended and there was plenty of participation from the audience. There was representation from SDLP and Aontu, however it was confirmed that other parties did not respond to the invite or declined the offer to attend. Sinn Fein's Sean McGlinchey stated that he was 'happy to speak to people individually however their position was that they would wait until planning have made their decision'. There was discontent and disappointment from the audience regarding lack of representation from local councillors. One participant asked 'what are they getting paid for if they cant represent the views of the wider community and not just those of a select few?' The main focus of the evening was that Dungiven is not a community against renewable energy, but a community demanding protection for the natural and built heritage and protection of key local landmarks, that give the area its identity with the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. One participant stated 'there will be nothing left for the next generation to write poetry and songs about and feel a sense of connection to. Theres a very simple message that you need to get outWe dont want any more of these wind farms'. Another participant added 'much of the area was already destroyed by the influx of more wind farms'. One participant asked 'why cant they take some of the windfarms to the Belfast hills where the electricity is most needed'. The audience felt strongly that the community has already played a very big part in contributing to the renewable energy endeavor but were strongly against sacrificing more Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty or key natural landmarks. One businessman stated: If all the wind applications in our area get the go head, well basically end up living in the middle of a big wind farm, we might as well scrape our AONB status and people will drive by Dungiven onto the next place, because these massive turbines over our landscape will look oppressive. Another business person said that people flock from the cities to his campsite to enjoy the wild uninterrupted scenery and peace and feared they would just drive on by if Dungiven gets more of these wind farms approved. He said: Customers are very clear about what they want and dont want, and they dont want to be looking out onto an industrial landscape when maybe theyve just driven 50 miles from Belfast to escape that. There was a brief update on the current state of the two wind farms to highlight that the Banagher Wind Farm refusal was being appealed by RES Renewables and that the Benbradagh Wind Farm was still at the consultation stage. A map was shown of the initial 12 wind turbines that ABO wanted to put on Benbradagh but it was confirmed that this has been scaled back to four wind turbines. A participant in the audience stated: We dont want any turbines up on Benbradagh, the scale back to four is only to get a foot in the door and planners wont have any authority after that, sure look at how they are now appealing Banagher, no doubt that will go ahead, its a sorry state of affairs for Dungiven and the community needs to get behind in protecting this area. We need protection for our Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and our loved landmark Benbradagh. The Save Benbradagh group thanked the audience for their time and asked them to leave details if they wish to get further involved. If you wish to get more involved please find the group on Facebook Save Benbradagh or email savebenbradagh@gmail.com Northern Irelands leaders are heading stateside for their first international trip since taking up the posts earlier this year. First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly will travel to Washington DC where they will meet US president Joe Biden. They will also take part in a series of St Patricks Day engagements in the city, focused on showcasing Northern Irelands economy and developing key relationships and networks across the United States. U.S. visit opportunity to generate investment and strengthen relationship ONeill and Little-Pengelly More info https://t.co/YEfDND6nCc NI Executive (@niexecutive) March 12, 2024 Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris and Stormont Economy Minister Conor Murphy are also in the US this week. Meanwhile, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is in the United States representing the Republic of Ireland. He has taken part in engagements in Boston and later this week will present Mr Biden with the traditional shamrock bowl, as an extension of St Patricks Day greetings from the people of Ireland to the people of the United States. Just weeks after the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland, Ms ONeill said it was vital to seek every opportunity to attract investment. .@Economy_NI Minister @ConorMurphySF is in the United States of America this week, visiting both New York and Washington, DC. During his visit the Minister will address business and political leaders and share his Economic Vision and the unique benefits of the new trading pic.twitter.com/W7hzWdZIpE Economy NI (@Economy_NI) March 11, 2024 I am ambitious for a brighter future for our people and I want to harness the benefits of the special connection between ourselves and the US, she said. This relationship was crucial to our peace process and continues today through investment, knowledge sharing and support. Now that government here is back up and running, it is vital that we seek every opportunity to attract investment, grow our economy and deliver for our citizens. Ms Little-Pengelly said the events they would attend, which included the Ireland Funds Gala and meeting with the US Chamber of Commerce, would give them an opportunity to engage with influential decision makers. We have a strong relationship with the US and this week, our focus will be on showcasing Northern Ireland as a compelling investment opportunity and highlighting the many benefits of doing business here, she said. These events give us the opportunity to engage with some of the most influential decisions makers at a senior level. I am confident they will see the potential we have to offer and recognise our commitment to doing everything we can to ensure Northern Ireland thrives. A series of meetings held recently are to express opposition to an Irish sea border, and not TUV rallies, it has been insisted. DUP MP Sammy Wilson previously ruled out attending a gathering in Carrickfergus on Tuesday evening contending they were creating a poisonous atmosphere and were TUV electioneering. A number of events have been organised by TUV leader Jim Allister and campaigner Jamie Bryson since the DUP struck a deal with the Government over post-Brexit trading arrangements and returned to devolved government. DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said the Safeguarding the Union document has effectively removed the so-called Irish Sea border for goods moving from Great Britain to, and staying in, Northern Ireland. Addressing the meeting in Carrickfergus, campaigner Jamie Bryson claimed a large percentage the DUP oppose the deal and challenged Sir Jeffrey to a public debate on it. He also said the events are not TUV rallies. These are anti Irish Sea border meetings against the Surrendering the Union deal, he said. It isnt the TUVs fault that they are the only party with a cohesive collective party stance against the Irish Sea border, alongside the PUP who, to be fair, have also rejected the deal. The only people who divided unionism were the DUP leadership who broke the central pledges which held unionism together, and who abandoned the Ulster Day 2021 joint-unionist declaration. I am confident that, in the fullness of time, there is only one outcome here, and that is that every reasonable unionist will realise they have been fundamentally misled and that the Surrendering the Union far from removing the Irish Sea border, in fact, embeds it. The family of a murder victim whose body was dumped in a reservoir in Co Antrim say they have found themselves in the midst of an unimaginable tragedy. Michael Campbell, 34, was jailed at Belfast Crown Court for a minimum of 21 years for the murder of Roy Reynolds in 2022. Campbell, whose address was given as HMP Maghaberry, admitted the murder as well as a second charge of attempting to prevent the burial of a body. A judge said the murder of Mr Reynolds was brutal in the extreme, relentless and merciless. A second man, Robert Fulton, 70, of Brickhill Park, Newtownabbey, was given a sentence of two years and four months for assisting in the disposal of a body. Mr Reynolds, who was 54, was beaten and stabbed at a flat in Rathcoole in March 2022. The court heard he had suffered more than 100 injuries. His body was placed in the boot of a car and taken to North Woodburn Reservoir, near Carrickfergus, where it was later discovered in shallow water. In a statement after the sentencing, Eric McCully, Mr Reynolds brother-in-law said: We, Roys family, find ourselves in the midst of an unimaginable tragedy. Our beloved Roy Reynolds, affectionately known as Fobby, was taken from us far too soon. As we grapple with grief, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has stood by our side during this harrowing time. He added: Fobby was more than a name; he was a cherished brother, father and grandfather. His twin sister, Maggie, shares our grief, as do his brother Phillip and sisters Samantha, Joanne and Donna. Roys legacy lives on through his daughters, Natasha and Lisa, and his three precious grandchildren: Charlie, Freya and Ayda. Setting out the background to the case in court, Mr Justice OHara said Mr Reynolds had gone to Campbells flat on the evening of March 27 2022 for drinks. The next morning a neighbour phoned police to say he had seen Campbell dragging a naked body to a silver car and putting it into the boot. The car was owned by Fulton. When police stopped the car in Newtownabbey, Campbell, who was in the vehicle with Fulton, had blood on his face. The judge said officers later received a call to say Mr Reynolds body had been found in the reservoir. When police recovered the body, it was naked from the waist up and Mr Reynolds trousers and underwear had been pulled down to his ankles. Mr Justice OHara said it was evident that Mr Reynolds had been murdered in Campbells flat where police had discovered substantial blood staining. He said a post-mortem examination showed Mr Reynolds had suffered more than 100 injuries, including injuries consistent with the use of a knife, punches and blows from another weapon. The judge said the severity of the injuries indicated the victim was dead before he was placed in the water. During police interviews, Campbell gave differing accounts of what had happened, but the judge said Fultons version of events had been accepted by police as being close to the truth. Referring to victim impact statements he had received from Mr Reynolds family, the judge said It is clear from them how much he is loved and missed by his family and friends. The shock of his murder, especially the brutality of it, has made all of their lives so much harder than before. A major extra element of distress and grief has been caused by the way in which Mr Reynolds body was treated. It is one thing to lose a family member to murder, it is worse again, a lot worse, when the body is taken in the boot of a car and dumped in water. Sentencing the two men, Mr Justice OHara said: Campbells murder of Mr Reynolds was brutal in the extreme, relentless and merciless. It was made worse, many times worse, by what was done by Campbell to Mr Reynolds body after he was killed. He said Campbell must serve at least 21 years before he can be considered for release. The judge said Fulton could be treated differently because he was not involved in the murder and had shown remorse. He was given a total sentence of two years and four months, with half to be served in custody. However, the judge said that due to time already served, Fulton will not be required to return to prison. The door is not shut on adding Northern Ireland to a Westminster law aimed at quashing the wrongful convictions of subpostmasters caught up in the Horizon IT scandal, Stormonts Justice Minister has insisted. Naomi Long said she was very disappointed the Government had not widened its draft Bill to include Northern Ireland. Ms Long claimed her Stormont colleagues First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly had been given an indication on Tuesday from Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove and Northern Ireland Office minister Steve Baker that the Government was open to showing flexibility around including the region in the proposed law. She said that made its exclusion from the Bill introduced in the Commons on Wednesday particularly frustrating. However, she said it was not too late to add Northern Ireland by amending the legislation as it proceeds through its parliamentary stages. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill will exonerate those convicted in England and Wales on the basis of the faulty Horizon accounting software. Northern Ireland and Scotland are excluded from the Bill, with the Government having pledged to work with those devolved administrations to find ways for them to expunge wrongful convictions. More than 700 subpostmasters in the UK were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsus faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. Ms Long said there were around 25 affected subpostmasters in Northern Ireland. Obviously were very disappointed that (Post Office) minister Kevin Hollinrake has decided to go ahead today with the Post Office convictions expunction legislation, without including Northern Ireland and indeed Scotland, she told reporters at Stormont. We became aware that he was going to do so yesterday when they shared a draft of the legislation with us. It was particularly disappointing because earlier in the day the First and deputy First Minister had sought reassurances from Steve Baker as Minister of State and from Michael Gove as the Secretary of State for Levelling Up and they seemed open and flexible about the inclusion of Northern Ireland in that legislation. So it is particularly frustrating that theyve decided to proceed without it. We have written again to the minister and asked him to consider adding Northern Ireland to the legislation as it goes through the House of Commons, because there will be an opportunity to amend the legislation. We remain of the view that this is not just the simplest way and the quickest way to deal with it but the right way to deal with it in terms of ensuring that there is parity of treatment for people in Northern Ireland with those right across the UK who were affected by the Post Office scandal. It now remains to be seen whether ministers will step up and take that opportunity. She added: I dont think the door is completely shut when it comes to whether Northern Ireland may be included as it goes through its passage of the House because then it could be added at amendment stage. Ms Long said introducing specific legislation at Stormont would be slow and cumbersome. She said it would also be using a sledgehammer to crack a nut given the relatively small number of people involved. Ms Long said an alternative approach in Northern Ireland could see the creation of an administrative scheme, rather than primary legislation, but she said that would mean every affected individual would have to apply to have their cases reviewed. She said the most straightforward solution was to add Northern Ireland to the Westminster legislation. I dont think all is lost, I think there is still an opportunity at amendment stage for us to be able to get those amendments done, she said. Government could do that very simply because weve pointed out to them where the amendments would be needed. If Government dont do it, then I would hope that some of our MPs will step up and do that and hope that the Government would then accept those amendments, and work with us to actually deliver this. It makes sense because its the most efficient use of resources. But it also ensures that there is equality of treatment across the board, which there wont be if we go down a different route. Ms Long indicated that her party colleague and North Down MP Stephen Farry would be prepared to propose such an amendment at Westminster. The minister said while there were complications presented by Scotland having a different legal system, she said the only real change to the Bill required to reflect the Northern Ireland situation would be the inclusion of reference to the regions Public Prosecution Service, in addition to the Crown Prosecution Service in England and Wales. In Northern Ireland, the real change, the most substantive change is the difference between CPS and PPS, so I mean were not talking here about extreme changes to legislation, theyre fairly minor tweaks that would allow us to be part of this wider legislation going forward, she said. The minister said she did not accept an argument advanced by Government that Stormont should deal with the issue because justice was a devolved issue. The scandal which actually created this problem was not in the devolved sphere, it was in postal services, and the Post Office, which are reserved matters, she said. The actual compensation scheme, it is not a devolved matter, it is a reserved matter, and it will be dealt with by Government. And so I think that this small issue of actually which courts delivered the sentences is almost irrelevant in that conversation. What they should be doing is expunging those factually inaccurate and unsafe convictions and thats what the Government should be doing because ultimately this was a problem of their making, and I think the resolution should lie with them. Pressures facing public finances in Northern Ireland will leave Stormont ministers having to make many unenviable decisions, Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibald has warned. During an appearance before a Stormont scrutiny committee, a senior civil servant also said savings were not achievable through belt-tightening, but would be aligned to stopping doing certain things. Ms Archibald and Department of Finance permanent secretary Neil Gibson updated MLAs on Wednesday on budget pressures and department priorities. The Treasury has offered to write off almost 600 million of Stormont debt, conditional on the powersharing Executive raising 113 million and producing a plan to deliver sustainable finances. The stipulation is a key element of a 3.3 billion financial package drawn up by the UK Government to support the return of devolution in Northern Ireland. However, Stormont ministers have criticised the Treasury demand and instead agreed last month to a 4% increase in the regional rate, which equates to around 30 million extra in revenue. Ms Archibald told the Finance Committee she had secured flexibilities after discussions with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Laura Trott. The Finance Minister said: I have had a constructive meeting with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 28 February. Treasurys position remains that the write-off of the 559 million is conditional on raising income through local revenue and the production of a sustainability plan. It is my strong view, and one that is shared by my Executive colleagues, that the 559 million of debt exists primarily due to the underfunding of public services. However, starting the 2025/26 budget with in deficit of that quantum would do lasting damage to our public services. So we must ensure sustainable finances so we can deliver high-quality public services. Ms Archibald said the Treasury had recognised the difficulties with a rushed sustainability plan. She said: I am therefore pleased to have secured an extended timeframe for an initial scoping and structure of that plan to be carried out by May with the final plan to be produced by August. Getting it right is obviously more important than getting it done. Recognising the challenges of raising 113 million of additional revenue, given how close we are to the start of the financial year and the limited financial levers at our disposal, the Chief Secretary has agreed that this can be generated over 24 months instead of 12 months. The enhanced timeframe for both the development of a sustainability plan and to generate locally raised income is contingent on the Executive delivering a balanced budget. Ms Archibald added: As an Executive, ministers will collectively and individually have to make many unenviable decisions. DUP committee member Phillip Brett asked the minister to explain what she meant by unenviable decisions within her department. Ms Archibald said: We will face a challenging budget like every department and there are pressures that we will have to make decisions around. Mr Gibson said: The harsh reality of the budget pressures means we are in a world of looking down things and saying, Can we stop this? Is this no longer required? Are we definitely the right people to deliver this? The scale of pressures are not achievable through belt-tightening, it is not a little nip or a tuck here, it is a more fundamental assessment of whether everything we do is still a requirement to do. And then presenting those options and choices to ministers to make the relevant decision. If you ask me to find some little savings or belt-tightening measures, they are not there. If there are significant cuts coming to the department it will be aligned to stopping doing certain things. HIGHLIGHTS Microsoft is reportedly working to add a Magic Eraser tool to its OneDrive application. This feature will likely use AI for generative erasing functionality. The Magic Erase feature is expected to let you remove parts of your photo that you don't want. Lots of tech companies are putting AI into their products, some do it well, some not so much. In smartphones, weve seen cool AI features like Google Photos Magic tools that can remove objects or improve audio. A new report has revealed that Microsoft is working to add an AI Magic Eraser tool to its OneDrive application. In the latest Microsoft OneDrive v7.1 beta 1 on Android, Android Authority noticed some hints suggesting that Microsoft is developing a Magic Erase feature. This feature will likely use AI for generative erasing functionality. Also read: Copilot in OneDrive: Your personal file assistant will roll out in April 2024 The Magic Erase feature is expected to let you remove parts of your photo that you dont want. Just like other versions of this feature, you will likely be able to use a brush to mark the areas you want to get rid of. Then, AI will fill in those removed spots for you. Also read: Microsoft blocks terms that led Copilot create inappropriate images: All details here Microsoft will likely give a heads-up that the erased area might not be perfect or exactly what you were hoping for. This kind of caution is pretty normal for AI features like this. OneDrive already has a photo editor in its Android app. In the current version, you can do basic stuff like cropping, adjusting brightness and contrast, applying filters, and adding notes. When testing out the beta version, the AI Magic Erase feature couldnt be turned on. So, it seems like it might be locked behind a server switch for now. Well have to wait and see if and when Microsoft decides to release this feature. Given that the stock Photos app on Windows already has AI-based erase features, theres a good chance that this feature in development will eventually become available to users. HIGHLIGHTS Google announced how it will be providing support to the 2024 Indian General Election. Google has started rolling out limitations on the types of election-related questions that Gemini will provide responses for. Google has =collaborated with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to enable people to easily find important voting information on Google Search. Google recognises the vital role it plays in upholding the democratic process by supporting elections, especially as India prepares for its upcoming General Election with millions of eligible voters. The tech giant is dedicated to giving people good information, stopping misuse of its platforms, and helping users deal with AI-generated content. Google announced how it will be providing support to the 2024 Indian General Election. Also read: Gemini now lets you modify its responses: Heres how Google has started rolling out limitations on the types of election-related questions that Gemini will provide responses for. Also read: Google unveils Gemini 1.5 AI model with enhanced performance, long context window & more Out of an abundance of caution on such an important topic, we have begun to roll out restrictions on the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses. We take our responsibility for providing high-quality information for these types of queries seriously, and are continuously working to improve our protections, Google wrote in a blogpost on March 12th. Google has also collaborated with the Election Commission of India (ECI) to enable people to easily find important voting information on Google Search such as how to register and how to vote in both English and Hindi. Moreover, Google has strict policies and restrictions around who can run election-related advertising on our platforms. For example, the company asks all advertisers who wish to run election ads on its platforms to undergo an identity verification process, provide a pre-certificate issued by the ECI or anyone authorised by the ECI for each election ad they want to run where necessary and have in-ad disclosures that clearly show who paid for the ad. Additionally, ahead of the General Election, Google is supporting Shakti, India Election Fact-Checking Collective, a consortium of news publishers and fact checkers in India, working together to aid the early detection of online misinformation, including deepfakes, and to create a common repository that news publishers can use to tackle the challenges of misinformation at scale, the tech giant said. Global tech heavyweights converge on Taiwan: 2024 Smart City & Net Zero City Expos signal major growth The 2024 Smart City Expo and the 2050 Net Zero City Expo are slated to unfold on March 19 for a four-day run at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. This year boasts a record-breaking participation of over 600 exhibitors, presenting cutting-edge solutions and technologies. Alongside a full lineup of domestic tech firms, international heavyweights are set to join, with a notable European country earmarking billions of euros for smart city development, signaling opportunities for Taiwanese companies to expand globally. At a pre-show press conference, Acer chairman Jason Chen, also the president of the Taiwan Smart City Solutions Alliance (TSSA), pointed to several milestones for the twin fairs. Notably, a 13% increase in exhibitors and a 16% rise in registered overseas visitors totaling over 2,000 from 46 countries highlight Taiwan's pivotal role in driving global smart city and net-zero city initiatives through its technological prowess. Anticipating the market arrival of AI-powered PCs and phones within the next 1-2 years, the expo has introduced an "AI+" zone, showcasing AI applications across diverse sectors such as retail, transportation, healthcare, and manufacturing. According to the Taipei Computer Association (TPA), one of the show organizers, this year's exhibition will focus on the ecosystem from upstream to downstream, shaping Taiwan's AI industry clusters by connecting different fields. Intel's Renu N. Navale, vice president of its network & edge group and general manager of video and AI cities, will address the 2024 AI series forums, underscoring the company's deepening collaboration with Taiwanese system integrators. There will be more heavyweight overseas visitors, including the Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) ICF, known for its global smart city rankings. This year, the organization is cooperating with the Smart City Expo for the first time to hold the ICF Smart 21 release event. The Spanish National Industrial Technology Development Agency (CDTI) is also leading a delegation to visit Taiwan for the first time. The visit comes as the Spanish government has allocated up to billions of Euros for developing and promoting smart cities nationwide. According to TPA, the CDTI's visit signifies the Spanish government's search for relevant smart city solutions to be adopted in Spain. They are also seeking cooperation opportunities with Taiwanese partners. However, the specific smart city projects the CDTI will focus on during their visit remain unclear. More details are expected to be revealed during the expo. Continuing the dual-axis exhibition model in Taipei and Kaohsiung, the 2024 twin fairs will jointly feature the theme "Digital and Green Transformation." The Net Zero City Expo, in particular, will unveil the "Taiwan 2050 Net Zero Emissions Pathway" blueprint, bolstered by 12 key strategies. Additionally, the involvement of state-owned and private banks indicates growing financial support for large-scale green projects, aligning with the global shift towards sustainable finance. Save my User ID and Password Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site. Silicon Catalyst partners with Arm to launch the Arm Flexible Access for Startups Contest Silicon Catalyst, the world's only incubator focused exclusively on accelerating semiconductor solutions, announced it is partnering with Arm on the Arm Flexible Access for Startups Contest. The contest is directed toward early-stage entrepreneurial teams developing a System-on-Chip (SoC) design using Arm processor IP (intellectual property). The 2024 Arm Flexible Access for Startups Contest is open to privately owned startup companies in pre-seed, seed, and Series A funding that have raised a maximum of $20 million in funding. Arm technology credits of $250,000 and $150,000, will be awarded to the Winner and Runner-up, respectively, and can be used to cover IP fees for a complete embedded system or contribute to the cost of a higher-performance system. The winner and runner-up will also receive additional benefits, including a pitch review session hosted by the Silicon Catalyst Angel investment group. All contest applicant organizations will be considered for acceptance to the Silicon Catalyst Incubator/Accelerator. Paul Williamson, senior vice president and general manager of the IoT Line of Business at Arm, said Arm technology is recognizing and supporting the next wave of innovators to grow their business and accelerate their SoC designs. "We know that time to product and access to the largest possible market is critical for startups, which is why we created Arm Flexible Access for Startups, providing zero-cost access to a wide portfolio of IP, tools, and support, to maximize their chance of success," said Williamson. Pete Rodriguez, Silicon Catalyst CEO pointed out that the winning and runners-up prizes of Arm technology credit represent significant investments for start-ups, so they can accelerate the commercialization of their products. This is a game-changer for silicon startups looking to design and deliver innovative SoC devices through the Arm Flexible Access for Startups program. "As a key strategic and in-kind partner, we are delighted to again be supporting Arm through the contest and assisting the next generation of leading silicon startups to deliver commercial success and business growth," said Rodriguez. The contest is live now and will run through May 17, 2024. It will be judged by senior executives from both Arm and Silicon Catalyst, and the contest winner and runner-up will be announced in June 2024. Contest rules and application details can be found here. About Silicon Catalyst "It's about what's next" Silicon Catalyst is the world's only incubator focused exclusively on accelerating semiconductor solutions, built on a comprehensive coalition of in-kind and strategic partners to dramatically reduce the cost and complexity of development. More than 1000 startup companies worldwide have engaged with Silicon Catalyst and the company has admitted over 100 exciting companies. With a world-class network of mentors to advise startups, Silicon Catalyst is helping new semiconductor companies address the challenges in moving from idea to realization. The incubator/accelerator supplies startups with access to design tools, silicon devices, networking, and a path to funding, banking, and marketing acumen to successfully launch and grow their company's novel technology solutions. Over the past nine years, the Silicon Catalyst model has proven to dramatically accelerate a startup's trajectory while at the same time de-risking the equation for investors. In 2023, Silicon Catalyst UK was awarded a contract by the UK Government to establish an incubator for entrepreneurial teams based in the UK targeting the semiconductor industry. More details at: https://www.eetimes.com/silicon-catalyst-launches-1-3m-chipstart-u-k-incubator/ Silicon Catalyst has been named the Semiconductor Review's 2021 Top-10 Solutions Company award winner. The Silicon Catalyst Angels was established in July 2019 as a separate organization to provide access to seed and Series A funding for Silicon Catalyst portfolio companies. More information is available at www.siliconcatalyst.com and www.siliconcatalyst.uk About Silicon Catalyst Angels The Silicon Catalyst Angels was established in July 2019 as a separate organization to provide access to seed and Series A funding for Silicon Catalyst portfolio companies. What makes Silicon Catalyst Angels unique is the investment group's visibility into a semiconductor-focused deal flow pipeline, and our membership comprises seasoned semiconductor veterans who bring a wealth of knowledge and their ability to invest. Driven by passion and a desire to 'give back', our members understand the semiconductor market thanks to a lifetime of engagement in the industry. When you couple our members' enthusiasm, knowledge, and broad network of connections with companies vetted and admitted to Silicon Catalyst, you have a formula that is nonexistent within the investment community. More information about membership can be found at www.siliconcatalystangels.com Contact Information Silicon Catalyst LLC Richard Curtin, Managing Partner (richard@siliconcatalyst.com) Silicon Catalyst.UK Sean Redmond, Managing Partner (sean@siliconcatalyst.uk) Silicon Catalyst Israel Moshe Zalcberg, Managing Director (moshe@siliconcatalyst.com) India reportedly delays Tower Semiconductor fab project amid legal dispute Recently, India approved three proposals to set up wafer fabs and ATMP/OSAT facilities. However, India has yet to clear Tower Semiconductor's proposal, reportedly due to legal entanglements between the company and its joint venture partner. Business Standard quoted lawyers from ISMC, a joint venture set up by Abu Dhabi-based Next Orbit Ventures and Israel-based Tower Semiconductor, asking the Indian government not to approve Tower Semiconductor's US$8 billion proposal to set up wafer fabs for analog ICs based on 40-65nm process nodes, as ISMC argued Tower Semiconductor's unilateral decision to halt their partnership was a breach of contract. Tower Semiconductor and Next Orbit Ventured formed ISMC in February 2022 following India's introduction of an INR760 billion semiconductor and display fabs incentive scheme. The duo applied for the scheme and sought land in Karnataka for a 65nm analog IC wafer fab. Despite the funds from Next Orbit Ventures and technology from Tower Semiconductor, India did not clear ISMC's proposal, as Intel proposed to acquire Tower Semiconductor, and the Indian government would like to wait for the completion of the deal, which failed to materialize due to a delayed review by the Chinese government. After Intel's acquisition of Tower Semiconductor fell apart, the latter decided to end its partnership with Next Orbit Ventures and sought a third-party partner introduced by ISMC. According to Business Standard, ISMC's lawyers said they strongly object to Tower's unilateral move and will pursue legal remedies in addition to asking the Indian government to block Tower Semiconductor's proposal. The Indian government approved three projects: Tata-PSMC's wafer fab in Gujarat, Tata's ATMP facility in Assam, and an OSAT facility by CG Power-Renesas-Star Microelectronics in Gujarat. Earlier, Micron's US$2.75 billion memory ATMP facility was approved by India and received a subsidy of US$1.925 billion from India's central and state governments. The Ministry of Electronics and IT of India confirmed Tower was among the applicants in the latest round of applications, but Tower Semiconductor may have to address its disputes with ISMC before obtaining approval from India. Art gallery dedicated to late Chinese sculptor Liu Shiming opens in NYC Xinhua) 15:51, March 13, 2024 NEW YORK, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A new art gallery honoring the late Chinese sculptor Liu Shiming opened to the public in Midtown, New York City, on Tuesday. Located on the 5th floor of 15 East 40th Street, the Liu Shiming Art Gallery greeted visitors Tuesday evening with an inaugural exhibition entitled "From The Beginning: Sculpture by Liu Shiming," set to run throughout the summer. Featuring over 35 pieces, the exhibition offers a glimpse into Liu Shiming's prominent role in modern Chinese sculpture. Liu, who died in 2010 at the age of 84, was among the first generation of homegrown artists from the People's Republic of China, who mined his grassroots experiences and research into classic Chinese art to create "Chinese methods" of sculpture. Liu's works often depict ordinary people he knew, such as villagers, herders and opera performers, and vividly record the daily lives of China's countryside residents in the 1960s. According to Fran Kaufman, the gallery's curatorial director, the gallery is committed to showcasing Liu Shiming's work through solo and combined exhibitions. A monograph on Liu's work, authored by Richard Vine, former managing editor of the New York-based monthly magazine Art in America, is scheduled for release in early 2025. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) Subscriber content preview By MATT O'BRIEN AP Technology Writer U.S. lawmakers are threatening to ban TikTok but also say they are giving its Chinese parent company a chance to keep it running. The premise of a bipartisan bill headed for a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives is that TikTok fans in the U.S. can keep scrolling through their favorite social media app so long as Beijing-based ByteDance gives up on owning it. . . . Subscriber content preview PORTLAND (AP) Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek wants to scrap a plan to implement tolls on large sections of two Portland-area interstates. KGW-TV reports Kotek sent a letter to the Oregon Transportation Commission on Monday saying the Regional Mobility Pricing Project for Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 should be halted. . . . Subscriber content preview NEW YORK (AP) The National Small Business Association has successfully challenged a law designed to combat money laundering but that small businesses contend is too burdensome. A federal court in Alabama on March 1 ruled that the Corporate Transparency Act is unconstitutional. . . . Councillors and Gardai have expressed concern over plans by car enthusiasts to converge on Bundoran on St Patrick's Day. Hundreds of car enthusiasts are organising themselves to descend on the seaside town after making the announcement on social media. Young drivers from as far away as Galway and across Northern Ireland are part of the group planning to visit the popular location this weekend. There are now concerns among local community leaders that the plan will bring chaos to the town. The issue was raised at the recent Joint Policing Committee Meeting at County House in Lifford. Councillor Michael McMahon said he had been made aware of the plans and was very concerned. "It is a serious cause for concern for both the business community and the families, he said. They have been there before and the Gardai have worked very hard on it, to control it in the best possible way. "We and the Gardai have tried to get in contact with the leaders of these car groups but it just hasn't happened. "The point is that they are picking a day which is one of the busiest days you will have with thousands of people and lots of parades. "It will be chaos number one and number two is the health and safety situation that will arise there will be serious. "I have no solution and this has been ongoing but I do know that with the activities of these cars, there is an accident waiting to happen there. God forbid we had an accident in our town a few months ago and we certainly don't want another one. "What I am saying is that I spoke to the Superintendent there and I will be meeting the Garda and the business people from Bundoran. "It is an ongoing situation and a very serious situation and the talk of it is already spoiling the day for people who want to enjoy St Patrick's Day in a proper and democratic fashion. "So I am wondering if we have any solutions to this and perhaps we can speak to these people and see if we can accommodate them in some form. "But we are where we are and it has been posted on their Facebook page as happening on the 17 of March and that is serious." Garda Superintendent Karen Duffy of Ballyshannon Garda Station confirmed she was aware of the plans. She confirmed at the meeting that Gardai had reached out to the organisers of the event but that they had not yet responded. She added that if the cars were taxed and insured then Gardai could not stop people from driving them. Meanwhile, a statement issued by local Gardai says they have a plan to set up extra checkpoints in the Bundoran area to monitor driving activity in the area this weekend. A spokesperson said: "Due to the upcoming bank holiday weekend and the St. Patrick's Day parades in Bundoran, Ballyshannon, Donegal Town and the surrounding areas, it is expected to be a busy weekend. "Gardai have been made aware of a planned car gathering in Bundoran on St. Patrick's Day and as a result of this planned event, Gardai will be conducting extra checkpoints to detect Road Traffic Offences." A man who, along with his housemate, forced his way into the apartment of a 17 year old Malaysian student in the town, was jailed for two years and nine months at Dundalk Circuit Court. Alan Bird (32) with an address at the time at Ashbrook Avenue, Dundalk admitted a single count of robbery, arising out of the incident at Mourneview Hall, Dublin Road, Dundalk on May 3rd 2020. The victim, who was a student at DkIT, had heard banging around midnight and when he answered the door, Alan Bird's co-accused asked for one of his flat mates. Before he could reply, the other man started hitting him in the face and knocked him to the ground before he ran off. Shortly afterwards both defendants kicked the door down and while his co-accused beat the victim, Alan Bird, who was wearing a ski mask, started looking for money that he claimed a flat mate owed. They stole the students laptop, Nintendo Switch, a Macbook Air and 250 in cash. In a victim impact statement, the injured party said what occurred had changed and scared him in a way he will always remember and loud noise or banging triggers his paranoia. Alan Bird had 23 previous convictions including burglary and assault causing harm.In a letter previously read to the court, he apologised to the victim. He said he was struggling with mental health problems during lockdown but stressed he is now clean of Class A drugs. He added he has a new perspective on life since turning 30. Judge Dara Hayes, noted Alan Bird's now assessed as being at moderate risk of re-offending, having previously been considered at high risk. He imposed a sentence of five years and three months, with the final two and a half years suspended on him placing himself under the supervision of the Probation Service for 12 months post-release. It was backdated to November 27th last to allow for time spent in custody on the charge. Students from year 3 Event Management, Hospitality Management and Culinary Arts courses in Dundalk Institute of Technology (DkIT) hosted a fabulously glamorous PR Perks & Pastries Afternoon Tea event recently in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland. This occasion was held in the Hospitality Training Restaurant on campus which was transformed for the event with magically elegant decor thanks to Wow Weddings. The attendees of this event indulged in delicious treats and got to hear from and network with PR professionals Bronagh Quinn and Leah Morgan of Enhance Management as they discussed the world of social media influencing and PR. Bronagh Quinn who is the founder of Enhance Management is a graduate of DkIT where she studied Event Management. This company has grown rapidly, working with some of the most in demand influencers & spreading waves across the industry. At Enhance Management their main goal is to support influencers to succeed to their best ability. Lorraine Dunne, Lecturer & Programme Director, BA in Event Management, stated: "The year 3 students hosted a wonderful Afternoon Tea in DkIT around the theme of 'PR Perks & Pastries. They were delighted to welcome our past Event Management student, Bronagh Quinn, proprietor of Enhance Management and influencers Leah Morgan & Carly Mahady. "Guests were treated to a sparkling wine and orange juice reception paired with chocolate dipped strawberries and proceeded to have an array of mouthwatering savoury and sweet treats for Afternoon Tea. Bronagh, Leah & Carly enlightened the audience about the world of PR and Influencing with an engaging Q&A afterwards. All guests received an enviable goody bag provided by Benefit Makeup. Families are invited to embark on an enchanting, augmented reality journey in Carlingford this St Patrick's Day, to find a gang of friendly but mischievous leprechauns, the Carlichauns, with the launch of the magical Carlichauns Adventure Trail. This St Patricks Day, families are invited to step into a free location-based AR app - the Carlichauns Adventure Trail. This new immersive experience will see the little heroes, known as the Carlichauns, virtually hide amongst the festivities of the day and they need your help to grant wishes to children all over the world. From the Cooley Peninsula and the shores of Carlingford Lough come the Little Heroes from the Land of the Legends, called the Carlichauns Hazel, Riley, Dara, Zara and Big Green. People heading to SKYPARK in Carlingford will be transported to the captivating Carlichaun Kingdom through a free immersive AR app. Be swept along by mysterious adventures and endless fun as you use your phone or tablet to search for the Carlichauns. For anyone managing to catch them there, are special prizes to be won, including a bar of gold! To download the Carlichauns Adventure Trail App visit the App Store or Google Play and share your adventures #Carlicahuns. A modern embodiment of Irish folklore, the magical Carlichauns grant important wishes from kids around the world via secret portals from Carlingford Lough. Each Carlichaun character has their own special superpower, collectively making them a fearless force along the Carlichauns Adventure Trail, with plenty of mystery, magical and laughs too. From Irelands Last Leprechaun Whisperer, Kevin Woods, the Carlichauns are the re-imagining of centuries-old tales. Kevin said: Its been my ambition to build a legacy for the myth and legend you can find in Carlingford and bring it to a worldwide audience. And the Carlichauns are doing just that, ensuring this element of Irish folklore continues for generations to come. Weve always been a nation of storytellers, now the Carlichauns will be telling our tales, sharing our magic and inviting people from around the world to immerse in our legends. I know the leprechauns of Ireland approve theyve told me. Follow the Carlichauns on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. Visit carlichauns.com to follow the Carlichauns journey and see whats next for this formidable gang. The PEACEPLUS team at Louth County Council are inviting the public to join an online meeting on Tuesday 26 March, from 3pm to 4pm, where a summary of the proposed projects in the PEACEPLUS Action Plan will be presented. PEACEPLUS is a new cross-border funding Programme supported by the European Union, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Government of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland Executive. The Programme is designed to support peace and prosperity across Northern Ireland and the border counties of Ireland, building upon the work of the previous PEACE and INTERREG Programmes. The PEACEPLUS Action Plan is a co-designed proposal, representing the need and requirements in Louth for PEACEPLUS investment and outlining what would be done with the funding. The Action Plan is planned for submission to the Special EU Programmes Body on 28 March 2024. A project supported by the PEACEPLUS Programme, managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB). Please contact peaceplus@louthcoco.ie or on 042 9324240 for full details of the meeting, which will take place on Zoom. The onslaught of electric cars continues with the arrival of another new brand here in Ireland. When I say new I mean new to Ireland because Smart has been around for 25 years. Motor Distributors Limited are now the importers of Smart here in Ireland adding to their two other brands Mercedes-Benz and BYD. Youll have seen Smart cars on Irish roads for sure, but they have all been private imports. The MDL deal now makes it official. Until the launch of their first model here, aptly called the #1 Id never actually driven a Smart Car. Ive longed to as I think the original Smart ForTwo is a cracking concept executed brilliantly for city living. It is a zen way of making sure you use the car for the transportation of you whilst at the same time making you OCD about carrying unnecessary baggage. That principle has gone with the new #1 as the configuration is a normal 5-seater with four doors and a hatch. The brand is also an entirely electric one and future models all starting with the # symbol - will all be all-electric. Smart is a 50/50 joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and Geely the Chinese manufacturer that also owns familiar names like Lotus, Volvo and another all-electric brand, Polestar. The split is Geely makes the cars in China (no surprise there) with Mercedes-Benz doing practically everything else and you can see that interior influence when you sit inside the car. The #1 is a compact crossover landing smack in the middle of the premium sector. Gone are the days when you had to earn your spurs here because buyers, and buyer loyalty, is not as rigid as it once was. The car has a 66kWh battery claiming, not promising, a range of 420 - 440 kms. If you must recharge when out and about from a rapid charger itll take 30mins to get from 10% to 80%. Funny how this fact has become the new 0-60mph stat for a car. Coming soon enough will be a smaller 49kW battery version which will reduce cost and range but in the EV space Im still a biggest is best believer. The #1comes in 4 trims Pro, Pro+ and Premium with a range topping Brabus edition a relationship Smart have had for a long time. Ive always hankered for a Brabus Smart Coupe and there is one near me that I ogle over at the local supermarket. Prices start from 37,479 going all the way up to 54,170 for the Brabus edition. The savvy or early adopter buyers have already created a waiting list for the Brabus edition showing how tenuous buyer loyalty is. Smart cars are on sale now and youll be able to see them at some Mercedes-Benz dealerships with the two brands under the same roof. Ill be getting my hands on the new Smart #1 soon for a full review here in Democrat Motoring. What will an enlarged European Union of 500 million people look like? How will the citizens of its 35 or more Member States live, work and interact? Who will pay for it and how much? How will decisions be made and can consensus be reached with more voices at the table? These were just some of the questions debated at this years Model Council of the European Union, which took place on March 1 at Dublin Castle. Teams of secondary school students from across Ireland, each playing the role of an EU Member State, did a deep dive into the reforms needed to make future EU enlargements a success. They came prepared with passionate and articulate arguments, to defend the interests of their adopted Member States. Six teams rose above 21 other schools with their convincing portrayal of EU Ministers for European Affairs, going head to head on some of the key challenges presented by enlargement such as the future of the EU budget, how it is financed and where the money should be spent. Maynooth Post-Primary School in Co Kildare won first place for their representation of Malta during the debate. They will travel with their class to Strasbourg in October to take part in Euroscola, where they will become MEPs for a day in the European Parliament. Ardscoil Ris from Dublin, representing the Netherlands and St Leo's College from Carlow, representing Denmark, took joint second place. Honourable mentions were given to the following schools: *Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Burkeen, Co Wicklow as Austria. *Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary as Poland. *Deansrath Community College in Clondalkin, Dublin as Germany. The debate, based on the format of a real meeting of the Council of the European Union, is a practical but also enjoyable way for young people to learn how the EU works, how decisions are made, and more importantly, how consensus can be reached. Stepping into the shoes of EU politicians for a day is not for the faint hearted but these young people rose to the challenge and made their voices heard. As millions of Europeans prepare to vote in the European elections in June, engaging our young people in active citizenship and encouraging their participation in the democratic process will empower them to shape their future in a Union that is preparing to welcome new member states. Ireland has played its part in the story of EU enlargement. On 1 May, we will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the largest single enlargement of the EU when 15 became 25 on the historic Day of Welcomes, hosted by the Irish Presidency of the EU in Dublin in 2004. The economic and political achievements of the past 20 years have shown what a success story the 2004 enlargement has been, not only for the 10 Member States concerned but for the EU as a whole. *SPONSORED CONTENT By SA Commercial Prop News Afrox MD Brett Kimber signs a R300m investment deal with the Coega Development Corporations executive manager Christopher Mashigo for the establishment of the 150-ton air separation unit in Zone 3 of the Coega industrial development zone. Industrial gas company Afrox has signed a land lease agreement with the Coega Development Corporation (CDC) for the construction of a R300m air separation unit at the Coega Industrial Development Zone in the Eastern Cape. Coega on Tuesday said this was the first public announcement of a secured investor in this financial year and other deals were in the pipeline. Coega has really gained momentum over the past few years in spite of a tricky global economic climate and investment it has shown sustained investor attraction, particularly in strategic and high impact projects, said Christopher Mashigo, Coega Development Corporation (CDC) Business Development Executive Manager. Clearly investors are closely watching the developments at the Coega Industrial Development Zone and seeing the potential in the Eastern Cape. This is encouraging for the CDC and we applaud savvy investment that will enable supply chain development and secure further industrial prowess for the province, while creating jobs across industry. Afrox will establish a 150 ton per day air separation unit (ASU) in the Industrial Development Zone (IDZ) to service customers throughout the Eastern Cape. The investment will see the supply of a variety of industrial gases used in the automotive, food processing and medical sectors. Afrox managing director Brett Kimber said it made strategic sense to build a plant in Port Elizabeth, saying this is where the customers are. We want to reinvigorate quality and reliability of supply, he said, adding Afrox had looked at multiple sites but that Coega has won out in the end. Afrox has an established customer base in the Eastern Cape, servicing the automotive and medical sectors in particular, but the company also indicated that it is focused on broadening its focus. There are burgeoning opportunities in mining, chilling and the fish industry. One of the most exciting things about the gas industry is the breadth of customers you work with. Our commitment to Port Elizabeth is to assure our partners that they can rely on Afrox to meet their needs. Coega welcomed the R300-million investment saying that it would support industrial development. Afroxs air separation unit is important to us not only as a new investor but as an enabler. It enhances our value proposition and also provides a foundation for Afroxs own growth, added Mashigo. As the IDZ comes of age we begin to see operations that are not necessarily inside conventional factory buildings, but go beyond the IDZ into the city and business itself. This represents a mark of confidence in the IDZ and a complexion of fullness of IDZ development as the plug and play motif gains further credence with the addition of gas to the utilities available. I am looking forward to seeing the completed picture on the not so distant future. High level officials were in attendance at the signing ceremony and Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber chief executive, Kevin Hustler, welcomed the investment on behalf of the business community. Afrox will have a critical role to play in the next 20 years as we diversify. Something we dont realise is how far and wide gas goes. It touches so many sectors of the market. It is wonderful to see the nature of such investment in our city, Hustler said. The Afrox ASU will come online in Zone 3 of the Coega IDZ in the first quarter of 2015. From Sarah Feldberg, Editor of Emerging Product: The San Francisco Chronicles investigation into deadly police chases has been honored with the prestigious Sidney Award, administrators announced Wednesday. The national award, given by the Sidney Hillman Foundation, recognizes one exceptional piece of journalism published in the previous month. Fast and Fatal, an investigation into the nations growing death toll from police pursuits and the lack of accountability for officers who initiate the chases, is the foundations honoree for February. Reporters Jennifer Gollan and Susie Neilson spent a year examining pursuits around the country to establish a national database of fatalities and reveal that deaths from high-speed chases rose even as agencies and officials vowed to reduce them. The Chronicle found that 3,336 people were killed as a result of police chases from 2017 through 2022, including 15 police officers and at least 551 bystanders. Tens of thousands of people were also injured during these pursuits. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Through more than 250 public records requests, interviews with more than 100 people and hours of dash and body camera footage reviewed by multimedia editor Guy Wathen, the Chronicle reported that most fatal police chases begin over low-level offenses, including minor traffic infractions like broken tail lights or failing to fully stop at a stop sign. Many of the victims were passengers or bystanders. Jennifer and Susies reporting shows that police pursuits too often act as judge, jury and executioner for people who have not been convicted of crimes, and many who are not even suspects, said Lisa Gartner, the Chronicles investigative editor. We are beyond thrilled that the Sidney Hillman Foundation has chosen to recognize this work. Even when department policies prohibit officers from engaging in pursuits related to such violations and even when officers hurt bystanders or passengers theyre rarely held accountable for deaths or injuries. In fact, reporters found that the federal government isnt accurately tracking the toll of police chases; the Chronicle uncovered 662 pursuit deaths that were missing from federal statistics. This was a remarkable feat of reporting by Jennifer and Susie, and by our video team led by Guy Wathen, to shine light on an often misunderstood phenomenon, said Chronicle Director of News Demian Bulwa. I think many readers were stunned to learn that such a large number of those killed in police pursuits are complete bystanders. What we are perhaps most proud of is that the investigation not only catalogs the death toll but points a way toward reducing it. Established in honor of Sidney Hillman, the president of a labor union for clothing workers, who died in 1947, the Sidney Hillman Foundation honors investigative journalism that pursues the public good through its annual Hillman Prizes and monthly Sidney Awards. Fast and Fatal was edited by Jesse Marx, Dan Kopf, Demian Bulwa and Lisa Gartner, with copy editing by Michael Mayer. Visuals were by Stephen Lam, Jon Cherry and Liz Sanders. Chronicle Visual Director Nicole Fruge edited the visuals, with video production and annotations by Daymond Gascon and icons by John Blanchard. Alex K. Fong and Sophie DAmato provided design and development, with additional development from Hearst DevHubs Danielle Rindler and Janie Haseman. Danielle Mollette-Parks, the Chronicles former creative director who passed away in December, contributed to the projects design. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Colleagues from across the newsroom and Hearst brought their many talents to this project, Gollan said. This reporting is part of the Chronicles tradition of producing work in the public interest with stories that expose wrongdoing and hold the powerful to account. Were thrilled to receive the Sidney Award, and thankful the judges recognized our hard work, added Neilson. It wouldnt have been possible without the families we spoke to, who shared some of the most painful moments of their lives with us in the hopes their stories could prompt accountability and change. To read the Fast and Fatal investigation, click here. You can also view the Chronicles national database of police chase deaths, and read about why the federal agency that tracks such fatalities consistently undercounts them. About The San Francisco Chronicle Advertisement Article continues below this ad Annie is a reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle. She previously was a digital producer for The Chronicles Datebook section. She graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in 2017 with a degree in journalism. During her time there, she spearheaded a culture column, produced radio pieces for NPR-affiliate station KCBX, and was a DJ and writer for KCPR, the campus radio station. Before joining the Chronicle, she was an associate producer at SFGATE and interned at VICE and Flood Magazine. Shes particularly interested in communities and scenes that are often misunderstood. She can be reached at avainshtein@sfchronicle.com. Canva On 13 March, the European Parliament adopted the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA). A coalition of 21 media sector organisations, representing journalists, media freedom and civil society groups, and public service media, congratulate the EU institutions and welcome the EMFA as an important step towards protecting and promoting media freedom and pluralism in the EU. The coalition takes this opportunity to remind media stakeholders and public authorities that, in certain areas, the EMFA only lays down the very minimum of standards. Member States should go much further in establishing stronger safeguards to protect media freedom and pluralism and journalists rights, in particular from the use of intrusive surveillance and spyware. We call on the European Commission, national governments, and independent regulatory authorities to work closely with media stakeholders for the EMFAs full and effective implementation to help strengthen media freedom and pluralism across the European Union. Read the full statment to the Right Our website uses cookies We are always working to improve this website for our users. To do this, we use the anonymous data provided by cookies. Learn more about how we use cookies CONCERNS have been expressed over what has been described as organised begging in the city centre, adding to a challenging trading environment. Speaking at a meeting of the Cork City Joint Policing Committee (JPC) this week, president of the Cork Business Association (CBA), Kevin Herlihy, commended the Gardai on their policing of the city but said traders are concerned over the level of begging in the city centre. Mr Herlihy, who is also the operations director of the Herlihy Centra Group which he owns and operates with his brother Brian, said traders are operating in a very challenging environment. Its very tough. Our own business is back 10% since Christmas. What Cork city centre needs is it needs an ambience and it needs an atmosphere of safety and the big concern that all the traders are feeding into us is the begging thats going on on the streets and its organised begging, he said. Cork Business Association president Kevin Herlihy of Herlihy Centra Group. Pic: Brian Lougheed Superintendent John Deasy said aggressive begging is something Gardai are keen to crack down on. Begging per se, is legal, but aggressive begging isnt. We do tackle beggars around the city that are the second category, he said. Supt Deasy said gardai are mindful that there are homeless services around the city centre and that gardai must be seen to be fair when engaging with vulnerable people. A lot of the time, my members will advise people in relation to blocking passageways, we give them the opportunity to go somewhere else and they will go somewhere else and dont return, he said. We have to be seen to be authoritative when we have to be and, as the chief [Chief Superintendent Tom Myers] said, we probably have the highest number of detections for begging in the country. Supt Deasy said that, before Christmas, there was an influx to Cork city, particularly from Galway, for begging purposes. Some of them have come back after Christmas and were challenging any behaviour that falls within section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act. Cork City Council chief executive Ann Doherty said it might be helpful to encourage people who wish to support vulnerable people to do so through one of the homeless charities. Sinn Fein councillor Mick Nugent said people who are begging could fall into two categories. We have a group that its an operation to come in and out. We do have others as well that could be compelled by issues of homelessness, addiction, mental health, and you do need all of those wraparound services to try and address that, he said. Cork Airport expects over 50,000 passengers to pass through the airport over St Patricks bank holiday weekend. Friday is expected to be the busiest day for arrivals and departures at the airport. Over the coming days, Cork Airport will play host to a feast of traditional Irish music and dance as local and regional music groups take to the specially decorated St Patricks weekend stage to entertain departing and arriving passengers. To cater to increased demand for Cheltenham Racing Festival revellers, both Ryanair and Aer Lingus Regional will operate additional services to Birmingham and Bristol respectively between now and Friday. Managing Director at Cork Airport, Niall MacCarthy, said: Our passenger numbers have grown 20% in the year-to-date, versus the same period last year. The message about the friendliness and ease of Cork Airport is spreading further afield and we are working to make this weekend a friendly, safe, smooth, and welcoming weekend at Cork Airport. The Craft Lane Bar, airside at Cork Airport, was full of Cheltenham-bound punters recently. Heading to Cheltenham were Jack Crosby; Kieran Casey; Ciaran Murphy; Kieran Fitzgerald and Eoin Murphy, all from Cork. Picture: Andy Gibson. We have a great asset in our traditional music and dance, which is a unique part of our culture and sometimes we can take that for granted. This St Patricks weekend, we will be teaming up with our friends in Comhaltas, the John Lonergan Academy of Irish Dancing, soloist Pat Kelleher, Music Generation Laois Harp Ensemble to ensure that our national music and dance are on show to welcome visitors and locals alike home to Ireland. Cork Airports 2024 Summer Schedule will also commence at the end of this month with 48 routes to destinations across the UK, Spain, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Croatia, and Greece. Seven scheduled airlines will operate services from Cork Airport in 2024 including Ryanair, Aer Lingus, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air France, Lufthansa, SWISS International Air Lines, and Emerald Airlines (operating under the Aer Lingus Regional brand). TUI will also operate charter services to popular sun destinations. CORK Prison has proudly celebrated the third instalment of its award winning prisoner-run, pop-up restaurant. Operated by six inmates who have completed the prisons practical culinary skills programme, The Open Door Restaurant catered to 60 invited guests including local hoteliers, restauranteurs, and community volunteers. The programme is headed by JJ Healy, an experienced chef and MTU lecturer. Upon completion of the initiative, all participants received an accredited certification. Guests were treated to a carefully curated menu, comprised of Cashel Blue stuffed chestnut mushrooms, sage stuffed pork roulade, and Malteser and vanilla cheesecake. Inmates John, 34, and James, 36, spoke to The Echo prior to the event, detailing their experience with the programme and what it means to be a part of something positive. You lose your confidence and opportunities when you come to a place like this, you dont see much light at the end of the tunnel. So when something like this comes around, its a way forward, James said. It does put confidence back into you, theres a good bit of craic too. James, who has a release date of just under two years, said that the time spent in the kitchen is like stepping into a time machine. When you go in in the morning and back in the evening, your day is nearly gone. If you dont have something like that, it would be a very long day. So why not upskill, why not educate yourself? he added. Its not something I thought Id ever have an interest in before this, John added. It definitely makes time easier here. Managed jointly by the Irish Prison Service, MTUs Department of Tourism and Hospitality, and the Irish Association for Social Inclusion Opportunities (IASIO), the programme enables participants to pursue employment upon reintegration into society. The governor of Cork Prison, Liam Spacey, said: I am hugely proud to be involved in this initiative. It gives them an opportunity to fit back into the community and to make a positive contribution, which is what rehabilitation is all about. The DPPs appeal against a four-year jail term being too lenient in the case of a 50-year-old health care worker who raided three Cork post offices while armed with a knife was rejected at the Court of Criminal Appeal. Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said that he, Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy and Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh, found that the Director of Public Prosecutions had not shown that the sentencing judge, Judge Colin Daly had erred in principle in imposing a sentence of five years with the last year suspended in the case against Fintan Tindley at Cork Circuit Criminal Court. In effect, Mr Tindley continues to serve the four years imposed last June without any increase today. His senior counsel Elizabeth OConnell suggested that this was a highly unusual set of circumstances where a person with no previous convictions carried out these serious crimes with a certain sense of naivety, for instance parking his gold-coloured Qashqai car near the post offices when he was robbing them. Ms OConnell said the sentencing judge approached the unusual factors in a very nuanced manner and showed an intuitive synthesis when dealing with the aggravating and mitigating factors. Paula McCarthy barrister for the DPP submitted that, essentially, the totality of the sentence was unduly lenient. She said that not only were the post office staff victims of the crimes but that Fintan Tindley caught a customer and held a knife to their throat in each robbery, the customers being a 72-year-old man in the first case, a 44-year-old woman in the second and a 45-year-old woman in the third. I say there was excessive weight given to the mitigating factors, Ms McCarthy said on behalf of the DPP. Det Garda Kevin Motherway said at the original sentencing hearing that the accused had been a customer at two of the post offices prior to the crimes and there was evidence that he had been looking at nine post offices in the Cork area when he was caught. Judge Daly said of the victims of the violent crimes, These were members of his own community. One can only conclude that his actions are most unusual in circumstances where prior to November 2022 he had never come to the attention of An Garda Siochana before. By all accounts he was diligent employee and dutiful son. While he was under stress, he was financially supportive of his mother and he was not suffering any particular psychological problems. He carried out a robbery of South Douglas Road post office on November 11 and attempted robbery there on November 18, and robbed Ballintemple post office on November 16, 2022. Each time he grabbed and unsuspecting customer and placed a knife to their throat making a death threat as he demanded cash from the post mistress. Judge Daly said: Culpability is high where he deliberately and intentionally disguised himself with a hat and mask and armed himself with a knife. The judge said that two of the victims to these crimes attributed their decisions to stop working, to the experience of these crimes carried out by Tindley. Detective Garda Kevin Motherway testified that at lunchtime on November 11, 2022 the accused entered South Douglas post office and placed a knife to the neck of 72-year-old customer and shouted at the post mistress: Give me all the money. The customer said he felt the knife at his neck and feared he was going to be cut. 2,380 was robbed from the post office that day. Five days later he turned up shortly before noon at Ballintemple post office and placed a knife to the neck of a 44-year-old woman who was there to post a parcel. On this occasion he demanded 15,000. The customer was in fear that she was going to be injured or killed. The defendant left with 1,300. He returned to the South Douglas Road post office and grabbed a 45-year-old woman and again threatened her with a knife as he demanded 15,000 but he fled when the post mistress sounded the panic alarm. On that occasion the customer feared she was going to be stabbed or seriously harmed. On the occasions of these two robberies and one attempted robbery he wore a hat and mask. Fintan Tindley travelled to the USA in 2022 where he met his fiance whom he had originally met online, and sent her a total of 19,000. Having worked as a HSE home care assistant and having no previous convictions, the crimes at the post offices were described by Elizabeth OConnell senior counsel as totally out of character as he had always been a person who was a million miles away from someone with criminal tendencies. She said that the accused had written letters of apology to the three customers he threatened and the three members of staff on duty when he raided. The defence senior counsel said there was an unusual degree of disconnect between these violent offences and the offender. Cork's community boatyard is calling on local companies and groups to take to the water next month for a spectacular event in the heart of the city. Meitheal Mara is inviting firms and organisations to take part in its annual Dragon Boat Challenge, which will take place this year on Saturday, April 27. The banks and quays of the River Lee are expected to echo with the sound of drums, the splashing of paddles and the roar of the dragons as 16 crews will compete to become this years champions. Dragon's drum Starting opposite the site of the former R&H Hall, crews of 17 per boat will race 250m to the finish line at Lapps Quay, powered by the beat of the dragons drum. The races organisers say the Dragon Boat Challenge is a fun, sociable, and colourful event, and no previous experience is necessary. Pre-race training will take place for crews in the two- week lead-up to the main event, giving participants a chance to warm up their muscles and exercise their vocal chords. Meitheal Mara, Corks community boatyard and nationally accredited training centre, is dedicated to fostering and promoting maritime culture and seamanship through traditional currach and wooden boat building skills. In particular, providing training and development to those who are sometimes at risk of social exclusion, who are recovering from addiction, and those living with disabilities. Because Meitheal Mara is a registered charity, contributions towards its event are tax-deductible offering companies an opportunity to demonstrate their support. Registration is 680 per team of 17, which works out at 40 per person and includes the cost of the training session. For further information, contact dragons@meithealmara.ie or telephone 021 4847673. Places are filled on a first-come, first-served basis so early registration is encouraged. Convicted rapist and killer Ian Horgan who recorded a mocking video to the tune of Lovely Day after a vicious hammer attack on a 29-year-old man had his eight-and-a-half year prison sentence increased to eleven-and-a-quarter years on appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions. Mr Justice George Birmingham, president of the Court of Criminal Appeal, said in response to an appeal brought by the DPP on the basis of the sentence being unduly lenient that it should be increased. Instead of nine years with the last six months suspended, the decision of the appeal court was to increase it to 11 years and three months with none of it suspended. Mr Justice Birmingham said that in light of the seriousness of the incident itself and the serious nature of Ian Horgans previous convictions, he saw no merit in suspending any portion of the sentence to encourage rehabilitation. He said that the assault causing serious harm was offending of the most serious kind because of a number of factors including the degree of preparation and pre-planning involved whereby Horgan travelled from Macroom by bus to Cork city, bringing with him a change of clothes and a claw hammer to attack his victim. It was also extremely serious because of the fact that he forced his way into the constitutionally protected home of Mary OCallaghan where he attacked her son, first choking him until he lapsed into unconsciousness and then attacking him with the hammer as he lay unconscious on the floor. Donal OSullivan barrister for the DPP said it was only by the grace of God that this did not turn out to be a murder case. James OMahony senior counsel for the defence submitted that while it might be seen as lenient it was not unduly so. Detective Superintendent Michael Comyns described at the original sentencing hearing how 40-year-old Ian Horgan, of no fixed address and formerly of The Hermitage, Macroom, Co Cork, left his home in Macroom that Saturday afternoon, got the bus to Cork City, walked to a derelict shed near the crime scene, changed his shoes and clothes and walked to the house where he carried out the attack. The 29-year-old victims mother said Ian Horgan only left when he thought her son was dead. Horgan then sent texts mocking the injured man to his partner, who had previously been in a relationship with the injured man, Hassan Baker. Sitting in Fitzgeralds Park, he also sent videos of the seriously injured man to his girlfriend and the contrasting scene in the park. He told her his knuckles were f***ed again and that he was washing blood off himself, as the song Lovely Day played. Ian Horgan texted his girlfriend that afternoon, I destroyed him. He wont be acting the hard man, let me tell you. He is a cheeky c***. LOL. Det Supt. Comyns said Horgan got a 12-year prison term at the Court of Criminal Appeal for raping and killing a young woman in Ballincollig on October 26, 2000. On Saturday afternoon, March 26, 2022, as he approached the victims home at MacCurtain Villas, off Bandon Road, neighbours were suspicious of him as it was a hot day and he was wearing a hood up and had a snood covering his face. He knocked on the door, pushed past Mary OCallaghan and ran at Hassan Baker, who tried to disarm him of the hammer. Horgan struck him with the claw of the hammer into the shoulder, causing him to fall. Det Supt Comyns said: Ian Horgan grabbed him around the neck for 20 to 30 seconds, causing Mr Baker to collapse unconscious by the fireplace. He struck him on the left side of the head with the hammer, fracturing his skull and cheekbone. He was shouting in a Dublin accent, pretending it was a drug debt. Mrs OCallaghan intervened. He assaulted her with a hammer, fracturing her right wrist. He video-recorded Hassan Baker and Mary OCallaghan in extreme distress and in a disoriented state. Mr Horgan walked calmly out, returned to the shed and changed his clothing. He discarded the clothing and hammer within the shed and walked through the grounds of UCC to Fitzgeralds Park. There he shared videos of the crime scene with his then girlfriend, who was previously in a relationship with Mr Baker. Jordan Parker is a breaking news reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle. He graduated from Sacramento State University in May 2022 with a degree in journalism. During his time there, he spent three years as a reporter and editor for the university's award-winning student newspaper, The State Hornet. He spent his senior year of college serving as The Hornet's first Black editor in chief, leading the organization to two Pacemaker awards and several other national honors from the Associated Collegiate Press. When he's not chasing down a story, he likes watching movies, traveling and trying new restaurants. He can be reached at Jordan.Parker@sfchronicle.com. A MOTION which called for an Irish political boycott of the annual Patricks Day visit to the White House in light of the American Governments support of Israel was defeated by a large margin at a meeting of Cork City Council this week. The motion was tabled by Socialist Party councillor Brian McCarthy and An Rabharta Glas councillor Lorna Bogue. It stated that, in light of the ongoing support by the Biden administration for the genocidal actions of the Israeli state in Gaza, including arming and funding that state, that the council would ask all parties and politicians in Ireland to send a clear message by boycotting the visit to the White House on St Patrick's Day. Speaking at the meeting, Mr McCarthy said Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will present a bowl of shamrock to US president Joe Biden on behalf of the Irish people during the visit, but that there are a lot of people out there all across Ireland who are saying no, not in our name. Ms Bogue also said she did not believe it was right for Irish politicians to visit America this Patricks day, owing to Americas ongoing support for Israel as it pursues its offensive in Gaza. They [the US Government] are the ones who are supplying the weapons, theyre the ones who are allowing Israel to continue its act of aggression against a people who now are entering into famine, she said. Fine Gael councillor Shane OCallaghan said an Irish political boycott of the visit wouldnt contribute to saving one Palestinian life and wouldnt bring a ceasefire any closer. Mr OCallaghan said that when the Palestinian Ambassador to Ireland, Dr Jilan Wahba Abdelmajid, paid a visit to City Hall, he had asked the ambassador what more could the Irish Government do to support the Palestinian people. Her response was that the Irish Government should use its influence with the American Government, with President Biden, to try to ensure that he brings about a ceasefire. This motion is the exact opposite of what she asked us to do. Thats why this motion, in my view, is the worst kind of cynical virtue signalling and grandstanding Ive come across in a while. His party colleague, Cllr Des Cahill, said that dialogue and diplomacy are key to resolving issues and that it would be a wasted opportunity if the Taoiseach did not attend. I have full confidence that the Taoiseach will make the countrys thoughts and wishes known to the [US] president, he added. Sinn Fein councillor Mick Nugent had proposed an amendment to the motion, suggesting that the latter half be changed to ask all parties and politicians in Ireland to send a clear message while and if on a visit to the White House on St Patrick's Day by raising the plight of the Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank and pressing for immediate, full ceasefire and renewal of a peace process grounded in international law and the two-state solution. However, it was deemed that the amendment was too long and wasnt submitted in adequate time before the meeting. Mr Nugent said Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald and party colleague First Minister of Northern Ireland Michelle ONeill would carry the message of peace and the need for immediate ceasefire in Gaza during their visit to the US. The motion calling for the boycott was defeated with three votes for, one abstention and 18 against. HOW do I apply for or renew my driving licence? NDLS Online is the most efficient way to apply for or renew your driving licence or learner permit. All you need is a Public Service Card and a verified MyGovID account. If you prefer to call in in-person to your local NDLS (National Driver Licence Service), you must book an appointment at www.ndls.ie to attend in person. All existing Irish licence holders must present with their most recent Irish driving licence/learner permit and proof of PPS number. All customers will be required to supply documents to verify their identity. You can check ndls.ie or speak with your local Citizens information Centre to get the list of documents needs. Do I need to complete an application form to renew my driving licence? Unless you want to make your application in Irish, you are no longer required to submit an application form. However, you do need to prove your identity. Your photograph and signature will be captured at the NDLS centre. Must I complete a medical report form? You will need a Driving Licence Medical Report Form if you are applying for driving licence categories C, C1, D, D1, CE, C1E, DE or D1E (buses and trucks), unless you previously provided a medical report which is still applicable. You will not need a Driving Licence Medical Report Form if you are applying for driving licence categories AM, A1, A2, A, B, BE or W (motorcycles, cars and work vehicles) unless you have a specific disability or condition. If you are aged 75 or over, you will need a certification of fitness to drive from your doctor to apply for a three-year or a one-year licence. You can download the medical report form or get one from your local Citizens Information Centre (it must be printed back-to-back on one page). It is also available from NDLS centres. A registered medical practitioner should carry out your medical examination and then complete the form. You must sign the declaration on the medical report form in the presence of the registered medical practitioner. It must be sent within one month of the medical examination. Do I need to complete an eyesight report form? Generally, any eyesight issues will be reported in the Driving Licence Medical Report Form. But, you will need a Driving Licence Eyesight Report Form if you no longer need glasses or contact lenses to drive (for example if youve had laser eye surgery). You can download the eyesight report form from ndls.ie (pages 1 and 2 should be printed back to back on one page). It is also available from NDLS centres or your local Citizens Information Centre. It must be sent within one month of completion. Can I drive in Ireland if I have a foreign driving licence? If you have a driving licence issued by an EU or EEA member state, you can drive in Ireland as long as your existing licence is valid. If you wish to exchange your driving licence for an equivalent Irish driving licence when it expires, you must do so within 10 years of your driving licence expiring. If your licence was issued by one of the countries or territories considered to be recognised states you can drive in Ireland for up to one year when visiting, providing your licence is valid. Recognised states include Australia, Japan, Switzerland, New Zealand and the UK. If you become normally resident in Ireland, you should exchange your driving licence or begin the process of applying for an Irish driving licence. You are normally resident in Ireland if, because of personal and occupational ties, you usually live here for at least 185 days in each calendar year. What are the current driving licence rates? Ten-year driving licence 55 Five-year bus or truck driving licence 55 Three-year driving licence 35 One-year driving licence (medical grounds) Free Category added 35 Motorists over the age of 70 can get their driving licence for free. What can I do if I lose or damage my driving licence? If you need a replacement driving licence, apply to the National Driver Licence Service (NDLS). The replacement will be a copy of your original and valid for the same period. The fee for a replacement driving licence or learner permit is 35. The replacement fee of 35 applies to the over 70s if the licence is lost or damaged. You will also have to get a Garda declaration Form completed and signed by a Garda. Our telephone lines at South Munster Citizens Information in Cork city are monitored from 10am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday. In addition, the Cork City Centre CIC in Cornmarket Street is open to the public Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, from 9.45am to 1pm and Wednesdays from 2pm to 4.30pm. The Blackpool CIC is open to the public each morning from 10am to 4pm, Tuesday and Thursday. Full details for all Citizens Information Centres and their opening times are available on their website. Stephen Maguire Gardai have launched a major action plan after hundreds of car enthusiasts announced they will descend on a seaside town this St Patrick's Day. Councillors and gardai fear plans by the group to converge on Bundoran in Co Donegal this weekend will bring chaos to the town. Thousands of people will already be in the town celebrating the bank holiday weekend, which includes a parade on Sunday afternoon. But now hundreds of young drivers from as far away as Galway and across the North are planning to visit the popular location this weekend. The group announced their plans on social media. Gardai have responded by announcing plans to put on extra checkpoints to monitor any road traffic offences. Councillor Michael McMahon said he had been made aware of the plans and was very concerned. "It is a serious cause for concern for both the business community and the families. They have been there before and the gardai have worked very hard on it, to control it in the best possible way. "We and the gardai have tried to get in contact with the leaders of these car groups but it just hasn't happened. "The point is that they are picking a day which is one of the busiest days you will have with thousands of people and lots of parades. "It will be chaos number one and number two is the health and safety situation that will arise there will be serious. "I have no solution and this has been ongoing but I do know that with the activities of these cars there is an accident waiting to happen there. God forbid we had an accident in our town a few months ago and we certainly don't want another one. "What I am saying is that I spoke to the Superintendent there and I will be meeting the Garda and the business people from Bundoran. "It is an ongoing situation and a very serious situation and the talk of it is already spoiling the day for people who want to enjoy St Patrick's Day in a proper and democratic fashion. "So I am wondering if we have any solutions to this and perhaps we can speak to these people and see if we can accommodate them in some form. "But we are where we are and it has been posted on their Facebook page as happening on the 17th of March and that is serious." Garda Superintendent Karen Duffy of Ballyshannon Garda Station confirmed she was aware of the plans. She said gardai had reached out to organisers of the event but that they had not yet responded. She added that if the cars were taxed and insured then gardai could not stop people from driving them. Meanwhile, a statement issued by local gardai says they have a plan to set up extra checkpoints in the Bundoran area to monitor driving activity in the area this weekend. A spokesperson said: "Due to the upcoming bank holiday weekend and the St Patrick's Day parades in Bundoran, Ballyshannon, Donegal Town and the surrounding areas, it is expected to be a busy weekend. "Gardai have been made aware of a planned car gathering in Bundoran on St Patrick's Day and as a result of this planned event, gardai will be conducting extra checkpoints to detect Road Traffic Offences." STOCKHOLM The Scandinavian Textile Initiative for Climate Action (STICA) next week hosts its Climate Action Week for Fashion and Apparel to highlight the daunting challenges facing the industry in meeting its carbon targets. Experts from across the industry will discuss a range of climate-related issues during a week of webinars that will highlight the challenges and potential solutions for the apparel industry from 18th22nd March. Over 40 speakers will contribute to 13 seminars throughout the week. They include 2B policy co-founder and director Baptiste Carriere-Pradal; Kim Hellstrom, climate programme manager at H&M; Pascale Moreau, founder of Ohana Public Affairs; Kalpona Akter from Bangladesh Center for Workers Solidarity; and ECOS programme manager Luca Boniolo. The event begins on Monday 18th March with two webinars 'What Gets Measured Gets Managed: But Are We Measuring the Right Things And Are We Measuring Them Right?' and 'Fibre Production & GHG Emission Reductions: How Important Is What Is Made VS. How It Is Made? Are Natural Fibres and Synthetics Equally Problematic?' Tuesday will see three webinars. The first discusses the feasibility of climate goals, before Show Me The Money For Financing the Transition and Voluntary Industry Organisations & Climate Initiatives: How Effective Are They & What More Can They Do?. The third day will host the session Is the Current Climate Strategy, as Currently Defined By Brands, Doomed to Fail? A Select Group of Manufacturers Weigh In. Two more sessions will then address legislative proposals to mitigate the climate crisis in the European Union and the US. Three webinars are scheduled for Thursday: Climate Action Means Transition But How Do We Ensure This Transition is Just?; Circular Business Models Are Critical for Climate Action So What Is Preventing Them From Becoming Mainstream?; and a session on climate action watchdogs. Friday sees two final sessions. One entitled Green-growth, Overconsumption & Degrowth: Can Sufficient Emissions Reductions Be Achieved within the Current Paradigm? before A Conversation with Ken Pucker concludes the week. The Sustainable Fashion Academy, which coordinates STICA, provides full details and registration links on its website. A statement also highlights the daunting task facing the industry in meeting its climate targets. Our progress is too slow and the challenges ahead are many. But we must stay the course, it says. We will identify what we should keep doing, what we should stop doing and what more we can still do. (Photo: REUTERS / Olivia Harris)Madiha, 12, and Afsha, 11, pose for a picture outside London Mosque in west London November 1, 2013. Madiha and Afsha started to wear the hijab around the age of 8. They wear the hijab for religious observance, modesty and to protect themselves. Reuters photographer Olivia Harris took portraits of a range of Muslim women in Britain and asked them why they chose to wear a hijab or veil. New research suggests that Islam will be an even more significant part of religion in Britain in the future and that churches for black migrants are thriving while traditional churches with a mainly white base are on the decline. "The future of religion in Britain is to be found in Islam and the black majority churches," says Professor David Voas, who specialises in population studies at Essex University and is an expert on religious trends. "Muslims already contribute ten per cent of British births; within several decades people of Muslim heritage will form 10 percent of the population, even if immigration came to an abrupt halt tomorrow. "If even half are observant, they will form a substantial proportion of the religiously active population. Ethnic minority Christians will have another large share," says Voas. Professor Voas discusses the latest trends in a blog for the thinktank Theos. "While the secularisation of consciousness in the West is an ongoing process, the secularisation of behaviour has reached the point of no return," he writes. He notes that the leaders of the major Christian denominations are asking the wrong question asserting that the issue is not why people are staying away from church but why anyone would go to church. "The onus is on churches to offer something that people want and would have difficulty finding anywhere else." "While the secularisation of consciousness in the West is an ongoing process, the secularisation of behaviour has reached the point of no return," he writes. He says the leaders of the major Christian denominations are asking the wrong question. The issue is not why people are staying away from church but why anyone would go to church. "The onus is on churches to offer something that people want and would have difficulty finding anywhere else." (Photo Credit: Adrian Pingstone/Public Domain)The Houses of Parliament in England are seen across Westminster Bridge in a 2005 photo. Shock and outrage at the terror attack carried out next to the UK parliament apparently in the name of Islam was expressed by Christian and British Muslim leaders as all faiths rallied the day after the attack. The man responsible for the attack was not from Iraq, Syria, Libya or Egypt, but was born and grew up in Britain. British Muslim leaders condemned the terrorist attack in Westminster, with many imams expected to express shock and horror at Friday prayers, The Guardian newspaper reported. More than a dozen faith leaders Muslims, Hindus, Christians, Sikhs and Jews met officers at Scotland Yard, the police headquarters, on March 23 to discuss responses to the Westminster attack the day before. The Muslim Council of Britain, which condemned the attack and offered prayers for the victims on the day of the attack, issued a further statement the day after, praising the London's Metropolitan police, the prime minister and the mayor of London, who is a Muslim. The group's general secretary, Harun Khan, said: "This attack was cowardly and depraved. There is no justification for this act whatsoever. The best response to this outrage is to make sure we come together in solidarity and not allow the terrorists to divide us." The British-born jihadi who killed four people and injured 29 in Westminster was revealed by police as middle-aged man with a criminal career who the MI5 intelligence agency had investigated in the past and had a previous conviction for stabbing a man. English teacher Khalid Masood, 52 was a 'lone wolf' attacker, who was living in the Birmingham area, had a series of convictions for assault and other crimes. Scotland Yard revealed how Masood was known by a number of aliases and The Daily Mail reported he was born Adrian Elms to a single mother in Kent before his religious conversion to Islam. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, described the incident the terror-inspired killing in the name of Islam at the UK's Houses of Parliament as "brutal and senseless", while Cardinal Vincent Nichols said it was "terrible". After Britain's deadliest terror attack in 12 years on March 22, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit offered sympathy for those who lost loved ones from both Great Britain and other countries. The group calling itself Islamic State said the attack was carried out by one of its fighters in which four people, including the attacker was killed and scores injured as he ran amok with a car, before stabbing a police officer. The ISIS-linked Aamaq news agency said March 23 that the person who carried out the "attack in front of the British parliament in London was a soldier of the Islamic State." TELGRAM FROM POPE FRANCIS Pope Francis sent a telegram expressing his condolences to the victims of the terror attack at the House of Parliament in which the attacker killed four people before armed police shot him dead. Addressed to the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, and signed by the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, the telegram conveys the Pope's promises of prayers and spiritual closeness to the grieving families, as well as his spiritual solidarity with the whole people. Welby is as the spiritual head of the Church of England a member of the upper chamber of the UK Parliament, the House of Lords and spoke there about the attack on March 23. He said he wanted to acknowledge, "The work of so many members of the public who pitched in and did what they needed to do, when faced with things for which they had never been trained or prepared. "Yesterday afternoon, one of our own security staff at Lambeth Palace, a Muslim, arrived at the gate having been missed by the vehicle very narrowly, and spent time helping those who had been injured. It was typical of this community and this country that he refused to go home until the end of his shift, and simply spent the time doing his job as he expected." Welby said, however, he wanted "in terms of values, to refer to something that seems to me to go deeper, to something that is really at the foundation of our own understanding of what our society is about, and to do that in three very simple, very brief pictures. "The first is of a vehicle being driven across Westminster Bridge by someone who had a perverted, nihilistic, despairing view of objectives of what life is about, of what society is about, that could only be fulfilled by death and destruction. "The second is of that same person a few minutes later, on a stretcher or on the ground, being treated by the very people he had sought to kill. "The third is of these two Houses, where profound disagreement, bitter disagreement, angry disagreement is dealt with not with violence, not with despair, not with cruelty, but with discussion, with reason and with calmness." For his part Tveit said, "I speak for the whole fellowship of Christian churches around the world when I say that we unconditionally condemn this criminal act of terror, whatever the motivation behind it have been, and we stand in solidarity with you in these difficult and trying circumstances." He urged the WCC's churches which represent more than 560 million Christians and all people in Great Britain and elsewhere to stay strong in their faith in God and also in their commitment to God's love. This he said embraces all, and God's reign, holds out hope for a just and inclusive society, one of compassion and reconciliation. "It is sorely needed now," Tveit wrote. The aspiration of an inclusive society is tested by such events as this attack, he noted. "Yet It was St. Bede who summoned a vision not only of individual Christians healing the wounds of their neighbours but also of a whole compassionate community - a cradle of redemptive love - leading the way to reconciliation through practicing the values of the reign of God." (Photo: REUTERS / Stefan Wermuth)Muslims attend Friday prayers in the courtyard of a housing estate next to the small BBC community center and mosque in east London March 28, 2014 The UK government's new definition of extremism is likely to "vilify the wrong people" by threatening freedom of speech and the right to peaceful protest, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, the country's two senior Anglican clerics, have warned. Archbishops Justine Welby, the Anglican leader and Stephen Cottrell issued a joint statement. In it, they said that the new plan also "risks disproportionately targeting Muslim communities, who are already experiencing rising levels of hate and abuse," The Guardian newspaper reported on March 9. Their statement pre-empts an announcement, expected on March 14, in which the UK's Communities Secretary, Michael Gove, plans to broaden the official definition of extremism. It will include individuals and groups who "undermine the UK's system of liberal democracy" and ban them from public life. The move, first leaked to The Observer newspaper in November, has been fiercely opposed by counter-terror and extremism experts, including three former Conservative Home Secretaries: Priti Patel, Sajid Javid, and Amber Rudd. They are among the signatories of a joint statement, released over the weekend, which warns the Government not to politicise extremism. Other signatories include Brendan Cox, the widower of slain lawmaker Jo Cox, Neil Basu, a former head of counter-terrorism policing; and Lord Dannatt, a former Chief of the General Staff in the British Army. - UK GENERAL ELECTION A government statement says: "In the run-up to a General Election, it's particularly important that that consensus is maintained and that no political party uses the issue to seek short-term tactical advantage. "We urge the (opposition) Labour Party and the (governing) Conservative Party to work together to build a shared understanding of extremism and a strategy to prevent it that can stand the test of time, no matter which party wins an election." In a joint statement, the archbishops refer to "growing division" between communities in the UK, including among the faiths. "Many of our Jewish and Muslim brothers and sisters have spoken about feeling unsafe while simply walking down the street, or attending their places of work and worship. These depressing developments not only undermine the cohesion of our society, but also threaten our country's rich diversity that should be so highly prized in 21st-century Britain." They say: "How our leaders respond to this is far too important for a new definition of extremism to be its cure. Instead of providing clarity or striking a conciliatory tone, we think labeling a multi-faceted problem as hateful extremism may, instead vilify the wrong people and risk yet more division. "The new definition being proposed not only inadvertently threatens freedom of speech but also the right to worship and peaceful protest things that have been hard won and form the fabric of a civilized society. Crucially, it risks disproportionately targeting Muslim communities, who are already experiencing rising levels of hate and abuse." The two archbishops also express concern for public life, calling on the UK government to reconsider its approach, "and instead have a broad-based conversation with all those who it will affect." The Church was willing to facilitate that conversation, they write. "The UK has a proud history of welcoming people from all walks of life and celebrating diversity. We are a community of communities. Our leaders should cherish and promote that and pursue policies that bring us together, not risk driving us apart." According to the CIA Factbook Christians make up 59.5 percent of Britain's 68 million population, while Muslim account for 4.4 percent, and Hindus 1.3 percent. Malaysia and Canada to boost cooperation in agriculture, fisheries and livestock Malaysia and Canada have expressed their commitment to strengthening cooperation in the agriculture, fisheries and livestock sectors, in addition to welcoming technical cooperation in agricultural research and development, Bernama reported last month. This was among the essence of the discussion between Malaysia's Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup and Canada's Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay, which took place in February. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (KPKM) said the meeting also discussed aspects of bilateral cooperation in the field of food security. "(Kurup) also extended his congratulations to Canada for assuming the chair of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) for 2024," said KPKM. Additionally, Kurup invited Canada to participate in the Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture and Agro-tourism Expo, set to take place on September 11-22. - Bernama A United Airlines jet is seen after leaving the taxiway on March 8 at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. No passenger or crew injuries were reported in this incident, according to a United Airlines spokesperson. Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle United Airlines experienced multiple emergencies on recent flights traveling to or departing from San Francisco, capping an unusually bad week for the airline. But aviation experts say the Chicago-based airlines series of troubles is more indicative of bad luck than it is of a systemic failure and shouldnt deter would-be travelers from taking to the skies. Last Thursday, a United flight bound for Japan lost a wheel during takeoff at San Francisco International Airport, with the wheel landing in an airport employee parking lot. Three days prior, another SFO-bound United flight traveling from Hawaii experienced an engine failure before it made an emergency landing at the airport. That same Monday, a United flight departing Houston emergency landed after flames engulfed one of its engines. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In this image taken from video provided by Cali Planes, a United Airlines Boeing 777 bound for Japan loses a tire as it takes off from San Francisco International Airport on March 7. The plane made a safe emergency landing in Los Angeles. Associated Press On Friday, a United jet flying from SFO to Mexico made an emergency landing in Los Angeles because of a problem with the planes hydraulics system. And on Monday, a San Francisco-bound United flight departing from Sydney, Australia, was forced to turn back because of what airline officials described as a maintenance issue. Those failures, some of which created panic among passengers on board, followed the Jan. 5 mid-flight door panel blowout of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max plane. Scott Miller, a pilot for a major U.S. airline and an aviation lecturer at San Jose State University, acknowledged the recent public attention on commercial air travel safety. But he noted that the recent United Airlines incidents involved different types of planes and their factors dont seem to share similarities. A damaged car is seen in an airport employee parking lot after tire debris from a Boeing 777 landed on it at San Francisco International Airport on March 7. A United Airlines jetliner bound for Japan made a safe landing in Los Angeles on Thursday after losing a tire while taking off from San Francisco. Haven Daley/Associated Press This is an indication to me that, at least in the beginning, theres no major systemic failure here, it was just random bad luck that these things occurred in such a quick succession, Miller said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad No one was injured in any of Uniteds recent emergencies, and flight crews safely landed at the nearest airports. Thats not occurring by luck, Miller said. Federal aircraft design standards prohibit building commercial planes that have the potential for a single-point failure, Miller said, adding modern aircraft have enough redundancy designed in that theres still adequate tools to use to safely get the aircraft on the ground. In the case of the flight with the hydraulics failure, for example, the aircraft came equipped with two other independent hydraulics systems that allowed it to continue to operate safely, according to the airline. A United Airlines jet sits in a grass area after leaving the taxiway on March 8 at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle Miller said flight crews have extensive training and procedures for responding to specific system failures during a flight so they dont have to freelance the response off the top of their head. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the San Francisco incidents where United planes lost a wheel and experienced an engine failure. The airline said its internally investigating each incident as well. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said that while commercial airline failures like Uniteds attract public attention, such incidents remain rare and American aviation is the safest means of travel in the world. Buttigieg pointed out to reporters on Monday that air travel is much safer than driving on the nations roadways, where about 40,000 people are killed annually. I only wish that we could take the level of concern and rigor that we have for aviation safety and start applying it to roadway safety, where the number of Americans we lose on a daily basis is roughly equivalent to the number of passengers aboard a fully loaded 737, Buttigieg said. The Spanish government, together with the regional government of Andalusia and imec have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) outlining their intent to establish a specialized chip technology pilot line in Malaga (Andalusia). The new innovation facility intends to complement imecs existing 300mm advanced CMOS process line in Leuven, Belgium, with new 300mm processes developments and the introduction of new materials that are difficult to combine today with standard CMOS processes. The new facility aims to answer the industrys need for R&D, prototyping and pave the road to the manufacturing of promising, new technologies. The facility aims to leverage the unique advantages of leading-edge 300mm semiconductor process technology to drive new applications in health care, life sciences, photonics, augmented and virtual reality, precision sensing, etc. Complementing the existing expertise and infrastructure in Leuven with non-standard processes that are currently incompatible with semiconductor manufacturing processes, the two sites are meant to be closely linked. The negotiations will now start with an eye to finding a strong public - private cooperation model, between imec, the Spanish government and the government of Andalusia. The governments already agree to support the construction of the new facility including the advanced equipment. They have also formulated the intention to financially support the pilot lines operations in a sustainable, long-term manner, to the benefit of its growing semiconductor ecosystem. Imec intends to manage the operations, provide the required knowledge and technology, and guarantee access to its global academic and industrial partner network. This MoU emphasizes the partners ambition to collaborate on a pan-European scale to contribute to the Spanish semiconductor ecosystem. It builds on local strengths, yet leverages cross-border expertise and capabilities to address global societal challenges, while supporting regional economic ambitions. By establishing this new facility, which is closely connected to imec's Leuven-based 300mm pilot line, the goal is to fully harness the innovation potential in Spain and Andalusia. Further details of the operations of the facility, such as hiring prospects, cannot be confirmed yet as they will be concluded in ensuing discussion. Lesen Sie mehr zum Thema A man pushes a cart by a fenced-off area along Beach Drive in Aptos (Santa Cruz County). The fence went up in late January. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle Annie Vaudagna loves to spend sunny days in Aptos sitting on her beachfront patio or leaving her door open to hear the crash of waves. But its an experience she has enjoyed far less since Santa Cruz County began arguing that her patio, along with those of her neighbors, is actually part of a public walkway. The escalating fight over nearly 800 feet of walkway a clash of private property rights and public access to the coast has cost millions of dollars and counting. It pits homeowners who have fenced off more than two dozen properties for decades against both the county and the California Coastal Commission, which argue the public has a right to walk through the area. Advertisement Article continues below this ad For property owners, being told that land they had been using and maintaining for years was no longer part of their homes came as a shock. A couple stroll along a walkway also known as a set of patios behind homes on Beach Drive in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle It is an unsettling feeling. I think anybody would feel that way about their backyard, Vaudagna said. For proponents of public access, its an issue of accessibility. Although most visitors can walk to the beach, named Rio Del Mar, there is no other paved area wide enough for people with wheelchairs or strollers to get through, they say. It sends a broader message that the coast is available to a select few, either those that are well resourced or those that dont have mobility challenges, said Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend, who represents Aptos. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Individual homes by the beach are valued from $2 million to $5 million, according to Zillow estimates. Graffiti on a barrier reads Tear Down This Wall along Beach Drive in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle For the moment, the walkway is blocked off by a green plastic and chain-link fence. For more than half a century, a permanent fence and stone wall boxed in the ends of the walkway, but they were demolished by the county in 2018. In late January, a new fence went up after the homeowners secured a legal victory though the county has since appealed. We want to be the nice place people want to come and visit, not a place with fences, said Barry Scott, an Aptos resident whos been organizing neighbors against the fence. Rio Del Mar is hardly the only hot spot in the debate over coastal access. Just 7 miles up the coast, the Coastal Commission is investigating whether a private fence improperly blocks an unofficial trail to Twin Lakes State Beach in Santa Cruz. In San Mateo County, Martins Beach has become the focus of a decade-long effort to restore public access after a homeowner shut down the private road leading to the beach. The homeowner there has agreed to keep the road open during the day while the case is in court. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On Beach Drive in Aptos, the public sidewalk is narrow and at times uneven. Expanding it to make it easier for strollers and wheelchair users would mean cutting into an equally narrow road where most cars already cross over the centerline when passing through. (It also wouldnt have a view of the beach.) Behind the Beach Drive homes, by the shore, high tides rise all the way up to a rock retaining wall, precluding the county from building any new path, according to Friend. A walkway closes off public access behind homes on Beach Drive in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle That leaves the existing walkway as the best solution for people needing wheels, Friend said. When the original barriers were still up, he remembers having trouble getting through the sidewalk on Beach Drive with his son in a stroller. It was constantly obstructed by homeowners trash cans, cars that are parked up against the curb, Friend said. On the other side, it was much safer and accessible for everyone in the community who deserves to have access to that walkway. Tensions over the walkway began rising in 2018, when some of the homeowners filed a lawsuit seeking to resolve a long-standing debate over who could access the walkway. One month later, the county tore down the decades-old barriers. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The countys argument came down to one line in a 1980 permit obtained when the homeowners were first building the rock seawall. It called a stretch of land extending 37 feet behind the homes a public easement and mandated that the public shall have the right to use a walkway. Barry Scott, an Aptos resident whos been organizing neighbors against the fence by the Rio Del Mar beach, shows a photograph of trash cans on the sidewalk while standing on Beach Drive in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle The homeowners argued they had built the walkway and the seawall protecting it with no financial help from the county and that the barriers to public access had previously existed without objection. Earlier this year, a county judge finalized a ruling that there was no easement and ordered the county to pay the homeowners $3.7 million in damages and legal fees. The county has appealed that decision. The Coastal Commission points to a separate coastal development permit, also issued in 1980, that required the homeowners to follow the requirements of all local permits. That permit, it argues, makes the public access clause enforceable, whether or not the county owns the land. At a December meeting, the commission voted to fine the homeowners more than $5.2 million for restricting public access, as well as what it said were other permit violations. The homeowners in turn sued the commission, and litigation continues. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The debate has spread from the courtroom to social media, where talk of the fences has dominated local Facebook groups. Scott, who lives up the hill from Beach Drive, believes free public access is well worth the millions of dollars the county is paying in an effort to fight the fences in court, though he said he wishes it didnt have to be that way. Im all for (the cost), if thats what it takes, Scott said. A sign warns against climbing on rocks on a sea wall along Rio Del Mar beach in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle Not every owner of the 27 homes that line the walkway is involved in the two lawsuits. Vivian Neasham, one of the few full-time Beach Drive residents, told Lookout Santa Cruz that she would be in favor of restricted access such as allowing walkers, but no bikes or scooters. Im hopeful, at the end of all this, therell be something that actually works for the entire community down there. I think it can still happen, Friend, the county supervisor, said. In the summers that the barriers were down, Vaudagna, a longtime homeowner, recalls almost a thousand people a day walking along the pathway. Sometimes, Vaudagna said, she would be cooking in her kitchen and look up to see people staring in her window or sitting on her patio furniture. At least once, she said, things turned violent. In 2018, Vaudagna said, an elderly homeowner who asked a group of teenagers to leave his patio was beaten and hospitalized. Greg Poncetta, president of the homeowners association for the Beach Drive properties, said his home was broken into while the fence was down. Greg Poncetta and other homeowners oppose public access to a walkway behind their houses on Beach Drive in Aptos. Nic Coury/Special to the Chronicle Now that the temporary fence is back up, Vaudagna said she feels safer and has seen fewer people entering the walkway. Some still walk through an open carport or come up the stairs from the beach. Poncetta said the homeowners have no problem with the public having a walkway in the area as long as it isnt directly behind their back doors. Its crazy, Poncetta said. The reason we are all here is because we all love the beach and love to be able to spend time here. A bill that could force a sale or outright ban on TikTok passed the House just days after it was first introduced. The House of Representatives approved the measure Wednesday, in a vote of 352 - 65, in a rare showing of bipartisan support. It now goes to the Senate. If passed into law, the legislation would give parent company ByteDance a six-month window to sell TikTok or face a ban from US app stores and web hosting services. While the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act is far from the first effort to force a ban or sale of TikTok, its been able to draw more support far more quickly than previous bills. The measure cleared its first procedural vote in the House last week, just two days after it was introduced. The bill will now move onto the Senate, where its future is less certain. Senator Rand Paul has said he would block the bill, while other lawmakers have also been hesitant to publicly back the bill. TikTok has called the bill unconstitutional and said it would hurt creators and businesses that rely on the service. "This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban," a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement following the House vote. "We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service." Last week, the company sent a wave of push notifications to users, urging them to ask their representatives to oppose the bill. Congressional staffers reported that offices were overwhelmed with calls, many of which came from confused teenagers. Lawmakers later accused the company of trying to interfere with the legislative process. Free speech and digital rights groups also oppose the bill, with many noting that comprehensive privacy laws would be more effective at protecting Americans user data rather than a measure that primarily targets one app. Former President Donald Trump, who once also tried to force ByteDance to sell TikTok, has also said he is against the bill, claiming it would strengthen Meta. In a letter to lawmakers, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Fight for the Future and the Center for Democracy and Technology argued that the bill would set an alarming global precedent for excessive government control over social media platforms and would likely invite copycat measures by other countries with significant consequences for free expression globally. If the bill were to muster enough votes to pass the Senate, President Joe Biden says he would sign the bill into law. His administration has previously pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok. Officials maintain the app poses a national security risk due to its ties to ByteDance, a Chinese company. TikTok has repeatedly refuted these claims. If the law was passed, the company would likely mount a legal challenge like it did in Montana, which passed a statewide ban last year. A federal judge temporarily blocked the ban in November before it could go into effect. Update March 13, 2024, 12:32PM ET: This story has been updated to add a statement from a TikTok spokesperson. Actress Jenifer Lewis told the harrowing story of a devastating accident she endured while on vacation. The 'Black-ish' star revealed the shocking incident where she sustained injuries after falling 10 feet from a balcony in Africa just two years ago. During an interview with 'Good Morning America's' Robin Roberts, Lewis, 67, admitted that 2022 was her hardest year after the ABC series, where she played matriarch Ruby Johnson, ended and she ventured on a journey to enjoy her life. "I was gonna retire and move back home. I conquered a dream," she told 'GMA' with a smile. She was optimistic about a trip to Africa that she and a friend planned. RELATED: ENSTARZ EXCLUSIVE Interview: Day In The Life Of 'Unprisoned' Child Star Jordyn McIntosh After exploring nature in the African Serengeti on the "trip of a lifetime," she was set to stay at a lodge with an infinity pool by a deck overlooking the landscape. "When the sun sets in the Serengeti, there are no streetlights it is pitch black. I was escorted to the lodge, my room, but I wasn't given a tour. I should've been given a tour," she reiterates. "I laid out my safari clothes, and I saw the infinity pool out on my deck, so I went out. I was just taking in the fact that I was back in the Serengeti once again, and I'm walking, and all of a sudden boom I had fallen 10 feet into a dry ravine full of boulders and stones and sharp rocks, Robin." Lewis stated. "I fell." Lewis says she recalled there being a gap of space that wasn't sectioned off, nor was there any warning of a 10 foot drop. She claimed she was "in shock." "My right hip took the impact, my shoulder went up against a stone. A lightning bolt went through my mind's eye right here. In pitch black, I didn't know I was falling. Nothing would move," she continued. RELATED: Kelsey Nicole Breaks Silence In First Interview On The Night That Tory Lanez Shot Megan Thee Stallion "So, I laid there, I said, 'Move your body, baby, come on Jenny, move your body.' Then, I called for my friend, Lori. It was hard to even take a big breath to scream," she said. She also states matter-of-factly, that when Lori ran to get help, she heard the roar of a lion nearby. "My last thought...because I am Jenifer Lewis was what a headline!" she laughed. "The king ate the queen! Pieces of Jenifer Lewis' body being flown back to the states," she joked, referring to what could happen if help hadn't arrived in time. When Roberts, 63, asked Lewis why she'd held the story under wraps so long, she responded triumphantly, telling Roberts she didn't want people to know she had fallen until she could show you "how I got back up." Foreword by General Michael T. Flynn Washington, DCIn his explosive memoir, Patrick Byrne, former CEO of Overstock.com, presents a harrowing account of his involvement in a maze of corruption and deception at the top tiers of the U.S. government. Published by Defiance Press, Danger Close: Domestic Extremist Threat #1 Comes Clean offers readers an extraordinary glimpse behind the veil of power, laying bare startling truths poised to redefine public knowledge of governmental operations. The prologue, penned by the highly regarded retired military officer General Michael T. Flynn, paves the way for Byrne's jaw-dropping disclosures. General Flynn writes, "The unbelievable saga of bribery, blackmail, rape, and murder, more commonly the fabric of fictional narratives, is the reality of a man coerced into facilitating these deeds for our government. Patrick's testimony is genuine, the corruption he has unveiled is authentic, and the narrative becomes increasingly alarming as it unfolds." Adding to the narrative's credibility, the preface by Maria Butina, who finds herself at the heart of Byrne's story, illuminates her wrongful persecution and her unexpected bond with Byrne. Butina reveals, "I was framed and made a scapegoat for alleged 'Russian Collusion' with Trump's presidential campaigna collusion that never existed, as confirmed by both the Durham and Mueller reports. My consequence was an 18-month U.S. prison sentence. Regrettably, Patrick's involvement as 'patient zero' in my case, working against me with the FBI, was significant." Dave Roberts, CEO of Defiance Press, emphasizes the critical timing of the book's publication, stating, "With the approach of the 2024 election, it's imperative that the public learns the full scope of the 'Russiagate' conspiracy. Patrick Byrne's revelations provide a sobering reminder of the urgent need for transparency and truth in our political discourse." Danger Close offers an insider's view into the machinations of power, unveiling shocking realities that challenge the status quo and pose serious questions about the integrity of government agencies. Byrne affirms, "This book is a candid narrative of my personal experiences and the disturbing realities I discovered. My aim in telling my story is to highlight the insidious elements at play and to spark a critical dialogue on the necessity of accountability and openness in our governance." About The Author: Patrick Byrne, an alumnus of Dartmouth College, Stanford University, and Cambridge University as a Marshall Scholar, is a seasoned entrepreneur and visionary. Mentored by Warren Buffett, Byrne's diverse ventures span real estate to blockchain, and he boasts 20 years as an E-Commerce pioneer at Overstock.com. Recognized as the "National Entrepreneur of the Year" (2011) and with his firm honored as "One of America's Most Trusted Firms" by Forbes, Byrne's journey also includes a legendary battle against Wall Street manipulators preceding the 2008 Financial Crisis. Beyond his business achievements, Byrne unveils a second life intertwined with the United States Government. From exposing a fake Russian scandal to facilitating a bribe for Hillary Clinton, his involvement in historical events becomes a compelling narrative. Byrne argues these were early elements in a Deep State soft-coup against America, with the pivotal moment being the rigging of Election 2020a stance he believes challenges the principles of just government derived from the consent of the governed. Danger Close: Domestic Extremist Threat #1 Comes Clean Published February 2024, ISBN: 196310210X, 188 pages, is available in paperback, kindle and hardcover on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, major retailers and via the publisher, Defiance Press. Media Contact: For a review copy of Danger Close or to arrange an interview with Patrick Byrne, contact Scott Lorenz of Westwind Book Marketing at scottlorenz@westwindcos.com or at 734-667-2090. Reach Lorenz on Twitter @abookpublicist. Two men walk through a grape farm in the Fresno area in October 2021. A new study finds that climate change is significantly increasing the thirst of crops in the San Joaquin Valley. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle Climate change is driving up the thirst of crops significantly in Californias San Joaquin Valley, new research shows, adding to the critical water challenges faced by one of the worlds leading agricultural regions. The total water demand of orchards, vineyards and row crops in the area is up 4.4% over the past decade compared with the prior 30 years because of hotter, drier conditions, and its likely to continue growing, according to a federally funded study published this week. In 2021, the water demand of crops was up an astonishing 12.3%, the study shows. While the warming atmosphere has long been known to dry out plants and soil, the new research identifies the impact specific to the San Joaquin Valley. The resulting estimates of increased crop water demand come on top of the regions well documented decrease in water supply, which is the result of less snow in the mountains and deeper droughts, also largely the product of the warming climate. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We know that theres been a water (supply) issue, said Joshua H. Viers, professor at the School of Engineering at UC Merced and co-author of the new study. This is the other side of the issue where were thinking about the additional water required by the agricultural system. The authors of the study describe the increased water demand of crops as an invisible water surcharge thats forcing farmers in the San Joaquin Valley to lean more heavily on overdrafted groundwater supplies and limited imports from mountain reservoirs. They say its putting stress on the sustainability of the global fruit and nut supply and shouldnt be ignored. This increased water demand needs to go into the balance sheet of the water accounting folks, said Josue Medellin-Azuara, also a professor at UC Merceds School of Engineering and co-author of the study. Put in real terms, the crops in the region demanded about 582,000 more acre-feet of water annually between 2012 and 2023 than they did in the previous three decades, the authors say. This yearly increase is close to twice the amount of water that San Franciscos Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park can hold. Because rates of evapotranspiration, or water loss, have risen so significantly with the warming climate, the high water demand of crops remains even in very wet conditions, including the record-setting 2023 water year, according to the study. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Weve seen a lot of these years that have not been dry from a precipitation standpoint but they have had high water evaporative demand, said John Abatzoglou, a professor of climatology at UC Merced and co-author of the study. The research was published Wednesday in the scientific journal PLOS Water. Financial support came from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. The authors arrived at their conclusions by using climate data and crop coefficients, which help model evapotranspiration, to estimate crop water demand for major crops over 40 years. Their approach isolates the climate change effects from other changes over the time period, such as how farmland is managed and what crops are grown. The San Joaquin Valley, which stretches from just south of Sacramento to the Bakersfield area, is home to seven of the states top 10 agricultural counties. It accounts for most of Californias more than $50 billion of annual crop production. The region provides at least a third of the nations fruits and nuts. Its top crops are almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, citrus and cotton. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Cannon Michael, president and CEO of Bowles Farming Co., which grows a range of crops near Los Banos in Merced County, said the increasing water demand of crops has been largely intuitive within the farming community. The past decade has seen two multiyear droughts as well as record-high temperatures. Like other growers, Michael has addressed the elevated crop water demand by saving water in other places when he can, such as using more drip irrigation. Hes also planting crops that use less water, such as carrots, garlic and onions. Some growers have eliminated low-value crops like alfalfa altogether, to redirect water to more lucrative investments. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Fairfield, MT (59436) Today Light snow this evening will give way to some clearing late. Low near 25F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of snow 70%.. Tonight Light snow this evening will give way to some clearing late. Low near 25F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of snow 70%. A nationwide campaign seeking to put a spotlight on beef produced in Britain returns for 2024, with an emphasis on the meat being 'naturally delicious'. The iconic Great British Beef Week (GBBW) returns for its 14th year on 23 April 2024, coinciding with St George's Day. Launched by farmers, it celebrates the versatility of British beef while highlighting the commitment of the sector's sustainable practices. The event is the brainchild of Ladies in Beef, a voluntary organisation of female beef farmers founded by Devon producer Jilly Greed and former NFU President Minette Batters. The group was formed to help drive awareness of the quality of British beef to consumers using a country-wide network of beef producers. This year, the public will be inspired to experiment with 'naturally delicious' British beef, from traditional UK recipes to global ones. Ahead of the week-long festivities, farmer and LiB member, Anna Blumfield, is hosting an event called British Beef Re-imagined' at Deersbrook Farm in Essex. Attendees will embark on a field-to-fork journey, experiencing first-hand the processes involved in beef production. AHDB, which backs the initiative, is also collaborating with several well-known food influencers who will lend their expertise to create their own 'British Beef Re-imagined' dishes. Karl Pendlebury, from AHDB, said: Beef farmers work hard to produce a quality product to world-class food and farming standards that can give consumers confidence in the food on their plate. "Along with the animal welfare systems in place around the country, farmers are working with the environment and nature in mind to reduce inorganic inputs and create wildlife corridors Beef farmer and LiB member, Anna Blumfield added: GBBW is not just about enjoying delicious meals, it also raises awareness about the importance of supporting the British farming community with the challenges they face. The campaign is supported by AHDB, Hybu Cig Cymru Meat Promotion Wales, Livestock and Meat Commission, NFU, Red Tractor and charity RABI. After being crowned the winner of this years NMR RABDF Gold Cup at Dairy-Tech earlier this month, Bisterne Farms will host the open day at their farm. In a break from tradition, this years winners will be showcasing how their, low-input, grass-based, cross-bred herd took the win. The Gold Cup, which was first launched in 1920, recognises dairy business efficiency in the UK. Hampshire-based Bisterne Farms, which will host the open day on 22 May, will highlight how their focus and performance resulted in them being victorious. Industry experts who have contributed to the farms success will speak at the event in a series of talk stations situated around the farm. They will explain how contract farming partner George Brown and his team have focused their attention to detail to enable the herd to produce 3,730 litres of milk from forage. They will also highlight the finer details when it comes to daily practice, looking at how these decisions have ultimately resulted in the business becoming a premier herd. Mr Brown said: The whole team are looking forward to hosting the Open Day in May and are praying for a sunny day. We hope the people attending are able to get a better understanding when it comes to our business structure and an insight into some of the main principles that drive our dairy business. Making up the three talk stations, the Andersons Centre, LIC and Synergy Farm Health will repeat their sessions to visitors throughout the day giving everyone a chance to listen. The Andersons Centre will explain how the mechanics of the farms Contract Farming Agreement work and the benefits that have come with it. They will also look at the business financial performance and its utilisation of benchmarking. With New Zealand genetics and grazing systems having been integral to the success of the joint venture at Bisterne Farms, specialists LIC will discuss the grazing system in place. They will look into the finer details of the farms breeding, including the benefits of block calving and the importance of using the right genetics for the system. Lastly, Synergy Farm Vets are responsible for many of the decisions made when it comes to animal health. Farmers and rural businesses are living in fear due to growing organised crime, including those linked to the international drugs trade, a new report warns. The report from Durham University, commissioned by the National Rural Crime Network and farming groups, claims many crimes are committed by prolific rural offenders, rather than opportunistic individuals. These criminals intentionally victimise rural communities in multiple ways, the report says, including through violence and intimidation, during long and sustained criminal careers. Data carried out by senior criminologist Dr Kate Tudor found that many rural criminals are also involved in the supply and sale of drugs, often on a large and global scale. Foreign organised crime networks are also deeply involved in sustaining the UKs rural crime problem by creating international transportation and disposal routes for goods stolen from the UK countryside. Responding to the report, farming groups say police forces across the UK are treating it as a small-scale issue, despite these gangs increasingly preying on rural communities. Dr Tudor said that essentially, these criminals were "entrepreneurs working in the field of illicit business". "They are already well grounded in crimes such as drug dealing, but theyre always looking for new and emerging business opportunities. Additionally, the report reveals that some 22 organised crime gangs are actively involved in rural crime across the UK. However, only a small number of them are mapped in formal police procedures, which not only means the full extent of organised crime activity in rural areas is unknown, but crimes are less likely to be a priority for police intervention. The gangs also intentionally cross the borders of police force boundaries to exploit the weaknesses in policing methods, according to the report. Agricultural machinery and vehicle theft, hare coursing and poaching, theft of livestock, and fly-tipping are just some of the crimes found to have devastating consequences for farmers. The report found that the costs associated with the theft of agricultural machinery and vehicles alone were 11.7 million, an increase of 29% from the previous year. It also underscores that both fear of crime and first-hand victimisation are rampant. Of those recently surveyed by the Countryside Alliance, some 97% of rural respondents felt that crime was a significant problem in their community. And just under half (43%) of those surveyed reported that they had been the victim of crime in the last 12 months. Despite this, rural communities claim they feel unsupported due to what the report describes as a collapse in police-community relationships, which has significant consequences for feelings of safety in rural areas. Rural communities are found to have a lack of faith in rural policing, feeling that police do not take rural crime seriously, which results in frequent underreporting of crimes. In response to the reports revelations, the NRCN has set out ten recommendations which it believes will help the countryside fight back, including an overhaul of the way police prioritise rural crime. They have called on the College of Policing to review and update their Threat, Harm and Investigation guidelines (THRIVE), used to assess the right initial police response, to better reflect the organised element to rural criminality. Additional measures include recruiting specialist rural crime coordinators, implementing tougher controls at ports and borders, and issuing new rural crime sentencing guidelines. Tim Passmore, chair of the NRCN and PCC for Suffolk said: People in rural areas are paying higher and higher taxes but often feel that policing in their communities is not a priority. "This new research provides clear evidence that criminal gangs from the UK and abroad are using our countryside to commit crimes that fuel the drugs trade and other serious criminal activity. "It is now time to acknowledge that if we want to stop the organised crime gangs we have to better protect our farms, businesses and rural communities. NFU vice president, Rachel Hallos said gangs of criminals have continually plagued the British countryside in recent years, stealing livestock, valuable farm machinery and expensive GPS equipment. The NFU believes more can and should be done and we welcome the NRCNs recommendations in response to their report," she said. Farms often double as family homes and small businesses and these crimes leave many rural communities feeling vulnerable and intimidated. The importance of collaboration between farmers, policymakers and police forces to effectively tackle rural crime also cannot be understated." The report was commissioned by the National Rural Crime Network in conjunction with several farming organisations, including the Countryside Alliance, Country Land and Business Association, and NFU. The Liberal Democrats has written to the NFU after more than 1,750 people added their names to an open letter urging all parties to outline plans to protect farms from flooding. Following the devastation caused by storms last year, the union sent the letter to Defra Secretary Steve Barclay, Shadow Defra Secretary Steve Reed and Tim Farron, who is the Liberal Democrat's EFRA spokesman. It called for a proactive plan for Environment Agency controlled watercourses and flood defences, as well as ensuring farmers are paid fairly for flood storage services. The letter also asked for changes to the way funding for flood defences is currently allocated, with NFU President Tom Bradshaw saying that 'urgent action' was needed to tackle flooding. He said: We need to see all political parties deliver solutions to mitigate the impact of flooding of farmland to ensure farmers can continue producing food for the nation. Mr Farrons letter in response assures farmers that the Liberal Democrats join your call for a proactive management plan for Environment Agency controlled watercourses and defences. He added that the government should bring forward the 5.2bn flood defence spending, ensure Natural England and the Environment Agency are properly funded, and ring-fence funding allocations for flood risk management. I could not agree more regarding the significance of farmers contributions to flood management across the United Kingdom, he wrote to the NFU. I worry that farmers are still systematically at the bottom of the governments priority list when it comes to tackling flood risk. As severe weather events, such as storms and flooding, become more extreme and more frequent, we must take proactive steps to ensure our farmers are well supported to recover and build resilience." Mr Farron also called on the government to increase the budget for the Environmental Land Management schemes (ELMS) by 1bn and invest in new schemes to support farmers in delivering natural flood defences. The NFU said it would continue to engage with all parties to raise the concerns of farmers affected by flooding. Northern Irish farmers are being told not to overbuy 'UK' livestock tags as the prefix code in the province is set to change to 'XI'. The new tags will be available to purchase later this year, Northern Ireland's Department of Agriculture (DAERA) has announced. The department said it was finalising plans for the January 2025 implementation of the XI tags, which will replace UK tags. Livestock identification in Great Britain remains unchanged, with the UK prefix still being used. According to DAERA, the change is a legal requirement under EU animal health law and is necessary to allow NI unfettered access to the EU market. The Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) said the news had 'come out of the blue' without consultation with the industry. UFU deputy president, John McLenaghan said: This access to the EU single market is essential. We do, however, seek more clarity on the process of how the prefix was selected. "It is critical that when using these new XI tags, that we still have access to premium markets in GB and our product can still be labelled as UK origin beef." There is no guarantee that UK livestock tags can be used from 1 January 2025, with the UFU urging farmers not to overbuy UK tags due to the uncertainty. Mr McLenaghan said this lack of assurance had the potential to cause issues for a lot of farmers as many were already spring calving and have purchased UK tags. "The UFU has already raised concerns with DAERA about the lack of consultation and that sufficient lead time needs to be given so our members can use up all the UK tags that they have already bought. Scottish ministers have approved an increase in Quality Meat Scotland's levy rates following an extensive consultation with the industry. A levy rise of 6.8% will be implemented for processors and producers from 1 April 2024, it has been confirmed today (13 March). Thereafter, QMS has proposed that levy increases will revert to annual increases in line with the CPIH index. It marks the first time that the organisation has requested a change to the levy in 13 years. QMS is the public body responsible for promoting the Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb brands in the UK and PGI labelled Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb branded products abroad. The quality assurance schemes run by QMS covers more than 90% of livestock farmed for red meat in Scotland. Kate Rowell, chair of the organisation, said the levy increase would ensure its financial model remained sustainable. She said: "We are pleased that ministers have approved the levy increase which will ensure continuation of the work that QMS has committed to prioritising for farmers and processors. "The new rates will allow us to invest in our key activities underpinning our vision to make Scotland the choice for premium red meat, during a critical time for all businesses. "QMS will continue to proactively engage with the whole red meat chain as we navigate the future together, and look forward to showcasing some of our new work streams over the coming months." It comes after Defra ministers approved AHDB's levy increases in all four sectors it supports pork, beef and lamb in England, dairy in GB, and cereals and oilseeds in the UK. The new rates will also be implemented from April 2024. Elena Kadvany joined The San Francisco Chronicle as a food reporter in 2021. Previously, she was a staff writer at the Palo Alto Weekly and its sister publications, where she covered restaurants and education and also founded the Peninsula Foodist restaurant column and newsletter. She can be reached at Elena.Kadvany@sfchronicle.com. Ariana Madix isn't ready to forgive Tom Sandoval. Ariana Madix isn't ready to forgive her ex-boyfriend The 38-year-old beauty split from Tom in 2023 after it emerged that he had a months-long affair with Rachel Leviss, and Ariana has now revealed that she still isn't ready to get on the "Sandoval sympathy train". Speaking to Lala Kent on the latest episode of 'Vanderpump Rules', Ariana shared: "My position has not changed that he doesn't get any sort of access to my life via me or via mutual friends. "I'm not down with him being around. You know, I can quietly remove myself from situations that make me uncomfortable. "I'm not the person to come to with the Sandoval sympathy train." Earlier this year, Ariana accused Tom of refusing to accept responsibility for his actions. She said on an episode of 'Vanderpump Rules': "He still will not take responsibility for what he did. So ease up?! I'm not gonna be like, 'Hey everybody, it's me Ariana on my Instagram Story, if you guys could just like, be nice to my ex-boyfriend who did all these things...' that's not happening." Tom has spoken openly about his mental health struggles over the last year. And while Ariana has some sympathy for her ex-boyfriend, she also believes that he only has himself to blame. She said: "I can understand that he has had some thoughts and some feelings, but those thoughts and those feelings are based on a situation he created." By contrast, Rachel previously took to social media to apologise to Ariana. The 29-year-old star wrote on Instagram in 2023: "I want to apologize for my actions and my choices foremost to Ariana, and to my friends and the fans so invested in our relationships. There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana. (sic)" The government of Bangladesh recently took a significant step by commencing negotiations for the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Japan. This is as per media reports, which added the primary objective of this is to maintain duty benefits post-Bangladeshs anticipated graduation to a developing nation in 2026. State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu officially announced the commencement of negotiations during a press conference held at the ministry office in capital Dhaka. State minister for commerce officially announced commencement of the negotiations. By initiating negotiations for EPA, Bangladesh aims to ensure continuity in trade benefits, supporting its export-oriented economy, maintaining competitive edge in the global market. Senior commerce secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh also highlighted the criticality of the EPA. Meanwhile, senior commerce secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh highlighted the criticality of the EPA, stating that without it, Bangladesh would incur more than an 18 per cent duty on exported goods after 2026, thereby highlighting the urgency and importance of securing this agreement to safeguard Bangladeshs economic interests. Ambassador IWAMA Kiminori, representing Japan in Bangladesh, also contributed to the discussion, underscoring the significance of bilateral cooperation in trade matters between the two nations. The proactive approach by the Bangladeshi government demonstrates its foresight in addressing potential challenges associated with the countrys transition to a developing nation status. By initiating negotiations for the EPA now, Bangladesh aims to ensure continuity in trade benefits, thereby supporting its export-oriented economy and maintaining its competitive edge in the global market. Overall, this development marks a crucial milestone in Bangladeshs economic trajectory, reflecting its determination to navigate the complexities of international trade dynamics and secure favourable terms that will benefit its economy in the long term. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DR) To read the full story, become a PRIME member today. PRIME Unlimited Access to Insightful Industry Information All Corporate Members and TexPro Subscribers are eligible to access F2F PRIME CONTENT using the same login credentials. The Netherlands and Bangladesh recently renewed their 1993 agreement to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion by incorporating required changes and doing away with inconsistencies. Bangladesh finance minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali and Dutch minister for tax affairs and tax administration MLA van Rij signed the deal in Dhaka. The Netherlands and Bangladesh have renewed their 1993 pact to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion by incorporating required changes and doing away with inconsistencies. The new agreement offers tax-free benefits only to state-owned institutions. Tax can now be collected at a maximum rate of 10 per cent in case of payment of bills against services. The new treaty consists of 33 articles, with several new articles added to broaden the scope of taxation and collect tax from new areas, according to media reports from Bangladesh. The new agreement offers tax-free benefits only to state-owned institutions, a press release issued by the Bangladesh finance ministry noted. Tax can now be collected at a maximum rate of 10 per cent in case of payment of bills against services. It includes a provision regarding capital gains on the transfer of shares getting taxable in Bangladesh. Both contracting states shall assist each other in collecting tax claims. In fiscal 2022-23, Bangladesh's exports to the Netherlands were worth $2 billion and its imports from there were worth $300 million. Export items included knitwear, wovens, garments, shoes, textiles and leather goods. Imports comprised capital machinery, minerals, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, plastics and rubber. The Netherlands ranks fourth in terms of foreign direct investment in Bangladesh. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS) Unemployment rates were higher in January in four US states, lower in two states and stable in 44 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS). Twenty-five states had jobless rate increases from a year earlier, six states had decreases and 19 states and the District of Columbia had little change. The national unemployment rate remained at 3.7 per cent in January 2024 and was little changed from the same month last year. Unemployment rates were higher in January in four US states, lower in two states and stable in 44 states and the District of Columbia. Twenty-five states had jobless rate hikes from a year earlier, six saw drops and 19 states and the District of Columbia had little change. The national unemployment rate was 3.7 per cent, little changed from January 2023. Non-farm payroll employment increased in eight states and was essentially unchanged in 42 states and the District of Columbia in January this year. Over the year, non-farm payroll employment increased in 27 states and was essentially unchanged in 23 states and the District of Columbia, a BLS release said. North Dakota had the lowest jobless rate in January, 1.9 per cent. The next lowest rate was in South Dakota, 2.1 per cent. Nevada had the highest unemployment rate, 5.3 per cent, closely followed by California, 5.2 per cent. In all, 16 states had unemployment rates lower than the US figure of 3.7 per cent, seven states and the District of Columbia had higher rates, and 27 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation. Four states had unemployment rate increases in January: Connecticut, Rhode Island, Washington and California. Massachusetts and Wisconsin were the two states with rate falls. Forty-four states and the District of Columbia had jobless rates that were not notably different from those of a month earlier. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS) Actor Anshuman Jha, known for his role in Love, Sex Aur Dhokha, tied the knot with his American girlfriend Sierra Winters in October 2022. The couple recently welcomed their baby girl, Tara, born on March 10 in the United States after a 32-hour labour for Sierra, a triathlete runner. Anshuman expressed his gratitude, sharing that both Sierra and Tara are healthy and safe. The actor feels blessed and acknowledges the significant female influence in his life, making him matriarchal. He said, "We feel truly blessed to have an angel. I have been raised by my mother, my elder sister is the reason why I could pursue acting, and I have always had a lot of female influence in my life through my cousin sisters as well." Regarding the baby's gender, Anshuman shared, "In the US, it is legal to find out if it is a girl or boy, but we intentionally didn't find out because we wanted to have a surprise. And we are thrilled to have our daughter." Sierra's parents, Tara's grandparents, were also present, and Sierra chose the name Tara. The couple has decided not to share photos of their daughter at this stage of their life. Anshuman stated, "Some things don't need to be shared. In a world that is obsessed with counting likes, followers - I count my blessings & keep it private." Ananya Panday is not just an actress of this generation but also someone who is driving conversations, that make a difference. The actress launched a Digital Social Responsibility initiative on 30th June 2019 on the occasion of World Social Media Day, 'So Positive'. The initiate has constantly found resonance with the audience and stands for 'social positivity'. It aims to create awareness about healthy social media behavior and the toxicity that it can bring into our lives, if not dealt with correctly. Now, the actress has yet again reiterated the need for social media positivity at the 'Humanitarian Awards' in Chennai instituted by Apsara Reddy. Ananya Panday took to her social media and shared a video while she delivers her speech at the event, recognizing the tireless efforts of grassroots level social activists working towards causes that need attention. Upholding the need for positive social media, as it still stays an unregulated space, Ananya shared... "Honoured to be at the 'Humanitarian Awards' here in Chennai that recognizes the tireless efforts of grassroot level social activists working towards the noble cause of child rights and the prevention of child sexual abuse. And many who ensure children go on a lifelong journey of care, comfort and further education post traumatic situations @apsara_official @sopositivedsr" Pulkit Samrat-Kriti Kharbanda Age Gap: Actors Pulkit Samrat and Kriti Kharbanda are gearing up to tie the knot on March 15 in Manesar, Haryana. Ahead of their wedding, the couple was spotted jetting off to the national capital on Tuesday, radiating with the glow. Beaming with joy, they graciously accepted congratulations from the paparazzi. PULKIT SAMRAT-KRITI KHARBANDA WEDDING DETAILS Today (March 13), the pre-wedding festivities of Pulkit Samrat and Kriti Kharbanda started and fans are eagerlya waiting their pictures. For those who are not aware, Pulkit and Kriti first crossed paths on the sets of their film Pagalpanti in 2019 and have been inseparable ever since. While Pulkit Samrat and Kriti Kharbanda have openly acknowledged their relationship, they've opted to keep details of their upcoming wedding private, abstaining from sharing any photos or videos from the festivities. For those interested in their age gap, here's all the information you need. Pulkit Samrat-Kriti Kharbanda Pre-Wedding Festivities Begin: Groom Snapped In Yellow Kurta For Haldi - VIDEO AGE GAP BETWEEN KRITI KHARBANDA AND PULKIT SAMRAT Panchayat 3 Release Date, Cast, Delay Reason: Here's All You Need To Know About Jitendra Kumar's Show Pulkit, born on December 29, 1983, in Delhi, is currently 40 years old. Similarly, Kriti, born on October 29, 1990, also hails from Delhi. The 33-year-old actress spent her formative years in the national capital before pursuing her career in Mumbai. Despite a seven-year age gap, Pulkit and Kriti share a deep bond, often referring to each other as best friends. DETAILS ABOUT PULKIT SAMRAT FIRST WEDDING Notably, this will mark Pulkit's second marriage, having previously been married to Shweta Rohira, Salman Khan's rakhi sister. However, their union ended in divorce within a year. Reportedly, Pulkit and Kriti's wedding will span four days in Manesar, attended by their closest friends and family. Their leaked wedding invite hints at an eagerly anticipated celebration with their cherished squad. Expected attendees include cast members from Fukrey, including Varun Sharma and Manjot Singh. Keep watching this space for more updates! SW China's Guiyang resumes direct flights to Kuala Lumpur Xinhua) 15:57, March 13, 2024 GUIYANG, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Regular flights between Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province, and Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, resumed on Tuesday, according to the Guizhou Civil Aviation Industry Group Co., Ltd. Flight OD608 arrived at the Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport on Tuesday evening with 162 tourists from Malaysia. This is the first tourist charter flight from Malaysia to Guizhou after the implementation of a bilateral visa-free policy last year. The air service will run once a week every Tuesday and is expected to increase in frequency in the future, according to the company. The airport is also set to launch several international air routes this year. So far, it has resumed four international and regional passenger flights connecting Guiyang to Bangkok, Phuket, Kuala Lumpur, and Osaka. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing) New surveys from the Pew Research Center and Ipsos and Axios show a major decline in COVID-19 concerns among Americans and growing vaccine indifference. Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle New surveys from the Pew Research Center and Ipsos show a major decline in COVID-19 concerns among Americans and growing vaccine indifference. Lizzy Montana Myers/Special to the Chronicle As we enter the fifth year of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new survey reveals a notable shift in how Americans perceive the coronavirus. According to a Pew Research Center report published last week, only 20% of respondents now consider the coronavirus a significant threat to the health of the U.S. population, marking a substantial decline from the peak of public concern in 2020. A mere 10% expressed deep concern about the prospect of contracting the virus and ending up in the hospital. Here are some key takeaways from the survey, conducted in February with more than 10,000 adults: Advertisement Article continues below this ad Vaccine indifference up: Only 28% of U.S. adults have received the updated COVID-19 vaccine recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for severe illness protection, a considerable decrease from the 69% fully vaccinated by August 2021. Political divide narrows: The partisan gap in whether Democrats and Republicans view COVID-19 as a significant threat has decreased from a 37-point gap in May 2022 to a 16 points now. Long COVID awareness decreases: Approximately 21% of respondents believe its somewhat important for the medical field to address long COVID, while 6% say it is not very important or not at all important. A surprising 22% indicated they had never heard of long COVID. Economic concerns diminishing: Concerns about the virus being a significant threat to the U.S. economy have significantly decreased, with only 23% considering it a major threat currently, compared to 88% in May 2020. Fear is fading: About 27% of Americans express some level of concern about contracting a severe case of COVID-19 that would necessitate hospitalization, while a slightly larger group, 40%, are worried about unknowingly spreading the virus to others. The changing attitudes reflect recent shifts in public health policy, including the scaling back of COVID-specific guidance by the CDC and the classification of the virus alongside other respiratory bugs, like influenza and RSV, by the California Department of Public Health. However, this may not accurately mirror the actual threat of COVID-19, which continues to claim hundreds of American lives each week and land thousands more in hospitals. Many other individuals are grappling with the persistent and debilitating symptoms of long COVID. The pandemic has not been officially declared over. Our collective fear of COVID is understandably diminished, but it is tragic that we still see so many deaths, said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases expert with UCSF. The vast majority of these deaths are preventable with the array of tools we have. We need to replace fear with cautious optimism, not apathy. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A disease is deemed endemic once its spread becomes constant, akin to the flu, which resurfaces annually in winter. COVID-19, however, shows little sign of falling into a predictable pattern. But experts concur that the public emergency is over. The vast majority of people worldwide now have some protection against the virus, either through vaccination, previous infection or both. COVID-19 no longer poses a large-scale threat, and health care systems are not collapsing. Doctors now possess tools that enable most people to avoid or at least mitigate the damage from an infection: masks, vaccines, tests and treatments. However, the emergence of new variants could potentially undo much of the progress made since the emergence of the fast-spreading but generally milder omicron offshoot of the virus. A separate Axios/Ipsos American Health Index poll, published last month, indicates that COVID-19 has dropped to the bottom of the list of potential public health threats for most Americans, with just 2% citing it as their top concern, far behind threats like opioids and fentanyl, obesity, mental health issues, and access to guns. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In that survey, 11% of Americans perceive a considerable health risk in contracting COVID-19, an increase from 6% in the summer. However, this heightened concern doesnt result in significant shifts in behavior or attitudes. Only 15% report wearing a mask in public either at all times or sometimes, down from 30% one year ago. Moreover, only a third of respondents said they had heard about the CDCs plan to drop its guidance recommending a five-day isolation period for those infected with the virus. I wish we had the right term to describe the current COVID-19 situation, said Dr. Robert Wachter, chair of the UCSF Department of Medicine. Its not a pandemic, but its still a significant threat. Taking a few simple steps masking in high-risk settings, adding extra ventilation, testing when you dont feel well, keeping up to date with vaccines, and taking Paxlovid if you get COVID and are at high risk can make the difference between a mild illness and a severe one. Sara Ali Khan has been on a roll after all her upcoming release Murder Mubarak is creating a lot of buzz in the town. Also starring Vijay Varma, Karisma Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Dimple Kapadia, Sanjay Kapoor, Tisca Chopra, Suhail Nayyar and Tara Alisha Berry, it has been one of the most anticipated releases of the year. In fact, from the teaser, trailer and the poster, Murder Mubarak has left everyone intrigued. Interestingly, this Homi Adajania directorial happens to be a mystery thriller which is based on Anuja Chauhan's Club You To Death and marks Sara's first collaboration with Pankaj. In fact, she will be seen romancing Vijay Varma in the movie and their sizzling chemistry has been grabbing eyeballs. Murder Mubarak Release Time As Murder Mubarak has managed to create a massive buzz in the town, fans have been quite eager for the movie's release. To note, Murder Mubarak will be releasing on March 15 on Netflix. The mystery thriller will be releasing at noon around 1 PM. Meanwhile, talking about Murder Mubarak, Sara stated, "I think it was a huge huge privilege. I think that you know, it was so amazing to work with homie sir and this cast because I got to discover so much about myself also. I also think that this film came to me an important time in my life when it was very important for me to unlearn". Apart from Murder Mubarak, Sara will also be seen in Ae Watan Mere Watan which is a historical biographical drama film based on the life of Usha Mehta and will be releasing on March 22 this year on Amazon Prime. Helmed by Kannan Iyer, the movie also stars Anand Tiwari, Sachin Khedekar, Abhay Verma, Sparsh Shrivastav, Alexx O'Nell, and Benedict Garrett in key roles along with Emraan Hashmi in a guest appearance Photo Credit: Puneeth Rajkumar's Jackie Movie Re-Release: Jackie is a rustic action drama made in Kannada featuring the beloved actor, the late Puneeth Rajkumar. The movie written and directed by Duniya Soori attained cult status following its theatrical release in 2010. Referred to as a trendsetting and remarkable film of Puneeth Rajkumar's career as well as the Kannada films, Jackie is now back in the headlines for its grand re-release. Starring Bhavana as the female lead, the movie went on to become one of the most successful films in the Kannada film industry. The film's dialogues, music, songs and lyrics, technical aspects along with performances received heaps of appreciation. Jackie also bagged the 'Best Film' award at the South Filmfare Awards in 2010. Made on a budget of Rs 7.5 Crore, Jackie collected about Rs 30 Crore when it was released. Jackie Re-Release On March 15 The Late Puneeth Rajkumar's epic action drama Jackie is now ready to enthrall the audiences and fans of Appu once again in the theatres in a re-mastered version. The 4K update of Jackie movie starring Bhavana, directed by Duniya Soori will open on the big screens for the second time on March 15. Jackie Synopsis The movie is about a happy-go-lucky guy Jackie, who lives with his mother and dreams of making it big in the real estate without having to work harder. He decides to help the daughter of a priest elope with her lover, who is a human trafficker. Unknown of the same, when the priest accuses him of helping them out, Jackie takes the responsibility to track her down. Meanwhile, a CID team is behind Jackie for hiding a prisoner who escaped. Jackie Cast The movie stars Puneeth Rajkumar as Janakirama aka Jackie. Bhavana played the role of Jackie's love interest Lakshmi. Sumithra as Jayamma, Harshika Poonacha as Yashoda, Vikas as Parangi Seena, Rangayana Raghu as Meese Bheemanna, Bullet Prakash as Malgere Sanna, M.S. Umesh, Mithra, Sampath Raj, Krishna, Shobharaj, Ravi Kale, Vaijanath Biradar, and Honnavalli Krishna among others played important characters. Duniya Soori, Yogaraj Bhat, and V. Harikrishna made special appearances in the title song. Jackie Crew Duniya Soori wrote and directed by movie which was funded by Parvathamma Rajkumar under the Poornima Enterprises banner. V Harikrishna composed the film's entire background score and music. Satya Hegde cranked the camera while Deepu S. Kumar worked as the film's editor. Photo Credit: The GOAT Life OTT Platform Fixed: The GOAT Life is the latest survival thriller featuring Prithviraj Sukumaran in the lead playing the real-life character of Najeeb Muhammad, a Malayali migrant worker from India who went to Saudi Arabia for work. Based on the book written by Benyamin titled 'Aadujeevitham,' The GOAT Life was directed by Blessy. The movie is gearing up to hit the screens on March 28 worldwide in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Hindi. The movie was in the making for numerous years, and the entire cast and crew had to undergo many schedule changes apart from other budget-related issues to complete The GOAT Life. The makers have officially claimed that the movie was first thought of about 16 years ago. Blessy, who read the novel in 2008 had been dreaming of making it into a feature film ever since. He also worked for over 10 years on the script and, six years were spent on the film's shooting. The film's teaser and trailer were released as part of the promotional campaign ahead of its grand theatrical release. They met with huge appreciation. Prithviraj Sukumaran poured life into the character and all of his conviction is visible in the glimpse. Photo Credit: The GOAT Life Synopsis The movie written and directed by Blessy and Benyamin charts the journey of an Indian migrant worker named Najeeb Muhammad, who lands in Saudi Arabia to earn for his family. However, his slavery in the middle of deserts with nothing but goats as their herd prompts him to take an extreme step. The GOAT Life OTT Platform Fixed As per the available update, the digital streaming rights to this real-life survival drama The Goat Life have been bought for a decent price by the OTT giant Disney Plus Hotstar, a frontrunner for all the exciting Malayalam films. The makers are said to have closed the deal for The GOAT Life's digital rights, ahead of the theatrical release. The GOAT Life Cast Prithviraj Sukumaran played the lead role of Najeeb Muhammed while Amala Paul will be seen in the character of Sainu. Jimmy Jean-Louis played the role of Ibrahim Khadiri. In addition, there are many actors including Rik Aby, Shobha Mohan, Robin Das, Giovanni V.Guisti, Ajesh Babu, Tlaib Al Balushi, Akef Najem, and Nazer Karutheni among others. The GOAT Life Crew Written for the screen by Blessy based on the book Adujeevitham by Benyamin, The GOAT Life was funded by Blessy, Jimmy Jean-Louis, and Steven Adams under the Visual Romance Image Makers, Jet Media Production, and Alta Global Media banners. The movie's cinematography was handled by Sunil K.S. and A. Sreekar Prasad worked as the editor. Lover OTT Release: The Tamil film 'Lover,' released on February 9, 2024, features Manikandan and Gouri Priya Reddy in the lead roles. Directed by debutant Prabhu Ram Vyas, the movie promises to deliver a captivating romantic drama. Lover Synopsis As Arun and Divya's six-year relationship begins to unravel, they find themselves drifting apart, prompting the question of whether love can endure such differences. Lover Cast And Crew The film's ensemble cast features K. Manikandan portraying the character of Arun, while Sri Gouri Priya takes on the role of Divya Shanmugam. Kanna Ravi brings the character of Madan Wanders to life, alongside Harish Kumar as Suhail. Saravanan and Geetha Kailasam portray Arun's parents, while Nikhila Shankar and Harini depict Divya's friends, with Nikhila playing Divya's friend and flatmate and Harini appearing as Aishu. The cast is further enriched by Pintu Pandu and Arunachaleshwaran, who portray significant roles as well. The film's technical team includes cinematographer Shreyaas Krishna, editor Barath Vikraman, and music composer Sean Rolden. Lover OTT Release Date And Platform The highly anticipated Tamil romantic drama film "Lover," directed by debutant Prabhu Ram Vyas and featuring Manikandan and Gouri Priya Reddy in the lead roles, is set to premiere on Disney+ Hotstar on March 27. This news comes amidst growing excitement among fans eager to witness the unravelling of Arun and Divya's tumultuous relationship on screen. With an ensemble cast including K. Manikandan, Sri Gouri Priya, and other talented actors, along with the skilled technical team behind the scenes, anticipation for the film's digital release is palpable. Stay tuned for further updates and mark your calendars for March 27 to experience the captivating tale of love and its complexities in "Lover" on Disney+ Hotstar. Lover Review According to film industry tracker Ramesh Bala, "Lover" is a 'True Lover' and garners a rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars from him. The film delves into the dynamics of a possessive boyfriend and a girlfriend seeking independence. As their relationship unfolds on screen, the audience is kept engaged, wondering whether they will resolve their differences or part ways permanently. The movie captures attention from the very first scene and concludes with a convincing climax. Manikandan delivers a fantastic performance, while Gouri Priya Reddy shines in her role. Kannaravi's portrayal adds depth to the narrative, and Sean Roldan's music serves as the lifeline of the film. Director Prabhu Ram Vyas presents a realistic romantic tale tailored for today's youth, making "Lover" a definite winner in the genre. Vidaa Muyarchi First Look Poster Release: Ajith Kumar is presently engaged in the production of an intense action-packed film titled "Vidaa Muyarchi," directed by Magizh Thirumeni and produced by Subaskaran Allirajah under the banner Lyca Productions. Lover OTT Release Date And Platform: Find Out When And Where To Watch Manikandan's Movie Magizh Thirumeni, renowned for his knack for crafting sophisticated entertainers, has notable works like "Kalaga Thalaivan," "Thadam," and "Thadaiyara Thaaka" to his credit. Alongside Ajith, the star-studded cast includes Arjun Sarja, Trisha, Regina Cassandra, and actor Arav, among others. The principal photography of the movie began in October 2023 and is primarily taking place in Azerbaijan. The film features music by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography by Nirav Shah and Om Prakash, and editing by N. B. Srikanth. Marakkuma Nenjam OTT Release Date And Platform: Find Out When And Where To Watch VJ Rakshan's Movie Unfortunately, the film unit faced a tragic setback during their shoot in Azerbaijan. Milan, a prominent art director in Tamil cinema and a key member of the team, unexpectedly passed away due to a heart attack while on location. Milan, who had contributed to numerous of Ajith's earlier projects such as "Billa," "Aegan," "Veeram," "Vedalam," and "Vivegam," had an illustrious career spanning over 30 films. Following Milan's untimely demise, Ajith and Magizh Thirumeni, deeply affected by the loss, prioritised the health of their team members by arranging medical check-ups to ensure their well-being amidst the shoot. Lal Salaam OTT Release Date And Platform: Here's When And Where To Watch Rajinikanth's Movie Anticipation Peaks: Speculations Surrounding 'Vidaa Muyarchi' First Look Release Fans of Ajith Kumar are eagerly awaiting the release of "Vidaa Muyarchi" with excitement. Meanwhile, speculation is brewing on social media, suggesting that the first look poster of the film might be unveiled tomorrow, with an announcement expected today. Netizens are eagerly anticipating an official update from the filmmakers, adding to the excitement surrounding the highly-awaited project. Munmun Dutta engagement rumour: It is said that rumour spreads travels than light. Gossip mills claimed that Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah fame Munmun Datta has exchanged rings with Raj Anadkat. The rumour spread like wildfire on the internet. MUNMUN DUTTA DATING RAJ ANADKAT? HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW Earlier in the day, rumour mongers claimed that Munmun and Raj got engaged in the presence of their family members. A report in a news channel suggested that the two co-stars had an intimate engagement ceremony. While rumours about them dating each other had surfaced in 2022, Munmum had squashed the speculations. A report in News18 stated that Munmum Datta and Raj Anakat's families have accepted their relationship and they attended the ceremony. The netizens wondered if Munmun and Raj are dating each other as the news was heavily circulated on social media. Speculations were rife that the duo was in a relationship since 2017; however, there's no truth to the same. Munmun Dutta-Raj Anadkat Age Gap: Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah's Tapu Reacts On 'Relationship' With Co-star MUNMUN DUTTA-RAJ ANADKAT ENGAGED IN VADORA? ACTRESS REACTS The Bengali Beauty expressed her displeasure over the conjecture about her personal life. Calling it 'utterly ridiculous', she said that there was no 'truth' in the rumour. The actress, while interacting with a portal, called it' fake news' and said that she would not waste her energy and attention over the same. "This is utterly ridiculous! There's not an ounce of truth to any of this. I refuse to waste my energy and attention on such fake news," Munmun told India Forums. While Munmun has been a part of Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah since its inception, Raj joined the show in 2017. He replaced Bhavya Gandhi, who originally played the role of Tapu in the sitcom, which airs on Sony SAB. Raj decided to quit TMKOC due to creative differences in 2022 after a successful five-year stint with Taarak Mehta. Eventually, the production house replaced him with Nitish Bhaluni. Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 12, 2024) - Mayo Lake Minerals Inc. (CSE: MLKM) (Mayo or Company) is pleased to report on the progress of Mayo's and WestMountain Gold, Inc.'s (WestMountain) merger as described in Mayo's press release of August 17, 2023. The Letter of Intent (LOI) as described in the press release outlined the proposed terms and conditions of a transaction pursuant to which Mayo and WestMountain plan to affect a three-cornered amalgamation of a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mayo and WestMountain that would result in Mayo indirectly acquiring all of the outstanding share capital of WestMountain (Transaction). The amalgamated entity resulting from the Transaction will continue to carry on the combined operations of Mayo and WestMountain. The Transaction, which is contemplated for completion in the first quarter of 2024, remains subject to Mayo and WestMountain entering into a definitive agreement and the receipt of all regulatory and other approvals. Mayo will issue a comprehensive press release pursuant to the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange upon execution of a definitive agreement. To date, the companies have carried out extensive due diligence and are pleased with the progress. Pursuant to the LOI, Mayo will issue WestMountain shareholders that number of common shares at a deemed value of $0.08 per share in the capital of Mayo equivalent to fifty percent (50%) of the common shares issued and outstanding on a fully diluted basis at the time of closing. As additional consideration, Mayo will issue two (2) tranches of warrants on a pro-rata basis, each tranche equal to 10% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Mayo at the time of closing of the Transaction calculated on a fully diluted basis. Each warrant shall be exercisable for five (5) years from the date of issuance at the market price of Mayo's common shares at the time of closing of the Proposed Transaction. Each tranche will be exercisable when the following thresholds are met: (a) delineation of a compliant gold resource consisting of a minimum of two million inferred or better ounces and (b) delineation of a compliant gold resource consisting of a minimum of three million, inferred or better ounces. Upon completion of the Proposed Transaction, Mayo's board of directors will be reconstituted and consist of three directors nominated by current Mayo shareholders and two directors nominated by current WestMountain shareholders. Mayo is expected to assume a principal amount of US $3 million of WestMountain secured notes and accrued interest maturing on February 7, 2025. The completion of the Transaction is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions precedent, including: receipt of all necessary consents, approvals and authorizations of any regulatory authorities, shareholders or third parties; Mayo having obtained such regulatory approvals as are necessary in connection with the completion of the Proposed Transaction, including but not limited to the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange; all claims and leases comprising the Terra Gold Project's ( Terra ) being in good standing at closing with annual payments and other fees paid in full and all permits and approvals to conduct exploration and development at Terra being in good standing; WestMountain having converted approximately US$5 million of its total debt and related obligations into common shares on or before closing; and with the exception of the amount of the US $3 million secured notes of WestMountain to be assumed by Mayo, all other outstanding notes of WestMountain and any interest accrued shall have been discharged through payment of cash or share conversion prior to closing, or as otherwise agreed by the parties. Amendment to Terms of Private Placement - As previously announced on January 4, after due consultation between management and certain parties followed by a review with the board of directors, the Company passed a resolution amending the terms of the common share unit (CS Unit) portion of its ongoing $1.4M private placement to include one whole warrant per CS Unit that is now exercisable at $0.09 for an extended period of four years as opposed to the previous three-year period. The planned closing date has now been rescheduled for on or about March 29, 2024. The securities issued pursuant to the Offering will be subject to a statutory hold period in Canada of four (4) months and one day after the closing date. Finders that source investments in the Offering may earn a cash commission of up to 7% and warrants to purchase that number of common shares equal to 7% of the number of the respective type of units sold by the finder which are valid for four years. The CS Unit proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes as well as certain exploration expenditures and the FT Unit proceeds will be used for eligible exploration expenditures, qualifying as "CEE" under the Income Tax Act (Canada) and applicable regulations, on Mayo's Anderson-Davidson, Carlin-Roop and Trail-Minto properties. Mayo also confirms that on March 8 it closed a second tranche of the above noted placement consisting of 701,667 CS Units bringing its cumulative total to 2,676,668 CS Units for a total of $160,600.08; leaving Mayo's capital structure as set forth in the table below. COMMON SHARES 98,805,821 WARRANTS 23,973,622 FINDERS WARRANTS 697,094 RESTRICTED SHARE UNITS 187,482 DEFERRED SHARE UNITS 900,000 OPTIONS 4,920,158 FULLY DILUTED SHARE STRUCTURE 129,484,178 A company controlled by an officer of the Company (a 'Related Party' under Multilateral Instrument 61-101), subscribed for a total of 166,667 CS Units. Mayo is exempt from obtaining a formal valuation and minority approval of its shareholders in respect of the Related Party Participation due to the fair market value of the Related Party Participation being below 25% of the Company's market capitalization for the purposes of MI 61-101. Merger Financing Subsequent to the completion of Mayo's current financing, Mayo shall complete a second private placement financing prior to closing of the proposed Transaction for minimum gross proceeds of $1,400,000, and a maximum of $2,800,000, or such amount as mutually determined by Mayo and WestMountain. Merger Synergy. The proposed Transaction would result in a well-diversified set of prospective gold properties within the Tintina Gold Province. Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Mayo would hold an advanced-stage project with an attractive resource and prospective projects in the pipeline that are open to the discovery of upper-tier mineral deposits in the future. The significance of Terra's present delineation of high-grade veins with associated envelopes of low-grade mineralization cannot be overstated, as it provides a core to which successful drilling can rapidly increase the total gold resource. Mayo's executives have a combined track record of successful exploration and development that underlines their capacity to unlock the full potential of the combined company's projects. They combine an experienced professional understanding of regional mineralization, decades of working in a harsh environment and a strong commitment to environmental matters. WestMountain Gold Reports 703,300 Ounces of High-Grade Gold: WGM brings in the Terra Gold Project (https://www.westmountaingold.com) a new primary flagship property to the amalgamated company. In 2020, R.J. (Jim) Robinson, B.Sc. P.Geo., (QP) reported to WestMountain 1 that Terra contains Indicated Resources ("IND"), 435,360 ounces gold at 12.08g Au/t and Inferred Resources ("INF"), 267,943 ounces gold at 10.59g Au/t with a 5.0g Au/t cut-off for a total of 703,303 ounces at 10.28g Au/t based on an under-ground ("UG") narrow vein mining model. Robinson also reported in an internal report to WestMountain that resources for a model with extraction by open pit at the Fish Zone) and bulk mining at the Ben Zone were IND, 1,422,330 ounces gold at 2.31g Au/t and INF, 588,789 ounces gold at 2.05g Au/t for a total of 2,011,119 ounces gold at 2.23g Au/t. For Mayo's purposes, these resources are deemed historical. Thirty diamond drill holes (DDHs) were completed during drilling in 2018 and 2019. Of the thirty DDHs, twenty-five cored quartz veins assaying over 10g Au/t; with multiple veins being cored in fifteen DDH. The gold values ranged from 10g Au/t up to 246g Au/t with widths ranging from 0.2 to 1.5m in a total of sixty-four intercepts, averaging 36.3g Au/t. As of August, 2023, 4,500 ounces of gold have been extracted from ~ 3,000 tonnes of excavated ore; this equated to a gold grade of ~ 46g Au/t. On-site pilot studies determined that the gold and silver (partially) could be extracted by crushing and pulverizing followed by gravity separation without the use of chemicals. The Ben and Fish zones lie within a 2.5 km N-S trending, mineralized corridor. The two zones contain numerous multi-phased high-grade veins up to 1m in width and of various strike lengths. These veins parallel the primary vein within each zone. The high-grade veins are commonly within an envelope of stringers and stockwork silification, increasing the width of the mineralization adjacent to the main vein widths to anywhere up to 10m; a configuration that could lead to a reduction of costs in underground mining. Both zones are open along strike and at depth, being only tested to approximately 250m below ground surface. Parallel high-grade veins and adjacent low grades enveloping the veins offer the opportunity for a rapid upgrade in resource quantity and quality with strategically located drill holes. Terra has infrastructure and facilities at the site including: a 25-person camp facility with a mess tent, showers, water wells, laundry facilities, and privies, plus an office, core shack, storage area, a mill building, a storage shed, fuel depot, bulldozers and vehicle equipment, a road network and a 1,463m airstrip. Services are available at Anchorage some 210 km to the southeast. A winter road from the Alaska Highway Network presently ends within 65 km of Terra and an all-weather road is planned by the state to replace the winter road in the near future. WestMountain has stated that there are no significant fish, wildlife, wetlands or environmental issues, no indigenous land claims and no Federal mining permits required. For more information on WestMountain's properties, please visit: https://www.westmountaingold.com/. Mayo holds pipeline of drill-ready projects in the Yukon: Mayo controls 5 properties covering 244 square kilometres where it has completed extensive exploration over the last 12 years. Independent of any activities proposed for Terra, Mayo plans to drill prospective gold targets within the Anderson Gold Belt and to trench its Carlin West and AJ targets at its Carlin-Roop property in 2024. Mayo's Trail-Minto property, which may well host similar mineralization to that at Banyan Gold's AurMac or Victoria Gold's Eagle Mine (intrusion related with sheeted veining), will be the subject of additional groundwork before planned drilling in 2024. The reader can access a number of maps and Mayo's history in addition to property news and descriptions and the current private placement Term Sheet that it has in place in order to complete this exploration at https://www.mayolakeminerals.com. Qualified Person. The technical and scientific information contained within this news release has been reviewed and approved by Dr. Vern Rampton, P.Eng., a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standard of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101). Rampton, in addition to data reported on https://westmountaingold.com relied on a technical report, dated June 20, 2020 (see footnote 1) and an internal report (2023) prepared for WestMountain and authored by Jim Robinson, B.SC., P.Geo. (QP). Rampton accepts responsibility for any interpretations or projections based on the information contained within the two reports. The information contained in these documents provides an indication of the exploration potential of Terra as interpreted by Rampton, but he cannot certify that the reported projections will result in development and mining. About Mayo Lake Minerals Inc. : Mayo is actively engaged in the exploration and development of five precious metal projects in the Tombstone Gold (Plutonic) Belt of the Tintina Gold Province. The properties cover 244 square kilometres in the Yukon's Mayo Mining District and lie within the traditional territory of the Na-Cho Nyak Dun First Nation. Mayo is presently focusing on its two flagship properties; the Carlin-Roop Silver Project lying within the Keno Hill Silver District and the promising Anderson-Davidson gold property. Two active mines; Victoria Gold's Eagle Gold Mine and Hecla Mining's Keno Silver mines are nearby. For additional information, please contact : Vern Rampton, Ph.D., P.Eng. President & CEO; vrampton@mayolakeminerals.com Tel. 613-836-2594 Tyrell Sutherland, M.Sc., P. Geo., VP Exploration; tsutherland@mayolakeminerals.com About WestMountain Gold, Inc. : WestMountain is a junior mineral exploration and development company that is seeking to explore and develop its current prospective advanced-stage Terra Gold Project in Alaska, consisting of 339 unpatented lode mining claims and 5 leased unpatented lode mining claims. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements relate to future events or future performance. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements or information. The forward-looking statements and information are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by management of Mayo and WestMountain. Although management of Mayo and WestMountain believe that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking statements and information are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements and information since no assurance can be given that they will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements and information are provided for the purpose of providing information about the current expectations and plans of management of Mayo and WestMountain relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such statements and information may not be appropriate for other purposes, such as making investment decisions. Since forward-looking statements and information address future events and conditions, by their very nature, they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release. BECAUSE MAYO AND WESTMOUNTAIN HAVE ENTERED INTO A NON-BINDING LETTER OF INTENT, THERE IS NO ASSURANCE WHATSOEVER THAT THE CONTEMPLATED TRANSACTION WILL OCCUR. FURTHER, THERE IS NO ASSURANCE THAT MAYO WILL BE ABLE TO RAISE THE NECESSARY CAPITAL TO PROCEED WITH THE CONTEMPLATED TRANSACTION. BOTH MAYO AND WESTMOUNTAIN HAVE LIMITED CAPITAL. The forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and no undertaking is given to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. 1 Revised N.I. 43-101 Technical Report on the Geophysical Surveying, Diamond Drilling, Soil and Rock Sampling, and Resource Estimates of the Terra Property, Lime Hills Quadrangle, McGrath Mining District, Mt. McKinley Recording District, Alaska, USA; June 20, 2020. Report prepared by Mr. Ronald James (Jim) Robinson, B.Sc., P. Geo. Of Aurora Geoscience Ltd., 1901 Davis Ave. Unit B1, Juneau, AK99801, USA for WestMountain Gold Inc. 1001-A East Harmony Road, Suite 340, FT Collins, CO80525, USA. NOT TO BE DISTRIBUTED TO NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201488 SOURCE: Mayo Lake Minerals Inc. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl LUXEMBOURG (dpa-AFX) - Steel and mining major ArcelorMittal S.A. (MT) said that it will acquire a 28.4% stake in Vallourec from Funds managed by Apollo Global Management Inc., for a total consideration of about 955 million euros. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of the year, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. ArcelorMittal noted that it does not intend to launch a tender offer for Vallourec's remaining shares over the next six months. After leading the financial restructuring of Vallourec, Apollo Funds became the largest equity investor in Vallourec in 2021. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. EQS Newswire / 13/03/2024 / 04:15 CET/CEST LONDON, UK - Media OutReach Newswire - 13 March 2024 - UXLINK, a fast-growing Web3 social platform and infrastructure, has recently closed a new round of funding, accumulating over $9 million total investment. This round's investors include OKX Ventures, Web3Port Foundation, Manifold, UOB Venture, Comma3 Ventures, Cypher Capital, Kucoin Ventures, Gate Labs, Forgame (0484.HK), ECV, Signum Capital, 7UPDAO, and industry leaders. According to Singapore Corporate Information, HongShan Capital, GGV Capital, MatrixPort Ventures and ZhenFund are also its investors. UXLINK's backers include not only crypto and exchange investors from North America, Asia, and the Middle East, but also strategic investors like publicly listed companies. According to its community, UXLINK may raise another round of funding prior to TGE. As a social ecosystem, UXLINK is a leading solution for aggregating Web3 gateway, social DEX, and infrastructure for mass adoption. Unlike other social infrastructure projects that focus on one-way, following-only relationships, UXLINK is the first to focus on bi-directional, acquaintance-based social relationships, similar to the differences between Twitter vs. Facebook. UXLINK consists mutual-promoting two layers: The application layer mainly includes Social DEX module and UX Growth (Link to Earn) module. The infrastructure layer includes unique and integrating data and the RWS social protocols, with a plan to launch an innovative Social Liquidity Chain, which utilizes OP Stack L2 and EigenDA technologies, to better support developers and third-party Dapps. UXLINK has caught the attention of the market and investors with its product innovation and rapid growth. Since its product launch in April 2023, it has gained more than 3.5 million verified users in 10 months, with more than 75,000 decentralized groups, covering more than 6 million users. Its users are mainly located in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, South Asia, and Africa. "In Web1.0 and Web2.0 era, there are great products based on acquaintance social relationships, such as Facebook and WeChat, being the main drivers and infrastructure for Mass Adoption, benefiting billions of users; UXLINK is this kind of innovation and project in the Web3 era" Web: https://uxlink.io/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/UXLINKofficial Telegram: https://t.me/uxlinkofficial2 Odyssey: https://dapp.uxlink.io/quest Hashtag: UXLINK The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. News Source: Media OutReach 13/03/2024 Dissemination of a Financial Press Release, transmitted by EQS News. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Media archive at www.todayir.com HONG KONG, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading telecom executives, government officials, and industry experts recently gathered at the World Broadband Association's (WBBA) Broadband Development Congress in Barcelona to discuss how telecom companies can harness technological change to adapt and thrive over the coming decade. The mood was one of urgency and anticipation, as over 200 speakers and attendees discussed the need for telecom companies to transform into "techcos" to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. Essentially, this means integrating data and decision intelligence across as many areas of business operations as possible. The speakers zeroed in on the primary reasons for telecom companies to transition, including new growth opportunities and the necessity to upgrade networks to handle surging data consumption, topics that have been prominent at this year's Mobile World Congress. Each of the speakers presented ideas on how best to adapt, including strategies for developing next-generation networks, organizational changes, and new service offerings. "New technologies and applications, represented by generative AI, are emerging, giving rise to a large number of new scenarios, business forms, and models," said Ke Ruiwen, chairman and CEO of China Telecom. "We're now facing a new round of technological revolution. We must adapt to meet its new demands." He emphasized that China Telecom's strategy centered on heavily investing in research and development, with R&D staff making up 10% of the company's total workforce and investment growing at a double-digit rate each year. As a result, China Telecom has managed to leverage new technological offerings to generate new revenue, such as Tianyi Cloud, which has become the world's largest cloud service operated by a telecom operator and China's largest hybrid cloud. He mentioned China Telecom was also diversifying into industry-focused AI-enhanced cloud solutions, cloud-network broadband services, and quantum technologies, experiencing significant growth as a result. Andrew Bender, CTO and head of strategy for fixed networks at Nokia, put a spotlight on the seismic shifts in new multi-gigabit broadband technologies. He noted the widespread adoption of XGS PON broadband technology, a type of very fast internet connection technology, which will soon constitute 67% of North America's broadband network. Bender stressed the importance of integrating traditional and mobile internet services to develop customizable, value-added solutions tailored to the varied requirements of both individuals and businesses. He pointed out that strategies like on-demand network slicing would be essential to this integration. "For operators, and the industry in general, we see a potential two-fold increase in revenue being driven by services of this sort," Bender stated, predicting widespread adoption of integrated services across the sector. Leon Wang, president of Huawei's Data Communication Product Line, introduced Huawei's next-generation network solutions, dubbed Net5.5G, designed to assist carriers in boosting revenue and managing increasing data demands. "Huawei has worked closely with industry partners and proposed Net5.5G as a next-generation network," Wang stated. "It comprehensively supports ubiquitous 10 Gbps connections, elastic ultra-broadband transport, hyper-converged data centers, and autonomous network self-optimization, empowering carriers to upgrade and evolve their networks while driving new business growth." Brian J Smyth, managing director and global lead for innovation, comms, media, and technology at Accenture, highlighted four key trends expected to shape the telecom industry: the influence of AI on how people interact with technology, the growth of AI and chatbot systems, the potential of spatial computing and virtual reality, and the increasing use of wearable technology. Smyth advised telecom companies to prioritize creating real value, transforming their workforce, establishing a strong digital infrastructure, and earning public trust to make the most of these technological advances for the good of society. Additionally, the WBBA announced the upcoming launch of the Broadband Excellence Awards. Set to become a benchmark for excellence in the industry, these awards will recognize outstanding contributions and initiatives in broadband development. The award categories will be announced shortly, with submissions opening in the spring and the awards ceremony scheduled for October in Paris. Founded in 2021, the WBBA seeks to combat digital inequality by promoting innovation and collaboration among business leaders, regulators, policymakers, and standard-setting bodies. It currently boasts 77 members from more than 30 countries. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/telco-leaders-convene-at-wbba-congress-to-discuss-digital-transformation-302087538.html Ranked-choice voting could promote greater civility and moderation in political campaigns as candidates are incentivized to appeal to a broader crowd rather than catering solely to their base. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle I write to express the need to adopt ranked-choice voting across the state. Ranked-choice voting is the process of ranking candidates in order of preference. If a candidate receives over 50% of the votes, they win. If no candidate receives a majority, the lowest-voted member is removed, and the tally begins again. This process is repeated until one candidate is left with a majority of votes cast. With several cities already successfully implementing the system, its evident that this innovative approach to elections holds significant promise for our states electoral landscape. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Ranked-choice voting offers benefits that align with the principles of fairness and representation in our democracy. By allowing voters to rank candidates in order of preference, the method promotes greater civility and moderation in political campaigns as candidates are incentivized to appeal to a broader crowd rather than catering solely to their base. Despite the successful implementation of ranked-choice voting in multiple Californian cities, Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill in 2019 that passed the state Legislature and would have allowed its expanded use statewide. Such a decision overlooks the advantages of ranked-choice voting and the growing momentum for electoral reform in California. As Californians committed to fostering a more inclusive and representative democracy, we must urge our elected officials to embrace innovation in our electoral system. Jonathan White, Lafayette Advertisement Article continues below this ad Democracy worth saving Regarding Please stop trying to save democracy (Open Forum, SFChronicle.com, March 10): Joe Matthews opinion piece is a troubling narrative that seems to sow seeds of doubt about the worth of our system of government. Indeed, our system is not perfect, but its far superior to an authoritarian theocracy, which is where this nation is headed if we cannot save our democracy. The would-be authoritarians and theocrats are tearing at every fabric of our democracy. I couldnt tell which side of the argument Matthews landed. If the point was to stimulate discussion, it succeeded, but at the risk of sending the wrong message to weak minds. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Richard Hutson, San Francisco Remember the Lincolns I invite people to visit the memorial to the Abraham Lincoln Brigade on the Embarcadero just north of the Ferry Building in San Francisco. The memorial is the only public monument to the 2,800 American men and women who volunteered to fight in the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s against a Fascist army strongly supported by Hitler and Mussolini. Seven hundred died there. The Lincoln Brigade had to go with 45,000 other international volunteers because the U.S. was among the countries that refused to sell arms to the democratically elected government of Spain. General Francisco Franco committed atrocities on his way to victory, and his brother fascists went on to start World War II. As one of the Lincolns said, We had a chance to stop fascism in Spain and we missed it. Advertisement Article continues below this ad My hope is we are not saying the same thing years from now when Vladimir Putin is trying to crush democracy in Europe because we refused to support the brave people of Ukraine. John Ahlbach, Pacifica Ticket double-parkers Regarding $320 for a parking permit? How S.F.s notorious bureaucracy even makes moving here a pain (Opinion, SFChronicle.com, March 9): Emily Hoevens piece ends by mentioning the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agencys large budget shortfall. If it would just start ticketing double-parked Amazon trucks, it could run at a profit within six months. Moving trucks are a minor traffic disruption compared to the hundreds of delivery trucks moving around the city; many of them stop in the traffic lane even when theres curb space available. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Add FedEx, UPS, Doordash and UberEats into the mix and there are often two or three double-parked vehicles on a block. I have yet to see one ticketed. DUBLIN (dpa-AFX) - Dublin, Ireland -based Endo International plc announced that its operating company Par Pharmaceutical, Inc. is recalling one lot of Treprostinil Injection 20mg/20mL (1mg/mL) to the consumer level. The recall, being conducted along with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is due to the potential for the presence of silicone particulates in the product solution. The affected product is Treprostinil Injection 20mg/20mL (1mg/mL) with Lot code 57014 and expiration date 04/2024. The injection is distributed in 20mL multidose vials as sterile solutions in water for injection, individually packaged in cartons under NDC #42023-206-01. The impacted lot was distributed nationwide to wholesalers and hospitals from June 16, 2022, through October 17, 2022. Treprostinil Injection, a prostacyclin vasodilator indicated for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension, is formulated for subcutaneous or intravenous infusion. According to the company, administration of an injectable product that contains particulate matter may result in local irritation or swelling in response to the foreign material. If reaching the blood vessels, the particulate matter can travel to various organs and block blood vessels in the heart, lungs or brain which can cause stroke and even lead to death. However, Par has not received any reports of adverse events related to the recalled product to date. Par is informing the wholesale accounts and the hospital location that have received the affected lot. It is also arranging for return of all existing inventory of Lot 57014 through Inmar, Inc. Wholesale distributors and hospital pharmaciesare urged to immediately discontinue use of the product and stop distribution immediately. In similar recalls, Hospira, Inc., owned by drug major Pfizer Inc., in October last year called back certain Sodium Bicarbonate and Lidocaine HCl Injections citing the potential for presence of glass particulate matter. Merck Animal Health, affiliated to drug major Merck & Co., Inc., also recalled last year three batches of Banamine/Banamine-S (flunixin meglumine injection) 50 mg/mL in the United States citing the presence of particulate matter. For More Such Health News, visit rttnews.com Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken Kuros Biosciences AG / Key word(s): Annual Results Kuros reports 163% growth in direct MagnetOs sales and 153% increase in total medical device sales for the full year 2023 13-March-2024 / 07:00 CET/CEST Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Financial highlights Direct MagnetOs sales grew by 163% to CHF 31.7 million in 2023, climbing from CHF 12.1 million in 2022. Total medical device sales accelerated by 153% from CHF 13.3 million in 2022 to CHF 33.6 million in 2023 The Medical Devices segment achieved a positive EBITDA of CHF 6.8 million driven by MagnetOs Cash and cash equivalents amounted to CHF 14.2 million and funds available (including trade and other receivables) totaled at CHF 21.8 million as of December 31, 2023 Operational highlights MagnetOs surpassed the important milestone of 25,000 patients treated MAXA clinical trial comparing MagnetOs standalone to the gold standard autograft for the challenging posterior lateral spinal fusion showed a fusion rate of 79% versus 47% in the full study population and 80% versus 32% in a difficult-to-heal smoker population FDA market clearance received for interbody use of MagnetOs Flex Matrix, MagnetOs Easypack Putty and MagnetOs Granules as well as MagnetOs Putty for standalone us Fibrin-PTH discontinued based on the MAXA results Outlook Kuros expects a similar sales growth trend going forward. The Company is adequately financed on its planned organic growth path and - adjusted for the Fibrin-PTH costs - will generate positive single-digit EBITDA for the first time in 2024. Schlieren (Zurich), Switzerland, March 13, 2024 - Kuros Biosciences ("Kuros" or the "Company"), a leader in next-generation bone graft technologies, today announced financial results for full year 2023 along with continued significant growth. Direct sales of MagnetOs rose 163% to CHF 31.7 million in 2023 from CHF 12.1 million in 2022. Total medical device sales accelerated from CHF 13.3 million in 2022 to CHF 33.6 million in 2023, which is a 153% increase. MagnetOs exceeded its commercial plan in 2023 by reaching the important milestone of 25,000 patients treated worldwide, resulting in a positive EBITDA of CHF 6.8 million in the Medical Devices product segment in 2023. Chris Fair, Chief Executive Officer, stated: "Kuros Biosciences experienced a tremendous year in 2023 as we built a newly focused, scientifically led and clinically proven, pure play MedTech business. Last year's record sales revenue, coupled with our global expansion efforts and a dedicated strategy, marked a successful period as we transitioned to becoming a global leader in bone grafting technologies. Our significant, 153% revenue growth of MagnetOs sales in 2023 compared to last year corresponds to the treatment of over 25,000 patients with MagnetOs. Mr. Fair continued, "The marked growth in revenue for 2023 is a result of a well-executed plan of geographic and sales channel expansion led by our expert sales, marketing, and customer service teams. In addition, our continued investment in innovation, and operational excellence in manufacturing, quality, and logistics has ensured that we can meet and exceed our customers' demands, ensuring that no patient will miss treatment. With our recent decision to focus our financial resources on the MagnetOs technology and associated portfolio of products, and not to proceed into Phase 3 with Fibrin-PTH, we have made significant progress toward reaching a cash flow break-even point more quickly. These strong financial results underline our commitment to increasing shareholder value by balancing high sales growth with targeted profitability." Key developments in 2023 and so far in 2024 February 16, 2023 Kuros Biosciences announces changes to Executive Management Team February 21, 2023 Kuros Biosciences announces publication of supportive osteoimmunology data for MagnetOs bone graft March 15, 2023 Kuros Biosciences reports results for the full year 2022 April 27, 2023 Kuros Biosciences reports 168% increase in direct MagnetOs sales in the first quarter of 2023 May 8, 2023 Annual General Meeting of Kuros Biosciences approves all resolutions July 13, 2023 Kuros Biosciences announces completion of enrollment in the Fibrin-PTH Phase 2 trial August 9, 2023 Kuros Biosciences reports results for first half 2023 October 12, 2023 Kuros Biosciences reports a 150% increase in direct MagnetOs sales in the first nine months of 2023 and announces changes within Executive Management Team November 28, 2023 Kuros Biosciences receives US FDA 510(k) clearance for use of MagnetOs in interbody spinal cages December 20, 2023 Kuros Biosciences receives US FDA 510(k) clearance for use of MagnetOs Putty standalone December 27, 2023 Kuros Biosciences announces results from two prospective randomized clinical trials: STRUCTURE and MAXA January 4, 2024 Kuros Biosciences announces three advancements related to its MagnetOs portfolio including impressive fusion data from MAXA prospective randomized clinical trial and two 510(k) clearances from FDA January 31, 2024 Kuros Biosciences receives US FDA 510(k) clearance for MagnetOs Granules for interbody use and regulatory clearance of MagnetOs Granules and MagnetOs Putty in New Zealand February 1, 2024 Kuros Biosciences presents at the CG 2024 Musculoskeletal Conference Group financial results Revenue and cost of goods sold In 2023, direct sales of MagnetOs rose by 163% from CHF 12.1 million to CHF 31.7 million in 2023. Total revenue from medical devices arrived at CHF 33.6 million (2022: CHF 13.3 million), showing an increase of 153% or 166% on a constant currency basis versus 2022. Cost of goods sold amounted to CHF 9.6 million (2022: CHF 7.2 million) of which CHF 1.8 million (2022: CHF 2.2 million) related to the amortization of capitalized R&D; and CHF 4.4 million and CHF 0.1 million related to impairment of goodwill and intangible assets respectively. (2022: impairment of goodwill of CHF 3.6 million). Net operating costs Operating costs amounted to CHF 37.1 million, compared to CHF 24.2 million in the previous year. The increase is primarily driven by sales and marketing costs resulting from growing commercial activities. Therefore, sales and marketing costs increased from CHF 12.8 million in 2022 to CHF 23.3 million in 2023, mainly due to the increase in sales force headcount and general sales and distribution costs. Research and development costs increased from CHF 5.2 million in 2022 to CHF 5.6 million in 2023. General and administrative costs increased from CHF 6.6 million in 2022 to CHF 8.4 million in 2023. Other income amounted to CHF 0.2 million (2022: CHF 0.4 million). Net finance expense Net finance expense amounted to CHF 0.2 million (2022: CHF 2.5 million), mainly comprised of a gain resulting from a revaluation on financial liability to XOMA because of the re-assessment of the probability assumption of future milestone payments, net of the result of foreign exchange. Financial position and other assets Cash and cash equivalents amounted to CHF 14.2 million and funds available (including trade and other receivables) totaled CHF 21.8 million as of December 31, 2023. This is a decrease of CHF 5.9 million from CHF 27.7 million as of December 31, 2022. The decrease is mainly driven by net operating cash outflows. As of December 31, 2023, total intangible assets amounted to CHF 16.5 million (2022: CHF 19.4 million) and goodwill amounted to CHF 24.5 million (2022: CHF 29.3 million). The impairment of goodwill of CHF 4.4 million resulted from a reassessment of the assumptions underlying the expected milestones from Checkmate licensing. Key figures 2023 2022 In TCHF, IFRS - Revenue from product sales 33,564 13,265 - Revenue from collaborations - 4,721 Total Revenue 33,564 17,986 Cost of Goods sold (9,628) (7,217) Gross profit 23,936 10,769 - Sales and marketing costs (23,328) (12,785) - Research and development costs (5,599) (5,194) - General and administrative costs (8,449) (6,598) - Other income 248 362 Net operating costs (37,128) (24,215) Operating loss (13,192) (13,446) Net finance expense (155) (2,545) Income tax (380) 1,396 Net loss (13,727) (14,595) Net loss per share (in CHF) (0.38) (0.43) Cash and cash equivalents 14,208 24,065 Trade and other receivables 7,617 3,618 Events after the reporting period The group has no significant events after the reporting period up to the date of this announcement. Outlook Kuros' products are advancing according to plan with MagnetOs continuing to generate strong sales growth in the U.S., Europe, and the rest of the world. The company is adequately funded along the planned organic growth path and - adjusted for the Fibrin-PTH costs - will generate positive single-digit EBITDA for the first time in 2024. The annual report 2023 is available on our corporate website under the following link: Kuros Biosciences 2023 Annual Report We will discuss the 2023 results in a virtual call on March 13, 2024, at 3pm CET. If you wish to participate, please register in advance for this webinar: Kuros Biosciences FY-2023 Financial Report Investor Webcast After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing instructions to join the webinar. For further information, please contact: Kuros Biosciences AG Daniel Geiger Chief Financial Officer Tel +41 79 673 43 69 daniel.geiger@kurosbio.com LifeSci Advisors Sandya von der Weid Investors Relations +41 78 680 0538 svonderweid@lifesciadvisors.com About MagnetOs MagnetOs is a bone graft like no other: thanks to its NeedleGripTM surface technology, it grows bone even in soft tissues. This surface technology provides traction for our body's vitally important 'pro-healing' immune cells (M2 macrophages). This in turn, unlocks previously untapped potential to stimulate stem cells - and form new bone throughout the graft. The growing body of science behind NeedleGrip is called osteoimmunology. But for surgeons and their patients it means one thing: a more predictable fusion. 1-5* Indications statement Please refer to the instructions for use for your local region for a full list of indications, contraindications, warnings, and precautions. About Kuros Biosciences Kuros Biosciences is on a mission to discover, develop and deliver innovative biologic fusion technologies. With locations in the United States, Switzerland and the Netherlands, the company is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The company's first commercial product, MagnetOsTM, is a unique synthetic bone graft that has already been used across three continents in 25,000 fusion surgeries. For more information on the company, its products and pipeline, visit kurosbio.com . Forward Looking Statements This media release contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "will" or "expect" or the negative of those words or other similar words to be uncertain and forward-looking. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements include scientific, business, economic and financial factors. Against the background of these uncertainties, readers should not rely on forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no responsibility for updating forward-looking statements or adapting them to future events or developments. 1. Van Dijk, et al. eCM. 2021; 41:756-73. 2. Duan, et al. eCM. 2019; 37:60-73. 3. Van Dijk, et al. Clin Spine Surg. 2020;33(6): E276-E287. 4. Van Dijk, et al. JOR Spine. 2018; e1039 5. Van Dijk, et al. J Biomed Mater Res. Part B: Appl Biomater. *Results from in vivo laboratory testing may not be predictive of clinical experience in humans. For important safety and intended use information please visit kurosbio.com. MagnetOs is not cleared by the FDA or TGA as an osteoinductive bone graft. MagnetOs has been proven to generate more predictable fusions than two commercially available alternatives in an ovine model of posterolateral fusion. End of Inside Information Findings reveal significant fuel savings, underscoring the potential for wind assisted propulsion to support the shipping industry's decarbonization efforts Cargill today revealed exciting results of the six-month test period of the Pyxis Ocean, underscoring the potential for the wind assisted propulsion technology in moving the shipping industry toward renewable energy use. The MC Shipping Kamsarmax vessel retrofitted with two WindWings -large solid wind sails developed by BAR Technologies - has achieved performance consistent with what was predicted which is equivalent to an average of 3 tonnes of fuel per day. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313673847/en/ Pyxis Ocean sailing through the English Channel from Spain to Amsterdam, March 2024 (Photo: Business Wire) "We are encouraged by the results and have learned a great deal about implementing wind assisted propulsion on dry bulk vessels," said Jan Dieleman, president of Cargill's Ocean Transportation business. "We could never have done this alone BAR Technologies and MC Shipping and have been fantastic partners in making the Pyxis Ocean a reality as well as the captain and crew. We are on the leading edge of change in the shipping industry and believe technologies that harness the wind could be an important, cost-effective way to achieve our decarbonization goals in the short, medium and long-term." The Pyxis Ocean hit open waters in August 2023 and during the first six months of testing it has sailed the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean, North and South Atlantic, and passed Cape Horn and the Cape of Good Hope. The ship was retrofitted with two WindWings, which measure 37.5 meters in height and resemble large airplane wings. The wings are installed vertically to catch the wind and propel the ship forward, allowing the ship's engine to be turned down so that the ship can travel at the same speed as a conventional ship using less fuel. The wings are controlled by a touch panel on the bridge. A simple traffic light system tells the crew when to raise or lower the sails. Once raised, the operation is fully automated: sensors onboard constantly measure the wind, and the sails self-adjust to the optimal configuration. Wind assisted propulsion has potential to be a cost-efficient way of supporting the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) new greenhouse gas strategy. One of the IMOs 2030 targets is to have 5 percent, striving for 10 percent, of energy coming from very low carbon sources by 2030: wind assisted propulsion could be an important way of achieving this. The early voyages have provided insight on more than just the application of the sails on a vessel, it has also highlighted broader logistical challenges in the global maritime system. Given that every port, terminal, and berth is different, their involvement is critical towards integrating Wind Assisted Propulsion (WAP) technology into the global maritime system on a wider scale. John Cooper, BAR Technologies CEO added, "The results of the Pyxis Ocean's first voyage with WindWings installed clearly demonstrate that wind assisted propulsion can secure significant fuel savings and emissions reduction. For example, in near optimum sailing conditions, during an open sea voyage, the Pyxis Ocean achieved fuel savings of 11 tonnes per day. And while the Pyxis Ocean has two WindWings, we anticipate the majority of Kamsarmax vessels will carry three wings, further increasing the fuel savings and emissions reductions by a factor of 1.5. With Cargill we are now able to validate our performance predictions and modelling in real-world conditions, it's an exciting time as we begin to roll out WindWings production globally." "Cargill is creating ways for all WAP vessels not just the Pyxis Ocean to operate on global trade routes," said Dieleman. "So far, we've engaged with more than 250 ports to find ways of enabling vessel with large scale WAP to berth. This complexity is where Cargill truly excels, and how we can leverage our unique role in the maritime industry. We are not afraid to be a development partner and invest, share risks with partners, and to make a difference in transforming the industry." Cargill will continue the testing and experimenting of operational, technical and commercial aspects of the Pyxis Ocean to incorporate the maximum amount of learning into potential design of future installations before scaling up. Notes to editors: [1] BAR Technolgies and Cargill estimate an annual average savings of 3 tonnes of fuel reductions per day (this equates to 11,2/t/day CO2e well-to-wake emissions reductions. This equates to roughly 14 percent savings on Pyxis Ocean. Average performance measured so far is within 10% of predictions made using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations by BAR Technologies to estimate how well wind assisted propulsion would work on Cargill routes. During optimal sailing conditions, the Pyxis Ocean achieved savings of more than 11t/day in fuel consumption, which translates to 41t/day less CO2e emitted well-to-wake, or a 37% emissions savings. The 11.2t/day CO2e average above works out to be about 2650CO2e/yr (11.2t x 237 average sailing days per year 2650t well-to-wake). This would be the equivalent of removing 480 cars off the road. ( Reference: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Typical Passenger Vehicle US EPA) Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Typical Passenger Vehicle US EPA) Cargill and MC Shipping have engaged DNV as an independent third party to review and verify the fuel savings calculations. About WindWings Cargill was the first to install "WindWings," large solid wing sails with a potential to deliver double-digit percentage reductions in emissions. Working with partner BAR Technologies, Cargill installed WindWings on a Kamsarmax vessel, Pyxis Ocean, that we are chartering from MC Shipping. Installation was done at COSCO, in Shanghai, China in 2023. Pyxis Ocean is now the most energy efficient Kamsarmax in Cargill's fleet of chartered vessels The Pyxis Ocean will be used to inform the potential scale-up across the fleet and industry. Cargill plans to continuously learn how to further improve design, operation, and performance. The WindWing project is part of a project that has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 955286 About Cargill Ocean Transportation Cargill Ocean Transportation is a leading freight-trading organization that charters around 650 vessels worldwide at any one time. Founded in 1956 in Geneva, we benefit from the rich heritage and expert capabilities of Cargill's global operations in food, agriculture and commodities trading. Our customers, including other companies as well as Cargill's own internal businesses, are at the center of everything we do. We provide services that combine the latest digital technology with green solutions to make shipping safer and more sustainable. About Cargill Cargill is committed to providing food, ingredients, agricultural solutions, and industrial products to nourish the world in a safe, responsible, and sustainable way. Sitting at the heart of the supply chain, we partner with farmers and customers to source, make and deliver products that are vital for living. Our 160,000 team members innovate with purpose, providing customers with life's essentials so businesses can grow, communities prosper, and consumers live well. With 159 years of experience as a family company, we look ahead while remaining true to our values. We put people first. We reach higher. We do the right thing-today and for generations to come. For more information, visit Cargill.com and our News Center View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313673847/en/ Contacts: Nicole Marlor media@cargill.com Commerzbank AG - Pre-Stabilisation notice PR Newswire LONDON, United Kingdom, March 13 13thMarch 2024 Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful. The German State of North Rhine-Westfalia (Land NRW) EUR 1,000,000,000 30y benchmark transaction Pre-Stabilisation Notice Commerzbank AG (contact: Daniela Olt-Farrelly; telephone: +49 69 136-20) hereby announces, as Stabilisation Coordinator, that the Stabilising Managers named below may stabilise the offer of the following securities in accordance with Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052 under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU Regulation 596/2014). The security to be stabilised: Issuer: North Rhine-Westfalia Guarantor (if any): none Aggregate nominal amount: EUR 1,000,000,000 Description: benchmark, senior, unsecured Offer price: tbc Other offer terms: Fixed rate due 20th March 2054, under the issuer's EMTN programme, denoms 1k/1k, payment date 20th March 2024 Stabilisation: Stabilisation Coordinator: Stabilising Managers: Commerzbank AG Barclays Bank Ireland plc Citigroup JP Morgan SE Morgan Stanley Europe SE Stabilisation period expected to start on: 13th March 2024 Stabilisation period expected to end on: no later than 30 days after the proposed issue date of the securities Existence, maximum size and conditions of use of over-allotment facility. The Stabilising Managers may over-allot the securities to the extent permitted in accordance with applicable law. Stabilisation trading venue: Duesseldorf regulated market In connection with the offer of the above securities, the Stabilising Manager(s) may over-allot the securities or effect transactions with a view to supporting the market price of the securities during the stabilisation period at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, stabilisation may not necessarily occur and any stabilisation action, if begun, may cease at any time Any stabilisation action or over-allotment shall be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and rules. This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the Issuer in any jurisdiction. This announcement is not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any other jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful. END Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl MADRID (dpa-AFX) - Spanish clothing company Inditex (IDEXF.PK) Wednesday said its profit before tax for the full year increased to 6.870 billion euros from 5.358 billion euros a year ago, primarily helped by growth in sales. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization or EBITDA rose 13.9 percent year-on-year to 9.9 billion euros. Net income increased 30.3 percent to 5.4 billion euros. Sales for the year grew 10.4 percent to 35.9 billion euros. The company's Board has proposed a dividend of 1.54 euros per share, up 28 percent from last year. The dividend, that includes an ordinary dividend of 1.04 euros per share and a bonus dividend of 0.50 euros per share, will be paid in two equal parts. On May 2, a payment of 0.77 euros per share will be made with ex-date April 29, and an equal amount will be paid on November 4 with ex-date October 31. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Geberit Group (GBERY.PK, GBERF.PK) reported that its 2023 net income declined to 617 million Swiss francs from 706 million francs, last year. The company said the decline was mainly due to a positive one-off tax effect in the previous year. Earnings per share was 18.39 francs compared to 20.48 francs. Operating profit or EBIT was 769 million Swiss francs compared to 755 million francs, previous year. Operating cashflow or EBITDA increased by 1.4% to 921 million Swiss francs. Currency-adjusted net sales in 2023 fell by 4.8%. Net sales in Swiss francs decreased by 9.1% to 3.08 billion francs. A dividend increase of 0.8% to 12.70 francs will be proposed to the General Meeting. For more earnings news, earnings calendar, and earnings for stocks, visit rttnews.com. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Pierre-Jean Arvers takes over as CEO of American energy storage and battery testing solutions powerhouse, Bitrode Corporation. ST. LOUIS, MO / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Schuler North America hired Pierre-Jean Arvers as the new CEO of Bitrode Corporation (Bitrode), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Schuler Group. Schuler, a member of the ANDRITZ Group, acquired both Sovema Group and Bitrode in 2022. Arvers has over 20 years of international experience, from chemistry and chemical engineering to C-level positions in the battery industry, fueling revenue growth and expanding market shares. The plan is to propel Bitrode to new operational heights through Arvers' astute customer-centric approach to executive leadership in the electric vehicle, energy storage, and battery testing industries. "Our goal remains to integrate Bitrode within the Schuler and Sovema teams and expand our capabilities," explains Kevin McAllister, President of Schuler North America. "We warmly welcome Pierre-Jean to our team. Together, we will continue to strengthen our market-leading position as an equipment supplier of solutions for efficient battery testing and manufacturing." Schuler already offers production lines for battery cell housings, electrical sheets for e-motors and bipolar plates for fuel cells, and several other solutions for e-mobility. The strategic acquisition of Sovema and Bitrode amplifies the European- and North American-based companies' capabilities to supply equipment for the mass production and testing of lithium-ion batteries for existing or planned gigafactories. "There is significant potential for growth in the battery testing and formation market. I am confident that Bitrode's latest advancements, such as the new Bitrode Digital Cycler (BTDC), will accelerate our best-in-class positioning for battery testing," states Arvers. "The Bitrode team is proud to contribute to ANDRTIZ and Schuler's global, innovative network." Schuler, Sovema, and Bitrode will exhibit at the Battery Show North America in Detroit, Michigan from October 7-10, 2024. The companies will present their Battery Division, manufacturing equipment, and service capabilities at Booth 3600. Website Schuler North America Schuler Group Bitrode Corporation Sovema Group Attachments Pierre-Jean Arvers takes over as CEO of American energy storage and battery testing solutions powerhouse, Bitrode Corporation. Bitrode Corporation, headquartered in St. Louis, MO, is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Schuler Group. ### About Schuler Group-www.schulergroup.com Schuler offers customized cutting-edge technology in all areas of forming, from the networked press to press shop planning. In addition to presses, Schuler's products include automation, dies, process know-how, and service for the entire metalworking industry. Schuler's Digital Suite brings together solutions for networking forming technology and is continuously being developed to further improve line productivity and availability. Schuler customers include automotive manufacturers and suppliers, as well as companies in the forging, household appliance, and electrical industries. Schuler presses are minting coins for more than 180 countries. Founded in 1839 at the Goppingen, Germany headquarters, Schuler has approximately 5,000 employees at production sites in Europe, China and the Americas, as well as service companies in more than 40 countries. The company is part of the international technology group ANDRITZ. Schuler's global portfolio of world-renowned brands include BCN (Bliss Clearing Niagara) Technical Services, Muller Weingarten, Beutler, Umformtechnik Erfurt, SMG Pressen, Hydrap Pressen, Wilkins & Mitchell, Beche, Spiertz Presses, Farina Presse, Liebergeld, Peltzer & Ehlers, Schleicher, Sovema Group, and Bitrode Corporation. About Schuler North America-www.schulergroup.com Schuler North America (Schuler), headquartered in Canton, Michigan, is the North American subsidiary of Schuler Group. Schuler provides new equipment, spare parts, and a portfolio of lifecycle services for all press systems, including preventative maintenance, press shop design and optimization, turnkey installations, retrofits for existing systems, and localized production and service. Schuler's best-in-class position in the metalworking and materials industry serves automotive manufacturers and tier suppliers, as well as home appliance, electronics, forging, and other industries. For Media Inquiries: Jaime Israel, Marketing & Communications Manager E: jaime.israel@schulergroup.com C: +1 734-865-0133 SOURCE: Schuler Incorporated Canton View the original press release on accesswire.com EQS Newswire / 13/03/2024 / 10:00 CET/CEST HO CHI MINH CITY, VIETNAM - Media OutReach Newswire - 13 March 2024 - The HCM City Development Joint Stock Commercial Bank (HDBank) has hiked its loan limits and promoted lending for rice production and export value chains to enable Vietnamese rice to reach the world. At the eighth congress of the Vietnam Farmers Union held in December 2023, HDBank launched its HDBank Rural Services, a specialised and superior financial solution integrating smart technology along with a preferential loan programme for agriculture and rural areas at 0 per cent interest. - Photo courtesy of HB Bank. Prime Minister Ph?m Minh Chinh issued Directive No 10/CT-TTg on March 2, 2024, on promoting the production, trading and export of rice in a sustainable, transparent and effective manner. It requires the State Bank of Vietnam to direct banks to run credit programmes to support links between cooperatives and businesses for high-quality, low-carbon rice production, processing and consumption in the C?u Long (Mekong) Delta region. At the same time HDBank announced that, starting in March 2024, it would disburse loans worth nearly VND5 trillion (US$202 million) to agricultural services and food conglomerate L?c Tr?i Group Joint Stock Company to help expand its value chains in the rice industry, including companies producing fertilisers, processing and exporting rice, distribution agents, and production households. It focuses on meeting credit needs for buying and exporting rice from the 2023-2024 winter-spring crop in the Mekong Delta. Ph?m Qu?c Thanh, general director of HDBank, said the loans are a "green" capital source for the development of agriculture and rural areas since they are associated with promoting and meeting quality standards in production and business and environmental responsibility, especially, creating products that meet the rigorous standards of developed markets around the world. For example, just a month after the Vi?t Nam-EU Free Trade Agreement took effect on August 1, 2020, L?c Tr?i Group exported Vietnamese jasmine rice to the EU. By 2022 the company and its subsidiary, L?c Tr?i Agricultural Products Joint Stock Company, successfully exported rice under its own brand, Com Vi?tNam Rice, to Germany, France and the Netherlands. L?c Tr?i was also the first enterprise to put Vietnamese rice on the shelves of E.Leclerc, which has nearly 600 hypermarkets and more than 100 supermarkets across France. In recent years Vi?t Nam's rice industry has had outstanding success, reaching world levels and establishing its position. The important thing is that the country has rice businesses that meet strict production standards, and promote green production and growth, Thanh said. "These values create the foundation for achieving sustainable growth and records in term of both volume and value for rice exports in recent years." This direction by the rice industry, achieved arm in arm with commercial banks, has also been clearly defined in a programme called "Sustainable development of one million hectares of high-quality, low-carbon rice production associated with green growth in the Mekong Delta by 2030," approved by PM Chinh at the end of 2023. The project aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 10 per cent compared to traditional rice cultivation methods, and increase added value in the rice value chain by 40 per cent by 2030 and provide profit margins of more than 50 per cent for rice farmers. Hashtag: HDBank The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. About HDBank HDBank stands as one of Vietnam's prominent financial institutions, deeply committed to promoting ESG, sustainable development, innovation, and development. The bank's mission is to offer financial solutions that enable both individuals and businesses to thrive and prosper. News Source: Media OutReach 13/03/2024 Dissemination of a Financial Press Release, transmitted by EQS News. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Media archive at www.todayir.com Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - German stocks were little changed on Wednesday as new data showed wholesale prices in the country continued to decline in February. Wholesale prices dropped 3.0 percent on a yearly basis, sharper than the 2.7 percent fall in January. Wholesale prices have been falling since April 2023. Month-on-month, wholesale prices edged down 0.1 percent, offsetting the 0.1 percent rise in January. Prices were expected to grow 0.2 percent. The benchmark DAX was marginally higher at 17,979 after rallying 1.2 percent the previous day. Automaker Volkswagen edged down slightly despite reporting robust financial results in a challenging environment in 2023. Sportswear giant Adidas fell nearly 3 percent after reporting an annual loss for 2023. Zalando soared almost 13 percent. After reporting a decline in annual sales, the online fashion retailer said it expects to return to growth in 2024. E.ON, Europe's biggest operator of energy networks, surged 6.3 percent after 2024 profit guidance beat expectations. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. The impending closure of Macys offers an opportunity for new uses in the building that could revitalize the Union Square area. Juliana Yamada/Special to The Chronicle As a real estate and economic development professional who follows brick-and-mortar retail trends, I felt a sense of loss but not surprise when news broke of Macys impending exit from San Franciscos Union Square. The unique features of urban retail that drew crowds during the 2010s buzzy city streets and sights, for example, or proximity to other retail and amenities like restaurants were greatly diminished by pandemic-related closures. The retail apocalypse that largely affected suburban malls after the 2008 financial crisis has now clearly hit San Francisco. Luxury chains like Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent (located in a building that was part of the Macys complex before a previous downsizing) have taken more space in Union Square in recent years. But a store like Macys has a greater effect on the areas vibrancy given its larger format, more accessible price points and tradition of community engagement. For example, Macys plays an important placemaking role during the holiday season when it sponsors the neighborhoods famous Christmas tree, attracting customers and window shoppers alike. As enthusiastically demonstrated by the estimated 40,000 attendees of the Union Square Alliances Tulip Day event on Saturday, Union Square is a critical gathering spot and destination for the city and region. Advertisement Article continues below this ad With Macys preparing to depart the area, its critical to the regional economy that whatever replaces it can similarly appeal to a large and diverse community of shoppers and visitors. Case studies from around the world show that a destination food hall would be the perfect way to repurpose some portion of the Macys space. It could even be lucrative enough to defray the costs of redeveloping the rest of the complex into smaller retail spaces, conference spaces or other uses while renewing the neighborhoods vitality. Eataly, the Italian marketplace and food hall chain, is this concepts most high-profile proof point. Founded in Italy, Eataly closely adheres to the same formula in more than 40 locations in Europe, the Americas and Asia: an immersive cultural experience that co-locates multiple food and beverage options in spaces that can top 150,000 square feet. A single Eataly location places street food, coffee, fine dining, fast casual and specialty items under one roof and within steps of each other. The concept attracts 50 million visitors annually, many in the United States. The company has nine locations in the U.S., including in San Jose, and plans to open 20 more in North America during the next five years. Given Eatalys ubiquity and expansion plans, a downtown San Francisco location might not prove a unique enough draw to pull Union Square out of its slump. But as Chef Jose Andres dizzying array of Spanish culinary offerings has demonstrated in his Mercado Little Spain at Manhattans Hudson Yards, an Eataly-like concept can be adapted to center many different cuisines and cultures. Theres ample opportunity for San Francisco to offer a differentiated retail destination by capitalizing on the citys unique cultural mosaic. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Macys complex is within a 10-minute walk of the Philippine Consulate General in San Francisco and the SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District. What about a community-led, small-business-centered market showcasing the rich culinary traditions of the Filipino American community? Or perhaps a pan-Asian market, similar to Tangram in Queens, N.Y., that pays homage to the famous night markets popular throughout East and Southeast Asia? The incredible success of Septembers Sunset Night Market and similar events in Chinatown highlight the strong demand for the concept in San Francisco. Given the diversity of the city and the Bay Area, the possibilities are endless. And they are all but guaranteed to create an attractive, successful retail destination for visitors. Mayor London Breed publicly recognized the problem that Macys impending closure presents and the many questions that need answers to solve it. Macys isnt a tenant; it owns the complex. If the company sells its building, who will be the new owner? Would Macys be open to staying as a tenant in a smaller, subdivided space? What would it cost to meet the ventilation, energy and plumbing needs of a commercial food use conversion? Answering these questions will demand leadership from Breed and a convening of stakeholders Macys, District Three Supervisor and Board President Aaron Peskin, businesses and community organizations in and around Union Square, and potential buyers of the complex, to name a few. Advertisement Article continues below this ad MUNICH, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nagarro, a global digital engineering leader, today announced its preliminary unaudited financial numbers for its full year ended December 31, 2023. Revenue grew to 912.0 million in 2023 against guidance of 915 million and up from 856.3 million in 2022, a YoY growth of 6.5%. Gross profit and Adjusted EBITDA were affected by excess capacity throughout the year because of the moderation in growth. Gross profit was 235.5 million in 2023, down from 247.1 million in 2022. Gross margin was 25.8% in 2023 against the guidance of 26%, and down from 28.9% in 2022. Adjusted EBITDA was 125.9 million in 2023, down from 148.5 million in 2022. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.8% in 2023 against guidance of 13% and down from 17.3% in 2022. EBITDA was 123.2 million in 2023, down from 145.6 million in 2022. Nagarro's cash balance at the end of 2023 was 109.0 million as against 110.2 million at the end of 2022. The company reported 18,413 professionals as of December 31, 2023. Manas Human, co-founder, said, "The year ended with a more stable demand environment than we have seen recently. The final results were affected by fewer working days in the last quarter and year-end effects. We also continued our efforts to trim off excess capacity gradually. As a company, we feel very well prepared to capitalize on improving economic conditions as and when they happen. We are excited that we continue to enjoy the loyalty and patronage of our esteemed clients." Nagarro plans to publish its audited annual report for 2023 on April 16, 2024. Legal notice The information contained in this document is provided as of the date of its publication and is subject to change without notice. It contains preliminary unaudited figures and forward-looking statements based on the current views, expectations, assumptions, and information of the management of Nagarro. Gross profit, gross margin, Adjusted EBITDA, and Adjusted EBITDA margin are non-IFRS/non-GAAP financial measures. These and other non-IFRS/non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies, nor should they be construed as an alternative to other financial measures determined in accordance with IFRS or other GAAP. About Nagarro Nagarro, a global digital engineering leader, helps clients become fluidic, innovative, digital-first companies and thus win in their markets. The company is distinguished by its entrepreneurial, agile, and global character, its CARING mindset, and its Fluidic Enterprise vision. Nagarro employs over 18,000 people in 36 countries. For more information, please visit www.nagarro.com. FRA: NA9 (SDAX/TecDAX, ISIN DE000A3H2200, WKN A3H220) For inquiries, please contact press@nagarro.com. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/844192/3850575/Nagarro_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/nagarros-preliminary-numbers-for-fy-2023-show-consistent-performance-and-6-5-revenue-growth-302087876.html 50% of Europcar Mobility Group's fleet now connected Ford joining the program Europcar Mobility Group pushes forward its ambition to connect all the vehicles in its fleet by the end of 2024 and, in that perspective, is ramping up its "Connected Vehicles" program. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313719496/en/ Photo credit: Europcar Mobility Group For the European N1 in vehicle rental, the development of vehicle connectivity either natively through partnerships with car manufacturers or by adding telematics solutions to vehicles is a key enabler in collecting vehicle data in accordance with data protection regulations, so as to be able to improve fleet management efficiency and customer experience. To date, 125,000 vehicles in the Europcar Mobility Group fleet all brands combined (Europcar, Goldcar, Ubeeqo) are connected, out of a fleet of around 250,000 vehicles, which represents a significant milestone. In some countries, such as the UK and Portugal, 100% of the fleet is already connected. "The first benefits of our program translate into operational efficiency. Built-in connectivity brings us real-time control on our fleet, optimization of operational processes such as fuel management, vehicles allocation, vehicles safety and security monitoring, but also a better management post-accidents. Moving towards a fully connected fleet will further allow us to automate certain tasks such as fleet inventory, invoicing, etc. Last but not least, connectivity paves the road to a better customer experience: enabling deskless and direct access to the vehicle, enhanced transparency on billings and potentially, new connected services, such as real time assistance and eco-driving guidance scoring" comments Caroline Jannel, Group Operations Director. As part of the deployment of its "Connected Vehicles" program, Europcar Mobility Group recently signed a partnership with Ford, which allows a seamless access to Ford vehicles' telemetry data such as geolocation, fuel level, mileage and maintenance alerts. "This partnership with Ford is a great example of how much the collaboration with car manufacturers brings immediate benefits into our capacity to connect our fleet, without investing and installing aftermarket solutions. I would like to thank Ford for acting such as a strong partner, we together set up a new reference in our business" Roy Tippner, Network Transformation Director, in charge of the Connected Vehicles Program. Chris Miller, Data Services Manager, Ford Pro Intelligence, commented: "Europcar Mobility Group have successfully delivered a clearly defined and well executed connectivity strategy, and Ford is delighted to support the program as a partner. Our Ford Pro Data Services software delivers seamless access to a rich selection of connected vehicle data from Ford cars and vans on the fleet, and has enabled Europcar to boost their efficiency and enhance the experience of their employees and customers". About Europcar Mobility Group Europcar Mobility Group is a global mobility player, with 75 years of mobility services expertise and a leading position in Europe. "We help to change the way you move" is what we stand for and brings us together. More than ever, we're committed to delivering simple, seamless, innovative solutions that make mobility easy, enjoyable and increasingly eco-friendly. To do this, we offer to individuals and businesses a wide range of car and van rental services, be it for a few hours, a few days, a week, a month or more, on-demand or on subscription, relying on a fleet of more than 250.000 vehicles, equipped with the latest engines including an increasing share of electric vehicles. Our brands address differentiated needs, use cases and expectations: Europcar a global leader of car rental and light commercial vehicle rental, Goldcar a frontrunner at providing low-cost car rental services in Europe, Ubeeqo one of the European leaders of car-sharing (BtoB, BtoC) and Fox-Rent-A-Car, one of the main players in the car rental market in the US, with a "value for money" positioning. Customers' satisfaction is at the heart of the Group's ambition and that of our more than 8,000 employees, everywhere we deliver our mobility solutions, thanks to a strong network in 133 countries (including 16 wholly owned subsidiaries completed by franchisees and alliance partners). More info: www.europcar-mobility-group.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313719496/en/ Contacts: Media relations Contacts: Valerie.sauteret@europcar.com Vincent.vevaud@europcar.com OSLO, Norway, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Navamedic (OSE: NAVA) is pleased to welcome new shareholders and delighted to see existing shareholders acquire a bigger stake following Inger Reiten Investment Company's (IRIC) sale of its entire 17.1 percent interest in the company. "IRIC has been an active owner in Navamedic since December 2018 when it became our largest shareholder. During this period, we have transformed the company into a profitable business with an attractive product portfolio, well positioned for future growth. We have appreciated the cooperation and good support from IRIC," said Kathrine Gamborg Andreassen, CEO of Navamedic ASA. Since 2019, Navamedic has almost tripled its turnover, reaching NOK 512 million in 2023, and turned loss into profit. The company has built a diversified and strong product portfolio through acquisitions and long-term distribution agreements. Navamedic has proven its ability to develop new market opportunities within the specialty pharma, hospital, and consumer health areas. The recent acquisitions of Impolin AB and Sensidose AB have lifted the company into a new era having own products with global potential. "Our strategy has proven successful over the years, and the management team and employees are keen to see profitable growth continue, both for the company and to the benefit of our shareholders," Gamborg Andreassen concluded. Management and leading employees together hold 16.7 per cent of the company's shares and as a group represents the company's largest shareholder. For further information, please contact: Kathrine Gamborg Andreassen, CEO, Navamedic Mobile: +47 951 78 680 E-mail: kathrine@navamedic.com Lars Hjarrand, CFO, Navamedic Mobile: +47 917 62 842 E-mail: lars.hjarrand@navamedic.com About Navamedic Navamedic ASA is a full-service provider of high-quality healthcare products to hospitals and pharmacies. Navamedic meets the specific medical needs of patients and consumers by leveraging its highly scalable market access platform, leading category competence and local knowledge. Navamedic is present in all the Nordic countries, the Baltics and Benelux, with sales representation in the UK and Greece. Navamedic is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (ticker: NAVA). For more information, please visit Navamedic.com. This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/navamedic-asa/r/navamedic-welcomes-new-shareholders,c3945063 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/navamedic-welcomes-new-shareholders-302087911.html JERSEY CITY, N.J, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- InsightAce Analytic Pvt. Ltd. announces the release of a market assessment report on the "Global Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials Market- By Application (Therapeutics and Research), By Product (Ionizable Lipids, Reagents, Others), By Disease Indication (Cancer, Infectious Diseases, Blood Diseases, Others), By End User (Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies, Academic & Research Institutes, Others)) Trends, Industry Competition Analysis, Revenue and Forecast To 2031." According to the latest research by InsightAce Analytic, the Global Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials Market is valued at US$230.23 Mn in 2023, and it is expected to reach US$ 356.05 Mn by 2031, with a CAGR of 5.80% during the forecast period of 2024-2031. Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials Market Report Scope: Report Attribute Specifications Market Size Value In 2023 USD 230.23 Mn Revenue Forecast In 2031 USD 356.05 Mn Growth Rate CAGR CAGR of 5.80% from 2024 to 2031 Quantitative Units Representation of revenue in US$ Mn and CAGR from 2024 to 2031 Historic Year 2019 to 2023 Forecast Year 2024-2031 Report Coverage The forecast of revenue, the position of the company, the competitive market structure, growth prospects, and trends Segments Covered By Application, By Product, By Disease Indication, By End-user and By Region Regional Scope North America; Europe; Asia Pacific; Latin America; Middle East & Africa Country Scope U.S.; Canada; U.K.; Germany; China; India; Japan; Brazil; Mexico; France; Italy; Spain; Southeast Asia; South Korea Request for Sample Pages:https://www.insightaceanalytic.com/request-sample/2367 The various building blocks of lipid nanoparticles are lipids, stabilizers, and occasionally targeting ligands. Lipids that are frequently used are phospholipids, which include cholesterol and phosphatidylcholine. The rise in the market is ascribed to various factors, including the growing need for medications that employ lipid nanoparticles as delivery vehicles, the increasing occurrence of chronic illnesses like cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and autoimmune disorders, and technological developments. Additionally, it is anticipated that the growing number of partnerships and joint ventures amongst industry participants will favorably affect market expansion. List of Prominent Players in the Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials Market: Echelon Biosciences BroadPharm Biopharma PEG Scientific Inc. NOF AMERICA CORPORATION CordenPharma International Merck KGaA Avanti Polar Lipids Tebubio Creative Biolabs Polysciences, Inc. Precision NanoSystems (Cytiva) Evonik Industries AG Nippon Fine Chemical Lipoid GmbH CLARIANT Market Dynamics: Drivers- Support from the government is essential for R&D projects aimed at creating novel lipid nanoparticle-based products, such as medication delivery methods for a range of therapeutic uses. Furthermore, the market's expansion is propelled by leading players' increasing investment in research and development capabilities, which in turn fosters technological improvements, expands market prospects, and stimulates innovation. For instance, Evonik stated in June 2022 that it would build a new, large-scale pharmaceutical lipid production facility in the United States. In addition, the need for LNP raw materials in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors is greatly impacted by the rising incidence of cancer. Challenges: The production of lipid nanoparticles is an intricate and costly procedure requiring a multidisciplinary team of experts. As a result, pharmaceutical producers depend more on contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) that have specialized machinery and knowledge to handle the difficulties associated with normal operations and technological issues. In addition, a number of rules have been introduced to monitor the efficacy and quality of medications in light of the pharmaceutical industry's global expansion. Furthermore, a several nations' rigorous laws limited the amount of money that could be invested in research and development to create and market sophisticated medications that use lipid nanoparticle raw materials. Regional Trends: The North America lipid nanoparticle raw materials market is expected to register major market share in terms of revenue and projected to grow at a high CAGR in the near future. The North American pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are strong, which supports the market's expansion. Lipid nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems are in high demand due to the significant investments made in research and development by pharmaceutical and biotech businesses in the United States and Canada. There are now more prospects for lipid nanoparticle-based delivery methods in North America due to the trend toward biologics and gene therapy products. Besides, Asia Pacific is anticipated to be the fastest growing region in the market. The area's economy is expanding quickly, which is driving up the cost of healthcare and investments in medical R&D. Lipid nanoparticles are one of the modern drug delivery technologies that are in high demand due to expanding healthcare services and improved infrastructure, which is propelling market expansion. Curious about this latest version of the report? @ https://www.insightaceanalytic.com/enquiry-before-buying/2367 Recent Developments: February 2024: University of Pennsylvania researchers in the United States have developed a unique high-throughput screening tool designed for evaluating mRNA enclosed in lipid nanoparticles. With the help of this cutting-edge platform, large libraries of LNPs intended for brain targeting may be quickly screened. Its application accelerates the development of gene editing treatments by assessing and fine-tuning LNPs meant for brain delivery. University of Pennsylvania researchers in the United States have developed a unique high-throughput screening tool designed for evaluating mRNA enclosed in lipid nanoparticles. With the help of this cutting-edge platform, large libraries of LNPs intended for brain targeting may be quickly screened. Its application accelerates the development of gene editing treatments by assessing and fine-tuning LNPs meant for brain delivery. July 2023: A formulation technique from Cytiva has been made available to enable the seamless production of lipid nanoparticle medications at both the clinical and commercial stages. By streamlining the procedure, this method makes it possible to produce lipid nanoparticle-based drugs effectively and completely, from development to commercialization. Segmentation of Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials Market- By Application Therapeutics Research By Product Ionizable Lipids PEGylated Lipids Sterol Lipids Neutral Phospholipids Kits Reagents Other Raw Materials By Disease Indication Cancer Infectious Diseases Blood Diseases Others By End-use Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies Academic & Research Institutes Others By Region North America- The US Canada Mexico Europe- Germany The UK France Italy Spain Rest of Europe Asia-Pacific- China Japan India South Korea South East Asia Rest of Asia Pacific Latin America- Brazil Argentina Rest of Latin America Middle East & Africa- GCC Countries South Africa Rest of Middle East and Africa For More Customization @ https://www.insightaceanalytic.com/customisation/2367 Why should buy this report: To receive a comprehensive analysis of the prospects for global Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials market Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials To receive industry overview and future trends of global Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials market To analyze the Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials market drivers and challenges To get information on the Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials market size value (US$ Mn) forecast till 2031 Major Investments, Mergers & Acquisition in global Lipid Nanoparticle Raw Materials market industry Other Related Reports Published by InsightAce Analytic: Lipid Nanoparticles (LNPs) CDMO Market Nanoparticle Formulation Market Lipid Nanodiscs Market Sample Preparation Market About Us: InsightAce Analytic is a market research and consulting firm that enables clients to make strategic decisions. Our qualitative and quantitative market intelligence solutions inform the need for market and competitive intelligence to expand businesses. We help clients gain competitive advantage by identifying untapped markets, exploring new and competing technologies, segmenting potential markets and repositioning products. Our expertise is in providing syndicated and custom market intelligence reports with an in-depth analysis with key market insights in a timely and cost-effective manner. Contact US: InsightAce Analytic Pvt. Ltd. Tel.: + +1 551 226 6109 Email: info@insightaceanalytic.com Site Visit: www.insightaceanalytic.com Follow Us on LinkedIn @ bit.ly/2tBXsgS Follow Us On Facebook @ bit.ly/2H9jnDZ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1729637/InsightAce_Analytic_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/lipid-nanoparticle-raw-materials-market-worth-356-05-mn-by-2031---exclusive-report-by-insightace-analytic-pvt-ltd-302087916.html SHENZHEN, CHINA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / TerraMaster, a professional brand that focuses on providing innovative storage products for homes and businesses, recently launched D4-320, the updated USB Storage of previous D4-300. The configured USB interface has been directly upgraded from 5Gbps USB3.1 to 10Gbps USB3.2 Gen2 interface, providing doubled 10Gbps data transmission bandwidth. D4-320 adopts TerraMaster new design concept with more simple and elegant appearance and more convenient hard drive installation. By optimizing the internal structure design of the product and adding measures to suppress noise diffusion, and the overall noise level has been reduced by 50% compared with the previous generation.D4-320 adopts TerraMaster new design concept with more simple and elegant appearance and more convenient hard drive installation. By optimizing the internal structure design of the product and adding measures to suppress noise diffusion, and the overall noise level has been reduced by 50% compared with the previous generation. TerraMaster D4-320 Key Features 10Gbps Faster Speed The D4-320 utilizes the USB3.2 Gen2 protocol to achieve a data transfer speed of up to 10 Gbps, twice the speed of the D4-300 (5Gbps). When equipped with four hard drives, the actual read/write speed can thus be measured at up to 1,016 MB/s (combined read/write with WD Red 8TB x 4). Even with just one hard drive installed, the read speed effortlessly reaches 510 MB/s (WD Red 1TB SSD). Thus, whether using multiple hard drives operating in parallel or ensuring the efficient operation of a single hard drive, the D4-320 demonstrates exceptional performance. Super-large Storage Space D4-320 perfectly combines large-capacity storage and high-speed performance, supporting 4 SATA HDDs or 4 SATA SSDs, with a maximum capacity of up to 96TB (24TB*4), providing sufficient space for your massive data. TPC Backupper Supported D4-320 comes with free TerraMaster TPC Backupper software to easily back up Windows PC data. It supports incremental and differential backup strategies to ensure easy data backup and worry-free data storage. Expansion of TNAS Storage Space In addition to supporting direct use on a variety of system devices such as MAC, Windows, and Linux, D4-320 can also provide additional storage capacity for NAS devices, thereby effectively expanding the storage space of NAS to meet the growing data needs and providing users with more flexible and diverse storage expansion solutions. New Push-lock Bracket Design D4-320 adopts tool-free hard disk tray, easy to install and replace HDD. It has a unique Push-Lock design that automatically locks the hard drive tray to prevent the hard drive from falling off or being disconnected. A hard drive can be installed in just 8 seconds. Intelligent Heat Dissipation System Built-in intelligent temperature-controlled low-noise fan that automatically adjusts the speed according to the hard drive temperature to ensure that the hard drive operates at the optimal temperature and provides better heat dissipation. Less Noise With special sound-absorbing panels and shock-absorbing measures, D4-320 noise level (only 21dB) is 50% lower than the previous generation structural design, allowing you to enjoy a quiet working environment. The 320 series includes D2-320 (2 bays), D4-320 (4 bays) and D6-320 (6 bays), which can meet the needs of home users, SOHO and small businesses for high-performance NAS are fully available worldwide now. For more information, please visit the product links below: TerraMaster D4-320: https://www.terra-master.com/global/products/homesoho-das/d4-320.html Follow TerraMaster on social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terramasterofficial Twitter: https://twitter.com/TerraMasters About TerraMaster TerraMaster is a professional brand that focuses on providing innovative storage products, including network attached storage and direct attached storage that has become increasingly popular in over 40 countries and regions. The brand has been developing storage technology for 10 years, addressing the needs of customers such as home users, small/medium businesses, and enterprises. Contact Information: Mike +86 755 81798272 Marketing Manager marketing@terra-master.com SOURCE: TerraMaster View the original press release on accesswire.com Oakville, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - FendX Technologies Inc. (CSE: FNDX) (OTCQB: FDXTF) (FSE: E8D) (the "Company" or "FendX"), a nanotechnology company developing surface protection coatings to reduce the spread of pathogens, is pleased to announce it has received total proceeds of $785,000 from the exercise of 7,850,000 share purchase warrants at a price of $0.10 per share which had an expiry date of March 10, 2024. The Company issued an aggregate of 7,850,000 common shares pursuant to the warrant exercises, which occurred between February 28, 2024 and March 10, 2024. The proceeds from the exercise of warrants will be used for general working capital purposes. The Company also announces it has completed a previously announced share for debt transaction pursuant to which it issued 500,000 common shares at a price of $0.225 per share to settle $112,500 of debt with a creditor. The shares issued pursuant to the share for debt transaction are subject to a hold period expiring four months and one day from the date of issuance, in accordance with applicable securities laws. Dr. Carolyn Myers, CEO and Director of FendX stated "We would like to thank all of our shareholders for such a strong vote of confidence and their continued support as we continue to advance our R&D and scale-up efforts on our nanotechnology." About FendX Technologies Inc. FendX is a Canada-based nanotechnology company focused on developing products to make people's lives safer by reducing the spread of pathogens. The Company is developing both film and spray products to protect surfaces from contamination. The lead product under development, REPELWRAP film, is a protective surface coating film that, due to its repelling properties, prevents the adhesion of pathogens and reduces their transmission on surfaces prone to contamination. The spray nanotechnology is a bifunctional spray coating being developed to reduce contamination on surfaces by repelling and killing pathogens. The Company is conducting research and development activities using its nanotechnology in collaboration with industry-leading partners, including McMaster University. The Company has an exclusive worldwide license to its technology and IP portfolio from McMaster, which encompass both film and spray coating nanotechnology formulations. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "Carolyn Myers" Carolyn Myers Chief Executive Officer and Director Contacts: Dr. Carolyn Myers, CEO and Director 1-800-344-9868 Alyssa Barry, Investor Relations 1-833-947-5227 investor@fendxtech.com For more information, please visit https://fendxtech.com/ and the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation, including with respect to: the plans of the Company; proposed use of funds of the proceeds of the warrant exercises; the continued advancement of our R&D and scale-up efforts on our nanotechnology; and products under development and any pathogen reduction benefits related thereto. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts; they are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective," "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur, or are those statements, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made and involve several risks and uncertainties. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and that actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include: product candidates only being in formulation/reformulation stages; limited operating history; research and development activities; dependence on collaborative partners, licensors and others; effect of general economic and political conditions; and other risk factors set forth in the Company's public filings which are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Accordingly, the reader is urged to refer to the Company's such filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors should change. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201479 SOURCE: FendX Technologies Inc. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices rebounded on Wednesday after settling lower in the previous session amid uncertainty over the pace of Fed rate cuts. Benchmark Brent crude futures jumped 1.1 percent to $82.81 a barrel, while WTI crude futures were up 1.1 percent at $78.44. Heightened geopolitical tensions lent some support after a wave of drone strikes targeted Russia's oil refineries for the second day in a row. 'The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone,' Pavel Malkov, the governor of the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, wrote on Telegram. Oil prices also benefited from industry data showing a large, unexpected draw in U.S. crude inventories and a report from OPEC that said global oil demand will likely remain strong this year and in 2025. According to the American Petroleum Institute, U.S. crude stockpiles shrank by 5.5 million barrels in the week to March 8 versus expectations for a build of 0.4 million barrels. OPEC expects oil demand this year to rise 1.43 million barrels per day over the previous year, slightly up from an earlier forecast for a rise of 1.42 million barrels per day. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. - Breakthrough Therapy Designation ("BTD") provides an expedited review pathway, as well as increased access to U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") guidance on trial design, with the potential to significantly reduce drug development timelines - - First known BTD granted by the FDA for an adjunctive psychedelic based therapy for the treatment of Major Depressive Disorder ("MDD") - - Robust, sustained and statistically significant improvement in depression symptoms at four months with 75% of patients in remission from depression after two doses (16mg) - - Impressive mean 22-point reduction in Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale ("MADRS") score from baseline at four months - - Data supports progression to a pivotal Phase 3 multinational study of CYB003 in MDD in mid-2024 - - Achievement of milestones expedites and de-risks CYB003 development program - - Company to host webcast to discuss CYB003 program updates today at 8:30 a.m. ET - This news release constitutes a "designated news release" for the purposes of Cybin's prospectus supplements each dated August 23, 2023, to its short form base shelf prospectus dated August 17, 2023, as amended December 22, 2023. Cybin Inc. (NYSE American:CYBN) (Cboe CA:CYBN) ("Cybin" or the "Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to revolutionizing mental healthcare by developing new and innovative next-generation psychedelic-based treatment options, today announced that the FDA has granted BTDto CYB003, its proprietary deuterated psilocybin analog in development for the adjunctive treatment of MDD. If approved by the FDA, CYB003 would be the first known adjunctive psychedelic-based therapeutic for the treatment of MDD. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313731043/en/ Strong and durable effects 4 months after 2 doses (Graphic: Business Wire) The Company also announced that its Phase 2 trial of CYB003 in MDD demonstrated robust and sustained improvement in depression symptoms at four months with 75% of participants receiving two 16mg doses achieving remission and no longer showing signs of depression. These significant milestones reflect the Company's commitment to advancing cutting-edge treatment options for MDD, marking a transformational moment in the pursuit of regulatory approval. Breakthrough Therapy Designation Accelerates and De-risks the Path Forward6 BTD provides an expedited review pathway, as well as increased access to FDA guidance on trial design, with the potential to reduce drug development timelines. It is reserved for drug candidates that target serious conditions and demonstrate substantial improvement on a clinically significant endpoint over available therapies. The designation includes all "fast track" program features, as well as more intensive FDA guidance and discussion of the CYB003 development program, including planned clinical trials and plans for expediting the manufacturing development strategy. The designation of CYB003 as a breakthrough therapy acknowledges the significant unmet medical need for more effective treatments of MDD and supports CYB003's potential for significant improvements over existing therapies. BTD serves as validation of the Company's progress to date and is expected to accelerate Cybin's mission to advance its proprietary next-generation treatment towards new drug approval on an expedited basis. This designation is supported by the positive topline results from the Company's Phase 2 study of CYB003 in MDD, which demonstrated an improvement in depression symptoms superior to approved antidepressants and recently reported data with other psychedelics.1 "It is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire Cybin team that we have accomplished so much so quickly. The granting of Breakthrough Therapy Designation by the FDA underscores the potential of CYB003 to fill a gap in the treatment landscape for MDD and serves to expedite and de-risk our development program going forward," stated Doug Drysdale, Chief Executive Officer of Cybin. "This designation provides for a streamlined review process and enhanced engagement with the FDA. With the robust durability data from our Phase 2 study in hand, we are ready to move forward expeditiously. We are grateful for the opportunity to accelerate the development and regulatory review process that this designation affords, as we prepare to advance CYB003 toward a Phase 3 pivotal trial around mid-year." "Currently available standard treatments for MDD can be limited in efficacy, remission and response rates, presenting challenges for patients and mental health practitioners alike. CYB003 may have potential to address these challenges, and with the FDA's Breakthrough Therapy Designation, the regulatory path forward is accelerated," said Dr. Maurizio Fava, M.D., Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychiatrist-in-Chief at Massachusetts General Hospital. Positive Four-Month Efficacy Data for CYB003 Robust and sustained improvements in symptoms of depression with two doses of 12 mg or 16 mg of CYB003: Mean reduction from baseline in the MADRS total score was approximately 22 points from baseline in both dosing cohorts. Approximately 75% of the patients were responders (>/= 50% improvement in MADRS scores) following two doses of 16mg. 60% of patients on 12 mg and 75% on 16 mg were in remission from depression following 2 doses (MADRS score = 10). Safety and tolerability: CYB003 was well tolerated with no drug-related serious adverse events. All adverse events were mild or moderate in intensity. No incidents of suicidal ideation or behavior. No discontinuations due to adverse events. "The sustained reduction in depression symptoms at the four-month mark after just two doses of CYB003 is a critical milestone, that demonstrates the durability of the response, following the rapid improvement in symptoms. It also paves the way for a change in the treatment paradigm for MDD. Unlike currently approved adjunctive treatments which require chronic, daily dosing, CYB003 allows for intermittent dosing without the challenges of withdrawing patients from their existing medications," stated Amir Inamdar, MBBS, DNB (Psych), MFPM, Chief Medical Officer of Cybin. "Notably, the durability data showed that at four months, approximately 75% of patients were responders, meaning that they achieved an improvement of 50% or greater in their MADRS scores. Across the two dosages, we also observed that at four months, 60% of patients receiving 12 mg and 75% receiving 16 mg achieved a MADRS score of less than or equal to 10, indicating that they were in remission and no longer showing signs of depression. Considering these positive findings, we are eager to progress the program and bring relief and treatment alternatives to the millions of people who can benefit," concluded Mr. Inamdar. "It is truly remarkable that at four months the participants experienced a sustained reduction and incremental improvement in depression symptoms," continued Drysdale. "Impressively, the mean reduction from baseline in the MADRS total score was approximately 22 points at 4 months (compared to a mean reduction of 14 points vs placebo and 17 points from baseline at 3 weeks). This is highly encouraging, especially for patients who have not responded to existing treatment options. We look forward to initiating our Phase 3 trial, which we anticipate will be an international, multisite study to further evaluate the safety and efficacy of CYB003 capsules in a larger MDD patient population. As we advance this program, we are proud to lead the way and contribute to the growing body of scientific evidence supporting the therapeutic potential of psychedelic drugs to treat a multitude of mental health disorders," concluded Drysdale. The MADRS is a 10-item, clinician-administered scale designed to measure overall severity of depressive symptoms in subjects with MDD. It is widely used in clinical trials and accepted by regulatory authorities worldwide as a measure of symptoms of depression. The MADRS includes items ranging from sadness of mood, reduction in sleep and appetite, to difficulties in concentration, anhedonia, and negative and suicidal thoughts that are scored from 0 to 6, giving a total score ranging from 0 to 60. Typical score ranges for severity are: 0-6 normal; 7-19 mild; 20-34 moderate; and >34 severe depression. In the CYB003 study, mean baseline total scores on the MADRS were 31.4 to 33.7 in the active group and 30.8 in the placebo group. Significant Unmet Medical Need in Depression Depression is the leading cause of disability due to mental illness 2 and affects over 300 million people worldwide.3 Despite the use of currently available treatments such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ("SSRIs"), up to two-thirds of patients with depression do not achieve remission with initial antidepressant treatment.4 Over 43 million Americans take antidepressants and over 70% of these individuals are treated with SSRIs.5 The BTD of CYB003 as an adjunctive therapy for MDD underscores the urgent need to address this treatment gap, as a significant proportion of people do not experience relief with existing therapies. Conference Call and Webcast Details: Date: Wednesday, March 13, 2024 Time: 8:30 a.m. ET. Dial-in: 800-267-6316 (U.S. Toll-Free) or 203-518-9783 (International) Conference ID: CYBN0313 Webcast: Register for the webcast here The archived webcast will also be available on the Company's investor relations website on the Events Presentations page. Notes: Stone et al. (2022) Response to acute monotherapy for major depressive disorder in randomized, placebo-controlled trials submitted to the US Food and Drug Administration: individual participant data analysis. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 378, e067606. GBD 2019 Diseases and Injuries Collaborators (2020). Global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, 1990-2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Lancet 396: 1204-22. Friedrich M. J. (2017). Depression Is the Leading Cause of Disability Around the World. JAMA, 317(15), 1517. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2017.3826. Rush et al. Am J Psychiatry 2006; 163:1905-1917. Sood et al. (2023). Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor use, age-related neuropathology and cognition in late-life. Psychiatry Research 328. There is no assurance that timelines will be met. Anticipated timelines regarding drug development are based on reasonable assumptions informed by current knowledge and information available to the Company. Such statements are informed by, among other things, regulatory guidelines for developing a drug with safety studies, proof of concept studies, and pivotal studies for new drug application submission and approval, and assume the success of implementation and results of such studies on timelines indicated as possible by such guidelines, other industry examples, and the Company's development efforts to date. About Cybin Cybin is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company on a mission to create safe and effective psychedelic-based therapeutics to address the large unmet need for new and innovative treatment options for people who suffer from mental health conditions. Cybin's goal of revolutionizing mental healthcare is supported by a network of world-class partners and internationally recognized scientists aimed at progressing proprietary drug discovery platforms, innovative drug delivery systems, and novel formulation approaches and treatment regimens. The Company is currently developing CYB003, a proprietary deuterated psilocybin analog for the treatment of MDD and CYB004, a proprietary deuterated DMT molecule for generalized anxiety disorder and has a research pipeline of investigational psychedelic-based compounds. Headquartered in Canada and founded in 2019, Cybin is operational in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Ireland. For company updates and to learn more about Cybin, visit www.cybin.com or follow the team on X, LinkedIn, YouTube and Instagram. Cautionary Notes and Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this news release relating to the Company are forward-looking statements and are prospective in nature. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts, but rather on current expectations and projections about future events and are therefore subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may", "should", "could", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "anticipate", "expect", "believe" or "continue", or the negative thereof or similar variations. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding the Company's planned clinical trials and plans for expediting manufacturing and development strategy for CYB003; the potential for CYB003 to provide significant improvement over existing therapies; the advancement of CYB003 toward a Phase 3 trial in mid-2024; the potential reduction in drug development timelines afforded by BTD; and the Company's plans to engineer proprietary drug discovery platforms, innovative drug delivery systems, novel formulation approaches and treatment regimens for mental health conditions. These forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions and estimates of management of the Company at the time such statements were made. Actual future results may differ materially as forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to materially differ from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors, among other things, include: implications of the spread of COVID-19 on the Company's operations; fluctuations in general macroeconomic conditions; fluctuations in securities markets; expectations regarding the size of the psychedelics market; the ability of the Company to successfully achieve its business objectives; plans for growth; political, social and environmental uncertainties; employee relations; the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions in the markets where the Company operates; and the risk factors set out in each of the Company's management's discussion and analysis for the three and nine month periods ended December 31, 2023 year, and the Company's annual information form for the year ended March 31, 2023, which are available under the Company's profile on www.sedarplus.com and with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the Company believes, or believed at the time, to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure shareholders that actual results will be consistent with such forward-looking statements, as there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release. The Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law. Cybin makes no medical, treatment or health benefit claims about Cybin's proposed products. The FDA, Health Canada or other similar regulatory authorities have not evaluated claims regarding psilocybin, psychedelic tryptamine, tryptamine derivatives or other psychedelic compounds. The efficacy of such products has not been confirmed by approved research. There is no assurance that the use of psilocybin, psychedelic tryptamine, tryptamine derivatives or other psychedelic compounds can diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or condition. Rigorous scientific research and clinical trials are needed. Cybin has not conducted clinical trials for the use of its proposed products. Any references to quality, consistency, efficacy and safety of potential products do not imply that Cybin verified such in clinical trials or that Cybin will complete such trials. If Cybin cannot obtain the approvals or research necessary to commercialize its business, it may have a material adverse effect on Cybin's performance and operations. Neither the Cboe Canada nor the NYSE American LLC stock exchange have approved or disapproved the contents of this news release and are not responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the contents herein. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313731043/en/ Contacts: Investor Media: Gabriel Fahel Chief Legal Officer Cybin Inc. 1-866-292-4601 irteam@cybin.com or media@cybin.com CHICAGO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Electric Tractor Market is estimated to grow from USD 0.7 billion in 2024 to USD 3.4 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 28.3%, according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. Growing stringency in emission norms and advancements in overall battery technology are primarily driving the developments in electric tractors. Electric tractors offer reduced carbon emissions and lower operational costs, making them attractive options. The electrification of tractors has challenges such as high initial cost, concerns about battery life and charging times, weight, and dawn-to-dusk demands. However, advancements in battery technology would further improve the performance and range of electric tractors, enhancing their practicality and usability in the field. Furthermore, government incentives and regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions further encourage the adoption of electric tractors, driving market growth. Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=109801941 Browse in-depth TOC on "Electric Tractor Market". 235 - Tables 55 - Figures 265 - Pages Electric Tractor Market Scope: Report Coverage Details Market Size USD 3.4 billion by 2030 Growth Rate CAGR of 28.3% Largest Market Europe Market Dynamics Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities & Challenges Forecast Period 2024-2030 Forecast Units Value (USD Million/Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered Propulsion (Battery, Hybrid & Hydrogen), Capacity (<50, 51-100 & >100kWh), Chemistry (LFP & NMC), Hybrid Tractor (<50, 51-100 & >100HP), Function (Agriculture, Utility & Industrial) and Region Geographies Covered Asia Pacific, Americas, and Europe Report Highlights Updated financial information / product portfolio of players Key Market Opportunities Emergence of Hydrogen-powered electric tractors Key Market Drivers Growing stringent emission regulations Lithium-iron phosphate batteries are projected to be the most preferred batteries for electric tractors over the forecast period. Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for electric tractors have surged recently due to safety advancements, cost-effectiveness, and government initiatives. One significant development is the increasing investments by key players in the agricultural machinery industry. For instance, Deere & Company started building a battery factory in North Carolina in August 2023, focusing on LFP batteries specifically for its electric vehicles and equipment. These investments signal a strategic shift towards sustainable agricultural practices, highlighting the importance of reliable battery technology in modern farming equipment. In November 2023, Faradion (UK) based LFP battery company partnered with Kubota Corporation (Japan) to explore LFP solutions for electric tractors, focusing on safety and performance enhancements. Moreover, in December 2020, the European Union launched a USD 2.6 billion initiative to support developing and producing sustainable batteries, including LFP, to reduce reliance on critical materials like cobalt. OEMs like Solectrac from the US also showcased the "e70N Narrow" electric tractor in August 2021, which offered 70 HP motor power and had an LFP battery that runs for 3-8 hours, depending upon load. These types of batteries are usually preferred for small farming purposes. LFP batteries use readily available and economical materials like iron and phosphate compared to nickel, manganese, and cobalt in Li-NMC batteries. Owing to this, the production cost of these batteries is lower than that of NMC batteries. Also, the LFP batteries offer significantly longer lifespans, often exceeding 5,000 charge cycles compared to 2,000-3,000 for Li-NMC. This translates to lower replacement costs and longer battery life. The LFP batteries also have other advantages over NMC or NCA, like higher resistance to elevated temperatures. Though they require more physical space due to lower energy density, they offer safety benefits and stability, particularly at higher temperatures. Hence, these recent developments, benefits, and investments have given the LFP batteries the highest market share in the forecasted period. >100 KWh is the fastest-growing battery capacity segment for the electric tractor market. Tractors equipped with battery capacities exceeding 100 kWh represent a transformative leap in the electrification of agricultural machinery, offering unprecedented power and efficiency for heavy-duty field operations - these higher battery capacities electric tractors are used in larger farmlands. Geographically, Europe has a higher availability of farmlands, which requires highly mechanized equipment and a higher battery capacity electric tractor, so the demand for >100 kWh battery capacity electric demand is higher in Europe. OEMs like Deere & Company (US), Tadus (Turkey), Fendt (Germany), and Case IH (US) are actively involved in developing >100 kWh tractor prototypes. For instance, Deere & Company showcased the SESAM (Sustainable Energy Supply for Agricultural Machinery) electric tractor prototype, which boasts a massive 130 kWh battery capacity that delivers up to 400 horsepower, comparable in power and performance to conventional diesel-powered tractors. Moreover, a German startup named Tadus also showcased their prototype, E-Traktor, in August 2023, an electric battery tractor with a battery capacity of 130 kWh. Also, a key player from Turkey named ZY Elektric showcased their prototype "King Size 320 HP" battery electric tractor with a battery capacity of 155 kWh. These high-powered battery capacity electric tractors are built for heavy-duty applications with higher battery ranges. Their products are not commercially available, but they have a potential future in the European market. While electric tractors with >100 kWh battery capacities hold immense promise for sustainable agriculture, their adoption still faces cost and infrastructure limitations. However, manufacturers are making significant strides in overcoming these barriers. For example, Fendt (Germany), a leading agricultural machinery manufacturer, has announced plans to introduce electric tractors with battery capacities exceeding 100 kWh by leveraging advancements in battery technology and charging infrastructure. These electric tractors offer power, performance, and environmental benefits needed to meet the demands of modern agriculture with heavy machinery farming, which reduces reliance on fossil fuels and mitigates carbon emissions. Overall, regulatory pressure, technological innovation, market demand, and the pursuit of operational efficiency and sustainability are expected to drive the adoption and advancement of >100 kWh electric tractors in the agricultural machinery market in the coming years. Americas to be the third largest region in the electric tractor market. The Americas region is estimated to be the third largest growing electric tractors industry, with key countries like the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina contributing significantly. This growth is propelled by stringent environmental measures and upcoming emission regulations, compelling manufacturers to focus on electric and hybrid tractors. The region has a robust agricultural sector with a significant emphasis on technology and innovation. Electric tractors in the Americas have leveraged autonomous operation capabilities to reduce labor requirements and improve productivity. These tractors perform tasks such as plowing, seeding, and harvesting autonomously, guided by sensors and GPS systems. In December 2022, CNH Industrial (CNHI) revealed the New Holland T4 Electric Power, the first all-electric light utility tractor prototype with autonomous features. The tractor has a peak power of 120 hp and a maximum torque of 440 Nm. The roof of the tractor has sensors, cameras, and control units. CNH Industrial developed the tractor in collaboration with Monarch Tractor, a California-based tractor manufacturer focusing on electrification and autonomy. America's governing body has provided several schemes to increase the adoption of electric tractors. For instance, US Federal Tax gives a USD 7,500 tax credit for purchasing qualifying electric vehicles, including electric tractors for some selected models, subject to eligibility criteria. Also, the California government has offered a scrappage policy for their old vehicles which California government gives the "Core Voucher" to buy electric tractors with the amount of USD 16,147.00 for e25G Gear, USD 13,753.00 for e25H Hydrostatic, and finally USD 28,000.00 for buying eUT+ Narrow. Also, the Central Coast Community Energy (CCCE) for the US is providing grants to substitute heavy-duty agricultural vehicles with fully electric equipment, where customers receive incentives covering 50 to 70% of the overall project expenses, capped at USD 75,000. Funding allocation operates on a first-come, first-served principle. Moreover, the OEMs are also partnering with banks or financial institutions to offer low-interest loans, lease programs, or flexible payment plans tailored to the needs of farmers. For instance, Monarch Tractor (US) and CNH Industrial Capital (Netherlands) announced a financial services partnership on May 2023, which aimed to make Monarch's MK-V electric tractor more accessible to farmers by providing more comprehensive financing options through CNH Industrial Capital's expertise and established dealer network. Also, in January 2023, Solectrac (US) launched electric tractor financing and rental choices for buyers of 25 HP electric tractors, which are used for smaller tasks and operations in the US. Adding further, Solectrac in November 2022 also partnered with DLL (Netherlands), which is a global financial solutions provider which benefited Solectrac to access to DLL's extensive financial resources and expertise, making it easier for farmers and landscapers to finance the purchase of electric tractors in the US. Hence, these leveraging financing options have propelled the adoption of electric tractors in the Americas. Vineyards are growing in the Americas, particularly in regions like California, Oregon, Washington State, and parts of South America such as Chile and Argentina due to favorable climate, soil, and tourism & hospitality. OEMs like Monarch Tractor in the US provide customized electric tractors tailored to the unique needs of vineyards in the Americas. Their MK-V series electric tractors are designed and customized to navigate the narrow rows and uneven terrain commonly found in vineyards, offering superior maneuverability and precision. Equipped with advanced sensors and AI-driven technology, these machines also autonomously perform tasks such as pruning, spraying, and harvesting, reducing labor costs and increasing operational efficiency for vineyard operators. Also, the local presence of key players such as Deere & Company, Monarch Tractors, Case IH, Fendt, Kubota Corporation, Solectrac, and International Tractor Limited are offering electric tractors in the Americas. Hence, all these factors have propelled the demand for electric tractors and made the Americas the second fastest-growing region. Inquire Before Buying: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=109801941 Key Market Players: The major players in Electric Tractor Companies include Kubota Corporation (Japan), Solectrac (US), AGCO Corporation (US), CNH Industries NV (Netherlands), and Escorts Kubota Limited (India). Recent Developments In November 2023, The Fendt launched the e107 V Vario electric tractor, a fully battery-electric, narrow-track tractor designed for specialized applications in orchards, vineyards, greenhouses, and municipalities. The e107 V Vario has a maximum power output of 68 horsepower (50 kW) and a battery capacity of 100 kWh, which provides an estimated range of 4 to 7 hours for partial load applications such as cutting, mowing, or road maintenance. In September 2023, Kubota Corporation launched the "Future Cube" webpage, which showcases a fully autonomous electric tractor prototype, highlighting Kubota's research and development in advanced agricultural technologies. Unveiled at CES March 2023, this exhibition highlighted Kubota's vision for the future of farming, where sustainability, automation, and data-driven insights come together to revolutionize agricultural practices. In August 2023, Solectac launched the eUT+ Narrow electric tractor, a zero-emission electric tractor. This vehicle is designed to be comparable to diesel tractors, with a hitch that can lift 5,500 pounds. The eUT+ Narrow has 60 kWh / 560 amps at 106 volts, Lithium Iron phosphate (LFP), and a 70HP. This tractor is offered at USD 7499 for a 12-inch bucket attachment with a 19kW motor capacity. In August 2023, Solectrac launched the e25H model, a compact and accessible electric tractor ideal for smaller farms, vineyards, and landscaping endeavors. It comes with 25HP power to tackle lighter tasks like mowing, tilling, and hauling with its electric motor's instant torque. This eco-friendly machine boasts a 5-hour range on a single charge, catering to most workday needs. Maneuvering tight spaces is a breeze thanks to its compact size and foldable ROPS, while features like LED headlights and a PTO enhance its versatility. The company also offers a 19kW motor with Li NMC battery with this tractor. In September 2022, The Kubota launched LXe-261, a 26-horsepower, four-wheel drive electric tractor currently available for lease in Europe (France, Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, etc.). It is the first electric tractor launched by Kubota. The LXe-261 has a lithium-ion battery that provides up to three to four hours of operating time on a single charge. The battery can be fast charged in one hour. Get 10% Free Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=109801941 Browse Adjacent Market: Automotive and Transportation Market Research Reports & Consulting Related Reports: Electric Construction Equipment Market - Global Forecast to 2030 Farm Equipment Market - Global Forecast to 2028 EV Charging Station Market - Global Forecast to 2027 Terminal Tractor Market - Global Forecast to 2027 About MarketsandMarkets: MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report. MarketsandMarkets is a blue ocean alternative in growth consulting and program management, leveraging a man-machine offering to drive supernormal growth for progressive organizations in the B2B space. We have the widest lens on emerging technologies, making us proficient in co-creating supernormal growth for clients. Earlier this year, we made a formal transformation into one of America's best management consulting firms as per a survey conducted by Forbes. The B2B economy is witnessing the emergence of $25 trillion of new revenue streams that are substituting existing revenue streams in this decade alone. We work with clients on growth programs, helping them monetize this $25 trillion opportunity through our service lines - TAM Expansion, Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy to Execution, Market Share Gain, Account Enablement, and Thought Leadership Marketing. Built on the 'GIVE Growth' principle, we work with several Forbes Global 2000 B2B companies - helping them stay relevant in a disruptive ecosystem. Our insights and strategies are molded by our industry experts, cutting-edge AI-powered Market Intelligence Cloud, and years of research. The KnowledgeStore (our Market Intelligence Cloud) integrates our research, facilitates an analysis of interconnections through a set of applications, helping clients look at the entire ecosystem and understand the revenue shifts happening in their industry. To find out more, visit www.MarketsandMarkets.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Contact: Mr. Aashish Mehra MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com Research Insight: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ResearchInsight/electric-tractor-market.asp Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/electric-tractor.asp Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2297424/MarketsandMarkets_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/electric-tractor-market-worth-3-4-billion-by-2030---exclusive-report-by-marketsandmarkets-302087735.html TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Galway Metals Inc. (TSXV:GWM);(OTCQB:GAYMF) (the "Company" or "Galway") is pleased to report assay results from its diamond drilling program at the Southwest Deposit at the Company's 100%-owned flagship Clarence Stream high-grade gold project in New Brunswick, Canada. The Southwest Deposit, as well as the South and North Deposits, are open in all directions for expansion. Management believes that the Clarence Stream gold project has district-scale potential with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres. Rob Hinchcliffe, President and CEO of Galway stated "We are excited about these new results from the Southwest Deposit because they demonstrate good gold continuity. More specifically we are seeing extensions of mineralization at surface and at depth including a high-grade intercept extending the Southwest Deposit 106 metres with spectacular visible gold (Link to figure 1). With gold prices trading close to an all-time high we remain bullish on the Company's 2024 outlook". Extended Mineralization at Depth (Link to figures 2 & 3) BL-251 intersected 114.1 g/t gold over 2 metres including 447.0 g/t gold over 0.5 metres Extending mineralization 106 metres at depth from previously released high-grade intercepts of 44.1 g/t gold over 9.5 metres (BL-87) and 20.7 g/t gold over 9.45 metres (BL-72) BL-252 intersected 7.43 g/t gold over 6 metres including 20.95 g/t gold over 1.0 metre and 3.08 g/t gold over 7.5 metres Extended Mineralization to Surface BL-253 intersected 0.94 g/t gold over 6.5 metres beginning 12.7 vertical metres from the surface beginning 12.7 vertical metres from the surface BL-249 intersected 0.53 g/t gold over 10 metres beginning at 19 vertical meters from the surface Results from Drilling The drill holes in this release are located within the Southwest Deposit which straddles the Sorrel Ridge Granite in proximity to the brittle-ductile Sawyer Brook Fault Zone. Holes BL-251 and BL-252 were drilled to test the down dip expansion of high-grade gold mineralization. Both holes intersected visible gold (Link to figure 1) within sericite altered quartz veining and extended the deposit 106 metres from previous high-grade intercepts (BL-72 and BL-87). Holes BL-249, BL-250 and holes BL-253 through BL-258 were testing up-dip extensions to bring gold mineralization to the surface, which was confirmed with these assay results (Link to assay table). The intercepts highlighted within this press release are all outside the area that was included in the 2022 Mineral Resource Estimate (Link to 2022 Clarence Stream Resource Estimate). Two Additional Areas were Explored to Test (Link to figure 4): The down-dip and western extensions of the Southwest Deposit Hole BL-220 intersected 0.84 g/t gold over 21 metres and 0.79 g/t gold over 6 metres , confirming gold mineralization below the known resource , confirming gold mineralization below the known resource Hole BL-202 intersected 2.23 g/t gold over 1.0 metre, which is over 1 kilometre SW of the Southwest Deposit. Gold in soil anomalies on the western side of the Sorrel Ridge granite. Sediments on the southeastern side of the Sorrell Ridge granite host the Southwest Deposit where gold zones are parallel to the granite contact Hole PL-01 intersected 2.39 g/t gold over 0.8 metres These encouraging results show the strong potential for additional gold discoveries along the boundaries with any of the felsic intrusions, and in structures parallel to the Sawyer Brook Fault at the Clarence Stream gold project (Link to drill coordinates). New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program Galway would like to acknowledge financial support from the New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program, which partially funded drilling of the Southwest Deposit. Geology and Mineralization The Clarence Stream deposits can be characterized as intrusion-related, structurally-controlled, quartz-vein hosted gold deposits. These deposits consist of quartz veins and quartz stockwork within brittle-ductile fault zones that include adjacent crushed, altered wall rocks and veinlet material. The mineralized systems are hosted in intrusive and metasedimentary rocks within high strain zones controlled by regional fault systems. Pyrite, base metal sulphides, and stibnite occur in these deposits along with anomalous concentrations of bismuth, arsenic, antimony and tungsten. Alteration in the host rocks is confined within a few metres of quartz veins and occurs mainly in the form of sericitization and chloritization. A more complete description of Clarence Stream's geology and mineralization can be found at www.galwaymetalsinc.com. Review by Qualified Person, Quality Control and Reports Jesse Fisher, P.Geo., Project Manager for Galway Metals, is the Qualified Person who supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical disclosure in this news release on behalf of Galway Metals Inc. All core, chip/boulder samples, and soil samples are assayed by Activation Laboratories, located at 41 Bittern Street, Ancaster, Ontario, Canada, Agat Laboratories, located at 5623 McAdam Road, Mississauga Ontario, Canada L4Z 1N9 and 35 General Aviation Road, Timmins, ON P4P 7C3, and/or Swastika Laboratories situated in Swastika, ON. All four labs have ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. All core is under watch from the drill site to the core processing facility. All samples are assayed for gold by Fire Assay, with gravimetric finish, and other elements assayed using ICP. The Company's QA/QC program includes the regular insertion of blanks and standards into the sample shipments, as well as instructions for duplication. Standards, blanks and duplicates are inserted at one per 20 samples. Approximately five percent (5%) of the pulps and rejects are sent for check assaying at a second lab with the results averaged and intersections updated when received. Core recovery in the mineralized zones has averaged 99%. About Galway Metals Inc. Galway Metals is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing its 100%-owned, high-grade, open-pitable flagship Clarence Stream gold project in southwest New Brunswick. Clarence Stream is an emerging gold district with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres and widths of up to 28 kilometres in certain areas. Galway Metals also has 100%-ownership in the Estrades project, a former producing high-grade, gold-rich polymetallic VMS mine in the northern Abitibi of western Quebec. Led by a management team with a proven track-record of creating shareholder value having sold Galway Resources for US$340 million, Galway Metals is focused on creating value for all its stakeholders. For additional Information on Galway Metals Inc., Please contact: Robert Hinchcliffe President & Chief Executive Officer Telephone: 1-800-771-0680 Email: info@galwaymetalsinc.com Website: www.galwaymetalsinc.com Look us up on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn Cautionary Statement Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. This News Release includes certain "forward-looking statements" which are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "estimates", "may", "could", "would", "will", or "plan". Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management's expectations. Risks, uncertainties and other factors involved with forward-looking information could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the Company's objectives, goals or future plans, information with respect to the OTCQB listing, DTC eligibility, and broadening U.S. institutional and retail investors. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to changes in economic conditions or financial markets, political and competitive developments, operation or exploration difficulties, changes in equity markets, changes in exchange rates, fluctuations in commodity prices capital, operating and reclamation costs varying significantly from estimates and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry, an inability to predict and counteract the effects of COVID-19 on the business of the Company, including but not limited to the effects of COVID-19 on the price of commodities, capital market conditions, restrictions on labour and international travel and supply chains, and those risks set out in the Company's public documents filed on SEDAR. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. SOURCE: Galway Metals Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Dozens of bills in Sacramento are aiming to regulate artificial intelligence. A new crop focuses on the technologys potential to upend the coming fall elections. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle 2021 There are dozens of active bills in the state Legislature seeking to regulate artificial intelligence. Legislators are concerned about the technologys potential to upend the coming fall elections. Noah Berger/Special to the Chronicle 2021 State lawmakers unveiled two more bills Wednesday to the growing pile of legislation aimed at reigning in the potential worst effects of artificial intelligence. With the primaries in the rearview mirror and the November general election just eight months away, lawmakers have introduced bills focusing on the technologys potential to confuse and deceive voters, and otherwise disrupt democracy. The legislation was announced at a press conference Wednesday hosted by policy group California Common Cause. The groups California Initiative for Technology and Democracy launched last year to fight the potential for AI generated content to distort political messaging and confuse voters. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Assembly Member Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, introduced AB2655, which would require large social media sites to label election-related deepfakes. The goal would be to limit the spread of election-related deceptive deepfakes meant to prevent voters from voting or to deceive them based on fraudulent content, Berman said. That effort follows a 2019 law Berman authored on deepfakes videos that use technology to animate a persons face or body and make it appear they said or did things they did not. That law, AB730, prohibits the distribution of deceptive audio or visual material of a political candidate within 60 days of an election. Meanwhile, state Sen. Steve Padilla, D-Chula Vista, introduced SB1228, which he said would require large online social media sites to verify the identity of users with more than 25,000 followers, or that have shared more than 1,000 pieces of AI-generated content Accounts with more than 100,000 followers or sharing more than 5,000 pieces of AI-generated content would require verification via a government-issued ID, Padilla said. In response to a question about the legislations potential to run afoul of free-speech rights, Padilla said the bill isnt something thats going to stifle free expression. He added: It is only going to inform the consumer so that they can make an informed decision. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Assembly Member Gail Pellerin, D-Santa Cruz, also attended the discussion Wednesday in Sacramento. Her bill, AB2839, introduced last month, would ban AI-generated and other digitally manipulated campaign media within 120 days of an election, as well as 60 days afterward. Pellerin also chairs the assembly elections committee. There are currently dozens of active bills in the Legislature seeking to regulate AI. Bills are frequently dropped by their authors, fail to make it through committee or are merged with other similar pieces of legislation. The AI industry has exploded in San Francisco and other parts of the state, and no federal legislation has yet been passed on the topic. The call for regulation has taken on renewed urgency in California. As Berman put it Wednesday, the state must act because Congress isnt. President Joe Biden called for a ban on AI-generated voice impersonations during his State of the Union speech earlier this month. That was after an apparently AI-generated voice reportedly cloning Bidens trademark folksy delivery reached out to voters ahead of the New Hampshire primary to discourage them from voting. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Each legislator referenced the episode in their remarks Wednesday. The Federal Communications Commission has also sought to crack down on phone calls using AI to simulate real human voices. A bill in the state Legislature authored by Assembly Member Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, would rein in some automated calls, including those using AI. Here are some of the other major areas in which Sacramento is gearing up to regulate AI this session: Safety Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, introduced perhaps the most overarching bill last month aimed at safety testing large AI programs before they are introduced to the public. That bill would create more state resources for testing AI programs and force companies to disclose their safety protocols to the states technology department. It would also permit the state to sue under certain circumstances if the technology runs awry, but exempts smaller startups. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Another bill from Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, would require the state government to assess the pros and cons of using AI in its own systems, and require departments to disclose whenever they use the technology in their communications. Bay Area lawmaker Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, is carrying a bill this session that originally intended to require companies to watermark their AI-generated content. That bill currently reads more broadly, aiming to create a mechanism to allow consumers to easily determine whether images, audio, video, or text was created by generative artificial intelligence. Assembly Member Evan Low, D-Cupertino, has also authored a bill that would require watermarking of deep fakes and other AI-generated content. Assembly Member Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, is authoring a bill that would ban police from using a match from facial recognition technology as the sole cause for an arrest or warrant. The technology often uses a form of artificial intelligence to search for facial matches in a large database. Health care and discrimination Another bill from Becker would require a physician to be involved when artificial intelligence is used for certain decision-making in health care settings. That would include decisions to approve or deny coverage for care. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A bill that Assembly Member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, D-Orinda, is bringing back from last session places limits on how and when automated decision making tools like artificial intelligence can be used. The aim of the bill is to prevent unfair discrimination by an algorithm in situations such as hiring or property rentals. That bill would also require companies that use the tools to say they are doing so, and allow people to opt out when possible. Companies would also have to provide periodic reports to the state on the purpose and performance of the software. A separate Bauer-Kahan bill would require so-called data digesters companies that use personal information to train artificial intelligence, to register with the state. VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Mako Mining Corp. (TSX-V:MKO)(OTCQX:MAKOF) ("Mako" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update of results from the ongoing reverse circulation (RC) drill program at Mako's newest mining area, Las Conchitas, located immediately south of the company's San Albino gold mine, which is currently in commercial production. Since the most recent mineral resource estimate ("MRE") at the San Albino Project was defined (see press release of December 6th, 2023), Mako has completed 9,951 m in 176 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes of the resource expansion drill program (see drill plan below). The results reported in this release are from the Southern portion of Las Conchitas, which hosts gold mineralization in three principal zones; El Limon, Mango and Bayacun. The main objectives of the near-surface, extension and confirmation drilling campaign were to gain a higher level of confidence of the grade and geometry of gold mineralization within six areas of interest where the Company has received a permit to process material through the San Albino plant ("Las Conchitas Permit" see press release of June 19th, 2023) and to identify gold mineralization for potential resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE. Highlights Results of 12 RC drill holes, completed in 2024, in the southern portion of Las Conchitas ("LC-S"), together with prior results drilled since the MRE, support the potential to expand the high-grade, gold mineralization within the currently defined open pits as well as potential extensions outside of the current MRE. The Mango intercept below is one of the widest mineralized, shallow, high-grade intervals reported to date. 13.43 g/t Au and 36.8 g/t Ag over 9.0 m (Estimated True Width - ETW) - Mango vein 9.65 g/t Au and 11.8 g/t Ag over 2.0 m (ETW) - El Limon vein 7.30 g/t Au and 14.9 g/t Ag over 1.0 m (ETW) - Mango 2 vein Akiba Leisman, CEO of Mako states, "this is another spectacular result from our exploration team. This exceptionally wide and high-grade intercept outside of our current MRE, is another clear example of the expansion potential of our current resource. We have been mining this area at Las Conchitas since last November. Therefore, this result will likely be turned into cash flow over the course of the next two years through normal mining operations. When we began mining the San Albino project over 4 years ago, the intent was to use the cash flow generated from the plant to reinvest in exploration without the need for any outside capital beyond what it would take to commission the mine. The Company has not raised equity since July of 2020, nor has it required any net capital since the commissioning of the plant. Now that the Company has significant cash flow, with a pristine balance sheet, and hundreds of exploration targets across our 188 square kilometer land package, we will be taking advantage of the new bull market in gold to grow our company significantly." To date, the 2024 drilling has been successful in identifying potential extensions of the El Limon and Mango mineralized structures. The key objectives of this year's drilling program at the mine are to demonstrate extensions of high-grade zones beyond and outside the current MRE. Drill hole LC24-RC282 (see table below) intersected one of the widest, high-grade zones reported to date, which is also located outside of the current MRE. The 9.0 m interval (ETW) assayed 13.43 g/t Au and 36.8 g/t Ag, starting at 57m from surface. This drill hole is situated between two drill holes (see drill plan below), approximately 40m apart along strike, which also intersected high-grade intervals. Drill hole LC22-475, situated approximately 30m SW by strike from LC24-RC282, intersected the same high-grade zone of 10.98 g/t Au and 27.0 g/t Ag over 2.0m (1.7m ETW), including 20.80 g/t Au and 49.9 g/t Ag over 1.0m, 33m from surface (see press release dated September 8th, 2022). Drill hole LC19-101, collared 11m NE along strike from LC24-RC282 (see press release dated August 19th, 2019), intersected two mineralized zones of 4.62 g/t Au and 12.0 g/t Ag over 2.1 m and 19.55 g/t Au and 40.6 g/t Ag over 1.2 m. All three drill holes mentioned above, intersected the zone outside of the current resource model and confirm the potential for resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE and have the potential to extend the current resource base and mine life. Our exploration team continues to advance drilling in the area with a goal of identifying further extensions of this mineralized zone. Our mining team has already begun plans to expand the pit in this area. At the El Limon zone, drill hole LC24-RC276 intersected at 42.0m vertical depth, the 2.0m wide (ETW) interval containing 9.65 g/t Au and 11.8 g/t Ag, confirming a 31m SW strike extension of high-grade mineralization, intersected by drill hole LC22-467 which assayed 37.02 g/t Au and 54.4 g/t Ag over 2.30 m (2.0 m ETW) at a vertical depth 52.0 m (see press release July 28th, 2022). Both drill holes intersected the zone outside of the current resource model and confirm potential resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE. In addition, recent drilling targeted mineralization in the Mango zone. This post-resource drilling supports the potential for additional, high grade, low strip ratio, mineral resources. Highlights of the Mango drilling include drill hole LC24-RC283 which intersected the Mango 2 zone, grading 7.30 g/t Au and 14.9 g/t Ag over 1.0 m (ETW), at 97m vertical depth and outside the current open pit resource in the MRE. This high-grade intercept represents a 68.5 m down dip extension from drill hole LC20-149 that reported 5.17 g/t Au and 8.3 g/t Ag over 0.6 m (ETW), (see press release August 18th, 2021) and 106 m down dip extension of drill hole LC20-148 which intersected a mineralized interval of 20.94 g/t Au and 6.13 g/t Ag over 2.3 m, 73m from surface (see press release March 11th, 2020). Table - Assay Results Reported in This Press Release Note: The mineralized intervals shown above utilize a 1.0 g/t gold cut-off grade with not more than 1.0 m of internal dilution. *Widths are reported as drill hole lengths. Unless otherwise stated, true width is estimated to be between 75% and 100% of the downhole width. In addition to the drill holes presented in the table above, the following drill holes returned only anomalous values: LC24-RC274 and LC24-RC280. In addition to the drill holes presented in the table above, the following drill holes returned no significant values: LC24-RC275, LC24-RC277 and LC24-RC278. Figure - Drill Hole Plan Sampling, Assaying, QA/QC and Data Verification All reverse circulation (RC) holes were drilled dry i.e above the water table and no water or other fluids were injected into the hole. RC drill samples were collected every 1 meter using a center-return hammer and samples were obtained from a Gilson chip splitter which is cleaned using compressed air after each sample. Samples were bagged and labeled at the drill site under a geologist's supervision and are logged on site by a geologist who visually selects potential mineralized intervals for fire assay. The mineralized interval(s) including 3-5 samples above and below the selected interval are continuously sampled and shipped to the Bureau Veritas Lab (BV) in Managua, respecting the best chain of custody practices. Pulps are sent by Bureau Veritas to their laboratory in Vancouver under their chain of custody for analysis. Gold was analyzed by standard fire assay fusion, 30 gr aliquot, AAS finish. Samples returning over 10.0 g/t gold are analyzed utilizing standard Fire Assay-Gravimetric method. The Company follows industry standards in its QA&QC procedures. Control samples consisting of duplicates, standards and blanks were inserted into the sample stream at a minimum ratio of 1 control sample per every 10 samples. Analytical results of control samples confirmed reliability of the assay data. Qualified Person John M. Kowalchuk, P.Geo, a geologist and qualified person (as defined under NI 43-101) has read and approved the technical information contained in this press release. Mr. Kowalchuk is a senior geologist and a consultant to the Company. On behalf of the Board, Akiba Leisman Chief Executive Officer About Mako Mako Mining Corp. is a publicly listed gold mining, development and exploration company. The Company operates the high-grade San Albino gold mine in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua, which ranks as one of the highest-grade open pit gold mines globally. Mako's primary objective is to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets on its district-scale land package. For further information: Mako Mining Corp., Akiba Leisman, Chief Executive Officer, E-mail: aleisman@makominingcorp.com, phone: (917) 558-5289 or visit our website at www.makominingcorp.com and SEDARPLUS www.sedarplus.ca. Forward-Looking Information: Some of the statements contained herein may be considered "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information can be identified by words such as, without limitation, "estimate", "project", "believe", "anticipate", "intend", "expect", "plan", "predict", "may" or "should" or variations thereon or comparable terminology. The forward-looking information contained herein reflects the Company's current beliefs and expectations, based on management's reasonable assumptions, and includes, without limitation, that the Company is expected to positively reconcile to the published mineral resource with additional drilling at Las Conchitas; that the Company high-grade production will generate significant cash flows for the foreseeable future. Mako's primary objective to operate San Albino profitably and fund exploration of prospective targets on its district-scale land package. Such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking information, including, without limitation, changes in the Company's exploration and development plans and growth parameters and its ability to fund its growth to reach its expected new record production numbers; unanticipated costs; the October 24 measures having impacts on business operations not current expected, or new sanctions being imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department or other government entity in Nicaragua in the future; and other risks and uncertainties as disclosed in the Company's public disclosure filings on SEDAR at www.sedarplus.com. Such information contained herein represents management's best judgment as of the date hereof, based on information currently available. Mako does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE: Mako Mining Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com PARIS, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading printer solution provider Pantum is bringing its latest products at IT Partners 2024, taking place at Disneyland Paris from March 13-14. Some of the products on show will include a new series of 22PPM A4 monochrome laser printers, 20PPM A4 color laser printers, and 30PPM A3 color LED printers. The trade event brings together the IT, telecoms, and audiovisual channel industry communities for extensive exchanges. During the premier IT trade show, Pantum will connect with a wide variety of customer groups and tap into new market opportunities, with the goal of amplifying its brand recognition throughout Europe and the wider sector. "We're very honored to be part of the IT Partners 2024 exhibition and showcase our latest products and innovations in the European market. Pantum always insists on placing innovation, excellence, and customer-centricity at the core of the brand, and commits to sustainable development through design and technological innovation, to bring users efficient and reliable printer products and services," said Jose Ballesteros, the Deputy Manager of Pantum Holland Branch Office. Smart Classic Series: Cost-effective, Compact, and Hassle-Free Printing Solution At IT Partners 2024, Pantum will introduce the Smart Classic series, a cost-effective printing solution with a compact design that's suitable for your desk and office setup. High printing quality at 22 pages per minute (ppm) for A4-sized paper (monochrome) Driverless setup for Windows 10/11 and one-click driver installation for other operating systems Versatile connectivity options including USB, wired connections, 2.4 Ghz/5 Ghz dual-band Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, Pantum mobile app for seamless connectivity ID card copy automatic correction feature Select models equipped with Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) for enhanced functionality and productivity Vibrant 20 Series: High-Speed Printing with Advanced Features and Enhanced Connectivity The Pantum Vibrant 20 Series caters to a wide range of user scenarios. It is well-suited for small offices or home offices, offering high printing speed and versatile features that enhance office productivity. High printing speed at 20ppm for both monochrome and color Ceramic heating technology with ENERGY STAR 3.0 compliance 3.0 compliance Cartridge options with up to 3,000 pages for monochrome and 2,500 pages for color Enhanced connectivity options: wired and wireless networks, Bluetooth, USB, and shared printers One-click driver installation for quick and effortless setup ID card copy automatic correction feature CM2100ADW model with sleek design and 3.5-inch touchscreen Advanced functions: borderless printing, watermarking, and handling multi-page documents High-security printers with Nessus and AWVS testing for document protection Long-awaited Ultra 330 series: A Highly Efficient A3 Color LED Printer The Ultra 330 series, on the other hand, stands out as a highly efficient model for office applications, combining high-quality printing, advanced features, and robust security measures. Rapid startup time and preheat function High-speed printing at 30ppm for both monochrome and color Scanning rate of 55ppm and 110-page Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) High-resolution LED printing capabilities up to 1200x2400 dpi (color) and 1200x1200 dpi (monochrome) User-friendly 7-inch touchscreen and various finishing options Security features: password protection, user authentication, and encryption options Advanced document management with watermarking, booklet creation, and versatile scanning delivery options With a strong commitment to innovation, customer-centricity, and sustainable development, Pantum will continually expand its strong product portfolio while forging more expansive partnerships centered on consistent growth. "Moving forward, Pantum will bring more innovative products and deliver premium series printers to our customers, while guaranteeing that our offerings align seamlessly with evolving consumer needs and expectations," said Jose Ballesteros. About Pantum Founded in 2010, Pantum is a printer manufacturer, with its business covering printers, printing materials, and printing solutions and services. In 2011, Pantum began its overseas expansion with a current global footprint of more than 110 countries. With its patented technology, Pantum is committed to meeting evolving printing needs by offering economical, user-friendly, and energy-efficient products, as well as reliable printing solutions. Today, Pantum is now also bringing greater value to its customers through its cost-effective products and premium services. For more information, please visit our website, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube For any media inquiries, please contact: info@pantum.com. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361583/Pantum_IT_PARTNER.jpg Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361584/Pantum_IT_PARTNER_2.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/it-partners-2024-pantum-showcases-latest-products-accelerating-europe-market-development-302087905.html Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - KO Gold Inc. (CSE: KOG) ("KO Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has granted a total of 1,800,000 stock options ("Options") to purchase common shares of the Company to certain directors, officers and consultants pursuant to the Company's Stock Option Plan. Such Options are exercisable into common shares of the Company at an exercise price of $0.45 per common share for a period of two years from the date of grant. The Options vested on issuance. About KO Gold Inc. KO Gold is a Canadian junior mining company listed on the CSE under the ticker symbol "KOG". The Company's strategy is to acquire and explore highly prospective gold properties within the Otago Gold District in New Zealand. KO Gold has eight 100%-owned prospecting and exploration permits within the Otago Gold District, which includes the Smylers Gold Project for a combined land package of approximately 1,064 km2. The Smylers Gold Project is an advanced exploration project located adjacent to OceanaGold's active Macraes Gold Mine. The Smylers Gold Project has the potential to host a major gold deposit and has seen significant investments in exploration and drilling over the past few years including over C$1M spent by KO Gold on exploration including reverse circulation (RC) and diamond drilling. For further information, please contact: Greg Isenor, President and CEO, Director Tel: (902) 832-5555 Email: info@kogoldnz.com Website: www.kogoldnz.com KO Gold Inc. Suite 802 - Sun Tower, 1550 Bedford Highway Bedford, Nova Scotia B4A 1E6 Canada The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Neither the CSE nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Forward-Looking Information The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements." Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201509 SOURCE: KO Gold Inc. Brampton, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Star Navigation Systems Group Ltd. (CSE: SNA) (CSE: SNA.CN) ("Star" or the "Company") wishes to announce the resignations of Mr. Karl Reichert and Mr. Anoop Brar from the Board of Directors effective immediately and the appointments of Mr. Alessandro Cunsolo, M.Eng and Ms. Amanpreet Kaur-Purewal to the Board effective immediately. Mr. Reichert has been a steady solid advisor to the Management of Star as both a Director and a long time-investor for many years. For personal reasons he was not able to devote the time he felt necessary to be an effective Board member. The Company wants to thank Karl for his years of service and support and wishes him all the best in the future. Mr. Brar has resigned as both Director and Chief Technical Officer to pursue other endeavors and the Company thanks Mr. Brar for his efforts and wishes him all the best in the future. The Company is pleased to announce the additions of both Mr. Alessandro Cunsolo and Ms. Amanpreet Kaur-Purewal to the Star Board. Mr. Cunsolo presents a new face of relevant expertise with a shared vision for the future of STAR. He holds a Masters degree in Aerospace Engineering, from which he obtained a strong research background in predictive AI systems and the optimization of design for manufacturing processes. He has over 6 years of experience serving on boards of directors at the faculty, provincial and national levels throughout his undergrad, and currently serves as chairperson for the TMU faculty of Science and faculty of Engineering societies. He currently works in additive manufacturing consulting, and as of November 2023 has obtained his first US patent for a detachable skate tightening system. He is well versed in aviation technology and is actively pursuing his pilot's license with plans to one day become a commercial pilot. Ms. Purewal has her Juris Doctor from Lincoln Law School. She was recently In-House Counsel for Kaiser Permanente out of California, USA where she focused on Mitigation expert-risk management, analysis and response. About Star Navigation Systems - www.star-navigation.com Star Navigation Systems Group Ltd. manufactures the In-flight Safety Monitoring System, STAR-ISMS, the heart of the STAR-A.D.S. System. The STAR-A.D.S. System has real-time capability of tracking, performance trends and predicting incident-occurrences which enhances aviation safety and improves fleet management while reducing costs for the operator. Star's MMI Division (Military and Defence) designs and manufactures high performance, mission critical, flight deck flat panel displays for defence and commercial aviation industries worldwide. Forward-Looking Information Certain statements in this news release may constitute "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements are statements that address or discuss activities, events or developments that Star expects or anticipates may occur in the future. When used in this news release, words such as "estimates", "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "projects", "will", "believes", "intends" "should", "could", "may" and other similar terminology are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations and beliefs of Star's management. Because forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, actual results, performance or achievements of Star or the industry may be materially different from those implied by such forward-looking statements. Examples of such forward-looking information that may be contained in this news release include statements regarding; growth and future prospects of our business; our perceptions of the industry and markets in which we operate and anticipated trends in such markets; expectations regarding the operation of our app; and our future revenues. Material factors or assumptions that were applied in drawing a conclusion or making an estimate set out in the forward-looking statements may include, but are not limited to, our ability to execute on our business plan, increase visibility amongst consumers and convert users to revenue producing subscribers and the success of the business of our partners. Forward-looking statements involve significant uncertainties, should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be an accurate indication of whether or not such results will be achieved. Should one or more of these factors or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Accordingly, readers should exercise caution in relying upon forward-looking statements and Star undertakes no obligation to publicly revise them to reflect subsequent events or circumstances, except as required by law. NEITHER CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE. Please visit www.star-navigation.com or contact Randy Koroll, Chief Financial Officer at 1-416-252-2889 x228 randy.koroll@star-navigation.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201533 SOURCE: Star Navigation Systems Group Ltd. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese yen weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Wednesday. The yen fell to a 5-day low of 161.73 against the euro, from an early high of 160.90. Against the pound, the U.S. dollar and the Swiss franc, the yen slipped to 189.26, 148.05 and 168.50 from early highs of 188.42, 147.24 and 167.82, respectively. Against the Australia and the Canadian dollars, the yen slid to 5-day lows of 97.80 and 109.75 from early highs of 97.24 and 109.13, respectively. Moving away from an early high of 90.53 against the NZ dollar, the yen dropped to a 2-day low of 91.12. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 163.00 against the euro, 192.00 against the pound, 150.00 against the greenback, 170.00 against the franc, 99.00 against the aussie, 111.00 against the loonie and 93.00 against the kiwi. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Transaction would take I Squared's stake to 100% and will support Rubis Terminal in its continued growth and diversification, notably into energy transition opportunities. I Squared Capital, a leading independent global infrastructure investment manager, today announced it had entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire the remaining 55% stake in Rubis Terminal that it does not already own from Rubis SCA, a French energy group. If completed, the transaction would bring I Squared's ownership of Rubis Terminal to 100%, reinforcing its commitment to the company. The equity value of the acquired stake is 375 million. Commenting on the acquisition, Mohamed El Gazzar, Senior Partner, I Squared Capital said: "With facilities at the heart of some of the most important trading hubs in Europe, Rubis Terminal plays a critical role in supporting the energy transition and ensuring security of supply. This transaction underscores I Squared's confidence in Rubis Terminal's transition strategy and our commitment to its continued growth." Rubis Terminal is among the leading players in Europe in the bulk liquid and gas storage sector with 4 million cubic meters of storage capacity across France, Spain and the Northern European hubs of Antwerp and Rotterdam. I Squared initially invested in Rubis Terminal in January 2020, purchasing 45% of the equity stake held by Rubis to implement a strategy of diversification and geographic expansion, which has created significant value for the company. Over the last four years, and with the support of I Squared, Rubis Terminal has successfully acquired and integrated TEPSA, a leading storage provider to the chemical and biofuel sectors in Spain, disposed of an oil-weighted terminal in Turkey, invested nearly 150 million into the expansion of primarily chemical and biofuel capacities across all geographies, and put in place a highly attractive infrastructure financing package. As a result of such initiatives, more than 70% of Rubis Terminal's revenues today are derived from sustainable products and the company has a robust pipeline of projects to further diversify its product mix. Looking ahead, Rubis Terminal is well-positioned to play a key role in the energy transition with the ambition to serve as the go-to logistics provider to new energy developers. Closing Conditions This contemplated transaction remains subject to the information and consultation process of the relevant employee representative bodies in accordance with applicable laws, as well as customary regulatory approvals including antitrust authorities and foreign investment committees. Closing is expected by mid-year 2024. About I Squared Capital I Squared is a leading independent global infrastructure investment manager with over $38 billion in assets under management focused on investing in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Headquartered in Miami, the firm has more than 260 professionals across its offices in London, New Delhi, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Taipei. I Squared Capital has invested in a diverse portfolio of 82 companies with over 66,000 employees in 71 countries across the utilities, energy, digital infrastructure, transport, environmental infrastructure, and social infrastructure sectors providing essential services to millions of people around the world. You can find out more by visiting: www.isquaredcapital.com I Squared in Europe I Squared has been investing in Europe out of London since 2013 and has owned and operated 14 European infrastructure companies in 26 countries. Its portfolio spans high quality, resilient infrastructure assets in the energy, waste, transportation and logistics, and telecoms industries. Disclaimer No discussion with respect to specific companies should be considered a recommendation to purchase or sell any particular investment. The companies discussed do not represent all past investments. It should not be assumed that any of the investments discussed were or will be profitable, or that recommendations or decisions made in the future will be profitable. Past performance is not indicative of future results, and there can be no assurance that any investment will achieve similar returns. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312759482/en/ Contacts: I Squared Brunswick Group isquared@brunswickgroup.com UK: Fiona Micallef-Eynaud Peter Hesse +44 207 404 5959 France: Aude Lepreux +33 (0)1 53 96 83 83 TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / ARway.ai ("ARway" or the "Company") (CSE:ARWY)(OTCQB:ARWYF)(FSE:E65) is an AI powered Augmented Reality Experience platform with a disruptive no-code, no beacon spatial computing solution enabled by visual marker tracking with centimeter precision is pleased to announce multiple new student plan subscriptions with prestigious universities around the globe. These partnerships signify a growing demand and adoption of ARway's platform for research and education programs, showcasing the increasing interest among educators, students, and researchers in the implications of XR/AR technologies. As part of these new global student plan subscriptions, senior post-secondary students, masters students and Ph.D students enrolled in accredited educational institutions will have access to the ARway Student Plan. These students have funding from their universities for specific courses and advanced degrees including computer science, spatial computing, and more. This plan, designed to enhance their research and educational experiences, requires a valid student ID and student email for enrollment. The ARway Student Plan offers a comprehensive suite of ARway's innovative tools and resources and is valid for 6 months from the activation date, providing students ample time to explore the possibilities of augmented reality in their academic pursuits. The universities include: Indonesia - Bicol University Pakistan - DHA Suffa University Canada - University of Alberta These partnerships mark the beginning of a new era in education, where augmented reality opens doors to boundless possibilities for exploration and discovery. Students from these institutions will be utilizing ARway's innovative technology for specific research programs, enhancing their educational experiences and opening new doors for scholarly exploration. These partnerships underscore ARway's commitment to advancing academic endeavors through cutting-edge AR solutions. ARway's platform provides students and researchers with tools to create immersive and interactive experiences, revolutionizing the way they approach research and learning. By enabling visualization and simulation in three-dimensional space, ARway empowers scholars to explore complex concepts and data sets with unprecedented clarity. The growing interest in ARway's platform for research and education programs underscores the transformative impact of XR/AR technologies in academic settings. As universities worldwide continue to embrace the potential of augmented reality, ARway remains committed to supporting their endeavors with innovative solutions. Existing Deals in Educator Sector This news follows ARway's deals in the Education sector directly with universities including Suleyman Demirel Universitesi situated in Isparta, Turkey and with Germany's prestigious Institut fur Innovations- und Informationsmanagement (iFii). Suleyman University currently has approx 70,000 students enrolled, making it the second-largest academic institution in Turkey. ARway's innovative technology aims to revolutionize the way visitors interact with and navigate through indoor environments within the university campus. The partnership with iFii aims to revolutionize the way faculty and visitors experience its campus using an intuitive AR experience and AR-powered navigation, it added. Highlighting the depth of the collaboration, iFii will implement, evaluate and publish research on over 20 different use cases with ARway's technology. Watch a video example of ARway's technology implemented at a university campus: click here. Sign up for Investor News - HERE To learn more about ARway, please follow on Social Media: Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook, and visit our website: www.arway.ai. About ARway.ai ARway.ai (CSE:ARWY) (OTCQB:ARWYF) (FSE:E65) is a spatial computing platform powered by artificial intelligence (AI) providing an array of augmented reality (AR) experiences for indoor spaces. ARway's breakthrough no-code no-beacon IPN allows for the easy creation of navigation, tours, information sharing, notifications, advertising and gamification. ARway works seamlessly as a cross platform solution on iOS/ Android. ARway's technology is optimized for both mobile devices and AR glasses: Apple's Vision Pro, Magic Leap and Microsoft's HoloLens. ARway has unlimited use cases for augmenting physical spaces, making it a valuable tool for creators, brands and companies in various industries. The complete ARway platform includes: the Web Creator Studio, the ARwayKit Software Development Kit (SDK) and a mobile app for iOs and Android. Nextech 3D.ai On October 26, 2022, ARway.ai. was spun-out from its parent Company, Nextech3D.ai (OTCQX:NEXCF) (CSE:NTAR) (FSE:1SS). Nextech retained a control ownership in ARway.ai. with 13 million shares, or a 50% stake. Nextech3D.ai is a Generative AI powered 3D modeling Company and leading provider of augmented reality ("AR") experience technologies and 3D model services. Nextech's AI-powered 3D modeling platform, "ARitize3D" has contracts with; AMZN, KSS, CB2, Genuine Parts & many others. To learn more about Nextech3D.ai, visit www.nextechar.com For further information, please contact: Investor Relations Contact Julia Viola investor.relations@arway.ai ARway.ai Evan Gappelberg CEO and Director 866-ARITIZE (274-8493) Forward-looking Statements The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Certain information contained herein may constitute "forward-looking information" under Canadian securities legislation. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as, "will be" or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "will" occur. Forward-looking statements regarding the completion of the transaction are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. ARway.ai will not update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information that are incorporated by reference herein, except as required by applicable securities laws. SOURCE: ARway Corporation View the original press release on accesswire.com COQUITLAM, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Grid Battery Metals Inc. (the "Company" or "Grid") (TSXV:CELL)(OTCQB:EVKRF)(FRA:NMK2) is pleased announce that it will immediately begin the 2024 Exploration Program on its Clayton Valley Lithium Project. The planned exploration program is identified in the NI 43-101 Technical Report completed by Mr. Steven McMillin P.G. filed on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) and viewed on the Company's website at Clayton Valley Technical Report. Clayton Valley Lithium Project Furthermore, the Company has selected Rangefront Geological ("Rangefront") to perform both a detailed soil sampling on a 250 m X 250 m spacing and to oversee a CSAMT geophysical survey performed by KLM Geoscience. The CSAMT survey is a preferred method for identifying strata that may contain lithium brine (evidenced by low resistivity), and structures that potentially focus brine. The soil sampling will identify where subsurface brine may have reached the surface. The combination of CSAMT and geochemistry will assist the Company in determining the next steps for its 2024 exploration including the planning of a first phase drill program. For over a decade, Rangefront has combined in-depth expertise with cutting-edge technology to provide mining consulting services, contract labor, field crew services, and vehicular support to the mining industry. With services available across North America, Rangefront will work closely with Grid to provide high-quality soil sampling and mineral exploration program tailored to the Clayton Valley Lithium project. Tim Fernback, Grid President & CEO comments "Rangefront is a company that our geological team has successfully used several times in the past for lithium exploration work in Nevada for both Grid and other companies that we have managed in the past, including work done by Surge Battery Metals. This soil sampling program will take place immediately, and the CSAMT survey will begin on March 18, 2024 by experienced operator KLM Geoscience. This soil sampling together with planned geophysics and geochemistry on our Nevada lithium property, will allow us to select drill targets for subsequent exploration programs later in the year. Here, we plan to select four drill locations to reach depths of 1000 ft each. After this is complete, Grid plans to create a 3D model and provide an interpretation of the underground area for its shareholders." About Rangefront Geological Elko Nevada-based Rangefront Geological has combined in-depth expertise with cutting-edge technology to provide mining consulting services, contract labor, field crew services, and vehicular support to the mining industry. With services available across North America, Rangefront works closely with its clients to provide high-quality mineral exploration services. About KLM Geoscience LLC KLM Geoscience is an industry-leading, Nevada-based geophysical exploration company, established in 2014. KLM specializes in a wide array of geophysical methods. Using state of the art equipment, KLM's services include induced polarization (IP), natural-source magnetotellurics (MT, AMT), controlled-source audio-frequency magnetotellurics (CSAMT), passive seismic and magnetic potential field surveys. KLM prides itself on its safety procedures and logistical planning, which allows us to efficiently survey in difficult and technical terrain. Its head office location in Nevada allows KLM to rapidly mobilize and begin work at a moment's notice throughout the Western United States and beyond. Qualified Person Mr. Steven McMillin, P.G. is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has approved the technical information contained within this news release. About Grid Battery Metals Inc. Grid Battery Metals Inc. is a Canadian based exploration company whose primary listing is on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company's maintains a focus on exploration for high value battery metals required for the electric vehicle (EV) market. www.gridbatterymetals.com . About Texas Springs Property The Company owns a 100% interest in the Texas Spring Property which consists of mineral lode claims located in Elko County, Nevada. The Property is in the Granite Range southeast of Jackpot, Nevada, about 73 km north-northeast of Wells, Nevada. The target is a lithium clay deposit in volcanic tuff and tuffaceous sediments of the Humbolt Formation. A Phase 1 exploration program at the Texas Springs Property (Fall 2023) yielded results with average lithium grades of 2010 ppm, applying a 1,000 ppm cut-off, and up to 5,610 ppm Lithium. The Texas Spring property adjoins the southern border of the Nevada North Lithium Project - owned by Surge Battery Metals Inc. ("Surge") (TSXV:NILI),(OTC:NILIF) and comprised of 725 mineral claims. Surge's first round of drilling identified strongly mineralized lithium bearing clays. The average lithium content within all near surface clay zones intersected in the 2022 drilling program, applying a 1000 ppm cut-off, was 3254 ppm. (Press release March 29, 2023). More recent results have shown higher grade lithium up to 8070 ppm on this property after initial drilling (Press release September 12, 2023). Our exploration results are on-trend with these results. About Clayton Valley Lithium Project The Company owns a 100% interest in 113 lithium lode and placer claims covering over 640 hectares in Clayton Valley. Clayton Valley is a down-dropped closed basin formed by the Miocene age Great Basin extension and is still active due to movement along the Walker Lane structural zone. As a result, the basin has preserved multiple layers of lithium bearing volcanic ash, resulting from multiple eruptive events over the past 6 million years including eruptions from the 700,000-year-old Long Valley Caldera system and related events. These ash layers are thought to contribute to the lithium brines extracted by Albemarle and are also likely involved in the formation of the exposed lithium rich clay deposits on the east side of Clayton Valley. Volt Canyon Lithium Property The Company owns a 100% interest in 80 placer claims covering approximately 635 hectares of alluvial sediments and clays located 122 km northeast of Tonopah, Nevada. About the British Columbia, Nickel Projects The Mount Sidney Williams Group consists of three claim blocks with a total area of 10,569 hectares in the area surrounding Mount Sidney Williams, both adjoining and near the Decar project of FPX Nickel Corp., located 100 kilometres northwest of Fort St. James, B.C., in the Omineca mining division. Metallic mineralization includes nickel, cobalt, and chromium. At least some of the nickel mineralization occurs as awaruite. The Mitchell Range Group area claim consists of one claim block covering 8,659 hectares with demonstrated metallic mineralization including nickel, cobalt, and chromium. Nickel cobalt mineralization has not been well explored, but the presence of awaruite has been documented. The Company's B.C. Nickel properties are held within Grid's wholly-owned subsidiary, AC/DC Battery Metals Inc. The Company has previously announced plans to spin out its wholly-owned subsidiary, AC/DC Battery Metals Inc., finance it separately, and separately list it on the TSX Venture Exchange in 2024. This transaction once complete, will provide a valuable share dividend to each Grid Shareholder of record for no additional cost. On Behalf of the Board of Directors "Tim Fernback" Tim Fernback, President & CEO Contact Information: Email: info@gridbatterymetals.com Phone: 604- 428-5690 Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain forward-looking statements which include, but are not limited to, comments that involve future events and conditions, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Except for statements of historical facts, comments that address resource potential, upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt and security of mineral property titles, availability of funds, and others are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may vary materially from those statements. General business conditions are factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from forward-looking statements. It should be noted that results from any adjacent property(s) are not an indication of what may be found on the Company's property(s). SOURCE: Grid Battery Metals Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have secured their parties' nomination for the presidential candidate by winning Tuesday's state primaries, setting the stage for a potential presidential rematch between them in November. The nominations will be officially declared at Republican and Democratic party conventions, scheduled to be held this summer. Biden is projected to win the Democratic primary in Georgia, Mississippi, Washington, the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands, and in the primary for Democrats Abroad. Biden crossed the threshold of 1,968 out of 3,934 delegates that is required to win the Democratic nomination. The 81-year-old president reportedly picked up an estimated 2099 delegates. 'Today's a day, a call to action,' Biden said in a new campaign video posted on X. 'With your voice, with your power, with your vote - come November, we will vote in record numbers, and can do it, we have the power to do it. Are you ready? Are you ready to defend democracy? Are you ready to protect our freedom? Are you ready to win this election?'. Trump took to the same social media platform, and made a swipe at his opponent, saying, 'Now we have to get back to work because we have the worst president in the history of country. His name is Joe Biden, sometimes referred to as crooked Joe Biden, and he must be defeated.' To win the Republican nomination, a candidate needs 1,215 of 2,429 delegates. Having won most of the primaries that polled so far, Trump achieved that target easily, winning a total of 1228 delegates, according to reports. The latest GOP primaries were held in Mississippi, Georgia and Washington State, and a caucus in Hawaii. Primary elections are due in many more states before the November 5 final voting. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken LONDON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The London Blockchain Conference is excited to announce the launch of its ground-breaking campaign, 'Crypto is Dead'. The campaign signals a significant shift from the crypto gold-rush to real-world blockchain applications. The 'Crypto is Dead' campaign started on 29th February 2024 with the London Blockchain Conference creating and executing content on/with several media platforms and partnerships: The Raconteur/Times inserts (29/02/2024) - Print and digital advert/editorial sponsored pieces Social media campaign focused on Facebook Burning billboard fake-Out-of-Home - Live on London Blockchain Conference social accounts The 'Crypto is Dead 'campaign is designed to shift the narrative away from cryptocurrency speculation and towards the transformative power of BSV Blockchain technology. The London Blockchain Conference aims to educate and inspire individuals, enterprises and governments about the potential and advancement of blockchain. Alex Stein, Conference Director, said, "We need people to stop thinking about Blockchain as crypto. Blockchain is an underlying technology that can solve real-world problems for enterprises and governments. We want to move the needle on the adoption of blockchain by enterprises and governments because we see it as the natural next step in the global digital transformation. The next wave of transformation is going to be about harnessing blockchain technology." The three-day London Blockchain Conference at the ExCel will bring together politicians, business leaders, and innovators. The conference will be running from 21 - 23 May 2024 and will focus on disruptive and the real-world application of blockchain technology and the impact it is having on politics, emerging technologies and enterprises. For more information about the 'Crypto is Dead' campaign, visit the London Blockchain Conference 2024 website. About the London Blockchain Conference NETWORK. LEARN. ENGAGE. At the London Blockchain Conference, we show how Blockchain will change the world and help people see another way to manage data, build scalable on-chain solutions and achieve great things. We do this by creating valuable, insightful, and engaging events that educate and inform, allowing you to connect and network to build strong business relationships. Our conference is the best avenue to see blockchain innovations, ecosystem announcements, product launches, technology updates, keynote speeches, panels, and fireside chats from blockchain leaders. Join us and experience it for yourself. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/london-blockchain-conference-launches-disruptive-marketing-campaign-crypto-is-dead-302088016.html Bob Egelko has been a reporter since June 1970. He spent 30 years with the Associated Press, covering news, politics and occasionally sports in Los Angeles, San Diego and Sacramento, and legal affairs in San Francisco from 1984 onward. He worked for the San Francisco Examiner for five months in 2000, then joined The Chronicle in November 2000. His beat includes state and federal courts in California, the Supreme Court and the State Bar. He has a law degree from McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento and is a member of the bar. Coverage has included the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978, the appointment of Rose Bird to the state Supreme Court and her removal by the voters, the death penalty in California and the battles over gay rights and same-sex marriage. He can be reached at begelko@sfchronicle.com. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl MOSCOW (dpa-AFX) - The United States has announced an emergency package of security assistance of $300 million worth of weapons and equipment to address some of Ukraine's pressing needs. Announcing this at a White House briefing, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the emergency package is one that Ukraine desperately needs to hold the line against Russian attacks and to push back against the continuing Russian onslaught in the east and in other parts of Ukraine. 'This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period but only a short period. It is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs, and it will not prevent Ukraine from running out of ammunition in the weeks to come.' Sullivan told reporters that the U.S. cannot continue to support Ukraine's fight against Russia without additional funding from Congress. 'This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period,' Sullivan said. 'This package does not displace and should not delay the critical need to pass the bipartisan national security bill.' Capabilities provided in the latest military package include Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), artillery shells, anti-tank weapons, demolitions, and small arms ammunition, and spare parts and other ancillary equipment. Since Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, the U.S. has provided some $44.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. This latest round of presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, is the first this year and was made possible after the Army negotiated a lower price for replacing supplies already sent to Ukraine. With that finding, additional funds became available. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / VIOR INC. (TSXV:VIO),(OTCQB:VIORF) and (FRANKFURT:VL51) and SOQUEM INC. are pleased to announce the results of their 2023 field exploration program at their Skyfall Project ("Skyfall" or "the Project"). Vior's field work has confirmed the multi-mineral potential of the Skyfall property, including the significant discovery of a polymetallic gold-copper-cobalt (Au-Cu-Co) Forezien showing (2.9g/t Au, 0.09% Cu, and 0.18% Co) along an 800m electromagnetic (EM) axis, as well as nickel (Ni) potential for magmatic-type nickel-copper +/- platinum group elements (Ni-Cu+/-PGE) mineralization areas associated with newly mapped komatiitic volcanic units. This work was conducted with a combination of helicopter-borne VTEM Plus geophysical survey, fieldwork, and systematic outcrop sampling of EM conductors. A detailed presentation of the geological context is available on the Vior website HERE. Mark Fedosiewich, President and CEO of Vior, commented, "We are pleased with these early results that confirm some large-scale multi-mineralized systems that reinforce the Project's discovery potential. Although the assessed samples represent only a small portion of the vast property due to the impact of 2023 forest fires, we look forward to resuming fieldwork in the 2024 season to determine the Project's potential over the remaining expanse of land." The Skyfall Project is located approximately 150 km east of Lebel-sur-Quevillon, and 50 km east of the world-class Windfall gold project being developed by Osisko Mining Inc., in partnership with Gold Fields Ltd. This district-scale property covers an area of 545km2, includes 985 claims, and straddles two geological provinces. The northern domain consists of the eastern end of the Urban-Barry greenstone belt, while the southern domain consists of the Grenville Province parautochtone sequence (Figure 1). Vior recently identified potential for nickel and polymetallic sulphide mineralization and has partnered with SOQUEM to prioritize further exploration. (See Vior Press Release dated March 7, 2023.) About the exploration potential at Skyfall The northern domain of the Project (Figure 1) features numerous multi-kilometre ultramafic rock horizons intercalated within metasedimentary and basaltic sequences. The ultramafic rock, mostly recognized as komatiites, is spatially associated with strong VTEM Plus conductors defining prime targets for the discovery of magmatic-type Ni-Cu+/-PGE mineralization. Given the abbreviated 2023 field activity, numerous EM conductors have not yet been sampled. conductors defining prime targets for the discovery of magmatic-type Ni-Cu+/-PGE mineralization. Given the abbreviated 2023 field activity, numerous EM conductors have not yet been sampled. The southern domain of the Project (Figure 1) consists of units of the Grenvillian parautochtone and is host of the recently identified Forezien showing. The showing sample was taken in a massive sulphide unit about 1m in thickness and corresponds to a horizon formed by several EM conductors from the VTEM Plus , extending over a distance of more than 800m (Figure 2). This showing is surrounded by a highly prospective area of 35km 2 that consists of multi-kilometre bands of ultramafic rocks, amphibolites and metasedimentary units. , extending over a distance of more than 800m (Figure 2). This showing is surrounded by a highly prospective area of 35km that consists of multi-kilometre bands of ultramafic rocks, amphibolites and metasedimentary units. This prospective area contains strong anomalies in Cu, Co values, and Ni background (Figure 2) in outcrops, indicating a large prospective polymetallic mineralized systems environment. In several locations, the combined sum of the three elements exceeds 0.3% Cu-Co-Ni. Other highly anomalous values were detected outside of this area, notably at Lac Augusta (10km further east, still in the parautochtone) with a maximum combined value of 0.46% Cu-Co-Ni. Outlook 2024 The Vior team will resume fieldwork in Spring-Summer 2024. Work will focus on stripping and trenching of multiple recognized nickel prospects, including the Forezien showing, and surrounding area. Regional exploration will continue with Beep Mat prospecting on the VTEM Plus conductors that have not yet been assessed. Overall, three metalliferous environments will be assessed for the following: magmatic Ni, Co, Cu and platinum group elements (PGE) mineralization within ultramafic rocks; the possible remobilization of these same primary mineralizations within adjacent metasediments; and the possibility of hydrothermal-type Au, Co, Cu mineralization, also hosted in metasediments. Figure 1: Skyfall Project location Figure 2: Location of the Forezien showing in the 35km2 prospective zone enriched with Cu and Co. Other News Vior wishes to announce that, effective February 13, 2024, it has mutually terminated its the digital marketing and investor relations agreement with Machai Capital Inc. (see Vior press release of January 10, 2024 and Vior press release of February 7, 2024). Also, as per Vior's stock option plan, the 360,000 stock options granted to Machai with the agreement did not vest, and lapsed on February 13, 2024. About VIOR Vior is a junior mineral exploration corporation based in the province of Quebec, Canada, whose corporate strategy is to generate, explore, and develop high-quality mineral projects in the proven and favourable mining jurisdiction of Quebec. Through the years, Vior's management and technical teams have demonstrated their ability to discover several gold deposits and many high-quality mineral prospects. Vior is rapidly advancing its flagship Belleterre Gold Project with the strategic support of Osisko Mining Inc. The Belleterre Gold Project is an exciting district-scale property that includes Quebec's past-producing high-grade Belleterre gold mine. Vior has conducted extensive exploration at the Belleterre property and is finalizing plans for a +50,000m drill program. Vior is also actively developing its promising Skyfall Project in partnership with SOQUEM Inc., as well as several other properties with multi-mineral potential. About SOQUEM Inc. SOQUEM Inc. is a subsidiary of Investissement Quebec and is dedicated to promoting the exploration, discovery and development of mining properties in Quebec. SOQUEM also contributes to maintaining strong local economies and is a proud partner and ambassador for the development of Quebec's mineral wealth. SOQUEM relies on innovation, research, and strategic minerals to be well-positioned for the future. Qualified Person The technical content disclosed in this press release was reviewed and approved by Laurent Eustache, Executive Vice-President, Vior, and Christian Blanchet, Operations Manager, Vior, both Qualified Persons as per NI 43-101. About QA/QC Controls Vior has implemented a quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) program to ensure sampling and analysis of all exploration work is conducted in accordance with industry best practices, including certified reference material (CRM) standards and blank material inserted every 20 samples. Sample preparation and gold analyses were performed either at Activation Laboratories Ltd (Actlabs) in Sainte-Germaine-Boule, QC or by SGS Canada Inc., with samples prepared at the SGS Sudbury, and analysis of samples performed at the SGS Burnaby site in BC. All samples were analyzed for gold by fire assays (50g) with an atomic absorption finish or ICP-AES technique. Repeats were conducted by fire assay (50g) followed by gravimetric testing on each sample containing more than 3.0 g/t Au. Selected samples are also analyzed for multi-elements, including silver, using a four-acid digestion finish ICP-MS method. High-grade silver was repeated by 'aqua regia' digestion ICP-OES finish. For further information, please contact: Mark Fedosiewich President and CEO 613-898-5052 mfedosiewich@vior.ca Laurent Eustache Executive Vice-President 514-442-7707 leustache@vior.ca www.vior.ca SEDAR: Vior Inc. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the Policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements. All statements, other than of historical facts, that address activities, events or developments that the Corporation believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future including, without limitation, the planned exploration program on the Belleterre project, the expected positive exploration results, the timing of the exploration results, the ability of the Corporation to continue with the exploration program, the availability of the required funds to continue with the exploration and the approval from the Ministere de l'energie et des ressources naturelle ("MERN") of the request for abandonment of the two mining concessions filed by 9293-0122 Quebec Inc. are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of the words "will", "should", "continue", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "believe", "intend", "to earn", "to have', "plan" or "project" or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Corporation's ability to control or predict, that may cause the actual results of the Corporation to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include, among other things, failure to meet expected, estimated or planned exploration expenditures, the possibility that future exploration results will not be consistent with the Corporation's expectations, general business and economic conditions, changes in world gold markets, sufficient labour and equipment being available, changes in laws and permitting requirements, unanticipated weather changes, title disputes and claims, environmental risks, the refusal by the MERN to approve the request for abandonment of the two mining concessions held by 9293-0122 Quebec Inc. as well as those risks identified in the Corporation's annual Management's Discussion and Analysis. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described and accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. The Corporation does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements except as otherwise required by applicable law. SOURCE: Vior Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / BTU METALS CORP. ("BTU" or the "Company") (TSX-V:BTU)(OTCQB:BTUMF) announces updates on the exploration work completed on the Dixie Halo Project optioned to Kinross Gold Corporation (K-TSX). Kinross holds their interests in the area in a wholly owned subsidiary Great Bear Resources Ltd. ("GBR"). The Company's Dixie Halo project is a strategic, large land position adjacent to the world class Great Bear gold deposit southeast of the main Red Lake Gold camp area in northwestern Ontario. The Dixie Halo Project is located adjacent to Kinross' Great Bear project (the "Great Bear Project") where Kinross has budgeted $85 million for 2024 for the continuing exploration and development of what they refer to as a world class gold deposit. Kinross continues to expand the envelope of the known gold mineralization down-dip and along strike and they have also announced plans to explore outside the known mineralization this year. Kinross recently announced deep drill hole results on the Great Bear Project that included an intersection of 389.57 g/t gold over a 4.4 m core length (Drill hole BR843AC1A). Exploration Summary and Exploration Plan for 2024 A state-of-the-art airborne magnetic survey was completed in late 2023 using the same contractor (Geotech Ltd.) and the same airborne geophysical system as was used at the Great Bear project to provide a seamless, consistent high-quality airborne magnetic dataset to generate a solid base for updated geophysical interpretation and geological correlation across the Great Bear and Dixie Halo projects. Detailed interpretation of the data is ongoing. GBR is continuing work under the Option Agreement including an ongoing program of re-logging and sampling of all of the BTU drill core using its ever-expanding experience and geological knowledge they have amassed in relation to the gold mineralization at the Great Bear project. GBR will use the sampling protocols used at Great Bear to provide a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the geology and alteration on the Dixie Halo project and to provide an expanded basis for the correlation of geological units and alteration throughout the area. GBR plans to complete a geological review and sampling of various outcrop areas of interest on Dixie Halo including some of the areas worked in the past by BTU. As the various review, relogging and sampling results are received and compiled by GBR, an initial core drilling program will be planned and GBR expects to be in a position to execute an initial drill program once it has secured an exploration permit from the Ontario government. Under the option agreement GBR is required to spend not less than $2.7 million over the first three years and a total of $4.7 million to earn a 70% interest in the Dixie Halo property. The BTU-GBR option agreement closed on February 22, 2023. BTU CEO Paul Wood commented; "We are very pleased to be working with Kinross and the Great Bear project team as they carry on the exploration of the Dixie Halo project. We are excited to be involved as they apply their expertise to continue the evaluation of the best places to explore on the Dixie Halo project. We look forward to them defining the best available gold targets and then drill testing those targets. The knowledge and expertise they bring to the further evaluation of the Dixie Halo project are invaluable, given they are the experts at defining the structure, alteration and gold mineralization in the area." BTU has now received the $300,000 anniversary payment from GBR under the Purchase Agreement, bringing the Company's cash balance to approximately $1.7M. February 2023 transactions with GBR The Transactions entered into by BTU and GBR, in late February 2023 included: (i) a purchase agreement pursuant to which GBR acquired from BTU certain unpatented mining claims located in the Kenora District of Ontario, with BTU continuing to participate in those lands through a newly created royalty payable to BTU; (ii) an option agreement, which provides GBR with an option to earn a 70% interest in certain unpatented mining claims held by BTU located in the Kenora District of Ontario; and (iii) a subscription agreement pursuant to which GBR purchased 25,000,000 common shares of BTU at a purchase price of CAD$0.05 per common share. Asset Acquisition The Company entered into a purchase agreement with GBR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kinross, for the purchase (the "Acquisition") of certain unpatented mining claims located in the Kenora District of Ontario (the "Acquisition Properties"). The Acquisition Properties had a total area of 2,637 hectares and consisted of 39 Boundary Cell Mining Claims and 76 Single Cell Mining Claims located to the south of the Great Bear Project, as well as 2 Multi-cell Mining Claims located to the north of the Great Bear Project. BTU holds Net Smelter Royalties from 1.5% to 2.5% on these properties as well as underlying royalty buy back rights. The consideration payable by GBR pursuant to the Acquisition was: (i) CAD$1,550,000 in cash, with CAD$1,250,000 due immediately on closing and an additional CAD$300,000 due on the one-year anniversary of the closing date (received February 2024), and (ii) GBR issued to the Company a variable 1.5% - 2.5% NSR royalty on the Acquisition Properties (the "Royalty"), such that each Acquisition Property will have a cumulative total 4% NSR royalty attached to it upon the grant of the Royalty, once combined with the existing royalties payable over and in respect of the Acquisition Property. BTU will maintain any existing third-party royalty buy-back rights in respect of the Acquisition Properties. Figure 1: Map showing the Acquisition Properties, Optioned Properties ase well as Kinross' properties and the BTU/GoldON Pakwash properties. The Great Bear Project mineral resource is located on the northern Kinross property on this map. The Acquisition was an arm's length transaction pursuant to the policies of the TSX-V. About the Option Agreement The Company entered into a property option agreement (the "Option Agreement") with GBR, pursuant to which GBR has been granted the right to acquire an undivided 70% interest in and to 757 mining claims (12 Boundary Cell Mining Claims, 3 Multi-cell Mining Claims, and 742 Single Cell Mining Claims) covering approximately 16,410 hectares of land, located in the Kenora District of Ontario (the "Optioned Properties"). Pursuant to the terms of the Option Agreement, GBR has the option to acquire the 70% interest in the Optioned Properties in consideration for completing cash payments or exploration expenditures on the Optioned Properties, being: (i) CAD$2,700,000 in expenditures, to be incurred by GBR on or before the date that is 36 months from the effective date of the Option Agreement, and (ii) a further CAD$2,000,000 of expenditures, to be incurred by GBR in its sole discretion within 48 months from the effective date of the Option Agreement. In connection with a private placement in February 2023, GBR acquired 25,000,000 Common Shares. Pursuant to the private placement GBR held an aggregate of 25,000,000 Common Shares representing approximately 17.5% of the current issued and outstanding common shares on a non-diluted basis of the Company. About BTU BTU Metals Corp. is a junior mining exploration company focused on the Dixie Halo Project located in Red Lake, Ontario immediately adjacent to the Great Bear Project. The Company has no debt, no property obligations and maintains a cash balance of approximately $1.7M. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "Paul Wood" Paul Wood, CEO, Director pwood@btumetals.com BTU Metals Corp. Telephone: 1-604-683-3995 Toll Free: 1-888-945-4770 Cautionary Statement Trading in the securities of the Company should be considered highly speculative. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws that are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. The information in this release about future plans and objectives of the Company are forward-looking information. Other forward-looking information includes but is not limited to information concerning: the intentions, plans and future actions of the Company. Any statements that involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans", "budget", "scheduled", "forecasts", "estimates", "believes" or "intends" or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results "may" or "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking information and are intended to identify forward-looking information. This forward-looking information is based on reasonable assumptions and estimates of management of the Company at the time it was made, and involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others: risks relating to the global economic climate; dilution; future capital needs and uncertainty of additional financing; the competitive nature of the industry; currency exchange risks; the need for the Company to manage its planned growth and expansion; the effects of product development; protection of proprietary rights; the effect of government regulation and compliance on the Company and the industry; reliance on key personnel; global economic and financial market deterioration impeding access to capital or increasing the cost of capital; and volatile securities markets impacting security pricing unrelated to operating performance. The Company has also assumed that no significant events occur outside of the normal course of business. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking information other than as required by law. SOURCE: BTU Metals Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Crown Holdings, Inc. On International Women's Day 2024, Crown and Signode reinforce commitments to empowering women in all professional roles With 25,000 employees across 195 locations, our organization is widespread and reflects a diverse range of roles-everything from engineering and design to quality and safety. In all of these roles, we aim to build an environment that empowers women and supports their ability to pursue a fulfilling career path with Crown. We are continuously striving to give women more opportunities beyond the traditional office roles and to help them advance in any area of the Company. Lately, we've been concentrating on hiring more women for technical jobs like mechanics, forklift drivers, quality controllers and production leaders. It's essential to understand that these jobs aren't just for men. Anyone, regardless of gender, can have the skills needed for success in these roles. As we kick off International Women's Day 2024, which aims to inspireinclusion, we spotlight some of the initiatives around women directly working in our production environment. One example includes a specialized "Women in Industry" development program conducted by our Brazil team. A social and professional project developed by Crown, the course was designed to teach valuable technical skills to women within the communities where we operate. "This initiative was a way to offer development to women, who would like to work in the industrial area, but have not yet had the opportunity. We paved the path for their dreams to come true and with this, more women are being recognized and valued in the job market. This year we will do even more, expanding this project to other regions where our plants are located," said Eliane Rigolo, HR Director - Crown Brazil. The program provides 164 hours of content around various subjects related to our can production process. Through this initiative, our goal is to empower women to pursue careers at Crown and to prepare them for industrial roles specifically. We initially ran a pilot program in Ponta Grossa, Brazil and attracted a total of 315 candidates. From this pool of applicants, 20 women were selected to attend the course, and after completion, several were employed as mechanics in one of our facilities. Others are still part of our talent pool, having gained valuable skills and qualifications to enhance their resumes. Two successful women who completed the program and have joined our organization are Viviane Pacheco and Francielle dos Santos. Both have expressed gratitude for the training's valuable skill development, which has enriched their careers: Viviane Pacheco , Production Mechanic Apprentice and Women in Industry trainee: "For me, the course experience was very good. This course addedlots of learnings. I always want to do my best, I always want to be able to learn more. Companies should practice more the inclusion of women in the industry." , Production Mechanic Apprentice and Women in Industry trainee: "For me, the course experience was very good. This course addedlots of learnings. I always want to do my best, I always want to be able to learn more. Companies should practice more the inclusion of women in the industry." Francielle dos Santos, Production Mechanic Apprentice and Women in Industry trainee: "I was delighted with the program [Crown was] doing, the attitude of including us in this field of mechanics, of operating machines. The course came to teach much more practices, theoriesthis exchange was really rich, both personal and professional." Alongside the program, we have worked to increase women's presence in technical roles within engineering, production, supply chain, and beyond. We have collaborated with our team to identify new professional development opportunities in those fields. Recently, we've welcomed several female engineers to our team, and in all roles across our organization, two out of every ten new hires are women. Amy Weisel-Gibbs and Rileigh Swanson are two examples of career paths in supply chain and engineering. Both are encouraged to see women becoming more of a focus in the industrial field: Amy Weisel-Gibbs , Sales Operations Manager: "Everyone, regardless of gender or background, has the potential to bring value to the table. Women play a vital role and possess unique capabilities that enrich teams and drive progress." , Sales Operations Manager: "Everyone, regardless of gender or background, has the potential to bring value to the table. Women play a vital role and possess unique capabilities that enrich teams and drive progress." Rileigh Swanson, Mechanical Engineering: "It is exciting to see how many women are in engineering, not just Signode. I love to see how the world is showcasing women in engineering around the world!" In addition to these types of roles, we are striving to propel women into leadership positions that are traditionally held by men. Boosting gender representation within all levels of the Company provides crucial examples of opportunity and success for women within the workforce. Jamie Jarrett, Plant Manager at Signode's Eden, NC facility, is one such individual who has built her career within Crown up to a plant-wide leadership level. Our team caught up with her to learn about her journey through the industrial field and what her position means to her now: Tell us a little bit about your career? What path did you take to becoming Plant Manager at the Eden facility? I started with Signode in August 2022 as the Operations Manager. Working closely with my SR PM Eric Sprague and my Director Dustin Craig provided the opportunity for growth to be promoted to Plant Manager in October of 2023. To me this would not have been possible without their support, leadership and incredible emotional intelligence. During the time I have been with Signode, I was able to participate in SSGB training given by Lucas Scott and his team which fostered collaboration between the Executive team and the facility, so we have the same vision. From Day One I have been given guidance and unwavering support by Human Resources; I work daily with Teresa Manzanares who empowers me to face challenges head on, provides me with solutions and trusts my judgement. We have heard that women have a strong leadership presence in your facility. Tell us about your team. I work with a group of talented, driven, and dedicated women who challenge themselves every day to be better than they were the day before. This mentality is absorbed by all the employees in Eden. There are two women Supervisors and our stellar Operations Coordinator who push everyone around them to be successful. Their most attractive attribute is their resilience; they bounce back from failures, learn from them and persevere toward their goals with little to no hesitation. What advice would you offer to other women aspiring to advance in their careers, especially in male-dominated industries? Having a humble attitude reduces bias, inequities, and builds trust in the workplace and with male colleagues. Are there any female role models or mentors who have inspired or influenced your career journey? There are two women from my previous job that impacted me: my previous CEO Angelika Matczak, MBA. Angelika pushed me to be resilient and adaptable, she conveyed an unobstructed vision of her expectations and demanded excellence in any tasks her employees were performing. She allowed me exposure to all aspects of the business which resulted in me becoming more well-rounded in manufacturing. I collaborated with employees on the production floor, quality, continuous improvement and maintenance. The second admiral woman who impacted me is Magdalena Domzalska-Pol, Human Resource Executive/Servant Leader. Magda fosters a supportive and inclusive environment and really taught me about active listening-to hear what a person is not verbally saying. She delegated authority and encouraged autonomy, pushing me to take initiative and be confident in my decision-making. When I made a mistake, as we all do at times, her response was still encouraging. Both women were driven to succeed but based their own professional success on the growth of the organization, individuals and community impact. Lastly, what does International Women's Day mean to you personally? Acceptance for what you offer regardless of gender; fostering unity within teams to provide a platform for equal voices and discussions. Having a daughter whose dream is to be an Air Force pilot, I am confident she will be accepted if she is qualified. The world has grown to evaluate the best candidate and the old school silos of prejudgment are diminishing. We take pride in having these employees as valued members of our team and we are excited about the numerous other women pursuing their ambitions at Crown. While we celebrate the progress we have made in gender representation thus far, we acknowledge there is more work ahead and look forward to the next milestones. It is our commitment to stand with our female employees and do our best to inspireinclusion. Interested in more updates about our International Women's Day efforts and beyond? Follow us here on our corporate website and on our LinkedIn page for information on the latest initiatives and efforts. View original content here. View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Crown Holdings, Inc. on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: Crown Holdings, Inc. Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/crown-holdings-inc Email: info@3blmedia.com SOURCE: Crown Holdings, Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Milestone fundraise comes on firm's 40th anniversary Wind Point Partners ("Wind Point"), a leading Chicago-based private equity firm, today announced the successful closing of its latest fund, Wind Point Partners X ("Fund X" or the "Fund"). Fund X closed at its hard cap with total commitments of $2.3 billion, exceeding the Fund's $1.7 billion target. The closing of Fund X coincides with Wind Point's 40th anniversary and represents the firm's largest fund to date, including a more than 50% increase to the 2019 predecessor fund. With Fund X, Wind Point will seek to continue its long history of partnering with top caliber management teams to acquire well-positioned middle market businesses with a clear path to value creation. Through multiple economic cycles, Wind Point has built a reputation as a partner of choice for business owners and talented executives seeking more than just capital. Since 1997, Wind Point has utilized an executive-oriented partnership model to align with top operating talent in private equity investments. Today, the firm's Executive Advisor Partner ("EAP") program is comprised of more than 40 high-caliber executives who are closely aligned with Wind Point and contribute across all aspects of the firm's investment process. Wind Point's Managing Directors average more than 20 years of tenure at the firm. Since 1997, Wind Point's buyout funds have completed 75 platform investments and more than 300 add-on acquisitions. Wind Point's Managing Directors, Nathan Brown, Paul Peterson, Alex Washington, Konrad Salaber and Joe Lawler, issued the following statement: "On behalf of the Wind Point team, we would like to convey our gratitude for the trust and partnership by so many quality institutions represented with Fund X. The success of this fundraise is a testament to the clarity and quality of our strategy, the strength and tenure of our team, and importantly, our consistent results. We believe Wind Point is extremely well-positioned for the long-term and we look forward to continued shared success with our valued partners." Nathan Brown added, "I want to thank our partners in Fund X for their outstanding support. Fund X represents our largest and most diverse investor base to date, which was enabled by the strong foundation of our repeat partners some of whom have been investors with us for nearly three decades." Ron Liberman, Wind Point's Head of Investor Relations, commented, "With Fund X we were able to add significant new capital from sophisticated institutions representing more than ten countries around the world. This is an exciting time for our firm and the team is extremely energized to be in such a strong position to continue delivering for our investors." Evercore acted as Wind Point's global placement agent, and Kirkland Ellis LLP served as fund counsel. About Wind Point Partners Wind Point Partners is a Chicago-based private equity investment firm with approximately $7 billion in assets under management. The firm focuses on partnering with top caliber management teams to acquire well-positioned middle market businesses where it can establish a clear path to value creation. Founded in 1984, Wind Point is one of the oldest private equity firms in Chicago and an early adopter in developing a partnership model to align with top operating talent in private equity investments. Today, the firm's Executive Advisor Partner ("EAP") program is comprised of more than 40 high-caliber executives who are closely aligned with Wind Point and contribute across all aspects of the firm's investment process. Wind Point targets investments in the business services, consumer products and industrial products industries. Since inception, Wind Point has deployed ten private equity buyout funds in partnership with leading institutional investors around the world, including public pensions, insurance companies, endowments, foundations, fund of funds and family offices. Additional information about Wind Point is available at www.windpointpartners.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312309327/en/ Contacts: Ron Liberman, Wind Point Partners Phone: 312-255-4812 Email: rliberman@wppartners.com BEIJING, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- During Solar Pakistan 2024, JA Solar, a leading manufacturer of high-performance photovoltaic (PV) products, signed PV module supply memorandum of understanding (MOU) agreements with Pakistani firms Garibsons, SM Solar, and Wasiq Traders, respectively, which totaled capacity of 600MW. The collaboration is a significant step toward promoting sustainable and low-carbon energy solutions in Pakistan. JA Solar is committed to working closely with these partners to support the country's shift to greener energy. Established in 1974, Garibsons is Pakistan's largest rice exporter with its business spanning over 100 countries worldwide. The company is committed not only to providing high-quality rice products but also to practicing sustainable development and environmental protection. Garibsons' signing of the MOU with JA Solar aligns with the company's dedication to sustainable energy solutions and environmental responsibility. SM Solar, a subsidiary of Nishat Chunian Group, a leading player in the textile and power sectors of Pakistan, has signed an MOU with JA Solar for the supply of n-type PV modules, which is a big step for the company's commitment to promoting the utilization of renewable energy sources and contributing to the green and sustainable development of energy in Pakistan. Wasiq Traders specializes in PV modules and inverters import, and is the No. 1 PV module importer in Pakistan. By signing the PV module supply MOU with JA Solar, Wasiq Traders, as a distributor of JA Solar, will introduce JA Solar's products into the Pakistani market to promote the development of the local PV industry. JA Solar officially entered the n-type product market with the release of its first n-type module product in 2022, aiming to continually meet the market's demand for high-efficiency products. In 2023, JA Solar launched the new generation n-type flagship module DeepBlue 4.0 Pro. This series of modules feature quality-enhancing and efficiency-increasing technologies such as Bycium+ cell technology, SMBB, and high-density encapsulation, which boast advantages such as lower attenuation, higher bifacial power generation, and better high-temperature power generation performance. Among them, the flagship module in 72-cell format with dimensions of 2465mm*1134mm achieves a maximum production power of 635W and a conversion efficiency of 22.8%, making it the most powerful product in the current 182 series PV modules. The signing of this agreement not only marks the development of the cooperation between JA Solar and Garibsons, SM Solar, and Wasiq Traders, but also represents a concrete initiative by all parties to promote the development of the renewable energy industry, which will make more contributions to the development of Pakistan's PV industry in the future, aiding in the local energy's green and low-carbon transition. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/ja-solar-signs-mous-with-three-leading-pakistani-enterprises-for-supply-of-600mw-n-type-pv-modules-302088055.html Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Hypercharge Networks Corp. (Cboe CA: HC) (OTCQB: HCNWF) (FSE: PB7) (the "Company" or "Hypercharge"), a leading, smart electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions provider, today announced it has signed an agreement with the Trotman Auto Group ("TAG"), an industry-leading, diversified dealer group, to supply three DC fast charging stations at three of its dealerships in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Recognized as one of the most innovative dealer groups in Canada, Trotman Auto Group is an industry-leading, diversified dealer group representing 12 major original equipment manufacturer (OEM) brands across 11 dealerships located across British Columbia. Under the agreement, one of Hypercharge's Preferred Partners, Nightingale Electrical Ltd., will install three 200kW DC fast charging stations at TAG's Abbotsford Chrysler, Langley Chrysler, and Mainland Ford dealerships, with installation due to be completed in Q2 2024. "Our collaboration with TAG is part of their ongoing strategy and leadership to help promote greater EV and hybrid adoption by offering fast, convenient, and reliable charging stations at its dealerships throughout British Columbia," said Chris Koch, Head of Growth & Partnerships at Hypercharge. "Our ability to provide Level 2 and DC fast charging stations, networking services, carbon credits, and assistance with rebate programs continues to provide us opportunities to work with pioneering auto groups like TAG to serve customers and communities. We look forward to continuing our work with TAG to make EV charging faster and more convenient for consumers in British Columbia, and drive the adoption of zero emission vehicles." About Hypercharge Hypercharge Networks Corp. (Cboe CA: HC) (OTCQB: HCNWF) (FSE: PB7) is a leading provider of smart electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions that offers turnkey technology to residential and commercial buildings, fleet operations, and other rapidly growing sectors. Driven by its mission to accelerate EV adoption and enable the shift towards a carbon neutral economy, Hypercharge is committed to providing seamless, simple charging solutions by offering industry-leading equipment and a robust network of public and private charging stations. Learn more: https://hypercharge.com/. On behalf of the company, Hypercharge Networks Corp. David Bibby, President & CEO Contacts Investor Relations: Chris Tyson | Executive Vice President | MZ Group HC@mzgroup.us | (949) 491-8235 Media Contact: Kyle Kingsnorth | Head of Marketing | Hypercharge kyle.kingsnorth@hypercharge.com Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Any statements that are contained in this news release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms such as "may", "should", "anticipate", "will", "estimates", "believes", "intends", "expects" and similar expressions which are intended to identify forward-looking statements. More particularly and without limitation, this news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the expected installation of EV charging stations, contractual performance, and expected growth rates and trends in the EV market. Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and the actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, assumptions and expectations, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Readers are cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking statements may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. Readers are further cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, as such information, although considered reasonable by management of the Company at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release, and are expressly qualified by the foregoing cautionary statement. Except as expressly required by securities law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the included forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Neither NEO Exchange Inc. nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in policies of NEO Exchange Inc.) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201473 SOURCE: Hypercharge Networks Corp. TAIPEI, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- GIGABYTE, the world's leading computer brand is excited to announce its gaming sub-brand AORUS's presence at PAX EAST 2024 in Boston, USA. Attendees can expect to delve into AI innovation, experiencing unparalleled performance from GIGABYTE AI gaming laptops, stunning OLED monitors, and powerful PC systems. Collaborating with well-known game developers, Capcom and miHoYo, AORUS also offers exceptional first-hand access to newly launched game titles, exclusive on-site prizes, and exciting game challenges during the event. To revolutionize the gaming experience for gamers, AORUS unveils the groundbreaking GIGABYTE AI gaming laptop lineup powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra processors and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 series laptop GPUs that deliver up to 20 times faster performance for generative AI workloads. The AORUS series represents the pinnacle of gaming excellence while equipped with exclusive AI Nexus technology of AI Power Gear, AI Boost, and AI Generator utilities that further elevate user experience. AORUS also showcases a lineup of OLED monitors in various sizes for delivering stunning visuals and an immersive gameplay experience. The centerpiece is the world's first DP2.1 UHBR20 tactical gaming monitor, FO32U2P, promising an unprecedented gaming experience with an impressive 80 Gbps bandwidth without Display Stream Compression (DSC). With a new Tactical Switch to change viewing area for FPS-optimal resolution and AI-driven solutions for OLED burn-in protection, this OLED lineup offers a glimpse into the future of gaming monitors. Alongside the product demonstrations, AORUS is excited to partner with Capcom, offering attendees the chance to experience Dragon Dogma 2 firsthand on its launch day, March 22nd. Gamers can get early access to Zenless Zone Zero before its release and stand a chance to win exclusive prizes. While showcasing its powerful gaming setup with various game challenges, AORUS also demonstrates real-time AI displays powered by NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 graphics cards, providing unparalleled realism and immersive game character swapping in each gaming challenge. AORUS invites those unable to attend in person to participate in an online giveaway to win a Z790 AORUS ELITE AX ICE motherboard throughout the event. Stay updated with event details and campaigns by following @aorus_official on Instagram. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2348551/GIGABYTE_welcomes_gamers_AORUS_Infinity_a_superior_AI_experience_PAX.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/gigabyte-welcomes-gamers-to-aorus-infinity-for-a-superior-ai-experience-at-pax-east-2024-302072725.html BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- oneZero, a global leader in multi-asset enterprise trading technology solutions, has been named by Business Intelligence Group as a 2024 Best Place to Work . This prestigious award acknowledges our ongoing commitment to creating an exceptional work environment that fosters employee engagement, growth and outstanding performance. "oneZero's Co-Founder Jesse Johnson and I are pleased to be acknowledged again - in a process driven by employee feedback - by a group we regard as our wider family. This is one of a number of recent awards where oneZero has been recognized on a repeat basis as a company that delivers for all of our team members as we continue to grow. We were recently renamed one of the Top Places to Work by The Boston Globe and also in the Inc. 5000 - a list of the fastest-growing private companies in America," said Andrew Ralich, CEO and Co-Founder of oneZero. "Today's Business Intelligence Group award is international, which means the 175 staff across our global offices find oneZero a great place to work. As the company grows, we keep working hard to instill a culture of global engagement. We want all our staff to engage on a personal level, and so we devote significant energy to a varied program of social activities, both virtual and in-person, that bring the whole oneZero community together. We feel this creates a virtuous circle that helps to drive our performance and enables us to thrive in today's competitive technology market," continued Ralich. Maria Jimenez, Chief Nominations Officer of Business Intelligence Group, commended oneZero's commitment to employee well-being and excellence. "Congratulations to oneZero for creating a workplace culture that prioritizes employee well-being and fosters excellence," she said. "This recognition is a testament to your dedication to building a strong and engaged workforce, even amidst challenging times. We commend your commitment to listening to employee feedback and taking action to create a truly exceptional work environment." About oneZero oneZero Financial Systems has been a leading innovator in multi-asset class enterprise trading technology since 2009. Through reliable connectivity, technology, infrastructure and market access, oneZero empowers financial institutions and brokers to compete effectively in the global financial markets through a globally compliant, liquidity-neutral solution. Headquartered in Boston, oneZero has development and operations centers in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. About Business Intelligence Group The Business Intelligence Group was founded with the mission of recognizing true talent and superior performance in the business world. Unlike other industry and business award programs , business executives-those with experience and knowledge-judge the programs. The organization's proprietary and unique scoring system selectively measures performance across multiple business domains and then rewards those companies whose achievements stand above those of their peers. Contacts: Talia Geberovich Head of Marketing and Communications oneZero tgeberovich@onezero.com Maria Jimenez Business Intelligence Group +1 (909) 529-2737 jmaria@bintelligence.com Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2360672/BEST_WORKPLACE_2024_01.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/827473/oneZero_Financial_Systems_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/onezero-recognized-as-a-2024-best-place-to-work-for-third-consecutive-year-302087638.html ATLANTA, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CYREBRO , an ML-powered Managed Detection and Response (MDR) solution, announced that it was named as a Representative Vendor in the 2024 Gartner Market Guide for?Co-Managed Security Monitoring Services. CYREBRO leverages advanced proprietary technology alongside a team of highly skilled experts to offer a robust cybersecurity solution that encompasses strategic monitoring, detection, optimization, threat research, threat hunting, and intelligence. These capabilities are further enhanced with incident response and forensic investigations, making CYREBRO an essential tool for a wide array of organizations confronted with diverse risks and cyberattacks. By significantly reducing mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR), CYREBRO ensures that businesses can maintain continuity with minimal disruption. With its 100% channel-based model, CYREBRO offers an extensive network of expertise with unparalleled support and collaboration. Among the Gartner report's key findings: 'Security operations teams have a wide range of complex responsibilities. Outsourcing certain elements of security delivery eases the workload of the security operations center (SOC) and provides resources that can be focused on operational requirements.' 'Buyers often invest in TDIR-capable products without fully staffing its daily operations and maintenance. Using co-managed security monitoring services enables them to derive more value from complex areas such as architecture, maintenance and content development while retaining ownership and access to technology investments.' "CYREBRO ensures that businesses not only gain real-time visibility into their security posture but also provides swift correlation and prioritization of security events that most need attention," said CYREBRO Co-Founder and CEO Nadav Arbel. "CYREBRO's technology and team constantly provides recommendations and steps to mitigate against cyber threats. By leveraging AI and machine learning to drastically improve detection sophistication and precision, the CYREBRO team and technology provide clients with a clear picture of their security posture, and actionable steps to reduce security risk. We believe, being recognized in the Gartner report validates the consistent value we strive to deliver to our clients, underscoring our commitment to transforming how organizations address and neutralize cyber threats." Gartner, Market Guide for Co-Managed Security Monitoring Services, 4 March 2024. GARTNER is a registered trademark and service mark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and is used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner members can access the full report here. (For Gartner subscribers only) Gartner Disclaimer GARTNER is the registered trademark and service mark of Gartner Inc., and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and/or internationally and has been used herein with permission. All rights reserved. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. About CYREBRO CYREBRO is a Managed Detection and Response solution that rapidly detects, analyzes, investigates and responds to cyber threats. CYREBRO's capabilities cover strategic monitoring and detection, optimization/threat research, threat hunting and threat intelligence which are augmented with incident response and forensic investigations. Backed with more than 1,500 constantly optimized detection algorithms, CYREBRO monitors numerous companies facing a wide variety of risks and attacks to shorten mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR). CYREBRO is vendor-neutral and easily connects to hundreds of different tools and systems, delivering time-to-value within hours. To learn more, visit www.cyrebro.io . Media Contact Josh Turner Si14 Global Communications cyrebropr@si14global.com (917) 231-0550 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/cyrebro-recognized-in-the-2024-gartner-market-guide-for-co-managed-security-monitoring-services-302087807.html A former anti-discrimination official at San Francisco State University says the school ignored hundreds of students claims of bias and harassment, and eventually fired her for seeking action. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle A former anti-discrimination official at San Francisco State University says the school ignored hundreds of students claims of bias and harassment, and says it eventually fired her for seeking action. When Heather Borlase was hired in early 2021 as S.F. States civil rights administrator, she found more than 400 unresolved complaints and took steps to address them, her lawyers said in a suit filed Wednesday in San Francisco Superior Court. But when university officials learned of her actions, the suit said, they were more interested in cover-up and hiding the problem of their failure and refusal to address discrimination, harassment and retaliation complaints because of the negative press. Borlase nevertheless addressed 350 complaints from students over the next year, her lawyers said. After her office detailed a professors sexual harassment of a student in a report more than 100 pages long, the suit said, officials urged her not to issue such lengthy documents that made the school look bad. Advertisement Article continues below this ad They also objected to her offices finding of racial discrimination by a white supervisor who allegedly referred to a Black employee, DeMauriae Vaughn, as a runaway slave, Borlases suit said. Vaughn, an academic adviser at San Francisco State, has also sued the university and his former manager, Karen Rubin, who resigned in 2022 but has denied making the slur or other racist statements. Vaughns suit is scheduled to go to trial in December. Then in late 2022, the suit said, a number of Muslim students reported that a history professor, Maziar Behrooz, had provocatively and gratuitously displayed a drawing of the Prophet Muhammad to students in his Islamic history class without warning. Borlases office investigated the incident and reported last March that the allegations, if proven, could show that Behrooz had engaged in religious harassment of Muslim students, who consider public displays of Muhammad to be a form of idolatry. University President Lynn Mahoney had pressured Borlase not to investigate, criticized her for doing so, and sent an email to the campus community saying the investigation interfered with academic freedom, the suit said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Borlase was suspended from her position a week after issuing the report and was fired on July 31, her suit said. She now runs a San Francisco law firm that handles complaints of discrimination in education and employment. Her dismissal, her lawyers wrote, was an act of retaliation for investigating the incident, for finding that Behrooz may have engaged in unlawful harassment, and for her efforts to comply with and ensure San Francisco State University complied with the Universitys duties under federal and state civil rights laws. The suit seeks unspecified damages. It is critical for students to know it is safe to come forward and, when they do, their complaints will be fairly investigated, Wendy Musell, a lawyer for Borlase, said in a statement accompanying the lawsuit. An independent report last year reached similar conclusions about the entire California State University system, which has 458,000 students at 23 campuses. A law firm commissioned by CSU trustees found that campus officials largely ignored complaints of discrimination or harassment, lacked enough staff to investigate the claims they received and failed to compile data on discriminatory conduct. About one-quarter of the students surveyed said they had not reported misconduct because they did not trust the university. Advertisement Article continues below this ad RAMAT GAN, Israel, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Pulsenmore (TASE:PULS), the world leader in self-scan ultrasound technology for at-home use and remote clinical diagnosis, announces its new clinical study collaboration with Michigan Medicine. The study will examine the ability to conduct a remote biophysical profile (BPP) test, by using the Pulsenmore home ultrasound with the guidance of a remote clinician, potentially reducing the clinical burden. The Pulsenmore prenatal home ultrasound, empowers pregnant women to connect their personal smartphones to a dedicated device and application, allowing them to perform ultrasound imaging scans from the comfort of their homes. These scans are seamlessly transmitted to the hospital for evaluation, focusing on essential fetal vitality parameters. The results are then communicated back to the patients. Clinicians can engage with patients asynchronously or in real-time, significantly reducing the necessity for in-clinic visits. Traditional antenatal testing, like the biophysical profile (BPP), typically conducted in clinical settings, involves assessing fetal parameters such as movement, tone, breathing, and fluid levels using ultrasound, and sometimes combined with a non-stress test. The study with Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigan's academic medical center aims to assess whether patients can successfully complete a BPP using the Pulsenmore device with remote clinician guidance. The success of the study could potentially lead to reducing the burden of clinical care and improving patients' pregnancy experience due to factors like transportation, rural residence, or balancing childcare and work commitments. Dr. Alex Peahl, MD MSc, an assistant professor and physician-investigator in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Michigan and the Principal Investigator of the study stated: "Prenatal care delivery has undergone drastic changes since the COVID-19 pandemic, including a rapid growth in virtual prenatal visits. Yet, birthing people with complex pregnancies have not been able to benefit from the improved flexibility, accessibility, and convenience of telemedicine because of the need for in-person fetal testing. The BPP 4 Me study puts pregnancy monitoring tools in patients' hands, allowing patients to complete Biophysical Profiles (BPPs), tests of fetal wellbeing, from anywhere. BPP 4 Me is the first step towards a new patient-centered model of prenatal care that can reduce care burden and barriers while empowering patients, particularly those most marginalized by our current health care system". To date, over 100,000 scans were successfully performed with the Pulsenmore solution, demonstrating its' safety and reliability. Recent studies indicate the solution can improve access to care and reduce clinical visits duration by 63%, reduce maternal anxiety and improve maternal bonding, as well as contribute to a better pregnancy experience with greater patients' satisfaction. Pulsenmore recently announced a commitment agreement with 'Sheba BEYOND' virtual hospital. Sheba Medical Center, known for its excellence in healthcare, will utilize Pulsenmore's solution at 'BEYOND' as part of its' obstetrics department, offering top-quality medical services to high-risk pregnancy insured individuals. Pulsenmore holds approvals for marketing in Europe, the UK, Switzerland, Israel, Australia, and Brazil. The company continues to expand its operations by growing its' distribution and collaborations with health organizations in key markets. For more information, please visit www.pulsenmore.com Mira Altmark-Sofer, VP Marketing mira@pulsenmore.com +972505911212 Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzILwjkmshg View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/pulsenmore-is-expanding-the-application-of-its-home-ultrasound-solution-for-pregnant-women-a-clinical-trial-with-michigan-medicine-will-focus-on-the-remote-assessment-of-the-fetal-biophysical-profile-302088105.html Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Mink Ventures Corporation (TSXV: MINK) ("Mink" or the "Company") today announced it has received all assay results for its recently completed six hole, 507-meter drill program at its Warren Nickel Copper Cobalt Project, located approximately 35 km west of Timmins, Ontario. The drilling confirmed the geophysical data and intersected broad zones of sulphide mineralization in all six holes with anomalous nickel, copper and cobalt values associated with disseminated and net textured sulphides. Drill hole W-24-01 was drilled to a depth of 60 meters, and intersected 0.48% Nickel (Ni), 0.12% Copper (Cu), and 0.07% Cobalt (Co) over 0.9 meters in semi massive sulphides typical of those found in the "A" Zone surface trenches. Surface sampling on the "A" Zone and the recent drill program has shown that the best values to date are associated with massive to semi massive sulphides. The current interpretation is that the initial "A" Zone massive sulphide may have formed as a typical sulphide lense, then been broken apart by a later pulse of gabbro. This is based on a number of features seen in the drill core as well as the extent of massive and semi massive sulphides and Ni Cu Co values seen in the "A" Zone trenches. Further drilling is required to ascertain the extent of potential massive sulphide zones down plunge and along strike, as the "A" Zone has only been tested by very shallow drilling (65 meters vertical) over a short strike length. The "A" Zone geophysics suggests a strike length of approximately 700 meters. "This initial drill program enabled us to confirm our understanding of the geometry and geology of the "A" Zone, and fortuitously we clipped the edge of the "B" Zone in several holes, which enhanced our understanding of how the zones sit relative to one another. Given the extent of surface nickel, copper, cobalt mineralization on the property, over seven historical mineralized zones, with significant untested strike lengths, the data is compelling and more drilling is warranted," said Natasha Dixon, President and CEO. "We look forward to continuing the exploration work at Warren and remain grateful that half of the cost of this initial drill program was offset with the non-dilutive capital provided through the OJEP grant," she added. The Warren project contains numerous historical, trenched surface zones, with significant Cu and Ni values which are associated with coincident geophysical responses including magnetics, electromagnetic (EM) and induced polarization (IP) anomalies over long strike lengths. (See Figure 3.) The majority of these occurrences have had little or no drilling. At this time, it is thought that the "Shaft Area", along with the "D" Zone, and "SW" Zone are extensions of the "C" Zone. This system has had very minimal exploration along a strike length of approximately 1.5 km from geophysical data. (See Figure 3 & Table 3.) Mink plans to evaluate a number of these high priority zones in order to outline a follow up drill program. The initial prospecting work will be conducted in the early spring/summer in order to prioritize targets for future drill testing in 2024. DRILL PROGRAM DISCUSSION: The "A" Zone (see Figures 1, 2, & 3) was the focus of Mink's initial drill program. It was selected as a high priority target for drill testing as a result of geological data review, a field examination, and a confirmation sampling program conducted by company geologists during the summer of 2023. The "A" Zone is exposed in historical trenches over a strike length of 120 meters. Mink's grab samples on the "A" Zone returned assay values ranging from 1.075% to 2.08% Cu. Nickel values ranged from 0.313% to 0.348% Ni. Cobalt values ranged from 0.0389% to 0.0498% Co and silver values of interest ranged from 10.3 ppm to 23.8 ppm Ag. (See press releases: February 5, 2024, September 20, 2023.) The "A" Zone has had very limited drilling at depth or along its projected strike length. Mink's recent drilling demonstrated the presence of anomalous copper and nickel sulphide mineralization on the "A" Zone and confirmed the geophysics. (See Table 1&2.) During the course of drilling the "A" Zone, a sulphide zone was intersected in the upper portion of Holes W-24-02, to W-24-04 inclusive. This mineralization is interpreted to be the extension of the "B" Zone (See Figure 1 & 2). "B" Zone mineralization is now known to extend for approximately 75 meters beyond the historical trenches for a total interpreted strike length of 200 meters. The "B" Zone intercepts support the continuity of mineralization along strike in general as interpreted by geophysical surveys. The geophysical signature for both the "A" and "B" Zones have a projected strike length of approximately 700 meters. (See Figure 3.) Minimal drilling has been conducted on the "B" Zone. Two historical bulk samples on the "B" Zone returned 0.21% Cu, 0.96% Ni, 0.11% Co and 0.10% Zinc (Zn), and a second bulk sample returned 2.83% Cu, 0.58% Ni, 0.10 Co and 0.13 Zn. Reference: Technical Report for Western Troy Capital Resources on the Warren Property (W. Hawkins P. Eng, 2021) Table 1: Drill Hole Co-Ordinates Drill Hole UTM East UTM North Elevation(m) Dip Azimuth Length W-24-01 439348 5364484 320 -45 80 60 W-24-02 439324 5364479 320 -45 80 87 W-24-03 439312 5364478 322 -45 80 108 W-24-04 439312 5364478 322 -70 80 111 W-24-05 439349 5364406 320 -45 80 75 W-24-06 439373 5364371 320 -45 80 66 Table 2: Drill Hole Assay Table DDH # From (m) To (m) Meters (m) Ni ppm Ni % Cu ppm Cu % Co ppm Co % S % Comment W-24-01 17.3 24.5 7.2 1774 0.18 2014 0.20 271 0.03 4.4 Zone A W-24-01 21.5 22.4 0.9 4780 0.48 1230 0.12 704 0.07 7.49 Zone A W-24-01 39.0 49.5 10.5 1260 0.13 633 0.06 80 0.01 0.9 Zone A W-24-02 18.5 21.0 2.5 1263 0.13 1326 0.13 95 0.01 1.9 Zone B W-24-02 44.5 53.0 8.5 631 0.06 1049 0.10 109 0.01 1.9 Zone A W-24-02 60.5 68.0 7.5 1220 0.12 807 0.08 86 0.01 1.1 Zone A W-24-03 36.0 40.5 4.5 1476 0.15 1289 0.13 136 0.01 2.0 Zone B W-24-03 64.0 70.5 6.5 740 0.07 1019 0.10 123 0.01 2.3 Zone A W-24-04 56.5 60.0 3.5 1631 0.16 1363 0.14 149 0.01 2.4 Zone B W-24-05 30.9 42.0 11.1 873 0.09 1841 0.18 140 0.01 3.0 Zone A W-24-05 48.2 51.0 2.8 1262 0.13 740 0.07 77 0.01 0.9 Zone A W-24-06 11.0 14.0 3.0 932 0.09 1513 0.15 151 0.02 3.4 Zone A All intervals shown are core lengths as true width of the zone is not known at this time. WARREN PROPERTY GEOLOGY: Mink's Warren Project is hosted within the Kamiskotia Gabbro Complex (KGC) and is thought to be broadly equivalent to the Montcalm Gabbro Complex (MGC) but separated by a granitic arch. The MGC hosts the former Montcalm Mine which produced approximately 3.93 million tonnes grading 1.25% Ni, 0.67% Cu and 0.05% Co (OGS, Atkinson, B., 2010). Gabbro complexes such as MGC and KGC are known to be prospective for magmatic nickel copper sulphide deposition as demonstrated by the Montcalm Mine located within the MGC. The Warren property complements Mink's Montcalm property due to the distinctly similar prospective geological environments found in the MGC and the KGC, as well as the presence of significant Cu Ni zones on the Warren Property. The Warren patents have had a sporadic exploration history since the late 1920's to present day and a number of promising historical mineralized Cu Ni zones were outlined. The majority of the exploration completed to date on the property was completed in an area representing a very minimal portion of the property and completed well over 60 years ago. More recent geophysical surveys from the early 1990's and 2008-2009 outlined a series of untested targets along strike from known mineralization and/or new targets proximal to known mineralization. These targets are particularly evident in the accompanying compilation map shown in Figure 3. Quality Assurance / Quality Control Program: Drill core samples selected had a maximum sample length of 1.5 meters. Each sample was split with a mechanical splitter; a representative sample was retained for reference purposes with a designated sample tag stapled in the core box. Samples were transported in sealed bags to the ALS Canada Ltd. facility in Timmins for preparation. Pulps were transported to Vancouver, B.C., for 35-element MEICP41 aqua regia inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy analysis, as well as PGM ICP23 analysis for gold-platinum-palladium analysis. For higher grade base metal samples, a second analysis was performed Cu OG46 analysis for over 10,000 ppm Cu and NiOG46 analysis for over 10,000 ppm Ni. Oreas standards and a blank sample were submitted by the corporation as an external check and numerous quality control samples and duplicates were completed as an internal check by ALS Canada Ltd. All standards and blanks submitted by the corporation were within an acceptable range for QA/QC purposes. Qualified Person: Mr. Kevin Filo, P. Geo. (Ontario), is a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Filo approved the technical data disclosed in this release. Figure 1: Trench and Drill Hole Location Map To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8332/201540_4c6787de044f6ae2_001full.jpg Figure 2: "A" Zone Drill Section: Drill Holes W-24-01, W-24-02, W-24-03 and W-24-04 To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8332/201540_4c6787de044f6ae2_002full.jpg Figure 3: Compilation Map (IP & Mineralized Zones) To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8332/201540_4c6787de044f6ae2_003full.jpg Table 3: Select Historical Sample Data Accompanying Figure 3 To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8332/201540_minkventurestable3.jpg Reference: Ontario Resident Geologists Office Timmins Ontario; Maxmin, Magnetometer and VLF Surveys Evaluation Report, Whitesides and Massey Twp. Claims (C. Mackenzie Consulting Geologist, 1990). The reader is cautioned the sampling is historical in nature and may not be NI43-101 compliant with respect to QA/QC and/or sampling procedures at the time. The methods and parameters used during the course of sampling are unknown and sampling may not be representative of mineralization on the specific zones. It is not to be relied upon and is reported as a historical statement only. About Mink Ventures Corporation: Mink Ventures Corporation (TSXV: MINK) is a Canadian mineral exploration company exploring for critical minerals (nickel, copper, cobalt) at its Warren and Montcalm projects, in the Timmins, Ontario area. Mink's flagship Montcalm Project, covers 40 km2 adjacent to Glencore's former Montcalm Mine which had historical production of 3.93 million tonnes of ore grading 1.25% Ni, 0.67% Cu and 0.051% Co (Ontario Geological Survey, Atkinson, 2010). Its Warren Ni Cu Co Project is located 35 km away. Both projects have excellent access and infrastructure with an all-weather access road and power as well as its proximity to the skilled labour and facilities of the Timmins Mining Camp. The Company has 18,810,534 shares outstanding. For further information about Mink Ventures Corporation please contact: Natasha Dixon, President & CEO, T: 250-882-5620 E: ndixon@minkventures.com or Kevin Filo, Director, T: 705-266-6818 or visit www.sedarplus.ca. Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes certain "forward-looking information", including, but not limited to, statements with respect to the Warren Project, the exploration work required to exercise the option, and the prospectivity of the Warren Project and the Montcalm Project. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Mink to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect the outcome include, among others: future prices and the supply of metals; the results of exploration work; inability to raise the money necessary to incur the expenditures required to retain and advance the Warren Project and Montcalm Project; environmental liabilities (known and unknown); general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; political instability, or delays in obtaining governmental and stock exchange approvals. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to Mink's filings with Canadian securities regulators available on SEDAR+. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and Mink disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or ac curacy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201540 SOURCE: Mink Ventures Corporation NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Aflac Incorporated Originally published on Aflac Newsroom Community giving, close to home - that's what the Employee Engagement Team's Philanthropy Committee at Aflac's Premier Life, Absence and Disability Solutions (PLADS) wanted. And they made it happen, streamlining the donation process so that they could more quickly get needed items in the hands of local students in need. From vision to reality: Closet of Care takes shape Employees in both the Connecticut and Florida PLADS locations rallied behind this mission. The offices in Farmington, Connecticut, and Plantation, Florida, each identified a nearby public high school with a high number of at-need students and began collecting school supplies, hygiene products, toiletries, snacks and clothing. In that moment, the Closet of Care was born. Since delivering the first batch of supplies to the schools in November 2022, the Philanthropy Committee developed a process to track inventory. Using it - and with continued, generous donations from PLADS employees - they continue to keep school shelves stocked. No-shame participation Closet of Care addresses studies showing children are better able to meet academic and achievement standards when not distracted by stress.1 With basic needs met - and discreetly - stress levels decrease, and students can devote their energy to academics and social development. Focused equally on preserving students' sense of dignity and respecting their privacy, the schools created space for supplies and communicated to students that help was available free of charge. As the partnership between PLADS and local schools grew, a faster and even more efficient delivery of supplies was needed. Now, PLADS employees can access Amazon Wish Lists for Bulkeley High School in Connecticut and Flanagan High school in Florida from their personal devices to order and ship requested supplies directly to the schools. Both locations are seeing positive impact from the Closet of Care - in fact, Florida school representatives felt the program was so impactful that they nominated Randy Olivo, manager, Group Proposition Development, who assisted with the local program, for a countywide Community Involvement Award in the School-Based Partnership Category. Learn more about how Aflac gives back to the community at Aflac.com. 1Education Library, "Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs In Education." Accessed on Feb. 1, 2024. https://educationlibrary.org/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-in-education/. Premier Life, Absence and Disability Services (PLADS): Group life, disability, and absence services are administered by Continental American Insurance Company (CAIC), a proud member of the Aflac family of insurers. CAIC is not licensed to solicit business in New York, Guam, Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands. Continental American Insurance Company | Columbia, SC AGC2400201 View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Aflac Incorporated on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: Aflac Incorporated Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/aflac-incorporated Email: info@3blmedia.com SOURCE: Aflac Incorporated View the original press release on accesswire.com HYDERABAD, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cyient, a global Intelligent Engineering and Technology Solutions company, has announced that it has signed a multiyear services agreement with Airbus for Cabin and Cargo Engineering. Following this agreement, Cyient has been selected by Airbus for the development of a part of its cabin 'Intelligent Core Management Platform' (iCMP). These systems focus on enabling faster software updates, easy and rapid customization, and proliferation of digital services in Cabin. Cyient has been working with Airbus, supporting the future-ready Cabins to deliver state-of-the-art services requiring new technologies and significant data flow volumes. "We thank Airbus for their confidence in our capabilities and partnering to work on their key future technology development programs. Cyient is committed to growing this partnership with Airbus to greater heights. We look forward to leveraging our technology expertise to support Airbus in their pursuit of transforming in-flight communication and diagnostics systems," said Karthikeyan Natarajan, Executive Director and CEO, Cyient. About Cyient: Cyient (Estd: 1991, NSE: CYIENT) partners with over 300 customers, including 40% of the top 100 global innovators, to deliver intelligent engineering and technology solutions for a digital, autonomous, and sustainable future. As a company, Cyient is committed to Designing a culturally inclusive, socially responsible, and environmentally sustainable Tomorrow Together with our stakeholders. For more information, please visit www.cyient.com Follow news about the company at @Cyient Gowtham Uyalla Kaizzen PR gowtham.uyalla@kaizzencomm.com Phalguna Hari jandhyala Cyient Phalguna.Harijandhyala@cyient.com View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/cyient-collaborates-with-airbus-for-cabin-engineering-services-to-support-future-connected-cabins-302088088.html Marketing and Branding Industry's Conference to Feature Innovators and Thought Leaders Discussing the Future of Brands on April 25, 2024?? CHICAGO, IL / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / BrandSmart 2024, one of the brand marketing community's most prestigious conferences, announces Sheila Hamilton, Marketing and Menu Lead - New Business Ventures at McDonald's as its keynote speaker. The annual conference will feature renowned thought leaders who will delve into the latest marketing trends and share insights about the future of branding in an experience-driven economy. In addition to Hamilton's keynote address, BrandSmart will feature industry expert panels and mainstage presentations uncovering actionable strategies to empower brands in an ever-evolving marketing landscape. Sheila Hamilton, Marketing and Menu Lead - New Business Ventures at McDonald's Sheila Hamilton of McDonald's to kick-off AMA Chicago's 2024 BrandSmart Conference as its Keynote speaker.? Now in its 22nd year, BrandSmart is the longest-running conference of its kind in the country. The 2024 theme, "The Future of Brand in an Experience-Driven Economy," highlights the crucial role that memorable experiences play in customer engagement and loyalty. This year's event will be held in the AON Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier in Chicago on Thursday, April 25, 2024, from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. CDT. BrandSmart is produced by the American Marketing Association Chicago, (AMA Chicago) the largest AMA chapter in North America. "We are so pleased to welcome Sheila as our keynote speaker and anchor the conference around her marketing innovation and branding wisdom," said AMA?Chicago President Chris McGuire. "The background she'll be sharing on design thinking, speed-to-market, and customer experience transcends industries, and brand leaders from all marketing backgrounds will benefit from her insights." Hamilton's keynote, Staying Grounded While Launching an Out-of-this-World Brand, will take place at 9:30 a.m. She will also be doing a LinkedIn Live on the AMA Chicago channel on April 17th at 12:00 CDT. Additional BrandSmart sessions include: Embracing AI and Maintaining the Human Touch with Jennifer Polk, Chief Marketing and Digital Experience Officer at Feeding America with Jennifer Polk, Chief Marketing and Digital Experience Officer at Feeding America Mega Power Panel with Dan Moriarty, Chief Marketing Officer at Chicago Fire with Dan Moriarty, Chief Marketing Officer at Chicago Fire Innovation as Creativity with Meghan Hurley, Vice President of Global Brand Marketing at Claire's with Meghan Hurley, Vice President of Global Brand Marketing at Claire's Branding in the Narrative Economy: The Psychology of Consumer Experiences with Kristian A. Aloma, Ph.D., Founder & CEO at Threadline with Kristian A. Aloma, Ph.D., Founder & CEO at Threadline Architecting Your Future with Jennifer Wesley, Managing Director, Talent Strategy and Development at Google Networking is a core component of BrandSmart each year, and attendees will have ample opportunities to mingle with marketing peers from across the country. "BrandSmart is a platform for knowledge sharing, but it's also a meaningful source of connection and community for marketing leaders," says McGuire. For information and tickets, visit?https://brandsmart.amachicago.org. The American Marketing Association Chicago provides ongoing development opportunities for Chicagoland marketers to expand knowledge, improve skills, and grow both their networks and careers through access to innovative marketing thought leaders and cutting-edge programming. Visit amachicago.org Contact Information Karolyn Raphael PR for American Marketing Association Chicago karolyn@wingermarketing.com 312-494-0422 Bonnie Massa Executive Director AMA Chicago executivedirector@chicagoama.org SOURCE: American Marketing Association Chicago View the original press release on newswire.com. PUNE, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The report titled "Medical Grade Skincare Market by Product (Cleansers, Gels, Creams & Moisturizers, Masks & Serums), Active Ingredients (Alpha Hydroxy Acids, Ceramides, Ferulic Acid), Packaging Type, Indication, Distribution Channels, Revenue Distribution - Global Forecast 2024-2030" is now available on 360iResearch.com's offering, presents an analysis indicating that the market projected to grow from a size of $96.82 billion in 2023 to reach $168.06 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 8.19% over the forecast period. "Surge in Demand for Precision Skincare Solutions Drives Global Medical-Grade Skincare Market Growth" In dermatological advancements, medical-grade skincare products stand out for their meticulously formulated, potent compositions, addressing diverse skin concerns. These superior-quality products, enriched with higher concentrations of active ingredients such as retinoids, alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), beta hydroxy acids (BHAs), antioxidants, and peptides, are typically dispensed through licensed healthcare professionals, including dermatologists and physicians. Their efficacy is backed by scientific research and clinical validation, meeting the escalating consumer demand for targeted skincare remedies for aging, acne, hyperpigmentation, and sensitivity issues. However, the market's expansion is currently challenged by constrained distribution channels, limiting accessibility for consumers, especially those in remote locations. Innovations such as encapsulation systems, nanotechnology, and sophisticated delivery mechanisms offer promising prospects for market augmentation. The Americas depict high consumption, propelled by a robust healthcare infrastructure, heightened consumer awareness, and a keen interest in niche skincare solutions such as anti-aging and sun protection products. Similarly, the influence of K-beauty and J-beauty trends catalyzes a shift toward advanced, medical-grade skincare in Asia-Pacific. In Europe, countries such as Germany, France, the UK, Italy, and Spain form a burgeoning market landscape, owing to well-established distribution channels and a pronounced focus on skincare health. The burgeoning eCommerce platforms further extend the reach of medical-grade skincare brands across the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, democratizing access to premium skincare solutions. Download Sample Report @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/medical-grade-skincare "Revolutionizing Aesthetics: The Surge in Non-Surgical Procedures and Medical Grade Skincare Innovation" The escalating use of non-surgical aesthetics reflects a societal transformation toward valuing youthful appearances, facilitated by cutting-edge technological advancements, robust social media influences, and an enhanced understanding of non-invasive treatments' safety and efficacy. There has been a noticeable increase in demand for medical-grade skincare solutions, owing to their accessibility and minimal invasiveness as the community becomes increasingly receptive to aesthetic improvements. These products, standing at the forefront of personalized skincare, provide tailored approaches to combating aging, benefiting from social media and celebrities' endorsements that have played significant roles in elevating their adoption among the broader public. Coupled with their cost-effectiveness and convenience over surgical alternatives, medical-grade skincare represents a beauty trend and a viable investment in individuals' long-term dermatological health and confidence. This industry shift toward preventative measures further emphasizes a proactive stance in maintaining one's aesthetic vitality, making such advancements increasingly indispensable in modern beauty regimes. "Revolutionizing Skincare: The Power of Active Ingredients in Combating Common Skin Concerns" In the ever-evolving skincare industry, achieving flawless skin involves a meticulously formulated blend of active ingredients tailored to address a wide array of skin concerns. For the constant need for acne solutions employing benzoyl peroxide, salicylic acid, and retinoids that work together to unclog pores and alleviate inflammation, to the pursuit of an ageless complexion utilizing hyaluronic acid, peptides, and antioxidants, each component plays a pivotal role in skin health and rejuvenation. As the aging population seeks remedies for liver spots, products enriched with hydroquinone, vitamin C, and glycolic acid emerge as major constituents for restoring even skin tones. Meanwhile, the dryness hinges on hyaluronic acid's hydrating prowess, ceramides' barrier-repair function, and emollients' soothing touch. Additionally, the scourge of sun damage highlights the significance of incorporating antioxidants and SPF into daily skincare routines. Emphasizing the remarkable capabilities of alpha hydroxy acids, ceramides, and vitamins A, C, and E, this discourse shines a light on the transformative effects of active ingredients in propelling the skincare industry toward new horizons of efficacy and sophistication. Request Analyst Support @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/medical-grade-skincare "Shiseido Company, Limited at the Forefront of Medical Grade Skincare Market with a Strong 1.77% Market Share" The key players in the Medical Grade Skincare Market include GlaxoSmithKline PLC, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited, Shiseido Company, Limited, Beiersdorf AG, L'Oreal S.A., and others. These prominent players focus on strategies such as expansions, acquisitions, joint ventures, and developing new products to strengthen their market positions. "Introducing ThinkMi: Revolutionizing Market Intelligence with AI-Powered Insights for the Medical Grade Skincare Market" We proudly unveil ThinkMi, a cutting-edge AI product designed to transform how businesses interact with the Medical Grade Skincare Market. ThinkMi stands out as your premier market intelligence partner, delivering unparalleled insights with the power of artificial intelligence. Whether deciphering market trends or offering actionable intelligence, ThinkMi is engineered to provide precise, relevant answers to your most critical business questions. This revolutionary tool is more than just an information source; it's a strategic asset that empowers your decision-making with up-to-the-minute data, ensuring you stay ahead in the fiercely competitive Medical Grade Skincare Market. Embrace the future of market analysis with ThinkMi, where informed decisions lead to remarkable growth. Ask Question to ThinkMi @ https://app.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/medical-grade-skincare "Dive into the Medical Grade Skincare Market Landscape: Explore 191 Pages of Insights, 750 Tables, and 28 Figures" Preface Research Methodology Executive Summary Market Overview Market Insights Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Product Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Active Ingredients Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Packaging Type Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Indication Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Distribution Channels Medical Grade Skincare Market, by Revenue Distribution Americas Medical Grade Skincare Market Asia-Pacific Medical Grade Skincare Market Europe, Middle East & Africa Medical Grade Skincare Market Competitive Landscape Competitive Portfolio Inquire Before Buying @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/medical-grade-skincare Related Reports: Skincare Devices Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 Skin Care Products Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 Skin Antiseptic Products Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 About 360iResearch Founded in 2017, 360iResearch is a market research and business consulting company headquartered in India, with clients and focus markets spanning the globe. We are a dynamic, nimble company that believes in carving ambitious, purposeful goals and achieving them with the backing of our greatest asset - our people. Quick on our feet, we have our ear to the ground when it comes to market intelligence and volatility. Our market intelligence is diligent, real-time and tailored to your needs, and arms you with all the insight that empowers strategic decision-making. Our clientele encompasses about 80% of the Fortune Global 500, and leading consulting and research companies and academic institutions that rely on our expertise in compiling data in niche markets. Our meta-insights are intelligent, impactful and infinite, and translate into actionable data that support your quest for enhanced profitability, tapping into niche markets, and exploring new revenue opportunities. Contact 360iResearch Mr. Ketan Rohom 360iResearch Private Limited, Office No. 519, Nyati Empress, Opposite Phoenix Market City, Vimannagar, Pune, Maharashtra, India - 411014. Email: sales@360iresearch.com USA: +1-530-264-8485 India: +91-922-607-7550 To learn more, visit 360iresearch.com or follow us on LinkedIn , Twitter , and Facebook . Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2359256/360iResearch_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/medical-grade-skincare-market-projected-to-reach-168-06-billion-by-2030---exclusive-report-by-360iresearch-302087847.html VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Falcon Gold Corp. (FG:TSXV)(3FA:GR)(FGLDF:OTCQB); ("Falcon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has awarded a drilling contract to CentreLine Drilling of Newfoundland to conduct a diamond drilling program at its 100% owned Great Burnt Copper Project in Central Newfoundland. The Company initially plans to test up to ten geophysical anomalies with a maximum of 1100 metres of drilling. Falcon will provide further guidance on an estimated drill start date once logistics for the program are determined and remaining service providers are confirmed. Falcon holds 2,275 hectares in the Great Burnt camp, with licenses located north of, and contiguous to, Benton Resources Inc. - Spruce Ridge Resources Ltd. Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture (see Figure 1). Benton Resources Inc. ("Benton") recently optioned the Great Burnt Copper-Gold Project from Spruce Ridge Resources Ltd. ("Spruce Ridge") in an agreement that allows Benton to earn a 70% interest in the property (see press release dated August 17, 2023). The Benton-Spruce Ridge property is host to the Great Burnt Copper Zone, a deposit with an indicated resource of 381,300 tonnes at 2.68% Cu and inferred resources of 663,100 tonnes at 2.10% Cu (https://www.spruceridgeresources.com/great-burnt.php). Recent drilling by Benton at the Great Burnt Copper Deposit reported drill results that returned 7.20% Cu, 7.12 g/t Ag, and 0.05% Co over 12.30 metres (see press release dated December 5, 2023). Previous drilling in 2020 by Spruce Ridge reported 8.06% Cu over 27.2 m (TSXV: SHL press release dated March 18, 2021). The Great Burnt Greenstone Belt is prospective for copper and gold, and further hosts the South Pond A and South Pond B copper-gold zones, and the End Zone copper prospect along a 14 km mineralized corridor. The mineralized corridor occurs along a conductive trend, and this conductive trend continues into Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property (see right-hand-side image in Figure 2). The presence of mineral occurrences within ground adjacent to Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property cannot be used as an indication of mineralization within Falcon's property itself. Figure 1. Location of proposed drilling within Falcon's recent acquisition proximal to the Benton - Spruce Ridge Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture in Central Newfoundland. Karim Rayani, Chief Executive Officer, commented; "We are very excited to move forward on our first phase of exploration drilling at our Great Burnt Copper Project. The Great Burnt camp is quickly becoming recognized for its high-grade copper tenor demonstrated by Benton Resources Inc.'s recent successful drilling (see Benton Resources Inc. press release dated January 30, 2024). Benton's success at Great Burnt and recent press releases from FireFly Metals Ltd that disclose plans to advance the high-grade Green Bay Copper-Gold project in the Rambler camp have put the copper potential of VMS Deposits in Newfoundland front and center. The Green Bay Copper-Gold project hosts a mineral inventory that includes aggregate measured, indicated and inferred resources of 39.2Mt @1.83% Cu (click here to view the report). We believe that Benton's recent success at Great Burnt is a testament to the untapped VMS potential of the Great Burnt area, and we are thrilled to hold an extensive strike extent of this unexplored, never-drilled horizon." The Great Burnt Copper Property The property is hosted within the Great Burnt Greenstone Belt (GBGB) which hosts massive sulphide deposits that have been interpreted as Besshi-type. These types of deposits generally occur as laterally extensive sheets of pyrrhotite- or pyrite-rich sulphide rock within mixed volcanic-sedimentary environments. Sulphide lenses can be several metres thick and extend for several kilometres. Besshi-type massive-sulphide deposits are generally copper dominant, commonly contain other lithophile elements like cobalt or lead, and can contain precious metals such as gold and silver. The property is also located four km west of the Crest Resources-Exploits Discovery joint venture project within the Exploits Subzone. The Exploits Subzone contains deep-seated gold-bearing structures of the Dog Bay-Appleton Fault-GRUB Line deformation corridor that contains the high-grade Keats Gold Zone of New Found Gold Corp. Figure 2. Great Burnt Copper Project area with Falcon claims in orange and Benton - Spruce Ridge Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture in blue. New claims cover conductive trends hosting copper and gold mineralization. Qualified Person The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Greg Robinson, P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. The QP and the Company have not completed sufficient work to verify the historical information on the properties comprising the Great Burnt Copper Property claim group, particularly regarding historical exploration, neighbouring companies, and government geological work. The QP and the Company further acknowledge that the presence of mineral occurrences within property adjacent to Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property cannot be used as an indication for mineralization to occur within Falcon's property itself. About Falcon Gold Corp. Falcon is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on generating, acquiring, and exploring opportunities in the Americas. Falcon's flagship project, the Central Canada Gold Mine, is approximately 20 km southeast of Agnico Eagle's Hammond Reef Gold Deposit which has currently an estimated 3.32 million ounces of gold (123.5 million tonnes grading 0.84 g/t gold) mineral reserves, and 2.3 million ounces of measured and indicated mineral resources (133.4 million tonnes grading 0.54 g/t gold). The Hammond Reef gold property lies on the Hammond shear zone, which is a northeast-trending splay off the Quetico Fault Zone ("QFZ") and may be the control for the gold deposit. The Central Gold property lies on a similar major northeast-trending splay of the QFZ. The Company holds multiple additional projects: the Viernes and Area 51 Gold/Silver/Copper projects in the world class copper cluster located Antofagasta Chile; the Springpole West Property in the world-renowned Red Lake mining camp; a 49% interest in the Burton Gold property with Iamgold near Sudbury Ontario; the Spitfire-Sunny Boy, and Gaspard Gold claims in B.C.; the Great Burnt, and Golden Brook projects adjacent to First Mining, Matador, Benton-Sokoman's JV, and Marvel Discovery in Central Newfoundland; and most recently battery metals projects, Timmins West Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Property Ontario, Outarde Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Property, HSP Nickel -Copper property in northern Quebec and the Havre St. Pierre Anorthosite Complex respectively. CONTACT INFORMATION: Falcon Gold Corp. "Karim Rayani" Karim Rayani Chief Executive Officer, Director Telephone: (604) 716-0551 Email: info@falcongold.ca CHF Capital Markets Cathy Hume Chief Executive Officer Telephone: (416) 868-1079 x 251 Email: cathy@chfir.com Website: www.falcongold.ca Twitter: @FalconGoldCorp Facebook: @FalconGoldCorp LinkedIn: @FalconGoldCorp Instagram: @FalconGoldCorp Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary Language and Forward-Looking Statements This news release may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore, involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements. SOURCE: Falcon Gold Corp View the original press release on accesswire.com Miami, Florida and Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Sekur Private Data Ltd. (OTCQB: SWISF) (CSE: SKUR) (FSE: GDT0) ("Sekur" or the "Company"), a leading Swiss hosted secure and private communications platform, outlines solutions to protect enterprise and small to medium-sized business (SMB) owners from the growing menace of bad actor cyber threats. With statistics indicating the escalating costs of ransomware attacks on businesses, during the crucial US presidential election year, Sekur Private Data is committed to providing robust and comprehensive security solutions. Recent incidents, such as the alleged exploitation of Google accounts via OAuth2 functionality and the high-profile hacking of Microsoft's corporate network from a Russian hacking group, highlights the critical need for robust cybersecurity and data privacy measures. In this environment, Sekur remains at the forefront of the battle against state-actor cyber threats, equipping enterprises and SMB owners with impenetrable security solutions. According to recent studies, ransomware attacks have inflicted staggering financial losses on businesses, amounting to billions of dollars annually. Sekur Private Data's comprehensive suite of encrypted emails, secure messengers, and communication tools offers a formidable defense against these escalating threats. Alain Ghiai, the CEO of Sekur Private Data Ltd., commented, "As bad actor states continue to escalate their cyber threats, especially in the USA and during a presidential election year, businesses are facing unprecedented risks and soaring costs, as these rogue states and bad actors are doing everything to disrupt the U.S. economy. At Sekur, we provide robust solutions that safeguard sensitive data, empowering SMBs, enterprises and governments to stay one step ahead of these evolving threats and challenges. We are happy to be able to provide these solutions, as we can offer the only Swiss-hosted, proprietary, private and secure communications platform that does not rely on big tech infrastructure, open-source coding or data mining, therefore reducing exponentially the risk of cyber penetration. Our prime directive is to provide private and secure communications for everyone, by offering a truly independent, private and secure means of communications, without any data mining, through our proprietary technology and our secure private servers based in Switzerland." SekurRelay Enterprise Email Solution, a vital component of the Sekur Enterprise suite, empowers corporate executives and management to effortlessly implement enhanced security measures for their company's email domain. By leveraging SekurSend/SekurReply features and other Swiss-hosted privacy solutions, SekurRelay ensures that sensitive communications remain secure without necessitating a complete migration of the entire workforce. This breakthrough eliminates a significant hurdle to mass adoption within large corporations and government agencies. Additionally, SekurVPN sets new industry standards by utilizing its proprietary infrastructure and abstaining from hyperscaler or Big Tech hosting providers. Unlike other VPNs, SekurVPN exclusively employs its private Swiss cloud infrastructure, offering Swiss-hosted VPN services with Swiss IPs only. This guarantees unparalleled data protection, as the service solely relies on SekurVPN's own servers and routing. By adhering to the stringent regulations of FADP Swiss privacy laws, SekurVPN treats users' IP addresses as private property, making data harvesting a criminal offense under Swiss legislation. SekurMessenger comes with a proprietary feature and technology called "Chat-By-Invite." This feature allows a SekurMessenger user ("SM user") to invite via email or SMS a non-SM user, or a group of non-SM users, to chat in a fully private and secure way without the recipient ever having to register to SekurMessenger or download the app. Additionally, SekurMessenger uses a strict vetting system that prevents non vetted users from spamming and hacking your account, as it does not collect the user's phone number and does not harvest any data or phone contact from SekurMessenger users. Sekur's Data privacy solutions are all hosted in Switzerland, protecting users' data from any outside data intrusion requests. In Switzerland, the right to privacy is guaranteed in article 13 of the Swiss Federal Constitution. The Federal Act on Data Protection ("FADP") of 19 June 1992 (in force since 1993) has set up a strict protection of privacy by prohibiting virtually any processing of personal data which is not expressly authorized by the data subjects. The protection is subject to the authority of the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner. Under Swiss federal law, it is a crime to publish information based on leaked "secret official discussions." In 2010, the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland found that IP addresses are personal information and that under Swiss privacy laws they may not be used to track internet usage without the knowledge of the individuals involved. About Sekur Private Data Ltd. Sekur Private Data Ltd. is a cybersecurity and Internet privacy provider of Swiss hosted solutions for secure and private communications. The Company distributes a suite of encrypted e-mails, secure messengers and secure communication tools. Sekur Private Data Ltd. sells its products through its own website, https://www.sekur.com, approved distributors and telecommunications companies worldwide. Sekur Private Data Ltd. serves consumers, businesses and governments worldwide. Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sekurprivate On behalf of Management SEKUR PRIVATE DATA LTD. Alain Ghiai President and Chief Executive Officer corporate@sekurprivatedata.com For more information, please contact Sekur Private Data at corporate@sekurprivatedata.com or visit us at https://www.sekurprivatedata.com For more information on Sekur visit us at: https://www.sekur.com Forward-Looking Information This news release contains certain forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). All statements other than statements of present or historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "achieve", "could", "believe", "plan", "intend", "objective", "continuous", "ongoing", "estimate", "outlook", "expect", "project" and similar words, including negatives thereof, suggesting future outcomes or that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations; they are not guaranteeing future performance. Sekur cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond Sekur's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the future of the Company's business; the success of marketing and sales efforts of the Company; the projections prepared in house and projections delivered by channel partners; the Company's ability to complete the necessary software updates; increases in sales as a result of investments software development technology; consumer interest in the Products; future sales plans and strategies; reliance on large channel partners and expectations of renewals to ongoing agreements with these partners; anticipated events and trends; the economy and other future conditions; and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in Sekur's prospectus dated May 8, 2019, filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available on www.sedarplus.ca. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, Sekur undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201523 SOURCE: Sekur Private Data Ltd. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl WARSAW (dpa-AFX) - The United States will offer to sell Poland 96 AH-64 Apache helicopters. This is a major step to provide Poland's armed forces with cutting-edge capability to defend itself, strengthen NATO interoperability, and further bolster the U.S. defense industry, the White House said in a readout of President Joe Biden's meeting with Polish leaders. The Boeing AH-64 Apache is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter. Primarily operated by the U.S. Army, the AH-64 has also become the primary attack helicopter of multiple nations. Biden hosted Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk for a joint meeting at the White House marking the 25th anniversary of Poland's accession to NATO. At the meeting, President Biden announced that the United States will move forward with a new $2 billion Foreign Military Financing (FMF) direct loan to Poland to bolster its security and support its defense modernization using previously appropriated congressional funds. This loan will enable Poland's purchase of additional U.S. defense equipment, further supporting U.S. jobs and deepening the two nations' security relationship. The leaders committed to ensuring continued support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russia's attacks. They also discussed the strong U.S.-Polish energy security partnership and the enduring importance of democratic values. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The European Commission has recommended to open EU accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina. As requested by the European Council, the Commission is presenting to the Council a report on progress made by Bosnia and Herzegovina. As outlined in the report, since the European Council granted candidate status to the country in December 2022, the public commitment of the political leadership to the strategic goal of European integration was taken forward by important reforms and have brought positive results. Bosnia and Herzegovina has shown strong commitment to move forward on long pending reforms such as the adoption of the law on the prevention of conflict of interests and the law on anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing. The Balkan country has taken significant steps to improve the judiciary and prosecutorial system, the fight against corruption, organised crime and terrorism and to improve migration management, with the approval of a mandate to negotiate a Frontex status agreement. Bosnia and Herzegovina has reached and maintained full alignment with the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, which is a significant positive step and crucial in these times of geopolitical turmoil, the Commission said. The Commission said it also discussed the upcoming oral report to the Council on the progress made by Ukraine and Moldova to address the outstanding steps made in the Commission's Enlargement report of November. The Commission has also finalised proposals for the draft Negotiating Frameworks with these countries, which will be submitted to the Council. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken Shira Stein is The San Francisco Chronicle's Washington correspondent, covering national politics and policy with a particular eye to the impacts on California. She was previously a health care reporter and received several awards for her work covering the COVID-19 pandemic for Bloomberg. She also covered the fall of Roe v. Wade, including being the first to report President Joe Bidens consideration of a public health emergency for reproductive rights; the Trump administrations efforts to lower prescription drug prices; and the third legal fight to overturn the Affordable Care Act. She previously interned at the Washington Post, Bloomberg Law, and the Colorado-based Durango Herald. She is a native of the Bay Area and a graduate of American University. She can be reached at shira.stein@sfchronicle.com. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 completed the agency's seventh ?commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station after spending 199 days in orbit. On Tuesday, the international crew of four splashed down safely in a Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Pensacola, Florida. NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Russian cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov ?returned to Earth splashing down at 5:47 a.m. EDT. Teams aboard SpaceX recovery vessels retrieved the spacecraft and its crew. After returning to shore, the crew will fly to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov traveled 84,434,094 miles during their mission, spent 197 days aboard the space station, and completed 3,184 orbits around Earth. The Crew-7 mission was the first spaceflight for Moghbeli and Borisov. Mogensen has logged 209 days in space over his two flights, and Furukawa has logged 366 days in space over his two flights. Throughout their mission, the Crew-7 members contributed to a host of science?and maintenance activities and technology demonstrations. Moghbeli conducted one spacewalk, joined by NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara, replacing one of the 12 trundle bearing assemblies on the port solar alpha rotary joint, which allows the arrays to track the Sun and generate electricity to power the station. The crew contributed to hundreds of experiments and technology demonstrations, including the first study of human response to different spaceflight durations, and an experiment growing food on the space station. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. BEIJING, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from People's Daily: The international community is closely watching China's "two sessions," the annual gatherings of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee. It is optimistic about China's potential for economic and social development, looking forward to China injecting more positive energy into world economic recovery. It is widely believed that the GDP growth target of around 5 percent reflects China's confidence in its economy, and the new quality productive forces will contribute to the country's high-quality development and advancing Chinese modernization. With stable economic growth and a vast market, cooperating with China has become a highly attractive choice. In 2023, China's economy showed strong resilience and achieved remarkable results. Despite the complex international environment and challenging tasks to stabilize reform and development, China has accomplished its main economic and social development goals for the year. In 2023, the country's GDP grew 5.2 percent year-on-year to over 126 trillion yuan ($17.53 trillion), a growth rate that ranks among the top of the world's major economies. As calculated at comparable prices, China's economic increment last year exceeded 6 trillion yuan, equivalent to the economic aggregate of a medium-sized country. This proves that China's economy remains a crucial engine for global economic growth and possesses immense development potential. The 2024 growth target of around 5 percent highlights the stability of China's economy, sending a clear and positive signal. The stable growth expectation of China not only helps consolidate consensus on development but also provides valuable certainty for the sluggish global economy. China has significant institutional advantages, the demand advantage from an ultra-large market, the supply advantage of a well-established industrial system, and the talent advantage of a large number of skilled laborers. Its technological innovation capabilities continue to improve, while new industries, business models, and growth drivers are rapidly growing. Its endogenous growth momentum is also being generated. The overall trend of recovery and long-term improvement remains unchanged and will not change. China's economy is becoming "newer" as new growth drivers and advantages for development are constantly forged. Developing new quality productive forces is an endogenous requirement and a pivot of high-quality development. Accelerating the development of new quality productive forces will undoubtedly provide stronger impetus and support for high-quality development. The inclusion of "new quality productive forces" in this year's government work report has attracted widespread attention from the international community, with many recognizing the term as the strategic cornerstone for China to empower economic development through innovation and technological progress. Last year, China's exports of electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products exceeded 1 trillion yuan, with a nearly 30 percent year-on-year growth. The digital economy accelerated its development, with over half of the country's population becoming 5G users. The installed capacity of renewable energy historically surpassed that of thermal power, with the annual new installation exceeding half of the global. Traditional industries underwent rapid transformation and upgrading, while strategic emerging industries flourished. The future industries were laid out orderly, with advanced manufacturing and modern services deeply integrated. Several major industrial innovations have reached the international advanced level, marking significant progress in the construction of China's modern industrial system. China's economy is releasing its vitality and potential through high-level opening up, aiming for mutual benefits with other countries. China actively aligns with high-standard international economic and trade rules, steadily expands institutional opening up, promotes quality and quantity of foreign trade, increases efforts to attract foreign investment, and advances high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. It is also deepening both bilateral and regional economic cooperation. Through a series of practical measures, the country has enhanced the synergy between the domestic and international markets and resources, sending a clear signal that China is firmly committed to expanding high-level opening up. International investors continue to see great opportunities for investing in China, with many multinational companies agreeing that to maintain global competitiveness, it is necessary to increase their presence in the Chinese market. China is persistently advancing high-level opening up, which not only drives its own economic development but also provides win-win opportunities for global players, which contributes to the growth of the global economy as a whole. In the past year, China faced an array of interwoven difficulties and challenges. China's economy grew in wave-like progress, moving forward amid twists and turns. Indeed, these achievements did not come easily. In the new year, China will set its goals, make concrete efforts, and continue to effectively upgrade the quality and appropriately expand the quantity of the national economy. It will constantly bring new impetus and new opportunities to the world through its own new development. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/chinese-economy-to-provide-more-opportunities-for-cooperation-302088248.html Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Legislation that would require EU member states to integrate solar installations into future building works, and retroactively install PV on buildings, is one step closer to becoming law, after being approved by members of the European Parliament. Members of European Parliament (MEPs) have adopted the EU Solar Standard, which will require the installation of solar on buildings across EU member states. The standard forms part of the European Performance of Buildings Directive, which was provisionally agreed upon in December. The directive was formally approved by MEPs on Monday, with 370 votes ... Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. PUNE, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The report titled "Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market by Modality (Arteriovenous ECMO, Venoarterial ECMO, Venovenous ECMO), Age (Adult, Neonate, Pediatric), Component, Application, End-User - Global Forecast 2024-2030" is now available on 360iResearch.com's offering, presents an analysis indicating that the market projected to grow from a size of $794.86 million in 2023 to reach $1,085.63 million by 2030, at a CAGR of 4.55% over the forecast period. "Innovations and Global Adoption Propel ECMO Machines Market Forward Amidst Healthcare Challenges" The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine, a crucial medical device, offers extended cardiac and respiratory support to patients with insufficient gas exchange capabilities, marking a significant advancement in critical care. ECMO machines play a pivotal role in sustaining life during severe heart and lung dysfunction, allowing these vital organs to recover by oxygenating blood outside the body and removing carbon dioxide. The increasing incidence of cardiovascular and respiratory ailments and technological improvements highlight the growing reliance on ECMO systems worldwide. Ongoing enhancements in machine design for better portability and compatibility with various treatment environments are broadening the scope for ECMO applications regardless of the challenges, such as high operational costs and a scarcity of trained personnel. Furthermore, market prospects include integrating ECMO with other extracorporeal treatments and concentrated research efforts to expand usage indications. Regionally, the Americas have significant ECMO deployment, driven by robust healthcare infrastructure, skilled workforce availability, and increased ECMO use during the COVID-19 crisis. In Europe, rising healthcare spending and an aging population increase the demand, while the Asia-Pacific region depicts significant growth due to economic advancement, increased healthcare investments, and a burgeoning medical tourism sector. This innovation, regional adoption, and strategic advancements position the ECMO machines market on a sustained growth trajectory and vital support in healthcare delivery. Download Sample Report @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine "Enhancing Neonatal Care: The Strategic Expansion of ECMO Centers" The medical community is increasingly adopting extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) technology, a critical lifesaver for infants unresponsive to traditional treatments for addressing severe neonatal respiratory and cardiac failures. This advanced support mechanism is especially vital for newborns grappling with acute conditions such as persistent pulmonary hypertension (PPHN), meconium aspiration syndrome, and severe respiratory distress, providing essential oxygenation and circulation to sustain life during critical periods. Significant technological advancements have made ECMO machines more adaptable to neonates' unique needs, facilitating broader implementation in neonatal care. Moreover, the post-COVID-19 landscape has highlighted expanding ECMO capacity as a core element of public health preparedness. These initiatives reflect a growing acknowledgment of ECMO's critical role in neonatal care and the concerted efforts to enhance access to this lifesaving technology across new and specialized centers. "Enhancing ECMO Therapy: Innovations in Oxygenators and Optimal Component Integration for Patient Care" In extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) technology, advancements include the development of durable and biocompatible oxygenators, ensuring maximal efficiency in gas exchange with minimal impact on blood cells. Integral to the ECMO system, anticoagulation mechanisms are pivotal in preventing blood clotting during its passage through the ECMO circuit. Advanced blenders enable adjustable oxygen concentration levels, addressing diverse patient requirements and achieving precision in oxygen delivery. Cannulae are essential conduits for blood flow between the ECMO machine and the patient, and they are available in various sizes and materials. Heat exchangers within the ECMO setup maintain the patient's core temperature, underscoring the necessity for circulatory temperature regulation. Continuous monitoring systems are indispensable, providing vigilant oversight of patient vitals and ECMO machine performance. The oxygenator exemplifies the forefront of innovation and is designed to enhance gas exchange efficiency and reduce blood trauma. Pumps, whether centrifugal or roller, propel blood through the ECMO circuit. Centrifugal pumps are distinguished by their reduced hemolysis rates, whereas roller pumps are recognized for their simplicity and cost-efficiency. These components highlight the evolving landscape of ECMO therapy, aiming to offer personalized and effective support for patients in critical care. Request Analyst Support @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine "Getinge AB at the Forefront of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market with a Strong 28.07% Market Share" The key players in the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market include Dragerwerk AG & Co. KGaA, XENIOS AG by Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA, Getinge AB, LivaNova PLC, Medtronic PLC, and others. These prominent players focus on strategies such as expansions, acquisitions, joint ventures, and developing new products to strengthen their market positions. "Introducing ThinkMi: Revolutionizing Market Intelligence with AI-Powered Insights for the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market" We proudly unveil ThinkMi, a cutting-edge AI product designed to transform how businesses interact with the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market. ThinkMi stands out as your premier market intelligence partner, delivering unparalleled insights with the power of artificial intelligence. Whether deciphering market trends or offering actionable intelligence, ThinkMi is engineered to provide precise, relevant answers to your most critical business questions. This revolutionary tool is more than just an information source; it's a strategic asset that empowers your decision-making with up-to-the-minute data, ensuring you stay ahead in the fiercely competitive Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market. Embrace the future of market analysis with ThinkMi, where informed decisions lead to remarkable growth. Ask Question to ThinkMi @ https://app.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine "Dive into the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market Landscape: Explore 196 Pages of Insights, 474 Tables, and 26 Figures" Preface Research Methodology Executive Summary Market Overview Market Insights Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market, by Modality Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market, by Age Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market, by Component Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market, by Application Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market, by End-User Americas Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market Asia-Pacific Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market Europe, Middle East & Africa Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market Competitive Landscape Competitive Portfolio Inquire Before Buying @ https://www.360iresearch.com/library/intelligence/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine Related Reports: Extracorporeal CO2 Removal Devices Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 Extracorporeal Shock Wave Lithotripsy Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 Lithotripsy Devices Market - Global Forecast 2024-2030 About 360iResearch Founded in 2017, 360iResearch is a market research and business consulting company headquartered in India, with clients and focus markets spanning the globe. We are a dynamic, nimble company that believes in carving ambitious, purposeful goals and achieving them with the backing of our greatest asset - our people. Quick on our feet, we have our ear to the ground when it comes to market intelligence and volatility. Our market intelligence is diligent, real-time and tailored to your needs, and arms you with all the insight that empowers strategic decision-making. Our clientele encompasses about 80% of the Fortune Global 500, and leading consulting and research companies and academic institutions that rely on our expertise in compiling data in niche markets. Our meta-insights are intelligent, impactful and infinite, and translate into actionable data that support your quest for enhanced profitability, tapping into niche markets, and exploring new revenue opportunities. Contact 360iResearch Mr. Ketan Rohom 360iResearch Private Limited, Office No. 519, Nyati Empress, Opposite Phoenix Market City, Vimannagar, Pune, Maharashtra, India - 411014. Email: sales@360iresearch.com USA: +1-530-264-8485 India: +91-922-607-7550 To learn more, visit 360iresearch.com or follow us on LinkedIn , Twitter , and Facebook . Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2359256/360iResearch_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine-market-projected-to-reach-1-085-63-million-by-2030---exclusive-report-by-360iresearch-302088239.html SERRA DO SALITRE, Brazil, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- EuroChem today celebrated the opening of its new phosphate fertilizer production facility in Serra do Salitre, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. With a total project investment of nearly US$1 billion, the new phosphate mine and plant complex was constructed in record-breaking time and will have an annual production capacity of 1 million tonnes of advanced phosphate fertilizers, significantly increasing the reliability of domestic phosphate fertilizer supplies to Brazilian farmers. The facility offers state-of-the-art integrated phosphate fertilizer production, with low water consumption, a fully closed water circuit, and a clean energy generation system that re-uses its own steam and generates up to 40% of the entire facility's energy needs. "EuroChem has a long-standing and successful history in South America, a key growth market for us, where there is a high demand for our products," said EuroChem Group President Oleg Shiryaev. "The launch of our new facility moves us one step closer to our customers and allows us to provide Brazilian farmers with access to the highest quality fertilizers via our well-established distribution network in this important global breadbasket. EuroChem operates on a mine-to-farm basis, ensuring reliability and quality across the entire fertilizer supply chain, from raw material extraction to production and delivery to the end consumer." EuroChem is a leading international fertilizer producer, with products ranging across all three major nutrient groups: nitrogen, phosphate, and potash. With a global workforce of 32,000 people and a sales network spanning over 100 countries, the Company helps provide food security for more than 250 million people worldwide. EuroChem is actively investing in the development of its production facilities and, over the past few years, has launched several new production sites, including the EuroChem-Northwest ammonia plant and the Usolskiy and VolgaKaliy potash plants in Russia. An ammonia and urea plant in Russia, EuroChem North-West-2, as well as a potassium nitrate plant in southern Russia and a chemical complex in Karatau, Kazakhstan, are currently under construction. In South America, in addition to its Salitre complex, EuroChem has blending facilities and a wide distribution network, employing over 3,000 people in Brazil. The Company has been present in the country since 2016, following the acquisition of Fertilizantes Tocantins and Fertilizantes Heringer. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361940/EuroChem_Serra_do_Salitre_complex.jpg Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361941/EuroChem_Serra_do_Salitre.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/eurochem-launches-state-of-the-art-phosphate-fertilizer-complex-in-brazil-302088326.html BETHESDA, MD / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / GrammaTech, Inc., a leading provider of cybersecurity services and tools that improve and accelerate software development, along with researchers from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Virginia, has been selected as one of the winners of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)'s AI Cyber Challenge's Small Business Track Competition! DARPA received a robust response of competitive submissions from small businesses for this opportunity, and GrammaTech's team, VERSATIL, scored in the top seven. GrammaTech's team will receive $1 million in prize money and the distinction of competing in the AIxCC Semifinal Competition (ASC) as a Small Business Track competitor. GrammaTech AIxCC The Artificial Intelligence Cyber Challenge (AIxCC) is a two-year competition asking leading AI companies, like GrammaTech, to work with DARPA to defend the software that everyone relies on. The growing importance of software in modern life creates an ever-expanding attack surface for malicious actors. New AI-enabled technology can address this cybersecurity problem. AIxCC asks competitors to design novel AI systems to secure critical code and will award a cumulative $29.5 million in prizes to teams with the best systems. GrammaTech's team combines technology and expertise from industry and academia. Built upon its system that won second prize at DARPA's 2016 Cyber Grand Challenge, and its commercial successor Proteus, GrammaTech's latest advances multiply the effectiveness of state-of-the-art static and dynamic analysis tools by leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs). The system will use LLMs to find potential vulnerabilities, guide and customize vulnerability discovery analyses, and generate patches to fix the vulnerabilities. An invaluable resource in support of the industry drive for Secure-by-Design, the system will automatically find and repair vulnerabilities at scale. AIxCC competitions will occur at one of the world's top cybersecurity conferences, DEF CON. The semifinal competition will be at DEF CON 2024, and the final competition at DEF CON 2025, where the top prize will be $4 million. Ray DeMeo, Chief Growth Officer at GrammaTech, said: "This is GrammaTech's second AI award in the first months of 2024. It reflects the caliber of our team and decades-long reputation for solving the hardest cybersecurity problems. GrammaTech's combination of talent and technology being leveraged here are uniquely suited to next-level growth of our already formidable offerings for identifying vulnerabilities, automating remediation, and securing supply chains across the full software, firmware, and microelectronics compute stack, now a top priority for information processing and inference at the edge." About GrammaTech: GrammaTech is a provider of advanced cybersecurity services and developer of software-assurance solutions. Originating from the computer science department at Cornell University, the company has a 35-year history of delivering cutting-edge cyber capability in support of government, intelligence, and mission-critical infrastructure. GrammaTech offerings are leveraged by software developers and system defenders alike, everywhere reliability and security are paramount. They cover threat detection and mitigation, malware analysis, machine learning and automation, migration to memory-safe languages, attack surface area reduction, and software supply chain integrity. Contact Information Sarah Riggins Project Manager, GrammaTech sriggins@grammatech.com 301-530-2900 SOURCE: GrammaTech View the original press release on newswire.com. Top Five Conveyor Car Wash Company Expands Footprint in Virginia, Texas, and Georgia THOMASTON, GA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Tidal Wave Auto Spa, one of the nation's fastest-growing express car wash companies, opened three brand-new locations across the south this week in Culpeper, VA, Hillsboro, TX, and Savannah, GA. To celebrate these Grand Openings, each new Tidal Wave location is offering eight days of free car washes from March 13-March 20. This limited-time promotion provides an opportunity for car owners to experience Tidal Wave's premium wash option, Graph-X4, at no cost. Additionally, any new customer that joins a Clean Club unlimited wash membership plan during Grand Opening week will enjoy their first month of unlimited washes for only $9.97 - saving up to $40. "We're committed to delivering superior service and unparalleled convenience to our customers," said Tidal Wave CEO and Founder Scott Blackstock. "Each of these new locations represents our ongoing commitment to setting new standards in car care excellence and providing a truly exceptional experience for every customer who visits a Tidal Wave Auto Spa." Tidal Wave Auto Spa is committed to providing every customer with an exceptional car wash experience through industry-leading car care technology, clean and attractive locations, and friendly customer service at every location. Stop by for a single wash or join Tidal Wave's Clean Club for the ultimate experience. Members can wash every day of the month for one convenient monthly payment and save time with exclusive club member wash lanes - plus, memberships can be used at any Tidal Wave location. For those needing to wash multiple cars, Tidal Wave offers discounted monthly family plans and fleet plans for businesses with five or more vehicles. Culpeper, VA Location: 16105 Ira Hoffman Lane, Culpeper, VA 27701 Nearby: Manassas, VA Hillsboro, TX Location: 1319 Corsicana Hwy, Hillsboro, TX 76645 Nearby: Fort Worth, TX (Coming Soon) Savannah, GA Location: 10001 Abercorn St, Savannah, GA 31406 Nearby: Hinesville, GA, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA - E Victory Drive (Coming Soon) Tidal Wave currently operates 11 Virginia locations, 16 Texas locations, and 43 Georgia locations. In the coming months, the company will open additional brand-new locations in Waynesboro, VA, Christiansburg, VA, El Paso, TX, Silsbee, TX, Statesboro, GA, and a second convenient location in Savannah, GA. For additional information, including upcoming locations, fundraising, fleet plans, and more, please visit: https://www.tidalwaveautospa.com/. About Tidal Wave Auto Spa Tidal Wave Auto Spa is an industry-leading conveyor car wash company founded in 1999 by Scott and Hope Blackstock in Thomaston, GA. Tidal Wave is committed to providing cutting-edge car care technology and exceptional customer service at each of their 244 locations sprawling 25 states across the South, Midwest, and Northern United States. In 2020, Tidal Wave partnered with Golden Gate Capital to facilitate their accelerated growth across the country. Tidal Wave is one of the top five conveyor car wash companies in the country and has been included in the Inc. 5000 list for America's Fastest Growing Companies since 2020. The company was recognized as a 2023 Champion of Charity Honoree by Professional Carwashing & Detailing and has raised over $3 million dollars for organizations in their communities. Contact Information Heather Coleman Marketing Manager media@tidalwaveautospa.com Andrea Traylor Senior Director of Digital Marketing andrea.traylor@tidalwaveautospa.com 2058212220 Related Images SOURCE: Tidal Wave Auto Spa View the original press release on newswire.com. HALIFAX, NS, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Spatial Technology Solutions ("GSTS" or "the Company") announced that it has been awarded a contract by Canada's Ocean Supercluster's Core Technology Leadership Program to advance the capabilities of its proprietary, AI powered SaaS platform, OCIANA. This award enables GSTS to further develop and implement a predictive, dynamic Berth Schedule Management System which will facilitate digital collaboration and enhance global supply chain efficiency through reduced vessel emissions and fuel use. Working in partnership with leading maritime innovators including Canada Steamship Lines, Montreal Port Authority, Laurentian Pilotage Authority and Clear Seas, OCIANA's latest capability will streamline vessel berthing through AI Predictive Analytics to support Just-in-Time Arrivals (JIT). OCIANA's Berth Schedule Management System will connect ships, pilotage authorities and ports to support Green Digital Shipping Corridors and environmental protection thus promoting the overall efficiency of the maritime supply chain. "We are extremely pleased to continue to work with our valued customers and innovation partners", said Richard Kolacz, Chief Executive Officer, GSTS. "On a daily basis we see events that have an impact on vessel routing and schedules. These include the Red Sea Crisis, Panama Canal issues, weather events, like hurricanes and labour events such as strikes. OCIANA's novel capability will allow vessels to respond to events and identify optimal routes and arrival times by coordinating with ports and pilotage authorities thereby reducing emissions, fuel use and transport costs." This initiative will thus deliver the world's first dynamic, fully collaborative, integrated, Berth Schedule Management System, equivalent to air traffic control for ships and ports. "As the first shipowner to participate in the Ocean Supercluster project, we are excited to support GSTS' development of the OCIANA platform," saidJean Fahmy, Vice President - Digital, Canada Steamship Lines. "By contributing real-time data from our Canadian fleet, we aim to help advance efforts to leverage artificial intelligence to support decarbonization in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway by optimizing Just-in-Time routing and voyage ETAs." "We are particularly proud of the work accomplished by our multidisciplinary team, in close collaboration with GSTS. This collaborative effort has resulted in a significant advance in port management. I congratulate the multidisciplinary team of experts in information technology, the environment, research, and port operations management, who worked together at every stage of the project to create a collaborative platform dedicated to dock occupancy management," saidJulie Gascon, Chief Executive Officer, Montreal Port Authority. "Our approach began with the aim of improving the predictability of ship arrivals at the port, and then expanded to integrate the operational needs of stakeholders on the ground. This approach enabled us to develop an innovative tool that facilitates collaboration among all stakeholders, with the goal of optimizing the entire supply chain and the efficiency of maritime trade corridors," she added. "The Laurentian Pilotage Authority is pleased to join GSTS and the Ocean Supercluster project and thus contribute to the protection of the environment on the waters under its jurisdiction," said Marc-Yves Bertin, Chief Executive Officer, Laurentian Pilotage Authority. "This initiative is directly in line with the Authority's mission to provide a safe, effective, and efficient pilotage service with strong willingness to protecting human health, property and the environment, by innovating and using state-of-the-art technology that will improve the fluidity of the supply chain." "Clear Seas is excited to collaborate on this new initiative to develop a more efficient and intelligent maritime system in Canada", said Paul Blomerus, Executive Director, Clear Seas. "Better information leads to better decisions, enabling marine shipping to continue its critical role in the supply chain while reducing its impact on the ocean." With the development of this capability, GSTS will further enhance its leading position in the global maritime transportation industry, providing next generation advancement that will create competitive advantage for national and international customers across ports, shipping lines and terminal operators. OCIANATM is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform that provides maritime vessel and port optimisation as well as maritime risk management solutions for the global maritime market. The AI platform ingests a wide range of operational and oceanographic data sets and through proprietary analysis, supports decision making related to the safe and efficient movement of people and goods on all of the world's waterways. About Us GSTS: Global Spatial Technology Solutions (GSTS) is a global maritime intelligence company delivering solutions to enhance decision making across the maritime and logistics industry. Our predictive solutions are enabled by a range of operational, environmental, vessel and cargo data to provide real-time decision making intelligence for ports, terminal operators, shipping lines, logistics companies, importers, exporters, national and international agencies as well as security organisations. For more information and to explore opportunities to join our consortium, contact us today. CSL: The CSL Group is a world-leading provider of marine dry bulk cargo handling and delivering services. CSL owns and operates a highly diversified fleet of specialized self-unloading vessels, offshore transhippers and handy-size bulk carriers, and delivers more than 78 million tonnes of cargo to industrial customers annually. MPA: Montreal Port Authority is a hub for international trade that contributes to the economic development of Canada. It does everything in its power to put innovation, sustainable development, and collaboration at the heart of its business processes. Their missions is to build together a more resilient, smarter and sustainable marine corridor. LPA: The Laurentian Pilotage Authority, a federal Crown corporation created in 1972, is responsible for establishing, managing and providing marine pilotage services as well as related services in the Laurentian region waters, notably in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the St. Lawrence River and the Saguenay River. The LPA monitors navigation manages regulations and provides services for three pilotage districts that cover a distance of 265 nautical miles between Montreal and Les Escoumins and another 70 nautical miles on the Saguenay River. Clear Seas: Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping was established in 2014 after extensive discussions among government, industry, environmental organizations, Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities revealed a need for impartial information about the Canadian marine shipping industry. It provides impartial information on marine shipping in Canada to policy makers and the public. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2358386/GLOBAL_SPATIAL_TECHNOLOGY_SOLUTIONS_INC___GSTS__GSTS_selected_by.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/gsts-selected-by-canadas-ocean-supercluster-to-develop-worlds-first-ai-based-collaborative-predictive-berth-schedule-management-system-302088363.html FluidOne, the market-leading provider of Connected Cloud Solutions, announced today that its cyber division Cyber Security Associates (CSA) has acquired SureCloud Cyber Services, a UK-based company with expertise in CREST and NCSC CHECK certified penetration testing and specialist cyber risk consulting. The acquisition will enable CSA to enhance its services and provide its customers with a more comprehensive range of cyber security solutions against the ever-growing cyber threat. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313036120/en/ Cyber Security Associates, a division of FluidOne, acquires penetration testing specialist SureCloud Cyber Services. (Photo: Business Wire) SureCloud Cyber Services Limited has 28 expert staff delivering CREST and NCSC check certified penetration testing and specialist cyber risk consulting for 160 customers, including enterprise, public sector and international businesses. The services were born in the cloud in 2006 when the founders pioneered the successful penetration-testing-as-a-service (PTaaS), being the first to operationalise testing output through cloud technology. FluidOne invested in CSA in 2020 as a Centre of Excellence for cyber security following market demand for expertise to protect customers from the growing threat landscape. Surveying our customers their feedback was that IT MSP's shouldn't "mark their own homework" and this led us to operate CSA as a separate division dedicated to cyber security. Led by Dave Woodfine, the former commander of the MOD Cyber Defence Unit, CSA excels in Monitoring and Detection, with particular strength in managed services using Microsoft Sentinel and the wider Microsoft suite of security products. For expertise in penetration testing and incident response, the team have historically partnered with specialist suppliers. The SureCloud Cyber Services acquisition brings these skills in-house, with an expert team of 28 employees led by Commercial Director, Ben Jepson, who has been with the business for 4 years, following 16 years with NCC. Ben will join the board at CSA reporting to the MD Dave Woodfine. The SureCloud Cyber Services portfolio perfectly complements that offered by CSA and the acquisition will benefit both businesses clients. FluidOne's Connected Cloud Solutions are designed to enable its customer's people to work from anywhere, connecting to their business applications simply and securely. As businesses progress their digital transformation, the continued demand to move applications to the cloud, combined with hybrid working, means the cyber security risks for businesses continue to increase. Over 60% of medium and large UK businesses reported a cyber breach in the past 12 months. This makes Cyber Security a vital part of the FluidOne strategy and solution set. Following on from the December 2023 acquisition of CNC, the SureCloud Cyber Services acquisition takes the FluidOne group to 109m revenue and 500 employees, with over 50% now being IT and Cyber Security. Commenting on the acquisition Russell Horton, FluidOne CEO and Chairman of CSA, said: "During the acquisition process we have got to know Ben and the senior SureCloud team, combined with surveying their key customers. This has reinforced the quality and expertise of their staff, and a strong alignment in culture and drive to deliver great customer service. We will work together to deliver a world-class cyber Centre of Excellence that together with the other FluidOne pillars will strengthen our range of Connected Cloud Solutions." Ben Jepson, Commercial Director, SureCloud Cyber Services, added: "I am extremely excited at the prospect of integrating with one of the best cyber providers in the UK Cyber Security Associates (CSA), part of the FluidOne group. Prior to the acquisition process we have worked on a number of joint bids with CSA and it became immediately apparent that both businesses had a complementary service portfolio and were an excellent cultural fit. CSA's focus on technical excellence, its customers and dedication to developing its people echoes our own ambitions. Having a home in a fast-growing business dedicated to cyber will enable us to provide clear career paths for our current people and attract new talent both of which will enable us to increase the value delivered to our joint customers. I'm looking forward to getting started on this new challenge and for the broader team and our clients to see the huge potential that I have experienced throughout the last couple of months." Dave Woodfine, Founder and MD Cyber Security Associates added: "Both myself and James Griffiths as the co-founders of Cyber Security Associates are delighted to add the world-class cyber services that SureCloud Cyber Services brings to the growing portfolio of CSA capabilities. Having met Ben and his team at SureCloud we see a great opportunity to enhance the range of cyber services we can offer both existing and new clients through the provision of penetration testing, red teaming and specialist consultancy. The addition of CREST and CHECK certified testing alongside a team who understand the specialism of cyber in operational technology and the Payment Card Industry (PCI) will accelerate the growth of CSA this year and beyond. More importantly as one team we will be able to work together to close the cyber threat gap and enable all our clients to be more secure." Post-acquisition, FluidOne's CEO, Russell Horton, is to become Chairman of SureCloud Cyber Services, with FluidOne Directors Simon Ward, Chris Rogers and Roy Hastings also becoming board directors. About SureCloud Cyber Services SureCloud Cyber Services Limited has 28 expert staff delivering CREST and NCSC check certified penetration testing and specialist cyber risk consulting for 160 customers, including enterprise, public sector and international businesses. The services were born in the cloud in 2006 when the founders pioneered the successful penetration-testing-as-a-service (PTaaS), being the first to operationalise testing output through cloud technology. About Cyber Security Associates Ltd Providing Cyber Security Solutions designed to Protect your People. Founded in 2013 by Managing Director Dave Woodfine and Technical Director James Griffiths, Cyber Security Associates Limited (CSA) provides cyber consultancy and cyber managed services which help to detect, protect and educate against the ever-changing cyber threat. We have built our team from a foundation of Government (ex-Military) and commercially experienced specialists all holding current and relevant cyber certifications. Today our core services are based around a 24/7 Security Operations Centre (SOC) based in Gloucester while still providing trusted and professional cyber consultancy advice and guidance to both new and existing clients. CSA continues to grow its capabilities and security certifications to ensure it remains a world-class Cyber Security Provider. CSA is a certified Microsoft partner and an Advanced Security Specialist Partner in Threat Protection and an IASME Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus Certification Body. www.csa.limited About FluidOne Established in 2006, FluidOne is an award-winning provider of Connected Cloud Solutions with a 109m turnover and one of the consistently highest Net Promoter Scores (NPS) in the industry, securing 87 for January 2024. Underlying its services is FluidOne's national fibre network, Platform One, which is the most connected network in the UK. FluidOne has a strong company culture enjoyed by 500 staff and was ranked in the UK top 50 large companies to work for in the Best Companies awards 2023. FluidOne supports the needs of 2,500 customers, including 200 channel resellers, with services covering connectivity, SD-WAN, cyber security, IT managed services, mobile, IoT, UCaaS and CCaaS. FluidOne consults with its customers to design solutions that complement their in-house IT structures; taking complex hybrid multi-site environments, to make them simple and secure, so end-users can access their business applications wherever they are. Led by CEO Russell Horton, co-founder and CIO Chris Rogers, CFO Roy Hastings and CRO Simon Ward, the management team is backed by Livingbridge to support their ambitious long-term strategy. www.fluidone.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313036120/en/ Contacts: contact@fluidone.com WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - A recent report by the Ohio Capital Journal unveiled findings from two Ohio organizations, revealing over 200 instances of HIV-related prosecutions in Ohio. Equality Ohio and the Ohio Health Modernization Movement (OHMM) researchers examined data from 2014 to 2020, focusing on six existing statutes within Ohio law that criminalize or impose penalties on individuals living with HIV. These laws in Ohio consider not disclosing HIV, hepatitis, or tuberculosis status before engaging in sexual activity as a form of felony assault, regardless of transmission risk or protective measures taken. Between 2014 and 2020 in Ohio, 56% of HIV-related cases were prosecuted under the 'harassment with a bodily substance' provision of Ohio law, while 36% were charged with felonious assault. A small percentage of cases were linked to sex work, as per the study by Equality Ohio and OHMM. Offenders could face a second-degree felony conviction, a fine of $15,000, and a prison sentence ranging from two to eight years. These charges stem from six Ohio laws aimed at preventing HIV transmission and addressing the AIDS epidemic. However, these laws have not been updated since the 1990s, failing to reflect current scientific knowledge about HIV treatment and transmission. The CDC reported that as of last year, 34 states, including Ohio, had laws criminalizing HIV exposure, with Ohio being one of 21 states with HIV-specific statutes and regulations. The report by Equality Ohio and OHMM argues that the current laws do not account for the low transmission risk in most scenarios targeted, as they do not require actual transmission, intent to transmit, or the likelihood of transmission. These arguments are supported by the CDC, which confirms that HIV is not transmitted through saliva or unbroken skin, and there have been no documented cases of HIV transmission through spitting. Enforcement of these laws in Ohio varied across different regions, with a concentration of cases in Cuyahoga County, followed by Hamilton, Lucas, Franklin, Montgomery, and Warren counties. The report also highlights a racial disparity in the prosecution of individuals under HIV-criminalization laws compared to the general population, with Black defendants accounting for over 35% of cases despite Black Ohioans making up only 12.5% of the population. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken Supervisor Catherine Stefani said a bill she authored creates standardized performance metrics set up by the citys controller and requires that nonprofits be subject to monitoring of their operations, activities and effectiveness of services rendered. Benjamin Fanjoy/The Chronicle San Francisco is poised to adopt a sprawling nonprofit monitoring bill that backers say might have prevented a slew of recent scandals at organizations that provide city services. San Francisco spends about $1.7 billion a year contracting with about 600 nonprofits to offer services that include running homeless shelters, providing drug treatment and organizing neighborhood crime prevention groups. At least half a dozen charities over the past several years have become embroiled in scandal or have come under scrutiny for their performance. That includes nonprofits accused of pilfering hundreds of thousands of dollars, spending taxpayer money on unnecessary and excessive expenses, not providing promised services, engaging in cronyism and other allegations. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Supervisor Catherine Stefani said her bill, which passed Tuesday, creates standardized performance metrics set up by the citys controller and requires that nonprofits be subject to monitoring of their operations, activities and effectiveness of services rendered. The bill would also require the controller to administer a new corrective action policy for underperforming nonprofits and set up community meetings to start a public rulemaking process that allows residents to recommend rules that govern nonprofits. A 2022 city report found problems with the citys network of nonprofit contractors, arguing that its difficult to measure the overall impact of the programs and services provided because performance measurement and program monitoring vary among city departments and most data is not shared. Mayor London Breed and the Board of Supervisors have vowed to deal with the issue over the past few years, but the scandals have continued. Currently, the city controller monitors only the finances of nonprofits, but soon it will scrutinize other aspects of nonprofits performance, thanks to Stefanis bill. We hear it as supervisors all the time: We spend all this money on nonprofits, but were not seeing any results, Stefani said in an interview. We really wanted to make sure that at least there was accountability and transparency about how we are receiving our contracts. I want to be able to turn around and say to our constituents this is how were doing it. As part of the legislative process, Stefani unearthed a 2003 controllers report commissioned by then-Supervisor Sophie Maxwell that outlined ways the city needed to change its relationship with growing nonprofits. The task force urged the city to review the performance of nonprofits and create a centralized way of monitoring them with standards that apply to all contractors. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Stefani said Maxwells report predicted that a failure to address these issues would ultimately create a crisis at the core of the city safety net. The city did implement recommendations around fiscal monitoring, but performance monitoring has been kicked down the road for years due to the complex nature of the work, Stefani said. I think thats what weve been seeing with a lot of these nonprofits that have gone unchecked, the ones that have taken advantage of the byzantine rules and procedures in the place right now, Stefani said. The rules are so complex it feels like its probably easier to get away with things. For years, critics have decried what they dubbed the non-profit industrial complex, and argued for heightened scrutiny of the citys top contractors. While some nonprofits employ strict auditing, oversight and ethics protocols, the city has seen multiple examples in recent years of nonprofits that have come under scrutiny for improper behavior. Some are also not fiscally responsible, according to the controllers office. In June 2023, the Board of Supervisors passed a bill that will require nonprofits to submit tax and governance documents confirming their state nonprofit status after reporting by the San Francisco Standard found nearly $25 million went to nonprofits that were blocked by state law from receiving funds. The city controller said in November that some nonprofits arent well run and its unclear to city officials what tools they have to address underperforming nonprofits. Stefanis legislation will require the city to provide specific guidelines for each city department to work more efficiently with nonprofits partners. Stefani has criticized HealthRight 360 the citys largest behavioral health contractor for blaming lack of staff due to a COVID-19 outbreak for its decision to pause on new intakes. Advertisement Article continues below this ad She called for an audit of the organization last year. HealthRight 360 Vice President of Policy Gary McCoy said, Were looking forward for the support from all members of the board and the mayors office and other elected representatives to work closely with labor and SEIU 1021 in ensuring we can expand staffing so when we have things like a COVID outbreak among staff we have the staffing necessary. He said HealthRight 360 welcomes any kinds of metrics that can show the success of programs. The nonprofit has also said in the past that nonprofits have been raising the alarm about staffing issues for years, and that the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be overstated and continue to this day. My concern has always been, Why are you overpromising and under-delivering? Stefani said. We need to have a common way of looking at whether or not they are performing that service. Stefani said she believes the recent nonprofit scandals would not have happened or would have come to light sooner if her legislation had been in place. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc - Transaction in Own Shares PR Newswire LONDON, United Kingdom, March 13 For immediate release 13 March 2024 FINSBURY GROWTH & INCOME TRUST PLC (the "Company") MARKET PURCHASE OF COMPANY'S OWN SHARES The Company announces that it has today purchased 225,960 of its own shares ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 854.38 pence per Ordinary Share. Such shares will be held in treasury by the Company. The transaction was made pursuant to the authority granted at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on 23 January 2024. Following this transaction, the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury is 35,324,551; the total number of Ordinary Shares that the Company has in issue, less the total number of Ordinary Shares held by the Company in treasury following such purchase, and therefore, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 189,666,752. The figure of 189,666,752 may be used by shareholders as the denominator for calculations of interests in the Company's voting rights in accordance with the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules. For and on behalf of Frostrow Capital LLP Company Secretary For further information, please contact: Victoria Hale Frostrow Capital LLP Tel: 020 3 170 8732 Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl MEXICO CITY (dpa-AFX) - The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) has issued a warning after two cases of rabies in bobcats were confirmed in the state. In Grant County, a man was attacked by one of the rabid bobcats near his home, while in Sierra County, a dog was attacked by the second infected bobcat. The man who was attacked is now receiving shots to prevent rabies, and the dog is currently under observation for 45 days, despite being current on its rabies vaccine. Both infected bobcats were euthanized. State Public Health Veterinarian, Erin Phipps, emphasized the importance of vaccinating pets against rabies, as the disease can be fatal once symptoms start showing and there is no cure. Phipps also stated that 'Unvaccinated pets exposed to a rabid animal must either be euthanized or put into strict isolation for four months to prevent them from exposing people to rabies.' The health officials from NMDOH caution that rabid wild animals may exhibit no fear of humans, displaying either aggression or appearing quiet and tame. To prevent rabies, the DOH recommends keeping pets on a leash and ensuring that they are up to date on rabies vaccinations, as even indoor pets can be at risk of exposure, contacting a veterinarian if the pet is bitten or scratched by a wild animal, and considering vaccinating horses and other livestock against rabies. It is also important to avoid contact with wild or unfamiliar animals, and if bitten by an animal, wash the wound with soap and water, inform local animal control, and seek medical attention. In case of exposure to the saliva of wild animals, people are advised to seek medical care immediately and contact the DOH helpline at 833-796-8773. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Texas-based Paul Alexander, who lived in an iron lung for seven decades, died on March 11. He was admitted to the hospital a few weeks ago after contracting Covid-19. The actual reason for the death has not been disclosed. Alexander contracted polio in 1952 when he was six, which left him paralyzed from the neck down. The doctors operating on him decided to place him in an iron lung, a metal cylinder enclosing his body up to his neck since he was unable to breathe on his own. The iron lung's bellows sucked air from outside, forcing his lungs to take the air in and let it back. He eventually learnt to breathe on his own but only for a short amount of time. He graduated from high school and later attended Southern Methodist University. He pursued law from the University of Texas at Austin. Two years later, he was admitted to the bar, and thereafter he practiced as a lawyer for decades. Alexander also published a memoir in 2020. As the years passed by, iron lungs became obsolete and were replaced by ventilators. However, he continued to live in the iron lung saying he was used to it. He was recognized by Guinness World Records as the person who lived the longest in an iron lung. During the last few years, Alexander started a fundraiser, GoFundMe, to help him fund the maintenance of iron lung, housing, payment to caregivers and even for his funeral. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Tesla Inc. (TSLA) founder Elon Musk on Wednesday visited the Tesla Gigafactory near Berlin, where production was halted due to an arson attack. According to reports, Musk waved to workers as he arrived at the factory in the German state Brandenburg. He also addressed them on stage in a tent where employees gathered to meet him. Reports also said that Musk told the crowd, 'I love you,' in German. Meanwhile, Musk is reportedly expected to meet regional politicians during his visit to Germany. Last week, Tesla was forced to halt production at its Gigafactory due to a suspected arson attack at a nearby power substation. The attack set an electricity pylon close to the site ablaze. However, the fire did not spread to the Tesla facility. Tesla's Gruenheide factory is located southeast of the German capital Berlin. The Tesla site, which employs around 12,500 people, was evacuated and most employees were sent home. Left-wing extremist group Vulkangruppe claimed responsibility for the attack in a letter posted online, criticizing Tesla's environmental competencies. Regional authorities are still investigating the case. 'These are either the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth or they're puppets of those who don't have good environmental goals,' Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on X about the attack. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - United Airlines Holdings, Inc.'s (UAL) Boeing 777-300 aircraft had to return to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport after a fuel leak was detected just after take-off. The incident marks the fifth reported issue for the airline in just over a week. The incident occurred during United Airlines Flight 830, which was carrying 167 passengers and 16 crew members on board and was originally bound for San Francisco. Fortunately, no one was injured, and all 183 people on board safely deplaned. The aircraft was met by fire crews upon landing, as captured in a video showing fluid leaking from the wheel area during take-off. Following the incident, passengers were accommodated overnight and rebooked for a flight to San Francisco the following day. However, just hours before this incident, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner from Sydney to Auckland experienced a technical event, causing injuries to 50 passengers, including one individual hitting the cabin ceiling. Both incidents are under investigation, and Boeing is facing heightened scrutiny from various government investigations. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has emphasized the need for Boeing to undergo significant changes in its safety and manufacturing standards. The Federal Aviation Administration, which falls under Buttigieg's jurisdiction, is also conducting a separate investigation into Boeing. Buttigieg has stressed the importance of Boeing's full cooperation with investigative bodies such as the Department of Justice and the National Transportation Safety Board. A recent report by The New York Times revealed that Boeing did not pass 33 out of 89 FAA inspections conducted after an incident involving an Alaska Airlines aircraft. The comprehensive six-week audit identified numerous deficiencies across various components of the 737 Max model, as disclosed in a presentation on the audit findings. The report mentioned that seven out of 13 audits that targeted Spirit AeroSystems, the manufacturer of the aircraft body, did not meet the requirements. An instance highlighted was the application of liquid Dawn dish soap for lubricating a door seal in a 'fit-up' procedure. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Groer Dividenden-Report 2024 von Dr. Dennis Riedl Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl Jetzt hier klicken VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / bettermoo(d) Food Corporation (CSE:MOOO)(OTCQB:MOOOF)(Frankfurt:0I5A) (WKN: A3D8PP) (the "Company" or "bettermoo(d)") announces that the special investor announcement (the "Announcement") initially scheduled for Wednesday, March 13, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. PT (see press releases on March 8 and 11, 2024), has been rescheduled to Monday, March 18, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. PT. The decision to reschedule the special investor announcement was made in order to afford bettermoo(d) necessary time to secure confirmation and approval from a major company to incorporate their brand name into the Announcement. CONFERENCE CALL: The conference call will be held on Monday, March 18, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. Pacific, 4:30 p.m. Eastern, 9:30 p.m. CET. Please call in 10 minutes before the conference call starts and stay on the line. Questions will be answered at the end of the call. CONFERENCE PARTICIPANT ID: BETTER DIAL-IN NUMBERS: Toll: 785 424 1744 Toll-Free Canada & the US: 877 830 2596 Toll-Free Germany: 0 800 186 2030 The Company will issue a press release detailing the new announcement after the conclusion of the Conference Call. ABOUT BETTERMOO(D) FOOD CORPORATION bettermoo(d) Food Corporation is an innovative plant-based dairy alternative food and beverage company based in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada, launching Moodrink, a nutritious dairy-alternative beverage with a revolutionary flavour. Moodrink includes a blend of herbs and flowers similar to what cows ate, before the time of mass livestock production. Like rich dairy products, Moodrink contains added healthy plant fats and vitamins, so consumers don't miss out. The "Moodrink" is just the beginning of the revolution for the Vancouver based dairy-alternative company, bettermoo(d). Driven by the motto "What A Cow Eats and A Human Needs" bettermoo(d) seeks to produce dairy alternative products that are good for both people and the planet - ensuring that all products are nutritious and sustainably sourced, and that also emulate the great taste of traditional milk from the Alps regions of Switzerland, France and Austria. Working with food scientists, the Company's goal is to conduct continuous food research and development programs with the aim of rolling out a full line of dairy alternative products, including Moogurt and Buetter, as well as many other products, that are better for YOU and better for the planet. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD of DIRECTORS Nima Bahrami Chief Executive Officer and Director bettermoo(d) Food Corporation For further information please contact: Email: investors@bettermoodfoodcorporation.com Website: www.bettermoo.com Phone: 1-855-715-1865 The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain certain forward looking statements and forward looking information (collectively, "Forward-Looking Statements") within the meaning of the applicable Canadian and U.S. securities laws, including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements with respect to the anticipated commercial production of Moodrink, are forward-looking statements. When or if used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target, "plan", "forecast", "may", "schedule" and similar words or expressions identify forward-looking statements or information. Such statements represent the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social risks, contingencies and uncertainties. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements and information other than as required by applicable laws, rules and regulations. SOURCE: bettermoo(d) Food Corporation View the original press release on accesswire.com Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Argentum Silver Corp. (TSXV: ASL) ("Argentum" or the "Company") today announced the resignation of Albert Contardi from the Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Contardi has tendered his resignation in order to avoid potential conflicts of interest arising from his other professional commitments. Mr. Contardi served as a member of the Board and Audit Committee Chair since 2017. "On behalf of Argentum Silver Corp., we would like to express our sincere gratitude to Mr. Contardi for his valuable contributions during his tenure on the Board of Directors," said Gary Nassif, CEO of Argentum Silver Corp. "We understand and respect his decision to prioritize his other commitments, and we wish him the very best in his future endeavors." In addition, the Company is pleased to announce that Ms. Carly Burk has been appointed to the Board of Directors, effective immediately. Ms. Burk practices securities law and works with both public and private issuers. Ms. Burk holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Southampton, a Certificate of Qualification from the Federation of Law Societies and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from Carleton University. Ms. Burk serves as an officer and/or director of several public and private entities. About Argentum Silver Corp. Argentum Silver is a junior mineral exploration company listed on the TSXV under the stock symbol ASL. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Norsemont II Resources SAC, the company controls the Cochavara Project consisting of six silver-lead-zinc mining concessions totalling 3,479 hectares in La Libertad, Northern Peru. The mining concessions host several mineralized structures with the main mineralized zone (Margarita Mine) covering an estimated strike length of 1,500 metres. The project area is located 3.5 kilometres southwest of the historical Quiruvilca silver-lead-zinc mine deposit, a large polymetallic vein system with over 130 different mineralized structures. The Company is actively reviewing additional mineral exploration properties in North America. For further information, please visit www.argentumsilvercorp.com or contact: Gary Nassif President & CEO Phone: 416-855-9304 Email: gnassif@argentumsilvercorp.com Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201636 SOURCE: Argentum Silver Corp. Der kostenlose Dividenden-Report zeigt ganz genau, wo Sie in diesem Jahr zuschlagen konnen. Das sind die Favoriten von Borsenprofi Dr. Dennis Riedl INDIANAPOLIS (dpa-AFX) - Eli Lilly (LLY) announced that Amazon's (AMZN) Pharmacy subsidiary has agreed to deliver several prescription drugs, including weight loss drug Zepbound, directly to the customers' homes. Under the agreement, Amazon Pharmacy will deliver prescribed drugs for obesity, diabetes and migraine to the customers who have ordered through Eli Lilly's website, LillyDirect. 'I think it's a wonderful advantage,' Frank Cunningham, Eli Lilly's senior vice president of global value and access, said. 'The goal is to have a fantastic customer experience where the product gets to them as soon as possible.' The online pharmacy platform offers two-day deliveries to Amazon Prime members. It will also provide 24/7 access to clinical pharmacists to handle customer inquiries about the medications. 'We actually don't think that's a high enough bar. We're still getting started,' Amazon Pharmacy Vice President John Love told CNBC about the two-day delivery option. Love added, 'But this is what I think makes us an attractive partner and collaborator for all sorts of folks like Lilly, payers, providers who are looking for a different type of pharmacy.' LillyDirect launched in January, connects people directly with an independent health company which prescribes drugs to eligible customers only, eliminating the need to go to doctor for prescription. The pharmaceutical giant also has another online delivery partner, Truepill, to deliver medications to patients. Copyright(c) 2024 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. ANN ARBOR, MI / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Zomedica Corp. (NYSE American:ZOM) ("Zomedica" or the "Company"), a veterinary health company offering point-of-care diagnostics and therapeutic products for equine and companion animals, today announced that it is continuing dialogue with senior regulatory staff at the NYSE American regarding next steps to regaining compliance with its listing standards. Zomedica shares will remain listed on the NYSE American at this time. As announced on September 13, 2023, Zomedica received formal notice from the NYSE American that it was not in compliance with continued listing standards as set forth in Section 1003(f)(v) of the NYSE American Company Guide. According to the notice, the Company had a reasonable period of time, which was determined to be March 12, 2024, to effect a reverse stock split or otherwise demonstrate sustained price improvement. While the notice did not result in an immediate delisting of Zomedica's common shares, it did prompt the Company to announce that it would undertake certain cure measures to regain compliance. A Special Meeting of Shareholders was held on February 28, 2024, with the company unable to effect an 80:1 share consolidation corporate action by a required majority of 67.7% votes as set forth by the Company's bylaws. Larry Heaton, Chief Executive Officer of Zomedica Corp. stated, "Following the rejection of our proposed reverse stock split, we have been in contact with the NYSE American to understand the implications for Zomedica's continued listing. The exchange has indicated that they will continue to monitor our share price and other developments and noted that additional deterioration of the share price could result in delisting. This gives us time to continue to highlight the progress the Company has made over the last several years, and the tremendous opportunities ahead, to positively impact our share price." About Zomedica Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Zomedica (NYSE American:ZOM) is a veterinary health company creating products for horses, dogs, and cats by focusing on the unmet needs of clinical veterinarians. Zomedica's product portfolio includes innovative diagnostics and medical devices that emphasize patient health and practice health. Zomedica's mission is to provide veterinarians the opportunity to increase productivity and grow revenue while better serving the animals in their care. For more information, visit www.zomedica.com. About Zomedica Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Zomedica (NYSE American: ZOM) is a veterinary health company creating products for horses, dogs, and cats by focusing on the unmet needs of clinical veterinarians. Zomedica's product portfolio includes innovative diagnostics and medical devices that emphasize patient health and practice health. Zomedica's mission is to provide veterinarians the opportunity to increase productivity and grow revenue while better serving the animals in their care. For more information, visit www.zomedica.com. Follow Zomedica Email Alerts: http://investors.zomedica.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/zomedica Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/zomedica X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/zomedica Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zomedica_inc Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Except for statements of historical fact, this news release contains certain "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur and include statements relating to our expectations regarding future results. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. We cannot guarantee future results, performance, or achievements. Consequently, there is no representation that the actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as those set out in the forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, including assumptions with respect to economic growth, demand for the Company's products, the Company's ability to produce and sell its products, sufficiency of our budgeted capital and operating expenditures, the satisfaction by our strategic partners of their obligations under our commercial agreements, our ability to realize upon our business plans and cost control efforts and the impact of COVID-19 on our business, results and financial condition. Our forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking information. Some of the risks and other factors that could cause the results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: the outcome of clinical studies, the application of generally accepted accounting principles, which are highly complex and involve many subjective assumptions, estimates, and judgments, uncertainty as to whether our strategies and business plans will yield the expected benefits; uncertainty as to the timing and results of development work and verification and validation studies; uncertainty as to the timing and results of commercialization efforts, as well as the cost of commercialization efforts, including the cost to develop an internal sales force and manage our growth; uncertainty as to our ability to successfully integrate acquisitions; uncertainty as to our ability to supply products in response to customer demand; uncertainty as to the likelihood and timing of any required regulatory approvals, and the availability and cost of capital; the ability to identify and develop and achieve commercial success for new products and technologies; veterinary acceptance of our products; competition from related products; the level of expenditures necessary to maintain and improve the quality of products and services; changes in technology and changes in laws and regulations; our ability to secure and maintain strategic relationships; performance by our strategic partners of their obligations under our commercial agreements, including product manufacturing obligations; risks pertaining to permits and licensing, intellectual property infringement risks, risks relating to any required clinical trials and regulatory approvals, risks relating to the safety and efficacy of our products, the use of our products, intellectual property protection, risks related to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact upon our business operations generally, including our ability to develop and commercialize our products, and the other risk factors disclosed in our filings with the SEC and under our profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. We undertake no duty to update any of the forward-looking information to conform such information to actual results or to changes in our expectations except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Investor Relations Contact: Zomedica Investor Relations investors@zomedica.com 1-734-369-2555 SOURCE: Zomedica Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com The new 10-mile Capital to Tahoe Trail connects Carson City, Nev., to Lake Tahoe, accomplishing a longstanding goal of providing hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians a path through the peaks separating Carson City and the Tahoe basin. Visit Carson City The new 10-mile Capital to Tahoe Trail, which cost $160,000, is a dirt singletrack that climbs to a peak elevation of 8,382 feet before dropping down towards the lake and intersecting with the Tahoe Rim Trail. Visit Carson City At the end of the new 10-mile Capital to Tahoe Trail, hikers can turn right and wrap around the lakes northern edge to an intersection with the Pacific Crest Trail near Tahoe City. Visit Carson City Carson City has a deal for hikers: Trek from the Nevada state capital west through the mountains to a link-up with the Pacific Crest Trail in Lake Tahoe, and then complete the 1,600-mile mountain walk north to the Canadian border, and you could earn $5,000. Its part of the citys plan to promote a new 10-mile trail that accomplishes a longstanding goal of providing hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians a path through the peaks separating Carson City and the Tahoe basin, a feat the citys tourism officials reckon is worth celebrating. After many years in planning, the Capital to Tahoe Trail, as its called, will open to outdoor enthusiasts as soon as the spring melt allows. Technically it was finished last year, but winters deep snowpack lingered on the trail through the summer season. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Its a wonderful trail that can put us on the map and it connects to these major, world-famous trails, said Lydia Beck, marketing and public relations manager at Visit Carson City, which sponsored the trail. At a cost of $160,000, the new segment is a dirt singletrack that climbs to a peak elevation of 8,382 feet before dropping down toward the lake and intersecting with the Tahoe Rim Trail. From there, hikers can turn right and wrap around the lakes northern edge to an intersection with the Pacific Crest Trail near Tahoe City. The PCT wends through the Northern Sierra, across Oregon and into Washingtons Cascade Range before its end at the Canadian border. To win the $5,000, hikers planning for such a trip next year, in 2025, must apply for what Visit Carson City calls the Carson to Canada Quest before a May 31 deadline. The tourism bureau will review applications and select just two hikers, Beck said. Each will receive two lump-sum payments first when they hit the PCT intersection in Tahoe, then second when they reach the Canadian border. Theres a bit of a catch, though, stipulated in a contract attached to the application: Hikers must carry a satellite tracker (a smartphone activated with Strava counts, or a Garmin InReach, for example) and submit their GPS location during their journey for real-time monitoring purposes. They also must create content in the form of blogs, videos, photos, podcasts, or any other form of media on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or other agreed upon social media at least once per week, per the contract. Advertisement Article continues below this ad PCT lovers are highly active on certain social media hubs, and many thru-hikers post personal journals of their adventures online a seasonal phenomenon that has given the trail a ton of exposure in the past decade. The idea for Carson City is to tap into those thru-hiking channels and perhaps create a wave of interest that washes into town. Were looking for someone whos interested in documenting their journey so we can follow along with them and share their adventure with the rest of the world, Beck said. Kerecis, the medical-fish-skin company, has been named Iceland's Export Company of the Year. The President of Iceland, Gudni Th. Johannesson, presented the award to Kerecis' founder and CEO Fertram Sigurjonsson at a ceremony at the President's residence. Former and current Kerecis staff, board members, and investors attended. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313333916/en/ The President of Iceland, Gudni Th. Johannesson, presented the Export Company of the Year award to Fertram Sigurjonsson, the founder and CEO of medical-fish-skin company Kerecis. (Photo: Business Wire) This prestigious award is given annually to a company that excels in value creation for Iceland and elevates the country's reputation internationally. "Kerecis is a fine example of a company that builds a bridge from Iceland's primary industries to the world of high-tech and innovation," said President Johannesson. "Fish skin that previously was discarded is now being used by Kerecis in advanced medical products that have shown efficacy and commercial traction in the global healthcare industry. Companies like Kerecis are very important for the Icelandic economy as export currency earners and for diversification of the Icelandic economy," he added. Sigurjonsson expressed his gratitude on receiving the award and reflected on Kerecis' remarkable history. "The Kerecis journey has been amazing. I am so grateful for the support we have received from Iceland's entrepreneur-support system, investors and, of course, the doctors who pioneered the use of our fish-skin wound-treatment products that are now becoming the standard of care for hard-to-heal wounds worldwide." Sigurjonsson also thanked the Kerecis team for believing in his innovative idea. "The most impactful aspect of this journey has been the unwavering dedication of the Kerecis staff, founding team members, and board members who have stood by my side tirelessly. Together, we have transformed an idea into a company that is now making a meaningful contribution to wound treatment." About the President's Export Award The President's Export Award has been awarded 36 times to Icelandic export businesses that excel in value creation for Iceland and elevate the reputation of Iceland abroad. The award is administered by Business Iceland, a public-private partnership established to improve the competitiveness of Icelandic companies in foreign markets and to stimulate economic growth through increased exports. About Kerecis Kerecis was founded by Fertram Sigurjonsson to develop products from fish skin and fatty acids for cellular therapy, tissue regeneration and protection. When grafted onto damaged human tissue or implanted, the patented material supports the body's own processes to heal and regenerate. Because no disease-transfer risk exists between cold-water fish and humans, the Kerecis fish skin is only gently processed and retains its similarity to human tissue. The gentle processing preserves the skin's original three-dimensional structure, maintaining its inherent natural strength, complexity and molecules (such as fatty acids). Clinical studies have found that the Kerecis products heal wounds faster than competing products. Kerecis is the only approved manufacturer of medical devices containing intact fish skin globally. Kerecis is the fastest-growing and one of the top five companies in the U.S. biologics-skin and dermal-substitute market, according to SmartTRAK Business Intelligence. Kerecis' expanding product portfolio includes SurgiBind/SurgiClose, which are used for reconstructive surgery in hospital operating rooms; GraftGuide, which is mostly sold to burn centers; and MariGen and Shield, which are sold to healthcare facilities to treat chronic wounds such as diabetic wounds, as well as post-Moh's surgery wounds. Kerecis is committed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The fish skin used in Kerecis' products derives from wild and sustainable fish stock caught in pristine Icelandic waters and processed with 100% renewable energy in the town of Isafjordur, close to the Arctic Circle. Kerecis is part of Coloplast, the leading global supplier of intimate healthcare products. For more information, visit https://www.kerecis.com. Trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313333916/en/ Contacts: Kay Paumier Communications Plus kay@communicationsplus.net Office: 408-370-1243 Mobile: 408-806-1177 Autonomo, a London, UK-based startup providing checkout-free software that enables retailers to convert existing stores into a cashierless shopping experience, raised 2M in funding. The round, which brought the total amount to $3.8M, was led by Potter Ventures and River Capital through their EIS growth fund fund:AI. The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and development efforts. Led by CEO James Sutherland, Autonomo is an Harvard deep tech business that aims to simplify shopping for customers and retailers. It uses computer vision to remove checkouts from retail stores, allowing customers to tap their card or phone, grab their products and walk out. Its team of 28 people work with petrol stations, convenience stores and grab-and-go stores to increase customer satisfaction and increase efficiencies in brick and mortar retail. To date, the technology has been used by over 20,000 customers across leading European brands such as Edeka. FinSMEs 13/03/2024 Fermat, a San Francisco, CA-based startup that allows retailers to create a shopping experience for each customer journey, raised $17M in Series A funding. The round, which brought the total amount to $30M, was led by Bain Capital Ventures (BCV) with participation from existing investors Greylock, QED Investors and Courtside Ventures. The company intends to use the funds for growth for its customers, including social commerce brands like True Classic, Jack Archer, mindbodygreen, U Beauty, and Nood. Founded in November 2021 by Rishabh Jain and Shreyas Kumar, both former LiveRamp product and engineering executives, Fermat provides an end-to-end shopping experience for consumers and greater advertising performance for commerce brands. When shoppers engage with a brand on social, email, or SMS, the company uses AI and machine learning to provide a unique and personalized journey from ad to shop to sale. Throughout the process, the platform carries relevant information about the customer, such as products they like, discounts theyve seen, and influencers theyve engaged with. With Fermat, commerce brands can launch, test and optimize thousands of highly-specific landing page experiences at once, each targeted to that individual customer. Its no-code platform is powered by its proprietary commerce graph. FinSMEs 13/03/2024 Micledi Microdisplays, a Leuven, Belgium-based developer of microLED display modules, raised an undisclosed amount in Series A funding. This brings the companys total funding to date to nearly $30m. Backers included imec.xpand, PMV, imec, KBC and SFPIM. The company intends to use the funds to expand the team, design and build an active backplane ASIC, and create a fully-functional microLED display module that can be used in glasses for AR displays. Led by CEO Sean Lord, Micledi Microdisplays is a developer of microLED display modules for the augmented reality (AR) market. Its technology is based on an innovative combination of III/V materials processing, 3D integration and 300mm silicon-based processing combined with a proprietary ASIC to provide a self-contained, compact monolithic AR display with image quality and efficiency. Commenting on the news, Sean Lord said: Our door is open to engagements with some of the worlds largest and most innovative electronic product manufacturing companies, most of whom are working on their own internal development projects for augmented reality (AR) displays in such diverse use cases as smart-wearable devices and automotive HUDs. This level of total funding to date is almost unheard of for a four-year-old startup. The company was spun-out from imec, a Belgian R&D center, in 2019. FinSMEs 13/03/2024 wagely, a Jakarta, Indonesia- and Dhaka, Bangladesh-based provider of a financial wellness platform, raised US$ 23M in funding The round was led by Capria Ventures, with the addition of some debt sources. The company intends to use the funds to expand operation and development efforts. wagely provides a financial wellness platform offering workers visibility into their daily earnings, and instant access to earned wages. wagelys financial wellness platform allows workers to better manage their money by letting them access their pay after each workday. Used in Indonesia and Bangladesh, wagely also allows users to track their salary and access financial literacy resources. It is offered free to employers who then provide it as an optional benefit to employees. In 2023 alone, wagely says it has disbursed over US$25M in salaries, processing close to one million transactions and being accessible by 500,000 workers. FinSMEs 13/02/2024 The laws and regulations that control banks and other financial institutions are the subject of a subset of banking law. It covers a broad spectrum of legal matters about the management and operation of banks, including their interactions with shareholders, customers, and regulatory bodies. In actuality, banking law is essential to maintaining the stability and safety of the banking system, shielding customers from deceptive business practices, and fostering the smooth operation of the finance lawyers markets. Maintaining Confidentiality of Information Bank and finance attorneys handle business plans, trade secrets, and other confidential or sensitive client information. The most necessary prerequisite for any well-qualified lawyer, but particularly for well-qualified banking and finance lawyers, is upholding the principle of confidentiality for all information supplied by clients and disclosing information to third parties only when approved by clients or mandated by law. Money management abilities Financial literacy is rising among lawyers, especially those starting their private practices. A career in finance will require you to understand tax laws and principles, balance ledgers, compute profits, bill clients, and communicate some of this information when collecting payments from them. Commercial Awareness Foundation Certificate One of the online courses for corporate lawyers to learn about organisational behaviour, structure, operations, and business finance is this one. Additionally, you will acquire the commercial knowledge needed for successful business analysis. Assess a financial case, comprehend pricing and costing, forecasting, budgeting, interpreting financial accounts and particular business performance ratios, and analyse the business domain and portfolio value topics. It will also cover organisational models and structures. Skills of Analysis: The success of a finance lawyer is dependent on their analytical abilities. Through careful examination of financial statements and legal nuances, finance lawyers can provide comprehensive legal advice in their clients best interests. These skills enable attorneys to anticipate outcomes, identify potential risks, and develop well-considered solutions to problems. To present strong arguments, finance lawyers must be adept at performing legal research using databases, statutes, and case law. Observing the law When practising law, even the most knowledgeable and experienced finance lawyers must respect the law and abide by it. A competent lawyer must act in a way that safeguards their clients legal rights and sense of justice in addition to abstaining from criminal activity for themselves and their clients. Skills for Solving Problems Issues about finances frequently call for original solutions. Your attorney ought to be an astute problem solver. To safeguard your financial investments, look for someone with creative thinking. Skills in Negotiation: Proficiency in negotiation is imperative for finance lawyers, as they frequently handle intricate financial transactions. To achieve advantageous terms and agreements, these attorneys must bargain on behalf of their clients. These abilities entail evaluating risks, planning negotiation strategies, and examining the other partys stance. The capacity to reach a consensus while defending the rights of their clients is a necessary skill for finance attorneys. Proficiency in negotiations is a prerequisite for both the successful settlement of economic conflicts and the establishment of advantageous legal frameworks. Proficiency Seek legal counsel from an attorney knowledgeable in Nigerian financial laws and regulations to protect your financial interests. Complex financial cases in the dynamic legal system require expertise. Proficiency in Communication Effective dialogue is crucial. Your finance lawyer should have clear communication skills to confirm you understand all legal nuances. In addition, they need to be adept negotiators to represent your financial interests. Competing Interests Conflicts of interest arise when representing one client at the expense of another. For instance, an attorney could not represent the defendant and the plaintiff. However, if both clients agree, a lawyer may occasionally represent two clients. Additionally, the ABA takes a different stance on possible conflicts of interest with clients, past and present. Attorneys are not allowed to do business with their current clients in any way, but they may with a previous client after enough time has passed. Networking:Letting opportunities in In finance law, networking is essential. Join associations in law and finance to network with professionals and gain access to resources. Expand your opportunities by interacting with knowledgeable professionals and like-minded individuals. Online resources offer chances to leaders in the industry and finance attorneys. Participate in conversations, join groups, and present your knowledge. Participate in online forums to broaden your contacts and acquire a variety of perspectives. Moral Guidelines Trust is essential. Confirm the attorney you choose upholds the highest moral standards while being open and honest. They must behave in their best financial interests, steering clear of conflicts of interest. With the complex legal system, having an experienced lawyer is essential. Conclusion Its a profession that provides high earning potential, intellectual stimulation, and the chance to have an economic impact. Like any career, though, it has its share of difficulties. Every step of the way has challenges, from passing the bar exam to comprehending intricate financial concepts. However, these difficulties are surmountable with thorough planning, ongoing education, and efficient stress reduction. A company should hire a general counsel as soon as it grows significantly. Usually, these benchmarks take the shape of capital acquisition, growing executive teams, and better infrastructure. The outside general counsel can be a functional tool in times of uncertainty, particularly in the transitional phases of a businesss lifecycle. What Does General Counsel Not Cover? Large companies can staff entire legal departments with an in-house general counsel, but moderately sized companies might only have one full-time legal professional on staff. On the other hand, smaller companies and startups are usually better off working with outside general counsel, at least initially. Until your company gets designed to circumvent current legal or regulatory procedures, you probably wont require full-time general counsel at the beginning of your enterprise. 1. Business growth When Youre Growing General counsel should help you grow while, ideally, cutting costs. As a result, they will focus on managing contracts and ongoing risks for serving as consultants. They will conduct an overall assessment of your business, keep you out of trouble, and search for chances to expand it. 2. When Something Is Wrong Outside general counsel loves to take action on your behalf if your company finds itself in legal trouble. A business lawyer with extensive experience and a solid command of the law is the best person to handle certain matters. They will represent you when problems arise and expedite the dispute resolution and litigation. 3. When Legal Counsel Is Needed A business owner may occasionally have general legal inquiries. Wouldnt it be great if you could reach someone on retainer by phone or email, and they could answer questions as needed? Having outside general counsel is like having a medical doctor who can assess, analyse, and handle your case while applying relevant legal regulations. 4. When Your Internal Team Requires Assistance Teams working internally and with external general counsel can collaborate. You can provide outside general counsel to your current team instead of hiring a new attorney. They can handle transactional work and routine matters that tend to burden your in-house counsel, freeing them up for more urgent matters. 5. When the Advantage Justifies the Drawbacks It is frequently more expensive to lose a civil lawsuit than to retain legal representation in the first place. If you cant afford it, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. The company you choose ought to function as an open collaboration that aims to accomplish favourable results for you and your group without any qualms about voicing a disagreeable or unpopular viewpoint. An outside general counsels duties Although they may work on a variety of projects, outside general counsels are responsible for the following responsibilities: Legal counsel An outside general counsel provides legal advice to the organisation and its staff. They will conduct research, identify potential legal problems, provide a detailed explanation of those problems, and offer advice on how your company can guarantee legal compliance. Working in a highly regulated environment: Sectors with strict regulatory oversight, such as healthcare, biotech, and finance, greatly benefit from having an internal legal expert. A general counsel understands the complex legal requirements and has longevity. For Board governance support: Boards of directors often require internal legal advice in the complex world of todays business. It is crucial for managing the sensitive relationship between the board and senior management, comprehending corporate governance and bylaws, and identifying potential legal issues within the framework of the industry. As a wise counsellor, a general counsel can provide the business with moral and legal advice. Exemplary The general counsel will be the primary point of contact for the company in all legal matters. When interacting with other parties, such as a business you are looking to acquire, merge with, or be acquired by, or any adverse parties, it is imperative to have a legal expert by your side to help you navigate any legal process. To guarantee that you safeguard the rights of your company, you may need the assistance of an outside general counsel. Supplier of Services Outside general counsel oversees every aspect of your companys legal department, including contract drafting and corporate governance procedures. General counsel will plan, direct, and carry out all legal actions necessary for your companys successful expansion, management, and long-term viability. Court Cases Litigation matters may be handled by outside general counsel and their firm if it employs business trial lawyers. Outside general counsel can provide businesses with great value at a reasonable cost when they use it. To sum up: There are a few uncertainties when selecting an internal general counsel and an outside attorney. It depends on the organisations size, long-term goals, financial constraints, and specific needs. Nonetheless, the justifications provide why businesses believe legal advice from locations other than their headquarters is superior. Its critical to strike the right balance between the operational realities of the firm and its goals. Continued pressure on smallcap and midcap stocks, profit-booking in largecap PSU shares, as well as investors adopting a sell-on-rise strategy led to the markets closing in the red The volatile trading session on Wednesday ended with the benchmark Sensex and Nifty 50 indices eking out earlier gains, plunging up to 1.5 per cent in the red. The 30-share BSE Sensex index bled over 906 points (1.23 per cent), dropping to 72,761.89 level. The broader Nifty 50 index, too, fell from its 22,000 perch. It tumbled 338 points (1.5 per cent) to 21,997.7 points. Advertisement Even in the broader market, bears reigned supreme. Here are three reasons why Dalal Street was painted red on Wednesday: Midcap, smallcap stocks under pressure Smallcap and midcap indices recorded a steep fall. While BSE MidCap index was down over 4 per cent, BSE SmallCap had slipped 5.11 per cent. Nifty Midcap 50 closed 3.86 per cent down and Nifty Smallcap 50 registered losses of 5.25 per cent. Key equity benchmarks lost their earlier gains [> The overall sentiment of the market is negative as we have seen sharp decline in the midcap and smallcap index, Choice Brokings Deven Mehata told Firstpost. Unfavourable risk-reward balance of mid and smallcap stocks, fuelled by prolonged premium valuations, has aggravated the downfall, Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services told us. Advertisement In recent times, small and midcap shares have been under pressure, primarily due to the Securities and Exchanges Board of Indias (SEBI) demanding that mutual funds make disclosures regarding such shares. The markets regulator was concerned about the froth building up in small and midcap mutual fund schemes. Sell-on-rise strategy Kunal Shah, Senior Technical and Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities told Firstpost about a sell on rise trend in the market. Advertisement The means that investors sell their assets when the price rises to a predetermined resistance level. The idea is to take advantage of short-term price increases to secure profits. The strategy is likely being used because the markets have shown volatility and frequent price fluctuations in recent times. Selling in largecap PSU stocks Advertisement Largecap public sector stocks Powergrid, NTPC, and Coal India were top losers in both Sensex and Nifty indices. The shares were down up to 7.28 per cent at the time of market closing. These dragged the indices, as well as the broader indices lower on Wednesday, likely due to profit-booking. China is Apple and Teslas largest market outside the US. But the American giants have reasons to worry, as the Communist nation shifts to local brands. Chinese consumers are ditching the iPhone for homegrown options like Huawei and the EV maker is seeing a drop in sales A Chinese woman uses an iPhone outside an Apple store in Beijing. Sales of the phone have plunged in China in the first six weeks of 2024. File photo/AFP The iPhone is the best-selling smartphone worldwide. But not in China. Many are ditching Apple for homegrown options. And the tech giant is not the only American brand taking a hit. For years, the worlds second-largest economy was where US tech companies thronged, as China provided growth like no other nation. But now the ground reality is far different. Amid rising geopolitical tensions, sentiment towards the West has soured and American corporations are feeling the pinch. Advertisement We take a look at whats changed in China and how Apple and Tesla are seeing a drop in sales. The forbidden Apple Chinese smartphone users are embracing homegrown names, which has come as a shot in the arm for brands like Huawei. iPhone sales have plunged in China in the first six weeks of 2024, according to a report by the analyst firm Counterpoint Research. Apple is facing stiff competition from local smartphone firms like Huawei, Oppo, Vivo and Xiaomi. The Tim Cook-led company came under particular pressure from Chinese tech giant Huawei , whose consumer business is experiencing a resurgence in China after the launch of its Mate 60 smartphone, which has 5G connectivity, reports CNBC. Huawei and its spinoff Honor, which branched out of the tech giant in 2020 because of US sanctions, were the best-performing smartphones in the first six weeks of the year. Advertisement Shipments of the Huawei smartphone unit rose 64 per cent year over year in the first six weeks of 2024, and that of Honor handsets by two per cent, according to Counterpoint Research. The report said that Apples share of the Chinese smartphone market dropped to 15.7 per cent, putting it in fourth place, compared with second place in the year-ago period when it had a 19 per cent market share. Advertisement Visitors walk under the logo of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. at a tech fair in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. The Chinese tech giant is giving a stiff competition to Apple. File photo/Reuters Apple faced stiff competition at the high end from a resurgent Huawei while getting squeezed in the middle on aggressive pricing from the likes of OPPO, Vivo and Xiaomi, Counterpoints senior analyst Mengmeng Zhang was quoted as saying by Reuters. The change in buying habits can be attributed to uber-nationalism endorsed by Beijing and the government-led initiative to reduce the usage of iPhones among state employees. Advertisement At the recent Communist Party annual gathering in Beijing, the anti-Apple sentiment was on full display. Several participants told Financial Times (FT) that they use phones from Chinese brands. Zhan Wenlong, a nuclear physicist and party delegate, was quoted by the publication as saying that people attending the meeting were encouraged to use domestic phones because phones like Apple are not safe. Advertisement Wang Chunru, a member of Chinas top political advisory body, the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference, said he was using a Huawei device, according to the FT report. We all know Apple has eavesdropping capabilities, he said. This sudden disdain for the iPhone comes as the campaign asking state agencies to stop using the Apple handsets, which kicked off last summer, has gained momentum. Advertisement Chinese agencies and government-backed firms across the country have ordered staff to stop bringing iPhones to work. By October-November last year, multiple state firms and government departments across at least eight provinces in China instructed employees to start carrying local brands, according to a report in Bloomberg. It all started around last September when only a handful of agencies in Beijing and Tiajin began instructing their staff to leave foreign devices at home. Advertisement Now even school teachers have been told to use made-in-China brands. Schools are told to use Chinese phones as well, to support Chinese companies, Nong Jiagui, a teacher in rural Yunnan province, told FT. However, some ordinary consumers are making the switch voluntarily gripped by a feeling of patriotism. Ive been waiting for a long time for a phone with a real domestically produced chip so I put down my iPhone and am supporting Huawei, Liu said. Advertisement People look at the iPhone 15 Pro as it goes on sale across China at a store in Shanghai in September 2023. Apple has started offering discounts on its phone models as more and more locals turn to domestic brands. File photo/Reuters Apple has also started subsidising certain iPhone models by as much as 1,300 yuan (approx. Rs 15,000) last week through flagship stores on Tmall, Alibabas major marketplace platform. It had already offered iPhone discounts of up to 500 yuan (Rs 5,762) on its official sites last month. It remains to be seen if this will help it revive its fortunes in the country. Advertisement Gene Munster, a managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, told Business Insider that the decline in Apples popularity did have something to do with American products falling out of favour in China. Be it patriotism or enforced restrictions, Apple is forced to take a backseat in its biggest market outside the United States. Wall Street is taking notice as the tech giants share price has dropped by nine per cent this year. Advertisement Trouble for Tesla? But Apple is not an isolated case. Telsa is also facing similar challenges in China. Its revenue has fallen by 22 per cent during the recent financial year. The American electric vehicle maker suffered a huge slump in shipments from its Shanghai gigafactory last month, with 60,365 vehicles shipped, according to a Bloomberg report. That is 16 per cent lower than its shipments in January and 19 per cent lower than the same month last year, reveals data from the China Passenger Car Association. Advertisement There has been a slowdown in the electric vehicle (EV) market. While Tesla sales in China remained solid last year, there appears to be a slump in demand in the last couple of months. The slower sales during Februarys Lunar New festivities in China was telling. Telsa owners also have to cope with the growing number of areas their vehicles are prohibited from. Amid concerns that in-cabin devices in the cars could collect sensitive data, they cannot enter military and government complexes, reports FT. The Biden administration has similar concerns about Chinese smart cars. Visitors look at a Tesla model at its showroom in Beijing. The sales of the EV have dropped in China in February. File photo/Reuters When it comes to EVs, local makers like BYD are seeing a rise in demand. Their vehicles are cheaper than Tesla. In January, BYD reported a 43 per cent rise in sales, according to CarNewsChina, reports Business Insider. It also cut the prices of its best-selling models by an average of 17 per cent. Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is also entering Chinas EV market. Its shares rose 12 per cent on Tuesday after it announced that it would start selling its much-awaited SU7 vehicles this month. With yet another local competitor on the horizon, Teslas challenges continue. According to Daniel Kollar, an automotive expert at the consultancy Intralink, Teslas China performance had remained strong, but the company faced challenges from local competition, a renaissance of hybrid cars and security-related restrictions. There are a lot of local alternatives to choose from in this space, he told FT. An emerging trend Apple and Tesla are only the latest foreign companies to see a drop in sales as Chinese consumers take to local brands. Sales of Nike and Adidas clothing have yet to return to their 2021 peak, reports FT. A salesperson arranges Nike T-shirts inside a shop in a shopping district in Beijing. Sales of other foreign brands have also taken a hit in China. File photo/Reuters Amid this, Beijing is expected to continue its push for domestic products, especially when it comes to technology and energy. The Wall Street Journal reported that a directive known as Document 79 was ramped up to push out Western companies. It asks state-owned companies in several sectors, such as finance and energy, to replace foreign software in their IT systems by 2027, reports Business Insider. The truth remains that China is a big market. Losing control over it is expected to hurt America. With inputs from agencies There has been a rise in attacks on people by pet dogs in India. Now the Centre has sought a ban on the import, breeding and sale of ferocious canine breeds the Pit bull, Rottweiler, Terrier, Wolf Dog and Mastiff. These, it says, cannot be kept as pets or for other uses because they represent a danger to human life Pitbulls' reputation is based on their history of dog fighting, the high number of bite instances that have been documented, and their propensity to bite while gripping onto prey. Pexels In the wake of many dog attack deaths, the Centre is seeking a ban on the import, breeding, and sale of several ferocious dog breeds. The aggressive dog breeds Pit bull, Rottweiler, Terrier, Wolf Dog, and Mastiff are prohibited from being kept as pets or for other uses because they represent a danger to human life. Advertisement This prohibition will also apply to crossbred and mixed breeds. Lets take a closer look. The ban The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying wrote to each state requesting that no licences or permits be issued for the sale or breeding of these canines, according to The Times of India. The recommendation is based on a report by an expert committee and animal welfare organisations that was established by the Delhi High Courts ruling. The identified breeds (including mixed and cross breeds) include Pit bull Terrier, Tosa Inu, American Staffordshire Terrier, Fila Bresileiro, Dogo Argentino, American Bulldog, Boesboel, Kangal, Central Asian Shepher Dog, Caucacian Shepherd Dog, South Russian Shepherd Dog, Tornjak, Sarplaninac, Japanese Tosa and Akita, Mastiffs, Rottweiler, Terriers, Rhodesian Ridegback, Wolf Dogs, Canario, Akbas, Moscow Guard, Cane Corso, and every dog of the type commonly known as Bandog, an official release said. Advertisement The local bodies may also issue necessary implementation guidelines, the letter said. At Bragancas home. News18/Representative Image The letter highlights a number of citizen and animal welfare organisation representations in addition to the Delhi High Courts judgment prohibiting the ownership of certain kinds of dogs as pets. In a ruling dated 6 December 2023, the Delhi HC ordered that the Union of India shall decide petitioners representation as expeditiously possible, preferably within three months, after consulting all stakeholders. Advertisement The government has also requested that states make sure local organisations and state animal welfare boards are carrying out the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules 2017 and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Pet Shop) Rules 2018. Advertisement Recent attacks in India and local bans A man in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, was attacked by his pet Rottweiler in January of this year. The dog bit the victim and tore flesh off his arms and legs, causing more than 60 wounds. According to India Today, the attack occurred when the man remembered he had forgotten to feed the dog during the day and went to provide food around midnight. The owner was rescued by his son when the hungry Rottweiler became aggressive and started biting him. Advertisement In the same month this year, four other incidences of a similar nature were reported. One of these was a seven-year-old boy who was attacked by a Pit bull in Mahendra Park, northwest Delhi, while he was playing near his residence. In Vishwas Nagar, a Pit bull attack resulted in injuries for a two-year-old boy. A Pit bull attacked a 1.5-year-old girl in the Burari Nagar Colony in Uttarakhand. The young child required 18 stitches after suffering three separate leg fractures. She was also hospitalised for 17 days. Advertisement In January, an American bully is said to have attacked a seven-year-old girl in Shahbad Dairy while she was playing outside her home. Another account claims that a Pit bull grabbed an 18-month-old girl from her grandfathers lap and began to maul her at Uttarakhand Colony in Burari area, as per TOI. Advertisement Rottweilers are thought to be descendants of cattle-driving dogs left by the Roman soldiers near Germanys Rottweil during the 2nd Century CE. Pexels According to the newspaper, in November 2023, a 65-year-old nonresident Indian (NRI) who was visiting his son in Bengaluru was attacked by a Rottweiler in Malleswaram. The victim had gone to celebrate his friends birthday. In a matter of minutes, the dog also attacked a 60-year-old man who was strolling by. A case under IPC section 289 (negligent conduct with respect to animals) was filed against the owner of the dog. Advertisement In August 2022, a Pit bull that was out on a stroll with its owners mauled a 30-year-old woman in Gurugram. She suffered severe facial and head injuries as a result of the incident, according to PTI. A few weeks prior, a teenager in Meerut suffered serious injuries by a Pit bull attack that happened as he was walking past the dog that was chained to a houses fence. Locals pried open its jaws with a screwdriver to release the teenager. Advertisement According to Deccan Herald, the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation banned citizens from owning Rottweilers, Pit bulls, and Dogo Argentinos as pets in 2022. The city authority has released several other guidelines requiring pet owners to obtain a licence for their canines. No family is permitted to maintain more than one pet dog, per the rules. Additionally, it stated that dog owners who fail to register their pets would pay a charge of Rs 2,000. Advertisement The development came after more than 10 children suffered dog bites. In September of same year, a similar ban on Pit bulls and Rottweilers was passed in Pachkula, Haryana. Additionally, a resolution prohibiting the raising of Pit bull and Rottweiler breeds in the city was enacted by the Kanpur Municipal Corporation. According to the resolution, anyone found to be raising one of the two breeds faces a fine of up to Rs 5,000 and would have their pet taken away. Advertisement Are these breeds dangerous? All five dog breeds are contentious and have a bad reputation due to a variety of issues. Some of the breeds have even been banned or restricted in several nations, including Turkey, the Cayman Islands, Norway, and the Cayman Islands. Pit bulls reputation is based on their history of dog fighting, the high number of bite instances that have been documented, and their propensity to bite while gripping onto prey. Companies in the US even provide dog liability insurance, and owners of Pit bulls are liable for any attacks on other people their dogs may cause. They frequently participate in nature vs. nurture discussions concerning whether their habits are inherited or the result of their owners actions, according to Deccan Herald. The genetic makeup of wolves and dogs is responsible for the frightening behaviour of wolf dogs. Pexels As per Brittanica, Rottweilers are thought to be descendants of cattle-driving dogs left by the Roman soldiers near Germanys Rottweil during the 2nd Century CE. This species, which were bred as attack and hunting dogs, have also served as guard dogs, a drovers dogs, draft dogs, rescue dogs, and police dogs. Stories of Rottweilers attacks have hit the headlines with some frequency over the past couple of years. Experts say these dogs are fiercely loyal, but gravely misunderstood. Furthermore, the breeds reputation has been further solidified by their aggressive appearance and the bad connotations attached to them in television shows and films, most notably The Omen and its sequels. Though they are not a dog for everyone, Rottweilers are the best breed in the world, according to the American Rottweiler Club, who is one of the breeds supporters. Rottweilers need a solid, steady, and peaceful pack leader, or else they will take on that responsibility for you. Dogo Argentino, another dog bred for hunting, largely has similar characteristics to Rottweilers. According to the American Kennel Club, the Dogo Argentino is a pack-hunting dog instantly identifiable by a short, completely white coat. It has been bred to chase big game such as wild boar and puma. In general, the dog has a strong natural instinct to protect its territory and is considered a very social animal. A mix between a domestic dog and a wolf is known as a wolf dog, according to The Spruce Pets website. Because they still have the instincts of their wild relatives, this huge breed is rather contentious. As headstrong, aggressive, and downright ferocious, they have been described. They also need kilogrammes of uncooked meat each day. The American Kennel Club claims that Mastiff dogs were developed over generations in the Neapolitan region of southern Italy as estate and home guards. They may trace their origins back to Molossus, the breed that originated from the mixing of short-haired Indian dogs and Macedonian battle dogs during Alexander the Greats reign. There are numerous varieties of Mastiff dogs, such as Bullmastiff, English Mastiff, Great Dane, Tibetan Mastiff and more. They have an impeccable pedigree. According to the website Mastiffguide, if Mastiffs are not socialised early on, they may become violent. Because of their size, they can also be harmful around little children. They can also get aggressive if they feel that their owners or themselves are in danger. Bandogs are believed to have originated in Middle England between 1250 and 1300, according to Viovet.co.uk_. Though other dogs, such as early Bullenbeissers and crossing breeds used in the Crusades, may have also contributed to their origin, they list the American Pit Bull Terrier and the Neapolitan Mastiff as their ancestors. Their main functions were property guarding, hunting, and combat. Despite their protective and devoted nature, they are not recommended for inexperienced owners. If Mastiffs are not socialised early on, they may become violent. Pexels The genetic makeup of wolves and dogs is responsible for the frightening behaviour of wolf dogs. But thats precisely why domestication isnt appropriate for it. Because they are unpredictable and unable to meet their needs, these giants are difficult to handle, as per Jagran. Also read: What are American XL Bully dogs? Why is Britain banning them? Other countries that have banned/restricted them Experts consider Pit bulls far too aggressive to be kept as house pets. They have been banned or restricted in 30 nations including the UK, Denmark, Columbia, Norway, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Malta, Spain, France, Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand. According to Times Now, Rottweilers, who are aggressive dogs with powerful jaws, are banned or restricted in 18 countries, including Ecuador, Bermuda, France, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Qatar, Ukraine, Malaysia, and in many US states, as per the newspaper. Like the Pit bull, the Dogo Argentino has been banned or restricted in several countries, including Ukraine, Australia, Denmark, Hong Kong, Israel, and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom, Dogo Argentinos are banned under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 unless an owner gets a court exemption. As many as 11 countries, including Australia, Bermuda, Columbia, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, have either banned or restricted Terrier. Wolf dogs are banned or restricted in Australia, Bermuda, New Zealand, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates. Mastiffs are also banned or restricted in Bermuda, Malaysia, Qatar, Singapore, With inputs from agencies Weather models predict strong winds throughout Northern California on Wednesday night, gusting 40 to 50 mph in the Sacramento Valley and parts of the Bay Area. Baron/Lynx An anticipated warming trend will begin across the Bay Area on Wednesday, but it will come with an extended period of strong winds. Scattered morning clouds will yield to afternoon sunshine, as a dry northerly breeze pushes clouds out of the region. Most of the day should be fairly calm throughout the Bay Area, but winds are expected to increase in the evening. Solano County will be hit by the powerful gusts first, gusting over 30 mph by 5 p.m. and eventually up to 50 mph overnight. Winds are forecast to pick up throughout the Bay Area overnight, gusting up to 45 mph in Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Concord and the Tri-Valley and up to 35 mph in San Francisco and Oakland. Gusts at higher elevations such as Mount Diablo and Mount Saint Helena may even eclipse 60 mph at times. These powerful gusts could snap some tree limbs and blow around unsecured items. Localized power outages are possible. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory for the mountains and valleys of the East Bay and North Bay and parts of Solano County, beginning Wednesday evening. Strong winds are expected to continue through Thursday afternoon into Friday morning. Winds out of the north-northeast are more typical of fall than the late winter and typically raise fire weather concerns. However, vegetation is lush from recent rains, and isnt as flammable as in the fall, meaning fire danger is predicted to be low. Still, the unseasonable wind pattern will lead to the warmest weather since November in the Bay Area. Wednesdays highs are expected to be in the mid-60s, with a few degrees of warming Thursday before widespread lower 70s Friday, even at the coast. Wednesday breakdown San Francisco: Scattered morning clouds will give way to a mainly clear afternoon in the city, with temperatures climbing to the lower to mid-60s, right around the normal mid-March high of 62. Winds are expected to pick up throughout the evening, gusting out of the north-northeast at 25 to 35 mph overnight. Lows will be in the upper 50s under starry skies. Advertisement Article continues below this ad North Bay: After a chilly morning in the upper 30s, temperatures should jump to the mid-60s Wednesday afternoon with abundant sunshine. Wind will pick up throughout the day, gusting up to 45 mph in Vacaville, Fairfield and Vallejo in the evening. Strong winds are expected to continue overnight, with gusts up to 60 mph in the North Bay mountains and up to 45 mph in the valleys. Lows will be in the upper 40s. East Bay: Lingering clouds are expected to move out of the East Bay as the day progresses, leading to a sunny afternoon with highs in the mid-60s in Oakland, Berkeley, Hayward, Fremont, Concord and the Tri-Valley. Northerly gusts will increase in the evening and overnight, reaching 50 mph in East Bay hills and up to 45 mph in the interior valleys, including Walnut Creek, Dublin, Livermore and Pleasanton. Lows will be in the upper 40s to lower 50s. Pacific Coast and Peninsula: A few morning clouds will slowly part for a sunny afternoon in San Mateo County. Highs will be around in Pacifica and Half Moon Bay and the lower to mid60s in San Bruno, Burlingame, San Mateo, Redwood City and Menlo Park. A breezy evening is in store, with gusts up to 25 mph. Northeasterly gusts are expected to increase overnight, gusting up to 40 mph in Half Moon Bay. The offshore wind will keep low temperatures elevated, in the lower to mid-50s. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Thousands of Nepalese are protesting in Kathmandu, calling for the republic to be abolished. Royalist groups accuse the countrys major political parties of corruption and failed governance and say people are frustrated with politicians Supporters of Rastriya Prajatantra Party, or national democratic party, wave their flags during a pro-monarchy protest in Kathmandu, Nepal. AP Has Nepal lost faith in the democratic process? Thousands of Nepalese are protesting in Kathmandu, calling for the republic to be abolished. Their demand stems from frustration over long-standing political instability, which has resulted in 13 government changes in 16 years. Why are there more voices calling for the return of the monarchy in Nepal? How will it affect the country? Advertisement Come back king Sixteen years ago, mass protests in Nepal forced then-King Gyanendra Shah to give up the throne and clear the way for a republic. Now, a new wave of protest is trying to bring him back. The capital of the Himalayan country is again teeming with demonstrators, this time demanding that Shah be reinstated as king and Hinduism brought back as a state religion. Royalist groups accuse the countrys major political parties of corruption and failed governance and say people are frustrated with politicians. Come back king, save the country. Long live our beloved king. We want a monarchy, the crowd chanted at a rally last month in Kathmandu. Police escort supporters of Rastriya Prajatantra Party, or national democratic party, during a pro-monarchy protest in Kathmandu, Nepal. AP Growing frustration with the present system has led to calls for radical change. Pro-monarchy rallies have been growing larger, and an increasing number of homes and businesses are displaying portraits of the ex-king and his ancestors. Advertisement Gyanendra was a constitutional head of state without executive or political powers until 2005, when he seized absolute power. He disbanded the government and parliament, jailed politicians and journalists and cut off communications, declaring a state of emergency and using the army to rule the country. Protests that drew hundreds of thousands of people forced him to give up power to the parliament in 2006, and two years later parliament voted to abolish the monarchy and Gyanendra left the Royal Palace to live the life of a commoner. Advertisement But many Nepalis have grown frustrated with the republic, saying it has failed to bring about political stability and blaming it for a struggling economy and widespread corruption. Nepal has had 13 governments since the monarchy was abolished in 2008. Politicians want power, better under the monarchy Many Nepalis believe elected politicians are more interested in power and patronage than addressing their problems, said Dhruba Hari Adhikary, an independent analyst based in Kathmandu. Thats why some people started to think that, well, it was far better under the monarchy, he said. Advertisement In November, tens of thousands rallied in support of the king in Kathmandu, where riot police officers used batons and tear gas to halt them from marching to the centre of the capital. Kings were long considered reincarnations of the god Vishnu in the majority-Hindu nation. The king is the umbrella that is really needed to block and protect (the country) from all the pressure and influence that is being put on Nepal by countries like India, China or America, said Rudra Raj Pandey, who was among the protesters at last months rally. Advertisement Our country will retain its values and identity only if it is turned back to a monarchy and the king is reinstated to the throne, he said. But the movement is too small to prevail any time soon, Adhikary said. The support for monarchy With polls and surveys rarely conducted in Nepal, its not clear how many people support the monarchy. Gyanendra was an unpopular king, but the monarchy remained broadly popular before he seized absolute power. Advertisement The countrys major political parties have rejected the possibility of the king returning to power. Nepal is a republic and the monarchy will never be reinstated, said Narayan Prakash Saud of Nepali Congress, which led the revolt against the kind in 2006 and is currently the largest party in parliament. The only way it would be possible would be through changing the constitution, but there is no possibility of that happening at all. Advertisement A statue of Nepals late king Prithivi Narayan Shah is garlanded in Kathmandu. Nepals once unpopular monarchy abolished after centuries of rule over the Himalayan nation is hoping to regain some of its lost glory. File image/AP The most powerful group supporting restoration of the monarchy is the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, or national democratic party, which was founded in the 1990s by allies of the monarchy. It has 14 seats in parliament around five per cent but wields outsize influence as a representative of the protest movement. Advertisement Party leaders met with the prime minister in February and presented their demands. I think it is very possible and the environment throughout the country has never been so congenial for this agenda, said Rabindra Mishra, deputy chairman of the party. If we cant restore the institution of the monarchy in this country, there is no future for the youth in this country and the existence of this country itself could be at risk, he said. Advertisement Gyanendra himself hasnt commented on the movement. He has stayed out of open involvement in politics since his abdication, and only rarely makes public appearances. Other groups supporting the king have sprung up. We need a monarchy. Without a king, we have no identity as Nepalese and all of us might as well just declare ourselves as refugees, said Pasupathi Khadga, who leads a youth organisation that supports the reinstatement of the monarchy. Advertisement Nepals monarchy did not allow political parties to form until 1990, when a pro-democracy movement brought in elections and reduced the monarchy to a ceremonial role. Gyanendra became king after his elder brother, then-King Birendra, and his family were killed in a massacre at the royal palace in 2001. With inputs from AP A new fad Sephora kids has gained traction on social media. It shows children as young as 10 swarming expensive beauty stores like Sephora and sharing videos showing off their long skin-care routines. Experts are concerned since such products arent designed for kids and can be harmful to them People walk past a Sephora in the Manhattan borough of New York City. Reuters/Representative Image Theres a new trend among teens known as Sephora kids on the internet. The catch-all term indicates a newfound love for pricey cosmetics and flashy skin care routines among children and young teenagers. Dermatologists are alerting people to possible dangers that may be hiding below the surface. Heres all we know about the trend. Advertisement What is Sephora Kids trend? The Sephora Kids craze, which has gained traction on social media, has seen young boys and girls swarming Sephora shelves with great excitement and then sharing videos showing off their incredibly long skin care routines, as per Global News. The hashtags #sephora or #sephorakids have taken over TikTok and Instagram. In certain videos, four-year-old kids can be seen going to Sephora with their moms and excitedly choosing various skincare items. Global News reports that the seven-year-old twins Koti and Haven, who have over 4.8 million followers on TikTok, have become well-known because of their Get-Ready-With-Me videos, which include them applying items such as peptide serums, face sprays, and toners. Advertisement Videos of retailers and consumers complaining about the little children presence at Sephora and Ulta Beauty and other cosmetic stores have also garnered popularity. They complain about rude young shoppers grabbing products right from other shoppers hands and messing up stores and display products. Denish Shah, an associate professor of marketing at Georgia State Universitys Robinson College of Business told BBC News, Yes, tweens are not only flooding Sephora stores, but theyre also making a lot of purchases of these products online. This category, in general, is seeing a huge increase in sales. Advertisement Why are experts concerned? Lead dermatologist Dr. Renita Ahluwalia of the Canadian Dermatology and Plastic Surgery Centre in Toronto said retinol, exfoliating acids, and fragrance are among the components in some of these treatments that are unhealthy for childrens skin and can damage the skin barrier. The problem is when they use a whole bunch of different products that are not designed for young skin, and especially when theyre combining them because theyre doing 10 steps, Ahluwalia told Global News. Advertisement The risk of irritation and breakdown of the skin barrier and causing dermatitis and acne, which already young people are dealing with as their hormones shift and change. So there are a lot of areas where there can run into trouble. In addition to the skin damage, she said that parents may develop a pricey habit of purchasing all these products. Advertisement They say theyre interested in skin care because their friends are doing it because its on social media, she said. Are beauty brands targeting Gen Alpha? Many skincare and makeup companies have recently introduced their products to serve to younger consumers. According to BBC News, Yawn, a makeup brand, introduced skincare and makeup lines for clients three years of age and up. Since 2020, Bubble, marketing itself as the new school skincare, has been providing products for acne and skin texture. Another brand that caters to tweens and teens but whose products are equally appropriate for eight-year-olds is Gryt. Advertisement Drunk Elephant, a self-described clean beauty brand owned by Japanese conglomerate Shiseido, also listed which of its products would be advised for children on Instagram in December. Shah highlights the recent off the charts rise in stock prices of California-based cosmetics brand e.l.f. According to the report citing Marketwatch, e.l.f.s stock price has increased by 203 per cent in the last year. Advertisement The companys sales have increased exponentially over the past year, and thats significant because they position themselves as really affordable cosmetics. And if you look at their marketing efforts, theyre all targeted toward that tween demographic, Shah told the British outlet. The market is growing pretty rapidly. There are a lot of new brands launching specifically for tweenage girls, BBC quoted Jessica DeFino, creator of The Unpublishable, a newsletter behind the scenes of the beauty industry, as saying. Advertisement The target audience of the beauty industry is expanding. The baby and child skincare market is anticipated to reach a global market volume of approximately $380 million by 2028, growing at an annual rate of roughly 7.71 percent, according to Statista data. By the same year, 160.7 million consumers are anticipated worldwide. How are they targeting tweens? Advertisement Tweens are being marketed by brands in a variety of ways. They develop products aimed towards younger consumers and market them on social media, where an increasing number of skinfluencers are active. Interestingly, this coincides with tweens increased usage of social media following their isolation during the pandemic. And it goes beyond the shops that specialise in cosmetics. Retail stores additionally endorse these goods by stocking cosmetics on their shelves. Advertisement Theyre among the biggest consumers of some social media platforms. All that social media time is, in turn, exposing these young users to influencers paid by brands to use and promote beauty and skincare products. Increasingly sophisticated algorithms also feed this exposure, serving users recommendations about beauty tips and influencers after just a few searches on the topic, Shah was quoted as saying by BBC. Advertisement He also brings up the well-known fact that tweens worry a lot about the way they look. Tweens are preoccupied with personal appearance. Theyre very, very self-conscious in terms of how their growing bodies are going to turn out and about their developing self-identity. Theres a lot of sensitivity around that and thats existed for decades. And these two factors combined are whats really driving the sales in these younger demographics, he says. With inputs from agencies Sticking to the Supreme Court deadline, the State Bank of India shared data on electoral bonds on Tuesday. The information collated in two password-protected PDF files was stored in a pen drive. An envelope containing the passwords was handed over to the Election Commission A man walks past a a State Bank of India branch in Mumbai. On Tuesday evening, SBI submitted data about electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India, in line with the Supreme Court order. File photo/Reuters The State of India (SBI) was racing against time. Two days after the Supreme Court (SC) refused to extend the deadline in the electoral bonds case, it filed an affidavit on Wednesday that it had submitted the data to the Election Commission (EC). Keeping in mind the courts directions, the SBI, Indias largest lender, furnished details of the purchase and redemption of electoral bonds . Advertisement What does the SBI data reveal? According to the banks affidavit, a total of 22,217 electoral bonds were issued between April 2019 and 15 February 2024, before the Supreme Court scrapped the scheme. Within this, 3,346 bonds were purchased between 1 April 2019 and 11 April 2019, of which 1,609 bonds were redeemed. Further, 18,871 bonds were purchased between 12 April 2019 and 15 February 2024, according to the affidavit. Out of the total 22,217 bonds purchased, 22,030 bonds were redeemed The remaining 187, the bank said, was redeemed and the money was deposited to the Prime Ministers national relief fund, according to the rules. The now-junked scheme allowed donors to purchase and donate electoral bonds to political parties. These were to be redeemed within 15 days, failing which the amount would go to the PMs fund. Advertisement SBI has provided the EC with the date of purchase and denomination of the bond, the names of political parties who have redeemed them along with the relevant date and denomination, according to the compliance affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court. However, the affidavit does not mention whether the unique code on each electoral bond that could be used to match the donation to the party that received it is part of the data, reports The Indian Express. Advertisement CPI(M) workers stage a protest against the State Bank of India (SBI) after it moved the Supreme Court to seek more time to disclose electoral bond details, outside the bank office, in Chennai last week. PTI In the affidavit, the SBI chairman said the bank has ready records in which the date of purchase, denomination and name of the buyer were recorded, and [in relation to the political parties> the date of encashment and the denominations of the bonds encashed were recorded. It added that the record of the information was made available to the EC before the close of business hours on Tuesday. It was hand-delivered in a digital form (password protected). Advertisement Also read: Supreme Court delivers verdict on electoral bonds: Why are they contentious? How SBI shared the data The SBI shared the data on electoral bonds with the EC in two separate password-protected PDF files stored in a pen drive. A separate envelope containing passwords to open the PDF files was shared, a letter written by SBIs deputy managing director to the EC reveals. Advertisement The first PDF file contained the details of purchasers and the second had the names of political parties who encashed these bonds, according to the letter made available as part of the affidavit filed by SBI chairman Dinesh Khara in the Supreme Court, reports moneycontrol. A man walks in front of a signboard displayed at the head office of the State Bank of India (SBI) in Mumbai. In the landmark verdict on 15 February, the SBI had been ordered to stop issuing the bonds immediately. File photo/Reuters How SBI met the deadline The SC, which declared electoral bonds unconstitutional in a landmark verdict on 15 February, had ordered SBI to stop issuing them immediately. It had set a deadline of 6 March for the bank to submit the data. Advertisement But the bank requested the court for an extension until 30 June, which was challenged by the Association for Democratic Reforms, one of the petitioners who had opposed the electoral bonds scheme. Also read: SC verdict on electoral bonds: How much did the BJP earn? What about Congress, others? SBI had, in its plea, told the apex court that details of purchases of electoral bonds at the branches are not maintained centrally at any one place but in two different silos. No central database was maintained. This was done so as to ensure that donors anonymity would be protected, the bank said. Advertisement It said that retrieval of information from each silo and the procedure of matching the information of one silo to that of the other would be a time-consuming exercise. Furthermore, the bank stated that donor details are kept in sealed covers, which are deposited in the main branch in Mumbai. However, the top court on Monday turned down SBIs request and set a 24-hour deadline for it to share the details. Advertisement The Supreme Court declared electoral bonds unconstitutional. File photo/Reuters This meant that the bank had to act swiftly. To gather information on all bonds collected at its various branches across the country was a mammoth task. The timing made a difference. With 31 March being the last day of the financial year, banks are busy with closing. Hence, diverting resources to collect data on electoral bonds was challenging. Advertisement How is this to be appreciated? The SBI had asked for time, not to hide date, but to ensure that data is collected and curated correctly and in an organised manner, a top government source told News18. But despite a tight deadline, SBI submitted the data on Tuesday evening. What happens next? With the earlier 6 March deadline for SBI to submit the data, the EC had been asked to make it public by 13 March. Advertisement Now, the EC has been asked to upload the data on its website by 5 pm on Friday. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said on Wednesday that the poll body will disclose electoral bonds data on time. We have three pillars disclosure, disclosure & disclosure. Disclose everything to people. The commission has been in favour of transparency. SBI has given us in time, and we have received it. We will disclose it on time, he said when asked about the SBI sending electoral bonds data to the ECI as per the Supreme Courts order. Advertisement The CECs remark came during a press conference in Srinagar after reviewing election preparedness in Jammu and Kashmir. With inputs from agencies House Republicans are moving ahead with a bill that would require Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban in the United States even as former President Donald Trump is voicing opposition to the effort The bill calls for prohibiting TikTok in the US but makes an exception if there's a 'qualified divestiture.' AP Efforts to ban TikTok are gaining traction in Congress, with the US believing the short-form video platform poses a threat to national security, in spite the fact that former President Donald Trump is voicing opposition to the effort. ByteDance is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance Ltd, and China has a reputation for requiring its companies to share any national security-related data with the government. Advertisement The premise of a bipartisan bill headed for a vote in the US House of Representatives is that TikTok fans in the US can keep scrolling through their favourite social media app so long as Beijing-based ByteDance gives up on owning it. Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, an Illinois Democrat and bill co-sponsor, recently emphasised this point: It doesnt have to be this painful for ByteDance. They could make it a lot easier on themselves by simply divesting @tiktok_us. Its their choice. However, the situation is more complex than it appears. If the technology company attempts to find a new owner for TikTok, the task will be far from easy. Heres a closer look. Who would buy TikTok? While some people have voiced an interest in buying TikToks US business among them Shark Tank star Kevin OLeary there are a number of challenges including a six-month deadline to get it done. Advertisement Somebody would have to actually be ready to shell out the large amount of money that this product and system is worth, said Stanford University researcher Graham Webster, who studies Chinese technology policy and US-China relations. But even if somebody has deep enough pockets and is ready to go into negotiating to purchase, this sort of matchmaking on acquisitions is not quick. Advertisement While some people have voiced an interest in buying TikToks US business, there are a number of challenges including a six-month deadline to get it done. AP Big tech companies could afford it but would likely face intense scrutiny from antitrust regulators in both the US and China. Then again, if the bill actually becomes law and survives First Amendment court challenges, it could make TikTok cheaper to buy. One of the main effects of the legislation would be to decrease the sale price, said Matt Perault, director of the University of North Carolinas Centre on Technology Policy, which gets funding from TikTok and other tech companies. As you approach that 180-day clock, the pressure on the company to sell or risk being banned entirely would be high, which would mean probably the acquirers could get it at a lower price. Advertisement How would it work? The bill calls for prohibiting TikTok in the US but makes an exception if theres a qualified divestiture. That could only happen if the US president determines through an interagency process that TikTok is no longer being controlled by a foreign adversary, according to the bill. Not only that, but the new US-based TikTok would have to completely cut ties with ByteDance. That includes no more cooperation with respect to the operation of a content recommendation algorithm or an agreement with respect to data sharing. Advertisement It reflects longstanding concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data on the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organisations to assist with intelligence gathering. Its an unusual bill in the way that it targets a single company. Typically, a government group led by the Treasury secretary called the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, will review whether such a sale would pose any national security threats. Advertisement Hasnt this happened before? Yes. The Trump administration brokered a deal in 2020 that would have had US corporations Oracle and Walmart take a large stake in TikTok on national security grounds. The deal would have also made Oracle responsible for hosting all TikToks US user data and securing computer systems to ensure national security requirements are satisfied. Microsoft also made a failed bid for TikTok that its CEO Satya Nadella later described as the strangest thing Ive ever worked on. Advertisement Instead of congressional action, the 2020 arrangement was in response to then-President Donald Trumps series of executive actions targeting TikTok. But the sale never went through for a number of reasons. Trumps executive orders got held up in court as the 2020 presidential election loomed. China also had imposed stricter export controls on its technology providers. Advertisement Incoming President Joe Biden in 2021 reversed course and dropped the legal proceedings. Now Biden says hes in favour a bill that would ban TikTok if ByteDance wont divest, and Trump is not. With inputs from AP A total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased between April 1 to 11, 2019, SBI said in a compliance affidavit filed to Supreme Court on Wednesday A total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 redeemed by political parties between April 1, 2019, and February 15, 2024, the State Bank of India (SBI) told the Supreme Court on Wednesday. A compliance affidavit was filed by Chairman of SBI, Dinesh Kumar Khara, to the SC, a day after the bank sent all electoral bonds data to the Election Commission of India (ECI) as per the order of the court. Advertisement What happened to remaining 187? In the affidavit, the bank, the authorised financial institution under the scheme, said, as per rules, the remaining 187 were redeemed and the money has been deposited in the Prime Ministers national relief fund. Password-protected document In the compliance affidavit, the SBI informed that the details of the electoral bonds were submitted to the poll body in a pen drive. It further said the electoral bonds data is on two PDF files that are password-protected. Passwords were given in a separate envelope. Details of SBIs electoral bonds data As per the data provided by SBI, a total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased between April 1 to 11, 2019. During the period, a total of 1,609 bonds were redeemed. Advertisement From April 12, 2019, to February 15, 2024, a total of 18,871 electoral bonds were purchased and 20,421 bonds were redeemed, the data by the bank added. What does affidavit filed by SBI to SC say? SBI chairman apprised that the affidavit filed by the bank mentions: 1 - Date of purchase of each electoral bond Advertisement 2 - Name of the purchaser 3 - Denomination of the electoral bond purchased 4 - Date of encashment of the electoral bonds 5 - Name of political parties who have received the contributions 6 - Denomination of the bonds. When can you view electoral bonds data? On March 11, a five-judge Constitution bench of Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud dismissed the SBIs plea seeking an extension of time and ordered it to disclose the details of electoral bonds to the EC by close of business hours on March 12. Advertisement The court also directed the ECI to publish the details shared by SBI on its official website by 5 pm on March 15 after which people can view the data. On February 15, the Supreme Court, in a landmark verdict, scrapped the Centres electoral bonds scheme calling it unconstitutional and ordered disclosure by the ECI of donors, the amount donated by them and the recipients. Advertisement Ordering the closure of the scheme, the SC had directed the SBI, to submit the details of the electoral bonds by March 6 purchased since April 12, 2019. But on March 4, the bank requested the court for an extension till June 30. This extension was challenged by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which was among the petitioners who had opposed the electoral bonds scheme. Advertisement What was electoral bonds scheme? On January 2, 2018, the Central government announced the electoral bonds scheme which was pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring in transparency in political funding. The first sale of electoral bonds took place in March 2018. An eligible political party could encash electoral bonds only through a bank account with the authorised bank. Advertisement With inputs from agencies Tobgay will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and call on President Droupadi Murmu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement, announcing the Bhutanese leaders visit from 14 to 18 March On the invitation of PM Modi, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay will be on a five-day visit to India staring Thursday. This will be Tobgays first foreign trip after assuming the top office in January. Prime Minister of Bhutan, Dasho Tshering Tobgay will be on an official visit to India from 14-18 March 2024 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The upcoming visit is Prime Minister Tshering Tobgays first overseas visit after assuming office in January 2024. pic.twitter.com/oC32l8QGR5 ANI (@ANI) March 13, 2024 Advertisement Tobgay will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and call on President Droupadi Murmu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement, announcing the Bhutanese leaders visit from 14 to 18 March. The Bhutanese leader is also scheduled to travel to Mumbai. The visit of the prime minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan, the MEA said in a statement. Advertisement Tobgay will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including a number of his cabinet colleagues and top officials. India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding at all levels, the MEA said. During the visit, the prime minister of Bhutan will call on President Droupadi Murmu and hold bilateral talks with the prime minister of India, it said. Advertisement External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on the Bhutanese prime minister. With inputs from agencies As Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) is implemented after 4 years, the Ministry of Homes Affairs issued a notification to bust several misconceptions and myths surrounding the Act As the contentious Citizen Amendment Act (CAA) was implemented by the BJP-led central government earlier this week, the Ministry of Homes Affairs has now issued a notification to bust misconceptions and myths surrounding the law that is keeping people on the edge. The centre said that it prioritises safeguarding the rights of Indian citizens irrespective of their religion and emphasised that it will only grant Indian citizenship to those who faced religious persecution in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. Advertisement The BJP-led government released the rules of CAA on Monday, almost four years after the law was passed in 2019, also clearing the air on the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) and said it has nothing to do with CAA. This time the government wants to leave no scope for worry about CAA, and the centres notification gives a reality check to 5 common myths surrounding the law Myth: CAA will impact Indian citizens as well, will take away the citizenship of selected religions, and will discriminate based on gender, language, and ethnicity Reality: This is a law to give Citizenship, CAA will not take away the citizenship of any Indian citizen irrespective of religion. No Indian citizen would be asked to produce any document to prove his citizenship after this Act. Advertisement CAA does not deal with any other forms of persecution on grounds of race, gender, membership of a political or social group, language, ethnicity Myth: CAA is anti-muslim, and will give citizenship to only specific minority religions from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh Reality: There is no bar on Muslims from anywhere in the world to seek Indian Citizenship under Section 6 of the Citizenship Act, it does not affect or amend the present legal process of acquiring Indian citizenship by any foreigner of any category. The usual processes will remain operational. Advertisement The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) applies to Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian foreigners, who have migrated from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan into India up to December 31, 2014, due to religious persecution faced and have no shelter except India. Myth: The centre will slowly exclude Indian Muslims from the citizenship of India Advertisement Reality: Indian Muslims need not worry as CAA has not made any provision to impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the present 18 crore Indian Muslims, who have equal rights as their Hindu counterparts. Myth: CAA will be followed by a process called NRC, which will take away the citizenship of Muslims in India Advertisement Reality: The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has nothing to do with NRC. The legal provisions of NRC have been part of The Citizenship Act, 1955 since December 2004. Myth: After CAA, Illegal immigrants, especially Muslims, will be deported to Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Bangladesh Reality: India has not signed any pact or agreement with any of these countries to repatriate migrants back to these countries. Advertisement This Citizenship Act doesnt deal with the deportation of illegal immigrants and the concern that CAA is against Muslim Minorities is unjustifiable, the Centres notification said. Karnataka is the most important State for the BJP in south India as its only here that it had held power in the past. The BJP swept the previous Lok Sabha elections bagging 25 seats out of the total 28 in the State, while an independent backed by the party also won. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the election campaign for the BJP from Kalaburagi in Karnataka where he will address a public meeting on March 16, the partys state general secretary V Sunil Kumar said on Wednesday. The public meeting will be held at NV Playground on March 16 at Kalaburagi. The event in Shivamogga will take place at Allamaprabhu Ground on March 18 he said. Advertisement Kalaburagi is the home district of AICC President M Mallikarjun Kharge, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from there in 2009 and 2014 but lost to BJPs Umesh Jadhav in the last general elections. Karnataka is the most important State for the BJP in south India as its only here that it had held power in the past. The BJP swept the previous Lok Sabha elections bagging 25 seats out of the total 28 in the State, while an independent backed by the party also won. The Congress and the JD(S) headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, who were running a coalition government back then and fought the elections together, came a cropper winning a seat each. But the political landscape has changed significantly since then. The Congress scored a landslide victory in the May Assembly polls, winning 135 seats in the 224-member Assembly. The BJP and JD(S) slumped to 66 and 19 seats, respectively. The JD(S) joined the BJP-led NDA last September and the two parties are fighting the elections together. Advertisement Sunil Kumar said BJP president J P Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath along with other national leaders will visit different Lok Sabha constituencies and address public gatherings in the coming weeks. With inputs from agencies. Indias response to Chinas espionage activities remains vigilant as evidenced by its withdrawal and reissuance of no-fly zone notices to safeguard its missile tests Indias recent test of the Agni-5 missile marked a significant advancement in its defence capabilities. However, amid the celebration of this achievement, suspicions arose concerning Chinas activities in the vicinity during the test. Code-named Divyastra, meaning divine weapon, the mission garnered attention not just from Indian officials but also from an uninvited observer a Chinese research vessel named Xiang Yang Hong 01. Advertisement Chinas prying vessel The vessel was spotted in the Bay of Bengal region, less than 260 nautical miles off the coast of Visakhapatnam, precisely where India conducted its missile test on the APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the Odisha coast. This unannounced presence raised questions about Chinas intentions, particularly considering the timing coinciding with Indias crucial test. Speculation suggests that China might have been monitoring the test to gather data on Indias latest weapons technology, specifically the Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (M.I.R.V.), equipped with multiple warheads capable of hitting a range of targets in a single strike. This technology significantly enhances Indias nuclear deterrence against regional adversaries like China and Pakistan. Advertisement The snooping habit Chinas interest in Indias military developments is not new, considering its own possession of similar weapons technology. However, its covert surveillance through research vessels reflects a pattern of invasive behaviour in Indias neighborhood. Similar incidents have been documented previously, including instances where Chinese ships disregarded no-fly zone warnings issued by India during missile tests. Advertisement The presence of dual-use equipment on these vessels, capable of both civilian and military applications, adds to the concern regarding Chinas intentions. Furthermore, Beijings recent protest against Indian leaderships visit to Arunachal Pradesh, an integral part of India, highlights the ongoing territorial disputes between the two nations. Despite Chinas claims, international consensus recognizes Arunachal Pradesh as Indian territory. Nevertheless, China persistently challenges Indias sovereignty over the region, contributing to tensions on both land and sea borders. Advertisement Indias response to Chinas espionage activities remains vigilant, as evidenced by its withdrawal and reissuance of no-fly zone notices to safeguard its missile tests. However, challenges persist as China continues to assert its presence in Indias vicinity, reflecting the broader geopolitical dynamics between the two Asian giants. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. As budget season sweeps across nations worldwide, President Joe Biden recently unveiled his ambitious $7.3 trillion spending wishlist. However, in the middle of this unveiling lies a subtle yet significant twist: its an election year in the United States. Traditionally, a budget serves as a policy blueprint. Still, with the looming spectre of elections, Bidens budget becomes more than just a roadmap for governance. It transforms into a strategic campaign pitch, offering a glimpse into what a potential second term under Bidens leadership could entail. Advertisement But guess what? Well, Im a capitalist man. Make all the money you want. Just begin to pay your fair share of taxes. The last administration enacted a $2 trillion tax cut, $2 trillion tax cut that benefits the very wealthy, the top 1 per cent, the biggest corporations. And exploded the federal deficit. Last administration added more to the national debt than any presidential term in American history, said President Biden. Top three highlights Tax reforms: Among Bidens key proposals is a call for increased taxation on the wealthy. He aims to raise the corporate tax rate from 21 per cent to 28 per cent and target the top 0.1 per cent of Americans, those with assets exceeding $100 million, with a 25 per cent tax rate. This move aligns with long-standing liberal demands to alleviate income inequality by taxing the ultra-rich more fairly. Advertisement Social security expansion: Bidens budget reflects liberal priorities by advocating for expanded social welfare programmes. This includes subsidies for childcare and higher education, a $258 billion investment in affordable housing and the introduction of paid family leave, covering various personal circumstances such as caregiving or illness recovery. Defence spending: In a departure from conventional budgetary trends, Biden proposes a marginal 1 per cent increase in military spending. This move signals a deliberate shift away from aggressive defence expenditure with plans to reduce purchases of F-35 jets and submarines. Advertisement Political manoeuvering However, the passage of Bidens budget faces significant hurdles. With Republicans controlling the US House of Representatives, opposition to many of Bidens proposals poses a formidable challenge. Last year, similar budgetary endeavours faltered, leaving the government reliant on interim funding measures. Moreover, critics argue that Bidens budget, while addressing liberal concerns, exhibits shortsightedness. The emphasis on electioneering over immediate geopolitical concerns, such as ongoing conflicts and tensions with China, raises questions about the administrations priorities. Advertisement Foreign policy quandaries Bidens foreign policy, particularly regarding Israel, encapsulates this dilemma. Reports suggest a subtle shift in the administrations stance with Biden issuing warnings to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding military actions in Gaza. This move reflects growing pressure from Muslim-American constituents, who demand a more balanced approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Advertisement Yet, Bidens attempt to navigate these competing interests has resulted in a muddled policy. While blocking UN Security Council resolutions against Israel, he simultaneously pushes for a ceasefire. This indecision underscores the delicate balancing act the administration faces striving to appease divergent constituencies without making substantial progress on key issues. Challenges ahead Advertisement As Biden seeks re-election, he confronts a challenging political landscape. Polls indicate a narrow lead for his predecessor, Donald Trump, reflecting the intensity of the upcoming electoral contest. To bolster his prospects, Biden employs various tactics, from delivering campaign-style State of the Union addresses to crafting budget proposals laden with electoral promises. Advertisement In essence, Bidens budgetary agenda intertwines policy imperatives with electoral calculus, reflecting the intricate dance of governance in a hyper-partisan era. As the political landscape continues to evolve, the true test lies in whether such manoeuvres can translate into tangible outcomes for the American people. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. Elderly make beeline for niche destinations China Daily) 15:59, March 13, 2024 When Hong Jianyi, a 70-year-old retiree from Beijing, and his family went on a holiday to Iran in late January, it was an experience that exceeded all his expectations. Hong remembers being hugely impressed by Iran's rich history and its friendly people during his trip, which came before the Spring Festival holiday rush began. A growing number of sophisticated travelers, mostly elderly Chinese, are venturing far out of the country this spring, heading to niche destinations such as Serbia, Morocco and Tunisia, benefiting from lower hotel and flight rates after the Chinese New Year break. Prices of hotel rooms and flight tickets to popular tourist destinations have dropped by nearly 40 percent in March, considered offseason for travel, compared with the Spring Festival period, according to Qunar, a Beijing-based online travel agency. For tourists aged above 55, the average flying distance exceeds 1,200 kilometers this month, over 30 percent farther than last year, Qunar has found. The proportion of the elderly among all outbound travelers has nearly rebounded to over 9 percent, close to pre-pandemic levels, Qunar said. "March is suitable for spring outings, but it has been an offseason for travel for many years. This year, more travelers have embarked on their journeys in March, especially for outbound trips," said Xiao Peng, a researcher at the big data research institute of Qunar. "The increase in passenger volumes indicates strong demand, and the falling prices of flight tickets and hotels have significantly stimulated demand." "The booking volumes of outbound travel by elderly consumers have surged compared with the same period last year, indicating that the capacity of outbound flights and overseas receptions has gradually recovered, and elderly Chinese are showing a strong willingness to spend," Xiao said. A large number of elderly Chinese born in the 1960s are tech-savvy. Online bookings and languages are not barriers for them, and more than 80 percent of such elderly customers travel without being accompanied by their children, Xiao added. The number of travel bookings by children and students under the age of 25 has declined, while the growth in bookings has been most significant for middle-aged and elderly travelers, Qunar said. Thanks to visa-free policies for Chinese visitors, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore rank among the top five overseas destinations in terms of flight booking volumes in March, and the number of Chinese travelers who booked flight tickets a few days in advance has significantly increased, Qunar said. A staff member (right) hands out souvenirs to Chinese tourists at a Ferrari-branded theme park in Abu Dhabi in February. [Photo/Xinhua] More flights Airlines are launching more flights to Southeast Asia to satisfy the growing travel demand. Guangzhou-based China Southern Airlines launched its first direct flight an Airbus A321 aircraft connecting Beijing Daxing International Airport and Singapore on March 7. The route, three times a week initially, will turn into daily trips from March 31. Following the launch of the new route, China Southern now operates 45 weekly flights between China and Singapore. The carrier said it will continue to increase its international flight capacity by launching and resuming more international flights. In January, China and Thailand signed an agreement on permanent mutual visa exemption, which became effective on March 1. Earlier, the visa exemption policy between the two countries had been temporary. Now, a one-way flight ticket to Bangkok from domestic cities such as Shanghai; Guangzhou, Guangdong province; and Chengdu, Sichuan province all carry price tags of around 600 yuan ($83) each. Flights departing between 6 am and 9 am are popular among this set, given the cheaper prices, Qunar said. This year, Thailand will hold various events across the country to celebrate Songkran, the world's largest water festival, with a total of 21 days of celebration and revelry from April 1 to 21. "Fun and interesting festivals are becoming a benchmark for tourism, and featured activities will help drive local consumption," Xiao said. In China, the period between April 13 and 15 is better known as the water splashing festival and is also the New Year period for the Dai ethnic minority, when people splash water on each other to send and receive blessings. Many travelers have booked their flights to Xishuang Banna Dai autonomous prefecture in Yunnan province in advance, and the booking volume has doubled compared to the same period of 2023. This year, there are more flights from various cities within the country to Xishuang Banna, and the average price of flight tickets has fallen by about 30 percent. Most of the domestic tourists are from Shanghai, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, Changsha, Hunan province, and Guangzhou, Guangdong province, according to Qunar. As the grandest traditional event of the Dai ethnic group, the water splashing festival is celebrated in various places in Yunnan, such as Mangshi, Pu'er, Ruili, and Lincang. Chinese tourists receive a warm welcome on arrival in Budapest in March 2023. [Photo/Xinhua] Some tourists prefer to explore rich folk customs and experience the festive atmosphere in small towns, and the booking volumes of hotels in such places have jumped 40 percent from the same period last year, Qunar found. After the frenetic travel rush during the Spring Festival, the market is expected to embrace a long window during which one can travel by avoiding holiday peaks. On some popular domestic routes, the prices of flight tickets could be lower than train tickets. For instance, the price of a one-way flight from Beijing to Sanya, the tropical island of Hainan province, could be lower than 400 yuan, said Tuniu Corp, a Nanjing, Jiangsu province-based online travel agency. By the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period, more than 100 million healthy elderly Chinese who have strong purchasing power are expected to travel frequently. Sales of the elderly tourism market are forecast to hit 1 trillion yuan, according to a projection by the China Tourism Academy. Tourist spots that can meet diverse and personalized demands will become sought-after and desirable among travelers. Cities that utilize factors such as modern technologies, culture and art may also become popular tourist destinations, said Dai Bin, president of the Chinese Tourism Academy. "The increasingly personalized travel demand from Chinese consumers has provided travel agencies with more business opportunities and potential for innovation. While boosting consumer confidence, it is expected to significantly promote the recovery and growth of the Chinese economy and the global tourism market," Dai added. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) The Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) says businesses across the country will welcome the governments new employment relations priorities announced yesterday by the Workplace Relations and Safety Minister. EMA Head of Advocacy Alan McDonald says that in recent years areas of workplace relations legislation had become overly complex, and this wasnt serving either employers or employees well. "The Holidays Act, for example, is a shambles. The Act is so complex that businesses struggle to understand their obligations, resulting in miscalculations and unintentional errors," says McDonald. "That is why we strongly support the Ministers commitment to ensuring the changes to the Holidays Act are workable and are an improvement on the status quo." McDonald says there is no need for a lengthy consultation period around the Holidays Act given the issues are well known. "Government officials, employers and unions all acknowledge the Holidays Act is broken. The good news is that a lot of work has already been done identifying solutions, including introducing an accrual model, so now we need to get on and fix it up." McDonald says businesses will also welcome moves by the government to simplify health and safety legislation. "We know that there are too many people being hurt at work, but one of the problems is that we have created an overly complex system of compliance that hasnt delivered any meaningful change. "A review of our health and safety framework is required so that we are creating a system that is not just about ticking boxes but is focussed on creating an environment that keeps workers safe. "We are also supportive of a wider review of the Employment Relations Act so that it remains fit for purpose in the modern employment market," adds McDonald. "The way we are working is changing, and our employment legislation needs to reflect this. That is why we back any moves that improve the flexibility of the employment market. "We know that flexible employment markets are critical to supporting a more productive economy, and this is good news for everyone because productive economies deliver more higher paying jobs." McDonald says the EMA looks forward to working with the Minister as she progresses her priorities. "We believe that the Ministers priorities are a step in the right direction, and her commitment to cutting the red tape holding employers and employees back is important if we want New Zealand to realise its potential." ENDS 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: SML - Synlait Milk Limited - Trading Halt of Securities AIA - Auckland Airport announces board chair changes AIA - Auckland Airport announces board chair changes CEN - Tauhara commissioning progress update FPH initiates voluntary limited recall March 28th Morning Report KFL Celebrates 20 Years of Excellence in Investment Mgmt. SVR - Savor FY24 Earnings Guidance & Change in Banking Partner NZK - NZ King Salmon Investments Limited FY24 Results March 27th Morning Report The local search and rescue organisation reports that during Indonesias rainy season, their boat overturned due to inclement weather Eleven Indonesian fisherman survived three days at sea clinging to their upturned boat, rescuers said Wednesday, as they hunted for at least 22 crew members remained missing following the weekend catastrophe, which killed two. Before the 11 were discovered stranded on two different atolls after days of floating in the sea, the boat carrying at least 35 crew members sank on Saturday in waters off the isolated Selayar Islands in South Sulawesi Province. Advertisement The local search and rescue organisation reports that during Indonesias rainy season, their boat overturned due to inclement weather. They had been floating in the sea for three days, they were carried away by the current to Selayar waters, local government official Andi Caco Amras told AFP Wednesday. On two different islands, the two victims were discovered. On March 3, the fishing boat sailed to Lombok Island in the West Nusa Tenggara Province from a port in North Jakarta. The search was being assisted by the navy and volunteer rescue workers. The joint team will conduct a search and rescue operation and they have departed this morning, local search and rescue official Andi Raswan told AFP. Advertisement He said it would take rescuers five hours to reach the location. The survivors were found after local fishermen spotted them and alerted authorities, state news agency Antara reported. Amras told AFP survivors said they held out for three days at sea by wearing life jackets and tying themselves to the boat. They were carried away along with the boat to the Selayar islands. The boat was turned over, the bottom was at the top, said the official. Advertisement The vessel of 93 gross tons was carrying equipment to catch fish such as fish traps, nets, rocks, ropes, coconut leaves and fishing rods, he said. Amras said 35 people were on the boat with 22 missing while the rescue agency gave a higher toll of 37 and 24 missing. It is common in Indonesia for the number of actual passengers on a boat to differ from the manifest. Advertisement Authorities received reports about the incident early Tuesday but said bad weather had hampered their efforts. Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago of around 17,000 islands, due to lax safety standards. In 2018, more than 150 people drowned when a ferry sank in one of the worlds deepest lakes on Sumatra island. Polands foreign minister said last week that the presence of NATO forces is not unthinkable and that he appreciates the French president for not ruling out that idea. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned Poland against sending troops to Ukraine, saying that any such attempt would lead to further escalation and may end up with a long-term occupation. In an extensive interview with Russian journalist Dmitry Kiselyov, which is set to be aired by Rossiya 1 TV and RIA Novosti on Wednesday, Putin said If Polish troops enter the territory of Ukraine to, as they say, secure the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, for example, or in some other places to free up Ukrainian rear military units to participate in hostilities on the frontline, then I think that Polish troops will never leave, Putin said, according to snippets of the interview. Advertisement Polands foreign minister said last week that the presence of NATO forces is not unthinkable and that he appreciates the French president for not ruling out that idea. Radek Sikorski observed a discussion marking the 25th anniversary of Polands accession to NATO in the Polish parliament Friday, and the Foreign Ministry tweeted the comments later in English. They reflect a larger European debate over how to help Ukraine as Russia has gained some momentum on the battlefield and Kyiv is running low on ammunition. The U.S. Congress is withholding aid that Ukraine says it critically needs to hold off the Russians, putting more pressure on Europe to respond to the war that has shattered peace on the continent. Advertisement Last month French President Emmanuel Macron said the possibility of Western troops being sent to Ukraine could not be ruled out, a comment that broke a taboo among allies and prompted an outcry from other leaders. French officials later sought to clarify Macrons remarks and tamp down the backlash, while insisting on the need to send a clear signal to Russia that it cannot win its war in Ukraine. Advertisement However, The Kremlin has warned that if NATO sends combat troops, a direct conflict between the alliance and Russia would be inevitable. Russian President Vladimir Putin said such a move would risk a global nuclear conflict. Poland is a member of NATO along the alliances eastern flank, with Ukraine across its eastern border. The country has been under Russian control in the past, and fears run high that if Russia wins in Ukraine, it could next target other countries in a region that Moscow views as its sphere of interest. Advertisement With inputs from agencies. There is no longer any doubt that the fall general election will feature a rematch between two flawed and unpopular presidents. And that rematch the first featuring two U.S. presidents since 1912 will almost certainly deepen the nations searing political and cultural divides over the eight-month grind that lies ahead As the 2024 presidential race moves to a general election rematch that many Americans do not want, President Joe Biden overcame doubts about his leadership from inside his own party to secure the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday with resounding victories in Georgia and Mississippi. Notwithstanding significant political and logistical disadvantages of his own, Donald Trump was also on track to win his partys candidature. The former president of the United States, who is a Republican and has been charged with four felonies, also won Georgia and Mississippi, but he fell short of the number of votes required to secure the GOP candidature in Washington state and Hawaii. Advertisement All things considered, Tuesday was a turning point for a country apprehensive about its 2024 decisions. There is no longer any doubt that the fall general election will feature a rematch between two flawed and unpopular presidents. And that rematch the first featuring two U.S. presidents since 1912 will almost certainly deepen the nations searing political and cultural divides over the eight-month grind that lies ahead. In a statement, Biden celebrated the nomination while casting Trump as a serious threat to democracy. Trump, Biden said, is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. He continued, I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever. Advertisement On the eve of Tuesdays primaries, Trump acknowledged that Biden would be the Democratic nominee, even as he unleashed a new attack on the presidents age. I assume hes going to be the candidate, Trump said of Biden on CNBC. Im his only opponent other than life, life itself. Despite their tough talk, both Biden and Trump are grappling with glaring flaws. Advertisement Trump is facing 91 felony counts in four criminal cases involving his handling of classified documents and his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, among other alleged crimes. Hes also facing increasingly pointed questions about his policy plans and relationships with some of the worlds most dangerous dictators. Trump met privately on Friday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has rolled back democracy in his country. Advertisement The 81-year-old Biden is working to assure a skeptical electorate that hes still physically and mentally able to thrive in the worlds most important job. Hes also dealing with dissension within his partys progressive base, which is furious that he hasnt done more to stop Israels war against Hamas in Gaza. Last month in Michigan, a related protest uncommitted vote attracted more than 100,000 votes and actually secured two Democratic delegates. Advertisement Ahead of Tuesdays vote, a scattering of lawn signs across Seattle urged primary participants to vote uncommitted as well, with some signs reading: Over 30,000 dead. Vote Ceasefire by Tuesday 3/12. Moments after Bella Rivera, 26, dropped off her ballot at a drop box in Seattle, they said they hoped that by voting uncommitted that it would serve as a wakeup call for the Democratic party. Advertisement If you really want our votes, if you want to win this election, youre going to have to show a little bit more either support of Palestinian liberation thats something thats very important to us and ceasing funds to Israel, said Rivera, a preschool teacher who uses they/them pronouns. Advertisement Meanwhile, Trump is on pace to win the number of delegates needed to clinch the GOP nomination. He picked up an additional 11 delegates ahead of Tuesdays primaries when the Texas Republican Party announced it was awarding all of the states 161 delegates to the former president, based on results from last weeks primary. The Texas GOP had been planning to award 11 delegates at the state party convention in May, but national party rules require the delegates to be awarded based on the presidential primary, which Trump won overwhelmingly. Advertisement That put Trump just 126 delegates short of the 1,215 needed to win the Republican nomination at the partys national convention this summer. There are 161 Republican delegates at stake on Tuesday in Georgia, Mississippi, Washington state and Hawaii. With a strong showing on Tuesday, Trump can sweep all the delegates in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state. Hawaii allocates delegates proportionally so other candidates could win a few, even with a small share of the vote. Advertisement Not certain he will hit the mark, Trumps campaign has not planned a big victory party like it did last week when hundreds packed his Mar-a-Lago club for a Super Tuesday celebration with drinks and passed hors doeuvres. On the ground in Georgia, retiree Donna Graham said she would have preferred another Republican nominee over Trump, but she said theres no way shed ever vote for Biden in the general election. Advertisement He wasnt my first choice, but hes the next best thing, Graham said of Trump. Its sad that its the same old matchup as four years ago. The Maldives announced last week that it had ordered Indian troops stationed in the tiny but strategically located archipelago to leave, and that it had instead inked a military assistance agreement with China The delegation of officials from the Chinese military's international military cooperation department focused on "in-depth consultations on promoting bilateral defence cooperation" Image Courtesy Agencies Beijing announced on Wednesday that a military delegation from China has visited Nepal, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives to discuss future defense cooperation. Beijing is attempting to offset India, its strategic adversary for influence, by forging tighter relationships throughout South Asia. The Maldives announced last week that it had ordered Indian troops stationed in the tiny but strategically located archipelago to leave, and that it had instead inked a military assistance agreement with China. Advertisement Furthermore, Beijing verified on Wednesday that, from March 4 to 13, a delegation had been to Nepal and Sri Lanka and had a meeting with President Mohamed Muizzu, who is pro-China. In all three countries, they exchanged views on military relations and regional security issues of common concern, the Chinese military said in a statement on its official WeChat account. The delegation of officials from the Chinese militarys international military cooperation department focused on in-depth consultations on promoting bilateral defence cooperation. A series of consensus was reached to further enriched defence cooperation between the PLA and the relevant countries, it added, referring to the Chinese military by its official acronym. India is suspicious of Chinas growing presence in the Indian Ocean and its influence in the Maldives, a chain of 1,192 tiny coral islands stretching around 800 kilometres (500 miles) across the equator, as well as in neighbouring Sri Lanka. Advertisement Both South Asian island nations are strategically placed halfway along key east-west international shipping routes. Beijing also enjoys close ties with Nepal, led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, an ex-Maoist guerrilla known by his nom de guerre Prachanda. (With agency inputs) The kidnappings on Tuesday occurred in the Kajuru region of Kaduna State, while security personnel looked for the students who had been abducted from their school in Kuriga village, which was around 150 kilometres (93 miles) away People gather around an area were gunmen kidnapped school children in Chikun, Nigeria. AP Days after more than 250 students from a nearby school were kidnapped, gunmen on Tuesday took scores of people from a town in northwest Nigeria, according to two local officials and a UN source. In northwest Nigeria, criminal gangs frequently target schools, communities, and roads in order to rapidly abduct a large number of people in exchange for ransom payments. Advertisement The kidnappings on Tuesday occurred in the Kajuru region of Kaduna State, while security personnel looked for the students who had been abducted from their school in Kuriga village, which was around 150 kilometres (93 miles) away. President Bola Ahmed Tinubus administration, which pledged to address insecurity, manage the cost-of-living problem, and attract more investment to the most populous country in Africa, is facing challenges as a result of the recent wave of widespread kidnappings. When contacted for details about the latest incident, Kaduna State officials did not answer right away. However, Abubakar Buda, a local councilman, told Channels TV that gunmen broke into the community early on Tuesday morning, going from house to house kidnapping people and occasionally shooting fire. According to Buda, Channels reported that only a military action prevented further persons from being abducted. Usman Danlami Stingo, a state legislator, revealed to Arise News that 29 men and 32 women had been kidnapped. Advertisement A UN source, who was not authorised to speak publically to the media, also told AFP that gunmen stormed the village early Tuesday morning. The initial tally showed 40 persons were abducted but the figure rose to around 60, the source said. Officials say troops are searching forests in the northwest to rescue the Kuriga students, but families say little detail has emerged since the abductions. Advertisement The mass kidnapping in Kaduna State and another in the northeast a week before came almost 10 years after Boko Haram militants triggered a huge international outcry in 2014 by abducting more than 250 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno state. The Dutch government information service says that the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the importance of an immediate pause in fighting and the release of all hostages will be discussed Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will visit Israel and Egypt on Wednesday to hold discussions on the ongoing conflict in West Asia. Rutte is expected to meet his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu before leaving for Cairo for talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi. The Dutch government information service says that the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the importance of an immediate pause in fighting and the release of all hostages will be discussed. Advertisement Rutte also will discuss the need to prevent regional escalation and find a lasting solution to the conflict. Recently, Israeli President Isaac Herzogs participation in the inauguration of the National Holocaust Museum in the Dutch capital of Amsterdam irked many over Israels military operation in Gaza. Protestors, even Jews, gathered at the museum to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. In its defence, the National Holocaust Museum said that an invitation to Herzog was dispatched before Hamas launched its offensive against Israel on October 7. The museum said in a statement that it acknowledges that Herzogs attendance at the opening raises questions but added that he represents the homeland of Dutch Holocaust survivors who had emigrated to Israel. Advertisement Last month, a Dutch court ordered the termination of the deliveries of parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza. The order comes after the court withheld an appeal by a human rights organisation that flagged concerns over the supply of F-35 jet parts saying that such a move is allegedly a violation of international law by Israel in its war with Hamas. Advertisement The court orders the State to cease all actual export and transit of F-35 parts with final destination Israel within seven days after service of this judgment, said the ruling. Government lawyers argued that Israel can easily procure the parts from other countries even when the Netherlands stops supplying them. The International Court of Justice in The Hague, which rules on disputes between states, has said Israel must do everything possible to prevent genocidal acts in Gaza. Advertisement With inputs from agencies The surrender came after agents from the elite Special Operations Battalion were deployed to the scene to conduct negotiations, according to police An ambulance leaves the Novo Rio bus terminal after the gunman who was holding passengers hostage surrendered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. AFP At Rio de Janeiros major bus stop on Tuesday, a gunman shot two people and kept 16 passengers hostage for three hours until they were persuaded to give up, according to authorities. The afternoon at the Novo Rio station, through which over 38,000 people travel every day on buses bound for all parts of Brazil, there were scenes of terror as gunshots rang out. Advertisement Before entering the bus, witnesses said, a guy opened fire. For reasons that the police have not revealed, the man then took 16 people hostage, including a youngster and six elderly people. A previous police count listed 17 captives in all. According to Rio Health Secretary Daniel Soranz, a 34-year-old male who had been wounded in the chest and abdomen was in critical condition in the hospital. A second person, also hospitalized, was less severely injured. The hostage-taker surrendered, he was arrested, all the hostages were released, they are safe, Colonel Marco Andrade of the military police announced about three hours after the crisis began. The surrender came after agents from the elite Special Operations Battalion were deployed to the scene to conduct negotiations, according to police. Advertisement Officers had cordoned off the station after evacuating all employees and passengers, who crowded in the hundreds outside while police tried to reason with the gunman. Images broadcast by the Globo news channel showed agents escorting a man in a colorful pink T-shirt, green Bermuda shorts and short hair towards a police van after the incident as passengers exited the bus, including a young woman with a baby in her arms. Advertisement The hostage-takers identity has not been revealed, but Rio military police secretary Luiz Henrique Marinho said it appeared he had been trying to flee the city over problems in his faction, in apparent reference to a criminal gang. At some point he felt threatened by someone, a person or a group, on the bus, and thats when he fired the shots, Marinho told Globo. Advertisement On social network X, Rio state Governor Claudio Castro praised the exemplary action of police in bringing the drama to a close. Everyone is desperate Televised images showed chaotic scenes at the station as fearful passengers scattered and a blue bus remained stationary in the middle of an empty parking lot. A man drew a gun, started shooting and entered the bus. I have two friends on this bus, everyone is desperate, we dont know what will happen, one witness told Globo ahead of the passengers release. Advertisement Bus hijackings are not unknown in Rio. In 2019 a hijacker armed with what turned out to be a fake gun held bus passengers hostage on a bridge outside the city for nearly four hours before being shot dead by police snipers. In 2011, a similar incident left three people injured in the heart of Brazils most iconic city, long plagued by high crime rates linked to poverty and inequality. Advertisement And in 2000, a hostage-taker and a captive were killed in another bus hijacking that was broadcast live to a rapt audience and inspired the 2008 movie Last Stop 174. Rios sprawling favelas, which crowd the metropolitan areas hillsides, often overlooking picture-postcard beaches and lush mountains, are the epicenter of gang and drug-related violence. According to Hamas, the strike claimed the life of Hadi Mustafa, a member of its armed branch in Lebanon. Hadi Mustafa was from the Palestinian refugee camp of Rashidiyeh, which is near the coastal city of Tyre Hezbollah, Hamas' ally in Lebanon, and Israel have engaged in almost daily gunfire since the conflict in Gaza broke out in October. Palestinian organizations in Lebanon have also claimed cross-border attacks against Israel Image Courtesy Agencies According to official media, an Israeli strike in south Lebanon on Wednesday claimed the lives of two people, including a Palestinian member of Hamas. Hezbollah, Hamas ally in Lebanon, and Israel have engaged in almost daily gunfire since the conflict in Gaza broke out in October. Palestinian organizations in Lebanon have also claimed cross-border attacks against Israel. Advertisement According to Hamas, the strike claimed the life of Hadi Mustafa, a member of its armed branch in Lebanon. Hadi Mustafa was from the Palestinian refugee camp of Rashidiyeh, which is near the coastal city of Tyre. According to Lebanons official National News Agency, there was also a Syrian bystander who died. The most well-known Hamas member to die in the conflict was Hamas deputy commander Saleh al-Aruri, who was slain together with six other members in Hezbollahs stronghold in south Beirut in January, in an attack that a US defense official claimed was carried out by Israel. In response to cross-border firing, Israel has attacked targets farther and deeper into Lebanese territory. According to security sources, two persons were killed on Tuesday and one on Monday by Israeli attacks against Hezbollah targets in eastern Lebanon. Advertisement At least 321 individuals have died in Lebanon since hostilities started, mostly Hezbollah combatants but also 55 civilians. According to the military, at least ten troops and seven civilians have died in cross-border exchanges in Israel. (With agency inputs) Praising PM Modi, Shri Thanedar said the Indian prime minister has established a good relationship with the previous administration and also the current administration The progress in India has been outstanding under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said popular Indian-American Congressman Shri Thanedar said, adding that the US must respect and honour the ability India has and the potential the country and its people have. The progress (of India) is outstanding (in the last 10 years), said Thanedar in an interview to PTI. Advertisement When I think Prime Minister Modi was elected, India was like the 10th economy in the world, then it became the fifth economy and very soon to be the third largest economy in the world. So there is absolutely no doubt that India has made amazing progress, he said. Young people are strength of India Its a country of young people. I think it has more young people, percentage wise than most nations. That is the strength of India, Thanedar said. Revolution going on in India India has now embraced technology. We are seeing the digitalisation of the financial systems, the banking systems. That digitalisation, that progress, that technology has reached smaller towns, villages. So there is a revolution going on in India, said Thanedar, who represents the 13th Congressional District of Michigan. Advertisement No one can ignore India Its all very exciting to see. India continues to be a strong force in the world. No one can ignore India, including the United States. The US must respect and honour the ability India has and the potential India and Indian people have. And I think President Biden understands that, Thanedar said. Advertisement India-US need to become more stronger allies Praising PM Modi and his administration, Thanedar said the Indian prime minister has established a good relationship with the previous administration and also the current Biden administration. I think when I was at the White House, when Modi_ji_ came and we had the dinner in his honour, I could see the chemistry, the friendship between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi. It continues to strengthen, he said. Advertisement In my personal opinion, I think the relationship needs to be much better than what it is now. As you know, India started with a non-alignment position and many years India was trying to balance between the Soviet Union and the United States. But time has now come for India to fully trust and put its faith and friendship into the United States and focus on working closely together, he said. Advertisement We need to become much more stronger allies. We need to have much more collaboration in terms of defense and in terms of technology and commerce in general. I think theres a lot more that can be done, but I think we have a good relationship right now, Thanedar said. A Marathi speaker, Thanedar travels to various parts of the US, meeting and interacting with various Indian American groups and organisations. He was in India as part of a Congressional delegation last August. Advertisement With inputs from PTI The arrested Indian nationals were transferred to the Immigration Departments detention center in Welisara on the orders of relevant authorities, Controller General Harsha Illukpitiya was quoted as saying Sri Lankas Department of Immigration and Emigration nabbed 21 Indians after they were found working illegally while on tourist visas. As per the Daily Mirror newspaper, the Indians were found operating an illegal online marketplace in Negombo, violating the island nations tourist visa norms. The arrested Indian nationals were transferred to the Immigration Departments detention center in Welisara on the orders of relevant authorities, Controller General Harsha Illukpitiya was quoted as saying. Advertisement As per a preliminary investigation, the Immigration Department raided a rented house, where the arrested men, said to be aged under 25, had converted the accommodation into an office space with computers and other devices installed. The men took advantage of the cash-strapped nations relaxed visa conditions, under which it is offering free-of-cost visas till March 31 to a select number of countries under an ongoing pilot project. The visa conditions aim to revive the countrys fledgling tourism industry and extend to six other countries namely Russia, China, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Japan. However, under Sri Lankas law, those who visit the country on tourist visas are prohibited from engaging in any kind of paid or unpaid work, as per an official. Advertisement The men had arrived in Sri Lanka in February and March on tourist visas, the senior immigration officer was quoted by the newspaper. Kenyas President William Ruto stated that he and Henry saw the signing of the reciprocal agreements between Kenya and Haiti on March 1, which cleared the way for the deployment Kenya has halted preparations to deploy at least 1,000 police personnel to Haiti in response to the tremendous violence that has erupted in the Caribbean nation, as well as Prime Minister Ariel Henrys statement that he will quit once a presidential council is formed, a Kenyan official said Tuesday. Kenya agreed in October to lead a United Nations-authorized international police force to Haiti, but the countrys top court decided in January that this was unlawful, citing a lack of reciprocal agreements on similar deployments between the two nations. Advertisement Kenyas President William Ruto stated that he and Henry saw the signing of the reciprocal agreements between Kenya and Haiti on March 1, which cleared the way for the deployment. Under the plan, the U.N.-backed multi-national police led by Kenyan officers was to help quell gang violence that has long plagued Haiti. But violence escalated sharply since Feb. 29, with gunmen burning police stations, closing the main international airports and raiding the countrys two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates. Scores have been killed, and more than 15,000 are homeless after fleeing neighborhoods raided by gangs. Food and water are dwindling and the main port in the capital of Port-au-Prince remains closed, stranding dozens of containers with critical supplies. After returning from a trip to Kenya where he had gone to salvage plans for the African countrys deployment, Henry has been locked out of his own country and has remained in Puerto Rico since last week. Advertisement It is true the planned deployment of police officers has been put on hold, Kenyas Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Koriri Singoei said Tuesday. There has been a fundamental change in circumstances in Haiti as a result of the complete breakdown of law and order, Singoei added. Henrys announcement Tuesday that he would resign once a transitional presidential council is created indicated he was bowing to international pressure to make way for new leadership in the country overwhelmed by violent gangs. Advertisement Henry spoke after Caribbean leaders and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met in Jamaica to discuss a solution to Haitis spiraling crisis. The government Im running will remove itself immediately after the installation of the council, Henry said in a recorded statement. Singoei said that without a clear administration in place in Haiti, there is no anchor for an international police force. Therefore, the Kenyan government will await the installation of a new authority in Haiti, before making further decisions on its deployment. Advertisement On Monday, Kenyan Interior Minister Kindiki Kithure said their officers selected to go to Haiti were ready and awaiting deployment after the top courts requirements on bilateral agreements were met. Critics of Henry, who was sworn in as prime minister nearly two weeks after the July 7, 2021, assassination of President Jovenel Moise, say he was never elected by the people or Parliament, which remains nonexistent after the terms of the last remaining senators expired in January 2023. Advertisement That has also left Haiti without a single elected official. PM Modi and PM Sunak expressed satisfaction with the progress made under the Roadmap 2030 in diverse areas including trade, investment, defence, security, emerging technologies and others As India and the UK inch closer to reaching a deal over the free trade agreement (FTA), Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephone conversation with his British counterpart Rishi Sunak to discuss an early conclusion of the negotiations. Had a good conversation with PM @RishiSunak. We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and work for early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 12, 2024 Advertisement The 14th round of negotiations between the officials of the two countries took place in New Delhi. Following the meeting, Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce L. Satya Srinivas said, The majority of the chapters are either closed or at an advanced stage of negotiation. Discussions are being held at the higher level as well as at the team level to iron out differences. Meanwhile, earlier this week, India signed a free trade agreement with the four-nation European Free Trade Association (EFTA) under Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. 5 key takeaways from conversation between PM Modi and Sunak: 1 Both the leaders discussed ways to strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership 2 - The two leaders exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest Advertisement 3 - PM Modi and Sunak expressed satisfaction with the progress made under the Roadmap 2030 in diverse areas including trade, investment, defence, security, emerging technologies and others 4 - They assessed positively the progress made toward the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement 5 PM Sunak and Indian Prime Minister Modi also agreed to remain in touch and exchanged greetings on the upcoming festive occasion of Holi Volkov, 43, is one of Russias most famous opposition politicians and a close ally of Navalny, having served as the late leaders former chief of staff and chair of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023 Leonid Volkov, a close supporter of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was taken to the hospital on Tuesday after being attacked outside his house in Lithuania, according to local police. Volkov, 43, is one of Russias most famous opposition politicians and a close ally of Navalny, having served as the late leaders former chief of staff and chair of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023. Advertisement Leonid Volkov has just been attacked outside his house. Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer, Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said on X, formerly Twitter. Photos of Volkovs injuries, which included a black eye, a red mark on his forehead, and blood on his leg that had seeped through his pants, were posted on social media by Volkovs wife, Anna Biryukova. Later, Volkov was shown on a stretcher being taken into an ambulance by Navalnys squad. According to Lithuanian police spokeswoman Ramunas Matonis, who spoke with AFP, a Russian national was beaten close to his Vilnius, the countrys capital, at about ten oclock at night (2000 GMT). A lot of police are working at the scene, Matonis said. Advertisement The suspects have not been identified and more details about the assault are expected on Wednesday morning, he added. Police confirmed that Volkov had been admitted into hospital. Attack is shocking The attack comes almost a month after Navalnys death in an Arctic prison, which Volkov blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin, and days before elections set to extend the Kremlin chiefs stay in power. Advertisement The day before he was attacked, Volkov wrote on social media: Putin killed Navalny. And many others before that. Lithuanias Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis condemned Volkovs beating in a social media post. News about Leonids assault are shocking. Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime, he said on X. Advertisement NATO member Lithuania is home to many Russian exiles and has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine throughout Russias invasion. Russian dissidents who have spoken out against the Kremlin often complain of being targeted with threats and attacks. Volkov told the independent Russian news outlet Meduza hours before he was beaten on Tuesday that he was worried for his safety after Navalnys death. Advertisement The key risk now is that we will all be killed. Why, its a pretty obvious thing, the outlet quoted him as saying. Volkov went into exile in 2019 along with several other of Navalnys allies after authorities launched a criminal probe into the leaders Anti-Corruption Foundation. Volkov was declared wanted by Russian authorities in 2021 over his role in drumming up mass protests against the Kremlin together with Navalny. Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal won 157 votes in the 275-member parliament, while 110 lawmakers voted against him Nepals Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Wednesday won a parliamentary vote of confidence, a week after he formed his third coalition in just 14 months to lead a government that is dominated by liberal communists. The new cabinet led by Dahal is dominated by the liberal Nepal Communist Party (UML) and includes several other smaller groups. He had also headed a coalition with the UML briefly after the 2022 elections. Advertisement Earlier this month, Dahal changed allies saying he was not given a free hand. Dahal, a former Maoist guerrilla leader from Nepal - sandwiched between China and India, formed a coalition Cabinet last year that included the Nepali Congress party and other smaller groups. Dahal wins vote of confidence Dahal won 157 votes in the 275-member parliament, while 110 lawmakers voted against him. To win the trust of the house, 138 votes were required. I was let down several times and was forced to form a new coalition cabinet, which is just a regular political process, Dahal said in parliament on Wednesday, referring to the Nepali Congress, which is now the main opposition party. Dahal is serving a third time as prime minister but did not complete the full five-year term during his previous stints. Advertisement Nepal has had 13 governments since it abolished its 239-year-old monarchy in 2008 and became a republic. After the split last week, Nepali Congress said prime minister Dahal had deceived it by dumping it from the cabinet without any notice. Dahal led a decade-long insurgency from 1996 which caused 17,000 deaths before he joined mainstream politics under the 2006 peace deal overseen by the United Nations. Advertisement With inputs from Reuters The knife attack comes a day after a 12-year-old Palestinian boy died after being shot by Israeli border police at a refugee camp in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem Palestinian official news agency Wafa reported that the Palestinian teenager was "left to bleed until he died" by security forces at the checkpoint Image Courtesy Reuters At a checkpoint in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, a 15-year-old Palestinian kid on a bicycle stabbed two Israeli security guards before being shot and killed, according to authorities. The adolescent arrived at the Tunnels checkpoint south of Jerusalem on a bicycle at approximately 8:15 am (06:15 GMT), according to a statement released by the force. Advertisement When security forces at the crossing attempted to check him, the terrorist drew a knife and began stabbing the forces present at the scene, the police said. An armed civilian guard immediately engaged with the terrorist, and simultaneously IDF (army) forces at the location responded with precise gunfire neutralising the terrorist. A female soldier and a civilian armed guard were wounded in the stabbing, the police said, adding their injuries were mild to moderate. Police later pronounced the attacker dead. Palestinian official news agency Wafa reported that the Palestinian teenager was left to bleed until he died by security forces at the checkpoint. The knife attack comes a day after a 12-year-old Palestinian boy died after being shot by Israeli border police at a refugee camp in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. Advertisement Rami Hamdan al-Halhuli, 12, suffered a fatal gunshot wound during clashes between residents of the Shuafat refugee camp and police, who said the child had aimed fireworks at them. Hundreds of extra police have been deployed in the Old City of east Jerusalem since the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan began on Monday. Advertisement (With agency inputs) Progress in talks took place due to substantial pressure exerted by Doha on Hamas, with the terror group being warned that its leaders residing in Qatar would be kicked out of the country if they didnt adapt their approach in the negotiations, according to a report A man holds a sign calling for the release of the hostages taken by Hamas militants to Gaza during the 7 October attack, during a demonstration in Tel Aviv, Israel, on 20 January, 2024. AP File After an extended period of deadlock in the talks, Qatari and Egyptian mediators believe they have made significant progress this week toward securing a truce between Israel and Hamas, according to a report. According to a Times of Israel report, citing Arab diplomat, progress in talks took place due to substantial pressure exerted by Doha on Hamas, with the terror group being warned that its leaders residing in Qatar would be kicked out of the country if they didnt adapt their approach in the negotiations. Advertisement Meanwhile earlier today, Al Arabiya quoted a senior Hamas official saying that the group had accepted a modified version of the latest US proposal, which was based on a framework accepted by Israel during a meeting in Paris last month. Hamas, however, later issued a statement denying the report. According to the Arab diplomat, the proposed three-phase agreement entails the release of around 40 hostages comprising women, the elderly, and the wounded in the initial six weeks. Subsequently, soldiers would be released in the second phase, followed by the handover of hostages bodies in the third phase. The later stages of the agreement would involve discussions aimed at establishing a more lasting ceasefire between the parties, the diplomat explained. In the first phase, mediators are endeavoring to persuade Hamas to agree to a 10:1 ratio of security prisoners released by Israel for each hostage, the diplomat revealed. He noted that Hamas had initially pushed for a more skewed ratio but seems to have moderated its stance. Advertisement Although Israel initially accepted a framework in Paris upon which the current proposal is based, final approval from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus cabinet, as well as from Hamas, is still pending, the Arab diplomat added, expressing uncertainty about whether this approval will be obtained. With inputs from agencies According to regional governors, dozens of drones were fired over the course of the night, the great majority of which were shot down over the Ukrainian border districts of Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, and Voronezh, causing minor damage but no casualties A fire breaks out following a Ukrainian drone strike at an oil depot in Oryol, Orlovskaya Oblast, Russia. Reuters For the second day in a row, Russias oil refineries and border areas were the target of drone strikes on Wednesday. One of the hits started a fire and injured many people in the Ryazan region, according to officials. According to regional governors, dozens of drones were fired over the course of the night, the great majority of which were shot down over the Ukrainian border districts of Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk, and Voronezh, causing minor damage but no casualties. Advertisement One crashed into an oil refinery in the Ryazan area, some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, setting up a fire and injuring many persons. The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone, Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov wrote on Telegram. According to preliminary information, there are injuries, he wrote. A fire broke out at the refinery following the strike and all rescue services are working at the scene, Malkov said. Alexander Drozdenko, the regional governor, said on Telegram that a drone that was aimed at a second oil refinery in the Leningrad area, close to Saint Petersburg, the second city in northwest Russia, was shot down. He added that there was no casualties or damage. Over thirty drones were shot down over the Voronezh area; regional governor Alexander Gussev reported little damage on Telegram. Advertisement Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram that six drones were shot down over the Belgorod area, hurting many electrical wires and resulting in power interruptions. The governors of those areas posted on Telegram that eight drones were shot down over the Bryansk region and four were destroyed over the Kursk region, with no reports of damage. Advertisement On Tuesday, Ukraine launched one of its most significant drone strikes on Russia so far in the two-year conflict. Two Russian energy sites, including one of the largest oil refineries some 800 kilometres from the border, were hit in the strikes, Russian officials said. A major oil refinery in Kstovo, just outside the city of Nizhny Novgorod, was hit by a drone early on Tuesday morning, the regional governor said. Advertisement Another drone crashed into a fuel depot and started a fire in Oryol, around 160 kilometres from the border, according to the regional governor. Throughout its two-year military campaign in Ukraine, the Kremlin has bragged about its nuclear capabilities. Last month, it warned Western nations that escalating the conflict carried a real risk of nuclear disaster Putin's browbeating rhetoric comes just days ahead of elections in Russia that are all but guaranteed to hand him another six years in power and as the Russian military posts gains in Ukraine Image Courtesy AFP Russia President Vladimir Putin praised his countrys nuclear arsenal on Wednesday and issued a warning, saying that if Russias sovereignty was threatened, he was prepared to use the weapons. Throughout its two-year military campaign in Ukraine, the Kremlin has bragged about its nuclear capabilities. Last month, it warned Western nations that escalating the conflict carried a real risk of nuclear disaster. Advertisement Putins browbeating rhetoric comes just days ahead of elections in Russia that are all but guaranteed to hand him another six years in power and as the Russian military posts gains in Ukraine. Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here, Putin said in a wide-ranging interview with state media. We are ready to use weapons, including any weapons - including the weapons you mentioned - if it is a question of the existence of the Russian state or damage to our sovereignty and independence, Putin added in the interview that aired on Wednesday. The Russian leader also dismissed recent comments from French leader Emmanuel Macron, who last month declined to rule out putting boots on the ground, a significant shift in rhetoric as Ukraine struggles on the battlefield. Advertisement The fact is that the militaries of Western countries have been present in Ukraine for a long time, the Russian leader claimed, referring to what the Kremlin says are mercenaries. But if we talk about official military contingents of foreign countries, I am sure it will not change the situation on the battlefield, he added. Advertisement While Macron has doubled down on his remarks, several of Ukraines allies, including Washington, have distanced themselves from the idea, which stunned many in Europe. Putins comments came hours after a wave of drone strikes targeted Russias oil refineries and border regions for the second day in a row. One caused a fire and wounded several people when it crashed into an oil refinery in the Ryazan region that lies some 200km southeast of Moscow. Advertisement The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone, Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov wrote on Telegram. This week, Russia has faced some of the most significant attacks on its territory since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine more than two years ago. Pro-Kyiv militias made up of mainly Russian citizens this week said they had crossed over Russias border and captured a village in Kursk. Advertisement Putin said that Ukraine was upping its attacks on Russian territory in order to interfere with upcoming presidential elections. Its simple. This is all happening against the backdrop of failures on the frontline. They did not achieve any of the goals that they set for themselves last year, Putin said. I have no doubt that the main goal is, if not to disrupt the presidential elections in Russia then to somehow interfere with the normal process, he said. Advertisement Ukraine has ceded ground to Russian forces in recent months as it faces a myriad of shortages, from artillery to air defences, in part because a US$60 billion aid package remains held up in the US Congress. (With agency inputs) Moscow has repeatedly warned that it will respond in kind if the West goes through with threats to confiscate Russian assets. The finance ministry said last month that Western states and companies themselves still have holdings in Russia that could be jeopardized if the frozen funds were tapped. While Brussels is exploring legal avenues to transfer frozen Russian assets to Ukraine, it must also retain a portion of the funds as a precautionary reserve, a senior EU official informed Reuters, adding that it is necessary to safeguard against potential disruptions to the global financial system, particularly if Euroclear, the Brussels-based clearing house, encounters difficulties. Advertisement Since the onset of the Ukraine conflict two years ago, the West has frozen approximately $300 billion in assets belonging to the Russian central bank. Euroclear, based in Brussels holds around 191 billion ($205 billion) of these assets. The EU is reportedly expediting the process to transfer the first instalment of up to 3 billion ($3.2 billion) to Kyiv from profits generated by the frozen Russian assets, with plans to commence as early as July. However, the EU must ensure that this transfer does not compromise financial stability. According to an unnamed EU official, there is a need to maintain a significant amount of funds in Euroclear to address potential claims against the clearing house. The official emphasized that once the conflict ends and settlements can be completed, the retained funds will be transferred to Ukraine. Advertisement Should the West proceed with expropriating the funds, the Russian central bank is likely to seize some 33 billion of Euroclear money held in the national securities depository in Moscow, the official noted. Russia may also sue to seize Euroclear cash from depositories in Hong Kong and Dubai. Moscow has repeatedly warned that it will respond in kind if the West goes through with threats to confiscate Russian assets. The finance ministry said last month that Western states and companies themselves still have holdings in Russia that could be jeopardized if the frozen funds were tapped. Advertisement If Western banks begin suing Euroclear for the loss of their money invested in Russia thats the mechanism how Euroclear could be emptied, the EU official warned. The Euroclear Bank boasts of over 37 trillion of assets in custody globally, but if it runs out of liquidity amid a litany of lawsuits the Belgian central bank may be forced to withdraw its license, causing a global financial crisis, the official warned. Advertisement A number of Western countries remain divided over expropriating Russias frozen assets to aid Ukraine. While the US and UK support the direct seizure of the assets, some EU member states, including France and Germany, have recently warned that the move could negatively affect financial stability and erode trust in the euros status as a reserve currency. Advertisement With inputs from Reuters. It is generally anticipated that the elections would bring Kagame back to government for a fourth seven-year term. This is because he oversaw contentious constitutional reforms that could extend his potential to rule until 2034 Although Kagame is credited with stabilizing the African country, his administration has come under fire for its appalling record on human rights Image Courtesy AP Due to prior convictions for terrorism and denial of the genocide, a Rwandan court ruled on Wednesday that opposition leader and dissident Victoire Ingabire is ineligible to compete in the July presidential election. An outspoken opponent of Paul Kagame, the longtime leader of Rwanda, Ingabire served eight years in prison before her 15-year sentence was shortened in 2018 by a presidential pardon. Advertisement Although it is against the law for convicted candidates who have served more than six months in jail to run in the July 15 elections, she had sought the Kigali High Court to grant her permission to do so. The court finds that Ingabires request to have her conviction removed is not accepted, a judge said, reading out the decision. I disagree with this ruling. It is clearly politicised. We still have a country where the courts are still not independent, Ingabire told AFP after the court decision. Rwandan law states that she has two years from the date of the verdict to file an appeal. It is generally anticipated that the elections would bring Kagame back to government for a fourth seven-year term. This is because he oversaw contentious constitutional reforms that could extend his potential to rule until 2034. Advertisement With more than 90% of the vote in the presidential elections held in 2003, 2010, and 2017, the 66-year-old has ruled the landlocked African country for decades. Frank Habineza, chairman of the Green Party, is Kagames lone known opponent in the July polls. Habineza received 0.45 percent of the vote in 2017. The Rwandan Patriotic Front, in power, is backed by all other opposition parties that are duly registered. Advertisement Rwanda does not formally recognize Ingabires Dalfa Umurunzi (Development And Liberty For All) movement. Ingabire, a 55-year-old ethnic Hutu, was charged with divisionism after he openly questioned the official account of the 800,000-person Tutsi genocide that occurred in 1994. Although Kagame is credited with stabilizing the African country, his administration has come under fire for its appalling record on human rights. Advertisement In a statement published on social media after Wednesdays verdict, Ingabire said the ruling is not merely a personal setback but is emblematic of the broader issues facing our nation. Todays decision is a stark reminder of the barriers to political participation and the urgent need for reform in our countrys governance. Advertisement The Rwandan president is frequently accused by Ingabire of stifling opposition and ignoring the underprivileged. She had informed reporters that she was released from prison in 2018 as a result of international pressure on Rwandas government. This prompted Kagame to issue a warning, saying, Do not be shocked if you go back to prison. Advertisement Over the past few years, a number of opposition lawmakers have vanished or died under suspicious circumstances. September 2019, a member of FDU-Inkingi, the old party of Ingabire, was stabbed close to Kigali, the city. This occurred six months after Anselm Mutuyimana, the partys spokesman, was abducted and his death was subsequently discovered in a jungle. Advertisement Ingabire, who has been in the Netherlands since 1994, decided to run for president of Rwanda in 2010 as the head of the FDU-Inkingi. However, she was taken into custody after advocating for the prosecution and punishment of those who commit crimes against the Hutu majority. In a poignant reflection on his tenure as Sri Lankas President, Gotabaya Rajapaksas recently published memoir, The Conspiracy to Oust Me from Presidency, offers a detailed glimpse into his relationship with Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith and the intricate dynamics surrounding the investigation into the Easter Sunday Suicide Attacks in 2019. [Photo: Presidential Secretariat, Sri Lanka] Rajapaksas memoir delves into the depth of his association with Cardinal Ranjith, tracing back to his tenure as Defense Secretary and highlighting their shared endeavours in advancing the welfare of the Catholic community. From spearheading the restoration of churches post-war to facilitating the establishment of educational institutions like the Benedict XVI Catholic Institute of Higher Education, Rajapaksa underscores his commitment to fostering collaboration with the Cardinal for the betterment of society. Central to Rajapaksas narrative is a pivotal conversation with Cardinal Ranjith regarding the Commission of Inquiry appointed to probe the Easter Sunday Attacks. Rajapaksa recalls seeking the Cardinals perspective on the composition of the Commission, expressing a willingness to accommodate any concerns or suggestions. Cardinal Ranjith, however, reaffirms his confidence in the Commissions impartiality and underscores the necessity of allowing it to function autonomously, free from external influence. The memoir elucidates on the nuances of Cardinal Ranjiths evolving sentiments towards the investigation, juxtaposing moments of satisfaction with concerns arising from developments such as the controversial release of Riyad Bathiudeen, a suspect linked to the attacks. Rajapaksa candidly portrays the Cardinals apprehension, citing it as a testament to the complexities and challenges inherent in navigating the aftermath of a terrorist atrocity. Furthermore, Rajapaksas memoir sheds light on his efforts to assuage the Cardinals concerns, reiterating the governments unwavering commitment to upholding the rule of law and ensuring accountability for those responsible for the attacks. Despite the complexities surrounding the investigation, Rajapaksa emphasizes the imperative of fostering communal harmony and pursuing justice through collaborative endeavours. The memoir also offers poignant anecdotes, such as Rajapaksas attendance at the inauguration ceremony of the Benedict XVI Catholic Institute of Higher Education, where he was honoured by Cardinal Ranjith for his contributions to the institutions establishment. In the video, firefighters could be seen rescuing injured people from broken building entrances while a fire consumed the roof of one residential building The Dnipropetrovsk region's governor, Serhiy Lysak, first reported that 28 people and 10 children had been injured, but he later said that rescue efforts had been completed Image Courtesy Reuters Rescue crews were searching for survivors late into the night after a Russian missile crashed into two apartment buildings in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih on Tuesday, killing three and injured at least 38. Among the injured were ten children. The Dnipropetrovsk regions governor, Serhiy Lysak, first reported that 28 people and 10 children had been injured, but he later said that rescue efforts had been completed. Advertisement Two buildings were hit, one five storeys, one nine storeys, Lysak wrote on Telegram. The number of injured is constantly rising as is the number of children injured. According to Oleksandr Vilkul, the commander of the military administration of Kryvyi Rih, the city had at least three missile impacts documented. According to him, one youngster and at least five people receiving hospital treatment were in critical condition. Searches from apartment to apartment had turned up nine bodies, and all of the fires at the scene had been contained. In the video, firefighters could be seen rescuing injured people from broken building entrances while a fire consumed the roof of one residential building. Cranes reached the upper stories of buildings alongside floodlights, windows blown out, and balconies all but ruined. The emergency services and residents who care are rescuing residents blocked in their apartments and are continuing to search for anyone who might be under the rubble, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko wrote. Advertisement Kryvyi Rih has been a frequent target of Russian attacks. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was born and raised in the city, praised rescue teams on Telegram and vowed Russia would be brought to account. Every day, our cities and villages suffer similar strikes. Every day, Ukraine loses people to Russian evil, he wrote. There can be no pause, not for a day, a week, let alone a month, in support for simply defending lives, for saving people from terror. Advertisement (With agency inputs) Slovak Prime Minister Robert Ficos closeness with Russia has been a cause of concern for critics. For the first time in his present term, this has led to protests against Ficos foreign policy, especially around the Russia-Ukraine war Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has been in office for less than six months. He has already seen multiple protests against policies relating to changes in the countrys penal code and judicial system. Now, for the first time, the demonstrations against the populist leader have moved from domestic politics to foreign policy. Advertisement Why are the Slovaks protesting? Thousands of Slovaks thronged to the countrys capital city, Bratislava, to protest against the central governments growing closeness to Russia. The organisers told local newspaper Dennik N that around 5,000 people were present for the demonstration. The podium featured a sign calling Russia a terrorist state, Reuters reported. Widely known to be a pro-Russia leader, Fico has sent his critics alarm bells ringing due to his strong criticism of the military aid that Europe is providing Ukraine. Fico has compared Ukrainians to Nazis multiple times, and has accused the European Union of hating the Russian Federation. He has even said that Ukraine needs to give up some territory to bring the war to a close. Advertisement Prior to his election, Slovakia was a staunch Ukraine supporter. Before Fico came to power, the country had also been providing Ukraine with substantial help. However, military aid to Kyiv was scrapped soon after Fico assumed office in October last year. In recent times, he has made a string of remarks questioning Ukraines sovereignty and calling for peace with Russia. Advertisement Slovakias closeness to Russia a concern Ficos government has also been pushing for Slovakia to renew cultural and political ties with Russia. Earlier this month, Slovakias Foreign Minister Juraj Blanar met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov an event that sent ripples in the region. Lubica Karvasova, a former senior government adviser on European affairs, associated with the opposition Progressive Slovakia party, told The Guardian that Slovakia is moving away from the EU in terms of values [> This pulls us into isolation from our closest European partners and allies. Advertisement She stated that the current governments foreign policy only serves the interests of Russian propaganda. A 2023 study by Globsec showed that 40 per cent of Slovaks believe Russia was primarily responsible for the war in Ukraine. Fico maintains that his governments foreign policy is balanced and sovereign. With inputs from agencies According to WFP spokesman Shaza Moghraby, enough food was transported to Gaza City in the early hours of Tuesday to feed 25,000 people. Deliveries to the north had not been made by WFP since February 20. This one proves that moving food by road is possible A truck containing humanitarian aid from the World Food Organization (WFP) moves in a location given as northern Gaza Strip, in this handout image released on March 12, 2024. Israeli Army Handout/Handout via REUTERS For the first time in three weeks, the UN sent food to northern Gaza on Tuesday via a new ground route, as international pressure mounts on Israel to permit greater access to the coastal enclave in light of an impending famine. The north of the enclave was reached by a World Food Programme (WFP) convoy via an Israeli military road that runs beside the Gaza border barrier, according to Jamie McGoldrick, the UN relief coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, who spoke to Reuters. Advertisement According to WFP spokesman Shaza Moghraby, enough food was transported to Gaza City in the early hours of Tuesday to feed 25,000 people. Deliveries to the north had not been made by WFP since February 20. This one proves that moving food by road is possible. We are hoping to scale up, we need access to be regular and consistent especially with people in northern Gaza on the brink of famine, said Moghraby. We need entry points directly to the north. The UN has warned that at least 576,000 people in Gaza one-quarter of the population are on the brink of famine. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the United States was working with Israel to increase the amount of aid by ground both through Kerem Shalom and through a new crossing, where we had the first trucks get in last night and we need to see more where that came from. Advertisement Israels military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the use of the military road by the WFP convoy. Limited aid via land has been reaching southern Gaza through the Rafah crossing from Egypt and Kerem Shalom from Israel. Life-saving relief for Palestinians in Gaza is coming in trickles if it comes at all, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday. Advertisement UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Tuesday that the UN and aid groups were working to deliver desperately needed assistance, despite ongoing fighting and Israeli bombardment, as well as insecurity, frequent border closures and access constraints that continue to impede safe and efficient aid operations. The UN had been pushing Israel for weeks to allow aid convoys - once inspected in the south - to use the military road along the Gaza border fence road, McGoldrick said last week. The plan was for trucks to cross into Gaza from the Israeli village Beeri. Advertisement The United States, Jordan and others have conducted airdrops of aid in Gaza and on Tuesday a ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid left Cyprus in a pilot project to open a sea corridor to deliver supplies. While UN officials have welcomed new aid routes, they stress there is no substitute for land access. Advertisement The war began after Hamas fighters attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel retaliated by imposing a total siege on Gaza, then launching an air and ground assault that has killed 31,000 Palestinians, health authorities in Gaza say. Cartwright is supporting the move by Indian American organisations, including the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora (FIIDS) to remove the per country seven per cent quota in issuing Green Cards every year. The US lawmaker advocated for the removal of the seven per cent country quota for issuing Green Cards which has resulted in decades of long wait for professionals from India who have moved to this country. Congressman Matt Cartwright, who represents the 8th Congressional District of Pennsylvania told PTI that the United States needs highly qualified professionals from India. There is so many highly educated people in India, and its a resource that the United States would be foolish, foolhardy not to take full advantage of the people who want to come to this country and become part of our economy and become part of our brain trust in this nation, he said. Advertisement Its so important that Indians can immigrate to the United States when theyre looking for jobs because the United States depends on high quality, highly skilled, very smart people coming from all over the world to work here. Its one of the natural advantages of the United States that we welcome people from all over the world, he told PTI. Cartwright is supporting the move by Indian American organisations, including the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora (FIIDS) to remove the per country seven per cent quota in issuing Green Cards every year. Always, the United States of America has always welcomed people of high intellect and high ethical standards and work standards to come here and invigorate our economy. Thats been part of a tradition in the United States for a couple of hundred years, and so to cut ourselves off with this arbitrary seven per cent number, thats a mistake, and thats why Im proud to be part of the effort to do away with that, he said. Advertisement With inputs from PTI. In January, the United States and over a dozen other nations ceased providing funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) following accusations by Israel that 12 of the organizations 13,000 employees in Gaza were involved in the October 7 Hamas attack The United States, which provides $300400 million to UNRWA yearly, stated that before it will consider resuming financing, it wants to see the findings of that investigation and any corrective actions taken Image Courtesy AFP Because of resistance in Congress, US officials are getting ready to temporarily stop supporting the primary U.N. agency for Palestinians, despite the Biden administrations insistence that the assistance groups humanitarian efforts are essential. In January, the United States and over a dozen other nations ceased providing funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) following accusations by Israel that 12 of the organizations 13,000 employees in Gaza were involved in the October 7 Hamas attack. Advertisement After receiving information about the allegations from Israel, UNRWA terminated certain employees and opened an inquiry into the claims by the U.N. The United States, which provides $300400 million to UNRWA yearly, stated that before it will consider resuming financing, it wants to see the findings of that investigation and any corrective actions taken. Just roughly $300,000 of the already approved cash would be given to UNRWA, even if the freeze is lifted. Congress would have to approve anything more. Even while countries like Sweden and Canada have stated they will resume their contributions, bipartisan resistance in Congress to funding UNRWA makes it doubtful that the United States will begin regular donations anytime soon. Advertisement A clause in a supplementary budget measure in the U.S. Congress, backed by the Biden administration and including military aid to Israel and Ukraine, would prevent UNRWA from receiving financing should it become law. Officials from the United States say they understand the critical role that UNRWA plays in providing relief within the heavily populated enclave that Israels attacks over the last five months have driven to the verge of hunger. Advertisement We have to plan for the fact that Congress may make that pause permanent, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday. Washington has been looking at working with humanitarian partners on the ground, such as UNICEF and the World Food Program (WFP), to continue giving aid. But officials are aware that UNRWA is hard to replace. Advertisement There are other organizations that are now providing some distribution of aid inside Gaza, but that is primarily the role that UNRWA is equipped to play that no one else is due to their long standing work and their networks of distribution and their history inside Gaza, Miller said. A few Senate Democrats, including Senator Chris Van Hollen, along with some progressive House members, have opposed an indefinite ban on funding to UNRWA. Advertisement But any new funding would need the support of at least some Republicans, who hold a majority in the House of Representatives. Many have expressed their opposition to UNRWA. UNRWA is a front, plain and simple, Republican lawmaker Brian Mast, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement. Advertisement It masquerades as a relief organization while building the infrastructure to support Hamas It is literally funneling American tax dollars to terrorism, Mast said. UNRWA was established in 1949 by a U.N. General Assembly resolution, after the war that followed Israels founding, when 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes. Advertisement Today it directly employs 30,000 Palestinians, serving the civic and humanitarian needs of 5.9 million descendants of those refugees, in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and in vast camps in neighboring Arab countries. In Gaza, UNRWA runs the enclaves schools, its primary healthcare clinics and other social services, and distributes humanitarian aid. Advertisement William Deere, director of UNRWAs Washington Representative Office, told Reuters that U.S. support accounts for one-third of UNRWAs budget. Thats going to be very hard to overcome, he said. Please remember that UNRWA is more than Gaza. Its health care and education and social services. Its East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon. Advertisement Fighters from Hamas, which administers Gaza, killed 1,200 people in the Oct. 7 attack and took 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies, an assault that sparked one of the bloodiest wars in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israels retaliatory military campaign on the densely populated enclave has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza authorities, while infrastructure has been obliterated and hundreds of thousands are now close to famine. Advertisement (With agency inputs) Tobgays visit to India from March 14 to 18 will be announced by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which also stated that he will meet with President Droupadi Murmu and have extensive discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He is also expected to visit Mumbai Tobgay's visit to India occurred in the context of China and Bhutan seeking a swift settlement to their long-running border dispute, which may have an impact on India's security interests Image Courtesy Reuters Tshering Tobgay, the prime minister of Bhutan, will go to India for the first time since taking up the position in January. He will be there for five days starting on Thursday. Tobgays visit to India from March 14 to 18 will be announced by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which also stated that he will meet with President Droupadi Murmu and have extensive discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He is also expected to visit Mumbai. Advertisement The visit of the prime minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan, the MEA said in a statement. A high-level team led by the ministers of industry and business, energy, and international and external trade for Bhutan will accompany Tobgay. India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding at all levels, the MEA said. During the visit, the prime minister of Bhutan will call on President Droupadi Murmu and hold bilateral talks with the prime minister of India, it said. The prime minister of Bhutan will have a meeting with receive a call from minister of external affairs S Jaishankar. In January, the first high-level visit from New Delhi to Bhutan following the formation of the new government under Tobgay was made by Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra, who spent three days in the country. Advertisement Tobgays visit to India occurred in the context of China and Bhutan seeking a swift settlement to their long-running border dispute, which may have an impact on Indias security interests. Five months ago, Tandi Dorji, the former foreign minister of Bhutan, met in Beijing with Wang Yi, the foreign minister of China. Advertisement According to a Chinese readout on the meeting, Bhutan is prepared to cooperate with China in order to expedite the political process of establishing diplomatic relations and to uphold the one-China principle. Given the potential impact on New Delhis security interests, particularly in the Doklam triangular region, New Delhi has been closely monitoring the negotiations between China and Bhutan regarding their boundary dispute. Advertisement China and Bhutan decided to move quickly to implement a three-step roadmap to resolve their festering boundary dispute at the same time in August of last year. Bhutan and China signed the three-step roadmap agreement in October 2021 in an effort to speed up talks to settle their boundary issue. The agreement was signed four years after China attempted to build a road across territory that Bhutan claimed was its own, resulting in a 73-day standoff between the Chinese and Indian forces at the Doklam tripoint. Advertisement There were even concerns about a wider confrontation between the two neighbors following the 2017 standoff between China and India on the Doklam plateau. India backed Bhutans claim to the territory, which it had claimed. On Tuesday, Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Skill Development, Entrepreneurship, and Jal Shakti, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, marked the inauguration of Indias pioneering FutureLABS centre at C-DAC Thiruvananthapuram. Over 100 students and industry partners attended as the Minister highlighted the centres opportunities. Catalyzing Next-Generation Chip Design Named Centre for Semiconductor Chips & Systems for Strategic Electronics, this centre plays a vital role in fostering an ecosystem for advanced chip design, manufacturing, and research. Collaborations and Partnerships During the inauguration, several collaborations were announced, including a partnership between C-DAC (T) and the Ministry of Railways for advancing electric locomotive technologies. An MoU was also signed between C-DAC(T) and Tata Power for developing and deploying microgrid technologies. Moreover, the technology transfer of an electric vehicle wireless charger to BelRise Industries Limited was announced. Unveiling Indigenous Technological Solutions Two indigenously developed technologies were launched: Movable Electric Vehicle Charger: Providing roadside assistance to bridge charging infrastructure gaps, ensuring sufficient charge to EVs until reaching the nearest charging point. Electric Vehicle DC-DC Converter: Facilitating the conversion of high-voltage power into custom voltage suitable for EVs, featuring easy installation, mounting, and a reliable liquid-cooled system adaptable to various environmental conditions. Ministers Vision for Innovation and Collaboration Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar emphasized the significance of collaborative efforts between government, industry, academia, students, and startups. He highlighted the potential of digitization, AI, semiconductors, and future electronics for Indian startups and students. He envisioned FutureLABS as pivotal in making Thiruvananthapuram, Indias next innovation hub. Industry Endorsement Industry partners present expressed their support for collaborations with C-DAC and praised Minister Chandrasekhars leadership. They highlighted the transformative impact of these initiatives on technology innovation in Kerala and beyond. Shri Atul Deshmukh, VP eMobility, Kalyani Powertrain Ltd, emphasized the importance of Minister Chandrasekhars support for their endeavors and looked forward to future partnerships. Shri Manoj Gupta, CEO, TP Renewable Microgrid Ltd, hailed the historic collaboration between Tata Power and CDAC, highlighting its potential to empower rural communities through microgrid technology. Ms. Meenakshi Singh, Director, JMV LPS Ltd, lauded the Ministers commitment to Digital India and entrepreneurship, citing significant milestones achieved through collaborations with CDAC and Indian Railways. At the event, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar stated, A Breeze Airways airplane is parked at Bradley International Airport on May 16, 2023. Five of Connecticut's Congress members have sent a letter to Breeze CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, along with four other Congress members who represent Connecticut, have sent a letter to Breeze Airways CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. H John Voorhees III/Hearst Connecticut Media Senator Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, along with four other Congress members who represent Connecticut, have sent a letter to Breeze Airways CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Connecticut, along with four other Congress members who represent Connecticut, have sent a letter to Breeze Airways CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Cat Salazar Digital Press Secret U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut, along with four other Congress members who represent Connecticut, have sent a letter to Breeze Airways CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Ned Gerard/Hearst Connecticut Media U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-Connecticut, along with four other Congress members who represent Connecticut, have sent a letter to Breeze Airways CEO David Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Jim Michaud/Journal Inquirer David Neeleman, founder and CEO of Breeze Airways, stands in a terminal at Bradley International Airport, in Windsor Locks, Conn., on May 16, 2023. Five of the Congress members who represent Connecticut have sent a letter to Neeleman, telling him that the airline should not interfere with flight attendants' efforts to potentially form a union. Arnold Gold/Hearst Connecticut Media Several members of Connecticuts Congressional delegation have directed Breeze Airways, a startup airline that has established a significant presence at Bradley International Airport in the past couple of years, to not meddle in its flight attendants efforts to potentially unionize. Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, along with Reps. Joe Courtney, Rosa DeLauro and John Larson outlined their support for the flight attendants in a letter sent last week to Breeze CEO David Neeleman. The letter was sent ahead of voting by Breezes approximately 600 flight attendants, including about 100 based at Bradley, on whether to form a union with the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO (AFA). We urge you not to interfere with these organizing efforts, the five Congress members, who are all Democrats, said in the letter. We are excited that Breeze is continuing to offer additional flights from Bradley International Airport. As you continue to expand your operations and presence in Connecticut, it is important that the workforce powering that expansion remains free to decide whether they would like to unionize, free from any employer interference. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Breeze officials said in a written statement that the company, fully respects the right of our flight attendants to decide whether they want to be represented by a labor union and we would never interfere with that decision. However, the company strongly believes that our flight attendants are better served by maintaining their direct relationship with Breezes senior leaders, as opposed to being represented by an outside third party. The working conditions at the Salt Lake City-headquartered Breeze have faced greater scrutiny since Breeze flight attendants announced in early January a campaign to form a union with AFA. The flight attendants issues with Breeze include, constantly changing work rules, drastically substandard pay for time on the job, hotel accommodations, insufficient work hours and disrespectful treatment from management, according to a news release issued by AFA on Jan. 22 that expressed its support for the flight attendants organizing efforts. Breeze officials offered a different account of relations between flight attendants and management. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The airline's senior leaders and its flight attendants continue to collaborate on a number of significant enhancements benefiting the flight attendant group, including several pay increases and other improvements to work rules, the company added in its statement. These important advancements have been put in place in record time, underscoring the effectiveness of our direct relationship, which is only getting stronger by the day. A representation election, which will decide whether the flight attendants will join AFA, is moving ahead, according to AFA officials. It will be conducted by the National Mediation Board, with ballots mailed on March 12, followed by a vote count on May 7. Breeze flight attendants organized faster than almost any campaign Ive ever seen. The solidarity and recognition of their worth is inspiring. We cant wait to make the union theyve built together official with this election, AFA International President Sara Nelson said in a statement, in the AFA news release. Breeze flight attendants just showed management and the world that they are united behind a common purpose and ready to do whats necessary to secure dignity and voice at work. AFA already represents flight attendants at Avelo Airlines, which established a hub at Tweed New Haven airport in 2021. Avelos flight attendants voted to join AFA in 2022, and, we are currently working on negotiating a first contract, an AFA spokesperson said in an email. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Connecticut Congress members letter noted that, a number of recent high-profile contract negotiations have thrust labor unions into the public eye and given greater visibility of them than in years past. As more workers explore whether or not joining a union is right for them, executives like you have an important role to play in showing these workers that their rights will be respected by those in positions of authority, the Congress members added in their letter to Neeleman. Your non-interference will give workers the confidence they need to make the decision that is best for them and their families. Messages left for spokespersons for Connecticuts two other U.S. representatives, Jahana Hayes and Jim Himes, that inquired why they did not sign the letter were not immediately returned on Tuesday. The Connecticut Airport Authority, which owns and operates Bradley, referred an inquiry to Breeze. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As Breezes flight attendants vote on whether to join AFA, Breeze continues to solidify its position as the carrier with the most routes serving the Windsor Locks-based Bradley. Since its launch in 2021 by Neeleman, a serial aviation entrepreneur whose previous startups include JetBlue, Breeze has established about 20 routes that connect Bradley to cities along the east coast, in the Midwest and as far west as California. On Monday, Minister of Communications Ashwini Vaishnaw launched the Curtain Raiser of World Telecom Standardization Assembly Delhi 2024 (WTSA 2024) and India Mobile Congress (IMC 2024), marking a significant milestone for the telecom industry. Spectrum Regulatory Sandbox and Wireless Test Zones The government introduced guidelines for the Spectrum Regulatory Sandbox (SRS) or Wireless Test Zones (WiTe Zones), aimed at fostering innovation, enhancing ease of doing business, and promoting indigenous telecom manufacturing. WiTe Zones, categorized into urban and remote areas, offer a simplified regulatory framework to encourage Research and Development (R&D) activities and drive technological advancements across various frequency bands. Abolition of Wireless Operating License The requirement for Wireless Operating License (WoL) for Access Services authorization in various licenses was abolished in November 2016. Additionally, as of November 15, 2022, the need for WoL for Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs) operating under Commercial VSAT CUG license has been eliminated. In further telecom reforms, the requirement of WoL for licensees under section 4 of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, has been entirely abolished. This simplifies the licensing process, reduces compliance burden on Service Providers, and aligns with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) initiatives to promote innovation and ease of doing business. MoU with Ericsson for 5G Education An MoU was signed between the Department of Telecommunications and Ericsson to offer accredited courses on 5G for students in DoTs 100 5G use case labs. This project aims to enhance capacity building and skill development in the labs, enabling institutes to mentor students and faculties in creating innovative 5G products and use cases. The collaboration includes the Ericsson Educate program tailored for telecommunication subjects, supplementing technical studies with practical knowledge. The program, designed for the 5G use case labs, offers a three-month accredited course covering key technologies such as Automation, Telecommunications, AI, IoT, 5G, and Machine Learning, intending to train around 10,000 students in the next two years. Scaling Up IMC 2024 Telecom Secretary Dr. Neeraj Mittal emphasized universal participation for IMC 2024s success, aiming to upscale the event from Asias largest forum to a global platform. He highlighted the importance of engaging students and educational institutions effectively and promoting gender diversity in technology. International Collaboration and Recognition ITU Director of Telecom Standardization Bureau, Seizo ONOE, praised Indias perspective and innovation in digital inclusion, emphasizing collaboration in AI and digital technologies. Dr. Monisha Ghosh, Professor at the University of Notre Dame, underscored Indias leadership in technology gatherings and called for collaborative efforts between the US and India in telecom initiatives and spectrum management. Future Prospects WTSA 2024 WTSA 2024 is expected to attract over two thousand technology developers, industry leaders, policymakers, and more, shaping global agendas in emerging technologies. Hosting IMC 2024 concurrently will provide Indian technology companies with a global platform to showcase innovations and contribute to a robust standardization ecosystem. Expanding Horizons at IMC 2024 IMC 2024, Asias largest technology forum, will focus on Artificial Intelligence, Quantum technology, Circular Economy, and more. The event will provide a platform for startups through initiatives like Aspire, facilitating investor meetings and funding opportunities. WTSA 2024 Event The WTSA, a flagship event of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), is scheduled from 15-24 October 2024, along with IMC 2024, which will run from 15-19 October 2024 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. Speaking at the event, Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw remarked, Today, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) advised Paytm FASTag users to obtain a new FASTag from a different bank before March 15 for hassle-free travel and to avoid problems at toll plazas, as stated in its statement. The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways suggests this switch to prevent fines or double charges while traveling on national highways. NHAIs advice aligns with the Reserve Bank of Indias rules on Paytm Payments Bank. From March 15, 2024, Paytm FASTag users wont be able to recharge or add money. However, they can still use their existing balance for toll payments after that date. NHAI recommends Paytm FASTag users to contact their respective banks for any questions or assistance. They can also check the FAQs on the Indian Highways Management Company Limited (IHMCL) website, as per MoRTH. NHAI urges all Paytm FASTag users to act now for smooth travel on National Highways. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) previously recommended customers and merchants of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) to transfer their accounts to other banks by March 15, allowing PPBL customers to withdraw or utilize their balances without any limitations beyond that date. Earlier this month, Paytm concluded its agreements with Paytm Payments Bank, transferring its nodal account to Axis Bank to ensure the continuity of services such as QR codes, Soundbox, and Card machines beyond March 15, 2024, in compliance with a directive from the central bank issued on January 31. MSI today announced the launch of its latest AI-powered laptop series and its debut gaming handheld in India, following its showcase at CES 2024. The lineup introduces Intel Core Ultra processors with integrated Neural Processing Units (NPU) and extends the utilization of 14th Gen HX-series processors alongside RTX 40 series graphics. Titan 18 HX/ Raider 18 HX / Stealth 18 AI Studio Gaming Laptops The Titan 18 HX and Raider 18 HX feature Intels 14th Gen Core i9 processors and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 Series graphics, while the Stealth 18 AI Studio is powered by Intel Core Ultra processors. These laptops boast an 18-inch display, including options like the worlds first 18-inch 4K 120Hz mini LED display. Each model showcases distinctive features such as the Titan 18 HXs Seamless RGB Haptic Touchpad and revamped Cherry Switch Mechanical Keyboard. The Raider 18 HX introduces the iconic matrix light bar and a new 3D stand for enhanced cooling airflow. Crafted with a magnesium-aluminum alloy, the Titan 18 HX and Stealth 18 AI Studio ensure durability and sleek aesthetics, with the Stealth 18 AI Studio being the lightest 18-inch gaming laptop available. Quick specifications: MSI Titan 18 HX laptop Quick specifications: MSI Raider 18 HX laptop Quick specifications: MSI Stealth 18 laptop MSI Claw gaming handheld device Claw marks MSIs debut into the handheld gaming realm, powered by Meteor Lake technology and boasting a 7-inch FHD 120 Hz display. Offering smooth gameplay with Intel XeSS technology, Claw ensures optimal gaming performance with efficient cooling via MSI Cooler Boost Hyperflow thermal technology. Its 53Whr battery provides up to 2 hours of gameplay under full workload conditions, complemented by a user-friendly UI design with MSI Center M and support for MSI APP Player, granting access to both Windows and Android games. Quick specifications: MSI Claw High-power gaming laptops: Vector HX, Crosshair HX, and Pulse AI These AI laptops deliver full GPU power for exceptional gaming experiences. Notably, the Vector 17 HX, with MSI Overboost technology, offers a total power output of 250W for outstanding gaming performance. The Crosshair HX and Pulse AI series feature innovative thermal designs, optimizing airflow with 6 exhaust and 2 intake ports for peak performance. Additionally, these models showcase MSIs cutting-edge design with 24-zone RGB keyboard backlighting. The Crosshair HX boasts a futuristic spacecraft pattern, while the Pulse AI flaunts an electromagnetic pulse pattern, demonstrating innovative laptop design. Quick specifications: Vector HX Quick specifications: Crosshair HX Quick specifications: Pulse AI Mainstream gaming laptops: Sword HX, Cyborg, and Thin 15 models The Sword 16/17 HX, in space grey with PCR materials, delivers a gaming experience with a 24-zone RGB backlit keyboard. The Cyborg 15 AI, equipped with the latest Intel Core Ultra processor, features a futuristic translucent chassis blending style and performance. The Thin 15, in cosmos grey, offers a sleek gaming solution with portability and a translucent WASD blue backlit keyboard. MSI also introduces the Cyborg 14, a 14-inch option combining style and functionality for broader preferences. Quick specifications: Sword HX Quick specifications: Cyborg Quick specifications: Thin 15 Prestige 16 AI/ Prestige 14 AI/ Prestige 13 AI The Prestige AI series, powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra processors, provides exceptional performance in a lightweight build. Leading the pack is the ultralight Prestige 16 AI, weighing just 1.5kg with a robust 99.9WHr battery, offering up to 19 hours of battery life. The Prestige 14 AI features the largest battery (90Whrs) in its class for extended productivity. Both support up to PD 3.1 140W Charging for added convenience. Certified by Intel Evo and Nvidia Studio, these laptops combine high performance with portability, equipped with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 40 series Laptop GPU, ideal for creative applications. The Prestige 13 AI Evo, weighing only 990g, is equipped with a 75WHrs battery, up to 50% more capacity compared to similar laptops. Featuring 16:10 OLED displays with 100% DCI-P3 Color gamut coverage, both the Prestige 16 AI and Prestige 13 AI Evo offer visual excellence. MSI Prestige 16 AI Studio laptop specifications: MSI Prestige 14 AI Studio laptop specifications: MSI Prestige 13 AI Evo laptop specifications: Content Creation Series The all-new Content Creation Series showcases the Creator Z17 HX Studio, Creator 16 AI Studio, Creator M14, and Creator M16 HX laptops. The Creator Z17 HX Studio features a vapor chamber cooler for top-notch performance. The Creator 16 AI Studio offers a 16:10 OLED display and is lightweight for on-the-go use. Additionally, the lineup expands with the Creator M14 and Creator M16 HX laptops, catering to diverse content creation needs. MSI Creator Z17 HX Studio laptop specifications: MSI Creator 16 AI Studio laptop specifications: MSI Creator M16 HX laptop specifications: MSI Creator M14 laptop specifications: Pricing and availability The all-new full range of MSI laptops will be available in the market starting at Rs. 68,990 through MSI retailers, both online and offline, including e-commerce platforms. Commenting on the launch, Bruce Lin, Regional Marketing Manager, MSI, said: New Haven City Hall Helen Bennett / Hearst Connecticut Media NEW HAVEN A city employee reported what she referred to as green card marriages to a federal immigration agent for the better part of last year, after having created additional barriers for applicants, according to a 41-page report by independent investigators the city recently released. Patricia Clark, the registrar of the Office of Vital Statistics which issues and maintains marriage, birth and death certificates reported 93 non-citizen marriages that she suspected of marriage fraud in 2023 to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Eighty percent of the applicants were from India, according to the report. The report reveals the extent of her actions and indicates that the issue was not whether the marriages were suspicious, but that Clark acted beyond her jurisdiction and without approval. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The evidence supports that many of the applicants coming to New Haven seeking marriage licenses were raising red flags, indicating a larger operation involving individuals and officiants, who were possibly connecting the couples for immigration purposes, the report says. According to statements, the likely reason that applicants were coming to Connecticut was that there is no waiting period, and couples can be married on the same day that they apply for the license. The report says Clark created her own marriage fraud screening process by requiring unnecessary documentation of applicants. She would scan copies of peoples identifications, birth certificates, social security cards and other personal documents like bank records, maintaining physical folders and sharing the records with federal immigration, the report says. The report shows various emails to a USCIS officer, Ellis OBriant, where Clark wrote Enjoy! and Happy hunting!" Advertisement Article continues below this ad Clark was placed on paid administrative leave on Nov. 30, 2023, pending the investigation, and she retired on Feb. 26, the same day she was supposed to have a hearing before city officials. Because of that, she will not face consequences and will get a monthly pension of nearly $1,900 beginning in 2039 when she turns 65, officials said. Clark did not return requests for comment. When the city learned of Clarks actions, officials said they notified the impacted people with a letter that included information about legal resources. Under U.S. immigration law, marriage is one pathway to citizenship. A person must prove they are not entering the marriage with the purpose of evading immigration law by providing evidence like shared expenses, common credit, photographs and travel together, New Haven immigration attorney Glenn Formica has said. He said in his experience, the marriage license is what federal immigration authorities care about the least. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Clarks justification was that she believed she was expected to work independently, with little oversight, the report says. She said she was instructed by the state to report to federal immigration authorities, but Mayor Justin Elicker said Friday that subsequent communication from the state registrar told Clark that she should not share that kind of information with the federal government, and that her job was to process marriage licenses, not to report fraud. Assistant registrars interviewed for the investigation said in the report they noticed an influx of Indian men in their thirties from out of state requesting marriage licenses to marry New Haven residents, many who were Black and Latino women in their early 20s, sometimes coming in groups. The report says that two officiants seem to be connected to the marriages. An Indian man tried to apply twice on the same day with two different women, according to a June 2023 email from Clark to OBriant, the report said. She noted that those types of marriages happen weekly. The next month, she said one man tried to get married two days in a row with two different women, according to the report. Clark said couples appeared not to know each other or each others names and would have difficulty filling out the required paperwork, according to the report. She claimed a handler would come in with the couples who had arranged the marriages. When asked to elaborate, she could not, and the report said many of her responses were not credible. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Clarks union representative did not respond to a request for comment Monday. Additionally, Clark changed language on the citys website to say birth certificates were required for marriage license applications, the report stated. Birth certificates are only required for marriage licenses if the applicants do not provide a government-issued photo ID such as a drivers license or passport, according to a statement from state Department of Public Health spokesperson Chris Boyle. In that case, the applicants must provide two forms of identification, such as a birth certificate and Social Security card, Boyle has said. One assistant registrar interviewed for the investigation said Clark turned away applicants who had provided all the documentation Clark required, the report stated. The person also said Clark would sometimes not accept a birth certificate, saying it looked fake, the report stated. The assistant registrar described Clark yelling at applicants and referring to them as idiots in front of the staff, according to the report. Clark also made marriage applicants come to the office at the same time, even though that is not a state requirement, the report said. Multiple times this affected applicants who were terminally ill: In one case, an applicant died before the couple could get married, according to an assistant registrar quoted in the report. Even though staff was willing to go to the hospital and fulfill the dying wish, the employee said, Clark denied it, the report said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Clark also made it more difficult for people, especially Latinos and newly released inmates, to obtain Elm City ID cards, a program meant to help immigrants and others access city services, the report stated. The investigation also found that Clark shortened the service hours for both Elm City ID and marriage applicants without approval, the report stated. She also began charging a search fee for records, the report says. Assistant registrars described a hostile work environment created by Clark, according to the report. City officials said Clark acted unilaterally and does not reflect the values of the department or the city. Advertisement Article continues below this ad From left to right: Roshni Yousef, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz and state Rep Dominique Johnson at the first Gender Equity ImpACT Awards in Honor of Women's History Month. March 11, 2024 The city of Norwalk, contributed by Norwalk city and state leaders gathered to recognize state Rep Dominique Johnson, D-Norwalk, and Roshni Yousef, a senior at Brien McMahon High School, as the citys first recipients of Gender Equity ImpACT Awards. March 11, 2024 The city of Norwalk, contributed by First lady of Norwalk, Lucia Rilling, presenting Roshni Yousef with the first Rising Star ImpACT award. March 11, 2024 The city of Norwalk, contributed by State Rep. Dominique Johnson, D-Norwalk, receiving the Adult ImpACT Award at the first Gender Equity ImpACT Awards in Norwalk. March 11, 2024. The city of Norwalk, contributed by NORWALK For the first time ever, the city of Norwalk hosted the Gender Equity ImpACT Awards, honoring both present and future leaders for gender equity in Connecticut. We thought it would be really important to recognize Womens History Month and International Womens Day, which is March 8, so last year we started working toward that. And tonight is the fruition of that effort, said Claudia Conner, chair of Norwalks Commission on the Status of Women during the first-annual Gender Equity ImpACT Awards ceremony Monday night at the South Norwalk Library. State Rep. Dominique Johnson, D-Norwalk, and Roshni Yousef, a senior at Brien McMahon High School, were the citys first recipients of the Adult ImpACT award and Rising Star ImpACT award, respectively. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We stand on those womens shoulders today and we keep them in mind as we are saying thank you to two stellar women in Norwalk, said Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz. Johnson and Yousef were nominated and selected based on their commitment to advocating and promoting gender equity in Norwalk. Nominated by Barbara Wood, Brien McMahon High Schools principal, Yousef is a member of the Center for Youth Leadership and has testified at the city and state level. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I was most impressed with the work that she has done around issues that relate to women, not just in Brien McMahon, actually not just in Norwalk but across the state, Wood said. Brien McMahon, the city of Norwalk, and many people in this world are better because of Roshni and will be better because of what I know she is going to do in the future, Wood added. Yousef and her peers in the Center for Youth Leadership have advocated for several gender equity issues, including a bill that required tampon dispensers in all CT schools. I think its really important that student voices are heard directly from students, especially in coming up with bills and working with the legislature because we have a unique experience coming from a disenfranchised group of people for the most part, Yousef said. The experiences of students are very important, especially, for example, the committee on children who might not have the perspective of a student in modern times and knowing what we go through. Advertisement Article continues below this ad After serving as a member of the Norwalk Common Council, Johnson was elected to represent Norwalk and Westport in the 143rd House District in 2022. She is the first gender queer legislator in Connecticut and a trailblazer for gender equity in the state, said Lucia Rilling, the first lady of the city of Norwalk. Johnson, who uses she and they pronouns, was nominated for the award by state Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, who said he immediately thought of Johnson when he heard about the award. When she comes to the legislature, she brings a lot of authority with her, and she comes with the experience and knowledge that you just cant get anyplace else, Duff said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad What struck me the most about Dominique is her voice, her thinking, and her ability to lead by her example to be able to stand up for those who dont necessarily have a voice, said state Rep. Lucy Dathan, D-New Canaan. Overwhelmed, Johnson thanked Duff and Dathan for being strong allies. Everything we do is because we want to make sure the next generation only has it a little better than us but knows that they are loved, Johnson said. So that is why I want to do what I do because I feel like people before me, people I never met demonstrated that they loved me. So lets just keep that going. President Joe Biden visits his Wisconsin election campaign office Wednesday, March 13, 2024, in Milwaukee. Jacquelyn Martin/AP President Joe Biden visits his Wisconsin election campaign office Wednesday, March 13, 2024, in Milwaukee. Jacquelyn Martin/AP President Joe Biden speaks about jobs at the Pieper-Hillside Boys & Girls Club, Wednesday, March 13, 2024, in Milwaukee. Jacquelyn Martin/AP President Joe Biden speaks at the Pieper-Hillside Boys & Girls Club Wednesday, March 13, 2024, in Milwaukee. Morry Gash/AP President Joe Biden talks with, from left, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley and Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., as he arrives in Milwaukee, Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at the Milwaukee International Airport Air National Guard Base. Jacquelyn Martin/AP MILWAUKEE (AP) President Joe Biden is getting to be a familiar face around the Great Lakes and with a November rematch against Donald Trump looming, that's no accident. He started a two-day swing through Wisconsin and Michigan in Milwaukee on Wednesday as he tried to shore up a Democratic blue wall and build momentum for his reelection campaign after a fiery State of the Union address last week. Aiming to show voters that his administration has improved their lives, Biden used the stop to announce $3.3 billion for infrastructure projects in disadvantaged communities, including $36 million to reconnect parts of Milwaukee's 6th Street, which had been divided by highway construction in the 1960s. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Were rebuilding the roads, were filling in the cracks in the sidewalk, were creating spaces to live and work and play safely, and to breathe clean air, and to shop at a nearby grocery stocked with fresh and healthy food, he said. Youve lived and felt decisions made decades ago," Biden said. "Today, today, were making decisions to transform your lives for decades to come. The money comes from the bipartisan infrastructure law that Biden signed in the first year of his presidency. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Biden told voters that Donald Trump, his Republican predecessor and likely opponent in this year's election, had promised infrastructure improvements but never delivered. He didnt get a single thing done," Biden said. "Not one. Biden and Trump clinched their parties' nominations on Tuesday after decisive victories in the primaries, setting up what promises to be a grinding rematch between the two men. Much of that battle will be fought in Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as Pennsylvania, which was Biden's first stop after his State of the Union. They're collectively known as a blue wall" because of their historic support for Democrats. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Trump flipped all three to win the White House in 2016, but Biden took them back four years ago and likely needs to hold them if he's going to secure a second term. Biden also plans to travel to North Carolina and other battleground states in the coming weeks. He has been overseeing openings of field offices as his campaign hires and trains organizers and begins assembling volunteers. That's meant as a show of political organizing strength an area where the president has so far outpaced Trump, who has been occupied for months with a competitive primary and four ongoing criminal cases in which he faces 91 felony counts. Biden's reelection campaign hopes on-the-ground organization can neutralize the president's low approval ratings and polling showing that a majority of voters even a majority of Democrats don't want him to seek reelection. Advertisement Article continues below this ad This particular president is a really impressive retail politician. He doesnt just do the rally and leave, said Jim Paine, the mayor of Superior, Wisconsin, a port city on the border with Minnesota. Biden has been there twice, including in January to promote a bridge built as part of the infrastructure law. He really puts time in with people, listens to individual stories, he talks about his own life one-on-one, Paine said. The $3.3 billion in grants announced on Wednesday covers 132 total projects, including in Atlanta; Los Angeles and Philadelphia as well as Birmingham, Alabama; Syracuse, New York; and Toledo, Ohio. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said that some of the projects are relatively modest and can be completed in short order, while others are massive and ambitious undertakings that will take many years. Biden visited the opening of his campaign headquarters in Milwaukee, where nearly 40% of residents are Black, rather than Madison, the state capital that typically serves as the fulcrum for Democratic campaigns. Advertisement Article continues below this ad He said volunteers and staff in places like Milwaukee would help ensure his victory over Trump. This is how we are going to win again," he said. A lot of you helped me in 2020, and we made sure he was a loser and is a loser and were going to make sure that happens again, right? Its Bidens ninth visit to Wisconsin as president and his fifth to Milwaukee, where Republicans are holding their national convention this summer. Chris LaCivita, an adviser to Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson 's successful reelection campaign in 2022, is also a top Trump campaign aide another signal that the state is a top GOP priority. On Thursday, the president heads to Saginaw, north of Detroit, which has high concentrations of Black and union-affiliated voters. It was once reliably Democratic, but swung to Trump in 2016 and only narrowly backed Biden four years ago. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Biden and top advisers, both from the campaign and the White House, have made frequent trips to Michigan recently amid criticism of his administration's handling of the war in Gaza, visiting places like Dearborn, a Detroit suburb with the nation's highest concentration of Arab Americans. His challenge was demonstrated in Michigan's Democratic presidential primary last month, when activists promoted an uncommitted movement that garnered about 13% of the vote. Thursday's visit won't take him to Dearborn, but will instead help Biden connect with key constituencies in other parts the state. The campaign promises to open more than 15 Michigan field offices, complementing the 44 it and the state Democratic Party have in Wisconsin. Early polls have shown Biden faring better against Trump in Wisconsin than Michigan. Richard Czuba, a longtime Michigan pollster, said far more potentially decisive in November than supporters of the uncommitted movement during the Democratic primary are many double-unfavorable" voters. He described those as state residents who plan to vote in November but dont like either Trump or Biden. Advertisement Article continues below this ad If they are persuaded to vote for Joe Biden, Joe Biden will win the state of Michigan, Czuba said. But, for Donald Trump, I think its an easier assignment to make sure that those double-unfavorables get divided. One way Biden can win over such voters might be to make the race about issues like abortion rights, rather than himself, Czuba said. He noted that the president's criticism of a suggestion by Trump that hed allow Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" to some NATO allies might resonate with Michigans large Polish-American population as well as immigrants from the Baltic nations. Bidens campaign moved quickly to highlight those comments in a three-week, six-figure digital ad campaign that targeted roughly 900,000 Baltic Americans in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Still, that may not be enough for some voters in Michigan, where apathy about the Trump-Biden rematch is palpable. Said Saginaw resident Jeffrey Bulls: I probably will be skipping that top spot on the ballot." Advertisement Article continues below this ad ___ A cannabis flower Fernando Vergara / Associated Press State Rep. Mike D'Agonstino, D-Hamden, co-chairman of the legislative General Law Committee, left, and Rep. David Rutigliano, R-Trumbull, a top Republican on the panel. Ken Dixon/Hearst Connecticut Media HARTFORD Connecticut hemp farmers would be allowed to partner with smaller adult-use cannabis cultivators under a wide-ranging update to the state's 14-month-old retail marijuana market overwhelmingly approved Tuesday morning in a key legislative committee. The amended bill, passed in a bipartisan vote of the General Law Committee, would limit the sale of beverages laced with THC - the active psycho-active ingredient in cannabis - to package stores only; allow the attorney general and local law enforcement to penalize and close stores that illegally sell THC-based products; and require the disclosure of mold and yeast levels in their cannabis products. The legislation, which next heads to the House floor, was the result of negotiations among lawmakers, Attorney General William Tong and the Department of Consumer Protection, which administrates the medical and adult-use cannabis markets. Rep. Mike D'Agostino, D-Hamden, who in recent years has been the chief proponent of adult-use cannabis, said the bill isn't entirely finished, because percentages of THC throughout the legislation are likely to change before it is debated on the House floor. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Acknowledging the state's problem with an adequate supply of dried cannabis flowers issue, the bill would allow people with grow licenses to step down to smaller, less-expensive micro-cultivation projects and partner with existing hemp farmers, to use that existing infrastructure. Areas where the failed war on drugs affected neighborhoods designated for cannabis business - census tracts called disproportionately impacted areas - would be expanded to other areas of a city or town, subject to local zoning approval, to allow for space to grow cannabis. Last year, state hemp farmers hoped to be able to join the adult-use cannabis market, but the legislation failed. State Sen. Christine Cohen, D-Guilford, recalled the first legislative approval of hemp farming back in 2019. "It's been really difficult for them to make it work, particularly since the legalization of recreational marijuana," she said of state hemp farmers, whose product has the compound CBD, which is sold for various chemical properties and health benefits. While that section of the legislation has been in the bill most of the session, other parts of the bill are new, and are aimed at problems that have developed as the nascent adult-use market has grown , D'Agostino and other members of the committee agreed. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "One thing we know we've failed at in the last few years is enforcement," D'Agostino said in the Legislative Office Building. "We intentionally left enforcement of the unregulated market to criminal laws and local police departments, and that's just not working. It's certainly not a slight at our local PDs. They've certainly got plenty to do. It's hard for them to go into a store and know whether something hits a ratio, or contains a certain amount, or where it came from." The bill contains two new civil enforcement procedures for the attorney general and local police. If found to be selling THC-infused beverages outside liquor stores, heavy civil fines could result, with some of the penalty money returning to local municipalities. "If a town has a vape shop within its borders, their health department goes in and see products that should be in our regulated stores, they can go down and shut down that store," D'Agostino said. Another major change would require THC beverages to be sold with excise taxes only through package stores with liquor permits, for those over 21 years of age. "Right now the bill says up to two-and-a-half percent THC per container," D'Agostino said while highlighting the legislation on the committee. "Only sold at liquor stores, not sold at restaurants, not sold at convenience stores, not sold anywhere else." Hemp products, with very low amounts of THC, that are not included in the regulated cannabis market, would also be subject to new age restrictions and testing requirements. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "I believe that this bill represents the best of this committee," said Rep. David Rutigliano of Trumbull, a top Republican on the panel. "Everybody's ideas have been put forth and seriously considered." State Rep. Melissa Osborne, D-Simsbury, a member of the committee, said that in the drafting of the bill, she was approached by residents focused on mold and yeast contamination in adult-use cannabis. "We're not quite sure we know where we're going with respect to the specifics of how we're going to disclose mold levels, (if it's) going to be statutory or regulatory, but that's an ongoing conversation as we really tease it out and really drill down into where this properly be," Osborne said. "On enforcement, we're limited to what tools are available," said Sen. John Kissel, R-Enfield. "If I'm a beat cop or I work for the DCP (Department of Consumer Protection), I don't know if I have the tools to whip it out and open a bag of whatever they're selling to either confiscate it or let it go." He asked D'Agostino how he sees the cannabis landscape evolving. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Officers had cordoned off the station after evacuating all employees and passengers, who crowded in the hundreds outside while police tried to reason with the hostage-taker US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L), conferred with Guyana President Irfaan Ali (C), Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness and other regional leaders at an emergency summit over the Haiti crisis US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (second to left) meets with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness (2R), Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith (R) and US Ambassador to Jamaica N. Nick Perry at a crisis meeting in Kingston on Haiti 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 This 2002 photo provided by LGBTQ+ Victory Fund shows David Mixner at the at the Gay & Lesbian Victory Funds (now LGBTQ+ Victory Funds) Oates-Shrum Leadership Awards in Washington. Mixner, a longtime LGBTQ+ activist who was an adviser to Bill Clinton during his presidential campaign and later called him out over the Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy regarding gays in the military, has died. He was 77. LGBTQ+ Victory Fund President and CEO Annise Parker says Mixner died Monday, March 11, 2024 at his home in New York City. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, center left, meets with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness, center right, and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Kamina Johnson Smith, right, and U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica N. Nick Perry, left, at the Pegasus Hotel prior to an emergency meeting on Haiti at the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in Kingston, Jamaica, Monday, March 11, 2024. FILE - Former President Donald Trump speaks after exiting the courtroom for a break at New York Supreme Court, Dec. 7, 2023, in New York. Trump has secured a bond sufficient to support an $83.3 million jury award granted to writer E. Jean Carroll during a January defamation trial stemming from rape claims she made against Trump, his lawyer said Friday, March 8, 2024, as she notified the federal judge who oversaw the trial that an appeal was underway. The ship belonging to the Open Arms aid group with aid on a platform ferry some 200 tonnes of rice and flour directly to Gaza, departs from the port from southern city of Larnaca, Cyprus, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. An aid ship loaded with some 200 tons of food set sail Tuesday from Cyprus to Gaza, the international charity behind the effort said. The shipment is a test for the opening of a sea corridor to supply aid to the territory, where starvation is spreading five months into the Israel-Hamas war. Website warning of cyberattack in Georgias largest county removed after it confused some voters Officials in Georgia's most populous county have removed a banner from their website warning of an unexpected IT outage after it created confusion on the final day of voting for the presidential primary In Connecticut and elsewhere, cryptocurrency scammers have targeted elderly residents, coercing them to deposit large amounts of money into special ATMs, which quickly transfer the value to another party. In one instance reported on by CT Insider, a Hartford man named deposited his life savings about $20,000 into a Bitcoin ATM under instruction from scammers. When he realized his mistake and called the police, they told him the money legally belonged to the company that owned the ATM and that he had little recourse to retrieve it. Though Samuels ultimately got his money back through a legal settlement, others aren't so lucky. According to one estimate, crypto users lost more than $2 billion to scams and hacks in 2023. Other bills that generated discussion among the Banking Committee on Tuesday included the proposal to ban coercive debt, meaning debt taken out in the name of a domestic abuse victim through force or fraud. Members of both parties touted the measure as an important protection. "It is so important that we address this issue, and I will be wholeheartedly supporting it," Delnicki said. "Having talked to a number of victims, their stories are compelling, and their lives in many cases have been ruined, and that can't stand." Added Sen. Christine Cohen, D-Branford: "Coerced debt is a form of coercive control, something that the legislature takes very seriously, and we want to make sure that we're protecting our victims and survivors of domestic violence as best we can." The bill to establish a special savings account and tax deduction for first-time home-buyers gained approval with little discussion, while the proposed changes regarding payday loans prompted back-and-forth among lawmakers seeking to balance commercial and consumer issues. The bill, which would roll back strict limits on wage advances, drew opposition from several major unions and advocacy groups, with Connecticut AFL-CIO president Ed Hawthorne testifying that it "imposes a burden on workers." An interchange from Interstate 70 onto 29 Road would complete the loop, a ring of roads encircling Grand Junction designed to move traffic more efficiently. The federal government has pledged $2 million toward the interchange to the Colorado Department of Transportation as part of a recent appropriations bill passed by Congress. U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert announces on Rumble on Wednesday she wont seek the nomination to run in a special election to replace U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who is retiring March 22. Instead, Boebert will continue to seek the nomination for that seat in the June 25 primary. Former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., from left, talks to Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., before President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol, Thursday, March 7, 2024, in Washington. From left, Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Guyana's President Irfaan Ali and Jamaica's Prime Minister Andrew Holness attend an emergency meeting on Haiti at the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in Kingston, Jamaica, on Monday, March 11, 2024. Fri Friday 68 /36 Windy with a mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the upper 60s and lows in the mid 30s. The application window for Montana Farmers Union scholarships ranging from $500 to $1,000 closes Sunday, March 31. The annual scholarships are offered through MFU as part of the organizations commitment to education and include the Bud Daniels Memorial Scholarship for $1,000 and the John Korsbeck Memorial Scholarship for $1,000. Montana Farmers Union Foundation $1,000 scholarships also are available. Several Farmers Union Locals also offer scholarships for county residents, with Cascade County-wide Farmers Union Local offering a scholarship worth $1,000, Chouteau County Farmers Union Local offering one at $500, and the Flathead County-wide Farmers Union Local offering a $500 scholarship. Students planning to or currently attending Montana State University-Northern who express a strong interest in meat sciences also are eligible for scholarship funding through MFU. Traditional and non-traditional students can apply for multiple scholarships through one online application available on MFUs website. The application window is open through Sunday, March 31. Current college students and high school seniors are encouraged to apply. Montana Farmers Union members also are eligible for scholarships through National Farmers Union (nfu.org). To learn more and apply, visit: https://montanafarmersunion.com/education/scholarships-grants/. My sister Cece, who lives in southeast Missouri and is enjoying spring flowers (and her asparagus) already, recently sent me pictures of her Kaffir lilies. The mother plant has lots of red berries on the stalks the flowers had been on. Her smaller one is just now blooming. Ive always cut off the flower stalks once they start puffing up to make seeds. Id thought maybe if I didnt, it would somehow diminish the plant and prevent future blooms. But Cece says she hasnt and its always bloomed again. So now I need to go look up proper care of Kaffir lilies. Our younger sister, Charlie, also in southeast Missouri, joined the group text, wondering if hers would bloom soon. How to care for Clovis (Kaffir/bush) lilies in containers: This plant is also known as the Flame lily. It prefers to be somewhat shaded. Direct sun will cause browned leaf tips. It should be watered sparingly in the fall and winter months. (I nailed that by being away a lot.) My research shows I can plant the off-shoots. It grows by rhizomes. You can plant the seed or do plant divisions, so I guess I can let mine form seed pods (berries) if it blooms again. Although this same source also says to cut off the flower stalk so it doesnt produce berries, which could prevent next seasons blooms. Decisions, decisions Kaffir lilies are poisonous, all parts of it, so not a good choice if you have puppies or kitties that chew on plants. They do need to be brought inside before frosts hit. Ceces photos prompted me to go check on my plant. There was what Id thought initially was a flower stalk starting to form, deep amongst the leaves on one clump. Closer inspection revealed that to be dead blossoms that had dropped from the now-expired diplodenia (it didnt appreciate the spotty watering ensuing from our trips) on a shelf above the lily. Mine didnt bloom at all last summer, but that was the first summer Id kept it indoors. It had always suffered lots of leaf damage from our strong Montana winds. I havent yet a spot in my yard that is wind-proof. Cece consoled me with the comment, the leaves look better not all beat up! You may remember me talking about my mom smuggling a bit of Kaffir lily root home with us from Germany. This was in 1968. After she passed, dad still hauled the huge pot in and out of the house each summer. Cece volunteered to repot it to make it easier for him. She needed a sledge hammer to break the root out of the clay pot theyd so thoroughly invaded. She split it five ways, and made sure all us girls (4) got an offshoot. This happened about 40 years ago. I did find my plant has birthed two new clumps of leaves (offshoots). Maybe Ill get around to repotting it this summer, and give those new plants their own cramped pot. They do like to have their roots constricted in a deep, narrow pot. When I repotted mine many years ago, I gifted offshoots to both of my sisters-in-law. Now that Ive chattered so much about my non-flower-producing Kaffir lily (I also learned that that term is offensive to some, so I should retrain my brain to call it Clovia), Im going to share another recipe. I recently made a big pot of this soup to share with our chemo-enduring daughter. It may have been a bit too spicy (tomato-ey) for her right now. I used a lot of my frozen tomatoes from last summer. She needs more blandness, so back to chicken noodle or chicken rice soups. Lasagna Soup 1 pd. hamburger 1 onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp thyme 1 Tbl brown sugar 1 (32 oz) box chicken broth 2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce 2 tsp Italian seasoning 1/2 tsp sly 2 C broken lasagna noodles 1 (5 oz) pkg grated Parmesan 2 C shredded mozzarella Brown hamburger with onion and garlic. Add next seven ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Add noodles and simmer until tender. Top with cheeses. Broil until browned. I didnt broil the cheeses, just stirred them in. Im still glad I made this soup. I kept a good-sized serving for myself, which I thoroughly enjoyed. And Dennis is happy as now I wont be making lasagna for quite some time. He hates lasagna - its a pasta dish. Republican George Logan (right) is facing off against U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes in Connecticut's 5th Congressional District. The race has drawn the interest of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who is coming to Hartford this weekend for a fundraiser to support Logan. Brian A. Pounds/ Hearst Connecticut Media A congressional race in northwestern Connecticut is once again drawing the attention of national Republicans intent on securing their control of the U.S. House of Representatives. On Saturday, House Speaker Mike Johnson will appear at a campaign fundraiser in Hartford for Republican George Logan, a former state senator who is making a second bid to unseat U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Wolcott, in the states fiercely competitive 5th Congressional District. Hartford is not part of the 5th District, which does include Avon, Chesire, Farmington, Meriden, New Britain, and Waterbury. For years, Republicans have viewed the district as one of their best opportunities to flip a seat in New England, where their numbers in federal offices have dwindled in recent decades. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Democrats, meanwhile, have seized on the appearance by the conservative, evangelical House Speaker from Louisiana to tie his agenda to Logan, a self-described moderate who has pledged to uphold Connecticuts laws permitting abortions. Logan did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday. During his most recent and unsuccessful campaign against Hayes in 2022, Logan similarly appeared with former House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. prompting similar attacks from Democrats. While Logan lost that election by just over 2,000 votes, Republicans took control of the House and installed McCarthy as speaker, only to dump him less than a year later during a right-wing revolt that saw Johnson emerge as a consensus leader. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In a statement released by her campaign on Tuesday, Hayes called the decision to host the Republican speaker an odd and unfortunate choice, while directly rebuking Johnson as an election denier, for his vote against the certification of the 2020 election. People care about our international allies, Johnson is playing politics with a security supplemental bill, even on the issue of the crisis at the Border, Johnson refuses to put a bill on the floor for a vote, Hayes said. People in the Fifth reject Johnsons extreme views on abortion and LGBTQ rights. This event further solidifies my opponents embrace of Trump and their most extreme policies. In his own post on the social media site X last week, Logan acknowledged that Donald Trump is all but ensured to be his partys nominee for president, without explicitly offering his endorsement of the former president. I remain laser focused on solving the issues plaguing our country and my communities each and every day, which is why Im running for Congress, Logan said. We must return to economic strength, secure borders and deliver change for the American people." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Johnsons upcoming visit has also rankled his only opponent in the Republican primary for the 5th District, Michelle Botelho of Danbury. Logan has the establishment behind him, Botelho said Tuesday. They have a lot of money invested in him, and so everybody is backing him. I am the grassroots, so I have a lot of conservative voters and conservative constituents backing me. According to federal campaign disclosures, Logan raised $426,326 for his election bid last year, trailing Hayes $1.1 million by a significant margin. However, the Republicans fundraising efforts eclipsed Hayes during the final quarter of the year, $397,618 to $279,195. Advertisement Article continues below this ad It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Katrina Turner, a beloved mother, sister, friend, and daughter. Katrina departed from this world on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, leaving behind a legacy of kindness, compassion, and unwavering strength. Katrina was born on July 10, 1982, in Colorado Springs, Colo., to Pamala Kirchdoerfer (Dodson) and Jerry Spencer, where she spent her formative years cultivating a deep appreciation for life's simple pleasures. Her family moved around often when she was a girl and eventually planted roots in Glasgow, Mont., in 1994 at the age of 11. A woman of many talents and passions, Katrina would light up any room she walked into and was often the center of attention. She was gifted with the natural ability to love through hugs and teasing. Katrina had a remarkable ability to make others feel valued and appreciated. She made everyone feel welcome in any setting she was in. Katrina was a cherished friend and confidante to many. Her infectious laughter, compassionate spirit, and genuine warmth brought joy and comfort to all who had the privilege of knowing her. She was a social butterfly who rarely wanted to be alone. You would often find her hanging out with friends or spending time at her parents' house waiting to interact with anyone who came by. Although her struggle with addiction often got the best of her, she truly loved her children and said they were the best of her. She loved watching them grow both near and far. She wanted so badly to reach her full potential in order to make a positive impact in their lives. When it came to immediate family, Katrina was closest to her brother Melvin and would always refer to them as Irish twins because they were less than a year apart. They spent much of their time together teasing one another, but they would do anything to protect each other. She also had a close and loving relationship with her cousin Melanie, who helped her through her lowest moments of life. Katrina, though you may no longer walk among us, your spirit will forever live on in the hearts and memories of those who were fortunate enough to have known you. You will always be loved and missed. Our thoughts will always be full of love and good memories as we continue to remember and miss you. You were an important part of your family's lives, as I'm sure for many others. Your laugh was infectious, and we will never forget it. Katrina is survived by her parents Pamala and John Dodson; three older brothers, Martin Blake (Leola), Travis Kirchdoerfer (Kristin) and Melvin McNary: her five loving children, Jaysen, Haylly, Kaylly, Agalia, and Jax; her former husband, James Turner; five nieces and five nephews: many aunts, uncles, and cousins; her biological father Jerry Spencer; and a host of cherished friends who will forever hold her dear. While we mourn the loss of a truly remarkable individual, we take solace in the knowledge that Katrina's spirit will continue to shine brightly through the countless lives she touched during her time on this earth. Though she may be gone from our sight, Katrina will never be forgotten. May her soul rest in eternal peace, knowing that she was dearly loved and will be profoundly missed by all who had the privilege of knowing her. A memorial service was held at Glasgow Assembly of God on March 11, at 10 a.m., with a luncheon in the basement following the service. Condolences can be sent to 618 3rd Ave. North Glasgow, MT 59230. Valley County Sheriffs Office, Glasgow Police Department, and the Montana Highway Patrol (MHP) are encouraging Montanans to plan for a sober ride home before celebrating St. Patricks Day. Celebrations and festivities at bars and restaurants are common for St. Patricks Day, and celebrations may happen during the days leading up to St. Patricks Day. Law enforcement partners across the state will be increasing patrols and making DUI arrests to help all Montanans get home safely. Under the Vision Zero goal, Valley County Sheriffs Office, Glasgow Police Department, MHP, and the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) are committed to reducing fatalities and serious injuries on Montanas roadways during St. Patricks Day celebrations. Montana law ensures that if drivers have a BAC (blood alcohol content) of .08 or higher could be arrested and face a DUI charge and other serious consequences. This can include having their drivers license revoked, being required to take mandatory classes, and receiving possible jail time and up to $10,000 in fines and legal fees. Montanans take St. Patricks Day seriously, said Undersheriff Chris Richter. But we all need to take the safety of our community seriously, too. Before you even start drinking or head out for a celebration, make and commit to a plan. Choose one of your friends or family members as a sober driver and arrange for them to give you a ride home. If you see your friends have been drinking, have their back and help them get home safely, too. Were in this together. Why is Montana law enforcement increasing patrols during St. Patricks Day? These are Montanas sobering statistics: Montana has one of the highest fatality rates in the nation for the number of deaths caused by alcohol-impaired drivers per vehicle mile traveled. In Montana, 66 percent of all fatalities in 2020 involved an impaired driver (up from 58 percent in 2019). Please celebrate responsibly during St. Patricks Day. Have fun and dont drive impaired, said MHP Colonel Steve Lavin. Well be increasing patrols during St. Patricks Day weekend to make sure Montanans get home safe. Do your part and plan ahead or call for a sober ride home if youve been drinking. Together, we can keep our community safe. Montana Department of Transportation Vision Zero This is a Vision Zero message from the Montana Department of Transportation. This and other enforcement and educational campaigns are strategies to reach Vision Zero zero deaths and zero serious injuries on Montana roadways. US 'reluctant to let go hegemony' in intelligence assessment Global Times Report distorts facts to serve US geopolitical, strategic purposes By GT staff reporters Published: Mar 12, 2024 08:57 PM The US' latest intelligence report is part of the country's cognitive warfare against designated "competitors" and "rivals," and exposes that Washington is anxious and reluctant to accept that US supremacy is waning, Chinese observers said on Tuesday. The 2024 edition of the annual threat assessment report of the US intelligence community was presented to Congress on Monday. Intelligence leaders warned lawmakers on Monday, US local time, that the country faces an "increasingly fragile world order," strained by great power competition, transnational challenges and regional conflicts, Reuters reported. Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that when the assessment made the conclusion of an "increasingly fragile world order," it mirrors the US' own situation - that the US itself has become fragile and its leadership has been weakened, and therefore the international order has become fragile. It is a US-centric conclusion. Chinese analysts pointed out that this intelligence report is nothing to do with intelligence collecting, but all about politics. In other words, it serves the US' geopolitical and strategic purposes with partial claims, exaggerations and distortions. LA Xiang, a US studies expert and research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday that the function of US intelligence is two-fold: to collect intelligence from others and to spread disinformation. Such published intelligence, infused with distortions about China, Russia and some others, aims to fight disinformation warfare. LA pointed out the internal contradiction of the report that China is developing and "threatening the US," and at the same time China will ultimately fail. Such contradiction reflects the US' chaotic policy and mentality in dealing with China. US President Joe Biden is running his campaign on TikTok, but the US is also pushing a ban on the social media giant unless Chinese company ByteDance divests it, another example of US' hysteria. The Monday report claimed that "[China] may attempt to influence the US elections in 2024 at some level because of its desire to sideline critics of China and magnify US societal divisions," hinting on TikTok. It accused China of targeting candidates from both parties on TikTok in the 2022 midterms. The report also accused China of providing economic and security assistance to Russia by supporting Russia's defense industrial base. CIA chief William Burns told the Senate that if the US walks away from Ukraine, it will stoke the ambitions of China. Commenting on that, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a regular press briefing on Tuesday that what the US cares about is not Ukraine, but to realize its own geopolitical and strategic goal via the Ukraine crisis. On the Gaza war, the intelligence community assessed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "viability as a leader" to be "in jeopardy," and that the threat of a terrorist attack within the US "has gone to a whole [other] level," according to a hearing. Admitting US' mistakes is not an option, but the nuanced changes in rhetoric concerning Israel and Ukraine have exposed that the US' biggest challenges stem from its own mishandling of international affairs, LA said. In the introduction, the intelligence report stated that "An ambitious but anxious China, a confrontational Russia, some regional powers, such as Iran, and more capable non-state actors are challenging longstanding rules of the international system as well as US primacy within it." Li analyzed that in an election year, the report is supposed to consolidate domestic consensus on Biden administration's policies and send signals to US allies to follow the pace of Washington and enhance coordination to contain US "competitors and rivals" such as China, Russia and Iran. Therefore, the report is not providing a truthful and realistic assessment of the world and international affairs, but a bugle call to aggregate US resources, crack down on US-designated risks and to maintain US ambition in dominance and hegemony, Li noted. If the US gets jittery whenever it hears the word "China," where is its confidence as a major country? If it only wants itself to prosper but denies other countries' legitimate development, where is international fairness? Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi asked at a press conference on Thursday. The challenge for the US comesafrom itself, not from China. If the US is obsessed with suppressing China, itawill eventually harm itself, Wang noted. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Classified Document Hearing Shows Stiff Partisan Divides on Biden's Responsibility, Memory By Anita Powell March 12, 2024 Members of Congress on Tuesday turned a hearing about President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents into a charged referendum on a question central to the upcoming presidential election: the 81-year-old's mental fitness. The Biden administration and their main challengers, the backers of presumptive Republican candidate Donald Trump, emerged from the House Judiciary Committee's five-hour grilling of Special Counsel Robert Hur with radically different answers to that question. They also starkly disagreed over Hur's decision not to file criminal charges, despite concluding in his February report that Biden "willfully retained and disclosed classified materials as a private citizen." Criminal charges were not warranted, Hur argued in announcing his decision in early February, because, he said, Biden would likely present himself to a jury as a "well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory" a words that Republican legislators repeated, repeatedly, during the hearing. Afterward, Ian Sams, spokesperson for the White House counsel's office, gave his take: "The main thing I took away from the hearing today was that we had three hours of the Republicans showing just how hypocritical they're willing to be in order to politically attack the president at the same time that they and the Democrats and the special counsel himself laid bare exactly why there is no case here," he said. "The case is closed, the evidence did not support bringing charges, and it's over," Sams said. "It's time to move on." Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesperson for Trump's Make America Great Again movement, offered his own conclusion. "Joe Biden put America's national security at risk with his illegal retention and disclosure of classified material," he said. "Biden lied about his wrongdoing in a national press conference, which begs the question a what else is Joe Biden lying about?" Further muddying the picture on the matter is Hur's own grammatically complex statement: "The word exoneration does not appear anywhere in my report and that is not my conclusion," Hur said. A newly released transcript of Hur's five-hour interview held last year with Biden, includes instances of Biden saying he couldn't recall details or citing dates incorrectly, appearing to say in one instance that his eldest son died in 2017 and that Trump, who was elected in 2016, was "elected in November of 2017." "The transcript is now available for every American to see, for all media to see," Sams said. He noted it shows that, despite the confusion over the year of Beau Biden's death, it shows that Biden correctly cited the date: May 30. "I think that you saw the anger and emotional reaction of a father who still experiences the pain of that loss every single day," Sams said. Many Republicans used their five-minute question periods to compare Biden's situation to that of his challenger. Trump, too, faces criminal charges over his handling of classified documents after he left office. He was initially slapped with 37 felony counts, including charges that he obstructed justice by failing to return the documents even in response to a subpoena. It's not clear when that case will go to trial. Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, in one sentence, took aim at the justice system and Biden's mental acuity: "This guy's not getting treated the same way as Trump, because the elevator is not going to the top floor, so we can't prove intent." Democrats resisted that characterization. "Joe Biden is a competent, good president who knows American values," Tennessee Representative Steve Cohen said. Hur, in his opening statement, said he would "refrain from speculating or commenting on areas outside the scope of the investigation." But he also responded to criticism that he overstepped, saying he could not have reached the conclusion he did "without assessing the president's state of mind." Other elected representatives chose not to ask Hur any questions, such as Missouri Representative Cori Bush, a Democrat, who described Hur's report as a "partisan hit job" a though she said it was appropriate for both Trump and Biden to be investigated. "Our country deserves better than this," she said of the hearing. Texas Representative Nathaniel Moran praised Hur's efforts, asking him only yes-or-no questions and suggesting Biden could be ruled incompetent by a District of Columbia court and placed under guardianship. And he repeated the critical line from Hur's report a words sure to echo over November's presidential contest a although he prefaced it with an adjective, calling Biden a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Steps Up Spy War on West By Henry Ridgwell March 12, 2024 Russia has successfully relaunched its spy operations against the West after hundreds of its operatives were ejected following Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, according to analysts. They warn that the Kremlin is using a network of proxies to infiltrate European nations and carry out a range of intelligence operations. Infiltration In a recent report, Britain's Royal United Services Institute, or RUSI, warned that Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, "is restructuring how it manages the recruitment and training of special forces troops and is rebuilding the support apparatus to be able to infiltrate them into European countries." The operations range from the killing of political opponents based overseas to interference in foreign elections, with the aim of undermining Western unity and support for Ukraine. A recent high-profile case was the killing of Maxim Kuzminov, a Russian helicopter pilot who had defected to Ukraine in August 2023. Kuzimov moved to Spain and started a new life under a false identity. Last month, his bullet-riddled body was found in a parking lot in the southern Spanish town of Villajoyosa. A burned-out getaway car was found nearby. in the killing, but the director of Russia's foreign intelligence service has since described Kuzminov as a "moral corpse" for defecting to the West. Spies ejected Analysts say the killing is the latest example of how Moscow's intelligence operations have been reinvigorated since European governments kicked out around 600 suspected Kremlin spies in the wake of Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "The Europeans had a sense of security that the Russian spies are not there anymore, that their capabilities have been significantly curtailed. But the problem is they have not been. They are mightier than ever," said Marina Miron, an analyst at Kings College London's Department of War Studies. Russia last month intercepted a phone call between senior German air force officers discussing supplying long-range "Taurus" missiles to Ukraine. The recording was published by the state-owned broadcaster Russia Today, or RT, and was widely seen as an attempt to interfere in the German debate over arming Kyiv. Berlin has ruled out sending the weapons to Ukraine. Ukraine warnings Kyiv said it had warned Berlin of the dangers. "We have made multiple warnings to our German partners about the spy network of Russians that are very active in Germany. ... It is well known that the Russians are listening to conversations of German officials, and we think it is not the last conversation they have [in their possession]," Ukraine's national security adviser, Oleksiy Danilov, told The Times of London newspaper last week. French intelligence services are investigating a Russia-backed campaign aimed at interfering in the June European elections, involving hundreds of websites promoting Russian propaganda and supporting pro-Kremlin candidates. "We are going to step up our own efforts to expose a number of disinformation operations. And in this context, Russia is also attacking us. ... Europe is under attack from an informational point of view," French Foreign Minister StAphane SAjournA told reporters on Feb. 17 after details of the operation were revealed. Undermining democracy With its army tied down in Ukraine, Russia is seeking to boost its "unconventional" operations overseas, according to the RUSI report. Russia "has an active interest in destabilizing Ukraine's partners, and with a slew of elections forthcoming across Europe, there is a wide range of opportunities to exacerbate polarization," the report said. "Moreover, with its conventional forces a so often used to coerce others a fixed by the fighting in Ukraine, the significance of unconventional operations as a lever of influence increases. This is especially important with the collapse of Russian overt diplomatic access across target countries." Those operations aim to disrupt democracies, according to Oleksandr V. Danylyuk, an associate fellow at RUSI and a co-author of the report. The Russians "still invest billions into intelligence operations in Europe, developing capabilities which are designed for interference into elections; radicalization of different social, ethnic, religious groups, including minorities; investing billions into political proxies who can actually even come to power," he told VOA. Proxy operations Moscow's spy agencies are increasingly operating remotely, using non-Russian proxies to carry out operations, including organized criminals and foreign nationals. "What is actually very important for special operations is the ability to deny the sponsorship of the government," Danylyuk added. Several spy networks have been uncovered in recent years. In Poland, 14 citizens from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine were convicted in December of belonging to a spy ring that was preparing acts of sabotage on behalf of Moscow, including plans to derail trains carrying military aid to Ukraine. Trials of suspected Russian spies are ongoing in Britain, Germany, Norway and several other European countries. "It's not any more an ideological fight," said Danylyuk. "It's not like 'communism fighting capitalism,' like the Soviets would say. It's that authoritarian countries are trying to subvert the West as a stronghold of democracy, freedom and human rights. And this is, for them, an existential fight." 'Recruiting opportunity' Meanwhile, William J. Burns, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, said in January that Russia's war on Ukraine has in turn presented an opportunity for the West to improve its intelligence capabilities. "Disaffection with the war is continuing to gnaw away at the Russian leadership and the Russian people, beneath the thick surface of state propaganda and repression," Burns wrote in Foreign Affairs magazine. "That undercurrent of disaffection is creating a once-in-a-generation recruiting opportunity for the CIA. We're not letting it go to waste." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Army Reserve in Europe Hosts Command Operations Sync By Staff Sgt. Jessica Forester March 11, 2024 KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany -- The 7th Mission Support Command, America's Army Reserve in Europe, hosted their annual operations & training synchronization workshop at the Sembach Community Center, in Kaiserslautern, Germany, 4 - 8 March 2024. U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Howard Johnson, the Readiness and Mobilization Officer (G37), and the event officer in charge explained the event and its motivations. "The purpose is to synchronize the efforts of our subordinate unit commanders and their operations personnel to develop their yearly training calendar for fiscal year 2025," said Johnson. All command directorates participated, providing insight from their shops, which included personnel, budget, sustainment, unit operations and training personnel. "Our goal is to improve the units' foundational knowledge of operations planning and resourcing." Traditional Reserve Soldiers hold civilian careers while also participating in monthly battle assemblies, completing mandatory training and mission essential tasks specific to their units. Providing an overview for what training is happening, and when, ensures readiness across the board and gives Soldiers predictability to manage their civilian employment as well. "This workshop allows us to project training requirements and their associated resources 12-18 months out," said Johnson. "We are looking to send Soldiers to school, continuing their professional military education, making sure they're qualified to perform their duties. We also plan our annual training requirements based on Army Regulation 350-1. We plan and coordinate our ranges to qualify on our assigned weapons systems and we have two-to-three-week annual training requirements (in support of U.S. Army Europe and Africa missions across the theater), that are planned and developed during this workshop." At the conclusion of the workshop, the 7th MSC's 26-unit commanders will have a yearly training plan that meets the needs of their unit and aligns with the MSC's mission to provide logistical and sustainment support for U.S. Army Europe and Africa, increasing capability in the region. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 11 Red Sea Update U.S. Central Command Press Release | March 11, 2024 USCENTCOM March 11, 2024 Release Number 20240311 - 02 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TAMPA, Fla. -- Between 8:50 a.m. and 12:50 p.m. (Sanaa time) on March 11, Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles from Houthi-controlled areas of into the Red Sea toward merchant vessel Pinocchio, a Singaporean-owned, Liberian-flagged ship. The missiles did not impact the vessel and there were no injuries or damage reported. Between 2:50-11:30 p.m. (Sanaa time) on March 11, United States Central Command conducted six self-defense strikes destroying an unmanned underwater vessel and 18 anti-ship missiles in Houthi controlled areas of Yemen. It was determined these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region. These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy and merchant vessels. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 11, 2024 Transcript Navy Officials Hold a Press Briefing on President Biden's Fiscal 2025 Navy Budget Under Secretary of the Navy Erik Raven; Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget/Director, Fiscal Management Division, Rear Admiral Ben Reynolds STAFF: Good afternoon. I'm Lieutenant Junior Grade Luke Bienstock, the Public Affairs Officer for the Department of the Navy's Fiscal Year 2025 presidential budget request. The Honorable Erik Raven, Under Secretary of the Navy, and Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Budget, Rear Admiral Ben Reynolds, will brief the Department of the Navy's submission for F.Y. '25. Following the overview, they will take questions as time permits. Questions should focus specifically on the Department of the Navy's F.Y. '25 budget request. Mr. Undersecretary? UNDER SECRETARY OF THE NAVY ERIK RAVEN: Thank you very much, and good afternoon. I'm grateful to be here with Rear Admiral Reynolds to brief the Department of the Navy's F.Y. '25 President's budget request. This budget is focused on delivering resources to ensure America's maritime forces, our Navy and Marine Corps team, are ready, resilient, flexible, and forward deployed to do our nation's tasking, whether that's supporting naval diplomacy, crisis response, building partnerships, or protecting the world's global economy which floats on seawater. We need to compete and be able to win during this time of great power competition. Next slide? PB '25 is a strategy-driven budget that is nested under our National Security Strategy and our National Defense Strategy. This budget builds upon the tenets of our national defense, which are integrated deterrence, campaigning, and building enduring advantages. Aligned with Secretary Austin's three priorities, as seen here, our request demonstrates the department's commitment to providing a ready, modernized, and capable naval force, a force that continues to be the nation's primary instrument of seapower and maritime statecraft, now and into the future. Secretary Del Toro's strategic guidance solidifies that we are one Navy and Marine Corps team, and it identifies three enduring priorities - strengthening maritime dominance, building a culture of warfighting excellence, and enhancing strategic partnerships. The budget also supports the CNO's America's Warfighting Navy and the Commandant of the Marine Corp's Force Design. The PB '25 request is reflective of what allows us to build, modernize, and maintain the right mix of capabilities to defend against great power competition among the other threats while also investing in our future. Next slide? PB '25 prioritizes our people, readiness, and it invests in our industrial base to build and sustain our fleet. The department continues to make significant strides across our three enduring priorities established by the Secretary of the Navy, which you can see labeled here. Just a few of the examples and work of each one of these areas. Under strengthening maritime dominance, we invest in nuclear deterrence and maintaining 31 amphibious ships as the law directs. In building a culture of warfighting excellence, we make investments to improve quality of life and quality of service. And in enhancing strategic partnerships, we make major investments in building capacities for submarines, ships, and ship maintenance. The - these three priorities at - that we, as a department, are all supporting, each of these align with the National Defense Strategy. Next slide? While we're gathered here today, our sailors and Marines are currently deployed around the - around the globe to actively deter and respond to a wide set of challenges posed by nations and non-nation state actors alike. As Secretary Del Toro and other defense leaders have made clear, the challenges and threats we face range from the Russo-Ukrainian War, now in its second year, the continued aggression across the Indo-Pacific instigated by the People's Republic of China, as well as the maligned influence throughout the Middle East stemming from the Islamic Republic of Iran's - Iran and their regional proxies. Displayed on this slide are just a few snapshots of some of our ongoing efforts in support of regional security and stability, highlighted by the picture at the center of the USS Carney defending against aggression in the Red Sea. Next slide? We are and will continue to be where it matters, when it matters. Comprised of nearly 75,000 deployed Navy and Marine Corps personnel across the globe, over a third of our battle force ships are currently deployed and one-fifth are underway. Alongside our international allies and partners, our sailors and Marines help to uphold international norms, keep sea lanes open, and provide access to free and open oceans. And now, I'd like to turn it over to Admiral Reynolds to discuss some of the details within the F.Y. '25 request. DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY REAR ADMIRAL BEN REYNOLDS: Thank you, Secretary Raven. Next slide, please. Transitioning to the fiscal slides, the FY25 President's Budget Request is $257.6 billion. This is a 0.7 percent increase above our FY24 budget requests. This is in compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility Act which caps defense spending. This budget depends on enacting PB '24. Absent an enactment, a full-year continuing resolution would be unprecedented and would drive a $12.5 billion shortfall and cause profound and lasting damage to our forces. CR restrictions in conjunction with sequestration would expand that shortfall to $29 billion. On the top left, you'll see a graph showing our Department of the Navy top line. Under this capped budget we make hard choices. We prioritize our readiness to deploy our fleet, our people, and our ability to respond in this decade of concern while taking risk and future capabilities. In the chart in the upper right, I will highlight changes in the appropriation groups. Procurement is mostly flat. We have investments in the industrial base, undersea capabilities, and Marine Corps force design. Investments in manpower increased slightly in order to maintain strength levels and support our sailors and marines with a 4.5 percent pay increase and additional compensation. There is a decrease in R&D, an area we take risks to adequately fund other priorities. Military construction decreases compared to PB '24, representing a return to typical historical levels following significant investments in PB '24. It's about a 20 percent decrease from our our FY24 MilCon enactment. And then a 3.5 percent increase in operations and maintenance supports our commitment to keep ready players on the field and a postured expeditionary force capable of meeting global challenges. Next slide? With that backdrop, I'll brief a few slides starting with investments in our industrial base and shipbuilding, followed by other procurement accounts and our investments in the future fight. I will then discuss readiness and investments in our shore facilities, followed by our people, and then close with how we're enhancing our strategic parts partnerships. Next slide. Our department is committing committed to pulling every available lever to expedite the necessary ships, aircraft, and weapons to our war-fighters; both by partnering with industry to deliver new platforms and improving our ability to maintain our existing platforms. Starting on the top left of this slide, submarine industrial base, or SIB investments, are necessary to meet a generational increase in demand driven by recapitalizing the most survivable leg of the nuclear triad, the Columbia, on-time delivery of Virginia submarines, maintenance of in-service submarines, and national commitments made under the AUKUS agreement. This is an nationwide effort, building and sustaining our submarines requires more than 15,000 companies across all 50 states. With an investment of $3.9 billion in FY25 and then $11.1 billion across the fit-up for the submarine industrial base, and with a $3.3 billion FY24 supplemental request, the Navy expects to achieve Virginia class submarine construction performance of two per year by FY28. In addition to SIB, the Navy will continue initiatives in major surface shipbuilding programs as a mechanism to incentivize investment in the needed facilities of our U.S. shipbuilders. Moving to the top right, we also partner with industry in our weapons procurement. PB '25 continues investments with $227 million to expand capacity Trident II, long range anti-ship missiles, standard missiles, and Mark 48 torpedoes. This builds on our FY23 efforts as well as pending PB '24 investments. On the lower portion of the slide, I will further highlight fortifying the foundation through the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program, or SIOP, the Navy's four public shipyards are essential elements of our national defense. The average age of the naval shipyard facilities and related infrastructure is 61 years, while the average drydock age is 107 years. And so that's that's pre-World War I. In FY25 we invest $2.8 billion in MilCon and restoration at our shipyards to maximize our players on the field today and over the next few decades. We already see results from previous years' SIOP investments such as the completed renovation of Drydock 4 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard and the contract award for drydock re-replacement at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Finally, on the lower right, we invest $407 million in our aviation depots to get more aircraft back to the fleet. Next slide. The Navy procures six battle force ships and FY25. Additionally, the budget fully funds the nation's top defense acquisition priority, Columbia class nuclear ballistic missile submarine. Nine-point-six billion dollars, or one third of our new construction budget, will provide the second of two years of incremental funding for the second Columbia class submarine, the USS Wisconsin, as well as advanced procurement for future ships of the class. For attack submarines, PB '25 requests $7.3 billion for Virginia class. This will procure the first Virginia Block VI submarine, and will initiate a nine-ship planned multiyear procurement beginning in FY25. The request also includes advanced procurement for two FY26 and two FY27 Virginia class ships, and material for eight future Virginia class submarines executed as part of the FY25 multiyear contract. The budget requests $1.6 billion for the four San Antonio class LPD. The department is committed to 31 amphibious ship requirement, with two additional LPDs programmed in the FYDP. Other ships include the (lead ?) medium landing ship and then seven across the FYDP, two Arleigh Burke class destroyers, including completion funds for three FY23 and two FY 24 ships, and one Constellation class guided missile frigate. We request $1.9 billion to continue incremental funding for CVNs 80 and 81, and an additional $1.1 billion to fund the USS Harry S Truman refueling and complex overhaul. You will note that the Navy currently has 88 ships on contract with 66 under construction procured in previous years. As I mentioned on the previous slide, we will pull every lever to get these ships to our war-fighters. The budget includes a divestment of 10 ships before their end-of-service life. This is a return on investment decision. A hull by hull assessment based on the material condition, life remaining, cost, and time to upgrade, and net war-fighting value. We will continue to work closely with Congress for these divestments. Next slide. In aviation, the department's request of $16.2 billion in PB '25 procures 75 aircraft plus modernization, spares, and support equipment. Our aviation investments include 26 F-35 Lightning Bs and Cs, 27 multi-engine trainer systems, and 19 heavy-lift CH-53K King Stallions. The budget continues our investment in unmanned platforms to improve ISR and close the kill chains. We completed Triton and Marine Corps MQ-9 procurement in FY24. We fund new capabilities for these aircraft in this budget. MQ-25 is re-phased to a better glide path. We're procuring three in FY25 plus advanced procurement for long lead time material for future aircraft. Next slide. PB '25 provides $6.6 billion for weapons procurement Navy. More than any other appropriations, our weapons procurement relies on enacting PV24 to make progress in this critical area. Pending enactment of PV24 we continue multi-year buys for four critical munitions while increasing line capacity. The standard missile 6 or SM 6 is the fleets air defense weapon carried on board Aegis cruisers and destroyers. We buy 125 missiles in FY '25 and invest $100 million for special tooling and equipment to increase production capacity to 300 per year by FY '28. Other weapons include 90 LRASMs. That's 30 of the standard version and 60 extended range. 102 Naval Strike Missiles, 261 AMRAAMs, 182 JAGMs, 79 Mark 48 heavy weight torpedoes to include funding to address throughput in future years. You'll notice we are not buying any conventional prompt strike missile in FY '25. The Department continuously assesses program performance and determine that the best course of action in PB '25 is to rephrase missiles to future years to allow the program time to restore technical confidence via design views and additional testing. Next slide. $4.2 billion continues the marine corp commitment to forest design. We procure 80 amphibious combat vehicles with improved lethality with 30 millimeter and 7.62 millimeter weapons. FY '25 funding initiates long range fires, low rate initial production. This includes 8 LRF launchers and carriers, which which will provide the initial equipment for the long range missile batteries in FY '27. Other Marine Corp procurement includes 123 javelin missiles, 674 joint light tactical vehicles and 12 medium range intercept capability Emrick systems. We pause Nemesis launcher and carrier production this year while maintaining equivalent purchases to support the establishment of additional batteries. Next slide. The FY '25 research and development request reflects the departments focus on readiness as we take risks and some future capabilities. $25.7 billion invested in the war fighting naval force to provide our sailors and marines with the most cutting edge systems, weapons and platforms to win decisively in an increasingly complex environment. The Navy remains committed to the strategic deterrence mission funding the generational recapitalization of all sea based portions of the triad. The department slows development of next generation platforms, rephrasing the F/A-XX program while investments in future submarine and large surface combatants remain flat across the (Fed ?). Investments in information warfare and cyber security efforts ensure command, control and communications in any environment. The Department continues to focus on key enabling technologies for unmanned programs to maximize interoperability and capability. In aviation when we continue investments in FY '25 for MQ Triton and MQ25, building on requested reprogrammings in FY '23 and our FY '24 budget. The FY '25 Marine Corp R&D budget continues investment in modernization and innovation that support force design to include anti-ship missile systems, amphibious combat vehicles, and ground based expeditionary radar systems. Next slide. In readiness our Navy must be able to put the right mix of players on the field today with trained crews, ships, and air craft ready to operate and with capable weapon systems and munitions. In the cap year, PB '25 prioritizes readiness. Starting at the top left of the slide, ship operations, funds, the fuel, parts and support necessary for the fleet to train and operate around the globe. Ship operations funding increases $600 million in PB '25 to pace battle force (steaming ?) days, fuel prices and increases in costs for logistics force. Moving to the bottom left. The budget fund ship maintenance at $14.5 billion as the Navy continues to focus on maximizing the time our ships are available to fleet commanders. This covers private contract availabilities as well as the Navy's four public shipyards, regional maintenance centers and intermediate maintenance facilities. On the right hand side, the flying our program funds. The flight hours to enable carrier and expeditionary strike group power project and dynamic employment. The FY '25 budget request provides 875,000 flying hours providing operations, flight line maintenance and training for active and reserved squadrons and fleet air training program. The decrease from FY '24 represents a shift towards maintaining the high readiness levels built through investment and substantial process improvements in previous years. These hours will allow Navy and Marine Corp squadrons to train their crews and deploy ready for mission requirements. On the bottom right the aircraft depot maintenance program paces the fleet flying (out ?) program, funding repairs of aircraft, engines, and components to ensure mission capable aircraft are available to all the warfighters. Next slide. FY the FY '25 budget prioritizes the Marine Corp commitment to readiness for the nation's naval expeditionary force. Marine Crop readiness funding increases to $4.5 billion and includes $39 million for continued build-up of three marine (inaudible) regiments while maintaining the operational readiness of five traditional infantry regiments. Other specific investments include small unmanned aircraft, global combat support systems, modernization of tactical communication IT systems and depot maintenance service life extensions for ground vehicles and integration of new radar systems. Next slide. PB '25 prioritize prioritizes critical shore investments to increase fleet readiness. Continued investment in facilities is necessary to maintain our shore installations. This provides the foundation for everything we do, deploy our fleet, maintain our readiness and take care of our people and their families. Navy FSRM is funded at $4.7 billion in PB '25, an increase of 5.3 percent. Marine Corp FSRM has increase of 7.5 percent. Moving to the right hand side of the slide, the estimate FY '24 enacted MILCON budget is $5.8 billion and the FY '25 budget request of $4.6 billion includes 20 projects in support of new platforms, shipyard improvements and (could ?) remain in Norfolk, Virginia, safety and environmental compliance. This request provides 7 $872 million for INDOPACOM and EUCOM posture construction to include $364 million for major construction supporting the relocation of U.S. Marines from Okinawa to Guam and Darwin, Australia; as well as $386 million for planning a design including a child development center on Guam. Next slide. As I said earlier, this budget prioritizes our people. The budget includes a 4.5% pay raise for our service members, followed by a 5.2 percent pay raise in 2024. For Navy personnel, PB '25 includes $41 billion for a force of 332,300 active sailors remaining relatively flat from FY '24. The budget also provides $2.8 billion for 57,700 (resurface ?) aligned with fleet fore structure changes. The Navy is laser focused on recruiting shortfalls. We had $134 million for additional recruiting and retention bonuses. We continue to invest in advertising at a - higher than usual rates across multiple media platforms. For the Marine Corps, the F.Y. '25 budget request is based on what is realistically achievable in the current recruiting and retention environment. The request provides $15.9 billion for an active duty end strength of 172,300 Marines and $939 million for 32,500 Reservists. The Marine Corps remains committed to telemanagement - management objectives that support the targeted maturation of small unit leaders and technically skilled personnel. Next slide? Last year, the department set a new course for quality of service (inaudible) Secretary of Defense is taking care of our people. This budget includes $1.4 billion of investments in quality of service initiatives. For our junior sailors, we will continue improving conditions for crews on ships under construction or long-term maintenance, investing in sustainment of berthing barges, increasing options for ops - off-ship housing, and increasing access to quality food source choices. Recognizing that taking care of Marines is a fundamental warfighting function, the Marine Corps is also focused on barracks modernization and sustainment. The Marine Corps is inspecting every barracks in our inventory, a key step in further invest - investments needed to bring all barrack facilities to the necessary standards by 2030. To benefit all service members, this budget includes significant investments in unaccompanied housing, childcare centers, and childcare fee assistance and recreation programs. We remain committed to warfighter mental and physical wellness, with sustained investments of $353 million in sexual assault and prevention and response, and increased investments in mental health and suicide prevention with a $52 million increase over PB '24 levels. Next slide? The Department of the Navy continues to expand strategic collaboration with the Joint Force, industry, academia, and international allies and partners. The generational AUKUS security agreement between the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom is changing the geostrategic landscape in the Indo-Pacific. This agreement is a model for leveraging industry partnerships across our three nations' defense industrial bases. Military-to-military cooperation with our partners in every domain is a asymmetric advantage against our adversaries and is the heart of our national - national defense. Next slide? In closing, our PB '25 request represents the best possible mix of investments in readiness now and investments in capabilities for the future fight under a capped budget. The budget assumes and builds on an enacted PB '24. This budget prioritizes our people and our readiness to deploy and operate today and respond in this decade if called to. We invest in our industrial base in order to get the ships and the aircraft and weapons to our sailors and Marines. This is particularly true in support of our submarine and our weapons industrial base. The budget delivers the resources necessary to operate and build a lethal naval force to defend our nation and our way of life. Thank you. Under Secretary Raven and I would be happy to answer any questions. STAFF: The AP? Q: Hi. Tara Copp with the Associated Press. Thank you for doing this. I was struck by the slide on the number of SM-6s that you'll be buying, just that the number sort of seemed kind of small. Given the rates that you've been seeing activity in the Red Sea, how much risk are you taking with the ships firing missiles, you know, sometimes on a daily basis to defend ships and - transiting there? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: You want to take that? Yeah, thank you very much. The - for - for SM-6s, let me just start with the - a reminder that we had significant investment in SM-6s in our - in our PB '24 budget as well. And probably the most important thing that we can do is to enact PB '24 and allow those investments to take hold, cause we have investments in our industrial base to increase capacity. You're right, we have - we're investing to procure 125 missiles in '25, and look to ramp up with industry up to 300 towards the end of the FYDP. So investing and doing everything we can with industry to do that, to include looking at alternatives for - for rocket motors or anything we can do to increase that. One - a couple of other things on that, on the Red Sea - and you heard, I think, the Vice Chairman talk earlier about our in-depth - defense (inaudible). So we're doing everything we can within this - within this - within '24. We have some supplemental funding requested to help us improve our capacity in '24 and to accelerate that, and then we're looking at different - and we're looking at different weapons for defense (inaudible) to protect our - our sailors and Marines out there in the Red Sea. Q: ... just to feed off of that, since this is a long-term operation it seems at this point and you're having to continue to defend not only your ships but commercial ships, how much risk are you taking with the burn rate you're seeing in - in the munitions you're firing? MR. RAVEN: Want - want me to take that? So in terms of ongoing operations around the world, this PB '25 budget really reflects the need to invest in readiness, people, and industrial base to set up a long-term success of our Navy and Marine Corps team. The impacts of overseas operations, whether that's munitions expended or the cost of ongoing operations, in terms of fuel, additional maintenance, and so forth, that's - that's not built into the F.Y. '25 budget. We'll have to work with - with Congress and - and other parties to make sure that those costs have reflected elsewhere. STAFF: We'll go to the phone. Is Reuters there? Politico? (Inaudible). Bloomberg? Q: (Inaudible). Already, Congressman Courtney and a couple of others are complaining about the cut of (one ?). What's your argument to them in terms of why you did what you did? And Secretary McCord said it was a Navy decision. And for you, the tactical - the Tomahawk, it's been more in use of (the ?) (inaudible) probably than SM-6 over there. And you've got 22 in the budget but you've got refurbishing (inaudible) 365 (inaudible) certification. In English, does that mean translating - transferring - or updating block fours into block five Tomahawks and that's how you're going to beef up your inventory? MR. RAVEN: Let me tackle the submarine question first. So I see the F.Y. '25 budget as being very strong on the undersea. There are historic investments in the submarine industrial base. Last year, we presented a program with $2.4 billion of investments in the submarine industrial base. That's up by more than $11 billion in this budget, and then in addition to that, another $3.3 billion that's pending before Congress right now in - in the - in the form of a - of a supplemental. This budget funds nine out of 10 Virginia-class that had been projected over the FYDP. We removed one Virginia-class out of concern for the industrial base ability to produce yet one more, while, in a capped environment, making room for these historic investments in the submarine industrial base. But we're going about this in a - in a - in a strategic way because we're not simply taking a submarine out, we are also continuing the investment in advanced procurement to make sure that the supplier industrial base is fully funded and able to expand to meet future submarine requirements moving forward. So in total, this F.Y. '25 budget really makes the necessary investments to set up for long-term success on both the Virginia and Columbia-class submarines. REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: Tony, thank - thank you for the question - Tomahawk. And - and I - I don't want to sound like a - a broken record on this but, again, with our - with Tomahawk, like with SM-6, we do have that in our PB - we have some industrial capacity initiatives in our '24 budget, and I think that's the - that - that'll - the key to unlocking this. If you'll recall, just like Mark 48s a few years prior, with Tomahawks, we reopened the line and we went from just re-certifying the Tomahawks we have to building new. This - this budget reflects that, that we continue to re-certify wherever we can, we continue to look for other - other areas that we - that we can have more kits and - and buy more rocket propellant, and then we have a mix of (inaudible) rounds and recertification. The budget is fully funded to the capacity in '25 and then across the FYDP to get to the capacity that we're looking for by the end of the FYDP. Q: What does "re-certify" mean in English (inaudible) block five? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: That's right. So there'd be - well, the - it depends. To - every 15 years, we have to, just like you go through a ship modernization, we have to go through and just do a - basically a depot event for that Tomahawk. And so that could be anything to - to - for upgrading or it could be changing that upgrading and then making that a maritime strike Tomahawk, like, for example, we have the MST, Maritime Strike Tomahawk, in this budget, and some of those are kits to go on our current Tomahawks. Q: OK, thank you. STAFF: Defense News? Q: Hey, thanks. Megan Eckstein with Defense News. A - quick clarifications of Tara's question, and then one of my own. On the Red Sea spending, you mentioned additional costs for ship maintenance, ship operations, aircraft maintenance operations as well. I wonder if there's a dollar amount associated with that gap that's not in F.Y. '25? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: Can I be - we'll - Megan, we do have $1.6 billion of supplemental funding that's - that's over on the Hill, I believe passed by - by the Senate, and that includes the operations in the Red Sea and that includes some additional funding, about $159 - $150 million, for - to basically re-certify and refurbish SM-2s that are - that we have today and work through other weapons systems. So $1.6 of - of supplemental - we have about $1.6 of supplemental request for Ukraine that includes operations, and then of course our SIB supplemental. Q: And then - so you mentioned the DDG(X), SSN(X), and F/A-XX being re-phased and, you know, pushed back due to the budget caps. I wonder - the - the timing of this has been at issue in the past, just because there are three big bills that would come due potentially, you know, back-to-back-to-back, and I wonder if there's a sense of the timing of those now, given that re-phasing? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: Yeah, we look at that really carefully and - and we continue to look at it across the FYDP. I think, Megan, that we did a good job here as we look across, one, the prioritization, right, prioritizing our readiness and our people today and our ability to fight, and then F/A-XX, we still remain committed to that. That goes - that goes down to about $450, ($500 ?) million in '25, but we've ramped up across the FYDP. And the - as technology matures, we'll learn more and develop those - those weapons systems. An important piece to this, Megan, is not just focusing on those three weapons systems, but an immense amount of capability that we have, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, we get through our investments in things like Project Overmatch, our long-range kill chain, and - and the weapons that I talked about earlier. STAFF: USNI? Q: Hi. Sam LaGrone from USNI News. Talk - looking at some of this - submarine industrial base, spending would (inaudible) - you know, there's a lot of attention to (inaudible) and the Virginia as - what about Columbia? You know, are you doing everything that you can to keep that program on track? I think the last time we checked in with y'all, that margin was razor thin. Are y'all able to keep up with that pace relative for this budget? MR. RAVEN: Yeah, so our investments in Columbia continue. It is our number one acquisition priority. And across the submarine industrial base, we're counting on a lot of the same not only shipyards but suppliers to support both programs. So this budget, again, has solid investments in the submarine industrial base, really taking it to another level, but in terms of performance, several weeks ago, the Secretary of the Navy directed a 45 day review of all shipbuilding programs, not just - not just Virginia but look across the portfolio to assess really where we are on - in terms of production of each one of those classes of ships. We're continuing that work and we'll have more on that in the coming weeks. Q: ... Columbia is something y'all have, like, daily updates on. I mean, that is the number one acquisition priority and have been for some time. (Inaudible) now (inaudible)? MR. RAVEN: Look, the - the stress across the submarine industrial base is - is clear, both from the supply base and - and at shipyards. We're watching that extremely closely on - on Columbia. And again, I think, putting that in the context of the 45 day review, which we expect to complete pretty soon, will provide the - really, a - I think, a good picture of where we are across all shipbuilding programs. STAFF: Task & Purpose? Q: Thank you. Admiral Reynolds, you mentioned the investments in PB '24, the $6.9 million - billion in munitions. Have any of those munitions been built yet, the refurbished Tomahawks, the SM-6s, or are you waiting until PB '24 has passed before you can start building any of the munitions in PB '24? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: Yeah, the - the - so - so we can continue with the - the - at the F.Y. '23 levels of funding that we had, but that's a significant difference. That's, like, $2 - $2 billion, maybe $1.9 billion less than our '24 levels. And then the other big piece of this is that when we - when we phase in these - when we really try to ramp up our - our weapons systems, we'll - we will add what we call the (inaudible) and long lead time material to try to get the industry up to another level, and that requires the multi-year funding in '24, but it also requires authorization. So we need the budget before we can start those multi-year programs in '24. Q: But just checking, have any of you - SM-6s and SM-2s from PB '24, have they been built yet? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: We - we continue to build - we - we continue to build rate at the capacity that - that we can. So yes, we're continuing to build - we continue to build missiles and - and - and SM-6s in '24 and refurbish missiles that we - that we can. STAFF: (Inaudible) Breaking Defense? Q: Hi, sir, it's Justin Katz. Two things. On the carriers, your budget is going to move (inaudible) procurement from '28 to '30. That industrial base has been pretty vocal about the pain it believes is going to be caused by that delay, particularly with the interval between the procurement of 82 and 81. So could you speak to what you're doing to mitigate that damage? And secondly, you said during your remarks that you believe you can get to two point - or two Virginias per year by F.Y. '28. Can you talk a little bit about the calculus there? Mr. McCord was up here two hours ago saying, you know, we're not going to buy a Virginia sub this year because the (boats ?) are delayed. Other than pumping more money into the industrial base, what's going to change between now and '28? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: OK, for the carrier first, Justin, your - your question was on - on CVN-82 and capacity? OK, good. The - so again, CVN - you're right, CVN-82 was a '28 ship, and now is a - is a '30 ship. And - but we have funding across the (inaudible) for CVN 82 and 83 and then start and then start (AP ?) in '27 for those ships to try to to mitigate some of that get and get that long (retirement ?) material that we need. Again, as you know, this industrial base is tight and the carriers are built and the same yards that are Columbias are built and our Virginias are built and that we do our COHs. So working with everything we can do to unlock the capacity. And I think that the initiatives that we're doing, plus the AP, we'll do everything we can to get after that. MR. RAVEN: On on getting Virginia to that 2.0 cadence that we need, the turnaround is not going to come overnight but the good news is that for several years we have been investing in the submarine industrial base to be able to improve performance across the program. That include billions of dollars previously provided by Congress and we're seeing the signs that those investments are starting to make a difference in key areas. We've invested in hundreds of small businesses creating more than 1,000 jobs in the supply base. That's helping to expand through put and capacity for the supply brace, for the for the SIB. We're starting to see that that hiring is going better in a number of places. That has been a limiting factor in previous submarine construction. And so it's not going to turn around overnight but we're starting to see the indications that the investments that we have made are starting to show a difference. The challenge is that with many ship building programs, including submarines, the cycles are so long, it takes many years to build a submarine that it takes time for all of these of these foundational investments to produce the results that we need. But again, our estimate is that 2028 with these investments and with the acceleration that's still pending before Congress of that $3.3 billion, we expect to be at the 2.0 cadence that we need. STAFF: (Inaudible). Q: Hi, (Malory Schwart ?). Just want to follow-up on Virginia. So I understand that the two boats of your cadence is the goal for FY '28 but many officials have said you need to get to 2.33 in order to sell to the Australians under AUKUS. So I'm just curious, you know AUKUS is, you know, being built as one of the most important security partnerships in our generation. What are you telling the Australians about this decision to buy one per year and what it means for the partnership going forward? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: Well, it's one in one year and we have a plan to procure two in the in the in the out years. We're being very transparent with with all our partners about where we are and the scale of investments that we're making in this budget and that are pending before Congress. But to be clear, the investments made in this budget are those required to get to that 2.0 cadence that we need for U.S. needs. Thanks to the Australians and the support of Congress there are additional investments that we expect to bring us up above that 2.0 delivery cadence to that 2.33 that we we would need to produce the submarines to fulfill our AUKUS commitments and we're having regular exchanges with the Australians on the the timing and the shape of those investments. So it's an open dialogue. Q: And a quick follow-up on Columbia. A report just came out that the Navy is forecasting a one year delay on the delivery of the first boat. Can you speak to that? REAR ADM. REYNOLDS: We're seeing stress across the industrial base. And again, I think putting this into context of the secretary's 45 day review will add additional depth and context to the challenges that we're seeing across the ship in (our ?) portfolio and we expect to have that done fairly soon. MR. RAVEN: Can I just add one thing. I think, (Malory ?), I think we should be, you know, positive and very and I think excited about all of this opportunity in our industrial base and the money that we have in our supplemental funding, our PP24 and then this '25. And then I think I said before, heck, we were at building almost five fast attack submarines a year in the or in the early 80s. I mean we have while we were while we are having a generational change in our Columbia predecessor, the Ohio, I mean I think we have a real opportunity to get our industrial base to a better place and to give these ships and aircraft and weapons to our warfighters out there in the fleet. STAFF: Great. That's all we have time for today. Thank you all for coming. MR. RAVEN: Thank you. https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3704491/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister Justin Trudeau participates in High-Level Meeting on Haiti convened by CARICOM Heads of Government Prime Minister of Canada - Justin Trudeau March 12, 2024 Ottawa, Ontario Yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau participated virtually in the High-Level Meeting on Haiti convened by Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government and hosted by Jamaica. During the meeting, Prime Minister Trudeau urged Haitian stakeholders to come to a political agreement that paves the way toward free and fair elections and the restoration of democratic order in Haiti. He expressed his appreciation for CARICOM's ongoing leadership in convening Haitian stakeholders to facilitate political consensus toward Haitian-led solutions that would serve the people of Haiti. The Prime Minister highlighted Canada's ongoing efforts to support Haiti and CARICOM countries as they prepare to address the crisis. He also underscored Canada's ongoing commitment to Haiti and the Haitian people, who have experienced difficult years and now face a growing security and humanitarian crisis. He called on additional international partners to step up and provide much-needed support. Prime Minister Trudeau referenced his earlier discussion with Prime Minister Henry and recognized his contributions. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Baby boom in the Year of Dragon: New quality productive forces facilitate balanced population growth 16:33, March 13, 2024 By Liu Caiyu ( Global Times Chinese people always have a special preference toward the zodiac sign of Dragon. In the previous Year of the Dragon of 2012, there was a small baby boom. It's natural that in the current Year of the Dragon, another increase in the total population can be expected. Meanwhile, many are wondering what major trends will shape China's population policy, birth support measures, and related laws and regulations. How can long-term balanced development of the population be achieved, while also mitigating the structural impact on economic and social development? The Global Times sought answers from Wang Pei'an, Chairman of the Academic Committee of the National Health and Population Development Strategy Research Institute affiliated with the National Health Commission and former deputy director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission. According to Wang, in the Year of the Dragon in 2024, a year traditionally associated with an increase in birth rate due to cultural beliefs, and with the government's ongoing efforts to improve fertility support measures, it is expected that the newborns in China will see a slight increase. Wang said in a group interview that he noticed that many families in China started to plan to have babies in the post-epidemic time, which also coincides with the Year of the Dragon. He said that the increase in the number of marriage registrations may have a positive impact on future births. According to media reports, many places in China witnessed a rise in marriage registrations in 2023 for the first time in recent years. However, despite the expected slight increase in population in the Year of the Dragon, Wang said the trend of China's fertility rate is likely to continue to fluctuate at a low level for the foreseeable future. Data showed that in recent years, the fertility rate in China has dropped to below 1.3. The drop in China's fertility rate is the main factor that has contributed to population size and its structural changes, Wang said. "Only by promoting fertility rate can we achieve long-term balanced development of the population and alleviate the structural impact on economic and social development." Policy combination As economic and social development progresses, the younger generation's attitudes toward marriage and childbearing are rapidly changing. The concept of "having fewer children, but ensuring they are of high quality and well-raised" has become the mainstream societal view on reproduction. Wang suggested integrating the concept of fertility support into all economic and social policies to enhance the targeted effectiveness and implementation of fertility-supportive measures. This includes establishing a unified national standard of fertility supportive measures based on local explorations, and gradually reducing regional disparities in policies such as how subsidies are released and holidays given to fertility families. According to Wang, boosting economic support, such as favorable tax and housing policies, promoting education equity, and improving the supply of high-quality educational resources, are essential. "These measures aim to significantly reduce the financial burden on families in terms of child-rearing and education expenses," Wang said, adding that nowadays, people tend to invest more in their children, making the cost of raising children one of the main expenditures for families. At the same time, the costs of marriage, housing and education are also gradually rising. Furthermore, Wang said the country should work on improving the childcare service system, such as expanding the functions of community childcare services, improving basic public service facilities for infant and toddler care, and supporting employers to provide childcare services for their employees. Another reason why the childbearing population is reluctant to have baby is that many women find it difficult to balance between child-rearing and career development. He suggested optimizing the maternity leave system, such as implementing flexible working hours, to help workers find a healthy balance between work and family. Meanwhile, as a support to childcare service, Wang proposed the implementation of a comprehensive incentive, evaluation, and supervision system to encourage the elderly to participate in intergenerational infant and toddler care. This could include offering childcare subsidies in the form of meal vouchers, travel discounts, free park access and other benefits, Wang told the Global Times. Moreover, the sexual and reproductive health status of young people is not optimistic, affecting the national fertility rate, he said, suggesting offering free contraception and pre-pregnancy health checks. Talent dividend While boosting the fertility rate, how can the quality of the population be further improved? Wang said new quality productive forces that the Chinese leader proposed is conducive to enhancing the overall quality of the population, compensating for the decrease in population size. As China focuses on increasing its fertility rate, the quality of the population must also be addressed. Experts emphasized the importance of not only improving the health and education of the population but also introducing how new quality productive forces are going to shape the country's population characters. "The formation of new quality productive forces is conducive to enhancing the overall quality of the population and can offset the impact of decrease in population size," Wang told the Global Times. China's "demographic dividend" is evolving into a "talent dividend," he emphasized. The demographic dividend still exists, and the talent dividend is accumulated, which can provide talent support and intellectual guarantee for high-quality development. According to data, in 2023, China's working-age population exceeded 860 million, with an average of 11.05 years of education. The number of people with a college education surpassed 250 million. According to the China Population and Development Research Center's model projection, the number of working-age people with higher education is expected to reach 329 million in 2035 and 337 million in 2050, accounting for a continuously increasing percentage in the total working-age population, projected to reach 36.31 percent and 45.23 percent, respectively. Despite the expected decline in population growth, China's total human resources will continue to grow before 2040, and remain stable by 2050, thanks to improvements in health and education levels, providing talent and intelligence support to develop new quality productive forces, according to Wang. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing) March 12 USCENTCOM Conducts Humanitarian Airdrops into Gaza U.S. Central Command Press Release | March 12, 2024 USCENTCOM March 12, 2024 Release Number 20240312 - 01 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE TAMPA, Fla. -- U.S. Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force conducted a combined humanitarian assistance airdrop into Northern Gaza on March 12, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. (Gaza time) to provide essential relief to civilians in Gaza affected by the ongoing conflict. The combined joint operation included Jordanian provided food and a U.S. Air Force C-130 aircraft. A U.S. C-130 dropped approximately 5,280 pounds of food, including rice, flour, pasta, and canned food, providing life-saving humanitarian assistance in Northern Gaza. The DoD humanitarian airdrops contribute to ongoing U.S. and partner-nation government efforts to alleviate human suffering. These airdrops are part of a sustained effort, and we continue to plan follow-on aerial deliveries. -30- NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 Transcript Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder Holds a Press Briefing Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon Press Secretary MAJOR GENERAL PAT RYDER: Well, good afternoon, everyone. Just a couple things to pass along and then we'll get right to your questions. Today, the Department of Defense deployed four U.S. Army vessels from Joint Base Langley-Eustis to meet the eastern -- to the Eastern Mediterranean in support of humanitarian assistance operations in Gaza and the mission to build a temporary pier. The U.S. Army Vessel SP4 James A. Loux, U.S. Army Vessel Monterrey, U.S. Army Vessel Matamoros, and U.S. Army Vessel Wilson Wharf from the 7th Transportation Brigade Expeditionary all departed earlier today, carrying the equipment and supplies needed to support this mission. Once in theater, these vessels and their crews will establish a roll-on/roll-off pier capability that allows ship-to-shore humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza. We expect the pier to be fully operational in approximately 60 days, which will be able to facilitate the delivery of up to two million meals daily. Also on the humanitarian assistance front, this morning, U.S. Central Command and the Royal Jordanian Air Force conducted another combined airdrop into northern Gaza, where U.S. Air Force C-130s dropped over 5,280 pounds of food, including rice, flour, pasta, and canned food. Since March 2nd, U.S. Central Command has conducted eight humanitarian assistance airdrops into Gaza to provide essential relief to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict. C-130s and their air crews have dropped over 2,000 -- or 204,000 meals, 48,000 bottles of water, and more than 5,000 pounds of food items. Separately, today, the Department of Defense announced additional security assistance via the presidential drawdown authority as an extraordinary measure to address some of Ukraine's most pressing security and defense needs. This package is the 55th tranche of assistance and is valued at up to $300 million and includes capabilities to support Ukraine's immediate air defense, artillery, and anti-tank requirements. The capabilities in this announcement include Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, additional ammunition for HIMARS, 155 millimeter artillery rounds, including high-explosive and dual-purpose improved cluster munition rounds, 105 millimeter artillery rounds, AT4 anti-armor systems, additional rounds of small arms ammunition, demolitions munitions for obstacle clearing, spare parts, maintenance, and other ancillary equipment. Now, to be clear, we were able to provide this PDA due to negotiated savings on contracts to replace equipment from previous drawdowns for Ukraine. As a result of these cost savings, we were able to authorize a new PDA package for Ukraine today without additional significant impacts to U.S. military readiness. But this does not change the fact that we urgently need Congress to pass DOD's supplemental request. Today's PDA package, while providing urgent capabilities to Ukraine's forces, is nowhere near enough, and the only way to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs is for Congress to swiftly pass the supplemental. With that, I'll be glad to take your questions. Let's start with AP, Lita Baldor, on the phone I believe. Q: Hi, Pat. Yes, thank you. Can you just do quick follow-ups on -- on what you sort of announced? Is there a location yet for where this new pier is going to be in Gaza? And is the U.S. participating in any way in any of the other currently ongoing Marine vessel aid deliveries to Gaza? And then I have a question on the aid, but if you want to do those two first? GEN. RYDER: Thanks, Lita. So in terms of the specific location of the pier, I don't have that to provide to you. For opsec, I'm not -- I don't think we're going to provide that in advance, but of course as the pier starts to become constructed, we'll be sure to obviously keep you in the loop on that. In terms of the ongoing delivery of aid via the sea that I think you've seen in the press, to my knowledge, there is no DOD participation in that, other than the broader discussion of how we can complement ongoing international efforts to ensure that aid gets into Gaza. Q: Secondly, on the -- so on the -- the aid, I think a lot of people are a little confused about sort of the Pentagon, for the second time, finding money like you're finding, quarters in the couch kitchen -- in the cushions. So can you explain? Initially, we were told several months ago that the military had not anticipated the cost of some of the replacement, so some of the replacement was more than what they originally budgeted. So the military -- you know, the Pentagon is in the hole. Now we're told in some cases they thought that it was going to cost more than it actually cost. So it's kind of contradictory. Do you think you're starting to lose credibility on this issue? GEN. RYDER: No, not at all, Lita. And to explain, you know, we're talking about two different things here. One, there's the authorization to expend funds to buy equipment for Ukraine. And then there's the replenishment funds. And of course, we're out of replenishment funds. And so what you heard the White House announce earlier today is when we sent Ukraine weapons last year, the DOD negotiated contracts to replenish those weapons into U.S. stockpiles, and because of those negotiations, you know, we budgeted the full amount of appropriated funds for those contracts, but because of those negotiations, those contracts came in under budget. And so we have a modest amount of funding available -- and this happens from time to time -- but as -- of course, it's not something you can plan for. You can't plan for budget savings on contracts. And so as I highlighted on the top, we're able to use these cost savings to make up this modest amount of new security assistance available right now without significantly impacting military readiness. Because of the situation in Ukraine, obviously they are in an existential fight, they have an urgent need for help, so this is a way that we can provide a small amount of assistance urgently right now, but as I also highlighted, it in no way changes the need for a supplemental to fully fund and be able to provide Ukraine with the kinds of capabilities they need to defend their country and sustain this fight. Thank you. Let me go into the room here. Oren? Q: Follow-up question on the aid to Ukraine. Presumably, the $300 million wasn't found all at once, it's built up to that point. Why -- why wait until it was at this point instead of announcing a -- you know, half that, $150 million weeks ago, as you were already warning the situation was dire? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, so a couple things. So this covers multiple contracts. And as I understand it, as those negotiations came to conclusion, it's only been in the last couple of weeks that we've been able to identify the full amount that could be made available to do this. And so of course that's why we're announcing it now, because of the urgent need to be able to provide what we can, again recognizing the fact that at the end of the day, what we really need is the supplemental. Thank you. Lara? Q: Thank you. Two questions. First of all, since you were able to cobble together this amount of cost savings, are there additional potential cost savings you're looking at for other contracts to be able to send additional aid to Ukraine? And then I have a follow-up. GEN. RYDER: So the short answer is no. I mean, again, as I mentioned, you can't necessarily plan for budget savings. It's not like you can say "well, because I'm buying bulk, I can assume that I'm going to get this amount." And so it -- it's not a sustainable way to support Ukraine for the long-term, which is again why we really need this supplemental passed. Q: And then I think you mentioned in your initial readout that you're sending DPICMs -- additional DPICMs. Can you say how many you're sending? Is this the second or third time that you're -- you are sending a tranche of DPICMs? And what is the dud rate of the DPICMs that you're sending? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, so no, I can't provide numbers for operational security reasons, Lara, and I'd point you back to our previous statements on DPICMs. I don't have, in front of me, you know, the number of announcements we've made. As you highlight, we have provided them in the past. So I'd refer you back to those. Yeah, I don't have any information to - Q: And the dud rate? GEN. RYDER: I don't have any information to pass along on that. Tom? Q: Thank you, General. Just one clarification on the aid to Gaza, and then a question on Ukraine. So you said on Friday it was going to be 60 days from Friday, and then today, you just said it's going to be 60 days. So is it 60 days from today or is it 60 days from last Friday? GEN. RYDER: 60 days-ish. Q: From last Friday-ish? GEN. RYDER: Yeah. So within 60 days. So, I mean, count it from the day that we made the announcement. But, I mean, 60 days that this -- they'll be operational. Q: Thank you. And then on the Ukraine aid, how soon will the artillery that you described -- the artillery rounds actually get to the battlefield? And do you see it as shifting the needle much for Ukraine? GEN. RYDER: So a couple things. I'm not going to provide you with a specific date that this aid will arrive, other than to say we've been doing this for a while. U.S. Transportation Command, working with the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine, has processes in place to ensure that this aid can be delivered as quickly as possible. So it's going to be fast. And in terms of the impact on Ukraine, it will give them some much needed capability that will likely last in the weeks timeframe, but nowhere even close to what they need to be able to continue to sustain this fight, which is why we'll continue to work very closely with Congress to get the funding that we need to be able to support Ukraine in the way they need to be supported. Thank you. Sir? Q: Thank you, General. Do you have any updates on the HMC meetings with the Iraqi government? Have you got any understanding with them about the future presence of the U.S. forces in Iraq? GEN. RYDER: Sure. I really don't have anything substantive to provide at this point, in terms of updates. I mean, as you highlight, the Higher Military Commission meetings do continue. And so certainly as we have additional information to provide on the status of those, we'll make that available. Q: Based on the Fiscal Year budget that you published yesterday, there's an increase of the amount that funded to the Iraqi government and also to the Kurdish Peshmerga. Does that mean that you're going to stay for the whole year in 2025, despite the outcome, the results of that HMC meetings? And why there's an increase on that (inaudible)? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, again, I'm not going to get ahead of the outcomes of the HMC. As we have updates to provide, we certainly will. As it relates to Iraq, you know, I don't have the budget right in front of me, so I don't want to speak to specific budget line items, other than to say we value Iraq as a partner, we're longstanding partners, and when it comes to supporting Iraq and security assistance, you know, those are things that we -- that we obviously look at. But beyond that, I'm not going to have anything further. Q: ... not to stay until 2025? GEN. RYDER: Like I said, I'm not going to get ahead of the HMC discussions. I don't have anything right now that -- you're asking me to speculate on the future. You know, we obviously have a longstanding bilateral security relationship with Iraq, but, you know, I'll just leave it at that. Let me go to the phone here real quick. Jeff Schogol with Task & Purpose? Q: Thank you very much. Are there any ATACMS in this security package? Thank you. GEN. RYDER: Yeah, thanks, Jeff. Jeff, I don't have anything to announce on ATACMS. Again, as I highlighted in the top there, what this package does contain are critical munitions, to include additional ammunition for HIMARS, the 155 millimeter rounds, which Ukraine obviously, desperately needs right now. But nothing to announce on ATACMS. Let me go here. Patrick Tucker, Defense One? Q: Thanks. That -- that was my question but I guess I'd follow up with given the current state of the front line and -- and what officials have said about the current state of Ukrainian artillery and supplies and Russian supplies, is there a -- any urgency in -- in maybe giving them something different, like ATACMS, or is there any discussion about different packages that can go now that perhaps wouldn't have gone before when the battlefield looked a little bit more favorable to Ukraine? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, thanks, Pat. So again, you know, what we're announcing today is what we're able to, you know, provide unexpectedly, in the sense that we were able to put these funds together to get them these critical capabilities now. What we really need is the supplemental approved so that we can provide the kinds of capabilities they require long-term. Again, nothing to announce today as a relates to ATACMS. But, again, you know, going forward we'll certainly keep you updated on any developments. Sir. Q: Thank you, General. So on the -- you mentioned it was 60 days to construct a pier to deliver the aid. My question why are we not using Ashdod pier? It's a pier roughly 30 kilometers north of Gaza in Israel, which would seem to be an easier task just to use an existing pier rather than create a new one? GEN. RYDER: Yes. So this is the mission the Department of Defense has been given. It's a capability that we have. As I highlighted, it will enable upwards of 2 million meals to be delivered per day. But to your point. This is just part of a bigger effort, an international effort to get aid into Gaza. And so I am, you know, aware that there are other efforts. But as for that specific facility, you know, I don't have anything to provide on that. But, again, in addition to our maritime efforts, the airdrops, and then USAID working with partners in the region to open and expand the land routes. We will continue to do our part as the Department of Defense, again, cognizant of the fact that this is not just us. There is a much broader effort. Thank you. Q: So are we not using that pier because Israel is not letting us use that pier? GEN. RYDER: I don't think Israel said we can or can't. The Department of Defense has been given a mission to provide this capability. It's something that we have the ability to do. And so, something that we're going to do. Let me go to Luis. Q: General, who initiated this review of the assessment of the -- you know, looking back at -- at the readjustment of costs that (inaudible) part of this PDA? And there has been some reporting that it could go as high as 400 million. Does that mean that there is an additional hundred million that is -- that you're sitting on or is that just (inaudible)? GEN. RYDER: Yes, so as I understand it, Luis, I mean, this is part of the process of accounting, is when any of the services are provided with funding to do replenishment, they negotiate those contracts. It's not an unprecedented thing to come back with cost savings and then you turn those funds back over to the department to be put into the broader pool. So that's just the course of doing business. And as I highlighted, because this was related to multiple contracts, as it became clear that there were going to be these funds available, and as it -- and over the last couple of weeks as we were able to determine how much could be available, you know, with confidence, that was the decision to be made. And as I highlighted, I don't anticipate right now that we're going to be able to do future PDAs like this. Certainly not in a sustainable way. Q: This was not initiated as a top-down initiative, let's say, from the secretary saying, look for anything possible -- any financing possible that could allow for the replenishment... GEN. RYDER: As -- as I understand it, as the services, you know, and they look at those things, it becomes clear, hey, there is additional funding here, we'll put it back in the pot. How could we use that in a way that supports Ukraine in the near term? Let me go back to the phone here. Chris Gordon, Air & Space? Q: Thanks, Pat. So now that you've found these funds, is there a renewed push to look around for more savings, to find your money since it is possible? Is there any prospective savings among other services, not just the Army? GEN. RYDER: Yes, again, Chris, as I highlighted, this is not a sustainable way to support Ukraine. And so this, in a lot of ways, is, as I understand it, a one-time good deal right now. But, you know, we're going to continue to work closely with Congress to try to get the funding that we need, to the broader strategic point of they need to win this fight, and it matters because not only is it important for Ukraine but it matters for international security, to include United States security, if Russia were able to win this fight. OK, take a couple more. Yes, sir? Q: Thank you. I'm sorry. A question regarding the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act. The final version of DOD's 2024 defense bill says Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces to be equipped with air defense systems to (inaudible) counter-attack by missiles, rockets, and unmanned systems. To your knowledge, is there any practical option (inaudible)? GEN. RYDER: Well, we're still waiting for the 2024 budget to be passed. So at this point, you know, that's step one. So again, we call on Congress to pass that budget, at which time we may have more to talk about. Thank you. Last question. Carla? Q: Great. I'll take cleanup. Three questions then. So first, General Kurilla last week said that the most important thing to securing the Red Sea was interdiction efforts to prevent Iran from resupplying. Has there been an increase of U.S. interdiction efforts to try to stop this resupply? GEN. RYDER: Thanks, Carla. Yeah, I mean, it is obviously an important mission. It's something you know that we've been doing for a while in the Middle East region. U.S. Central Command forces have been working with partners and allies in the region for many years on the interdiction effort. But to your point and to the point that General Kurilla was underscoring -- is that if there are these illegal shipments of arms, capabilities, weapons, that we have a responsibility to interdict those, to prevent them from getting into the hands of terrorists. I mean, as you know, this is something, for example, that we've seen Iran sponsor in the past. It's certainly something that -- you know, that they do to try to provide capabilities to the Houthis. And so we will continue to work closely with partners in the region to help deter and prevent that from happening. Q: OK. And then two on Ukraine. First, there have been reports -- Russian reports that two Patriots were destroyed in eastern Ukraine. Can you confirm? And is the -- the U.S. considering replacing those if they have been destroyed, due to the importance of air defense? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, when it comes to Ukrainian capabilities and talking about the status of their equipment, that's something I'd refer you to the Ukrainians to talk about. Q: OK. And then lastly, when we're talking about this latest aid package, there has been -- this podium -- you know, you have said that, Sabrina has said that there's a risk in giving part of the $4 billion left in the PDA because there isn't a -- an ability to replenish those funds. But what is the risk in giving Ukraine things that the Army no longer uses, that do not need to be replenished, like 155 millimeter cluster munitions or M113s? GEN. RYDER: I'm not sure I'm following what you mean. Q: Is there a risk in giving them things from the Pentagon's stockpile that the Army doesn't use, like 155 cluster munitions? GEN. RYDER: Yeah, so as I understand it, the capabilities that we're providing to them are obviously combat-capable, effective capabilities, things that they can employ on the battlefield, right? So I'm not sure I'm tracking what you're asking, but the bottom line is they're in a fight, they have requirements. As best we can, we're going to work with them and our international allies and partners to get them what they need as quickly as they can, to include from our own stockpiles or, in some cases, if they're capabilities that we don't necessarily draw from our stockpiles, we're going to contract them out. For example, to the USAI program. So I'll just leave it there. Q: Again, can I follow just -- up -- because you said you didn't quite understand? If it is confirmed by the Army that they're not using M113 vehicles or they're not using cluster munitions, they're not allowed to use them, is the Pentagon willing to consider those as part of a shipment to Ukraine which is still authorized under the $4 billion left in PDA? GEN. RYDER: Oh, I see what you're saying. So for example, things that are going to be mothballed and things like that? So, you know, the bottom line is, Carla, it kind of goes back to what I was saying in terms of -- that they're going to have certain needs and we're going to have to be able to deliver capabilities that are going to be effective or they're going to be able to use them on the battlefield. If something is going out of the inventory -- and it -- and in some ways, I mean, it's just sort of dependent on what we're talking about here -- there could be costs associated with it, there could be, you know, retrofitting requirements -- you know, I'm getting into hypotheticals here -- but the bottom line is we're going to look at ways that we can support their needs. You know, there's nobody sitting around saying "well, we've got all of this ammunition sitting around that we don't need anymore, but let's not give it to Ukraine." So, you know, again, without getting into specific systems or, you know, making things up, I mean, the bottom line is we're going to look for ways to support them as best we can. OK? Thanks very much, everybody. Appreciate it. https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3705095/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By Joseph Clark , DOD News Specialized Army Unit Underway to Support Humanitarian Aid Delivery to Gaza The specialized Army unit tasked with establishing a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza to deliver critical humanitarian assistance has wasted no time in making the complex operation a reality. The first of several watercraft used to construct the pier and manned by troops from the 7th Transportation Brigade began the weekslong transit from the unit's homeport in Virginia to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility less than two days after President Joe Biden called on the military to conduct the emergency operation during his State of the Union Address. Today, four more Army vessels set sail from Joint Base Langley-Eustis to join the operation: USAVs Monterrey, Matamoros, SP4 James A. Loux and Wilson Wharf. The brigade, a component of the XVIII Airborne Corps, is the Army's premier watercraft unit specializing in Joint Logistics Over-the-Shore, or JLOTS. JLOTS systems can jointly employ Army and Navy logistics assets to deliver critical supplies to troops or civilians in austere environments anywhere in the world. "This is Army watercraft's moment, and we're up for it," said Army Col. Samuel S. Miller, the 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary) commander. "The U.S. and the world will see our humanitarian capability on display and in action forward," he said. "The 7th TB(X) is highly trained, mobile, versatile and capable to operate in these types of environments." Delivering the capability involves the complex choreography of logistics support and landing craft vessels that carry the equipment used to construct an approximately 1,800-foot causeway comprised of modular sections linked together known as a Trident Pier. Once in theater, the unit will begin construction of the causeway off the coast of Gaza enabling the flow of critical aid from the sea to civilians affected by the ongoing conflict. The capability is expected to be operational in approximately 60 days. Deploying on short notice anywhere throughout the globe is par for course for the units that comprise the XVIII Airborne Corps, said Army Brig. Gen. John B. Hinson, the corps' assistant commanding general for support. "We are the contingency corps for the Army," Hinson said. "We have units, divisions, brigade combat teams, separate brigades, that can deploy anywhere in the world for any type of contingency operation in 18 hours. "The 7th TB(X) is one of these units that falls in that category where all of their units are very deployable for an immediate response force for different types of contingencies all around the world," he said. Once operational, the pier will be capable of delivering up to 2,000,000 humanitarian aid meals per day. Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder previewed the capability Friday during a briefing at the Pentagon following Biden's State of the Union Address. "This is part of a full-court press by the United States to not only focus on working on opening up and expanding routes via land, which are the optimal way to get aid into Gaza but also by conducting air drops," Ryder said. The U.S. has conducted several humanitarian assistance airdrops into Gaza alongside the Royal Jordanian Air Force. The combined operations have delivered hundreds of thousands of badly needed meals to civilians. Biden said more aid is needed. Ryder stressed that the JLOTS capability enables the U.S. to continue delivering aid without putting boots on the ground in Gaza. "We'll be working with partners in the region to be on the receiving end of [the JLOTS installation], but at no time will we require U.S. forces to actually go on the ground," he said. "Our role will be essentially to provide the service of getting [the aid] to the causeway, at which point it will then be distributed." Miller said the unit's extensive training in environments throughout the world has prepared its soldiers to accomplish the mission in Gaza. JLOTS was last used operationally to deliver humanitarian assistance following the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti in 2010. Soldiers from the 7th TB(X) train extensively in deploying the capability around the globe, including off the coast of Australia last summer in support of Exercise Talisman Sabre, a large-scale joint defense exercise between Australia and the United States. "We understand the importance of this mission, and the interests of the world in this regard," Miller said. "When it may seem, at times, we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, we will forge across the water to deliver humanitarian assistance." That same determination was echoed throughout the ranks. "We like what we do," said Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Benjamin Tate, the chief engineer on one of the vessels that set sail for Gaza today. "We're extremely proud that we get to participate in humanitarian relief," Tate said. "Me personally, if my family was in that situation, I'd want somebody to be willing to help. So, when we were told that was the task, our guys are ramping the boat up and getting ready." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By Jim Garamone , DOD News U.S. Ships Leave Virginia for Gaza, More Equipment to Flow to Ukraine U.S. Army ships are moving to the Eastern Mediterranean to build a pier to supply civilians in Gaza with essential supplies, Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said today. The ships will establish a roll-on, roll-off capability that will allow ship-to-shore humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza. "We expect the pier to be fully operational in approximately 60 days which will be able to facilitate the delivery of about 2 million meals per day," Ryder said. The seaborne delivery will complement other means of getting essential supplies to Gazans. The United States is air-dropping food and supplies to Gaza and the U.S. Agency for International Development is working to get land routes open to those who need the supplies. Ryder noted that U.S. Central Command and the Royal Jordanian air force conducted another combined air drop into northern Gaza today. Air Force C-130s dropped more than 5,280 pounds of food including rice, flour, pasta and canned food. This was the eighth U.S. air drop to Gaza. "C-130s and their aircrews have dropped over 204,000 meals, 48,000 bottles of water and more than 5000 pounds of food items," Ryder said. In a separate announcement, Ryder said the United States will send another package of aid of $300 million to Ukraine. This one-time aid through the president drawdown authority will support Ukraine's immediate air defense and anti-tank requirements. "To be clear, we were able to provide this PDA due to negotiated savings on contracts to replace equipment from previous drawdowns for Ukraine," Ryder said. "As a result of these cost savings, we were able to authorize a new PDA package for Ukraine today without additional significant impacts to U.S. military readiness." Ryder said the aid does not begin to meet Ukraine's needs as Russian forces continue their attacks on the country. "We urgently need Congress to pass DOD supplemental requests," he said. "Today's PDA package, while providing urgent capabilities to Ukraine's forces, is nowhere near enough. And the only way to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs is for Congress to swiftly pass the supplemental." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By Beth Reece , Defense Logistics Agency Defense Logistics Agency Strengthens Allies, International Security Through Foreign Military Sales A program that transfers America's defense equipment to international partners gives the U.S. and its allies an upper hand on the battlefield. "We want to be interoperable with our NATO partners, and the Foreign Military Sales program allows us to work succinctly and without delay in a time of crisis," said Andre Hinson, FMS account manager for the Defense Logistics Agency and liaison to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency. FMS is authorized by the Foreign Assistance Act and Arms Export Control Act. The U.S. Department of State oversees the program while DSCA administers it on behalf of the Defense Department. Most individual cases are implemented by the Army, Navy and Air Force as they transfer service-managed platforms like F-16 fighter aircraft and M777 howitzers to global FMS customers. DSCA and the services then lean on DLA to meet international needs for repair parts that keep FMS equipment running. South Korea and Canada are among the allied partners that DLA supports through FMS, but current crises in Ukraine and Israel also drive some of the agency's current FMS work. "A large amount of our support is toward sustainment and material readiness for both ground and aviation equipment in those regions," said Hinson. Though repair parts make up the bulk of DLA's participation in FMS cases managed at service levels, two DLA entities manage cases of their own: DLA Disposition Services and the Defense Logistics Information Service. DLA Disposition Services provides excess material to eligible countries on an as-is, where-is basis. Typical examples include medical equipment, office equipment, basic field equipment, clothing and spare parts. Excess tactical vehicles may also be transferred if available. DLIS provides foreign customers with coding and cataloging data for DLA-managed items, as well. The information shared ranges from national stock numbers and maximum-release quantities to item description and weight. DLIS can also provide tailored information depending on nations' unique needs. "DLIS has assisted countries that are looking for alternate items when the current NSN they have is no longer available, for example," said Ray Woods, also a DLA FMS account manager and DSCA liaison. "They can even help get cataloging data translated and provide maintenance instructions. That type of support has been significant for Ukraine." Requesting Support For an FMS case to begin, a letter of request must be sent from the eligible foreign nation's embassy to the U.S. Embassy. Each case is unique and may require discussions to develop requirements and an actionable agreement. The State Department helps determine what the requester may or may not have. From there, requests are filtered down to a case manager through DSCA, and the case manager works with the nation to build a letter of acceptance outlining the transaction, to include how much of an item the customer needs, when they want it and other terms. All requests include the amount the buyer will spend and indicate whether the partner knows what they'll buy. A request that outlines which items will be purchased is known as a Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Agreement, which helps DLA project future demand and invest in additional stock. "With CLSSA, they're telling us, 'I'm going to buy these things and I'm going to give you 30% upfront to use toward my future purchases,'" Woods said. Requests that don't identify the specific items needed are non-CLSSA, or blanket-order cases for designated timeframes. Customers are aware such orders can take longer to fulfill, Woods said, adding that the agency tracks material availability to measure how well it meets needs. The goal for CLSSA items is 85% although it's currently at 89% for the four major weapons systems DLA supports in Israel. "Currently, non-CLSSA has a material availability of 65.8%, which is very good for items we do not demand plan for," he continued. Hinson pointed out that DLA can sometimes overcome availability obstacles, especially for urgent needs. "When there's been an aircraft on the ground that a particular nation needed for mission support, for example, we were able to move material out much quicker than normal, even within 30 days." In cases where foreign partners use equipment U.S. forces no longer use, FMS requests include an agreement that DLA will continue to support sustainment needs despite low demands. "If parts are no longer in our inventory, DLA item managers will work with industry to procure them, but the customer understands the lead time for those items can be potentially long and they're willing to wait if it's not a readiness priority," said Woods. Orders for FMS items enter DLA through the same automated systems used by U.S. military customers but include a unique code that identifies the buyer as an FMS customer. Woods added that DLA charges FMS customers the same it does other organizations, but the customer relies on a third-party logistics provider to pick up material from DLA locations and ship it internationally. Foreign partners are also required to use items as specified in the agreement and must dispose of material on their own. "We constantly remind countries that once items have been received, they can't return them to us," said Hinson. However, DSCA's Worldwide Warehouse Redistribution Service allows FMS customers to resell excess spare parts to other allied partners. "So if one nation purchases five widgets but only needs two, it can make the other three available through WWRS," he continued. Monthly and quarterly meetings with international customers help make DLA's support successful, Woods added. Discussions focus on whether the agency is doing enough to meet sustainment requirements and possible supply discrepancies. "The countries have invested in their supply chains by sending what we consider security liaisons or senior logisticians here to the United States on two-year rotations, so those are the representatives that we're in touch with on a continual basis," said Hinson. "They also have points of contact at our major subordinate commands to resolve issues as they surface." The benefits of DLA's participation in FMS surpass interoperability. Larger orders for similar items help the agency achieve better prices for all customers while also supporting U.S. foreign policy, said Woods. "We're not the only nation with a robust supply chain. If we don't stay in close ties and collaboration with our NATO countries, they have the option to go elsewhere to procure sustainment for their equipment," said Hinson, pointing to adversaries such as China. "But any time we share parts for weapons systems that are similar or the same as those used by our allies, we're more effective as a team." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By David Vergun , DOD News Leaders Discuss Security Priorities for Western Hemisphere The 2022 National Defense Strategy states that the department's top priority is defense of the U.S. homeland against the growing multidomain threats posed by China and Russia, said Rebecca Zimmerman, who testified at a House Armed Services Committee posture hearing today. While China and Russia pose the most danger to the homeland, the strategy also mentions threats from Iran and North Korea, said Zimmerman, who is performing the duties of assistant secretary of defense for homeland defense and hemispheric affairs. "North Korea is expanding its nuclear and missile capability to threaten the homeland. Iran is testing space-launched technologies, and global terrorist groups require continued monitoring," she said. "Emerging technologies pose new challenges to strategic stability and demand that we adapt and adjust our posture, deterring adversaries from employing advanced threats by denying them the benefits of their aggression," she said. Small, uncrewed aircraft systems proliferate in the open market and their costs have decreased while their capabilities have rapidly increased, posing a threat to the homeland, Zimmerman said. The United States also continues to face the challenge of natural and manmade hazards, she said. Last year the U.S. homeland endured 114 incidents, 24 more than in 2022, caused by natural hazards including severe storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods and wildfires, Zimmerman said. In December, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III approved a classified homeland defense policy guidance updating the Defense Department's approach to homeland defense to account for major changes in the global security environment, she said, adding that the department plans to publish an unclassified version later this year. "The guidance looks to meet the challenges we face today by driving action across the department to deter threats of aggression or strategic attack to the homeland across multiple domains and the spectrum of conflict," she said. The guidance also identifies initiatives that contribute to DOD's ability to project power, defend the homeland and in the event of a conflict, maintain continuity of wartime operations, she said. Defense support to civil authorities is an important DOD activity, supporting the American public and U.S. partners in responding to disasters, public health emergencies and border security, so long as these activities do not impair warfighting readiness, Zimmerman noted. Today between 2,500 and 3,000 military personnel are deployed to the Southwest border, supporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection activities. DOD has supported this mission for 18 of the last 21 years, she said. "The United States derives immense benefit from a stable, peaceful and democratic Western Hemisphere that reduces security threats to our nation," Zimmerman said. The U.S. is deepening partnerships with Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia and Chile, while reinforcing democratic institutions, civilian control of the military and respect for human rights and the rule of law, she said. On Feb. 22, Austin participated in the 5th North American Defense Ministerial virtually with his counterparts from Mexico and Canada to discuss opportunities to strengthen North American defense cooperation, she said. DOD is also working to sustain the department's supporting role in Central America and the Caribbean for institutional capacity building, humanitarian assistance and disaster response, she said. In addition, the department is participating in U.S. government efforts to support a U.N.-backed multinational security support mission in Haiti to assist the Haitian national police, she said. Army Gen. Laura Richardson, commander of U.S. Southern Command, who also testified, said the National Security Strategy recognizes the direct link between Latin American and Caribbean security and U.S. security. Richardson emphasized strengthened partnerships in the region to address challenges from China, Russia, other adversaries and criminals. "The good news is working with our very willing partners leads to the best defense. We must use all available levers to strengthen our partnerships with the 28 like-minded democracies in this hemisphere who understand the power of working together to counter these shared threats," she said. "The United States remains the preferred and most trusted security partner in the region. We build trust through investment and security cooperation programs that train and equip our partner militaries and security forces, a robust joint exercise program to build interoperability and the development and employment of emerging technologies," she said. Richardson also mentioned robust interagency partnerships as being important, along with non-federal entities. Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot, commander of U.S. Northern Command, who also testified, noted in his prepared remarks: "Transnational criminal organizations in Mexico and elsewhere in the Western Hemisphere continue to foster instability and challenge the rule of law, creating potential opportunities for our state and non-state adversaries to expand their access and influence along our southern approaches. "Irregular migration through Mexico reached record levels in the last year, and drug-related violence has escalated as rival cartels fight for control of lucrative drug and human trafficking routes. Cartels have also demonstrated a growing willingness to directly engage Mexican military, security forces, and government officials, highlighting the need for continued theater security cooperation with our partners in Mexico." Guillot also noted in his prepared remarks the rapid proliferation of small unmanned aerial system technology and usage in the homeland, including near military installations. "While most of this activity can likely be attributed to hobbyists, sUAS could be exploited by nefarious actors for surveillance, illicit trafficking, orin a worst case - attacks on domestic critical infrastructure. Unauthorized sUAS flights over government installations and civilian infrastructure have the potential to disrupt critical services and threaten force protection and mission assurance," he stated. Northcom does employ its own UAS as part of its mission, he added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Poland - AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder Missiles Media/Public Contact: pm-cpa@state.gov Transmittal No: 24-26 WASHINGTON, March 12, 2024 -- The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Poland of AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder Missiles and related elements of logistics and program support for an estimated cost of $219.1 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today. The Government of Poland has requested to buy two hundred thirty-two (232) AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II Tactical Missiles and sixteen (16) AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II Tactical Missile Guidance Units. Also included are missile containers; training aids; active optical target detectors; spares; support equipment; missile support; U.S. Government and contractor technical assistance; and other related elements of logistics and program support. The estimated total cost is $219.1 million. This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a NATO Ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in Europe. The proposed sale will improve Poland's capability to meet current and future operational needs. The additional missiles will allow Poland to bolster its defenses while increasing NATO interoperability. Poland already has these missiles in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing the additional weapons into its armed forces. The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region. The principal contractor will be RTX Corporation, Tucson, AZ. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale. Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Poland. However, periodic travel on a temporary basis will be required in conjunction with program, technical, and management oversight and support requirements. There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale. The description and dollar value are for the highest estimated quantity and dollar value based on initial requirements. Actual dollar value will be lower depending on final requirements, budget authority, and signed sales agreement(s), if and when concluded. All questions regarding this proposed Foreign Military Sale should be directed to the State Department's Bureau of Political Military-Affairs, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, pm-cpa@state.gov. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Haiti: Statement by the Spokesperson on the political and security situation European External Action Service (EEAS) 12.03.2024 EEAS Press Team The European Union welcomes the important progress achieved at Monday's meeting in Kingston, Jamaica, between Haitian political forces and international partners. The EU commends CARICOM for the tireless facilitation efforts that have made this possible. A viable, inclusive and sustainable Haitian-led political transition is the only option to put the country on a pathway to stability, where the rule of law can be restored, and the human rights of the population upheld. The EU strongly supports the continuing efforts to ensure this. Over the past two weeks, criminal gangs have unleashed a new tide of violence in Haiti, inflicting further suffering on the people and bringing the country to the brink. It is essential that the ongoing political efforts translate swiftly into improvements on the ground. The EU therefore emphasises the importance of swiftly deploying the Multinational Security Support Mission, led by Kenya, and authorised by the UN Security Council under Resolution 2699/2023. As a long-standing partner of Haiti, a major donor of humanitarian assistance and one of the main providers of development cooperation, the EU remains committed to the future of the country. For French version click here https://europa.eu/!T8KvH4 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China urges S.Korea to refrain from hyping up SCS issue Global Times By Chen Qingqing Published: Mar 12, 2024 07:00 PM The Chinese foreign ministry urged South Korea on Tuesday to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the South China Sea issue, following South Korean foreign ministry's remarks regarding a recent incident during which Philippine vessels had trespassed into the waters off China's Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef), and a spokesperson from the ministry said exterritorial countries should not become troublemakers on the issue. In response to the "deep concerns" of South Korea over the incident between China and the Philippines, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry, told a press conference on Tuesday that China has noted the relevant remarks made by the spokesperson of the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on which we express serious concern. Regarding the incident of the Philippine vessels illegally trespassing on Ren'ai Jiao on March 5, Wang Wenbin said China is gravely concerned about the statement of the South Korea's Foreign Ministry spokesperson. "I would like to stress once again that what caused the event is that the Philippine side went against its pledges and infringed upon China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," the spokesperson said, noting that China took necessary management and control measures in accordance with the law. The maneuvers were professional, restraint, reasonable and lawful. The responsibility for the incident lies entirely with the Philippines, the spokesperson stressed. South Korea is not a party to the South China Sea issue. However, in recent years, it has changed its prudent and neutral position that it had adhered to for years, and alluded to or blamed China on the South China Sea issue on multiple occasions, Wang Wenbin said. We once again urge the South Korea to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the matter, and avoid adding unnecessary burden to the China-South Korea relations, the spokesperson said. Responding to question from foreign media that what countries can comment on issues in the South China Sea, Wang Wenbin said Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed last week that with joint efforts of China and the ASEAN countries, the South China Sea has remained peaceful and stable in a turbulent world. It is hard-won and should be treasured by all. One of the most important experience we have drawn is that we must adhere to two principles. First, differences should be properly managed and resolved through dialogue, consultation, or negotiation between states directly involved. Second, peace at the sea should be upheld by China and ASEAN countries working together. It is also the core essence of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed in 2002, the spokesperson said. I want to reiterate here that if certain countries truly want to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, they should respect the effort of China and relevant ASEAN countries to properly address disputes through dialogue and consultation and safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, and refrain from stirring up troubles in the region, Wang Wenbin noted. "In face of unwarranted provocation, we will respond with prompt and legitimate countermeasures. We also urge certain countries outside this region not to make provocations, pick sides, or stir up troubles and problems in the South China Sea." Also on Tuesday, the Philippine foreign ministry said it had received some proposals from China, but it said they would not be considered as they were against its national interests, according to media reports. China has indisputable sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao (South China Sea islands). There's no territorial disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Proceeding from its bilateral relationship with the Philippines and peace and stability in the South China Sea, China has made proposals to the Philippines on managing the situation at sea and carrying out maritime cooperation, Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday. "Regrettably, the Philippines has not yet responded to most of the proposals and made frequent infringements and provocations at sea. Such moves seriously undermine the atmosphere of communication and cooperation between China and the Philippines," the spokesperson added. He also emphasized that China's position on the South China Sea issue is consistent. We stand ready to continue to work with the Philippines to properly handle differences through dialogue and consultation. At the same time, we will take resolute measures to firmly safeguard our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China calls for immediate cease-fire as Gaza conflict defies Ramadan Global Times By Yang Sheng and Du Qiongfang Published: Mar 12, 2024 10:36 PM A cease-fire in Gaza has not materialized despite the arrival of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, with international concern over the ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis ramping up. China on Tuesday called for an immediate cease-fire and ensuring access to humanitarian aid for the people in the region. Chinese analysts said the conflict will likely continue, and even though both Israel and Hamas are tired, neither side can find an acceptable way out to end the war. The US-led mediation was unfair to the Palestinians because a "temporary cease-fire" based on prisoner swaps is unreliable and unsustainable. The US' unilateral approach and vetoes of a cease-fire, have derailed UN Security Council mechanisms, which means that the conflict will continue. Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said at a routine press conference on Tuesday that "The current round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has lasted for more than five months, exceeding the duration of all Middle East wars except the first one, resulting in a particularly high number of deaths, especially among civilians, surpassing all previous Middle East conflicts." According to the latest data provided by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, since the beginning of the conflict on October 7, 2023, more than 30,228 Palestinians have been killed, and about 71,377 have been injured, mostly civilians. More than 1,200 Israelis were killed, and about 5,432 injured. The UN estimates that about 1.7 million people are displaced in Gaza. "The killing of Gaza civilians must stop, the injustice toward the Palestinian people must be corrected, and the double standards in dealing with human rights and international humanitarian law must be abandoned. The longer the flames in Gaza flare up, the more the humanity is scourged by conscience, the more the cornerstone of justice is eroded," Wang said. The international community must act urgently to set the immediate cease-fire as an overwhelming priority and the humanitarian aid in Gaza as a pressing moral responsibility, the spokesperson urged. Hard to find way out UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that "Even though Ramadan has begun, the killing, bombing and bloodshed continue in Gaza... My strongest appeal today is to honor the spirit of Ramadan by silencing the guns and removing all obstacles to ensure the delivery of lifesaving aid at the speed and massive scale required." All remaining Israeli hostages or prisoners taken by Hamas must be released immediately too, the UN chief said, noting that the "catastrophic Israeli onslaught in Gaza" is now in its sixth month. Egypt, Qatar and the US had sought to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas before the start of Ramadan on Monday, and there had been optimism for a last-minute deal that would allow for the release of some Israeli hostages held in Gaza and Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, The New York Times reported on Sunday. But weeks of indirect negotiations have stalled, and a top Hamas political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, said in a televised speech on Sunday that Hamas wanted an agreement that would end the war, guarantee the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, return displaced Palestinians to their homes and provide for the humanitarian needs of Gazans. Israel "wants to get its prisoners back and then resume the war on our people," he said, according to the report. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he intends to press ahead with an invasion of the city of Rafah on the southern border of the Gaza Strip in defiance of US President Joe Biden, who has warned such an offensive would be a "red line." Netanyahu blames Hamas for not releasing Israeli hostages, Politico reported on Sunday. As to why the US-proposed deal has failed to reach a halt in hostilities, Mei Hualong, an assistant professor at Peking University on Middle East studies, said the deal was unfair for the Palestinians so Hamas believes they would rather continue the fight to let Israel keep suffering from the pressure. "If Gaza's border remained blockaded by Israel during the pause while Israeli forces receive further supplies from the US that will enable them to restart the conflict and cause more bloodshed, it would not be a fair deal for Hamas and the people in Gaza, and this is why the US was unable to broker a deal," Mei noted. Unfortunately, during this process, the UN Security Council cannot play an effective role as long as the US continues with its stance and approach for mediation, said Liu Zhongmin, a professor at the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University. The almost-daily phone calls stopped months ago. Now tensions between Biden and Netanyahu have burst into the open as the two leaders bicker publicly, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. Late last week, the US announced its army would build a pier to bring aid to civilians in Gaza, with food short and relief groups warning of famine amid Israel's assault. Biden demanded the Israeli leader "pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost," warning that "he is hurting Israel more than helping Israel," according to the report. While on the surface the issue of a Gaza cease-fire is causing tensions between Biden and Netanyahu, the US has also repeatedly vetoed resolutions for immediate cease-fire proposed by many countries in the UN Security Council, giving Israel the green light to continue its deadly operations in Gaza, Liu noted. In other words, the US does not want the UN Security Council to play a key role in mediating the conflict, as Washington wants to take the credit alone if there is any possibility of a cease-fire. Now, although the relationship between Biden and Netanyahu is tense, the US is still not imposing enough pressure to stop the killing in Gaza, experts said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mozambique: ICRC calls on respect for civilians, ramps up support to Mozambique Red Cross response to a new wave of displacements in Cabo Delgado ICRC - International Committee of the Red Cross Maputo (ICRC) -- Nearly 100,000 people, more than half of them children, have been displaced in one month due to an escalation of armed violence in Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique. The new wave of displacements is taking place against the backdrop of a protracted cholera outbreak, heightening the risk of infectious diseases for displaced families and host communities, who share crowded accommodations with poor sanitation. News release 12 March 2024 Mozambique "It is heartbreaking to see so many women and children traumatized and exhausted," said Catherine Gendre, the Head of the Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Maputo. "We call on all the armed actors to spare civilians from harm and respect their obligations under international humanitarian law." Some 46,000 people fled from the Chiure district of Cabo Delgado into Nampula province in search of safety. Many families have been separated, and unaccompanied children find themselves highly vulnerable. The ICRC works with the Mozambique Red Cross (CVM) to facilitate phone calls, reconnect families, and register unaccompanied minors. Despite several humanitarian organizations' efforts, there is still a desperate shortage of hygiene items, water purification products, mosquito nets, and blankets to alleviate the suffering of the displaced people. Jose Campira, CVM Nampula branch Provincial Secretary The ICRC is supporting CVM's efforts to prevent the spread of cholera by promoting hygiene and distributing household essentials among displaced families. In the past few days, 300 households in Namapa, Erati district, received hygiene kits and household items with support from the Belgian Red Cross, Swedish Red Cross, Spanish Red Cross, and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. In Cabo Delgado, the ICRC conducted rapid assessments of needs in the northern districts, where thousands have been displaced several times since December when violence significantly increased. It will work on emergency interventions to assist the most vulnerable people in these districts, as well as longer-term projects to provide clean water and sanitation. In Cabo Delgado, the ICRC helps people affected by the armed conflict. In cooperation with the Mozambique Red Cross, it works to reunite separated families, improve access to healthcare, clean water, and sanitation, and improve livelihoods, while promoting the respect of international humanitarian law. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Zionist forces killed, injured in Resistance operations IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Attacks by Palestinian Resistance groups have inflicted casualties on the Zionist forces in Gaza Strip, local media reported. Palestine's Shahab News said on Tuesday that a number of Zionist troops were killed or injured in two ambushes by Qassam Brigades in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza. Qassam Brigades have also said they have destroyed a Merkava tank of the Zionist Army. In an announcement on the same day, Al-Quds Brigades said they have carried out several operations against Zionist troops in northwestern Khan Yunis. The statement added that Al-Quds Brigades have targeted a six-member team of Zionist soldiers in an apartment by means of a strong explosive device. 9341**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah targets two Israeli military bases, destroys spying items IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah has targeted two Israeli military bases and destroyed spying equipment stationed there. Hezbollah targeted Israeli military bases in Birket Risha and Jal Al-Alam and completely destroyed them, al-Quds News Network reported on Tuesday. Also, Lebanese sources said that two people were martyred and 10 others wounded following several airstrikes on the Beqaa Governorate. The sources added that a missile fired from an Israeli warplane had crashed into an uninhabited region in the village of Hrajel located in the Keserwan District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. Israeli official: Zionist regime loses deterrence against Hezbollah Chairman of Upper Galilee Regional Council Giora Salz referred to the Lebanese Hezbollah's missile attacks, admitting that the regime's deterrence power no longer exists against Hezbollah, IRNA reported citing an Israeli newspaper. Referring to the continued Lebanese Hezbollah missile attacks and the occupying regime's inability to counter these attacks, he underscored that the Zionist regime is unable to revive its deterrence power against Hezbollah. He called for establishing a buffer zone between Lebanon's Hezbollah and the occupied Palestinian territories. Earlier today, the Israeli media confirmed that Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets towards occupied al-Jalil and the Golan, Beirut-based Al Mayadeen news network reported. Describing it as the largest since October 8, Israeli media revealed that "a salvo of about 100 rockets were fired at Israel this morning", detailing that it came in two batches consecutively, 70 rockets in the first, and then 30 in the second. The Israeli media said that the operation was in response to the aggression on Baalbek last night. Simultaneously, sirens sounded in the northern Golan, al-Ghajar, and Ain Qenya. 3266**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Senior Hamas delegation meets Hezbollah leader in Lebanon IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Delegates from the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas have held talks with Secretary General of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah. Lebanon's Hezbollah released a statement on Tuesday saying that the meeting had taken place between Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah and the Hamas delegation led by deputy chairman of the movement Khalil al-Hayya. According to the statement, the two sides reviewed the latest developments in Gaza and in the West Bank and the situation of resistance groups that support people in Gaza in the war with the Israeli regime. The talks also focused on efforts for an immediate truce in Gaza which includes the fulfilment of Resistance's conditions in line with serving the interests of Palestine and the people in Gaza. Following the genocidal acts of the Zionist regime of Israel against Gaza since early October, Lebanon's Hezbollah has targeted the regime's military bases in north of the occupied Palestinian lands in order to show support for the Palestinians. Hezbollah attacks have frightened Zionist settlers, causing the Israeli regime to relocate them to other parts of the occupied Palestine. More than 31,000 Palestinians, including thousands of women and children, have been killed in Gaza since the October 7, 2023, when the Israeli launched its aggression on the enclave. 1483**4261 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yemen confirms targeting US ship amid Gaza War IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Yemeni Armed Forces' spokesman Yahya Saree confirms that Yemen has targeted the Pinocchio, an American ship, amid the genocidal war in the Gaza Strip. Yemeni Armed Forces have accurately targeted the Pinocchio in the Red Sea with several appropriate naval missiles, Yemen's Al-Masirah TV network reported on Tuesday. Yemen will continue to prevent ships from moving to the ports of occupied Palestine until the end of the attack and siege of Gaza, Saree stated. The Yemeni army targeted two American warships in the waters off the country's west coast in solidarity with the Palestinian people and in response to the US-UK aggression against Yemen last week. Instantly after Operation Al-Aqsa Storm on October 7, 2023, the Israeli regime's army initiated an all-out devastating war on Gaza, resulting in over 30,000 martyrs and more than 70,000 injured, mostly women and children. 7129**9417 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel regime strikes Lebanon's Bekaa Valley IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- The Israeli regime has launched air strikes near Lebanon's eastern city of Baalbek on Monday, in the second raid in the region since the Gaza war began. The strikes targeting the Bekaa Valley killed one person on Monday, Al Jazeera news television network reported. Israeli aircraft targeted a former Hezbollah building near Dar Al Amal Hospital and conducted another raid on a warehouse west of Baalbek. Some media outlets reported that the strikes have killed one person and injured six others. The city of Baalbek in the Bekaa Valley is a Hezbollah bastion bordering Syria. 6125**4354 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah ready to confront Israeli ground invasion: Sheikh Qassem ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Tue / 12 March 2024 / 11:29 The Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Sheikh Naim Qassem, affirmed that the Resistance was prepared to counter any expansion in aggression, emphasizing that it is most ready to support Gaza until the Israeli aggression on the Strip ceases. Tehran -ISNA- In his speech during the memorial ceremony of three martyrs from the southern Lebanese village of Blida, Sheikh Qassem said Hezbollah is not concerned with any Israeli statement regarding a ground invasion of Lebanon, whether it can be an exaggeration or a declaration. He stressed that the Resistance remains defensive, supportive, and determined to confront Israel, affirming that it will not be intimidated. A few days ago, Sheikh Qassem "If Israel attacks, we will break its legs and the legs of those who come with it," Sheikh Qassem underlined during his address at the memorial of martyr Mustafa Salman in Beirut. "Are you threatening us with Israel?," the Hezbollah official said in reference to Western diplomats that have demanded Hezbollah cease its operations in support of Palestine. "For us, Israel has become weaker than a spider's web, and we see it nearing its end. If it attacks, we will respond, and if it fights, we will fight it. If it wants to threaten, we do not threaten in media outlets. Rather, we are preparing for any day when Israel chooses to expand its battle. We are waiting for it, God willing, and we will be victorious with God's help as we were victorious in July 2006," Qassem concluded on Thursday. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hamas to resist Israel for years: US Intelligence assessment ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Tue / 12 March 2024 / 11:29 In an annual threat assessment compiled by US intelligence, it was warned that Israel is expected to face challenges from the Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas "for years to come," amid the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, which according to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, aims to "destroy Hamas". Tehran -ISNA- "Israel probably will face lingering armed resistance from Hamas for years to come, and the military will struggle to neutralize Hamas's underground infrastructure," the report suggested. It pointed out that "media coverage of the destruction and loss of life [in Gaza] are being intensified by active social media campaigns on all sides, roiling public reactions among neighboring countries and around the world." Additionally, the report cautioned that Israel is likely to encounter increasing international pressure due to "the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip." Touching on the Palestinian Resistance's Operation Al-Aqsa Storm on October 7, the intelligence report mentioned that the Biden administration believes Tehran "did not orchestrate nor had foreknowledge" of the attack. The report pointed to Hezbollah's daily operations against the Israeli occupation military along the border with occupied Palestine, suggesting that the Lebanese Resistance group will persist with its actions. It added that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq would also continue its attacks against US forces in Syria and Iraq, warning that the operations of the Yemeni Armed Forces in the Red Sea "create a real risk of broader escalation." The assessment underscored the internal challenges confronting Netanyahu, forecasting that his Cabinet's viability "may be in jeopardy." "Distrust of Netanyahu's ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections," the report indicated, suggesting that "a different, more moderate government is a possibility." End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza Resistance bombards IOF gatherings in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Tue / 12 March 2024 / 11:28 The Palestinian Resistance in the Gaza Strip continues to engage in intense confrontations with Israeli occupation forces, particularly in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Tehran -ISNA- The Resistance confirmed inflicting casualties on the raiding forces. Fighters from al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, showered the headquarters and control center of the Israeli occupation military south of Gaza City with a barrage of heavy mortar shells. Meanwhile, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades bombarded gatherings of Israeli forces and vehicles with a barrage of 60mm mortar shells in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood in southeast Gaza. The Brigades' Resistance fighters engaged in fierce confrontations with Israeli occupation forces and military vehicles, using machine guns and RPGs in various combat zones within the Gaza Strip. Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for 14 operations against Israeli forces in the past 72 hours, ranging from intense confrontations to targeting concentrations of Israeli military vehicles, resulting in numerous casualties and injuries among the raiding occupation forces. In a collaborative effort among different Palestinian Resistance factions, joint operations were carried out against Israeli forces. In one such operation, fighters from al-Quds Brigades and Martyr Omar al-Qassem Forces bombarded a gathering of Israeli forces in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, released a video dedicated to the souls of martyrs from the occupied West Bank and the '48 occupied territories. On Sunday, al-Qassam shared footage of a drone-launched operation, using two anti-personnel shells that engaged an Israeli military point and command tents east of Beit Hanoun town, north of Gaza. Al-Qassam Brigades also announced that its fighters sniped an Israeli soldier with the Ghoul rifle in the southern part of the Tal Al-Hawa neighborhood in Gaza City. The footage showed an al-Qassam Resistance fighter dedicating the operation as a gift to the Yemeni Ansar Allah leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address YAF targets US ship "Pinocchio" in Red Sea: Yemeni Army ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Tue / 12 March 2024 / 11:28 The Yemeni Armed Forces targeted the American ship "Pinocchio" in the Red Sea with several appropriate naval missiles, the spokesperson for the YAF, Brigadier General Yahya Saree announced in a statement published early Tuesday. Tehran -ISNA- Brigadier General Saree confirmed that the strike was accurate, vowing that the military operations of the YAF would escalate during the holy month of Ramadan in support of the oppressed Palestinian people and Resistance fighters in the besieged Gaza Strip. It has been reported on Monday that the US-British aggression aircraft launched 18 airstrikes in the past hours on the provinces of Hodeidah and Saada, west and north of Yemen. The American and British aircraft hit the coastal province of Hodeidah on the Red Sea with 13 airstrikes. Among the airstrikes, eight targeted the al-Irj area in the Bajil District and the Ras Issa area in the al-Salif District, northwest of Hodeidah. In addition, three airstrikes hit the al-Jabbana area northwest of the city, and two airstrikes targeted the al-Taif area in the al-Durayhimi District south of the coastal province on the Red Sea west of Yemen. The US-British aggression aircraft also launched five airstrikes that hit the Takhya area in the Majz District in the Saada Province, north of the country. On Monday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported receiving a report of an incident 71 nautical miles southwest of Salif, Yemen. This comes as the Yemeni Armed Forces persist with their operations in the Red and Arabian seas against Israeli and Israeli-bound ships until the cessation of the aggression on the besieged Gaza Strip, as well as against American and British ships in response to the two countries' aggression on Yemen. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sweden attends first North Atlantic Council meeting as an Ally, in discussion devoted to NATO-EU cooperation NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation 12 Mar. 2024 For the first time in history, thirty-two NATO Allies gathered for a meeting of the North Atlantic Council on Tuesday (12 March 2024), with Sweden's Ambassador Axel Wernhoff taking his alphabetical place around the table. Sweden officially joined the Alliance on 7 March, and its accession was marked with a flag-raising ceremony at NATO Headquarters on 11 March. Speaking at the flag-raising, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg underlined that "Sweden's membership makes NATO stronger, Sweden safer, and all of us more secure". He added: "Sweden's accession shows again that NATO's door remains open. No one can close it." Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana chaired Tuesday's meeting of the Council, which was focused on NATO-EU cooperation, and featured the participation of European External Action Service Secretary General Stefano Sannino, as well as Deputy Secretary General for Peace, Security and Defence Charles Fries. Allies had the opportunity to exchange views on the European Union's Strategic Compass, as well as support for Ukraine, the Western Balkans, and the situation in the Middle East and North Africa. Allies underscored that the European Union remains a unique and essential partner for NATO, and welcomed work to further strengthen the partnership in a spirit of transparency and complementarity. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address DFA Statement on The Manila Times article Republic of the Philippines - Department of Foreign Affairs 12 March 2024 - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) refers to the headline article in The Manila Times titled "Chinese Official: PH ignored China's proposals on sea row", published on 11 March 2024. From the outset, the DFA wishes to underscore that the Philippines is approaching these confidential negotiations with utmost sincerity and good faith. We were, therefore, surprised by China's disclosure of sensitive details of our bilateral discussions. Furthermore, the DFA provides the following information to set the record straight: 1. The DFA had received last year a number of concept papers from China on various maritime-related proposals. In no way did the Philippine Government ignore China's proposals. 2. Upon receipt of the Chinese proposals, the Philippine Government had immediately undertaken serious study and consideration of all of them. The DFA had lengthy and in-depth consultations with the various concerned Philippine Government agencies which have primary competence, or functional mandate over the topics and issues in the said Chinese concept papers. Several rounds of internal discussions and deliberations were also undertaken within the DFA to consider the Chinese proposals. 3. It should be noted that any agreement or understanding to be reached with any foreign government should not only be in accordance with our mutual interests, but should also not undermine the Philippine Constitution or denigrate the legally-settled rights of the Philippines under international law, particularly the 1982 UNCLOS and the 2016 Arbitral Award. 4. While a few proposals were deemed somewhat workable, many of the remaining Chinese proposals were determined, after careful study, scrutiny and deliberation within the Philippine Government, to be contrary to our national interests. 5. The Philippine Government, thus, submitted counterproposals last year, which were products of extensive internal consultations. 6. Instead of considering the Philippine counter-proposals, however, the Chinese side presented its own counter-proposals, which again did not reflect our interests, especially on issues such as the South China Sea. 7. These matters were further discussed in person during the 8th Bilateral Consultation Meeting on the South China Sea (BCM) which was convened in Shanghai on 17 January 2024. Kindly refer to the DFA press release on the 8th BCM on what was agreed upon between the Philippines and China. 8. The proposal raised by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in March 2023 referred to a so-called "gentleman's agreement" wherein China insisted on actions that would be deemed as acquiescence or recognition of China's control and administration over the Ayungin Shoal as China's territory. As Ayungin Shoal is a part of the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, the proposal of China could not be considered by the Philippines without violating the Philippine constitution or international law. END NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Time for humanity to prevail, UNRWA says of Gaza catastrophe Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 6:47 PM The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip is "catastrophic" and deteriorating "by the minute." "We call the world to not look away. It's time for humanity to prevail," the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) said in a post on X. Reports of hunger and malnutrition are rife. By depriving Gaza of food and water, Israel's assault is literally starving children to death across the besieged Palestinian territory. Aid agencies have sounded the alarm over child starvation in Gaza, which is witnessing the fastest deterioration in a population's nutrition status on record. On social media, images from northern Gaza show kids scavenging through torn bags and on the ground to find grains for making soup. Videos show a severely dehydrated and malnourished boy crying. UNRWA 'backbone' of Gaza humanitarian response Separately, UNRWA said in a statement there is no other agency that is able to respond to the humanitarian needs in Gaza at UNRWA's scale. "We are the backbone of the humanitarian response," the statement read. "With over two million people in dire need of life-saving humanitarian assistance in Gaza, no other agency is able to respond at the same scale." The UNRWA runs more than 150 shelters and has at least 3,000 working staff in Gaza. Earlier this year, the regime claimed that 12 employees of the UNRWA were involved in the Hamas-led retaliatory attack on the occupied territories on October 7, 2023. The regime's allegations against UNRWA, which were not publicly backed by evidence, have prompted more than 10 donor countries, including the United States, Germany, the European Union, Canada, and Japan, to suspend financial support. The UN agency says some of its employees were tortured by the occupying regime to falsely admit that the agency had ties with Hamas and its retaliatory operation in October last year. Some of the countries that had previously stopped funding UNRWA, such as Sweden and Canada, recently announced their decision to resume funding the UN agency. The UN aid coordinator for the Gaza Strip says no organization could ever replace the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees due to UNRWA's "tremendous capacity" in handling the situation in the besieged Palestinian territory. The death toll from Israel's savagery in Gaza since October 7 stands at nearly 31,200, most of them women and children. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Over 9,000 Palestinian inmates subjected to starvation as Ramadan begins Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 6:07 PM A Palestinian human rights group says more than 9,100 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails are subjected to starvation with the arrival of the holy month of Ramadan. The Palestinian Prisoners' Club (PPC) said in a statement on Tuesday that Palestinian prisoners face a policy of starvation which has worsened since the start of Israel's genocidal war in the besieged Gaza Strip in early October 2023 as a result of a number of measures imposed by the occupying regime and its escalating crackdown. The measures include confiscating the prisoners' remaining food supplies, reducing meals as well as poor quantity and quality food provided by the prison's authorities which particularly affects the sick Palestinian prisoners and worsens their health conditions, it said. The PPC went on to say that Israel deliberately brings food that is not cooked well, and in some detention centers and camps, specifically affiliated with the military, some expired canned food is provided to detainees. In addition to the starvation policy, the Israeli regime has also deprived Palestinian inmates from practicing religious rituals, the rights group said, adding that prisoners were subjected to attacks several times after trying to perform prayer or even reading the holy book of Qur'an, the right group said. It said thousands of detainees are unaware of prayer times inside the cells due to lack of means of communication with the outside world, including radios. There are reportedly more than 9,100, including 3,558 administrative detainees, about 200 children, and 61 female prisoners. Hundreds of the inmates have been incarcerated under so-called administrative detention, without trial or charge. Palestinian detainees have continuously resorted to open-ended hunger strikes in an attempt to express outrage at their illegal detention. Israel keeps Palestinian inmates under deplorable conditions without proper hygienic standards. Palestinian inmates have also been subject to systematic torture, harassment, and repression. Human rights organizations say Israel continues to violate all rights and freedoms granted to prisoners by the Fourth Geneva Convention and international laws. According to the Palestine Detainees Studies Center, around 60 percent of the Palestinian prisoners detained in Israeli jails suffer from chronic diseases, a number of whom died in detention or after being released due to the severity of their cases. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Qatar says truce not imminent in Gaza despite Ramadan Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 3:58 PM Qatar has ruled out suggestions of an imminent ceasefire in Gaza where the Israeli regime continues killing people despite the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said on Tuesday that there was no prospect of an imminent truce for Gaza despite extensive mediation efforts in recent weeks. "We are not near a deal, meaning that we are not seeing both sides converging on language that can resolve the current disagreement over the implementation of a deal," said al-Ansari. He said, however, that indirect negotiations involving Qatari, Egyptian and US mediators were continuing to work out a ceasefire deal "hopefully within the confines of Ramadan". Some 2.3 million people in Gaza started Ramadan on Monday as Israel continued with a merciless offensive that has killed more than 31,000 people since it started in early October after Hamas led an unprecedented operation against Israeli settlers and military forces. International organizations had aimed for a ceasefire that could allow the delivery of aid into Gaza and the freedom of Palestinian prisoners in return for release of captives taken by Hamas during its October 7 blitz. That comes as sources close to the negotiations say that Israel's refusal to accept key conditions set by Hamas is the main obstacle in the way to reach a ceasefire agreement for Gaza. Hamas authorities have said they would not agree to anything short of a permanent ceasefire while calling for a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the unconditional return of displaced people to their homes. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia: Israel deliberately impeding probe into crimes committed in Gaza Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 3:28 PM Russia says Israel is deliberately obstructing investigations into crimes it has committed in the besieged Gaza Strip. In a speech delivered at the United Nations Security Council on Monday, Russian Deputy Ambassador to the UN Maria Zabolotskaya said Moscow would "welcome any efforts aimed at shedding light on the crimes committed during the Palestinian-Israeli conflict." Israel began the campaign of death and destruction in Gaza on October 7, 2023, after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. Since then, the regime has killed at least 31,110 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured some 72,760 others. The regime has also imposed a "complete siege" on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there. "We are convinced that the UN is not doing enough in this area. Thousands of people are being killed. According to the International Court of Justice, there is a high probability of genocide currently taking place in the Gaza Strip," Zabolotskaya said during the UNSC session. She said the world body "has no access to reliable information", stressing, "Israel deliberately impedes such access." On January 26, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a ruling in which it acknowledged that there was a plausible suspicion that Israel is acting contrary to its obligations in terms of the Genocide Convention in carrying out its military operations in Gaza since that October day. The ICJ ordered Israel to take all possible measures to shield the Palestinian people and prevent the crime of genocide. Elsewhere in her remarks, Zabolotskaya said Russia "unequivocally condemned from the outset the acts of violence committed against Israelis on 7 October." "We firmly believe that those crimes, no matter how heinous, cannot be seen as a justification for collective punishment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank and for Israel's flagrant violations of international humanitarian law against Palestinian civilians," she said. "That is our position, and as far as we can tell, the vast majority of the world's states think the same," Russia's envoy to the UN said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Leader: Palestinian resistance in Gaza will bring Israel to its knees Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 3:22 PM Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the resistance and steadfastness of the Palestinian people in the besieged Gaza Strip will bring the Israeli regime to its knees. Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with Quran reciters and memorizers on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in the capital Tehran on Tuesday. "Today, what is coming to pass in Gaza is the apex of crime, malice and brutality," the Leader said as he pointed to the 158th day of Israel's genocidal war on Gaza. "The [Palestinian] resistance is still standing strong and will bring the Zionists to their knees." Some Muslim countries, the Leader said, are taking sides with the Israeli regime in its brutal aggression. "In the Islamic world, some governments help the enemies of the oppressed Palestinian people. God willing, they will see the punishment for this perfidy." The Leader said it is a disgrace to Western civilization that Israel has committed unprecedented crimes in Gaza, such as the killing of children and babies through starvation and thirst. "Although the Zionists have all kinds of weapons and aid coming from the United States and the West, they have not been able to do anything whatsoever in the face of the unique patience of the people of Gaza and the resilience of resistance fighters." The holy fasting month of Ramadan started in the Gaza Strip, with a population of approximately 2.3 million, on Monday. The territory has been under the occupying regime's incessant bombardment for more than five months. Israel had rejected multiple calls from the international community, organizations and rights groups for a humanitarian truce to take effect before the holy Muslim month. Israel began the genocidal war on October 7, 2023, after Hamas-led Palestinian resistance groups carried out Operation al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. Since then, the regime has at least 31,184 Palestinians and injured some 72,889 others. The regime has also imposed a "complete siege" on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the Palestinians living there. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Israel has killed 400 Palestinians at food lines since 'flour massacre', says Gaza media Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 2:35 PM Israel's military forces have in two weeks killed more than 400 desperate Palestinians who were waiting in lines to receive life-saving aid for their families in northern Gaza, according to the Gaza media office. The media office said in a statement on Tuesday that people were waiting for aid trucks at the Kuwait Roundabout in Gaza City this morning when the regime's forces attacked them. At least eleven people were killed. The latest attack on hungry people in Gaza City has resulted in the death of more than 400 people since the "flour massacre." The flour massacre happened in late February, when Israel forces opened fire on Palestinians who were trying to get aid from a food truck along the coastal road on the southwest edge of Gaza City. Over 100 people were killed that day. Head of Gaza media office Salameh Marouf said on Tuesday that Israel insists on "targeting those searching for a living for their children to satisfy their hunger, and is deepening the policy of starving our people." He criticized the international community "for lack of seriousness to end the suffering of our people through a ceasefire and the adequate flow of aid." "What encourages the occupation to continue this crime is the compliance of the international community." Northern Gaza has largely been cut off from the rest of the territory since the regime started hostilities in early October.The blockade has driven hundreds of thousands of people to the brink. Shooting into large crowds of hungry people is the latest episode in Israel's genocidal war that has so far killed more than 31,000 people in the besieged territory. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sweden says against permanent NATO bases in country Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 12:57 PM Sweden's Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom says Stockholm is against the deployment of NATO bases in the country. Sweden recently became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. "Of course, NATO institutions will work in Sweden, but we do not want permanent bases for the alliance," Billstrom said in an interview with Turkish media published on Tuesday. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has said Sweden's entry into NATO "is a victory for freedom today. Sweden has made a free, democratic, sovereign and united choice to join NATO." Russia sees Sweden's membership in NATO as a threat to regional stability. President Vladimir Putin said earlier, "As for the expansion of the North Atlantic Alliance: yes, this is a problem that is being created, in my opinion, quite artificially in the foreign policy interests of the United States." "Russia has no problems, but the expansion of military infrastructure on the territory of this region will certainly cause our response." The Russian leader believes the recent move could aggravate "an already difficult situation in the sphere of international security." "Russia has no reason, no interest - no geopolitical interest, no economic, political or military interest - to fight NATO countries," Putin said in an interview with Russian media. Putin even said Russia is seeking to expand its relations with NATO countries and has no intention of damaging ties. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah highly prepared for 'eye for an eye' retaliation against Israel: Deputy chief Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 11:11 AM A senior Hezbollah official says the resistance movement is highly prepared for "an eye for an eye" retaliation against Israel if the occupying regime launches an aggression against Lebanon. Sheikh Naim Qassem, Hezbollah's deputy secretary general, made the remarks on Tuesday after the head of the Israeli military's Northern Command Major General Ori Gordin said the regime's army is working on "contingency plans" for an attack on Lebanon. "If the enemy intends to expand its aggression [against the Gaza Strip to Lebanon], the resistance is ready to respond at the highest level and it will never backtrack on its decision to support Gaza," he said. Qassem asserted that Hezbollah remain impervious to the Israeli threats and intimidation, noting that the resistance group will keep supporting Gaza and defending Lebanon. "The Lebanese resistance will speak its mind in the battlefield... This is our equation, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," he said. Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire since early October, shortly after the occupying regime launched its bloody war on the besieged Gaza following a surprise operation by the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement. Hezbollah's constant rocket fire has prompted tens of thousands of Israeli settlers to flee from northern areas of the occupied territories. The Lebanese resistance group has vowed to keep up its retaliatory operations as long as the usurping entity continues its Gaza onslaught, which has so far killed at least 31,112 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 72,760 others. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address When reading the dailies one cannot help but be astonished at the prevalence of toxic privilege that is so endemic in our society. Topping the cake is the fact that those we expect to at least try to do something to curb this toxic privilege are now joining in on the fray, hoping to benefit from the perks of toxic privilege. I reference my thoughts on the submissions made by some Members of Parliament (MPs) requesting to appoint 59 army recruits, a sentiment that boggles the mind. It is hard to fathom that these statements came from a legislator. Another MP submitted that the construction of factory shells in rural areas would promote sex work. An MP is also reported to have called for the public to be given individual licences for drinking. These abhorring statements are made by those in the echelons of power, who ought to use their privilege for the betterment of the entire community and not just a select few. This is what I term toxic privilege, while one may analyse and frame their points from a vantage point of privilege, the overall impact of these points of view are negative for the 99 per cent. Vantage point of the 1% These sentiments, in my view, are borne from privilege, I would not want to call it ignorance but rather toxic privilege. Standing from a vantage point of privilege, it is easy for one to argue that the construction of factory shells in rural areas would lead to a surge in sex work. I have two points to make from this statement. The first is that sex work is work; those in power should not, therefore, be seen to be demonising it or sensationalising the issue. I strongly believe in the do no harm philosophy; if your sentiments and statements are likely to harm someone, then it is safe for you to reserve your comment lest you hurt someones welfare. Also, from a distribution perspective, I would argue that centralising production systems in towns leads to skewed infrastructure development, with rural areas left wanting even of the basic infrastructure. Also, from a labour perspective, locating industries in the rural areas lowers the costs associated with access to the labour market. This essentially lowers the efficiency wage, which is the wage the one needs to be sufficiently nourished to take on the labour market. I argue that decentralising industry would make workers wages last longer as transport costs and rental costs would not be a factor to consider for most workers. We count on MPs to do no harm and be advocates for inclusive growth and broad base development in the kingdom. Corrupt privilege The other aspect, which I want to delve into, is that of corrupt and weaponised privilege. Instead of advocating for fair access to army jobs for all emaSwati, some MPs are advocating that they be allowed to appoint 59 individuals into the pool of recruits. This is blatant elite capture, and electioneering of State resources. Electioneering is a situation where those in political office utilise State resources to position ones self to win the election at the peril of non-incumbents. It is clear that the nation should not expect much from the current House in terms of dealing with corruption, through the establishment of transparent systems for access to public sector jobs and the private sector. Instead, we have a scenario wherein the MPs simply want to legitimise elite capture and a corrupt practice. The access to public sector jobs based on who one knows results in inefficient labour markets. It results in a situation of adverse selection; this is a scenario where one of those who end up getting the jobs are of poor quality compared to those who do not get the jobs. This has negative impacts on the countrys growth trajectory. The issue of payment for jobs and technical know who is a common secrete in this country. It is sad that the House we had banked our hopes on to fix it and ensure transparent recruitment procedure within the public sector wishes to use its privilege to perpetuate the practice. Social detachment This is by far the worst form of privilege, being detached from social issues. Just because one drinks in an exclusive and contained environment does not equip that person to utilise their privilege to suppress the middle class. It is bemusing how MPs would expect members of the public to have drinking licences. This is an indicator that pro-poor policies will always elude us as a country. Aid ship sets sail from Cyprus to Gaza amid Israeli naval blockade Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 10:36 AM The charity ship Open Arms has left a port in Cyprus towing relief supplies bound for Gaza as part of an international effort to launch a maritime corridor to break the naval Israeli blockade amid the US-backed Israeli war on the territory. The ship was seen sailing out of Larnaca port in Cyprus early on Tuesday, towing a barge containing about 200 tonnes of flour, rice, and protein in a pilot project to open a fresh maritime pathway delivering aid to a population teetering on the edge of famine. The EU Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, praised Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides for his "leadership in setting up the humanitarian maritime corridor to Gaza". The EU chief wrote on X that "the departure of the first ship is a sign of hope. We will work together for many more ships to follow. We will do everything in our power for aid to reach Palestinians." The Open Arms, a salvage vessel owned by a Spanish NGO and more accustomed to rescuing migrants at sea, is towing a barge with hundreds of tonnes of food sourced by the charity World Central Kitchen (WCK). Israel has been preventing humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza's 2.3 million population. Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) Cindy McCain said on Monday that famine is imminent in northern Gaza if the size of aid entering the enclave does not increase "exponentially." "Right now, WFP is gravely concerned about humanitarian conditions across Gaza, particularly the north which is in the grip of a humanitarian catastrophe," McCain said at a news conference in Rome for the launch of the initiative "Food for Gaza." The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday that, "The situation on the ground is more dramatic than ever, and it has reached a tipping point. We have all seen the reports of children dying of starvation. This cannot be." She revealed that the bloc had put into effect the EU civil protection mechanism to enhance its ability to deliver humanitarian aid. The Open Arms aid ship is set to dock in Gaza at the same time that a US army vessel is reacting the war-ravaged territory's shores. The US has announced its plans to construct a temporary facility to purportedly deliver humanitarian supplies. The US project comes as Washington has provided billions of dollars in aid as well as weapons that Israel has used in Gaza since October 7. A spokesperson for WCK said they were building a jetty unrelated to the US project. "WCK and partners agree more than one ship will be needed and are working towards a constant flow of aid," WCK said in a statement, adding that another 500 tones of aid were ready to follow the initial shipment. Israel launched the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7 after Palestinian resistance groups carried out a retaliatory operation into the occupied territories. Concomitantly with the war, the regime has been enforcing a near-total siege on Gaza, which has reduced the flow of foodstuffs, medicine, electricity, and water into the Palestinian territory into a trickle. Since the onset of the military onslaught, the regime has killed more than 31,112 Gazans, most of them women and children. The war has also destroyed the infrastructure of the besieged Gaza, damaged vital facilities or forcing them to shut down. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UNICEF says Gaza residents living a 'nightmare', urges end to war Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 10:23 AM A UNICEF spokesperson has urged an end to the war on Gaza in hope of stopping the "nightmare" of the Palestinians in the besieged territory. James Elder expressed his concern over the dire situation faced by the children of Gaza, saying no "suitable words" can describe the tragedy children are contending with. Elder emphasized the Gaza children have suffered the most from war, hunger, and malnutrition in the Gaza Strip. At least 20 people, most of them children, have died from malnutrition and dehydration in northern Gaza over the past days. Ashraf al-Qadara, spokesperson for the Palestinian Ministry of Health, has said the number of reported deaths only belongs to the victims who lost their lives in hospitals, but it is believed that tens of other people are dying silently due to hunger, without being transferred to hospitals. Catherine Russell, executive director of UNICEF, had previously highlighted the dire situation faced by the children in Gaza, emphasizing that Palestinian children are on the "verge of death." In her social media account on X platform, Russell stated that one in six children under age two are acutely malnourished. Humanitarian officials have issued a dire warning, stating that unless a ceasefire is implemented and aid is significantly increased, the toll of malnutrition and disease is expected to rise, leading to an alarming loss of lives. The Gaza Health Ministry has reported that the ongoing war has already claimed the lives of over 31,000 individuals. It said that over 2 million displaced individuals across 100 regions are also struggling to find enough food to eat. Israel has blocked the entry of food and aid supplies into Gaza, draining its limited health services. The head of the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees, UNRWA, said last month the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip is a "man-made disaster," and called for urgent steps to deliver aid to the besieged territory. Philippe Lazzarini added that the agency's "calls to send food aid have been denied and have fallen on deaf ears." Israel is using hunger and starvation as a weapon against the people of Gaza, and there seems to be no pressure on the occupying regime to end its genocidal war. The Tel Aviv regime is pressing ahead with its genocide campaign in Gaza with total impunity and the green light of the United States and its allies amid the silence of the international community. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hezbollah fires 100 rockets at Israeli targets after regime attacks Beqaa Valley Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 9:17 AM Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement has fired scores of rockets at Israeli targets in the northern part of the occupied Palestinian territories, following airstrikes by the Tel Aviv regime targeting a strategic region in the Arab country. In a statement, Hezbollah said its fighters attacked "the Israeli air and missile command center in the Keila barracks" with more than 100 rockets, along with "the missile and artillery base in Yoav" and nearby artillery centers. The resistance movement said the reprisal attack was conducted "in support of the steadfast Palestinian nation in the Gaza Strip" and "in response to the Israeli attacks on our people, villages and cities, including the most recent one in the vicinity of the city of Baalbek" that killed one person and injured several others. The regime's military confirmed that some 100 rockets were fired in two different barrages on Tuesday morning, claiming that some of them were intercepted. The rockets targeted the Upper Galilee region and the occupied Golan Heights, the Israeli military said, but claimed there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The attack triggered rocket sirens in Snir, Ghajar and She'ar Yashuv in the northern Galilee as well as Ein Qiniyye in the occupied Golan Heights. That came following overnight airstrikes that targeted the Beqaa Valley region of Lebanon. The Israeli military released footage of its overnight airstrikes against two targets in the Beqaa Valley region of Lebanon, saying it had attacked two sites that Hezbollah used to launch aircraft into the Israeli occupied territories. Meanwhile, the Israeli military claimed that it had targeted the source of the launches from Lebanon in response to the attack. Hezbollah and Israel have been exchanging fire since early October, shortly after the occupying regime launched its war on Gaza. The movement has vowed to keep up its retaliatory operations as long as the Tel Aviv regime continues its onslaught on Gaza. Israel waged its genocidal war on Gaza on October 7 after the Palestinian Hamas resistance group carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. The Tel Aviv regime has also imposed a "complete siege" on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there. Since the start of the offensive, the Tel Aviv regime has killed over 31,000 Palestinians and injured more than 72,000 others. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hamas will challenge Israel 'for years'; Hezbollah 'tying down' Tel Aviv: US assessment Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 7:35 AM A US intelligence assessment has questioned Israel's ability to eliminate Hamas, saying the Palestinian resistance group is likely to pose a "lingering" challenge to the occupying regime for years. The 2024 Annual Threat Assessment, which was released on Monday, predicted that Israel would "struggle" to achieve its declared objective of "destroying Hamas" in its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip. "Israel probably will face lingering armed resistance from Hamas for years to come, and the military will struggle to neutralize Hamas's underground infrastructure," the report said. It also warned that the risk of an escalation of the Gaza war, which is now in its sixth month, "remains high." The Gaza onslaught is "posing a challenge" to America's Arab partners because of growing public sentiment against both Israel and the United States caused by "the death and destruction in Gaza," the assessment added. It further predicted that "Israel will face mounting international pressure because of the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip." Israel waged its brutal US-backed war on the besieged Gaza on October 7 after Hamas carried out Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the usurping entity in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people. However, 158 days into the offensive, the Tel Aviv regime has failed to achieve its objectives of in the Gaza war despite killing at least 31,112 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring more than 72,760 others. Hezbollah operations meant 'to tie down Israeli forces' Additionally, the US assessment said that Lebanon's Hezbollah resistance movement will continue its attacks on the Israeli-occupied territories throughout the Gaza war. Hezbollah's operations are meant "to tie down Israeli forces as they seek to eliminate Hamas in Gaza," it added. "Hezbollah is calibrating this pressure on Israel from the north while trying to avoid a broader war... Hezbollah's leadership, though, probably will consider a range of retaliatory options depending on Israel's actions in Lebanon during the upcoming year." The assessment also noted that Iran "did not orchestrate nor had foreknowledge" of Hamas's October 7 operation. Netanyahu's rule 'in jeopardy' Furthermore, the assessment highlighted domestic pressures faced by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid the Gaza war, saying that his hold on office "may be in jeopardy." "Distrust of Netanyahu's ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections," it said. CIA chief calls for Gaza 'ceasefire' Meanwhile, during a public testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee on Monday,Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns said that a ceasefire agreement in Gaza could be "the first step toward what might be more enduring arrangements over time." "The reality is that there are children who are starving. They're malnourished as a result of the fact that humanitarian assistance can't get to them. It's very difficult to distribute humanitarian assistance effectively unless you have a ceasefire," he noted. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mar. 11: 'Axis of Resistance' operations against Israeli occupation Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 6:59 AM By Press TV Website Staff Amid Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians so far, including at least 14,000 children, resistance groups in Palestine and across the region continue their operations against the Tel Aviv regime and its Western backers. The major operations carried out by the Palestinian and regional resistance groups on Monday, March 11, are as follows: Al-Quds Brigades' operations on Mar. 11: Heavily pounded the headquarters and control center of the Israeli military, south of Gaza City, with mortar shells. In a joint operation with the Martyr Omar Al-Qassem Forces, shelled Israeli regime forces surrounding the Bakrun building south of the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza. Al-Aqsa Brigades' operations on Mar. 11: Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their vehicles with a barrage of 60mm mortar shells in the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza. Engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli forces and their vehicles with machine guns and RPGs on the axis inside the Gaza Strip. Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces' operations on Mar. 11: Detonated a highly explosive device targeting an Israeli army vehicle in Hamad Town, west of Khan Younis city. Hezbollah's operations on Mar. 11: Eastern sector: At around 10:25 local time, a drone attack targeted the Israeli military's missile headquarters in the Kaila barracks. At around 11:45 local time, Israeli soldiers were targeted on Al-Tayhat Hill with appropriate weapons. At around 16:00 local time, the Al-Sammaqa site in Kafr Shuba was targeted with a barrage of missiles. At around 16:10 local time, Israeli soldiers were targeted with a volley of missiles at the Marj site. Western sector: At around 10:25 local time, the Jal al-Alam site was targeted with appropriate weapons. At around 15:00 local time, Israeli soldiers in the vicinity of the Raheb site were targeted with artillery shells. At around 16:00 local time, an Israeli drone was targeted with appropriate weapons, forcing it to retreat and return to the occupied territories. At around 16:00 local time, Israeli soldiers and their artillery in Khirbet Ma'ar were targeted with missiles. Yemeni military's operations on Mar. 11: Carried out a military operation targeting the American ship "Pinocchio" in the Red Sea with several appropriate naval missiles. Iraqi resistance's operations on Mar. 11: Targeted the Ben Gurion Airport deep in the occupied territories with a drone NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yemen strikes container ship in Red Sea, says will intensify retaliation in Ramadan Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 6:14 AM The spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces says the army's naval division has carried out a retaliatory strike against a container ship in the Red Sea, and the missiles hit the vessel in an accurate and direct manner. Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the operation was launched against a "US-owned ship" in support of the Palestinians, who are suffering in the blockaded Gaza because of Israeli aggression and siege, and were in response to US and British airstrikes on Yemen. The US Central Command earlier said Yemeni forces fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles at a Liberian-flagged container ship, identified as Pinocchio, in the Red Sea. Saree vowed in a statement on Tuesday that the Arab nation's military will ramp up its operations against Israeli-linked ships in the Red Sea and the narrow strait of Bab el-Mandeb during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in solidarity with Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip. He said the Yemeni Armed Forces will continue to prevent vessels with commercial ties to Israel or heading towards ports in the occupied territories from sailing in the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, until the brutal Israeli onslaught against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip comes to an end and the all-out siege is lifted. Yemenis have declared their open support for Palestine's struggle against the Israeli occupation since the regime launched a devastating war on Gaza on October 7 after the territory's Palestinian resistance movements carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm. The Yemeni Armed Forces have said they won't stop retaliatory strikes. The maritime attacks have forced some of the world's biggest shipping and oil companies to suspend transit through one of the world's most important maritime trade routes. Tankers are instead adding thousands of miles to international shipping routes by sailing around the continent of Africa rather than going through the Suez Canal. Arabs urged to airdrop arms into Gaza amid Israeli war Meanwhile, a senior member of the Yemeni Supreme Political Council has called upon Arab governments to airdrop weapons and munitions into Gaza in light of the bloody Israeli military campaign against Palestinians there. "Arab governments should seize the favorable opportunity, and airdrop armament into Gaza for unarmed Palestinian population in the coastal sliver. This is a moral duty in the face of the genocide that the Zionist enemy is perpetrating in the territory. "No [international] law or mechanism has managed to stop the massacres in Gaza. The Israeli genocide will stop once Gazans are armed," Mohammad Ali al-Houthi said. He further urged Arab states to send paratroopers into Gaza if they want to stop massacres and the hunger crisis in Gaza and earn themselves the reputation of chivalry and assistance. Since the start of Israel's genocidal war following Operation al-Aqsa Storm by Gaza-based resistance movements on October 7, 2023, more than 31,000 Palestinians, including many women and children, have lost their lives. The Israeli military offensive has left a trail of destruction in Gaza, leaving hospitals in ruins and displacing around half of its 2.4 million residents. Israel has additionally enforced a comprehensive blockade on the coastal sliver, severing the supply of fuel, electricity, sustenance and water to the population residing there. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US 'all in' on Philippine chip sector as China tensions ramp up U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo also announced $1 billion in new American investment for the Philippines. By Camille Elemia for Benar News 2024.03.12 -- The United States is going "all in on the Philippines" and its semiconductor sector in a bid to diversify the global chip supply chain amid growing tensions with China, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Tuesday. Raimondo made the announcement during a two-day trade mission to Manila in which she was joined by 22 American business executives from companies including Alphabet's Google, Visa and Microsoft. "This is historic. The message is: We are all in on the Philippines," Raimondo said at a meeting with U.S. and Philippine business associations in Makati City, the city's financial hub. She also announced that American companies would invest $1 billion in the Philippines, spanning solar energy, electric vehicles and digitization. The U.S. delegation, the first of its kind to the Southeast Asian nation, comes as the battle for semiconductor supremacy heats up between the world's two largest economies. Washington has stepped up sanctions to limit China's access to the tiny electronic devices that power the modern economy, while encouraging American firms to diversify hi-tech supply chains. "U.S. companies have realized that our chip supply chain is way too concentrated in just a few countries in the world. Forget about geopolitics; just add that level of concentration. It's the old adage: 'Don't put your eggs in one basket'," Raimondo said. "The Philippines has 13 semiconductor assembly, testing, and packaging facilities. Let's double it," she added, without providing details on how that would be achieved. Raimondo said the Philippines was rich in critical minerals, which "are more important than ever." "So as companies are thinking about how to make their supply chain more resilient, they are looking for countries in the world where they can establish an operation. I believe you are at the top of the list," she said. Raimondo did not publicly refer directly to China by name during the Manila visit. U.S. engagement with the Philippines has increased since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office in June 2022, especially on security matters. At the same time, Washington has done more to cultivate economic ties with nations in the so-called Indo-Pacific region, which comprises 40% of the global economy, in a bid to counter China's expanding influence. In May 2022, the U.S. launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) with a focus on four pillars: Trade, supply chains, the clean economy and the fair economy, the latter of which covers tax and anti-corruption. Aside from the U.S. and the Philippines, IPEF partners include Australia, Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. However, the initiative is not a traditional free-trade agreement and has faced criticism for not providing any market access. On Monday, Raimondo met with Marcos at the Malacanang presidential palace in Manila before the president departed for a trip to Germany. "Today's gathering not only signifies a meeting of officials, but also celebrates the enduring relations between the Philippines and the United States - ties that have been built on shared sacrifices, mutual support and unwavering respect," Marcos said. In 2023, the U.S. ranked as the Philippines' third biggest trading partner, its largest export market and fifth highest source of imports, according to data from the Philippine government. In the same period, total bilateral trade amounted to $19.96 billion, with exports valued at $11.54 billion and imports at $8.41 billion. The Philippines' top bilateral trade partner last year was China, with which it had a deficit of about $2 billion. Most of the Raimondo-led trade delegation was from the technology, artificial intelligence, renewable energy and information and communications sectors. Tech giant Microsoft said Tuesday it would partner with the Philippines' Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to train 100,000 Filipino women on AI and cybersecurity. Ted Osius, president and CEO of the non-profit US-ASEAN Business Council, said the U.S. commitments were good for the region. "It's in our national interest as well as in our economic interest to invest in the Philippines, to be involved in the Philippines, to support the Philippines' growth and prosperity," he told reporters after Raimondo's address. Resilient supply chains were important not just because of "challenges with China," he said. "We found during the COVID-19 pandemic that supply chains are more fragile than we expected. Even right now, there's action in the Red Sea that is causing delays in shipping, causing delays in parts, needed parts, getting goods," he said. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 Hunger, Poverty Overshadow Ramadan In Afghanistan By Faiza Ibrahimi and Sana Kakar March 12, 2024 Ramadan is usually a time of compassion, charity, and celebration. But the Islamic holy month has been overshadowed in Afghanistan, the world's largest humanitarian crisis, by rising hunger, poverty, and joblessness. As some in the Muslim world break their fast with nightly feasts, millions of Afghans are desperately trying to stave off starvation in a country where many survive on only bread and water. "We have nothing to eat during iftar," said Maria, a mother of three who lives in Kabul, referring to the nightly, fast-breaking meal served after sundown throughout the month of Ramadan. Maria, whose husband is a drug addict, is the sole breadwinner of the family. But the Taliban, which seized power in 2021, has barred most women from working outside their homes. "We won't be able to celebrate Eid either," she said, referring to Eid al-Fitar, the festival that marks the end of Ramadan, which began on March 11 this year. Abdul Qadir is one of the more than 500,000 Afghan refugees and migrants expelled from neighboring Pakistan since October. Unable to feed his family, he said he cannot observe Ramadan this year. "It's impossible to fast when you have nothing to eat [in the evening]," said Qadir, who lives in the eastern province of Laghman. "The economy is absolutely zero. There's no work." Multiple Crises Ramadan has coincided with a devastating humanitarian and economic crisis in Afghanistan. Around 24 million people -- out of a population of around 40 million -- will need life-saving humanitarian support this year, the United Nations said on March 10. The World Food Program said around 4 million Afghans are acutely malnourished, including over 3 million children under the age of 5. In a report issued on March 10, the World Bank said Afghanistan was experiencing deflation amid weak economic activity. It also reported a significant decline in Afghanistan's exports and depreciation of the national currency. The Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 triggered an economic collapse and worsened a major humanitarian crisis. Western donors abruptly cut off assistance and the Taliban government was hit by international sanctions. Aid groups have continued their humanitarian operations, although major cuts in international funding have restricted their activities. The Taliban government, which remains unrecognized and under sanctions by the international community, appears unable to address the crises. Natural disasters like earthquakes and droughts as well as the influx of over 1 million Afghan refugees from neighboring countries recently have further aggravated the already dire humanitarian situation in the war-torn country. 'I Have Nothing' Many Afghans are scaling back or even skipping Ramadan altogether this year due to their increasing financial restraints. "Like everyone I know, we suffer enormous economic pressures," said Mursal, a civil servant under the previous Western-backed Afghan government who is now unemployed. "I can't cope with the expectations and demands of Ramadan," added Mursal, who lives with her family in Kabul. Nida Ahmadi, a female teacher in the northern province of Parwan, says she took out a loan in order to be able to fully observe Ramadan. "But even that is not enough," said Ahmadi, whose monthly salary of around $200 is not enough for her family of seven. "When I go to the market, I wonder what to buy with the little money I have," she said. Written by Abubakar Siddique based on reporting by Faiza Ibrahimi and Sana Kakar of RFE/RL's Radio Azadi Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-ramadan- poverty-hunger/32858912.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Tajikistan Going All In On Hydropower, Doubters Be Damned By Chris Rickleton March 12, 2024 ALMATY, Kazakhstan -- When it comes to energy bets, Tajikistan is all-in on hydropower. Having spent much of the last decade and several billion dollars building the Roghun "megadam," the project is clearly too big to fail from the point of view of Tajikistan's leadership. But amid spiraling costs and long-standing questions about the environmental and human impacts, its critics contend that Roghun is also too big to be sustainable. Tajikistan is not alone in eying Roghun's potential 3,600 megawatts of installed capacity. While millions of Tajiks continue to live without power or have it for just a few hours per day, especially in the colder months, Roghun is an important piece of the energy-security puzzle in Tajikistan's electricity-strapped neighborhood, with Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan all potential customers. So there is a lot at stake. And that is without considering whether large-scale hydropower is a wise direction for a region where climate change is set to continue the erosion of river-feeding glaciers. But while some of Tajikistan's Central Asian neighbors are already diverting resources to smaller solar and wind projects to plug their deficits, megadams new and old are still the order of the day for Dushanbe. Supply Outrunning Demand On March 9, a delegation from the board of executive directors at the World Bank Group wrapped up a regional tour of Central Asia that included talks in Tajikistan with Roghun's ultimate champion, President Emomali Rahmon, as well as a trip to the dam's partly operational hydropower plant (HPP). The group's press release gave little in terms of the details of the talks, but they included "a particular focus on climate change within the prism of the water-energy nexus." The visit came on the back of both negative and positive developments for Tajikistan's power sector. The negative was a massive and as-yet-unexplained power outage that plunged the vast majority of the country, including the capital, Dushanbe, into darkness for several hours on March 1. Local media outlet Asia-Plus cited a source that attributed the outage to an "accident" at the Norak HPP that currently supplies around half of Tajikistan's power. Another outlet, Dushanbe TV, cited a source claiming a "technical accident on the main republican high-voltage lines." State power company Barki Tojik did not provide RFE/RL's Tajik Service with a comment. Just days later, on March 4, Deputy Energy and Water Minister Sorbon Kholmuhammadzoda was dismissed. A government decree said he would assume a new post, although it is unclear what that will be. More encouraging was news issued by the World Bank last month, and confirmed by the Taliban last week, that the all-important Afghan leg of CASA-1000 -- a four-country regional power project in which Tajikistan is expected to play the role of top provider -- is back on track. CASA-1000 had been de facto suspended since the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, but the World Bank announced it would move forward with financing pylons and other infrastructure in the Afghan section "in a ring-fenced manner" to ensure distance from the radical government that is yet to gain international recognition. When CASA-1000 eventually becomes reality, Tajikistan should transmit 70 percent of an approximately 1.3 gigawatts of electricity to the power-starved Afghan and Pakistani grids, with Kyrgyzstan due to receive the remainder. But the power-transportation infrastructure is of little use if Tajikistan doesn't have the spare energy. With colder-than-usual temperatures recently hitting Central Asia in the final lap of winter, Tajikistan's annual but now worsening power shortages have had some tragic consequences. In recent weeks, RFE/RL's Tajik Service has reported multiple carbon-monoxide deaths, including of children, as rural families load up their stoves to get through the freezing nights. And if reports of the Dushanbe blackout being connected to an accident at the Soviet-era Norak HPP are true, that means progress at Roghun -- where only two of six 600-megawatt units are currently online -- cannot come fast enough. Bulldozing On In December, Rahmon said he expected the third unit of Roghun to come online in 2025. His personal attachment to the project is clear. In 2016, when construction began, he clambered into a bulldozer to move earth around the site in a grandiose ground-laying ceremony. Some political subordinates of the long-serving leader have even called for the HPP to take his name. At the time of its ground-laying, the government's estimate for the total cost was just under $4 billion. Following a long construction delay during the coronavirus pandemic, the most recent government estimate put the project's total cost at $6 billion. The Italian-based company Webuild (formerly Salini Impregilo) is the project's principal contractor. But there is no clear path to financing the final stages of a facility that Dushanbe wants to be the tallest of its kind in the world at 335 meters. Norak, which is 300 meters high, once held this honor but was displaced from the top more than a decade ago by China's Jinping-I dam, which has a height of 305 meters. Roghun has thus far been financed with a combination of state budget funds and borrowed money. The former have been disproportionately large for Central Asia's poorest country, reportedly outweighing all other infrastructural spending. The latter has included a $500 million, 7.1 percent-yield eurobond issued in 2017, the success of which Reuters hailed as "the latest indication of the undiminished thirst for high-yield debt, even from frontier markets -- so-called because of their poverty and rock-bottom credit scores." Tajikistan is clearly hoping that international institutions will pick up the rest of the tab. In a release this month, a group of 17 environment- and government-focused nonprofit organizations -- including the Prague-headquartered watchdog CEE Bankwatch Network -- called on the World Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the European Investment Bank to "reconsider" an apparent collective-funding pledge of up to $600 million to support Roghun, branding the project's current Environmental and Social Impact Assessment unfit for its purpose. The coalition had in February referred to Roghun as "a sad reminder of the Soviet ideology of exerting total control over nature," while pointing out that at least 46,000 people would have to be displaced for a dam that it said might not reach full operational capacity until 2040. "The development of the [Roghun] HPP project on the Vakhsh River is of great concern due to its enormous associated social and environmental risks, not only to Tajikistan but to the region as a whole," the organizations wrote. One important former Roghun critic has in recent years become a cautious supporter. That is partly because Tajikistan's downstream neighbor Uzbekistan -- a water-stressed country of around 35 million people -- has prioritized better regional relations under President Shavkat Mirziyoev than did his late, hard-line predecessor, Islam Karimov. But it is also because Uzbekistan is increasingly unsure which it needs more -- water or electricity -- with deliveries from Tajikistan potentially easing one of those problems. Tajikistan, for its part, has begun talking up other "green technologies" to plug its deficits. But in comparison to the region's renewable pacesetters, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan -- which are also mulling nuclear power -- this appears to currently be little more than an idea. At the Effective Energy In Tajikistan conference in Dushanbe in October, Tajik officials said solar and wind energy could contribute up to 70 megawatts to Tajikistan's energy mix by 2030. But then-Deputy Energy and Water Minister Kholmuhammadzoda was clear what the government's priority was. "In the next seven years, energy [production] capacity in Tajikistan will increase by an additional 4,000 megawatts of electricity due to the commissioning of the Roghun hydroelectric power station and the reconstruction of other hydroelectric power stations, such as Norak, Sarband and Kairakkum," he said. So it's hydro or bust. Or perhaps, "hydro and bust." With reporting by RFE/RL's Tajik Service Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-hydropower- doubling-down-roghun/32858855.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Romanian President Says He Will Run For NATO's Top Job By RFE/RL's Romanian Service March 12, 2024 Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said he will run for NATO's top job as the influence of the alliance's Eastern European member states grows stronger. Iohannis, a former physics teacher who has been serving as the president of Romania since 2014, announced his candidacy on March 12, saying the alliance needs change and an Eastern European perspective. "NATO needs a renewal, with a strong, influential representation from this region, which meets the needs of the member states," he said. If elected, Iohannis would be the first Eastern European to head NATO. Eastern European countries began joining the alliance exactly 25 years ago following the collapse of communism and the Warsaw Pact in the late 1980s. In a political article published the same day outlining his vision for the alliance, Iohannis said European members must boost defense spending to at least 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and rebuild the military-industrial complex on the continent in light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "While we have been lagging on defense financing, benefiting from what we thought to be an everlasting peace dividend for many years, this is no longer possible," Iohannis said, referring to the war in Ukraine. Europe has struggled to supply Ukraine with ammunition and heavy equipment following decades of underinvestment in arms production. Iohannis said NATO must help Ukraine in its existential struggle with Russia "for as long as it takes." A Russian victory in Ukraine would greatly increase security risks for Romania, which borders Ukraine along the Black Sea. Iohannis said the alliance has "a moral, political, and strategic obligation" to make sure Ukraine makes progress on its path toward NATO membership and EU accession. The alliance, which will mark its founding 75 years ago this June, quickly came together to support Ukraine in the first year of the war. However, support has weakened in some member states in recent months, most notably the United States, which has been unable to agree on a new Ukraine aid package since October. Furthermore, there is a growing isolationist voice within the U.S. Republican Party. Some experts fear that should Donald Trump win the U.S. presidency in November, he might try to withdraw the United States from NATO. Trump has repeatedly complained about the failure of some European member states to reach the minimum defense spending level of 2 percent of GDP. Iohannis's call for European countries to boost spending could potentially assuage Trump's concerns. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/romanian-president-iohannis- says-he-will-run-for-nato-s-top-job/32858951.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 dnata Travel, the UAE's longest serving travel provider, has revealed that bookings by UAE travellers for the Eid Al-Fitr break this April have more than doubled in volume compared to 2023 levels. In previous years, the UAE-based travel agency has seen a close-to-equal split between the choice for a staycation or travelling internationally with UAE residents during the first Eid break. The split is weighing heavier this year towards outbound travel at 60% of all bookings, compared to 40% for local stays. The most popular destinations for holiday bookings over Eid al-Fitr 2024 from the UAE are Maldives, Thailand, Italy, Mauritius, and the US, respectively. Meerah Ketait, Head of Retail and Leisure UAE at dnata Travel, said: An extended break is anticipated for Eid celebrations this April, and travellers are making the most of the opportunity with bookings being made further in advance and to long-haul destinations including across Asia and the USA. The Indian Ocean islands of the Maldives and Mauritius, alongside Thailand, are popular for travellers year-round with tropical climates and accessibility to the UAE. This year, Italy and the USA are trending for the Eid break compared to 2023. Travellers are heading to the Italian cities of Rome and Venice, whilst in the US, stays in New York City and Las Vegas are proving most popular. The dnata Travel team is launching a range of bespoke holiday packages for UAE travellers with last-minute availability remaining across the Eid al-Fitr break this April. Highlights include five-star stays with airport transfers and meals included across popular destinations in the Maldives, Seychelles, Hong Kong, and Bali, alongside an extensive tour of Sri Lanka's top sights, amongst other attractive holiday package offers. Top Eid al-Fitr 2024 holiday offers with dnata Travel are: Maldives Stay three nights at the five-star Kandima Maldives with dnata Travel in a Sky Studio with breakfast daily, return domestic flights and speedboat transfers, and return flights. Seychelles Stay three nights at the five-star Savoy Seychelles Resort & Spa with dnata Travel in a Standard Room with daily breakfast, return private airport transfers, and return flights. Hong Kong Stay three nights at the five-star InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong with dnata Travel in a Classic Room with daily breakfast, return private airport transfers, and return flights. Bali Stay three nights at the five-star Bulgari Resort Bali with dnata Travel in an Ocean View Villa with daily breakfast, return private airport transfers, and return flights. Sri Lanka A seven-day tour of Sri Lanka's Wildlife, Nature and Culture with dnata Travel includes a one-night stay in Kandy, two nights in Nuwara Eliya, one night in Udawalawe, one night in Yala and a final night in Bentota. Highlight excursions include the breath-taking Horton Plains, wildlife discovery with game drives at two national parks, the impressive Rawana Waterfall, a Maadu-ganga River Cruise, a city tour of Galle, and more. Private transfers, six nights of accommodation and return flights are included. TradeArabia News Service Armenian Leader Again Threatens To Leave Russian-Led Defense Bloc By RFE/RL's Armenian Service March 12, 2024 YEREVAN -- Armenia will leave the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if its lingering security concerns are not addressed by the Russian-led military alliance, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian warned again on March 12. Pashinian, who has led the South Caucasian country since 2018, said the CSTO must first and foremost clarify its "zone of responsibility" in Armenia and pledge to defend it against foreign aggression. "If the CSTO answers these questions and its answers correspond to our expectations, it will mean that the problems between Armenia and the CSTO have been solved," he told a news conference. "If not, Armenia will leave the CSTO. When? I can't tell." Yerevan has boycotted high-level meetings, military exercises, and other activities of the CSTO over the past year in what Pashinian described last month as an effective suspension of Armenia's membership in the alliance of six ex-Soviet states. On February 28, the Armenian premier also threatened to pull his country out of the CSTO, saying it is becoming a security threat to his country. In an interview with the Russian TASS news agency published earlier on March 12, CSTO Secretary-General Imangali Tasmagambetov said Armenia has not yet notified the organization about the suspension of its membership and therefore "remains our ally." At the same time, he expressed concern at "certain events and sentiments among a part of the Armenian elite." "But we hope for the political sobriety of the political leadership of Armenia and a balanced assessment of prospects for the implementation of various scenarios in relation to the organization," added Tasmagambetov. The Armenian government had asked Russia and other CSTO allies for military support after Azerbaijan launched an attack along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in September 2022. Article 4 of the 2002 Collective Security Treaty states that any aggression against one signatory would be perceived as aggression against all. Aside from Russia and Armenia, the other signatories of the treaty are Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Armenia accused Russia and the CSTO of ignoring its request for military support. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the CSTO had agreed in November 2022 to send a "peacekeeping mission of observers" to the border but Pashinian rejected it. Yerevan also declined CSTO offers to provide it with "military-technical assistance," Lavrov claimed. Leading Armenian opposition groups contend that an exit from the CSTO and a breakup of Armenia's broader military alliance with Russia would create a dangerous security vacuum that cannot be filled by Western powers and would only encourage Azerbaijan to launch new attacks. Azerbaijan has more than three times the population of Armenia and a defense budget that is larger than Armenia's entire budget. During the March 12 press conference, Pashinian said Armenia has "informed" Moscow that the service of Russian border guards at Yerevan's Zvartnots international airport will end by August 1. Armenian border guards will replace them. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later confirmed that Moscow had received Armenia's notification. Russian media quoted Peskov as saying that there were ongoing "contacts" between relevant departments of Russia and Armenia at the moment. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenian-leader-again- threatens-to-leave-russia-led-defense-bloc/32858863.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Russia Refuses To Reverse Decision To Open Polling Stations In Moldova's Separatist Transdniester By RFE/RL's Moldovan Service March 12, 2024 Russia's ambassador to Chisinau says Moscow will not reverse its move to open six polling stations in separatist Transdniester for presidential elections in Russia this week despite an official protest over the move by Moldova. Russia is scheduled to hold presidential elections on March 15-17 that are widely expected to give President Vladimir Putin another term in office in the absence of any credible competition and amid the increasingly harsh repression of dissent in the country just over two years into its invasion of Ukraine. Moldova's pro-Western government has approved the opening of only one polling station at the Russian Embassy in Chisinau, and Moldovan Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi has said it is "unacceptable" that other polling stations are planned for Transdniester. Ambassador Oleg Vasnetsov on March 12 was summoned to Moldova's Foreign Ministry, where he was told that the opening of polling stations without Chisinau's approval was a defiance of international norms and undermines Moldova's sovereignty. After the meeting, Vasnetsov told the media that the decision made jointly by Russia's Central Electoral Commission, the Russian Foreign Ministry, and Transdniester's de facto authorities, will not be rescinded. "Several polling stations will be opened. Of course, not as many as in previous years. But I am urging all Russian citizens to go and vote on March 17," he said. Moscow-backed Transdniester broke away from Moldova in 1990 and the two sides fought a war that left more than 1,000 dead in 1992 before Russian troops intervened on the separatists' side. Although it has not recognized Transdniester's independence officially, Moscow has been economically and militarily backing the separatists, many of whom hold Russian passports. Under U.S.-educated President Maia Sandu, who came to power in late 2020 after defeating the Moscow-backed incumbent, Moldova has sought to distance itself from decades of Russian influence. In 2022, Moldova secured EU candidate status and Brussels said in December that it would open accession negotiations for Moldova to the 27-nation bloc once the country is prepared. Moldova joined EU sanctions against Russia in November. During the 2018 presidential election in Russia, there were 24 polling stations opened for the Russian passport holders in the region. According to official results, Putin won in Transdniester with 96 percent of the vote. Transdniester authorities claim that more than 220,000 Russian citizens live in the separatist region, although there is no official confirmation of the number. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-polling-stations- moldova-transdniester/32858683.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Hamas Agrees to US-Initiated Gaza Ceasefire Proposal - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 CAIRO (Sputnik) - The Palestinian movement Hamas has agreed to the US-initiated proposal for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and gradual return of displaced people, Al Arabiya reported on Tuesday, citing a source in the movement. Hamas will send a delegation to Cairo in the next few days to discuss the details of the ceasefire deal, the source said, adding that the movement has received an international proposal for a ceasefire, which includes the release of children, women and elderly people held in Israeli prisons. On October 7, 2023, Palestinian movement Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel from Gaza and breached the border, killing 1,200 people and abducting around 240 others. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. Over 31,000 people have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said. On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Moves Forward on $2Bln Loan to Poland, Approve Sale of 96 Apache Helicopters - Sullivan Sputnik News 20240312 WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States has decided to move forward with a $2 billion foreign military financing loan to Poland under which it will sell 96 Apache attack helicopters, White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday. "Today, the President [Joe Biden] will share with Poland's leaders that the United States plans to move forward with a new $2 billion Foreign Military Financing direct loan to Poland, using previously appropriated congressional funds and will offer to sell Poland 96 Apache helicopters," Sullivan said during a press briefing. After sending some 3 billion worth of Soviet-era equipment to Kiev, Poland has been left highly dependent on assistance from its US allies, and on contracts with South Korea, when it comes to replenishing its stocks. Aid to Kiev has included 14 Polish MiG-29 fighters, a dozen Mi-24 helicopter gunships, over 300 Soviet and Polish variants of the T-72 tank, 142 Polish-variant BMP-1s (known as BWP-1) and an array of sophisticated but aging Soviet howitzer and rocket artillery and air defense equipment. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Biden May Limit Military Aid to Israel in Case of Operation in Gaza's Rafah - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - US President Joe Biden could consider conditioning aid to Israel if it extends ground operation in the Gaza Strip to the southernmost city of Rafah on the border with Egypt, where around 1.4 million people are currently sheltering, Politico reported, citing unnamed US and Israeli officials. "It's something he's definitely thought about," one of the officials was quoted as saying. On the other hand, the operation in Rafah is not imminent: even if the order was given today, it would not start, an anonymous Israeli military official said. Palestinian refugees would have to be evacuated from the city before it could begin, and troops would have to be trained, the official added. Israel is also yet to present a sound and feasible plan to protect the civilian population of Rafah, as the United States wants to see it before any action is taken, another US official said. Last week, Biden said he would continue to send necessary supplies for Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system, but added that mass Palestinian casualties were a "red line" for him. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for his part, said he would still enter Rafah despite the warnings, and that a ceasefire during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was only possible if the remaining hostages held by Palestinian movement Hamas were released. On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel from Gaza and breached the border, killing 1,200 people and abducting around 240 others. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. At least 31,100 people have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said. On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sweden Does Not Want Permanent NATO Bases in Country Sputnik News 20240312 ANKARA (Sputnik) - Sweden does not want to host permanent NATO bases on its territory, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said on Tuesday. "Of course, NATO associations will operate in Sweden. But we do not want permanent NATO bases," Billstrom said in an interview with Turkish state-run news agency Anadolu. Sweden formally joined the bloc last Thursday, becoming its 32nd member state. The NATO headquarters in Brussels held a flag-raising ceremony for Sweden earlier on Monday. Sweden's flag was raised simultaneously with those of the other 31 allies at NATO commands across Europe and North America. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Haitian Prime Minister Resigns Amid Social Unrest in Country Sputnik News 20240312 MEXICO CITY (Sputnik) - Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry will leave his post amid the state of emergency declared by local authorities due to ongoing unrest in the country, Guyanese President Irfaan Ali said on Tuesday, adding that power in the country will be temporarily held by a transitional presidential council. "In this regard, we recognize the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry to create a transitional presidential council and appoint an interim prime minister," Ali said during a press conference following international negotiations in Jamaica. The transitional presidential council will consist of seven members representing various Haitian movements with the right to vote and two non-voting observers, a declaration, drafted by representatives of Haiti, the member states of the Caribbean Community, the United States, Canada, France and Brazil, read. The council will temporarily exercise a number of presidential powers, acting by majority vote. On February 29, gangs began shooting in downtown Port-au-Prince and at the Haitian capital's international airport in the absence of Henry, who was on a visit to Kenya to seek agreement for the deployment of foreign forces in his country to fight organized crime. The gangs said their goal was to prevent Henry from returning to Haiti. An armed gang stormed Haiti's largest prison and freed an unconfirmed number of inmates. The Haitian government declared a state of emergency in the capital region. Haiti has long been mired in a social and political crisis that escalated after the assassination of President Jovenel Moise on July 7, 2021. The country has faced an unprecedented increase in the activities of criminal groups, while the humanitarian situation has deteriorated due to a multitude of natural disasters. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US, UK Carry Out 15 Strikes on Yemen Over Past 24 Hours - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 DOHA (Sputnik) - The United States and the United Kingdom carried out at least 15 airstrikes on Yemen as a response to Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea, Yemeni media reported. US and UK aircraft carried out five raids on the Sa'dah province in northern Yemen, Al-Masirah broadcaster reported. In addition, they carried out about 13 strikes in western Yemen, including Hodeidah province, the report added. The Houthi movement, which controls large parts of northern and western Yemen, vowed in November 2023 to attack any ships associated with Israel until it halts military actions in the Gaza Strip. This led US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to announce the creation of a multinational operation to secure navigation in the Red Sea. US and UK forces later launched major strikes against Houthi positions in a bid to degrade the rebels' ability to target commercial vessels. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Background Briefing with Senior State Department Official on the Situation in Haiti US Department of State Special Briefing Office of the Spokesperson Via Teleconference March 12, 2024 MODERATOR: Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to our background call on the situation in Haiti. As a reminder, today's call will be on background, attributable to a senior State Department official, and is embargoed until its conclusion. For your information only and not for reporting, joining us today is [Senior State Department Official]. We will now turn the floor over to [Senior State Department Official] to provide some opening remarks, then we'll take your questions. [Senior State Department Official], over to you. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Thanks very much, [Moderator], and a pleasure to be with you. This is a crucial moment in Haiti. We in the United States remain deeply concerned about the security situation and the challenges to the safety and well-being of the Haitian people have to confront with on a daily basis. The events of the last few days have been the culmination of an inclusive, Haitian-intensive-led process to find a broader political consensus around a new transitional government. Thirty-nine different Haitian stakeholders participated in scores of conversations over the course of the preceding days around the formation of a new presidential council that will select a new interim prime minister and pave the pathway for elections, as well as the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission. This process was facilitated by intensive work from CARICOM heads of government. They were engaged both at the head level themselves, particularly Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, but also the Eminent Persons Group of retired prime ministers from CARICOM countries. The United States, from Secretary Blinken on down, was actively engaged in this process to support Haitian stakeholders in reaching agreement, outreach to some of those key stakeholders directly, intensive coordination with CARICOM leaders, day and night for the better part of 10 days, really going back to the meeting in Georgetown, Guyana. We've been in regular contact directly as well as in support of CARICOM leaders with outgoing Prime Minister or former Prime Minister Ariel Henry as he reached a decision to step down from his role. And we want to commend Prime Minister Henry for his statesmanship in putting his country first and agreeing to step down when the transitional presidential council is formally established. We're also in contact with the acting interim Prime Minister Michel Boisvert, who's normally the finance minister. He's in Port-au-Prince now, and we're in regular contact with him as well. The Secretary of State and other senior U.S. officials are also in contact with diplomatic partners from outside the region - Canada, Mexico, France. Kenya attended the meeting yesterday virtually; Benin was represented at the meeting, the UN. And while the achievement of reaching an agreement after seven hours of on-the-ground talks in Kingston, Jamaica around a new presidential council is a tremendous step forward, we recognize that there is much work left to be done to secure a better future for the Haitian people. I would note that the agreement that was reached yesterday specifically excludes individuals who are charged or indicted or convicted of crimes, individuals who've been sanctioned by the United Nations, individuals intending to compete in the next election, and individuals who oppose the UN Security Council Resolution 2699 authorizing the Multinational Security Support Mission. Those characteristics mean that the continuity of governance and the agreement between Haiti, in terms of its request both to the United Nations would authorize this mission as well as with the contributing nations to the mission, remains firm. And we will have pledged an additional $100 million to facilitate the deployment of the MSS, bringing the total U.S. contribution thus far to $300 million - 200 from the Department of Defense, $100 million commitment from the Department of State. Yesterday, Secretary Blinken also announced an additional contribution of $33 million in humanitarian assistance to help the Haitian people at this difficult time. The - as I said, the challenges ahead are many, but I think this is an incredibly important milestone in broadening Haitian governance and addressing the concerns of the Haitian people going forward. And I'd be happy to take any questions that you have at this point. Thank you. MODERATOR: Great. Thank you so much. AT&T moderator, would you mind please sharing the instructions for joining the question queue? AT&T moderator, would you mind - can you hear me? OPERATOR: I can. Thank you very much. If you wish to ask a question, please press 1 followed by 0 - 1 followed by 0. You'll hear a tone indicating you've been placed in queue. You can take yourself out of the queue by simply pressing the 1-0 command again. One moment, please, for our first question. MODERATOR: Can we go to Vivian Salama from The Wall Street Journal? OPERATOR: Yes. One second, please. Give me one second; I'm so sorry. Okay. From The Wall Street Journal, please, go ahead. Your line is open. QUESTION: Can you hear me, guys? Hi, can you hear me? OPERATOR: We can. QUESTION: Okay, excellent. Thanks so much, gentlemen, for doing the call. I've got two questions. One of them - Jake Sullivan was just at the White House podium, and he mentioned the fact that - the U.S. hopes that allies would be willing to contribute to the security efforts of the multinational force, and so if you could just talk a little bit about sort of what the challenges to that have been. Are you struggling to convince certain allies to join, and how are you incentivizing participation in that multinational force to others? And then separately, there was a BBC report floating around that said that the - that Kenya's mission has been suspended because of Henry's resignation. Kenyan media in particular was saying that the mission was delayed, but then there were reports saying that it was suspended, and so I'm wondering if you have any clarity on what the situation is there, if you could kind of share. Thanks. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So we've been in regular contact with President Ruto and other senior officials in Kenya, and the - certainly the legal framework for the deployment remains in place, as I said in my opening remarks. The Government of Haiti has made a both formal request to the Security Council, which has authorized this mission under Chapter VII. There's no further action required by the Government of Haiti. And during his recent trip to Nairobi, former Prime Minister Henry did sign a formal agreement with - or, excuse me, he supervised the signature. It was signed by the acting security minister at that time between Kenya and the United States around deployment. And in our conversations with Kenyan officials, we've stressed the - I think on both sides have stressed the importance of moving to deploy as quickly as practicable. The conversations certainly that we've had have been much more focused on the lines of, given the changes in the security circumstances, what additional assessment or procedures or equipment might be required, given the change in circumstances from the initial assessments that Kenyan officials have carried out. But we remain confident that the mission will go forward and that - in all the conversations we've had, Kenyan officials have said that they intend to go forward and they intend to lead this mission. The - and I would note that both the interim prime minister right now - normally Finance Minister Michel Boisvert - has reiterated his support for the MSS, and all of the actors who had formed part of the new presidential council have stated - as a prerequisite have accepted that the - their support for Security Council Resolution 2699 authorizing the MSS. The - in terms of contributions to the MSS, the - certainly Kenya, Benin, CARICOM countries, countries in Latin America have offered their assistance to the MSS in terms of the on-the-ground force contribution. Other countries have pledged financial resources or in-kind equipment. The challenge at this moment is this is a time of unprecedented global crises; the ongoing conflict in Ukraine provoked by Russia's further invasion, the incredibly challenging humanitarian situation in Gaza have meant that donors are stretched. And that's not to forget a number of other challenges in Africa and in other parts of the world. So the donor community really is facing an unprecedented level of requirements on them. That being said, the humanitarian crisis and the security crisis in Haiti is as great as any other crisis around the world. The - our efforts have been toward encouraging other nations to make robust contributions, and that's why Secretary Blinken hosted the Haiti Ministerial on the margins of the G20 at the end of February, and we continue to urge all nations to make robust contributions, both financial and in terms of troop or police contributions, logistical contributions, equipment, to the MSS as urgently as possible. MODERATOR: Can we please go to Daphne Psaledakis from Reuters. QUESTION: Hi, thank you so much for doing this. Guy Phillippe has said he wants the presidency. Would the U.S. accept him having a seat at the table? Would he need to be excluded from the council, given he's been charged in the past and has said he wants to become president? And then if you don't mind, given that Kenya has said it would like to be paid the costs of the deployment for the mission up front, can you just say concretely whether any of the U.S. 300 million for the MSS would be provided to Kenya directly up front or to the UN fund, or if it's all being disbursed in a different way? Thank you. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So the - I think your first question was about Guy Phillippe, and certainly for participation in the presidential council, the requirements there state that it excludes individuals charged, indicted, or convicted of crimes. The - with regard to the payment for deployment, it's a - let me just note that the U.S. funds will go to prepare the facilities on the ground in Haiti in terms of the DOD contribution. And the Department of State contribution can go to the reimbursement or even forward funding of some salaries and other activities. Training activities is something that we're already working on reimbursing Kenya on. They've already carried out a lot of training. But there need to be a variety of funding mechanisms. The UN multidonor trust fund for the Haiti MSS, in terms of reference, are still being refined. The - and how that trust fund will work and whether or not there'll be a mechanism to pay for costs for contributing nations in advance is still being debated. But there's also other donors who have pledged to contribute. Canada has pledged 91 million U.S. dollars for their contribution, and some of those funds, as well as other donors, may be able to be used in advance. The issue of pre-deployment funding was something that we're very cognizant of. It's been part of conversations we've had with many of the contributors in terms of the force, and we're going to continue to refine that. Thank you. MODERATOR: Thank you so much. Can we please go to Jacqueline Charles from the Miami Herald? OPERATOR: I am so sorry. I do not see that one queued up. MODERATOR: She must have dropped. That's okay. OPERATOR: She dropped. Yeah, no problem. MODERATOR: Can we go to Lydia Polgreen from The New York Times? Is she still on? OPERATOR: Yes. Please go ahead. QUESTION: Hi. Thanks so much for organizing this call. So I'm curious about timelines here. I mean, obviously the security situation, particularly in the capital, is very serious and untenable, and it's going to take some time for the international force to be stood up. How do you anticipate the next days and weeks unfolding? And how will the provisional government deal with the security situation until that force can be deployed? SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Well, we continue to work closely with the Haitian National Police. The United States is the largest donor to the Haitian National Police. We work to ensure that they continue to have the equipment and resources and ammunition and personal protective equipment to do their jobs under these incredibly trying circumstances. The process of deciding the interim prime minister, new interim prime minister and cabinet, is probably the most immediate task that this new presidential council will have, and I don't want to in any way take away their agency in making decisions about how they're going to approach security issues. We will need to work with stakeholders throughout the international community, do all we can to resource the MSS to get the equipment in place that they will need when they deploy and have that ready to go forward. We hope that the political agreement that was announced yesterday will provide a much-needed sense of a political way forward and a greater calm among the population. But whether or not that happens or not, we still believe we have to be supportive of the ongoing Haitian National Police effort as well as to prepare the MSS for urgent deployment. That's going to involve intensive diplomacy going forward, and making sure that Haitian stakeholders are able to be the captains of their own fate. MODERATOR: Thank you. Can we please go to Michael Wilner from McClatchy, if he's still on? QUESTION: Hi. Can everyone hear me? MODERATOR: Yes, hi. QUESTION: Hi, thanks for doing this. Yesterday, as part of the Secretary's announcement of additional funds, he mentioned a doubling of Defense Department support. What exactly is that money going to go to? And does that allow you to expedite the plan of the MSS even though you have the 40 million that's still caught up in - on the Hill from State Department funding? Or is that a conflation of the two? Can you just sort of break down whether or not this new funding can help expedite the deployment? SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes, it can. The funds that were announced yesterday by the Secretary of State are funds authorized by the Secretary of Defense pursuant to an authority that he notified to Congress last fall. The requirements for that are that once the intent to use funds for this purpose has been notified, it's up to the Secretary of Defense to determine the level of funding that is provided. The ability to move forward in the contracting, construction, equipping of facilities for the MSS is all encompassed in the funds that were announced yesterday, so that $200 million can go to that process. So yes, it absolutely will help expedite this process. The State Department funds that you're talking about and those funds that have been held are separate authorities within the State Department and under - operating under separate congressional notification rules. MODERATOR: Thank you. Josh Goodman from the AP, please. QUESTION: (Inaudible) go on the record for some of this; maybe afterwards you would consider that. Two questions. One, a clarification: The agreement, as I read it, was that Prime Minister Henry would resign upon the appointment of the interim prime minister, but when you began your remarks you mentioned that you are now dealing directly with the acting prime minister, Michel Boisvert. I just want to know if you can clarify, is - I know this could be a question of hours, but is - to your understanding, is Henry no longer the prime minister and that the actual authority in the country is Michel Boisvert? And then my second question on Guy Philippe, again, I know you were clear that he would not qualify to serve on the presidential council. But if he were to win a free and fair democratic election, would the U.S. be willing to work with him given that he does have a pretty substantial criminal record in the United States? Thank you. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So let me sort of take the second part first. I think not just the United States but very many countries in the international community would consider having someone who's been convicted of a variety of crimes (inaudible) OPERATOR: Hello? MODERATOR: Sorry, did we lose [Senior State Department Official]? OPERATOR: Yeah, I think he's - you just dropped off. MODERATOR: Apologies for the technical issues here. We'll wait until [Senior State Department Official] dials back in. Apologies. Stand by, please. OPERATOR: Thank you. I'll let you know. We're trying to dial out again, just to let everybody know. [Senior State Department Official], are you back? MODERATOR: [Senior State Department Official], are you back on the line? OPERATOR: The operator says he keeps dropping as soon as they call him. MODERATOR: Okay. OPERATOR: We - I even tried myself. MODERATOR: Okay. OPERATOR: I apologize, but every time I call it just drops. She's trying again. [Senior State Department Official], do you hear us now? SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes, I hear you. OPERATOR: Okay. MODERATOR: Great. Apologies for the technical issues, everyone. Sir, if you want to just resume your question - I'm happy to repeat it if you need, but you were cut off in the middle of your answer. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: What was the last thing you heard me say? MODERATOR: About the concerns about an individual convicted of crimes being elected. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. So certainly I note that I question whether or not Haiti's own legal framework would allow that, but I refer you to Haitian authorities on that point. But I think the United States and the vast majority of the international community would find that deeply worrisome, and we would have serious concerns about that. The - with regard to the status of Ariel Henry, he - in his statement of last night, he said that he was - he would turn over the government to this new presidential council once it is created. He's not in Haiti now, and there's been an acting prime minister, normally a finance minister, Michel Boisvert, who's been exercising day-to-day administration while Prime Minister Henry is out of the country already, and he's signaled his willingness to facilitate the orderly transfer of function to a new prime minister and cabinet once the presidential council names those individuals. And that's our understanding of the status. Over. MODERATOR: Okay, excellent. [Senior State Department Official One], do you have time for another question since we got disconnected, or do you have to run? SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I can take another question. MODERATOR: Okay. We'll take one more quick question, please, from Fraser Jackson from France 24 - from France 24. QUESTION: Hi, can you guys hear me? MODERATOR: Yes. QUESTION: Thank you. Thank you for taking my question as well; thank you for doing this. [Senior State Department Official], Haitians are wary of international actors given the history of the cholera epidemic and sexual abuse scandals that took place in the country. How do you assuage Haitian concerns about international intervention in the country? And I've got a follow-up, if that's okay. MODERATOR: We don't have time for follow-ups, so we'll just take this question and then we have to run. Thank you. QUESTION: Okay, thank you. SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So polling indicates that the vast majority of Haitians support an international mission to provide security in Haiti. The resolution of the UN Security Council that created the Multinational Security Support Mission includes provisions that address the issues of concern that people have had in the past. It includes provisions for an ombuds. It includes provisions to ensure the prevention of sexual and gender-based violence and any abuse of authority by members of the mission. It includes a recording requirement to the council on the mission's activities, and that will include any complaints that are filed. There's an extensive human rights training requirement. There is a sanitation and health training and strategy requirement included for this mission. There will be specialized training on those issues before deployment for members of the force, and that's already been ongoing for Kenyan as well as Jamaicans who are training to deploy. So those issues have been, I think, treated with the utmost seriousness, and the international community, as well as Haitian stakeholders, are very cognizant of the mistakes of the past. And they're taking active measures to ensure that they are never repeated. I would just note that the framework for this mission is one that really is focused on supporting Haitian leadership. This mission calls upon the MSS to support the Haitian National Police and Haitian authorities in carrying out their tasks. That is something that I know that the force-contributing countries are very much focused on and supportive of, and they see a crucial difference between this mission and past missions in that it is really going to be integrated into the Haitian fabric of policing and security, rather than operating outside of that context. And I just want to reiterate that over the course of the last few days in particular, the engagement that regional authorities in CARICOM, the United States, Secretary Blinken, other senior U.S. officials have had with Haitian stakeholders in finding a way forward has been as intensive a diplomacy as I have ever seen. And I will note that numerous stakeholders who had reserved their judgment on the issue of an MSS deployment in Haiti have said that they support it now as a result of that engagement as well. So these are all very positive developments. We have many challenges ahead, but we've made incredible progress. And I think some of the outcomes that we had yesterday are things that few people thought were achievable. And we've been able to help birth broad-based agreement among Haitians as a way forward, and we're certainly very proud of that regional and global effort to do so. MODERATOR: Thank you very much. That does unfortunately conclude our call for today. As a reminder, today's call was on background to a senior State Department official, and the embargo has now lifted. Thank you all so much for joining us and have a great day. Thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address "We stand ready to assume responsibility in Gaza as a guarantor" Presidency Of The Republic Of Turkey 12.03.2024 Speaking at an iftar with ambassadors in Ankara, President Erdogan said: "We stand ready to assume responsibility as a guarantor for the prevention of the recurrence of the massacres in Gaza and for the revival of the region. Everyone is aware of the fact that lasting peace and stability is not possible in our region or the world unless a just resolution is found to the Palestinian issue." President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shared iftar with ambassadors in Ankara. "ISRAEL RECKLESSLY MAINTAINS ITS WAR CRIMES" Addressing ambassadors during the iftar, President Erdogan stated that they have welcomed Ramadan, the month of peace, solidarity and grace, sadly due to the ongoing incidents in the region, Gaza in particular, and said: "Our 32 thousand brothers and sisters have been martyred during the Israeli attacks that have been going on for five months in Gaza and on the occupied Palestinian territories. And 73 thousand Palestinians have been injured during the bombardments targeting civilians and civilian residential units." Underscoring that Israel has been continuing its massacres as if nothing has happened despite the ICJ injunction on protection of civilians, President Erdogan added: "Israel, which has turned a deaf ear to everyone, maintains its war crimes recklessly, and what is more, it acts in such an impudent manner that it is threatening the countries that call for an immediate ceasefire. Israel makes not only the Palestinian people but also international organizations pay the price of it being spoiled for nearly a century and of remaining silent to its massacres, land usurpations and thefts. We will all face the price of the loss of confidence in international organizations as much more terror and much more instability in the upcoming period." "TURKIYE HAS DELIVERED OVER 40 TONS OF HUMANITARIAN AID TO GAZA" Stressing that the hesitant policies of those, who provide Israel with unconditional military and diplomatic support, encourage Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and his abettors, President Erdogan went on to say: "While cargo planes constantly carry weapons and ammunition to Tel Aviv from western capitals, halfhearted sentences are meaningless. We all know well that the current amount of aid is not enough while the attacks on and the blockade in Gaza continue. The most urgent need is to increase the truck crossings from Rafah Border to the necessary level. Obviously, further pressure must be put on Israel to achieve this." Pointing out that Turkiye has delivered over 40 tons of humanitarian aid to Gaza via Egypt so far, President Erdogan said: "Recently, a ship that belongs to Kzlay and our nongovernmental organizations arrived at the Al Arish Port of Egypt the other day. We will increasingly continue our aid during Ramadan through our public institutions, municipalities, foundations and associations alike." "LASTING PEACE AND STABILITY IS NOT POSSIBLE IN OUR REGION OR THE WORLD UNLESS A JUST RESOLUTION IS FOUND TO THE PALESTINIAN ISSUE" Stating that Turkiye stands ready to assume responsibility as a guarantor for the prevention of the recurrence of the massacres in Gaza and for the revival of the region, President Erdogan continued as follows: "Everyone is aware of the fact that lasting peace and stability is not possible in our region or the world unless a just resolution is found to the Palestinian issue. And the only way to achieve this is the establishment of an independent, sovereign and geographically-integrated Palestinian state within the 1967 borders, with East al-Quds as its capital. We all are in debt to the massacred Palestinian children, and this debt can only be paid by the establishment of a Palestinian state." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address For the first time in weeks, UN aid teams reach Gaza City 12 March 2024 - Enough aid for 25,000 people has reached Gaza City for the first time in weeks, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) announced on Tuesday, in a call for daily aid missions and better access. "WFP delivered enough food for 25,000 people to Gaza City early Tuesday in first successful convoy to the north since 20 February," the UN agency said in a tweet. "With people in northern Gaza on the brink of famine, we need deliveries every day and we need entry points directly into the north." The news came as UN humanitarians also welcomed the announcement on Tuesday that an aid ship, Open Arms, had left Cyprus for Gaza carrying 200 tonnes of relief supplies. But they stressed that it was "not a substitute" for overland assistance to Gazans on the verge of famine. "Any food and other emergency aid that comes into Gaza, as we all know, is desperately needed; there is no question about it," said Jens Laerke, spokesperson for UN aid coordination office, OCHA. "So, it's highly appreciated...But it's not a substitute for the overland transport of food and other emergency aid into Gaza and particularly northern Gaza. It cannot make up for that." The UN's Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag also welcomed the opening of the new maritime coordinator to Gaza, together with the head of UNOPS, Jorge Moreira da Silva. "For aid delivery at scale there is no meaningful substitute to the many land routes and entry points from Israel into Gaza", the stressed. "The land routes from Egypt, Rafah in particular, and Jordan also remain essential to the overall humanitarian effort. The maritime corridor brings, however, much needed additionality and is part of a sustained humanitarian response to provide aid as effectively as possible through all possible routes." Relief lifeline The NGO behind the Open Arms initiative, World Central Kitchen, has already worked with UN aid teams in Rafah in southern Gaza, where some 1.5 million have sought shelter amid daily Israeli bombardment and fighting for the last five months, prompted by Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel that left some 1,200 dead and more than 250 taken hostage. Children's scissors denied Underscoring the dire humanitarian emergency still unfolding in Gaza, head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, condemned the refusal to allow so-called "dual-use" items destined for the enclave. "A truck loaded with aid has just been turned back because it had scissors used in children's medical kits," tweeted Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General on Tuesday. "Medical scissors are now added to a long list of banned items the Israeli Authorities classify as 'for dual use'. The list includes basic and lifesaving items: from anaesthetics, solar lights, oxygen cylinders and ventilators, to water cleaning tablets, cancer medicines and maternity kits. "The clearance of humanitarian supplies and the delivery of basic and critical items need to be facilitated and accelerated. The lives of two million people depend on that, there is no time to waste." All options explored Asked by journalists in Geneva if the UN might use the new maritime corridor between the southern port of Larnaca in Cyprus and Gaza, OCHA's Mr. Laerke replied that "any and all entry points into Gaza should be looked at". But following repeated refusals by Israeli authorities to allow humanitarian convoys to access the north and unsafe conditions for aid teams, the UN official insisted that "we need the overland access and the safe and secure and regular delivery within Gaza as well". Famine 'imminent' In a related development, UN World Food Programme chief Cindy McCain warned on Monday that famine is "imminent" in Gaza and will only be avoided if humanitarian there increases "exponentially". Speaking in Rome, the WFP Executive Director underlined grave concerns for people "across Gaza, particularly the north, which is in the grip for humanitarian catastrophe. "If we do not exponentially increase the size of aid going into the northern areas, famine is imminent." Ahead of Tuesday's announcement that aid had reached northern Gaza, the veteran aid official explained that WFP had been forced to pause aid deliveries there owing to concerns "for the safety of our staff and due to the complete breakdown of law and order". The UN agency head insisted that all options were being explored to alleviate the hunger crisis in northern Gaza, including air drops, but "they will never deliver the necessary volume that road access can". Road access "and the use of existing ports and crossings is the only way to get aid into Gaza at the scale that is now required," the WFP chief insisted. "We need 300 trucks of food entering Gaza every single day." UNRWA Ramadan campaign Amid the humanitarian crisis, UNRWA on Tuesday launched its annual Ramadan campaign to provide emergency food aid to Gaza. The campaign will run through the end of the holy month and provide 100 per cent of Zakat contributions directly to internally displaced people in the Gaza Strip who are facing starvation. Zakat contributions - almsgiving which is one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith - will also go to eligible Palestinian families in the region through emergency food and cash assistance, the agency said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Chaos across Haiti amid high risk of famine 12 March 2024 - The UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned on Tuesday that Haiti is on the brink of a devastating hunger crisis, with aid operations at risk of "grinding to a halt" amid rampant violence as Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned on Monday and armed gangs tightened their grip on the capital, Port-au-Prince. The lack of goods and resources is worsening an already precarious economic situation, with water and basic services being "stretched to the limit", UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said. The UN Secretary-General called on all Haitian stakeholders to act responsibly and expressed appreciation to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and partners' for facilitating a way forward to resolve Haiti's political crisis through a just-signed agreement to, among other things, appoint an interim prime minister, Mr. Dujarric said. Thousands displaced In Haiti, armed groups have taken control of many of the main roads, flights to Port-au-Prince have been grounded and incomes are plummeting amid a sharp rise in displacement, according to UN agencies. Gang violence has displaced more than 362,000 Haitians, over half of them children. At least 35,000 have fled from their homes since the beginning of 2024, trying to escape the escalating crisis. 'Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground' Media reports on Monday said Kenya is now pausing its plans for the support force following the resignation of Mr. Henry, who had in October asked the Security Council to deploy a mission to restore calm amid the growing chaos wreaked by armed gangs. WFP said that while recent agreements between Haiti and Kenya enabling the deployment of the support mission are promising, failing to address the country's hunger crisis could itself jeopardise efforts to restore stability. Cindy McCain, WFP's Executive Director, said the spreading violence is keeping aid workers from reaching communities in need at a time when donor funds are drying up. "Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground," she said. "Efforts to restore law and order must be matched by an equally effective humanitarian response to meet soaring needs." Aid effort 'running on fumes' Right now, the $674 million humanitarian response plan for Haiti is just two per cent funded, she said. "Our humanitarian operation in Haiti is running on fumes, with funding for hot meals about to run out in two weeks," Ms. McCain said. "We need donors to step up today so we can tackle the rising tide of hunger and halt the slide into chaos." The security and political crises are unfolding alongside a largely unaddressed food crisis. Risk of famine In Haiti, Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP country director, warned of an impending famine, stressing that there are levels of hunger in Port-au-Prince that are typically seen in war zones. "Haiti is one of the world's most severe food crises," said Mr. Bauer, briefing reporters at UN Headquarters via videolink from a WFP warehouse in Cap Haitien. Food security has been fragile in Haiti since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in 2020, but today, 1.4 million people are "a step away from famine", he said. Port-au-Prince besieged Describing desperate coping strategies to get enough to eat, he said people are cutting down on meals and eating lower quality foods, leading to high malnutrition rates. People are also selling goods, from personal items to land, just to be able to survive, he added. Haiti depends on food imports for 50 per cent of its needs, he explained. While WFP has prepositioned stocks in Port-au-Prince, the city remains besieged, and "no one can go in and out". Right now, there are more than 200,000 children vulnerable to acute malnutrition, he said, noting that an integrated security phase classification (IPC) report tracking food insecurity will be published in the coming weeks. 'We need to do more' WFP has assisted more than 280,000 people since 1 March. About 300 WFP employees are striving to reach the most vulnerable, including serving 14,000 meals to people recently displaced in the capital, Mr. Bauer said. "It's a constant struggle," he said, citing of such efforts as providing mobile credit for those in need and close coordinating with local authorities, which enabled serving meals to 160,000 school children outside the capital. "But, we know we need to do more," he said. "We need to ensure security comes back to the country. We need the port to reopen and stocks to be replenished." 'Recipe for a food crisis' If the situation in the capital continues, food prices will sharply increase over already inflated prices that saw costs jump by 25 per cent in southern Haiti in January. Over the past few days, prices have risen by at least 10 per cent, Mr. Bauer warned. "That's a recipe for a food crisis," he said. Mass hunger is related to unrest, strife and mass migration and without a strong food support for the population, the forthcoming multilateral support mission will not be able achieve its objectives alone, he explained. While security is needed, a robust humanitarian response plan is imperative, he said. Security permitting, WFP aims to reach 2.4 million people in 2024 through emergency assistance in cash and in-kind food rations and is working with the government to provide school meals and to implement longer-term programmes to help Haitian produce their own food, the agency said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address As World Grapples with Multiple Crises, Stronger UN-European Union Cooperation Crucial for International Peace, Security, Speakers Tell Security Council Meetings Coverage Security Council 9573rd Meeting (AM) SC/15622 12 March 2024 High Representative Highlights Regional Bloc's Support for Ukraine, Two-State Solution in Middle East, Increased Focus on Conflict Prevention With multiple global crises threatening the foundations of international peace, stronger cooperation between the European Union and the United Nations is more important than ever, the Council heard today, as delegates highlighted the indispensable role of multilateralism. "There are moments in history when the darkness of the world is even darker than usual," said Josep Borrell Fontelles, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, calling the United Nations "a ray of light, a sign of hope". Speaking during the Council's annual meeting on strengthening the European Union's cooperation with the UN, he said that since Moscow unleashed a war of aggression against Ukraine two years ago, the regional bloc has shown its full solidarity with that country through exceptional economic, financial and military aid. "This strong support, symbolized by our commitment to make Ukraine a member of the European Union, will continue," he pledged, noting Europe's determination to protect itself against the danger that the Russian Federation now represents for its security. On the conflict in Gaza, he reiterated his condemnation of the 7 October terrorist attacks and stated Israel's right to self-defence. However, this must be done with full respect to international law. With more than 30,000 dead, 1.8 million displaced and 500,000 on the brink of starvation, the very survival of Palestinians is at stake. While the bloc awaits the conclusions of the UN's independent investigation, he underscored that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) only exists because there are Palestinian refugees. "We won't make these refugees disappear by making UNRWA disappear," he asserted, noting the need to make "those refugees citizens of a Palestinian State that coexists with an Israeli State". The European Union will do everything possible "not just like the good Samaritan coming in to help those who are suffering"; instead, it will attempt to set up the political mechanisms to avoid the root causes. Turning to the specifics of the European Union's cooperation with the UN, he stated: "Our strong support to the UN is reflected in numbers." Together with its Member States, the bloc finances almost one third of the UN's regular budget and nearly one quarter of all UN agencies, funds and programmes. "And we pay on time," he added. This makes Europeans the UN's largest financial contributor and the world's largest provider of humanitarian aid. Detailing instances of strategic partnership with the UN, he noted the bloc's intention to focus increasingly on conflict prevention. Committed to peace and security in Africa, it is working closely with the African Union and regional economic organizations to support African-led peace support operations. The European Union has provided almost 1 billion in military support to African partners in the last three years through the European Peace Facility. "We have stepped up all over the world as a security provider," he said, noting that there are currently 24 European Union missions and operations, deploying over 4,300 personnel to contribute to a more stable and safer world. The recently launched European Union Naval Force's Aspides operation to protect commercial vessels in the Red Sea demonstrates that the bloc is increasingly becoming "a global maritime security provider". He further stressed that deploying to Haiti the Multinational Security Support Mission to be led by Kenya is urgent to restore security and make any Haitian-led political solution viable. Additionally, the bloc's contributions represent a third of the total international response in Sudan. In the following discussion, numerous Council Members among them, the representatives of Switzerland, Slovenia and Ecuador underscored that the partnership between the European Union and the United Nations is essential for conflict prevention, crisis management and peacekeeping. The war in Ukraine and the crisis in the Middle East took centre stage, with many including the representatives of Guyana and Algeria stressing that continued support to Gaza through UNRWA is critical. Russian Federation President Vladimir V. Putin's aggression against Ukraine "has made clearer than ever the urgency of standing up for the UN Charter and the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity", said the representative of the United States, spotlighting efforts by Washington, D.C., and the European Union to mitigate the humanitarian impacts of Moscow's war. Echoing that, France's delegate stated that the European Union and its Member States are mobilized "more than ever" to stand ready in support of Ukraine. Spotlighting the bloc's response to global crises, he said that, last week, it paid 50 million to UNRWA and will contribute 82 million in 2024. Its members also contribute nearly a third of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) staff, whose commitment to de-escalation is critical, he added. Detailing other European Union efforts, the speaker for Malta said that, in the Mediterranean Sea, Operation IRINI continues to contribute to implementing the arms embargo on Libya pursuant to resolution 2292 (2016). "As co-penholders with France, we believe it is essential that the Security Council renews this resolution again in June," she urged. Recognizing the European Union's efforts to "address the challenges that will shape the twenty-first century", her counterpart from the United Kingdom highlighted its ambition to leverage 150 billion through 2027 for investments in the transport, digital, climate, energy, health, education and research sectors across Africa. He also welcomed the bloc's contribution to developing safe artificial intelligence (AI) systems, including its support of the landmark Bletchley Declaration, which will deepen international coordination on AI. Meanwhile, China's delegate called for "genuine multilateralism" underpinned by the UN Charter and emphasized that the security of one State cannot be achieved at the expense of the security of another. The European Union should do more to bring about a political solution and achieve a balanced security architecture in Europe. As well, it should use its influence in Gaza to promote an immediate ceasefire and a two-State solution. Many recognized the European Union's contribution to maintaining peace and security in Africa, including the speaker for Algeria, who highlighted long-standing cooperation between the African Union and the European Union premised on the principle of "African solutions to African problems". Accordingly, he welcomed resolution 2719 (2023), which opened the door for UN funding for African-led peace missions authorized by the Council. Also welcoming the operationalization of the resolution, Mozambique's delegate said that European Union support to that end could be "a game-changer". Relatedly, he called for unconditional support to be lent to the political transition in South Sudan and the implementation of the peace agreement in the Central African Republic. Adding to that, the representative of Sierra Leone commended the bloc's continuous support for the African Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) and the effective implementation of the Somalia Transition Plan. For their part, the representatives of Japan, Council President for the month, and the Republic of Korea detailed their strategic partnerships with the European Union. While Japan joined projects mobilizing strategic investments in quality infrastructure in the Indo-Pacific and Africa, the Republic of Korea and the bloc held a summit where both sides reaffirmed their strong support for multilateralism, the rule of law, democracy and human rights. Meanwhile, the representative of the Russian Federation countered that the European project designed to help the wounds left after the Second World War has completely altered its nature. Today, "we are observing an aggressive expansionist bloc which is completely subordinating itself to the United States' and [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] NATO's goals and placing political interests above economic ones." While acknowledging that in the absence of weapon deliveries the conflict in Gaza would end, Mr. Borrell does not apply the same logic to Ukraine, he continued. Weapons for Kyiv are being provided through the European peace fund: "This is very Orwellian: War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength," he said, emphasizing that Moscow has never undertaken any aggressive actions against the European Union. However, "any attempts to (establish) a united anti-Russian bloc will end badly for Europe", he cautioned. Mr. Borrell, re-taking the floor at the end of the meeting to respond, asked: "The country that has launched the greatest military aggression in our times sees the European Union as an aggressive bloc?" The bloc supports Ukraine because it believes it has the right to exist, he insisted, adding that the war must end in a way that respects the principles of the UN Charter. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet visits USS Bulkeley (DDG 84) US Navy 12 March 2024 From U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa / U.S. Sixth Fleet Public Affairs NAVAL STATION ROTA, Spain -- Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee, commander, U.S. 6th Fleet, embarked the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Bulkeley (DDG 84) at Naval Station Rota, Spain to meet with the crew and recognize their accomplishments at the conclusion of their four month patrol, Mar. 8, 2024. Since arriving to Rota and joining the Forward deployed Naval Forces Europe (FDNF-E) forces in August 2022, Bulkeley's crew has completed their second patrol in the U.S. Sixth Fleet area of operations, working alongside Allies and partners to ensure security and stability throughout European and African waters. "The sailors of the USS Bulkeley have consistently shown their dedication and commitment to carrying out the mission as a forward deployed asset since joining FDNF-E force in August 2022," said Ishee. "The patrol they just completed made a significant impact on naval operations in the region and around the globe, and I am proud to have this incredibly capable ship and crew in this area of operations." During the patrol, Bulkeley operated with Carrier Strike Group (CSG ) 12 and USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). Bulkeley also escorted the Blue Ridge-class command ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) and the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) on separate missions. The ship participated in various port visits, exercises, trainings, integrating various ships and working alongside allies and partners to ensure security and stability throughout European and African theater. Bulkeley returned to Naval Station Rota at the end of February 2024, and has spent their in port period maintaining proficiency and training the crew to sustain capability and excellence. Bulkeley's FDNF-E assignment demonstrates the U.S. Navy's flexibility to operate throughout Europe and Africa, supporting security and stability in the maritime domain. For over 80 years, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF) has forged strategic relationships with allies and partners, leveraging a fountain of shared values to preserve security and stability. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Spanish Aid Ship Headed to Gaza to Feed Famished Palestinians By VOA News March 12, 2024 A Spanish charity ship carrying 200 tons of humanitarian food aid set sail from Cyprus to Gaza on Tuesday, the latest effort to feed tens of thousands of starving Palestinians as fighting between Israel and Hamas militants rages on. The food, gathered by World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres, was on a barge being towed by a ship belonging to the Spanish aid group Open Arms and headed to an undisclosed location on the Gaza coast. The 400-kilometer voyage was expected to take two to three days. A second vessel was being loaded in Cyprus to soon make the same trip to help besieged Palestinians, Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos told state radio. Speaking later in Beirut, Kombos said "We are working towards the safe arrival of the first shipment and then the safe distribution." "If all goes according to plan... we have already put in place the mechanism for a second and much bigger cargo, and then we'll be working towards making this a more systematic exercise with increased volumes," he said. Andres said while there was no certainty the food delivery would be successful, "the biggest failure will be not trying." "We could bring millions of meals a day," Andres said. "The people of the north [in Gaza] will be fed!" The U.S. military has dispatched a ship to the Mediterranean to build a temporary pier on the Gaza shoreline to provide passage for more aid trucks but says the dock may take two months to be completed. No cease-fire The United States, Qatar and Egypt had hoped to broker a cease-fire before the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan began Monday that would have included the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and a greater flow of aid into Gaza. The talks stalled last week. The U.S. is encouraging Israel to "stay engaged," said national security adviser Jake Sullivan during a news briefing Tuesday. "We believe that there still is scope for this deal to get done, notwithstanding the fact that we have entered the Ramadan period," Sullivan added. Sullivan declined to confirm reporting that the administration is considering placing conditions on U.S. military aid to Israel should it continue with plans to invade Rafah without adequate plans to protect civilians. More than 1 million Palestinians are seeking safety there, Gaza's southernmost area close to the Egyptian border. "I'm not going to comment on hypotheticals," Sullivan said, reiterating the administration's talking points that the U.S. does not support a military operation in Rafah that "cuts off the main arteries of humanitarian assistance, and then places enormous pressure on the Israel-Egypt border." American Israeli hostage death President Joe Biden said Tuesday he was "devastated" to learn that 19-year-old American Israeli soldier Itay Chen had been killed. Chen was previously believed to have been taken hostage by Hamas, but the Israeli military announced this week that he was killed during the October 7 attack. "I reaffirm my pledge to all the families of those still held hostage: we are with you. We will never stop working to bring your loved ones home," Biden said in a statement released by the White House. Chen's family has been prominent in pushing Israeli and American officials to secure the release of the 100 or so hostages still held by Hamas. His father, Ruby Chen, has made repeated media appearances and met with top U.S. officials. Sullivan underscored the grim fate of other hostages held by Hamas, saying that the U.S. cannot ascertain "whether they are still alive." Lebanon attacks On a second battle front, the Israeli military said about 100 projectiles were launched from Lebanon on Tuesday, some of the heaviest fire coming from Israel's northern neighbor since the start of the war in Gaza. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage following the strikes, which appeared to be in response to Israeli airstrikes deep in Lebanon on Monday. No group claimed responsibility for the attack. Israel's military and fighters from the Lebanese Hezbollah have been trading fire since the Israel-Hamas conflict began. More than 220 Hezbollah fighters and nearly 40 civilians have been killed on the Lebanese side, while in Israel, nine soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed in the attacks. Sullivan said the U.S. administration is engaging in "delicate diplomacy" to end hostilities between Israel and Lebanon "consistent with past agreements and consistent with the principle that the people who have been displaced from their homes can return to them." More Israeli strikes Palestinian officials said an Israeli strike early Tuesday on a home in central Gaza killed 11 people, including four women and five children, all from the same family. Israel also reported carrying out new airstrikes in the Khan Younis area of southern Gaza as it pushes forward with its campaign to eliminate the Hamas militant group. Israel said Monday that an airstrike in Gaza over the weekend targeted a senior Hamas military leader, but it was still trying to determine whether he had been killed. The strike on the presumed hideout of Marwan Issa took place "between Saturday and Sunday," Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told a news briefing. He said the compound in central Gaza was used by two senior members of Hamas, including Issa, who Israel accuses of being one of the key planners behind Hamas' October 7 terror attack on Israel. Issa is second in command of Hamas' military wing, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades. "We are still examining the results of the strike, and final confirmation has yet to be received," Hagari said. Israel began its military campaign to wipe out Hamas after the group's October 7 terror attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Gaza health officials say Israel's counteroffensive has killed more than 31,000 people and injured 72,700 others. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this article. Some material in this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address India, China Spar Over Modi Visit to Himalayan State By Anjana Pasricha March 12, 2024 India has dismissed China's objections to a recent visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing claims is its territory. The spat is the latest flare-up in a four-year-long military standoff between the two countries' that shows no signs of easing. A day after Beijing lodged a diplomatic protest over Modi's visit, India's foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said that Chinese objections do not "change the reality that Arunachal Pradesh was and will always be an integral part of India." Modi visited the Himalayan state on Saturday to inaugurate a two-lane tunnel built at an elevation of 4,000 meters. It will provide a year-round transportation link to the remote region and facilitate movement of soldiers and military equipment to the border state, where both countries have amassed troops. He also announced several other infrastructure projects that include development of roads and power generation. New Delhi is also racing to complete several other infrastructure projects such as roads and bridges in the Himalayas as tensions with China persist along their 3,500-kilometer-long border. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters on Monday that Beijing "strongly deplores and firmly opposes" the Indian leader's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, which it refers to as Zangnan, and that "India has no right to arbitrarily develop the area of Zangnan in China." He said that "India's relevant moves will only complicate the boundary question and disrupt the situation in the border areas between the two countries." India dismissed the Chinese protests. "Indian leaders visit Arunachal Pradesh from time to time, as they visit other states of India. Objecting to such visits or India's developmental projects does not stand to reason," Jaiswal said. China has objected to visits by Indian leaders to Arunachal Pradesh in the past, but tensions over the region have intensified in the past year. Last August, India lodged a protest with Beijing over reports that China released a new map showing the state as part of its territory. Last April, Beijing renamed 11 places in the state, including rivers and mountain peaks. Relations between the Asian giants plummeted to their lowest point in six decades after their troops clashed on the western side of their border in Ladakh in 2020, killing 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers. Since then, each side has deployed tens of thousands of troops along their border, backed by fighter jets, artillery and tanks. "This tension that we have seen for the last four years has not served either of us well," Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told a media conclave organized by the Indian Express newspaper on Monday. "So, the sooner we resolve it, I genuinely believe it is good for both of us. I am still very much committed to finding a fair, reasonable outcome." Analysts say efforts by the two sides to de-escalate have largely failed. Although soldiers have pulled back from five friction points, the deployment along the border is still huge. "Ties between India and China continue to be cold and despite 21 rounds of talks between their military commanders since the 2020 clash to discuss withdrawal of troops, there are no signs of a wider pullback," according to Manoj Joshi, distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN Chief Urges Haitian Stakeholders to Implement Caribbean Bloc Agreement By Margaret Besheer March 12, 2024 U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday called on all stakeholders in Haiti to "act responsibly" and take steps toward implementing the agreement reached late Monday for the establishment of a transitional government and the subsequent resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry. "The secretary-general takes note of the agreement reached yesterday by Haitian stakeholders on a transitional governance arrangement, including the establishment of a presidential council and the appointment of an interim prime minister," spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters. "He also takes note of Prime Minister Ariel Henry's announcement that he would resign immediately upon the installation of a transitional presidential council," he said. The agreement was reached at a meeting of the Caribbean Community bloc, CARICOM, held Monday in Kingston, Jamaica. The transitional government will be in place until new elections are held. Assassination, turmoil Haiti has been in turmoil since the July 7, 2021, assassination of President Jovenel Moise at his home in the capital, Port-au-Prince. Violent armed gangs now control much of the capital and have spread to other parts of the country. They have carried out massacres and kidnappings, human trafficking, and sexual violence. Last year, Haitian officials said more than 5,000 people were killed and more than 3,000 were kidnapped. The situation has continued to rapidly unravel this month, with gangs trying to seize the country's largest airport and helping thousands of prisoners break out of jail. The United Nations says Haiti needs a combination of a strengthened national police force, the rapid deployment of a multinational support force and credible elections to put the country on the path back to security and stability. In October, the U.N. Security Council approved plans for a Kenyan-led multinational support force of about 2,000 police officers to assist the Haitian National Police. But the mission has faced numerous delays in Kenya's courts and was in limbo again Tuesday after Nairobi said it was pausing the deployment until a "sitting government" is in place in Haiti. The mission also has funding, equipment and logistical gaps. European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell was at the United Nations on Tuesday and said the bloc supports the deployment of the multinational force. "We believe that the international community has to engage in order to make the Haitian people get out of the black hole where they are," Borrell told reporters. "Alone, they will not succeed. That's clear." Growing hunger The U.N. says the insecurity has displaced 360,000 people more than half of them children. Nearly half the population 4 million people are acutely food insecure, as gangs block major roads from agricultural areas to the capital, and the country's main seaport has been closed since March 7 due to the insecurity. The country relies on imports for half its food. The head of the World Food Program said Tuesday that deployment of the multinational security support mission is promising, but if Haiti's hunger crisis is not addressed, it could negatively impact efforts to restore security. "Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground. Efforts to restore law and order must be matched by an equally effective humanitarian response to meet soaring needs," said Cindy McCain, WFP's executive director. She said WFP desperately needs funds to meet the scale of needs. The U.N. humanitarian appeal for Haiti is just 2% funded, despite more than 1 million people teetering on the brink of conflict-related famine. McCain warned that without a cash injection, funding for hot meals will run out in two weeks. Since violence escalated this month, WFP says it has helped more than 280,000 people, including serving 62,000 hot meals to 14,000 displaced persons. Speaking to reporters over a video link from a food warehouse in the city of Cap-Haitien, Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP's country director in Haiti, said humanitarians need the seaport to reopen so they can replenish their food stocks, which could run out in a matter of weeks. He said people are stuck in their homes by the violence, hurting their ability to earn money and buy what little food is available on the market. "Food prices are rising, incomes are lowering, and at the same time, there is also population displacement aggravating preexisting vulnerabilities," he said. "So, that makes me quite concerned." Health services are also collapsing. Many hospitals and clinics have had to close because of a lack of staff and supplies. The U.N. said Tuesday that there is a serious shortage of blood at the National Blood Transfusion Center, and efforts are under way to bring in blood from neighboring Dominican Republic. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address WFP races to preposition food in eastern Chad as funding crunch and looming rains threaten aid to Sudanese refugees World Food Programme 12 March 2024 N'DJAMENA -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is today warning that life-saving programmes in Chad will grind to a halt in a matter of weeks without urgent funding. The stark warning comes as thousands of Sudanese refugees continue to stream across the border from Darfur, and as the rainy season looms, threatening to cut off road access for humanitarian deliveries to the camps in the east of the country - where around a million Sudanese refugees have sought shelter. WFP's assistance will be suspended for 1.2 million Sudanese refugees and crisis-affected people in April due to funding shortfalls, including for new Sudanese refugees. Also at risk is the vital cross-border life-line supply route into Darfur - the only reliable route into embattled western Sudan. This route has enabled WFP to assist one million people in Darfur since August, and the organization plans to scale up assistance to reach one million people a month. WFP is racing to procure, transport and pre-position enough stocks in the east of Chad to supply both its refugee response and its Darfur cross-border operations through the rainy season that will see roads become impassable mud rivers littered with stranded trucks. But without adequate funding, this will be impossible. "We are in a race against time. The small window to pre-position supplies is closing rapidly and our funding is drying up at this dramatic juncture. We've already cut our operations in ways that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, leaving hungry people close to starvation," said Pierre Honnorat, WFP's Representative and Country Director in Chad. WFP is in the grips of a catastrophic funding crisis in Chad and has already cut across the board. Since the conflict in Sudan erupted last year, erratic funding has allowed WFP to concentrate on immediate needs only, focusing efforts on new Sudanese refugees. However, in April the organization will be forced to cut all assistance to new Sudanese refugees. For months, the majority of refugees from Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Nigeria, have received no assistance at all due to limited funding. Cutting rations fuels competition between refugees, returnees and host communities over already scarce resources, sowing the seeds of conflict and instability. "The spillover from the crisis in Sudan is overwhelming an underfunded and overstretched humanitarian response in Chad. We need donors to prevent the situation from becoming an all-out catastrophe," Honnorat warned. Ten months after the violent conflict broke out in Sudan, over 559,000 Sudanese refugees and 150,000 Chadian returnees have crossed into Chad, which now hosts more than one million refugees, making it home to one of the largest and fastest-growing refugee populations in Africa. Chad is also facing its fifth consecutive year of food crisis, with record acute hunger set to affect 2.9 million people during the June-August lean season - which coincides with the rainy season. In February, the Government declared a food and nutrition emergency - highlighting the urgency of the situation. The majority of refugees cross the border carrying the burden of trauma, hunger and horrific tales of violence. They rely entirely on humanitarian assistance to survive. WFP assessments show food consumption at worrying poor or borderline levels for 90% of new refugees, 77% of pre-existing refugees and 67% of local communities in the east. The nutrition situation is particularly worrying with 40 percent of Sudanese refugee children under five suffering from severe anemia. "Cutting assistance to communities facing this level of vulnerability is unthinkable. We are forcing families to skip meals and eat less nutrition food, laying the ground for crises of nutrition, crises of instability, and crises of displacement," Honnorat warned. To ensure continued support to crisis-affected people in Chad over the next six months, WFP urgently needs US$ 242 million. # # # The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address WFP scrambles to respond to hunger crisis in Haiti amid funding crunch as country teeters on the brink World Food Programme 12 March 2024 PORT-AU-PRINCE -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is today warning that Haiti is on the edge of a devastating hunger crisis, with humanitarian operations at risk of grinding to a halt, as rampant insecurity limits access to communities and donor funding dries up. As fighting raging across the capital, WFP has been able to reach almost 300,000 people in the first ten days of March, delivering vital hot meals, food distributions, mobile money transfers and meals in schools. Recent agreements between Haiti and Kenya enabling the deployment of a multinational security support mission to Haiti are promising. But failing to address Haiti's hunger crisis could itself jeopardise efforts to restore security. "Haiti needs more than just boots on the ground. Efforts to restore law and order must be matched by an equally effective humanitarian response to meet soaring needs. But WFP desperately needs funding to respond to this largely forgotten crisis," said Cindy McCain, WFP's Executive Director. "Our humanitarian operation in Haiti is running on fumes, with funding for hot meals about to run out in two weeks. We need donors to step up today so we can tackle the rising tide of hunger and halt the slide into chaos," Executive Director McCain added. The number of displaced people in Haiti has shot up to over 362,000, and more than 35,000 have fled from their homes since the beginning of 2024. Those who run for their lives find themselves sheltering in schools, church yards and construction sites, struggling to feed their families. WFP has assisted more than 280,000 people since 01 March, including 62,000 hot meals served to 14,000 displaced individuals. However, funding for the hot meals programme will run out in two weeks if no one steps forward to support WFP's operations in Haiti. "Haiti is one of the world's most severe food crises - 1.4 million Haitians are one step away from famine. This crisis has been largely unaddressed. WFP is on the ground and responding, but we need consistent and safe access to deliver assistance to people who need it," said Jean-Martin Bauer, WFP Country Director in Haiti. WFP aims to reach 2.4 million people in 2024 through emergency assistance (cash and in-kind food rations) - security permitting - and is working with the government to provide school meals and to implement longer-term programmes to help Haitian produce their own food. # # # The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Readout of President Biden's Meeting with President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland March 12, 2024 President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. welcomed President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland for a joint meeting at the White House on March 12. This historic visit marked the 25th anniversary of Poland's accession to NATO and underscores our two nations' ironclad commitment to the NATO Alliance, which makes us all safer. The leaders committed to ensuring continued support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russia's war of aggression. They also discussed the strong U.S.-Polish energy security partnership and the enduring importance of democratic values. At the meeting, President Biden shared the United States will move forward with a new $2 billion Foreign Military Financing (FMF) direct loan to Poland to bolster its security and support its defense modernization using previously appropriated congressional funds. This loan will enable Poland's purchase of additional U.S. defense equipment, further supporting U.S. jobs and our deepening security relationship. The President also shared that the United States will offer to sell Poland 96 AH-64 Apache helicopters. This is a major step to provide Poland's armed forces with cutting-edge capability to defend itself, strengthen NATO interoperability, and further bolster the U.S. defense industry. ### NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Remarks by President Biden After Air Force One Arrival | Joint Base Andrews, MD March 12, 2024 Joint Base Andrews Prince George's County, Maryland (March 11, 2024) Q Have you scheduled your "come to Jesus" meeting with Bibi Netanyahu? THE PRESIDENT: No. Q Do you plan to, sir? THE PRESIDENT: We'll see what happens. Q Mr. President, when is a border executive action coming? An executive action on the border? THE PRESIDENT: I'm counting on the border action happening by itself, the passing it. Q But Congress can't come to an agreement. THE PRESIDENT: Well, they haven't Q How can THE PRESIDENT: yet. Q you help them? THE PRESIDENT: They haven't yet. Q Mr. President THE PRESIDENT: I'm I'm helping them. Q Mr. President, do you plan to address the Israeli parliament? THE PRESIDENT: No, not at this moment. Q Would you do it remotely, or do you have something in the works? THE PRESIDENT: Anything else? Q On Poland, Mr. President. Would you support increasing U.S. troops at the Polish border? THE PRESIDENT: There there's no need for more troops at the Pol- there's no need for more troops at the Polish border. Q Do you know what you mi- THE PRESIDENT: But I'm meeting I'm meeting with the Prime Mini- I'm meeting with the Polish leader tomor- Is it tomorrow? Q Do you know what you might talk about with him tomorrow? THE PRESIDENT: Yeah, but I'll talk to him about it. Okay? Thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address First aid consignment via Cyprus corridor departs for Gaza People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:10, March 13, 2024 NICOSIA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The first consignment of aid through the Cyprus-based corridor left on Tuesday morning for Gaza, with more aid expected to be shipped soon, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides announced. "The journey of hope and humanity has just started," Christodoulides said in a statement after a ship owned by Spanish NGO (non-governmental organization) Open Arms left the Larnaca port in southern Cyprus, towing a barge loaded with food, water and pharmaceuticals. Due to the low towing speed of the barge, the 400-km journey to Gaza is anticipated to span two days, contrasting with the usual 15-hour duration. The ship was part of an aid project known as "Amalthea." The Cyprus-proposed project was activated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Christodoulides on Friday in Larnaca and later endorsed in a joint statement by the European Commission, Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the United Kingdom, Greece, Italy and the Netherlands. According to Cypriot media reports, upon arrival in Gaza, the aid will be received by activists from the NOG World Central Kitchen, which will help distribute it to the local population facing dire food shortages. Since the Israel-Hamas conflict in October last year, the Palestinian death toll has climbed to 31,112, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russo-Ukraine War - 12 March 2024 - Day 747 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 31 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 on 9 March 2024, an uncrewed aerial vehicle attack launched by the Ukrainian Armed Forces struck areas across the Beriev Tankt maintenance facility in Taganrog, Rostov region, Russia. The Taganrog site is used to produce, upgrade, maintain and repair the Russian Air Force's A-50U MAINSTAY Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft. It also has broader strategic significance for Russia as it also services long range strategic bombers, transport aircraft, and is the test centre for the next generation AEW&C aircraft, the A-100. The constant presence of active air defence positioned around the site is indicative of its importance. The loss of the A-50U from Russian operations highly likely significantly degrades situational awareness. Images of the damage caused by the attack that circulated online appear to show damage to two large buildings associated to the A-50U fleet, highly likely used to shelter the aircraft during periods of deep maintenance. Two weeks after the loss of a second A-50U, the fleet highly likely remains grounded from flying in support of Ukraine operations. This attack demonstrates that Ukrainian operations can still reach strategically significant targets within Russia, even when such sites are thought to be protected, whether in the air or on the land. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that during the day of March 12, there were 78x combat engagements. Russian forces launched a total of 9x missile and 73x air strikes, carried out 72x MLRS attacks at the positions of Ukrainian troops and various settlements. Unfortunately, Russian attacks resulted in wounded civilians. Residential private and apartment buildings, as well as other infrastructure were destroyed and damaged. Volyn and Polissya axes: no significant changes. No signs of formation of an offensive group. 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. Russian forces launched air strikes in the vicinities of Soldats'ke, Popivka, Luhivka (Sumy oblast), Muravs'ke, Bolohivka, Odnorobivka, Kozacha Lopan' (Kharkiv oblast). More than 25x settlements came under Russian artillery and mortar fire, including Sen'kivka, Khrinivka, Bleshnya (Chernihiv oblast), Seredyna-Buda, Sukhodil, Malushyne, Pavlivka, Krasnopillya, Popivka (Sumy oblast), Udy, Strilecha, Starytsya (Kharkiv oblast). Kup'yans'k axis: the Ukrainian defenders repelled 4x attacks in the vicinities of Syn'kivka and Tabaivka (Kharkiv oblast), where the Russian occupiers made unsuccessful attempts to dislodge Ukrainian units from their positions. Russian forces launched air strikes in the vicinities of Kup'yans'k, Kivsharivka (Kharkiv oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at more than 10x settlements, including Dvorichna, Syn'kivka, Petropavlivka, Ivanivka, Berestove (Kharkiv oblast). Lyman axis: the Ukrainian defenders repelled 6x assaults in the vicinities of Terny (Donetsk oblast) and Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast), where the Russian adversary, with air support, made attempts to breach Ukrainian defense. Russian forces launched air strikes in the vicinities of Serebryans'ke forestry (Luhansk oblast) and Serebryanka, Proletars'ke, Vyimka, Rozdolivka (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at around 10x settlements, including Nevs'ke (Luhansk oblast), Terny, Tors'ke, Verkhn'okam'yans'ke, Spirne, Rozdolivka (Donetsk oblast). Bakhmut axis: the Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 6x attacks in the vicinities east of Chasiv Yar, Klishchiivka, Ivanivske (Donetsk oblast), where the Russian occupiers made attempts to improve their tactical situation. Russian forces launched air strikes in the vicinities of Bohdanivka, Druzhba (Donetsk oblast). Around 10x settlements came under artillery and mortar fire, including Mykolaivka, Vasyukivka, Bohdanivka, Chasiv Yar, Ivanivske, New York (Donetsk oblast). Avdiivka axis: the Ukrainian defenders repelled 22x attacks in the vicinities of Berdychi, Orlivka, Tonen'ke, Pervomais'ke (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces launched air strikes in the vicinities of Novokalynove, Novobakhmutivka, Umans'ke, Oleksandropil' (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at around 15x settlements, including Prohres, Vovche, Zhelanne, Myrnohrad, Novohrodivka, Umans'ke (Donetsk oblast). Novopavlivka axis: the Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to hold back Russian forces in the vicinities of Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka, Novomykhailivka (Donetsk oblast). In that area, the Russian invaders, with air support, made 19x attempts to breach Ukrainian defense. Russian forces launched an air strike in the vicinity of Urozhaine (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces fired artillery and mortars at around 20x settlements, including Krasnohorivka, Berestky, Kostyantynivka, Antonivka, Katerynivka, Zolota Nyva, Blahodatne (Donetsk oblast). Orikhiv axis: Russian forces, with air support, conducted 6x attacks on positions of Ukrainian defenders in the vicinities of Staromaiors'ke (Donetsk oblast), west of Verbove and Robotyne (Zaporizhzhia oblast). Russian forces launched an air strike in the vicinity of Malynivka (Zaporizhzhia oblast). Around 20x settlements, including Malynivka, Hulyaipole, Mala Tokmachka, Novoandriivka, Mali Shcherbaky, Prymors'ke (Zaporizhzhia oblast), were under Russian artillery and mortar fire. Odesa operational-strategic group, Kherson axis: the Russian occupiers do not abandon their intention to drive Ukrainian units out of their footholds on the left bank of the Dnipro. Russian forces conducted 3x attempts to assault positions of Ukrainian defenders. More than 15x settlements, including the city of Kherson, Khreshchenivka, Dudchany, Beryslav, Stanislav (Kherson oblast), were under Russian artillery and mortar fire. During the day of March 12, the Ukrainian Air Force launched air strikes on 9x concentrations of Russian troops, weapons and military equipment. The Ukrainian missile troops hit 1x concentration of troops, 1x artillery system, 2x air-defense systems of Russian invaders. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that in Kupyansk direction, units of the Zapad Group of Forces in cooperation with aviation and artillery have repelled seven attacks and counter-attacks of assault groups of AFU 57th motorised infantry and 32nd mechanised brigades near Sinkovka (Kharkov region). The enemy losses were up to 40 Ukrainian troops, two pickups, three U.S.-made M777 artillery systems, two D-30 artillery guns, as well as one Bukovel-AD electronic warfare station. In Donetsk direction, units of the Yug Group of Forces have liberated Nevelskoye (Donetsk People's Republic) and taken more advantageous lines and positions. The 79th Air Assault Brigade and the 81st Airmobile Brigade of the AFU have been hit near Novomikhailovka (Donetsk People's Republic) and Belogorovka (Lugansk People's Republic). The AFU losses amounted to up to 350 Ukrainian troops, two tanks, four motor vehicles, as well as one Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system. In Avdeyevka direction, units of the Tsentr Group of Forces have improved the situation along the front line by strikes at manpower and hardware of 23rd mechanised, 71st, 143rd infantry brigades of the AFU near Keramik and Berdychi (Donetsk People's Republic). 11 counter-attacks of AFU 24th, 47th mechanised, 3rd, and 78th assault brigades have been repelled close to Kirovo, Leninskoye, Novobakhmutovka, Orlovka, and Tonenkoye (Donetsk People's Republic). The enemy losses were more than 380 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, and 13 motor vehicles. In South Donetsk direction, the Vostok Group of Forces' units have taken more advantageous positions and hit manpower and hardware of the 128th Territorial Defence Brigade close to Staromayorskoye and Vodyanoye (Donetsk People's Republic). One attack launched by assault groups of the AFU 58th Mechanised Infantry Brigade has been repelled near Shevchenko (Donetsk People's Republic). The AFU losses amounted to more than 145 Ukrainian troops, two infantry fighting vehicles, eight pick-up trucks, and one Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system. In Kherson direction, units of the Dnepr Group of Forces have inflicted fire damage on 117th mechanised and 128th mountain assault brigades of the AFU near Rabotino, Kamenskoye, and Lobkovoye (Zaporozhye region). The AFU losses amounted to up to 50 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one Msta-B howitzer, and one D-30 gun. Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have eliminated one ammunition depot of the AFU 43rd Mechanised Brigade, as well as one U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS vehicle. In addition, clusters of AFU manpower and hardware have been eliminated in 132 areas. Air defence systems have shot down 11 MLRS projectiles: HIMARS, Grad, and Vampire projectiles, as well as one Tochka-U tactical missile during the day. In addition, 146 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles have been shot down, including near Kremennaya (Lugansk People's Republic), Zelenopolye, Aleksandrovka, Kodema (Donetsk People's Republic), Mirnoye, Vishnyovoye, Shevchenkovo, Konskiye Razdory, and Ocheretovatoye (Zaporozhye region), and Rybalche (Kherson region). In total, 577 airplanes and 267 helicopters, 15,226 unmanned aerial vehicles, 484 air defence missile systems, 15,438 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,238 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 8,378 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 19,658 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ahead of Paris Olympics, French state bodies targeted by 'unprecedented' cyberattacks Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 7:07 AM Several French government institutions have been hit by cyberattacks of "unprecedented intensity" ahead of the Paris Olympics. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's office said in a statement that several state bodies were targeted, without elaborating. "Many ministerial services were targeted" in attacks that started Sunday night "using familiar technical means but of unprecedented intensity," Attal's office said. According to the statement, the cyberattacks have been "contained." The PM's staff said a "crisis cell has been activated to deploy countermeasures", meaning "the impact of these attacks has been reduced for most services and access to state websites restored." Specialist services, including information security agency ANSSI, were "implementing filtering measures until the attacks are over." The attacks took place after Attal's defense adviser warned just last week that the Olympics games in July and European Parliament elections in June could be "significant targets." Several hacker groups claimed responsibility for the attacks, including Anonymous Sudan which said it had launched a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack on French government network infrastructure that affected "very important" websites. During DDoS attack, a target system becomes unable to respond to legitimate users because of a massive number of requests made by the attackers. "We have conducted a massive cyberattack... the damage will be widespread," Anonymous Sudan said, adding "A lot of different digital government sectors have been affected, including very important websites, with their respective subdomains." Anonymous Sudan is a known outfit that carried out attacks in the past year against websites in Sweden, Denmark and Israel, among others. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Laos' highest court aims for special court in lawless Golden Triangle An office site in the special economic zone has already been selected, a government official said. By RFA Lao 2024.03.12 -- Laos' highest court is working to set up a special court in the notorious Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone to directly clamp down on an area that has attracted scam-related businesses and human trafficking, a government official told Radio Free Asia. Lao state media reported last week on the planned special court. A government official who works in the zone said the idea was first proposed several months ago. "There is now an agreement to open the People Court's office in the zone," he said on condition of anonymity for security reasons. An office site and a place where court officials would live has already been selected, he said. Relevant officials in nearby Bokeo province have agreed to coordinate in forming the new court. The Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone, or SEZ, was established in 2007 in the northern province of Bokeo on a 3,000-hectare (7,400-acre) concession along the Mekong River where Laos, Myanmar and Thailand meet. It's become a gambling and tourism hub catering to Chinese citizens where investors - exempt from most national-level economic regulations - have built hotels, restaurants, casinos, a hospital, markets and factories. But it has also earned a reputation as a haven for criminal activities, including prostitution and drug trafficking. In August, a report from the International Crisis Group called for a "coordinated regional approach" - including through law enforcement - to combat the outsized impact illicit businesses have in the Golden Triangle SEZ and across the river at another special economic zone in Myanmar's Shan state. Lao authorities currently do not have the right to enter special economic zones to conduct investigations. In June, however, the Golden Triangle SEZ management board handed oversight of a detention and rehabilitation center located inside the zone to Bokeo provincial police. And in January, officials from the Office of People's Supreme Prosecutor visited the zone to discuss logistics for establishing a prosecutor's office. 'Money is god there' Laos' judicial system includes a People's Supreme Court that is located in Vientiane as well as local People's Courts and Military Courts throughout the country. The special court would be directly overseen by the People's Supreme Court. A former Lao government official told RFA that the special court could speed up criminal cases, which would help authorities tackle the zone's large volume of crime. "This zone has almost become its own country already," he said. "There are too many people who break the law." But a resident of Bokeo province said a better approach would be to strengthen the current system of transferring criminal cases to the local People's Court in Bokeo province. A lawyer in Vientiane said that court officials located inside the zone would be even more unlikely to resist bribes from wealthy Chinese business people who dominate the zone. "Everything will be difficult," he told RFA. "In Laos, officials are afraid of rich people. If the rich people committed crimes in the zone, who would sue them in this court? It seems impossible to do so." Another Lao resident of Bokeo province agreed with this sentiment. "I have seen that when something bad happens in the zone, law enforcement's response is weak," he said. "These days, money is god there." RFA contacted the People's Supreme Court in Vientiane for comment on the planned special court, but a relevant official said he wasn't able to comment. Translated by Phouvong. Edited by Matt Reed. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 Taking Coordinated Actions with Bahrain against Supporters of Al-Ashtar Brigades US Department of State Press Statement Matthew Miller, Department Spokesperson March 12, 2024 In coordination with the Kingdom of Bahrain, the United States is today designating three Iran- based operatives and a financial facilitator linked to Al-Ashtar Brigades, a U.S.-designated terrorist group. Today's action underscores the U.S. government's commitment to target destabilizing forces and threats emanating from Iran, including those threatening our regional partners. We will continue to target Al-Ashtar Brigades operatives and financial sources wherever they are located. These designations highlight the critical role Iran plays in providing support to Al-Ashtar Brigades. In 2018, the government of Bahrain prosecuted numerous individuals for terrorism-related activities. A number of these individuals fled Bahrain to evade prison sentences and settled in Iran, which has long supported and continues to serve as a safe haven for terrorist groups. The Department of State designated Al-Ashtar Brigades as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2018. The Department of the Treasury designations were taken pursuant to Executive Order 13224, as amended, which targets terrorist groups and their supporters. For more information on today's action, see Treasury's press release. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S. Targets Al-Ashtar Brigades Operatives U.S. Department of the Treasury March 12, 2024 WASHINGTON -- Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is taking action in coordination with the Kingdom of Bahrain against key Iran-based operatives and a financial facilitator for designated terrorist group Al-Ashtar Brigades. The Department of State designated Al-Ashtar Brigades as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in 2018. "Today's action, taken in coordination with the Kingdom of Bahrain, underscores our collective commitment to disrupting Iran's destabilizing forces and threats, particularly those which threaten our partners in the region and around the world," said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. Today's designations highlight the critical role that the Iranian regime plays in providing support to Al-Ashtar Brigades. In 2018, the government of Bahrain charged numerous individuals due to terrorism-related activities. A number of these individuals fled Bahrain to evade prison sentences and settled in Iran, which has long supported and continues to serve as a safe haven for terrorist groups. These individuals are being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, which targets terrorist groups and their supporters. AL-ASHTAR BRIGADES OPERATIVES IN IRAN Hussein Ahmad 'Abdallah Ahmad Hussein Al-Dammami (Al-Dammami) has engaged in facilitating lethal aid into Bahrain in support of Al-Ashtar Brigades. Previously, Al-Dammami was investigated by the Bahraini government for attempted murder, terrorism, possessing explosives, and other crimes, and fled to Iran following his sentencing and asset seizures. Ali Abdulnabi Ahmed Ebrahim M Alshofa is an Iran-based Al-Ashtar Brigades member involved in suspected lethal aid facilitation in the Middle East. Hasan Ahmed Radhi Husain Sarhan is an Iran-based Al-Ashtar Brigades member that has been involved in plotting terrorist operations in Bahrain. Isa Saleh Isa Mohamed Salman (Salman) is an Iran-based Al-Ashtar Brigades financier involved in money transfers for the group. On several occasions, Salman facilitated money transfers into Bahrain. Hussein Ahmad 'Abdallah Ahmad Hussein Al-Dammami, Ali Abdulnabi Ahmed Ebrahim M Alshofa, Hasan Ahmed Radhi Husain Sarhan, and Isa Saleh Isa Mohamed Salman, have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Al-Ashtar Brigades, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 13224. SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the designated individuals described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC's regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. In addition, financial institutions and other persons that engage in certain transactions or activities with sanctioned entities and individuals may expose themselves to sanctions or be subject to an enforcement action. The prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any designated person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person. The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions derive not only from OFAC's ability to designate and add persons to the SDN List, but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. For information concerning the process for seeking removal from an OFAC list, including the SDN List, please refer to OFAC's Frequently Asked Question 897 here. For detailed information on the process to submit a request for removal from an OFAC sanctions list, please click here. It is a Treasury priority to address unintended impacts on the humanitarian sector and to ensure that humanitarian organizations retain the financial access necessary to engage in life-saving activities. OFAC sanctions programs that implement E.O. 13224 contain certain humanitarian-related general licenses, which include authorizations to enable the flow of legitimate humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations. Designated persons themselves, including the individuals and entities designated today, are not permitted to use these available authorizations. Click here for more information on the individuals and entities designated today. Additional Treasury resources on countering the financing of terrorism: FinCEN Alert to Financial Institutions to Counter Financing to Hamas and its Terrorist Activities ### NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By Jim Garamone , DOD News U.S., Australian, British Land Chiefs Address Security Agreement's Progress AUKUS, the trilateral security agreement among Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, is already bringing the three allies closer together, and concrete progress will be measured over the next few years, the chiefs of the countries' land forces said yesterday at a Center for Security and International Studies presentation. AUKUS, signed in September 2021, is primarily known as a program that will enable the three countries to work together to provide a nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarine force to Australia in the 2040s. This is the "Pillar 1" portion of the program, but leaders from all domains are already working on Pillar 2 of the agreement. Army leaders speaking at CSIS said they can see the benefits of the close partnership happening much more quickly. Pillar 2 looks at technologies a including hypersonic weapons, cyber and computer technology and more a and land forces have expertise in these capabilities. Australian Chief of Army Lt. Gen. Simon Stuart, British Army Chief of the General Staff Gen. Sir Patrick Sanders, and U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy A. George have worked closely together to examine the ramifications of the partnership and ways to make it closer and more interoperable. "In an era of great power competition, defense and security is once again, a whole of nation endeavor," Stuart said. "But even more so, it requires us to work even more closely and in a more integrated fashion with allies and partners. As military professionals, our greatest challenge is balancing the enduring human nature of warfare with its ever-changing character." The three men have been meeting for a week and observed exercises at Camp Pendleton, California. The other two land force chiefs echoed Stuart's statements. The leaders see Russia's war on Ukraine and conflict in the Middle East and see lessons for their own militaries and the need for closer cooperation among the militaries. In the past, George said, the military would see a promising technology or system and examine it and, perhaps, get it on line in four or five years. "We have to be quicker than that," he said. "What we talk about in the U.S. Army is continuous transformation." He used lessons from unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine as an example. "You really can't hide anymore with all the sensors that you have out there," he said. "That has implications for ... how we're going to have to transform." He noted that commercial companies are moving much quicker than the military in many areas, and the three leaders had conversations about the process. Other aspects they spoke about were that more people are moving to cities and combat is moving to cities, as well. "That will have implications on ... what your capabilities are and how you're going to do those things," he said. The meeting of the land forces chiefs is timely, as the world situation is volatile, Sanders said. "We can see threats proliferating, at a scale, a pace and a vector that we probably haven't seen for 80 years or more," the British chief said. "It's not beyond the realms of possibility that these threats begin to metastasize together." The meetings are also key as time is "surely the most critical strategic resource that we have in the face of these threats," he continued. Sanders said he sees the discussions as a chance to speak about deterrence, which includes maintaining and increasing capabilities - what he calls "magazine depth." AUKUS, he said, is about maintaining the warfighting competitive edge. "It's about partners" being able to seamlessly work together. To that point, Stuart said that the chiefs spent a lot of time discussing the need for U.S., Australian and British forces to share data at machine speed. "You need to get the right data in the right place at the right classification," he said. "If we were to look at what some of the central priorities are, I think what we would previously have called the network is really at the heart of the of digital age warfare in all domains, but particularly in the land domain." Data is the key, Sanders said. Data ultimately generates effects, and that requires "being able to freely flow data from sensors through to deciders through to effectors across all domains," he said. " is the single most important enabler to allow us to co-develop, co-produce and co-sustain the sort of capabilities that were, that we're talking about." There is a lot of blue in any map of the Indo-Pacific, and many believe AUKUS is a maritime strategy. George said people must think larger than that. "You're not going to win a war from the sea," he said. "I don't think you're going to win a war from the air. I'm certainly not saying that you would win just from the land. "I think that there's no such thing as a maritime theater, for example, I think these are joint theaters," he continued. "It's going to take everybody's capability. It's going to have to be a joint team." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Nuclear safeguards: AUKUS statement to the IAEA Board of Governors UK Deputy Representative Nicola Murray gave a statement on behalf of Australia, the UK and the US about AUKUS safeguards under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. 12 March 2024 Statement made by the UK on behalf of AUKUS partners under agenda item 9: transfer of the nuclear materials in the context of AUKUS and its safeguards in all aspects under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT): Chair, I take the floor on behalf of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States to respond to comments made regarding Australia's acquisition of naval nuclear propulsion technology. In response to the inclusion of this politically-motivated, artificial and unnecessary agenda item, we refer Board members to our note verbale dated 28 February. We regret that we must continue to clarify for the record that the item proposed does not, and has never, enjoyed consensus support and is not a standing agenda item. In order to support the Board's efforts to dedicate its limited time to address genuinely pressing issues, we have not taken procedural action against the addition of this agenda item. But to be clear, in common with many other Board members, that does not mean we support it. As we have done at previous Board meetings, an update will be provided on Australia's naval nuclear propulsion programme under Any Other Business. Regrettably though, we must again invoke our Right of Reply to address some of the misleading assertions made today. We continue to engage consistently, openly and transparently with member states. Unfortunately, attempts at genuine discussion of this issue continue to be subject to persistent attempts designed to sow mistrust in the Agency or undermine its independent mandate. As one delegation stated yesterday, it is important that the Secretariat's cooperation with certain member states not be politicised. Chair, the Director General has already provided clear answers to questions raised today and in previous meetings: first, the Agency already has "the necessary experience to develop the arrangements related to the use of nuclear material for naval nuclear propulsion in accordance with the Statute and relevant safeguards agreements" second, the nuclear material transferred to Australia will remain subject to IAEA monitoring, in accordance with Australia's CSA and Additional Protocol third, Australia's Article 14 arrangement will allow the Agency to continue to fulfil the technical safeguards objectives established for Australia fourth, the Board has already authorized the Director General to conclude and implement Comprehensive Safeguards Agreements on the basis of INFCIRC/153, which provides for the establishment of Article 14 arrangements. fifth, for any CSA state acquiring naval nuclear propulsion technology, the Director General will transmit the Article 14 arrangement to the Board for 'appropriate action'. To suggest that the Board will somehow be bypassed is categorically false Chair, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States - along with the majority of the Board - continue to oppose proposals for standing agenda items, parallel processes, or any other efforts that undermine and politicise the independent technical mandate of the IAEA. We reject any suggestion that the Agency does not have a mandate to engage bilaterally with member states on issues relevant to the implementation of safeguards. The majority of member states that have voiced an opinion have been clear that there is no need for this agenda item. We welcome constructive Board discussions on NNP on the basis of reports by the Director General, under apolitical agenda items. Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States have provided updates on our ongoing engagement with the IAEA at Board meetings since the initial AUKUS announcement in September 2021. We will continue to engage in good faith with member states on genuine questions, consistent with our approach to maintaining open and transparent engagement, and welcome the Director General's continued commitment to provide updates on naval nuclear propulsion, as he deems appropriate. Thank you, Chair. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Keynote Address by Minister of National Defence Bill Blair to the CDA Institute Ottawa Conference on Security and Defence National Defence Speech March 7, 2024 Good morning everyone. First of all, let me acknowledge and thank Youri Cormier and the Conference of Defence Associations Institute and their President, General Guy Thibault. Thank you for holding this valuable dialogue year after year and I also want to say how difficult it is, and this isn't the first time I've had to follow General Thibault to the mic. It's always a bit of a challenge, but it's always a privilege, sir. I'd also like to thank all of you for joining us here today. To the Senators, to the members of the House of Commons, members of the Canadian Armed Forces, distinguished guests from around the world, and if I may, I'd like to also extend a particularly warm welcome to my Latvian counterpart and good friend, Defence Minister Andris SprAds, who's joined us all the way from Riga. He is here as well to acknowledge the important relationship that has developed between Canada and Latvia as part of our NATO commitments in that country. I also want to take the opportunity to recognize of Chief of the Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre. General, this is an opportunity to thank you and I hope I have many more opportunities to thank you for your decades of service to this country. Colleagues and friends, as you all know and as your report last night tells you, we live in times of great challenge and uncertainty. Whether it's the war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East or tensions in the Indo-Pacific. Whether it's new threats to our Arctic sovereignty, rapid technological advances, changes to our climate. In our interconnected world, all of these challenges are having a direct impact on Canada and on Canadians, and this is having a direct impact as well on our national security, our prosperity and our way of life. And as some global actors seek to challenge the international rules that we have built up, Canada is and must increase its investments in security and defence. But let me acknowledge we have done much work, we have much more work to do. We're boosting our contributions to our international alliances, we're doubling down to protect the rules-based international order that has kept us safe for nearly 80 years. We've read recently in the press, and I actually want to thank Murray Brewster for his reporting yesterday, bringing to the attention of Canadians the state of readiness and preparation of the Canadian Armed Forces. And as General, as former Admiral Mark Norman stated, this is decades in the making. I really see no point in us spending a lot of time trying to find out how we got to this state. We must focus on what needs to be done, and we must get to work. We've got a great deal of work to do and that's what I'd like to talk to you briefly about today. First of all, the war in Ukraine. I was just in Kyiv with Prime Minister Trudeau and Deputy Prime Minister Freeland to mark the two-year anniversary of Putin's full-scale invasion of that country. I had the opportunity to see up close the devastation that Russian forces have caused. We met Ukrainian troops who bravely defended the Hostomel Airport in the early hours of the war, one of Russia's first major strategic failures, and a sign of things to come. I had a chance to witness firsthand the unbreakable spirit of the Ukrainian people as they continue to fight for their homeland and their freedom and their future, to be frank, which is also our future. Canada has been there to support our Ukrainian friends from day one, in collaboration with more than 50 allies and partners. And while in Kyiv, the Prime Minister signed a historic security cooperation agreement with Ukraine. It lays out our long-term support for Ukraine as it defends its sovereignty and territorial integrity, it protects its people and helps to rebuild their economy and create a stable and secure future for that country. It includes over $3 billion in financial military aid for this year alone. And altogether so far, Canada's committed more than $4 billion in military assistance since the war began; everything from tanks to armoured vehicles to ammunition to drones. We've also been helping Ukraine protect its systems from malicious cyber activity and sharing vital intelligence. And I'm very proud, we've trained members of the Ukrainian military, their combat medics and sappers in Poland, new recruits in the United Kingdom, junior officers in Latvia, and many more. And in fact, since 2015, we trained more than 40,000 members of Ukraine's military through Operation UNIFIER. We've been teaching everything from combat survivability to patrol tactics to demining. And earlier this week, I had the opportunity and privilege to visit CFB Edmonton to meet with Canadian troops there who have trained Ukrainians with lifesaving demining skills. We must keep going because Ukraine's fight for freedom is a fight for democracy itself. And when despots like Vladimir Putin invade their neighbours at will, it undermines the international rules that have kept us safe for over 80 years and it threatens the sovereignty and security of all nations. The world mustn't stand for it and I want to assure you Canada will not stand for it. We will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. And on that note today, and because I'm a politician, I'll make a few announcements. I'm announcing a new initiative that will keep Canadian innovators developing solutions that will help Ukraine move forward and clear their mine fields. Through DND's IDEaS Program, we're launching the challenge to Canadian innovators in English and French and in Ukrainian. Successful applicants could receive up to $1 million to develop their concepts and our goal is to generate solutions that can be demonstrated to Canadian and Ukrainian military experts as early as next year. This project will fund the best concepts that could save Ukrainian lives and protect crucial Ukrainian military equipment. I'll also share with you that when I went to Ukraine and the General and I had an opportunity to meet with their Minister of Strategic Defence, he told us that they've learned a great deal about fighting the Russians over the past two years and they're willing to share that learning with us. And I think that's an opportunity not only for our military, but the Canadian industry as well, because the nature of warfare has evolved very significantly on the Ukrainian battlefields and we have an opportunity to learn from that experience to apply it to our own future. In addition to some of the demining expertise that Ukraine has received from us, they've also made it very clear they need artillery ammunition. They need it now and they need it for the long term. We've donated tens of thousands of rounds of NATO standard 155 artillery ammunition to Ukraine. But Ukraine needs much more ammunition and, quite frankly, so does Canada and the Canadian Armed Forces. So today I'm announcing that we are investing $4.4 million with General Dynamics Ordinance and Tactical Systems, and IMT Defence. This funding is going to enable these Canadian manufacturers to develop detailed plans to modernize production and ramp up production capacity for 155 ammunition. This planning is going to facilitate the next steps. We've already made investments to increase production of artillery and ammunition here in Canada, but as I have acknowledged, there's a great deal more work to do. And I'd like to assure Canadians that we are working with industry right now in ways to substantially increase the production of this ammunition in Canada, and I hope that we will have much more to say about this in the very near future, because we need to increase our ability to defend ourselves, to support our allies and to arm our friends in Ukraine. And as we support Ukraine, we're also helping to protect NATO's eastern flank as I referenced earlier when I introduced my good friend from Latvia. We're proud to lead NATO's Enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group in Latvia. We're more than doubling our military presence in Latvia to full brigade size, with up to 2,200 persistently deployed troops by 2026. And we are working hard to make sure that those troops have the equipment that they need. Canada has already deployed 15 Leopard 2 tanks to Latvia and starting this summer, we'll begin deploying helicopters as well. Last year at this conference, my predecessor, Minister Anand, announced that Canada would use urgent operational requirements to acquire additional equipment for our Latvian Forces. We require new anti-tank weapons, air defence capabilities and counter drone equipment. And today, I can tell you that all of those contracts are now signed and will begin delivering this much needed and essential armaments to our troops in Latvia later this year. This is an example of defence procurement done differently. It's also an example of defence procurement done right. We're also bringing our cyber expertise to our NATO allies, including in Latvia, where we've deployed military and civilian personnel to help protect critical networks there. And in fact, a report that was published by the British House of Commons Intelligence and Security Committee stated that Canada is with the UK and I quote, "at the head of the pack on cyber security." As NATO marks its 75th anniversary, Canada's commitment to the alliance is strong and will get stronger. As the Prime Minister committed in Vilnius last year, we must and will do more. If I may now move briefly to the Indo-Pacific, which is another priority for Canada. As a Pacific nation ourselves, the Indo-Pacific is crucial to our security and prosperity. Six of our top trading partners are located in that region, and that's why we're building closer ties with many of those partners. As part of our Indo-Pacific Strategy, Canada is deploying a greater number of ships and personnel to the region. And last year, for the first time in decades, we deployed three warships into the Indo-Pacific. We sailed through the Taiwan Strait. We will continue to do so and we will continue to do more. We're hard at work to strengthen our defence relationships with likeminded partners, which is why last September, Canada and ASEAN launched our strategic partnership. And it's why we have signed a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation with the Philippines in January. The Indo-Pacific is vital to our future and so, Canada must do more to maintain a persistent presence so that we can work with our partners and allies to strengthen the rules and norms that keep Indo-Pacific nations safe. None of this work around the world is possible if we are not strong at home here in Canada and secure in North America. But we need to be clear eyed about the challenges we face. The Arctic is warming at four times the global average. The Arctic is becoming more accessible, which means that geography no longer affords us the security that we once relied upon. We know that Russia and China harbour Arctic ambitions and these have major security implications for Canada. It is incumbent upon us to meet the moment. Through Canada's NORAD modernization plan, we're investing almost $40 billion to modernize our NORAD capabilities over the next 20 years. This modernization is going to be absolutely essential to our national security. It will strengthen the extraordinary alliance that Canada and the United States share, an alliance unlike any other in the world. Our NORAD investments are taking shape and we will be building a new Arctic Over the Horizon Radar that will vastly improve our threat detection. We'll be upgrading our infrastructure in places like Alert, Inuvik, Yellowknife and Goose Bay in consultation with Indigenous and Northern partners. And where possible, we will be investing in airfields, roadways, infrastructure that'll prioritize dual use that can meet the needs of the military and benefit our communities in the North. Beyond NORAD modernization, in November, I announced that Canada is purchasing up to 16 P-8 Poseidon aircraft, an investment of nearly $10.4 billion. These are state-of-the-art multi-mission aircraft which strengthens Canada's ability to conduct maritime and overland surveillance here at home and to support our allies. They're among the major defence procurements currently underway in Canada. And as I've said, we have much more to do. With respect to the, to the Air Force - I'm pleased to see General Kenny here this morning - we've been able to complete the purchase acquisition of a new fleet of 88 F-35 fifth generation fighters. It takes time to deliver them, but they will be delivered and they'll be implemented into our Air Force. We're also investing in new tanker and transport aircraft and we have begun to deliver up to nine of those, those aircraft in the immediate future. As I've said, we also acquired the P-8 contract and 11 new drones. These investments are going to give our Air Force the capability that it requires to fulfill the mission that we task them with. And at the same time, let me also acknowledge it takes time to deliver this equipment. We're going to have to make sure that we maintain our current fleet of aircraft to make sure that we can continue to do the missions required of us. We're making significant new investments in the, in the Navy. We'll have 15 new Canadian Surface Combatant ships, Arctic offshore patrol vessels that we are investing in, but we are also facing an enormous challenge because it takes time to deliver those important new platforms. And so, we have to invest in supporting and maintaining our existing fleet of Halifax ships. We're also investing in armoured combat support vehicles and the LC4ISR technology for the Army. We have much more to do. These capabilities will allow us to project power further, farther and faster and for far longer. They will make it even more costly for any aggressor to challenge our sovereignty in our north. And put together, these capabilities will mean that Canada will be better able to protect our Arctic, to patrol our coastline and to strengthen our national security. Canada's defence spending is actually doubling from about $18 billion a year to over $40 billion a year between 2016 and 2026-27. But in a world as dangerous as ours, with the new threat environment that we're facing, we know that we need to do much more. And I want to assure everyone in this room we will do more. From the emergence of drones to the increased importance of air defence, to the necessity of cutting edge radar to defend our continent, we know that much has changed over the past few years. To contend with the return of large-scale land warfare and to contribute to NATO, Canada needs more artillery ammunition, the industrial capacity to produce it and long-range precision strike capabilities. There is an urgent need in Canada, and all NATO countries, to increase our production capability. Not just in artillery shells, but in all military production, because production is deterrent and a stronger defence industrial base is going to make us stronger and less susceptible to coercion. And General, I hear very clearly the dismissal of some as lobbyists and business interests. I disagree completely. And with our new Defence Policy Update, I see it not only as military policy and foreign policy, but it's industrial policy as well because quite clearly, our industrial partners need the clarity and the certainty that the update will provide. They need to know where Canada's going. They need to know what industries and products they'll have to produce in order to support our defence mission in Canada. And we need to provide them with that certainty. To deal with the new challenges to our Arctic security, we are going to need persistent underwater surveillance capabilities and a robust network of Arctic infrastructure that's going to allow us to project power in our region and to maintain a meaningful presence here. I've spoken to people in the North and when we talk about Arctic sovereignty, they say it isn't the episodic flyover of a plane or even a ship passing by off the coast. They say we need a persistent presence, that we have to invest in infrastructure, invest in our security. If we do not defend our sovereignty in the far North, then it is no longer our sovereignty. And so then it's our obligation. It is our commitment. And I want to acknowledge to you all we know we must do more and we will be doing more. To manage the frequency and scale of natural disasters, I have been the Minister responsible for calling upon General Eyre on many occasions and asking for the military to come to the aid of Canadians in the face of an emergency. I know that has an enormous impact on our personnel, on their training and on their readiness and preparedness, and yet we know that when Canadians need them, the Canadian Armed Forces always answer their call. We're going to need modern tactical aviation capabilities for our Air Force and we're making those investments. It'll take time to deliver those capabilities, but when they're delivered, our Air Force will be and will remain among the best in the world. Now it says in my notes that soon we will be releasing Canada's Defence Policy Update. None of you want to hear me say soon. I don't want to tell you soon. What I can tell you is that we've been working very hard. General Eyre and his command staff team and I have been making our case for what the Canadian Armed Forces needs, what Canada needs in order to fulfill our obligations to our alliance partners and most importantly to defend our own country. We will soon be releasing that Defence Policy Update. I don't have a date for you, but I understand its urgency. I feel its urgency. We all feel its urgency. We need that clarity, we need that certainty and so do our industry partners, so do Canadians, so do our allies. Last year, we launched some consultations to seek feedback, and I have met with many of you to hear your input and your suggestions. We know what needs to be done. We've heard you loud and clear. We know that our updated defence policy must provide Canadian defence industry with a certainty and clarity that it requires to meet the needs of our armed forces, because building up a more robust domestic defence industry base with a capability to scale is going to help keep Canadians safe. Resilience makes us a harder target. It makes us less susceptible to coercion, and as we provide industry with that certainty, it means it will also be there to help, will also be there to help our industry partners because we're in this together. So we'll be bolstering their cyber security, helping them stay resilient and will harness emerging technologies together. And speaking of emerging technologies, artificial intelligence will transform how we defined Canada and Canadians. It's already driving new opportunities, new capabilities and new risks, and we can't afford to fall behind. And so today, we're launching our new National Defence Canadian Armed Forces AI Strategy. This strategy is intended to guide how we use artificial intelligence across defence so that we can become more AI enabled by 2030. It's going to help us use data and resources more efficiently, and it's going to enable National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces to work more closely with Canada's thriving innovation ecosystem and to ensure that we use AI in a responsible, ethical and safe way. And as AI continues to develop at a rapid pace, it's imperative that we remain fully capable and interoperable with our industry partners, our allies and our defence partners from around the world. And that's what this strategy is intended to enable. I'd like to turn to something that for me is perhaps the most urgent requirement of the Canadian Armed Forces. It's people. We're investing in modernizing our armed forces. We're there to work with our industry partners for the certainty required to support our troops and our number one priority must always be the people, men and women, who serve in uniform. None of this work is possible without them. That's why we must invest in new housing for our troops. We gave them a pay raise. We're taking meaningful steps to build a more diverse and inclusive and supportive institution that can attract and retain the talent from all segments of Canadian society. Because the bottom line is the Canadian Armed Forces must grow. We're short a lot of people, almost 16,000 people at last count in both our Regular Forces and Reserves. Now, in my conversations with the Canadian Armed Forces, they told me about all the efforts that they're making and they've urged us to be patient. But we can't be patient. There is a sense of urgency. We must change the way in which we recruit and retain the people of our forces. And therefore, I've asked our military leaders to take a hard look at expanding eligibility for recruitment, to abolish outdated medical requirements where they are not meaningful and relevant. Creating a probationary period to enroll new members, especially permanent residents and to streamline the security clearance's process. We had a remarkable situation where we announced last year that we were going to allow permanent residents to Canada to apply for the Canadian Armed Forces. Almost 16,000 people applied. A year later, less than 100 of them have been enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces. Quite frankly, that's unacceptable. It's an opportunity lost and we can't afford to lose those opportunities. And so we are going to have to do the work necessary to change. We need to maintain our high standards and it is not my intention in any way to compromise the remarkable standards of the Canadian Armed Forces that has led to the excellence that we have come to expect. But we also know that far too many people want to join the Forces and are being turned away or they're spending years in the enrollment process. And if you're not the first to call with a job, they'll go somewhere else. And so we must find a way to be first. We must do better. We must be more flexible and we have to be more creative. But I have every confidence because in my exposure to leaders of the Canadian Armed Forces, I have seen a capacity for innovation, for, for flexibility to get the job done. As Churchill once said, sometimes it's not good enough to do your best, you have to do what's required. And I have every confidence that the Canadian Armed Forces will do what's required. We've made some significant strides in Canada to give the military what they need. We have, over a 10-year period, nearly doubled the DND budget. We're rapidly procuring some key capabilities that our troops require and we are starting to invest in proven platforms that will boost our interoperability with our allies. But as I've said probably too many times in this speech, I suffer no illusions. We've got a lot of work ahead of us. We're going to have to invest in new capabilities for our military. We're going to have to provide our industry partners with a certainty that they need to meet our requirements. We're going to have to take a fresh look at recruitment and retention and implement new innovative measures that will actually fill the gap. We must also invest and maintain the equipment that we've got. None of us were happy to see information that more than half of our trucks, more than half of our planes and more than half of our ships are not available for service because they are in need of parts and repair. And so we're going to have to do better. We're going to have to keep those planes in the air, those ships on land and most importantly, we're going to have to equip our Army to make sure that they can do the job that we call upon them to do almost every day in order to make sure that they can continue that work while we invest in new equipment for the future. We've got to be there for our people in uniform. They've raised their hands to serve Canada. They are among the very best in our country, and we've got to be there for them. We face a pivotal moment in our history. The global security environment is changing quickly and new threats are emerging. And as we stare down a future that is fraught with risk and uncertainty, Canada must do whatever it takes to defend our country and to defend the rules that have kept our country and others around the world safe. We have no choice but to fulfill this mission and we will. Together with our allies, our partners, our defence industry and all of you, I'm confident that we can strengthen our collective defence, we can uphold our democracy, we can protect our way of life from those who seek to challenge it. Canadians expect this of us. It is our collective responsibility and we must not fail them. Thank you all very much. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address If you have an event you'd like to list on the site, submit it now! Submit Security and Defence: The European Union and China hold their 14th consultations European External Action Service (EEAS) 11.03.2024 EEAS Press Team On 11 March, the European Union and China held their 14th annual consultations on security and defence in Beijing. The EU and China exchanged their respective assessments on regional security issues in Europe, focusing on Russia's illegal war of aggression against Ukraine and the military support provided to Russia by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea that is in direct violation of UN Security Council resolutions. The EU recalled its commitment to supporting Ukraine with whatever it takes to prevail, stressing that the respect for the principles of the UN Charter, Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity remained the basis of any settlement. The EU also conveyed that China's positioning on the war continues to affect the EU-China relationship. The EU and China also exchanged views on regional security issues in the Red Sea and the Indo-Pacific, including in the South China Sea and Taiwan. The EU underlined its concerns regarding increasing tensions in regional hotspots, and stressed its commitment to promote security and stability with its partners in the Indo-Pacific. In spite of diverging views and different assessments on strategic and security issues, they both valued the candid exchanges that took place. The consultations were co-chaired by Benedikta von Seherr-Thoss, Managing Director for Peace Security and Defence at the European External Action Service on the European Union side, and by Major General Yao Qin, Deputy Chief of Office for International Military Cooperation on the Chinese side. Background To advance its interests and uphold its values, the European Union engages with China on a wide range of issues in accordance with the multi-faceted policy approach set out in the March 2019 Joint Communication of the European Commission and the High Representative "EU-China: A Strategic Outlook". This includes talking about security and defence issues and addressing their differences, as China is an increasingly active global actor with growing military capabilities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China warns of conflict over US push for major-country contest Global Times By Wang Cong and Zhang Weilan Published: Mar 12, 2024 09:43 PM China's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday excoriated a series of US' latest maneuvers that Washington says aim to "outcompete China," warning that the US' engagement in malign competition puts the fundamental interests of the Chinese and US peoples and even the future of mankind at stake and will only push the two countries toward confrontation and conflict. US officials have in recent days stepped up efforts to crack down on and contain China on multiple fronts - from requesting additional funds to "outcompete China" and arm the island of Taiwan to trying to lure Asian countries into its tech restrictions against China. All these moves are bad for China-US bilateral ties, the Asia-Pacific region and the entire world, Chinese experts warned. Chinese officials and experts further pointed out that the US' focus on major-country contest, politicization of economic and trade issues, and interference in other countries' internal affairs will not only fail to help address a litany of problems within the US but will actually backfire on the US itself. Vicious competition Commenting on the US' budget for the 2025 fiscal year, which includes funds to "outcompete China" and arm China's Taiwan region on Tuesday, Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, reiterated that competition is not the true nature of China-US ties and major-country contest will not address problems faced by China and the US. The US' attempt to "outcompete China" is not benign competition, but vicious competition, in which the US sets up traps for the competitor at every turn, Wang said at a regular press briefing. "It is an unrestrained gamble that puts the fundamental interests of people of the two countries and even the future of humanity at stake, and it will only push China and the US toward confrontation and conflict," he said. The US administration's budget request for the 2025 fiscal year includes $4 billion over five years in mandatory funding so as to "employ all the tools at our disposal to outcompete China." The budget request also includes a "first-time funding request" of $500 million to replenish weapons that would be provided to Taiwan, media reported. Wang on Tuesday also stated China's firm opposition to military ties between the US and the island of Taiwan and the US' attempt to arm the island. "We urge the US to abide by the one-China principle and stop interfering in China's internal affairs. China will take measures to firmly safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said. In addition to its budget request, the US government has also stepped up efforts that are apparently aimed at further intensifying its technological crackdown campaign against China. While leading a US business delegation to the Philippines, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo signaled that the US "will do whatever it takes" to crack down on China's technological capabilities, Bloomberg reported on Monday. In the Philippines, Raimondo announced that US companies are set to announce investments totaling more than $1 billion in the Philippines, according to Reuters. The US Commerce Secretary said the US' commitment to expanding trade and investment in the Philippines also extends to "the larger Indo-Pacific region," even as she reiterated that the US is not seeking to decouple from China. "This is another vivid manifestation of the US engaging in the so-called major-country contest," Diao Daming, a professor at the Renmin University of China in Beijing, told the Global Times on Tuesday. Diao said that while it is up to the US business community to decide on their own how it forms business strategies, it is clear that the US government is actually engaging in major-country contest out of political and strategic considerations and is pushing for a decouple under the guise of de-risking. "This is not a positive signal for China-US relations, the region or even the world," he stressed. Danger for world The US government's engagement in zero-sum major-country contest will not only risk confrontation between the world's two biggest economies, but also draw more countries in the region and around the world into bloc confrontation, at a time when the world needs cooperation the most, Chinese experts noted. Further underscoring Washington's intensifying campaign to contain China in a major-country contest, the US government is also pushing its allies, including the Netherlands, Germany, South Korea and Japan, to tighten chip restrictions against China, and is considering adding another Chinese chipmaker, ChangXin Memory Technologies Inc, to its so-called entity list, according to Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the US Congress is rushing a bill that will essentially force Chinese firm ByteDance to sell its popular TikTok or face a ban in the US, a move that Chinese experts have said it's another hysterical move by Washington to crack down on Chinese firms. The latest moves by the US reflect "politicians' mentality in pushing for a decoupling from China," Li Yong, a senior research fellow from the China Association of International Trade, told the Global Times on Tuesday, noting that US politicians' tactic of blatantly interfering in businesses is absurd and will not serve their own political purposes. "Using a politicized means to promote business competition is not competition at all." US politicians' intensifying crackdown and containment campaign against China reflect mounting domestic woes within the US, including its evaporating economic and technological dominance globally, that the country cannot address in any effective manner due to partisan divisions and dysfunctions of the government, according to Chinese analysts. "The Biden administration seeks to bolster the US' competitiveness by cracking down on China and rectifying its domestic development woes by hyping the so-called external threats. Such a tactic may gain consensus in certain areas in the short term, but it cannot solve the root causes," Diao said, stressing that the US approach of "treating its internal wounds externally" will not work. More importantly, such an attempt will not contain China's economic and technological rise, as businesses, including US companies, driven by market forces not politics, will continue to invest and operate in the Chinese market, experts said. "Many US business executives are visiting China and expanding investment in China," Li said, adding that political restrictions on US businesses will only hurt US' interests. In an apt example of US firms expanding investment in China, US tech giant Apple announced on Tuesday a plan to open a new research lab in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, and upgrade its Shanghai research lab. This comes shortly after the company just announced to open a new store in downtown Shanghai. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China, Iran, Russia launch joint drills near Gulf of Oman, safeguard regional maritime security Global Times By Liu Xuanzun and Guo Yuandan Published: Mar 12, 2024 10:38 PM The naval forces of China, Iran and Russia on Monday launched an exercise near the Gulf of Oman in a joint effort to safeguard regional maritime security, without targeting any third country or current regional tensions, experts said on Tuesday. The Security Belt-2024 joint exercise kicked off on Monday local time after Chinese warships arrived in waters near Chabahar, Iran and rendezvoused with participating Iranian and Russian naval vessels, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Tuesday. It marks the fourth joint naval exercise by the three countries since 2019. According to an annual schedule and consensuses reached by the three countries, the joint exercise held near the Gulf of Oman started on Monday, and will last until Friday, CCTV reported. With the theme of jointly building peace and security, the exercise mainly features anti-piracy and search and rescue training courses, and is organized in three phases, namely the harbor phase, the sea phase and the summarize phase, the report said. China's Ministry of National Defense said in a press release on Monday that the aim of the exercise is to jointly safeguard regional maritime security. The Security Belt joint exercise is hosted by the Iranian Navy, with more than 10 vessels from the three countries participating, CCTV reported. The Chinese participating forces consist of three warships of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy's 45th escort task force that just wrapped up escort missions in the Gulf of Aden, namely the Type 052D guided missile destroyer Urumqi, the Type 054A guided missile frigate Linyi and the Type 903A comprehensive replenishment ship Dongpinghu, the report said, noting that the Iranian side sent over 10 vessels including the frigates Alborz and Jamaran, while the Russian side sent the guided missile cruiser Varyag and the large anti-submarine warfare ship Marshal Shaposhnikov. "The joint drills are conducive to enhancing exchanges and cooperation among the Chinese, Iranian and Russian navies, and it further displayed [the three countries'] will and capability in jointly safeguarding maritime security and actively building a maritime community with a shared future," Liang Dong, a member of the PLA Navy's 45th escort task force, said in the CCTV report. Zhuo Hua, an international affairs expert at the School of International Relations and Diplomacy of Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Tuesday that the fourth edition of the joint naval exercise by China, Iran and Russia indicates that the drill has become regular. Such regular exercises can enhance the three countries' traditional friendship, boost their interoperability at sea, elevate pragmatic cooperation, and safeguard navigation safety in important international sea lanes in the region, Zhuo said. Envoys from the militaries of Azerbaijan, India, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan, and South Africa are in attendance as observers of the joint exercise, Russian media outlet RT reported on Monday. Zhuo said that the participation of the six countries as observers signals their recognition of the exercise, as the drill focuses on joint efforts on peace and stability with high multilateral inclusiveness, and it does not point to traditional military confrontation. The Security Belt joint exercise is expected to win more recognition and positive responses in the international community, and more participants could join in the future, Zhuo said. Western media including VOA linked the trilateral exercise with current tensions in the Red Sea and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, saying that some US officials have previously expressed concern over growing military ties between the three countries. Slamming these Western reports as unprofessional, a Chinese military expert who requested for anonymity told the Global Times on Tuesday that China, Iran and Russia have started to regularly hold joint exercises in the region long before the current tensions in the Middle East, and that the Gulf of Oman is an entire Arabian Peninsula away from Gaza and the Red Sea. The Gulf of Oman is another important international sea lane that needs peace and stability, and the trilateral exercise provides that, the expert said. Zhang Junshe, another Chinese military expert, told the Global Times on Tuesday that the China-Iran-Russia joint exercise does not target any other country, nor is it related to the regional situation. The US should reflect on itself, because the US' military exercises with its allies are often linked with geopolitics, many of which held in the Asia-Pacific region were pointed at China, Zhang said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin's Regular Press Conference on March 12, 2024 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China 2024-03-12 21:32 AFP: Media outlets from the Maldives reported that the first batch ofaIndian military personnel have left the Maldives. What's China's response? Wang Wenbin: I'm not aware of what you said. China supports the Maldives in safeguarding its territorial sovereignty and carrying out friendly cooperation with all sides on the basis of independence. CRI: China announced that the President of Angola will visit China. Can you share the arrangement and China's expectation for the visit? How does China view the current relations with Angola? Wang Wenbin: China and Angola share a traditional friendship. Last year, the two countries celebrated the 40th anniversary of the diplomatic relations. At the moment, the China-Angola relations are growing with a sound momentum, with deepening political mutual trust and fruitful outcomes of practical cooperation, which have brought tangible benefits to the peoples of the two countries. During President LourenAo's visit, President Xi Jinping will host a welcome ceremony and a welcome banquet for him. The two presidents will hold talks and attend the signing ceremony of cooperation documents. Premier Li Qiang and Chairman Zhao Leji will meet with President LourenAo respectively. President LourenAo will also visit Shandong Province. We believe that President LourenAo's visit will provide new impetus for the comprehensive growth and deepening of the China-Angola relations and promote new progress in the friendship and cooperation between the two countries. TASS: CIA Director William Burns told the Senate that the US will continue its support for Ukraine both to bolster the government in Kyiv and indirectly contain China and send a message to China about Taiwan or the South China Sea. What's your comment? Wang Wenbin: These remarks show that what the US truly cares about is not Ukraine, but using the Ukraine crisis to realize its own geopolitical strategic goals. Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory. The Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair, which brooks no foreign interference. Any attempt by anyone of meddling in the Taiwan question is doomed to failure. Reuters: The Philippine Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday it had received several concept papers from China on territorial disputes in the South China Sea, but added China's proposals could not be considered because they were against the Philippines' sovereignty. What's China's comment?a Wang Wenbin: China has indisputable sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao. There's no territorial disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Proceeding from its bilateral relationship with the Philippines and peace and stability in the South China Sea, China has made proposals to the Philippines on managing the situation at sea and carrying out maritime cooperation. It fully shows China's sincerity and goodwill in standing ready to manage differences through negotiation and consultation. Regrettably, the Philippines has not yet responded to most of the proposals and made frequent infringements and provocations at sea. Such moves seriously undermine the atmosphere of communication and cooperation between China and the Philippines. China's position on the South China Sea issue is consistent. We stand ready to continue to work with the Philippines to properly handle differences through dialogue and consultation. At the same time, we will take resolute measures to firmly safeguard our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. RIA Novosti: A Pentagon official said earlier that the administration of US President Joe Biden in the defense budget for the year 2025 for the first time requested the authority to provide weapons from American warehouses to aid Taiwan. What's China's comment on this? Wang Wenbin: We have noted relevant reports. We've made clear time and again that competition is not the defining feature of China-US relations and that competition between major countries cannot solve the problems facing China and the US. By claiming to "outcompete" others, what the US refers to is not healthy competition of becoming one's better self and making progress together but vicious competition of trying to trip the other and recklessly gamble at the cost of the fundamental interests of the two peoples and even the future of humanity. It will only push the two countries toward confrontation and conflict.a As Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out last week, if the US is obsessed with suppressing China, it will eventually harm itself. We urge the US to correct its wrong perception of China, discard the mentality of zero-sum game, and give up the illusion of "outcompeting China." Instead, the US needs to work with China in the same direction, gradually translate the San Francisco vision into reality and promote the sound, steady and sustainable development of China-US relations.a I would like to stress that China is firmly opposed to US's military ties with Taiwan and its effort of arming Taiwan. We urge the US to abide by the one-China principle and stop interfering in China's internal affairs. China will take steps to firmly uphold its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Kyodo News: On China's suspension of the import of all aquatic products originating from Japan, Japanese Prime Minister Kishida said yesterday that they cannot accept these regulations that are not based on scientific evidence and that the government will work as one to call for the immediate lifting of such regulations by China. What is China's comment?a a Wang Wenbin: The ocean discharge of the Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water impacts the health of all humanity, the global marine environment and the international public interest. It's entirely legitimate, reasonable and necessary for China and other countries to take precautionary measures to protect food safety and people's health in response to the discharge.aa After Japan's discharge of nuclear-contaminated water, incidents at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station where nuclear-contaminated water was splashed onto workers and leaked from the purification system spotlight Fukushima's grave safety problems, Tokyo Electric Power Company's management deficiency and inadequate government oversight. It aggravates the concerns of international community and demonstrates again that Japan's claim that the discharge is "safe" and "reliable" is not convincing. China urges Japan to attach great importance to the concerns of international community and provide full cooperation in setting up an independent international monitoring arrangement that remains effective in the long haul and has the substantive participation of Japan's neighboring countries and other stakeholders, so as to avoid irrevocable consequences stemming from the ocean discharge. Dragon TV: On March 7, the spokesperson for the Republic of Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed deep concerns on the dangerous situation caused by collision between the Chinese and the Philippine vessels and use of water cannons against the Philippine vessels in the South China Sea. The ROK side said it supported peace, stability and rules-based order in the South China Sea, including freedom of navigation and overflight according to the principles of international law, including UNCLOS. What's your comment? Wang Wenbin: We noted the statement of the ROK's Foreign Ministry spokesperson and are gravely concerned about it. On the illegal intrusion of the Philippines' vessels at Ren'ai Jiao on March 5, China has shared relevant information and stated our solemn position. I would like to stress once again that what caused the event is that the Philippine side went against its pledges and infringed upon China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests. China took necessary management and control measures in accordance with the law. The maneuvers were professional, restraint, reasonable and lawful. The responsibility lies completely with the Philippine side. The ROK is not a party to the South China Sea issue. However, in recent years, it has changed its prudent and neutral position that it had adhered to for years, and alluded to or blamed China on the South China Sea issue on multiple occasions. China has lodged representations immediately to state our opposition. We once again urge the ROK to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the matter, and avoid adding unnecessary burden to the China-ROK relations. Kyodo News: Official materials from China show that Chinese nuclear power plants released wastewater containing tritium in 2022 at levels higher than the highest amount expected to be found in the planned annual discharge of "treated water" from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Some Japanese people have expressed their disapproval against this. What is China's comment? Wang Wenbin: We noted the reports by some Japanese media outlets. It needs to be pointed out that the nuclear-contaminated water produced in the Fukushima accident is in nature different from the liquid effluent from normally functioning nuclear power plants around the world. They could not be put in the same category. This is common sense. The nuclear-contaminated water in Fukushima comes from the cooling water injected into the damaged reactor cores, as well as seepage of groundwater and rainwater after the nuclear disaster. It contains various radionuclides released from the damaged reactor cores and is difficult to deal with. Relevant reports focus one-sidedly on tritium in an attempt to create a false impression that the Fukushima nuclear-contaminated water contains only tritium. This is distorting facts and misleading the public. Relevant media outlets should stop such unprofessional and irresponsible reporting.a CCTV: For more than a week, the world has focused on the two sessions. Several foreign media quoted analysis by international institutions and experts, and stated that the two sessions send positive signals of China's economic rebounding. What's your comment on that? Wang Wenbin: The annual two sessions is a major political event of China. It also offers an important window, through which the international community observes China's major policies. Whether it is the expected GDP growth of 5 percent set in this year's Report on the Work of the Government, or such keywords as "new quality productive forces", "higher-standard opening up", and "high-quality development", all of them attracted attention from the international media. Through the two sessions this year, the world sees a China with steady advancement, trail-blazing innovation, openness, confidence and solidarity. It holds an even more positive view on China's enormous potential for economic and social development, and expects more opportunities brought about by China's high-quality development to the world. The growth target of around 5 percent demonstrates the resilience, potential and vitality of China's economy. It exceeds not only the forecast by the IMF and World Bank on China's economic growth this year, but also the IMF forecast on the growth rate of the US and Europe. The international media comments that, against the backdrop of an uncertain world economy, China's growth target of around 5 percent is ambitious. Since the beginning of this year, factors for a stronger Chinese economy have been accumulating. During the Spring Festival this year, China witnessed over 2.293 billion cross-region trips, with domestic tourists spending more than RMB 632.6 billion yuan, an increase of 7.7 percent on a comparable basis than the same period in 2019. In the first two months this year, China's total trade in goods hit RMB 6.61 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 8.7 percent. With China's economy continuing its sound momentum of rebounding and improvement, the first quarter is expected to kick off with a good start. The important notion of new quality productive forces guides the Chinese economy to break new ground. When attending the deliberation of the delegation of Jiangsu Province, General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that we should stay committed to the priority of high-quality development, and develop new quality productive forces based on local conditions. For the first time, it is put forward in this year's government work report that we should strive to modernize the industrial system and develop new quality productive forces at a faster pace. Last year, exports of the "new trio," namely, electric vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products exceeded RMB one trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 30 percent. Last year also witnessed accelerated development of digital economy, with half of the population using 5G. The application of international patents by Chinese applicants through the Patent Cooperation Treaty topped the world for four consecutive years. The new quality productive forces have taken into shape and strongly boosted and supported high-quality development. New ways to expand higher-standard opening-up showcase China's resolve to share opportunities with the world. It is pointed out in the Government Work Report that we should pursue higher-standard opening up and promoting mutual benefits, promote alignment with high-standard international economic and trade rules, steadily expand institutional opening up, work to steadily increase the volume and raise the quality of foreign trade, intensify efforts to attract foreign investment, strive for solid progress in high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and deepen multilateral, bilateral, and regional economic cooperation. In January, 4588 foreign-invested businesses were established in China, which marks an increase of 74.4 percent year on year. According to the latest survey by the German Chamber of Commerce in China, 91 percent of German businesses will continue to invest in China. According to a report by the American Chamber of Commerce in South China, 76 percent of the companies interviewed plan to invest again in China in 2024. More and more multinational business are recognizing that investing in China is investing in the future, and the next China is still China. The blueprint is drawn up, and the clarion is sounded. We have every confidence, condition, and capability to accomplish all the targets and missions of economic and social development for this year. Chinese economy is getting bigger and stronger. The development of China will break waves and embrace a even brighter future.a Bloomberg: The former President Donald Trump who is a Republican candidate to the next election said that he plans to increase tariffs on Chinese products if he is elected for a second term. And he also didn't mind if China retaliated with its own tariffs in that case. Do you have any comment about his comment that they might impose tariffs on all Chinese exports up to 60 percent? Would China retaliate again with further tariffs on US products at that time or would China respond by taking actions at the WTO or making other steps? Wang Wenbin: The presidential election is the US's internal affairs. We will not comment on that. What I would like to tell you is that the economic and trade relations between China and the US are mutually beneficial and win-win in nature. Waging wars of tariffs and trade does not serve the interests of China, the US and the world at large. Global Times: It's reported that Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui just concluded the second round of shuttle diplomacy. Can you brief us on Special Representative Li Hui's trip? During the visit, did parties reach any consensus on any issue? What's China's take on the prospects of peace after the visit? Wang Wenbin: Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs Li Hui visited Russia, the EU headquarters, Poland, Ukraine, Germany and France from March 2 to 12. He held talks with relevant parties on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis, had in-depth exchanges of views, and traveled intensively to mediate among different parties and convey information. All sides attached high importance to Special Representative Li Hui's visit and commended China's effort of promoting talks for peace.a It has been more than two years since the full escalation of the Ukraine crisis began. Over the past two years and more, China has always followed an objective and impartial position and worked to build consensus for ending the conflict and pave the way for peace talks. As the conflict drags on and the situation faces the risk of escalation and spillover, the most urgent priority now is to restore peace. China sincerely hopes that relevant sides can show political will, deescalate the situation and make concerted efforts for an early ceasefire and a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture. China will continue to promote peace talks and play a constructive role for a political settlement of the Ukraine crisis. CCTV: Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Peter Szijjarto reportedly said that it's a good news that China offers visa-free policy on a trial basis to Hungarian nationals visiting China for tourism or business. Based on the principle of mutual benefits, from that day on, the Hungarian government will offer long-term visa for senior executives of Chinese companies travelling to Hungary for investment cooperation. Foreign Minister Szijjarto also stressed that the measures will further enhance economic, tourism, and cultural cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between Hungary and China. What's your comment?a Wang Wenbin: China and Hungary are comprehensive strategic partners. The two countries have achieved fruitful outcomes in cooperation in various areas. We noted that immediately after China announced the pilot visa-free policy for six countries, including Hungary, Hungary announced that it will issue five-year multiple-entry visas to relevant Chinese people from the business community. This facilitation arrangement is yet another vivid example of how the China-Hungary relations have been strong and robust. China welcomes this. We believe these measures will further boost cross-border travel between the two countries, deepen the mutually-beneficial cooperation in various areas, and bring the bilateral relations to an even higher level. China welcomes more visa facilitation measures for Chinese nationals from relevant countries to enhance people-to-people exchange and mutually-beneficial cooperation. Bloomberg: Previously, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has complained about countries that are not party to or not part of the region interfering in questions such as the South China Sea. And just now you criticized South Korea for doing the same. What countries can actually comment on issues in the South China Sea if the Republic of Korea cannot? Previously, Japan has been criticized for doing that. The US obviously is not part of this region, according to the Chinese definition. Which countries exactly do have a right to discuss the issues in the South China Sea? Wang Wenbin: Last week, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi responded to relevant questions when he met the press on the margins of the two sessions. I would like to quote Foreign Minister Wang Yi's relevant statement here, which will help understand the situation in the South China Sea, and how to better maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea. Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed that with joint efforts of China and the ASEAN countries, the South China Sea has remained peaceful and stablea in a turbulent world. It is hard-won and should be treasured by all. One of the most important experience we have drawn is that we must adhere to two principles. First, differences should be properly managed and resolved through dialogue, consultation, or negotiation between states directly involved. Second, peace at the sea should be upheld by China and ASEAN countries working together. It is also the core essence of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed in 2002. Foreign Minister Wang Yi also pointed out that on maritime disputes, China has been exercising a high degree of restraint. We maintain that parties should find solutions that are acceptable to each and all by working in the spirit of good-neighborliness and friendship, and on the basis of respecting historical and legal facts. But abusing such good faith should not be allowed. Distorting maritime laws cannot be accepted. In face of deliberate infringements, we will take justified actions to defend our rights in accordance with the law. In face of unwarranted provocation, we will respond with prompt and legitimate countermeasures. We also urge certain countries outside this region not to make provocations, pick sides, or stir up troubles and problems in the South China Sea. On your question, I want to reiterate here that if certain countries truly want to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, they should respect the effort of China and relevant ASEAN countries to properly address disputes through dialogue and consultation and safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, and refrain from stirring up troubles in the region.a Bloomberg: You are saying that South Korea shouldn't intervene in this issue because they are not part of this region. So my original question is, what countries do have a right to intervene in this question? Is it just China and the ASEAN 10 countries or the claimants to the South China Sea or there are other countries as well who have a right to express their opinions on the questions? Wang Wenbin: What I can tell you is that if certain countries outside the region truly want to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, they should support China and relevant ASEAN countries in properly addressing disputes through negotiation and consultation, and they should support the efforts jointly made by China and ASEAN countries in safeguarding peace and stability in the South China Sea. BRTV: UN Secretary General AntAnio Guterres yesterday called for immediately ceasing hostilities in Gaza and removing all obstacles to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid during Ramadan. What's your comment?aa Wang Wenbin: The latest Palestinian-Israeli conflict has lasted for over five months, which has outlasted previous Middle East wars except the first Middle East war and has killed more people, especially civilians, than previous Middle East wars. As Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed, this is a tragedy for humanity and a disgrace for civilization.a The killing of civilians in Gaza must be stopped. Injustice done to the Palestinian people must be corrected. The double standards against human rights and international humanitarian law must be abandoned. The longer the flames in Gaza flare up, the more the humanity is scourged by conscience, the more the cornerstone of justice is eroded. The international community must act urgently to set the immediate ceasefire as an overwhelming priority and the humanitarian aid in Gaza as a pressing moral responsibility. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China pushes 'Sinicization of Islam' in Xinjiang as Ramadan arrives Xinjiang's Communist Party secretary says it is an 'inevitable trend.' By Jewlan and Mettursun for RFA Uyghur 2024.03.12 -- While global leaders from U.S. President Joe Biden to U.N. Secretary-General AntAnio Guterres to Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoAYan issued well wishes to the more than 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide at the start of Ramadan this week, China's president remained silent. Xi Jinping failed to acknowledge Ramadan, one of the most sacred times for Muslims, despite the 11 million-strong mostly Muslim Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples who live in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, as well as the roughly 7 million other Muslims in China. Chinese authorities have cracked down on Uyghurs in Xinjiang for decades, claiming they are prone to religious extremism and separatism. The Chinese government says it wants to make Islam "compatible" with Chinese culture by ensuring it aligns with traditional Chinese values defined by Beijing. Ramandan began less than a week after Ma Xingrui, China's Communist Party secretary in Xinjiang, discussed the "inevitability" of the Sinicization of Islam, with Uyghur rights organizations expressing concern about possible crackdowns on Muslims during Ramadan, which runs from the evening of March 10 to Apr. 9. "Everyone knows the need for Sinicization of Islam in Xinjiang," he said at the National People's Congress in Beijing on Mar. 7, according to a VOA report. "This is an inevitable trend." Since 2017, China has restricted or banned religious rituals among the Uyghurs in an effort to eliminate "religious extremism" amid a larger crackdown on Muslims that resulted in the mass detention of nearly 2 million of them. Authorities have also demolished mosques and committed severe rights violations in Xinjiang, amounting to genocide and crimes against humanity, according to the U.S. government and others. In 2023, authorities banned Uyghurs in many parts of the region from praying in mosques and their homes during Eid al-Fitr, the holiday marking the end of Ramadan. Only senior citizens were allowed to pray in mosques under heavy police surveillance. The previous Ramadan, authorities in Kashgar paid Muslim Uyghur men to dance outside Xinjiang's most famous mosque to celebrate the end of the holy month. The performance was filmed and released by state media ahead of an anticipated visit by the U.N. human rights chief. "To the Uyghurs enduring the ongoing genocide, Ramadan is synonymous with extreme suffering, pervasive surveillance and unyielding oppression," Rushan Abbas, executive director of Campaign for Uyghurs, told Radio Free Asia. "This year, the situation is further inflamed by Ma Xingrui's audacious remarks about the inevitability of the Sinicization of Islam in East Turkistan," she said, using the Uyghurs' preferred name for Xinjiang. Religions must adapt The concept of the Sinicization of Islam was first introduced by Xi Jinping during the National Religious Work Conference in April 2016, when he emphasized the need for religions to adapt to a socialist society and advocated for the integration of religious beliefs with Chinese culture, Xinhua News agency reported. In 2017, the Chinese government began detaining Uyghurs and other Muslim en masse in large "re-education" camps and prisons, in part to eradicate "religious extremism." During the National Religious Work Conference in 2021, Xi made "adhering to the Sinicization of religions" a main objective. He emphasized the need for training more personnel with Marxist views on religion and collecting believers around the Chinese Communist Party, according to Xinhua News Agency. American political analyst Anders Corr said Ma Xingrui's comments indicate little change in Beijing's goal of bringing Islam and other religions under the control of the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP. During an August 2023 visit to Xinjiang, Xi Jinping urged government officials to enhance the Sinicization of Islam in Xinjiang and to suppress illegal religious activities. He also emphasized the importance of maintaining stability through efforts directed against terrorism and separatism, according to media reports. Turghunjan Alawidin, a member of the East Turkistan Scholars Union, said the Sinicization of Islam will completely transform the religion in China. "The statement that the Sinicization of Islam is an unavoidable trend essentially implies the eradication of Islam," he told RFA. "China has a history of hostility towards Islam and has targeted the religious beliefs of Uyghurs," he said. "Chinese authorities seem to acknowledge that erasing Uyghur religious beliefs is necessary to gain compliance; thus, they are actively suppressing Islam." Hu Ping, a U.S.-based China analyst and former chief editor of the pro-democracy journal "Beijing Spring," said that the Sinicization of Islam implies the CCP's systematic alteration and control of the religion. Historical precedent Ma Ju, an ethnic Hui scholar based in the U.S. said China's efforts to Sinicize Islam has historical precedent, noting a failed attempt during the transition from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Now, Xi Jinping is treating the issue as one of Chinese nationalism, he said. "The primary objective of Sinicizing Islam is the complete eradication of the Muslims in China," he said. "Ma Xingrui's recent visit to Beijing and his public declaration that the Sinicization of Islam is inevitable sends signals to the world that China intends to persist in ethnic and cultural genocide in the Uyghur region." Ma Xingrui's concern about the "three forces" a a political phrase referring to ethnic separatism, religious extremism and violent terrorism in Xinjiang a is "self-defeating and undermines the effectiveness of past anti-terrorism efforts," Ma Ju said. But Anders Corr said that the Chinese government uses the phrase as justification for its oppression of the Uyghurs. "Beijing is still using the excuse of terrorism to bring Islam under its control and commit genocide against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims," he said. "There is little to no recent evidence of extremism in Xinjiang." Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Joshua Lipes. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 China Renews Diplomatic Push to Repair Strained Ties with EU By William Yang March 12, 2024 China has launched a new push to repair relations with the EU in recent weeks, deploying its special envoy on Eurasian affairs on a "shuttle diplomacy" tour through several European countries while calling on Brussels to prioritize the common interests rather than differences between the two sides. At a press conference during China's annual parliamentary meeting last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pushed back against the European Union's characterization of China as "a partner, competitor and systemic rival" while reiterating that their common interests "outweigh" differences. "China and Europe do not have clashing fundamental interests between them, or geopolitical and strategic conflicts," he said in front of dozens of local and foreign journalists. "The two sides should be characterized rightly as partners, [and] cooperation should be the defining feature of the relationship." Some analysts say Wang's emphasis on "common interests over differences" reflects Beijing's attempt to use mild diplomacy in a bid to improve relations with Europe. "Over the last few months, China has been trying to stabilize not only their relationship with the U.S. but also their relations with the EU," said Justyna Szczudlik, a China analyst and deputy head of research at the Polish Institute of International Affairs. In light of Brussels' toughening stance on China, including sanctions imposed on Chinese companies supporting Russia, Szczudlik told VOA in a phone interview that Beijing is aware that the EU has leverage on them. "China also needs stability because of the economic headwinds and social problems they are facing," she said. Despite Beijing's attempt to reduce tension with European countries through measures such as extending visa-free travel to six other European countries, some experts say the effect of this strategy will be limited. "While European countries recognize that Beijing is trying to improve relations with the EU, all the old problems still prevail, including uneven trade disputes and China's stance on the Ukraine war," Sari Arho Havren, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in Brussels, told VOA by phone. She said that while Brussels has repeatedly highlighted its trade pain points and other concerns during meetings with Beijing, those messages don't seem to have registered with the Chinese side. "Nothing is happening [on the Chinese side], so I don't think Beijing is listening to the EU's concerns," Havren said. Since the beginning of March, Li Hui, the Chinese special envoy on Eurasian affairs, has been conducting "a second round of shuttle diplomacy" across Europe, traveling to Russia, Brussels, Poland, Ukraine, Germany and France. During his meeting with top European diplomats in Brussels, Li expressed Beijing's firm opposition to the EU's inclusion of Chinese companies in its sanctions against Russia while urging the EU to "return to the right track of dialogue and consultation with China," according to the official readout issued by the Chinese government. Apart from urging Brussels to lift sanctions on the Chinese companies, the South China Morning Post reported, Li also told European officials that "no discussion on Ukraine's territorial integrity would take place until the violence stops," which he claimed could only happen if "the EU stops sending weapons to Ukraine." In response, the EU expressed concerns about the large volumes of dual-use and advanced technology items that China has exported to Russia's military-industrial complex and said China's position on the Ukraine war "inevitably impacts" the bilateral relations. Brussels also urged Beijing to "play a constructive role" by calling on Russia to withdraw all forces "from the entire territory of Ukraine" within its internationally recognized borders. Some experts say the EU's readout shows they don't expect Beijing to play a constructive role in facilitating a potential cease-fire and peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. "The EU feels that Li was delivering messages close to Moscow's propaganda during their meeting, and it would likely make Brussels less willing to open up to the olive branch from China," Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy, an expert on China-EU relations at the National Dong Hwa University in Taiwan, told VOA in a phone interview. Ferenczy said that while China's commitment to its partnership with Russia has damaged the EU's trust in Beijing, Brussels has repeatedly expressed its commitment to "keep channels of communication open" with the Chinese. Amid Beijing's renewed diplomatic outreach, the EU has adopted a series of measures that some analysts say signal a toughening stance on its trade relations with China. Last week, the European Commission started customs registration of electric vehicles imported from China, paving the way for a possible imposition of tariffs on Chinese EVs. Additionally, the EU is moving closer to adopting an anti-forced-labor law, which could ban imports from China's Xinjiang region, where some research and media reports suggest a large number of Uyghur Muslims are being subjected to forced labor, an accusation Beijing denies. Szczudlik in Poland said the potential adoption of these trade measures shows that the EU's handling of its trade relationship with China has gone from "setting up defensive tools" to "being offensive." "This process is a good example that the EU is not toothless when it comes to China," she said. The EU is preparing to hold its parliamentary election in June, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is running for reelection in 2024, but Ferenczy in Taiwan said she doesn't expect any big changes in EU-China relations in the short term. "I expect the European side to remain skeptical of China and push forward the same agenda," she said, adding that the outcome of the two elections may have some impact on how the EU shapes its policies toward Beijing. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Xi Jinping Sees AI, Unmanned Tech Boosting Military's Capabilities By Yang An March 12, 2024 During China's top legislative meetings this year, which wrapped up Monday, Chinese leader Xi Jinping ordered the military to develop what he called "new quality combat capabilities," a phrase analysts say highlights a focus on the use of artificial intelligence, high-tech and intelligent warfare. It also could signal, they say, plans to build forces of unmanned ships and submarines to support military operations. Speaking at a gathering of the People's Liberation Army or PLA and Armed Police Force delegates to the National People's Congress late last week about "new quality combat capabilities," Xi called on the military to deepen its reforms and promote innovation to enhance strategic capabilities in emerging areas. During the meeting, six representatives from the military spoke about a range of topics from defense capabilities in cyberspace and the application of AI to the development and use of unmanned combat capabilities. Chung Chieh with the National Policy Foundation in Taipei said that based on Xi's remarks at the meeting and comments in past speeches, his "new quality combat capability" seems to refer to intelligent combat capabilities. "His (Xi's) current goal is to achieve the so-called integrated development ... as fast as possible," Chieh said. With the use of AI, for example, militaries are looking to speed up the pace of combat, shorten the time it takes for a range of tasks, such as discovering targets, carrying out strikes as well as near instant operations and even simultaneous control of many unmanned combat vehicles, he said. For major military powers, whoever can master the new combat mode first will gain the upper hand. A report Sunday in the PLA Daily said that following the meeting, lawmakers highlighted the need to make technology a "core capability" to enhance China's strategic power. One lawmaker, Hao Jingwen, talked about how drone swarm technologies in air, sea and land have been developed and successively deployed in regional conflicts. "China needs to realize the important roles, emerging areas and new quality combat capabilities could play in modern warfare, be aware of their development trends, plan battlefield applications of advanced technologies in advance, and conduct active research in fields such as big data, the Internet of Things and AI, so as to be able to win future warfare," the PLA Daily quoted Hao as saying. Ying-Yu Lin, an assistant professor at the Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies at Tamkang University, said that while "new quality combat capabilities" seek to draw on scientific and technological capabilities, it's hard to say how they'd be used to meet Xi's standards a or how widely used the capabilities might be in the future. "In fact, China itself is still trying to figure out how to do it, and it cannot clearly point out what its new quality combat capabilities are. If it wants to fight technological warfare in the future, its training methods and the talents it needs will definitely be a little different from the past," Lin told VOA. Lin believes that since new quality combat capabilities are based on technological development, it is bound to eliminate the traditional mentality of military training and recruit high-tech professional talents. However, he said, such talents may have better options with foreign companies or private enterprises and may not want to join the PLA. During the plenary meeting, Xi also emphasized the need to coordinate preparation for maritime military conflicts, the protection of maritime rights and interests, maritime economic development, and to enhance maritime strategic capabilities. Analysts said Xi's remarks revealed Beijing's ambitions to become a sea-power country and control sea communication lines. Chieh said taken together the remarks about "new quality combat capability" and "preparation for maritime military conflicts" are a sign that unmanned autonomous ships will be a key development project for the PLA. "Maybe in the future, at sea, or even in distant oceans, the Chinese Communist Party will use a large number of unmanned vehicles, such as unmanned ships and even unmanned submarines, to support its maritime operations and control of sea lines of communication," he said. Adrianna Zhang from VOA's Mandarin Service contributed to this story. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US House Expected to Pass Bill Forcing Chinese Company to Give Up TikTok By Katherine Gypson March 12, 2024 The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to approve legislation Wednesday that would force the popular TikTok video app to either separate from its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance or sell the U.S. version of the software. The bipartisan Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act "gives TikTok six months to eliminate foreign adversary control a which would include ByteDance divesting its current ownership a to remain available in the United States," said Representative Mike Gallagher, chairman of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, the top Democrat on the committee. "All TikTok would have to do is separate from CCP-controlled ByteDance. However, if TikTok chose not to rid itself of this CCP control, the application would no longer be offered in U.S. app stores. But TikTok would have no one but itself to blame," the lawmakers said in a prepared statement. Here's what we know about the legislation and what happens next in the U.S. Senate. Why is TikTok under scrutiny? "The concern is that TikTok could transfer personal information to its parent company ByteDance, who in turn could transfer it to the Chinese government," Caitlin Chin-Rothmann, a fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told VOA. Chin-Rothmann said concerns by some members of Congress about the Chinese Communist Party potentially controlling TikTok's algorithm for propaganda purposes have not yet been proven. "That's not to say that, in the future, there's not a risk that the Chinese government could exert pressure," she said. What does TikTok say about the legislation? TikTok on Monday called the legislation a "ban" and has repeatedly denied the allegations against it. In a statement last week on X, formerly Twitter, the company said the "legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States." How do lawmakers view the legislation? The bill has strong support from House Democrats and Republicans, despite congressional offices receiving floods of phone calls from Americans concerned about losing access to the social media app. House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters last week, "It's an important bipartisan measure to take on China, our largest geopolitical foe, which is actively undermining our economy and security." What about the Senate? The bill could face a much harder road to passage in the Democratic-controlled Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said it will face consideration in the appropriate committees. "I will listen to their views on the bill and determine the best path," Schumer said in a statement. Some Senate Democrats, including Mark Warner, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, have expressed doubts about the legality of singling out a social media app in legislation. He has introduced alternative legislation more broadly targeting apps that collect personal data. But Warner told CBS News on Sunday that the TikTok app is a serious national security concern. "If you don't think the Chinese Communist Party can twist that algorithm to make it the news that they see reflective of their views, then I don't think you appreciate the nature of the threat," Warner said. How do the leading 2024 presidential candidates feel about the bill? The White House said it welcomes the legislation, even though the Biden campaign joined TikTok recently as an effort to reach out to younger voters. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters the bill ensures "ownership isn't in the hands of those who may do us harm." Former President Donald Trump a who initially called for a ban of the app in 2020 a has now changed course, arguing that Facebook will be empowered if TikTok is no longer available. "There's a lot of good, and there's a lot of bad with TikTok. But the thing I don't like is that without TikTok, you're going to make Facebook bigger," the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee told U.S. cable network CNBC in a phone interview this week. What happens once the bill passes the House? Apart from constitutional concerns over preventing U.S. citizens from exercising their right to free speech, the bill could also be difficult to legally enforce and face challenges in U.S. courts. "Chinese export control laws could potentially prevent the sale of TikTok's algorithm," Chin-Rothmann said. "A divestiture would be very logistically difficult, in general. TikTok is one of the largest companies in the world. So, any buyer would have to be very large, as well. They would have to have a strategic interest in purchasing TikTok, and then the merger would have to not raise antitrust concerns in the United States." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Officials from central government, HKSAR refute Western media reports on Article 23 Global Times By Global Times Published: Mar 13, 2024 01:17 AM Officials from the central and Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) governments have refuted Western media reports on Article 23 legislation by writing letters to media outlets such as the Washington Post and Bloomberg, pointing out their misleading reporting on the matter. Hong Kong's Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung wrote to Bloomberg on Tuesday, strongly opposing one of the comment articles about the Article 23 legislation of the Basic Law. Tang pointed out that the remarks about "external forces" mentioned in the article were clearly inaccurate, emphasizing that enterprises or organizations will not be banned from operating simply for working with foreign forces. The legislation targets enterprises that collude with external forces and use improper methods, including making false statements, using violence, threatening to damage others' property or reputation, or intending to interfere, such as interfering with elections. He stated that normal business operations and external communications would not be breaking the law. The Hong Kong official also pointed out that a Bloomberg article comparing the law enforcement actions of Hong Kong with those of Singapore and Australia is severely misleading, as the actions of law enforcement officers in Hong Kong are unrelated to political beliefs or backgrounds. The draft bill of the Article 23 legislation stipulates strict conditions for the exercise of law enforcement powers and provides strict safeguards, such as limiting the time for relevant individuals to consult lawyers to 48 hours. Also, extending detention requires prior authorization, which is similar to practices in other countries, Tang said, while also criticizing the article for being hypocritical and having double standards. The Legislative Council of the HKSAR is currently going through the review process for the legislation, and some Western media reports have come up with some misleading and inaccurate comments about it. The Commissioner's Office of China's Foreign Ministry in the HKSAR said on Tuesday that it has written to the Washington Post as the office is "deeply shocked" by the media's ignorance and double standards on Hong Kong following its editorial piece "With the new security law, Hong Kong doubles down on repression" published on Sunday. "When I read the part aboutathe Jimmy Lai case, I just can't help laughing.aYou insisted that Lai wasaexercisingahisaright asathe founder and owneraof the Apple Daily when the newspaper editorialized in favor of US sanctions against Hong Kong officials, and that ita'seemsalike normal editorial decisions or the prerogatives of a media owner.' What about this:athe owner of the Washington Post exercisesahisaprerogativesaof ordering you to editorialize in favor of foreignasanctions against USaofficials?" said the spokesperson of the commissioner's office. On the Article 23 legislation, the Washington Post claimed that the public consultation period was "shortened." The commissioner's office responded that the US Patriot Act was passed just 45 days after the 9/11 attacks without a hearing being held. "I wonder if the time for this legislation was also 'shortened' based on your standard? Have you ever bothered to opine against it?" the office asked. Tang also voiced strong opposition toward the Washington Post's article. The legal proceedings against Lai and 47 others charged with conspiring to subvert state power are still ongoing, and it is inappropriate for anyone to comment on the details of the case, the Hong Kong official said, noting that all cases are strictly based on evidence and handled according to the law, and all defendants are protected by the law and entitled to a fair trial. Also on Tuesday, the HKSAR government strongly condemned a report by UK newspaper The Times, which was headlined "Hongkongers to be jailed for keeping old newspapers." It is necessary to clarify and set the record straight, a spokesperson for the government said. "Not only is the report extremely misleading, its headline is also completely wrong, which misleads people into believing that one can be imprisoned for possessing certain old newspapers, thereby generating panic among members of the public," the spokesperson said. According to the results of public consultation on the Article 23 legislation, the majority of the total submissions indicated support and made positive comments, which reflect the common voice of the Hong Kong people, Junius Ho Kwan-yiu, a Hong Kong lawyer, told the 55th session of the Human Rights Council on Tuesday. "I believe no one shall ever again feel at risk from bullying and intimidation at the hands of domestic terrorists in Hong Kong. Article 23 will serve as a crucial safeguard protecting the national security and social stability of Hong Kong," Ho said. Equally important is that its implementation will codify necessary procedural safeguards in line with international human rights standards, as enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and international labor conventions, as stated in Article 39 of the Basic Law, Ho noted. "Hong Kong will be safer than ever before, and I believe the Council will be pleased to know that human rights and the duties related to such rights will continue to be observed and exercised in the city," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Analysis: Does North Korea's Kim Want Another Summit With Trump? By Christy Lee March 12, 2024 A re-elected U.S. President Donald Trump could well awaken the following day to a phone call inviting him to Pyongyang for a summit with Kim Jong Un, says a veteran of the two previous Trump-Kim summits in 2018 and 2019. "If I were Kim Jong Un talking to my advisers in Pyongyang, I'd be thinking of whether I [should] call President-elect Trump the day after the election to congratulate him" and say, "Why don't you come to Pyongyang? Let's meet here," says former Trump adviser John Bolton. "And Trump might do it," continued Bolton in an interview with VOA's Korean Service on Friday. Bolton served as national security adviser during the period in which Trump and Kim exchanged frequent letters and conducted summits in Singapore in June 2018 and Hanoi in February 2019, as well as an impromptu meeting at the inter-Korean border in June 2019. The Hanoi summit broke down when Trump walked away from Kim's offer to dismantle North Korea's main nuclear plant at Yongbyon in exchange for sanctions relief, and Kim has refused to engage with the United States or South Korea since U.S.-North Korean talks broke down in Stockholm eight months later. But Bolton said that does not rule out the possibility that Kim might try again, or that Trump might accept. "The danger with another Trump administration is he prizes making deals more than the substance of the deals, which he often doesn't understand in the international context," said Bolton, who has frequently criticized the former president's approach to foreign affairs since leaving his administration. Gary Samore, former White House coordinator for arms control and weapons of mass destruction during the Obama administration, told VOA via phone on Friday, "Kim Jong Un may very well believe that if there's another summit, he can persuade Trump to lift international economic sanctions" and "weaken the U.S.-ROK [South Korea] alliance as Trump did in the Singapore meeting." At a news conference following his 2018 summit with Kim in Singapore, Trump announced the U.S. would suspend military drills with South Korea, describing them as "very provocative" and "tremendously expensive." Joint exercises resumed, however, under Trump's successor, President Joe Biden. The U.S. and South Korea are currently holding the annual Freedom Shield exercise. It began on March 4 and will continue through Thursday. Harry Kazianis, a senior editor at the website 19FortyFive and president of the Rogue States Project, thinks another Trump-Kim summit would be unlikely. "Right now, North Korea is likely getting billions of dollars a year from Russia to help Putin arm his military in the Ukraine war and likely little sanctions enforcement from China. If those conditions were to hold, Kim has very little to gain from dealing with Trump," he said. But, he told VOA via email on Friday, Kim might need to engage with the American leader again if Trump were to bring the war in Ukraine to an end and successfully pressure China to enforce sanctions. Scott Snyder, director of the program on U.S.-Korea policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, said via email on Friday that Pyongyang has made clear it is not interested in talks. For diplomacy to resume, he said "both sides would have to find a way of putting the Hanoi experience behind them and establishing a new modus vivendi and mutually beneficial rationales for pursuing a new relationship." Sangjin Cho contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address German Army Short of 'Everything,' Partly Due to Supplies to Kiev - Official Sputnik News 20240312 BERLIN (Sputnik) - The German armed forces lack equipment, personnel and "everything" in general, with stocks depleted by military deliveries to Ukraine, the parliamentary commissioner for the Bundeswehr, Eva Hoegl, said Tuesday. "Unfortunately, I have to admit that the Bundeswehr still has too little of everything. There is a shortage of ammunition, spare parts and radio equipment. There are not enough tanks, ships and aircraft," Hoegl said presenting the annual report on the state of the German military. The commissioner praised Berlin for doing an "outstanding" job in supporting Ukraine in the conflict. However, supplying military aid to Kiev means that the German armed forces now have even less of everything, even more so two years into the conflict, she added. Germany continues to procure equipment to modernize the Bundeswehr under a special military fund worth 100 billion euros ($109 billion), Hoegl said, adding that two-thirds of it are already earmarked for specific purchases. "As for personnel, I have no good news or messages here because the Bundeswehr is aging and shrinking," Hoegl said, adding that the number of applications and recruits last year was the same as in 2022, while 20,000 posts remain vacant. A total of 181,514 people were serving in the Bundeswehr as of the end of last year, with the average age of a German soldier being 38.8 years. The 100 billion euro fund was announced by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to improve the country's defense capabilities shortly after the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022. The fund was approved by the German parliament in June of that year. In January 2023, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that the special defense fund would not be enough for Germany to modernize its troops and cover maintenance costs for military equipment. Pistorius then called for an increase of 10 billion euros per year in the German defense budget. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Only Half of Approximately 600 Germany's Taurus Missiles Ready for Use - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Only half of approximately 600 Germany's Taurus missiles are ready for use, the Welt newspaper reported on Tuesday. According to Welt, Germany has around 600 Taurus missiles, but the total number is classified. Only half of these missiles are ready for use after their technical modernization in 2018, while other missiles have expired certificates, the newspaper reported. Earlier, Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of RT and the Rossiya Segodnya media group (Sputnik's parent company) published a readout of a conversation among four German military officers discussing a potential attack on the Crimean Bridge with long-range Taurus missiles. Later, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz ruled out the possibility of supplying Taurus missiles to Ukraine and said that the government was investigating the leaked conversation. The potential delivery of German-made cruise missiles to Ukraine sparked a scandal in Berlin at the beginning of March, with aleaked confidential conversation between Bundeswehr commanders discussing the possible use the weapons against Russian infrastructure in Crimea prompted questions about who's really in charge in Germany - the military, or a government which has said it has no plans to send the missiles Kiev's way. Foreign Minister and Green Party leader Annalena Baerbock added fuel to the fire on Sunday, saying she was open to the "option" tabled by her British counterpart David Cameron of sending Taurus missiles to the UK, so that London could deliver more of its Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address In a joint operation, Indian Coast Guard apprehends Pakistani Boat in Arabian Sea near Porbandar India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Narcotics worth about Rs 480 Cr seized onboard Posted On: 12 MAR 2024 6:09PM by PIB Delhi In an overnight joint operation during intervening nights of 11 & 12 Mar 2024, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG), based on intelligence inputs, apprehended a Pakistani Boat with 06 crew and narcotics onboard, worth approx Rs 480Cr. The Boat was apprehended about 350 Km from Porbandar into Arabian Sea in a sea-air coordinated operation involving ICG ships and Dornier Aircraft. The operation exhibited well-coordinated efforts between ICG, NCB and ATS Gujrat. The Indian Coast Guard, on specific intelligence input from agencies, strategically positioned its ships in Arabian Sea on Monday, 11 March 24. ICG also tasked its Dornier aircraft to scan and locate the boat in likely areas. After an exhaustive search in area, the ICG Ships, with teams of NCB and ATS Gujarat, arrived location and positively identified the boat which was moving suspiciously in dark. On being challenged by ICG Ships, the boat started evasive manoeuvring, but was deftly chased and forced to stop by ICG ships. Boarding team immediately embarked the ship for preliminary checks and investigations. The boat was found to be a Pakistani boat with six crew. Investigation by the joint boarding team and rummaging of boat revealed approx. 80 Kg of drugs worth approx. Rs 480 Cr. The boat along with crew has been apprehended and is being brought to Porbandar for further investigation. This is the tenth apprehension by ICG, jointly with ATS Gujarat and NCB, in last three years, amounting to 517Kg Narcotics worth Rs 3135 Crores. ***** ABB/Anand (Release ID: 2013835) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran, Russia, China begin joint naval drills in Sea of Oman IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Naval forces from Iran, Russia and China have begun conducting joint drills in the Sea of Oman, their fifth common military exercise in recent years. Dubbed "Maritime Security Belt 2024", the naval exercise got underway on Tuesday with more than 20 ships, support vessels and combat boats from the three allies participating. The drills will continue until Friday. The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy has dispatched ten heavy and light vessels, two helicopters and 420 armed support personnel to take part in the joint drills. Russia's Pacific Fleet, led by the Varyag cruiser, arrived at the Iranian port of Chabahar on Monday ahead of the drills, while China sent the guided-missile destroyer Urumqi and the guided-missile frigate Linyi to the exercise. Naval forces from Oman, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan and South Africa are acting as observers. The joint exercise comes at a time of heightened tensions in the region over the Israeli regime's war of aggression in the Gaza Strip, which has threatened to spiral into a wider regional conflict. 4353**2050 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian, Chinese warships arrive in Iran's territorial waters for joint drills IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Mar 12, 2024 Tehran, IRNA -- Russian and Chinese warships have arrived in Iran's territorial waters to participate in joint naval drills dubbed "Maritime Security Belt 2024". A Tuesday statement from the media headquarters of the joint drills said that Russia's Varyag missile cruiser and the Marshal Shaposhnikov frigate will participate in the joint drills along with two warships and a logistics ship of the Chines navy and 10 warships from Iran. The Russian Defense Ministry announced on Monday that the Varyag missile cruiser of the Russian Pacific Fleet had arrived inthe Iranian port of Chabahar to participate in the joint drills. The main phase of the 2024 Marine Security Belt combined naval exercise will begin on Tuesday (March 12, 2024) in the Indian Ocean. The drill's purpose is to consolidate security and its foundations in the region and to expand multilateral cooperation among the participating countries to show their ability to jointly support world peace, maritime security, and to create a maritime group in the future. Other goals of holding the drills include strengthening the security of international maritime trade, combating piracy and maritime terrorism, helping humanitarian measures such as exchange of information for maritime rescue operations and to exchange operational and tactical experiences. 6125**4261 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran, Russia, China to start joint naval exercise ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Tue / 12 March 2024 / 11:32 Naval forces from the Islamic Republic of Iran, Russia and China will start a combined naval exercise in the northern tip of the Indian Ocean, where various divisions of their militaries will conduct large-scale maritime maneuvers. Tehran-ISNA- The main stage of the naval war game, dubbed Maritime Security Belt 2024, will kick off on Tuesday. The naval and airborne units of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy, together with their Chinese and Russian counterparts, will participate in the joint naval drills. Naval delegations from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan and South Africa have taken part as observers in the exercises. The Maritime Security Belt 2024 naval drills are meant to beef up security and its fundamentals in the region, enhance multilateral cooperation among the participating countries, and to demonstrate the goodwill and ability of the participants to jointly safeguard global peace and maritime security. The exercises are also intended to strengthen the security of international maritime trade, combat piracy and maritime terrorism, and provide an opportunity for the exchange of information in the field of maritime rescue as well as operational and tactical experiences. The Iranian naval forces and their Chinese and Russian counterparts have held several military drills in recent years to enhance the security and stability of international maritime trade. They have also been involved in joint efforts aimed at countering piracy and maritime terrorism, exchanging information in naval rescue and relief operations as well as sharing operational and tactical experience. In March 2023, the Iranian, Chinese and Russian naval forces staged the 2023 Marine Security Belt war game in the northern parts of the Indian Ocean, which was the fourth joint exercise in recent years. End Item NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran says IAEA must observe impartiality in its reports on Iran Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 5:54 PM Iran's Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Vienna has called on the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, to observe impartiality in reports conducted on the country's nuclear activities. The call was made in an explanatory note submitted to the International Atomic Energy Agency dated March 5, 2024, which was released to the media on Tuesday. The note came in response to reports submitted to the IAEA Board of Governors on February 24 by the IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi on verification and monitoring of Iran's nuclear activities and on the Non-Proliferation Treaty Safeguards Agreement with Tehran. "The Islamic Republic of Iran rightfully expects that the Agency conducts its reporting on verification activities in Iran based on the principles of impartiality, professionalism, and objectivity," said the note in response to claims in Grossi's reports that Tehran had not cooperated with the IAEA on verification issues. The note said that Iran had fully complied with its obligations including the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, adding that the country "has done its utmost to enable the Agency to effectively carry out its verification activities in Iran". The note also criticized Grossi for not duly separating issues in the two reports submitted to the Board of Governors, which included one on matters related to a 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, known as the JCPOA, and another concerning NPT Safeguards. "As an example, verification and monitoring activities related to manufacture of centrifuges rotor tubes and bellows, which are defined in the scope of [the] JCPOA, should not be reported under the NPT Safeguards Agreement Agenda Item," it said. Iran's UN mission in Vienna said that the country had ceased all voluntary transparency in its nuclear activities following the United States' unlawful withdrawal from the JCPOA in May 2018 and after the European parties to the deal failed to fulfill their commitments under the agreement. It said in its note to the IAEA that the decision to cease performing commitments was fully in accordance with Iran's inherent rights under paragraphs 26 and 36 of the JCPOA. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran, Russia, China kick off joint naval drills in Sea of Oman Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 2:40 PM Naval forces of Iran, Russia and China have started a joint exercise in the Sea of Oman amid heightened tensions in the region over the Israeli campaign of death and destruction in the besieged Gaza Strip. The "Marine Security Belt 2024" drills kicked off on Tuesday and will reportedly involve more than 20 ships, support vessels, combat boats, and naval helicopters from the three countries. The media headquarters of the joint drills announced in a statement that Russia's Varyag missile cruiser and the Marshal Shaposhnikov frigate will participate in the joint drills along with China's guided-missile destroyer Urumqi and the guided-missile frigate Linyi as well as 10 warships from Iran. Admiral Mostafa Tajaddini, the drill's spokesperson, also noted that the exercise will take place in 17,000 square kilometers (6,600 square miles) of water. He went on to say that the maneuver's goal is to strengthen "the security of international maritime trade, combating piracy and maritime terrorism," among others, according to a report by Iranian state media. Russia's Defense Ministry also said the exercises, which will run through Friday, would focus on the protection of "maritime economic activity" as well. China's Defense Ministry, for its part, said the drills are aimed at "jointly maintaining regional maritime security." "China will send ... guided-missile destroyer Urumqi, guided-missile frigate Linyi and comprehensive supply ship Dongpinghu to participate in the exercise," the ministry said in a statement. Iranian naval forces, together with their Chinese and Russian counterparts, have held several military drills in recent years to enhance the security and stability of international maritime trade. They have also been involved in joint efforts aimed at countering piracy and maritime terrorism, exchanging information in naval rescue and relief operations as well as sharing operational and tactical experience. The latest drills a the fifth joint military exercise by the three nations in recent years a comes amid Israel's genocidal campaign in Gaza. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan and South Africa are observers of the drills. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Tehran Court Says Iranian-German National, U.S. Must Pay $2.5 Billion Over 2008 Bombing By RFE/RL's Radio Farda March 12, 2024 A court in Tehran has ordered Iranian-German national Jamshid Sharmahd and the United States government to pay $2.5 billion in compensation to victims of a 2008 bombing in Shiraz in southern Iran. The Tehran International Claims Court handed down its decision on March 11, saying 116 plaintiffs claiming to be families of the deceased and wounded in the attack at the Sayyid al-Shuhada Husseiniya mosque were owed compensation. Fourteen Iranians were killed and 210 others wounded in the incident, which occurred during a ceremony to mourn the death of Imam Hussein, the third imam of Shi'a Muslims. The court said Sharmahd was part of the Tondar group, which it deemed responsible for the bombing in Shiraz, according to the Mizan News Agency, which is affiliated with Iran's judiciary. Sharmahd was detained under unclear circumstances in 2020 and is accused by the Iranian Intelligence Ministry of being a member of the Iranian opposition group Kingdom Assembly of Iran, or Tondar. Based in Los Angeles, Tondar says it aims to overthrow the Islamic republic and reestablish a monarchy similar to that of Cyrus the Great. It runs pro-Iranian opposition radio and television stations abroad, as well as social media channels. Because it is based in the United States, the court ruled the U.S. government is also liable. Iran's Intelligence Ministry accused Sharmahd of planning the bombing, a charge his family has robustly refuted, dismissing them as "ridiculous." In November, Sharmahd's daughter, Gazelle Sharmahd, said her 68-year-old father is barely able to walk and talk due to health conditions that prison authorities have failed to properly treat. She added that her father suffers from Parkinson's disease and could die due to his deteriorating health Iran is known to have assassinated and abducted multiple exiled opposition figures in the past, including Iranian journalist Ruhollah Zam, the administrator of the opposition Amadnews Telegram channel that has been accused by authorities of stirring up domestic dissent. At least one other Iranian-German dual citizen, Nahid Taghvi, is also being held in Iran, which has arrested dozens of foreigners and dual nationals in recent years, often on widely criticized espionage and security-related charges. Western countries have repeatedly said that Iran is trying to take advantage of foreign countries by taking dual and foreign nationals hostage and then using them in prisoner swaps. Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-german-national- sharmahd-court-compensation-bombing/32858379.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Press Release: Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency With Respect to Iran March 12, 2024 On March 15, 1995, by Executive Order 12957, the President declared a national emergency pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701a1706) to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States constituted by the actions and policies of the Government of Iran. On May 6, 1995, the President issued Executive Order 12959, imposing more comprehensive sanctions on Iran to further respond to this threat. On August 19, 1997, the President issued Executive Order 13059, consolidating and clarifying those previous orders. The President took additional steps pursuant to this national emergency in Executive Order 13553 of September 28, 2010; Executive Order 13574 of May 23, 2011; Executive Order 13590 of November 20, 2011; Executive Order 13599 of February 5, 2012; Executive Order 13606 of April 22, 2012; Executive Order 13608 of May 1, 2012; Executive Order 13622 of July 30, 2012; Executive Order 13628 of October 9, 2012; Executive Order 13645 of June 3, 2013; Executive Order 13716 of January 16, 2016, which revoked Executive Orders 13574, 13590, 13622, 13645, and provisions of Executive Order 13628; Executive Order 13846 of August 6, 2018, which revoked Executive Orders 13716 and 13628; Executive Order 13871 of May 8, 2019; Executive Order 13876 of June 24, 2019; Executive Order 13902 of January 10, 2020; and Executive Order 13949 of September 21, 2020. The actions and policies of the Government of Iran a including its proliferation and development of missiles and other asymmetric and conventional weapons capabilities, its network and campaign of regional aggression, its support for terrorist groups, and the malign activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its surrogates a continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States. For these reasons, the national emergency declared on March 15, 1995, must continue in effect beyond March 15, 2024. Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency with respect to Iran declared in Executive Order 12957. The emergency declared by Executive Order 12957 constitutes an emergency separate from that declared on November 14, 1979, by Executive Order 12170, in connection with the hostage crisis. This renewal, therefore, is distinct from the emergency renewal of November 7, 2023. This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress. JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR. THE WHITE HOUSE, March 12, 2024. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Jeremy Scahill, Ryan Grim, and Daniel Boguslaw at The Intercept: Anat Schwartz had a problem. The Israeli filmmaker and former air force intelligence official had been assigned by the New York Times to work with her partners nephew Adam Sella and veteran Times reporter Jeffrey Gettleman on an investigation into sexual violence by Hamas on October 7 that could reshape the way the world understood Israels ongoing war in the Gaza Strip. By November, global opposition was mounting against Israels military campaign, which had already killed thousands of children, women, and the elderly. On her social media feed, which the Times has since said it is reviewing, Schwartz liked a tweet saying that Israel needed to turn the strip into a slaughterhouse. Violate any norm, on the way to victory, read the post. Those in front of us are human animals who do not hesitate to violate minimal rules. The New York Times, however, does have rules and norms. Schwartz had no prior reporting experience. More here. PM Netanyahu Addresses the AIPAC Conference Israel - Prime Minister's Office The 37th Government 12.03.2024 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, today , addressed, by video link, the AIPAC Conference in Washington DC: "I want to say a few words. I want to say a few words to you, Mr. President, and to our wonderful friends at AIPAC. Thank you for standing with Israel at all times and especially during these trying times. Thank you, AIPAC. I deeply appreciate it, the support we've received from President Biden and the administration and I hope it will continue. But let me be clear, Israel will win this war no matter what. To win this war, we must destroy the remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah. If not, Hamas will regroup, rearm and reconquer Gaza and then we're back to square one. And that's an intolerable threat that we cannot accept. We will destroy Hamas, free our hostages and ensure that Gaza doesn't ever pose a threat to Israel again. We will finish the job in Rafah while enabling the civilian population to get out of harm's way. We've taken measures to minimize civilian casualties that no other army has taken in history. Just ask Colonel John Spencer, a world expert on urban warfare, in charge of urban warfare at West Point. We have taken measures to minimize civilian casualties that no other army has taken in history. So to our friends in the international community, I say this: you cannot say you support Israel's right to exist and to defend itself and then oppose Israel when it exercises that right. You cannot say you support Israel's goal of destroying Hamas and then oppose Israel when it takes the actions necessary to achieve that goal. You cannot say that you oppose Hamas's strategy of using civilians as human shields and then blame Israel for the civilian casualties that result from this Hamas cynical strategy. For Israel, every civilian death is a tragedy. For Hamas, every civilian death is a strategy. So it is wrong and immoral to hold Israel to a standard for avoiding civilian casualties that no other country on earth is held to. My friends, I want to assure you, none of these pressures will stop us. Israel's very future, its very survival is at stake. We have no other option but total victory and that victory is in and within reach. I know that the overwhelming majority of the American people stand with us. I know that the overwhelming majority of Congress stands with us. I know that you stand with us. I know that you're working tirelessly, day in and day out, to get us the tools so we can finish the job faster. And on behalf of the united people of Israel, I want to say thank you, AIPAC. Thank you for everything you're doing for Israel. God bless Israel. God bless America. Thank you." Prime Minister Netanyahu added: "Some people would make you believe that the people of Israel are disunited. In fact, some people would have you believe there is the prime minister and then there is the people of Israel. The truth of the matter is that the people of Israel overwhelmingly support the policies set forth by myself and my government. They overwhelmingly support the need for total victory. Overwhelmingly. They overwhelmingly oppose the idea of having a Palestinian state rammed down our throat. We just had a vote in the Knesset, to illustrate the point I just made, 99 to 9 supporting this position. And you know what? It's not irrational. It's because they think that giving now a Palestinian state after the October 7th massacre will be the greatest reward for terrorism in modern times. They overwhelmingly reject the idea that we should implant, after we've destroyed Hamas in Gaza, the PA that still inculcates its children towards terrorism and the annihilation of Israel. They want a future of peace, a future of security that is purchased by a resounding victory. And as I say, the possibilities for this victory, the possibilities that are opened up are immense but they require that one word: victory. And I will repeat it again, victory, victory, victory. No substitute for that and we will achieve it together. Thank you, AIPAC." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Deputy Secretary Campbell's Meeting with Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Okano US Department of State Readout Office of the Spokesperson March 12, 2024 The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller: Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell met in Washington, D.C. with Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Okano Masataka and reaffirmed the indispensable role of the U.S.-Japan Alliance in promoting global peace, security, and prosperity. They discussed the importance of trilateral cooperation with other partners such as the Republic of Korea, Australia, and the Philippines in advancing regional stability and security. The Deputy Secretary and Vice Minister reaffirmed their lasting commitment to the peace and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific and pledged to continue close cooperation on regional and global challenges. Deputy Secretary Campbell described the enthusiasm with which President Biden and the U.S. government were preparing to host Japanese Pime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to the United States in April, and discussed with the Vice Minister how the visit will showcase the enduring friendship, trust, and global partnership that exists between the United States and Japan. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Arakan Army captures Myanmar township bordering Chinese deep sea port The seizure of Ramree follows 3 months of fighting that included daily military airstrikes and shelling. By RFA Burmese 2024.03.12 -- The Arakan Army has captured a key township near a major Chinese special economic zone in western Myanmar's Rakhine state, the ethnic rebel group said Tuesday, in the latest setback for the country's military junta in the country's three-year civil war. The seizure of Ramree on Monday comes after three months of fighting, the Arakan Army, or AA, said. It marks the first town to fall to the group in Rakhine's majority ethnic Bamar south. The Arakan Army is part of an alliance of three ethnic armies that have pushed the junta back in the western and northern parts of the country, suggesting a turning point in the war that began soon after the junta took control of the government in a February 2021 coup d'etat. Ramree shares an island with Kyaukphyu township, home to the Kyaukphyu Special Economic Zone, or SEZ, and deep sea port complex - a Chinese-led venture for which Beijing had requested heightened security. The project was approved in 2023 by the junta and attempts to recruit locals for work have been met with controversy and distrust. In January, following AA rocket attacks on the Danyawaddy naval base, which lies adjacent to the port project, residents told RFA Burmese that the rebel army had gained control of some of the SEZ. On Tuesday, the AA said in a statement that the capture of Ramree came despite junta troop reinforcements, as well as daily airstrikes and shelling by the army, navy and air force. It warned residents who fled their homes during the fighting to refrain from returning immediately, as landmines remain in the area. An elderly man was injured in a junta artillery attack on Monday, after the AA had occupied Ramree, a resident told RFA on condition of anonymity due to security reasons. The resident said that more than 10,000 people had fled their homes since the AA launched its offensive on Ramree on Dec. 8. Military airstrikes have destroyed more than 200 houses and buildings, including a township hospital, he said. Pushing on to Kyaukphyu Residents said that they remain concerned about possible military attacks by the navy and air force, despite the AA's control of the township. Pe Than, a veteran Rakhine politician and former lawmaker, said now that the AA has seized Ramree, he expects it will push on to Kyaukphyu township. "Danyawaddy navy base is located in Kyaukphyu and if the navy fires shells from there, it could kill a lot of civilians in the area," he said. The AA is now in control of most of the areas within the Kyaukphyu SEZ, meaning it will likely have a say on how Chinese development proceeds, said a resident who has closely watched the progress of Chinese projects in the region. "AA territory is now within 8 kilometers (5 miles) of Kyaukphyu, so if China wants to continue with its projects, it will have to hold discussions with the AA," he said. "Otherwise, the projects may encounter some problems." The military, meanwhile, has enforced its defense lines near the Shwe natural gas pipeline project on Kyaukphyu's Maday Island, residents said. The junta has yet to issue a statement on the capture of Ramree. Attempts by RFA to contact Hla Thein, the junta's spokesperson for Rakhine state, went unanswered Tuesday, as did efforts to contact the Chinese Embassy in Yangon. AA spokesman Khaing Thukha said on March 4 that the AA intends to "fight for the liberation of all of Rakhine state to be able to build the future of the Rakhine people," who are ethnically distinct from the Bamar people. In November, the AA ended a ceasefire agreement with the military that had been in place since the coup. Since then, the ethnic army has captured the Rakhine townships of Minbya, Mrauk-U, Kyauktaw, Ponnagyun, Myebon and Ramree, as well as Pauktaw township in neighboring Chin state. Border checkpoints reopened The AA, along with the Ta'ang National Liberation Army, or TNLA, and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, or MNDAA - the Three Brotherhood Alliance - launched an offensive known as "Operation 1027" against the military in northern Shan state, which borders China, and 16 cities before agreeing to a ceasefire in China-brokered talks with junta representatives on Jan. 11. An ex-military official later said it was not sustainable and less than a week after the agreement, both sides were accused of violating it in a skirmish. At the end of last month, the two sides met again in the Chinese city of Kunming for talks that focused on reopening parts of the border with China that had been shut down during the fighting and preserving the ceasefire. On Monday, the MNDAA group of ethnic Kokang rebels reopened the Chinshwehaw and Wanding border checkpoints in the townships of Chinshwehaw and Kyu Koke, which had been closed since the beginning of Operation 1027. The two gates serve as crucial trade channels with China. While people are allowed to use the checkpoints, moving goods across the border at the two locations remains "uncertain," said MNDAA Information Officer Li Kyarwen. "People with proper documentation can now cross the border," he said. "However, the import and export of goods is still undetermined. Further clarification is needed." Nyo Tun Aung, the deputy chief of the AA, disclosed in a press conference that the junta and the Three Brotherhood Alliance discussed reopening the checkpoints on Feb. 29 and March 1. However, Li Kyarwen would not confirm whether the decision to reopen Chinshwehaw and Wanding was a direct result of the talks. Translated by Aung Naing and Kalyar Lwin. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 Myanmar junta refuses dozens of nationals facing deportation by India The 77 women had migrated to Manipur state before and after the coup, and were working as weavers in the state. By RFA Burmese 2024.03.12 -- Myanmar's junta has refused to accept dozens of nationals facing deportation by the Indian government for illegally entering the country, their relatives said Tuesday. Indian media reported that authorities in eastern India's Manipur state have been making arrangements to send 77 women who served sentences for illegal immigration in the state's Imphal Jail back across the border from Moreh township to Tamu township in Myanmar's Sagaing region since March 8. On that day, Indian authorities took an initial batch of 38 women by helicopter from Imphal Jail to an Indian military camp in Moreh, but junta officials refused to accept them, a family member of one of the women, who contacted her by phone from Imphal, told RFA Burmese. "Indian prison staff told them that they will be sent back to Imphal Jail because the Myanmar military regime refused to accept them," said the family member who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on condition of anonymity due to security concerns. Attempts by RFA to contact Nyunt Win Aung, the junta's social affairs minister and spokesperson for Sagaing region, and junta spokesperson Major Gen. Zaw Min Tun, for an explanation of why the women were not accepted, went unanswered Tuesday. The exact number of women being deported remains unclear. Some of them have children with them and their husbands remain in Imphal, family members said. Most of the women are from Sagaing and Magway regions, as well as Chin state. Some of them migrated to Manipur before the Myanmar military's Feb. 1, 2021 coup d'etat, while others fled there after the takeover. Most were arrested while working as weavers in the towns and villages of Manipur. Jailed despite sentences served A family member from Sagaing's Monywa township told RFA that most of the women who entered India before the coup had served their five-year sentences and paid fines of 1,000 rupees (US$12), but had been "kept in prison for two and a half years" more. "They should be allowed to stay in Manipur without being sent back to Myanmar, or they should be recognized as refugees by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees," she said. A person who is helping Myanmar refugees in Manipur told RFA that they would face persecution back home if Indian authorities repatriate them. "Those who fled Myanmar after the coup could be arrested on various charges," he said. "They will not be safe in Myanmar." Civil society organizations, including India for Myanmar, have called on Manipur authorities to only repatriate the women through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to ensure their safety. RFA emailed the Myanmar Embassy in New Delhi and the Indian Embassy in Yangon for more information on the situation, but had not received a response by the time of publishing. According to data collected by India for Myanmar and other civil society organizations, more than 150 Myanmar nationals are being detained on immigration charges at detention centers in Manipur state, and more than 80 of them have already served their sentences. Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Joshua Lipes and Malcolm Foster. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 Week-long battle in Myanmar's Shan state displaces over 110,000 The ethnic Pa-O region has seen more than 1,500 explosives fired by the junta in an attempt to recapture ground lost in January. By RFA Burmese 2024.03.12 -- Week-long fighting between the junta and an ethnic army is responsible for mass displacement in Myanmar, locals told Radio Free Asia on Tuesday. Junta troops entered Hsihseng city in western Shan state on March 3, where gunshots could still be heard as of Monday at noon, said one Hsiseng resident, asking for anonymity. "The battle is still going on. The junta based in Hsaik Hkawng village and Bang Yin city are shelling toward Hsihseng city," he said. "On March 3, the junta troops returned to enter Hsihseng city, and the fighting has been going on ever since and hasn't stopped yet." The Pa'O National Liberation Army captured Hsihseng on Jan. 22, causing junta troops and the allied Pa-O National Army to retaliate with heavy weapons and airstrikes. The Pa-O National Liberation Army is an insurgent group composed of the Pa-O, an ethnic group native to Myanmar's Shan state. More than 100,000 people from six urban Hsihseng neighborhoods and 60 villages in Hsihseng township have fled to safety, as have the residents of 31 villages in neighboring Hopong township. Fighting also resumed in southern Shan state's Pinlaung township on Saturday, forcing nearly 10,000 civilians from 17 villages to temporarily relocate. A Pinlaung resident who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons told RFA on Monday that fighting between the junta and Karenni Nationalities Defense Forces and allied Pa-O National Liberation Army resumed in the township after junta troops carried out an offensive. "The junta army carried out the offensive and confronted them there. It's been three days since March 9," he said. On Sunday and Monday, fighting grew more intense as the junta began using airstrikes and heavy weapons, he added. Heavy damage in southern Shan state The renewed conflict has killed nearly 50 civilians and injured 60 more from Jan. 22 to March 11, despite a Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement signed by both the Pa-O National Liberation Army and junta officials in Hsihseng, Hopong and Loilen townships, according to the Pa-O Youth Organization. Roughly half of the dead were killed by airstrikes or heavy weapons, among them five children, according to the youth organization's Monday statement. "The military council has increased the airstrikes and drone bombings in the Hsihseng city battles. In Hopong's Mae Nel mountain ridge, the junta carried out an airstrike when the locals returned after fighting calmed on March 8," said Nan, a spokeswoman of the Pa-O Youth Organization. "It killed a man on the spot in Kyauk Ka Char village, Hopong township. About 10 houses were damaged, although there was no fighting in that village." In some areas, civilians are continuing to die from airstrikes, she added. Thirteen of the near 50 deaths occurred when people died after being arrested and interrogated by the junta. Eight people, including those internally displaced, died due to other causes. Five children were among the 60 injured. Airstrikes injured 36 people, artillery shells injured 18 and six were injured by landmines and other causes, according to the statement. The junta army fired over 1,500 explosives, and conducted over 400 attacks by air and drones, destroying nearly two hundred homes, as well as 15 religious buildings. RFA reached out to Shan state's junta spokesperson Khun Thein Maung to confirm the organization's statistics, but he did not answer calls. In early 2023, conflict killed more than 30 civilians and displaced more than 10,000 during fierce battles between the Karenni National Defense Forces, affiliated resistance groups, or People's Defense Forces, and junta troops in Pinlaung township. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn. Copyright 1998-2024, 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 March 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 Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's meeting with the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Western Sahara Staffan de Mistura 11 March 2024 20:25 454-11-03-2024 On March 11, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Moscow with Staffan de Mistura, the UN Secretary-General's Personal Envoy for Western Sahara. The officials focused on the status of and prospects for a Western Sahara settlement. They noted the stabilising influence of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO). They exchanged views on the plans for re-launching the political process under Staffan de Mistura's latest contacts with all interested parties. The Russian Foreign Minister emphasised the importance of reaching a fair, long-term and mutually acceptable solution to the Western Sahara issue in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions. During the meeting, the participants also discussed some aspects of the developments in North Africa and the Middle East. They emphasised that UN activities continue to be needed as regards both peace and development. On the same day, Staffan de Mistura held separate consultations with Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yuan's share in Russia's trade settlements expands in January, sign of steady internationalization progress Global Times By GT staff reporters Published: Mar 12, 2024 09:05 PM The share of the yuan in Russia's trade settlements in January further expanded, signaling steady progress for promoting the internationalization of the yuan. Experts highlighted China's steady economic development and firm support as major advantages contributing to the yuan's global expansion, while outlining lingering challenges going forward. The yuan accounted for 40.8 percent of Russia's export settlements and 38.5 percent of its import settlements in the first month of 2024. The settlement amounts reached $13.2 billion for exports and $9.1 billion for imports in US dollar terms, data from Russia's central bank showed on Monday. In December 2023, the yuan accounted 35.8 percent of Russia's export settlement and 37 percent of its import settlement, Sputnik reported. China's large and continuously growing economy has provided a solid foundation for the yuan's internationalization, and the country's ramped-up policy support for building the financial infrastructure and optimizing the mechanism for cross-border yuan settlements has created a favorable environment for promoting the internationalization of the yuan, Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday. Wang noted that the yuan's stability has been further recognized by the international market as its exchange rate remained steady overall despite some fluctuations in recent years. This remains a significant consideration for global investors. Cross-border yuan settlements have risen since 2009, accounting for nearly half of China's export payments and settlements. The yuan also ranks third in terms of the weight in the IMF's Special Drawing Rights basket, Lian Ping, chief economist and head of the Zhixin Investment Research Institute, told the Global Times on Tuesday. The yuan is the world's fourth-largest payment currency, third-largest trade finance currency and fifth-largest foreign exchange trading currency, Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People's Bank of China (PBC), the central bank, told a press conference on March 6, adding that boosting the internationalization of the yuan remains the top priority for promoting high-quality financial opening-up. Pan said that economic entities have increased internal demand for the use of the yuan, and the yuan has formed an initial network effect for international use with its continuously enhanced international monetary functions such as payments and settlements, investment and financing, and international reserves. In December 2023, the PBC and the National Bank of Serbia signed a memorandum of understanding to establish yuan-clearing arrangements in Serbia, which will help enterprises and financial institutions of the two countries use the yuan for cross-border transactions and further promote bilateral trade and investment facilitation. Amid the steady progress achieved for the internationalization of the yuan, experts vowed to tackle lingering challenges, which will contribute to deepen China's financial opening-up. Both Wang and Lian stressed the importance of continuously expanding the yuan's global usage and market share, as it still has a large gap with major global currencies such as the US dollar and the euro. Wang noted that China's financial market has further space for opening-up to meet global investors' demand, while more optimized regulations should be formulated to protect investors' rights. Lian noted that measures such as prudently promoting capital account convertibility for the yuan and its internationalization, while maintaining the basic stability of the yuan's exchange rate and an overall surplus in the balance of payments, will be significant for bolstering the financial sector's high-quality opening-up. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Meduza, Russian-Language News Outlet, Says It Faced Unprecedented Attacks By RFE/RL March 12, 2024 Meduza, an independent, Russian-language media outlet, accused the Russian authorities of carrying out an unprecedented wave of cyberattacks last month with the intent to "destroy" it. In a March 11 statement, the Latvia-based Meduza said the attacks began around the time when Aleksei Navalny, Russia's most prominent opposition leader, died in an Arctic prison while facing a long prison term. "In February 2024, the Russian authorities launched a series of cyberattacks against Meduza more intense than any we've ever faced," the outlet said in the statement. "While we don't have direct evidence, we believe this campaign is an attempt to completely destroy Meduza," it said. Meduza said Russian authorities and Kremlin-affiliated organizations are increasingly blocking its mirror servers; launching distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks to disable its website; attempting to disrupt its crowdfunding infrastructure; and hack into its journalists' accounts using phishing and other techniques. The outlet said the "high-value" attacks show the Russian authorities are willing to spend vast resources to achieve their goal. Meduza said the attacks are part of a wider campaign by the authorities to "carpet bomb" the Russian Internet, including Internet outages and interference with messaging apps. The attack on Meduza, a leading source of Russian news, comes ahead of tightly controlled presidential elections on March 15-17. President Vladimir Putin, 71, is expected to win a fifth term as he faces no competition. Russia last year labeled Meduza, a reader-supported outlet, "an undesirable organization" as part of its sweeping crackdown on independent media, claiming it was a "threat" to Russia's constitutional order and security. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-meduza- attacks-media-freedom/32858055.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Russian Foreign Ministry Summons Swiss Ambassador Over Russian Assets' Confiscation Plan Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that it had summoned Swiss Ambassador in Moscow Krystyna Marty Lang in connection with decision of the Swiss parliament on a mechanism that would allow the confiscation of Russian assets. "On March 12, the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassador of Switzerland in Moscow, K. Marty Lang, to protest against the decision of the Swiss parliament to initiate the development of the legal basis for a mechanism that would allow the confiscation of state assets of Russia located on the territory of Switzerland," the ministry said in a statement. The Russian side strongly condemns this step by the Swiss authorities, "which flagrantly violates the fundamental principles and norms of international law regarding state immunity," the statement read. "Any encroachment on Russian state property under the guise of any contrived 'reparation mechanism' will be nothing more than theft at the state level," the ministry said. If Switzerland confiscates state Russian assets, Moscow will take inevitable retaliatory measures, the ministry added. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Il-76 Military Plane Crashes During Takeoff in Russia's Ivanovo Region - Defense Ministry Sputnik News 20240312 The Il-76 military transport aircraft crash on Tuesday in Russia's Ivanovo Region killed military pilots from Tver and Orenbrug regions, the regional governors said. "The tragedy claimed the lives of the crew of Tver military pilots, true professionals ... Please convey my condolences to the comrades of the victims and words of support to the relatives of our officers," Tver Region Governor Igor Rudenya said in a statement. Pilots from Orenburg region were also killed in the Il-76 crash, Governor Denis Pasler said. Earlier in the day, the Russian Defense Ministry said that an Il-76 military transport aircraft has crashed during the takeoff in Russia's Ivanovo Region. "On March 12, 2024, an Il-76 military transport aircraft crashed in the Ivanovo region at about 13:00 Moscow time [10:00 GMT] while taking off for a scheduled flight. There were eight crew members and seven passengers on board," the ministry said in a statement. The aircraft crashed as one of the engines caught fire during the takeoff, the ministry said, adding that a commission of the Russian aerospace forces is on its way to the Ivanovo airfield to find out the causes of the crash. Ivanovo Region Governor Stanislav Voskresensky has arrived at the crash site, the local government said. "Residential areas have not been damaged as a result of the incident. An operational headquarters has been arranged on the site, all the services are working," the local government said on Telegram. The fire at the crash scene has been put out, Voskresensky wrote on Telegram later in the day. The regional governor expressed condolences to the families of the deceased Il-76 pilots and ordered specialized services to provide all necessary assistance. The Russian IL-76 heavy airlifter is a versatile and robust aircraft designed to transport troops, cargo and equipment. First introduced in the late 1970s, the IL-76 has since become a mainstay of the Russian Air Force and is also used by numerous other countries around the world. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Conference held in Shenzhen to promote cooperation, exchange between China, Thailand People's Daily Online) 16:38, March 13, 2024 A cooperation and exchange conference entitled "Bridging Markets, Shaping Futures: Crafting the Future of Sino-Thai Economic Powerhouse Forum" is held in Luohu district of Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, on March 8, 2024. (Photo courtesy of the organizer of the conference) A cooperation and exchange conference entitled "Bridging Markets, Shaping Futures: Crafting the Future of Sino-Thai Economic Powerhouse Forum" was held in Luohu district of Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, on March 8. Zuo Jinping, head of Luohu district, said that against the backdrop of the alignment of Thailand's Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) and the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Luohu district is committed to exploring the cooperation potential between China and Thailand in various sectors, including technological innovation, digital economy, new energy vehicles, and the jewelry industry. Korkij Danchaivichit, deputy secretary general of the Eastern Economic Corridor Office of Thailand, emphasized the significance of the EEC in promoting economic cooperation between China and Thailand. He also expressed the hope for increased participation of Chinese companies in the EEC, as well as their strong integration with the ASEAN and global markets. During the conference, KASIKORNBANK (China) Company Limited signs a memorandum of understanding with the Federation of Shenzhen Commerce. (Photo courtesy of the organizer of the conference) Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, chairman of the board of KASIKORNBANK (China) Company Limited, said that the mutual visa exemption agreement between China and Thailand has opened up a new era of improved connectivity and elevated exchanges between the two nations. During the conference, KASIKORNBANK (China) Company Limited signed a memorandum of understanding with the Federation of Shenzhen Commerce. The new headquarters of KASIKORNBANK (China) Company Limited, located in Luohu, was officially inaugurated. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) Owner of Telemedicine Companies Pleads Guilty to Role in $136 Million Medicare Fraud Conspiracy The owner of two purported telemedicine companies pleaded guilty today to her role in a conspiracy to defraud Medicare of $136 million. According to court documents, Jean Wilson, 52, of Richmond Hill, Georgia, was a licensed nurse practitioner in New Jersey. Wilson owned two purported telemedicine companies, Advantage Choice Care LLC (ACC) and Tele Medcare LLC (Tele Medcare), and two orthotic brace suppliers, Southeastern DME and Choice Care Medical. Wilson, through these companies, recruited medical professionals who were bribed to sign prescriptions for Medicare beneficiaries for orthotic braces and prescription drugs that were medically unnecessary, ineligible for Medicare reimbursement, or not provided as represented. In certain instances, Wilson only paid providers when they signed orthotic brace orders. The medical professionals Wilson recruited would often sign the orthotic brace orders based solely on a brief telephonic interaction with the beneficiary, or no interaction at all. Wilson and the medical providers she retained frequently signed false and misleading documentation to support claims to Medicare. During the conspiracy, Wilson and others submitted, or caused the submission of, false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, Medicare sponsors, and Medicare Part D plans in excess of approximately $136 million for orthotic braces and prescription drugs that were medically unnecessary, ineligible for Medicare reimbursement, or not provided as represented. Medicare, Medicare sponsors, and Medicare Part D plans paid at least $66 million for these claims. Wilson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. She is scheduled to be sentenced on July 18 and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. As part of her plea, she has agreed to pay over $66 million in restitution to Medicare and the IRS. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Departments Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Naomi Gruchacz of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Special Agent in Charge James Dennehy of the FBI Newark Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Tammy Tomlins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Newark Field Office made the announcement. The HHS-OIG, FBI, and IRS-CI are investigating the case. Trial Attorneys Darren C. Halverson and Nicholas K. Peone of the Criminal Divisions Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Divisions efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $27 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit. This story has been published on: 2024-03-12. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. International Criminal Law: Rifaat AL ASSAD to stand trial before the Federal Criminal Court Swiss Government Bern, 12.03.2024 -- On 11 March 2024, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland referred the former Vice-President of the Syrian Arab Republic and former officer of the Syrian army, Rifaat AL ASSAD, to the Federal Criminal Court for trial on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The accused is charged with ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions in Syria in February 1982, in his capacity as commander of the defence brigades (Saraya al Difaa in Arabic) and commander of operations in Hama, within the context of the armed conflict and the widespread and systematic attack launched against the population of the city of Hama. The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) submitted an indictment to the Federal Criminal Court (FCC) for facts that took place during the month of February 1982 in the city of Hama and within the context of the armed conflict between the Syrian Armed Forces and the Islamist opposition. Historical context According to the indictment of the OAG, the armed conflict between the Syrian Armed Forces and the Islamist opposition, in particular including the armed faction of the Muslim Brotherhood called 'Fighting Vanguard of the Muslim Brotherhood', caused between 3,000 and 60,000 deaths in the city of Hama, according to estimates. A majority of these deaths were civilians. Starting at the beginning of February 1982, the Syrian security forces were deployed in Hama to suppress an insurrection of the Islamist opposition. The operation allegedly ended at the end of the same month. The defence brigades (Saraya al Difaa) were purportedly the main forces in charge of the suppression. In this context, several thousands of civilians were allegedly victims of different abuses, ranging from immediate execution to detention and torture in specifically-created centres, according to several testimonies. Initiation of criminal investigations against AL ASSAD Following a complaint by the non-governmental organisation TRIAL International, the OAG initiated criminal proceedings in December 2013 for war crimes against Rifaat AL ASSAD, former commander of the defence brigades (Saraya al Difaa) and Vice-President of the Syrian Arab Republic between 1984 and 1998, on suspected war crimes, carried out in his capacity as commander of operations in Hama in February 1982. The criminal proceedings were initiated under the principle of universal jurisdiction and non-applicability of statutory limitations to war crimes. In this context, a police control established that the accused was present in Swiss territory when the investigation was initiated. Several victims filed civil complainnts within the OAG's criminal proceeding. The facts of the indictment In its indictment, the OAG accuses Rifaat AL ASSAD of ordering several violations of the laws of war to be committed and, in particular, ordering the troops under his command to scour the city of Hama and execute its inhabitants in the month of February 1982, in his role as responsible for operations in Hama and commander of the defence brigades (Saraya al Difaa). In this context, the accused was allegedly involved in homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions committed during the military operation in Hama. The aforementioned facts constitute a violation of the laws of war according to Article 109 para. 1 of the Military Criminal Code (MCC) in the version that was in force at the time of the facts, as per Article 108 para. 2 MCC in addition to common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. The homicides that the accused is being charged with can also be characterised as crimes against humanity (Art. 264a para. 1 let. a Swiss Criminal Code). The OAG will present its conclusions during the hearing before the FCC in Bellinzona. The accused will be entitled to the presumption of innocence until the entry into force of the decision. Once the indictment is submitted, the FCC has jurisdiction for additional information. Original version of the text in French The prosecution of crimes under international criminal law in Switzerland before 2011 Under the former Military Criminal Code (MCC), a war crime has been a criminal offence in Switzerland since 1968, regardless of where it takes place and the nationality of the offender or the victim. Article 109 of the former MCC expressly makes an offence of violating the provisions of international agreements on warfare, the protection of persons and property, and other recognised laws and customs of war. Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions provides that, in the event of an armed conflict that is not of an international character that occurs on the territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, each party to the conflict is bound to apply certain provisions; accordingly, violence to life or person, and the cruel treatment and torture of persons who are not directly involved in the hostilities, are prohibited. Switzerland ratified the Geneva Conventions on 31 March 1950 and the Syrian Arab Republic on 2 November 1953. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Swiss to Try Syrian President's Uncle for War Crimes By VOA News March 12, 2024 Swiss prosecutors referred Rifaat Assad a the uncle of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a for trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity that he allegedly committed as a military commander in 1982. In a statement Tuesday, Switzerland's attorney general's office said Rifaat Assad, a former Syrian vice president, is accused of "ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions" in 1982 when he was leading troops in the city of Hama. According to Reuters, Assad is known by his critics as the "Butcher of Hama" for his role in suppressing an Islamist uprising in the city, a conflict Swiss federal prosecutors say caused anywhere from 3,000 to 60,000 deaths, mostly civilians. Assad has previously denied responsibility for the deaths in Hama. If Assad is convicted by the Swiss federal criminal court, it is unclear whether he will serve time in Switzerland. When sentenced by France to four years in prison in 2021 for illegally using Syrian state funds, he fled to Syria. Assad lived in exile in France for more than 30 years because of an alleged overthrow attempt of his brother, but then-Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, Rifaat's nephew, allowed him to reenter the country. Swiss prosecutors say there is no statute of limitations for the charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. They argue that while Assad is alive, he can be held accountable for his alleged crimes. Swiss authorities say Assad was in Switzerland when investigators launched their initial probe. Ribal Assad, one of Rifaat Assad's 16 children, told The Associated Press that he didn't know whether his father will travel to Switzerland for the trial, and that he hasn't spoken to his father since his return to Syria in 2021. According to Benoit Meystre, legal adviser for Trial International, there is a small chance that Assad will be present for the trial, but the indictment "in itself is a victory for all the victims" of Assad's regime. The war crime proceedings were initiated by the Swiss attorney general's office in 2013, under the principle of universal jurisdiction and non-applicability of war crime statutory limitations. The case will be presented to the federal criminal court by Swiss prosecutors in the city of Bellinzona, according to the attorney general's office. A date was not specified. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Biden's fiscal 2025 budget includes request for Taiwan ROC Central News Agency 03/12/2024 12:34 PM Washington, March 11 (CNA) The 2025 budget proposal released by the White House on Monday includes a US$100 million request to assist Taiwan in strengthening deterrence and maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. The funding would provide resources to the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to strengthen and expand Taiwan's collaboration with international partners, the State Department said in a news release. The State Department described the proposed US$100 million in funding as an "historic investment in Taiwan's security" through the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) mechanism "to strengthen deterrence and maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait." The request comes after U.S. President Joe Biden signed off on a US$80 million grant through the FMF in November 2023 to bolster Taiwan's military capabilities. When asked why the department described the funding as "historic," Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard Verma said it meant there would be a dedicated funding item for Taiwan. "We break out Taiwan for the first time and have a specific line item for it. It reaffirms our commitment to security assistance for Taiwan and to a free and open Indo-Pacific. I think it's very clear. I think it stands on its own," Verma said. On whether the US$100 million includes funding for a permanent training mission by U.S. Special Forces troops in Taiwan, Verma said he did not think so, saying it was just "traditional security assistance." "There's also IMET assistance. And again, you have to read that together with the totality of our assistance in the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the new mandatory funding we've also added," he said. IMET stands for International Military Education and Training, which is a program that establishes a rapport between the U.S. military and other countries' militaries to build alliances for the future. In a separate budget overview released by the U.S. Department of Defense, its 2025 fiscal budget proposal includes a US$500 million request to replenish U.S. weapons stocks in Taiwan through Presidential Drawdown Authority, which takes weapons from existing Pentagon stocks and ships them overseas. (By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Ko Lin) Enditem/ls NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Chinese FM slams US' attempt to 'outcompete China' with $100 million defense aid to Taiwan listed in Biden's FY2025 budget Global Times By Wang Qi Published: Mar 12, 2024 07:30 PM The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday slammed the US' attempt to "outcompete China," and vowed to take measures to firmly safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity in terms of the Taiwan question, after the White House released its budget proposal for 2025 Financial Year, which includes billions of spending for its "Indo-Pacific" strategy to contain China and a 100 million request to arm Taiwan authorities through the Foreign Military Financing (FMF), a mechanism typically saved for sovereign nations. US President Joe Biden on Monday local time proposed a in a $7.26 trillion budget plan for FY 2025, a 4.7 percent surge year on year. It includes a defense budget request of $849.8 billion, targeting "persistent threats" from countries Russia, North Korea and Iran and "pacing challenges" from China in "Indo-Pacific" region. The budget also provides $4 billion "to realize a more free, open, secure, and connected Indo-Pacific that bolsters US alliances and partnerships," according to the fact sheet release by the White House. The "Indo-Pacific" package also includes $2.1 billion in bilateral and regional foreign assistance, including $100 million for a standalone request for Taiwan military assistance. The US State Department described the 100 million in funding Taiwan an "historic investment in Taiwan's security including new bilateral Foreign Military Financing (FMF) request," to "strengthen deterrence and maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits," media reported. In response to media questions on "historic," deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard Verma said it meant there would be a dedicated funding item for Taiwan. "We must employ all the tools at our disposal to outcompete China wherever possible," Verma remarked. At a press briefing on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin slammed the US attempt to "outcompete China." According to Wang, the so-called "competition" mentioned by the US side is not benign competition in which one chases for common progress. Rather, it is a vicious competition in which the opponent is trapped and obstructed at every turn. It is a big gamble in the fundamental interests of the two peoples and even the future and destiny of mankind, which will only push China and the US into confrontation and conflict. We hope that the US will correct its wrong perception of China, abandon its zero-sum mentality, and promote the sound, stable and sustainable development of China-US relations, Wang said. In terms of the Taiwan question, Wang stressed that China firmly opposes military contacts between US and Taiwan authorities and arming Taiwan. "We urge the US side to abide by the one-China principle and stop interfering in China's internal affairs. China will take resolve measures to firmly safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity." Chinese analysts said the US move hinted at more political than military implications. According to Xin Qiang, director of the Taiwan studies center at Fudan University, the pernicious nature of the US move is that the MFM is always offered to sovereign nations, which means the US is treating Taiwan as a "state entity," even a paramilitary ally. And that violated the one-China principle. In August 2023, the Biden administration has approved an $80 million military transfer to Taiwan island through the FMF program. Foreign military financing, to some extent, suggests a resumption of US military aid to Taiwan, when the arms sales dominated in past decades, Xin said, "The US is moving a small step forward in providing defense support to Taiwan authorities, which takes more diverse forms than in the past." Despite 100 million not being a huge amount compared with past US military sales to Taiwan island, Xin said the US is testing the reaction of the Chinese mainland. If there is no strong response from the Chinese mainland, the US is likely to continue to expand the scale and the amount in the future, Xin said. "This is a familiar US tactic," Xin said, "having set a precedent, it later makes it the new norm gradually." The budget plan also came amid the rising tension cross the Straits after the fatal fishing incident. And the situation seems unlikely to return to calm in the future. According to a Wall Street Journal report on Tuesday, secessionists Hsiao Bi-khim, the running mate of Lai Ching-te who is set to take the post of Taiwan regional leader in May, is in Washington this week "for a low-profile private visit." While Mike McCaul, who leads the House Foreign Affairs Committee said on March 6 that he will lead a delegation to Taiwan to celebrate Lai's election, as 2024 also marks 45 anniversary of "Taiwan relation act." US moves are likely to be interpreted as support and encouragement for the secessionist Taiwan authorities, and the Chinese mainland should be highly vigilant about the cross-Straits ties and collusion between US and Taiwan island, Xin added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan Mar. 13, 2024 ROC Ministry of National Defense 2024/03/13 PLA activities in the waters and airspace around Taiwan 1. Dateis 6 to 6 a.m. (UTC+8) Tuesday to Wednesday, Mar. 12-13 2.PLA activitiesis 10 PLA aircraft and 9 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 4 of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan's southwestern and eastern ADIZ. ROC Armed Forces have monitored the situation and employed CAP aircraft, Navy vessels, and coastal missile systems in response to the detected activities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UK to Send HMS Diamond Destroyer to Red Sea to Rejoin Naval Mission - Minister Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United Kingdom will send its HMS Diamond destroyer to the Red Sea to take over from HMS Richmond frigate in protecting commercial shipping in the region from attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels, Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said Tuesday. "I thank the crew of HMS Richmond for their incredible work and am confident that HMS Diamond will continue to stand up for freedom of navigation and the safety of seafarers," Shapps said in a statement. HMS Diamond, equipped with Sea Viper surface-to-air missiles, has patrolled the volatile region since the end of December, after the United States said it would muster a multinational naval force for the stated goal of protecting maritime shipping from Yemeni rebel attacks. HMS Richmond, armed with Sea Ceptor air defense missiles, was rotated to the region at the beginning of January. After handing over to HMS Diamond, the warship will set sail for the UK for maintenance and resupply. Yemen's Houthi rebels said in November they would attack Israeli-linked ships passing through the Red Sea in retaliation for the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. They have since launched dozens of attacks on ships in the region, prompting retaliatory airstrikes from the UK and the US. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address HMS Diamond heads back to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden to protect global shipping One of the UK's most advanced warships is heading back to the Red Sea to protect global shipping from Houthi attacks. 12 March 2024 HMS Diamond will take over from HMS Richmond, which joined Operation Prosperity Guardian - the international coalition to protect commercial shipping from Houthi attacks - in February. Just this weekend, HMS Richmond successfully repelled a Houthi drone attack in the southern Red Sea, shooting down two attack drones using Sea Ceptor missiles. This is the first time a UK warship has fired a Sea Ceptor missile in combat. The deployment is part of the UK's broader response to Houthi attacks, which has also included intercepting weapon-smuggling to Yemen, imposing sanctions to hold members of the Houthis to account and conducting proportionate and targeted strikes against Houthi military targets in Yemen. Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said: Protecting shipping around the world is one of the Navy's key tasks and this deployment shows how our highly skilled sailors and advanced warships are helping to keep our sea lanes safe. Britain continues to be at the forefront of the international response to the Houthis' dangerous attacks on commercial vessels, which have claimed the lives of international mariners. I thank the crew of HMS Richmond for their incredible work and am confident that HMS Diamond will continue to stand up for freedom of navigation and the safety of seafarers. HMS Richmond, which left Plymouth at the beginning of January, is designed for a variety of operations and is fitted with a Sea Ceptor missile system, providing a powerful shield against airborne threats, including hostile combat jets, helicopters and other missiles. After handing over to HMS Diamond, she will return to the UK via Saudi Arabia for a period of maintenance and resupply. HMS Diamond previously operated in the region in December and January, maintaining a near constant presence in the 'high threat area' of the Red Sea. The destroyer came under fire in three separate attacks Houthi rebels, successfully destroying nine drones using her world-class Sea Viper missile system and guns. HMS Diamond has sailed nearly 20,000 nautical miles on patrols since leaving Portsmouth at the end of November - almost enough to carry her around the globe - while her Wildcat helicopter has flown more than 53 hours of sorties over the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden making its crew the busiest in the Royal Navy. The UK remains committed to deterring the Houthis from their indiscriminate attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The Houthis' illegal attacks have claimed the lives of international mariners and continue to harm the global economy and undermine the stability and security of Yemen. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 Transcript Senior Defense Officials Hold a Background Briefing Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder; Senior Defense Official 1; Senior Defense Official 2 GEN. RYDER: Great. Well, good morning, and thank you very much for joining us today. Again, I'm Major General Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary. I'll be facilitating today's background call. First up, as a reminder, today's call is embargoed until Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Jake Sullivan goes to the podium for his press briefing later this afternoon, where he'll announce a new PDA package. As I'm sure you can appreciate, we do not want to get ahead of the White House announcement, but we did want to make our briefers available to you in advance to help provide additional context regarding this announcement and to answer any questions you might have to inform your reporting. Second, today's call is on background, attributable to "senior defense officials." I appreciate your assistance with this, and not for reporting, but for your info only, our briefers this morning are (inaudible), who will be "senior defense official 1", and (inaudible), who will be "senior defense official 2". Please note I'll call on reporters. We'll try to get to as many questions as possible in the time we have available. Before we begin, I'd ask you to please keep your phones on mute unless you're asking a question. And with that, I will turn it over to senior defense official one for any opening comments. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Thank you, Pat. Good afternoon, everyone. I was going to take a few minutes here on how we got here. Many of you know we have basically exhausted our funding to assist Ukraine, both USAI and drawdown funding -- or drawdown replenishment funding. The last supplemental we got was December of 2022, so 15 months now since we've gotten any -- any money to help Ukraine with. Given that the secretary has expressed his concerns about doing any more drawdowns because it -- you know, we have the ability to move funds out of our stocks, but without the ability to replenish them, we are -- we are putting our own readiness at -- at some risk. So what happened this week, or -- or in the last week or two, given the battlefield situation, you know, the -- the -- the president, secretary of -- others are -- are concerned about what's happening, and we're looking to see if there was anything we could do. As that was -- discussion was ongoing, savings were starting to come in, which has happened before and may happen again. To explain how -- how supplemental funding works, funding for Ukraine is completely separate legally from our base budget. I don't have any ability to reprogram money from any of the other $800 billion available to the Defense Department to help Ukraine with on drawdown. That took -- that -- that funding and that authority are -- are completely walled off, and that's why we need a new supplemental. Terms and conditions for that funding are in the supplemental. Anybody can read them. The funding for replenishment comes -- comes in what's called a transfer fund that allows us to take a pot of money to replenish anything that we might give Ukraine and move it to the appropriate type of account. When we give them -- if we give them mostly Army equipment, as we have, the -- the funding to replace that is moved to Army accounts. If any of it is not needed, it can be transferred back to the central pot to be reused. That is how every transfer fund that we have works, whether it's counter-drug, environmental restoration or Ukraine replenishment drawdown. Again, you can see those terms and conditions in the law. We have done this before. No -- it wasn't news before that we transferred money back when we had savings because we weren't broke at the time. But now we are, and it's -- it's more of interest. And so the -- the -- the connection here I think for most -- most interest to you is that we had savings come in that will allow us to offset the cost of a new drawdown package. This is a bit of a -- of a unique occurrence, not that we've not had savings before. We've had about six percent of all the funds appropriated have been returned and reused so far, and those returns are also publicly available on our website. We're not hiding them. Again there just wasn't the interest until now. So I think that -- that the bottom line here is that the -- the savings that have come in here are going to help square the circle of what the secretary said of needing to have new funding come in to be comfortable doing anymore drawdown. We do have funds come in that can cover the cost of one more package, but this is a bit of an ad hoc, or a one-time shot. We don't know if or when future savings will come in, and we certainly can't count on this as a way of doing business, so we do need the House to act, the House to be allowed to act and allowed to vote on the supplemental to send authority approved. With that, let me turn to my colleague who has maybe a little more information on the specifics of this particular savings which, again, are not the first time this has happened. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: Yeah, thanks, sir. So just, I was going to provide a few examples. So the vast majority of the, you know, contract award savings being returned to the replenishment of fund are the result of good negotiations. And for example, bundling funding across different things, so Ukraine replenishment funding, for example, paired with base budget funding allowed us to buy things at a better price because we were buying in bulk, so to speak, and I have a few examples. So in one instance, with 25 mm ammunition, we, you know, were buying, you know, 120,000-plus rounds. We estimated initially a unit cost of $130 each, but we ended up getting a better price of $93 to help us as we negotiated the contract with the vendor. So that's an example of how you generate savings with good negotiations. We did something very similar with joint light tactical vehicles. We used a initial cost estimate based on the previous JLTV contract, but once we were finalizing this contract award, we had the new contract in place, and the unit price went down as a result of a competition we did, where we now have a new vendor for JLTV. That produced a savings. On Humvee, we also similarly were able to work with the vendor to extend the ordering period and the quantity, so we got more -- more for our same dollars, but also a unit-cost break. So here again, just working with the vendors, we got -- we came in kind of under -- under estimate, which generate the savings that goes back to the replenishment pot. So, the funding in question being referred to here going back to the pot was a result of multiple contract actions over multiple months as they worked to finalizing as -- as (Senior Defense Official 1) said. You know, we made the department aware. There's a process where we make OSD Comptroller aware of such things, and that was part of the conversation about this drawdown package. And this has happened before. We've had savings -- significant savings, for example, from Javelin, Stryker, and HIMAR awards -- HIMARS awards that will also impact the (replenishment pot ?). So it is not routine but it is also not unprecedented and is mostly the result of just good stewardship by the Army to make sure we're getting the right thing at the right price for -- for what the Army needs to replenish. Over. GEN. RYDER: Thank you very much, gentlemen. First question will go to Associated Press, Tara Copp. Q: Hi. Thank you both for doing this. A couple questions. Can you give us a dollar figure for what this PDA will be and what kind of munitions or air defense or -- or whatever it will cover? And then secondly, can you confirm that -- like, the DOD isn't just broke on this particular replenishment fund, it's actually $10 billion overdrawn. So how could you find in -- more money by this cost savings if you're already $10 billion in the hole? Thank you. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Yeah, thanks. So we believe that the package that the -- that the Security Advisor will announce will be up to $300 million. So when you think about the -- the savings that we have identified, it's in that same range. So it leaves us neutral. It doesn't -- it doesn't -- at the end of the day, should not increase or decrease the $10 billion. The $10 billion is a good example of why we need the supplemental approved, right? When we get funding from Congress to replenish things that we've -- have given or will give to Ukraine, that means that we can use them to fill the hole or, if there is new drawdowns, we can -- we can at least keep even. And the pace of events on the battlefield kind of dictates how much you lean in the one direction or the other, but we do -- we do need funding for -- for ourselves. Even if there were a -- a -- a decision, which would be a horrible decision, to stop helping Ukraine, the hole -- the hole would exist and we still would need Congress to do something. Q: So is $10 billion kind of the ceiling of the -- the amount -- like, you're not willing to assume more risk than that at this point? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: I don't want to put words in the Secretary's (inaudible) but I think it's -- you know, something in that neighborhood is correct, yeah, that he -- he -- you know, without a signal from Congress -- and remember, the -- after the first year, we had Congress act four times, very quickly every time, 100 percent, if not more, of what we asked for. So there's kind of been a sea change in the difficulty of getting Congress to continue supporting for Ukraine. So absent that -- you know, with that complete kind of 180 on congressional support, to date at least, in terms of the House being allowed to vote, we believe the -- the support's still there if the House is allowed to vote, but not -- having that kind of change in situation means yeah, you -- you -- you -- you've got to take a different risk calculus about going any further if it's no longer assured that you're going to get help. GEN. RYDER: Thank you. Let's go to NBC, Courtney Kube. Q: Thank you. I just -- if I could just ask, when you -- forgive me, cause you both sound a little bit alike, if you could just say if it's Defense Official one or two, just so we don't misidentify you, if he's -- if it's not too much trouble? Thanks. And then one clarification off of Tara's -- SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: Anything offered is Defense Official 1. (Laughter.) Q: Thank you -- thank you. Sorry. I figured, but you don't want to make a mistake. You -- you didn't -- you didn't dispute Tara's $10 billion, so I just want to be clear -- you guys are -- you're acknowledging that there is this $10 billion in -- deficit in replenishment money, right? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Yes. Q: Okay. And -- and then -- SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: -- number one -- sorry -- official number one said yes. Q: Thank you -- thank you. And then can you just give us some specifics about what's in this package, the number of -- you know, in a -- everyone's assuming it's artillery and ammunition. Can you give us some specifics about what you're sending? Thanks. GEN. RYDER: Hey, Courtney, this is Gen Ryder. So -- so we'll have much more to provide later today, but it's a -- a combination of things like anti-aircraft missiles, ammunition, artillery rounds, some armor systems. Again, we -- we don't want to get ahead of the -- the White House, but -- but they'll be announcing it, plus there'll be a DOD press release on this later today. Q: Thanks. If the announcement later could also include when they expect some of these things to get in, that would be helpful too, unless you can share it now. Thanks. GEN. RYDER: Thanks, Courtney. Let's go to CNN, Haley. Q: Hi. Thanks for doing this. I'm curious if you can talk sort of about the timeline here? I -- unless I'm mistaken, I don't believe these contracts necessarily, like, immediately new. So sort of how was this figured out today -- or, you know, recently? And then if you could kind of address -- I -- I -- I'm sure there's going to be some inevitable questions from Congress and things on sort of why this is happening now and -- and what this means for DOD being able to move ahead without Congress supplemental and -- et cetera. So I guess just kind of address those ahead of time if you could. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: So, this is Defense Official 2. So, I think the way these -- you know, as (Defense Official 1) said, the -- the funding comes in -- you know, we get this transfer fund. The -- the DOD then iteratively goes to Congress and says "we would like to use amounts of that fund for these specific purposes." These are our replenishment requests that go back to Congress for approval. So the Army, as we've been getting those -- they're, you know, coming at a fast pace for a -- a while -- you know, those -- that starts the clock on getting the funding on -- on contract. So, like, the funding for the ones I'm talking about were, you know, in some cases, provided several months ago, and then just through the natural course of contract negotiations and working through the paperwork to review and vet and make sure we're doing the contract the right way, you know, these -- these things have been trailing items that have now manifested, that have been planned for a while. So, you know, the timing is really coincidental, in my view, but it has also turned out to be timing that helps support the overall decision here, I believe. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Yeah, and I'll -- I'll just add -- this is -- this is (Defense Official 1) here. The process takes a little time but it -- we are not allowed to replenish anything until we've actually given it to Ukrainians. That's kind of a legal requirement, right? We can't replenish something we think that we're going to give them or would like to give them, we actually have to -- have -- given it to them first and then start the contracting process -- SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: That's right. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: -- that he's describing. So it takes a while. I would say in -- in -- the other part of your question, this has no impact on the -- the need for a supplemental moving forward. Again, the -- this -- this has happened before. It is sporadic, unpredictable, and hardly to the scale that we need. $300 million is -- is -- you know, we -- we were doing, as you may remember, packages much -- much more than this every two weeks when we had funds. And what drove this of course in the near-term, just look at what's happening on the battlefield today around Avdiivka and other places. Ukrainians are -- are struggling without ammunition. I think everybody knows that. So there was an imperative to act, and we had on our side an ability to help the Secretary and the President with a way to at least cover the cost of this one package, but that's this one package. Not -- it's not a -- it's not a -- you know, a fountain of -- of -- of money that is going to sustain us. GEN. RYDER: Thank you. Let's go to Nick Schifrin, PBS. Q: Thanks very much for doing this. I think this was kind of asked before but when will the weapons arrive? And -- and what I'm really getting at is -- is how critical is specifically air defense? Are you taking this step because if you didn't, air defense in Ukraine might run out? And is there a concern that this could reduce pressure on the House to pass the supplemental or -- you know, we're all tracking a discharge petition movement this morning. And if -- if -- forgive me for asking one more question. Are you considering more drawdown packages that would not be immediately replenished? Thanks. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Let -- let me answer the last one first, no, we're not considering any further drawdown packages at this time. The president has that right, obviously, and the secretary and others, to make a different decision based on the situation on the ground, but, no, we are not. When -- when items might deliver, our colleagues in TRANSCOM have a very good record of getting things over there within days, oftentimes, of a decision being announced. So the actual equipment, I think -- and that presumably is the point, is to get it there quickly because they need it now. GEN. RYDER: Thank you -- (CROSSTALK) Q: And, sorry, but I just -- the -- the question about, is there a concern this could reduce pressure on the House to pass the supplemental? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: It shouldn't. (Laughter.) SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: It's Official 2. The supplemental is absolutely vital for our readiness, as well as Ukraine winning this conflict. This doesn't change that at all. It is a relatively small package to give Ukraine the minimum of what it needs for a short amount of time. We need it badly. GEN. RYDER: Thank you. We have time for just a few more here. Let's go to Jeff Schogol, Task & Purpose. Q: Thank you. Senior Defense Official 1, you mentioned briefly the concerning situation in Ukraine. I'm wondering if you can elaborate about how concerning it is? And also, just a clarification, the package will include armor systems. Does that mean tanks? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: On the second part first, I -- I don't -- no. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 2: I believe it's more anti-armor. SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: I think -- I think, yeah, it might have been a miscommunication, anti-armor. On -- on the first part, you know, I would say General Cavoli and others are much better positioned to characterize what's happening on the battlefield. I'm just going by -- by what I observe as we discuss this among senior officials. But, again, I don't think it's particularly a surprise that -- that Ukraine is low on ammunition now. I think they've been saying that publicly, and it's, sort of, self-evident. GEN. RYDER: Thank you. Let's go to Noah Roberts -- Robertson, Defense News. Q: Thank -- thank you both for doing this, Senior Defense Official One and Two. I'm wondering if you could go a little bit further into how the $10 billion hole on replenishment actually came about in the first place? Is that due to a difference in price, replacing the items sent, than actually sending them themselves, the value at the time? Just explain that a little bit further, please? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Yeah, basically what happened, when we started, back shortly after the invasion in February '22, we got our first supplemental, I think it was only a month later. And at the time, we had to come up with some ratio, with zero data, on how much more of a premium there should be if you give what is -- what is valued on your books at $100 of x, how much it would cost to buy that same x back again. And we came up with -- with 10 percent. That turned out to be, after -- after we had some data, which was quite far along, under-valued, based on, you know, replacement values, which were probably in many cases closer to 20 percent. So that is basically where the hole came from, is having a fairly decent volume over that year, year and a half, at what turned out to be, once we had data, which was much, much later, that we had any kind of good data on this, that we -- we were not getting enough dollars back to replace what was -- what was given out. There's plenty of things that influence this, right? There's -- there's some things, maybe, you can't replace and some things that you can only replace with something that's newer and better and that's not identical. So there's a lot of variables here, and it took us a while to, kind of, get some data and assign it to different categories, like a vehicle versus an artillery round. So in the course of that, yeah, we -- we are ahead, and -- and, as I said, remember, we haven't gotten any funding in 15 months. So this issue is -- is -- the hole is not news, by the way. The committees have been aware of this for some time as well. But what we need is -- is some help with this. Very much like what happened, you know, in Desert Storm and other -- and other previous conflicts where there was a -- a recognition that you need to come in on the backend and kind of make, in that case as in this case, the Army largely whole for what was used up or -- or in this case, donated. Q: And a -- a second question. Could you explain when that data explaining the 20 percent, rather than 10 percent estimate actually came in? When were you able to develop that? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: That was -- I -- I would say the second half of last year, by which point three of the four sups were already done. And you know, we have -- if you'll notice, the sup that we sent up in October, which Congress hasn't been able to act on yet -- at least, the House has not been able to act on yet -- the ratio is adjusted. But -- but you know, there was hes- -- was some water under the bridge before that happened. Q: Thank you. GEN. RYDER: Last question will go to Carla Babb, Voice of America. Carla, are you there? Okay, then we'll go to (inaudible) -- Q: I'm here, Pat. GEN. RYDER: Oh, go ahead. Q: Sorry, I didn't press "*6". Officials -- help walk me through again, because somebody just looking at this, giving Ukraine $300 million of savings that you found that could be going to replenish, it's hard to see the difference, if you're willing to do that, why you're not willing to use the $4 billion left in PDA, you know, if you're willing to take it out here instead of giving it back to the Army to replenish. What's the argument for why you can't pull out anything more from the $4 billion that you could potentially pull out? Because there's been arguments that 155 mm cluster munitions, or M-113s, things that the Army's not using anyway could go to Ukraine, and you have the authority to do that with the $4 billion. So why is that a stopping point for you guys, and this is not? SENIOR DEFENSE OFFICIAL 1: Well, I would say first that there's scale, $300 million and $4 billion. One is -- one is, you know, 12 times, 13 times larger than the other in terms of money. Second, as I described a -- a -- a minute ago, the -- the lack of clarity about whether the House even intends to vote on this, let alone approve it, makes -- makes us very reluctant to dig the hole deeper. Here in this case, we are not digging the hole deeper; we're staying even while recognizing that Ukraine is in -- is in a very tough spot this moment. So, you know, I would say that as -- as a -- a mere Under Secretary, I -- the secretary doesn't get any easy stuff, nor does the president, right? So it this -- this is not necessarily an easy call, but you've got a situation where, yeah, we are -- we are short on funding. They are short on ammunition. We have an opportunity here to -- to -- to do something, but it doesn't change the fact we're still -- we're still -- have a hard problem, and we need the House to act. GEN. RYDER: All right. Ladies and gentlemen, that is all the time we have for today. Again, thank you for joining us. Just as a reminder, this was on background attributable to "senior defense officials". It's also embargoed until the national security advisor, Mr. Sullivan, goes to the podium later this afternoon. Again, we'll have much more info on the details of the PDA in our press release from DOD later today. Thanks very much, everyone. Out here. https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3704861/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address March 12, 2024 By C. Todd Lopez , DOD News DOD Able to Send Additional Assistance to Ukraine Using Unexpected Army Savings The Defense Department today announced additional security assistance for Ukraine. Included in this assistance are artillery rounds and rockets for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. The package totals $300 million. This latest round of presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, is the first this year and was made possible after the Army negotiated a lower price for replacing supplies already sent to Ukraine. With that finding, additional funds became available. Since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, the U.S. has provided some $44.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. That assistance has come through either PDA, where with presidential approval equipment can be withdrawn from existing U.S. military inventory and then shipped to Ukraine, or through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, where the U.S. commits to buying new equipment for Ukraine from defense contractors. Funds for USAI have run out, and the U.S. can no longer buy equipment for Ukraine unless Congress provides more money. With PDA, equipment taken from U.S. inventory must eventually be replaced with new equipment paid for with replenishment funds that must also be authorized by Congress. While the Defense Department has been authorized by the president to pull even more equipment from its inventory for Ukraine, Congress has not agreed to provide additional funds to replace that equipment. Sending more equipment without the promise of funds to replace it would be risky for DOD and would affect national security. As a result of USAI funding running out and inadequate replenishment funding to replace equipment sent to Ukraine through PDA, DOD had stopped sending support to Ukraine. The latest round of PDA was made possible when the Army found additional funds after renegotiating contract costs to replace equipment that's already been sent to Ukraine. This PDA package is unique in that regard, and a senior defense official said Tuesday that the DOD can't expect to continue assisting Ukraine using cost savings. "We had savings come in that will allow us to offset the cost of a new drawdown package," said a senior defense official today. "The savings that have come in here are going to help square the circle of what the secretary said of needing to have new funding come in to be comfortable doing any more drawdown. We [did] have funds come in that can cover the cost of one more package. But this is a bit of an ad hoc or one-time shot. We don't know if or when future savings will come in. And we certainly can't count on this as a way of doing business." U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the security assistance announced today will provide much-needed ammunition to help the Ukrainians, but unless Congress acts to appropriate more funding, the U.S. will no longer be able to help. "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sullivan said. "This package does not displace and should not delay the critical need to pass the bipartisan national security bill." Without additional funding from Congress, Sullivan said, the U.S. cannot continue to support Ukraine's fight against Russia without impacting its own readiness. "Congress must act, the House of Representatives must pass the bipartisan national security supplemental as soon as possible," Sullivan said. "The House has got to pass the supplemental as soon as possible to allow us to continue the flow of vital security ... assistance to Ukraine, to replenish the U.S. military's munitions stocks, to invest in our industrial base, and to support jobs in 40 states across the United States. The world is watching, the clock is ticking, and we need to see action as rapidly as possible." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Joint Expeditionary Force Defence Ministers' meeting focus on assistance to Ukraine Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of National Defence 2024-03-12 International cooperation | Security and defense policy Vice Minister of National Defence Ailvinas Tomkus attended a distance meeting of Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) Defence Ministers where Danish, Estonian, UK, Latvian, Lithuanian, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and Icelandic Defence Ministers or their representatives once again reiterated the solidarity and cooperation in rendering assistance to Ukraine and ensuring security in the Baltic and the High North. "We are leading a demining coalition for Ukraine with Iceland, we have 22 members in it, including seven JEF partners," said Vice Minister thanking the JED countries for contributing to the demining coalition. According to A. Tomkus, the Ukrainian military were particularly short of demining equipment and encouraged JEF nations to donate it or contribute financially to the demining coalition fund. Lithuania has contributed 15 million euros to the fund which will be used to procure demining equipment for Ukraine. Overviewing the JEF activities of 2023 Ministers praised the UK-led JEF decision to take active role in addressing damage done to the critical underwater infrastructure in the Baltic and North Sea and activate the JEF in response for the first time since its establishment. That demonstrated the JEF readiness and capabilities to deter potential adversaries from actions against critical infrastructure lines of the JEF nations. All the ten JEF partner nations committed national capabilities to respond in the Baltic, North and Norwegian Seas after the real-life events last October. "The Joint Expeditionary Force is one of the first instruments of response to any crisis and their activation demonstrates the reliable participant of the European security it is that should be used when necessary in the future too," said A. Tomkus. The JEF is a high-readiness combat unit designed to respond to emergencies. The JEF is led by the United Kingdom and manned by 10 Norther European partner nations contributing maritime, land and air capabilities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hong Kong: Health chief visits GZ, Dongguan Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau today led a delegation on a two-day visit to Guangzhou and Dongguan to meet Mainland health officials to deepen exchanges and co-operation between Hong Kong and Mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area. The delegation today first met Guangdong Health Commission Deputy Director General Huang Fei to discuss a number of cross-boundary healthcare services, including the Elderly Health Care Voucher Greater Bay Area Pilot Scheme and a direct cross-boundary ambulance service. Prof Lo thanked the commission for its valuable advice in the process of pressing ahead with the pilot scheme, adding that the Department of Health is working with various pilot medical institutions on follow-up arrangements such as reimbursement for claims for Elderly Health Care Vouchers and system configurations. The health chief pointed out that in terms of healthcare development, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government has all along been reinforcing co-operation with various bay area cities to optimise the policy initiatives for providing more convenience for Hong Kong citizens under the principles of complementarity and mutual benefits and on the premise that the development of the Mainland healthcare system will be benefited without comprising the development of Hong Kong's local healthcare service. As for the provision of a direct cross-boundary ambulance service, Prof Lo said the discussions between the Health Bureau and relevant parties in Shenzhen and Macau are making good progress, and he hoped the service could be launched as soon as possible to enable direct point-to-point hospital transfer of inpatients with appropriate medical conditions. The delegation then visited Sun Yat-sen Universitys Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center and its First Affiliated Hospital. Last month, the First Affiliated Hospital was included by the Health Bureau as one of the pilot medical institutions under the pilot scheme. Hong Kong seniors eligible for the Elderly Health Care Voucher will be able to use the voucher to pay for outpatient healthcare services they receive at the hospitals designated medical centres or medical service departments later this year. At a meeting with hospital President Prof Xiao Haipeng, Prof Lo witnessed the signing of a co-operation agreement between the hospital and the Hospital Authority on enhancing training and exchanges of healthcare professionals. During Profs Los absence, Under Secretary for Health Dr Libby Lee will be Acting Secretary. This story has been published on: 2024-03-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Russia intercepts, destroys dozens of Ukrainian drones Iran Press TV Tuesday, 12 March 2024 11:31 AM Russia's defense ministry says it has intercepted and downed 25 Ukrainian drones over separate regions of the country, including the capital Moscow. "On-duty air defense systems intercepted and destroyed drones over the territories of Moscow (2 UAVs), Leningrad (1 UAV), Belgorod (7 UAVs), Kursk (11 UAVs), Bryansk (1 UAV), Tula (1 UAV), and Oryol (2 UAVs) regions," the defense ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. One drone flying towards Moscow had been downed over Ramensky district near the capital, Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on Telegram. The remaining Ukrainian drones that were not intercepted carried out strikes across several regions of western Russia, causing a fire at two of Russian fuel depots in separate attacks. The defense ministry said in the statement, "The Russian Armed Forces have foiled the Kiev regime's attempt to launch terrorist attack using 25 fixed-wing UAVs against the facilities in the Russian Federation." The massive drone attack caused fire at fuel facilities in the Nizhny Novgorod and Oryol Regions. "In the morning, the Kstovo industrial zone, a fuel and energy complex facility, was attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles. Now special services are working on the spot, using all the necessary forces and means to localize the fire at one of the oil refining installations," Nizhny Novgorod Governor Gleb Nikitin said on Telegram. The Russian railways told the state news agency RIA that a fire train is taking part in extinguishing a fire on the grounds of the refinery. The refinery belongs to Russia's multinational oil and natural gas firm Lukoil, which announced that the facility has been closed "due to an incident." The other fuel and energy facility was hit in the city of Oryol during a drone attack, governor Andrey Klychkov noted on Telegram, saying special services are working at the site to contain a fire. "In Oryol, the consequences of an evening drone attack have been eliminated. The resulting smoke does not pose any danger and is a consequence of the work of the fire services. There were no casualties," Klychkov later reported. The ministry also reported earlier that nine Ukrainian missiles were downed by the country's air defense over the Belgorod region. Ukrainian authorities have yet to comment on the reports. Two armed factions claiming to consist of Russians who are against the Kremlin and are based in Ukraine have announced on their social media platforms that they initiated an invasion across the Russian border on Tuesday. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Strikes Apartment Buildings In Kryviy Rih, Kupyansk, Killing 3 By RFE/RL March 12, 2024 Russian armed forces on March 12 struck apartment buildings in the Ukrainian cities of Kupyansk and Kryviy Rih, killing at least three people. Early in the day, Russia bomb on an apartment building in Kupyansk, in the eastern region of Kharkiv, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said. The bomb caused extensive damage and triggered several fires, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, the service said in a message on Telegram. Then, late in the evening, a Russian missile slammed into two apartment buildings in Kryviy Rih in central Ukraine, killing three people and injuring at least 38. Ten children were among the injured. Rescue teams were sifting through rubble in a nighttime search for survivors. Kryviy Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's home town, has regularly been targeted by Russia's armed forces. The Ukrainian military said earlier in the day that its air-defense systems shot down 17 of the 22 drones launched by Russia. Russia has stepped up air and ground attacks on Ukraine this year as the country runs low on air defense and ammunition. Ukraine has asked the United States and other NATO members for more air defense. A $60 billion U.S. aid package that would open the door to shipments of military aid to Ukraine has been held up for five months by Republicans in the House of Representatives. The United States on March 12 announced a new $300 million military aid package to Ukraine, the first in months, after it found additional funding from the Pentagon. That aid package will consist of munitions and rockets, the Biden administration said. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-strikes-apartment-buildings- in-kryviy-rih-kupyansk-killing-3/32859020.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 U.S. To Send $300 Million In Military Aid To Ukraine, First New Package In Months By RFE/RL March 12, 2024 The Biden administration said it will send $300 million in military aid to Ukraine, the first new package in months, as its massive aid bill for the embattled country remains stuck in Congress. The White House has been scrambling to find ways to send more military assistance to Ukraine after Congressionally approved funding dried up in December. U.S. national-security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on March 12 that the funding would come from the Pentagon, which had saved money on contracts. The $300 million represents a rounding error in the Pentagon's roughly $840 billion budget. Sullivan said the funding would be used to send artillery rounds and munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) to Ukraine. He said the aid would suffice for only a few weeks. Russia has stepped up its attacks along the front this year as Ukraine's armed forces suffer from a lack of munitions and rockets. Prior to today, the United States -- Ukraine's biggest source of military aid over the past two years -- had been unable to approve new weapon shipments to the country amid Congressional gridlock. Republicans in the House of Representatives have been holding up a spending bill that would allocate $60 billion in aid to Ukraine, the majority of which consists of military support. U.S. intelligence officials told Congress yesterday that if the United States does not send aid soon to Ukraine, its forces will struggle to stop Russia's advances. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us-300-million-military-aid- package-ukraine/32858982.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Ukraine Hits Oil Facilities In Sweeping Attack Inside Russia By RFE/RL's Russian Service and RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service March 12, 2024 Ukrainian drones were used to hit multiple targets in a sweeping attack on Russia that reportedly ignited fires at two major oil facilities and saw armed groups cross into Russian territory. Russia's Defense Ministry said nine of its regions were attacked by Ukrainian drones, while Ukrainian missiles were shot down over the Belgorod region early on March 12. The attacks, the ministry said, targeted several energy facilities, including LUKoil's Norsi refinery, Russia's fourth-largest, in the Nizhny Novgorod region about 775 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Another drone hit an oil depot in Oryol, 116 kilometers from Ukraine. At the same time, the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion, which consist of Russian citizens who have been fighting alongside Ukrainian armed forces in the war, launched cross-border attacks into Russia territory. The groups released video they said showed their soldiers inside Russia, though the claim could not be independently verified. "On the territory of the Russian Federation, they operate completely autonomously and independently," Andriy Yusov, the spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence, said. The Kremlin said Russian forces repelled the incursions and inflicted heavy losses on the armed groups. The Kremlin's claim also could not be independently verified. Russia's Defense Ministry said the attacks took place around 3 a.m. Moscow time with the insurgents using tanks and armored personnel carriers to target several locations inside Russia, with Russian troops employing missiles, artillery, and air forces to repel the attacks. Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov of the Belgorod region said on March 12 that a Ukrainian drone hit the building of the administration of the regional capital, Belgorod. One woman sustained shrapnel wounds and another suffered a contusion, Gladkov wrote on Telegram, adding that the explosion also shattered windows and damaged the building's facade. Meanwhile, a Russian attack overnight hit an apartment building in Ukraine's Kupyansk. Ukraine's State Emergency Service said the Russian bombing caused extensive damage and triggered several fires, but there were no immediate reports of casualties. In Ukraine's western Ternopil region, the regional military administration reported that a Russian drone strike damaged infrastructure, but no casualties were immediately reported. "There was a fire at one of the infrastructure facilities in the Kremenets district [of Ternopil]; 19 units of special equipment, 73 personnel, and a tactical robot were involved in extinguishing the fire," the report said. The Ukrainian military said that its air-defense systems shot down 17 of the 22 drones launched by Russia. With reporting by Reuters Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-kupyansk-russia- bomb-apartment-building-war-drones-oil/32858151.html Copyright (c) 2024. 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 Szijjarto Not Fully Ruling Out Deployment of Western Troops in Ukraine Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Tuesday that the potential deployment of Western troops in Ukraine cannot be completely ruled out as European leaders often change their opinions. Szijjarto commented on French President Emmanuel Macron's statement about the possibility of sending troops to Ukraine. According to Hungary's top diplomat, this kind of development would cross NATO's red line, as the alliance has repeatedly said that it is not a side in the Ukraine conflict. "At the same time, given the changes in the European position, unfortunately this cannot be completely ruled out," Szijjarto said, as quoted by the MTI news agency. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukraine Loses 234 Fighters During Attempt to Cross Border - MoD Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Ukraine lost 234 fighters, seven tanks and three Bradley infantry fighting vehicles during an attempt to cross Russia's border on Tuesday, the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said. "The enemy lost 234 militants killed, seven tanks, three US-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and two armored personnel carriers. There were no violations of the state border," the ministry said in a statement, adding that all attacks were repelled when the enemy attempted to enter the Russian territory in three different directions. In particular, the ministry said that up to 60 Ukrainian fighters were killed and four trucks were destroyed in the Kharkov Region. In addition, 100 soldiers were killed in border areas form the Ukrainian side, and five tanks were also destroyed, while 45 troops were killed near the Nekhoteyevka settlement in Russia's Belgorod Region. Moreover, two tanks were destroyed near Nekhoteyevka. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address White House Announces $300Mln Emergency Security Assistance Package for Ukraine Sputnik News 20240312 WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced on Tuesday a new $300 million security assistance package for Ukraine. "Today, on behalf of President [Joe] Biden, I'm announcing an emergency package of security assistance of $300 million worth of weapons and equipment to address some of Ukraine's pressing needs," said Sullivan during a press briefing. Sullivan added that the package was made possible because of unanticipated cost savings in contracts the Defense Department negotiated to replace equipment already sent to Ukraine through previous drawdowns. New Aid Package Includes Artillery, GMLRS Munitions The new US $300 million aid package for Ukraine will include Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) rockets for their High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), he noted. "This emergency package that we're announcing contains a large tranche of artillery rounds and GMLRS," he said. Media reported that the package will also include ATACMS, the US long-range, precision-strike, surface-to-surface missile system. New Aid Not Enough to Meet Kiev's Battlefield Needs Jake Sullivan also added that the new $300 million US emergency security aid package for Ukraine is not enough to meet Kiev's needs on the battlefield and will not prevent it from running out of munitions in the coming weeks. "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sulivan said during a press briefing. "It is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs and it will not prevent Ukraine from running out of ammunition in the weeks to come." Western countries have provided hundreds of billions of dollars worth of aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia's special military operation in February 2022. Aid shipments began in 2022 with artillery munitions and training and have escalated to include tanks, advanced air-defense systems, missiles and cluster munitions. All while making false statements about the so-called "Russian threat" and simultaneously conducting full scale military drills close to Russian borders. The Kremlin has consistently warned against the West's continued arms deliveries to Ukraine, saying that they only prolong the conflict, adding that Western military equipment will be eventually destroyed. Moscow also cautioned that NATO countries "are playing with fire" by providing Kiev with arms. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US to Announce ATACMS Munitions to Ukraine as Part of New $300Mln Package - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States is expected to announce that it will provide ATACMS munitions to Ukraine as part of a new $300 million package, Politico reported on Tuesday citing US officials. The announcement is expected as soon as Tuesday, the report said. The military aid package will also include additional 155mm artillery rounds and Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) munitions, the report said. ATACMS refers to the US long-range, precision-strike, surface-to-surface missile system. This new Ukraine aid package will be funded with savings from a previous US Army contract for Ukraine weapons, the report added. A US official told Politico that this is not an alternate path to replace the $95 billion supplemental package stuck in the House of Representatives. Western countries have provided hundreds of billions of dollars worth of aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia's special military operation in February 2022. Aid shipments began in 2022 with artillery munitions and trainingand have escalated to include tanks, advanced air-defense systems, missiles and cluster munitions. All while making false statements about the so-called "Russian threat" and simultaneously conducting full scale military drills close to Russian borders. The Kremlin has consistently warned against the West's continued arms deliveries to Ukraine, saying that they only prolong the conflict, adding that Western military equipment will be eventually destroyed. Moscow also cautioned that NATO countries "are playing with fire" by providing Kiev with arms. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Preparing $400 Million Weapons Aid Package for Ukraine - Reports Sputnik News 20240312 WASHINGTON (Sputnik/Prime) - The United States is preparing a $400 million aid package of weapons for Ukraine after a nearly three-month-long pause since the announcement of the latest military aid package for Kiev, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing US officials. The last time the United States announced a new package of military assistance to Kiev was at the end of December 2023. The $250 million package completely depleted funds for military support for Ukraine approved by Congress a year earlier. Meanwhile, US lawmakers to date have not passed a $118 billion national security supplemental package that includes $60 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel and border policy reforms. Western countries have provided hundreds of billions of dollars worth of aid to Ukraine since the start of Russia's special military operation in February 2022. Aid shipments began in 2022 with artillery munitions and training and have escalated to include tanks, advanced air-defense systems, missiles and cluster munitions. The Kremlin has consistently warned against the West's continued arms deliveries to Ukraine, saying that they only prolong the conflict, adding that Western military equipment will be eventually destroyed. Moscow also cautioned that NATO countries "are playing with fire" by providing Kiev with arms. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov emphasized that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. According to him, the US and NATO are directly involved in the Ukraine conflict by supplying weapons and training soldiers in the UK, Germany, Italy and other countries. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Armed Forces Take Control of Nevelskoe Settlement in Donetsk Area - MoD Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Ukraine has lost more than 380 soldiers in the Avdeyevka area, over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. Over the given period, the Russian armed forces have repelled seven attacks and counterattacks by Ukrainian troops in the Kupyansk area, and another attack in the South Donetsk area. "The enemy lost more than 380 soldiers, two armored fighting vehicles and 13 vehicles [in the Avdeyevka area]," the ministry said in a statement. Ukraine has also lost up to 350 soldiers in the Donetsk area, more than 145 soldiers in the South Donetsk direction and 40 soldiers in the Kupyansk region, the ministry said. Additionally, the Russian armed forces have taken control of the Nevelskoe settlement in the Donetsk area, the statement read. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Foils Attempt by Ukrainian Armed Formations to Break Into Belgorod and Kursk Regions Sputnik News 20240312 MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russian military, together with units of the border service of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), thwarted Ukraine's attempt to break into the Russian border territory in the Belgorod and Kursk regions overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. "This morning, units of the Russian armed forces, together with units of the border service of the FSB of Russia, thwarted an attempt by the Kiev regime to break into the border territory of Russia in the Belgorod and Kursk regions," the ministry said in a statement, adding that Ukrainian forces tried to invade Russia with the support of tanks and armored fighting vehicles in three directions. The Russian forces prevented the violation of the state border by Ukrainian armed forces in the Belgorod and Kursk regions, the ministry added. "From 8:00 to 8:25 [local time, from 05:00 to 05:25 GMT], four attacks by Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups trying to break into the border territory near the village of Tetkino in the Kursk region were repulsed. Having suffered significant losses, the enemy was driven back," the ministry said. Russian soldiers repelled all Ukraine attacks, the ministry said, adding that "the enemy came under fire from aviation, missile forces and artillery." Russian soldiers and border guards destroyed up to 60 Ukrainian soldiers that tried to infiltrate Russia's Belgorod Region, the ministry said. "Up to 60 Ukrainian terrorists were destroyed on the border territory from Ukraine in the area of Odnorobivka, three tanks and an armored personnel carrier in the area of Nehoteevka, and two tanks in the area of Spodariushino," the statement said. The Ukrainian forces suffered significant losses and were driven back from the Russian border, the ministry added. Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) on Tuesday denied information that Ukrainian armed formations entered Russia's border regions of Belgorod and Kursk. "Information is being spread on social networks about the entry of Ukrainian armed formations into some border settlements of the Belgorod and Kursk regions. The published information is not true," the FSB said in a statement. Since Sunday, the security forces have prevented the violation of the state border in the two regions, destroying over 100 people, six tanks and 20 armored vehicles, the FSB said. "Strikes against [Ukrainian] armed formations in the Ukrainian border area continue," the statement read. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia Foils Ukraine's Attempt to Carry Out Terrorist Attack Using 25 UAVs Sputnik News 20240312 Russian air defenses destroyed 25 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory overnight, the Russian Defense Ministry said. "An attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack with the use of 25 airplane-type drones on objects on the territory of the Russian Federation was foiled," the ministry said. According to the ministry, the air defense forces on duty intercepted and destroyed two drones over the territory of the Moscow Region, one over the Leningrad Region, seven over the Belgorod Region, 11 over the Kursk Region, one over the Bryansk Region, one over the Tula Region and two over the Orel Region. Ukraine has been sending drones and missiles into the Russian territory almost daily since it launched a counteroffensive in early June. The United Nations said in August 2023, following a botched drone strike on Moscow, that it did not want to see any targeting of civilian infrastructure. A Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yet Another Ukrainian City Shaken by a Horrendous Attack - Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine Denise Brown Condemns a Strike on a Residential Apartment Building in Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro Region, Causing Dozens of Civilian Casualties UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs About an hour ago, an attack struck the city of Kryvyi Rih in the Dnipro Region, central Ukraine, damaging a multi-storey building and burying residents under the rubble. Dozens of civilians, including children, are among the casualties. Humanitarian organizations are already on site, providing emergency support. I am appalled to know that families were just getting together to have dinner and spend a quiet evening at home just to see their homes damaged and their loved ones hurt. There appears to be a pattern of attacks across Ukraine and in front-line regions, impacting homes and civilian infrastructure, killing and injuring civilians who were just living their lives. Russia's war on Ukraine has exacted a devastating toll on the Ukrainian civilians, who continue to pay the highest price possible. International Humanitarian Law is clear: civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected. Kyiv, 12 March 2024 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Providing $300 Million in New Ukraine Military Aid By Carla Babb March 12, 2024 The United States is providing a new round of military aid for Ukraine valued at up to $300 million, the first such announcement since late December, in what defense officials have called an "ad hoc" package made possible through U.S. Army procurement savings. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced the 55th presidential drawdown authority (PDA) package at the White House on Tuesday and said it would include artillery rounds and munitions for HIMARS, weapons desperately needed on the Ukrainian front lines where shortages abound. "This ammunition will keep Ukrainians' guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sullivan said. Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder added that the package would provide Stinger anti-aircraft missiles along with anti-armor systems. He said the artillery rounds would include 155-mm dual purpose improved cluster munition rounds, which officials tell VOA the Army no longer uses. The funding for this package came from savings garnered in "multiple contract actions over multiple months" where the Army was able to "buy things at a better price" than initially budgeted, according to senior defense officials who spoke to reporters on conditional of anonymity ahead of the White House announcement. "This is a bit of an ad hoc or one-time shot. We don't know if or when future savings will come in, and we certainly can't count on this as a way of doing business," one of the senior defense officials said. In one example provided by the officials, the Army had initially estimated the cost of 25-mm rounds at $130 but was able to negotiate the price down to $93. The savings were then placed back into the U.S. funding pot for Ukraine aid, a process that has happened several times but wasn't considered as newsworthy during those times because the fund wasn't "broke" before, according to defense officials. $10 billion shortfall The aid package comes despite a Pentagon funding shortfall of about $10 billion for U.S. military weapons needed to replace those already sent to Ukraine, a shortfall that requires additional money from Congress to fix, according to top defense officials. "We don't foresee a likely alternative outside of the supplemental funding [bill] or having that money added into an appropriations bill in order to achieve the replenishment that we need," Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks told reporters on Monday. Pentagon officials expected to get the funding to replenish those stocks in a supplemental request from the Biden administration, which included billions of additional dollars in aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. However, Congress has yet to pass a supplemental aid bill because of arguments on spending and U.S. border security. Because it has been 15 months since Congress last approved money to help Ukraine, defense officials say Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has expressed concerns about any future drawdowns. The department still has about $4 billion in authority to send weapons to Ukraine, but there is no congressionally approved money left to replenish the Pentagon's weapons stockpiles. "We have the ability to move funds out of our stocks, but without the ability to replenish them, we are putting our own readiness at some risks," according to one senior defense official. The $10 billion shortfall is tied to the way the Pentagon has accounted for the aid sent to Ukraine. Last June, the Pentagon said it overestimated the value of weapons sent to Ukraine by about $6.2 billion over the past two years. When calculating its aid package estimates, the Department of Defense was counting the cost incurred to replace the weapons given to Ukraine, while it said it should have been totaling the cost of the systems actually sent, officials told VOA at the time. The error provided the Pentagon the legal cover needed to send more aid to Ukraine, but the problem remained that more funds would be needed to replenish U.S. military stockpiles with newer, costlier weapons. Asked by VOA why the Pentagon was willing to use its savings to send more aid for Ukraine but was not willing to dip into the $4 billion of remaining presidential drawdown authority, one of the senior defense officials told reporters that "the lack of clarity" from Congress on whether they will approve additional aid makes the Pentagon "very reluctant to dig the hole deeper." "In this case, we are not digging the hole deeper. We're staying even, while recognizing that Ukraine is in a very tough spot this moment," the defense official added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Biden Meets Polish Leaders Amid Anxiety Over US Support for Ukraine By Patsy Widakuswara March 12, 2024 On the day that Poland commemorates 25 years as a member of NATO, President Joe Biden hosted Polish President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk at the White House amid anxiety over future U.S. funding to help Ukraine fend off Moscow's invasion. "America's commitment to Poland is ironclad," Biden told reporters Tuesday ahead of the meeting. The meeting comes as the administration announced another security assistance package to Ukraine a $300 million of weapons and equipment. The funds come from "unanticipated cost savings" refunded to the Department of Defense, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said during a press briefing on Tuesday. "It's not nearly enough," Biden said of the package, urging Republicans in the House of Representatives to pass the Senate-approved foreign aid package that includes $60 billion for Ukraine "before it's too late." "Russia's aggression against Ukraine" has demonstrated that the United States is "the security leader," Duda said. He reiterated calls to fellow alliance members to boost their defense spending to 3% of their GDP to defend against Russia's aggression. Poland contributes 3.9% of its GDP to defense, almost twice the current NATO target of 2%, and the highest in percentage of GDP. The U.S. is the second-largest contributor by percentage, at 3.5% of GDP, but the largest within NATO in total dollar amount. Duda's proposal highlights the anxiety felt by Poland and other countries on NATO's eastern flank that feel most threatened by Moscow's aggression and comes as some in the western part of the alliance are pushing for a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine war. However, it's aspirational and unlikely to be adopted anytime soon, as many within NATO have yet to meet even the 2% GDP target, said Michal Baranowski, managing director for GMF East, at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. In an opinion piece Monday in The Washington Post, Duda highlighted Russia's alarming militarization, with Moscow earmarking nearly 30% of its annual budget for military spending. He underscored the threat posed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, calling it the most significant challenge to global peace since the Cold War era. More US troops Duda, who under the Polish system represents the country in foreign affairs, and Tusk, the head of government in Poland, are bitter political rivals intensely locked in various domestic struggles but have vowed to speak with one voice on Ukraine, NATO and relations with Washington. Warsaw advocates for more U.S. military presence in Poland, where approximately 10,000 U.S. personnel are on rotation. Washington is not keen on the idea, with Biden telling reporters Monday that there is "no need for more troops at the Polish border." Sullivan reinforced the message, saying the alliance is "postured well," and that plans "to defend Poland, should it come to that, are strong." Sullivan said the U.S. will move forward with a new $2 billion Foreign Military Financing direct loan to Poland and will offer to sell Poland 96 Apache helicopters. Also Tuesday, the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs notified Congress of their approval to sell more than $3 billion worth of missiles to Poland. Meeting congressional leaders Earlier Tuesday, Duda and Tusk met with Democratic and Republican congressional leaders and advocated support for Ukraine. Duda said it is "a key element for containing Putin and Russia's imperial ambitions." Democrats and the White House are convinced the foreign aid package has the votes to pass in the House of Representatives, but Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring it to the floor for a vote. Having Polish leaders communicate to lawmakers the need for Washington to be a responsible ally is key, Baranowski told VOA, but it's unlikely to be the final push that would break the logjam. Many House Republicans are allies of Donald Trump and support the former president's opposition to providing foreign aid unless it's structured as a loan. Earlier this week, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor OrbAn told the Hungarian state news channel that Trump would not give "a penny" to support Ukraine, and "therefore, the war will end." OrbAn's comments followed his meeting with Trump last week. Asked for confirmation, the Trump campaign said a "top priority" in the former president's "second term" will be "to quickly negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war," and that "European nations should be paying more of the cost of the conflict." "He will do what is necessary to restore peace and rebuild American strength and deterrence on the world stage, and he is the only person who can make that happen," Steven Cheung, the campaign's communications director, said in a statement to VOA. Trump's claims have further fueled European anxiety over U.S. commitment to the alliance, particularly if there's a change in administrations following the American presidential election in November. Last month, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said he'd "encourage" Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" if a NATO country didn't spend enough on defense. European officials have been increasingly concerned. "We need to send this message to Russia collectively a the EU. and the U.S. a that there is no fatigue, and that we will support Ukraine to defend itself," one European diplomat speaking on the condition of anonymity recently told VOA. NATO summit According to the White House, the leaders will coordinate strategies ahead of the forthcoming NATO 75th Anniversary Summit in Washington in July. Warsaw wants to ensure that regional defense plans agreed to at the 2023 NATO summit in Vilnius are "not only well-planned, but actually resourced with troops to provide the level of deterrence and defense" needed on NATO's eastern flank, Baranowski said. Reinforcing U.S.-Polish partnership in energy security is another main topic. Warsaw has earmarked $40 billion to build two nuclear plants. The first one is being built by Westinghouse, an American company. It has been 25 years since a Polish president and prime minister visited Washington at the same time. In 1999, President Alexander Kwasniewski and Prime Minister Jerzy Buzek attended NATO's 50th Anniversary Summit in the U.S. capital. VOA national security correspondent Jeff Seldin and VOA chief national correspondent Steve Herman contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address United Nations: Press remarks by High Representative Josep Borrell after his address to the UN Security Council European External Action Service (EEAS) 12.03.2024 New York, 12/03/2024 EEAS Press Team Check against delivery! Thank you, and good afternoon. It is a great pleasure for me to be here, at the United Nations, representing the European Union and participating in the meeting of the [United Nations] Security Council to talk about the cooperation between the European Union and the United Nations. But I have been talking about something more than that. I started by saying that we live in a very complex, difficult and challenging world. But without the United Nations, the world will be still more challenging and more dangerous. The United Nations is a light in the darkness. The world is becoming darker and darker, but without the United Nations, things would be much worse. I wanted to stress the importance of the United Nations as a landmark in the middle of the turmoil. I expressed my strong support to the United Nations system and, in particular, to the Secretary-General [of the United Nations, AntAnio Guterres]. In particular to him, defending him from the unjustified attacks that he has been suffering. At the beginning of my speech, I focused specifically on two main problems of the world today. Both are a defining moment for the United Nations, for the respect of the values and principles of the United Nations: Ukraine and Gaza. In Ukraine, the Russian aggression continues with great brutality. I think there is no way for the Ukrainians to surrender, to raise a white flag. It is not the moment for the Ukrainians [to do this]. They have to continue resisting the invader, and we have to continue supporting them in order to make them [to be able] resist. I have been in Ukraine. Their cities are being bombed by Russian missiles and their culture and identity, are being threatened by annihilation. Because Russia denies Ukraine the right to exist. Once again, this attack is a blatant violation of the United Nations Charter, and it was quite comical that today, the Russian Ambassador [to the United Nations] accused the European Union to be an aggressive power. Are we an aggressive power? This is being said by Russia who has been launching the greatest aggression of this century against a neighbour? Well, I appealed for the European Union membership for Ukraine, which will be the strongest security commitment that we can offer to Ukraine. I insisted that we are not against the Russian people. We are not against Russia - the Russian nation and state. We are just against an authoritarian regime who has invaded its neighbour, violating the United Nations Charter. The second issue is Gaza. The situation in Gaza is unbearable. The very survival of the Palestinian population is at stake. There is a wide-scale destruction. Everything that makes a society is being destroyed, systematically: from cemeteries, to universities, to civil register, to the property register. A wide-scale destruction, looming starvation of hundreds of thousands of people, famine, and acute lack of healthcare and humanitarian assistance. What we know is that scores of kids [are] traumatised, orphaned and without shelter. At the same time, we have to remind that there are still more than 100 Israeli hostages held by terrorists. This situation has to be alleviated, and for that, we have to increase humanitarian aid. But keeping in mind that this humanitarian crisis is not being caused by a natural disaster. It is not a flood. It is not an earthquake. It is not something caused by the nature. It is a man-made humanitarian disaster. Yes, we have to support the people in need. We are quadrupling our humanitarian assistance [since 7 October.] We have to mobilise the international community. But it is urgent that the Israeli authorities stop impeding humanitarian access. [Delivering aid] from parachutes and from the sea is better than nothing, but this is not an alternative. We cannot substitute hundreds of tons and hundreds of trucks coming by road with an airborne operation. It is better than nothing, but it does not prevent us from showing and pointing [to] what is the real problem. And the real problem is that there is not enough access, by the normal access way which is by road. We are launching parachutes in a place when one hour by car, there is an airfield. So what? Why not use the airfield? Why not open the door to the cars, to the trucks? This is the problem today, but we have to look at the root causes of the problem, and to look [at] how to reach a lasting peace in the Middle East. The only way to do that - from the European Union's point of view - is a two-state solution. I encourage the United Nations Security Council to take action. I encourage the Security Council to draft a new resolution, explicitly endorsing the two-state solution as "the" solution and defining the general principles that this could be made a reality. For us Europeans, the values of the United Nations remain at the cornerstone of the international system. The European Union backs financially the United Nations. We are the largest financial contributor. We finance almost one third of the United Nations' regular budget. One third is coming from the Member States and the European Union. We fund [almost] one quarter of all United Nations agencies, including UNRWA. We fund [almost] one quarter of all programmes of the United Nations around the world. And at the same time, we have [over] 20 military and civilian missions and operations around the world. I explained to the members of the Security Council. Around the globe, there are 4.300 Europeans working for peace in 25 military and civilian missions [and operations]. Working in post-conflict situations, training national security forces, contributing to the overall stability in various regions. In Africa - I mentioned [them] one after the other -, in the Sea - the last one in the Red Sea (EUNAVFOR Operation Aspides)-, in the Mediterranean, in several places in Africa. Around the world, there are Europeans working to try to make peace a reality. We have also to focus on conflict prevention. It is clear that it would be much better to prevent the conflicts than to come quickly when the conflict has erupted. Do not forget about the "forgotten" conflicts. Do not forget about Afghanistan where there is a gender apartheid. Do not forget about what is happening in the Horn of Africa, in Sudan, in Somalia. Around the world, there are so many crises that we have to increase our capacity to prevent and to try to solve them. We want to be a security provider, working for sustainable development and supporting the United Nations. Because we need this House more than ever. And I want to pay tribute to everybody working in the United Nations system, especially the ones who have lost their lives trying to support people, in particular in Gaza. Thank you. Q&A Q. You have just said you want peace. What is the European union doing, or can it do, to try and promote and promote a ceasefire of even six weeks in Gaza to let humanitarian aid in and have hostages and prisoners exchanged? What is the EU's reaction to the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry in Haiti and the prospect of a Presidential Transitional Council? Well, Haiti is one of the chronic crises that has been looming for years. This has not happened overnight. The international community has been taking too long to intervene in Haiti. Now, with this mission which is waiting to deploy their capacities on the ground, there is a possibility of trying to restore a minimum of stability in order to deploy humanitarian support. I know that this will require a lot of efforts. The only thing I can say is that we support this mission. We support the deployment of these forces. We believe that the international community has to engage in order to make the Haitian people get out of the black whole where they are. Alone, they will not succeed, that is clear. It needs a strong engagement of the international community, and I want to highlight the efforts done by the United States, Canada, and [by] the Kenyan people to engage their troops, their police, in this endeavour. What are we doing? Look, here at the Security Council. What are the Europeans doing? You have France, you have Slovenia, you have Malta [who are] members of the Security Council supporting a resolution which could make a difference. Pushing in order to try to make everybody agree on what is needed, which is a long-term cessation of hostilities and at the same time, the freedom of hostages. You know that there are different sensitivities among Member States of the European Union, but what unites us is the fact that hostages have to be released as a condition in order to make the hostilities to stop and to look for a political solution. And that is what the members of the Security Council belonging to the European Union are doing. Q. Besides the position of the Security Council taken by some of the European nations you just mentioned, is there any other leverage that the European Union can exercise to put a stop to what is happening in Gaza? Where are the actual actions? Where are the measures taken by the EU? We have not seen anything yet, besides what you just described. Is there really nothing else? We also know that some European countries are actually enabling what is happening in Gaza by sending weapons, like Germany for example. So, how do you reconcile that and what are actual measures that the EU can take? As I said, I am representing the European Union as a whole. Sometimes, it is difficult because there are different sensitivities and different positions. There are some Member States, who are completely reluctant to take any position that could represent the slightest criticism towards Israel, and others who are very much pushing in order to get a ceasefire. Two Member States - Ireland and Spain - have requested the European Commission and myself, as High Representative, to study how and if the Israeli government's behaviour is in agreement, how it fits with the obligations according to the Association agreement that we have with Israel. And next Monday, at the Foreign Affairs Council, we will have an orientation debate about this important issue. Q. On the maritime corridor for Gaza, could you just explain to us a little how you see it working and will you roll in it. We know there is a first ship that has left Larnaka, but where is it going to dock? Well, this is the ship of the Spanish ... This is a ship of the World Kitchen, it is not an EU ship. I don't want to take the merits of others, no? This is a ship that was put on board by these individuals who have an extraordinary merit because with their own resources, they are collecting food and trying to send it by ship. And as I said, look, they can go by ship - better than nothing. But the coast in Gaza is not easy because there is no harbour. The United States wants to build a kind of provisional harbour in order to make the boats ready to approach the coast. I know that this is going on. This is going on, but this is a ship that has been provided by an individual initiative. I want to give them all the merit. And at the same time, the European Commission and the European Union, [gave] their support to this initiative [of maritime corridor]. We are doing a lot from the point of view of humanitarian support. We are doing a lot. But keep in mind that before the war, every day 500 trucks were coming into Gaza and now there is - in the best cases - less than 100. Just imagine living in a village and suddenly, the number of supplies is being divided by five or by ten, and in addition to that, the distribution of the supply is being very difficult because there are military actions every day. So, we have to put all of our initiatives on maritime, on airborne capacities, but we shouldn't forget the root causes of the problem. The root cause of the problem is that by the normal way of entering into Gaza, there are obstacles that have to be lifted. Q. So, you are saying you support the maritime corridor, but are you involved in executing it in any way then? Does the European Union have a role? Yes, we have a role. The President of the [European] Commission [Ursula von der Leyen] went to Cyprus, to express the support and the engagement of the European Union with that. But keep in mind who is doing what. Thank you. Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-254356 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address United Nations: Speech by High Representative Josep Borrell at the annual UN Security Council session on EU-UN cooperation European External Action Service (EEAS) 12.03.2024 New York EEAS Press Team Check against delivery! Thank you. Thank you, Mr President. Dear Secretary-General, Excellencies, Ambassadors, There are moments in history when [the] darkness of the world is becoming darker, and today is one of these moments. The world is even darker than usual. Black is blacker, and pain and despair become the ordinary of human condition. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the state of the world today is deeply worrying. But it could be worse if we did not have the United Nations which, through its Charter, remains an unsinkable compass for our humanity confronted with the surge of passions, torrents of blood, and rivers of hatred which destroy any semblance of reason around the world. What we see is that every day the [UN] Charter is being flouted, distorted, hijacked or ignored. Ignored in some cases with a sense of impunity that is increasingly worrying. But the United Nations is here, with all the men and women working for this organisation, and among them the Secretary-General [AntAnio Guterres] - who I mentioned at the beginning - and to whom I would like to pay tribute today, supporting him in front of many accusations and attacks he has been suffering. Yes, the United Nations remains a landmark in the turmoil. It is a lantern in the thick fog through which we search our way every day, trying to look for a solution. The United Nations is a ray of light, it is a sign of hope. That is why we expect a lot from the Summit of the Future. The Summit of the Future should be a moment to reform the United Nations Security Council, to enlarge its composition in order to reflect better the world [of] today, to reform the international financial institutions, moving from some billions to the many trillions needed. Anyway, the future will come. The future will come anyway, so let's try to make it less bleak than our bleak present. Excellencies, Going to the concrete things. [For over] two years now, we have been witnessing a flagrant violation of international law by a permanent member of this [Security] Council that deliberately launched a war of aggression against a sovereign state, Ukraine, whose security it was supposed to guarantee. Since the beginning of this war, which is an attack on the United Nations' Charter, the European Union has shown its full solidarity with Ukraine and granting [it] exceptional economic, financial and military aid. The European Union has demonstrated a remarkable unity and an ability to make Europe an active and structured power in the international system. This support, symbolised by our commitment to make Ukraine a member of the European Union, will continue. Because it is not simply a matter of preserving a fundamental principle of international law - which is the territorial integrity of sovereign states - it also reflects Europeans' determination to protect ourselves against the danger that Russia now represents for our peace and security. The second major conflict we must confront is the one in Gaza. Gaza is just the tip of an extraordinarily serious conflict that has been raging between Israelis and Palestinians for almost a century. It is the one Hundred Years War. And we have condemned repeatedly - here again I will do it - the terrorist attacks that took place on 7 October and [re-state] Israel's right to defend itself. But we have also stated, equally strongly and repeatedly, that this has to be done in full respect of International Law and International Humanitarian Law. And when you look [at] what is happening, you may doubt about it. I do not want to teach anyone of you about what is happening in Gaza. [More than] 30,000 people dead, 1.8 million [people] displaced, [and] 500.000 people on the brink of starvation. We are facing now a population fighting for their own survival. Humanitarian assistance needs to get into Gaza, and the European Union is working as much as we can in order to make it possible. But this is a humanitarian crisis which is not a natural disaster. It is not a flood. It is not an earthquake. It is man-made. And when we look for alternative ways of providing support - by sea or by air - we have to remind that we have to do it because the natural way of providing support through roads is being closed, artificially closed. And starvation is being used as a weapon of war. When we condemn this happening in Ukraine, we have to use the same words for what is happening in Gaza. In Gaza, the United Nations agencies - Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), World Food Programme (WFP) and UNRWA - are the last lifeline for many people. Yes, UNRWA is facing allegations. But allegations have to be proved, that is why they are allegations. And we await with interest the conclusions of the United Nations' independent investigation by the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), an audit to be conducted by EU experts, and the findings of the Colonna Commission set up by the United Nations Secretary-General. But let me remind something: UNRWA exists because there are Palestinian refugees. It is not a present to the Palestinians, it is an answer to their needs. UNRWA exists because first there were Palestinian refugees. We won't make these refugees disappear by making UNRWA disappear. They will still be there. In fact, there is only one way to make UNRWA disappear: making those refugees citizens of a Palestinian state that coexists with an Israeli state. Almost everybody agrees on that, but how can we make this solution a reality? There is no magic solution. But maybe there are credible ways to try to achieve it. The two-state solution. We talked about it many years ago, and now, we talk [about] it again. But admittedly, we have never seriously tried to make it a reality. And in order to make it a reality, the first step should be a unanimous resolution by this [UN] Security Council, endorsing a two-state solution and defining the general principles which may lead to this result. And on that, the European Union is ready to cooperate. I think that we have a wonderful opportunity to show that our principles are not empty words. And since we all agree on the implementation of this solution - the two-state solution - as the only viable solution to the conflict, we must act accordingly, following - in my opinion - three principles that should guide our actions. The principle of clear separation between the two states, since there is no viable alternative to this separation. The principle of security, without which tragedies like the one of October 7th can only be repeated once and again, because both Israel and Palestine need to feel secure. And finally, the principle of regional integration, since both Israel and Palestine are perfectly capable of taking their place in a peaceful regional collective. Today, we are dominated by the images of war and hatred. But it is not impossible to imagine a pacified region based on a complementarity between Israel and its wider neighbourhood, from the Mediterranean to the Gulf. This was Shimon Peres' dream. Shimon, my old friend, he was dreaming about it. Let's try to make this dream come true. Let's roll up our sleeves. Let's try to engage on that. Because the world peace is at stake. Let humanitarian support flow into Gaza. Continue asking - and more than asking - Israel not to impede humanitarian to go through the natural way, which is by road. And in the meantime, let's try for other solutions that will be less efficient and never an alternative to the hundreds of trucks that should come into Gaza to avoid the starvation of hundreds of thousands of people. This is the scenario on which we cooperate, where the United Nations and the European Union cooperate. And this cooperation is very well reflected in numbers. I know that the United Nations faces serious financial constraints. Some contributions are not being paid. And now that everyone is talking about securing adequate financing to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), my dear colleagues and friends, numbers matter. Let's go from the principle to the facts and remind that the European Union and its Member States, we finance almost one third of the United Nations regular budget. One third. We collectively finance [almost] one quarter of all United Nations agencies. One quarter of all programmes. We pay and we pay on time. We are the largest financial contributor to the United Nations. We are proud of it. And we are also the largest provider of humanitarian aid in the world. From time to time, it is important to remind these facts. But we are not only payers, we are partners. We are strategic partners - on crisis management [and] on peace operations. We are working together in [over] 25 crisis contexts, providing peace mediation and supporting dialogue. In the future, we would like to focus increasingly on conflict prevention, increasing our cooperation with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), analysing conflicts and preventing electoral violence. In the Pact for the Future, I think that conflict prevention should have a prominent place. [It is] better to foresee and prevent than to try to mend the problem once the crisis has erupted. Our block I think is particularly committed to peace and security in Africa. In 25 years from now, 25% of the world population will be living in Africa. One out of four human beings will be living in Africa, a continent of opportunities where humankind will still be growing. But in order to harvest this potential, they need security. They need stability. This is why we are working with the African Union, supporting the African-led peace support operations. I know this is a priority for the United Nations Security Council and I welcome the resolution 2719 on financing such peace support operations. In the last three years, we have provided almost a1 billion in military support to African partners. a1 billion in three years to support, through the European Peace Facility, our African partners. We have 25 missions and operations around the world. We deploy 4,300 people. From the maritime security in the Gulf - the recently launched [EUNAVFOR] Operation Aspides - to the Operation Atalanta to counter piracy in the Horn of Africa, supporting our partners in the Gulf of Guinea [EU Gulf of Guinea Strategy and Action Plan], our Mission in Armenia [EUMA] to support the mediation efforts in the region; an Advisory Mission in Ukraine training the Ukrainian police. In the Mediterranean, [EUNAVFOR] Operation Irini, with a strong mandate from the United Nations trying to work on the implementation of the arms embargo in Libya. In Bosnia and Herzegovina also, Operation [EUFOR] Althea. We hope that this Security Council will renew the annual authorisations for these operations that we are implementing under your mandate. And more recently, and dramatically, let's turn our eyes to Haiti, where the escalation of [violence by] criminal gangs over the past weeks has [brought] the country to the brink, and the ordinary Haitians are paying the price. We welcome the progress by the political forces [and] commend CARICOM for its facilitation. We support the efforts for a Haitian-led political transition. We are looking [for] a way to support the broad objective of the mission led by Kenya, and we are ready to contribute and to finance this operation. In the Sahel, after ten years of cooperation, we are facing a deteriorating situation, with several military coups in the last years. The political landscape in the region has changed, but the challenges remain the same. We want to be engaged and support any peace initiative - supporting ECOWAS, supporting African solutions to African problems. But I think that in Sahel the international community needs to adapt to the new threats and new actors. Be more flexible and respond better to the demand of our regional partners. The same is true for Sudan. The world's largest internal displacement crisis is taking place silently in Sudan. 8 million people displaced inside and outside the country. 20 million Sudanese - [almost] half of the population - [are] at risk of starvation. It is not in the headlines of the press, but it is happening. The de-facto government not allowing UN agencies to deliver aid via Chad is making the situation even worse. Yes, we want to support any initiative and any international response to Sudan, and we need all parties and their sponsors - because these parties are being sponsored - to silence the guns and to end hostilities without pre-conditions. In the Horn of Africa, in Somalia, we have been the main [financial] contributor to the African Union Missions for years, to stabilise the country. Since 2007, we provided a2.6 billion to support these missions. We increased support to the Somali security sector, and there are some positive results. We will present a detailed proposal for a new mission to the UN Security Council, in Somalia. We stand ready to work with international partners to support the implementation, but I want to emphasise the importance of financial burden sharing. Afghanistan. Afghanistan seems to be forgotten, but the humanitarian, economic, political and human rights situation is alarming. There is a de-facto a gender apartheid in Afghanistan. The situation cannot stand. So, we support the work of the [UN] Secretary-General and the meetings [among special envoys] in Doha. We need to push for the implementation of this [UN Security] Council resolution 2721 and continue being engaged. Myanmar, another priority. We fully support the mediation efforts of Laos and of the new ASEAN Special Envoy. But I think that the United Nations has also to play a more important role and speak with one voice about what is happening in Myanmar. The appointment of a UN Envoy and of a Resident Coordinator is long overdue. We have to fill in this hole. The United Nations has to be present there. And do not forget that we have celebrated International Women's Day. I want to close my intervention with a few words on the human rights of women and girls. I talked about it when I said "a gender apartheid" in Afghanistan. Yesterday was the [start of the] 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women. This Commission is one of a kind. It is the main global body dedicated exclusively to advancing the enjoyment of human rights by all women and girls. I think it is the right time for the European Union to once again reiterate our firm stance against sexual and gender-based violence, wherever it happens. This kind of violence has to stop, no matter where and not matter by whom it is committed. To conclude, and thank you very much for your attention, let me restate the deep commitment of the European Union to the United Nations' values and principles. Not only to the organisation, not only to the men and women who are working every day and, in some cases, losing their lives at the service of this organisation. It is about the principles and values that underpin the existence of the United Nations, with the promise that we will continue working hard on ensuring the full implementation of these values and principles, with financial support and with political commitment. Thank you. Link to the video (starting from 19:40): https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1x/k1x269rrww Closing remarks Mr President, I think I am going to speak in Spanish. It will be for me a way of expressing myself with the heart, without having to translate what I am thinking and what I am saying. Quiero dar las gracias a todos ustedes. A todos, por las palabras tan amables que han tenido, y por la voluntad de seguir trabajando desde las Naciones Unidas con la UniAn Europea. He empezado mi intervenciAn diciendo que la UniAn Europea es una brAjula imprescindible para guiar a la humanidad a travAs de la dureza y la crueldad de este mundo. Y este debate ha servido para demostrar que la inmensa mayorAa de ustedes comparte esta apreciaciAn. Yo comparto muchas de las cosas que se han dicho. Comparto en particular lo que ha dicho el representante de China [Geng Shuang] sobre la necesidad de concebir la seguridad de una manera indivisible, evitar una confrontaciAn entre bloques, y trabajar juntos en favor de en multilateralismo efectivo basado en el respeto al derecho internacional. La UniAn Europea no tiene nada contra el ascenso de China como una gran potencia polAtica u econAmica. Deseamos simplemente que este ascenso que se inscribe en la lAgica de la historia se haga en esa manera que contribuya a ese multilateralismo efectivo. [Nos encontramos] en un mundo cada vez mAs multipolar, [con] cada vez mAs polos, y, por desgracia, cada vez menos multilateral. Somos mAs polos y ejercemos menos en la cooperaciAn entre nosotros. Cada vez hay mAs vetos en el Consejo de Seguridad de las Naciones Unidas, y menos acuerdos. Necesitamos mAs cooperaciAn porque el nAmero de actores importantes - que no existAan cuando las Naciones Unidas se fundaron - ha aumentado y lAgicamente [estos] piden su lugar en la historia. La Anica diferencia, obviamente, la tengo con el embajador de Rusia, que me ha parecido sarcAstico. No sabe uno si reAr o llorar cuando oye decir a Rusia, precisamente a Rusia, que la UniAn Europea es un bloque agresivo. El paAs que ha lanzado la mayor agresiAn militar de nuestros tiempos considera a la UniAn Europea un bloque agresivo. AAlgunos de ustedes se sienten agredidos por la UE? AA cuAntos paAses estamos bombardeando? Francamente, me parece sarcAstico que sea Rusia el que nos considere un poder agresivo. Por cierto, cuando uno oye las explicaciones que ha dado recientemente el candidato a la reelecciAn, el presidente Putin - cuya reelecciAn es "dudosa", sin duda - acerca de las razones por las cuales Hitler invadiA Polonia, diciendo que es que Polonia provocA tanto a Hitler que el pobre no tuvo mAs remedio que invadirla. Claro que, con esta interpretaciAn de la historia, no me extraAa que ahora se pueda considerar a la UniAn Europea como un poder agresivo. Ustedes saben que no lo somos. Ustedes saben que la UniAn Europea es hoy un proyecto que intenta contribuir a la paz y la estabilidad mundial. No somos una alianza militar, pero tampoco queremos ser solo una uniAn econAmica. Tenemos la voluntad de ser un actor geopolAtico, no solo econAmico. Y ciertamente, apoyamos a Ucrania. La apoyamos. La apoyamos porque pensamos que ese paAs tiene derecho a existir, y tiene derecho a defenderse. Que hay una agresiAn clara. AsA lo reconocen la mayorAa de los paAses de las Naciones Unidas cuando votan en la Asamblea General. Ciertamente no esperaba de Rusia que defendiese la primacAa del derecho internacional, ni esperaba que defendiese la soberanAa y la integridad territorial, cuando uno ve lo que ocurre [en Ucrania]. Pero no he venido a tener un cuerpo a cuerpo con Rusia, sino seAalar simplemente que para nosotros el apoyo a Ucrania es una manera de apoyar el principio fundamental de integridad territorial de los paAses. Pensamos que ciertamente la vAa diplomAtica tiene que estar permanentemente abierta. Todas las guerras se acaban con una paz, o por lo menos con una "no-guerra". Pero cuando uno oye a los responsables de Rusia diciendo que mientras no consigan sus objetivos militares, la guerra va a continuar, pensamos que no es el momento de dejar de apoyar a Ucrania y que tampoco es el momento para Ucrania de levantar la bandera blanca de la rendiciAn, porque demasiado ha pagado ya - en tArminos de vidas y en tArminos de su riqueza, en tArminos de sus infraestructuras destruidas, en tArminos de los bombardeos que soporta para acabar esta guerra de una manera que no sea respetuosa a los principios de la Carta de las Naciones Unidas. Paz, si - pero una paz justa. Una paz que respete los principios que defendemos los que aquA nos sentamos. Esos principios son universales y tienen que ser aplicados en todas partes. Cuando decimos que cortar los suministros a una poblaciAn civil y utilizar el hambre como arma de guerra es algo que va a contra del derecho internacional, esto vale igual cuando ocurre en Ucrania que cuando ocurre en Gaza. Tenemos que utilizar los mismos principios y valores y recordar que en este momento, hay 500.000 personas que estAn al borde de sufrir una hambruna que no es causada por un accidente de la naturaleza, sino por las dificultades que se imponen al acceso de la asistencia humanitaria. Que sA, hay que utilizar las vAas aAreas y marAtimas, como intentamos hacerlo, pero sin dejar de seAalar que lo razonable serAa que se utilizasen las vAas eficientes y existentes - las vAas terrestres - que permiten el transporte masivo de ayuda. Y que, por desgracia, no estAn suficientemente abiertas. Tenemos que abordar las causas profundas de lo que estA pasando en el Medio Oriente. Tenemos que buscar una soluciAn a este conflicto. Quiero acabar diciendo que, si las Naciones Unidas creen, como parece que lo cree la gran mayorAa de las Naciones Unidas, que la Anica soluciAn es la coexistencia de dos Estados, entonces yo invito al Consejo de Seguridad de decirlo de la forma mAs solemne y formal posible. Que sea el Consejo de Seguridad quien proclame este principio. Que saque de ello consecuencias prActicas, para evitar la tragedia que vive el pueblo de Gaza, y para construir un futuro que evite que la tragedia se repita una y otra vez. En eso la UniAn Europea harA todo lo que pueda. No solo como el buen samaritano que acude a ayudar al que sufre, sino como el que trata de poner en marcha los mecanismos polAticos que eviten las causas de sufrimiento. Y eso pasa, sin duda ninguna, porque el Consejo de Seguridad sea capaz de llegar acuerdos que permitan el fin de las hostilidades, el desarrollo de la ayuda humanitaria, el enunciado del principio de la soluciAn de los dos Estados como la fArmula que debe guiar el trabajo de todos y un compromiso serio y efectivo de la comunidad internacional para conseguir hacerlo una realidad. Muchas gracias, seAor presidente. Muchas gracias, seAoras y seAores. Link to the video (starting from 02:04:00): https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1x/k1x269rrww NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN an 'unsinkable compass' for humanity, says top EU official 12 March 2024 - A top European Union (EU) official on Tuesday emphasized the crucial role of the United Nations in addressing global challenges, describing it as an "unsinkable compass" for humanity. "The UN remains a landmark in the turmoil, a lantern in the thick fog through which we search our way every day, trying to look for a solution - it is a ray of light, a sign of hope," Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, told ambassadors at the Security Council. He emphasized the need for reforms of the Security Council and the international financial institutions to better reflect the present realities: "The future will come anyway, so let us try to make it less bleak than our bleak present." War in Ukraine Mr. Borrell emphasized the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, citing Russia's violation of international law by launching its war of aggression against a sovereign State. "Since the beginning of this war, which is an attack on the UN Charter, the European Union has shown its full solidarity with Ukraine and granting it exceptional economic, financial, and military aid," he said. He added that the support, symbolized by EU's commitment to make Ukraine a member of the bloc, will continue. "Because it is not simply a matter of preserving a fundamental principle of international law, that is the territorial integrity of sovereign states, it also reflects European determination to protect ourselves against the danger that Russia now represents for our peace and security." Conflict in Gaza The EU foreign affairs chief also voiced deep concern over the situation in the Gaza, stating that it is "just the tip of an extraordinarily serious conflict that has been raging between Israelis and Palestinians for almost a century." Condemning the 7 October attacks on Israeli communities and Israel's right to self-defence, he added that this must be done in full compliance with international law and international humanitarian law. "I don't want to teach anyone of you about what is happening in Gaza," he said, adding: "This humanitarian crisis - it is not a natural disaster...it is man-made," he added, stating that aid deliveries via road are "being artificially closed, and starvation is being used as a war." UNRWA, an answer to Palestinians' needs Mr. Borrell stressed that UN entities, such as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), World Food Programme (WFP), and the UN agency assisting Palestine refugees (UNRWA), in Gaza are the "last lifelines" for many. "Yes, UNRWA is facing allegations, but allegations have to be proved - that is why they are allegations," he said, noting that the EU awaits, with interest, the conclusions of the Office for International Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation, an EU systems audit, and the independent review led by Catherine Colonna. "But let me remind something, UNRWA exists because there are Palestinian refugees. It is not a present to the Palestinians, it is an answer to their needs," he said, stressing that one cannot make the refugees disappear by making UNRWA disappear. In fact, the only way to make UNRWA disappear is by making those refugees citizens of a Palestinian state that coexists with an Israeli state, Mr. Borrell said, emphasizing the importance of the two-State solution. Other crisis hotspots The EU High Representative also expressed concern over several crisis hotspots, including Sudan, Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Haiti, and the Sahel. On Haiti, he emphasized that the skyrocketing violence by criminal gangs over the past weeks has brought the country to the brink, with ordinary Haitians to pay the price. Commending regional body CARICOM for its intervention on Monday, he expressed support for the efforts for a Haitian-led political transition, as well as the broader objective of the security initiative led by Kenya. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Jeroen Spruyt appointed as President of Agfas Radiology Solutions division Mortsel, Belgium - March 13, 2024 7:45 a.m. CET Effective March 13, 2024, Jeroen Spruyt will assume the position of President of Agfas Radiology Solutions division. He will also join Agfas Executive Management Team. Jeroen Spruyt holds a degree in Applied Economics, complemented by an MBA from Vlerick Business School. Through his career in logistics and his pivotal role as co-founder and board member of TheSignalling Company, Jeroen has demonstrated exceptional leadership acumen and an entrepreneurial mindset. In September 2022, Jeroen joined the Agfa-Gevaert Group as Head of the Direct Radiography (DR) business unit, which is part of the Radiology Solutions division. He will continue to lead the DR business unit alongside his new responsibilities. Jeroen has orchestrated a remarkable transformation of the DR business, an achievement which serves as a testament to his hands-on leadership and unwavering dedication to excellence. With this appointment, we entrust Jeroen with the leadership over a critical segment of our Groups activities, said Pascal Juery, CEO of the Agfa-Gevaert Group. About the Radiology Solutions division Agfas Radiology Solutions division is a major player in the diagnostic imaging market, providing analog and digital imaging technology to meet the needs of specialized clinicians in hospitals and imaging centers around the world. Agfas innovative imaging equipment and its leading MUSICA image processing software set standards in productivity, safety, clinical value and cost effectiveness. Furthermore, its SmartXR portfolio provides radiographers with predictive workflow assistance. With over 150 years of experience, Agfa helps its customers to improve the quality and efficiency of their patient care. With Agfa, every image counts. About Agfa The Agfa-Gevaert Group is a leading company in imaging technology and IT solutions with over 150 years of experience. The Group holds three divisions: Radiology Solutions, HealthCare IT, and Digital Print & Chemicals. They develop, manufacture and market analogue and digital systems for the healthcare sector, for specific industrial applications and for the printing industry. In 2022, the Group realized a turnover of 1,857 million Euro. Contact Viviane Dictus Director Corporate Communications tel. ++32 0 3 444 7124 e-mail: viviane.dictus@agfa.com Attachment NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION (IN WHOLE OR IN PART), DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF THAT JURISDICTION. THIS IS AN ANNOUNCEMENT FALLING UNDER RULE 2.4 OF THE UK CITY CODE ON TAKEOVERS AND MERGERS (THE CODE) AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF A FIRM INTENTION TO MAKE AN OFFER UNDER RULE 2.7 OF THE CODE. THERE CAN BE NO CERTAINTY THAT ANY OFFER WILL BE MADE. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Ageas SA/NV confirms improved possible offer for Direct Line Insurance Group Plc Ageas SA/NV (Ageas) notes the recent announcement by the Board of Direct Line Insurance Group Plc (Direct Line) and confirms that it has submitted an improved possible offer to the Board of Directors of Direct Line to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Direct Line (the Proposed Transaction). Ageas confirmed on 28 February 2024 that it had submitted a possible offer proposal (the Initial Possible Offer) to the Board of Direct Line on 19 January 2024 to acquire the entire issued and to be issued share capital of Direct Line. Following the rejection of the Initial Possible Offer by Direct Line on 29 January 2024, Ageas has improved the terms of its possible offer, which were shared with the Board of Direct Line on 9 March 2024 (the Improved Possible Offer). Under the terms of Ageas Improved Possible Offer, Direct Line shareholders would receive: 120 pence in cash for each Direct Line share; and One newly issued Ageas share for every 28.41107 Direct Line shares. Based on a Sterling to Euro exchange rate of 1.1705 and the closing price of Ageas shares on 12 March 2024, being the last date prior to the date of this announcement, the Improved Possible Offer has an implied value of 239 pence per Direct Line share, representing a significant premium of 46% to 163.35 pence, being the undisturbed closing share price per Direct Line share on the business day prior to the announcement of the Initial Possible Offer (27 February 2024). The Improved Possible Offer values the entire issued and to be issued ordinary share capital of Direct Line at approximately 3,171 million. The increase in the cash component of the Improved Possible Offer, from 100 pence to 120 pence, allows Direct Line shareholders to realise in cash ~73% of Direct Lines undisturbed share price, whilst retaining exposure to the significant value creation upside from the delivery of cost and capital synergies through their c.20% ownership of the enlarged Ageas Group. It is currently envisaged that the cash component of the consideration and associated transaction costs will ultimately be financed through a mix of existing cash and newly issued debt instruments. The share consideration is intended to be satisfied via newly issued Ageas shares. Ageas continues to recognise the underlying attractiveness and opportunities of the UK personal lines sector and remains confident that the combination of Ageas and Direct Lines UK businesses will be beneficial for both Ageas and Direct Line shareholders, providing a meaningful opportunity to unlock shareholder value. Ageas firmly believes that Direct Line being a part of a strong, diversified financial group will create resilience and stability, and that it would allow Direct Line, together with Ageas UK businesses, the flexibility to execute its strategic agenda and make the optimal investments required to future proof the business and secure being a reference UK insurance company in personal lines in the UK. Ageas continues to seek engagement from the Direct Line Board ahead of the deadline of 27 March 2024 under the Code, in order to work collaboratively towards a recommended Firm Offer. Commenting on the possible offer, Hans De Cuyper, CEO of Ageas, said: We have made a compelling possible offer that represents a substantial premium to Direct Lines undisturbed share price. Our Improved Possible Offer delivers substantial cash proceeds to Direct Line shareholders, whilst ensuring they benefit from the material value creation that we believe the combination of the UK businesses of Ageas and Direct Line will deliver. We look forward to engaging with the Direct Line Board of Directors on the terms of our Improved Possible Offer. Ageas reserves the right to make an offer for Direct Line on less favourable terms than those set out in this announcement: (i) with the agreement or recommendation of the Direct Line Board; (ii) if a third party announces a possible offer or firm intention to make an offer for Direct Line which, at that date, is of a value less than the value implied by the possible offer; or (iii) if Direct Line announces a Rule 9 waiver pursuant to the Code or a reverse takeover. Ageas reserves the right to introduce other forms of consideration and/or vary the mix or form of consideration of any offer. Ageas reserves the right to reduce the offer consideration to take account of the value of any dividend or other distribution which is announced, declared, made or paid by Direct Line after the date of this announcement. A further announcement will be made if and when appropriate. Additional information Ageas continues to carefully assess the Proposed Transaction with a disciplined focus on the strategic and financial rationale, and there can be no certainty that an offer will be made, even if the pre-conditions are satisfied or waived. This announcement does not constitute an announcement of a firm intention to make an offer under Rule 2.7 of the Code. The announcement of a firm intention to make an offer under Rule 2.7 of the Code remains subject to the satisfaction or waiver by Ageas of a number of pre-conditions, including, among others, completion of satisfactory due diligence by Ageas and reciprocal due diligence by Direct Line, receipt of irrevocable undertakings from each member of the Direct Line Board of Directors who holds Direct Line shares and Direct Line shareholders to vote in favour of the Improved Possible Offer, agreement of the detailed terms of the Improved Possible Offer and the unanimous and unqualified recommendation of the Board of Direct Line. Ageas reserves the right to waive in whole or in part any pre-conditions. In accordance with Rule 2.6(a) of the Code, Ageas is required, by not later than 5.00 pm (London time) on 27 March 2024, to either announce a firm intention to make an offer for Direct Line in accordance with Rule 2.7 of the Code or announce that Ageas does not intend to make an offer for Direct Line, in which case the announcement will be treated as a statement to which Rule 2.8 of the Code applies. This deadline can only be extended with the consent of the UK Takeover Panel in accordance with Rule 2.6(c) of the Code. BofA Securities (Lead Financial Adviser to Ageas SA/NV) +44 (0) 20 7628 1000 Jonathan Alpert Geoff Iles Marcus Jackson Benjamin Ries Sid Rishi Deutsche Bank AG (Financial Adviser to Ageas SA/NV) +44 (0) 20 7545 8000 Marie-Soazic Geffroy Hubert Vannier Derek Shakespeare Inigo de Areilza Charles Farquhar FGS Global (PR Adviser to Ageas SA/NV) +44 (0) 20 7251 3801 / Ageas-UK@fgsglobal.com James Leviton Chris Sibbald Linklaters LLP is acting as legal adviser to Ageas. Merrill Lynch International ("BofA Merrill Lynch"), which is authorised by the UK Prudential Regulatory Authority and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the UK Prudential Regulatory Authority, is acting exclusively for Ageas and for no one else in connection with the possible offer for Direct Line and will not be responsible to anyone other than Ageas for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the matters referred to in this announcement. Deutsche Bank AG is a stock corporation (Aktiengesellschaft) incorporated under the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany with its principal office in Frankfurt am Main. It is registered with the local district court (Amtsgericht) in Frankfurt am Main under No HRB 30000 and licensed to carry on banking business and to provide financial services. The London branch of Deutsche Bank AG is registered as a branch office in the register of companies for England and Wales at Companies House (branch registration number BR000005) with its registered branch office address and principal place of business at 21, Moorfields, London EC2Y 9DB. Deutsche Bank AG is subject to supervision by the European Central Bank (ECB), Sonnemannstrasse 22, 60314 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt fur Finanzdienstleistungsaufsicht or BaFin), Graurheindorfer Strasse 108, 53117 Bonn and Marie-Curie-Strasse 24-28, 60439 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. With respect to activities undertaken in the United Kingdom, Deutsche Bank AG is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority. It is subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority and limited regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority. Details about the extent of Deutsche Bank AGs authorisation and regulation by the Prudential Regulation Authority are available from Deutsche Bank AG on request. Deutsche Bank AG, acting through its London branch (Deutsche Bank) is acting as a financial adviser to Ageas and no-one else in connection with the matters described in this announcement and will not be responsible to anyone other than Ageas for providing the protections afforded to clients of Deutsche Bank, nor for providing advice in connection with the subject matter of this announcement or any other matter referred to in this announcement. Disclosure requirements of the Code Under Rule 8.3(a) of the Code, any person who is interested in 1% or more of any class of relevant securities of an offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror (being any offeror other than an offeror in respect of which it has been announced that its offer is, or is likely to be, solely in cash) must make an Opening Position Disclosure following the commencement of the offer period and, if later, following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified. An Opening Position Disclosure must contain details of the persons interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s). An Opening Position Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(a) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the 10th business day following the commencement of the offer period and, if appropriate, by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the 10th business day following the announcement in which any securities exchange offeror is first identified. Relevant persons who deal in the relevant securities of the offeree company or of a securities exchange offeror prior to the deadline for making an Opening Position Disclosure must instead make a Dealing Disclosure. Under Rule 8.3(b) of the Code, any person who is, or becomes, interested in 1% or more of any class of relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror must make a Dealing Disclosure if the person deals in any relevant securities of the offeree company or of any securities exchange offeror. A Dealing Disclosure must contain details of the dealing concerned and of the persons interests and short positions in, and rights to subscribe for, any relevant securities of each of (i) the offeree company and (ii) any securities exchange offeror(s), save to the extent that these details have previously been disclosed under Rule 8. A Dealing Disclosure by a person to whom Rule 8.3(b) applies must be made by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the business day following the date of the relevant dealing. If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire or control an interest in relevant securities of an offeree company or a securities exchange offeror, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3. Opening Position Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company and by any offeror and Dealing Disclosures must also be made by the offeree company, by any offeror and by any persons acting in concert with any of them (see Rules 8.1, 8.2 and 8.4). Details of the offeree and offeror companies in respect of whose relevant securities Opening Position Disclosures and Dealing Disclosures must be made can be found in the Disclosure Table on the UK Takeover Panels website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk, including details of the number of relevant securities in issue, when the offer period commenced and when any offeror was first identified. You should contact the Panels Market Surveillance Unit on +44 (0)20 7638 0129 if you are in any doubt as to whether you are required to make an Opening Position Disclosure or a Dealing Disclosure. No profit forecasts or estimates Except as otherwise set out herein, nothing in this announcement (including any statement of estimated synergies) is intended as a profit forecast or estimate for any period and no statement in this announcement should be interpreted to mean that earnings or earnings per share or dividend per share for Ageas or Direct Line, as appropriate, for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings or earnings per share or dividend per share for Ageas or Direct Line, as appropriate. Important information A copy of this announcement will be available, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons resident in restricted jurisdictions, at https://www.ageas.com/investors/webpage-related-ageass-possible-offer-direct-line by no later than 12 noon (London time) on 14 March 2024. The content of the website referred to in this announcement is not incorporated into and does not form part of this announcement. This announcement and the information within it is not intended to, and does not, constitute or form part of any offer, invitation or the solicitation of an offer to purchase or subscribe for, sell or otherwise dispose of, any securities whether pursuant to this announcement or otherwise, nor shall there be any sale, issuance or transfer of securities in any jurisdiction in contravention of applicable law. In particular, this announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States. No offer of securities shall be made in the United States absent registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, such registration requirements. No statement contained or referred to in this announcement is intended to be a profit forecast. This announcement has been prepared in accordance with English law and information disclosed may not be the same as that which would have been prepared in accordance with the laws of jurisdictions outside England. The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in jurisdictions outside the United Kingdom may be restricted by law and therefore persons into whose possession this announcement comes should inform themselves about, and observe, such restrictions. Any failure to comply with such restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities law of any such jurisdiction. Ageas is a listed international insurance Group with a heritage spanning 200 years. It offers Retail and Business customers Life and Non-Life insurance products designed to suit their specific needs, today and tomorrow, and is also engaged in reinsurance activities. As one of Europe's larger insurance companies, Ageas concentrates its activities in Europe and Asia, which together make up the major part of the global insurance market. It operates successful insurance businesses in Belgium, the UK, Portugal, Turkiye, China, Malaysia, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Singapore, and the Philippines through a combination of wholly owned subsidiaries and long-term partnerships with strong financial institutions and key distributors. Ageas ranks among the market leaders in the countries in which it operates. It represents a staff force of about 50,000 people and reported annual inflows of more than EUR 17 billion in 2023. Attachment NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Phosphorus Cybersecurity Inc., the leading provider of unified, prevention-based security management for the xTended Internet of Things (xIoT), today announced the appointment of Osama AlZoubi as the Regional Vice President, Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. In his new role, AlZoubi will oversee Phosphorus growth and development throughout the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, as the company expands its presence in the region with its best-of-breed Cyber-Physical System (CPS) Protection Platform that discovers, remediates, monitors, and manages the full scope of IoT, OT, IIoT, and IoMT devices. As one of the worlds fastest growing economic regions, Saudi Arabia and the Middle East are experiencing significant technological progress, particularly in energy, smart manufacturing, and urban development. Saudi Arabia is also spearheading a monumental transformation in the region with its Vision 2030 with mega and giga projects like NEOM, King Salman Park, Diriyah, Murabba, the Red Sea Project, and Qiddiya. The regions rapid development and integration of advanced Cyber-Physical Systems requires more robust security capabilities to protect sensitive IoT and OT devices from the growing threat of cyber attacks. AlZoubi will play a critical role in leading Phosphorus efforts to assist the regions public and private enterprises in achieving the highest level of proactive cybersecurity for their entire xIoT estates, including the most sensitive mission-critical and life-critical assets. Osama is an accomplished computer scientist and former CTO of Cisco Middle East and Africa who helped build many of the networks we work to secure. His knowledge and experience will make him a tremendous asset to our organization and senior leadership team, said Chris Rouland, CEO of Phosphorus. Cybersecurity is critically important in fast-developing Saudi Arabia, and across the Middle East region, as more countries invest in advanced technologies, such as smart cities. These critical IoT and OT assets require a new level of protection that traditional security solutions simply cannot provide. Osama will play a crucial role in expanding our xIoT platform across this region to ensure our customers have the highest level of proactive protection for their Cyber-Physical Systems. Phosphorus is a groundbreaking and disruptive security company with remarkable potential in the region and throughout the world, said AlZoubi. Only Phosphorus has the capability to proactively discover, remediate, monitor, and manage the full range of IoT, OT, IIoT, and IoMT assets that represent an ever-expanding attack surface. This is especially true in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and throughout the Middle East and Africa, where high-tech development is not only creating massive economic opportunity, but also the potential for disruption from ransomware and cyber-physical attacks. I am excited to join this innovative company and I look forward to accelerating its growth in the region. AlZoubi is a seasoned technology and business leader with over 25 years of extensive experience in information and communications technology (ICT). His expertise encompasses pivotal domains such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, data centers (DC), software (SW), and infrastructure. Throughout his career, he has actively engaged in cutting-edge research and development initiatives, including a patent for a wireless underwater IoT system. Prior to joining Phosphorus, AlZoubi held multiple global leadership roles and most recently served as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) for Cisco in the Middle East and Africa. AlZoubi led the Engineering and Business Architecture teams, to drive Digital Transformation across the MEA region, while driving the digitization initiatives, innovation, and business growth across the private and public sector in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, and Africa. AlZoubi is also the author of The Digital Disruption, he holds a patent in the IoT field, and he has multiple publications in Harvard Business Review Arabia. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), and a Master of Science in Computer Science from the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago. Phosphorus Gartner-recognized Unified xIoT Security Management Platform is the industrys only CPS Protection Platform proactively covering the entire security and management lifecycle for xIoT. Through its unique ability to directly communicate with over one million device models (including over 600 vendors) in their native languages, Phosphorus platform empowers all organizations to safely discover, harden, remediate, and manage any IoT/OT/IoMT device, including the most sensitive mission-critical and life-critical assets. For more information about Phosphorus, visit www.phosphorus.io , or see us at upcoming conferences, such as RSAC, Black Hat, and DEF CON. ABOUT PHOSPHORUS SAN MATEO, Calif., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alluxio , the data platform company for all data-driven workloads, is honored to announce its inclusion for the second consecutive year as one of Forbes "Americas Best Startup Employers. Alluxio placed 368 on Forbes' Americas Best Startup Employers 2024 list which ranked the 500 top startup companies displaying excellence across employer reputation, employee satisfaction and growth. This accolade underscores Alluxio's dedication to nurturing a vibrant work culture that propels the future of data and AI innovation. Alluxio's recognition on the Forbes list of America's Best Startup Employers underscores how our commitment to cultivating an environment conducive to employee satisfaction fuels product innovation, particularly in pioneering domains like AI, said Haoyuan Li, Founder and CEO, Alluxio. At Alluxio, our employees are at the center of our customer-first culture, driving our dedication to excellence and innovation. It is a great honor to be included on this list for a second year in a row. In recognition of Alluxios culture of product innovation, CRN recently named Alluxio Enterprise AI, a new high-performance data platform for AI and ML workloads, to its list of the 10 Hottest Big Data Tools in 2023. The Forbes Best Startup Employers list is the fifth such ranking done between Forbes and Statista, to identify 3,000 privately-held companies that are headquartered in the United States, employ more than 50 people, and were founded between 2014 and 2021. Each startup must also have been started from scratch, as opposed to being a spinoff of a larger corporation. The companies were then evaluated based on three primary criteria: company reputation, employee satisfaction and growth. Millions of data points were used to determine each companys score, and the 500 startups with the highest scores made the final list. To assess employer reputation, Statista reviewed articles, blogs and social media posts about each employer, searching for such phrases as corporate culture and employee engagement. Text analysis was used to categorize those phrases as positive, negative or neutral. Statista evaluated employee satisfaction through online reviews, employee retention rates, and company policies relating to topics such as diversity and inclusion, parental leave, and workplace flexibility. Growth was assessed by examining the organizations website traffic, job openings, and head counts over a two-year period. The final list ranked the top 500 employers. About Alluxio Alluxio , a leading provider of the high performance data platform for analytics and AI, accelerates time-to-value of data and AI initiatives and maximizes infrastructure ROI. Uniquely positioned at the intersection of compute and storage systems, Alluxio has a universal view of workloads on the data platform across stages of a data pipeline. This enables Alluxio to provide high performance data access regardless of where the data resides, simplify data engineering, optimize GPU utilization, and reduce cloud and storage costs. With Alluxio, organizations can achieve magnitudes faster model training and serving without the need for specialized storage, and build AI infrastructure on existing data lakes. Backed by leading investors, Alluxio powers technology, internet, financial services, and telecom companies, including 9 out of the top 10 internet companies globally. To learn more, visit www.alluxio.io . Media Contact: Beth Winkowski Winkowski Public Relations, LLC for Alluxio 978-649-7189 beth@alluxio.com VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Latin Metals Inc. (Latin Metals or the Company) - (TSXV: LMS) (OTCQB: LMSQF), a leading mineral exploration company in South America, announces that it has entered into a binding Letter Agreement (the Letter Agreement) with Golden Arrow Resources Corp. (Golden Arrow) to earn up to a 100% interest in the 3,500-hectare Huachi Property (Huachi). Huachi is contiguous with the Companys Esperanza Project (Esperanza), located in San Juan Province, Argentina (Figure 1). Figure 1: Location of the Huachi property, located immediately west of the Companys Esperanza Property, San Juan Province, Argentina. Option Agreement Terms Under the terms of the Letter Agreement, Latin Metals has been granted the Option to earn an initial 75% interest in the Huachi project by incurring exploration expenditures totalling US$1,000,000 and making cash payments of US$1,000,000 to Golden Arrow over a four-year period (Table 1). The Letter Agreement will serve as the basis for the preparation of the Definitive Agreement, to be completed within 90 days after the execution of the Letter Agreement (signed). Following the exercise of the Option, Latin Metals shall have a top-up right (the Top-Up Right) whereby Latin Metals can purchase the remaining 25% interest in the Huachi property (aggregate 100%) by providing notice to Golden Arrow within 60 days after exercise of the Option and paying US$2,000,000 cash to Golden Arrow (Table 1) within 90 days after exercise of the Option. Upon completion of the acquisition, Golden Arrows interest shall be reduced to a 1% NSR royalty. Table 1: Commercial Terms to Acquire up to 100% Interest in the Huachi Property, San Juan Province Anniversary Following the Commencement Date Work Commitment USD Cash Payments USD Vesting First Anniversary $100,000 $100,000 - Second Anniversary $150,000 $150,000 - Third Anniversary $250,000 $250,000 - Fourth Anniversary $500,000 $500,000 75% Top-Up Right - $2,000,000 25% Total $1,000,000 $3,000,000 100% Note. The four-year Option Period commences on the Commencement Date, which is the date on which the environmental permit (Declaracion de Impacto Ambiental or DIA) is approved and in force, allowing exploration activities to begin. If the DIA is not obtained on or before February 28, 2027, then the Definitive Agreement will be terminated. If Latin Metals elects not to exercise the Top-Up Right, Latin Metals and Golden Arrow will form a joint venture (JV) with Latin Metals holding 75% and Golden Arrow holding 25%, to continue exploration and development of the Huachi property. In order to maintain its interest in the JV, each party will contribute to work programs in proportion to its ownership interest. If either party dilutes to 15% or less, its interest shall be reduced to a 1% NSR royalty. The Company is entitled to perform due diligence over the 30 days following the execution of the Letter Agreement. If the due diligence is not satisfactory to Latin Metals, the Company may terminate the Letter Agreement without any obligation to Golden Arrow. About Esperanza and Huachi Esperanza is a copper-gold porphyry exploration project where a copper-gold porphyry system has been partially defined by drilling and where a pyrite halo is exposed at surface over an area of 1,400m x 850m. Drill hole 18-ESP-025 (see news release May 8, 2018), completed by Latin Metals, returned 387m grading 0.57% copper and 0.27 g/t gold from surface, including 166m grading 0.84% copper and 0.37 g/t gold from surface (true width unknown). Mineralization is open in all directions with an interpreted vector to the west towards the Huachi property. Latin Metals has an option to acquire 100% interest in the Esperanza Property. About Latin Metals Latin Metals is a mineral exploration company acquiring a diversified portfolio of assets in South America. The Company operates with a Prospect Generator model focusing on the acquisition of prospective exploration properties at minimum cost, completing initial evaluation through cost-effective exploration to establish drill targets, and ultimately securing joint venture partners to fund drilling and advanced exploration. Shareholders gain exposure to the upside of a significant discovery without the dilution associated with funding the highest-risk drill-based exploration. Stay up-to-date on Latin Metals developments by joining our online communities on X, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram. Qualified Person Keith J. Henderson, P.Geo., is the Company's qualified person as defined by NI 43-101 and has reviewed the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for portions of this news release. He has approved the disclosure herein. Mr. Henderson is not independent of the Company, as he is an employee of the Company and holds securities of the Company. On Behalf of the Board of Directors of LATIN METALS INC. Keith Henderson President & CEO For further details on the Company readers are referred to the Company's web site ( www.latin-metals.com ) and its Canadian regulatory filings on SEDAR at www.sedar.com . For further information, please contact: Keith Henderson Suite 890 - 999 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6C 2W2 Phone: 604-638-3456 E-mail: info@latin-metals.com Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and U.S. securities legislation, including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding the negotiation of the Definitive Agreement and exercise of the Option for the Property, the anticipated content, commencement, timing and cost of exploration programs in respect of the Property and otherwise, anticipated exploration program results from exploration activities, and the Company's expectation that it will be able to enter into agreements to acquire interests in additional mineral properties, the discovery and delineation of mineral deposits/resources/reserves on the Properties, and the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Often, but not always, forward looking information can be identified by words such as "pro forma", "plans", "expects", "may", "should", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "potential" or variations of such words including negative variations thereof, and phrases that refer to certain actions, events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation, market fundamentals will result in sustained precious and base metals demand and prices, the receipt of any necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in connection with the future development of the Companys Argentine projects in a timely manner, the availability of financing on suitable terms for the development, construction and continued operation of the Company projects, and the Companys ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such risks and other factors include, among others, operating and technical difficulties in connection with mineral exploration and development and mine development activities at the Properties, including the geological mapping, prospecting and sampling programs being proposed for the Properties (the "Programs"), actual results of exploration activities, including the Programs, estimation or realization of mineral reserves and mineral resources, the timing and amount of estimated future production, costs of production, capital expenditures, the costs and timing of the development of new deposits, the availability of a sufficient supply of water and other materials, requirements for additional capital, future prices of precious metals and copper, changes in general economic conditions, changes in the financial markets and in the demand and market price for commodities, possible variations in ore grade or recovery rates, possible failures of plants, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry, delays or the inability of the Company to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required, any current or future property acquisitions, financing or other planned activities, changes in laws, regulations and policies affecting mining operations, hedging practices, currency fluctuations, title disputes or claims limitations on insurance coverage and the timing and possible outcome of pending litigation, environmental issues and liabilities, risks related to joint venture operations, and risks related to the integration of acquisitions, as well as those factors discussed under the heading as well as those factors discussed under the heading Risk Factors in the Companys annual managements discussion and analysis and other filings of the Company with the Canadian Securities Authorities, copies of which can be found under the Companys profile on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward looking statements. Except as otherwise required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking information in this news release or incorporated by reference herein. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/68d9dfb9-90da-48fc-bd37-94ab68b90e81 OTTAWA, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Colonnade BridgePort, a leading full service real estate investment and management company, has opened offices in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and is now providing real estate management services in Atlantic Canada. Effective January 1, 2024, the company is officially managing a portfolio of over one million square feet of industrial/flex properties and two land hold mandates in three major markets Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), NS; Fredericton, NB; and Moncton, NB. Headquartered in Ottawa, Colonnade BridgePort first expanded into the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and Southern/Southwestern Ontario in 2018, where its portfolio has grown steadily. This latest move into Atlantic Canada aligns with the companys plans for continued strategic expansion into markets where a client-centric, value-add approach to real estate management will drive success. We determined that our approach to real estate management was an ideal fit for the Atlantic Canada market, said Senior Vice President, Real Estate Management Services Ron Matheson. We are excited to embark on this new chapter of our business growth and we are confident we will make a positive impact in the region by helping clients maximize the potential of their assets and position them for long term success. Colonnade BridgePort will provide a full suite of services in all asset classes including office, retail, industrial and residential. To execute on the Atlantic Canada portfolio, Colonnade BridgePort has set up offices in Dartmouth and Fredericton and has brought on a local team of seasoned property management and leasing professionals. The team's industry expertise and market knowledge enable the exceptional execution of asset strategies, ensuring that owners' objectives are realized, and tenants' needs are met. Colonnade BridgePort now manages a total of over 12.5 million sq.ft. of space in all asset classes including office, retail, industrial, and residential across the Ottawa region, GTA and Southern/Southwestern Ontario, and Atlantic Canada. About Colonnade BridgePort - colonnadebridgeport.ca Colonnade BridgePort is a full-service real estate company, offering property management and leasing services, acquisition, development, investment management and asset management for commercial and residential properties. We take the time to understand our clients objectives and then apply our real estate expertise and market knowledge to drive better performance. Colonnade BridgePort is headquartered in Ottawa with offices in Mississauga, Toronto, Dartmouth and Fredericton. Media Contact Rachal Fleury Manager, Marketing and Communications rfleury@colonnadebridgeport.ca | 343.633.5129 Property Management Contact Atlantic Canada Kristina Borneby Director, Commercial Property Management Atlantic Canada kborneby@colonnadebridgeport.ca | 506.461.1176 A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fb9bc97e-b34f-4280-986b-87ed0632aaa3 FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ZEFIRO METHANE CORP. (the Company, Zefiro, or ZEFI) board of directors member Catherine Flax served as a featured speaker at this weeks Wall Street Green Summit in New York City. The event, which was held at The Cornell Club in midtown Manhattan, was organized to highlight unique opportunities throughout the energy sector that promote a more sustainable future. Zefiro also hosted a cocktail reception at the historic venue following the conclusion of the days official programming for key stakeholders and conference attendees. During her remarks, Ms. Flax outlined the public health threat posed by the nationwide proliferation of orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells. According to the latest expert estimates, there are millions of these sites throughout the U.S., with the potential for many to be unplugged. Ms. Flax also underscored Zefiros industry-leading efforts to forge a diverse portfolio of carbon credits that are directly linked to the ongoing plugging projects the Company is conducting across the country. Pictured: Zefiros Catherine Flax addresses attendees of the Wall Street Green Summit on March 12, 2024 Readers using news aggregation services may be unable to view the media above. Please access the Investors section of the Companys website for a version of this press release containing all published media. Too many American homes, schools, hospitals, and other staples of our everyday lives are uncomfortably close to a potentially hazardous unplugged oil or gas well, said Catherine Flax, Board of Directors Member, Zefiro Methane Corp. As the only entity in the energy sector that combines the hard work in the field, experience in the oil and gas industry, and the know-how to define a growing portion of the energy commodities marketplace, I firmly believe that Zefiros truly comprehensive business structure will have an outsized impact on addressing this national public health problem. Ms. Flaxs speech was the latest in a series of public speaking engagements that Zefiros senior leadership team has undertaken, including Zefiro Founder and Chief Executive Office Talal Debs appearance at the United Nations COP 28 Conference, to highlight the Companys expanding field operations and discuss how the energy industry can help combat this legacy issue. Since Zefiros inception, our team has worked tirelessly to build an expansive portfolio of projects and help establish a marketplace that is on the leading edge of innovation, said Talal Debs, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Zefiro Methane Corp. Addressing this national issue requires big, bold solutions, and our efforts to forge the industrys first comprehensive service provider will help more long-affected communities remediate these potentially dangerous sites. More information on the Wall Street Green Summit can be found here. On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company, ZEFIRO METHANE CORP. Talal Debs Talal Debs, Founder & CEO For further information, please contact: Zefiro Investor Relations 1 (800) 274-ZEFI (274-9334) investor@zefiromethane.com For media inquiries, please contact: Rich Myers - Profile Advisors (New York) media@zefiromethane.com (347) 774-1125 About Zefiro Methane Corp. Zefiro develops methodologies to reduce methane emissions by plugging orphaned and abandoned oil/gas wells, while originating carbon offsets. Under executive leadership to include the former carbon market team at J.P. Morgan, Zefiro actively deploys crews to decommission wells throughout the United States. With unprecedented global demand for carbon offsets as corporations and institutions work towards net-zero targets, Zefiro is strategically aligning with industry leaders for a greener future. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as seeks, believes, plans, expects, intends, estimates, anticipates and statements that an event or result may, will, should, could or might occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-looking information in this press release includes statements regarding the Company, the Companys business, the industry in which the Company operates, the Companys opportunities, strategies, competition, expected activities and expenditures as the Company pursues its business plan, the adequacy of the Companys available cash resources and other statements about future events or results. The forward-looking information reflects managements current expectations based on information currently available and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause outcomes to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed timeframes or at all. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations include: (i) adverse general market and economic conditions; (ii) changes to and price and volume volatility in the carbon market; (iii) changes to the regulatory landscape and global policies applicable to the Company's business; and (iv) other factors beyond the control of the Company. The Company operates in a rapidly evolving environment where technologies are in the early stage of adoption. New risk factors emerge from time to time, and it is impossible for the Companys management to predict all risk factors, nor can the Company assess the impact of all factors on Companys business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking information. The forward-looking information is based on a number of assumptions, including assumptions regarding general market conditions, the availability of financing for proposed transactions and programs on reasonable terms, and the ability of outside service providers to deliver services in a satisfactory and timely manner. The forward-looking information included in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and the Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4d0bc0ef-1e47-440e-a0a7-0b53f1e84613 OXFORD, United Kingdom, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sophos , a global leader in innovating and delivering cybersecurity as a service, today announced it is a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Modern Endpoint Security for Small Businesses 2024 Vendor Assessment,* which evaluates the product offerings and business strategies of 18 modern endpoint security (MES) vendors. This news closely follows Sophos being named a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Modern Endpoint Security for Midsize Businesses 2024 Vendor Assessment.** We believe Sophos being named a Leader in both reports validates its commitment to understanding and meeting the needs of small and midsize businesses (SMBs) with an expansive portfolio of world-class products and managed security services that are compatible with virtually any environment or tech stack. The IDC MarketScape for Modern Endpoint Security for Small Businesses notes, Sophos is a strong consideration for small businesses, particularly those with large business security requirements that have little to no in-house security expertise. In addition, the IDC MarketScape recognizes Sophos constant innovation to stay ahead of the evolving threat landscape: Even with the most diligent efforts to deflect attackers, there are no guarantees that all manner of attacks can be thwarted. Addressing this potential, Sophos recently added several new capabilities: adaptive attack protection, critical attack warning, and data protection and recovery. Sophos Endpoint defends more than 300,000 organizations worldwide against advanced attacks with anti-ransomware, anti-exploitation, behavioral analysis, and other innovative technologies. With an extensive range of integrated capabilities, Sophos Endpoint seamlessly integrates with other Sophos products and managed security services, including Sophos Managed Detection and Response (MDR), the most widely adopted MDR offering. The IDC MarketScape noted, Sophos MDR, already in use by over 20,000 Sophos customers, is a time-tested MDR service combined with Sophos engagements with cyberinsurance providers delivers the confidence small businesses need to attain their endpoint security objectives without being security experts. We know from Sophos threat intelligence that cyberattackers are actively stealing SMBs credentials and other critical data and targeting them with ransomware. While ransomware can disrupt any organization for weeks at the time, the difference with small businesses, especially those with 500 or less employees, is that ransomware attacks could potentially wipe out these organizations, said Rob Harrison, senior vice president for endpoint and security operations product management at Sophos. Small businesses need quality endpoint security that adapts in real-time to prevent or slow down cyberattacks. Were proud that the IDC MarketScape has recognized Sophos for consistently delivering defenses that protect small businesses from relentless and determined cybercriminals. "Every organization, regardless of size, suffers from resource constraints. The stakes in cybersecurity, with small businesses in particular, are massive, and many of these companies are struggling to keep up," said Michael Suby, research vice president, Security & Trust, IDC. "Sophos, with an expansive set of protection technologies and proven MDR service offering, is a great option to help a small business improve its security posture in whatever way fits best - either with the tools to help its experts in-house or by leveraging the expertise of the dedicated MDR security team." Sophos Endpoint solutions, including the flagship Intercept X, are managed in the cloud-native Sophos Central platform, which is part of the Sophos Adaptive Cybersecurity Ecosystem that collects, correlates and enriches security data with additional context to enable automatic and synchronized responses to active threats. This platform is further optimized by Sophos X-Ops threat intelligence, a cross-operational task force of more than 500 security experts within SophosLabs, Sophos SecOps and SophosAI. For more information, go to Sophos.com. * Doc #US50521424, March 2024. ** Doc #US50521323, February 2024. About IDC MarketScape IDC MarketScape vendor assessment model is designed to provide an overview of the competitive fitness of ICT (information and communications technology) suppliers in a given market. The research methodology utilizes a rigorous scoring methodology based on both qualitative and quantitative criteria that results in a single graphical illustration of each vendors position within a given market. IDC MarketScape provides a clear framework in which the product and service offerings, capabilities and strategies, and current and future market success factors of IT and telecommunications vendors can be meaningfully compared. The framework also provides technology buyers with a 360-degree assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of current and prospective vendors. Columbia Falls, Maine, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In November 2023, ten Vietnam veterans embarked on a journey they never thought possible, returning to Vietnam and exploring the locations and memories that, for 50 years, have held deep significance for each of them. Mission Veteran Expedition, a collaborative venture between CDLLife, FASTPORT, and nonprofits Waypoint Vets and Wreaths Across America, made this journey possible and, together, proudly announce the upcoming release of a new documentary of the trip, Mission Veteran Expedition: Honoring Vietnam Veterans in the Transportation Industry. The documentary, captured and produced by U.S. Army veteran Nicholas Mott, owner of Seven Five Media, will be released and available at no cost on Wreaths Across Americas YouTube channel on Friday, March 29, 2024 National Vietnam War Veterans Day. Click here to view a short preview of the documentary. The documentary offers an intimate and compelling look at the journey of these veterans, said videographer Nicholas Mott. Capturing the essence of their experiences and the profound impact of the Mission Veteran Expedition was truly an honor. I hope other Vietnam veterans will watch it and find it healing. The trip offered ten veterans, each of whom has made a living in the transportation industry, an extraordinary opportunity to revisit Vietnam and reflect on their service there. The documentary explores this impactful journey, which combines travel, camaraderie, and history. Waypoint Vets, a non-profit organization dedicated to uniting and empowering veterans through camaraderie and adventure, led the expedition, ensuring each participant experienced a meaningful and lasting journey. The itinerary included a variety of experiences, including: Grounds Tour of the Former Saigon Embassy Walking Street Food Tour through Ho Chi Minh City Cu Chi Tunnels & Mekong Delta Luxury Tour War Remnants Museum Halong Bay Cruise Defense POW / MIA Accounting Agency Tour A Welcome Home ceremony hosted at Sirius XM studios in Hollywood, with interviews on Radio Nemo The Mission Veteran Expedition successfully commemorated these veterans valiant contributions while allowing them to experience the beauty of Vietnams landscapes and the richness of its culture, said Sarah Lee, Army combat veteran and founder of Waypoint Vets. For many veterans, the memories associated with Vietnam are often intertwined with the challenges of war. This expedition redefined these associations and replaced them with new, healing memories. By engaging with Vietnam on a deep, personal level, the trip forged lasting connections and helped veterans find solace in the beauty of a nation at peace. As commemorative partners of The United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration, FASTPORT and Wreaths Across America have had the honor of Welcoming Home more than 7,500 Vietnam veterans. I feel the trips culmination was an important piece of closure for the participants journey, said Brad Bentley, President of FASTPORT, who traveled to Vietnam with the group. These men returned to the United States to a heros welcome, and for millions who never received this show of gratitude for answering the call of duty, it was truly an honor to say, Welcome Home. # # # About Waypoint Vets Waypoint Vets is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the Mission of Uniting and Empowering Veterans through Camaraderie and Adventure. Our therapeutic experiences combine mental and physical intensity with Americas most breathtaking landscapes, delivering lasting healing and clarity to military veterans. Waypoint Vets is actively combating post-traumatic stress, military sexual trauma, and suicidal ideation on a national scale. Our Alumni Aftercare and Waypoint Wellness Programs offer mental health seminars, fitness classes, our nationally accredited Veteran Service Officer, and peer support. We are dedicated to helping veterans better navigate life after service. The heartbeat of our mission is to Honor the Fallen by Living and taking back our health and happiness together. About FASTPORT Fastport, Inc. solves Americas toughest recruiting challenges through research, technology, and people. Fastport is also a U.S. Department of Labor Industry Intermediary and a part of the Centers of Excellence to support apprenticeship development and sustainability. For more information about FASTPORT and Registered Apprenticeships, visit www.fastport.com or www.nationalapprenticeship.org. Wreaths Across America Wreaths Across America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded to continue and expand the annual wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, which was begun by Maine businessman Morrill Worcester in 1992 . The organizations yearlong mission Remember, Honor, Teach is carried out in part each year by coordinating wreath-laying ceremonies in December at thousands of veterans cemeteries and other locations in all 50 states and beyond. TORONTO, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Horizon Media, one of Canada's leading media companies, proudly announces the appointment of Robert Jenkyn as President of its Canadian operations. A recognized leader in the Canadian media landscape with over 30 years of experience, Robert brings a wealth of expertise and a proven track record of delivering exceptional results. His strategic vision and innovative approach have consistently strengthened brands by aligning client objectives with agency capabilities. Robert is replacing Kevin Kivi, who returns home to Australia driven by a desire to be closer to his immediate family. Under Kevins leadership, Horizon Media established itself in the Canadian market and achieved many significant milestones. Robert's appointment marks an exciting chapter for Horizon Media Canada, said Bill Koenigsberg, President, CEO, and Founder of Horizon Media. His extensive experience and leadership in the industry will undoubtedly drive our Canadian operations to new heights, bringing innovative solutions to our clients and reinforcing our commitment to excellence. Throughout his career, Robert has demonstrated a keen ability to navigate complex media landscapes, develop cutting-edge strategies, and drive impactful results. As Chief Executive Officer of Media Experts, Robert led the company's transformation into a data-driven, client-centric media agency, positioning it for success in an ever-evolving industry. Additionally, as Senior Vice President of Digital for Media Experts, he played a pivotal role in expanding the agency's digital capabilities and spearheading groundbreaking initiatives. I am thrilled to join the Horizon Media team and lead the Canadian operations, said Jenkyn. With a focus on innovation, collaboration, and client-centric solutions, I am confident that together, we will drive growth and deliver unparalleled value to our clients. I look forward to working closely with our talented team and impressive roster of client partners to capitalize on new opportunities and further solidify Horizon Media's position as a market leader. Roberts diverse experience spans both the vendor and non-profit sectors. He has driven digital initiatives for major players like Canoe.ca, Excite Canada, Standard Interactive, Microsoft, and The Globe and Mail. He is a past Board Chair for Vividata, as well as a current board member of the Merit Award Bursary Program, a charity promoting continued education for at-risk students in the Greater Toronto Area. Additionally, he has served on the jury panels for numerous Canadian and international media awards. For more information on Horizon Media in Canada, please visit https://horizon-media.ca/ Horizon Media Horizon Media, Inc, the largest independent media agency in North America, delivers data-driven business outcomes for some of the worlds most innovative and ambitious brands. Founded in 1989, headquartered in New York, and with offices in Los Angeles, Toronto, and Edmonton, the company employs 2,400 people and has media investments of more than $9.5 billion. Horizon Media's fundamental belief is that business is personal, which drives its approach to connecting brands with their customers and engaging with its own employees resulting in industry-leading workplace satisfaction levels (Glassdoor). The company is consistently recognized by independent media outlets for its client excellence and has earned several "Best Workplaces" awards reflecting its commitment to DEI and the life and well-being of everyone at Horizon Media. Media Contact: Andrew Findlater SELECT Public Relations (647) 444-1197 A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ad6f69cc-db4c-4e38-9fbc-edd6e80182ee MONTREAL, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today at the Universite de Montreal, Que., the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Transport of Canada and Quebec Lieutenant, announced more than $515 million in funding for research infrastructure through the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). He made the announcement on behalf of the Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry. The funding will support 100 infrastructure projects at 32 postsecondary institutions and research hospitals across the country and will help Canada remain at the forefront of exploration, discovery and innovation. For Canadian researchers to be ready to respond to critical issues facing our planet and pursue ambitious ideas that drive innovation, they need access to the right tools and facilities. The Government of Canada understands this need, and through the CFI, it is supporting researchers across the country in making meaningful contributions in health, the environment, and the economy to build a resilient, thriving society. The Universite de Montreal received funding for three projects, including one that will use medical imaging to learn more about type 2 diabetes, a disease that affects nearly one in 10 adults around the world. CFI funding will supply research teams at the Universite de Montreal and the Universite de Sherbrooke with PET scans, MRI and quantitative ultrasound technology to monitor organ function in people with the disease with the goal of preventing and treating it. Other exceptional research infrastructure projects this funding supports include: Repurposing drugs to treat opioid use disorder. In 2022, an average of 20 lives were lost every day to opioid overdose, twice as many as in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. CFI funding will support researchers at the University of Calgarys Cumming School of Medicine who are looking at how opioid use disorder changes the brain. There are currently only four approved medications to manage opioid use disorder and the rate of relapse among individuals undergoing treatment is about 70 percent. Researchers will collaborate with people with lived experience of opioid use to repurpose existing drugs to treat the disorders debilitating symptoms. While the research team will also work on developing new drug therapies, focusing on existing medicines will save many years of testing and approvals and could ultimately save lives. Read: Probing the brain to break the cycle of opioid addiction Preventing coastal erosion. Prince Edward Island is shrinking faster than ever predicted, losing an average of 30 centimetres of coastline a year. How to protect against climate change-induced heavy precipitation, storm surges and rising sea levels has become one of the most pressing questions for the province. CFI funding will support the University of Prince Edward Islands Climate Lab to develop a province-wide coastal hazard monitoring and testing system. Cameras with a 360-degree view will record storms in real time and an indoor facility will test protective measures in a simulated coastal environment. It will systematically evaluate measures like planting vegetation and erecting sea walls to see what works in different locations across P.E.I. The system will be the only one of its kind in Canada. Read: Coastal scourge Building better wheelchairs. Few wheelchairs on the market have been built for Canadas rigorous climate and landscape. A team at the British Columbia Institute of Technology is looking to change that, to make wheelchairs go places they cant right now off-road, through snow and up and down stairs. Their goal is to create a modifiable chair that can be adapted to add e-bike-like power-assist units or to tackle different terrain. A partnership with the University of Manitoba will test the devices in the snow. Thorough testing will evaluate what the technologies can do safely to ensure that new wheelchairs will further break down barriers for people living with disabilities. Read: Unlimited access Discover more stories on projects funded in this competition. Quotes Congratulations to top-tier researchers who will get a boost through this vital funding to take their projects to the next level. Our Government is proud to support future generations by enabling students and postdoctoral researchers to acquire and hone the skills and knowledge they need to excel in their challenging fields. Their pioneering research will further establish Canadas position as a global leader in innovation while helping to drive our economy and achieve our shared vision of a brighter, healthier future for all Canadians. - The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Research labs and facilities, like those being funded today, provide the foundation upon which Canadas research leaders can make discoveries and drive innovation that will contribute to a better future for all of us. - Roseann OReilly Runte, President and CEO of the CFI Quick facts The investments announced today were made through the CFIs Innovation Fund. This fund supports 40 percent of infrastructure costs across the full spectrum of research, from fundamental research to technology development, with the remaining portion coming from partners such as provincial and territorial governments and the institutions themselves. These investments will help Canada remain at the forefront of exploration and knowledge generation and will support researchers in addressing global challenges and making meaningful contributions to social, health, environmental and economic benefits for Canadians. Projects supported through the Innovation Fund are eligible for additional funding through the Infrastructure Operating Fund (IOF) to cover the costs of operating the research infrastructure. The total investment of $515.3 million includes $117.7 million from the IOF. It also includes $5.5 million to cover incremental administrative costs associated with the management and governance of 20 projects that involve three or more collaborating CFI-eligible institutions. Many of the funded projects involve collaboration among research institutions. Of the 100 proposals, 41 include at least one collaborating institution. Quick links More about the Canada Foundation for Innovation Details on the CFIs Innovation Fund Discover the CFI Research Facilities Navigator: An online database of labs and facilities that are open to working with businesses About the Canada Foundation for Innovation With a bold, future-looking mandate, the Canada Foundation for Innovation equips researchers to be global leaders in their field and to respond to emerging challenges. Our investments in state-of-the-art tools, instruments and facilities at universities, colleges, research hospitals and non-profit research institutions underpin both curiosity- and mission-driven research that cuts across disciplines and bridges all sectors. The research infrastructure we fund mobilizes knowledge, spurs innovation and commercialization, and empowers the talented minds of a new generation. Related products A full list of the funded projects and stories about the facilities we fund are available online at Innovation.ca. For updates, follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and X @InnovationCA and subscribe to our YouTube channel to find videos about the CFI and its transformative research projects. Contacts VERNON, CA, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AXIS IOS, a real estate investment platform dynamically positioned to acquire, develop, and manage Industrial Outdoor Storage (IOS) throughout the United States, has opened its first electric vehicle (EV) charging facility in Vernon, California, located just a half mile from 4 Interstate freeways (5, 10, 110 and the 710), a major freight corridor coming out of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and home to numerous distribution centers performing last-mile delivery. The site is designed for local fleet clients that are operating medium-duty and light-duty vehicles in the Los Angeles area and features enough space for 42 vehicles, which will include 34 Level 2 chargers and 8 Level 3 DC fast chargers. Fleet customers will benefit from the areas low and competitive utility rates, which on average are approximately 8-10% lower than neighboring utility rates. Recent market analyses show a surge in demand for medium-duty electric vehicles from fleets, with a 640% jump in orders in 2022 and several major regulations coming down the way including the Advanced Clean Fleets Rule in California and the Advanced Clean Trucks Rule in 14 states and the District and Columbia. AXIS IOS is actively looking to address the lack of adequate charging infrastructure for fleets facing these regulations and opening the Vernon location is the latest example of how the EV transition begins with real estate. This site is part of the trend towards private, behind-the-fence EV charging depots designed with fleets in mind including those local businesses doing last-mile delivery. AXIS IOS worked closely during the development of the site with Vernon Public Utilities, the citys locally owned utility from design drawing submittals to power delivery to the site. AXIS IOS's EV charging facility was operational within several months. Vernon is excited to support local businesses as they transition towards the electrification of their fleets, said Margie Otto, Assistant General Manager of Vernon Public Utilities. Partners like AXIS IOS are helping show that our city is prepared for the electric future and ready to support the transition to electrification." The Vernon site is available to lease for businesses looking to serve the Los Angeles area immediately and fleets are encouraged to reach out if theyre interested. Many fleets in California have ambitious ESG goals and ZEV compliance requirements. However, they grapple with the cost, delays, siting, and power procurement challenges associated with charging infrastructure. Our Vernon site provides a solution, enabling swift deployment of electric vehicles (EVs), says Joe Killefer, Partner, AXIS IOS. Through a typical triple-net real estate lease, we simplify and expedite the process, allowing fleets to treat charging as an operating cost rather than a complex capital investment. AXIS IOS is planning to leverage its expertise to build further EV charging sites, including one in early 2025 in Newark, New Jersey, with charging and storage for 62 commercial EVs. About AXIS IOS: AXIS IOS is a fully capitalized real estate investment platform dynamically positioned to acquire, develop, and manage Industrial Outdoor Storage (IOS) throughout the United States. With the surge in e-commerce, AXIS meets the growing demand for well-located Industrial Outdoor Storage facilities. As urban properties become increasingly scarce, AXIS IOS is targeting these mission critical properties to help clients maintain robust supply chain logistics. Attachment Washington, D.C., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Children's National Hospital has appointed Nathan Kuppermann, M.D., M.P.H., as its new executive vice president (EVP), chief academic officer (CAO) and chair of Pediatrics. In this role, Dr. Kuppermann will oversee research, education and innovation for the Childrens National Research Institute as well as academic and administrative leadership in the Department of Pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Services. He comes to Childrens National from UC Davis Health and UC Davis School of Medicine in Sacramento, CA, and will start in September. After a national search, Dr. Kuppermann stood out for his exceptional contributions to clinical and academic research, focusing on pediatric emergency care, and his dedication to mentorship. For the past 18 years he has served as the Bo Tomas Brofeldt endowed chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine and is currently a distinguished professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics, and the associate dean for Global Health at UC Davis Health. I was drawn to Childrens National by its nationally recognized work and dedication to innovation and team science, says Dr. Kuppermann. Im eager to contribute to the remarkable work being done in both the research and education space to continue to improve the understanding, prevention and treatment of childhood diseases. Dr. Kuppermann is a pediatric emergency medicine physician and clinical epidemiologist, and a leader in emergency medical services for children, particularly in multicenter research. With more than 300 peer-reviewed research publications to his credit, Dr. Kuppermann has contributed extensively to high-impact journals including the New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, BMJ and the Lancet. The Childrens National Research Institute is a key part of our health systems ecosystem its where we nurture innovation and pursue the most promising research, says Michelle Riley-Brown, MHA, FACHE, president and CEO of Childrens National. "Dr. Kuppermanns unwavering commitment to excellence in pediatric healthcare, research and innovation set him apart in a competitive field. I am confident he will advance our efforts in making breakthrough discoveries for kids everywhere. Dr. Kuppermann received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University, his medical degree from UC San Francisco School of Medicine and his Master of Public Health degree from the Harvard School of Public Health. He completed a pediatrics residency and chief residency at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and a fellowship in Pediatric Emergency Medicine at Boston Children's Hospital. He has been recognized nationally and internationally for his research and mentorship. He was a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar in the U.K. and in 2010 was elected to the National Academy of Medicine. In 2022, he received the Maureen Andrew Mentor Award from the Society for Pediatric Research. "Dr. Kuppermann's leadership will undoubtedly propel the hospitals efforts in advancing pediatric healthcare innovation, reinforcing Childrens National as a top-ranking institution, says Horacio Rozanski, chair of the Childrens National Board of Directors. We look forward to the positive impact he will make to the hospitals overall mission, as well as its research and academic endeavors. Media contact: Diana Troese | media@childrensnational.org ### About Childrens National Hospital Childrens National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., was established in 1870 to help every child grow up stronger.Today, it is the No. 5 childrens hospital in the nation and ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. Childrens National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. The Childrens National Research & Innovation Campus opened in 2021, a first-of-its-kind pediatric hub dedicated to developing new and better ways to care for kids. Childrens National has been designated three times in a row as a Magnet hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty care locations in the D.C. metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. Childrens National is home to the Childrens National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. As a non-profit, Children's National relies on generous donors to help ensure that every child receives the care they need. For more information, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn. Attachment Washington, D.C., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Children's National Hospital has appointed Wayne J. Franklin, M.D., F.A.C.C., as the new senior vice president (SVP) of the Childrens National Heart Center . In this role, Dr. Franklin will oversee the full spectrum of heart care services including cardiac imaging and diagnostics, interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, cardiac anesthesia, cardiac surgery and cardiac intensive care. He joins us from Phoenix Childrens in Arizona and starts June 2024. Dr. Franklin currently serves as co-director, medical director of Quality and endowed chair in the Center for Heart Care and associate director of the Adult Congenital Heart Disease Program at Phoenix Childrens. Hes also a professor of Child Health, Medicine, and Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix. Dr. Franklin is involved with research focused on adults with congenital heart disease, specifically single ventricle-Fontan physiology, neurocognitive outcomes, pulmonary hypertension, cardiac disease in pregnancy and transition medicine.After a national search, he stood out for his clinical and research accomplishments, as well as his demonstrated ability as a visionary leader and mentor. I look forward to leading the exceptional Heart Center team at Childrens National, as we contribute to advancing pediatric cardiac care and research, said Dr. Franklin. There is a clear dedication to clinical excellence and innovation, and together well continue to advance the field and make a lasting impact on the lives of the children and families we serve. Dr. Franklin is a graduate of Williams College in Williamstown, MA, and UCLA School of Medicine. He completed his residency training in internal medicine and pediatrics at Duke University. He then completed two simultaneous fellowships in adult cardiology and pediatric cardiology at St. Luke's/Texas Heart Institute and at Baylor College of Medicine/Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. Dr. Franklin brings a wealth of expertise and steadfast leadership that will undoubtedly strengthen the foundation of our cardiac program, said David Wessel, M.D. , executive vice president, chief medical officer and physician-in-chief at Childrens National. Together with our Heart Center leadership team, he will ensure were meeting the highest standards of safety, quality and innovative care for our patients and families. The Childrens National Heart Center is a multidisciplinary center that provides high-quality and innovative pediatric cardiac care. In his role as SVP, Dr. Franklin will lead our Heart Center to new heights in pediatric heart care, innovation and education, working together with Yves dUdekem, M.D., Ph.D., chief of the Division of Cardiac Surgery, and Ricardo Munoz, M.D., chief of the Division of Cardiac Critical Care Medicine, and Andrew Waberski, M.D., director of Pediatric Cardiac Anesthesia. Media contact: Jennifer Stinebiser | media@childrensnational.org ### About Childrens National Hospital Childrens National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., was established in 1870 to help every child grow up stronger.Today, it is the No. 5 childrens hospital in the nation and ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. Childrens National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. The Childrens National Research & Innovation Campus opened in 2021, a first-of-its-kind pediatric hub dedicated to developing new and better ways to care for kids. Childrens National has been designated three times in a row as a Magnet hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty care locations in the D.C. metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. Childrens National is home to the Childrens National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation . It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. As a non-profit, Children's National relies on generous donors to help ensure that every child receives the care they need. For more information, follow us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and LinkedIn . Attachment Washington, D.C., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Childrens National Hospital is pleased to welcome Jacqueline M. Saito, M.D., M.S.C.I., M.B.A., as the new chief quality and safety officer and vice president for Medical Affairs, effective March 1, 2024. Dr. Saito will lead Childrens National in its continuous efforts on quality, patient safety and employee safety, as well as medical staff affairs. In addition, she will serve on the medical faculty and as attending physician in the Division of General and Thoracic Surgery. I am honored to lead the patient safety and quality initiatives at Childrens National Hospital, Dr. Saito said. This role is pivotal in advancing our standards of excellence. Together as a team, we will intensify our focus on enhancing quality initiatives and striving to make a positive impact on the lives of our patients, their families and the community we serve. Dr. Saito is a recognized leader in quality improvement, evidence-based care, supply standardization and clinical integration/clinical engagement, and has a background and training in pediatric surgery. Dr. Saito has served as a leader for the American College of Surgeons, National Surgical Quality Improvement Program-Pediatric and has been an active participant in the Childrens Hospitals Solutions for Patient Safety (SPS). Additionally, she has served as the principal investigator for multicenter research projects related to pediatric surgical outcomes. She holds a Master of Science in Clinical Investigation. She joins Childrens National after 15 years at Washington University, St. Louis, where she was associate professor of Surgery and associate medical director of Supply and Resource Stewardship at the BJC Healthcare Center for Clinical Excellence. Dr. Saito has served as site principal investigator for several multi-institutional clinical research projects related to pediatric surgical outcomes and antimicrobial stewardship. We are pleased to welcome Dr. Saitos leadership and expertise as we continue to ensure the safest, highest-quality care for the children we care for, said David Wessel, M.D. , executive vice president, chief medical officer and physician-in-chief at Children's National. With her exceptional background in quality improvement and medical staff affairs she will elevate our efforts in safety, quality improvement and patient care outcomes. Media contact: Ariana Perez | Media@childrensnational.org | 202-476-4500 ### About Childrens National Hospital Childrens National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., was established in 1870 to help every child grow up stronger.Today, it is the No. 5 childrens hospital in the nation and ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. Childrens National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. The Childrens National Research & Innovation Campus opened in 2021, a first-of-its-kind pediatric hub dedicated to developing new and better ways to care for kids. Childrens National has been designated three times in a row as a Magnet hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty care locations in the D.C. metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. Childrens National is home to the Childrens National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. As a non-profit, Children's National relies on generous donors to help ensure that every child receives the care they need. For more information, follow us on Facebook , Instagram , Twitter and LinkedIn. Attachment Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market: Trends, Opportunities and Competitive Analysis [2024-2030]" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The future of the global ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) market looks attractive with opportunities in the packaging, solar, agriculture, wire & cable, footwear, and automotive industries. The global ethylene vinyl acetate market is expected to reach an estimated $16.5 billion by 2030 with a CAGR of 5.1% from 2024 to 2030. The major drivers for this market are growing demand for EVA in food and medical packaging industries and expansion of solar photovoltaic capacity around the globe. Emerging trends, which have a direct impact on the dynamics of the industry, include increasing demand for EVA in the medical industry and expansion of the solar industry. Key Market Insights Films are forecast to remain the largest application segment during the forecast period. It is also expected to witness the highest growth over the forecast period due to increasing awareness of the use of solar energy, which is augmenting the demand for EVA films in photovoltaic cells. Solar is forecast to remain the largest end use industry, and it is also expected to witness the highest growth over the forecast period, supported by growth in solar photovoltaic cell installation in the Asia Pacific region, especially in China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Asia Pacific is expected to remain the largest market by value and volume, and it will experience the highest growth over the forecast period, supported by growth in the various end use industries, such as packaging, footwear, solar photovoltaic cells, and wires & cables. China is the largest market for ethylene vinyl acetate due to its high consumption in footwear, solar, automotive, and wires & cables, supported by the high domestic demand. Key Report Features Market Size Estimates: Ethylene vinyl acetate market size estimation in terms of value ($M) and volume (Million Pounds) Trend and Forecast Analysis: Market trends (2018-2023) and forecast (2024-2030) by various segments and regions. Segmentation Analysis: Ethylene vinyl acetate market size by various segments, such as application, density, and end use industry in terms of value and volume Regional Analysis: Ethylene vinyl acetate market breakdown by North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the World. Growth Opportunities: Analysis of growth opportunities in different applications, densities, end use industries, and regions for the ethylene vinyl acetate market. Strategic Analysis: This includes M&A, new product development, and competitive landscape for the ethylene vinyl acetate market. Analysis of competitive intensity of the industry based on Porter's Five Forces model. Companies in the market compete on the basis of product quality offered. Major players in this market focus on expanding their manufacturing facilities, R&D investments, infrastructural development, and leverage integration opportunities across the value chain. With these strategies ethylene vinyl acetate companies cater increasing demand, ensure competitive effectiveness, develop innovative products & technologies, reduce production costs, and expand their customer base. Some of the ethylene vinyl acetate companies profiled in this report includes: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company Hanwha Chemical ExxonMobil Formosa Plastics LyondellBasell Industries Arkema Celanese USI Lotte Chemical Versalis This report answers the following key questions: What are some of the most promising potential, high-growth opportunities for the global ethylene vinyl acetate market by application (film, foam, adhesives, and others), end use industry (packaging, solar, agriculture, wires & cables, automotive, footwear, and others), density (very low density EVA, low density EVA, medium density EVA, and high density EVA), and region? Which segments will grow at a faster pace and why? Which regions will grow at a faster pace and why? What are the key factors affecting market dynamics? What are the drivers and challenges of the market? What are the business risks and threats to the market? What are the emerging trends in this market and the reasons behind them? What are some changing demands of customers in the market? What are the new developments in the market? Which companies are leading these developments? Who are the major players in this market? What strategic initiatives are being implemented by key players for business growth? What are some of the competitive products and processes in this area, and how big of a threat do they pose for loss of market share via material or product substitution? What M&A activities did take place in the last five years in this market? Key Topics Covered: 1. Executive Summary 2. Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market Dynamics 2.1: Introduction, Background, and Classifications 2.2: Supply Chain 2.3: Industry Drivers and Challenges 3. Market Trends and Forecast Analysis from 2018 to 2030 3.1: Macroeconomic Trends and Forecast 3.2: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market Trends and Forecast 3.3: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market by Application 3.3.1: Films 3.3.2: Foam 3.3.3: Adhesives 3.3.4: Other Applications 3.4: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market by End Use Industry 3.4.1: Packaging 3.4.2: Solar 3.4.3: Agriculture 3.4.4: Wires & Cables 3.4.5: Automotive 3.4.6: Footwear 3.4.7: Other End Use Industries 3.5: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market by Density 3.5.1: Very Low Density EVA 3.5.2: Low Density EVA 3.5.3: Medium Density EVA 3.5.4: High Density EVA 3.6: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market by Process Type 3.6.1: Autoclave 3.6.2: Tubular 4. Market Trends and Forecast Analysis by Region 4.1: Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market by Region 4.2: North American Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 4.3: European Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 4.4: APAC Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 4.5: ROW Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 5. Competitor Analysis 5.1: Product Portfolio Analysis 5.2: Geographical Reach 5.3: Porter's Five Forces Analysis 6. Growth Opportunities and Strategic Analysis 6.1: Growth Opportunity Analysis 6.2: Emerging Trends in the Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 6.3: Strategic Analysis 6.3.1: New Product Development 6.3.2: Capacity Expansion in the Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 6.3.3: Mergers, Acquisitions, and Joint Ventures in the Global Ethylene Vinyl Acetate Market 7. Company Profiles of Leading Players E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company Hanwha Chemical ExxonMobil Corporation Formosa Plastics Corporation LyondellBasell Industries NV Arkema S.A. Celanese Corporation USI Corporation Lotte Chemical Corporation Versalis S.p.A. For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/p7zob4 About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. WINNIPEG, Manitoba, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company (Wawanesa) today announced the official opening of its new national headquarters in downtown Winnipeg. Purpose-built for Wawanesa at True North Square, the 21-storey, environmentally sustainable headquarters features 360,000 square feet of leading-edge workspace for the companys 1,300 local employees. This building proudly symbolizes Wawanesas transformation from small-town roots in rural Manitoba to a leading Canadian mutual insurance company, said Jeff Goy, Wawanesas President and CEO. Wawanesa Insurance began in 1896 when 20 farmers formed an insurance company to meet their local needs. Today our operations span the country with over 1.6 million members, but our commitment to downtown Winnipeg and the Province of Manitoba has never been stronger. Developed by True North Real Estate Development and designed by Architecture49, the new headquarters was built to accommodate Wawanesas growing workforce, which doubled in size over the last decade concurrent with the companys strong financial growth. The new headquarters brings employees from multiple different Manitoba office locations together under one roof. It has been built to leading standards of environmental sustainability and employee wellbeing. The building is on-track to achieve LEED Gold certification, meaning it has been built to meet high standards for energy efficiency, water conservation, and environmental quality, and is on-track to be WELL certified at the Gold level by the end of 2024, reflecting the buildings numerous health and wellness amenities and features. We are thrilled to officially welcome Wawanesa to True North Square and see their vision of an innovative, inviting and purpose-built employee home come to life in opening their new national headquarters, said Jim Ludlow, President of True North Real Estate Development. Wawanesa has long held tremendous pride in their Manitoba roots and their continued commitment to their employees and to being part of a dynamic downtown Winnipeg core also speaks very loudly through this stunning space. Wawanesas new headquarters features modern amenities, flexible workspaces, and spaces that support employee health and wellbeing, such as: Workspaces designed for a broad range of work styles, allowing employees to connect in ways that arent possible digitally; A floor for large meetings, townhalls, and multi-group functions, offering panoramic views of the prairie skyline; A floor devoted to training and development, with state-of-the-art technology and exhibits of Wawanesas rich 127-year history; A cafe on-site with healthy food options and compostable serving-ware, consistent with the companys focus on environmental sustainability; A health & wellness floor, with fitness equipment, wellness consultations, and room for exercise classes; A childcare centre, to be opened at a later date, providing convenience for working parents; Connection to the excitement of True North Square, as well as Winnipegs skywalk system, offering easy access to the citys vibrant culture and amenities. Wawanesa also announced a $500,000 investment in downtown revitalization, with $450,000 over three years to support the Downtown Winnipeg BIZs environmental team, community clean up events, and the planting of seasonal flowers. Wawanesa also made a $50,000 contribution to the Downtown Community Safety Partnership. Wawanesa is proud to partner with our community, Goy added. Our operations span the country, but Manitoba is our home and always will be. About The Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company The Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company, founded in 1896, is one of Canadas largest mutual insurers, with over $3.5 billion in annual revenue and assets of $10 billion. Wawanesa Mutual, with its National Headquarters in Winnipeg, is the parent company of Wawanesa Life, which provides life insurance products and services throughout Canada, and Western Financial Group, which distributes personal and business insurance across Canada. Wawanesa proudly serves more than 1.7 million members in Canada. The company actively gives back to organizations that strengthen communities, donating more than $3.5 million annually to charitable organizations, including over $2 million annually in support of people on the front lines of climate change. Learn more at wawanesa.com For more information: Brad Hartle Manager, Corporate Communications & Media Relations The Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company Phone: 1-844-946-6282 media@wawanesa.com Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Anxiety Disorders And Depression Treatment Market Analysis & Forecast 2024-2034: Market By Drug Class; By Indication; By Distribution Channel; and By Region" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global anxiety disorders and depression treatment market size was estimated to be USD 21.56 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach at USD 41.83 billion by 2034 with a CAGR of 6.21% during the forecast period 2024-2034. Surge in prevalence of anxiety disorders & depression, growing awareness regarding the disorders among population, rising innovative product launches by key market players, increasing focus on development of novel therapies, growing investment for research by major market players, surge in novel drug approvals by regulatory bodies, and rising research & development activities for the development of innovative drugs for the treatment of anxiety & depression disorders are some of the key factors boosting the market growth. Rising research & development activities for the development of innovative drugs for the treatment of anxiety & depression disorders is predicted to boost the market growth during the forecast period. For instance, in February 2022, AbbVie has sent an additional application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the medication cariprazine (marketed as VRAYLAR). This application pertains to the use of cariprazine as an add-on treatment for individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) who are already undergoing antidepressant therapy. By drug class, antidepressants was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global anxiety disorders and depression treatment market in 2023 owing to growing prevalence of major depressive disorder, increasing focus on manufacturing of advanced antidepressant drugs, and rising number of approvals for antidepressant drugs. By indication, major depressive disorder (MDD) was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global anxiety disorders and depression treatment market in 2023 owing to the growing prevalence of major depressive disorder, increasing product launches by major market players, and rising regulatory approvals. By distribution channel, hospital pharmacies was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global anxiety disorders and depression treatment market in 2023 owing to a rise in the number of patients seeking treatment & the sales of medications obtained by prescription for the treatment of MDD & other depressive disorders, increasing launch of new products by leading market players, and growing initiatives by major market players. Anxiety Disorders And Depression Treatment Market Analysis & Forecast by Drug Class 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn) Antidepressants Anxiolytics Anticonvulsants Noradrenergic Agents Atypical Antipsychotics Anxiety Disorders And Depression Treatment Market Analysis & Forecast by Indication 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn) Phobia Major Depressive Disorder Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Others Anxiety Disorders And Depression Treatment Market Analysis & Forecast by Distribution Channel 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn) Retail Pharmacies Online Pharmacies Hospital Pharmacies Companies Mentioned Axsome Therapeutics Abbvie Biogen Inc. Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Merck & Co. Inc AstraZeneca Eli Lily & Co GlaxoSmithKline Sage Therapeutics Inc H. Lundbeck A/S Johnson & Johnson Pfizer Inc Dr. Reddy's Laboratory Sanofi-Aventis Forest Laboratories For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/vld7vw About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Attachment ANN ARBOR, Mich., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Washtenaw Community College (WCC) will open its virtual classroom doors to the public during Free College Week on Monday, April 8, through Friday, April 12. The week will culminate in on-campus, in-person events Saturday, April 13. Registration for the classes opened today. In-person activities include hands-on sessions, campus tours and an Esports tournament featuring the popular game Super Smash Bros in the campus Esports arena. Community members, business representatives, prospective students and others throughout Washtenaw County and beyond are invited to attend the more than 120 free online sessions. In recognition of national Community College Month in April, WCCs annual Free College Week is a unique opportunity to serve and engage the community that supports it by providing high quality learning experiences at no cost. We are the communitys college, and Free College Week is our way of thanking everyone for their support. We love opening our doors and inviting the community to be a part of the incredible learning opportunities here, whether its brushing up on a professional skill that can help on the job or exploring potential career options or new hobbies, said WCC President Dr. Rose B. Bellanca. Last year more than 3,800 people registered for Free College Week classes. Classes are designed for a wide range of ages and include topics to help people hone computer skills, grow businesses, explore cultures, improve personal wellness and more. WCC faculty members from academic programs, as well as trainers from the colleges non-credit Economic & College Development division and outside businesses, will teach. Classes are provided at multiple times from morning through evening to offer flexibility to accommodate schedules. Visit the Free College Week webpage for class details and to register. General topics include: Virtual Classes Interview Skills to Land Your Next Job First Time Home Buyer Seminar Cooking 101: Quick and Easy Italian Supper Exploring Smartphones and Tablets Understanding a Doctors Office Visit Dental Careers 101 Windows Computer Basics Aerial Photography with Drones Ornamental Tree Pruning And much more In-person Classes Exploring Chemistry A Short History of Fake News General Maintenance for Your HVAC Equipment Lets Record a Song! Introduction to Yoga What to Know About Getting Your Real Estate License And much more Students who want to enroll in WCCs Summer and Fall semesters can do so through Xpress Registration from 9 a.m.3 p.m. April 13 during on-campus events. FREE COLLEGE WEEK When: Virtual classes, April 8-12 On-campus and in-person, April 13 Times: 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Who: Open to all ages Where: Online via Zoom Cost: Free Email: fcw@wccnet.edu Website: wccnet.edu/fcw About Washtenaw Community College Washtenaw Community College (WCC), Ann Arbor, Michigan, educates students through a wide range of associate and certificate programs in areas such as health care, business, STEM and advanced transportation and mobility. The college also works through community, business and union partnerships to develop highly specialized training programs to meet the regions workforce talent needs. For more information about Washtenaw Community College, visit www.wccnet.edu. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/134075d8-78bd-4e67-a9c4-48366cc7a955 Edmonton, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Edmonton, Alberta - A trusted name in garage door repairs, Garage Door Fix offers an extensive range of services and is now available in 12 cities across the nation. A leading name in garage door repair services, Garage Door Fix proudly announces the launch of four new service locations in Canada. Committed to delivering top-notch repair solutions and unparalleled customer service, Garage Door Fix extends its footprint to Edmonton, Toronto, Bradford, and Vaughan, catering to the growing demand for reliable and efficient garage door services in these regions. The decision to expand into these key Canadian cities comes as a response to the increasing need for professional garage door repair services. Recognizing the importance of timely and effective repairs for both residential and commercial clients, Garage Door Fix aims to bridge the gap by providing comprehensive solutions tailored to meet the unique needs of each customer. In Edmonton, residents can now rely on Garage Door Fix's expertise to address a wide range of garage door issues, from malfunctioning openers to broken springs. With a team of skilled technicians stationed in the area, prompt assistance is just a phone call away, ensuring minimal disruption to daily routines and relief to homeowners and businesses grappling with faulty garage doors. The expansion into Toronto, Bradford, and Vaughan further solidifies Garage Door Fix's commitment to serving communities across Canada. By establishing a presence in these regions, the company aims to make quality garage door repair services more accessible to residents, providing peace of mind knowing that expert assistance is readily available whenever needed. Whether it's a minor adjustment or a major repair job, customers can trust Garage Door Fix to deliver results that exceed expectations, backed by years of industry experience and unparalleled professionalism. For more information, visit https://garagedoorfix.ca/ At the core of Garage Door Fix's mission is a dedication to customer satisfaction. Each service location is equipped with the latest equipment to tackle even the most complex repair challenges with ease. Notably, the company prides itself on its transparent pricing and upfront approach, with no extra charges on weekends, evenings, or holidays. The company's range of professional services includes installation and covers every aspect of maintaining the aesthetics and performance of an installed unit. The installation of new garage doors is carried out by an efficient team of experts, providing top-quality service that ensures complete customer satisfaction. Repair services are the bread and butter of the company's services and include repairing and replacing garage door springs, cables, door openers, and more. Its garage door paint service ensures that the garage door gets a fresh look that complements any home or business premise. In addition to repair services, Garage Door Fix offers preventive maintenance packages designed to prolong the lifespan of garage doors and minimize the risk of unexpected breakdowns. By scheduling regular maintenance checks, customers can avoid costly repairs down the line and ensure that their garage doors remain in optimal condition year-round. Located in a dozen cities across Canada and growing, Garage Door Fix is the go-to destination for all their garage door repair needs. With convenient service locations and highly skilled technicians standing by, efficient and affordable garage door services are never far away. With the launch of these four new locations in Edmonton, Toronto, Bradford, and Vaughan, Garage Door Fix reaffirms its position as a trusted name in the industry, setting new standards for excellence in garage door repair across Canada. Whether a simple fix or a complex overhaul, customers can rely on Garage Door Fix to deliver results second to none, backed by a commitment to quality, reliability, and customer satisfaction. About the Company: Located in 12 major cities, Garage Door Fix has built a reputation for reliability and excellence in garage door services across Canada. With an unparalleled commitment to delivering top-notch service, the company caters to a spectrum of needs, from routine maintenance to emergency repairs and sophisticated installations. With teams of experienced and skilled professionals nationwide, the company guarantees that each service call is carried out meticulously, ensuring the highest standards for repairs, installations, and maintenance services. ### For more information about Garage Door Fix, contact the company here: Garage Door Fix Stan Klugman (825) 901-9596 contact@garagedoorfix.ca #160 6325 Gateway Blvd NW, T6H 5H6 Edmonton, Alberta SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Organizers of the California Hydrogen Leadership Summit (CHLS) unveiled the event agenda for the annual policy event that will focus on the development, storage, and use of clean hydrogen to achieve the state's climate and economic goals. The Summit, scheduled for June 16-17, 2024, at the Sheraton Grand Sacramento Hotel in downtown Sacramento, California, convenes state lawmakers, utility specialists, and experts from the energy and transportation sectors to advance hydrogen-related public policy aimed to improve air quality and escalate energy resilience. The program agenda and speaker list continue to be updated at www.CAhydrogenleadershipsummit.com. "Policymakers and industry leaders need a forum to debate and explore ways to make hydrogen increasingly feasible for use in the energy and transportation markets," said Katrina Fritz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the California Hydrogen Business Council and co-organizer of the CHLS event. "The purpose of the Summit is to develop common understanding of what is needed for hydrogen projects to succeed, develop policy action in support of new decarbonization technologies and programs, and also put large-scale investment measures in place to fund deployment of these climate friendly hydrogen solutions." The five core interactive modules selected for the 2024 Summit agenda include: Exploring the Keys to Success for Californias Hydrogen Hub: Leaders of ARCHES explain the Hydrogen Hub benefits provided to overburdened communities and discuss ongoing efforts to leverage investment in the hydrogen industry. Hydrogen Decarbonizing Transportation: Dig into the policy changes needed on both the federal and state level to allow hydrogen fuel to unlock decarbonization of the transportation industry. Building Efficiencies in Permitting and Approval Processes: Stakeholders investigate important questions surrounding the states permitting and approval processes that allow jurisdictions to safely implement projects at scale. Valuing Renewable Hydrogen and its Environmental Attributes: This myth busting panel will examine the misconceptions surrounding the environmental impact of producing renewable hydrogen and what regulations are needed to ensure energy and environmental benefits. Visions for the Future: Balancing Hope and Realism, a CEO Roundtable: Attendees will gain perspective from top executives of what to expect from the hydrogen industry in the coming years through promising ideas, technologies, and vehicles building upon the strong foundation of todays investments and the Hydrogen Hub. Now in its third year, the annual Summit plays a crucial role in aligning elected officials, public agencies, and corporate leaders with state mandates to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045 and deliver 90% clean electricity by 2035. Esteemed speakers at the event include State Sen. Josh Newman, 29th District; State Sen. Anna M. Caballero, 14th District; Assemblymember Juan Carrillo, 39th District; Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, 73rd District; California State Treasurer Fiona Ma; California Energy Commission Vice Chair Siva Gunda; Alberto Ayala, Executive Director and Air Pollution Control Officer, Sacramento Metropolitan AQMD; Seth Harris, Director of Sustainability, Americas, Emerson; and Mike G. Hart, CEO of Sierra Energy. Angelina Galiteva, CEO of Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES), the California Hydrogen Hub, will deliver one of the Summits keynote remarks outlining how the state initiative is accelerating renewable hydrogen projects. These measures are expected to create more than 20,000 green jobs and generate $2.95 billion per year in economic gains, including significant community healthcare cost savings from pollution reduction. California is leading the nation on how hydrogen can become a major economic driver to pave the way for creation of renewable energy, grid resiliency, and green jobs, said Cliff Gladstein, founding president of GNA, a TRC Company, and co-organizer of the CHLS event. The Summit serves as a catalyst for assembling this distinguished group of industry experts who are committed to harnessing the power of hydrogen to build a cleaner and more prosperous future." The California Hydrogen Leadership Summit is organized by the California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC), the state's largest and most diverse hydrogen trade association, and Gladstein, Neandross & Associates (GNA), a TRC Company, a leading clean energy and transportation consulting firm. Presenting Sponsors for CHLS 2024 include Accelera by Cummins, Chevron, Emerson/Caltrol, PG&E, Sierra Northern Railway/Sierra Energy, and SoCalGas. To register or learn more, visit www.CAhydrogenleadershipsummit.com. #### About the California Hydrogen Leadership Summit The Summit brings together policymakers, public agencies, business leaders, and stakeholders from the hydrogen, bioenergy, solar, wind, fuel cell, utilities, and transportation industries, as well as other participants, to inform California policymakers on the economic and environmental benefits of hydrogen. Set for June 16-17, 2024, the Summit is expected to assemble 400+ attendees from across the public and private sectors. It is co-produced by the California Hydrogen Business Council (CHBC) and Gladstein, Neandross & Associates (GNA), a TRC Company, who together have 50+ years of experience advocating for hydrogen and organizing clean energy conferences. The CHBC is comprised of over 140 organizations involved in the business of hydrogen, united to commercialize hydrogen in all market sectors to achieve Californias climate, air quality, and decarbonization goals. GNA (now TRC) is the leading North American consulting firm specializing in market development for low-emission and alternative fuel vehicle technologies, infrastructure, and fuels. Learn more at www.CAhydrogenleadershipsummit.com. Attachment LOS ANGELES, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Feit Electric Company, Inc. (Feit Electric), a leading global lighting and smart home brand headquartered in California, today commenced a second white LED filament patent enforcement action against Savant Technologies LLC doing business as GE Lighting (Savant) in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. Despite being warned by Feit Electric, Savant imported and then sold white LED filament light bulbs marketed under the GE brand. Feit Electric introduced light bulbs with white LED filaments in August 2022 and the fresh alternative to the traditional yellow filament quickly appealed to retailers and consumers. Anticipating that other light bulb suppliers might copy the Feit Electric white LED filament bulbs, Feit Electric announced to the industry that it owns a set of patents directed to covering the yellow material used on LED filaments. Not only did we widely announce to the industry that Feit Electric owns a set of patents directed to covering the yellow material used on LED filaments, but we also specifically and directly informed Savant as well as retailers and other manufacturers, said Alan Feit, President of Feit Electric. Despite those warnings, Savant went forward with infringing white LED filament products. Feit Electric is seeking an injunction to bar the further importation and sale of infringing white LED filament light bulbs, for damages, and for enhanced damages and attorney fees for willful infringement. While we would prefer that our competitors respect our patents, we are committed to enforcing our patents against infringers if they do not. We also hope that retailers look to us for light bulbs with visible white filaments, rather than infringers, said Mr. Feit. Feit Electrics new line of white filament decorative lighting is available at The Home Depot and Ace Hardware stores. For more information on Feit Electrics white filament product line visit feit.com. About Feit Electric Founded and headquartered in California, Feit Electric is celebrating over 45 years as a leading global lighting and smart home brand. Through innovative design, supply chain expertise, and industry-leading technology, Feit Electric offers its customers a full portfolio of reliable lighting products including home decor lighting collections, light fixtures, smart and feature-rich high-performance lighting solutions as well as a full line of general household, specialty light bulbs in all shapes, sizes, and configurations. For more information, visit feit.com, and follow us on X , Facebook , Instagram , TikTok and YouTube . A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5198fdad-192e-484d-afa8-b7cc49cc704f VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nevada Exploration Inc. (NGE or the Company) (TSX-V:NGE; OTCQB:NVDEF) announces that further to its news release dated February 20, 2024, that due to excess demand the private placement has been increased from C$550,000 to up to C$605,000. Subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval, the Company now intends to complete a non-brokered private placement offering of up to 5,500,000 units (the Units) at a price of C$0.11 per Unit (the Offering), for total gross proceeds of up to C$605,000. Each Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of the Company (a Common Share) and one Common Share purchase warrant (a Warrant), with each Warrant entitling the holder thereof to acquire an additional Common Share at an exercise price of C$0.20 per Common Share for 36 months after the date of issuance (the Closing Date). If after four months plus one day from the Closing Date the closing price (or closing bid price on days when there are no trades) of NGEs common shares is greater than C$0.40 per share for 10 consecutive trading days, NGE may accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants to the 30th day after the date on which NGE gives notice to the Warrant holders of such acceleration, with such notice being the issuance of a news release by the Company announcing the acceleration of the expiry date. Proceeds from the Offering will be used for general working capital purposes. The Offering is subject to receipt of all necessary regulatory and TSX Venture Exchange approvals. The securities issued at closing of the Offering will be subject to a four month plus one day hold period from the date of issue, as well as to any other re-sale restrictions imposed by applicable securities regulatory authorities. Subject to approval by the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities legislation, NGE may pay finders fees with respect to certain subscriptions from arms length subscribers in accordance with the TSX Venture Exchange Policies. About Nevada Exploration Inc. NGE has for the past several years been applying modern technology to systematically explore for the undiscovered second half of Nevadas gold endowment waiting to be uncovered within Nevadas valley basins. The Company is examining other opportunities in its quest to create shareholder value. For further information, please contact: Nevada Exploration Inc. Email: info@nevadaexploration.com Telephone: +1 (604) 601 2006 Website: www.nevadaexploration.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. WASHINGTON, DC, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Leaders for AmeriCorps, Engage Arkansas, Arkansas State Parks and the Arkansas Parks & Recreation Foundation gathered at Pinnacle Mountain State Park on Monday, March 11, for the official signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding designed to create a framework for increased conservation programs and environmental activities in Arkansas. The signing event took place during AmeriCorps Week, March 10-16. The annual celebration recognizes the more than 1.3 million Americans who have chosen to serve their country through AmeriCorps programs as well as the thousands of AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers. The State Parks of Arkansas date back to 1907, when Fort Smith Lumber Company officials toured Petit Jean Mountain in the Arkansas River Valley. Impressed by the mountains beauty, they sought to protect it, ultimately leading to the passage of Act 276 of 1923, creating Arkansas State Parks. Now, more than 100 years later, this continuing partnership will advance the shared conservation priorities of key partners from AmeriCorps and Arkansas. The state of Arkansas, with knowledge of its needs, priorities and existing efforts in conservation, will leverage AmeriCorps NCCCs ability to deploy teams quickly, frequently and effectively. Since 2018, twelve AmeriCorps NCCC teams have served with Arkansas State Parks. This agreement demonstrates a commitment to prioritize and increase projects in the parks, with the potential for up to 10 AmeriCorps NCCC teams over the next 12 months, with the potential to renew and extend the MOU in the future. AmeriCorps members in the NCCC program will create and restore hiking trails, plant trees and construct and renovate public buildings to support Arkansas promotion of its incredibly beautiful parks, scenic rivers and hunting grounds to boost tourism, outdoor recreation and public health. AmeriCorps is committed to helping build resilient communities that conserve public lands and waters, said Michael D. Smith, CEO, AmeriCorps. Uniting community and national service with conservation efforts delivers a win all around. It improves the environment, strengthens local economies and provides pathways to clean jobs. I couldnt be more encouraged to begin this important work with our partners in Arkansas, protecting public lands and creating greater access for all. The AmeriCorps current has been flowing through Arkansas for 30 years, and thanks to this programming, our state has been able to meet and serve many community needs, said Amanda R. Nipper, Co-Chair, Governors Commission on National Service and Volunteerism- Engage Arkansas. Arkansas State Parks are a treasure in this state, and Engage Arkansas is proud to collaborate with the state parks office and our AmeriCorps NCCC partners to accomplish even more. In Arkansas, we are always looking to enhance the conservation of our natural heritage for future generations, Secretary of Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism Shea Lewis said. We look forward to continuing our partnership with AmeriCorps as they continue to aid us in the important task of building a skilled workforce and growing conservation efforts. Outdoor recreation and tourism revenue are vital to the Arkansas economy. The shared goals of this partnership, signed just one month ahead of Earth Day, will leverage conservation-based programs and activities, effectively protecting and increasing access to environmental and outdoor resources in Arkansas. Since 2000, AmeriCorps NCCC teams have assisted 20.6 million people in disaster areas, recruited or coordinated nearly 940,000 volunteers, assisted more than 33,000 veterans, served 6.1 million meals, protected more than 1.6 million acres of land through firefighting and fire management and more. This AmeriCorps Week, AmeriCorps celebrates its 30th Anniversary and the millions of Americans ages 18 to 55+, who have served with AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors programs. In nearly 40,000 locations right now, more than 200,000 people serve as members or volunteers across all 50 states and territories. To join the celebration, follow AmeriCorps on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and join the conversation by sharing pictures and stories on Twitter, using #AmeriCorpsWeek. AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism, provides opportunities for Americans to serve their country domestically, address the nations most pressing challenges, improve lives and communities, and strengthen civic engagement. Each year, the agency places more than 200,000 AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in intensive service roles; and empowers millions more to serve as long-term, short-term, or one-time volunteers. Learn more at AmeriCorps.gov. AmeriCorps offers opportunities for individuals of all backgrounds to be a part of the national service community, grow personally and professionally, and receive benefits for their service. Learn how to get involved at AmeriCorps.gov/Serve. Attachment Dubai, UAE, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In a significant advancement for the field of plastic surgery, SNB Aesthetic Clinic has announced the integration of cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technologies into its surgical practices. This development marks a new era in enhancing surgical precision, patient safety, and personalized treatment outcomes in the domain of aesthetics. The clinic's initiative positions it at the forefront of innovation, setting a new standard for aesthetics clinics globally, particularly in the competitive landscape of plastic surgery in dubai. The integration of AI into plastic surgery practices offers a transformative approach to preoperative planning, surgical execution, and postoperative care. By harnessing the power of AI, SNB Aesthetic Clinic aims to refine the precision of surgical procedures, tailor treatments to the individual needs of patients, and significantly reduce the risk of complications. This innovative step underscores the commitment of the clinic to leveraging technology for the benefit of patient care and outcomes. Artificial intelligence systems at SNB Aesthetic Clinic utilize advanced algorithms to analyze extensive datasets, including medical imaging, patient health records, and outcomes from previous surgeries. This analysis enables a plastic surgeon to make informed decisions tailored to the unique anatomical and health profiles of their patients. The technology aids in predicting potential surgical risks and optimizes the surgical approach for each patient, thereby enhancing the accuracy of interventions and the likelihood of optimal results. The use of AI also extends to surgical simulation, allowing surgeons to practice and refine their techniques in a risk-free virtual environment. This capability is particularly beneficial for complex facial surgeries, where precision is paramount. Surgeons can explore various surgical strategies and anticipate the outcome of each, ensuring that the chosen approach is the most effective and safest for the patient. In the realm of patient consultation and planning, AI-driven tools offer a new level of clarity and understanding. Through realistic 3D modeling and simulation, patients can visualize the potential results of their surgeries, fostering a more informed and confident decision-making process. This technological approach demystifies surgical outcomes, bridging the gap between patient expectations and surgical reality. Moreover, the post-operative phase benefits greatly from AI and data analysis. The clinic employs advanced monitoring tools and algorithms to track patient recovery, identify any signs of complications early, and adapt care plans as needed. This proactive approach to post-surgical care not only enhances patient safety but also contributes to faster, smoother recoveries and higher overall satisfaction with the surgical experience. The ethical use of AI and data in surgery is a priority for the SNB Aesthetic Clinic. All technological applications comply with the highest standards of data privacy, security, and patient consent. The clinic remains dedicated to the responsible use of AI, ensuring that all innovations serve to enhance patient care without compromising personal privacy or autonomy. This initiative by SNB Aesthetic Clinic represents a significant leap forward in the practice of plastic surgery, particularly within the vibrant medical tourism destination of Dubai. As one of the leading aesthetics clinics in Dubai, SNB Aesthetic Clinic is not only advancing the technical capabilities of plastic surgeons but also setting a benchmark in patient-centric care. Through the adoption of AI and data analysis, the clinic is redefining what is possible in the field of aesthetic medicine, ensuring that patients receive the safest, most effective treatments available. As the global community continues to witness remarkable advancements in technology and healthcare, SNB Aesthetic Clinic's commitment to innovation places it at the cutting edge of the aesthetics field. This initiative promises to inspire further advancements and adoption of AI in healthcare, paving the way for a future where technology and medicine converge to offer unprecedented benefits to patients worldwide. About SNB Aesthetic Clinic SNB Aesthetic Clinic is a premier provider of plastic surgery and aesthetic treatments in Dubai, UAE. With a focus on innovation, safety, and personalized care, the clinic offers a wide range of surgical and non-surgical services designed to meet the diverse needs of its patients. Led by a team of highly skilled plastic surgeons and supported by the latest technologies, SNB Aesthetic Clinic is dedicated to achieving the highest standards of patient satisfaction and outcomes. For more information about SNB Aesthetic Clinic and its innovative approach to plastic surgery, please visit the clinic's website. Media info, Contact Person, Dr. Bahareh Farahi Company, SNB Aesthetic Clinic Email, info@snbaestheticclinic.com Website, https://www.snbaestheticclinic.com Address, Dubai, UAE Disclaimer, This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The information contained herein is provided without any warranties, express or implied. Before considering any cosmetic or surgical procedures, individuals should consult with a qualified healthcare provider. SNB Aesthetic Clinic is not liable for any decisions made based on this release. YUBA CITY, Calif., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- River Valley Community Bancorp (OTC markets: RVCB) with its wholly owned subsidiary, River Valley Community Bank (collectively referred to as the RVCB), has been featured as an Exceptional Bank in The Findley Reports March 2024 Newsletter. About the Findley Companies Since 1965, The Findley Companies have been committed to supporting Premier Performance for California Financial institutions. The Findley Companies publishes the highly recognized The Findley Report Newsletter, a monthly publication providing essential banking transactions and regulatory updates in an editorial format. These newsletters, and more information on the Findley Companies, can be found at www.findley-reports.com. River Valley Community Bank has been profiled as an Exceptional Bank in The Findley Reports March 2024 newsletter publication. The Findley Reports has profiled exceptional banks for several years, but only profiles four exceptional banks a year. The publication reviews RVCBs commitment to its marketplace, focus on customer satisfaction and delivering relationship-oriented service over its nearly 18 years of operation. The article also includes some key operating results and an in-depth interview with President and CEO, John M. Jelavich, about the direction and focus of RVCB, and what makes RVCB Exceptional! The entire Exceptional Bank Profile can be viewed HERE. CEO John M. Jelavich stated, We are proud to be recognized as an Exceptional Bank by The Findley Reports. This designation is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire RVCB team. Our reputation for hands-on, community focused, relationship-based banking continues to grow throughout our markets. We strongly believe that banks like ours play a vital role in providing full-service banking solutions for our communities and we are honored with this recognition, Jelavich concluded. The Bank remains highly rated with BauerFinancial, and Depositaccounts.com and serves its customer base through its offices located at: 1629 Colusa Avenue, Yuba City, CA 580 Brunswick Rd, Grass Valley, CA 905 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA 904 B Street, Marysville, CA 401 Ryland Street, Ste. 205, Reno, NV (Loan Production Office) 1508 Eureka Rd., Ste. 100, Roseville, CA (Loan Production Office) The Bank offers a full suite of competitive products, services, and banking technology. For more information please visit our website at www.myrvcb.com or contact John M. Jelavich at (530) 821-2469. Forward Looking Statements: This document may contain comments and information that constitute forwardlooking statements. Forwardlooking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements. Forwardlooking statements speak only as to the date they are made. The Bank does not undertake to update forwardlooking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forwardlooking statements are made. Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Rendered Poultry Products Global Market Report 2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The rendered poultry products market size is expected to see steady growth in the next few years. It will grow to $7.96 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.5%. The anticipated growth in the forecast period can be attributed to regional market expansion, a growing interest in sustainable agriculture practices, global economic recovery, increased adoption of alternative protein sources, and a rising demand for high-quality proteins. Noteworthy trends expected during the forecast period include a rise in meat production, an increased market size, market segmentation based on type and grade of rendered poultry products, technological advancements in the rendering industry, an evolving competitor landscape in the market, and the influence of macroeconomic factors. The rendered poultry products market is anticipated to experience growth driven by the increase in meat production. Meat production involves the comprehensive process of nurturing, slaughtering, and processing animals for human consumption. The utilization of rendered poultry products in this context enhances the incorporation of poultry byproducts, minimizes waste, and adds value to the meat production cycle by combining poultry byproducts with beef, chicken, and pork. Recent data from the Foreign Agricultural Service indicated a rise in global chicken meat production from 101.2 million tons in 2021 to 102 million tons in 2022. Similarly, global beef and veal production increased from 58.4 million tons in 2021 to 59.3 million tons in 2022. Forecasts from the Food and Agriculture Organization suggest a global meat production increase to 373 million tons by 2030. This surge in meat production is a significant driver for the rendered poultry products market. The growing demand for snack foods is poised to further propel the rendered poultry products market. Snack foods, categorized as ready-to-eat items consumed between regular meals, are witnessing increased popularity. Rendered poultry products contribute to the versatility and flavor enhancement of snack options, aligning with consumer preferences for diverse and flavorful snacking choices. According to a report from SNAC International, snacks accounted for 27% of total food and beverage sales in the United States, with salty snack sales reaching approximately $28.4 billion in 2022 - a notable 15.6% growth compared to the previous year. This escalating demand for snack foods is a key factor driving the rendered poultry products market. A prominent trend in the rendered poultry products market is the increasing investment in this sector by major companies to maintain market positions. For example, Tyson Foods Inc., a leading US-based company in rendered poultry products, invested $208 million in the Hanceville rendering plant in April 2022. This substantial investment aims to boost food production efficiency, reduce energy usage, and provide a concentrated protein source for animal feed and pet food. Such investments play a pivotal role in supporting the agricultural industry and poultry processing in specific regions. Innovation in product offerings is a noteworthy strategy adopted by major companies in the rendered poultry products market. Companies are developing innovative products, such as organic chicken products, to cater to larger customer bases, drive sales, and increase revenue. Diana Food, a France-based provider of rendered poultry products, launched a range of organic poultry products in February 2021. This selection includes organic hen broth, hen bone broth, hen meat powder, and hen fat. The unique aspect lies in the sourcing approach, ensuring ethically raised chicken materials from local farmers. Additionally, the products boast non-allergenic characteristics, a clean label, and no additives such as monosodium glutamate (MSG) or added hormones. Report Scope Markets Covered: 1) By Type: Poultry Fat; Grease; Protein Meal; Other Types 2) By Grade: Food Grade; Feed Grade; Industrial Grade 3) By Application: Food Industry; Medical Industry; Other Applications Key Companies Mentioned: Cargill Inc.; JBS USA Holdings Inc.; Tyson Foods Inc.; Smithfield Foods Inc.; Hormel Foods Corporation Regions: Asia-Pacific; Western Europe; Eastern Europe; North America; South America; Middle East; Africa Time Series: Five years historic and ten years forecast Data: Ratios of market size and growth to related markets, GDP proportions, expenditure per capita Data Segmentation: Country and regional historic and forecast data, market share of competitors, market segments For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/syuvdz About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Attachment Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Crop Reinsurance Global Market Report 2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The crop reinsurance market size is expected to see strong growth in the next few years. It will grow to $53.32 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.4%. The anticipated growth in the forecast period can be ascribed to the adoption of precision farming techniques, a heightened awareness of climate-related risks, the integration of satellite and drone technologies for risk assessment, the emergence of index-based insurance solutions for crops, and the tailoring of reinsurance products to address regional risks. Key trends expected in the forecast period encompass technological advancements in agriculture, collaborative efforts between insurers and reinsurers to mitigate risks, progress in data analytics for precise risk modeling, the adoption of blockchain to enhance transparency in reinsurance transactions, the implementation of IoT for real-time monitoring, and an increased emphasis on social and environmental sustainability in the field of crop reinsurance. An anticipated rise in natural disasters is set to drive the growth of the crop reinsurance market in the future. Crop reinsurance serves as a financial safeguard for crop insurers against losses resulting from natural disasters, offering support to farmers or agricultural entities when their crops are adversely affected or destroyed due to such events. The increase in agricultural productivity is poised to contribute to the growth of the crop reinsurance market in the future. Agricultural productivity denotes the efficiency and output of crop and livestock production within a specified area or timeframe. Crop reinsurance plays a pivotal role in enhancing agricultural productivity by mitigating financial risks associated with crop losses, thereby fostering stability in the farming sector. Major companies in the crop reinsurance sector are actively engaged in developing innovative solutions in reinsurance practices to maintain their market positions. For example, in September 2021, MS Amlin Ltd., a UK-based insurance company, introduced its agriculture and weather index reinsurance practice. This new practice offers coverage for crop insurance, livestock insurance, aquaculture insurance, forestry goods, and weather index products globally. It serves as a reliable option for farmers across major agriculture markets worldwide, providing insurance against crop losses. The practice, backed by deep technical expertise and financial strength, contributes to the financial stability of farmers and offers insurance for crop yield and crop revenue. The primary categories of crop reinsurance include crop yield reinsurance, crop price reinsurance, and crop revenue reinsurance. Crop yield reinsurance provides coverage to agricultural producers against losses arising from low crop yields. Its various applications include multi-peril crop insurance (MPCI), crop hail, livestock, and forestry. These reinsurance products are distributed through channels such as banks, insurance companies, brokers and agents, and other relevant avenues. Report Scope Markets Covered: 1) By Type: Crop Yield Reinsurance; Crop Price Reinsurance; Crop Revenue Reinsurance 2) By Application: Multi-Peril Crop Insurance (MPCI); Crop Hail; Livestock; Forestry 3) By Distribution Channel: Banks; Insurance Companies; Brokers and Agents; Other Distribution Channels Key Companies Mentioned: Munich Re Group; Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd.; Tokio Marine Holdings Inc.; Chubb Group of Insurance Companies; Zurich Insurance Group Ltd. Regions: Asia-Pacific; Western Europe; Eastern Europe; North America; South America; Middle East; Africa Time Series: Five years historic and ten years forecast Data: Ratios of market size and growth to related markets, GDP proportions, expenditure per capita For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/uk79a6 About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Attachment Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Investments Global Market Report 2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The investments market size is expected to see strong growth in the next few years. It will grow to $5680.1 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.5%. Forecasted growth is fueled by sustainable investing, digital currencies, global trade changes, regulatory shifts, and cybersecurity concerns. Major upcoming trends include robo-advisors, increased private equity and venture capital activities, emphasis on real assets and infrastructure investments, integration of AI in investment strategies, and diversified investment portfolios. Numerous wealth management firms are strategically investing in advanced big data analytics capabilities to derive insights that enhance and optimize service offerings, ultimately driving revenue growth. The deployment of big data solutions plays a crucial role in providing insights into client segments, product penetration, and evaluating the effectiveness of training programs. These technologies enable wealth management companies to assess clients' preferences, lifetime value, investment patterns, and risk tolerance. Moreover, big data analytics aids in monitoring business performance, improving client acquisition and retention rates, boosting sales, and delivering real-time investment advice. An illustrative example is CargoMetrics, a Boston-based investment firm that utilized the Automatic Identification System (AIS) to gather data on commodity movements. This data was employed to develop an analytics platform for trading commodities, currencies, and equity index funds. Additionally, the tool was successfully marketed to other hedge funds and wealth management entities. The anticipated increase in economic growth is poised to drive the expansion of the investment market in the foreseeable future. Economic growth, characterized by a sustained rise in the production and consumption of goods and services within an economy, brings forth several advantages for investments. This includes an upsurge in investment opportunities, heightened returns, increased consumer spending, and expanded foreign trade. As of September 2023, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported a 2.1% annualized growth rate in real gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of 2023, reflecting a positive trend. Hence, the anticipated upswing in economic growth serves as a driving force behind the growth of the investment market. Wealth management firms are increasingly embracing a hybrid service model, offering a blend of standardized and personalized advice to a global client base. The demand for both standardized and customized solutions has grown significantly, prompting wealth management firms to leverage computer-driven analysis for standardized advisory services. Simultaneously, they maintain a high level of granularity in their offerings, delivering tailored solutions to meet individual client needs. Major companies are at the forefront of innovation, introducing new batches of dual investment products to fortify their market positions. Dual investment products refer to financial instruments that combine features from two distinct types of investments. For instance, in September 2023, Binance, a company based in the Cayman Islands specializing in cryptocurrency exchanges, unveiled a fresh batch of dual investment products. These products come with updated target prices and settlement dates, offering users free access to Buy Low and Sell High options at their chosen prices on selected future dates. Designed to cater to new Dual Investment users, the products include a step-by-step guide for better user understanding. Notably, the unique feature of these products is the absence of trading fees, coupled with the potential for high rewards. The primary types of investments encompass wealth management, securities brokerage, stock exchange services, and investment banking. Wealth management involves securing and growing wealth through various modes, including online and offline channels, catering to both Business-to-Business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C) end-users. Report Scope Markets Covered: 1) By Type: Wealth Management, Securities Brokerage and Stock Exchange Services, Investment Banking 2) By Mode: Online, Offline 3) By End-user: B2B, B2C Subsegments Covered: Asset Management, Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles, Portfolio Management and Investment Advice, Equities Brokerage, Stock Exchanges, Bonds Brokerage, Derivatives & Commodities Brokerage, Other Stock Brokerage, Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory, Debt Capital Markets Underwriting, Equity Capital Markets Underwriting, Financial Sponsor/Syndicated Loans Key Companies Mentioned: Berkshire Hathaway Inc.; Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC); JPMorgan Chase & Co.; Bank of America Corporation; Legal & General Group plc Regions: Asia-Pacific; Western Europe; Eastern Europe; North America; South America; Middle East; Africa Time Series: Five years historic and ten years forecast For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/dllfqi About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Cold Storage - Market Share Analysis, Industry Trends & Statistics, Growth Forecasts 2020 - 2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global cold storage market size was valued at USD 190.24 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17% during the forecast period. The market has benefitted significantly from the stringent regulations governing the production and supply of temperature-sensitive products. Key Highlights Its expansion can be linked to rising demand for cold storage in commercial and industrial organizations, as well as regulatory compliance regulatory compliance demands. The majority of the expansion was seen in emerging nations such as India, China, Brazil, Indonesia, and Mexico, among others. According to the cold storage industry, 53% of enterprises want to enhance their cold storage capacity. Increasing demand for food and pharmaceuticals, as well as a greater emphasis on safety, has resulted in a rise in demand for cold storage space. In 2022, the frozen category led the market, accounting for around 77.3% of worldwide sales. Increasing frozen food consumption in emerging nations such as India and China is pushing the frozen food industry in particular. Warehouses in this category keep their storage temperatures between -10F and -20F. They hold frozen vegetables, fruit, fish, meat, seafood, and other items. The absence of infrastructure necessary to support the cold chain is expected to provide a significant hurdle for enterprises looking to grow into emerging economies. Furthermore, the unavailability of power hook-ups for reefer trailers at transportation hubs and ports may stymie industry expansion in these areas. COVID-19 caused lockdowns and travel restrictions in numerous regions of the world, affecting the supply chains of many industries. The consequences of COVID-19 have had a considerable impact on the market. Cold Storage Market Trends: Rapid Growth in Import and Export Activities of Food Items and Pharmaceutical Cold storage facilities are witnessing rapid growth in demand owing to the increasing import and export activities. The cold storage market is booming with increasing global trade and the corresponding need for secure storage infrastructure. India accounts for 5.92% of the worldwide pharmaceutical and medicine market. Formulations and biologics accounted for most of India's exports (73.31%), followed by drug intermediates and bulk medicines. In 2021-22, the country exported pharmaceutical items worth USD 24.62 billion, a 2% increase over the previous year. Exports increased by 18% yearly to USD 24.4 billion in 2020-21. Renewable Refrigeration Technologies to Open New Market Opportunities Cooling is the fastest-growing energy use, but it is also one of the most crucial energy debate blind spots today. Rising cooling demand is putting a strain on electrical infrastructure and pushing up emissions in several countries. The European Commission's Heating and Cooling Strategy mentions measures such as "raising the percentage of renewables" and "reuse of energy waste from industry" as two essential areas for decarbonizing cooling to meet the EU's climate objectives by 2050. As a result, new technology development and adoption are critical to meet end users' needs promptly by flexibly 'absorbing' renewable energy and/or waste heat and then 'converting into' and storing cooling energy. Solar-powered cold storage systems reduce post-harvest loss by roughly 80% and increase the shelf life of perishable foods from two to 21 days. There are also cooling systems that use natural refrigerants like ammonia (NH3) or carbon dioxide (CO2) to collect heat from the field and start the cold chain process. Load monitoring in real time also enables the collection of data on location, temperature, humidity, and other variables such as CO2 levels or door opening to improve control. Increasing the capacity to monitor and control the cold chain allows for timely corrective actions to be taken when a critical variable departs from the ranges established for quality control, providing the opportunity to avoid or reduce losses, while registration itself, the log of conditions throughout the chain, allows the parties involved to validate that the products were kept in the required conditions. Intelligent systems based on the 5G (ubiquitous) Internet of Things are an emerging technology in the design of cold chain logistics. With its technological benefits, the Internet of Things is infiltrating the logistics area and replacing the original industrial shape. This provides a solid foundation for wholesalers and retailers to make logistical decisions, and it has significant application value for increasing the logistics efficiency of the whole cold chain. For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/f6xtmp About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. ZEPHYR COVE, Nev. and SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- two (NYSE: TWOA) (TWOA), a special purpose acquisition company, and LatAm Logistic Properties, S.A. (d/b/a LatAm Logistic Properties) (LLP), a leading developer, owner, and manager of institutional quality, Class A industrial and logistics real estate in Central and South America, today announced that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has declared effective the amended registration statement on Form F-4 (the Registration Statement) filed by Logistic Properties of the Americas ("Pubco") in connection with LLP and TWOAs previously announced proposed business combination (the Business Combination or the Transaction). Following the close of the Business Combination, LLP and TWOA will merge with newly-formed subsidiaries of Logistic Properties of the Americas, resulting in the formation of a newly-formed holding company (Pubco), which will be the publicly traded parent company. The Registration Statement can be accessed on the SECs website at www.sec.gov . TWOA will mail the definitive proxy statement/prospectus (the Proxy Statement/Prospectus), which is a part of the Registration Statement, to its shareholders as of the close of business on March 4, 2024 (the Record Date). The Proxy Statement/Prospectus will contain a proxy card relating to the extraordinary general meeting of TWOAs shareholders (the Extraordinary General Meeting). TWOA will hold the Extraordinary General Meeting at which TWOAs shareholders will be asked to consider and vote upon proposals to approve the Business Combination and related matters. The Extraordinary General Meeting to approve the proposed Business Combination is scheduled to be held on March 25, 2024 at 10:00 am, Eastern Time, at the offices of Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP at 1345 Avenue of the Americas, 11th Floor, New York, New York 10105. If the proposals at the Extraordinary General Meeting are approved, the parties anticipate that the Business Combination will close and Pubcos ordinary shares are expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol LPA, shortly thereafter, subject to the satisfaction or waiver, as applicable, of all other closing conditions. Every shareholders vote is important. To ensure representation at the Extraordinary General Meeting, TWOA shareholders are urged to complete, sign, date and return the proxy card accompanying the Proxy Statement/Prospectus as soon as possible. Additional details on the proposed Business Combination can be found in the original announcement from August 15, 2023, linked here. Advisors BTG Pactual acted as financial advisor to LLP in the business combination and sole placement agent on the PIPE. About two two is a special purpose acquisition company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. For more information, visit twoaspac.com. About LatAm Logistic Properties LatAm Logistic Properties, S.A. is a leading developer, owner, and manager of institutional quality, class A industrial and logistics real estate in Central and South America. LLPs customers are multinational and regional e-commerce retailers, third-party logistic operators, business-to-business distributors, and retail distribution companies. LLPs strong customer relationships and insight is expected to enable future growth through the development and acquisition of high-quality, strategically located facilities in its target markets. As of September 30, 2023, LLP consisted of an operating and development portfolio of twenty-eight logistic facilities in Colombia, Peru and Costa Rica totaling more than 650,000 square meters (approximately 7.0 million square feet) of gross leasable area. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains certain forward-looking information with respect to the Business Combination, which may not be included in future public filings or investor guidance. Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements about future events or LLPs, TWOAs or Pubcos future financial or operating performance. For example, statements regarding the benefits of the Business Combination, and the anticipated timing of the completion of the Business Combination are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as pro forma, may, should, could, might, plan, possible, project, strive, budget, forecast, expect, intend, will, estimate, anticipate, believe, predict, potential or continue, or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology. These forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future results of LLP, Pubco and TWOA are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, and projections about the industry in which LLP operates, as well as the beliefs and assumptions of LLPs management. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors beyond LLPs, Pubcos or TWOAs control that are difficult to predict because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. They are neither statements of historical fact nor promises or guarantees of future performance. Therefore, LLPs and Pubcos actual results may differ materially and adversely from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements and LLP, Pubco and TWOA therefore caution against relying on any of these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by LLP and its management, TWOA and its management, and Pubco and its management, as the case may be, are inherently uncertain and are inherently subject to risks variability and contingencies, many of which are beyond LLPs, TWOAs or Pubcos control. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: (i) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of any definitive agreements with respect to the Business Combination (the Business Combination Agreement); (ii) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against LLP, TWOA, Pubco or others following the announcement of the Business Combination and any definitive agreements with respect thereto; (iii) the inability to complete the Business Combination due to the failure to obtain consents and approvals of the shareholders of TWOA, to obtain financing to complete the Business Combination or to satisfy other conditions to closing, or delays in obtaining, adverse conditions contained in, or the inability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals required to complete the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement; (iv) changes to the proposed structure of the Business Combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations or as a condition to obtaining regulatory approval of the Business Combination; (v) LLPs and Pubcos ability to manage growth; (vi) the ability to meet stock exchange listing standards in connection with, and following, the consummation of the Business Combination; (vii) the risk that the Business Combination disrupts current plans and operations of LLP as a result of the announcement and consummation of the Business Combination; (viii) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the Business Combination, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of Pubco or LLP to grow and manage growth profitably, maintain key relationships and retain its management and key employees; (ix) costs related to the Business Combination; (x) changes in applicable laws, regulations, political and economic developments; (xi) the possibility that LLP or Pubco may be adversely affected by other economic, business and/or competitive factors; (xii) LLPs estimates of expenses and profitability; and (xiii) other risks and uncertainties set forth in the filings by TWOA or Pubco with the SEC. There may be additional risks that neither LLP nor TWOA presently know or that LLP and TWOA currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of LLP, TWOA or Pubco speak only as of the date they are made. None of LLP, Pubco or TWOA undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect any changes in their respective expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. Nothing in this press release should be regarded as a representation by any person that the forward-looking statements set forth herein will be achieved or that any of the contemplated results of such forward-looking statements will be achieved. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. LLP, TWOA and Pubco disclaim any and all liability for any loss or damage (whether foreseeable or not) suffered or incurred by any person or entity as a result of anything contained or omitted from this press release and such liability is expressly disclaimed. Additional Information This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or exchange, or the solicitation of an offer to buy or exchange, any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, sale or exchange would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. In connection with the Business Combination, Pubco has filed with the SEC the Registration Statement, which contains the proxy statement of TWOA and a prospectus of Pubco, and was declared effective by the SEC. This press release does not contain all the information that should be considered concerning the Business Combination and is not intended to form the basis of any investment decision or any other decision in respect of the Business Combination. LLPs and TWOAs shareholders and other interested persons are advised to read the Registration Statement, including the definitive Proxy Statement/Prospectus, any amendments thereto, and any other documents filed in connection with the Business Combination, as these materials contain important information about LLP, TWOA, Pubco and the Business Combination. The Proxy Statement/Prospectus and related materials for the Business Combination will be mailed to shareholders of TWOA as of the Record Date. Shareholders may also obtain copies of the Registration Statement, including the Proxy Statement/Prospectus and other documents filed with the SEC, without charge at the SECs website at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to: two, 195 US HWY 50, Suite 208, Zephyr Cove, NV 89448; Tel: (310) 954-9665. Participants in the Solicitation TWOA and its directors and executive officers may be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies from TWOAs shareholders with respect to the Business Combination. A list of the names of those directors and executive officers and a description of their interests in the Business Combination is contained in TWOAs filings with the SEC and in the Registration Statement. LLP, Pubco and their respective directors and executive officers may also be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the shareholders of TWOA in connection with the Business Combination. A list of the names of such directors and executive officers and information regarding their interests in the Business Combination is included in the Registration Statement, which was filed with the SEC and is available free of charge at the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. No Offer or Solicitation This press release shall not constitute a solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to any securities or in respect of the proposed Business Combination. This press release shall also not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any states or jurisdictions in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. INVESTMENT IN ANY SECURITIES DESCRIBED HEREIN HAS NOT BEEN APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED BY THE SEC OR ANY OTHER REGULATORY AUTHORITY NOR HAS ANY AUTHORITY PASSED UPON OR ENDORSED THE MERITS OF THE OFFERING OR THE ACCURACY OR ADEQUACY OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY IS A CRIMINAL OFFENSE. Investor Relations Contact: Gateway Group, Inc. Cody Slach (949) 574-3860 TWOA@gateway-grp.com two Contact: Nick Geeza Chief Financial Officer ngeeza@hennessycapitalgroup.com Calgary, March 12, 2024 - Canadian Critical Minerals Inc. (TSXV: CCMI) (OTCQB: RIINF) ("CCMI" or the "Company") is pleased to report that it has received additional revenues for the Company from the sale of stockpiled copper, gold and silver mineralized material at the Bull River Mine ("BRM") project near Cranbrook, BC. During the month of February 2024, the Company trucked 897 wet metric tonnes ("wmt") of mineralized material to New Afton under an Ore Purchase Agreement ("OPA") (see press release dated October 5, 2023, on Sedar+) and the Company received a provisional payment of approximately US$66,000 for the February shipments. To-date the Company has trucked 977 wmt of mineralized material from the BRM to New Afton. The Company temporarily suspended trucking following the imposition of road restrictions in the last week of February. Road restrictions to 70% of normal loads has a negative impact on the economies of trucking. The Company will resume trucking once road restrictions are removed. Road restrictions were imposed approximately two months earlier than normal by the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure of British Columbia due to mild winter conditions in the Cranbrook area. The mineralized material sent to New Afton in February 2024 was a combination of coarse material and fine material, but primarily fine material. There are approximately 45,000 tonnes of mineralized material on surface that has been screened and crushed by our contractor. To-date no mineralized material has been sent to the Steinert KSS 100 ore sorter pending commissioning by Steinert personnel. Steinert personnel arrived at the BRM on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, and have begun the commissioning process with BRM personnel. Once the ore sorter is commissioned, the Company will begin sending coarse mineralized material to the ore sorter for up-grading prior to trucking to New Afton. The Company expects that 40% to 50% of the coarse material is non-economical and only the higher-grade material will be sent to New Afton. Fine material will not be sent to the ore sorter. Ian Berzins, President and CEO commented, "The receipt of additional revenues from the Bull River Mine is encouraging for the Company. While the revenues remain modest, we have successfully implemented the OPA with New Afton and we look forward to completing the commissioning of the ore sorter. Revenues for the Company are expected to increase by sending high-grade, pre-concentrated stockpiled material to New Afton." About Canadian Critical Minerals Inc. CCMI is a mining company primarily focused on two near-term copper production assets in Canada. CCMI's main asset is the 100% owned Bull River Mine project (>135 million lbs of copper) near Cranbrook, British Columbia which has a Mineral Resource containing copper, gold and silver. CCMI also owns a 34% interest in the Thierry Mine project (>1.3 billion lbs of copper) near Pickle Lake, Ontario which has a Mineral Resource containing copper, nickel, silver, palladium, platinum and gold. Contact Information Canadian Critical Minerals Inc. Ian Berzins President & Chief Executive Officer M: +1-403-512-8202 E: iberzins@canadiancriticalmineralsinc.com Website: www.canadiancriticalmineralsinc.com Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information This news release includes certain information that may constitute "forward-looking information" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements about strategic plans, future work programs and objectives and expected results from such work programs. Forward-looking information necessarily involve known and unknown risks, including, without limitation, risks associated with general economic conditions; inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favourable terms; and other risks. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information and the risks identified in the Company's continuous disclosure record. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. All forward-looking information contained in this news release is given as of the date hereof and is based upon the opinions and estimates of management and information available to management as at the date hereof. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this new release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201467 Vancouver, March 12, 2024 - Oberon Uranium Corp. (CSE: OBRN) ("Oberon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that, further to its news release dated March 1, 2024, it has closed the sale of its Element 92 Uranium Property, comprised of a single Saskatchewan mineral claim number covering 5,961 hectares located in northern Saskatchewan, Canada, on the southern end of the Athabasca region (the "Property"). Pursuant to a property purchase and sale agreement dated March 1, 2024 (the "Agreement") with Forty Pillars Mining Corp. (CSE: PLLR) ("Forty Pillars"), as consideration for the Property Forty Pillars paid to Oberon $10,000 in cash and issued 2,000,000 common shares of Forty Pillars (each, a "Share") at a deemed price of $0.07 per Share, representing aggregate Share consideration of $140,000. The Shares are subject to a four month hold period in accordance with applicable securities laws. Following closing of the transaction, Oberon is now an insider of Forty Pillars, with the 2,000,000 Shares received by Oberon under the transaction representing approximately 17.26% of the 11,587,530 issued and outstanding common shares of Forty Pillars, on an undiluted basis. Prior to the transaction, Oberon did not hold any securities of Forty Pillars. Depending on the circumstances, Oberon may, from time to time, acquire additional securities or related financial instruments of Forty Pillars or dispose of all or a portion of the securities or related financial instruments of Forty Pillars previously acquired. Other than the foregoing, Oberon does not have plans or any future intentions which relate to or would result in any of the other foregoing matters. The Form 62-103F1 - Required Disclosure under the Early Warning Requirements associated with this news release can be obtained from Forty Pillars' profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. To obtain a copy of the report, please contact Lawrence Hay, President and CEO of Oberon, at the contact details described below. About the Company Oberon Uranium Corp. is a mineral exploration company with a 100% interest in the past producing Lucky Boy Uranium Property located in Arizona, USA. Oberon also owns a 100% interest in the Fusion Uranium Zone Project located in the Athabasca Region of Saskatchewan, Canada. For further information, please refer to the Company's disclosure record on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) or contact the Company by email at info@oberonuranium.com. On Behalf of the Board of Directors "Lawrence Hay" President and CEO Tel: 778.317.8754 Email: info@oberonuranium.com Forward-Looking Information Certain statements in this news release are forward-looking statements, including with respect to future plans, and other matters. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such information can generally be identified by the use of forwarding-looking wording such as "may", "expect", "estimate", "anticipate", "intend", "believe" and "continue" or the negative thereof or similar variations. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including but not limited to, business, economic and capital market conditions, the ability to manage operating expenses, and dependence on key personnel. Such statements and information are based on numerous assumptions regarding present and future business strategies and the environment in which the Company will operate in the future, anticipated costs, and the ability to achieve goals. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include, the continued availability of capital and financing, litigation, failure of counterparties to perform their contractual obligations, loss of key employees and consultants, and general economic, market or business conditions. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the contents of this news release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201475 MONTREAL, March 13, 2024 - (TSX-V: HAR) ("Harfang" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Ludovic Bigot as the Company's Vice President ("VP"), Exploration effective on or around March 20, 2024. The Company would also like to announce the appointment of Mr. Rick Breger as CEO, effective February 1, 2024, and the departure of Mr. Francois Huot, former VP, Exploration, effective February 23, 2024. Mr. Bigot brings a unique skillset to Harfang with his nearly 15 years' experience as an exploration geologist. He was most recently with ALS GoldSpot Discoveries as the lead project geologist responsible for the management and mineral targeting programs for precious and strategic metals in green- and brownfields exploration projects. Mr. Bigot obtained a Master of Science in Economic Geology from the Universite du Quebec a Montreal ("UQAM") where he focused on gold deposits in the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in Quebec. He also obtained a Bachelor of Science in Earth Sciences from UQAM and is a practicing member of the Ordre des geologues du Quebec ("OGQ"). "On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Harfang team, I am delighted to welcome Ludovic as the new VP, Exploration," said Mr. Breger. "He is a seasoned exploration geologist and project manager with an impressive track record in the field as well as in the Boardroom. I look forward to working closely with him to build Harfang into a significant player among Canadian exploration companies." Mr. Breger adds, "I would also like to thank Francois for all his hard work and dedication to the Company throughout his tenure. He has played a key role is bringing Harfang to where it is today and on behalf of the Board and the rest of the team, I wish him all the best in his future endeavours." "Harfang's current portfolio provides a solid foundation for growth," said Mr. Bigot. "I am excited to work with Rick and our talented team to implement innovative exploration strategies focused on uncovering significant mineral discoveries, increasing shareholder value, and attracting new shareholder interest. My first order of business will be to conduct a comprehensive review of our entire portfolio to pinpoint key development opportunities. With the incredible optionality of its assets, and in today's pivotal economic environment, my approach will focus on leveraging our existing strengths while exploring innovative avenues for strategic growth, ensuring that every dollar spent is an investment in our company's future." About Harfang Exploration Inc. Harfang Exploration Inc. is a well financed technically driven mineral exploration company with the primary mission to discover ore deposits in Quebec and Ontario. The Company is managed by an experienced team of industry professionals with a proven track record of success, controls a portfolio of highly prospective projects and has a strong financial position. Harfang is dedicated to best practices through engagement with all stakeholders and commitment to the environment. On behalf of the Board of Directors and for further information, please contact: Rick Breger, P.Geo. President and CEO info@harfangexploration.com www.harfangexploration.com Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information The information in this news release includes certain information and statements about management's view of future events, expectations, plans and prospects that constitute forward-looking statements. These statements are based upon assumptions that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Because of these risks and uncertainties and as a result of a variety of factors, the actual results, expectations, achievements or performance may differ materially from those anticipated and indicated by these forward-looking statements. Any number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements as well as future results. Although Harfang believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that the expectations of any forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Except as required by law, Harfang disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward-looking statements or otherwise. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Vancouver, March 13, 2024 - Bayhorse Silver Inc., (TSXV: BHS) (OTCQB: BHSIF) (FSE: 7KXN) (the "Company" or "Bayhorse") reports that it has commenced the first stage of its underground drill program at its Bayhorse Silver Mine in Baker County, Oregon, USA. The first drill holes are to confirm the Big Dog hanging wall mineralization, where prior drill results has identified silver grades of 6.75 oz/t over 6 meters, (BHS22-08) and Grab samples taken from the Big Dog zone returned 218.2 oz/t (6,786.76 g/t) and 30.17 oz/t (938.4 g/t) silver respectively, while a Goldilocks sample returned 145.05 oz/t (4,511.5 g/t) silver. (BHS22-07) The second stage of underground drilling will be to target a low resistivity zone identified from the recent VTEM survey, that starts immediately to the west of the western end of the current underground workings. ( Figure 1 - Proposed drill targets). The known strike of the Big Dog hanging wall zone is 100 meters (330 feet) with a 12 meter (40 foot known vertical extent. A surface drill program is currently in the permitting stage targeting the large low resistivity zone on the SE corner of the Bayhorse Idaho property, that appears to extend to the east, beyond the VTEM survey area. Drill target "1" and drill target "2'" are 600 meters (2,000 feet) apart, with the smaller low resistivity drill target 3, is a further 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) to north, to determine whether a copper porphyry exists on the Idaho property. There are possibly two different mineralized targets on the newly acquired Idaho claims. A Bayhorse Mine style silver rich massive sulphide target related to the strong magnetic signatures and a possibly Hercules Silver-type copper porphyry target marked by the strong minimal Resistivity results. Bayhorse CEO, Graeme O'Neill, comments that the low resistivity anomaly both immediately west and east of the Bayhorse Mine underground workings, makes it a priority for further drill testing. As well the low resistivity anomalies in the east of the Idaho property, may significantly increase the discovery potential of a copper porphyry deposit as found at Hercules Silver property, 44 km to the north in similar geological terrain. Due to the historic reported gold grades of up to 10 g/t at the Bayhorse Mine, (Silver King Mines, 1984) and presence of high grade gold properties in close proximity to the Bayhorse Mine (Gleason, 8 km to the west, Connor Creek, 6 km to the north) the Company's senior geological consultants believe it possible that the silver-rich Bayhorse Mine epithermal mineralization may be underlain by a gold-rich zone. Figure 1 Proposed drill targets To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5015/201535_bayhorse_figure1.png Dr. Clay Conway, P.Geol., has mapped rhyolite-hosted mineralization east of the Snake River in the area underlain by the strong magnetic anomalies. This raises the possibility that another Bayhorse Silver rich deposit may be found at the hydrothermally altered rhyolite contacts. Figure 2. Bayhorse underground and mapped Idaho mineralization To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5015/201535_2747604c44029ac8_002full.jpg It has long been known there is a strong genetic and spatial relationship between porphyry plutons (which are the source of the hot fluids and metals) and outlying or overlying epithermals, skarns, mantos and even vein systems. If the metals stay in the pluton or close to its margins it may end up as a Cu porphyry. If in addition the fluids move upwards along conduits, then this could result in precious metal epithermal mineralization like the Bayhorse high grade silver deposit. This News Release has been prepared on behalf of the Bayhorse Silver Inc. Board of Directors, which accepts full responsibility for its content. Mark Abrams, AIPG Certified Professional Geologist, a Qualified Person and Director of the Company has prepared, supervised the preparation of, and approved the technical content of this press release. On Behalf of the Board. Graeme O'Neill, CEO 866-399-6539 About Bayhorse Silver Inc. Bayhorse Silver Inc. is an exploration and production company with a 100% interest in the historic Bayhorse Silver Mine located in Oregon, USA. With state of the art Steinert Ore-Sorting technology reducing waste rock entering the processing stream by up to 85%, we have created a minimum environmental impact facility capable of mining 200 tons of mineralization per day and the ability to process and supply 3,600 tons per year of silver/copper/antimony concentrate ranging between 7,500 to 15,000 g/t silver and 10-12% copper, 10-12% antimony, and 15-18% zinc using standard flotation processing at its milling facility in nearby Payette County, Idaho, USA, with an offtake agreement in place with Ocean Partners UK Limited. The Company also has an option to acquire an 80% interest in the Brandywine high grade silver/gold property located in B.C. Canada. The Company has an experienced management and technical team with extensive mining expertise in both exploration and building mines. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201535 Vancouver, March 13, 2024 - One World Lithium Inc. (OTCQB-OWRDF) (CSE-OWLI) (the "Company" or "OWL") is pleased to announce a one year extension to March 1, 2025 of its Non-Exclusive Research and Evaluation License with Option (Patent) (the "License") with the US Department of Energy's ("DOE") National Energy Technology Laboratory ("NETL") for the DOE's Patents titled Selective Lithium Recovery as Lithium Carbonate from natural brine. Doug Fulcher, President and CEO, commented "We are pleased to have signed a one year extension with NETL. The extension will allow OWL and NETL to evaluate commercial applications of the DOE's two patents for Lithium Carbonate Extraction." OWL and MatterGreen LLC. (" MG") entered into a Definitive Agreement on September 28, 2023 whereby MG will assign two patent applications for Lithium Carbonation, the first patent application is for natural brines and the second is for slurries made from pegmatite, clay, volcanic rock and sediment After the assignment OWL will be the sole and exclusive owner of the patent applications (the "OWL Patent Applications"). Under the Agreement MG will conduct and manage the development, testing and R&D laboratory work associated with the commercialization of the DOE License and the OWL Patent Applications. MG will take two months to assemble its laboratory. The work will be carried out in the Lab facilities in Albany, Oregon. In addition, MG states "By consuming carbon dioxide from industrial waste streams and air in carbonation processing, the process can produce carbon-neutral lithium carbonate for battery cathode manufacturing, which would generate a premium on the market price." Stock Option Grant The Company also announces it has granted incentive stock options to an advisor of the Company to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,000,000 common shares of the Company (the "Options"). The Options are exercisable on or before March 13, 2026, at a price of $0.05 per common share, being the minimum allowed closing price of the Company's common shares on the Canadian Stock Exchange on March 12, 2024. All Options are fully vested and were granted in accordance with the Company's Stock Option Plan. About One World Lithium Inc. One World Lithium Inc. remains focused on properties of merit that may contain lithium in brine. The Company is also focused on commercial application of its Direct Lithium Extraction Technology. OWL intends to license or joint venture its technology to current and future lithium carbonate producers. For more information, visit: https://oneworldlithium.com/. On behalf of the Board of Directors of One World Lithium Inc., "Douglas Fulcher" President and Chief Executive Officer For further information please visit www.oneworldlithium.com or email info@oneworldlithium.com or call 604-644-4359. Forward-Looking Information: This press release may include forward looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Forward looking information is based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by the management of the OWL, including, but not limited to OWL & MG's collective abilities to commercialize the DOE Patents and MG's Patent Applications. Although OWL believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because OWL can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from the those anticipated in such statements, important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the company's expectations include: (I) inability of OWL & MG to commercialize its DLE technology (II) OWL's inability to execute its business plan and raise any required financing, (III) risks and market fluctuations common to the mining industry and lithium sector in particular, and (IV) advancements in other new DLE technologies. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, some of which are beyond the control of the OWL. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information contained in this press release. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved. VANCOUVER, March 13, 2024 - Integra Resources Corp. ("Integra" or the "Company") (TSXV: ITR) (NYSE American: ITRG) is pleased to announce the completion of its previously announced bought deal public offering, pursuant to which the Company issued a total of 16,611,750 units (the "Units"), including the full exercise of the over-allotment option by the Underwriters (as defined below), at a price of C$0.90 per Unit (the "Offering Price") for aggregate gross proceeds of C$14,950,575 (the "Offering"). Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at an exercise price of C$1.20 for a period of 36 months from the closing of the Offering. The Offering includes an investment made into Integra from a new strategic corporate entity as well as support from current shareholders Beedie Investments Ltd. and Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. The Offering was completed pursuant to an underwriting agreement dated March 7, 2024 entered into among the Company and a syndicate of underwriters led by Cormark Securities Inc., and including BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., Desjardins Securities Inc., Eight Capital, PI Financial Corp., Raymond James Ltd. and Stifel Nicolaus Canada Inc. (collectively, the "Underwriters"). The Company paid the Underwriters a cash fee of 6% of the aggregate gross proceeds of the Offering, other than in respect of the purchasers on the president's list, for which a cash fee of 3% was paid. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Offering to fund exploration and development expenditures at the DeLamar Project, the Nevada North Project, and for working capital and general corporate purposes. The Offering was conducted by way of a prospectus supplement dated March 7, 2024 (the "Prospectus Supplement") to the Company's existing base shelf prospectus dated January 16, 2024 (the "Base Shelf Prospectus") in each of the provinces and territories of Canada (other than the province of Quebec). The Prospectus Supplement (together with the Base Shelf Prospectus) is available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The Offering remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been registered under United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States, or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. Persons (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act), absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. Company Webinar The Company is pleased to host a corporate update webinar on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 11:00am PST/2:00pm EST. The webinar will feature a presentation from Integra's President, CEO and Director, Jason Kosec, as well as a live Q&A session. A recording of the webinar will be available on Integra's corporate website. To register for the webinar, please use the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SY-uNxuWR12DXx-9Y8kpSA About Integra Integra is one of the largest precious metals exploration and development companies in the Great Basin of the Western USA. Integra is currently focused on advancing its two flagship oxide heap leach projects: the past producing DeLamar Project located in southwestern Idaho and the Nevada North Project, comprised of the Wildcat and Mountain View deposits, located in northwestern Nevada. The Company also holds a portfolio of highly prospective early-stage exploration projects in Idaho, Nevada, and Arizona. Integra's long-term vision is to become a leading USA focused mid-tier gold and silver producer. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Jason Kosec President, CEO and Director Some statements ("forward-looking statements") in this news release contain forward-looking information concerning plans related to Integra's business and other matters that may occur in the future, made as of the date of this news release including, but not limited to, the Offering; the use of proceeds thereof. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual events or results to differ from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, risks related to legislative and/or regulatory changes; actual results and timing of exploration and development, mining, environmental services and remediation and reclamation activities; future prices of silver, gold, lead, zinc and other commodities; possible variations in mineral resources, grade or recovery rates; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; Native American rights and title; continued capitalization and commercial viability; global economic conditions; competition; and delays in obtaining governmental approvals or financing or in the completion of development activities. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions that management believes are reasonable at the time they are made. In making the forward-looking statements included in this news release, Integra has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, the assumptions; that Integra will be able to raise additional capital as necessary, that the proposed exploration and development activities will proceed as planned, and that market fundamentals will result in sustained silver, gold, lead and zinc demand and prices. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Integra expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. SOURCE Integra Resources Corp. Contact Corporate Inquiries: ir@integraresources.com, Company website: www.integraresources.com, Office phone: 1 (604) 416-0576 To its many critics, President Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty is often described as the classic 1960s social program: a well-intentioned but naive effort that spends billions of dollars year in and year out without making much of a dent in poverty.But imagine if government only paid social service providers if their efforts actually yielded the desired results. That's the idea behind "pay for success" programs, also known as social impact bonds. Under this concept, businesses and/or philanthropies provide upfront money for programs to address difficult social problems. If they achieve a set of measurable outcomes within an agreed upon time period, the funders get their investments back, plus interest. If not, government pays nothing.Pay for success programs seem to be attracting a growing number of bipartisan fans since I wrote about them in 2014 , and two new programs illustrate how implementation of the concept is becoming more sophisticated.Last month, Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, a Democrat, announced a four-year initiative to keep children from 500 families out of foster care. Social workers from the Yale Child Study Center will focus on parents with substance abuse problems as part of an intensive effort to keep the children in their homes.No funder has been named yet for the $12 million initiative, but several have expressed interest. If successful, the state will reimburse the upfront money plus a 5 to 6 percent interest payment. It's a pretty good deal considering that Joette Katz, commissioner of the state's Department of Children and Families, toldthat Connecticut currently pays about $350 million annually for services to children in foster care and institutions.In South Carolina, Republican Gov. Nikki Haley recently announced a $30 million, four-year program to send registered nurses who specialize in maternal and child health into the homes of low-income pregnant women to teach them parenting skills and ways to keep their children healthy. The effort is funded by foundations and a corporation.The Connecticut and South Carolina programs highlight the opportunity pay for success presents for prevention programs that can yield long-term savings but might not get funded through the traditional appropriations process. The South Carolina program also addresses the potentially sticky issue of determining whether a program has achieved the agreed upon outcomes by designating an MIT research group to conduct an evaluation. Such provisions enhance the integrity and perception of pay for success.As a model that is dependent on what funders are willing to invest in, pay for success isn't the silver bullet for addressing every stubborn and costly human services problem. But particularly during a time when some once again seeing economic clouds looming, they can be a valuable tool for helping our neediest citizens by focusing state and local government resources on the best kinds of programs -- those that actually work. Hamilton will struggle to beat Leclerc at Ferrari says Briatore Lewis Hamilton runs the risk of being humbled by team incumbent Charles Leclerc at Ferrari next year. Charles Leclerc, Saudi Arabian GP 2024 Ferrari That is the warning of iconic and notorious Formula 1 personality Flavio Briatore, the former Renault boss who remains Fernando Alonso's advisor. He met in a Monaco cafe with Toto Wolff just as the Hamilton-to-Ferrari bombshell was breaking in February, and is now predicting another full season of utter dominance by Red Bull and Max Verstappen in 2024. This year Red Bull is even more competitive - much more than last year, with a huge gap over the others, Briatore, 73, told Italian broadcaster Rai 1. Verstappen has 8 tenths over everyone and never makes a mistake, the flamboyant Italian added. The synergy with Red Bull is terrifying, as (Ayrton) Senna was with McLaren, (Fernando) Alonso was with Renault, or (Michael) Schumacher was with Ferrari. Ferrari, now headed by Frederic Vasseur, claims it has gotten closer to Red Bull over the winter, but Briatore said: "They may be the second force, but it is not a position suitable for Ferrari. The car must improve. With those gaps, no driver can make the difference. He is referring, of course, to Ferrari's decision to oust Carlos Sainz at the end of the year in favour of seven time world champion Hamilton, 39. If Hamilton was already at Ferrari today, he would do the same things as Leclerc, who is a fast driver, although often underestimated, said Briatore. "But despite Hamilton's unquestionable abilities, the internal competition with Leclerc could prove more difficult than he thinks. In the end he might struggle to stay ahead of Charles because he is one of those drivers who doesn't put much effort into it if the car isn't good. (GMM) Three star drivers top Mercedes 2025 short list Three top drivers are clearly at the top of the shortlist to succeed Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes next year. Lewis Hamilton, Saudi Arabian GP 2024 Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd. Team boss Toto Wolff's obvious top pick is Formula 1's ultra-dominant Max Verstappen, especially amid the internal conflict and power struggle playing out at Red Bull at present. La Gazzetta dello Sport claims the turmoil might not only cost Red Bull its triple world champion, but also Adrian Newey, Pierre Wache - and other top engineers. One would be David Morgan, Red Bull's aerodynamic development manager, the Italian newspaper reports, claiming the engineers have been targeted by Ferrari. "Ben Waterhouse, on the other hand, oversees the entire dynamics of the car. Last, but not least, an Italian engineer could be among those eligible for a transfer to Maranello - Alessandro Germani - team leader of aerodynamic development. Auto Motor und Sport, meanwhile, claims that Newey is increasingly unhappy about the Christian Horner scandal - as well as his boss's apparent plans to move him over to a hypercar project for budget cap reasons . On the driver front, however, Wolff says he would do handstands if it convinced Verstappen to make the switch - although Horner doubts the Dutchman could be wooed by Mercedes. I'm sure all the teams want Max, but Toto also says that the best drivers want the best cars, Horner said. However, the unrest at Red Bull is far from over. I don't think Horner will survive it, said former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher. He hasn't been able to clarify things. He only talks about it at the legal level, but it can't be in Horner's spirit that such a successful team will fall apart because of one person, the German told formel1.de. As for the prospect of losing Verstappen, Schumacher added: I think he could go through with it, but not this season. Next year. After Verstappen, Mercedes' top pick might be the 17-year-old Wolff protege Kimi Antonelli - if he proves he is ready for the leap to F1 next year. Fernando Alonso might then be next in line, as he holds off on talks with Aston Martin about 2025 for now while his manager Flavio Briatore chats with Wolff. Just as the Hamilton-to-Ferrari news broke in February, Briatore posted a photo of himself sitting down in a Monaco cafe with Wolff. Wolff was drinking from a very distinctive mug - and now, post-Jeddah, Alonso has posted a photo of himself sitting and grinning in the very same cafe with exactly the same design of cup. Finally, just as the unwell Carlos Sainz walked slowly back into the Jeddah paddock last Saturday, his managers Carlos Onoro Sainz and Carlos Sainz snr were spotted walking out of the Mercedes hospitality area with Wolff. A bigger question, of course, is just how attractive the 2025 Mercedes seat really is, with even Wolff admitting that the new car is very weak in high speed corners. Even Ferrari chairman John Elkann hinted in Saudi Arabia that the Italian team may need to wait until 2026 to really challenge Red Bull, because one cycle of regulations will close and another will open . The implication, given Verstappen's utter dominance, is that the 2022-2025 rules cycle - designed specifically for closer racing - has proved a failure. Aston Martin boss Mike Krack says one fact of that era is that the sport now has a Red Bull dominance that none of us want . I don't think the regulations have failed, Williams boss James Vowles insists. "I think even on the data that we can see now, it's still better than the '21, '20 generations of cars. Whether it will improve in '25? No, I don't think so. And in '26, the rules are still being ratified as we speak, so it's hard to evaluate that. (GMM) Last year Poco launched two 'flagship killers', the F5 and F5 Pro, and the former proved to be way more popular owing to its much better price to features ratio. This year it seems like we'll get a duo as well, with the F6 Pro already starting its certifications journey. A 'vanilla' non-Pro F6 is also coming, and it will have its work cut out since the F5 is a pretty tough act to follow. Still, it will try, apparently with the yet-unannounced Qualcomm SM8635, which could be branded Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 or 8s Gen 2 when it finally gets official on March 18. Poco F5 The F6 Pro, on the other hand, will employ the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 if it's just a rebranded Redmi K70 as rumors are now saying. If all of this is accurate, it will be interesting to see what the performance delta between the two will be, since the 'vanilla' model could once again turn out to be the better buy. The Poco F6 will have the model number 24069PC21G internationally, and 24069PC21I in India. Interestingly, the upcoming Redmi Note 13 Turbo for the Chinese market has the model number 24069RA21C, which strongly suggests that the Poco F6 will be a rebranded Redmi Note 13 Turbo. Furthermore, the Poco F6's codename is reportedly "Peridot", which is a yellow ruby, and the codenames of Redmi Note series devices are usually using gemstone names - so this could just be one more speculative confirmation of the aforementioned rebranding. Either way, we'll find out in a few weeks, most likely, as after Qualcomm makes the SM8635 official a bunch of Chinese smartphone makers will probably want to quickly announce new devices using it. Redmi should be among them, and then Poco could be taking its model to an international audience. Stay tuned and we'll let you know when we find out more. Source You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close All is set for this Saturdays Field to Fork-Babui hunting derby, a Department of Agriculture initiative that helps feed families, and reduce the nuisance feral pig population which, in turn, helps reduce erosion to protect Guams forests and coral reef fisheries. The derbies also foster safe, responsible and ethical hunter development. The March 16 Field to Fork-Babui hunt participants will compete in either the firearm or bow divisions and in the following categories: Biggest pig or most pigs. Here are the derby day check stations: Yigo Senior Citizen Center Talofofo Police Koban In as many facets as possible, your Department of Agriculture strives to help foster community engagement in increasing Guams food security and protecting our native jungles and coral reef fisheries. This is one of the most fun ways to do just that, while also reducing the population of this nuisance species causing so much destruction to our lands, Guam Agriculture Director Chelsa Muna-Brecht said in a statement on Wednesday. Agricultures last pig hunting derby engaged 60 hunters, removed 45 feral pigs from the jungles, and generated over 1 ton of meat, the equivalent of 4,232 meals, according to the local agency. The babui hunt will serve the three major far-reaching goals of the agency: Increasing food security Involving hunters in the Ridge to Reef natural resource management practice Encouraging R3 or recruitment, retention, and reactivation of hunters on Guam. Agriculture said its hunting derbies have also increased community partner participation, bringing together the work of government agencies, village mayors, and private business partners who have all stepped up to provide valuable support and logistics to ensure a successful event for the community. The list of private sector partners, according to Agriculture, include Ke-Ra-Da Sporting Goods, Matson, SPPC, Meskla, Burger King, Code One, Bargain Tactical, Auto Spot , Micronesia Brokers Inc., Jamaican Grill, Mosas, Royal Bics, Run Guam, Bensons, Maolek Beverages, ERC, Fish On, AM Insurance, Balutan Queen, Kracked Egg, and AC Sales. Field to Fork-Babui is funded by the Guam Hunter Education Program, through a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Wildlife and Sportfish Restoration Grant Program. Derby registration forms will be uploaded through Agricultures website and social media, and are also available for pick up at the Division of Aquatic and Wildlife Resources office and during the safety briefings held through the week. Here is the remaining schedule for the mandatory safety briefing after the March 12 and 13 briefings at Mangilao Community Center: Thursday, March 14, at 6 p.m., Yigo Senior Center. Hunters are encouraged to visit doag.guam.gov/resource/ to download the registration packet. A current Firearms ID is required if you are hunting with a firearm. Minors need to be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian during the hunt. Please provide identification proof at the time of registration, Agriculture said. Call (671) 735-0294/95 for accepted forms of identification, or contact Megan Volsteadt at megan.volsteadt@doag.guam.gov. Professional MMA fighter Ricky 2 Slick Camp and Joseph Christopher Mendiola were ready for the first day of trial in Superior Court Judge Alberto E. Tolentinos courtroom on Monday. Instead, the pair was released after the prosecutor for the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to dismiss the case without prejudice. Dismissal without prejudice means the charges have been dismissed but can be refiled at some point. Camp and Mendiola faced accusations of felony assault following an incident in Tumon in August 2023. Camp also faced accusations of assault as a misdemeanor from another incident in the parking lot of Kings Restaurant in March last year. The government didnt feel like they were going to be able to meet their burden to prove their case. We, from the start, knew that Mr. Camp had very strong self-defense argument and we feel that without a doubt that we would have proven him innocent had the case gone to trial, said Assistant Alternate Public Defender Tyler Scott. There were issues with the victims statement and certain witnesses contradicting what he had told police that would be brought to light at trial, so the government took that into account and decided to drop the case. Scott said the alleged victim in the misdemeanor assault case, when contacted by the AGs office, said he wanted nothing to do with the case. Yolanda Elliot, chief of staff for the AGs office, sent a copy of the governments motion to dismiss the case. The motion stated that the alleged victim in the first case did not want to testify on the matter. The alleged victim in the second case was unable to identify which defendant assaulted him due to the effects of the incident, according to the motion. And, a witness that had come forward was unable to identify which party had initiated contact first, and the government would be unable to disprove an affirmative defense. Moreover, the government had just received new information that requires more investigation before moving further. Mendiola had been released recently pending the results of a trial. Camp had posted $20,000 for release until his trial. It was the third time he had to post bail after not conforming to the conditions of his release twice before. The Guam Community College has rescheduled its public hearings on proposed increases in rental fees for its new state-of-the-art multipurpose auditorium. The hearing originally set for Tuesday has been rescheduled for 3 p.m. on Monday, March 18, at the GCC Hall 1 of the multipurpose auditorium. The March 13 hearing will be held at 3 p.m. in Room 3108, Building 3000. For those who cannot attend the in-person hearings, they can watch the live stream on GCC's YouTube channel at youtube.com/@GuamCommunityCollege. GCC seeks to increase rental fees by $50 to as much as $750 for its new 12,500-square foot auditorium. "The proposed fees are needed to cover operational and maintenance costs for the new state-of-the-art MPA, GCC's public notice reads. GCC Assistant Director John Dela Rosa told the Pacific Daily News last week that the new multipurpose auditorium can accommodate a bigger crowd and it has modernized amenities that the other buildings didnt have. The rates have remained unchanged for several years, he added. Here are some of the proposed fees: Duration: Four hours Fee for Halls 14: $750, includes up to 200 chairs and 25 standard white rectangle or round tables Fee for Hall 1: $250, includes up to 120 chairs and 15 standard white rectangle or round tables Fees for Halls 2, 3, 4: $200 each, includes up to 80 chairs and 10 standard white rectangle or round tables Duration: Eight hours Fee for Halls 1-4: $1,500, includes up to 200 chairs and 25 standard white rectangle or round tables Fee for Hall 1: $500, includes up to 120 chairs and 15 standard white rectangle or round tables Fee for Halls 2, 3, 4: $400, includes up to 80 chairs and 10 standard white rectangle or round tables Daily rates A man led police on pursuit starting in Dededo using a suspected stolen yellow bus until the vehicle collided with a concrete barrier as he tried to turn to Andersen Air Force Base in Yigo Wednesday morning, according to the Guam Police Department. Jesse Sablan Basaliso, also known as Jesse Taitano Basaliso, was taken into custody and arrested for theft of a motor vehicle, criminal mischief, criminal trespass, eluding a police officer, no drivers license, resisting arrest, and obstructing government operations, according to GPD spokesperson Officer Berlyn Savella. At around 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday, GPD received reports of a stolen vehicle, a yellow Thomas bus, owned by Core Tech. Core Tech employees, according to GPD, had spotted the bus heading towards Tanguisson Beach and followed the vehicle after communicating with authorities. GPD officers intercepted the vehicle at the intersection of Route 3 and Route 28, matching the description that Core Tech gave. Police said efforts to stop the bus were met with resistance as the operator, later identified as Basaliso, refused to comply with commands to pull over using blue lights, sirens and PA system. The pursuit continued, leading officers onto Rt. 9 near Chalan Ramirez, when (the) operator began brake-checking officers as it was observed the bus would attempt to come to an erratic pause and continued forward movement, GPD said. The driver, upon reaching Route 1 and Andersen Air Force Base main gate, attempted to turn into Andersen but collided with a concrete barrier. Traffic congestion forced the operator to come to a halt, at which point officers approached the bus, GPD said. Officers were able to restrain and apprehend him despite initial resistance, GPD said. GPD said the case is closed and forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General for disposition. Migratory birds seen in wetlands in Togtoh, north China's Inner Mongolia People's Daily Online) 11:06, March 13, 2024 White swans fly at a wetland in Togtoh county, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (Photo/Wuligeng) As the weather warms up, Togtoh county in Hohhot city, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is welcoming a multitude of migratory birds to wetlands along the Yellow River. The migratory birds are seen playing and swimming in the water, occasionally diving for food and singing cheerfully. Their presence brings a sense of vitality to the wetlands in spring. Over 10 bird species, such as white cranes, swans, swan geese, and ruddy shelducks, have already been sighted in the area. As the temperature continues to rise, Togtoh county's wetlands along the Yellow River are expected to reach the pinnacle of bird migration. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) A man whose Toyota Highlander was stolen from the parking lot of his apartment complex called police when he saw the vehicle pulling into the garage at Micronesia Mall the next day. Neveah Tamar James, 19, was charged Wednesday with theft of an automobile as a second-degree felony and vehicle without identification as a misdemeanor. On Monday, police spoke with a man who reported his vehicle was stolen from the parking lot of his Dededo residence. Surveillance video from the parking lot timestamped 3:04 a.m. showed individuals walking around the parking lot, checking car doors and then leaving in the Highlander, according to a magistrates complaint filed in Superior Court. At 2:08 p.m. Tuesday, the man said he saw his car pulling into a parking garage at the mall. He also said he saw a man, later identified as James, and a female, later identified as a 16-year-old girl, get out of the car and go in the mall. The license plate on the car had been changed, according to the complaint. When police questioned the girl, she said she, James and another friend, age 17, were in the parking lot of the residential complex when they found the Highlander. She said James drove the car to various locations and picked up friends. James told police he and a friend opened the door of the Highlander, found a key and stole the vehicle to pick up friends, the complaint stated. He said he drove to Guam Home Center, left the vehicle in the parking lot, swapped out the license plate with one from an abandoned car near his home, then drove to the mall where he was caught. James, who has no criminal record, was released on $10,000 recognizance bond. If found guilty of all charges, he could face nine years in prison, according to documents from the Office of the Attorney General. Ron McNinch is a longstanding member of the Guam community and frequently gives his opinion on a wide range of topics. The Creole State and its people have served as inspiration for countless documentary films over the years. While Louisiana is known for its vibrant culture and vast swampy wilderness, the state also battles widespread poverty, devastating natural disasters and a not-so-distant dark history. These five nonfiction films shed light on the lives of those who call the Bayou State home. When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in 4 Acts Where to watch: Free with HBO Max subscription. A mother and her children are rescued by boat from the Lower Ninth Ward during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on Aug. 30, 2005, in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Mario Tama | Getty Images)Getty Images Spike Lees four-part documentary When the Levees Broke places the viewer directly in the eye of the storm. Emotional interviews and video footage show the devastation unleashed by Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans in 2005, and how it could have been prevented. Lee argues that the states most catastrophic natural disaster was anything but. The film demonstrates the failure of levees designed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the abysmal government response, and the weeks of chaos and police violence that followed in the city. Rodents of Unusual Size Where to watch: Free on Tubi, $3.99 on Apple TV, $3.99 on Apple Prime Video. At the edge of the world, a defiant and isolated people are defending their community from an invasion of giant, orange-toothed rodents. This whimsical documentary follows hard-headed Louisiana fisherman Thomas Gonzales, who has taken it upon himself to protect his coastal wetland home using guns, traps and Cajun innovation. Yes, Rodents of Unusual Size focuses on the threat of invasive nutria but under the surface, the film really explores what it means to fight for a disappearing way of life. The Pharmacist Where to watch: Free with Netflix subscription. When his son is murdered in a drug-related shootout in New Orleans, small-town pharmacist Dan Schneider embarks on a quest for justice. The film explores the devastation of our nations opioid crisis by profiling the heartbreak of one relentless father. Katrina Babies Where to watch: Free with subscriptions to YouTube Premium, Hulu Premium, Amazon Prime and Max. Have you ever talked about this before? an interviewer asks a tear-streaked young woman, as she recounts her harrowing experience in the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina. No, I havent ... nobody really asked me, she responds. HBOs Katrina Babies follows the ongoing trauma of Katrinas most vulnerable victims: children. 17 years after the storm, this award-winning film shows the struggles of an entire generation still reeling from disaster. Mossville: When Great Trees Fall Where to watch: Free with subscriptions to YouTube Premium, Hulu Premium, Amazon Prime and Max. The community of Mossville, Louisiana, was once a thriving community founded by free and formerly enslaved people of color. Then the chemical plants moved in. This 2019 documentary follows local resident Stacey Ryan, who believes the death of both of his parents due to cancer was caused by contaminated drinking water. Lauded as a powerful portrait of the human cost of environmental devastation by the Hollywood Reporter, this film is sure to stick with you long after the credits roll. Irelands patron saint yes, thats Patrick is known historically for spreading Catholicism, banishing the snakes from Ireland, and his fervent love of Green No. 3 food dye. Well, we cant confirm that last part, but its how we observe St. Patricks Day regardless. The annual celebration of Irish culture falls on Sunday, March 17 this year, and theres no better way to indulge than by downing a green-dyed pint at one of these New Orleans bars. For a full preview of the weekends festivities, see here. The Bulldog Address: 3236 Magazine St., New Orleans. Hours: 11 a.m.-1 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-12 a.m. Sunday. The taps at this Uptown watering hole are running green this weekend for as long as supplies last, that is. The emerald brew will start flowing on Friday night and continue until the kegs run dry. The Holy Ground Irish Pub Address: 3236 Magazine St., New Orleans. Weekend hours: 2 p.m.-3 a.m. Friday, 12 p.m.-3 a.m. Saturday and Saturday. Think of The Holy Ground Irish Pub as the shimmering pot of gold at the end of your St. Patricks Day rainbow. After watching the Irish Channel parade, you can head over to the Mid-City bar for a sparkling green mimosa and a plate of Chinese food from Get Your Mom & Dim Sum. Pat OBriens Address: 3236 Magazine St., New Orleans. Weekend hours: 12 p.m.2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, 12 p.m.12 a.m. Sunday. This quintessential French Quarter Irish bar is pulling out all the stops for St. Patricks Day. Pick up free Pat OBriens hats and beads, sip on $6 drink specials and enter to win bar tab giveaways. Parasols Address: 3236 Magazine St., New Orleans. Weekend hours: 11 a.m.2 a.m. Friday, 9 a.m.2 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. Come for the beer, stay for the block party: Theres no way to celebrate St. Paddys in New Orleans without a stop at Parasols. The classic neighborhood dive will be serving green beer, frozen Irish coffee and shots of Chartreuse right along the Irish Channel St. Patricks Day Parade route. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says a statewide marijuana legalization initiative that residents may soon have the chance to vote on is too broad and hes also concerned about the smell. The proposed state amendment, which would allow Floridians to buy and hold limited marijuana amounts for personal use without a medical license, is currently under review by the state Supreme Court, which has until April to decide if it will be included on the Nov. 5, 2024, ballot for a statewide vote. Following the ceremonial handkerchief drop that traditionally signals the close of Floridas 2024 legislative session, DeSantis on Friday addressed reporters and shared his trepidations surrounding the Florida Marijuana Legalization Initiative, a state constitutional amendment proposal spearheaded by the Smart & Safe Florida campaign, which receives funding from Trulieve, a provider of medical marijuana. I looked at that language and it is the broadest language I think Ive ever seen, DeSantis said of the amendment. Basically, nobody could ever be regulated or penalized in any way for possessing or using this I mean, you cant regulate it near a school, you cant tell people you cant smoke I mean, it seems to supersede any other regulatory regime that we have. But most Florida voters appear to favor legalization. To receive a review from the state Supreme Court, the initiative required 891,523 valid signatures from Florida voters and it received more than 1 million. Further, a survey from the University of North Florida Public Opinion Research Lab reveals that nearly 70% of Floridas registered voters are in favor of the proposed state amendment. But aside from the broad language, DeSantis has another issue with marijuana he thinks it stinks. And if the amendment passes, he warned, the odor will become a part of the downtown area. Ive gone to some of the cities that have had this and everywhere it smells, DeSantis said. So, from a quality of life perspective, if you cant do time, place and manner restrictions, that is going to impact every Floridian one way or another. On Jan. 19, just a few days before officially ending his presidential campaign, cannabis lobbyist Don Murphy asked the governor about the likelihood of marijuana being legalized throughout the state. In response, DeSantis said, I think the court is going to approve that so itll be on the ballot. But that probably would not be the case if the decision was solely up to him, with the governor previously stating that recreational marijuana is a real, real problem and telling reporters, Yeah, I would not legalize. I dont want to walk in front of shops and have this; I dont want every hotel to really smell, DeSantis said. I dont want all these things. But if youre saying you cant regulate it, or you cant limit it that could be a big, big problem. In 2016, Florida voters overwhelmingly supported a constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana, with more than 70% in favor, paving the way for a significant number of Floridians to access medical cannabis. As of March 8 2024, the state had 876,346 registered medical marijuana patients. Haiti - FLASH : Kenya suspends the deployment of the Mission in Haiti Kenya has decided to temporarily suspend its plan to send police officers to Haiti, as part of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMSS) supporting the Haitian National Police (PNH) approved by the UN "There has been a fundamental change in circumstances as a result of the complete breakdown of law and order and the subsequent resignation of the PM Ariel Henry https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41864-haiti-flash-acting-prime-minister-ariel-henry-resigns-video.html Without a political administration in Haiti, there is no anchor on which a police deployment can rest," said Korir Sing'oei, Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Kenya. "Whence government will await the installation of a new constitutional authority in Haiti, before taking further decisions on the matter [...]" while reiterating that Kenya remained determined to "providing leadership to the MSS." Reacting to Kenya's announcement Matthew Miller, State Department Spokesman, said "I would be concerned about any delay, but we don't think it will be necessary," adding "it is natural for Kenya to want to know that there is a Government which can welcome them and which can ask them to deploy a mission." The United States believes that the transition agreement will allow the establishment of a new government, as Nairobi wishes. "The new transitional council which will appoint an interim Prime Minister and a ministerial cabinet should be formed in the next 24 to 48 hours" and this "will pave the way for the continuation of this mission," added Miller. However, a major challenge, according to diplomats familiar with the subject, is financing the Mission. The United States has pledged $300 million. However, a UN spokesperson said on Monday (March 11) that so far less than $11 million had been deposited into the dedicated UN trust fund for the Mission. A senior US State Department official said the Biden administration was working with Congress to get the money transferred. On the other hand, Kenya has requested that the costs of the deployment be paid up front, but UN rules require that the funds it administers be used only to reimburse the costs incurred, according to a diplomat based in Nairobi and UN officials. So if Kenya wants to be paid up front, it will have to find a country willing to pay it directly, said the diplomats and UN officials, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject. . See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41864-haiti-flash-acting-prime-minister-ariel-henry-resigns-video.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41852-haiti-caricom-extraordinary-session-on-the-transition-in-haiti.html SL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - FLASH : Presidential Transitional Council, some members already known After the formation of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) for Haiti, Ariel Henry will resign from his position as Prime Minister. The CPT will be composed of 9 members : 7 titular members who will assume a rotating presidency and 2 observers (religious sector and Civil Society), as agreed during the meeting of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) with Haitian actors and international partners, in addition to the UN. Should be noted that the representatives of the groups which will form the Presidential Transitional Council participated in a videoconference on March 11. All these representatives gave their agreement to the road map. Haitian political actors have 48 hours to designate their representative within this council (deadline ending this Wednesday). Before the end of this week a new Government must take office. Let's remember that according to the Caricom aide-memoire on meetings with political and civil society organizations, to be a member of the CPT "You must renounce being a candidate in the next elections; not be under conviction or under indictment, adhere to UN resolution 2699 on the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti and agree not to participate in the next elections." List of the 7 entities which will each appoint a representative to the CPT : 1 - Collective of January 30 : It brings together the signatories of the declaration of January 30, 2023 to try to emerge from the crisis: the Haitian Tet Kale Party (PHTK, in power since 2011), the National Union for Integrity and Reconciliation (UNIR-Haiti), the Dessalinian Popular Party. Patriotic Movement (Mopod), the Alternative League for Progress and Haitian Emancipation (Lapeh), the party of former president Rene Preval, the Organization of the People in Struggle (OPL) and the Grand Rally for Haiti party Evolution of Haiti (GREH). Representative on hold : 2 - Montana Agreement : Signed on August 30, 2021 by 431 civil society actors, 106 grassroots organizations, 326 individuals and 86 political parties or poles. Representative already known : Fritz Alphonse Jean 3 - Agreement of December 21, 2022 : Signed between the Prime Minister and representatives of political parties, civil society organizations and members of the private sector. published in the official bulletin Le Moniteur on January 3, 2023. Representative already known : former Deputy Vikerson Garnier 4 - EDE/RED and political commitment and allies : Alliance between the political party of former Prime Minister Claude Joseph (Les Engages pour le Developpement, EDE) and the platform of the Democratic Resistance (RED) and the members of the historic coalition and their allies, which include around forty political parties and movements like Ayiti An Aksyon (AAA), led by former senator Youry Latortue, and the Rally of Progressive Democrats (RDNP), of which Mirlande Manigat, member of the High Council of the Transition, is a member. Representative already known : the former Minister for the Status of Women, Marie Ghislaine Mompremier 5 - Fanmi Lavalas : It is the party led by former president Jean Bertrand Aristide. Since at least the end of the 1990s, this force has actively participated in the political life of the country, which has produced two presidents and dozens of senators and deputies. It is one of the most powerful parties in Haiti. Representative on hold : 6 - "Pitit Dessalin" Party: Formation born in February 2017 and led by former senator Jean Charles Moise. Politically left-wing, this party declares itself open to all those who "share the ideal of Dessalines to the end". Representative on hold : 7 - Private business sector: Made up of personalities, organizations and associations from the business sector, such as the Haiti Tourism Association (ATH), the Association of Haitian Industries (ADIH) and the Chambers of Commerce and Industry, including the Western Chamber of Commerce (CCIO) and the American. Chamber of Commerce (AmCham Haiti). Representative on hold : See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41874-haiti-flash-barbecue-and-guy-philippe-reject-the-caricom-agreement-videos.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41872-haiti-flash-kenya-suspends-the-deployment-of-the-mission-in-haiti.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41864-haiti-flash-acting-prime-minister-ariel-henry-resigns-video.html https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41852-haiti-caricom-extraordinary-session-on-the-transition-in-haiti.html SL/ S/ HaitiLibre Haiti - Spain : Financial and personnel support for the Security Mission in Haiti Jose Manuel Albares, the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, recognized that the situation of violence in Haiti "concerned him greatly", and insisted on the fact that Spain has already announced financial support for Haiti as well as its participation, with training personnel, pending the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MMSS) to support the Haitian National Police (PNH) in its fight against armed gangs. "The situation in Haiti is a situation that worries us enormously, we are talking about security, physical security for Haitians and a situation of respect for human rights and the dignity of people," Albares declared during a official visit to Panama. He stressed that despite the levels of violence and insecurity experienced in Haiti, "Spain is one of the few countries that keeps its embassy open," from where they continue to provide "political and diplomatic support", while waiting for the Multinational Mission. "We have already announced that we are going to participate [...] and we are going to do it both financially, we have already announced an initial amount of 3 million euros, and also through personnel and training for this police operation," while waiting for the deployment of the international contingent, which will be led by Kenya, to materialize. S/ HaitiLibre Haiti - News : Zapping... The Minister of the Interior attacked The Minister of the Interior and Local Authorities (MICT) was the target of a violent attack by heavily armed individuals. Opening a breach in the fence adjoining Street de la Reunion to enter the space, they riddled certain Ministry infrastructures with bullets and set fire to equipment. The shootings and arson attacks hit two generators, central air conditioning ducts and motors, windows and furniture at various levels. At least six vehicles were also destroyed by fire among other damage recorded. Radio Television Caraibes abandons its premises Radio Television Caraibes (RTVC) had to abandon its premises on Street Chavannes due to the escalation of violence in downtown Port-au-Prince. RTVC is now installed in another space in the metropolitan region of Port-au-Prince. 6,800 displaced people housed at Lycee Marie-Jeanne Nearly 6,800 displaced people, including more than 200 pregnant women, are housed at the Lycee Marie-Jeanne, according to the Directorate of Civil Protection (DPC) in Port-au-Prince, which is launching an appeal to the leaders concerned and members of social organizations in order to provide assistance. Comments from Anthony Blinken "Haitians cannot wait longer to find a path to security, stability and democracy. The United States and CARICOM support a clear political transition plan, led by trusted representatives of Haitian society," Secretary Anthony Blinken See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-41876-haiti-flash-presidential-transitional-council-some-members-already-known.html Interference by the international community Tuesday March 12, 2024, The Caribbean People's Assembly held a conference denouncing the interference of the international community which decided to provide the country with new leaders. PAHO/WHO alongside the Peace University Hospital Faced with the current crisis, the Pan American Health Organization and the World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO Haiti) continues to support the Ministry of Public Health and Population through its support to the University Hospital la Paix (HUP) in Delmas 33, on the front line of emergency response. This support provided to the HUP ensures that emergency care is completely free and facilitates the operation of other services. HL/ HaitiLibre Primary season has arrived in Montana, with filing for the upcoming ballot now closed and all non-write-in candidates now declared, though most candidates on the county level in this region are running unopposed. In Blaine County, Republican Miles Hutton is running unopposed to maintain his seat on the Blaine County Commission, with Democrats Julie Campbell and Kendall Harwood both running unopposed for clerk of district court and county superintendent of schools respectively, the latter as an appointed incumbent. Blaine County Justice of the Peace Jim Doyle, another appointed incumbent in a n... Program intended to enhance consumer protection; USDA makes additional investments to support independent processing capacity and build resilience in the meat and poultry supply chain; announces new actions to enhance transparency and competition in the seed industry Press release PHOENIX At the National Farmers Union Annual Convention Monday, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the finalization of a rule to align the voluntary Product of USA label claim with consumer understanding of what the claim means. Vilsack also announced USDA is awarding $9.5 million to 42 projects through the Local Meat Capacity grant program to expand processing options for the meat and poultry industry and new actions to ensure transparency and a fair and competitive market in the U.S seed industry. Todays announcement is a vital step toward cons... Dairy production in Uganda is dominated by rural smallholder farmers. The dairy sector currently represents 6.5 percent of the country's agricultural gross domestic product and dairy production is reported by the Dairy Development Authority of Uganda (DDA) to be a major activity in the cattle corridor, a stretch of rangeland covering more than a third of the country. Cooperative chairman Johnson Kwesigabo guides dairy cattle through the fields at Migina Milk Collection Centre in Kiboga district, Central Uganda. Photo by Heifer International Uganda. Given its predominance in rural areas, dairy farming contributes significantly to rural communities' economic, nutritional and employment opportunities, making the dairy sector a worthy investment for developing agribusiness in Uganda. Heifer International thus chose to support Ugandas dairy farming sector to address the challenges that contribute to limited milk production and render dairy farmers vulnerable, including access to energy, which we consider a key variable for enabling dairy farmers to earn a living income. Solar Power for Sustainable Income According to the World Bank, only 28 percent of Ugandas population had access to electricity in 2018. This lack of access has significant implications for economic development and quality of life, as it limits opportunities for businesses and makes it difficult for individuals to access basic services like healthcare and education. For dairy farmers, a lack of electricity makes it difficult to keep milk chilled, and many rely on diesel generators, which emit high volumes of carbon and are expensive to maintain. To address this challenge, Heifer International has partnered with Carbon Trust under the Powering Renewable Energy Opportunities (PREO) program to implement the Solar for Sustainable Income in Dairy project to provide alternative power, specifically solar-powered rural milk chilling solutions, at the dairy cooperative level across Uganda. General Manager Charles Ibona poses next to a solar-powered milk cooling tank. Photo by Heifer International Uganda. The first to benefit from the project was Migina Milk Collection Centre, a satellite milk bank for Dwaniro Dairy and Livestock Farmers Cooperative Limited in Kiboga district, Central Uganda. The cooperative has a total of 821 milk suppliers, of which 468 are members, as of December 2023. These farmers supply the cooperative with milk daily and, in turn, attain a market for their milk through the milk processing companies that purchase milk in bulk from the collection center. Heifer officially commissioned a 41.4 kilowatt-peak (kWp) photovoltaic (PV) solar system for the Migina Milk Collection Center in August 2023. Before the solar system was installed, the cooperative relied on generators as its source of power and, as a result, used to spend $30,000 annually on servicing, maintaining and fueling the machines. The unreliability of the generators and high maintenance fees resulted in high operating costs for the cooperative and, in turn, lower prices offered to farmers for their milk. Generators are serviced by technicians outside the operational areas. The time lag between generator troubleshooting activities led to milk losses worth $2,500 in spoilage, said Edna Nyamwaka, Heifer project manager, referring to the cooperatives substantial monthly losses. The reliable source of power results in good quality milk, which fetches a good market price from the off-taker [buyer]. This, in turn, enables the cooperative to pay farmers well. Heifer Project Manager Edna Nyamwaka With sufcient and reliable solar power, Dwaniro Dairy and Livestock Farmers Cooperative Limited has reduced milk losses at Migina Milk Collection Centre to zero. According to Steven Kawooya, production and marketing manager for the cooperative, 197,321 liters of milk worth $49,682 are now chilled monthly, and the cooperative has reduced its power costs to $18,170 a year. With this initiative, and with less losses made by the cooperative, the farmers save up to 46 percent of what they earn from milk sales, he said, explaining how dairy farmers who sell to the solar-powered milk collection center are now earning a higher price per liter than they were before. A worker collects milk into yellow jerry cans in front of a stainless steel milk cooler. Photo by Heifer International Uganda. In December 2023, a second solar power system was commissioned for Nabitanga Dairy Cooperative located in Ssembabule District, Central Uganda, and in February 2024, a third solar system was commissioned for Kiryanyonza Milk Collection Centre, a second satellite milk bank for Dwaniro Dairy and Livestock Farmers Cooperative Limited. With these in place, the cooperatives are expecting savings resulting from less milk spoilage and eliminating the expenses of generator fuel and maintenance, along with less carbon emissions from generator use, creating efficiency, a clean environment, safer and cleaner milk, and more volumes of milk collected for sale. Milk prices fluctuate, said Edna. In the wet season prices are low, and dry season prices are high. The reliable source of power results in good quality milk, which fetches a good market price from the off-taker [buyer]. This, in turn, enables the cooperative to pay farmers well. Power for the Future Site Engineer John Robert calibrates solar panels to ensure peak performance. Photo by Heifer International Uganda. Successes and learnings from the first two solar installations have attracted more funding and partnership opportunities to expand the Solar for Sustainable Income in Dairy project. In part with new support from aBi Development Limited, a Uganda-based provider of agriculture grants and business development services, Heifer International plans to put in place two more solar installations for Kiboga Livestock Cooperative in Kiboga District, Central Uganda, and Kijjumba Dairy Cooperative in Nakaseke District, Central Uganda by June 2024. Additionally, with 30 percent co-financing from Heifer International, Heifer Uganda is leveraging 70 percent commercial financing from the Uganda Development Bank and Centenary Bank through the Ugandan government's Agricultural Credit Facility, a fund dedicated to agriculture-related investments, to finance three more solar installations by December 2024. The Solar for Sustainable Income in Dairy project works in alignment with the governments objective to power the entire country by 2030, including with solar solutions; the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development recently received a grant worth $35 million from the German government and the European Union to support the electrification of Ugandas rural areas with solar energy and contribute to the transition to clean renewable energy. Installed solar panels at Nabitanga Dairy Cooperative in Ssembabule District, Uganda stand ready to convert sunshine into sustainable energy for dairy processing. Photo by Heifer International Uganda. By bringing solar power closer to farmers, Heifer Uganda is contributing to this mission. Going forward, the project intends to scale up operations by conducting feasibility studies to design optimal solar solutions for other Heifer-supported dairy cooperatives. The project will also support technology providers and financiers to design appropriate business models for financing the installations. Amidst global energy challenges, the sun offers bright solutions. See how Heifer is leading the charge with other sustainable projects. LEARN MORE ABOUT SOLAR Leaders from HHS, White House, DOL, and the health care community convened to discuss ways to mitigate harms to patient and providers caused by the cyberattack. On Tuesday, March 12, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra and Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm, led a convening of health care community leaders joined by White House Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden, White House Deputy National Security Advisor (DNSA) for Cyber and Emerging Technologies Anne Neuberger, and others from the federal government to discuss concrete actions to mitigate harms to patients and providers caused by the cyberattack on Change Healthcare. Over the weekend, Secretary Becerra and Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su called on UnitedHealth Group (UHG) and other payers to meet the moment, urging actions that complement those taken by the Biden-Harris Administration to ensure patients access to care and support providers. Secretary Becerra and Domestic Policy Advisor Tanden made clear the government and private sector must work together to help providers make payroll and deliver timely care to the American people and that insurers help providers in this moment of challenge. Since February 21, when HHS first learned of the Change Healthcare attack, it has been in near-constant communication with countless stakeholders to understand the impact on the ground and step in to help facilitate solutions with urgency. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure also announced that guidance to states is forthcoming to provide needed flexibilities for states to support Medicaid providers and suppliers during this time. Biden-Harris Administration officials directly heard concerns from representatives of provider groups hospitals, childrens health providers, physicians, infusion centers, pharmacies, community health centers, long-term care facilities across the country on the broad impact the cyberattack on Change Healthcare has had on the health care sector. They highlighted gaps in the response from payers, including the need for more immediate payment options, direct communications and relaxed billing and claims processing requirements. Health care payers were then called upon and committed to continued coordination to meet the need considering additional steps to reduce red tape, provide accessible funding opportunities through advanced payments, and through other means to provide productive solutions to address the cash flow issues that providers are experiencing. Biden-Harris Administration officials called upon the payers to respond with urgency and noted they will follow-up with the payer community about the actions and commitments voiced today. The DNSA Neuberger noted the interconnectedness of the domestic health care ecosystem and the urgency of strengthening cybersecurity resiliency across the sector, by implementing HHSs voluntary HPH Cyber Performance Goals (CPGs). Department of Labor Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits, Ali Khawar reminded the participants of DOLs Cybersecurity Program Best Practices for plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries, record keepers and plan participants in the health care community. List of Administration participants: HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra HHS Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm Neera Tanden, White House Domestic Policy Advisor Anne Neuberger, White House Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Dawn O'Connell, Administrator and Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Carole Johnson, Administrator of Health Resources and Services Administration Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Jonathan Blum, Principal Deputy Administrator and Chief Operating Officer, CMS Ben Smith, Deputy Director of the Indian Health Service Bertha Alisia Guerrero, Director of the Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs Ali Khawar, Department of Labor Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Employee Benefits List of Stakeholder participants: Alliance of Community Health Plans Americas Essential Hospitals Americas Health Insurance Plans American Academy of Family Physicians American Academy of Pediatrics American Health Care Association | National Center for Assisted Living American Hospital Association American Medical Association American Osteopathic Association American Pharmacists Association American Society of Consultant Pharmacists American Society of Health-System Pharmacists AmeriHealth Caritas Association for Community Affiliated Plans Availity BlueCross BlueShield Association Centene Childrens Hospital Association The Cigna Group CVS Health Elevance Health Federation of American Hospitals Humana Infusion Providers Association Kaiser Permanente LeadingAge Medicaid Health Plans of America National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations National Association of Chain Drug Stores National Association of Community Health Centers National Community Pharmacists Association National Hispanic Medical Foundation National Rural Health Association Pharmaceutical Care Management Association Prime Therapeutics UnitedHealth Group These efforts are part of HHS broader cybersecurity strategy. HHS continues to urge everyone to implement the aforementioned CPGs designed to help health care organizations strengthen cyber preparedness, improve cyber resiliency, and ultimately protect patient health information and safety. HHS Actions on Change Healthcare to Date Once the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) was notified of the cyberattack on Change Healthcare systems on February 21, 2024, HHS acted to address the impacts. Within first 24 hours the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), in its role as sector risk management agency, stood up an interagency response team and began coordinating with federal partners (e.g., Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigations, Veterans Affairs) and across HHS to develop a comprehensive understanding of the situation and to coordinate the federal response. HHS began direct communication with UnitedHealth Group (UHG) leadership on day one, with an initial focus on scope and magnitude of impact. HHS continued coordination as the situation progressed, continuing engagement with UHG to both assess timeline to restoration and system-wide impacts, and to press UHG for a swift and effective response to mitigate harms to patients and providers. ASPR continues to lead interagency actions, including the development and distribution of actionable threat intelligence with the healthcare sector and actions to ensure a system-wide response, coordination with Department of Labor and the Small Business Administration for potential private market supports, and communication with industry. HHS has also been in consistent communication with other private sector health care entities including private payers and clearinghouses to ensure a systemwide response to increase claims flow and advanced payments wherever appropriate. HHS is in regular contact with state partners and with numerous external stakeholders, including physicians, hospitals, pharmacies, and other health care providers, to understand the nature of the impacts and to assess the effectiveness of the system-wide response. As CMS has received reports of any obstacles with claims processing or enrollment delays, the Agency has followed up with the Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) to troubleshoot issues. HHS is working with Members of Congress to facilitate assistance to providers and hospitals struggling with cash flow issues. HHS, through ASPR and in partnership with Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), conducted a comprehensive initial assessment of impacts on agencies within HHS and continues to monitor for additional impacts. As a result, the Indian Health Service (IHS) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) are communicating with leaders to address and mitigate effects. And last, HHS, through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, took the following policy and administrative actions: swift policy action through Medicare Parts A and B to ensure health care providers have adequate cash flow and to prevent patient harms. announced that they streamlined the process for providers to change clearinghouses to ensure continuity of payments, encouraged insurance plans to remove or relax prior authorization requirements in both Medicare and Medicaid, and directed MACs to be prepared to accept paper claims submissions during the course of the outage. Key Actions: How did the decision to translate Olga Tokarczuk come about? Did you read her work and feel this is something that must find readers in English? Translator Antonia Lloyd Jones (Susan Bernofsky) I have known Olga for a long time now, since the mid-1990s. She was already quite popular in Poland when I first met her. Someone was already translating her work into English, though without a publishing deal, so I didnt think I would ever be her translator. Unfortunately, it took a long time for an English-language publisher to take an interest. In those days, Olga was represented internationally by her Dutch publisher, who finally sold the rights to one of her books to a British publisher, Granta. The editors there were trying to decide between two books in particular, and the Dutch publisher recommended me to them as a potential translator. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The book they chose was House of Day, House of Night, and I suspect they may have chosen the wrong one to launch her work in English at that point in time, and possibly Primeval and Other Times (which I translated a few years later) might have been more successful, but who knows? I am about to revise my translation of House of Day, House of Night for a new edition that will be published next year; I think I can improve the translation, and Ill restore some sections that were cut from the old edition. Granta didnt want to publish another one of her books because they werent happy with the sales; its always difficult when a publisher doesnt want to continue publishing a particular author. Like the novel Flights, House of Day is what Olga Tokarczuk calls a constellation novel, formed from a mosaic of loosely connected pieces of text. She likes experimenting with the form of the novel, and often rejects the idea of the linear novel in favour of something very different. 288pp, 361; Riverhead (HC) (Amazon) You mentioned Drive Your Plow should have been published before. Why is that? In fact, it is her most conventional, linear novel. For some years we couldnt find a new publisher for her in English. I tried and tried with Drive Your Plow, and whenever Olga and I appeared at a public event, I would invite publishers to attend, but without luck. Soon after translating House of Day I was contacted by a young American translator called Jennifer Croft, who told me she was passionate about Olgas work and would love to translate it. I was impressed by the sample translations she sent me. To cut a long story short, we became friends and we teamed up to promote Olgas work. Jennifer was interested in Flights, so she began working on that, but at first her efforts to find a publisher were as fruitless as mine. Then came the time when Poland was going to be the guest of honour at the London Book Fair. Suddenly, publishers woke up to the idea of Polish literature. By then, Jennifer had sent some extracts from Flights to Jacques Testard, who runs the British publishing house, Fitzcarraldo Editions. He published it in time for the book fair, when it could get maximum publicity, and he also did a very good job of selling it on to an American publisher. Suddenly, everything fell into place Flights won the Booker International prize. In the meantime, I had translated Drive Your Plow so that the publisher could follow up on the success of Flights quickly. Drive Your Plow has been Olgas most successful book in terms of sales, but I think thats partly because its a crime novel, a genre that appeals to some readers who wouldnt necessarily want to read a highly literary novel. Also, its funny and comparatively short. Some of Olgas books are very long, in particular The Books of Jacob, which is an epic historical novel for which she did eight years of research. As the translator, Jennifer Croft had to do a lot of research too. Tell us about Olgas relationship with her translators. One thing about translating a writer of Olgas stature, especially now that she has won the Nobel Prize, is that she has been translated into very many languages. Her translators have become friends and have built a community. It started with The Books of Jacob, when the translators needed each others help to research all the historical details. Olga now holds biannual events in Wrocaw (the city where she lives some of the time) where she invites her translators to meet up and talk about our work. We also have our own Facebook page where we ask each other questions about the text. Its a special kind of brother- and sisterhood where we share books and writers. Olga Tokarczuk (Markus Wissman/Shutterstock) Tell us a bit about Olga Tokarczuk Olga lives in a remote village in south-western Poland called Krajanow, which is similar to the one described in Drive Your Plow. Its in a strange part of Poland called the Kodzko Valley, which protrudes into the Czech Republic. Its different, rather isolated, and has a special magic of its own. I used to visit Olga there every summer, and I remember trudging across the fields in bad weather to a remote, run-down house that was home to an old, retired woman named Teresa Chmura. Although she was living in very poor conditions, she was a former engineer, and an excellent artist with a brilliant imagination. Olga was very fond of her and used to take her food in the winter. When Teresa Chmura died, Olga established a local walking route in her memory, with signs along the way featuring her drawings of the landscape. Olga made sure Teresa Chmura was memorialised in the place she had been a part of, had loved and drawn. As you can tell, Olga is a remarkable person, who does all sorts of things for all sorts of people. Shes very interested in people. Since winning the Nobel Prize, she has established the Olga Tokarczuk Foundation, based in Wrocaw. It supports a range of cultural, social and educational projects. While you are translating from one language to another, how do you translate the atmosphere of the place? Put simply, the main tasks for a translator are to understand what the author is trying to say in their own language, and then reproduce the same meaning and effect in their own language. Olga writes very well and is very good at descriptive narrative. But, of course, it helps that I know the place where Drive Your Plow is set, so to some extent I knew what Olga was imagining while composing some of the scenes. While Im translating, I try to imagine two people standing behind me. One is the author, and the other is the reader. So my job is to understand what the author has written, what their intention was, and how theyve achieved it why theyve put this word rather than another. Once I have understood the authors approach, I have to think how to say the same thing in English, in the same way, so that the reader will understand it and will feel the same effect as the Polish reader. When you are translating a Polish novel, there must be a significant style that you follow. Can you tell us about the style? Polish literature does not have one particular style. At the moment, I am working on the Penguin Book of Polish Short Stories, an anthology of 39 stories, dating back 100 years, in a wide range of styles, most of them never previously translated. Nine of the stories have been bought in as existing translations; I have commissioned 13 from other translators, and Ive translated 17 myself. Theyre all completely different in terms of style, so Ive had to change style every few days, which has been challenging. Perhaps theres a certain mood to the way Polish writers think. Their work is quite often characterised by black humour, and they have a slightly different way of looking at the world from many Western authors, a Central European approach, we could say. Please name three Polish writers whose work is essential reading. There are so many good writers that its hard for me to select just three. I would recommend the classic poet Adam Mickiewicz; in particular, his epic poem Pan Tadeusz, which is one of the most important and inspiring works written in Polish. Its also a good, exciting story that reads like a novel the latest translation, by Bill Johnston for Archipelago Books, is superb and an immensely good read. You should definitely read anything by the Nobel prize-winning poet Wisawa Szymborska, whose poems are wise and, as I see it, help us to understand life. I recommend a collection titled View with a Grain of Sand, translated by Stanisaw Baranczak and Clare Cavanagh (published by Faber). I keep her books in the bathroom, where I read a poem whenever I go to the loo! So I come out relieved, not just physically, but also spiritually. I can also recommend The Possessed by Witold Gombrowicz, which is a funny pastiche of a Gothic novel (I translated it for Fitzcarraldo Editions), full of bizarre characters including a pair of star-crossed lovers, a mad old prince who lives in a crumbling castle, and his scheming secretary. Amrita Talwar is a marketing professional who is an avid birdwatcher. New Delhi, India, 12 March - The legal community witnessed a momentous event on March 6th and 7th, 2024, as the 5th Edition of the LexTalk World - Global Legal & IP Conference organised by ClickAway Creators LLP (A Division of CAC Media and Events Inc., Canada) unfolded at Hotel Le Meridien, Windsor Pl, New Delhi, India. With approximately 1500 legal professionals and 70 distinguished speakers, the conference became a platform for insightful discussions, networking, and recognition of outstanding contributions in the legal and intellectual property domains. This Edition of the Conference was Powered and Sponsored by MRS Business Professionals Consulting, in Association with the Indian Society of International Law. As Diamond Sponsors iSON Experiences, Virtuous Digital, and Agiloft, as Gold Sponsors, Kroll, EY, Xpress Legal Advocates & Legal Consultants, and Law Qube Technologies participated in the conference. Also, at the same time, as Premium Exhibitors, Case Research AI, and Zoho Contracts, and as Event Exhibitors ProVakil, Legistify, LegalBook.IO, Signdesk, and Manupatra participated in the Event. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Eminent Legal Personalities Grace the Occasion: The conference was graced by the presence of 8 eminent legal personalities who added prestige to the event: Honble Justice Mr. Rajesh Bindal, Supreme Court of India Mr. R. Vekataramani, Attorney General of India Honble Justice Mr. Pankaj Mithal, Supreme Court of India Mr. Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India Mr. Pravin H. Parekh, President of the Indian Society of International Law Dr. Lalit Bhasin, President of the Society of Indian Law Firms, India Dr. GV Rao, Senior Advocate Supreme Court of India, & Vice-President Indian Society of International Law. Mr. Nar Hari Singh, Ex. Add. Advocate General, Senior Central Govt. Counsel & Advocate-on-Record, Supreme Court of India This was the first conference held in India, since its inaugural edition in Dubai, UAE, in 2021. Day 1 - March 6, 2024: The inaugural day commenced with a Lamp Lighting Ceremony by Chief Guests for the Day, including Mr. Tushar Mehta, Solicitor General of India, Dr. Lalit Bhasin, President of the SILF, and the Director-cum-Co.-Founders of ClickAway Creators LLP, Mr. Abhishek Gourav and Mr. Pardeep Tyagi. Around 42 speakers led discussions on 13 diverse topics, including 5 Panel Discussions, 1 keynote speech, and 2 Case Study Presentations, led by speakers like John Cabeca, US Intellectual Property Counsellor for South Asia, Embassy of the United States of America, New Delhi, Dr. Narinder Singh, Secretary General of ISIL, Former Ambassador, Dr. Kishore Singh, Former Rapporteur of UNESCO, etc. Hall A, focusing on the theme Legal, featured discussions led by 24 speakers, addressing topics such as "Environmental Law and Sustainability," and "Corporate Governance & Compliance, Navigating Regulatory Challenges." Hall B, themed "IP and Law Tech," saw discussions on topics like "Ethical Considerations in Intellectual Property Practice" and "Pharmaceutical Patents and Access to Medicine." Day 2 - March 7, 2024: The second day commenced with registrations, welcoming Chief Guests Mr. Pravin H. Parekh, President of ISIL, Honble Justices Mr. Rajesh Bindal & Mr. Pankaj Mithal, and R. Vekataramani, Attorney General of India. Hosting 38 speakers addressing 11 diverse topics, the day featured discussions mirroring the pattern of panel discussions, keynote speeches, and case study presentations in both the Halls, led by speakers Stalin Muthusamy, CEO, Aaytham Consulting, Sonal Sharma, VP-Legal & Commercial, HCL Technologies Ltd., Rajiv Malik, Head of Legal at LG Electronics, Noida Manufacturing Facility, Lakshmidevi Somanath, Partner, IP Practice at Surana & Surana International Attorneys, Monica Romelina Sijabat, Founder & Managing Partner at MRS Business Professionals Consulting, etc. In Hall A, discussions covered topics like the "Role of Artificial Intelligence in the Legal Industry" and "Competition Laws and Social Justice." In Hall B, discussions included topics like "Technology and Access to Justice" and "E-Discovery and Digital Evidence." The day concluded with keynote speeches by Honble Mr. Justice Rajesh Bindal, & Honble Mr. R. Venkataramani, Attorney General of India, also Honble Mr. Justice Pankaj Mithal, and Mr. Nar Hari Singh, Advocate-on-Record, Supreme Court of India joined the conference as Honourary Guests The Awards Distribution Ceremony acknowledged the outstanding contributions of about more than 100 legal professionals, who were awarded the LexFalcon Global Awards. The Lifetime Achievement Awards were conferred upon 2 eminent legal personalities Dr. Lalit Bhasin, President of the SILF, and Mr. Pravin H. Parekh, President of ISIL, marking the end of the conference. Taking note of the proceedings and the responses of this two-day event, it is evident that the LexTalk World - Global Legal & IP Conference, New Delhi, India 2024 was a grand success, which received overwhelming support and response from the Global Legal Fraternity. For Media or Content Related References, Please Contact- barshan@clickawaycreators.com Disclaimer: This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Hindustan Times. Hindustan Times does not endorse/subscribe to the content(s) of the article/advertisement and/or view(s) expressed herein. Hindustan Times shall not in any manner, be responsible and/or liable in any manner whatsoever for all that is stated in the article and/or also with regard to the view(s), opinion(s), announcement(s), declaration(s), affirmation(s) etc., stated/featured in the same. The global trend is shifting away from the traditional reliance on Bachelor's or Master's degrees as markers of career success. Instead, younger generations are increasingly opting for careers in finance and accounting, driven by the promising job prospects and prevailing economic circumstances. This significant change is accompanied by a noticeable rise in the number of women pursuing financial courses. This surge of female participation in the industry is fostering equal opportunities and cultivating a more inclusive and diverse workplace environment. Previously, finance and accounting were viewed as inaccessible professions due to a lack of educational options. However, times have changed, with a range of job opportunities now available in corporate finance, fintech, and sustainable finance, extending beyond traditional roles. Alongside this expansion, the narrative surrounding women's participation in finance is also evolving. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. A recent survey conducted among over 600 students of Indian Institute of Commerce Lakshya across its 8 centers in Kerala dispelled misconceptions about commerce and financial studies, which have historically been perceived as male-dominated realms. The survey, involving 664 students, unveiled a significant deviation from the norm, with men comprising only 33.3% while women constituted a higher proportion at 66.7%. This notable rise can be attributed to a growing awareness of the importance of financial literacy and concerted efforts to address gender disparities in this field. Additionally, the increasing complexity of financial uncertainties has attracted women to this traditionally male-centric sector. The growing presence of women underscores the recognition of diverse skills and perspectives within the profession, signaling an acknowledgment of their valuable contributions to the sector. Moreover, the survey highlights that a significant 73.8% majority of students come from a commerce background, while an encouraging 22.9% are from science streams. This discovery is noteworthy as it dispels the misconception that professional commerce careers are exclusively for those with a background in commerce. The survey also indicates that individuals of varying ages are stepping forward to pursue successful careers in finance. A substantial 52.1% of students fall within the 20 to 25 age bracket, while 46.7% are aged between 16 and 19. Additionally, the survey underscores that students with diverse educational backgrounds are enrolling in professional commerce courses. Notably, a significant 52.3% of students opt for these courses upon completing grade 12, indicating positive progress. The emergence of new professional commerce courses, such as ACCA, CA, CMA USA, CS, B.Com + ACCA, MBA + ACCA, B.Voc + ACCA, and CMA IND, plays a pivotal role in shaping well-rounded professionals capable of navigating the opportunities and challenges within the dynamic financial industry. Despite the misconceptions surrounding professional commerce streams, this sector is thriving and pushing past limitations. As it evolves beyond traditional roles, it creates opportunities for women to make meaningful contributions. This critical juncture represents the beginning of a new era defined by enlightened perspectives from various gender viewpoints. Orwell Lionel, Founder & Managing Director, Indian Institute of Commerce Lakshya (The views expressed here are of Orwell Lionel, Founder & Managing Director, Indian Institute of Commerce Lakshya.) Website: https://lakshyaca.com/ Disclaimer: This article is a paid publication and does not have journalistic/editorial involvement of Hindustan Times. Hindustan Times does not endorse/subscribe to the content(s) of the article/advertisement and/or view(s) expressed herein. Hindustan Times shall not in any manner, be responsible and/or liable in any manner whatsoever for all that is stated in the article and/or also with regard to the view(s), opinion(s), announcement(s), declaration(s), affirmation(s) etc., stated/featured in the same. IBM layoffs: International Business Machines Corp (IBM) reportedly announced layoffs without informing about the specific number of job cuts. IBM reportedly laid off employees in the company's marketing and communications division. The decision of layoffs was disclosed in a seven-minute meeting by Jonathan Adashek, the chief communications officer at IBM, with the employees in the department. CNBC reported IBM layoffs citing unnamed sources although the company did not release the information officially. IBM layoffs: Figurines with computers and smartphones are seen in front of IBM logo. The company reportedly announced job cuts.(Reuters) This comes as the company's CEO Arvind Krishna said last year that IBM expects to pause hiring for roles which could be replaced with artificial intelligence (AI) in the coming years. Arvind Krishna said that hiring in back-office functions such as human resources will be suspended or slowed. He said, I could easily see 30% of that getting replaced by AI and automation over a five-year period." Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Tech layoffs in 2024 At least 204 companies including IBM have announced job cuts in 2024 as per layoffs.fyi website. These layoffs have affected 49,978 employees. Is IBM restructuring? In January, IBM's Chief Financial Officer James Kavanaugh said that the company is likely to spend the same amount on restructuring as it did last year which was $400 million when it reduced its workforce by about 3,900 jobs. IBM's volunteer for layoffs call IBM reportedly asked its employees who wish to opt for voluntary redundancy to step forward in layoffs that would target positions in Europe. A report in The Register said that the initiative taken by IBM is being viewed as "transformative" rather than solely financial and 80 per cent of the reduction target is directed towards Enterprise Operations & Support (EO&S) and Q2C missions as well as Finance & Operations. Speaking at a research conference organised by Sebi and its education-focused capacity-building body NISM, Buch said the regulator will further reduce the minimum investment size of bets on real estate investments trusts and infrastructure investment trusts to ensure that common people are able to take bets on such assets. HT Image "We are all delighted that now, government of India bonds will be part of the global indices," Buch said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "We are expecting that on the back of the inclusion of the sovereign debt on the global indices, there will be a significant interest in corporate debt," she added. J P Morgan and Bloomberg have included securities issued by the Indian government to take care of its funds in their indices, which is expected to lead to inflow of up to USD 40 billion into Indian debt from foreign investors. Buch said the young generation, which is keen to spot the next best money multiplier, should look at REITS and InvITs, which help an investor take a fractional ownership in major real estate and infrastructure assets. "The level of investor interest, particularly from foreign investors, in the InvIT space is very very significant," she said, listing out the strategies to be deployed by Sebi to make it more popular going ahead. The regulator is comfortable with the level of disclosures and governance standards in the instruments now, and has already decreased the minimum investment amount in such asset classes as the risk in such assets has gone down, she said. "We have steadily brought it down and the intention, the commitment to the industry is that down the line we will bring it down even further making it very much affordable," she said. This is a part of the "sachetisation" of financial products strategy adopted earlier, Buch said, adding that such a move should help even the smallest of investors own a fractional ownership of such assets. Meanwhile, speaking at the same event, Sebi's Whole-Time Member Ananth Narayan said the regulator will be launching a survey on the level of investor awareness and what are the mediums through which they get their information. Stating that it will take some time, he said, "This is something that we are consciously trying to do, to actually figure out scientifically on where are the gaps, how can they be addressed, what is the best medium of doing so. Its worth the exercise rather than us assuming what the investor wants." This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Smallcap stock sell-off continued for the third straight day today (March 13) as it experience the most intense fall this year so far. The Nifty smallcap 100 index fell 4.8%, slipping below 15,000 mark, reaching a low of 14,366 points, marking the most significant intraday decline witnessed so far this year. Majority of stocks in the Nifty Smallcap 100 index are trading at discounts ranging from 10% to 45%. Market regulator SEBI warned of a froth building up in small-cap and mid-cap segments Stocks like Rites, HUDCO, Data Patterns, NMDC Steel, IRB Infrastructure Developers, Cochin Shipyard, SJVN and Nalco were part of the 99 stocks that are trading in red. Central Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank, Jyothy Labs, Century Textiles & Industries, NLC India, HFCL, KEI Industries, MRPL, UCO Bank, Global Health also traded with losses between 5.5% and 11%. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. This comes as market regulator SEBI warned of a froth building up in small-cap and mid-cap segments which prompted Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) to instruct mutual funds to conduct stress tests once every 15 days. First such stress test will be published by March 15 and is aimed at providing investors with insights. ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund also said that it will no longer accept lumpsum deposits in its mid- and small-cap plans beginning March 14- the first fund company to stop such deposits in a mid-cap fund after Nippon, Tata, and SBI MFs stopped lump-sum investments in their small-cap schemes. ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has also stopped switching into both its mid-cap and small-cap funds although it said that it will continue to accept new registrations via systematic investment plans (SIPs) and systematic transfer plans (STPs) with a monthly cap of 2 lakh per PAN. In its first legal response on the lawsuit filed against it, Microsoft-backed company OpenAI lambasted billionaire Elon Musk for the allegations made against the firm, calling his claims incoherent". This comes after Elon Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging that the artificial intelligence startup has strayed from its initial mission. Elon Musk and OpenAI are embroiled in a legal battle(Getty Images) Sam Altman-led OpenAI, in a strongly worded court filing, said that it has not violated any of its agreements with Musk, who is one of the investors in the company. Musk in his February lawsuit had posed allegations against OpenAI, chief executive officer Sam Altman and President Greg Brockman, claiming that the company is now just a beholden to Microsoft, its biggest investor. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. OpenAI said in its court filings that the agreement with the Tesla CEO was not violated because "there is no founding agreement, or any agreement at all with Musk, as the complaint itself makes clear. The relief Musk seeks is as extraordinary as his claims are contrived, OpenAI said in its filing in San Francisco state court. Musk requests an order compelling OpenAI to reorganize and distribute its technology in accordance with the terms of his fictitious contract. OpenAI also issued a blog post to all its employees and investors, denying Musk's claims against the company. Musk was one of the initial investors of the artificial intelligence company, but had a falling out with the board and its polices. Musk has criticized OpenAI for its commercialisation strategy and its close relationship with Microsoft. Elon Musk vs OpenAI brings AI safety to focus The dispute between two of techs biggest players touches on core issues of AI safety and accessibility, and has spilled over into the larger startup world. On Monday, billionaire venture capitalist and OpenAI investor Vinod Khosla told Bloomberg TV that Musk could not sue his way to artificial general intelligence. OpenAI further claimed in its blogpost that Elon Musk had previously pushed for the company to be a part of Tesla Inc, the billionaire's electric car company. It also said in the filing that Musk was in favor of OpenAI operating as a for-profit company, but only if he controlled it. The AI company's lawyers wrote, Seeing the remarkable technological advances OpenAI has achieved, Musk now wants that success for himself. OpenAI is a lie, Musk said in an emailed response to a request for comment. (With inputs from Bloomberg) The Bharatiya Janata Partys list of candidates for Lok Sabha polls from Karnataka has many replacements, and one such is allotting a Mysuru-Kodagu ticket to Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the scion of erstwhile royal Mysuru family. Yaduveers name has been doing rounds for a while as speculations were rife about his ticket and the BJP now confirmed it. Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar Also Read - BJP's 2nd list of candidates for Lok Sabha: Khattar from Karnal, Nitin Gadkari retains Nagpur Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Who is Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar? 32-year-old Yaduveer is the grandson of Jayaramachandra Wadiyar, who was the 25th and last ruling maharaja of Mysore. Promoda Devi Wadiyar who is the wife of Yaduveers uncle Srikanthdatta Wadiyar adopted Yaduveer and played a crucial role in his upbringing. Yaduveer did his schooling in Bengalurus Vidyanikethan school and later went to the University of Massachusetts in the USA for his higher education. He holds a degree in English literature and Economics. This is the first time for Yaduveer to contest in elections and BJP decided to field him from the crucial Mysuru region where the royal family holds a very good reputation. Yaduveers uncle Srikanthdatta Wadiyar too contested from Mysuru earlier on a Congress ticket and won four times from the same Lok Sabha seat. However, he lost in 1991 when he contested there on a BJP ticket. He also lost in 2003 again on a Congress ticket. Meanwhile, Pratap Simha, the MP sitting in Mysuru-Kodagu's seat, could not retain his seat in this region. Simha, who was in the news when the Parliament security breach happened last year in New Delhi was hopeful about the retention of his seat as he was confident about the work he has done for his constituency. However, he said that he will lend his support to whoever contests from BJP from Mysuru-Kodagu seat. After the list was announced, Simha said he called Yaduveer and congratulated him. I extended my wishes to Yaduveer, who will be contesting from Mysuru-Kodagu. I will start campaigning for BJP in next two days, he wrote in X. Twenty people were injured after being attacked by a stray dog in Ghumarwin area in Himachal's Bilaspur, an official said on Tuesday. Bilaspur: According to the civil hospital authorities, dog attack incidents have increased in the past few days. (Representational photo) Municipal Council Ghumarwin President Rita Sehgal said the dog would suddenly pounce on the people passing by and bite them. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The incident occurred on Monday night when a stray dog bit several people within the span of a few hours near Gandhi Chowk in the Ghumarwin market. Also Read | Stray dog feeding points a headache for authorities The injured were sent for treatment at a local hospital and have been administered anti-rabies vaccines, Sehgal added. However, this is not an isolated incident. According to the civil hospital authorities, dog attack incidents have increased in the past few days. People are coming to the hospital every day with dog bites and are being given anti-rabies vaccines, they said. Also Read | Will chalk out a plan soon to tackle stray dog menace: Chandigarh mayor The locals have alleged that the authorities have not taken any action in this matter and this has led to some people being seriously injured in dog attacks. They also claimed that the dog who bit 20 people has not been caught yet and demanded the dog menace be brought under control. Taking note of the situation, Sehgal said the Animal Husbandry Department has been informed and a team has been sent to catch the dog. Twenty two days after a violent clash broke out between two local gangs, the police arrested 11 more accused, including gangster Ankur on Wednesday. The police team traced the accused from Dehradun; the accused were of the run after the clash. (HT File Photo) The police team traced the accused from Dehradun. The accused were on the run after the clash. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Deputy commissioner of police (DCP, city) Suhail Qassim Mir confirmed the development. Shubham Mota and his aide Nadeem, who suffered bullet injuries during the clash, were already arrested by the police, while their rivals, including Ankur, had managed to escape. Members of both the gangs had indulged in a clash near Subhani Building in the wee hours on February 21. The accused had pelted empty bottles and stones at each other. There were also reports of gunshots fired between the two gangs. They had also vandalised CCTVs installed outside the establishment. In the gangwar, Mota suffered a bullet injury in his leg and was rushed to Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH), where he had to undergo a surgery. His aide Nadeem was also hospitalised with injuries. The Division number 1 police had lodged an FIR against members of both the gangs. Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) leader and former Haryana deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala on Wednesday alleged that his party followed the alliance dharma with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) even when the latters leaders repeatedly insulted him and his party leadership. Former Haryana deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala , who was addressing a rally in Hisar a day after the BJP snapped ties with his party just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, said his party was preparing for two parliamentary seats Hisar and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh but that the BJP was not willing to offer the JJP more than one seat. (Photo: X) Chautala, who was addressing a rally in Hisar a day after the BJP snapped ties with his party just ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, said his party was preparing for two parliamentary seats Hisar and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh but that the BJP was not willing to offer the JJP more than one seat. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The former deputy CM said that he recently met BJP president JP Nadda. I told Nadda that we are preparing on two seats, Hisar and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh, he said, adding that the BJP chief told him that his party could offer only the Rohtak Lok Sabha seat to the JJP. The BJP won all 10 parliamentary seats in Haryana in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Chautala also attacked former Tripura chief minister and BJPs Haryana in-charge Biplab Deb, accusing him of making several attempts to break the BJP-JJP alliance. Read Here | Haryana politics: Break up in state, a strategy in play Deb made remarks against me, and my party, and made all attempts to insult me. However, to fulfil the alliance dharma, I remained quiet every time, he contended. On the upcoming general elections, he said party chief Ajay Chautala will take a final call on fielding candidates. The party chief will decide whether we will contest on two seats, all seats or focus on assembly polls. If he asks me, I am ready to contest again from the Hisar parliamentary seat, he added. HT reached out to BJP leaders for a comment, but could not get one immediately. On Tuesday evening, Nayab Singh Saini (54) was sworn-in as Haryana chief minister after the surprise resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar following the exit of the JJP from the states ruling coalition. Those who attended the rally included JJP Shahbad MLA Ram Karan Kala, Uklana MLA Anoop Dhanak and Julana legislator Amarjeet. However, Dushyants mother, Naina, was in Delhi and the five rebel MLAs skipped the rally. In compliance with orders of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the municipal corporation (MC) demolished the remaining statue base and shut down the cafeteria located at Rakh Bagh. In November, the MC issued a notice to the Hero Cycles to remove the statue and cafeteria which was violating the green belt area, following the directions of the NGT. (Gurpreet Singh/HT Photo) Subsequently, Hero Cycles, which has been looking after the upkeep of the park, in response to the MCs actions, decided to stop all activities soon, including the operation of the toy train and recreational games, at Rakh Bagh. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. SK Rai, MD Hero Cycles said, We have decided not to do anything at the Rakh Bagh and are going to shut all the things soon. In November, the MC issued a notice to the Hero Cycles to remove the statue and cafeteria which was violating the green belt area, following the directions of the NGT. According to the officials of the MC, they can use only 15% of the green belt area for recreational activities. Sanjay Kanwar, municipal town planner, said, We are going to discuss this issue with the higher authorities and recreational games and trains will run so that people would not miss this charm of Rakh Bagh. We are going to run it ourselves or give this to some company on no profit and no loss terms. During the hearing of a plea of unauthorised commercial use of green area within Rakh Bagh Park in Ludhiana at the National Green Tribunal in February, MCs counsel obtained two days time for dismantling all concrete structures associated with the statue and cafeteria and restoring the green area of the park to its original state. The application highlighted unauthorised commercial use of green area within Rakh Bagh. The next hearing will be on April 23. The applicant has raised objections to the park being utilised for activities such as establishing a cafeteria, amusement park rides, and erecting statues of private individuals. According to reports, the municipal corporation had initially granted the responsibility to maintain the park to M/s OP Munjal Foundation as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative. However, it was found that the foundation was utilising the space for unauthorised purposes. During the National Green Tribunal hearing on November 21, 2023, the civic body had acknowledged the illegal status of the statue in Rakh Bagh. Meanwhile, the MC sought six weeks time to file an action taken report against the statue and commercial activities. The case was filed by members of the Public Action Committee, and the NGT had previously directed the municipal commissioner to submit the action-taken report. The Ladhowal police arrested a man for allegedly hacking his friend to death with sharp-edged weapons in the forest area of Ladhowal on Wednesday. The victim has been identified as Arjun Singh, 28, of Ladhowal in Ludhiana. (HT File Photo) According to the police, the accused indulged in a scuffle with the victim over some issue when they both were high on drugs. Three more accused are involved in the crime, who are yet to be identified. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The victim has been identified as Arjun Singh, 28, of Ladhowal. The police have arrested his friend Rinku for the murder. The FIR has been lodged on the statement of the wife of the victim. Inspector Varinder Singh, SHO at Ladhowal police station stated that according to the statement of the complainant, Arjun had left the house two days ago with Rinku stating that he will be back in a few minutes. They started searching for him after Arjun did not return till midnight, but to no avail. The complainant added that on Wednesday, someone informed her about the body of her husband lying in the forest area. She informed the police and reached there. The SHO added that the police arrested Rinku, who told the police that while consuming drugs they, indulged in a scuffle. He along with his three aides hacked Arjun to death with sharp-edged weapons before fleeing, he said. The SHO added that a hunt is on for the arrest of the rest of the accused. Miscreants attacked three members of a family and two others in Haibowal area with sharp- edged weapons on Wednesday, police said. The Haibowal police lodged an FIR against the accused and initiated investigation. (HT File Photo) The Haibowal police lodged an FIR against the accused and initiated investigation. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Condition of one of the victim is stated to be serious. He has been referred to PGIMER, Chandigarh. The complainant, Prince, stated that they had constructed a ramp outside the house. As the plaster had not dried, he tied a piece of rope around the ramp so that no one could step on it. On Tuesday night, their neighbour, who was reportedly under influence of liquor, came there and started hurling abuses at his family members. Prince added that when they objected to it, the accused assaulted him, his mother Jyoti, uncle Ashok Kumar, two friends Manoj and Rohit. ASI Sukhjinder Singh, who is investigating the case, said that an FIR has been lodged against five persons, including the neighbour and his aides. A hunt is on for their arrest. The Capital on Wednesday recorded scattered light rain, which was largely down to a passing western disturbance influencing northwest India, even as the maximum temperature was capped at 31.4 degrees Celsius (C) three degrees above normal and a marginal rise from Tuesdays 30.9C according to data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Clouds above the Civic Centre in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo) With this, Delhis maximum has remained at 30C or above for the third consecutive day, signalling the arrival of a hot summer in the days to come. The minimum, meanwhile, settled at 13C, which was two degrees below normal and nearly a degree lower than Tuesdays 14.2C. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. IMD has forecast mainly clear skies on Thursday, accompanied by surface winds of speed 25 to 35km/hour. The skies will clear out in the later part of the day and mainly clear skies will persist on Friday, accompanied by surface winds of speed 25 to 35km/hour, said an IMD official. The maximum is forecast to oscillate between 29C and 30C for the next three days while the minimum is expected to stay between 13C to 15C. On Wednesday, Safdarjung, which is representative of Delhis weather, only received trace rainfall between 8.30am and 5.30pm. Other weather stations including Palam, Lodhi Road, Ridge and Ayanagar also recorded trace rainfall while SPS Mayur Vihar recorded 0.5mm of rain. Meanwhile, NCR areas like Noida and Gurugram recorded 2mm and 2.5mm of rainfall, respectively. Read Here: Heavy traffic expected in parts of central Delhi as 2 big events slated for today Thunderstorms with light to moderate intensity rain and gusty winds with speed of 30 to 40km/hour was recorded in isolated places of Delhi, Met officials said. The citys humidity oscillated between 26% and 91% in the past 24 hours. This drizzle was because of western disturbances but it will pass soon. Skies will be partly cloudy in the early hours of Thursday but it will become clear in the later part of the day, said Kuldeep Srivastava, scientist at IMD. Meanwhile, Delhis air quality continued to stay in the moderate category. The 24-hour average air quality index (AQI) recorded a reading of 165 (moderate) at 4pm, according to the Central Pollution Control Boards (CPCB) national bulletin. It was 191 (moderate) at the same time the day before. The air quality is likely to be in moderate category from Thursday to Saturday. The outlook for the subsequent six days is that the air quality is likely to be in the moderate category, said the Air Quality Early Warning System for Delhi on Wednesday. CPCB classifies an AQI between 0-50 as good, between 51 and 100 as satisfactory, between 101 and 200 as moderate, between 201 and 300 as poor, between 301 and 400 as very poor and over 400 as severe. Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday sparked a political row after he claimed that the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 or CAA will take away jobs meant for Indias youth, and will lead to an increase in crime. He also claimed that the Centre implemented the law ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in order to consolidate votes for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal addresses the media on CAA in New Delhi on Wednesday. (HT Photo) The BJP hit back strongly, accusing Kejriwal, who is also the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), of being anti-Hindu, anti-Sikh and anti-Buddhist. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The Centre on Monday implemented CAA, a contentious law that paves the way for citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014. The development came four years after Parliament passed the law in December 2019. Speaking out against the law at a press conference on Monday, Kejriwal accused the BJP of indulging in vote bank politics, and demanded its repeal. Read Here: What is CAA? All you need to know about the Citizenship Amendment Act If those people (minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan) are brought to India and selectively settled in constituencies where the BJP is politically weak, the vote bank of the BJP will increase. Some people say that in the future elections, the vote bank will give BJP a big political advantage, he said. The BJP-led central government is not able to provide jobs to our youth A large number of people in India are homeless and jobless, but the BJP wants to give our jobs to them, spend the money, which should have been used on the people of India, on their settlement The entire country demands that CAA should be withdrawn. We will not give our share of jobs to people from other countries, he added. The AAP national convenor also alleged that the BJP may in the future extend the cut-off date for non-Muslim migrants eligible for CAA. They are saying that those who have come to India before 2014 will be given citizenship. It is not like that. Once the doors (to the country) open, a large number of people will start coming into India. In the next election, the BJP will extend the cut-off date to 2024 and later extend it further, he said. Read Here | 'Indian Muslims need not worry': Centre allays fear on CAA Later, during the inauguration of a flyover at Moti Nagar in west Delhi, Kejriwal claimed that CAA may lead to an increase in crime. Even if 15 million migrants come to our country, it will be a bigger migration compared to what happened after Independence in 1947. Would people like it if migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh start living in jhuggis near their homes? It may hit the law and order of our country, and incidents of crime may increase, he said. The BJP hit back strongly, saying that CAA is a law to shelter the needy. Through his press conference today, Arvind Kejriwal has proved that he is anti-Hindu, anti-Sikh and anti-Buddhist. He doesnt even understand that CAA is a law to provide shelter to all needy people persecuted by jihadis and not to strip anyone of their citizenship. Kejriwal either intentionally disrespects refugees or is unaware of how Muslim fundamentalism have persecuted Hindus and Sikhs, taken their jobs, and humiliated their sisters and daughters, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said. Kejriwal should understand that refugees from Pakistan, Afghanistan are our own and will remain so. He should not forget that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not only provided benefits of all schemes to all Indian Muslims, but also to Muslims from neighbouring countries, he added. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) is set to hold the Kisan Mahapanchayat at the Ramlila ground in Delhi on March 14. According to the SKM, more than 50,000 farmers from Punjab are expected to attend the event. In view of this, the Delhi traffic police has issued an advisory, alerting the commuters about the traffic regulations and diversions of routes. Farmers to hold Kisan Mahapanchayat in Delhi on March 14; check traffic advisory According to the advisory, movement of traffic will be regulated from 6am to 4pm on Thursday on these routes - Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Asaf Ali Road, Swami Vivekanand Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Minto Road, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover, Bhavbhuti Marg, Chaman Lal Marg, Barakhamba Road, Tolstoy Marg, Jai Singh Road, Sansad Marg, Baba Kharak Singh Marg, Ashoka Road, Connaught Circus, and DDU Marg. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Meanwhile, traffic diversions may be imposed on these routes from 6am - Delhi Gate, Mir Dard Chowk, Ajmeri Gate Chowk, Guru Nanak Chowk, R/Kamla Market, Paharganj Chowk and R/A Jhandewalan, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover from Barakhamba Road to Guru Nanak chowk, Barakhamba Road/Tolstoy Road crossing, Janpath road/ Tolstoy Marg crossing, and R/A GPO. Also read: Farmers set 12 vehicles on fire over drop in chilli prices People travelling towards ISBT, railway station, or airport are advised to carefully plan their travel with sufficient time in hand, the advisory read. It added, Commuters are requested to cooperate by avoiding or bypassing the above-mentioned roads, if possible, and by making maximum use of public transport, especially Metro services. Further, the general public is advised to keep sufficient time at hand while planning road journeys via the above-mentioned roads and junctions. Meanwhile, the Delhi police have issued the NOC for conducting the Mahapanchayat at Ramlila Maidan and arranged parking space and other basic amenities like water, toilets, and ambulances with the support of the municipal administration of Delhi. According to the SKM, preparations are in full swing to ensure the massive participation of farmers in the Kisan Mahapanchayat. In a release issued by the farm body, the Mahapanchayat will adopt a Sankalp Patra or letter of resolution to intensify the fight against the pro-corporate, communal, dictatorial policies of the Modi Government, to fight to save farming, food security, livelihood and the people from corporate loot. Amid this, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait on Wednesday claimed that there are reports of police reaching the homes of farmers to stop them from going to Delhi, and warned officials to not take such steps. (With inputs from agencies) A farmers mahapanchayat in central Delhis Ramlila Maidan and an event involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Stadium on Thursday are likely to cause traffic jams in parts of the city, with the Delhi traffic police saying movement will be restricted on several roads around these venues. The traffic police requested commuters to cooperate by avoiding or bypass the roads where restrictions will be imposed, if possible, and by using public transport, especially the Metro. (Parveen Kumar/HT Photo) The traffic police on Wednesday issued two advisories warning about restrictions around Ramlila Maidan and JLN Stadium because of the large number of people expected to attend the events. Up to 15,000 farmers may attend the mahapanchayat (though the official cap is 5,000), according to police officers aware of the matter, while 60,000 people are likely to participate in the event at JLN Stadium where the Prime Minister will address beneficiaries of the PM SVANidhi scheme and disburse loans to 100,000 street vendors, including 5,000 from Delhi, according to the PMs official website. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also Read | Nod for two Metro lines to link south, north Delhi According to the first advisory, traffic will be regulated from 6am to 4pm on Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Asaf Ali Road, Swami Vivekanand Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Minto Road, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover, Bhavbhuti Marg, Chaman Lal Marg, Barakhamba Road, Tolstoy Marg, Jai Singh Road, Sansad Marg, Baba Kharak Singh Marg, Ashoka Road, Connaught Circus, and DDU Marg. Diversions may also be imposed from 6am at Delhi Gate, Mir Dard Chowk, Ajmeri Gate Chowk, Guru Nanak Chowk, Kamla Market roundabout, Paharganj Chowk and Jhandewalan roundabout, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover from Barakhamba Road to Guru Nanak chowk, Barakhamba Road/Tolstoy Road intersection, Janpath road/ Tolstoy Marg intersection, and GPO roundabout. Commuters are requested to cooperate by avoiding or bypassing the above-mentioned roads, if possible, and by using public transport, especially the Metro. People are advised to plan their travel accordingly, the advisory said. The second advisory said traffic will be regulated from noon till 10pm on Bhishma Pitamah Marg, Lodhi Road, Jor Bagh Road, Dayal Singh/CGO Road, DAVP Road/JLN Road, Scope Complex Road, Barapullah Elevated Road (Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Setu), Lala Lajpat Rai Marg /Lodhi Road intersection, JLN Road/ Bhishma Pitamah Marg intersection, Maharshi Raman Marg/ Lodhi Road/ Bhishma Pitamah Marg intersection, Lala Lajpat Rai Marg, Mathura Road, MGM (From Safdarjung to Sarai Kale Khan), Archbishop Marg, Maharshi Raman Marg, Max Muller Marg, Aurobindo Marg, Dr. Zakir Hussain Marg, Lodhi Road Flyover, Oberoi Flyover, and Aurobindo Marg intersection/Lodhi Road. Farmers meet in Delhi Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), the coalition of farmers unions that spearheaded the farmers protests in 2020-21, said that it has received a no-objection certificate from the Delhi Police to hold the mahapanchayat on Thursday and to arrange parking space and other basic amenities such as drinking water, toilets, and ambulance with the support of the municipal administration of Delhi. Follow Kisan Mahapanchayat Live Updates Delhi Police officers said that they had asked SKM to restrict the number of participants to 5,000 but expect more than 15,000 people to attend it. No tractor or trollies are allowed at the event. The mahapanchayat will start at 11am and is expected to end at 2pm. No weapons will be allowed and no rally or demonstration is allowed either. No one will be allowed to stay, said a senior police officer aware of the matter, adding that adequate personnel have been deployed around the venue to maintain law and order. Farmers from nearby states will join the mahapanchayat, most of them coming by train. Buses and four-wheelers ferrying farmers will have window stickers marking them as farmers vehicles, aside from the flags of the respective organisations. Student organisations from at least two universities in Delhi conducted protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 on Tuesday, a day after the Centre implemented the contentious law that paves the way for citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Students of Jamia Millia Islamia University protest inside the university in New Delhi on Tuesday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo) According to police, the protests took place at the north campus of Delhi University (DU) and at Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI). Students from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) had also scheduled a protest against the law on Tuesday, but were unable to get permission for the demonstration due to the partial code of conduct that is in place in the varsity for the upcoming students union polls, students and JNU officials said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. At DU, student groups such as the All India Students Association (AISA) and Students Islamic Organisation of India (SIO) called for a protest against CAA. Soon after the protesters staged a march from the Arts Faculty building to the Central Library, police said that DU authorities called them in, and they detained 50-60 students. The detained students were taken to the Burari police station. The students were detained as they didnt listen to us. We had requested them to leave but they continued protesting, deputy commissioner of police (north) Manoj Meena said, adding that they were released later in the day. Some student groups alleged that the protesters were manhandled. A lot of students were detained, including students who were not actually a part of the protest and were just present at the location. Women protestors were not handled properly and some of their clothes were torn, said Manik Gupta, the president of AISAs DU unit. However, police dismissed the allegations. All allegations of police brutality are false. Adequate female staffers were deployed to deal with the situation, Meena said. HT reached out to DU, but the university did not comment on the matter. Meanwhile, at JMI, student organisations such as the Fraternity Movement, the Muslim Students Federation (MSF), and the National Students Union of India (NSUI) conducted a night vigil inside the campus on Monday against CAA, and along with other student groups held a press conference on Tuesday, demanding the repeal of the contentious law. The student groups, in a collective statement, said, Our demands are repeal of CAA, release all students booked in the anti-CAA movement, and withdraw all cases charged against the students and the people. During the press conference and subsequent protest, there was a heavy presence of police and paramilitary forces outside the universitys gate, while drones circled the campus. JMI vice chancellor Eqbal Hussain said, It was a peaceful protest However, there was no ruckus on campus and no disruption of classes on Tuesday. POLICE QUOTE ABOUT JAMIA Separately, students at JNU initially announced a protest against the law, but then had to cancel it due to the partial code of conduct. When the student protest was announced on Monday, the election committee formed for the upcoming university polls let us know that no protests can happen before the elections, as per the partial code of conduct. Hence no student organisations will be protesting in JNU right now, said Anagha Pradeep, JNU students union councillor. Three people, including a father and son, were killed in a road accident in the wee hours of Wednesday after their speeding car met with a head-on collision with a dumper truck in Sanchore district of Rajasthan. Representational image. While two people died on the spot, the third passenger succumbed during treatment at a hospital. The accident took place on NH-68 in Karola Phanta area. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Eyewitnesses said the accident was so severe that the car got completely crushed. The dumper driver fled the scene, the police said. According to the police, Omprakash Bishnoi (35), was going to meet his mother-in-law in Deesa, Gujarat along with his son and nephew, both minors. District Collector Shakti Singh Rathore, Superintendent of Police Hari Shankar, and additional SP Mangi Lal Rathore rushed to the spot of the accident and launched a probe into the incident. LUCKNOW Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said that the Modi governments greatest achievement in the past 10 years was to bring 25 crore people of the country above poverty line and now the poor had been provided Ayushman card through which they could avail free medical treatment up to 5 lakh. Union defence minister Rajnath Singh with UP deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak and others during the launch of PM-SURAJ portal, in Lucknow, Wednesday. (PTI Photo) Singh was speaking at a programme marking nationwide outreach for credit support to disadvantaged sections here at the Indira Gandhi Pratishthan. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. PM Modi virtually launched the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan Evam Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan (PM-SURAJ) national portal from Lucknow and sanctioned credit support to one lakh entrepreneurs of disadvantaged sections of the country. Taking pot shots at previous governments, Singh said in the past only select people used to receive benefits of government welfare schemes. Once former PM Rajiv Gandhi said that out of 100 paisa sent by the central government, only 14 paisa reached people. But the BJP made a foolproof system through direct benefit transfer (DBT) in which money was transferred directly into bank accounts of beneficiaries, he said. Basic facilities like direct tap water connection in every house have been made available to the poor so that women do not have to walk long distances to bring water. I have asked all MLAs in my constituency to see that every household in Lucknow gets tap water, said the defence minister. He added: PM Modi is committed towards Viksit Bharat. The Modi government plans to raise the target for helping women associated with self-help groups (SHG) become Lakhpati Didi, from the existing 20 million to 40 million. The defence minister said the BJP was not here to come to power and form a government, but to develop India. He appreciated the countrys scientists and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his determination in the development of indigenous Covid vaccine. He said the PM enquired from all his ministers about the progress in development work in their areas. Today, the world looks towards India with a lot of respect, emphasised Singh. LUCKNOW: The annual peak demand in Uttar Pradesh is projected to reach 31,917 MW, making it the second-highest in the country after Maharashtra, which is expected to experience a peak demand of 32,640 MW in 2024-25, as per a recent report released by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA). The demand is anticipated to decline from October onwards and continue till March 2025. (Sourced) According to the report - Anticipated Energy Requirement and Peak Demand for 2023-25- the highest peak demand in Uttar Pradesh is anticipated to occur in September, with the state requiring 31,917 MW of power during peak times. This is followed by 31,585 MW in August, 30,581 MW in July, 29,853 MW in June, 28,291 MW in May, and 25,379 MW in April. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The demand is anticipated to decline from October onwards and continue till March 2025. The demand projection may raise concerns for the UP Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL), as it will need to procure additional power to meet the peak demand, particularly from June to September. This is because the corporation anticipates receiving only 29,000 MW of power from power plants within the state. In response to the report, Avdhesh Kumar Verma, chairman of the UP Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad, said the need for UPPCL to plan urgently to address this challenge. UPPCL must arrange for power as required to meet the peak demand besides upgrading its distribution and transmission networks to prevent a recurrence of the situations faced by consumers last year, he suggested LUCKNOW Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress the two INDIA bloc partners in Uttar Pradesh - are now in musical sync for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls after reaching a seat-sharing agreement on February 21. With 17 and 63 Lok Sabha seats for the Congress and SP, respectively, the parties have initiated coordinated efforts to consolidate each other while also launching a joint campaign song: Gathbandhan hai, gathbandhan hai; yeh INDIA ka gathbandhan hai; Dilli mein pravesh ki khaatir, Rahul aur Akhilesh ki khaatir; Samvidhaan bachana hai toh, vote karo is desh ki khaatir. The video version of the song has clips from the joint show that Akhilesh and Rahul put up in Agra on February 25 when the former joined Rahuls Nyay Yatra in Taj City; more campaign songs are in the works (File Photo) The four-minute songs opening lines call for making the alliance attain power at the centre for the sake of Akhilesh Yadav-Rahul Gandhi and for the sake of the Constitution. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The video version of the song has clips from the joint show that Akhilesh and Rahul put up in Agra on February 25 when the former joined Rahuls Nyay Yatra in Taj City. More campaign songs are in the works. The Congress is also working on a song: Samvidhaan aur loktantra ko bachana hai, phir se janata ka raaj laana hai; Dalit-Pichhdon ki ladai; INDIA gathbandhan aur hum ladengey bhai. But songs apart, that would be heard at joint rallies, roadshows, and other campaigns by the alliance leaders in days to come, the two parties since Sunday began joint meetings -- when Congress UP in-charge Avinash Pande, UP Congress president Ajay Rai and others called on Akhilesh Yadav launching the coordination programme between the two parties. The next day, the Ajay Rai-led Congress delegation had a first interactive meeting for the district leaderships of the two parties (from the 17 LS constituencies allotted to the Congress). Since February 21, the two parties seem to be correcting some of the mistakes made in their 2017 alliance for UP assembly polls that failed. In 2022, the SP could win only 47 seats (against its tally of 224 in 2012) and the Congress won seven seats (against its 28 seats win in 2012). The alliance came when the Congress had only one Lok Sabha seat in UP and the SP only three. In 2017, SP and Congress had a lot of high-profile campaigns with tag lines UP ke ladke (Rahul and Akhilesh) but did not coordinate well at the booth level. But now, the two parties have resolved to work concertedly at the booth level. On Sunday, Akhilesh Yadav told Avinash Pande that his partys booth level workers would lend full support to the Congress on 17 seats it is contesting in the state. Ajay Rai said the Congress would do the same on the 63 seats that the SP is contesting. Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav are likely to address a joint press conference in Lucknow after the LS polls notification expected in mid-March. The two parties will chalk out joint campaigns -- rallies, rath yatras and road shows in each others constituencies. LUCKNOW Uttar Pradesh government has approved an increase of 4% in the dearness allowance payable to all employees and teachers of aided institutions/technical institutes etc, with effect from January 1, 2024. About 14 lakh employees and teachers will benefit from the state governments decision. (File Photo) According to an order issued by additional chief secretary (finance) Deepak Kumar, the DA to be paid w. e. f. January 1, 2024, will be equivalent to 50% of the basic salary of employees. The revised DA will be paid to employees and teachers with the salary March 2024. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Kumar said the increased DA will cause an additional burden of 215 crore per month on the state exchequer. About 14 lakh employees and teachers will benefit from the state governments decision. Uttar Pradesh State Employees Joint Council president JN Tiwari said his organisation has expressed gratitude to chief minister Yogi Adityanath for the decision. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday disbursed loans worth 30,826 crore for the MSME sector and said due to the growing robustness of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), the government had flushed out products from enemy country from UPs markets. Chief minister Yogi Adityanath gives a toolkit to a beneficiary during the mega loan distribution programme for the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, at Lok Bhawan, in Lucknow on Wednesday. (ANI Photo) When our domestically produced goods gain traction in the market, its imperative that we nurture, incentivize and provide them with a platform to flourish. Its gratifying to witness our products gaining popularity, he said addressing a gathering during a programme of MSME department at the Lok Bhavan. Adityanaths veiled reference was meant for China, officials said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. He said: Nowadays, during festive occasions like Diwali, Vijaya Dashami, Eid, and Christmas, one predominantly finds UP products in the market. Our products are good, but our entrepreneurs and artisans also feel that their future is bright. The CM also gave cheques to developers engaged in the approved Pledge Park in Unnao while simultaneously inaugurating an online portal for plot allotment in industrial estates. He also distributed toolkits under the ODOP and Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana schemes. Read Here: India set to be worlds third-largest economy under PMs 3rd term, says Yogi Adityanath said the MSME department will have to lay special emphasis on providing products as per demand by doing complete mapping of the market and enhancing product packaging standards. By adopting these measures, he expressed confidence that locally made products from the state would soon gain national prominence. Adityanath said that the amount disbursed this year had doubled compared to the previous year and increased tenfold compared to seven years ago. As many as 10 districts of the state have been connected to Pledge Park, he stated. UP was already a state with unlimited potential, but some people had made it BIMARU. We have combined it with the nation-building campaign and progressed on the development path for the youth and entrepreneurs, he emphasised. UP is the only state in the country where young entrepreneurs are given a loan of 5 lakh without interest, he said, adding that of the 96 lakh MSME units in the state, 40 lakh had been registered. The goal is to register all 96 lakh as soon as possible. Read Here: Yogi calls Congress, SP liabilities The CM said achieving a 1 trillion-dollar economy in the next five years would be inevitable with a slight acceleration in UPs current pace. He emphasized the need to strengthen the manufacturing sector, noting a shift in investment patterns from previously concentrated areas like the NCR, Meerut, and Hapur to smaller districts such as Unnao and Hardoi. This shift underscores the untapped potential that existed previously, but remained underutilized, he pointed out. Hamid Ali Ansari from Lucknow, who secured a loan sanctioned by the CM, expressed his appreciation for the government, stating that the loan was for plastic management. Mohammad Izhar from Barabanki was all praise for the smooth process with which he got a loan for his cold storage facility. Asha Kumari, who received a sewing machine toolkit from the CM, Manoj Kumar from Sultanpur Road who secured a 47 lakh loan without any intermediary involvement, also thanked the CM. Unnao/Farrukhabad/Bareilly: Terming the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress as liabilities, chief minister Yogi Adityanath urged people to refrain from voting for parties that fail to ensure the provision of essentials such as ration, housing, and healthcare to the underprivileged. He also criticised them for not honouring peoples faith by constructing the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. UP CM Yogi Adityanath inaugurates a newly-installed Damru at Aadi Chauraha in Bareilly on Wednesday (PTI) During a whirlwind tour of three districts on Wednesday, the chief minister inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of numerous development projects. This included 103 projects worth 241.26 crore in Unnao, 102 projects worth 288 crore in Farrukhabad, and 64 projects worth 328 crore in Bareilly. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Addressing a public meeting in Unnao, Yogi said, Only those who work without bias should have the right to come to power. Today, there is only one unanimous voice in the country - Once again, Modi government in 2024. Emphasising the significance of the double-engine government, the CM remarked, With your blessings, the temple of Ram Lalla was constructed in Ayodhya. The Congress and SP have failed to undertake the construction of the temple. The state government is committed for the restoration of Satan Pasi Fort in Unnao, he said. Asserting that Viksit Bharat should be the collective commitment of the people, the CM said, The PM has emphasised the concept of Panch Pran for every citizen. Fulfilling civic duties is only possible when an individual upholds the Constitution and prioritises the nation above all. Our foremost aim should be the welfare of the country. Progress is achieved when we work towards this objective. Highlighting Indias enhanced global stature under PM Modis leadership, the CM remarked, Previously, India lacked respect internationally. However, in the last decade, India has surged to new heights of development. Today, India stands as a global leader. As we enter the second year of Amrit Kaal, in PM Modis third term, our aim is to propel India to become the worlds third-largest economy and herald the dawn of a Viksit Bharat. From PM Modi to Pradhan-Parshad (every local leader), we are all dedicated to advancing the cause of a Viksit Bharat. A state that was previously overlooked by investors has now received proposals worth 10.5 lakh crore, realised through initiatives like the Ground-Breaking Ceremony 4.0. Highlighting the significance of Unnao, the CM remarked, It was from this very soil that the bugle of independence was sounded by Chandrashekhar Azad. Addressing a public meeting in Farrukhabad, the CM said, When wrong people come to power, they get bullets fired at Ram devotees, but when a good and sensitive government is elected, the devotees of Lord Ram are valued. Today, Ram devotees are being given easy darshan in Ayodhya. Launching a pilot project to provide loan facilities to farmers in 10 minutes under the Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture Agri Stake Scheme, the chief minister said, Farrukhabad has become the first district in the country to connect with the loan facility within 10 minutes through kisan credit card under the agri stake scheme. Addressing a public meeting in Bareilly, the CM said, With the inspiration of PM Narendra Modi, the vision of Nath Nagri corridor is being realised in Bareilly while Mahadev overhead bridge in Qutub Khana is also ready. The chief minister congratulated the entrepreneurs and businessmen of Bareilly for their full cooperation in building the bridge. He mentioned that while Bareilly was earlier known for its earrings, now it will be recognised for flyovers and IT parks. A new identity of Bareilly is being formed, becoming a wonderful confluence of PMs vision, heritage, and development. Under the BJP government, the country has undergone significant changes, leading to the assertion that we are now citizens of a developed India. Today, the whole world looks towards India with hope. The increased respect for India also translates to increased respect for every citizen of the nation. He reiterated that Indias borders are now secure, and the menace of Naxalism and terrorism has been significantly diminished. Over the last five years, Nagpada-based lawyer Nadeem Siddiqui has begun his day by sending out bulk messages urging people to straighten their documents to prove their Indian citizenship. On Tuesday, there was a new addition to the message -- Badi khabar was prefixed to the news of the newly notified Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, which grants citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Advocate Nadeem Siddiqui helps people with their documents in Nagpada. (Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo) It was a busy day for Siddiqui. With CAAs implementation, fear of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) following is on the minds of the minority community, leading to people calling Siddiqui and others like him, to fix any gaps and mistakes that may exist in their documents which could be an impediment to prove their citizenship. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. On Tuesday afternoon, Imtiaz Khatri waited in line at Siddiquis office holding a file labelled NRC - 1987. I was born in Goregaon pre-1987, but my mother did not make a birth certificate for me, he said. I was a little worried. So, when Siddiqui held a camp in the Khatri Jamaat Hall, in Pydhonie on Friday, where I live, I had the opportunity to get the documents checked and iron out any creases. Last week, Ayaaz Mullah arrived from Karad, Satara, to enquire about the mismatches in his childs documents. Not mentioning fears around the CAA or NRC, he said, I just want to ensure that there is no trouble going ahead. Siddiquis altruism stemmed from personal experience. He participated in the 55-odd days of the anti-CAA/ NRC push backs, from December 2019, at Mumbai Bagh in Nagpada, not protesting, but working, spreading awareness on the importance of getting peoples documents in order. At the time he found gaps in the records of his own family members which he corrected soon. I found many mismatches. My name was spelled with two es, but in some documents, it was swapped with a y, he explained. Despite knowing my way around the legal system, as an advocate, it took me three months to fix. During the pandemic-driven lockdown, he switched to posting videos on YouTube to raise awareness. Since the time he opened his office in Nagpada in January 2022, between 100 and 125 people drop in each day to set right various inconsistencies in their documents. A majority have concerns about NRC. Often, we cannot accommodate them all in a day, said Siddiqui. Siddiqui is not the only one mobilising the public pre-emptively to get their documents in order for NRC. Till 2021, we were called five times a day by community leaders to hold advisory training sessions with marginalized groups such as Dalits, migrants, people from slums, farmers, Adivasis, workers, trade unions, and of course, Muslims, because of our work in Assam, said Teesta Setalvad, secretary of Citizens of Justice and Peace. Subsequently, there was a lull until the government reactivated it with Mondays notification. Since then, there have been frantic calls from all marginalised communities. Danish Lambe, a Mira Road-based IT professional, who has been facilitating documentation for 12 years, now offers free evaluation for NRC and consults with a team of lawyers when he comes across challenges. He uses his mobile van to help citizens in various parts of the city. On Tuesday, the van was in Byculla, and Lambe and his associates were seen at work. There are no definite rules or requirements for NRC. We check a few basic documents, which include the birth certificate, school leaving certificate, passport and voters ID. We scrutinise the uniformity in the spelling of the names, date and place of birth, said Lambe. Salim Khan, a Wadala-based social worker, said the most common glitch exists in spellings of names. The first, middle and last names need to be in the same order in all documents. The name of the parent should also match the parents name in their own documents, as establishing that link is crucial, he said. Then there is the problem of the date of birth. In their haste to put their children in school, people put any date or submit an affidavit with a different date of birth. This creates rift in the school leaving certificate, said Khan, who gets calls for help from NGOs, mosques, housing societies, etc. Today, the older lot is anxious about the future of the young ones, observed Siddiqui. It could be because they have witnessed the displacement of partition, and the horrors are real in their minds, he said. CAA is the first step to NRC, said Siddiqui. But it is not only the Muslims who will face harassment to establish proof of citizenship. Muslims will be among them, and they will not have the respite CAA offers to people of other religions, although applying for citizenship under CAA will not be so easy either. MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has sanctioned Vivek Kudva, former Asia Pacific distribution head of Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund, to travel abroad from March 18, 2024, to October 31, 2024. Kudvas plea, presented through an interim application, sought approval for visits to the United Kingdom, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Portugal, and the United States of America. HT Image This decision arises amid an ongoing Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into alleged irregularities in withdrawals from six debt schemes of Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund before their closure on April 23, 2020, by Kudva and others. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. During the hearing, the bench, led by justice Revati Mohite Dere and justice Manjusha Deshpandewas informed that an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) was filed against Kudva on September 23, 2020. However, no formal complaint has been lodged by the ED in the case thus far. Kudva, who retired from Franklin Templeton Mutual Fund in August 2022 after a 16-year tenure, has been actively cooperating with the investigation, consistently attending the EDs office as required. Notably, the court recognized that Kudva had previously been granted permission to travel overseas on two occasions and had dutifully adhered to the terms and conditions outlined by the court. Taking this into account, the court approved Kudvas interim application, albeit with specific conditions. Under the courts order, Kudva is permitted to travel abroad for 7 and a half months, during which the Look Out Circular (LOC) issued against him by the ED will be suspended. However, Kudva must provide the ED with a detailed itinerary of his travel plans, including contact details and addresses, prior to his departure. Furthermore, he must inform the ED of his return to India within 48 hours and be prepared to attend the ED office with at least two weeks notice. The court directed the joint director of the Directorate of Enforcement, Mumbai Head Office, to promptly inform the Bureau of Immigration, Ministry of Home Affairs, of the decision. Immigration Authorities were instructed to facilitate Kudvas passage through immigration and boarding of flights, irrespective of the systems update status. Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Tuesday launched the Krishak Unnati Yojna to provide input assistance to farmers, mainly paddy cultivators, in the state, and released 13,320 crore to 2.472 million farmers under the scheme. Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai. (PTI File Photo) Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav was also present at the event held at Saryu Prasad Agrawal Stadium in Balod district headquarters. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The paddy procurement for the 2023-24 kharif season was held between November 1 and February 4, and around 145 lakh MT of paddy was procured from over 2.4 million farmers at minimum support price (MSP). The MSP for common grade paddy was 2183 per quintal and 2203 for Grade A paddy. The difference amount over the MPS was given to farmers as input assistance at the rate of 917 per quintal. Of these farmers, 2.472 million are those who had sold paddy this year (in the 2023-24 kharif season at MSP). The paddy cultivators were paid the difference amount of 13,289 crore. Similarly, more than 31 crore was paid to 2,829 paddy seed producing farmers through the seed corporation, Sai said. The state government also gave an outstanding paddy bonus for two years (2014-15 and 2015-16) worth 3,716 crore to the farmers on the occasion of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayees birthday in December 2023. More than 1.3 million farmers benefited from the bonus, the CM added. Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city police booked over 50 individuals in two separate cases for involvement in the communal clash at Kamgar colony in the Chikhalthana area on Wednesday. Police said that two religious groups confronted each other, resulting in a tense situation in the locality. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO) According to police, a state transport bus was allegedly pelted with stones after an altercation between members of two communities over the volume of a loudspeaker at a temple at around 8.30 pm on Tuesday. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Police further said that two religious groups confronted each other, resulting in a tense situation in the locality. As per reports, one person was injured in this incident and no arrest has been made so far in this case. Following the stone-pelting incident, tension escalated with the situation potentially turning violent. A team of Police under the leadership of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP Zone II) Navneet Kumar Kanwat arrived at the scene with heavy police force and brought the situation under control. Additionally, Riot Control Police and Rapid Action Force were deployed to control the situation. Despite the initial tension and conflict, the situation remained relatively calm throughout the night, with no further incidents reported. Considering the gravity of the situation, police have registered two separate First Information Reports (FIRs) and booked over 50 individuals involved in communal clashes. Manoj Lohiya, Commissioner of Police, (CP) Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, said, A quarrel took place between members of two communities over the volume of a loudspeaker at the temple located in the area. The police intervened and the crowd was dispersed. A state transport bus was pelted with stones, another official from MIDC Cidco police station said. Following a complaint by a local resident, the MIDC Cidco police on Wednesday morning registered a case against seven persons, including a woman under Indian Penal Code sections 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 141, 143, 149 (unlawful assembly), 147 (rioting) and provisions of the Bombay Police Act, he said. After a complaint by a constable, the police registered another case against two identified and 30-40 unidentified persons under IPC sections 141, 143, 427 (mischief causing damage) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), the official said. Reacting to the development, DCP Kanwat said, In one FIR, a total of seven accused with 10-12 other individuals were booked. In an FIR lodged based on a complaint filed by police, two accused along with 40 other individuals have been booked, and the process to issue notices is underway. -With agency inputs The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has issued a show cause notice to Metro Hospital, Wagholi for alleged irregularities and violations of the Nursing Home Act. We have the nursing license and compliance as per the old local body. However, as per the recommendation of PMC the compliance will be done by us. The same report will be submitted to the PMC, says official of Metro Hospital. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO) The notice was issued on March 12 after finding multiple violations by the hospitals during the surprise visit and inspections, according to the officials. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The hospital has been instructed to complete the compliance by March 31 or stop functioning from April 1. The PMC health officials have started inspection of hospitals from the newly merged 34 villages in the civic limits. During the inspection of clinics and hospitals located in the Wagholi and Kesnand area Metro Hospital was found operating despite several irregularities. The civic body during inspection has found the hospital has been operating sans fire safety compliance and pollution control norms. The Biomedical Waste Rule 2016 was not followed and the numbers of beds in ICU and general ward were found to be more than approved. There was no grievance record book, no appointment of a grievance redressal officer and the treatment tariff was not displayed amongst other multiple irregularities, the officials. Dr Bhagwan Pawar, health officer of PMC, said the hospital was inspected for compliance with the Maharashtra Nursing Home Registration Act 1949 and Regulations 2021 and the irregularities were found. The hospital has a nursing home license which is due for renewal. The rural authorities have given the nursing home license to the hospital but we wont give them licence renewal without compliance. In case of failure they should stop functioning from next month, he said. Dr Mahesh Solanki, director, Metro Hospital, said the hospital was earlier in rural jurisdiction and has now come under the PMC jurisdiction. We have the nursing license and compliance as per the old local body. However, as per the recommendation of PMC the compliance will be done by us. The same report will be submitted to the PMC, he said. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) matric students appeared for the Information Technology (IT) exam here on Wednesday. CBSE Class 10 IT exam 2024: Students in Ludhiana give mixed reaction The students who took their last examination claimed the exam was a little unexpected. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Manavjot Singh, a student of Guru Nanak Public School (GNPS) said, "The exam was easy overall and covered almost everything in the syllabus, though the unimportant questions were not expected." Inderpreet Singh, another student claimed the examination to be moderately easy. Harjot Kaur, IT teacher at GNPS remarked, "The subjective part of the paper was quite easy but the objective one was a little tricky and unexpected." Navneet Kaur, another teacher, said that most of the questions were easy and direct and students were satisfied with their performance. The CBSE matric exams began on February 15 and ended today with students appearing for their last theory exam of 50 marks. National standard set for long-term care workers 08:16, March 13, 2024 By Cheng Si ( Chinadaily.com.cn China has released a national working standard for the profession of long-term care worker, as it faces the challenges of an aging population and many elderly people losing the ability to care for themselves. The move also aims to produce higher-quality, more skilled care workers and optimize the operation of long-term care insurance in the future. It's the first such standard for this profession in China, and was jointly released by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the National Healthcare Security Administration. According to the new standard, long-term care workers should possess basic life care and nursing knowledge and skills. They should provide life care and psychological services in homes, gated communities, nursing institutes or hospitals to individuals who have lost the ability to look after themselves and are covered by long-term care insurance. People above the age of 16 are allowed to work in the profession without limits regarding their educational background, and the profession has a three-level evaluation system based on workers' skills. For example, a long-term care worker at entry level is required to provide individuals in need with cleaning of the face, teeth and body, and with assistance in eating, among other duties. A senior-level worker the highest level can offer healthcare guidance to individuals with chronic diseases and assist them in limb-function training. Senior-level workers are also required to have the ability to offer psychological services. "Nursing the elderly and giving them good care is an urgent problem, considering the nation's increasing aging population. We now face a great labor shortfall in the sector," said Wu Xiaolan, a researcher from the China Research Center on Aging. She said current nursing services may not meet the needs of the elderly in the future, as current services mainly focus on basic life care and domestic services, while rehabilitation and psychological services for the elderly are now not easily accessible. "The long-term care worker is a profession requiring complex working skills, and the worker needs to provide comprehensive services based on the needs of the elderly, including basic life care, medical care and psychological care. The workers should not only possess sound knowledge and skills, but also the ability to show compassion and be patient. Thus they can offer professional and humanistic services to the elderly," Wu said. According to the National Healthcare Security Administration, the nation launched the long-term care insurance system, a state-level campaign to offer nursing assistance and financial subsidies to elderly people who have diseases or lose self-care ability, in 2016. It is a supplementary social insurance. The administration said that 49 cities so far, including Beijing and Qingdao, Shandong province, have conducted trial operation of the insurance program, with about 180 million people participating. Around 8,000 designated nursing institutes are currently authorized to offer the long-term care, with the number of employees reaching 300,000. "The nation now has over 42 million elderly people who are above 60 years old and have lost self-care abilities, while there is a critical shortage of professional and high-quality care workers," the administration said. Wu, the researcher, said that the long-term care worker standard clearly defines the work and skill requirements of the job. "The more professional and standardized development of the profession will attract more people to join the industry and work in the profession, bringing the healthier and more sustainable development of the industry," she added. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) AP TET 2024 Answer Key: The School Education Department, Andhra Pradesh, will issue final answer keys of the Andhra Pradesh Teacher Eligibility Test or APTET 2024 today, March 13. Candidates can download the APTET February 2024 answer key from aptet.apcfss.in, once it is released. Andhra Pradesh Teacher Eligibility Test Answer Key releasing today(Shutterstock) The state-level teacher eligibility test in Andhra Pradesh was held from March 27 to 9. Provisional answer keys and question papers, along with candidates' responses, have been released up to March 6 exams. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Per the schedule available on the website of APTAET, results will be announced on March 14. How to check APTET 2024 final answer key? Go to aptet.apcfss.in. On the home page, open the final answer key download link. Enter your login details. Check and download the answer key. For any help, candidates can call 9505619127, 9705655349, 8121947387 or 8125046997 between 10.30 AM to 1.00 PM and 1.30 PM to 5.00 PM on all working days. The APTET exam was conducted in the computer-based test (CBT) mode by the Department of School Education, Government of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the essential qualifications for appointment as a teacher in any school (both government and private) in Andhra Pradesh. Are you a high school student getting ready to take the SAT? Preparing for this important exam can be intimidating but meticulous preparation is key to success. The Scholastic Assessment Test, or SAT, administered by the College Board, has transitioned into a digital format, ushering in a new era of assessment. If you are planning to appear for SAT, check tips and tricks to crack the test, (Pic for representation) For optimal preparation, it is advisable to begin studying in the tenth or eleventh grade. This timeline allows for skill improvement, knowledge enhancement, and the opportunity to take the test multiple times if needed. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The SAT consists of two sections - Evidence-Based Reading and Writing, and Math. It is important to understand the purpose and outcome of the SAT. The test aims to gauge your ability to analyze written text, and your potential to perform mathematical problem-solving and most importantly, serves as an avenue to measure your resilience and test-taking skills in a timed testing environment. Also read: DSSSB Recruitment 2024: Today last day to apply for 1896 Pharmacist and other posts The digital SAT, when compared with the pen and paper-based SAT has very little differences. Both the tests still measure the same outcomes in the Evidence-based Reading and Writing and Maths sections. College Board has plenty of resources to help you prepare for the SAT. The Bluebook digital testing application is an excellent tool to help students get familiar with the test format, and question pattern and understand the adaptive nature of the test. Four full-length adaptive tests are available on the Bluebook app. The app helps students gain an added advantage while attempting the digital SAT and acquaints them with the digital environment. The same tool is mostly used by aspirants when they prepare for the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) as well. Apart from College Board, there are many other SAT prep materials available online that students can learn from widening the spectrum of learning opportunities. Also read: Punjab Police Constable result announced on punjabpolice.gov.in, direct link After each practice session, go over your results and identify areas where you struggled or made mistakes so you can focus your study efforts on those areas: Once you have identified those weak spots, create a study plan. Make sure it includes regular practice sessions, review of weak areas, and taking advantage of all available resources such as books, online courses, or tutoring services, if necessary. In addition to being consistent in your studying, It is also important to manage your time well during practice tests so that you can complete all questions within the given time limits; this is crucial! It is important to give yourself enough time to study for the SAT and not try to cram all the material into your head the night before. Make sure you are practicing all sections of the test and not just focusing on your strong areas - that way you can achieve a balanced score. Dont just rely on practice tests; incorporate other methods like reading, flashcards, and taking online courses. Make sure to take breaks while studying too, so you dont experience burnout! Finally, dont forget to read and understand the instructions for each section before starting - it could save you from making errors and impacting your score. A good SAT score significantly enhances your chances of securing a spot at competitive universities. With many highly selective institutions reinstating SAT requirements, the test holds increasing importance in the admission process. Benchmark scores at these universities become pivotal considerations when devising college admission strategies. Also read: JKSSB Supervisor registration window to reopen on March 15; check notice here While several colleges are reintroducing the SAT, others maintain a test-optional policy. Notably, many Indian, European, and Singaporean universities recommend the SAT as part of their admission process. Thus, parents and students should recognize the SAT as an essential component of college admissions. As a high school counsellor, I recommend taking the SAT if it provides an avenue to showcase proficiency in Reading, Writing, and Math. It enables you to uniquely position your application profile, particularly if you believe the test accurately represents your skill set. In conclusion, strategic SAT preparation and performance can open doors to diverse educational opportunities, shaping your academic journey and future prospects. (Praseeja Nambiar is a Career and Guidance Counsellor at Stonehill International School, Bangalore. The views expressed are personal.) Kiran Rao has said that her romance with ex-husband Aamir Khan 'absolutely didnt' start while they worked together on Lagaan (2001), although it is assumed that she caused his divorce from Reena Dutta. In an interview with Zoom, Kiran clarified that she began dating Aamir while assisting Ashutosh Gowariker during the making of Swades (2004), when Aamir was working on Mangal Pandey. Also read: Kiran Rao says she is still referred to as Aamir Khans wife' Kiran Rao opens up about being judged after Aamir Khans first divorce. (File Photo/ Varinder Chawla) Kiran clarifies she wasn't dating Aamir during Lagaan. Kiran Rao said, Lots of people think that Aamir and I connected on Lagaan, we absolutely didnt. Aamir and I got together during Swades, he was going to shoot Mangal Pandey at the time. We had just shot a couple of commercials with Ashutosh Gowariker for Coke and that is where Aamir and I reconnected. 3-4 years after Lagaan. I wasnt in touch with him. In fact, on Lagaan, I barely spoke to him. I was actually seeing somebody else during Lagaan. When Aamir and I started going out in 2004, everybody thought that this started when we were shooting for Lagaan and this caused the divorce, which was not the fact. (L-R) Kiran Rao, Reena Dutta, Ira Khan, Azad Rao Khan and Aamir Khan pose during Iran's wedding in January 2024. Reveals she and Aamir started dating after his divorce Aamir and Reena Dutta ended their marriage in 2002, a year after the release of Lagaan. Speaking about how she and Aamir went for couple's counselling after marriage, Kiran added, "When you marry someone, who has been in another relationship, there is a baggage that you bring that will affect your relationship. I strongly recommend couples counselling. Aamir and I did couples counselling. It becomes a neutral ground where you talk about your needs, how you see the other person and that was very beneficial to me. It helped that Aamir and I agreed that we both have to be honest with each other, whatever be the case. Kiran and Aamir married in 2005 and announced their separation in 2021. Kiran's recently-released second film, Laapataa Ladies, was co-produced by Aamir. They continue to co-parent their son Azad, who was born in December 2011. Ira Khan and Junaid Khan are Aamir's kids from his first marriage with Reena. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place Remember Neelam's key cameo in Karan Johar's 1998 directorial debut Kuch Kuch Hota Hai? Her effervescent energy as a VJ lifted every scene she was in. But remember the name of her segment in the film? The Neelam Show. That's what Neelam has come to be known for in the 40 years since she made her debut: being herself. Neelam Kothari made her Bollywood debut back in 1984 (Also Read Interview: Kareena Kapoor assures she is not going bus pakad ke Hollywood with The Buckingham Murders) Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Being Neelam I'm fine to do projects with different people, new people. I'm fine with stepping out of my comfort zone. I've done that for over 40 films. I'm quite okay to do that," said Neelam in an exclusive interview. One would imagine that from being the leading lady in Bollywood films of the 1980s to voicing Jean Grey in Audible Original Marvel's Wastelanders: Wolverine, Neelam has come a long way. But the actor has come into her own only by playing herself on screen. After working consistently for 15 years, Neelam took a break from acting at the start of the new millennium to focus on her jewellery business. She made a long-awaited return to the screen with Netflix India's reality show Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives, which further propped up her jewellery business. For her, acting is also a means to that end. Yes I did Audible's Marvel series, yes I'm doing Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Lives, yes I did Made in Heaven, but my jewellery business is my main hustle, Neelam reiterates. While she insists she's open to venturing out into the deep sea, the lack of dependence on a comeback allows her to pick and choose what works for her at this stage of her life and career. What made me excited was that it (Marvel's Wastelanders) was something new and something I hadn't done. Voice acting and podcasts have become very relevant. I love exploring new avenues. Like, for instance, when I did a reality show, it was me stepping out of my comfort zone. Now, doing this Marvel series is something I never imagined I'd do. Neelam 2.0 Some would argue that playing yourself on screen like she did in Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives isn't too adventurous, but for an 80s female actor, once at the mercy of merciless tabloids, to put her life out there isnt a cakewalk. From being open about her concern for ageing and getting fillers to her transparent trepidation about making a comeback in a whole new world, Neelam hasn't shied away from making her life public. Even when she did make a comeback with Made in Heaven Season 2 last year, she was glad to be cast opposite her husband Samir Soni because she had to break her onscreen no-kissing rule. But returning to the dubbing studios to record Marvel's Wastelanders was like a homecoming. For an 80s and 90s actor, juggling multiple shifts, recreating the emotion through their voice in the pre-sync sound era, was like second nature. I don't do any practise, rehearsals or riyaaz before any dubbing. I've never done it. The only thing you've to keep in mind is when you're using your voice so much, sometimes it does get tired. So I could dub max only for 2-3 hours," says Neelam, very nonchalantly. As we gear up to see her again in Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives Season 3, Neelam is set to step out of the comfort zone again, as she joins fellow Bollywood wives to go against three of Delhi's influential socialites. She chooses baby steps over giant leaps as she ventures into the twilight dark. Unlike Jean Grey, her Marvel's Wastelanders character, Neelam doesn't want to be the Dark Phoenix, but knows well enough that she can get away with calling it John Grey. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place. Brad Pitt is clearly at an advantage in War of the Roses. The latest court ruling is favouring Pitt, who has been handed up-to-the minute victory in the battle to control the French vineyard he owned with ex-wife Angelina Jolie. This marks his second consecutive win after the previous one in February. This big win implies that the Bullet Train stars legal team has all the rights to take the lawsuit to court, in which the A-lister is suing Jolie. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt separated in 2016. Also read: Love is Blind season 7: Release date, cast, location, everything about Netflix dating show Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Brad Pitt wins latest legal battle against ex Angelina Jolie According to Mail, Jolies legal team had been trying to reverse a court decision in LA that agreed with her ex-husband's claim. The big claim made by Pitt, where he mentioned Jolie selling her share of their beautiful vineyard to Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler without his consent in 2021, has been the center of dispute between the Hollywood heavyweights since their divorce. However, the court has now dismissed claims that his lawsuit was "frivolous, malicious, and part of a problematic pattern," marking another win for the Fight Club star. The Chateau Miraval dispute Now, following the big win, Pitts legal team is reportedly preparing to take the lawsuit to court in which the Babylon actor is suing Jolie for breaching an agreement that they would give each other first refusal. The Chateau Miraval estate, renowned for producing award-winning sparkling rose, is a 1,300-acre French winemaking estate that the couple jointly purchased in 2008. They later exchanged wedding vows in 2014 at the same place which currently values around $164 million. A source close to Pitt said Mail, Brad wants Jersey to start giving answers. He should have the right to know who bought his company. He has put his heart and soul into Chateau Miraval and feels like the rug is being pulled out from under him. Hes not sure who hes doing business with." Also read: Kate Middleton's Windsor car photo sparks new photoshop controversy on internet: 'Doesn't look like her' Earlier, Pitt, who had a 60% stake in the estate compared to Jolie's 40%, gave an additional 10% to Jolie as a gift, making it an equal 50-50%. However, the couple parted ways in 2016. Issues arose when Jolie sold her share, but Pitt claims that he still owns 60% of the company and that the transaction is void. There was a whiff of Hollywood glamour in the air on Monday at St. Anthony's, a primary school in the Irish city of Cork that counts Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy as a past pupil. (Also read: Oscars 2024: Cillian Murphy wins Best Actor for Oppenheimer) Cillian Murphy won the first Best Actor Oscar for an Irishman. The day after Murphy won his first Oscar -- Best Actor for his role in Oppenheimer -- staff, parents, and children at his former school were basking in his success. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "When we woke up this morning there was such a buzz of excitement," Sean Lyons, principal of the all-boys Catholic school, told AFP. The 47-year-old Murphy was a pupil at St. Anthony's, in the tidy Cork neighbourhood of Ballinlough, between 1982 and 1988. He won his first Oscar Sunday for his portrayal of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the US physicist who masterminded the atomic bomb, capping a glittering awards season that saw him snare a Golden Globe, a BAFTA and other prizes. "We thought can this be real, that this man from Ballinlough in Cork actually won the Oscar, a global award!" said the beaming bespectacled teacher. "He has set the seed now for many students not just here in Ballinlough and St Anthony's but all around Ireland that they can achieve on the global stage," said Lyons. Super proud A "Congratulations" banner referred to the actor's recent Golden Globe and BAFTA awards and wished him luck for the Oscars. "That will have to be updated now," smiled Mary Harrington, a 68-year-old grandmother picking up her grandchild at the school gate. "I got up early this morning to make sure he'd won -- I don't know why I did that as I knew he was going to win," she laughed. "My brother was in secondary school with Cillian and here as well, and he remembers all the gigs that he played with his music," said Valerie Ni Cochlain, who was waiting for her child to come out from her school. "Well done to Cillian and his family, it's great news for Cork and Ireland," she said. Murphy had dipped his toe into acting at both school and university in Cork. In 1996, after pestering a local director, Murphy landed a lead part in the frenetic "Disco Pigs", a play written by fellow Corkonian Enda Walsh. Cillian Murphy in a still from Oppenheimer.(HT_PRINT) The stage show was a critical success, going on an 18-month world tour, and proved a launchpad for his career. "Cork is a small close-knit community, a small city, we're proud of everybody who achieves success and goes on to achieve great things," said Elaine Murphy, who is no relation. "We are super proud and so are the children, it's a great boost for everybody to be proud of a local," she said alongside her two smiling children, seven-year-old Liam Eanna, and Holly, aged six. Homework-free day Displayed inside the school in a questionnaire filled out in 2015, Cilian Murphy advised current students on how to break into acting and film. "Join a theatre group, start making films on our phone with your friends, edit them on your computer and put them on YouTube," wrote the actor, who now lives in Dublin after returning to Ireland from a decade in London. According to the questionnaire his biggest challenge was "trying to understand the Cork accent" after moving to Cork as a child from Dublin, some 260 kilometres (160 miles) southwest of the Irish capital. "One regret I have is that I didn't put money on him getting an Oscar back then," said Eddie Hogan O'Connell, a staff member who was a classmate of Murphy's. "I'd say the odds would have been great, whereas now he is up there with the best in the world and congratulations to him," he said. For the children at the school Murphy's win was reason for a surprise from the teachers: no homework. "The kids are especially happy that the teachers let them off," said Phil Howard, a grandmother collecting her grandson, Colm. "Cillian would be happy if he heard that I'm sure," she laughed. Michelle Yeoh might have initially caused some confusion while handing out this year's Best Actress Oscar to Emma Stone. To clear the air, Michelle then took to her Instagram to write about the exact moment, clarifying that she deliberately handed it through Jennifer Lawrence because she knew that Emma and Jennifer were best friends. (Also read: Emma Stone shows dress' torn zipper during Oscars acceptance speech, reveals how she broke it) Emma Stone shares an embrace with presenter Michelle Yeoh as she wins the Oscar for Best Actress for "Poor Things" during the Oscars show at the 96th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 10, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Blake(REUTERS) What Michelle Yeoh wrote Michelle shared a bunch of pictures from the evening, where she was seen handing the Oscar for Best Actress to Emma. Michelle, who won last year in the same category for Everything Everywhere All At Once, was present with past Best Actress winners Sally Field (Norma Rae and Places in the Heart), Charlize Theron (Monster), Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) and Jessica Lange (Blue Sky). Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. As Emma came on stage to accept her Oscar, Michelle guided her for an extra second to Jennifer Lawrence, so she could hand the Oscar to Stone. Viewers were left confused at this moment and thought that Emma ignored Michelle. In the caption, Michelle threw light on what exactly happened and wrote, Congratulations Emma!! I confused you , but I wanted to share that glorious moment of handing over Oscar to you together with your best friend Jennifer!! She reminded me of my Bae Jamie Lee Curtis (star emoticon) always there for each other!! More details There was another moment at the Best Actress acceptance speech that also grabbed everyone's attention. Emma suffered a wardrobe malfunction while accepting the award, as the back of her strapless Louis Vuitton gown split open. "My dress is broken; I think it happened during Im Just Ken,' Im pretty sure," she said, referring to Ryan Gosling's live performance just a few minutes ago. Emma faced stiff competition in the category from Lily Gladstone for Killers of the Flower Moon, Annette Bening for Nyad, Sandra Huller for Anatomy of a Fall and Carey Mulligan for Maestro. She had previously won an Oscar in the same category for La La Land. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place Even Master Qui Gon was unable to assess Young Anakin's psychic dilemma. Jake Llyod had a psychotic breakdown due to schizophrenia.(AP/Lucasfilm Ltd.) Jake Lloyd, known for his role as Anakin Skywalker in the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, hid himself the spotlight soon after the movies release. Recently, his mother, Lisa Lloyd, provided an update on her sons well-being, addressing long-standing rumours within the Star Wars community. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. In an interview with Scripps News, Lisa revealed that Jake was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2008. He experienced challenges with distinguishing between realities, often seeing people with black eyes and claiming to have conversations with Jon Stewart, the host of The Daily Show. Plus, Jake was found to have anosognosia, a neurological condition that leads to a denial of ones symptoms. ALSO READ| Venom 3 gets surprise release date with new title, releasing sooner than expected He didnt think he needed to take medication because he wasnt sick, Lisa explained. He didnt think he needed to go to the therapist because theres nothing wrong with him. Jake has a psychotic breakdown Jakes struggles with the law in 2015 culminated in a high-speed chase that ended in a crash. Following this incident, Lisa sought legal assistance to transfer Jake from jail to a medical facility due to his lapse in medication. However, she faced the obstacle of unavailable hospital beds, resulting in Jake spending 10 months in jail. Tragedy struck again in 2018 when Jakes sister, who had a minor role in The Phantom Menace, passed away from natural causes, exacerbating Jakes mental health issues. In March 2023, Jake experienced a severe psychotic episode, prompting his admission to a mental health rehabilitation center. Over the past 10 months, he has shown significant improvement, to the point where he can now enjoy movies, such as the recent Wonka. That was one of the things that we couldnt do when he was off his medication was watch movies. He just didnt have the attention span for it, said Lisa. Jake loves Star Wars, and the negative comments are not the reason for his mental illness Lisa also highlighted Jakes enduring passion for Star Wars, noting his enjoyment of the Disney+ series Ahsoka and his delight in receiving an action figure of the shows protagonist for his birthday. People think Jake hates Star Wars. He loves it, she affirmed. Lisa clarified that the backlash from The Phantom Menace was not the cause of Jakes mental illness. She drove the reason to genetics, given the history of schizophrenia in Jakes paternal family. I believe that it was genetic. And his psychiatrist also agrees that Jake was going to become schizophrenic, she stated. ALSO READ| Michelle Yeoh explains why Jennifer Lawrence handed the best actress Oscar to Emma Stone: I confused you Lisa protected Jake from the film's negative reception, ensuring he remained unaware and unaffected as he continued his childhood activities. She also dismissed the notion that Jakes departure from acting was linked to Star Wars, instead citing family circumstances, including a divorce. Prior to his iconic role, Jake appeared in films like Jingle All the Way with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Apollo 11. His television credits include ER and The Pretender, with his last film appearance being in 2001s Madison. Venom 3 Release Date: The Tom Hardy-led Venom franchise has officially confirmed its release date, now hitting cinemas sooner than scheduled. The third installment of the hit fantasy-driven film is set to arrive in October 2024, according to Sony Pictures. Additionally, the latest from Columbia Pictures has debuted with a new title. Read on to know more. Venom: The Last Dance to premiere in IMAX and PLFs on October 25, 2024(Pic credit- Sony) Venom 3 is now Venom: The Last Dance With director Kelly Marcel at the helm, Venom 3 has been rebranded as Venom: The Last Dance. Starring Hardy, Juno Temple, and Chiwetel Ejiofor, the film, initially scheduled to release in November 2024, is now set to premiere in October. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also read: The Boy and the Heron wins Oscars: Where to watch Hayao Miyazaki last animated feature Venom 3 release date Sony Pictures announced on Tuesday that their latest film, Venom: The Last Dance, will premiere on October 25, 2024. The third installment will screen in IMAX and on PLFs. Apart from Marcel, who co-penned the story with Hardy, other individuals involved in producing the film are Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal, and Hutch Parker. Venom 3 cast- Whos returning? In the third installment of the film, Tom Hardy will reprise his role as the Marvel bad guy Eddie Brock and Venom, which he played in the first film released in 2018. The second one titled Venom: Let There Be Carnage came out in 2021 with Andy Serkis as the director. And now, the third is soon to hit the screens with Kelly Marcel. She wrote the scripts for the first two movies. Plot details for the same are being kept under wraps for now. Also read: BTS Suga shoutouts ARMYs, brings RM, Jimin & Jungkook onstage in D-Day film trailer: Watch Venom 3 might have come out sooner, but the Hollywood SAG-AFRA strike severely delayed production. Juno Temple hinted earlier to Variety that production was almost over. Were coming close to an end at the moment, she said. Its been a wild, wonderful ride. Its so new to me. Its a big set! This is crazy. Its been so much fun and I got to work with such cool people. Ive been so lucky in my career to just have the most incredible casts. I cant wait for it to get out into the world. I think its going to be a good one. Kim Kardashian and Bianca Censori hanging out in public has caught the internet's eye. While one would expect the American socialite to have all kinds of issues with her ex-husband's present wife, especially since he got hitched to Censori less than a month after his divorce from Kim, she is apparently above all that hubbub. All is calm between Ye's wife and former spouse as the unlikely duo was spotted at the controversial rapper's Vultures 2 Listening Party in San Francisco. Kim Kardashian and Bianca Censori were spotted together at the San Francisco Vultures 2 Listening Party on Tuesday.(Instagram) On Tuesday, the two were united under one roof to celebrate Kanye West's latest album. According to a DailyMail report, Kim had previously instructed Ye to never let Censori parade her risque fashion aesthetic in front of her children, whom she shares with West. Staying faithful to her words, Bianca was spotted in a relatively modest pink top as she stood right next to Kim in the stands. Kim and Kanye's children, Chicago, Psalm, North and Saint, also attended the music fest. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Kim Kardashian - Bianca Censori - Kanye West: an infuriating triangle of celebrity fame While Censori's outfits shouldn't be anyone's concern, they've repeatedly made it to eye-grabbing headlines owing to West's alleged control over Bianca's wardrobe. However, whenever she's been snapped with Kim's children, her outfits are drastically reserved, staying true to the promise. Although Censori's outfit for the Listening Party session was just as quirky as her other recent choices that have gone viral, the relatively toned-down ensemble featured a deep-cut pink top and white leggings with kitten heels. Also read | Blackpink's Lisa, Tyla collab confirmed? Grammy winner boasts cute friendship One can't help but be concerned with the eyebrow-raising dynamics between Kanye, Bianca and Kim. Throughout his marriage with the SKIMS founder, the Vultures rapper was known to have criticised her for her revealing outfits. Akin to his influence on fashion choices, he continues to meddle in Bianca's online portrayal by making her wear clothes he picks. However, the tide has severely turned with him following the same-themed wardrobe that he was once vehemently against in Kim's case. Kardashian has been quite vocal about Kanye's take on her fashion over the years. In a Keeping Up With the Kardashian episode, she made it clear that Kanye had always dressed her. In the early 2000s, he would literally just send me random emails with all these looks and what my style should be, she said. He's previously lambasted Kim's shapewear brand for being overly sexualised. However, a stark paradigm shift has caused him to take charge of Bianca's wardrobe in the exact opposite way, but in the same stern ways. Her concerned parents worry about her well-being and are mortified by Kanye using her for promotions, either for Yeezy or for his album. Also read | Kanye West's Vultures Listening Experience was a dud, here's what happened About Kanye West's album Vultures 2: Vultures 2 will serve as the second chapter of the American rapper's ongoing musical trilogy project with Ty Dolla $ign. Vultures 1 came out on February 10 after repeated delays; the upcoming album is witnessing a similar reception and is yet to roll out. Amidst backlash from fans for the never-ending wait, new reports have revealed that Ye might not release this music piece on streaming platforms at all. Earlier this week, he decided to go old school instead and announced that he would be selling the album on the Yeezy website for $20. Kanye's eldest daughter, North West, is all set to join him on the music front as she recently announced her debut album, Elementary School Dropout. At the previous Vultures 2 Listening Party, she confirmed that she was working on her new album. The 10-year-old also featured on her dad's song Talking / Once Again from the Vultures 1 album. They are celebrating festivals more Allu opined that the younger generations are owning everything about Indian traditions, including dressing and food. According to Bollywood Hungama, he said, I have seen youngsters are liking their culture more, they are celebrating their festivals even more. They are dressing up in their culture, they are eating food, and also looking rich in culture. We have started to own it up. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. We come from a generation who feel apologetic The actor also opined that his generation grew up feeling apologetic about owning who they are, but that has slowly changed. He also said that the onus lied on celebrities and media to help people embrace their roots. He said, Somehow we come from a generation who feel little apologetic about owning who we are. I think that is rapidly changing and I think celebrities and even media has got a huge role and responsibility of in projecting our culture. We should own our culture. Pushpa sequel Allu is currently shooting for the sequel of Pushpa: The Rise, titled Pushpa: The Rule, with director Sukumar and actors Rashmika Mandanna and Fahadh Faasil. He recently shot for the film in Vizag and is currently shooting for it in Hyderabad. The film will be released on August 15 this year. The film tells the story of a daily wage worker turned red sandalwood smuggler called Pushpa Raj, whose personal struggles threaten to overcome his life. Fahadh plays a police office, Bhanwar Singh Shekawat, who butts head with Pushpa in the film while Rashmika plays Pushpas wife Srivalli. New additions to the cast have been made but theyre yet to be announced. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place Union home minister Amit Shah recently met team HanuMan and was all praise for them. He took to X to share pictures from the meeting and share his views on the superhero film, thats first in Prasanth Varmas cinematic universe. (Also Read: HanuMan is culturally rooted, not religious: Director Prasanth Varma) Amit Shah met HanuMan's Teja Sajja and Prasanth Varma recently Amit Shahs post Amit wrote on his X account, Met the talented actor Shri @tejasajja123 and film director Shri @PrasanthVarma of the recent superhit movie Hanuman. The team has done a commendable job of showcasing Bharat's spiritual traditions and the superheroes that have emerged from them. Best wishes to the team for their future projects. In the pictures shared by him, Teja and Prasanth can be seen gifting Amit an idol of Lord Hanuman. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Teja seemed on cloud nine about the meet, writing on his X, An absolute honour to meet @AmitShah sir. Humbled and thankful for your kind words sir. Prasanth also re-shared Amits post on X, writing, It was a privilege meeting you sir. Your kind words and encouragement have left a lasting impact on us. About HanuMan HanuMan was released in theatres in January and later began streaming digitally on Zee 5. The film tells the story of a young man called Hanumanthu (Teja) who gains superpowers after coming across a totem in his village. How he stands up for his people against a capitalistic villain (Vinay Rai) with the help of his sister (Varalaxmi Sarathkumar) and lover (Amritha Aiyer) forms the tale. The films sequel Jai Hanuman is currently in pre-production. The filmmakers are yet to announce who has been cast in the titular role. The film will take the story forward from where HanuMan was left off. Prasanth also announced another film in his cinematic universe called Adhira, starring Kalyan Dasari. The film will seemingly delve into Lord Indiras lore and it remains to be seen how it connects to HanuMan. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place After acting in Telugu and Tamil films since 2005, actor Anushka Shetty will now debut in Malayalam. The actor will star in Rojin Thomas period fantasy drama, Kathanar - The Wild Sorcerer, which also stars Jayasurya and Vineeth. (Also Read: Anushka Shetty reveals why she took a break after Baahubali: I know its totally unheard of) Anushka Shetty will debut in Malayalam soon Honoured to collaborate Sharing pictures of the team welcoming Anushka on board, Rojin wrote on his Instagram, Honored to collaborate with the exceptional Anushka Shetty on our Kathanars cinematic journey! #dreamcast #kathanarthewildsorcerer #sreegokulammovies. (sic) In the pictures, Anushka can be seen all smiles as she accepts flowers and an idol of Lord Krishna from the films team. Anushka also shared the pictures on X, writing, Entered into the world of #Kathanar - The Wild Sorcerer'. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. About Kathanar The Wild Sorcerer Kathanar - The Wild Sorcerer is written by R Ramanand and is touted to release in two parts. The film tells the story of a 9th-century Christian priest, Kadamattathu Kathanar, endowed with magical powers. Jayasurya will essay the titular role while Anushka will play Kalliyankattu Neeli, who is described as a bloodthirsty ghost with divine beauty. The first part of the film will likely hit screens this year, with the makers planning to dub it in English, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, Chinese, French, Korean, Italian, Russian, Indonesian, and Japanese. Anushkas filmography Anushka was born in Mangalore, Karnataka, and hails from a Tulu-speaking family but she has interestingly never acted in a Kannada film. After debuting in 2005 with Puri Jagannadhs heist film Super, which also starred Nagarjuna, Ayesha Takia, she gained fame in Telugu with films like Vikramarkudu, Arundhati and Vedam. But the Baahubali films skyrocketed her fame and she pulled back after that, choosing to act in few projects. She has since starred in Bhagamathie and Nishbdham, playing a cameo in Chiranjeevis Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy. Her most recent film is the 2023 rom-com Miss Shetty Mr Polishetty with Naveen Polishetty. Entertainment! Entertainment! Entertainment! Click to follow our Whatsapp Channel Your daily dose of gossip, films, shows, celebrities updates all in one place Vanderpump Rules Season 11 may have turned out to be a dry spell in the larger scheme of things, but with ex-partners Ariana Madix and Tom Sandoval at each other's throats under the same roof, the mega dose of glib drama quotient goes on. The Emmy-nominated American reality TV series on Bravo has hit its midseason peak. And so, a new trailer hinting at all the melodrama has teased how the topsy-turvy dynamics between the cast will flesh out the journey ahead. With Tom Sandoval's potential new romantic interest possibly dropping by the pool party, and issues around his assistant Ann Maddox still vexing as ever, the new episode has a lot of ground to cover. Here's what you can expect from the eighth episode, releasing next week: Vanderpump Rules Season 11 premiered on Bravo TV on January 30.(Instagram/ lalakent) Vanderpump Season 11 Midseason Trailer Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Season 11 has been centred around Ariana and Tom still sharing the same roof despite the past Scandoval moment. After his betrayal, Sandoval is still mending bridges. While his relationship with Ariana has gone ice-cold, he still attempts to pull his friends back into his corner. The midseason preview captures Tom Schwartz playing the diplomatic centre as he does his best to convince others that Sandoval is not a trash person. He's a good person who did a trash thing. But Ariana obviously doesn't buy into it and is ticked off by everything her ex has done to A trash thing. The future episodes will also tackle the brewing love triangle between Schwartz, Katie Maloney and Tori Keeth. Tom has plans to bury the hatchet, but Ariana is clearly still hurting a lot and doesn't intend to speak to him, believing that he wouldn't even care if she died in a ditch. Also read | Royal rift between Prince William-Kate Middleton? America spills the tea on Katespiracy Vanderpump Rules Season 11 Episode 8 Release Date The upcoming episode, Peaks and Valleys, will drop on Bravo on Tuesday, March 19, at 8 pm ET. The Bravo original series can also be watched on Fubo TV, YouTube TV, Sling TV, and Hulu+ Live TV. As for online streaming, the new VPR episode will be available on Peacock the next day. UK audience can tune into Hayu to watch the show. Vanderpump Rules Season 11 Episode 8: What to expect? A previously released teaser of the next episode brought Tom Sandoval's assistant, Ann Maddox, back into the conversation. Sandoval will take flak for putting Ann through tasks that arenot part of her job description. As Ariana gets ready to host Scheana Shay at her place, she walks in on Ann cleaning up Sandoval's mess after the pool party. Pointing out that she shouldn't be doing that, Ariana, too, remains clueless about Ann's role. From housekeeping to taking on like a mother role, Ann has been mopping up after Sandoval. In her March 12 appearance on Andy Cohen's Watch What Happens Live, Ariana teased that there will be some developments" around Ann. Bravo TV's reports also suggest that Tom's new love interest, Victoria Lee Robinson's arrival, is due sometime soon, possibly even next time we meet the cast members on Tuesday. The upcoming pool party at the former couple's Valley Village home will likely host the new lady in Tom's life. Tom Schwartz also feels stuck in the middle of this weird situation. Despite being proud of Tom for putting himself out there, his friend feels uncomfortable that he's doing it under the same roof of the girl (he) cheated on. While India has been recognised as a nation with a thriving workforce, the trajectory of women's participation in employment does not align with the population growth. A World Bank report reveals that women's contribution to both formal and informal labour dropped from 27% in 2005 to 23% in 2021. Despite significant strides towards ensuring gender equality across industries, a persistent gender gap in workforce participation prevails, presenting a challenge for the nation's economic development. Working women (representative image)(Shutterstock) According to a Barclays report, India can achieve a Gross Domestic Product growth rate of 8% by ensuring womens share in more than half of the new workforce set to be created by 2030. However, a report from International Labour Organization (ILO) reveals a substantial employability gender gap in India, standing at 50.9%. Only around19.2% of women are actively participating in the labour force, with a stark contrast to 70.1% of men. Furthermore, the World Economic Forum's Gender Gap Report 2022 positions India at 135 out of 146 countries, trailing behind smaller nations like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. As per ILO, 52% of women in India are keen to build a career to meet the needs of their families; however, they are met with a series of challenges. A key obstacle hindering women's active involvement in the workforce is the complex issue of commuting because of inadequate, unsafe, and unreliable transportation options disproportionately limit job opportunities for women, particularly those residing in areas with insufficient public transport facilities. Addressing this challenge becomes paramount for fostering gender inclusivity in the workplace and ensuring that women can fully leverage their skills and potential. Corporate mobility services gain relevance in this context. Corporate mobility services have a far-reaching impact that goes beyond mere transportation. Such services can directly influence women from diverse communities to join the urban workforce. By providing reliable and secure transportation, corporate mobility services enable women to overcome geographical constraints, fostering inclusivity in the workforce. It also brings flexibility in commuting, allowing employees, especially women, to tailor their travel schedules to better suit their personal and professional commitments. By assuring scheduled and secure transportation in the form of well-maintained cars driven by qualified and thoroughly screened drivers, adding security guards to vehicles, and utilising real-time GPS tracking devices, corporate mobility service providers address safety concerns that women may face during their commute, especially those working late shifts or in industries with irregular working hours. Thus, corporate mobility service providers play a crucial role in advancing equality and cultivating an environment where women are empowered to contribute actively to the workforce. The last-mile connectivity issue, which frequently affects many women commuting between their homes and public transit hubs or between transportation hubs and their places of employment, is also addressed by mobility services. Corporate mobility service providers make sure that transportation runs smoothly by providing individual cab pick-up and drop points right upto the homes of employees, or through shuttle services, making it safer and easier for female employees to commute. Technology plays a pivotal role in transforming the workforce landscape, creating a more inclusive and diverse workforce. Corporate mobility service providers can harness the power of technology through mobile apps, to revolutionise the commuting experience for employees. Real-time GPS tracking, emergency assistance features, and employee check-ins are just a few among the many which can be leveraged to enhance the overall commuting experience. The implementation of these technological features not only augments safety measures but also fosters a sense of security for women employees. As advocates of gender equality, companies must recognise the integral role that corporate mobility plays in shaping a diverse and inclusive workforce. Safe commuting options are not only a matter of convenience but an imperative in helping women to actively participate in the workforce. By investing in secure transportation services backed by technology, employers can address majority of the concerns raised by women employees. This will foster an environment where women feel genuinely supported, encouraged, and empowered to contribute their skills and talents. This article is authored by Kavitha Ramachandragowda, co-founder & executive director, Routematic. Actor Anjali Anand, who made her big screen debut with Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani last year, has a lineup of 3 projects this year. I just finished two projects, one I can talk about and one I cant. One is Bun Tikki, where I am playing a small part. Its a beautiful film and I am so glad I am a part of it. I am getting to work with Shabana Azmi, Abhay Deol, and Zeenat Aman, such amazing artists. I cant wait for the world to watch it. Its unbelievable that I am getting to work with all these people so early on, says the actor, who will also be seen in Dabba Cartel and another web show. Anjali Anand Anand also tells us that her mother Purnima Anand, an artist from the 70s-80s, has worked with veteran actor Zeenat Aman in the past as her body double and now she is also got a chance to work with her in their upcoming project Bun Tikki, which is designer Manish Malhotras first feature film. When they told me that I am getting to work with Zeenat ji, I was on cloud nine. My mom was her body double many years ago. It was amazing to get to be in the same project with her. We spoke a lot and she knew my parents. She just couldnt believe that the little girl is now so big. She was all praises about mom and dad. I didnt have any memory of meeting her as a child. But, I knew that she was a part of our life and mom-dad knew her, the 31-year-old shares. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. I didnt even have to tell her, I just took their name and she recalled everything. She remembered every single thing and knew so much about my family, I had no idea. She knew where I stayed because she has been home so much. I actually dont ask too many questions from my mom, because I wanted to have new experiences of my own, she further adds. Anands dad Dinesh Anand was also a part of the industry but unfortunately passed away in 2001. Mum couldnt even believe that I would be working with all of these people because she thought that after dad, this time would never come back again. I am happy I am able to give her that life again. My dad was an actor and my mom was a dancer, choreographer and body double. I am feeling so lucky that I am getting to work with people that my parents have worked with. Even recently, I shot for a web show with Raj Babbar and he was my dads close friend, she expresses. Talking about her hatrick collaboration with veteran actor Shabana Azmi, she shares, Its my third with Shabana ji. I put up a post with her on social media because one day I just woke up and started missing her so much because I started another project and she wasnt a part of it. Since 2021, I have been working with her continuously, she is on every set and in every meeting. Suddenly she is not there, its making me feel so weird. She is a good friend of mine now, someone to talk to, someone to take advice from. Anand made her debut with Karan Johars commercial rom-coms flick and already has many opportunities coming her way. Would it have been different if it was a small film? Nobody in the film industry knew me, but now, I dont have to introduce myself to anybody because the success of that film reached everywhere. Its just about people seeing the talent in me and now giving me opportunities, she responds, continuing, Even if it wasnt something as commercial, I dont think that case different hota. Something as non-commercial as 12th Fail did so well and Medha, who is my friend, got so much fame and work after that. So, its not about small or big films, you just have to be good at what you do. Film chale na chale vo aapke luck and bahut saare alag factors par based hota hai. Actor Anshuman Jha is on cloud nine as he welcomed his baby girl, Tara, with his wife Sierra Winters on March 10. Talking to us exclusively from the US, the actor says, "The last 48. hours have been a blur; it was a long labour. It's a surreal experience, none like I've ever had before." Anshuman with wife Sierra While it's legal in America, the 38-year-old and his better half opted against taking a sex determination test as they "wanted the baby's gender to be a surprise". His wife went into labour on Mahashivratri night (March 8), however, "the due date was March 14 (celebrated as Pi Day), so we had started calling our baby 'Pi'. I truly believe women are the smartest people on the planet. I'm grateful we had a daughter," shares the Lakadbaggha (2023) actor. As Sierra and her family are from the US, the couple decided to give birth to their first child with her parents close by. "I believe having grandparents can make a big difference. I lost my parents in 2020. Having an elderly presence in the first two to three months, who has experience raising children, is important. Sierra's mum had three kids, so it's nice to have family around," he wraps up. Actor Rohan Gurbaxani, last seen in Zoya Akhtars Kho Gaye Hum Kahan as Ananya Pandays toxic boyfriend, is enjoying the OTT releases success. Kho Gaye Hum Kahan got an amazing response and I am happy about that. People could relate with the film and its characters, that was the best part, he says. Rohan Gurbaxani was last seen in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan Gurbaxani has also worked in many Hollywood projects, including, Becky and Knuckledust (both 2020), but came to India recently in late 2021. I went to college there, in Tisch School Of The Arts (acting school there) in New York for four years, and I wanted to build a network there. I had always thought that after graduating, I will do a few films over there, see how it is, and then come back here again. Get some experience and start working in India then, shares the 27-year-old, who made his debut in Bollywood in the second season of Made In Heaven. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. But eventually, I wanted to experience and conquer both industries. Its important to stay where the momentum is. Both industries are on my radar. Being here has also been good so far. Because my training journey started there, I do have a soft spot for that. However, I dont limit myself to one industry and would like to explore and work in both, the actor further adds. Ask Gurbaxani about what attracted him to the Hindi film industry and he shares, The year when I came back to India was when all these OTT platforms were releasing great content. I remember watching Made In Heaven, Mirzapur and many other shows during lockdown back in New York. I knew that that area of content would boom, adding, I thought that now that I am back here and casting options are vast, I will just audition and see. I tried reaching out to people and arranging for auditions. Its not like I am doing work here to go there or doing work there just to come here. If theres a good story to tell and portray a craft, thats what eventually matters, rather than which country you are sitting in. I have always been inspired and interested to come here. But you can say that with OTT, so many more new faces are launched and so many actors who probably couldnt have gotten opportunities before, now have them. I got my outsider ka lunch through Made In Heaven. You just have to continue working your craft and that will translate and bring you in front of good opportunities, he elaborates, highlighting the chances given in the OTT medium. Its not like I wanted to continue doing OTT shows after that, I am glad I got Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani, never expected that I would get a commercial film so early on. As an actor, you cant really choose. Whatever you get initially, you do the best you can. You can even make a mark in 2-3 minute roles, Gurbaxani wraps up. Bengaluru: A newlywed man was stabbed by his wifes father on Monday in Melapur of Mandya district, said police. At that time, he was visiting his relatives. Following the incident, all the nine accused were arrested till evening. The court has remanded the accused to 14-day judicial custody. (HT) Police have identified the victim as Shashank (22) from Madiwala community who recently married a 19-year-old woman from Kuruba community against the wishes of her families. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. According to reports, the assailants, including JP Anand, the womans father from Mysuru, confronted Shashank and brutally stabbed him with a knife that led to severe injuries in his intestines. He was rushed to a private hospital in Mysuru where he is critical, said police. The couple have been in a relationship for the past three years. The family of the woman had been opposing their relationship as the man belongs to a different community, said inspector N Kumar from Srirangapatna rural police station. The womans family found a match for her from their community, and even had an engagement ceremony against her wishes. But she eloped on March 6 and married Shashank in Nimishamba temple in Srirangapatna, said police. After marriage, the father of the woman visited her and called her to his house, but she refused to go. The irate father then hatched a plan to kill the boy; however, he survived, the inspector added. We have registered a case against all the accused under sections 141 (unlawful assembly), 149 (every member of the assembly guilty of an offence of common object), 325 (causing grave hurt), and 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Subsequently, we arrested them and produced them before Srirangapatna JMFC court, which remanded them to judicial custody for 14 days, stated the inspector. NEW DELHI: The union cabinet on Wednesday approved two agreements to be signed with Bhutan in the areas of energy and food safety ahead of Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgays visit to the country from March 14-18. (FILES) Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay will begin his five-day visit to India on March 14 (AFP FILE PHOTO) This will be Tobgays first foreign trip after assuming office in January following Bhutans general election. He will be accompanied by Bhutans ministers for foreign affairs, energy and natural resources and industry and senior officials. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The visit also comes against the backdrop of reports that Bhutan and China are moving towards a pact to settle their disputed boundary, a development that could have security ramifications for crucial stretches of the India-Bhutan border such as the Doklam plateau. Tobgay is making an official visit at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. Besides meeting President Droupadi Murmu, he will hold bilateral talks with Modi. Tobgay will also meet external affairs minister S Jaishankar and other dignitaries. He will also travel to Mumbai on this visit. India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding, and Tobgays visit will be an opportunity for the two sides to review progress in their partnership and to discuss ways to expand cooperation, the external affairs ministry said. Ahead of the visit, a meeting of the Cabinet chaired by Modi approved the signing of an agreement between the Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA) and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for cooperation in food safety. The agreement will facilitate trade between the two countries, an official statement said. BFDA will issue a health certificate as proof of compliance with requirements prescribed by FSSAI for exporting products from Bhutan to India. This will promote ease of doing business and reduce compliance costs on both sides. The Cabinet also approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Indias Bureau of Energy Efficiency and Bhutans department of energy for extending cooperation in energy efficiency and energy conservation measures. Under this MoU, India aims to assist Bhutan in enhancing energy efficiency in households by promoting the star labelling programme developed by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency. The framing of building codes to suit the climate conditions of Bhutan will be facilitated based on Indias experience. The creation of a pool of energy professionals in Bhutan is also envisaged by institutionalising the training of energy auditors. India also aims to support Bhutans efforts to implement the standards and labelling scheme. Energy-intensive appliances are the main products leading to higher consumption of power in households or commercial establishments and this can be optimised if consumers prefer high-efficiency appliances. The MoU was prepared by the power ministry in consultation with the external affairs ministry and the department for the promotion of industry and internal trade. It will enable the exchange of information, data and technical experts related to energy efficiency and energy conservation. Bhutan was provided the largest share of the external aid portfolio in Indias budget for 2024-25, with an outlay of 2,068 crore. The Indian side has also been keeping a close watch on efforts by Bhutan and China to resolve their boundary dispute. Bhutan and China held the 25th round of boundary talks in Beijing late last year and signed an agreement for a joint technical team to work on the demarcation of the boundary. The two countries held their last round of border talks in 2016 and the new agreement builds on a three-step roadmap finalised in 2021 for resolving the boundary issue. The Maharashtra Cabinet on Wednesday announced its decision to rename Ahmednagar district as Ahilya Nagar after the 18th-century Maratha queen Ahilyabai Holkar. Bharatiya Janata Party had been demanding the renaming of the Ahmednagar district after the renaming of Maharashtra's Aurangabad and Osmanabad as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and Dharashiv respectively. The proposal to rename the city was first announced by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde in May last year on the 298th birth anniversary of the 18th-century queenAhilyabai Holkar. The event was attended by Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, Maharashtra minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar among others. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Bharatiya Janata Party had been demanding the renaming of the Ahmednagar district after the renaming of Maharashtra's Aurangabad and Osmanabad as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and Dharashiv, respectively. Speaking about the renaming of Ahmednagar, BJP MLA Gopichand Padalkar told news agency ANI earlier, Ahmednagar's name must be changed to Ahilya Nagar. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis have changed the name of Aurangabad and Osmanabad after a demand raised by everyone. Following that people are also demanding of changing the name of Ahmednagar to Ahilya Nagar. The decision was announced amid other announcements including the Cabinet's decision to rename seven railway stations in Mumbai which were earlier given British era names. Following the approval, Curry Road will be renamed Lalbaug, Sandhurst Road will now be known as Dongri, and Marine Lines will be renamed Mumbadevi. Others including Cotton Green station will be renamed Kalachowki, Charni Road will be renamed Girgaon, Dockyard Road to Mazgaon, and King Circle will be renamed Tirthakar Parshivnath. The Cabinet has also decided to rename Mumbai Central Station as Nana Jagannath Shankarsheth Station for which a proposal has been sent to the railways ministry. The Maharashtra Cabinet has also approved the purchase of 2.5 acres of land in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, to construct a Maharashtra Bhavan there. The proposal for this was already made in the state budget in the previous session of the Maharashtra Assembly. The Maharashtra Cabinet has approved the construction of a sea link between Uttan (Bhayander) and Virar (Palghar). (With inputs from ANI) In yet another major blow for the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, senior party MLA and Uttar Pradesh co-in-charge Ajay Kapoor on Wednesday quit the grand old party and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). According to reports, Congress was seeking to field Kapoor, the now-former party MLA from Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, in the general elections. Congress party's national secretary Ajay Kapoor quits, joins BJP The reason for his switch to the saffron party is not yet known. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Addressing a press conference, with BJP leaders at the party headquarters in the national capital, Kapoor said that he worked very honestly during his over 37-year-long association with the Congress. But, today, I feel that every person should join Modi ji's family for the progress of the country, he said. Who is Ajay Kapoor? Born in 1967, Ajay Kapoor is a three-time MLA from Uttar Pradesh. He won the assembly election for the first time in 2002 from Govind Nagar as a Congress candidate, and then again in 2007 from the same seat. In the 2012 general elections, Kapoor won from the Kidwai Nagar constituency. However, in 2017, the UP election commission filed a show cause notice against Kapoor for violating election conduct rules. He lost his seat in the 2017 UP assembly election to BJP leader Mahesh Trivedi. Kapoor now joins the list of Congress leaders who have quit the party and joined the ruling BJP. Earlier in the day, Congress leader and former minister in Maharashtra Padmakar Valvi joined the BJP, saying that he was upset with the grand old party for the past year. The pace of work by the BJP and the planning made by the party from the state to the Centre (its benefits) reach to people. Its effect can be seen...We, the true workers of Congress, were upset for years. I was upset for a year. I was hoping to receive an opportunity to campaign for the party in the Lok Sabha election...People are indeed upset in CongressThere is no coordination in the management of the Congress organisation...I will carry out whatever role is assigned to me by the party (BJP), he told ANI. (With inputs from agencies) A day after the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 was implemented by the central government, the Delhi Police detained 55 students from Delhi University for staging a protest against the new law. The students were detained from the DU Arts Faculty, the police said. Security was deployed outside JMI and DU after anti-CAA protests (PTI Photo)(PTI) Scores of students from the Left-affiliated AISA had called for a protest against the implementation of the CAA notified by the Centre on Monday. Similar protests also erupted in Jamia Millia Islamia shortly after the Centre's notification. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. However, Delhi University AISA unit president Manik Gupta alleged that the students were detained by the police even before the protests started. He also alleged that the students were brutally handled by the authorities. Many students who were simply standing outside the Arts Faculty and not participating in the protest were detained by the police on the basis of mere doubt, Gupta claimed. Deputy commissioner of police (north) MK Meena said, Taking preventive measures, we have removed around 50 to 55 students from the Central Library of Delhi University (opposite Arts Faculty) who were protesting against the CAA. They were removed from the location and they will be released soon. "All allegations that the police thrashed the students are baseless as we have all video-recorded," he added. Anti-CAA protests at Jamia Millia Islamia Protests also erupted in Jamia Millia Islamia shortly after the rules for CAA were notified. Students' outfits held a press conference at Jamia demanding the withdrawal of the Act and release of all students, who were booked in the anti-CAA protest nearly four years ago. Security personnel were posted outside the university in case of any potential disturbances, as JMI was one of the prime spots where the anti-CAA protests erupted in 2020. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday notified the rules of the CAA giving nod to its implementation. Under the rules, persecuted non-Muslim migrants - Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians - from three countries, including Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, will be eligible for Indian nationality. (With inputs from PTI) The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra on Wednesday said an average of 1 lakh to 1.5 pilgrims are visiting the Ram Temple in Ayodhya daily. Owing to the footfall, the temple trust has issued a new set of guidelines for the pilgrims. These include the timing of darshan, process of entry and exit, timings of aartis and requirements for an entry pass. Devotees at the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya.(ANI) The Ram Temple in Ayodhya was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 22. Modi had presided over the consecration ceremony of the Ayodhya Ram temple in the presence of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, governor Anandiben Patel and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The prime minister performed the last Vedic rituals of the ceremony by symbolically opening the eyes of the Ram Lalla idol with a golden stick, and ending the rites with aarti and shashtang pranam (prostration) to the deity. Since its opening, the Ram temple has witnessed a massive influx of devotees who continue to arrive in the temple town from various parts of India and the world. What are new guidelines for Ram Temple devotees? Controversies and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Anantkumar Hegde representing Uttara Kannada Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka go hand in hand. In his parliamentary career, beginning from 1996 till the present date (with a five-year break from 1999 to 2004, when he lost the election to Margaret Alva of the Congress), Hegde is no stranger to controversies. Speaking at an event in Siddapur in his constituency earlier this week, Hegde alleged that the previous Congress governments at the Centre had amended the Constitution in a manner that marginalised Hindus. The Constitution requires amendments because the Congress has altered it fundamentally, introducing unnecessary provisions that undermine the Hindu community. Achieving this change necessitates a two-thirds majority, he said and sought public support for the BJP to secure over 400 parliamentary seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, citing the need for such a majority to enact Constitutional amendments. His statements have drawn sharp criticism from the Karnataka Congress, which accused the BJP of attempting to tamper with the Constitution and questioned its commitment to BR Ambedkar's vision. In a quick damage control, the BJP distanced itself from Hegde's remarks. BJP leader Gaurav Bhatia told news agency ANI: It must be made clear: The statement reflects his personal views and is not a statement that reflects the views of the BJP with clarity. The party has taken cognisance of this statement made by Hgede and has also asked for clarification from him. It must be reiterated that every step that is taken by the BJP, every decision that is taken by the BJP is always in the interest of our country and consonance with the spirit of the Constitution.'' Also read: Legally Speaking | Can the fundamental principles of the Constitution be altered? In 2017 too, as Union minister of state for skill development and entrepreneurship, he suggested changing the Constitution. We will respect the Constitution, but the Constitution has changed several times and will change in the future too. We are here to change the Constitution and we'll change it. At the same event, he urged people to identify with their religion or caste and ridiculed those who claim[ed] to be secular. Hegdes statements in January this year also kicked up a storm, when he called Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah a boot licker. With reports of some youth in Karnataka joining the Islamic State in Syria, Hegde said, Karnataka is becoming a home for terrorists. I won't be shocked if Siddaramaiah will go ahead and hold a Kasab Jayanthi in future. According to A Narayan, professor of policy and governance at Azim Premji University, There is a pattern to Hegde's call for changing the Constitution and prompt denial by the party bosses. His virulent attack on the Constitution holding it to be too pro-minority helps consolidate upper caste votes in favour of the BJP, more so in Hegde's Brahmin-dominated Uttara Kannada constituency. Then, the formal distancing of the party from his statements is to ensure that the Dalit voters who identify themselves with the Constitution are not displeased too much. Hegdes use of unparliamentary language extended to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, whom he called a hybrid specimen on account of his parents different heritage, speaking at a function in Karwar on January 30, 2019. A few days before that, Hegde made unsubstantiated claims that the Mughal-era monument Taj Mahal was originally a Shiv Mandir known as Tejo Mahalaya according to Hegdes claims, Mughal emperor Shah Jahan had bought the temple from a king named Jayasimha. Many questioned the unfactual basis of these claims. Dinesh Gundu Rao, who was the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president at the time, questioned Hegdes achievements as a Union minister. Hegde responded by referring to Rao as a guy who ran behind a Muslim lady (Rao is married to a Muslim). Now 56, Hegde reportedly caught the BJP leaderships attention soon after the Babri Masjid demolition in 1993. A case of rioting, unlawful assembly and promoting enmity was booked against him. In 1994, he broke the police cordon and hoisted the national flag at the Idgah maidan in Hubballi. According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), which collates the affidavits of candidates during elections, Hegde declared that he is facing charges ranging from promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony. His induction into the Union cabinet in 2014 surprised many, as he had overtaken many seniors from the state. But the BJP leadership realised he was becoming more of a liability than an asset with his statements supporting Hindutva ideologies. For instance, in 2016, at a press meet in Sirsi, Karnataka, Hegde allegedly equated Islam to a ticking time bomb of terror that needed to be eradicated. Soon after taking charge as minister, he was caught on camera slapping a doctor of a private hospital in Sirsi in Uttara Kannada for allegedly not paying enough attention to his mother, who had suffered multiple fractures after a fall at home. The footage showed him grabbing the doctor by the throat and slamming him against a wall. Residents of Hegdes constituency claim that he visits them only when elections are announced and every five years when the constituency goes to polls. We are proud that he has been raising issues about Hindutva, but there has been no development work done in the constituency for 30 years. He has been winning only because the Congress is weak here, Arun Kumar Vasanth Habbu, a voter said. When the party was looking to replace BS Yediyurappa as the state unit president in 2019, Hegdes name did the rounds for the post. The party picked MP Nalin Kumar Kateel and a sulking Hegde had not campaigned for the party during the 2023 assembly polls. Amid the rising cases of dog bites across the country, the Centre has imposed a ban on the import, sale, and breeding of 23 ferocious dog breeds which are considered to be a threat to human life. Joint secretary, ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying, Dr OP Chaudhary has sent a letter to the chief secretaries of states and Union territories to ensure the imposition of the ban. Centre bans breeding, sale of ferocious dog breeds amid rising dog bite cases The list of banned dog breeds includes - Pitbull Terrier, Tosa Inu, American Staffordshire Terrier, Fila Brasileiro, Dogo Argentino, American bulldog, Boerboel, Kangal, Russian Shepherd, Tornjak, Sarplaninac, Japanese Tosa and Akita, Mastiffs, Rottweiler, Terriers, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Wolf dogs, Canario, Akbash dog, Moscow Guard dog, Cane Corso, and every dog of the type commonly known as a Ban Dog. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. According to the letter, the import of such dog breeds is also recommended to be prohibited by the expert committee formed under the chairmanship of the commissioner of Animal Husbandry. The central government has also called for the enforcement of the Dog Breeding and Marketing Rules 2017 and the Pet Shop Rules 2018. The Centre's move comes after appeals from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India to protect vulnerable dog breeds commonly exploited by criminal elements of society for illegal dogfighting, as well as for the safety of humans. PETA also filed a writ petition in the Delhi high court regarding this. In its petition, PETA wrote: This order is key toward providing vital protection for both humans and dogs and sends a strong, clear message that pit bulls and other such breeds are bred to be used as weapons. Pit bulls and related breeds are the most commonly abandoned dogs in India, and this action can prevent a great deal of suffering. Several cases of deaths due to dog bites have surfaced across the country in the past few months. On Tuesday, 20 people were injured in Himachal's Bilaspur area after being attacked by a stray dog. Meanwhile, last month, a toddler was hospitalised for 17 days after she was bitten by a pitbull in Delhi. In another incident last week, another 10-year-old child was critically injured in Ghaziabad after a pit bull attacked her. The Hyderabad Police on Tuesday had to resort to lathi-charge to disperse the crowd that thronged a restaurant in Malakpet to get free haleem. Haleem is a flavourful stew made with a combination of lentils, meat, wheat and a blend of spices. The police said that a case will be registered against the management of the restaurant.(PTI) News agency ANI reported that the restaurant's management had decided to give free haleem to the public on the first day of Ramadan. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. However, the hotel management was unable to control the crowd, and later, the police had to be called in to disperse the crowd. Visuals shared by news agency PTI showed hundreds of people gathered at the restaurant for free haleem. The restaurant identified in the footage is named 'Aazebo'. Malakpet inspector U Srinivas told The Times of India that a case will be registered against the management of the restaurant for disrupting the free movement of traffic. The hotel management did not inform police in prior about the free offer nor did they take any permission. For creating disturbance to free movement of traffic a case will be registered," he said. Ramzan 2024 The holy Islamic month of Ramzan begins on Tuesday as the Ramzan moon was sighted in various parts of the country on Monday. A meeting of the Ruyat-e-Hilal Committee under the presidentship of Maulana Niaz Ahmed Farooqui, secretary Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, was held in Delhi, following which the announcement was made. It has been verified that the moon has been sighted in several parts of the country, a statement issued by them said. Millions of Muslims all over the world eagerly await the sight of the crescent moon, marking the beginning of the holy month. During Ramzan, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk after the pre-dawn meal 'sehri' and break their fast at sunset with 'iftar'. The end of the month is marked by Eid. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday in a fresh attack on the newly notified Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), said she does not want detention camps in Bengal just like in Assam. "The CAA is related to NRC, that is why we are opposing it. We don't want detention camps like those in Assam," the Trinamool Congress chief was quoted by PTI as saying. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.(HT_PRINT) According to an HT report, the Assam government in 2009 notified detention centres to house people declared foreigners by tribunals till they are deported. These centres were created inside jails as a temporary measure till a permanent place was constructed or found to keep them. The state's largest detention centre, the Matia Transit Camp, became operational in January last year. It is built on a 28,800 sq. ft area in Goalpara, about 130km from state capital Dispur. ALSO READ: 'Indian Muslims need not worry': Centre allays fear on CAA Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Continuing her attack on CAA, Banerjee termed the law as a political gimmick ahead of the Lok Sabha election. As per the law, the Centre will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who came to India till December 31, 2014. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians. ALSO READ: CAA a trap, lacks legal clarity: Mamata Banerjee Mamata Banerjee criticised the exclusion of Muslims from the ambit of the CAA, asserting that it aims at creating division among the country's populace. "The CAA is aimed at dividing the people of the country," she added. "We are not landlords, but vigilant custodians. No one will be ousted from West Bengal. All refugees will find permanent settlement here," Banerjee pledged at a programme in Jalpaiguri. ALSO READ: TMC will oppose if CAA deprives people of their rights, says Mamata Banerjee in first reaction Banerjee also rebuked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging that it espouses a "distorted interpretation of Hinduism". "The BJP's conception of Hinduism deviates from the teachings of the Vedas and Swami Vivekananda," the Bengal chief minister said. (With PTI inputs) Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and other Supreme Court judges on Wednesday felicitated the daughter of a judges cook who received multiple offers from renowned international universities to pursue a masters degree in law (LL.M). The Supreme Court judges who gathered at the apex courts judges lounge before the days business began gave a standing ovation to 25-year-old Pragya and her parents. (PTI) The judges, who gathered at the apex courts judges lounge before the days business began, gave a standing ovation to 25-year-old Pragya, who is currently associated as a law researcher with the Supreme Courts in-house think-tank the Centre for Research and Planning (CPR), and her parents. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The CJI, who gave her three books on the Indian Constitution, signed by every judge of the highest court, and offered shawls to her parents, said that it should not happen in a country that a student, who is hardworking, does not get resources. It is not just the responsibility of the government but also the citizens to ensure that every child, who wants to do higher studies or excel in sports, can achieve their dreams, he told news agency PTI, which released the video capturing the moment in the judges lounge. Other judges too wished Pragya luck in her future endeavours, congratulating her for getting admission offers from several prestigious law schools, including Columbia Law School, Chicago Law School and Michigan Law School which has also offered her a scholarship. Moved by the CJI and other judges gesture, Pragya said justice Chandrachud inspired her. He encourages young lawyers, and his words are like gems. He is my inspiration, she said. New Delhi: The Congress suffered another huge blow ahead of the Lob Sabha polls after its national secretary Ajay Kapoor joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday. Ajay Kapoor joined the BJP on Wednesday in the presence of senior BJP leaders at the party headquarters (Twitter Photo) A senior Congress leader and three-time MLA from Kanpur, Kapoor joined the BJP on Wednesday in the presence of senior BJP leaders at the party headquarters. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Addressing a joint press conference with BJP leaders, Kapoor said that today is like a rebirth for him. I am overwhelmed by joining the family of the countrys Prime Minister Modi, he said. Kapoor said he worked very honestly during his over 35-year-long association with the Congress. But, today, I feel that every person should join Modi jis family for the progress of the country, he added. Kapoor said that he had sent his resignation to Indian National Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge. It is a request that I have been serving the Congress Party selflessly for 35 years. Now I am resigning from my post and party membership. You are requested to please accept my resignation, he wrote. Kapoor, a former Congress MLA from the Govindnagar assembly seat in Uttar Pradesh, described Prime Minister Modi as a yugpurush and promised to work for the BJP for the rest of his political life under the guidance of its leadership. Today, its the beginning of a new life for me. I dedicate my life to the BJP leadership. As a family member of Prime Minister Modi, I will honestly serve the party (BJP) and the society, he said, expressing gratitude to the BJP leadership. Welcoming him to the party fold, BJP national general secretary Vinod Tawde said that Kapoor, who served the Congress in various capacities, was its in-charge for Bihar for about six years. He said this one plus one becomes eleven! His coming to the BJP fold will benefit the party in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and various other states, Tawde added. Manohar Lal Khattar, who resigned as Haryana chief minister a day ago, paving the way for party colleague Nayab Singh Saini, was on Wednesday named by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as its candidate from the state's Karnal constituency for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Former Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar speaking in the assembly during voting on the confidence vote moved by chief minister Nayab Singh Saini in Chandigarh on Wednesday. (PTI Photo) Khattar, who will now contest his maiden Lok Sabha election, took to X (formerly Twitter) to thank prime minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief JP Nadda. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. I express my gratitude to the respected prime minister Shri @narendramodi ji and the honourable national president Shri @JPNadda ji for declaring me as the BJP candidate from Karnal Lok Sabha seat. Under Modi ji's leadership, we will work with full devotion and dedication towards achieving the goal of making India a developed country by 2047 by winning 400 seats, he wrote in Hindi (rough translation). Also, the politician, 70, thanked the people of Haryana for their love and blessings when he was their chief minister. I am fully confident that you will give me the same love and affection for Lok Sabha as you did when I was your MLA from Karnal, the BJP leader posted. That Khattar will be fielded in general elections was evident earlier in the day, when, shortly after Haryana's new government passed floor test, he declared his resignation from the Karnal assembly seat. The incumbent MP from here is the saffron party's Sanjay Bhatia. On Wednesday, the BJP released its second list, naming candidates for 72 seats, including Khattar from Karnal. Two other ex-CMs featured on the list: Karnataka's Basavaraj Bommai (Haveri) and Uttarakhand's Trivendra Singh Rawat (Haridwar). Khattar was the party's first chief minister in Haryana, where he headed back-to-back governments. In the 2019 general elections, the BJP bagged all 10 parliamentary seats in the state. The Delhi high court on Wednesday dismissed the Congresss plea for staying an Income Tax (IT) department notice for the recovery of over 105 crore outstanding tax for the year 2018-19. We find no ground to interfere with the order impugned, said a bench of justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav. The court said it found no grounds to interfere. (Getty Images/iStockphoto) On March 8, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) refused to stay the recovery notice, saying the proceedings were not initiated in undue haste and the notice was not without merit. The tribunal said the IT authorities had not made any error in denying the exemption claimed under the Income Tax Act. The tribunal said the party had not demonstrated its keenness to expeditiously settle the issue. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The Congress moved the high court seeking quashing of the March 8 order. It argued the authorities adopted coercive measures by recovering outstanding demand and creating undue hardship for the party ahead of the general elections. Senior advocate Vivek Tankha, who appeared for the Congress, submitted the IT department made it difficult for the party to contest elections. He argued the department, during the pendency of the partys plea before the ITAT, recovered 48% of the outstanding amount. Special counsel Zoheb Hussain, who represented the IT department, said the party had no prima facie case. He added a wrong impression was sought to be created that the proceedings began just before the elections. We have shown that this has been going on since 2021. This is a routine recovery, he said. He added no financial hardship was being caused as the Congresss cumulative assets amounted to nearly 1,400 crore. Hussain submitted the party approached the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) in August 2021 challenging the July 2021 order. He added the assessing officer in October 2021 offered to keep the recovery in abeyance subject to the party depositing 20% of the disputed demand. Hussain submitted that with interest the total demand against the party was 135 crore, out of which 65.9 crore was recovered. The high court on Tuesday reserved its verdict, observing the Congress was to blame for the February 13 demand notice. The court added the IT department in 2021 offered to keep the recovery proceedings in abeyance subject to the party depositing 20% of the disputed amount. It said the party did nothing to securitise the outstanding demand and instead chose to reject the offer. You dont seem to have made any attempt or effort before the tribunal... even to make an offer to try and settle Someone in the petitioners office went out asleep right from 2021. Did the petitioners take any stand in seeking to securitise? Youre a petitioner who chose to not accept their [IT department] offer way back in 2021.., the high court told Tankha. The court criticised the party for seeking repeated adjournments before the ITAT in its plea challenging the July 2021 order for over 105 crore outstanding tax. It said that the matter was badly handled. The court said there was no basic or fundamental infirmity with the ITATs March 8 order. Legendary late actor Dilip Kumar's ancestral home in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, a national heritage, is almost on the verge of collapse after being severely damaged in the recent rains, an official has said. A file photo of veteran actor Dilip Kumar.(ANI) The torrential rains fully exposed tall claims of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) Archive Department about the rehabilitation and renovation of the house. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Kumar was born in 1922 in the house, located in Mohallah Khudadad at the back side of historic Qissa Khwani Bazar in Peshawar city, and spent his initial 12 years here before leaving for India in 1932. The house was declared Pakistan's national heritage monument on July 13, 2014, by then-Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Kumar had visited his house once and sentimentally kissed the soil. Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar's ancestral home at Mohalla Khudadad in the famous Qissa Khwani Bazar in Peshawar, Pakistan.(PTI) Shakeel Waheedullah Khan, Secretary of Heritage Council KPK province, said the recent rains in Peshawar badly damaged the house of Kumar. Despite pledging so many grants by the previous KPK government, not a single penny has been spent on this national heritage to protect and preserve it, he said on the property that was built in 1880. The property being so old, its reservation is the responsibility of the government, he said. The local socio-political circles have expressed grave concern over the attitude of the archive department to prevent the national asset from collapsing. The claims of the Department of Archive remained limited to press statements as on the ground no steps were taken to prevent the national heritage from natural calamity, they say. Tourists visiting the house from across the world became disappointed after seeing the dilapidated condition of the historic asset. Muhammad Ali Mir, who was looking after the house before it was taken over by the Archive Department, said he was properly looking after it with great care. The condition of the house started deteriorating after it was taken over by the Archive Department and its rehab and renovation process remained restricted to news statements. Today the property has turned into a ghost house. "Kumar had great love and respect for the people of Peshawar and, unfortunately, our department could do nothing to protect his house from being collapsed," he said. The actor, who died on July 7, 2021, in Mumbai at the age of 98, had always held the city of Peshawar close to his heart and would reminisce about his childhood memories. He was awarded Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Pakistan's highest civilian honour, in 1997. Election Commission will disclose all details on electoral bonds in time, chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar was quoted by PTI as saying on Wednesday. The poll panel chief's statement comes a day after the State Bank of India submitted all details of electoral bonds to the EC on Tuesday. In compliance of Honble Supreme Court's directions to the SBI, contained in its order dated Feb 15 & March 11, 2024 (in the matter of WPC NO.880 of 2017), data on electoral bonds has been supplied by State Bank of India to Election Commission of India, today, March 12, 2024, the Election Commission had posted on Tuesday. The Supreme Court had asked the poll panel to publish details of electoral bonds on its website by 5 pm on March 15. The SBI has filed a compliance affidavit before the top court, mentioning the details of electoral bonds that were purchased and redeemed between April 12, 2019 and February 15 this year. The SBI had submitted electoral bond details to the ECI day after its plea seeking an extension in deadline was rejected by a five-judge bench. The SBI has to just open the sealed cover, collate the details and give the information to the EC, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud had said. In the last 26 days, what steps have you taken? Your application is silent on that," the bench had asked SBI. In its February 15 judgement, the apex court had set the deadline for SBI as March 6. The apex court had said that by March 13, the ECI shall publish the details of Electoral Bonds on its official website. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar,(PTI) Good evening! Here are the top stories in your evening news bulletin. Sensex tanks 906.07 points to settle at 72,761.89; Nifty tumbles 338 points to 21,997.70. SBI affidavit on electoral bonds: The State Bank of India on Wednesday filed a compliance affidavit in the electoral bonds case, day after it sent all details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission as directed by the Supreme Court. In the affidavit, the public lender has shared details of electoral bonds purchased and redeemed till February 15, 2024. According to the data provided by SBI, a total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased between April 1, 2019 to April 11 the same year. A total of 1,609 bonds were redeemed, the data showed. From April 12, 2019 to February 15, a total of 18,871 electoral bonds were purchased and 20,421 bonds were redeemed, the SBI data added. The electoral bonds data was handed over in a pen drive with two password protected PDF files. Passwords were given in a separate envelope. The SBI had submitted details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission, day after the Supreme Court rejected its plea seeking extension till June 30. In the last 26 days, what steps have you taken? Your application is silent on that, a five-judge top court bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud had asked the SBI. Read story. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Rameshwaram cafe blast: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has denied media reports that claimed that the probe agency has arrested a suspect in the Bengaluru Rameshwaram Cafe IED blast case. Earlier, some TV reports and news agencies, citing sources, claimed that the NIA, which is probing the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case, detained a man from Ballari district in Karnataka. The man is said to have "some resemblance" with the prime suspect, news agency PTI, citing the unnamed sources, reported. Another news agency ANI, which also cited NIA sources, reported that the suspect, identified as Shabbir, was taken into custody from Bellary district. He is still being questioned in the case. It is yet to be ascertained whether he is the same man caught on CCTV camera, it quoted the sources as saying. The development comes two days after Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara said sleuths investigating into the March 1 blast at the popular eatery have "in a way" identified the suspect, and efforts are on to nab him. He said the investigators are verifying the suspect's identity and are getting closer to him. Investigation into the blast, caused by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), at the quick-service eatery in Brookefield area in the information technology corridor in east Bengaluru that left 10 people injured, is being carried by the NIA, which is being assisted by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) of the Bengaluru Police. Read story. Mamata Banerjee disowns brother: Mamata Banerjee said she and her family have cut all ties with Babun Banerjee, her brother, who revolted against the party's candidate Prasun Banerjee from Howrah Lok Sabha seat and said if the need arises, then he would contest as an Independent from the seat. Babun Banerjee is Mamata Banerjee's younger brother who on Wednesday expressed unhappiness over the party again giving a ticket to Prasun Banerjee from Howrah. "I am not happy with the selection of the candidate from Howrah Lok Sabha seat. Prasun Banerjee is not the right choice. There were many capable candidates who were overlooked," he said in New Delhi, alluding to the insult Prasun Banerjee hurled on him once. "I know Didi (Mamata Banerjee) would not agree with me. But if needed, I will contest as independent from Howrah Lok Sabha seat," Babun Banerjee said. "As long Mamata di is there, I would never quit the party and neither would I join any other political party. Yes as I am connected to sports, I know many BJP leaders, who too are connected with sports," Mamata's brother said. Mamata Banerjee reacted to her brother's statement and said she would not indulge in any nepotism. "Some people become greedy. I don't consider him as a family member. We will sever all ties with him. Please don't use my name with him. Don't identify him as my brother. We will stick to the candidate whom the party selected," Mamata Banerjee said. Read story. Bloodbath on D-street: Sensex fell over 700 points and reached below the 73,000-level while Nifty dropped over 1% today (March 13). It was the worst single-day fall for smallcap index since December 2022 which fell 5% while midcaps lost 3%. Microcaps and SME stock indices dropped around 5% each. With this, market capitalisation of all BSE-listed stocks reduced by 12 lakh crore and is currently at 374 lakh crore. The crash defies global trade setup as the S&P500 had hit a record high overnight and FIIs have also bought Indian stocks and invested $3 billion so far in the month. Sebi stress test could be a major reason for the crash as Sebi chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch put out a froth warning on smallcaps and midcaps. After the market regulator asked mutual funds last month to put in place a system to protect interest of smallcap and midcap investors, Madhabi Puri Buch said, There are pockets of froth in the market. Some people call it a bubble, some may call it froth. It may not be appropriate to allow that froth to keep building. Sebi chief also warned that valuation parameters are off the charts and not backed by fundamentals leading to "irrational exuberance". Read story. Congress's Nari Nyay Guarantee': In a bid to woo women voters, the Congress party on Wednesday announced its ambitious Nari Nyay Guarantee under which it has promised financial assistance of 1 lakh to women from poor families every year. Under the Nari Nyay Guarantee, Congress has outlined five key announcements Mahalaxmi, Aadhi Aabadi Poora Haq, Shakti Ka Sammaan, Adhikar Maitri, and Savitribai Phule Hostel. Aadhi Aabadi Poora Haq - under this women will have rights over half of the new recruitments at the central government level, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said in a video message. Third, Shakti Ka Sammaan - under this the central government's contribution to the monthly income of Anganwadi, ASHA and midday meal workers will be doubled, he added. To empower women with knowledge and awareness of their rights, Congress plans to appoint a paralegal professional in every panchayat, tasked with educating and assisting women in navigating legal frameworks effectively, Kharge said. Read story. Belagavi: Violence broke out in Byadagi town of Haveri district when a group of farmers protested a drastic drop in chilli prices. The farmers set 12 vehicles on fire, including five government-owned ones. (HT) The farmers under the banner of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha set 12 vehicles on fire on Monday and Tuesday, including five government-owned ones. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. They also vandalised the office of Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), said police. Apart from stoning, vehicles were set on fire. These included a police van, a firefighter vehicle, a car of APMC president and a jeep belonging to the government department, among others. The protesters also ransacked the APMC office. The protesters, armed with sticks, forced the few police personnel deputed there to flee. Then, we had to press additional force that resorted to light caning. The situation was brought under control, said inspector general of police (IGP) Tyagraj. The farmers were agitated after the chilli prices plummeted from 20,000 to 8,000 per quantile in a single day. Raghunandan Murthy, the deputy commissioner of Haveri, attributed this free fall to an unprecedented influx of Byadagi chillies, not only from within Karnataka but also from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. Farmers from Andhra Pradesh, reacting to lower prices in their state, flooded our markets with Byadagi chillies, leading to a sharp decline in rates, explained Murthy. Siddagouda Modagi, the president of the North Karnataka Sugarcane Growers Association that is affiliated with state farmers associations, said, farmers from southern states grow the internationally known Byadagi chilli and export the produce through APMCs. Along with other crops, farmers in north Karnataka grow chilli as it is a commercial crop yielding results in a short time with less risk. The drastic fall in rates from 20,000 to 8,000 per quantile in just one day stunned the farmers, he added. Prakash Naik, representing the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangh, criticised the failure of the Haveri agriculture department to manage the influx of chillies, which overwhelmed the market. Lack of coordination by the department resulted in an influx of 5 lakh (500,000) quantiles of Byadagi chillies leading to the crisis, he added. The APMC officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the rapid decline in auction prices, attributing it to the overwhelming supply of chillies and pressure from bidders demanding lower rates. Meanwhile, chief minister Siddaramaiah directed the agriculture department to investigate the root causes of the price collapse. He asked for a report to be submitted on the same, based on which action will be taken, said the official. Nagaland is readying to hold elections for its urban local bodies (ULB) after a gap of 20 years following the receipt of Governor La Ganesans assent to the new Nagaland Municipal Bill 2023, recently. Elections to the states civic bodies were last held in 2004. A public interest litigation (PIL) is ongoing in the Supreme Court filed by the People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) against the Nagaland government's failure to conduct the civic polls with 33% quota for women. The apex court has directed the state to complete the ULB election process by April 30 this year. We are racing to finish up the process. We have already notified the special summary revision of electoral rolls for all the 39 ULB which will be completed on April 12, after which, the election will be notified, state election commissioner (SEC) T John Longkumer said. The SEC will carry on the election process as per the new municipal law of 2023. The state has, on multiple occasions, been notified about holding ULB elections, but quotas for women and taxation of land and property were obstacles that prevented the polls from taking place. Leading Naga tribal bodies and civil society organisations have long opposed the ULB polls under the Nagaland Municipal Act of 2001 on the contention that certain clauses were in contravention of Article 371A of the Constitution of India. Also read: Nagalands civic poll conundrum: Reservation and property tax The article provides that no act of Parliament in respect of religious or social practices of the Nagas, Naga customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal justice involving decisions according to Naga customary law, and ownership and transfer of land and its resources, shall apply to the state of Nagaland unless the state assembly by a resolution so decides. This casts a special responsibility on the states legislators to make policies and decisions that do not offend the rights of the people. Accordingly, tribal bodies and civil society organisations contended that the newly passed act contained clauses that empowered municipalities to levy taxes on land and buildings. The crux of the argument is that Article 371A covers the entire state without classification on rural or urban areas, therefore, if the Naga people are to pay tax to the government irrespective of urban or rural areas, it implies that the land belongs to the government, which defeats the constitutional provision that ensures absolute ownership of the people over their land. How the womens reservation is connected to it Despite the constitutional requirement to ensure that a minimum of one-third of the total number of seats to be filled by direct elections in every municipality shall be reserved for women; and seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a municipality, the 2004 ULB elections did not have any reserved seats, as the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2001 did not contain the necessary clause. Subsequently in 2005, a woman intending candidate approached the Gauhati high court (HC) against the state government for not notifying seats reserved for women. The following year, the state assembly incorporated a new section in the 2001 act providing 33% reservation of seats for women in the ULBs and reservation of office of the chairpersons in the ULBs. However, ULB elections have not taken place since then due to stiff opposition from various quarters towards the provision of reservation of seats on claims that it was a matter concerning the customary practices of the Nagas. In 2011, representatives of a womens group filed a writ petition against the state governments decision to withhold civic body elections in the Kohima bench of the Gauhati HC. The court directed the state government to hold elections implementing 33% reservation of seats for women by January 2012. However, opposition from tribal and civil society organisations meant that the ULB elections, though notified, were once again postponed. Resistance to reservation for women In the same year (2012), the state assembly passed a resolution under Article 371A to exempt Nagaland from the application of Article 243T. However, the womens panel in 2014 filed a special leave petition against the state assembly resolution in the Supreme Court two years later, the assembly revoked the resolution and brought womens reservation back. It also removed provisions relating to property tax (tax on land and building) from the state municipal act all references and operative provisions relating to tax on land and buildings in the act were deemed to be omitted. The state government then notified the ULB polls with 33% reservation for women to be held in early 2017, and with assurance from the then chief minister TR Zeliang to conduct the polls as scheduled amid protests from civil and tribal organisations, the womens panel withdrew their case. However, the governments decision to go ahead with the polls despite opposition from organisations erupted in violent protests, loss of lives and successive bandhs, forcing the government to call off the elections. Zeliang had to step down as CM. The matter was raised again last year after the state election commission notified the ULB poll schedule and tribal bodies demanded that the municipal law be rewritten. They objected to the governments usage of ambiguous words omission/omitted. A possible resolution While not entirely opposing the application of a 33% quota for women in ULB elections, the organisations demanded that the state government guarantee that the reservation would not infringe on Article 371A. They also asked for the duration of reservation to be not more than two tenures, and opposed reservation to the office of the chairperson for women. The Nagaland government under chief minister Neiphiu Rio introduced a fresh Nagaland Municipal Bill 2023 in September last year. The new municipal bill, which was passed in November includes one-third reservation of seats in ULBs for women and excludes provisions relating to taxes on land and buildings. Rio termed the new law a new beginning. It is a time for women to rise and prove their capabilities and be a part of urban governance. The wait has been long but hopefully, we will see better, cleaner and well-developed towns and municipalities with the inclusion of women councillors, says Dr Rosemary Dzuvichu, a professor at Nagaland University and a staunch womens rights activist. We welcome the ULB elections, says Thejao Sekhose, the president of the Association of Kohima Municipal Wards Panchayats (AKMWP), which was at the forefront of opposing the 2001 municipal act. New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters has raised doubts over Canada's claim of an alleged "potential" Indian link in the killing of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. A mural features the image of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, (REUTERS) New Zealand, a member of the Five-Eyes intelligence alliance alongside the US, Canada, UK, and Australia, has reportedly received intelligence from Canada regarding the Nijjar case. However, Peters, during an interview with The Indian Express, expressed scepticism about the evidence provided by Canada. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also Read: CCTV footage of pro-Khalistan figure Hardeep Nijjars killing made public in Canada When asked about whether New Zealand had conveyed its position to India, Peters, who is on an official visit to India, said he was not involved in the handling of the matter, which the previous government primarily managed. Well, I wasnt here, it was handled by the previous government. But look, sometimes when youre hearing Five-Eyes information, youre hearing it and saying nothing. It is coming past you. You dont know the value or the quality of it, but youre pleased to have it. You dont know whether there is going to be substantial material value or nothing. But the very, very critical information that matters This was mainly handled by the previous government, Peters was quoted as saying. As a trained lawyer, I look okay, so wheres the case? Wheres the evidence? Wheres the finding right here, right now? Well, there isnt one, he added. This marks the first instance of a Five-Eyes partner openly questioning Canada's claims regarding the Nijjar case. Also Read: Is airing of Nijjars killing footage aimed to polarise Punjab voter? Nijjar, a designated terrorist in India, was shot and killed as he came out of a Gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia, on the evening of June 18, 2023. His death sparked a massive diplomatic row between India and Canada. In September last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made unsubstantiated allegations against the Indian involvement in Nijjar's killing on Canadian soil, which India rejected as "absurd and motivated." According to the Ministry of External Affairs, Canada has not been able to present any evidence to back its claims over the killing. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has yet to name suspects or make arrests in connection with Nijjar's killing. New Delhi: The Committee on Digital Competition Law, constituted by the Union ministry of corporate affairs, has proposed a legislation to curb anti-competitive business practices used by tech giants such as Amazon, Google and Facebook. After the panel submitted its comprehensive report and a draft legislation on Tuesday night, the ministry sought public comments on the same until April 15. The panel recommendations come amidst greater scrutiny of business practices of tech giants in India and abroad. (Representational image) In the draft bill, the committee proposed that for certain core digital services such as search engines, web browsers and social networking sites, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) should designate companies as Systematically Significant Digital Enterprise (SSDE) depending on either quantitative or qualitative factors such as turnover, size, user base, and market power. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The designated SSDEs will be prohibited from engaging in practices such as self-preferencing, anti-steering, and restricting third party applications, among others, for the identified services and if they do, they can attract a penalty of up to 10% of their global turnover. The panel recommendations come amidst greater scrutiny of business practices of tech giants in India and abroad. Few days ago, Google and a clutch of Indian app developers had a public spat over what the latter called were anticompetitive practices used by Google on its Google Play Store. The DCL panel was born out of a recommendation by the Parliamentary Committee on Finance led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Jayant Sinha that recommended that competitive behaviour of internet based/digital companies needs to be assessed before the markets are monopolised by a handful of players. This is called ex-ante regulation where the law defines what conduct is illegal versus the regulator adjudicating whether certain acts are illegal after they have been committed (ex-post regulation). Following the recommendations of the parliamentary panel, the ministry of corporate affairs constituted the CDL committee in February last year, headed by corporate affairs secretary Dr Manoj Govil, which was tasked with examining the need for an ex-ante regulatory mechanism for digital markets through a separate legislation, and to submit a draft Digital Competition Bill within three months. At least three people aware of the committee proceedings told HT that many members felt that a separate competition law is not required for digital economy but were constrained by the remit of the committees constitution that mandated a bill. HT has learnt that within the first few months of the committees constitution, all members decided that a separate ex-ante regulatory regime was indeed required. In the report, the CDL panel mentioned the Digital India Act, a legislation which is purported to be the successor to the Information Technology Act, 2000. The Committee observed that since the draft of the proposed legislation is currently unavailable, the exact contours of its applicability cannot be delineated yet, the report said. In his two presentations on the principles of the DIA in March and May 2023, minister of state for electronics and information technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar had said that an open internet should have fair trade practices that prevent concentration of market power and gatekeeping, amongst other things, but gave no details of how that would be done through the DIA. Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy assisted the MCA in drafting the final version of the bill. To designate a company as an SSDE, the bill proposes a self-reporting regime wherein an entity engaged in core digital services will be deemed as an SSDE if it has a turnover in India of at least 4,000 crore, or a global turnover of at least US$30 billion, or gross merchandise value in India of at least 16,000 crore, or a global market capitalisation or fair market value of US$75 billion; and if its core digital service had at least 10 million end users or at least 10,000 business users in India in each of the preceding three financial years. If the entity fails to report this to the CCI, it can attract a penalty of up to 1% of its global turnover. The Union government, in consultation with the CCI, must reassess these thresholds every three years from the date of the commencement of the act, the bill proposes. Even if these quantitative thresholds are not met, the CCI can designate an enterprise as an SSDE if it thinks that the company has a significant presence with respect to a CDS along multiple factors which include the companys size and resources, volume and commerce, number of end or business users, economic power, monopoly position, network effects and data driven advantages, market structure and size of the market, etc. The bill proposes that the CCI can impose different set of regulations for different CDS, and different obligations for different SSDEs depending on the nature of the market, number of users in India, and any other factors that the CCI deems fit. It can also specify different regulations to the group entities of the SSDEs that offer CDS, designated as Associate Digital Enterprises. The SSDEs and ADEs are forbidden from engaging in any behaviour (such as dividing up their business, etc.) that will allow them to escape the regulations. Amongst other obligations, they are forbidden from using any non-public data of their business users (Amazon was accused of this in the US), or cross use personal data of end users collected from different CDS (WhatsApp was accused of doing this through its 2016 and 2021 privacy policies). SSDEs must also allow users to access third-party applications, and change default settings. The bill empowers the Centre to exempt enterprises from any provisions or rules or regulations for three reasons: state security or public interest; Indias obligations under bilateral or global treaties; or if the enterprise performs a sovereign function on behalf of the central or state government. The Jayant Sinha-led committee had listed nine anti-competitive practices in digital markets but the MCA committee opined that only nine of them were relevant to the report on digital competition. [A]nti-competitive mergers and acquisitions do not need to be dealt with extensively in this Report since the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2023 sufficiently addressed the same by introducing a deal value threshold for notification of transactions to the CCI, the report said. NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday observed there would be a grave danger to federal structure if states are prohibited from imposing tax on minerals and that the right to impose a tax on mineral rights has been given to states subject to limitations to be imposed by the Centre. The Supreme Court is hearing a batch of more than 80 appeals dealing with the question whether royalty charged on mining is a tax (Burhaan Kinu/HT FILE PHOTO) A limitation on states powers under Entries 23 (regulation and development of minerals) and 50 (tax on mineral rights) of State List does not transfer the entire taxing power to the Union government. Look at the grave danger to the federal structure by this argument. If this limitation is taken as prohibition, states can be prohibited by the Union. Also, Parliament can say I have limited the states so my power is unlimited, a nine-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud said on Wednesday. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The bench, also comprising justices Hrishikesh Roy, AS Oka, BV Nagarathna, JB Pardiwala, Manoj Misra, Ujjal Bhuyan, Satish Chandra Sharma and Augustine George Masih, will continue the hearing on Thursday. The top court is hearing a batch of more than 80 appeals dealing with the question whether royalty charged on mining is a tax and whether states have legislative competence to levy taxes on minerals and mineral-bearing lands in addition to the royalty imposed by the Centre. The matter was referred to a nine-judge bench in March 2011 following conflicting verdicts by the courts. In 1989, a seven-judge bench of the top court held that royalty was a tax but a five-judge bench in 2004 ruled that there was a typographical error in the 1989 verdict and that royalty was not a tax. On Wednesday, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for a group of mining companies and certain companies of the Tata Group, argued that the royalty payable by mining leaseholders was a tax and tax on minerals falls exclusively with the Centre under Entry 54 (regulation of mines and mineral development) and additionally Entry 97 (residuary powers) of the Union List. For the sake of argument, Singhvi added, even if it was assumed that the states had the power to tax mineral rights under Entry 50, the same can only apply to the grant of mining lease and not extraction of minerals. Singhvi said Parliament enacted the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act 1957 by virtue of this power. This law provides for the charge of royalty which is clearly a tax. This royalty is paid to states and not Centre and the royalty rate is fixed by Centre without consulting the mining leaseholders and can be coercively recovered. The bench told Singhvi, Parliament cannot prohibit states from levying tax. The entire field of mineral rights is given to states subject to limitations to be imposed by Centre. It is not that tax on minerals is given to Parliament and tax on mineral rights is given to state subject to limitations. Further, the court observed that though the argument that Centre can tax on minerals through Entry 97 is a weighty point, such residuary powers cannot be brought in to levy tax. You are abolishing the power of state to tax. That cannot be the scheme of Constitution....Money (from royalty) going back to state cannot be the logic to deny state the right to tax, the bench reasoned. In response, Singhvi told the court that Entry 50 of State List clearly recognises that the power to tax is subject to a superior authority which is Centre. This 9-judge bench must lay down that mineral rights cannot be equated with minerals. It will be a subterfuge where a taxable event can be changed by a measure completely, Singhvi submitted. He said that Parliaments competence under Entry 54 is not limited only to legislate on regulation of mines and mineral development but also extends to taxing mineral rights. It is settled that taxing entries in the State List cannot tax the subject matter of a general entry which occurs in the Union List. Once the general subject lies within the exclusive domain of the Parliament, states cannot exercise taxing powers with respect to the same, Singhvi said. Parliament has plenary powers under Article 248(2) read with Entry 97 of List I, to levy tax on any subject not mentioned in any of the lists. Article 248 states, Parliament has exclusive power to make any law with respect to any matter not enumerated in Concurrent or State Lists. Such power shall include the power of making any law imposing a tax not mentioned in either of the two lists. It is therefore clear, that at the very least, the Parliament would have the exclusive competence to levy a tax on minerals as the same is not mentioned in any of the lists, he said. He added that the expression tax on mineral rights contemplates levy of taxes only on minerals that are still embedded in the earth i.e., on the right of extraction and implies a tax on the grant of mineral concession/lease. A host of senior advocates including Arvind Datar, AK Ganguly and Darius Khambata among others questioned the states power to tax on minerals. On Tuesday, the Centre argued that the exploration, extraction and management of minerals have to be guided by national goals, integrated into the overall strategy of the countrys economic development, besides being in public interest. It argued that the limitation on states to tax minerals was envisaged in the Constitution to promote domestic industry and reduce import dependency, to make domestic industry resilient and self-sustainable. Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini-led BJP government on Wednesday won the floor test in the assembly by a voice vote. The floor test was carried out after a two-hour long discussion in the Haryana assembly. The special Haryana assembly session had started on a stormy note after the opposition Congress questioned the summoning of House. Leader of opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda sought the Speaker to adjourn the House till all members arrive. However, the Speaker refused to accept the Congress's demand. Haryana floor test LIVE coverage Haryana Chief minister Naib Singh Saini speaks during a special session to seek a trust vote at Haryana Assembly in Chandigarh on Wednesday.(Keshav Singh/ Hindustan Times) Chief minister Nayab Singh Saini, who took oath along with his five ministers on Tuesday, moved the motion seeking trust vote on the floor of the House. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. After Saini moved motion of trust vote, the four Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) MLAs who were present in the House left. The Dushyant Chautala-led JJP had issued a whip, asking its 10 legislators to remain absent from the House during voting on the confidence motion. "I come from a humble family background, no one is in politics in my family. I am just a party worker of the BJP and today I have been given such a big opportunity. I must say that this can be only possible in a party like the BJP," Saini said. During the debate, Hooda hit out at the BJP over the move to replace Manohar Lal Khattar with Saini. BJP has replaced ML Khattar and appointed Nayab Singh Saini as CM purely as stop gap arrangement. Saini was a nightwatchman. He asked CM to recommend dissolution of tje House and seek fresh mandate. People will decide who has the numbers, he said in the assembly. "The whip JJP issued asking its MLAs to abstain from voting was a testament to BJP-JJP still supporting each other. BJP was fooling people but people will give a befitting reply in polls. You keep changing CM, we shall change this governemnt, Hooda said. Congress leader Raghuvir Singh Kadian too attacked the BJP, saying,"Plight of farmers is before everyone, when sarpanches came to seek their right, they were lathicharged, ASHA workers have to take streets for their demands." In the 90-member state assembly, the BJP has 41 MLAs and it also enjoys the support of six of the seven independents as well as of lone Haryana Lokhit Party MLA Gopal Kanda. Khattar announces resignation from Assembly Former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced that he is resigning as an MLA from Karnal constituency. It is likely that the BJP will field him in the Lok Sabha election. I announce today that I am resigning from the post of MLA from Karnal Assembly seat. Now from today, our CM Nayab Saini will take over the responsibility of Karnal Assembly, the two-time former chief minister said. The Congress appears to have fallen into deep slumber and stood reawakened only in January 2023 when a notice of demand came to be raised, the Delhi high court remarked on Wednesday as it refused to stay a notice issued by the Income Tax (I-T) department to the party for recovery of over 105 crore outstanding tax for assessment year 2018-19. Delhi high court (Representative Photo) Taking note of the change in circumstances, including the I-T department already having recovered 65.94 crore from the Congress following encashment of bank drafts, the court granted liberty to the party to approach the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) with a fresh stay application. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. A bench led by justice Yashwant Varma said the problems that beset the Congress were, to a large extent, of its own making and added that the ITAT was justified in rejecting the allegation of the action being either motivated or actuated by mala fides. The court noted that the party despite issuance of the first demand notice in July 2021 and rejection of its application for stay in October that year, took no steps to either securitise the outstanding amount or seek appropriate interim protection. Read Here: Income Tax tribunal dismisses Congress's plea to stop action against bank accounts This would clearly appear to suggest that the petitioner has been far from vigilant and clearly lax in pursuing the legal remedies which were otherwise available, the bench, also comprising justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav, said. As we read the impugned order, what ultimately appears to have weighed upon the ITAT is of the petitioner having firstly been remiss in taking peremptory steps in respect of a demand which had remained outstanding right from 2021. It failed to abide by the conditions which had been imposed by the AO (assessing officer) while considering its application under Section 220(6) of the [I-T] Act, the bench said. The petitioner appears to have fallen into deep slumber and stood reawakened only in January 2023 when a notice of demand came to be raised. The partys appeal pertained to the ITAT order dated March 8 that refused to stay the February 13 notice of the I-T department on the recovery of demand, saying the proceedings were not done in an undue haste and the notice was not without merit. It would, therefore, be incorrect to accept the submission that the ITAT had failed to apply its judicial mind for the purposes of a prima facie evaluation of the questions which stood posited, the bench noted. Senior advocate Vivek Tankha, appearing for the Congress, had submitted that ITAT had erred in upholding the view that there was a failure on the partys part to comply with the conditions imposed under Section 13A (income tax exemptions for political parties) of the Income Tax Act. The ITAT also failed to consider the issue of financial hardship which was raised by the party, the counsel had argued, urging the court to grant it some protection otherwise the party would collapse. Former Haryana home minister Anil Vij, who did not attend the swearing-in ceremony of new chief minister Nayab Singh Saini and other ministers at the Raj Bhavan on Tuesday, said he will take part in the floor test to be held on Wednesday. Former Haryana home minister Anil Vij.(ANI) I am a 'bhakt' of the BJP. Circumstances keep on changing, but I have worked for the party in every situation. I will work today as well and with more power. Situations may change but I will continue to work for the party, Anil Vij told reporters in Ambala, before leaving for Chandigarh. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. On Tuesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party replaced Manohar Lal Khattar with OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini as Haryanas chief minister in a swift switch in the state, just weeks ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Follow Live Updates on Haryana floor test Nayab Singh Saini, who is the partys state unit president, was sworn in as chief minister along with five ministers at a Raj Bhawan ceremony hours after the dramatic resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar and his cabinet. Anil Vij, who was often at loggerheads with the chief minister, was upset over being ignored by the party. Im a devotee of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Circumstances keep on changing, but Ive worked for the party in every situation. I will work today as well and with more power, Anil Vij's statement paved the way for a possible round of talks that failed on Tuesday after he left the legislative party meeting halfway as soon as Nayab Saini, the Kurukshetra MP, was chosen as the next chief minister. Upset Anil Vij, a six-time MLA from Ambala Cantonment, skipped the oath- taking ceremony and chose to stay in his constituency, even as his name was on the list of council of ministers. Manohar Lal Khattar had said renewed efforts would be made to reach out to Anil Vij. ML Khattars second term as chief minister was ending in October, when the next assembly elections are due. Only on Monday, he shared the dais in Gurugram with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the launch of several road projects. Modi spoke warmly there about his old association with ML Khattar, recalling that the two had travelled through the state on a motorcycle. Khattar on Tuesday said the party leadership has told him that he will be given another responsibility. Maybe it is about the Lok Sabha polls, he said amid speculation that he may be fielded as the BJP's Lok Sabha candidate from Karnal. He also claimed he has come to know that Dushyant Chautala's JJP has decided to contest the coming polls on its own. The JJP, which had three ministers including deputy chief minister Dushyant Chautala in the 14-member Khattar cabinet, held its own meeting Tuesday in Delhi. Five of the JJPs MLAs in Haryana are said to have skipped the meeting and four were seen at the swearing-in, triggering speculation over a possible rift in that party. (With inputs from agencies) The day is not far when India will become a global power in the manufacture of products for the semiconductor sector, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday as he laid the foundation stone for three major semiconductor projects and blamed previous governments for indulging in corruption worth thousands of crores and not investing in modern technology. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the foundation stone-laying ceremony of three semiconductor facilities, via video conferencing, in New Delhi on Wednesday. (ANI) The PM was addressing via video conferencing a gathering at Indias Techade: Chips for Viksit Bharat in Dholera, where he laid the foundation stone for three semiconductor projects two in Gujarat and one in Assam valued at approximately 1.25 lakh crore. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. India has left behind old thoughts and old approach and has moved much ahead. India is taking speedy decisions and making policies. We have lost decades in semiconductor manufacturing. But we should not lose a single moment now, he said in his 25-minute address. Acknowledging the critical role of electronic chips in the tech landscape of the 21st-century, Modi said that Made in India and Designed in India chips will play a major role in taking India towards self-reliance and modernisation. Read Here: PM Modi gives vacation homework to babus, fires up ministers for 2024 elections In the 60s, India had dreamed of semiconductor manufacturing and thought in this direction. But the governments then could not take advantage of the opportunities that were before us. The biggest reason for this was lack of will, lack of efforts to convert thoughts into action and the lack to take bold decisions for the country. Due to this, for many years, Indias dream of making semiconductors remained a dream, he added. The developments are in line with the governments recent push to make the country a hub for manufacturing and assembling semiconductors, a key ingredient in a wide swathe of technology sectors but one whose supply was disrupted first by the pandemic and then geopolitical tensions between the US and China. Modis events came weeks after the Cabinet approved three proposals to set up semiconductor units in India; these facilities, together, will create high performance compute chips to be used in electric vehicles, high power compute, telecom, defence, automobiles, consumer electronics, power electronics and display, in addition to helping in assembly, testing, marking, and packaging of semiconductors. Modi said that those in power earlier were complacent and he criticised previous governments for considering semiconductor technology a requirement for the future and neglecting investments, citing the misconception that India, being a poor country, couldnt manage high-tech sectors. Read Here: PM Narendra Modi meets ministers on 100-day plan after Lok Sabha polls They could not balance the countrys priorities. They thought that India is a poor country and how will it manage high tech areas like semiconductors. In the guise of the countrys poverty, they ignored investments in such modern technology. They could do scams worth thousands of crores of rupees but could not invest similar amount in semiconductor sector. With such thoughts, no country can progress, he said. He emphasised that such thinking hinders a countrys progress and contrasted it with his governments forward-looking approach, stressing the importance of advancing in the semiconductor sector to compete with developed nations while simultaneously addressing other major needs of the country, such as providing pucca housing for the poor, investing in research, executing large-scale sanitation drives, and developing modern infrastructure. On one hand we are running the worlds largest sanitation drive and on the other hand, we are racing ahead in semiconductor manufacturing. We are eradicating poverty rapidly and on the other hand we are building modern infrastructure. We are making India Aatmanirbhar [self-reliant]. In 2024, we have laid foundation stones and inaugurated schemes worth over 12 lakh crore, he said. The semiconductor fabrication facility at the Dholera, about 120km from Ahmedabad, will be set up by Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) for semiconductor fabrication in India. With a total investment of over 91,000 crore, this will be the first commercial semiconductor fab in the country. The facility, developed in collaboration with Taiwans Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC), will have a capacity to manufacture up to 50,000 wafers per month. Read Here: Modi launches PM-SURAJ portal; to benefit marginalised sector The Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility in Morigaon, Assam will also be set up by TEPL under the Modified Scheme for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP), and with total investment of about 27,000 crore. Another OSAT facility in Sanand, will be set up by CG Power and Industrial Solutions Limited under the ATMP with total investment of about 7,500 crore. These initiatives are expected to generate substantial employment opportunities. In the first, second, and third industrial revolutions, India lagged behind due to various reasons, but in the fourth industrial revolution, India is moving forward with great self-confidence, determined not to lose a single moment, Modi said. With the semiconductor mission initiated two years ago, today marks the unveiling of three projects. India commits, India delivers and hence democracy delivers. He further stated that the Covid-19 pandemic emphasised the need for a reliable and resilient supply chain, and India was prepared to play a significant role in this regard. The country has already shown its prowess in space, nuclear technology, and digital power. India is now stepping into semiconductor commercial production, poised to become a global player in this field. The decisions and policies made today will strategically strengthen the country for the future, he said. Gujarat Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi welcomed the Centres initiatives for the semiconductor sector, but criticised the Prime Minister for allegedly appropriating credit. The priority for the country post-Independence was different. Without producing engineers how do you expect to make semiconductor chips? One must remember that it was Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who built world class institutions including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), he said. The Israel embassy in India on Wednesday joined the viral trend 'What's wrong with India', with the diplomats 'spilling chai' on the trend in a video that ends with an unexpected twist. In a post on social media platform X, the Israel embassy wrote, WHAT'S WRONG WITH INDIA? Listen to our diplomats spill the chai on #WhatsWrongWithIndia. Brace yourself for the unexpected twist at the end In a post on social media platform X, the Israel embassy wrote, WHAT'S WRONG WITH INDIA? Listen to our diplomats spill the chai... "(X/Israel in India) The 57-second-long video begins with a person asking the Israeli ambassador, "Ambassador, what's wrong with India?" To this, he responds saying, You soft-landed on the Moon. We crashed. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The same question is then posed to other diplomats, who respond with "Too many beautiful places to visit", "Too many desserts, I love jalebi", "Too many good songs to listen to", Many delicious food items and so many amazing Bollywood movies, I don't know how to finish them all as answers to the question. In the end, there's a twist. When asked the same question the last diplomat responds, "Rakhi Sawant!" He then looks at two photographs of the model actor pinned on his desk and says, "Why did you choose Adil? I am right here". Reacting to the video a user wrote, Hahaha, our country India's best friend Israel has also supported our stand on how X app's algorithm is biased towards India. Meanwhile, another commented, This gesture from Israel taking stand with India against the collective racism directed towards India on X is heartwarming. Damn .. Whose cutting onions near me? The emergence of the #WhatsWrongWithIndia trend on X stemmed from a string of stereotypical tweets portraying India negatively following the gang-rape of a Spanish tourist in Jharkhand. In response, Indian X users contributed by highlighting positive aspects of India, alongside instances of misconduct from other countries, using the same hashtag. The trend gained significant momentum when the government participated in it on Tuesday and posted about the significant accomplishments of the nation. A Jain delegation met German ambassador Philipp Ackermann on Tuesday and apprised him of the heartbreaking situation of Baby Ariha who has been in German foster care since 2021. The delegation requested Ackerman to work towards handing over the child's custody to the Indian government. Jain delegation meets German Ambassador Philipp Ackermann.(X/ Dr Philipp Ackermann) The delegation highlighted the trouble and instability faced by Ariha due to the frequent change of foster care mothers over a period of two and a half years. "Ariha's situation is heartbreaking. Ariha's foster carer in Germany is going to be changed in May 2024 for the third time in just two and a half years, causing significant instability in her life. Every time Ariha is taught to call the foster carer as 'mother' and in few months Ariha is shifted to the new foster carer and again calling new person as 'mother'," the Jain delegation said in a press release. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. READ | Who is Ariha Shah, Indian baby taken from her parents by German foster care? They said that the consistent rotation of foster mothers for Ariha is not only deeply psychologically impactful for her but also highlights the inadequacies of the German child services in terms of resource allocation and their deficiency in providing nurturing care and affection for young children. "Ariha is a blameless child caught in an agonizing situation We implore the German government to prioritize her well-being. A stable and culturally sensitive environment is paramount for her development. A Jain foster family in India can offer the love, support, and stability she craves while nurturing her connection to her Indian and Jain heritage - all while awaiting the resolution of her German custody case," the spokesperson of the Jain delegation said. Although ambassador Ackermann acknowledged their concerns, he emphasised the necessity for additional "trust building" and collaboration with German child services. After the meeting concluded, Ackermann took to X and posted details about the meeting. "Real pleasure to meet with senior representatives of the Indian Jain community today. Discussed issues of common concern. Encouraged by the goodwill and dedication amongst the community," the German envoy posted on X. In September 2021, Ariha Shah, the child, was accidentally injured by her grandmother, leading to the German authorities removing the baby from her care. Ariha is presently in the custody of German foster services. Upon the family's request for intervention, the Indian government has continuously discussed the matter with German authorities. (With inputs from ANI) Jharkhand Congress MLA Amba Prasad on Wednesday night reacted to the searches by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) at premises linked to her. Congress leader Amba Prasad in Ranchi.(ANI) Prasad claimed that the ED searches were a result of her refusal to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), reported PTI. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. I was offered an MP ticket from the BJP for Hazaribagh, which I declined. Some people from the BJP side pressurised me to contest from the side of BJP MP Chatra. We are from the Congress party, and we have consistently won the Barkagaon seat, Amba told PTI. She added: We are very strong in that area of Hazaribagh. I saw it from the party's and media's perspective that I am a winning candidate. So, this is a consequence of my refusal, and today I have been subjected to torture throughout the day, which is unacceptable. The ED conducted searches at multiple locations linked to Congress MLA Amba Prasad including her official residence in Ranchi as part of its money laundering investigation. The federal agency said searches were carried out at 17 locations related to the Congress MLA from Barkagaon assembly in Hazaribag district and associates. Amba, the youngest MLA in the current assembly, is the daughter of former minister Yogendra Saw. Her mother Nirmala Devi is also a former legislator. On Tuesday, Devi said that ED raided the premises of her daughter to break her morale ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, reported PTI. "I had no idea of the raid, as I was not inside. I knew it through media persons. I am no longer in politics. I had told my daughter to leave politics," she said. Devi said, "The action (ED raids) is being carried out to break the morale before the election". Jharkhand Congress legislative party leader Alamgir Alam blamed the BJP for the raids and said that only members of the opposition are being targeted. "Why only leaders of the opposition are being targeted. This is just the beginning of the election session and they (BJP) cleared their intentions", he told reporters, according to PTI. Yavatmal, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has again asked Union minister Nitin Gadkari to leave the BJP if he is being "insulted", saying the opposition in Maharashtra would ensure his victory in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. HT Image Speaking at a rally at Pusad in eastern Maharashtra's Yavatmal district on Tuesday, Thackeray said people like Kripashankar Singh, whom the BJP once targeted , figured in the saffron party's first list of candidates along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but Gadkari's name was missing. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "I had told Gadkari this two days ago, and I am repeating it again. If you are being insulted, leave the BJP and join the Maha Vikas Aghadi . We will ensure your victory. We will make you a minister when our government comes to power, and it will be a post with powers," he said. The opposition MVA comprises the Shiv Sena , Sharad Pawar-led NCP and Congress. Last week, responding to Thackeray's offer to Gadkari to contest as a candidate of the opposition, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis mocked the Sena chief, saying it was like a man in the street offering someone to make US president. Gadkari is a prominent leader of the BJP, but the first list did not have names from Maharashtra as seat-sharing discussions between the BJP and its allies were not complete, Fadnavis had said. Thackeray, meanwhile, termed the notification of rules under the Citizenship Act as an "election jumla" . Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis and others coming to India are welcome but the timing of the notification is suspicious as elections would be soon announced, the former Maharashtra CM said. It has been more than four years since the abrogation of Article 370, but no elections have taken place in Jammu and Kashmir and Kashmiri Pandits have not yet returned to their homes in Kashmir, he said. The BJP should first bring Kashmiri Pandits back and then implement the CAA, Thackeray said. In the coming elections, there is the BJP which is creating enmity between religions and wants to change the Constitution, and on the other hand there is the INDIA bloc which is an alliance of patriots, he said. "This election will be between `desh-bhakt' and 'dvesh bhakt' ," Thackeray said. Prime Minister Modi has not yet found time to visit the restive Manipur, he added. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday rejected suggestions that senior leaders of the party were shying away from contesting the coming Lok Sabha elections. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge addresses a special press briefing at his residence in New Delhi on Tuesday.(ANI) Kharge, however, indicated that he may not enter the poll fray this time with age being a factor, PTI reported. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. It is wrong that we are backing out, Kharge told reporters. "I am 83 years old, you (journalists) retire at 65...So I am 83." Also Read | Mallikarjun Kharge calls SC direction to SBI on electoral bonds victory for transparency "If given a chance, everyone goes and tells our party workers (that I should fight)...if they say then I will definitely fight. Look, sometimes we are at the back, sometimes we are at the forefront, we also have a list of ten people asking for the same seat," he added, according to PTI. Kharge made the remarks while speaking to mediapersons at a press conference at his residence in New Delhi. Kharge was the MP from Karnataka's Gulbarga from 2009-2014. He lost his seat in 2019. He is the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha. 'BJP stole our guarantee' On another question about the comparison between Modi's guarantee and that of the Congress, Kharge accused the BJP of copying their idea. "They stole our guarantee. We started in Karnataka, won the elections, later we did it in Telangana. ...Modi Saheb is stealing our guarantee and saying 'this is our guarantee'," the Congress chief said, according to PTI. Kharge also said that his party has started the process of making draft rules for the Minimum Support Price (MSP) that will be implemented once they come to power. The guarantee is for MSP (minimum support price). We announced MSP for farmers. We are also making a law to ensure MSP guarantees for their crops, we will legalise it. This is also our guarantee. Farmers, particularly from Punjab, have been protesting against the Centre to press them to accept their demands, including a legal guarantee of minimum support price (MSP). They have been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points since February 13, when security forces stopped them from marching towards Delhi. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday launched the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan and Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan (PM-SURAJ) national portal and sanctioned credit support to one lakh entrepreneurs of disadvantaged sections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Twitter/@BJP4India) Interacting with beneficiaries of various government schemes, including Scheduled Caste, Backward Classes, and sanitation workers, PM Modi emphasized the governments commitment to prioritise the underprivileged. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Todays occasion provides a glimpse of the governments commitment to prioritise the underprivileged, said Modi. He expressed satisfaction with how welfare schemes are reaching the Dalits, deprived, and backward communities. This makes me emotional as I am not separate from them, and I see in them my family, he said. The PM talked about the importance of reaching out to marginalised communities and ensuring their inclusion in the nations development process. He stressed the significance of initiatives like PM-SURAJ in providing financial assistance directly to beneficiaries, eliminating middlemen and commissions. He highlighted the governments efforts to provide essential amenities like gas connections, bank accounts, and toilets to marginalised communities saying that the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047, cannot be achieved without the development of the deprived segments. The PM also spoke about various initiatives aimed at empowering the marginalised sectors, such as doubling assistance to the SC, ST, and OBC communities, increasing scholarships for youth, and promoting entrepreneurship through schemes like Mudra Yojna and Standup India Scheme. Modi said that the government has spent nearly Rs.1.60 lakh crore for the welfare of the SC community this year alone, emphasizing a departure from the alleged scams associated with significant funds during previous administrations. Modi underscored the commitment to education by citing increased scholarships to the youth belonging to the marginalised section of society. He mentioned measures taken by his government such as the reservation of 27% seats for the OBC in the all-India quota of medical seats, greater opportunities for OBC students in NEET examinations, and support through the National Overseas Scholarship for underprivileged students pursuing Master and PhD degrees abroad. Additionally, the PM noted the heightened funding for National Fellowship, particularly for students pursuing PhDs in science-related subjects. Expressing satisfaction over the constitutional status granted to the National Commission for Backward Classes, Modi acknowledged the development of Panch Teerths associated with the life of Babasaheb Ambedkar. Citing the Mudra Yojna, which has disbursed financial assistance totalling around Rs.30 lakh crore to the poor, including those from SC, ST, and OBC communities., the PM emphasized the governments focus on employment and self-employment opportunities for youth from deprived sections. Keeping in mind the entrepreneurship among Dalits, our government has also launched the Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission, PM Modi said, showcasing the administrations commitment to fostering innovation and self-reliance within marginalized communities. This is a testament to our commitment to provide dignity and justice to the underprivileged, PM Modi affirmed. He concluded by guaranteeing intensified development and respect for the deprived class in the coming years, saying, With your development, we will fulfil the dream of Viksit Bharat. During the program, the PM also distributed Ayushman Health Cards and PPE kits to Safai Mitras under the National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE). This initiative aims to safeguard the health and safety of frontline workers who serve in challenging conditions. The program witnessed the participation of about 300,000 thousand beneficiaries of various government schemes from disadvantaged groups across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday slammed previous governments for scams and said they did not invest in modern technology and neglected the semiconductor sector even as Indias ambition of becoming its hub dates back five decades. Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (PTI) He said India left behind old thoughts and approaches and moved ahead. India is taking speedy decisions and making policies. We have lost decades in semiconductor manufacturing. But we should not lose a single moment now. In the 1960s, India dreamed of semiconductor manufacturing. But the governments then could not take advantage of the opportunities, he said as he laid the foundation via video conferencing for three semiconductor projects valued at approximately 1.25 lakh crore in Gujarats Dholera. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Modi said Indias dream of making semiconductors remained unfulfilled due to a lack of ability to make bold decisions. He said those in power previously were complacent and wondered what was the hurry. Modi criticised the previous governments for considering semiconductor technology a requirement for the future and neglecting investments, citing the misconception that India, as a poor country, could not manage high-tech sectors. They could not balance the countrys priorities. They thought how would India, as a poor country, manage high-tech areas such as semiconductors. In the name of poverty, they ignored investments in such modern technology. They could do scams of thousands of crores of rupees but could not invest a similar amount in the semiconductor sector. With such thoughts, no country can progress. He said the Covid-19 pandemic underscored the need for a reliable and resilient supply chain. He added India is prepared to play a significant role in this regard. The country has shown its prowess in space, nuclear technology, and digital power. India is now stepping into semiconductor commercial production, poised to become a global player in this field. The decisions and policies made today will strategically strengthen the country for the future. Modi said thinking of previous governments hindered the countrys progress while contrasting it with his administrations forward-looking and futuristic approach. He stressed the importance of advancing in the semiconductor sector to compete with developed nations while simultaneously addressing other major needs such as housing for the poor, investment in research, sanitation, and modern infrastructure. On one hand we are running the worlds largest sanitation drive and on the other hand, we are going ahead in semiconductor manufacturing. We are eradicating poverty rapidly and are building modern infrastructure. We are making India self-reliant. In 2024, we have laid foundations and inaugurated schemes worth over 12 lakh crore. He said India lagged in the first, second, and third industrial revolutions. ...but in the fourth industrial revolution, India is moving forward with great self-confidence, determined not to lose a single moment, Modi said. With the semiconductor mission initiated two years ago, today marks the unveiling of three projects. India commits, India delivers and hence democracy delivers. Hyderabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will share the dais with Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu and Jana Sena Party chief, actor Pawan Kalyan at a massive public rally proposed to be held at Boppudi village, near Chilakaluripet town in Andhra Pradeshs Palnadu district on March 17. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during the launch of the redevelopment project of the Sabarmati Mahatma Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, India, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) (AP) A TDP leader privy to the development said the party received a communication from the Prime Ministers Office on Tuesday confirming Modis visit to Andhra Pradesh to take part in the Chilakaluripet rally. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. After finalising the seat sharing talks with the Bharatiya Janata Party national leadership in New Delhi on March 9, Naidu extended a formal invitation to Modi requesting him to take part in the Chilakaluripeta rally on March 17. This morning, we received the confirmation, the TDP leader said. This is going to be the first rally of the National Democratic Alliance for the upcoming assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the state. While Jana Sena Party is already a part of the NDA, the TDP will be formally joining the NDA at this rally in the wake of forging an alliance with the BJP. The three leaders Modi, Naidu and Kalyan addressed joint election rallies in Andhra Pradesh in 2014, when the TDP and Jana Sena Party were part of the NDA. The Jana Sena Party did not contest the elections then, but supported the TDP-BJP combine. In March 2018, Naidu walked out of the NDA on the issue of special category status to Andhra Pradesh and after that, he never shared a public dais with the Prime Minister. An official statement from the TDP on Tuesday said party general secretary and Naidus son Nara Lokesh has been entrusted with making arrangements for the public meeting of the NDA allies. Lokesh held a meeting with senior leaders of all the three parties to discuss the arrangements for the rally. According to the statement, as many as 13 coordination committees have been formed with members of all the three parties for the rally. The public meeting will be a historic one, heralding a new era in the state politics and help the NDA allies to lead the state into the path of progress, the statement quoted Lokesh as saying. The seat sharing agreement among three NDA partners was announced on Monday night, after eight-hour-long talks among the leaders of the three parties at N Chandrababu Naidus residence at Undavalli in Amaravati. Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, BJP national vice-president Baijayant Jay Panda and Jana Sena leader Pawan Kalyan took part in the talks. The TDP will contest 144 out of 175 Assembly seats and 17 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats. It left 31 Assembly segments and eight Lok Sabha seats for the two allies. While Jana Sena will contest 21 Assembly and two Lok Sabha seats, the BJP will field its candidates in 10 Assembly and six Lok Sabha constituencies. In a post on X, Pawan Kalyan said the seat sharing was done keeping in view the future of the state, rather than individual benefits of the party. All the three parties have taken a step forward with a strong resolve to develop the state and achieve progress, he said, adding that the alliance would lay a strong foundation for a golden era in the state. Mukhtar Ansari was on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment in a 36-year-old fake arms licence case by a special MP/MLA court in Varanasi. On Tuesday, the court convicted the gangster-turned-politician and fixed March 13 for pronouncing the quantum of punishment in the case. Gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari.(PTI file) During the hearing, accused Mukhtar Ansari had appeared in the court through videoconferencing from Banda jail where he is lodged. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. After hearing the matter, MP/MLA court of Special Judge (MP-MLA) Avnish Gautam convicted Mukhtar guilty in the case under section 428 (mischief), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and section 30 of the Arms Act, Singh said. What's the case? On June 10, 1987, Mukhtar Ansari had applied to the district magistrate, Ghazipur, for the licence of a double-barrel gun. Later, the arms licence was obtained with fake signatures of the district magistrate and the superintendent of police. On December 4, 1990, when this fraud was exposed, the CB-CID lodged a complaint with the police and based on the complaint, a case under various sections of IPC against five persons, including Mukhtar Ansari, was registered at Mohadabad police station, Ghazipur. The charge sheet was sent to the court in 1997 against the then ordnance clerk Gaurishankar Srivastava and Mukhtar Ansari. Gaurishankar Srivastava died during the hearing of the case. In the case, the statements of 10 witnesses were recorded were recorded by the prosecution. According to police officials, around 60 cases are pending against Ansari in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, New Delhi and other states. He has so far been convicted in at least seven cases. The MP/MLA court here has sentenced gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari to five and a half years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of 10,000 in the case related to threatening a witness in the coal businessman Nand Kishore Rungta murder case. New Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday comfortably won a vote of confidence in the assembly by a voice vote, stabilising his government a day after his dramatic induction following the resignation of his mentor, Manohar Lal Khattar. Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini speaks as former CM Manohar Lal Khattar looks on during a special session of the state Assembly, in Chandigarh, on Wednesday. (PTI) With 78 members present in the 90-member House, the speaker put the motion of confidence to a voice vote. The BJP enjoyed the support of its 41 members and the support of six independents and a lawmaker from a smaller party, above the majority mark of 46. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Ten legislators of the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), the BJPs former ally who broke ties on Tuesday morning triggering the crisis, were absent during the voice vote, although five of them attended the House briefly, leaving before the voting commenced. The JJP issued a whip asking its legislators to stay away from the House during the voting on the confidence motion. Saini said he came from a humble background and felt honoured that the party made him chief of the state unit and now CM. An ordinary party member like me was appointed state BJP president. Now I have been entrusted with the big responsibility as chief minister. This can only happen in the BJP, Saini said. Read Here | Haryana politics: Break up in state, a strategy in play From today, our chief minister will look after the Karnal assembly constituency (AC), Khattar said, appearing to indicate that Saini would now take care of the AC. Later in the evening, the BJP released its second list for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, fielding Khattar from the Karnal Lok Sabha seat. In the 90-member House, the JJP has 10 members, the Congress 30, and Haryana Lokhit Party (HLP) and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) one each, and there are seven independents. The crisis began early on Tuesday after the entire Haryana cabinet resigned along with Khattar following the break-up with the JJP. In the evening, five ministers were sworn in BJPs Kanwar Pal (Jagadhari), Mool Chand Sharma (Ballabhgarh), Jai Parkash Dalal (Loharu) and Banwari Lal (Bawal), and Independent MLA Ranjit Singh Chautala (Rania) along with Saini. The new CM can accommodate at least eight more ministers. The move to part ways is believed to have been triggered by disagreement over seat-sharing for the summers Lok Sabha elections; the BJP , which has 10 incumbent MPs in all 10 parliamentary constituencies in the state was unwilling to share Lok Sabha seats with the JJP. JJPs Dushyant Chautala said on Wednesday that they were following the principles of alliance dharma by preparing for two parliamentary seats Bhiwani-Mahendergarh and Hisar adding that everyone knows what decision the BJP made in the end. The split between the two parties is said to have been triggered by disagreement over seat-sharing for the Lok Sabha elections; the BJP, which has 10 incumbent MPs in all 10 parliamentary constituencies in the state was unwilling to share Lok Sabha seats with the JJP. Haryana twist: Nayab Saini replaces Khattar as CM, BJP cuts ties with JJP It is believed that Khattars handling of the ongoing farm protests the Haryana police has sought to prevent the farmers from crossing over from Punjab into the state en route Delhi, and on February 21, a farmer was shot dead did not go down well with the dominant Jat population in the state. That and the prospect of going into election season with a two-term CM may have prompted the BJP to effect the change, analysts said. The near four-hour long noisy proceedings of the House were marked by sharp exchanges after Leader of the Opposition, Bhupinder Singh Hooda Bhupinder Singh Hooda launched a volley of attacks. The Congress demanded secret voting to decide the fate of Saini government. Hooda described Saini as a night watchman and Congress deputy leader Aftab Ahmed said BJP was running a jod tod ki sarkar. Speaker Gian Chand Gupta, however, declined the plea. During the debate, Congress MLAs said the break up of the alliance was an eyewash and the change in leadership was an attempt by the BJP to fight anti-incumbency. At a rally in Hisar, JJPs Dushyant Chautala said he recently met BJP national president JP Nadda, who told him that the BJP can only offer the Rohtak parliamentary seat the JJP. Read Here | Haryana CM Khattar resigns: A quick look back at his political journey I told Nadda that we are preparing on two seats, Hisar and Bhiwani-Mahendergarh. I narrated the entire conversation to JJP national chief Ajay Chautala who asked me to tell Nadda that we will not seek any seat till the BJP agrees to increase the monthly pension of elderly persons to 5,100. I conveyed our party chiefs message to Nadda, and the next day the alliance was snapped, he added. He criticised the partys five rebel MLAs and he claimed that it was difficult to work with them. Out of 10 MLAs, five were our workers and five came from other parties. Our five MLAs are standing with Ajay like a rock and the outsiders have gone. I advise former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda not to trust these five rebel MLAs as they can betray any time, he added. Hooda, said for the first time, a political party issued a whip to its MLAs to remain absent from the House. What does this mean? This only shows that the BJP and the JJP are hand in glovePeople of Haryana know what both are upto. Change of faces wont help much, Hooda said. NEW DELHI: New Zealand and India share a commitment to do more together to meet security challenges in the Indo-Pacific and both sides want the region to be characterised by respect for the rule of law and peaceful resolution of disputes, New Zealands foreign minister Winston Peters said on Wednesday. External affairs minister S. Jaishankar with deputy prime minister and foreign minister of New Zealand Winston Peters during a meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday. (PTI/@DrSJaishankar) Peters and his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar agreed during their meeting on Tuesday to work together to unlock more opportunities and enhance the bilateral relationship, he said as he wound up his four-day visit to India. Peters travelled to New Delhi and Gujarat to take forward ties in areas ranging from security to trade. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. New Zealands coalition government has given priority to enhancing relations with India to generate future benefits for both sides. It is clear that New Zealand and India share common strategic perspectives about the security challenges our Indo-Pacific region faces as well as a commitment to do more together to meet them, Peters said. New Zealand and India are two countries that can, should and will be doing more together, he said, adding that his visit demonstrated a joint commitment to investing more in building a broad-based, mutually beneficial relationship. Referring to his meeting with Jaishankar, Peters said they agreed to work together to unlock more opportunities and to achieve a step-up in the relationship, including further high-level political visits in both directions during 2024. In New Delhi and Gujarat, Peters discussions on trade and economic ties focused on areas such as education, agro-technology, air connectivity and tourism, and the potential that can be tapped through an enhanced economic partnership. During the visit, an enhanced air services agreement between the two countries came into force, making code-sharing on services between India and New Zealand easier. While it is ultimately a commercial decision for our national carriers, we are confident that direct flights between New Zealand and India are within sight in the next couple of years, Peters said. Besides Jaishankar, Peters also met Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. Peters said his discussions with Indian leaders encompassed the strategic security and defence relationship, trade and economic cooperation, efforts to combat climate change, and social and cultural links. New Zealand and India are democracies working with like-minded partners such as Australia and Japan to ensure an Indo-Pacific characterised by respect for the rule of law, freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes, he said. These shared principles lie at the heart of New Zealands push for an enhanced bilateral relationship with India, as well as deeper cooperation across the Indo-Pacific region - including with Pacific Island countries, he added. Indias importance to New Zealands society, economy and security is also growing. The Indian diaspora in New Zealand numbers 300,000 and India is New Zealands second-largest source of international students and largest source of skilled migrants. Peters also participated in an event alongside representatives of Pacific Island countries and the Indian government and businesses to explore how New Zealand and India can work together on economic connectivity with the Pacific. New Zealand and India both have deep historical, cultural and commercial ties into the Pacific Islands region - and we need to be doing more together there, he said. While appreciating the government for initiating the process to amend COTPA 2003 and setting a target of making India 100 per cent smoke free, they appealed for immediate removal of the current provision that permits smoking areas. HT Image "Smoking worsens lung function and reduces immunity. All designated smoking areas in hotels and restaurants and even airports should be abolished to ensure a 100 per cent smoke free environment. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "Most of these designated smoking areas are rarely compliant as per COTPA requirements and are actually putting our public at great health risk from exposure to secondhand smoke," said Dr Harit Chaturvedi, chairman of Max Institute of Cancer Care. In India, smoking is banned in all public places, according to the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act , 2003. Section 4 of this Act prohibits smoking in any place to which the public has access. However, COTPA 2003 presently allows smoking in designated smoking areas of certain public places like restaurants, hotels and airports. "Exposure to passive smoking happens in eateries, specifically hotels, restaurants, bar and restaurant, pubs and clubs, risking lives of thousands of non-smokers by exposing them to the smoke of cigarettes. "As cigarette smoke seeps from smoking areas to common areas, COTPA needs to be amended to not permit smoking in any premises. All places should be completely smoke free in the best interest of the public health," said Nalini Satyanarayan, a passive smoking victim and health activist. Second-hand smoking is as harmful as smoking. Exposure to second-hand smoke causes many diseases including, lung cancer and heart disease in adults and the impairment of the lung function and respiratory infections in children, experts said. People with compromised respiratory and cardiovascular systems are at higher risk of death. Designated smoking areas facilitate the spread of infection as smokers cannot socially distance or wear masks and are trapped in close proximity in a smoke-filled environment, they said. "We are finding that families prefer to stay in hotels which do not allow smoking. We are happy that the government is strengthening the COTPA provisions to make hospitality sector completely smoke free. "We support the government in its initiative for safeguarding people's health," said G P Sharma, president, Hospitality Association of Uttar Pradesh. The government of India has started the COTPA Amendment process and introduced the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Bill, 2020. A recent survey conducted in India revealed that 72 per cent believe that second-hand smoke is a serious health hazard and 88 per cent people strongly support strengthening of the current tobacco control law to address this menace. India has the second largest number of tobacco users in the world. Of these, at least 1.2 million die every year from tobacco related diseases, Dr Chaturvedi said. One million deaths are due to smoking, with over 200,000 due to second-hand smoke exposure, and over 35,000 due to smokeless tobacco use. Nearly 27 per cent of all cancers in India are due to tobacco usage. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. In another blow to the Congress, the Delhi high court on Wednesday dismissed the party's plea seeking a stay on the income tax demand notice for the recovery of 105 crore outstanding tax from the party. The Congress moved the high court challenging the order passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal in March refusing to stay the demand notice issued for the recovery of the outstanding tax. Accordingly we find no ground to interfere in the order impugned, a high court bench led by Justice Yashwant Varma said. The main bank accounts of the Congress were frozen by the income tax department in February for tax default. (Jitender Gupta ) The Congress approached the high court after the ITAT on March 8 dismissed the party's application seeking a stay on the February 13 notice of the I-T department initiating recovery proceedings against it. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The assessing officer had raised a tax demand of more than 100 crore for the assessment year 2018-19 when the income was assessed to be more than 199 crore. In February, the income tax department seized the party's four main bank accounts on an income tax demand of 210 crore for 2018-19. The party approached the tribunal seeking a stay on the action of the income tax department and said the party won't be able to pay bills and salaries if their accounts were frozen. Pending the hearing and the verdict in the case, the income tax department mandated banks to transfer over 65 crore from Congress, IYC and NSUI accounts to the government, Congress treasurer Ajay Maken alleged on February 21. Tax officials say the case pertains to the Congresss tax dues for assessment year (AY) 2018-19. The initial due to the tax department was Rs103 crore, and 32 crore was added to this on account of interest. The tax due was reassessed at 105 crore on July 6, 2021. After this, the Congress appealed before the Commissioner, Appeals but did not pay the mandatory 20% of the tax due to initiate the appeal. It paid only 78 lakh, prompting the commissioner to dismiss the plea. The Congress appealed again in May 2023, and in October, paid 1.72 crore. The Ram Nath Kovind-led high-level committee set up to study the issue of simultaneous national and assembly elections is set to submit its report to President Droupadi Murmu, five months after its creation, on Wednesday, according to government officials. Former President Ram Nath Kovind. HT learns that the report uses data on the three elections between 1951-52 and 1967 and argues that, like then, simultaneous elections are possible now.(ANI file) A committee member, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that the panel will suggest holding simultaneous polls in 2029 and discuss procedural and logistical issues related to this. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. A second committee member, also requesting anonymity, said the report will strongly reflect the widespread stakeholder consultations that have taken place. The committee believes that all its recommendations should be available in the public domain but that it is up to the government to accept or decline them, the second member said. This person also said that the report includes a paper by chairperson of the 15th finance commission NK Singh and International Monetary Funds Prachi Mishra on the economic viability of simultaneous polls. The report will also lay out the financial and administrative resources required for conducting simultaneous elections. It has considered the feedback given through its website and those received from various stakeholders, including former chief election commissioners. Read Here | Congress opposes one nation, one election: Undemocratic, against federalism HT learns that the report uses data on the three elections between 1951-52 and 1967 and argues that, like then, simultaneous elections are possible now. The cycle of simultaneous elections was broken after some state governments collapsed or were dismissed before they could complete their term, necessitating a fresh election. The committee was formed in September last year and is chaired by former president Kovind. The committee has been conducting consultations with political parties, constitutional experts, former chief election commissioners and the election commission and other relevant stakeholders to solicit their views and gather insights on the matter. The committees mandate includes examining the potential impact of synchronised elections on governance, administration, political stability, expenditure, and voter participation, among other aspects. It is also tasked with formulating recommendations and presenting a comprehensive report outlining the pros and cons of the idea. In the past, a parliamentary standing committee, the Niti Aayog, and the Law Commission have weighed in on the issue of simultaneous polls, expressing concern over the burgeoning expense of holding one election after another but also flagging possible constitutional and legal problems. Read Here | One nation, one election: What is the rationale, can it work and other questions answered Kovind has already come out in favour of simultaneous parliamentary and state assembly polls, urging all political parties to support the idea in national interest. In November last year, the former president said any party in power at the Centre will benefit from one nation, one election and money saved in election expenditure could be used for development. The Bharatiya Janata Partys 2014 and 2019 manifestos pitched for simultaneous elections across the country but for that to come into force, at least five articles in the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act would have to be tweaked. On February 20, the BJP backed the idea, telling the Kovind-led panel that changes in the law that governs Indias elections should be brought through consensus and the repeated invocation of the model code of conduct hurts governance and fosters corruption. Besides the BJP, the Janata Dal (United), Shiv Sena and Republican Party of India - Athawale have backed the idea of simultaneous polls. The parties which are not in favour of the proposal are the Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Samajwadi Party, Aam Aadmi Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India. Virtually conceding that the party would not give him a ticket for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Pratap Simha, BJP's 2-time MP from Karnataka's Mysuru-Kodagu constituency, on Tuesday appealed to his supporters to not protest. BJP MP Pratap Simha (File Photo/ANI) Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Simha said his whole political existence is because of prime minister Narendra Modi. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Dear karyakarthas & well-wishers, what am I without beloved @narendramodi ji? See these 2 photos and understand. I owe my political existence to Modi ji. I humbly request all of you to not protest. We all belong to one family, lets work for Modi ji, the ex-journalist, 47, wrote on the microblogging platform. In the 2014 general elections, the BJP won 17 out of Karnataka's 28 Lok Sabha seats, and increased its tally to 25 five years later. On both occasions, Simha was the party's winning candidate from Mysuru. Now, however, in its bid for fresh faces, the saffron party has reportedly been courting Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the 31-year-old scion of the Mysuru royal family, to contest on its ticket from the constituency. BJP MP fumes at royal family scion On Tuesday, the BJP MP took a not-so-subtle dig at the royal family member, saying how someone from the air-conditioned palace of Mysuru, has now come to live with the people. Also Read: Pratap Simha fumes amid buzz that BJP might field royal family scion "It is good to know that a person who lived in the palace will work as a BJP worker and protest on the street against the (state's) Congress government. Similarly, the (titular) king would sit with commoners while senior leaders sit on the dais and he would wait outside hotels when the senior leaders come to the city. It is good to know, the parliamentarian remarked. The Lok Sabha polls, meanwhile, are likely to be held in April-May, and the Election Commission of India (ECI) is expected to announce the dates in the coming days. The BJP is seeking a third straight term under prime minister Modi. On March 2, the ruling party released its first list, naming candidates for 195 seats. It is expected to unveil its second list later today. Bengaluru: Amid speculation swirling within political circles in Karnataka, there are indications that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may introduce fresh faces for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The party is likely to replace incumbent MP Prathap Simha in the Mysuru-Kodagu constituency with Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, scion of the Mysore royal family. Pratap Simha (HT) In a recent video on social media, Simha hinted at leaving his renomination fate to divine intervention, expressing gratitude for the support of voters. Simha also indirectly referenced the advantages of a candidate with grassroots connections compared to those from privileged backgrounds, subtly criticising the partys decision. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. In another veiled attack on Tuesday, Simha said, From the air-conditioned palace of the Mysuru, he has come to live with the people. There are a lot of advantages to that. There are a lot of cases going on between the government and the palace over property. Maharani (titular queen) didnt allow us to run a drinking water pipe through palace property. It might be resolved now. It is good to know that a person who lived in the palace will work as a BJP worker and protest on the street against the Congress government. Similarly, the (titular) king would sit with commoners while senior leaders sit on the dais and he would wait outside hotels when the senior leaders come to the city. It is good to know, he added. On speculation regarding Wadiyar getting a party ticket from Mysuru, leader of the opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka said, I dont know. I have not contacted Yaduveer nor spoken to him. Whether others have contacted, I dont know about it. Meanwhile, talking to media in New Delhi, Ashoka hinted at potential surprises in the candidate list for Karnataka. Ashoka indicated that during a Central Election Committee meeting, discussions took place regarding the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. The partys central leadership, he stated, considered the opinions of state leaders, suggesting the possibility of fresh faces. Detailed discussion has taken place regarding all 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka. The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, home minister Amit Shah, national president JP Nadda and select leaders from the state. The central leadership has taken the opinion of the state leaders for selection of candidates, he said. So, there may be some changes. I cannot predict as to how many sitting MPs may get a ticket. It is left for the party high command to decide, but change is certain. BJP is a party that constantly keeps changing and gives opportunities to fresh faces, so surprises may be expected. Responding to speculation surrounding the potential exclusion of sitting MPs like Nalin Kumar Kateel, Anantkumar Hegde, and Prathap Simha, Ashoka urged MPs to remain optimistic while emphasising the final authority of the partys high command in candidate selection. Discussions have happened about the seats; I cannot reveal what was discussed. Sitting MPs must have hope. The decision of the high command is final. No one should lose hope, there are chances till the last minute. (With PTI inputs) Bengaluru: In the face of Bengalurus escalating water crisis, residents and organisations are rallying for a shift towards remote work practices. Residents are urging companies to adopt remote work policies and educational institutions to continue offering virtual learning solutions. Women protest against the Karnataka government over ongoing water crisis. (PTI) A concerned voice, echoed by prominent weather commentator Bengaluru Weatherman, has implored IT organisations to institute a 90-day work from home policy amid the ongoing water scarcity. With a parched forecast looming for the next month, the blogger emphasised the urgent need for the Karnataka government to consider remote work options until the rains arrive. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Please instruct IT organisations based in Bengaluru to announce 90 days Work from Home amid the ongoing water crisis, said the blogger on X. Residents of HSR Layout too have been calling on IT firms to actively facilitate remote work for their staff. IT companies need to come forward and allow employees to work from home, wherever possible. The water situation in Bengaluru is going from bad to worse, and theres nothing much we can do, the association of the residents said in a statement. Rajesh Pillai, a resident of Jayanagar, encountered a dire water shortage in his apartment complex, leaving him and his spouse grappling for essential supplies. The water crisis compelled us to relocate temporarily. Despite this, were saddled with a significant monthly rent of 25,000 for an uninhabitable flat. This is getting difficult, he added. His predicament is exacerbated by his employers refusal to implement a work from home arrangement. Ideally, we want to move back to our hometown from where we can work, he asserted. Namma Whitefield, a federation of residents and welfare associations in the Whitefield area, implored authorities to mandate work from home for the IT sector. Please mandate work from home, especially for IT sector. It will allow employees to return to their hometown and reduce the burden on Bengaluru. Please mandate education too for schools and colleges. It worked during Covid, it will work during water emergency, the federation appealed to the government. However, scepticism lingers regarding the viability of such measures. Some users fear potential repercussions on the citys real estate market. Krishna Kumar Gowda of the Outer Ring Road Companies Association highlighted the collective responsibility of companies and tech parks to conserve water and urged authorities to bridge the gap between demand and supply for both corporate and residential needs. It is concerning to note the overall shortage of water supply. This will affect households as well as office complexes and campuses. As responsible citizens, all companies and tech parks should put in measures to save water as much as possible in addition to all that they are already doing in this regard. We (ORRCA) also urge BWSSB and relevant authorities to take correct right measures to bridge the gap between the demand and supply for both corporates and residences, he added. Meanwhile, responding to calls for work from home, deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar emphasised that while the situation isnt dire yet, he asserted the governments commitment to ensuring water access for all residents. Its not my job to tell companies for work from home. The situation too is not that bad as of now. Water will be given to all residents as there is enough in the reservoirs, he added. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)s highest decision-making body Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) is all set to hold a key three-day meeting ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Napur from March 15 where the leaders will discuss the roadmap to achieve the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s target of winning over 350 seats, nationwide implementation of a Uniform Civil Code, Manipur conflict, farmers protests and Sandeshkhali issue among others. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat (ANI File Photo) Senior BJP functionaries including party president JP Nadda, general secretary Sunil Bansal and general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh will attend the meeting, which is also expected to provide directives to the RSS rank and file to work hard for the saffron organisation when it is celebrating its centenary year in 2025. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The gathering is expected to outline strategies for achieving the ambitious goal of securing over 350 seats for the BJP and 400 seats for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the upcoming elections. A prominent strategist within the BJP under the tutelage of Union home minister Amit Shah, Santhosh will reportedly present the partys election strategy and seek input from the RSS leadership. The meeting will be attended by approximately 1,550 top office bearers from the RSS and its affiliated organisations, including the BJP. RSS leaders Mohan Bhagwat and Dattatreya Hosabale will address the senior members of the Sangh Parivar during the event. Discussions will also focus on leveraging the historic consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya to benefit the BJP in the elections, as well as formulating a population control policy to address demographic challenges. However, contentious issues such as the Gyanvyapi mosque and Mathura Eidgah disputes are unlikely to be addressed during the meeting. Other topics on the agenda include resolving inter-community conflicts in Manipur and addressing the concerns of protesting farmers regarding Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their produce from the government are the two areas on which the Sangh affiliates, particularly Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), will make a presentation at the meeting. The ABPS meeting, held every third year at the Sanghs headquarters in Nagpur, will also involve discussions on social cohesion, environmental issues, sanitation, and citizens responsibilities in light of the upcoming 75th anniversary of the Indian Constitution. The ABPS will elect a new working committee, with Hosabale, expected to continue as the general secretary. As the RSS gears up to celebrate its centenary year in 2025, plans to expand its reach across the country and to increase the number of shakhas to one lakh will also be on the agenda for the meeting. Suggestions for the year-long celebrations to commemorate 100 years of the RSS will be discussed. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea by the non-profit Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) on March 15 to restrain the Union government from appointing election commissioners under the new law. Two vacancies of election commissioners came about following the resignation of Arun Goel on Friday and Anup Chandra Pandey's retirement on February 14. (AP) The matter has been listed for hearing after two vacancies in the three-member poll panel following the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey in February and the abrupt resignation of Arun Goel. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. A high-level committee chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to meet this week to select the election commissioner for the position left vacant after Pandey's resignation, according to a person aware of the matter. The selection panel under the new legislation has the prime minister, a Union minister and the Leader of the opposition as its members. Also Read: Arun Goel resigns as election commissioner: Why ex-IAS officer's appointment was also controversial In March last year, the Supreme Court, in response to a writ petition, directed that the appointment of Chief Election Commissioners and other ECs shall be made by the President based on the advice tendered by a committee consisting of the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha or leader of the largest opposition party in the House and the Chief Justice of India. The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, replaced the CJI with a Union minister, a move critics see as the government's attempt to control the watchdog which oversees the country's democratic exercise. Days before the poll panel was expected to announce the schedule for the Lok Sabha elections, Arun Goel resigned last Friday, making it the second resignation by an election commissioner under the Modi government. Ashok Lavasa had resigned as election commissioner in August 2020. He had given dissent notes on various model code of conduct violation decisions taken by the Election Commission during the last Lok Sabha polls. The executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association on Tuesday dissociated itself from the letter written by SCBA chief Adish C Aggarwala seeking presidential reference of the apex court judgement in the electoral bonds scheme case. The bar association also condemned the content of the letter, calling it an attempt to overreach and undermine the authority of the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court bench headed by the Chief Justice of India struck down the electoral bonds scheme on February 15. Adish C Aggarwala, who is also the chairperson of All India Bar Association, wrote to President Droupadi Murmu urging her to seek presidential reference of the verdict in the electoral bonds scheme case and not to give effect to it unless the top court has reheard the matter. (Also Read: SBI submits details of electoral bonds to EC, poll panel acknowledges) Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Revealing the names of corporates that had contributed to different political parties would render the corporates vulnerable for victimization, Aggarwala said in his letter to the President. "The possibility of them being singled out by those parties that had received less contribution from them, and harassed cannot be ruled out if the names of corporates and their quantum of contributions to various parties are revealed. This will be reneging on the promise given to them while accepting their voluntary contributions." He said, "Disclosing such sensitive information, that too retrospectively, will result in chilling effect in corporate donations and participation in the democratic process." While the letter was printed on the letterhead of the All India Bar Association, it bore Aggarwala's designation as President of the SCBA below his signature. Therefore, it has become expedient for the Executive Committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association to make it abundantly clear that the members of the committee have neither authorised the President to write any such letter nor do they subscribe to his views as expressed therein, the resolution signed by SCBA secretary Rohit Pandey read. The Executive Committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association further views this act as well as the contents therein as an attempt to overreach and undermine the authority of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India and unequivocally condemn the same, it added. While Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has been granted permission to go ahead with its day-long Kisan Mahapanchayat, scheduled to be held at Delhi's historic Ramlila Ground on Thursday, the Delhi Police, as per a report, gave no objection certificate (NOC) only after farmer leaders agreed to certain conditions put forth by it. Farmers during their ongoing protest, at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border, in Patiala district. (PTI) The agreement was signed between Delhi Police and senior SKM members P Krishna Prasad, Hanan Mollah, Prem Singh Gehlawat, and Ashish Mittal, the report said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. What are the conditions? Earlier farmer leaders had claimed that cultivators from several states will converge in the national capital, with more than 50,000 from Punjab alone. Under the agreement, however, not more than 5,000 participants will be allowed at the venue. The ground is said to have a capacity of around 1.25 lakh. Also Read: Mahapanchayat calls for uniting SKM factions Also, no instigating or intimidating speech shall be made, and no processions are to be taken out after the mahapanchayat. If an inflammatory address is made, the public address system will be switched off and speakers removed from the stage. Further, the rally must conclude by 3 pm on the day, and no person associated with it can spend the night in the city, both before and after the event. Traffic advisory issued Meanwhile, on the eve of the mahapanchayat, the Delhi Traffic Police released a traffic advisory, alerting the commuters about the traffic regulations and diversions of routes. The advisory states that the movement of traffic will be regulated from 6 am to 4 pm on select routes, and diversions could be imposed on a few other roads starting 6 am. People, therefore, must plan their commute accordingly, it said. POKHRAN (RAJASTHAN) A Tejas aircraft of the Indian Air Force on Tuesday crashed near Jaisalmer, minutes after taking part in a tri-services exercise that sought to demonstrate the strides India has made towards self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector, officials aware of the matter said. People try to douse fire at the site of Tejas crash. (PTI) This marks the first crash of the light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas, which IAF began inducting in July 2016. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. One Tejas aircraft of IAF met with an accident at Jaisalmer today, during an operational training sortie. The pilot ejected safely. A Court of Inquiry has been constituted to find out the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a statement. The aircraft had flown during the tri-services Bharat Shakti exercise at the Pokhran firing range near Jaisalmer along with another Tejas fighter before it went down. The two fighters fired flares during the exercise that was witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, defence minister Rajnath Singh, chief of defence staff General Anil Chauhan, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, army chief General Manoj Pande, navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar and others. The integrated tri-services live fire and manoeuvre exercise, Bharat Shakti, displayed how the Indian military plans to leverage its indigenous capabilities for dominating the battlefield and crushing any threat to the countrys security. Apart from LCA Mk-1, the exercise featured several weapons and systems including the light combat helicopter Prachand, armed advanced light helicopters, T-90 tanks, BMP-II infantry combat vehicles, drone launched precision guided munitions, a variety of unmanned aerial vehicles, rockets, air defence weapons, and artillery guns including Dhanush, Sharang and K9 Vajra. The idea of Viksit Bharat is unimaginable without Atmanirbhar Bharat, Modi said in his address, underlining the need to reduce dependence on others. The success of the countrys self-reliance drive can be seen in locally produced military hardware including fighter jets, helicopters, missile systems and artillery guns. We are experiencing the flight of Made in India with arms and ammunition, communication devices, cyber and space. This is Bharat Shakti, he said. In February, Tejas fighters took part in Exercise Vayu Shakti-24 at the Pokhran air-to-ground range and showcased their swing-role capability as they first engaged aerial targets, and later ground ones. That exercise, based on the theme Lightning Strike from the Sky, saw a variety of fighter jets carrying out precision strikes against simulated enemy aircraft and targets on ground, including runways, bridges, ammunition dumps, radar sites, terror camps, thermal power plants and ordnance factories. In November, Modi flew in LCA in Bengaluru and described the experience as incredibly enriching while also heaping praise on the countrys indigenous military capabilities. His sortie in an LCA Mk-1 fighter jet was seen as a significant endorsement of the LCA programme, and turned the spotlight on the locally produced fighter jet that IAF is looking at inducting in big numbers and India is also seeking to export. IAF ordered 83 Mk-1A fighters for 48,000 crore in February 2021, and plans to buy 97 more Mk-1As at an estimated cost of 67,000 crore. In October 2023, state-run plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited handed over the first trainer version of LCA Mk-1 to Chaudhari in Bengaluru, with the twin seater set to fill a key training role and double as a fighter if needed. The aircraft is part of an earlier order for 40 Mk-1 jets in the initial operational clearance (IOC) and the more advanced final operational clearance (FOC) configurations --- the first variants of LCA. Of the 40 Mk-1s, IAF has inducted 32 single seater jets and raised two LCA squadrons. The remaining eight aircraft are trainers and all of them will be delivered to IAF by March 2024. The latest crash comes at a time when IAF is getting ready to induct the first Mk-1A aircraft by March-end. The last of the 83 jets already ordered will be delivered by 2028. LCA is set to emerge as the cornerstone of IAFs combat power in the coming decade and beyond. IAF, the worlds fourth largest air force, is expected to operate around 350 LCAs (Mk-1, Mk-1A and Mk-2 versions), with a third of those already ordered, some inducted, and the rest figuring prominently on the air forces modernisation roadmap and expected to be contracted in the coming years, as previously reported by HT. The newer variants, Mk-1A and Mk-2, will come with significantly improved features and technologies over the current Mk-1 aircraft. IAF will deploy LCAs at forward air bases in the western sector to bolster its combat readiness against Pakistan and fill the gap left by the gradual phasing out of the Soviet-era MiG-21 fighter jets. Is there an Indic approach to leading a good life? I asked some scholars who are part of an online group called Bharatiya Vidwat Parishad, focusing on Indic thought. Here below is a compilation of their answers along with my own thoughts. Putting the sacred back into our relationship with nature will give an added fillip to our efforts to stave off climate change. Early humans, whether in Egypt, China or India venerated and propitiated nature because their survival depended on it. They worshipped the sun god, fire and wind. So too in India, where early Vedic hymns worshipped the earth, water and fire. Should we return to this approach, especially given that Mother Nature is showing her temper by unleashing cyclones, forest fires and melting glaciers? Should we view nature with the same reverence that our ancestors did-- as a powerful being that needs to be cared for and propitiated? To me, putting the sacred back into our relationship with nature will give an added fillip to our efforts to stave off climate change. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Besides nature, the umbrella against which the good life is measured in Hinduism are the four purusharthas: dharma, artha, kama, and moksha. Dharma is difficult to translate, but let us call it purpose. Artha means prosperity, not just monetary but also abundance in all its aspects. Kama is love and pleasure. Moksha is salvation from the vagaries of human existence. These four worthy goals intertwined with the idea of timing or the four ashramas (stages) of life set the cadence for a life well-lived. Do what you need at the right time. When you are a student, study. Once you have fulfilled your duties as a householder, retreat to the forest. These are macro concepts linked to life-cycles. What about simple material wishes about promotion, business victories and the kind that we look to self-help books for? These things are covered in the tail-end of many Hindu texts, according to Nagaraj Paturi, Dean, Indica. They are called phala shruthis or a list of blessings that you get by chanting a certain powerful strotram or hymn. For example, the Lalitha Sahasranamam or the 1000 words of Goddess Lalitha, has an end-note that describes what benefits you accrue by chanting these praises to Lalitha. They include cures from disease, prevention of unnatural or early death, wealth, good children, essentially everything that the average person longs for. This same approach defines folk and tribal songs to various gods. The idea is that you sing a song of worship and gain a blessing. This is reflected in the way elders bless us in India, or the things we ask for during a puja or havan (fire-ritual). The list is rather long but encompasses many of our longings: kshema (safety and security), sthairya (stability or tranquillity), veerya (energy, virility), Vijaya (victory), ayur (longevity), arogya (good health), aishwarya (abundance, prosperity), abhi-vridh-yartham (let it increase). The priest also asks for all auspicious things (mangala) for the family and for all the discomforts (duritha) to be pacified. In Vedic times, the word for the good life was Swasthi. It refers to well-being, and occurs many times in the Vedas: With Swasthi (well-being), we will go forth. In fact, the swastika is the symbol for the kind of good life envisaged by our ancestors, hence they drew the design on the walls of their homes. One idea unique to Indic thought has to do with boundaries, the notion of having enough, which is really about sustainability. So of course you can be ambitious and want to earn money, find pleasure, but the point is that resources are finite and limited and therefore must be shared by family, community and indeed the whole world. And this plays into the adage of Vasudaiva Kutumbakam, or the whole world is my family, and therefore desires and ambition must be tempered by moderation because without that sense of restraint, you could want and accumulate without limit. Tempering ambition with moderationand doing so in a way that sustains all beings creates a blueprint for the good life. With the urgency of climate change, this notion of balance, moderation, restraint, sharing, and embracing the world as your own is arguably the most sustainable way to live. The problem is that happiness, peace or wealth are not static. They come and go. The meaning of the word Shambhuwhich is another name for Shivameans source of bliss. You could argue that the good life is when you have enough Shambhu in your life to counteract or withstand every calamity. So you do prayers and good deeds in order to accrue this source of bliss or Shambhu in your life. In an excellent lecture, available on YouTube called Hinduism explained, philosopher Alan Watts talks about how the dharmic life which includes stints in the forest to discover your true self would lead to a point where death itself feels cheated because there would be nothing left to deprive the individual of. As Watts says, Death comes and will find no one to kill. For while you are identified with your role, with your name, with your ego, theres someone to kill. But when youre identified with the whole universe death finds you already annihilated. And theres no one to kill. Cheating death by living the good life is a profound concept. (Shoba Narayan is Bengaluru-based award-winning author. She is also a freelance contributor who writes about art, food, fashion and travel for a number of publications.) Conventional wisdom and logic dictate that a potentially winning combination has no reason to be disturbed. But Dalit icon, former four-time UP chief minister and BSPs presiding deity, Mayawati, is hardly deterred by such dialectics. BSP chief Mayawati Just as the election battle heats up in Indias political heartland Uttar Pradesh - even as the BJP juggernaut hauled by Modi and Yogi Adityanath threaten to ride roughshod over all that comes their way; even as Akhilesh Yadav picks up the pieces in his backyard and the Gandhis look determined to leave their family pocket boroughs - Mayawati has thrown the sucker punch. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. She announced this week her momentous decision of contesting this most crucial 2024 Lok Sabha election on her own. ``My decision to go alone in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls is atal (unwavering) and no one should have any confusion on the issue, the four-time former Uttar Pradesh chief minister posted on X. She also criticised the opponents and said, Our opponents look quite flustered with the fact that the BSP is contesting the elections on its strength and quite ably at that in Uttar Pradesh. That is why they seem to float fresh rumours each day to mislead the masses, she added, for good measure. Her decision is mystifying, to say the least. Going by history, the BSP and SP combination could have given a tougher fight to the BJP, an alliance certainly stronger than the one stitched by SP and the non-existent Congress, which will be weakened further if the Gandhi family decide to leave their favourite constituencies for the first time since 1951. In the 2019 Lok Sabha, BSP won ten Lok Sabha seatsup from zero in 2014in UP while its ally, SP bagged five seats. The Mahagathbandhan - SP+ BSP + Rashtriya Lok Dal - pulled 39.23 percent votes in UP, with Mayawati alone bagging a healthy 19.43 percent. In the run up to the 2019 general election, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati was so determined to field good candidates that she had reportedly reached out to former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader, HD Deve Gowda, to suggest some names to which the latter obliged. Gowdas trusted aide, JD(S) general secretary Kunwar Danish Ali, fought on a BSP ticket and won the Lok Sabha seat from Amroha. Former UP BJP minister, Siddhartha Nath Singh, told this reporter: ``Mayawati is playing a long game. Plus, her experience with Akhilesh Yadav has not been good. Insiders in the BSP camp who talk only off the record - say that their supreme leaders move is dictated by a combination of personal and political motivations. Ever since the idea of INDIA was floated by the anti-BJP opposition, Mayawati began withdrawing from a combination that would place the BSP as a junior partner in an alliance dictated by Akhilesh Yadav, with the Congress and Rahul Gandhi as senior partners. ``Behenji (Mayawati) would have been okay with a bilateral alliance with the SP, as last time. But she was not ready to play second fiddle even to Akhilesh, as she won 10 Lok Sabha seats to SPs five in 2019. On Akhileshs part, despite a potent Backward caste-Dalit combination, it is easier to deal with the Congress, which has been a spent force in the state since the last three decades or a little more, said an office bearer in Lucknow. As things stand now, the Congress is contesting 17 Lok Sabha seats in UP, as per the terms of agreement with the SP as part of the INDIA alliance. It is anyones guess as to how many they would win out of those 17. In the 2022 UP assembly elections even assuming there can be no comparisons with Lok Sabha polls the Congress won 2 seats out of an assembly strength of 403, finishing behind the likes of Apna Dal, Rashtriya Lok Dal, Nirbal Indian Shoshit Hamara Aam Dal and Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party! Interestingly, the only party it managed to beat was the BSP, which got one seat less, but who grabbed the third highest vote share with 12.9 percent. ``It is impossible to explain Mayawatis lack of ambition. Why would you not want to continue with a potentially winning combination? Leaders are re-inventing themselves today, like Chandrababu Naidu. But she has a nearly 19-20 percent vote share, which if diverted, would easily help the BJP, On the face of it though, she does not have any alliance, says Rasheed Kidwai, journalist, author, and political analyst. Mayawati first served as UP chief minister between June and October 1995 with the help of the BJP. She did another term as CM between May 2002 to August 2003, which was also backed by the BJP. She campaigned in Gujarat for Modi during the high voltage 2002 elections, which catapulted the then Gujarat chief minister into superstardom. Could the cause of the current reluctance be Mayawatis nephew, Akash Anand? The BSP leader, who is pretty much a recluse in this time and age of social media, had named Akash as her successor and party chief last December, though an official declaration is yet to be made. In 2019, she had appointed her brother Anand Kumar as the partys national vice president, leaving no one in doubt that like many regional parties, the BSP too was going to be a family affair. That has led to other problems. In 2016, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had detected cash deposits totalling over 104 crore in an account belonging to the BSP and 1.43 crore in another account belonging to Anand Kumar. Then again in 2019, the Income Tax department has attached "benami" assets worth 230 crore of retired IAS officer, Net Ram, who had served as Mayawatis secretary and was her key aide. So, there is no doubt that like many other political heavyweights in the country, the BSP leader too has investigative agencies on her tail. Party leaders say apart from the probes, her ambition to promote nephew Akash is paramount, which is going to happen soon after the general elections. They state that she wants to hand over her 20 percent vote share in UP intact to Akash, realizing that her personal appeal now lies diluted. ``But could it be enough for her to adopt this hands-off posture? Mamata Banerjee is not giving her nephew a free ride, says Kidwai, adding that it is a fact that some politicians could be uneasy about public litigations and tend to go into a shell. In addition, the BSP chief is also wary of losing her legislators to other parties, as has been the case during the course of her political career. The SP-BSP alliance has a formidable history in UP. In the early 1990s, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Kanshi Ram formed a coalition government in the state with Mulayam as the state's chief minister. The alliance won the 1993 assembly elections against BJP in wake of the Ram Janambhoomi movement, with a catchy slogan Mile Mulayam, Kanshi Ram, Hava mein ud gaye Jai Shri Ram ( "Mulayam and Kanshiram Come Together, Jai Shri Ram Vanishes in the air") In 1991 and 1993 elections, Mulayam Singh Yadav transferred his votes to Kanshi Ram's BSP. In undivided UP, BSP contested 164 seats and won 67 while SP contested 256 seats and won 109 in a House of 425, resulting in a coalition government formed with Congress's support from the outside. On 1 June 1995, Mayawati accused SP of usurping its voters and decided to end the alliance, which the next day led to the infamous and unsavoury `Guesthouse Episode, where Mayawati came close to being assaulted by SP workers. Since then, the relationship between these two powerful backward caste parties have been tense, leading to a nearly two-decade split and bitter confrontation. In periods when they have managed a truce, they have invariably defeated the BJP, like the 2018 by elections in Phulpur and Gorakhpur. Though the two parties fought together again in 2019, for the moment, the dye appears to be cast. Shillong: Senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer N. Luikham allegedly died by suicide on Wednesday, police said. Senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer N. Luikham (HT Photo/Sourced) Police said the incident took place around 7.30am on Wednesday. They found him hanging at his residence near Lady Keane College, Shillong. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Luikham was a 2003 batch of the Indian Forest Service. Police informed, adding, he was serving as the chief conservator of forests with the Meghalaya government. His body was taken to the district civil hospital for post-mortem examination and later was handed over to relatives, said police. His last rites will be performed in at his home town in Manipur, said East Khasi Hills superintendent of police (SP) Rithuraj Ravi told HT on a text message. The state government is coordinating with the forest department and assisting in all regards, he said. We are registering a UD (unnatural death) case in the matter. There is no suspicion of foul play, the SP said. If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918, Roshni Foundation (Secunderabad) Contact Nos: 040-66202001, 040-66202000, ONE LIFE: Contact No: 78930 78930, SEVA: Contact No: 09441778290 Ahmedabad: The Congress on Tuesday announced its second list of 43 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls. In Gujarat, the party has fielded seven candidates against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The list includes a mix of senior leaders and fresh faces. The Congress on Tuesday announced its second list of 43 candidates for the Lok Sabha polls (Representative Photo) Geniben Thakor, a two-time MLA from the Vaav constituency, has been fielded from the Banaskantha constituency. She has been a vocal critic of the BJP in Gujarat and had won against BJPs Shankar Chaudhary, a prominent OBC leader and chairperson of Banas Diary from the Vaav constituency in the 2017 state assembly elections. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Tribal leader and incumbent MLA Anant Patel has been fielded from the Valsad constituency, reserved for ST candidates. The 44-year-old leader was at the forefront of an uprising of the tribals in 2022 following which the Centre decided to halt the Par-Tapi-Narmada (PTN) river-linking project a few months later to avoid the displacement of tribals from their ancestral land in the project affected region. Former MLA Lalit Vasoya has been fielded from the Porbandar constituency where he will contest against Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya, a two-time Rajya Sabha member. Former MLA Bharat Makwana will contest from the Ahmedabad (west) seat which is reserved for SC candidates. The party has fielded Rohan Gupta, the partys national spokesperson, from the Ahmedabad East constituency. Gupta was earlier the chairperson of the social media department of the party. All the seven candidates have a strong bond with the party and will strongly fight the BJP candidates to win these seats, said Manish Doshi, Gujarat Congress spokesperson. Of the total 26 seats, Congress will field candidates for 24 seats in Gujarat, as it has allocated Bharuch and Bhavnagar Lok Sabha seats to the Aam Aadmi Party as per the pre-poll alliance. Siddharth Chaudhary has been fielded on the ST seat of Bardoli. Nishitbhai Lalan, president of the Youth Congress in Kutch, has been fielded for the Kutch Lok Sabha constituency. Earlier on Tuesday, senior Congress leader and former Union minister Bharatsinh Solanki announced via social media his decision to refrain from participating in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. My family and I have been given a lot by the Congress party over the decades. Considering my current responsibility as AICC in-charge Jammu & Kashmir and to be able to effectively campaign for the party in Gujarat, I humbly convey to the high command of my wish not to contest this election, the former Lok Sabha member said on X. The 70-year-old former Gujarat Congress president, however, also said he will accept whatever decision is taken by the party leadership. US Congressman Rich McCormick heaped praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he is confident that he would be re-elected in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US Congressman Rich McCormick.(PTI/AFP) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is incredibly popular. I was just over there. I actually had lunch with Prime Minister Modi and several other congressmen, and to see his popularity across party lines really. Somebody who I think is around 70 per cent popular. He is going to be prime minister again, McCormick, a Republican, told PTI in an interview. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. McCormick said Modi's progressive outlook on the economy and positivity towards the Indian diaspora worldwide is going to affect the global economy. To see his progressive outlook on economy, on development, on goodwill towards all people, to see his application and positivity to the Indian people in the diaspora worldwide is going to affect the global economy, their strategic relationships. I look forward to his influence in a very positive way, he said in response to a question. The US Congressman added that under PM Modi's leadership, the Indian economy has been expanding within a range of four to eight per cent per year. If you look at their willingness to work with other nations now, I would say, I'll put a caveat in there, sometimes there's a bit of protectionism, which a lot of characters do. They've kind of copied some things that China have done. They'll have incredible leverage going forward as businesses want to get into India in an expanding market, McCormick was quoted further as saying by PTI. McCormick, who represents Georgias 6th Congressional district that has a sizeable Indian American population, also said that the US sees a very incredibly important strategic and tactical ally within India. We just have to be sure that we do it in a way that makes sense to both nations when we share technologies that there's trust in. The good news is we don't see the aggressive posturing like we see in China. As a matter of fact, we see a very incredibly important strategic and tactical ally with India to resist countries like China who are autocracies, who believe in a Marxist theology, he said. He added further: We need to make sure that we develop that relationship where there's true trust, that we continue to realise that India is honest. They're not trying to steal our technologies; they're trying to share them. It's okay to use your economic leverage to do that, and as long as we're having an honest conversation, we can have a great conversation in the future, McCormick said. The International Day of Action for Rivers is a day of solidarity when people from all walks of life come together to declare that rivers are essential and deserve our protection. It highlights the importance of ensuring that communities have access to clean, free-flowing water and that everyone has the fundamental right to participate in decisions that affect their lives and their water. It is our collective responsibility to defend these rights and protect our rivers now more than ever. As we celebrate the 27th anniversary of the Day for Rivers, let us also recognise the importance of water availability in all aspects of our lives. From theme to history, scroll down to know more. (Also read: Pi Day 2024: Date, history, significance and all that you need to know about the special day) International Day of Action for Rivers serves as a global platform to raise awareness about the importance of rivers and advocate for their protection.(Unsplash) International Day of Action for Rivers 2024 date and theme The International Day of Action for Rivers is observed every year on March 14 and this year it will be celebrated on Thursday. This year's theme is "Water for All". Water is essential for life and should be shared by all, regardless of the issues your community is facing: water rights, access to clean water, fighting dams, water grabs and privatisation, or removing dams and restoring salmon runs. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. International Day of Action for Rivers 2024 history "The International Day of Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water, and Life was approved at the first International Meeting of People Impacted by Dams in March 1997 in Curitiba, Brazil," according to internationalrivers.org. On March 14, river experts from 20 different nations announced the "Day of Action for Rivers". The aim of the participants was to form a coalition against the degradation of ecologically sensitive water bodies, rivers and watersheds. Significance of International Day of Action for Rivers As a global forum to promote the conservation, restoration and sustainable management of rivers, the International Day of Action for Rivers is of paramount importance. Every year on March 14, environmentalists, communities and politicians come together to commemorate the importance of rivers in sustaining ecosystems, biodiversity and human livelihoods. The day draws attention to the need to address issues such as pollution, habitat degradation and over-exploitation while encouraging the adoption of laws and policies that ensure the long-term health and vitality of rivers. This day aims to promote better stewardship of these invaluable natural resources for present and future generations by inspiring positive change through education, advocacy and collective action. Pi Day 2024: Pi is an important symbol in Mathematics, Statistics and Physics. It is the ratio of the circumference of the circle to the diameter. The ratio is a constant of 3.14 PI. In most calculations in Mathematics, Physics and Statistics, the value of Pi plays a significant role. Pi is one of the most widely known mathematical constants that is applied in calculations inside and outside of science. Every year, Pi Day is observed to commemorate the constant value of Pi and how it simplifies calculations for us. As we gear up to celebrate the special day for this year, here are a few facts that we need to know. Every year, Pi Day is celebrated on March 14.(Unsplash) Date: Every year, Pi Day is celebrated on March 14. This year, the special day falls on Thursday. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. History: The constant value of Pi was first calculated by Mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse. In 1737, Leonhard Euler used the symbol of Pi, and hence it got accepted in the scientific community. In the year 1988, American physicist Larry Shaw celebrated the first Pi Day. Incidentally, Pi Day is observed on the birth anniversary of renowned Physicist Albert Einstein. Significance: Pi Day falls on March 14. When the date is written in the format of month and date, it matches the first three digits of the Pi value. On this day, people also eat pie to commemorate the value of Pi and add to the celebrations. Pi recital competitions and workouts are parts of the i day celebrations observed by Mathematics lovers across the world. Pi is a part of Egyptian mythology. People in Egypt believed that the pyramids of Giza were build adhering to the principles of Pi. The value of Pi has interested people for 4000 years, and has made world-famous Mathematicians such as Fibonacci, Newton, Leibniz, and Gauss study the value, calculate the digits and apply the value of Pi in numerous calculations. In the two decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the United States hubristic achievement of its unipolar moment, few would have anticipated the slow geopolitical landslide that is unravelling the established order in the world today. This was marked by Sweden abandoning its two-century-old neutrality to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the starkest threat of nuclear weapons use issued by President Vladimir Putin over western support to Ukraine. In his State of the Nation speech a few days ago, Putin denied that his country planned to attack Europe but simultaneously warned that any increase of support to Ukraine really risks a conflict using nuclear weapons, which means the destruction of all civilisation. The context was French President Emmanuel Macrons suggestion of sending western troops to beleaguered Ukraine. Macrons own context was, perhaps, Donald Trumps declaration last month that if European countries were delinquent in their defence spending, I would encourage them (Russia) to do whatever the hell they want. In his speech, Putin invoked history when he recalled the fate of those who once sent their contingents to our country. The list of those who were humbled by Russia includes not just NATO stalwarts France and Germany, but Sweden as well, whose imperial ambitions suffered a catastrophic defeat at Poltava, now part of Ukraine, in 1709. Now, Putin added, potential interveners would suffer a tragic fate since we also have weapons that can strike targets on their territory. Coincidentally, on the day Putin issued his warnings, the Financial Times had a major exclusive, based on leaked Russian military files of the 2008-2014 period that included training scenarios for war, not just in Europe, but also surprisingly, China. The main point that emerged was that Russian forces had rehearsed using tactical nuclear weapons at an early stage of a conflict with a major world power. Russia has strategic nuclear weapons which mainly target the US. There is a similarity between the Russian doctrine and that of Pakistan which developed tactical nuclear weapons after India unrolled its Cold Start doctrine. Fed up with its inability to deter Pakistani terror attacks because of the slow pace of its mobilisation that enabled Islamabad to undertake a counter-mobilisation, the Indian Army worked out a doctrine that could have their forces entering Pakistan in quick time. To negate Indias advantage, Pakistan decided to develop tactical nuclear weapons. The common assumption is countries that have nuclear weapons will use them only as a last resort. But countries like Russia and Pakistan believe that the military balance is against them and fear that their adversaries will overwhelm them with their conventional forces unless they use or threaten to use nuclear weapons. While countries like India and China broadly offer a no-first-use pledge, neither Russia nor Pakistan, or for that matter, the US, provide it. The big problem with tactical nuclear weapons is that the authority for their employment has to, necessarily, be delegated to the commanders forward on the ground. Whereas the employment of strategic weapons can be carefully controlled by the highest authorities of the land. Just how seriously these developments are being taken is reflected in the decisions of Finland and Sweden to join NATO. Having been defeated by Russia in World War II, Finland lost territory to the erstwhile Soviet Union and had a somewhat precarious existence in the Cold War when Finlandisation became a byword of enforced neutrality. As a result of its misadventures in the Napoleonic wars, in 1812, Sweden adopted neutrality for two centuries, which allowed it to sit out both the World Wars and the Cold War. But the Russian invasion of Ukraine has compelled a change of course. What will the accession of the two countries to NATO mean? Both countries did have informal defence ties with fellow Scandinavian countries and the US, but NATO membership is qualitatively different. Having planned all this time to defend themselves without allies, the two had developed significant capabilities which they now bring into the alliance. Finland shares a 1,340-km border with Russia and its accession has doubled NATOs border with Russia. It brought along substantial military capability into the alliance and the mobilisation strength of a 285,000-strong army. The Swedes for their part will come with a strong naval component built around their ability to dominate the Baltic Sea. The Swedish Air Force, one of the largest in Europe, will also make a major contribution. In addition, they will come with strong defence R&D and industry that will benefit the alliances military-industry capacity. By all accounts, Sweden has developed some of the worlds most formidable cyber defence capabilities. All these developments need to be seen in light of the steady expansion of NATO, a development that has been viewed as threatening by Russia and triggered the Ukrainian crisis. In the present circumstances, the Baltic republics that joined NATO in 2004 see themselves as a frontline of sorts. The population of ethnic Russians in two of them Estonia and Latvia is around 24%. The Ukraine war itself is currently stalemated. With the summer offensive of 2023 having failed, Kyiv is unlikely to attempt another one this year. With American assistance blocked in the US Congress, things dont look too good for Kyiv. In any case, what we have seen till now is that western assistance has been fitful and inadequate and undermined by the American need to supply artillery ammunition to Israel since last October. But to jump from here to the point where Macron suggested western boots on the ground in Ukraine will be a leap too far and will definitely elicit a strong Russian response. We should be clear that the Ukraine war is likely to be a long one and attrition rather than manoeuvre will be key. The challenge is Europes ability to support Ukraine, especially since American isolationist sentiments are surging. But it still remains important to ensure that it does not lead to a larger Russia versus NATO configuration. There have been worries about the intentions of President Putin who has himself denied that Moscow had no intention of invading Poland, Latvia or anywhere else. But the problem with war is that while it is relatively easy to start one, it is very difficult to forecast its course or the circumstances of its termination. Manoj Joshi is a distinguished fellow, Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. The views expressed are personal In today's fast-paced world, consumers face a myriad of challenges when it comes to maintaining freshness, efficiency, and organisation in their kitchens. From fluctuating temperatures to insufficient storage space, finding the right fridge can be difficult. However, our selection of the top 8 kitchen fridges aims to address these common issues head-on. Best kitchen fridges: Enhance your kitchen game with our top-rated 8 picks for the ultimate fridge experience.(Pexels) These fridges offer innovative solutions to the everyday problems faced by consumers. Whether it's preserving freshness with advanced cooling technology or maximising storage capacity with smart organisation features, these appliances are designed to streamline the kitchen experience. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. With spacious interiors and flexible storage options, these fridges ensure that every inch of space is utilised effectively, allowing users to store more without compromising on the organisation. Moreover, these fridges are equipped with energy-efficient technology, helping consumers save on utility bills while reducing their environmental footprint. With sleek designs and user-friendly interfaces, they not only enhance the functionality of the kitchen but also add a touch of modern elegance to any home. To address these challenges, we have curated a selection of 8 top-rated fridges available for purchase on Amazon, ensuring that you can find the perfect solution within your budget. Browse through our options and say goodbye to kitchen woes for good! 1. Samsung 183 L, 2 Star, Digital Inverter, Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator B0BR3V1SQT Experience efficient and reliable cooling with the Samsung 183 L, 2 Star, Digital Inverter, Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator. This 2024 model, in Gray Silver, features advanced digital inverter technology for precise temperature control and energy efficiency. Its direct-cool mechanism ensures uniform cooling, while the compact design makes it ideal for small spaces. With its sleek gray-silver finish, this refrigerator adds a touch of modernity to any kitchen decor. The advanced digital inverter technology not only ensures efficient cooling but also minimizes noise levels, providing a quiet operation environment. Specifications of Samsung 183 L, 2 Star, Digital Inverter, Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 183 L Energy Rating: 2 Star Cooling Technology: Digital Inverter, Direct-Cool Model: RR20C2412GS/NL Colour:Gray Silver Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Advanced digital inverter technology for precise cooling Limited capacity for larger households Energy-efficient operation No frost-free feature for hassle-free maintenance Compact design suitable for small spaces Limited colour options Sleek Grey Silver finish adds modernity to kitchen decor Limited warranty period 2. Whirlpool 240 L Frost-Free Triple-Door Refrigerator B0CJRJD1ZJ Enhance your kitchen with the sleek Arctic Steel finish, adding a touch of elegance to your home decor. Its spacious triple-door design not only enhances organization but also offers easy access to your stored items. With advanced features like intelligent cooling and frost-free operation, this refrigerator promises to keep your groceries fresh for longer durations. Say goodbye to the hassle of frequent defrosting and hello to hassle-free maintenance with Whirlpool's innovative technology. Whether you're storing fresh produce or frozen treats, this refrigerator ensures every item stays at its optimal temperature, preserving its flavour and nutritional value. Specifications of Whirlpool 240 L Frost-Free Triple-Door Refrigerator: Model: FP 263D PROTTON ROY ARCTIC STEEL(N) Capacity: 240 L Door Type: Triple-Door Cooling Technology: Frost Free Colour: Arctic Steel Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Spacious triple-door design for efficient organisation Relatively smaller capacity compared to other models Frost-free operation for hassle-free maintenance Limited color options Advanced cooling technology ensures optimal freshness Limited warranty period Energy-efficient performance May be priced higher compared to other models in the same range 3. LG 185 L 4 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator B0BSLNLG9J Upgrade your kitchen with the LG 185 L 4 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator in Scarlet Euphoria. This 2023 model combines style with efficiency, featuring a base stand with a drawer for added convenience. With its 4-star energy rating and inverter technology, it ensures optimal cooling while minimizing energy consumption. The direct-cool mechanism provides uniform cooling, preserving the freshness of your food items. Compact yet spacious, this refrigerator is perfect for small households or as an additional storage unit. Experience the perfect blend of performance and aesthetics with LG's innovative refrigerator design. Specifications of LG 185 L 4 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 185 L Energy Rating: 4 Star Cooling Technology: Inverter Direct-Cool Model Year: 2023 Colour: Scarlet Euphoria Additional Features: Base stand with drawer Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Energy-efficient operation with a 4-star rating Limited storage capacity for larger households Inverter technology for consistent cooling Relatively smaller freezer compartment Base stand with drawer for added convenience May not fit larger items easily Stylish Scarlet Euphoria color No built-in water or ice dispenser Low noise operation for quiet ambiance Limited colour options Also Read: Best French door refrigerators: Upgrade your kitchen with these top 10 models 4. Godrej 180 L 4 Star Turbo Cooling Technology, Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator B0BV27HC9R Introducing the Godrej 180 L 4 Star Turbo Cooling Technology Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator (2023 Model, RD EDGENEO 207D THF AQ BL, Aqua Blue). Elevate your kitchen experience with this efficient and stylish appliance. With its Turbo Cooling Technology, it ensures rapid and effective cooling, maintaining freshness for your food items. The Aqua Blue colour adds a refreshing touch to your kitchen decor. Its compact design makes it suitable for smaller spaces, while the 4-star energy rating ensures energy efficiency. Now, let's delve into the specifications and reasons to consider or avoid this refrigerator. Specifications of Godrej 180 L 4 Star Turbo Cooling Technology, Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 180 L Energy Rating: 4 Star Cooling Technology: Turbo Cooling Model: RD EDGENEO 207D THF AQ BL Colour: Aqua Blue Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Turbo Cooling Technology ensures rapid cooling Limited storage capacity for larger households 4-star energy rating for energy efficiency Manual defrosting required periodically Compact design suitable for smaller spaces No frost-free feature for hassle-free maintenance Stylish Aqua Blue color adds aesthetic appeal 5. LG 185 L 5 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator B0C2J46ZKN Introducing the LG 185 L 5 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator (GL-D201ABPU, Blue Plumeria, Fast Ice Making, Base stand with drawer). Experience rapid ice-making and efficient cooling with its Fast Ice-Making feature. This refrigerator not only enhances your kitchen decor with its vibrant Blue Plumeria colour but also offers convenient storage with its base stand and drawer. With LG's innovative inverter technology and 5-star energy rating, enjoy reliable performance while saving on energy costs. Embrace freshness and style with this sleek and practical addition to your home. Specifications of LG 185 L 5 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 185 L Energy Efficiency: 5-star rating Cooling Technology: Direct-Cool Colour: Blue Plumeria Ice Making: Fast Ice Making feature Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Energy-efficient with 5-star rating Limited capacity for larger families Fast Ice Making for quick chilling Direct-Cool may require manual defrosting Stylish Blue Plumeria color Limited color options may not suit all preferences Convenient base stand with drawer Higher initial cost due to advanced features Reliable brand reputation of LG Limited additional features compared to competitors 6. Samsung 653 L, 3 Star, Frost Free, Side By Side AI Enabled Smart Refrigerator B0BQC4Y4TP Experience the epitome of innovation with the Samsung 653 L, 3 Star, Frost Free, Convertible 5-in-1 Digital Inverter, Side By Side AI Enabled Smart Refrigerator. This 2024 model, in refined Inox silver, redefines convenience and connectivity in the kitchen. With AI technology and Wi-Fi capability, it offers unparalleled control and monitoring. Its convertible design adapts to your changing needs, while the spacious side-by-side layout ensures ample storage. Explore its impressive specifications below and weigh the reasons to embrace this cutting-edge appliance for your home. Specifications of Samsung 653 L, 3 Star, Frost Free, Side By Side AI Enabled Smart Refrigerator: Capacity: 653 L Energy Rating: 3 Star Cooling Technology: Frost Free Inverter Technology: Digital Inverter Convertible Modes: 5-in-1 Design: Side By Side Connectivity: WiFi Enabled Colour: Refined Inox (Silver) Model Year: 2024 Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Advanced AI technology and WiFi connectivity Higher initial cost compared to traditional refrigerators Spacious side-by-side layout for ample storage Requires stable WiFi connection for full functionality Convertible 5-in-1 design adapts to changing needs Larger footprint may not fit smaller kitchens Frost-free operation for hassle-free maintenance Advanced features may be unnecessary for some users Samsung brand reliability and reputation Complex setup and operation may require learning curve 7. Haier 165 L 1 Star Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator B0BTHLCK15 Introducing the Haier 165 L 1 Star Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator in Red Steel. This 2023 model boasts efficient cooling and a compact design, perfect for smaller spaces. Its direct cool technology ensures uniform cooling, while the affordable price point makes it an attractive option for budget-conscious buyers. The stylish Red Steel exterior adds a pop of colour to your kitchen decor. Despite its 1-star energy rating, this refrigerator offers reliable performance and ample storage for essentials. Ideal for those seeking affordability and functionality without compromising on style or performance. Specifications of Haier 165 L 1 Star Direct Cool Single Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 165 L Energy Rating: 1 Star Cooling Technology: Direct Cool Design: Single Door Colour: Red Steel Model Year: 2023 Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Affordable price point Low energy efficiency Compact design fits small spaces Limited storage capacity compared to larger models Direct cool technology ensures uniform cooling Manual defrosting required Suitable for budget-conscious buyers Limited features and functionalities compared to others Stylish Red Steel exterior adds a pop of color May not meet the needs of larger households 8. LG 322 L 3-Star Frost-Free Smart Inverter Double Door Refrigerator B0C8NVVGTB Experience the convenience of advanced technology with the LG 322 L 3-Star Frost-Free Smart Inverter Double Door Refrigerator. This smart appliance offers efficient cooling and ample storage space for your groceries. Its smart inverter compressor ensures energy savings and quiet operation, while the frost-free design eliminates the need for manual defrosting. With features like toughened glass shelves, multiple cooling modes, and a sleek design, this refrigerator is perfect for modern households. From preserving freshness to enhancing convenience, the LG refrigerator ticks all the boxes for a reliable and functional kitchen appliance. Specifications of LG 322 L 3-Star Frost-Free Smart Inverter Double Door Refrigerator: Capacity: 322 L Energy Rating: 3-Star Cooling Technology: Frost-Free, Smart Inverter Door Type: Double Door Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Efficient cooling with smart inverter compressor Relatively lower energy efficiency compared to higher star-rated models Ample storage space for groceries and beverages May be priced higher than basic models with similar features Frost-free operation for hassle-free maintenance Limited color options may not suit all kitchen aesthetics Toughened glass shelves for durability and convenience Multiple cooling modes cater to different storage needs Also Read: Best refrigerator in India: Choose from top 10 options Best 3 features for you: Products Capacity Cooling Technology Door Type Samsung 183 L, 2 Star, Digital Inverter, Single Door 183 L Digital Inverter Single Whirlpool 240 L Frost-Free Triple-Door 240 L Frost-Free Triple LG 185 L 4 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door 185 L Inverter Direct-Cool Single Godrej 180 L 4 Star Turbo Cooling Single Door 180 L Turbo Cooling Single LG 185 L 5 Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door 185 L Inverter Direct-Cool Single Samsung 653 L, 3 Star, Frost Free, Side By Side 653 L Frost-Free Side By Side Haier 165 L 1 Star Direct Cool Single Door 165 L Direct Cool Single LG 322 L 3-Star Frost-Free Smart Inverter Double Door 322 L Frost-Free Smart Inverter Double Best value for money product: The LG 185 L 4-Star Inverter Direct-Cool Single Door Refrigerator stands out as a compelling choice for value-conscious consumers. Its efficient inverter technology and 4-star energy rating offer excellent energy savings without compromising performance. The 185 L capacity provides ample storage space for small to medium-sized households, while the direct-cool system ensures uniform cooling. Its sleek design and sturdy build quality further enhance its value proposition. Overall, this refrigerator offers a perfect balance of affordability, energy efficiency, and functionality, making it an ideal investment for those seeking a reliable cooling solution without breaking the bank. Best overall product: The Samsung 183 L, 2 Star, Digital Inverter, Single Door refrigerator is a reliable and efficient choice for smaller households and stands out as the best overall product for customers. With its compact yet spacious 183 L capacity, it offers ample storage space while consuming minimal energy, thanks to the digital inverter technology. The single-door design enhances accessibility and convenience, making it ideal for tight spaces. Its 2-star energy rating ensures decent energy efficiency. Overall, this Samsung refrigerator combines essential features with Samsung's renowned reliability, making it the perfect solution for those seeking a balance of performance, efficiency, and affordability in a compact refrigerator. How to find the best kitchen fridges for your home? When selecting the best kitchen fridge for your home, consider your household size, storage needs, and available space. Begin by determining the ideal capacity and configuration, such as single door, double door, or side-by-side. Look for features like frost-free operation, adjustable shelves, and energy efficiency ratings to ensure optimal performance and convenience. Additionally, consider special features like water and ice dispensers or convertible compartments based on your preferences. Reading user reviews and comparing brands can also help you make an informed decision. Disclaimer: At Hindustan Times, we help you stay up-to-date with the latest trends and products. Hindustan Times has an affiliate partnership, so we may get a part of the revenue when you make a purchase. We shall not be liable for any claim under applicable laws, including but not limited to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, with respect to the products. The products listed in this article are in no particular order of priority. Marked by severe restrictions, women in Afghanistan are being denied their basic rights and freedoms under Taliban rule, which returned in 2021. Among those women, however, are two sisters who have launched their own form of movement against oppression through music. Clad in blue burqa, they started a music movement called the Last Torch. Protected by anonymity, they took it upon themselves to perform songs which resonated with many women across their country. Two burqa-clad sisters are protesting against the Taliban with their music. (Screengrab) In an interview with the BBC, the sisters, whose names are changed to Shaqayeq and Mashal to protect their identity, shared, Our fight started from right under the flag of the Taliban and against the Taliban. Before the Taliban came to power, we had never written a single poem. This is what the Taliban did to us. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Taliban took just a few days, after returning to power, to implement its vision in Afghanistan, including ban on womens education, reports the BBC. Many also faced a harsh crackdown when they took to the streets to protest against the restrictions imposed on the everyday life of the women. Women were the last light of hope we could see, Shaqayeq told the BBC. That's why we decided to call ourselves the Last Torch. Thinking that we wouldn't be able to go anywhere, we decided to start a secret protest from home, she added. One of the songs they performed is a famous poem written by the late Nadia Anjuman, reported the BBC. She wrote the song as a form of protest against the first Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 1996. Their videos have made their way to social media. Heres one such video that shows the sisters singing a song while covered in blue-coloured burqas. According to the BBC, singing under Taliban rule is punishable, and the sisters are well aware of that. Shaqayeq shared that she had spent many nights thinking that the Taliban would end up identifying them. We have seen their threats on social media: Once we find you, we know how to remove your tongue from your throat. Our parents get scared whenever they read these comments. They say maybe it's enough and we should stop. But we tell them we can't, we cannot just continue with our normal lives, Mashal added. The sisters left the country last year for their security. However, they hope that they can return soon to their birthplace. NASA's Hubble Telescope was launched in 1990, and since then, it has provided scientists with fascinating information about space. Numerous discoveries made by this telescope are also shared on Instagram and often catch the attention of many people. Recently, the telescope captured a star cluster that was born five and a half million years ago. The space agency took to Instagram to share its picture and provided details about it. This cluster, named NGC 6611, has left the Internet mesmerised. Snapshot of the NGC 6611 captured by NASA's Hubble Telescope. (Instagram/@NASA) In the caption of the post, NASA Hubble informed, "This #HubbleClassic view is within M16, also known as the Eagle Nebula. The cluster's intense ultraviolet glow makes the surrounding nebula glow. The dark patches seen throughout are regions of very dense gas and dust, obscuring light from passing through. These may be sites of new star formation before the fledgling stars clear away their surroundings and burst into view." (Also Read: NASA shares behind-the-scenes look at a star formation captured by Hubble Telescope) Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. While describing the image, the space agency wrote, "Several bright-white, bluish, and orange stars shine with diffraction spikes, interspersed throughout dark dust. Particularly, dark regions of gas and dust are seen near the lower left." Take a look at the star cluster shared by NASA here: This picture was shared a few hours ago. Since being shared, it has gained more than 54,000 likes and numerous comments. Many people found the image 'beautiful'. Some even said that it left them 'fascinated'. (Also Read: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope finds water vapour in exoplanet 97 light years away from Earth) Check out how people reacted to the picture of the star cluster here: An individual wrote, "Space is just so beautiful." A second added, "How beautiful! They look like diamonds. The universe is very fascinating." "Fantastic photo by Hubble. The Eagle Nebula is a beautiful section of sky," posted a third. A fourth shared, "Truly beautiful!" "So gorgeous," commented a fifth. Many others reacted to the picture of this cluster using heart emoticons. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, anticipating what his office called the possibility for invasion," ordered more than 250 law enforcement officers and soldiers to the Florida Keys on Wednesday to stop Haitian migrants fleeing violence or nearly two people deployed for every Haitian migrant who has been repatriated by the U.S. Coast Guard in the last five months. HT Image Haitian migrants have tried to make the journey to Florida by boat from the impoverished nation for years. DeSantis already sent state resources to the Keys last year in what he said was an attempt to stop migrants. He issued Wednesday's order for additional personnel along with aircraft and boats after violence in Haiti spiked in recent days. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. But so far, the Coast Guard hasn't seen increased migrant traffic in the waters off Florida. Currently, no, there's nothing out of the ordinary, said Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Stephen Lehmann in Miami. We have resources in the area and standing by if we do see an influx. The Coast Guard has repatriated 131 migrants found at sea to Haiti since Oct. 1, including 65 on Tuesday who were found on a boat near the Bahamas last week, according to a news release. The governor's office said in a news release the state has the right to defend itself from the potential of invasion. DeSantis is sending a mix of Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers, along with members of the Florida National Guard and Florida State Guard, to the waters south of the state's southern Peninsula. DeSantis made immigration one of his top themes during his failed campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. He has boasted about using millions in state money to fly migrants from the U.S.-Mexico border to California, and to fly Venezuelan migrants from Florida to Marthas Vineyard, Massachusetts, under a program he pushed through the state Legislature. Haitians have been migrating to the U.S. in large numbers for several years, many having left their Caribbean nation after a devastating 2010 earthquake. In recent days, Haiti has witnessed a series of gang attacks that have paralyzed the country, forcing thousands of people from their homes, especially in the capital city of Port-au-Prince, where the port and airport remain closed. The armed gangs seized power in much of Port-au-Prince following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and now control about 80% of the city. The U.N. food agency reported Tuesday that 4 million people face acute food insecurity and 1 million are one step away from famine. After an intense session of international diplomacy, a group of Caribbean nations and the United States announced Tuesday that Haitis best hope for calming violence rests with the creation of a presidential council of influential figures who would elected an interim prime minister and open the pathway for presidential elections. Some Haitian political parties have rejected the plan. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Toronto: Half of Canadians believe that there are too many immigrants coming into the country, according to the findings of a new survey. Passengers wait for their flights at Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal, Canada. (AFP) The survey, conducted the agency Leger for the Montreal-headquartered Association for Canadian Studies and the Metropolis Institute, showed that 50% of respondents were of the opinion that immigration numbers are too high. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. That was a steep increase from the 21% who held that opinion in a previous survey in January 2023 conducted by the Canadian government cited by the outlet National Post. At that time, they were outnumbered by those that sought higher immigration. Canada has never had an anti-immigrant sentiment, and all parties have agreed on the necessity of newcomers. But, Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for Canadian Studies and the Metropolis Institute, told the National Post, This concern about immigration has traction and certainly it constitutes a challenge to this consensus. This suggests its a departure from what weve seen in the previous decade, he added. These views have evolved amid a surge in immigration after travel restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic were lifted. There were nearly a million newcomers in 2022, and was higher in 2023. In fact, last year saw a million international students in the country for the first time. Some of the change in the prior welcoming attitude towards immigrants is from those who came to the country fairly recently, between the last 10 and 20 years, according to Naresh Chavda, president of Globayan Immigration Corporation, felt. They are not saying they are anti-immigrant, Chavda stressed, but that the number of immigrants coming in should not exceed the capacity of the country to absorb them. As economic issues, like cost-of-living and housing affordability, become prime drivers of the weakening support for immigration, Chavda said new groups, like recent immigrants as well as those once holding a liberal stance towards immigration, are joining those who were always against newcomers, in boosting the negativity. They believe their standard of living is dropping, Chavda said. The change in perception has already weighed heavily on the popularity of the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leading to measures like reducing the number of applications being accepted for study permits and holding steady the quantum of permanent residencies being granted. In January, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced a cap of 35% on the intake of applications for study permits this year, which is expected to bring the number of approvals down to 360,000. Starting in 2026, the government will stabilise the number of permanent residents accepted to 500,000. One person was killed and 22 others injured following a gas explosion at a Yanjiao restaurant in north China's Hebei Province on Wednesday, damaging the building and several vehicles, official media reported. The explosion is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak at a fried chicken shop in Yanjiao township, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Yanjiao township is located on the outskirts of Beijing. Chinese media said the explosion occurred at a restaurant on the ground floor of an old residential complex. State media Global Times reported that the explosion occurred at a restaurant on the ground floor of an old residential complex in Hebei province. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Videos from the scene circulating online show a huge plume of blue smoke, several damaged sedans, and debris scattered all over the ground. Local authorities have sent an investigation team to the scene and are currently conducting rescue work, reports said. Watch here: Police cordoned off streets 1 kilometre out from the explosion, Associated Press reported, and were directing people away. Fire engines were still arriving at the scene as of 11 am, and a truck could be seen hauling away a burnt-out car with its windows gone. An explosion occurred at the ground floor restaurant in an old residential area, state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding it was a "suspected gas explosion". The blast took place around 7:55am (local time), CCTV said, in a residential area in the village of Xiaozhanggezhuang, Yanjiao, in Sanhe City, less than 50 kilometres east of the capital Beijing. A video on social media showed what appeared to be a building that had completely collapsed and several destroyed cars. Watch here: China: Two coal mine accidents kill 12 In unrelated incidents, two separate coal mine accidents have killed 12 people in China over the 24 hours, state broadcaster CCTV reported, the latest incidents to plague the industry after the government recently revised mining safety legislation. An underground coal bunker owned by a firm in Zhongyang County, Shanxi province collapsed right before midnight on Monday, killing five people with two missing, CCTV said on Tuesday. The fatal accident in Shanxi comes after its mining safety regulator issued a notice last month telling mines to curb overproduction to prevent accidents. China's top producing coal mine region saw a surge in deaths in 2023. In 2023, China had a string of deadly coal mine accidents, forcing the country's mine safety administration to revamp an existing law that an official said had "prominent problems". (With inputs from AFP, Reuters) Lithuanian police said on Wednesday they had launched an investigation into an assault on Leonid Volkov, the long-time aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, after he was attacked outside his home in Vilnius. Leonid Volkov, top aide of Alexei Navalny.(REUTERS) Volkov was attacked on Tuesday with tear gas and a hammer, suffering among other things a broken arm, a bruise to his forehead and a leg wound, former Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Volkov said in a Telegram post he was back home from hospital on Wednesday after receiving treatment, adding he had been hit about 15 times on his leg with a hammer. The investigation was launched into a "minor health impairment", a Lithuania police spokesperson told Reuters, while adding that no suspects had yet been identified. Several police units including the elite anti-terrorism unit had been investigating the crime scene near Volkov's house on the Lithuanian capital's northern outskirts overnight. READ | Navalny aide says the Russian opposition leader was close to being freed before his death Volkov has repeatedly angered Russian authorities by organising anti-Kremlin protests from his base in Vilnius and demanding the release of Navalny from prison when he was still alive. The U.N. human rights expert on Russia said on Monday that Navalny's Feb. 16 death was Moscow's responsibility as he was either killed in prison or died from detention conditions that amounted to torture. Russian authorities say Navalny, President Vladimir Putin's most prominent critic, died in an Arctic prison of natural causes. Navalny's wife, Yulia Navalnaya, has accused Putin of having him killed, an accusation the Kremlin rejects. The U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania, Kara McDonald, said on social media X she was "shocked" by the news of the attack on Volkov. "His resilience and courage in the face of recent attempts to silence and intimidate him are inspiring. The Navalny team remains an outspoken voice against Kremlin repression and brutality", she said. Lithuanian Foreign Affairs Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis on Tuesday called the incident shocking and said the perpetrators must "answer for their crime". Several members of Navalny's political group, the Anti-Corruption Foundation, are living in EU and NATO member Lithuania after fleeing Russia. A federal judge in Florida on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit against Meghan Markle, the wife of Britain's Prince Harry, rejecting claims that the actress had made "disparaging, hurtful and false" claims about her half-sister. The lawsuit specifically took issue with Meghan Markle's remarks that she and Samantha had not been close growing up. (Reuters) Markle's half-sister Samantha, with whom she shares a father, had alleged that Markle's statements in a Netflix documentary series and a 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey had implied Samantha was a "deceptive fame-seeking imposter with avaricious intentions." Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also Read | UK Tabloid says Meghan Markle may have dodged a bullet amid Kate Middleton Photoshop scandal The lawsuit specifically took issue with Markle's remarks that she and Samantha had not been close growing up, and that Samantha had changed her surname back to Markle when the royal couple first started dating. U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell of Florida's Middle District found in her ruling on Tuesday that the statements in question were either opinions, substantially true, or did not plausibly defame Samantha. Meghan Markle and Harry, King Charles' younger son, are known as The Duke and Duchess of Sussex. They and their two children have lived in California since the couple stepped down from royal duties in 2020. Their widely publicized split from the rest of Britain's royal family has been worldwide tabloid fodder for years, and prompted the British government to strip Harry of automatic police protection when he was in Britain. In the 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey cited in Samantha Markle's complaint, the couple accused the royal family of racism, neglect, and internal feuds. Asked by Winfrey about a "supposedly tell-all book" her half-sister had authored about her, Markle replied that it would be "very hard to tell all when you don't know me." Their appearance with Winfrey was viewed by 49 million people around the world, according to U.S. network CBS. It caused their popularity to plummet within Britain and triggered the 1,000-year-old monarchy's biggest crisis of the century. (Reporting by Julia Harte Editing by Bill Berkrot) Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda is scheduled to seek a vote of confidence from Parliament on Wednesday, days after the Maoist leader dumped the Nepali Congress and forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) party. Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as Prachanda(Reu) Prachanda, a former guerilla leader belonging to the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), the third largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR), on Sunday sent a letter to the Parliament Secretariat, indicating that he has severed ties with the Nepali Congress. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also Read | UPI now accepted in Nepal: How it works and other key details worl Prachanda is required to prove his majority after he lost the support of the previous ally, the Nepali Congress, the largest party in the HoR. Prachanda has now forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML) led by former prime minister K P Oli, who was regarded as a top critic of the Maoist leader. The new government requires at least 138 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives to win the vote of trust. Wednesday's vote of confidence will be the third such by Prachanda, 69, since he assumed office in December 2022. Also Read | New Government alliance in Nepal after Maoist Centre-Nepali Congress coalition collapses The Prachanda-led coalition government currently enjoys the support of 150 members in the lower house of Parliament. The second-largest party in the HoR, CPN-UML, led by former premier KP Sharma Oli, has 76 seats, while the third-largest party, CPN-Maoist Centre, has 32 seats. Similarly, the Rastriya Swatantra Party, the Janata Samajwadi Party and the CPN-Unified Socialist have 20, 12 and 10 seats, respectively. Out of a total of 78 lawmakers of the CPN-UML in the lower house, one of the members has passed away, while another is suspended. The CPN-Maoist Centre has issued a whip to all of its members of the HoR to be present in the lower house on March 13. This is the third time that Prime Minister Prachanda is seeking a vote of confidence in the House in less than one-and-a-half-year. Prachanda became the prime minister for the third term with the support of the Nepali Congress on December 25, 2022. Last year, Prachanda faced a floor test after the Oli-led CPN-UML withdrew its support to the Prachanda-led government following a rift over backing the main opposition partys candidate for the presidential poll. In the 2017 election, Prachanda and Oli merged their parties and secured a comfortable majority. Oli became the prime minister, but their partnership ended halfway following differences between them. The Nepali Congress party has asked its members to vote against the Prachanda government. Meanwhile, the five political parties in the ruling alliance on Tuesday inked a seven-point agreement, pledging to support the Prachanda-led government. A meeting of the parties that took place at the Prime Minister's official residence in Baluwatar decided to promote mutual cooperation to make the government delivery further "effective" and "advance" towards good governance, social justice and prosperity. The meeting attended by the top leadership of the five parties also agreed to promptly conclude the transitional justice issue, the remaining task of the peace process and matters concerning the establishment of sustainable peace based on consensus. They also agreed to prepare a common minimum programme among the parties in the government and to come up with government policies and programmes capable of promoting national interests and consolidating democracy. An understanding has been reached among the political parties to strengthen national independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity as well as to move ahead towards the path of political stability for socialism-oriented socio-economic development. The five parties agreed to move ahead to fulfil the people's aspirations of good governance, development and social justice as well as putting the issues of national interest and concerns in priority. Meanwhile, President Ramchandra Paudel on Tuesday administered an oath of office and secrecy to the newly-elected Chairman of the National Assembly Narayan Prasad Dahal. Dahal, a common candidate of the ruling alliance, was elected chair of the upper house securing 39 votes in the 59-strong House. Dahal, the younger brother of Prime Minister Prachanda, was nominated to the National Assembly in 2022 by President Bidya Devi Bhandari on the recommendation of the then Sher Bahadur Deuba government. He, however, has a long political history. The upper house of the Parliament has 59 members, but presently it has 58 members. TAIPEI, Taiwan His writing won Chinas first Nobel Prize for Literature, but is it patriotic enough for Xi Jinpings China? Thats the question at the center of a high-profile lawsuit now driving a debate about nationalism in China. HT Image Patriotic campaigns have become more common in recent years in China, as online nationalists attack journalists, writers or other public figures they say have offended the country's dignity, but it is unusual for a figure as prominent as Mo Yan to be targeted. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Patriotic blogger Wu Wanzheng, who goes by Truth-Telling Mao Xinghuo online, sued under a law that carries civil penalties and, in some cases, criminal punishments for perceived offenses against Chinas heroes and martyrs. Wu claimed Mos books have smeared the Chinese Communist Partys reputation, beautified enemy Japanese soldiers and insulted former revolutionary leader Mao Zedong. The lawsuit filed last month demands that the author apologize to all Chinese people, the countrys martyrs and Mao, and pay damages of 1.5 billion yuan 1 yuan for each Chinese person. He also requested that Mos books be removed from circulation. Wu based his grievances on the 2018 law that made insulting heroes and martyrs a crime punishable by up to three years in prison. The law is part of Xis campaign to fight historical nihilism, a phrase the party uses for any interpretation of historical events that runs counter to its official narrative. Mo, whose real name is Guan Moye, won the Nobel in 2012. He is known for portraying rural life in China and delving into some of the downsides of the countrys rapid economic development. Literature and art should expose the darkness and injustice of society, he said in 2005 while accepting an honorary doctorate from a Hong Kong university. But the 69-year-old has had few conflicts with Beijing. In 2011, he became vice chairman of the state-backed Chinese Writers Association. After he received his Nobel, a top party official praised him as an outstanding representative of Chinas rising economic might and international influence. It seems unlikely that Wu will win the lawsuit. The Chinese government has not formally commented on the saga, but state-run tabloid Global Times on Tuesday published a story quoting a recent speech by Mo, indirectly signaling support for the author. The blogger said on Chinese social media platform Weibo that a Beijing court rejected his first lawsuit because Wu failed to provide Mos home address. His current lawsuit is based on part of the 2018 law that would hold someone civilly liable if they insult or slander "heroes and martyrs to the detriment of the public interest. The Associated Press could not independently verify his claims because the court has not made the documents public. Sharp-tongued media commentator and former editor of Global Times Hu Xijin also criticized Wu, calling his attempt to sue Mo a farce and a populist act. On Weibo, Hu decried support for the action as a very alarming trend in online public opinion. In return, Wu threatened to sue Hu too. Online, discussion was divided, while some called it a reflection of growing nationalism in China and others condemning the accusers. The controversy has trended on Weibo, where the hashtag #MoYanbeingsued had been viewed around 2 million times. At least one other related hashtag has been censored. Murong Xuecun, a well-known Chinese writer who lives in exile in Australia, said he sees no evidence the government is backing the targeting of Mo, but it has created an environment where such patriotic attacks are encouraged. This trend has incited people to report, to inform on and to expose each other, targeting those who diverge from mainstream ideologies or promote universal values, he said. Thats what authorities have been doing. The 2018 law and other similar laws have resulted in scores of arrests, including an investigative reporter who challenged Chinas official casualty numbers in a border skirmish with India in 2021 and a former editor of a financial magazine who questioned official justifications for Chinas involvement in the Korean War. Associated Press researcher Wanqing Chen in Beijing contributed to this report. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a military demonstration involving tank units on Wednesday, state media KCNA reported on Thursday. A military demonstration involving tank units and guided by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is held in North Korea. (Reuters) Kim was joined by senior officials including Defence Minister Kang Sun Nam at the event described by KCNA as a "training match" between tank units. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The military event was designed to strictly inspect the actual combat capabilities of tank crews and make them familiar with combat action methods on different tactical missions, KCNA reported. "Swiftly weaving their way through various worst combat circumstances, heavy tanks hit targets at once with powerful strikes and broke through strong defense lines with high maneuverability," the report said. Kim also emphasised the need to organise intensive exercises simulating an actual war and training matches for enhancing combat capability to be able to carry out any combat mission promptly and accurately in any contingency. Kim's appearance at the demonstration came days after he guided an artillery firing drill by the Korean People's Army, the country's military force, last week. The drill involved units near the border that are in firing range of "the enemy's capital," KCNA said, referring to South Korean capital Seoul, which has nearly 10 million residents. One man has died and 29 workers have been rescued after a gold mine collapsed in the Australian state of Victoria, police and union officials said Thursday. One of the trapped workers was freed and airlifted to hospital in "serious condition", police said. Emergency services were called to the Mount Clear gold mine near the town of Ballarat on Wednesday evening after reports of "a rockfall" inside a mining tunnel, Victoria Police said. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "Two people were pinned by fallen rocks while 28 workers were able to take refuge in a safety pod," they said in a statement. One of the trapped workers was freed and airlifted to hospital in "serious condition", police said. The body of a 37-year-old man was recovered on Thursday morning, they added. The 28 miners that took refuge were safely brought to the surface and assessed by Ambulance Victoria. Toronto: Civil liberties groups, Booker Prize-winning Canadian author Margaret Atwood and Tesla founder Elon Musk are among those who have come out against the draconian so-called Online Harms Bill introduced by the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets workers as he tours new construction at Edgemont Flats housing complex during an announcement of new funding for housing in Edmonton, Alberta. (REUTERS) The bill was introduced before the House of Commons late last month but has gained national attention after celebrated author Margaret Atwood described it as Orwellian in a post on X recently. The possibilities for revenge false accusations + thoughtcrime stuff are sooo inviting! Trudeaus Orwellian online harms bill, the two-time Booker Prize winner posted. She was referring to British author George Orwells novel Nineteen Eighty-Four where the autocratic regime considers any idea outside its ideology as a thoughtcrime. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. That view appeared to be shared by Tesla founder and executive chair of X Elon Musk, who posted, in response to an article on the bill, This is insane. Canadas Minister of Justice and Attorney General Arif Virani, an Indo-Canadian, who is shepherding the bill through parliament, attempted to defend it on Tuesday. During an event in Toronto, he said in French, It includes expressions of detestation and vilification. It does not include insults, offensive comments, or jokes that are not very polite, according to the outlet CBC News. The governments position has not impressed groups like the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) which has described some of the bills provisions as draconian. In a release after the bill was tabled, CCLAs executive director and general counsel Noa Mendelsohn Aviv said its initial assessment reveals that the bill includes overbroad violations of expressive freedom, privacy, protest rights, and liberty. The broad criminal prohibitions on speech in the bill risk stifling public discourse and criminalising political activism, he noted, adding, The bill imposes draconian penalties for certain types of expression, including life imprisonment for a very broad and vaguely defined offence of incitement to genocide, and five years of jail time for other broadly defined speech acts. This not only chills free speech but also undermines the principles of proportionality and fairness in our legal system. The Canadian Constitution Foundation stated that the bill will significantly hamper constitutionally-protected expression. In a post on its website, it added, The mere threat of human rights complaints and fines for Canadians and social media companies will chill large amounts of otherwise protected speech. The government has argued that the proposed legislation will create stronger protections for kids online and better safeguard everyone in Canada from online hate and sets out a new vision for safer and more inclusive participation online. As we were leaving later that evening, an elder took us aside. He was pleased we had taken their beliefs seriously and said many older Pacific people wont talk about traditional knowledge for fear of ridicule. People have inhabited the Pacific Islands for 3,000 years or more and have experienced many climate-driven challenges to their livelihoods and survival. This reflects the dominance of science-based understandings in adapting to climate change and its threats to ways of life. Our new research suggests this attitude should change. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. We reviewed evidence on traditional knowledge in the Pacific for coping with climate change, and found much of it was scientifically plausible. This indicates such knowledge should play a significant role in sustaining Pacific Island communities in future. A proven, robust system Our research was co-authored with 26 others, most Pacific Islanders with long-standing research interests in traditional knowledge. People have inhabited the Pacific Islands for 3,000 years or more and have experienced many climate-driven challenges to their livelihoods and survival. They have coped not by luck but by design through robust systems of traditional knowledge built by diverse groups of people over time. The main short-term climate-related threats to island livelihoods in the Pacific are tropical cyclones which can damage food crops, pollute fresh water and destroy infrastructure. Prolonged droughts common during El Nino events in the southwest Pacific also cause widespread damage. Traditional knowledge in the Pacific explains the causes and manifestations of natural phenomena, and identifies the best ways to respond. It is commonly communicated orally between generations. Here, we describe such knowledge relating to animals, plants, water and sky and show how these beliefs make scientific sense. Its important to note, however, that traditional knowledge has its own intrinsic value. Scientific explanations are not required to validate it. Reading the ocean and sky Residents of Fijis Druadrua Island interpret breaking waves to predict a cyclone as long as one month before it hits. In Vanuatus Torres Islands, 13 phrases exist to describe the state of the tide, including anomalies that herald uncommon events. These observations make scientific sense. Distant storms can drive ocean swells onto coasts long before the winds and rain arrive, changing the usual patterns of waves. In Samoa, ten types of wind are recognised in traditional lore. Winds that blow from the east indicate the imminent arrival of heavy rain, possibly a tropical cyclone. The south wind is most feared. It will cease to blow, it is said, only when its appetite for death is sated. Many Pacific Island communities believe a cloudless, dark blue sky signals the arrival of a tropical cyclone. Other signs include unusually rapid cloud movements and the appearance of short rainbows. These beliefs are supported by science. Rainbows are sometimes shortened or partly obscured by a distant rain shower. And Western science has long recognised changes in clouds and winds can signal the development of cyclones. In Vanuatu, a halo around a moon signals imminent rainfall. Again, this belief is scientifically sound. According to Western science, high thin cirrus clouds signal nearby storms. The clouds contain ice crystals through which moonlight is filtered, creating a halo effect. The wisdom of animals and plants As mentioned above, birds are are said to herald weather changes across the Pacific. In Tonga, when the frigate bird flies across the land unusual behaviour for an ocean species it signals a tropical cyclone is developing. This traditional knowledge is captured in the logo of the Tonga Meteorological Service. Birds are similarly interpreted in Fiji and northern Vanuatu. This belief stacks up scientifically. One study in North America, for example, showed golden-winged warblers dodged tornadoes by detecting shifts in infrasound. Another study, which included data on frigate birds in the Pacific, found seabirds appeared to circumvent cyclones, probably by sensing wind strength and direction. Traditional knowledge about insect behaviour in the Pacific Islands is also used to predict wet weather. Bees, wasps and hornets usually build nests in tree branches. When nests are built close to the ground, Pacific Islanders know the forthcoming wet season will be wetter than normal, probably due to more tropical cyclones. This type of nest-building may prompt residents to make appropriate preparations such as storing food. Studies suggest insect behaviour can predict changes in weather. For example, a study of wasp nesting in French Guiana found their ability to quickly move nests to more sheltered locations may help them survive wet years. Across the Pacific, common signs of impending wet weather are found in the behaviours of some plants. The central shoot of the plantain, for example, will be conspicuously curled instead of straight. This can be explained scientifically by a process in which plant leaves close to protect their reproductive organs from extreme weather. Planning for a warmer future Since colonisation imposed Western worldviews around the world, traditional knowledge has been sidelined. This is true of the Pacific Islands, where in some places, traditional knowledge is all but forgotten. But both Western and traditional knowledges have their pros and cons. Science-based knowledge, for example, is generic and often cant realistically be applied at local scales. As climate change impacts worsen, optimal planning for island peoples should combine both approaches. This will require open-mindedness and a respect for diverse sources of knowledge. AMS AMS This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Paul Alexander, the man who spent 70 years of his life in an iron lung passed away at the age of 78 in Texas, United States on Monday. A fundraiser for his healthcare confirmed the news on his GoFundMe page. "After surviving polio as a child, he lived over 70 years inside an iron lung. In this time Paul went to college, became a lawyer, and a published author. His story travelled wide and far, positively influencing people around the world. Paul was an incredible role model that will continue to be remembered," Christopher Ulmer, who had set up the page, said in the update. A picture of Paul Alexander shared on the GoFundMe page. Alexander was forced to live inside the 600-pound metallic structure after being struck by polio at the age of six. Popularly known as 'Polio Paul,' he was paralyzed in 1952 by the disease, rendering him incapable of breathing independently. He was swiftly taken to a Texas hospital upon experiencing symptoms, only to awaken confined within the mechanical lung. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. However, despite his physical constraints, Paul Alexander achieved much as a published author and lawyer. At the age of 21, he became the first person to graduate from a high school in Dallas without ever attending class in person, The Daily Mail said in a report. After facing numerous challenges with university administration, he finally secured acceptance into Southern Methodist University in Dallas. Subsequently, he gained admission to law school at the University of Texas, Austin, the report stated. In his pursuit of becoming a trial lawyer, Paul also represented clients in court while donning a three-piece suit and utilising a customised wheelchair to maintain his upright position despite his paralysis. During his hospitalisation, medical professionals attempted to wean Paul off the ventilator, switching it off to encourage him to breathe independently, but he would quickly turn blue and lose consciousness, the report added further. Despite the availability of newer ventilator technologies, Paul opted to stick with the iron lung machine out of familiarity and comfort. Polio, an infectious viral disease, impacts the respiratory function and central nervous system, leading to muscle weakness and paralysis. It spreads through contaminated water and food or contact with an infected individual. It has been revealed that Prince Harry has been "worried for years" about some of his unseen naked pictures that a dominatrix threatened to leak. An expert said the Duke of Sussex is in panic mode, according to The Mirror. Prince Harry is in panic mode' over threats that his naked photos may be leaked (Photo by Don MacKinnon / AFP)(AFP) Carrie Royale said she and Harry met in 2012 when she received an invitation to a suite at the five-star Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. This is where Harry was pictured naked during a party. The dominatrix recently said she would leak the photos on her OnlyFans account. She was banned from the platform following that. A spokesperson for the site said, "The creators account has been deactivated and they have been banned from the platform for threatening to share non consensual intimate images." Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Harry has been worried for years According to royal expert Tom Quinn, Harry considered taking legal action after the threats. "Harry has been worried for years that his past will come back to haunt him and now it has. Threats by the dominatrix from his 2012 Las Vegas trip to release photographs of him naked has sent him into panic mode and he is considering legal action or a pay-off to stop it, Quinn said. "He is acutely embarrassed about his wild past because that isn't who he is now after the seismic shift choreographed by Meghan - from right-wing playboy to right-on saviour of the planet and its inhabitants, Quinn added. One can read about this Las Vegas party in Harrys memoir, Spare. In the book, the Duke wrote that his friends had invited "four or five women who worked at the hotel to join us, along with two women they'd met at the blackjack tables" before the naked photos were taken. Photos from the party showed Harry standing while holding his hands in front of his crotch. An unidentified naked woman was seen beside him. Harry was 27 at the time. After weeks of intense debate, the US House of Representatives is set to vote on the TikTok ban bill, which would force the social media giant to cut ties with its Chinese owner or face a ban in the United States. The US House is expected to vote on the ban at 10am on Wednesday (7:30pm IST). The TikTok ban bill in the US could be passed tonight. (AP/FILE) The legislation is the biggest threat yet to the video-sharing app, which has surged to huge popularity across the world all while causing intense nervousness amongst governments and security officials about its Chinese ownership and its potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. While many oppose the bill, it is predicted that the legislation will be passed by the US House with an overwhelming majority despite the deep political divide in Washington. The White House further said in an official statement that President Joe Biden will sign the bill, known officially as the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," into law if it came to his desk. TikTok ban in US: All you need to know House Republican Mike Gallagher and House Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi are the co-sponsors of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act bill, which can potentially ban TikTok in the United States. The measure, which passed unanimously through a committee last week, would require TikTok's parent company ByteDance to sell the app within 180 days or see it barred from the Apple and Google app stores in the United States. The TikTok ban bill can also give power to the president to designate other applications to be a national security threat if under the control of a country considered adversarial to the US. Former US President Donald Trump, who previously endorsed the bill, turned around from his stance and said that a ban on TikTok would strengthen Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, which he called an "enemy of the people." The Trump administration had attempted to take control of TikTok from its Chinese parent company, but the action was blocked by the US courts. Multiple other attempts have also been made in the past to wrest control or ban the app in US states, but federal courts have blocked the move. (With inputs from AFP) Ukraine launched a sweeping drone attack on Russian regions on Wednesday, causing a fire at Rosneft's biggest oil refinery in what President Vladimir Putin said was an attempt to disrupt Russia's presidential election. Rescuers work to extinguish fire at a building due to a drone attack.(REUTERS) Russia and Ukraine have both used drones to strike critical infrastructure, military installations and troop concentrations in their more than two-year war, with Kyiv hitting Russian refineries and energy facilities in recent months. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The day after seriously damaging Lukoil's NORSI refinery, a Ukrainian drone attacked Rosneft's Ryazan oil refinery, Russia's seventh largest, 180 km (110 miles) from Moscow. Russian media said around 60 drones had been destroyed over Russian sovereign territory over just several hours. "The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle)," Pavel Malkov, governor of the Ryazan region bordering the Moscow region to its north, said on the Telegram messaging app. READ | Ukraine hits Russia's key oil refinery in latest drone attack: Report "A fire broke out as a result. According to preliminary information, there are injuries," he said, without elaborating. Russia's RIA state news agency said four Ukrainian drones attacked the plant in the early hours, leading to a 175 sq m blaze. The fire was put out several hours later. The impact on its production was not immediately clear. Unverified video footage posted on social media showed a plume of black smoke soaring above flames at the Ryazan plant, which refines about 12.7 million tonnes of oil a year, or 4.6% of the Russian total, according to industry sources. REFINERY SECURITY TIGHTENED It accounts for about 6.4% of Russia's gasoline production, 4.1% of diesel, 7.7% of fuel oil and 8.0% of aviation fuel, according to the sources. Full Russian production figures are no longer published. A drone was destroyed by air defences on its approach to the Kirishi refinery, Russia's second largest, in the north of Russia, Alexander Drozdenko, the Leningrad region's governor, said. There was no impact on the refinery's work, he said. READ | 234 fighters killed after thwarting incursion from Ukraine: Russia Security around oil refineries, a key source of Russia's income, was tightened in some regions, Russian media reported. More than 30 drones were destroyed in the air over the Voronezh region that borders Ukraine, Governor Alexander Gusev, said on Telegram, adding there was only minor damage. Putin in remarks published on Wednesday accused Kyiv of attempts to interfere with the March 15-17 presidential election through its attacks. "The main goal, I have no doubt about it, is to - if not to disrupt the presidential elections in Russia - then at least somehow interfere with the normal process of expressing the will of citizens," Putin told Russia's RIA state news agency and Rossiya-1 state television in a wide-ranging interview. Putin, who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago, is nearly certain to win the vote. In the Belgorod region, falling debris from downed drones damaged a gas supply line and cut off power to some villages. John Barnett, former Boeing employee who raised safety concerns about the world's largest aerospace company's production standards, was found dead in Charleston, South Carolina, on Saturday. People protesting against Boeing as it holds the Defense Supplier Summit in Seattle, Washington, U.S.(REUTERS) In a release, the Charleston County Coroners Office said Barnett died from "what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The police officials said they are investigating the matter to determine the formal cause of death. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. According to a statement provided to CNN by his lawyer, Barnett's death occurred amidst a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which was nearing completion. The lawyer insisted that they don't see any indication that Barnett would take his own life, adding that we need more information about what happened to John. His family told NPR the case was scheduled for trial in June, and that Barnett was looking forward to appearing in the court, hoping that "it would force Boeing to change its culture." Also Read: Who was John Barnett, the Boeing whistleblower mysteriously found dead in US? John Barnett vs Boeing In 2019, Barnett accused Boeing of ignoring safety concerns he raised with supervisors about slashing corners and using shoddy components to manufacture planes. Boeing has refuted Barnett's assertions. Barnett said workers at a plant in South Carolina often installed substandard components on planes. He additionally reported about defective oxygen systems, which might lead to oxygen masks not functioning effectively. Barnett even recalled an instance at the factory where employees reprocessed scrap bin parts and fixed them into planes. Before his death, Barnett had been providing proof in the case against Boeing. He had been appearing in legal interviews related to the case and was set to face additional questions on Saturday. As he did not appear for the grilling on Saturday, investigators went to his hotel, where he was found dead inside his car that was stationed at the hotel parking lot. Also Read: John Barnett death: Family says Boeing's hostile work environment led to suicide, He was suffering from PTSD After his demise, Boeing in a statement expressed sadness and offered condolences to his friends and family members. Barnett's sudden death has sparked several concerns with many questioning Boeing over their former employee's sudden death and hoping that officials conduct a genuine probe. Sharing a video of Barnett speaking to TMZ about the case against Boeing, X user Collin Rugg wrote: "When he died, Barnett was in Charleston for interviews linked to a case against Boeing. He was supposed to come back for more questioning on Saturday but did not show up... Police are investigating Barnett's death but say he died from a "self-inflicted" wound...Totally normal." Without naming Boeing, another X user Matt Wallace wrote that Barnett was found dead in his car as he was about to expose their entire money laundering operation. Robert F. Kennedy, the independent presidential candidate, claimed that Boeing worked to destroy his life after he exposed safety concerns. "John Barnett worked for Boeing for 32 years. The company worked to destroy his life after he exposed safety concerns. I'm proud that my sister Rory worked to tell his story in her award winning documentary Downfall: The Case Against Boeing. Boeing killed 346 people out of greed. Let's hope there is a genuine investigation of John Barnett's 'suicide'," Kennedy wrote on X. A look at series of Boeing incidents In a tragic incident on Monday, at least 50 people were injured after a Chilean LATAM Airlines Boeing 787 Dreamliner "dropped" midair while flying from Australia to New Zealand. According to an ambulance representative, twelve patients were brought to the hospital when the jet landed in Auckland, with one suspected to be in serious condition. The reason for the plane's abrupt dive is still unknown and is being investigated by New Zealand's Transport Accident Investigation Commission. In January, an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Portland after its door panel blew off in midair, creating an enormous hole in the plane. Shortly after its takeoff on March 4, Boeing 737 made an emergency landing in Houston, Texas, following an engine fire. Last Wednesday, a Boeing 737-800 made an emergency landing in Portland International Airport after passengers in the plane reported smelling some fumes or an odor. A tyre dropped off a Boeing 777-200 as it lifted off from San Francisco, demolishing a car. The jet was destined for Japan, but it was rerouted to Los Angeles. On March 8, a Boeing 737 MAX skidded off the Houston runway and got stranded in the grass. Boeing has been facing severe criticism over its safety performance following two deadly crashes that claimed the lives of 189 people in Indonesia in 2018 and 157 people in Ethiopia in 2019. Boeing 737 MAX jets were grounded globally for nearly two years following the tragedies. US House Rep. Cori Bush slammed former US President Donald Trump as a "White Supremacist-in-Chief" during a congressional hearing, sparking a debate on racism online. Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing with Department of Justice Special Counsel Robert Hur, Tuesday March 12, 2024. (AP) She made the statement while grilling former special counsel Robert Hur, who testified on Capitol Hill about his damning report on US President Joe Biden, in which he described him as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. "As my colleagues have pointed out, President Biden fully complied with the investigation conducted by special counsel Hur who did not find evidence sufficient to warrant criminal charges," Bush said. "Despite this outcome, Republicans have used the special counsel's report to further their long-standing efforts to reelect the former white-supremacist-in-chief Donald Trump." As her statement sparked outrage, she went on to say on X (formerly Twitter):"I said what I said [shrug emoji] Donald Trump is the former White Supremacist-in-Chief." Also Read: US Presidential Elections: Donald Trump and Biden rematch a done deal now The lawmaker defended her serious stance against Trump by posting a clip of the statements on her congressional X account. Rep. Bush wrote, "Another day, another sham GOP hearing to run interference for Donald Trump. As I said during the hearingour country deserves better than this GOP clown show. On Tuesday, Trump secured the requisite delegates to clinch the GOP presidential nomination for the third time in a row, paving the way for a November rematch with Biden. In response, President Joe Biden echoed similar sentiments with Bush's remarks, stressing Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. Cori Bush chastised for using racist slur against Trump Soon after her remarks surface on social media, Cori Bush started trending on X. Condemning Bush, several X users accused her of using a racist slur against Trump. Someone needs to permanently remove @CoriBush from Government office. She is a crook, racist and danger to this country, one X user wrote. The Democrats are running out of names to call the Republicans, another wrote. I can only imagine if this same name calling were thrown in the other direction what the outcome would be. This woman has no business being allowed to speak at this hearing, a third user added. She called the former President a White Supremacist - with ZERO evidence. She used a RACIAL SLUR and she should be censured or reprimanded! She should be sued for defamation or slander, a fourth X user chimed in. Libs of TikTok slammed her for not saying a word about Kailee, a student from Hazelwood East High School who remains in critical condition after being brutally beaten by a black teen. Also Read: Robert Hur stands firm with his decision not to charge Joe Biden. Here are 5 key takeaways from the testimony Earlier, Bush referred to Trump as a white supremacist during a session held after the deadly attack on the US Capitol in 2021, when lawmakers were discussing whether to impeach Trump for another time. Bush is a notable member of "The Squad," which includes House members Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar. These lawmakers have gained prominence in Congress for their outspoken criticisms of GOPs, and they are frequently targeted by conservatives who disagree with their policy positions. Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), has been accused of influencing the results of 2022 US midterm election. Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), has been accused of influencing the results of 2022 US midterm election.(REUTERS) In a post on X on Wednesday, journalist Tucker Carlson said US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has alleged that Musk committed election interference in 2022 by changing the algorithms on X to change the results of the midterm elections. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. According to Carlson, Cortez levelled the allegation against Musk during a classified briefing attended by "officials from the Biden Justice Department" on Tuesday afternoon. Musk responded to Carlson's post, emphasising that he "made the algorithm open source and neutral to all parties," and claiming that Cortez's "standards" construed his program as election interference. Former Fox News anchor Carlson further stressed on a bill that could impose a ban on TikTok, a video-sharing app that is widely used in the United States. He said that it is not a coincident that anti-TikTok is being debated on the Capitol Hill that would empower the government to ban any social media platform that interfere in elections. Just so you know whats coming in 2025, he added. Also Read: Donald Trump tells supporters his $355 million fraud fine is election interference ploy Did Russia and China target some election systems during 2022 midterms? In December, the US Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security released a report, stating that hackers with links to China and Russia targetted some electoral systems during the 2022 midterm election. However, the government did not find any evidence to substantiate their claim that foreign governments compromised the vote. The report stated that no foreign government or agent jeopardized the security or integrity of electoral systems. Also Read: TikTok ban in US: Fate of social media giant to be sealed by US House today The investigation found that pro-Russian activist hackers appeared to have briefly barred access to the website of a state electoral authority. According to the examination, hackers with links to China examined both election-related and non-election-related state government websites. "There is no evidence that this activity prevented voting, changed votes, or disrupted the ability to tally votes or to transmit election results in a timely manner; altered any technical aspect of the voting process; or otherwise compromised the integrity of voter registration information or any ballots cast during the 2022 federal elections," the report stated. The Director of National Intelligence found that Chinese officials saw the exploitation of some of the polarising topics that gained attention in 2018 elections, such as abortion and gun regulation, as a chance to depict the US democratic model as "chaotic, ineffective, and unrepresentative." The intel's midterm assessment also discovered that the Russian government "sought to denigrate the Democratic Party" prior to the polls in an evident attempt to undercut support for war-torn Ukraine. Donald Trump is under fire after images surfaced on social media showing him holding a photo of Laken Riley, which he had autographed. On the photograph, which reads Say her name, Trump spelled her name wrong. Instead of Laken, the former president wrote, I love you Lakan. Trump reportedly posted the photo on his website. Donald Trump blasted for autographing Laken Riley's photo (REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer/File Photo)(REUTERS) When Donald Trump met Laken Rileys family The picture was reportedly taken on March 9, when Trump met Rileys parents backstage before speaking at a rally in Georgia. "I met her beautiful mother and family backstage," Trump told the crowd in Rome. "They said she was like the best. She was always the best to us. They admit that she was the best, and she was the first in her class. She was going to be the best nurse. She was the best nursing student. She was always the best. She was the brightest light in every room, they told me." Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Trump is being slammed shortly after president Joe Biden was blasted for saying Rileys name wrong during his State of the Union address. He failed to apologise for his mistake, but later said he regrets referring to Rileys killer, Jose Antonio Ibarra, as an illegal during his speech. While campaigning in Georgia, Trump slammed Biden, saying, Joe Biden went on television and apologized for calling Laken murderer an illegal. Biden should be apologizing for apologizing to this killer." Trumps recent photo, showing him holding Rileys picture with his autograph on it, has sparked controversy. In the photo, Trump is seen with a wide smile on his face. Why is he so happy holding a photo of a deceased girl? Many flocked to the comment section, slamming Trump. Looks to me like he misspelled her name, one user said. This is gross. So gross, one said, while another user wrote, Only Trump would misspell her name on a poster that literally says, Say Her Name and then sign it. Its Laken not Lakan. And smiling about it. these people are morally bankrupt! one user said. You know it never fails, every time I think he can't go any lower, he finds a depression in the muck, one user said, while another wrote, Exploiting this poor girl, its sad. And spelled her name wrong. And said I love you, one user said. And why is he so happy holding a photo of a deceased girl? one wrote. Tax filing just got easier! IRS has introduced a new system for taxpayers in twelve selected states that will ease them into filing federal income taxes this season, which began on January 29 with an April 15 deadline. The Treasury Department has estimated that about 19 million people may be eligible to use the online tool. A Spanish version of the program will also go live on Tuesday at 1 pm ET. FILE - An Internal Revenue Service 2023 1040 tax form and instructions are shown on Jan. 26, 2024 in New York. It's tax season in the U.S., and for many people, filing tax returns can be a daunting task that's often left until the last minute. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)(AP) IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel declared the new expansion as a "milestone" during the Tuesday press conference. He emphasised how Direct File marks the first time taxpayers can electronically file their returns directly with the Internal Revenue Service instead of availing commercial tax preparation software package TurboTax for income tax returns. And the whole thing being free of charge just can't be beaten. Here's everything you should know about the Direct File pilot program: Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. All About the IRS Direct File Pilot Program: With its easy-to-follow approach, the free online tool will provide you with a step-by-step checklist, guiding you through the filing process and helping you keep track of the progress made. Once finished, Direct File will show a detailed summary of your 2023 federal taxes. Customer service representatives can also clear your doubts through live chat from Monday to Friday, 7 am to 10 pm ET. Technical support is offered in both English and Spanish. Also read | Donald Trump blasted for autographing Laken Riley's photo, misspelling her name Which states are implementing the Direct File Pilot? Taxpayers who didn't live in the following 12 states in 2023 can't access Direct File. Arizona California Florida Massachusetts Nevada New Hampshire New York South Dakota Tennessee Texas Washington State Wyoming For taxpayers from Arizona, California, Massachusetts or New York: Direct File takes you to the state-supported tool, which will help you prepare and file state tax returns. As for Washington state taxpayers, the pilot will guide you to a state site. There, you can apply for the Working Families Credit while filing your federal return with the pilot. Direct File Eligibility: Other than the pilot state criteria, taxpayers reporting the following types of income/credits/deductions on their 2023 tax return will be eligible for the program: Types of income: W-2 wage SSA 1099 Social Security 1099-G unemployment compensation 1099-INT interest income of $1,500 or less Types of credits: Earned Income Tax Credit Child Tax Credit Credit for other dependents Type of deductions: Standard deduction Student loan interest Educator expenses (Taxpayers itemising deductions can't use the pilot program) IRS employee Dixie Warden had also referred to the US government's electronic tax return filing method as "taxes for dummies" earlier this month. Direct File is still in its mere pilot phases and has been launched on a limited basis. Werfel hasn't "prematurely" reached a conclusion about its availability in the 2025 season yet. The new project's success will significantly determine its role and growth in the future. An AP News report revealed that Warden, a Texan employee of the IRS, saved nearly $400 by filing her returns directly to the government instead of relying on other tax preparation services. Congress and the Biden-led administration are considering a variety of executive and legislative options to ban TikTok, an intensely popular video-sharing app with nearly 170 American users. The new US bill requires TikTok to cut links with its Chinese owner within 180 days or face a ban in the United States. (AP) However, the critics argue that the proposed ban could trigger long-term consequences for free speech and expression, global data transfer and mostly importantly US-China ties. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives will vote on a bill that was overwhelmingly approved by committee last week. The legislation requires TikTok to cut links with its Chinese owner within 180 days or face a ban in the United States. While TikTok enjoys word-wide popularity, it has sparked immense concerns among governments about its Chinese ownership and apparent servitude to the Communist Party in Beijing. Avril Haines, America's director of national intelligence, has warned the House intelligence committee that China could use TikTok to influence the November elections. "We cannot rule out the possibility that the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) would use it," Haines said. An act of bullying? Xi administration warns US against TikTok ban Issuing a major warning to the US government, China on Wednesday claimed that the ban is an attempt to suppress TikTok as the United States has not provided any evidence that app threatens its national security. In a press conference, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Wang Webin, denounced the US move as bullying behaviour that would inevitably come back to bite the United States itself." "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," said Wenbin. "This kind of bullying behaviour that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order," he added. Meanwhile, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew has arrived in Washington in a bid to garner support to stop the bill. In a letter to bill's co-sponsors, TikTok's vice president for public policy Michael Beckerman stated that the proposed legislation poses serious constitutional concerns. This latest legislation being rushed through at unprecedented speed without even the benefit of a public hearing, poses serious Constitutional concerns, he wrote in the letter, as per AFP. A look at Biden and Trump's take on TikTok ban US President Joe Biden recently announced that he will sign the legislation, Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, requiring Chinese tech giant ByteDance to divest from TikTok. Addressing reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland's Prince George's County, Biden reaffirmed his support for the proposal, saying, "If they [Congress] pass this, I'll sign it." If passed, the legislation would give president the authority to declare other apps as a national security threat if they are controlled by a country considered hostile to the United States. The revived effort by Washington against TikTok alarmed the firm as TikTok officials were relieved when Biden himself joined the app as part of his re-election campaign. Former US President Donald Trump, who has long touted his tough stance against China, has reversed his position on the TikTok ban, claiming that youngsters in the United States "would go crazy" without the popular app. Trump's U-turn coincides with his meeting with Jeff Yass, a billionaire Republican megadonor who has a significant stake in ByteDance. The meeting has fueled speculations that economic interests are influencing Trump's stance on the issue. Trump has even suggested that if the US bans TikTok, companies such as Facebook will gain an unfair advantage. "Without TikTok, you can make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people," he stated in a CNBC interview on Monday. Will the ban escalate tensions between US and China? The steps come as the US has increased pressure on Chinese companies in recent years, specifically in the semiconductor, electric vehicle, and biotech sectors. Experts believe that the United States may apply further measures to thwart competition from China, as "the decoupling is really in full force." Earlier this month, the United States Senate voted to adopt legislation that could limit business with Chinese biotech corporations including WuXi AppTec and BGI due to national security concerns. China is viewed as a danger to the US auto industry, as US vehicle exports plummet and businesses such as General Motors reduce overseas operations. US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm recently admitted that the US is "very concerned about China bigfooting our industry". According to the White House, the US was conducting investigations into whether automobile imports by China pose any threat to national security, claiming that they may gather confidential information about US citizens and infrastructure and send it to China. In October 2022, the United States issued laws aimed at preventing China from gaining access to high-tech semiconductor chips and chip-manufacturing equipment, citing concerns that China could use them militarily. A year later, the United States said that it will impose additional limitations to plug gaps that had opened up following the implementation of AI chip export limits in 2022. As the moves by US government has already infuriated Beijing, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that the United States has been coming up with new methods to suppress China. He further claimed that Washington's baseless allegations against Beijing have reached a "unbelievable degree." "If it [U.S.] persistently monopolizes the high end of the value chain, and keeps China at the low end, where is fairness and competition?" Wang asked. If the United States bans TikTok, it won't be unfair to say that Washington will struggle in maintaining cordial ties with China. Other than the US, some nations that have fully banned TikTok include Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Nepal, India, Iran and Somalia. The vote is slated to take place today at 10 am (local time) at the House of Representatives. The bill's fate is unknown in the Senate, where major stakeholders have expressed objections to taking such extreme action against TikTok amid concerns over data privacy, foreign interference, and cybersecurity risks. The family of John Barnett, the Boeing whistleblower who was recently found dead, has blamed the companys hostile work environment for his suicide. Barnett was found dead on the day he was set to testify against the jetplane manufacturer. John Barnett death: Family says Boeing's hostile work environment led to his suicide (WTHR screenshot/YouTube) He was suffering from PTSD and anxiety attacks as a result of being subjected to the hostile work environment at Boeing which we believe led to his death, Barnetts relatives said, according to New York Post. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Barnett worked as a quality inspector and manager for Boeing for over three decades. He retired in 2017. The Charleston County coroner ruled that he was found dead on Saturday, March 9, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was discovered in his truck in the parking lot of his South Carolina hotel. Boeing had a culture of concealment and was putting profits over safety The 62-year-olds family said that he initially enjoyed working for Boeing. However, things began to change after he was transferred to the companys 787 plant in Charleston. Things greatly changed for him when he learned that upper management was pressuring the quality inspectors and managers to cut corners and to not follow processes and procedures which they were required by law to follow, the family said. The family said that Boeing would often coerce employees to overlook defects to avoid slowing down the assembly line. Those who refused were labeled as trouble makers, retaliated against, and subjected to a hostile work environment, they said. Barnett reportedly told his family that getting the management to do the right thing was no less than a battle every day. He was deeply concerned about the safety of the aircraft and flying public, and had identified some serious defects that he felt were not adequately addressed, the relatives said. He said that Boeing had a culture of concealment and was putting profits over safety. Barnett began to get so stressed out that his doctor was worried. It caused him so much stress that his doctor told him that if he stayed, he would have a heart attack, the family said. What are John Barnett's lawyers saying? Barnett's lawyers, however, have claimed there was no indication that he could kill himself. Lawyers Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles said in a statement, according to the Daily Mail, ohn was in the midst of a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which finally was nearing the end. He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didn't see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it. We are all devastated. We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned, they added. Barnett, known as Mitch in his family, filed a complaint against his employer in 2017. He was looking forward to his day in court, according to his relatives. Mitch carried all this on his shoulders to try to bring this all to light in the interest of the flying public, his family said. Charleston police are now investigating the circumstances around Barnetts death. Meanwhile, Boeing said in a statement, We are saddened by Mr. Barnetts passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends. Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). Shocking details have emerged about Boeing whistleblower's death days after he was found dead in South Carolina, on Saturday. John Barnett, 62, reportedly shot himself with his handgun and left a suicide note in his truck in a parking lot in Charleston, South Carolina, according to a DailyMail.com report. John Barnett, a former Boeing employee. found dead after he had had raised concerns about the company's production standards(@sentdefender) John Barnett allegedly died of a gun shot, days after he exposed the wrongdoings in his company - seven years after he retired following a 32-year career. John was in Charleston for deposition against Boeing and when on third day he was due to be cross examined by his own lawyers, he failed to show up. Formal cause of death is yet to be confirmed. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Police: John Barnett died from a 'self-inflicted' wound Investigating Officers at Charleston Police Department, probing his death, claim Boeing's ex-quality manager died from a 'self-inflicted' wound. He reportedly extended his stay at Holiday Inn two days prior to his suspected suicide. John was expected to check out the day before his friend contacted the hotel and raised an alarm. Employees knocked on his hotel room, with no response and later found him dead inside his Dodge Ram in the parking lot. He had a 'silver handgun' in his right hand. Also Read: Shocking claims made by Boeing Whistleblower John Barnett The report further states, John had his right pointer finger remaining on the trigger, and suffered a 'gunshot wound near his right temple. Next him was a white paper, however, its contents have not been revealed yet. Hotel staff confirmed a gunshot sound and surveillance footage had captured him exit the hotel on March 8, 24 hours before he was found dead. Sgt Anthony Gibson of Charleston PD said in a statement: 'Detectives are actively investigating this case and are awaiting the formal cause of death, along with any additional findings that might shed further light on the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Barnett. 'Given the sensitive nature of the investigation, we are unable to participate in media interviews at this time. This stance is not unique to this case but is a standard procedure we adhere to in order to preserve the integrity of active investigations. Public disclosure will follow the investigation's conclusion.' John Barnett's lawyers cry foul, No one can believe it Barnett's lawyers, Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles, were quoted by DailyMail.com, claiming there had been 'no indication' the former Boeing employee would take his own life. The statement read in part: 'John was in the midst of a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case, which finally was nearing the end. He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didn't see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it. 'We are all devastated. We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned.' Kate Middleton's "disappearance" from the public eye has given rise to many conspiracy theories online. However, ever since the Princess of Wales admitted to a major editing failure in her Mother's Day image with her three children, every image released by the Palace or its sources has been met with a lot of scrutiny. The 42-year-old was photographed with Prince William on Monday, potentially putting an end to all disappearance rumour theories, but it seems like a segment of the internet is not convinced at all. Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton was just so stunning on her India tour and she still is on her two-day visit to Thimphu, Bhutan. (REUTERS) Also read: Kate Middleton looked like sad Princess Diana' sitting in car after apology for editing mishap Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Internet claims Kate Middleton's Windsor Car image is photoshopped Princess Kate Middleton spotted in car doesnt look like her a few users claimed on x (formerly Twitter). Many wonder how, given that the picture was taken from someone's phone, not one of those photos captured the whole face of the Princess, and why only Williams face is clearly visible in every image. Things didnt stop there. Keen-eyed royal followers also questioned the color of the bricks, which somehow didnt appear to match the color of the bricks outside the car. The car in which she was photographed was also surrounded by questions like: It is rather odd that the car in yesterday's picture of Catherine, Princess of Wales, otherwise known as Kate Middleton, has 6 wheels - 2 of which seem discombobulated. Has no one else noticed that the most recent photo of #KateMiddleton in the car the bricks in the car windows, dont appear to match the bricks outside the car Is this another photoshopped picture, an X user wrote on Monday after the photos went viral. Also read: Oscars 2024: Michael Keaton unlocks new Batman meme amid Schwarzenegger- DeVitos joke Is Kate Middleton's Windsor car photo old? A few users also presented theories claiming the picture might be old, dating back to Christmas 2023 the last time Middleton was seen before undergoing abdominal surgery in January. They used a Christmas day photo. They erased her earring, her hat brim can clearly be seen, as can the top be seen obscuring the rectangle in the interior of the car then they added some noise to make it harder to discern the edits they are really bad at this!!! an internet user wrote. Photographer blasts all the claim Hours after social media started buzzing with theories and claims about doctored photographs, the photographer who snapped the shot told Page Six that his agency doesnt change photos in photoshop other than adjusting the light levels if necessary. Bennett added, Car shots are unpredictable at the best of times, and with some reflection on the glass, it can be difficult. Earlier, following an editing mishap, Middleton made a rare public statement, releasing an apology. She said, Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused, she wrote on X from the official Prince and Princess of Wales account. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mothers Day. C. Robert Hur, the special counsel appointed to investigate President Joe Bidens management of classified documents, appeared before a House committee on Tuesday. The session was marked by intense exchanges, with Hur facing critical questions from both Democratic and Republican members. Special Counsel Robert Hur testifies during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on his probe into US President Joe Biden's alleged mishandling of classified materials after serving as vice president, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, March 12, 2024. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP)(AFP) 5 key points from the hearing by the House judiciary committee included: Hur sees Biden as a sympathetic one Special counsel Hur defended his report on Biden, stating no criminal charges were warranted. He noted that Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials but believed a jury would see Biden as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Addressing the criticism, Hur clarified, My task was to determine whether the president retained or disclosed national defence information willfully My assessment about the relevance of the presidents memory was necessary and accurate and fair. He denied concluding Biden was senile, asserting, That conclusion does not appear in my report. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Hur says he stayed neutral and Politics played no part whatsoever in his investigation In a recent hearing, Hur maintained his neutrality while declining to dismiss the possibility of joining a future Trump administration. The committees Democrats levelled accusations at Hur, suggesting he had a hand in influencing the 2024 election by authoring a report that cast President Biden in a negative light, despite Hurs conclusion that no charges against the president were warranted. Democratic Representative Adam Schiff of California confronted Hur, stating, You cannot tell me youre so naive as to think your words would not have created a political firestorm, and added, You were not born yesterday. You understood exactly what you were doing. ALSO READ| Trump takes shot at Biden as Robert Hur's transcript reveals fresh details about President's memory Hur stood firm against these claims, assuring Schiff, Politics played no part whatsoever in my investigative steps. However, when pressed on whether he would consider a role in Trumps administration should the former president be re-elected, Hur remained noncommittal. Im not here to speak about what may or may not happen in the future, Hur responded, sidestepping the question. Matt Gaetz slams Hur's decision not to charge Biden, alleges double standard in Justice Republicans have accused Democrats of a double standard in justice, contrasting Trumps indictment with Bidens case. Matt Gaetz criticized the decision not to charge Biden, calling it the senile cooperator theory. He stated, Biden and Trump should have been treated equally. They werent. And that is the double standard that I think a lot of Americans are concerned about. Democrats, like Jerry Nadler, countered by highlighting Trumps refusal to return classified documents. Nadler questioned, What kind of man bungles not one, but dozens of opportunities to avoid criminal liability? What must that say about his mental state? He also dismissed claims of a biased justice system, saying, House Republicans may be desperate to convince America that white conservative men are on the losing end of a two-tiered justice system a theory that appeals to the Maga crowd but has no basis in reality. Hur says he didn't exonerate Biden During a discussion about the decision not to charge President Biden, Pramila Jayapal confronted the special counsel, asserting, You exonerated him. The special counsel, Hur, clarified, I did not exonerate him. That word does not appear in the report. ALSO READ| Joe Biden clinches Democratic nomination after winning Georgia, and Mississippi primaries, Donald Trump trails close House Democrats release Biden interview transcripts House judiciary committee Democrats released transcripts of Bidens interviews with Hur, showing discrepancies with their public statements. Hurs report suggested Biden forgot when his son died, which Biden angrily denied, saying, How in the hell dare he raise that? it wasnt any of their damn business. The transcripts, however, did not show Hur asking about Beau Bidens death date but rather about document locations post-White House, to which Biden referenced his sons death, saying, Oh, God, May 30. Confusion arose when Biden couldnt recall the year, later confirmed by an aide as 2015. Despite some memory lapses on document transfer details, Biden provided precise recollections on other matters, prompting Hur to comment on his photographic memory of his home. One can only imagine the Palace's telephone lines ringing off the hook with all Kate Middleton-centric conspiracies, now being labelled as Katespiracy or Kate Gate, having blown out of proportion. Social media trends are bombarding new terminologies and whatnot to address the Princess of Wales' whereabouts and health. Unfortunately, Kensington Palace's very clear claims about her resuming her royal station after Easter are not enough to keep it all under control. The royal family would've been hoping for everything to quiet down. On the contrary, now, America has joined the chat. US TV sensations have no intentions of holding back from spilling the tea. The recently doctored Mother's Day family portrait has exacerbated the inconvenience for Princess Catherine. Her husband's alleged affair resurfacing amidst it all has put salt on the royal scenario. Here are some American celebs' two cents on the growing controversies. The Late Show host Stephen Colbert 'spills the tea' on Prince William's alleged affair with Lady Rose Hanbury, US coverage of Kate Middleton's conspiracy theories 1. Is Prince William Cheating? The Late Show host Stephen Colbert spills the tea In one of his latest opening monologues, Colbert went around sniffing Prince William's alleged affair. While the rumours itself has consumed tabloids for quite a while, the talebearing accusation rose to the top again when Middleton's disappearance became the talk of the internet. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Also read | Meghan Markle would be annihilated for edit fail like Kate Middleton: Report The 42-year-old's discreet photograph with Prince William, as they rolled out of Windsor in a car, should've silenced all conspiracies around her missing out in action. Instead, it ended up fanning the flames. Twitterati started speculating that the woman beside William in the Windsor car image wasn't Middleton. The picture caught the lady turning to the window on the other side, again raising questions about why Middleton would shy away from cameras when she never has before. Many came down, concluding that William's companion was actually his alleged mistress, Lady Rose Hanbury. Colbert also built his monologue around the same suggestion. Though this story about the other woman has never been confirmed, the gossip continued. Many are correlating the Princess' public absence with the same tidbit. The Late Show host had no plans of formulating a timeline because he was busy cracking jokes at the expense of what was going down. As for the distressing rumours, Kate supposedly confronted William about it in 2019, but he laughed it off. 2. John Oliver quips, There's a non-zero chance she died 18 months ago, on Andy Cohen's Watch What Happens Live! Also read | Where is Kate Middleton, and why has her absence stirred the internet? Like many netizens, British-American comedian John Oliver had left the Kate situation behind until the Photoshop thing blew up. It feels like you're almost handling it badly in an impressive way at this point. During Tuesday night's Watch What Happens Live episode, host Andy Cohen dug into the royal scandal, wondering what was going on with Kate Middleton. Oliver chimed in with what many internet sleuths are already considering: How could Kensington Palace's attempts to assuage the mess have only wiped out the minimal possibility of silencing the scandalous tittle-tattle? Facetiously, Oliver's tongue-in-cheek remarks about the"non-zero chance" of Middleton's death caused an uproar online. He continued, "Im not saying it happened, Im saying its non-zero. Until proved otherwise, until we see her with a copy of todays newspaper. 3. The Daily Show hosts unpack the Kate Middleton Photoshop fail and more The lack of self-restraint continued the motion, with The Daily Show hosts Desi Lydic and Michael Kosta dissecting the Photoshop scandal. I'm calling bullsh** that Kate was the one who edited the picture. This is the royal family. They don't do anything themselvesThe only they know how to do without help is adultery, Lydic's flippant joke played around the ongoing inflated talks of conspiracy theories. Regardless of how hard the royal cleansers may be doing their job to prove Middleton's presence behind her leave of absence, everything has backfired on them. The Photoshop mess took the cake. Kill orders sought for the Mother's Day family photo to be taken down in light of how digitally doctored it was that nothing seemed to fit the normalcy bill. The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill on Wednesday that would force TikTok to divest from its Chinese owner or get banned from the United States. (FILES) In this photo illustration, the social media application logo, TikTok is displayed on the screen of an iPhone on an American flag background on August 3, 2020 in Arlington, Virginia. The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill on March 13, 2024 that would force Tiktok to divest from its Chinese owner or get banned from the United States. (Photo by Olivier DOULIERY / AFP)(AFP) The lawmakers voted 352 in favour of the proposed law and 65 against, in a rare moment of bipartisan unity in politically divided Washington. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. The legislation threatens to be a major setback for the video-sharing app, which has surged in popularity across the world while causing nervousness about its Chinese ownership and its potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. The fate of the bill is uncertain in the Senate, where some key figures are apprehensive of making such a drastic move against an app that has 170 million US users. President Joe Biden will sign the bill, known officially as the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," into law if it came to his desk, the White House has said. The measure, which only gained momentum in the past few days, requires TikTok's parent company ByteDance to sell the app within 180 days or see it barred from the Apple and Google app stores in the United States. It also gives the president power to designate other applications to be a national security threat if under the control of a country considered adversarial to the US. The resurgent campaign by Washington against TikTok came as a surprise to the company, the Wall Street Journal reported, with TikTok executives reassured when Biden joined the app last month as part of his campaign for a second term. Also read | IRS Direct File pilot: US' new free online tax filing program explained TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is in Washington, trying to shore up support to stop the bill. "This latest legislation being rushed through at unprecedented speed without even the benefit of a public hearing, poses serious Constitutional concerns," wrote Michael Beckerman, TikTok's vice president for public policy. TikTok ban: The Trump factor The co-sponsors, House Republican Mike Gallagher and House Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, as well as the White House, argue that the bill is not a ban of TikTok, as long as the company divests from ByteDance. China warned on Wednesday that the move will "inevitably come back to bite the United States." "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, condemning it as "bullying behaviour." Republican lawmakers approved the bill, in an unusual act of defiance against Donald Trump. In a turnaround from his earlier stance, Trump on Monday said he was against a ban, mainly because it would strengthen Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, which he called an "enemy of the people." When Trump was president, he attempted to wrest control of Tiktok from ByteDance, but was blocked by US courts. Trump denied accusations that he changed his tune because a major investor in TikTok, hedge funder Jeff Yass, is donating to his 2024 election campaign. "I think it will die in the Senate," said representative Nancy Mace, a Trump ally. "This is not our job to this." Other efforts to ban TikTok have failed with a bill proposed a year ago getting nowhere largely over free speech concerns. Similarly, a state law passed in Montana banning the platform was suspended by a federal court on the suspicion that it violated constitutional free speech rights. TikTok staunchly denies any ties to the Chinese government and has restructured the company so the data of US users stays in the country, the company says. This weeks G20 meeting took place in Indonesia, the most important country that people routinely overlook. The last time its economy and politics were in the global spotlight was during the mayhem of the 1990s when a crony capitalist system collapsed amid the Asian financial crisis, causing the fall of the 32-year-long dictatorship of Suharto. A man looks at apartment buildings in Jakarta on March, 7 2024. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP)(AFP) A quarter of a century on, Indonesia matters once again. It is the worlds largest Muslim-majority state, its third-biggest democracy and its fourth-most-populous country. With 276m people spread across thousands of islands that stretch from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific, it is caught up in the strategic contest between America and China. And like India and other emerging markets, it is adapting to a new world order in which globalisation and Western supremacy are in retreat. Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now. Over the next quarter-century, the countrys clout could increase spectacularly. The economy is one reason. Indonesia is the sixth-biggest emerging market by GDP, and in the past decade has grown faster than any other $1trn-plus economy bar China and India. A source of dynamism is digital services, which are helping create a more integrated consumer market, with over 100m people collectively spending $80bn a year on everything from e-payments to apps for on-demand trucking. Another economic catalyst is Indonesia-specific. With a fifth of global reserves of nickel, used in batteries, the country is a vital link in electric-vehicle (EV) supply chains. As the West, China and India increase subsidies to attract EV investment at home, Indonesia has spotted an opportunity. Rather than seeking to be the Saudi Arabia of the green-metal age, it is pursuing a policy of downstream, banning the export of raw materials to force global firms to build factories in Indonesia. This is unorthodox, but over $20bn of investment has been secured so far. Coal-fired power stations are being retired early, pushing these new industries to run on clean power. The second reason for Indonesias strong prospects is that it has found a way to combine democracy with economic reform. Reflecting the traumas of the 1990s, a flawed but pluralist political system has developed that emphasises compromise and social harmony. Joko Widodo, the deceptively laid-back president since 2014, rules through a sprawling coalition which has co-opted many of his opponents. You might think this would lead to the lowest-common-denominator policies. But the public finances are tightly run. Incremental improvements include new infrastructure, the cleaning up of state firms and some modernisation of education and labour laws. Corruption is a problem, but the economy is more open than it was ten years ago. The final reason for Indonesias growing clout is geopolitics. Its location, size and resources make it a key theatre in the superpower contest. Reflecting a tradition of non-alignment that goes back to the 1950s, it wants to be neutral. It solicits capital from both sides of the divide and is an arena in which Chinese and American digital firms and investors compete directly. In batteries catl, the Chinese champion, is investing in a $6bn project, but Jokowi, as the president is known, is also wooing Tesla. In diplomacy, he has sought to be a convener and peacemaker. Indonesia has criticised Western sanctions on Russia. Jokowi is one of the few people to have met presidents Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky this year. If Indonesia stays on this path for the next decade, the country could become one of the worlds ten biggest economies. It would remain fairly resilient against shocks: its currency has outperformed several rich-world peers this year despite global financial turmoil. Living standards would rise: only 4% of people now live on $2.15 a day or less, three-quarters less than in 2012. Although Indonesia is unlikely to become a Chinese-style manufacturing miracle, a big middle class would emerge. Inevitably, there are dangers. One is succession. Jokowis final term ends in 2024 and he has no obvious successor. Some supporters want him to fiddle with the constitution to remain in power. The succession could become a competition to appeal to devout voters by espousing chauvinist Muslim policies. Alternatively, the business figures and political clans who form part of Jokowis coalition could win power and lead a slide back to oligarchic rule. He has built plenty of roads and airports, but Jokowi has not strengthened the institutions that can guarantee continuity after he has left office. Protectionism is another risk. The country has a long history of prickly resource nationalism. Downstreaming may work in nickel, in which Indonesia has market power, but backfires in other industries. Indonesia has yet to attract Apples supply chain as it shifts from China to other parts of Asia, in part because its labour market is still too rigid. If Indonesia pushes too hard, EV firms will try to find substitutes for its green metals. The biggest danger is that geopolitics causes Indonesia to stumble. Even on its current path, it could drift into Chinas orbit. For every dollar American firms have invested in Indonesia since 2020, Chinese firms have deployed nearly four. If tensions escalated, the costs would be high. A war over Taiwan could block the sea lanes upon which Indonesia relies, while Western sanctions might strike Chinese firms that Indonesia depends on. Jokowis diplomacy is humoured by Mr Biden and Mr Xi but so far the worlds non-aligned countries, including most members of the ASEAN South-East Asian group, are too diffuse to have much influence on the superpowers. Growing up in a zero-sum world India and Indonesia are the bright stars of Asia. Both must satisfy electorates at home and find a way to grow, even as globalisation is in retreat. India is opting for tech- and manufacturing-led development, fuelled by subsidies, chauvinistic politics and decoupling from China. Indonesia is relying on resources, surgical protectionism, big-tent politics and neutrality. Both are giant bets. The superpowers will be watching closelyas will many other countries that want to get richer but would prefer not to pick sides. If it succeeds, Indonesia will improve the lives of a quarter of a billion people and spur on a growth-starved world. It could even alter the global balance of power. Correction (November 30th 2022): The original version of this story stated that Jokowi may have been the only person to have met four presidents this year. This has been changed to say that he is one of the few people to have done so. For subscribers only: to see how we design each weeks cover, sign up to our weekly Cover Story newsletter. 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com The man accused of murdering 13-year-old Madeline Soto and dumping her body in the Florida woods is now facing 60 sex crime charges after police allege they found disturbing evidence involving a minor on his cell phone. Police named Madeline's mother's boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, 37, the primary suspect in the teen's alleged murder and disappearance. Sterns was allegedly tasked with dropping her off at school the morning of Feb. 26, but she failed to show up, investigators said. Video evidence from that day allegedly showed Sterns discarding several items in a dumpster, including Madeline's backpack, at the Kissimmee, Florida, apartment he shared with Madeline and her mother, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Surveillance footage also allegedly captured the teen in Sterns' car that same morning, although authorities believe she was already dead. Madeline's body was discovered in the nearby woods during a coordinated search on March 1, four days after she was reported missing, according to police. In addition to being named the primary suspect in Madeline's murder, Sterns has now been charged with eight counts of sexual battery on a child under 12, five counts of sexual battery with a child 12-18, seven counts of lewd and lascivious molestation, and 40 counts of unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child 10 or more images, in connection with the alleged pictures and videos found on his phone, authorities announced Tuesday. Police did not clarify if the content involved Madeline or other victims. It's unclear if Sterns entered a plea to the charges or retained an attorney to comment on his behalf. He remains held at an Osceola County jail on no bond. "We appreciate the efforts of our partners in the State Attorney's Office in assisting with seeking justice for Madeline," Kissimmee Chief of Police Betty Holland said in a statement. "With this being a complex case with many facets, our work is not done, and we are continuing our investigation into the timeline leading up to Madeline's death." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Kena Betancur/Getty Images) NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 20: Colombian President Gustavo Petro attends the Climate Ambition Summit at the United Nations Headquarters on September 20, 2023 in New York City. The event, held during Climate Week NYC and the UN General Assembly, seeks to gather support for global agreements aimed at phasing out the use of fossil fuels. On Tuesday, Colombia's Supreme Court of Justice chose Luz Adriana Camargo Garzon as the country's new attorney following weeks of political tensions over delays in naming someone for the role. The president of the Supreme Court of Justice, Gerson Chaverra, told reporters in Bogota that corruption investigator Camargo was selected with 18 votes out of 23. Colombia Names New Attorney General Camargo was a former judge who began serving in the attorney general's office in the 1990s for 12 years. She also worked as a prosecutor at the Supreme Court, where she looked into any connections between lawmakers and right-wing paramilitary organizations. She is set to oversee several delicate investigations, including a probe into accusations of illegal financing in Petro's 2022 presidential campaign. As part of an investigation that started more than a year ago, the attorney general's office is also pursuing charges against Nicolas, the eldest son of Petro and a former regional politician, for alleged corruption and money laundering. Francisco Barbosa, a well-known critic of Petro, served as the former attorney general until his four-year term ended in February. Camargo's appointment comes amid weeks of political unrest and demonstrations against the delays in appointing an official. Petro promised to appoint a woman to fill the upcoming vacancy on the Supreme Court. In January, he submitted three candidates to replace Barbosa. However, the voting process had stalled in the weeks since. Hundreds of Petro supporters gathered around the Supreme Court last month to voice their opposition to the slowdown. Without further pressure on the court, the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights have called for Barbosa's replacement to be named as soon as possible. On Tuesday, there was another upheaval before Camargo was voted in. Amelia Perez, who had long been seen as the frontrunner to take the position, declared she would not be running. Perez's prospects seem less certain recently due to the controversy surrounding her husband's social media posts. Semana magazine reported that Gregorio Oviedo, Perez's spouse, had insulted the Supreme Court and other justices on his online platforms and criticized Petro's son inquiry. Furthermore, Petro denied wrongdoing and criticized the attorney general's office for its campaign investigation efforts. Right-wing legislators have also opposed Petro, the first leftist president in Colombian history. Read Also: Boeing Whistleblower John Barnett Found Dead in South Carolina Hotel Days After Testimony Against Aviation Giant Colombia's New Attorney General Luz Adriana Camargo Before her appointment on Tuesday, Camargo worked for the investigative team of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) from 2014 until 2017. While in that role, she worked alongside current Defense Minister Ivan Velasquez Carmago also provided advice to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on the kidnapping and murder of three Ecuadorian journalists by an armed group in Colombia. She will also be in charge of a case in which it is alleged that younger Petro received payments from drug dealers in return for favorable treatment under his father's "Total Peace" plan, which is a framework for putting an end to the armed conflict that has engulfed Colombia for almost 60 years. Furthermore, she will oversee the long-running case against right-wing former president Alvaro Uribe, who is accused of fraud and witness tampering, allegedly part of a scheme to discredit accusations he had ties to paramilitary groups. Uribe has denied the accusations against him. Related Article: RNC Staff Shakeup After Donald Trump Daughter-in-Law Elected Co-Chair: Report @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Leonid Volkov, a Russian opposition activist known for his association with the late Alexei Navalny, was viciously attacked outside his residence in Vilnius, Lithuania. Volkov was assaulted by an unidentified assailant wielding a hammer and tear gas, according to statements from Navalny's spokesperson Kira Yarmysh. Navalny Ally Volkov Brutally Attacked Outside Home The attack occurred late on Tuesday night, as Volkov arrived home. Yarmysh detailed the brutal assault in a social media post. "Leonid Volkov has just been attacked outside his house," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer." Ivan Zhdanov, another member of Navalny's circle and director of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, corroborated the account, mentioning that Volkov sustained injuries to his legs and arms. Disturbing images shared online depicted Volkov with a swollen face and bloodied leg, alongside shattered glass near his vehicle. Following the assault, Volkov was promptly transported to a nearby hospital for medical treatment. The extent of his injuries has yet to be fully disclosed, but reports indicate that he suffered significant trauma, including a broken hand or arm and severe blows to his legs. The motive behind the attack remains unclear, prompting swift action from Lithuanian authorities, who have initiated an investigation into the incident. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuania's Foreign Minister, condemned the assault, labeling it as "shocking" and ensuring that the perpetrators will be held accountable for their actions. "Relevant authorities are at work,"Landsbergis posted on X. "Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime." Read Also: Navalny on Verge of Freedom in Prisoner Swap Deal Before Death, Allies Say Attack Comes Amidst Rising Tensions Post-Navalny's Death Volkov, a staunch critic of the Kremlin, has been residing outside Russia for several years due to safety concerns. His involvement with Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation has made him a target of the Russian government, resulting in numerous politically motivated charges against him. The attack on Volkov comes amidst heightened tensions within the Russian opposition movement, following the untimely death of Navalny last month. Navalny's passing in a Russian prison sparked international outcry and accusations of foul play, with his supporters, including his wife, alleging that he was murdered by the Russian authorities, a claim vehemently denied by the Kremlin. Despite residing outside Russia, Volkov has remained active in advocating for political change within the country, recently urging Russians to participate in a protest ahead of the upcoming presidential elections. Related Article: Russian Intelligence Head Insists Alexei Navalny Died Naturally: 'Life Ends and People Die' @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A Santa Monica judge has set a trial date in a civil case alleging that director Roman Polanski raped a child in the 1970s, years before he was arrested for sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl in a separate lawsuit. Attorney Gloria Allred confirmed in a press conference on Tuesday that Polanski's trial has been scheduled for August 2025. The case was submitted to the Los Angeles County Superior Court in June last year. Polanski To Face Trial in 2025 Polanski has been a fugitive from the US for decades since fleeing the country to avoid punishment after admitting to the 1977 rape of 13-year-old Samantha Geimer. The director has been accused of sexual abuse on several occasions. The Los Angeles trial comes as Polanski is on trial in France for allegedly slandering a British actor who accused him of assaulting her. In this case, Polanski is charged with sexual rape and intentionally causing great emotional distress about an alleged 1973 event. The filmmaker was not named in the case until July, while the plaintiff remains anonymous as Jane Doe. On Tuesday, Allred made an appearance with Jane Doe, who accused Polanski of raping her in 1973 when she was a minor. According to Allred, Polanski invited her to dinner months after they had met at a party. He allegedly knew she was a minor but still brought her to his Los Angeles home and gave her drinks all night. Allred said that he allegedly informed the teen he wanted to have sex with her when she woke up in his bed. "Plaintiff, though groggy, told defendant, 'No.' She told him, 'Please don't do this.' She alleges he ignored her pleas," Allred said. "She also alleges that defendant Polanski removed plaintiff's clothes and he proceeded to sexually assault her, causing her tremendous physical and emotional pain and suffering." Furthermore, Allred stated that when Polanski dropped her off at home, she never saw him again. The lawyer claimed that despite multiple accusations against him, Polanski has gone back to living his life normally, but his accuser has not been able to return to business as usual since her victimization. She said that even though the criminal justice system in California had failed to yield a just outcome, her client had demonstrated enormous courage in filing her lawsuit against a famous director who previously pled guilty to a sex crime against a minor and then fled to Europe to avoid sentencing. Read Also: Colombia Picks New Attorney General Amid Turmoil for President Gustavo Petro's Administration Polanski's Victims Speak Out Doe, who originally came out with charges against Polanski in 2017, filed a lawsuit last year under a change in California law that grants victims of child sex abuse more time to file lawsuits against their abusers. She said it took her a long time to file this suit against Polanski, but she finally decided to file it to obtain justice and accountability. Between 2017 and 2019, four women, three of whom were allegedly minors at the time, came forward to accuse Polanski of sexually abusing them in the 1970s. Among them was artist Marianne Barnard, who said Polanski had raped her when she was 10. British actor Charlotte Lewis also claimed in 2010 that she was sexually assaulted by Polanski in 1983 when she was 16. Polanski has denied all of the accusations. Related Article: Andrew Tate Arrested in Romania, Charged with Sexual Aggression @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Idaho Supreme Court rejected Bryan Kohberger's attorney's appeal of a grand jury indictment over the murders of four students. The reasoning behind the court's rejection of the pre-trial appeal on Tuesday was not provided. In the filing, the suspect's attorney claimed that the prosecutors in the case indicted their client improperly on four counts of first-degree murder and a single count of burglary, to the grand jury. Bryan Kohberger Appeals Indictment At the time that the grand jury was working toward an indictment, prosecutors in the case said that they must reach an indictment if the case reached the higher legal standard of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt instead of the standard of probable cause. The Idaho Supreme Court's one-page ruling did not give out any reasoning for their denial of the defendant's attorney's filed appeal and the matter was quickly closed, according to Fox News. Kohberger is a Ph.D. student at the nearby Washington State University and is the primary suspect in the brutal murders of four students. The victims were identified as Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves, and Ethan Chapin. The crime occurred inside a rental house near the University of Idaho campus. The grand jury in the case indicted Kohberger in May last year after he was taken into custody after a weeks-long investigation. The arrest was made after surveillance footage showed the defendant's vehicle at the scene of the crime multiple times around the time of the killings in Moscow, Idaho. However, Kohberger has repeatedly pleaded not guilty on all counts and has maintained his innocence throughout the case. While a trial date has not yet been set, the suspect's defense team is seeking to have it moved to a different country, said Yahoo News. The 29-year-old defendant appeared in a Pennsylvania courtroom in January last year and waived his extradition to Idaho. This meant that he had voluntarily agreed to return to the state in order to face the charges that were filed against him. Read Also: Connecticut Woman Admits to Murdering Husband, Cashing His Paychecks While Body Decayed in Basement Killing of Idaho Students The victims were found to have been stabbed to death on Nov. 13, 2022, and two others, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, were at the home at the time but were not harmed. Investigators early in the probe quickly ruled out the surviving roommates as suspects. Initially, officials believed that Mortensen and Funke slept through the attack that killed the four victims. However, the probable cause affidavit, which was released in January last year after Kohberger came back to Idaho, revealed that one of them said they saw the killer. The roommate described a "figure clad in black clothing and a mask" who she said walked past her as he left the crime scene. She also said that on the night of the killings, she heard crying. The May 2023 indictment of the defendant allowed prosecutors to bypass the previously scheduled June 2023 hearing. The two surviving roommates could have potentially been cross-examined during that particular hearing. The day after, the defendant stood silently while the court waited for his plea. Ultimately, the judge in the case entered a plea of "not guilty" in his stead, according to People. Related Article: Ex-Jacksonville Jaguars Employee Faces 6 Years Imprisonment for Stealing $22 Million From Franchise @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Pennsylvania law enforcement officials found the capture of two parents accused of starving and physically causing damage to their 1-year-old twins to the brink of death. According to Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer, 23-year-old Armani Coleman and 18-year-old Zamareon Moat are facing charges of aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children, and conspiracy. Pennsylvania Parents Accused of Near-Fatal Abuse Following claims of horrific abuse against their 1-year-old twins, parents Armani Coleman, 23, and Zamareon Moat, 18, have been subject to severe allegations from Pennsylvania law enforcement officials. The alarming information regarding the case emerged as officers received calls about an unconscious infant on January 22nd in Chester. The Delaware County District Attorney's Office revealed that Coleman and Moat provided investigators with a dubious explanation, suggesting that their son may have sustained head trauma by hitting his head on a door jamb while crawling. However, subsequent investigations unraveled a disturbing narrative, classifying the boy's injuries as "near fatal" due to blunt-impact trauma and indications of being shaken. Upon further investigation, horrific evidence of abuse that had been done upon the twin sister was found. Based on the findings of a medical examination, bruises, bite marks, and injuries that were consistent with both constraint and killing were uncovered. When it became clear that both parents were the sole guardians of the infants, it was shocking. This revelation raised serious questions about the extent of how the children had been ignored and abused. As a result of digital forensics, the terrifying behavior of the case was further enhanced when police identified distressing searches on the devices of the parents. These searches included inquiries about the removal of scars for toddlers, approaches to eradicate bite marks, and alarming queries about detecting indications of choking in infants, according to KYW News Radio. Read Also: Trump, Biden Hope to Seal 2024 Party Nominations with Tuesday Presidential Primary Victories Accused Parents Missed Medical Appointments The Delaware County Department of Children and Youth Services had been actively involved in investigating the welfare of the children after the parents missed a staggering 15 medical appointments. Authorities lamented the lack of necessary medical equipment required to care for the girl, who suffers from a medical condition necessitating oxygen. Coleman and Moat now face serious charges of aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children, and conspiracy. They currently remain detained at the George W. Hill Correctional Facility pending further legal proceedings. Medical experts stated the seriousness of the 1-year-old girl's condition, linking her emaciated appearance to intentional food restriction that almost led to her death. The finding of strange internet searches shows the critical nature of the situation, portraying a bleak image of neglect and abuse that persisted without intervention for an extended period. As the legal process continues, the community is trying to come to terms with the shocking truth of these terrible crimes happening in their neighborhood. The upcoming preliminary hearing scheduled for March 28 is a stark reminder of the critical importance of protecting the most vulnerable individuals in the community. Related Article: Watch Live: Biden Classified Docs Special Counsel Robert Hur Defends Comments on President's Age @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Former United States President Donald Trump cruises to victory in the Georgia GOP primary, setting up a rematch with President Joe Biden as the Democrat clinches his party's nomination. The Republican businessman's overwhelming victory in the Georgia primary did not come as a surprise as he was not expected to face any serious competition in the Peach State. The GOP primary in the state awards 59 delegates. Donald Trump Claims Victory in Georgia Primary Trump's popularity has become even more one-sided after former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley dropped out of the GOP presidential nomination race last week. However, the former UN ambassador can still get votes in the Republican nominating contests and therefore, delegates. This situation has raised questions about whether or not members of the GOP would still cast a ballot for Haley as a protest against Trump. The former president's primary victory comes as Georgia is among a handful of states that are expected to play a critical role in determining the presidency in the upcoming November general election, according to The Hill. On top of the Georgia primaries, Mississippi and Washington will also be holding their respective races on Tuesday. On the other hand, Hawaii will hold its Republican caucuses on that day. Democrats who are abroad and in the Northern Mariana territory will vote on Tuesday as well. Over the weekend, Biden and Trump both visited Georgia where they held dueling rallies. The Democratic president met with roughly 500 supporters at the Pullman Yards hall on Atlanta's east side in DeKalb County. This came as the Republican businessman went to the Forum River Center, which is an arena in Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene's ruby-red district. Since the November 2020 elections, the state of Georgia is estimated to have added roughly 375,000 to its population. The number is emblematic of the growth in the American South in exchange for the Rust Belt and California as U.S. population growth overall close to zero. Read Also: Aaron Rodgers, Jesse Ventura Top RFK Jr Running Mate List: Report Crucial State for the 2024 Presidential Election As of today, roughly 8 million people are registered to vote, which is nearly 10% more than the number that was seen in October 2020. However, this figure is expected to drop as the Georgia secretary of state's office eliminates duplicates and the registrations of people who have moved or have died, said The Guardian. While Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock are expected to support Biden, there are no Senate races on the ballot to drive state-level organizing. The president's campaign will also be relying on its own election apparatus and that of grassroots organizations. Despite Biden and Trump viewing Georgia as a crucial state for the 2024 presidential elections, it also highlights some of the obstacles that both candidates face coming into the November election. For the Republican businessman, these are his criminal indictments, including one where he faces charges within the state of Georgia itself, as well as a shrinking Republican tent. On the other hand, Biden is seeing an enthusiasm gap in his campaign among non-white voters and concerns over his handling of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, according to NPR. Related Article: Biden Gets Democratic Nomination, Sets Stage for Historic Rematch Against Trump @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. US District Judge Lewis Kaplan has approved former President Donald Trump's $92 million bond in the defamation case brought by columnist E. Jean Carroll. This approval, granted following an order filed on Tuesday afternoon, temporarily halts the execution of the judgment while Trump pursues an appeal. Should Trump's appeal prove unsuccessful, the bond guarantees Carroll's collection on the judgment. Trump Secures $91.6M Appeals Bond for Defamation Case Judgment The former president had obtained an appeals bond from the Federal Insurance Company totaling $91,630,000 to cover the $83 million judgment in the case plus interest, according to court filings. The conditions of the bond did not specify what assets Trump used to secure the bond. Trump's attorney, Alina Habba, expressed confidence in their appeal, stating to ABC News that they believe it will result in the judgment being overturned. Trump is still appealing a $5 million judgment awarded to Carroll last May after a jury determined he had sexually abused her. In January, Trump was ordered to pay $83.3 million in damages to Carroll for defaming her in 2019 when he denied her allegation that he sexually abused her in the 1990s. Trump has denied all wrongdoing, claiming Carroll was "totally lying." The bond approval allows Trump to continue fighting the defamation judgment while preventing Carroll from taking immediate steps to enforce it. Carroll did not oppose Trump's bond application after his lawyers agreed to make one change to the conditions. Read Also: E. Jean Carroll Case: Trump Loses Bid To Delay Payment of $83.3 Million Fine Trump's Legal Team Challenges Defamation Judgment Trump's legal team is seeking to get the recent judgment tossed entirely or at least reduced, arguing that the jury's awarded amount is excessive. They have also questioned the causal link between Carroll's alleged harms and Trump's statements. Trump on Saturday reiterated his denial of Carroll's accusations at a campaign rally in Georgia, prompting Carroll's legal team to suggest the possibility of a third defamation lawsuit if Trump persists in discrediting her claims. "I could say things about what it would cost normally," Trump said at the campaign rally. "$91 million, based on false accusations made about me by a woman that I knew nothing about. Didn't know, never heard of, I know nothing about her. She wrote a book, she said things, and when I denied it, I said, it's so crazy it's false, I got sued for defamation." The approval of the bond marks a significant step in the legal saga between Trump and Carroll, which has garnered significant attention since Carroll first made her allegations public in 2019. Trump posted the bond just before reaching an early-week deadline, preventing collection actions by Carroll. The former president also recently faced a New York civil fraud loss exceeding $450 million, with ongoing interest accrual. Related Article: Trump Posts $92 Million Bond in E. Jean Carroll Defamation Lawsuit @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. As the challenges confronting Boeing escalate, the aviation giant finds itself falling further behind its principal rival, Airbus, in the ongoing race for aircraft deliveries. In February, Boeing delivered only 27 aircraft, while Airbus handed over 49, further extending its lead in the delivery race, according to Bloomberg. Airbus Extends Lead as Boeing's Market Struggles Intensify Boeing's stock has taken a beating this year, plummeting by 29%, resulting in a market valuation that now trails Airbus by a record margin. With Boeing's market capitalization at $112 billion, it lags behind Airbus by approximately $24 billion, as of the market's close on Tuesday. This significant difference arises following heightened scrutiny on Boeing, compounded by a string of setbacks such as fatal crashes and extended groundings of its aircraft. The turning point came in mid-2022, when Boeing's outlook disappointed investors, leading to a reversal in its market supremacy over Airbus. Since then, Boeing has struggled to maintain its lead, with recent negative developments exacerbating its market woes. The latest blow to Boeing's prospects came with United Airlines Holdings Inc.'s Chief Executive Officer, Scott Kirby, indicating a preference for Airbus' A321, signaling a potential loss of market share for Boeing. Boeing's ongoing struggles with quality control issues and production delays, exemplified by the recent incident involving a door plug on an Alaska Airlines Max 9, continue to impede its delivery schedules. Related Article: Boeing Whistleblower John Barnett Found Dead in South Carolina Hotel Days After Testimony Against Aviation Giant Airline Industry Feels Ripple Effects of Boeing's Delivery Woes The impact of Boeing's delivery delays is reverberating throughout the airline industry, with carriers like Southwest Airlines and United Airlines compelled to revise their capacity plans and fleet strategies. Southwest Airlines, which operates an all-Boeing 737 fleet, is trimming its capacity projections due to fewer Max deliveries, prompting a reevaluation of its financial forecasts for 2024, according to a statement released Tuesday. Similarly, United Airlines has opted to remove the Max 10 from its fleet plans for the year. Boeing's delivery figures for February included 17 Max jetliners and seven wide-body 787-9 Dreamliners. However, the company's ability to fulfill orders is crucial as customers typically make substantial payments upon receiving the aircraft. Despite the challenges facing Boeing, customer loyalty remains intact, with American Airlines recently placing an order for 260 narrow-body airplanes from Boeing, Airbus, and Embraer. As Boeing grapples with quality control issues and production delays, its market position continues to erode, prompting concerns within the airline industry and among investors about the company's long-term viability. Related Article: Boeing Failed 33 of 89 FAA Audits Tied to 737 Max: Report @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have both secured the delegates needed to clinch their parties' presidential nominations. This sets the stage for a general election rematch in November that has been anticipated for months. Biden encountered little opposition in the Democratic primary, a common scenario for a sitting president, whereas Trump had established himself as the leading candidate in his party for months. Biden, Trump Set For Presidential Rematch Their upcoming collision seemed increasingly probable following Trump's significant victory in Iowa in January. The win eliminated all but one of his main Republican competitors and set him on a smooth path to securing his party's nomination. The most recent primary opponent, Nikki Haley, ended her campaign last week, making the path even smoother for a candidate dealing with significant legal issues. Biden was named the presumptive Democratic nominee by The Associated Press following his projected victory in Georgia, while Trump was declared the presumptive Republican nominee after winning the GOP contests in Georgia, Mississippi, and Washington State. The results from Tuesday have paved the way for an extensive 2024 general election campaign, which is expected to be one of the lengthiest in modern American history at just under eight months. It will also mark the country's first presidential rematch in almost seven decades. On Tuesday evening, the 81-year-old president expressed gratitude for the support he received in his re-election bid, emphasizing the perceived threat posed by Trump. Highlighting encouraging economic indicators, he confidently stated that the US was currently experiencing a resurgence. However, he pointed out potential obstacles to its democratic future, including efforts to impose abortion limitations and reduce social services. "I believe that the American people will choose to keep us moving into the future," stated Biden in a release from his campaign. Read Also: Biden Gets Democratic Nomination, Sets Stage for Historic Rematch Against Trump US Presidential Election Being the incumbent, Biden had a clear advantage and did not encounter any significant competition for the Democratic nomination. Despite ongoing concerns from voters about his age affecting his presidential duties, the party apparatus showed strong support for him. Meanwhile, Trump, 77, continues to enjoy strong support from the Republican voter base, leading him to success in primary after primary despite facing well-funded opponents. The focus of his reelection campaign revolves around tightening immigration laws, with promises to secure the border and carry out unprecedented deportations. Trump has pledged to combat crime, increase domestic energy production, tax foreign imports, resolve the conflict in Ukraine, and prioritize American interests in global affairs. The results from Tuesday night were not surprising, given the strong performance of both candidates in their respective races. It appeared certain that both of them would be nominated again, even though polls show that Americans are unhappy about the idea of another election between iden and Trump in November. The US presidential primaries and caucuses involve a state-by-state competition to secure the most party delegates. Both Democrats and Republicans have slightly different rules for their primaries, but the process remains essentially the same. Every state receives a specific portion of party delegates, which can be given entirely to the winning candidate or distributed proportionally depending on the outcome. To win the presidential nomination, a Republican candidate needs to secure a minimum of 1,215 delegates from their party during the primary season, while a Democrat must secure 1,968, as per BBC. Republicans held primaries in Mississippi, Georgia, and Washington State on Tuesday, along with a caucus in Hawaii. Meanwhile, Democrats conducted primaries in Georgia, Washington, and Mississippi, along with the Northern Mariana Islands and for Democrats residing abroad. Both Biden and Trump's top rivals had withdrawn from the race prior to the primary elections on Tuesday, making the outcome almost guaranteed. Nikki Haley, the former UN Ambassador and Trump's final competitor, withdrew from the race earlier this month following defeats in 14 states on Super Tuesday. Even though there are still more states left to hold their primary contests, with both Trump and Biden surpassing the delegate threshold, the 2024 general election is now essentially in progress. The upcoming US presidential election is scheduled for November 5, 2024. Related Article: Trump, Biden Hope to Seal 2024 Party Nominations with Tuesday Presidential Primary Victories @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Japan's Space One Kairos rocket exploded after its inaugural flight on Wednesday amid efforts of the agency to become the first company in the country to put a satellite into orbit. The Kairos rocket explosion occurred a few seconds after lift-off and left behind a large cloud of smoke, a fire, fragments of the rocket, and firefighting water sprays near the launch pad, visible on local media videos. Kairos Rocket Explodes The company later said that the flight was "interrupted" after the launch on the tip of the mountainous Kii peninsula in western Japan and officials said that they are now investigating the situation. There was no immediate indication as to what caused the sudden explosion of the rocket. The governor of the local Wakayama government, Shuhei Kishimoto, said that fortunately, there were no injuries that were reported near the launch pad and that the fire had already been extinguished. Following the incident, Space One said that the launch of the Kairos rocket was highly automated and only required roughly half a dozen staff at the ground control center, according to Reuters. The rocket was carrying an experimental government satellite that is capable of temporarily replacing intelligence satellites in orbit in the event that they fall offline. Additionally, Space One had planned the launch of the rocket for Saturday but it was postponed due to a ship entering the nearby restricted sea area. While Japan is a relatively small player in the space race, the Asian country's rocket developers are scrambling to build cheaper vehicles in an effort to capture the demand for satellite launches from its government as well as from global clients. The company, which is based in Tokyo, was established in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese companies, including Canon Electrics, the aerospace engineering unit of IHI, construction firm Shimizu, and the state-backed Development Bank of Japan. Read Also: James Webb Captures Oldest 'Dead' Galaxy, Challenges Understanding of Early Universe Japan's Space Ambitions The Kairos rocket explosion appeared to have occurred around the middle of the fuselage and the company said that the flight was intentionally terminated. The 18-meter long, 23-ton rocket was planned to be inserted into orbit roughly 500 kilometers above the Earth's surface, said Nikkei Asia. Space One previously touted its Kairos rocket as being capable of putting a 150-kilogram payload into sun-synchronous orbit or a 250-kilogram payload into low Earth orbit. On top of the three solid-fuel stages, the Kairos has an additional liquid fuel "kick stage" that would inject the payload into its trajectory more accurately. The company initially sought to conduct its first rocket launch in fiscal 2021 but was forced to delay the attempts five times since. Officials cited delays in procuring parts amid the coronavirus pandemic as well as Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Hokkaido-based Interstellar Technologies in May 2019 sent Japan's first privately developed rocket into space. However, that particular spacecraft was not carrying a satellite payload, unlike the recent Kairos mission. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) succeeded last month in launching its next-generation H3 rocket. This would provide a much-needed boost to the Asian country's satellite-launching and space exploration ambitions following the failure of its first model almost a year ago, according to the Japan Times. Related Article: International Crew of Four Astronauts Conclude Six-Month Orbit, Safely Return to Earth @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. In Slovakia, thousands of people flocked to the streets of the capital city of Bratislava on Tuesday, March 12, to display their solidarity with Ukraine and their disapproval of their government, which they believe has become too close to Russia. Critics have been alarmed by Prime Minister Robert Fico's administration since it took office last October. The government has been vocal in its rejection of Europe's military assistance for Ukraine, as well as its efforts to reestablish cultural and political connections with Russia. This month, for instance, Slovakia's foreign minister Juraj Blanar met with Sergei Lavrov of Russia, marking an unusual high-level meeting between two countries that the European Union has actively worked to isolate. People's Disapproval From a podium draped with Slovak, Ukrainian, EU, and NATO flags along with a banner labeling Russia a "terrorist state," protest organizer Michal Hvorecky stated: "I am here because the actions of this government coalition cross all borders," as reported by Reuters. Approximately 5,000 individuals showed up at the demonstration, according to the organizers. Martina Simkovicova, Slovakia's minister of culture, took steps to restore cultural relations with Russia in January. This was the first time that Fico's foreign policy was the target of opposition-led rallies. Fico had previously been the target of protests against his policies, most notably a rewrite of criminal laws that opponents claimed undermined the battle against corruption. Read Also: Slovakia: Thousands Protest To Condemn Graft Prosecutor's Office Disbandment Ties With Russia As the crisis in Ukraine drags on, nearly two years after Russia's invasion, Fico has maintained that his government's foreign policy is "balanced and sovereign" and said that the use of force will not resolve the issue. He believes that providing arms to Ukraine, with the exception of commercial supply, would only serve to prolong the battle, hence he has rejected this idea. The Western supporters of Ukraine then dismissed such reasoning, claiming that cutting off funding would result in defeat for Ukraine instead of discussions. Meanwhile, the meeting with Lavrov on March 2, which Blanar said was requested by Russia, was justified by the foreign minister as a diplomatic effort to resolve the issue. Although Fico has spoken out against Russian sanctions, he has refrained from actively opposing EU measures or financial assistance for Ukraine. Related Article: US to Send $300 Million Weapons Package to Aid Ukraine in War With Russia: Report @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Cathay Pacific Airways has broken records with its operational profit report after suffering through the pandemic's aftershocks. Chairman Pat Healy said in a statement: "We finally left the Covid-19 pandemic behind us." In a report by Bloomberg, Hong Kong's leading airline said on Wednesday, March 13, that operating income increased by a factor of three in 2023, reaching HK$15.1 billion ($1.9 billion). The previous all-time high was HK$14.1 billion ($1.8 billion) in 2010. With a net income of HK$9.8 billion ($1.3 billion), the much-anticipated first profit after three years of losses finally happened. As the demand for travel in the aftermath of the pandemic persisted and ticket rates increased, revenue surged 85% to HK$94.5 billion ($12 billion). Highly-Anticipated Comeback The announcement of the results caused Cathay's stock to surge as much as 5.1%, the largest intraday rise in over eight months. This year, the stock has increased by 10%. In addition, the staff would recognize the airline's increased financial performance with a bonus of 7.2 weeks' salary. Cathay instituted the initiative to raise morale among its staff. Because capacity was running at a fraction of pre-Covid levels for most of last year, Cathay's financial comeback stands out. Passengers were willing to pay a premium for tickets despite the airline's delayed flight restoration. The airline said it anticipates returning to pre-pandemic flight levels by the first quarter of 2025, which is three months later than originally anticipated. Cathay Pacific CEO Ronald Lam claimed that the company was moving more cautiously in order to prevent a repeat of the disastrous mass flight cancellations that occurred during the last Christmas travel season, as reported by the South China Morning Post. Also Read: Airbus Surges Ahead in Aircraft Deliveries Amid Deepening Boeing Crisis Prior Setbacks According to Bloomberg, the main airline and the carrier's subsidiaries have contributed to its recovery. Associate Air China, in which Cathay has a 16.26% share, continued to be unprofitable but saw considerable annual improvement, which lessened the negative impact on Cathay's performance. As profits from air freight continued to level out after COVID-19, cargo revenue dropped 16.2% to HK$25.6 billion ($3.3 billion) in the previous year. Despite a drop in air freight, strong demand for passenger tickets and high pricing are more than compensated. The Hong Kong airline incurred around HK$34 billion ($4.3 billion) in damages due to the pandemic. Because of its profitability, Cathay is able to repay half of the HK$19.5 billion ($2.5 billion) government bailout. Also Read: United Announces Resumption of Direct Flights to Israel @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Savannah, Georgia's oldest city, would celebrate the 200th anniversary of its annual St. Patrick's Day parade on Saturday (March 16), which has grown into one of the largest across the United States and was considered to be the South's biggest street party between New Orleans's Mardi Gras and Florida's spring break. Thousands of revelers are expected to flock to Savannah and surrounding Chatham County to witness the parade through the city's downtown historic district. The Associated Press reported that the parade lineup would include at least 230 pipe and drum bands, dignitaries on cars, marching military units, and floats, while downtown bars have stocked up on extra supplies of beer and city officials have rented 320 portable toilets in expectation for the turnout. More than 18,000 hotel rooms across the Savannah metropolitan area have also nearly sold out for the weekend. "We're expecting historic crowds from visitors and residents alike," Savannah City Manager Jay Melder told a press conference. Savannah Police Department's Sgt. Jason Pagliario added that his fellow officers would be in full force in the lead-up to the festivities and have requested assistance from several law enforcement agencies to augment their staff. Read Also: North Carolina Mom Arrested After Second Infant Dies 'Co-Sleeping' With Her How Savannah's St. Patrick's Day Started The first Irish immigrants settling in Savannah, in cooperation with the Hibernian Society of Savannah, inaugurated its first St. Patrick's Day parade on March 17, 1824, by marching from a hotel near the riverfront to attend a special service at what then was the city's only Catholic church, in which they invited Bishop John England, an Irish native appointed to lead the newly formed Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina, to participate in the service. "May the example of Savannah be widely influential," England told both the Catholic and Protestant congregations inside the church at that time. "Here men who differ in religion may meet as friends and brethren." Georgia Southern University Center for Irish Research and Teaching director Howard Keeley added that the Irish society marched back to the hotel after the service, where the bishop joined about 80 members for an evening banquet marked by a steady stream of toasts. "They partied the night away, apparently," he said. "It was a big celebration. The Hibernians had always had these celebrations since their founding in 1812. This one was just kind of amped up by the presence of the bishop." Savannah's St. Patrick's Day parade, like its older counterparts in New York and Boston, were likely rooted in military units celebrating the holiday during the American Revolution, Keeley explained, noting that there were accounts of Irish-born soldiers marching on St. Patrick's Day while serving under George Washington. Related Article: Biden, Trump Hold Competing Georgia Rallies as 2024 Race Gains Steam @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The UK will take part in a massive military exercise together with over 20,000 NATO personnel, indicating the largest in a generation. The Carrier Strike Group of the Royal Navy, under the command of HMS Prince of Wales, was accompanied by over 30 ships, four submarines, and various aircraft from nations such as Canada, Denmark, France, and Spain. NATO's Military Exercises Pavel said that there would be no legal obstacle to NATO member nations sending help in Ukraine, including both military troops and civilians. This would be in compliance with international law and the United Nations Charter. The annexation of Crimea by Russia and the support of separatist violence in the eastern Donbas area in 2014 were instances that led to the formation of a training mission within Ukraine by NATO, which was underlined by Pavel. When asked about his stance on a potential renewed deployment, the president expressed openness to debating the matter. "I would certainly not dismiss discussion on this matter," he remarked, proposing an alternative approach wherein rather than training Ukrainian soldiers on the territory of NATO member states and deploying thousands of troops to neighboring countries like Poland or the Czech Republic, it would be more practical to send a limited number of instructors to Ukraine for training purposes. Read Also: Karen Read, Accused of Killing Police Officer Boyfriend But Claims She's Been Framed, Makes Last Minute Plea to Dismiss Case Macron's Troop Proposal Raises NATO Concerns Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron caused unease among some NATO allies recently by suggesting the deployment of allied troops to Ukraine for support and advisory roles. Subsequent intelligence leaks from Germany hinted at the involvement of British and French personnel in Ukraine, assisting Kyiv in directing its Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missile strikes. However, cautious partners are concerned that such a NATO deployment might further increase relations with Moscow. The Kremlin has stated that such a deployment could end in a direct conflict between the two adversaries. Pavel, recognized for his strong position on Russia within the alliance, rejected the idea of differentiating between essential Western material assistance and sending ground troops. "Presently, we are not merely supplying Ukraine with basic armaments; we are providing tanks, and potentially aircraft and medium-range cruise missiles, all without provoking an attack on NATO territory," he emphasized. Additionally, there have been reports of 3,000 Swedish soldiers, 450 from France, and approximately 50 British personnel stationed on Finnish territory. Even though the activities are set to end on March 15, there is an expected rise in activity before then. Finland's newly-inaugurated president, Alexander Stubb, decided to attend the exercises in Norway as his initial official foreign engagement, straying from the usual visits to Sweden and Estonia. Stubb clarified the multinational exercises as a warning to Russia, advising against any possible aggression towards allied nations in the region, RCI reported. Related Article: Biden Hosts Polish Leaders Amid Calls for NATO Defense Spending Increase @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A gas explosion inside a restaurant in China near Beijing was said to have killed at least one and injured 22 others in the city of Sanhe. The incident was suspected of being caused by a gas leak at a fried chicken shop, and local reports added that the injured individuals had already been hospitalized. The explosion comes as China has experienced a series of deadly accidents in the past few months. Lax safety standards and poor enforcement have typically caused these. China Gas Explosion Rescue workers rushed to the scene of the incident, and the local Langfang service said that 36 emergency vehicles and 154 personnel had been dispatched to respond to the Sanhe explosion. Law enforcement personnel cordoned off the streets and directed people nearby to stay away from the area. According to Aljazeera, officials said the fire was currently under effective control and that rescue work was being carried out urgently. Video footage of the incident that was shared on the Chinese social media platform Weibo showed destroyed building facades. There were also many mangled cars and glass littered in the surrounding streets that could be seen as some of the objects were on fire. A separate video on Chinese social media showed what seemed to be a building that had completely collapsed due to the explosion, with debris strewn across the street. The incident comes after at least 15 people were killed and 44 others injured last month. It was due to a fire at a residential building in the eastern city of Nanjing. In the latest explosion, at least three buildings were severely damaged, and one was left in a skeletal state. Local residents posted on social media that they heard a sudden and loud band in the early morning and then felt their buildings shake, said CNN. Dozens also lost their lives in January after a fire broke out at a shop located in the central city of Xinyu. Local media outlets reported that the blaze had been caused by workers' "illegal" use of fire in the store's basement. Read Also: After North Korea, China's Xi Jinping Calls for Military Preparation for Conflicts at Sea A Series of Fatal Incidents That particular blaze happened only a few days after a fire at a school in central Henan province that killed 13 schoolchildren while they were sleeping in a dormitory. Local media reports also suggested that an electric heating device caused the incident. A gas explosion was also reported in June last year at a barbecue restaurant in northwest Ningxia region that killed 31 people. After that incident, Chinese market regulators issued detailed guidelines on using gas appliances and cookers to avoid safety risks. In November 2023, 26 people lost their lives, and dozens of others were hospitalized after a fire at a coal company office located in northern China's Shanxi province, according to the Voice of America News. The Shanxi incident occurred after the region's mining safety regulator issued a notice last month that told mines to curb overproduction to prevent accidents. This comes as China's top-producing coal mine region observed a surge in deaths last year. Related Article: Taiwan Security Official Warns of Increased Chinese Military Activities Near Island @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Doctors from the United Kingdom used Apple's Vision Pro virtual reality headset during two spinal surgeries, playing into the tech giant's healthcare vision for its product. The medical team in question is from Cromwell Hospital in London and utilized Apple's $3,500 headset during the two surgeries. Medical professionals called the Vision Pro a "game-changing" tool, supporting Apple's claim that the Vision Pro has a future as a medical device. Vision Pro in Surgery While the doctors who performed the surgeries did not wear the virtual reality headset themselves, a scrub nurse reportedly had a Vision Pro strapped on during preparations for the surgeries and the procedures themselves. The Apple product was used to view virtual screens imposed on the operating room to select tools and monitor surgery progress. The software that the Cromwell Hospital medical team used was developed by eXeX, a company that builds AI-driven apps targeting surgeons. According to Gizmodo, one of the Cromwell surgeons who used the device, Syed Aftab, said in a press release that working with eXeX to take advantage of the Vision Pro made a "huge difference" in the way they delivered care to their patients. He added that it was a privilege to be among the first teams in the UK and Europe to use the software in surgery. Aftab added that he was looking forward to seeing how the technology advances in the future and its impacts across hospitals. Read Also: Samsung May Make Galaxy Watch Screens Square, Similar to Apple's Design A recent Apple press release said that a company known as Stryker is touting the "myMako" app for the Vision Pro. It helps doctors develop surgical plans for hip and knee replacements by using 3D models as well as other tools. A variety of other companies and developers are taking advantage of Apple's Vision Pro for medical training and education. A variety of new apps have become available, including Fundamental Surgery, CollaboratOR 3D, and Complete HeartX. Virtual Reality in Healthcare The lead scrub nurse who wore the Vision Pro virtual reality headset during the surgeries was identified as Suvi Verho. This was not the first time that eXeX's products have been used in an operating room, said TechRadar. Last month, American surgeon Dr. Robert Masson used Apple's virtual reality headset with eXeX's app to assist him in performing a spinal procedure. Similar to the Cromwell medical team, Masson did not wear the headset himself but had his assistants do so. They used the Vision Pro to follow procedural guides from inside a sterile environment, which was previously considered "impossible." Masson also praised the combination of the virtual reality headset and the eXeX app, saying that it enabled an "undistracted workflow" for his team. Apple's vice president of worldwide developer relations, Susan Prescott, said in a press release that they were thrilled to see the incredible apps that various developers across the healthcare community have brought to the Vision Pro's reach, according to Business Insider. Related Article: Discord To Bring More Games, Apps Inside Chats as App Seeks Profit in 2024 @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Russia is currently in a state of combat readiness and is fully prepared for a nuclear war, according to President Vladimir Putin's recent remarks. During an interview with state media, Putin, who initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and is highly likely to secure victory in the March 15 to 17 presidential election, stated that Russia would be prepared to utilize nuclear weapons if its sovereignty was jeopardized. Putin Affirms Russia's Full Military Preparedness "From a military-technical perspective, we are fully prepared," Putin stated in an interview with Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA when asked about the country's readiness for a nuclear conflict. Putin mentioned that the United States is aware that deploying American troops on Russian territory or to Ukraine would be considered as an intervention by Russia. "In the United States, there are plenty of experts in Russian-American relations and strategic restraint," Putin stated. He emphasized that the use of nuclear weapons was outlined in the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine, its policy detailing the situations in which Russia might use its weapons. In a wide-ranging interview, he mentioned that if the United States conducted nuclear tests, Russia might do the same. Putin stated that Russia has never had to resort to using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, where the conflict has been ongoing since February 2022. Plans to attack Europe are suggested in a letter that was leaked on November 30. The document looked to be rubber-stamped by Putin with his initials and the phrase "agreed" on December 12, 2023, only a few days after he declared his campaign for a fifth term in power. It seems almost possible that Vladimir Putin will be re-elected this week, particularly considering that he has been controlling Russia with an iron fist for more than twenty years. Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin said in the documents that the committees of the State Duma, which is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, would be prepared to begin working on draft legislation, according to The Sun. Read Also: Colombia Picks New Attorney General Amid Turmoil for President Gustavo Petro's Administration Russia's Proposed Laws These draft laws would include expanding the level of censorship over the entirety of Russia, particularly on television and the internet. In addition, the letter criticizes the Western world's backing for Ukraine, stating that it is "delaying the quick completion" of Putin's invasion of Ukraine. As part of an extensive strategy, Volodin offers strengthening the nationalisation of the economy by transferring ownership of all raw materials industries to the state. The Kremlin aims to address the challenge posed by opposition movements as Putin seeks to strengthen his leadership and leave a lasting impact. Putin has consistently shown a lack of kindness for disagreement, leading to many of his opponents being imprisoned, exiled, or killed. Just recently, a prominent critic of Putin, Alexei Navalny, passed away while in custody on false accusations. The Kremlin attempted to depict Navalny and his supporters as people who break the law and are influenced by Western powers, working to create instability in Russia. Russia's nuclear arsenal was commended by Putin for its ongoing progress, being the largest globally. He added that the need to improve the defense-industrial complex to boost the country's scientific, technological, and industrial capabilities. The conflict in Ukraine has caused an emergency in Moscow's connection to Western countries, reminiscent of the tension during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Putin has cautioned about the risks involved in a direct clash between Nato and Russia, SCMP reported. Related Article: Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu Could Be Ousted from Power as Coalition in Jeopardy, US Intelligence Report Claims @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An off-duty Connecticut cop was charged with breach of peace and 3rd-degree assault after punching a driver in traffic for honking at him at a red light. Video footage of the incident showed the law enforcement personnel threatening to ticket the driver. The video was taken from dashcam footage of the company van of the driver, identified as Thomas Brocuglio. Off-Duty Police Punches Driver In the footage, Meriden Police Department Corporal Allen Ganter stopped at a red light in Rocky Hill in December last year. The 37-year-old driver had his dog riding shotgun with him as he pulled up behind the off-duty police officer and waited for him to make a right turn on a red light. While honking his horn, Brocuglio yelled and asked the police officer in front of him, "What are you doing?" Then, the 57-year-old cop exited his Toyota Tacoma as he was seen wearing gym shorts and a zip-up hoodie. He waved his badge as he was approaching the driver's vehicle, according to the New York Post. The 20-year veteran of the Meriden Police Department then shouted at Brocuglio, saying that he cannot take a right turn on that particular red light. In response, the driver pointed to a sign that read, "Stop here on red," and noted that it did not read, "No turn on red." He then accused the off-duty police officer of being on his phone and not paying attention to traffic. Read Also: Department of Justice Arrests 4 Philippine Nationals for Running 'Large-Scale Marriage Scam' Brocuglio said that he saw the off-duty cop looking down and doing something inside of his car. The police officer answered by saying that he was only moving something inside his bag and the back-and-forth banter between the two individuals started to heat up. Ganter then threatened to serve Brocuglio a ticket and that he would call his "supervisor" for honking at him. The driver then asked the off-duty cop for his badge number, suggesting that he planned to file a complaint. This was when the officer could be seen reaching into Brocuglio's car, punching him in the side of the face. Violent Altercation During the violent moment, Ganter could be heard saying, "F****ng as***le. Who do you think you are f*****ng with? Do you want to get arrested?" The driver then responded by saying that the officer could get arrested for assaulting a civilian, said the Daily Mail. After the altercation, Brocuglio called 911 and said that he was assaulted by a police officer, telling them that Ganter punched him through his car's window. Rocky Hill Police later contacted Ganter and talked to him outside of his home. Body camera footage showed that he asked the officers who visited him if he could press charges against Brocuglio. Video footage showed him asking, "Is her pressing charges against me like for breach because I yelled at him and stuff?" The responding officer then told Ganter that Brocuglio was pressing charges for assault and added that the encounter was caught on video. The Connecticut officer then admitted to hitting the driver and said that it was his fault. Meriden police also suspended Ganter for five days without pay and he was reassigned following an internal investigation. He later told internal affairs officers that the incident was one of the moments of "plain stupidity" on his part, said the New York Daily News. Related Article: New York: BMW Driver Abandons Passenger, Flees Scene After Fatal Hit-and-Run in Staten Island @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Katharine Birbalsingh, self-proclaimed "Britain's Strictest Headmistress," has brought back a traditional, super-strict style of education to the UK-and it seems to be effective. At Michaela Community School in northwest London, students follow a strict military-style regimen under its "SLANT" policy (Sit up, Lean forward, Ask and answer questions, Nod your head, and Track the speaker). For example, during the school's lunch break, students walk quickly and silently to the cafeteria in a single line. There, they loudly recite a poemOzymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelleyin unison, then eat for 13 minutes as they discuss that day's mandatory lunch topic. While some critics called her model oppressive, Draconian, and even dystopian, Michaela has the highest rate of academic progress in England, according to a government measure of the improvement students make between the ages of 11 and 16, and the model is becoming increasingly popular. In a growing number of schools, days were marked by strict routines, silent corridors, and detentions for minor infractions. Tom Bennett, a government adviser on school behavior, said sympathetic education ministers had helped create such "momentum." "There are lots of schools doing this now," he added, "and they achieve fantastic results." Birbalsingh's Educational Influence Michaela opened in the mid-2010s as a publicly funded but independently run secondary school. It emerged as a leader of a movement convinced that children from disadvantaged backgrounds needed strict discipline, rote learning, and controlled environments to succeed inside and outside the classroom. "How do those who come from poor backgrounds make a success of their lives? Well, they have to work harder." Birbalsingh told the Times. "What you need to do is pull the fence tight. Children crave discipline." Born in New Zealand in 1973 to Indo-Guyanese and Jamaican educators who traveled the world to teach at several universities across the Commonwealth, Birbalsingh came to national prominence in October 2010 when she criticized the British education system at that year's Conservative Party conference and supported its education policies. She also served as the British government's head of social mobility from 2021 until last year, a position she held while running Michaela. However, despite supporting then-Education Secretary Michael Gove's no-excuses education policies and expressing her disappointment in his removal from the portfolio in 2014, Birbalsingh insisted that she was a "small-c conservative" in contrast to the Tory perspective of conservatism. Gove's and Birbalsingh's perspective is tied to a conservative political ideology that emphasizes individual determination rather than structural elements shaping people's lives. The Times also revealed that former British Home Secretary Suella Braverman was a director of the Michaela School. Read Also: Prince William Visits Synagogue, Stresses UK's Fight Against Antisemitism Criticisms of the Michaela Method However, some educators have expressed concern about the broader zero-tolerance approach, saying that the trade-off for producing excellent academic results by minutely controlling students' behavior was the lack of personal autonomy and critical thinking and a psychological toll. "It's like they've taken 1984 and read it as a how-to manual, as opposed to a satire," award-winning British secondary school teacher and author Phil Beadle said. To him, free time and discussion were as important to child development as good academic results, worrying that a "cult-like environment that required total compliance" could deprive children of their childhood. This came after the Michaela School made headlines last January when a Muslim student took it to court over its ban on prayer rituals, arguing that it was discriminatory. Birbalsingh defended the ban on social media, saying that it was vital for "a successful learning environment where children of all races and religion[s] can thrive." As of this writing, there are no updates from the legal arbiters on its decision in the case. Proponents of the strict model and some parents said that children with special education needs thrive in strict, predictable environments, but others saw their children with learning difficulties struggle in these schools. Related Article: College Board Debuts New Digital SAT: 'Computers Are What We're More Comfortable With' @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images for Teton Ridge) Luke Bryan is asking fans to share any information they might have about missing college student Riley Strain. Country music star Luke Bryan is asking his fans to share any information they might have about missing college student Riley Strain, who disappeared after being out of his Nashville bar. Strain, 22, was visiting Nashville with other members of his fraternity when he was kicked out of Luke's 32 Bridge bar on Friday night. He hasn't been seen since. Bryan posted a statement on Instagram from the restaurant group that operates the bar and restaurant with his own message saying, "Y'all this is scary. Praying for his safe return." The country star is also a judge on ABC's American Idol. Strain told his fraternity brothers that he planned to go back to their hotel - but he may have gotten lost, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. On Tuesday, the Metro Nashville Police Department released a video of Strain crossing 1st Ave North to Gay St, at 9:47 p.m. on Friday. They are asking anyone with information about him to give them a call. Strain is 6-foot-5, 160 pounds, with blond hair and blue eyes. He was wearing brown boots, jeans and a black-and-white shirt the evening he disappeared. His stepfather Christopher Whiteid is calling the situation a "nightmare." Mizzou officials have been in contact with Strain's family and Nashville law enforcement since the disappearance. "The safety of our community is our highest priority," said Angela King Taylor, interim vice chancellor for Student Affairs in a statement. "Our thoughts are with Riley's family as the search continues. We will be offering any support to them that we can, and we encourage anyone who needs help to reach out to our counseling resources." "It's so hard," His mother Michelle Whiteid told WSMV. "I just need to know where my son is." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Al Golub-Pool/Getty Images) LA Innocence Project takes up Scott Peterson's claim of innocence over the murder of his wife and unborn son in 2002. A California judge on Tuesday set three new dates in court for Scott Peterson, the man imprisoned for killing his pregnant wife, who is now working with the Los Angeles Innocence Project to clear his name nearly 20 years after his original conviction. Peterson is expected to appear in court on April 16, May 29 and July 15. The first hearing will deal with a motion to seal documents, while the second will revolve around new DNA testing and the third will address post-conviction discovery. Peterson was initially sentenced to death for killing his wife Laci and her unborn child but the sentence was overturned in 2021, due to jury bias. He was subsequently resentenced to life without parole. Prosecutors allege that Peterson killed his eight months pregnant wife on Christmas Eve, before dumping her body in a river. Now the LA Innocence Project is arguing that Laci could've actually witnessed burglars breaking into a neighbor's house. The group has theorized that the burglars then broke into the Peterson home and then kidnapped and killed Laci. The non-profit first filed motions on behalf of Peterson in January "to order further discovery of evidence and allow new DNA testing to support our investigation into Mr. Peterson's claim of actual innocence," said director Paula Mitchell, according to the Associated Press. The Innocence Project is seeking new DNA testing that could link the burglars to the tarps and other evidence uncovered when Laci's body was discovered. They have also asked for police materials - including audio and video recordings - connected to the initial burglary investigation. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : GoFundMe) Kaylee Gain is breathing on her own again after a March 8 brawl left her unconscious. A teenager savagely beaten near a St. Louis-area school in a video that went viral remains unconscious in a hospital in critical condition, as the Missouri Attorney General demands the teen who attacked her be charged fully as an adult. A GoFundMe to raise money for her care identified the girl's first name as Kaylee and released a photo of her. The fundraiser reports that the teen has major brain bleeding and swelling and is still not awake. "Kaylee is fighting hard to stay alive and heal but this is only the beginning of a very uphill battle," organizer Sarah Hall said. She added that the family will not know the extent of the brain damage until she wakes up. "The path to recovery will be extremely hard on the family, not only mentally but financially," Hall said. Why do people have no control, no manners, and no respect for anyone? Teen girl is left in critical condition after high school mob beatdown in Missouri The fight broke out by an intersection near Hazelwood East High School pic.twitter.com/MNiEbAjYob Ronald Kelly (@RonK3l) March 11, 2024 The fight took place last Friday near Hazelwood East High School. A video widely circulated on social media shows the two teens start fighting for an unknown reason. They two end up on the ground and one of the girls repeatedly punches the other girl in the face before slamming her head into the road several times. The St. Louis County Police Department says it happened around 2:30 p.m. just north of the school campus. Police arrested a 15-year-old girl on Saturday to face assault charges. The school district released a statement in response to the violence saying, "It is a tragedy anytime children are hurt. Bullying and fighting in the community is an issue for which we all need to take ownership and work towards a resolution for the sake of our children." "The Hazelwood School District offers our sincerest condolences to everyone involved, and will offer additional emotional support from our support and crisis team to those in need. We look forward to continuing to partner with our community for the sake of our children. Please be kind and respectful of the families involved during this difficult time and pledge to help work toward the betterment of our entire community." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. British couple David John and Rosaline Foster have died while on holiday in the Caribbean nation of Grenada. Local police said that the 76-year-old man suffered a heart attack while at sea at Paradise Beach in Carriacou and was later pronounced dead at the scene. His 77-year-old wife attempted to save her but eventually became unconscious. The Royal Grenada Police Force told the BBC that Rosaline was still taken to hospital but later died. Read Also: Americans, Canadians Stranded in Haiti Await Flights As Gangs Take Over Streets: 'We Are Seriously Trapped' "The basic facts seem to suggest the man may have suffered a heart attack and the lady may have gone to his assistance, and she probably would have drowned," Royal Grenada Police Force Cpl. Ardell Lewis said. Local media also reported that the retired couple was on holiday with other family members at the time. The UK's Foreign Office did not immediately respond to reporters' requests for comment. The death of the Fosters brought the total number of tourist fatalities in the country to four after American couple Ralph Hendry and Kathleen Brandel were allegedly murdered when their yacht was stolen. Related Article: Virginia Woman Kathy Brandel Was Raped Before Boat Hijackers Killed Her, Cops Say @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. President Vladimir Putin is boasting that Russia's nuclear weapons are more modern than those of the U.S. Putin made the claim in an interview with the state broadcaster that aired on Wednesday. "Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here," Putin said, according to the Moscow Times. Putin also warned that he was ready to deploy the weapons if Russia felt threatened. "We are ready to use weapons, including any weapons - including the weapons you mentioned - if it is a question of the existence of the Russian state or damage to our sovereignty and independence, he told Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA. Putin said the use of nuclear weapons was outlined in the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine, the policy that details the situations in which Russia might use its weapons. Russia has made threats about using nuclear weapons in Ukraine but it is unclear how serious they are about the possibility. Plans to attack Europe were also suggested in a letter that was leaked in November. The document looked to be rubber-stamped by Putin with his initials and the phrase "agreed" on December 12, 2023. Putin is expected to win the March 15 to 17 presidential election in Russia. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks during a news conference at the Fulton County Government building on August 14, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Georgia judge that dismissed six counts in Donald Trump's election interference case pointed to a "fatal" mistake by prosecutor Fani Willis in his ruling - but also noted that the state could move to re-indict the former president on those dismissed charges. Trump, his former attorneys and his former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were all indicted in Georgia in a wide-ranging racketeering case, based on the former president's alleged attempts to interfere with the 2020 election results. Trump, Meadows, and lawyers Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, Ray Stallings Smith and David Cheeley have all pleaded not guilty. The dismissed counts - three of which were specific to Trump - dealt with the defendants' alleged attempts to solicit state officials to violate their oaths of office. Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee argued that the charges were "generic" in his dismissal. "The court's concern is less that the state has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the defendants - in fact it has alleged an abundance. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigned's opinion, fatal," McAfee wrote. McAfee argued that the charges "fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e. the underlying felony solicited," adding that the lack of detail would make it too challenging for the defendants to adequately prepare for their trials. The state can still move to re-indict the defendants on the six dismissed charges, McAfee wrote in a footnote. "Even if the statute of limitations has expired, the State receives a six-month extension from the date of this Order to resubmit the case to a grand jury." @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Following less than two hours of deliberation, a jury convicted a Virginia dad of murdering his 4-year-old son whose body has never been found. Cory Bigsby, 45, was found guilty of second-degree murder and concealing a body in connection with the death of his child, Codi Bigsby, according to investigators, WTKR-TV reported. His sentencing is scheduled for a later date, but the prosecution said it would seek the maximum time behind bars. "Forty years for second-degree murder, which is the max. Five years for discarding a dead body. That's the most I'm going to get, and that's what I'm going to ask for," Hampton Commonwealth Attorney Anton Bell said, according to the outlet. While loved ones and advocates were satisfied with the jury's decision, the hunt for Codi's remains is far from over. "This verdict still doesn't give us Codi," Joe Slabinski, who worked as a lead searcher on the case said, according to WVEC-TV. Bigsby first reported Codi missing on Jan. 31, 2022, but investigators believe the little boy was killed seven months prior to him filing the missing persons report. Codi's mother took the stand and said a 2020 hospitalization forced her to leave the children she shared with Cory in his care. She said that she had not spoken to her son since April 2021, WTKR reported. The victim's 7-year-old brother also told the court he failed to shake his brother awake around that time, and that his face was red and covered with bruises. He claimed their dad would often discipline Codi. Corrections Officer Jemal Massey testified Cory admitted to murdering the boy. He said Cory confessed, "I found my son unresponsive, tried CPR... [I] could not revive him... I put him in a trash bag, put him in the car, where he sat for three to five days... I buried him," according to the station. After the verdict was announced, Bigsby's defense attorney told reporters outside the courthouse: "Y'all presented the case as if he was already guilty, so I hope y'all are happy," WVEC reported. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)) People take cover during a shooting at Union Station during the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVIII victory parade on February 14, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. Several people were shot. Three Kansas City men have been charged with illegal firearms trafficking and straw purchases of firearms connected to the mass shooting at the Chiefs Super Bowl victory celebration. One person was killed and more than 20 people were injured when the shooting happened at Union Station on Feb. 14. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Missouri announced Wednesday that authorities connected two firearms recovered at the scene to Fedo Antonia Manning, 22, who was charged in a 12-count federal complaint, and Ronnel Dewayne Williams, Jr., 21, and Chaelyn Hendrick Groves, 19, who were charged in a separate 4-count federal complaint. "These cases underscore the importance of enforcing federal firearms laws," U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said in a statement. "Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence. At least two of the firearms recovered from the scene of the mass shooting at Union Station were illegally purchased or trafficked. According to court documents, 12 individuals brandished firearms and at least six individuals fired their weapons. The Kansas City, Mo., Police Department recovered several firearms, spent shell casings, and other items of evidentiary value from the scene. According to the first complaint, Manning, who is not a licensed firearms dealer, allegedly purchased dozens of firearms. 15 firearms originally purchased by Manning were recovered by law enforcement in the possession of others. Several were banned from even owing guns. The firearm recovered from the scene of the mass shooting at Union Station is one of seven firearms originally purchased by Manning that have been recovered during investigations of crimes, prosecutors said. Manning also allegedly was the straw purchaser of seven guns that were later sold to a confidential informant during a separate federal criminal investigation. One of the firearms recovered from the scene of the shooting was an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol. The loaded pistol was found along the wall with a backpack next to two AR-15-style firearms and backpacks. Because the pistol was in "fire" position and there were 26 live rounds in the magazine, which is capable of holding 30 rounds, it may have fired several rounds before it was discarded. According to an affidavit filed in support of the federal criminal complaint, the AM-15 pistol was purchased by Manning from Frontier Justice in Lee's Summit, Mo., on Aug. 7, 2022. The affidavit alleges that Manning illegally trafficked dozens of firearms, including many Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 firearms. The second firearm recovered from the scene of the mass shooting was a Stag Arms 300-caliber pistol. According to an affidavit filed in the second federal criminal complaint, the pistol was purchased by Williams from The Ammo Box during a gun show at the KCI Expo Center on Nov. 25, 2023. Williams allegedly purchased the firearm for Groves, who accompanied him to the gun show but was too young to legally purchase the firearm himself. The federal criminal complaints do not claim that Manning, Williams, or Groves were at the shooting scene. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Arthur "Jack" Schubarth, the owner of a Montana ranch, was behind a cloning scheme to create the largest sheep on earth. The "massive" hybrid sheep would then be sold for trophy hunting, revealed the Justice Department. Schubarth, 80, knew his regular and loyal customers. Captive hunting facilities, shooting preserves, and game ranches would outbid one another for bigger sheep, as reported by The Sacramento Bee. Prosecutors argue Schubarth's yearslong aspiration to create "a larger and more valuable" species of sheep for profit violated federal and international law. The mad breeder pleaded guilty on March 12 to two felony wildlife crimes: a conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and violating the Lacey Act, said the Justice Department in a news release. "This was an audacious scheme to create massive hybrid sheep species to be sold and hunted as trophies," Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division said in the release. Schubarth is the owner of Sun River LLC, a 215-acre ranch also known as Schubarth Ranch in Vaughn, Montana. There, prosecutors allege "alternative livestock," including mountain sheep, are purchased, sold, and bred. He is known to have worked with at least five others from 2013 to 2021 to produce hybrid sheep from the genetic material of a Marco Polo argali sheep-- the largest sheep species currently in existence. These sheep are native to Central Asia and live in high elevations in a mountainous region known as the Pamir region. Furthermore, they are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and by the US Endangered Species Act. Males alone can weigh more than 300 pounds, with their horns growing to be more than five feet in length. Schubarth had the sheep's parts trafficked into the US without properly declaring their importation after a Marco Polo argali sheep was hunted in the Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan in 2013. With cloned embryos, Schubarth implanted ewes and female sheep at his ranch, which led to the birth of a "pure genetic male Marco Polo argali." He allegedly named the sheep "Montana Mountain King." Montana law does not allow possession of the argali sheep in order "to protect native sheep from disease and hybridization." After Montana Mountain King was born, Schubarth and his associates used its semen to impregnate different ewes at his ranch to further the production of the hybrid offspring. Records reveal Schubarth agreed to sell one of the sheep's offspring, named, "Montana Black Magic," to two individuals in Texas for $10,000. He also agreed to sell the same group eleven sheep that contained 25% of the Montana Mountain King's genetics for $13,200. "To move the prohibited sheep into and out of Montana, Schubarth and others forged veterinary inspection certificates, falsely claiming that the sheep were legally permitted species," prosecutors said. Under state law, hunted game animals and their parts cannot be sold or used on alternative livestock ranches. He stands accused of selling and transporting parts from Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, and his sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 11. Schubarth faces up to five years in prison for each of the two felony counts, and a fine of up to $250,000 could also issued. @ 2024 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Atwell Suites - part of IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG), one of the world's leading hotel companies - today announced the opening of its first Texas property in Austin. Atwell Suites Austin Airport marks the third U.S. open property for the brand, following debuts in Miami and Denver. The 80-room Atwell Suites Austin Airport is the brand's first conversion property - bringing a new kind of all-suite accommodation to the area - designed to support longer stays that allow for easy transition between business and leisure. Karen Gilbride, Vice President of Atwell Suites, avid hotels & Garner hotels, said: "The opening of Atwell Suites Austin Airport is an opportunity for us to showcase the flexibility our brand can offer potential owners and establish Atwell Suites as a distinctive choice among the upper midscale market with its modern design and fresh aesthetic. At IHG, we've seen great success with conversions in recent years - particularly during times of tighter financial lending environments. As we continue to see an increasing desire from owners in this space, we're excited that Atwell Suites can provide this option." The hotel, which is conveniently located near Austin Bergstrom International Airport and less than 20 minutes from Downtown Austin, will offer the brand's signature hallmarks for guests to enjoy: Flexible & Enriching Spaces include modern suites designed with distinct zones for work and rest, with functional workspaces and a comfortable lounge area complete with well-crafted design touches like a gallery wall above the in-room sofa (perfect back drop for virtual meetings!) and other unique surprises like secret messages. The lobby areas mix private and shared spaces in a thoughtfully designed space that incorporates elements that pay homage to local Austin culture and Texas traditions. include modern suites designed with distinct zones for work and rest, with functional workspaces and a comfortable lounge area complete with well-crafted design touches like a gallery wall above the in-room sofa (perfect back drop for virtual meetings!) and other unique surprises like secret messages. The lobby areas mix private and shared spaces in a thoughtfully designed space that incorporates elements that pay homage to local Austin culture and Texas traditions. Food & Drink to Start & End the Day includes complimentary breakfast in the morning featuring a variety of quality hot and cold items such as overnight oats, vegetable egg white omelets, and the brand's signature Churro donut. Guests will also have access to a self-serve Refreshment Stand, featuring bean-to-cup coffee, still and sparkling water and tea 24/7. In the evenings, guests can share small plates with friends, accompanied by a variety of after-hour beverages to wind down the day including wine, localized beer, and delicious, ready-to-drink cocktails. includes complimentary breakfast in the morning featuring a variety of quality hot and cold items such as overnight oats, vegetable egg white omelets, and the brand's signature Churro donut. Guests will also have access to a self-serve Refreshment Stand, featuring bean-to-cup coffee, still and sparkling water and tea 24/7. In the evenings, guests can share small plates with friends, accompanied by a variety of after-hour beverages to wind down the day including wine, localized beer, and delicious, ready-to-drink cocktails. Genuine Connections inspired by conversation starter coasters at the bar, a shared TV lounge, games and puzzles placed throughout public areas, and themed events that bring guests together. The opening of Atwell Suites Austin Airport is the latest of exciting milestones for the brand with over 40 additional properties in the pipeline including three recent groundbreakings in Las Vegas, Nev., Henderson, Nev., Kansas City, Mo., and Fort Worth, Texas. Hotel website The Ruby Group has marked its debut in the Scandinavian market by securing its' first project. Located in the heart of the island of Kungsholmen in Stockholm, Ruby is set to develop a 187-room hotel. This venture is in partnership with Alecta Fastigheter, a real estate company owned by Swedens largest pension fund Alecta. Ruby Hotels, led by founder and CEO Michael Struck, continues its successful expansion, introducing its' Lean Luxury concept to Northern Europe for the first time. The brand's inaugural project in Sweden represents a significant milestone, with entry into the Scandinavian market recognised as a formidable challenge due to the strong presence of local operators and a competitive office market. Ruby's upcoming hotel, repurposed from a former office space, will feature engaging public areas on the ground level, including a round-the-clock bar and cafe. Additionally the hotel will include a restaurant located on the 11th-floor which will be managed by a third-party restaurant operator positioned to join forces with our hotel, creating the city's newest hotspot. Stockholm, vibrant and continuously evolving, offers an irresistible blend of history, nature, and culture. With its strategic location in Kungsholmen, near Fridhemsplan underground station, the hotel ensures excellent access to public transportation, including an express airport link. Guests will find themselves in close proximity to major tourist attractions, a plethora of dining options, and the city's bustling cafe culture as well as the water and green park amenities. The conversion of the former office building is being carried out under the management of Alecta Fastigheter as project developer and investor, the interior design by Ruby's own design team led by Matthew Balon. The new Ruby Hotel is scheduled to open in spring 2026. Hotel website Mint House , a premier hospitality brand offering a new category for long and short-term accommodations, proudly announces the appointment of Judy Turchin as Independent Director to its executive board. Judy, former Equinox Chief Operating Officer, brings more than two decades of real estate and operations knowledge to propel Mint House's vision forward and complement its accomplished executive board. With a distinguished career spanning leadership roles at renowned companies including Equinox and Blackstone Real Estate, Judy's strategic insights have been pivotal in addressing critical issues spanning customer experience, brand development, real estate growth, and operational excellence at scale. Additionally, as a board and compensation committee member for several consumer brands, Judy's extensive understanding of operations, sales, marketing, and human capital underscores her critical role in propelling Mint House toward innovation and operational excellence in the hospitality sector. Consisting of seven members with several decades of combined experience, Mint House's Board of Directors brings together a wealth of hospitality, real estate, operations, and investing expertise. Adding Judy to the board alongside the likes of the former CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, the former president of Euro Disney, and investors from Revolution and Ingleside further elevates Mint House's position in the market. Together, this team brings a high-quality and robust set of experience creating a strong and dynamic board. PITTSBURGH - With relationship building always top of mind, Aptech will be exhibiting at the 35th Annual Hunter Hotel Investment Conference to display its integrated enterprise accounting, business intelligence, and budgeting/forecasting software for hotels. To be held March 19 to 21 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, the event is designed to foster networking and create connections. In addition to learning about upcoming investment trends and connecting to the industrys whos who, attendees will get an overview of the most advanced financial-management software on the market in Aptech Booth #812. The technology enables finance teams to access, view, compare, and analyze performance data of a single hotel or a multi-property/multi-brand enterprise. Aptechs solutions work independently or in sync to respond to revenue and expense changes and identify trends to better position assets for growth and profitability. As hotel owners and operators convene in Atlanta next week to gain a better understanding of the financial state of industry, Aptech will be there with the tools finance teams need to collect daily performance data and generate reports. For many properties, gaining access to information that helps make effective business decisions is challenging. Forget multiple spreadsheets from different legacy sources, software systems, and locations. We will show attendees what a secure, leading-edge, web-based enterprise back office system looks like one that is scalable and easy to use with flexible financial reporting and enables finance teams to work remotely. Aptech President Jill Wilder Kim Sieminski and James Troutman will be at the conference to answer questions about our modules and recent partnerships with companies such as Ottimate, a provider of AI-powered AP automation, and Plaid, a data network powering the digital financial ecosystem, Wilder said. Together with these partners Aptech is streamlining vendor invoice processing for simplified, automated bank reconciliation. The following will be on display in Booth #812 at the Hunter Hotel Investment Conference 2024: PVNG named among the Best Finance & Accounting Software of 2024 by Hotel Tech Report featuring Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, General Ledger, Statistics, Financials, Bank Reconciliation, automated invoice processing, a myriad of payment options, and drill-down capabilities in financial statements and reports. It can handle single or multi-property accounting and is deployed as a hosted service. Execuvue featuring a BI platform that delivers visualizations of financial and operational data that hoteliers can act upon. The drag-and-drop environment provides easy-to-access reporting and analytics. The solution configures data portfolio wide, giving operators a performance snapshot by region, brand, and property. The scalability, flexibility, and integration capabilities of Execuvue sets Aptech apart from other BI providers. Targetvue providing accounting teams with one version of the truth. It consolidates reports, identifies trends, and eliminates the maintenance and distribution of Excel spreadsheets throughout the organization. Automated forecast snapshots offers users ad-hoc capabilities to previous and future performance projections. We are eager to engage with hospitality financiers to discuss their pain points and learn how Aptech can help them improve daily accounting processes, Sieminski said. Aptech has been in this business for more than 50 years, connecting people with computers and information to solve significant problems at their hotels. This event will be instrumental in connecting us with customers and prospects who are looking to operate more efficiently. To register for the Hunter Hotel Investment Conference, click here. To preschedule a meeting with Kim Sieminski or James Troutman, email [email protected]. For more information on all Aptech solutions, visit http://www.aptech-inc.com. About Aptech Computer Systems Inc. Aptech Computer Systems, Inc., based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is the only provider of a fully integrated enterprise accounting, business intelligence and planning ecosystem to the hospitality industry. All clients are companies like yours, which own or manage hotels. Its solutions help customers at both the corporate and property levels understand their financial and operational data for faster goal achievement. The company is renowned for introducing business intelligence into the hotel industry and offers a solid resource of hospitality professionals. Aptech is an IBM Software Value Plus partner and Premier Solution Provider, as well as a Prophix Premier Business Partner. Incorporated in 1970, Aptech's state-of-the-art back office, true business intelligence and enterprise planning solutions are 100% hotel specific. Solutions include PVNG, Execuvue and Targetvue. Clients comprise over 3,500 properties including large chains, multiple-property management companies and single-site hotels. Execuvue is registered to Aptech Computer Systems Inc. All other trademarks are owned by their respective holders. For more information, please visit www.aptech-inc.com. Barbara Worcester +1 440 930 5770 The last few years have been fraught with mergers and acquisitions in the hotel management space. Companies have grown larger and less personalized, more streamlined, increasingly technologically advanced, and geographically agnostic. The benefits of a large management company may seem obvious: efficiency and economies of scale, technology and innovation, specialized knowledge and resources, and distribution channel advantages, among others. However, when choosing a management company for your hotel, I encourage you to look beyond the seemingly obvious and evaluate whether a more personalized and strategic approach is appropriate for your hotel real estate investment goals. This article outlines the benefits of selecting a small management company for the day-to-day operation of your hotel. How Do You Know if You Need to Hire a Hotel Management Company? One of the most obvious reasons for hiring a management company or changing operators is the struggling performance of your hotel asset. Indicators of struggling performance include unexplained falling revenue or income levels, lack of increasing revenues as compared with the market and industry, increases in poor guest satisfaction scores and online reviews, and/or high employee turnover. Inadequate performance is not only problematic in the short term but can also lead to declines in the assets marketability, reputation, and even market value. Hiring the right operator can help rectify issues and maximize the hotels performance as a real estate investment. Another reason to seek a third-party operator is simply that these firms are qualified and employees have years of hospitality operational experience. These firms know how to negotiate with brands, implement revenue-management strategies, hire talented staff, market the asset, and manage expenses on a granular level, to name just a few areas of expertise. Hiring a management company in many cases can be more cost-effective than managing the property in-house as a result of this experience and the benefits of leveraging industry relationships. Hiring a third-party operator also helps release time and resources of the owner that could be used to focus on other business priorities. Finally, hiring a hotel management company is crucial as a first-time hotel developer or as an existing owner looking to reposition an asset. The lack of experience in this space can lead to costly mistakes that can be easily avoided by seeking the advice and guidance of a qualified operator. Have you ever considered where the laundry storage room should be placed relative to the elevators? Or how the back-of-the-house office space is designed to maximize guest-facing and revenue-generating areas in the front of the house? Have you thought about whether your hotel should be designed with connecting rooms or showers only in the bathrooms, and whether the hotel should feature an in-house laundry operation versus outsourcing laundry? Hotel operators have decades of experience and market intelligence that can help navigate these and many other important considerations. What Are the Major Differentiators to Consider When Evaluating the Qualifications and Benefits of a Small Hotel Management Firm? The single greatest advantage to working with a small or boutique hotel management company is the firms ability to be nimble. With a smaller company, decisions can be made quickly. The leadership structure of a smaller company is likely flatter, allowing for agility and flexibility in everything from staffing decisions to contract terms. Changes can be implemented without having to cut through red tape, and owners often have direct contact with the companys decision makers. Proactive solutions do not get bogged down in the bureaucracy of a large firm, allowing problems to be addressed swiftly and decisively. A terrific example of this is the hotel management agreement. Most firms look to secure agreements for 5-, 10-, or even 15-year terms as a standard. This provides the manager with financial security and assurance for a significant duration of time, putting less pressure on them to maximize the hotels performance. Smaller companies can step out of the industry standards and work with the owner to create more compelling terms. Shorter termination clauses of 30, 60, or 90 days after an initial period are becoming more common and are sometimes used by smaller firms to assure owners that if expectations arent being met or exceeded by the operator, the commitment risk is relatively low. This further protects the owner from costly legal and termination fees if it is determined that the relationship with the third-party operator is no longer aligned with the owners priorities. Additionally, the shorter term offered by a smaller firm can keep the company vigilant and its operational decisions more at the forefront since the guarantee of the agreement is relatively vulnerable. Along these lines, termination fees, performance thresholds, and/or incentive fees are more likely to be negotiable items. Smaller firms are also less likely to mandate standardization across their portfolio of managed hotels. If your property is unbranded, you dont have to worry that a certain brand of bed linens or hand soap will be mandated across the board; the autonomy of those decisions lies with the ownership group in collaboration with the operator. In that vein, ongoing and regular dialogue with clients is a major differentiator of small management firms. Keeping the owner involved to their desired degree ensures that near- and long-term goals are actively implemented in collaborative partnership, instead of in a vacuum. Reporting on hotel performance can happen on a daily basis, if needed, and questions on performance can be answered in real time. A small management company has the ability to provide a more personalized and hands-on approach with regard to the day-to-day management of your hotel asset. Not only are you more likely to have a dedicated account manager who knows the local market, the companys smaller client list allows it to focus wholly on your priorities. One of the most important components of this is the design and implementation of a strategic marketing plan. A smaller management company will conduct thorough market research and leverage local connections to help maximize your hotels exposure to its target guest base. The firm will help you better evaluate the competitive landscape and identify opportunities and services gaps given the intimate understanding of the local market. A smaller company with more focused experience will undoubtedly be aware of changes in market dynamics that could affect the operation of its clients hotel. Examples include the opening of a new hotel, renovations of competitive properties, travel freezes at local firms, corporate expansions, and new meeting and group demand sources, to name a few. I experienced one such example at the end of 2019 when a small hotel management firm in the Pacific Northwest leveraged its relationship with a tech company that had significant exposure to business operations in China. This relationship allowed the hotel management company to better prepare for the impacts of COVID-19 on the global travel industry. This firm was able to warn its owners, beef up reserves, and weather the storm of the pandemic with better preparation than many other operators. Another often overlooked and misunderstood benefit of using a boutique hotel management company is its relatively lower overhead and cost of doing business. Many smaller companies have employees working remotely, eliminating the cost of renting office space. These companies often do not have multiple shared service fees to help deflect their corporate overhead. Boutique firms have leaner teams, passing those savings on to the owner in terms of competitive contract fees and terms. Despite streamlined operational budgets, quality of service and guest experience are not compromisedand, in fact, are strengthened through a higher level of interaction with the property. Although each hotel management contract is different, one of the most significant components of the agreement is the fee. Hotel management fees can range from 2% to 5% of gross rooms revenue depending on the size, quality, and type of hotel. A provision for an incentive fee is typically included regardless of the size of the hotel and is usually tied to the excess after meeting the budget. Smaller companies have the ability to negotiate more creatively, with possible fees including a monthly minimum fee as a percentage of the propertys total revenue or a tiered rate as a percentage of revenue. Finally, it is important to understand how the firm is integrated into the greater hospitality industry. What is the experience of the principles and owners? Is the firm associated with an advisory council to help lead the industrys ever-changing trends? Do members of the firm attend industry events and provide thought leadership on industry topics? Is the company part of a larger firm, allowing collaboration and synergies with other advisory services? These are just some of the considerations that can help a small firm stand out in a sea of large-scale operators. The ultimate decision regarding the management company to hire for your hotel takes a tremendous amount of research and time. Not all firms are created equally, and hotel assets vary significantly; there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Understanding the benefits of a small or boutique firm is crucial when determining the best option for your hotel investment. As an owner, you have specific goals for your hotel investment that may include market reputation, employee retention and professional advancement, and/or community impact, in addition to maximizing return on investment. Your management company should understand your goals intimately and work with you on these differentiators to achieve success. Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from www.HotelExecutive.com. View source Canadians Among Top Anticipated Travel Spenders for 2024 According to Amex Global Travel Trends Report American Express Travel released its 2024 Global Travel Trends Report yesterday, highlighting the inspiration and trends driving global travel bookings this year. The report reveals that Canadians rank as the second highest global market for anticipated average trip spend and are prioritizing spontaneous, bucket list, and once in a lifetime vacations. "The Global Travel Trends Report highlights the continued desire for Canadians to prioritize unforgettable travel, from spontaneous trips to once in a lifetime experiences," said Vanessa Crooker, VP of Brand, Partnerships and Lifestyle Benefits at American Express Canada. "We know that 82% of Canadians plan to spend more or the same on travel this year and we are excited to meet that demand with our premium travel benefits." A summary of the Canadian findings from the American Express Travel 2024 Global Travel Trends Report are as follows: Extended, bucket-list trips are on the rise: Canadians are looking to take longer trips compared to the global average, visiting multiple countries in a region or taking expedition/remote trips. Canadians are looking to take longer trips compared to the global average, visiting multiple countries in a region or taking expedition/remote trips. Canadians are willing to spend, unless a travel hack can help them save: Travelers are willing to foot the bill to get the most out of their trip but lean on travel hacks for cost savings and upgrades. Travelers are willing to foot the bill to get the most out of their trip but lean on travel hacks for cost savings and upgrades. Spontaneity, solo travel and self-love drive travel desires: Canadians are leaving room for spontaneous exploration, exploring for self-fulfillment, and look to escape the chaos of daily life with solo trips. Extended, bucket-list trips are on the rise. 1-in-3 (33%) Canadians planning on taking a trip in 2024 plan to travel for a major trip (e.g., bucket list trip, dream vacation) this year. The most common types of trips Canadians consider to be a 'dream vacation' or major trip include multi-country tour within a region (66%), expedition cruises (32%), adventure travel (29%), wellness retreats (23%). Among Canadians planning to take a trip to visit multiple countries in a region, 70% plan on visiting Europe. Canadians planning on taking a trip in 2024 are making the most of vacation time, with 12-week trips (45%) and week-long trips (44%) being most common, compared to week-long (47%) and weekend trips (41%) being most popular among global responses. Canadians willing to spend, unless a travel hack can help them save. Over one-third (36%) of Canadians plan to spend more on travel compared to last year. Globally, Canada ranks the second highest market for anticipated highest average spend for leisure trips at an average of $8,824 for all leisure trips in 2024. Increased spend is balanced with a range of 'travel hacks' to save money on travel: 44% will travel during off-peak seasons. 41% will use credit card points to pay for flights/hotels. 20% will book through companies that offer complimentary hotel benefits (e.g. room upgrades, hotel credits) 85% of Canadian Adults agree that they are interested in finding flight deals so they can spend more on accommodations or upgrades. Spontaneity, solo travel and self-love drive travel desires Some Canadians book travel spontaneously, while others find spontaneity at their destination: Over one-third (37%) of Canadians took a last-minute trip in 2023, with even more (43%) interested in taking one in 2024. Planning timeframes are short, with nearly half (47%) booking 2 weeks in advance or more. While at their destination, Canadians prefer to leave dining plans (61%), excursions/activities (39%) and shopping (35%) to be spontaneous. Over half (54%) of Canadians plan on travelling solo more often or about the same in 2024. Of those Canadians, 53% are Millennials and Gen-Z (compared to 59% of all Global Adults). Of those planning solo-travel in 2024, 59% of Canadians plan to take a "treat yourself" solo trip centered around self-love. The full American Express Travel 2024 Global Travel Trends Report can be downloaded here. SURVEY METHODOLOGY This poll was conducted between January 31 February 8, 2024 among a sample of 2,005 US Adults, 1,007 Australia Adults, 1,002 Canada and UK Adults, 1,002 Japan Adults, 1,006 Mexico Adults and 1,005 India Adults who have at least a $50k+ income equivalent and typically travel at least once a year. The interviews were conducted online. Results from the full survey have a margin of error of plus or minus 2-4 percentage points. Some geographies may be weighted with fewer variables depending on local census data availability. How Do You Know if You Need to Hire a Hotel Management Company? The benefits of a large hotel management company may seem obvious. However, when choosing a management company for your hotel, consider looking beyond the obvious and evaluating whether a more personalized and strategic approach is appropriate for your hotel investment goals. This article outlines the benefits of selecting a small hotel management company for the day-to-day operation of your hotel. The last few years have been fraught with mergers and acquisitions in the hotel management space. Companies have grown larger and less personalized, more streamlined, increasingly technologically advanced, and geographically agnostic. The benefits of a large management company may seem obvious: efficiency and economies of scale, technology and innovation, specialized knowledge and resources, and distribution channel advantages, among others. However, when choosing a management company for your hotel, I encourage you to look beyond the seemingly obvious and evaluate whether a more personalized and strategic approach is appropriate for your hotel real estate investment goals. This article outlines the benefits of selecting a small management company for the day-to-day operation of your hotel. How Do You Know if You Need to Hire a Hotel Management Company? One of the most obvious reasons for hiring a management company or changing operators is the struggling performance of your hotel asset. Indicators of struggling performance include unexplained falling revenue or income levels, lack of increasing revenues as compared with the market and industry, increases in poor guest satisfaction scores and online reviews, and/or high employee turnover. Inadequate performance is not only problematic in the short term but can also lead to declines in the asset's marketability, reputation, and even market value. Hiring the right operator can help rectify issues and maximize the hotel's performance as a real estate investment. Another reason to seek a third-party operator is simply that these firms are qualified and employees have years of hospitality operational experience. These firms know how to negotiate with brands, implement revenue-management strategies, hire talented staff, market the asset, and manage expenses on a granular level, to name just a few areas of expertise. Hiring a management company in many cases can be more cost-effective than managing the property in-house as a result of this experience and the benefits of leveraging industry relationships. Hiring a third-party operator also helps release time and resources of the owner that could be used to focus on other business priorities. Finally, hiring a hotel management company is crucial as a first-time hotel developer or as an existing owner looking to reposition an asset. The lack of experience in this space can lead to costly mistakes that can be easily avoided by seeking the advice and guidance of a qualified operator. Have you ever considered where the laundry storage room should be placed relative to the elevators? Or how the back-of-the-house office space is designed to maximize guest-facing and revenue-generating areas in the front of the house? Have you thought about whether your hotel should be designed with connecting rooms or showers only in the bathrooms, and whether the hotel should feature an in-house laundry operation versus outsourcing laundry? Hotel operators have decades of experience and market intelligence that can help navigate these and many other important considerations. What Are the Major Differentiators to Consider When Evaluating the Qualifications and Benefits of a Small Hotel Management Firm? The single greatest advantage to working with a small or boutique hotel management company is the firm's ability to be nimble. With a smaller company, decisions can be made quickly. The leadership structure of a smaller company is likely flatter, allowing for agility and flexibility in everything from staffing decisions to contract terms. Changes can be implemented without having to cut through red tape, and owners often have direct contact with the company's decision makers. Proactive solutions do not get bogged down in the bureaucracy of a large firm, allowing problems to be addressed swiftly and decisively. A terrific example of this is the hotel management agreement. Most firms look to secure agreements for 5-, 10-, or even 15-year terms as a standard. This provides the manager with financial security and assurance for a significant duration of time, putting less pressure on them to maximize the hotel's performance. Smaller companies can step out of the industry standards and work with the owner to create more compelling terms. Shorter termination clauses of 30, 60, or 90 days after an initial period are becoming more common and are sometimes used by smaller firms to assure owners that if expectations aren't being met or exceeded by the operator, the commitment risk is relatively low. This further protects the owner from costly legal and termination fees if it is determined that the relationship with the third-party operator is no longer aligned with the owner's priorities. Additionally, the shorter term offered by a smaller firm can keep the company vigilant and its operational decisions more at the forefront since the guarantee of the agreement is relatively vulnerable. Along these lines, termination fees, performance thresholds, and/or incentive fees are more likely to be negotiable items. Smaller firms are also less likely to mandate standardization across their portfolio of managed hotels. If your property is unbranded, you don't have to worry that a certain brand of bed linens or hand soap will be mandated across the board; the autonomy of those decisions lies with the ownership group in collaboration with the operator. In that vein, ongoing and regular dialogue with clients is a major differentiator of small management firms. Keeping the owner involved to their desired degree ensures that near- and long-term goals are actively implemented in collaborative partnership, instead of in a vacuum. Reporting on hotel performance can happen on a daily basis, if needed, and questions on performance can be answered in real time. A small management company has the ability to provide a more personalized and hands-on approach with regard to the day-to-day management of your hotel asset. Not only are you more likely to have a dedicated account manager who knows the local market, the company's smaller client list allows it to focus wholly on your priorities. One of the most important components of this is the design and implementation of a strategic marketing plan. A smaller management company will conduct thorough market research and leverage local connections to help maximize your hotel's exposure to its target guest base. The firm will help you better evaluate the competitive landscape and identify opportunities and services gaps given the intimate understanding of the local market. A smaller company with more focused experience will undoubtedly be aware of changes in market dynamics that could affect the operation of its client's hotel. Examples include the opening of a new hotel, renovations of competitive properties, travel freezes at local firms, corporate expansions, and new meeting and group demand sources, to name a few. I experienced one such example at the end of 2019 when a small hotel management firm in the Pacific Northwest leveraged its relationship with a tech company that had significant exposure to business operations in China. This relationship allowed the hotel management company to better prepare for the impacts of COVID-19 on the global travel industry. This firm was able to warn its owners, beef up reserves, and weather the storm of the pandemic with better preparation than many other operators. Another often overlooked and misunderstood benefit of using a boutique hotel management company is its relatively lower overhead and cost of doing business. Many smaller companies have employees working remotely, eliminating the cost of renting office space. These companies often do not have multiple shared service fees to help deflect their corporate overhead. Boutique firms have leaner teams, passing those savings on to the owner in terms of competitive contract fees and terms. Despite streamlined operational budgets, quality of service and guest experience are not compromisedNand, in fact, are strengthened through a higher level of interaction with the property. Although each hotel management contract is different, one of the most significant components of the agreement is the fee. Hotel management fees can range from 2% to 5% of gross rooms revenue depending on the size, quality, and type of hotel. A provision for an incentive fee is typically included regardless of the size of the hotel and is usually tied to the excess after meeting the budget. Smaller companies have the ability to negotiate more creatively, with possible fees including a monthly minimum fee as a percentage of the property's total revenue or a tiered rate as a percentage of revenue. Finally, it is important to understand how the firm is integrated into the greater hospitality industry. What is the experience of the principles and owners? Is the firm associated with an advisory council to help lead the industry's ever-changing trends? Do members of the firm attend industry events and provide thought leadership on industry topics? Is the company part of a larger firm, allowing collaboration and synergies with other advisory services? These are just some of the considerations that can help a small firm stand out in a sea of large-scale operators. The ultimate decision regarding the management company to hire for your hotel takes a tremendous amount of research and time. Not all firms are created equally, and hotel assets vary significantly; there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Understanding the benefits of a small or boutique firm is crucial when determining the best option for your hotel investment. As an owner, you have specific goals for your hotel investment that may include market reputation, employee retention and professional advancement, and/or community impact, in addition to maximizing return on investment. Your management company should understand your goals intimately and work with you on these differentiators to achieve success. Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from www.HotelExecutive.com. About Kasia M. Russell, MAI Kasia Russell, MAI is the Senior Managing Director and Practice Leader for the U.S. West Region. HVS leaders now live in and work from more than 30 markets throughout the North American region, including San Diego, LA, San Francisco, Sacramento, Portland, Seattle, Las Vegas, and Phoenix in the U.S. West. Kasia has front-line hotel experience with Extended Stay America and Best Western and also worked for the Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Washington, and the Skagit Valley Resort in Bow, Washington. She holds the MAI designation and is a state-certified appraiser in Oregon and surrounding states. Contact Kasia at (970) 227-7799 or krussell@hvs.com. This article originally appeared on HVS. Sono acquires Hotel Dame des Arts in Paris from TPG Angelo Gordon and EQ A summary of European hotel transactions provided by HVS Sono acquires Hotel Dame des Arts in Paris from TPG Angelo Gordon and EQ South Korean hotel group Sono Hotels & Resorts, through its European arm Sono Hospitality BV, has acquired the four-star, 109-room Hotel Dame des Arts in Paris, France, from American alternative investment fund TPG Angelo Gordon and European hospitality investment platform EQ Group, for some 120 million (1.1 million per room). Located in the Latin quarter in Pariss 6th arrondissement near the Notre-Dame cathedral, the hotel will continue to be operated by EQ Group. The sellers acquired the property, then a Holiday Inn, in 2019 as part of a Parisian five-property portfolio for which they paid a reported 181 million, and then undertook an extensive renovation through 2021 and 2022 to reposition it into one of the Top 20 hotels in Paris as voted by Conde Naste readers. Sono presently owns a portfolio of 16 hotels and 10,000 rooms in South Korea, with this being the groups first acquisition in Europe. HVS conducted valuation services on this asset. Atalaya fund acquires Be Live Experience Lanzarote Beach, Spain Atalaya, Andorra-based Andbanks investment fund managed by Spanish group Navis Capital, has acquired the four-star, 237-room Be Live Experience Lanzarote Beach in the Canary Islands, Spain, from an undisclosed seller. The hotel is located on the Costa Teguise on the eastern coast of Lanzarote island. The asset, previously managed by Be Live Hotels, will undergo a renovation programme at the cost of 4.5 million (19,000 per room) to become both branded and managed by the THB Hotels group. With this transaction, the Atalaya fund is nearing full investment, having raised some 70 million upon launch in 2020 to invest in Spanish three- to four-star coastal hotels, and has a leverage of approximately 55%. Limestone Capital acquires luxury resort in Sardinia, Italy Switzerland-based hospitality-focused private equity group Limestone Capital AG has acquired a luxury resort in Sardinia, Italy, from an undisclosed buyer, with the aim to reposition the asset following a comprehensive capital expenditure plan. Located on Sardinias luxurious Costa Smeralda, the hotel is set to open in May 2024 under the groups Aethos brand as a five-star, 64-room luxury resort and will offer fitness, yoga and wellness services and a ZAIA-branded restaurant outlet. This acquisition marks Limestones fourth Italian property, and its portfolio also comprises luxury assets in France, Spain and Portugal. Andras House acquires ETAP Belfast in Northern Ireland Northern-Irish hotel group Andras House has acquired the two-star, 146-room ETAP Belfast in Northern Ireland, from an undisclosed seller, for 7.35 million (50,000 per room). The hotel, located some ten minutes by foot from the city centre of Belfast and five minutes from Belfast Central Station, is presently leased to Accor for a remaining six and a half years. Andras House is led by Rajesh Rana and its portfolio comprises ten hotels and eight commercial assets in Northern Ireland, with an 83-room hotel development currently underway in Portrush that is expected to open in 2025. HVS is the world's leading consulting and valuation services organization focused on the hotel, restaurant, shared ownership, gaming, and leisure industries. Established in 1980, the company performs more than 4,500 assignments per year for virtually every major industry participant. HVS principals are regarded as the leading professionals in their respective regions of the globe. Through a worldwide network of over 50 offices staffed by 300 experienced industry professionals, HVS provides an unparalleled range of complementary services for the hospitality industry. For further information regarding our expertise and specifics about our services, please visit www.hvs.com. Wait! Before you go Please sign up for our Evening Digest and Breaking Newsletters Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request. * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Hudson, NY (12534) Today Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low near 35F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low near 35F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Multiple SXSW Protests: Festival Organizers, Texas Governor respond SXSW is under fire on at least three fronts from musicians and panelists who are unhappy with how the festival, now co-owned by Penski, the publisher of Rolling Stone, Billboard, and Variety, does business. While their numbers are small compared to SXSWs estimated 2000 artists and more than 300,000 attendees, they represent the most visible protests at the festival in recent memory. Low Pay, Gaza & The Military Industrial Complex Musicians and panelists protesting SXSWs sponsorship deals with the U.S. Army and Collins Aerospace, a defense contractor RTX Corporation subsidiary, have withdrawn from official festival showcases and events. Earlier this week, Squirrel Flower, Mamalarky, Shalom, and Irish rap trio Kneecap were aoung the musicians opt-ing out of SXSW in protest of the United States and RTXs support of Israel in the war in Gaza. Also this week, United Musicians and Allied Workers (UMAW) is hosting a Fair Pay at SXSW protest concert and rally demanding higher pay for showcasing musicians. The concert will be at Cheer Up Charlies on Wednesday, March 13, from 7 pm-1 am, and the rally will be outside the Austin Convention Center on Friday, March 15, at 2 pm. After UMAWs initial protests in 2023, the festival gave artists their first pay raises in over a decade, increasing compensation from $250 to $350 for bands, and from $100 to $150 for solo artists. SXSW also raised the rates at the inaugural SXSW Sydney from $0 to $350AUD for bands and $150AUD for solo artists. The UMAW called these raises insulting after years of stagnant compensation. Texas Governor Abbott & SXSW Respond Texas Governor Greg Abbott took to X to tell the protesters, Bye. Dont come back If you dont like it, dont come here. Bands pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship. Bye. Dont come back. Austin remains the HQ for the Army Futures Command. San Antonio is Military City USA. We are proud of the U.S. military in Texas. If you dont like it, dont come here. https://t.co/t3RyQgLRKN Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) March 12, 2024 SXSW festival organizers took a more conciliatory tone. SXSW does not agree with the Governor, festival organizers said in a series of posts on X. We fully respect the decision these artists made to exercise their right to free speech. The defense industry has historically been a proving ground for many of the systems we rely on today, SXSW responded to the Army-related protests. These institutions are often leaders in emerging technologies, and we believe its better to understand how their approach will impact our lives. The Armys sponsorship is part of our commitment to bring forward ideas that shape our world. SXSW does not agree with Governor Abbott. https://t.co/fOHHn9r5BG SXSW (@sxsw) March 12, 2024 Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, President of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor. Share on: The impact of Superfans: Who are they, and how do you cultivate them? Are Superfans the solution to a successful musicians career? The post dives into what Superfans truly are and how they can affect an artists success. by Mathilde Neu of Reprtoir The music industry has a concept known as the 1,000 true fans. These listeners are the lifeblood of an artists fandom. True fans willingly invest $100 annually to support their favorite artists work (equivalent to about $8.25 monthly). With a thousand of these loyal supporters, an artist can generate an annual income of $100K while wholeheartedly pursuing their passion. The key to this approach lies in establishing a direct and meaningful connection with their music fans. This article delves into the concept of superfans, a group that elevates fandom to the next level, and their growing significance in todays music industry. Understanding Superfans Superfans are not just ordinary listeners; they are incredibly passionate and dedicated individuals who go above and beyond to support their favorite artists or bands. These highly engaged music fans willingly invest considerable time and financial resources into showcasing their unwavering support. They purchase exclusive merchandise. They snag front-row concert tickets. They loyally promote their favorite artists. This makes superfans the ultimate brand ambassadors. A recent report by Musically reveals that approximately 20% of music listeners in the United States proudly consider themselves superfans. Such unwavering dedication and passion make these individuals indispensable to the music industry ecosystem. The Role of Superfans in the Music Industry Superfans are a powerful force within the music industry. They drive substantial economic value and shape trends. Heres a closer look at their unique role: Profound Economic Impact : According to a report by Goldman Sachs, superfans contribute a staggering $4.2 billion to the music industry. This illustrates their high spending power, making them a valuable demographic for artists and music businesses. : According to a report by Goldman Sachs, superfans contribute a staggering $4.2 billion to the music industry. This illustrates their high spending power, making them a valuable demographic for artists and music businesses. Fan Engagement : Superfans engage deeply with an artist and their content, often to the exclusion of other music. They follow artists closely. They attend concerts, buy merchandise, and more. Their dedication helps fuel the artist-fan relationship. This is crucial for sustained success in the music industry. : Superfans engage deeply with an artist and their content, often to the exclusion of other music. They follow artists closely. They attend concerts, buy merchandise, and more. Their dedication helps fuel the artist-fan relationship. This is crucial for sustained success in the music industry. Influence over Trends : The music industry thrives on trends, and superfans are topping the charts. They significantly impact the popularity of songs, albums, and artists. This is what makes them trendsetters within the industry. : The music industry thrives on trends, and superfans are topping the charts. They significantly impact the popularity of songs, albums, and artists. This is what makes them trendsetters within the industry. Loyalty and Retention: Superfans are loyal to their favorite artists. They represent a reliable source of income. They can help stabilize an artists career in an industry known for its volatility. The Potential Risks of Over-Reliance on Superfans While superfans are undoubtedly valuable, there are potential risks in relying too heavily on them. Too much emphasis on them could result in an unsustainablebusiness model, raising concerns about their future worth. This is a direct consequence of the streaming economy that the industry aims to expand, but it also limits the spending potential of these dedicated fans. In addition, it overlooks the importance of casual listeners contributing to the industrys success. The music industry is in the midst of a balancing act. It must nurture superfans who provide dedicated support. It must also engage occasional listeners who significantly expand the audience base and drive growth. By recognizing the value of both groups and adapting strategies accordingly, the music industry can ensure a sustainable and thriving future. Engaging Superfans: Best Practices Building strong relationships with music fans involves creating unique experiences and meaningful connections. This is a realm that exists beyond numbers. It focuses on the magical moments that turn followers into fans. A genuine value exchange must invigorate these listeners and truly make them feel special, enhancing their loyalty. Superfans are 59% more likely to say theyd like to connect with their favorite artists more personally. Theyre also 43% more likely to participate in the community or fandom their favorite artists offer. Innovation and startups in the music industry also play a part in this engagement. They continuously develop new ways to create unique experiences for audiences, including superfans. These efforts further foster the growth and development of the superfan community. Looking Ahead: The Future of Superfans As we look to the future, the question arises will the superfan trend continue to matter a year from now? Based on current trends and the growing emphasis on fan engagement, its likely that superfans will remain relevant and a strong force in the music industry. However, the key lies in maintaining a balanced approach that values both superfans and casual listeners. This caters to the diverse spectrum of fandom. Harnessing the Power of Superfans in the Music Industry Understanding the superfan community is essential in todays music industry. These supporters have become a focal point in strategies to grow and sustain success. Theyre especially valuable to independent musicians looking to make a living with their art. While their value is undeniable, its equally important not to lose sight of the broader audience. As we navigate the evolving landscape of the music industry, superfans stand out as a testament to the power of passionate support and the profound connections music can create. At the same time, the need for efficient management tools also becomes evident. Thats where Reprtoir can help. Explicitly designed for music industry professionals, our software suite offers a secure online workspace, allowing you to manage music assets, releases, playlists, and accounting in one place. Dont let the complexities of managing your music career weigh you down. Click here to discover how Reprtoir can streamline your workflow today. Share on: TikToks call to overwhelm Congress backfires [UPDATED] TikTok notified users of a supposed ban on the platform and encouraged them to call their representatives. But the campaign only seemed to make things worse. UPDATE: On Wednesday, The US House of Representatives approved the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act which requires China tech giant ByteDance to sell TikTok, or the popular app will effectively be banned in the U.S. The bill now heads to the Senate where passage is less certain. President Biden has said he will sign the bill if it reaches his desk. Op-ed by Mike Masnick of Tech Dirt Flooding Congress with phone calls can work wonders to stop bad bills at times. The SOPA blackout 12 years ago was one of the most effective advocacy campaigns in history. Coincidentally, I was at the Capitol that day, and wandering the halls between meetings, hearing phones ringing non-stop was amazing. However, that process was carefully planned out over weeks, with sites pushing a very clear message of why internet users should call Congress and complain about the terrible copyright laws that were being pushed. It appears that TikTok may have taken the wrong lesson from all that and assumed that simply flooding Congress with calls is an effective strategy. It can be, but you have to equip callers with a basic understanding of what it is that theyre calling for and why. And maybe it doesnt make sense to do it on a bill built off the (mostly false) belief that your app is controlling the minds of gullible American voters. On Thursday, TikTok put up a pop-up on all US users screens when they went to get their daily fill of random videos: Stop a TikTok shutdown! it yells, claiming that Congress is planning a total ban of TikTok. Speak up now before your government strips 170 million Americans of their Constitutional right to free expression. The bill in question is stupid. Its a fear-mongering (bipartisan) bunch of grandstanding nonsense. It doesnt technically ban TikTok, but would directly require ByteDance to divest its ownership in the company. If ByteDance does not do so, then it is a ban (despite the bills sponsors insisting its not). It does seem like a pretty clear bill of attainder, targeting a single company, TikTok, out of yet another fear-mongering moral panic that a successful internet company coming out of China must be evil. As weve been saying for years now, if the fear is about the privacy of American users of the platform, Congress could pass a comprehensive privacy bill. They just choose not to do so. Instead, they play up a silly culture war, which will only lead to even more retribution for American apps outside the US. Indeed, expect to see other countries passing similar bills demanding that US companies divest from successful apps in their countries, as a result of this stupid bill. And, on top of that, the bill is almost certainly a First Amendment violation, as has been found during previous attempts to effectively ban TikTok, none of which have gone well in court. TikToks gambit apparently worked in terms of getting people to call. But it didnt always effectively get the message out: TikTok users flooded some congressional offices with dozens of calls. Results were mixed: Some staffers dismissed the callers as uninformed, or as pranksters, or as teenagers and old people saying they spend their whole day on the app. And, look, when you have a bunch of overly anxious politicians who think that TikTok is like Chinese mind control over American brains (its not, but thats what they seem to think), its not difficult to see how telling TikTok users to call Congress could drive those politicians to think this is even more evidence of why the bill is needed, especially when there is a flood of calls from unsophisticated constituents talking about how they spend their whole day on the app. And that seems to have been the case. House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) said if anything, TikToks orchestrated calling campaign only exposed the degree in which TikTok can manipulate and target a message. And thus its no surprise that the committee voted 50 to 0 to advance the bill: Lawmakers on the Energy and Commerce Committee, which greenlit the bill Thursday afternoon after months of negotiations, said the intent was not to get rid of TikTok, but to prevent a Chinese company from having access to large troves of American data. The committee voted 50-0 to advance the bill to the full House or Representatives. Again, its a painfully stupid and reactionary bill, but this campaign seemed pretty mistargeted. There was a way in which TikTok could have more effectively leveraged its large user base to talk about the problems and risks of such a bill. But just sending them in to scream at Congress was perhaps not the best approach given the specific animus behind this bill. Share on: Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation Scholarships LUDLOW, Mass. For the third year, Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation (BWPCC) will award scholarships to students from Lanesborough and Hancock. The scholarship is open to seniors at Mount Greylock Regional High School and Charles H. McCann Technical School. BWPCC will select two students from the class of 2024 to receive $1,000 scholarships. The scholarships will be awarded to qualifying seniors who are planning to attend either a two- or four-year college or trade school program. Seniors must be from either Hancock or Lanesborough to be considered for the scholarship. Special consideration will be given to students with financial need, but all students are encouraged to apply. The BWPCC owns and operates the Berkshire Wind Power Project, a 12 turbine, 19.6-megawatt wind farm located on Brodie Mountain in Hancock and Lanesborough. The non-profit BWPCC consists of 16 municipal utilities located in Ashburnham, Boylston, Chicopee, Groton, Holden, Hull, Ipswich, Marblehead, Paxton, Peabody, Russell, Shrewsbury, Sterling, Templeton, Wakefield, and West Boylston, and their joint action agency, the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC). To be considered, students must submit all required documents including a letter of recommendation from their school counselor and a letter detailing their educational and professional goals. Application and submission details will be shared with students via their school counselors. The deadline to apply is Friday, April 19. MMWEC is a not-for-profit, public corporation and political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts created by an Act of the General Court in 1975 and authorized to issue tax-exempt debt to finance a wide range of energy facilities. MMWEC provides a variety of power supply, financial, risk management and other services to the state's consumer-owned, municipal utilities. Suicide Prevention Group Gives Leadership Award To Berkshire President PITTSFIELD, Mass. The Massachusetts Coalition for Suicide Prevention (MCSP) has selected Brian Berkel to receive the Leadership in Suicide Prevention Award this year. Berkel, a retired Lieutenant with the State Police, currently serves as President of the Berkshire Coalition for Suicide Prevention (BCSP). In his role as President, Berkel has created a bridge between BCSP and first responders, the District Attorney's office, local community mental health providers, minority organizations, and other area mental health and suicide prevention advocates. In his role, Berkel led a group of suicide loss survivors and volunteers to form and launch a Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors (LOSS) team in Berkshire County. LOSS teams are made up of trained first responders and survivors of suicide loss who go to the scene of a suicide to provide support, information about available resources, and hope to the newly bereaved. The goal of the LOSS model is to make sure survivors do not wait years to get the help they need to cope with this devastating and traumatic loss. Without postvention, the average length of time that survivors of suicide loss take to reach out for help is 4.5 years; research shows that people bereaved by a suicide loss are at increased risk for dying by suicide themselves. The Berkshire County LOSS team will work in conjunction with the Berkshire County District Attorney's Office. In addition to the LOSS team, Berkel supported a media campaign to promote the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which provides free and confidential emotional support to people in a suicidal crisis or emotional distress. He also arranged for Board members to receive various trainings such as Talk Saves Lives, Mental Health First Aid, and Signs of Suicide (SOS). He is also a strong advocate for gun safety. In addition to his long-term affiliation with BCSP, Berkel also serves as Treasurer on the board of Berkshire HorseWorks and for the Pittsfield Lions Club, as well as serving as a Board Member for the Non-Profit Center of the Berkshires. Past community involvement incudes volunteering as a mentor to at-risk youth through Big Brothers of Berkshire County and 18 Degrees. "I have worked with Brian [Berkel] on the Coalition for about nine years. I have always respected him as a board member, but his leadership is inspiring. His ability to form positive relationships across the community is exactly what the coalition needs in order to connect those who struggle and provide support programs for those who have lost a loved on to suicide," he said. The Leadership in Suicide Prevention Award award will be presented to Berkel on March 4, 2023, at the annual MCSP State House Day. West Cross Road has no sidewalks, making the movement of students from the school down the road to the Community Center a safety concern. State Wants to Give Clarksburg $1.2M for a Safe Route to the School CLARKSBURG, Mass. Clarksburg School asked the state for a $400,000 grant to develop a safe route from the school to the Community Center. The state came back with a different offer how about $1.2 million and a sidewalk along the entire road? "I have never submitted a grant where they've came back and said we'd actually like to give you more money. We'd like to expand this and we'd like to triple it," Assistant Superintendent Tara Barnes told the School Committee last week. "Never. I've never seen this so I honestly take this as a signal from the state and from the leadership in the state that they would like to invest in rural communities. They were very excited about this project." Barnes, assistant superintendent of student services and curriculum for the Northern Berkshire School Union, applied to the federally funded Safe Routes To School Program last fall. The goal was to find a way from the school to the neighboring town field and putting in a crosswalk from there to the Community Center, which also is the town's evacuation center. There are few sidewalks in the rural community and West Cross Road is no exception. The students can now reach the town field through a rough path in the woods and walk the field until crossing the road or walk along the sidewalk-free Cross Road, a heavily traveled way with no shoulders. That access through the woods is only available at certain times of the year, Barnes pointed out. Representatives from the state Department of Transportation, which oversees the grants, are aware of the difficulties, she said, and have visited the school during the hectic drop-off and pickup times. That will be part of the challenge in developing a safe route design. "We have done evacuation drills in the past. We've had to walk 200 children on the shoulder of the road to get down there [to the center]. It's not ideal. And it's not ideal that we can't access the town field when it's muddy and when you can't walk down through the the woods," she said. "So having a safe designated path that's a walking path between these two places in our hub, in our town is ideal." The grant would go beyond that to run a sidewalk from Middle Road west to the top of Eagle Street. The project, including engineering, could take up to five years. Principal Sandra Cote said the state's interest was in line with its goal to improve the number of children who walk and bike to school. "We only do it one week a year because we are concerned with the safety," she said. The MassDOT website says the agency administers the program "to increase safe walking, biking, and rolling among public elementary, middle, and high school students." North Adams received a $740,000 grant for a MassDOT project to increase walkability and safety at Brayton Elementary School through Safe Routes to School. Barnes said it would not just be a benefit to the school but the entire community. "I've driven up and down the street so many times and seeing couples walking with their dog at night or during the morning first thing, and yes, there's a shoulder, but it's scary," she said. "I'm excited that they're interested. I hope the town can support this and see the benefit for everyone in the community beyond just the school." In other business: Cote said the contractor installing left had been out to measure it again and that its installation was on track as soon as school lets out. Barnes presented the school's Student Opportunity Act plan, which was endorsed. Business Administrator Lisa Blackmer updated the committee on some financial issues, including a jump in tuition costs in this budget for Drury because more students are attending than accounted for. She thought some may have originally planned to go to McCann Technical School plus there are new families in town. Officials are going to determine whether the students live in Clarksburg. The initial budget for next year is about a 5.21 percent increase. Blackmer said that translates to $147,000 and noted that the town is set to receive at least $255,000 more in state Chapter 70 education aid. She had budgeted to use $300,000 in school choice funds, down $50,000 from this year, but the School Committee asked that be reduced to $250,000. That would bring the increase to $197,000, still below what the town was getting extra in aid. "We're not really asking for anything that they're not getting," said member Cindy Brule. "Let's not hit [school choice] as hard if we don't have to, right?" School choice receipts are expected to decrease next year and following years as more Clarksburg students are enrolling, leaving fewer places for school choice. Cote said she had been receiving a pretty much a phone call a day about school choice openings the past couple weeks. Cote showed a certificate the school received for participating in the National Assessment of Educational Progress. "The kids, they took it seriously, you could tell that they were sitting there and trying hard and hopefully we'll be a part of the Nation's Report Card when that finally comes out," she said. She also reported that graduation will be June 6. Williamstown Planning Board Chair to Fin Comm: We're Not the 'Enemy' WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. The chair of the Planning Board last week stopped by a meeting of the Finance Committee to defend the planners' recent activities to promote economic diversity and growth in town. Peter Beck went to the podium during the public comment period at the end of the Finance Committee's Wednesday meeting after hearing issues before the Planning Board discussed at the last two Fin Comm sessions. Beck offered to answer any questions the Finance Committee members might have and to bring any concerns the body might have back to his own board. Town Manager Robert Menicocci advised the Fin Comm to take Beck's public comment but not to engage in any discussion that wasn't warned on the agenda for the Wednesday meeting. "[The Planning Board] wasn't on the agenda the last two times it was spoken of, so I thought we'd keep the trend going," Beck said. "That's fine." On Feb. 21, in a meeting where Menicocci gave a presentation on the proposed fiscal year 2025 budget and discussed a lower rate of growth in the tax base than previous years, Finance Committee member Fred Puddester offered some thoughts on factors leading to lower growth. First, Puddester cited a recent example where neighborhood objections forced a developer to back down from a plan to develop housing on Water Street. Then he raised an issue that the Planning Board has been discussing, off and on, for two years: a desire by the owner of the Sweetwood Independent Living Community on Cold Spring Road to alter their special permit to allow multi-family housing at the South Williamstown site. "The local committee that oversees the seniors in there loves the idea," Puddester said, perhaps referring to the Sweetwood residents committee who endorsed a proposed bylaw amendment at the Planning Board's Feb. 13 meeting. "[The owner is] going to allow them to stay there as long as they want. But the Planning Board sent them packing and didn't support changing the special permit. That's a property that used to be worth $8 million. It's now worth $1 million because it's empty. That's almost a year's worth of our growth right there. But we, our citizen government, rejects it. "So we've met the enemy, and he is us. ... That's the problem. Then the Select Board tells the Finance Committee to keep the tax rate flat while the Planning Board is stopping all growth." Members of the Planning Board did raise concerns about the most recent proposal from CareOne, the New Jersey company that owns Sweetwood. Namely, they were concerned that the proposal as written would allow for conversion of the property to entirely multi-family housing once the current residents with contracts with CareOne no longer live there thus not supplementing the assisted living business but, ultimately, replacing it with an apartment building. The Planning Board did not, at its Feb. 13 meeting , vote on the proposal from CareOne one way or the other; its members did suggest the landowner consider making changes to it. And the Planning Board does not have the final say on whether CareOne's proposal goes to town meeting in May; as a landowner, CareOne has the right to petition the meeting on its own. Any Planning Board vote before town meeting only would be advisory to the May meeting. At the Feb. 21 Fin Comm meeting, Menicocci tried to temper the discussion about the Planning Board's deliberations. "[The Planning Board] also would say, the current provider, are they the appropriate provider for that facility?" Menicocci said. "Because [CareOne] doesn't want to provide a continuum [of care], necessarily. So, if you had a provider, a care provider, who really did provide that continuum, that particular site might be more viable. "So there are arguments to be made." Puddester stood firm. "My question is, 'Why do we care?' " he said. "The building is built. Why do we care if it's apartments for Williams faculty or senior living? Why does it matter to the Planning Board. Twenty years ago it was zoned by special permit for that purpose. Things change, folks." One week later, the Finance Committee read aloud into the record of its meeting an email that claimed to be from a resident concerned about the property value of the Sweetwood property. Despite repeated requests from Menicocci at the Feb. 28 meeting that the email writer be identified, they were not. And text pasted into the minutes of the Feb. 28 meeting identify the author as "Oblong Road Resident." Beck last week did not focus on the CareOne petition, which is not a product of the elected body, but instead on what the Planning Board has done to promote growth. "I would say at the same time the strides the last several boards have made over the last few years and the town has made ... have, contrary to our sometimes reputation, been about as forward thinking as you'll find in any municipality, any of the 351 towns and cities in the commonwealth," Beck said. "We allow [accessory dwelling units] by right. We allow duplexes by right throughout town. We allow triplexes and quads by right throughout all of our sewered area in the General Residence zone. We are proposing a cottage court bylaw that would further add to the stock of what's referred to as "missing middle" housing not large, subsidized units where there is public funding available to help incentivize developer nor the large-scale single-family, high value homes that our market supports, but everything in the middle, the kind for folks who don't qualify for a subsidy but can't afford a lot of market rate units a lot of working class professionals. "That's what we've been working on." Puddester did not attend the March 6 Planning Board meeting, where the main agenda topic was the town's Department of Public Works budget and capital plan for FY25, the fiscal year that begins on July 1. Beck invited any of the Finance Committee members to attend a Planning Board meeting and address that body directly and offered to come back any time the Finance Committee did want to put zoning bylaws or the work of the Planning Board on a Fin Comm agenda. "There are 50 problems to tackle, and we're trying to tackle all of them," Beck said. "There's not going to be a magic bullet, but we're pretty steadfastly working on them and have racked up significant achievements. "To the extent that is a topic of recent history that often isn't shared or celebrated, that is important for all of us to be aware of and keep pushing for progress in that area. All of that aligns, I think, with what this committee has discussed. But it sounded like there was more disagreement, tension and cross purposes in the last couple of times zoning was brought up than I think is warranted. We're always open to disagreement and always open to more conversation." Two BCC Students Receive National Recognition PITTSFIELD, Mass. Berkshire Community College (BCC) students Mariangel Dus and William Garrity have received national recognition for academic excellence. Both are members of Phi Theta Kappa, a national honor society for associate degreeseeking students. Mariangel Dus won a spot on the 2024 All-USA Academic Team. The team, sponsored by education technology provider Cengage in collaboration with Phi Theta Kappa, recognizes students for intellectual achievement, leadership, community and campus engagement. She is one of only 20 college students named to the team and was selected from more than 2,200 nominees. Dus will receive a $5,000 scholarship and will be recognized at the American Association of Community Colleges' annual convention in Louisville, Kentucky in April. Dus has also been named a 2024 New Century Transfer Scholar and will receive a $2,250 scholarship. New Century Transfer Scholars are selected based on their academic accomplishments, leadership, activities and how they extend their intellectual talents beyond the classroom. More than 2,200 students from more than 1,300 college campuses nationwide were nominated, and only one New Century Transfer Scholar is selected from each state. The program is sponsored by The Coca-Cola Foundation, the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation, Phi Theta Kappa and the American Association of Community Colleges. William Garrity was selected as a Bronze Scholar on Coca-Cola's 2024 Academic Team and will receive a $1,000 scholarship. His selection was based on the score he earned in the All-USA Academic Team competition, for which more than 2,200 applications were received. The program is sponsored by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation and is administered by Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Lake Onota Village residents spoke out against a nearly 30 percent increase in their rent, saying the owner has failed to properly maintain the Valentine Road park. Pittsfield Board Continues Hearing on Mobile Home Rent Increase Ward 7 Councilor Rhonda Serre speaks on behalf of the park's tenants. DALTON, Mass. The request for hefty rent increases to a Valentine Road mobile home park seems unlikely following the Mobile Home Park Rent Control Board meeting on Thursday night. A number of Lake Onota Village residents attended the meeting expressing their disapproval of owner M.H. Communities request for a 29 percent, or $153 per month, rent increase over the next three years. M.H. Communities had initially requested a 63 percent hike, or more than $200 per month, spread out over three years. However, on the morning of the board meeting, the owners updated the application to lower the amount. "It's been almost 12 years since the last rent increase for Lake Onota Village and, as you can imagine, much has changed financially over 12 years," Jeffrey Scrimo, attorney for M.H. Communities, said. "Obviously, naturally, increased costs over that timeframe As of this morning, we submitted an updated application. The original appeared to have an issue with one of the formulas that we use. So, the number has dropped from our original application. It's come down a bit." The paperwork originally provided by the owners said the total site assessment was a little over $831,000. The new application says the total site assessment for the 28.6-acre park is about $3,803,000. Both applications state that the assessed value per unit is about $29,000 and that there are 131 units. The company takes in total of about $521,000 in rent per year, with residents paying between $3,960 and $4,560 annually. A $21,000 expense for vacancies was cited and the owners have proposed a $14,500 capital project for mailbox lighting and electrical work. Even with the decrease in the original request, not one Lake Onota Village resident in attendance approved the rent hike, citing issues in the park including potholes, flooding, tree damage, trash and illegal dumping, speeding, sewer issues, sinking trailers, lighting, and a water main issue. City ordinance entitles the owners to a certain rate of return but the current request is 4 1/2 percent more than what is allowed. Based on the net income, assessed value, allowable income, prime rate, and number of units, the company is entitled to a rent of $422 per unit, park resident Michael Hubbard said. Ward 7 City Councilor Rhonda Serre, who attended the hearing, agreed with Hubbard, adding that the owners are requesting more than the national increase of 4.2 percent even though they only have one capital project on the books. The project was for a $14,000 investment, which was slated to happen in 2023, but residents are still complaining there is still poor lighting around their mailboxes, she said. Resident Joseph Zelinsky said the only light that works in the park is his, which he has been covering the cost of for six years and has not been compensated. In the past when, he turned off the light he received requests from neighbors to leave it on, because it's too "dark" and "scary. He has left the light on. The park owners are aware of the issues surrounding lighting and have taken steps to improve it, co-owner Richard Baldwin said. Their first attempt to improve lighting was to install solar-powered lights because there wasn't electricity close enough. However, due to "minor issues," it didn't work, Baldwin said. They have since hired a contractor to bring electricity from the nearest source over to that set of mailboxes, he said. The project should be done within the next "couple days" and then Eversource will have to visit the location to inspect it, Baldwin said. The owners are claiming they deserve a retro hike back to 2012. Serre listed a number of issues residents raised from the lack of snow plowing, the illegal dumping and trash collection, and the claiming of loss of revenue from vacancies. "I'm not sure what [profit and loss] ledger you all are familiar with, but I never saw an opportunity to reclaim lost revenue twice on the same general ledger," she said. If they are short $21,000 for vacancies they should clean up and resell the abandoned properties in the park, Serre said. "That's on them, not on their tenants. In summary, this increase request is outrageous, even at 29 percent it's outrageous," Serre said. "Looking at the rate of return origin of 8 percent there is 4 percent there that is pretty discretionary and not valid. So, therefore, I would like you to consider a reasonable rent increase at the national average of 4.2 percent." Of the 131 lots in the park, two of them are vacant and abandoned, residents said. The owners are working on removing the abandoned trailers, Scrimo said. It is very hard to take a trailer off a lot, even if it is abandoned, in Massachusetts. It is a multi-step legal process that they are currency working on. Board member Kenneth Ferris said he can not support an increase this high considering the amount of concerns that were raised and questioned the $51,551 management fee. The management fees allocate funds to a portion of the rent for the Nashua, N.H., office and two employees that do the company's bookkeeping. In addition to that, $13,000 of the management fees goes to the owners, Baldwin said. The owners also budgeted for salaries and wages for $33,244, which pays for the park's attendant. The board can consider approving a smaller rent increase for this year and reviewing additional increases next year and the following year based on the improvements made to the park, Chair Alisa Costa said. Before the board makes a decision, it wants to see documentation supporting the costs provided in the application and a list of capital projects to improve the park. The board continued the hearing until April 4 at 6:30 p.m. The board also voted Costa in as chair and Nate Joyner as vice chair. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic 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 The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The Holocaust Survivors Foundation USA has condemned The Zone of Interest director Jonathan Glazer for his divisive Oscars speech, calling it morally indefensible and disgraceful. In an open letter posted on the foundations website, the groups 94-year-old president, David Schaecter, wrote: I watched in anguish Sunday night when I heard you use the platform of the Oscars ceremony [to] equate Hamass maniacal brutality against innocent Israelis with Israels difficult but necessary self-defense in the face of Hamass ongoing barbarity. Your comments were factually inaccurate and morally indefensible, Schaecter said, arguing: The occupation of which you speak has nothing [to] do with the Holocaust. You made a Holocaust movie and won an Oscar. And you are Jewish. Good for you. But it is disgraceful for you to presume to speak for the six million Jews, including one and a half million children, who were murdered solely because of their Jewish identity, he added. You should be ashamed of yourself for using Auschwitz to criticise Israel. If the creation, existence, and survival of the State of Israel as a Jewish state equates to occupation in your mind, then you obviously learned nothing from your movie. During Sundays (10 March) ceremony, the British director, 58, was awarded the Academy Award for Best International Film for his Holocaust movie, The Zone of Interest, about an Auschwitz commandant and his wife who try to build a dream life next to the camp. While accepting the Oscar, Glazer brought some in the audience to tears with the impassioned and powerful speech he gave on behalf of himself and the films producer, James Wilson. Jonathan Glazers speech brings Zone of Interest star Sandra Huller to tears (A.M.P.A.S. 2024) Our film shows where dehumanisation leads at its worst, Glazer said. Right now, we stand here as men who refute their Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation, which has led to conflict for so many innocent people whether the victims of October the 7th in Israel or the ongoing attack on Gaza all the victims of this dehumanisation how do we resist? The Anti-Defamation League also responded in outrage to Glazers speech, tweeting: Israel is not hijacking Judaism or the Holocaust by defending itself against genocidal terrorists. Glazers comments at the #Oscars are both factually incorrect & morally reprehensible. They minimise the Shoah & excuse terrorism of the most heinous kind. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Meanwhile, the Under the Skin director has also received support for his remarks. [Glazer] took an unequivocal stance against the cynical utilisation of Judaism and the Holocaust in the name of justifying the occupation we refuse to accept the ease with which the blood and lives of civilians is used as a justification for political ideologies, or as a bargaining chip. Empathy is not a zero-sum game, Israeli military veterans organisation Breaking the Silence said in a statement on X. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic 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 The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Neve Campbell has announced that she will be returning for Scream 7 after having left the horror-slasher franchise in June 2022 over a pay dispute with the studio. The 50-year-old actor, who starred as the film series recurring protagonist, Sidney Prescott, across the first five films, shared the news in an Instagram post on Tuesday (12 March). Sidney Prescott is coming back!!!! Campbell wrote, alongside a picture of the movie scripts cover. Its always been such a blast and an honour to get to play Sidney in the Scream movies. My appreciation for these films and for what they have meant to me, has never waned. Im very happy and proud to say Ive been asked, in the most respectful way, to bring Sidney back to the screen and I couldnt be more thrilled. Nearly a year before Scream 6 was released, Campbell dropped out of the film, explaining that the studios offer did not equate to the value I have brought to the franchise. As a woman I have had to work extremely hard in my career to establish my value, especially when it comes to Scream, she said in a statement. Campbell has also revealed that screenwriter and director Kevin Williamson, who wrote the original Scream (1996), Scream 2 (1997) and Scream 4 (2011) and executive produced the 2022 Scream reboot and its 2023 sequel, will take over as director of the seventh film. This was his baby and its his brilliant mind that dreamt up this world. Kevin is not just an inspiration as an artist but has been a dear friend for many years. To the amazing Scream fans, I hope you are as excited as I am. See you on set, she added. Christopher Landon had originally been brought on to direct the next instalment, but announced in December that he had formally exited the project. It was a dream job that turned into a nightmare. And my heart did break for everyone involved. Everyone. But its time to move on, the Happy Death Day director tweeted at the time. The month before Landon announced his departure from Scream 7, Melissa Barrera, who had made her Scream debut in the 2022 reboot, was fired from the forthcoming movie after comments she made on Instagram about the Israel-Hamas war were perceived as antisemitic by the films production company, Spyglass Media. Barrera addressed her firing, arguing that her Instagram posts shouldnt be controversial. Im not the first person thats happened to, but it was shocking, she told Rolling Stone about her firing. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Landon later confirmed that Barreras shock firing wasnt his doing. Everything sucks. Stop yelling. This was not my decision to make, he said in a statement. The day after the 33-year-old In the Heights star was dropped, it was reported that her co-star Jenna Ortega had also left the franchise due to scheduling conflicts. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic 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 The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Sharon Stone has identified the late producer she alleges suggested she sleep with her Sliver co-star Billy Baldwin to improve their on-screen chemistry. The now-66-year-old actor first wrote about the incident in her 2021 memoir, The Beauty of Living Twice. She refrained from naming the alleged producer at the time; however, speaking on a recent episode of the Louis Theroux Podcast, she named the producer as the late Robert Evans. Evans, best known for his work on Rosemarys Baby and The Godfather, died of natural causes in 2019. He was 89. Recalling the moment, the Basic Instinct actor said that she shouldve been on set but was told to meet Evans in his office to discuss her chemistry with Baldwin, now 61. [Evans] running around his office in his sunglasses, explaining to me that he slept with Ava Gardner and I should sleep with Billy Baldwin, because if I slept with Billy Baldwin, Billy Baldwins performance would get better, Stone remembered. And we needed Billy to get better in the movie, because that was the problem. Explaining Evans logic, she said: If I could sleep with Billy, then we would have chemistry on-screen, and if I would just have sex with him then that would save the movie. Sharon Stone and Robert Evans (Getty Images) And the real problem in the movie was me because I was so uptight, and so not like a real actress, who could just f*** him and get things back on track. And the real problem is that I was such a tight ass, Stone added. The Independent has contacted Baldwins representative for comment. The 1993 mystery thriller saw Stone play Carly, a successful book editor who, after moving into a luxury apartment building, discovers that several female tenants have been murdered. She then becomes romantically involved with the prime suspect (Baldwin). Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Stone has been a prominent voice in Hollywoods #MeToo movement, detailing her experiences in her memoir. Last November, she spoke about an encounter with an unnamed Sony executive who she says exposed himself to her during a meeting. On an episode of Kelly Ripas Lets Talk Off Camera podcast, Stone claimed that when she met with the executive, he began complimenting her before he came walking right up in front of me and he said, But first... and he took his penis right out in my face. She said that the executives assistant eventually led her out of the room, before adding that this was not the last of many weird experiences like this in my career. I specifically did not name names in my book, because its a pointless exercise, they know who they are, Stone said. They so know who they are I havent worked in 20 years. Close Gary Goldsmith becomes first Celebrity Big Brother housemate to be evicted 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 Celebrity Big Brother housemates have now waved goodbye to three contestants after Lauren Simon was evicted during Tuesday nights episode. She follows in the footsteps of the Princess of Waless uncle, Gary Goldsmith, who became the first contestant on this years series to be evicted. Months after the reality series titan returned on ITV, the celebrity version has been resurrected in the hopes of emulating the success of the latest civilian series, which was won by Jordan Sangha in November. Surviving contestants include X Factor judge Louis Walsh who has already shocked viewers with an incredibly rude comment Love Island winner Ekin-Su and Strictly Come Dancing professional Nikita Kuzmin. In the latest episode, Sharon Osbourne, who was in the series as a celebrity lodger, left the CBB house. She was only planned to be in the series for several days and was given a private en-suite bedroom separate from the rest of the housemates. As for the eviction, it was between Fern Britton, Louis Walsh and Lauren Simon, but it was the Real Housewives of Cheshire star who was voted off. Meanwhile, Louis launched a scathing attack on the pop duo Jedward, calling them vile, and he later made several comments about Ronan Keating. Follow along with all the live updates as CBB airs on ITV 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 }} Matthew Perrys stepfather, NBC Dateline correspondent Keith Morrison, has said that the Friends star was happy before his sudden death last October. Morrison, 76, whos been married to Perrys mother, Suzanne Perry, since 1981, was speaking with fellow journalist Hoda Kotb on Wednesdays (13 March) episode of her Making Space podcast. As other people have told me hundreds of times, it doesnt go away. Its with you every day. Its with you all the time, and theres some new aspect of it that assaults your brain, the Canadian broadcaster said of his grief. Its not easy, Morrison continued. Especially for his mum. Of Perrys relationship with his mum, Morrison said: Toward the end of his life, they were closer than Ive seen them for decades. He was happy, and he said so. And he hadnt said that for a long time, Morrison added. So its a source of comfort, but also he didnt get to have his third act, and thats not fair. Perry was found dead in his Los Angeles hot tub in October 2023, aged 54. He died from the acute effects of ketamine, an autopsy report later revealed. Keith Morrison and Matthew Perry (Getty Images) For years before his death, Perry struggled with alcohol and drug addiction, detailing his journey toward sobriety in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. He felt like he was beating it, Morrison said of Perrys battle with addiction. But you never beat it, and he knew that, too. Commenting on his own relationship with Perry, Morrison said: We got along fine. I never tried to replace his dad but I was there for him, and he knew it, and we were close. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Perry mentioned his biological father, John Bennett Perry, in his memoir, writing that John abandoned him and his mother to pursue a career in acting when Perry was nine months old. After two years of marriage, the couple got divorced when Perry was one year old in 1970. In a 2004 interview with Katie Couric, Perry recalled that the way he mostly saw his father when he was young was on TV. You know, getting shot through a door on Mannix or something like that. Thats my dad, he said at the time. After the divorce, Perry and his mother relocated to Canada, where Suzanne began working as a press secretary for then-Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau the father of current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. A decade later, Morrison and Suzanne got married in 1981. That same year, John also got remarried to Debbie Boyle. Between John and Suzanne, Perry has five half-siblings, all of whom he listed as beneficiaries of his $1m estate. 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 }} Politicians and senior lawyers have raised concerns over the use of testimony of a jailed pro-democracy activist against Jimmy Lai amid allegations that it may have been obtained under torture during his detention in mainland China. Andy Li, one of the most prominent pro-democracy activists arrested by China in 2020, took the witness stand on Wednesday to testify for the prosecution. Mr Lai, a 76-year-old UK citizen and founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, is facing the prospect of life in prison if found guilty of sedition and charges of colluding with foreign forces under the draconian national security law. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. On Wednesday, Mr Li told the court that Mr Lai allegedly assisted an opposition group by fronting the expenses for an advertising campaign aimed at garnering international support for the anti-government protests in the city five years ago. Without specifying Mr Lais role, he named two private companies which Mr Lai used to settle payments to foreign newspaper outlets in 2019. Mr Li, a 33-year-old programmer, has pleaded guilty under the national security law for his involvement in the democracy movement. A year-long Washington Post investigation found that Mr Li was mistreated while in Chinese custody, prompting the UN special rapporteur to urge China to not use Mr Lis testimony. On Wednesday, Miriam Lexmann, a member of the European parliament said Mr Li has been tortured and will be forced to testify in the political show trial of Jimmy Lai. Pro-democracy media tycoon Lai (R) is escorted into a correctional services van outside the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong in 2021 (AFP via Getty) It shows the long way the totalitarian regime in Beijing and its stooges are prepared to go to destroy any peaceful democratic opposition to their oppression, she said. A human rights campaigner, Luke de Pulford, one of the alleged co-conspirators in the case, said Hong Kong authorities are using Mr Li to connect Mr Lai to work he was not involved in. This is ludicrous transparently false, he said. It comes after UN special rapporteur on torture, Alice Jill Edwards, raised the allegations of Mr Lis torture with China and expressed doubts over what could be a coerced testimony as the trial commenced in January. I am deeply concerned that evidence that is expected to be presented against Jimmy Lai imminently, may have been obtained as a result of torture or other unlawful treatment, said Ms Edwards. An investigation into these allegations must be conducted immediately, before any evidence is admitted into these present proceedings. Pro-democracy media tycoon Lai poses during an interview (AFP via Getty) Mr Li told court that he was part of the discussions about running newspaper ads ahead of the 2019 G20 summit in Japan to raise international awareness of the democratic movement in Hong Kong that year. The group was very supportive of the idea of taking the momentum to the world stage, including those very eye-catching scenes during the protests, he said. The court heard the activist managed to source HK$6.73m ( 672,327) on two crowdfunding platforms and he used the alias Tony Lo. Those adverts were published in 13 countries, including the United States, Britain, Canada, Germany, Japan and South Korea by him and other anonymous people. Mr Lais closely monitored trial at the West Kowloon Court is expected to last nearly 80 days and well into March. The proceedings have been condemned by both the UK and the US as an attempt to stop the peaceful exercise of [Mr Lais] rights to freedom of expression and association. Experts from the UN have called on China to drop all charges against Mr Lai and release him immediately. 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 }} India says it has successfully conducted its first test flight of a homegrown long-range ballistic missile capabale of delivering multiple warheads to different targets, a significant development for the countrys weapons programme. Prime minister Narendra Modi took to X formerly Twitter to congratulate the scientists behind the Agni-5 missile, which derives its name from the Sanskrit language word for fire and is equipped with Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicles (Mirv) technology. It puts India among a relatively small club of countries including the US, Russia, China, France and the UK that are known to have Mirv-equipped missiles. The missiles range of over 5000km and its general utility as a potential first use weapon in instigating a conflict have led experts to express concerns that the test will trigger an arms race in the region and lead to increased instability over time, one analyst told The Independent. The Agni-5 missile, developed by Indias military research wing, took its maiden flight test in April 2012 and since has been tested multiple times, every time with added technological advancements. The missile isnt quite an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which has a range greater than 5,500km. However its 5,000km range still covers the whole of Pakistan, China and much of the wider Asia neighbourhood. Details about its exact range and how many warheads it can carry have not been made public. Mirv technology was first developed in the 1970s by the US, and provides strategic advantages because of its capability to overcome ballistic missile defences by inundating the adversarys defence systems. This missile test is unique. So far, all eight tests done on Agni missiles had a single warhead, which means one missile was carrying one warhead. The latest missile was unique in the sense that it had Mirv technology, Saurabh Todi, research analyst at the Takshashila Institution, tells The Independent. India conducts test of its Agni-5 missile on 11 March 2024 (DRDO) This capability is important, he explains, as a ballistic missile equipped with Mirv is launched from a designated location, typically from a land-based silo, a submarine, or an aircraft. As the missile exits the Earths atmosphere and reaches the designated altitude, it releases the Mirv payload. Each warhead separates from the missile body, typically using small rockets or a release mechanism, and has its own propulsion and guidance system, allowing it to manoeuvre independently towards its designated target. This enables a single missile to strike multiple targets simultaneously or within a short timeframe. Defence analysts have questioned the need for Mirv and the timing of the test, which was announced just days before Indias election commission is expected to declare the start of the campaign period ahead of the countrys general election, in which Mr Modis Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is vying for a third straight term. Experts questioned the utility of Mirv technology, which is seen as being most useful for first strikes, as India like China has a no first use policy when it comes to nuclear weapons. Indias nuclear doctrine is based on credible minimum deterrence that underlines that the country has only second-strike capability, fulfilling the bare needs of defence and security. Derek Grossman, a senior defense analyst focused on national security policy and the Indo-Pacific, says it is a great scientific and technological achievement but fears it will trigger an arms race in the region and lead to increased instability over time, rather than effectively addressing potential international threats. Im not sold on the need for India to invest in this technology just based on the threat landscape. When you look at the international landscape, China is continuing to develop their nuclear programme and they are in early stages of having a ballistic missile defence, Russia is a friend, and you already have a conventional advantage against Pakistan, Grossman tells The Independent. But there is a prestige issue here and that India wants to be part of the nuclear club, not just in terms of having nuclear weapons, but having technologies associated with nuclear weapons, he says. He says the timing of the Indian announcement cannot be ignored, adding that it could be a political decision to appease the domestic audience and appeal to a sense of patriotism ahead of the election. The latest missile tries to level the playing field with China to some extent, he says. China already has missiles such as the Dong Feng-41 with a range of 12,000-15,000km, capable of hitting any Indian city. China has significantly increased its military budget by 7.2 per cent this year, marking the biggest jump in five years. It is increasing its military spending for 2024 to 1.67 trillion yuan (181.7bn). But does the Agni-5 give India an edge over China? Grossman says no. Maybe in the short term it can benefit to show that theres this kind of provable capability that they can hit multiple targets with nuclear weapons, he says. But in the end, China is going to come up with improvements to its own defences and its already expanding its offensive capabilities. In that way, it is not going to bolster stability in the region. Tensions between India and China, which fought a war in 1962 over longstanding territorial disputes, have worsened over the years and reached the worst point in decades in 2020 as a brutal skirmish between soldiers in the disputed Himalayan region led to deaths on both sides. Since then, the two countries have amassed thousands of soldiers on their de facto border and repositioned artillery and howitzers to the region. Christopher Clary, associate professor of political science at the University at Albany, tells The Independent that the Agni-5, with or without Mirv, puts China into Indias target range. Indias challenge is that major Chinese cities, including importantly Beijing, are far away from India. Beijing is roughly 2,400km from the easternmost Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and 4,000km from central India, he says. India has had relatively few missiles with the range necessary to hold such east coast Chinese cities at risk. Long-range missiles are expensive. More expensive than nuclear warheads in the experience of many nuclear weapons states. So a missile that permits delivery of more than one warhead can ensure the ability to strike far away at lower cost than building multiple missiles each with one warhead at their top, he says. Experts said it would still be some time before India can induct this new missile technology into its strategic nuclear forces. The government has not yet revealed how many warheads were aboard the Agni-5 test, which will give some indication of how well India has been able to miniaturize its nuclear warheads, Clary says. 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 decade ago on March 8, a Malaysia Airlines flight vanished without a trace, becoming one of aviations biggest mysteries. Investigators still do not know exactly what happened to the plane and its 239 passengers. But Malaysias government said Sunday it may renew the hunt for MH370 after an American marine robotics company that tried to find the plane in 2018 proposed a fresh search. A massive multinational search in the southern Indian Ocean, where the jet is believed to have crashed, found nothing. Apart from some small fragments that later washed ashore, no bodies or wreckage have ever been found. Heres what we know about the deadly aviation tragedy. What is known about MH370s disappearance? The Boeing 777 plane disappeared from air control radar 39 minutes after leaving Kuala Lumpur en route to Beijing on March 8, 2014. The pilot sent a last radio call to Kuala Lumpur before leaving Malaysia Good Night Malaysian Three Seven Zero but failed to check in with air traffic controllers in Ho Chi Minh City when the plane crossed into Vietnams airspace. Minutes later, the planes transponder a communication system that transmits the planes location to air traffic control shut down. Military radar saw the plane turn around to travel over the Andaman Sea before it vanished, and satellite data showed it continued to fly for hours, possibly until it ran out of fuel. The plane is believed to have crashed in a remote part of the southern Indian Ocean. Theories about what happened on board range from hijacking to a loss of oxygen in the cabin to power failure. But there was no distress call, no ransom demand, nor bad weather or evidence of technical failures. Malaysian safety investigators cleared all on board in a 2018 report, but didn't rule out unlawful interference." Malaysia's government has said that someone intentionally severed communications with the ground and diverted the plane. Who was on the plane? The plane carried 227 passengers, including five young children, as well as 12 crew members. Most of those aboard were from China, but there were also people from other countries, including the United States, Indonesia, France and Russia. The passengers included two young Iranian men using stolen passports to seek a new life in Europe; a group of Chinese calligraphy artists returning from an exhibition of their work; 20 employees of U.S. tech firm Freescale Semiconductor; a stunt double for actor Jet Li; families with young children; and a Malaysian couple on a long-delayed honeymoon. Many families lost multiple members in the tragedy. What efforts have been made to find the plane? Dozens of ships and aircraft from various countries began the search between Malaysia and Vietnam in the South China Sea, before moving to the Andaman Sea and the Indian Ocean. Australia, alongside Malaysia and China, then led the largest and most expensive underwater search ever undertaken, covering some 120,000 square kilometers (46,000 square miles) of seabed off western Australia, using aircraft, vessels equipped to pick up sonar signals, and robotic submarines. Search vessels detected ultrasonic signals that might have been from the plane's black box and shipwrecks believed to be 19th century merchant vessels, but never found the plane. In July 2015, a fragment later confirmed to be a flaperon from Flight 370 was found on Frances Reunion Island in the western Indian Ocean, the first hard evidence that MH370 ended its flight in the Indian Ocean. Several more pieces of debris were later found washed ashore on the east coast of Africa. The search was suspended in January 2017. U.S. marine robotics company Ocean Infinity picked up the search in January 2018 under a no find, no fee contract with Malaysia, focusing on an area north of the earlier search identified by a debris drift study. But it ended a few months later without success. Why is the search so hard? One reason why such an extensive search fail to turn up clues is that no one knows exactly where to look. The Indian Ocean is the world's third largest, and the search was conducted in a difficult area, where searchers encountered bad weather and average depths of around 4 kilometers (2.5 miles). It's not common for planes to disappear in the deep sea, but when they do remains can be very hard to locate. Over the past 50 years, dozens of planes have vanished, according to the Aviation Safety Network. Whats next? Malaysia's government has consistently said it will only resume the hunt if there is credible new evidence. It is now considering an Ocean Infinity proposal for a fresh search with new technology, although it is unclear if the company has new evidence of the plane's location. Many families who lost people in the disappearance remain steadfast in their quest for answers. They argue the mystery must be resolved, not just for personal closure but also to prevent future disasters. The disaster has also helped to bolster aviation safety. Starting in 2025, the International Civil Aviation Organization will mandate that jets carry a device that will broadcast their position every minute if they encounter trouble, to allow authorities to locate the plane if a disaster occurs. The devices will be triggered automatically and can't be manually turned off. But the rule applies only to new jets not the thousands of older planes still in service. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate 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 Independent Climate email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Giant sequoia trees, first imported to the UK 160 years ago, are flourishing despite the dramatically different climate to their native California, a new study has found. The huge trees, which are declining in numbers in California due to increasing heat, are adapting well to the British climate and growing taller, according to a study conducted by UCL researchers. The growth here in the UK seems to be suited to our wetter climate, so theres far less chance of water stress here than in the Sierras in California, the studys co-lead author and a professor of geography, Mat Disney, told The Independent. Giant sequoias are one of Earths largest and longest-living trees. Their large trunks and extensive foliage mean they can potentially absorb an average of 85kg of carbon per year in their 3,000-year lifespan, more than many other tree species. Researchers mapped nearly 5,000 individual trees in the UK and found that these giants grow well in the country, providing an opportunity for more carbon sequestration. This is the first time the trees growth rate and resilience in the UK have been analysed, according to the study, which was published in the journal, Royal Society Open Science, on Tuesday. The study used terrestrial laser scanners to create 3D models of the trees, accurately measuring their heights and volumes without causing harm. A 3D laser scan of a Giant Sequoia (Mathilda Digby) We found that UK redwoods are well adapted to the UK and able to capture a large amount of carbon dioxide, said Ross Holland, a co-author of the study. We hope that these findings can help guide decisions on future tree planting and management. Although the tallest UK sequoias are about 180ft smaller than their American counterparts, which can grow up to 300ft, the researchers said that it shows how well they are adapting. They are pretty big by UK standards, Dr Disney said. But not by Californian standards. But they are still very, very young for giant sequoia, and so if they survive the next couple of hundred years, they will become much taller. Dr Disney suggested that the trees could theoretically become as tall as those in the US but that the UK ones will face serious hurdles in doing so, because they dont have the same strength in numbers as their Californian cousins. Its unlikely they will reach the heights of the California giants though because the taller they get, the more they tend to stick out in the landscape compared to their surroundings, and hence the more prone they are to lightning strikes and wind damage, he said. Despite their endangered status in California, where less than 80,000 giant sequoias remain, the UK is home to an estimated half a million of the trees. Their numbers are growing partly due to their public appeal and the environmental benefits as people plant these giants to offset their carbon emissions. Currently, these trees are probably more important for their aesthetic and historical interest than they are for solving the climate crisis, Dr Disney said. But as more are planted we need to know how they will grow. The researchers stressed that while reducing carbon emissions is crucial, dense forests made up of trees like Giant sequoias can also play a role in fighting off the climate crisis. 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 }} Irish actor Cillian Murphy has been announced as the latest face of Versace with a new fashion campaign. The 47-year-old, who portrayed American theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer in the biographical war film, will front the campaign, wearing key pieces from the mens Versace Icons collection. Launching globally on April 3, it will be Murphys first campaign for the Italian luxury fashion company. I am thrilled that Cillian is joining the Versace family. He is a truly exceptional actor and totally deserves his Oscar win, chief creative officer Donatella Versace told WWD. He is magnetic and mesmerising in front of a camera, and I loved seeing him bring Versace to life. It comes after Murphy wore a black custom Atelier Versace tailored suit to the the 96th Academy Awards, in Hollywood on March 10. The outfit consisted of a wool tweed single-breasted jacket with contrast silk peaked lapels, a silk formal shirt with pleated front panel and concealed buttons, and mohair wool tailored pants with a large silk waistband, the brand posted on Instagram. It was a nod to the labels past, stylist Rose Forde, who helped design Murphys look throughout the films press tour and awards, told Vogue.We looked at a lot of 90s Versace references, she said. Murphy accepted the award for best actor, while Oppenheimer also won best picture, best supporting actor, best director, best original score, best cinematography and best film editing. The film is the sixth project Murphy has collaborated on with British-American filmmaker Christopher Nolan. He has also starred in Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Inception, The Dark Knight Rises and Dunkirk. The actor from Douglas, Cork, also starred in the BBC television series Peaky Blinders, a historical drama about a criminal gang in Birmingham, post-World War I. During Milan Fashion Week last month, Versace unveiled their new 2024 autumn/winter collection, and Solange Knowles son Daniel Julez Smith Jr. walked the runway. The Versace collection considered wildness, where tailoring is disrupted, print deconstructed, and Atelier Versace fabrics shredded and meticulously hand-woven into new materials. This collection has a rebel attitude and a kind heart. The woman is a good girl with a wild soul. She is prim but sexy. Dont mess with her! The man is her soulmate, a shy genius. They are breaking the rules to make new ones, said Versace at the time. Versace also announced that a smaller Medusa 95 the Versace logo will feature across their designs. Sign up to our free Living Well email for advice on living a happier, healthier and longer life Live your life healthier and happier with our free weekly Living Well 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 Living Well email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Olivia Munn has revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer. The actress took to Instagram on 13 March to explain the entire process up until this point, including some photos of her in the hospital. I was diagnosed with breast cancer, she captioned her post. I hope by sharing this it will help others find comfort, inspiration and support on their own journey. Munn wrote that she and her sister were undergoing genetic testing for 90 different cancer genes including BRCA, the most well-known breast cancer gene. Although both Munn and her sister tested negative for the gene and had a clear mammogram, her doctor decided to calculate her Breast Cancer Risk Assessment Score just in case. The fact that she did saved my life, Munn wrote in her Instagram post, noting that her risk was 37 per cent. Because of that per centage, she was then sent for an MRI, ultrasound, and biopsy, which revealed she had Luminal B cancer in both breasts. Her post explained that this is an aggressive, fast moving cancer. In the post, she revealed that, over the next month, she had a double mastectomy, and a total of four surgeries in the last 10 months. I went from feeling completely fine one day, to waking up in a hospital bed after a 10-hour surgery the next, she wrote. Im lucky. We caught it with enough time that I had options. The actress went on to thank her loved ones for helping her throughout all of her surgeries, specifically mentioning her boyfriend and father to her two-year-old son, Malcolm, John Mulaney. Despite dating for three years, the couple did not make their first red carpet debut until January 2024. Although the outing marked the couples first red carpet together, they frequently share insights into their life as a family of three on social media. Im so thankful to John for the nights he spent researching what every operation and medication meant and what side effects and recovery I could expect, she wrote in her Instagram post. For being there before I went into each surgery and being there when I woke up, always placing framed photos of our little boy Malcolm so it would be the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. Munns post ended with her thanking all of the health professionals involved in her surgeries including her physicians, the staff at Cedars-Sinai and Saint Johns in Santa Monica, California. She also called her OBGYN, Dr Thais Aliabadi, her guardian angel. She noted in her post that according to Aliabadi, any woman with a Breast Cancer Risk Assessment score above 20 per cent needs annual mammograms and breast MRIs starting at 30 years old. Mulaney went on to comment on the post, writing: Thank you for fighting so hard to be here for us. Malc and I adore you. 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 }} John Krasinski and Emily Blunt were the ultimate couple goals during Hollywoods biggest night. On Sunday 10 March, the actors attended the 2024 Oscars followed by the Vanity Fair Oscars After Party. The Office comedian supported his wife, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Oppenheimer. While walking the red carpet, fans couldnt help but notice Krasinski, 44, stare lovingly at Blunt, 41, as she posed for the cameras. In a video shared to X, formerly Twitter, the Devil Wears Prada star was seen wearing her gravity-defying Schiaparelli dress as her husband stood off to the side. Krasinski gazed at his wife, before raising his eyebrows and shaking his head, as if he was waking up from a trance. When the Jungle Cruise star noticed Krasinskis reaction, she laughed out loud and went over to hug her husband. John Krasinski being in awe of Academy Award nominee Emily Blunt, one fan captioned the clip. Just hours after the awards ceremony ended, the couple - who were married in 2010 - headed off to the Vanity Fair Oscar party, where Blunt also did a quick outfit change. For the event, she changed into a plunging pink lace gown and left her blonde tresses down instead of in a bun. Krasinski was once again caught admiring his wife as she walked Vanity Fairs red carpet, and even appeared to mutter the phrase: Wow. In response to the sweet moment, fans expressed their adoration for the longtime couple in the comments. The way he loves her makes me fall for him all the more, one fan replied. I adore them together. I love a man in awe of his lady, another person said. The very definition of a supportive husband, a third user wrote. While Blunt received a nod for her role as Kitty Oppenheimer in the Christopher Nolan-directed film, she ultimately lost out to actor DaVine Joy Randolph in The Holdovers. Nevertheless, Oppenheimer still took home several Oscars that evening, with Nolan, Cillian Murphy, and Robert Downey Jr all earning their first ever Academy Awards. In July 2010, Krasinski and Blunt were married less than one year after getting engaged. The pair tied the knot during an intimate ceremony at George Clooneys estate in Lake Como, Italy. Since then, the couple have gone on to welcome two daughters: Hazel Grace, 10, and Violet, seven. Despite both their successful careers in Hollywood, Blunt previously admitted that their daughters dont really think its exciting to have famous parents. In an interview with Harpers Bazaar published last June, the Edge of Tomorrow star explained why her children arent too impressed by her fame. They might say, Oh, theres Mama, but its not exciting for them, she said. Whats exciting for them is when I can pick them up from school and take them swimming. Blunt noted that she tries not to be away from her daughters for too long while working, adding that spending time with her family is a major priority. Because even though theyre hardy, and theyre used to this strange life, its still rough on them when I have to go away, she continued. The actor also shared how theres certain points in her childrens daily routine that she doesnt want to miss out on. There are cornerstones of the girls day that I dont want to compromise on - like, will you wake me up, take me to school, pick me up and put me to bed? Blunt said. And I just want to be able to say, yes, yes, yes. Its such an exhale for me to be able to do that. 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 }} Fans are loving Martin Scorseses sweet reaction to Ryan Goslings performance of Im Just Ken during the Oscars this year. In a TikTok shared by British Vogue, the 81-year-old director was captured attending the event with his 24-year-old daughter, Francesca Scorsese, who he shares with his wife Helen Morris. The clip went on to share a video documented by Francesca, as she was sitting next to her father inside the Dolby Theatre during Goslings performance of the tune from Barbie. After Gosling began the performance by singing to co-star Margot Robbie in the audience, Francesca then focused her camera on her father, who had a huge smile on his face. The video continued with shots of the Killers of The Flower Moon director standing up while laughing in glee at the performance. During one moment, Francesa tapped her father on the shoulder, before he turned around and showed his seemingly surprised reaction to the dancers in the aisle. As Francesca continued to laugh at her fathers smiles throughout the performance, she documented another video of him focused on the aisle, as the dancers were running through it. The video concluded with Martin pointing at the stage and laughing, followed by another clip of him clapping when the performance came to a close. Martins reaction to the Oscars moment has quickly gone viral on social media, with Goslings partner Eva Mendes even praising it. In her since-expired Instagram Story, she re-shared the footage of Martin and called it the best video ever. @Francesca.scorsese, Im living for this major moment of your Dad!!!! How F cool, she wrote in the caption, as reported by People. In the comments of British Vogues TikTok video, fans expressed their excitement over how happy Martin looked during the Im Just Ken performance. The pure joy in his face melts my heart, one wrote. Protect this man (and his movies) at all cost. I just want to put this little man in my pocket. Hes so adorable, another wrote, while a third quipped: He may not like superhero movies, but he sure as hell likes Ken. Other fans quipped about how they now wanted Martin and the Notebook star to work together on a project. PLEASE work with Ryan Gosling before you retire Marty, one wrote, while another joked: Marty contemplating at that moment how to get Ryan Gosling in his next movie. During the 96th annual Academy Awards on 10 March, Gosling began his now-viral performance from the audience while wearing a dazzling hot pink suit bedecked with rhinestones, which he paired with pink socks, pink leather gloves, and dark sunglasses. He then joined the songs co-writer Mark Ronson, giving the composer a playful cuff on the chin, before he moved over to a pink staircase where he was joined by a troupe of fellow Kens, all dressed in suits with striped ties and cowboy hats. The dance also had a special meaning, with references to Marilyn Monroes iconic performance of Diamonds Are a Girls Best Friend in the 1953 film, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Originally sung by Carol Channing in the 1949 Broadway show of the same name, Monroe brought her signature pizazz to the performance while dressed in a pink strapless gown with matching arm-length gloves and a black fan. Aside from fans, many celebrities who were up on their feet during the Oscars number have gone to praise Goslings performance. Emma Stone also revealed that her dress broke during that performance, as she accepted the award for Best Actress for her role in Poor Things. Oh boy. Um, my dress is broken, Stone said, as she addressed the audience, while turning around to show the style mishap. I think it happened during Im Just Ken. Im pretty sure. 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 woman has been applauded for the non-negotiable demand she gave her parents. Taking to the popular Reddit forum, Am I The A**hole, the mother of one explained how she told her mom and dad they needed to get their noses pierced before they could see their granddaughter again. She then offered background information on her family, revealing that her parents brought her young daughter to get her ears pierced without the permission of her or her husband. My husband and I travel down to Mexico to visit with my family. I am an American citizen, my mom and dad are not, she explained. According to the Reddit user, her mom and dad bought her daughter earrings for her birthday. However, because her one year old doesnt have her ears pierced, she politely told them shed save the jewellery for when she was old enough to get her ears pierced. We left my daughter with my parents while we went to meet up with some friends, the original poster continued. When we went to pick up my daughter, my mom showed us that we didnt need to wait because they had taken her to get her ears pierced. According to the post, both the Redditor and her husband were so upset. Her partner suggested that the grandparents were no longer allowed to spend time with their granddaughter alone. But that wasnt enough of a punishment in the Reddit users opinion. I said that I would not be bringing her, or any other kids we might have, down here to see my parents. We checked out three days early and went home, she confessed. Frustrated by her parents actions, she didnt speak to them for a few days and ignored their calls. Then, once she returned and settled in Phoenix, Arizona, she reached out to her mom and dad. She proclaimed: I finally called them. I asked them not to speak until I was done talking. I told them that my husband and I are upset with them for getting our babys ears pierced without our permission. I told them that we went back home and probably wouldnt be visiting for a while. They said that my sister and I both had pierced ears when we were babies and that it did not harm us, she continued. I said that we were not going to change our minds. They started getting everyone including my grandmother to call me and say I was being ridiculous. After some time, both the Reddit user and her husband devised a compromise. The pair agreed to continue to visit, but the grandparents wouldnt be allowed time with their grandchild alone. Additionally, the Redditors mom and dad had to get their noses pierced. She noted: They said that we are being stupid and that they are not going to do that. I said no problem and hung up. We have started blocking anyone who tries to call us and give us shit for denying my parents their RIGHT to see my daughter. Readers flooded the comment section of her post, sharing their candid impressions of the situation. The majority agreed that the Reddit poster was not the bad guy for demanding her parents get their own piercings, especially because they broke her trust. One person said: NTA! They violated your trust in a huuuuuge way, and they have absolutely no right to see your daughter, nor do they have a right to see you. Theyre confusing rights with wants. I came from a country where it is almost traditional to give babies piercings before their first birthdays and I still think OPs parents are still AHs for doing it behind the babys parents backs. NTA, another individual wrote. Someone else remarked: I read your ultimatum as more tongue-in-cheek. Not that youre actually expecting them to get their noses pierced but that youre simply enforcing a NC boundary (knowing that theyre obviously not getting themselves pierced). I think thats fine and fair. One Redditor disagreed: Though as much as petty responses make for some good Reddit drama, its not the best way to go here. Yeah it is a strategic mistake to ask for something you dont really want because you think the other person wont comply, another added. Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check 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 Health Check email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} NHS workers who suffer a miscarriage before they are six months pregnant will be given paid time off work as part of new guidelines. Staff and their partners will be entitled to additional leave to process their grief under NHS Englands new National Pregnancy and Baby Loss People Policy Framework, which was issued to hospitals on Wednesday. Experts said the move sends a powerful signal that people impacted by baby loss deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve. For the first time in the NHS, women who suffer a miscarriage before 24 weeks of pregnancy will be offered up to 10 days paid leave. If a member of staffs partner loses a baby, they will be offered up to five days paid leave. The framework also asks NHS trusts to give staff paid time off to attend appointments including for medical examinations, scans and tests, as well as mental health-related interventions. Those who return to work after a miscarriage will be offered occupational health support, which could include a referral to a specialist within their trust. A general view of staff on a NHS hospital ward (Jeff Moore/PA) (PA Wire) NHS staff who miscarry after six months of pregnancy will remain eligible for paid maternity leave. Dr Navina Evans, chief workforce, training and education officer, said: Baby loss is an extremely traumatic experience that hundreds of NHS staff experience each year, and it is right they are treated with the utmost care and compassion when going through such an upsetting experience. We know the significance of getting support right in the very first instance for our staff, which is why, for the first time in the healthcare sector, we are providing paid leave so parents can take time out to process this traumatic experience as well as paid time to attend appointments. Dr Evans added that she hopes the formal guidance will inspire other sectors to adopt such supportive approaches to miscarriage in their own organisations. Kath Abrahams, chief executive of baby loss charity Tommys, said: Pregnancy loss can take a huge toll on women and birthing people, both physically and mentally. Their partners may also be profoundly affected. As the largest employer in the UK, the NHS is sending a powerful signal that staff going through this experience deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve and that support is possible, no matter what your workplace looks like. Health minister Maria Caulfield added: Our brilliant NHS workers look after us when we need it most and this new guidance is a positive step towards ensuring they are supported through the tragedy of losing a baby. It means doctors, nurses and their partners will now be entitled to additional leave to help process their grief, which is crucial to their long-term mental health and wellbeing. Ms Caulfield said the framework delivers on key recommendations made in the Pregnancy Loss Review and forms part of the Governments drive to improve womens health through its Womens Health Strategy. The new policy was trialled at Birmingham Womens and Childrens NHS Trust, where a staff survey revealed workers were twice as likely to remain with their employer as a result. 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 }} When Shawn Landis, an evangelical Christian from Pennsylvania, heard about the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on southern Israel, he knew he would come to Israel to volunteer as soon as it was safe. Five months later, he was chopping vegetables in a Tel Aviv kitchen, preparing meals for Israeli soldiers. Evangelicals have been among Israel's fiercest foreign supporters for years, particularly in the United States, where their significant political influence has helped shape the Israel policy of recent Republican administrations. They believe Israel is key to an end-times prophecy that will bring about the return of the Christian Messiah. Many of these Christians support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are Gods chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. In the Scripture it instructs us to support Israel, and sometimes the best time to support someone is when theyre grieving, said Landis, who has been on four previous faith-based trips to Israel. Friendship is not just about being there for the good times, its also about the rough times. Landis is part of a wave of religious voluntourism to Israel, organized trips that include some kind of volunteering aspect connected to the war in Gaza. Israels Tourism Ministry estimates around one-third to half of the approximately 3,000 daily visitors expected to arrive in March are part of faith-based volunteer trips. Before the fighting, around 15,000 visitors arrived in Israel per day, about half of whom were Christian, according to Tourism Ministry statistics. In 2019, the latest tourism statistics available that were not impacted by COVID-19, about 25% of visitors arrived on organized trips, according to the Tourism Ministry. A study by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem found that almost half of Israelis volunteered in some capacity during the early weeks of the war. But many Israeli volunteers have returned to work and school, and now international visitors are filling the gaps. In the U.S., support for Israel has become a top priority for evangelical Christians during a presidential election year. They are among the most outspoken backers of Israels handling of the conflict, and Republicans have faced pressure to hew not just to traditional Republican support for Israel but to beliefs rooted in the Bible. The war began with Hamas' attack in southern Israel in which militants killed around 1,200 people and took 250 others hostage. Israel responded with an invasion of the Gaza Strip that so far has killed more than 30,000 Palestinians. On Oct. 11, dozens of leading evangelicals signed a statement of support for Israel organized by the public policy wing of the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest evangelical faith group in the U.S. One of the key pro-Israel groups in the U.S. is Christians United for Israel, founded and led by evangelical pastor John Hagee. CUFI says it has raised and dispersed more than $3 million to support Israeli first responders, health care workers, and survivors of the Oct. 7 attack. Landis was part of a two-week volunteer trip organized by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem. The evangelical group has put together five volunteer trips since January and expects to bring half a dozen more in the coming month. Normally, ICEJ brings about 6,000 Christian visitors to Israel annually. Like Landis, Claudio Pichardo, a 37-year-old from Colombia studying business in Holland, was inspired by Scripture to join the ICEJ trip. This is the best way I can help, because posting on Facebook doesnt help, he said. When the war started, many international airlines suspended flights and tourism stopped, aside from a handful of Jewish and Christian solidarity missions. Some major airlines resumed flights to Israel in recent weeks, and others plan to soon. Peleg Lewi, the foreign affairs adviser to the Tourism Ministry, said the faith-based solidarity missions boost morale. The can also kick-start overall tourism to Israel after a cycle of war or violence, he said. With the war in its sixth month, Israel is under growing international pressure to do more to end the suffering of civilians in Gaza, including allowing in more aid. Aid groups say the fighting has displaced most of the territorys population and pushed a quarter of the population to the brink of famine. Hospitals have reported that some children have died of hunger. Many Israelis fear the world is forgetting about Oct. 7. Elizabeth degaard, a trip participant from Norway, said she was surprised by how emotional Israelis get when they meet international visitors who have come to support them. Many people tell us, `The whole world hates us. Everyone is against us,' so I want to say to them, `Youre not alone,' she said. I know the people of Israel are important to God. These are my brothers and sisters, and when they attack Israel, they attack me too. ICEJ trip participants visited hard-hit communities in southern Israel, including the site where the shells of hundreds of burned-out cars are being stored, many from the Tribe of Nova music festival, where 364 people were killed. It was humbling and sobering to be there, to know what happened a few months ago and to see Israeli resilience, said Landis. During such trips, visitors join volunteer initiatives that sprang up in Israel over the past five months, providing extra hands for farmers struggling to harvest crops, cooking meals for families who have a parent serving in the reserves or sorting donations for evacuees still living in hotels. One initiative is Citrus & Salt, which previously hosted cooking classes and tours of Tel Avivs markets for tourists. When the war started, it pivoted to making more than 35,000 donated meals. It really helps boost morale for people to come from abroad to Israel in a time of conflict, to physically say, Im here to help. What do you need? said Aliya Fastman, a native of Berkeley, California, who has lived in Israel for over a decade and runs Citrus & Salt with her sister. Chopping onions is no small thing when you fly across the world to do it. ___ Find more of APs coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war 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 aristocrat accused of killing her baby has defended living off-grid while on the run with her newborn, telling jurors: Jesus survived in a barn, didnt he?. Constance Marten, 36, and her partner, Mark Gordon, 49, are on trial after baby Victoria died while they were camping on the South Downs in wintry conditions last year. While being cross-examined at the Old Bailey, she argued their period living in a tent on the South Downs was being looked at from a Western perspective, adding that Bedouin families walk through cold deserts with children while others live in shanty towns. Constance Marten rejected the prosecutions suggestion that her baby was carried alive in a Lidl bag (PA) Marten became tearful when questioned if she was responsible for her babys death, replying: I think to a degree of course, I feel responsible as her mum for her death but at the same time I have to love and forgive myself because it was a really awful set of circumstances but I didnt mean to fall asleep. I live with that sadness because she died in my arms. Giving evidence for the fourth day, she strongly rejected the prosecutions ridiculous suggestion that she had carried her daughter in a Lidl bag for life when she was alive. This whole line of reasoning is absurd, that she is alive in the bag, she said. If Id done that she would have been screaming, people would have noticed. Im not going to put her alive in a Lidl bag, Im sorry it is absurd. Victorias remains were found in a red Lidl bag inside a shed on an allotment shed on 1 March 2023, a few days after her parents were caught and arrested by the police. She was found alongside a used beer can and a sandwich wrapper, with her mother previously telling the court that she died after Marten fell asleep with her under her jacket. The red Lidl carrier bag in which Victoria was found (Metropolitan Police) Marten also became agitated when asked about a teddy bear babygrow Victoria was wearing in CCTV footage from east London which was later among items recovered with her dumped body. She insisted Victoria was not dumped but had been placed in the Lidl bag, telling jurors: Its awful, I know. The only thing I can say, if someone passes away the immediate reaction is panic. Mark and I were not in a good place. We were in fear and grief. She was not dumped anywhere. She was with us the whole time. Throughout the day, she was repeatedly questioned about their decision to camp in a tent in sub-zero temperatures with few possessions. She stressed: We were not looking to live in a tent. We were acting on instinct. She was our number one priority. We were living in a tent for Victoria. Marten is on trial with her partner Mark Gordon (PA) A mothers love for her child is incredibly strong, she continued. There was no way I was going to part with my child. We were hiding from the entire British public because I was worried about Victoria being taken. The couple had purchased a tent from Argos shortly after the first police media appeals began to emerge requesting for information on their whereabouts. Jurors have heard that Gordon and Marten went on the run from authorities in a bid to keep their baby after their four other children were taken into care, and that they had concealed her pregnancy. Giving her reasoning, she said that social services had stolen her children, and claimed two of her children were spat on and physically abused after being taken into care. I would do anything to protect my child to prevent her being taken by the system thats abhorrent, yeah, she said. She also took aim at her family, accusing them of involvement in the removal of her children: I have had a very privileged upbringing but my family are used to getting what they want and they wont stop until they get it. The babys remains were found in a bag in an allotment shed after the couple were arrested (Metropolitan Police) She added: Im not passing blame on anyone but my family have a huge responsibility in this. While accepting that the tent had no heating, hot water or electricity, Marten insisted that people around the world live in conditions like that. The wealthy aristocrat told jurors: I have grown up with luxury, I have been blessed in that respect. I like feathered duvets and comfort but I would do anything for my baby. Anything. So it was an easy decision to make. I would rather be in a plush bed in a palace. I would rather be in a nice big bed. However, she stressed that the decision to live in a tent was only meant to be for a pit stop until they found somewhere to live in the countryside. Jurors were shown CCTV of Marten carrying Victoria underneath her zipped-up jacket in east London on 7 January, where she appeared to adjust the baby after she slipped down in her arms. A screen grab taken from bodyworn police camera footage of the moment Marten was arrested (PA) Asked if that was an appropriate way to carry a newborn baby, mother-of-five Marten said she had always done it with her children. After moving between various hotels and Airbnbs, the couple abandoned many of their belongings after their car burst into flames near Bolton, Greater Manchester, last January 5, which alerted them to the police. When they were finally arrested in Brighton last 27 February, they had refused to answer officers urgent questions about where their baby was and whether she was alive or dead. The defendants, of no fixed address, deny manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child. The Old Bailey trial continues. Close Police find Constance Martens baby in a rubbish-filled shopping bag 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 }} Aristocrat Constance Marten has called the death of her newborn baby a horrible accident that couldve happened to anyone. Marten, 36, and her partner Mark Gordon, 49, are on trial after their daughter Victoria died while they were camping on the South Downs in wintry conditions last year. Following their arrests last February, the infants badly decomposed body was found in an allotment shed inside a Lidl supermarket bag that also contained soil and rubbish. On Thursday, her fifth day of giving evidence in her trial, the mother was also cross-examined at the Old Bailey about the couples decision to buy a tent and live off grid to hide from authorities, telling jurors: Babies dont require that much to survive. The couple deny charges of gross negligence manslaughter of Victoria between 4 January and 27 February last year, charges of perverting the course of justice by concealing the body, along with concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty, and allowing the death of a child. The trial resumes on Friday when the cross-examination of Marten is set to 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 }} Video footage has captured the moment an angry mob of conspiracy theorists chased innocent parents and a vicar down the street after they accused them of eating babies. A new documentary has followed ordinary parents from the London suburb of Hampstead who were the unlikely victims of a baseless Satanic cult paedophile conspiracy started by trolls online. The rumours, originating from two young children and spread by their mother, spread worldwide and prompted activists from around the globe to protest outside the North London school. The Channel 4 documentary delves into the events starting in 2015 when siblings aged eight and nine made shocking accusations about teachers, religious leaders, parents and their own father, who they claimed led the events. One of the children alleged: We do sex with the baby, sacrifice and eat the baby, and drink the blood from it we dance with the skulls. Following the allegations, a police investigation concluded that the stories had resulted from relentless emotional and psychological pressure as well as significant physical abuse, the children had suffered at the hands of their mother Ella Draper and her partner, Abraham Christie. Sabine McNeill shared false allegations about the conspiracy and was interviewed for the Channel 4 programme (Channel 4) Draper alongside her informal legal advisor, Sabine McNeill, shared a document making false allegations against 175 people alongside their personal details. The documentary, Accused: The Hampstead Paedophile Hoax, speaks to several innocent mothers caught up in the conspiracy theory about their experience and how they cleared their names. One of the mothers interviewed for the documentary, named Alice, said she was petrified by the ordeal. She said: Its not in the little Alice In Wonderland world now where its all make-believe on the internet - its real, its on your doorstep, these people are here. One of the mothers interviewed for the documentary named Sarah was played by Sarah Barlondo (Channel 4) Another mother named Sarah, added: A group of 20 to 30 people every Sunday morning would come and stand outside the church and hurl abuse at parishioners. At one point, conspiracy theorists even came to the area and filmed their harassment. The videos are featured in the documentary. One person says as they film: Heres the church, where the vicar lives - the paedo. Another man responds to being challenged by a local by saying: Im allowed to [film] - its a free world. Why are you eating babies? Upon the police investigation, Draper and Christie fled to Spain in 2015 and are still on the run. Meanwhile, McNeil was later jailed after being put on trial for stalking, harassment and breaching a restraining order. She served four years of her nine-year sentence McNeill was also interviewed for the Channel 4 programme and said: I didnt accept any of the charges, I didnt accept the verdict, I cannot accept the verdict. All I can do is suffer - suffer it, like Jesus Christ did. Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Nadine White Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter The Race Report 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 The Race Report email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Shabana Mahmood, Labours shadow secretary of state for justice and one of the first Muslim women to be elected to the House of Commons, has warned of an explosion in Islamophobia not being reported to police. It comes amid a 365 per cent surge in anti-Muslim hate incidents across the UK following Hamass attack on Israel in October last year. She said: Theres been an explosion of Islamophobia since October 7 - but theres also a huge underreporting of the issue. In my constituency, people report it to me but not the police. They kind of just put it down to the price you pay for being a Muslim in this country, (but) reporting is then what drives police policy, social policy and potential legislation. We all have a role to play. Ms Mahmood made the comments after the recent screening of HIJABI, a documentary created by BAFTA award-winning filmmaker, Samir Mehanovic, at the House of Commons. The documentary charts the journeys of five British women who choose to wear the hijab and their experiences of Islamophobia in the UK and was unveiled to mark the International Day To Combat Islamophobia this Friday and International Womens Day. (L-R) Labour MP Shabana Mahmood; Asmaa Shuweikh, activist; Amna Abdullatif, award-winning national anti-racism campaigner; Labour MP Afzal Khan; Adama Juldeh Munu, award-winning journalist; Tasnim Nazeer, award-winning journalist and the first hijab-wearing TV reporter in Scotland; filmmaker Samir Mehanovi (UK Parliament ) The heartwrenching story of a Muslim grandmother left devastated after an Islamophobic attack by teenagers and forced to flee Britain formed part of the testimonies heard in the film. During a panel discussion after the screening, Ms Mahmood, who has been MP for Birmingham Ladywood since 2010, added: Islamophobia has passed the dinner party test - its seen as acceptable. This is not just a Muslim problem, it should be addressed by all of society. Have you been affected by this? Contact nadine.white@independent.co.uk Over 65 per cent of all Islamophobic hate crimes are targeted against Muslim women, with Muslim women who wear the hijab or niqab head covering overwhelmingly targeted, according to data from Tell Mama. Lee Anderson, the former Tory deputy chairman, was suspended from his party last month after accusing Sadiq Khan, the Labour mayor of London, of being controlled by Islamists. Mr Anderson has refused to apologise for the remarks despite Rishi Sunak, Britains first Asian prime minister, labelling them wrong. Speaking after the screening, Labour MP Afzal Khan said: With Islamophobic hate crime having trebled since October and senior members of the Conservative Party spouting Islamophobia through the media in recent weeks, there has never been a more pressing time to listen to the testimonies of visibly Muslim women in Britain. Islamophobia has passed the dinner party test (AFP via Getty Images) When approached by The Independent for comment, a government spokesperson said: British Muslim women make a huge contribution to the United Kingdom and in strengthening the ties that bind our country together. It is unacceptable for anyone to feel unsafe while practising their religion and we take a zero-tolerance approach to anti-Muslim hatred. We expect the police to fully investigate all hate crimes and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to make sure the cowards who commit these abhorrent offences feel the full force of the law. Shaista Aziz, who was among the first Labour councillors to resign in protest over Keir Starmers response to the Gaza attacks said: I was disappointed, in all honesty, by the fact that, at an event like this, the politicians in the room did not mention Gaza. When it comes to Islamophobia, there's rightly lots of focus on the government and what is they are doing and not doing. There's no focus though, on the man who wants to become the next leader of this country: Keir Starmer. Labour can talk about equalities till the cows come home. However, the proof is there: anti-Black racism, Islamophobia and a hierarchy of racism. Martin Fordes report has not been acted on. These things cannot be brushed under the carpet and I felt like there wasn't the openness that was needed this evening. The Labour party has been approached for comment. A recent poll by HOPE not Hate revealed that 58 per cent of Conservative Party members think Islam is a threat to the British way of life while Labours support amongst British Muslims has plummeted amid major concerns about Sir Kiers handling of the Gaza war. London-based charity Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU) reports that many Islamophobia incidents have involved people being targeted over their support for Palestine, as the Israel-Hamas war spirals on. Speaking to The Independent, some Muslims said they have had bricks thrown through their windows for displaying the Palestinian flag, while one teenager said he was interrogated by his teachers after he wore a Palestinian badge at school. 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 family photo released for Mothers Day is at the centre of a royal row sparked over concerns it had been manipulated. The picture of Kate Middleton and her three children, George, Charlotte, and Louis, was released on Sunday but then pulled by news agencies after apparent errors in the image were spotted. Initially, the palace refused to comment, but on Monday the Princess of Wales apologised as she admitted to editing what was the first official picture of her since she underwent abdominal surgery in January. Said to have been taken by Prince William in Windsor this week, the photo shows the mother smiling surrounded by her children. A family photo released by the Princess of Wales to mark Mothers Day led to widespread speculation over editing failures before it was pulled by major news agencies citing fears of manipulation (EPA) However, within hours of it being posted on social media, royal fans pointed out several editing errors, including that the sleeve of Princess Charlottes cardigan did not line up. In an Instagram post on Monday morning, the princess said: Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mothers Day. C. However, the princess has not confirmed what edits were made and Kensington Palace said it would not be reissuing the original unedited photograph despite her apology. Here, we take a look at the glitches that have been spotted in the photo. Areas of concern cited by picture agencies The Associated Press (AP), Agence France-Presse (AFP), EPA, Getty, Reuters and the UKs leading news agency PA are among those that have so far recalled the photo. Concerns have been raised over the sleeve of Princess Charlottes cardigan, which does not appear to line up in the photo (EPA) News agencies AFP and AP both told The Independent that concerns raised over the sleeve of Princess Charlottes cardigan which does not appear to line up in the photo contributed to the decision to withdraw the picture. Eric Baradat, photo director for AFP, said that it is clear to any experienced digital image professional that it has been doctored, adding: It has been done in a very amateurish way. Mr Baradat also highlighted Kates zip, which does not appear to line up in the photo, and claimed there had also been edits to the princesss face, sweater, hair, and skirt. He also pointed out apparent alterations to the sweaters worn by Prince Louis and George. Kates zip does not appear to line up in the photo (EPA) Mr Baradat said he spotted copy and pastes, as well as blurring, calling the edits very gross and visible. In its advisory issued to media on Sunday, AP said: At closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image. No replacement photo will be sent. Editing failures suggested by royal fans Royal fans have pointed out that the princess wedding ring does not appear to be on her finger (EPA) There has been a huge amount of speculation online from royal fans suggesting other potential issues with the picture. It has been pointed out that the princesss wedding ring does not appear to be on her finger, while Louiss fingers appear to be in an unusual position. The trees in the background appear to be in full bloom when it is only March, others have pointed out. Others have queried the white skirting behind the family in the bottom left of the image, which seems to be wonky. 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 }} Several major picture agencies have pulled the first official photograph of the Princess of Wales after surgery over concerns that it could have been manipulated. Buckingham Palace remained silent last night after Getty, Associated Press, Reuters and AFP removed the image and advised clients to remove it from all their platforms. The picture, taken by Prince William in Windsor this week, was released by the royal family to mark Mothers Day and showed Kate smiling surrounded by her three children. In the post, the princess said: Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months. Wishing everyone a Happy Mothers Day. C. But in an extraordinary development just hours after it was posted online, multiple international picture agencies issued a kill notice on the image. At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image, AP said in a notice to customers. Clients please be advised that the following story has been killed and should no longer be used. The image, taken by Prince William in Windsor this week, was released by the royal family to mark Mothers Day (Prince of Wales ) Royal watchers had earlier claimed that the sleeve of Princess Charlottes cardigan did not line up and suggested it had suffered an editing fail. There was speculation that other parts of the image had also been edited. The palace did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Confusion over the picture could fuel bizarre online conspiracies about Kate which have been swirling on the internet since her surgery. A spokesperson for the UK-based Press Association news agency said it had not pulled the picture on its service, but was seeking urgent clarification from Kensington Palace about the concerns raised. Royal watchers claim sleeve of Princess Charlottes cardigan did not line up and suggested it had suffered an editing fail (Prince of Wales/Kensington Palac) The photo of the princess is the first released since she was admitted to the London Clinic, the private hospital where the King also underwent treatment for an enlarged prostate, for a planned operation on 16 January. Charles, 75, visited his daughter-in-laws bedside after being admitted himself on January 26, the 11th day of Kates stay. She was also visited by her husband, William. Kate left the hospital on 29 January, almost two weeks later, and returned to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor. Details of the princesss condition have not been disclosed but Kensington Palace previously said it was not cancer-related and that Kate wished her personal medical information to remain private. The 42-year-old future queen was last pictured in public during a Christmas Day walk in Sandringham, Norfolk. Kate is not expected to return to official duties until after Easter, and William, 41, had temporarily stepped back from his royal role to juggle caring for her and their children. He carried out his first public engagements since her surgery in early February. Kates parents, Carole and Michael Middleton, and siblings, Pippa Matthews and James Middleton, were expected to be hands-on in helping the Waleses. 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 }} Several of the worlds biggest news agencies have pulled an official Mothers Day picture of Kate, the Princess of Wales, and her three children from circulation after concerns were raised about image manipulation. Kensington Palace shared the image on Sunday, marking the first official photo of the princess since she underwent abdominal surgery nearly two months ago. The exact nature of her treatment has not been shared. Speculation on social media has been widespread, with members of the public wondering why Kate had not made any public appearances since December, and expressing concern for her health. In a highly unusual move for an official royal photo, it was pulled by a number of news agencies after concerns about manipulation. (Prince of Wales/Kensington Palace/PA Wire) However, efforts to shut down the gossip backfired after royal observers noticed inconsistencies in the photo', leading to claims that it had been manipulated. The Associated Press (AP), Reuters, Getty Images, and Agence France-Presse (AFP) all pulled the photograph from circulation later on Sunday. The Press Association follow suit on Monday morning, saying the palace had failed to give clarification. Shortly after, the Princess of Wales broke her silence over the picture row, saying: Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mothers Day. What was wrong with the picture? The picture appeared on William and Kates social media channels at 9am, shared with a Mothers Day message from Kate. It is a photograph of the princess and her three children George, Charlotte and Louis credited to Prince William and taken in Windsor. Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months, she said. At first glance the photograph may appear completely normal, however social media users were quick to point out some key giveaways that the picture may have been altered, or photoshopped. Most glaring is Princess Charlottes left-hand sleeve, which appears to partially dissolve into nothing. Kates right hand also appears to be unusually blurred, while a wall near Louis leg appears to disconnect. By early evening, many news agencies decided to remove the image after examining it more closely. Several issues have been spotted of Kates Mothers Day that have led to concerns of manipulation (Kensington Palace / PA) What did the news agencies say? PA UK national news agency PA Media removed the image from their picture service on Monday. A spokesperson for the agency said: Like other news agencies, PA Media issued the handout image provided by Kensington Palace of the Princess of Wales and her children in good faith yesterday. We became aware of concerns about the image and we carried a report about it last night, and made clear that we were seeking urgent clarification about the image from Kensington Palace. In the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service. Getty Images American visual media company Getty Images said on Sunday: Earlier today our Picture Desk identified a problematic image provided to Getty Images by Kensington Palace. We can confirm the image in question was removed from our site in accordance with our editorial policy. AP AP issued an immediate kill notification on the picture, notifying customers that it was being pulled from their service. At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image, the AP said in its advisory. No replacement photo will be sent. The news agency later gave further clarified their position: APs editorial standards state that images must be accurate. AP does not use altered or digitally manipulated images. Reuters Reuters confirmed they had removed the image following a post-publication review. We are reviewing the matter, a spokesperson said. The agency later shared a news release which clarified their position: Reuters picture editors said part of the sleeve of Kates daughters cardigan did not line up properly, suggesting that the image had been altered. Reuters could not immediately establish how, why or by whom the alteration had been made. AFP It has come to light that the Handout issued by Kensington Palace today of Kate and the kids had been altered, wrote the French news agency in a note to clients, therefore it was withdrawn from AFP systems. EPA EPA Images also issued a mandatory kill notice on the picture of Kate and her children over concerns of photo manipulation. 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 }} Schoolchildren are being offered vapes spiked with drugs which are being distributed via Snapchat, the Met Police has warned. A letter sent to parents at a school in west London raised concerns about the risk of young people experiencing severe health problems after using vapes which contain drugs such as spice and THC. Synthetic cannabinoids, better known by the street name spice, are substances made in labs designed to mimic the effects of cannabis which can cause chest pains, seizures, extreme anxiety and suicidal thoughts. They have been widely consumed in UK prisons for more than a decade. The letter, exclusively shared with The Independent, alerts parents to a concerning issue affecting our school community, as it warns spice is a harmful psychoactive drug that can cause severe health problems. It adds: We wish to emphasise the importance of informing parents about the hazards associated with unregulated vape pens, given the recent surge in related incidents. Law enforcement authorities across London, including our local police officers, have seized numerous vapes from students in the past weeks. Some of these devices are currently undergoing testing to detect dangerous Class B substances such as spice or THC, the active component in cannabis. Display of disposable vapes (Getty Images) The letter states vapes that contain drugs are believed to be distributed via social media apps including Snapchat. Inhaling spice through a vaping pen is particularly hazardous for young people, explains the letter. Leading to various health issues such as breathing difficulties, chest pains, heart palpitations, seizures, extreme anxiety, paranoia, suicidal thoughts, psychosis, vomiting or diarrhoea, and acute kidney injury. In some instances, a single dose can prove fatal. The Independent recently reported that a group of children from a school in Eltham, south-east London, were taken to hospital after inhaling a spice-laced vape, with one of the pupils left in a coma. A New Scotland Yard spokesperson said: In recent weeks, four vapes have been sent for testing and all were found to contain the drug spice rather than THC. This included one of the vapes recovered after an incident in Eltham. The Independent reported that thousands of incidents of spiking have emerged in England and Wales ahead of freshers week kicking off at universities with vapes now a target for spiking. Dawn Dines, chief executive and founder of the national charity Stamp Out Spiking, told The Independent there is not enough awareness among Britons that vapes can be spiked. Vape shop in London (AP) How easy is it say try this blueberry or bubblegum flavour vape? Ms Dines added. She said she had supported a mother-of-three who was spiked with a vape who found herself slumped down outside the front of a club. Ms Dines added: She said, If I was being raped, I couldnt even open my eyes to know who was doing it to me. She just couldnt move. We dont know what was in the vape. I dont believe she was drinking alcohol. Her friend called an ambulance and she was taken to hospital and they didnt do any tests to find out what was in the vape. This is routine in healthcare settings. Ms Dines has heard the most horrific accounts of different types of spiking incidents in the two decades she has spent talking to victims, she added. Helen Conibear, chief executive of Talk about Trust, told The Independent: Vape spiking is becoming more prominent unfortunately, it is coming across our radar more and more. Ms Conibear, whose organisation supports spiking victims and raises awareness of the issue in schools and universities, said vape spiking commonly causes extreme nausea and memory blackout. Motives of spiking vapes are similar to other forms of spiking and can involve sexual assault, robbery, and pleasure at seeing somebodys distress, the campaigner added. Ms Conibear said it is easy to find out how to spike disposable vapes online. When we are talking in schools about vaping, we highlight the importance of not sharing vapes with people you dont know well, especially at festivals and outside bars and clubs, she added. We also encourage people to keep their vapes safe so they arent tampered with. A spokesperson for Snapchat said: Using Snapchat to buy or sell drugs, including vaping products, is strictly against our rules. You cannot search for terms associated with drug dealing, we remove violating content and accounts when we become aware of them either through our detection technology or in-app reporting tools, and work with police to support investigations. Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Nadine White Sign up to our free fortnightly newsletter The Race Report 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 The Race Report email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A racism row involving the Conservative partys top donor has intensified following revelations of further resurfaced comments from Frank Hester. Mr Hester - the chief executive of The Phoenix Partnership (TPP), which has won more than 400m in government and NHS contracts - is alleged to have called a meeting in 2019 of his foreign workers to address allegations of racism. The business tycoon asked if there was no room for Indians, then? as he addressed staff members on a crowded balcony at a meeting in the companys headquarters, according to The Guardian. He is then reported to have said: Climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there maybe. Frank Hester donated 10m to the Conservative party in 2023 (TPP/Youtube) Mr Hester also referenced a forthcoming work trip, allegedly saying: Im looking forward to going to Malaysia, so that I can make new jokes I dont know any jokes about Malaysian people but Im sure well find them. Im sure well find them. There have got to be some, havent there? He added: I do think that in a loving company, we should be able to make jokes about each other in a loving way, and tease each other, and enjoy each others company. And I think we all know the difference between a racial slur and perhaps Asian corner, which is still going on here today. The new allegations emerge following reports the chief executive also said the former Labour MP Diane Abbott makes you want to hate all black women and that the MP should be shot. The Independent revealed Diane Abbott has reported Mr Hester to the Metropolitan Polices parliamentary liaison and investigations team after she described the comments as frightening. Diane Abbott said the remarks made about her by the chief executive were frightening (AFP via Getty Images) After publication of the initial reported remarksm a statement from Mr Hester was posted on social media which read: Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism, not least because he experienced it as the child of Irish immigrants in the 1970s. He rang Diane Abbott twice today to try to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her, and is deeply sorry for his remarks. The statement added: He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life. Mr Hester later posted another statement on social media that said he abhors racism and that we should have the confidence to discuss our differences openly and even playfully without seeking to cause offence. Leading Tory figures have condemned the language used by the Conservative donor, who gave the party 10m in 2023. Trade secretary Kemi Badenoch and former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng said the remarks were racist. Eventually, a day after the row first broke out, the prime ministers spokesperson said the comments were racist and wrong having previously refused to condemn them as racist. But Rishi Sunak and his party are increasingly under fire for refusing to return Mr Hesters donations. Labour party chair Anneliese Dodds said the Conservatives must apologise unequivocally to Diane Abbott and pay back these donations and root out the extreme views and prejudice which appears to be tolerated within the party. In an extraordinary blue-on-blue intervention, leading Conservative and mayor for the West Midlands Andy Street told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that if hed received a 10m donation from Mr Hester: I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. Buisness minister Nus Ghani has also expressed discontent on social media site, X, stating: Zero tolerance on racism is just a slogan in todays politics. In a coded message, Ms Ghani said: Zero tolerance on racism is just a slogan in todays politics. Am reminded of Toni Morrisons quote The people who do this thing, who practice racism, are bereft. That is something distorted about the psyche. Its a huge waste and its a corruption and a distortion. But asked on Sky News whether the Tories should give back Mr Hesters money, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said: I dont think that is the right thing to do. Mr Hollinrake said that although his comments were clearly racist and wrong, Mr Hester has apologised and said: I dont think that means Frank Hester is necessarily a racist. Asked whether he would be comfortable spending Mr Hesters donations, Mr Hollinrake said: On the basis he is not a racist, has apologised for what he said, yes. TPP and Mr Hesters lawyers have been approached for comment. 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 }} Diane Abbott has hit out at the Conservatives and Labour, accusing both parties of shocking racism in the Tory donor scandal. The MP, who sits as an independent and was dragged into the centre of the race row, turned her fire on Sir Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak after the pair clashed over the issue at PMQs on Wednesday. Mr Sunak has refused to hand back a 10m donation from businessman Frank Hester after he allegedly said Ms Abbott made him want to hate all Black women and that she should be shot. Writing in The Independent, Britains longest-serving Black MP described his words as outrageously racist and sexist and added: I am afraid long-term experience teaches me that the Tory party has long been a source of whipping up racism in this country, including directed at me personally. Abbott has attacked Starmer and Labour over racism in the party (Getty) She also attacked Sir Keir and said: The position of the current leadership of the Labour Party is disappointing, which seemed equally reluctant at the outset to call out either racism or sexism. Instead, the entire focus was on the demand that the Tories give Hester back his money, which is surely not the primary point in this case. Ms Abbott, who was a Labour MP for more than three decades until she was suspended last year, said her former party had initially failed to label Mr Hester's alleged comments against her as racist and sexist. She went on to condemn the shocking levels of racism and sexism from within the Labour Party, again much of it directed against me personally. Mr Hester has apologised for being rude to Ms Abbott and tried to call her twice to speak her directly but insisted he was neither sexist or racist. On Tuesday evening, following almost 24 hours of outrage from across the political spectrum including business secretary Kemi Badenoch and former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng the prime minister condemned the alleged comments as racist. But Mr Sunak is facing increasing pressure to return the money from the businessman, after he said on Wednesday that Mr Hesters remorse should be accepted. Labour sources insisted they had been quick to condemn the Tory donor, pointing to a comment from Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, who described Mr Hesters words as racist on Monday evening. The former Conservative Party chair Chris Patten said it was an open and shut case that the party should pay the 10m donation back to Mr Hester. Frank Hester has tried to contact Diane Abbott to apologise (PA) In a sign of internal Tory tensions over the issue, the Scottish Conservatives also criticised the decision to accept Mr Hesters money and called for a review. A spokesperson for the Scottish Tories said: These comments were racist and wrong. The Scottish Conservative Party has never accepted a donation from Frank Hester and the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. Meanwhile the mayor for the West Midlands, Andy Street, sometimes described as the most powerful Conservative outside of London, told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that if he had received a donation from Mr Hester: I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. And business minister Nus Ghani also expressed discontent, tweeting that zero tolerance on racism is just a slogan in todays politics. Labour also pressed for the money to be paid back as Sir Keir asked Mr Sunak how low a donor would have to sink, what racist, woman-hating threat of violence would he have to make before the prime minister plucked up the courage to hand back the 10m that hes taken from him? Rishi Sunak defends keeping the 10m donation at PMQs on Wednesday (UK Parliament/PA) Mr Sunaks spokesperson said the PM was acutely aware of the unacceptable abuse that Ms Abbott has suffered over the course of her career. Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said she was writing to every Conservative MP to urge them not accept tainted money from Mr Hester. Asked about Mr Hesters comments in an appearance before the Treasury select committee on Wednesday, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, said it would be wrong for the donor to be cancelled for comments made in the past and for which he has apologised. Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds said: The Scottish Tories are saying what we all know: accepting tens of millions of pounds from Frank Hester is wrong on every level. In a separate development, Ms Abbott also accused speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle of failing to act in the interests of the Commons or democracy after she was not called to speak on the issue at PMQs. A spokesperson for Sir Lindsay said he had to prioritise MPs listed on the order paper and there was not enough time to call all members who wanted to ask a question. 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 government is under pressure to return a 10 million pound donation from business executive Frank Hester after racist comments aimed at Diane Abbott were unearthed this week. Hester, chief executive of healthcare software firm The Phoenix Partnership, reportedly said in a 2019 company meeting that Abbott, Britains longest-serving Black legislator, should be shot and made him want to hate all Black women. The Conservative Partys biggest donor, Hesters company has been paid more than 400 million pounds ($510 million) by the National Health Service and other government bodies since 2016. After the comments were published by The Guardian newspaper, Hester acknowledged that hed been rude about Diane Abbott but denied being racist. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak initially criticized Hesters comments as unacceptable, but it took almost 24 hours for him to call the remarks racist. Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake told broadcasters on Wednesday that the party would not give back the money, telling Sky News that clearly the comments were racist, but that it was right to keep the donation because Hester is not a racist, and he has apologized for what he said. But Andy Street, the Conservative mayor of Englands West Midlands region, told BBC radio that if it were up to him, I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. As Britains political parties are trying to build up funds for election campaigns later this year, should the Tories return the sum donated by Hester? Share your thoughts by adding it in the comments and well highlight the most insightful ones as they come in. All you have to do is sign up and register your details - then you can then take part in the discussion. You can also sign up by clicking log in on the top right-hand corner of the screen. Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines , which can be found here . For a full guide on how to comment click here. Join the conversation with other Independent readers below or by clicking here. 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 }} Major Tory donor Frank Hester has been under fire since comments that he allegedly made about Diane Abbott. He is accused of saying in 2019 that Britains longest-serving black MP made him want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. Mr Hester has not denied making the remarks, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Independent revealed Diane Abbott reported the Conservative Partys biggest ever donor to the police. The MP filed a complaint with the Metropolitan Polices parliamentary liaison and investigations team after Frank Hester, who donated 10m to the Tories last year, allegedly made a series of incendiary comments about her, including that she made him want to hate all Black women. In a statement issued on Tuesday morning, Ms Abbott, Britains longest-serving Black MP, had described the reported comments as worrying. It is frightening. I live in Hackney, I dont drive, so I find myself, at weekends, popping on a bus or even walking places, more than most MPs, she said. I am a single woman and that makes me vulnerable anyway. But to hear someone talking like this is worrying. But who is the businessman embroiled in the racism row? What is Frank Hesters background? The 58-year-old grew up in Armley in the west of Leeds, West Yorkshire. His parents, from Ireland, started a plastering business. It was his mothers payroll work that inspired him to start writing software to speed up the process. Mr Hester trained as a priest before studying computer science at university and working as a software engineer in the financial sector. How did Frank Hester make his fortune? He founded The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) in 1997 in an effort to improve efficiency and standards in the UK healthcare system and remove the administrative burden from his GP wife, according to its website. The Yorkshire-based health tech companys core product SystmOne allows digital medical records to be shared and is today used in more than 2,600 GP practices and a third of acute mental health trusts, as well as in China, the Middle East and the Caribbean. TPP is worth 1 billion after winning more than 400 million of NHS and prison contracts in the last eight years, according to the Guardian, which broke the story about Mr Hesters comments about Ms Abbott. Then-Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott addresses anti-Brexit supporters in London, Saturday, October 19, 2019 (AP) It was the subject of controversy in 2018 when an error by the company, used by the NHS, led to confidential health data of 150,000 patients being shared. During the pandemic, TPP was reported to have won a six-figure Government contract to supply data on vaccine uptake levels at GP practices in England. The service has proved to be very profitable, with TPP recording an 80 million turnover and profit before tax of 40 million in the year to March 2023, according to Companies House documents. Mr Hester, its sole director, netted a salary of 510,000. He appeared at number 321 on the 2023 Sunday Times Rich List, with the newspaper estimating his wealth at 415 million. Mr Hester wrote on LinkedIn that TPP takes care of all of our staff with bacon sandwiches for breakfast and a free bar early evening at the local pub on Fridays. In 2015, the businessman was made a member of the Order of the British Empire for his services to healthcare. What about his donations to the Conservative Party? Mr Hester donated 10 million to the Tories last year, according to Electoral Commission records. He individually donated 5 million to Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks party in May and gave another 5 million via TPP in November. Prime Minster Rishi Sunak departs 10 Downing Street to go to the House of Commons for his weekly PMQS (AP) Mr Sunak also accepted a personal gift of nearly 16,000 for a helicopter ride last December. In an interview with the Telegraph last month, Mr Hester said he spent much of his adult life voting for the Green Party or spoiling his ballot before turning to the Tories. The entrepreneur has been invited on several government trade missions in the past, including visiting India with then-prime minister David Cameron in 2013. He told the Telegraph the he became more supportive of the Tories on the trade trip, but that it was Mr Sunaks engagement with artificial intelligence that convinced him to hand over cash. Ive had some quite long conversations with Rishi about AI, he told the paper. The donations came as the Conservative Party continues to languish in the polls ahead of a general election expected later this year. Mr Hester has posted on LinkedIn about meeting Boris Johnson at the 2020 Commonwealth heads of government meeting and attending Mr Sunaks AI discussion with tech billionaire Elon Musk last year. What happed in the past week? Before this week, Mr Hester kept a fairly low public profile for a leader of such a major company. But on Monday he was cast into the spotlight by a report about racist comments he allegedly made in 2019. The Guardian reported that, during a meeting at his Leeds company headquarters, he discussed Ms Abbott after criticising an executive at another organisation. He reportedly said: Its like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and youre just like you just want to hate all black women because shes there. And I dont hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot. (The executive) and Diane Abbott need to be shot. The fallout intensified on Tuesday night when the newspaper reported that he referred to no room for the Indians during a crowded meeting, and suggested they climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there. What was his response? Mr Hester admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. In a statement released through his firm, Mr Hester said he had tried to call Ms Abbott on Monday to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her. He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life. Responding to the Guardians second story on X, formerly Twitter, he did not deny making the comments, but pointed out he also said I abhor racism. What was the wider reaction to the revelations? Mr Hesters alleged comments were widely condemned, with Labour and the Liberal Democrats branding them racist and calling for the Tories to return his donations. After ministers and Downing Street refused to describe Mr Hesters comments as racist for most of Tuesday, the Prime Ministers spokesman finally labelled them as such in the evening. There is no sign Mr Sunaks party is moving to hand back the cash Mr Hester has donated. Ms Abbott herself said the reported comments were frightening and alarming given that two MPs Jo Cox and Sir David Amess have been murdered in recent years. Police are understood to have been contacted. Close Minister says he would accept 10m from under fire Tory donor 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 government has identified groups that could face restrictions following the publication of the new extremism definition amid rising concerns about threats to social cohesion and British democracy. A ban on white supremacist group British National Socialist Movement and Patriotic Alterntive engaging with the government will be considered, as well as anti-War on Terror group CAGE , Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND) and Muslim Association with Britain, which he says give rise to concern. The groups will be assessed for whether they met the definition of extremism, Levelling Up secretary Michael Gove said. He told MPs the countrys values of inclusivity and tolerance were under challenge from extremist groups which are radicalising our young people and driving greater polarisation within and between communities to further their own ends. Earlier, he said the new definition of extremism was not intended to stop people from protesting amid fears it could curtail free speech. Meanwhile, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the former Labour MP Diane Abbott needed an arm around her but the issue of restoring the whip was completely different and still subject to investigation. 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 }} Angela Rayner is piling pressure on Rishi Sunak to tackle toxic Islamophobia in the Conservative Party after a series of damning revelations in recent weeks. The Conservatives have been rocked by ex-deputy chairman Lee Andersons anti-Muslim rant about Sadiq Khan, as well as the chair of its own Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group (AMHWG) revealing that it has not met in more than four years. The Labour deputy leader and shadow women and equalities secretary Anneliese Dodds have now written to ministers demanding to know what is being done to combat Islamophobia in the Tory ranks and why the AMHWG has been inactive for so long. They have also piled pressure on Michael Gove and Kemi Badenoch to explain what is being done to get the group back up and running. Angela Rayner and Anneliese Dodds said it beggars belief that the governments Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group has not met in four years (Henry Nicholls/Reuters) The letter comes after Akeela Ahmed, the chair of the working group, revealed that its last meeting took place in January 2020. Ms Dodds and Ms Rayner said that at a time when Islamophobic hate crimes are soaring it beggars belief for the AMHWG to not be meeting. Recent figures from anti-Muslim hate crime monitoring agency Tell Mama showed the number of Islamophobic incidents reported in the UK has more than tripled in the four months since the Hamas attacks in Israel last year. Ms Dodds and Ms Rayner also lashed out at the governments failure to appoint a new Independent Adviser on Islamophobia, with the post having sat vacant since Qari Asim was removed in 2022. The pair wrote to equalities minister Ms Badenoch and levelling up secretary Mr Gove about the chaotic scenes which unfolded as the government was set to appoint a new adviser this week who then resigned before being appointed. Revealing that the role would have been for only two days per month, Fiyaz Mughal said he had questions about the veracity of the governments drive against anti-Muslim hate. The top Labour duo said Mr Sunaks failure to bring together the AMHWG and appoint an adviser on Islamophobia were linked to the prime ministers failure to condemn Lee Andersons racist remarks about Sadiq Khan. And they pointed to an independent review which last year found that turmoil at the top of the Conservative Party had delayed government plans to tackle Islamophobia. The Labour duo demanded to know what action Rishi Sunak is taking to combat Islamophobia in the Tory ranks (Daniel Leal/PA Wire) In the letter, seen by The Independent, the pair said: What steps are you taking, as Conservative frontbenchers, to root out toxic Islamophobia and other extreme views within your party, and to begin to rebuild faith that the Conservative Party, as a party of Government, is capable of governing in the interest of the whole country? And with Mr Gove expected on Thursday to unveil a new definition of extremism, Ms Dodds said: The Conservatives talk about extremism but they do not have a serious plan. They are taking no action on Islamophobia and are failing to appoint an Independent Adviser in the most chaotic scenes. "When tensions are at a high, with Islamophobic hate crime soaring, this wilful lack of action from the Government is inexcusable. And she called on the PM to explain why his Government has made such little progress on tackling Islamophobia and why he is too weak to root it out of his own party. Ms Rayner added: It beggars belief that Ministers have abandoned any pretence of tackling Islamophobia, just as data shows it skyrocketing. If the Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group isnt even meeting, there are serious questions over whether anyone left in government is even focused on fighting this violent hatred. Muslim communities need the government to take this seriously. They should be able to expect that Ministers will appoint an adviser who has their trust, and convene the Working Group as a priority. Housing minister Lee Rowley said: The government is clear that all forms of racial and religious discrimination are unacceptable, and they have no place in our communities. We continue to take a broad approach to religious hatred which will develop on the work of the previous Antisemitism and Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Groups. 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 }} Sir Keir Starmer has pledged that parliament will debate and vote on changing assisted dying laws if Labour wins the next general election. In a phone call to TV presenter and assisted dying campaigner Dame Esther Rantzen, the Labour leader said he was personally in favour of changing the law around assisted dying. In footage shown by ITV News, Sir Keir told the Childline founder: I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now. Dame Esther has been a persistent advocate for a vote on assisted dying since her terminal cancer diagnosis in 2023. She revealed that she joined the Swiss assisted dying society Dignitas to ensure that her familys last memories of me are not painful because if you watch someone you love having a bad death, that memory obliterates all the happy times. Dame Esther Rantzen has said people should no longer be able to claim allowing assisted dying is detrimental to a countrys palliative care system, after a parliamentary report found no indications this is the case (PA) She added that if her family accompanied her to Switzerland the police might prosecute them. At present, assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to potential murder charges. A bill to make assisted dying legal in Scotland being put forward by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur is expected to come before Holyrood in the coming weeks. The Health and Social Care committee has also warned that the government must consider what to do if the law is changed in part of the UK, Isle of Man or Jersey. It said legalisation in at least one jurisdiction was looking increasingly likely and suggested the government must be actively involved in discussions about how to approach differences in the law. Sir Keirs pledge marks a historic juncture after years of campaigning by pro-assisted dying groups. In his previous role as director of public prosecutions, the Labour leader recommended that families who assist terminally ill loved ones to die should not be subject to prosecution. The man who wants to be the next prime minister has said he would offer MPs a free vote meaning members would not be compelled by party line to vote for or against the proposal. But Sir Keirs personal position means that this would be the first time the law would be debated under a prime minister who was supportive of the plans. The last time MPs voted on legalising assisted suicide was back in 2015, when the bill was defeated by 330 votes to 118. The bold new stance catapults the UK into alignment with its European neighbour after French president Emmanuel Macron announced that a bill on assisted dying would go before the French parliament in May. Under the proposed legislation, doctors would be able to prescribe a lethal substance to those suffering from incurable illnesses and pain, but who were still in control of their faculties. Mr Macron said the bill showed people were facing up to death and that it would reconcile the autonomy of the individual and the solidarity of the nation. Emmanuel Macron has said a bill on assisted dying will be presented to Frances Council of Ministers in April (AP) A poll by Opinium on behalf of pro-assisted dying group Dignity in Dying showed an overwhelming majority of support for a change in the law across England, Scotland and Wales. Of 10,000 people polled, 75 per cent said they supported a change in the law, versus 14 per cent who were opposed. The poll found a majority of support across all age groups, with most Christians, Jews, Hindus and Sikhs favouring a change in the law. Those of the Muslim faith are the only demographic to broadly oppose assisted suicide, reducing support in some constituencies with large Muslim populations. Sir Keir said the new law would address concerns about pressurising vulnerable people into assisted deaths and include the introduction of safeguards. He said: When I consulted on this for the prosecutors guidelines, the churches and faith groups and others were very, very powerful in the arguments they made. We have to respect that and find the right balance in the end. I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case [for assisted dying] where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable. Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Dignity in Dying said that Sir Keirs intervention shows that parliamentarians are listening: Assisted dying has emerged as a vital issue among voters of all political persuasions...Crucially, Parliamentarians are listening. Both the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition have committed to give this historic matter the time it needs in Parliament, should they be our next Prime Minister. She added: Only a free vote early in the next parliament can deliver what our terminally ill citizens need a safe and compassionate law providing choice at the end of life. Voters are rightly demanding to know which political parties and candidates will give assisted dying the time and attention it deserves, and which will cling to a status quo that is unsafe, unfair, unequal and more than six decades out of date. As Sir Keir has recognised dying people simply do not have time to wait. 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 }} Rishi Sunak is under mounting pressure to call a snap general election after a poll showed nearly half of the public want a May contest. The prime minister has refused to say when the next election will take place, only suggesting that it will be in the second half of 2024. But a poll by More in Common, seen by The Independent, showed four in ten voters want an election to take place within weeks. Fewer than 30 per cent of voters want the prime minister to wait until November, when many expect the vote to take place. Former chancellor George Osborne has predicted the election will be on 14 November. Rishi Sunak is under pressure to call a general election in May (PA Wire) The PM has pointedly refused to rule out going to the polls sooner, and could call a snap election to coincide with local elections on 2 May. The last day to do this is 26 March, as polling day is 25 working days after parliament is dissolved. Asked about the prospect by Jeremy Vine on BBC Radio 2 last week, Mr Sunak answered: Im not going to say anything about that. What matters is the choice at that election. Labour says it is preparing for a May election and ordered shadow ministers to submit policies for the partys manifesto by February. Shadow paymaster general Jonathan Ashworth this month bet Sky News presenter Kay Burley that the contest would be in May. He said: After 14 years of the Tories I think the British people will say its time for a change and will want to get rid of the Tories. And by the way, this election is coming in May. I think it is definitely coming in May the Conservatives are planning for that. Mr Ashworth accepted a 10 bet for a children of alcoholics charity and called on Mr Sunak to name that date. And data showing the Conservatives have ramped up their spending on Facebook adverts by 1,700 per cent has added to speculation of an earlier election. Figures show that 697,709 has been splashed on ads in the first three months of this year, compared to just 41,774 in the same period last year, according to tracking website Who Targets Me. Chancellor Jeremy Hunts 2p national insurance giveaway also added to expectations of a May vote, with the change taking effect from April. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has repeatedly called for an immediate general election (Ian West/PA Wire) But after the move failed to give the Tories a boost in the polls, Mr Sunak appears less likely to call an immediate contest. The More in Common poll showed those who backed the Tories in 2019 are more likely to want to wait until the autumn for an election. But Labour 2019 voters are much more likely to want Mr Sunak to call one now. A recent poll showed support for the Conservatives has plunged to the lowest level since 1978 with just a fifth of British voters now backing Rishi Sunaks party. The bombshell survey, showing the Conservatives as 27 points behind Sir Keir Starmers Labour Party, would spell electoral oblivion for Mr Sunak if replicated at a general election. The Ipsos poll, published on Monday, shows Mr Sunak could hold on to as few as 25 seats 340 fewer than Boris Johnson won in 2019 in what would be a historic defeat. It also predicts Sir Keir could secure as many as 537 seats 335 more than Jeremy Corbyn managed at the last election and equating to a landslide which would eclipse Sir Tony Blairs 1997 win. 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 }} A law aimed at quashing the wrongful convictions of subpostmasters caught up in the Horizon IT scandal is being introduced by the government on Wednesday. The proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill marks an important step forward in finally clearing the names of hundreds of wronged branch managers who have had their lives callously torn apart, prime minister Rishi Sunak said. The legislation will exonerate those convicted in England and Wales on the basis of the faulty Horizon accounting software in what has been branded the biggest miscarriage of justice in British legal history. The new law Downing Street said that under the law, convictions will be automatically quashed if they meet the following criteria: Were prosecuted by the Post Office or Crown Prosecution Service; Were for offences carried out in connection with Post Office business between 1996 and 2018; Were for relevant offences such as theft, fraud and false accounting; Were against subpostmasters, their employees, officers, family members or direct employees of the Post Office working in a Post Office that used the Horizon system software. Those with overturned convictions will receive an interim payment with the option of immediately taking a fixed and final offer of 600,000, according to No 10. Mr Sunak said: I want to pay tribute to all the postmasters who have shown such courage and perseverance in their fierce campaign for justice, and to those who tragically wont see the justice they deserve. While I know that nothing can make up for what theyve been through, todays legislation marks an important step forward in finally clearing their names. We owe it to the victims of this scandal who have had their lives and livelihoods callously torn apart, to deliver the justice theyve fought so long and hard for, and to ensure nothing like this ever happens again. More than 700 subpostmasters were prosecuted by the Post Office and handed criminal convictions between 1999 and 2015 as Fujitsus faulty Horizon IT system made it appear as though money was missing at their branches. The long-running saga was put in a fresh spotlight by ITVs acclaimed drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office. The government will also bring forward enhanced financial redress for postmasters who, while not convicted or part of legal action against the Post Office, made good the apparent losses caused by the Horizon system from their own pockets. They will be entitled to a fixed sum award of 75,000 through the Horizon Shortfall Scheme, Downing Street said. Those who have already settled for less money will have their compensation topped up to this level, while people can instead choose to have their claims assessed as part of the usual scheme process, in which there is no limit to compensation. The new Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme, to be run by the Department for Business and Trade, is to open for applications to those who have had their convictions quashed as soon as possible once the legislation has passed. The government hopes the bill will receive royal assent and become law ahead of MPs summer holiday. Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said: Postmasters have been fighting for justice for years, and I hope the introduction of todays legislation is the light at the end of the tunnel they have been waiting for. Business secretary Kemi Badenoch says ministers wont rest until every victim receives the compensation they are entitled to (PA) Business secretary Kemi Badenoch said ministers wont rest until every victim receives the compensation they are entitled to. It is absolutely right that we sweep away the convictions wrongly given to postmasters on the basis of bad evidence, and it is a disgrace that they were ever pursued by the Post Office, she said. Ministers have decided the scale of the scandal is so great that the usual process of individuals going through the courts would take too long. Justice secretary Alex Chalk said: These are exceptional circumstances which require an exceptional response to ensure those who were wrongly convicted can not only clear their names but be fairly and swiftly compensated. Ministers acknowledge there is a risk the legislation could quash convictions of some people who were genuinely guilty of a crime. To counter this, subpostmasters will have to sign a legal statement that they did not commit the offence, leaving them liable to prosecution if they were subsequently found to have lied. The Law Society, which represents solicitors in England and Wales, said the devil will be in the detail of such a complex proposal and warned against treating the scheme as a precedent for government intervention in the independent judiciary. 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 whose asylum claims have been rejected in Britain are being offered thousands of pounds to move to Rwanda, under a new scheme drawn up by Rishi Sunaks government. With MPs yet to approve the prime ministers flagship scheme to forcibly send asylum-seekers whose claims are still pending to Rwanda, The Independent understands that a new deal has been struck with Kigali in recent weeks. The new plans will see Rwanda use the same framework established for the forcible removals scheme to also host people who choose to move there voluntarily after their asylum claims in the UK have been unsuccessful. Those deemed to have no right to live or work in the UK will instead be offered up to 3,000 to relocate to Rwanda, where it is claimed they will be provided with a package of support lasting up to five years to help them obtain housing, study, undertake training, and work. The Home Office is understood to have already started approaching people it believes could wish to volunteer for removal under the scheme, who otherwise will remain unable to work, secure accommodation or claim benefits in the UK. The plan mirrors existing voluntary removals schemes which, according to the Home Office saw 19,000 people given financial assistance to return to their country of origin last year, down from more than 31,000 in 2010. But it is unprecedented in the fact that people would be paid to move to Rwanda, a third country, as opposed to their country of origin. While Mr Sunaks government insists Rwanda is a safe third country, this was disputed in the Supreme Court, whose damning ruling the prime minister is now seeking to override with new legislation, which will return to the House of Commons on Monday. Home secretary James Cleverly and Rwandas foreign minister Vincent Biruta shake hands after signing a new treaty in Kigali in December (PA) According to The Times, which first reported the plans, ministers believe the new scheme is lawful because it will be on a voluntary basis, and it will not be dependent upon the controversial new legislation gaining parliamentary approval. We hope there will be failed asylum seekers out there who have no right to benefits or work in the UK, might be in hotels for prolonged periods of time and may want to take up the opportunity, a government source told the paper. The Home Office rejected 30,967 asylum claims in 2023. Just over 4,000 of the 19,253 people who accepted voluntary resettlement were those whose claims had been rejected. Of the remainder, 15,243 people had committed crimes or overstayed their visas, with a further 6,393 enforced returns, according to The Times. A Home Office spokesman said: In the last year, 19,000 people were removed voluntarily from the UK and this is an important part of our efforts to tackle illegal migration. We are exploring voluntary relocations for those who have no right to be here to Rwanda, who stand ready to accept people who wish to rebuild their lives and cannot stay in the UK. This is in addition to our Safety of Rwanda Bill and Treaty which, when passed, will ensure people who come to the UK illegally are removed to Rwanda. 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 }} Tory senior treasurer Mohamed Mansour, who was appointed to the role after donating 5m to the party, has been awarded a knighthood on the recommendation of Rishi Sunak. Mr Mansour, a businessman and former Egyptian politician, has made a number of charitable donations over the years, including to causes which raised money for Covid-19 victims in the UK. No 10 have pointed to this in answer to concerns around his knighthood. Labour Party chair Anneliese Dodds said: This is either the arrogant act of an entitled man whos stopped caring what the public thinks, or the demob-happy self-indulgence of someone who doesnt expect to be prime minister much longer. It comes after the Conservative Party became embroiled in a political row as it was alleged top donor Frank Hester made racist comments about MP Diane Abbott to colleagues. The West Yorkshire businessman reportedly said Ms Abbott makes you want to hate all black women and said the MP should be shot. Mr Hester has made over 10 million in donations to the Conservatives over the past two years, making him the biggest donor of Rishi Sunaks premiership. Mr Mansour is the third highest donor. Here are the biggest donors to the Tories since the last general election: Lord John Sainsbury 10.85m John Sainsbury was made a life peer in 1989 (Getty Images) Lord John Sainsbury was chair of the Sainsburys supermarket chain for 23 years, from 1969 to 1992. He was knighted in 1980, and made a life peer in 1989. When he died in 2022, he bequeathed a record 10.85m donation to the Conservatives the largest single donation ever given to the party. This 10m sum substantially added to the 2.35m Lord Sainsbury had donated since 2007, making him the biggest single donor to the party this century. His donation went specifically to the Conservative Party Foundation, which funds bursaries for parliamentary candidates and builds long-term funding for the party. His cousin, Lord David Sainsbury has also been the biggest donor to the opposition Labour Party, donating 17.88m since 2005. Frank Hester 10.17m Frank Hester speaking in 2022 (PA Wire) Frank Hester is a businessman from Leeds, West Yorkshire, and founder and CEO of The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) software company. Last year, Mr Hester made donations to the Tories totalling 5.17m through his IT company, as well as a 5m personal donation. This makes him the biggest donor to the Conservatives during Rishi Sunaks premiership. In 2023, it was found that Mr Hester had profited from 135m of NHS contracts between 2019 and 2022, throughout the height of the Covid pandemic. During these four years, Mr Hester was the only shareholder of TTP, making him the sole recipient of over 20m in dividends. He appeared on the Sunday Times Rich List, with an estimated wealth of 415m. In 2023, Mr Hester wrote an open letter to the NHS, saying: We are here for our NHS. We are here to help. Not to drive profits for shareholders, or to grease revolving doors. TTP supplies software to around 2,700 GP surgeries in England as well as providing data services that enable medical records to be held electronically. Writing in The Telegraph after making his 5m donation, Mr Hester said: As a businessman from Yorkshire I have been fortunate enough to have met the prime minister. He shares my passion for harnessing the data revolution to transform the way we as citizens access healthcare. Graham Edwards 5.31m Graham Edwards is co-founder of property investment company Telereal Trillium, or TT Group. He became Executive Chairman in 2018, having been Chief Executive since 2001. He has donated 5.31m since the 2019 general election and 5.52m overall, first donating in 2018. Mr Edwards tax arrangements have come under scrutiny in the past. In 2007, a tribunal judge blocked a complex tax avoidance scheme set up by KPMG for their clients, including Mr Edwards. The property tycoon was found to have wrongly tried to reduce the tax on 5m he received in bonuses. A spokesman for Mr Edwards said at the time: Two decades ago Mr Edwards received a bonus and paid full tax and National Insurance on it, on the day he received it, The scheme mentioned was a KPMG-led tax reclaim scheme that HMRC disallowed. Mr Edwards paid all taxes properly and never received any penalty from HMRC. In December 2022, Mr Edwards was appointed Conservative Party treasurer by Rishi Sunak. Nine previous holders of this role have gone on to receive peerages. Mohamed Mansour 5.12m Mohamed Mansour speaks during a press conference at Snapdragon Stadium, 2023 (USA TODAY Sports via Reuters) Mohamed Mansour is an Egyptian businessman and former politician. He has led the Mansour Group family business alongside his two brothers since the death of his father in 1976. It reports an annual revenue of $7.5bn. Since 1997, the group has run the Africa and Middle East dealership of the Caterpiller Inc (CAT) construction equipment company. It does this through subsiduary companies Mantrac Group and Unatrac. It is through Unatrac that Mr Mansour has made several donations to the Conservatives totalling over 600,000 since 2015. In January 2023, he made a substantial personal donation of 5m to the party in his and his sons name. After being investigated by the HMRC, Mr Mansours Unatrac agreed to set aside $4m for backdated tax after being found to owe $3.15m in unpaid corporation tax between 2015 and 2018. Unatrac gave no comments. In December 2022, Mr Mansour was appointed senior treasurer of the Conservatives by Mr Sunak From 2006 to 2009, Mr Mansour was Egypts minister of transport under autocratic president Hosni Muburak, who ruled for three decades from 1981 to 2011. In 2010, Mr Mansour set up Man Capital, the Mansour Groups private investment subsidiary, based in London. He remains chairman while his son, Loufty Mansour, is the CEO. JCB and the Bamford family 3.27m Former PM Boris Johnson and JCB chairman Lord Anthony Bamford (POOL/AFP via Getty Images) British construction equipment giant JCB is also amongst the Conservative Partys largest donors. Through owners the Bamford family and the companies subsidiaries, JCB has gifted the Tories around 11m since 2001, including 2.8m since the last general election. The largest individual donor is chairman Lord Anthony Bamford, giving over 281,000 since 2007. This includes 166,250 in donations to former prime minister Boris Johnson. The Sunday Times Rich List puts Lord Bamford and his familys wealth at 5.9bn. Lord Bamford was first recommended for a peerage by David Cameron in 2010. He withdrew his name that year, but then joined the House of Lords later, in 2013. Lord Bamford and his brother Mark are both currently under investigation by the HMRC for allegations of avoiding UK tax over a period of two decades, The Guardian revealed in October 2023. The reported civil investigation has been underway for three years, and spans a complex network of offshore tax havens and companies. The HMRC has refused to confirm or deny the reports. Neither the Bamfords nor a legal representative for either of them has commented on the investigation yet. The last donation from a JCB subsidiary to the central Conservative party was 25,000, made in September 2023. Christopher Wood 2.02m Professor Christopher Barry Wood has donated 2.38m to the Conservatives since 2014, including 2.1m since the 2019 general election. He has made 89 donations since February 2014. Prof Wood has not made any public comments about his donations to the Conservative Party. He is a founder and director of several biotechnology companies. In 2009, he founded Medannex, a biopharmaceutical company that develops cancer and autoimmune disease treatments. In February 2024, the company appointed Sir Graham Brady MP as a non-executive director. The veteran Tory MP said: I am delighted to be joining the team of this young and exciting life sciences company. Medannex has won awards for its pioneering work in areas of unmet medical need and I look forward to being an active part of its continued progress. The UK is looking to companies like Medannex for the next phase of our countrys growth. Prof Wood added: Its a real pleasure to welcome Sir Graham to the board of directors of Medannex. He adds a new and important dimension to the company in its quest to develop new treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases. Richard Harpin 2.005m Richard Harpin is the founder and CEO of Homeserve, a multinational UK-based home repairs business. He is originally from Huddersfield, Yorkshire, now residing in Nun Monkton. Mr Harpin has donated 2.74m to the Tories since 2008, with 2m coming since the 2019 general election. He was the UKs 254th richest person in 2023 according to the Sunday Times Rich List, with a worth of 630m. In 2014, Mr Harpins company Homeserve was fined a record 30m by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for widespread failings related to misselling insurance policies. Responding to the fine, Mr Harpin said: We have transformed the business, rebuilding and strengthening the management team, retraining staff and restructuring systems and controls. Amit Lohia 2.00m Nicknamed The Prince of Polyester, Amit Lohia is the vice-chairman of Singapore-based textile giant Indorama Corporation. Founded by his father and grandfather in 1975, Mr Lohia has been part of his familys business since 1995. In March 2023, Mr Lohia made a 2m donation to the Conservative party, his first and only so far. His father Sri Prakash Lohia was the UKs 33rd richest person in 2023, according to The Sunday Times Rich List, with a worth of 5.846bn. Mr Lohia also sits on the board of sister company Indorama Ventures, which manufactures plastic resins, polyester yarn and wool products. The business came under scrutiny last year when it was found to be a majority shareholder in hygiene fabrics firm Avgol, which has a production line in Russias Tula Oblast region. Amit Lohia is a non-executive director of Indorama Ventures Ltd and made the donation in a personal capacity, said a spokesperson for Mr Lohia. Avgol Russia makes materials used in babies nappies and feminine hygiene products. It represents less than 0.19% of Indorama Ventures operations. Malcolm Healey 1.90m Malcolm Healey is a billionaire businessman, and owner of Wren Kitchens. He has run the fitted kitchen retailer since founding it in 2009. He has donated 2.15m to the Tories since the 2019 general election, and 4.17m overall since his first donation in 2017. The 2023 Sunday Times Rich List puts Mr Healey and his familys net worth at 2.5bn. In late 2021, The Independent revealed that Mr Healeys company Wren Kitchens claimed millions in furlough money during the Covid pandemic despite recording a 75.3m profit. This was not unlawful, but Labour MP Rushanara Ali told The Independent : This goes against the whole spirit of the furlough scheme. It is unjust and immoral for a billionaire Tory donors firm to take taxpayers money to pay staff when their business is not in need, at a time when millions were struggling and continue to struggle to make ends meet. Neither Mr Healey nor Wren Kitchens responded to The Independents requests for comment. Alan Howard 1.58m Alan Eldan Howard is a billionaire British hedge fund manager and co-founder of Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP. In 2019, he stepped down as the firms chief executive, but retains overall control. Mr Howards annual pay from Brevan Howard was 82m in 2023. He is the UKs 100th richest man according to the Sunday Times Rich List, with a worth of 1.75bn in 2023. He has donated 1.8m to the Conservative party since 2005, 1.5m coming in just over four years, since the 2019 general election. 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 }} Three Egyptian monks have been killed in an attack at a monastery in South Africa. Police said on Wednesday that the monks belonging to the Coptic Orthodox Church were fatallay stabbed and a suspect has been arrested. The monks were killed on Tuesday at the Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Samuel the Confessor Monastery in Cullinan, a town east of the capital, Pretoria. The Coptic Orthodox Church named the monks killed in South Africa as Monk Hegumen Takla el-Samuely, Monk Yostos ava Markos and Monk Mina ava Markos. All three were Egyptian nationals. A fourth person was beaten with an iron rod before escaping and hiding in a room at the monastery. The suspect arrested was a 35-year-old man. Police did not provide his name or other details. He was due to appear in court on Thursday. The motive for the attack was unclear, but it appeared nothing was stolen from the monastery, police spokesperson Col. Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said in a statement. Police had said that they were seeking multiple suspects. ( Coptic Orthodox Church/Facebook) Deadly attacks on churches and other places of worship in South Africa are rare. The Coptic Orthodox Church has its headquarters in Egypt and dioceses in several countries. It is one of the oldest Christian communities in the world and has been the target of deadly attacks by Islamic militants in Egypt and elsewhere. The attacks in Egypt have subsided recently amid tighter security around Christian places of worship in the Muslim-majority country. The Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa said that el-Samuely was the deputy of the local diocese. It said the monks were the victims of a criminal attack, which resulted in their martyrdom. The Coptic church has its own pope, currently Pope Tawadros II, and the South African diocese said he was aware of the attack and was waiting to be informed of its causes.The Egyptian ambassador to South Africa visited the monastery following the attack, the Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa said. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said it was in communication with the embassy in South Africa. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 Boeing whistleblower who raised concerns over the firms production standards has been found dead aged 62 in South Carolina. Local authorities confirmed that they found former Boeing employee Mr Barnett dead in his truck in a hotel car park over the weekend. Police said it appears he suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound and are investigating further. Mr Barnett had been giving evidence in a lawsuit against Boeing in recent days, having first blown the whistle on alleged aircraft safety issues in 2019. Boeing has responded to Mr Barnetts death, saying: We are saddened by Mr Barnetts passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends. Who is John Barnett and what were his Boeing accusations? Mr Barnett worked at Boeing for over three decades, retiring in 2017 after 32 years with the company. From 2010, he worked as a quality manager at their North Charleston plant in South Carolina, where he worked on the 787 Dreamliner long-haul passenger aircraft. Since retiring, Mr Barnett was engaged in legal action against his former employer for disparaging his character and hampering his career after being forced to retire for raising issues about the company. Boeing denies this, claiming that Mr Barnetts retirement plans were long-standing, and that they had in no way negatively impacted Mr Barnetts ability to continue in whatever chosen profession he so wishes. A Boeing 737 MAX jet, 2020 (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) The qualified aerospace engineer had been giving evidence in a lawsuit related to this case in recent days and was due to return for questioning on Saturday 9 March. Enquiries were made at his hotel when he did not arrive, which is when his body was found. In 2019, Mr Barnett shared concerns about his former employer with the BBC, alleging issues with the oxygen system on board the 787 Dreamliner. The qualified aerospace engineer raised concerns that passengers on board the aircraft could be left without oxygen in case of sudden cabin decompression. After finding some oxygen bottles were not discharging, Mr Barnett commissioned a test of 300 brand new oxygen systems. He claimed 75 of them a quarter did not deploy properly. He claimed that Boeing had blocked him from looking into the matter further. He then went to the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) to complain, but they were unable to substantiate the claim as Boeing had informed them it was working to resolve the issue at the time. The aircraft manufacturer rejects Mr Barnetts allegations, issuing clarification in 2017: [Boeing] identified some oxygen bottles received from the supplier that were not deploying properly. We removed those bottles from production so that no defective bottles were placed on airplanes, and we addressed the matter with our supplier. Every passenger oxygen system installed on our airplanes is tested multiple times before delivery to ensure it is functioning properly, and must pass those tests to remain on the airplane. Mr Barnett also alleged that Boeing failed to follow tracking procedures at its South Carolina plant, as defective items were allowed to be lost. He said that workers had deliberately been fitting sub-standard parts from scrap bins on the production line, claiming that Boeing South Carolina is strictly driven by schedule and cost. A 2017 review by the FAA upheld Mr Barnetts complaint, finding that the location of 53 non-conforming parts was unknown, and ordering Boeing to take action on the issue. Boeing responded to the report saying it had fully resolved the FAAs findings with regard to part traceability, and implemented corrective actions to prevent recurrence. In 2024, Mr Barnett joined other employees in speaking out against the 737 MAX aircraft, which has been subject to several mid-air technical emergencies in recent years. In my opinion, Boeing needs a reckoning from the top down, he said. This is a Boeing issue, this is not a 737 issue. When did Boeings legal issues begin? In 2018 and 2019, two separate Boeing 737 MAX crashed, killing a combined 346 passengers with no survivors. In response, the airline model was grounded around the world a total of 387 planes. Investigations were subsequently made by both the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and US House of Representatives in 2020. The following year, the Department of Justice (DoJ) found Boeing had conspired to defraud the FAA during their investigation, meaning they had attempted to cover up their failures and not engaged with the federal government agency honestly. This is a criminal offence in the US, carrying the charge of conspiracy to defraud the US. Entering a deferred prosecution agreement with the DoJ, Boeing was criminally charged and made to pay over $2.5bn. The payment comprised a criminal fine of $243.6m, compensation payments of $1.77bn and a $500m fund to compensate the relatives of the 737 MAX crash victims. A spokesperson for the Criminal Justice Department said: Boeings employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception. This resolution holds Boeing accountable for its employees criminal misconduct, addresses the financial impact to Boeings airline customers, and hopefully provides some measure of compensation to the crash-victims families and beneficiaries. The agreement sees the criminal charge dropped after three years if Boeing complies with all its conditions. The fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 Boeing 737-9 MAX (via REUTERS) On 5 January 2024, a door plug blowout occurred on board Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 at 16,000 feet. Several passengers were injured as the aircraft made an emergency landing with a door-sized hole in the body of the 737 MAX 9 jetliner. The FAA said in January that it was increasing its scrutiny of Boeing, while the Justice Department opened a criminal investigation into the Alaska Airlines blowout in March. Close Ghislaine Maxwell team will appeal guilty verdict, says attorney The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} Ghislaine Maxwell should have been protected by immunity provisions from a previous non-prosecution agreement in Florida, her attorneys have argued. The disgraced British socialite, 62, returned to the spotlight this week as lawyers launched an appeal over her 2021 sex trafficking conviction. During an appeal hearing in New York federal court on Tuesday, Diana Fabi Samson representing Maxwell referenced the 2008 non prosecution agreement, made by state prosecutors with late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein in Florida. Ms Samson said not honouring the terms of the agreement would strike a dagger in the heart of the trust between the government and its citizens. In the end, Ms. Maxwell was prosecuted for crimes that she as a third party beneficiary to the plea agreement in Florida should not have been prosecuted, Ms Samson said. Maxwells attorneys had previously argued that a juror failed to disclose that they were a sexual abuse victim. It was a 2021 interview journalist Lucia Osborne-Crowley conducted with the juror Scotty David published in The Independent in the weeks following the Maxwell sex-trafficking verdict that led her legal team to appeal on this matter. One of Maxwells attorneys, Arthur Aidala addressed the issue of an impartial juror outside court saying that the failure of Mr David to disclose he had been the victim of sexual assault was wrong and that the juror had totally misrepresented the truth. That is absolutely verboten. Its wrong. And although the judge had a hearing, and he acknowledged he wasnt accurate at all she said, well, I think he made an honest mistake by not checking off that box so Im going to let the verdict stand, he said. Mr Aidala said the case should be dismissed, adding: If we allow the government to make deals with the citizens with us, and then they decide, for whatever reason, theyre going to rip up that room and rip up that deal, that handshake means nothing. Maxwell was not present in the courtroom for Tuesdays hearing, but was reportedly listening remotely from her jail cell in Florida. She was convicted in 2021 of five counts of trafficking and abusing young girls over decades with Epstein. She was sentenced to 20 years behind bars in June 2022. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} Attorneys for Ghislaine Maxwell argued that the disgraced British socialite should have been protected by a deal Jeffrey Epstein made years ago as they made a bid for her freedom in a New York courtroom on Tuesday. Maxwell, 62, returned to the spotlight this week as her defence team launched an appeal over her sex trafficking conviction. In December 2021, Maxwell was found guilty of recruiting and grooming four teenagers for sexual abuse by the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, who was her boyfriend at the time. He died by suicide in prison in 2019 while awaiting his own sex trafficking trial. Now, her lawyers are fighting to overturn the conviction for the former socialite, who is currently housed at the Federal Correctional Institution Tallahassee, Florida. She is eligible for release in July 2037. During an appeal hearing in New York federal court on Tuesday, Diana Fabi Samson one of the attorneys representing Maxwell referenced the 2008 non-prosecution agreement, made by state prosecutors with Epstein in Florida. Ms Samson told a three-judge panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals that not honouring the terms of the agreement would strike a dagger in the heart of the trust between the government and its citizens. Maxwell was not present in the courtroom but was reportedly listening remotely from her jail cell in Tallahassee, Florida. Ghislaine Maxwell during her arraignment in 2020. She was not present in the courtroom for her appeal hearing on Tuesday, but was reportedly listening remotely from her jail cell in Tallahassee, Florida (Reuters) Ms Samson argued that Maxwell should not have been prosecuted in 2019, as she was protected by provisions from a prior non-prosecution agreement (NPA) made by Florida prosecutors with Epstein. The deal was made by former federal prosecutor Alex Acosta and resulted in a jail sentence and a sex offender registration for the disgraced financier. Under the 2008 NPA, Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges in Florida of soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution. That allowed him to avert a possible life sentence, instead serving 13 months in a work-release program. He was required to make payments to victims and register as a sex offender. Epstein was later charged by federal prosecutors in Manhattan for nearly identical allegations in 2019. In the end, Ms Maxwell was prosecuted for crimes that she as a third party beneficiary to the plea agreement in Florida should not have been prosecuted, Ms Samson said. The central promise in the non-prosecution agreement is a promise by the Southern District of Florida not to prosecute Epstein in that district, Assistant US Attorney Andrew Rohrbach responded. This is a document entered into by the US Attorneys office for the Southern District of Florida intended to bind the Southern District of Florida and that district alone. Ms Samson was only given 10 minutes for the defence arguments. She was also expected to argue, as detailed in her written argument, that her client did not get a fair trial because, among other things, one of the jurors, Scotty David, failed to disclose in his juror questionnaire that he is a survivor of sexual abuse. But her allotted time for defence arguments ended at 10 minutes. It was a 2021 interview journalist Lucia Osborne-Crowley conducted with Mr David, known as Juror 50, published in The Independent in the weeks following the Maxwell sex-trafficking verdict that led her legal team to appeal over her conviction. But Tuesdays hearing ended without any mention of Juror 50. One of Maxwells attorneys, Arthur Aidala later addressed the issue of an impartial juror outside court. Maxwell lawyer addresses juror who failed to disclose he was the victim of sexual abuse Mr Aidala said that the failure of Mr David to disclose he had been the victim of sexual assault was wrong and that the juror had totally misrepresented the truth. Whats worse is after the fact he goes on national television and says what a big role he played in the jury, basically acting as an expert witness to explain some of the flaws in the prosecutions case and speaking in his capacity as a victim of a sexual act. That is absolutely verboten. Its wrong. And although the judge had a hearing, and he acknowledged he wasnt accurate at all she said, well, I think he made an honest mistake by not checking off that box so Im going to let the verdict stand. Mr Aidala continued: If we allow that to happen in the United States of America, each and every one of us are in jeopardy, because it could be your father, your uncle, your aunt, your cousin whos on trial, and you really want someone whos sitting in the jury box whove been so afflicted by something so similar, in that they cannot be fair and impartial. Its all about being fair. And there are certain things that could happen in ones life that makes you unable to be fair and impartial. And that was the case in Ghislaine Maxwells jury box. And [Mr David] admits that he played a heavy role in there. On that grounds the case would cause the case to be reversed to go back to a new trial, he added. Mr Aidala said the case should be dismissed, adding: If we allow the government to make deals with the citizens with us, and then they decide, for whatever reason, theyre going to rip up that room and rip up that deal, that handshake means nothing. Maxwell, the daughter of the media tycoon Robert Maxwell, had once lived life as one of Britains most well-connected socialites, mingling with US presidents, royalty and celebrities. She now spends her days holed up in a cell in Florida, having been transferred from the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York since her arrest. Ghislaine Maxwells lawyers said she should have been protected by a deal Jeffrey Epstein made years ago (PA Media) Her lawyers made a number of complaints that conditions at the Brooklyn jail were reprehensible and that she had been deprived of water, had raw sewage entering her cell and been placed under invasive surveillance. She had requested to serve her sentence at the minimum security prison FCI Danbury in Connecticut but the Bureau of Prisons ultimately decided to place her in the Florida jail given the nature of her offences. Over the course of the late 1990s and early 2000s, she helped lure and recruit a number of underage girls to work for the US billionaire, only for them to be forced to give sexual massages and allegedly abused by his associates. Following a ruling by US judge Loretta Preska in December, documents relating to more than 170 people who were friends or acquaintances of the disgraced financier have been made public. Among them are two former US presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew, all three of whom have been pictured with and known to associate with the disgraced financier in the past. Other names include lawyer Alan Dershowitz, magician David Copperfield, Michael Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio. However, being identified through the court documents does not mean that the individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein. Mugshot of British convicted sex offender and former socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, taken at the Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn (Federal Bureau of Prisons) The files also detail the relationship between Maxwell and Epstein, who had previously been described as his partner in crime. Ghislaine Maxwell is one of the names that features the most, appearing more than 1000 times in the first five batches of documents. This is due to the files being part of a 2015 US defamation case by Virginia Giuffre against her, though the name Maxwell appears still more, sometimes in reference to legal matters and footnotes. References to Maxwell were made throughout the documents, with various other witnesses being asked about her involvement with Epstein in their separate testimonies. Close Haiti: Hundreds of inmates escape after armed gangs storm prison The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} Haiti is facing further turmoil as former Prime Minister Ariel Henry has said that only he can appoint the transitional council needed to take over leadership of the beleaguered Caribbean nation. Ariel Henrys office told CNN that, under Haitis constitution, it is down to him and his cabinet to appoint the transitional leaders as he vowed to follow constitutional procedures. We will not deliver the country to just a group of people without following the procedure. We are in crisis as a country, but we must stay inside of the law and set a good example, his office said. This further state of flux comes after a state of emergency was declared in the nation last week, prompting Caribbean leaders and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to meet in Jamaica to urgently discuss the crisis on Monday. On 11 March, Mr Henry agreed to resign once a transitional presidential council is created. The violence, which began on 29 February, has seen gang members burn down police stations and raid prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates. Heavily armed criminal gangs also attacked major government assets across the capital Port-au-Prince and took control of the main international airports. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem posted an infomercial-style video on X Monday night lavishing praise on a team of cosmetic dentists outside her state for giving her a smile she said she can be proud of. Noem, who has showcased herself as a potential vice presidential pick for former President Donald Trump, posted the nearly 5-minute video on her personal X account, writing, I love my new family at Smile Texas!" Noem at the start of the video identifies herself as the governor of South Dakota as a clip is shown of her speaking at a state Republican party event with Trump signs in the background. She needed to have what she called an adjustment to her teeth because she knocked out her front teeth years ago in a biking accident, she says in the video. Noems two spokespersons did not immediately respond to emails asking what prompted Noem to make the video, whether the dental work was free in exchange for making the video and why she went to Texas when other providers in South Dakota appear available. Smile Texas also didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. The team here was remarkable and finally gave me a smile that I can be proud of and confident in, and that really is a gift that I think is going to be incredibly special to have," Noem said. She mentions two dentists by name and says she chose Smile Texas, for among other things because they're the best," adding that she researched other cosmetic dental work they had done. Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School, on Tuesday called the video a shameless plug for a private business. I'm honestly kind of baffled by it but one could say everything shes doing at the moment is an audition to be Trumps VP candidate, Levinson said. Noem as governor will be term-limited in 2026 and, after declining to run for president this year, is considering her options to maintain prominence in the GOP. Those who are keen to be considered as Trumps running mate have been openly jockeying for the position. A former member of Congress, Noem rose to national prominence with a mostly hands-off approach to the COVID-19 pandemic. She endorsed Trump at a Republican party fundraiser in South Dakota last September. Asked around that time whether she would consider joining a potential Trump ticket if invited, Noem told Newsmax she would in a heartbeat. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 Missouri university student has vanished after being kicked out of a bar in Tennessee, while on a trip with his fraternity. Riley Strain, 22, was last seen on Friday night as he left Lukes 32 Bridge Food + Drink in Nashvilles Broadway area. The seniors stepfather said in an interview on Monday that the days since Rileys disappearance had been pure hell. His family has travelled to the city and been walking the streets looking for the young man who called his frat brothers after leaving the bar, saying he was going back to their hotel. Rileys friends tried to call him repeatedly after that on Friday night and on Saturday morning, but the calls kept going to voicemail. Riley Strain was last seen wearing this shirt while on a night out in Nashville, Tennessee on Friday 8 March 2024 (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department) Metropolitan Nashville Police Department released video footage on Tuesday, showing Riley wearing a two-tone shirt, crossing 1st Avenue North to Gay Street at around 9.45pm on Friday. That spot is just over half a mile from the bar. Investigators are asking anyone who could help locate the 65" tall man with a thin build, blue eyes and light brown hair to come forward. The department said on Monday that it had searched the downtown area where Riley was last seen, including the riverbank, but to no avail. Rileys mother Michelle Whiteid told WSMV that she and his stepfather Chris had driven down from Springfield, Missouri when they heard the news. We talk every day, multiple times a day, Ms Whiteid told the outlet. This is the longest Ive ever gone without talking to him. Oh, God bud, we love you so much and were all looking for you, all of us, the mother added. Riley was on an annual trip with his Delta Chi fraternity at the University of Missouri, or Mizzou. On Monday, the school said it had been in touch with his family The safety of our community is our highest priority, Angela King Taylor, interim vice chancellor for Student Affairs, said in a statement. Our thoughts are with Rileys family as the search continues. We will be offering any support to them that we can, and we encourage anyone who needs help to reach out to our counselling resources. Anyone with information on Rileys whereabouts is asked to call the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department on 615-862-8600. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} University of Missouri student Riley Strain was out with his fraternity brothers in Nashville, Tennessee, on Friday 8 March when he disappeared. Hed been asked to leave a bar the Delta Chi group were hanging out in, shortly before 9.45pm, and said he was going back to their hotel. Two weeks after he walked out of the bar, his body was discovered in the Cumberland River, some eight miles downstream from Nashville. An initial autopsy revealed no signs of foul play-related trauma. Riley Strain: Body found in river identified as missing Nashville student Here is everything we know about the disappearance and death of Riley Strain. What happened to Riley Strain? According to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, 22-year-old Riley Strain was last seen on Friday 8 March. He was at a bar in the Broadway area of the city, Lukes 32 Bridge Food + Drink, his family has said, and was asked to leave the nightspot at around 9.45pm. Strains friends called him and he said he was going to head back to their hotel. The young man was then seen on CCTV footage wearing a two-tone shirt, crossing 1st Avenue North to Gay Street at 9:47pm. His path was taking him further away from his hotel, and closer to the Cumberland River. The last pings from his cellphone put him near a park in the proximity of the river on the night of 8 March. The last time Strain was seen was on surveillance video as he was crossing to Gay Street. Metro Nashville Police released body camera footage on 18 March showing Strain speaking to a police officer on the night of his disappearance. In the video, the officer sees Strain walking down the street and asks him how he is doing. Strain greets the officer and says hes doing fine before continuing down the street. Police also revealed that the final text message sent from Strians phone before it died said good lops, but its currently unclear what that might have meant. Some social media commenters suggested it meant low on power, sorry, but a friend of Strains, Chris Dingman, told NewsNation that Mr Strains phone was not low on power at the time that text was sent. Riley Strain had visited Nashville before Strain had been visiting Nashville from the University of Missouri, known as Mizzou, with his fraternity. The Delta Chi group was on its annual spring trip. The frat said that it and the university were actively involved with the search. It was reported that Strain, a senior, had made the trip to Nashville before. His mother and stepfather are from Springfield, Missouri, around 160 miles from the college campus in Columbia. The search for Riley Strain On 14 March, Chris Dingman, a friend of the family, said that they had had confirmation from two separate homeless encampments that Strain had been in the area. I was talking to family members currently in downtown Nashville searching, and we have found another homeless person that had acknowledged that Riley had been in that area, Mr Dingman told WSMV4. This now makes two people that has done confirmation. These are areas that the camera had stops. We dont have any footage. Basically, the areas where his phone quit pinging. We now do have visual confirmation from two homeless camps that Riley was in that area. On the afternoon of 14 March, police said there were currently no signs of foul play in Strains disappearance, but that investigations by water and air would continue. Police used boats equipped with sonar to search the Cumberland River, and a drone and helicopter to search the riverbanks. No evidence has turned up suggesting Strain fell into the river. A body was found floating in the Cumberland River on Sunday 17 March, but it did not match Strains description. Bank card found near river On the same day, a pair of women searching for Strain found his bank card on the banks of the Cumberland River. Metro Nashville Police Sgt Bob Neilsen said, In a missing persons case, people go missing for various reasons. Some are voluntary, some are not. Some could be due to a medical incident. Right now, we have no idea what happened with this gentleman. We dont believe there was any crime involved, however. All of our resources right now are dedicated to locating him, the police sergeant added. On 19 March, Strains family held a press conference announcing that the United Cajun Navy a disaster relief and search and rescue organisation founded during Hurricane Katrina would be coordinating the volunteer search and adding additional volunteers to the ground effort. Dave Flagg, the United Cajun Navys national director of operations, told reporters that the group was bringing a hoverboat to assist the river search. The group has been operating an airboat in the area since the search began. On 20 March, police began searching the Cheatham Lock and Dam near Ashland City for any trace of Strain. On 21 March, Mr Dingman confirmed that police had obtained new surveillance footage showing Strain approaching the James Robertson Parkway bridge, which spans the Cumberland River. That footage has not been released to the public at the time of this report. Bar owner Luke Bryan speaks out Country music star Luke Bryan, whose bar Strain had been at before his disappearance, spoke out about the incident on social media. Yall this is scary, Bryan posted on his Instagram story. Praying for his safe return. The singer, 47, said TC Restaurant Group, which operates and owns Lukes 32 Bridge Food + Drink, was working closely with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department on its investigation. The bar was providing security footage and any other information which could help locate Strain. The bar is located in the busy Broadway area in downtown Nashville and offers live music every night. It sits around two blocks from the Cumberland River and the spot where Strain was last seen. Although the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission announced on 13 March that it was investigating whether Mr Strain had been overserved at the bar, on 15 March, the bar owners revealed that the college senior had been served just one drink and two waters before being escorted out. No members of Rileys party were required to stay inside the venue to close any open tabs, and no one from Lukes 32 Bridge team prevented anyone from Rileys party from leaving the venue with him, the owners said in a statement. Dead ends and questions over police response Members of the Nashville police told reporters they still had no evidence to suggest foul play, and said they were following up on numerous actionable leads regarding Strains disappearance. Some locals volunteering their time to assist with the case as well as some of Strains friends and family - criticised the police response. While Strains parents defended the police response during a press conference on 19 March, they have also said it has been frustrating to have few answers and previously said the police were doing a B- job. The Nashville police have insisted they have been following up on actionable leads and briefing the family with what information they can provide. Chris Salisbury, a homeless advocate in Nashville, said he learned from several homeless individuals that a man named Ross, also homeless, had been seen wearing Strains shirt. The man reportedly said he found the shirt covered in vomit, wiped the vomit off, and began wearing the shirt. That report would later turn out to be incorrect, as Strain was wearing his shirt when his body was ultimately recovered. Who was looking for Riley Strain? The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department officers and Strians family and friends led the search. Later, volunteers, TikTokers, and the United Cajun Navy would join the effort. A MNPD helicopter searched the downtown area three days after Strain first disappeared. Riley Strain, 22, was last seen on Friday 8 March 2024 in Nashville, TN (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department) When Strain disappeared, his friends said they spent hours looking for him, while his mother and stepfather have also joined the search in recent days. Boats searched the Cumberland River for Strain as detectives shifted their focus to reviewing security video. Strains phone was last tracked near Public Square Park along the Cumberland River. The sad part of this situation is every day we get new leads and go down different avenues, Mr Dingman told WSMV4. Were going to get there, but it also opens up more doors on what couldve possibly happened. Strains parents have also come to Nashville to assist with search efforts. This is definitely the worst nightmare, Strains stepfather, Chris Whiteid, told News 2. Riley talks to us, whether its me or to his mom. He talks to his mom three or four times a day. For him to go this long without talking is not normal by any means. On 16 March, as one week had come and gone since Strain was last seen, Mr Whiteid told NBC News that he and his wife continue to search. Were very hopeful and were moving forward as, you know, hes coming home and were graduating in May and life goes on just as normal, he added. Police said on 17 March that they had recovered his bank card between Gay Street and the Cumberland River thanks to a pair of amateur sleuths who were scouring the river bank for clues and documenting their search on TikTok. Riley Strain is found dead After a two-week search, Strains body was finally located and recovered on Friday 22 March. Police said the body had been located in the Cumberland River approximately eight miles from Nashville, and bore no signs of foul play. Workers removing an object from the water stumbled onto Strains body and notified the police. Nashville Police Chief John Drake held a press conference on Friday 22 March, confirming that it was Strains body that was recovered from the river. An initial autopsy revealed no signs of foul play-related trauma, police told local outlet WKRN. Mr Drake made note of a grim detail during the presser that could shed some light on why it took so long to find Strain; a body matching Strains height and weight would typically take approximately 14 to 20 days to surface after being submerged in a body of water. He said the police were expecting to find him sometime this week as a result. Soon after police found Strains body, his family held a press conference thanking the Nashville community. I want to reiterate how thankful we are for everyone and how much we appreciate everyones support, love and prayers, Strains mother, Michelle Whiteid, said. I just ask that you mamas out there hug your babies tight tonight, please, for me, she continued. Riley Strain's mother speaks out after his body is recovered Community response Just hours after Strains body was recovered, Nashville residents came together to hold a candlelight vigil for the 22-year-old. The event was on Gay Street, the last place Strain was seen before his disappearance. Nashville Mayor Freddie OConnell also urged residents and visitors to be cautious and to be mindful of each other in the city in the wake of Strains death. I think this is an important reminder to everyone to also look out for one another, Mr OConnell said during a Friday morning meeting. You know, I think some of this is just about how we as a city look after each other as neighbors and as people interacting in the entertainment district. A candlelight vigil for Riley Strain, held on the same street where footage last captured him alive (AP) A Nashville city council member representing the citys downtown district said he is planning to secure the area of the river where Strain is believed to have slipped into the water. He issued a statement on Friday after news broke that Strains body had been found in the river. My heart breaks for Rileys family and friends, District 19 city councillor Jacob Kupin said. Since his disappearance, I have been actively working on steps to secure the river area where he likely fell. We will continue these efforts to make sure his death was not in vain. What did the University of Missouri say? The universitys president issued a statement after Strains body was found. University of Missouri President Mun Y Choi informed students and faculty on Friday that Strain, who was a senior, had been found dead. I write to you with a heavy heart with the news that the search for MU student Riley Strain has ended tragically, Mr Choi wrote. After an exhaustive search by authorities and volunteers, Rileys body was recovered today in Nashville, Tenn., where he had travelled to attend his fraternitys spring formal event. As the Mizzou community mourns Riley, we are keeping his family in our thoughts and offering support, Mr Choi wrote. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US 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 }} Nonbinary Oklahoma student Nex Benedict died by suicide, an autopsy report by the state Medical Examiner has concluded. According to the report, acquired by The Independent on Wednesday, the 16-year-olds manner of death was suicide, while the probably cause was listed as Diphenhydramine and Fluoxetine combined toxicity. Diphenhydramine and Fluoxetine are commonly known as Benadryl and Prozac. Oklahoma student Nex Benedicts cause of death revealed (AP) The teenager was beaten by other students inside a school bathroom on 7 February, at the Owasso High School in Oklahoma. They died the following day. Owasso Police Department also confirmed the ruling on Nexs cause of death. In a Facebook post on Wednesday, the department wrote: From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office. The Oklahoma Medical Examiners report has now been made public. The Owasso Police Department would like to take this moment to inform anyone in crisis or contemplating suicide of the Oklahoma Mental Health Lifeline, just call or text 988. Nex, whose family say used them/they pronouns, died one day after a fight with three girls inside a high school restroom, during which they suffered severe head injuries, according to the Owasso Police Department. The teenager collapsed at home the day after the incident and was later pronounced dead in hospital. According to the state Medical Examiners report, the 16-year-olds manner of death was suicide (THE OKLAHOMAN) Nex had been bullied at the school for being openly nonbinary, their mother Sue Benedict told The Independent. The bullying had begun, Ms Benedict said, at the beginning of the 2023 school year after Republican state lawmakers passed a bill that required public school students to use bathrooms that matched the sex listed on their birth certificates. The family previously said they were conducting an independent investigation into the death, and said that the facts surrounding the case were troubling at best. On Wednesday, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, said: My heart is broken over the tragic death of Nex Benedict. The Medical Examiners finding of suicide makes me even more concerned that bullying played a role in this terrible loss. Experts tell us that social media, bullying and a host of other factors are fueling a rash of suicides among young people, particularly for marginalized and traumatized youth. Combating this problem likely means strengthening laws against bullying, as well as increasing emphasis on mental health services. Perhaps most immediately it means rejecting the cruelty of words and actions so often inflicted by other students, adults and algorithms on our youngest generations. Nexs death after has led to widespread condemnation of Oklahoma lawmakers, who have introduced more than 50 anti-LGBTQ bills in the current legislative session. LGBTQ advocacy groups in the state have linked Nexs death to the rise of hateful rhetoric and anti-trans legislation that has been passed. Freedom Oklahoma described Nexs death as a hate crime, and blamed the hateful rhetoric spewed by leaders in our state and far-right social media influencers. In late February, following Nexs death, more than a dozen of their former classmates staged a walkout to protest bullying and show support for the schools LGBTQ community. Students and advocates displayed signs that stated You Are Loved and Protect Queer Kids as they gathered at an intersection across from the school in the Tulsa suburbs. There is a community here in this city that does exist, and we see them, and they are loved, organiser Cassidy Brown, an Owasso graduate, told KTUL. The protest came amid nationwide vigils to honour Nexs memory across Oklahoma state, and in Los Angeles, New York and Texas. It is appalling and shameful that Nex Benedict endured a year of anti-LGBTQ harassment, then a brutal beating in the school bathroom, the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD said in a statement. Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said: As parents, we send our kids to school expecting that they will be safe and cared for. Nex was failed by so many and should still be here today. We hold their family in our hearts as they grapple with the devastating reality that their beloved child, a teen with a bright future, is no longer making this world a brighter place. Nex died one day after being beaten unconscious in a school bathroom, and following more than a year of bullying and harassment at school. This is heartbreaking. And we have heard from so many parents and students that this culture of bullying and harassment is both pervasive at Owasso Public Schools and that many within the school had actual knowledge that it was occurring and took no steps to fix it. We reiterate our call for a full and complete investigation. Young people in Oklahoma and across the country deserve to be safe and respected at school. Nearly 58 per cent of of LGBT+ youth in Oklahoma felt unsafe at school, according to a 2022 survey from the Human Rights Campaign. Less than half of trans and gender nonconforming students in Oklahoma believe teachers and staff care about them, compared to two-thirds of trans youth in other states, the survey found. A separate youth survey by the Trevor Project in 2022 found that 48 per cent of Oklahoma LGBT+ youth, including 55 -er cent of trans and nonbinary youth, had seriously considered suicide within the year prior to the survey. Sixteen per cent of LGBT+ youth in the state, including 20 per cent of trans and nonbinary youth, reported attempting suicide, according to the report. Close Trumps mental acuity questioned on Fox News Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday to wish a happy Easter to all, including all those he claimed were doing everything possible to put him in jail. In a lengthy and all-capitalised post on Sunday afternoon, Mr Trump railed against some of his usual suspects, including DOJ special counsel Jack Smith and Georgia attorney Fani Willis. HAPPY EASTER TO ALL... INCLUDING THOSE MANY PEOPLE I COMPLETELY & TOTALLY DESPISE BECAUSE THEY WANT TO DESTROY AMERICA, he wrote. It comes as Republicans, led by the former president, are sounding off on Joe Biden after he issued a statement recognising Trans Visibility Day becasue it happened to coincide with Easter Sunday this year. Created by a Michigan-based transgender activist, Rachel Crandall, in 2009, International Transgender Day of Visibility (often shortened to Trans Visibility Day) falls on March 31 every year. In 2024, that date coincidentally falls on Easter Sunday, which is determined annually by marking the first Sunday after the full moon occurring on or after the Spring Equinox. President Biden marked the push for transgender rights with a statement recognising Trans Visibility Day on Friday that has immediately set off alarm bells on the far right. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has long argued that Wisconsin is a purple state. The states voting record on the national level would suggest hes right. In 2020, President Joe Biden won the state by just around 20,000 votes less than one percentage point. In 2016, former President Donald Trump beat former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by about the same margin also within one percentage point. But looking at the state legislature over the last decade, you would see a solidly red state. It was just clear over the last 10 years that the previous maps did not reflect the peoples wishes, Evers tells The Independent. Lets just use my race as an example: I won one race by 1 per cent and another one by 3 per cent [but] the Republicans had a supermajority in the Senate and a huge majority in the assembly. When Evers was elected in 2018, Democrats won the popular vote in the state assembly by 53 to 45 per cent, but the heavily skewed map still gave the Republicans a majority of 63 to 36 seats. Gerrymandering is one of the biggest risks we face for democracy This was the result of gerrymandering the practice of drawing districts in a way that maximizes the seats of one party or another. The practice was named after Elbridge Gerry, a vice president of the United States at the time of his death, who in 1812, when he was the governor of Massachusetts, signed a bill that created a district the shape of which was compared to a mythological salamander. Political science Professor Christopher Warshaw of George Washington University tells The Independent that gerrymandering is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, risks we face for democracy in the United States. Obviously, I think [former President Donald] Trump presents a whole other set of risks. But at a structural level, I think gerrymandering is a really profound risk for democracy. The central impetus [for] gerrymandering in most places, historically, has been partisanship one party tries to screw over the other party, he adds. Certainly the other motivation for gerrymandering in many places is racial, for the part of white people that controlled offices of power [to] minimize the voting power of African Americans and other racial minorities. Districts are redrawn every 10 years after the census, and Republicans took advantage of their 2010 midterm gains when Americans came out to vote against Obamacare and its new namesake president. The only way forward in Wisconsin On December 22 last year, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that the gerrymandered maps were unconstitutional, but that ruling only came after liberal judge Janet Protasiewicz won a seat on the court, flipping its ideological majority. Evers tells The Independent that having the state Supreme Court declare the maps illegal was the only way forward. The new maps were created by Evers and his staff and were approved by Republicans and Democrats in the legislature out of four options. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers raises a bill which re-defines the state's legislative maps after signing it at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis., on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024 (AP) Republican state Senator Van Wanggaard said in a statement after the passing of the new maps that Republicans were not stuck between a rock and a hard place. It was a matter of choosing to be stabbed, shot, poisoned or led to the guillotine. We chose to be stabbed, so we can live to fight another day. That was a clever statement, but Im not sure it was accurate, Evers says. The four maps that were still in play in the Supreme Court were almost identical, so I dont think between stabbing or a guillotine is necessarily an appropriate observation. This is reflective of Wisconsin, its a purple state When the legislature is either mildly red or violet blue, thats going to force people to collaborate if they want to get something done, he adds. Nonpartisan commissions and ballot initiatives Evers laments the lack of a nonpartisan commission in Wisconsin, saying it would be preferable instead of his office creating the new maps. Commissions take the redrawing of the maps out of the hands of legislators to create fairer maps. But theyre almost exclusively available in states with ballot initiatives the practice of handing a decision on a specific issue over to the voters. John Johnson, a research fellow at Marquette University in Milwaukee, tells The Independent that ballot initiatives are an idea that became popular later in Americas history and so you mostly see it in the constitutions of western states who joined the US much later than eastern states. So to get something like an independent commission in Wisconsin, you would have to get legislators to agree with that. And it doesnt matter what party a legislator is they usually dont like that idea. Seat-rich Southern states Its not surprising that Republicans are the biggest beneficiary of gerrymandering because they control far more space and far more seats in the drawing of the maps, Michael Li at the Brennan Center for Justice tells The Independent. He notes that a lot of Democratic states, such as California, are governed by an independent commission, and theyre not gerrymandered. Democrats didnt have a lot of seats where they could gerrymander. Meanwhile, Republicans control seat-rich Southern states where they can maximize [their] advantage. Li says gerrymandering doesnt only give an outsized advantage to one party, it also eliminates competition. There are only about 25 seats right now that are toss-ups of the 435 in the US House. Compare that to 1998, when there were 186 seats that were competitive There was much more in play three decades ago than there is today a large part of that is gerrymandering, he says. When Republicans drew maps in Texas, they didnt sit there and say, Okay, lets get rid of this Democrat but what they did is they took what they had and said, Gosh, you know, these seats are really competitive, lets make them non-competitive. And thats sort of the danger, he adds. Most Americans live in the suburbs, which are usually swing areas, and should be the most competitive places regardless of state, and yet in most of the country, that doesnt happen because of the way the maps are drawn, Li says. Republicans won a small majority in the US House in 2022, which has shrunk further since following resignations and special elections. Why do we have elections every two years? Because [when] the mood of the country changes, so should the composition of Congress. But that really doesnt happen for most people, Li says. Democrats would have an easier path to a House majority if you had better balanced and more competitive maps in North Carolina, Texas, Georgia, and Florida, he argues. The great gerrymander of 2012 But a lot of progress has been made since the 2010 midterms. Gerrymandering is not going to determine who controls Congress in 2024 thats a big victory for democracy, Warshaw says. Thats not where we were 10 years ago, when Republicans won a majority in the House, even while Democrats won a majority of votes. One academic called the 2012 election the great gerrymander of 2012, Warshaw adds. And I think that really does fairly describe it Gerrymandering was pivotal in determining the outcome of elections across that decade starting in 2012. Thats true now at the state-by-state level [but] at the national level, thats no longer true. Johnson notes that a recent study found that Democrats are good enough at gerrymandering in the places where they had control that the main consequence in net terms was a reduction in competitive seats, but not a big change in terms of the partisan balance. In a consequential swing state like Wisconsin, the Democratic governor thinks the new maps will encourage more people to vote on both sides. Well hopefully set some records as far as the number of people voting, Evers says. One example of where things are developing in the opposite direction is in North Carolina. The state currently has seven Democrats and seven Republicans in the US House but thanks to a new Republican majority on the Supreme Court, that may flip in 2024 to 11 Republicans and three Democrats. Li calls it a wild skew in a state that is about 50-50. Now you have a map that is 10-4 maybe in the right cycle could even be 11-3 and that is just out of whack for a state that is a presidential battleground every cycle for every election, he says. In swing states during the 2010s, most had deeply pro-Republican gerrymanders that led to massive Republican biases in the legislatures, Warshaw says. So in places like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio, you had huge advantages for Republicans. The maps in all of those places now are [fairer]. Ohio had a ballot initiative that required fairer maps and the maps there are not what advocates wanted theyre not totally fair. But theyre probably better than the counterfactual what they would have been absent that ballot initiative, he adds. How the maps look hinges on whos in power when its time for redistricting. Republicans dominated the 2010 elections and were then able to aggressively gerrymander as much as they wanted in many states but in more recent elections Democrats won governorships in a bunch of states that were the most gerrymandered, Warshaw notes. The role of the federal government East of the Mississippi [River], very few states allow for ballot initiatives. And almost no southern states do, and so the South, which has some of the worst gerrymandering, is also where its hardest to reform. And I do think that you will ultimately have to have the federal government play some role, Li argues. Congress has the power to set the rules for redistricting. It could require partisan fairness, require potentially the use of independent commissions even short of that it could just have a robust anti-partisan gerrymandering standard, which I think is going to be key, he adds. For now, its up to each state to find a solution if the political will exists among lawmakers or the public. There are lots of ways to get to fair maps, Li says. Unfortunately, the road there, short of congressional action, is a little bit of a patchwork quilt. For Michigan, there was a nonpartisan commission, Warshaw says. In Wisconsin, it was dual litigation and changes in the composition of the Supreme Court. And I think also just in politics. How where people live affects map-drawing There were changes in the bipartisan commission that led to fairer maps in Pennsylvania. Another factor was simple geography, specifically in the upper Midwest. Whereas rural areas have gotten more Republican and the suburbs have gotten more contested, its made it a little bit easier to draw fair maps and harder for Republicans to draw super aggressive gerrymanders, Warshaw notes. Speaking about the new map in Wisconsin drawn up by the governors office and grudgingly accepted by the Republicans in the state legislature, Johnson says it doesnt actually increase the number of competitive seats all that much compared to the old gerrymandered maps. What it does is it raises the Democratic floor a lot and it lowers the Republican ceiling a lot. It makes the relatively small number of competitive seats that remain actually determine which party controls the assembly. So the competitive seats we do have are very consequential. And in that sense, the map is competitive. But its not a map that maximises the number of competitive seats, he argues. For the first time in over a decade, we dont know which party will control the state assembly after the next elections. The consequences of a skewed map When asked what couldve been passed in Wisconsin if it werent for gerrymandering, Evers mentions Medicaid expansion, saying that the state did not receive several billion dollars over time which would have gone a long way to take care of all sorts of disproportionate health outcomes. While Evers has been able to block Republican initiatives, he says that before he came to office in early 2019, Republicans decided to essentially neuter teacher unions in the state of Wisconsin making it much more difficult for teachers to unionize and, frankly, take away a lot of side benefits, like health care. The measure took money right out of their pockets and the issue hasnt been resolved even though about a decade has passed, the governor tells The Independent. Johnson says another example is medical marijuana, which overwhelming majorities of Wisconsin voters support. There are Republican members of the legislature who publicly support this. And yet, they failed to even bring such a bill to a vote in the assembly. Johnson adds that the Republicans in Wisconsin didnt need to do anything to keep their legislative majority there was not really any electoral pressure on them to do popular things or refrain from doing unpopular things in the state legislature. Its easier to gerrymander than its ever been before The effects of gerrymandering go beyond the districts that are gerrymandered themselves, Li says. Having seats be non-competitive means that many voters wont be targeted by mobilizing efforts, which in the end may result in lower turnout across large swaths of the country, affecting races up and down the ballot. Due to polarization and improving technology, its easier to gerrymander than its ever been before, Warshaw says. If you have the ability to gerrymander, and you want to draw a map that locks your party into power, its pretty easy to do so. Gerrymandering has long been used to target racial minorities. The reality right now is that if you are trying to gerrymander a map, its much easier to target communities of color to get there and thats true whether youre a Democratic gerrymanderer or a Republican gerrymanderer, Li says. Its all about residential segregation. Lets say youre a Republican gerrymanderer. The problem with trying to target white Democrats is that they oftentimes live really close to white Republicans sometimes in the same house, Li notes. Unless you can figure out a way to draw a line on somebodys bed to separate spouses, its really hard. Its much easier to say, Oh, well, lets just pack all these Black neighbourhoods together, or, Lets split these Black neighbourhoods apart and lose the partisan valence of a map up or down, he adds, about the gerrymandering tactics known as packing and cracking. Its hard to decouple that from partisanship given that the vast majority of Black voters are Democrats how much of that is racial animus versus partisan animus? Warshaw asks. But he adds that if we didnt have the Voting Rights Act, you would see a mass disenfranchisement of Black voters throughout the South. Johnson notes that in Wisconsin, Black and Latino voters are the only groups who live in sufficient concentrations that the Voting Rights Act applies to them. Whats weird about that is that the Voting Rights Act requirements and Republican goals for gerrymandering are in agreement in a place like Wisconsin the VRA basically says you have to pack Black and Latino voters into majority-Black and Latino districts, he adds. And because Black and Latino voters vote strongly for Democrats, that amounts to legally-mandated packing of Democratic voters, which Republicans are enthusiastic to do. A transformation across almost the entire upper Midwest When asked which state is the worst for gerrymandering, Warshaw says, Until recently, I would have said Wisconsin, but the new map is a huge improvement. Illinois on the Democratic side, thats probably the worst remaining one, he adds. After Wisconsin on the Republican side Ohio, despite being better than it could be, its still pretty deeply gerrymandered. Reformers in Ohio are trying to pass a truly nonpartisan commission, which would be a huge reform, Warshaw says. Getting [fairer] maps in Ohio will really lead to a transformation across almost the entire upper Midwest compared to 2012. But in the end, when thinking about the general election in the autumn, Johnson argues that almost everyone has an opinion about Joe Biden or Donald Trump. Its those attitudes towards the top of the ticket that are going to drive down-ballot voting more than the other way around. So even though we have this more competitive state legislative race in Wisconsin, I dont think thats going to drive turnout up for the presidential election. Encapsulating the change over the last decade, Johnson says its possible that Trump will win in November, but that Democrats could still win a majority in the House even in that scenario, which would be remarkable. The Marquette research fellow goes on to say that partisanship may be replacing gerrymandering, producing similar effects. The growing problem is going to be that so many voters vote the same way every single time. There are so many people who only vote for Republicans or only vote for Democrats that even if youre trying to draw non-partisan maps, you will still end up with a situation where there just arent very many competitive seats, and you dont have a very responsive legislature for that reason, Johnson says. The parties are so bad at competing for votes they have their bases locked up. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Days after Kensington Palace admitted that a photograph of the Princess of Wales and her children had been digitally altered, touching off new rounds of conspiracy-tinged speculation about her whereabouts and well-being, the White House has declared that it is officially staying out of the matter. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday told reporters that the matter of Kates alleged photo editing skills was not one she was bringing to the desk of President Joe Biden. Speaking aboard Air Force One as Mr Biden and his staff travelled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Ms Jean-Pierre was asked if Mr Biden or anyone from the administration had been in contact with the British government about the Princess. She replied: I have not spoken to the president about Kate Middleton. After a brief pause, the White House spokesperson adde that the Princess was in recovery and said the administration would be respecting her right to be left alone. She has asked for privacy. Her family has asked for privacy and we're certainly going to respect that, she said. The Princess of Wales last engagement in public was accompanying her husband, Prince William, and their three children to church at the royal familys Sandringham estate in Norfolk. On 17 January, Kensington Palace issued a statement which said she would be undergoing planned abdominal surgery and would refrain from any further public engagements until Easter. Twelve days later the palace issued another statement announcing that shed returned to the Waless home at Windsor Castle and reported that the princess was making good progress in her recovery. And a month later, on 29 February, the palace reiterated previous guidance stating that only significant updates would be provided about her health. But the 10 March photograph, released to celebrate Britains Mothers Day, sent royal-watchers and amatueur sleuths into a tizzy when it was discovered that the photograph had been digitally manipulated. In a statement released by the palace, the princess took responsibility for the dodgy photoshop job, writing: Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. Ms Jean-Pierres exchange with the reporter aboard Air Force One on Wednesday marked the second consecutive day she was asked about the controversy. On Tuesday, she told reporters at the daily White House press briefing that the Biden administration does not manipulate official photographs of the president. After she was asked the question, she replied: I would say no. Why would we digitally alter photos? Are you comparing us to what is going on in the UK? As the reporter attempted to justify the question as relevant because it concerned a world leader, Ms Jean-Pierre reiterated her previous statement. No, that is not something that we do here, she said. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The Republican House majority will become even thinner next week as Representative Ken Buck departs several months before his final term comes to an end. In an unexpected Tuesday evening announcement, Mr Buck a Republican from Colorado said he would leave Congress next Friday, rather than retiring at the end of his term as originally planned. Afterwards, Republicans will hold just 218 seats out of 435 in the House, leaving Democrats one step closer to clinching the majority. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York and member of the progressive Squad, told The Independent her party must take advantage of Mr Bucks early departure. Ms Ocasio-Cortez said Democrats have to make sure that that we see that do the best we can to navigate how razor-thin the situation is. Continuing to push some of our priorities that we think can peel some folks off on the Republican side I think that remains our thinking, she told The Independent. Republicans will now hold just a two-seat majority following resignations from three other GOP members in recent months including former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. With 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats, the GOP can only afford to lose two votes in a party-line contest that is, only if there are no absences, which is a rare occurrence for the House. Mr Buck initially planned to leave at the end of his term when he announced his retirement last year. Since then, Mr Buck has blamed his departure on disagreements with the GOP. Earlier this month, he told NewsNation he wanted to step down because hes not willing to lie on behalf of the party or Donald Trump. But really were at a time in American politics, that I am not going to lie on behalf of my presidential candidate on behalf of my party, the Colorado representative said. And Im very sad that others in my party have taken the position that as long as we get the White House, it doesnt really matter what we say. Close Biden launches ad answering Trumps question: Were you better off four years ago? Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The US has condemned Fridays terror attack on a concert in Moscow. A statement from the White House called perpetrators ISIS a common terrorist enemy that must be defeated everywhere. Meanwhile, a US government shutdown has been averted after the Senate passed a $1.2trn spending package in a 2am vote 74-24. President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on Saturday. It will keep the federal government open until the end of fiscal year 2024 on 30 September. The House of Representatives passed the spending package 286 to 134, surpassing the two-thirds majority needed. Calling it a betrayal of Republican voters, a furious Marjorie Taylor Greene initiated the process to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson. In 2024 election news, the Biden campaign is mocking Donald Trump as Broke Don after the latest Federal Election Commission filings revealed the presidents fundraising is far outstripping his Republican rival and he faces hundreds of millions of dollars in civil judgments in New York. Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris toured the blood-stained classroom building where the 2018 Parkland high school massacre occurred. Accompanied by some victims family members, she spoke about gun violence prevention efforts. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Seth Meyers has weighed in on Donald Trumps alleged praise of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, reported in a new analysis of post-Cold War global politics released this week. According to a new book, former president Trump has praised Adolf Hitler in private conversation with aides and once said, quote, Hitler did some good things. Meyers said in a recent episode of Late Night. Oh, come on, I dont believe he said that once, the host added, with emphasis on that last word. Meyers has previously delved into the times that Mr Trump has shown admiration for dictators following a comment he made that he would be a dictator on day one of his possible second term. He used to be pro-choice, now hes anti-abortion. He used to be for gun control, now hes against it. But the one thing hes been consistent on his entire life is his support for dictators, Meyers said on his show in December. The book that was released on Tuesday, The Return of Great Powers, is written by Jim Sciutto, a CNN Anchor and Chief National Security Analyst. Mr Sciutto highlighted a few key moments from his interviews with senior former advisors in an article on the day of the book release, such as an alarming claim that Mr Trump allegedly said that Adolf Hitler did some good things. The CNN anchor spoke to retired US Marine Corps General John Kelly, who was homeland security secretary before becoming chief of staff under Mr Trump. He alleged that Mr Trump passed comment on Adolf Hitler, the leader of Nazi Germany in World War II. He said, Well, but Hitler did some good things. I said, Well, what? And he said, Well, [Hitler] rebuilt the economy. But what did he do with that rebuilt economy? He turned it against his own people and against the world. And I said, Sir, you can never say anything good about the guy. Nothing, Mr Kelly claimed. I mean, Mussolini was a great guy in comparison. Kelly added: Its pretty hard to believe he missed the Holocaust, though, and pretty hard to understand how he missed the 400,000 American GIs that were killed in the European theatre. But I think its more, again, the tough guy thing. John Kelly served under the Trump administration (Getty Images) Back in 2021, reports that Mr Trump allegedly said Hitler did a lot of good things were also aired in another book by Michael Bender. Bender wrote in Frankly, We Did Win This Election: The Inside Story of How Trump Lost, that Mr Trump said these remarks to Mr Kelly. In a statement to The Independent in 2021, Mr Trumps spokesperson Liz Harrington denied he ever made the comments about Hitler. This is totally false, she said. President Trump never said this. It is made-up fake news, probably by a general who was incompetent and was fired. When asked by CNN to respond to the allegations from the ex-Trump administration officials, the 77-year-olds campaign spokesman Steven Cheung did not comment on the claims themselves, but he did say, John Kelly and John Bolton have completely beclowned themselves and are suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. They need to seek professional help because their hatred is consuming their empty lives. White House spokesperson Andrew Bates also offered CNN a response to the Hitler-praising allegations, saying that President Joe Biden has called the Nazi leader a demonic figure. No American should ever praise the genocidal monster who committed the Holocaust. Just like it is incumbent on all leaders not to associate with neo-Nazis and Holocaust deniers. Hundreds of thousands of American service members heroes, not suckers or losers gave their lives to defeat that evil. Admiring Hitler is an insult to their memory. President Biden is committed to bringing all Americans together based on our shared values, Mr Bates told the news outlet. The Independent has contacted Mr Trump for further comment. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Stephen Colbert mocked former special counsel Robert Hurs testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, in which he defended his investigation into Joe Bidens handling of classified documents. The late-night talk show host slammed the Tuesday testimony as yet another clownish attempt by the Republican party to draw some sort of moral equivalency between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Special counsel Mr Hur investigated Mr Bidens handling of classified documents and declined to charge the president, but did comment on the presidents mental fitness, calling him a sympathetic well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory. This kind of assessment is sort of outside the normal job description of a special counsel, Colbert said. It would be like your doctor saying, Well, we ran some tests, Mr Johnson, and, uh, your cholesterol looks very good, but I am worried about how ugly you are. Colbert claimed that Republicans were hoping to use details from Hurs report to damage Biden ahead of the election. Yes, Biden has been dangerously forgetful, Colbert said. Colbert said that he is now worried about Hurs cognitive ability (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) Unlike Trump, who always remembers that he is running against Obama and unopposed at that since Nancy Pelosi dropped out, he added, referencing Mr Trumps recent blunders, mistaking his political rivals for other people, such as Mr Biden for Mr Obama and Nikki Haley for Ms Pelosi. The show host pointed out that once you read through the 268-page transcript, it shows the 81-year-old president as having a far more accurate recall than was described in Mr Hurs report. What do you know, its not as old-man-forgets-a-lot as his summary made it out to be, Colbert said, pointing to one part which details ...you appear to have a photographic understandingand recall So, its the exact opposite of his report summary, Colbert said. At this point, Im worried about Hurs cognitive ability. However, some parts of the transcripts caught Colberts eye, especially when the president appeared to make some jokes. Robert Hur authored a report on Mr Biden after an interview with Joe Biden last year (Getty Images) One part, when Mr Biden was recalling a trip to Mongolia read, ...were out in the middle of nowhere and theyre looking up on the hill its a 20-mile horse race with all these kids under the age of 16 on bareback racing to come down. And you know, there are sumo wrestlers doin everything they do. He proceeds to talk about how he was then handed a bow and arrow and recalls targets on bales of hay before concluding, Im not a bad archer. That, of course, in response to the question Sir would you like a glass of water, Colbert quipped. The host also pointed out how Mr Biden joked while the FBI was searching through his things. I just hope you didnt find any risque pictures of my wife in a bathing suit, which you probably did. Shes beautiful. What a strange day it must have been for those agents, Colbert reacted. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A judge in Texas has ruled in favour of a non-profit organisation sheltering migrants on the US-Mexico border after the states Attorney General ordered it to hand over a large number of records. AG Ken Paxton said in February that his office believed Annunciation House was helping people to illegally enter the United States, alien harbouring and people smuggling. The non-profit, which operates migrant shelters in and around El Paso, asked for more time to hand over the files requested by Mr Paxtons office. The Attorney General then announced his office was suing Annunciation House, seeking to revoke its licence to operate. However, on Thursday El Paso County District Judge Francisco X. Dominguez abruptly put a stop to Mr Paxtons efforts. The Attorney Generals efforts to run roughshod over Annunciation House, without regard to due process or fair play, call into question the true motivation for the Attorney Generals attempt to prevent Annunciation House from providing the humanitarian and social services that it provides, the judge said in his ruling. There is a real and credible concern that the attempt to prevent Annunciation House from conducting business in Texas was predetermined. Neither Ken Paxtons office nor Annunciation House returned requests for further comment from The Independent before publication. Judge Dominguez has ordered the AGs office to go through the courts if it wishes to continue its investigation. When the lawsuit was announced on 20 February, Mr Paxton said his office had complete and unlimited authority to examine business records and that failure to comply with a request could lead to termination of its right to operate within Texas. The AG then immediately brought up the issues at the border with Mexico. The chaos at the southern border has created an environment where NGOs, funded with taxpayer money from the Biden Administration, facilitate astonishing horrors including human smuggling, Attorney General Paxton said. While the federal government perpetuates the lawlessness destroying this country, my office works day in and day out to hold these organisations responsible for worsening illegal immigration. However, the organisation argues that it is just trying to help the around 300 undocumented migrants in its care to get processed by authorities, so they can live the American dream and lead a safer life. In an article in January, Annunciation Houses director Ruben Garcia said that asylum seekers were afraid of US authorities, though. Theyre saying, We want to present ourselves. We want to get processed. We want to proceed with our asylum. So from that was born the idea, lets have a workshop on asylum, Mr Garcia told El Paso Matters. Its about enabling asylum seekers to actually access the asylum process, which is their right to do, which has been denied. The Annunciation House case is being seen as part of a wider effort by both Ken Paxton and Texas Governor Greg Abbott to target organisations they see as supporting widespread, illegal immigration into the US. The Texas Tribune reports that the state has spent over $10 billion since March 2021 on Operation Lone Star - meant to deter people from crossing over from Mexico. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The US House of Representatives has voted to approve a bill that could ban TikTok from US app stores. The bill Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applicants Act overwhelmingly surpassed the 2/3 majority needed when lawmakers cast their votes on Wednesday morning. Authored by a bipartisan group of representatives, the bill would allow federal law enforcement agencies to label certain apps as national security threats if they are determined to be under the control of foreign adversaries. If the bill becomes law, TikTok parent company ByteDance will have 180 days to sell 80 per cent of its stake to a US company or face the app being removed from American app stores. The FBI has previously warned that TikTok could spread harmful propaganda due to ByteDances alleged ties to the Chinese government. So now the House has voted in favour of the bill what happens now? Following a successful House vote, the bill will now go to the US Senate for a vote. However, given the upper chambers Democratic majority, it is unclear whether the bill will survive this next step. However, some Republican Senators have already expressed their support. Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, called for the chamber to take up the bill immediately. If it does indeed pass the Senate, President Joe Biden has already told reporters he is committed to signing the bill into law. Despite overwhelming support for the bill among the House, it has also faced opposition from both parties. Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, voted against the bill. I have more insight than most into the online threats posed by our adversaries, Mr Himes said in a statement. But one of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations, and social media platforms. We do not. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right Republican, also voted no. As the only member of Congress who has ever been banned from social media, I oppose todays TikTok ban bill, she wrote on X. This bill would open Pandoras box and create a slippery slope for future government censorship of Americans and our precious First Amendment. The bill also faces backlash from former president Donald Trump, who reversed his position on the potential TikTok ban only recently and now claims it will allow Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram to become more successful. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, the former president said, referring to his baseless conspiracy theory that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. Amid these threats to its app, ByteDance has launched a massive campaign to kill the bill. Last week, some TikTok users got a push notification urging them to call their representatives and speak out against the bill. Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin and co-author of the bill, told NBC News his office was then inundated with calls. This strategy came as a House committee advanced the bill on a rare unanimous bipartisan vote of 50-0 earlier this month, making its success on Wednesday morning unsurprising. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The judge overseeing Donald Trumps election interference case in Georgia has dismissed several charges against the former president and five of his co-defendants but has stressed that his decision does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee did not throw out the racketeering charges facing all defendants in the sweeping election interference case and has refused to throw out certain overt acts in the indictment against them. The judge dismissed three charges against Mr Trump stemming from an alleged pressure campaign to solicit state officials to violate their oaths of office and subvert Georgias election results to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss. Judge McAfee dismissed six charges altogether against Mr Trump, his former attorney Rudy Giuliani, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former attorney John Eastman, Georgia official Ray Stallings Smith III and attorney Bob Cheeley, who were implicated in an effort to pressure state lawmakers and Georgias secretary of state to falsely assert Mr Trumps victory. That pressure campaign included Mr Trumps phone call to Georgias Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on 2 January, 2021, days before Congress convened to certify the nations election results, an event that was upended by a violent mob fuelled by Mr Trumps bogus claims of victory. All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, Mr Trump said during that call. The Courts concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants in fact it has alleged an abundance, Judge McAfee wrote on Wednesday. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigneds opinion, fatal. The judge argued that the charges contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, ie, the underlying felony solicited. The charges do not give the defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways, according to Judge McAfee. But, crucially, the judge noted that such deficiencies do not apply to six overt acts described in the indictment that support the RICO charge against all defendants, particularly acts that describe the pressure campaign from Mr Trump and his co-defendants against Georgia lawmakers and Mr Raffensperger. Overt acts alleged as part of a conspiracy are not held to the same pleading standards as statutorily based offenses, the judge noted. Defendants have not provided any authority requiring that the particulars of an overt act be alleged or subjecting overt acts to the standards of general or special demurrers. The defendants challenge of these overt acts is therefore denied. Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis may also seek a reindictment supplementing these six counts, the judge noted. She may also appeal the judges decision. In a footnote, the judge also dealt a major blow to defence arguments that state lawmakers werent doing their official duties when they met to come up with fake electors to falsely certify his victory. The Court disagrees and finds that the Georgia Senate can play a role in election contests and that the appointment of presidential electors relates to their official duties, he wrote. The judges dismissal of other charges, however, now leaves Mr Meadows with only a single charge, facing one count under the states RICO statute. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee (AP) Mr Trump is charged alongside more than a dozen co-defendants who joined an alleged criminal enterprise to overturn election results, from using a so-called fake elector scheme to falsely assert his victory in a state he lost to Joe Biden, to pressuring election workers and state officials and seizing vote information from machines in another county in the state. Four of Mr Trumps original co-defendants in the Fulton County case including attorneys Kenneth Chesebro, Jenna Ellis and Sidney Powell pleaded guilty after reaching plea deals with prosecutors. Judge McAfee is imminently expected to issue a decision on whether to disqualify Ms Willis from the case, following a high-stakes series of hearings on allegations that she financially benefited from a relationship with a prosecutor she hired to lead the case against the former president. Lawyers for the former president and his co-defendants claim that Ms Willis improperly benefited from her romantic relationship with Nathan Wade when she hired him on the case and then had him pay for vacations they took together. Ms Willis and Mr Wade have acknowledged the relationship, but they have repeatedly testified that they started dating after he was hired, split travel costs, and that the relationship ended last summer before an indictment. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} In the years since Donald Trump took over the Republican Party, elected officials have almost never crossed him. The cost of doing so has always been too high. They didnt cross him when he broke GOP orthodoxy on free trade. They elected not to buck him when transcript of a phone call revealed he wanted to have Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dig up dirt on Joe Biden. Many still voted to object to the election results after Capitol riot. And just last month, they torpedoed a bill that swapped restrictions on immigration for aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. But on Wednesday, Republicans found a line they were willing to cross with the once and potentially future president: TikTok. On Wednesday, the House voted overwhelmingly on a piece of legislation that would require the video apps parent company Bytedance to divest from the company or have it banned. WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 13: (L-R) Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Rep. Mike Gallager (D-WI) talk with reporters after the House of Representatives voted on legislation they co-sponsored to ban TikTok at the U.S. Capitol on March 13, 2024 in Washington, DC. The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to ban TikTok in the United States due to concerns over personal privacy and national security unless the Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance sells the popular video app within the next six months. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) (Getty Images) And the vote was not even close. While 50 Democrats voted against the legislation, only 15 Republicans voted against it, allowing it to pass with 352 votes. Given the tight margins in the House these days and how the House often only has legislation that could pass with two-thirds majority, that is a rare feat. It should be noted that as president, Trump supported banning TikTok. He even put in place an executive order that did ban the app, which the company successfully challenged in court. But this weekend, he said, If you get rid of TikTok, Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business, in reference to Meta executive Mark Zuckerberg. Despite Trumps objections, Republicans still went full steam ahead. Indeed, some of Trumps most ardent supporters like Representatives Ronny Jackson of Texas, Anna Paulina Luna of Florida and Lauren Boebert of Colorado voted for the bill. Elise Stefanik, currently in the running to become Trumps running mate, joined the rest of House Republican leadership in voting for the bill, too. Last week, Representative Troy Nehls of Texas wore a shirt with Trumps mugshot to President Joe Bidens State of the Union. But on Wednesday, he explained why he also voted yes. I just say I've been on the record on this for the last year and a half, and I can't change my position on this one, Nehls said, as he recovered a still-lit cigar from outside the Capitol that he had left while he voted. Congressman Anthony DEsposito, who vocally supports Trump despite representing a district that voted for Biden, said he agreed with Trumps critiques of Meta. I think the real reasons that President Trump has come out against it are valid and it is one of the reasons why the Committee on House Administration has done oversight on Zuckerbucks, DEsposito told me, in reference to Zuckerbergs donations to various local governments in 2020. Jody Arrington, the House Budget Committee Chairman, said he voted for the legislation out of the best interest of his west Texas constituents. Generally, I align with where President Trump is but not always, he said. The two Republicans who led the charge Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Select Subcommittee of the Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mike Gallagher are two of the last grown-ups in the party who know how to legislate. Neither voted to object to the 2020 election results. Gallagher, for his part, voted against impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, while McMorris Rodgers is a former chairwoman of the House GOP Conference. Consequently, as the House GOP offers fewer rewards for getting things done, both are leaving at the end of this Congress. Gallagher pointed to Trumps previous actions to ban TikTok. The goal of the bill is not to shut down TikTok and force its users onto Facebook that would be a bad outcome, he told me. But our bill allows for a divestiture and again, a lot of this process started with the former president in 2020 trying to tackle the national security threat posed by Bytedances ownership of TikTok. Though Gallager will be out of Congress next year, he made sure to play to Trumps ego. Im glad we were able to move forward and Trump may, if he gets re-elected, have an opportunity to consummate the deal of the century, he said. McMorris Rodgers led the committee that voted unanimously to refer the bill to the floor and called on TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. But she said she agreed with Trump. That's a separate issue from this bill. This is a unique bill focused on foreign adversaries, she said. Of course, the GOP was not unanimous and some of the loudest pro-Trump voices voted against it, including Representatives Matt Gaetz, Nancy Mace and Marjorie Taylor Greene. The government should not be banning apps from the Apps Store, Mace said. This bill is a divest and/or ban Tiktok bill. Anyone who tells you its not a ban is not telling you the truth. Greene said the bill would have unintended consequences before bringing the issue, inevitably, back to herself. Im the only member of Congress that actually got banned on Twitter by an American-owned Twitter and China didnt do that to me, so I voted no for those reasons, she said. Still, the fact that most of the Republican Party ignored Trump on this issue just a month after they torpedoed a bipartisan immigration deal for him shows that the former presidents grip isnt unremitting. He may have the GOP politically, but he doesnt have them entirely under his thumb when it comes to policy. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington 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 Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The US will send $300m of weapons to Ukraine even as $10bn is needed to restore the stockpiles of weapons it has sent to Kyiv to aid them in its fight against the years-long Russian invasion. The Pentagon located some cost savings in its contracts to find the funds for the weapons package while Congress has so far failed to pass further aid. Senior defence officials made the revelation on Tuesday. Its the first weapons package announced since late last year when the Pentagon said it was out of funding to send more weapons to the wartorn country. More recently, officials have revealed the $10bn overdraft. The funds used to replenish stockpiles have meant that the Pentagon has been able to send existing munitions, and air defence systems, in addition to other weapons from reserve inventories using a presidential drawdown authority to send weapons to Ukraine and subsequently order new weapons to replenish the stores. A defence official told the press that the new package was a one-time shot until Congress passes further Ukraine aid, as proposed in a $60bn supplemental aid bill, or until further cost cuttings are located. The official said that the new package is set to include anti-aircraft missiles, artillery rounds, and armour systems. On Tuesday, Polish President Andrzej Duda met congressional leaders from both parties and he was also set to meet President Joe Biden as part of an effort to get the US aid process going even as House Republicans dig their heels in against further aid. Despite it being likely to pass the lower chamber, House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring the $95bn package, which also includes aid for Israel and Taiwan, to the floor. Democrats are attempting to force a vote using a discharge petition, an effort with long odds of success and would need a majority 218 members to back it. While Russia has plenty of supplies as its transformed into a war economy, Ukrainian forces are now rationing munitions on the front lines as they attempt to hang on. Republicans have argued that the US southern border needs to be secured before any aid can be sent to Ukraine, but they recently rejected a bipartisan border bill after former President Donald Trump came out against it. On Monday, defence officials said they were waiting on the supplemental to cover the $10bn hole in the budget. Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks said, If we dont get the $10 billion we would have to find other means. Right now were very much focused on the need for that supplemental, she added. In June last year, the Pentagon also suddenly found extra funds for Ukraine after it said it had overestimated previous weapons shipments to the country by $6.2bn. The US has sent more than $44.2bn of aid to Ukraine since the start of Russias invasion. The Director of the CIA William Burns has told Congress that Ukrainian units have told him that they were down to their last dozens of artillery shells and other kinds of ammunition. He added that the recent Ukrainian withdrawal from the eastern city of Avdiika was caused by resupply failures, not a lack of Ukrainian willpower. The Associated Press contributed to this report 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 school in Brisbane has received flak for marking International Womens Day with a nappy-changing game for its students. The Stretton State College in Queensland celebrated the day with various events, including a game that involved changing nappies on dolls. The school later posted photos of the activities on their Facebook page and received widespread criticism. The activity was organised by a student group under staff supervision and was endorsed by the student council. Other festivities included selling cookies and a photo station with an inspire inclusion slogan, according to a Queensland Department of Education spokesperson. Today we celebrated International Womens Day and took time to celebrate and bring awareness to the need for a world that is free of bias, stereotypes and discrimination. A world that celebrates achievements, diversity and inclusivity across the globe. #inspireinclusion, a post accompanying the Facebook photos read. Parents criticised the school for the activity which they said was in poor taste. Kara Williams, a parent of two daughters who attend the school, was quoted as saying by the Guardian: One daughter said its a bit weird [after the event]. And the younger daughter went What? Whats the point of that? Im sure that just from the sort of shock and disbelief, I think they probably agreed with me and thought it was not appropriate. She said that the activity did not reflect the message of inclusion and empowerment. Several other parents were planning on raising the issue during the parent association meeting. Another parent expressed concerns, stating the hope that her daughters would be encouraged to pursue careers in STEM or trades, in addition to considering motherhood. For International Womens Day, the school also organised several other events including a school assembly, performances by student and staff rock bands, various student games and activities, and a charity lunch for senior girls. The Queensland Department of Education spokesperson said the assembly focused on topics such as closing the gender pay gap, challenging gender stereotypes, and the path to achieving gender equality. The activity in question was designed by the year nine student cohort and welcomed all students to participate and challenge gender stereotypes, the statement added. The school has not received any complaints regarding the event and the response in the community has been extremely positive. No further details can be provided due to student and staff privacy issues. The Independent has reached out to the Stretton State College principal for a comment. 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 former New Zealand MP pleaded guilty to four counts of shoplifting in an Auckland court on Wednesday after she was charged with stealing $8,917 worth of items. Golriz Ghahraman from the Green Party resigned in January this year after CCTV footage showed her taking a designer bag from a boutique. "I have let down a lot of people and I am very sorry," she said at the time of her resignation, explaining that work-related stress made her behave out of character. A former UN human rights lawyer, Ms Graharaman made history in 2017 after being elected as the first refugee in the countrys government. She fled from Iran as a child and was granted political asylum in New Zealand. However, since being elected, Ms Ghahraman spoke out about the abuse she faced because of her Iranian heritage, gender, as well as political stance. On Wednesday, the 43-year-old admitted to shoplifting charges in relation to three incidents in Auckland and one in Wellington, 1 News reported. While two incidents relate to Ponsonby retailer Scotties Boutique on 21 and 23 December last year, the third is related to Wellington retailer Cre8iveworkx on 22 October. Another incident that took place at Standard Issue in Aucklands Newmarket on 22 December was laid out last month. Ms Ghahraman, who is due back in court on 24 June, was not expected in court until 20 March but the dates were brought forward by a week to Wednesday. The case hearing was postponed twice due to the addition of the third and fourth charge. The offence carries a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment. Its not a behaviour I can explain because its not rational in any way, and after medical evaluation, I understand Im not well," she said earlier. "The mental health professional I see says my recent behaviour is consistent with recent events giving rise to extreme stress response, and relating to previously unrecognised trauma." Meanwhile, her lawyer Annabel Cresswell lambasted the media coverage on mental health surrounding her client, adding that Ms Ghahraman has been a victim of abuse since the matters came to light. Her Green Party co-leader James Shaw at the time of her resignation said that his colleague had been subjected to "pretty much continuous threats of sexual violence, physical violence, death threats since the day she was elected to parliament". "That has added a higher level of stress than is experienced by most members of parliament," he said. "There have been police investigations into those threats almost the entire time that she has been a member of parliament, and so obviously if youre living with that level of threat in what is already quite a stressful situation then there are going to be consequences for that". In 2017, Ms Ghahraman was given an escort after she received threats from white supremacists. Speaking out about the abuse, Ms Ghahraman told TVNZ in 2021: "Eventually some of the online threats I faced got to the point where I had to carry a security alarm and have security escorts back and forth from Parliament. 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 }} Leonid Volkov, a close ally to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, has vowed to continue his struggle against Vladimir Putin after he was attacked outside his house in Lithuania. The Putin critic said he was left with a broken arm and multiple injuries after being attacked with a hammer late on Tuesday. He alleged that the attack was carried out by agents of the Russian president. It was a characteristic bandit greeting from Putins henchmen, he said. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda later said he also believed the attack was clearly pre-planned and ties in with other provocations against the Baltic nation. Addressing Russian President Vladimir Putin directly, Mr Nauseda said: "I can only say one thing to Putin - nobody is afraid of you here." The Lithuanian state security department then concurred with its Presidents suspicions that the attack was executed by Russia. Mr Volkov, 43, was briefly hospitalised after the assault. "The man attacked me in the yard, hit me on the leg about 15 times," he said in a video message on Telegram. "The leg somehow is OK. It hurts to walk... However, I broke my arm." "They literally wanted to make a schnitzel out of me," he added. The attack comes almost a month after Navalnys sudden death at an Artic prison where he was serving a decades-long sentence on what many international observers have described as trumped-up charges. Kira Yarmysh, a former Navalny spokesperson, said someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in Mr Volkov's eyes. He was then attacked with a hammer, she added. Leonid Volkov's wounds after he was attacked outside his home in Vilnius (Courtesy of X user @a_biryukova/) Mr Volkov's wife Anna Biryukova posted images showing him with a bruise on his forehead, blood coming out of his leg and the damaged vehicle with shattered glass lying on the floor. She said her husband was unable to walk due to a severe bruise from blows with a hammer. "The choice between running to your husband who was attacked or not leaving your sleeping children alone is disgusting, I wouldnt wish it on anyone," Ms Biryukova said in an update on X on Wednesday. Leonid Volkov's wounds after he was attacked outside his home in Vilnius (Courtesy of X user @a_biryukova/) "We will all work even harder. And even angrier," she declared. Lithuania's foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis called the assault "shocking", adding that the "perpetrators will have to answer for their crime". The police in Lithuania said they had been informed a man was beaten outside his home, and were investigating. Law enforcement officials have fenced off a pine forest near Mr Volkov's house on Vilnius' northern outskirts, and officers with dogs and flashlights were combing the area. Police Commissioner Renatas Pozela said authorities were devoting huge resources to investigate the attack on Mr Volkov. Police officers inspects the area near the house of Leonid Volkov, a close associate of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny (AP) Mr Volkov, a member of Navalny's political group the Anti-Corruption Foundation, fled Russia for Lithuania in 2019. Russia tried to get him extradited through an Interpol notice, but a Russian court order was rejected by the Lithuanian government which accused Moscow of using international tools for politically motivated prosecution. An energetic IT specialist originally from Yekaterinburg, Russias fourth-largest city, Mr Volkov began working with Navalny in 2012. He rose to prominence the following year when he led a slick Moscow mayoral campaign for the late opposition politician. 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 Pope issued a fresh condemnation of all wars on Wednesday, days after backlash from Kyiv and Western capitals for appearing to suggest that Ukraine should surrender and negotiate peace with its Russian invader. Pope Francis told Swiss broadcaster RSI that Ukraine should show the courage of the white flag and open talks with Russia, but his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin clarified in a Tuesday interview that Russia should first halt its aggression. Wind blows Pope Francis cap off his head as he arrives for his general audience in St. Peter Square at the Vatican on Monday (AFP via Getty Images) Many young people, many young people go to die (in war). Lets pray to the Lord to give us the grace to overcome this madness of war, which is always a defeat, the pope said during his weekly audience in St Peters Square. Also on Wednesday, the Russian Embassy to the Holy See congratulated Francis on the 11th anniversary of his election, hailing him on X as a true and sincere advocat(e) of humanism, peace and traditional values. Francis is one of the few political leaders with a truly strategic viewpoint on world problems, the embassy said. Francis did not specifically mention Ukraine or any other war zones in his audience, but said he had earlier been given a set of rosary beads and a copy of the Gospels that had belonged to a man killed on an unspecified frontline. Sister Lucia Caram, an Argentine nun who met the pope before his appearance at St Peters Square, wrote on social media that the man was a 23-year-old Ukrainian soldier who died in Avdiivka, an eastern city captured by Russians last month. The rosary had originally been blessed by the pope, and Sister Caram returned them to the pontiff, she said, adding that Francis kissed it and appeared moved as he loves Ukraine and suffers for the martyrdom of this people invaded and cruelly attacked. Francis, who is 87 and hampered by mobility and respiratory issues, limited his speaking at the audience for a third week in a row, leaving it to an aide to read most of his prepared texts. Pope Francis meets Ukraine's ambassador to the Vatican, Andriy Yurash at the Vatican (via REUTERS) He told the faithful he still had a bit of a cold. Its not the first time Francis sometimes imprecise way of speaking, which is often appreciated in other contexts because of its simplicity, have created a diplomatic headache for the Holy See and angered one or the other side in the war. He has repeatedly expressed solidarity with the martyred Ukrainian people but refused to call out Russia or President Vladimir Putin by name. He has seemingly expressed understanding for the invasion Putin ordered by saying NATO was barking at Russias door by expanding east, but then earned a formal protest from Moscow when he blamed most of the cruelty on Chechens and other minorities. In September, Francis again courted the displeasure of Ukrainians, including its Greek Catholic bishops, when he praised Russias imperial past during a meeting with Russian youths. After Ukrainians voiced their sense of betrayal, Francis later acknowledged his words were perhaps not happy and that he in no way meant to justify Russias invasion. Close Zelensky rejects Putins claims that Ukraine involved in Moscow attack 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 }} Russia is using barges in a bid to enhance the defences of one of its ports in the Black Sea, Britains Ministry of Defence has said. It comes following a number of successful Ukrainian strikes on navy ships in the region. Recent imagery analysis has identified four barges positioned at the entrance to the Black Sea fleet facility of Novorossiysk Sea Port, the MoD said in its latest intelligence update. This is an effort to enhance the defence of the port against attacks from Ukrainian Uncrewed Surface Vessels (USVs). Elsewhere, a Russian cruise missile strike on infrastructure in Ukraines western Lviv region killed one man, while another died in an attack in the northeast, officials said Sunday. The attack in Lviv destroyed a building and sparked a fire, governor Maksym Kozytskyi wrote on social media app Telegram. He said that rescue operations were being conducted. In the Kharkiv region, governor Oleh Syniehubov said that an air attack killed an 19-year-old man after a missile hit a gas station. 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 }} Millions of Russian citizens have started to head to the polls in a sham election that will confirm Vladimir Putins presidency for at least another six years. The stage-managed vote will also take place in parts of Ukraine now controlled by Russian forces. But with the election and candidates tightly controlled by the Kremlin, is the Russian election rigged, how does it work and what does it mean for Mr Putin? The Independent has put together all you need to know below. The election is expected to confirm Russian president Vladimir Putin as president for at least another six years (AP) When is the election? The Russian presidential election will be held between 15 March and 17 March. Results will follow shortly afterwards and the winner will be inaugurated in May. Voting will also take place in what Russia calls its new territories - parts of Ukraine now controlled by Russian forces that have been placed under Russian law. A remote online voting system will be available for the first time in a Russian presidential election. There are 112.3 million people with the right to vote in the election. The Russian population is around 143.4 million. Around 70-80 million people usually cast ballots. Turnout in 2018 was 67.5 per cent. The Russian presidential election will be held between 15 March and 17 March. Pictured: Ballots to be used in 2024 (AFP via Getty Images) How does the election work? Russian politics professor Samuel Greene, of Kings College London, explained getting onto the ballot was a complicated process controlled by the Kremlin which sees genuine Putin critics barred. He told The Independent: Getting on to the ballot is a complicated process. Parties that have representation in parliament have guaranteed access to the ballot. Everybody else has to go through a system of petitions and collecting tens of thousands of signatures that have to be verified. The government authorities invariably find problems with the signatures that have been collected by genuine opposition candidates. Russian president Vladimir Putin meets with residents following a visit to a greenhouse complex near Moscow ahead of elections this weekend (AP) Is the election rigged? Prof Greene added that all parties are vetted by the Kremlin in an illegal process separate to the Central Election Commission, which checks regular conditions like nationality and criminal records. All parties that are able to function in Russia are coordinated by the presidential administration. Candidate lists are vetted by the Kremlin; fundraising is both limited and enabled by the Kremlin, he said. He explained Russian candidates are only allowed to campaign within red lines set by Putin and dont really expect to win the election - which means they wont say anything too controversial like criticising the war in Ukraine. The opposition candidates are being careful not to be any more aggressive than Putin is in his campaigning. They dont really expect to win, he said. All parties in Russia are vetted and approved by the Kremlin, experts say (AP) Who are the candidates? There are four candidates that have been vetted by the Kremlin and who are on the ballot for this years Russian presidential election. Vladimir Putin In charge of all the levers of state, incumbent Vladimir Putin, 71, is expected to easily win a landslide victory and another six-year term. Already the longest-serving ruler of Russia since Joseph Stalin, will win a fifth and unconstitutional term after polls close on Sunday. His standing in the election comes as a result of a referendum in 2020 amending Russias constitution to reset presidential term limits having previously opted in 2008 merely to swap places with prime minister Dmitry Medvedev to sidestep the two-term limit. While that move triggered the largest protests of his rule, the changes ushered in by the referendum in 2020 were largely unopposed, and Putin could theoretically still be in the Kremlin in 2036, notes Independent columnist Mary Dejevsky. Nikolai Kharitonov Nikolai Kharitonov (AP) A 75-year-old member of Russias lower house of parliament, the State Duma, Nikolai Kharitonov is the official candidate of the Communist Party, whose candidates have finished a distant second to Putin at every election since 2000. Mr Kharitonov, a Siberian, stood previously in 2004 and won 13.8 per cent of the vote to Putin's 71.91 per cent. A state pollster said in February that its research showed that around 4 per cent of Russians were ready to vote for him. The state Tass news agency has quoted Kharitonov as saying he would not find fault with Mr Putin, because he is responsible for his own cycle of work, why would I criticise him? Mr Kharitonov supports the war in Ukraine, but has previously opposed some of the ruling pro-Putin United Russia partys domestic policies. He enjoys the backing of Gennady Zyuganov, the 79-year-old veteran Communist Party leader. Leonid Slutsky Russia Cold War Treaty (The State Duma, the Lower House of the Russian Parliament) A senior member of the State Duma, Leonid Slutsky, 56, is the leader of the ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), and has long chaired the parliaments international affairs committee voicing support for the Ukraine war and the need to keep food prices down. A regular anti-Western mouthpiece on Russian state TV, Mr Slutsky took over as the partys permanent leader after veteran firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky died in 2022. He is seeking to tap into his late predecessors popularity by campaigning on the slogan Zhirinovsky lives on. A state pollster said in February that its research also showed that around 4 per cent of Russians were ready to vote for him. In 2018, a group of female journalists accused Mr Slutsky of sexual harassment. A parliamentary commission exonerated him, which his accusers labelled a whitewash. Vladislav Davankov New People politician Vladislav Davankov is deputy chair of the State Duma, and has received a state award from Mr Putin in the past. Aged 40, heis the youngest registered candidate and has said he wont criticise his political opponents. His main campaign slogans are Yes to changes! and Time for new people! A state pollster said in February that its research showed that over 5 per cent of Russians were ready to vote for him. Mr Davankov has tried to position himself as someone opposed to excessive curbs on peoples personal freedom and in the context of Russian politics as someone who is more liberal. Without mentioning Ukraine by name, he has said he favours Peace and talks. But on our terms and with no roll-back. What does the election mean for Putin? Prof Greene explained the elections are designed to give an air of legitimacy to Vladimir Putin and Russias political system without alienating the majority of Russians. The Kremlin knows there are people in Russia who wont vote for Putin, Prof Greene said. But it would rather people vote for a candidate and party that is controlled by the Kremlin and can be relied on not to cause problems, instead of people becoming disaffected and protesting for broader change. They want people to feel like they have a voice in the system and have somebody they can vote for so they lost the election fair and square. What have critics said about the Russian ballots? Critics of the Kremlin have warned that the ballots are unlikely to bear any resemblance to true democracy. Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said: We know already that opposition politicians are in jail, some are killed, and many are in exile, and actually also some who tried to register as candidates have been denied that right, he said. And an EU spokesperson said: We know, given the track record of how votes are being prepared and organised in Russia under the current Kremlin administration and regime, how this will look. Its very difficult to foresee that this would be a free, fair and democratic election where the Russian people would really have a choice. And as Nato warned Russias attempts to organise elections in four Ukrainian regions it claims to have annexed would be competely illegal, as the Ukrainian mayor of Mariupol Vadym Boychenko alleged that at least two Chechen military men with machine guns had been seeking to enforce voting there. A fortnight after the death of Alexei Navalny, the Russian dissident community has convened a plan to disturb this rubber-stamping exercise, dubbed Noon Against Putin, in which Russian citizens frustrated with the leaders rule are being called to head to the voting booths all at the same time on the final day in a display of discontent. The campaign has been dubbed Navalnys political testament by independent media outlet Novaya Gazeta, and has been backed by the opposition leaders widowed wife Yulia Navalnaya, along with a host of prominent anti-Putin figures, including Mikhail Khodorkovsky, formerly Russias richest oligarch, and Gary Kasparov, the chess grandmaster turned opposition figure. Additional reporting by Reuters 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 Vladimir Putin has claimed Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to statehood, sovereignty or independence. In a rambling interview with Russian state television released early on Wednesday, Mr Putin also said he hoped the US would refrain from actions that could trigger a nuclear conflict. His statement is another blunt warning to the West ahead of a presidential vote this week in which he is all but certain to win another six-year term. Mr Putin has consistently turned towards nuclear threats during Russias invasion of Ukraine, as Western allies have rallied around Kyiv. Adrienne Watson, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said in a statement that Russias nuclear rhetoric has been reckless and irresponsible throughout this conflict. It is Russia that brutally invaded Ukraine without provocation or justification, and we will continue to support Ukraine as they defend their people and their sovereign territory from Russian aggression, she added. Mr Putin described US president Joe Biden as a veteran politician who fully understands the possible dangers of escalation. He said he does not think the world is heading to a nuclear war. At the same time, he said Russias nuclear forces are in full readiness and from the military-technical viewpoint, were prepared. Mr Putin said Moscow is ready to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the existence of the Russian state, our sovereignty and independence. The most recent similar threat came in his state-of-the-nation address last month when he warned the West that deepening its involvement in the fighting in Ukraine would risk a nuclear war. Ukrainian soldiers from The 56th Separate Motorized Infantry Mariupol Brigade prepare to fire a multiple launch rocket system based on a pickup truck towards Russian positions at the front line, near Bakhmut (AP) But what are the key facts about Russias nuclear arsenal? Russia, which inherited the Soviet Unions nuclear weapons, has the worlds biggest store of nuclear warheads. Putin controls about 5,580 nuclear warheads, according to the Federation of American Scientists (FAS). Of those about 1,200 are retired but largely intact and around 4,380 are stockpiled for use by long-range strategic launchers and shorter-range tactical nuclear forces, according to the FAS. Of the stockpiled warheads, 1,710 strategic warheads are deployed: about 870 on land-based ballistic missiles, about 640 on submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and possibly 200 at heavy bomber bases, FAS said. In this pool photograph distributed by Russias state agency Sputnik, Putin gives an interview (Getty) Such numbers mean that Moscow could destroy the world many times over. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union had a peak of around 40,000 nuclear warheads, while the US peak was around 30,000. New nukes The United States said in its 2022 Nuclear Posture Review that Russia and China were expanding and modernising their nuclear forces, and that Washington would pursue an approach based on arms control to head off costly arms races. While Russias nuclear statements and threatening rhetoric are of great concern, Russias nuclear arsenal and operations have changed little since our 2023 estimates beyond the ongoing modernisation, the FAS said in its 2024 analysis of Russian forces. In the future, however, the number of warheads assigned to Russian strategic forces may increase as single-warhead missiles are replaced with missiles equipped with multiple warheads, FAS said. Testing nukes Putin has said Russia would consider testing a nuclear weapon if the United States did. Last year, he signed a law withdrawing Russias ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Post-Soviet Russia has not carried out a nuclear test. Joe Biden and Putin shake hands as they arrive for a US-Russia summit at Villa La Grange in Geneva in 2021 (Getty) Since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, only a few countries have tested nuclear weapons, according to the Arms Control Association: the United States last tested in 1992, China and France in 1996, India and Pakistan in 1998, and North Korea in 2017. The Soviet Union last tested in 1990. The CTBT was signed by Russia in 1996 and ratified in 2000. The United States signed the treaty in 1996 but has not yet ratified it. Who would press the button? The Russian president is the ultimate decision maker on the use of the countrys nuclear weapons. The so-called nuclear briefcase, or Cheget (named after Mount Cheget in the Caucasus Mountains), is with the president at all times. The Russian defence minister, currently Sergei Shoigu, and the chief of the general staff, currently Valery Gerasimov, are also thought to have such briefcases. Essentially, the briefcase is a communication tool that links the president to his military top brass and thence to rocket forces via the highly secret Kazbek electronic command-and-control network. Kazbek supports another system known as Kavkaz. If a nuclear attack were confirmed, Putin could activate the so-called Dead Hand (Sputnik) Footage shown by Russias Zvezda television channel in 2019 showed what it said was one of the briefcases with an array of buttons. In a section called command there are two buttons: a white launch button and a red cancel button. The briefcase is activated by a special flashcard, according to Zvezda. If Russia thought it faced a strategic nuclear attack, the president, via the briefcases, would send a direct launch order to general staff command and reserve command units that hold nuclear codes. Such orders cascade swiftly down different communications systems to strategic rocket force units, which then fire at the US and Europe. If a nuclear attack were confirmed, Putin could activate the so-called Dead Hand or Perimeter system of last resort: essentially computers would decide doomsday. A control rocket would order nuclear strikes from across Russias vast armoury. 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 }} Haitis prime minister Ariel Henry said he was resigning amid mounting international pressure following gang violence that has pushed the capital to the brink of civil war. Mr Henry faced calls to resign from Haitian gang leaders who have taken control of capital Port-au-Prince, keeping the prime minister stranded outside the country. Heavily armed gangs have tried to seize control of Haitis main international airport, exchanging gunfire with police and soldiers in the latest attack on key government sites. Former police officer Jimmy 'Barbecue Cherizier, leader of the G9 coalition, greets a boy while giving a press tour of the La Saline shanty area of Port-au-Prince, (REUTERS) An explosion of violence has taken place in the country, including a mass escape from the countrys prisons. Jimmy Barbecue Cherizier, a former elite police officer who now runs a gang federation, has claimed responsibility for the surge in attacks. The Toussaint Louverture International Airport was closed when the attack occurred, with no planes operating and no passengers on site. It is the biggest attack on the airport in Haitis history. A breakthrough has come with Mr Henrys resignation after the Caribbean Community regional bloc, Caricom, held urgent meeting of Caribbean leaders late on Monday in Jamaica. It was also attended by officials including US secretary of state Antony Blinken. The government that Im running cannot remain insensitive in front of this situation. There is no sacrifice that is too big for our country, Mr Henry said in a video statement. The government Im running will remove itself immediately after the installation of the council. Last week, the airport was struck briefly by bullets amid ongoing gang attacks, but gangs did not enter the airport nor seize control of it. A police officer runs during an anti-gang operation at the Portail neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Gangs already were estimated to control up to 80 per cent of the capital Port-au-Prince. They are increasingly co-ordinating their actions and choosing once unthinkable targets such as the Central Bank. Mr Henry has remained stranded in Puerto Rico after he travelled abroad last week to try to salvage support for a United Nations-backed security force to help stabilise Haiti in its conflict with the increasingly powerful crime groups. Haitis National Police has roughly 9,000 officers to provide security for more than 11 million people, according to the UN. They are routinely overwhelmed and outgunned. A demonstrator holds up a Haitian flag during a protest against Prime Minister Ariel Henrys government (REUTERS) Gunfire was reported in several neighbourhoods in the capital. Internet service for many residents was down as Haitis top mobile network said a cable connection was slashed during the rampage. After gangs opened fire at Haitis international airport last week, the US embassy said it was halting all official travel to the country. On Sunday night, it urged all American citizens to depart as soon as possible. The Biden administration, which has refused to commit troops to any multinational force for Haiti while offering money and logistical support, said it was monitoring the rapidly deteriorating security situation with grave concern. An inmate waves at the National Penitentiary in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sunday, March 3, 2024 (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Why is there violence in Haiti? Some of Haitis most powerful gang leaders say their goal is bringing down Henry. The country has failed to hold parliamentary and general elections in recent years and there are no elected officials. Henry was sworn in as prime minister with the backing of the international community after the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. The latest round of attacks began in February after Henry pledged to hold long-awaited general elections by mid-2025. The surge in attacks follows violent protests that turned deadlier in recent days as the prime minister went to Kenya seeking to move ahead on the proposed UN-backed security mission to be led by that East African country. Mr Cherizier said the goal is to capture Haitis police chief and government ministers and prevent Mr Henrys return. He has threatened to go after hotel owners hiding politicians or collaborating with Mr Henry. He demanded the countrys next leader be chosen by the people and live in Haiti, alongside their families. If (Henry) continues down this path, he will plunge Haiti into chaos, Mr Cherizier said. Were not in a peaceful revolution. We are making a bloody revolution in the country because this system is an apartheid system, a wicked system. The prime minister, a neurosurgeon, has shrugged off calls for him to resign and did not comment when asked if he felt it was safe to come home. A map of Port-au-Prince in Haiti Henrys whereabouts were not public Monday. When asked in Kenya if it was safe for him to return to Haiti, Henry shrugged. Who is responsible for the violence? Mr Cherizier announced as gunmen began to attack infrastructure that he would try and capture the countrys police chief and government ministers. Four police officers were killed when their stations came under siege. Mr Cherizier said last summer that he would fight any international armed force if they committed abuses, and he urged Haitians to mobilize against the government. Former police officer Jimmy 'Barbecue Cherizier, leader of the G9 coalition, greets a boy while giving a press tour of the La Saline shanty area of Port-au-Prince, (REUTERS) Other gang leaders also appear to be involved in recent attacks. Johnson Andri best known as Izo and leader of the 5 Seconds gang, appears in a video posted on TikTok wielding a heavy mallet in his right hand as he pretends to punch his face with his left hand. Mr Andris gang is considered an ally of G-Pep, archenemy of Mr Cheriziers gang federation, but alliances have been shifting in recent days. A report released last month by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime found that for the gangs, the development of alliances is a fluid phenomenon. It also noted how only the most powerful gangs such as Izos or Chiriziers are usually able to operate or profiteer outside their fiefdoms. Residents transport mattresses on a motorcycle in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, March 4 (AP) Mr Cherizier is leader of a gang federation known as G9 Family and Allies, and he has previously launched powerful attacks that have crippled the country. In late 2022, he seized control of an area surrounding a key fuel terminal in the capital of Port-au-Prince for almost two months. Why have the gangs become so powerful? An estimated 200 gangs exist in Haiti, with 23 main ones believed to be operating in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince. Up until recent years, they controlled some 60 per cent of the capital, a number that has since grown to 80 per cent, according to UN officials. Smuggled firearms and ransom payments to kidnappers have allowed gangs to become more financially independent. That has increased their power as the state has weakened, and an underfunded and under-resourced police department has been unable to contain them. Present-day gangs enjoy a much higher degree of military capacity than those a decade ago, according to the Global Initiative report. This has largely been driven by the gangs ability to acquire high-caliber weapons. A 2023 UN report stated that recovered weapons destined for Haitian ports include .50 caliber sniper rifles, .308 rifles, and even belt-fed machine guns. Hezbollah carried out one of the largest attacks in five months of escalating conflict on the border between Lebanon and Israel this week, firing more than a hundred rockets, and vowing that the barrages would continue. The strikes on Tuesday led to Israels hardline national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir demanding a war now while criticising defence minister Yoav Gallant for not seeking severe retribution: What are you waiting for? Over 100 rockets fired and you sit quietly? We have to start responding, attacking. Hezbollah said it had launched the Katyusha missiles in response to Israeli air raids in the Bekaa Valley 24 hours earlier, and also to show continuing support for Palestinians in Gaza. Israeli military did, in fact, respond immediately, hitting Hezbollah targets near Baalbek. One man was killed, eight injured and a warehouse destroyed. It was the second time in a fortnight that sorties had been carried out so deep into Lebanon. A drone strike on a car near Tyre followed, killing two others. 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 }} SpaceX has successfully launched its Starship rocket in a huge test of Elon Musks ambitions to send humans to Mars. The third test flight of the worlds biggest rocket saw it lift off from a launchpad at SpaceXs Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, on Thursday morning. Two previous attempts to fly the uncrewed rocket from Texas to Hawaii both ended in high-altitude explosions. The third launch will see a different route attempted, with a splashdown site in the Indian Ocean. Each of these flight tests continue to be just that: a test, SpaceX said ahead of the Starship launch attempt. They arent occurring in a lab or on a test stand, but are putting flight hardware in a flight environment to maximise learning. You can follow all the latest news, analysis and updates - as well as watch a live stream of the Starship launch - in our live coverage below. Close Majorie Taylor Greene opposes House attempt to ban TikTok 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 }} The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to pass a bill that could remove TikTok from US app stores. The vote succeeded 352-65, with the majority of nos coming from Democrats on Wednesday. If the bill becomes law it will require the Chinese firm Bytedance to divest from TikTok and other applications that it owns within 180 days. If ByteDance does not divest, TikTok would be removed from US app stores. Legislators have argued that Bytedance could give the Chinese government access to TikTok users data, pointing to national security laws that require companies to help with intelligence gathering. The bill will now require a successful US Senate vote and subsequent Presidential signature to become law. Despite its overwhelming success, the bill also received bipartisan opposition. Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said he was not in favour of the potential ban that could result from the bill. Meanwhile, Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar told The Independent she was not convinced to vote yes even after a national security briefing. Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene also voted no, telling The Independent it could have unintended consequences for social media use. 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 }} Boeing has promised changes after receiving poor grades in the latest blow to the company. The aircraft maker said that it would work with employees found to have violated company manufacturing procedures to make sure they understand instructions for their jobs. It detailed its latest steps to correct lapses in quality in a memo to employees from Stan Deal, president of Boeing's commercial plane division. The memo went out after the Federal Aviation Administration finished a six-week review of the company's manufacturing processes for the 737 Max jetliner after a panel blew off one of the planes during an Alaska Airlines flight on January 5. The FAA reviewed 89 aspects of production at Boeing's plant in Renton, Washington, and found the company failed 33 of them, according to a person familiar with the report. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details that have not been publicly released although they were reported earlier by The New York Times, which saw a slide presentation on the government's audit. The vast majority of violations found by the FAA involved workers not following Boeings approved procedures, Deal said in his memo. Deal said the company will take remedial steps that include working with each employee noted with a non-compliance during the audit to ensure they fully understand the work instructions and procedures. Boeing will also add weekly compliance checks for all work teams in the Renton factory, where Max jets are assembled, he said. Boeing Executive Deal acknowledged a recent conclusion by a panel of government and industry experts that found Boeings procedures for ensuring safety were too complicated and changed too often. Our teams are working to simplify and streamline our processes and address the panels recommendations, he told staff. The day before the blowout on Alaska Airlines flight 1282, engineers and technicians at the airline wanted to remove the plane from service to examine a warning light tied to the planes pressurization system, but the airline kept flying the plane and scheduled a maintenance check for late the following night, The New York Times reported Tuesday. Before that could happen, however, a door-plug panel blew off the jet 16,000 feet (4,800 meters) over Oregon. Alaska said that the maintenance plan was in line with all processes and procedures. Nothing required or suggested that the aircraft needed to be pulled from service. Bret Oestreich, president of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, the union for technicians at Alaska, said there was nothing unusual in Alaska's handling of the matter. He said the warning light does not indicate the location of a possible pressurization issue, and mechanics had been unable to pinpoint a problem after the light tripped on three earlier flights. The earlier cabin-pressurization warnings caused Alaska to stop using the plane on flights to Hawaii. A few days after the blowout, National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy said the warnings were unrelated to the accident. A preliminary report pointed to four bolts that were missing after a repair job at the Boeing factory. Besides the ongoing FAA and NTSB probes, Boeing faces a Justice Department investigation into whether its recent problems including the Jan. 5 blowout of an emergency door panel from an Alaska Airlines jet that had taken off from Portland, Oregon violate terms of a settlement the company reached in 2021 to avoid criminal prosecution after two crashes of Max jets in 2018 in Indonesia and 2019 in Ethiopia killed 346 people. Separately on Tuesday, Boeing reported that it received orders for 15 jetliners in February and delivered 27 planes, including two Max jets each to Southwest Airlines and United Airlines. TD Cowen analyst Cai von Rumohr called the deliveries anemic but not surprising because of increased FAA scrutiny of the company. The slowdown in deliveries is putting Boeing farther behind European rival Airbus, which delivered 49 planes last month, and becoming increasingly frustrating for airlines. Southwest said it might have to reduce its growth, as it now expects to receive fewer Max jets than it planned because of Boeing's struggles. 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 }} ScotRail workers who belong to the RMT union are to be balloted for strike action over driver-only operation (DOO) trains. The union says the rail operator, run by the Scottish government, will allow some routes in the Glasgow area to run without a second member of staff at the discretion of the driver. The RMT says more than 100 conductors who will be affected by ScotRails plans will be balloted. The general secretary, Mick Lynch says: ScotRail are trying to sneak through DOO via the back door by putting train drivers in a difficult position, giving them the power to decide whether a train runs or not without a second staff member on board. It is important for safety and the comfort of passengers that a second person is on these ScotRail services. We will resist all attempts to endanger our members jobs. But Phil Campbell, ScotRail customer operations director, said: Our proposals will not result in anyone within the business losing their jobs, or their terms and conditions, and will in fact see the recruitment of almost 120 additional members of staff. As a publicly owned company, it is critical that we continue to deliver value for money for the taxpayer and this represents a fantastic opportunity to do that. We are absolutely committed to working with our trade union colleagues, and we hope that meaningful talks can continue to find a suitable resolution. These are the key questions and answers about this complex and contentious issue. What is driver-only operation? Strictly, when the only staff member working on a train is the driver. He or she opens and closes the doors, with cameras installed to ensure that the operation can be conducted safely. DOO is a subset of driver-controlled operation (DCO). This covers all trains on which the driver opens and closes the doors. But on a DCO train that is not DOO, one or more members of staff on board will perform other duties. This is the arrangement on, for example, Lumo services linking Edinburgh and Newcastle with London Kings Cross. Where does DOO exist at present? Last year, RMT boss Mick Lynch told MPs on the transport select committee: We will never sign up to accepting DOO. It will never happen while I am general secretary. It will never happen as long as the RMT exists. That might give the impression the concept is new. In fact, many trains have been operated by a single person since the 1980s. Every day, millions of passengers travel on trains where the only member of staff on board is sitting at the front mainly on short-distance trips in Greater London, but also on some journeys of over 100 miles. The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), representing train firms, says that driver-only operation is the normal mode on 45 per cent of UK trains and that those trains carry 55 per cent of passengers nationwide. All Greater Anglia trains, linking East Anglia and Essex with London Liverpool Street, are DOO including the Stansted Express. On Britains biggest rail franchise, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), all Thameslink and Great Northern trains are driver-only operation,. These include some very long routes, including Peterborough to Horsham (118 miles), Brighton to Bedford (103 miles) and London Kings Cross to Kings Lynn (99 miles). There is, though, little coherence. Between Brighton and Gatwick Airport, for example, Thameslink trains have only a driver on board, but Southern trains serving exactly the same stations always have an on-board supervisor as well. The two brands are both operated by the same organisation, but with different staffing agreements. Southern trains largely within Greater London are DOO, but longer-distance Southern services and Gatwick Express trains always have an on-board supervisor in addition to a driver. The mixed pattern is repeated elsewhere. On Southeastern, linking central London with Kent and East Sussex, metro services are driver-only while longer-distance trains (including the high-speed) line always have an on-board manager or conductor/guard. Whats the difference between an on-board manager and conductor/guard? An on-board manager does not open or close the doors. They are responsible for customer service on board, as well as checking tickets. They have safety training in case of emergencies. Sometimes they are known as ticket examiners. A conductor/guard opens and closes (or sometimes only closes) the doors as well as providing customer service. On South Western Railway, linking London Waterloo with Surrey, Hampshire and beyond, currently the guard opens and closes the doors. But new and much-delayed Arterio trains will have DCO with a second member of staff on board all trains. So there are some trains where the driver opens the doors but the conductor/guard closes them? Many. Driver opens, conductor closes (DOCC) is standard on all Great Western Railway high-speed services linking London Paddington with South Wales and the West of England; shorter distances to and from the capital are driver-only. DOCC applies on ScotRail trains linking Glasgow and Edinburgh via Falkirk; other electric trains on the Scottish network are DCO, but the fast link between Scotlands two biggest cities is covered by an old agreement dating to when it used diesel trains. LNER, which runs from London Kings Cross to Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland, has DOCC on its new Azuma trains, but on older 225 rolling stock the train manager opens and closes the doors. What is the thinking behind Driver opens, conductor closes? The theory is that the driver has a clear view arriving at a station that all is well, and he or she can safely open the doors. But by having a guard closing the doors allows them to get a better view, up and down the platform. Is driver-only operation safe? Not according to the rail unions. Mick Lynch of the RMT says expansion of DOO will make our railways less safe, secure and accessible. Mick Whelan, general secretary of the train drivers union, Aslef, says The train drivers who do it, hate it, feel its unsafe. We believe its inherently unsafe. But in 2018 the Rail Safety and Standards Board concluded :Driver dispatch of trains is unquestionably safe according to all criteria. The Office of Rail and Road also investigated the practice in 2017 and concluded it fully meets legal requirements for safe operation so long as suitable equipment, procedures and competent staff are in place. What about safety for women travelling alone and passengers who need assistance? Public security and disability access are extremely important issues that need wider discussion. In 2013 the Transport Select Committee said: We are very concerned that proposals to reduce staffing at stations and on trains could make the railway less safe, particularly at night, and deter women and vulnerable users from travelling by train. We recommend the government develops a strategy for improving the security of the rail network, as well as perceptions of how safe the network is. Ideally every train would have on-board staff and every station would be staffed. This would undoubtedly increase passenger confidence and improve provision for less able travellers. But the rail industry is currently losing billions of pounds each year and is being propped up by taxpayers cash. The view from successive governments has long been that a balance needs to be struck between care for rail users and the cost to public funds. Do the government and train firms want to make things worse? That is certainly the message from the unions. But proposals by the RDG appears to be uirging more DCO, not DOO. The organisation stresses its proposals do not mean routinely removing staff from on board trains. Instead, the RDG says, the aim is to allow staff on board to focus on other safety issues and looking after customers on board with journey advice, selling tickets etc. In normal circumstances, at least; the unions are concerned that when disruption occurs, trains will depart with only a driver. Which is at the root of the latest ScotRail dispute. 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 }} A decade on from the MH370 aviation mystery, a British Boeing 777 pilot has claimed that the flights take-off documents are clues that the pilot pre-meditated a mass murder-suicide. Simon Hardy believes that the Malaysian Airlines flight plan and technical log reveal last-minute changes to the cargo including an additional 3,000kg of fuel and extra oxygen that indicate Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah directed the plane to oblivion. Hardy, who worked with the Australian Transport Safety Bureau during the search in 2015, told The Sun: Its a strange coincidence that the last engineering task that was done before it headed off to oblivion was topping up crew oxygen which is only for the cockpit, not for the cabin crew. The aviation expert called the additions to the flight bizarre and said that they didnt meet the official requirements to justify the changes. Hardy also said that the flaperon found on Reunion Island indicates there was an active pilot until the end of the flight: If the flaps were down, there is a liquid fuel, then someone is moving a lever and its someone who knows what they are doing. It all points to the same scenario. He determined that the pilot had to have planned meticulously to time the crash and avoid leaving a trace of fuel residue on the surface of the ocean that would indicate the planes final destination. Like many other theorists, he points to a depressurisation of the cabin by the pilot to knock the 239 passengers unconscious as the pilot made a U-turn to ditch the plane in the ocean. Combined with a trail of satellite clues Hardy believes he has calculated the position of the missing aircraft just outside the official 7th arc search area in the Geelvinck Fracture Zone of the Southern Indian Ocean, a trench hundreds of miles long. The Malaysian Government announced on 3 March that the search could resume for the aircraft that disappeared on 8 March 2014 with Texan company Ocean Infinity on a no find, no fee basis. 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 }} Sometimes, a broken-down plane can prove a blessing. Air Transat bestowed me with an unexpected three days in Toronto: paying for a stay at the Hilton, no less, that allowed me to appreciate the mosaic of cultures and cuisines in Canadas largest city. Flying back eventually to London Stansted was a disappointment. And when the air-conditioning failed on a Tui flight from Santo Domingo to London Gatwick, I relished the opportunity to explore the capital of the Dominican Republic. There are many worse places to be stranded than the Caribbean. Yet for Mark Pantlin and hundreds of other Tui passengers this week, being unexpectedly stuck in Barbados was not the gift you might expect it to be. The passengers had boarded their Boeing 787 to Gatwick and were waiting to go. But then, he told me: We heard a loud bang. A ground vehicle had struck the aircraft. After an inspection and discussions with engineers in the UK, the flight was cancelled. Tui does not have spare aircraft sitting around in outstations such as Barbados. All 342 passengers, along with the crew, would have to stay another night at the airport. Under air passengers rights rules, airlines must provide hotels (plus transport to get there) and meals for overnight delays. But even after keeping everyone on board for a further five hours, not enough hotel rooms could be found. Only the pilots, cabin crew, families with young people and elderly or infirm passengers were assigned accommodation. Which left hundreds of people in a pickle. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) accepts airlines may not be able to meet their obligations, saying: Sometimes airlines are unable to arrange care and assistance for all passengers. This can happen when staff are stretched during major disruptions. If this happens, in our view you have the right to organise reasonable care and assistance yourself, then claim the cost back later. Tui told stranded passengers: If you manage to find suitable accommodation, well reimburse up to 180 per household to help cover any extra travel, meal, or accommodation costs you may incur. That equates to 153 or 38 per person for a household of four people for hotel rooms, transport and 24 hours of meals on one of the most expensive islands in the Caribbean. Yet as Tui knows full well, there is no upper limit and airlines cannot impose arbitrary caps. A cynical person might suspect that this huge and highly profitable company intended to convince passengers into thinking there was a cap on spending. Faced with paying hundreds of pounds more, the passenger might decide simply to sleep at the airport. Which is what most of them did. How do Tuis rivals compare in communicating the fact that no airline is allowed to cap welfare costs when a flight gets cancelled? EasyJet says: We can only reimburse expenses for standard class or shared transport, three-star or equivalent hotel/accommodation, where available. Of course, you should keep the bill down as much as possible but if only a four- or five-star is available, easyJet must pay; ensure you have evidence, for example in the shape of screenshots from hotel searches. British Airways says only we will consider [my italics] reimbursing reasonable expenses. But BA does point out it will meet the cost of two telephone calls or internet-related costs to contact people outside the airport. Back at Tui, after I challenged the company, a spokesperson told me: We gave the amount as a guidance for customers but understand that it may have been misleading. Therefore, we are ensuring messages are clearer in the future. I shall be watching. Meanwhile Tui, to its credit, is issuing each of the 342 passengers with 520 in cash compensation without them needing to apply. And Tui package holiday customers each get an extra 200 holiday voucher. 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 }} A survey has revealed international travellers biggest fears to be civil unrest and terrorism, a significant attitudinal shift from last spring. Global Rescue, a American company which provides medical, security, travel risk and crisis management services, surveyed over 1,500 current and former members about their primary concerns while travelling abroad. More than a third of travellers (36 per cent) reported civil unrest and terrorism as their biggest travel concerns, surpassing accidents and illness by more than 10 percentage points. Only 25 per cent of respondents to the January 2024 survey said having an accident or getting ill during a trip was their greatest fear, down from 50 per cent of respondents to the Spring 2023 Traveler Sentiment and Safety Survey. Global Rescue said that the results mark an attitudinal shift in traveller sentiment. CEO Dan Richards said: Were seeing an understandable increase in traveller concern worldwide. Nevertheless, international trip takers continue to travel anyway despite the rising threats of civil unrest, war, and terrorism. Worries about trip cancellations, robberies and theft were of primary concern for between seven and nine per cent of respondents, while testing positive for Covid, natural disasters and nuclear disasters were the area of biggest anxiety for around five per cent of travellers. Over a third of those surveyed said that the war in Ukraine and the Hamas-Israel conflict have prompted them to increase their travel insurance protection including purchasing security advisory and conflict extraction protection. Richards said: Traveller uncertainty generally increases traveller demand for emergency medical and security services. He added: Last year, traveller purchases of security and extraction services increased by 36 per cent, and we expect that will continue in 2024. Weve seen this traveller behaviour since the war in Ukraine, and were seeing it continue following the attacks on Israel. A staff member at a Virginia wildlife rescue dressed up in a furry fox mask to feed an orphaned cub that was less than 24 hours old when the centre found it. Melissa Stanley, Executive Director of the Richmond Wildlife Center, donned a mask and rubber gloves while feeding the tiny animal that came into the rescue's care in February milk via a syringe. The kit was discovered by a man walking his dog in the city with her umbilical stump still attached. The wildlife centre explained that they wear masks to minimise the chance that that the orphans that are raised in captivity do not become imprinted upon or habituated to humans. A doctor returning home from holiday has described the miraculous moment he helped a woman give birth on a Wizz Air flight. Hassan Khan jumped into action on the trip from Amman, Jordan, to London Luton Airport, on Saturday morning when the crew called for a doctor. The 28-year-old doctor, who works at Basildon Hospital in Essex, said the woman was lying on the floor outside the cockpit and her waters had broken. People were saying it was miraculous. I only realised how significant it was after I had the chance to process it all, Dr Khan said. The Jordanian woman did not speak English and another person on the flight had to translate during her delivery. She gave birth to a healthy girl. Students appear to have flocked to Florida's Miami Beach despite a viral ad campaign telling those who want to "drunk and ignore laws" to go elsewhere. Although Fox News reports there are fewer disturbances, footage still appears to show groups of people enjoying the city's thriving nightlife. New rules imposed by the city for students include curfews, increased parking fees, and limited beach access. The campaign pointed to the state of emergency Miami Beach called this time last year, with an actor saying: "That was our breaking point, so we're breaking up with you". Police discovered a snow cave a missing family desperately tried to build to shelter in the Swiss Alps before being found dead. Footage shows the helicopter search for the cross-country skiers - including five members of the same family - who went missing over the weekend near Switzerlands famed Matterhorn. A sixth member of the group remained missing as of Wednesday, 13 March. Valais regional police said the skiers set out in relatively good conditions on Saturday but the situation deteriorated quickly. Their disappearance was reported by a relative of the family after the group didnt arrive in Arolla, as expected, on Saturday before nightfall. Vladimir Putin has issued a direct nuclear warning to the United States. The Russian leader issued a defiant response when asked how he would respond if America sent ground troops to Ukraine. Speaking in an interview on Wednesday (13 Marc), Mr Putin said Moscow was prepared for a nuclear confrontation if there was a threat to Russias sovereignty or security. The Russian leader said: I dont think that everything is rushing so head on here [with nuclear confrontation], but we are ready for this. South Dakota governor Kristi Noem has posted a bizarre infomercial-style video on social media, heaping praise on a team of cosmetic dentists outside her state for giving her a smile she said she can be proud of. The video, almost five minutes long, was captioned I love my new family at Smile Texas and I am so grateful for their help fixing my smile for me. Ms Noem shared the post on her personal X account, which has nearly 500,000 followers. She has been touted as a potential vice presidential pick for Donald Trump, who is expected to secure the Republican nomination. Conservative MP Jonathan Gullis said he does not want the foreign aid budget to exist at all after it was revealed 3.2 billion has been allocated to the Home Office to house migrants in hotels. Appearing on BBC Politics Live today (13 March), Mr Gullis and Labour MP Sarah Champion joined the panel to discuss whether migrants should be paid to go to Rwanda. Ms Champion said: I can announce 3.2 billion of UK foreign aid has been allocated to the Home office, for hotels for the next financial year. Mr Gullis replied: I dont want the foreign aid budget to exist at all. Irish arm of Equinor benefited from soaring gas prices before it completed deal with Vermilion Energy last year The Irish arm of Norwegian state-owned Equinor paid out a dividend of 350m last year before finalising the sale of its 36.5pc share of Corrib Gas to Vermilion Energy. The sale to the Canadian energy firm completed on March 31 last year and new accounts for Equinor Energy Ireland Ltd show that the 350m dividend was paid out in the first quarter of last year to parent and Norwegian government-owned Equinor ASA. The accounts show that Equinor Energy Ireland Ltd benefited from soaring gas prices in 2022 as revenues from its Corrib gas sales increased by 39pc from 304.18m to 422.27m. The firm recorded pre-tax profits of 221.89m and was liable to an EU energy windfall corporation tax bill of 54.66m on its profits. The temporary solidarity contribution was introduced as an emergency intervention by the EU in October 2022 to address high energy prices as a result of the war in Ukraine, with consumers being hit by much higher bills for gas and electricity. The Government here has estimated that the tax will raise in the range of 200m to 450m. Along with the windfall tax bill of 54.66m, Equinor Energy Ireland was also subject to a 25pc corporation tax rate totalling 55.47m, showing that it was liable to a cumulative corporation tax bill of 110.13m. However, the companys corporation tax bill for 2022 was reduced to 7.18m. This was after the company was able to utilise a deferred tax credit of 47.48m and use of tax losses totalling 48.72m. The profits for 2022 take account of non-cash depreciation costs of 53.14m. The directors report for Equinor Energy Ireland says that in 2022, there was significant price volatility, primarily triggered by high economic growth and subsequent supply chain bottlenecks on the back of measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. The directors say that climate change in general, the energy transition, governmental regulations and policies, and the worlds reach of the climate targets set out in the Paris Agreement, could either together or independently influence oil and natural gas prices. A breakdown of revenues shows that 310.21m revenues were generated here and 112.06m was sold to the rest of Europe. On environmental matters, the directors say that the company works continuously to limit greenhouse emissions and ensure that the Corrib project is engineered in such a way as to minimise future emissions from related plant and machinery. They say that Equinor Energy Ireland Limited activities are guided by the principle of zero harm to the environment. The board considers it very important to find industrial solutions that safeguard the natural environment. Before the dividend payout, the firm had accumulated profits of 666.3m at the end of December 2022. No dividend was paid out in 2022. As a result of the deal with Vermilion, the Canadian firm became the countrys largest provider of domestic natural gas here, giving it an operating interest of 56.5pc in Corrib. Vermilion paid out C$488.89m (331.7m) in cash for the 36.5pc share of the business. The Corrib gas field contributes up to 29pc of Irelands natural gas consumption and 100pc of the countrys gas production, and is located about 83km off Co Mayos coast. Andrea Enria is to visit Dublin later this month and will meet senior figures in the financial services sector to take industry soundings as he begins an independent review of the Central Banks fitness and probity regime, the Irish Independent has learned. The visit has not been announced but it is understood he will be gathering views and feedback including from outside the Central Bank on perceptions of how the fitness and probity regime, that was introduced after the financial crisis, is working. The regime, which effectively gives the Central Bank a veto on senior appointments, was introduced in an effort to ensure decision makers in banks and other financial institutions are qualified and capable. The review now under way comes after a damning judgment against the regulators process published last month. The highly critical judgment by the Irish Financial Services Appeals Tribunal (IFSAT) raised significant questions over the Central Banks process, describing fundamental procedural flaws and asserting that the original process in the case it assessed under appeal fell below the standard of constitutional fairness. It has struck a chord across the financial services sector where the opaque and often slow and unpredictable fitness and probity process individuals must undergo before taking on new roles or promotions has been a private bugbear that institutions have been reluctant to criticise publicly. The so-called slow no, where candidates applications are not rejected outright but in many cases withdrawn during a lengthy wait for approval, is likely to be raised with Mr Enria, one senior source said. It is seen as particularly unfair, leaving former candidates in professional limbo not only during the process, but afterwards. A perceived gap between how the regime works here and in other euro-area jurisdictions where many international financial services firms also operate is also likely to be raised, senior sources said. In Ireland, unsuccessful applications are either rejected or slowly left to fall away, leaving a potential professional taint on unsuccessful candidates and sponsoring firms, while in other EU markets, regulators will grant conditional approval dependent on specific training being undertaken by individuals, another source said. Mr Enria stepped down in December as chair of the supervisory board of the European Central Bank (ECB) and previously served in senior roles at the ECB, European Banking Authority and Italian central bank. The terms of reference for the Enria review say its objective will be to make an independent assessment for the Central Bank governor on the manner in which the Central Bank here exercises its statutory functions in relation to fitness and probity, rather than examining the legal framework itself. Global investment bank now a shareholder alongside Government and entrepreneur Eamon Waters Global investment bank Goldman Sachs has taken a near 6pc stake in PTSB, in what will be seen as validation of the Irish lenders longer term outlook. The 5.8pc stake that Goldman Sachs told the stock market it now owns in the Irish bank is valued at 43.4m based on PTSBs share price on Wednesday afternoon. The bank has a market capitalisation of 747m, with the State owning just over 57pc of the company following its bailout during the financial crisis. Goldman Sachs confirmed in a regulatory filing that it breached the 5pc ownership level last Friday. Investors with more than a 3pc stake of a publicly listed firm have regulatory requirement to reveal their ownership details. Other shareholders in PTSB include Sretaw Private Equity, the investment firm controlled by Irish entrepreneur Eamon Waters. Sretaw current has a 7pc stake in the lender. He also has a more than 10pc stake in stock market-listed Irish insurer FBD and a holding in Irish hotel operator Dalata. Shares in PTSB have declined about 45pc in the past year. They also sank last week after it lowered its guidance for 2024 and 2025 and chief executive Eamonn Crowley said that PTSB is unlikely to start paying dividends again until 2026. Shares in PTSB are now trading at a 60pc discount to local peers - a long-term low, noted a Bank of America analyst this week. The lender reported an underlying pre-tax profit of 166m, helped by former Ulster Bank loans that it acquired as its rival exited the Irish market. The underlying profit compared to the 45m it generated in 2022. PTSBs total performing loan book stood at 20.9bn at the end of 2023. That was 1.8bn higher than a year earlier. The growth was driven by business banking and consumer finance, which offset a decline in new mortgage lending. New consumer term lending was broadly in line with the prior year, at 2.8bn, while new mortgage lending of 2.3bn was 11pc lower year-on-year. But the lender had a bigger, 19pc share of a smaller market. It recorded a pre-tax profit of 79m following inclusion of negative goodwill following the purchase of the retail and business banking operations from Ulster Bank. Customer deposits rose to 23bn, but costs jumped 25pc to 496m across the year as the workforce expanded. Even so, the banks cost to earnings ratio declined. Mr Crowley said the bank is now positioned as a real challenger to AIB and Bank of Ireland. Aircraft maker struggling to recover from fallout of Alaska Airlines incident in January Boeing's aircraft deliveries trailed that of rival Airbus last month as the US aircraft maker dealt with the growing fallout from an early-January accident that has since plunged the company into crisis. Boeing handed over 27 airplanes to customers in February, lagging the 49 notched by Airbus, according to data posted on the US company's website. Shipments from the US aircraft maker came in one shy of the same month last year and were in line with the 27 jets it delivered in January. Former Credit Suisse chief executive officer Tidjane Thiam signalled his intention to run for president of Ivory Coast in October next year. Mr Thiam convincingly won a bid to lead the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast at a congress last year. The 61-year-old former banker will seek the party's nomination to run for president at a forthcoming convention, he said in an interview with Paris-based newspaper Le Monde. Hes shy and sensitive, cowardly, and lies to keep people happy The Rise and Fall of Boris Johnson (Channel 4, Wed & Thur; full series available to stream at Channel4. com) is not the first time television has plumbed the shallows of the disgraced former UK prime minister. There have already been documentaries and a trio of dramas: Skys series This England and Channel 4s one-offs Partygate and Brexit: The Uncivil War. But this four-part series is being touted as the definitive look at Johnson. Here are 12 things we learned from it. 1. HIS CHILDHOOD WAS UNHAPPY Johnson, whose ambition as a young boy was to be World King, had a privileged but miserable upbringing. He was starved of love by his philandering father Stanley, whose abusive treatment of Boriss mother drove her into a psychiatric hospital for a spell. Boris Johnson. Photo: PA Wire 2. HE ALWAYS HATED NOT BEING THE CENTRE OF ATTENTION An anecdote in the series relates how the young Boris, angered at the attention his sister was receiving on her birthday, jumped up onto the table shed stood on to make a speech (you know, like normal kids NEVER do on their birthday), pushed her off and petulantly insisted everyone listened to his speech instead. 3. HES SHY AND SENSITIVE According to Petronella Wyatt, who had an affair with Johnson when the two worked at The Spectator magazine, beneath all the bluff, bluster and bull, the real Boris is a shy, sensitive, insecure, vulnerable little flower who yearns for some real friends... aw! Now, what was that you said about selling me a 10pc share in London Bridge? 4. HE TRIED TO PAY HIS BIOGRAPHER NOT TO WRITE HIS BIOGRAPHY Andrew Gimson recalled a panicked Johnson offering to buy him out of his contract. He told the author a satirical piss-take would be fine, but a serious book that told the truth about me could be disastrous for him. Nadine Dorries 5. HE PLAYED THE PERCENTAGES ON BREXIT Johnson only decided to support or pretend to support the Leave camp 15 minutes before publicly announcing his decision, effectively stabbing his old Bullingdon Club pal David Cameron in the back. Privately, Johnson was so convinced the Remain side would coast to victory, he didnt bother staying up for the results. The shellshocked look on his face at the following mornings press conference silently screamed: WTF have I done? 6. HE RANTED AT HIS YUCCA PLANT In order to write his infamous anti-EU columns for The Telegraph, thus giving its frothing readers what they wanted to hear rather than what he actually believed, the pro-EU Johnson used to work up some fake bile by shouting at the yucca plant he kept on his desk. Sadly, yucca plants dont have a vote. 7. HE DIDNT WANT TO WEAR A RING AT HIS FIRST WEDDING Having been badgered into it, Johnson managed to lose the ring within two hours after tying the knot with Allegra Mostyn-Owen. She should have taken this as an omen. 8. HES NEEDY According to Gimson, Johnson cant bear to be alone, which might explain why hes had numerous mistresses, one of whom, the aforementioned Petronella Wyatt, says: Hes a very loyal person. Just not to his first two wives, obviously. Jennifer Arcuri 9. HE SEES HIMSELF AS A KIND OF KNIGHT FROM CAMELOT More likely, hes a knight from the Monty Python and the Holy Grail musical Spamalot. Perhaps Brave Sir Robin, about whom its sung: When danger reared its ugly head, He bravely turned his tail and fled. 10. HE LIES TO KEEP PEOPLE HAPPY He lacks moral courage, says one contributor. He promises people things he knows he cant deliver, because he hates letting them down. 11. HE BLOCKED AN EX-MISTRESSS CALLS When Jennifer Acuri was being hounded by the media, she rang Johnson for help. First he blocked her. When he finally answered, he handed the phone to someone who pretended to be Chinese. What a wimp, what a spineless coward! she says. 12. HIS MARITAL STATUS AS PM CAUSED CONCERNS Whitehall mandarins were worried that Johnson sharing No.10 with his then-girlfriend, now wife, Carrie Symonds, would cause trouble. They were probably worrying about the wrong woman in his life. Brazil's new President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (R) poses for a picture with Agriculture and Livestock Minister Carlos Favaro during the induction ceremony of the members of his cabinet, at Planalto Palace in Brasilia on January 1, 2023, after his inauguration ceremony. (Photo by Sergio LIMA / AFP) (Photo by SERGIO LIMA/AFP via Getty Images) Brazil's government is preparing a rescue package for farmers in default and agricultural companies struggling with delinquency amid tumbling corn and soybean prices. The government is working with state-owned bank BNDES to fund additional credit lines to help refinance the debts of producers, crop-input distributors, and machinery and fuel retailers, said Carlos Favaro, Brazil's minister of Agriculture and Livestock. The plan includes lending dollars or Brazilian reais with a two-year grace period and five years for repayment, the minister said. "Brazil is experiencing a good moment on the world market," Favaro said in an interview. "BNDES has a default rate very close to zero, the lowest among investment banks." As for the size of the program, he said it will include "as much as is necessary." The details will be announced this month, he said. The funding would provide much-needed relief for an industry that is Brazil's largest economic growth engine. The nation's farmers are filling for bankruptcy protection at an alarming rate, affecting sales of products including fertilizers and tractors and hurting investors in agribusiness-focused funds known as Fiagros. Read More: Brazilian Growers Go Bust in Blow to $7 Billion Farm-Credit Boom Crop prices have been in decline since mid-2022 as bumper global supplies offset trade disruptions caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A Bloomberg gauge of key agricultural commodities tumbled almost 16% last year, the biggest drop in a decade. In Brazil, prices fell even further, with corn and soybeans trading at large discounts to futures in Chicago. BNDES still needs to approve the credit lines and determine the conditions for granting the money through commercial banks, Favaro said. Bloomberg. Peat bogs are also vital carbon sinks when healthy, the Commission said. The European Commission has referred Ireland to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failure to apply the Habitats Directive to protect sites designated for raised bog and blanket bog habitats from turf cutting. The Habitats Directive requires Member States to designate their most precious natural habitats and to protect them from harmful activities. These sites in Ireland continue to be degraded through drainage and turf cutting activities, and insufficient action is being taken to restore the sites. These areas are biodiversity hotspots playing host to important insect and bird species. They are categorised as priority habitats under the Directive due to their unique qualities. Peat bogs are also vital carbon sinks when healthy, while a UN report estimated that Ireland's degraded peatlands emit 21.5 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year, the Commission said. It sent a letter of formal notice to Ireland in January 2011, followed by a reasoned opinion in June 2011. Despite some progress, the Irish authorities have not fully addressed the shortcomings, it said. For instance, it claimed whilst some restoration work has been undertaken on raised bog sites, no action has been taken regarding blanket bog sites where Ireland has failed to put in place an effective regulatory regime to protect these unique bog sites. Therefore, the Commission sent an additional reasoned opinion in September 2022. The Commission considers that efforts by the Irish authorities have, to date, been insufficient and is therefore referring Ireland to the Court of Justice of the European Union. Ireland hosts some of the most unique active raised bog sites in the EU as well as large areas of still active blanket bog. "Their protection and restoration could assist Ireland in meeting its climate change goals, not only by keeping healthy peat in the ground but also avoiding emissions when peat is burnt as a fuel. "While traditionally families cut peat by hand, cutting today is done by machine resulting in additional damage to the structure of these sites. Digging and drainage fundamentally undermines their hydrology making restoration challenging. Ireland must redouble its efforts to move turf cutting machines away from these sites before the damage done makes restoration impossible, the Commission outlined in its release. Wicklow Calf Company has warned that importers in the Netherlands are not earning money out of feeding the calves". Wicklow Calf Company has said it is prioritising the buying of calves for export from dairy farmers who buy its milk replacer. The company, which exports over 70,000 calves annually, sells an own brand milk replacer which is manufactured by Netherlands based Denkavit. Seamus Scallan of Wicklow Calf Company, told the Farming Independent: Those who are dealing with me [buying milk replacer], I am going to get their calves out first. Naturally, because it gives me more power to sell the calves. After that Ill take calves where I have the space. ICMSA has told farmers to buy milk replacer at the most competitive price in response. It shouldnt be a case that you have to buy off me because Im buying something else off you, ICMSA President Denis Drennan told the Farming Independent. Were hearing that theres a demand for them there and that the calves arriving from Ireland are a lot healthier than calvers arriving from two and three hours up the road. If you want to sell something sure its up to you to be competitive with it and provide good quality at the right price. In a video posted to TikTok, Mr Scallan encouraged farmers to buy milk replacer from his company because other companies arent buying your calves. He warned that importers in the Netherlands are not earning money out of feeding the calves and cant understand why we [Wicklow Calf Company] cant sell the milk in Ireland to our customers. He said: Its a valid point theyre making to us and what were going to say to the people were dealing with at the moment is that you need to start buying the Dutch powder. The people who are taking your calves every week in the Netherlands, youll be sure that you can get your calves away. Probably 90pc of the dairy farmers in Ireland use milk powder but for some reason their friends come in and they buy milk powder off them but they have to remember one thing - these people coming in that youre buying the milk powder off, theyre not taking your calves. Youre depending on the Dutch to take your calves, otherwise were going to have a big problem here and the calves are going to be left. Mr Scallan said his lorries are going out to the continent full of calves and coming back empty. Were asking people who deal with Wicklow Calf Company to come on board and start supporting us the way you support your co-op to buy fertiliser and different things. The calves are a byproduct and they need to leave. The family of Danielle McLaughlin, who was murdered in India seven years ago, said they hope her alleged killer will be found guilty during a trial this year Danielles body was discovered by a farmer on March 14, 2017, after it was dumped on remote farmland in Canacona, South Goa, India. The Donegal native, who was attending the Holi festival, known as the Hindu festival of colours had been attacked with a bottle, raped and strangled. "Danielle, she was just this amazing person. She was just so bright, she shone, her sister Joleen said on RTEs Prime Time tonight. She told how no matter where Danielle was, she would keep in touch with family, sending back videos of her travels. She had just turned 28 before being killed, after returning to India, having previously volunteered in an orphanage in Calcutta. Her intention was to teach yoga, while backpacking in the south Asian country. However her plans were cut short. Hours after her body was found, Goan local Vikat Bhagat, who Danielle was acquainted with from a previous trip to the popular party island, was arrested. He was subsequently charged with her murder, however, due to flaws in the Indian justice system, his trial is yet to conclude, seven years later. Speaking on Prime Time, her bereaved mother Andrea said her daughter, who graduated with a degree in Psychology and Criminology in Liverpool, wanted to travel the world and volunteer to help those in need. I remember when they crossed the border out of India, the Kevin Bell Trust, they contacted me and said, Andrea, she's no longer in India, shes coming home. I never was as happy to know my daughters coming home, she said of her daughters repatriation. Danieles sister Joleen said there were no other cases of murder in Goa that the family could compare it to and so after Mr Bhagat was arrested they thought there shouldnt be such a big holdup. "And then all of a sudden years passed and it just felt like such a long road thats never ended, Joleen said. The trial has continued to trickle on for more than seven years or 2,500 days. The family had reached out to a lawyer who was dealing with another murder in Goa and are still paying him to this day. During this period, both Irish and British diplomats in India have raised Danielles case locally, as Danielle was born in Glasgow and has dual Irish and British citizenship and passports. Her mother recalled how a spokesperson for the Taoiseach's department mistakenly told the family Danielle wasnt an Irish citizen, 18 months after she was killed. Despite Leo Varadkar himself apologising in person days later, Andrea said it was really hurtful at the time adding that it felt like they were also saying that Danielle wasnt important. Danielles trial is still progressing, with her mother Andrea telling Prime Time that it is now being heard sometimes eight times per month. "So that is why I am hopeful that it could be ending this year, she added. Last week was the 254th hearing of the case, with the accused not appearing in court as he was taken from jail to hospital for treatment. The next hearing is this Thursday on the seventh anniversary of the day Danielles body was discovered. Danielles family are hoping to travel to India for the first time this year, after a higher court in India directed that the trial conclude this year. It's just so draining that we just want it over and done with. We don't really know what's gonna happen. They say it should end this year, but we don't really know and we don't wanna have that hope that it will end because we have been let down so many times in the past by everyone, We have to do everything ourselves. The next family, like, we hope that they'll never have to go through what we did. It's just such a hard process. her sister Joleen told Prime Time. During the programme, the Department of Foreign Affairs told Prime Time that Mr Varadkar met the McLaughlin family in 2018. The Department outlined how Irish officials in India, New Delhi, Mumbai and back home are actively engaged on this case and remain in regular contact with the family. On numerous occasions, officials have made clear to the appropriate authorities our interest in this case and our wish to see a timely and just conclusion. Just 8pc of workers are happy to be office-based five days a week. Photo: PA Half of workers would skip a pay rise if it meant they got a job that offers remote, hybrid or other flexible working arrangements. A new survey shows that workers doing hybrid work prefer two days in the office. Only 8pc are happy to be office-bound five days a week. The survey by recruitment company Morgan McKinley found that 92pc of workers have a strong preference to continue hybrid or remote working since the pandemic. Despite this, 56pc of companies globally and 42pc in Ireland are urging their staff to return to the office more regularly. Professionals with a hybrid working arrangement are the happiest with their work patterns. A total of 59pc of them said they are willing to forego pay rises for flexibility. The demand for flexible working is seen as important by 80pc of hiring managers when it comes to attracting and retaining talent. Stephen OBrien, managing director at Morgan McKinley, said the global workforce is still grappling with the ongoing debate surrounding hybrid work models four years after the pandemic. Simply mandating a five-day-a-week office presence would likely encounter resistance and productivity dips, he said. He said the companys research reveals a resounding preference for flexibility, with 86pc of those surveyed seeking the continued adoption of hybrid arrangements. Companies, therefore, need to implement a strategic and mindful approach to this remote rewind, he said. Striking the balance between flexibility and practicality calls for close collaboration through open communication channels and understanding the motivations driving employees desires for flexible work arrangements. He said this year will be pivotal in recognising whether organisations see flexibility as not just a perk but a fundamental aspect of workplace culture. The survey found that one to two days in the office is the favoured weekly working pattern for 47pc of professionals. Another 25pc want three to four days in the office. More than half of workers who work onsite five days a week are most actively looking for a new job in the next six months compared to hybrid and fully remote workers. Employers in Hong Kong, Australia, Japan, Singapore, and China are issuing return-to-office mandates at a much higher rate than UK, Canadian and Irish employers. COUNCIL crews with high-volume pumps are on standby across Cork and Kerry amid fears over 50mm of rainfall will hit the south west by lunchtime on Thursday. Met Eireann issued a Status Orange rainfall warning for both counties but stressed that the rain will occur as part of a 24-hour event and will not involve any torrential downpours. The alert will remain in place for Cork and Kerry until 12 noon on Thursday. Forecaster Michelle Dillon said that while a significant volume of rainfall is involved, it is not thought likely to generate a repeat of the damaging flooding suffered by parts of Midleton and east Cork last October. However, she warned that low-lying areas could see flooding and there was a risk of coastal flooding given the combination of rainfall, high tides and wave-overtopping. Kerry County Council, Cork City Council and Cork County Council all held meetings of their severe weather assessment teams. Parts of west Cork and Kerry are expected to receive over 50mm of rainfall in just 24 hours - while other parts of Cork will receive between 30mm and 50mm of rainfall. Both Gardai and the Road Safety Authority urged people to drive with care given the likelihood of challenging driving conditions and the risk of spot flooding on secondary roads. Water Safety Ireland urged people to be careful and to avoid streams and rivers which are close to flooding. Some mountain streams may pose a risk of flash-flooding given the large volumes of rain falling. Council crews are on standby across Cork and Kerry with high-volume pumps ready to be deployed to any flood-hit areas. Officials are also liaising with fire brigade, garda and other emergency services as well as utility providers such as the ESB and Uisce Eireann. "Motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists are advised to travel with caution and not to enter flooded areas," a Cork City Council spokesperson said. "Should flooding occur, diversions will be put in place to ensure traffic can still circulate safely. Road users are asked to plan their journeys to travel with caution and follow diversional signage, which is put in place for your safety." The council said it was carefully monitoring the situation given the potential aggravating factor of high astronomical tides this week. Cork County Council said it had crews on standby on all flood risk areas. While west Cork is expected to receive the heaviest rainfall, officials are carefully monitoring river levels in Midleton which was devastated by floods last October and suffered multi-million Euro damage. Midleton traders warned it was "beyond belief" that the booming east Cork town should be left at the mercy of floods with no hope of a flood defence scheme for several years. Cork County Council said all drains and culverts had been cleaned. "Persistent rain, accompanied by strong onshore winds, high tides, and elevated river levels may lead to flooding, wave overtopping and difficult driving conditions," a spokesperson warned. "This weather event is forecast to differ from other recent Status Orange rainfall events insofar as the rainfall intensity is expected to be moderate to steady; high intensity downpours are not expected. "Council crews are on standby in several known risk locations across the county. Crews are currently clearing inlets and gullies and pumping arrangements are being put in place as a precautionary measure in known problem locations. River levels will continue to be monitored." Met Eireann warned that the unsettled weather will persist throughout the St Patrick's weekend with the heaviest rain forecast for Thursday, Friday and Saturday. St Patrick's Day will open with mist and low clouds before sunny spells emerge. Parade-goers will see temperatures of up to 15 degrees and while some parades may enjoy dry conditions, there is a chance of persistent rain showers developing across the southwest throughout the course of the day. The early indications are that the Bank Holiday Monday will see overnight rain clear to sunshine before a further spell of prolonged rain is likely to move in from the Atlantic later in the day. My dad was a strong person so if this can happen to him, what else is happening? Martin Abbott's daughter on his death in University Hospital Limerick A Status Orange rain warning will come into effect for counties Cork and Kerry from midday, with flooding expected. Persistent rain in the region could turn heavy at times and will be accompanied by strong winds, high tides and elevated river levels. Cork County Council crews are on standby in several known risk locations across the county and pumping arrangements have been put in place in known problem locations for flooding. Cork City Council is continuing to monitor the situation as between 30mm to 35mm of rainfall is expected within 24 hours. A @MetEireann Status Orange Rain warning for Cork will come into effect tomorrow Wednesday the 13th of March from 12:00 noon and will remain in effect until 12:00 noon on Thursday the 14th of March. A Status Yellow Rain Warning is currently in place for Cork County in pic.twitter.com/A8bSJYxIYL Cork County Council (@Corkcoco) March 12, 2024 A Status Yellow rain warning is currently in place for both Cork and Kerry until 12pm, with a further Status Yellow rain warning for Waterford coming into effect from 12pm. Potential impacts include localised flooding, wave overtopping and difficult travelling conditions. The warnings will remain in place until 12pm. Were not expecting any very significant flooding across the city, we dont expect for example the River Lee or any of its key catchments in the River Bride or the Curraheen River to burst its banks, said David Joyce, the director of operations with Cork City Council. Were not expecting the usual suspects. Were not expecting the city centre to flood, which normally floods in tidal flooding conditions. Were not expecting the west of the city to flood, which would be a normal fluvial event coming out of the River Lee. He told RTEs Morning Ireland that while it is difficult to predict the locations and rates of flooding that could be seen, highly localised flooding can be expected and the drainage network should be able to handle it. Contingency plans are in place for the city and county with crews on standby throughout today and tomorrow, he said. We are not expecting this to be a significant flooding event across the city for the next 24 hours. We are expecting it to be a wet, miserable, dull, rainy day today and into tonight and into tomorrow. Motorists, cyclists and pedestrians have been urged to drive carefully and not drive, cycle or walk through floodwaters in the event of flooding and to instead take an alternative route. Localised flooding and difficult travel conditions are also anticipated for Kerry and Waterford. Elsewhere, it will remain cloudy and damp across the country with outbreaks of rain and drizzle that could turn heavy at times. There is a chance of flooding in the south and southwest of the country ahead of drier weather in the north and northwest of the country. Highest temperatures of 8 to 12 degrees are expected. Unusually high tides may lead to coastal wave overtopping. Further rain is expected overnight as lowest temperatures reach between 3 to 6 degrees in north Ulster but ranging from 7 to 10 degrees elsewhere. It will remain generally unsettled with rain and showers in the coming days, but there will be some dry and sunny weather at times. Friday will again begin damp, though brighter weather will extend from the west throughout the morning and afternoon. Maximum afternoon temperatures of 10 to 13 degrees in a moderate northwest breeze are expected. Temperatures will drop on Friday night, with lowest temperatures of -1 to 3 degrees expected. Saturday will see similar patches of rain as temperatures remain mild, with St Patricks Day on Sunday looking likely to clear into sunny spells and scattered showers. However, there is the chance of a spell of persistent rain developing in the southwest later, Met Eireann forecast. Highest temperatures of 12 to 15 degrees in a moderate southwest breeze are expected. THE Court of Appeal rejected a challenge by the Director of Public Prosecutions to the alleged leniency of a four year prison sentence handed to a former care assistant who robbed three post offices while armed with a knife in a desperate bid to raise cash to visit his girlfriend in the US. Fintan Tindley (49), a former healthcare worker who was sending money to an American woman he met online during the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown, was jailed for four years last year after he pleaded guilty to a number of charges arising from three post office robberies in Cork. Tindley of Loughmahon Avenue, Mahon, Cork had met the American woman online and had visited her twice in the US after taking loans of over 27,000. Tindley had travelled to the United States in 2022 where he first met his fiance whom he had first come in contact with online. The court heard that over the course of 12 months he sent the American woman a total of 19,000. A sentencing court heard Tindley was desperate to visit the American woman again. The DPP lodged an application with the Court of Appeal to challenge the sentence on the grounds it was excessively lenient. Paula McCarthy BL, for the State, told the court that the issue was not with the original headline sentence of nine years. However, it was argued that the trial judge had attached excessive weight to mitigating factors and reduced the sentence to the overly lenient level of four years in prison. "The overall reduction in mitigation was excessive and the resultant sentence was unduly lenient," she said. Judge Colin Daly at Cork Circuit Criminal Court imposed a total sentence of five years, with the last year suspended. Elizabeth O'Connell SC, for Tindley, opposed the application. She said the overall circumstances of the matter were very unusual. "It is such an unusual case," she said. "It enters the sphere of intuition - the (trial) judge did not get it wrong." She argued that her client had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity, had genuine remorse for his actions, had never been in trouble before, suffered from ADHD and was now an enhanced prisoner status in custody. When interviewed by Gardai and shown CCTV footage of one of the robberies, he broke down. "Something catastrophic happened in his life that was part of the mix," she said. Ms O'Connell argued that Tindley, who was a HSE worker, had made an enormous contribution to society before these events. He was living with his mother before the post office robberies. The court heard that the defendant regrets that the lady he was in a relationship with might in any way be tainted by the matter. The woman involved remains in regular contact with him as he serves his sentence. During the sentencing hearing, Gardai said that as well as the credit union and An Post loans, Tindley had also borrowed 3,000 from the widow of a man whom he had taken care of in the course of his work. It was also alleged that he received 4000 from another pensioner whom he had attended on during the course of his work The Court of Appeal heard that the robberies did not display great criminal sophistication - Tindley had parked his car across the road from the post office being robbed, he took off his face mask afterwards running the risk of him being identified and had robbed a post office where he was personally known by the post mistress. Within a short time of one of the robberies he had sent money by Western Union to the US. Today's News in 90 Seconds - March 13th Mr Justice Pat McCarthy dismissed the DPP application to challenge the sentence on the grounds of leniency. "The burden (of proof) is on the director. It seems to us the director has not shown as she must in this type of matter that the judge went outside the margin of discretion. "We are not satisfied that the director has discharged the burden of proof in this case." The three judge panel of the Court of Appeal formally rejected the application. Cork Circuit Criminal Court last year heard that Tindley carried out a robbery of South Douglas Road post office on November 11, 2022, attempted a robbery there on November 18, and robbed the Ballintemple post office on November 16 2022. Each time he grabbed an unsuspecting customer and placed a knife to their throat, making a death threat as he demanded cash from the postmistress. One customer was 72-years-old while the others were aged in their 40s. Judge Daly warned they were very serious offences. Culpability is high where he deliberately and intentionally disguised himself with a hat and mask and armed himself with a knife, he said. The three crimes were committed within a seven day period - a crime "spree" as described by the DPP. Two of those who had knives brandished to them said the incident contributed to their decisions to stop working. Detective Garda Kevin Motherway testified that at lunchtime on November 11, 2022, the accused entered South Douglas Road post office, placed a knife to the neck of a 72-year-old customer and shouted at the postmistress: Give me all the money. Some 2,380 was robbed from the post office that day. Five days later he turned up shortly before noon at Ballintemple post office and placed a knife to the neck of a 44-year-old woman who was there to post a parcel. On this occasion, he demanded 15,000. The customer was in fear that she was going to be injured or killed. The defendant left with 1,300. He returned to the South Douglas Road post office and grabbed a 45-year-old woman and again threatened her with a knife as he demanded 15,000 but he fled when the postmistress sounded the panic alarm. On that occasion, the customer feared she was going to be stabbed or seriously harmed. When CCTV was examined, the accused was seen waiting across the road for up to two hours before entering a post office. During the investigation, it was found that Tindley had identified nine post offices in Cork around the time he committed the offences at two premises. The sentencing hearing was told the crimes were totally out of character with Tindley having worked for over a decade as a HSE home care assistant. Ms O'Connell said there was an unusual degree of disconnect between these violent offences and the offender. Measles is on the rise what do you need to know? A fourth case of measles has been confirmed in Ireland this year. It follows three other cases in recent weeks including one involving a man in Westmeath in his forties who tragically died after picking up the virus in the UK. A teenager in the west of Ireland was diagnosed last week and a passenger on a flight to Dublin was also confirmed to be infected. The circumstances of the latest case are not known. The case is not believed to be linked to the public health alert following the discovery an airline passenger had the virus during a flight lasting more than eight hours. It means that the equivalent of cases of measles reported during the whole of 2023 has been reached so far this year. A public health alert was issued yesterday after a passenger who was on a flight from Abu Dhabi to Dublin on Saturday was found to be infectious. The HSE asked pregnant women, people who are immunocompromised and parents who had children on board aged under one year of age to come forward. The latest infectious disease report from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre said the fourth case was reported today. There were five possible cases of measles reported last week with one confirmed case. Asked if any of the airline passengers came forward a spokes person for the HSE said it was not possible to say due to privacy. The HSE said: Departments of Public Health respond to notified cases of infectious diseases and undertake a risk assessment of the situation. Appropriate investigations are undertaken and control measures are put in place. The scope of any public messaging will be determined by Public Health assessments. The HSE cannot comment on the specifics of these measures to protect the privacy and confidentiality of the people involved. Public Health is managing this incident according to national guidelines, including contact tracing and other appropriate measures. HSE Public Health teams have worked with Etihad Airways to contact passengers on this flight. Gardai in Tallaght are seeking the public's assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 42-year-old Ram Rijal. Ram has been missing from his home in Deerpark, Tallaght, since Tuesday, March 12. Ram is described as being 5ft 7 inches tall, with a slim build and black hair. His family is deeply concerned for his safety and wellbeing, and they are anxious to make contact with him. Anyone with any information on Rams whereabouts is asked to contact Tallaght Garda Station on 01 666 6000, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station. The US-Ireland Alliance has announced it is pausing the George Mitchell scholarship programme, as the lack of funding has put its future in question. The organisation said it had decided to pause the prestigious scheme named after the US senator who was one of the architects of the Northern Ireland peace process and the Good Friday Agreement, as it considers the long-term sustainability of the scholarship. The programme sends 12 American students to study at Irish and Northern Irish Universities each year. Alliance founder Trina Y Vargo said the programme was seeking millions in funding in order to make is sustainable, while she also criticised the lack of response from both the Irish Government and the Biden administration to an appeal for more financial support. The Mitchell Scholarship class of 2025 will proceed as planned and students will start studying in Ireland and Northern Ireland this autumn. However, the class of 2026 will not be selected. The scholarship was founded 25 years ago by Ms Vargo, following the signing of the Good Friday Agreement. The Irish Government matches donor funding for the scholars up to $21 million but does not fully fund the programme. When asked why the Irish Government would not fund the program fully, Ms Vargo said: You would have to ask the Taoiseach or the Tanaiste. Ms Vargo said the alliance has not received a response in two years to requests for more funding from the Irish Government. We have raised this with them for at least the last two years but have received no reply, she said in a Q&A video posted on the US-Ireland Alliance website. "Senator Mitchell also raised this when he was in Ireland in September, and they made no commitment to him either. We get no sense that they care if the Mitchell continues. This scholarship is the only such scholarship that sends future American leaders to the island of Ireland, Ms Vargo added. "If the Mitchell ceases to exist, those Scholars are going to Oxford and Cambridge instead. Finally, much has been written lately about Ireland needing to attract international talent. "The Mitchell is an avenue for that and, with appropriate funding and strategizing, could play an even more important role on that front. Ms Vargo added that the organisation has also sought the support of President Biden for more than two years and has never received a reply. I fear that the US foreign policy pivot to Asia has been at the expense of Ireland and Western Europe, she said. The minimum endowment the Alliance would need to sustain the Mitchell Scholarship for the long-term would be $40 million, she said. The Irish Government has committed to match any funds raised for this purpose up to $21 million. The support weve enjoyed for the last 25 years is very much appreciated and necessary, but unfortunately, its not sufficient, said Ms Vargo. Hence the need for a bridge to the future, which an endowment will provide. The Department of Higher Education told the Irish Independent that the Government agreed to a year extension to the George Mitchell Scholarship in February. The George Mitchell Scholarship Programme is an important strand in the Ireland-US relationship and marks the significant role that Senator Mitchell has played in the Peace Process, a Department spokesperson said. The Government agreed at that juncture there was a need for long-term, sustainable funding for the scholarship. The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science is currently examining this as part of a wider review of international scholarships under the Global Citizens 2030 strategy. This will be concluded in the near future, the spokesperson added. The Taoiseachs department and the Tanaistes department have been contacted for comment. The Government has an entire stand at a US military-sponsored event and paid another $8,000 on top of that for the panel discussion involving Media Minister Catherine Martin. It comes as Minister Martin will not boycott events linked to the SXSW music festival in the US - despite a number of Irish artists pulling out over the ongoing Middle East conflict. Ms Martin is to attend a number of events, some of which form part of the SXSW festival, in Austin, Texas on Wednesday as part of the Government's St Patricks Day programme A number of Irish acts who had been scheduled to appear at the festival have cancelled, citing its association with the US military and the ongoing Israeli offensive in Gaza. They include Kneecap, Gavin James, Soda Blonde and Mick Flannery. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar says "its not Irish government policy to boycott events" in response to the South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival A spokesperson for the Media department said: "Ireland House at SXSW is a collaboration between Irelands Consulates in Austin, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, Culture Ireland, Screen Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Tourism Ireland and Music from Ireland, as well as the Department of Foreign Affairs. "The programme of events at Ireland House will include a panel discussion on Basic Income for the Arts, in respect of which the Department paid $8,000, the standard registration fee for a panel discussion at SXSW. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar backed Ms Martins decision to speak at the festival. Speaking in Boston, Mr Varadkar said he had not spoken to the Tourism Minister but said the Government does not engage in boycotts. I fully appreciate that people have the right to boycott events should they choose to and I totally respect that but it's not the policy of the Irish governments to engage in boycotts, the Taoiseach said. It's one thing to exclude a country from an event or from a competition or from a sporting event or you know, film festival, for example. It's another thing to exclude yourself because they weren't excluded and it's not our policy to boycott. It's our policy to engage. With Ms Martin facing similar calls to pull out, a spokesperson for her department said the minister spoke to many of the musicians who have withdrawn from the SXSW Festival this morning. She outlined that she has the utmost respect for their freedom of expression as artists and reassured them that she will use every opportunity available to her to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza, the Department of Media spokesperson said. They went on to say that the events the Green Party deputy leader will attend are aimed at promoting Ireland's creative industries through a trade mission led by Enterprise Ireland and a comprehensive promotion of Irelands film industry. The spokesperson added: They are taking place in collaboration with Irelands consulates in Austin, Los Angeles and San Francisco, as well as the Department of Foreign Affairs, Culture Ireland, Screen Ireland, IDA, Tourism Ireland and Music from Ireland. "In addition, the Minister will be engaging with young Irish business professionals and the wider diaspora in the region. This includes the St Patricks Day consular reception in Austin on Tuesday where, the spokesperson claimed, she will outline the Irish Governments calls for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and a massive and sustained increase in humanitarian aid, food and medicine to the people of Gaza. Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns earlier called on the minister to boycott the festival, saying Irish artists who had cancelled shows did so at significant financial cost because they did not want their work tainted by association with the US military industrial complex. She added: "It is wholly inappropriate for Minister Catherine Martin to attend the festival as part of her St Patricks Week visit to the United States." HSE suffers IT glitch that leaves data of more than one million people vulnerable to hackers The HSE suffered an IT glitch that weakened security around the vaccination details of more than one million people, the agency has admitted. The organisation misconfigured a Covid-related database in December of 2021, a spokesperson said, opening the details of more than a million people up to potential exploitation. In a statement, the health body said no personal data was accessed by hackers or malicious parties. However, it did not report the issue to the Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), which was made aware of the data lapse this week by the Irish Independent and is now examining the issue. If the DPC determines that a data breach occurred, it could open an investigation into the breach itself and why a breach notice was not made. The initial security lapse was spotted by an external security researcher, Aaron Costello, who says the IT glitch allowed third parties to access personal information about vaccinated citizens. In a statement, Mr Costello said the IT vulnerability allowed individuals to access sensitive personal identifiable information and protected health information of other registrants, as well as internal Health Service Executive documents. In a statement, the HSE said it fixed the IT glitch soon after being made aware of the issue by Mr Costello, although it did not say how long the vulnerability had existed. The security lapse occurred just months after the calamitous IT security attack on the HSE, which disrupted the national healthcare system, cost the taxpayer more than 100m and forced Ireland to rethink its standards in national cybersecurity. The HSE has blamed time pressure to get Irelands Covax Covid-19 registration database up and running for the security lapse. The Covax system, which the HSE says is at the centre of the glitch, is an electronic dataset that records Covid-19 vaccinations for all residents in the State. According to the HSE, it also assists in the planning of vaccination clinics as well as being used for statistical and activity analysis. Security considerations were at the forefront of the Covax deployment, however when a system of this nature is put together under time pressure, as was the case as we established the Covid-19 vaccination campaign, misconfigurations can occur, a spokesperson said. In this case, an external source pointed out one misconfiguration which would have required deep technical expertise to exploit. Apart from the source who informed us of this issue, there was no unauthorised accessing or viewing of this data. The spokesperson also said the data accessed by Mr Costello was insufficient to identify any person without additional data fields being exposed and, in these circumstances, it was determined that a Personal Data Breach report to the Data Protection Commission was not required. However, Mr Costello, a security researcher for cybersecurity firm AppOmni, said he was able to access enough information to regard it as a serious security vulnerability and express disappointment that the HSE did not disclose the lapse to other authorities. Ian Horgan attacked a man and his mother in their home in March 2022 A convicted killer and rapist had his sentence for a claw-hammer attack on a mother and son increased by almost three years after a challenge by the DPP at the Court of Appeal. Ian Horgan (40) had his original sentence of eight years and six months increased to 11 years and three months by appeal judges. Horgan attacked a man and his mother in their home with a claw hammer in March 2022 then filmed the blood-soaked pair before posting it on a social media site with another video from a Cork park captioned Lovely Day. Last year at Cork Circuit Criminal Court Horgan was handed a nine-year prison sentence, with six months suspended, for assaults causing harm. One victim described the attack as akin to something from "a horror movie" and "a blood bath. But the Court of Appeal was told the DPP was challenging the sentence as unduly lenient given the severity of the attack and Horgan's history of violent offences. It was also queried whether the prospect of consecutive sentences should have been considered by the trial judge such was the severity and violent nature of the attack on the mother and son. In increasing the sentence to 11 years and three months, the Court of Appeal judges said there was "no merit in suspending any portion of the sentence. Appeal judges noted Horgan's previous convictions including rape, manslaughter and robbery. Horgan was described as having "a long history of extremely violent offending" and has already spent almost 18 of his 40 years in prison. He was convicted of the manslaughter and rape of Co Cork beautician Rachel Kiely, who was 22. Horgan had originally been convicted of her murder, but that conviction was quashed on appeal. He was just 16 when he killed her and was eventually handed a 12-year prison term. Horgan had attacked Ms Kiely while she was out walking the family dog in a Ballincollig Park in October 2000. Separately Horgan was jailed for eight years for an armed robbery on a rural Cork post office in September 2005 with the offence occurring while he was awaiting retrial on the Kiely killing. He used a slash-hook to terrify the postmaster and his wife before threatening their son with the weapon. All three were locked in the kitchen of the property before Horgan fled with 1,500 and Lotto cards. Concerning the claw-hammer attack in March 2022, Mr Justice George Birmingham, president of the Court of Appeal, said the assault causing harm convictions were very serious. "In terms of a Section 4 [assault causing harm], it is hard to envisage cases that are much worse," he said. "It is hard to imagine worse circumstances." Mr Justice John Edwards noted Horgan's long history of violent offending. Donal O'Sullivan, for the DPP, said it was "the luck of God we are not dealing with a murder case" in respect of the consequences of the claw-hammer attacks. The DPP asked the court to consider whether the trial judge should have considered consecutive sentences given the severity of the offences involved. Jim O'Mahony SC, for Horgan, acknowledged it was "a bad case of assault. But he said the eight-and-a-half-year sentence imposed was not unduly lenient and the trial judge had gone to great lengths to explain the sentencing decision. He also noted his client's plea had saved the State enormous time and effort with more than 70 gardai involved in the investigation. "The onus is on the appellant to show that there was undue leniency," he said. At Cork Circuit Criminal Court last year, Judge Helen Boyle said Horgan was guilty of "a particularly cowardly assault" with a number of aggravating features and that had appalling consequences for the victims. Horgan did not personally know either victim, Mary O'Callaghan, or her son Hassan Baker (30). However, Horgan's then girlfriend had been in a previous relationship with Mr Baker. After the attack, Horgan sent a video-clip of a blood-soaked and moaning Mr Baker to his girlfriend. Cork Circuit Criminal Court had heard how, in a series of social media messages later recovered by gardai, Horgan texted his girlfriend from a Cork city park that his knuckles were sore and that he was "washing the blood off." "I destroyed him. He won't be acting the hard man ever again," he texted. Det Supt Michael Comyns said Horgan had travelled from his home in Macroom to Cork city that day by bus. He had brought a bag with him containing a change of clothing and the claw hammer and was captured by CCTV cameras as he travelled to his victims home. He walked to an area near MacCurtain Villas where the victims lived and went to a derelict shed where he changed into clothing including a black hoodie and snood to cover his face. Horgan, of no fixed address but formerly of The Hermitage, Macroom, Co Cork, had pleaded guilty to assault causing serious harm to Mr Baker at MacCurtain Villas on March 26, 2022. He had also pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to Mrs O'Callaghan. Exclusive | They said I was going to be safe, it was going to be fun and Id probably win it Louis Walsh talks about his 1m stint on Big Brother Passengers would have gone on to connecting flights to Europe or could have mingled in Dublin Airport Measles is on the rise what do you need to know? Passengers on a flight to Dublin, at the centre of a public health alert, were left at risk of a highly contagious passenger with measles for more than eight hours, it emerged last night. The HSE is asking the most vulnerable passengers on Etihad Airways flight EY45 from Abu Dhabi to Dublin, which arrived on Saturday last at 6:30am, to contact them urgently. Records show a flight journey of more than eight hours. The most concern is for pregnant women, the immunocompromised and unvaccinated children under the age of one, who were on board. They should contact HSELive at 1800 700 700, or 00 353 1 240 8787 if calling from outside of Ireland, urgently because they may need to have treatment, such as a measles antibodies injection. The alert follows confirmation the infected passenger was the third case of measles in Ireland this year. A man in his late 40s from Westmeath, who caught the virus in Birmingham, died in February and a teenager from the west of Ireland was confirmed as having measles last week. The HSE has advised all passengers on the flight to be aware of the signs and symptoms of measles until Saturday, March 30, which is 21 days from the time of possible exposure. Abu Dhabi is a hub and its airport is a gateway for people travelling from the Middle East and Africa as well as South Asia. It is unclear if the person on board the flight to Dublin had flown from another country. Some passengers on the plane to Dublin would have gone on to connecting flights to parts of Europe, which widens the risk of infection being passed on, while they could also have mingled in Dublin Airport. Ireland is at risk of measles outbreaks because vaccination rates with the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) have fallen below 90pc and there are pockets of young people who have missed out on the two jabs. Measles is on the rise in Europe and in the US and the influx of tourists and participants in St Patricks Festival activities heightens the risk, along with families from this country going abroad for Easter. The Centre for Disease Control in the US warns that people who are not immunised have a 90pc chance of becoming infected if they are exposed to the virus. Signs and symptoms of measles include a runny nose, sneezing and a cough, sore red eyes, a temperature of 38C or above and a rash which usually appears on the head and neck first and spreads to the rest of the body. If anyone has these symptoms and if illness develops, they should stay at home in a separate room, and seek healthcare advice. The HSE warned that anyone with further travel arrangements should not travel if they are experiencing the above symptoms, but should seek medical advice. The HSE will roll out a proactive MMR vaccine catch-up programme in the coming weeks, in response to a rise in measles cases in the UK and Europe. Fine Gael senators attack Fianna Fails Lisa Chambers who canvassed for Yes but changed her mind The Coalition has been plunged into further crisis in the fallout from its failed referendums as Fine Gael senators publicly attacked Seanad leader Lisa Chambers and yet more government politicians admitted voting No. Two Fine Gael senators, Mary Seery-Kearney and Regina Doherty, the partys European election candidate in Dublin, launched scathing attacks on Ms Chambers, the Fianna Fail senator and European election candidate in Midlands North West, after she admitted canvassing for two Yes votes in the family and care referendums but then voting No. Meanwhile, two Fine Gael senators privately admitted voting No last week. They didnt vote last Friday, instead flying to London for Irelands Six Nations match It comes as former cabinet minister Eamon O Cuiv became the latest Fianna Fail TD to confirm he voted No in both referendums, describing their wording as bizarre. This came on the day that another two Fine Gael senators, John McGahon and Garret Ahearn, admitted to the Irish Independent they didnt vote last Friday, instead flying to London for Irelands Six Nations clash with England the following day. Mr McGahon said it was a brilliant experience, despite the result, adding: The flight was booked long before the writ for the referenda had been moved. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar yesterday defended their decision to travel to Twickenham rather than vote, saying he is not their mammy and will not tell his party members what to do with their weekends. Perhaps it was a trip that was organised long before polling day was set, I honestly dont know, he said. He also said he absolutely has confidence in Ms Chambers despite her campaigning for a Yes-Yes vote in the referendums but voting No-No. Mr Varadkar said he has to be respectful of the fact she is a Fianna Fail politician and he didnt see whats to be gained by claiming to be on the winning side after a vote. Five Fianna Fail politicians have now said they voted No in one or both referendums. Photo: Leah Farrell Doubts are now being raised by some in Fine Gael as to whether Ms Chambers, a Fianna Fail European election candidate, can continue as government leader in the upper house after her dramatic U-turn. As the post-referendum recriminations continued, Ms Seery-Kearney said there were serious questions to be asked about Ms Chamberss judgement. She was in charge of the guillotine [of the referendum legislation] in the Seanad, she was out campaigning for a Yes and then came out afterwards, after the people have said No, and says she voted No! she said. She is only being honest, but its not a great look. Is Lisa going to vote for herself in the European Election, or will she change her mind at the last minute? The voters in that constituency need absolute clarity. Meanwhile, Ms Doherty, who is the Governments deputy leader in the Seanad, said of Ms Chambers: If she changed her mind, she should have told us on the day or the day before [the referendums]. Afterwards, it looks like youre disingenuous or I cant trust your word. She is only being honest, but its not a great look. Im not their mammy Taoiseach says hes not responsible for Fine Gael senators who went to Ireland rugby match instead of voting in referendums A third Fine Gael senator privately questioned whether Ms Chambers could continue as government leader in the Seanad. She is going to have to be removed, they said. But others downplayed the prospect of removing the Mayo-based senator, who did not respond to a request for comment. She said earlier this week she voted No in both referendums because she could not support the removal of the word mother from the Constitution and had concerns over the legal consequences. She had been pictured on Fianna Fail social media accounts canvassing for Yes in February. Meanwhile, a Fine Gael senator, who declined to go on the record, said they voted no in both referendums last Friday. I wasnt happy with the explanations I was getting. Durable relationship wasnt explained well enough at all, they said. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar with Fine Gael Senator Mary Seery-Kearney, who has criticised Fianna Fail senator Lisa Chambers for canvassing for Yes votes and then voting No. Photo: Colin Keegan Another Fine Gael senator, who also declined to be named, said they voted No in the care referendum: I had concerns about it and as it came closer, Ill be honest, it didnt sit comfortably with me on a personal level, they said. Four Fianna Fail politicians, including Mr O Cuiv, Ms Chambers, Limerick TD Willie ODea and Cavan-Monaghan deputy Niamh Smyth have now said they voted No in one or both referendums. Carlow-Kilkenny backbencher John McGuinness had said before the referendums that he would be voting No. A Fianna Fail source said there was no suggestion TDs or senators who voted against the party position face losing the whip, but added any complaint against them would be considered. A senior party figure said Tanaiste Micheal Martin had no plans to discuss with Ms Chambers her canvassing for Yes but voting No. Dee Ryan, the former chief executive of Limerick Chamber, was confirmed as Fianna Fails candidate for the countrys first ever directly-elected mayor contest in Limerick last Monday where she was pictured alongside Mr Martin Tanaiste and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin in Limerick as he announced Dee Ryan as party candidate for directly elected Mayor of Limerick. Photo: Arthur Ellis. Fianna Fails candidate for Limerick mayor is a former Fine Gael member who previously described Tanaiste Micheal Martin as not a leader and posted a slew of comments criticising her new party on social media. Dee Ryan, the former chief executive of Limerick Chamber, was confirmed as Fianna Fails candidate for the countrys first ever directly-elected mayor contest in Limerick last Monday where she was pictured alongside Mr Martin. Ms Ryan, who resigned from the chamber of commerce to contest the mayoral election this June, was, however, a strong supporter of Fine Gael in the run-up to and after the 2016 general election, according to her social media activity. It is understood she is a former member of Fine Gael and was also previously a member of Labour. She frequently posted comments on Twitter, now X, criticising Mr Martin, his party and senior Fianna Fail figures in 2016 and 2017 whilst at the same time expressing support for Leo Varadkar. In a statement on Wednesday, Ms Ryan said she has been a member of other political parties, without specifying which ones. She said that she was unafraid to speak my mind, but added that her views had evolved and that her opinion of Mr Martin and Fianna Fail could not be more positive. Tanaiste and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin in Limerick as he announced Dee Ryan as party candidate for directly elected Mayor of Limerick. Photo: Arthur Ellis. Screenshots of posts on Twitter, now X, seen by the Irish Independent show that in 2015 Ms Ryan posted a blurry picture of her and Mr Varadkar, the then health minister, at Electric Picnic with the caption: Look who I bumped into at the bar last night and the hashtag #verytallinreallife. Ms Ryan also tweeted from the Fine Gael ard fheis in January 2016, including a post quoting Simon Harris saying that Fianna Fail royally failed the Irish people. During the same event she reposted a quote from Paschal Donohoes speech in which the then transport minister said: Fianna Fail would wreck the very recovery that they said would never happen. Dee Ryan when she was chief executive of Limerick Chamber of Commerce. Photo: Oisin McHugh/True Media Ms Ryan also reposted a number of tweets criticising Micheal Martin and Fianna Fail, during the 2016 general election leaders debate on RTE Prime Time, including one from Young Fine Gael which said Mr Martin sat around the cabinet table when the Irish economy was destroyed. Other comments Ms Ryan reposted included one which labelled Mr Martin deluded for saying he left the health service in a good state and a post from Fine Gael saying the Fianna Fail leader created the HSE, failed to tackle overcrowding and then handed over the Department to Mary Harney. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin and Limerick mayoral candidate Dee Ryan She later posted that the then taoiseach and Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny was #amazeballs in the same TV debate and in another post said: EK had facts & figures at fingertips & was #rockofsense M.Martin sooo #notaleader. In another post from the election campaign, Ms Ryan said she found it deeply worrying that Mr Martin thinks he shud (sic) tell girls & women how to handle personal & difficult decisions. In another post in March 2016 referring to Darragh OBrien, the current Housing Minister, she posted: Cringing at the schoolyard conduct of @SenDOBrien on @SaturdayRTE Is this what were in for now that @fiannafailparty are feeling confident? In another post that same month, Ms Ryan referred to Fianna Fail as the Jedi-mind-trickers of the political world #thesearenotthechargesyouhate In May 2017 she tweeted a picture of herself and Mr Varadkar during his Fine Gael leadership campaign wishing him best of luck in the final leadership hustings. In another post from May 2017, she said of the partys current Midlands North West European election candidate: More Barry Cowen criticising Govt work cleaning up #FiannaFail mess. Its easier to criticise than find solutions, opp suits FF, she wrote on X in May 2017. In a statement, Ms Ryan said: My opinion of Fianna Fail and Tanaiste Micheal Martin, particularly through his leadership, today could not be more positive. Ive been very impressed by his and the partys strong leadership since re-entering government four years ago, not least in guiding the country through the challenging pandemic. When it came to my candidacy for Mayor I felt Fianna Fail with party values of fairness and equity, was the best fit for me. As Taoiseach and now Tanaiste, Micheal Martin has presided over a government that not alone maintained economic stability but returned the country to remarkable growth, albeit with much still to do and, moreover, with an appetite to do it. I am passionate about politics and have been for many years and Ive been a member of other political parties, but my opinions have been my own and Ive no difficulty in saying that they have evolved. I remain unafraid to speak my mind and if the people of Limerick choose to do me the honour of electing me as their Mayor, I can assure them that I will be a strong voice in pursuit of our shared agenda to make Limerick a better place for all its citizens. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel, Washington, DC, during his visit to the US for St Patrick's Day. Photo: PA/Niall Carson. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said Sinn Fein will make Ireland broke again if they are elected into office. Speaking ahead of an Ireland Fund gala dinner in Washington DC, the Taoiseach said he was looking forward to speaking with Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle ONeill. However, he said he is still opposed to going into government with Sinn Fein. He said he is willing to cooperate with Sinn Fein on issues relating to Northern Ireland but said entering into a coalition with Mary Lou McDonalds party in the Republic will not happen while he is Fine Gael leader. I firmly believe that Sinn Fein will make Ireland broke again if they pursue their economic and trade policies, he said. I know they're telling one thing to business leaders but they tell a very different thing to the Irish people, he added. Mr Varadkar also took issue with Sinn Feins foreign policies which he said will turn our friends into enemies. He said Sinn Feins support of separatists in Spain along with support for Cuba and Venezuela could cause Ireland problems with other allies. He said the party is already making an enemy of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen by seeking to veto her reappointment. He said Sinn Fein are very quiet in the United States about their foreign policy and their support for certain regimes. I think a lot of countries that are friends of ours at the moment will be turned into enemies, he added. Mr Varadkar also described as unhelpful Sinn Feins demand for a border poll. He said the Good Friday Agreement sets out a pathway for unity when it becomes clear that the majority of people in the North and South are in favour of unification. The majority of people in Northern Ireland in particular don't want unification at this time. I think pressing for that and calling for that actually makes it harder for the Good Friday Agreement institutions to work, he said. He said recent research showed 20pc of people come from a Catholic background in Northern Ireland want to remain in United Kingdom but only 4pc of people who come from Protestant background want unification If we're ever going to have unification we need more people from a Protestant background, more people who don't identify as Protestant or Catholic, considering unification and I think be an approach actually puts them off, he said. Around 105,000 passengers are expected to travel through Dublin Airport today as the Bank Holiday begins, with Dublin Airport reminding passengers to arrive at their terminal two hours before a short-haul flight and three hours prior to a long-haul flight. The busy week began with thousands of Irish fans travelling to Cheltenham Racing Festival and will culminate with the arrival of thousands of tourists for St Patricks Day and the homecoming of Oscar winner Cillian Murphy. Passengers planning to travel over the coming days are advised to consider how they will get to and from Dublin Airport and are encouraged to travel by bus where possible. The demand for the parking is high, particularly in the short-term car park, and passengers are asked to book as far in advance as possible to ensure best rates and availability. The team at Dublin Airport is ready to facilitate it all over the coming days, from the arrival home of Oscar winner Cillian Murphy, to the arrival of hundreds of thousands of tourists for St Patrick's Day, said media relations manager Graeme McQueen. "Cheltenham is always a popular destination for Irish racing fans at this time of year and this year is no different, with flights to airports in southern England set to be very busy over the coming days, he said. "The influx of tourists ahead of St Patrick's Day will pick up pace from Thursday onwards, with around 183,000 people set to fly into Dublin Airport between Thursday and Sunday ahead of St Patricks Day itself. "Joining them will be around 5,000 Scottish rugby fans coming to Dublin for the final Six Nations rugby match at the Aviva, as well as the many thousands who will avail of the long bank holiday weekend to go on a city break or spring holiday, he added. Stardust campaigner Antonette Keegan signs the book of condolences for Charlie Bird at the Mansion House in Dublin. Photo: Stephen Collins Members of the Stardust Disaster Campaign have said journalist Charlie Bird now joins the 48 angels who died in the 1981 blaze. Remembering the broadcaster who had reported extensively on the Dublin nightclub fire and later championed their cause, Stardust survivor Antoinette Keegan said she was privileged and honoured to have had such a great friend as Mr Bird in her life. As the new inquests into the deaths at the Valentines Day disco reach their conclusion, the Stardust families always felt they had an ally in Mr Bird and his dedication to them even after he retired from RTE. The one thing that sticks out in my mind was that Charlie was the first journalist at the Stardust on February 14, 1981, Ms Keegan said. "And when we had our candlelight vigil on February 10 this year, as sick as he was, both Charlie and [his wife] Claire made their way there, and Claire wheeled Charlie back onto the site of the Stardust disaster, where he brought his biggest story worldwide of the biggest disaster in the history of the State. Charlie not only became friends with my family over the years, he got to know the 45 families of the Stardust disaster who lost a loved one in the tragedy. He was a gentleman, a brilliant journalist, and always so supportive. Over the years in our campaigns fighting for truth and justice, we had so many let-downs. Each time we thought we were going to get justice for our loved ones, we were left with huge disappointment. I always recall Charlie's words. He was always so supportive, stood tall for justice, and would say simple words like never give up and keep fighting and one day you will get the answers you waited so long for. While we hope and pray we get the answers shortly through the new inquest, we know Charlie, my mum, my dad and the 48 angels will guide us to the truth once and for all. Mr Bird, who was 74, died on Monday at Wicklow Hospice with his family at his side. Frances and Eamonn Mooney sign the book of condolence. Photo: Steve Humphreys Meanwhile, people who felt an affinity for Mr Bird, whether through his work as a journalist or through his bravery and honesty in dealing with motor neurone disease (MND), have been signing a book of condolence at Dublins Mansion House. Frances and Eamonn Mooney, from Tullamore, Co Offaly, said Mr Bird had been a great reporter that people grew up with on RTE. Youd always listen when you heard Charlie Bird I think it was his distinctive voice, Ms Mooney said. Mr Mooney said: He was a real reporter. I remember him covering the Dublin riots back in the 1990s and someone throwing bricks at him. It brought it home to you what he was doing. He was sticking his neck out and putting it on the line. Anthony Devlin signs the book of condolence. Photo: Steve Humphreys Anthony Devlin travelled from Raheny in north Dublin to the Mansion House. Charlies name is synonymous with the news, he said. I was reared to treat other people how you would like to be treated, and Charlie Bird came across in that manner where he reported stories as they were, sometimes not good news, but he reported it fairly, honestly, and in a manner that would kind of catch your attention, with a bit of compassion. He said Mr Bird handled his diagnosis in a way that struck a balance between living his life and working to raise awareness of the illness. His name is synonymous with news and reporting and decency, and as I wrote in the book he will always be remembered and was a really nice man. For Rachel Kiely, from Blackrock, Co Dublin, it was his work to raise awareness of MND that motivated her to express her own condolences, something that stirred her emotionally. My partner had MND, she said. He had it for five years, and he passed in 2006. So I'm very much aware of MND, and through Charlie now everybody is aware of it and what a cruel, cruel, illnesses it is. Charlies colleague Colm Murray had MND as well, and to see him on RTE I could recognise the signs of it, like his hands. So then with Charlie, when I heard that news, it was just so sad. MND is just so horrific. Your mind is still perfect, but communication becomes a problem. It was the same with my partner, his voice went. For people who are so sociable, and with Charlie's work as a broadcaster, his voice was everything. Coverage of MND is just super now, thanks to Charlie. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland has "eased off" as new limited supports are to be offered for those arriving in the country Ukrainian refugees flee through Poland at the start of the war The Governments offer of State accommodation for arriving Ukrainians is to be limited to 90 days from Thursday. The decision was approved at Cabinet in January and legislation was passed last week. Under the revised plan, Ukrainian refugees will be provided with accommodation for a maximum of 90 days and will be provided with food, laundry and integration support in Designated Accommodation Centres. Their allowance will be reduced from 232 to 38.80 per week while living in Designated Accommodation Centres. They will still have access to child benefit and additional needs payments if they meet eligibility requirements. They will also be required to engage with the States employment service. Once they leave the centres, they will be able to apply for social welfare and look to source their own accommodation. The Department said the first five centres to be confirmed under the new legislation are: Ballyogan Road in Dublin City, which can house 392 people; Stradbally in Co Laois, where 950 can be housed; Fernbank in Limerick City for 250 people; Punchestown in Co Kildare where 378 can be housed; and Gerald Griffin Street in Cork City for housing 107 people. The Government said its current offering was unsustainable and changes were needed to meet obligations to future arrivals. It has said the changes being made will bring Irelands provision for Ukrainians in line with other EU countries. The changes will not affect people from Ukraine who arrived in Ireland before this policy came into force and are already registered for temporary protection, nor other asylum seekers. Emma Lane-Spollen, national coordinator of the Ukraine Civil Society Forum, told the News at One on RTE Radio One: It'll be a very significant change because up to now, people who were fleeing the war from Ukraine, were treated as Irish citizens. They would be accommodated where the State had availability in hotels, guest houses and others. And they would have entitlement to Jobseekers (Allowance) or pension, or whatever was appropriate and they would have the right to travel and all sorts of things This is now a fundamental shift and now they will have a set 90 days in a designated accommodation centre and they will, rather than having Jobseekers, have an allowance of 38.80 for an adult and 29.80 for a child. And within that 90 days, theyll be expected to find employment, find somewhere to live and after 90 days, theres supposed to be a firm, youre now moving on, youre evicted. I understand the pledges and hosting has been really positive. The Irish public have been quite extraordinary. I think there are over 21,000 people hosted or in pledge accommodation, so far. That's phenomenal. This is the only lifeline people in the 90 day scenario have. its crazy, as it's not a long term solution. The reliance on the Irish public is the only way out of the designated accommodation centres, as the State is washing their hands. The biggest two reasons people come to Ireland is the distance to Ukraine and the English language. Accommodation is a fantastic thing we've been offering, (though) not totally from the generosity of our hearts. Its because we don't have a rental market that other European countries have. People are limited to stand on their own feet, as we are in a housing crisis. That's why the State has been loathe to take people out of hotels, as they don't want to put pressure on the housing market. She said the changes being made are a policy of deterrence and there was no other practical intention of this being implemented. Anetoliy Prymakov, from Ukrainian Action In Ireland, told RTE: It's going to be eviction. So, we have to see how thats going to manifest. The absolute worst fear is that we will see people on the streets, that were going to see shanty towns, were going to see very unpleasant and unimaginable scenes, if thats the case. And that is the worst case scenario. Hopefully that doesn't happen. The accommodation market is very tough at the moment. Youre locating people in Dublin, Limerick and Cork. Those areas will be generally easier, even in the current climate, somewhat easier to find accommodation for the majority of people than the other centres in, for example, Stradbally or Punchestown. Not to mention the fact that some centres will have more opportunities, in terms of finding work, as well. So, for example, if we take a person, even without kids - a single person that arrives - (and stays)... in Dublin, after weeks, they have 500 to their name, they are expected to somehow find accommodation, pay the first months deposit and rent and find work, over a language barrier, over a lot of barriers. Is that impossible, it might be possible - but its certainly very difficult and I think it might be pretty much impossible for people with children. First and foremost we hope there won't be any homeless, but we'd like the Government to address homelessness and housing, as a national issue. He called for political will to make meaningful changes, on housing for Ukrainian refugees and all refugees and to resolve the housing situation for all people in Ireland, not just refugees and Ukrainians. Taoiseach Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland has "eased off" as new limited supports are to be offered for those arriving in the country. While in the US for St Patrick's Day events, Mr Varadkar was asked whether he expected protests outside these locations now that they had been announced. "I hope not, my understanding is two of them are already known and Stradbally has been in operation on and off for some time," he said. "Generally speaking when it's come to providing welcome or residential centres for Ukrainians, we haven't seen a large amount of protests or difficulties with that. "Sadly the difficulties that have arisen in terms of protests are more often connected with people seeking international protection rather than those coming from Ukraine." The Taoiseach could not confirm that the Ukraine centres were not a part of the Government's new immigration strategy. He said: "It is part of a general Government policy approach that we've agreed to that when it comes to managing Ukrainians arriving in Ireland that initially we'll provide accommodation for them in a number of large centres around the country. "To allow them to establish themselves, to find employment opportunities and alternative accommodation, for example. "The numbers arriving from Ukraine have come down quite considerably and have eased off, although we can't assume that that will continue to be the case." More than 100,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Ireland since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, with around 75,000 living in state accommodation and some 57,000 in fully serviced accommodation. As the Irish Government continues to attempt to close the gap between housing supply and demand, it has taken a number of measures to house Ukrainians. Most Ukrainians have been housed in serviced accommodation such as hotels and B&Bs, paid for by the State, while others are in modular homes and refurbished State buildings. A further 14,000, or almost 20% of all Ukrainians in Ireland, are in spare rooms or homes provided through the Irish Red Cross or in holiday homes or other accommodation pledged through the Offer A Home scheme run by local authorities. Those who house Ukrainian refugees are entitled to an 800-euro tax-free payment, which does not affect other welfare rates. Despite the measures, housing in Ireland remains under pressure, forcing asylum seekers to sleep on Dublin's street. According to figures published by the Department of Integration, there are 1,260 people who have applied for international protection in Ireland who are still waiting for an offer of accommodation. The shortage of accommodation has resulted in dozens of asylum seekers setting up tents outside the International Protection Office in Mount Street where they have slept in rain and snow. Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore said this was a "shameful reminder" of the Government's failure on immigration policy. "For the hundreds of asylum seekers forced to live in such appalling conditions, this is no longer just a humanitarian crisis, it is becoming a serious public health risk. "Lack of sanitation and running water has resulted in health problems for some international protection applicants, with growing cases of skin and respiratory conditions reported. "I have now written to Minister Roderic O'Gorman, urging him to outline what his department's response will be to this unfolding humanitarian crisis - a crisis that appears to be the result of deliberate Government policy to discourage refugees from coming to Ireland." Minister for Integration Mr O'Gorman said last month that there had been a decrease in the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland since the coalition announced the change for Ukrainians, which he expected would continue to fall. He said he plans to bring a proposal to Cabinet in the coming weeks on Ireland's long-term strategy in the face of increasing global uncertainty and an increase in arrivals. There was a 415% increase in the number of asylum applications in Ireland in 2022 compared with 2021, and a 186% increase on 2019. Tent city Mr Varadkar has said he has "no difficulty" in meeting asylum seekers who are sleeping in tents in Dublin but said he did not believe it would "change the situation". He said he was aware of the number of people who had pitched tents near the International Protection Office on Mount Street in Dublin and had "seen it with my own eyes". According to figures published by the Department of Integration, there are 1,260 people who have applied for international protection in Ireland who are still waiting for an offer of accommodation. The Taoiseach said the government was "doing all that we can" to find accommodation, and said that women, families and men with particular vulnerabilities were being prioritised. There were 13,000 applications for asylum in Ireland in 2022, a 415% increase in the number of asylum applications compared with 2021, and a 186% increase on 2019. "The situation is that we've had a very big increase in the number of people entering Ireland irregularly, it's more than quadrupled since 2019, and that's a very challenging situation," he said. "I would say to people who are thinking of coming to Ireland irregularly, if they are coming from a safe country where they have accommodation, we can't guarantee you accommodation in Ireland, that's very clear. "We're here in America where they're facing exactly the same problems. "So many people on the move in the world and if you are passing through a safe country or if you have accommodation already in that country, whether it's Britain or France, we can't guarantee accommodation in Ireland anymore and I just have to be honest about that." Charlie Bird climbed to the top of Croagh Patrick in 2022 in a charity campaign which raised 3m for motor neuron disease. Photo: Gerry Mooney There is a poignant irony in the fact the minutes silence paid by disability rights campaigners in Dublin city in respect to the late broadcaster Charlie Bird was probably the most eloquent tribute the veteran reporter could have been paid. The courage with which he accepted his motor neurone disease in 2021 was an inspiration. Not only did he live his last years to the full, he used them to make the lives of others better, raising millions of euro along the way. His voice became hard-wired into the nations news, Never toney or affected, he spoke directly to listeners, covering the stories that shaped the last 40 years. He made light of his talent, often referring to the fact he left school without a Leaving Cert. But from the time he joined RTE in 1972, when he was on the scent of a story he showed the tenacity of a terrier going after rabbit. Completely without guile, his direct questioning cut through the armour of even the wiliest politicians. It was his candour and beguiling ordinariness that made him so formidable. He saw himself as the voice of the common man or woman if there was something they ought to know, it was his mission to tell them. His keen, searching intelligence, matched with limitless energy, made him a force to be reckoned with. Whether it was his compassionate coverage of the Stardust disaster (1981) in which 48 people died, or his painstaking reporting of the Peace Process in the 1990s, he excelled at reaching to the heart of the matter. People were not only informed, they were often deeply affected by the tragedies he reported. It was with his charity campaigning while he dealt with his terminal illness that he won the admiration and respect of the country. Shortly after his diagnosis, he told RTE in an interview: Im hanging on. Im dealing with it like everyone else, its reality. But it was the manner in which he dealt with it that so touched people. He spoke of how even school children, moved by his campaigning, were sending him their pocket money. President Michael D Higgins described him as a truly remarkable man driven by a deep sense of social justice in the most positive sense. Tanaiste Micheal Martin said: His message of generosity, friendship and simply looking out for each other will long be remembered. That spirit of decency shone in his personal pilgrimage up Croagh Patrick as part of Climb With Charlie in April 2022. As if he did not have enough to surmount with his own physical battles, he rose to another challenge. On the result, the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association CEO Lillian McGovern said: We managed to achieve in one year what would take us five years to raise money for. Through his professional work, Charlie gave us the headlines. Through his final heroic personal struggles, he made his own. Locals in attendance at a public meeting in Swanlinbar last week. Aisling McGovern, Sylvia Young, Kevin Prior, Serena Prior, Mark Lyons and Cllr Peter McVitty standing beside a placard erected in opposition to proposed changes to Swanlinbar's GP service provisions. A west Cavan community is celebrating the rise of people power after HSE bosses agreed to row back on plans to introduce a three-day-a-week GP service as opposed to a full time one by consenting to advertise for a permanent doctor. Residents living in the greater Swanlinbar area of the Breffni county have been campaigning for several weeks to try and reverse a HSE decision to implement a pilot initiative. That measure would have seen a doctor travel 16km from Ballyconnell to operate a three-day-a-week service with the possibility of a further rollout of services on Tuesday and Thursday mornings if required. Locals in attendance at a public meeting in Swanlinbar last week. However, following a number of public meetings and face to face talks last week with Health Minister Simon Donnelly, HSE officials yesterday (Tuesday) confirmed it had abandoned those plans by announcing its decision to re-advertise for a full time GP. News of the u-turn has, not surprisingly, been greeted with universal approval by locals. Its absolutely fabulous to have got that news, said Sylvia Young, a member of Swanlinbars Development Association. I spoke with a number of older people last night and they were so relieved. Hopes are now high resident locum practitioner, Dr Cristian Cimpoeru, who has seen his contract extended until May, will now be able to apply for the post and remain in situ on a full time basis. Local Cllr Peter McVitty was just as upbeat over the announcement, saying the decision made common sense for an area that encompassed a number of other rural localities. Members from Swanlinbar's Development Association join Dr Cristian Cimpoeru outside the village's GP's surgery. It (pilot proposal) didnt make any sense at all, not for such a massive area that also covered Glangevlin, Corlagh and Templeport, he said. I think after all the pressure that was put on when those plans came to light, thats why the HSE did move back on it in the end. The Irish Independent website has, following the announcement, reached out to the HSE for comment. Anthony Allen with Catherine D'Arcy as the couple enjoy a special moment celebrating Anthony's 60th birthday in Cavan General Hospital. Anthony Allen with Catherine D'Arcy and family members at home in Kells. The family of a county Meath man suffering from Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and left bed bound in an ICU unit for over a year have said they are over the moon by a HSE decision to fund a specialised care programme to allow him spend his last days at home. Catherine DArcy spoke exclusively to the Irish Independent website last month to tell of her frustration at how long term partner Anthony Allen remained under the care of staff at Cavan General Hospital and unable to return home. The Kells man was diagnosed with the debilitating illness in January 2023 and is in need of round the clock care due to the worsening nature of his condition. Despite that, the 60-year-old father of three, together with Catherine and his beloved family launched a campaign to force the hand of health chiefs to try and tailor a care package to fast-track his return home. Anthony Allen with Catherine D'Arcy as the couple enjoy a special moment celebrating Anthony's 60th birthday in Cavan General Hospital. The issue was one which likewise garnered national political attention with Sinn Fein Meath East TD Darren ORourke bringing it to the floor of the Dail. Less than a month on, those hopes have turned into the most longed-for of realities as HSE bosses contacted the family to confirm the news they had been desperately yearning for. We are just delighted with the news and I think it was through the media that we got the funding, said a delighted Catherine. We are just over the moon and we are trying to get things organised now. Meetings have taken place with 24 hour care nurses and hospital management with optimism growing that Anthony could well be back in Kells by the end of the month or early April. Read more Meath family make heartbreaking plea to allow father-of-three with Motor Neurone Disease to spend final days at home Anthony Allen with his long time partner Catherine D'Arcy. We are delighted he is coming home. The kids cant wait, he cant wait and its just about getting everything in place now. I have met the 24 hour care staff and we are delighted. He is in better form since he found out and is really looking forward to coming home. "We are absolutely over the moon. Read more Meath family make heartbreaking plea to allow father-of-three with Motor Neurone Disease to spend final days at home A number of councillors expressed concerns over the accuracy of the electoral register as they highlighted numerous situations of deceased family members receiving polling cards in the lead up to the recent referendums on care and the family. Social Democrats councillor Chris Heinhold initially raised the issue under Any Other Business (AOB) at last Mondays full council meeting. I had a call on Saturday morning from a very concerned poll worker on Heir Island who is shocked at the state of the electoral register. The large number of deceased people that were on it and new residents not being on the register given that he had contacted the office five years ago after the last votes. We need this to be addressed urgently, he said. This is Cork Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Cork newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details Independent councillor Marcia Dalton also gave an example of issues in the Carrigaline Municipal District. I too had a concern expressed to me from a particular household where there were four voters. Two got polling cards and when the four of them who had been living in the house for 20 plus years went to the polling station only one of those was on the register even though two got polling cards. It makes no sense. Fine Gael councillor Karen Coakley said polling cards being posted out for deceased people is upsetting for families. It is a national issue and it has to be rectified, said Fine Gael councillor Kevin Murphy. I got umpteen complaints about the actual number of people who were deceased for several years and they are still on the register. Secondly when people went to vote they werent on the register at all. Lets try and find a solution. We need to get it right. Fine Gael councillor John OSullivan said solving the issue needs to come from national government. I appreciate completely the franchise difficulty with people moving house and with updating registers. There is a need and it must come from national government. We have to find a way to streamline it better. The register could be out by 10% which is a fair amount. The Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Frank OFlynn suggested the use of Personal Public Service (PPS) numbers in future referendums and elections. There is nothing more important than the right to vote. I think there should be some system there. Everyones PPS should be on the register and it would do away with a lot of the messing. Everyone in this country has a PPS number. I cannot see for the life of me why it cannot be used. A letter should go to the government. We are facing down the road on June 7 and I hope the register will be right. The person has a right to go into the polling booth and vote. The PPS number is the way to go, he added. Karina Cremin Senior Executive Officer for Corporate Services said a full debriefing session will be held on the recent referendums. We will certainly have a full debriefing session and I will get back to the members. It is a national system and there are certainly issues with that national system that we have raised. It is an issue for a number of local authorities. In relation to the use of PPS numbers, Ms Cremin said: There are a number of people on the register that we dont have details of Personal Public Service Number (PPSN) numbers. They are still registered. We dont willy nilly put anybody off the register. Councillors highlighted increasing delays in the ambulance service throughout Cork County and called on the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly to investigate the workings of the ambulance service. The motion seeking an investigation into the workings of the ambulance service was brought before last Mondays full council meeting by Fianna Fail councillor Deirdre OBrien who highlighted her fears about increasing delays in the service. Cllr OBrien said the reduced hours by SouthDoc has had a knock-on effect on the ambulance service. I raised this because of the reduced hours by SouthDoc our ambulance service is now not bad, it is broken. What could be treated by a GP at SouthDoc is now a call for the ambulance team. The ambulance service is being called out for non-life-threatening conditions which are now treated in the same category as the emergency call, heart or stroke call, she said. This is Cork Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Cork newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details In my own area in Fermoy, the ambulance is never in Fermoy, said Cllr OBrien. It is diverted to Mallow, Clonmel or even Dungarvan regularly to cover for staff in these centres. The ambulance service works to a central system and this could often mean no ambulance is available when an emergency occurs. Huge waiting times can be experienced often by the callers. Staff are exhausted and expected to cover over 100 kilometres. Often if they take a patient to a city hospital they are then told to stay in the city to attend calls for that night and never to go back to their areas of responsibility. This begs the question who is looking after the people in these areas? There needs to be further investment into the fleet if we are to save lives, she added. Cllr OBrien said the reduced service from SouthDoc has led to a lot of issues with the ambulance service. I am asking that we write to the Minister for Health to investigate the workings of our ambulance system and the category of the callouts being dealt with. We have an A+E capacity problem in our hospitals. This I believe stems from a reduced service of SouthDoc. We should be increasing our investment in to our health service. We need to get the basics right. The Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Frank OFlynn supported the motion from his party colleague. It is a very worthy motion. Our population is now heading for 5.4 million. We need to look at the number of ambulances on the ground at the base. Fine Gael councillor Noel McCarthy said ambulance staff are being pulled and dragged all over the place. I want to compliment the ambulance staff because the work they do is second to none. They have a very difficult job. They are pulled and dragged from one area to another. Our SouthDoc service was reduced in Fermoy last year. If someone gets sick now in Fermoy and they cant get to Mallow, they are told to ring the ambulance by the SouthDoc services. The ambulance is then under more pressure. This is happening in other areas. The Minister for Health must realise the ambulance service is under more pressure because of decisions made like the reduction in SouthDoc. There is difficulties in the ambulance service but with no fault to the staff, he added. Fine Gael councillor Kay Dawson also lent her support to the motion. It is sad that we have to put in motions like this. It is what we are living with in our areas throughout the county. The HSE will have to bear in mind that we have an ageing population, said Fine Gael councillor Michael Hegarty. We also have a very sizeable increase in population in recent times. We do not have the backup that is appropriate to the population that we currently have. It was subsequently agreed that a letter would be sent to Minister Donnelly seeking an investigation into the workings of the ambulance service with regard to increasing delays in the service. John Coughlan and Lucy Murphy from Colaiste Pobail Bheanntrai and their design Queen of the Kings. The fashion-conscious students of two Cork schools have been selected for the Junk Kouture Dublin City Final 2024. On March 4 and March 5, 160 designs shortlisted from schools across the country battled it out at the Junk Kouture Regional Finals 2024. A total of 60 designs were chosen by the Junk Kouture judges fashion designer Claire Garvey, Miss Universe Ireland 2023 Aishah Akorede and former Junk Kouture winner Maxim OSullivan to participate in the Dublin City Final 2024 in May. This is Cork Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Cork newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details Entries from schools in Bandon and Bantry have made it through Fire and Ice by Ali Cotter, Rachel Brown and Holly Jacobs from Bandon Grammar School, was selected as one of the 12 finalists representing the South Region. The design is made using a lampshade, lighting gel filters and melted fibre optics and the outfit is a 911 call for Mother Nature. Fire and Ice from Bandon Grammar School. The creation used materials that stemmed from the theatre world. The Fire and Ice team contacted numerous theatre venues around Cork to source the theatrical material discarded or unused by multiple venues to create a climate-inspired creation. Students Ali Cotter, Rachel Brown and Holly Jacobs spoke to The Irish Independent about progressing to the finals with their design. We are very grateful to make it through to the regional finals in the Helix and hope that our design can inspire others to reuse old materials in a new light. We want to raise awareness about climate change, which ties into our dress 'Fire and Ice. For the Junk Kouture competition, we designed an outfit out of reused and pre-loved materials such as optic fibres, lighting gel filters, an old lamp shade stage prop, unwanted old shoes and an old theatre curtain, they explained. Our skirt represents the melting of the ice caps in the Antarctic; we sewed blue lighting gels onto an old theatre curtain, which we then fitted onto a lampshade. Our corset top represents the forest fires worldwide as we incorporated yellow, orange and red light gels around a moulded and melted-down optic fibre corset. We had a great time exploring the possibilities of this unconventional material while trying to represent topical matters such as climate change. We must review our corset and headpiece in the coming weeks to ensure we arrive in style at the Ireland finals. John Coughlan and Lucy Murphy from Colaiste Pobail Bheanntrai and their design Queen of the Kings. Meanwhile, John Coughlan and Lucy Murphy from Colaiste Pobail Bheanntrai in Bantry, have been selected for their design Queen of the Kings. The design is made entirely from silage and fertiliser bags with a shattered mirror and bloody heart to represent all of the lives lost in war. The black and white chequered design takes inspiration from a chessboard and the outfit features a removable skirt and jaw dropping headpiece. The two students created the project with the help and support of their teacher Mr. Graham. Congratulations to everyone who took part, there was so much creativity and imagination on display. To our 60 Dublin City Finalists, we will see you in May! Thank you to all the brilliant educators who help make this all happen, said Junk Kouture Director of Global Events and Production Megan Kelly following the regional finals. Hedigan's in Glasnevin, also known as The Brian Boru, is facing demolition to make way for MetroLink The owner of the Brian Boru pub in Glasnevin, which is facing demolition to make way for Dublins MetroLink, has suggested renaming a station to preserve its legacy. The well-known bar is one of Irelands oldest pubs and has been run by the Hedigan family for the past 120 years. Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the National Transport Authority have said the demolition is regrettable, but necessary after multiple alternatives were deemed unworkable. At the MetroLink hearing in Dublin today, Michael Hedigan and his brother Peter called for the history of the pub, referenced in James Joyces Ulysses, to be recorded properly. Michael said the site is a hugely important part of Glasnevins history and has connections with The Chieftains, who wrote a song called Hedigans Fancy in 1977 after the writers favourite local pub. Michael joined the business in 1968, followed by Peter in 1975. Since then, the fourth and fifth generations of the family have worked in the Brian Boru pub. Owner Michael Hedigan outside the pub in 2008 as the painting is restored A painting of Brian Boru, which has been at the front of the building for over 100 years, was restored in 2008. We want to make sure the presence of the Brian Boru on this site is recorded properly, Michael said. If the Brian Boru has to go, we would like it to be remembered correctly. The pub owner said the pub will be sorely missed, not only by the community and customers of the pub, but also by the wider Dublin area. Mr Hedigan also put forward the idea to TII of renaming the Glasnevin Station to the Brian Boru Station or the Prospect Station, after Prospect Road on which the pub is located. He told the hearing this might be a more appropriate name as it has a meaning in the area. In response, project lead Aidan Foley from TII said that while it is regrettable that the demolition of the pub is necessary, he agreed it will be sorely missed. I believe it would be fitting that the station records the presence of the Brian Boru in some way, he said. If that is the incorporation of a nameplate or some other means by which youd like to see the name recorded, wed be happy to work with you to come up with such an arrangement. He added that the idea of renaming the station was interesting, but would require further discussions. Community waiting over five years for pub promised to replace The Belgard Inn in Tallaght The Belgard Inn in Tallaght before it was demolished in 2018 A Dublin community is still waiting on Lidl to build a pub, promised as a condition of planning permission granted over five years ago. In March 2018, The Belgard Inn served its last pint before it was demolished to pave the way for a Lidl store in Cookstown, Co Dublin. Local residents are now seeking answers as to when Lidl will meet its commitment and build the new pub as a facility for the community. The old Belgard Inn was a social centre, it was demolished as part of the new development which was a setback for the community, Peter Forde, of the Belgard Residents Association, said. But the fact that a pub was included in the new plans, that addressed the situation. But were still waiting. The community is very disappointed. We signed a petition before Christmas and sent it to the council asking it to enforce the planning permission. Local councillor Mick Duff said he believes Lidl should meet with residents to provide an update on the situation. Planning permission granted by South Dublin County Council [in 2019] provided for Lidl to build a pub replacing the old Belgard Inn, which was knocked down to facilitate the new Lidl complex, he said. As the Planning permission is due to expire in 2025, the Belgard Residents Association set about seeking answers as to when Lidl would meet its planning commitment and build the pub as a facility for the local community. South Dublin County Council instigated a Planning Enforcement Notice on Lidl, and no further information can be given to councillors until the end of the enforcement period expires in June. I believe Lidl is engaging with South Dublin County Council on the issue, and I would strongly encourage Lidl to give the Belgard Residents Association the same courtesy and meet with them as soon as possible, he added. South Dublin County Council has confirmed that planning permission was granted, subject to conditions, in January 2019. These conditions included the demolition of the existing public house and associated units and adjacent multi-deck car park and the development of a licensed, discount food store including ancillary off-licence area. In addition, the development includes four retail units (adaptable for a variety of commercial uses) and a public house. The proposed development also includes improvements to the footpaths and an additional crossing point on the Old Belgard Road. Condition No 1 refers as follows: The development shall be carried out and completed in its entirety fully in accordance with the plans, particulars and specifications lodged with the application. A Section 154 Enforcement Notice for noncompliance with Condition No 1 has been issued and the developer has been given a period (to June 11, 2024) to comply with this condition, a spokesperson explained. Lidl has been contacted for comment. Transition Year students in Presentation Secondary School in Listowel will be taking to the stage in St John's Theatre next week with their production of Arthur Miller's 'The Crucible'. if youre looking for plans for next Wednesday and Thursday night in Listowel, then why not add in a trip to St Johns Theatre in Listowel where Transition Year (TY) students from Presentation Secondary School will be staging what is sure to be a brilliant performance of a timeless classic. The students have spent months honing their skills for their production of Arthur Millers The Crucible' and their hard work will all come to fruition on Wednesday, March 20 and Thursday March 21 at 7pm when the curtain raises. The play, written in 1953 by Arthur Miller, details the Salem witch trials that occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. Abigail, the main character in the play, manipulates the Puritan town's anti-witch fervor to destroy John Proctor, her former employer who once had an affair with her. Under the expert guidance of their drama teacher and stage director, Margaret O'Sullivan, the students have been diligently honing their acting skills since September of last year and have dedicated countless hours to rehearsals to make sure they have perfected every nuance of the play with the aim of ensuring that the portrayal of this iconic play is nothing short of extraordinary. As the performance date approaches, the excitement and anticipation are palpable and the school is now inviting the local community to come out and join them in supporting these dedicated students on both nights next week. Tickets for this not-to-be-missed event are on sale now from the St Johns Theatre website. Good news may be in the pipeline for the town of Cahersiveen with the news that interest has been shown in two GP vacancies in the town. Following a meeting with the Health Minister Stephen Donnelly last week it has emerged that a GP practice has expressed interest in the upcoming vacancy that if not filled will leave the town without any permanent GP. It has also emerged that there is interest in the first GP vacancy in the town, which arose on the retirement of a GP last year, and which has been advertised several times. This is Kerry Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Kerry newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details Currently that GP practise is being run by locum GPs but with the planned retirement of a second GP in the coming months, a looming medical crisis was on the cards for the entire Iveragh peninsula, which only has one other resident GP who is based in Waterville. Cllr Norma Moriarty (FF) has said that she is hopeful that the positions will be filled following on from she said was a successful meeting with Minister Donnelly that highlighted the rural GP crisis in Kerry. "There has been an expression of interest shown in replacing both GPs and I hopeful that requirements will be filled to get this across the line. She was part of a deputation from Kerry which also included members of Tascforsa Uibh Rathaigh. Cllr Michael Cahill (FF) was also part of the delegation and he too said it was a very positive meeting. "We met with Minister Donnelly who appeared to be very well briefed on the issue and anxious to help. Everybody there got an opportunity to put across their point of view, he said. "We need now, to find a way to make it financially attractive for General Practitioners to choose South Kerry as their base. All in all, I would say that we left the meeting feeling more positive and hopeful, than when we entered, he said. Cllr Cahill also again highlighted the need for a primary care centre for the town which has currently stalled. Joanne Hayes from Abbeydorney who Jim Sheridan hopes to 'exonerate' in his film on the Kerry Babies. THE solicitor for Joanne Hayes and her family told film director Jim Sheridan that if he insists on bringing the Kerry Babies saga to the big screen he must ensure it is fair and accurate. Solicitor Pat Mann was speaking to The Kerryman this week after Jim Sheridan revealed how he is planning on bringing the tragic saga to the big screen in the near future. Jim Sheridan contacted Mr Mann who has represented Joanne Hayes and her family for 40 years since they were so wrongly dragged into the controversy by the original garda murder probe to inform the family of his decision to make the story into a dramatised film. The director said he wants to honour and exonerate Ms Hayes. She has already received an apology from the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar on behalf of the State over her treatment in the 80s. When they made contact with my office to say they were doing it regardless I said they must do it factually and no other way. The important thing is that they deal with the story fairly and accurately, Mr Mann told The Kerryman. Mr Sheridan has said that he wants the film to exonerate Abbeydorney woman Joanne Hayes. Mr Mann said any reference to the saga upsets the Hayes family and the film is the same in that regard. "They wish these things werent mentioned at all, they find any any reference to it upsetting, said Mr Mann, who has represented the Hayes family since they were wrongly arrested 40 years ago including Joanne who he remains in regular contact with. He said that given the film is going ahead the most important factor is the film portrays the true story. He said that he has not yet spoken to Joanne about the film but will be doing so. Mr Sheridan says there are three actresses whom he admires that he would love to play the role of Joanne Hayes. They include American actress Emma Stone, Jessie Buckley, who is from Killarney and Eve Hewson, The Kerry babies saga began when a baby boy named 'Baby John' was found on Cahersiveens White Strand on April 14, 1984 having been murdered. The tragedy became national news when Abbeydorney woman Joanne Hayes was wrongly accused of being involved in the case having given birth to a baby boy in the other side of the country around the same time. She has since been exonerated of all wrongdoing and has nothing whatsoever to do with the baby on the beach but the ensuing saga over 40 years led to one of the biggest policing scandals and injustices in the country. Irish artists such as Kneecap, Gavin James and Mick Flannery are also boycotting the event in solidarity with the people of Palestine Kilkenny singer-songwriter Robert Grace is the latest Irish artist to pull out of performing at the South by South West (SXSW) music festival in Texas. The news comes as 12 acts from Ireland and Northern Ireland including Kneecap, Gavin James and Mick Flannery, Soda Blonde and Sprints have all pulled out of the festival due to the events association with the US military. Follow Independent Kilkenny on Facebook Irish artists have explained they are boycotting the event in solidarity with the people of Gaza, due to the US Armys sponsorship of the event. Robert Grace took to his Instagram to announce the news, as he explained his financial loss for not attending the festival is nothing compared to the loss the people of Palestine are experiencing. "After a lot of thought and consideration, I have decided not to attend or perform at SXSW in Texas this week, stated Robert Grace. "This is a significant loss financially but as other performers have stated before me, this loss is absolutely nothing in comparison to the loss being experienced by the people of Palestine. "As Gavin James noted earlier music and art should always stand on the side of peace and humanity. Graces statement followed other statements from artists such as Gavin James who announced on his Instagram I have decided I will not be performing or travelling to SXSW this week. "Music & art should always stand on the side of peace and humanity. I will never support any event that is associated with weapons of war. "For anyone who may have planned to attend my shows, I hope to see you later in the year, concluded Gavin James. Kneecap also issued a similar statement about why they had cancelled their three shows at SXSW and their decision to not travel to Austin this week. "It is done in solidarity with the people of Palestine and to highlight the unacceptable deep links the festival has to weapons companies and the US military who at this very moment are enabling genocide and famine against a trapped population, read the statement. The two men were arrested after Gardai searched five locations in County Cork and two locations in County Roscommon on Saturday morning. Drugs and a substantial amount of cash were seized at a private house in Gorey Town on Tuesday, March 5. 2,000 worth of crack cocaine, heroin and cannabis were found in the premises. Gardai carried out surveillance on the premises before it was searched. This is Wexford Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Wexford newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details One male in his early 40s was arrested and a file is now being prepared for the DPP. If you were walking on a beach and found a mermaids purse, would you know what species of elasmobranch produced it? Using your finger and thumb, if you grip the bridge of your nose between your eyes and squeeze you can feel hard, rigid bone underneath. If you move down to the tip of your nose the situation becomes quite different; the tip is softer, flexible and bendable. The difference is, of course, that the skeleton underlying the bridge of your nose is bone whereas the tip of your nose contains cartilage. Fish are divided into two large groups: those with a skeleton made of bone and those with a skeleton made of cartilage. The ones with a skeleton made of cartilage are sub-divided into two smaller groups depending on how many gills they have: the chimaeras and the elasmobranchs. Chimaeras have four gills. Eight species have been recorded far out off the west of Ireland but since they live in the deep ocean little is known about their biology. The elasmobranchs have five or seven gills, and the group includes sharks, rays, skates, and dogfish. Over seventy species have been recorded in Irish territorial waters representing about half of the species known to occur in Europe and about seven percent of the species found worldwide. The conservation status of 58 species that occur in Irish territorial waters was assessed by fisheries scientists in 2016. About one third of them were classed as either endangered or vulnerable. Another third was threatened with extinction and the final third was of least concern. The young of elasmobranchs are called pups. Before they are born, the pups are contained in a tough, leathery, protective egg case and these cases, popularly and rather fancifully known as mermaids purses, are regularly washed up on beaches and are found by walkers. Most washed-up cases are empty but on rare occasions after a storm a case may contain a wriggling pup. Telling what case comes from what fish is made simple due to an excellent guide produced by the Marine Institute and available to download free of charge at http://hdl.handle.net/10793/1889. Elasmobranch egg cases have tendrils at both ends to entangle and firmly anchor the mermaids purse in the weed. BBC Scotland presenter Andrew Black leaves the funeral of TV presenter and journalist Nick Sheridan, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire Nick Sheridan's brother Brian (front left) helps carry the casket from the funeral of TV presenter and journalist, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire The funeral of BBC journalist and Wexford-native Nick Sheridan, who passed away on March 6 at the age of 32, has heard how his dying wish of having his organs donated was granted by staff at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Glasgow hours after his death. At St Ibar's Church, Castlebridge on Wednesday morning, Nicks family and friends gathered to pay tribute to a man who had, in the words of Father Denis Kelly, left a greater footprint in his 32 years than many would leave in a century. Nick, who worked as a journalist with BBC Scotland and was the author of four childrens books, died after suffering a brain aneurysm in his adopted home of Glasgow. In an emotional eulogy, his only sibling, Brian, began by thanking all those who supported the family, including their parents Bernie and Nick Snr, during the most difficult time in our lives. Nick epitomised everything that is good in life, family, friendship, creativity, and, most of all, kindness, Brian continued. Growing up with Nick as a brother, every day was an adventure, we were two sides of the same coin, opposites, but we always had each others back. Nick Sheridan. "As the older brother, I often felt the need to explain to Nick how I imagined things should be done. He, of course, would have his own, and invariably better, way of doing things. As we grew up, instead of me showing Nick how things should be done, he was the one teaching me to live, just by his actions. Revealing that Nicks fifth book would be released posthumously in the coming months, Brian recalled how his younger brother spent every free moment of his childhood typing up and hand delivering local news bulletins and creating short stories and how a career in the media had been Nicks goal from a young age. BBC Scotland presenter Andrew Black leaves the funeral of TV presenter and journalist Nick Sheridan, at St Ibar's Church in Castlebridge, Co Wexford. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire In achieving that goal, Nick made many friendships along the way, friendships which Brian said were of the utmost importance to his brother. He was fiercely loyal to friends from St Peters in Wexford, in DCU, and throughout Dublin, and Glasgow, every friend he had was valued and cherished. Once Nick was your friend you had a friend for life. Even when my brother lived in a different city or country, I was always sure in the knowledge he was safe and happy in the company of great work colleagues and friends. To Nicks friends, know that how ever much you loved him, you were loved back as much and more. Describing Nicks relationship with his parents as a special one, Brian said this close, loving connection was only occasionally usurped by his love of his godson Sean and niece Sadhbh whom he adored. This is Wexford Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Wexford newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details In recent years a new presence in Nicks life had made him the happiest hed ever ever been. Our family has lost its guiding star, Nicks light always shone brightly, but never more so since he met you Lewis, Brian said, addressing Nicks partner. Everybody who knew Nick, knew that he had met someone special, he found love when he found you Lewis, you will always be a part of our family, Nick was the happiest hes ever been since he met you, thank you for being there for him and know that we are all there for you. Vowing never to forget the amazing person he was, and is, Brian said his brothers enduring kindness will continue beyond his life. I mentioned that his most important gift was kindness, on Thursday night as a registered organ donor, in the loving care of the donor team of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Glasgow, Nick gave the ultimate gift of life through organ donation, he said. Concluding, Brian recalled his wedding, a day which saw his younger brother perform the role of best man. He read the last part of the speech Nick delivered on the day. The day will end, the chapter too, and we begin another, well walk together side by side, my best friend and my brother. Christ Church COI Services of Worship for this Sunday St. Patricks Day: 11am Morning Prayer. Save the Date: The Christ Church Parish Fete will take place on Saturday May 18th. Connect Online: Our most active communication tools currently are our Website www.christchurchbray.ie and our facebook page @christchurchbray. Bray Methodist Church Worship for this Sunday: 10amSunday Worship with Creche and Sunday School. Bray Presbyterian Church Worship for this Sunday: 11.30am Sunday Worship. Christian Assembly Church Worship for this Sunday: 10.45am Morning Worship. Wednesdays: 8pm Prayer Meeting & Bible study. Monthly Ladies Meeting: For details see: www.christianassemblybray.com. Cornerstone Church at The Well Worship this Sunday: 11am. Holy Redeemer Parish Mass Times: 10amMonday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday No Mass on Tuesday. Sunday Masses: 6pm Vigil Mass on Saturday and on Sunday at 10.30am and 12Noon. To book a Mass, please call into the Sacristy before or after our Masses. Mass Cards may be purchased from the Parish Office during its opening hours. Baptism: Registration for Baptism can be made online via the parish website www.holyredeemerbray.ie. St Peters Parish St. Peters Church Mass Times: Sunday: 9.30am (Irish), 11.30am. Holy Days of Obligation: 11.30am. No Weekday Mass. Mass on the First Friday of the Month is celebrated at 10am. Sunday Mass is broadcast on the parish website at 9.30am (Irish) and 11.30am (English)Google Chrome required. Car Park Hours: These are from 9am to 12.30pm, Monday to Friday, for parish business and at the weekends during church ceremonies. The Cemetery is accessible via the laneway for pedestrians. St. Peters Cemetery: There is a strict policy of No Dumping Allowed in any area of the cemetery. Visitors to the cemetery are requested to take home all forms of rubbish with them in order to keep the cemetery tidy. Your co-operation is appreciated. St. Annes Church, Shankill: A Vigil Mass is celebrated on Saturdays at 5pm. All are welcome. St. Fergals Parish Mass Times: Mass times are 9.30am Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. No morning Mass on Thursdays and Saturdays. Saturday: 7pm Vigil Mass; Sundays: 8am and 10.30am. Baptism: Baptisms take place on the first and third Saturday of each Month at 12Noon. Bookings can be made through the Parish Office Only. The Preparation meeting takes place on the Monday before the 1st Saturday of the month. Please call into the Parish Office three weeks in advance of the Baptism to complete the Baptism Form and to confirm the date. Confessions: Are heard on Saturdays after the 7pm Vigil Mass. Syro Malabar Catholic Church Mass is celebrated every Sunday at 2.30pm in St. Fergals Church, Ballywaltrim. Our Lady Queen of Peace Eucharistic Adoration: Eucharistic Adoration takes place from 11am to 10pm on Mondays only in this Church. Mass: Weekday Masses are celebrated at 10.30am on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Weekend Masses are at 6.30pm on Saturdays and 10.30am and 12 Noon on Sundays. QOP youth club Queen of Peace Adventure Youth Club next activities include yoga, pool swimming, first aid training, climbing Djouce Mountain, and using walkie talkies. There will be no club function on Good Friday. Diving club Bray Divers Sub-aqua Club based in Greystones Harbour has up to four available places on a new diver course starting in April. New recruits may be qualified one star divers within six weeks. It is important to realise that diving is for fun and that each individual trainee may move along on the course at the pace that is most enjoyable without any pressure to compete or indeed to keep up with anyone else. For details call Albert on 087 6756439 and get underwater as soon as you want. Bray Library Opening hours are 10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday with late opening on Tuesday and Thursday until 8.30pm. The library will be closed this Saturday and next Monday due to the St. Patricks Weekend. The library can be contacted at 01-2862600 or email: braylib@wicklowcoco.ie. Online services including e-books, audio-books, digital magazines and newspapers and e-learning are available via the library website. Doodle Time for 9-12 year olds takes place every Thursday from 3pm to 4pm. Afterschool Storytime takes place every Tuesday at 3pm in the Junior Library. The Junior Book Club (ages 9 to 11) is now accepting new members. It meets on the second Monday of each month at 3.15pm- email: braylibrary@wicklowcoco.ie or ask at the library desk to book a place. Ballywaltrim Library Opening hours are 10am to 5 pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and 10am to 8pm on Wednesday. The library is closed on the Saturdays and Mondays on Bank Holiday weekends i.e. this Saturday and next Monday due to the St. Patricks Weekend. The library can be contacted at 01-2723205 or by email at: ballywatrimlibrary@wicklowcoco.ie. Online services including e-books, audio-books, digital magazines and newspapers and e-learning are available via the library website. Borrowers can renew their books on-line at any time. Study paces are available. Sensory Space +Sensory Kits: Our Sensory space provides A relaxing and colourful sensory experience. Sensory kits can also be issued at the desk (for use in the library only). STEM Saturdays: 10am to 11.30am Booking is essential. FAST Sensory Toy Collection: Our FAST toy collection features over 140 items divided into four functional categories: Gross Motor skills, Fine Motor skills, Language, Social, Life and Play Skills and Sensory & Tactile. A catalogue is available to view in the library or on-line. Quilting Group & Knitting Group: Runs fortnightly, each group meets on alternating Wednesdays between 6.30pm and 8pm. Tummy Time (0-12 month olds): Mondays and Fridays between 10.30am and 12pm no booking required. Storytime for all: Saturdays at 11.30am. (Saturday times may change). Ballywaltrim Book Clubs: Meets on a Wednesday and Saturday of each month between 3pm and 4pm. Enquiries to library staff. (Saturday times may change). Bookaneers Book Club: Junior Book Club contact the library for more details. Coder Dojo: Wednesdays between 5pm and 6.30pm (September to May only). Bray Cualann Historical Society Margaret McGuirk will be the guest presenter for the Thursday March 21st meeting of the Bray Cualann Historical Society, the local history society for Bray and North Wicklow, and will present The Phoenix Park, Dublin at 8pm in the Royal Hotel, Bray. All are welcome admission for non-members is 8. Members and supporters of the Bray Cualann Historical Society are asked to note that today (Wednesday) Dermot ORiordan will present Dublin On War Service Lapel Badges during WWI at 6pm to the Old Dublin Society in The Conference Room, Dublin City Library & Archive, 144 Pearse Street, Dublin 2. All are welcomeadmission is free; Historian in Residence Elizabeth Kehoe will present Curfews in Dublin 1920-1921 at 6.30pm in Phibsboro Library, Blacquiere Bridge, North Circular Road, Dublin 7. Admission is free but booking is requiredbook in-branch, call 01-222 8333 or email: phibsborolibrary@dublincity.ie; Aidan Giblin will present Corr Castle, SuttonHistory & Archaeological Finds at 7.30pm to the Clontarf Historical Society in St. Johns Parish Centre, Clontarf Road, Dublin 3; Dr. Mary Muldowney will recall The 1973 Escape from Mountjoy Prison by Helicopter at 7.45pm to the Knocklyon History Society in the Iona Pastoral Centre, Idrone Avenue, Knocklyon, Dublin 15. All are welcome to attendadmission is 3 for members and 5 for non-members; tomorrow (Thursday) John Martin will present Dalkeys local churches and schools in Dalkey at 5.30pm in Dalkey Library, Castle Street, Dalkey, Co. Dublin. Admission is free but booking is requiredbook in branch, call 01-2855277 or email: dalkeylib@dlrcoco.ie; Cathy Scuffil will present Weavings in the Liberties at 8pm to the Kilmacud-Stillorgan Local History Society in St. Raphaelas Primary School Hall, St. Raphaelas Road, Upper Kilmacud Road, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin. All are welcome admission 3; next Tuesday James Scannell will present Life in Emergency Ireland, 1939-1945 at 8pm to the Foxrock Local History Club in Foxrock Parish Pastoral Centre, Foxrock, Co. Dublin. All are welcomeadmission is 5 for visitors; Dr. Emma Lyons will present The Horse in Co. Wicklow Work and Play at 8pm to the Roundwood & District Historical, Folklore & Archaeological Society in Roundwood Parish Hall, Roundwood, Co. Wicklow. All are welcome admission charge; next Wednesday the AGM of the Greystones Archaeological & Historical Society takes place at 7.30pm in the Kilian Family Centre, beside Holy Rosary Church, Greystones, Co. Wicklow, and will be followed with a presentation by Dr. Michael Kennedy on The Curry Houses of Dublin. All are welcome admission is 3; Professor Seamas OSiochain will present Sir Roger Casement and Ireland at 8pm to the Dun Laoghaire Borough Historical Society in the Royal Marine Hotel, Marine Road, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. All are welcomeadmission is 5. The Bray Cualann Historical Society is always interested in new members and those wishing to join the Society can do so at the Thursday March 21st meeting of the Society in the Royal Hotel, Bray, or log onto the Societys website to obtain more information. Poetry in the Park Poetry in the Park takes place on the First Sunday of Every Month at 12pm on the bandstand in the Peoples Park, Lower Dargle Road, Bray. Listen to or read your favourite poems, hear original poetry performed by local poets or simply chat with other poetry fans in this beautiful outdoor setting on the banks of the River Dargle. Cllrs Melanie Corrigan and Aoife Flynn Kennedy, on Eglinton Road, in Bray, after three new hidden disability parking spaces were approved. A total of 946,660 has been allocated to road improvement works in the Bray Municipal District (BMD) for 2024, and five sections have already been completed. The updates were presented to councillors at the March meeting of BMD. The five sections are: L-19543 Seapoint Court: 39,000 on surface inlay. L5807, L5808 and L19533 at St Cronans, Greenpark and Fairgreen: 22,000 on patch repairs and surface inlay. L-10029 Wurzburg Road: 30000 on patch repair and surface overlay. L-19698 Heatherwood: 40,000 surface inlay complete. R-766 Meath Road, south of Sidmonton Ave: 16,000 on patch repairs and surface inlay. This is Wicklow Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Wicklow newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details Meanwhile, among the issues raised on the topic at the meeting was the delay in providing signage and markings for the hidden disability scheme, something Cllrs Aoife Flynn Kennedy and Melanie Corrigan had been pushing for as far back as April 2022. It was approved by Wicklow County Council last year, with three spaces to be provided in Bray at Eglington Road, Novara Avenue and Herbert road car park. Cllr Flynn Kennedy expressed her frustration at the delay, given the addition of the spaces needs an awareness campaign to work in tandem. Ongoing issues were also raised by Cllr Flynn Kennedy at the Hills roundabout/Ballywaltrim Lane, where near misses have been reported, something she has been flagging since 2018. Concerns over the lack of traffic wardens at two schools at the Vevay, in Bray, were raised by Cllr Joe Behan, who thought it was shocking that this basic service was not being provided and wondered why there were no staff available at WCC to fill in until wardens were found. The roles have been advertised but as yet, there have been no applicants. Much time was devoted to discussing road safety issues on Vevay Road, with speeding being singled out among other worries, such as the state of the bicycle lanes, the extended wait for the Active Travel Scheme and the lethal hazards facing pedestrians trying to access St Cronins. Cllr Erika Doyle asked for an update on the festoon lights which were promised for Albert Walk two years ago, while the issue of parking at the plaza on Bray seafront, which is becoming a constant, was raised by Cllr Flynn Kennedy, who asked whether there could be deterrents placed to prevent it. And in what has now become a particularly testing issue, not just for Bray but also for Greystones, the persistent closure of the train stations in both towns over successive bank holiday weekends was raised by Cllr Behan, who as the elected members in Greystones are planning to do proposed writing to Irish Rail to request that extended works be done at night. In response, District Engineer Liam Bourke highlighted the difficulty securing the necessary paint for the hidden disability spaces, and that the wait time for the smaller jobs has always been an issue. The problem with the Hills Roundabout/ Ballywaltrim Lane is establishing the boundaries, as sections are under the remit of Transport Infrastructure Ireland. A crossing for St Cronins school will be examined, as he agreed it was lethal, but the active travel for the Vevay was at least a year away. Meanwhile, the festoon lights at Albert Walk have hit a hurdle, as Irish Water has discovered problems with drainage and the walk may need to be dug up. This will have an impact on power supply. James McCann, from St Gerard's School, Bray, County Wicklow, at the Helix for the Junk Kouture Dublin finals. It was two nights of style and sustainability as the Junk Kouture Regional Finals 2024 took place, in the Helix, on Monday and Tuesday, March 4 and 5, with one talented designer from Wicklow successfully battling it out against 159 other designs to become one of 60 to go on to the Dublin City Final 2024, which takes place in May. Stainless Style by James McCann, a student of St Gerard's School, Bray, was a dazzling suit of armour fashioned out of old metal road signs and old metal bottle caps, to protect yourself against the harsh realities of the world. Junk Kouture judges, couture designer Claire Garvey, Miss Universe Ireland 2023 Aishah Akorede and former Junk Kouture winner Maxim OSullivan, had their work cut out for them as they picked 30 designs from each of the two regional finals to make up 60 Dublin finalists and deemed Jamess design worthy of that honour. Designs were selected from the regions of north, south, south-east, east and west. James McCann, from St Gerard's School, Bray, County Wicklow, at the Helix for the Junk Kouture Dublin finals. St Gerard's School was full of praise for James and remarked how he has previously put his talents to work in the school. James got through to the National Finals of Junk Kouture with his dynamic design Stainless Style. James handcrafted his costume from repurposed road signs to create a fresh and stylish design, a spokesperson said. James is a talented designer, he honed his craft designing numerous costumes for our TY school muscial. "We are very proud of his achievements and are looking forward to seeing him on the world stage in fashion in the future, they concluded. Commenting on the hotly contested event, Junk Kouture Director of Global Events and Production Megan Kelly said: What a fantastic two nights in the Helix. The atmosphere was incredible. Congratulations to everyone who took part, there was so much creativity and imagination on display. To our 60 Dublin City Finalists, we will see you in May. Thank you to our partners Eurospar and all the brilliant educators who help make this all happen. Pupils from St Gerard's JS, Bray, Wicklow. Their project investigated the science behind the question 'Is it true that food is safe to eat if it's picked up within five seconds of dropping it on the floor?'. Pupils from Delgany NS, Wicklow. Their project investigated the science behind the 'Which material makes a car go fastest down a slope?'. Pupils from St Marys and St Gerards NS, Enniskerry, with TD Jennifer Whitmore and Niamh De Loughry, Deputy Chief Executive of the RDS Foundation. Their project investigated the science behind the question: Why does a Hula Hoop come back to you?. Pupils from St Marys SNS, Blessington, with TD Jennifer Whitmore. Their project investigated the science behind the question: Does skipping every day for 5 minutes make us run faster?. Pupils from Scoil Mhuire Realt na Mara, Brittas Bay, Wicklow. Their project investigated the science behind the question ''What is a tornado?'. Some 21 schools from County Wicklow submitted their hard work to join over 500 projects from primary schools from around the country, at this years sixth annual ESB Science Blast, the RDS Foundations flagship Science and Technology Programme. What is a tornado? Why does a Hula Hoop come back to you? Does skipping every day for five minutes make us run faster? These were the pressing questions posed by the countys inquisitive minds at the RDS, Dublin. This is Wicklow Newsletter Enter your email address below and click 'Sign Up' to receive the This is Wicklow newsletter direct to your inbox. Please check your inbox to verify your details The event was a STEM-focused (science, technology, engineering and maths) educational programme for classes to investigate the science behind simple questions. It took place over four days in RDS Simmonscourt, from March 4-7, and included a la speisialta do Ghaelscoileanna agus do scoileanna Ghaeltachta. Participating schools in Wicklow included The Glebe National School, Wicklow Town; St Kevins National School, Greystones and Gaelscoil na gCloch Liath. The pupils from Wicklow showcased an experiment and discussed their investigation with a STEM expert (Judge/Moltoir). The judging was non-competitive and aimed at growing pupils interest and passion for STEM. Over 55,000 children have participated in ESB Science Blast to date, making it the largest primary school programme on the island of Ireland, and one of the largest programmes of its kind in Europe. Strong themes emerging from schools this year included climate change, biodiversity, the impact of fast fashion and questions related to physical and mental health. Their projects featured other questions such as: How can we capture energy from the sun? How many harmful chemicals does the average person/child consume each day? Speaking at the event in RDS Simmonscourt, Niamh De Loughry, Deputy Chief Executive of the RDS Foundation, said: Its wonderful to see such a great turnout for our key Science and Technology Programme from primary schools across the length and breadth of Ireland including Wicklow. In developing ESB Science Blast we wanted an event that would be informative, inclusive and, above all, a really fun and engaging learning experience. Ive really enjoyed meeting the children from all around the country and learning so much from the wild and wonderful projects that theyre showcasing here this week, she added. Media Minister Catherine Martin speaks during a press conference at the Government Buildings in Dublin. Cabinet ministers have backed their colleague Catherine Martin despite calls for her to step down, with the Labour Party describing her position as Media Minister untenable. Picture date: Friday February 23, 2024. Irelands culture minister has said she has felt nothing but revulsion and anger at the deaths and injuries in Gaza in recent months and said it has to stop. Catherine Martin appealed to the US, a country with strong ties to Israel, to join us in the pursuit of peace. The Green Party deputy leader has faced pressure over her attendance at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas this week. Several Irish artists boycotted the arts festival for its ties to the US Army over its support for Israels military offensive in the Gaza Strip. On Wednesday Ms Martin took part in a SXSW panel discussion on the Basic Income For The Arts pilot in Ireland. In her opening remarks, published on the Department of Cultures website on Wednesday evening, she said that she had spoken to artists who had withdrawn from the music festival. She said that she had reassured the Irish musicians that she would use every opportunity available to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza. Remarks were also uploaded to the departments website of comments for a St Patricks Day reception at the Austin consulate on Tuesday night, where she said the slaughter and maiming of innocent people under any flag, under any name for any cause is wrong. In her preprepared remarks for the SXSW panel on Wednesday, she said she was taking a stand for the concerns of the Irish people and Irish artists. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will raise the issue with US president Joe Biden (Niall Carson/PA) She called for a ceasefire, condemned the Hamas attack on 7 October and called for the release of all hostages, and for a massive increase in humanitarian aid for people in Gaza. As a representative of the Irish government, there is a special opportunity afforded to me to speak directly with you in the US, the country and the people with strong ties to the Israeli nation. Like so many people in Ireland, I have felt nothing but revulsion and anger at seeing the killing, bombing and maiming inflicted on the Palestinian people in Gaza in recent months. It has to stop. She continued: We extend our hand to all Americans to join us in the pursuit of peace. The time for action is now, and Ireland remains steadfast in its commitment to bringing an end to this humanitarian crisis. She also said Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is expected to raise Irelands concerns about Gaza with US President Joe Biden this week. Politicians stepping away from these public engagements where we can raise the horrific plight of Gaza is not an option. Instead, our jobs as representatives of the Irish Government is to use this platform to argue for peace. Also on the panel were Sarah Calderon, executive director of Creatives Rebuild New York, Shafeka Hashash, an Associate Director of Guaranteed Incomes, and Angela Dorgan was the moderator. A Ukrainian serviceman launches a mid-range reconnaissance drone type Vector for flying over positions of Russian troops, amid Russias attack on Ukraine, near the town of Bakhmut, Ukraine, yesterday. Photo: Reuters Russian volunteers fighting for Ukraine drove tanks and armoured vehicles into Russia in a three-pronged raid across the border. Three separate units of Russian-born soldiers clashed with Moscow security services as they claimed to have captured a village in an attack that is likely to anger the Kremlin. Dutch holidaymakers invited to step into shoes of brave ancestors at former slave colony Campaign urges tourists to sample the atmosphere of slave plantations Wooden houses at Peperpot plantation in Suriname. Photo: Getty James Crisp Telegraph.co.uk Wed 13 Mar 2024 at 18:13 Travel company TUI has apologised after offering Dutch tourists the chance to follow in the footsteps of their brave ancestors who enslaved people in the former colony of Suriname. Aid ship leaves Cyprus for Gaza, as Palestinians are on the brink of famine The ship carrying is carrying 200 tonnes of suppliesIt will take up to two days to arrive in Gaza27 Palestinians have died of dehydration and malnutrition in the last two weeksMediators are working to establish a ceasefire The ship at sea, in a test to launch a sea route from Cyprus to deliver aid to residents of the Gaza Strip who face famine. Photo: World Central Kitchen Michele Kambas and Nidal Al-Mughrabi Wed 13 Mar 2024 at 03:30 A ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid for Gaza has left Cyprus in a pilot project to open a sea corridor to deliver supplies to a population that aid agencies say is on the brink of famine. LATEST | Jeffrey Epsteins weird deal should have stopped Ghislaine Maxwell prosecution, lawyers claim An appeals court in the southern district of New York heard Maxwells arguments on Tuesday Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein. Photo: Patrick McMullan Josh Payne Wed 13 Mar 2024 at 07:39 Disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell should never have been prosecuted due to a weird agreement drafted more than 15 years ago, her lawyers have told a court. Photo courtesy: twitter.com/TRBRajaa Mumbai: Automotive industry major Tata Motors signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. As per the agreement, a manufacturing facility will be set up at an investment of Rs 9,000 crore, with the aim of generating 5,000 job opportunities, both directly and indirectly. In a landmark move, @TataMotors has inked an MoU with the Government of Tamil Nadu to establish a vehicle manufacturing facility, investing Rs. 9000 crores and creating over 5000 jobs. With this investment, Tamil Nadu further solidifies its position as the unrivaled automobile https://t.co/cAuSMe0wog M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) March 13, 2024 The signing ceremony took place in Chennai, attended by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and top officials from Tata Motors. "The agreement with Tata Motors Group signifies another significant step towards enhancing industrial development in Tamil Nadu. The manufacturing plant, planned to be located in Ranipet district (near Vellore), will involve an investment of Rs 9,000 crores and is expected to generate employment opportunities for 5,000 people over the next five years," said a statement from TN CM's office. "Tamil Nadu, being the second largest economic state in India, is committed to achieving the goal of becoming a trillion-dollar economy by 2030. The industries department of Tamil Nadu government is actively pursuing various initiatives to attract high-value, capital-intensive industries to the state," it added. Tamil Nadu Industries Minister TRB Rajaa stated that, in accordance with the MoU, Tata Motors would be setting up an advanced vehicle manufacturing facility, with an investment of Rs 9,000 crore, expected to create around 5,000 job opportunities. Tata Motors, a manufacturer of cars, trucks, and buses, did not specify the types of vehicles to be produced at the new plant. Tata Motors, in a stock exchange filing, stated that after the MoU signing, teams from Guidance, Tamil Nadu's agency for investment promotion and facilitation, and Tata Motors Group, would collaborate to progress with this opportunity. Tata Motors is set to open its second plant in South India, succeeding the Dharwad facility in Karnataka. On February 25, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin laid the foundation of an electric vehicle and battery manufacturing plant for VinFast Auto Ltd. The Vietnamese company has pledged investments amounting to Rs 16,000 crore in the state. This commitment was solidified through a memorandum of understanding with the Tamil Nadu government during the initial session of the Global Investors Meet organized by the DMK government in January. Rishi Sunak, Narendra Modi discuss early conclusion of FTA. Photo Courtesy: PIB Indian PM Narendra Modi and his British counterpart Rishi Sunak discussed 'early conclusion' of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement on Tuesday. Following his meeting with Sunak, Modi posted on X: "Had a good conversation with PM @RishiSunak . We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and work for early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement." Had a good conversation with PM @RishiSunak. We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and work for early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 12, 2024 During their interaction, Modi and Sunak expressed satisfaction with the progress made under the Roadmap 2030 in diverse areas including trade, investment, defence, security, emerging technologies and others. The two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest. "Both leaders agreed to remain in touch and exchanged greetings on the upcoming festive occasion of Holi," read a statement issued by the PMO. India signs FTA with European Free Trade Association with investment commitment of $100 billion India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) on Sunday (March 10, 2024) signed a Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA). The main highlights of the agreement are EFTAs commitment to promote investments to increase the stock of foreign direct investments by $ 100 billion in India in the next 15 years, and to facilitate the generation of 1 million direct employment in India, through such investments, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. The investments do not cover foreign portfolio investment. EFTA is an inter-governmental organization set up in 1960 for the promotion of free trade and economic integration for the benefit of its four member states. EFTA countries include Switzerland, Iceland, Norway & Liechtenstein. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister has approved signing of the TEPA with EFTA States, the statement said. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister said, TEPA is a modern and ambitious Trade Agreement. For the first time, India is signing FTA with four developed nations - an important economic bloc in Europe. For the first time in history of FTAs, binding commitment of $100 bn investment and 1 million direct jobs in the next 15 years has been given. Goyal emphasised that the agreement will give a boost to Make in India and provide opportunities to young and talented workforce, and open window to Indian exporters to access large European and global markets. The agreement comprises 14 chapters with the main focus on market access related to goods, rules of origin, trade facilitation, trade remedies, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, investment promotion, market access on services, intellectual property rights, trade and sustainable development and other legal and horizontal provisions. EFTA is an important regional group, with several growing opportunities for enhancing international trade in goods and services. EFTA is one important economic block out of the three (other two - EU &UK) in Europe. Among EFTA countries, Switzerland is the largest trading partner of India followed by Norway. For the first ever time in the history of FTAs, a legal commitment is being made about promoting target-oriented investment and creation of jobs. Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video Kolkata/IBNS: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the implementation of controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), accusing the country's ruling party of depriving Indian children of their rights. Kejriwal says by implementing CAA, the government is giving away the rights of the children to migrants from neighbouring countries, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The Chief Minister said, "If BJP does not withdraw CAA, then people should express their anger by voting against BJP. In the last 10 years, 11 lakh rich industrialists and businessmen left India. If BJP has to bring them back, then it should bring these people back. "They will come to India, they have money, they will provide employment. What disgrace is this that we will give place to the people of Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan in India and will give them employment which is right for our children." Kejriwal, who heads the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which rules Delhi, has alleged the BJP is playing vote bank politics with CAA. He says, "By snatching jobs from crores of children of India, by demolishing the houses of Indians, it will provide jobs and houses to crores of people of Bangladesh-Pakistan-Afghanistan. "BJP is playing with the country like this only for the sake of vote bank." The Centre Monday notified the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. The notification paves the way for granting Indian citizenship to people belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian communities on grounds of religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh before 2015. In a post on X, the Home Ministry said, "These rules, called the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 will enable the persons eligible under CAA-2019 to apply for grant of Indian citizenship." "The applications will be submitted in a completely online mode for which a web portal has been provided," it said. Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will be notifying today, the Rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA-2019). These rules, called the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024 will enable the persons eligible under CAA-2019 to apply for grant of Indian citizenship. (1/2) Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) March 11, 2024 The Parliament passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in December 2019. Photo Courtesy: CoHNA X page The Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA), a US-based advocacy group, has appreciated India for implementing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and said the decision is a 'big win' for the persecuted religious minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. "A big win for #HumanRights for the persecuted religious #minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. India finally notifies the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which was passed by the Indian Parliament in 2019!" the group posted on X. "A reminder - #CAA has NO impact on existing Indian citizens of any faith. It simply fast-tracks the Indian citizenship process for approximately 31,000 religious minorities who fled Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan in the face of extreme and systemic persecution. For instance, each year in Pakistan alone 1000+ minor girls from minority communities are kidnapped, forcibly converted and "married" to their abductors, with support from police and judicial authorities. As a result, petrified families with young kids have been fleeing to India for basic safety," the group added. A big win for #HumanRights for the persecuted religious #minorities of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. India finally notifies the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which was passed by the Indian Parliament in 2019! A reminder - #CAA has NO impact on existing Indian citizens pic.twitter.com/QecebYMGH3 CoHNA (Coalition of Hindus of North America) (@CoHNAOfficial) March 11, 2024 Ahead of India's general polls, the Indian government recently implemented the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The act was implemented nearly five years after it was passed by the Indian Parliament. The CAA triggered widespread debate and intense protests across the nation since it was passed by the Parliament on December 11, 2019. What is CAA? The CAA, which was Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) before it was passed by the Indian Parliament, aims to grant citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi but not Muslim refugees who came to India before Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh before 2015. After its passage, protests were held in various parts of the country including Kolkata, Delhi and Assam. The protests, however, fizzled out amid COVID-19-imposed restrictions and lockdowns. Photo courtesy: UNI New Delhi/IBNS/UNI: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved two corridors of Delhi Metro with a total investment of Rs 8,399 crore. The two metro lines of 20.7 km would be built between Lajpat Nagar and Saket G-Block, and between Inderlok and Indraprastha. The metro line between Lajpat Nagar and Saket G-Block would be approximately 8.4 kilometres and have eight metro stations. The entire corridor will be elevated. The length between Inderlok and Indraprastha would be 12.377 kilometres. This corridor will comprise an underground line of 11.349 kilometres and an elevated line of 1.028 kilometre. This corridor will have 10 stations. Eight new interchange stations will come up on these corridors at Inderlok, Nabi Karim, New Delhi, Delhi Gate, Indraprastha, Lajpat Nagar, Chirag Dilli and Saket G Block. These stations will significantly improve the interconnectivity among all the operational lines of the Delhi Metro network. "The metro network in the national capital is the largest network in the country. The total length of the metro network in the country is 945 kilometres and works on 919 kilometres of metro network is under progress. I am happy to share that two new corridors have been approved entailing an investment of Rs 8,400 crore," Union Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Anurag Thakur said while briefing the media on Cabinet decisions. The Minister said that both metro corridors will be completed by March 2029. "The construction of metro lines will ease traffic congestion and reduce pollution. It will reduce fossil fuel consumption and reduce travel costs besides enhancing commuter convenience," Thakur said. The total project cost of the two corridors will be sourced from the Centre, Delhi government, and international funding agencies. While the Lajpat Nagar-Saket G Block corridor will connect the Silver, Magenta, Pink, and Violet Lines, the Inderlok-Indraprastha corridor will be an extension of the Green Line and will provide interchange with the Red, Yellow, Airport Line, Magenta, Violet and Blue Lines. The Delhi Metro is already constructing a network of 65 kilometres as part of its fourth phase of expansion. These new corridors are expected to be completed by March 2026 in stages. At present, the DMRC operates a network of 391 kilometres consisting of 286 stations. The Delhi Metro is now one of the fastest growing Metro networks in the world. "The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) has already started the pre-bid activities and preparation of Tender documents," an official statement said. Photo courtesy: UNI Agartala/IBNS/UNI: The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is set to sacrifice the East Tripura (ST) seat to its newfound ally TIPRA Motha in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, but the latter has agreed to fight the polls under the BJPs symbol. Motha founder and Tripura royal scion Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma reiterated on Tuesday in a video message that he will decide on the candidate for the East Tripura constituency and said, We should fight using the brain, not emotion and physique. I will select the candidate for East Tripura who will fight for the constitutional solution of the Tiprasa (tribal) and not block the prospect. He said the time is to remain cool and deal with the situation tactfully, and he mentioned, Keep our unity stronger to achieve the goals. This was the understanding reached between TIPRA Motha and BJP leadership at the time of the signing of a tripartite agreement that Motha became a part of the state government. According to reports, Pradyots elder sister, Kirti Singh, who married and settled in Jharkhand, is likely to become the candidate in the East Tripura seat. An indication was available on Monday when Kirti Singh was seen on a dais with Pradyot in a meeting of the party in Khowai. Despite resentment in TIPRA Motha over the candidature, Pradyot Kishore has already sent his elder sisters name to the BJP headquarters for final approval and announcement, sources claimed. However, sources in the BJP here said that the party has reached an understanding with Motha because, keeping them aside, it will be difficult to win the East Tripura seat. The outgoing MP, Rebati Tripura, has been convinced that he will be nominated for the next assembly election from a convenient seat and that he should cooperate with the campaign's heart and soul. Meanwhile, Pradyots decision to go with the BJP and join the state government irked the TIPRA Motha rank and file. Angry Motha supporters burned Pradyots effigy, protesting against his decision to join the BJP government and his silence over CAA implementation. Pradyot had to leave Congress after Sonia Gandhi requested that he withdraw the case he filed in the Supreme Court against CAA and NRC. Thereafter, Pradyot resorted to agitation and road blockades, resulting in firing that left many injured. Photo Courtesy: Wallpaper Cave New Delhi: The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the Inter-Governmental Framework Agreement (IGFA) between India and UAE. IGFA was signed on February 13, 2024, during a high-level visit to New Delhi, between the Indian government and the government of the United Arab Emirates. The IGFA aims to enhance bilateral relations and strengthen the relations between the two countries in the Ports, Maritime and Logistics sectors. The agreement includes areas of cooperation between the two countries to explore further potential of future joint investment and collaboration for the development of the IMEC. It contains a detailed framework for cooperation between the two countries. The cooperation will be based on a set of mutually agreed upon principles, guidelines and agreements consistent with the relevant rules and regulations of the countries' jurisdiction. In image Khajuraho Temple in Madhya Pradesh/ courtesy: Unsplash Madhya Pradesh government said it has signed an agreement with MakeMyTrip and redBus to foster sustainable tourism development and promote the state as a 'premier' tourist destination. Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), online travel firm MakeMyTrip will provide offline and online training sessions to existing and upcoming homestay operators to help them understand the various nuances of promoting and running such properties effectively, Madhya Pradesh Department of Tourism said in a statement. "Madhya Pradesh is committed to showcasing and curating newer experiences to suit modern travellers across age groups. We believe this collaboration will help us tap into newer approaches and avenues to support our goal in a conscious, sustainable, and equitable manner," Sheo Shekhar Shukla, Principal Secretary, Tourism and Managing Director, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board, said. Further, MakeMyTrip will collaborate with the tourism department to intensify the focus on promoting pilgrimage and wildlife-led travel experiences that the state has to offer through its platform, according to the statement. redBus will be recognized as the official "Online Bus Ticketing Partner" by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board and will work to help travellers discover the far reaches of the state. Suspected gas explosion rocks restaurant in China. Photo Courtesy: X page video grab At least two persons died and 22 others were injured after a blast triggered by a suspected gas leak hit a four-storey residential building in China's Hebei province on Wednesday, media reports said. A government statement said the blast occurred at 7.54am in Sanhe county of Langfang in northern Hebei province, which neighbours the countrys capital, reported The South China Moring Post. The blast reported occurred in a restaurant. According to reports, 26 people were recovered from the scene of the blast by afternoon. The wounded people, mostly suffering from minor injuries, were sent to a nearby hospital for treatment. Several footage of the moment of the blast are currently circulating on Chinese social media outlets. Sanhe emergency department told The South China Morning Post that the municipal fire department sent 36 vehicles and 154 personnel to the scene. Videos circulating on the internet showed firefighters working hard to douse the flame. Photo Courtesy: Pixabay The Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) on Wednesday arrested a terrorist during an Intelligence Based Operation (IBO in Pakistan's Sahiwal region, media reports said. As per details, the Intelligence Based Operation was carried out on Arif Wala Road and arrested one terrorist, reported ARY News. CTD officials told ARY News that the arrested terrorist of the banned organization was identified as Azam Gul and a resident of Landi Kotal Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Weapons, explosives, detonators and batteries were recovered from hs possession. Photo Courtesy: Unsplash Somali pirates on Tuesday hijacked a Bangladesh-flagged cargo vessel in the Indian Ocean and held hostage all the 23 crew members, Bangladeshi officials confirmed. The pirates are suspected to be Somalis as the coast is located in that country, Mohammad Maksud Alam, director general at the Department of Shipping, Bangladesh, told The Daily Star. The cargo ship named MV Abdullah was carrying coal from Mozambique's Maputo port to Al Hamriyah Port of UAE. Pirates have taken control of the ship. The crew informed us they (pirates) have heavy arms, he added. All the crew members, however, are safe and the government is working to rescue them and the vessel using all possible diplomatic channels, he added. The vessel belongs to Bangladeshi SR Shipping Lines, the official confirmed. Earlier, in 2010, another vessel of SR Shipping was hijacked by pirates in the Arabian Sea. (With UNI inputs) Photo Courtesy: BNM X page The Baloch National Movement members recently hosted an anti-Pakistan protest at the Broken Chair sculpture in Geneva during the 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Protesters voiced pro-freedom slogans and accused Islamabad of gross human rights violations in Balochistan, which is the largest yet the poorest province in Pakistan, reported ANI. They demanded immediate release of forcefully detained Baloch people. BNM is currently conducting a campaign in Geneva, coinciding with the 55th session of the Human Rights Council. As part of this campaign, a protest demonstration took place at Broken Chair on the second day. Leaders of the Baloch National Movement (BNM), including Chairman pic.twitter.com/O6vwyGLS0L BNM (@BNMovement_) March 12, 2024 The Baloch, Pashtuns, Sindhis, and Kashmiris are suffering at the hands of the Pakistan Army. We demand the United Nations to intervene and investigate human rights violations in Pakistan, Naseem Baloch, the chairman of the Baloch National Movement said at the protest site as quoted by ANI. Pakistan has tested its nuclear weapons without any safety precautions in Balochistan. The local people are suffering from various diseases, and we want to convey to the world about the heinous crimes by Pakistan in Balochistan, he added. Razzak Baloch, Secretary-General of the Baloch American Congress, alleged that the Pakistan Army is running the countrys affairs and it needs to be driven out of Balochistan. We are here to protest the occupation of Balochistan. In 1947, the British created Pakistan for their purpose. That purpose is served now. They occupied Balochistan in 1948, and since then, the Pakistan army has been running the affairs of the country. We want the Pakistan army to be out of Balochistan. The Pakistan army is looting and plundering our wealth. Our people are suffering. We want Pakistan to be dismantled, he told ANI. Photo Courtesy: Pixabay The Secretariat Employees Association in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's Muzaffarabad city recently demonstrated against the governments discriminatory policies, media reports said. They demanded a hike in the salary of contractual employees. While addressing the employees, the opposition leader of the PoK assembly, Khawaja Farooq Ahmed, told ANI that the members of the assembly and ministers of the government are helpless in front of the current Prime Minister, Chaudhary Anwar-ul-Haq. Here, even assembly sessions are not held regularly. School fees, electricity bills and gas bills have become a very big issue here. Where will people go if you deduct 15,000 from their 30,000 salary? Khawaja Farooq Ahmed was quoted as saying by ANI. Members of the Secretariat Employees Association expressed annoyance over employees in PoK not being promoted to permanent positions. The employees claim that they only receive half of the allowance as compared to the other provinces across Pakistan. Representative Photo Courtesy: Unsplash Tibetan women-in-exile members recently held a demonstration in the Indian hilly town of Shimla to mark the 65th anniversary of Tibetan Womens National Uprising Day. They also protested against the atrocities committed against Tibetan people by Chinese authorities. The Tibetan women-in-exile participated under the banner of the Regional Chapter of TWA (Tibetan Women Association) and appealed to the international community to support the cause of Tibet, reported ANI. Dawa Cheodon, the organiser of the protest and Tibetan freedom activist said that through the protest, they aim to globally highlight the situation in Tibet amid Chinese atrocities. Today we are here to mark the 65th Women National Uprising Day. On this day in 1959, 15,000 Tibetan women gathered near Potala Palace to protest against Chinese illegal occupation. We have gathered to pay tribute to those who died for us. Through this peace march, we are trying to highlight to the world about the situation in Tibet, Cheodon told ANI. There is no internet or news access inside Tibet. China is planning a hydroelectric dam inside Tibet which is a big threat to the people and the monasteries. The degradation of our land and our people only benefits China, she said. Tsering Dorjee, the spokesperson of the Tibetan community in exile, highlighted the human rights violations in Tibet and said that the dam being built on the Indo-China border presents a grave threat to the local culture as well as to the region. The 1959 Tibetan uprising or the 1959 Tibetan rebellion began on 10 March 1959, when a revolt erupted in Lhasa, the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, which had been under the effective control of the People's Republic of China since the Seventeen Point Agreement was reached in 1951. Armed conflict between Tibetan guerillas and the People's Liberation Army(PLA) had started in 1956 in the Kham and Amdo regions, which had been subjected to socialist reform. The guerrilla warfare later spread to other areas of Tibet and lasted through 1962. The anniversary of the uprising is observed by Tibetan exiles as the ''Tibetan Uprising Day''. Ramadan 2024, 3rd Roza Timings: Ramadan, the ninth month, is one of the holiest in the Islamic calendar. Muslims worldwide follow sawm (fasting - one of the five pillars of Islam) to commemorate the sacred month. Therefore, Ramadan rituals are observed for 29-30 days from the first sighting of the crescent moon to the other. Moon sighting is important to decide the beginning and the end of the month of Ramadan. Muslim community observes fast from dawn to dusk. After the day is over, in the evening, they break their fast by eating meals, known as Iftar with family or friends. It is believed that by refraining from food and water throughout the day, one understands the pain and suffering of other people and gets closer to the almighty God (Allah). Ramadan 2024: 3rd Roza City-wise Sheri and Iftar Timings Discover the city-wise Sehri and Iftar timings for the 3rd Roza in India. Mumbai 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:35 AM 6:48 PM Delhi 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:13 AM 6:31 PM Chennai 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:06 AM 6:20 PM Hyderabad 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:20 AM 6:36 PM Lucknow 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 4:59 AM 6:16 PM Kanpur 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:02 AM 6:19 PM Bengaluru 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:17 AM 6:34 PM Kolkata 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 4:32 AM 5:46 PM Jammu 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:20 AM 6:41 PM Patna 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 4:43 AM 5:59 PM Noida 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:13 AM 6:31 PM Ajmer 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:25 AM 6:43 PM Ahmedabad 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:35 AM 6:50 PM Thiruvananthapuram 3rd Roza Timings: Roza Date Sehri Iftar 3rd March 14 5:20 AM 6:34 PM Ramadan 2024 Start And End Dates In India, The holy month of Ramadan 2024 begins on March 12 and will last for four weeks and ends with Eid-ul-Fitr. On April 10, Eid-ul-Fitr will be observed. Here's how Ramadan Roza is observed During the holy month of Ramadan Roza (fasting) begins after sunrise and culminates with sunset Consumption of food and water is prohibited between sunrise and sunset. Interestingly, the days start with Fajr (prayer during dawn), followed by Zhuhr (midday), Asr (afternoon), Maghrib (evening) and conclude with the Isha (night). Muslims consume a pre-dawn meal called Suhur, and they break their fast by having Iftaar during this month. About the Holy month of Ramadan According to Islamic culture, the origins of Ramadan can be traced back to the seventh century, when the Prophet Muhammad received the first verses of the Quran, the holy book of Islam, during the month of Ramadan. According to Islamic tradition, the revelation of the Quran to Muhammad began on the 27th night of Ramadan, a night that is known as Laylat al-Qadr, or the Night of Power. Muslims believe that Laylat al-Qadr is the holiest night of the year and that praying on this night is more valuable than praying for a thousand months. The practice of fasting during Ramadan is based on the Quranic injunction to "fast for a fixed number of days". Muslims are required to abstain from food, drink, and other physical needs during daylight hours throughout the month of Ramadan. The fast is broken at sunset with a meal known as iftar, which typically consists of dates, water, and a light meal. After the meal, Muslims perform the Maghrib prayer, the fourth of the five daily prayers in Islam. Ramadan is also a time for spiritual reflection, prayer, and charitable giving. Muslims are encouraged to read the entire Quran during the month, and many mosques offer daily prayers and study groups. In addition, Muslims are expected to give to charity during Ramadan, with many mosques and charitable organizations organising food drives and other initiatives to help those in need. Ramadan 2024: Dua For Iftar And Sehri FAQs What is Ramadan Dua? Ramadan dua is an act of worship that can bring great spiritual benefits to believers. It helps to strengthen one's faith and deepen their relationship with Allah. It can also serve as a means of self-reflection and introspection, as believers reflect on their actions and seek forgiveness for any shortcomings. How Many Fasting Days in Ramadan? The duration of the Ramadan fast is one lunar month, usually 29 or 30 days. What is Iftar and Sehri (Suhoor)? Iftar is a meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their daily fast during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Iftar is the evening meal when Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset. This is followed by a prayer called the Maghrib prayer. Then, depending on the region, the iftar meal consists of a variety of traditional dishes, such as soups, salads, appetizers, main dishes, and desserts. After the meal, many Muslims attend a special congregational prayer called the Tarawih. What is dua for Sehri in Ramadan? The dua for Sehri is Wa bisawmi ghadinn nawaiytu min shahri Ramadan means I intend to keep the fast for tomorrow in the month of Ramadan after reading this dua in Ramadan 2024 for fasting in Sehri you are not permissible to eat and drink anything till the time of Iftaar. What is dua for Iftar in Ramadan? Iftar, also known as futoor (the Arabic word for breakfast), is a meal held every day during Ramadan at sunset. You can break your fast by saying this Ramadan iftar dua, 'Allahumma inni laka sumtu wa bika amantu wa 'alayka tawakkaltu wa 'ala rizqika aftartu'. Note: Dates/timings may be subject to change; details mentioned here are as per the information available. For more informative articles on historical and upcoming events from around the world, please visit Indiatimes Events. Kanpur Ramadan 2024 Sehri And Iftar Timings: Ramadan or Ramzan is a festival that is celebrated with a lot of joy and fervour by Muslims across the globe. During the month of Ramadan, people observe Roza (without even drinking water for 30 days). Ramadan is also a time when people break their Roza together to celebrate the festival with their friends, family and loved ones. Ramadan 2024 started on March 12 and ended on April 9 and Eid will begin on April 10 in the evening and end in on April 11th evening (tentative date). Muslim community observes fast or Roza from dawn to dusk. Roza has two parts, one is Sehri - the meal that one consumes before daybreak and the second one is known as Iftaar - when people break the Roza - the meal that is eaten after sunset. People make elaborate meals for Iftaar. People also invite their friends and loved ones over for Iftaar and it is quite a grand affair. At the end of the month of Ramadan, Muslims make some donations to disadvantaged people. These donations have to be made before starting the celebrations for Eid. Therefore, it is important to keep a check on the time for Sehri and Iftaar. Here, take a look at the Sehri and Iftar timetable during Ramadan for Kanpur: Ramadan 2024: Kanpur Sehri and Iftar Timing Calendar Kanpur Ramadan Timings 2024 Calendar, Sehri & Iftar Time Table Roza Date Sehri Timing Iftar Timing 1 March 12 5:04 AM 6:18 PM 2 March 13 5:03 AM 6:18 PM 3 March 14 5:02 AM 6:19 PM 4 March 15 5:01 AM 6:19 PM 5 March 16 5:00 AM 6:20 PM 6 March 17 4:59 AM 6:20 PM 7 March 18 4:57 AM 6:21 PM 8 March 19 4:56 AM 6:21 PM 9 March 20 4:55 AM 6:22 PM 10 March 21 4:54 AM 6:22 PM 11 March 22 4:53 AM 6:23 PM 12 March 23 4:52 AM 6:23 PM 13 March 24 4:51 AM 6:24 PM 14 March 25 4:49 AM 6:24 PM 15 March 26 4:48 AM 6:25 PM 16 March 27 4:47 AM 6:25 PM 17 March 28 4:46 AM 6:25 PM 18 March 29 4:45 AM 6:26 PM 19 March 30 4:44 AM 6:26 PM 20 March 31 4:42 AM 6:27 PM 21 April 1 4:41 AM 6:27 PM 22 April 2 4:40 AM 6:28 PM 23 April 3 4:39 AM 6:28 PM 24 April 4 4:38 AM 6:29 PM 25 April 5 4:37 AM 6:29 PM 26 April 6 4:35 AM 6:30 PM 27 April 7 4:34 AM 6:30 PM 28 April 8 4:33 AM 6:31 PM 29 April 9 4:32 AM 6:31 PM Ramadan 2024: Dua for Sehri and Iftar Dua For Keeping The Fast? (Sehri Ki Dua | Suhoor Dua) "Wa bisawmi ghaddan nawaiytu min shahri ramadan" Dua For Breaking A Fast? (Iftar ki Dua | Iftar Dua) " Allahumma inni laka sumtu wa bika aamantu wa 'alayka tawakkaltu wa 'ala rizq-ika aftarthu fathakabl minni" Here's how Ramadan Roza is observed During the holy month of Ramadan Roza (fasting) begins after sunrise and culminates with sunset Consumption of food and water is prohibited between sunrise and sunset. Interestingly, the days start with Fajr (prayer during dawn), followed by Zhuhr (midday), Asr (afternoon), Maghrib (evening) and conclude with the Isha (night). Muslims consume a pre-dawn meal called Suhur, and they break their fast by having Iftaar during this month. Ramadan 2024: Dua For Iftar And Sehri FAQs What is Ramadan Dua? Ramadan dua is an act of worship that can bring great spiritual benefits to believers. It helps to strengthen one's faith and deepen their relationship with Allah. It can also serve as a means of self-reflection and introspection, as believers reflect on their actions and seek forgiveness for any shortcomings. How Many Fasting Days in Ramadan? The duration of the Ramadan fast is one lunar month, usually 29 or 30 days. What is Iftar and Sehri (Suhoor)? Iftar is a meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their daily fast during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Iftar is the evening meal when Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset. This is followed by a prayer called the Maghrib prayer. Then, depending on the region, the iftar meal consists of a variety of traditional dishes, such as soups, salads, appetizers, main dishes, and desserts. After the meal, many Muslims attend a special congregational prayer called the Tarawih. What is dua for Sehri in Ramadan? The dua for Sehri is Wa bisawmi ghadinn nawaiytu min shahri Ramadan means I intend to keep the fast for tomorrow in the month of Ramadan after reading this dua in Ramadan 2024 for fasting in Sehri you are not permissible to eat and drink anything till the time of Iftaar. What is dua for Iftar in Ramadan? Iftar, also known as futoor (the Arabic word for breakfast), is a meal held every day during Ramadan at sunset. You can break your fast by saying this Ramadan iftar dua, 'Allahumma inni laka sumtu wa bika amantu wa 'alayka tawakkaltu wa 'ala rizqika aftartu'. Note: Dates/timings may be subject to change; details mentioned here are as per the information available. As an IAS officer, your duty is to serve the people. Sometimes, this means you have to come up with clever solutions to solve problems and address issues at their core. Serving as an inspiration for all aspiring civil servants, IAS officer Kriti Raj took matters into her own hands when it was discovered that patients were experiencing difficulties at a hospital in Firozabad, Uttar Pradesh. Unprofessional behaviour of doctor Kriti Raj, who is posted as the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) in the Firozabad area of UP, had been receiving complaints regarding inconveniences faced by patients in the area. "I had received a complaint in regards to Dida Mai health centre that the doctor was not present even after 10 am to administer an injection for a dog bite," she said. Representative image/ India.com Kriti decided to call the doctor at the hospital herself and tried to take an appointment. She realised while speaking to the doctor over the phone itself that his behaviour was quite unprofessional. Then, on the day of the appointment, Kriti made her way to the hospital - but, in a guise. Anonymous visit in veil reveals glaring inefficiencies "I went there anonymously in a veil. I sought an appointment and spoke with the doctor. The doctor's behaviour was not appropriate," she said. IANS Images from the scene depicted SDM Kriti Raj wearing a veil alongside other patients at the hospital. Apart from his behaviour, the inspection also revealed inconsistencies in staff attendance at the health centre. She noted, "When I checked their attendance register I noted that some of them were absent. Some of them had signatures on the register but were not present at the health centre." Further, the stock of medicines were found to be past their expiry date. Representative image/ PIXABAY Additionally, the hospital was found lacking in cleanliness and hygiene. She added, "Even injections were not being given properly. The staff were not working with the motive to serve people." Kriti stated that the health centre would be investigated and a report would be sent to them regarding its inefficiencies. For more on news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. Delhi on Tuesday witnessed a rather unique marriage, where two history-sheeters started a life together as man and wife. Gangster Sandeep alias Kala Jathedi married Anuradha Choudhary alias Madam Minz in a banquet hall in Delh's Dwarka on Tuesday. BCCL The unusual wedding was witnessed by a large contingent of Delhi Police who made fool-proof arrangements for the event due to security concerns. Who are Sandeep and Anuradha Sandeep, who is a close associate of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, is facing over a dozen cases of robbery, murders, attempt to murder, extortions and arms Act in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh was brought to the wedding venue by the Delhi Police, from Tihar jail. Anuradha, a former close confidante of slain gangster Anandpal Singh, is facing over half-a-dozen cases in Rajasthan and Delhi and is currently out on bail. Reached the venue driving a black Mahindra Scorpio SUV. BCCL The duo's love story began in Madhya Pradesh's Indore, where Anuradha met Sandeep through a common associate Vicky Singh. More police than guests The marriage ceremony started with 'jaimala' and was followed by rituals, which were witnessed by about 50 guests, Delhi Police officers, lawyers and the couple's family members. According to reports some 250 policemen along with SWAT (Special Weapons and Techniques) commandos carrying hi-tech weapons were deployed in and around the venue. BCCL Groom back in Tihar, after wedding Sandeep entered into a new life on Tuesday after getting a six-hour parole. For marriage, Sandeep wore kurta-pajama with a half jacket on it while Anuradha wore a pink colour saree. After the wedding ceremony, Sandeep was taken back to the Tihar jail by the Delhi Police. BCCL To start a life away from crimes As they began a new life together, the duo has reportedly expressed the desire to renounce their past. Anuradha who is taking care of Sandeep's parents in Sonipat is also pursuing law and wishes to fight her husband's case in court. For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. Soon Maharashtra's capital Mumbai will have a 300-acre Central Park, like the New York Central Park. The Maharashtra Government has cleared a proposal to develop a landscaped park of international standards. BCCL Mumbai Central Park The Central Park will be developed on 120 acres of the total 211 acres of the Mahalaxmi Race Course. According to the Chief Ministers Office, the government will hand over the plot to the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) which will be the nodal development agency. Mahalaxmi Racecourse agrees to hand over land On Sunday, the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) gave its nod to the BMCs proposal to convert the Mahalaxmi Racecourse into a theme park. BCCL According to reports, 76.24% of the members of RWITC voted in favour of the proposal to return 120 acres of land leased to them nearly 100 years ago, to the BMC permanently. The BMC had offered to renew the turf clubs lease, which expired in 2013, for a 30-year period if the RWITC hands over half of the 211 acres of land it possesses. The cabinet has approved granting a lease of 91 acres of land to RWITC for a further period of 30 years from the date of actual possession and renewal of the said lease per the provisions prescribed from time to time. BCCL What will be left of Mahalaxmi Racecourse As part of the deal the race tracks, helipad, grandstand and certain horse stables will fall under the 91-acre portion, which will stay with the race course, the remaining 120-acre parcel will accommodate jogging tracks, additional stables, the parking area and a portion of the lawn. The agreement on the leased plot was approved for renewal from June 1, 2013, to the date of actual possession of the plot. BCCL As per Mondays cabinet decision, the difference in the amount payable for the said period will be recovered by the BMC as per the rate fixed by the state Revenue and Forest Department. For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. Embarking on a nine-month odyssey across the vibrant landscapes of India, UK-based travel influencers Liam and Janine Day, celebrated for their YouTube channel 'Those Happy Days,' undertook a remarkable voyage of exploration and cultural immersion. Instagram UK YouTuber couple's autorickshaw journey in India Departing from the conventional confines of their campervan, the adventurous couple opted for an autorickshaw affectionately dubbed 'Pete' as their mode of transport, traversing 9,000 kilometres from Kanyakumari to Amritsar. In an exclusive interview with The Indian Express, Janine shared insights into their nerve-wracking initiation into autorickshaw driving amidst the bustling chaos of Indian cities. "Liam was the driver for the whole 9,000-km rickshaw journey, and I was the passenger. Liam practised driving it for half an hour in a quiet suburb in Chennai," she disclosed. Reflecting on the challenges encountered during their escapade through India's varied terrains, the couple expressed astonishment at the unexpected cold weather in certain regions. "Being British with no threats from wild animals, it was also a challenge getting our heads round the fact that we were potentially surrounded by elephants, leopards, and other wild animals," they revealed to the publication. Instagram UK YouTuber couple visited Sadhguru's ashram Their journey also led them to navigate the treacherous roads of the Western Ghat mountains, an endeavor they acknowledged as risky, especially with a 20-year-old rickshaw. However, amidst the perils, they found moments of joy and camaraderie, such as their unforgettable celebration of Mahashivratri with Sadhguru. Recalling the eventful night at Sadhguru's ashram, the couple humorously recounted returning to find two unexpected guests asleep inside 'Pete'. "Experiencing the kindness we had hoped existed in the world, but only upon coming to India did we truly find it," they emphasised, reflecting on the warmth and hospitality they encountered throughout their journey. Instagram As their Indian expedition drew to a close, Liam and Janine made a poignant gesture by donating 'Pete' to a dog sanctuary in Amritsar. The autorickshaw was repurposed into a dog ambulance, facilitating numerous rescues and garnering substantial support through their documentary video, which raised thousands of dollars for the sanctuary. With their unconventional journey leaving an indelible mark on both their lives and the communities they encountered, Liam and Janine bid farewell to India, cherishing the memories and lessons gleaned from their extraordinary adventure. For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. What happens if some crops or their seeds are lost forever from the face of the earth? It would be a great loss for the environment, biodiversity, and food safety. But what if there is a safe repository of all the seeds in the world? It is from this idea the Svalbard Global Seed Vault also known as the doomsday vault was born. REUTERS What is Svalbard Global Seed Vault It all began back in 1984 when the Nordic Gene Bank began storing backup Nordic plants in an abandoned coal mine outside of Longyearbyen, Norway. From there it evolved into the Svalbard Global Seed Vault which is located deep in the icy mountain on an island above the Arctic Circle between Norway and the North Pole. NORD GEN The Svalbard Global Seed Vault was launched in 2008 as the ultimate backup for the world's gene banks to protect plants from war, disease and climate change. As the name suggests, the seed vault is designed to withstand catastrophes including natural disasters. Over one million seeds Today the Global Seed Vault houses over one million seed samples from around the world to prevent the loss of crop species after the likes of a war, natural disaster or pandemic. NORD GEN How the seeds are stored In chambers that open only three times a year to limit exposure of seeds to the outside world, the temperature is around minus 18 degrees Celsius. The seeds are placed in sealed envelopes, and inserted into plastic containers on metal shelves. Low temperatures and limited oxygen reserves prevent the aging of seeds. NORD GEN Last opened in February The last time it was opened was in February this year when twenty-three seed banks including those from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cameroon, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria and Zambia deposited seeds of crops such as beans, barley, cowpea, maize, rice, millet and sorghum. With the latest deposit, 111 seed banks in 77 countries have a backup of their plants in Svalbard. For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News. When an artist from Singapore was invited to paint a mural on the walls of a residential building in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, he couldn't turn it down. Who is the artist who painted the mural in Tamil Nadu? Yip Yew Chong painted the mural | Image : Instagram Yip Yew Chong, 55, flew to the city at the end of January 2024 to transform a four-story building in Ukkadam. He painted a 15m by 14m mural inspired by daily life in the city. It shows a guy pouring tea, a lady cooking thosai, and a hawker selling pani puri. He also added a goat and a cat to the mural after residents repeatedly asked him to paint their pets, according to The Straits Times. When did he start the mural? Chong also posted updates on his Instagram account regarding his 10-day trip to the city. On January 28, he posted a few photographs with the comment, "My Studio for the next ten days - a prelude to 'I Paint my World'." The photos show him enjoying tea and snacks. Some even display murals on city buildings. A couple photographs show youngsters playing while women fill pitchers with water from the community tank. The mural depicts daily life of the city | Image: Instagram In another picture, he featured a 'Indian version of Chinatown tea-pouring mural'. He also uploaded photos of paintings created by pals in the city. Chong posted on February 4 about the progress of his mural in Ukkadam. He said, "I'm happy to say I'm on track!" The photos show him posing in various positions with his mural. While one image shows him 'holding' the glass of tea he painted, another depicts him 'drinking' tea that a man is pouring in the mural. The third image depicts the remaining part of the building with the incomplete artwork. The remaining photos show him eating, playing with the kids, and taking selfies with locals. How is Singaporean and Tamil culture similar according to the artist? During his stay in Coimbatore, Chong noted certain similarities between Singaporean, Malaysian, and Indian Tamil cultures. He said in a statement to The Strait Times, "There are similarities with Singaporean and Malaysian Tamil culture such as Thaipusam, roti prata and teh tarik, but it's quite amazing to see how culture has evolved among the diaspora." What do you think about this? Tell us in the comments. For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram. A massive steel monolith was recently discovered on a hill in Wales, perplexing locals and specialists alike. What is this massive steel structure? A 10-foot-tall steel block, shaped like a big Toblerone, was discovered in Wales | Image: X According to the New York Post, the 10-foot-tall steel block, shaped like a big Toblerone, was discovered by locals on Hay Bluff near the Powys town over the weekend. ''I thought it looked a little strange and might be a scientific media research thing collecting rainwater," Richard Haynes told reporters. "But then I realized it was far too tall and unusual for that. Then I approached it, and it was at least 10-feet tall, triangular, and clearly stainless steel. It was hollow and, I assume, fairly light. "It's light enough for two people to carry up and plant it," Haynes remarked. Which theories have people come up with after the images went viral? The images of the monolith that have gone viral have sparked various conspiracy theories online. While some said it was the work of aliens, others believed it was a complex piece of hidden artwork. The images of the monolith that have gone viral have sparked various conspiracy theories online | Image: X Prior to this remarkable occurrence, a spate of monoliths surfaced around the world, sparking great public interest and discussion. Theories regarding their origins ranged from a marketing ploy to extraterrestrial life. When has it happened before? According to the New York Times, a mysterious 10-foot-tall metal slab arrived in northeastern Turkey in February 2021 before silently disappearing. It was engraved with a cryptic inscription in the Gokturk alphabet, an ancient Turkic language: ''Look at the sky, see the moon.'' It was eventually revealed to be a government publicity hoax promoting Turkey's new space program. What do you think about this? Tell us in the comments. For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram. TikTok has warned both current and former employees against speaking negatively about the company, indicating potential consequences. According to Fortune, TikTok provides restricted stock units (RSUs) to its employees as part of their compensation package. However, these RSUs are subject to being revoked under a provision outlined in a TikTok shareholder agreement. What Will Happen If Tik Tok Employees Bad Mouth The Company? unsplash According to the agreement, holders of restricted stock units (RSUs) are prohibited from making any "critical, adverse, or disparaging" remarks about the company, its affiliates, or employees. The consequence for violating this provision is the immediate forfeiture of all the participant's restricted share units. As per the report, a former employee expressed concerns to Fortune, stating that he feels he is being targeted by the company. Quoting Patrick Spaulding Ryan, the report highlighted that TikTok excluded him from its recent buyback offer for both current and former employees on March 4. This exclusion occurred because he had publicly criticized the disparagement clause on LinkedIn. Trump's TikTok Concerns Spark Legislative Response and Uncertainty twitter Against the backdrop of former US President Donald Trump's assertion that TikTok posed a national security risk, he also acknowledged the potential adverse effects of banning the app, particularly on young users. Trump suggested that such a ban could inadvertently bolster competitors like Facebook, a platform he has previously criticized. Meanwhile, US lawmakers are gearing up to vote on legislation that would compel TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest the app within six months. With close to 170 million users in the United States, TikTok stands as a significant platform, further emphasizing the importance and potential impact of any divestiture proceedings. Meanwhile, India banned TikTok and 100-plus other Chinese apps in June 2020 citing national security concerns. For the latest and more interesting financial news, keep reading Indiatimes Worth. Click here In a one of the episodes of Shark Tank India's season three, two young Bihar entrepreneurs named Dilkhush Kumar and Siddharth Shankar Jha impressed and won over the judges with their analytical skills and the "jugaad" they used to secure funding for their taxi service company in their home state. But what stood out was the story of Dilkhush, who was once rejected for the job of peon. Rejected For Peon Job, Pitcher Gets Rs 50 Lakh Deal On Shark Tank peon job rejected shark tank /x During Shark Tank India's ongoing third season, taxi startup RodBez's co-founder Dilkhush was questioned by OYO CEO Ritesh Agarwal about his background and how he came to be in charge of a company that was bringing in Rs 8 lakh a month in commission payments. The young businessman disclosed that the day he was turned down for a peon position was when he made the decision to start something of his own Dilkhush told the story of how his father, a bus driver, forced him into marriage at the age of 16, leaving him in charge of providing for the family. Pitcher Shares His Experience Of Getting Rejected For Peon Job taxi startup shark tank india season 3 peon job rejected/TOI To earn money, he went for a job interview. When I went for an interview for the job of a peon, I was rejected as I couldnt recognise the logo of Apple. They had already made their decision based on how I look. When I returned from there, I burnt my certificates and decided that I would never go for a job. I told my father to teach me how to drive and started working as a driver, the shared. Also Read: After Rs 50 Lakh Rejection On Shark Tank India, This Startup Is Now Valued At Rs 120 Crore The Idea Behind His Taxi Startup He went into detail about how he launched his first company and made a Rs. 8 lakh commission from it. He left that company and secured an investment from an investment firm for his new venture, an app that provides taxi services, which was valued at Rs 4 crore. He also disclosed that he learned to code on YouTube and used that knowledge to create the user interface of his app, RodBez, as per TOI report. Two Sharks Struck Rs 50 Lakh Deal With Him Dilkhush's "clarity" of thought impressed Shark Tank India season three judge Ritesh, who also extended an offer to Vineeta Singh. They made him an offer of Rs 20 lakh with 5% equity and Rs 30 lakh with 12% interest on debt. Peyush recommended that Dilkhush carry on receiving funding from regional investors, just as he is doing at the moment. He did, however, choose to accept Ritesh and Vineeta's offer. The co-founder had thanked the sharks and penned a heartfelt post after the deal. For the latest and more interesting financial news, keep reading Indiatimes Worth. Click here Minister of Defense Nikos Dendias met with NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT) General Philippe Lavigne, on Tuesday The Greek frigate Hydra today , in the morning hours , fired against two Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), in accordance with standard Rules of Engagement Bandits have again abducted about 61 persons in Buda community under Kajuru Local Government Area (LGA) of Kaduna State. Dauda Kajuru, a resident of the community, told Punch on Tuesday that the bandits came to the community in large numbers and started shooting sporadically in the late hours of Monday. He said some members of his family were part of the victims, adding that a swift response from the military prevented the bandits from going away with a larger number of people. What happened yesterday (Monday) was terrifying. The bandits came intending to abduct scores of people that will outnumber that of school pupils in Kuriga Village of Chikun LGA, but the swift response of soldiers who were not more than 2 kilometres away from Kajuru curtailed the number. READ ALSO: Kidnappers Demand N40trn, 11 Hilux Vans, 150 Bikes As Ransom For Abducted Kaduna Residents My siblings were part of those abducted yesterday and based on the information available as of this morning, the bandits and their victims are yet to get to their destination, Kajuru said. Lawal Abdullahi, another resident of the community who escaped from the bandits, said his wife, children and some women, including a nursing mother of two weeks, were among the abductees. He urged the state government to take action and ensure the safe return of the victims. The situation devastates me because we have not heard from them since the incident happened on Monday. We are appealing to the government to take action and ensure our loved ones return immediately,Abdullahi told the Punch. The attack comes a few days after bandits abducted 287 school children including their teachers in Kuriga town in Chikun LGA of Kaduna. Bright Okpocha, commonly known as Basketmouth, a Nigerian comedian and actor, is worried about the tasks and accomplishments of Nigerian senators other than padding budgets. This is coming after Abdul Ningi, the senator representing Bauchi Central Senatorial District, was suspended for alleged 2024 budget padding. In response, the comedian pondered what senators do other than pad budgets. He also asked about the senators initiatives that the typical Nigerian had benefited from during the last fifty years. Taking to his Instagram story, he wrote, Ive got a question Aside padding budgets, what else do our senators do? Likewhat have they done in the past 50yrs that favored the average Nigerian? READ MORE: K1 Refutes Rumours Of Wife, Emmanuella, Catching Him In Bed With Maid See some reactions to his post, @ejbigbrova noted: When you have followers, you got influence, when you got influence you have a voice. Its gratifying when Celebs speak up against social ills . Thanks my dear brother Basketmouth. Blessings! @funkya1803 said: Absolutely nothing. They only enrich their pockets, and when they are no longer on the seat, they die untimely death. SEE POST: The President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration, on Tuesday, announced the indefinite postponement of the launch of the Nigerian Students Loan Scheme indefinitely. The loan scheme was formally billed to take off on Thursday before the latest postponement. The Federal Government disclosed that the development was necessitated by the need to fine-tune and put finishing touches to the modalities of the scheme. Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), Akintunde Sawyer, who made the disclosure in an interview with Arise News, stated that the loan scheme was indefinitely postponed because of some corrections that are being made around the launch. According to him, they wanted every stakeholder to be on the same page in order to avoid claims of being sidelined. Unfortunately, I wont be able to commit to a specific date. We are sort of waiting to ensure that all the stakeholders are aligned to make sure that nobody is blindsided, then we can actually roll this out in a meaningful, comprehensive, wholesome and sustainable way. he said. READ ALSO: Alleged Budget Padding: Suspended Lawmaker Resigns As Chairman Of Northern Senators Forum President Bola Tinubu signed the bill into law in June 2023, to establish a Students Loan Fund (SLF) to provide interest-free loans to Nigerians seeking higher education. The bill, sponsored by Femi Gbajabiamila, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, was initially planned to begin between September and October 2023. President Tinubu announced the scheme would begin by January 2024, after his Government failed to meet the October deadline last year. In January, Yusuf Sununu, Minister of State for Education, confirmed at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, while briefing to newsmen, that preparations were completed for the scheme to begin, including the finalisation of the Student Loan Scheme website and the conclusion of technical plans to facilitate the schemes kick-off. Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have foiled a kidnap attempt at an undisclosed primary school in the Ijegun area of the state following the arrest of a suspected gang member. The Lagos State Police Command disclosed in a Tuesday statement that it rescued a kindergarten student and two pupils during the incident. The suspects were said to have positioned their operational motorcycles close to the school premises, waiting for other members who went inside to get their targets. Benjamin Hundeyin, spokesperson for the Command, said the rescued pupils are identified as Sofiat, four years old; Israel, five years old and Mustapha, six years old, adding that they had reunited with their families. READ ALSO: One Feared Killed, Five Injured In Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Crash At about 3.30 pm, on March 11, 2024, the headmaster of a school situated in the Ijegun area of Lagos, reported at Area M Command, that some unknown persons invaded the school and abducted three pupils in the school premises. Upon the information, detectives swung into action and led a formidable team to the scene of the crime. Furthermore, the culprits were given a hot chase, where one Akintola Alima, a 40-year-old woman, who kidnapped the three pre-nursery children was arrested and the children were rescued. However, other unknown suspects escaped with an unregistered motorcycle on sighting the police, he stated. He added that, investigation revealed that she abducted the children for criminal purposes and she had a standby motorcycle now at large, which was waiting for her to escape with the children before she was apprehended. The investigation is still ongoing. Rita Dominic, a veteran Nollywood actress, has explained why she took a break from the screen. The actress stated that she left prominence in 2002 and relocated to the United Kingdom due to personal issues. She mentioned that while in the UK, she began working as a caregiver for persons with special needs. Speaking at the 2024 Women of Valour Conference in Accra, Ghana, Dominic stated that while others may see her employment as a step-down, she did not because caring for others offered her joy and purpose. READ MORE: Shank Finally Reacts Following Accusations Davido Hijacked His Host Kai Cenat In her words, In 2001/2002 I stopped acting. I left the [movie] industry and moved to London because it was a very dark period in my life. I fell out with some friends I considered family. And I just gave up acting for a while. I needed to get out of that space for a minute. And then I moved to London and gave up stardom. You wont believe this, this is something Ive never told people before. While in London, I was trying to make ends meet so I started working in a care home as a caregiver for adults with special needs. While some might view it as a step-down, I dont. Taking care of others brought me joy and purpose at a time I needed it most. Philip Shaibu, Edo State Deputy Governor, on Tuesday, debunked being served with impeachment notice from the State House of Assembly. Recall that the Assembly Speaker, Blessing Agbebaku during plenary, on Monday, said for shunning the notice the House had sent, a substituted service through national dailies will be used to serve Shaibu. Reacting in a letter addressed to the Speaker dated March 12, 2024 and titled RE: Service of Impeachment Notice, signed by the Personal Assistant to the Deputy Governor, Charles Olubayo, Shaibu denied ever being served any letter and refusing to collect same. According to him, he has been out of the State since March 3 and therefore could not have been served as claimed during plenary. The Office of the Deputy Governor, Edo State wishes to draw your attention to the inaccuracies and misleading information that emanated from the plenary session of Monday, March 11, 2024, wherein Mr. Speaker directed that the impeachment notice be served on the Deputy Governor, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu through newspaper publications The Nigeria Observer and other national dailies, sequel to the refusal of the Deputy Governor to acknowledge the impeachment notice. READ ALSO: Shaibu Shuns Impeachment Notice, Edo Assembly Resolves To Serve Him Via National Dailies Mr. Speaker was quoted to have also stated at the said plenary that the action became necessary because the Deputy Governor refused to acknowledge an earlier impeachment notice sent to him through the Clerk of the House. We wish to state categorically that no impeachment notice was ever served on the Deputy Governor let alone refusing to acknowledge the impeachment notice. The Deputy Governor has since March 3, 2024 travelled out of Benin to Abuja and has not returned to Benin since the said March 3, 2024. The Clerk never saw the Deputy Governor whether in the office, at home or anywhere for that matter since the said date; hence surprised that the House resolved to publish the impeachment notice in the Observer and other national dailies because the Deputy Governor refused to acknowledge the earlier impeachment notice sent to him through the Clerk of the House. One therefore wonders where the Clerk or his appointee served him the impeachment notice and he refused to acknowledge it. Neither the Clerk nor any person sent impeachment notice to the Deputy Governor which he refused to acknowledge. It is therefore our prayer that Mr. Speaker corrects the impression created in the public as the outcome of yesterdays plenary to avoid misrepresentation in this all-important matter, he said. Former Kaduna Central lawmaker, Shehu Sani has disclosed what the Senator Abdul Ningi (Bauchi Central) stands to lose following his three-month suspension from the Senate. Ningi, Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, was on Tuesday suspended over his budget padding claims. The suspension came after the lawmakers deliberated on the allegation made by the Bauchi lawmaker that about N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget was not tied to any project. Reacting, Sani, via X, said the suspended lawmaker will no longer have access to his office and will not be entitled to remunerations until the suspension is lifted. READ ALSO: Senate Suspends Ningi For Three Months Over Budget Padding Claim The socio-political commentator lamented that such huge punishment has kept even lawmakers from the opposition parties silent on issues of importance. Suspension in the Senate means a Senator will not be allowed to attend the plenary and will be prohibited from attending committee meetings and participating in oversight functions. His salary, allowances and all entitlements will be blocked. He will not have access to his office and he is expected not to be seen within the premises of the National Assembly until the suspension is lifted. When I publicly disclosed the salaries and running costs of lawmakers, it was the then-Senate president who saved me from suspension. If you talk too much, your body go tell you, that is why even opposition no fit oppose too much, he posted. Organist Chelsea Chen will be playing a 1931 Skinner at Girard College Chapel at 7 p.m. Friday, as part of the first Philadelphia Organ Festival. Read more Frederick R. Haas knows his organs. He earned a degree from the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory of Music in organ performance, and over the last few decades hes played on Philadelphias great instruments including the mighty Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ at the Kimmel Center, named for his grandfather. And yet when the Philadelphia Organ Festival opens this week, the spotlight will land on some organs that even Haas has never heard. Philadelphia has so many organs, who could be acquainted with them all? We all know there are all these organs out there that are like little lost souls, Haas said. The citys first Philadelphia Organ Festival aims to bring at least some of them into the fold. The festival presents nine concerts featuring organs both famed and unsung from March 15-23, mostly outside of Center City in neighborhoods north, south and west, and beyond. Advertisement Everyone in Philly is always walking by these incredible buildings, including gorgeous houses of worship, but going inside is something we dont usually get an opportunity to do, said John Walthausen, the festivals artistic director. This is a chance to experience Philly in a different way. And to experience some musical gems. Among the instruments that will roar to life are a 1927 Moller organ at Tindley Temple on South Broad Street in a program by organist Alan Morrison honoring Philadelphia contralto and civil rights figure Marian Anderson, who performed there. What makes it really special is the organ was commissioned and purchased by an African American church community, and it brings together palettes [sounds] from theater organs of the silent film era. The general palette is very lush, Walthausen said. A recital by organist Chelsea Chen and a brass ensemble gives listeners a chance to hear the 1931 Skinner at Girard College Chapel. Its one of the largest E.M. Skinner organs from the end of his glory years, said Haas, a major donor to organ projects nationally, who is sometimes referred to as Philadelphias godfather of the organ. So many of his organs have been altered beyond recognition. Its a treasure. If a somewhat hidden one. The entire installation is in the ceiling and speaks through this art deco grille. Not a lot of people know its there, Haas said. With pipe organs, the room is half the instrument. Pipe organs are radically different depending on the room theyre in. In Girard College Chapel, you almost cant tell where the sound is coming from. It just envelopes you. Its so powerful but has all these soft, shimmering sounds up to a majestic tutti that thrills everyone. A 1964 Rieger imported from Germany is the star at the Unitarian Society of Germantown in Bachs cantata Wir mussen durch viel Trubsal, BWV 146, presented in a format akin to how Bach would have presented it in 1720s Leipzig. Rather than performing on stage, the musicians will be in the organ loft. Everyone is singing from above, which is not something we get to hear every day, said Walthausen, who will be playing the Rieger at the concert. The instrument is a mechanical action organ, so the player has a much closer rapport with the sound production, Walthausen said. Its brighter, its clearer. Its designed to have this articulating, speechy quality. The Philadelphia Organ Festival is a project of Partners for Sacred Places, a Philadelphia nonprofit founded in 1989 to help congregations that own historic buildings reimagine and make the most of their space on behalf of the larger community, preserving their buildings and hosting programs that serve people in need, said A. Robert Jaeger, the groups president. The festival was seen as a way to build audience interest in churches and organs, to get congregations to understand pipe organs, who made them, and how to be better stewards of these organs, he said. Many congregations have struggled with declining attendance and competing financial obligations, and organs sometimes slip to the bottom of the list of priorities. Since the 1996 Organ Historical Society convention in Philadelphia, local organs have not fared well. Of the instruments and sites featured then, nearly half are now unplayable, in poor condition, or destroyed; or located in sacred places that have closed, been demolished or converted to new uses, according to a group of local organ experts. There are currently 830 purpose-built sacred places in Philadelphia, and most of them would have had a pipe organ, he said. Partners for Sacred Places is currently in the process of surveying how many organs have survived and determining their condition. The hope is that the organ festival will continue on an ongoing basis, and that it can raise the profile of sacred buildings and the grand musical instruments they house. If we can help build an audience for these places and these pipe organs by inviting people in to experience the music, that is key to getting people to care, said Jaeger. They may not worship, but may volunteer their time or make a gift. These are ways to get people involved, to understand that theres something really special in their own backyard. The Philadelphia Organ Festival runs March 15-23 at various locations. Tickets are $30, $25 for seniors and $10 for students. phillyorganfestival.org. The organ fun concludes Saturday, March 23 at the Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Streets, with the 12th annual Organ Day a free open house with organ demonstrations and performances from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. ensembleartsphilly.org. Robyn R. Jones and Adrian Moody adjust pieces by Lydia Boddie-Rice at the Moody Jones Gallery in Glenside. "The Light of Truth" art exhibition opens March 13. Read more The art on the walls, the African sculptures, the colorful rug, all evoke a certain ambience at the Moody Jones Gallery in Glenside. As one enters the space, a peace descends, transporting visitors far from the traffic just outside the gallery doors on Easton Road. Inside, a small tree-shaped lamp has miniature lights glowing like tiny candles. Theres a sense of having just walked inside a museum devoted to Black culture and empowerment. People talk about how cozy it feels to them, said Adrian Moody, who, together with his wife, Robyn R. Jones, owns the Moody Jones Gallery. Advertisement Yet the art on the walls doesnt neglect the social problems beyond those walls. Moody and Jones on Sunday were taking down art from the previous show, We Three Kings, that exhibited works of Philadelphia artists, James Atkins, R. L. Washington, and Richard Watson. They then began installing pieces for a Womens History Month show, The Light of Truth, that will feature the works of three female artists: Antoinette Ellis-Williams, Martryce Roach and Lydia Boddie-Rice. The exhibit opens March 13. A reception will be held at the gallery at 107b Easton Road, in Glenside, from 4 to 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 16. The title for the show was taken from a quote by Ida B. Wells-Barnett: The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them. Wells-Barnett, a pioneering Black journalist, investigated the lynchings of Black men and women in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The artists The three artists featured in the show bring with them years of experience in other professional fields. Martryce Roach, 40, grew up in New Brunswick, N.J. With a bachelors degree in public health and a masters in social work, she once worked for the New Jersey child protection agency. In graduate school, Roach worked with high school students in a cognitive behavioral therapy program. However, she discovered the students responded better to art therapy, . That led Roach to begin painting on her own to cope with the stress of working with children who had been abused or neglected. Soon, other artists persuaded her she was more talented than working in art as a hobby. In September 2022, she resigned her full-time job to devote herself to art. Last year, she was an Artist-in-Residence at ArtCrawl Harlem, on Governors Island, N.Y. One of her pieces, Solo Traveler, was purchased for the permanent collection of The Colored Girls Museum in Philadelphia. She recently returned to a social work job and will continue her art career. So now, I am juggling two full-time careers at the same time, she said. One of her pieces at Moody Jones, Balancing Act, shows a woman balancing different parts of her life on both hands and one foot. Antoinette Ellis-Williams, 60, of Newark, N.J., is a professor of Womens and Gender Studies at New Jersey City University in Jersey City. She also is a poet, playwright, and minister and holds a doctorate in public policy and urban planning from Cornell University. She only began painting after turning 50. She turned to art in 2015 to express her rage after 270 girls were kidnapped in 2014 in Nigeria by Boko Haram. I changed at that point, she said. Something inside me cracked open. I found myself drawing these little dresses, each one for me representing one of the girls. I started to think about these girls as my daughters. She had already been writing poems and essays. After the kidnappings, she wrote a play, Scarf Diaries, which told stories about women from around the world. She began to create collages. Born in Jamaica and 6 when she came to the U.S., Ellis-Williams creates art as a way of unpacking rage, pain, contradictions, beauty, agency and joy, constantly trying to understand the complex history and narrative of blackness in the United States and the Black diaspora. Lydia Boddie-Rice, 69, from Rochester, N.Y., has formal training in art. She received a bachelors degree in art from Brown University and simultaneously, during her senior year at Brown, completed a K-12 certificate in art education the Rhode Island School of Design. Boddie-Rice has had a career as a corporate communications specialist, for a media company and for a Rochester utility company. She also was an elected member of the Rochester Board of Education. Four years ago already retired from corporate and nonprofit careers, she returned to art. Boddie-Rice describes herself as an emerging artist. I consider myself to still be very new at it, she told The Inquirer. She creates collages, using photographs, commercially designed fabrics and her own digitally designed fabrics. She composes a design on her computer and then will have a company print the design on fabric, which she then paints. Boddie-Rice recently began creating large kites, using fabrics designed with a collage of photos and other images. Two of her kites were recently featured in the Burchfield Penney Art Centers Art in Craft Media 2023 juried show. One of the kites, Triumph has the painting of a friend, a dancer, who had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. Her father was a doctor and her mother was a nurse, but Boddie-Rice said it is coincidental that she thinks of art as having healing powers. I want to tap into the emotional place that we protect, sometimes to our detriment and allow ourselves to be vulnerable, so we can heal. We just have a passion for art Moody, 67, is a semiretired lawyer who works in a law office three days a week. Jones, 68, is a retired physician active in volunteer work. The couple, who live in Wyncote, opened the gallery in December 2016. They began collecting art about 36 years ago after they married when they were 32. Moody, grew up in North Philadelphia. Jones is from New York. Jones said they began a personal collection after her uncle, Robert R. Jones, traveled to South Africa in the 1980s and brought back all kinds of artworks, paintings, textiles and stone sculptures. He would sell them in peoples homes. They began going to art shows and meeting artists and building their own collection. We lived in this house for a while with no furniture, but lots of art, Jones said. A few years ago, an accountant advised them to start downsizing their collection. One day, Moody was sitting in a pub on the block. He looked across the street and saw a for rent sign on the building that would become the Moody Jones Gallery. In addition to art shows, the space offers artist talks, and other workshops for people who want to learn how to collect art. Sometimes there is live music or poetry readings. They expect to soon expand the gallery to the vacant store next door, Moody said. We just have a passion for art, Moody said. With a self-portrait photo of Barkley Hendricks are (from left) Richard Watson, Anna Arabindan-Kesson, and Valerie Gay at the Art Sanctuary. Read more Valerie Gay is the citys new head of arts and culture, several arts insiders said Wednesday. A trained soprano with degrees from Temple University and the University of the Arts, Gay, 58, was most recently deputy director of audience engagement and chief experience officer at the Barnes Foundation. Previously, she had been executive director of the Art Sanctuary. Arts leaders said they were thrilled with Mayor Cherelle L. Parkers appointment, not only for Gays experience, but also because the post is expected to be elevated to a cabinet-level position within the mayors administration. With Vals appointment we believe that the arts and culture sector now has several champions embedded within the administration, said Patricia Wilson Aden, president and CEO of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance. This is such a strong affirmation of the mayors response to the arts and culture communitys advocacy of appointing a high-level cabinet person, and we are very happy Mayor Parker has responded and by bringing in someone at helm that is so very well-qualified. No one could better bring all of the qualities that we are looking for in our next arts and culture leader. Advertisement A spokesman for the mayor declined to comment. In addition to her experience in the arts, the Philadelphia-born Gay has a background in fundraising and investment. She was assistant dean for institutional advancement at Temples College of Education, as well as director of development and alumni affairs. Before that she was vice president and portfolio manager at PNC Advisors, where she managed investments for high net-worth individuals and family trusts. Val has a background in business, she understands the creative economy and arts and cultures influence on the economy, but shes a creative as well, said Aden. Shes been involved with small organizations and large organizations. She is at the nexus of a lot of those things. Mayor Parker spoke about the importance of arts and culture to the citys future in February at the Kimmel Center announcement that Verizon Hall will be renamed for Marian Anderson. Addressing the arts leaders in attendance, she said: You are what I would consider to be a part of the nucleus of what is a great unifier in our globe, in our commonwealth and here in our city, no matter the race, class, socio-economic status, the zip code, sexual orientation or identity, and/or religion. There is something about melody, music, and art that allows us to feel our human oneness. As mayor of this city, she said, I promise I wont be afraid to make the tough decisions needed to ensure that this community thrives. Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel listens during a press conference regarding the Burholme shooting that injured eight teenagers at a bus stop last week. Read more U.S. Marshals released information Wednesday about the fourth suspect in the Burholme shooting that left eight high school students injured last week, as law enforcement officials urged the teenager to turn himself in. Asir Boone, 17, is wanted on attempted murder and related charges, according to a statement from the U.S. Marshals Service. A $5,000 reward is being offered for information leading to Boones arrest. The Marshals Service said that Boone frequents the Olney neighborhood and that his last known address was in Germantown. A deadline has come and gone for Asir Boone to turn himself in, said Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Clark. We are now asking for the publics assistance to further our investigation while also warning that anyone supporting Boones flight will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. U.S. Marshals had called for Boone to turn himself in Tuesday after the agency and Philadelphia police arrested three other people in connection with the March 6 shooting at Rising Sun and Cottman Avenues. The intersection, known as Five Points, is where students often transfer on SEPTA buses to and from school. Advertisement READ MORE: How police closed in on two of the Five Points shooting suspects On Tuesday afternoon, U.S. Marshals took 19-year-old Jehmahd Carter into custody in Northeast Philadelphia. Carter was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault, and related crimes. On Monday, Marshals and police arrested two 18-year-olds, Jamaal Tucker and Ahnile Buggs, and charged them with attempted murder, aggravated assault, and related crimes. Marshals contacted Boones family on Tuesday and urged them to assist in his surrender, or else have his name and photo made public and a reward announced Wednesday. A prisoner at the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility was killed in a fight with another inmate early Wednesday morning, police said. At around 12:15 a.m., a correctional officer found a 28-year-old man lying on the floor of his cell at the prison on State Road, said John Mitchell, spokesperson for the Philadelphia Department of Prisons. The man was attacked by his cellmate, a 41-year-old man, Mitchell said. Although medical staff attempted lifesaving measures, Alexander Rosa, of North Philadelphia, was pronounced dead minutes later, at 12:30 a.m., authorities said. Rosa was in custody after a March 9 arrest on assault charges. His cellmate, Direll Skipworth, who was jailed on drug charges, was taken to the hospital with head trauma, records show. Advertisement No weapon was recovered, authorities said, and a preliminary examinationshowed that the injuries Rosa sustained were the result of the fight inside the cell. No charges have been filed against Skipworth, police said. The motive for the fight was unclear. The death marks the third homicide in five months in Philadelphias prison system. And it comes at a time when city prisons have come under scrutiny amid concerns about conditions for incarcerated people and a series of escapes. Philadelphia jails have been under review by a federal monitor for more than a year, as part of the settlement of a class-action lawsuit over violence, prolonged lockdowns, and staffing shortages alleged by civil rights lawyers representing incarcerated people. The Philadelphia Department of Prisons did not admit to any civil rights violations in the agreement. Franklin Towne Charter High School, on the campus of the Frankford Arsenal in Bridesburg. Read more The day before winter break, Jasmine Yancey-Washington got an urgent call from Franklin Towne Charter High School, where her daughter was a ninth grader: There had been a heated argument between Journee and another student, and Yancey-Washington needed to pick her up. Yancey-Washington was surprised Journee was a strong student who had made friends quickly at the school, which Yancey-Washington chose for her daughter because of its stellar academic reputation, she said. When she arrived at the Bridesburg campus to pick up Journee, administrators told Yancey-Washington theyd deal with the consequences after the break. She could hardly believe her ears at that disciplinary meeting in early January: Franklin Towne officials told her Journee was facing expulsion for the argument, during which Journee never threw a punch. They said that because of this incident Journees first the ninth grader could go through the hearing and would be expelled, or Yancey-Washington could sign papers to withdraw Journee, saving her daughter from having an expulsion on her record. READ MORE: Franklin Towne Charter High School is now challenging Pennsylvanias charter school law Advertisement Journee receives special education services, and federal law requires schools to hold manifestation hearings for students to determine whether the infraction for which theyre being disciplined was due to their disability. Franklin Towne never held such a meeting for Journee, Yancey-Washington said. Even a cop will give you a second chance, even a judge will give you a second chance, said Yancey-Washington. She and her daughter are Black, and Yancey-Washington believes Journee was targeted because of her race; the school demographics do not match the city or the district from which it draws its students from a lottery Franklin Towne is 52% white, 25% Hispanic, and 13% Black, while the district is 15% white, 27% Hispanic, and 43% Black. I feel like they really dont want us at their school, which is sad, but its the honest truth, Yancey-Washington said. School officials initially said they could not respond to the claims of Yancey-Washington or other families who say they were unfairly targeted because of their race. But the school eventually posted a message on its website denying that its code of conduct is applied unfairly and based on the race of the student. Pursuant to state and federal law, FTCHS cannot discuss or comment on student disciplinary matters, regardless of whether the students in question are current or former FTCHS enrollees, Mark Seiberling, a Franklin Towne lawyer, said in a statement. The schools handbook does explicitly state consequences for fighting at Franklin Towne: Students shall not engage in fighting or mutual combat. Ten-day suspension with intent to expel. Rebecca Preuss, a lawyer at the nonprofit Education Law Center, said Journees story is all too common: Students of color at some charter schools, including Franklin Towne, are threatened with expulsion, then pressured to withdraw for infractions that would merit far less serious consequences at traditional public schools. (The Philadelphia School District allows discipline ranging from school-based punishment to disciplinary hearings for fighting, but not expulsion.) When their worried parents accept deals, the schools have no expulsions on their record, either. Its always Black and brown students that were hearing from, and a lot of times they are students with disabilities, Preuss said of Yancey-Washington and Journee. Its a big problem, particularly at Franklin Towne, but its not exclusive to Franklin Towne. Studies indicate that Black students do not misbehave more than their white peers, but are punished more harshly for similar behavior. That Franklin Townes code of conduct calls for expulsion after fighting is troublesome, said Preuss like it or not, she says, fighting is a common youth behavior. We disagree with schools jumping to expulsion anytime anyone gets into a fight, especially without considering individual circumstances, Preuss said. Expulsion doesnt address the root causes of misbehavior or teach better behavior, and we know that it disproportionately affects Black and brown students and students with disabilities. My kid is not safe there It felt as if her son hit the lottery when he got into Franklin Towne, another parent said, and he did the school receives many more applications than it has seats. But the parent, whose name is being withheld to protect her sons privacy, had to convince the boy to go to Franklin Towne, because he was worried about attending as a student of color. Franklin Towne is facing the possible revocation of its charter over allegations it rigged its lottery to shut out students from certain majority Black and brown zip codes. He had heard a lot about them being racist before, when there was a blackface video; he wasnt happy about going, the parent said. But I said, Its a charter school, its blue ribbon. To me, it was supposed to be safer its in a gated area, and theyre saying theres so much safety there. I really didnt want my son to go to public school. I wanted him to get the high school experience I never got. Franklin Towne impressed the parent during a meeting about the boys special education plan, and even her teen came around to the idea when he attended a few summer events and made friends quickly. But once school started, things started to worry both mother and son. He was given detention right away, not for behavior, but for being late to class the second day of school, before he was familiar with a new building. Other times, he was given detention because his supplies werent out on his desk or because he joked around, the mother said. Eventually, the boy got detention so often that he was given a Saturday suspension. His grades were good, and he didnt fight, but he kept getting flagged for minor infractions, and things snowballed. The boy has ADHD, and when hes flustered, he sometimes shuts down, his mother said. He developed anxiety. READ MORE: Critics call for greater accountability in aftermath of allegations that Franklin Towne fixed its lottery As the demerits racked up, Franklin Towne put the boy in a status that meant he couldnt participate in any extracurricular activities. Staff told his mother that he could get privileges back by the freshman dance. By early February, he had gone eight weeks without a new demerit. But on Feb. 2, the boys mother got a call from him he had been in a fight just outside the school. He said, Mom, Im OK, I got a ride to Grandmoms house, Im so sorry, I love you, but he was frantic. I was hysterical, she said. The boy had been threatened on social media the week before, his mother said, and on Feb. 2, boys came to start a fight with him and others. Nearly all withdrew after being threatened with expulsion, the mother said. They were all Hispanic and Black kids, and they were all kicked out, the mother said. They pressured every parent to withdraw their child because there was fear that their kid was going to have expulsion on their record and no school was going to take them. The mother is incredulous she said a security guard stood and watched her son get kicked, but did nothing. School staff said security did not intervene because the fight did not occur on school property, but the mother wonders how the fight is considered a school matter but not worth staff intervention. Ultimately, the mother chose to withdraw her son, too. I know that my kid is not safe there, she said. I know that he would have a target on his back. The mother has enrolled her child in a cyber school for the rest of the year. Hes depressed, angry and bored, she said. They want to protect the reputation of the school A third former Franklin Towne family described a similar progression of events. They, too, asked that their names be withheld to protect their childs privacy. The mother said her child had been a good student at the school until getting into a fight with another teen, who provoked a confrontation and then insisted that they engage in a physical altercation when her child flat-out refused to fight and tried to walk away. The mother went into the disciplinary meeting believing that staff would see her child was not the aggressor. Her child, too, is a student of color and has special needs, but no determination meeting was held to consider whether the actions were the result of the disability. The parent said Franklin Towne told her that her child would be expelled because, she remembers an official telling her, We dont have fights in this school. We have a zero-tolerance policy our students know that theyre not allowed to fight in this school. They want to protect the reputation of the school. Thats how theyre able to get good staff, quote unquote, and good students. They said, If you withdraw, everythings wiped away, she said. Ultimately, she, too, withdrew her child and then enrolled the child in a cyber school. It affected her childs confidence, mood, outlook on life. The parent said shes looking for another brick-and-mortar charter school for her child to attend in the fall, but that she wants people to know about Franklin Towne. I hope this will give people who want to go to that school a different view, she said. They didnt say, Lets work with you, lets fix this. They dont want to help them, they just want to kick them out. Franklin Towne responds Though the school responded to questions from The Inquirer by saying it could not talk about student matters, it posted a lengthy response on its website Wednesday, dismissing the families allegations of racial bias as unsubstantiated and patently false. Some parties involved in these incidents have unfortunately resorted to accusations of racial bias as a response to our investigation into code of conduct violations by students attending our school, said the statement from Franklin Towne CEO Brianna ODonnell. We wish to be perfectly clear that race is in no way a factor or consideration when investigating code of conduct violations. The only factors considered are related to determining each students involvement, if any, or if their actions violated the schools code of conduct. ODonnell said the school uses video surveillance and eyewitness accounts to investigate incidents and said students or families were never threatened with disciplinary action, that students were given due process, including the opportunity to present their perspectives, and at no time were they asked or instructed to leave. Franklin Townes record, ODonnell said, demonstrates our commitment to fairness and equity. Safety of the school and student body, she said, is the paramount consideration; the school will continue to use the disciplinary tools at our disposal to ensure we provide as safe an experience as we possibly can. Underneath its deceptively simple guise, the Caesar salad is a culinary powerhouse. The salad was invented in 1924 in Tijuana, Mexico, at a restaurant owned by Italian immigrant Caesar Cardini, though disagreements exist about who actually invented it. Despite its apocryphal beginnings, the Caesar is timeless, its simplicity one of its greatest charms. An assemblage of crunchy romaine, croutons, it is a blank canvas for the genius that is its signature dressing, a creamy, savory blend of Worcestershire sauce, eggs, oil, lemon, garlic, and anchovies. Liz Grothe, Phillys underground supper club queen, champions the Caesar as a beginners guide to the rich, savory world of umami. Despite their seeming ordinariness, the ingredients have nowhere to hide in this simple salad, so their depth and versatility take center stage. If youre in the mood for more updated classics, Inquirer restaurant critic Craig LaBan found noteworthy versions like the anchovy-forward Caesar at Royal Tavern and tahini Caesar at High Street. [Theyre] the gateway to these flavors, [helping you to get] out of your comfort zone and eat an anchovy for the first time, Grothe said. Advertisement Meanwhile, other Philly chefs are redefining the umami flavor bomb, as Grothe calls it, adding extra flair or deconstructing it all together. For instance, Grothe serves up a Caesar toast as sort of an amuse-bouche, skipping the lettuce altogether but celebrating the anchovy in both the dressing and in the form of bright Boqueron served atop pan-seared focaccia, playing with the idea of a big crouton. Around town, youll find other exciting transformations of the classic Caesar, from chicken schnitzel salads in Center City to Caesar hoagies in South Kensington and Fishtown. Here are six innovative Caesars we cant stop eating. How we choose our best lists What makes something the best? Our recommendations are based on our reporters' deep regional knowledge and advice from local experts. We also strive to represent the geographic and cultural diversity of the city and region. Spot an error or omission? Email us at phillytips@inquirer.com Tabachoy Forget anchovies this Bella Vista Filipino hot spot opts for the punch of bagoong, a fermented shrimp paste. The paste adds a briny kick to the dressing, which coats Napa cabbage and bitter mustard greens in lieu of romaine, while shaved cured duck yolks, scallions, sesame seeds, fried shallots, and chili sesame oil up the umami ante. We wanted to break down what makes a Caesar salad good: cold and crispy greens, creamy and tangy dressing, something crunchy, and something salty but funky, chef/owner Chance Anies said. Then we added a lil extra pizzazz and heat. Advertisement 932 South 10th St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19147, 215-315-8720, tabachoyphilly.com Liberty Kitchen packs all the Caesar goodness in a hoagie. Read more KC Tinari Liberty Kitchen Imagine this: a fusion of classic Caesar salad flavors nestled within the comforting embrace of a hoagie. For $16.50, the South Kensington/Fishtown deli and market Liberty Kitchen delivers just that. Chef Beau Neidhardt tosses curls of kale, crispy shallots, shaved pecorino Romano, and a house Caesar dressing made with Merro-brand anchovies atop a breaded chicken cutlet inside a fresh Liscios Bakery seeded roll. 1400 N. Front St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19122, 215-964-9535, libertykitchenphl.com The Black Caesar salad at Honeysuckle Provisions subs anchovies with smoked herring, a celebrated ingredient in Haitian gastronomy, and a 9- to 12-day fermented black garlic from resident fermenting specialist Jamaar Julal. Read more Courtesy of Honeysuckle Provisions Honeysuckle Provisions The Black Caesar salad at Honeysuckle Provisions, the West Philly Afrocentric grocery and cafe, features a nontraditional dressing. Chefs Omar Tate and Cybille St. Aude-Tate sub anchovies with smoked herring, a celebrated ingredient in Haitian gastronomy, and add a 9- to 12-day fermented black garlic from resident fermenting specialist Jamaar Julal black garlic is funky, but also sweet, earthy and complex, adding a bass note to an already savory preparation Field greens, pickled shallots, grana padano cheese, and croutons made from Yamz bread, featuring housemade sweet potato flour, bring this flavorful salad together. 310 S. 48th St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19143, 215-307-3316, honeysuckleprovisions.com Liz Grothe offers a Caesar toast at her Forin Cafe residency. Read more Mike Prince Couch Cafe Chef Liz Grothe started Couch Cafe as a pop-up, but as she looks to open up her own spot, shes popping up at East Kensingtons Forin Cafe through May 25 with a residency. There, youll find her playful take on the Caesar salad, made with pan-fried sourdough focaccia toasts (the crouton) slathered in a Caesar dressing with colatura, an Italian anchovy sauce, as the base. Boqueron, a.k.a. Spanish white anchovies, top the toast, along with Parmesan and black pepper. A salad without any of the lettuce for a bit more fun, Grothe said. 2525 Frankford Ave, Philadelphia, Pa. 19125, lizlaugh.love Get the chicken schnitzel Caesar at Darling Jack's Tavern. Read more Courtesy of Bondfire Media Darling Jacks Tavern At Darling Jacks in Center City, youll find the chicken schnitzel Caesar ($19) at lunch and brunch only. Chef-owner Marcie Turney wanted to offer an elevated, composed version of the traditional chicken Caesar salad, gilding the lily with a crispy Parm-crusted chicken breast as the base. Burying the poultry in a bed of color are red endive and Little Gem lettuce coated with an anchovy-lemon aioli, shaved fennel, and Parmesan. 104 S 13th St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19107, 215-546-4200, darlingjacks.com P.S. & Co. offers a maple barbecue tempeh Caesar salad.Courtesy of Read more Courtesy of P.S. & Co. P.S. & Co. Step into this Rittenhouse restaurant to discover a vegan and gluten-free riff: the barbecue tempeh Caesar salad. Priced at $18, this dish coats organic lacinato kale, house-pickled onions, and roasted maple-barbecue glazed tempeh with a Caesar dressing dupe, featuring dulse flakes (a type of seaweed) subbing for anchovies and a creamy cashew base in lieu of eggs. 1706 Locust St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19103, 215-985-1706, psandco.com Routine skin checks by a dermatologist can help monitor for skin cancer. Read more Many of the people who come into my dermatology office are pale, some with pink and peeling skin betraying their recent transgressions, most with brown spots, and changes from years of worshiping the sun. My job is not to judge I want to grant my patients reprieve, for surely they should not apologize for living a good life. But how do you know if you need a skin check or skin cancer screening? Is being light-skinned enough of a reason? Skin cancers are the most common type of cancers in humans and anyone can get them regardless of their skin color. Unfortunately, we do not have universal guidance on who should get skin checks. Here are some questions to consider to help you decide how best to monitor for skin cancer. How should I monitor my own skin? Its a good idea to take a look at your body and get a sense of what spots and changes you have on your body at baseline. If you notice a new or changing mole or lesion on your skin, you should see a dermatologist. That alone is reason enough to see us for an evaluation, and may merit a full skin check while you are in the office. Most moles and spots on your skin may change slowly over time, but in general, if something seems off, see a doctor. Its not your expertise to know what is and isnt dangerous. Your job is to look for the clues, and well do the worrying for you. What is a skin check? A skin check is a full body skin examination meant to screen for cancer in patients at higher risk. Its making sure everything is OK, like a skin wellness check. Each dermatologist will examine a patient differently some have patients standing up, some lying on an exam table. Many of us also use a special tool to aid our visual exam called a dermatoscope, which is essentially a fancy magnifying glass supported by polarizing light to better appreciate skin structures. Advertisement When I examine the skin, personally I start with the patient sitting and study the hands, then the face. I examine the hair and scalp, and then the feet. Then I have patients stand up so I can examine their backs and back of their legs, and then turn to the front of the body, all while trying to respect patient privacy, keeping everything as covered as possible, examining one area at a time. Who should get an annual skin check? Opinions may vary, but a consensus of dermatologists would agree that all of the following people should be seen yearly: People with a personal history of any skin cancer People with a first-degree family member (parent or sibling) with a history of melanoma People with more than 50 or subjectively large/atypical moles People who have a strong history of tanning bed use or many severe sunburns People with weakened immune systems (on immunosuppressant medications or with immunodeficient conditions). Every patient is an individual, and we will base our recommendations on each persons risks. And we are always happy to screen anybody to give them peace of mind, even if they do not have especially high risk, and make an assessment about their risk and need for future regular screening. Darker-skinned patients, in part due to protective effects of melanin, have a lower risk (but not no risk) for skin cancer, so unless there is a family history or immune system issue, we usually will not recommend regular skin checks. People of all skin tones should seek out a dermatologist when there is any question about something new or changing. What is a biopsy? If a lesion is concerning, we may recommend a skin biopsy. This minor procedure takes only a couple minutes and involves cleaning the affected area, numbing the area with an anesthetic injection, and then typically shaving off the concerning lesion with a small curved blade. This specimen will then be processed onto a slide examined under a microscope by a pathologist. If the lesion shows signs of being cancerous or especially atypical, we may recommend an excision to cut the lesion completely out. For most skin cancers, this will complete the treatment. Dermatologists want to help, not judge When the exam is finished, patients often feel the need to explain themselves, confessing how they laid out in the sun, applied oils or used reflectors because they didnt know how dangerous it was. Again, a good dermatologist should provide a judgment-free zone. But for light-skinned folks looking to prevent skin cancers and everyone (dark and light skinned) looking to prevent skin aging and hyperpigmentation, we do recommend avoiding excess sun and regularly wearing sunscreen, SPF 30 or greater and reapplying it, in addition to photo-protective clothing. Our practice and others regularly provide free skin cancer screenings. You can find lists of free screenings on the American Academy of Dermatology website: https://www.aad.org/public/public-health/skin-cancer-screenings/find-a-screening Jules Lipoff practices as a board-certified dermatologist for Advanced Dermatology and Cosmetic Surgery in Manayunk/Roxborough and an adjunct clinical associate professor in the Department of Dermatology at Temple Universitys Lewis Katz School of Medicine. The nurses at Virtua Health will reconsider a contract proposal in a Thursday vote. Read more Nurses at Virtua Health will reconsider their decision last week to reject a contract negotiated between their union and officials at the South Jersey-based hospital system, the union told nurses on Tuesday. The second vote on the contract proposal is expected to take place on Thursday. The contract would cover 1,700 nurses, most of whom work at Voorhees Hospital in Camden County and Marlton Hospital in Burlington County, the hospital said. The nurses are represented by JNESO, an AFL-CIO affiliate that represents roughly 5,000 nurses and health-care techs in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Union representatives said in a Tuesday meeting that turnout was low when members were asked to vote on the contract, which was rejected by a narrow margin. Only 305 nurses voted on March 4, and the contract was rejected by 11 votes, a representative for the union told members, according to a recording of the meeting obtained by The Inquirer. Advertisement If the nurses reject a contract again, it will bring the union closer to a strike. READ MORE: Virtua Health union of 1,700 nurses rejects contract offer Virtua will continue to offer the current proposal until Friday, the health system said in an email to nurses last week. The note, one of two obtained by The Inquirer, asked nurses to reconsider the very fair and generous contract offer in another vote. At this time, Virtua is continuing to keep open its offer described in the Tentative Agreement, provided the members ratify the proposed contract on or before next Friday, March 15, Rhonda Jordan, Virtuas chief human resources officer, said in an email signed by the health systems negotiation committee. Virtua and JNESO declined to comment. The union informally polled members who attended informational meetings on Tuesday about whether to vote again on the contract. A majority agreed to another vote. But some pushed back, arguing that voting again was caving to pressure from hospital administrators, according to a recording of the meeting. The nurses contract expired on Feb. 28. Bargaining for a new contract began in early January, according to the union. The team bargaining on behalf of the nurses and Virtua Health administrators reached a tentative agreement at the end of February. However, the unions general membership voted to reject the proposal on March 4. A divided union JNESO held four informational meetings on Tuesday to discuss next steps after last weeks vote to reject the contract. The union said in emails to members that the goal of the meeting was to discuss the forthcoming strike. At the meetings, a representative from the union cautioned against moving ahead with a strike based on the low turnout vote, a recording provided to The Inquirer showed. Virtuas management was aware of the low turnout and margin, the representative said. If they think only 300 are going on strike, they will never come back to the table, the union representative told the nurses in attendance. Nurses expressed frustration with both Virtuas management and the union. They complained about lack of transparency in the unions handling of the negotiations and contract vote, and Virtuas resistance to offer a better contract. JNESO told members last week that it filed an unfair labor practices complaint against Virtua for attempting to dictate internal business to the union, a reference to emails sent by the health system to nurses, according to an email obtained by The Inquirer. Any such complaint had not been posted to the website of the National Labor Relation Board as of March 13. Virtua is the largest health-care provider in South Jersey. In addition to Voorhees and Marlton, its three other hospitals in the region are Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Mount Holly Hospital, and Willingboro Hospital. The rejected three-year contract includes wage increases, according to a draft of the agreement obtained by The Inquirer. But it does not include an increase to pension contributions, which the nurses had sought. The health system increased pension contributions in the nurses 2020 contract, Jordan, the Virtua human resources chief, told nurses in an email last week. She called the current rate at which Virtua contributes to the pension fund fair and generous. The contract proposal also does not include any change to the number of patients each nurse is assigned to take care of, one of the nurses demands, according to the unions website. Similar demands for improved staffing levels was among the catalysts for four-month strike of the roughly 1,700 nurses at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. Marcus McKnight at the start of his Navy Yard bus route at Broad Street and Pattison Avenue in South Philly on Friday morning. Read more Meet Marcus McKnight, a self-proclaimed transit geek who cofounded the Philly Transit Riders Union, drives the Navy Yard and Philly Phlash buses, and moonlights as a substitute teacher. The allure of public transit: What I love is that every trip is different, even if the journey is the same. On Philly: Its a love-hate relationship. You know you have that friend, they get on your nerves but you love them to death and youll defend them till the day you die? Thats Philly. Marcus McKnights fascination with public transportation began when he was growing up on a quiet block in the citys Logan neighborhood. Riding SEPTA gave him a window to the world, or, at least, to Philadelphia. Sure, that window may have been scratched and smudged sometimes, but it never dulled McKnights curiosity. Advertisement It was like an adventure: What can I see where were going to go? he said. Whether it was to school or to the supermarket, the people were always different and there was always something different going on. Motivated by his love for public transit, McKnight, 34, who still lives in Logan, got his commercial drivers license in 2019 and today works as a driver for the Krapf Group, which operates the Navy Yard and Philly Phlash buses. But McKnight, a 2007 Olney High grad, has long felt called to teaching, too. In a 2003 Daily News student spotlight feature, McKnight, then just 13, said he wanted to become a teacher or the mayor. McKnight is now pursuing his bachelors degree in history online from Southern New Hampshire University and in December, he started substitute teaching at K-12 charter schools in Philly. I thought, Let me do this part-time and see how this will work out, see if my heart is still in it, he said. On top of working two jobs and going to school, McKnight also advocates for public transit riders and workers through the Philly Transit Riders Union, a grassroots group he cofounded that works to defend and expand public transit. Were the first organization to give viewpoints of not just bus riders but also transit employees, he said. McKnight often posts about his experiences as a bus driver, substitute teacher, and transit activist on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. His ultimate goal is to meld his passions and create a program for schools that would not only teach students how to use public transit but also inform them about job opportunities in the field. I have to create my dream job, he said. The Phlash The two buses McKnight drives vary widely in terms of ridership and route. The Philly Phlash, which runs April through September, is mainly for tourists (though some locals do hop on). It loops through Old City and Center City, stopping at sites like Independence Hall and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Ive met people from across the country and around the globe, McKnight said of driving the Phlash. I always ask people when they get on the bus: Where are you coming from? How long are you here for? And what do you like? He then dishes out advice accordingly, before seeking some of his own. I ask, If I come to your town what is one place I have to visit and one place I have to eat and drink? McKnight said. And whats the question he gets asked most? Everybody always asks about the Rocky stairs. People are always asking me, Are you going to run up the steps, too? McKnight said. Maam, I live in a three-floor house, my bedroom and office are on the third floor, and my laundry is in the basement. When I do a load of laundry, its like running up the Rocky steps. Hes on point On the Navy Yard bus, which runs all year, McKnight sees mostly city residents who are on their way to or going home from work. Before starting an early morning shift of the loop last Friday, McKnight draped the drivers seat of his bus with a fuzzy pepperoni pizza blanket (he almost went with his Golden Girls blanket that reads Thug Life, but chose the pie instead). His first pickup was at Broad and Pattison, where he kept close watch on the clock to make sure he left at the scheduled departure time 7:10 a.m. Gotta go! he yelled. Over the course of the next several hours and several loops (McKnight can drive up to 32 loops on a split-shift day), he picked up riders who were still half asleep, a man heading to a job interview, a woman from out of town on business, some stone-faced shipyard workers, and longtime passengers like Lennora White. White, 65, of Overbrook, has worked at the Navy Yard for 40 years and said she enjoys riding with McKnight, with whom she exchanges treats and snacks from time to time. Hes a good guy, White said. Hes on point, hes on time, and he wants to get you to work on time, which I love. Impart a lesson McKnights punctuality and penchant for rising early comes in handy at his second job, with a company that places substitute teachers in K-12 charter schools in Philly. He said his first day subbing was laid back, pleasant, and enjoyable, but other days, its been challenging. The most difficult part of teaching, whether youre a substitute or youve been doing it for 30 years, is student behavior, he said. A lot of students grow up with iPads and cell phones so their level of concentration is a lot different. McKnight said he has various tools and techniques to reach students, but on days when none of them work, its frustrating. You question yourself, What mistakes am I making? I can inspire you, I can encourage you, but I cant get anything done if theres no borderline basic respect, he said. Just all day having to say Please sit down. Please be quiet. I get paid money to drive a bus, youre not going to be running me ragged. On the hard days, McKnight tries to remember why he wanted to become a teacher. As a Black man its important to have Black male teachers, thats the biggest thing I thought about when getting into teaching, he said. And on the good days, McKnight shares his love of public transit and talks about his job with his students. I get to tell them about my life and impart a lesson, he said. I tell them Im a bus driver so if you have questions why something may be, ask me. I want to show them the other jobs you can do. Authentically Philly Its those conversations and his work with the Philly Transit Riders Union that inspired McKnights dream of bringing a transit education program into schools. The first thing would be how to be a smart and savvy rider ... how to read maps, how to read schedules. You should know how to use tools in case something happens or your phone dies, he said. The second part would be educating about jobs in transit. In the transit industry a lot of people are starting to retire. ... If we educate students we can start filling some of these jobs. As a lifelong resident, McKnight knows Philly isnt perfect, and may never be. But its home and its real, and when you really love something, you want to help it succeed. The nice part about Philadelphia is its authentically itself, he said. Im not looking for perfection, Im just looking for it to be a little bit better than it was yesterday. Want more We the People? Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter Its going to be a warm one, folks, with temps in the high 60s. Almost makes me wish I werent heading to Aruba later this week. (JK, itll be 85 there.) Today were taking another look a Northeast charter school that is being criticized by parents of Black students who face what they call an unfair choice: expulsion for minor disciplinary infractions, or withdrawal. And our business team digs into Cescaphes dominance of the local wedding market. The event company hosted 750 weddings last year and is opening an eighth venue this spring. Julie Zeglen (@juliezeglen, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com) Advertisement If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here. When fights occur, the students are given two options: Accept expulsion, or voluntarily withdraw with no record. But to their parents, its not much of a choice. Franklin Towne Charter in the Northeast is a predominantly white high school is a majority-Black district, and has been under fire for alleged lottery manipulation designed to keep out kids from certain zip codes and elementary schools. Now, parents of several Black students are claiming that their kids were pressured to leave the school because of minor disciplinary infractions, such as fighting even when they never threw a punch. Its always Black and brown students that were hearing from, and a lot of times they are students with disabilities, a lawyer at the nonprofit Education Law Center said of the cases. Its a big problem, particularly at Franklin Towne, but its not exclusive to Franklin Towne. Kristen A. Graham has the story. Buckle up: Its nearly wedding season. And if youre attending a wedding in Philly, theres a not-small chance youll end up at one of Cescaphes venues. Cescaphe just celebrated 20 years in business, and in that time its expanded from one ballroom in Northern Liberties to eight venues across the city. That includes the new Switch House at the Battery, the former site of a PECO power plant in Fishtown and the companys first venue with a hotel attached. Make weddings fun again: For whats meant to be the best day of your life, planning a wedding can be hellish. Brides who hosted their big days at Cescaphe venues said the companys comprehensive packages and attention to detail made it easy. If you can afford it, that is. The business of love: Around 750 couples tied the knot at the companys venues in 2023. Its average wedding costs $35,000, but a Saturday event at its brand-new space in the Bellevue Hotel could cost nearly $100,000. Notable quote: There are no redos in weddings. We have to earn our stripes for every single couple, CEO Joe Volpe who cofounded the company with his own wife, Andrea, in 2003 said about keeping Cescaphes offerings fresh. You dont get by on what youve done in the past. Ariana Perez-Castells has the scoop on how Philadelphias premier wedding business has grown over two decades. What you should know today You know Gritty, the Phanatic, Swoop, and Franklin. But what about the amateur mascots, the ones working at the high school and college level? The Inquirer is looking for the best amateur mascot in the region and awarding that school with a $1,000 donation. From the hundreds in the area, weve narrowed the list down to 16 finalists. Now, this Temple Owl has her own opinions. So does City Councilmember Isaiah Thomas (hes on my side) and Gov. Josh Shapiro, who both shared their picks with The Inquirer. And delightfully, the Unions Phang chose the Penn Quakers for the strong chin, cool hat, and oatmeal for days. Its your turn: Fill out a bracket by April 5 at 4 p.m. and well reveal the winner on April 16. Trivia time This recently sold coffee shop is believed to be Philadelphias earliest microroaster when it opened in 1985 on an alley in the shadow of Christ Church. A) La Colombe Coffee Roasters B) Old City Coffee C) Menagerie Coffee D) Chapterhouse Cafe & Gallery Think you know? Check your answer. What were... Parking: Our cars near the PMA and more Philly attractions only when SEPTA is off peak hours, of course thanks to The Inquirers newest guide. Buying: A replica of Jason Kelces iconic Mummers hat from the 2018 Super Bowl parade (while we still can). Squealing over: The baby squirrels and owls in this story about the Pocono wildlife rehab center. Unscramble the anagram The nonprofit West Philadelphia Skills Initiative just received $4 million from this philanthropist, who has donated billions to charities since her divorce from Amazons Jeff Bezos. AZTEC COMET INKS Email us if you know the answer. Well select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Karen Clarkson, who solved Tuesdays anagram: Saquon Barkley, the Penn State grad and running back just signed to the Philadelphia Eagles on a three-year deal. Photo of the day Enjoy your Wednesday. Ill see you again tomorrow morning. By submitting your written, visual, and/or audio contributions, you agree to The Inquirers Terms of Use, including the grant of rights in Section 10. Seth Bluestein (from left), Lisa Deeley, and Omar Sabir after they are sworn in as city commissioners on Jan. 2 on the stage of the Met Philadelphia on North Broad Street. Read more This article is made possible through Spotlight PAs collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting. Sign up for Votebeats free newsletters here. A power shift and restructuring within the Philadelphia Board of City Commissioners is causing strife among its three elected members, which observers warn could create the appearance of dysfunction in the office as it enters a high-pressure year overseeing the citys elections. In January, Commissioners Seth Bluestein and Omar Sabir voted to replace longtime Commissioner Lisa Deeley as chair and have Sabir take over the role. The newly reorganized board also shuffled responsibilities among the offices top employees, removing some of the chairs central authority. Since then, the commissioners meetings have been marked by frequent public spats, primarily between Deeley and Sabir. I worry that the animosity that youre seeing in those meetings is going to undermine peoples faith in the security of our system, said Lauren Cristella, president of the Philadelphia-based good government group Committee of Seventy. I think that drama adds itself to the idea of the office not being well run when in reality it is, she said. Advertisement Deeley, a Democrat who became chair in 2017, described the changes to Votebeat and Spotlight PA as a power grab by Bluestein, a Republican who is the boards newest member. She says shes nervous that the leadership changes could make the election operation weaker, including a risk of election fumbles that typically come with inexperienced officials. At one meeting, she also accused her fellow commissioners of breaking transparency rules. The two other commissioners defended the changes and expressed confidence in the offices capacity to run the elections. The three city commissioners are responsible for overseeing all aspects of elections in Philadelphia, from voting machine purchases to coordinating operations at polling places on Election Day. Unlike commissioners in other counties, Philly commissioners work exclusively on elections. So far, Deeley is the only person in city government raising concerns about the coming election, and despite the restructuring of duties in the office, the three commissioners appear to agree on many of the policy decisions that will most affect voters, such as establishing satellite election offices. But as in 2020, the boards actions will be under intense scrutiny as the city runs the presidential election for Philadelphia, which will be the biggest and most logistically complex in the state. Four years ago, then-President Donald Trump filed a barrage of lawsuits and accused Philadelphia of malfeasance aimed at keeping him from winning reelection. At the time, the board made up of Deeley, Sabir, and Al Schmidt, who is now secretary of the commonwealth publicly presented a unified front, markedly different from the infighting seen so far this year. Two visions of how the commission should work The disputes among board members began in January when the commissioners presented two starkly different visions for how their office should operate. The competing proposals pitted Deeley, who has served on the board since 2016, against Bluestein, who had worked as a deputy commissioner under Schmidt since 2012. Bluestein was nominated to fill Schmidts seat in December 2021, then was elected this past November. Deeleys plan would have consolidated power over elections under the boards chair, who would be in charge of all of the day-to-day operations and have top staff in the office reporting directly to them, according to the proposal. If the chair position became vacant, under the proposal, the chairs unelected deputy would take over those responsibilities until the board picked a new chair. That vision for the board was an extension of how the office had been operating for several years, Cristella and others said. A member of Deeleys staff, longtime deputy Nick Custodio, had for years been managing many of the day-to-day tasks of the commissioners office. Deeleys proposal would have further given him authority over the other two commissioners office staff, along with the chairs. So much, almost everything ran through Nick, Cristella said. So this was kind of codifying this and extending it over to the other commissioners. Rich Garella, a South Philadelphia voting and transparency activist who has been monitoring the board since 2019, said that for the last several years it has seemed as if Custodio were in charge. Garella said, for example, that he saw Custodio instruct ballot canvass watchers on what they could and could not do, and other times when he asked questions about how the board was operating, commissioners told him: Nick decided that. In an interview with Votebeat and Spotlight PA, Deeley defended her proposal as being in line with how things have traditionally run at the office. The chair of the commission has historically led the board of elections, she said. At the end of the day, respectfully, you need someone to be the boss. Bluestein offered a different vision, one that he and Sabir, a Democrat, approved over Deeleys opposition. Under Bluesteins plan, commissioners are responsible for hiring and managing their own staff. The proposal also created two new positions at the top of the department the director of election administration and director of election operations who report to the board. The director of election administration is responsible for overseeing day-to-day administrative work for the department such as working with outside entities such as vendors and state government and presenting the departments proposed budget. Previously, Custodio and others on Deeleys staff handled those tasks. Bluestein and Sabir voted to hire Stephanie Reid for that position. She is a city employee who previously worked with the commissioners office to help implement satellite voting offices in 2020. Weve put someone in charge who has never run an election before, Deeley said. People should be concerned, she said. This is not a year to be building [experience]. Nick and I and the staff have been building since 2020 to prepare for 2024. Deeley likened her concerns to statewide ones about the turnover among election directors and the resulting inexperience among the people in charge of voting operations. Two commissioners say the changes will bolster the office In an interview, Bluestein did not respond directly to Deeleys assertion that the change was a power grab, but said he had complete confidence in the offices ability to manage the election. We are bolstering our team underneath the city commissioners to bring in more people who are experienced and competent administrators and collaborative in their approach to management, he said, adding that the plans for these positions have been in development with the previous mayors office and an outside consultant for several years. This is a policy of addition, not subtraction, he said. Bringing more people in to shoulder some of the workload will benefit the entire team. Bluestein said he had confidence that Reid had the right experience and knowledge about how elections in Philadelphia operate to ensure they run well, and that the commissioners role in overseeing voter registration and elections hasnt changed. That confidence was echoed by Cristella of the Committee of Seventy in a statement released at the time of Reids hiring. In a separate interview, Sabir said the operation as a whole remains strong despite the changes. This is an unfortunate distraction in this climate, where people are attacking the integrity of our elections with misinformation, he said, adding that he has full confidence in the newly hired staff, including Reid. He also rejected Deeleys accusation that the structural changes were a power grab. We cannot get caught up with the distractions of other people who have their doubts, he said. A lot of those same people had those doubts in 2020, and guess what? We delivered and were going to deliver again. Dispute on display at board meetings Bluestein and Sabirs decision to remove Deeley as chair and empower new staff members to run the office has caused tensions that have spilled over into recent meetings. At the commissioners first meeting after the board shake-up, Sabir cut off Deeleys line of questioning about the commissioners proposed budget, saying Were not going to turn this meeting into a circus. The pattern repeated itself at the next weeks meeting, when Sabir again repeatedly halted Deeleys questioning, saying at one point that items she was bringing up should have been addressed before the meeting. At a subsequent meeting, Sabir reminded his colleagues to refer to him as chairman after Deeley called him commissioner. Deeley publicly accused the board of violating the states Sunshine Act a law that governs public meeting transparency after Sabir stopped her from asking questions about a hiring decision that was unrelated to the boards recent reorganization. The board had been criticized for its transparency practices under Deeleys tenure, too the city controller accused the commissioners of using an opaque process to buy voting machines, for instance, and they got flak from Garella and others for refusing to livestream in-person meetings to the public during the pandemic. Melissa Melewsky, a lawyer with the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association (of which Spotlight PA is a member), said the commissions handling of the hiring decision seems to run afoul of the letter of the law. The Sunshine Act requires agencies to provide an opportunity for citizens to meaningfully comment on issues before a vote, which Melewsky said cannot be done if citizens do not understand the proposal. Sabir deferred questions about the Sunshine Act to the citys legal department, but said his understanding is that everything is running smoothly. Garella, the activist who has repeatedly accused commissioners of not being transparent enough, said he hoped their practices would improve under the new leadership structure. But what I can see is that we have a chaotic situation where the new chair is trying to shut down that discussion in front of the public, he said. Asked about the back-and-forth between her and Sabir, and her Sunshine Act allegations, Deeley said that things were bumpy in the beginning and that Sabir has been evolving in the role, but that she still needs to be allowed to ask questions. Kevin Greenberg, a Philadelphia-based lawyer who has represented all three commissioners at various points, said there was an ordinary amount of friction during the chair transition, and doesnt believe the staff restructuring will amount to much change in how elections are run. He thinks it has now been resolved and said the Philadelphia election community is confident in Sabirs ability to run an efficient, transparent, and honest election this year. Cristella, of the Committee of Seventy, said she is confident in the office itself, as well as Reids administrative abilities. She pointed to initiatives the commissioners are leading, such as new poll worker training and recruitment efforts, as things the public should focus on. Theres a lot of reasons to be confident in their ability to lead the citys elections, she said. I just hope the personal drama doesnt eclipse that. Carter Walker is a reporter for Votebeat in partnership with Spotlight PA. Contact Carter at cwalker@votebeat.org. BEFORE YOU GO If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to Spotlight PA at spotlightpa.org/donate. Spotlight PA is funded by foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. Jeff Yass is cofounder of Susquehanna International Group, which has a major stake in TikTok's parent company. Read more Congress move toward potentially banning TikTok is likely to disappoint millions of Americans who enjoy using the video-sharing app and also a billionaire investor in the Philadelphia suburbs whos one of the biggest GOP donors in the country. The Republican-led Houses vote Wednesday in favor of legislation that could shut down TikTok in the United States came not only despite pleas from TikTok users who flooded congressional offices with complaints but also from opposition from the Club for Growth, a conservative group that has received tens of millions of dollars in recent years from Jeff Yass, cofounder of the Bala Cynwyd-based trading and investment firm Susquehanna International Group. The club hosted former President Donald Trump at a donor retreat earlier this month, after which he came out against the legislation. Trump spoke with Yass about school choice Yass biggest political interest during a cocktail party at the retreat, according to a person familiar with the matter. Trump said on CNBC this week that the two didnt discuss TikTok. Susquehanna invested in Beijing-based ByteDance in 2012 before the company had even developed TikTok. Today Susquehannas stake is measured at about 15%, the Wall Street Journal reported last year, and worth about $21 billion. Advertisement The House voted 352-65. The bills future in the Senate is uncertain, but President Joe Biden has said he would sign it into law if it reaches his desk. The bill would prohibit app stores and internet service providers from offering TikTok unless ByteDance divests from the app. The legislations supporters say the measure is aimed at protecting national security, raising concerns that the Chinese government could gain access to Americans data under TikToks current ownership structure. Opponents say it would violate users free speech rights. Ive supported libertarian and free market principles my entire adult life, Yass, 65, told the Wall Street Journal last year. TikTok is about free speech and innovation, the epitome of libertarian and free market ideals. The idea of banning TikTok is an anathema to everything I believe. TikTok says it hasnt shared data with the Chinese government and wouldnt do so if asked. The company said in a statement last week that the legislation will trample the First Amendment rights of 170 million Americans and deprive 5 million small businesses of a platform they rely on to grow and create jobs. Trump, the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee, warned this week that banning TikTok would make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people. While Trump was in the White House, his administration attempted to impose several bans on social media apps with ties to China, including TikTok, but they were blocked by the courts. Trumps recent about-face on the issue came after he reconciled with Club for Growth, a conservative group that had been at odds with Trump politically and which opposes a TikTok ban. Yass has contributed $61 million to the group since 2010, the Journal reported. The club invited Trump to speak at its March 1 retreat in Palm Beach, Fla., and Trump reportedly told donors that he and the organizations president were back in love, according to Politico. Trump praised Yass as fantastic, Politico reported. Former Trump aide Kellyanne Conway has been lobbying members of Congress to oppose the TikTok ban on Club for Growths behalf, Politico reported. Yass last year backed political groups supporting GOP presidential candidates Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott, and Chris Christie, according to campaign-finance records. Trump has been lagging Biden in fundraising; it remains to be seen whether Yass will support the former president financially ahead of the November election. Susquehanna became ByteDances earliest U.S. backer in 2012, putting up $3 million of ByteDances $5 million initial funding round. Mayor Cherelle L. Parker speaks at a news conference last month alongside union leaders. She is unveiling her first budget proposal this week, a major opportunity for the new mayor to advance her agenda. Read more Mayor Cherelle L. Parker is proposing a $6.29 billion city budget that keeps tax rates flat, adds resources for law enforcement, and boosts funding for priorities such as commercial corridor cleaning, according to administration documents viewed by The Inquirer. Parker, who took office in January as the citys first female mayor, will deliver her first budget proposal to City Council on Thursday in a high-profile address that is likely to be a defining moment in her history-making tenure. Council will negotiate with the administration over Parkers proposal this spring, and must reach a final agreement before July 1, when the new budget takes effect. Parkers first budget proposal comes at an unusual time for the city as it is navigating the complexities of the post-pandemic economy. Typically, City Hall struggles to find money for badly needed investments in city services. But at the moment, city coffers are flush with cash, and the administration is required to spend $449 million in federal pandemic relief money by the end of 2024. READ MORE: Mayor Parker calls on Philadelphia businesses to return to in-person work Advertisement Despite the influx, it has been difficult to spend money in a way that visibly improves services due to the citys ongoing struggle to fill thousands of open positions, a symptom of the staffing crisis affecting local governments across the country. The administration is framing the plan as an investment of $2 billion over five years on Parkers top priorities, which are encapsulated in the mayors oft-repeated campaign slogan and governing principle of making Philly the safest, cleanest, greenest big city in the nation with economic opportunity for all. This year, that includes $33 million in new spending on public safety efforts, $36 million in funding for housing programs, and $36 million for clean and green initiatives such as cracking down on illegal dumping, according to the administration documents. No planned cuts to wage and business taxes Mayors often use their first budget proposal when their political capital is highest to push a major initiative that may be difficult to pass in Council. There is little in Parkers plan, however, that appears likely to raise alarm with the majority of city lawmakers, except, perhaps, the lack of cuts to the citys wage and business taxes. For about 30 years, successive mayoral administrations have supported incremental cuts to the citys wage tax, which is among the nations highest at 3.75% for Philly residents and 3.44% for people who work in the city but live elsewhere. In recent years, there has also been broad support for lowering or reforming the business income and receipts tax. But in public appearances since taking office, Parker has said that before the city prioritizes tax reform, she wants to see Harrisburg take action on two major issues: raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour and granting Philly permission to tax residential and commercial properties at different rates. She has also said she wants Councils newly announced Tax Reform Commission to make recommendations before changing tax rates. Parkers plan does, however, call for an adjustment in how real estate tax revenue is distributed. She is proposing bumping the school districts share from 55% to 56% of that revenue, which the administration estimates will increase funding for the district by $119 million over five years. The city will take the remaining 44% of property tax proceeds. Increased police spending and funding for anti-violence grants Last year, Parker campaigned on a tough-on-crime platform, calling for the city to hire hundreds more police officers and embracing the controversial policing tactic known as stop-and-frisk. She is proposing millions of dollars in spending on police technology and equipment, including $15 million for more than 200 new cars, $2.7 million for drones, and $1.4 million for upgrades to investigative tools. Her plan also calls for allocating $45 million in capital funds to improve the departments forensics lab. But her proposal does not appear to significantly increase the number of officers, instead calling for maximizing deployment of current force and accelerating recruitment. That is likely a reflection of the departments inability to fill hundreds of open positions. Parkers plan would add staff to the citys public safety apparatus, including 15 new 911 dispatchers, 10 community outreach positions, 50 office clerks, and nine new victim advocates. In addition, the proposal includes millions of dollars in anti-violence funding outside traditional policing, including about $25 million for a relatively new initiative that grants money to grassroots community organizations that work with vulnerable populations and in neighborhoods most affected by crime. READ MORE: Mayor Cherelle Parker summons city leaders to meet and discuss solutions following SEPTA shootings The Inquirer has reported that results have been mixed, and that some of the nonprofits improperly managed the funds. Parker has vowed that her administration will ensure accountability, and her budget proposal would fund new staff positions in the office that manages the grantmaking. Corridor cleaning and more money for L&I Parkers budget calls for nearly $100 million over five years to support a program called Philadelphia Taking Care of Business, which she created when she was a Council member. In its previous iteration, the initiative funded community groups to sweep sidewalks and remove litter along commercial corridors. Her plan would allocate $92 million to those contracts and add an additional $3.5 million to fund new staff positions needed to expand the program. Her budget would also fund new staff positions in the Department of Licenses and Inspections, which enforces building safety regulations and the city code. Those new workers would focus on audits, investigations, and clean and seal, the process the city uses to secure blighted and abandoned properties. Parker previously announced that her administration is splitting L&I in two, with one arm focused on quality-of-life issues and the other on building and construction safety. Money for triage centers and homeless services More details of Parkers spending plan will be unveiled throughout the week. Other highlights that have come to light so far include: $10 million in new funding for the Community College of Philadelphia to avoid a tuition increase. $16 million in added funding for the citys beleaguered Office of Homeless Services, which over the last four years has overspent its budget by nearly $15 million and is the subject of three investigations into financial mismanagement. City officials have said the department is underfunded and did not have enough money in its accounts to pay nonprofits that contract with the city to house the citys homeless population. $431 million over five years for future labor costs. The unions for city workers will negotiate new contracts with the administration this summer, and the budget sets aside money for cost increases that may result. $100 million for new triage facilities. The facilities are a key priority for several Council members who represent Kensington and want to dismantle the open-air drug market in the neighborhood. Their plan is to stand up city-funded spaces where police and outreach workers can bring people who openly use drugs in to either be connected to long-term recovery programs or, if they dont cooperate, be arrested. Parkers budget plan also includes leaving $486 million unspent at the end of the next fiscal year, a surplus known as the fund balance. That amounts to 7.8% of city revenue, below the 17% that government finance experts recommend be kept for unexpected downturns. Parker is proposing putting another $220 million into other emergency funds, for a total of about 11% of revenue in reserves. It wont be easy to turn all of those investments into improved services that Philadelphians can touch, see, and feel, which Parker has said is her goal. About 18% of budgeted city employee positions are unfilled, according to a December report. Thats despite Council last year approving $45 million in funding to bolster recruitment and retention efforts across the government. The city has used overtime pay to make up for the staffing shortages and is on track to exceed the record $250 million it spent on overtime last year. Everything we do at FWD aims to empower our customers to celebrate living, knowing they have the protection they need, at the moments that matter in their lives. As we look ahead, enhancing our presence and deepening FWD's footprint across the 10 markets we operate in will be a top priority as we continue to build scale in our business, said Huynh Thanh Phong. This prestigious list highlights those in the brokerage field who excel in managing the complexities of the market, all while putting client needs at the forefront. Im extremely grateful to my colleagues for their hard work in delivering these results, and our parent company and brokers for placing their trust in us. While weve restored our business to profitable growth, I believe the best opportunities lie ahead of us. Were now focussed on achieving sustainable long-term performance, as we fulfil our purpose of providing continuity for clients in an uncertain world. However, PSC Insurance, with a market valuation around AU$1.88 billion, has kept details about the identities of these parties or the possible valuation of any deal under wraps. More details on Tasmanias ruling The Clyde & Co associate said an important part of the Tasmanian ruling concerned whether the expiration of the limitation period for an abuse case had a disproportionate influence on the survivors decision to settle his claim for a particular amount and whether such expiry effectively forced the survivor to accept whatever offer was proposed to them at the time of entering into the Deed. School holidays will be here before we know it, so now is the time to ensure you have the proper insurance coverage if you're planning an overseas trip, he said. We hear of too many stories of families facing financial hardship due to medical emergencies or accidents overseas, simply because they didn't have travel insurance. Projects chosen for the IIC will address some of the biggest challenges facing low and middle-income communities, including health, well-being, gender equality, and sustainability. We are looking forward to seeing the impact that our project partners will have in delivering innovative, accessible, and inclusive insurance products for populations that need them most. Britains Direct Line said on Wednesday it had rejected a revised 3.17 billion pound ($4.06 billion) takeover bid from Belgian rival Ageas, repeating that it significantly undervalued the home and motor insurer. Direct Line, a household name in insurance in Britain, rejected a previous offer from Ageas last month, which valued it at 3.1 billion pounds. The board is confident in Direct Line Groups standalone prospects, the insurer said in a statement, describing Ageas sweetened offer as highly opportunistic. Direct Line has been through a rocky period since it scrapped its dividend, and its former chief executive exited the company in January 2023. It is due to report full-year results next week, after the appointment of Adam Winslow as CEO earlier this month. Direct Lines shares have risen sharply since it said on Feb. 28 it had rejected Ageas first proposal. Its shares were trading 5.8% lower at 212.8 pence at 1221 GMT. Direct Line said it had received the fresh Ageas proposal on March 9, adding that it offered 120 pence in cash and a new Ageas share for every 28.41107 Direct Line share held. This was above the earlier bid of 100 pence and an Ageas share for every 25.24047 Direct Line share. Direct Line said the offer valued the company at 237 pence per share, around 3% above the previous Ageas offer, based on its March 8 closing price. We look forward to engaging with the Direct Line Board of Directors on the terms of our improved possible offer, Ageas said in a separate statement, adding that it would continue to engage ahead of a March 27 deadline under UK takeover rules. Jefferies analysts said that there was much more needed to make the deal attractive, though they reiterated their buy rating on Direct Line. Ageas shares were up 0.43%. KBW analysts said that Ageas had been disciplined and rational in its approach with this second offer, adding that it could also signal that not many other potential bidders are ready to commit to Direct Line. Reuters reported on March 7 that Ageas was pursuing a further offer and that both insurers had hired extra advisers. ($1 = 0.7812 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru and Carolyn Cohn in London; editing by Shinjini Ganguli, Sinead Cruise and Alexander Smith) Related: Topics Carriers This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Arch Reinsurance and DUAL France. A summary of these new hires follows here. Arch Reinsurance Promotes 3 Senior Leaders: Halgan, Hardy Pickering and Pun Arch Reinsurance Group announced the promotions of three senior executives, effective April 1: Jerome Halgan, Vanessa Hardy Pickering and Lester Pun. Details of the promotions are as follows: Jerome Halgan will be president and chief underwriting officer of Arch Reinsurance Group, in addition to maintaining his role as CEO of Arch Reinsurance Ltd. (Arch Re Ltd.). In this expanded role, he will also oversee underwriting strategy, operations and approach across the group. Halgan joined Arch in 2009, and his leadership to encourage innovation, collaboration and strengthen relationships with our clients has strongly contributed to the growth and continued success of the business. will be president and chief underwriting officer of Arch Reinsurance Group, in addition to maintaining his role as CEO of Arch Reinsurance Ltd. (Arch Re Ltd.). In this expanded role, he will also oversee underwriting strategy, operations and approach across the group. Halgan joined Arch in 2009, and his leadership to encourage innovation, collaboration and strengthen relationships with our clients has strongly contributed to the growth and continued success of the business. Vanessa Hardy Pickering will be chief financial officer (CFO) of Arch Reinsurance Group. In this role she will work closely with Reinsurance CFOs across the company to shape the future state of the finance department. Her track record of supporting strategic growth plans, leading strong teams and serving as a trusted partner makes her a natural fit for this new role. Hardy Pickering joined Arch in 2021 and most recently served as the CFO of Arch Re. will be chief financial officer (CFO) of Arch Reinsurance Group. In this role she will work closely with Reinsurance CFOs across the company to shape the future state of the finance department. Her track record of supporting strategic growth plans, leading strong teams and serving as a trusted partner makes her a natural fit for this new role. Hardy Pickering joined Arch in 2021 and most recently served as the CFO of Arch Re. Lester Pun will be chief operating officer of Arch Reinsurance Group where he will drive the execution of key transformation projects across the company, including oversight and support of its data strategy initiative. With more than two decades of actuarial and operational experience, Pun has the practical know-how to bring Arch Reinsurance Groups future ambitions into reality. He joined Arch in 2018 and most recently served as chief actuary of Arch Re Ltd. *** DUAL France Taps Deal From Everest France as Managing Director DUAL Europe announced the appointment of Guillaume Deal as managing director, DUAL France, reporting to Olaf Jonda, CEO, DUAL Europe. DUAL said his appointment reflects the companys strategy to attract top industry talent, and further strengthens its French leadership team following the appointment of Gwenael Herve as chair in December 2023. Deal, who is based in Paris, joins DUAL from Everest where he held a variety of senior roles, most recently as head of Financial Lines, Everest France. Prior to this he was managing director Continental Europe, Navigators, and chief underwriting officer at CAMCA, the insurance subsidiary of Credit Agricole Group. Deals role will be to lead DUAL Frances growth trajectory and to solidify its position in the French market. DUAL France offers financial lines, professional indemnity, cyber, construction all risks, title and M&A insurance solutions for medium-sized and large companies, and accident & health. The specialist underwriting arm of Howden Group, DUAL Group was launched in 1998 and is now one of the worlds largest international underwriting agencies with US$3.5 billion of GWP. The company has more than 1,600 people in 21 countries across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific, and is one of Lloyds largest international coverholders. DUAL Europe operates from 17 locations in 13 countries. Topics Talent Leadership Reinsurance TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Kansas judge ruled Monday that the state isnt violating transgender residents rights under the state constitution by refusing to change their drivers licenses to reflect their gender identities. District Judge Teresa Watson kept in place indefinitely an order she first issued in July 2023 to prevent the Kansas Department of Revenue from changing the listing for sex on transgender peoples drivers licenses. Attorney General Kris Kobach, a conservative Republican, sued Democratic Gov. Laura Kellys administration to stop such changes in line with a 2023 law that ended legal recognition of transgender peoples identities. Watson allowed transgender Kansas residents to intervene in Kobachs lawsuit, and the American Civil Liberties Union argued on their behalf that the no-changes policy violated rights protected by the Kansas Constitution. The Kansas Supreme Court declared in 2019 that the state constitution grants a right to bodily autonomy, though the decision dealt with abortion rights, not LGBTQ+ rights. Watson said invoking the right to bodily autonomy to require the state to change drivers licenses would be an unreasonable stretch. She said Kansas residents do not have a fundamental right under the state constitution to control what information is displayed on a state-issued drivers license. Information recorded on a drivers license does not interfere with transgender persons ability to control their own bodies or assert bodily integrity or self-determination, Watson wrote in her 31-page order, issued in Shawnee County, home to the state capital of Topeka. Kelly supports LGBTQ+ rights. After she took office in 2019, her administration allowed transgender people to change their drivers licenses and birth certificates to reflect their gender identities. The Republican-controlled Legislature overrode her veto to enact the 2023 law, and transgender people can no longer change either identity document, thanks to Kobachs efforts. Its not clear whether Kellys administration or transgender Kansas residents will appeal Watsons ruling. D.C. Hiegert, an ACLU of Kansas LGBGQ+ legal fellow who is trans, predicted that Watsons ruling will lead to transgender people being harassed and denied services. What possible reason can we articulate to deny our transgender population peace of mind? added Pedro Irigonegaray, a Topeka attorney representing the Kelly administration. Why this vindictive attitude towards this class of individuals? The Kansas law was part of a wave of measures from GOP-controlled Legislatures across the U.S. to roll back transgender rights. Montana, North Dakota and Tennessee also enacted laws defining man and woman, and Republican governors issued executive orders in Nebraska and Oklahoma, where nonbinary teenager Nex Benedict was bullied and died after a fight in a girls bathroom at a school. Similar measures have been proposed in at least 13 other states. The Kansas law doesnt mention drivers licenses or birth certificates but says for the purposes of any state law or regulation, a persons sex is either male or female, based on their biological reproductive system identified at birth. Watson ruled that the laws language is clear and there are no exceptions. Kobach said in a statement: This decision is a victory for the rule of law and common sense. Watsons ruling came the day before the Kansas House planned to debate a proposed ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors, something at least 23 other states have done. A final House vote was expected Wednesday. We will continue working toward a vision of our state that allows all of us to live in peace, free from government persecution and impositions on our core identities, Hiegert said in a statement. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Personal Auto Kansas Last October, an Idaho farmer using a backhoe punched a hole into a 22-inch pipeline buried under a field, sending more than 51 million cubic feet of natural gas hissing into the air. While the incident on Williams Companies Northwest Pipeline was big, it was no anomaly along the roughly 3 million miles of natural gas pipelines crisscrossing the U.S. Accidental pipeline leaks caused by things like punctures, corrosion, severe weather and faulty equipment happen routinely and are a climate menace that is not currently counted in the official U.S. tally of greenhouse gas emissions, according to a Reuters examination of public data and regulatory documents. Pipeline mishaps unintentionally released nearly 9.7 billion cubic feet of gas into the atmosphere between 2019 and late 2023, according to a Reuters examination of incident report data maintained by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). That is the climate equivalent of running four average-sized coal-fired power plants for a year, according to an Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) online calculator. Those emissions are currently not included in the nations official greenhouse gas count because federal rules exempt large, unexpected leaks, and mainly only capture emissions from regular operations, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Biden administration aims to change that as early as next year under a set of rules proposed by the EPA to crack down on methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, and which would punish emitters with fees of $900 to $1,500 per metric ton when they exceed a certain threshold. Reuters relied on PHMSA data and interviews with researchers, company officials and regulators to provide new detail on the scale of greenhouse gas emissions from accidental pipeline leaks that could soon be added to the official greenhouse gas tally, as well as the potential cost to companies under the looming fees. I dont think the public or regulators have realized just how much methane has been lost from pipeline infrastructure, said Kenneth Clarkson, a spokesperson for the Pipeline Safety Trust, a non-profit watchdog. Newer studies have come closer to capturing the true amount of emissions and this has started catching the attention of policymakers. Accidental leaks reported from PHMSA by the five biggest U.S. pipelines between 2018 and 2022 showed that those incidents could have significantly increased the facilities overall reported emissions, potentially resulting in fees of up to $40 million under the proposal. The operators of the five biggest pipelines include Berkshire Hathaway, TC Energy and Kinder Morgan. Berkshire Hathaways 14,000-mile Northern Natural Gas pipeline, for instance, reported unintended releases of natural gas to PHMSA during the five year period that were the equivalent of about 30% of the methane the facility reported to EPA during the period. Williams, the owner of the pipeline that leaked in Idaho in October, reported unintended gas releases that amounted to about 15% of the methane it reported to EPA. Berkshire Hathaway and Williams did not respond to requests for comment on Reuters analysis or the EPA proposal. TC Energy said reducing its methane emissions was a critical part of its business, but did not comment directly on the EPA proposal or Reuters analysis. Kinder Morgan said it does not exclude unintended emissions from its reports to EPA, even though it is not required to include them. BIG DISCREPANCY The Biden administration unveiled its batch of final rules aimed at cracking down on U.S. oil and gas industry releases of methane at the United Nations COP28 climate change conference in Dubai in December, part of international efforts to curb releases of the gas. Piped natural gas is typically around 90% methane, a greenhouse gas which is several times more potent in warming the planet than carbon dioxide during the relatively short time it remains in the atmosphere. The new policies would ban routine flaring of natural gas produced by newly drilled oil wells, require oil companies to monitor for leaks from well sites and compressor stations and establishes a program to use third party remote sensing to detect large methane releases. The new reporting requirements for large leaks, meanwhile, are likely to be finalized later this year and take effect in 2025, the EPA told Reuters. Under the proposal, companies will be required to report abnormal leaks of about 500,000 cubic feet of pipeline gas or more starting next year, a threshold significantly lower than what PHMSA requires. The new reporting rules would also apply to big, unplanned emissions from other parts of the oil and gas industry, such as drilling operations, EPA said. The fact that some large methane leaks have never been accounted for in U.S. greenhouse gas inventories underscore concerns among environmental groups and scientific researchers that emissions from the fossil fuel sector have been vastly understated. An Environmental Defense Fund analysis last year, for instance, estimated U.S. pipelines leak between 1.2 million and 2.6 million tons of methane per year, or 3.75 to 8 times more than EPA estimates. The EDF figure includes not just large mishaps but also pervasive smaller leaks on tiny distribution lines. The failure of EPA to account for these large events is a big driver of that discrepancy, Edwin LaMair, an EDF attorney who focuses on oil and gas regulations, said in an interview. The Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, a pipeline industry trade group, said most incidents reported to PHMSA relate to safety systems operating as intended. The group also pointed to an EPA analysis showing that most transmission and storage facilities may not meet the 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year emissions threshold required to pay the methane fee. The EPA analysis said, however, that it was not yet possible to accurately estimate the magnitude of emissions that will be reported and which facilities will report those emissions. The pipeline industry has also said in public comments to the EPA about the new reporting rules that they could lead to double-counting of some emissions. Topics USA A Russian state-sponsored hacking group that stole sensitive data from Microsoft Corp. executives is trying to leverage that information to compromise the companys source code and other internal systems, according to the technology giant. The revelation makes clear that a hacking campaign Microsoft first identified in January had more unauthorized access than previously thought, the company said in a filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday and a related blog post. The hackers ongoing attack is characterized by a sustained, significant commitment of the threat actors resources, coordination and focus, Microsoft said, adding that further unauthorized access might occur. The company said it is coordinating with federal law enforcement about what it described as its ongoing investigation. The FBI declined to comment. In February, the hackers increased tenfold the volume of attempted password spray attacks, a technique in which intruders attempt to use multiple passwords on specific usernames to try breaching high-value accounts, according to Microsoft. The group also is attempting to use secrets shared between Microsoft and its customers in email, according to the blog post. To date, we have found no evidence that Microsoft-hosted customer-facing systems have been compromised. The hackers, who Microsoft calls Midnight Blizzard, may be using the information it has obtained to accumulate a picture of areas to attack and enhance its ability to do so, Microsoft said. They were previously caught accessing emails that belonged to senior leaders, including cybersecurity and legal executives. The suspected Russian hackers, who industry experts also call Cozy Bear and APT29, are the same group that the US and UK blamed in 2021 for the cyberattack on SolarWinds Corp., in which malicious code was inserted in a software update that allowed the intruders further access to customers. In all, about 100 companies and nine federal agencies were targeted for further attacks. In February, the US, UK and other allies warned that the same group, which they say comprises hackers from the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, known as the SVR, were finding ways to access cloud environments in order to target aviation, education, law enforcement, local and state councils, government financial departments and military organizations. Photo: Photographer: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg Copyright 2024 Bloomberg. Topics Cyber Fraud Russia Oklahoma lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a bill that would provide financial grants to residents to construct or retrofit homes, making them more resilient against the destructive forces of tornadoes, windstorms and hail. House Bill 3089, introduced by Rep. Mark Tedford, R-Tulsa, would make grants available by the Oklahoma Insurance Department to residential property owners who meet specific eligibility criteria. These criteria include an owner-occupied, single-family primary residence. The grants are intended to help homeowners achieve safety standards outlined by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS). The bill passed the House floor by an 88-4 vote. The Senate will now consider the legislation, where it is sponsored by Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee. The Strengthen Oklahoma Homes Act would establish a grant program aimed at assisting homeowners in reinforcing their roofs with impact-resistant materials that meet Fortified standards set by the IBHS. Roofs that meet the Fortified standards have stronger edges, better attachment, impact-resilient shingles and a sealed roof deck, according to IBHS website. Oklahoma lawmakers have not specified how much funding would be allocated to the program. Last year Louisiana created a similar program that grants up to $10,000 for homeowners to upgrade their roofs to the Fortified standards. Louisianas program was modeled off of one in Alabama which has funded more than 6,000 Fortified roofs in the past seven years. Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready said the Strengthen Oklahoma Homes Act would assist residents in fortifying their homes against natural disasters. As Insurance Commissioner, I cant control the weather, but I can certainly help Oklahomans fortify their homes, said Mulready. I am looking forward to seeing this bill becoming law and giving Oklahomans some relief when it comes to helping the consumer lower their homeowners rates. Source: Oklahoma Insurance Department Topics Oklahoma A former Georgia insurance commissioners efforts to dismiss insurance fraud and money laundering charges against him have run their course. John Oxendine must face trial starting April 15, a federal judge has decided. A pretrial conference is set for March 28, giving Oxendines attorneys just a few weeks to prepare for the long-awaited trial on charges that Oxendine acted as a middleman between a physician who urged a lab company to bill health insurers millions of dollars for unneeded tests. U.S. District Judge Steve Jones upheld a magistrate judges 2023 report that had denied Oxendines motion to dismiss the charges. This Court agrees with the Magistrate Judge that the definition of kickback accurately describes what is alleged to have occurred in the superseding indictment, Jones wrote in his March 7 order. Furthermore, the Court agrees that use of the word kickback in this context is not unfairly prejudicial. Therefore, the Objections by Defendant are without merit. Oxendine was Georgia insurance commissioner for four terms, from 1994 to 2010. His administration was marked by controversies as well as victories. He then ran unsuccessfully for governor. In 2022, he was indicted by a federal grand jury. Jones said in his order last week that the evidence outlined by prosecutors was clear, that Oxendines due process was not violated, the charges were not time-barred, and a statement he gave to investigators was not coerced. The judge cited the magistrates report and the indictment, noting that Oxendine in 2015 gave a speech during a meeting sponsored by the doctor, in which Oxendine told doctors they needed to order the tests. Dr. Jeffrey Gallups, who was convicted in 2022 of requiring his clinics to order the unnecessary tests, had agreed to split the proceeds from insurance companies with the lab testing firm. When the lab firm paid the alleged kickbacks, Oxendine used much of the money to provide donations to charity and to pay attorney fees. But he allegedly kept more than $40,000 for himself, the court documents contend. Topics Fraud Legislation Georgia A Broward County jury has decided that the Cleveland Clinic Florida should pay almost $32 million to the estate of a man who was not put in intensive care after suffering septic shock and who later died. The jury found the hospital was negligent and jurors awarded $30 million for present and future pain and suffering, loss of companionship and guidance, to the minor daughter of the patient, Saverio Sasso. About $1.9 million was awarded for medical expenses, funeral services and loss of support. Sasso, 51, was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic emergency department in September 2018 after reporting severe back pain. In the previous 24 hours, Sasso had visited urgent care facilities with burning sensation during urination, nausea, fever and a urinary tract infection, the amended complaint reads. At the time his fiance brought him to the Cleveland ER, he was at high risk of septic shock from the internal infection, the lawsuit notes. But instead of placing him in an acute intensive care unit as his condition warranted, he was placed in an intermediate step-down unit for observation, the complaint charges. His condition worsened overnight. The next day, a rapid response team was called and personnel attempted to intubate Sasso. The procedure was unsuccessful until an anesthesiologist arrived. But that left the patient deprived of oxygen for 14 minutes, the suit contends. Sasso died a week later. The not-for-profit Cleveland Clinic denied most of the allegations in the complaint and said that Sassos death was related to congenital medical conditions, and was not due to negligence by the hospital staff. The plaintiffs attorneys, Diana Santa Maria, David Carter and Dane Ullian, also asked the judge to sanction the clinic officials. The clinic deliberately withheld emails that allegedly supported the fact that the intubation was initiated by a resident rather than a fellow at the hospital, the March 7 sanctions motion reads. During the trial, the Cleveland Clinic also offered new stories that were suspiciously coincident in an attempt to deflect damaging evidence, the estates lawyers said. The Cleveland Clinic issued a statement to Insurance Journal about the verdict. The well-being of our patients is our top priority, the statement reads. While we respect the jurys verdict and appreciate the time they committed to hear the case, we do not agree with the outcome and are evaluating our options. Topics Florida March 13, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Investorideas.com, a global news source and expert investing resource, announces today's roundup of stocks to watch in the Lithium Mining and Cleantech sectors. The newest lithium mining companies are ASX/LSE listed with operations world-wide. The latest cleantech stocks operate in wave power, green building, energy storage and battery metals. New Stocks Added to the Lithium Mining Directories: Argosy Minerals Limited (ASX:AGY) is an Australian company with a current 77.5% (and ultimate 90%) interest in the Rincon Lithium Project in Salta Province, Argentina and a 100% interest in the Tonopah Lithium Project in Nevada, USA. The Company is focused on its flagship Rincon Lithium Project located within the world renowned "Lithium Triangle", host to the world's largest lithium resources. Aldoro Resources Ltd (ASX:ARN) is an ASX-listed mineral exploration and development company. Aldoro has a portfolio of critical minerals including rare earth, lithium, rubidium, niobium and base metal projects, three projects are located in Western Australia and the fourth in Namibia, Southwest Africa. The Company's flagship project the Narndee Igneous Complex, which is prospective for Ni-Cu-PGE mineralisation and has identified two prospects VC01 and Area32. The Company's other projects include. are the Kameelburg REE and niobium Project targeting carbonatites, the Wyemandoo Project in the Windimurra Igneous Complex with a principal focus on lithium-rubidium-tungsten in the pegmatite dyke and sill swarms but also has Nickel-Copper-PGE-gold potential along its western structurally controlled margin and the Niobe lithium-rubidium-tantalum Project in the Mount Farmer pegmatite swarm. Atlantic Lithium Limited (LSE:ALL; ASX:A11) is an AIM and ASX-listed lithium company advancing a portfolio of lithium projects in Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire through to production. The Company's flagship project, the Ewoyaa Project in Ghana, is a significant lithium spodumene pegmatite discovery on track to become Ghana's first lithium-producing mine. The Company signed a funding agreement with Piedmont Lithium Inc. towards the development of the Project. At the Ewoyaa Project, Atlantic Lithium intends to be producing spodumene concentrate via a simple gravity only process flowsheet. Atlantic Lithium holds 560km2 and 774km2 of tenure across Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire respectively, comprising significantly under-explored, highly prospective licences Bradda Head Lithium Limited (LSE:BHL.L) is a North America-focused lithium development group. The Company currently has interests in a variety of projects, the most advanced of which are in Central and Western Arizona: The Basin Project (Basin East Project, and the Basin West Project) and the Wikieup Project. New Stocks Added to the Cleantech Directories: Carnegie Clean Energy Ltd. (OTCQB:CWGYF; ASX: CCE) is a technology developer focused on delivering ocean energy technologies to make the world more sustainable. Carnegie Technologies Spain and CETO Wave Energy Ireland is a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnegie Clean Energy. Carnegie is the owner and developer of the CETO and MoorPower technologies, which capture energy from ocean waves and convert it into electricity. Using the latest advances in artificial intelligence and electric machines, Carnegie can optimally control our technologies and generate electricity in the most efficient way possible. The company has a long history in ocean energy with a track record of world leading developments. Northstar Clean Technologies Inc. (OTCQB:ROOOF; TSXV: ROOF) is a Canadian clean technology company focused on the sustainable recovery and reprocessing of asphalt shingles. Northstar has developed a proprietary design process for taking discarded asphalt shingles, otherwise destined for already over-crowded landfills, and extracting the liquid asphalt for use in new hot mix asphalt, shingle manufacturing and asphalt flat roof systems, and aggregate and fiber for use in construction products and other industrial applications. Focused on the circular economy, Northstar plans to reprocess used or defective asphalt shingle waste back into its three primary components for reuse/resale at its first commercial scale up facility in Calgary, Alberta. As an emerging innovator in sustainable processing, Northstar's mission is to be the leader in the recovery and reprocessing of asphalt shingles in North America, extracting the recovered components from asphalt shingles that would otherwise be sent to landfill. Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd. (OTCPink: GMGMF; TSXV: GMG) is a clean-technology company which seeks to offer energy saving and energy storage solutions, enabled by graphene, including that manufactured in-house via a proprietary production process. GMG has developed a proprietary production process to decompose natural gas (i.e. methane) into its elements, carbon (as graphene), hydrogen and some residual hydrocarbon gases. This process produces high quality, low cost, scalable, 'tuneable' and low/no contaminant graphene suitable for use in clean-technology and other applications. The Company's present focus is to de-risk and develop commercial scale-up capabilities, and secure market applications. In the energy savings segment, GMG has focused on graphene enhanced heating, ventilation and air conditioning ("HVAC-R") coating (or energy-saving paint), lubricants and fluids. In the energy storage segment, GMG and the University of Queensland are working collaboratively with financial support from the Australian Government to progress R&D and commercialization of graphene aluminium-ion batteries ("G+AI Batteries"). Charger Metals NL (ASX:CHR) is a well-funded exploration company targeting battery metals and precious metals in three emerging battery minerals provinces in Australia. The directories are not meant as recommendations but as a research tool to discover opportunities and trading ideas in a particular sector. About Investorideas.com - Big Investing Ideas Investorideas.com is the go-to platform for big investing ideas. From breaking stock news to top-rated investing podcasts, we cover it all. Our original branded content includes podcasts such as Exploring Mining, Cleantech, Crypto Corner, Cannabis News, and the AI Eye. We also create free investor stock directories for various sectors, including gaming, biotech, tech and sports. Public companies within the sectors we cover can use our news publishing and content creation services to help tell their story to interested investors. Paid content is always disclosed. Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/ and tickertagstocknews.com Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp Learn more about our news, PR and social media, podcast and ticker tag services at Investorideas.com https://www.investorideas.com/Investors/Services.asp Learn more about advertising and guest posts https://www.investorideas.com/Advertise/ Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/Investorideas Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Investorideas Follow us on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/Investorideas Contact Investorideas.com to be added to our stock directories or learn more about us Dawn Van Zant and Cali Van Zant 800 665 0411 March 13, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) The convergence of the AI boom and the global energy transition is a compelling investment opportunity for forward-thinking investors, says the CEO and founder of one of the world's largest independent financial advisory, asset management and fintech organizations. The bullish analysis from Nigel Green of deVere Group comes as John Podesta, the top US climate envoy, visits Japan, to discuss how the world's largest and third-largest economies can collaborate to speed-up decarbonization. "There's no question that if we're going to avert a catastrophic human disaster, we need to make that transition and increase the pace and scale of that action," said Podesta. The deVere CEO says: "While there was no mention of AI specifically, just technologies' by the US climate envoy on his trip to Japan, we believe that there's a huge opportunity for AI to boost the energy transition. "The AI boom is fundamentally reshaping our economies, how we do business, and our lives in real-time. "The climate crisis is the defining issue of our time. "The convergence of the two - the AI era and critical environmental issues - presents enormous opportunities for investors." At the heart of this convergence lies the transformative power of AI. With its ability to analyse vast amounts of data, optimize processes, and make informed decisions in real-time, AI serves as a catalyst for innovation across the energy landscape. When applied to the challenges of transitioning to renewable energy sources, AI unlocks a multitude of opportunities. "Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind are inherently intermittent, presenting challenges for grid stability and energy management," says Nigel Green. "However, AI algorithms can analyze weather patterns, energy demand forecasts, and historical data to optimize the deployment and operation of renewable energy assets. "By maximizing efficiency and minimizing downtime, AI ensures that renewable energy generation reaches its full potential, driving down costs and increasing competitiveness." Energy storage is a critical component of a sustainable energy system, enabling the integration of variable renewable sources and providing stability to the grid. The deVere CEO notes: "AI-driven algorithms can optimise the performance of energy storage systems by predicting demand fluctuations, managing charging and discharging cycles, and identifying opportunities for revenue generation through ancillary services. "As the demand for energy storage continues to rise, AI-powered solutions offer a strategic advantage in capturing market opportunities and delivering value to investors." The modernization of energy infrastructure requires intelligent grid management systems capable of handling diverse energy sources and dynamic demand patterns. AI technologies enable utilities to monitor, analyze, and optimize grid operations in real-time, reducing transmission losses, minimizing downtime, and improving overall efficiency. By enhancing grid reliability and resilience, AI-driven solutions "mitigate risks for investors while unlocking new revenue streams" in the changing energy marketplace. Beyond generation and distribution, AI plays a crucial role in promoting energy conservation and demand-side management. Smart sensors, IoT devices, and AI algorithms enable real-time monitoring and control of energy usage in buildings, industrial facilities, and transportation systems. "By identifying inefficiencies, achieving optimal equipment performance, and adjusting consumption patterns, AI-driven solutions drive down energy costs and contribute to sustainability goals, creating value for investors and stakeholders alike," affirms the CEO of deVere. In addition to the technological advancements enabled by AI, the global momentum behind the energy transition further amplifies the investment appeal of this convergence. "Governments, businesses, and consumers worldwide are increasingly prioritizing sustainability, driving demand for clean energy solutions and regulatory support for renewable energy adoption. "As the transition accelerates, investors stand to benefit from a growing market for AI-driven energy technologies, characterised by robust demand, expanding opportunities, and favourable policy environments." Moreover, the financial performance of sustainable investments continues to demonstrate resilience and outperformance relative to traditional asset classes. Nigel Green comments: "Studies have consistently shown that companies with strong environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices exhibit superior financial performance and risk-adjusted returns over the long term. By integrating AI-driven energy transition investments into their portfolios, investors can not only align with ESG principles but also capture value from innovative tech and sustainable business models." The convergence of AI and the energy transition presents a compelling investment opportunity for future-focused investors wanting to ride today's markets while contributing to a more sustainable future. "By leveraging AI-driven solutions to optimize renewable energy generation, enhance grid efficiency, and drive innovation across the energy value chain, investors can capture value from transformative tech, market disruption, and the global transition to clean energy. "As the momentum behind sustainability continues to build, now is the time for investors to embrace the synergy of AI and the energy transition and capitalize on the lucrative opportunities it presents," concludes the deVere Group CEO. e: george@priorconsultancy.co.uk t: +44 207 1220 925 Twitter: @PriorConsults deVere Group is one of the world's largest independent advisors of specialist global financial solutions to international, local mass affluent, and high-net-worth clients. It has a network of more than 70 offices across the world, over 80,000 clients and $12bn under advisement. More Info: This news is published on the Investorideas.com Newswire - a global digital news source for investors and business leaders Disclaimer/Disclosure: Investorideas.com is a digital publisher of third party sourced news, articles and equity research as well as creates original content, including video, interviews and articles. Original content created by investorideas is protected by copyright laws other than syndication rights. Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Disclosure is posted for each compensated news release, content published /created if required but otherwise the news was not compensated for and was published for the sole interest of our readers and followers. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclaimer info: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Disclaimer.asp Learn more about publishing your news release and our other news services on the Investorideas.com newswire https://www.investorideas.com/News-Upload/ Global investors must adhere to regulations of each country. Please read Investorideas.com privacy policy: https://www.investorideas.com/About/Private_Policy.asp Get Great Trading Ideas and News Alerts Guest posts and sponsored content - Got $100? That's all it takes to get an article published on Investor Ideas - Learn More The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that would give TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the US assets of the short-video app or face a ban in the greatest threat to the app since the Trump administration. The move is a serious escalation in the US clash over China trade and investments but it is unclear what the fallout could be for TiKTok which employs hundreds of people in Dublin at a major global head office. The Government via the IDA has helped support TikTok and other major Chinese investments in Ireland. The US bill passed 352-65, with bipartisan support, but it faces a more uncertain path in the Senate where some favour a different approach to regulating foreign-owned apps posing security concerns. Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer said the US Senate "will review the legislation when it comes over from the House". TikTok's fate has become a major issue in Washington. Democratic and Republican lawmakers said their offices had received large volumes of calls from teenage TikTok users who oppose the legislation, with the volume of complaints at times exceeding the number of calls seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Senate Commerce Committee chair Maria Cantwell said she wanted legislation "that could hold up in court" and is considering a separate bill but is not sure what her next step is. Security concerns The measure is the latest in a series of moves in Washington to respond to US national security concerns about China, from connected vehicles to advanced artificial intelligence chips to cranes at US ports. "This is a critical national security issue. The Senate must take this up and pass it," House Republican Steve Scalise said on social media platform X. Shortly after passage, a bipartisan pair of senators, Democrat Mark Warner and Republican Marco Rubio, issued a joint statement saying they were encouraged by the bipartisan support for the bill and they "look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law. The vote comes just over a week since the bill was proposed following one public hearing with little debate, and after action in Congress had stalled for more than a year. Last month, president Joe Biden's re-election campaign joined TikTok, raising hopes among TikTok officials that legislation was unlikely this year. "This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: It's a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realise the impact on the economy, seven million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service," a TikTok spokesperson said. Mr Biden said last week he would sign the bill. Goal to end Chinese ownership White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday the goal was ending Chinese ownership, not banning TikTok. It is unclear whether China would approve any sale or if TikTok's US assets could be divested in six months. If ByteDance failed to do so, app stores operated by Apple, Alphabet's Google and others could not legally offer TikTok or provide web hosting services to ByteDance-controlled applications. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump sought to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat but was blocked by the courts. Any forced TikTok divestment from the US would almost certainly face legal challenges, which the company would need to file within 165 days of the bill being signed by the president. In November, a US judge blocked a Montana state ban on TikTok use after the company sued. Supporting farmers, and retrofitting of buildings, are predicted to be the biggest climate change public expenditure items in Ireland. The Irish Fiscal Advisory Council (Ifac) said the proportion of these climate transition costs to be borne by the State was ultimately a Government policy choice, making the expenditure path incredibly uncertain to predict in its report, entitled "What Climate Change Means for Ireland's Public Finances". Overall, transition costs in both revenue and spending will be the largest impacts. Adaptation to climate change, and potential penalties for non-compliance, would have lower but still significant effects. The Ifac report was discussed at a recent meeting of the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight. We assume that farming supports will be maintained out to 2050. In the high-cost scenario, we assume all losses of farm income from the reduction in livestock numbers are compensated by the Government. "In the low-cost scenario, only 70% of the income loss is compensated," said Ifac member Professor Michael McMahon. Farmer compensation Ifac economist Killian Carroll, chief author of the report, said its calculations of farmer support were based on Teagasc research findings of the reduction in livestock numbers needed for the sector to meet its targets, and on farmer compensation for the accompanying reduction in farm incomes. "The figure we had was about 500m per year between 2026 and 2030 in support. Some farms may operate at a net loss in existing circumstances. Some beef and sheep herds operate at a net loss. "One could support those farms, in particular, to transition away from using the land for their beef and sheep herds towards other land uses like afforestation. They could end up better off as a result." Ifac said the highest level of climate change public expenditure would occur late in this decade, from 2027 to 2030. "Public spending of between 0.7% and 1.2% of national income, or 2.6bn and 4.4bn, would be required at that time. Thereafter, costs are expected to fall slightly, settling at 0.4% to 0.7% of national income per year," said Professor McMahon. However, all the Ifac scenarios are based on the assumption that Ireland meets its legally binding targets of 51% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 (relative to 2018), and climate neutrality by 2050. But these outcomes are unlikely, with the Environmental Protection Agency projecting Ireland would reduce emissions by only 29% in 2030. Cost of non-compliance In that event, the cost of non-compliance by 2030 could be up to 3.5bn cumulatively, according to Government estimates. "Not achieving climate targets today would likely result in much greater fiscal costs in later years," said Professor McMahon. Mr Carroll told the committee the non-compliance cost of 3.5bn cumulatively to 2030 could be accompanied by a fall in government revenue of about 2.5bn (mostly due to the switch from petrol and diesel vehicles to battery electrical cars). And the largest expenditure cost for the public purse would be on retrofitting residential buildings. With the State picking up 50% of this retrofitting cost, it would be about 11bn cumulatively by 2030 (if climate targets are met) for the State. Additional spending will be required for adaptation to climate change, including flood defences. Mr Carroll said the costs of rare climate events could also get really large, if we do not transition towards net zero fairly quickly. In the past, we have seen costs of around 200m per year for these once-in-10-year events. Over time, what had been regarded as once-in-100-year events might occur annually. The frequency of these events will increase and not only that, but the costs will also increase. He said the cost of flooding in Dublin city if the sea level rose by about 0.5m could increase costs from 25m today to 330m. "If it rose by 1m, costs in Dublin city alone could rise to about 3bn". "The costs of inaction, particularly if mirrored by other countries, could be far larger if it means a greater likelihood of more catastrophic outcomes related to climate change," said the report. The Ifac report was also based on the current tax system being largely maintained (including the carbon tax increases already in legislation). Electrification of vehicles Hence the big impact on Government revenue due to electrification of Irelands vehicles. Electric vehicles are much less taxed than diesel and petrol vehicles (which incur excise, Vat, motor tax and vehicle registration taxes). The resulting reduction in Government revenue would reach 0.9% of gross national income (GNI) by 2030, or 2.5bn in todays money, further increasing to 1.6% of GNI in the 2040s. "These falls in revenue could be offset by making changes to the tax system, changes which could further help achieve climate targets," said Professor McMahon. "For instance, the 2023 Tax Strategy Group papers discussed charging drivers for road use by distance, congestion charges, and/or by weight. It is worth noting that this would not necessarily involve an increase in the average tax burden faced by households and businesses. "It would merely replace one declining revenue stream with a new revenue stream, although there may be important distributional implications which would warrant further analysis". The Fiscal Advisory Council is an independent statutory body that acts as Irelands budgetary watchdog. The Department of Agriculture has confirmed a vaccine vital for the health of horses will be in short supply until the autumn or later. Without Artervac, the only inactivated vaccine against equine viral arteritis (EVA) used in Europe, the racehorse breeding industry is left with a significantly increased risk of a serious EVA outbreak. Such an outbreak "would have catastrophic consequences", warned Joe Hernon, chairman of the European Federation of Thoroughbred Breeders' Associations, in a statement issued in November, when it called for an emergency import licence to make Arvac, an alternative vaccine, available prior to the 2024 thoroughbred breeding season. However, some leading stud farms in the UK and Ireland have said use of Arvac was being explored, but it would not be available for the 2024 breeding season. They advised mare owners that stallion immunity to EVA would be reduced, without Artervac. An additional EVA blood test from mares would be needed no more than 30 days before they are covered. EVA is a notifiable disease, all suspicions of EVA should be reported in Ireland directly to the Department of Agriculture without delay. EVA outbreaks can lead to a country losing its horse export status. The main way of preventing EVA is six-monthly vaccination, particularly for stallions and teasers. Establishing freedom from infection involves checking the disease status of breeding stock before the breeding season, by blood testing. The safest option is to blood test all mares, whether intended for natural mating or artificial insemination (AI), after January 1, and within 28 days before breeding. Mares should not be bred until the results are available. Clinical signs The virus occurs worldwide. In pregnant mares, abortion may occur. EVA may occasionally be fatal. Clinical signs vary widely, with no signs at all in some stallions which might nevertheless still excrete the virus, posing a significant risk of disease transmission if undetected. The fertility of these "virus shedder" stallions is not affected. Infected mares may transmit EVA via the respiratory route. The EVA virus can survive in chilled and frozen horse semen used for AI. The Department of Agriculture said precautionary measures must continue, to help prevent virus introduction and spread, because any outbreak of the disease would have significant negative consequences for the equine industry. That means blood samples from all previously vaccinated stallions (including those used in AI) and teasers must be submitted for antibody monitoring to the department's Central Veterinary Research Laboratory at Backweston, Co Kildare, at six monthly intervals. Blood samples must also be submitted for any new stallions commencing breeding in 2024, to confirm their EVA-negative status. And all breeders are strongly encouraged to review and optimise biosecurity and mare testing protocols for the 2024 breeding season. The department also said an EVA test should be requested of imported mares and stallions before departing the country of origin, in order to protect the Irish horse population. Disease scare The disease scare has arisen because the Zoetis pharma company announced the shortage of the hitherto widely used Equip Artervac vaccine will continue until autumn 2024 at the earliest. EFTBA chairman Joe Hernon had called for an emergency import licence for an alternative vaccine called Arvac. We are doing this on behalf of our European industry, which represents 23,000 thoroughbred breeders in Europe and creates direct and indirect employment for 150,000 people and represents 2.4% of all agricultural output in its multi-billion-euro value to the EU economies," said Mr Hernon, of the Castletown Stud, Castletownroche, Co Cork. He is a former chairman of the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association. However, veterinary authorities have expressed major reservations about the two alternative vaccines. One is an inactivated vaccination from Japan for which there is insufficient required safety information. And multiple concerns around the Arvac live vaccination from Zoetis include potential to bring in extraneous agents, and that it has never been used in a disease-free population. Furthermore, experts say personal protective equipment would be needed during administration of the Arvac vaccination, followed by horse quarantine for four weeks. Biosecurity approach Hence the preference of many European vets for a biosecurity approach to the arteritis threat. The Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association has welcomed the Irish Equine Centre initiative to reduce the cost of repeat EVA testing to 15 plus Vat on all EVA testing after their initial 66 plus Vat bundle package of CEM, EVA, and EIA testing. The association said enhanced EVA testing of mares was advised. Based on information from stud farms, it said the minimum requirement was a negative EVA test 30 days before covering. Some stud farms require extra testing. The Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association said the European Breeders Fund in Ireland would also fund extra EVA testing set up on each Saturday during the covering season. The Irish Equine Centre called on all thoroughbred and non-thoroughbred horse breeders to review and optimise biosecurity in preparation for the increased EVA disease risk in Ireland. Irish Examiner readers have shared tributes to the late Charlie Bird, with many noting the broadcasters constant presence in their homes during his time with RTE while others have commended his trojan campaign work. The retired RTE journalist worked for the national broadcaster for four decades. In 2021, he told the nation that he had been diagnosed with motor neurone disease and from there, he continued to share his journey. He posted regular updates online, often with his wife Claire and beloved dog Tiger by his side. He died aged 74. I was very saddened to hear that Charlie is no longer with us, wrote one Irish Examiner reader following the news of Charlie Bird's passing. Although I knew of his illness of course, somehow the news still shocked me I honestly felt like Id lost a friend. Hes out of his pain now but will be sadly missed and always remembered for his many qualities both professionally and personally, and his bravery and humanity in the face of his illness. Bird first joined the national broadcaster as a researcher in current affairs in 1974. I grew up listening to Charlie Bird. I always trusted what he said as he was such an honest soul, wrote Richard. I would prefer if he was still with us but am glad he is not suffering anymore. He was one of those very rare people that everybody liked. One reader recalled a family pet who was named after the veteran journalist. Wed a pet budgie called Charlie Bird when we were younger after Charlie Bird on the Telly, she said. I grew up seeing Charlie on the news from early childhood, I feel like he narrated news in our house for my whole childhood and beyond. Charlie Bird, his wife Claire Mould and their dog, Tiger pictured in Greystones, Co Wicklow. Picture: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin One of Charlie Birds earliest assignments was the Stardust fire in Artane in Dublin in 1981 which killed 48 people. The tragedy held a special place in his heart and he remained in close contact with the families of those who lost their lives. Such sad news, you were an amazing and courageous man, we will never forget what you did for us The Stardust Families, it was an honour to have met you and got to know you well, wrote the family member of a Stardust victim, Louise Leech. Condolences [to] Claire and his family. Rest In Peace Charlie, she added. Honoured to have known Charlie and to know Claire [and his] empathetic mascot Tiger. Charlie fought his condition with humour, bravery and honour remaining steady and respectful to the ebb and flow of life, said one reader. Another reminisced on the time they met Bird in a pub. I met him casually once many years ago in a crowded pub in Schull with a pint of Guinness in his hand and it was obvious to all and sundry that he was in his absolute element and truly enjoying himself amongst so many ordinary people like himself as he too was an ordinary man despite his huge notoriety as a fantastic journalist and RTE News reporter, they said. Book of condolences for former RTE journalist Charlie Bird. Picture: Stephen Collins/Collins Photos Following his diagnosis, Bird set up the Climb with Charlie initiative which raised over 3.5m for Pieta House and the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association. He was joined by thousands of supporters and famous faces on a hike to the top of Croagh Patrick for the cause in April 2022. Throughout his illness, he extended "the hand of friendship" and encouraged others to do the same. Leading by example throughout his career and life. A hero and a voice for those who needed it, wrote Mary. I didnt know Charlie at all, but he has inspired me to strive for the impossible and to help others." Margaret noted how there were hearts "breaking all over the country" following the 74-year-old's death. "You, Claire and Tiger showed so much love and inspiration since the start and finish of your illness we will never forget what you have done." Another reader paid tribute to Bird's legacy and inspirational approach to his illness. "Charlie Bird was a major inspiration to us all, for his gratitude, empathy, endurance and uplifting attitude to life, his long-lasting commitment and legacy in his journalism, and in his unwavering support in highlighting many important causes." A member of rap group Kneecap has said that Arts Minister Catherine Martin will be "standing on her own on the Irish stage at the South by South West (SXSW) music festival in the US. The band are among the entire lineup of Irish artists who withdrew from the Texas event in protest at sponsorships by the American military, and major sponsorships from military-industrial companies. Speaking on Morning Ireland, Kneecap's Mo Chara said the withdrawal "sent a clear message." He explained: "We just made the decision because it's good to be on the right side of history, you know, as Irish people. "And I was very, very proud to see how a lot of bands followed suit. Straight off, it sends a very clear message, that the Irish people will always be in solidarity with the Palestinian people. Mo Chara said he would not comment on whether people should or should not attend the festival. "We were only making the decision based on us. But I know obviously the Minister was saying that she was going to support Irish acts. I think that she will be standing at the Irish stage on our own. When asked if the minister had spoken with Kneecap, he said she hasnt spoken a word to me. In their original statement about withdrawing, Kneecap pointed out that the tally of 31,000 Palestinians killed - over 21,000 of them women and children - in the past five months is 10 times the number of people killed in the Troubles in Northern Ireland over 30 years. Soda Blonde, Sprints and Kneecap have withdrawn from the SXSW Festival in Texas. Mo Chara noted: "The financial impact of not attending the festival will be very expensive, But at the end of the day, this is just a minor sort of hiccup in our careers in comparison to what's actually happening in Gaza, you know, and everybody can play their part. But the whole country can play their part, whether it's at rallies or boycotting Israeli goods and anyone who has a platform continuing to use it in any way. "Yes, we lost a bit of money, but, you know, it's priceless to do the right thing. A statement issued by the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media on Tuesday said that Ms Martin is "representing Ireland at a number of events in Austin as part of the Governments 2024 St Patricks Day programme, some of which form part of the SXSW festival". Speaking in Boston, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar strongly backed Ms Martin's decision. He said that while the musical artists are entitled to, Ireland's government does not have a policy of boycott. "I fully appreciate that people have the right to boycott events should they choose to do so and I totally respect that. "But it's not the policy of the Irish government to engage in boycotts. It's one thing to exclude a country from an event or a competition or a sporting event or you know, film festival, for example. It's another thing to exclude yourself because they weren't excluded. And it's not our policy, to boycott. It's our policy to engage." A man denied raping his wifes friend when she and his wife were both sleeping in the same bed after a catch-up social night together. And now at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork, a jury of seven men and five women have found him not guilty of rape and of sexual assault of his wifes friend that night April 12, 2021 following six hours of deliberation that commenced on Monday, March 11. Mr Justice Tony Hunt thanked the jurors and exempted them from further jury service for a period of seven years. The background to the matter was that two young women got together after being out of contact for four years. The complainant met her old friend and they went out together socially, the idea being that she would sleep over in what was described as a girly, gossipy night at her friends house. They slept in the same bed that night. The woman who lived there with her then boyfriend, now husband, was on the outside and her partner got into bed on her side. It was agreed by the prosecution and defence that he climbed over his partner and had sex with his wifes friend. He said that by having sexual intercourse he had been unfaithful to his girlfriend (now wife) and that the complainant had been unfaithful to her boyfriend. Prosecution senior counsel, Ray Boland, said: She was falling asleep drunk so you could get away with having sex. He replied: That is absolutely not true We were kissing. She was rubbing my penis. If I sensed anything was wrong I would have stopped immediately. Mr Boland asked why the accused climbed over his girlfriend a light sleeper according to defence evidence to have sex with the complainant, and why if it was consensual they did not, for instance, go downstairs to the couch and pretend they had gone downstairs for a glass of water if they were found there. The accused replied: It was just in the moment. We were being very careful not to wake (wife). Mr Boland put it to the accused that the complainant was out cold with drink and you forced yourself on her. He replied: She was explicitly consenting to everything that was going on (effectively saying) I am enjoying this, this is fun. She was wide awake. She was dead sober. We were having fun Nobody was drunk, it was a couple of sociable drinks. Prosecution senior counsel, Ray Boland, said in his closing speech to the jury: We would view this as a classic jury case there is very little outside evidence, you have a stark conflict of fact. We know that sex occurred. He admits that sex occurred. And digital penetration is admitted. So where is the big dispute between the prosecution and defence? It is the issue of consent. If you accept her evidence of the way it occurred, not only did she not consent and he knew she did not consent, she said repeatedly to him, No, no, no. She froze and she pushed him away. He gives an account of not just consensual sex but sex that was enjoyed and encouraged. On his account she initiated it. On her account he was not even in the bed when she went to sleep and she woke to find him having sex with her. Mr Boland accepted that the defence would point to inconsistencies in the complainants evidence and that she is not a good historian. However, she is straightforward about that. She does not claim to have a great memory. She says, I dont have a complete bit by bit memory of what happened. But what I would say is she does have a real, visceral and emotional memory of what happened. "I say that she was completely believable and she relived something that happened to her. She says she was drinking and taking cannabis. The defendant and his wife present a different picture that everyone was stone cold sober, Mr Boland said. Tom Creed senior counsel for the defence said the complainant told the jury she left the bed after the disputed incident and went downstairs but she did not take the opportunity to open the front door and leave immediately. For five hours she sat and thought about what she would do and ultimately sat in the car with the alleged rapist (and got a lift from him from the house in County Tipperary to Limerick where she was going to get a bus home). You have heard the defendants version. He was coming home with the milk (shortly after dropping the complainant into Limerick) when the guards stopped him. He said this is what happened before he even knew what she was saying. He said to the gardai that he wanted to set out his side of the story and give his statement. And he got in the witness box in court and he was consistent in what he said. I say there is only one verdict and that is not guilty and that is what I urge you to do, Mr Creed said. Cork County Council needs 800m to bring its roads up to an acceptable standard, yet it has received the third lowest funding per kilometre for road repairs of any local authority. All roads should be given structural upgrading every 20 years, but insufficient funding means the council can only achieve this every 50 years. That means improvements can only be made to 2% of the council's road network every year where the minimum required should be 5%. Families whose relatives were ready to transfer to a new multi-million euro HSE nursing home in Tipperary have called for clarity on why it is being repurposed for hospital use. It follows confirmation from the HSE that a tender has gone out for a private provider to run the building as a step-down facility to help reduce overcrowding in University Hospital Limerick (UHL). The plan leaves residents of an older nursing home, St Conlons, in limbo following criticism of the dated building by the Health and Information Quality Authority (Hiqa). Brid Slatterys 81-year-old father, a retired farmer and teacher, is among those affected. Ms Slattery was shocked to read of the plans on social media. We didnt get any information, she said. There should have been some consultation, its like they ignored the voice of the elderly themselves. "And especially for someone like my father with dementia, he needs somebody to communicate on his behalf and there was no letters or communication with myself or any of my family. She added: Theres been meetings held, preparing families for the transfer, Ive attended two. Her fear now is that the unit may never become a nursing home. There is nothing very temporary about anything like this, it easily becomes a permanent fixture. St Conlon's in Nenagh, Co Tipperary. Eamonn Donnellans father, aged 90, a patient in Nenagh Hospital, was listed for transfer to the new unit. We had applied for the Fair Deal and all that, everything was ready to go, he said. His father, a retired member of the Defence Forces, had been supported at home until recently after having a stroke at 88. The hospital are not going to let him home, so we really were relying on getting that place open, he said. I was there on Tuesday looking around, it just makes no sense. All I want is what is already there, that its used for what it was actually built for. He acknowledged overcrowding concerns, saying when his mother went to UHL they had no beds for her but does not see this as a fair solution. HSE officials only met staff yesterday to discuss the plans. Seamus Morris, independent councillor in Nenagh, would like HSE chief Bernard Gloster to meet local politicians on the issue. The current St Conlons is under threat of closure by Hiqa, thats why the new one was built, he said. So how can someone in the HSE decide they are taking this nursing home and renting it out to a private company? The Midwest Hospital Campaign has long called for solutions to overcrowding, but member Dr Conor Reidy said this is not the answer. The biggest fear here now is that this building will never come back to what it was originally purposed for, he said. There is enormous anger here, that these beds have been snatched away. Labour TD Alan Kelly also criticised the move earlier this week. The HSE said the plan is an interim measure only and is linked to significant pressures facing UHL. A new week, a new dawn. The people have spoken. Most people are sick to the back teeth of referenda chat, and you dont need another hot take on this debacle. However, you dont drop 23m without some level of reflection. The need to reflect has been repeatedly floated as reeling politicians turn on each other like rats and attempt to apportion blame. What did we learn? Terry Prone wrote in this newspaper that people were not confused, they didnt want the referenda at all. She made the point that we were told that nothing practical would emerge from either referendum without further legislation so why bother? On conceding defeat and coming out with his hands up the Taoiseach, taking responsibility for the failure (full square it must be said), agreed that people didnt want the referenda. A referendum is not always the answer Referenda may not always be the solution when legislation is needed to repair issues and deficits. If you have a Citizens' Assembly, then pay attention to the nuance of what they say. Gen Z were not pouring into polling stations as they did for the abortion referendum. They did not connect with this referendum and perhaps do not vote if they dont personally connect with an issue. The folk memory of why Irish people prize their vote in a relatively new State may be fading. According to political scientist Theresa Reidy, about two-thirds of the electorate could be considered liberal, and yet we had a double no from nearly seven out of 10 voters. Life is lived in grey areas Ireland is not split into two binary groups as those on the yes side seem to imagine, the Catholic right, the far right, and social conservatives on one team, and the progressives, and liberals on the other team. Newsflash folks: Plenty of us live life in the grey and hold nuanced views. Not all of us who voted no want a continuation of the old Catholic orthodoxy where mothers stay at home, where the nuclear family is at the heart of society, and where gender roles are traditional. The arrogance and the myopia of the self-appointed liberals have been roundly punished, and at a high cost quite literally. Its far too simplistic to attribute the no vote to a lack of information, apathy, and confusion. There were a lot of things going on beneath the surface. So take a long hard look at your assumptions. Childcare and choices Childcare and choices, for mothers, fathers, and families abled-bodied or not are at the heart of this referendum. Ireland seems to spend between 0.3% to 0.4% of its GDP on childcare. The OECD average expenditure is around 0.8%. Unicef has recommended that 1% of GDP be invested in childcare. Its over 1% in France; 1.6% in Sweden and 1.7% in Iceland. The figures speak for themselves. Families struggle to pay their childcare costs every month, single-parent families get waterboarded, many children live in needless poverty, and mothers get discouraged from working and drop out. Research last month found that 41% of parents have skipped meals to ensure their children have food, what does that tell you? Stop rubbishing care Stop rubbishing stay-at-home mothers, and those who engage in caring work for the sick and the elderly because it gets peoples backs up. Some commentators on the yes side did this. Women who choose to stay at home are not antediluvian helpmeets. Caring work is crucial in any society and should be rewarded in all its forms. There are plenty of people who agree that we should aim for a society where fathers are supported to engage in care work and where gender roles are not prescribed, but they didnt care for the tone that denigrated caring work and denied womens outsized role in it. Mother is not a dirty word. Women do the bulk of care work Last Friday, at a networking event hosted by the Irish Examiner and PepsiCo for International Womens Day, Esther N McCarthy, Life/Style editor at the newspaper, did a great job as host. Esther N McCarthy, Irish Examiner, at the International Women's Day breakfast at The Kingsley Hotel in Cork on Friday. Picture: Larry Cummins She pointed out that women attending the event to empower professional women and inspire inclusion probably had to negotiate childcare because the schools were closed. Cue nodding heads across the room because something that working women know all too well is the challenge presented when the schools are off or when a child gets sick. Senator Tom Clonan is right Senator Tom Clonan must be listened to on disability rights. We can agree that families have a duty of care to one another. Still, we must acknowledge it is no longer acceptable to continue treating around 22% of the Irish population as second-class citizens. This figure taken from the 2022 census screams at us that state planning must respond to disability and include support for independent living. Language matters but action matters more People want positive changes in the form of services and resources that boost them in their everyday lives and help them to lead more fulfilled existences. We are a wealthy country. We could choose to structure things differently. We need to have a long, hard look at countries with stronger family policies that emphasise the civic role of the state in facilitating the wellbeing of families and individual citizens. It would require a shift in thinking so that the social contract would mean giving financial security to families and individuals during times when they are burdened. Overall, it would mean supporting the reconciliation of work and family life and facilitating female workforce participation where women choose to work outside the home. Measures might include state-backed affordable public and private daycare centres of high quality, egalitarian and flexible paid parental leave, pension credits for parental leave, parental benefits paid to a person who is close to a single parent and helps out, social insurance which covers people with disabilities so that they dont have to beg for help or rely solely on their families. We need a new Donogh OMalley The gap is wide open for a new political hero Donogh OMalley style. The former Fianna Fail politician provoked a social revolution by introducing free second-level education. Step right up whoever you are, you could be remembered for generations if you implemented some of the aforementioned measures. We dont want any more high-cost aspirational, badly thought-out rushed referenda. Still, a betting person would say that most of us would say yes to positive rights introduced through legislation that could change lives, increase our choices, and benefit society. Now that would be a legacy. The suggestion from Pope Francis that Ukraine should have the courage to raise the white flag and negotiate a settlement with (in other words, surrender to) Russia was deeply shocking for Kyiv and its backers. The understandably outraged response from Ukraines foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, was that the only flag Kyiv would raise was its own: the yellow and blue of Ukraine. Some may think that the popes words are inconsequential to how this war unfolds. It is not the first time Pope Francis has displayed overtly pro-Russian sympathies, nor has the Vaticans mediation, for instance regarding the liberation of Ukrainian children kidnapped by Russia, been successful so far. So what if the pope speaks out again about the war, given that his views are already known and his practical efforts to address the humanitarian dimensions of the war have failed? Yet the popes words are extremely relevant, and dangerously so. First, they provide moral cover to an unabashedly pro-Kremlin line that runs deep in some quarters in the West, from Trumpian Republicans in the US to the nationalist right and populist left in Europe, to the point of being almost mainstream in countries like my own, Italy. Claiming that the war can only end with Ukraines surrender is precisely what Vladimir Putin has been preaching for more than two years. The fact that a religious authority such as the Vatican toes the same line provides incredible political ammunition to the Kremlin and its cheerleaders in Europe and beyond. Pope Francis words matter because they reflect views that are widespread in the global south. File photo: AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia Second, the popes words matter because they reflect views that are widespread in the global south. In fact, rather than a pro-Russian sentiment, what the pope projects is a deep-rooted anti-westernism. This consequently taints his reading of the war, with its emphasis on Natos presumed culpability and the agenda of the western military-industrial complex. The Wests failure to persuasively make its case in the global south is a problem for it, especially as the views and voices of the south matter more and more in todays international relations. The problem has been greatly exacerbated by the US and Europes unwillingness to halt Israels catastrophic war in Gaza. Precisely because the popes words matter, its important to say why hes wrong. I believe hes wrong on the past, the present and perhaps most importantly the future. The pope betrays his underlying beliefs on the past causes of the war through both admission and omission. Two years since the invasion began, Ukraine is, it is now generally accepted, struggling on the battlefront. Some could claim that the popes call for surrender is therefore purely driven by detached political realism (perhaps an odd theoretical tradition for a religious authority, but nevertheless), so it is better to give in now than to persevere in defeat. However, if realism is really what motivates the pope, why didnt he call on Russia to surrender and withdraw when its first attempt to subjugate Ukraine failed and Ukraine recaptured about half of the territory it lost in the first few weeks of the invasion? When the pope talks of Ukraine raising the white flag while making no mention whatsoever of Russia, what hes actually doing is perversely blaming Ukraine (and the West) for provoking Russia into war (for instance, by aspiring to enter Nato), totally neglecting the imperial ambitions that drove the Kremlin to invade Ukraine. Yet the past is past, and theres probably nothing that can change strongly held beliefs on the causes of the war. Those, like the pope, who believe that the West is to blame for it all, will probably continue to do so regardless of the evidence produced to prove the opposite. However, the pontiffs mistakes are not limited to its causes. The wars present dynamic, and particularly Ukraines problems on the frontline, stems from the fact that the western military-industrial complex, reviled by the pope, has done too little, not too much. Rather than the Wests defence industry fuelling war, Ukraines recent losses are due to a lack of manpower and especially a lack of weapons to fend off Russias invasion. Europes defence industry has not been put on a war footing (unlike Russias), while the US Congress still holds $60bn in military aid to Kyiv hostage to domestic political wrangling. If Ukraine is losing, its down to the fact that its artillery fire is a fraction of what it was last summer. File photo: AP/Libkos There is nothing pre-ordained in the wars outcome, as the pope implies: if Ukraine is losing, its down to the fact that its artillery fire is a fraction of what it was last summer, and while the West dithers, Russia has replenished its military stocks and North Korea has sent Moscow roughly 1.5 million shells. Ukraine needs weapons not just to defend its frontline, but also to protect the civilian population that should be dear to the pope. Its thanks to western air defences that Ukraine can protect its citizens and civilian infrastructure across the country from Russian drone and missile strikes. Its also thanks to western military capabilities that Ukraine has knocked out about a third of Russias Black Sea fleet, ensuring that grain can continue flowing to the global south, despite Russias withdrawal from the Black Sea grain initiative last year. Looking to the future, the pope assumes that a Ukrainian surrender would put an end to the war, presumably via a deal allowing Russia to retain control of the five Ukrainian regions it has annexed illegally, and perhaps a few more (like Odesa). These are the kind of terms Donald Trump would probably also like to see. Of course, no one has a crystal ball. Yet if Putins past behaviour is any indication, theres no evidence whatsoever to suggest this would represent a steady state ending the war. What the pope chooses to forget is that this is not the first war that Putin has waged in Europe, beginning with Georgia in 2008 and Ukraine in 2014. Every time the West sidelined and played down the Russian threat, Moscow came back to bite off a bigger piece. Likewise, the pope neglects Russias military build-up, which European intelligence claims could pose a direct threat to Nato in a few years time. In short, even in the morally reprehensible scenario in which the popes words are heeded and the West throws Ukraine under the bus, all signals point to the fact that this would not lead to peace in Europe. More likely it would open up the continent to an even more dangerous and deadly phase of this unjust war. The Electricity Supply Board (ESB) has been granted permission for the construction of a hydrogen production facility in Aghada, Co Cork. The development is to be located on a 0.56-hectare site within the ESB Aghada generation facility. It includes a hydrogen compound and contractor's compound with all associated works which will be used for hydrogen production for an operational period of up to five years. The development contains a megawatt electrolyser, including a water purification unit (a 40-foot container) with a stack height of 7.7m above ground level. Transformers, ground units, storage containers, welfare units, compressors, and various other amenities are all proposed as part of the works. Previously, the ESB told the Irish Examiner that it is a small-scale generation project which will be the first step in its wider plans to create a hydrogen lighthouse around Ireland. It will be used for five years as a means to demonstrate how green hydrogen can be produced using renewable energy. Beer garden to be demolished Elsewhere, a plan has been unveiled to demolish a beer garden to make way for a residential development. The Chestnut Group has applied to Cork City Council, seeking permission to demolish a beer garden at the Spreading Chestnut bar in Cloughduv, southwest of Cork City. It is proposing the removal of a 98 square metre shed and boundary walls and the decommissioning and removal of a septic tank. In their place, it will build nine two-storey houses. It also wants to build two commercial units. The first would be a two-storey building comprising four individual units, including a ground-floor pharmacy. and three units to be used for services such as a GP, physio, or dentist. The second building will also include such services, as well as a three-bed apartment. Parking spaces, bicycle spaces, and revised access to the existing pub will all be completed if the works are approved too. US president Joe Biden clinched a second straight Democratic nomination on Tuesday and set up an all-but-certain rematch with the predecessor he blames for destabilising the country. Mr Biden became his partys presumptive nominee when he won enough delegates in Georgia. That pushed Bidens count past 1,968 for a majority of delegates to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago this August, where his nomination will be made official. Former president Donald Trump is expected to clinch the Republican nomination shortly. Joe Biden first ran for president in 1987 (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File) Mr Biden, who mounted his first bid for president 37 years ago, did not face any serious Democratic challengers to his run for re-election at age 81. Thats despite facing low approval ratings and a lack of voter enthusiasm for his presidency driven in part by his age. Just 38% of U.S. adults approve of how Mr Biden is handling his job as president while 61% disapprove, according to a recent survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Mr Biden and his allies are betting that over a bruising seven-and-a-half-month general election, his Democratic base and independent voters fearful of a second Trump presidency will stand with him despite their misgivings. Their strategy to constantly highlight Trumps perceived shortcomings combined with Mr Trumps plan to attack Biden in brutally personal terms sets up a spiritless campaign that many Americans said they did not want but will have to decide in November anyway. Mr Biden has tried to frame the race as a battle for freedom, both at home and abroad. He contrasts his support for Ukraine and work to expand Nato with Mr Trumps praise for Russian president Vladimir Putin and his suggestion that he would tell Russia to attack NATO allies he considers delinquent. The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it plans to direct a significant portion of the 1.4 million displaced Palestinians living in the Gaza Strips southernmost town of Rafah toward humanitarian islands in the centre of the territory ahead of its planned offensive in the area. The fate of the people in Rafah has been a major area of concern of Israels allies including the United States and humanitarian groups, worried an offensive in the region densely crowded with so many displaced people would be a catastrophe. Rafah is also Gazas main entry point for desperately needed aid. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said a Rafah offensive is crucial to achieve Israels stated aim of destroying Hamas following the militants October 7 attack in which about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and about 250 taken hostage and moved into Gaza. Israels invasion of Gaza has killed more than 31,000, according to Gaza health officials, left much of the enclave in ruins and displaced some 80% of Gazas 2.3 million people. Israels chief military spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, said moving those in Rafah to the designated areas, which he said would be done in co-ordination with international actors, was a key part of the militarys preparations for its anticipated invasion of Rafah, where Israel says Hamas maintains four battalions it wants to destroy. Rafah has swelled in size in the last months as Palestinians in Gaza have fled fighting in nearly every other corner of the territory. The town is covered in tents. We need to make sure that 1.4 million people or at least a significant amount of the 1.4 million will move. Where? To humanitarian islands that we will create with the international community, Admiral Hagari told reporters at a briefing. An Israeli tank moves near the Gaza Strip border in southern Israel (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov) Admiral Hagari said those islands would provide temporary housing, food, water and other necessities to evacuated Palestinians. He did not say when Rafahs evacuation would occur, nor when the Rafah offensive would begin, saying that Israel wanted the timing to be right operationally and to be co-ordinated with neighbouring Egypt, which has said it does not want an influx of displaced Palestinians crossing its border. The US has been firm with Israel over its concerns about Rafah, and secretary of state Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Washington had yet to receive from Israel its plans for civilians there. We need to see a plan that will get civilians out of harms way if theres a military operation in Rafah, he told reporters in Washington after convening a virtual ministerial meeting on Gaza aid with officials from the UN, the EU, Britain, Cyprus, Qatar and the UAE. Weve not yet seen such a plan. At the start of the war, Israel directed evacuees to a slice of undeveloped land along Gazas Mediterranean coast that it designated as a safe zone. But aid groups said there were no real plans in place to receive large numbers of displaced there. Israeli strikes also targeted the area. More than 31,270 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and most of its 2.3 million people forced from their homes, Gazas health ministry says. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead. Meanwhile, fighting continued across Gaza. An Israeli strike Wednesday hit a food distribution site in southern Gaza run by UNRWA, the UN agency that works with Palestinian refugees, killing one staff member from the agency and wounding 22 others. The death brings to 165 the number of workers for the agency killed during the past five months of fighting, according to UNRWA. Wednesday, Mar 13th, 2024 (8:22 am) - Score 1,280 Broadband ISP Connexin has said theyre investigating after their UK engineers, who were deploying poles to carry a new 10Gbps capable full fibre (FTTP) network in the East Yorkshire (England) town of Beverley, accidentally damaged a gas pipe in the Beverley Parklands area on 11th March. The network operator began their 3m roll-out in the town at the end of last year (here), which is being supported by network integrator firm STL and aims to cover 22,000 local premises. The deployment forms part of their wider ambition to cover 500,000 premises with their new fibre broadband infrastructure (no timescale has been given for when this will be achieved), much of which will be built using poles. NOTE: 80m from PATRIZIA and currently has 25,000 customers (May 2023). Connexin is backed by an investment offrom PATRIZIA and currently has 25,000 customers (May 2023). According to a report on the BBC News, locals began smelling gas during Connexins works in the area, and it wasnt long before engineers from Northern Gas Networks arrived on the scene to investigate. Fibre engineers usually do a pretty good job of avoiding strikes on the gas mains because its not only very dangerous for them, but its also highly disruptive, although such incidents do still occur (theyre usually quite rare). A spokesperson for Connexin confirmed that repairs have been carried out to ensure that the area is safe and any disruption to supply is kept to a minimum, although they were unable to say more while the cause remains under investigation. Scott Kitchingman, Business Operations Manager at Northern Gas Networks, said: Northern Gas Networks (NGN) attended an incident in Beverley Parklands, Beverley yesterday afternoon (Monday 11 March), where a third party had accidently damaged a gas pipe in the area, causing a gas escape. Engineers made the situation safe and are working hard to repair the pipe as quickly as possible. Our team has been speaking to householders in the area to keep them informed about the work and are on hand to answer any questions while it progresses. There is no impact on gas supplies to homes and businesses in the area. The incident will no doubt add some fuel to the fire of those who, in recent months, have been very vocal in their opposition to network operators using poles as part of their strategy for deploying full fibre broadband networks. But its worth considering that poles are, so far as we can tell, only very rarely the cause of damage to the gas mains, and weve seen many more incidents that involved traditional underground works. On the other hand, theres currently a distinct lack of up-to-date and publicly available information with respect to the reporting of such incidents, which makes it difficult to get a full picture. Greater public transparency over this area might help to encourage network operators and their contractors to ensure a higher standard of street works and safety. Today Thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 51F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Tonight Thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Low 51F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Tomorrow Sunshine along with some cloudy intervals. High 73F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. An Afghan refugee accused in the slayings of three Muslim men in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was in court as attorneys delivered opening statements in the first of three trials An N.C. House Select Committee is recommending that the General Assembly change a state law forcing districts to start school the Monday closest to Aug. 26 and end no later than the Friday clo Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) The Annual Threat Assessment of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (Avril Haines) contains some important information that should be highlighted because it refutes right wing propaganda. Let me just draw attention to some of these points. 1. Heres an essential one: We assess that Iranian leaders did not orchestrate nor had foreknowledge of the HAMAS attack against Israel. After the horrid October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israelis, the majority of them innocent civilians, the usual suspects went wild blaming Iran. The Wall Street Journal, a bizarre hybrid of Rupert Murdoch conspiracy theories and sterling reporting, erred on the side of the former with lurid allegations that Iran trained and put Hamas fighters up to the terrorist attack. The Iran War Lobby swung into action. And yet. The ODNI says all that was a fever dream. 2. It should come as no surprise that the Israeli response, which the International Court of Justice found plausibly genocidal, has given a fillip to al-Qaeda and ISIL, and that the ODNI expects it to provoke terrorism against the US. This conclusion, which seems fairly obvious, contradicts the favored inside-the-Beltway meme that Israel is an asset to US security. Its current governments dedication to policies that produce starving children is likely to lead to anti-US terrorism. 3. But the assessment also says, The Nordic Resistance Movementa transnational neo-Nazi organizationpublicly praised the attack, illustrating the conflicts appeal to a range of threat actors. This ugly neo-Nazi movement, by the way, celebrated noisily when Trump won in 2016 and saw it as the beginnning of a global far right revolution. The European and North American far right is confused about Arab-Israeli conflicts. On the one hand, some of them see Israel as white and so side with it against Arabs. But in this case apparently they were willing to idolize Hamas if only it would kill innocent Jews. 4. Another important observation: Israel probably will face lingering armed resistance from HAMAS for years to come, and the military will struggle to neutralize HAMASs underground infrastructure, which allows insurgents to hide, regain strength, and surprise Israeli forces. In other words, the stated goal of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, of wiping out Hamas, is impossible. Hamas will pose a danger for years to come. Likewise, Secretary of State Antony Blinkens support for the far right Netanyahu governments total war on Gaza is misplaced, since he said he believes it is waged so that this never happens again. Combine points 2, 3, and 4 we can conclude that Netanyahu is virtually assuring that it does happen again. 5. Then there is this: Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has publicly stated his opposition to postwar diplomacy with the Palestinian Authority (PA) toward territorial compromise. First, the ODNI is saying that there isnt an icicles chance in hell of there being a two-state solution as long as Netanyahu is prime minister. This conclusion contradicts everything President Biden keeps saying about the future of the Palestinians, and his tired mantra about the imaginary two-state solution. Well, you could say, if the problem is Netanyahu, he may not be there very long. But what the assessment doesnt say is that the entire Knesset just voted against a Palestinian state. So it isnt just Netanyahu. It is the Israeli mainstream. Times of India: Netanyahu Out? U.S Intels Stark Assessment Of Israeli Presidents Political Career I Key Details 6. Speaking of Netanyahu not being there: Netanyahus viability as leader as well as his governing coalition of far-right and ultraorthodox parties that pursued hardline policies on Palestinian and security issues may be in jeopardy. Distrust of Netanyahus ability to rule has deepened and broadened across the public from its already high levels before the war, and we expect large protests demanding his resignation and new elections. A different, more moderate government is a possibility. Note that US intelligence concurs that the Netanyahu government is extremist, which is the only way to understand the hope for a more moderate successor. Netanyahu gets between 17% and 19% approval in opinion polls, and keen observers of the Israeli political scene believe that his far right Likud Party and its extremist allies (Religious Zionism and Jewish Power) will take a bath in the next parliamentary elections. So US intelligence is not telling us here anything we dont already know. Making this assessment public, however, is surely intended to give courage to Netanyahus political opponents and to signal that the US intelligence community thinks America would be better off with a different leader. Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association | Tedd Mitchell Chancellor, Texas Tech University System Tedd.mitchell@ttuhsc.edu Lawrence Schovanec President, Texas Tech University lawrence.schovanec@ttu.edu Ron Hendrick Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Texas Tech University provost.communications@ttu.edu Eileen Gianiodis Assistant Vice President of Marketing & Communications, Texas Tech University egianiod@ttu.edu Dear Chancellor Mitchell, President Schovanec and colleagues: We write on behalf of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) and its Committee on Academic Freedom to express our deep concern about the suspension of Jairo Funez-Flores, Assistant Professor of Curriculum Studies and Teacher Education in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Texas Tech University (TTU). In a statement issued on 5 March 2024, your administration announced that Professor Funez-Flores had been placed on paid leave pending an investigation because some of his social media posts were hateful, antisemitic, and unacceptable, and antithetical to the universitys values. The statement cited no examples to support these allegations. The social media posts which led to the suspension of Funez-Flores expressed robust criticism of Israel and vigorous support for Palestinian rights, but whatever one thinks of them they do not appear to have manifested anything which can reasonably be construed as antisemitic. We therefore regard the action you have taken against Professor Funez-Flores as a violation of his academic freedom and of his constitutionally protected right to free speech. MESA was founded in 1966 to promote scholarship and teaching on the Middle East and North Africa. The preeminent organization in the field, the Association publishes the prestigious International Journal of Middle East Studies and has nearly 2,800 members worldwide. MESA is committed to ensuring academic freedom and freedom of expression both within the region and in connection with the study of the region in North America and outside of North America. Professor Funez-Flores is widely regarded as a respected and promising younger scholar in the fields in which he works, and in the 2022-2023 academic year the TTU College of Education awarded him its Hemphill-Wells New Professor Excellence in Teaching Award. We note that the allegations which led to his suspension were apparently first disseminated on the right-wing Texas Scorecard website in late February 2024. It is regrettable that an institution of higher education would embrace such intemperate and baseless allegations. It is even more disturbing that your characterization of the opinions Professor Funez-Flores expressed on social media as antisemitic and hateful is based on a dangerous and insupportable conflation of criticism of Israels policies toward the Palestinians and its military campaign in Gaza with antisemitism. We are of course well aware of, and deeply troubled by, the rising tide of antisemitism, anti-Muslim racism and xenophobia in the United States. Combatting antisemitism and all other forms of racism, bigotry and discrimination is an essential duty for this countrys colleges and universities. However, we do not believe this cause is well-served by abetting calculated efforts to delegitimize and silence free speech on Israel and Palestine by tarring legitimate criticism of Israels actions and policies, or of Zionism as a political ideology, with the brush of antisemitism. We understand that TTU and other colleges and universities, in Texas and across the country, are facing heightened pressure from donors, politicians and organizations pursuing a political agenda who are seeking to vilify and silence opinions with which they disagree. TTU has apparently succumbed to such pressure by suspending and investigating a faculty member for expressing his political views on a matter of public concern. This countrys institutions of higher education should be places in which all members of the campus community can express their views freely, even on contentious issues like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. TTU claims to respect and uphold the right of its faculty to freedom of speech and to academic freedom, but its actions in this matter constitute a betrayal of that avowed commitment. We therefore call upon the Texas Tech University administration to immediately terminate the suspension and investigation of Professor Funez-Flores, and to apologize for its egregious treatment of him. We further call on your administration to vigorously and publicly reiterate your commitment to respect and defend the right to free speech and the academic freedom of all of TTUs faculty, students and staff. We look forward to your response. Sincerely, Asl U. Bali MESA President Professor, Yale Law School Chair, Committee on Academic Freedom Professor Emerita, University of Southern California Laurie BrandChair, Committee on Academic FreedomProfessor Emerita, University of Southern California Via Committee on Academic Freedom Documents & Links DENVER / Mar 13, 2024 / Business Wire / Vista Gold Corp. (NYSE American and TSX: VGZ) (Vista or the Company) announces the results of the feasibility study update for its Mt Todd gold project (Mt Todd or the Project) located in Northern Territory, Australia which was undertaken in conjunction with the Companys annual reporting of its mineral resources and mineral reserves in its Annual Report on Form 10-K, as required under Item 1300 of Regulation S-K under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (S-K 1300). The updated feasibility study reflects changes in project economics since the feasibility study filed in February 2022. Material capital and operating cost components have been updated with quotes obtained in Q1 2024. The updated study also reflects the current outlook for the long-term gold price and foreign exchanges rates, and the recently announced royalty. Mt Todd mineral resources and mineral reserves, mine plans, gold recoveries, and gold production schedules remain unchanged. Highlights of the Mt Todd 2024 Updated FS appear below, with changes from the 2022 feasibility study shown in parenthesis ( ): After-tax NPV 5% of $1.13 billion (+$131.5 million) and IRR of 20.4% (-0.2%) at a $1,800 gold price and a $0.69 Fx rate (1)(2) ; of $1.13 billion (+$131.5 million) and IRR of 20.4% (-0.2%) at a $1,800 gold price and a $0.69 Fx rate ; Average cash costs of $913 (+$96) per ounce (life of mine) (3) ; ; Average all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of $1,034 (+$104) per ounce (life of mine) (3) ; and ; and Initial capital requirements of $1.03 billion (+$138 million), which continues to reflect the use of a third-party owner/operator of the power plant. (1) All dollar amounts stated herein are in U.S. currency and are expressed as $ unless specified otherwise. All foreign exchange (Fx") rates are in U.S. dollars per Australian dollar. (2) The 2022 feasibility study economics were reported at a gold price of US$1,600 and Fx rate of 0.71. (3) Cash costs per ounce and AISC per ounce are non-GAAP financial measures. See Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures below for a discussion on non-GAAP financial measures and a reconciliation to U.S. GAAP measures. Using a gold price of $2,100 and a $0.66 Fx rate, which the Company believes are more reflective of current market conditions, the after-tax NPV 5% of the Project is $1.88 billion and the IRR is 29.6%. Frederick H. Earnest, President and CEO of Vista Gold, commented, Mt Todd is a robust project with strong leverage to the gold price. Project economics are approximately the same or slightly better than reported two years ago, inclusive of cost increases that have affected the entire gold mining sector. We are pleased that Mt Todds value is confirmed at the given foreign exchange rates and conservative gold price selected. These results do not change our strategy for Mt Todd. We continue to work with CIBC Capital Markets (CIBC) to identify and advance interest in Mt Todd and are focused on achieving a transaction that maximizes shareholder value. Our evaluation of a smaller-scale, staged development strategy to advance Mt Todd is ongoing and complements the work that we are doing with CIBC. Detailed Report An S-K 1300 technical report summary for the 2024 Updated FS will be included as an exhibit to the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. A technical report will also be prepared in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101) disclosure standards and filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca within 45 days of the date hereof. Both reports will be available on our website. Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves The tables below present the estimated mineral resources and mineral reserves for the Project. The effective date of the mineral resources and mineral reserves estimates is December 31, 2023. The following mineral resources and mineral reserves were prepared in accordance with both S-K 1300 standards and Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgical and Petroleum definition standards. Mt Todd Gold Project Mineral Resource (Exclusive of Gold Mineral Reserves) Based on US$1,300/oz Gold Pit Shell Batman Deposit Heap Leach Pad Quigleys Deposit Total Contained Contained Contained Contained Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) Measured 594 1.15 22 594 1.15 22 Indicated 10,816 1.76 613 7,301 1.11 260 18,117 1.49 873 Measured & Indicated 10,816 1.76 613 7,895 1.11 282 18,711 1.49 895 Inferred 61,323 0.72 1,421 3,981 1.46 187 65,304 0.77 1,608 Notes: 1) Measured & Indicated Mineral Resources exclude Proven and Probable Reserves. 2) Batman and Quigleys mineral resources are quoted at a 0.40g-Au/t cut-off grade. Heap Leach resources are the average grade of the heap, no cut-off applied. 3) Batman: Mineral resources constrained within a $1,300/oz gold WhittleTM pit shell. Pit parameters: Mining Cost $1.50/tonne, Milling Cost $7.80/tonne processed, G&A Cost $0.46/tonne processed, G&A Cost/Year US$8,201 K, Au Recovery- Sulfide 85%, Transition 80%, Oxide 80%, 0.2g-Au/t minimum for resource shell. 4) Quigleys: Resources constrained within a $1,300/oz gold WhittleTM pit shell. Pit parameters: Mining cost $1.90/tonne, Processing Cost $9.779/tonne processed, Royalty 1% gross production, Au Recovery- Sulfide, 82.0% and Oxide/Transition 78.0%, water treatment $0.09/tonne, Tailings $0.985/tonne. 5) Differences in the table due to rounding are not considered material. Differences between Batman and Quigleys mining and metallurgical parameters are due to their individual geologic and engineering characteristics. 6) Rex Bryan of Tetra Tech is the QP responsible for the Statement of Mineral Resources for the Batman, Heap Leach Pad and Quigleys deposits. 7) Thomas Dyer of RESPEC is the QP responsible for developing the resource WhittleTM pit shell for the Batman Deposit. 8) The effective date of the Heap Leach, Batman and Quigleys resource estimate is December 31, 2023. 9) Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves have no demonstrated economic viability and do not meet all relevant modifying factors. Mt Todd Gold Project Mineral Reserves 50,000 tpd, 0.35 g Au/t cut-off and $1,500 per Ounce LG Pit Batman Deposit Heap Leach Pad Total Contained Contained Contained Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces Tonnes Grade Ounces (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) (000s) (g Au/t) (000s) Proven 81,277 0.84 2,192 81,277 0.84 2,192 Probable 185,744 0.76 4,555 13,354 0.54 232 199,098 0.75 4,787 Proven & Probable 267,021 0.79 6,747 13,354 0.54 232 280,375 0.77 6,979 Economic analysis conducted only on proven and probable mineral reserves. Notes: 1) Thomas L. Dyer, P.E., is the QP responsible for reporting the Batman Deposit Proven and Probable mineral reserves. 2) Batman deposit mineral reserves are reported using a 0.35 g Au/t cutoff grade and $1,800 per ounce gold price. A US$ 1,500/oz-Au pit shell was used. 3) Deepak Malhotra is the QP responsible for reporting the heap-leach pad mineral reserves. 4) Because all the heap-leach pad reserves are to be fed through the mill, these reserves are reported without a cutoff grade applied. 5) The mineral reserves point of reference is the point where material is fed into the mill. 6) The effective date of the mineral reserve estimates under the requirements of S-K 1300 is December 31, 2023. There have been no changes in the mineral reserve estimates since December 31, 2022 because the Company and the relevant qualified persons determined that the same material assumptions and criteria continued to apply as of December 31, 2023, including that the Company used a cutoff grade higher than the economic cutoff grade such that any intervening changes in the underlying economic assumptions were not material and did not require use of a cutoff grade greater than 0.35 g Au/t for mineral reserve estimation purposes. 7) The effective date of the mineral reserve estimates under the requirements of NI 43-101 is December 31, 2023. Qualified Person John Rozelle, a qualified person as defined by S-K 1300 and NI 43-101, has verified the data underlying the information contained in and has approved this press release. For additional information applicable to the 2024 Updated FS, including data verification, quality assurance and control, and key assumptions; and for other matters relating to the Project, see Vistas most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K as filed on EDGAR at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. About Vista Gold Corp. Vista is a gold project developer. The Companys flagship asset is Mt Todd, located in the mining friendly jurisdiction of Northern Territory, Australia. Situated approximately 250 km southeast of Darwin, Mt Todd is one of the largest development stage opportunities in Australia and demonstrates compelling economics. All major environmental and operating permits necessary to initiate development of Mt Todd are in place. Mt Todd benefits from its location in a leading mining jurisdiction and offers opportunities to add value through growth of mineral reserves, alternative development strategies, and other de-risking activities. For further information about Vista or Mt Todd, please contact Pamela Solly, Vice President of Investor Relations, at (720) 981-1185 or visit the Companys website at www.vistagold.com. Forward Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this news release that address activities, events or developments that we expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future, including such things as the Companys anticipated plans for Mt Todd, including finding potential development alternatives and the Companys focus on maximizing shareholder value and the realization of the intrinsic value of Mt Todd; estimates of mineral reserves and resources; projected Project economics, including anticipated production, average cash costs, after-tax NPV, IRR, capital requirements and expenditures, gold recovery after-tax payback, operating costs, average tonne per day milling, mining methods procedures, estimated gold recovery, Project design, and life of mine, ability to convert estimated mineral resources to proven or probable mineral reserves; average cash costs, average all-in sustaining costs, timing for and completion of the NI 43-101 technical report and the S-K 1300 technical report summary for the FS; our belief that using a gold price of $2,100 and a $0.66 Fx rate are more reflective of current market conditions; our belief that Mt Todd is a robust project with strong leverage to the gold price; our belief that Mt Todds value is confirmed at the given foreign exchange rates and conservative gold price selected; our belief that Mt Todds value is confirmed at the given foreign exchange rates and conservative gold price selected; our belief that our evaluation of a smaller-scale, staged development strategy to advance Mt Todd complements the work we are doing with CIBC; our belief that Mt Todd is one of the largest development stage opportunities in Australia and demonstrates compelling economics; our belief that Mt Todd offers opportunities to add value through growth of mineral reserves, alternative development opportunities, and other de-risking activities are forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. The material factors and assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements and forward-looking information contained in this news release include the following: our forecasts and expected cash flows; our projected capital and operating costs; our expectations regarding mining and metallurgical recoveries; mine life and production rates; that laws or regulations impacting mine development or mining activities will remain consistent; our approved business plans, our mineral resource and reserve estimates and results of preliminary economic assessments; preliminary feasibility studies and feasibility studies on our projects, if any; our experience with regulators; political and social support of the mining industry in Australia; our experience and knowledge of the Australian mining industry and our expectations of economic conditions and the price of gold. When used in this news release, the words optimistic, potential, indicate, expect, intend, hopes, believe, may, will, if, anticipate and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such factors include, among others, uncertainty of resource and reserve estimates, uncertainty as to the Companys future operating costs and ability to raise capital; risks relating to cost increases for capital and operating costs; risks of shortages and fluctuating costs of equipment or supplies; risks relating to fluctuations in the price of gold; the inherently hazardous nature of mining-related activities; potential effects on our operations of environmental regulations in the countries in which it operates; risks due to legal proceedings; risks relating to political and economic instability in certain countries in which it operates; uncertainty as to the results of bulk metallurgical test work; and uncertainty as to completion of critical milestones for Mt Todd; as well as those factors discussed under the headings Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factors in the Companys latest Annual Report on Form 10-K as filed in February 2023, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Although we have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information; whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Note Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures In this press release, we have provided information prepared or calculated according to U.S. GAAP, as well as provided certain non-U.S. GAAP prospective financial performance measures. Because the non-U.S. GAAP performance measures do not have standardized meanings prescribed by U.S. GAAP, they may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other companies. These measures should not be considered in isolation or as substitutes for measures of performance prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. There are limitations associated with the use of such non-U.S. GAAP measures. Since these measures do not incorporate revenues, changes in working capital and non-operating cash costs, they are not necessarily indicative of potential operating profit or loss, or cash flow from operations as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The non-U.S. GAAP measures associated with Cash Operating Costs, Cash Costs, AISC and resulting per ounce metrics are not, and are not intended to be, presentations in accordance with U.S. GAAP. These metrics represent costs and unit-cost measured related to the Project. We believe that these metrics help investors understand the economics of the Project. We present the non-U.S. GAAP financial measures for our Project in the tables below. Actual U.S. GAAP results may vary from the amounts disclosed in this news release. Other companies may calculate these measures differently. Cash Operating Costs, Cash Costs, AISC and Respective Unit Cost Measures Cash Operating Costs is a non-U.S. GAAP metric used by the Company to measure aggregate costs of operations that will generally be within the Companys direct control. We believe this metric reflects the operating performance potential for Mt Todd for the mining, processing, administration, and sales functions. Contractual obligations for surface land rights (project royalties) are excluded from this metric. Cash Costs and AISC are non-U.S. GAAP metrics developed by the World Gold Council to provide transparency into the costs associated with producing gold and provide a comparable standard. The Company reports Cash Costs and AISC on a per ounce basis because we believe this metric more completely reflects mining costs over the life of mine. Similar metrics are widely used in the gold mining industry as comparative benchmarks of performance. Cash Operating Costs consist of Project operating costs and refining costs, and exclude royalties. Cash Costs consist of Cash Operating Costs (as described above), plus royalties. The sum of these costs is divided by the corresponding payable gold ounces to determine the per ounce metrics. AISC consists of Cash Costs (as described above), plus sustaining capital costs. The sum of these costs is divided by the corresponding payable gold ounces to determine the per ounce metric. Other costs excluded from Cash Operating Costs, Cash Costs, and AISC include depreciation and amortization, income taxes, government royalties, financing charges, costs related to business combinations, asset acquisitions other than sustaining capital, and asset dispositions. The following tables demonstrate the calculation of Cash Operating Costs, Cash Costs, AISC, and related unit-cost metrics for amounts presented in this press release. Units Life of Mine Payable Gold koz 6,313 Operating Costs US$ millions $5,420 Refining Cost US$ millions 23 Cash Operating Costs US$ millions 5,443 Royalties US$ millions 324 Cash Costs US$ millions $5,767 Cash Cost per ounce US$/oz $913 Sustaining Capital US$ millions 759 All-In-Sustaining Costs US$ millions $6,526 AISC per ounce US$/oz $1,034 Units Life of Mine Payable Gold koz 6,313 Mining Costs US$ millions $2,153 Processing Costs US$ millions 2,889 Site General and Administrative Costs US$ millions 293 Project Services US$ millions 84 Operating Costs US$ millions 5,420 Refining Cost US$ millions 23 Cash Operating Costs US$ millions 5,443 Royalties US$ millions 324 Cash Costs US$ millions $5,767 Note: Amounts may not add to totals due to rounding. TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Galway Metals Inc. (TSXV:GWM);(OTCQB:GAYMF) (the "Company" or "Galway") is pleased to report assay results from its diamond drilling program at the Southwest Deposit at the Company's 100%-owned flagship Clarence Stream high-grade gold project in New Brunswick, Canada. The Southwest Deposit, as well as the South and North Deposits, are open in all directions for expansion. Management believes that the Clarence Stream gold project has district-scale potential with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres. Rob Hinchcliffe, President and CEO of Galway stated "We are excited about these new results from the Southwest Deposit because they demonstrate good gold continuity. More specifically we are seeing extensions of mineralization at surface and at depth including a high-grade intercept extending the Southwest Deposit 106 metres with spectacular visible gold (Link to figure 1). With gold prices trading close to an all-time high we remain bullish on the Company's 2024 outlook". Extended Mineralization at Depth (Link to figures 2 & 3) BL-251 intersected 114.1 g/t gold over 2 metres including 447.0 g/t gold over 0.5 metres Extending mineralization 106 metres at depth from previously released high-grade intercepts of 44.1 g/t gold over 9.5 metres (BL-87) and 20.7 g/t gold over 9.45 metres (BL-72) BL-252 intersected 7.43 g/t gold over 6 metres including 20.95 g/t gold over 1.0 metre and 3.08 g/t gold over 7.5 metres Extended Mineralization to Surface BL-253 intersected 0.94 g/t gold over 6.5 metres beginning 12.7 vertical metres from the surface beginning 12.7 vertical metres from the surface BL-249 intersected 0.53 g/t gold over 10 metres beginning at 19 vertical meters from the surface Results from Drilling The drill holes in this release are located within the Southwest Deposit which straddles the Sorrel Ridge Granite in proximity to the brittle-ductile Sawyer Brook Fault Zone. Holes BL-251 and BL-252 were drilled to test the down dip expansion of high-grade gold mineralization. Both holes intersected visible gold (Link to figure 1) within sericite altered quartz veining and extended the deposit 106 metres from previous high-grade intercepts (BL-72 and BL-87). Holes BL-249, BL-250 and holes BL-253 through BL-258 were testing up-dip extensions to bring gold mineralization to the surface, which was confirmed with these assay results (Link to assay table). The intercepts highlighted within this press release are all outside the area that was included in the 2022 Mineral Resource Estimate (Link to 2022 Clarence Stream Resource Estimate). Two Additional Areas were Explored to Test (Link to figure 4): The down-dip and western extensions of the Southwest Deposit Hole BL-220 intersected 0.84 g/t gold over 21 metres and 0.79 g/t gold over 6 metres , confirming gold mineralization below the known resource , confirming gold mineralization below the known resource Hole BL-202 intersected 2.23 g/t gold over 1.0 metre, which is over 1 kilometre SW of the Southwest Deposit. Gold in soil anomalies on the western side of the Sorrel Ridge granite. Sediments on the southeastern side of the Sorrell Ridge granite host the Southwest Deposit where gold zones are parallel to the granite contact Hole PL-01 intersected 2.39 g/t gold over 0.8 metres These encouraging results show the strong potential for additional gold discoveries along the boundaries with any of the felsic intrusions, and in structures parallel to the Sawyer Brook Fault at the Clarence Stream gold project (Link to drill coordinates). New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program Galway would like to acknowledge financial support from the New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program, which partially funded drilling of the Southwest Deposit. Geology and Mineralization The Clarence Stream deposits can be characterized as intrusion-related, structurally-controlled, quartz-vein hosted gold deposits. These deposits consist of quartz veins and quartz stockwork within brittle-ductile fault zones that include adjacent crushed, altered wall rocks and veinlet material. The mineralized systems are hosted in intrusive and metasedimentary rocks within high strain zones controlled by regional fault systems. Pyrite, base metal sulphides, and stibnite occur in these deposits along with anomalous concentrations of bismuth, arsenic, antimony and tungsten. Alteration in the host rocks is confined within a few metres of quartz veins and occurs mainly in the form of sericitization and chloritization. A more complete description of Clarence Stream's geology and mineralization can be found at www.galwaymetalsinc.com. Review by Qualified Person, Quality Control and Reports Jesse Fisher, P.Geo., Project Manager for Galway Metals, is the Qualified Person who supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical disclosure in this news release on behalf of Galway Metals Inc. All core, chip/boulder samples, and soil samples are assayed by Activation Laboratories, located at 41 Bittern Street, Ancaster, Ontario, Canada, Agat Laboratories, located at 5623 McAdam Road, Mississauga Ontario, Canada L4Z 1N9 and 35 General Aviation Road, Timmins, ON P4P 7C3, and/or Swastika Laboratories situated in Swastika, ON. All four labs have ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. All core is under watch from the drill site to the core processing facility. All samples are assayed for gold by Fire Assay, with gravimetric finish, and other elements assayed using ICP. The Company's QA/QC program includes the regular insertion of blanks and standards into the sample shipments, as well as instructions for duplication. Standards, blanks and duplicates are inserted at one per 20 samples. Approximately five percent (5%) of the pulps and rejects are sent for check assaying at a second lab with the results averaged and intersections updated when received. Core recovery in the mineralized zones has averaged 99%. About Galway Metals Inc. Galway Metals is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing its 100%-owned, high-grade, open-pitable flagship Clarence Stream gold project in southwest New Brunswick. Clarence Stream is an emerging gold district with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres and widths of up to 28 kilometres in certain areas. Galway Metals also has 100%-ownership in the Estrades project, a former producing high-grade, gold-rich polymetallic VMS mine in the northern Abitibi of western Quebec. Led by a management team with a proven track-record of creating shareholder value having sold Galway Resources for US$340 million, Galway Metals is focused on creating value for all its stakeholders. For additional Information on Galway Metals Inc., Please contact: Robert Hinchcliffe President & Chief Executive Officer Telephone: 1-800-771-0680 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Website: www.galwaymetalsinc.com Look us up on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn Cautionary Statement Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. This News Release includes certain "forward-looking statements" which are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "estimates", "may", "could", "would", "will", or "plan". Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management's expectations. Risks, uncertainties and other factors involved with forward-looking information could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the Company's objectives, goals or future plans, information with respect to the OTCQB listing, DTC eligibility, and broadening U.S. institutional and retail investors. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to changes in economic conditions or financial markets, political and competitive developments, operation or exploration difficulties, changes in equity markets, changes in exchange rates, fluctuations in commodity prices capital, operating and reclamation costs varying significantly from estimates and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry, an inability to predict and counteract the effects of COVID-19 on the business of the Company, including but not limited to the effects of COVID-19 on the price of commodities, capital market conditions, restrictions on labour and international travel and supply chains, and those risks set out in the Company's public documents filed on SEDAR. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Blackrock Silver Corp. (TSXV: BRC) (the "Company" or "Blackrock") is pleased to announce that the Company has exercised its option (the "Option") to acquire a 100% interest in the Tonopah West project ("Tonopah West") pursuant to an option agreement dated February 24, 2020 (the "Option Agreement") between the Company's wholly-owned Nevada subsidiary, Blackrock Gold Corp., and Nevada Select Royalty, Inc. ("Nevada Select Royalty"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gold Royalty Corp. Tonopah West consists of 101 patented and 19 unpatented lode mining claims covering mineral rights on approximately 1,380 acres (558.5 hectares) located within the historic Tonopah silver district in the Walker Lane trend of Western Nevada. Andrew Pollard, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, commented: "In the four years since we first optioned Tonopah West, it has quickly emerged as one of the best silver discoveries of the decade, cementing its status as the highest-grade undeveloped large silver project in the world1, and we're excited to now complete our acquisition granting us 100% ownership of the property. With title in-hand, we are now squarely in the driver's seat to continue on our mission to quickly de-risk and advance the project through further engineering, hydrologic and metallurgic studies, while pursuing the vast resource expansion potential." David Garofalo, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Gold Royalty Corp, commented, "The Blackrock team has delivered significant value with their advancement of the Tonopah West project, which has quickly become one of the most exciting precious metals projects in Nevada. We are encouraged to have continued exposure to the project through our royalty interest, and for Blackrock to continue to deliver on their strategy of unlocking the value of the project." In connection with the exercise of the Option to acquire Tonopah West, the Company made payments to Nevada Select Royalty totalling US$3 million over a 4-year term, with a final cash payment in the amount of US$1,000,000. Pursuant to the terms of the Option Agreement, Nevada Select Royalty retained a net smelter returns royalty (the "Royalty") on Tonopah West equal to 3.0% of the net value of all precious and base metals, products and materials of commercial value mined and removed from Tonopah West and sold by the Company. Under the terms of the royalty agreement (the "NSR Agreement"), the Company is required to pay Nevada Select Royalty an annual advance minimum royalty of US$50,000 (each, an "Advance Royalty Payment") until the earlier of the commencement of commercial production at Tonopah West or the twentieth (20th) anniversary of the effective date of the NSR Agreement. All Advance Royalty Payments made by the Company will be credited towards any future royalty payments to Nevada Select Royalty. The Royalty also covers 64 unpatented claims staked by the Company in July 2021 which fall within the one (1) mile area of interest delineated by the Option Agreement. Such additional claims cover 1,280 acres (518 hectares) bringing Tonopah West to a total size of 2,660 acres (1076.5 hectares). About Blackrock Silver Corp. Backed by gold and silver ounces in the ground, Blackrock is a junior precious metal focused exploration company driven to add shareholder value via the drill bit. With 6.12 million tonnes grading 508.5 g/t silver equivalent2 at its Tonopah West project, and a new bonanza-grade gold discovery at its Silver Cloud project, the Company has a proven track record of exploration success. In addition to its gold and silver project portfolio, the Company is credited with a lithium discovery, the Tonopah North project, which is under option to a lithium exploration group. Anchored by a seasoned Board of Directors, the Company is focused on its 100% controlled Nevada portfolio of properties consisting of low-sulphidation, epithermal gold and silver mineralization located along the established Northern Nevada Rift in north-central Nevada and the Walker Lane trend in western Nevada. For further information, please contact: Andrew Pollard, President & Chief Executive Officer Blackrock Silver Corp. Phone: 604 817-6044 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements concern, without limitation: the Company's intentions to de-risk and advance Tonopah West through further engineering, hydrologic and metallurgic studies for the purposes of realizing resource expansion potential. Such forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of assumptions, which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things: conditions in general economic and financial markets; accuracy of assay results; geological interpretations from drilling results, timing and amount of capital expenditures; performance of available laboratory and other related services; future operating costs; and the historical basis for current estimates of potential quantities and grades of target zones. The actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of risk factors, including: the timing and content of work programs; results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties; the interpretation and uncertainties of drilling results and other geological data; receipt, maintenance and security of permits and mineral property titles; environmental and other regulatory risks; project costs overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses; availability of funds; failure to delineate potential quantities and grades of the target zones based on historical data, and general market and industry conditions. Forward-looking statements are based on the expectations and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. The assumptions used in the preparation of such statements, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date the statements were made. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements included in this news release if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as otherwise required by applicable law. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. 1 As of March 11th, 2024. Sourced from S&P Capital IQ for deposits greater than 80M AgEq ounces (MI+I). 2 Technical information relating to the Tonopah West project is based on and derived from the National Instrument 43-101 technical report prepared for Blackrock entitled "Technical Report for Updated Estimate of Mineral Resources, Tonopah West Silver-Gold Project, Nye and Esmeralda Counties, Nevada, USA" effective October 6, 2023 and dated November 8, 2023 authored by Jeffrey Bickel, C.P.G. (the "Technical Report"). The Technical Report outlines 6.12 million tonnes at a block diluted grade of 242 grams per tonne (g/t) silver (Ag) and 2.9g/t gold (Au) for a total inferred mineral resource of 47,738,000 ounces Ag and 570,000 ounces Au, or 508.5 g/t silver equivalent (AgEq) for 100.04 million oz AgEq. AgEq equivalent grade is based on silver and gold prices of US$22/ounce and US$1,850/ounce, respectively, and recoveries for silver and gold of 87% and 95%, respectively. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Founders Metals Inc. (TSXV: FDR) (OTCQX: FDMIF) (FSE: 9DL0) ("Founders" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Natalie Senger to the position of Vice President of Resource Development. Mrs. Senger is a Professional Geoscientist with over 15 years of exploration industry experience, most recently serving as Vice President of Resource Development for Tudor Gold Corp. Her experience has been heavily focussed on gold dominant projects, including the discovery and development of the Brucejack Mine in northern British Columbia, Canada. She also has had valuable exposure to the mine permitting and environmental regulations as a geoscientist with the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation in British Columbia. President and CEO Colin Padget commented: "We are thrilled to welcome Natalie on board and fill a role that is exceedingly necessary as we aggressively explore and develop the Antino Gold Project. Natalie's background of working on the development phase of exploration projects is exceptionally valuable to Founders, as we not only continue to focus on exploration, but more thoroughly examine the economic potential of various zones within the Antino Gold Project. I am very excited to be working with her and look forward to the value that she can bring to the Company." Mrs. Senger Added: "I am honored to take on the role of Vice President of Resource Development with Founders. The Company has demonstrated remarkable success in the short time they have been developing the Antino Gold Project. The Property has a staggering amount of potential and I'm looking forward to contributing as the Company forges on and continues to develop a strong understanding of the continuity and distribution of gold at Antino." About Founders Metals Inc. Founders Metals is a Canadian exploration company with properties in North and South America. The Company focuses on acquiring and advancing gold projects in the Guiana Shield. Its flagship asset is the 20,000 ha Antino Gold Project in Suriname, where artisanal surface/alluvial mining has produced over 500,000 gold ounces to date1. Using its diamond drilling equipment, the Company drilled over 10,000 m in 2023 and is fully financed for up to 30,000 m in 2024. 1 2022 Technical Report - Antino Project; Suriname, South America. K. Raffle, BSc, P. Geo & Rock Lefrancois, BSc, P.Geo. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Per: "Colin Padget" Colin Padget President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director Founders Metals Contact Information Dave Burwell, Manager, Investor Relations Tel: 403 410 7907 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Nick Stajduhar, Director Tel: 780 701 3216 | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements regarding the use of proceeds from the Company's recently completed financings and the future or prospects of the Company. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect ", "is expected ", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to business, market, and economic risks, uncertainties, and contingencies that may cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, other factors may cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Other factors which could materially affect such forward-looking information are described in the risk factors in the Company's most recent annual management discussion and analysis. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. All material information on Founders Metals can be found at www.sedar.com TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Aclara Resources Inc. ("Aclara" or the "Company") (TSX:ARA) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an investment agreement with CAP S.A. ("CAP"), a publicly listed company on the Chilean Stock Exchange, pursuant to which, amongst other things, CAP will make a US$29 million strategic investment in REE Uno SpA ("REE Uno"), Aclaras Chilean subsidiary, which owns the Penco Module (the "Investment Agreement"). Under the terms of the Investment Agreement, CAP also has an option to invest an additional US$50 million in REE Uno and a three-year option to subscribe a 19.9% interest in Aclara, and the parties have also agreed to form a joint venture company to develop metals and alloys for the rare earths permanent magnet industry (the "Transaction"). The Transaction reflects the parties' shared view that the future will require innovative mineral extraction methods, a strong focus on environmental and social sustainability, and the understanding that our planet requires cleanly produced rare earths metals in its urgent fight against climate change. CAP S.A., a company with more than 77 years of history and listed in the Chilean Stock Exchange since 1987, is the parent company of the CAP Group, a Chilean conglomerate operating in various industries including iron ore mining (CMP), with mines and industrial operations in the north of the country, as well as steelmaking operations in Concepcion (Huachipato), very close to the Penco Module. CAP is one of the leading high-grade iron ore producers in the world with four operating mines in Chile. In addition, CAP has several steel product manufacturing plants in Chile, Peru and Argentina. It operates five ports, a seawater desalination plant and has vast industrial infrastructure in the Biobio region. Huachipato has been operating since 1950, and together with SMS Group is developing a project for sustainable steel using green hydrogen for the direct reduction of iron. CAP has a strong connection with the people of the Biobio region, where it has been a major employer for several decades, contributing directly to the development of the south of Chile. Transaction Summary A US$29.1 million capital contribution by CAP into REE Uno, Aclaras Chilean subsidiary which owns the Penco Module and all of Aclaras mining concessions in Chile, in exchange for a 20% equity participation in REE Uno. Payments will be made in three tranches with the initial tranche of US$9.7 million to be made upon closing of the Transaction, the second payment of US$12.5 million in January 2025 and the remaining balance of US$6.9 million to be made in January 2026. This initial investment represents a pre-money valuation of REE Uno of US$116.5 million. An option to invest an additional US$50 million in REE Uno for an additional 20% equity interest in REE Uno once the requisite environmental permit is secured for the Penco Module. Upon completion, this additional investment would allow CAP to attain a 40% equity interest in REE Uno. This second investment represents a pre-money valuation of REE Uno of US$150 million. A three-year option to invest up to 19.9% in Aclara by participating in any private placement or public offering of shares that Aclara may make during the next 36 months, including a residual top-up right to maintain pro rata voting rights. Any subscription to such private placement or public offering will be made on the same terms offered by Aclara to other investors. CAP will have the right to nominate one board member upon attaining and for so long as its equity interest in Aclara amount to at least 15% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Aclara. In addition, CAP holds a one-time demand subscription right to invest up to an aggregate of 19.9% in Aclara, exercisable upon the satisfaction of certain conditions and continuing for a maximum period of 18 months counted from the end of the initial 3-year option. The formation of a 50/50 joint venture to develop metals and alloys for the rare earths permanent magnet industry. CAP will invest US$3.0 million in exchange for its 50% of the shares of the newly established joint venture company. Aclara will own the other 50% of the shares. Closing of the Transaction is subject to the performance of certain customary closing conditions, which the parties expect to complete within the next 30 days. Aclara Corporate Structure after the Completion of the Transaction with CAP Transaction Benefits to Aclara The US$29.1 million initial capital injection from CAP into REE Uno will support the ongoing development of the Penco Module throughout its permitting, community relations, and feasibility study phases. This allocation will allow Aclara Resources to reallocate its current cash reserves towards advancing its Carina Module project in Brazil. The option for an additional US$50 million investment post-receipt of the environmental permit is intended to cover a significant part of the equity portion associated with the construction of the Penco Module. This provision mitigates financing risks linked to the module's construction for Aclara. Drawing upon CAP's extensive experience in environmental permitting from multiple mining projects in Chile, Aclara anticipates strengthened support for the forthcoming Penco Module Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") permit application. CAP's involvement includes a thorough review and constructive contributions to the application preparation, as well as accompanying Aclara throughout the review and approval process by Chilean environmental agencies. Furthermore, the establishment of a metals and alloys company represents the initial phase of Aclara's strategic vision to vertically integrate its rare earths concentrate production towards the manufacturing of permanent magnets. This move aims to offer a geopolitically independent alternative supply of permanent magnets to the market. The new company will harness CAP's substantial expertise in metal refining and ferro-alloyed special steels, synergizing with Aclara's thorough understanding of the rare earths and permanent magnet industry. Valuation The Transaction reflects the valuation of Aclara at the time of the Company's initial public offering (the "IPO") and is indicative of the belief both parties have in establishing Aclara as a leading producer of clean rare earths. Upon closing, REE Uno will be valued at US$116.5 million on a pre-money valuation. In addition, Aclara will own 50% of the newly established joint venture company, which has a valuation of US$3.0 million. In total, the Transaction represents a value for Aclara of US$119.5 million, which reflects Aclara's pre-money valuation at the IPO. It's noteworthy that Aclara's Brazilian subsidiary, Aclara Mineracao, which oversees the Carina Module and all mining concessions in Brazil, is not part of this transaction nor included in the valuation mentioned above. This aspect adds further value to Aclara Resources and its shareholders. Eduardo Hochschild, Chairman of Aclara, quoted: "We are thrilled to partner with CAP to develop our Penco Module and strategy in Chile, as well as joining efforts to start developing Aclara's capabilities in the vertical integration of the rare earths and permanent magnets industry. Aclara now combines its innovative attributes with the proven execution capabilities of two major players in the Latin-American natural resources space, Hochschild Mining and CAP. CAP is a company already committed to improving our planet via innovative and sustainable practices, such as its commitment to produce sustainable steel leveraging Chile's green hydrogen potential. Also, its longstanding relationship with local communities, as well as the Chilean corporate and governmental network, provides an added support to Aclara's initiatives in-country. CAP brings significant metallurgical knowledge and expertise to produce metals and alloys, specifically through Huachipato and its leading special steels capability. CAP has been producing high performance alloys for decades and can apply this experience to the emerging rare earths sector. The creation of a company to fund R&D efforts towards producing higher value products is a necessary step and both parties will decidedly support its development. Finally, the financial commitment that CAP is showing by investing in Aclara at its different levels reflects the shared view by both companies of the promising future that rare earths have. We both agree that rare earths extracted by methods that prioritize the protection of the environment will own a special niche of the market, one that will be highly priced by companies with outstanding corporate government. We welcome CAP to Aclara and look forward to making an impact together in Penco, in Chile and in our planet." Juan Enrique Rassmuss, Chairman of CAP S.A. commented: "This alliance with Aclara represents a historic milestone for Grupo CAP, marking the first step in our strategy to become leaders in the production of essential materials for decarbonization and energy transition. We hope to contribute our knowledge in mining and metallurgy, to generate value-added products based on new alloys and products. The partnership with an innovative company like Aclara, in sustainable projects and with enormous growth potential, opens a new stage for us in which we have great expectations. We will contribute resources and our experience to accelerate the impact of Aclara as a significant player in the fight against climate change and the care of the environment". About CAP CAP Group has mining and industrial operations in Chile, Peru and Argentina, and has global presence through its diversity of products. In commercial terms, it sells to countries located in America, Asia and Oceania. In addition, it has operations in the port industry, water desalination services and energy transmission. CAP Group is the main producer of iron ore and pellets on the American Pacific coast; the largest steel producer and the most important steel processor in Chile. Additionally, it is the third port operator in the country. The purpose of the company is "We generate wellbeing and shared progress, transforming resources with Chile and the world". About Aclara Aclara Resources Inc. (TSX: ARA) is a development-stage company that focuses on heavy rare earth mineral resources hosted in Ion-Adsorption Clay deposits. The Company currently has two projects under development: the Penco Module in the Bio-Bio Region of Chile, and the Carina Project in the State of Goias, Brazil. Aclara's rare earth extraction process offers several environmentally attractive features. It does not involve blasting, crushing, or milling, and therefore does not generate tailings, thus eliminating the need for a tailings storage facility. The extraction process developed by Aclara minimizes water consumption through high levels of water recirculation made possible by the inclusion of a water treatment facility within its patented process design. The ionic clay feedstock is amenable to leaching with a common fertilizer, ammonium sulfate. Further, harmful levels of radionuclides, typical of hard rock rare earth deposits, are not concentrated within the Aclara flowsheet. Simultaneously, alongside the development of the Carina and Penco projects, the Company intends to identify and evaluate further opportunities to increase future production of heavy rare earths. This will involve greenfield exploration programs and the development of additional projects within the Company's concessions in Brazil, Chile, and Peru. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, which reflects the Company's current expectations regarding future events, including statements with regard to: the Company's strategic investments and partnerships, the current and future valuation of the Company and its subsidiary, the economic effect of the Investment Agreement, the closing of the strategic investment and other transactions contemplated thereby, and the Company's expectations as to the partnership and future financings by investors and the achievement of certain environmental and permitting milestones, and other transactions contemplated thereby. Forward-looking information is based on a number of assumptions and is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to risks related to operating in a foreign jurisdiction, including political and economic problems in Chile and Brazil; risks related to changes to mining laws and regulations and the termination or non-renewal of mining rights by governmental authorities; risks related to failure to comply with the law or obtain necessary permits and licenses or renew them; compliance with environmental regulations can be costly; actual production, capital and operating costs may be different than those anticipated; the Company may be not able to successfully complete the development, construction and start-up of mines and new development projects; risks related to mining operations; and dependence on the Penco Module and/or the Carina Module. Aclara cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. For a detailed discussion of the foregoing factors, among others, please refer to the risk factors discussed under "Risk Factors" in the Company's annual information form dated as of March 28, 2023, filed on the Company's SEDAR+ profile. Actual results and timing could differ materially from those projected herein. Unless otherwise noted or the context otherwise indicates, the forward-looking information contained in this press release is provided as of the date of this press release and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required under applicable securities laws. For further information, please contact: Ramon Barua Chief Executive Officer This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. "Queen of Tears" and "My Name is Loh Kiwan" dominated the global rankings, and recorded millions of viewing hours. Keep on reading for details! Song Joong Ki's 'My Name is Loh Kiwan' Tops Netflix Global Ranking in 30 Countries Song Joong Ki and Choi Sung Eun's first movie team-up "My Name is Loh Kiwan" made a significant move as it rose to the top of Netflix's global rankings. The famous online streaming platform gathered data showing that on March 13, "My Name is Loh Kiwan" was watched 5.1 million times and recorded 11.2 million viewing hours from March 4 to 10, ranking first in the non-English language category. After it premiered on March 1, it started at third place in the global top 10 during its first week. For its second week, it continues to attract more international viewers and even topped in 31 countries including South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Portugal, Morocco, and Bolivia. "My Name is Loh Kiwan" is Song Joong Ki's comeback Netflix movie following his record-breaking film "Space Sweepers" in 2021. YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Song Joong Ki Rejected 'My Name is Loh Kiwan' in 2017 - Here's What Changed His Mind The movie tells the story of Loh Kiwan, a North Korean defector who stayed in Belgium with the last hope of life, and Marie, a woman who has lost her reason to live. The two fall in love and conquer their problems together. 'Doctor Slump' Remains Unbeatable in Global Rankings Aside from the movie, ongoing K-dramas starring some of the hottest stars today are dominating the Netflix rankings. With just a week remaining before its finale, JTBC's "Doctor Slump," solidified its position and ranked fifth in the Non-English language TV series category, making it the highest rank among Korean works included in the list. The rom-com medical series headlined by Park Shin Hye and Park Hyung Sik, tells the story of doctors who fall into the biggest slump of their lives. The drama has been in the ranking since it premiered in January. 'Queen of Tears' Makes Graceful Debut on Netflix Global Ranking Lastly, tvN's newly released drama "Queen of Tears" starring Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won gracefully entered the list just after two episodes were released. According to the source, the series ranked seventh, marking another achievement for the drama and its team. It already garnered 1.2 million viewing hours during its pilot week. "Queen of Tears" was also near to achieving double-digit ratings with its latest episode. The fresh narrative of the series is making the viewers hook and anticipate the upcoming turns of events. Catch "Doctor Slump" and "Queen of Tears" every Saturday and Sunday on Netflix. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Did You Know? Kim Soo Hyun's Drunk Scene in 'Queen of Tears' Inspired From Kim Ji Won's 'Fight for My Way' 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. A new set of posters for Netflix's "Parasyte: The Grey" was unveiled which features lead actors Jeon So Nee, Koo Kyo Hwan and Lee Jung Hyun. With this, excitement for the upcoming drama was doubled. Here's what you should know about the new series. Jeon So Nee & Koo Kyo Hwan Threatened By Parasites In New Drama The brand new Netflix series "Parasyte: The Grey" published a new set of character posters ahead of its premiere. Based on the Japanese comic of the same name written by Hitoshi Iwaaki, it depicts people's struggles after parasitic life-forms from outer space invade the Earth by living off human hosts. On March 13, the production team shared new posters with Jeon So Nee, Koo Kyo Hwan and Lee Jung Hyun who are entangled with parasites that threaten their lives and health. Jung Su In (Jeon So Nee) gets targeted by a parasite in the new poster, exuding an eerie feeling. Meanwhile, Seol Kang Woo (Koo Kyo Hwan) gives off a melancholic tone as he battles with parasites on his journey in searching for his missing brother. Lastly, Choi Jun Kyung (Lee Jung Hyun) raises excitement as she boasts her heroic side as she leads a task force to exterminate the parasite that turns humans into monstrous mutants. Focus is given on how the trio, who all have their own missions to accomplish while trying to survive, continue living as hosts to unidentified parasites from outer space. READ MORE: Jeon So Nee Co-Exists With Monsters In New Series 'Parasyte: The Grey' Make sure to check out "Parasyte: The Grey" this April 5 on Netflix. Watch the drama trailer below: 'Parasyte: The Grey' Cast Dishes On Production & More Before its long awaited release, the cast of "Parayste: The Grey" shared their affection for their forthcoming Netflix project. Jeon So Nee, who's widening her acting spectrum with the new show, admitted that the whole parasitic beasts theme was the factor that drew her to the production. "I was curious about the relationship between the hosts and parasites and how they survive within the society," the rising actress said. "I prepared a lot for my character so please anticipate it a lot." Meanwhile, Koo Kyo Hwan was challenged by the work's influence on the development of one's mind. He also shared that he's a fan of the original work, which opened his eyes to a variety of views on the world and co-existence. Lastly, Lee Jung Hyun took on martial arts classes prior to filming, and also focused on her vocalization and body language, saying, "It's the strongest acting transformation that I've done." ALSO READ: Lee Ji Ah Agrees to Kim Go Eun's Money Statement on Acting: 'It's all about that' Are you excited for "Parasyte: The Grey"? Share your thoughts on the drama in the comments down below! KDramaStars owns this article. Written by Elijah Mully. Kim Ha Neul got candid about her married life, and spoke about what her non-celebrity husband is like in an interview with Shin Dong Yeop. The actress promoted her upcoming romance thriller series "Nothing Uncovered" opposite seasoned actors Yeon Woo Jin and Jang Seung Jo. Keep on reading. Kim Ha Neul Shares Glimpse Into Married Life After two long years, Kim Ha Neul is finally coming back to the acting scene with the upcoming drama "Nothing Uncovered." The show is based on the popular novel "Grabbed by the Collar," and tells the story of ex-lovers who work together in solving cold cases that involve the both of them. In the series, Kim Ha Neul transforms into Seo Jung Won, a passionate investigative reporter. She's entangled with two handsome men played by Yeon Woo Jin and Jang Seung Jo. On March 11, the actress appeared in Shin Dong Yeop's drinking show "Zzan Bro" to promote her upcoming series. She also spoke about her marriage and personal life. According to Kim Ha Neul, her husband even encouraged her to drink as much as she'd like. She said, "We agree on so many things because we have similar tastes. He's so cute in my eyes." Shin Dong Yeop asked the actress how her husband reacts to her kissing scenes, especially now that her character in "Nothing Uncovered" is stuck in a hot love triangle. READ MORE: Kim Ha Neul Becomes Prime Suspect In Cold Murder Case In 'Nothing Uncovered' "He doesn't seem to be bothered by it since it's just a part of my job," Kim Ha Neul answered. "He doesn't get jealous because nothing is real when it comes to acting." Although her husband doesn't display his affection through physicalities, Kim Ha Neul said that she receives a lot of beautiful words and affirmation from him, which she described as "enough." Meanwhile, Shin Dong Yeop made the actress laugh when he joked, suggesting to do more intimate scenes with other male actors to make her husband jealous. Kim Ha Neul Opens Up About Career Struggles & More In 2016, Kim Ha Neul tied the knot with her businessman husband. The two gave life to a beautiful baby girl in 2018. While this was a great milestone for the actress, her marriage greatly affected her career as acting offers decreased as soon as she tied the knot. When she entered motherhood, acting roles and opportunities became scarce. She said, "Many productions came to me in the past that I just wanted to rest. Now it feels precious for me to receive one offer." Despite that, the actress didn't regret her decision, saying that she's blessed with an understanding husband and a beautiful daughter who is now 5 years old. On the other hand, "Nothing Uncovered" airs on March 18 at 10:10 p.m. KST on KBS. ALSO READ: Here's What To Expect From Kim Ha Neul In 'Nothing Uncovered' KDramaStars owns this article. Written by Elijah Mully. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Police have arrested four suspects and recovered ivory worth Ksh 2 Million. According to National Police Service, the four suspects identified as 34-year-old Stephen Kitavi, 39-year-old Peter Kioko, Shadrack Kyalo Muange, 47; and Danstan Musyoka, 54 were nabbed at Makindu, Makueni County. The suspects were found in possession of six pieces of ivory tusks weighing 6.8 kilograms, police said. They were arrested by a multi-agency team comprising NPS officers from Makindu Police Station, Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), and their counterparts from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS). The suspects were detained at Makindu Police Station awaiting arraignment on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. The National Police Service takes this opportunity to thank members of the public for their cooperation on this case, police added. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Former Defence Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa has told President William Ruto to pull out of Haiti's peacekeeping mission or else he will send our boys and girls to their early graves. This follows the resignation of Rutos friend and Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry after public pressure. In a statement via X, Wamalwa said that the Haitian citizens who mounted pressure on Henry to resign did not want the deployment of Kenyan Police to the Caribbean country. The DAP K party leader wondered why the Kenyan government is insisting on the deployment of officers based on an agreement signed by the former Haitian Prime Minister. If Haitians rejected Ariel Henry with his so-called reciprocal agreement signed with Kenya and he obliged and resigned, they have rejected the deployment of Kenyan police to their Country, why is the KK regime insisting on the deployment of our officers based on a dubious agreement signed by the deposed Prime Minister whose legitimacy and capacity to contract was questionable? Wamalwa posed. The former Defence CS said Kenya should abort the mission unless there are other interests Kenya seeks to achieve in the mission. The reasonable thing to do in the circumstances is to abort Mission unless there are other interests at play other than National Security interests, Wamalwa added. Henry resigned as the Haiti Prime Minister on Monday following weeks of pressure and increasing violence in the Caribbean country. The former Prime Minister who has led the country since the assassination of the countrys former President is currently stranded in Puerto Rico after being prevented by armed gangs from returning home. On Monday Interior CS Kithure Kindiki announced that the Haiti peace mission is unstoppable and was in the pre-redeployment phase. The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 American actress, Sharon Stone has accused late movie producer Robert Evans of pressuring her to sleep with co-star Billy Baldwin to help improve his acting performance in the 1993 film Sliver. She alleged that Robert Evans, the Hollywood mogul who headed production at Paramount, told her to sleep with William Baldwin. Evans died in 2019 at age 89. The Hollywood star had initially revealed the meeting in her 2021 memoir without disclosing the identities of those involved. The actress said on Tuesday's episode of Spotify's Louis Theroux Podcast that she "should've been on set" but was called into Evans' office to discuss her chemistry with Baldwin, 61. "He's running around his office in his sunglasses, explaining to me that he slept with Ava Gardner and I should sleep with Billy Baldwin, because if I slept with Billy Baldwin, Billy Baldwin's performance would get better," Stone recalled of their alleged conversation. "And we needed Billy to get better in the movie, because that was the problem." According to Stone, Evans' logic was, "If I could sleep with Billy, then we would have chemistry onscreen, and if I would just have s3x with him then that would save the movie." "And the real problem in the movie was me because I was so uptight, and so not like a real actress, who could just f--- him and get things back on track. And the real problem is that I was such a tight ass," the Total Recall actress said. Stone further alleged on the podcast that Evans "wouldn't listen to the list of actors that I suggested for the part," and insisted on casting Baldwin instead. The actor believes the studio bosses were to blame for their poor casting decisions. I didnt have to f*ck Michael Douglas. Michael could come to work and know how to hit those marks, and do that line, and rehearse and show up. Now all of a sudden Im in the I have to f*ck people business. Stone rose to fame in the 1980s and 90s, appearing in hit films such as Total Recall, The Mighty, Casino, The Last Action Hero and Basic Instinct, where she starred opposite Michael Douglas. Stone recalled multiple instances of being approached by producers about having s3x with her costars in her memoir The Beauty of Living Twice. As she wrote in the book, "I had actor approval in my contract. No one cared. They cast who they wanted. To my dismay, sometimes. To the detriment of the picture, sometimes." The Casino star recalled one producer (now named as Evans) who brought her into his office, and "explained to me why I should f--- my costar so that we could have onscreen chemistry." "You guys insisted on this actor when he couldn't get one whole scene out in the test," Stone said she remembered thinking at the time. "Now you think if I f--- him, he will become a fine actor? Nobody's that good in bed." "I felt they could have just hired a costar with talent, someone who could deliver a scene and remember his lines," she continued. "It was my job to act and I said no." Stone went on to add that the actor "did make a few haphazard passes at me in the upcoming weeks," which she felt was likely "spurred on" by the producer. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 President William Ruto has finally seen the light and halted the deployment of 1,000 police officers to tame gang crimes in Haiti. According to Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs Korir Sing'oei, the decision comes about following the resignation of Haiti's Prime Minister on Monday. Sing'oei further stated that the lack of a political administration in Haiti provides no ground or anchor for the mission. Kenya, therefore, will wait for the installation of a recognized constitutional authority before further decisions on the deployment are made. The deal they signed with the president still stands, although the deployment will not happen now because definitely, we will require a sitting government to also collaborate with, Singoei stated. Because you dont just deploy police to go on the Port-au-Prince streets without a sitting administration," he added. Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned as Haitis top leader following a crisis meeting held between the 15-member Caribbean Community regional bloc known as CARICOM. Also discussed in the meeting, was the creation of a presidential college, that would pick a new interim Prime Minister to hold the fort. This comes a day after the Interior Cabinet Secretary (CS) Kithure Kindiki confirmed the mission was in the pre-deployment stage, despite court orders barring the operation. Ruto had vowed never to back down from the Haiti mission despite several calls from Azimio leaders to think twice before sending poor officers to die in the troubled Caribbean nation. The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka has reportedly become a nuisance to residents of Parklands, where his side chic lives. He reportedly makes endless visits to his side chics apartment with a huge motorcade. He goes to the estate with sirens blaring, the flag on and security agents in tow, bringing activities at the estate to a standstill. He then keeps his security entourage waiting outside the apartment for hours as he engages in escapades with his side chic. He drives off after satisfying his manly needs. Lusaka, a well-known womanizer, was notorious for this conduct even when he was the Speaker. His friends thought he would change his behaviours after he became a Governor but old habits die hard. We understand that his side chic is a student at USIU. He has rented an apartment for her in Parklands. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Tuesday, March 12, 2024 A 76-year-old Connecticut woman has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter six years after being accused of murdering her husband and stealing his paychecks. Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi pled guilty on Monday, March 11, after being arrested in February 2018 over the death of her husband Dr. Pierluigi Bigazzi, 84, Hartford Judicial District States Attorney Sharmese L. Walcott announced in a press release. The wife of the University of Connecticut professor was initially charged with murder after her husband was found dead by police at their Burlington home during a visit on Feb. 5, 2018. Police suspected Dr. Bigazzi's body was stored in the basement of the couple's home for months, According to the release, police discovered the body while responding to a call for a welfare check at the home from the victims employer who had not heard from the victim for several months. The victim is believed to have died sometime in July 2017. A medical examiner previously determined the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. An investigation showed paychecks from the victims employer continued to be deposited into the couples joint checking account from the time of his death, which authorities believe to be sometime in July 2017, until his body was discovered in early February 2018, the release continued. Kosuda-Bigazzi pled guilty to a charge of manslaughter in the first degree and larceny in the first degree. Her sentencing is scheduled for June 28 in Hartford Superior Court. This case has been pending for six years so we are thankful we were able to reach a resolution today, Walcott said in the release following the plea. In February 2018, Kosuda-Bigazzi was charged with one count of murder and one count of tampering with physical evidence, according to online court records. After posting $1.5 million bail, she was put under house arrest and the affidavit in support of the arrest warrant was sealed by order of the court. We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our longtime faculty member Dr. Pierluigi Bigazzi, professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UConn School of Medicine, UConn Health said in a statement in 2018 obtained by the Hartford Courant newspaper. After being unable to reach Bigazzi, concerned departmental leadership contacted UConn Police who visited his home. UConn Police immediately contacted the local police department who is investigating the death in collaboration with the State Police. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 If you have ever vandalized or planning to destroy the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), just stop it because you will die. This is after Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki gave the police the green light to kill anyone found vandalizing the SGR. Speaking in Makueni, Kindiki issued a shoot-to-kill order against SGR vandals and other critical infrastructures to supply scrap metals to dealers. We have gazetted a new law protecting the railway line and other critical infrastructure. The law governing the critical infrastructure is the Protected Area Act Cap 204, Kindiki stated. Any person found within the vicinity of protected facility, such as the railway line and water reservoirs will be dealt with per the Act. "It is the most serious and most punitive law. It is the law that protects the State House. "It allows police officers to kill on the spot anyone found within the protected area without having to arrest them. Kindiki was responding to a report of a spike in vandalism of critical infrastructure by Makueni County Commissioner Henry Wafula and Makueni Governor Mutula Kilonzo Junior. The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 A gunman who shot and wounded two people and took 17 passengers, hostage, on Tuesday at the main bus station in Rio de Janeiro surrendered Wednesday morning, March 13 and freed his captives after negotiations, Brazilian police said. "The hostage-taker surrendered, he was arrested, all the hostages were released, they are safe," said Colonel Marco Andrade of the military police. In total, 17 people were held hostage, including children and elderly, Andrade told reporters outside the station. He said one person had been shot three times, while another had lesser injuries. The wounded were taken to hospital according to Brazilian reports. Police have not released the identity of the gunman or his motives. Images broadcast by the Globonews channel showed chaos at the station in the center of Rio, where buses leave for all regions of Brazil, with police deployed around the area. "A man drew a gun, started shooting and entered the bus. I have two friends on this bus, everyone is desperate, we don't know what will happen," a witness told the broadcaster. The terminal was closed after all passengers and employees were evacuated, AFP witnessed. For years, Brazil's most iconic city, Rio de Janeiro has long been plagued by high crime rates linked to poverty and inequality. Tuesday, March 12, 2024 A British man who moved to Australia to become a police officer has died in a fatal accident during his engagement party. Liam Trimmer, 29, died on Sunday, March 10, at his home in Western Australia during a party with friends and family to announce his engagement. The senior constable reportedly slipped and fell to the ground, cutting open his carotid artery. Loved ones rushed to save Trimmer, but he died from heavy bleeding shortly before the paramedics could arrive at the scene, the police said. Trimmer was described as an "extraordinary officer" by police commissioner Col Blanch, who said the officer's friends and family did their best to save him. It was not immediately clear how the police officer fell and suffered the fatal neck wound, which has prompted an inquest to be opened." Everything was done to try and save him, but it wasn't to be and I know everyone that was involved are really, really hurting at the moment and I think they wish they could just wake up from this nightmare," the commissioner told 9News. "This extraordinary officer loved helping the community and was a fine example of WA [Western Australia] policing and it's just such a tragedy. [He] a very, very confident, capable young man with his whole life ahead of him, and that's how sad this is." Trimmer was featured in the BBC show Wanted Down Under, in which British families were given a taste of life in Australia and New Zealand before deciding whether to leave the UK, the Telegraph reported. He moved to Australia in 2013 and graduated from the Joondalup Police Academy, before relocating to Kalgoorlie town. He joined the Gang Crime Squad and tactical response group in the force and became one of the prominent members of the local community. Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Meghan Markle has scored a massive legal victory in the defamation lawsuit brought against her by her half-sister, Samantha Markle. Samantha Markle accused Meghan making "demonstrably false and malicious statements" about her to a "worldwide audience" after the explosive 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview. A Florida judge has dismissed the lawsuit, saying the duchess was expressing "an opinion about her childhood and her relationship with her half-sibling" and a statement of pure opinion was "not capable of being proved false". In a court order, US District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell wrote: "As a reasonable listener would understand it, the defendant merely expresses an opinion about her childhood and her relationship with her half-siblings. "Thus, the court finds that the defendant's statement is not objectively verifiable or subject to empirical proof.... plaintiff cannot plausibly disprove the defendant's opinion of her own childhood." The judge specifically noted that there were no examples of defamation to be found in Meghan and Prince Harrys Netflix docuseries, Meghan & Harry or Omid Scobies Finding Freedom. Additionally, the judge found no examples of defamation in the couples hourlong sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey that aired on CBS in March 2021. Florida District Court Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell found that Samantha, 59, supplied mischaracterizations of the [interview] transcript and determined that the couples statements about Samantha and their father, Thomas Markle, were quintessential examples of opinion. Samantha sued the Suits alum, 42, in March 2022, claiming Meghan made false and malicious statements during her sit-down with Winfrey. She accused the former Tig blogger of falsely claiming to be an only child and alleged Meghan lied about the timeframe of when they last saw each other. She also claimed Meghan publicly bashed Thomas in an attempt to sell the world a false rags-to-royalty narrative of her life. Samantha asked for $75,000 in damages and for the cost of court and attorneys fees. In response, Meghan called the lawsuit meritless. We do not empanel juries to rule on whether two people are close, or whether one genuinely feels that they grew up as an only child, Meghans legal response at the time read. Courts are not equipped to adjudicate the legitimacy of a persons feelings about their childhood and relationships. Nor should they be. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - A Ugandan lawyer has sued President William Ruto at the East African Court of Justice over his decision to sack EAC Secretary General Peter Mathuki and replace him with a friendly face. The lawyer stated that the decision by Kenya to recall the Secretary-General and replace him with another appointee was unlawful. In his prayers to the court, he sought a permanent injunction imposed on Kenya restraining President William Rutos government from nominating another Kenyan national to Mathukis position. In his argument, the lawyer states that this move was in contravention of the EAC treaty which states that "the Secretary-General shall serve a fixed five-year term. Additionally, the lawyer faulted Kenya for disregarding the Rule of Law and the Equal Opportunities Doctrine, a fundamental EAC principle. Article 7(2) of the EAC Treaty sets the rule of law as an operational principle of the community. As such, the lawyer now wants the regional court to issue an order annulling the decision by Kenya to replace Mathuki. The lawyer further wants the East African Community Summit, Parliament, and/or Council of Ministers not to implement any decision by Kenya to replace Mathuki. EAC Court of Justice has further been petitioned to award general, exemplary, punitive, and aggravated damages to the Applicant. President William Ruto recalled Mathuki from the EAC top seat 1.5 years before his exit. He had earlier served as a Member of Parliament of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA), from 2012 to 2017. He was subsequently appointed as Kenyas ambassador to Russia pending approval by the National Assembly. The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 Famous Kenyan author, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, used to physically abuse his first wife Nyambura, his son Mukoma has disclosed. Mukoma wa Thiongo, a poet, author, and professor, made this known on the social media platform X on Tuesday, March 12. The 53-year-old shared a newspaper article about his mother and wrote: My father @NgugiWaThiongo physically abused my late mother he would beat her up. Some of my earliest memories are me going to visit her at my grandmothers where she would seek refuge. But with that said it is the silencing of who she was that gets me. Ok- I have said it. This isn't the first time Mukoma has complained about his mother's story being erased. Back in 2022, he wrote on Twitter: It hurts to see my late mother, Nyambura (my daughter is named after her) being systemically erased from the @NgugiWaThiongo_ story. We literally (of course) and figuratively would not be here if it was not for her keeping us glued together through the political persecutions. Ngugi, who is renowned as Kenya's most famous writer, married Nyambura in 1987. The two went on to have six children: Thiongo, Kimunya, Nduchu, Mukoma, Wanjiku and Njoki. Apart from Kimunya, an economics graduate from the University of Nairobi, the rest of their children attended US universities. Ngugis first marriage collapsed due to detentions and exiles orchestrated by both Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi. Nyambura died in 1995 and Thiongo couldnt attend her funeral as he was in exile in the United States. He then married Njeri, who already had a daughter from a previous relationship with an African-American partner. The couple went on to have two children before separating last year. Ngugi, 86, is currently suffering from kidney failure and is living alone under the care of medical personnel at his house in California, US. He undergoes kidney dialysis three times a week and he recently had surgery. Njeri is the director of Human Resource Faculty and Staff Conflict Resolution Services at the University of California, Irvine, where Ngugi is a Distinguished Professor at the Comparative Literature School of Humanities. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Former Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya has dismissed the reports of alleged fallout in the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party, following a recent endorsement from former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. In a statement, Oparanya also downplayed allegations that the party was in disarray, following the recent development and Raila's plan to vie for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship. He further debunked claims that there are factions inside the party. He insisted that ODM was still intact. "That is a creation of the media or Kenya Kwanza who think that we have factions within ODM. The party is still strong under the leadership of Raila Odinga," Oparanya stated. "The issue of assuming that we have factions is not true. The party is intact," he added. Oparanya also downplayed reports that various leaders within the party had launched campaigns to replace Raila as the party leader in 2025. He noted that reconstitution will be done by all party members and in a transparent manner. His sentiments come days after Raila endorsed him and Former Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho to lead the opposition party in case he clinches the African Union Commission chairmanship. Raila said that his exit from local politics should not kill the opposition party, which has existed for nearly 20 years. The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Rwanda's President Paul Kagame has assured former Prime Minister Raila Odinga of his full support in his bid for the African Union Chairmanship. Speaking during an interview, Kagame credited Raila's experience at the international body as a factor in his decision to support him. He noted that he had collaborated with Raila in 2018, during which Kagame served as the African Union (AU) chairperson while Raila held the position of the AU's high representative for infrastructure. Further, he revealed that he had respect for the ODM boss, adding that he understood Raila's struggles. "I respect Raila Odinga. I know his struggles. He was actually at one time representing the Commission of Infrastructure at a time when I served as the AU chairperson in 2018. "He did a good job and has a grasp of it. We give him our support and wish him well," he stated. Further, Kagame noted that he would continue to support Raila should the ODM boss get elected to the position. He explained that the support to Raila would ensure that the continent prospers. Kagame made the remarks days after Raila travelled to Rwanda to seek his support. The former premier is seeking to succeed Moussa Faki, who has served as the AUC chairperson for two terms with elections slated for February next year. Raila has also received backing from other presidents among them William Ruto (Kenya), Samia Suluhu (Tanzania), Felix Tshisekedi (DRC), Salva Kiir (South Sudan) and Yoweri Museveni (Uganda). The Kenyan DAILY POST Wednesday, March 13, 2024 Russia's President, Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday, March 13 that Russia was technically ready for nuclear war and that if the U.S. sent troops to Ukraine, it would be considered a major escalation of the war. Putin, speaking just days before a March 15-17 election that will give him another six years in power, said the nuclear war scenario was not "rushing" up and he saw no need for the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. "From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready," Putin, 71, told Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA in response to a question whether the country was really ready for a nuclear war. Putin said the U.S. knew that if it deployed American troops on Russian territory or to Ukraine, Russia would treat the move as an intervention. "(In the U.S.) there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint," said Putin. "Therefore, I don't think that here everything is rushing to it (nuclear confrontation), but we are ready for this." Putin has sent a series of public nuclear warnings to the U.S. aimed at discouraging greater involvement in Ukraine - a move the Kremlin says would mark a slide into world war. Washington says it has seen no major changes to Russia's nuclear posture but Putin's public nuclear warnings are now eliciting concern in Washington. Putin sent soldiers into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering full-scale war after eight years of conflict in eastern Ukraine between Ukrainian forces on one side and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian proxies on the other. The war in Ukraine has triggered the deepest crisis in Russia's relations with the West since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis and Putin has warned several times the West risks provoking a nuclear war if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine. Putin's nuclear warning came alongside another offer for talks on Ukraine. The U.S. says Putin is not ready for serious talks over Ukraine. In a U.S. election year, the West is struggling with how to support Kyiv against Russia, which now controls almost one-fifth of Ukrainian territory and is producing artillery much faster than the West and Ukraine. Kyiv says it is defending itself against an imperial-style war of conquest designed to erase its national identity. Russia says the areas it controls in Ukraine are now Russia. Putin reiterated the use of nuclear weapons was spelt out in the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine, which sets out the conditions under which it would use such a weapon: broadly a response to an attack using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction, or the use of conventional weapons against Russia "when the very existence of the state is put under threat." "Weapons exist in order to use them," Putin said. "We have our own principles." "Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but they should be based on reality - and not on cravings after the use of psychotropic drugs," Putin said. Putin said he trusts no one and Russia would need written security guarantees in the event of a settlement. "I don't trust anyone, but we need guarantees, and guarantees must be spelled out, they must be such that we would be satisfied," Putin said. Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru has given President William Ruto a thumbs up, saying he is leading Kenya to greatness. Speaking yesterday, Waiguru lauded Ruto's regime, saying it is the best government Kenya has ever had since it became a republic. The Council of Governors (COG) Chairperson also urged Kenyans to support the government and its initiatives for a prosperous nation. "Nataka kuwaomba maneno mawili tu, ya kwanza ni kushikilia serikali ya Kenya Kwanza kule mashinani because there will never be a better government than the Kenya Kwanza government," Waiguru said. Earlier, Waiguru affirmed her support for the president's 10-year consecutive regime, saying she was fully behind the president and his agendas for the country. However, Waiguru stated that come 2032, women will support a woman candidate. She subsequently sought Ruto's support for a woman presidential candidate in the 2032 General Election. This is after Ruto hinted that he might drop Rigathi Gachagua in favour of a woman candidate going forward. The county head who spoke during the launch of Women Governors G7 Caucus strategy in Nairobi last week defended that women leaders are always determined to steer the country in the right direction. She referred to when the country recorded a marginal improvement in 2017 after three women became governors. The governor further stated that women were prepared to take on the leadership mantle and that women would vie for various seats once Ruto retires. Further, Waiguru stressed that gender equality and women's empowerment were moral and economic necessities. The Kenyan DAILY POST Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Former President Donald Trump has revealed what his first acts would be if reelected. Trump said one of his first acts if elected to a second term would be to "free" people convicted for their roles in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, whom Trump continues to claim are "wrongfully imprisoned." He made that promise, presumably about using the presidential pardon power, on his social media platform on Monday night. He also said he would close the border on his first day back in the White House. He wrote: My first acts as your next President will be to Close the Border, DRILL, BABY, DRILL, and Free the January 6 Hostages being wrongfully imprisoned! Wednesday March 13, 2024 - European Union (EU) citizens have written protest letters to EU President Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen asking the economic bloc to cancel a trade deal with Kenya. This was revealed by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) on Tuesday, March 12, as the region's Parliament tried to prevail upon the citizens to cease the protests. In their letters, the citizens are calling upon the European Parliament to vote against economic agreements struck between the European Commission and Kenya in December 2023. The European Parliament on February 29, approved the agreement paving the way for its implementation. The citizens have further demanded the cancellation of a similar agreement signed between the EU and the government of Chile during the same period. These citizens are concerned that the agreements would be detrimental to local populations and environmental protection, EPRS noted. EPRS, which provides comprehensive research and analytical support to the Members of the European Parliament, its parliamentary committees, and the European Parliament, noted that the citizens were demanding a review of EU trade policies. However, defending the agreement with Kenya, the EU noted that it would boost bilateral trade, increase investment, contribute to sustainable economic growth, and work towards a green transition away from fossil fuel use. The EU citizens concerns were addressed by being assured that the agreement would ensure climate and environmental protection as well as workers rights and gender equality. Additionally, they were appraised that the agreement was a precursor to strengthening EU relations with Africa. The Kenyan DAILY POST Tuesday, March 12, 2024 Wendy Williams' ex Kevin Hunter is reportedly demanding the star pay two years of back divorce payments because he relies on them for expenses. According to court filings exclusively obtained by The U.S. Sun, Kevin is demanding that payments, which he claimed were agreed to in his and Wendy's Marital Settlement Agreement, resume after they suddenly ceased just before she was placed under guardianship in 2022. In the documents, Kevin said that their out-of-court mediation had failed, and that's why he is bringing their case once again before the court. The father of two told the court, "I rely on the severance pay for my living expenses, and having been without this income for twenty-three months has affected me greatly." Wendy's ex is also asking that the star, via her guardianship, "immediately pay all severance payments which may be due and owing at the time of this Courts Order." Kevin is also seeking to execute documents pertaining to Wendy's AFTRA Retirement Plan. "I also respectfully request that the court compel the Plaintiff to sign the Qualified Domestic Relations Order for the AFTRA Retirement Plan or in the alternative appoint me an Attorney in Fact so that I can execute the document if the Plaintiff does not sign the document within seven (7) days of this Court's Order," he added. "I would not have to file this motion if the plaintiff did not stop my severance payments and if the plaintiff would have signed the qualified domestic relations order for the AFTRA retirement plan." Kevin also urged the court to compel Wendy's team to hand over all the bank records from the date of "dissolution of marriage until current." In the documents, filed last week, Kevin argued he was promised access to his ex's financial records by way of her guardian. "On December 8 2022, I attended a mediation with [Wendy's] counsel and [Wendy's] New York court-appointed guardian attorney Sabrina Morrissey. "In that mediation, [Wendy's] counsel and Guardian agreed to provide statements to accounts and bank records they claimed to have gotten permission from the New York court to provide." 1 of 1 CAA : khaskhabar.com : , 13 2024 11:48 AM There was a soft air of sadness over Clonmel, south Tipperary and, no doubt, parts of county Kilkenny, on Monday last when news came through of the passing of well-known Anne (Nancy) Lennon in her 103rd year. Nancy (nee Tynan), who hailed originally from Muckalee in county Kilkenny, lived for many many years at Powerstown, Clonmel, before taking up residence for the past seven years or so in St Anthonys Unit at Glenconnor, Clonmel. Nancy, who celebrated her 102nd birthday on January 17, was predeceased by her husband Stephen (a Monaghan man originally), and her daughter Deirdre (McSherry). She will always be lovingly remembered by her family Bernard, Jerome, Stephen and Anne Marie (Cosgrave), daughters-in-law, sons-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, extended family, neighbours and friends. Nancy will repose at Fennessys Funeral Home on Thursday from 5 to 7 pm, with removal on Friday morning to St John the Baptist Church, Powerstown, arriving at 11.50 am for requiem Mass at 12 noon. Interment will take place at Lisronagh Cemetery afterwards. In an interview with Eamonn Wynne on the occasion of her 100th birthday in January 2022, Nancy explained her longevity Plenty of fresh air, plain food and hard work are the recipes for a long and happy life, she said. In great form on the day, surrounded by her family, Nancy added: If you dont stay out in the fresh air youre finished. I dont smoke or drink and I like plain food. Although she lived in Clonmel for most of her long and happy life, Nancy was born in Kilkenny and remained a proud Kilkenny woman up to the very end. She was born into a farming family in Julianstown, Castlecomer, on January 17, 1922, at a time when Ireland was enduring the birth pangs of a new nation. She was baptised Anne Nancy Tynan but for the past 102+ years was known to all and sundry, who had the pleasure of knowing her, as Nancy. She came to Clonmel in the early 1940s to help out in the bar of the Ormonde Hotel in Gladstone Street for what she presumed would be a short spell. Little did she know then. Shortly after her arrival she met Stephen Lennon, originally from Tullycara in Castleblayney, Monaghan, who had moved to Clonmel with the army during the Emergency. Nancy and Stephen were married in 1947 and lived for a short time at Kings Close on King Street before setting up home with their family in the old schoolhouse in Powerstown, right opposite the church, in 1952. A few years later they opened a shop at the front of the house selling groceries and newspapers. The shop also sold sweets, which meant it was a popular meeting place for local children on their way home from school. Nancy Lennon celebrating her 100th birthday in 2022 at St Anthonys Unit in Clonmel with her sons and daughter. From left, Stephen, Bernard, Anne Marie and Jerome. Picture: John D Kelly The couple raised a family of five children - Bernard, Jerome, Deirdre (McSherry, who died in 2003), Stephen and Anne Marie (Cosgrave). The couple met when Nancy was assistant manager of the Spanish Arms, the guesthouse and lounge bar near the bus and railway station in Clonmel. One of her colleagues suggested to Nancy that she should go and listen to Stephen speaking, because she couldnt understand his northern Irish accent. As they say, the rest is history. Despite her 80 odd years spent in Clonmel, a hint of a Kilkenny accent was always evident when Nancy spoke. She got the Kilkenny People and The Nationalist every week without fail and read both newspapers from cover to cover, to keep her up to date with all the news and sport from her home county and her adopted county. She also read the Irish Independent daily. I like world affairs and all that but I dont have much time for television. I prefer to read a book, she told Eamonn Wynne back in 2022. Nancy always kept in touch with her relations and friends in Kilkenny, and one of the nicest surprises she received on the occasion of her 100th was a birthday card from her hero, legendary Kilkenny hurler Henry Shefflin, which she treasured almost as much as the letter and cheque she received from President Michael D Higgins on her special birthday. Throughout her life Nancy was actively involved with Powerstown Lisronagh ICA, serving as the branchs president, and also enjoyed her trips to Lourdes, both as a helper and a pilgrim. For her final seven years of life Nancy was a resident of St Anthonys Unit and enjoyed her time there. Its a friendly place and they look after me very well, she always said. Im alright, she smiled when finishing up her chat that day on her 100th birthday. Please God, the man above will leave me here for another while, she said. And indeed, He did. May she rest in peace. A man who asked his sister to sell herself for sex to get him money for drugs set fire to her home when she refused. Glen Friel appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court after pleading guilty to setting fire to his sister's rented home at Straleeny, Killybegs on April 22, 2020. The court heard how the 24-year-old accused arrived at the house and wanted his sister to give him money for drugs and even asked her to sell her body for money and threatened to kill her if she didn't. The terrified woman asked her mother to call Gardai and Friel then managed to barricade himself into the house. His sister left the house which she had rented for five years and he smashed it up and after setting fire to the house, Friel also fled. The house belonged to a local man, Conal Doherty, and was worth 130,000. The court heard that 79,450 of damage was caused to the house and that the contents of the house was not insured. When arrested, Friel made certain admissions and said he wanted to start the fire to bring him "joy and revenge." He told Gardai he was hoping to get revenge on his sister Linda as she had been a bitch to him that day. "I do feel a bit angry but I'm sorry at the same time," he told Gardai. Garda Sergeant Stuart Doyle said Friel admitted starting the fire with a lighter but did not think he had started it in the bedroom of the house as the fire service had suspected. The court was told that Friel, of no fixed abode, has 12 previous convictions including convictions for threatening and abusive behaviour, assault, possession of drugs and intoxication in a public place. The injured party, Mr Doherty, did not want to come to court or give a victim impact statement. The barrister for the accused, Mr Colm Smyth, SC, said his client had a number of issues. He suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after his brother took his own life when Friel was aged just nine and he was also sexually assaulted when he was a young boy. He no longer speaks to his parents and had been living rough in Dublin. Friel, who has been in custody since last October, took to the witness stand and said he was very sorry to the man whose house he destroyed and promised to go to all appointments. Asking Judge John Aylmer to be as lenient as possible, Mr Smyth said his client is indeed a troubled individual with a number of diagnoses including PTSD and a personality disorder. He has expressed a desire to get back on track and engage with various agencies, Mr Smyth adding that if he does not he will end up in a very difficult position and his life will be cut short. "He doesn't immediately give one confidence but I think he has a lot of outlying issues," added his barrister. Judge Aylmer adjourned the case until later in the week requesting time to read the psychiatric report on Friel in more detail. Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said Israels apparent plans for the Gaza Strip after a potential ceasefire are entirely unacceptable. He said he planned to raise the issue with US President Joe Biden this week during a high-profile White House meeting to coincide with St Patricks Day. The Taoiseach also said that Europe and the US would have a role to play in building a Palestinian state after any truce. Mr Varadkar and other ministers are attending events in the US around St Patricks Day. He has said he will use the very special platform with US politicians to give the Irish peoples view that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar said he would try to mention Irish-Palestinian man Zak Hania, who is in Rafah, whose wife has asked for his case to be raised with the US president. He said there had been hundreds of requests for issues to be raised with Mr Biden. I should point out though that Irish citizens in Gaza, our main contact is with Israel and Egyptian governments, as well as the Qataris, he replied. Mr Varadkar said he would be encouraging Mr Biden to redouble efforts the US is making to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Well be encouraging him to redouble efforts in that regard, offering any help we can, but also really want to talk about the day after. I think what were hearing from the Israeli government in terms of what their plans are for Gaza the day after (a ceasefire) are entirely unacceptable. It is an occupied territory, its not Israels right to decide what happens in Gaza, its an occupied territory. America and Europe have a role to play in building a Palestinian state which I think is the only chance that we have of peace and justice. An interesting blog post by a former UK civil servant and special advisor: I'd also note that the vast majority of civil servants I worked with, both as a civil servant and as a SpAd, were committed to impartiality. Concerns are rising about civil service impartiality just look at the regular headlines in the Telegraph or the Daily Mail or, for some more thoughtful articles, see here here, or here, which set out some good reasons for this. When one side starts losing faith rightly or wrongly with an institution that is meant to be impartial, that causes real problems for that institution's ability to continue to exist in that form. Like Caesar's Wife, an impartial institution must be above approach. Those who care most about civil service impartiality should be in the forefront of addressing and rectifying these concerns. Despite promises from the new government to quickly review/replace these bizarre documents it appears that this remains the current official document in NZ that school Boards of Trustees must implement. Relationship and Sexuality education in Years 1 8 This features statements such as: In english, akonga can: critically explore how the diversity of families, schools, and communities is represented in texts explore and critique the representation of gender roles and relationships in texts co-construct ground rules for engaging in critical discussions about text content create oral, visual, or written texts about the roles and relationships within their whanau or family engage in dialogue and debate in the context of provocative online posts linked to relationships, gender, and sexuality In science, akonga can: consider how biological sex has been constructed and measured over time and what this means in relation to people who have variations in sex characteristics consider variations in puberty, including the role of hormone blockers This is for children between 5 and 12 years old (Year 1 8). There is no way they are going to be allowed to be kids. They get the worries of the adult world thrust down upon them and, for the record, i have always felt the sex and sexuality education belongs in the home. What happens in NZ is that when a topic like this comes up a range of self-interest idealogues put their hands up and the Ministry calls them experts and gives them carte blanche. Families/parents and/or representatives of those pillars of society are most certainly not welcome to express their views. The most insidious part of these documents was to spread the content through every learning area so that the ability for parents to withdraw their children was significantly negated. Here is just one example of how the NZ documents are a disaster: Puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones Puberty blockers (gonadotrophin-releasing hormone analogues) are not available to children and young people for gender incongruence or gender dysphoria because there is not enough evidence of safety and clinical effectiveness. From the age of 16, teenagers who've been on hormone blockers for at least 12 months may be given cross-sex hormones, also known as gender-affirming hormones. These hormones cause some irreversible changes, such as: breast development (caused by taking oestrogen) breaking or deepening of the voice (caused by taking testosterone) Long-term cross-sex hormone treatment may cause temporary or even permanent infertility. However, as cross-sex hormones affect people differently, they should not be considered a reliable form of contraception. There is some uncertainty about the risks of long-term cross-sex hormone treatment. Children, young people and their families are strongly discouraged from getting puberty blockers or gender affirming hormones from unregulated sources or online providers that are not regulated by UK regulatory bodies. (www.nhs.uk/conditions/gender-dysphoria/treatment/) Parents must be the key agents of all things to do with sex/sexuality in NZ. The State/Ministry has no role to play. Time for parents to be in touch with the Minister on this. Alwyn Poole Innovative Education Consultants www.innovativeeducation.co.nz alwynpoole.substack.com www.linkedin.com/in/alwyn-poole-16b02151/ www.wood2water.co.nz www.russellinfo.co.nz Share this: Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp More Pinterest Print Tumblr Shenandoah, IA (51601) Today Cloudy skies early with scattered thunderstorms developing late. Low 46F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%.. Tonight Cloudy skies early with scattered thunderstorms developing late. Low 46F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 60%. Naloxone is a life-saving medication that can reverse an overdose from opioids including heroin, fentanyl, and prescription opioid medications when given in time. Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are expected to clinch their respective parties 2024 nominations, with voting taking place in four additional states. Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (NYSEARCA:GHYB Get Free Report)s stock price rose 0.1% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $44.07 and last traded at $44.01. Approximately 8,781 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 21,614 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.95. Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF Price Performance The companys fifty day moving average is $43.93 and its 200-day moving average is $43.07. Get Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF alerts: Institutional Investors Weigh In On Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GHYB. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 1,949.7% in the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 747,793 shares of the companys stock worth $31,280,000 after purchasing an additional 711,310 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 1,521.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 62,393 shares of the companys stock worth $2,712,000 after purchasing an additional 58,544 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF in the first quarter worth approximately $2,462,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its holdings in Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 13.1% in the third quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 367,346 shares of the companys stock worth $15,464,000 after purchasing an additional 42,649 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF by 2.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,379,406 shares of the companys stock worth $65,149,000 after purchasing an additional 34,947 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF Company Profile The Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (GHYB) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in high yield fixed income. The fund tracks a broad-maturity, USD-denominated, high-yield corporate bond index selected by debt service and leverage. GHYB was launched on Sep 5, 2017 and is managed by Goldman Sachs. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Goldman Sachs Access High Yield Corporate Bond ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Invesco Bond Fund (NYSE:VBF Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of 0.065 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. Invesco Bond Fund has raised its dividend by an average of 2.5% annually over the last three years. Get Invesco Bond Fund alerts: Invesco Bond Fund Trading Up 0.5 % Shares of VBF stock opened at $15.45 on Wednesday. Invesco Bond Fund has a 1 year low of $13.68 and a 1 year high of $16.33. The firms 50 day moving average is $15.68 and its 200-day moving average is $15.10. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Invesco Bond Fund Invesco Bond Fund Company Profile A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of VBF. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in shares of Invesco Bond Fund during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in shares of Invesco Bond Fund by 108.3% during the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 3,228 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,678 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Invesco Bond Fund during the first quarter worth approximately $198,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Invesco Bond Fund by 26.6% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 41,539 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $601,000 after buying an additional 8,734 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Invesco Bond Fund by 35.1% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 48,400 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $746,000 after buying an additional 12,586 shares during the last quarter. 31.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. (Get Free Report) Invesco Bond Fund is a close ended fixed income mutual fund launched by Invesco Ltd. The fund is co-managed by Invesco Advisers, Inc, INVESCO Asset Management (Japan) Limited, INVESCO Asset Management Deutschland GmbH, INVESCO Asset Management Limited, Invesco Hong Kong Limited, INVESCO Senior Secured Management, Inc, and Invesco Canada Ltd. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Invesco Bond Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Invesco Bond Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Myers Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MYE Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.135 per share by the industrial products company on Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. Myers Industries has a dividend payout ratio of 32.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Myers Industries to earn $1.40 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.54 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.6%. Get Myers Industries alerts: Myers Industries Stock Up 1.1 % Shares of MYE opened at $21.17 on Wednesday. Myers Industries has a 52 week low of $15.65 and a 52 week high of $21.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $780.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.04 and a beta of 1.29. The businesss fifty day moving average price is $19.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.38. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Myers Industries ( NYSE:MYE Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.03. Myers Industries had a return on equity of 18.55% and a net margin of 6.01%. The business had revenue of $191.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $191.60 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Myers Industries will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year. Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MYE shares. KeyCorp raised their price target on Myers Industries from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. StockNews.com raised Myers Industries from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Read Our Latest Research Report on MYE Institutional Trading of Myers Industries Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 0.8% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 481,551 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $10,402,000 after acquiring an additional 3,665 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 12.0% during the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 31,112 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $672,000 after acquiring an additional 3,340 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 51.5% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 20,664 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 7,025 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 1.9% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 98,848 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $2,135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,852 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its holdings in shares of Myers Industries by 14.1% during the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 31,242 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $675,000 after acquiring an additional 3,852 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.57% of the companys stock. About Myers Industries (Get Free Report) Myers Industries, Inc engages in distribution of tire service supplies in Ohio. It operates through two segments, The Material Handling and Distribution. The Material Handling segment offers pallets, small parts bins, bulk shipping containers, and OEM parts, as well as storage and organization, and custom plastic products; and injection molded, rotationally molded or blow molded products, consumer fuel containers and tanks for water, fuel, and waste handling. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Myers Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Myers Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio (NYSE:NXN Get Free Report) announced a monthly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of 0.041 per share on Monday, April 1st. This represents a $0.49 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio Stock Performance NXN opened at $11.66 on Wednesday. Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio has a 1-year low of $10.64 and a 1-year high of $12.45. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $11.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.56. Get Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio alerts: Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NXN. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 12,000 shares of the companys stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 2,024 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio by 76.1% during the 2nd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 12,191 shares of the companys stock valued at $142,000 after acquiring an additional 5,267 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 14,548 shares of the companys stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 1,327 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 14,662 shares of the companys stock valued at $177,000 after acquiring an additional 2,958 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio by 80.8% during the 3rd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 19,147 shares of the companys stock valued at $212,000 after acquiring an additional 8,554 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio Company Profile Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio is a closed-ended fixed income mutual fund launched by Nuveen Investments Inc The fund is co-managed by Nuveen Fund Advisors LLC and Nuveen Asset Management, LLC. It invests in the fixed income markets of New York. The fund invests in the securities of companies that operate across diversified sectors. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Nuveen New York Select Tax-Free Income Portfolio and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Sabine Royalty Trust (NYSE:SBR Get Free Report) announced a monthly dividend on Tuesday, March 5th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.411 per share by the energy company on Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $4.93 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.85%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. Sabine Royalty Trust Trading Up 2.3 % Shares of SBR stock opened at $62.80 on Wednesday. Sabine Royalty Trust has a 12-month low of $55.60 and a 12-month high of $81.42. The firms 50 day moving average is $62.53 and its 200 day moving average is $63.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $915.62 million, a P/E ratio of 10.15 and a beta of 0.51. Get Sabine Royalty Trust alerts: Institutional Inflows and Outflows Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Sabine Royalty Trust by 6,062.5% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 493 shares of the energy companys stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sabine Royalty Trust during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. State of Wyoming boosted its stake in shares of Sabine Royalty Trust by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,511 shares of the energy companys stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 739 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sabine Royalty Trust during the 4th quarter worth $245,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sabine Royalty Trust during the 2nd quarter valued at $306,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.97% of the companys stock. About Sabine Royalty Trust Sabine Royalty Trust holds royalty and mineral interests in various producing oil and gas properties in the United States. Its royalty and mineral interests include landowner's royalties, overriding royalty interests, minerals, production payments, and other similar non-participatory interest in certain producing and proved undeveloped oil and gas properties located in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Sabine Royalty Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Sabine Royalty Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE:SD Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, March 5th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.11 per share by the oil and natural gas company on Friday, March 29th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. SandRidge Energy Trading Up 0.1 % SD opened at $13.40 on Wednesday. The firms fifty day simple moving average is $13.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.45. SandRidge Energy has a 12 month low of $11.51 and a 12 month high of $17.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $497.15 million, a P/E ratio of 8.17 and a beta of 2.12. Get SandRidge Energy alerts: SandRidge Energy (NYSE:SD Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 6th. The oil and natural gas company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter. SandRidge Energy had a net margin of 40.94% and a return on equity of 14.50%. The company had revenue of $33.93 million for the quarter. Institutional Trading of SandRidge Energy Analyst Ratings Changes A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SandRidge Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,918,892 shares of the oil and natural gas companys stock worth $26,231,000 after acquiring an additional 235,372 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in SandRidge Energy by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 81,383 shares of the oil and natural gas companys stock valued at $1,113,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in SandRidge Energy by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 38,710 shares of the oil and natural gas companys stock valued at $530,000 after acquiring an additional 11,480 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its position in SandRidge Energy by 161.9% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 63,031 shares of the oil and natural gas companys stock valued at $860,000 after acquiring an additional 38,968 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its position in SandRidge Energy by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 289,707 shares of the oil and natural gas companys stock valued at $3,960,000 after acquiring an additional 17,064 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.81% of the companys stock. Separately, TheStreet downgraded shares of SandRidge Energy from a b rating to a c+ rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Read Our Latest Stock Report on SandRidge Energy SandRidge Energy Company Profile (Get Free Report) SandRidge Energy, Inc engages in the acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas primarily in the United States Mid-Continent. As of December 31, 2022, it had an interest in 1,471 gross producing wells. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. See Also Receive News & Ratings for SandRidge Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for SandRidge Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. CBD of Denver Inc. (OTCMKTS:CBDD Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 316,600 shares, a decline of 53.7% from the February 14th total of 683,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 14,627,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days. CBD of Denver Stock Performance Shares of OTCMKTS CBDD remained flat at $0.00 during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The company had a trading volume of 15,573,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,968,813. CBD of Denver has a twelve month low of $0.00 and a twelve month high of $0.00. Get CBD of Denver alerts: About CBD of Denver (Get Free Report) Featured Articles CBD of Denver Inc engages in developing and commercializing cannabidiol (CBD) products. It is involved in the research, development, and distribution of premium hemp extract products. The company was formerly known as Verde Media Group, Inc and changed its name to CBD of Denver Inc in 2018. CBD of Denver Inc is based in Centennial, Colorado. Receive News & Ratings for CBD of Denver Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for CBD of Denver and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its position in Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON Free Report) by 15.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,565 shares of the industrial products companys stock after buying an additional 2,545 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLCs holdings in Sonoco Products were worth $1,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC. Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SON. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Sonoco Products by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 65,349 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $4,088,000 after buying an additional 7,130 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 14,286 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $894,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 23,239 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $1,454,000 after purchasing an additional 4,281 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 164.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 43,701 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $2,744,000 after purchasing an additional 27,157 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of Sonoco Products by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 274,058 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $17,145,000 after purchasing an additional 3,941 shares during the period. 76.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Sonoco Products alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets Several research firms recently commented on SON. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sonoco Products from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Sonoco Products from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, TheStreet cut Sonoco Products from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $61.50. Insider Activity In related news, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $604,065.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,456 shares of the companys stock, valued at $774,123.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jeffrey S. Tomaszewski sold 10,500 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.53, for a total transaction of $604,065.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,456 shares of the companys stock, valued at $774,123.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Adam Wood sold 537 shares of Sonoco Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.04, for a total value of $30,630.48. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 28,273 shares in the company, valued at $1,612,691.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 13,076 shares of company stock valued at $749,002. Company insiders own 0.51% of the companys stock. Sonoco Products Stock Performance SON stock traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.07. The company had a trading volume of 290,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,216. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.69. Sonoco Products has a one year low of $49.98 and a one year high of $63.74. The stocks 50-day simple moving average is $57.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.49. Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The industrial products company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. Sonoco Products had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 22.42%. The businesss quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Sonoco Products will post 5.25 EPS for the current year. Sonoco Products Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Sonoco Productss dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.50%. Sonoco Products Company Profile (Free Report) Sonoco Products Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company operates through two segments: Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SON? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Sonoco Products (NYSE:SON Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Sonoco Products Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Sonoco Products and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. The United States will send a new military aid package for Ukraine worth $300 million, President Joe Biden's administration said on Tuesday, the first such move in months as additional funds for Kyiv remain blocked by Republican leaders in Congress. The White House has been scrambling to find ways to send more military assistance given the situation on the battlefield and the resistance to the funding from Republican hardliners. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the funding was coming from unanticipated cost savings from Pentagon contracts and would be used for artillery rounds and munitions for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS). "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sullivan told reporters, adding it may only be helpful to Ukraine for a couple of weeks. "It is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs and it will not prevent Ukraine from running out of ammunition," Sullivan said. The new weapons package was first reported by Reuters earlier on Tuesday. Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder said the package included anti-aircraft missiles and artillery rounds. He said providing weapons to Ukraine through Pentagon contract savings was likely a one-time situation and not a sustainable way of funding Kyiv. The last drawdown was in December 2023 when funds to replenish stocks fell to zero. U.S. officials have also looked at options for seizing some $285 billion in Russian assets immobilized in 2022 and using the money to pay for Ukraine weaponry. The announcement came as Polands president and prime minister meet President Joe Biden at the White House later on Tuesday to talk about ways to bolster support for Ukraine. "Financial support for Ukraine is cheap considering what the other support could be," Polish President Andrzej Duda told reporters. Using the funds that have been returned to replenish stocks opens a narrow window to allow more aid to be sent from existing stocks as the Biden administration waits for supplemental funding to be passed by lawmakers. Biden, a Democrat, has backed military aid to Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, while his likely Republican opponent in the Nov. 5 U.S. election, former President Donald Trump, has a more isolationist stance. Republican House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, an ally of Trump, has so far refused to call a vote on a bill that would provide $60 billion more for Ukraine. The measure has passed the Democratic-run Senate, and both Republicans and Democrats in the House say it would pass if the chamber's Republican leaders allowed a vote. Leaders of U.S. intelligence agencies pressed members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday to approve additional military assistance for Ukraine, saying it would not only boost Kyiv as it fights Russia but discourage Chinese aggression. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that the situation along the front of the country's war with Russia was the best in three months, with Moscow's troops no longer advancing after their capture last month of the eastern city of Avdiivka. Zelenskyy, in an interview with France's BFM television, said Ukraine had improved its strategic position despite shortages of weaponry, but suggested the situation could change again if new supplies were not forthcoming. He said earlier that Russia is preparing a new offensive against Ukraine starting in late May or summer. Zelenskyy has said 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since February 2022. Russia's capture of Avdiivka gave the Kremlin's forces breathing room in defending the Russian-held regional center of Donetsk, 20 kilometers (12 miles) to the east. Earlier this month, a top military commander said Ukrainian troops were forced to leave several settlements neighboring Avdiivka due to Russia's continued offensive amid its own depleting stockpiles of munitions. Denmark will provide a new military aid package including Caesar artillery systems and ammunition to Ukraine worth around 2.3 billion Danish crowns ($336.6 million), the Danish Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. European Union countries are set to agree on a new 5 billion-euro ($5.46 billion) top-up to a fund used to finance military shipments to Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing four officials briefed on the discussions. (Reuters) Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. BTS Jungkook's massive Calvin Klein billboards are taking the world by storm, and for a truly unexpected reason. A Global Phenomenon Ever since Jungkook became the face of Calvin Klein, fans have been captivated by his unparalleled charm and striking visuals. The latest photos released by the brand for their spring collection have only added fuel to the fire, with Jungkook's handsome features showcased against the backdrop of New York's Grand Central Station. Worldwide Billboard Blitz Calvin Klein hasn't held back in promoting their collaboration with Jungkook. Giant billboards featuring the idol have popped up in multiple locations across the globe, becoming must-see attractions for any die-hard BTS fan. Jungkook Calvin klein ad in busan pic.twitter.com/S4UBU77kDn March 10, 2024 Jungkook really the face of "Calvin Klein"....!!! That brand treat him with some respect . pic.twitter.com/3flMxCBNca Only me() (@Bunnybear_4evr) March 6, 2024 ARMYs Take Center Stage However, it's not just the billboards themselves that are making waves-it's the reactions they're provoking. ARMYs, the devoted fanbase of BTS, have been flooding social media with photos of themselves gathering in large groups in front of the towering advertisements, all sporting expressions of pure excitement and joy at the sight of Jungkook's face. Omg huge Jungkook CK ad in Mexico in the daylight pic.twitter.com/7ExTJDcGLj JK GOLDEN (@jeonlver97) March 11, 2024 I'M CRYING JUNGKOOK NEED TO SEE THIS pic.twitter.com/ig5nuiPQZk missing Tannies (@yoonglssss) March 11, 2024 But seriously where is the line.. lemme join pic.twitter.com/2gifsNCx0R JK DAILY (@Daily_JKUpdate) March 12, 2024 Netizens have been quick to note the humorous and heartwarming ways in which ARMYs are responding to these colossal displays. READ ALSO: BTS Jungkook's 'GOLDEN' Becomes Longest-Charting K-pop Solo Album in Billboard 200 Netizens' Reactions Here are the sentiments of fans to the BTS ARMY's recent actions regarding the BTS Jungkook billboard. "Jungkook got everyone on their knees (including me)" "I just want to know his reaction after seeing these photos" "Sorry guys, I was there too" "why everyone want to touch my bf??" "If jk see this pic? Hehehe" "#CalvinKlein we're gonna need more of these big ads worldwide. Thank you!" "If i were there i would be worshipping him too" "I want to join too" With the sheer size of the billboards and Jungkook's undeniable charisma, it seems inevitable that this could be the start of a viral trend among fans. Could it be that these billboards will become the ultimate gathering spots for ARMYs worldwide? Only time will tell if reacting to Jungkook with a crowd of friends will become the next big thing among BTS enthusiasts. But one thing's for sure-wherever Jungkook's face appears, you can bet that ARMYs won't be far behind, ready to turn it into a moment to remember. YOU MIGHT BE ALSO INTERESTED IN: BTS Jungkook Breaks Silence on the INTENSE Pressure He Faces Daily For more K-Pop news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz. KpopStarz owns this article. Written by Cassidy Jones. HYBE is currently being slammed by netizens due to one of its screening locations for BTS Suga's upcoming "D-DAY" movie. Here's what happened. HYBE Under Fire for Showing BTS Suga's 'D-DAY' Movie in Israel Earlier on March 6, Suga officially announced that he would be releasing a feature film titled, "Agust D Tour 'D-DAY' THE MOVIE." The upcoming movie will recount the events that transpired during the rapper's "D-DAY" world tour, which spanned across the United States, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, and South Korea. According to sources, the film will be released in theaters and IMAX around the globe on April 10 and 13. Furthermore, the tickets have already started on March 12, which fueled the excitement of ARMYs further. On the same day (March 12), HYBE Labels released more details about the film screenings, along with its dates and schedules. The company also announced which countries the movie would be shown in, and while the reveal aimed to hype fans, some locations weren't well-received. On the film's official website, fans spotted Israel as one of the screening locations for "D-DAY," sparking flak among disgruntled netters. The sentiment comes from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine in the Gaza Strip. Under 'participating territories'. Yeah there is no excuse in the world to justify this. It's plain disgusting https://t.co/Y21sFqCuXq pic.twitter.com/PUWZrUlm23 nami ia ish (@jjkmacity) March 12, 2024 YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: BTS Suga Breaks Down During 'D-Day' World Tour Closing Performance - What Happened? The situation has since raised global awareness regarding the death toll that accumulated from the conflict, as well as igniting numerous boycotts of well-known services or food brands. Upon seeing the screening list containing Israel, fans took their thoughts on social media platform X (Twitter) to vent out against HYBE. They accused HYBE of "prioritizing profit" over human lives and expressed disgust over the company's selection. Read their reactions below: In other news, Suga managed to secure multiple achievements with his song "Haegeum." The song is from the idol's debut solo album "D-DAY," which was released on April 21, 2023. In May 2023, "Haegeum" made its first-ever entry on Billboard's Hot 100 by securing No. 58. The song also charted at the No. 1 spot on Billboard's Digital Song Sales Chart. Outside of Billboard, the song also debuted on the United Kingdom's Official Charts in April 2023. Read more about his achievements here! What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments below! Read KpopStarz for more K-pop news. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: BTS Suga's 'Haegeum' Debuts on Billboard Hot 100 + Dominates on Digital Song Sales Chart KpopStarz owns this article Written by Riely Miller In a recent Thai talk show, it revealed that a certain someone exposed (G)I-DLE Minnie for ignoring her calls. As a response, the idol claimed that it was Lisa and explained what really happened, drawing laughter from BLINKs and Nevies. Recently, the Thai-K-pop idol (G)I-DLE Minnie was invited to appear on "Woody Sing," a talk show hosted by the well-known MC Vuthithorn Milintachinda, also known as Woody. On this day, the two dished on Minnie's personality and while on the topic, Woody mentioned how someone exposed her to missing calls and never calling back. BLACKPINK Lisa Complains About Minnie Never Calling Her Back, Minnie Explains Why During the show, Minnie confessed that she's bad at replying to messages, and while on the topic, MC Woody brought up an anecdote that he received from a certain friend. Woody said: "I don't want to be gossiping, but I have this one friend, and she gave me some information. She said, 'Minnie, she never texted me back. I called her three times and she never picked up the phone.'" Giggling, Minnie denied it and asked who the person was: "Who's that? I normally answer my phone calls." Woody: I dont want to be gossiping.. but theres one of my friends.. Minnie: Who? W: And she gave me some informations.. M: Abou what..? W: She said, MINNIE, she never text me back. I called her 3 times and she never pick up her phone.. M: Whos that? I normally pic.twitter.com/BsJuCaCZoj March 12, 2024 ALSO READ: GOT7 BamBam, (G)I-DLE Minnie Recall How They First Met Through BLACKPINK Lisa While MC Woody refused to mention a name, Minnie mouthed BLACKPINK's Lisa name and explained why she ignored the global idol's phone texts and calls, saying: "(It must be Lisa) No, I do answer calls, but if I'm busy, I won't. But I will call them back. Not right away... maybe... when I'm free." K-pop Fans Find BLACKPINK Lisa & (G)I-DLE Minnie's Friendship Hilarious Following the broadcast, this certain snippet circulated on the X platform and BLINKs (BLACKPINK fans) as well as Neverlands ((G)I-DLE fandom) can't help but be impressed by the friendship of the OG members of the "Thai-line" Lisa and Minnie. Fans were emphasizing that regardless of Lisa's status as a global star and her role as Minnie's senior idol, they are just both 97-liners who are best friends at the end of the day, explaining their comfortable and strong friendship. Normal bestfriends.sometimes besties ghosting each other n thats really fine https://t.co/cr7Gx8zR9M Say who (@sbhs_m6) March 12, 2024 thats a real friendship tbh https://t.co/fno5y32Va1 (@planetidle) March 12, 2024 With this, BLINKs were also teasing Lisa, pointing out that she's the clingy type among a circle of friends, whereas, Minnie is the nonchalant one. so she's the type of friend who will spam you with calls and text until you reply to her https://t.co/roY5TyZbeC 327.0820 LLOUD (@aasahiblue) March 12, 2024 Oh so Lisa's that kind of friend ??? https://t.co/OWY8SMa4Ug LLOUD (@DxedWr0ngB) March 12, 2024 In fact, Nevies further exposed Minnie that Lisa wasn't the only unfortunate victim of the star's habit of not calling back, but even her co-(G)I-DLE members also complained before of not getting any reply or call from the star. Yuqi and Miyeon complaint many times that "Minnie never text back or answer calls" now it's Lisa's time to complaint https://t.co/CxgCj0muiH (@_Myinn_) March 12, 2024 So it not happened to only idle members but with Lisa too? Hahahahahahahaha https://t.co/Ox8q0nlfGG JSYQ WIFE is SUPER LADY (@windy_wooks) March 12, 2024 Hilariously, Minnie is not alone with this one, since some Nevies confessed that they are also like her who's used to not calling or replying to someone unless they are free. POOR LISA I FEEL YOU MINNIE BECAUSE I ALSO DO THIS OFTEN, BUT LISA MY LOVE, YOU CAN CALL ME AND TEXT ME ANYTIME YOU WANT, I WILL ALWAYS IMMEDIATELY ANSWER A CALL FROM YOU https://t.co/9s559ihCea pic.twitter.com/PB20h5eUQ4 (@lilishoudini) March 12, 2024 READ MORE: TWICE Jihyo Reveals How She Became Friends With BLACKPINK Lisa & (G)I-DLE Minnie For more K-Pop news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz. KpopStarz owns this article. Written by Eunice Dawson. 70 million for Africa's Great Lakes region As the Great Lakes region of Africa is suffering from major humanitarian crises caused by conflict, violence and natural disasters, the Commission is announcing new humanitarian aid worth almost 70 million. This EU funding will support projects addressing gender-based violence, support to Education in Emergencies, and disaster preparedness. Out of the total amount, 63,75 million are allocated for humanitarian projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including 4,75 million for disaster risk reduction. This is in addition to the 1.7 million allocated earlier this year in response to the floods in the country. A further 6 million is allocated to the Burundi regional refugee response, providing humanitarian aid to Burundi refugees in neighbouring countries (including Rwanda and Tanzania) as well as returnees to Burundi. Background In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, fighting in the east of the country has caused further displacements, and due to the M23 insurgency alone more than 1.6 million people are currently displaced there. In recent months, the escalation of this conflict has caused further suffering and hampered the delivery of humanitarian assistance. Civilians caught up in the violence suffer systematic violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, including targeted attacks against civilians and high levels of gender-based violence (GBV). Sexual violence and exploitation have reached unprecedented levels, including around camps for internally displaced persons, where women and children have been forced to engage in various forms of survival sex due to inexistent livelihood possibilities and insufficient humanitarian aid. Prevalent food insecurity in the country has resulted in approximately 26 million people being food insecure, one of the highest numbers in the world. The situation in Burundi is more conducive to refugee returns since the 2020 elections. However, the absorption capacity for sustainable reintegration of returnees remains insufficient due to a lack of socio-economic opportunities for returnees, while at the same time food ration cuts had to be implemented in 2023 in refugee camps across the region due to funding shortfalls. For more information: EU Humanitarian Aid to Burundi EU Humanitarian Aid to the DRC Quote The humanitarian situation in the Great Lakes region is desperate and is expected to deteriorate further in 2024, as the conflict intensifies and the root causes of violence persist. Already we have seen a significant deterioration in the security situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with devastating effects on civilians. Gender-based violence, and violations of International Humanitarian Law, are especially prevalent in the region. The EUs humanitarian funding will contribute towards alleviating the suffering of the most vulnerable. However, I also call urgently on all parties to conflicts to respect IHL and the rights of civilians. Janez Lenarcic, Commissioner for Crisis Management 2024-03-12 Zarazeno st 13.03.2024 12:03:00 Zdroj Evropska komise en Original ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/documents?reference=IP/24/1422&language=en lang en guid /IP/24/1422/ BEIJING, March 12 (Xinhuanet) -- The "two sessions" offer the international community new opportunities to learn more about China and enhance cooperation with China, said Serbian Ambassador to China Maja Stefanovic. The "two sessions" are of utmost importance not only for China, but for the world at large. They serve as a window to learn more about Chinese development, foreign policy and development objectives and targets for the next period, the ambassador said in a recent written interview with Xinhuanet. The "two sessions" refer to the annual sessions of China's top legislature and political advisory body. Stefanovic said she has been closely following the "two sessions" as always. "The decisions made at the sessions will greatly influence the cooperation of China with other countries, while the proposed economic targets will also have an impact on global economic development," she said. Chinese modernization remains a buzzword during this year's "two sessions". Stefanovic said that other countries in the world can learn a lot from the Chinese path of modernization, which is based on peaceful development, win-win cooperation and common prosperity. "In pursuing its own path of modernization, China is also offering to other countries the opportunity to reap the benefits of joint development, based on the principle of equality," the ambassador said. She hailed China's victory in eradicating absolute poverty as "a significant step in development," adding that it has made a positive impact on decreasing global poverty at large. Speaking of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Stefanovic said, "We believe the prospects of this initiative are bright, since it is based on a win-win approach and it is focused on strengthening cooperation between different regions of the world." Many high-level projects have been implemented under the BRI framework in Serbia, said the ambassador. In her opinion, the most outstanding project is the modernization of the railway between Serbia and Hungary. The Belgrade-Novi Sad section of the railway was put into operation in March 2022, carrying passengers at a speed of up to 200 km per hour. Stefanovic also mentioned the free trade agreement (FTA) signed by China and Serbia in Beijing in October 2023, saying that this FTA gives an important impetus in increasing the trade volume between the two sides. Exports of agricultural products and direct flights between the two sides are key areas benefited by the FTA, she said. Moreover, Stefanovic said Serbia has focused on strengthening cooperation with China in the fields of science and technology, innovations, and renewable energy, where China has emerged as a major proponent. PNN Georgia [US], March 13: In a significant culinary coup, The Yellow Chilli, Johns Creek premier Indian restaurant, proudly welcomes the renowned Chef Vikas Deep Rathour as its new Executive Chef. With an illustrious career spanning over 23 years, Chef Rathour brings a wealth of culinary expertise, a passion for Indian cuisine, and a commitment to innovation to his new role, promising to elevate The Yellow Chilli to new heights of gastronomic excellence. Also Read | Fintech Firm Perfios Becomes India's Second 'Unicorn of 2024' As It Raises USD 80 Million in New Funding Round. Chef Vikas Deep Rathour has earned global acclaim for his extraordinary culinary prowess and his distinctive ability to reimagine traditional Indian dishes with unparalleled creativity and flair. Throughout his career, he has continually pushed the boundaries of culinary innovation, mastering the intricacies of Indian regional cuisine and setting new standards for menu development. Prior to joining The Yellow Chilli, Chef Rathour served as the Culinary Manager at Mehfil Restaurant in Asheville, North Carolina. There, he played a pivotal role in orchestrating culinary operations, spearheading menu innovations, and upholding the highest standards of quality and hygiene. His experiences have prepared him well for his new role, where he is set to lead The Yellow Chilli's culinary team to new heights of success. Also Read | Harry Brook Pulls Out of IPL 2024 Due to Personal Reasons, Delhi Capitals Yet to Name Replacement: Report. Chef Vikas Deep Rathour's journey in the culinary world has been marked by a dedication to excellence and a passion for the art and science of cooking. His impressive resume includes stints at prestigious five-star hotels in New Delhi, such as The Lalit Hotel, Radisson Hotel, Claridges, Crown Plaza, and more. Chef Rathour's culinary journey extends beyond borders, with active participation in events hosted by the embassies of Britain, the United States, Germany, and other global locations, showcasing his ability to represent Indian cuisine on an international stage. His involvement as a jury member in events like Rasoi ke Dhurandhar, organized by IBCA, highlights Chef Rathour's commitment to nurturing aspiring chefs and recognizing culinary excellence. Furthermore, his role as a jury member in the Trade Test events of 2017 and 2018 underscores his dedication to evaluating and promoting culinary skills. Beyond his culinary engagements, Chef Vikas Deep Rathour has made significant contributions to culinary education. His role as a jury member at the British Columbia College of Management reflects his passion for encouraging and shaping the next generation of chefs. Chef Rathour's dedication to promoting and encouraging young talents to join the culinary field showcases his commitment to the growth and development of aspiring chefs. In his capacity as Executive Chef at The Yellow Chilli, Chef Vikas Deep Rathour will lead the culinary team, overseeing menu conceptualization and development. His role extends to ensuring meticulous standards of food quality and presentation, promising to enchant diners with his innovative culinary creations. "It is an absolute honor for me to join The Yellow Chilli family and have the privilege of showcasing the rich tapestry of Indian flavors to the discerning palates of the Atlanta community," expressed Chef Rathour. "I am deeply passionate about the art of cooking and am committed to delivering unparalleled culinary experiences that will captivate and delight our guests at The Yellow Chilli." Chef Vikas Deep Rathour, With his unparalleled expertise and commitment to excellence, Chef Rathour is poised to take The Yellow Chilli to new culinary heights, offering guests an unforgettable journey through the diverse and exquisite flavors of Indian cuisine. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) PRNewswire Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 13: The House of Abhinandan Lodha is set to redefine the real estate product evangelizing landscape with the groundbreaking first-of-its-kind app only launch of Imperial Goa, a luxurious 13-acre development starring one of the city's finest Clubhouses. This revolutionary approach to property acquisition will offer discerning connoisseurs with the extraordinary opportunity to secure their bit of Goan paradise at Imperial Goa through the exclusive HoABL app. The limited-time offer, available until March 17, 2024, presents a special app-only exclusive price for the first 12 plots, setting a new standard in the industry. Also Read | Elon Musk Says AI Will Be Smarter Than Any Single Human by Next Year. The regular price for a 3200 sq ft space is set at INR 2.48 cr., whereas an exclusive app-only price is available at an unmissable and lucrative price of INR 2.29 cr. This limited-period opportunity provides a significant cost advantage for those utilizing the dedicated application, making it a compelling opportunity for prospective buyers. This unprecedented offering not only boasts of an attractive price but also introduces an innovative payment structure. Customers opting to purchase through the HoABL app will only be required to pay an application fee of INR 99,000, making the acquisition process seamless and financially advantageous. Nestled within the embrace of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Imperial Goa, the former capital of the Portuguese state in India (1530-1843), is a hub of historical grandeur. Boasting forts, monuments, and revered churches like the Basilica of Bom Jesus, this prime location in Bainguinim offers unparalleled accessibility. Positioned strategically on the highway, Imperial Goa ensures one can effortlessly navigate the vibrant tapestry of Goa, from bustling party hubs to serene encounters with nature. With expansive 3,200 sq.ft. villa plots a magnificent clubhouse - Club Verve, and proximity to iconic landmarks, it's a gateway to the wonders of connectivity. Also Read | Mumbai: Mother Kills Daughter for Dating Drug Addict, Tries to Pass Off as Death Due to Severe Asthma Attack; Arrested. Speaking on this first of its kind innovation, Samujjwal Ghosh, Chief Executive Officer, The House of Abhinandan Lodha, said, "The app-only launch for Imperial Goa is a strategic move aimed at enhancing the purchasing experience for our clients. The exclusive pricing on the HoABL app underscores our commitment to providing a competitive edge for our customers. Imperial Goa represents a lucrative investment opportunity, and this app-only offer is a testament to our dedication to delivering exceptional value and a seamless transaction process. As a consumer tech company, HoABL recognizes the pivotal role our app plays. Beyond ownership applications, it empowers customers to track development, payment schedules, and more. Our app addresses traditional land ownership concerns, ensuring security, transparency, liquidity, and wealth generation." The Imperial Goa project is strategically located to offer breathtaking views, world-class amenities, and a lifestyle that echoes sophistication. This groundbreaking app-only launch marks a milestone in the real estate industry, setting the House of Abhinandan Lodha apart as pioneers of change. The limited offer on the first 12 plots is expected to create a buzz among potential buyers, urging them to act swiftly and secure their dream property at an unprecedented price. For more information on Imperial Goa and the exclusive app-only offer, visit https://hoabl.com/ or download the HoABL app from your preferred app store (available for both Android and IOS users). About The House of Abhinandan Lodha: The House of Abhinandan Lodha (HoABL), India's largest branded land developer, is a new-age consumer-tech company pioneering New Generation Land in India. This bellwether venture by Abhinandan Lodha, born out of a vision to democratize land for investors, is transforming land ownership in India by leveraging technology. HoABL aims to transform the process of owning land for a consumer by making it easy, secure, and liquid while ensuring that it becomes a critical part of people's investment portfolio. With fully digital sales, HoABL has made the entire consumer buying journey location agnostic, making it possible to buy land from anywhere in the world. HoABL has built a first-of-its-kind technology product in India that will simplify the process of land buying for customers. The HoABL app - a first not only in India but globally too - will give customers the ability to invest in land parcels that The House of Abhinandan Lodha has to offer, chart their land buying journey from start to finish and manage their portfolio effortlessly. Media Contact: Vishal Raovishal.rao@lodhaventures.com+91-9819258963 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2257232/4589438/HoABL_Logo.jpg (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PRNewswire. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Italian Secretary General of Defence and National Armament Director Lt Gen Luciano Portolano co-chaired the 10th India-Italy Joint Defence Committee meeting here on Wednesday during which both sides discussed a wide range of defence industrial and military cooperation issues. During the meeting, they also exchanged views on the Indo-Pacific and the security situations, according to a statement issued by the Indian defence ministry. Also Read | Bombay High Court Refuses To Quash Penalty Imposed on CISF Officer for Misconduct, Says Knocking Woman's Door at Midnight for Lemon Preposterous and Unbecoming. "Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and Italian Secretary General of Defence and National Armament Director Lt Gen Luciano Portolano co-chaired the 10th India-Italy Joint Defence Committee (JDC) meeting in New Delhi on March 13," it said. Both sides discussed a wide range of defence industrial and military cooperation issues, officials said. Also Read | Contractual Marriage Tragedy: Man Dies by Suicide Over Harassment by Wife, In-Laws for Money in Punjabs Barnala. The focus of the meeting was to "enhance defence industrial cooperation," they said. India and Italy signed an agreement on defence cooperation in October 2023 during the visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Italy. "With the agreement providing the overarching framework to deepen the bilateral defence relationship, both sides discussed ways and means to bring the defence companies of both the countries together for joint projects, including for co-production in India," it said. Defence Secretary Aramane suggested the integration of Indian vendors in the global supply chains of Italian defence companies to bring value to both sides and improve the supply chain resilience, it said. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) A 22-year-old woman was killed and at least six people were injured after being mowed down by a car in the Ghazipur area of east Delhi on Wednesday, police said. Following the incident that took place at around 9 pm, locals vandalised the erring vehicle and thrashed its driver, who sustained grave injuries in the attack and has been hospitalised, they said. Also Read | Defence Ministry Signs Contract To Upgrade Indian Army's Infantry Combat Vehicle BMP2 to BMP2M. A purported video of a group of irate people smashing the vehicle's windscreen and windows and trying to break its doors before flipping it over has surfaced on social media. The locals also alleged that the driver was under the influence of alcohol. Police, however, said a medical examination of the accused will be conducted to ascertain if he was drunk. Also Read | CAA Notification: YSRCP Opposes Citizenship Amendment Act in Current Form, Seeks Amendments To Address Concerns of Muslims, Says MLA Hafeez Khan. "A total of seven people with injuries were admitted to the Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital. Five of them were women and two were men," Deputy Commissioner of Police (east) Apoorva Gupta said. A woman identified as Sita Devi of Ghaziabad has succumbed to injuries, police said. The people who were mowed down are residents of Khoda Colony on the Delhi-Ghaziabad border, police said. "The accused is in police custody and legal action is being taken," said the officer. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi [India], March 13(ANI): The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought a response from the Delhi Government in an incident of the death of a class sixth student after he was beaten by his seniors in school in January this year. This incident pertains to the Government School at Shastri Nagar. The boy passed away due to a lack of timely proper treatment at a private and Government hospital. Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Bihar AIMIM Chief Akhtarul Iman Urges Party To Contest 11 Seats in the State. Justice Subramonium Prasad issued a notice to the Delhi Government and other authorities on the petition moved by the father of the deceased. The High Court has also called for a status report from the Delhi Government in three weeks. The matter has been listed on May 24 for a hearing. Also Read | Uttar Pradesh: Man Who Raped Minor Dalit Girl Out for Natures Call in Budaun in 2016 Awarded 10 Years in Jail. A petition has been moved by Rahul, father of the boy, aged 13, seeking action against Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital, a doctor and other authorities. He has also a direction for investigation and to appoint a committee headed by a retired High Court judge. It is stated that on January 11, 2024, the Petitioner's son was beaten up by some senior students of the school, where he suffered grave injuries. It is alleged that the school has not taken any action to date. There are other kinds of similar cases that previously happened in the school. It is further stated the petitioner's son was denied treatment at Deep Chand Bandhu Hospital due to the unavailability of the doctors and facilities in the Hospital, thus violating the fundamental right of the health of the Petitioner. It is the case of the petitioner that the doctor attending his son recommended he visit a private clinic. Due to said malafide acts of the Respondent, the petitioner filed the complaints before various authorities and filed a complaint at Sarai Rohilla Police Station. On 12.02.2024, the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) directed the School to submit the action taken report and observed the incident as grave. Despite thesaid direction, the Sarvodya Bal Vidyalaya Lalita Block Shastri Nagar failed to implement the order and did not submit any action taken report. Petitioner's son passed away on January 20 due to lack of timely proper treatment, the plea said. Death of Petitioner's son is only due to the insufficient facilities and unavailability of doctors in the Hospital and the way the Respondent School is managed, it added. There are similar types of incidents already occurred due to the inactions of the Hospital. The petitioner was represented by advocates Tanishq Sirohi, Sahil Sood and Shruti Shivkumar. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi [India], March 13 (ANI): The Delhi High Court on Wednesday upheld the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) order refusing to stay on the Income Tax notice for recovery of more than Rs 105 crore as an outstanding tax against the Congress. The bench of Justice Yashwant Verma and Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav passed the order and said, "We find no ground to interfere in the ITAT Order". Also Read | Delhi: Nigerian Man Who Ingested 71 Cocaine-Filled Capsules Worth Rs 15.61 Crore Held at IGI Airport, Says Customs. The Court, while upholding the ITAT order, granted liberty to the petitioner Congress party to move the Appellate Tribunal afresh with the grievance. The Congress has recently moved the Delhi High Court to challenge the dismissal of its plea by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) against the imposition of penalties for discrepancies in certain tax returns and sought a stay on the Income Tax notice for recovery of more than Rs 105 crore as outstanding tax. Also Read | Chhattisgarh: Class 12 Student Gives Birth to Baby in Bijapur; Hostel Superintendent Suspended. The ITAT bench of GS Pannu, Vice President, and Anubhav Sharma, Judicial Member, passed the order on Friday and said, "We do not find that the recovery notice under Section 226(3) of the Act issued by the Assessing Officer on February 13, 2024, is lacking in bona fides, so as to require us to intervene." The bench further added, "At this stage, we may also refer to the reliance placed by the Senior Counsel on various judgments of the Coordinate Benches in order to support the proposition that it was an accepted practice at the level of the Tribunal that the taxpayer is entitled to a stay on the recovery proceedings on payment of 20 per cent of the demand during the pendency of the appeal before the Tribunal. The aforesaid argument, in our view, is too general and does not merit acceptance." "Moreover, as we have already discussed, each application for a stay has to be decided on its own facts and circumstances, and there can be no generalized approach. The stay application is without merit and it is dismissed accordingly," said the bench in order. The Bench, in its order, further stated that even after the rejection of the appeal by the CIT (Appeals) on March 28, 2023, no recovery action seems to have been initiated by the Assessing Officer to recover the demand by February 13, 2024. On the other hand, the assessee has also not demonstrated its keenness to expeditiously settle the issue, in as much as the appeal of the assessee pending with the Tribunal had come up for hearing on three occasions, viz., 21st September 2023, 28th November 2023 and 5th February 2024 and, on each of the occasions, the record of proceedings reveals that the appellant-assessee was not prepared and sought an adjournment, the bench said. Senior Advocate Vivek Tankha, who appeared for Congress on Friday, also requested that the bench keep the order in abeyance for 10 days so that the Indian National Congress (INC) can approach the concerned High Court. However, the bench declined the same, saying that it had no such provision or prayer before it. Advocates Zoheb Hossain, Vipul Agrawal, Sanjeev Menon, and Vivek Gurnani appeared for the Income Tax Department in the matter before ITAT. During arguments earlier, Congress's senior lawyer submitted that the hardship created for the assessee, which is a National Political Party, in view of the forthcoming Parliamentary Elections, alleging that the initiation of the recovery proceedings under Section 226 (3) of the Act on February 13, 2024, is so timed that the assessee would not be left with enough resources to contest the Parliamentary Elections. Attributing malice to the action of the Assessing Officer in exercising his power of recovery under Section 226(3) of the Act, Senior Counsel Vivek Tankha further submitted that the intention is not merely to recover the outstanding demand, but to bring the activities of the assessee to a standstill, as it would not be able to meet out even the basic maintenance and establishment expenditure, noted the bench. "If a stay is not granted, then the party would be under a grave financial crunch ahead of the General Elections. So we need a protection order at this moment. Parties and elections will come and go but since revenue is a department of the government of India, it has to go by law. If there's only one party, then how will democracy survive?" asked Advocate Tankha. Senior Advocate Vivek Tankha also submitted that the compliance requirements have been met. "The wrong interpretation has been given by Income Tax. Our bank account has been frozen and on February 16, our accounts were made liens. Last evening, they went and withdrew Rs 65 crore. We are one of the largest parties and we are on the eve of the election. If our accounts are frozen like this, how will a democracy survive?" he said. Advocate Zoheb Hossain appeared for the Income Tax Department and submitted that this is a regular recovery proceeding and no propaganda ahead of polls. IT Department also argued that the conduct of Congress is not correct as they have not paid these dues from several. The counsel for the Income Tax Department defended the decision to recover the amount and submitted that there has been a breach of rules by Congress and, in such a scenario, the entity must be treated as a normal assessee. He submitted that on July 6, 2021, the first notice of recovery was given. He said the Congress party filed an appeal for a complete stay on October 28, 2021, but for this, they had to deposit 20 per cent of the dues as per the IT Act. He said they were requested to pay 20 percent of the demand but it was not done. The Income Tax Department further submitted before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) that they acted with responsibility and that their action was fully in line with the law to obtain demand drafts of Rs 65 crore from the bank accounts of the Congress party. The Income Tax Department had recovered Rs 65 crore from the accounts of the Indian National Congress out of the total outstanding tax dues of Rs 115 crore. The Congress has recently approached the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) against the recovery and has filed a complaint and sought a stay against Income Tax Department proceedings of recovery and freezing of their bank accounts. In the complaint, Congress said the Income Tax Department has enforced its law by encashing some of the balances lying with the banks without waiting for the outcome of the hearing scheduled before the bench. Congress appealed that the department should not proceed further until the disposal of the stay application. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday said it recently arrested a Delhi-based man in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to alleged duping of common people to the tune of about 5,000 crore through cyber crimes and online gaming. Ashish Kakkar, a "cyber fraudster" and resident of Greater Kailash in Delhi, was taken into custody from Holiday Inn hotel in Gurugram on March 2, the central agency said in a statement. Also Read | Bombay High Court Refuses To Quash Penalty Imposed on CISF Officer for Misconduct, Says Knocking Woman's Door at Midnight for Lemon Preposterous and Unbecoming. A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court sent him to ED custody till March 12, the ED said. It did not say if he was subsequently remanded to further custody of the ED or sent to judicial custody by the court. The agency alleged Kakkar was an "important kingpin of a syndicate involved in generation, layering and siphoning of the proceeds of crime to the tune of Rs 4,978 crore generated from various cyber crimes and online gaming ongoing all over India during the period 2020-2024." Also Read | Contractual Marriage Tragedy: Man Dies by Suicide Over Harassment by Wife, In-Laws for Money in Punjabs Barnala. The money laundering case stems from police FIRs registered in Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and some others. The agency said its investigation into cyber crime cases has found that fraudsters use different ways for cheating and generation of proceeds of crime such as investment fraud, part-time job fraud, online shopping fraud and loan fraud. Among these, it said, the most prevalent modus operandi used for duping the general public of their hard-earned money is to lure them into investing in fraudulent schemes with the promise of handsome returns. The depositors invest their life savings and when they demand their return, the fraudsters ask them to pay another sum in the guise of certain taxation or processing fees etc., it said. This continues until the customer himself stops investing their fund and the fund invested or transferred to the bank accounts provided by the fraudsters is gone, the ED said. A similar criminal act was done in this case, the ED alleged, and proceeds of crime were "layered and accumulated" in the bank accounts of the companies or firms controlled by Kakkar and his associates and subsequently sent out of India as foreign outward remittances. Kakkar and his associates created more than 200 companies (Kakkar is the beneficial owner of these companies) in the name of his employees or based on the KYCs of persons hired for the sole purpose of creation of dummy firms and companies, the agency alleged. Kakkar, who himself is neither a director nor any office holder in these companies, "controls" each transaction going on in the bank accounts of these companies through his loyal associates, the ED alleged. The probe found that these dummy companies have substantial banking transactions but have not filed their financial statements with the Registrar of Companies, the agency said. Kakkar, it alleged, imported a number of consignments declaring high value items like rose oil, solar panel machinery from Dubai, Hong Kong, China, etc. in various Special Economic Zones of Mundra, Kandla etc. and subsequently exported the same from the SEZs itself. Kakkar and others have sent outward remittances to the tune of Rs 4,978 crore against imports but no remittances have been realised against export of goods from SEZ, it said. In other words, the ED said, the accused was involved in "circular-trading" by way of import-export for the purpose of hawala or fraudulent transactions. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], March 13 (ANI): Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker M Appavu on Wednesday restored former Minister K Ponmudy's membership of the House following the interim order of the Supreme Court. This comes a day after the Supreme Court stayed the conviction of Ponmudy, a former Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister in a disproportionate assets case. Also Read | Petrol, Diesel Prices Fallen in India When Global Energy Market in Turmoil, Says Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. In a notification issued by the State Legislative Assembly Principal Secretary, the Speaker announced the cancellation of the byelection for the Tirukkoyilur constituency held by Ponmudy that was declared immediately after the verdict from the Madras Court sentencing him and his wife for three-year imprisonment in connection with a disproportionate assets case on December 19, 2023. The notification read, "I, M Appavu, Speaker of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, given the interim order dated March 11, 2024, of the Supreme Court of India in Criminal Appeal no 520-531 of 2024 declared that the notification no 88 published in Part I - Section 1 of the Tamil Nadu Government Gazette Extraordinary, dated March 5 2024 shall cease to operate with effect from December 19, 2023." Also Read | Delhi: BJP Fields Former Mayors Harsh Malhotra, Yogendar Chandolia From East and North West Delhi Seats for Lok Sabha Polls. Ponmudy's seat was initially declared to be vacant following his conviction by the High Court of Madras in Criminal Appeal of 2017, effective from December 19, 2023, the notice stated. Further, the notice stated that the Supreme Court of India, in its interim order dated March 11, suspended the conviction of Ponmudy related to the judgment dated December 19, 2023, by the High Court of Madras in the Criminal Appeal of 2017. Earlier on March 1, Tamil Nadu Leader of Opposition, Edappadi Palaniswami had written to Appavu in connection with the disqualification of K. Ponmudi as a member of the state assembly and the consequent announcement of a vacancy in the assembly seat. "Your office is aware of the fact that K. Ponmudi, who was elected from (76) Tirukkoyilur Assembly Constituency and who was also a minister in the present government, had been convicted of offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for having assets disproportionate to the known source of income by the Madras High Court vide its order dated December 21, 2023. The Supreme Court has not stayed the order of conviction passed by the High Court," Edappadi Palaniswami said in his letter. "You are also aware that under Section 8(1)(m) of the Representation of 4 People Act, 1951, any person who has been convicted of an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, stands disqualified from being a member of the Legislative Assembly," he added.The AIADMK general secretary also reminded the Speaker to issue the notification concerning the declaration of vacancy. "You are also aware that even though Section 8(4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, provides that such disqualification does not take effect until the appeal filed by the disqualified member is heard. The same has been declared illegal by the Supreme Court in Lily Thomas vs. Union of India, reported in (2013) 7 Supreme Court Cases 653," Palaniswami said in his letter." Therefore, the aforesaid Member of the House, K. Ponmudy, is disqualified with effect from December 21, 2023, and yet you have not taken any steps with the declaration of vacancy and issuing notification in this regard. Such failure on your part is a dereliction of your constitutional duty," he added. Palaniswami also called upon the Speaker to act unbiasedly in the matter. "I, therefore, call upon you to act unbiasedly and in such a manner as is expected of a dignified constitutional authority. In the past, when such incidents happened, the people of your office acted as was expected of them in a non-partisan manner. However, despite being aware of the situation, the failure on your part to do your constitutional duty is shocking," the AIADMK general secretary said in the letter." I call upon you to do the needful at the earliest without any further delay," the letter added. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Chennai, Mar 13 (PTI) Senior DMK leader K Ponmudy was on Wednesday reinstated as a legislator with the authorities revoking a notification that declared his Tirukoyilur Assembly constituency vacant. Following Ponmudy's conviction on 19 December 2023 by the Madras High Court in a disproportionate assets case, the Tamil Nadu Assembly Secretariat declared his constituency as 'deemed to have become vacant' from the date of his conviction. Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Bihar AIMIM Chief Akhtarul Iman Urges Party To Contest 11 Seats in the State. From May 2021, when the DMK assumed power, Ponmudy had served as the Higher Education Minister till his disqualification following conviction in the assets case. The TN Assembly Secretariat declared Tirukoyilur vacant by way of a notification issued on 5 March 2024. The Assembly Secretariat issued a fresh notification dated 13 March to rescind the notification of 5 March. Also Read | Uttar Pradesh: Man Who Raped Minor Dalit Girl Out for Natures Call in Budaun in 2016 Awarded 10 Years in Jail. According to the new notification, an interim order of the Supreme Court dated 11 March 2024 suspended Ponmudy's conviction and following that, the Assembly Secretariat on Wednesday revoked the earlier notification that declared the former minister's constituency vacant. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi [India], March 13 (ANI): The 12th edition of the India-Italy Military Cooperation Group (MCG) Meeting was held on March 12-13 in New Delhi. According to the Ministry of Defence, the discussions between the Directorate of International Defence Cooperation, Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff and the Military Policy and Planning Division of the Italian Defence General Staff focused on new initiatives to further enhance the defence cooperation and military-to-military-level exchange between the two countries. Also Read | PM Narendra Modi To Distribute Loans to One Lakh Street Vendors on March 14 Under PM SVANidhi Scheme. Italy and India recently elevated their bilateral relations to the levels of Strategic Partnership during the visit of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to India in March 2023. The MoU on Defence Cooperation was also recently renewed during the visit of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh to Italy in October 2023. Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Bihar AIMIM Chief Akhtarul Iman Urges Party To Contest 11 Seats in the State. In March last year, Giorgia Meloni and Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided to elevate the India-Italy partnership to the level of a strategic partnership. This was PM Meloni's first state visit to India, during the eighth edition of the Raisina Dialogue. During the bilateral meeting, the two leaders discussed the entire gamut of bilateral, regional and global cooperation. Later in September, PM Modi and Meloni held bilateral talks on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in the national capital. The talks covered sectors such as trade, commerce, defence and emerging technologies. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Ooty (Tamil Nadu) [India], March 13 (ANI): A labourer was killed after he was buried in a landslide during construction work in Ooty on Wednesday, said police. According to the police, in the incident, two labourers, identified as Zakir (23) and Rishwan (22) from Jharkhand, got trapped. On receiving information, the fire department reached the spot, and rescued both but Rishwan succumbed to injuries. Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Bihar AIMIM Chief Akhtarul Iman Urges Party To Contest 11 Seats in the State. The construction work was going on at a place belonging to Chandran, opposite the arboriculture park in the Nilgiris district. A total of four people were engaged in digging out soil for the construction when the landslide happened. Also Read | Uttar Pradesh: Man Who Raped Minor Dalit Girl Out for Natures Call in Budaun in 2016 Awarded 10 Years in Jail. Two of the workers managed to safeguard themselves, while the other two got trapped beneath the soil. Later, with the help of JCB machine, fire workers cleared the debris and rescued both workers, and with oxygen support, they were taken to the Government Medical College, in Nilgiris, where doctors declared Rizwan brought dead. Earlier a week ago, in a similar incident, six construction workers were killed after a portion of a building collapsed during house construction. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Ernakulam, March 13: Lyme, a disease caused by Borrelia bacteria, has been reported from Koovapady in Ernakulam district of Kerala, said a doctor of a private hospital who treated the patient. Jilse George, Senior Physician at Lisie Hospital, told ANI that the disease was confirmed in a 56-year-old man. The doctor said that the patient's sample tested positive at the Bengaluru unit of the National Institute of Virology. Dr. George said the patient was referred to Lisie Hospital with a high-grade fever on December 6, 2023. He also had a history of pain and swelling in the right knee for two weeks. Neck stiffness was present. CARE Project in Kerala: CM Pinarayi Vijayan Announces 'CARE' Plan To Prevent and Treat Rare Diseases in State. A local examination revealed superficial ulcers over the scrotum, he said. He was showing epileptic symptoms. Further tests confirmed that it was Lyme disease, said the doctor. After starting treatment for Lyme disease, his health improved and he was discharged from the hospital on December 26. Brucellosis Case in Kerala: Father and Son Test Positive for Bacterial Infection in Thiruvananthapuram. The patient's blood was sent to the National Institute of Virology for testing under the direction of the district health department. Lyme disease is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi. It is transmitted by certain insects. This disease affects the nervous system and can lead to the death of the patient. If detected on time, the disease can be cured. Agartala (Tripura) [India], March 13 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday virtually launched the PM-SURAJ (Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan and Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan) national portal. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha attended the launching function held in Agartala. Also Read | Arunachal Pradesh Assembly Elections 2024: BJP Names All 60 Candidates for Assembly Polls, CM Pema Khandu To Contest From Mukto. Prime Minister Modi marked a nationwide initiative for providing credit support to marginalised sections of society. He approved credit assistance for one lakh entrepreneurs from disadvantaged communities, according to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO). Also Read | Ramadan 2024 Calendar: Sehri and Iftar Timings for 3rd Roza of Ramzan on March 14 in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Lucknow and Other Cities of India. During the event, the Prime Minister interacted with beneficiaries of various government schemes targeting marginalised groups, including Scheduled Castes, backward classes, and sanitation workers. PM-SURAJ national portal for credit support to disadvantaged sections embodies the Prime Minister's commitment to prioritise the underprivileged (vanchiton ko variyata). It is a transformative initiative, aimed at uplifting the most marginalised segments of society. The credit support will be provided to eligible persons across the country and facilitated through banks, NBFC-MFIs, and other organisations, as per the statement issued by PMO. During the programme, the Prime Minister also distributed Ayushman Health Cards and PPE kits to Safai Mitras (Sewer and Septic tank workers) under the National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE). This initiative represents yet another step towards safeguarding the health and safety of frontline workers who serve in challenging conditions, the statement from PMO added further. Over 3 lakh beneficiaries of various government schemes from disadvantaged groups across 500 districts attended the event. Minister of Commerce Santana Chakma and Minister of ARDD Sudhangshu Das were also present during the event. Earlier, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha inaugurated the new terminal building of the Nagerjala bus stand in Agartala. Inaugurating the program, the Chief Minister said that the government is working to provide better services to the people by building modern infrastructure. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Nagpur, March 13: The of the (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) RSS, starting in Nagpur on March 15, is going to plan a grand celebration of the RSS centenary year in 2025, with discussions on the situation prevailing in various states, incidents and their consequences also on its agenda. Notably, RSS will be completing 100 years of its formation in 2025. RSS was founded in 1925 by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar. The current head of RSS is Mohan Bhagwat. The organization promotes the ideals of upholding Indian culture and the values of civil society and spreads the ideology of Hindutva, to "strengthen" the Hindu community. A resolution on Ram Temple is also expected to be passed in the meeting. RSS will also discuss how to take forward the good environment created in the country by Ram Mandir. India Is a Hindu Rashtra and Significant People Accept It: RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat RSS's Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha will be held on March 15, 16 and 17 at Smriti Mandi premises in Reshimbagh, Nagpur. All-India publicity head Sunil Ambekar, addressing a press conference, informed that around 1529 top office-bearers of the RSS will attend the meeting. He said that the representatives, including presidents, general secretaries and organization secretaries of 36 RSS-affiliated organizations, will also participate in this meeting. This meeting is of utmost importance from the decision-making point of view of RSS and in the meeting, various plans and decisions for the upcoming years will also be finalized. Sunil Ambekar said, "The important issues to be discussed or proposals to be brought to Pratinidhi Sabha will be decided in the meeting of the Executive Committee of the RSS. The situation in different states, the incidents and their social consequences will also be discussed in the meeting. suggestions from representatives of different provinces will also be discussed." The three-day meeting will deliberate upon reports of last year's activities, the coming year's work expansion plan of RSS, Sangh Shiksha Varg and the contextual present scenario. Ambedkar said that the RSS will celebrate the centenary year from Vijayadashami 2025 to 2026. "The Constitution is completing 75 years; the RSS will be carried forward to create public awareness regarding the duties along with the rights mentioned in the Constitution. RSS will celebrate the centenary year from Vijayadashami 2025 to 2026. The Panch-Parivartan (Five Changes) will be the main agenda of this centenary year. The RSS will take forward this work in collaboration with social, religious and educational institutions," he said. RSS To Step Up Campaign Against Love Jihad and Religious Conversions, Focus on Social Harmony He also informed that the RSS will celebrate the tricentennial ceremony (year-long celebration) of the birth of Ahilyabai Holkar, the former queen of the Malwa kingdom. In this meeting to be held once every three years, the General Secretary of the RSS will be elected, and along with this, the representatives will also elect the All India Executive Body of the RSS, he added. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Chennai, Mar 13 (PTI) Tata Motors has signed a memorandum of understanding with Tamil Nadu government, committing an investment of Rs 9,000 crore to establish a manufacturing facility in the state, Industries Minister T R B Rajaa said on Wednesday. The proposed facility would generate 5,000 new jobs, he said in a social media post. Also Read | Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Reached Agreement on Seat-Sharing, Claims LJP-Ram Vilas Chief Chirag Paswan After Meeting BJP Chief JP Nadda. However, he did not mention where the unit is expected to come up. Top officials of the auto major exchanged documents with government officials in the presence of Chief Minister M K Stalin in this connection. Also Read | Tripura Students Missing Case Solved: Class 8 Boys Who Left Home in Agartala With Hope of Becoming Someone in Mumbai Traced at CSMT, To Be Reunited With Families. "#TataMotors and the Government of Tamil Nadu are revving up for an epic journey!! In the presence of our Honourable @CMOTamilNadu Thiru. @MKStalin avargal, @TataMotors today signed an MoU with the Government of Tamil Nadu to establish a cutting-edge vehicle manufacturing facility, committing an investment of Rs 9000 crore and generating up to 5000+ #JobsForTN ", Rajaa said in a post on 'X.'. "For the FIRST time EVER, TN has attracted TWO BIG Automobile Manufacturing #Investments within a span of just 2 months", he said in another post. The other big ticket investment bagged by the state government is from Vietnam based Vinfast which has committed to invest Rs 16,000 crore for an electric vehicle manufacturing facility in the southern district of Thoothukudi. "Over the past couple of years, Tamil Nadu has hit the fast lane and become the ultimate hub for investments, showcasing our Chief Minister's dedication to fostering top-tier employment for our vibrant youth and amplifying our industrial prowess." "We're not just building factories; we're engineering dreams and accelerating towards a brighter, more prosperous future!# Investment #AutoCapitalOfIndia" Rajaa added. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Dehradun, Mar 13 (PTI) The Uniform Civil Code Bill, passed by the Uttarakhand Assembly on February 7, has become a law with President Droupadi Murmu giving her assent to it. Uttarakhand is the first state in the country after Independence to adopt the UCC. Also Read | Farmers Protest: On Samyukt Kisan Morcha's Call, Protesting Farmers To Attend Mahapanchayat at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on March 14. "It is a moment of great joy and pride for people of the state that the Uniform Civil Code Bill passed by our government in the Uttarakhand Assembly has been approved by the Honorable President Smt Droupadi Murmu," Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said in a post on X. The President gave her assent to the Uniform Civil Code, Uttarakhand, 2024 under Article 201 of the Constitution of India on March 11, a gazette notification by the government of Uttarakhand said. Also Read | Bombay High Court Refuses To Quash Penalty Imposed on CISF Officer for Misconduct, Says Knocking Woman's Door at Midnight for Lemon Preposterous and Unbecoming. "With the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code law in the state alongside providing equal rights to all citizens, the oppression of women will also be curbed," Dhami said. "#UniformCivilCode will play an important role in promoting harmony by proving the importance of social equality," he said. The state government is determined to protect the interests of citizens and maintain the essential character of Uttarakhand in accordance with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added. State BJP president Mahendra Bhatt also expressed happiness over the President's approval to the UCC. "It will give equal rights to all citizens," he said. Uttarakhand BJP media in-charge Manveer Chauhan said it is the fulfilment of a major commitment made by the party to the people of the state ahead of 2022 state assembly polls. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], March 13 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Tuesday that the state government is committed to curbing corruption and will frame strict laws in the future to eradicate it. While addressing a public meeting at Fatehpur in Kangra district on Tuesday, CM Sukhu said, "I have never compromised with principles in my life and have always stood for the poor and downtrodden. I am well aware of the sufferings of the common man, the farmers and the employees as well," he said. Also Read | Live Breaking News Headlines & Updates, March 13, 2024. "After becoming the Chief Minister, the first challenge was to bring out the state of economic crisis. The government can't function properly under the debris of debt and keeping this in mind, we took several measures to improve the economy of the state from the existing resources. We feel proud that within a year we have succeeded in bringing 20 per cent of the state's economy back on track," he remarked, adding that an additional revenue of Rs 2200 crore has been achieved due to persistent and earnest efforts of the government for tapping the existing resources. The Chief Minister said that just as the state was recovering from the financial crises, another jolt was in the form of a natural disaster, and thereafter, the political upheaval the state was presently witnessing. Also Read | PM Modi Talks to Rishi Sunak: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Dials British Counterpart, Discusses Early Conclusion of India-UK Free Trade Agreement. "Even Fatehpur was badly affected by the disaster and on the call of local MLA Bhawani Singh Pathania, rescue operations were conducted on war footing here as well. During the disaster, I visited every district and every affected village of the state to personally monitor the relief and rescue operations. The government enhanced the relief package by amending the rules and norms. Despite the financial crunch, the government provided a special relief package of Rs. 4500 crore for the affected families," he said. The government recently fulfilled its fifth guarantee by announcing Rs 1500 per month to the women of the state between the ages of 18 and 59, he added. On this occasion, the Chief Minister dedicated 14 developmental projects worth Rs 232 crore to the people of Fatehpur. Earlier, on reaching Fatehpur, the locals accorded a warm welcome to the Chief Minister.MLA Fatehpur and State Planning Board Vice-Chairman Bhawani Singh Pathania welcomed the Chief Minister on his arrival in Fatehpur. He expressed gratitude for fulfilling the announcements made by the Chief Minister. He said that for the progress and prosperity of any area, it was most important to develop means and resources. MLA Sudarshan Bablu, former MLA Ajay Mahajan, Member, (BoD) HPTDC Amber Mahajan, District Congress Committee President, Karan Singh Pathania and Block Congress President Jeet Ram Sharma were also present on the occasion, amongst others. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) A 19-year-old youth allegedly tried to stage his fake kidnapping as he did not want to accompany his friends to Leh for work, police said on Wednesday. The police acted on a complaint filed on social media by his friend and traced the youth from Keshopur Sabzi Mandi area here, they added. Also Read | Ram Mandir in Ayodhya Witnessing Average Footfall of 1 to 1.5 Lakh Pilgrims Daily, Says Temple Trust. The police said that Suraj, along with his friends Vimlesh Shah and Golu, came to Delhi from Champaran in Bihar. "Suraj told police that he along with his friends was going to Leh as they heard about higher wages there," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Railways) KPS Malhotra. Also Read | Who Is Nayab Saini? All You Need To Know About BJP Leader Set To Be New Haryana CM. The group was about to leave for Leh from New Delhi railway station, Malhotra said. "Suraj got scared when his friends Golu and Vimlesh Shah started discussing about the freezing weather of Leh. So he slipped away by giving an excuse to attend nature's call," the DCP said. The youth then reached Keshopur Mandi and texted his brother that he has been kidnapped. He then asked him to send Rs 5,000 as ransom to get him released, he said. Suraj's brother then called Shah and informed about the messages, he added. "Shah immediately informed the police through social media and we contacted him," the DCP said. "We had received a complaint on X in which Delhi Police was tagged. The social media cell forwarded the message to GRP railway for necessary action. A team was immediately formed and a rescue operation was launched after registering an FIR of kidnapping," the officer said. The police said a team traced Suraj from Keshopur Sabzi Mandi area and he is being questioned. They added that legal action will be taken upon further probe. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Guwahati, March 13: All Assam Students' Union (AASU) will launch a 'satyagraha' across the state on Wednesday to protest against the implementation of the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act. Anti-CAA protests by opposition parties, such as the Congress, and various organisations were held in the state for the last two days. The AASU will hold a 'satyagraha' in all the district headquarters during the day, a leader of the students' organisation said. The students' organisation had taken out a torchlight procession in several parts of the state on Tuesday evening. An AASU delegation had gone to New Delhi on Tuesday to pursue the petition against the Act in the Supreme Court, while leader of the opposition in the Assam assembly Debabrata Saikia filed an interlocutory application in the apex court, seeking a stay on the implementation of the Act. Several student and non-political indigenous organisations along with opposition political parties in Assam have been opposing the CAA, claiming that it violates the provision of the 1985 Assam Accord. Arvind Kejriwal Slams BJP Govt Over CAA, Says 'People Across Country Want Citizen Amendment Act To Be Withdrawn' (Watch Video). The accord called for "detection and deportation" of all people who entered the state from Bangladesh post March 24, 1971. With the CAA rules being issued, the central government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who came to India till December 31, 2014. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians. The Congress, Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiyatabadi Parishad, the left parties and others have announced that they will continue with their protests in a peaceful and democratic manner. Trinamool Congress' state president Ripun Bora said party workers will burn copies of the Act and rules in all the district headquarters of the state on Thursday. A 12-hour 'Sarbatamak Hartal', called by the 16-party United Opposition Forum Assam (UOFA) on Tuesday, however, did not evoke much response. CAA: List of Documents Required To Apply for Citizenship in India Under Citizenship Amendment Act. The Assam Police had issued notices to opposition parties, asking them to withdraw the hartal over the implementation of the CAA, and warned that "legal action" would be taken against them if they fail to follow the diktat. 'Notices were served by the Assam Police to ensure that there is no damage to public property and risk to life of the people through any forceful agitation in the state," Director General of Police G P Singh had said. Meanwhile, security has been tightened across the state with additional deployment of police personnel, including commandos in sensitive areas, while all police stations are on an alert, a senior officer said. Patrolling has been intensified and check-posts have been set up on the major thoroughfares in almost all cities and towns of the state, where widespread anti-CAA protests were held in 2019. Lagos (Nigeria), Mar 13 (AP) The head of the African Development Bank is calling for an end to loans given in exchange for the continent's rich supplies of oil or critical minerals used in smartphones and electric car batteries, deals that have helped China gain control over mineral mining in places like Congo and have left some African countries in financial crisis. They are just bad, first and foremost, because you can't price the assets properly, Akinwumi Adesina said in an interview with The Associated Press in Lagos, Nigeria, last week. If you have minerals or oil under the ground, how do you come up with a price for a long-term contract? It's a challenge. Also Read | Massive Explosion Rocks Restaurant in China's Yanjiao: Live Breaking News Headlines & Updates, March 13, 2024. Linking future revenue from natural resource exports to loan paydowns is often touted as a way for recipients to get financing for infrastructure projects and for lenders to reduce the risk of not getting their money back. The shift to renewable energy and electric vehicles has caused a spike in the demand for critical minerals, driving these kind of loans. That includes a China-Congo deal that strengthens Beijing's position in the global supply chain for EVs and other products as it taps into the world's largest reserves of cobalt, a mineral used to make lithium-ion batteries, in the impoverished central African country. Also Read | PM Modi Talks to Rishi Sunak: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Dials British Counterpart, Discusses Early Conclusion of India-UK Free Trade Agreement. Adesina, whose Abidjan, Ivory Coast-based institution helps finance development in African countries, said these arrangements come with a litany of problems. He highlighted the uneven nature of the negotiations, with lenders typically holding the upper hand and dictating terms to cash-strapped African nations. This power imbalance, coupled with a lack of transparency and the potential for corruption, creates fertile ground for exploitation, Adesina said. These are the reasons I say Africa should put an end to natural resource-backed loans," Adesina said. He pointed to a bank initiative that helps "countries renegotiate those loans that are asymmetric, not transparent and wrongly priced. Adesina said loans secured with natural resources pose a challenge for development banks like his and the International Monetary Fund, which promote sustainable debt management. Countries may struggle to get or repay loans from these institutions because they have to use the income from their natural resources typically crucial to their economies to pay off resource-tied debts, he said. Adesina specifically mentioned Chad's crippling financial crisis after an oil-backed loan from commodity trader Glencore left the central African nation using most of its oil proceeds to pay off its debt. A Glencore spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. After Chad, Angola and the Republic of Congo approached the IMF for support, the multilateral lender insisted on the renegotiation of their natural resource-backed loans. At least 11 African countries have taken dozens of loans worth billions of dollars secured with their natural resources since the 2000s, and China is by far the top source of funding through policy banks and state-linked companies. Western commodity traders and banks, such as Glencore, Trafigura and Standard Chartered, also have funded oil-for-cash deals, notably with the Republic of Congo, Chad and Angola. Standard Chartered didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment, while Trafigura pointed to its 2020 report called Prepayments Demystified, which says that trading firms are enabling production that would otherwise not be possible thus underpinning economic growth, job creation and the generation of fiscal revenues in the countries concerned. Adesina said there was no fixation on one country as being behind these types of loans when asked about criticisms over China's lending backed by oil; critical minerals such as cobalt and copper used in electric vehicles and other products; and bauxite, the main mineral in aluminum manufacturing, which has been used in China's recent resource-backed loan contracts with Guinea and Ghana. It is not about one country or the other; any country can exploit when you don't know what you are doing, he said, adding, The capacity to negotiate at the country level, the capacity to plan, the capacity for debt management is very important. Mao Ning, spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told reporters last year that Beijing operates with the principle of transparency and openness in relations with Africa. Congo has been looking to review the infrastructure-for-minerals agreement it signed with China in 2008 over concerns it gets too few benefits from the arrangement. That grants Chinese firms Sinohydro and China Railway Group a 68% stake in a joint venture for copper and cobalt with Congo's state mining company, Gecamines. Last year, Congo's state auditor demanded China's infrastructure investment commitment be increased to $20 billion from the original $3 billion to match the value of the resources sold by the state under the deal. China rejected the auditor's report. Adesina, a former Nigerian minister for agriculture, said the African Development Bank's new Alliance for Green Infrastructure in Africa aims to mobilize $10 billion to help countries finance bankable sustainable infrastructure, including in the energy and transport sectors, which could limit the allure of problematic financing.(AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Rafah (Gaza Strip), Mar 12 (AP) An aid ship loaded with some 200 tons of food set sail for Gaza on Tuesday in a pilot program for the opening of a sea corridor to the territory, where the five-month-old Israel-Hamas war has driven hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to the brink of starvation. The push to get food in by sea along with a recent campaign of airdrops into isolated northern Gaza highlighted the international community's frustration with the growing humanitarian crisis and its inability to get aid in by road. Also Read | PM Modi Talks to Rishi Sunak: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Dials British Counterpart, Discusses Early Conclusion of India-UK Free Trade Agreement. The food on the aid ship was collected by World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres, and is being transported by the Spanish aid group Open Arms. The ship departed from the eastern Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus and is expected to arrive in Gaza in two to three days. The United States has separately announced plans to construct a sea bridge near Gaza in order to deliver aid, but it will likely be several weeks before it is operational. President Joe Biden's administration has provided crucial military aid for Israel while urging it to facilitate more humanitarian access. Also Read | President Droupadi Murmu Participates as Chief Guest at Mauritius Independence Day Celebrations, Witnesses Indian Navy Contingent (See Pics). WAR RAGES WITH NO END IN SIGHT The war, triggered by Hamas' Oct 7 attack on Israel, has killed over 30,000 Palestinians and driven most of Gaza's 2.3 million people from their homes. A quarter of Gaza's population is starving, according to the United Nations, because they cannot find enough food or afford it at vastly inflated prices. The US, Qatar and Egypt have tried to broker a cease-fire and hostage release ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which began at sundown Sunday. But the talks stalled as Hamas demanded that any temporary pause in the fighting come with guarantees for ending the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to expand the offensive into the strip's southern city of Rafah, where half of Gaza's population has sought refuge, and to keep fighting until Hamas has been dismantled and all the captives it is holding have been returned. The war threatens to spill across the Middle East as Iran-backed groups allied with Hamas trade fire with US and Israeli forces. The Israeli military said around 100 projectiles were launched into Israel from Lebanon early on Tuesday, one of the biggest barrages since the war began. It appeared to be in response to Israeli airstrikes deep inside Lebanon the day before. A pair of Israeli airstrikes Tuesday in northeastern Lebanon killed at least two people and wounded 20. Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group have traded fire nearly every day since the war began. The Israeli military said it also hit two targets in Syria used by Hezbollah. 'OUR CHILDREN CAN'T FIND ANYTHING TO EAT' Aid groups say it is nearly impossible to deliver aid in much of Gaza because of Israeli restrictions, ongoing hostilities and the breakdown of order after the Hamas-run police force largely vanished from the streets. Conditions are especially dire in northern Gaza, which has suffered widespread devastation and has been largely cut off by Israeli forces since October. Up to 300,000 Palestinians are believed to have remained there despite Israeli evacuation orders, with many reduced to eating animal feed in recent weeks. On Monday, the first day of the normally festive month of Ramadan, children with pots lined up at a charity kitchen in the urban Jabaliya refugee camp. Each was given a small portion of cooked carrots and sweet potatoes to break the dawn-to-dusk fast. Our children can't find anything to eat," said Bassam al-Haw, a volunteer. "No food, no water, no flour. The World Food Programme delivered food into northern Gaza on Tuesday for the first time since Feb 20, according to the United Nations. Aid groups have been struggling to get aid to the isolated area for months, though some private convoys have managed to deliver food. The World Health Organisation and others delivered food, fuel and medical supplies on Monday to two hospitals in the north, the UN said. SEA ROUTE BRINGS PROMISE AND POTENTIAL PERIL The planned sea route has the support of the European Union, the US, the United Arab Emirates and others. The US and other countries have also launched airdrops, but such efforts are costly and unlikely to meet the mounting needs. The United Nations welcomed the inauguration of the sea route, but reiterated that transporting aid by land is the best way to get the most aid into Gaza. The Open Arms ship is towing a barge loaded with food. Once it nears Gaza, two smaller vessels will tow the barge to a jetty being built by World Central Kitchen, which operates 65 kitchens across the territory, the group said. It plans to distribute the food in the north. The best security is to have enough food in Gaza, Andres said. We want to make sure nothing happens to anybody. Scores of Palestinians were killed last month during a chaotic aid delivery in the north organised by Israeli troops, who fired on the crowd. Israel said most of those killed were trampled to death, while Palestinian officials said most had been shot. Israel, which controls Gaza's coastline and all but one of its land crossings, says it supports efforts to deliver aid by sea and will inspect all cargo shipments. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said it was the first time a ship had been authorized to deliver aid directly to Gaza since 2005 and that the EU would work with smaller ships until the US completes work on its floating port. Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos said during a visit to Beirut that there is a mechanism in place for larger shipments, with the goal of "a more systematic exercise with increased volumes. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel in a surprise attack on Oct 7, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Gaza's Health Ministry says the Israeli offensive launched in response has killed at least 31,185 Palestinians. The ministry doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said women and children make up around two-thirds of the dead. Israel blames the civilian death toll on Hamas because the militants fight in dense, residential areas. The military has said it has killed 13,000 Hamas fighters, without providing evidence. A strike on a home in the central city of Deir al-Balah early on Tuesday killed 11 people from the same family, including four women and five children, according to hospital records and an Associated Press reporter who saw the bodies brought in. (AP) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Washington, March 13 (PTI) Indian American politician Susheela Jayapal on Tuesday received a big boost to her Congressional campaign as she received an endorsement from influential Democratic Senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Coimbatore-born Jayapal, 61, is the elder sister of Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, 58, who is the first-ever Indian American woman in the US House of Representatives. Susheela previously served as a county commissioner for Multnomah County, Oregon, the state's most populous county. She is running for the US House of Representatives from the third Congressional District of Oregon. Also Read | PM Modi Talks to Rishi Sunak: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Dials British Counterpart, Discusses Early Conclusion of India-UK Free Trade Agreement. For many years, Susheela Jayapal has been an outstanding progressive leader in Oregon, Sanders said. The Vermont Senator has large following across the country in particular among youths and women and is considered to be the leader of the progressive movement. Pramila Jayap is the Congressional Progressive Caucus chair, From early in her career, she has stood with working families as she advocated for workers' rights, fought to strengthen support for immigrant and refugee communities, and took on big polluters. I look forward to serving with her in Congress, Sanders said in his endorsement. Also Read | President Droupadi Murmu Participates as Chief Guest at Mauritius Independence Day Celebrations, Witnesses Indian Navy Contingent (See Pics). Along with Sanders' endorsement, Susheela has also been endorsed by her sister, Pramila, Indian American Congressman Ro Khanna along with other Congressmen Mark Pocan and David Scott. I'm honoured and thrilled that Sen. Bernie Sanders, a champion for affordable health care and climate action, has chosen to endorse my campaign, Susheela said. Sen. Sanders joins dozens of leaders and organizations, who know I'm the progressive champion Oregonians need to fight for our families and communities in Congress, she said. A heavy Democratic seat, the third Congressional District of Oregon is currently being represented by Congressman Earl Blumenauer, a seat that he has represented since 1996. Last year, he announced not to seek his re-election in 2024 general elections. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], March 13 (ANI): Pakistan Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Wednesday alleged that Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has been asking the European Union to revoke the country's generalised system of preferences (GSP) Plus status, Geo News reported. Notably, the 'GSP+' serves as a special incentive arrangement to promote good governance and sustainable development by facilitating trade. Also Read | Switzerland: Five Cross-country Skiers Frozen to Death in Swiss Alps After They 'Fell Asleep Together' Near Matterhorn (Watch Video). Pakistan was given the status in 2014, which has now been further extended until 2027. The country enjoys duty-free or minimum duty on exports to the European market. Speaking to media persons in Islamabad, Tarar said, "PTI spokespersons are getting instructions from jail to harm Pakistan and a conspiracy is being hatched so that the country's GSP+ status is withdrawn." Also Read | China Gas Explosion: Two Killed, 26 Injured in Deadly Restaurant Blast in City Near Beijing (Watch Video). "PTI has used the [lack of] facilities being provided to PTI founder [Imran Khan] in jail as an excuse to attack Pakistan's GSP+ status," claimed the information minister. He said that PTI was conspiring against Pakistan by creating a "false narrative," adding that the party was making attempts to put the country's economy at stake through a campaign based on lies, Geo News reported. Tarar claimed that Khan was getting "luxurious facilities" in jail that are not available to any other person in prison. "The PTI founder has been provided with a kitchen, an additional room, a gallery to walk in and exercise equipment," he added. He further claimed that Khan was allowed to hold hundreds of meetings during his imprisonment and that he was allowed to meet four days a week. "Every prisoner is only allowed to meet once in jail according to the prison manual," he said. On the other hand, PTI has rejected the claims PTI spokesperson said that the minister's presser was nothing but "lies and accusations." "No letter has been written to the European Union and neither do we intend on writing such a letter," the PTI spokesperson said. He said that those who "forcibly occupied the country are teaching patriotism to others", adding that PTI is the most popular party and a reflection of the federation. He added that the Imran Khan's efforts for the success of the IMF programme are in front of everyone. "Ishaq Dar's incompetence caused delay in the completion of the IMF programme," he said. The PTI leader also claimed that the second tranche was issued after the PTI founder's approval. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Islamabad [Pakistan], March 13 (ANI): The sons of three-time Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif have returned to Pakistan, six years after they left for London to avoid arrest in corruption cases in the Panama Papers scandal, reported Dawn. The return of Hussain and Hassan, sons of Nawaz Sharif, was made possible after an accountability court last week suspended their arrest warrants in three corruption cases related to the Panama Papers. Also Read | US Presidential Elections 2024: Joe Biden, Donald Trump Set for Another Poll Rematch After Clinching Party Nominations. Like their father the duo were also living in the UK in a self-imposed exile. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) kept the arrival of Hussain and Hassan Nawaz a "low-key" affair, as the media was not informed about their return, according to Dawn. Also Read | China Restaurant Blast: One Killed, 22 Injured After Explosion at Restaurant in Hebei Province (Watch Videos). Reportedly, both landed at the Lahore airport from London and were escorted to their Jati Umra residence under the tight security of the Punjab police. Hussain and Hassan Nawaz left the country in 2018 after they were involved in corruption cases. Later, they were declared proclaimed offenders for not joining the investigation and court proceedings and subsequently, their arrest warrants were issued, Dawn reported. However, last week, the Islamabad accountability court suspended the arrest warrants of Hussain and Hasan until March 14 in the Avenfield apartments, Al-Azizia and Flagship Investment corruption references. They filed an application through their counsel, Qazi Misbahul Hassan, seeking the suspension of warrants issued against them in these cases. Reportedly, the court accepted the application, as reported by Dawn. The petitioners said that they wanted to surrender before the court "in good faith" to face the proceedings. They would appear before the court by March 14, reported Dawn. The court agreed with the NAB prosecutor's submission that "the purpose of the perpetual warrant of arrest is to procure the attendance of the accused and if the accused intends to surrender himself before the court, they may be allowed to face the trial." In their written reply to the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case, Hussain admitted to owning offshore properties, while Hassan outright denied owning any property abroad, reported Dawn. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Cairo [Egypt], March 13 (ANI): The National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) in India and the Information Technology Institute (ITI) in Egypt signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance workforce skills, promote employment opportunities, address skills gaps, and foster international cooperation, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said in an official statement on Tuesday. NIELIT, which is an autonomous scientific society under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, signed the MoU with ITI, affiliated with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of the Arab Republic of Egypt, in Cairo on Tuesday. Also Read | PM Modi Talks to Rishi Sunak: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Dials British Counterpart, Discusses Early Conclusion of India-UK Free Trade Agreement. According to the statement, the agreement was signed in the presence of Egypt's Minister of Communications and Information Technology (IECT), Dr. Amr Talaat and Indian envoy to Egypt, Ajit Gupte. "An MoU has been signed between National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT), an autonomous scientific society under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology of the Republic of India and Information Technology Institute (ITI) affiliated by Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of the Arab Republic of Egypt on 12th March, 2024 in Cairo, Egypt in the presence of Dr. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Arab Republic of Egypt and Ajit Gupte, Ambassador of India, Arab Republic of Egypt to foster mutual collaboration for improving workforce skills, promoting employment opportunities, addressing skills gaps, and fostering international cooperation," ministry said in a statement. Also Read | President Droupadi Murmu Participates as Chief Guest at Mauritius Independence Day Celebrations, Witnesses Indian Navy Contingent (See Pics). The agreement was signed by the NIELIT Director General, MM Tripathi and Egypt's ITI Chairman, Heba Saleh to promote cooperation and collaboration in the IECT domain. Under the MoU, both the insititues intend to collaborate in multiple areas including curriculam and traing materials development and sharing virtual labs facilities. "The MoU intends to promote cooperation and collaboration in the IECT domain. The broad areas of collaboration includes Curriculum and Training Materials Development, Exchange of Trainers and Experts, Mutual Recognition of Certification, Sharing of Virtual Labs Facility, Offering of Post Graduate (PG) Diplomas/ Technical Certificates to interns nominated by ITI Egypt, Offering of B.Tech/ M.Tech Programs to Egyptian students, Free Digital literacy flagship course to Egyptian students through NIELIT Virtual Academy etc," ministry added. (ANI) (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Washington, DC, March 13: US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have secured the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations, respectively, setting up a rematch with each other, according to CNN. Trump clinched the Republican nomination for president on Wednesday morning, while, Biden secured the Democratic nomination earlier Tuesday night. The voters cast ballots in presidential primaries in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington. Earlier on Tuesday, the Hawaii Republicans held caucuses, while voting wrapped up in the primary for Democrats Abroad, the official arm of the Democratic Party for Americans living overseas, reported CNN. Moreover, Biden is the projected winner of the Democratic primary in the US territory of the Northern Mariana Islands. The shorter slate of elections followed last week's Super Tuesday, when Biden and Trump dominated across the map, putting both on the cusp of winning a majority of the delegates needed to be crowned their parties' presumptive nominees. US Presidential Elections 2024: Joe Biden, Donald Trump Lead in Super Tuesday Wins, Edging Closer to Rematch. The long-anticipated rematch of Trump and Biden is expected to mirror the 2020 campaign, though Trump will run this time under the spectre of 91 felony charges related to allegations that he plotted to overturn his 2020 election defeat, CNN reported. The charges included that he played a lead role in the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol; illegally took classified documents from the White House; and covered up hush money payments to an adult film star ahead of the 2016 election. However, Trump has now achieved a record of accomplishments and missteps for voters to weigh. Moreover, Biden is so far running a similar campaign to 2020, appealing to concerns over Trump's authoritarian behaviour and a middling economy, according to CNN. Notably, unlike Trump, the US president has never faced a serious, well-funded primary challenge, with Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, his lone rival in elected office, dropping out and endorsing Biden last week. US Presidential Elections 2024: Joe Biden Challenger Dean Phillips Drops Out of White House Race. Biden's main opposition has come more from general intraparty anxiety over his age and from progressives' outrage over the administration's support for Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza. It has also come under some scrutiny following the release of special counsel Robert Hur's report, which concluded that Biden mishandled and improperly disclosed classified information after leaving the vice presidency. However, no charges were filed with Hur, who testified Tuesday on Capitol Hill, stating that he did not believe that there was enough evidence to charge Biden with a crime, as reported by CNN. On the Republican Party (GOP) side, Trump has long been seen as the prohibitive favourite despite competition from a collection of GOP challengers, including governors, senators, right-wing provocateurs and his own former vice president, Mike Pence. The last to give in was former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who left the Republican race last week after a string of Super Tuesday losses but did not endorse Trump on the way out. Haley said the former president needed "to earn the votes of those in our party and beyond it who did not support him." Similar to Biden, Trump will need to win over sceptical portions of his base to match past levels of support. However, the primaries in Georgia are expected to provide both candidates with a gut check ahead of their anticipated November rematch, reported CNN. Reportedly, Biden has been on a post-State of the Union tour of swing states, beginning from Pennsylvania on Friday before Georgia and then in New Hampshire on Monday. However, Trump is bound for Dayton, Ohio, this weekend, when he will host a rally for businessman Bernie Moreno, his endorsed candidate in the GOP primary to take on Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. Reportedly, the Ohio election is among several seen as critical to Democratic hopes of holding the Senate. New Delhi, March 13: The Defence Ministry on Wednesday signed a contract with the Armoured Vehicles Nigam Ltd (AVNL) for the procurement of 693 armament upgrades of the Indian Army's Infantry Combat Vehicle BMP2 to BMP2M, an official statement said. This upgrade includes night enablement, gunner main sight, commander panoramic sight and fire control system (FCS) with automatic target tracker under the Buy Indian-Indigenously Designed Developed and Manufactured Category. 12th Edition of India-Italy Military Cooperation Group Meeting Concludes in Delhi The Defence Ministry said that the AVNL has developed an indigenised solution for providing existing BMP 2/2K with night-fighting capabilities and FCS based on the integration of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), Chennai-developed sight and FCS. Viksit Bharat by 2047: Government Focused on Long-Term Gains, Says Defence Minister Rajnath Singh The AVNL will produce the armament upgrades with equipment and sub-systems sourced from indigenous manufacturers. This will further strengthen the indigenous defence manufacturing ecosystem and accrue the benefits of increasing self-reliance in this field, the statement said Ghaziabad, March 13: A local court here gave a death sentence to a man for killing his four relatives for refusing to lend him Rs 10 lakh. The court of Additional District and Sessions judge-2 Pawan Kumar on Tuesday convicted Ayyub for killing four relatives, district government counsel (DGC) Rajesh Chand Sharma said. Uttar Pradesh Shocker: Groom Stands Atop Car During Wedding on Delhi-Dehradun Highway, Police Seize Vehicle (See Pic) The court also imposed a fine of Rs 80,000 on him, he said. Giving details about the case, Sharma said the incident took place on the intervening night of June 27 and 28, 2021 in Toli Mohalla of Loni. Ayyub had reached his uncle Raheesuddin's house and asked for Rs 10 lakhs as a loan. Lucknow Shocker: Man Kills Four-Year-Old Boy After Unnatural Sex, Throws Body in Canal; Arrested His uncle denied lending him money and angered by this, Ayyub shot his uncle and two of his cousins and his aunt Fatima and fled from the spot, Sharma said. Fifteen witnesses were produced before the court and on Tuesday, the judge pronounced his judgement. The copy of the order has been dispatched to Allahabad High Court for confirmation of the punishment, Sharma added. (This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body) Mumbai, March 13: The evening of March 11, 2024, marked the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, which will be celebrated by Muslims worldwide till the evening of April 9. During this month of Ramadan, all adult Muslims keep fast as it is one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith. This obligatory fasting is known as Roza. Muslims consume a pre-dawn meal called Sehri and give up food and water for the entire day. They break their fast with Iftar when the sun goes down. The timings for Sehri and Iftar slightly differ from city to city. Scroll down to know Sehri and Iftar's timings for the third Roza on March 14 in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and other Indian cities. Ramadan 2024 Date in India: Crescent Moon Sighted in Many Parts, Ramzan Fasting to Begin From March 12. During this month of Ramadan, all adult Muslims keep fast as it is one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith. This obligatory fasting is known as Roza. During Ramadan, apart from fasting, people indulge in prayers, reflection, charity and humanitarian activities. Those who keep Roza can eat the first meal of the day, known as sehri, before sunrise, and they can end their fast by eating the evening meal (also known as iftar) after sunset. Hence, they look for the sunset time to break their fast. When Will Ramadan 2024 Fasting Start in India? Know Date, Significance and Importance of Fasting During the Holy Month of Ramzan. Sehri, Iftar Time for Third Roza on March 14: Roza 3 March 14, 2024 City Last Time For Sehri Iftar Time Mumbai 5:33 AM 6:49 PM Delhi 5:13 AM 6:30 PM Kolkata 4:31 AM 5:46 PM Ahmedabad 5:34 AM 6:49 PM Bengaluru 5:16 AM 6:31 PM Chennai 5:05 AM 6:20 PM Hyderabad 5:12 AM 6:27 PM Srinagar 5:28 AM 6:39 PM Lucknow 4:59 AM 6:16 PM Bhopal 5:14 AM 6:30 PM Malappuram 5:232 AM 6:37 PM Patna 4:42 AM 5:59 PM Jaipur 5:29 AM 6:36 PM The holy month of Ramadan ends with Eid-ul-Fitr. Depending on the moon's sighting, one of the two major Islamic festivals, Eid Al Fitr or Eid Ul Fitr, will be celebrated in India on April 10 or 11. The festival marks the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Shawwal month. Have a happy and blessed Ramzan. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2024 04:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). A division bench of Justices Nitin Jamdar and M M Sathaye in its order of March 11 said the petitioner constable of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) had consumed alcohol before the said incident and was also aware that his colleague, the woman's husband, was away on election duty in West Bengal. A Nigerian man, who had ingested 71 capsules containing cocaine worth Rs 15.61 crore, has been arrested by customs officials at the international airport here, according to an official statement issued on Wednesday. After opting out from the Lok Sabha elections race, Bhojpuri film industry's power star Pawan Singh on Wednesday claimed that he will contest the polls. A primary school teacher in Hunan province, China, is under investigation following a disturbing incident of physical assault on two students. The unnamed maths teacher at Jinquan Primary School was filmed by a fellow teacher while carrying out the attacks on February 28. New Delhi, March 13: Leading laptop brand MSI on Wednesday launched the new line-up of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered laptops and its first gaming handheld device, Claw, in India. The full range of laptops will be available in the market at a starting price of Rs 68,990. "With the integration of latest technologies such as the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) in our Intel Core Ultra processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX GPUs, we're redefining possibilities in terms of performance, efficiency, and user experience," Bruce Lin, Regional Marketing Manager, MSI, said in a statement. ASUS Zenbook S 13 OLED 2024, ASUS VivoBook 15 2024 Launched in India, Available for Purchase Now; Check Price, Specifications and Features. The gaming handheld also comes equipped with the Intel Core Ultra processor. MSI has introduced a new lineup of 18-inch gaming laptops, including the Titan 18 HX, Raider 18 HX, and Stealth 18 AI Studio. The Titan 18 HX and Raider 18 HX feature top-tier Intel 14th-generation Core i9 processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 Series graphics, while the Stealth 18 AI Studio boasts Intel Core Ultra processors. The all-new Vector 16/17 HX, Crosshair 16/17 HX, and Pulse 16/17 AI laptops offer full GPU power for an uncompromised gaming experience, the company said. Moreover, the company mentioned that the gaming handheld features a 7-inch Full HD touchscreen display boasting a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. Nothing Phone 2a Sales Top 1,00,000 Day After Launch, Looking Forward to Launching in Japan: Nothing CEO Carl Pei. Additionally, the Claw supports MSI APP Player, offering access to Windows games as well as Android mobile games. It offers a 2-hour battery life under full workload conditions, according to the company. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 13, 2024 07:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). Ahmedabad, March 13: Semiconductor is not just an industry but it opens a door filled with boundless potential for the youth who are capable and need an opportunity, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday. Addressing at Indias Techade: Chips for Viksit Bharat programme after laying the foundation stone of three chip manufacturing units worth Rs 1.25 lakh crore, PM Modi said that the semiconductor initiative has brought that opportunity to India. There is a huge presence of Indian talent in global chip design and manufacturing. Therefore, the talent ecosystem of India is completed as the nation moves forward in the semiconductor manufacturing sector, the Prime Minister told the gathering. PM Modi said that the youth of today are well aware of the opportunities being created for them, be it space or mapping sector and mentioned opening up these sectors for the youth. PM Narendra Modi Lays Foundation Stone of Three Semiconductor Projects Worth Rs 1.25 Lakh Crore, Within 15 Days After Cabinet Approval. The Prime Minister credited the unprecedented incentives and encouragement for India becoming the third largest startup ecosystem in the world and said that todays occasion would create new opportunities for startups in the semiconductor space. The projects of today would provide numerous advanced technology jobs for the youth. The facilities inaugurated are Semiconductor fabrication facility at the Dholera Special Investment Region (DSIR), Gujarat, Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility at Morigaon, Assam and the Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility at Sanand, Gujarat. Todays projects will play a key role in making India a semiconductor hub, PM Modi said. The Prime Minister noted that more than 60,000 colleges, universities and educational institutes were connected with this unique event. The youth is witnessing how India is working in a multi-pronged fashion for self-reliance and a strong presence in the global supply chain. A self-confident youth changes the destiny of the nation, PM Modi added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi To Participate Virtually in Indias Techade To Lay Foundation Stone of Three Semiconductor Projects Worth Rs 1.25 Lakh Crore. The Prime Minister underlined that only a handful of nations in the world are manufacturing semiconductors today and emphasised the need for a reliable supply chain after the disruptions caused by the pandemic. The day is not far when India will become a global power in the manufacture of products for the semiconductor sector, PM Modi noted. On 12 March Kenyas principal secretary for foreign affairs,, told international media that plans were on hold for the multinational security support mission (MSS) to Haiti, which 1,000 Kenyan police officials had been due to lead. End of preview - This article contains approximately 394 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options On 12 March Argentinas presidential spokespersonsaid it was the intention of Presidentto travel to the city of Rosario, Santa Fe province, which is currently experiencing a spate of violence. End of preview - This article contains approximately 408 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options On 12 March students from the Ayotzinapa rural teacher training college in Mexicos Guerrero state staged violent protests at the state attorney generals office (FGE) in state capital Chilpancingo. End of preview - This article contains approximately 395 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options While politicians on both sides of the aisle are about to vote on whether to force TikTok parent company, ByteDance, to sell the platform or face a US ban, influencers are scrambling to Washington to try to prevent the possible TikTok ban. These online influencers make money from the platform. Should it be banned from the US entirely, as lawmakers from both sides have been threatening, they might be losing their way of life. This comes as the US government seeks to pressure the Chinese-owned platform to make a very consequential decision over its future: selling TikTok or the platform should not be allowed in the United States entirely. Security concerns have arisen after whistleblowers revealed that the parent company in Beijing has access to the private data of users, including ones in the US. As a Chinese company, ByteDance is required to submit its data to the Chinese government, including data from other countries. This makes TikTok a security threat as it allows the Chinese government access to information about US citizens. TikTok is trying to counter the legislation and it is getting some of its most well-known influencers to help. The company even had several of these top influencers go to Washington in an effort to get lawmakers not to ban the platform, according to the Associated Press. "If they ban it, I don't know what it will do," said popular TikTok influencer Summer Lucille, who has over 1.4 million followers on the platform. "It will be devastating." Dozens of these influencers descended on Washington, DC, to make their case. The influencers, with the help of TikTok, will make their case during a 2-day public event. The company is also helping these influencers ahead of meetings with their respective lawmakers and also doing some media interviews. TikTok Influencers Fear Careers Will Be Destroyed, Work 'Deleted Forever' It is very clear that the mood for some TikTok influencers in the US, many of whom have millions of followers, is quite dreary, as many of them face losing careers they have cultivated for quite some time. READ MORE: TikTok Ban: House Republicans Move Ahead With Vote Despite Donald Trump Opposition and Joe Biden Support Many of these influencers argued that should Chinese parent company ByteDance choose not to sell and face the ban, it would infringe on their freedom of speech and hurt the creator economy. One of the influencers trying to push back against the ban is Shira, a content creator who operates under the name shirashiraonthewall. She spoke with Business Insider and said, "TikTok has cultivated a huge community of people who discuss politics and current affairs without it being altered by propaganda," adding, "A lot of us just want to know the truth. The whole TikTok ban is clearly a tactic to control the narrative." Several Prospective Buyers Have Voiced Interest in Buying TikTok Should Bipartisan Bill Pass While forcing the Chinese company, ByteDance, to sell TikTok or else have the platform banned entirely, would be easier said than done, there are already several people and companies wanting to buy the video-sharing platform. As the Associated Press noted, one of them is "Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary, as well as some big tech companies. However, should big tech companies buy TikTok, the move would likely face intense scrutiny from antitrust regulators not just in the US, but also China. There would be First Amendment challenges in the forced sale as well. READ MORE: TikTok Spreading Misinformation? New Report Says Their Search Engine Shows Fake News This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Why TikTok's parent company could face divestment or U.S. ban of the platform - PBS NewsHour The Mexico election season is now in full gear as what is now considered the country's biggest election yet has entered the campaign period. This is evident as candidates recently signed a commitment to peace with the Roman Catholic Church. The signing was held during a meeting by the Episcopal Conference of Mexico where leaders of the Catholic Church proposed strategies to reduce the violence in the country. However, they also criticized some of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's policies, leading his party's presidential candidate, Claudia Sheinbaum, to react. "I do not share the pessimistic evaluation of the current moment," said Sheinbaum, who is currently leading in the polls. She added that "not all Mexicans feel fear, distrust or uncertainty, as the Catholic Church was pointing out in the document that they shared with the three leading candidates. Sheinbaum then claimed that homicides dropped during the AMLO presidency. However, the Associated Press pointed out that large swaths of Mexico are now controlled by drug cartels through violence and corruption, with these violent criminal organizations now extorting businesses big and small for protection payments under his watch. In that document, Church leaders noted that the country suffers from a "deep crisis of violence and social decomposition." Their relationship with the AMLO administration has been tense ever since the murder of beloved Jesuit priests by a local drug lord. Mexico Presidential Candidate Slams AMLO Government as She Signs Commitment to Peace While administration candidate Claudia Sheinbaum did not agree with Church leaders on the matter of peace in Mexico, leading opposition candidate Xochitl Galvez slammed the AMLO administration, which is allied with her top rival. The opposition candidate, who represents three different opposition parties, criticized the increased military presence all over the country. She also pointed to the fact that eight Catholic priests have been murdered while AMLO is in office. READ MORE: Mexico Elections Primer: Who Are the Top 3 Candidates Vying to Replace AMLO? "I will make all these proposals my own," she said as she signed the agreement. "I am convinced that the churches, and particularly the Catholic Church, to which I belong, play a fundamental role in building peace." She proposed that to address Mexico's violence problem, the working conditions of police, prosecutors, and judges must be improved, adding, "A problem of this magnitude requires everyone's participation." The third leading candidate in the race, Jorge alvarez Maynez, also expressed support for the Church leaders and slammed AMLO's strategy of "hugs, not bullets." Specter of the Drug Cartels Still Looms Over the Mexico Elections Speaking of AMLO, the Mexican president is currently under fire after US media outlets exposed that some of his closest aides were connected to the drug cartels and he knew nothing about it. While this connection has done little to diminish Sheinbaum's massive lead, the influence of the cartels still looms large over the Mexico elections. As the Courier-Journal noted, the cartels have now infiltrated all levels of Mexico's government, making many question how much influence these criminal organizations have. "As the economic capacity of the cartels increased, they began to infiltrate more states and began to climb the pyramid to reach positions of greater relevance," security analyst David Saucedo told the outlet. "It's very common that criminal groups want a slice of political power to remain in force, to safeguard their criminal empire." READ MORE: Mexico Students Tried To Storm Presidential Palace, Rammed Truck Into Palace Doors in Protest This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Mexico likely to get first woman president in 2024 as top parties choose female candidates - FRANCE 24 English Embattled Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry has declared his intention to step down amidst escalating chaos in the Caribbean nation, marked by gang violence and a precarious social order, according to CNN. Henry made his announcement via a video address late Monday, emphasizing the urgent need for peace and stability in Haiti. He revealed plans for his government to relinquish power upon the establishment of a transitional council, stating, "Haiti needs peace. Haiti needs stability." Henry's advisor, Jean Junior Joseph, confirmed that Henry would continue in his role until the formation of a new interim government. CARICOM, during a meeting in Jamaica, announced its commitment to establishing a transitional council to facilitate the path towards elections in Haiti. Guyana's leader and CARICOM Chairman, Irfaan Ali, emphasized the importance of this governance arrangement in ensuring a peaceful transition of power and the rule of law in Haiti. Amid the rising Haiti crisis, Henry was stranded in Kenya, where he was negotiating the deployment of Kenyan police officers to restore security in Haiti. However, he was unable to return due to the deteriorating security situation around the capital's airport. The United States pledged $300 million to support this multinational security mission, with an additional $33 million allocated for humanitarian aid to Haiti. Following Henry's resignation announcement and the escalating lawlessness in Haiti, Kenya has suspended its deployment of police officers to the country. READ NEXT: US Urges Haiti Prime Minster Ariel Henry to Resign Politicians and Gangs Vie for Control As Haiti Prime Minister Ariel Henry prepares to step down, various political factions in Haiti are maneuvering for power, AP News reports. However, the most significant challenge comes from powerful gangs that wield considerable influence, particularly in the capital city, Port-au-Prince. Despite Caribbean leaders' optimism about Haiti's political future, experts caution that meaningful change is unlikely unless the issue of gang involvement is addressed. Gangs, which control significant parts of Haiti, have become increasingly independent, funding their activities through ransom payments and acquiring sophisticated weapons. Haiti is home to over 200 gangs, with two main coalitions, G9 Family and Allies led by Jimmy Cherizier ("Barbecue") and G-Pep led by Gabriel Jean-Pierre. These gangs have intricate ties to Haiti's political and economic elite, posing a significant challenge to the country's security and stability. The Rise of Barbecue Jimmy Cherizier, popularly known as Barbecue, has emerged as a prominent figure amidst Haiti's unrest, BBC News noted. Leading the G9 coalition, Barbecue has been vocal in his opposition to Ariel Henry's government and has been implicated in various violent incidents, including a 2018 massacre. Barbecue's actions, including blockades and attacks on vital infrastructure, have exacerbated Haiti's humanitarian crisis, leading to shortages of essential supplies and hindering medical services. While he claims to champion the interests of ordinary Haitians, his methods have drawn criticism and fear of further Haiti crisis. Even though Henry will resign as Prime Minister, the future of Haiti remains uncertain, with challenges posed by political instability, gang violence, and a looming humanitarian crisis. The international community's involvement, including the deployment of security forces, adds another layer of complexity to Haiti's fragile situation. Amidst escalating chaos and mounting pressure, Prime Minister Ariel Henry's resignation marks a significant turning point in Haiti's tumultuous political landscape. However, the challenges ahead, including addressing gang violence and restoring stability, are daunting. As Haiti navigates this critical juncture, the international community's support will be crucial in facilitating a peaceful transition and addressing the root causes of the country's crisis. Only through concerted efforts and genuine dialogue can Haiti hope to prevail over its current challenges and pave the way for a brighter future. READ MORE: Haiti: US Pledges Another $100M to Keen Up Security Mission This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Bert Hoover WATCH: Haiti's leader resigns as gangs run rampant through country - From CNN A bombshell new report has revealed that Donald Trump wanted to sell Truth Social and that he specifically wanted X CEO Elon Musk to buy it from him. This report came as the judge in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case approved the $92 million bond that Trump was forced to pay so he could appeal the ruling against him. The report came from The Washington Post, citing two people who were knowledgeable about the conversation between Musk and the former president as the source of the information. However, WaPo did point out that despite the conversation, it did not lead to a deal that had Trump sell Truth Social to Musk. The report also revealed that Trump and Musk have been communicating with one another more than what was previously known. The two also had more conversations other than the Truth Social sale, though, and these included other topics such as politics and business. Donald Trump and Elon Musk reportedly had another conversation earlier this month in Palm Beach, Florida, where he not just met with the X CEO, but also with other high-powered Republican donors. The subject of their discussion was not immediately clear but it was noted that Trump was looking for campaign contributions. However, Musk has recently announced that he is "not donating money to either candidate for US President." This announcement came shortly after reports that he met with Trump came out. The tech billionaire has recently started leaning right and has slowly started spreading conservative ideology on the platform previously called Twitter, including a few conspiracy theories that landed him in hot water. WaPo tried to ask both Musk and the Trump Media & Technology Group regarding the supposed attempted sale of Truth Social. Musk stated that he had "never been to Mar-a-Lago," while Trump Media did not address the rumor but attacked the outlet instead. READ MORE: Donald Trump Faces More Legal Trouble With Possible 3rd E. Jean Carroll Lawsuit and Classified Documents Donald Trump's Truth Social Was Facing Financial Trouble Before Trump met with Elon Musk in an effort to sell him Truth Social, the Trump-owned social media platform was in a dire financial situation. It was pointed out that the former president has a 90% stake in the platform but his income from it was less than $200. However, as The Independent noted, things might not be so bad for Truth Social, as the SEC has already given the green light to a merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp, a special purpose acquisition company. It would likely save Truth Social and improve the former president's financial situation as he faces mounting legal fees with his recent court losses. Donald Trump's $92 Million Bond in E. Jean Carroll Defamation Case Approved by Judge Meanwhile, as Trump faces more financial losses thanks to his myriad of court cases, a New York judge has just approved the approximately $92 million bond he had to pay so that he could appeal E. Jean Carroll's victory against him in that high-profile defamation case against him. According to the Associated Press, that bond ensures that Carroll will receive a jury award for his verbal attacks against her, even if Trump appeals. Carroll was granted $83.3 million last January after a jury found Trump liable for defaming her. READ MORE: Donald Trump Loses Delay Attempt for His $454 Million Fraud Penalty, Forced To Pay $100 Million Bond To Appeal This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Trump's continued attacks on E.Jean Carroll: 'Damages clearly are not working' says Weissmann - MSNBC Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted child sex trafficker and pedophile Jeffrey Epstein's most high-profile accomplice is back in court as she tries to appeal her 2021 sex trafficking conviction. She was previously found guilty of five counts of trafficking and abusing young girls. The 62-year-old former socialite and former heiress to a tabloid empire had her attorneys appeal her convictions on Tuesday. her team, led by Diana Fabi Samson, referenced the 2008 non-prosecution agreement that was offered by Florida state prosecutors with Epstein while he was still alive. The Maxwell lawyer argued that her conviction did not honor the terms of the agreement that Epstein had and that this would "strike a dagger in the heart of the trust between the government and its citizens." "In the end, Ms. Maxwell was prosecuted for crimes that she as a third party beneficiary to the plea agreement in Florida should not have been prosecuted," the lawyer argued during a hearing inside a New York federal court. However, The Independent noted that Ghislaine Maxwell herself was not present during the Tuesday hearing, but she was listening to the case from her jail cell in Florida. Federal Prosecutors Argued Jeffrey Epstein's Florida Deal Does Not Apply in New York While Maxwell and her lawyers argued that the prosecution against her went against Epstein's deal with Florida prosecutors, federal prosecutors shot back by pointing out that the deal in Florida only stays in Florida and would not apply to the federal case against the disgraced former socialite. READ MORE: Jeffrey Epstein List: Whose Names Appear on the New Unsealed Documents? "The central promise in the non-prosecution agreement is a promise by the Southern District of Florida not to prosecute Epstein in that district," Assistant US Attorney Andrew Rohrbach told the court. "This is a document entered into by the US Attorney's office for the Southern District of Florida intended to bind the Southern District of Florida and that district alone." Maxwell's lawyers argued that their client was made a "proxy" for Epstein who passed away after committing suicide inside his jail cell. They argued her persecution was to "satisfy public outrage" about his conduct and that "Maxwell was denied a fair trial, in part because one of the jurors failed to disclose his own history of sexual abuse during jury selection." according to ABC News. Jeffrey Epstein's Madame, Ghislaine Maxwell, Working on Memoir Aside from working on her appeal, Maxwell, who previously wrote a book about her life as a British socialite, is planning to write a new memoir in an effort to combat her ties to Jeffrey Epstein and his sex trafficking operation. According to The Daily Mail, she promised to share "the truth" in that new book that she is writing as she serves out her 20-year sentence in a federal prison in Florida. However, insiders have warned that the convicted sex trafficker would not finally come clean as her intention was to prove she did nothing wrong. Maxwell, a well-known socialite, became infamous when it was revealed that she was the one recruiting underaged girls to be part of Jeffrey Epstein's infamous sex trafficking ring, as well as taking part in their sexual harassment in the late pedophile's mansions and his island at the US Virgin Islands. READ MORE: Mexican Megachurch Leader Jailed in California for Sexually Abusing Minors This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Why Ghislaine Maxwell Was Convicted (And How A Juror Might Undo It) - LegalEagle Police in Nashville are intensifying efforts to locate Riley Strain, a 22-year-old University of Missouri student who disappeared during a night out with friends on Friday, March 8. Surveillance footage released by Metropolitan Nashville Police depicts Strain crossing a downtown street just before 10 PM when he went missing. He was last seen wearing a black and brown shirt. Missing Missouri student Riley Strain was allegedly asked to leave Luke Bryan's Nashville bar on Friday night, and there has been no contact with him since then, according to reports from Fox 17 Nashville. Strain had traveled to Nashville with his fraternity brothers for a convention and intended to walk back to their hotel, the Tempo by Hilton, located approximately five blocks away. Despite concerns about his level of intoxication, there were no hostile interactions reported by the bar staff. READ NEXT: Missing Missouri Man Since 2013 Found Remains at the Pond Family's Account and Ongoing Search Missing Missouri student Riley Strain's family remains deeply involved in the search efforts, Newsnation reports. A few hours before his disappearance, he Facetimed his mother, Michelle Whiteid, from one of the city's venues, showing her that he was having a good time with friends. "He and his buddy were having a good time, and he just wanted to show me that he was having a good time," Michelle Whiteid said. Their close relationship meant they often spoke multiple times a day, and there was nothing unusual about their last conversation on Friday night. After their call, Strain continued to send his mother texts expressing love and sharing pictures of his night out. Upon learning of Strain's disappearance, his parents and stepparents rushed to Nashville. Despite their efforts, the family remains uncertain about what happened to their son. They are relying on the police to gather digital evidence of Strain's movements after leaving the bar. University of Missouri's Response In a statement released on Monday, University of Missouri officials expressed solidarity with Strain's family and affirmed their commitment to assisting in the search. Angela King Taylor, temporary vice chancellor for Student Affairs, emphasized the university's focus on community safety and announced support services available for students in need. "The safety of our community is our highest priority," Taylor said. "Our thoughts are with Riley's family as the search continues. We will be offering any support to them that we can, and we encourage anyone who needs help to reach out to our counseling resources," she added. Described as 6 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 160 pounds, with and blonde hair, and blue eyes Strain is considered distinctive in appearance. The Nashville Police Department provided a detailed description of his attire at the time of his disappearance, including a black/brown button-up shirt, blue jeans, brown boots, and a black Apple watch. As authorities and loved ones continue the search for Missing Missouri student Riley Strain, the community remains hopeful for his safe return, People noted. Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is incite to contact the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department immediately. READ MORE: Hawaii Man Commits Murder-Suicide This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Bert Hoover WATCH: 22-Year-Old Mizzou Student Goes Missing in Nashville - From Inside Edition Beau DeMayo, the creator behind the highly anticipated 'X-Men '97', has been reportedly fired from the series just days before its scheduled debut on Disney+, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. The shocking news came to light on March 12, with DeMayo's company email being deactivated and an announcement made to the cast and crew that he would no longer be involved in the project. According to Variety, DeMayo will not participate in press events for the show nor be involved in any future seasons. Notably, DeMayo had already completed work on the second season of the series. Disney+ has yet to issue any official statement regarding the matter. DeMayo, known for his work on other Marvel projects such as Moon Knight and Blade, has also deleted his Instagram account following the reported termination. The timing of his firing, just a day before the Hollywood premiere of 'X-Men '97', adds to the surprise and speculation surrounding the situation, Vulture noted. The upcoming series serves as a continuation of the beloved '90s animated show 'X-Men: The Animated Series,' garnering considerable attention from fans eager for its release. DeMayo's involvement in the project held particular significance as a gay, Black creator leading a series that explores themes of societal acceptance and inclusivity. READ NEXT: Hugh Jackman Prepares to Play Wolverine Again in 'Deadpool 3' Unusual Turn of Events Before Premiere The departure of Beau DeMayo from the project just before its premiere marks an unusual occurrence in the realm of Marvel productions. While it's not uncommon for studios to part ways with writers, it's rare for a key creative figure to be absent from a premiere or to cancel press engagements abruptly, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Marvel often showcases multiple screenwriters at premieres, even if their involvement in the final product has been altered. DeMayo's hiring in November 2021 had initially generated excitement, as he brought a unique perspective as a gay Black man to the series, drawing parallels between his personal experiences and the struggles of the X-Men characters. DeMayo's social media activity, particularly on platforms like Instagram and Twitter, had been notable, with frequent updates about X-Men '97 and personal reflections. However, his presence on social media also led to challenges, including backlash over casting decisions. Despite these hurdles, X-Men '97 had garnered significant attention, benefiting from nostalgia for the original '90s animated series and the return of several original voice actors. Speculation Surrounding DeMayo's Exit While there has been no official statement regarding DeMayo's departure, the circumstances surrounding it have raised eyebrows in the industry. Unlike typical cases of creative differences or scheduling conflicts, DeMayo's firing came abruptly, just before the show's premiere. Marvel Studios, known for its transparency in such matters, has not provided clarity on the situation, leading to speculation about the reasons behind Beau DeMayo's exit, AV Club reports. The uncertainty surrounding X-Men '97's creator change adds a layer of intrigue to the series' upcoming debut. Despite the setback, the show is poised to attract a significant audience driven by nostalgia and anticipation for a continuation of the beloved X-Men saga. READ MORE: Oscars 2024 In Memoriam Segment This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Bert Hoover WATCH: BREAKING! MARVEL STUDIOS FIRES X-MEN 97 CREATOR BEAU DEMAYO RIGHT BEFORE PREMIERE - From Everything Always Bethlehem police are calling a message threat unfounded at Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts, but continue to investigate. Investigators were dispatched just after 11 a.m. Wednesday to the school, 321 E. Third St., in the city. The message, police said, was non-specific. It was found somewhere inside the school building. After finding the message, school administrators enacted safety protocols, including lockdown measures, police said. The investigation currently remains ongoing, however, there is no immediate danger to students, staff or any other occupants of the building, police said. The rest of the school day plans to continue as normal and dismiss on time, police said. Police also plan to beef up patrols in and around the school building as an extra safety measure. Christina Lincoln, the schools executive director & CEO, and Principal Jennifer Levernier didnt immediately return requests for more information. Those with information about the incident or threat are asked to contact the Bethlehem Police Department at 610-865-7000 or at BethlehemPolice@bethlehem-pa.gov. Anonymous tips can be sent to 610-691-6660. Please subscribe now and support the local journalism you rely on and trust. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. A Lehigh County teenager was taken into custody Tuesday after allegedly assaulting his mother and stealing a firearm from the familys home. Authorities called for the incident in Upper Macungie Township investigated threats possibly directed at Lehigh County Technical Institute, according to township police. The school in North Whitehall Township increased security and modified its day and dismissal. No one was reported injured. Upper Macungie police were called shortly before noon to the familys home in the Green Acres Mobile Home Park in the 8800 block of Max Way in Breinigsville, according to a news release from the police department. The suspects mother said the 17-year-old male had assaulted her and possibly taken a handgun, and also made threats to harm family members, according to police. Pennsylvania State Police responded to assist in searching for the suspect, who was not immediately located. About 3 p.m., officers received a tip the teen had been seen walking in the area of the mobile home park, the release states; officers arrived within minutes and took him into custody without incident. The stolen handgun was located a short time later in the area, police said. During this incident, there was a concern that the juvenile had made threats directed at the Lehigh County Technical Institute (LCTI), the release states. However, it was later determined that the only threats that were made were against his family. LCTI on its website said as a precaution related to the report of an external threat, the school restricted student and staff movement on campus Tuesday afternoon and called police. Responding police provided additional security on campus as regular instruction continued, prior to LCTI following a modified dismissal procedure and schedule to maximize student safety, according to the website. All students had been dismissed by 3:17 p.m. Police said the teen would be charged with theft, possession of a firearm by a minor and harassment. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. An Essex County, New Jersey man is accused of possessing crack, fentanyl and prescription drugs while asleep behind the wheel of a parked car in the parking garage at Wind Creek Bethlehem. Louis Polito, 55, of Belleville, is charged with two counts felony possession with intent to manufacture drugs; four counts misdemeanor intentional possession of a controlled substance by person not registered; and one count misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. Court records did not list any attorney information for Polito. A Bethlehem police officer shortly before 8 a.m. March 7 was patrolling the parking garage at the Wind Creek Casino, 77 Wind Creek Blvd. The officer spotted Polito allegedly asleep behind the wheel of a black Ford Explorer. The officer reported Polito was violently twitching, but breathing, city police said. The officer saw a crack pipe in plain view in the center console, according to police. Polito woke up to the officer knocking on the car window and advised heroin was inside the car, court records state. The officer then searched the SUV, seizing the following: 55 vials of crack cocaine; 106 glassine bags of fentanyl; a dozen hypodermic needles; multiple empty vials with white powdery residue; two Xanax/Alprazolam pills; two crack pipes; and three doses of Suboxone, according to court records. Polito additionally had $529 in cash in his possession, court records state. He didnt have a prescription for the medication, police said. Polito on March 7 was arraigned before District Judge Jordan A. Knisley, who set bail at $100,000. In lieu of bail, Polito was taken to Northampton County Prison. Please subscribe now and support the local journalism you rely on and trust. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. A new campaign has been launched calling for increased neurological services at Portlaoise Hospital. The campaign by the Neurological Alliance of Ireland is seeking funding for consultant neurologists in five regional hospitals across the country including Portlaoise, Bantry, Wexford, Letterkenny and Mayo hospitals. They say patients in Laois with chronic long term neurological conditions are regularly travelling 75km to see their neurologist. Commenting on the situation a patient from Laois who is impacted said: "Since being diagnosed in the 1980s I have had to travel from Laois to Dublin for neurology services. The journey adds another layer of stress and fatigue." The campaign is being launched as part of events nationwide to mark National Brain Awareness Week taking place throughout this week. "The need for a consultant neurologist to provide neurology services at Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise is recognised in the Neurology Model of Care and the local community should have these services as prolonged travel increases the cost of healthcare for patients and the provider," said a spokesperson for the campaign. "The HSE cites travel as one of the primary reasons for the Did Not Attend rate, increasing waiting lists. "Local neurology services reduce unnecessary admissions, length of stay and unnecessary testing. "These patients, many of whom suffer from serious and disabling neurological conditions could be seen quicker and closer to home as promised in Slaintecare." The public is being asked to contact Oireachtas members in their constituency to call for increased funding to address the issue. You can visit the campaign website www.patientsdeservebetter.ie and follow the campaign on social media #patientsdeservebetter. Stradbally has been announced as the largest of five Designated Accommodation Centres confirmed for Ukrainian refugees in Ireland. A total of six centres have been identified nationally. They are to be used to house new arrivals from Ukraine who register for temporary protection and are looking for State-provided accommodation in Ireland. They will be accommodated for a maximum of 90 days at the centres. The refugees will be provided with food, laundry, other services and integration supports in the Designated Accommodation Centres. From this Thursday, March 14, standard social welfare payments will no longer be available to a person while they are resident in Designated Accommodation Centres. They will be entitled to a reduced weekly allowance of 38.80 per adult and 29.80 per child in respect of daily expenses, while they are resident in Designated Accommodation Centres. Entitlement to Child Benefit is not affected by these changes. When they leave the Designated Accommodation Centre, or if they make their own accommodation arrangements on arrival, they will be entitled to apply for standard social welfare assistance, equivalent to Irish citizens subject to meeting the eligibility conditions. Stradbally was first used to house Ukrainian refugees in festival tents days after the Electric Picnic finished last September. Assurances were given at that time that the site would only be used as a temporary measure for six weeks and would house a maximum of 750 people. When the six weeks elapsed, a new contract was agreed and the refugees were housed in new winter-ready accommodation on the land in Stradbally. Under the new contract, the site was designed to house a maximum of 950 people but the residents were only staying for short periods before moving on to new locations. It's understood the facility has never neared capacity. The Department of Children, Equality, Disability Integration and Youth has now confirmed the Stradbally site is to have the largest capacity of five Designated Accommodation Centres announced for Ireland, a sixth centre has yet to be announced. The first five to be confirmed as Designated Accommodation Centres are: Stradbally, Co. Laois (capacity: 950), Ballyogan Road, Dublin City (capacity: 392), Fernbank, Limerick City (capacity: 250), Punchestown, Co. Kildare (capacity: 378) and Gerald Griffin Street, Cork City (capacity: 107). The Department said changes announced in social welfare and accommodation do not apply to people seeking international protection in Ireland, and only apply to people fleeing the war in Ukraine who request temporary protection here. Further information can be found on www.gov.ie/Ukraine. A railway bridge was struck by a high sided vehicle in Laois earlier today, the second such incident impacting rail services in Portlaoise this week. Irish Rail said services were temporarily delayed by the incident at around noon. Although Irish Rail say delays were minimal, it is the second time a bridge was struck causing delays for road and rail passengers this week. Update: Services have resumed through Portlaoise following a vehicle striking a bridge in the area. -AD https://t.co/R8NEaNNloL Iarnrod Eireann (@IrishRail) March 13, 2024 On Monday, there were 40 minute delays to rail services when a vehicle struck a railway bridge in Portaloise. Services have resumed through Portlaoise following a vehicle striking a bridge in the area. Delays of up to +40mins can be expected as a result, Irish Rail tweeted on Monday, March 11. In recent years Irish Rail had issued a tender for a new high vehicle warning system for rail bridges on the Mountrath and Mountmellick Roads in Portlaoise but the system has not been installed. The Leinster Express/Laois Live has repeatedly contacted Irish Rail in recent weeks in relation to bridge strikes in Portlaoise and the planned warning system for bridges in the town but Irish Rail/Iarnrod Eireann has not responded to queries. Electric scooters should be taken from children by their parents because they are not legal, a member of the Laois Joint Policing Committee has suggested. E scooters are a common sight around towns and villages in Laois, but an Irish law to govern them is still being drawn up, so they remain in legal limbo. This month the Laois JPC committee was told that the powered scooters are currently not legal. The Department of Transport gave a reply to Deputy Brian Stanley who had asked when legislation would be in place. The reply said that a Commencement Order is soon to be signed by the Minister for Transport. However there are some "technical and legal issues" still remaining and the law is expected to be in place at the end of March 2024. "E-scooters will not be legal to use in public areas until that time." It will ban E scooters from footpaths and pedestrian areas, and make helmets and protective clothing optional, but strongly recommended. JPC member Bobby Delaney from Mountmellick said parents must not know they are illegal now. "Maybe parents should take note, and take them off their young lads going to school. If I've an accident with an E-scooter, would the law be on my side? I think parents will say 'no you can't bring it to school it's illegal'," he said. Deputy Brian Stanley is on the committee. "As of now they are not legal. Could we get them off the footpaths?," he asked the Laois Chief Superintendent Anthony Lonergan. Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley highlighted a contradiction. "What law do you break if it isn't there? I'd look for clarification. That's an awful situation to put us in. Until the law is there the Gardai can't enact it," she said. "There are so many used on the edge of roads, in and out of heavy traffic, it's dangerous for motorists as well. They are certainly posing danger to them selves. Can Gardai go to schools and advise on them?" Cllr Paddy Bracken suggested. "I've seen three and four people on them at the same time. If they fall and you hit them, they are liable to claim on your insurance," warned Cllr Aisling Moran, chair of the committee. "Tax and insure them as a propelled vehicle, that will stop them fairly quickly," suggested Cllr Ben Brennan. The Chief Super said "we will welcome the legislation and seek clarity". He said that at the moment, incidents are "dealt with case by case". "When the legislation comes we won't be found wanting. We do also try to create awareness about public safety," he said. The HSE has issued an urgent call to people who were on a Dublin-bound flight after someone on the plane was confirmed to have measles. The HSE has appealed to anyone who was on the flight EY45 from Abu Dhabi to Dublin, which arrived on Sunday, March 9 at 6.30 am to contact HSELive on 1800 700 700. They have also said that any passenger on the flight who is pregnant, immunocompromised, or under the age of 12-months-old should be urgently put in contact with their local HSE Department of Public Health or HSELive, as immediate treatment may be beneficial. All passengers who were on the flight should be aware of the signs and symptoms of measles, including cold-like symptoms such as a runny nose, sneezing and a cough, and sore red eyes. Symptoms also include a temperature of 38 degrees celsius or above and a rash, which usually appears on the head and neck before spreading to the rest of the body. If any of the passengers have any of these symptoms, they have been asked to stay at home in an isolated room and seek healthcare advice. They have also been asked to call ahead of attending any healthcare setting. An Aer Lingus flight saw an emergency return to Dublin Airport on Sunday afternoon after pilots reported 'fumes' which they believed was from the engines. According to Shaun's Aviation on X, flight EI166 was on its way from Dublin to London when the information was relayed to Air Traffic Control (ATC). "After pilots reported fumes, on approach to Dublin, they informed ATC that they believed it was from the engines," a post shared on social media stated. It is said that the crew members were taken to receive treatment at a nearby hospital. A later statement by the 16-year-old aviation enthusiast added: "The crew of EI166 are receiving treatment in hospital following this incident, my best wishes go out to the crew." Aer Lingus have been contacted for comment, but have not responded at the time of publication. In only a matter of days before St Patrick's Day, a snake was sighted near the tracks at Kent Station in Cork, leaving staff astonished. The incident was reported by Colm, an Irish Rail worker, this Tuesday and he spoke of the encounter in an interview with PJ Coogan on Cork's 96FM opinion line. Speaking on the show, Colm said that his colleague Siobhan spotted the serpent and he quickly captured the footage. "It looked like a bit of cloth from where we were first," the Cork man said. According to Colm, he spotted the orange/brown snake and returned to the location in an attempt to relocate it to Fota Wildlife Park. However, upon his return, the reportedly three-foot long reptile had quickly left the area. "We had nothing on us to pick him up," he said. "We didn't know if he was dangerous or not. We thought he might have been a corn snake but we couldn't be sure". "We went to get gloves and a little bag too put him into," added the rail worker, "but unfortunately we couldn't find him when we went back down." Colm agreed with PJ that the reptile must have been a lost pet. "We frantically tried to look for him as he won't survive in this weather, they need a warm climate" he assured. When asked by PJ if the snake was aggressive, Colm added: "No, he was more frightened I think. His head was up about two inches, his eyes, and he was kind of staring at us. Then he decided to move off." A member of the Fota Wildlife Park team was said to have been contacted to bring the snake to safety, however, it was not located at the time. Dubbed "a pretty little lad" by PJ, another voice chuckled: "You wouldn't see too many of them in Cork, put it that way." Irish premier Leo Varadkar has questioned the decision of Government politicians announcing they had not voted in favour of recent constitutional amendments. Over the weekend, the Irish Government suffered major defeats to two proposed changes to the constitution relating to the definition of family and State recognition of women and carers. The three coalition parties had campaigned in favour of the the amendments, but a number of Fianna Fail representatives have since said they voted against the Government in one or both of the referenda. Mr Varadkar, the leader of Fine Gael, said he had not spoken to Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin who is in Canada. Speaking to reporters in Boston, he said he did not anticipate it would adversely affect relations between the coalition partners in any way. However, Mr Varadkar added: But you know, I would question why people would announce that theyre on the winning side, only after they realised who had won. I can understand how people in the privacy of the ballot box might vote in a particular way but Im not really sure what the wisdom of it is. But, you know, theyre all elected in their own right, and theyre all grown ups and theyre all free to explain themselves. I dont think I can do it for them. Mr Varadkar said it was the full-time job of Government TDs and Senators to have understood the issues in advance of the vote. He added: They had ample time and they are paid to do this. Inishcaltra South in Co Clare and Lullymore in Co Kildare had the highest literacy rates in Ireland in 1911 with 100%, it has emerged. The Co Down town of Donaghadee was not far behind with a rate of 99.7%. Newly digitised tables from the Census of Ireland, 1911 also identified Dublin County (excluding the city centre) as the county with the highest literacy rate at the time (96.6%). Eimear Crowley, a statistician with Ireland Central Statistics Office (CSO), said the findings come in the second release in their Stories from Census 1911 Series. The first release in the series looked at valuation and population statistics, giving insights into wealth and poverty in the country at that time. She said a team of CSO volunteers have worked to unlock stories from Census 1911, and the latest release looks at literacy levels in Ireland at that time provides further insights into how people lived in 1911. The census included a question on literacy for those ages nine years and over. The findings revealed much lower levels of literacy along the Atlantic coast while higher rates of literacy tended to be centred around Tipperary, Dublin and the North East. The top four areas for literacy were Dublin city, Dublin county, Belfast city, and Antrim. Eleven of the 20 District Electoral Divisions (DEDs) with the highest literacy rates were in Leinster, and seven were in Belfast City, Antrim, or Down. One example highlighted was that Donaghadee Urban DED in Down had one of the highest literacy rates in 1911 with a literacy rate of 99.7%. This area had a population of 1,797 aged nine years and over of which five were classed as illiterate. Lettermore DED in Galway was identified as the DED with one of the lowest literacy rates in 1911 with a literacy rate of 38.8%. It had a population of 1,003 who were aged nine years and over, of which 614 were illiterate. The CSOs Chapter on Literacy also looks at two different households using their 1911 Census return forms to tell their stories: the Louden household from the high literacy area of Donaghadee Urban DED in Down; and the OTooles from Lettermore DED in Galway, which was an area of low literacy. Michael Dunne- Stradbally The death has occurred of Michael Dunne, Stradbally Cottages, The Green Stradbally, and formerly of Clonard, Mountrath. Died 12th March 2024, peacefully in the tender care of Medical and Palliative care team in the Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise, surrounded by his loving family. Predeceased by his parents Bridie and Martin, cherished brother to Mary (Pollard) and Martin. Sadly missed by his brother-in-law Pat, nephew David, nieces Katie and Rosemarie and her partner Sean, sadly missed by the staff and his friends in Stradbally Cottages and Muiriosa Foundation, relatives, neighbours and friends. May Michael Rest in Peace Reposing in Stradbally Cottages (eircode R32E9M3) on Wednesday evening (March 13th) from 6.0clock, concluding with Rosary at 8.0clock. Removal on Thursday morning (March 14th) to St. Fintans Church, Mountrath, for Requiem Mass at 10.0clock, followed by Burial in St. Fintans Cemetery, Mountrath. Michaels Requiem Mass will be live streamed on www.mountrathparish.ie Family flowers only, donations, if desired, to Stradbally Cottages. Thomas (Tommy) Carolan- Stradbally The death has occurred of Thomas (Tommy) Carolan of Woodview, Stradbally, Laois, R32 NP20 / Nobber, Meath. Tommy passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family, in The Midlands Regional Hospital, Portlaoise on Monday, March 11. Formerly Nobber Co. Meath. Predeceased by his wife Adie, brother Paddy, sisters Pauline and Mary. Sadly missed by his sons Richard and Thomas, daughters Kathleen and Adeline, daughters in law Josephine and Sheila, sons in law Gabriel and Noel and his brother Charlie, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, brother in law, sister in law, nieces, nephews, relatives, neighbours and friends. May Tommy Rest In Peace Tommy will be reposing at his residence (R32 NP20) on Wednesday from 4pm to 8pm with recital of the Rosary at 8pm. Removal from his residence by Whelehan Funeral Directors on Thursday morning to arrive at the Sacred Heart Church, Stradbally (R32 WRH9) for 12 noon Requiem Mass. Interment to follow in Oakvale Cemetery. Family flowers only please. Donations in lieu to Cancer Research Ireland. Donation box will be in the church. House private on Thursday morning please. Tommy's Requiem Mass will be streamed on https://svtparish.ie The Carolan family would like to thank you for your support during this difficult and sensitive time. Parking spaces will be available in Stradbally GAA grounds during reposing times. Maura Dunne - Ballyfin The death has occurred of The Fields, Deerpark, Ballyfin who died March 10 in the tender loving care of her loving family. Predeceased by her beloved husband Jim ,her dear son John and her infant son, she will be dearly missed and forever loved by her children Majella, Pat, Breda and Seamus, her dear brother John Joe and dear sister Bernie (Kirwan) sons-in-law and daughters-in-law. Adored grandmother and great-grandmother to all her dear grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Much loved Aunt to all her nieces and nephews. She will be missed by all their families, neighbours and friends. Maura will repose in her daughter Bredas home in Clonagh, Ballyfin (R32 NY 61) on Tuesday from 5pm. Recital of The Rosary at 8pm. Removal on Wednesday at 10.30am to St Fintans Church, Ballyfin for Requiem Mass at 11am. Burial after in St Fintan's Cemetery. Family flowers only, please. Support for Daffodil Day on March 22nd in lieu of flowers, if desired. The Mass will be live-streamed on https://mountrathparish.ie/Profile/ballyfin May her gentle and faithful soul rest in heavenly peace. Christy Cahill- Portlaoise / Timahoe The death occurred of Christy Cahill, St Brigid's Place, Portlaoise and late of Orchard, Timahoe, on March 9 peacefully, surrounded by his loving family. Beloved husband of Lily. Loving father to Geraldine Lynam, Christy, Tony and Liz Traynor. Cherished grandfather to Jenna, Stephanie, Christopher and Paraig. Missed by great-grandchildren Sadie and Florence, sons-in-law Colm and John, daughter-in-law Christine, Jenna's husband Shaun, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, nephews and nieces, great neighbours and friends, and former colleagues in Shaws & Eircom. Reposed at Keegan's funeral home on Monday from 6.30 pm until 8 pm, with rosary at 7.30 pm. Removal on Tuesday morning from his home at 11.30 am to arrive at SS Peter and Paul's Church for 12 noon requiem Mass. Interment will follow in SS Peter and Paul's Cemetery, Portlaoise. House private, please. May he rest in peace. Funeral Mass streamed here. Shane O'Loughlin - Ballyroan The death occurred of Shane O'Loughlin, Newtown, Ballyroan on March 9. Passed away peacefully in the heart and lung transplant unit of the Mater Hospital. Beloved husband to his heartbroken wife Sarah and adored father to Carly, Kate, Kyle. Loving son to Louise and Noel. Cherished son-in-law to Liam and Mary Bergin. Brother to Stephen and partner Janine, Stacey and her husband John. Also missed by sister-in-law Jenah and brother-in-law to Derek and his wife Sara. Deeply regretted by his loving family - uncles, aunts, nephew, nieces and friends. Former colleagues in WMO Healthcare. Reposing at Keegan's Funeral home on Tuesday evening from 6 pm till 8 pm. Funeral arriving at St Patricks Church Ballyroan for 11 am requiem mass on Wednesday morning. Cremation will follow in Newlands Cross Crematorium. Family flowers only donations if desired to the Mater Hospital Foundation Trust. May he rest in peace. Three Portlaoise students got a chance to fly to Belgium for a farming business tour, as finalists in the Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition. Laois trio Jill Sheehy, Carol Sheehy and Sinead Slevin from Scoil Chriost Ri Transition Year, with their teacher Ms O Gorman, joined 25 other pupils and teachers from four other schools around the country in the farm to fork trip in February. The four-day trip was part of a skills development experience for the finalists in the 2023 competition which is organised by the Certified Irish Angus Producer Group, ABP and Kepak. The students described the trip as a trip of a lifetime. The tour started in Dublin with a visit to Tesco Ireland HQ and then the students travelled across to Bord Bia HQ to learn about the sale and promotion of Irish Angus beef. The teenagers then got back to the farming side of the trip in Teagasc Grange before moving to onto what is one of the most highly regarded centres for breeding Angus cattle and thoroughbred horses, Gigginstown House Stud and Farm owned by Ryanair's Michael O'Leary. From there it was onto Dublin Airport where they flew out with Ryanair to Belgium for a farm to fork study tour. The pupils stayed at the Irish College in Leuven. Their trip was action packed with the students making presentations in the European Parliament to Irish political and farming representatives about the projects they are working on as finalists. On the final day the pupils headed to Bruges where they visited Ter Groene Poorte school which is a training institute for nutrition-oriented studies. The school offers training for butchers, bakeries, large kitchens, and restaurants studies for pupils that would be a similar age to the Irish students. Ann Byrne is a Deputy Principal at Scoil Chriost Ri. "We are tremendously proud of our students and their teacher Ms O'Gorman who all have shown their passion in the subject of agricultural science. Not only had they the opportunity to bring the calves they are now rearing back to the school for a visit, but now also a whole world has been opened up to them. Thank you to the organisers for investing and believing in the future generation and their role in our domestic food industry," she said. Charles Smith is General Manager, Certified Irish Angus Producer Group. One of the highlights of the Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition for the students is undoubtedly this annual study trip. It provides them with the opportunity to meet some of the leaders in Irish and European Agriculture and we are very grateful to people like Michael OLeary, the Irish MEPs and our supplier partners who make time to interact with these students who are going to be the future of Irish Agriculture. "The trip also takes the students full circle, from their own experience rearing the calves as part of the competition to the marketing of a premium product on a global scale. At Tesco Ireland they learned about what it takes for a product to become one of the exclusive Tesco Finest* brands and the importance of provenance and consistency of quality for the retailer, he said. A Laois mother who is recovering after lung cancer, has urged others to go to their doctor if they feel anything is not right with their bodies. Samantha Vaughan, a Naas, Kildare native, is living in Borris-in-Ossory for the past 18 years with husband Steven and their four children, aged 14 to 30. Her diagnosis was down to her own tenacity to get answers for her ill health, as she told the Leinster Express / Laois Live. After having covid in 2022 I began experiencing breathlessness and repeated sinus infections for months. It was all put down to long covid and I was put on a few courses of antibiotics and given inhalers, but nothing worked. I asked for bloods but nothing showed because they weren't looking for cancer. I then began feeling pain in my left side lower ribs, as though I had pulled a muscle . I asked to go to ENT and when there I asked for an X-ray, she said. This showed a lesion in my right lung. After having a CT scan which confirmed there was a tumour, I was referred to the lung cancer rapid access service by my GP. Cork University Hospital got back to me first, she said. She was totally shocked at the diagnosis, made in September 2023. I was only 47 and felt I wouldnt be affected by lung cancer as I was a non-smoker. It was never in my family. They took a biopsy and removed the tumour, they also checked my lymph nodes to see if it had spread. I ended up having half my right lung and an airway removed as there was signs of some cancer there. I was in hospital for two weeks after surgery, spending a number of days in ICU. I was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (adenocarcinoma, stage II, grade III). It was an aggressive form but I caught it in the early stage. The tumour was successfully removed, with no lymph nodes affected and the cancer hadnt spread so no further treatment was needed, Samantha said. Six months on, she is now first to try a trial follow-up drug, a daily tablet that is hoped to protect her against a return of the cancer. It is part of a cancer trial under Dr Collins in CUH. I feel very lucky to be able to do this, she said. So far, its been up and down with side effects of the treatment. I have been dealing with some abscesses and ulcers in my mouth and nose, spots on the face, upset stomach and my taste buds arent great. My energy levels are also not the same, and breathing can be difficult sometimes as a result of the surgery. At the moment its the mental side I am struggling with most. I am experiencing bad anxiety which affects my sleep. I have been told to really cut down on my activity and I am also off work. I am a busy mum and always like to be out and about so I find no longer being able to do that very difficult. My recovery will take months not weeks, she said. She made friends during her hospital stays and they are a support for each other. We didn't want to be in this club but we wouldn't have met otherwise. They tell me the worry never goes away but you learn to push it to the back. I check myself more now for lumps. Ive been attending the Cuisle Centre in Portlaoise, for counselling, mindfulness and reiki which Ive found really helpful. At first I thought I wouldnt need these supports but I have actually found them invaluable. Especially meeting other people who are going through similar and understand. One piece of advice I would like to share with others is to always follow your instincts. My gut was telling me that something wasnt right in my body. Sometimes you have to push for further testing, you know your own body best. There seems to be a lot of diagnoses and a lot of that has to do with Covid, people didn't go to their doctor and they are now going. My hope for the future is to live long enough to enjoy my life to the fullest and all the special times ahead with my family, Samantha said. Her husband is actually also a cancer survivor. It has knocked twice on our door. Steven had testicular cancer 14 years ago. He was lucky, he went and got it checked out. There's not a bother on him now, she said. This Daffodil Day, the Irish Cancer Society is urging the public to Go All in Against Cancer. The Irish Cancer Societys Daffodil Day takes place on Friday, March 22. Visit cancer.ie to donate or get involved, or donate to daffodil collectors on the day all around Laois. An investigation has been launched by An Garda Siochana into a theft incident which occurred in Monasterevin over the weekend. Garda Mark Connolly told KFM Radio this morning that the incident took place at around 3am on Sunday, March 10 last. He told host Eoin Beatty that gardai received a report of a male who was spotted attempting to steal items from a car which was located in the Brocan Wood housing estate. Gda Connolly further said that the male was reportedly disturbed by someone else and fled the scene in a vehicle. "Nothing appears to have been taken by the male," he added. Gda Connolly concluded by saying that anyone with information in relation to this incident can ring Monasterevin Garda Station on (045) 525 322. When asked about the incident by the Leinster Leader, a garda spokesperson has this to say: "Gardai responded to reports of theft from a car in Monasterevin, County Kildare, on Sunday, March 10, 2024." The spokesperson also said that garda investigations are ongoing. A linchpin of the Quirke familys property empire has had his charge of theft dismissed at Thurles District Court. Bobby Alley (49) of Ballintemple, Dundrum, Tipperary was charged with stealing an Audi Q7 Jeep from Dublin Pool and Juke Box LTD on an unknown date and from an unknown location contrary to Section 4 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act, 2001. Mr Alley denied that he had stolen the jeep saying that the vehicle had been part of a bonus given to him by Richard Quirke. A GENEROUS EMPLOYER Mr Alley told the court that he had been in the employment of Richard Quirke for 12 years. He began as a landscaper with a background in forestry and horticulture. From landscaping, Mr Alley went on to develop and manage Richard Quirkes property portfolio, including his 900-acre estate in Tipperary and a farmstead in Galway. Mr Alley said he was involved in the design and management of Mr Quirkes Dublin casino located on the site of the old cinema on OConnell Street. Mr Alley told the court that he would also transport Mr Quirke and members of the family around the country, collect rents, help to sell properties and manage subcontractors. Mr Ally described Mr Quirke as a generous employer and said he had never had a cross word with him. He told the court of numerous bonuses he had received while working for Richard Quirke including an old timber building, holidays and various sums of money between 5,000 and 20,000 over the 12 years. When he began working with the Quirke estates, he had been a subcontractor, the court heard. He used his own vehicle and equipment, and Richard Quirke paid for the upkeep. However, in 2013 when it came time for the jeep to be replaced, Mr Alley said that Mr Quirke purchased for him an Audi Q7 Jeep. This was a commercial vehicle with no seats in the back. It was registered to and insured by the company but Mr Alley was the named driver. This vehicle was traded in, sometime in 2016 or 2017, and a second Audi Q7 Jeep was purchased for around 24,000. Mr Alley said he had organised the vehicle but Mr Quirke signed off on the purchase. Again, Mr Alley was the driver, but this time the jeep was not a commercial vehicle. Benefit-In-Kind Mr Alley told the court that after the purchase of the vehicle, another employee of Mr Quirkes, Patrick Martin raised concerns about the vehicle as a benefit-in-kind. Mr Martin, according to Mr Alley, was responsible for financial matters at the company including paying invoices, operating the offices and dealing with the accountants. Mr Martin is now deceased. Mr Alley told the court that he, Mr Martin and Mr Quirke had lunch and discussed the vehicle. They decided that Mr Martins concerns could be alleviated by transferring the ownership of the jeep to the defendant. Mr Alley said that it was decided that the jeep would be part bonus, part gift, but that as it was valued higher than his usual bonus, he would pay Mr Quirke 5,000. Mr Alley said he did so a week later, in cash and that there was no written contract. Mr Quirke continued to pay the expenses incurred by the defendant while using the vehicle for work, the court heard. Shortly after, the three men went to lunch and Mr Alley was given the tax book signed by Mr Quirke. Mr Alley told the court that it was approximately one year later that he registered the vehicle in his name, as he had at that point, been struggling financially. He said the vehicle was used purely for work purposes and was kept outside his house in Dundrum when not in use. CEASED AND SEIZED Then, in 2021, Mr Alley ceased his employment with Mr Quirke. Mr Alley told the court that he continued to have a good relationship with Mr Quirke. However, when Mr Quirke became ill, members of his family stepped in and took over some of his business affairs. Mr Alley said that was when the relationship deteriorated. I couldnt stick it any longer. I was out sick for a while. The pressure was too much, said Mr Alley. When his employment ceased, he received an email asking him to return his laptop, phone and the jeep. He instructed his solicitor to take the matter of the jeep. As far as I was concerned, the jeep was mine and I made that arrangement with Mr Quirke. However, the court heard that a detective came to Mr Alleys home and informed him he was being accused of stealing and took the jeep along with the laptop and phone. The barrister acting for Mr Alley, Donal Cronin clarified for the court that Mr Alley was told he had stolen the vehicle by dishonest appropriation. Mr Alley told the court that he was quite shocked to have been accused and had at no time hidden the vehicle. He said he had parked it outside his home and was driving the jeep. He said that he had worked very hard for Mr Quirke and they had never had an issue. As I said, he was generous but I worked very hard for him so I never gave him a reason for a cross word, said Mr Alley. DISPUTE Mr Cronin pointed out to the defendant that at the previous hearing of the case, a claim had been made that he and Mr Quirke had fallen out over a sum of money. He said it was alleged that there was a dispute over 6,000 which was a revenue liability. However, Mr Alley said that wasnt true. He said he had taken Mr Quirke to Northern Ireland to give a former employee the money and he believed this was the incident in question. He told the court that he did not know the former employee as he had worked for Mr Quirke before Mr Alley was taken on as a landscaper. That wasnt me. It was someone who used to work for Mr Quirke, said Mr Alley. Inspector James White, acting for the State, pointed out to Mr Alley that at the last hearing, a handwriting expert had determined that the signature on the tax book was falsified. He also pointed out that Mr Alley had initially said he paid Mr Quirke 8,000 for the vehicle and given that he had required a loan, he would think he would remember how much he borrowed. Mr Alley replied to the court saying that the tax book was already signed when it was handed to him in the presence of Mr Quirke and Mr Martin. He clarified that in his initial statement, he had made two mistakes, the amount of money paid and that another Q7 had been traded in. Inspector White put it to Mr Alley that he was the sole beneficiary of the vehicle being signed over and that it was convenient that the person who could refute his version of events was dead. Mr Alley rejected the Inspectors interpretation of events. I saw that I worked very hard that year and I was rewarded with the jeep, said Mr Alley. PLAUSIBLE EXPLANATION Judge Elizabeth MacGrath said that she was satisfied that Mr Alley had given a plausible explanation for how he had acquired the vehicle. She said this was sufficient to dismiss the charge, in a criminal case. The judge noted the previous evidence given by a representative of the Department of Transport, the handwriting expert and Richard Quirke. She also noted the defendants 12 years of employment, starting as a landscaper and becoming a linchpin in Mr Quirkes various businesses. She also noted that he was laid off in 2021. She said that Mr Quirkes evidence was somewhat confused probably due to his health. Judge MacGrath said that she acknowledged that the handwriting expert had concluded that the signature was not written by Mr Quirke, but by someone familiar with his signature. However, she noted that the expert had classified the evidence as limited. She said that even if you accepted that it was falsified, there was no evidence that Mr Alley had been the one to forge the signature. She said she acknowledged that Mr Alley had not hidden the vehicle. Mr Alley has given a very plausible explanation, said Judge MacGrath. Judge MacGrath dismissed the case against Mr Alley. RETURN OF THE VEHICLE Mr Cronin asked Judge MacGrath to order the return of the vehicle to Mr Alley. Inspector White pointed out that the Quirke family opposed this and wished it to be returned to them. Judge MacGrath told both counsels that the return of the vehicle needed to be dealt with by property application. Gas Networks Ireland have welcomed the verdict in a case relating to the unlawful interference of a gas meter, where the first imposed prison sentence was handed down to a perpetrator. Gas Networks Irelands Networks Safety Manager, Owen Wilson, commented: Anyone who either interferes with a gas meter themselves or agrees to allow someone who is not a registered gas installer to work on their gas installations is risking their own life, those of their family, and of people living nearby. Despite this, Gas Networks Ireland has detected approximately 3,000 cases of meter tampering across the country in the last decade. On Wednesday February 28, 2024, Mr Cornel Rostas and Ms Lina Rostas, with an address at 24 Orchard Court, Blackpool, Cork pleaded guilty and were convicted at Cork District Court under Section 15 of the Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1995 on two charges - unlawful interference with a gas meter and the dishonest use of gas. The court heard that Gas Networks Ireland had carried out an investigation at the property in August 2023 and found the lock on the gas meter had been removed illegally and the gas meter had been unlawfully tampered, preventing consumption from being recorded on the meter. Judge Marian OLeary - having heard the evidence from Gas Networks Ireland on the matter - convicted both Cornel Rostas and Lina Rostas under sections 15(2) and 15(3) of the Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1995 as amended by Section 5 of the Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2012. Imprisonment Commenting that what they did was outrageous and that it could have had dire consequences, Judge OLeary imposed the following sentences: Cornel Rostas was sentenced to four months imprisonment (with the final three months suspended) and was issued with fines of 600, while a four-month prison sentence suspended for two years, and fines of 400 were issued to Lina Rostas. This is the first conviction that we have secured for meter tampering that has resulted in a term of imprisonment for the defendant and we hope that this verdict will act as a strong deterrent, sending out an important message to the public that meter tampering is a serious crime with potentially deadly consequences, Mr Wilson commented. "Thankfully the gas theft was spotted before anything dangerous happened. This situation could have been a lot more serious if the gas meter interference caused a gas leak. While theft of gas is a very serious issue, far more serious is the risk to life that tampering with a gas meter poses to the perpetrator. and to people nearby. We are working hard to end unlawful interference with gas meters and the dangers associated with this activity,Mr Wilson added. Detections Gas Networks Ireland has been actively engaged in identifying and making safe installations where tampering has been found and has detected approximately 3,000 cases of meter tampering across the country since 2013. By law, only Gas Networks Ireland representatives and registered gas installers are authorised to work on natural gas meters and pipework. It is illegal to ask, pay or allow someone else to tamper with a gas meter. Due to the dangers involved, gas meter tampering is a criminal offence with possible fines of up to 5,000 and prison sentences of up to six months for those found guilty of the crime. Rogue contractors can make seemingly attractive offers, but the dangers involved in allowing someone who is not registered and qualified to do the work, are very real, Mr Wilson said. Members of the public are asked to report any suspicions of gas meter tampering to Gas Networks Ireland in strict confidence by calling 1800 464 464. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland has eased off as new limited supports are to be offered for those arriving in the country. The Government said that the offer to arriving Ukrainians in Ireland is to be limited from Thursday, as it confirmed the locations of five new accommodation centres where they would be housed temporarily. Under the revised plan, Ukrainian refugees will go to Designated Accommodation Centres for up to 90 days and be provided with food, laundry and integration support during this time. They will be paid a 38.80 euro subsistence allowance per week and an additional 29.80 euro per child. Arrivals had been entitled to a jobseekers allowance of 220 euro per week and unlimited time in State accommodation. Ukrainians who have arrived in Ireland before Thursday will still be entitled to this. Ministers have said that the change of policy was being made in order to bring Irelands provision for Ukrainians in line with other EU countries. The department said the locations of five of the six centres are: Ballyogan Road in Dublin City, which can house 392 people; Stradbally in Co Laois, where 950 can be housed; Fernbank in Limerick City for 250 people; Punchestown in Co Kildare where 378 can be housed; and Gerald Griffin Street in Cork City for housing 107 people. While in the US for St Patricks Day events, Mr Varadkar was asked whether he expected protests outside these locations now that they had been announced. I hope not, my understanding is two of them are already known and Stradbally has been in operation on and off for some time, he said. Generally speaking when its come to providing welcome or residential centres for Ukrainians, we havent seen a large amount of protests or difficulties with that. Sadly the difficulties that have arisen in terms of protests are more often connected with people seeking international protection rather than those coming from Ukraine. The Taoiseach could not confirm that the Ukraine centres were not a part of the Governments new immigration strategy. He said: It is part of a general Government policy approach that weve agreed to that when it comes to managing Ukrainians arriving in Ireland that initially well provide accommodation for them in a number of large centres around the country. To allow them to establish themselves, to find employment opportunities and alternative accommodation, for example. The numbers arriving from Ukraine have come down quite considerably and have eased off, although we cant assume that that will continue to be the case. More than 100,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Ireland since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, with around 75,000 living in state accommodation and some 57,000 in fully serviced accommodation. As the Irish Government continues to attempt to close the gap between housing supply and demand, it has taken a number of measures to house Ukrainians. Most Ukrainians have been housed in serviced accommodation such as hotels and B&Bs, paid for by the State, while others are in modular homes and refurbished State buildings. A further 14,000, or almost 20% of all Ukrainians in Ireland, are in spare rooms or homes provided through the Irish Red Cross or in holiday homes or other accommodation pledged through the Offer A Home scheme run by local authorities. Those who house Ukrainian refugees are entitled to an 800-euro tax-free payment, which does not affect other welfare rates. Despite the measures, housing in Ireland remains under pressure, forcing asylum seekers to sleep on Dublins street. According to figures published by the Department of Integration, there are 1,260 people who have applied for international protection in Ireland who are still waiting for an offer of accommodation. The shortage of accommodation has resulted in dozens of asylum seekers setting up tents outside the International Protection Office in Mount Street where they have slept in rain and snow. Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore said this was a shameful reminder of the Governments failure on immigration policy. For the hundreds of asylum seekers forced to live in such appalling conditions, this is no longer just a humanitarian crisis, it is becoming a serious public health risk. Lack of sanitation and running water has resulted in health problems for some international protection applicants, with growing cases of skin and respiratory conditions reported. I have now written to Minister Roderic OGorman, urging him to outline what his departments response will be to this unfolding humanitarian crisis a crisis that appears to be the result of deliberate Government policy to discourage refugees from coming to Ireland. Minister for Integration Mr OGorman said last month that there had been a decrease in the number of Ukrainians arriving in Ireland since the coalition announced the change for Ukrainians, which he expected would continue to fall. He said he plans to bring a proposal to Cabinet in the coming weeks on Irelands long-term strategy in the face of increasing global uncertainty and an increase in arrivals. There was a 415% increase in the number of asylum applications in Ireland in 2022 compared with 2021, and a 186% increase on 2019. Drama, film and theatre studies and climate action and sustainable development are two new school subjects being introduced to secondary school students across Ireland. Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD, is calling on secondary schools to apply for phase one of introducing these new diverse subjects into their curriculum, as they will be established on a phased basis from the start of the 2025/26 school year. The call for applications is part of Minister Foleys plan to redevelop senior cycle education in Ireland, which includes the revision of all existing subject specifications. We have seen the fantastic success of the Irish film industry at the Oscars, with Cillian Murphy winning an Oscar for Best Actor and Element Pictures from Dublin celebrating four Oscars for their film Poor Things, Minister Foley said. In Ireland, we are renowned worldwide for our contributions to the arts and I hope this subject will help students to thrive in the arts even more. And who knows, some of the new graduates may have memorable nights at the Oscars in years to come. A support package for schools who take part in the first phase of these new subjects will be sent out. All phase one schools will be provided with appropriate technical resources required to establish the new subject department in their school and additional teacher allocations. We have all seen in recent years how school students have engaged with and led actions to address climate change. As always, it is our responsibility to nurture and encourage our students to continue to contribute to solutions designed to protect our world, Minister Foley added. I encourage schools to consider submitting an application to be considered as one of the first phase of schools offering these modern new subjects to their students from the start of the next school year. The draft specifications require students to attend one live, public theatre performance and one live cinema performance. The Department will provide phase one schools with an annual grant per student for the 2025/26 and 2026/27 school years to support student attendance at performances, and costs associated with the appropriate film streaming service. For climate action and sustainable development, the draft specifications provide the opportunity for away visits and outdoor learning for students at local ecosystem projects, campaigning on sustainability matters and community outreach. Each of these subjects will incorporate additional assessment components that are not a traditional written examination, which will be worth a minimum of 40% of the available marks and will be externally assessed by the State Examinations Commission (SEC). Post-primary schools are invited to consider the information provided on Phase One Call for Applications 2024 | Gov.ie and submit an application to be in the first phase of schools introducing the new subjects from the start of the 2025/26 school year. Applications will close on 19 April 2024. It is a no brainer for Kneecap to boycott a US festival over Gaza, a member of the Belfast hip hop trio has said. Irish artists including Soda Blonde and Mick Flannery have withdrawn from South by Southwest (SXSW) over opposition to the US Army being a sponsor, citing US support for Israels military operation in the Gaza Strip. An Enterprise Ireland-led delegation is taking part in the arts festival, which is being held in Austin, Texas, this week. Culture Minister Catherine Martin has said she will still go, despite the boycott by Irish artists. Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns said it is deeply disturbing that the minister plans to attend the festival, while People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said it is nothing short of shameful. Ms Martin has said she respects musicians freedom of expression and will use the visit to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza. Kneecap member Mo Chara said the bands decision to boycott the event was made after it emerged the US Army is a super sponsor and that talks by companies which manufacture weapons are among the events. I think it was a no brainer once the information started coming to light, and we just made the decision, because its good to be on the right side of history as Irish people, he said on RTE Radio. I was very, very proud to see a lot of bands follow suit and that the Irish people will always be in solidarity with the Palestinian people. He said the financial hit they will take for not being paid for the performance, as well as the cost of flights and accommodation in Texas, is a minor hiccup in our careers in comparison to whats happening in Gaza. All we did was pull out of a gig. Yes, we lost a bit of money, but its priceless to do the right thing. Asked whether it would have been more effective to go to the festival and make a statement about Gaza, he said: Having our name on a poster or having our name in any way associated with that festival is clearly supporting the festival. Its also gathering more crowds to come to this festival to see certain bands, and I think it does better for the festival us being there than us not being there. If I know my fans like I think I do, I think theyll be very much supportive of our decision. Asked about the ministers decision to attend, he said: Were not here to speak on behalf of other people or say who should and shouldnt go, we were only making the decision based on us. But I know the minister was saying that she was going to support Irish acts. I think shell be standing at the Irish stage on her own seeing as theres no Irish acts playing anymore. But if shes using her platform to speak out against it, then all the power to her. What will an enlarged European Union of 500 million people look like? How will the citizens of its 35 or more Member States live, work and interact? Who will pay for it and how much? How will decisions be made and can consensus be reached with more voices at the table? These were just some of the questions debated at this years Model Council of the European Union, which took place on March 1 at Dublin Castle. Teams of secondary school students from across Ireland, each playing the role of an EU Member State, did a deep dive into the reforms needed to make future EU enlargements a success. They came prepared with passionate and articulate arguments, to defend the interests of their adopted Member States. Six teams rose above 21 other schools with their convincing portrayal of EU Ministers for European Affairs, going head to head on some of the key challenges presented by enlargement such as the future of the EU budget, how it is financed and where the money should be spent. Maynooth Post Primary School in Co Kildare won first place for their representation of Malta during the debate. They will travel with their class to Strasbourg in October to take part in Euroscola, where they will become MEPs for a day in the European Parliament. Ardscoil Ris from Dublin, representing the Netherlands and St Leo's College from Carlow, representing Denmark, took joint second place. Honourable mentions were given to the following schools: *Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Burkeen, Co Wicklow as Austria. *Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary as Poland. *Deansrath Community College in Clondalkin, Dublin as Germany. The debate, based on the format of a real meeting of the Council of the European Union, is a practical but also enjoyable way for young people to learn how the EU works, how decisions are made, and more importantly, how consensus can be reached. Stepping into the shoes of EU politicians for a day is not for the faint hearted but these young people rose to the challenge and made their voices heard. As millions of Europeans prepare to vote in the European elections in June, engaging our young people in active citizenship and encouraging their participation in the democratic process will empower them to shape their future in a Union that is preparing to welcome new member states. Ireland has played its part in the story of EU enlargement. On 1 May, we will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the largest single enlargement of the EU when 15 became 25 on the historic Day of Welcomes, hosted by the Irish Presidency of the EU in Dublin in 2004. The economic and political achievements of the past 20 years have shown what a success story the 2004 enlargement has been, not only for the 10 Member States concerned but for the EU as a whole. PICTURE CAPTION: Students from Maynooth Post-Primary School, Co. Kildare represented Malta at the Model Council of the European Union debate for secondary schools which took place in Dublin Castle. Pictured in front are Hannah Adams, Adrien Kells and Aoibhin Geraghty with (behind) Fionnuala Croker, acting head of the European Parliament Liaison Office; Helen English, teacher; Ambassador Giovanni Buttigieg; Barbara Nolan, head of the European Commission Representation in Ireland and Peter Burke TD, Minister of State for European Affairs. *SPONSORED CONTENT The academic accomplishments of 70 exceptional students at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS), Athlone Campus, were celebrated at a prestigious Deans Honours List ceremony recently. These students, hailing from diverse disciplines within the Faculty of Business and Hospitality, were honoured for their outstanding achievements during the past academic year. The TUS Dean's Honours List, a hallmark of academic excellence, is bestowed upon students who maintain an exceptional first-class honour gradeequivalent to a 70% averagethroughout their degree programme. Dr Michael Tobin, currently acting in the capacity of Dean of Business and Hospitality, the significance of the award, stating that it serves as a beacon of inspiration, encouraging students to strive for excellence in their chosen fields. "The awards are a highlight of the academic calendar, and the response from both students and faculty to this esteemed accolade has been overwhelmingly positive," remarked Dr Tobin. "For past recipients, it has served as a catalyst for sustained academic engagement, while for others, it has ignited a fervent desire for improvement." He underscored the importance of maintaining this high level of commitment throughout their academic journey, expressing his hope that the award will spur the awardees to continue their pursuit of excellence in both their studies and future careers. Each awardee was presented with a certificate commemorating their exceptional academic performance. As the ceremony drew to a close, Dr Tobin extended his heartfelt congratulations to all the awardees, wishing them continued success in their academic endeavours and beyond. Established in 2018, the Dean's Honours List at TUS's Athlone Campus has become a symbol of academic distinction, recognising the outstanding achievements of students across the campus. 1.30 - Gallagher's Novices' Hurdle - BALLYBURN (2/5) will win this race. He swerved the Supreme to come here for the longer trip and looks made for it. He has beaten the Slade Steel who won the Supreme this season and none of these should get near him. PREDATORS GOLD (10/1) is a good eachway shout if Ballyburn's price is too short for you. 2.10 - Brown Advisory Novices' Chase - I think FACT TO FILE (4/5) could be the best horse at Cheltenham this week and hopefully he gives a performance to match that. He was beaten by American Mike on chasing debut but has won twice since. He beat Zanahiyr by 17 lengths and then won on his own in a two-horse race at Leopardstown in which Gaelic Warrior unseated while miles behind at the last. Fact To File's galloping speed that day was incredible and he's been tearing up the gallops at home in Mullins' yard. He's the apple of his trainer's eye and could be very special. 2.50 - Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle - This is a good betting race and I've landed on SA MAJESTE (5/1) because it's just too hard to ignore his run to beat Noble Yeats at Limerick over Christmas. Noble Yeats is rated 152 over hurdles and subsequently won the Cleeve Hurdle. That would suggest Sa Majeste's mark of 140 is very lenient and he could be a cut above these. Jigoro (14/1) and Lucky Place (14/1) are good eachway bets in my book. 3.30 - Queen Mother Champion Chase - El Fabiolo (8/15) will go in my accumulators on Wednesday because I think he will win but at those odds, you can look around for an eachway bet. ELIXIR DE NUTZ (28/1) fits that bill for me. I was impressed with his win over Jonbon at Cheltenham in January. He would like the ground to dry out a bit by all accounts but can still run a big enough race and get some place money. 4.10 - Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase - This race is subject to an 8am inspection because the course is so soggy but if it does go ahead I'm a big fan of COKO BEACH (4/1) who will like the heavy ground. He has a touch of class and won his first try over the cross country fences easily at Punchestown recently. He had the likes of Genois and Stattler behind him that day and stayed on very well in heavy ground. Minella Indo and Delta Work warrant huge respect but I'm with Coko Beach. 4.50 - Grand Annual Chase - MASKADA (9/1) could win this again for the in-form Henry De Bromhead yard. He is running off an 8lb higher mark this year but was mightily impressive last year and hasn't done much wrong since. He was only eight lengths down behind Champion Chase favourite El Fabiolo in Cork in December. Henry's horses are running well so I'm happy enough to side with him again. Unexpected Party is another with a good eachway chance at 16/1 5.30 - Champion Bumper - This is very often a pin in the paper job and this year is no different. You can make a cause for almost all of them. One at a nice eachway price is C'EST TA CHANCE (20/1) for the huge Willie Mullins team. C'Est Ta Chance was just a short head behind arguably the best bumper horse in Ireland this year, William Munny, at Navan in January and has been put away for this. William Munny has won at Naas since and would be contesting favouritism for this race if lining up. Wednesday Treble: Fact To File, Ballyburn and El Fabiolo ALL TO WIN - 3/1 Add Sa Majeste if you're feeling lucky and the fourfold accumulator odds go up to 18/1 Representatives of Leitrim County Council, who are in New York this week for the St Patricks Day period, met with senior executives from Tourism Ireland yesterday, Tuesday 12. They were briefed on Tourism Irelands promotional programme in the United States for 2024, which is in full swing right now. St Patricks Day offers a unique opportunity for Ireland and Irish tourism. Tourism Ireland in the United States is rolling out an extensive trade, media, and consumer activity programme to capitalise on Irelands heightened profile this week. The St Patricks Day Festival in Dublin is the hero attraction, and Tourism Ireland will have renowned US travel broadcaster Gabe Saglie on the ground with us in Dublin, live streaming from the parade to 40 TV stations across the United States, reaching audiences of up to 50 million across CBS, FOX, ABC and NBC networks. Chefs Darina Allen, Catherine Fulvio and Noel McMeel will highlight our superb food scene with the media in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles. Alison Metcalfe, Tourism Irelands Head of North America, said: We were delighted to meet with the representatives of Leitrim County Council and to have the opportunity to brief them about the extensive promotional programme we are undertaking in the United States this year. The US remains an extremely important market for tourism to the island of Ireland its our most important market in terms of revenue and our second-largest market in terms of visitor numbers. Visitors from the United States tend to stay longer, spend more and tour extensively around our regions. Our St Patricks Day programme includes a major programme of trade, media and consumer activity. Our aim is to remind American holidaymakers that Ireland offers the warmest of welcomes and great fun, as well as wonderful scenery and heritage. We are taking every opportunity to capitalise on Irelands heightened profile around this St Patricks Day period. This year, Tourism Ireland is rolling out an extensive programme of promotions in the United States to increase the value of overseas tourism to the island of Ireland, support economies, communities, and the environment, inspire potential US visitors about all that Ireland has to offer and strengthen strategic partnerships. What will an enlarged European Union of 500 million people look like? How will the citizens of its 35 or more Member States live, work and interact? Who will pay for it and how much? How will decisions be made and can consensus be reached with more voices at the table? These were just some of the questions debated at this years Model Council of the European Union, which took place on March 1 at Dublin Castle. Teams of secondary school students from across Ireland, each playing the role of an EU Member State, did a deep dive into the reforms needed to make future EU enlargements a success. They came prepared with passionate and articulate arguments, to defend the interests of their adopted Member States. Six teams rose above 21 other schools with their convincing portrayal of EU Ministers for European Affairs, going head to head on some of the key challenges presented by enlargement such as the future of the EU budget, how it is financed and where the money should be spent. Maynooth Post-Primary School in Co Kildare won first place for their representation of Malta during the debate. They will travel with their class to Strasbourg in October to take part in Euroscola, where they will become MEPs for a day in the European Parliament. Ardscoil Ris from Dublin, representing the Netherlands and St Leo's College from Carlow, representing Denmark, took joint second place. Honourable mentions were given to the following schools: *Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Burkeen, Co Wicklow as Austria. *Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary as Poland. *Deansrath Community College in Clondalkin, Dublin as Germany. The debate, based on the format of a real meeting of the Council of the European Union, is a practical but also enjoyable way for young people to learn how the EU works, how decisions are made, and more importantly, how consensus can be reached. Stepping into the shoes of EU politicians for a day is not for the faint hearted but these young people rose to the challenge and made their voices heard. As millions of Europeans prepare to vote in the European elections in June, engaging our young people in active citizenship and encouraging their participation in the democratic process will empower them to shape their future in a Union that is preparing to welcome new member states. Ireland has played its part in the story of EU enlargement. On 1 May, we will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the largest single enlargement of the EU when 15 became 25 on the historic Day of Welcomes, hosted by the Irish Presidency of the EU in Dublin in 2004. The economic and political achievements of the past 20 years have shown what a success story the 2004 enlargement has been, not only for the 10 Member States concerned but for the EU as a whole. PICTURE CAPTION: Students from Drumshanbo Vocational School, Co Leitrim represented Italy at the Model Council of the European Union debate for secondary schools which took place in Dublin Castle. Pictured in front are Thomas McKeon, Marcos Fallon Alonso and Ruth McLoughlin with (back row) Fionnuala Croker, acting head of the European Parliament Liaison Office; Venessa Martin, teacher; Barbara Nolan, head of the European Commission in Ireland and Riona Daly, teacher. *SPONSORED CONTENT Northern Health Selects Datos Health for Care Pathway Automation MELBOURNE, Australia, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Datos Health, a global leader in remote care automation, announced today the company's Open Care platform, was chosen by Northern Health, a major Australian healthcare provider. Northern Health has partnered with Datos Health to develop innovative digital care models to enable a healthier community by improving the health outcomes that matter most to patients. This includes being able to deliver the right care, at the right time, in the right place, by utilising remote patient monitoring. Northern Health partners with Datos Health to develop digital care models that help improve patient outcomes. Datos Health's Open Care platform replaces rigid RPM solutions with a comprehensive platform for hybrid care delivery. The company's streamlined solution empowers healthcare organisations like Northern Health to customise remote care protocols to fit their unique approach to healthcare. Clinicians can easily adjust workflows as needed, with changes instantly translated into patient CareApps that deliver automated assisted self-care. Northern Health will integrate the Open Care platform into its virtual cardiac rehabilitation, back pain, lung cancer, severe asthma and gestational diabetes programs with plans to expand Datos into other programs to support their community's healthcare needs into the future. Datos Health will leverage IKAO Health, its Australian-based partner for their experience implementing localised solutions to meet the unique issues facing healthcare providers and to deliver on-the-ground support and service to Northern Health. Northern Health is committed to delivering safe, person-centred and value-based care by redesigning models of care to improve patient outcomes, automating clinical workflows to reduce administrative burden for clinicians and enhancing greater access to care for patients. The Datos platform offers exceptional flexibility and a seamless user experience for both patients and clinicians. Moreover, its ability to provide real-time data visualisations, ensures that clinicians can tailor and personalise care plans. Northern Health is dedicated to advancing health equity within its diverse community, empowering patients to better self-manage their health, monitor and track their progress over time, and access trusted educational resources. "Northern Health is creating a future where virtual care models enable a healthier community," said Dr. Katharine See, Chief Health Outcomes Officer and Director of Respiratory Medicine at Northern Health. "We're a pioneer in implementing digital health solutions that cater to the changing needs of our community. With Datos Health, we're enabling our healthcare professionals to offer exceptional virtual care options, that are not dependent on patients being in hospital. We look forward to working with Datos Health to roll out even more innovative digital health programs that support our community," she continued. "We're honoured to have been chosen by such a respected healthcare organisation and we look forward to working with Northern Health to design new and innovative care models," said Uri Bettesh, Founder and CEO of Datos Health. "Together with our local partner, IKAO Health, we've developed an excellent grasp of the intricacies of the Australian healthcare system. Our partnership with Northern Health is an excellent next step on our road to increasing access to care for Australia's highly diverse patient population, and our continuing expansion in the Asia-Pacific region," he concluded. About Northern Health Northern Health is a major provider of comprehensive health services in Melbourne's rapidly growing outer north, catering to a vibrant community of diverse backgrounds. Across five main campuses, Northern Health delivers acute, maternity, sub-acute, mental health, specialist, community and home-based services. Handling over 110,000 emergency cases annually and supporting 114,000 admissions, their commitment extends to ensuring accessible care for all, irrespective of language or culture. With over 8,500 dedicated professionals, they are committed to providing exceptional healthcare tailored to each individual, promoting well-being across Melbourne's dynamic northern landscape. For more information, please visit www.nh.org.au. About Datos Health Datos Health's open platform merges monitoring, care, and engagement, to seamlessly deliver hybrid care across any acuity level or use case. Clinicians can quickly implement and customize any program, choose the devices that fit their workflow, and integrate with any EMR. Workflows can easily be adjusted in our Design Studio by creating remote care programs from scratch or by leveraging existing protocols from leading healthcare organizations. These workflows are instantly translated into patient CareApps that collect biometrics and PROMs, provide self-care guidance and curated content, send escalation alerts to the care team, and facilitate virtual visits. Workflow automation is now easier than ever for both patients and clinicians. For more information, please visit www.datos-health.com. Datos Health Contact: Farah Parsa Vice President, Marketing [email protected] SOURCE Datos Health 12 march 2024 at 18:04 News published onand distributed by: Fable Updates Leading Accessibility Training Platform with IAAP Certifications, Product Management, Design Research Courses TORONTO, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fable Tech Labs Inc. (Fable), a leading accessibility platform powered by people with disabilities, today announced new updates to Fable Upskill, its custom accessibility training offering. In addition to unveiling two new training courses within Fable Upskill, Fable has become a member of the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP), a division of the Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs (G3ict). Fable Upskill is among a small group of offerings that has been qualified as an approved certification training preparation provider by the IAAP, and Fable is the only IAAP-approved accessibility training provider headquartered in Canada. Fable Upskill can immediately be used to prepare for two IAAP certification exams: Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC), IAAP's foundational professional certification, and Web Accessibility Specialist (WAS), IAAP's technical professional certification assessing candidates' current hands-on technical digital accessibility proficiency. Fable is also adding two new courses, Inclusive Research and Managing Accessible Products, to Fable Upskill's comprehensive video-based training coursework. Designed by people with disabilities and customized for each customer, Fable Upskill stands out from other accessibility training platforms in focusing on context-based learning and development instead of evergreen content that fades in usefulness over time. Fable Upskill directly incorporates customers' products, tools, and technology stacks, enabling teams to apply new skills immediately. "People learn best when every takeaway is applicable and specific to their world ? to the tools they use, the internal processes they follow, and the organizational structure in which they operate. Learning programs should be as customized to each organization as onboarding," said Kate Kalcevich, Fable's Head of Accessibility Innovation. "In Fable Upskill, people with disabilities show learners the barriers they face and provide clear guidance on fixing those barriers, and avoiding them in the future." Fable Upskill provides organizations with dashboards to manage and track accessibility training, ensuring the whole team has a common understanding of accessibility and is gaining skills specific to each team function. Champion badges recognize learner achievements and encourage them to continue their accessibility journey and evangelize accessibility throughout the organization. "We are proud to welcome Fable as an IAAP Approved Certification Training Preparation Provider," said Samantha Evans, Certification Director, IAAP. "Fable Upskill is an effective training platform for achieving the CPACC and WAS certifications and is well-recognized for delivering high-quality education and training for exam candidates." Learn more about Fable Upskill at: https://makeitfable.com/fable-upskill-custom-accessibility-training/ About Fable Fable is a leading accessibility platform powered by people with disabilities. Fable moves organizations from worrying about compliance to building incredible and accessible user experiences. Digital teams work with Fable to improve accessibility for over one billion people with disabilities. Fable Engage connects digital teams to people with disabilities remotely and on-demand for accessibility research and testing. Fable Upskill provides custom accessibility training for digital teams to gain skills to build inclusive products. To learn more, visit https://makeitfable.com. 13 march 2024 at 09:00 News published onand distributed by: Skipify and Synchrony Enter into Strategic Partnership to Simplify and Enhance Online Checkout Synchrony links Synchrony Mastercard to Skipify's Connected Wallet to provide friction-free shopping experience for cardholders, wherever they shop. SAN FRANCISCO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Skipify, a leading financial technology company redefining the checkout experience, today announced its partnership with Synchrony (NYSE: SYF), a leading consumer finance company with more than 70M active customer accounts across the US. The technology partnership leverages Skipify's payment infrastructure to provide simplified and enhanced checkout for Synchrony cardholders, improving the experience for shoppers and delivering higher authorization rates, conversion, and security for Synchrony merchants. As part of the partnership, Skipify, a Synchrony Ventures portfolio company, will add Synchrony Mastercard to its Connected Wallet product, a digital wallet embedded by merchants to ease many checkout challenges. Skipify's identity-powered wallet recognizes Synchrony cardholders on a merchant's website automatically, autofilling payment details, surfacing available cards, and offering instant access to points, rewards, and Synchrony financing. "Skipify is becoming a valuable platform for merchants who are focused on providing an elevated user experience and embedded payment credentials," said Florin Arghirescu, Chief Product Officer of Synchrony. "We're excited to bring our joint offering to market and make it easier for Synchrony Mastercard cardholders to make purchases online, with the intent to scale availability to the full suite of Synchrony financing options." "Synchrony continues to invest in innovation and technology that moves the needle for their merchants and cardholders," said Ryth Martin, Founder and CEO of Skipify. "Synchrony's integration and partnership with Skipify directly reduces the technical lift and effort for their merchants to throttle up transactions and conversion rates through Skipify. Synchrony cardholders can now breeze through checkout on any Skipify merchant site." Skipify and Synchrony will be co-hosting an event to elaborate on the news further at Shoptalk, the leading retail and technology industry event in Las Vegas, March 17-20, 2024. To request an invite to the event, contact Synchrony Events. About Synchrony Synchrony (NYSE: SYF) is a premier consumer financial services company delivering one of the industry's most complete digitally enabled product suites. Our experience, expertise and scale encompass a broad spectrum of industries including digital, health and wellness, retail, telecommunications, home, auto, outdoor, pet and more. We have an established and diverse group of national and regional retailers, local merchants, manufacturers, buying groups, industry associations and healthcare service providers, which we refer to as our "partners." We connect our partners and consumers through our dynamic financial ecosystem and provide them with a diverse set of financing solutions and innovative digital capabilities to address their specific needs and deliver seamless, omnichannel experiences. We offer the right financing products to customers in their channel of choice. For more information, visit www.synchrony.com. About Skipify Skipify is a fintech company based in San Francisco, California whose mission is to connect people to the merchants and financial products they trust and love through innovative, reliable, and secure digital experiences that feel more like magic than software. Skipify's Connected Checkout is used by merchants to enable better purchasing experiences on websites, in stores, and across marketing channels. Skipify has been recognized as a Fintech Top 50 company, a Leading 100 startup, and a CB Insights Retail Tech 100 winner. Skipify is backed by some of the world's leading fintech and commerce enablement investors, including Synchrony Ventures, Amex Ventures, Samsung NEXT, Okta Ventures, Point72, Flourish Ventures, Infinity Ventures, PayPal Ventures, Vinyl, Worldpay, and BDT & MSD Partners. Through its checkout and digital wallet product offerings, Skipify is building a network across merchants and financial partners that helps the entire ecosystem win. For more information, visit www.skipify.com. SOURCE Skipify 13 march 2024 at 09:00 News published onand distributed by: Currency Exchange International Announces a 7% Increase in Revenue for the Three-Months Ended January 31, 2024 Versus the Prior Year TORONTO, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Currency Exchange International, Corp. (the "Group" or "CXI") (TSX: CXI; OTCBB: CURN), reported its financial results and Management's Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") for the three-months ended January 31, 2024 (all figures are in U.S. dollars except where otherwise indicated). The complete financial statements and MD&A can be found on the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Randolph Pinna, CEO of the Group, stated, "The first quarter of 2024 was strong. The Group delivered 7% revenue growth over the prior period. This performance reflects our steadfast commitment to executing against the strategic plan. That strategy has seen each business focus fully on growing our global payments offering, expand into the international banknote marketplace, increase our penetration of financial institutions in the United States, as well as expand our direct-to-consumer reach through our online and agent platforms. The 2022 refresh of our strategic plan also identified specific investments in infrastructure and organizational design changes to enable a more scalable enterprise. With this seasoned management team in place, I am confident that CXI will grow to become a global leader in financial currency and exchange services." Financial Highlights for the three-months ended January 31, 2024 compared to the three-months ended January 31, 2023: Revenue increased by 7% or $1.2 million to $18.1 million compared to $16.9 million, led by Banknotes revenue which had a 10% or $1.3 million growth over the prior period, while Payments revenue declined by 3% or $0.1 million; Net operating income declined by $0.5 million or 18% to $2.2 million from $2.7 million with lower Canadian region revenue offset by higher revenue in the United States region; Net income declined by $0.7 million or 47% to $0.9 million from $1.6 million; Earnings per share was $0.13 on a basic and a fully diluted basis compared to earnings per share of $0.25 and $0.24, respectively; and The Group had strong liquidity and capital positions of $72.0 million in net working capital and $80.5 million in total equity as at January 31, 2024. Corporate Highlights for the three-months ended January 31, 2024: The Group continued to grow its network as a result of the strong consumer demand for foreign currencies as international travel continued to strengthen. The rate of Travelers passing through TSA check points in the United States airports increased 5% more than the same time last year; The Group increased growth in the financial institutions sector in the U.S. with the addition of 124 new clients, representing 135 transacting locations; The Group continued its growth in the direct-to-consumer market, adding 4 new airport agent locations, including two in Philadelphia airport for the first time; The Group continued growing its OnlineFX platform, adding the State of Alabama to its network, making it the 41 st State in which the Group provides its services through the platform; and State in which the Group provides its services through the platform; and The Payments product line processed 35,618 payments transactions, representing $2.99 billion in volume compared to 28,486 transactions and $3.11 billion in volume. Selected Financial Data The following table summarizes the performance of the Group over the last eight fiscal quarters1: Three-months ending Revenue Net operating income Net income Total assets Total equity Earnings per share (diluted) $ $ $ $ $ $ 1/31/2024 18,106,918 2,247,267 849,874 133,780,438 80,520,993 0.13 10/31/2023 22,786,072 5,818,667 2,303,822 132,049,444 79,232,981 0.34 7/31/2023 23,587,589 6,438,354 4,056,478 129,643,409 77,590,126 0.60 4/30/2023 18,694,919 3,743,069 2,243,708 134,697,253 73,104,851 0.33 1/31/2023 16,886,189 2,734,159 1,589,499 133,072,968 71,448,732 0.24 10/31/2022 19,800,463 5,401,678 4,383,876 125,528,832 69,305,509 0.66 7/31/2022 21,145,189 7,321,521 4,585,808 155,757,016 65,598,381 0.70 4/30/2022 14,071,953 2,888,757 1,308,445 150,804,096 60,821,752 0.19 1 Certain historical numbers in this table have been restated to conform with the numbers presented in the current period's financial statements Conference Call The Company plans to host a conference call on Thursday, March 14, 2024, at 8:30 AM (EST). To participate in or listen to the call, please dial the appropriate number: Toll Free - North America: (+1) 800 717 1738 Conference ID Number: 26323 About Currency Exchange International, Corp. Currency Exchange International is in the business of providing comprehensive foreign exchange technology and processing services for banks, credit unions, businesses, and consumers in the United States and select clients globally. Primary products and services include the exchange of foreign currencies, wire transfer payments, Global EFTs, and foreign cheque clearing. Wholesale customers are served through its proprietary FX software applications delivered on its web-based interface, www.cxifx.com ("CXIFX"), its related APIs with core banking platforms, and through personal relationship managers. Consumers are served through Group-owned retail branches, agent retail branches, and its e-commerce platform, order.ceifx.com ("OnlineFX"). The Group's wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary, Exchange Bank of Canada, based in Toronto, Canada, provides foreign exchange and international payment services in Canada and select international foreign jurisdictions. Customers are served through the use of its proprietary software, www.ebcfx.com ("EBCFX"), related APIs to core banking platforms, and personal relationship managers. Contact Information For further information please contact: Bill Mitoulas Investor Relations (416) 479-9547 Email: [email protected] Website: www.cxifx.com CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION This press release includes forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. This forward-looking information includes, or may be based upon, estimates, forecasts, and statements as to management's expectations with respect to, among other things, demand and market outlook for wholesale and retail foreign currency exchange products and services, future growth, the timing and scale of future business plans, results of operations, performance, and business prospects and opportunities. Forward-looking statements are identified by the use of terms and phrases such as "anticipate", "believe", "could", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "plan", "predict", "preliminary", "project", "will", "would", and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date such information is provided, and on information available to management at such time. Forward-looking information involves significant risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause the Company's actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in such forward-looking information. Actual results may differ materially from results indicated in forward-looking information due to a number of factors including, without limitation, the competitive nature of the foreign exchange industry, the impact of COVID-19 or the evolving situation in Ukraine on factors relevant to the Company's business, currency exchange risks, the need for the Company to manage its planned growth, the effects of product development and the need for continued technological change, protection of the Company's proprietary rights, the effect of government regulation and compliance on the Company and the industry in which it operates, network security risks, the ability of the Company to maintain properly working systems, theft and risk of physical harm to personnel, reliance on key management personnel, global economic deterioration negatively impacting tourism, volatile securities markets impacting security pricing in a manner unrelated to operating performance and impeding access to capital or increasing the cost of capital as well as the factors identified throughout this press release and in the section entitled "Risks and Uncertainties" of the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three-months ended January 31, 2024. The forward-looking information contained in this press release represents management's expectations as of the date hereof (or as of the date such information is otherwise stated to be presented) and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities laws. The Toronto Stock Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained in this press release. 13 march 2024 at 17:00 News published onand distributed by: European Commissioner for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova speaks during a news conference at the European Council in Luxembourg, on June 22, 2021. JOHN THYS / AP The EU is to better protect journalists from political interference under an unprecedented media freedom law adopted by the European Parliament on Wednesday, March 13. The legislation, backed in a vote by 464 EU lawmakers, with 92 against and 65 abstaining, also enshrines editorial independence and seeks to improve transparency on media ownership. The European Union commissioner for values and transparency, Vera Jourova, hailed the "historic vote", saying on X that "independent media are essential to democracies" and "it's the duty of democracies to protect them". Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a media watchdog advocating journalist safety and independence, welcomed the move. "This law's adoption marks a major step forward for the right to information within the European Union," said RSF's Brussels office chief Julie Majerczak. She called for EU member countries to "ambitiously" implement the law. The draft text of the European Media Freedom Act was introduced by the European Commission in 2022 in reaction to deteriorating media pluralism and independence in EU countries such as Hungary and Poland, and also as spyware like Pegasus and Predator was being used to target journalists. People fleeing violence receive food outside a Haitian National Police station, following a shootout between rival gangs, in Port-au-Prince on February 12, 2024. RALPH TEDY EROL / REUTERS Four million people face "acute food insecurity" and 1 million of them are one step away from famine, the UN food agency's director in the conflict-wracked Caribbean nation said on Tuesday, March 12. Jean-Martin Bauer told a virtual press conference that he's "ringing the alarm bell" because the recent increase in gang violence has made a very bad situation even worse and displaced an additional 15,000 people just over the first weekend in March in the capital, Port-au-Prince. That brings the total number of displaced people in Haiti to over 360,000, he said, and the UN says half of them are children. The country has over 11 million residents. Bauer said, there were 4 million food insecure and hungry Haitians during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and that number hasn't gone down, but the number on the brink of famine has escalated to 1 million. Port-au-Prince has been turned into "a bubble" where gangs control the roads, the port and airport are closed and no one can get in or get out, Bauer said. Read more Haitian PM resigns amid pressure from criminal gangs Imports for 50% of its food supply People carry water collected in buckets and containers along a street after Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry pledged to step down following months of escalating gang violence, in Port-au-Prince on March 12, 2024. RALPH TEDY EROL / REUTERS The World Food Program director said the agency and its partners started a hot meal service for newly displaced people in the capital, starting with 2,000 meals a day and now up to nearly 14,000 meals a day. But he said the WFP warehouse will run out of supplies in a few weeks unless the port is reopened to replenish the agency's stocks. Haiti depends on food imports for 50% of its food supply, and Bauer said WFP can confirm that the cost of a food basket is rising in Port-au-Prince as well as elsewhere in Haiti. Read more Subscribers only 'Finding an immediate stop to Haiti's fall into the abyss' There were disturbances in January and food prices jumped 25% in the south, where roadblocks came up and trucks weren't able to get to Port-au-Prince with necessities, he said. And there was a scarcity of propane, which is the basic fuel, including for cooking. Food prices jumped at least 10% In recent days, because of the gang violence, food prices have jumped at least 10%, Bauer explained. The economy in rural areas outside the capital depends on links to Port-au-Prince, he said, and food prices have also risen elsewhere in the country because of disrupted trade. A WFP survey found that as prices go up household incomes are going down because people can't go to work, are "sheltering in place" and aren't earning money, Bauer said. Asked about the impact of Prime Minister Ariel Henry's resignation, which will take effect once a transitional presidential council is created, Bauer said he isn't good at reading political dynamics "but we certainly hope that there will be an improvement in security." Insecurity is hampering people from doing very simple things right now like taking their children to school or going to the supermarket or work; which are "extremely risky," he said. Speaking from Cap Haitien in northern Haiti, Bauer stressed, however, that the focus can't just be on security, "We also need a robust humanitarian response," he said. But the UN's $674 million humanitarian appeal for Haiti this year is just 2.6% funded. On a positive note, Bauer said thanks to supplies WFP can purchase from local farmers, it was able to feed about 160,000 school children on Monday in north and south Haiti and other calm areas, part of an ongoing program. He said despite difficulties of access because of the violence, WFP has been able to deliver money to some of Haiti's poorest on their mobile phones. Read more Subscribers only Crisis in Haiti prompts thousands to flee to Dominican Republic UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday that many health facilities have been forced to shut down because of the gang violence. Blood shortages persist at the National Blood Transfusion Center and efforts are underway to bring in blood from the neighboring Dominican Republic, he said. A protester burns tires during a demonstration following the resignation of its Prime Minister Ariel Henry, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on March 12, 2024. CLARENS SIFFROY / AFP US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday, March 13, that Kenyan President William Ruto confirmed plans to send a security mission to Haiti and expected progress in the coming days on a transitional council. Kenya has offered to lead a security mission, largely funded by the United States and Canada, to violence-ravaged Haiti but said the mission was on hold after Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned on Monday in a deal pushed by Caribbean leaders and the United States. Confirming an account by Ruto, Blinken said he spoke to the Kenyan leader by telephone and discussed a transitional council that was formed to name a new prime minister ahead of elections. Read more Subscribers only 'Finding an immediate stop to Haiti's fall into the abyss' Ruto "confirmed Kenya's preparedness to lead that mission just as soon as this new council is stood up which we believe will happen in the next couple of days and an interim president is elected," Blinken said. Blinken acknowledged the challenges ahead for Haiti, where public order has broken down and armed gangs control most of the capital. "None of this is easy. None of this is going to happen from one day to the next," Blinken said. "But at least there is a plan, a process in place, to do that. It's Haitian-designed, it's Haitian-led, but it's supported by many countries not only in this hemisphere, but around the world." When it comes to upholding the rule of law within the continent, the European Parliament knows how to go on the offensive. In the next few days, this Strasbourg-based institution is set to bring a case before the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) against the EU Commission's decision, on December 13, 2023, to release 10.2 billion of EU funds which had been previously withheld from Budapest for its failings in upholding this principle. It will fall to Roberta Metsola, the president of the European Parliament, to take the formal decision at a meeting with the presidents of this legislative assembly's political groups on Thursday, March 14. Yet it is already a foregone conclusion, with the conservatives of the European People's Party (EPP), the Socialists & Democrats (S&D), the liberals of Renew, the Greens and the radical left (The Left) groups all being in favor of the move. "Initiating legal proceedings against the Commission is an extreme step but a necessary one," commented German MEP Sergey Lagodinsky (Greens). This would be the seventeenth time that MEPs have taken the Commission to court since the early days of EU integration. Viktor Orban's blackmail The matter came to a head on the evening of March 11, when the Parliament's legal affairs committee recommended, in a closed meeting, that legal action be lodged against the EU Commission. Sixteen MEPs were in favor, with just one Gilles Lebreton, a member of France's Rassemblement National (RN, far-right) party, which has cultivated a certain closeness to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban opposed to it. The European Parliament criticized the Commission for releasing the funds despite Budapest's failure to in return complete the reforms that had been required to guarantee the independence of the Hungarian judiciary. In so doing, the Commission had allegedly given in to Orban's blackmail, as he was then threatening to veto the opening of negotiations for Ukraine's accession to the EU. In any case, on December 14, 2023, the day after this decision was taken, the Hungarian prime minister let his partners take this step, by very conveniently absenting himself from the European Council meeting for a coffee. In a report published on February 22, the European Court of Auditors regretted that "political considerations" may have "ultimately play[ed] a major role [...] when rule-of-law decisions on Hungary had to be taken at the same time as voting on the Ukrainian accession talks." Read more Subscribers only Olaf Scholz's successful coffee break strategy with Viktor Orban "We cannot allow the Commission and Council to continue giving Viktor Orban leverage to blackmail the EU, block the necessary decisions and continue his attacks on the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights in the country," insisted Lagodinsky. You have 45.45% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only. Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt (2L) chatting with Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (2R) after presenting the annual budget statement in the House of Commons in London on March 6, 2024. AFP PHOTO / JESSICA TAYLOR / UK PARLIAMENT Britain's ruling Conservatives faced growing pressure on Wednesday, March 13 to return millions of pounds to a major donor accused of making racist comments about a high-profile Black lawmaker. Businessman Frank Hester, 57, is alleged to have said that Diane Abbott Britain's longest-serving Black MP made him "want to hate all Black women" and that she "should be shot." The comments emerged as Sunak pledged to crack down on extremism, and with increasing concern about the safety of MPs, after two were murdered in recent years and others facing threats and intimidation. Sunak Britain's first Hindu and Indian-origin prime minister took more than 24 hours to condemn the remarks. But he told parliament on Wednesday: "They [the comments] were racist and he [Hester] has rightly apologized and that remorse should be accepted." "There's no place for racism in Britain and the government that I lead is living proof of that," he added. Read more Subscribers only France and the UK's very different reactions to politicians of color Hester has admitted making "rude" comments about Abbott, but claimed that they had "nothing to do with her gender nor color of skin." The Guardian newspaper, which broke the story late on Monday, reported that Hester made the comments during a meeting at his company's headquarters in 2019. In a follow-up story on Tuesday night, it wrote that Hester had also said "no room for the Indians" during a crowded meeting, and suggested that they "climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there." The main opposition Labour party, tipped to win a general election due this year, has called for the Tories to return 10 million ($12.8 million) donated by Hester, CEO of software company The Phoenix Partnership. "If Rishi Sunak had anything about him, if he had any backbone, he would pay that money back today," Labour MP Jonathan Ashworth told the Sky News television channel. Sunak is also coming under pressure from members of his own party over the controversy. "I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back," Andy Street, the Conservative Mayor of the West Midlands, told BBC radio. Tory MP Nus Ghani tweeted that "zero tolerance on racism is just a slogan in today's politics," although she did not specifically mention the row in her post. Sunak, though, has rejected calls to repay the money, pointing instead to the diversity in his government. Read more Subscribers only Islamophobia among UK's Tories put under the spotlight by Gaza war Abbott was Britain's first Black female MP when she was elected to parliament in 1987. She sat as a Labour lawmaker until she was suspended in April last year for saying Jewish people were not subject to racism "all their lives." TIANJIN, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docked at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin, on Monday morning, with over 1,100 tourists from 30 countries and regions aboard. This marks the maiden visit of the cruise ship, measuring 285 meters in length and 32 meters in width, to Tianjin, where it will stay for two days and one night. The passengers will go sightseeing in the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Xi'an. A series of service measures adopted by the local customs administration and cruise ship agency made the ship's visit to Tianjin possible. Bi Linlin, a local immigration inspection officer, said they worked with the cruise line and the port company to streamline passenger clearance procedures and meet the needs of tourists. As the largest cruise home port in north China, Tianjin International Cruise Home Port has welcomed 16 cruise ships and seen 50,000 tourist visits so far this year, according to Dong Zichen, deputy general manager of Tianjin International Cruise Home Port Co., Ltd. "We are quite optimistic about the recovery of the cruise tourism industry in Tianjin," Dong said. "With government support policies and people's increasing demand for cruise tourism, we believe that the cruise tourism industry will develop rapidly in China," said Jiao Deshuai, senior assistant manager of the shipping department at the Sinotrans North China Container Company, which is engaged in the cruise ship agency business. Having traveled to the Chinese cities of Shanghai and Dalian, the Zuiderdam cruise ship is scheduled to leave Tianjin for Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon. Philippe de Gaulle and his wife Henriette de Montalembert arriving at the Opera for a reception in honor of the sovereigns of Nepal, King Mahendra and Queen Ratna, on an official visit to Paris on October 7, 1966. RUE DES ARCHIVES / RUE DES ARCHIVES/AGIP The luck of Philippe de Gaulle was to have been the son of one of France's greatest figures, Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Resistance and president of France who founded the Fifth Republic. His misfortune was also exactly that. A brave soldier during World War II, he had an accomplished career in the French Navy, but the model to which he was compared inevitably diminished his accomplishments. A victim of his glorious ancestry, he took his revenge late in life with a best-seller, De Gaulle mon pere ("De Gaulle my father"), a very personal account of the great man, which captivated the general public but angered established historians. Admiral Philippe de Gaulle died on the night of Tuesday, March 12, at the age of 102 in Paris. He was born in the French capital on December 28, 1921. He was the first child of Yvonne Vendroux and then captain Charles de Gaulle, who was wounded at the battle of Verdun in 1916 and was teaching at the Special Military School of Saint-Cyr at the time. Contrary to persistent legend, Philippe was not the godson of Philippe Petain, the general who would go on to lead the collaborationist regime during the Second World War. But Petain did hold Charles de Gaulle in high esteem, at the time. As a token of their ties, which dated back to 1912, Petain dedicated his photo to the newborn child with these words: "To the young Philippe who will walk, I hope, in the footsteps of his father." Croix de Guerre, Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor From the cradle, history was watching Philippe. It finally played a part in his life on June 19, 1940, when, accompanied by his mother and two sisters, he landed on the English coast in the hope of finding his father, whose whereabouts they had lost. By reading the local newspaper, they learned that a French brigadier general named Charles de Gaulle had launched a call to resist against the occupier the day before, via the BBC. Philipe de Gaulle was 18 years old. He was a young, slender man with a clean-shaven face who failed to convince his father to let him enter the naval academy at the College Stanislas in Paris, where he had just passed his high school diploma. Charles de Gaulle would have preferred to see him pursue a diplomatic career, given that "it's hardly an advantage for one family to have too many soldiers." A student at the Free French Forces Naval Academy, class of 1940, Philippe took part in much fighting during the war. He was involved in the air defense of Portsmouth and then in numerous operations in the Channel and the Atlantic. On August 1, 1944, he landed on Utah Beach in northwestern France with the men of the Leclerc division, where he had been enlisted as a fusilier marin. The 2nd Armored Division rushed to Paris where, on August 25, Philippe de Gaulle was ordered to negotiate the surrender of the German soldiers entrenched in the Palais-Bourbon, the seat of the Assemblee Nationale, a mission he carried out with composure and without firing a shot. With the Alsace campaign behind him and peace restored, Philippe de Gaulle became a pilot on aircraft carriers. He took part in the Indochina and Algerian wars before holding several air and sea commands, including that of the Atlantic Squadron. He ended his military career in 1982 as admiral inspector general of the Navy. He was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor but was not made a Companion of the Liberation. An "oversight" that his father justified: "Naturally, I could not make you, my son, a Companion of the Liberation, not even posthumously or if you had returned seriously mutilated." Before adding in the same tone: "In any case, everyone knows that you were my first companion." To be the son of such a father Philippe de Gaulle was annoyed to be considered a "son of an archbishop," as someone who owes his career to his father's position. For obscure reasons, he inherited the nickname Sosthene and suffered for a long time from the jealousy aroused by an extraordinary destiny that was not his own. He considered himself bullied. Jacques Foccart, a close advisor to "the General," as Charles de Gaulle was known, recounted that Philippe had paid him a visit the day after his father's death to complain about only being a captain: " To convince me of this, he cited the examples of Stalin's son, who was promoted to general at the age of 27, and of Eisenhower's son, who was also a general." Foccart opened up about this visit to President Georges Pompidou, whom he also advised. Pompidou replied: "I don't believe him to be particularly sharp and he is often clumsy, but he is the son of the General. Something must be done for him." This is how Philippe became an admiral in September 1971. And as a reward for the same debt, President Jacques Chirac later made him a senator for Paris, a seat that Philippe held for Chirac's right-wing party from 1986 to 2004. It was both a blessing and a curse to be the son of such a man, an intimidating and inflexible father, even in the privacy of his own family. He was attentive to his children's upbringing but was distant and not very present, focusing entirely on his own destiny and that of France. From a very young age, Philippe understood that he would never be close to the great man. "After kissing me, which he rarely did, he sent me away after 15 minutes." How many times did he have to be satisfied with this measured affection, even though his father made a point of calling him "dear old boy"? Heir to the moral rights attached to the general's work He was the eldest but not the favorite. The tenderness of Charles de Gaulle was directed first to his daughter Anne, who had Down's syndrome and died at the age of 20, in 1948. And in the close family circle, Philippe had to reckon with Alain de Boissieu, his sister Elisabeth's husband. De Boissieu was a Companion of the Liberation, and would become chief of staff of the Army and grand chancellor of the Legion of Honor. When his father died in 1970, Philippe inherited the family estate, La Boisserie, in the town of Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises. He was heir to the moral rights attached to the General's work, his memory, his image, his writings and his archives. He took advantage of his newfound freedom to make a curious letter that his father sent him in 1964 public, in which he expressed his hope that when the time came, he would take on "the responsibility of leading France." In homage to the deceased, thousands of streets and schools were named Charles de Gaulle after his death. In 1990, Philippe was invited almost daily to honor the inauguration of a school, a ceremony or a symposium with his presence. His resemblance to the General became striking as the years went by: the same gothic stature, the same "Cyranoesque" nose to use his father's expression and the same hint of a mustache and drooping eyelids. Memoirs that went unnoticed He was long opposed to any figurative representation of the General, but made an exception for the statue that was erected at the bottom of the Champs-Elysees, not far from those of Winston Churchill and Georges Clemenceau. He published many works. First, the 13 volumes of his father's Lettres, notes et carnets ("Letters, Notes and Notebooks"). Then a photo album from the family archives, De Gaulle (1989). Finally, it was time for his own memoir, under a title in the form of a statement: Memoires accessoires ("Ancillary Memories," two volumes in 1997 and 2000). These memoirs went almost unnoticed. They are, however, full of information and then-unpublished anecdotes, which were re-used for Philippe de Gaulle's most famous book: De Gaulle mon pere ("De Gaulle My Father," two volumes in 2003 and 2004). But the style is stiff and the details about Philippe's career are rather monotonous. Alone at his writing desk, he lacked literary talent. His interviews with the journalist Michel Tauriac for De Gaulle mon pere were a huge success. According to his publishers, a total of 800,000 copies were sold, plus 80,000 in paperback. In the wake of this triumph, he published a new photo album, Mon pere en images ("My Father in Photos"), in collaboration with Tauriac, in 2006. With De Gaulle mon pere, Philippe became a satisfied celebrity. At more than 80 years old, he did the rounds of the radio and television shows, chatting with the actress Arielle Dombasle, teased by TV host Thierry Ardisson, and coaxed by France's most famous presenter, Michel Drucker. He made so many appearances and looked so much like his father that some of the General's faithful cried betrayal. De Gaulle mon pere lifts the veil on a hidden part of the life of the founder of the Fifth Republic the husband, the father and the grandfather. The private man was shown in detail next to nothing was known about him, previously. Philippe depicted the General throwing Le Monde into his wastepaper basket one day, out of contempt. He revealed that his father "loved generously-topped sauerkraut." And that he made his grandchildren, whom he cherished, laugh with his riddles. The readers of De Gaulle mon pere appreciated it. Historians did not. The book is full of factual errors, misinterpretations and pettiness. To refute the accusation of anti-Semitism sometimes lodged against his father, Philippe explained that "many of [his] doctors were Jewish" and named them one by one. He attacked the memory of former prime ministers Leon Blum and Pierre Mendes France, and even those of writers Francois Mauriac and Andre Malraux. As the historian Pierre Nora cruelly said, "the Admiral marshalized the General" with his bestseller. Then the quarrel subsided. In his final days, Philippe was more sparing with his appearances, even if he honored the tributes that the Republic paid to the great man, to this father who was so different with his presence. Read more Subscribers only Succession and betrayal in Charles de Gaulle's family Philippe de Gaulle in a few dates December 28, 1921 Born in Paris 1971 Becomes rear admiral November 9, 1970 Death of Charles de Gaulle 2003-2004 Publication of De Gaulle mon pere ("De Gaulle My Father") 1986-2004 Senator for Paris March 13, 2024 Death in Paris The announcement was eye-catching, but slightly misleading: On Monday, March 11, China, Russia and Iran launched joint maritime exercises in the Indian Ocean from the Gulf of Aden, with the aim of "jointly maintaining regional maritime security." Against a backdrop of attacks in the Red Sea by Yemen's Houthi rebels, which are causing panic among merchant shipping, the move might have suggested that these powers one of which, China, has a naval base in Djibouti are keen to take charge of the regional order. Not really, though. After all, these maneuvers will only last five days. And Iran is the supplier of said Houthi rebels. On closer inspection, the three countries' announcement is just evidence that the disorder is set to continue. Everyone is sending a ship of their own. The United States deployed two aircraft carriers to the region at the start of Israel's war in Gaza in response to the attack on October 7, 2023. But so far, no one has been able to dissuade the Houthis from firing their missiles. This Middle-Eastern example reflects the state of the world in 2024: Several great powers coexist, monitoring each other, competing, clashing or cooperating depending on the stakes, but none is able to impose order any longer. "Forget talk of unipolarity or multipolarity," recently wrote the journalist Gregg Carlstrom in Foreign Affairs. "The Middle East is nonpolar. No one is in charge." The end of pax americana This staggering vacuum is particularly striking regarding what is still considered the world's leading power, the US. In past times, it was a major player in the Middle East. It remains present, if only through the crucial military and financial support it provides to Israel. Its aircraft carriers, of which only one remains in the Red Sea, bear witness to the hegemonic role it once played. But this role no longer modifies the course of events; it merely limits the conflagration, at best. Benjamin Netanyahu could not wage his devastating war in Gaza without American weapons; the White House is becoming increasingly critical of the way in which he is waging this war, but without succeeding in changing his strategy. In 2011, Barack Obama was criticized for using the expression "leading from behind" to describe the US's attitude toward the intervention in Libya, led by France and Great Britain. His detractors rightly saw this as a sign of America's retreat, later confirmed by Obama's decision to renounce his own red line on the use of chemical weapons by Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Today, the US isn't leading from behind: it isn't leading at all. The withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in August 2021 was more than just a disastrous episode: It marked the end of pax americana. You have 48.95% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only. The Great Seal of the City of Hohenwald: Incorporated 1911 Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Stuart C. McWhorter recently announced the 50 recipients receiving funding through the Infrastructure Planning Grant (IPG) program. The City of Hohenwald received a grant for $85,000. The $10.7 million in funding is part of the Rural Economic Opportunity Act and will assist communities and utility districts across Tennessee with long-term planning for their water and sewer systems. "Ensuring all Tennesseans have access to clean water starts with investing in the right infrastructure," said Gov. Lee.... A LIMERICK school has been picked as one of six locations nationwide for a "designated accommodation centre", it was officially announced this Wednesday. The former Salesian Secondary School at Fernbank, just off North Circular Road, has been chosen. It has capacity of 250 people. There have been protests ahead of the arrival of refugees outside the building. A number of parents with children at the neighbouring Salesian Primary School, which has 420 students, have pledged to do everything we can to halt this. The Clanmaurice Residents Association said in a statement they would like it to be known that they are happy to welcome the families coming to live in the old Salesian secondary school in Fernbank. A statement from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability Integration and Youth this Wednesday says that new legislation to bring into effect a revised approach to supporting new arrivals from Ukraine has been commenced. It follows the Government decision in December and the passing of the relevant legislation last week. "Under the revised approach, from this Thursday, March 14, anyone fleeing the war in Ukraine, who registers for temporary protection and is looking for State-provided accommodation in Ireland, will be accommodated for a maximum of 90 days. They will be provided with food, laundry, other services and integration supports in designated accommodation centres," said a spokesperson. The first five centres to be in confirmed are Ballyogan Road, Dublin City (capacity: 392); Stradbally, Co. Laois (capacity: 950; Fernbank, Limerick city (capacity: 250); Punchestown, Co. Kildare (capacity: 378) and Gerald Griffin Street, Cork City (capacity: 107). "Standard social welfare payments will no longer be available to a person while they are resident in designated Accommodation centres. They will be entitled to a reduced weekly allowance of 38.80 per adult and 29.80 per child in respect of daily expenses, while they are resident in designated accommodation centres. Entitlement to child benefit is not affected by these changes. "When they leave the designated accommodation centre, or if they make their own accommodation arrangements on arrival, they will be entitled to apply for standard social welfare assistance, equivalent to Irish citizens subject to meeting the eligibility conditions," said the spokesperson. The Government is making these changes in order to continue to meet the EU Temporary Protection Directive requirements, and to align more closely with other EU Member States, said the spokesperson. "These changes will not affect people from Ukraine who arrived in Ireland before this policy came into force and are already registered for temporary protection. "The focus of supports in designated centres will be orientation on living and working in Ireland and the options for sourcing accommodation independently. The remaining centre will be announced once finalised," said the spokesperson. This change does not apply to people seeking international protection in Ireland, it is only for people fleeing the war in Ukraine who request temporary protection here. Further information can be found on www.gov.ie/Ukraine Charlie Bird's funeral details have been announced after the former RTE journalist died on Monday after a battle with Motor Neurone Disease. Charlie's RIP.ie notice says he "died peacefully in the wonderful care of Wicklow Hospice with his family at his side." It adds that he will be "sadly missed by his beloved wife, Claire, loving daughters Orla and Neasa, little wingman Tiger, his sons-in-law Rob and Aidan, adored grandchildren Charlie, Hugo, Abigail, Harriet and Edward, his extended family, former colleagues and a wide circle of friends both at home and abroad. Remembering also Orla and Neasas late mother Mary." The family have announced that "a service to celebrate Charlie's life will be held on Thursday (March 14th) at 12 noon in the Round Room, Mansion House, Dublin 2. No flowers please. Donations, if desired, to Wicklow Hospice." Tributes have been coming in from around the world since news of Charlie's death broke on Monday. RTE journalist, Samantha Libreri, remembered her mentor and his words of wisdom. My mentor and my friend. I learned so much from Charlie Bird and was so lucky to have his support and friendship. Ive never met anyone with his passion, energy and excitement for a story. Ill miss him so much but carry his words and wisdom with me every day that I do my job, she said, sharing a Tanaiste, Micheal Martin paid tribute to Charlie and the memorable stories he covered. Deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Charlie Bird, who inspired so many with the courage, generosity of spirit and dignity he faced his battle with Motor neurone disease, Mr Martin started. As a journalist and broadcaster for RTE, Charlie had few peers. He memorably covered national and international events such as the Peace Process, the Sept 11 attacks, the Gulf War, and the National Irish Bank scandal. Personable and engaging, Charlie had the public interest at heart, representing public service broadcasting at its very best. Recently, Charlie captured the imagination, nurturing a true spirit of solidarity through his Climb With Charlie. His message of generosity, friendship, and simply looking out for each other will long be remembered. My condolences to Claire, his children, family, and friends, added Mr Martin. Sharing a picture from the day the pair reached the summit of Croagh Patrick, Tubridy said: "A joyful memory of Charlie Bird who has sadly died. I will never forget his fortitude, forbearance and fearlessness in the face of a cruel illness. He raised awareness and funding for charities that needed it most. "Condolences to his beloved Claire and his daughters, Orla and Nessa. Rest in peace Charlie and thank you for bringing us to the top of the mountain where perspective reigns supreme." Niall Breslin (Bressie) wrote in tribute: It has been a hard week for the hearts and minds of this country. We have lost two souls that have highlighted to us all, that we need to value the humanity in ourselves and those around us. We need to share that with each other. Charlie was a flicker of light in dark times, and the best way we can pay tribute to him and his family, is to honour his wishes for a more kind and fair Ireland. RTE Correspondent, Ingrid Miley, said: So sorry to hear of the passing of my former colleague Charlie Bird. To the end, in his darkest days, he worked to help others and raise awareness of a terrible disease. My sincere condolences to his beloved Claire and Tiger, and all his family and friends. May he rest in peace. Journalist Gareth OCallaghan also paid tribute: So sad to hear the news that Charlie Bird passed away this morning, after a long battle with motor neurone disease. He was the greatest reporter of my generation. What will an enlarged European Union of 500 million people look like? How will the citizens of its 35 or more Member States live, work and interact? Who will pay for it and how much? How will decisions be made and can consensus be reached with more voices at the table? These were just some of the questions debated at this years Model Council of the European Union, which took place on March 1 at Dublin Castle. Teams of secondary school students from across Ireland, each playing the role of an EU Member State, did a deep dive into the reforms needed to make future EU enlargements a success. They came prepared with passionate and articulate arguments, to defend the interests of their adopted Member States. Six teams rose above 21 other schools with their convincing portrayal of EU Ministers for European Affairs, going head to head on some of the key challenges presented by enlargement such as the future of the EU budget, how it is financed and where the money should be spent. Maynooth Post-Primary School in Co Kildare won first place for their representation of Malta during the debate. They will travel with their class to Strasbourg in October to take part in Euroscola, where they will become MEPs for a day in the European Parliament. Ardscoil Ris from Dublin, representing the Netherlands and St Leo's College from Carlow, representing Denmark, took joint second place. Honourable mentions were given to the following schools: *Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Burkeen, Co Wicklow as Austria. *Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary as Poland. *Deansrath Community College in Clondalkin, Dublin as Germany. The debate, based on the format of a real meeting of the Council of the European Union, is a practical but also enjoyable way for young people to learn how the EU works, how decisions are made, and more importantly, how consensus can be reached. Stepping into the shoes of EU politicians for a day is not for the faint hearted but these young people rose to the challenge and made their voices heard. As millions of Europeans prepare to vote in the European elections in June, engaging our young people in active citizenship and encouraging their participation in the democratic process will empower them to shape their future in a Union that is preparing to welcome new member states. Ireland has played its part in the story of EU enlargement. On 1 May, we will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the largest single enlargement of the EU when 15 became 25 on the historic Day of Welcomes, hosted by the Irish Presidency of the EU in Dublin in 2004. The economic and political achievements of the past 20 years have shown what a success story the 2004 enlargement has been, not only for the 10 Member States concerned but for the EU as a whole. PICTURE CAPTION: Students from Colaiste Nano Nagle, Limerick represented Ireland at the Model Council of the European Union debate for secondary schools which took place in Dublin Castle. Pictured in front are Flourish Olushola, Kulsum Dakar and Mariam Davadze. In the back row are Fionnuala Croker, acting head of the European Parliament Liaison Office; Noelle OConnell, CEO European Movement Ireland; Shane Ryan, teacher; Barbara Nolan, Head of the European Commission Representation in Ireland and Peter Burke TD, Minister of State for European Affairs. *SPONSORED CONTENT Given the rising age profile of Irish farmers, it is worrying that so few have a formal succession plan. This not only puts farmers financial security at risk but also potentially lines up problems for their families and successors. As with all business decisions, the starting point for succession planning is clarifying your objectives. Do you want to continue to be involved in the farm? Have you a successor in mind? Have you clarified your familys wishes? Asking your accountant or agri-advisor to chair a family meeting can be a good way to tease matters out and ensure that emotional factors do not overly influence your decisions. A key decision will be whether your business will transfer during your lifetime or after your death. Your accountant will explain your options and help you choose the best for your business. If you decide on a lifetime transfer, you must protect your financial security and ensure that you will have adequate retirement income for you and your spouse/partner. You can then decide what provision to make for your children. Remember, a parent can give a site to a child tax-free, provided the site is less than an acre and valued at less than 500,000. The Income Tax impact of your plan on both you and your successor will need to be reviewed. Factors that can affect this include off-farm earnings, whether you intend to continue to draw an income from the farm, and so on. You then need to look at the impact of capital taxes: Capital Acquisitions Tax (33%) is charged to the transferee; however, subject to satisfying certain conditions, Agricultural Relief can eliminate this liability. Capital Gains Tax (33%) is charged to the transferor. If you are aged under 66 and passing the farm to a family member, CGT relief is unlimited, provided you satisfy the relevant conditions. If you are over 66, the relief is restricted to 3m. The rules are more complicated for transfers outside the family. There is a cumulative lifetime cap of 70,000 on the amount of tax relief that a young-trained farmer can claim for stamp duty relief, stock relief and the succession farm partnerships tax credit. For transfers after death, only Capital Acquisition Tax is payable. The rate is 33% on amounts received above a certain threshold. For parent-to-child transfers, the threshold is 320,000. Regardless of how and when you intend to transfer the farm, once you know your objectives, you can document a sensible succession plan to protect you, your family and your business. You will then need to update your Will to reflect your decisions. Contact Eugene Higgins in ifacs Limerick office on (061) 337 833 today for an initial chat to get the ball rolling. Eugene Higgins Follow us on our socials: Facebook Instagram Twitter/X LinkedIn Website Call our Limerick office: 061 337833 *Sponsored Content Google has announced that its AI chatbot Gemini will be restricted from answering questions about global elections scheduled for this year, citing concerns over potential missteps in the deployment of the technology. This move comes amidst growing worries surrounding misinformation and fake news fueled by advancements in generative AI. Gemini users querying about upcoming elections, including the highly anticipated U.S. presidential match-up between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, will receive a response directing them to use Google Search instead. The decision to implement these restrictions was first announced in December, with Google emphasizing to ensure the responsible use of AI, particularly during critical political events. "In preparation for the many elections happening around the world in 2024 and out of an abundance of caution, we are restricting the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses," a spokesperson from Google stated. The restrictions are not limited to the United States, as several other countries, including South Africa and India, are also gearing up for national elections. In India, tech firms are required to seek government approval before releasing AI tools that are still in the trial phase, with an emphasis on labeling tools that may yield inaccurate results. Google's AI products have faced scrutiny following inaccuracies in historical depictions generated by Gemini, leading to the temporary suspension of its image-generation feature. CEO Sundar Pichai condemned the biases in Gemini's responses as "completely unacceptable" and assured users that the company was actively working to rectify the issues. To recall, the American tech giant has faced repeated challenges stemming from the behavior of its Gemini AI. The latest controversy emerged when Google found itself in hot water over its AI platform Gemini, prompting an apology to India amidst widespread criticism and apprehension, as reported by TOI. According to the publication's report, Google extended an apology to Prime Minister Modi following concerns that its AI platform, Gemini, was producing 'unreliable' outcomes and providing unsubstantiated responses to queries concerning the Prime Minister. (With inputs from Reuters) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! MUMBAI : Byju Raveendran received an extended relief from the Karnataka High Court on Wednesday, allowing him to remain at the helm of Byjus, amid a volley of charges and countercharges between his troubled edtech company and its investors. But that could also result in Think & Learn Pvt. Ltd, Byjus parent company, having to wait longer to access the money it has raised via a rights issue, essential to keep the companys operations running. The high court extended an earlier interim protection that was to end on 13 March by a fortnight, till 28 March, keeping Byjus investors from implementing resolutions passed at an extraordinary general meeting in late February. A clutch of key investors in Byjus, including Prosus NV, Peak XV Partners, General Atlantic, and Sofina SA, had voted to oust Raveendran as the chief executive officer of the company he founded, citing mismanagement. Byjus has said the meeting was invalid without the presence of at least one of the founding members. These four investors, who collectively hold around 25% stake in the company, have also moved the Bengaluru bench of the National Company Law Tribunal seeking a stay on Byjus rights issue. On Wednesday, the investors alleged that Byjus had secured Karnataka High Courts interim order on 22 February through fraud, and that they hadnt been issued a notice. Byjus, on its part, claimed the investors had lied under oath, citing differences in the filing date of an affidavit attached to the statement of objections, according to people familiar with the developments. Byjus delayed paying February salaries to its staff citing its inability to access money raised from its rights issue after the NCLT asked the company to hold the funds in a separate escrow account until the matter is resolved. Byjus had sought to raise $200 million through the rights issue to clear its immediate liabilities and for other operational costs, but at a pre-money valuation of $20-25 million. Byjus was not too long ago among Indias highest-valued tech companies, with an estimated worth of about $22 billion. The company has debtors, vendors and employeespast and presentwaiting to get their dues running into $180-200 million in all. Byjus is also facing a legal battle with lenders of its $1.2-billion Term Loan B. They have taken the company to insolvency court on charges of non-repayment and technical default and have accelerated their demand for full payment, which Byjus is contesting. The company is also under fire for having parked more than $533 million overseas. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! TikToks Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew went to Capitol Hill Tuesday to lobby against a bill that would force the apps Chinese parent to sell it or face a ban in the US. Joined by influencers from the popular short-video platform, Chew sought to persuade senators to reject the legislation. A vote in the House of Representatives scheduled for Wednesday appeared increasingly likely to get the two-thirds approval necessary even though former President Donald Trump has reversed his stand and suggested he opposes a ban. Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, said he was among those contacted by TikTok. Im telling them, and Ive been clear, Im voting for that, so youre wasting your time," he said, referring to the House bill. Trump calls TikTok a threat but says banning app would hurt some kids Ive spent hundreds of dollars on Drunk Elephant at Sephora because of my tween," Fetterman said, referring to a skincare brand thats gone viral on the app, prompting teens and tweens to flood Sephora locations. Thats annoying but I think theres a security issue as well too. And if they have nothing to hide, then TikTok should be the first ones to say, Lets remove any kinds of possible connection there. And I support that." But other senators expressed skepticism about the proposal to ban TikTok if its Chinese owner, ByteDance Ltd., doesnt sell it. The question is what are the unintended consequences of the approach for future companies?" asked Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina. He said European countries could seize on the precedent to target US firms. Jake Sullivan, President Joe Bidens national security advisor, told reporters Tuesday that the issue isnt about banning TikTok. Do we want TikTok as a platform to be owned by an American company or owned by China?" he said. Do we want the data from TikTok childrens data, adults data to be staying here in America or going to China?" He said Biden is clear where he stands" on the companys ownership but in terms of how that gets implemented precisely, thats something that we have continued to stay in touch with the Congress on." Officials from the FBI, the Justice Department and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence briefed House members on TikTok behind closed doors on Tuesday afternoon. TikToks Chinese ownership might be saved by a coalition of progressive Democrats and libertarian Republicans. Progressive Democrats coming out of the briefing said they werent persuaded that the threat warranted limits on freedom of speech. They say it is not a ban but it is," said Democrat Maxwell Frost of Florida, the first Gen Z member of Congress. Although Trump sought to ban TikTok when he was president, he said on CNBC this week that Meta Inc.s Facebook, not TikTok, was the real threat. Trump was banned from Facebook for two years following his praise for people engaged in violence at the Capitol on January 6," Facebook owner Meta said at the time. He also suggested he was wary of alienating the young Americans who use the app. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it," Trump said. The thing I dont like is that without TikTok, you can make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with a lot of the media." ByteDance Lobbying ByteDance spent a record $8.7 million on federal lobbying last year, congressional lobbying disclosures show. The company has put together a big team of in-house lobbyists and keeps on retainer a roster of lobbying firms with numerous former members of Congress. Kellyanne Conway, a former top Trump aide, confirmed she is advising the Club for Growth, which is against the divestiture requirement, on public opinion survey results and has spoken to members of Congress about the findings, although she said she isnt doing so this week. Dance videos and makeup tutorials have been stock content on the app, which has also seen a boom in discussions of news and politics. According to the Pew Research Center, about 43% of TikTok users say they regularly get their news there, twice the rate from three years ago, as do about one-third of all US adults younger than 30. Earlier in the day, FBI Director Christopher Wray reaffirmed his distrust of TikToks Chinese ownership in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee. Americans need to ask themselves whether they want to give the Chinese government the ability to control access to their data," which could be used to compromise their devices, Wray said. A Senate Republican aide, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said members in that chamber had concerns about the House bill, including whether it could grant the president too much leeway in how it would be implemented, the fact that it singles out a particular company and whether it would address future threats from similarly positioned companies. Even so, a strong majority of support in the House could mean the bill moves quickly in the Senate. Among potential holdouts: Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who said he had concerns about how the bill would square with freedom of speech and the First Amendment. Ill block anything thats contrary to the Constitution," Paul said. Senator Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican who had endorsed Trump for president in 2024, said he would support the House bill despite the former presidents opposition. Ive come to the conclusion that TikTok is absolutely a national security threat to our country," Marshall said in an interview. President Trump and I wont always agree on everything but we share the same goals." Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. Vedanta Ltd on Wednesday said it will appeal against Sebi's order to pay 77.6 crore penalty to Scottish explorer Cairn UK Holdings Ltd for delay in paying dividends to its erstwhile shareholder, news agency PTI reported. Vedanta said the Scottish firm had given up its right to claim interest when it settled a retrospective tax demand with the government. "Vedanta Ltd will appeal the Sebi order before the appropriate forum," the mining conglomerate said in a statement. Also Read | Piyush Goyal set to make poll debut as BJP releases 2nd candidate list Earlier on Tuesday, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had ordered Vedanta to pay 77.62 crore to Scottish explorer Cairn. The market regulator also barred the mining firm's entire board, including Billionaire Anil Agarwal's brother Navin and daughter Priya, from accessing the capital market for the same. The market regulator, in its order, said Vedanta violated the law by withholding dividends that should have been paid to the UK firm between January 2014 and June 2017. Also Read | Byju Raveendran gets longer lifeline as Karnataka HC extends interim relief However, Vedanta said there was "absolutely no intent" on its part to withhold the dividend payment from CUHL. "Vedanta Ltd has an exemplary record in payment of dividends. Vedanta Ltd has paid out dividends of over 84,000 crore to shareholders in the last 10 years. It has never delayed, or been penalised for, any dividend payment," the company said. The mining conglomerate said "The dividend payment by Vedanta Ltd to Cairn UK Holdings Ltd (parent firm of Cairn Energy) was under a tax dispute between Cairn UK and the Government of India. Also Read | Lok Sabha 2024: Yaduveer Krishnadatta Wadiyar to contest on BJP ticket "The said dividend amount was deposited in an 'unpaid dividend account' as per law and was to be released by Vedanta Ltd as per the orders of the Income Tax Department and which was subsequently released post orders of the department and no benefit, whatsoever was derived by Vedanta Ltd," the firm said in the statement. It went to state that when Cairn UK reached a settlement with the government in its tax dispute, "all dues were cleared, including the said dividend amount". "Also, as per the settlement with the Government of India on the tax dispute, Cairn UK undertook to surrender its rights to claim interest on such tax refund (arising on account of this dividend)," it said. The Indian mining conglomerate had in 2011 acquired Cairn Energy's majority stake in its Indian arm, Cairn India Ltd. Cairn Energy continued to hold a minority stake in Cairn India, which was subsequently merged into its parent and Mumbai-listed Vedanta Ltd. It is important to note that in 2014, the Income Tax department relinquished it powers to levy taxes retrospectively, to seek 10,247 crore in capital gains tax from the Scottish explorer over a 2006 reorganisation and listing of Cairn India. The tax department attached Cairn Energy's residual holding while Vedanta stopped paying dividends, citing the dispute. The UK firm approached Sebi over stopping the dividend payment even as it contested the tax demand. The tax department's attachment expired in March 2016. Cairn Energy in its 2017 complaint to Sebi said despite reminders and release of the attachment, the dividends were not paid until 2017 and the company was liable to pay interest on delayed dividends. VEDANTA More Information Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! India and the Dominican Republic have signed a protocol for setting up a Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) between both the nations. The joint committee will provide a platform for information exchange between various authorities and their counterparts, and a meeting of the committee is expected soon. Both the nations signed a set of rules after a decision in this regard was taken on 24 January in a meeting of the Union cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a government statement said. "This would help in facilitating trade of goods and services and consequentially help in better employment opportunities for professionals in both the countries," the statement said. At present, there is no bilateral institutional mechanism between the two nations on trade and commerce, it added. The protocol was signed at the ministry of foreign affairs (MIREX) of Dominican Republic at Santo Domingo on Tuesday. India primarily imports gold from the Dominican Republic and exports pharmaceuticals, marine products, motor vehicles, and two and three-wheelers. "The establishment of JETCO will strengthen the economic tie between India and the Dominican Republic and shall play a pivotal role and provide a platform for discussions, exchange of information, knowledge and ideas, which would, in turn, facilitate trade and industry," the statement said. The protocol can be an effective gateway to the larger Latin American and Caribbean markets. It will also facilitate mitigating challenges in the export of Indian products through mutual dialogue and pave the way for boosting exports of pharmaceuticals, automobiles and engineering goods manufactured in India. The bilateral trade between the countries has dipped to $690 million in 2022-23 from $959 million in 2021-22. The trade balance is in the favour of the Dominican Republic. India exported goods to the tune of $278.35 million in the first 10 months of this fiscal. India exports engineering goods, drugs, pharmaceuticals, ceramic products, glassware, marine products, cotton yarn, handloom products, organic and inorganic chemicals, tobacco, electronic goods, fruits and vegetables, etc. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The Tamil Nadu Common Entrance Test (TANCET) answer key 2024 is going to be out today, March 13. Once the answer key is released, candidates who appeared for the TANCET exam can access it on the official website at tancet.annauniv.edu. As per a notification on the official website of Chennai's Anna University, the TANCET 2024 answer key will be released on March 13. The TANCET 2024 final answer key will enable students to assess their performance and calculate their scores in the entrance exam. These scores will determine the likelihood of university admission to the desired program. The TANCET 2024 exam was conducted in offline mode on Saturday, March 9, from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm. The exam was of two-hour duration that is spanning 120 minutes and the final results are expected to be declared by April 14. Follow the below-mentioned steps to check the TANCET 2024 answer key: Step 1: Visit TANCETs official website at tancet.annauniv.edu. Step 2: At the homepage, click on the link, TANCET 2024 answer key." Step 3: The student login window will open. Step 4: Enter the necessary information to log in. Step 5: The TANCET 2024 answer key will be displayed. Step 6: Download the TANCET 2024 answer key and save the copy for future reference. Scorecards will be issued once the results are announced and thereafter students will be able to submit applications for admission to universities and other institutions. The minimum qualifying score to the relevant colleges and institutions will be disclosed on the official website under the result notifications section, once the results are announced. Candidates can determine their expected scores with the help of the marking scheme and the answer key. There were 100 questions in the exam, where each correct answer carried one mark. The marking scheme had negative marks for every incorrect response. One-third of marks will be deducted for every wrong answer as per the marking scheme. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Union Commerce minister and BJP leader Piyush Goyal is set to make his Lok Sabha Poll debut for the upcoming general assembly elections. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its second list of candidates with 72 names. Piyush Goyal has been fielded from Mumbai North. Also Read: Catch Live updates on BJP Lok Sabha Poll List From leading delicate trade negotiations and being a troubleshooter for the government, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is all set to take the plunge in the rough and tumble of electoral politics as the BJP's candidate from Mumbai North in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Also Read: BJP releases second list for Lok Sabha polls 2024: Manohar Lal Khattar, Anurag Thakur, Piyush Goyal among candidates After the list was published, Piyush Goyal took to microblogging site X and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP National President JP Nadda, and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the nomination. Also Read: Former CMs Manohar Lal Khattar, Basavaraj Bommai and TS Rawat feature in 2nd list Taking inspiration from the ideals of Prabhu Shri Ram and the legacy of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, I vow to dedicate myself to the honour and development of Maharashtra. Prime Minister Modi ji has always prioritised national welfare driven by 'Jan Sewa'. The nation has witnessed unprecedented development in the past decade, and we are now rapidly progressing towards building a Viksit Bharat in the Amrit Kaal.", Piyush Goyal wrote on X. Also Read: Yaduveer Krishnadatta Wadiyar of Mysore royal family to contest on BJP ticket With the trust and blessings of the people of Mumbai and the unwavering support of the party workers, I am confident that we will achieve Prime Minister Modi jis goal of Abki Baar 400 Paar & script a historic victory" Goyal added. Also Read: Anurag Thakur gets BJP ticket from Hamirpur seat Other portfolios held by Piyush Goyal include Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution, and Textiles. Piyush Goyal is also the Leader of House in Rajya Sabha. A three-term Rajya Sabha member, Goyal (59) has been in the thick of politics since his teenage years when he campaigned for his mother, late Chandrakanta Goyal, for the Maharashtra Assembly election. Also Read: Nitin Gadkari to contest Lok Sabha polls from Nagpur Ved Prakash Goyal, Piyush Goyal's father, was an old-time RSS worker who worked closely with Sangh stalwarts Balasaheb Deoras, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and L K Advani. The Goyal home at Sion in central Mumbai was a beehive of political activity, with veteran leaders opting for it as a residence of choice when visiting the metropolis. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Uranium spot prices have doubled over the past year to a 16-year high as owners of defunct mines in the US and several other countries are scrambling to restart operations amid renewed interest in nuclear power projects. The spot price breached $100 a pound in mid-January and while it is now off its peak of more than $106 a pound, it is holding above $90. The inability of mines to keep up with rising demand since the pandemic is one of the factors driving uranium prices higher. Many mines were closed or scaled down after the 11 March 2011 disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi project. That accident, caused by a powerful earthquake and tsunami, caused Japan and many other countries to shut down nuclear power plants amid safety concerns. But theres been a rethink in many countries since then, as demand for energy and concerns about carbon emissions are on the rise. Mint explains why theres renewed interest in nuclear power and what it means for uranium prices. Whats led to the rise in demand for uranium? A full-blown power crisis in Europe after Russias invasion of Ukraine, the higher cost of fossil fuels, and the urgent need to reduce carbon emissions have all helped nuclear energy stage a comeback. Europe was already facing a power crisis since 2021, when the post-pandemic recovery began and demand for power shot up. That crisis was aggravated by hostilities between Russia and the Western world after the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russia is a major exporter of energy in the form of coal, gas and crude oil. Hurt by the disruption in supplies after sanctions were imposed on Russia, European countries were forced to reconsider the closure of some of their nuclear power plants. France, which had decided to reduce its dependence on nuclear power following the Fukushima accident, announced plans to build new reactors, as did the UK. Japan also announced plans to restart many of its nuclear plants that had been idling since the Fukushima disaster. Many plants have been restarted since June 2021. Efforts to decarbonise by shifting away from fossil fuels has also helped increase the demand for nuclear power and therefore uranium. Nuclear power is considered to be almost as clean as wind power and produces just about one-third of the emissions per unit of electricity compared to solar. How did climate commitments create demand for nuclear power? To keep the average rise in temperature to 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the world needs to curb its use of fossil fuels. Many nations have pledged to cut emissions by 2050, and India aims to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2070. There is also recognition that renewable energy alone may not be enough to significantly reduce demand for fossil fuels. Several developed and developing countries committed to tripling nuclear capacity by 2050 in a declaration on 2 December 2023 during the COP28 talks in Dubai. These included the US, UK, Canada, Finland, France, Japan, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, and several small nations in eastern Europe. Does the world have enough uranium to triple nuclear capacity by 2050? The International Atomic Energy Agency estimates that the world requires about 60,000 tonnes of uranium to fuel the more than 400 nuclear power reactors in operation. With countries increasingly looking to nuclear power to address climate change, energy security and sustainable development, demand could rise to as much as 100,000 tonnes by 2040. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates there are more than six million tonnes of uranium reserves underground, roughly equivalent to 100 years of current demand. Australia has the largest reserves, estimated at two million tonnes, followed by Kazakhstan, Canada, Russia and Namibia. However, Kazakhstan is the worlds largest miner of uranium, followed by Canada, Namibia and Australia. If there are sufficient reserves of uranium, why is supply a concern? Increasing mining capacity is a challenge. Earlier this year, Kazakhstan government-controlled Kazatomprom, the worlds largest uranium miner, warned of a supply shortfall in 2024 and 2025 due to its inability to source adequate quantities of sulphuric acid, used in uranium mining, thanks to supply-chain disruptions and rising demand from the fertiliser industry. However, the restarting of defunct and closed mines will improve supply, and if uranium prices remain around $100 a pound, many more mines could be built. Another challenge is developing the capacity to process uranium into a usable form. Mined uranium needs to be enriched and processed into pellets and rods before it can be used in nuclear power plants. Currently, nearly 45% of this enrichment happens in Russia more than in the US, the UK, France, the Netherlands and Germany combined. New Delhi/Mumbai: Europes proposed carbon tax has split the Indian steel industry down the middle, with some companies in favour and others against, even as lobbying to waive or delay the levy continues. The tax, under the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), would increase costs for Indian steelmakers exporting to Europe, a key destination that is critical for their businesses. The tax has been supported by companies with major operations in Europe, such as Tata Steel. On the other hand, steelmakers with large-scale operations in India, such as JSW Steel, the countrys biggest, feel the levy is a trade barrier. Tata Steel, Asias oldest steelmaker, has sizeable operations in the UK and the Netherlands, and considers the levy vital for keeping steel manufacturing viable in Europe. In Europe, we are already subject to a carbon tax of 80 per tonne," T.V. Narendran, the companys managing director, told Mint recently while discussing the companys December quarter earnings. So, its only logical to say that anybody else who wants to sell steel in Europe should pay the same carbon tax. Otherwise, why would anyone want to make steel in Europe?" Narendran said that steelmakers across Europe are investing heavily in cleaner manufacturing routes that will boost their costs. If youre going to invest a lot of money in transitioning to a new process route like we are in Europe, you will naturally not allow cheaper steel imports," he said. ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AM/NS) India, which has one of its parent companies based in Europe, is also likely to favour the tax, people aware of the thinking within the company said. However, the company itself declined to comment. Also, Tata Steels exports to Europe from India are negligible, unlike other major Indian steelmakers. The latter are opposed to the tax and say it is an unfair imposition that will hurt their competitiveness. We feel that any international measure which is taken should consider the economic and social objectives of countries, societies, and communities at large," Jayant Acharya, joint managing director of JSW Steel said during a recent post-earnings call with Mint. It should not be intended to be a trade barrier, but we are afraid that in the short term, it (CBAM) can effectively become one, and we will have to monitor how much of an effect it has on decarbonization." Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) and Steel Authority of India (SAIL), the two other major steelmakers in India, are believed to be firmly in the opposing camp. The companies did not respond to Mints queries. Indian Steel Association (ISA), an industry body representing domestic steelmakers and leading several discussions with the government on behalf of the industry, declined to comment on the subject. Europes CBAM seeks to tax carbon emissions generated during the production of imported steel from 2026. This is perceived as a trade handicap for Indian steelmakers looking to export steel to the region. And so, the industry is pushing the government for a complete waiver, or at least delay the starting date of the carbon tax to help companies better prepare for it. While reporting on carbon emissions under CBAM has already started since October, levies will start from 2026. Under CBAM, steel exporters must cut their emissions by 2.5% in the first year, and cut further every year after that, and become net-zero emitters by 2034. Different targets have been set for every year. The current plan is to reduce emissions by 48.5% by 2030. The issue is important since Europe is one of the important export markets for Indian steelmakers. Indian steel accounted for 30-40% of European steel imports in FY23, totalling 3.5-5 million tonnes, up from 15-20% in FY21, when it stood at 2-3 million tonnes, according to data by ICRA Ltd. The Indian government has broached the subject with their European counterparts during their ongoing free-trade agreements (FTA). However, Mint had reported earlier that CBAM is likely going to take a backseat in these discussions in a bid to fast-track the agreements. Incidentally, CBAM was not part of the FTA that India signed with the four-nation European Free Trade Association (EFTA) block on Sunday. According to analysts, emissions by the top five Indian steel manufacturers stand at 2.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide per million tonnes of crude steel produced in blast furnaces, which is 9-10% higher than the global average. It is also significantly higher than the 1.65 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted per million tonnes of crude steel produced in electric arc furnaces. Following Indias target to become a net-zero emitter of carbon by 2070, domestic steelmakers have sharpened their focus on reducing their carbon footprint to 1.8-1.95 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per million tonnes of steel production over the next decade. As Indians increasingly opt for international holidays, especially after covid, the countrys airlines are following their flight trajectories. This has led to a sharp rise in the share of domestic airlines carrying passengers to global destinations from India, with growth rates to match albeit on a lower base. Experts say this trend is here to stay even as airlines focus on adding capacity to international routes to cater to rising demand. As per data from DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation), foreign carriers accounted for 56% share of the 54.4 million international passenger traffic to and from India in FY23, and Indian carriers held 44% share. Comparatively, in FY20 (pre-pandemic), their respective shares were 62.4% and 37.6%. In the current fiscal (April-January), domestic carriers have so far garnered 44.3% share of international traffic from India. Among individual airlines, Tata Group-backed Air India and Air India Express hold a cumulative share of 19.9%, the highest in international air traffic to from India. This is followed by IndiGo at 15.7% share and Vistara with 2.4%. Emirates is the biggest foreign airline flying passengers to and from India with a share of around 10%. "We continue to see immense potential for further growth as Indian carriers take centre stage for international travel," an IndiGo spokesperson said. We are aiming to double in size by the end of 2030, thus, transforming IndiGo from being a domestic-focused carrier." IndiGo, Indias largest carrier, has increased its international seat capacity by 47% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the October-December quarter. The airline, which currently serves 87 domestic and 33 international destinations, has seen 27% growth y-o-y in scheduled international flight passengers this January, and 38% compared to January 2020. Domestic growth has been 16% and 29% over the same period. Online travel portals say there has been a conscious attempt by Indian airlines to expand their international footprint. Passengers are also preferring Indian carriers for some overseas routes. We anticipate Indian airlines to secure a majority share, exceeding 50%, on international routes within the next few years," Nishant Pitti, chief executive officer and co-founder, EaseMyTrip said, which currently sees Indian carriers bagging nearly 30% of its platforms international bookings. "Indian airlines are gaining popularity among travellers primarily due to their competitive airfares vis-a-vis those offered by international carriers," a spokesperson of online travel portal Yatra.com said, adding that there has also been a significant surge in domestic flights operated by domestic airlines. Meanwhile, Tata Group-backed Air India has seen a 23% y-o-y increase in international air passenger traffic this January and 18% compared to January 2020. For the entire Air India umbrella airlines including Air India Express and AirAsia India, the cumulative international growth rate has been higher at 21% and 13% since January 2023 and January 2020, respectively, compared to domestic growth rate of 15% and 10%. Indian carriers have started to give priority to international destinations," said Jagannarayan Padmanabhan, senior director & global head, consulting, CRISIL Market Intelligence and Analytics. The Air India group has closed operations in some loss-making domestic routes and has made international flights a priority. On the other hand, IndiGo has started to operate direct flights to many African, European and Southeast Asian countries." Padmanabhan added that this trend is expected to continue with international tourism gaining traction among Indians. In absolute terms, domestic will continue to dominate but we can see a distinct growth coming in from international markets," he said. For context, of Indias total air passenger traffic of 327.3 million in FY23, 83% flew domestic and the rest, international. While the growth on international segment has been largely led by IndiGo and Air India, the highest growth rate has been recorded for full-service carrier Vistara, largely on account of a low-base effect. The airline, which began international flights in 2019, grew 65% and 571% in January 2024, compared to the same month in 2023 and 2020. The corresponding domestic growth rate in the same periods has been 18% and 57%, respectively. Expanding our global footprint has always been intrinsic to our growth strategy. We strategically built Mumbai as a vital hub for our global connectivity, which has witnessed an increase of nearly 70% in international departures in the last 12 months," a Vistara spokesperson said. With more aircraft joining our fleet this month, we will continue to evaluate new opportunities to add more viable routes/ destinations to our network." Currently, the airline has deployed 35% of its capacity to connect 18 international destinations. International segments are more lucrative on account of stable cash flows, higher revenue per passenger compared to domestic routes, and see a push as more countries offer benefits like visa on arrival, e-visa among others for Indian tourists, according to ratings agency ICRA. The growth in international passenger traffic will attract domestic airline players to capture the growing market in that segment. The international passenger traffic for Indian carriers surpassed the pre-covid levels in FY2023, although it trailed the peak levels of 25.9 million witnessed in FY2019. It is expected to cross this level in the current fiscal, with an estimated 25-27 million passengers, representing a y-o-y growth of 7-12%. The same is expected to further grow by 7-12% to 27-29 million in FY2025," Suprio Banerjee, vice president & sector head - corporate ratings, ICRA Limited said. Bitcoin exchange-traded funds have drawn billions of dollars from investors since they launched in January, but their target marketfinancial advisers who oversee trillions in client assetshas remained largely out of reach. Fans of the worlds largest cryptocurrency had hoped that the bitcoin funds would open the floodgates to a wave of new buyers, specifically U.S. financial advisers who collectively oversee $30 trillion in client assets. Yet much of the buying activity so far appears to have been driven by individual investors. And skeptics say it is unclear whether those buyers are new to crypto or simply shifting their bitcoin holdings from more expensive products and crypto exchanges to low-cost and easy-to-use ETFs. Investors have plowed more than $20 billion into nine new spot" bitcoin ETFs since they started trading Jan. 11, while yanking over $10 billion from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which converted into an ETF the same day. The Grayscale fund carries a hefty 1.5% fee, the highest among the 10 funds, versus 0.25% after a first-year fee waiver at BlackRocks popular ETF. Registered investment advisers, who are influential in directing capital to ETFs, have limited access to the bitcoin funds, for now. The wealth-management platforms at Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, UBS and Wells Fargo offer the funds only on an unsolicited basisadvisers cant actively pitch them to clients but can offer them to those who ask. Morgan Stanley, for one, has been doing due diligence on the funds and is evaluating whether to add them to its brokerage platform, according to people familiar with the matter. Wealth platforms and financial advisers face reputational and legal risks in approving and allocating their clients assets to spot bitcoin ETFs, some analysts say. Bitcoins short history has been dotted with euphoric bull runs and devastating crashes. After its last peak in November 2021, bitcoin dropped more than 70% over the next year. If bitcoin was to crater and go towards zero, there can be some damage to their reputation because some clients might view allowing products on a platform as some sort of stamp of approval," said Matt Apkarian, associate director of product development at research firm Cerulli Associates. It definitely opens up advisers to more potential for lawsuits." Investment advisers who charge fixed fees work under a strict standard of customer loyalty, known as a fiduciary duty, that requires them to elevate the interest of their clients above their own. And brokers who charge commissions must reduce conflicts of interest when making investment recommendations to customers, under the Securities and Exchange Commissions Regulation Best Interest. Despite approving spot bitcoin ETFs, SEC Chair Gary Gensler has said investors should remain cautious about bitcoin and crypto-related products. Meanwhile, the Labor Department has expressed concerns about putting cryptocurrencies in retirement accounts. Its not necessarily just the rules, but its also the regulators stance that often impacts how firms behave," said Brian Hamburger, president and chief executive of MarketCounsel Consulting. I think thats also why firms are quite hesitant to expand the role that crypto has when it comes to these retirement accounts." The rules are less stringent at self-directed brokerage platforms where the banks dont face significant liability by simply making the products available for purchase. Many of the bitcoin funds are available on Morgan Stanleys E*Trade, Wells Fargos WellsTrade and Bank of Americas Merrill Edge, as well as Charles Schwab and Robinhood. Vanguard, however, has said it has no plans to offer a bitcoin ETF and wont offer crypto-related products on its brokerage platform. The asset-management giant called bitcoin more of a speculation than an investment" in a recent blog post. Blake Spencer, a wealth manager at the Pinnacle Financial Group, said his firm has seen a significant pickup in client inquiries about investing in bitcoin with the digital currencys recent surge in price. Bitcoin has soared to a fresh record, trading above $73,000 early Wednesday. It is up over 70% in 2024. Most clients I talk with dont even know the ETFs are available," Spencer said. They are trying to figure out whether they should invest in bitcoin and how to get exposure to it." His firm, which is affiliated with LPL Financial, offers the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which was on the LPL platform before it converted into an ETF, Spencer said. He said he hopes to access cheaper alternatives for clients. The funds are already available at some smaller registered investment advisers. Carson Group, with $34 billion in assets and about 500 advisers, has approved the spot bitcoin ETFs offered by BlackRock, Fidelity Investments, Franklin Templeton and Bitwise. Grant Engelbart, an investment strategist at Carson Group, said his team evaluated the funds fees, spread, trading volume, asset growth, custodians, shareholder base, benchmarks and trading partners before picking the four funds for approval. We want to make sure that our advisers have all the asset classes at their fingertips, that they need to be able to allocate client accounts appropriately and appeal to all generations of clients," Engelbart said. Write to Vicky Ge Huang at vicky.huang@wsj.com Rungta Greentech Limited (RGL), a prominent producer of recycled and virgin plastic items, said that it has filed Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the NSE Emerge. The proposed offering includes a fresh issuance of 38 lakh Equity Shares, each having a face value of 10. Managing the book running process is Beeline Capital Advisors Private Limited, while Link Intime India Private Limited has been appointed as the Registrar to the issue. As per the DRHP, RGL aims to allocate a significant portion of the funds raised through its Initial Public Offering (IPO) to its wholly owned subsidiary, Rungta Eco Extrusions Private Limited. This investment will facilitate the establishment of a new manufacturing facility. Additionally, the company intends to utilize the remaining funds for general corporate purposes and to issue proceeds. Also read: What lies ahead for SME IPOs after SEBI remarks on price manipulation? Experts weigh in RGL's strategic plans involve expanding its current business line by introducing new products into its range. This expansion will take place at the proposed new manufacturing plant in Howrah, West Bengal, operated by its wholly-owned subsidiary, Rungta Eco Extrusions Private Limited. The envisioned facility will act as a forward integration to the existing product line, incorporating Food-Grade Recycled PET Resin and Recycled HDPE/PP granules into the company's portfolio. Based in Kolkata, Rungta Greentech specializes in the production of recycled and virgin plastic items, including Recycled PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) Flakes (RPF), Polyester Dope-Dyed Monofilament Yarn (PMY), Nylon Monofilament Yarn (NMY), as well as Blow- and Injection-Molded Jars and Caps (BM & IM). The company's diverse product range serves a wide array of industries, notably packaging, textiles, aquaculture, agriculture, and the edible oil sector. Operating from two manufacturing facilities located in Howrah, West Bengal, Rungta Greentech is known for its production of Recycled PET flakes, Polyester Dope-Dyed Monofilament Yarn, Nylon Monofilament Yarn, and Injection-Molded Jars and Caps. Its distribution network spans over 20 states, including Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Gujarat, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh. Moreover, the company exports its products to international markets such as Oman, Austria, Israel, and the United States of America. Also read: Krystal Integrated Services IPO to open tomorrow: GMP, issue details, 10 key things to know before investing Founded by the promoter duo Deepak Rungta and Praveen Rungta on August 3, 2005, the company saw its Blow & Injection Molding unit commence operations in 2007. Benefitting from over 45 years of combined expertise, the promoters meticulously developed an extensive network of retailers, distributors, and processors over the years. With a strong foundation laid, RGL is strategically positioned to leverage current and future growth prospects, boasting a skilled team comprising management professionals specializing in manufacturing, supply chain, and logistics. In the first half of the current financial year, ending September 30, 2023, the company reported revenue of Rs. 23.76 crore and a profit (PAT) of Rs. 2.45 crore. In the preceding fiscal year 2022-23, it achieved a revenue of Rs. 49.38 crore and a profit (PAT) of Rs. 1.82 crore. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Tata Sons, the holding company of Tata group, has been in the spotlight lately due to speculation about its listing. This news has triggered euphoria in select Tata group stocks such as Tata Chemicals Ltd and Tata Motors Ltd, which were seen as likely beneficiaries. But investors would do well not to get carried away because chances are that this listing may not happen. The Street seems to be ignoring the companys preference to stay as a private company as it had voluntarily converted from a public to a private entity in 2017. As per the rules, a listed company should have a minimum non-promoter shareholding of 25%. If promoters don't sell their stake through an offer for sale, there has to be a fresh equity issue. This would bring down the Tata group's stake to less than 75%. This means that the Tata group would not be able to pass special resolutions that require a 75% majority. Moreover, Tata Sons may not like to give up the privileges of being a private limited company as it helps in avoiding a lot of disclosures. For example, it has unlisted investments in loss-making Air India, the newly set up digital entity Tata Neu, and proposed semiconductor ventures. Currently, the financial performance of these loss-making companies and new ventures are not required to be disclosed to the stock exchanges and financial institutions at large. Further, if the company chooses not to get listed, there are many options to circumvent the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) guidelines for mandatory listing. Recall that Tata Sons has been classified as a core investment company in the upper layer of the RBIs list of non-banking financial companies (NBFC-UL). Such companies must list within three years of being identified as NBFC-UL. For Tata Sons, the deadline is September 2025. The listing is mandatory only if the company has more than 100 crore in assets and also has public funds. Public funds refer to non-promoter funds in the form of debt or equity. Tata Sons annual report for FY23 shows that the company holds debt of about 20,000 crore. This debt can be paid off easily by selling less than 2% of its 72.4% stake in Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, which has a market capitalization of about 15 trillion. The other alternative is to transfer the debt and holding in Tata Capital, which is the groups other NBFC, to a separate entity. With no public funds in the balance sheet, the mandatory listing can be bypassed. Shares of Tata Chemicals Ltd, which holds about 3% stake in Tata Sons, have been more sensitive to the news of listing, considering its relatively small market capitalization of less than 30,000 crore. The stock had rallied more than 35% during the previous week following media reports about the listing and that it could be a potential biggest beneficiary. However, it has pared gains as alternatives to listing emerged. The stock has declined more than 14% so far this week. On the other hand, shares of Tata Motors Ltd, with a market capitalization of about 379,000 crore, were up over 5% last week. The shares have dropped 4% so far this week. Tata Motors holds about 3% stake in Tata Sons. Other major listed shareholders in Tata Sons include Tata Steel Ltd (3%), Tata Power Co. Ltd (1.7%) and The Indian Hotels Co. Ltd (1.1%). Till further clarity emerges on this matter, uncertainty is likely to linger for Tata group stocks. Indian equities plunged on Wednesday in the backdrop of regulatory alerts and valuation concerns, with smaller stocks bruised the most. The Nifty 50 fell 1.5% to 21,997.70 points, while the S&P BSE Sensex fell 1.2% to 72,761.89 points, their worst decline since 23 January. The broader market saw worse: The Nifty Small Cap 250 and the Nifty Mid-Cap 150 plunged 5.2% and 4.2% respectively, their steepest one-day plunge in over two years. Comments by the stock market regulator on a potential bubble in the stock market, and a crackdown on several errant companies by the central bank have added to concerns, at a time small and mid-cap stocks have far outpaced the market's gains. The regulator's comments around valuations, impending disclosures of the stress tests at small and midcap funds, and lower liquidity in capital markets sparked the decline, said Nirav Karkera, head of research, Fisdom. It seems that the initial bout of decline led to a series of stop-loss triggers that further amplified the selling spree. One can expect that the same led to margin calls being triggered and cases where liquidation of holding was opted versus putting up incremental margin money, stretching the decline further," Karkera said. Earlier this week, Securities and Exchange Board of India chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch had pointed to the exuberance in some sectors. It may not be appropriate to allow bubbles to keep building because when they burst, they impact investors adversely," Buch said. The regulator had observed patterns of price manipulation" in new listings in small and medium enterprises, she added. In the past one year, the Nifty Smallcap 250 has surged 51% and the Nifty Midcap 150 49%, while the Nifty 50 and Sensex gained 28% and 25% respectively. With all the noise around, a sharp sell-off was certainly likely," said Andrew Holland, chief executive officer, Avendus Capital Alternate Strategies. He emphasized that the recent market upswing had set the stage for imminent corrections. However, long-term investors can rest assured as the narrative of India's long-term prospects remains intact, he added. These corrections are expected to wipe out the froth in the market and present some opportunities for fresh bets. There seems to be a sense of distress and despondency among retail investors today. The dichotomy underlines the risk arising from the inclination to chase momentum and speculative stocks by many investors rather than invest sensibly in a well-balanced portfolio," said Gaurav Dua, senior vice-president and head, capital market strategy at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas. Barring Nifty FMCG, all sectoral indices on the NSE ended in the red. Shares of public sector undertakings (PSU) that had grabbed investors attention lately witnessed a sharp fall. The S&P BSE PSU index closed 6% down at at 17,494.12 points, the lowest since April 2021. The fall was driven by a correction in NTPC Ltd, Power Grid Corp. of India Ltd, Coal India Ltd, and Oil & Natural Gas Corp. Ltd, that were down 5-7%. Adani group stocks plunged as well, with combined market capitalization of its 10 listed companies down a staggering 1.13 trillion (7.15%) to 14.71 trillion. Low-float stocks are creating some form of froth in the market," Nilesh Shah, managing director at Kotak Asset Management Ltd, said at an industry event in Mumbai. The regulator should do more to put guard rails around mid-and small-cap plans," he said. Meanwhile, shares of ITC closed over 4% higher, after a wholly-owned subsidiary of British American Tobacco Plc sold 3.5% stake in the cigarettes-to-hotels conglomerate. The sale involved 436.85 million shares changing hands at 400.25, amounting to 17,484.98 crore on the BSE through bulk deals. The Government of Singapore bought 91.54 million shares for Rs400.25 each, totaling 3,664.12 crore, while ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund acquired 5.9 million shares for 400.25 each, valued at 237.19 crore. Mint had reported on March 11 that ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund may pick a stake in ITC.ks In a highly volatile and unpredictable equity market, delivering consistent returns to shareholders over an extended period is no small feat. However, there are a handful of stocks that have shown remarkable resilience and stability, navigating through market uncertainties, economic downturns, and industry disruptions with ease. Xpro India, a diversified multi-locational company, is one such stock that has managed to maintain a consistent upward trajectory, delivering steady returns to its investors. Also Read: Multibagger stock: Kalyan Jewellers achieves over 280% return in 10 months In the last three years alone, the company's shares have experienced a remarkable surge, climbing from 48.70 to the current market price of 1,077 apiece. This impressive growth has translated into substantial wealth creation for shareholders, with their investments witnessing an impressive gain of 2111%. Even more strikingly, the stock has surged by a whopping 10000% over the past four years, jumping in value from 10.5 to the current value. If an investor invested one lakh in the Xpro India stock four years ago and remained invested until the present day, the wealth would have grown to a staggering 1.02 crore. On February 27, it reached an all-time high of 1,297 apiece, marking yet another milestone in its impressive journey of value appreciation. Also Read: 15 multibagger small-cap stocks tumbled between 15% and 30% from 52-week highs The company operates in the polymer processing industry, especially in India. It works in three divisions: Biax, Coex, and Thermoset. Biax Division produces a variety of coextruded biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) films using sophisticated, automated production lines that are used for a variety of applications, including food packaging and electronics. Ashish Kacholia, often called the 'Big Whale' of the Indian stock market, holds a 3.67% stake in the company as of February 2024, Trendlyne data showed. Recent developments at Xpro India have highlighted the company's strides in bolstering its financial footing and setting the stage for future growth. After successfully converting warrants to equity shares last year, the company took further steps to bolster its capital base. These included offering warrants convertible into equity and a Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP), both of which received strong support from shareholders. "The capital infusion is timely and significant. We have negligible debt levels or payout obligations on the horizon, so we can allocate our healthy net cash additions and the greatly enhanced capital resources essentially towards organic growth," the company said in its exchange filing dated March 05. Also Read: IREDA stock tumbles 32% from all-time high; is there more pain ahead? During the quarter ending in December 2023 (Q3FY24), the company showcased a healthy improvement in its performance. Revenues from operations experienced a YoY growth of 3.22%, reaching 96.1 crore compared to 93.1 crore in Q3 FY23. Its net profit surged to 10.07 crore in Q3FY24 as compared to 6.5 crore in Q3 FY23, which is a growth of 55%. Disclaimer: We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Living next door to Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan could be a reality for those interested. But, it comes with a hefty price tag. In Mumbai's posh Juhu area, a bungalow near Bachchan's famed residence Jalsa will soon be auctioned off. Deutsche Bank has pegged the starting price at 25 crore. With a mix of indoor and outdoor space, totalling over 3,000 square feet, the auction is set for March 27, Moneycontrol reported. This sale falls under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act (SARFAESI) of 2002. The bank previously asked borrowers and co-borrowers Seven Star Satellite Pvt Ltd and others to clear their dues of 12.89 crore. Since they couldn't pay up, the bank took over the property and decided to auction it. The bank demands 2.50 crore as the Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) from interested buyers. Risks of buying house in bank auction People often assume that real estate properties sold by banks in auctions have no legal issues. But, the notice usually says that the bank believes there are no problems with the property. However, it won't take responsibility for any hidden legal troubles or claims by others later on. Legal terms like as is where is" and whatever there is" are used while auctioning properties. These mean the property is being sold as per its present physical and legal conditions, including encumbrances, if any. Once the property is sold in an auction, any future issues are the buyer's problem. Experts say sometimes buyers find out the property has legal disputes or there's a court order against the bank's auction. Also, banks might only have the property on paper, not in reality. So, the previous owner might still live there. Before joining the auction, one must check all the details carefully. Banks give early notices about online auctions and share info about the properties. You should not just trust the bank's word. If someone else says they own your new property, the bank probably won't help you. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The Bengaluru Police have issued a traffic advisory due to the Karaga Mahotsava festival in Madivala area limits, which is being celebrated today, March 13. The festival is set to attract around 10,000 people, including political leaders. Two days ago, the local police issued guidelines with traffic restrictions, route diversions, blocked roads and alternate routes. Sri Renuka Yallamma Devi Karaga Mahostav is held once every ten years. The event will be held on Hongasandra Beguru main road in the vicinity of Madivala traffic police station. As per the advisory, traffic moving towards Beguru from Kodichikkanahalli Junction via Hongasandra Main Road will be blocked at Kodichikkanahalli Junction. The traffic will be diverted to DMart on Devarachikkanahalli main Road. The Kodichikkanahalli Junction on the Beguru main road will also be blocked at the PK Kalyana Mantapa crossroad. Traffic will be diverted to the inner roads of Beguru. In the wake of the Karaga Mahotsava festivities, commuters have been suggested to take alternative routes until 3:00 pm on Wednesday. Commuters travelling to Begur main road via Bommanahalli Junction on Hosur should take the Kudlugate route and take a right turn. Vehicles moving from Bommanahalli Junction towards Devarachikkanahalli and Begur are advised to turn right at Kodichikkanahalli Junction and proceed via DMart Junction. Commuters moving from Begur towards Kodichikkanahalli can take a left turn near PK Kalyana Mantapa and cross under Hulimavu Traffic Police Station using the internal roads of Begur. Additionally, to reach the Devarachikkanahali main road, commuters must proceed towards Bommanahalli Junction via Kodichikkanahalli Junction. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! CAA row: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, on Tuesday, March 12, alleged that the CAA is against the Constitution and said he would approach the Supreme Court. He condemned the law while stating that religion cannot be the basis of any law and that there are many Supreme Court judgments on it. In the wake of CAA rules being notified for the law, Asaduddin Owaisi slammed the BJP for bringing a law that is against the right to equality and said, You are giving permission (citizenship) to every religion, you are not giving to those whose religion is Islam," reported PTI. Owaisi suggested that CAA should not be seen alone but together with NPR (National Population Register) and NRC (National Register of Citizens). He said, This government is making rules after four years. I would like to tell the country. The present Home Minister (Amit Shah) has said in Parliament, and mentioning my name, that NPR and NRC will also come. He (Home Minister) had said this in many TV interviews. I would like to say dont see CAA (alone). You have to see this together with NPR and NRC." He claimed that this law was discriminatory and the biggest target sections of the population were Muslims, Dalits, Adivasis and the poor. He further claimed that 19 lakh names did not figure in the Supreme Court-monitored" exercise on NRC in Assam. The AIMIM president claimed that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma pointed out that about 10 to 12 lakh Hindus whose names did not figure in the list would get citizenship when CAA is implemented as their religion is included in it. Pointing to the injustice, he noted that about two lakh Muslims out of the 19 lakh would not get this benefit. The AIMIM leader said, Now, when the rules have been framed, we will file in the Supreme Court. We will make an effort to raise this issue in the court," reported PTI. Owaisi also pointed out that he had earlier filed a case in the Supreme Court for a stay order on CAA, but when the hearing took place, the government, in response, had said that rules had not been framed yet. The AIMIM leader alleged that the BJP is repeating its wrongdoing throughout the country as he added, We are not against the census exercise. Because it is done under a particular Act. NPR-NRC is done under the Citizenship Act. That is the concern. What BJP has done in Assam, it wants to do throughout the country." The AIMIM president alleged that the BJP is making this law to make 17 crore Muslims in India stateless when NPR and NRC are conducted in the future. However, he said that he is not against giving citizenship to Hindus and Sikhs from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Moreover, he noted that Hindus, Sikhs or Christians who were living in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh could be given citizenship by the government earlier as well via executive order. BJP-ruled centre on March 11 implemented the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. The CAA rules notification came four years after the Parliament passed the contentious law. The CAA aims to fast-track citizenship for persecuted non-Muslim minority migrants from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who came to India before December 31, 2014. The time of the notification aroused scepticism from various opposition leaders as it came days before the Lok Sabha 2024 elections. (With inputs from PTI) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! CAA row: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on March 13 stated that eminent leaders of India, including Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and many others, pledged to grant citizenship to persecuted religious minorities from neighbouring countries. He claimed that the ongoing outrage against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) was just to create a political issue. Arif Mohammed Khan said, "From Mahatma Gandhi, Pt Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad to Dr Manmohan Singh everyone talked about it. This promise was made in 1947," reported ANI. The Congress party is continuing its protest against the new law. The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee on Wednesday, March 13, organised a protest in front of the Raj Bhavan. The agitators protested against the Central government's decision to enforce the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. While addressing the protesters, the Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, VD Satheesan, criticised the BJP, accusing it of notifying the CAA rules to divide the people along communal lines. He stated, "When the Congress was in power at the Centre, we brought several legislations to uplift the lives of the poor. But when the BJP came to power, they enacted laws to divide the people for political purposes," he said, according to a PTI report. Several leaders of the party were present during the agitation against PM Narendra Modi-led central government, including UDF convenor and senior party leader MM Hassan, CWC member and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, and Attingal MP Adoor Prakash. Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the CAA was related to the National Register of Citizens (NRC), which was why her party was against the law. Moreover, she termed the CAA a political gimmick ahead of Lok Sabha polls. The BJP-led government government on March 11 issued a CAA rule notification. The CAA was passed by Parliament in 2019 amid huge protests across the country but the notification stating rules came four years later just before Lok Sabha polls. The act expedites the citizenship process for non-Muslim migrants who are considered persecuted religious minorities. Opposition parties have termed the act discriminatory and a violation of the Constitution of India. Religious minorities to be considered under this act include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians who migrated from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014. (With agency inputs) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The National Committee of Transmission (NCT) has recommended five large inter-state transmission system (ISTS) projects worth 16,439.87 crore for approval of the ministry of power. Two transmission systems for evacuation of power from part A and part B of Rajasthan Renewable Energy Zone PhIV (Bikaner Complex) would be developed at an estimated cost of 11,325.86 crore and is expected to be completed within a period two years from the award of the project. Further, an investment of 3,453 crore has been estimated for the transmission scheme for integration of Davanagere/Chitradurga REZ and Bellary REZ in Karnataka within a timeline of 24 months and 30 months, respectively. The other two projects among the large ISTS projects including the transmission scheme to integrate Bijapur REZ in Karnataka with the grid and evacuation of power from Kudankulam nuclear power units 3 & 4 (2x1000 MW) with a capex of 1,113 crore and 548 crore, respectively. NCT, under the ministry of power, has cleared three smaller projects worth up to 500 crore and the augmentation of capacity at Karur pooling station, Tamil Nadu, Jam Khambhaliya pooling station, Gujarat and transmission lines for integration Tumkur-II REZ in Karnataka. These projects cumulatively would require an estimated capex of 890 crore. These recommendations and approvals were given in the 18th meeting of the committee on 5 March, according to the minutes of the meeting. The meeting also discussed functioning of the national grid. The Grid Controller in its presentation on the operations of the national grid showed reliability issues such as low voltage, ICT overloading and repeated tripping of intrastate lines in Rajasthan Intra-state Network and also that high impact low frequency events such as water logging and floods impacted substations and generating station. The committee was of the view that construction standards are strictly to be adhered to during implementation of transmission system. The presentation also said that hydro power generation at Teesta in Sikkim III and IV has still not revived after it was halted post cloudburst and eventual damage to the dam in last October. "Entire 1,900 MW of hydro generation is yet to be revived," said Grid Controller presentation. In its previous meeting, the NCT had approved four new inter-state transmission systems (ISTS) valued at 736.83 crore. The government aims to reach a renewable energy capacity of 500 GW by 2030 and integrate it into the grid, aligning with its ambitious energy transition and climate targets. According to a draft plan floated by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), India requires a substantial investment of 4.75 trillion by 2027 to develop its transmission infrastructure, including lines, substations, and reactive compensation. The CEA has sought stakeholders comments and recommendations on its draft National Electricity Plan (Volume II) by 26 March. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! (Bloomberg) -- Colombia is likely to issue local peso bonds with longer maturities to avoid having too much debt due its 2033 benchmark, according to a top finance ministry official. The treasury has recently carried out a series of swaps to ease its short-term obligations. But thats led to a concentration of local peso bonds, or TES, due around 10-years from now, Public Credit Director Jose Roberto Acosta, said in an interview. Because of this, the government is considering creating a new tenor of TES, Acosta said, without elaborating on when the securities would mature. The Treasury will consider creating the new maturity once the July 2024 note has expired, he added. We have thought about it because the 2033 bond pile is starting to go up," Acosta said Tuesday, in an interview in his Bogota office. Colombia has about 46 trillion pesos ($11.8 billion) of bonds maturing over the next two years. Casa de Bolsa SA, a Bogota based brokerage, said in a report that the series of swaps will contribute to the steepening of the local yield curve, whereby long-term borrowing costs rise relative to short-term rates. Fiscal Rule During a trip to New York earlier this month, Acosta assured investors that Colombia will do all it can to comply with its fiscal rule, or balance-budget act, despite weak tax revenue. The Andean nation is willing to cut spending if it fails to raise around $2.5 billion expected this year from litigation with companies that have liabilities with the tax authority, he said. Acosta said Colombia wants to ensure that public investment is a priority, to ensure future growth. We are going to the limit with the fiscal rule, but as a bet, a necessary condition is to grow through public investment," he said. Colombias fiscal deficit is expected to widen to 5.3% of gross domestic product this year from 4.2% in 2023, according to the finance ministry. Excluding the pandemic, that would be the widest this century. Read more: Colombia Rally Fizzles as Fiscal Worries Leave Bonds in Limbo Acosta said he expects the launch of a Colombian exchange traded fund in the first half of this year. The fund, managed by Global X ETFs, will hold a basket of 12 local bonds, weighted by liquidity, and will become a key reference indicator for the economy, he said. The country has been working on the fund since 2019, and in 2021 it signed an agreement with the World Bank to develop it. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) chief Rajiv Kumar said on Wednesday that the poll body will disclose all details on electoral bonds in time. During a press conference, Kumar said the State Bank of India (SBI) submitted electoral bond details to the Election Commission yesterday (March 12) in time. I'll go back, look at the data and would definitely disclose it in time," Kumar said. He noted that the Supreme Court had directed the SBI to submit details of the electoral bonds to the Election Commission by March 12. ALSO READ: Electoral bonds ban unlikely to impact funding to political parties, says analyst He said the Election Commission has been in favour of transparency". we said in the court that we are in favour of transparency...anything we do in the commission and anything our district magistrate down the line in the elctions process too is based on...disclosure...disclose everything to the public and voter...the commission has always been in favour of transparency and that was our stand in the electoral bonds case also," CEC Rajiv Kumar said. ALSO READ: SBI electoral bonds case: SC Bar Association writes to President Murmu, says if donors are singled out His statement came hours after the chairman of State Bank of India (SBI) filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court, saying the data has been furnished in respect of bonds purchased and redeemed between April 12, 2019 to February 15, 2024. The Supreme Court had struck down the Centre's Electoral Bonds Scheme in February which allowed for anonymous funding to political parties. The court had also ordered the SBI to stop issuing Electoral Bonds immediately. The court had even asked the SBI to furnish details about each Electoral Bonds encashed by the political parties, which shall include the date of encashment and the denomination of electoral bond, by March 6. The Election Commission was asked to publish the information on its official website by March 13. However, the SBI has sought extension of the deadline from March 6 to June 30, after the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. In a setback to the SBI, the Supreme Court dismissed its application seeking extension of time till June 30 and asked the bank to disclose the details by March 12. What SBI said in its affidavit The SBI said that the data has been furnished in respect of bonds purchased and redeemed between April 12, 2019 to February 15, 2024. A total number of 22,217 bonds were purchased during the period April 1, 2019 till February 15, 2024," the SBI informed the Supreme Court. "From April 1 to 11, 2019 total number of Electoral Bonds purchased were 3346 and total number of bonds redeemed were 1609," news agency PTI reported while citing the affidavit. The SBI further told the court that from April 12, 2019 to February 15, 2024 total number of Electoral Bonds purchased 18,871 and total number of bonds redeemed were 20,421. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Uttar Pradesh news: A special MP-MLA court on March 13 sentenced gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari to life imprisonment in a three-decade-old fake arms licence case. On March 12, the court had convicted Mukhtar Ansari and fixed March 13 for pronouncing the quantum of punishment in the case. According to the district government counsel Vinay Singh, Mukhtar Ansari joined the court proceedings via video conference from Banda jail, where he is currently lodged. The order was passed by the special MP-MLA court of judge Awanish Gautam, Vinay Singh said. The case against Mukhtar Ansari was registered under IPC sections 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy), along with provisions of the Arms Act at Mohammadabad police station in Ghazipur in December 1990, news agency PTI reported, quoting Vinay Singh. According to the police, around 60 cases are pending against Ansari in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, New Delhi and other states. He has so far been convicted in at least seven cases. Mukhtar Ansari: Fake guns licence case According to a Hindustan Times report, on June 10, 1987, Mukhtar Ansari had applied for a gun licence with the district magistrate for a double-barrel gun. Later it was found that Ansari had received the licence with fake signatures of the district magistrate and the superintendent of police. The report further stated that on December 4, 1990, when the fraud in securing the gun licence was exposed, the CB-CID lodged a complaint with the police, and based on the complaint, a case under various sections of IPC against five persons, including Mukhtar Ansari, was registered at the Mohammadabad police station. The charge sheet was sent to the court in 1997 against the then ordnance clerk Gaurishankar Srivastava and Mukhtar Ansari. Gaurishankar Srivastava died during the hearing of the case. The prosecution recorded the statements of 10 witnesses. Who is Mukhtar Ansari? Mukhtar Ansari, a relative of former Vice-President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari, is a gangster-turned-politician. Mukhtar Ansari is a convicted criminal who was elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly from the Mau constituency five times. Notably, he won the Mau constituency seat in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on a Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party ticket. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Booking train tickets through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) can sometimes lead to a common issue. Money gets taken from your bank account, but no ticket is booked. This leaves passengers frustrated, waiting days for refunds. The good news is changes are coming. Soon, getting your money back, whether your ticket didn't get booked or you cancelled one, will be much faster. This update is in the works, thanks to efforts from IRCTC and the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), India Today has reported citing sources. The aim is to make refund times the same for all situations. The refund is likely to get processed within around an hour or so, the publication added. LiveMint could not independently verify the development. Complaints about slow refunds have been a big problem for the railways. People often go on social media to express their frustrations when their refunds don't come through quickly. Also Read: Swiggy partners IRCTC to provide food delivery service on Indian Railways The process right now can be slow. If a booking fails, the IRCTC starts the refund the next day. Then, it's up to the banks or payment services, which can take several days depending on the method used. But, the railway authority is looking to change that. They've directed teams to find ways to make the refund process much faster. This change is crucial in today's digital age, where systems run with little to no human input. It's important to note, though, that IRCTC charges a convenience fee when you book a ticket. This fee is not refunded. Why to ask for refunds? There are many reasons you might need a refund from the railways. It could be a booking issue, a cancelled train, or an unconfirmed ticket. Sometimes, if your train is late or there's an issue like AC not working, you might decide not to travel. For these cases, you can ask for a refund through a Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR), either online or in person. As per India Today, the time taken to refund will be reduced in all types of TDR scenarios The process for checking these claims is getting faster, too, as per the publication. Inspectors use handheld devices to update information directly into the system. This means your refund can be processed more quickly. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Lok Sabha Election 2024: With Lok Sabha elections just months away, PM Modi has gained support from US Congressman Rich McCormick who has exuded confidence that he would be re-elected as Prime Minister. Congressman Rich McCormick is a Republican from Georgia. In an interview with news agency PTI, McCormick described PM Modi as a popular leader and said, Prime Minister Modi is incredibly popular. I was just over there. I actually had lunch with Prime Minister Modi and several other congressmen, and to see his popularity across party lines really. Somebody who I think is around 70 per cent popular. He is going to be prime minister again." To see his progressive outlook on economy, on development, on goodwill towards all people, to see his application and positivity to the Indian people in the diaspora worldwide is going to affect the global economy, their strategic relationships. I look forward to his influence in a very positive way," he added. He also said that under Modi leadership, Indias economy is expanding anywhere from 4 to 8 per cent per year. If you look at their willingness to work with other nations now, I would say, I'll put a caveat in there, sometimes there's a bit of protectionism, which a lot of characters do. They've kind of copied some things that China have done. They'll have incredible leverage going forward as businesses want to get into India in an expanding market," McCormick said told PTI. We just have to be sure that we do it in a way that makes sense to both nations when we share technologies that there's trust in. The good news is we don't see the aggressive posturing like we see in China. As a matter of fact, we see a very incredibly important strategic and tactical ally with India to resist countries like China who are autocracies, who believe in a Marxist theology," he added. We need to make sure that we develop that relationship where there's true trust, that we continue to realise that India is honest. They're not trying to steal our technologies; they're trying to share them. It's okay to use your economic leverage to do that, and as long as we're having an honest conversation, we can have a great conversation in the future," McCormick said. The 6th Congressional district of Georgia, which includes a sizable Indian American community, is represented by McCormick, an honourably decorated veteran and emergency room physician. He is a member of the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees. (With inputs from PTI) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! It is official now! The Maharashtra government is all set to rename its largest district Ahmednagar. Known as the 'Land of Saints' Ahmednagar will now be know as Ahilya Nagar, in honour of the Maratha queen Ahilya Bai Holkar. The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday, March 13, approved the renaming of Ahmednagar district as Ahilya Nagar district. On the birth anniversary of Ahilya Bai Holkar on May 31 last year, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had announced that the state government will rename its historic district to honour the revered figure. Maharashtra's Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis had then said that Kashi wouldnt have remained, had Ahilya Bai Holkar not been there. "If she wasnt there, we wouldnt have temples of Lord Shiva. Thats why people want Ahmednagar renamed Ahilyanagar." Who was Ahilya Bai Holkar? Regarded as the most visionary female rulers of independent India, Ahilya Bai Holkar was the Queen of the Maratha Malwa kingdom. She is known for her role in propagating dharma. The Philosopher Queen built several temples and dharmshalas (public rest houses) across early-modern India. Ahilya Bai is also known for her efforts to popularise industrialisation. The Queen established the textile industry in Maheshwar, which is famously known for its Maheshwari sarees to date. According to the government website 'Indian Culture', the Maratha Queen was most notably known for her contribution towards the renovation and repair of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in 1780s. The legacy of Ahmednagar Founded in 1494 AD by Ahmad Nizam Shah I, Ahmednagar served as the capital of the Ahmadnagar sultanate. It was a major economic and political centre in the Deccan region. In the 17th century, the city came under the control of Emperor Akbar. Later in the same century, it came under the leadership of Maratha empire, under Shivaji Maharaj. The city witnessed several Maratha-Mughal and Anglo-Maratha wars. Under the British ear, the Ahmednagar district was a part of the Bombay Presidency. In the early 19th century, Christian missionaries, primarily from the USA, arrived in district after the British Parliament granted permission for proselytizing in regions under the control of the East India Company. In 1869, due to the formation of Nashik and Solapur districts, Wani and Karmala were excluded from Ahmednagar. From February 1981, the Ahmednagar District of Pune Revenue Division was incorporated in the new revenue department Nashik. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! A 62-year-old US national was found dead in a five-star hotel room in the Andheri area of Maharashtra's Mumbai on Tuesday morning, police said. Reportedly, the deceased man, identified as Mark Williams, arrived in Mumbai on March 9 and was planning to return on March 14. "The US citizen was in Mumbai for a meeting and was staying at the hotel since March 9," officials said. Mumbai Sahar police have registered an accidental death report (ADR) and an investigation into the matter is ongoing. According to police, there was no suspicion of foul play in the incident. A preliminary investigation suggested that the foreign national died of 'natural causes', officials said. The police received the information around 10.00 am on Tuesday. As soon as the information was received, the police reached the spot, took the body into custody, and sent it to the nearby government hospital for a post-mortem examination. Police were further looking into the case. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. The National Payments Corp of India (NPCI) is expected to approve a third-party application provider (TPAP) licence for Paytm , by March 15, three sources directly aware of the development said on Tuesday, reported Reuters . The third-party application provider licence will allow customers to continue using the Paytm app for payments through Indias popular unified payment interface (UPI), even as its banking arm, Paytm Payments Bank, ceases operations by March 15, following regulatory action due to issues of noncompliance. UPI, operated by the NPCI, is a real-time payments system that allows users to transfer money across banks. ALSO READ: What to do if you have a Paytm UPI handle? RBI advises this The (TPAP licence) approval will come before March 15 and most of the checks have been completed," one of the sources said. While the integration with banks may take more than a month, the licence approval should be in place before the deadline ends." None of the sources wished to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to the media. NPCI did not immediately respond to a Reuters email seeking comment, while Paytm declined to comment. New FASTag Meanwhile, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) stated in an advisory on March 13 that Paytm FASTag users should procure a new FASTag issued by another bank before March 13, 2024, to ensure a seamless travel experience and avoid inconvenience at toll plazas. Additionally, the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has countered the flak that the banking regulator is against home grown fintechs, saying the RBI's recent order against Paytm Payments Bank (PPBL) was only against a regulated entity. He also stated that the time offered until March 15 to move accounts and wallets to other banks is adequate, indicating that another extension is unlikely. Also, the company, on Feb 26, announced that its founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma resigned from the board. Consequently, Srinivasan Sridhar, former chairman of Central Bank of India, Ex-IAS officer Debendranath Sarangi, former executive director of Bank of Baroda Ashok Kumar Garg, and retired IAS Rajni Sekhri Sibal joined the board as independent directors. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The Supreme Court Bar Association on Tuesday clarified that it has not authorized SCBA President Adish Aggarwala to write to the President of India, Draupadi Murmu, to not enforce the electoral bonds verdict. The association called it an attempt to undermine the authority of the Supreme Court and unequivocally condemn the same. This came after the SCBA to President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday as the State Bank of India geared up to release electoral bond data. SCBA chief Adish C Aggarwala urged the top official to seek presidential reference of the apex court judgment as divulging details could make corporates vulnerable to victimization. The assertion was echoed by the All India Bar Association also headed by Aggarwala in a separate missive to the President. Disclosing such sensitive information, that too retrospectively, will result in chilling effect in corporate donations and participation in the democratic processThe possibility of them being singled out by those parties that had received less contribution from them, and harassed cannot be ruled out if the names of corporates and their quantum of contributions to various parties are revealed. This will be reneging on the promise given to them while accepting their voluntary contributions," the SCBA chief said. The two organizations urged Murmu to seek presidential reference in the electoral bonds case so the entire proceedings could be reheard. According to Article 143 of the Indian Constitution, the President has the power to consult the Supreme Court if a question of law or fact has arises. The State Bank of India submitted the details of entities which had purchased the now-scrapped electoral bonds and political parties which received them to the Election Commission on Tuesday evening. The development came in response to a Supreme Court order that called for SBI to disclose the details by close of business hours on March 12. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! A suspended Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Telangana, Praneeth Rao, has now been arrested foover erasure of sensitive data, and phone tapping. Rao has been accused of allegedly tapping the phones of Opposition leaders in Telangana. The Telangana Chief minister and Congress leader Revanth Reddy-led government had suspended Praneeth Rao on 5 March for allegedly tapping phones of opposition leader when the K Chandrashekar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) was in power in Telangana, reports Deccan Chronicles. According to media reports, Praneeth Rao was a officer with the Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) in Telangana Police. He had been recently transferred to the DGP office. A criminal conspiracy case had been registered by the Special Investigation Branch (SIB) against former Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Dugyala Praneeth Rao, police said. According to news agency ANI, Praneeth Rao is also known as a close aide to former CM K Chandrashekar Rao. Notably, Revanth Reddy had earlier accused the BRS government of tapping the phones of opposition leaders. Allegations against Praneeth Rao -According to the FIR, Praneeth Rao, while working in SIB, had two rooms exclusively for himself, unlike other teams, and operated with 17 systems issued to him. -Praneeth Rao also had an exclusive and dedicated leased line with an internet connection. Through this setup, he allegedly developed profiles of unknown persons and monitored them, without authorization and illegally -Upon investigation, it was revealed that Praneeth, by misusing and abusing his official position, regularly copied intelligence information into his drives and kept it under his custody. -It was further alleged that after the prevision election results, on December 4, 2023, Praneeth Rao turned off the cameras and destroyed old hard drives containing data gathered over decades, including information he obtained, to avoid suspicion -To avoid any criminal action against himself and others and to destroy the evidence Praneeth Rao turned off the CCTV cameras. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Top events of the day: PM Modi will initiate semiconductor projects in Gujarat and Assam. Karnataka HC to review Byjus case. Haryana CM to prove majority. IIFL Finance to discuss fundraising. Sharad Pawar will address farmers. PM Modi to join SC empowerment programme. Haryana Congress to hold 'Samvidhan Bachao' Yatra. Karnataka CM to inaugurate guarantee schemes. Tamil Nadu CM to visit Pollachi. Nepal PM to seek a vote of confidence. PM Modi to participate in Indias Techade-Chips for Viksit Bharat; to lay foundation stones of semiconductor projects in Gujarat and Assam via video conferencing: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stones for three semiconductor facilities worth over Rs. 1.25 lakh crore on Wednesday, March 13. Two of the three facilities are located in Gujarat, whereas one is based in Assam. He will also take part in the Indias Techade: Chips for Viksit Bharat programme. Byju CaseKarnataka HC to hear Raveendrans plea against certain investors: Byjus earlier approached the Karnataka High Court against an extraordinary general meeting called by its investors seeking the ouster of the companys co-founder and CEO Byju Raveendran and a revamp of its board of directors. The resolutions at the EGM went through. But Byjus had dismissed the EGM as invalid, also pointing to the case pending before the High Court. Haryanas new CM Saini to prove majority Mar 13: BJPs Nayab Singh Saini replaced Manohar Lal Khattar as the new Chief Minister of Haryana after taking oath in front of Governor Bandaru Dattatreya in Chandigarh on Tuesday. After the oath-taking ceremony, he presented a letter of support of 48 MLAs to the Governor and asked him to convene an assembly session on Wednesday for a floor test. IIFL Finance board to consider a fundraising proposal Mar 13: IIFL Finance Ltds board will convene on March 13, 2024, to discuss a proposal for fundraising through various instruments such as equity shares, convertible bonds, and debentures. These instruments may be issued via rights issue, private placement, preferential issue, or other methods, subject to regulatory, statutory, and shareholders approval. Sharad Pawar to address farmers on Mar13: On March 13, Sharad Pawar, the leader of NCP, will speak to farmers, including onion growers, in Niphad, Nashik district. Niphad falls within the Dindori Lok Sabha constituency, where the party may contest. Organising this event seems to be a strategy to garner support from farmers, a crucial voter segment in Dindori. Andhra PradeshPM Modi will virtually participate in the Pradhan Mantri Su-Raj programme organised in Krishna district for SC communities: The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will organise an outreach initiative called Pradhan Mantri Su-Raj to uplift Scheduled Caste (SC) communities in Krishna district. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually participate in the event on March 13, engaging with beneficiaries who have benefited from various Central schemes, including NSFDC, NSKFDC, NBCFDC, and NAMASTE. Haryana Cong to take out Samvidhan Bachao Yatra from Mar 13: Haryana Congress president Udai Bhan Friday alleged that the Constitution is under threat under the BJP rule at the Centre and announced a Samvidhan Bachao Yatra across the state from March 13. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah to inaugurate guarantee schemes in Udupi Mar 13: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is set to inaugurate a convention for beneficiaries of guarantee schemes in Udupi on March 13 at 11 am. The event will take place at MGM grounds. Additionally, he will inaugurate the boys hostel at the government polytechnic in Udupi on the same day. Tamil NaduCM Stalin to visit Pollachi Mar 13: S. Muthusamy, Minister for Housing, announced that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin is scheduled to visit Pollachi on March 13. NepalPM Prachanda likely to seek a vote of confidence Mar 13: Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal DahalPrachanda is scheduled to seek a vote of confidence from Parliament on Wednesday, days after the Maoist leader dumped the Nepali Congress and forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal. IIFL FINANCE More Information Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Indias deal with the four-nation EFTA or European Free Trade Association may not see a huge jump in trade. But its important for another reason. Mint looks at the significance of free trade agreements for India going forward. How significant is the India-EFTA trade deal? Unlike a possible deal with the European Union (EU) or the US, Indias largest trading partners, the India-EFTA deal is unlikely to boost bilateral trade by much. In the January-December 2023 period, Indias exports to EFTA, which comprises Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, was just $1.87 billion. Its imports were $20.45 billion but if you remove gold imports worth $19.65 billion from Switzerland (effective duty on gold remains unchanged post the deal), this too is minimal. The significant part is that EFTA has committed to invest $100 billion and create 1 million jobs in India over a 15-year period. What is the status of India-EU trade talks? In June 2022, India and the EU resumed their trade negotiations, stalled for nine years since 2013. The talks are currently on. Negotiations for a trade deal that first began in 2007 did not progress as there were differences in scope and expectations between the partners. The areas of disagreement were widetariffs on cars, wines, dairy products and liberalization of visa regime for Indian professionals. A deal will, no doubt, help boost bilateral trade significantly from the current $120 billion as the EU is Indias second largest trading partner and India is the EUs 10th largest trading partner. What about a free trade deal with the US? The US is Indias largest trading partner with bilateral trade in FY23 coming in at $129 billion. The US is also the third-largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) into India, totalling $6.04 billion, or 9% of total FDIs in FY23. No formal talks are on between India and the US for any trade deal due to strong opposition from trade unions in the US, which fear jobs losses. Why are trade deals important for India? India dreams of becoming a $30 trillion economy by 2047 (its GDP size today is $ 3.6 trillion). To achieve this, it has to grow its GDP at over 8% per annum. And that requires India becoming the manufacturing base of the world. The Centre has been pursuing policies such as Make in India and production linked incentives to increase exports and ride on the China+1 strategy of global manufacturers. Trade deals are critical for easy market access and go a long way in attracting manufacturing investments. What is Indias record in striking trade deals? Till a few years ago, India was seen as a difficult negotiator when it came to protecting its market and dealing with environmental and labour norms. That may explain why it had very few trade deals to speak of. India went without a trade deal for nine long years before changing its tack in 2021. Since then, India has signed 13 trade deals with countries such as Mauritius, United Arab Emirates, Australia and now EFTA. EU, UK, Oman, Israel and Peru are among 50 nations India is negotiating a trade deal with. ORCHARD HILLS, AustraliaAt an Australian military base here on the outskirts of Sydney, an unassuming shed-like structure known as Building 215 is set to play an important role in Washingtons strategy for confronting rivals such as China and Russia. Inside, officials plan to establish the first factory outside the U.S. to help make a type of missile thats been pivotal in the Ukraine war: Lockheed Martins Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System, or GMLRS. The U.S. has already sent Ukraine thousands of these missiles, which are fired out of vehicles known as Himars. The rapid consumption of munitions in Ukraine and the Middle Eastfrom missiles to artillery shellshas strained the ability of the U.S. industrial base to meet demand and replenish depleted stockpiles. The Biden administration is seeking to develop multiple production lines across allied nations for critical weapons, though that isnt easy. One initiative to provide more artillery shells to Ukraine by having Japan send them to Britain stalled, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year. European manufacturers say they need longer-term orders from governments to give them confidence to expand capacity. In Australia, the effort to transform Building 215, most of which was empty on a recent visit, offers a look at how Washingtons weapons strategy might unfold around the worldand the difficulties the U.S. and its allies face in ramping up munitions production. Lockheed and Australia will need to build new supply chains, train new workers and facilitate technology sharing with the U.S. Some say the plan is already moving too slowly, pointing out that it has been about four years since Australia floated the idea of making missiles. The initial idea was very good, but the implementation has been deeply unimpressive," said Michael Shoebridge, a former Australian defense official who is now director at defense think tank Strategic Analysis Australia. Its been overtaken by events in the world, notably the war in Ukraine, and now in the Middle East." U.S. officials say they are pleased with the momentum and speed of Australias efforts. They say Australia recently moved forward quickly on producing much-needed artillery shells, and that it is participating in the development of Precision Strike Missiles, or PrSMwhich can also be fired from Himars vehicles and have extended range. Given the pacing challenge in the Indo-Pacific and evolving competition with near-peer adversaries, precision munitions like GMLRS and PrSM are increasingly important," said Pentagon spokesman Jeff Jurgensen, referring to strategic competition with China. Its imperative that we have hot production lines to deliver them at scale." The plan is for Lockheed, which currently makes GMLRS at just one factory in Camden, Ark., to hire six Australian engineers and embed them at that facility to learn about the manufacturing process. Lockheed will ship semi-assembled parts of the missiles from the U.S. to Australia, where they will undergo final assembly at a new production line in Building 215. The first batch of about a dozen Australian-assembled GMLRS will be test-fired by the end of next year, Australian officials said. By the end of the decade, Australia aims to make thousands of missiles annually, expanding beyond Building 215. We dont need to be making 300 GMLRS a year, we need to make 3,000 GMLRS a year," Air Marshal Leon Phillips, an engineer and three-star Australian air-force officer tasked with overseeing the countrys missile-manufacturing efforts, said at his office in Australias defense headquarters in Canberra, the capital. Although the GMLRS will at first be assembled from imported components, Australia later wants to focus on making key missile parts domestically, including rocket motors and warheads. At some point, other types of missiles aside from GMLRS could be produced. But finding skilled workers could be a challenge given that Australia already has a shortage of engineers. Export rules have stifled some defense cooperation in the past. And developing new supply chains could be tough when certain systems such as rocket motors are already in short supply. Even figuring out the best way to transport missile components overseas could take practice. It is very different handling a missile when its bolted together and all assembled as opposed to shipping components," said James Heading, a former Australian air-force officer who is now in charge of Lockheeds missile business in the country. A warhead by itself, external to the weapon, is a very different beast to cart around." Lockheed is ramping up production of GMLRS at its Camden factory to 14,000 from 10,000 a year, but even there its been hard to hire more workers. The companys order backlog in its missiles and fire control business, which includes GMLRS, has increased nearly 20% in recent years, to more than $32 billion. The U.S. Armys recent budget request for 2025 seeks funding for about 6,400 GMLRS, up from about 5,000 in the prior years request. Phillips, the Australian air marshal, said the workforce issues were solvable. People can be trained to assemble missiles, he said, and Australias defense industry has existing skills for some missile parts. He pointed out that Australia already has munitions factories, where items like propellants, ammunition and other explosives are produced. Western nations have enjoyed a peace dividend that has led to an atrophying of the capacity of industry to produce," Phillips said. The challenge of weapons is you just go from a static peacetime usage, to an awfully accelerated volume of usage in war." When Australia first announced its missile production plans, I dont think there was the necessary finance and drive to get that going," Phillips said. Since then, Australia has said it would spend $2.7 billion on the program, including acquiring ready-made weapons. A possible second Trump administration could affect Washingtons willingness to send weapons overseas, and the former president recently said he would encourage Moscow to attack North Atlantic Treaty Organization members that dont pay." But the dynamic is different in Asia, given there is broad bipartisan consensus in Washington regarding the possible threat from China, some analysts say. If our allies in the Pacific can demonstrate that they share our concerns about Beijing, and are working to shoulder their share of the security burden and increase deterrence, that might reduce the chances for an unpleasant surprise in a Trump presidency," said Bradley Bowman, a former national security adviser to Republican members of the Senate armed-services and foreign-relations committees, and who is now a senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Australia has long been a close U.S. ally. In his office, Phillips himself has a picture of a jet fighter flying over St. Louis, a reminder of when he was posted there in the 2000s when Australia was upgrading its American planes. The relationship deepened even further in 2021 with the Aukus pact, a three-way security partnership that also involves the U.K. Some former U.S. defense officials said Australias timeline for ramping up missile production isnt too late to tip the strategic scales, but the clock is ticking. Russia and China are investing in their own missile capabilities. The United States and its allies need to produce as many munitions as they can, as soon as they can," said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who worked at the National Security Council and the Pentagon during the George W. Bush administration. Production capacity during a conflict could also matter, which means that the more production sites, the better." Aman Gupta, the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of boAt, won the Best Celebrity Creator Award on March 8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi honoured content creators at the National Creators Award held at Bharat Mandapam in Delhi. Now, the Shark Tank India judge has posted his reaction on social media. While sharing a photograph of the award, he wrote: The words Government of India", the National Emblem" and the title National award" . Man this award hits different." While receiving the award, he shared with PM Modi how he had begun his business in 2016. Quickly, boAt became one of the biggest audio brands globally. When we started in 2016 when 'Startup India' was unveiled, people did not take us seriously. Seven years later, we have become the world's second-largest audio brand," said Gupta whose popularity skyrocketed after he had become one of the Sharks on Shark Tank India. "I wish that a good tech brand goes out to other parts of the world and is appreciated the way we look at global brands," he added. His company now manufactures 70% of products in India, Aman Gupta said. He also spoke about his ambition. Just like people line up to buy products from foreign brands (read Apple), he wants people in foreign countries to queue up to buy boAt products. Other recipients The Disruptor of the Year was awarded to Ranveer Allahbadia (Beer Biceps). Former ISRO scientist Pankti Pandey received the Green Champion Award. Lakshya Dabas received the Most Impactful Agri Creator. The Cultural Ambassador of the Year Award went to Maithili Thakur. Jaya Kishori received the Celebrity Creator of the Year award. The Best International Creator Award had three creators: Kiri Paul from Tanzania, Drew Hicks from America, and Cassandra Mae Spittmann from Germany. Kamiya Jani of Curly Tales was given the Best Travel Creator award. 'Technical Guruji' Gaurav Chaudhary a top tech YouTuber won the Tech Creator Award. The Heritage Fashion Icon Award was given to Jahnvi Singh. The Best Creative Creator (female) award went to Shraddha while RJ Raunaq received the Best Creative Creator (male). (With agency inputs) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Pakistan's newly-elected President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday announced that he will forego his salary during his tenure to help the cash-strapped country facing challenging economic hardship. In an official statement, the Pakistan Peoples Party said he decided to encourage prudent financial management and not burden the national exchequer. It is pertinent to note that Zardari is one of the richest politicians in Pakistan. The President considered it essential not to burden the national exchequer and preferred to forgo his salary," President Secretariat Press Wing said in a press release on Tuesday as quoted by PTI. Former president Arif Alvi was drawing 8,46,550 per month, which was fixed by Parliament in 2018. Co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Asif Ali Zardari took oath as President of Pakistan for a second term at a ceremony at Aiwan-i-Sadr in Islamabad on Sunday. He secured a remarkable 255 electoral votes in the parliamentary election, beating the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed Sunni Ittehad Council candidate, Mahmood Khan Achakzai. Separately, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also followed the steps of Zardari and decided not to withdraw his salary while in office citing the ongoing economic challenges faced by the country. He committed to serving the nation in every possible way". "In these challenging times, committed to supporting and serving our nation in every possible way," he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter). Last February, the Cabinet of then-prime minister Shehbaz Sharif also gave up their salary and other perks to help the country tackle its possible default on external liabilities. Pakistan has been reeling under economic pressure with the commodities touching sky-high prices. The recently elected government is in dire need of a fresh loan from the International Monetary Fund, and its politiciansmany of whom are extremely wealthyuse such strategies to garner support from the underprivileged masses. (With PTI inputs) Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Australian vinters and lawmakers said China proposed lifting punitive tariffs on the nations wine, signaling the end is near to a three-year trade dispute as both countries seek to strengthen ties. Treasury Wine Estates Ltd. referenced Chinas plan in an exchange filing on Tuesday, adding that the final decision will be made in the coming weeks." The Ministry of Commerce in Beijing did not respond to a question about when they would release the report. The interim recommendation to remove tariffs on Australian wine is a welcome development," Australias Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement on Tuesday. It vindicates the governments preferred approach of resolving trade issues through dialogue rather than disputation," he added. In a separate statement, Foreign Minister Penny Wong pledged to continue to push for all remaining trade impediments to be removed." Removing the import taxes would help revive a billion-dollar Australian market and put an end to Beijings yearslong campaign of punitive trade actions to try to influence policy in Canberra. Before tariffs of up to 218% were imposed on Australian wine in March 2021, China was Australias largest market for vintners, accounting for A$1.1 billion ($728 million) in 2019. This is a positive step towards resuming trade with what was formerly our largest export market," said Lee McLean, chief executive of Australian Grape & Wine Inc., who said the industry remains hopeful about Beijings proposed removal of the tariffs. We are optimistic yet cautious with this news as there is a very large job for Australian winemakers to re-invigorate this market after three years of being out of it," said Mitchell Taylor, third-generation winemaker at Taylors Wines. Despite the challenge, Taylor said this is a big win" for the industry which has been under enormous pressure as it sought to adjust to changing economic circumstances. With the lifting of the wine tariffs now highly likely, China is on the brink of ending its trade campaign against Australia, as the interim plan unveiled on Tuesday becomes the latest in a slew of positive developments. Chinas Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian this week said things are moving on right tracks with the right direction" on the wine tariff review. Last month, Farrell made similar remarks. The wine tariffs were part of a series of trade curbs to punish Canberra for actions including calls by then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison for an international probe into the origins of Covid-19. Australia withstood the backlash from its largest trading partner, even as the specific industries targeted were hurt. Australias ability to ride out the trade tensions, with effectively no public concessions to Beijing, raises questions about the effectiveness of Chinas campaign. The tariff news comes at a good time for local wine producers as Australia is struggling with historically high inventory levels, according to a report by Wine Australia. In August, Rabobank estimated it wold take at least two years to work through a glut. At the time, the bank estimated Australia had 2.8 billion bottles of wine in storage enough to fill 859 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Before the trading issue, we exported 150 cases of wine a year," said Alex Xu, a director of the Royal Star Wine Company. Now we only export 10 containers to other countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and India. But these markets arent as profitable as the Chinese market." Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. China's spokesperson Wang Wenbin reportedly reacted to the first batch of Indian military personnel leaving the Maldives. He said, "China supports the Maldives in upholding its territorial sovereignty". "China supports the Maldives in upholding its territorial sovereignty and having independent exchanges and cooperation with other countries," tweeted the spokesperson of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As per China's state media Global Times, Wenbin said this "in response to the reported departure of the first batch of Indian military personnel stationed in the Maldives". Indian military troops, operating surveillance aircraft/helicopter in the Maldives, reportedly began withdrawing from the Maldives after the Island country's President Mohamed Muizzu asked India to withdraw its forces. As many as 25 Indian troops deployed in the southernmost atoll of Addu had left Maldives on Sunday, ahead of the March 10 deadline, Mihaaru newspaper reported. The Indian military personnel left the country after handing over the operations of the chopper to an Indian civilian crew, the Maldivian media reported on Monday. ALSO READ: India slips to 6th rank on Maldives Tourism charts as President Mohamed Muizzu welcomes China There was no official confirmation from the Maldivian or Indian authorities. However, Mihaaru claimed that the Maldivian National Defence Force confirmed about the withdrawal of Indian troops. In January this year, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu asked India to withdraw nearly 90 military personnel from the archipelago island. He later said no Indian military personnel, including those in civilian attire, would be permitted in his country after May 10. China reacts When asked for his comments on the first batch of the Indian military personnel's withdrawal from the Maldives, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said he was not aware of the specifics. China supports the Maldives in safeguarding its territorial sovereignty and carrying out friendly cooperation with all sides on the basis of independence," he said. Beijing said Wednesday that a Chinese military delegation recently visited the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Nepal to discuss further cooperation in defence issues. In all three countries, "they exchanged views on military relations and regional security issues of common concern", the Chinese military was quoted by AFP as saying in a statement on its official WeChat account. "A series of consensus was reached to further enriched defence cooperation between the PLA and the relevant countries," it added, referring to the Chinese military by its official acronym. Last week, the Maldives said it had signed a "military assistance" deal with China. Under this deal, China will supply 'non-lethal' weapons to the Maldives free of cost. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Nepal's Prime Minister, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as ' Prachanda ', is set to seek a vote of confidence in Parliament today March 13, PTI reported. This move comes after Prachanda parted ways with the Nepali Congress and formed a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML). Prachanda, a former guerrilla leader from the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), which is the third largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR), officially broke ties with the Nepali Congress by sending a letter to the Parliament Secretariat. As per constitutional requirements, a prime minister must seek a vote of confidence when an ally withdraws support from the ruling coalition. With the Nepali Congress withdrawing support, Prachanda needs to prove his majority. Forming New Alliances Prachanda has formed a fresh alliance with the CPN-UML, led by former Prime Minister KP Oli, despite past criticisms from Oli towards Prachanda. To secure the vote of confidence, Prachanda's government needs at least 138 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives. This will mark Prachanda's third confidence vote since taking office in December 2022. Currently, the Prachanda-led coalition government has the backing of 150 members in the lower house of Parliament. The CPN-UML, the second-largest party in the HoR, has 76 seats, while Prachanda's CPN-Maoist Centre holds 32 seats. Additionally, other parties such as the Rashtriya Swatantra Party, the Janata Samajwadi Party, and the CPN-Unified Socialist hold 20, 12, and 10 seats respectively. Political Developments Ahead of the vote, the CPN-Maoist Centre has issued a directive for all its members in the HoR to be present. This marks Prachanda's third bid for a vote of confidence in less than one-and-a-half years since he assumed office for the third term on December 25, 2022. Previously, Prachanda faced a similar test when the Oli-led CPN-UML withdrew support due to disagreements, resulting in a floor test. In 2017, Prachanda and Oli merged their parties to secure a majority, but their partnership dissolved over time due to internal conflicts. Meanwhile, the Nepali Congress party has urged its members to vote against Prachanda's government. However, ahead of the vote, five political parties within the ruling alliance have signed a seven-point agreement, pledging their support to the Prachanda-led government. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The US is going after the Chinese semiconductor industry with a ferocity that has very few precedents. Driven by a national security doctrine aimed at denying China the ability to exploit American technology to threaten Americas interests, Washington has been tightening the screws on its own industry and that of its allies since the summer of 2022. In addition to export restrictions and employment controls, the US government has been pushing Taiwan, the Netherlands, Japan, South Korea and Germany to squeeze the sale of manufacturing equipment, critical parts, raw materials and ongoing service contracts with mainland Chinese companies. Wang Yi, Chinas foreign minister recently called the sanctions reaching bewildering levels of unfathomable absurdity." No one likes the prospect of cutting themselves off from the Chinese market which used to purchase half the worlds chip outputand Washingtons policy is unpopular, painful and costly. Yet the US is doubling down on what it calls a small yard, high fence" strategy. Why has geopolitics become obsessed with semiconductors? It is because chips are the most important physical manifestation of the currency of power in the Information Age. Data, algorithms and intellectual property are abstract; only hardware and people are palpable. Computers, networks, vehicles, equipment and armaments are also physical manifestations, but chips are in virtually everything and everything depends on chips. They are zero-sum goods in a non-zero sum economy, so controlling them is seen as a way to remain powerful in this era. Whereas power once came from controlling land, sea routes, gunpowder, factories and nuclear weapons, it now comes from chips. At least in the eyes of leaders and policymakers. To what extent are chips the source of geopolitical power? When launching the crackdown on Chinas semiconductor industry, the US national security advisor said, These restrictions are premised on straightforward national security concerns. These technologies are used to develop and field advanced military systems, including weapons of mass destruction, hypersonic missiles, autonomous systems, and mass surveillance." Yes, there is a military dimension, but it is a narrow one. Having access to the most advanced chips allows the US to dominate the global economy. In denying such chips to China, Washington is not just trying to limit a military competitor, it is hoping to contain a strategic geopolitical rival. At least for a while. Washingtons actions set China back at least five but potentially more than ten years. Although Huawei has demonstrated 7nm microprocessors and GPUs in recent months made with pre-sanctions Western equipment, the Chinese industry will at best be capable of 14nm chips this year, when the US is at 2nm and about four generations ahead. China will also have to build its own domestic ecosystem and external supply chains. A spokesman for Chinas parliament declared that For any technology known to man, the US cannot choke Chinas development. It is merely a matter of time before we prevail." Some of this is bravado, but it is not beyond reasonable imagination. What you can do with a chip depends not only on how fast the chip is, but also on how you do it. Innovations in computational methods, processing algorithms and applications can offer alternative paths to development. But it will cost Beijing hundreds of billions of dollars over the next few years. Beijing reckons it has the money and a new vice-premier has been put in charge of the mission after the previous team was put behind bars for corruption. We should expect the global semiconductor industry to split into two competing ecosystems over the next decade. They will intersect at some levels but diverge at the cutting edge. In other words, while leading chip-makers will be compelled to isolate themselves from each other, a large number of global suppliers at the middle and lower levels of the value chain will be able to work with both Western and Chinese technologies if they choose to and their governments permit. The tech industry will operate in a world of intensifying political and policy risks. Even open source technologies have become risky, as Washingtons unwise moves against the RISC-V ecosystem indicates. Indias public support for domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity is well considered. No country has done so without massive government support. Similarly, no country (not even China before Xi Jinping) did so by being on the wrong side of the US. India is in a good position, but New Delhi must figure out how to take greater advantage of East Asian supply chains. One of the conclusions in my colleague Pranay Kotasthanes book on semiconductor geopolitics is that dependence on East Asia is unlikely to go away over the next two decades despite the massive investments happening across geographies." Tailpiece: Massive opportunity costs and weaker network effects are not the only price the world is paying for this fight over chips. To the extent that the global semiconductor turmoil affects the pace of an energy transition, the climate damage it inflicts might turn out to be more significant. Ever since photovoltaic cells started popping up on pocket calculators and building roofs a few decades ago, solar power has faced a key drawback: Its a nice technology, but theres simply not enough of it to make a difference. Right now, its facing the opposite difficulty. A tidal wave of investment in solar-power panels has swelled to the point that it threatens to overwhelm the global industry. Amid an onslaught of cheap Chinese-made modules, overseas manufacturers have either walled themselves off behind tariff barriers (as in India and the US) or resigned themselves to extinction, as in Europe. Now, even the Chinese companies blamed for the current glut are panicking. Beijing should introduce bidding rules to prevent low-quality, below-cost products being put onto the market, Zhong Baoshen, chairman of the biggest panel maker, Longi Green Energy Technology, said last week. The slump in prices is so drastic that there is now no profit across the entire supply chain," Gao Jifan, Zhongs counterpart at third-placed Trina Solar Company, told a BloombergNEF summit last November. From the perspective of manufacturing, the solar bit of the path to net-zero is already pretty much solved. The world will need to install about 650 gigawatts of solar capacity a year by 2030 to avoid catastrophic climate change, according to the International Energy Agency. But major manufacturers have already built about 783GW of annual production capacity and we might hit the IEAs 2030 installation target this year. The hitch is that its a lot harder to connect a solar panel than to make one. Utilities and even households face regulatory, political and logistical roadblocks joining the grid. As a result, BloombergNEF expects more than half of manufacturing capacity to go unused this year and next. Module costs have already fallen by more than half over the past two years. The current excess suggests further price declines are to come, which is great news for consumers but terrible for manufacturers. You might think thats a sign that the entire industry is headed for a crash, but previous high-tech revolutions offer reasons for optimism. Solar panels are ultimately semiconductors and they share a lot of similarities with the mainstream chip industry. Capital spending is colossal and rapidly becomes obsolete as the state of the art moves on. The product is highly commoditized, leaving few opportunities for differentiation. Demand growth is exponential, tempting manufacturers to stake out territory with little regard for profit. Without action, competition becomes so fierce that value ends up getting destroyed. One way out of this is price fixing. That happened with DRAMa type of high-speed computer memory chipduring the 2000s. The result was a slew of lawsuits and a market thats now become an oligopoly ruled by Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron. Samsung, LG and a group of Taiwanese companies were fined 648 million by the European Union in 2010 for operating a price cartel in LCD television and monitor screens. On the face of it, government-mandated price controls were the perfect way out of this dilemma. The onslaught of Chinese-made clean technology has been raising hackles among the countrys trade partners, who fear a green supply chain dominated by a geopolitical rival. If Beijing was to step in, that might help Chinese manufacturers restore profitability while easing the headlong deflation thats provoking such fear and loathing in Brussels, Washington and New Delhi. Thats the wrong approach, however. For all that trading partners like to howl against subsidies, Chinas white-knuckle solar industry doesnt look like the product of a state-directed industrial policy, but of a (terrifyingly) free market in the grip of a gold rush. Manufacturers have proven nimble, too. When the US passed a law in 2021 prohibiting the sale of products made by Uyghur forced labour, businesses were quick to set up separate Xinjiang-free supply chains, though some tainted goods may still be getting through. Other capital-intensive, commodified industries like computer chips, mining, petroleum and aviation periodically go through the same sorts of cycles. The outcome of all that competitive blood-letting is typically a more concentrated market where smaller players go out of business, while the most efficient manufacturers take market share until the next disruptive innovation comes along. Thats reason enough for Beijing to spurn industry calls for it to fix the current crisis. What Chinas solar sector needs right now is not state intervention to support panel prices, but a free hand to let them fall further and further. bloomberg The Delhi High Court upheld an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) refusing to stay Income Tax department's notice to the Indian National Congress for recovery of outstanding tax of more than 105 crore. A bench of Justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav said there was no reason to interfere with the ITATs March 8 order, and granted liberty to the Congress party to move the Appellate Tribunal afresh. The total payable amount of the outstanding tax with added interest now stands at nearly 135 crore, according to the statement of I-T departments counsel in court. According to a Bar and Bench report, the High Court Bench said that the proceeding against the Congress which began in 2021 has been handled very badly". It also added that someone in the grand old party's office remained asleep", and the Congress itself is to be blamed for the notice. "As we read this order (ITAT order), the petitioner has itself to blame. The demand is of 2021...It seems you made no efforts to securitise the demand...Someone in petitioner's office has remained asleep since 2021," the Bench said. The Congress approached the court after the ITAT dismissed the its application seeking a stay on the February 13 notice of the I-T department initiating recovery proceedings against it. The assessing officer had raised a tax demand of more than 105 crore for the assessment year 2018-19 when the income was assessed to be more than 199 crore. The counsel for the Congress had urged the court to grant it some protection otherwise the grand old party would collapse. While the I-T departments counsel informed the court 65.94 crore of the 135.06 crore tax demand has been recovered. The original tax demand was 102 crore, to which interest has been added, raising it to 135.06 crore. " we do not find that the recovery notice under Section 226(3) of the Act issued by the assessing officer on February 13, 2024 is lacking in bona fides, so as to require us to intervene," said the tribunal while dismissing the stay application. Earlier, the Congress said that the I-T tribunal order to freeze the party's funds was "an attack on democracy" as it had come just ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! The Congress announced five guarantees for women under its "Naari Nyay" initiative ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2023. They include 1 lakh cash transfer every year and 50 percent reservation for women in government jobs. Here are the five guarantees in details: ALSO READ: Congress candidate list: Second list features sons of Kamal Nath, Ashok Gehlot; Gaurav Gogoi gets new seat 1. One woman in every poor family will receive Rs. 1 lakh every year 2. 50% reservation for women in all central government recruitment 3. Doubling of central governments contribution to Anganwadi, ASHA and Mid-Day Meal workers salaries 4. Appointment of an Adhikar Maitri in every Panchayat, who will explain to women their rights to various schemes and benefits 5. Savitribai Phule Working Womens Hostel in every district headquarters across India, and the number of such hostels will be doubled. Congress leader KC Venugopal took to X to inform that apart from all these five guarantees, the Congress "will implement the Womens Reservation Bill immediately and remove provisions brought by the [Prime Minister Narendra] Modi government that delay the reservation by at least a decade". Venugopal said Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi announced the party's vision for women at the Mega Mahila Melava in Dhule, Maharashtra on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also posted about the five guarantees ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and said, The aim of Congress is to make half the country's population economically self-reliant and to provide equal representation." ALSO READ: Lok Sabha elections 2024: How BJP, Congress go extra mile to get people's pulse right on poll manifesto Kharge labeled the five guarantees for women under the "Mahalaxmi guarantee", "Aadhi Abadi, pura haq [half the population, full rights]", "Shakti ka Samman [respect for power]", "Adhikar Maitri" and "Savitri Bai Phule Hostel". He said the Congress announced Paanch Nyay to empower India Yuva Nyay, Bhagidari Nyay, Naari Nyay, Kisan Nyay, and Shramik Nyay. The Congress had earlier promised to give a legal guarantee of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) to the farmers in India. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Gabina VOA is designed to be an infotainment youth radio show broadcasting to Ethiopia and Eritrea in the Amharic language. The show brings varied perspectives on issues concerning young people in the Horn of Africa region. Gabina in the Amharic language is a front-row taxi ride. High drama ensued right in the middle of the street after former Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLA Aroori Ramesh hinted about joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2024. According to Deccan Herald, BRS workers allegedly tried to "kidnap" Aroori, a former BRS MLA in Warangal city of Telangana. He had met Telangana BJP chief G Kishan Reddy on Tuesday, which sparked rumours of him planning to quit the BRS and join the BJP, the report added. ALSO READ: Suspended DSP arrested for 'tapping phones of opposition leaders' during BRS regime "Former minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao had arrived to convince Aroori Ramesh and began taking him to Hyderabad," IANS reported. Upon learning about this, BJP workers "intercepted the car on the way and forcibly removed Aroori Ramesh". ALSO READ: Telangana former CM KCR announces BRS-BSP alliance for 2024 Lok Sabha Polls In a video shared by the IANS news agency, Aroori can be seen caught in a scuffle in the middle of the road, as a few people drag him out of a car. His shirt was torn, but he was "rescued" by the BJP workers "unharmed", Deccan Chronicle reported. Meanwhile, Siasat Daily reported, "BJP cadre arrived at Ramesh's house as he was being taken away by BRS leaders, blocked his car and dragged the ex-BRS MLA out of the vehicle." ALSO READ: Lok Sabha Elections 2024 : BRS MP BB Patil joins BJP in Delhi BRS party workers reportedly wanted to take Aroori to meet the party leadership in Hyderabad and prevent him from crossing over to the BJP. Amid the speculations, Aroori clarified on Wednesday that he came to Hyderabad with fellow party leaders and remains a part of the BRS. According to a local report, he denied joining the BJP. ALSO READ: Telangana election result recap: Congress ends 10-year rule of BRS; secures 64 seats. | 10 points to know He also attended a meeting with BRS chief KCR and leaders of the Warangal Parliamentary constituency in Hyderabad. Aroori, who reached KCR's residence in Hyderabad on Wednesday evening, made it clear that no one had kidnapped him. He reportedly said the party leaders brought him to Hyderabad from Warangal and he came only for discussions with KCR. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! RAMALLAH, West BankWhen Israeli soldiers released Baha Abu Rukba near a Gaza border crossing after holding him for nearly three weeks, the 24-year-old Palestinian said he was in pain and struggling to walk after being hit repeatedly with rifle butts and kicked in the groin. Since Israels armed forces pushed into Gaza in response to the Hamas Oct. 7 attacks on southern Israel that left 1,200 people dead, according to Israeli authorities, the United Nations estimates they have detained thousands of young Palestinians in operations the Israeli military has said are aimed at identifying militants. The Wall Street Journal has spoken with more than a dozen former detainees who described being subjected to various forms of psychological and physical abuse, including being beaten during interrogations and placed in stress positions for prolonged periods. I was praying just to survive," said Rukba, who works as a paramedic with the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Some days, he said, he was forced to kneel for up to 20 hours, his hands tied to a rod above his head. Twenty-seven Palestinians from Gaza have died in Israeli detention since Oct. 7, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported earlier this month. The Israeli military told The Wall Street Journal that it was aware of 27 deaths among detainees in its custody. Former detainees interviewed by the Journal were eventually released without being charged by Israeli authorities. They described a range of mistreatment, with some saying they suffered physical assaults during their detentions, including being hit and kicked. Some described being forced to kneel for much of the day or sometimes hold their hands above their heads for hours. Others said they werent beaten but were insulted repeatedly and subjected to other verbal abuse. Some said they were intentionally kept awake and allowed to sleep for only four hours a day. When they were allowed to sleep, they werent provided beds or blankets. Many described poor conditions in the detention facilities, including overcrowding and a lack of sanitation and food. The Israeli military said violent and antagonistic treatment" toward detainees is prohibited and contrary to its beliefs and values. It said detainees are treated in accordance with international law. It said all are provided with food and medical care and given opportunities to pray and sleep. Israels top military lawyer, Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi, said last month that some troops were under review for criminal offenses and other misconduct, including abuse of prisoners and excessive use of force. They are being held in incommunicado detention, with no right to counsel, no communications with their family," said Tal Steiner, executive director of the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, an organization that monitors the treatment of Palestinians in Israeli prisons. Steiner alleged that Israel has long used torture in interrogations. All this raises a very, very dark picture," she said. In the weeks after Israel invaded Gaza, videos and photographs of Palestinian detainees sparked condemnation from rights groups. Scores of men were stripped to their underwear, with some kneeling in the street or hugging their legs against the cold. The U.S. State Department called the photos deeply disturbing." Many of the Palestinians who spoke to the Journal said they were detained in November and December, during the initial phase of Israels offensive into Gaza, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians moved to the south of the enclave as Israel called for evacuations. They described being rounded up in large groups, stripped and sometimes blindfolded before they were transported to detention sites in Gaza and Israel. The Israeli military said it orders detainees to undress to ensure they arent carrying explosives or other weapons, and that it allows them to put their clothes back on as soon as authorities deem it safe to do so. However, former detainees told the Journal that they had been undressed for long periods, including during interrogations. Mohammad Obaid, a 20-year-old journalist, said he was detained in October while following orders by Israel to evacuate his neighborhood in Gaza City. Israeli soldiers pulled him aside and ordered him at gunpoint to strip to his underwear, he said. They then cuffed his hands and feet with zip ties. Obaid said the soldiers loaded him onto a truck and then a bus with other detainees. They were taken to an open field with a few makeshift buildings, he said. He said he was interrogated for six hours with his hands shackled to the ceiling. Obaid said the next day interrogators took him to a room and asked him about his whereabouts on Oct. 7 and the locations of Israeli hostages, Hamas tunnels and rocket positions, while they took turns punching him in the face. After the interrogation, he said he was dragged outside, told to wipe the blood off his face and pose in front of an Israeli flag for a photo. He said he was released without being charged after 40 days in detention. Ayman Lubbad, 34, said he was in his family home in northern Gaza when Israeli forces came on Dec. 7 and ordered the neighborhood to evacuate, according to a written account he shared with the Journal. When residents left their homes, he said, women and the elderly were ordered to go to a local hospital, and males 14 years and older were forced to remove their clothes and kneel in the street. Lubbad, who has a wife and three children, said he was blindfolded, bound with zip ties and taken to a series of detention sites in the subsequent days. I was repeatedly beaten by Israeli soldiers for no reason," he said. They constantly beat me on my rib cage. I could not sleep for two nights due to the severity of the pain." He said he was eventually released on Dec. 14. Palestinians in Gaza are generally held under a 2002 law that allows Israel to detain unlawful combatants." Following the Oct. 7 attacks, Israel introduced an emergency amendment to that law, which allows people to be held without seeing a lawyer for up to six months, if authorized by a judge. Maurice Hirsch, a former head Israeli military prosecutor in the West Bank, said Israel has been trying to obtain information about Israeli hostages being held in Gaza and Hamas infrastructure. More than 240 hostages were taken to Gaza in the Oct. 7 attacks. While he said Israel doesnt condone the physical mistreatment of prisoners, he acknowledged that some abuse does occur in the process of trying to get information urgently. Lifesaving information sometimes also does require the use of force, without question," he said. Hirsch said other countries such as the U.S. have been in emergencies that have led to abuses. We saw what happened in Abu Ghraib," he said, referring to abuses committed by American forces at a prison in Iraq. Does this happen? Yes. Is it good? No. Is it official policy? No." Many of the women who were interviewed by the Journal said they had been taken to regular prison facilities in Israel. Hiba Ghaben, 40, said she was arrested in early December while evacuating along a corridor leading to southern Gaza, and held for nearly two months in Damon Prison, located near Haifa in northern Israel. During interrogations, she was asked about the residents of her neighborhood and the whereabouts of Hamas leaders and Israeli hostages. They threatened to electrocute me," she said. When they returned us to the cell, they would tie our hands and feet." Rukba, the paramedic, was detained on Dec. 21 at the headquarters of the Palestine Red Crescent Society in northern Gaza, where he works. He was held and then released without being charged nearly three weeks later at a border crossing in southern Israel. Authorities confiscated his phone when they ordered him to strip to his underwear. He had no idea whether his family members had survived. He was eventually able to reach them by phone and learned that they were living in a tent city in northern Gaza housing people displaced by the fighting. Regular communication has been difficult, however, because of frequent telecommunications blackouts. He hasnt been able to go north to see his family because getting there is unsafe. It kills me to think of them under such circumstances," Rukba said. I wish I could reach them, or they were closer to me." Jared Malsin contributed to this article. Write to Sune Engel Rasmussen at sune.rasmussen@wsj.com WASHINGTONThe House is poised to approve a bill on Wednesday that would ban TikTok from operating in the U.S. or force a sale, with lawmakers largely shrugging off a last-minute lobbying push by the Beijing-owned service and setting the stage for a final showdown in the Senate in the spring. The popular short-video app has faced scrutiny over the way its algorithm works to select content for users, both on sensitive issues like teen depression as well as on contentious global debates like the Israel-Hamas war. U.S. officials say TikToks Chinese ownership potentially gives Beijing a way to both collect data on Americans and influence public opinion, driving years of efforts to crack down on the app and culminating in the new legislation. Opponents of the bill say the government shouldnt be in the business of banning businesses and raise free speech concerns. They also say that TikTok has taken steps to address concerns about its ownership, including ensuring all U.S. user data is stored in an Oracle cloud, not overseas, and that fears about the service are overblown. The legislation calls for TikToks parent ByteDance to divest itself or the platform will be banned from app stores and web-hosting services in the U.S. ByteDance would have a little more than five months from the enactment of the bill to comply. This bill is not about censorship, its about the inverse of censorship, which is propaganda and foreign propaganda pitting Americans against Americans or deprioritizing certain hashtag subject matter that is problematic" for Beijing, said Rep. Mike Gallagher (R., Wis.) who wrote the bill with the White House and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D., Ill.). Lawmakers and administration officials have expressed worries that Bytedance would give U.S. users data to the Chinas government. The company has said that it hasnt gotten any such requests and wouldnt comply if it did. Critics of the TikTok bill say the company is being unfairly singled out. This bill does not solve our data privacy problems and harms innocent users whose very livelihood and existence is supported by this app. Count me out," said Rep. Maxwell Frost (D., Fla.), the youngest member of Congress. If the bill passes the House, it will head to the Senate, where its fate is more uncertain. Asked how the chamber will handle the measure, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) said, Lets see what the House does." He said he would consult with Democratic committee chairmen to see what their views would be." President Biden has said he would sign the bill if it gets to his desk. TikTok, accessed by more than 170 million Americans, has fended off past efforts to rein it in. In 2020, then-President Donald Trumps tried to ban the app via an executive order. Courts blocked that attempt. In recent days the presumptive GOP presidential nominee has criticized the new legislation, indicating his position had flipped. To fight a potential ban, TikTok has spent millions on lobbying in Washington in recent years. Since 2019, parent ByteDance has spent roughly $21.3 million on federal lobbying, according to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan platform tracking money in politics, and an analysis of lobbying disclosure forms by The Wall Street Journal. The company could also challenge the legislation in court, arguing that it violates the First Amendment. After Montana banned the app last year, a federal judge blocked the state measure, citing free-speech concerns. Still, TikTok was blindsided by the speed of the House legislation. Leaders of TikToks U.S. operations decided to create a notification that would pop up on the phones of some TikTok users. The notification let users enter their ZIP Codes and call their representatives to complain about the bill, a move that ended up overwhelming some offices phone lines. The effort might have backfired: Some lawmakers said the stunt underscored the power of TikTok to shape public opinion. A House committee advanced the bill with a 50-0 vote. TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew is expected to be at the Capitol meeting with senators this week, though some said their opinion couldnt be swayed at this point. The company sees the legislation as an effective ban because separating the U.S. portion of its app wouldnt be practical and would undercut the appeal of the content app. Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, the chair of the Intelligence Committee, has wanted to ban TikTok for years and introduced his own legislation to do so. He seemed willing to support the House bill, though said he wanted more time to review it. I think there would have been ways when you could have been more certain it would stand up to a legal challenge but this version may be better than earlier versions," he said. Several senators said they hadnt yet received any new outreach from TikTok. The bill will fall under the jurisdiction of the Commerce Committee. The committees hard to predict at this point," said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R., W.Va.), a member of the panel. ByteDance has expanded its own public policy team in recent years, as well as tapping the ranks of D.C. lobbyists, including such former members of Congress as former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R., Miss.), former House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley (D., N.Y.) and former Reps. Jeff Denham (R., Calif.) and Bart Gordon (D., Tenn.) according to public records. ByteDance has also enlisted longtime Trump adviser David Urban, while former senior White House official Kellyanne Conway has advocated against banning TikTok on behalf of Club for Growth, a conservative group opposed to closing the video app. Conway has warned Republicans that TikTok has users in every district and a ban could trigger a backlash from voters, according to a person familiar with the discussions. She has also spoken with Trump about the complications of restricting TikTok, according to the person. Weve consistently been up against a very formidable lobbying effort by TikTok," said Kara Frederick, director of the Heritage Foundations Tech Policy Center. Heritage Action, the political sister organization of the conservative think tank, supports the House bill and is urging lawmakers to vote for it. ByteDance also hired public affairs companies to help sharpen its message both to lawmakers and a broader audience. The company worked with Seven Letter, a bipartisan communications firm, on an extensive series of focus groups and polling both before and after Chews congressional testimony last year, according to someone familiar with the project. Seven Letter declined to comment on the project. Lawmakers concerned about TikToks operations in the U.S. dismissed the efforts of the companys lobbyists. Youre wasting your time," Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.) said of his discussions with TikTok lobbyists. I can smile and nod, but thats not where my vote will be." Alex Leary and Jack Gillum contributed to this article. Write to Natalie Andrews at natalie.andrews@wsj.com and Kristina Peterson at kristina.peterson@wsj.com Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Billionaire and X (formerly Twitter) owner Elon Musk has predicted that AI will probably be smarter than individual human by next year. The billionaire was responding to a clip of a discussion between podcaster Joe Rogan and 'futurist' Ray Kurzweil on when AI will reach human level intelligence. The discussion involved Kurzweil telling Rogan that human level artificial intellige will become a reality by 2029. He said, We're not quite there, but we will be there, and by 2029 it will match any person. I'm actually considered conservative. People think that will happen next year or the year after." Reacting to the clip of the discussion on X, Musk wrote, AI will probably be smarter than any single human next year. By 2029, AI is probably smarter than all humans combined." What is AGI? AGI or Artificial General Intelligence has become a buzzword among tech leaders worldwide these days, following the rise of artificial intelligence systems such as ChatGPT and Gemini. However, there's still no agreed definition of the term, and it's generally accepted that it's a stage at which the AI model gains enough skills to perform any task that humans can do with equal or better proficiency. Even among technology leaders, there is wide disagreement about when or even if AGI will become a reality, and whether it will lead to potential harm or benefit to the human race. Let's take a look at what different tech leaders think about AGI. Meta's Yann LeCun: In an interaction with Time Magazine earlier this year, Meta Chief AI scientist Yann LeCun had said that the current LLMs powering AI chatbots are not on a path towards AGI. He said, Its astonishing how [LLMs] work, if you train them at scale, but its very limited. We see today that those systems hallucinate, they don't really understand the real world. They require enormous amounts of data to reach a level of intelligence that is not that great in the end. And they can't really reason. They can't plan anything other than things theyve been trained on. So they're not a road towards what people call AGI." I hate the term. They're useful, there's no question. But they are not a path towards human-level intelligence." Sundar Pichai on AGI: In an interaction with the New York Times, Google CEO Sundar Pichai had rejected the debate around AGI while saying that the current systems are goiung to be very very capable in the future. He said, When is it A.G.I.? What is it? How do you define it? When do we get here? All those are good questions. But to me, it almost doesnt matter because it is so clear to me that these systems are going to be very, very capable. And so it almost doesnt matter whether you reached A.G.I. or not; youre going to have systems which are capable of delivering benefits at a scale weve never seen before, and potentially causing real harm. Can we have an A.I system which can cause disinformation at scale? Yes. Is it A.G.I.? It really doesnt matter." Sam Altman on AGI: OpenAI founder and CEO Sam Altman has been amongst the prominent voices on the potential benefits that AGI could cause to humanity. Speaking to Time Magazine last year, he said, I think AGI will be the most powerful technology humanity has yet invented. If you think about the cost of intelligence and the equality of intelligence, the cost falling, the quality increasing by a lot, and what people can do with that. It's a very different world. Its the world that sci-fi has promised us for a long timeand for the first time, I think we could start to see what thats gonna look like." Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed it's all here, just a click away! Login Now! Immersed in the fast-paced world of pharmaceuticals and healthcare as an economist, I find Changjiang Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd.s (SZSE:300391) prospects intriguing. With the use of external analysis and data from reliable sources, I hope to provide readers a thorough understanding of Changjiang Pharmaceuticals perspective and educate them about the companys present situation as well as its future course. Understanding Changjiang Pharmaceuticals Position Listed under the ticker 300391 on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, Changjiang Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. is a major participant in the Chinese pharmaceutical market. Focusing on pharmaceutical product discovery, manufacture, and distribution, Changjiang Pharmaceutical has made a name for itself in the healthcare industry. 1 month-free trial showcasing Xenith Analyzing Financial Performance An analysis of Changjiang Pharmaceuticals previous financial performance is necessary to have a thorough grasp of the companys prognosis. Based on data from Simply Wall St., Changjiang Pharmaceutical has demonstrated steady sales growth and profitability over the last few years, suggesting that the companys financial health is sound. The capacity of the business to provide steady streams of income is a good sign of its long-term survival. Market Dynamics and Growth Potential Chinas pharmaceutical market is expanding quickly due to a number of reasons, including an aging population, rising healthcare costs, and a growing need for creative medical solutions. Because Changjiang Pharmaceutical has a wide range of products and a significant presence in important therapeutic areas, it is well-positioned to benefit from these developments. Strategic Initiatives and Innovation The capacity of Changjiang Pharmaceutical to innovate and adjust to shifting market conditions is critical to its success. The companys strategic endeavors, such as R&D investments, collaborations with academic institutions, and market expansion, demonstrate its dedication to promoting innovation and upholding competitiveness within the pharmaceutical sector. Regulatory Environment and Compliance Changjiang Pharmaceutical, a participant in the heavily regulated pharmaceutical sector, has to manage a challenging regulatory landscape to guarantee adherence to relevant rules and regulations. The companys ability to sustain customer trust and confidence in its goods is largely dependent on its compliance with regulatory requirements and dedication to quality assurance. Competitive Landscape and Market Position The competitive market environment in which Changjiang Pharmaceutical works is defined by the existence of both domestic and foreign pharmaceutical enterprises. To keep its market position and achieve long-term sustainable growth, the firm must be able to set itself apart via product quality, price strategy, and customer service. Risk Factors and Mitigation Strategies Although the future of Changjiang Pharmaceutical seems bright, there are hazards involved. The success of the firm may be impacted by variables including market competition, regulatory changes, and economic uncertainty. Changjiang Pharmaceutical has to keep investing in R&D, diversify its product line, and maintain a proactive approach to risk management in order to reduce these risks. Conclusion: Charting a Course for Success The dynamic Chinese pharmaceutical business presents opportunities for growth and success for Changjiang Pharmaceutical Group Co., Ltd. (SZSE:300391). Changjiang Pharmaceutical, with its emphasis on innovation, compliance, and market expansion, is in a strong position to take advantage of new possibilities and get over obstacles. Changjiang Pharmaceutical can set itself up for long-term success and value generation by remaining adaptable, proactive, and customer-focused. YEREVAN, MARCH 13, ARMENPRESS. The resolution presented at the plenary session of the European Parliament regarding the need for closer ties between the EU and Armenia and a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan was adopted with 504 votes in favor, 4 against, and 32 abstentions. According to the Brussels correspondent of Armenpress, in the resolution, the MEPs welcomed and accepted Armenia's determined desire to strengthen relations with the EU. They called on the executive bodies of the European Unionthe European Commission and the European Councilto respond positively to this desire and continue implementing the newly agreed agenda of the EU-Armenia Partnership. The resolution emphasizes the need for active pursuit of ambitious joint cooperation priorities. It also states that it is time to begin a dialogue on visa liberalization with Armenia. Members of the European Parliament call to consider the possibility of granting Armenia the status of a candidate for EU membership. The MEPs are convinced that if Armenia is interested in applying for candidate status and continuing on its path of sustained reforms consolidating its democracy, it could set the stage for a transformative phase in EU-Armenia relations. With the adopted resolution, the deputies of the Council of Europe are calling on the EU executive to actively support Armenia in enhancing cooperation with the EU. This support should encompass not only economic partnership but also political dialogue, sectoral integration, and cooperation in the field of security. It condemns the Azerbaijani military incursions into the internationally recognised territory of Armenia and ongoing occupation of parts of it; reiterates its demand for the withdrawal of Azerbaijans troops from the entirety of the sovereign territory of Armenia; rejects and expresses its grave concern regarding the irredentist and inflammatory statements made by the Azerbaijani President and other Azerbaijani officials threatening the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Armenia, including those in connection with demanding the exterritorial corridor linking Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan; warns Azerbaijan against any potential military adventurism against Armenia proper; highlights that Azerbaijans connectivity issues with its exclave of Nakhchivan should be resolved with full respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia. The resolution emphasizes that the EU should be prepared to establish a sanctions regime against individuals and organizations that pose a threat to the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Armenia. The resolution expresses serious concern about the failure to safeguard the cultural, religious and historical heritage of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, in violation of the ICJ Order of 7 December 2021; condemns all cases of the destruction, vandalism and desecration of all sites recalling the centuries-long Armenian presence in NagornoKarabakh; calls on the Azerbaijani authorities to preserve, protect and promote the rich and diverse heritage of the region; urges UNESCO to take immediate action to preserve and protect Armenian cultural heritage at risk in Nagorno-Karabakh. It calls on Azerbaijan to genuinely engage in a comprehensive and transparent dialogue with the Karabakh Armenians to ensure respect for their rights and guarantee their security, including their right to return to and live in their homes in dignity and safety under international presence, to access their land and property rights, to maintain their distinct identity and fully enjoy their civic, cultural, social and religious rights; calls on Azerbaijan to release and commit to broad amnesty for all the inhabitants of Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia who continue to be in Azerbaijani custody; calls for the full, immediate and effective implementation of all the ICJ orders. The resolution reiterates the European Unions unequivocal support for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of the borders of Armenia; strongly supports the normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan based on the principles of mutual recognition of territorial integrity and inviolability of borders based on the 1991 Almaty Declaration, border delimitation based on relevant USSR General Staff maps that have been provided to both sides, and the unblocking of regional communication based on respect for the sovereignty and jurisdiction of both countries, on the basis of reciprocity and equality. It expresses its support for the resumption of talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan on all pending issues, with the aim of concluding a peace treaty, and calls on both parties to remain fully committed to a lasting and peaceful settlement of the long-standing dispute, through dialogue and negotiations. The resolution also refers to the tone of statements made by some EU officials and structures who congratulated President Aliyev on his re-election without mentioning the lack of democracy in Azerbaijan. This is particularly concerning given that Azerbaijan is responsible for the ethnic cleansing of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh. Legislation that would ban some citizens of China from owning farmland in Georgia is advancing at the state Capitol despite criticism that it promotes xenophobia and could face legal hurdles Danielle Chacon say her daughter Haven was eager to attend the dance. She says her and her best friend talked about it and were ready to show each other their moves. Private utility wants to bypass Georgia county to connect water to new homes near Hyundai plant A private utility is asking Georgia lawmakers to change a state law so it can provide water service to new homes near Hyundai's upcoming electric vehicle plant without getting permission from local governments Guest Commentary By Sylvain Charlebois The global obesity epidemic is escalating at an alarming rate. According to a recent study in The Lancet, the number of people living with obesity surpassed one billion globally in 2022. Since 1990, obesity rates have more than doubled in adults and quadrupled in children and adolescents. Moreover, the data indicate that 43 percent of adults were overweight in 2022. This report suggests that obesity is now recognized as a greater global health concern than hunger, signalling a paradigm shift in our collective concern toward overweight and obese populations. The situation is projected to worsen. According to the World Obesity Federations 2023 atlas, 51 percent of the global population, amounting to over four billion people, will be classified as obese or overweight by 2035. This shift in focus from hunger to obesity indicates that the world is not necessarily running out of food but is rather facing a complex issue of food distribution and consumption. Hunger has always been an issue of unequal distribution, while the rising global obesity risks suggest a more intricate problem. Canada is not immune to this trend. The obesity rate in our country ranges between 30 and 33 percent depending on the source, with the overweight rate also exceeding 30 percent in many reports. Some studies even suggest that our obesity rate is now higher than that of the U.S. The call to action by The Lancet is a serious one. Experts argue that the issue is closely related to the accessibility of ultra-processed foods. In response, the Trudeau government has implemented several measures since 2015, including new front-of-packaging regulations set to take effect in 2026, which will help consumers identify products high in fat, sugar, or sodium. Additionally, Bill C-252, currently in the Canadian Senate, aims to restrict food and beverage marketing directed at children. While it is too early to assess the impact of these measures on the obesity epidemic, they represent a step in the right direction. However, many experts had high hopes for a significant change with the introduction of the new food guide. Despite being over five years old, the guide has not been able to reverse the trend of increasing obesity rates, while Canadas life expectancy has decreased for three consecutive years, from 82.3 years in 2019 to 81.3 in 2022. Although COVID-19 and other factors have contributed to this decline, obesity is a known risk factor for premature mortality and increased medical needs throughout life. The complexity of obesity as an issue is evident. Factors such as poverty, education, access to healthcare, and lifestyle all play a role in determining an individuals risk. One emerging trend is the increasing use of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, originally designed for diabetes management, for non-medical weight loss purposes in the Western world. The impact of obesity on COVID-19 mortality rates has also brought attention to these drugs as potential solutions for weight loss. The recent departure of Oprah Winfrey from the WeightWatchers board, coupled with her admission of using a GLP-1 drug, led to a 20 percent drop in the companys shares. This news, along with the decreasing shares of snack food companies like Mondelez, PepsiCo, and Nestle, indicates a growing concern in the industry about the impact of these drugs on consumer behaviour. With projections suggesting that nearly 25 million Americans will be using these drugs by 2032, the industry is closely monitoring the situation. While official numbers are unavailable in Canada, there was a shortage of Ozempic for a while, highlighting the growing demand. Policy decisions will undoubtedly influence the demand for these novel drugs. The new Pharmacare bill introduced in Parliament this week did not include these drugs, but it will be interesting to see whether governments will view them as a solution to the obesity problem. Our current approach to addressing obesity is not yielding the desired results. However, as with many other health challenges, the solution may once again emerge from Big Pharma. Dr. Sylvain Charlebois is senior director of the agri-food analytics lab and a professor in food distribution and policy at Dalhousie University. Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton said he hopes the voucher program gives parents the best chance of doing what best for their child's education. 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. CitySwift, a company co-founded by Longford men Brian O'Rourke and Alan Farrelly, has opened its first office in the UK and announced 50 new jobs for Ireland and the UK and a new partnership with Transport North East in the UK. Marking the accelerated pace of growth of Irish companies in the UK, Minister for Finance, Michael McGrath T.D. visited London to attend a series of events with Enterprise Ireland client companies including CitySwift, Version 1, EPS Water, Fexco and Bounce Insights who are all on a trajectory of rapid growth in the market. Minister McGrath officially opened CitySwifts first UK office, based in London. Brian O'Rourke is the Chief Executive Officer of CitySwift and Alan Farrelly is the Chief Commercial Officer of CitySwift. and both men are natives of Kenagh and past pupils of Mercy Ballymahon. CitySwift is the leading company in data intelligence for the public transport sector has made a huge impact in the UK market, growing its customer base by 150% in 2023, working with major transport operators including National Express, Go-Ahead Group, Transport for Wales, Metroline, Translink and Blackpool Transport. The company has announced that it is creating 50 new jobs for Ireland and the UK over the coming 2 years, as well as a new partnership with Transport North East in the UK. Alan was one of the guests at the recent AI: The Way Forward business event in Longfords Backstage Theatre. Minister McGrath said, "Companies such as CitySwift and many more are utilising their innovation and expertise to tap into new markets in the UK supporting their growth and employment levels and I wish them continued success. Deirdre McPartlin, Regional Director for UK & Nordics in Enterprise Ireland said, CitySwift is a great example of a company whose success and market credibility can be directly attributed to their ongoing commitment to customers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland over a number of years. The opening of this office in London is a critical next step in their ongoing growth in the UK. Enterprise Ireland is delighted to have been part of CitySwifts success through our start-up, innovation and in-market support. Video: Longford's Brian O'Rourke and CitySwifter bidding for glory at Irelands Best Young Entrepreneur (IBYE) Final By Catherine Sas, K.C. Special to The Post On Thursday, February 29, 2024, at 11:30 PM Eastern Standard Time, Canadas Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Honourable Marc Miller, re-imposed a visa requirement on all Mexican nationals seeking to come to Canada temporarily as visitors, students and workers. For many Mexicans currently in Canada, their Electronic Travel Authorizations (eTAs) were immediately cancelled. For those seeking to enter Canada, it put an immediate hold on travel plans while the new rules are sorted out and visas obtained. Canada has had an interesting relationship with an on-again, off-again and now on-again visa requirement for Mexico. After many years of a visa-free relationship between Canada and Mexico, that came to an end on July 14, 2009, when Canadas then Conservative Minister of Immigration, Jason Kenny, imposed a visa requirement due to the high levels of refugee claims by Mexican nationals. After the election of the Liberal government in November 2015 the visa requirement was lifted as of December 1, 2016. The Liberals have now changed direction by re-imposing the visa requirement this past month, again citing the high level of refugee claims being made by Mexican nationals, most of which are rejected by Canadas Immigration and Refugee Board. IRCC has been busy sending messages to many persons from Mexico currently in Canada advising them that their eTAs have been cancelled and advising them of the new visa and travel requirements. These new rules affect visitors to Canada and NOT persons with a valid work or study permit whose eTAs will continue to be valid. eTAs are required for air travel to Canada; however, for those who are travelling by car, bus, train or boat, a visitor visa is required. Select Mexican nationals will still be able to apply for an eTA to visit Canada. Specifically, those who have previously held Canadian visitor visas in the past 10 years or those who currently hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, will continue to be eligible to apply for eTAs to travel to Canada as visitors. One of the most notable changes resulting from the re-imposed visa requirements is for work permit applicants. Canada shares a special relationship with Mexico given its trade agreements. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) took effect on January 1, 1994, and allowed certain professionals and investors to apply for work permits exempt from the standard labour market impact assessment process (LMIA). This agreement was renamed the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) on July 1, 2020; however, the work permit provisions remained the same. With the visa-free status for Mexican nationals, they could apply for a work permit at the border or port of entry. That is no longer possible given the new visa requirements. Under the new rules, all Mexican nationals who wish to apply for a Canadian work permit must apply online to IRCC. Their applications will undergo the standard work permit processing procedures, which include the requirement to undergo biometric data collection (fingerprinting and photographs), as well as the requirement to submit the applicants original passport to receive their visa to travel to Canada. Recognizing that disallowing port-of-entry applications represents a dramatic shift from past practices, the Minister has announced that IRCC will be prioritizing the processing of work permit applications from Mexico. The Ministers announcement to re-impose visa requirements has far-reaching consequences for many travellers to Canada. Included among them are family members of Canadian citizens or permanent resident who were previously able to travel to Canada without visas to see their loved ones, but who are now required to apply for a visitor visa even though they have travelled to Canada in the past 10 years. It will also disproportionately affect certain travellers such as business visitors to Canada who were previously able to travel to Canada on short notice for business activities without going through a formal visa application process. Most importantly, the elimination of port-of-entry work permit applications for Mexican nationals means that Canadian employers will need to plan well ahead to bring Mexican talent to Canada. The re-introduction of the visa requirement necessarily adds delay for Canadian employers looking to hire workers from Mexico to fill labour shortages and it is still too early to know whether the Minister will deliver on his promise to provide prioritized processing for work permit applications coming from Mexico. Canadian employers and Mexican job seekers alike will need to stay updated with the latest news from the Minister! Catherine Sas, K.C. has over 30 years of legal experience. She provides a full range of immigration services and is a leading immigration practitioner (Lexpert, Whos Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada). Go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email catherine@sasanding.com. Crime By Chris Boyle Published: March 13 2024 Cornell Bozier Steered Over $800,000 in Construction Contracts to Co-Conspirator Controlled Companies in Exchange for Kickback Payments. Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Cornell Bozier, the former Chairman of the Board of Commissioners (Board) at the Village of Hempstead Housing Authority (VHHA) was sentenced by United States District Judge Joan M. Azrack to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and three counts of federal program bribery. Bozier was convicted by a federal jury in April 2019. Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), and William Woolard, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of the Inspector General (HUD-OIG), Northeast Region, announced the sentence. The defendant exploited his official position as Chairman of the Village of Hempstead Housing Authority to enrich himself at the expense of the elderly, disabled and low-income residents whom he was meant to serve, stated United States Attorney Peace. Corruption at any level of government erodes public confidence in the institution and will not be tolerated in this district as the defendant learned the hard way. Cornell Bozier and his co-conspirators engaged in an egregious false billing and kickback scheme resulting in the theft of critical taxpayer dollars, stated HUD-OIG Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Woolard. Moreover, they risk damaging the integrity of HUD programs and violate the trust of the communities who rely on them. HUD OIG will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to vigorously pursue those who seek to profit by abusing HUD-funded programs. The VHHA was established to provide low-income families, disabled residents, and senior citizens in Hempstead with safe, sanitary, and affordable housing, and received nearly $1 million in federal funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) during the defendants tenure as Board Chairman from 2011 to 2013. The funding from HUD included money needed for capital improvements, major repairs, and other large-scale construction projects. Before HUD would release funds for the more expensive construction projects, the VHHA was required to follow a Procurement Policy designed to ensure open and transparent competition in the bidding process and contract awards to the lowest responsible bidder. As proven at Boziers trial and set forth in court filings, rather than providing his residents with the honest services they needed, the defendant used his official position to orchestrate a bid-rigging and kickback scheme by filling numerous positions in the Housing Authority with either co-conspirators who were actively participating in the scheme, or people he believed could be manipulated and would not interfere. Bozier relied on bribes, threats and intimidation to pressure other Board members into supporting his fraudulent schemes. Bozier also fraudulently induced the Board to declare numerous projects as emergencies to sidestep the normal procedure process by which the VHHA obtained HUD funding. During the conspiracy, the defendant and his co-conspirators submitted grossly inflated bids to the Board for repair projects at properties throughout the VHHA and Bozier used his de facto control over the Board to secure the acceptance of those bids. The work related to those projects was then subcontracted out at a fraction of the amount paid by the VHHA for nominal and, in many cases, substandard repairs and work. Bozier demanded and received numerous cash payments from his co-conspirators, who prepared and submitted the fraudulent bids as kickbacks for his role in the scheme, which totaled more than $100,000. For example, the VHHA paid a co-conspirator company, Devlin Mac Construction, $273,900 to replace the roof at one of its apartment buildings. Rather than replacing the roof, a subcontractor was paid $23,000 to patch and repair certain sections. The rest of the VHHAs money was split between the defendant and his co-conspirators, with the defendant receiving $55,000 in kickbacks for his role. This scheme was repeated and fraudulent bids were submitted for more than a half dozen construction projects during Boziers tenure, as he tried to steal as much of the VHHAs money as he could. In total, the defendant steered more than $800,000 of VHHA funds to co-conspirator companies as part of his fraudulent scheme and received more than $100,000 in kickback payments. Local News By Chris Boyle Published: March 13 2024 As we work to prepare the Countys forthcoming capital plan, securing County resources to bolster traffic safety along Long Beach Road is my top priority, Legislator Mule said. Nassau County Legislator Debra Mule (D Freeport) applauded her colleagues on the Legislatures Rules committee for approving a key contract for advancing the Long Beach Road resurfacing, drainage and traffic safety improvement project. During committee meetings on Monday, March 11, Rules members approved an $807,647.60 contract Gannett Fleming Engineers and Architects, P.C. for engineering services. Funds will be drawn from the $9.44 million in capital plan funding commitments that Legislator Mule secured for the second phase of improvements to Long Beach Road in South Hempstead, a project which will focus on the stretch between Stanton Avenue and the Southern State Parkway. The project builds upon flood mitigation project on Long Beach Road under the Southern State overpass which Legislator Mule shepherded to completion in the summer of 2021. Local News By Chris Boyle Published: March 13 2024 During the ceremony, 279 members of the Department were recognized for exceptional police work. Nassau County Legislators Scott M. Davis (D Rockville Centre) and Seth I. Koslow (D Merrick) proudly attended the Nassau County Police Departments 144th Departmental Awards Ceremony, which was recently held at the David S. Mack Center for Training and Intelligence in Uniondale. During the ceremony, 279 members of the Department were recognized for exceptional police work, their heroism in life-saving scenarios, and dedication to the department and the residents they serve. It was a pleasure to be a part of an event that honors the men and women who make the Nassau County Police Department so outstanding, Legislator Davis said. The heroism and exceptional professionalism of these honorees exemplify a steadfast dedication to public service that is at the core of exceptional community policing. A C-130 takes part in a drill to supply troops in the field with equipment. (IDF) On March 11, the Israel Defense Forces targeted Hezbollah in Lebanon after two days of increased Hezbollah attacks on Israel. Airstrikes in the Beqaa Valley targeted sites that belong to Hezbollahs aerial forces that planned and carried out various attacks against the State of Israel. The IDF said this was direct retaliation for Hezbollah using drones or unmanned aerial vehicles to target the Golan Heights over the last week. The Hezbollah escalation in attacks began on March 9 and continued into March 10. In the morning on March 10, Hezbollah launched 35 rockets toward Mount Meron. Hezbollah has targeted this area before, launching attacks on an IDF base located on the mountain. Footage of the incident showed many rockets falling in a forest near the mountain. The IDF said that some of the projectiles were intercepted. The IDF also said that overnight between March 9 and 10, warplanes had struck an anti-tank missile launch post in Lebanon. The IDF also struck the site of the launches fired towards Meron. Hezbollah continued its attacks throughout the day, including an attempt to launch an anti-tank missile toward the Mount Dov or Shebaa Farms area which Hezbollah claims is part of Lebanon. IDF fighter jets and aircraft were directed to strike the cell before they were able to carry out the attack. In another incident, a Hezbollah drone targeted Mount Hermon, the large mountain that towers over the Golan Heights. This mountain has a ski resort on it that Israel often opens during the winter, but it has been closed due to the attacks. Hezbollah sought to shift its attacks toward this area on March 10. After the drone crashed, another thirty rockets were fired at the area. The IDF responded with artillery and struck a launcher. More attacks by Hezbollah followed on March 11, with a UAV infiltrating an area near the Golan. The IDF said that it had detected two aerial targets that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory that fell in open areas. It was not clear if these targets had been intercepted or crashed of their own accord. The increased attacks by Hezbollah on Mount Meron and the Mount Hermon appear to be part of a strategy by Hezbollah to try to target specific sites in the north. It has targeted IDF bases in the past and claimed to target surveillance sites on the border. Israels retaliation is proportional both to the type of attack and the type of threat. For instance, rockets and ATGM attacks are often met with artillery or other types of short-range precision fire. However, the longer range drone attacks are met with longer range strikes. The Israeli retaliation on March 11 took place more than 80 miles inside Lebanon. The pro-Iran Al-Mayadeen network said that the last time the IDF struck an area so far inside Lebanon was on February 26. At the time, Hezbollah claimed it had fired 60 rockets at Israel in retaliation for the Baalbek strike. The rising tensions in the north also came as Israel carried out an exercise to reinforce training for long-range logistical supply to forces. The IDF is exercising providing supplies under fire as part of operational readiness in the northern arena, the IDF said. The drill saw C-130s bring supplies to an airfield. The exercise included Northern Command in cooperation with the Israeli Air Force and ground forces. Equipment, water, fuel and ammunition were unloaded from the aircraft, the IDF said. The use of C-130s to carry out airdrops and supply operations have increased since the Hamas attack on October 7. More than 110 tons of supplies have been brought to Gaza using this method, the IDF says. The IDF is ready to conduct similar operations in the northern arena as wellextensively and under fire if necessary, the IDF said on March 11. This is a clear reference to being able to supply troops in the field if there is escalation in the north. It is also a message to Hezbollah given escalation by the Iran-backed group in recent weeks. Reporting from Israel, Seth J. Frantzman is an adjunct fellow at FDD and a contributor to FDDs Long War Journal. He is the acting news editor and senior Middle East correspondent and analyst at The Jerusalem Post. Shabaab, al-Qaedas branch in East Africa, is steadily undoing progress made by Somali security services in its nearly two year old counter-offensive against the group. Over the last few days, the group has recaptured several important areas in central Somalia that the federal government in Mogadishu previously touted as successes in the campaign to weaken the jihadist insurgency. At the same time, the United States has both sanctioned a far-reaching money laundering network of the group and launched new airstrikes in Somalia. Even with the recent sanctions and military operations against Shabaab, the U.S. continues to estimate that Shabaab rakes in nearly $100 million a year while the drone strikes have done little to stymie the groups advances against the Somali military. Retaking Ground Central Somalia, particularly the regions of Galguduud, Hiraan, and Mudug, have been at the forefront of the aforementioned counter-offensive against Shabaab since those operations were launched in mid-2022. The Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in Mogadishu has often touted the capture of Shabaab-held areas in those regions as signs of success in the counter-offensive. Over the last several months, however, the offensive(s) in those regions have largely stalled and Shabaab has made a concerted effort to take advantage of the halted progress particularly as seen with the devastating attack on a Somali military base in Oswein, Galguduud, in late Aug. 2023. Since then, Shabaab has exploited the weakness of the Somali military in the region to retake some of its previously lost territory. In the last week, however, Shabaab has made its most dramatic gains yet. For instance, in Mudug, Shabaab recaptured Caad, Camara, and allegedly Bacadweyn, though the local police chief has disputed this latter claim. All three areas saw intense fighting between Shabaab, Somali troops, and Macawisely, or local clan militias allied with the Somali National Army (SNA). The confirmed recapture of Caad and Camara also came after Shabaab launched large-scale attacks on those localities in Jan. 2024 and Dec. 2023, respectively. According to local media, the al-Qaeda branch was able to recapture the areas in recent days after Somali troops withdrew. Further still in Mudug, Shabaab also reportedly recaptured Laasgacamey and Sirgo, while advancing on Xarardheere, one of the biggest locales retaken from Shabaab during the counter-offensive. And much like in Caad and Camara, SNA troops also reportedly withdrew from Laasgacamey and Sirgo before Shabaabs recapture. And though entirely unconfirmed (as of the time of publishing), there are claims of Masagaway, a town in Galguduud, also being recaptured by Shabaab. If true, this comes just a few months after Masagaway was captured by Somali forces. The SNA prematurely withdrawing from strategic areas has been an issue for years and is a primary way Shabaab retakes territory. As the army advanced in central Somalia during the current counter-offensive, the SNA was theoretically meant to rely on the Macawisely for these holding operations. Shabaab taking advantage of the slowed-to-stalled counter-offensive against it is something FDDs Long War Journal has warned about for many months. For example, in July 2023, we noted the slowing of the offensive, and thus weakening the pressure against it, allowed Shabaab to conduct a series of attacks both in Mogadishu and against remaining African Union forces. Much more recently in Sept. 2023, which was Somalias worst month on record for suicide bombings taking place within its territory, we noted this was only possible in part due to the counter-offensive stalling. The more Somalias counter-offensive against Shabaab continues to be stalled the more likely it will be that Shabaab continues to find opportunities to further undo any progress made against it. All of this is currently compounded by the African Union troops, which provide for a much needed security buffer in many areas, drawing down for a full withdrawal by the end of the year. Sanctions and Drone Strikes As Shabaab was making these advances, the United States sanctioned a geographically disparate money laundering network helping to finance the al-Qaeda branch. Two drone strikes, neither of which were located in central Somalia, were also reported by the U.S. Militarys Africa Command (AFRICOM). On Monday, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned 16 entities and individuals, ranging from locations in Somalia, Kenya, Uganda, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Finland, and Cyprus, all operating as part of a cohesive network to help finance Shabaab. Many of the entities and individuals are related to the Haleel Group and its subsidiaries, which operate in all the aforementioned countries by members of the Somali diaspora. Two additional businesses, Qemat Al Najah General Trading in the UAE, and Crown Bus Services in Kenya, were also sanctioned for their connections to the Haleel Group. Treasury makes a specific note of this networks activities inside Uganda, noting that all of the directors of Haleel Groups Uganda branch are involved in this financing scheme. Shabaabs activities in Uganda, though receiving less attention than its activities in Kenya, remain steady. Though it does not conduct attacks inside Uganda like it does inside Kenya, the recent U.S. sanctions makes clear that Shabaab continues to find fertile ground at least for logistical support. In recent years, Shabaabs recurring recruitment of Ugandans have also come to light. Additionally, AFRICOM has noted that it has conducted at least two new drone strikes against Shabaab in southern Somalia. On March 2, it stated it killed two Shabaab members in a so-called collective self-defense strike not far from the southern city of Kismayo. And on March 10, it killed an additional three Shabaab fighters in a drone strike near Ugunji in the Lower Shabelle region. This brings the total number of U.S. drone strikes in Somalia so far this year to six. Last year, AFRICOM conducted 18 drone strikes and one special operations raid inside Somalia. Since taking office in Jan. 2021, the Biden Administration has conducted a total of at least 43 drone strikes inside Somalia according to data kept by FDDs Long War Journal. However, drone strikes over the last year have done little to stop Shabaab from taking advantage of a counter-offensive on pause and weakened security as African Union troops continue to draw down. Caleb Weiss is an editor of FDD's Long War Journal and a senior analyst at the Bridgeway Foundation, where he focuses on the spread of the Islamic State in Central Africa. Commentary By Emmanuelle Faubert If the New Democrats have their way, your drug insurance coverage could take a turn for the worse. As part of their agreement to keep the Liberals in power, the New Democrats have stipulated certain conditions. One of these is the adoption of a single-payer universal drug insurance plan from coast to coast. While the idea of expanding access to insurance to one and all may have some merit, the formula the NDP and the Liberals have adopted risks imperilling coverage quality for millions of Canadians. Their plan, in its first phase, covers birth control and diabetes medication under a federally imposed plan across the country. Yet, they have been clear that these two categories are just the first phase towards establishing a comprehensive, universal single-payer pharmacare system across the country. Universality is not the problem; it is the single-payer aspect of the pharmacare plan. What the members of the New Democratic Party are asking for amounts to the abolition of private drug insurance, to be replaced by a single plan administered by the government. Whatever province you reside in, private drug insurance plans cover many more different medications than public plans. On average, coverage is 51 percent more extensive in a provinces private plans. In Quebec, the province with the most generous public coverage, this difference is 59.6 percent. Indeed, extending coverage akin to Quebecs public drug insurance to the entire country would risk compromising the quality of coverage for 21.5 million Canadians by the imposition of a government monopoly in this area. And loss of coverage could mean loss of access to drugs. Already, some pharmacists are raising a flag about what reduced insurance coverage could signify. Alan Low of Medicines Access Coalition, for instance, says that coverage by some form of insurance is often a key factor in determining whether or not to distribute a drug in a given jurisdiction. When you consider that less than half of drugs that have entered the Canadian market over the past decade are covered by public plans, its enough to send a shiver up your spine! Additionally, there is the problem of delays in approval. The regulatory pathway a new drug must navigate before being marketed is already long and costly. Once a drug is approved by Health Canada, it takes an average of 226 days before a private insurer approves its coverage. Thats a little over seven months. That might seem long, but its nothing compared to the approval delays of public plans. On average, it takes 732 days after approval by Health Canada, or a little over three times as long, before a public plan adds a drug to its list of covered treatments. In other words, if an innovative drug is needed to treat your ailment, youd best be patient if your only option is public insurance. Should federal politicians want to guarantee drug insurance coverage for all Canadians, more focused, targeted options would achieve this goal without jeopardizing the coverage quality of the majority. Currently, thanks to public and private drug insurance plans, just under 90 percent of the Canadian population has drug insurance coverage. That still leaves 4.9 million of our fellow citizens who, for a variety of reasons, have no insurance coverage. Among these, the most vulnerable are surely the 1.1 million Canadians who are not eligible for insurance coverage, be it public or private. A targeted program aimed at this latter category of citizens would have the benefit of improving their access to health care without jeopardizing the access of tens of millions of Canadians for whom the current system works much better. Given the current strain on federal public finances, this approach would also have the advantage of not significantly increasing the deficit, unlike a single-payer universal program. Furthermore, implementing an insurance mandate similar to Quebecs model would ensure universal coverage while still allowing individuals to choose between private or public insurance. The NDPs request, in its current form, poses a significant risk for the insured. Hopefully, other federal politicians will adopt a more prudent approach. Emmanuelle B. Faubert is an economist at the Montreal Economic Institute Counting continues at Luxembourgs major employers, with final results for election to the Chamber of Employees not expected for several days OGBL president Nora Back was delighted that her union managed to gain majority representation in companies across almost all sectors OGBL president Nora Back was delighted that her union managed to gain majority representation in companies across almost all sectors Photo credit: Lex Kleren OGBL president Nora Back was delighted that her union managed to gain majority representation in companies across almost all sectors Photo credit: Lex Kleren Luxembourgs two major trade unions, the OGBL and LCGB, have said they are happy so far with results from Tuesdays social elections at which employees vote for staff delegation representatives in 2,662 companies and institutions. Nora Back, president of the OGBL, said Tuesday evening that the union had landed majority delegations in many companies, and in some such as supermarket Auchan, engineering solutions company Socom, the Red Cross and retirement home operator Servior, the union even managed to get 100% representation. This had happened across almost all sectors, Back said. Other companies, where the OGBL was previously in a minority or not at all represented, have now elected a majority of members from the union, including the Brasserie National (which makes Bofferding beer) and Oberweis and Namur in the food sector. Also read: Luxembourgs lesser known elections coming up in March Patrick Dury, head of the LCGB, said that he was pleased with the unions showing in companies such as dry-cleaning outfit 5 a Sec, Vinsmoselle and the CFL Multimodal unit. The union also performed well in the bus company sector. Dury said the LCGB was focused on the private sector. People who work in the private sector have specific needs, he told RTL at an election party at LCBG headquarters Tuesday. And we cant allow the gap between the private and public sector to grow. Provisional results by Wednesday lunchtime showed that the OGBL had managed to attain around 25% representation, with the LCGB at just under 14%. Also read: Banking unions lambast fake promotions as labour talks loom Politically neutral trade union ALEBA, which previously only represented staff in the banking and insurance sectors, has won around 4% of the votes. It has gained majority representation at Clearstream and Societe Generale, for instance. Overall, we are satisfied, Aleba president Roberto Mendolia told Luxembourg Times on Wednesday afternoon. We seem to be getting stronger in finance and everywhere else we have entered candidates we have obtained elected representatives, such as in the Robert Schumann hospitals, security at G4S, the textile industry at Indorama, commerce and communication. Now everyone knows that we are ready to defend genuine politically neutral trade unionism everywhere Roberto Mendolia President, Aleba Prior to the elections, Mendolia had stated Alebas ambition to join the big two unions in gaining national representation at the 2029 social elections. He said that the results laid the foundations for that goal. Admittedly, it has been timid breakthrough, Mendolia admitted. But now everyone knows that we are ready to defend genuine politically neutral trade unionism everywhere, while strengthening our position in finance but without losing our original identity. However, the majority of staff representatives, some 56%, are representatives of other trade union groups that are specific to a company or institution, according to figures released by the Inspectorate of Work and Mines. The counting of votes for election to the Chamber of Employees will take several days to complete. In total, some 617,000 employees were registered to vote at the social elections. Turnout, though, is not usually very high in 2019 it stood at around 33%. If Apple had its way, it would never open the App Store to competition, never offer web downloads of apps, never allow app developers to link to outside websites, and probably never reduce its cut of all App Store purchases from the original 30 percent tariff. For the last 15 years, Apple has had its way. Thats all changed, now, by the force of the European Unions Digital Markets Act (DMA), along with the results of a few legal matters in Japan, South Korea, and the Netherlands. This is a new era, where Apple cant just have its wayinstead, it has to abide by regulations specifically targeted at its own preferred business practices. The companys reaction to this era has been occasionally combative and passive-aggressive. Some have called it malicious compliance, a label that I dont think quite encompasses Apples approach. As events this week have shown us, Apples approach to responding to regulation is incremental and iterativekind of like its approach to designing and updating products. The question is, whats going to be the cost of Apple taking this approach? I dont want to be here If you werent sure before, Apples statement about the DMA made it perfectly clear that Apple is at a party it doesnt want to attend, dressed in an outfit its mom told it to wear. But rather than pull itself out of the rich European market, Apple is modifying its business model to comply with the new rules to the letter. By which I mean, its going to comply with the letter of the rules, not necessarily the spirit. Many of Apples choices suggest that the goal is to comply with the words on the page, but in a way that makes taking advantage of them as unpalatable as possible. The plan is to satisfy the lawbut nobody else. In a way, this makes sense. The job of a tax accountant is to make you (legally!) pay what you owe to the government and not a cent more. Apple wants to give away as little control of its platform as it can manage. The problem with this is that there are a bunch of European Commissioners and regulators who are interested in the DMA causing real change in behavior, and they have the ability to force Apple to change its ways in a way that nobody has really been able to do before. Apples approach to allowing third-party app marketplaces is to do the minimum and then adjust accordingly. Apples approach to allowing third-party app marketplaces is to do the minimum and then adjust accordingly. Foundry Apples approach to allowing third-party app marketplaces is to do the minimum and then adjust accordingly. Foundry Foundry When Apple announced its new policies, it was a real question: Do these satisfy the letter and spirit of the DMA? And if not, what happens next? This week we found out. I meant to do that Apples initial DMA rollout featured a polished presentation about the creation of alternative app marketplaces, basically App Stores run by companies other than Apple. It was a bit surprising since one of the implications of the DMA seemed to be that Apple would add sideloading, letting developers offer direct downloads of apps from their own websites. But according to the letter of the law, it was an either/orso Apple was going to force all developers to go through a middleman, even if it wasnt Apple. And of course, there were conditions to this already-compromised idea: Proprietors of these marketplaces needed to satisfy numerous tests in order to be allowed to run stores, and they couldnt be company townsthey had to offer space to companies other than themselves. But then something funny happened. Apple modified the rules, to allow company towns (i.e., Facebook could make a marketplace just for its own apps) and let certain developers offer marketplaces without satisfying some financial tests. And then on Tuesday, a bigger bombshell: alternative marketplaces wouldnt be mandatory for app distribution, after all. Later this spring, developers in the EU will be able to offer their apps directly, so long as they pass some of those same eligibility tests. Apple suggested that it made these changes after consultation with developers, which, okay, sure. But lets be clear: this is very obviously the result of European regulators nudging Apple and telling the company that it hadnt gone far enough and wasnt honoring the spirit of the DMA. And now we can fully see Apples strategy of incremental compliance, brought into action: The company announced the minimum possible and then waited to be told what else it needed to do. Now it will begin modifying those policies, as required, in order to satisfy regulators while still doing the minimum required of it, presumably hoping that it wont get nudged by the regulators all that often. How are we playing this? I dont think Apple should give away all of its control over its platform out of generosity. To its credit, the company has tried to build features that keep iOS as safe as possible in a world where apps can come from outside the App Store. I do believe it legitimately cares about platform securityit also cares about control and money. Apple opened the iPhone in the EUbut did it really? Apple opened the iPhone in the EUbut did it really? David Price / Foundry Apple opened the iPhone in the EUbut did it really? David Price / Foundry David Price / Foundry The challenge with Apples approach is that while theres a risk in giving away more control, power, and money than you have to, theres also a risk in being perceived by the regulators as being hopelessly combative and untrustworthy. Apple needs to maintain a good relationship with its regulators, or it risks being punished. I have to admit, it doesnt look like things are off to a good start. Apples numerous policy changes suggest that the reviews of its long-gestating policies are in, and theyre not good. The company didnt help itself by strongly suggesting last week that it kicked Epic Games off the App Store a second time because its CEO posted mean tweets that disagreed with Apples overall policies. (This was yet another decision that was suddenly reversed, presumably because a European regulator cleared its throat and wagged a finger at Apple.) Expect more of this. In a far cry from its usual major product announcements and declarations, which are generally comprehensive, Apples App Store policies in the EU will be a work in progress. The company will continue to make changes, incrementally, in order to address specific complaints. Policies will be announced, then revised, then rescinded. These shifting sands arent really good for anyoneits tough to build a business plan on them, and consumers in the EU will undoubtedly be frustrated toobut its the natural consequence of Apple continuing to draw lines in the sand, daring the regulators to cross, and then drawing yet another line and issuing another dare. While were all waiting for Apples big push into generative AI in iOS 18, a new report claims Apple may have something far less exciting in mind than chatbots and image editing: ads. According to a Business Insider post, Apple is taking a cue from Google and Meta by testing a new AI-powered ad system that automatically decides where to place ads within its App Store. The report says Apple has already informed advertisers of the pilot program, which is designed to help Apple learn how it can improve the performance of its Apple Search Ads, and is likely to introduce the new initiative in the coming months. Apple is expected to unveil several AI initiatives during WWDC in June, though its unlikely this program will be among them. The program Business Insider describes is similar to Googles Performance Max and Metas Advantage+ campaigns. On those platforms, Google and Meta simplify the ad-buying process by automatically determining the campaign that best fits a clients needs after a simple setup process. The new process, Business Insider explains, will let advertisers enter their budget target metrics, audiences, and countries they want to reach. Then Apples AI-powered algorithm will decide where best to place ads within the search result, today tab, or app listings. The program will reportedly be limited to App Store search results, though it may extend to other apps, including Maps and Sports. According to research firm Omdia, Apples ad business is on track to make some $7 billion in revenue this year, up from $6 billion in 2023 and $4 billion in 2022. Apple Vision Pro went on sale on February 2, 2024. Its a mixed reality headset (Apple calls it a Spatial Computer) that marries an M2 processor with a lot of custom silicon, sensors, cameras, and more. The starting price of $3,499 and limited availability means that its a niche product, but its the first in a new category that Apple believes will be critical in the coming years. Apple Vision Pro Read our review Apple Vision Pro price and availability The headset was first announced at WWDC in on June 5, 2023, with pre-orders starting January 19, 2024 and availability on February 2. The starting price is $3,499 for 256GB of storage, with a 512GB model availably for $3,699 and a 1TB model for $3,899. Apple Vision Pro is only available in the United States to start, with other territories coming throughout 2024. You can only buy it online directly from Apple or at an Apple Store. Part of the reason for this is the necessity to get a proper fit and optical inserts. Apple takes a scan of your face (you do this yourself with your iPhone if you are buying online) to select a proper face seal size. If you wear prescription eyewear or need readers, you can order special Zeiss inserts for $99 (readers) or $149 (prescription); the headset does not work with your own eyewear. If you want to buy the Vision Pro you can order one from Apples website, or by using the Apple Store app on your iPhone. You can also go to an Apple Store for a fitting and to purchase one. Apple Apple Apple There are also other accessories available for purchase, including a travel case ($199), battery ($199), Belkin Battery Holder ($50), Solo knit Band ($99), Dual Loop Band ($99), Light Seal ($199), and Light Seal Cushion ($29). AppleCare+ is also available for $499. Apple is yet to say when Vision Pro will be available to buy outside the U.S. beyond saying that it will be shipping to more countries later in 2024. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has suggested that the Vision Pro will be launched outside the U.S. before WWDC in June. He believes that will be necessary to enthuse the developers attending Apples Worldwide Developers Conference. Apple Vision Pro review In our Apple Vision Pro review, we found the technology very impressive, but the comfort and softwareboth apps and operating systemquite limited. Theres a lot of potential there, but it will take quite a while for the software to mature enough to unlock it, and for most users, the Vision Pro will never be worth the price. Will there be a cheaper Apple Vision Pro? We take the fact that the Vision Pro has the word Pro in its name as a big hint that a more affordable version will be coming down the line. An Apple Vision Air, if you will. Bloombergs Mark Gurman believes that a cheaper headset will arrive in 2025. He reported in October that Apple is already working on the sequel to the headset, which will be cheaper than the original model. The Vision Pro is likely to follow the example of the HomePod with the expensive pro model paving the way for a cheaper option down the line. But it could be a while before the economies of scale and advancements in technology make a cheaper Apple Vision product viable. Apple Vision Pro compatibility The Vision Pro is its own product with its own software ecosystem. It has its own App Store, and runs software independent from other Apple products (though apps like Messages and Photos can sync via iCloud with your other Apple products). There is support for iPad apps, however. By default, all iPad apps are made available for use on Vision Pro and can be found in the Vision Pro app store, but developers can opt not to allow their apps to be used on the device. White many iPad apps are available, prominent exceptions include YouTube, Spotify, and Netflix. Apple Vision Pro specs The Vision Pro is powered by an M2 processor with 8 CPU cores and 10 GPU coresthe same as you would find in a MacBook. It has 16GB of RAM and 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB of flash storage. There are 14 cameras on the inside and outside, a LiDAR scanner, multiple IR illuminators, an accelerometer, gyroscope, and multiple microphones. A custom R1 processor is made to process the vast amount of data from these sensors very quickly, for lightning-fast eye tracking and a delay for the video pass-through of only 12 milliseconds. When wearing the Vision Pro you look through custom catadioptric pancake lenses at a pair of micro-OLED displays, one for each eye. About the size of a postage stamp, each of these displays has a stunning resolution of about 3,386 pixels per inch, more than 4K per eye. Of course, what matters is pixels per degree when looking through the lenses, which on Vision Pro is around 34 pixels per degree (less than youd see looking at an iPhone display, but more than most other VR headsets). Apple does not disclose the field of view for the Vision Pro, but it appears to be somewhere around 110 horizontally and 90 vertically. The Vision Pro is actively cooled, with a fan inside, but the fan runs so quietly you cant hear it. There are two individually amplified drivers inside each audio pod on the side of the headset near the headband connection. They deliver Personalized Spatial Audio based on the users own head and ear geometry. As a result, the sound feels like it is coming from the space around you. Vision Pro also matches the sound to the room using audio raytracing. The Vision Pro also recognizes the users iris via a new method to unlock the device and authenticate passwords and purchases called Optic ID. Like the iPhone and Mac, all data is stored on a dedicated Secure Enclave processor. On the outside of the headset is an OLED display with a lenticular lens over it that Apple calls EyeSight. It projects a rendered image of your own eyes with correct perspective, so others can see you looking at them. If you are in a fully immersive environment and cant see anyone, the EyeSight display shows a blueish haze. Apple Vision Pro battery life Apple Vision Pro connects to an external battery via a custom tether, and the battery lasts for around 2 to 2.5 hours. The battery pack has a USB-C port that can only be used to recharge it, though you can use the Vision Pro with the battery plugged in. Weight & Dimensions According to Apple Vision Pro tech specs, the headset weighs 21.2 to 22.9 ounces (600 to 650 grams) depending on the Light Seal and headband configuration. Thats about the weight of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro (24 ounces/682 grams). Its not necessarily heavier than other VR headsets but quite a bit heavier than the Meta Quest 3, which weighs 18.2 ounces (516 grams). The weight is very front-heavy, mostly in the metal and glass out in the front of the face seal instead of distributed around the sides. The battery pack weighs 12.5 ounces (353 grams). What it is like to use Vision Pro With a Vision Pro headset users will be able to watch a movie, listen to music, browse photos, look at 3D objects, and even collaborate on a presentation. Users experience a three-dimensional interface and input system that they control with their eyes, hands, and voice. You select things by looking at them and pinching your fingers together, then dragging objects around or flicking your hand to scroll. A virtual keyboard is used to enter text where appropriate, either by poking at the keys or looking at each key in succession and pinching your fingers together. You can also use voice input to enter text, or a bluetooth keyboard. Apple has posted a 10-minute guided tour explaining how navigation and gestures work as well as several apps. Apple Apple Apple When you first put on Vision Pro you see your surroundings. You can freely move apps to fill the space around you and they can expand into your space. The digital crown lets you adjust volume or the degree of immersion in your environmentfrom fully immersed in a virtual space to seeing passthrough video of your own space. Heres an primer on what the Vision Pro buttons do. A user can bring Mac wirelessly into Apple Vision Pro just by looking at it and choosing to connect to it, if it is logged into the same Apple ID. The Mac display will blank out and be replaced by a big 4K virtual display in your Vision Pro environment; youll continue to use the Mac keyboard and touchpad, however, and audio will still play from the Mac. Apple Vision Pro software and apps The Vision Pro headset runs visionOS, an operating system that Apple has designed from the ground up for visual computing. The latest version is visionOS 1.1, which includes support for managed profiles, improved Personas, and lots of bug fixes and minor improvements. There will also be a number of well-known Apple apps available at launch, such as Safari, Messages, and FaceTime. Apple launched Vision Pro with more than 600 optimized apps. Apple Vision Pro terms As with many Apple products, the company has some of its own branding around things that may be better understood by other names. Here are some of the things you may see associated with Vision Pro and what they mean. Spatial Computing: Computing that appears to happen in the environment around you rather than inside a computer (or phone). A sort of umbrella-term that encapsulates AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality), and MR (Mixed Reality). It is not inaccurate to call Vision Pro and Mixed Reality headset. Spatial apps: Apps designed with the Vision Pro hardware in mind, as opposed to iPad apps running in a window. Some Spatial apps are fully immersive experiences, others are almost indistinguishable from iPad apps. Fully immersive: A fully immersive experience is one in which your surroundings are not visible: youre completely surrounded in a virtual environment. In other words Virtual Reality. Spatial Audio: Audio that seems to come from specific places in your environment. Persona: A 3D digital recreation of you, created by scanning your face using the Vision Pro cameras. It is meant to be used to represent you in video conferencing apps like FaceTime or Zoom, since the Vision Pro has no cameras that can actually see your face (just specialized internal cameras for eye tracking). Spatial Video: A new 3D video format that can be captured with either the Vision Pro or an iPhone 15 Pro. Spatial Videos can be viewed using a Vision Pro or even a Quest headset, and look a bit like a 3D diorama of a memory. Its an emotionally charged and effective way of capturing the moment. Effort adheres to China's 'new quality productive forces' philosophy The State Council, China's Cabinet, has rolled out a host of measures to enhance the resilience and competitiveness of industrial and supply chains and build up the nation's digital economy, as part of broader steps to bolster the development of "new quality productive forces". The Government Work Report, approved by legislators at the second session of the 14th National People's Congress on Monday, outlined steps to modernize the nation's industrial system, including stronger measures that will harness the role of innovation and promote new industrialization. The nation will launch an initiative for pursuing high-quality development of key manufacturing chains, with a focus on shoring up weak links, reinforcing strengths and fostering new capabilities, the report said. Officials and experts said the slew of measures will provide a solid policy framework for the nation's industrial upgrades and serve as a strong pillar for the development of new quality productive forces, which feature high technology, high efficiency and high quality, and are aligned with the country's new development philosophy. Jin Zhuanglong, minister of industry and information technology, said on the sidelines of the annual legislative sessions last week that the nation must accelerate the construction of a modern industrial system with advanced manufacturing as its backbone. He highlighted the need to promote the upgrade of China's traditional sectors to enable their green, intelligent and high-end transformation, saying that the government will continue to facilitate the development of a number of Chinese manufacturing brands with international influence. According to the report, the nation will launch industrial innovation projects, improve the industrial ecosystem, expand the application of innovations, and promote the integrated and clustered development of strategic emerging industries. More work will be done to consolidate and enhance the nation's leading position in industries such as intelligent connected new energy vehicles; step up development of hydrogen power, new materials, innovative drugs and other cutting-edge sectors; and foster new growth engines in fields such as biomanufacturing, commercial spaceflight and the low-altitude economy. New development plans will be made for the industries of the future, the report said, adding that the nation will strive to open up new fields such as quantum technology and life sciences, and create a number of zones for pioneering the development of future-oriented industries. According to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the scale of China's manufacturing sector accounted for over 30 percent of the global total in 2023, with the nation's total industrial added value reaching 39.9 trillion yuan ($5.5 trillion). Zhu Keli, founding director of the China Institute of New Economy, said ensuring that the nation's industrial system is independent and under its own control was emphasized in the latest report. He highlighted the significance of the national initiative to boost the high-quality development of China's key industrial chains in the manufacturing sector, saying that such a move would strengthen the competitiveness and resilience of the chains. Li Yan, deputy head of the department responsible for researching the industrial economy with the Development Research Center of the State Council, said that the rising cost of production and the lack of investment in research and development remained the major challenges facing China's manufacturing businesses. As an example, she said that the R&D intensity the ratio of R&D to GDP of the nation's large and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises only stood at about 1.4 percent in 2022, compared with the national average of 2.56 percent for that year. "With its low profitability and wage levels, the manufacturing sector isn't appealing for high-tech talent," she explained. Jin, the minister, said the government will seek to further amplify the role of leading firms in industrial chains to strengthen the manufacturing sector. Meanwhile, the Government Work Report said the nation will encourage the development of venture capital and equity investment and improve the functions of industrial investment funds. Another focus of the report is to extend stronger support to the high-quality development of the digital economy, including efforts to transform traditional industries with digital technologies and further integrate digital technology into the real economy. The Government Work Report said the nation will step up R&D and the application of big data and AI, launch an AI Plus initiative and build digital industry clusters with international competitiveness. China will work to digitalize the manufacturing sector and fast-track the large-scale application of the industrial internet, the report said, adding that more work will be done to promote the digitalization of the service sector and to build smart cities and digital villages. An initiative will be launched to also promote the digitalization of small and medium-sized enterprises. The draft budget report released by the Ministry of Finance last week said the central government will allocate 370.8 billion yuan for science and technology expenditures, up 10 percent year-on-year, with a focus on basic research, applied basic research, and national strategic science and technology tasks. Zhu, from the China Institute of New Economy, said the measures rolled out in the report were both forward-looking and systematic. "Enhancing the applications of R&D outcomes and building digital industry clusters will help build up the competitiveness of the nation's digital economy and provide a solid foundation for its long-term growth," he said. He also highlighted the significance of developing future-oriented digital infrastructure, explaining that a strong computation system serves as the pillar for the development of AI. "The cultivation of emerging and future industries can help the nation take the high ground in technology and industry, avoiding falling behind in the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation," he said. Furthermore, the growth of the digital economy can drive the digital transformation of the economy, enhancing the quality and efficiency of growth while providing the public with more convenient, efficient and intelligent digital services, he said. Yu Xiaohui, a national political adviser and president of the China Academy of Information and Communications, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency that he expects AI technology and its related sectors to enter a key period of rapid evolution and breakthroughs. He said the launching of an AI Plus initiative will promote the systematic empowerment of key areas by artificial intelligence, accelerate the reshaping of industrial ecology and foster new economic development momentum. A report conducted by Yu's academy last year showed that the scale of China's core AI industry output reached 578.7 billion yuan, with 4,482 related enterprises. The AI industry chain has covered key upstream and downstream fields such as chips, algorithms, data, platforms and applications. Commentary By Susan Martinuk A national Pharmacare deal has been reached and NDP leader Jagmeet Singh is proclaiming it to be a huge win for his party. But amidst the Gatorade celebrations and public self-congratulatory statements, Singh and his MPs appear blind to the possibility that this deal may be the final straw that breaks whats left of the back of Canadian healthcare. Most obviously, the plan is fiscally irresponsible. Healthcare already costs the federal government over $300 billion per year. Yet, in the past few months, as the gaping cracks in the system have become increasingly evident, the Trudeau government has added on a $13 billion per year dental plan that will soon go into effect. And now this another $40 billion per year to fund a behemoth Pharmacare bureaucracy. Its just another expensive add-on to our piecemeal system, which is already on life support because of a lack of cash and innovation. If $300 billion isnt enough to fund the healthcare system that is now in place, its difficult to understand how the government thinks it can pay out an additional $53 billion to fund Singhs political delusions. In fact, without innovation and change, there will never be enough money to sustain a universal, single-payer healthcare system. Healthcare delivery has changed, and the days of government-funded healthcare only are long gone. But Chrystia Freeland, the Liberal finance minister, seems just as unwilling to face reality, claiming the Pharmacare deal wont have any impact on our federal financial situation. Its an outrageous comment, as every Canadian knows that billions of dollars in additional spending will ultimately mean higher taxes, program cuts in other sectors, and/or another addition to our trillion-dollar debt. No matter which way you cut it, Canadians will pay for so-called free Pharmacare. Ironically, few Canadians even seem to want a national Pharmacare program. In December, a Leger survey asked Canadians to name their top healthcare priorities. Their top concerns were reducing surgical wait times (36 percent), building long-term care homes (32 percent) and expanding mental health services (30 percent). A national Pharmacare program was a priority to just 18 percent. The governments own research showed similar results. In January, it was reported that the Privy Council Office (which provides internal government research and support) had paid $815,0000 to a research group to hold focus groups on various issues, including healthcare. Two reports emerged, dated June 12 and July 10, 2023, and they offered broad insights into the health care concerns and priorities of Canadians. In the June report, priorities included long wait times to access emergency care, a shortage of doctors and nurses, burnout among medical professionals and a widespread dearth of mental health services. The July report highlighted a lack of home care options for an aging population, limited access to virtual care options and a perceived lack of prevention-base medicine. An August 2023 report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information confirmed these results while emphasizing the current need to modernize healthcare information systems and electronic health information. A national Pharmacare program? Apparently, not that important. Why? Probably because Statistics Canada has shown that 79 percent of Canadians already have some form of prescription drug coverage through employers or other government-sponsored plans. Admittedly, gaps exist, but the bottom line is that prescription drugs are affordable for most Canadians. If Canada cant afford it and Canadians dont want it, why is the Prime Minister doing this? To stay in power. The Pharmacare and dental plan deals were a condition of the NDPs confidence and supply agreement with the minority Liberal government and Prime Minister Trudeau. Over the past months, Singh has repeatedly warned Trudeau of the consequences that could ensue if his government failed to act on these two priorities. This is the sad result that occurs when healthcare is reduced to political expediency. Canadians and our broken healthcare system will end up paying the price for a government that is struggling to cling to power and keep the free family vacations. Too cynical? Perhaps. But backroom deals that serve politics rather than provide Canadians with the services that they need and want offer clear evidence that our federal government is out of touch with the realities of Canadian life. Susan Martinuk is a Senior Fellow with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and author of Patients at Risk: Exposing Canadas Healthcare Crisis. A hotel in Worcester has been recognized by AAA as one of the best hotels in central Massachusetts. The association awarded the Beechwood Hotel a ranking of four diamonds for the 14th consecutive year in a row, according to a statement released by the hotel on March 13. By Fernando Arce New Canadian Media When Vernetta found out four years ago that she got into a bridging program to help people with precarious immigration status study at York University, it was truly one of the happiest days of her life. It was very helpful, she recalls. It came at a point in my life where I was just facing a black hole. Four years ago, Vernettas application for permanent residence under humanitarian and compassionate grounds was being processed, leaving her without legal immigration status. In Canada, there are an estimated 200,000-500,000 people like Vernetta, with precarious or undocumented status, including youth, according to the Migrant Rights Network. Under Canadas Immigration and Refugees Protection Act (IRPA), foreign nationals as she was considered cannot attend postsecondary institutions without a study permit. They are also required to pay international student fees. Immigration data shows that between 2016 and 2019, the rate of humanitarian and compassionate grounds applications refused after processing ranged from 35 to 41 per cent, as Global News reported. That figure shot up to about 70 per cent in 2021. So, I was in a state of limbo, recalls Vernetta, who asked not to use her last name to avoid being stigmatized. Ive always wanted to pursue postsecondary education, but I was not able to because of my status. That changed when she found out about York Universitys Sanctuary Scholars Bridging Program, which helps people with precarious immigration status study at the undergraduate level with no questions asked and at domestic rates. Despite being able to enroll in elementary and secondary schools, students with uncertain, or precarious immigration status, can find it impossible to access higher education in Ontario, even though they may have received their entire education in Ontario or arrived in Canada with high school or university-level credentials. For this program, the term precarious immigration status is used to include students who are in the process of applying for permanent status in Canada through refugee claims, refugee appeals or judicial reviews, humanitarian and compassionate grounds applications, pre-removal risk assessments, or those who currently have no immigration status, according to the website. Last fall, Toronto Metropolitan University became only the second Canadian university to implement a similar Sanctuary Scholars program. According to a 2023 York U paper on the issue, without programs like the ones at York and TMU, after students with precarious status turn 18, they are often blocked from accessing postsecondary education either because they do not have study permits or because they cannot afford prohibitively expensive international tuition fees. This is made worse by the fact that in recent years the Canadian government has increasingly relied on temporary status to manage migration, which, in turn, facilitates multitude forms of temporariness, the paper states. Youre stuck in that point in time because you cant go forward, and you definitely cant go back, says Vernetta, who had been waiting many years for her PR application to be processed. Its a kind of permanent temporariness. Tanya Aberman, who coordinates both programs, says thats why it became so important to create this pathway: as people are trying to navigate the immigration system, they are still able to pursue their education and pursue their dreams. To Vernetta, it made a world of a difference. The sanctuary scholars program allows you to move forward, even though its just within the space of education, but at least you have that sense of control over your life, she says. Its something in your life that you can control, that youre making progress in. Aberman says students are officially categorized with the province as Non-Canadian, status unknown (refugees and other foreign students in Canada whose status is unknown). In its answers to NCM, IRCC said students considered to be foreign nationals and studying without a study permit may be determined inadmissible to Canada on the basis of non-compliance with the Act and/or Regulations. As well, the CBSA may conduct criminal investigations when it is determined that organizations/individuals have deliberately circumvented the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. However, Aberman assures the program is based on absolute confidentiality and students only report their status to her. In fact, she says, professors and other staff arent even aware of which students are in the program. This is absolutely key, says Vernetta, because when you have precarious status, that fear of exposure, of being found out, is very real Just one unfortunate encounter and youre going to be exposed. Thats why Aberman says it would be wonderful and a positive thing to expand the programs nationwide. Yet, outside of those two institutions which have limited spaces (TMUs fall cohort, for instance, only admitted 20 students) people with precarious status continue falling through the cracks. According to a The Varsity HYPERLINK "https://thevarsity.ca/2023/10/30/u-of-t-could-open-its-doors-to-canadas-..." news report from last October, the administration for Torontos other major institution University of Toronto is dragging its feet, avoiding direct questions as to when a similar program might be implemented there. We are engaging in conversations and consultations to understand the particular educational barriers that people with precarious immigration status face and possible models to address them. Discussions on this issue are ongoing and no decisions have been made, a U of T spokesperson is quoted as saying. The York U academic paper notes that institutions may be fearful that by admitting students without a study permit which is a violation under IRPA they may be culpable too. But charges and prosecutions using these provisions are highly unlikely, the authors argue. Moreover, if such charges were pursued, there is a good argument to be made that the Courts would find the relevant provisions unconstitutional. Even if an institution is penalized for breaking the law, they argue, this is one of the limited sets of circumstances where pushing back against the law and even breaking the law if necessary would be warranted. Ontarios Ministry of Colleges and Universities did not reply to NCMs multiple requests for comments as to their position on such programs and what legal or other barriers institutions might face in implementing them. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) replied through email, saying provinces and territories are responsible for education. It added that most people attending elementary or secondary schools in Canada are minors and have the right to study while in Canada. Not all of them require a study permit. On Monday, April 8, 2024, the moon will completely block the sun along a track intersecting the United States from Texas to northwest Vermont, bringing the path of totality closer to southern New England than anytime since 1963. In practical terms, we here in Massachusetts can experience 3 1/2 minutes in the moons shadow for the low, low price of a days round-trip drive. Its the total solar eclipse weve been waiting for. A 28-year-old man is facing charges after he was accused of inviting a man he met online to his apartment for sex, only to prevent him from leaving until the man paid him $100, prosecutors said. Anthony Brimage, 28, is charged with kidnapping and unarmed robbery in connection with the March 8 incident, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced Tuesday. Brimage was ordered held on $1,000 bail during his arraignment in the Dorchester division of Boston Municipal Court. Boston police responded to a call for an unarmed robbery at about 2:06 a.m. on March 8. The victim told police he met a man on the online dating app Grindr and agreed to meet at the mans apartment on Nepsonset Avenue, the statement said. But, when he arrived, Brimage is accused of telling the man he needed to send him money if he wanted to have sex, authorities said. A parent whose convictions in the college admissions scandal were overturned is now suing Netflix over his and his childrens depictions in the streaming services documentary about the case. In October 2021, Massachusetts resident and private equity investor John Wilson was convicted of paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to get his children accepted to elite colleges. But in May 2023, a federal appeals court overturned the fraud, bribery and conspiracy charges against him. Wilson and his son Johnny are now suing Netflix over a documentary it released in 2021 called Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal. The civil complaint, filed March 4 in Barnstable Superior Court, alleges that the documentarys producers defamed the family in their selective and misleading account of the Wilson family in this sensational celebrity cheating scandal, according to a press release. While justice has largely been restored in the court of law, exoneration is still needed in the court of public opinion, particularly as the Netflix film continues to falsely smear my family and shamefully misleads viewers to discredit the hard-earned accomplishments and talents of my innocent children, Wilson said in the release. We have suffered tremendous harm as Netflix chose sensationalism over accuracy, a deliberate choice which destroyed our reputations and grossly violated the ethics of documentary filmmaking as well as basic decency. Netflix did not immediately return a request for comment on the lawsuit Wednesday morning. In the complaint, Wilson and his lawyers argue that the Wilson family was falsely depicted through several different film-making techniques. One of these was the interspersing and superimposing of Wilsons voice-overs with reenactments of other parents committing crimes. For example, in one scene, Wilsons name and voice are superimposed over a scene in which actors depict parents photoshopping fake water polo photos of their child something Wilson was never accused of doing. This cinematic sleight of hand tarred Mr. Wilson with the dirty brush of other parents bad actions, the press release reads. Similarly, the documentary includes snippets of quotes from Wilson that distort the true meaning of the conversation, Wilson and his lawyers argue. In one scene, the film plays part of a quote from an FBI set-up call with Wilson in which he says his his daughters dont need to play the sport. Whats not included in the documentary is that Wilson goes on to say his daughters would be scorekeepers or team managers, the lawsuit alleges. The documentary also ignored the specifics of Wilsons and his childrens case, the lawsuit alleges. Wilson asserts that his highly-qualified children were admitted based on their own hard-earned merits, such as perfect ACT scores and world records in swimming. To this date, Netflix has failed to update their film to indicate that Mr. Wilson was cleared of all the core charges against him, leaving viewers with the false impression that he committed fraud against USC and other colleges, the press release reads. A girl attending the Josiah Quincy Upper School in Boston was injured when a classmate used a stun gun on her during a shouting match that turned violent, police said. A substitute teacher at the school told police he saw a student screaming at another girl in the hallway around 11 a.m. Monday morning, according to a Boston Police Department report provided to MassLive. The teacher attempted to intervene and told the student she needed to de-escalate. But, the girl just repeatedly said What are you talking about? Im not concerned about you. Im only concerned about my schoolwork. While the teacher was in between the two students, the girl stepped around him, pulled a black object out of the front pocket of her hoodie, and began hitting the other student in the head with it, police said. The teacher told police he heard a buzzing or zapping noise and saw a lighting bolt and a wire hit the floor before the other student began screaming, she tased me! The family of a Haverhill man killed in a shooting in North Andover early Sunday morning has created a GoFundMe campaign to raise money that will fund his funeral. North Andover police found the body of 21-year-old Jaeby Ortiz Ruiz on Riverview Street the afternoon of March 10, the Essex County District Attorneys Office said previously. Authorities believe he was shot and killed by 22-year-old Haverhill resident Derick Moncion sometime earlier in the day. Authorities have charged Moncion with murder in Ruizs death, the district attorneys office said previously. He was arrested Monday. Read more: Haverhill man charged with murder in North Andover fatal shooting In the GoFundMe campaign, Ruizs brother, Ninoshka Ruiz, describes him as one of the realest persons in our lives. With his departure, he left us all in a deep grieve and with an emptiness in our hearts, Ruizs brother wrote. Nine people had donated a total of over $300 to the campaign by 2 p.m. Wednesday, but the family is hoping to raise $10,000. It breaks Ruizs family to have to ask for money to pay for his funeral, Ninoshka Ruiz said on the campaign page, but anything helps. Please help us give my brother a beautiful forever resting spot, he wrote. The campaign indicates that Ruizs funeral is set to take place on March 20, but no funeral information was listed online on Wednesday. During Moncions arraignment in Lawrence District Court on Tuesday, a judge held him without bail in accordance with in an agreement the prosecution has made with Moncions lawyer, according to The Eagle-Tribune. The judge also revoked bail on an open case out of Lawrence. The case has been impounded, and authorities have not released any further information about it, including Moncions relationship to Ruiz or a potential motive. A Hopkinton couple was arrested Wednesday morning in connection with separate schemes to defraud workers compensation insurance carriers, the Small Business Administration, and their mortgage lender, the U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts office announced. Ronaldo Solano, 51, and Adriana Solano, 40, were indicted by a Boston federal grand jury on charges of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement. Ronaldo Solano is also facing additional counts of mail and wire fraud. The Solanos were expected to appear in federal court in Boston later Wednesday, Levys office said. The Solanos, who operated a roofing and construction company based in Framingham under the names H&R Roofing & Construction Inc. and H&R Roofing & Siding Corp., are accused of avoiding more than $627,000 in workers compensation insurance premiums by intentionally underreporting payroll expenses and paying workers through a shell company, Levys office said. They are accused of doing so over an eight-year period stretching roughly from 2012 to 2020. Separately, between 2021 and 2022, the Solanos submitted a loan application on behalf of the roofing company to the Small Business Administration under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program, which provided pandemic relief funds to companies. In their application, Ronaldo and Adriana Solano are accused of requesting $2 million in relief funds for working capital and other business expenses, according to the statement. After receiving the funds, the couple is accused of moving $1 million to a personal bank account they shared, and using more than $825,000 for a down payment toward a home in Hopkinton. Prosecutors said Ronaldo and Adriana Solano borrowed another $770,500 from a mortgage lender to pay for the home, but did not disclose the use of the disaster loan for the down payment. If convicted on both charges, Adriana Solano would face up to 50 years in prison and significant fines that could total more than $1 million. Ronaldo Solano would face the same penalties, and an additional sentence of no more than 20 years in prison for the charges of mail fraud and wire fraud, Levys office said. Investigators continue to work out an exact crime scene following a shooting along Interstate 391 in Chicopee after people in connection with the shooting were uncooperative, Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gullunis office announced. Massachusetts State Police troopers were notified of the shooting at around 8:45 p.m. on Tuesday, State Police said in a statement on Wednesday. They received a report that said there was a shooting on the southbound side of Interstate 391 in Chicopee. State Police found that one of the cars involved then arrived at Baystate Medical Center on their own, the statement said. One of the people inside who was shot, a 35-year-old man, was rushed into surgery but did not survive. Detectives interviewed the other three people who were in the car, including a person who was shot but survived, about the incident, State Police said. Early findings in the investigation suggest that the vehicle, an SUV, was driving southbound when it was fired upon from the drivers side in the area of mile marker 2.6. But as investigators attempted to find the crime scene, Gullunis office noted that the surviving occupants have been uncooperative ... Investigators were able to locate a scene earlier this morning on Interstate 391 south between exits three and four. The investigation remains ongoing, led by the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to Gullunis office. A car-to-car shooting along Interstate 391 in Chicopee ended in a mans death, Massachusetts State Police announced. Troopers were notified of the shooting at around 8:45 p.m. on Tuesday, State Police said in a statement on Wednesday. They received a report that said there was a shooting on the southbound side of Interstate 391 in Chicopee. State Police found that one of the cars involved then arrived at Baystate Medical Center on their own, the statement said. One of the people inside who was shot, a 35-year-old man, was rushed into surgery but did not survive, the statement said. Detectives interviewed the other three people who were in the car, including a person who was shot but survived, about the incident, State Police said. Early findings in the investigation suggest that the vehicle, an SUV, was driving southbound when it was fired upon from the drivers side in the area of mile marker 2.6. When the SUV stopped by the side of the road to flag other cars for help, no one came to their aid and they drove to a nearby hospital, State Police said. The investigation remains ongoing, led by the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit for Hampden County. The U.S. Attorneys Office for Massachusetts is seeking the recovery of approximately $2.3 million in cryptocurrency, which includes profits from a so-called pig butchering fraud scheme targeting a Massachusetts resident as part of a romance scam, prosecutors announced Wednesday. Prosecutors began investigating the fraud in the spring of 2023, and found a Massachusetts resident had been tricked into wiring more than $400,000 into a cryptocurrency wallet, acting U.S Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement. While the wallet was hosted by a legitimate cryptocurrency exchange, some of the funds were transferred to other wallets and ultimately to Binance, another crypto exchange. The parent of a New Jersey high school student was jailed after walking into a classroom earlier this week and threatening a student involved in a dispute with his daughter, according to police. The confrontation, which occurred Monday at Paulsboro High School, was caught on cellphone video that shows a man ordering a teenage boy to apologize to his daughter. The angry father then nearly got into a fistfight with another student, according to the video posted on social media. The 38-year-old man was charged with two third-degree counts of terroristic threats, along with simple assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct, and jailed on Monday. The father, a resident of the Gibbstown section of Greenwich Township, was ordered released from jail to await trial during a court hearing Tuesday afternoon. He must maintain monthly contact with court officials and is to have no contact with the students involved in the incident or their families, a judge said. He also is not permitted on school grounds. The video of the incident appears to show the father being directed to a classroom, then someone knocking on the door. Its unclear who let the father and the person taking the video into the locked classroom, but the man immediately confronted a male student once inside. You got a problem with my daughter? he asked the teen. Apologize to my daughter. I didnt do nothing to her, the student responded. You heard what the f--- I said. Apologize to my daughter Now, the father said again, his voice getting louder. The man then confronted another student who spoke to him, according to the video. It was more than a minute into the two minute and 51 second video before an adult attempted to intervene. A man put his arm on the fathers back and tried to escort him from the room as the parent verbally sparred with the second student, trading vulgar retorts, the video shows. If I gotta come up here again, Im gonna slap fire on both of yall, the father said as he began to leave the classroom. One of the students the father confronted then tried to encourage him to fight. The man, who was almost out of the classroom, returned to face the teenager, according to the video. He and the teenager appeared to make physical contact and police allege the father made threats and grabbed the students arm. School officials have not responded to requests to comment on the incident. The father had come to the school around 11:30 a.m. Monday to sign out his daughter, according to the affidavit of probable cause filed with the charges. His daughter was having a problem with another student over photos that were allegedly shared with others, police said. Instead of leaving the school after signing out his daughter, the father headed upstairs to the classroom, police said. The affidavit filed by police states the teacher in the classroom did not have his school radio within reach to communicate with school security and did not want to escalate the issue by reaching for it. Instead, the teacher said he tried to defuse the situation by speaking to the father, according to police. The schools head of security was not notified of the incident until the father was already off school grounds, the affidavit noted. Police were dispatched to the school around 2:15 p.m., hours after the incident, according to the affidavit. Paulsboro police reinstated the School Resource Officer program to add police officers to school buildings just last week, thanks to funding from a grant, Police Chief Gary Kille said Tuesday. But, a police officer was not working in the high school building on Monday when the incident occurred. The officer is primarily stationed at the high school, the chief said, adding that the district also has members of a security company in place at all of its schools. Americans discovering how Australian daylight saving time zones work have savagely ripped the country to shreds saying time zones Down Under "need to change". US-based sports journalist and podcaster Jack Mac shared his "fury" online after looking at maps showing the different times in each state and territory. "Every time Im reminded of how Australia does time zones, I get mad for no reason," he said. "The daylight saving portion of this graphic makes me furious." Despite the frustration as some Aussies have pointed out most US states also participate in daylight savings. Daylight saving time zones in Australia have been slammed by American podcaster Jack Mac. Source: TikTok American's fury at daylight saving time zones "The daylight saving portion of this graphic makes me furious," Jack said. "Why is this 7.30pm in daylight savings but this is 8.30pm?" he continued while pointing at the Northern Territory and South Australia. "And this part is just like 'were keeping it 6pm no matter what'," he said about Western Australia. "Im never visiting Australia because of this. I just decided." Responses flooded in from like-minded Americans "annoyed" with the Aussie map. "OMG Im dying!! Now Im annoyed with Australia's time zones. Do I have the time for this? No," one said. "I work with Australians from NY and the timezones with daylight savings confuses and angers me," another said. Aussies quickly came in to defend themselves against the onslaught though. "Australian here cant speak for SA and NT, but I do know that in NSW we have DLS to maximise the amount of daylight we have in summer," one explained. "Why cant people just look up why we do this," another asked. Aussie states and territories with daylight savings In Australia, NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and the ACT, participate in daylight savings and Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT) kicked in at 2.00am on October 1, 2023 making the clock jump forward to 3.00am. Story continues Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia don't follow daylight savings, so their time does not change. During October to April, the Australian mainland experiences five different time zones. When does daylight savings end in Australia this year? The time adjustment is in place until 3am on April 7, 2024. On that day some Aussies will be turning their clocks back an hour which means one extra hour of sleep for most. Roughly a third of the world participates in a form of clock changing, though it varies by region this includes most US states and Canada. In the US, states can choose whether they participate in daylight savings and as a result daylight saving time is observed across the country except in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and most of Arizona. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. A Randolph man will see prison time for his role in a March 2022 shooting that resulted in a gunfight with police, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Haydens office announced. Jeff Anilus, 33, was sentenced on Wednesday to 15 to 18 years in state prison along with two years of probation upon release, Haydens office said in a statement. He was convicted by a jury in January of two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon (gun), possessing a firearm without a license and possessing a loaded firearm without a license. At around midnight on March 31, Boston police on patrol near Blue Hill Avenue and Columbia Road saw a Honda Civic driving the wrong way on a one-way road, Haydens office said. Police tried to stop the car before it drove off and crashed into stone barriers along Jewish Memorial Drive near the Shattuck Hospital. When officers saw the driver, Anilus, they saw him take something from the car and run off on foot, Haydens office said. Officers followed him to the Shattuck parking lot, where he turned and fired a gun at the police but the shots struck a tree. More officers arrived when police reported shots were being fired. Anilus ran into a wooded area behind the hospital and was spotted lying under brush by a police officer, Haydens office said. The officer told Anilus to drop the gun he was pointing at the officer. Anilus said he would surrender but turned back and ran toward the hospital. When other officers found him, they saw his gun and fired, injuring him. Police recovered the gun, which contained a high-capacity feeding device with 13 rounds, Haydens office said. The gun was also jammed. This was quick, courageous and effective work by every officer on the scene that morning in a tense and chaotic and potentially deadly situation. This mans actions that morning along with his prior offenses make clear that he is a threat to society and deserves the sentence he received today, Hayden said in the statement. Just a few weeks since nurses at Worcesters Saint Vincent Hospital alleged that conditions at the hospital are dangerous, Saint Vincent is claiming the states health department gave it a clean bill of health but the department doesnt seem so sure. On Tuesday, the hospital which is run by Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare put out a press release asserting that a recent survey by the Department of Public Health found zero deficiencies in its staffing or quality of care, contrary to what the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) has claimed. The findings confirm Saint Vincents commitment to high-quality care, it said. But on Wednesday, the health department told MassLive it is still in the midst of an onsite investigation into conditions at the hospital, and that no conclusions can be drawn at this time. Saint Vincent did not respond to a request for comment on the health departments statement Wednesday morning, but the MNA characterized the hospitals claim as false. The Department of Public Healths investigation into Saint Vincent began Jan. 31 after the MNA the states largest nurses union filed complaints on behalf of its members at the hospital. The union alleged that staffing deficiencies, poor technology allocation and a deliberately punitive management culture has been causing preventable patient falls, and even preventable patient deaths at the hospital. But Saint Vincents claim to a clean bill of health is based on a five-day onsite survey by the health department in response to third-party complaints, according to the release. After examining the hospital in great detail, the surveyor found five of the six complaints to be unsubstantiated, the hospital said. In a statement Wednesday, MNA representative and long-time Saint Vincent nurse Marlena Pellegrino said the nurses stand by every complaint the union filed. The nurses of St. Vincent Hospital were gratified to learn that the DPH has countered the hospitals false claim that they have been in any way exonerated for the claims we have made about patently dangerous conditions at the hospital, conditions that are jeopardizing the safety of our patients nearly every day on every shift, she said. The surveyor did uncover an opportunity for improvement relating to Saint Vincents telemetry monitoring equipment, but the issue has since been corrected, the hospital said. Quality is the cornerstone of everything we do at Saint Vincent Hospital, and we always welcome constructive feedback from the DPH, Saint Vincent Chief Medical Officer Michele Sinopoli said in the release. But on Wednesday, the MNA challenged the validity of any recent findings about Saint Vincent by the Department of Public Health, claiming that nurses at the hospital have reported being denied the opportunity speak with state investigators. Nurses have also witnessed managers selecting certain nurses to be interviewed by the department, the union asserted. The MNAs complaints with the Department of Public Health were based on over 500 reports made by nurses between July 2023 and January 2023, the union said previously. The reports alleged violations of the nurses union contract and state patient care standards, such as the understaffing of emergency department nurses and the over-assigning of nurses in many units. The problems have resulted in unanswered bed alarms and call bells, patients not receiving their medications and treatments on time and patients sitting in their own excrement, the MNA claimed. The union also alleged that, not only did hospital leaders not address concerns raised by nurses, they retaliated against the nurses, going as far as to fire them. On Wednesday, the union said past retaliation by hospital leaders has made some nurses fearful of speaking with state investigators. We believe an accurate assessment of this crisis demands [that] nurses [be given] the unfettered right to meet with investigators without Tenet managers present, and without that input, we have little faith in any conclusions that are generated from such a flawed process, Pellegrino said. A Springfield man will see time in prison for his role within a regionally organized theft crew that stole catalytic converters from 496 vehicles, along with other robberies, Acting United States Attorney Joshua Levys office said Thursday. Nicolas Davila, 25, previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce and two counts of interstate transportation of stolen property, and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, Levys office said in a statement. U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin sentenced Davila to 37 months in prison and five years of supervised release. Davila was arrested in April 2023 and was charged in connection with the theft, transportation and sale of stolen catalytic converters from 496 vehicles between Massachusetts and New Hampshire in 2022 until April 2023, Levys office said. It is believed that a significant number of additional thefts have not been identified or were not ever reported to law enforcement, Levys office said. According to court filings, there has been a precipitous decline in catalytic converter thefts reported in Massachusetts as a result of the April 2023 takedown with only seven reported incidents of catalytic converter theft over the past 11 months following the arrests, in comparison to the hundreds of thefts reported during the nine-month period prior. Davila and his brother Rafael Davila used battery-operated power tools and car jacks to cut away and steal catalytic converters from those vehicles, Levys office said. The brothers and their ring targeted specific makes and models of vehicles to maximize the profits, the statement read. Ring members traveled hundreds of miles to specific locations, including home driveways and business parking lots in order [to] obtain an economy of scale, Levys office added. On numerous occasions, the crew targeted more than 10 vehicles in a single night, with one night reporting thefts from 26 vehicles, the statement said. Losses were determined to be around $5,000 per vehicle with specific trucks costing over $10,000 to repair, totaling to about $2 million in losses suffered by the more than 300 separate victims affected by the ring. Once in possession of the stolen catalytic converters, the crew would then sell them to Jose Torres, who would accumulate stolen catalytic converters from multiple theft crews and then in turn sell them to scrap dealers in the Northeast transacting approximately $30,000 to $80,000 in stolen catalytic converters per week, Levys office said. In particular, Torres sold stolen catalytic converters to scrap dealers who have since been charged federally for interstate transportation of stolen property and money laundering in the District of Connecticut, the Eastern District of California and Northern District of Oklahoma. Davila himself was accountable for his role in the thefts of catalytic converters from 42 vehicles, along with possessing cocaine and a gun at the time of his arrest, Levys office said. Davila was the fifth defendant to plead guilty, but he also faces a pending murder indictment in Hampden County Superior Court. The charge of conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charges of interstate transportation of stolen property each provide for a sentence of up to 10 years, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine provides for a sentence of up to 20 years, at least three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. Over 70 Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut police departments played a role in the investigation. With free agency officially open, the Patriots are beefing up their defensive line. New England signed ex-Steelers defensive tackle Armon Watts to a one-year, $3 million deal, a source told MassLive. Thats roughly their cap savings from cutting fellow defensive lineman Lawrence Guy earlier this offseason, so with the 27-year-old Watts, theyre getting younger at the position. Fanatics Sportsbook 10X$100 BONUS BET BET MATCH BONUS CLAIM OFFER Must be 21+. GAMBLING PROBLEM? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (CO, KY ,MD, OH, PA, TN, VA, VT, WV); (888) 789-7777 or ccpg.org (CT); 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA); (800) 327-5050 or gamblinghelpline.org (MA), mdgamblinghelp.org (MD), 1800gambler.net (WV) A Vikings sixth-round pick out of Arkansas in 2019, Watts played three seasons in Minnesota, spent 2022 with the Bears, and last season in Pittsburgh. The 6-foot-5, 307-pounder has registered 8.5 career sacks, 140 tackles, and excels against the run. Watts had a PFF run defense grade of 73.8 last season. That wouldve been the highest grade on the Patriots among defensive tackles in 2023, coming in ahead of Davon Godchaux (51.6), Daniel Ekuale (72.0), Jeremiah Pharms (5), Trysten Hill (60.5), Christian Barmore (67.8) and Guy (47.3). The Patriots have already made a few moves to fortify their front seven, as they agreed to extensions with edge players Anfernee Jennings and Josh Uche during the legal tampering period, and another external free agent, Sione Takitaki, too. The Browns linebacker landed a two-year, $6.5 million deal worth up to $10.3 million. U.S. lawmakers are threatening to ban TikTok but also say they are giving its Chinese parent company a chance to keep it running. The premise of a bipartisan bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday is that TikTok fans in the U.S. can keep scrolling through their favorite social media app so long as Beijing-based ByteDance gives up on owning it. The Republican-controlled chamber passed the bill on a vote of 352-65, but its fate in the U.S. Senate, where Democrats have a narrow majority, is uncertain. U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the chairperson of the Senate Commerce Committee, has concerns about the national security implications of a Chinese-owned app being used by hundreds of millions of Americans, The Hill reported. But Cantwell also wants to examine the free speech implications of the House measure, the news outlet reported. President Joe Biden has said hell sign the bill if it reaches his desk. And two Massachusetts lawmakers, Democratic U.S. Reps. Seth Moulton and Jake Auchincloss, are helping to lead the charge on the legislation. Neither pol wants to ban the wildly popular social media app, but to limit the influence of a geopolitical rival, Politico Massachusetts reported on Wednesday. ByteDance has access to a tremendous amount of Americans personal, private data. And they write the algorithms that control the feed. So, they influence what Americans receive on their phones, Moulton, who sits on the Houses China select committee, told Politico. When youre concerned about influence, malign foreign influence, in the election ... TikTok is their weapon. On his X feed, Moulton turned to his constituents for their opinions, asking them whether the app should be banned or whether Congress should legislate around it. Should Congress ban @tiktok? Should we legislate around it at all? Fill out my survey to let me know your thoughts: https://t.co/wGjJXEP2na pic.twitter.com/EqJLJc9ENn Rep. Seth Moulton (@RepMoulton) March 13, 2024 Auchincloss, who also sits on the committee, told Politico that he has concerns about the mental health impacts of TikTok and other social media apps. He amplified that with a post to X. As the youngest parent in the Democratic caucus, I speak daily with parents who are stressed about their childrens social media usage, and I speak with youth who are made increasingly lonely and anxious as a result of their social media habits, he wrote. Meanwhile, trillion-dollar social media corporations continue to productize our children to sell ads. Congress must fight back on behalf of parents and children, who dont have the time or resources to outfox algorithms. My legislation directly holds social media corporations accountable for their negligent approach to our childrens wellbeing, Auchincloss wrote. As the youngest parent in the Democratic caucus, I speak daily with parents who are stressed about their childrens social media usage, and I speak with youth who are made increasingly lonely and anxious as a result of their social media habits. Meanwhile, trillion-dollar social https://t.co/CpUYKAWuD1 Rep. Jake Auchincloss (@RepAuchincloss) March 5, 2024 All told, the Bay States nine-member, all-Democrat House delegation split on the bill, with U.S. Reps. William Keating, Lori Trahan and Stephen F. Lynch joining Moulton and Auchincloss in support of the bill. U.S. Reps. Katherine Clark, James McGovern, Richard Neal, and Ayanna Pressley, voting against it, according to the Washington Post. We need comprehensive data privacy legislationnot narrow policy that targets one platform that millions rely on to get news, make a living & build community. Its past time for a comprehensive approach to regulate big tech & combat disinformation, Pressley posted to X. Advocates welcomed the vote. China has used [TikTok] for years to steal Americans info, the advocacy group, With Honor Action, posted to X on Wednesday. Thanks to @committeeonccp Chair @RepGallagher, @RepSherrill, and @RepMoulton and the House for passing the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act and finally holding the CCP accountable. But the bill, which faces a bumpy path in the U.S. Senate, isnt as simple as lawmakers are making it sound, experts told the Associated Press. Who Would Buy TikTok? While some people have voiced an interest in buying TikToks U.S. business among them Shark Tank star Kevin OLeary there are a number of challenges including a 6-month deadline to get it done. Somebody would have to actually be ready to shell out the large amount of money that this product and system is worth, said Stanford University researcher Graham Webster, who studies Chinese technology policy and U.S.-China relations. But even if somebody has deep enough pockets and is ready to go into negotiating to purchase, this sort of matchmaking on acquisitions is not quick. Big tech companies could afford it but would likely face intense scrutiny from antitrust regulators in both the U.S. and China. Then again, if the bill actually becomes law and survives First Amendment court challenges, it could make TikTok cheaper to buy. One of the main effects of the legislation would be to decrease the sale price, said Matt Perault, director of the University of North Carolinas Center on Technology Policy, which gets funding from TikTok and other tech companies. As you approach that 180-day clock, the pressure on the company to sell or risk being banned entirely would be high, which would mean probably the acquirers could get it at a lower price. How Would It Work? The bill which now moves to the U.S. Senate calls for prohibiting TikTok in the U.S. but makes an exception if theres a qualified divestiture. That could only happen if the U.S. president determines through an interagency process that TikTok is no longer being controlled by a foreign adversary, according to the bill. Not only that, but the new U.S.-based TikTok would have to completely cut ties with ByteDance. That includes no more cooperation with respect to the operation of a content recommendation algorithm or an agreement with respect to data sharing. It reflects longstanding concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data on the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering. Its an unusual bill in the way that it targets a single company. Typically, a government group led by the Treasury secretary called the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, will review whether such a sale would pose any national security threats. Hasnt This Happened Before? Yes. The Trump administration brokered a deal in 2020 that would have had U.S. corporations Oracle and Walmart take a large stake in TikTok on national security grounds. The deal would have also made Oracle responsible for hosting all TikToks U.S. user data and securing computer systems to ensure national security requirements are satisfied. Microsoft also made a failed bid for TikTok that its CEO Satya Nadella later described as the strangest thing Ive ever worked on. Instead of congressional action, the 2020 arrangement was in response to then-President Donald Trumps series of executive actions targeting TikTok. But the sale never went through for a number of reasons. Trumps executive orders got held up in court as the 2020 presidential election loomed. China also had imposed stricter export controls on its technology providers. Incoming President Joe Biden in 2021 reversed course and dropped the legal proceedings. Now Biden says hes in favor a bill that would ban TikTok if ByteDance wont divest, and Trump is not. U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss already was an outspoken advocate for gun violence reduction. But now the Newton Democrat is putting (even more of) his money where his mouth is. On Tuesday, Auchincloss announced hes rebranded his existing political action committee, dubbed MA4Dems, and getting right to the heart of the matter. The newly christened Beyond Thoughts and Prayers PAC will work to elect like-minded lawmakers as Democrats look to take back the U.S. House and expand their margins in the U.S. Senate in November. We cant take on the gun lobby without a Democratic majority, which means platforming Democrats in blue seats who drive this issue in Washington and supporting Democrats who can win tough districts that get gun-safety legislation to 218 [votes,] the PAC wrote in a briefing memo that was circulated among interested parties on Tuesday. With the move, Auchincloss, D-4th District, who raised and spent more than $450,000 through his political channels in the 2022 midterms, is using his fundraising muscle to give to Democrats in need, his spokesperson, Matthew Corridoni, told MassLive. Records show that Auchincloss is on pace to raise and spend the same amount this year, according to an analysis by OpenSecrets, which tracks money in politics. A Marine veteran and young father, Auchincloss focus on gun violence reduction connects with his bio, and its a policy area hes passionate about, Corridoni said. My worst night in Congress was the night of the Uvalde massacre, Auchincloss said in a video posted to his YouTube channel in April 2023, referring to the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two adults were killed. In the video, Auchincloss said he put his then, two children to bed, and I thought about those parents in Texas, who were identifying their children by their shoes. And it just made me despair. The Bay State lawmakers record on the issue already is extensive. In November 2021, months into his first term on Capitol Hill, Auchincloss teamed with fellow Democratic U.S. Reps. Joe Neguse, of Colorado, and Robin Kelly, of Illinois, on a bill that would have restricted the sale of firearms to those convicted of violent misdemeanor crimes in the last five years. The bill was tied to a deadly shooting that year in a Colorado supermarket that claimed the lives of 10 people. The following year, in 2022, Auchincloss was a yes vote on the gun reform bill signed into law by President Joe Biden that implemented some of the most extensive reforms in decades though it did not go as far as some Democrats would have liked. Last December, Auchincloss joined with U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and other lawmakers on a comprehensive package that would impose universal background checks, ban assault-style weapons, and create a federal gun licensing system. All are long-sought reforms. With control of the White House and both sides of Capitol Hill on the line not to mention legislative races across the country, where the issue will be debated at the state level gun violence reduction advocates face one of their toughest tests in years, the Guardian reported in January. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision in a case known as U.S. V. Rahimi, which will test the constitutionality of a state law barring people under domestic violence protective orders from possessing guns. The eventual ruling could, as The Guardian noted, complicate efforts to strengthen the nations gun laws. Which does not mean that they will stop trying. Corridoni told MassLive that the PAC will be spreading its money around by backing candidates in key 2024 battleground states and on Republicans in vulnerable districts. That will happen as soon as Thursday with a fundraiser in Newton featuring U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, D-Ga., a former staffer for the gun violence reduction advocacy group Everytown for Gun Action and a gun violence survivor. McBath is facing a primary in her suburban Atlanta seat, according to the Associated Press. According to the briefing memo made public Tuesday, Auchincloss, through the PAC, will be available for appearances both in-person and virtually. Hell also put his social media platforms to work to support candidates. What that specific support looks like will be dependent on the candidates themselves and what they want, Corridoni told MassLive on Tuesday. The main emphasis is for folks who need extra help. While gun violence reduction measures have failed to gain traction in the now majority-Republican House and the Senate, where Democrats have a narrow majority, the issue continues to poll well, with 56% of Americans saying they want stricter laws, according to Gallup. Auchincloss announcement also comes as lawmakers on Beacon Hill debate a sweeping gun violence reduction proposal. The state Senate passed its own version of the bill in February, following action by the House last fall. The two chambers still have to work out the differences between their respective proposals, before they can send a final version to Democratic Gov. Maura Healey. A new season of Teen Mom: Family Reunion will air on Wednesday, March 13 at 8 p.m. EST on MTV. Season 3 of Teen Mom: Family Reunion will be available on MTV. Viewers looking to stream the premiere can do so for free with Philo, FuboTV or DirecTV Stream. All three streaming services offer free trials. According to MTV, The couples go to Colombia to focus on creating healthy relationships. In the new episode, its an unforgettable third season as the Teen Moms and their partners travel to Cartagena, hosted by Cheyenne and Jade. Couples are invited to a beachside resort to rekindle romance and face their issues with the help of professionals. How do I watch Teen Mom: Family Reunion if I dont have cable? Viewers looking to stream new episodes can do so on Philo, fuboTV and DirecTV which all offer a free 7-day trial for new users. The show will air on MTV on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m ET. Viewers with cable can access the new episode on MTV.com by logging in with your cable provider. When an Amherst staff member stepped down as the advisor to an Amherst middle school student group against sexual harassment, she meant to make a statement about the districts mishandling of student reports about inappropriate teacher behavior. What she didnt intend was that her job in the middle school would go along with it. SPRINGFIELD Investigators with the Massachusetts Environmental Police were in the city Wednesday to interview municipal employees about the controversial killing of a raccoon outside the Fire Departments headquarters last month. Fire Commissioner Bernard B.J. Calvi has come under heavy public fire after video footage emerged of him repeatedly running over a raccoon that had been wandering around the Worthington Street neighborhood. Calvi said he feared the animal was rabid. Editors note: On Tuesday, the Springfield Water & Sewer Commission reversed an earlier vote and backed an agreement to hire trade union members for a landmark project. In this commentary, the panels chair, Vanessa Otero, explains why she supported that agreement. I was present once when someone asked the Springfield schools superintendent, Daniel Warwick, what was the greatest obstacle faced by students. His response was poverty. As the rate of Australians facing homelessness soars to unprecedented new heights, calls are mounting for immediate government funding to address the lack of public housing, with almost 60,000 applicants currently on the waitlist in one state alone. This month, Homelessness NSW called for the state government to spend $1 billion each year for a decade to double the supply of social housing by 2050 in its pre-budget submission. The not-for-profit said there are some 57,000 applicants waiting for social housing, with a record 68,000 seeking help from homelessness services in 2023. CEO Dominique Rowe said NSW must build 5,000 homes per year to lift the state's share of social housing from one in 20, to one in 10 homes. "NSW has failed to invest in social housing for decades. Last year, just one-fifth of people seeking help from homelessness services could find long-term accommodation," she said on Thursday. There are some 57,000 applicants waiting for social housing in NSW. Source: Getty Almost 60,000 applicants waiting for social housing in NSW "Our ability to give NSWs most vulnerable communities a roof over their heads is falling, while housing stress and homelessness soar. Right now, many of the 57,000 households on the social housing waitlist are forced to wait up to a decade for a safe and stable place to call home." Homelessness NSW also implored the government to spend $30 million over three years to provide more temporary accommodation for those in desperate need, and to ensure one-fifth was reserved for women and children experiencing domestic violence. Anti-homelessness advocates are calling for an immediate funding injection into the housing sector in NSW. Pictured is an unidentified woman in a public housing in Sydney. Source: Getty Sydney woman Katrina Hyland is living in social housing in Balmain, in the city's inner west, and agreed the situation was dire. Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, Hyland said while she was extremely grateful to have a roof over her head, the system "really needs to be improved", particularly when it comes to the "matching process" of placing applicants into social homes. Story continues Sydney woman calls for 'better matching process' after violent incident "I've worked in community services for over 40 years, and the last couple of years I've become blind and had a whole lot of personal domestic issues happen to me, so that's why I'm here," Hyland told Yahoo. "But you know, it really needs to be improved and I think especially that matching process, when it comes to who lives where and does what, is missing." Hyland said in her complex there are "a lot of little children and mothers" who are often coupled in the same vicinity as those with serious mental health conditions. She recalled recently her neighbour, a man living with schizophrenia, allegedly smashed the windows to her home along with those of a neighbour, an elderly woman. As anti-homelessness bodies call for funding, a woman has shared a harrowing incident that occurred in her publicly-funded home. Source: Getty Hyland, who is blind and has special needs, said the ordeal left her "petrified", having no idea what was taking place in front of her in her very own home. "He was screaming and yelling and smashing things, and then violently attacked all my glass windows and the older lady's next door," she said. "It's very, very frightening, because I can't defend myself anymore. All I could do was scramble down on the floor and ring the police." Ordeal leaves woman 'scared to be at home' The Sydney woman explained it's these types of incidents that reflect the need for a more rigorous matching process making sure that when applicants are placed in government homes, neighbour compatibility is also a consideration. "I was so, so frightened," Hyland said of the ordeal. "He's obviously got acute mental health issues and he's obviously has got a right to live somewhere, but you've got to be mindful of who you place in a community group situation there are little children here, there's older people. "Vulnerabilities are quite high. So when they do that sort of assessment about who comes in, they've got to be mindful of that." Hyland is in the process of seeking a transfer out of the accomodation due to what she says are the dangerous conditions residents are forced to live with. Housing department weighs in Speaking to Yahoo News Australia a spokesperson for the NSW Department of Communities and Justice said there was a "zero-tolerance" policy in place for anti-social behaviour in public housing. In November, NSW Premier Chris Minns and Housing Minister Rose Jackson announced the government would try to lift its status as one of the state's worst landlords with an overhaul of how public housing repairs are handled. Source: Getty "Homes NSW is committed to ensuring the health and safety of all social housing customers and has zero-tolerance for illegal or antisocial behaviour," the spokesperson told Yahoo. "We have a robust policy framework in place to address these kinds of issues in NSW Government social housing properties. We take any complaints seriously and report them to NSW Police as required. Homes NSW manages housing transfer requests and once an application is received and a suitable new home is identified, we make an offer to the resident(s). "Homes NSW will contact the Balmain resident on Monday the 11th of March to discuss this matter directly with her." Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Rhode Island prosecutors pursuing child pornography charges against former Holyoke City Councilor Wilmer Puello-Mota acknowledged this week there exist photos and videos that purportedly show him serving in the Russian military in Russia or Ukraine. While the State cannot verify the authenticity of the videos and photographs, if they are accurate the defendant is well beyond the jurisdiction of this court and, if false, the defendant is engaged in an elaborate ruse to conceal his whereabouts, reads a motion filed Monday. In his annual State of the University message on Tuesday, UMass President Marty Meehan vowed to triple early college enrollment over the next five years in an effort to increase accessibility in higher education. Within the next five years, we plan to expand our early college initiatives to serve more than 2,000 high school students and broaden our early college reach to more rural areas of the state, Meehan said. CHICOPEE Over four months, five Westover Air Reserve Base crews transported thousands of tons in humanitarian supplies to support a global operation. According to officials at the base, which is located in Chicopee, the crews flew over 6,000 tons of cargo and over 1,000 personnel to support ongoing missions around the world. Officials at the base could not be immediately reached for comment on Wednesday. Apex Group, the global financial services provider, has appointed Mark Le Page as its new Head of Financial Crime in Guernsey. Apex Guernsey, with an AUA of over $100bn, is one of the regions best established and largest providers of fund and corporate services to the key sectors of private equity, closed-ended investment schemes, open-ended and listed business. Mark brings a wealth of industry and regulatory knowledge and experience to the role after many years working for the Guernsey Financial Services Commission. Apex Group acknowledges the importance of upholding Guernseys reputation internationally and wish to build an elite financial crime team to augment growth in its offering through industry leading technology and client service. A renowned specialist in the funds and financial crime industry throughout the Channel Islands and the UK, Marks role is a key strategic hire for Apex Group as it continues to build its strength and quality in the region. With more than 30 years experience across financial services, regulatory services and the accountancy profession, Mark will join the board of Apex fund and Corporate Services (Guernsey) Limited as well as leading the integration of the Financial Crime teams. Speaking on his appointment, Mark Le Page, said: When Apex Group proposed the role to me I did not need any persuading. The strength of the Apex Guernsey Board is well known and, with the growth of the company, it is an exciting time to join. Commenting on Marks role, Patrick Cummins, Managing Director Apex Fund and Corporate Services, said: ANTHROPOMORPHISM, the attribution of human characteristics or behaviour to an object, in a real or imagined way, has given rise to a multitude of topographical names all over the country. Most body parts are to be found in Mayo placenames, and the natural features compared with, and named from them, are generally hills. Two weeks ago, Townland Tales visited Mace townland, which gets its name from the Irish word mas, meaning thigh, applied to a long, low hill. This week, it is Bunanioo Bun na nAeu, Bottom-land of the Liver-Shaped Eminences in Corraun, that is our focus. Corraun is almost an island. Strictly speaking, it is an isthmus. I alluded to it briefly in a previous article featuring Belmullet and Achill (A tale of two isthmuses, published September 20, 2022). Occupying roughly 99 square kilometres of landmass, surrounded by water on all sides, it is connected to the Mayo mainland by a narrow neck of land at Mulranny between Bellacragher Bay and Clew Bay. We have visited some of its townlands previously, when Bolinglanna and Belfarsad featured here. Now, there are heart-shaped lakes and kidney-shaped islands, but this placename must be unique in its liver shape! Depending on how you look at it, a liver can resemble a wedge or a flat cone shape, so perhaps Corraun Hill and neighbouring Slieve Aghkerane can be described in this way. The Irish word for kidney is ara, and it is believed that the Aran Islands take their name from this. The Irish expression a dhuine na n-arann, means my dear friend. Similarly, ae is the Irish word for liver, and the expression a chara na n-ae istigh also means dearest friend. Hollows and pigs WHEN I visited Bunanioo, on a cold, crisp January day, we traversed the liver-shaped eminences and explored the plateau of the Corraun hills in some detail. Leaving the main road in Bolinglanna, we took the first bog road to the right that leads uphill in the direction of Loch Ard, the High Lake, found a convenient parking space, and then headed towards the eminences. Our first target was the top of Slieve Aghkerane. At 541 metres it is the highest point in the area, 17 metres higher than Currane Hill. From the edge of the summit plateau, we had good views into An Choire Dhu, the Black Corrie, and we took a short break to consider our best option for a safe descent route through Rothchoire Mora, Ring-shaped Mountain Hollow. The northern slopes get the least amount of sunlight and tend to be the most slippery, so care was needed. After crossing Fiodan an tSraha Moir, Stream of An Srath Mor, we arrived at the remains of a booley village, named Bothog na Muc, Little Hut of the Pigs, on our map. Our next objective was to scale the northeasterly-running spur from Curraun Hill, directly in front of us, and having regained some height, it was time to stop for lunch. We now had clear views of Achill Sound and Michael Davitt Bridge to the northwest and Coire Liath, Grey Corrie, to the south. Splendid scenery AFTER our break in the wintry sunshine, it was time to head for the top of 524-metre Curraun Hill, Cruach a Chorrain. We were duly rewarded for our efforts with some splendid views of Clew Bay and Clare Island, with Achillbeg in the foreground, and the whole of Bunanioo townland below. The two principal centres of habitation, or villages, in Bunanioo are Glasoilean (literally, Green Island) and Cnoc na Monadh, Hill of the Moor/Bog. It has been suggested that the name Bunanioo originally referred to the place where there is a pier, and a small group of tiny houses called Bunanioo, just southwest of the townland itself, in Gubnahardia (now part of Bolinglanna). The more difficult part of the name Bunanioo is the qualified element. The official Irish form is based on the genitive plural of ae, liver. Variants of this word have been found in the names of other townlands, including Corr an Aobha or Corranewy in Monaghan. (It is a ridge or back of land that is imagined in such a context.) As is often the case, there are other possible translations to ponder. The Irish word naomhog, is sometimes rendered nae in the feminine version, meaning boat (or currach/canoe) possibly giving Bun na Naeu, Bottom(-land) of the Boats. The Dingle Peninsulas Cuas na Nae, which has been translated as Canoe Cave, is another example of such a placename. Dr John OCallaghan is a mountain walk leader who has organised and led expeditions both at home and abroad. He has served on the board of Mountaineering Ireland and is currently on the Irish Uplands Forum board. POPULAR Irish language television presenter Manchan Magan heads to Achill Island for the beginning of his new six-part documentary series that dives into the myths and legends associated with Irelands Holy wells. In the new TG4 documentary, 'Ag Triall ar an Tobar', which begins this Thursday, March 14, Manchan Magan asks what is it about these therapeutic landscapes that retain a presence in todays world? In each episode presenter Manchan Magan uncovers holy wells that have been sites of worship and prayer for centuries and are still visited today for those seeking comfort and peace. Where have these rituals come from and who are the people that keep these traditions alive? In the first episode Manchan is in Achill where he meets John 'Twin' MacConmara at St Colemans well and Mary Jo Ui Chaoimh shows him where to find in Kildownet. Micheal O Maoileain tells us the importance of holy wells to Connemaras history and Liam Suipeil brings us to learn about St Declan and his reign in Ardmore, Waterford. John 'Twin' MacConmara with Manchan Magan during his visit to Achill for the TG4 series 'Ag Triall ar an Tobar' Have you ever come across a holy well and wondered who else has walked on this path? Ordnance Survey Ireland claimed there were as many as 3,000 holy wells in Ireland - more than in any other country in the world. This six-part series is a new format which fuses the exploration of Christianity and Pagan customs with historical record and local knowledge to take us on a journey through some of Irelands undiscovered sacred places. Presenter Manchan Magan treads through history to discover hidden secrets behind these rippled waters. He speaks of some of the customs that visitors to the well would enact, from tying ribbons to nearby trees to circling the well clockwise three times. He also lists all the potential ailments that might find relief and treatment from the waters of the holy well. These ailments can be a cure for a herd of cattle or a cure for dementia or bi-polar. Each ailment is as relevant today as they were back then. Each episode in the series delves into a theme, unveiling unique stories, rituals and beliefs associated with a local holy well. From tales of saints and fairies to ancient healing practices and modern day pilgrimages, viewers will be transported into a world where spirituality, folklore and nature intertwine. Manchan takes a deeper look at the enduring relevance of these sacred sites in todays society. He examines the reason why these places hold a special place in the hearts of the Irish people. Holy wells in Ireland hold a unique role as symbols of Irish culture and a connection with the natural environment. These sacred wells pre-date the Christian era, usually dedicated to Saint names that still echo like Brid, Padraig and Colmcille, there is clear evidence that they were originally pagan sites. Where once a pagan sacrifice may have taken place, today a bride might look into the waters for good luck, or someone may come in a desperate search for a cure of an illness. Each attached to their own saints, legends and healing properties, these holy wells have been secret sites of worship and prayers for centuries and are still visited today by those who seek the miraculous cures offered by the waters. The first episode of Ag Triall ar an Tobar is this Thursday, March 14 at 8pm on TG4. BRACKLOON NS has paid tribute to the late Charlie Bird following his passing from Motor Neurone Disease. This morning (Wednesday), the school said a prayer in memory of Mr Bird, who visited the school prior to his Climb With Charlie fundraiser in April 2022. Students from the school climbed Croagh Patrick ahead of him to cheer him on as he embarked on the long ascent with his wife, Claire, friends and hundreds of supporters. Brendan Tunney, principal of the West Mayo school, described the former journalist as a beacon of hope and extended his sympathies to Mr Birds family on behalf of the school. He was lovely on the visit and he was in great spirits. He had a word for everyone in the school, all the children and everything, Mr Tunney told The Mayo News. He walked around the track and high-fived everyone around the track and the pitch. Were sorry to hear of his passing today. He put up such a great battle and gave so many people courage and strength who are facing similar illnesses and difficulties in their lives. He was a great beacon of hope to people and, at the same time, fighting a battle where he knew the end was going to bring him. Scoil Phadraig in Westport, who Mr Bird also visited, were also saddened to learn of his passing. We created wonderful memories with Charlie, Claire and Tiger during the Climb with Charlie Campaign in February 2022. May you continue to walk with us in spirit Charlie, the school stated on Facebook. This comes as funeral details for the much-loved ex-RTE reporter have been announced, beginning with a special service to celebrate his life on Thursday, March 14, in Dublins Mansion House. His death notice, posted to RIP.ie, said he died peacefully yesterday in the wonderful care of Wicklow Hospice with his family at his side. A book of condolence in memory of Mr Bird will also be open at Westport Town Hall today from 12pm. Among those paying tribute to his memory have been Westport House, who described him as a truly inspiring human whose life was a testament to dignity, courage, and the power of friendship. Local county councillor Brendan Mulroy also extended his sympathies to the family of Mr Bird, who he described as an inspirational figure. He will be sadly missed by his beloved wife, Claire, loving daughters Orla and Neasa, little wingman Tiger, his sons-in-law Rob and Aidan, adored grandchildren Charlie, Hugo, Abigail, Harriet and Edward, his extended family, former colleagues and a wide circle of friends both at home and abroad. Donations, if desired, can be made to Wicklow Hospice. PHOTO CAPTION: The members of the Claremorris Drama and Fringe Festival group pictured at the 2022 Festival, back, from left: Patsy Kelly, Liam Newman, Kay Brennan, Breda Walsh, Mike Connelly, Ann Maloney, John Farragher, Rachel Comer and Michael Brennan. Front, from left: Linda Beirne, Peter McCallig, Mary Esler, Eileen Connolly, Carmel Glynn and Mary Murphy. Pic: Michael Donnelly THE 52nd Claremorris Drama and Fringe Festival will be officially opened on Thursday, March 14, at 8pm by chef and food writer, Andrew Hayden. The Kilkenny native is also the Chairman of the Drama League of Ireland. Patrons and drama enthusiasts can look forward to ten great nights in Claremorris Town Hall Theatre where tradition has laid down the finest of foundations over the last five decades. The Festival opens with a new play, The Empty Nest, by Oisin Flores Sweeney, directed by Geoff Gould and starring Seamus ORourke and Joan Sheehy. This play is set in Westport and, of course, Seamus ORourke, a proud son of Leitrim, is almost an adopted Claremorris man at this stage! The nine groups taking part in the Festival competition, which starts on Friday night, are Phoenix Players, Tubbercurry, with Animal Farm (Friday, March 15), Brideview Drama Group (Waterford) with Antigone (Saturday, March 16), Cornmill Theatre Group, Carrigallen (St Patricks Night), Dalkey Players with The Crucible (Monday, March 18), Ray Leonard Players, Claremorris, with Eclipsed (Tuesday, March 19), St Patricks Drama Group, Westport (who have already qualified for the All Ireland Final after three wins), with Agnes of God (Wednesday, March 20), Glenamaddy Players with The Outgoing Tide (Thursday, March 21), Clann Machua, Kiltimagh, with Stolen Child (Friday, March 22), and Prosperous Dramatic Society, Kildare, with A View from the Bridge (Saturday, March 23). The adjudicator is Irene OMeara from Tipperary. There are just four plays in the Fringe Festival this year and two of them will be staged in the Town Hall Studio on Friday night, March 15. Becketts Last Throw is a short play by well known Ballinrobe man, Liam Horan. Oliver Barrett with his new play, Transparency, will also be staged on the night. Nature Calls by Joe Bergin will be staged in the Town Hall Studio on Wednesday, March 20, after the main play ends in the theatre. The final play in the Fringe Festival is Handbag by Tom Byrne and this will be staged on Friday, March 22, with a strong Kiltimagh input. The chair of Claremorris Drama Festival, Peter McCallig, says they are all set for ten great nights of drama: All is in place now and the committee are raring to go. All the groups love coming to Claremorris which has a great tradition of a very warm welcome for groups and patrons alike. Let the drama begin! MORE Tickets for the shows (16 adults, 13 concessions, 5-night 55, 10 night 95) are available from Claremorris Town Hall on 094 9310999, townhall.ie and on the door each night. Curtain-up is at 8pm nightly. A CASTLEBAR man who was caught in possession of over 700 images and videos of child pornography admitted to gardai that he had a problem. Lee Carroll (33) of Cloonkeen, Castlebar, appeared before Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court, where he pleaded guilty to the possession and distribution of child pornography discovered on mobile phones and a laptop. Detective Garda Declan Sweeney told the court that in June 2020, gardai in Castlebar received a report in relation to the possession and upload of child pornography via an Instagram account in the name of the defendant. On June 17, 2020, gardai executed a search warrant at Mr Carrolls home, which is when the defendant told gardai that he has a problem with child porn, that he had some on my phone. A number of electronic items were seized and Mr Carroll admitted to having child porn on the devices, which included three tablets and six mobile phones. Det Garda Sweeney said that 206 images of a child sexual nature and 16 videos of children engaged in sexual activity along with 171 images of child exposure and one video of child exposure were found on five phones. The laptop contained 53 images of a child in a sexual nature and 125 videos of a child sexual nature while 186 images were of child exposure and 12 videos of child exposure. Mr Carroll, the court heard, made full admissions when interviewed by the Gardai. Predatory JUDGE Eoin Garavan was informed that Mr Carroll had a difficult upbringing, and that he lived in Islandeady with his father and in Manchester with his mother. He struggled in school due to dyslexia and enrolled in Youth Reach before living with his grandfather in Islandeady. With the assistance of an aunt he joined the Order of Malta, and through that he managed to get a job with a haulage company in Mayo. However, he lost the job as a result of his arrest. Mr Carroll, who has no previous convictions, came forward from the district court on a signed plea of guilty. When questioned by Mr Desmond Dockery, senior counsel for Mr Carroll, Det Garda Sweeney said the defendant was fully cooperative and forthright when questioned, stating he did not know why he behaved this way. Mr Dockery said his client was influenced by a person he met while gaming online, but Det Garda Sweeney said that while this was mentioned by Mr Carroll, he did not know if it was true. Mr Dockery said that the matter came to the attention of the Gardai after his client uploaded a 15-second video on Instagram that contained child pornography. He said Mr Carrolls probation report indicated that his needs are complex and that he did not know why he engaged in this behaviour. He said his client is a very vulnerable person and ripe for manipulation and had a difficult upbringing. He added that as a result of the attention brought by the arrests, he has lost two jobs as a a driver. Predatory JUDGE Garavan described this as a sad case for everyone involved but in particular the young victims which he said were the victims of predatory men like Mr Carroll. Judge Garavan noted that the psychiatric report stated that Mr Carroll was sexually aroused by the material and that he engaged in it for his own sexual gratification knowing it was morally wrong. He acknowledged that Mr Carroll had a difficult upbringing and that Dr John Bogue, the clinical psychiatrist who assessed him, was worried about his mental health, revealing that he had suicidal thoughts. Judge Garavan described the exploitation and abuse of the children as sinister and evil, and he said Mr Carroll had played his part in this by his activities. He sentenced Mr Carroll to 18 months imprisonment for the distribution of child pornography and 14 months for the possession, with each sentence was to run consecutively. However, he suspended the entirety of the sentence for three years on condition Mr Carroll comes under the care of the Probation Services for two years and allows gardai access to any electronic devices in his possession. What will an enlarged European Union of 500 million people look like? How will the citizens of its 35 or more Member States live, work and interact? Who will pay for it and how much? How will decisions be made and can consensus be reached with more voices at the table? These were just some of the questions debated at this years Model Council of the European Union, which took place on March 1 at Dublin Castle. Teams of secondary school students from across Ireland, each playing the role of an EU Member State, did a deep dive into the reforms needed to make future EU enlargements a success. They came prepared with passionate and articulate arguments, to defend the interests of their adopted Member States. Six teams rose above 21 other schools with their convincing portrayal of EU Ministers for European Affairs, going head to head on some of the key challenges presented by enlargement such as the future of the EU budget, how it is financed and where the money should be spent. Maynooth Post-Primary School in Co Kildare won first place for their representation of Malta during the debate. They will travel with their class to Strasbourg in October to take part in Euroscola, where they will become MEPs for a day in the European Parliament. Ardscoil Ris from Dublin, representing the Netherlands and St Leo's College from Carlow, representing Denmark, took joint second place. Honourable mentions were given to the following schools: *Colaiste Chill Mhantain in Burkeen, Co Wicklow as Austria. *Loreto Secondary School, Clonmel, Co Tipperary as Poland. *Deansrath Community College in Clondalkin, Dublin as Germany. The debate, based on the format of a real meeting of the Council of the European Union, is a practical but also enjoyable way for young people to learn how the EU works, how decisions are made, and more importantly, how consensus can be reached. Stepping into the shoes of EU politicians for a day is not for the faint hearted but these young people rose to the challenge and made their voices heard. As millions of Europeans prepare to vote in the European elections in June, engaging our young people in active citizenship and encouraging their participation in the democratic process will empower them to shape their future in a Union that is preparing to welcome new member states. Ireland has played its part in the story of EU enlargement. On 1 May, we will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the largest single enlargement of the EU when 15 became 25 on the historic Day of Welcomes, hosted by the Irish Presidency of the EU in Dublin in 2004. The economic and political achievements of the past 20 years have shown what a success story the 2004 enlargement has been, not only for the 10 Member States concerned but for the EU as a whole. PICTURE CAPTION: Students from Ballyhaunis Community School, Co. Mayo represented Spain at the Model Council of the European Union debate for secondary schools which took place in Dublin Castle. Pictured in front are Basmali Shavi and Sam Tynan. In the back row are Paul Ryan, teacher; Dr Concha Julian, education adviser at the Spanish Embassy; Barbara Nolan, head of the European Commission Representation in Ireland; Peter Burke TD, Minister of State for European Affairs and Fionnuala Croker, acting Head of the European Parliament Liaison Office. *SPONSORED CONTENT Signs warning visitors about the danger of swimming at popular and picturesque swimming holes around Cairns have been brought into question following the death of an overseas tourist at a waterfall on Sunday. It's understood the 20-year-old man from Japan jumped off a ledge at the Crystal Cascades waterfall a secluded, freshwater swimming spot west of Cairns in Far North Queensland and failed to resurface while visiting a friend on Sunday. Tragically, police divers located the mans body at about 6pm on Monday. At the time, the tourist is believed to have been swimming at the top set of waterfalls which are marked as a no-swim zone a repeated and dangerous behaviour that's frustrating local councillors. Crystal Cascades, west of Cairns, is a popular swimming spot among locals and tourists. Source: Instagram The man's death isn't the first at Crystal Cascades waterfall, which is popular among locals and travellers. In 2014, an 18-year-old man drowned after failing to resurface after slipping over the edge of the waterfall. And in April, 2023 a 21-year-old man and a 59-year-old man were declared dead after they were found unresponsive in water near the falls. Cairns councillor Brett Moller told Yahoo News Australia "something must be done" about people visiting the area disobeying signage, and ignoring warnings about the deadly risks associated with swimming where swimming is not allowed. 'Inherent dangers' at top Aussie spots Recent heavy rain and flooding in the area, including the aftermath of Cyclone Japser, have contributed to tougher swimming conditions at Crystal Cascades making visiting more dangerous. Something Moller says visitors don't often understand despite the council's attempt to get the message across. "Heavy rain pushed up the level of the water and of course, in the upper reaches of these creeks and rivers, we have fast-flowing currents, we have granite rocks, we have waterfalls, we have undercurrents," he explained. "So while they are pristine and beautiful natural environments, they have inherent dangers, particularly with the flooding waters. We've got to get that message out to visitors that might be coming and enjoying those particular swimming spots." Story continues Signs in certain areas of the waterhole warn visitors not to swim. Source: Instagram 'Extensive safety audit' to be carried out at popular swimming holes Council is looking to roll out the safety audit across all natural swimming holes, such as Crystal Cascades and Josephine Falls with hopes it will put an end to visitors overlooking warning signs. It follows an "extensive safety audit" which was conducted at Babinda Boulders another picturesque swimming hole nearby following a total of 21 tragic deaths there to date. "We looked at people's behaviour, the wording of signage, and how different graphic illustrations might help to get the message of danger across," he told Yahoo News on Tuesday, ultimately deciding to install graphic signage depicting how a person can drown. "We believe that what we've instigated at the Babinda Boulders is working successfully in terms of people taking more notice of the signage, and coming to understand the dangers that particular stretch of water at the boulders holds for people." An extensive safety audit was conducted at nearby Babinda Boulders which saw new graphic signage installed in the area. Source: Supplied/Herald Sun Social media to blame for risky photo opportunities Samuel Cornell, a research fellow from UNSW, told Yahoo News this is a widespread issue, not isolated to swimming holes in Cairns. Tourists are often caught disobeying warning signs at popular destinations across Australia, often for social media. "People go to national parks in particular and disobey the rules. They ignore warning signs, they traverse barriers, they just do what they want. And I think a massive part of that is social media driven," he explained. When searching the hashtag "Crystal Cascades" on Instagram, thousands of posts appear showing visitors posing, surrounded by the natural landscape. Moller suspects photos shared online draw tourists to the area. A 20-year old recently died after jumping off the top of Crystal Cascades waterfall in Cairns. Source: Google Images Tourists visiting K'gari, formally Fraser Island, have long been criticised for ignoring signs warning visitors against interacting with the native animals, which can be dangerous, rangers on the island warn. Meanwhile, lifesavers at The Pillars at Mount Martha in southeast Melbourne continue to plead with swimmers to stop jumping from the rocks after several separate incidents involving serious injuries. Moller told Yahoo it's now about understanding why people continue to ignore signage in areas where there's an obvious risk. "It's a different approach to safety, not just putting a red letter sign up, warning danger," he said. "But as I said, with the Boulders audit, we found some more pictorial graphics that really hit home the message of dangers and deaths that have occurred. "We always think that there must be something we can do to further get the message across." Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new newsletter showcasing the weeks best stories. If you've ever found yourself raging on the road, fighting the urge to scream profanities at drivers who shouldn't have been given a licence, you might relate to one West Australian whose subtle but "clever" number plates do all the work for them. The plates were spotted earlier this week on a Kia Sportage in WA, and read: 37OHSSV. While at first glance, the characters probably mean nothing to you, but taking a closer look and flipping it upside down, a "hilarious" surprise is revealed. As eagle-eyed Aussies on social media pointed out, the combination of numbers and letters when turned upside down spell out 'asshole' a simple but effective message that has sent the post viral. Tens of thousands of Australians reacted to the cheeky plates, with people in hysterics over the "brilliant" hidden message. "Well played," a woman said. "So creative. Hats off," another wrote. "So naughty, I love it," said a third. These cheeky number plates snapped up in WA have gone viral over their hidden meaning. Source: Facebook Number plates all over the country capture the attention of Aussies The find is the latest in a string of number plates that have captured the attention of Australians in recent weeks, though most of those were in breach of a road offence. It is unclear if the hidden message in WA was detected by authorities when issued. Yahoo News Australia has contacted the state's Department of Transport to see if the plates pictured pass their standards, which prohibit offensive plates. Number plates are popping up all over the country leaving Aussies in hysterics. Source: Supplied Global headlines were made last month when antisemitic plates were spotted in Sydney, appearing to reference the date of a brutal massacre. A few years ago in Victoria, a wannabe "criminal mastermind" was caught out by police after they spotted his suspicious-looking number plate. Story continues This driver hates people, too. Source: Facebook A Yahoo reader recently sent us a set of relatable plates which read: "CBF-247" ostensibly alluding to the quintessentially Aussie phrase "can't be f***ed". Another set, that may also resonate with some, were recently spotted that read: "IH8PPL2". Last week, a number plate altered with paint in South Australia caught the attention of authorities, warning people that modifying them can result in serious penalties. Meanwhile a few months ago, a driver was caught sporting not one, but two plates in a bizarre scene snapped on a Sydney road. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Wild footage has emerged from inside the LATAM Airlines flight that "plummeted" from the sky while travelling from Sydney to Auckland on Monday, as authorities seize the Dreamliner's black boxes to conduct an immediate investigation into what went wrong. Officials from Chile's aviation authority were on their way to New Zealand on Wednesday to head up the probe into the sudden midair dive by the Boeing 787, that left more than 50 people injured, one seriously. The plane abruptly dropped on Monday about an hour away from Auckland before the pilot was able to stabilise it, though dozens were thrown about the cabin during the ordeal. Nobody has so far been able to explain the aircraft's sudden change in trajectory and safety experts say most midair accidents are caused by a cocktail of factors that need to be thoroughly investigated. Some passengers were seriously injured, bleeding heavily on board. Source: 9News LATAM passengers share horror accounts of midair 'drop' Passengers have since spoken out about the conditions on board, with people describing the chaos that erupted after the horrifying drop. One traveller said he saw a man "on the roof of the plane" as they plummeted, before he slammed back down into the middle of the aisle. "It's dropped out of the air, instantly, then it started to [tilt] nose down, I was sure it was over," passenger Brian Jokat told 9 News. I looked up to see the gentleman that was sitting next to me on the roof of the plane, I was looking at him fully out stretched with his back on the roof of the plane and then he came crashing down to the floor.LATAM Airlines passenger Brian Jokat Jokat said that after the flight he asked the pilot what had happened when he spotted him travelling down the aisle. "I said, 'what happened' and he said 'my instruments, I just lost them just for a few seconds, they went blank'," he said. "Anyone that was not in those seatbelts, just flew randomly across the plane." Story continues About '30 to 40' passengers flung into the air Another traveller spoke of a passenger who was losing an immense amount of blood as a result of his injuries. "There was a massive air pocket, and about 30 to 40 people have gone flying up in the air," passenger Max Dineley said in a video recorded during the flight. "A lot of people have hit their heads, smacked their heads, we've got one person with a neck injury now bleeding out." One passenger was flung to the roof of the plane before he slammed down into the aisle. Pictured is a traveller tending to the man. Source: 9News Passengers offered single Macca's cheeseburger Brisbane woman Clara Azevedo, who was also on the flight, said about 250 passengers who were uninjured were given a single McDonalds cheeseburger while waiting at the terminal after landing. Azevedo told the New Zealand Herald passengers were not fed again until Tuesday morning when they shared a breakfast at an Auckland hotel having been transferred there by the airline at 2am. She said it felt like a miracle when the pilot regained control of the plane following the loss of altitude, revealing passengers werent sure we were going to make it. "We are all traumatised, and we had to find strength to help people out. But, this is not our responsibility, it is LATAM's but they havent done anything. Thats very frustrating," Azevedo said. Sydney woman Thais Iwamaoto also told the NZ Herald she was frustrated by the lack of information from Latam. "Its just ridiculous, just so disorganised after what we have been through". "This (Latams communications) is something I want to talk to them about because its not okay. Its just not fair. Accidents happen, but the way they treat us, thats not what its supposed to be," she said. A total of 13 people were transported to hospital after landing, among them four Australians. Source: 9News Richard de Crespigny, former Qantas pilot and author, said he had a feeling in his gut the plane ran into a thunderstorm during clear-air turbulence. "To be pushed down, which, as the aircraft was, it's a severe movement, it's worse than falling off a cliff," de Crespigny said. "It's possible they inadvertently flew into a thunderstorm, where there are updrafts and downdrafts, that's possible, that's my gut feeling." LATAM black boxes to be seized Even US authorities said they'd "follow the incident closely". "We were certainly work with the Australian and New Zealand authorities," the head of the US Federal Aviation Administration Mike Whitaker said. New Zealand's Transport Accident Investigation Commission will now seize the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder as it works out to determine what caused the drop. The recorders, known as "black boxes", provide data on the flight's direction and communications between pilots. The Boeing 787 had a total of 272 passengers on board and continued on without incident after the drop, landing safely an hour later in Auckland where it was met by a line of ambulances. Four Australians were among the 13 people taken to hospital. - With NCA Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. by Fern Siegel , March 13, 2024 A new creative studio that reimagines a traditional agency has just launched. Imagine This handles brand campaign concepts, TV and online ads, print and out-of-home production. Its mission is "bridging the gap between creative strategy, production solutions and artist representation." Toby Walsh, previously partner-managing director at Familia, heads the new employee-owned operation, based in the U.S. and the U.K. It also services brands in South Africa. The company offers brand and agency clients creative tools for every stage of campaign development. Dave East joins as partner and creative director, while Robyn Walsham is partner-Chief Brand Officer. Walsham said: "Were here to change the dynamic, offer up exciting new ways of working for creatives and create craft-forward, impactful work for brands. Watch this space. by Tanya Gazdik , March 12, 2024 Canine health and DNA company Embark Veterinary is launching a campaign that shows how knowing your dogs breed(s) can strengthen the human-canine bond. The effort, from AOR Boston-based Colossus, includes a 30-second spot featuring a couple explaining that they always thought there was something regal about their dog, Scraps. After a DNA test from Embark, their suspicions were confirmed. Turns out that Scraps was 91% Golden Retriever and 9% Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. A king, proclaims the wife, who with her husband has commissioned a royal portrait, turned their living room into an homage to England, and begun addressing their dog in high-pitched, over-the-top British accents. The effort launches with linear video, digital display, social, PR, and out-of-home activations. Audio influencer campaigns and affiliate marketing will be added later in the year. Executions include the 30-second spot along with 15-second and 6-second cut-downs. advertisement advertisement The objective is to appeal to new audiences by raising awareness of Embarks DNA testing. At Embark, we celebrate the joyful bond between humans and dogs, said Embark CMO JR Blaszek in a release, noting that the campaign shows "how science helps pet parents build even stronger bonds with their dogs. The campaign aims to stand out in a category awash in a sea of sameness, says Melissa Astorga, Colossus account director. It allows Embark to connect with consumers, tapping into their love of pet-related content and funny videos we know they are consistently engaging with, but standing out as a leader deeply rooted in science, Astorga says in a release. Owning a pet is and should be fun, and this work celebrates that, encouraging users to create their own memorable moments thanks to a simple-to-use DNA test. Embark Veterinary was founded in 2015 and is a challenger brand to Mars Inc.s Wisdom Panel, which has been selling tests since 2007 and has been in existence 20+ years. Embark is an official research partner of Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. by Ray Schultz , March 12, 2024 The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has passed a resolution that could funnel advertising to small local media, the Board announced on Tuesday. Introduced on March 5 by Supervisor Matt Dorsey, the resolution urges city departments to spend at least half of their advertising and outreach dollars in locally owned community and ethnic media outlets. Such a policy, while presumably non-binding, would be similar to those emerging in New York and Chicago, it says. Democracy depends on robust independent journalism, and robust independent journalism depends on thriving community- and neighborhood-centered news outlets, Dorsey says. Dorsey continuesL: With the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passage of this resolution today, were expanding on our Citys commitment to its diverse communities by supporting the diverse community-based journalism thats part of it. advertisement advertisement Local news is critical to our democracy, and we know that San Franciscans are hungry for more, adds Maya Chupkov, media & democracy program manager at California Common Cause. This is a critical first step in the right direction of reinvesting in our local media, and in turn, reinvesting in our communities and democracy. The Board also encourages the city to publicly report how much ad money is spent in ethnic and community publications and overall each year. by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, March 13, 2024 The House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a bill that could result in a ban on the popular TikTok app. The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (H.R. 7521), which passed 362-55, would prohibit app stores and websites from distributing TikTok unless its parent company, China-based ByteDance, sells the app within 180 days. The measure, largely driven by concerns that the Chinese government may be able to access data about TikTok's users, now heads to the Senate. TikTok stated after the vote that it hoped the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service. advertisement advertisement Digital rights groups criticized the bill, arguing that banning a communications platform would violate the First Amendment rights of millions of TikTok users. What's more, the groups argued, banning the app wouldn't prevent Chinese government from obtaining data about U.S. residents from other sources. If Congress wants to protect Americans' data, it should pass comprehensive privacy legislation, two dozen groups including the American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Democracy & Technology, Fight for the Future and Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University said in a letter sent Tuesday to House leaders. It's not clear whether the Senate will pass the bill, or even vote on the measure in its current form. One outspoken opponent, Senator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), describes the bill as a draconian measure that stifles free expression, tramples constitutional rights, and disrupts the economic pursuits of millions of Americans. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), who heads the Senate Commerce Committee, expressed concerns about foreign government's ability to access sensitive data, but appeared to suggest she doesn't support the House bill in its current form. Im very concerned about foreign adversaries exploitation of Americans sensitive data and their attempts to build backdoors in our information communication technology and services supply chains, she stated. These are national security threats and it is good members in both chambers are taking them seriously. Following todays House vote, I will be talking to my Senate and House colleagues to try to find a path forward that is constitutional and protects civil liberties. Last year, a federal district court judge blocked a Montana law that would have banned TikTok in that state, ruling that the law likely violates the First Amendment. U.S. District Court Judge Donald Molloy said in that case that the Montana law wasn't narrowly tailored to prevent China from accessing data about U.S. residents. It is well-established that other social media companies, such as Meta, collect similar data as TikTok, and sell that data to undisclosed third parties, which harms consumers, he wrote, adding that China and other countries could also purchase information about residents from data brokers. by Erik Oster , March 13, 2024 Barbie may have come up almost empty at the Oscars -- it won just one, for Original Song -- but the brand partnerships leveraging the Mattel icons renewed cultural cachet just keep coming. The latest brand to tap into this brand power is Stacys Pita Chips, which announced a deal with Barbie in celebration of Womens History Month. Barbie and Stacys Pita Chips share a common goal of inspiring women to achieve their dreams, so this partnership is a match made in herstory, Rhasheda Boyd, vice president of marketing at Stacys parent company Frito-Lay North America, said in a statement. The collab kicks off with limited-edition Barbie-inspired Stacys Pita Chips packaging, celebrating the brand stories of the two women-founded brands -- as well as Barbies 65th anniversary. The bags feature a Barbie-pink metallic exterior (naturally) -- in both a regular, human-sized version (filled with Stacys Simply Naked pita chips), and a Barbie-sized one designed as a perfect fit for the doll. advertisement advertisement Before the full-sized bags are made available to purchase at retailers this fall, fans can enter now for a chance to win a Stacys Career Barbie Kit that includes both bags, along with an exclusive Career Barbie doll and other prizes, by liking and commenting on the brands Instagram post for the giveaway. In collaboration with the Barbie Dream Gap Project, Stacys is also pledging a $100,000 donation to mentorship nonprofit Step Up. The donation will help sponsor career exploration conferences in Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, and New York, providing 1,000 hours of mentorship to middle- and high-school-aged girls. The campaign also comes on the heels of Stacys announcing the winners of this years Stacys Rise Project, an annual grant supporting women business founders which the brand introduced in 2017. For Stacys Rise Project Class of 2024, the brand awarded a grant of $25,000 to each of 15 North American founders, along with mentorship from Frito-Lay and PepsiCo leadership, connections to a peer network of women entrepreneurs, and increased visibility through Stacys brand platform and a spotlight on its FoundedByHer business directory. by Les Luchter , March 13, 2024 After two months in operation, Eli Lillys launch into D2C sales with LillyDirect has been surprisingly successful, the companys chairman/CEO David Ricks told an Economic Club of New York luncheon on Tuesday. The following morning, Amazon Pharmacy announced it had joined LillyDirect as a home delivery provider. Amazon joins Truepill, which also powers such other D2C pharma marketers as Mark Cubans Cost Plus Drugs and GoodRx. Were having trouble keeping up, Ricks said about the LillyDirect business. Youll see more in that department from us, he promised, stating that consumers have shown they want both reliability and a relationship with the manufacturer. advertisement advertisement Unlike CVS or Walmart, LillyDirect can provide peace of mind by telling shoppers not only that a product isnt now available but when it will be, Ricks said. And, unlike the runaround consumers get at pharmacies when trying to use coupons -- the pharmacist doesnt want to type in the number -- theyre applied every time on our site, so they [shoppers] have the confidence theyre getting the best value. In addition to LillyDirect, Lilly has also been engaging directly with the public more and more on social media thanks to its blockbuster weight-loss drugs, Zepbound and Mounjaro, which have been the subject of much activity. Ricks attributed this extraordinary chatter both to obesity being a common condition that a lot of people care a lot about (It affects 40% of Americans, he noted) and to the drug being highly effective, so you move from just a medical sphere to a public sphere of conversation. Echoing Lillys non-branded Oscar-related advertising this past week, Ricks said that Lilly hopes to direct that conversation online to the degree we can in a way thats productive -- these are drugs for a serious disease and if someone is suffering from obesity and we can help them, we want to do that. Lilly also wants people to use the drugs safely, on label, and to buy them from legitimate sources, he added. Ricks also vigorously defended Lillys diversity and inclusion efforts, saying that they have been key to our success in every way.... If we don't look like the population, were losing talent, he explained. When he became CEO in 2017, less than 30% of Lillys global management jobs were held by women, he said, and at the rate the company was then progressing, it would have reached gender parity in 73 years. Instead, he announced, that goal will be reached in 2024. by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, March 13, 2024 Siding with Google and Apple, a federal appellate court on Wednesday refused to reinstate lawsuits alleging that the companies violated state privacy laws in New York and Minnesota by retaining data about people's streaming video rentals. In an unsigned opinion, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld two district court judges' rulings that New York and Minnesota privacy laws don't allow individuals to sue companies for failing to delete records. Wednesday's decision stems from separate class-action complaints brought against Google and Apple, both filed in 2022 by residents of New York and Minnesota. The consumers alleged in both cases that the companies wrongly retained streaming video renters' viewing histories and credit card information. Video privacy laws in both New York and Minnesota ban disclosure of viewing data without consent, and require companies to promptly destroy identifiable information as soon as practical, with an outer limit of one year from the time the data is no longer needed. advertisement advertisement Google and Apple urged the trial judges to dismiss the complaints at an early stage, arguing that the state laws don't allow consumers to bring private lawsuits over data retention. To Apples knowledge, no court has ever recognized a private right of action for wrongful retention of consumer [personally identifiable information] under either statute, the company argued to U.S. District Court Judge Haywood Gilliam in the Northern District of California. Gilliam agreed with Apple and threw out the lawsuit in March 2023. Google made a similar argument to U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in the Northern District of California. She also sided with Google and dismissed the complaint in May 2023. The consumers appealed both cases to the 9th Circuit, arguing that both trial judges misinterpreted the state laws. Counsel for the consumers specifically argued that neither the New York nor Minnesota law has any language that would explicitly prohibit private lawsuits over record retention. The appellate judges rejected the consumers' argument. They wrote that both statutes have provisions allowing private lawsuits over disclosure of video viewing records, but don't have comparable language that would allow lawsuits for wrongful retention of data. by Ray Schultz , March 13, 2024 The suspense over Alaska Senate Bill 68, which would remove the legal requirement that public notices related to the sale and removal of water, are to be placed in local newspapers, is resolved. The Senate passed the bill on Monday by a unanimous vote of 17-0. Three senators were absent. The measure now goes to the House. Publishers had opposed the bill, which would deprive them of needed revenue. But they challenged it on the grounds of transparency. The public has relied on community newspapers to keep them informed and to publish public notices, said Virginia Farmier, the executive director of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, according to Must Read Alaska. If the state government publishes their own notices, wheres the transparency in that? Specifically, the bill would allow the states Department of Natural Resources to stop publishing some public notices in local media, Frontiersman writes. advertisement advertisement The bill reflects a growing nationwide movement that would see governments post notices on their own websites, not in paid local newspapers. However, there are exceptions. The St. Lawrence County legislature in upstate New York recently designated three newspapers as official papers for the purpose of publishing law notices and other notices required by law to be published. Parts of the Aussie outback have been drenched in a year's worth of rain in only a matter of days, flooding farmland and closing key transport routes that connect Western Australia to the rest of the country. The country's largest operating sheep station in Rawlinna situated in Western Australia's southeast shared images of the aftermath of the flooding online, showing workers saving animals on kayaks while rooms with heavy machinery filled with water. Debris can be seen floating around the work rooms with "water in the petrol tanks" and the farmland surrounding the station is covered in a layer of murky floodwater. Parts of Western Australia's outback have flooded after being battered with heavy rainfall. Source: Facebook/Rawlinna Station Rawlinna Station, the country's largest operating sheep station, was under water forcing workers to rescue animals via kayak. Source: Facebook/Rawlinna Station Those at the station had to flee without the sheep but staff feel confident "Rawlinna sheep are not silly" and are "hopeful" the animals have sought high ground. "As soon as we can get back in the air well be out there to check on them," Rawlinna Station wrote. "The homestead is almost completely under water but its also worth mentioning that its built on the edge of a depression, so the water was bound to pool there (we just never imagined wed get this much!)." Chaos caused by flooding Amid the deluge, there are serious concerns for a missing family of seven last seen in flooded Kalgoorlie Boulder on Sunday. It is believed they were travelling in two vehicles together. A search continued for the missing family on Wednesday. What's more, the main road connecting Western Australia with South Australia, the Eyre Highway, was closed alongside the Trans-Australia Railway line after floodwaters inundated parts of the transport routes. The Eyre weather station recording the intense rainfall has already exceeded its annual average within four days after 325 millimetres of rain fell in the area with the annual average being 315.9 millimetres. Story continues WA's Department of Fire and Emergency Services warned residents in Rawlinna, Carnegie, Cocklebiddy, Eyre and Zanthus to seek shelter, stand clear of windows and refrain from driving through floodwaters. "If you live in parts of the Goldfields, Eucla and South Interior districts you should take action and stay safe with severe weather to come," the department advised. "This is not typical weather for southeastern Western Australia." with AAP Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, March 13, 2024 A federal appellate court has rejected Meta's request to halt a Federal Trade Commission administrative hearing that could result in an order prohibiting the company from serving targeted ads to teens. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals said in an order issued Tuesday that Meta hadn't met the standards for an injunction for several reasons -- including that an in-house hearing at the FTC wouldn't cause irreparable injury to Meta because the company could appeal the outcome to a federal court. Meta does not dispute that a final order in that proceeding will be reviewable by a federal court of appeals,a three-judge panel of the appellate court wrote, adding that the expense and annoyance of litigation, including in an FTC proceeding, does not constitute irreparable injury. The move clears the way for the FTC to argue at an in-house hearing that Meta should be subject to new, more restrictive terms than it agreed to in a 2020 settlement over allegations that it allowed Cambridge Analytica and other outside developers to access users' data. advertisement advertisement That deal, which was approved by U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Kelly in Washington, D.C., required Meta to pay $5 billion, implement new privacy oversight and obtain an independent assessment of the program. Last May, the FTC proposed modifying the 2020 settlement by adding terms prohibiting Meta from using minors' data to fuel ad targeting or algorithms. The FTC also proposed that Meta should be banned from launching new products or service unless an assessor confirmed that the company's privacy program has no weaknesses. When FTC put forward the potential new terms, it served Meta with a demand to appear at an in-house administrative proceeding -- similar to a trial, but in front of the agency, as opposed to a judge. The FTC alleged at the time that an evaluator had identified gaps and weaknesses in the company's privacy program, and that between 2017 and 2019, Meta's Messenger Kids had coding errors that allowed children to communicate with people who hadn't been approved by parents, in violation of representations about the feature. Meta then sued in federal court to prevent the FTC from moving forward with an in-house hearing, arguing that only Kelly or another judge could modify the 2020 settlement. Kelly rejected that argument in November, ruling that he lacked jurisdiction to intervene in the current dispute. He ruled that even though Meta's agreement with the FTC was attached as an exhibit to the judgment he approved, he didn't retain jurisdiction over the terms. The D.C. Circuit appeared to agree with Kelly's reasoning on that point, essentially holding Meta hasn't yet proven that the FTC lacked authority to modify the settlement terms. A Meta spokesperson stated Wednesday that the FTC's allegations regarding potential weaknesses in the company's privacy program are "without merit." "We remain committed to investing in privacy programs that protect peoples privacy and we will continue to vigorously fight the FTCs baseless and unlawful action," the spokesperson added. This site uses cookies to deliver our services.By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Cookie Policy Privacy Policy , and our Terms of Use About Barretts esophagus is a condition where the inner lining of the esophagus changes to resemble the intestinal lining. It predisposes the patient to cancer. The esophagus is a 25 cms tube that connects the throat to the stomach and is the food pipe that lies behind the wind pipe. It consists of muscles lined on the inside by particular type of cells. Norman Barrett, a British surgeon first described this condition, hence it is named after him. Following Barretts esophagus, some cells could show precancerous changes. This stage is called low-grade dysplasia. It could further progress to high-grade dysplasia and cancer. The exact extent of the disease in the general population is not known since very few studies have been conducted on this topic. From the available information, it is estimated that the disease is less common in Asians than in the Western population. The rate of patients with Barretts esophagus developing cancer is less than 1% per year. Despite this, it is necessary to detect it since esophageal cancer is very difficult to treat once it develops. About Bombay blood group is a rare blood type in which the affected individuals have an H antigen deficiency. Bombay blood group is a rare blood type that was first discovered in a patient of Bombay, now called Mumbai. It is a rare condition and has been reported in 1 of 10,000 individuals in India and 1 in a million people in Europe. People with Bombay blood group appear that they have an O blood group; however, they suffer from a reaction if they are transfused with any other blood group including O blood. Why does this happen? This happens because the person lacks an antigen called the H antigen. The H antigen is a precursor protein that gives rise to the A and B antigens, on the basis of which people are classified into the A, B or AB blood groups . Normally, people with the O blood group do not convert H to A or B. Thus, they have large amounts of H antigen. On the other hand, people with Bombay blood group have the O blood group, but have one difference - they do not have the H antigen. They are said to have the Oh blood group and are described as h/h. Some of these individuals can make a small amount of H antigen, which appears in the secretions. These people are said to have the para-Bombay phenotype. It is also important to remember that people with Bombay blood group can donate blood only to those of this group. Advertisement Because Bombay blood group is very rare, a database of individuals of this blood group is maintained so that these individuals can help each other at times of need. The situation is even more difficult if a person with a Bombay blood group develops thalassemia, a condition that requires frequent blood transfusions. Women with Bombay blood group may theoretically deliver babies with hemolytic disease of the newborn if the baby does not inherit the same blood type, though such cases are not known as yet. Some tips to remember if you have Bombay blood group: Enter your name in one of the databases that keeps information about individuals with Bombay blood group. If you are in good health, do consider donating your blood to those of the same blood group in times of need. At the same time, it is better not to donate at regular camps but only when the need arises to prevent wastage of blood. Try to maintain a healthy lifestyle and as far as possible, avoid situations that will raise the requirement for blood. Finally, the presence of the Bombay blood group does not mean that you suffer from any illness. It just means that you are a little different. In fact, it also means that you are special, for you can help some individuals whom many others may be unable to help. What is Cataract? A cataract is any cloudiness in the crystalline lens of the eye or its overlying capsule. When light enters the eye, it passes through the outer transparent dome called the cornea, then through the fluid behind the cornea in the anterior chamber called the aqueous humor, then the opening of the iris called the pupil, and then through a transparent lens and a thick gel-like fluid called the vitreous humor. These media help to focus the light onto the most sensitive part of the retina, which ensures clear vision. The lens is located in a capsule just behind the iris and is suspended by fibers attached to the ciliary body. The ciliary muscles adjust the curvature of the lens to enable the eye to focus on objects at different distances. Clouding of the lens due to cataract prevents light from focusing on the retina and therefore affects vision. Cataracts are examples of curable blindness. They cannot be reversed, meaning that the crystalline lens cannot become transparent again, but the visual impairment due to a cataract can be rectified by surgical removal of the lens and replacement with a synthetic intraocular lens. Advertisement About 20 million people in the world are blind due to cataract, which accounts for about 51 % of cases of blindness due to various causes. According to the latest statistics, blindness in one out of every three people and visual impairment in one in six people in the world is due to cataract. In India, cataract accounts for 62.6 % of cases of blindness. Age-related cataract, which appears at an older age, is the most common form of cataract. However, there are other causes as well. Broadly, cataract can be divided into congenital and acquired varieties. Congenital cataract is cataract that is present from birth. Developmental cataract can develop shortly after birth. Some of the causes are genetic, galactosemia, (presence of excessive galactose in the blood), Lowe syndrome (an inborn error of amino acid metabolism), congenital rubella (baby born to a mother who had German measles during pregnancy), congenital toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus or varicella (chicken pox) infection, Downs syndrome, hypoparathyroidism, hyper- and hypoglycemia (increased or decreased sugar in the blood). Acquired cataract is most commonly age related. Some of the other causes include diabetes mellitus, myotonic dystrophy, malnutrition, atopic dermatitis, eye injuries, following eye inflammation, high myopia or short sightedness, and intake of drugs like corticosteroids. Some of the risk factors for age related cataract are genetic factors, smoking, diabetes mellitus, exposure to ultraviolet B rays, deficiency of antioxidants like vitamins A,C and E, and severe dehydrating conditions at a young age. Age-related cataract is mainly of 3 types cortical, nuclear and posterior subcapsular. Most patients have more than one of these types at the same time. A posterior subcapsular cataract is cloudiness just in front of the posterior capsule of the lens. Because of its location (at the center of the visual axis), this type of cataract causes significant disturbances of vision even in its early stages, such as difficulty with near work, and impairment of vision in bright sunlight and during exposure to oncoming headlights during night driving. Advertisement Nuclear cataract Here, there is a hardening of the center part (nucleus) of the lens. This results in short-sightedness referred as index myopia. Persons with an early nuclear cataract are often able to read without glasses (this temporary improvement in vision is referred to as second sight). Differential refractive indices in different portions of the lens can result in double vision or multiple images of the same object (often discernible as seeing multiple moons). In more advanced cases, difficult hue discrimination and impaired vision in the dark are experienced. Gradually, the vision is diminished enough to impair daily activities. Cortical cataract In a cortical cataract, the cloudiness or opacification is in the part of the lens lying superficial to the nucleus, and which is referred to as the cortex of the lens. Cortical cataracts occur due to coagulation of lens proteins. The symptoms depend on the location and density of the opacification. Patients frequently experience glare from oncoming headlights, double vision and a general impairment of distance vision that gets progressively worse with time. A posterior subcapsular cataract gradually spreads from the center of the posterior part of the lens to extend more peripherally; it simultaneously also becomes denser, resulting in a significant impairment of distant vision. Nuclear cataracts become denser, more opaque and change in color from light yellow in the early stages to dark brown in advanced stages. However, though both these types of cataracts give rise to significant visual disability in the advanced stages, neither of them become mature. A cortical cataract, on the other hand, tends to progress in the degree of cloudiness, and eventually the entire lens becomes completely opaque. This is called a mature cataract. If surgical removal is not undertaken, further changes lead to hypermaturity. Certain complications can occur in association with cataracts. 1. Phacomorphic glaucoma Here, excess water accumulation in the lens either in the immature or mature phase results in the swelling of the lens to such an extent, that it pushes the iris forward, which then blocks the drainage of aqueous humor from the anterior chamber of the eye, resulting in a sudden rise in intraocular pressure. (The anterior chamber is the part between the cornea on the outside and the iris and the lens on the inside. It contains aqueous humor that is drained at the angle). The eye becomes red and painful, and needs to be treated by an eye doctor immediately. 2. Phacolytic glaucoma Sometimes, in hypermature cataracts, the cortex of the lens becomes liquefied and leaks out through micro-perforations in the lens capsule. It is taken up by cells called macrophages, which then interfere with the drainage of aqueous humor from the eye. The sudden rise of intraocular pressure results in a red and painful eye and requires emergency treatment. Advertisement 3. Lens induced uveitis The leaked out lens material in hypermature cataracts can result in the formation of proteins called antibodies that result in a red, painful, inflamed eye. The eye doctor should be consulted immediately. 4. Hypermature cataracts can sometimes shrink, lose their support and then get either partially or completely displaced either forward or backward from their natural position. If they get caught in the pupil, there can be a dangerous rise of intraocular pressure, necessitating urgent treatment. Cortical cataracts can usually be diagnosed with a simple torchlight examination. However, appropriate assessment of cortical and nuclear cataracts and the diagnosis of posterior subcapsular cataracts requires examination with the slit lamp. The examination is a painless procedure where the patient is asked to sit in front of the instrument and place the chin on a chin rest. To date, there is no known medical treatment of cataract. There have been some clinical trials in the past few years which have studied the use of N-acetyl carnosine used as eye drops to halt the progression or reverse cataract. Some of these have shown positive results while others have not. Thus, there is no conclusive data at present to recommend this treatment for clinical use. The definitive treatment of cataract today is the surgical removal of the crystalline lens with implantation of a synthetic IOL (intraocular lens to replace the refractive function of the natural lens). Failure to place an intraocular lens results in a very high hypermetropia (long sightedness) which needs to be corrected either with spectacles or contact lenses for any useful vision to be present. Spectacles and contact lenses have many disadvantages; thus intraocular lenses are the gold standard for correction of vision after removal of cataracts. Phacoemulsfication is the standard of care, and is the most commonly used surgical technique today to treat cataracts. An ultrasound driven probe is used to fragment the nucleus of the lens (which is hard) which is then sucked out of a very small (approximately 3mm) incision. A foldable intraocular lens is then introduced into the eye, usually by loading it into an injector. The lens unfolds in the eye. Since the incision is small and self sealing, sutures are not necessary. Thus, compared to older surgeries that required a larger incision and resulted in scarring, the chances of astigmatism (refractive error due to irregularities in the shape of the cornea) are largely reduced with the newer surgeries. . In MICS (micro-incision cataract surgery), the incision is less than 2.2 mm. Thus, the advantages of phacoemulsification are a sutureless surgery, very less chances of astigmatism, and a very quick post-operative recovery. Sometimes phacoemulsification may be difficult or not preferred because of the nature of the cataract. In such cases, a small incision cataract surgery (SICS) is carried out. Here, the incision is about 5.5 to 7 mm in length, but still does not require suturing if the incision is made as a self-sealing one. Also, a foldable lens is not required for an SICS. The third type of surgery is what is described as an ECCE (extracapsular cataract surgery), wherein the surgical incision is much larger, and requires sutures to close it. This is very rarely performed these days as incidence of astigmatism is much higher in this type of surgery. Cataract surgery is performed under local anesthesia, either by the instillation of local anesthetic eye drops, or by injection of the anesthetic into the tissue around the eyeballs. General anesthesia is only indicated in poorly cooperative adults and in children. Femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS) is gaining popularity in recent times. It uses intraoperative image guidance combined with short pulse delivery of a near infrared laser to achieve precise tissue dissection. In this, a femtosecond laser is used to replace manual performance of any or all of the following steps of cataract surgery the corneal incision, capsulorrhexis (removal of the capsule of the lens), and lens fragmentation. This is what is commonly denoted by laser cataract surgery. Recent Advances in Intraocular Lens Technology Intraocular lenses are also available in newer designs. In contrast to the traditional monofocal lenses that correct vision only for distance (thus necessitating wearing of glasses for reading purposes), trifocals and multifocals allow intermediate vision and near correction in addition to that of distance. Another type of IOL is toric IOL, which can correct pre-existing astigmatism (these are akin to cylindrical spectacle lenses for astigmatism). Toric multifocals are also available. Various types of accommodating lenses attempt to respond to the accommodation effort of the patient in order to help in near vision. Various types of lenses that can correct residual post-operative refractive error with magnets, ultraviolet light (light adjustable lens or LAL) or laser are in clinical trials. Some of these are available in select countries, while others are in the trial stage. Robot-assisted simulated cataract surgery is also being currently evaluated and shows some promising results. Lin and co-workers have attempted a slight modification of technique to aid in the regeneration of a clear lens in pediatric cataracts. There is no proven method today for preventing cataracts. Smoking and exposure to ultraviolet rays are avoidable risk factors in age related cataract. Cessation of smoking and the use of sunglasses may help in delaying the onset or progression of cataract. There is some suggestive evidence that intake of vitamins A,C, E, niacin, riboflavin, beta carotene and protein is protective. Lutein and zeaxanthin are carotenoids present in the human lens, and some studies have shown a decreased risk with foods rich in lutein such as spinach and broccoli. What is Exotropia? Exotropia is a common form of strabismus or squint (a failure of the two eyes to maintain proper alignment). It is an outward deviation of the eyes that may occur while fixating distance or near objects or both. Exotropia can occur at any age but it is more common in early childhood between 1-4 years of age. Exotropia is more common in Asia, in contrast to convergent squint or inward deviation of the eyes (esotropia) which is more common in the west. Strabismus or squint refers to ocular misalignment. Proper ocular alignment is necessary for Proper visual stimulation Prevention of amblyopia (lazy eye) Binocular single vision (the ability to perceive objects seen by both the eyes as one, along with depth perception) Cosmesis Visual stimulation is very crucial in children for proper functional development of the visual system. Any barrier to an appropriate visual stimulus (either in the form of an obstruction such as cataract or an ocular deviation such as squint) can result in the formation of a lazy eye (amblyopia), in which stimulation does not result in a good image, and hence renders vision in that eye subnormal. The younger the child, the greater the chances of and the depth of amblyopia. Binocular vision has 3 grades - Simultaneous macular perception (the images of objects in both eyes are appreciated by the patient) Fusion (Separate and slightly dissimilar images arising in each eye are appreciated as a single image) Stereopsis (Depth perception) This is the highest grade of binocular vision, and which provides us with exceptional skill for certain tasks. When there is a squint, one or more of these are affected to varying degrees depending on the degree, duration of squint, age at which squint develops and depending on whether it is an intermittent squint or a constant squint. Advertisement Exotropia may be broadly classified into two classes: Comitant and Incomitant Comitant or incomitant Type Features Comitant (degree of deviation constant in all directions of gaze) Infantile Manifests within the first year of life Often associated with ocular disorders (such as ptosis, albinism, retinoblastoma, cataracts and 3rd cranial nerve paralysis), and systemic disorders (such as prematurity, cerebral palsy, seizure disorder and hydrocephalus). Treatment is by surgical correction. Intermittent exotropia Most common form of exotropia. Discussed in detail below. Sensory exotropia Occurs as a result of poor vision in one eye, and can occur at any age. The causes for sensory exotropia can be varied ptosis (drooping of eyelid to obstruct vision, cloudiness of the cornea, cataract, tumors like retinoblastoma, optic nerve defects, refractive errors. Consecutive exotropia Occurs after surgery for a convergent squint (esotropia). Incomitant (deviation varies in different directions of gaze) Paralytic exotropia Central nervous system disorders such as tumors, Third nerve paralysis, Disorders of the muscles moving the eyes such as thyroid eye disease, myasthenia gravis. Restriction of movement of the eyes resulting in ocular misalignment Tumors in the orbit, Fibrosis of muscles moving the eyes, Duanes syndrome Advertisement The treatment of incomitant deviations consists of treatment of the primary condition. Intermittent Exotropia - This is the most common form of exotropia and accounts for about 5090% of all the exotropia and affects about 1% of the general population.The onset of intermittent exotropia is usually between 12 months and 4 years of age. In children, exotropia may be preceded by exophoria (latent divergent squint), and the eye turn might only be visible during stressful situations such as fatigue, illness or stress. Closure of one eye in bright sunlight is another feature of intermittent exotropia. In adults, it can manifest as a result of consuming alcohol or sedatives. Initially the exotropia manifests on only while viewing distant objects; later the exotropia for near also increases. Intermittent exotropia may remain stable, or may evolve to constant exotropia. Constant exotropia can lead to variable degrees of diminished binocular function and lazy eye. Major Risk Factors for Squint Prematurity Central nervous system impairment Low birth weight Family history of squint (usually same type is present) Refractive error If the outward deviation is more for distance fixation than for near , it is called the divergence excess type of exotropia. If the deviation is more for near than for distance vision, it is referred to as the convergence insufficiency type of exotropia. If little or no difference is noted between near and distance deviation, it is called the basic type of exotropia. Advertisement Mostly the first signs of exotropia appear during childhood. The common symptoms include: Decreased vision, either due to refractive error, disorder in the eye,or due to suppression Outward deviation of the eyes Reduced binocular function Photosensitivity or increased sensitivity to bright light Double vision if the exotropia is intermittent. Suppression of image in the deviating eye to prevent double vision and confusion. Thus the higher degrees of binocular vision are affected. Abnormal retinal correspondence A poor adaptation made by the sensory mechanisms to maintain some sort of binocular vision even in the presence of a squint. This should be specifically looked for in every patient of squint prior to surgical correction. If present, this should be addressed, otherwise surgical correction of the squint can lead to double vision. The outward deviation is obvious and patient presents mainly with this symptom. Do not confuse exotropia with the transient outward wandering of the eyes that occurs in about 60-70% of normal newborns, and which resolves by 6 months of age. Visual acuity measurement- Visual acuity might be normal or abnormal. Diminished vision may either be due to a refractive error, pathology such as cataract or retinal disorders, suppression , or a combination of these factors. Visual acuity measurement in younger children is more challenging. There are special charts and devices for this purpose and require a great deal of patience. Cycloplegic refraction: It is an objective determination of the true refractive error, by elimination of the effect of accommodation. This is achieved by paralyzing the ciliary muscle with cyclopentolate eye drops or atropine eye ointment. These drugs also cause dilatation of the pupil making it easier for the doctor to examine the retina. Slit lamp exam- This test checks for any diseases or abnormalities in the anterior portion of the eye. This test checks for any diseases or abnormalities in the anterior portion of the eye. Fundus (retina) examination- It is also referred to as fundoscopy, and is used to view the eye's interior portion, involving assessment of the retina, optic nerve, blood vessels, and other features: It is also referred to as fundoscopy, and is used to view the eye's interior portion, involving assessment of the retina, optic nerve, blood vessels, and other features: Measurement of the amount of deviation Assessment of movement of the eyes in various directions of gaze Check for double vision, and if present, determine the type Determine the degree of binocular vision that is present Check for ability of fusion of the images of the 2 eyes Check for depth perception Check for suppression Check for abnormal retinal correspondence Exotropia can be managed both by non-surgical and surgical treatments depending upon the condition of patient. Non-surgical methods Correction of refractive error - Refractive errors like myopia, astigmatism, and high degrees of hypermetropia need to be corrected both for improvement of vision as well as to help in reducing the stimulus for exotropia. Some eye doctors prescribe additional minus lenses to stimulate accommodation (which is always accompanied by convergence ) to help in controlling the outward deviation. This may be useful in delaying surgery in some people. - Refractive errors like myopia, astigmatism, and high degrees of hypermetropia need to be corrected both for improvement of vision as well as to help in reducing the stimulus for exotropia. Some eye doctors prescribe additional minus lenses to stimulate accommodation (which is always accompanied by convergence ) to help in controlling the outward deviation. This may be useful in delaying surgery in some people. Orthoptic treatment makes use of fusional training exercises. Small intermittent deviations respond better than large and constant deviations. makes use of fusional training exercises. Small intermittent deviations respond better than large and constant deviations. Occlusion technique: This technique is beneficial for use in very young children. Patching the dominant eye or alternate patching of either eye is performed to interrupt and reduce the progression of the exotropia. Continued part-time patching (2-4 hours per day) helps the brain stop using abnormal neurological pathways while encouraging the normal neurological pathway. This technique is not usually effective for long, and in some patients can result in progression of the exotropia. Prism therapy- Base-in-prisms (prisms incorporated into spectacles with the base of the prism towards the nose) are extremely helpful in improving the appearance of the eyes and facilitating the patients communication and interaction with others. It alleviates difficulties associated with misalignment. It is useful for older patients with limited fusional capabilities. Surgical correction: Surgery is generally considered only after unsatisfactory non-surgical approaches. The goals of surgery are restoration of alignment and binocular function. Following points may help to prevent or worsen Exotropia: Routine eye check-ups to detect latent squint, refractive errors and application of corrective measures. What is LiFraumeni Syndrome? Li Fraumeni syndrome (LFS) is a type of inherited cancer syndrome. In this condition, the increased risk for developing certain types of cancers runs in families. The cancers tend to occur at a younger age compared to the general population. It is extremely rare and till date the condition has been identified in 1000 families (comprising many generations in each) worldwide. Inquiries on the LFS association website have received responses from about 172 countries so far. LFS was first described in 1969 by Drs. Frederick Li and Joseph Fraumeni, Jr., while working on childhood and familial cancers at the National Cancer Institute. They described four families having a history of several early-onset cancers in childhood and teens. In 1982, scientists in the UK were the first to term the condition Li-Fraumeni syndrome in a publication where they described two families with multiple forms of cancer in young individuals. In a major /peakthrough in 1990, inherited (or germline, see below for explanation) mutations of TP53 tumor suppressor gene were discovered as the primary cause of LFS. This finding provided a unique opportunity for genetic testing that allowed early detection, treatment and prevention of tumors in persons with LFS. The recognition of LFS fuelled several research projects into TP53 gene, to try and understand its function better. Interestingly non-inherited or somatic cell (non-reproductive cells which are not passed to offspring) mutations of the TP53 gene have been found to be associated with sporadic (in the general population, not hereditary) cancers as well. Advertisement The cause for Li Fraumeni syndrome is due to a germline (related to gametes/reproductive cells) mutation of the TP53 gene. This means that the TP53 gene mutation occurs in the reproductive cells (egg or sperm). Consequently, the mutation is transmitted via the reproductive cells to the offspring. Thus, the Li Fraumeni syndrome is an example of a hereditary (inherited) cancer syndrome associated with an increased risk of getting certain cancers, particularly at a young age, in affected families. (inherited) associated with an increased risk of getting certain cancers, particularly at a young age, in affected families. Nearly 70% of Li-Fraumeni syndrome families and 40% of Li-Fraumenilike families have germline mutations in the TP53 tumor suppressor gene. in the tumor suppressor gene. About 767 types of germ line mutations have been identified. of germ line mutations have been identified. Li Fraumeni syndrome is inherited as an autosomal dominant condition which means that having one copy of the defective gene (out of 2 copies, namely one from each parent) is sufficient for the person to develop the disease. condition which means that having one copy of the defective gene (out of 2 copies, namely one from each parent) is sufficient for the person to develop the disease. Most individuals with LFS have a germline TP53 gene mutation, but rarely, LFS is due to a spontaneous (de novo) genetic mutation in the egg or sperm cell. In this situation, the syndrome is not inherited from the parents. gene mutation, but in the egg or sperm cell. In this situation, the syndrome is not inherited from the parents. Individuals with LFS have an increased risk of developing cancers associated with certain lifestyle or environmental exposures , such as radiation exposure, sunlight or tobacco smoking, and should take adequate preventive measures to reduce these exposures. , such as radiation exposure, sunlight or tobacco smoking, and should take adequate preventive measures to reduce these exposures. A variant of Li-Fraumeni syndrome (although disputed) can be caused by mutations in another tumor suppressor gene called CHEK2, which normally prevents cells with DNA damage from multiplying. Advertisement LFS should be considered if someone has a personal or family history of cancers known to occur in LFS. History of multiple childhood cancers in a patient or his family members should alert the physician about possible LFS. Additionally, there are certain rare cancers such as adrenocortical and choroid plexus carcinoma that are characteristic of the syndrome that should raise the clinical suspicion to a possible diagnosis of LFS. Cancers most commonly associated (core cancers) with LFS include - Soft tissue sarcoma Osteosarcoma /peast cancer /pain and central nervous system (CNS) tumors (glioma, choroid plexus carcinoma, sonic hedgehog subtype medulloblastoma, neuroblastoma) Acute leukemia Adrenocortical carcinoma Lung adenocarcinoma Melanoma (skin cancer) Gastrointestinal cancers (such as colon, pancreas) Renal cancer Thyroid Gonadal germ cells (such as ovarian, testicular, and prostate) Persons with LFS have a roughly 50% of developing cancer by 40 years, and nearly 90% percent chance by 60 years. Females have nearly a 100% risk of getting cancer in their lifetime due to their significantly increased risk of /peast cancer. Many individuals with LFS in fact develop two or more primary cancers during their life. Diagnosis of Li-Fraumeni syndrome is based on clinical criteria and/or genetic testing for the mutation in the TP53 gene. Genetic testing is typically considered when a combination of the criteria outlined below are satisfied. Diagnosis of Classic LFS (all 3 criteria to be present) proposed by Li et al 1988 Sarcoma diagnosed before 45 years First-degree relative, i.e. a parent, sibling or child, diagnosed with any cancer before 45 years First-degree relative or second-degree relative (grandparent, aunt/uncle, niece/nephew, or grandchild) with a diagnosis of any cancer before 45 years or a sarcoma at any age Chompret Criteria for Clinical Diagnosis of Li-Fraumeni Syndrome (updated in 2015) (Bougeard et al., 2015) These are a recently described set of criteria proposed to identify families not falling under the Classic criteria listed above. A diagnosis of LFS and performing TP53 gene testing is considered in anyone with a personal and family history of any 1 of the following 3 criteria. Criterion 1 Familial Presentation Person with tumor belonging to the LFS spectrum, before 46 years including soft-tissue sarcoma, osteosarcoma, lung cancer, leukemia, pre-menopausal /peast cancer, /pain tumor, adrenal cortical carcinoma and At least one first or second-degree relative with LFS tumor (except /peast cancer if patient has /peast cancer) before 56 years or with multiple cancers Criterion 2 Multiple Primary Tumors Person with multiple tumors (except multiple /peast cancers), at least two of which belong to LFS tumor panel and first cancer occurring before 46 years Criterion 3 - Rare tumors Patient with specific rare cancers such as adrenocortical carcinoma, rhabdomyosarcoma em/pyonal anaplastic subtype or choroid plexus tumor irrespective of family history /peast cancer before 31 years Li Fraumeni like Syndrome (LFL) A diagnosis of Li Fraumeni like syndrome is considered in persons who do not meet the above defined criteria LFL Definition 1, called the Birch definition (all 3 to be present) Person diagnosed with any childhood cancer, sarcoma, /pain tumor, or adrenocortical malignancy before 45 years and First-degree or second-degree relative diagnosed with any LFS spectrum cancer, such as sarcoma, /peast cancer, leukemia, /pain cancer, adrenal cortical tumor, at any age and First-degree or second-degree relative diagnosed with any cancer before 60 years Two first-degree or second-degree relatives diagnosed with a typical LFS malignancy, such as sarcoma, adrenocortical cancer, /peast cancer, /pain cancer, or leukemia, at any age. STANDARD MANAGEMENT Treatment of Diagnosed Cancers Currently there is no standard treatment or cure for LFS. Most people with LFS who develop cancers are treated in the same manner as for cancers in other patients, but research is ongoing on how to best manage cancers related to LFS. Surveillance and Imaging for early detection and treatment of new cancers Early diagnosis is key to better patient outcome. According to suggested guidelines and recommendations by an expert panel of LFS researchers, oncologists, and genetic counselors, once a diagnosis of LFS is established, these individuals should be under surveillance and undergo periodic preventive screening by whole body MRI scan to detect and treat cancers early. The recommendations for children and adults are as follows - Children (birth to age 18 years) Adults General assessment Detailed physical exam every 3-4 months Urgent referral to primary care physician for any unusual symptoms or concerns Detailed physical exam every 3-4 months Urgent referral to primary care physician for any unusual symptoms or concerns Adrenocortical carcinoma Ultrasound abdomen and pelvis every 3-4 months If ultrasound is not satisfactory, blood tests every 3-4 months Ultrasound abdomen and pelvis every 3-4 months If ultrasound is not satisfactory, blood tests every 3-4 months /pain tumor Yearly /pain MRI (first MRI with contrast thereafter without contrast if previous MRI normal and no fresh abnormalities have developed) Yearly /pain MRI (first MRI with contrast thereafter without contrast if previous MRI normal and no fresh abnormalities have developed) Soft tissue and bone sarcoma Yearly whole body MRI General assessment Detailed physical examination six monthly Urgent referral to primary care physician for any unusual symptoms or concerns /peast cancer /peast awareness (age 18 years and forward) Clinical /peast examination twice yearly (20 years onwards) Yearly /peast MRI scan (20-75 years) ideally, alternating with yearly whole body MRI (one scan every six months) Consider bilateral mastectomy to reduce risk /peast awareness (age 18 years and forward) Consider bilateral mastectomy to reduce risk /pain tumor (age 18 years and above) Yearly /pain MRI (first MRI with contrast, subsequent scans without contrast if previous MRI has no abnormality) (age 18 years and above) Yearly /pain MRI (first MRI with contrast, subsequent scans without contrast if previous MRI has no abnormality) Soft tissue and bone sarcoma (18 years and above) Yearly whole body MRI Ultrasound abdomen and pelvis annually (18 years and above) Yearly whole body MRI Ultrasound abdomen and pelvis annually Gastrointestinal cancer (25 years and above) Upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy and colonoscopy every 2-5 years (25 years and above) Upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy and colonoscopy every 2-5 years Melanoma (18 years and above) Annual dermatologic examination Note - For families where breast cancer has already occurred when they are about 20 years of age, awareness and screening can be considered 5 to 10 years before the earliest recorded age of onset. The same is recommended for gastrointestinal cancers i.e. consider screening 5 years before the earliest record of onset of a gastrointestinal cancer in a family. member. Precautions to avoid certain exposures Radiation treatment of cancers in LFS should be usually avoided since radiation exposure in these persons increases their risk for other cancers. However, if the benefits outweigh the risks it should be given with caution. Other exposures to avoid include tobacco and sunlight. INVESTIGATIONAL TREATMENTS Several studies exploring the use of agents that reactivate or modify dysfunctional TP53 protein are being actively pursued, but none have reached the stage of clinical trials in LFS patients. About Clinical breast examination is a simple and inexpensive method of detecting breast cancer especially in women who do not have access to mammography or in whom mammography may not be feasible. Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers affecting women worldwide. Statistics from the year 2008 indicate that about 1, 82,000 breast cancer cases with 40, 481 deaths were reported in the US. Though the percentage of breast cancer cases appeared less in India due to its high population, the number of new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in 2008 i.e.1, 15,000, was not far behind. The number of deaths due to breast cancer in India in 2008 was 53, 592. Early diagnosis of breast cancer through screening techniques could result in complete cure of the patient. The screening methods used for screening of breast cancer are listed below: Self Breast Examination Clinical Breast Examination Film Mammography Digital Mammography MRI (in high-risk cases) Clinical breast examination is a procedure where the health care personnel such as doctors or nurses carefully examines the breasts for evidence of any abnormality such as lumps or blood discharge from the nipple. This is in contrast to a breast self examination where the woman exams her breasts on her own at home. Screening with Clinical Breast Examination Women in their 20s and 30s should undergo annual or every three yearly clinical breast examinations. Women over 40 years should get it done annually. Who should undergo clinical breast examination? The recommendations for clinical breast examination differ among different organizations, ranging from yearly to three yearly examinations for women in their 20s and 30s and yearly examinations thereafter. The US Preventative Services Task Force indicates that a clinical breast examination may not be important for patients undergoing mammography. Advertisement If you are a woman over 20 years of age, you should definitely consider annual to every-three-yearly clinical breast examination, especially if you are at high risk for breast cancer and may not be able to undergo mammography. If you notice any obvious abnormality like a lump or bloody secretion from the nipple, you should get a clinical breast examination done immediately. How are the breasts examined during a clinical breast examination? Clinical breast examination is usually performed in a clinic after assuring adequate privacy. The woman has to undress up to the waist for the examination. The health care professional examines the breasts for any obvious abnormal changes in the nipples or skin overlying the breasts. The breasts may also be examined in the sitting position with the arms overhead, at the side and on the hips. The health care professional then feels the breast with the pads of his/her fingers for any abnormality with the woman in lying down position and her head resting on her hands. The area from the collar bone to the about one inch below the breast is examined. The armpits are also examined for any swellings. (Cancer from the breast can spread to lymph nodes in the armpits, causing them to swell.) The nipples may be checked to detect the presence of secretion. What are the advantages of clinical breast examination? Clinical breast examination is a simple and inexpensive way of screening for breast cancer. It does not require any machinery and can be done at any primary care center. A clinical breast examination done before mammography can give the radiologist additional information, thus improving the chances of detecting a cancer on mammography. It could also help to detect other conditions affecting the breast besides cancer like fibroadenoma. Advertisement What are the harms of clinical breast examination? The procedure of clinical breast examination does not have any side effects. However, like other screening procedures, it could lead to false-positive results i.e. suspicion of breast cancer when it is not present. Patients with the slightest abnormality may be subjected to unnecessary additional tests like imaging and biopsy, thus increasing the cost of treatment and causing additional discomfort to the patient. It could also cause unnecessary anxiety to the patient. Frequently Asked Questions 1) Which doctor should I visit to get a clinical breast examination done? You should visit your general physician or gynecologist for a clinical breast examination. If there is any abnormality detected, you may be referred to a general surgeon/cancer surgeon for further workup and treatment. Advertisement 2) Which is better - breast self examination or clinical breast examination? Current evidence does not indicate that breast self examination reduces the number of deaths due to breast cancer. Clinical breast examination has a sensitivity i.e. ability to detect breast cancer of 40% to 69%, whereas the sensitivity for breast self examination ranges from 12% to 41%, which is much lower. Thus clinical breast examination is better, though breast self examination can be done in the comfort of ones home. 3) Which is the best screening test for breast cancer? Mammogram done between the ages of 50 and 79 years of age has been shown to reduce deaths caused due to breast cancer. If mammography is done as recommended, clinical breast examinations may not show any additional benefit in diagnosing breast cancer. However, in places like India where mammography is not feasible or widely available, clinical breast examination continues to play an important role in the detection of breast cancer. A complete clinical breast examination with the health care professional spending adequate time in examination helps in screening for breast cancer in these situations. It is also be useful in younger women, in whom mammography may not be of much use. A significant global increase in COVID-19 mortality among individuals over 15 years old was observed. Specifically, mortality rates rose by 22% for males and 17% for females from 2019 to 2021. #COVID #deathrisk Did You Know? Jordan and Nicaragua experienced significant excess mortality attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, a trend not previously captured in overall excess mortality estimates. Advertisement Advertisement A recent study, featured insheds light on previously unseen insights into the significantly high mortality rates caused by the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. Countries like Mexico City, Peru, and Bolivia witnessed substantial declines in life expectancy from 2019 to 2021.This research, presenting updated estimates from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2021, offers the most comprehensive analysis of the pandemic's impact on human health to date, revealing a global life expectancy reduction of 1.6 years from 2019 to 2021, marking a stark departure from previous increases. Notably, amidst the pandemic, child mortality rates continued their decline, with half a million fewer deaths among children under 5 in 2021 compared to 2019. Mortality rates among children under 5 decreased by 7% from 2019 to 2021, according to GBD's key findings.For adults worldwide, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a more profound impact than any event seen in half a century, including conflicts and natural disasters, says co-first author Dr. Austin E. Schumacher, Acting Assistant Professor of Health Metrics Sciences at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington. Life expectancy declined in 84% of countries and territories during this pandemic, demonstrating the devastating potential impacts of novel pathogens.Researchers from IHME identified high mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in places that were previously less recognized and/or reported. In analyzing subnational locations not previously investigated, the South African provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo had among the highest age-adjusted excess mortality rates and largest life expectancy declines during the pandemic in the world. Conversely, the places with some of the lowest age-adjusted excess mortality from the pandemic during this period included Barbados, New Zealand, and Antigua and Barbuda.During the COVID-19 pandemic, mortality among older people worldwide rose in ways unseen in the previous 70 years. While the pandemic was devastating, killing approximately 16 million people around the globe in 2020 and 2021 combined, it did not completely erase historic progress life expectancy at birth rose by nearly 23 years between 1950 and 2021.GBD 2021 analyzes past and current demographic trends at global, regional, national, and subnational levels. The study provides globally comparable measures of excess mortality and is one of the first studies to fully evaluate demographic trends in the context of the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. In estimating excess deaths due to the pandemic, the authors accounted for deaths from the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, as well as deaths associated with indirect effects of the pandemic, such as delays in seeking health care.GBD 2021 goes beyond assessing the impact of the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the authors note, it also offers implications for the future of health-care systems, economies, and societies and ... a valuable foundation for policy evaluation, development, and implementation around the world.GBD 2021 indicates that, despite early warnings that COVID-19 could threaten the gains that the world had made in saving childrens lives, these improvements continued during the pandemic, albeit at a slower pace. Still, stark differences in child mortality persist between regions. In 2021, one out of every four children who died worldwide lived in South Asia, while two out of every four children who died lived in sub-Saharan Africa.Our study suggests that, even after taking stock of the terrible loss of lives the world experienced due to the pandemic, we have made incredible progress over 72 years since 1950, with child mortality continuing to drop globally, said co-first author Dr. Hmwe Hmwe Kyu, Associate Professor of Health Metrics Sciences at IHME at the University of Washington. Now, continuing to build on our successes, while preparing for the next pandemic and addressing the vast disparities in health across countries, should be our greatest focuses.The GBD 2021 study also assessed population trends. Beginning in 2017, the rate of global population growth began to drop following years of stagnation. Then, during the COVID-19 pandemic, these declines accelerated. As of 2021, 56 countries have reached peak population. Now, these countries are seeing their populations shrink. However, rapid population growth has continued in many lower-income countries. In addition, populations around the world are aging . Between 2000 and 2021, the number of people who were 65 and older grew faster than the number of people under age 15 in 188 countries and territories.Slowing population growth and aging populations, along with the concentration of future population growth shifting to poorer locations with worse health outcomes, will bring about unprecedented social, economic, and political challenges, such as labor shortages in areas where younger populations are shrinking and resource scarcity in places where population size continues to expand rapidly, says Dr. Schumacher. This is worth restating, as these issues will require significant policy forethought to address in the affected regions. As one example, nations around the world will need to cooperate on voluntary emigration, for which one source of useful guidance is the UNs Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration.Source-Eurekalert Trusted Source MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) VIS Go to source Trusted Source Did you know? Mumps can cause serious complications like meningitis. Stay vigilant. #mumps #kerela #medindia Vaccination and Prevention from Mumps Despite not being part of the government's universal immunization program, a vaccine against mumps, measles, and rubella exists Public health experts stress the significance of vaccination, particularly for children, who can receive the MMR vaccine against all three diseases at private centers Symptoms and Manifestations of Mumps Mumps typically manifest with pain, tenderness, and swelling in the parotid salivary glands situated in the cheek and jaw area The swelling peaks within one to three days and gradually subsides over the following week Before the onset of parotitis, individuals may experience nonspecific prodromal symptoms such as mild fever, muscle pain, loss of appetite, general discomfort, and headaches MMR (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella) VIS - (https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/mmr.html) In the southern state of Kerala, a concerning outbreak of mumps has been reported, with a staggering 190 cases recorded in a single day. The outbreak has raised alarms among health authorities, prompting urgent measures to contain its spread ().According to data from the Kerala health department, the month has seen a total of 2,505 reported cases of mumps, contributing to a cumulative count of 11,467 cases over the span of two months this year. Most of these cases are concentrated in Malappuram district and other parts of north Kerala.The gravity of the situation has not gone unnoticed by health officials. The Union health ministry has acknowledged the outbreak, and the National Centre for Disease Control in the state has been notified to aid in managing the situation effectively.Mumps is caused by the paramyxovirus and spreads through direct contact or airborne droplets from the upper respiratory tract of an infected individual. Symptoms typically manifest within two to four weeks, starting with mild fever, headache, body aches, and fatigue. The hallmark indication of the ailment is the enlargement of the salivary glands.The outbreak of mumps in Kerala underscores the importance of robust public health measures and awareness campaigns to curb the spread of infectious diseases. Timely vaccination and prompt medical attention for suspected cases are crucial in mitigating the impact of such outbreaks on public health. Health authorities continue to monitor the situation closely and implement necessary interventions to contain the outbreak and protect the wellbeing of the population.Source-Medindia Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways invites the community to celebrate Girl Scout Week 2024. The annual celebration started March 10 and runs through this Saturday. Commemorated every March, Girl Scout Week starts with Girl Scout Sunday, ends with Girl Scout Sabbath/Shabbat on a Saturday, and always includes the Girl Scouts birthday on March 12. This year, Girl Scouts celebrates 112 years. The week also includes council-organized activities for members. Everyone can take part whether theyre a current member, volunteer, alum or friend of Girl Scouting. GSNYPENN shares activities at gsnypenn.org/gsweek and daily posts on Facebook at facebook.com/GSNYPENN. In celebration of Girl Scout Week, GSNYPENN profiled Cayuga County Girl Scout Lilyana Thornton, who embodies the Promise and Law and has been involved with Girl Scouting in the community for the past 11 years. A resident of the village of Cayuga, Lilyana is a member of the Caywasco Service Unit. They are a senior-level Girl Scout and Juliette, an independently or individually registered member. Q. Why did you join Girl Scouts? A. I was 5 years old when I joined. I was interested in meeting new people and doing fun things like camping. Q. Whats your favorite Girl Scout memory so far? A. Its hard to pick just one! Summer camp is my favorite. I have participated at Camp Comstock, Amahami and Trefoil, and love them all! My favorites are trip camps and going canoeing, kayaking, rafting and hammock/primitive camping in the Adirondacks. The opportunity to meet new people and try new things is the best part of GSNYPENN camp. Q. Have you earned any of Girl Scoutings highest awards? A. Ive earned my Bronze and Silver awards. For my Silver, I worked with another Girl Scout to construct little libraries in the village of Cayuga and the Salvation Army family shelter in Syracuse. We collected books and continue to keep them stocked for all to use. Lilyana also traveled to Japan with GSNYPENN during the summer of 2023. Group and international travel helps Girl Scouts build courage, confidence and lifelong skills like organization, time management and how to work as a team to succeed when things dont go as planned. Travel also allows them to make meaningful connections outside their home communities. "Japan was an amazing experience!" Lilyana said. "We traveled by airplane, bus, subway, boat and bullet train. We had a lot packed into 11 days, so we always had to be on time and ready to make it to the next part of the adventure. Some of the most memorable experiences for me were visiting Nara Park, where hundreds of deer just roam freely, and experiencing the peacefulness of Hiroshima. We also learned about Japanese history and culture through visits to many shrines and castles and trying all sorts of food. This summer I travel with GSNYPENN to the Galapagos Islands and am looking forward to learning all about marine life. Cookie Program concludes March 31 visit local booths GSNYPENNs 2024 cookie program, the annual fundraiser through which Girl Scouts unbox their futures by participating in the worlds largest entrepreneurial program for girls, concludes March 31. Use the Cookie Finder at buygirlscoutcookiesnow.com to locate booths and support local Girl Scouts. Cookies are $6 per package and include the varieties Samoas, Tagalongs, Do-si-dos, Lemon-Ups, Thin Mints, gluten-free Toffee-tastic, Trefoils, Girl Scout Smores and Adventurefuls. Local Girl Scout news Service Unit 401 of Auburn held a masquerade at Case Mansion on Feb. 10. Girl Scouts had a blast playing games, dancing and enjoying snacks and drinks. They also used the event as a service opportunity and made 40 birthday in a bag donations for local food pantries. Service Unit 117 of Jordan and Elbridge is holding a dining fundraiser on April 24 at Red Robin at Township 5, 160 Township Blvd., Camillus. Theyre raising funds to help offset the costs of their fall 2024 badge activity partnering with Challenge Island. For more information, contact service unit manager Anna Fikes at (315) 430-8497 or afikes630@gmail.com. A Chennai-based entrepreneur Karthik Manikonda has taken to social media and has revealed that his start-up The Mind and Company was selected for Shark Tank India 3 but later, he wasnt allowed to pitch. However, this time, its about an entrepreneur who has called out the show for denying him the opportunity to pitch his business to the sharks for funding because he wasnt fluent in Hindi. In recent times, we have seen a lot of pitchers who failed to secure a deal vent out their anger and frustration on social media or media against certain sharks . While Shark Tank India continues to entertain the audience in the third season, it is interesting to note that the new season is receiving a lot of bad press for various reasons. Linkedin/Karthik Manikonda He wrote on Linkedin, The Mind and Company was selected for Shark Tank India, but was not allowed to pitch to the Sharks. Reason: I am not fluent in Hindi. Its a Hindi show. Its a national show. I proposed to allow me to pitch in English. And I hear a Big NO. Had they told me other reasons like Your scale is not big or- This industry is too niche or- You are not investment ready etc I would have accepted. He continued, But I can't pitch in non Hindi language was a bummer. I don't blame Shark Tank. They have a format. They have to protect that. But regional startups shouldn't lose out due to the language barriers. Any ideas how can this be solved? - AI real time translation? How do world political leaders communicate in their local language? #Disappointed but not out. While the founder was refused an opportunity to pitch his business on Shark Tank India, the post about the rejection led him to meet up with a VC. The founder revealed in another post, When one door is closed, many others open. Last week I wrote about my experience of not being given an opportunity to pitch to the sharks. Many supported and inspired us to keep going. Many others volunteered to hear our pitch. Yesterday, I got the opportunity to meet Mr. Shashank Randev. Founder at 100X.VC. He was in Chennai to meet young startups like ours and was kind enough. He gave me time Heard my business prospects Gave valuable suggestions for future And thats all I could have asked for. Minister of Foreign Affairs George Gerapetritis will attend the "East Macedonia Thrace Forum II", which will take place in Alexandroupoli on March 13 and 14. Tomorrow, Thursday, March 14, at 9.15 a.m., Mr. Gerapetritis will participate in a fireside chat chaired by the journalist Alexandra Fotaki. The discussion will focus on the latest developments in Greek foreign policy. The Auburn Alumni Hall of Distinction Class of 2024 writes about the impact of growing up in Auburn and being inducted into the hall: Gary Mann (Auburn High School Class of 1999) High school was a wild and confusing ride for me. As a freshman and sophomore, my home life was pretty bad. As a junior, I spent much of the year in turmoil and homeless and eventually a ward of the state. The second half of my junior year and beyond I was extremely lucky to be taken in by a loving and understanding family and things turned around for me. I was an average student but being physically at school was important for me to just survive. A place to eat, feel safe and see how life could be if you work hard and accept the support that healthy-minded adults offer you. My hard work wouldn't necessarily be reflected in the grades I achieved but in my drive to graduate despite the hand I was dealt. Many people are handed complicated and tragic situations and many don't make it out with much to hold on to but I was lucky to have a principal that noticed my efforts and patient teachers combined with the kindest of strangers that took me in. Auburn High School will always be a beacon of dramatic second chances and proof that life can become what you dream if you weather the storm with people who care about you. James W. Rafferty (East High School Class of 1969) I am humbled and honored. It reminds me that my career accomplishment was only possible because of my loving family and the dedicated, loyal people with whom I was privileged to serve our nation. It is a feeling of full circle for me. I grew up in a city culture supported by family that prioritized faith in God, family importance, support to friends, neighbors, loyalty, honesty, the importance of education, and the responsibility of doing an honest days work for a full days wage. Those values gave me courage to spread my wings and experience new adventures. I am still shaped by that culture and experience. Its truly all about where you come from, both from family and locale. Circling back to Auburn is an affirmation of what a great place and what a great influence Auburn had on me. Thank you all. Karen Macier (Auburn High School Class of 1972) I am honored grateful amazed and "why me?" These all swirled through my mind when I received the call that I was to be inducted in the Auburn Alumni Hall of Distinction, particularly as I like to remain in the background. When someone takes the time to notice what you do, it means so much and reminds you that people do notice. It is also a privilege to be recognized with these other amazing graduates. I'm thankful to my family for instilling in me a strong sense of community, to the many colleagues who have worked beside and with me, to the hundreds of donors and volunteers who have shared this journey with me. And, to the many mentors I have had over the years, I am truly indebted. Working together to impact community change and to elevate and improve the common good is not easy. This honor has given me pause to reflect on my professional career and community service and to consider the true impact of that work. This work has given my life great meaning, introduced me to wonderful people and, I hope, changed lives for the better. I hope to continue to volunteer and give back for many years to come. Marc Petrosino (Auburn High School Class of 1993) I am truly honored to be inducted into the Auburn Education Foundation's Hall of Distinction. Attending school in Auburn was challenging, and it gave me the tools I needed to navigate college and the professional world. I am so grateful for the many dedicated teachers who not only supported my curiosity and thirst for knowledge, but also encouraged me to push beyond my comfort zone. Beth Lattimore (Auburn High School Class of 1986) When I received the call in December in regard to our nomination into the Auburn Education Foundation Hall of Distinction, I will honestly say I was a bit taken back by such an honor. I instantly thought, Why me? After I let it sink in, many emotions ran through me. I felt humbled, grateful and most importantly appreciative to be considered for this recognition. Once those original emotions sunk in, I then learned of who I was nominated by my late friend Joanne (Elser) and a whole new feeling of gratitude overcame me. After graduating from Auburn High School in 1986, I attended Clemson University, never thinking I would return to my hometown. Little did I know I would return with my high school sweetheart to run a business in the Auburn community. What makes this distinction even more admirable is that during the same month we will receive this honor, we will be celebrating our 25th anniversary as owners of the Springside Inn. It is evident that our roots are embedded in Auburn and the amazing community that surrounds it. I'm truly blessed to have raised our family here in Auburn, all while playing a part in helping so many families make lasting memories at the Springside Inn. Just as the Springside Inn has been a labor of love, this honor reinforces the importance of being invested in our community and a commitment to our roots. I truly feel that the reward for work well done is the opportunity to do more, as Sean and I will continue to do more in years to come. Sean Lattimore (Auburn High School Class of 1986) Shortly after Beth and I were married, we thought it was time to raise our family. We were living in Rochester at the time, but Rochester just didn't feel right for us. We wanted to raise our children with small town values, surrounded by family and friends, and to provide the type of childhood that we were so fortunate to have had. It was then we decided we were moving back to Auburn. As time moved along, we were blessed with two amazing children, Sydney (now 28 years old) and Sean Jr. (now 27), raised in a community that we treasure so much. We have been fortunate to own and operate the Springside Inn, one of our communitys most special treasures for the past 25 years. This May will be our 25-year anniversary of owning and operating the Springside Inn. Springside Inn has been so amazing for us. It has given us the opportunity to closely interact with the community we love so much in a way that we would have never been able to if we never moved back home. Springside Inn, by our involvement in planning so many community events, gave us a unique, inside view of all the hard work and dedication of community organizations, business and residents to make Auburn and Cayuga County so special. Being inducted into the AEF Hall of Distinction is an incredible honor. I am deeply humbled and profoundly grateful for our dear friend Joanne Elser for nominating us and for the committees decision to include us in a special group of individuals, who will always call Auburn home. Eric Emanuel (Auburn High School Class of 2008) did not respond in time for publication. In the collaborative efforts of carbon reduction, pollution control, afforestation, and development, Hefei, a landlocked city in Anhui Province, China, which is neither along the border nor adjacent to the sea, is achieving a harmonious coexistence between humans and nature through the green 'addition and subtraction' approach. Sharing the Beauty of Nature On a weekend morning in March, along the Lvzhouxi Road, lined with office buildings, a gentle breeze carried cherry blossom petals. People carrying tents and preparing for camping were enveloped by the spring atmosphere as they entered the nearby Green Axis Park. Years ago, this place was filled with weeds and wasteland. "Back then, mosquitoes and flies were rampant, and everyone took detours to avoid this place," said Chen Fuwen, a 63-year-old resident. "Now it has become the preferred place for nearby residents to take a stroll with their children." In 2023, China accomplished afforestation on 59.97 million mu, improved grassland on 65.685 million mu, and rehabilitated sandy and rocky desertification land on 28.575 million mu. Since the beginning of this century, about one-fourth of the global increase in green areas has come from China. China's man-made forest area has consistently ranked first in the world, making it the country with the fastest improvement in air quality globally. Located in the core area of Shushan District, Hefei, Swan Lake connects parks, communities, business districts, and financial districts through a nearly 4-kilometer greenway around the lake. Amidst the flow of cars and pedestrians, the sounds of bird chirping can be heard, and birdwatching enthusiasts capture images of magpies, sparrows, and wild ducks in the lake. "In the farther lakeside wetland park, you can even see egrets and little swans. They are increasingly choosing Hefei as their resting and nesting place," said photography enthusiast Zhu Ming, joyfully witnessing his "livable city" becoming a "paradise for birds." According to the survey conducted by the Forestry Department of Anhui Province, a total of 64 species of wintering waterbirds, primarily geese and ducks, were recorded in the province in 2024, with a population exceeding 650,000. Green and Low-Carbon Immersed Life Approaching 10 o'clock, the signs of new energy vehicle dealerships such as Ideal, NIO, Jike, and Tesla gradually lit up on the south side of Swan Lake. Li Jia, a salesperson at Jike Hefei Wanda Plaza store, was busy charging new cars. "Thanks to the tax exemption policy for car purchases, the customer flow and order volume have significantly increased this year, with more and more middle-aged people becoming new energy vehicle buyers." By the end of 2023, the national stock of new energy vehicles exceeded 20 million. According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, from January to February this year, China's production and sales of new energy vehicles reached 1.252 million and 1.207 million units, respectively, representing year-on-year growth rates of 28.2% and 29.4%. Technology Activates Green Momentum "As one of the first pilot parks for carbon peak trials in China, our 'Zero Waste Factory' is striving for pollution control and carbon reduction in design, production, and transportation," said the representative of Hefei Midea Washing Machine Co., Ltd. Over the past five years, the company has invested an average of over 70 million yuan annually in smart and green transformation, promoting the transition of traditional products to high-efficiency and energy-saving ones. By the end of 2023, China had established over 5,095 green factories at the national level, accounting for over 17% of the total output value of the manufacturing industry. 33-year-old Dr. Ali from Sudan found a new life goal in China's "Green Wave" - pursuing a major in photovoltaic agriculture at the University of Science and Technology of China and seeking green agricultural development solutions for drought-prone Africa. Recently, he came to the northern farmlands of Anhui Province to conduct experiments, saying, "I believe that soon I will bring 'greenness' back to my hometown." Source: anhuinews.com Spring musical season is underway, and three Cayuga County-area schools will perform shows this weekend: Union Springs students will present "Seussical," the musical comedy based on the children's stories of Dr. Seuss, at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, March 14 and 15, and 2 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at the high school, 239 Cayuga St., Union Springs. Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students. For more information, visit unionspringscsd.org. Auburn Junior High School will present "The Addams Family: A New Musical" at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 15 and 16, and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 17, in the school auditorium at 191 Franklin St., Auburn. Based on the macabre family, the musical finds Wednesday Addams trying to embrace them while fitting in with a prospective fiance's more normal loved ones. The cast includes Evan Murphy as Gomez Addams, Meghan Farrell as Morticia Addams, Adelaide Ryan as Wednesday Addams, Peyton Marsh as Fester Addams, Amelia Heurta as Grandma Addams, Chloe Connors as Pugsley Addams and Judah Nord as Lurch, along with a large supporting ensemble of students. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for students and seniors. For more information, visit facebook.com/auburnecsd. The Jordan-Elbridge Musical Players will present the Tony Award-winning farce "The Drowsy Chaperone" at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 15 and 16, in the auditorium of the high school, 5721 Hamilton Road, Jordan. The cast includes Aydan Piper as the Man in Chair, Madison DelCostello as Mrs. Tottendale, Owen Pardee as Underling, Alexander Kunz as Robert Martin, Cooper Childres as George, Mathieu Piper as Feldzieg, Bridget Whiting as Kitty and more than 25 other student performers. Tickets are $15. For more information, visit jecsd.org/drama. Broadway actor helps Auburn junior high performers at workshop AUBURN A Broadway actor who starred in an international tour of "The Addams Family" musical as a child helped Auburn Junior High School stud House lawmakers are demanding answers from the Department of Veterans Affairs about consulting firm McKinsey and Company's role in the department's decisions to prescribe opioids to veterans while it was also advising opioid manufacturers on how to push the highly addictive pain medications for VA care. In a Tuesday letter to the VA, which was obtained by Military.com, four congressmen said they were dismayed by the apparent conflict of interest, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. McKinsey consulted for the VA while also advising pharmaceutical companies such as Purdue Pharma and Endo on how to sell opioids to the department for veterans, according to the newspaper, though McKinsey denied a conflict of interest. "It has become increasingly clear that McKinsey's unprecedented access to VA decision making, strategy and policy formulation allowed them to exploit their consulting contracts to the benefit of their opioid manufacturer clients and to the detriment of many veterans suffering from injuries sustained during their service," the letter said. Read Next: Soldiers Said Goodbye to Loved Ones as Army Ships Set Sail to Gaza to Build Pier for Aid Delivery The letter was spearheaded by California Rep. David Valadao and signed by Reps. John Carter of Texas, Ryan Zinke of Montana and John Rutherford of Florida, all Republicans. "Given the immense societal damage caused by prescription opioids, it is unacceptable that any private entity involved in the proliferation of these medications had the ability to influence the VA in its medical treatments of American veterans," they wrote. All of the signatories on the letter are members of the House Appropriations subcommittee on military construction and veterans affairs. More than 600,000 people have died in the U.S. from opioid abuse since 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Veterans were at the forefront of the opioid epidemic in the 2010s, with almost 900,000 veterans prescribed an opioid in 2012, according to data provided by the VA. Of those veterans, more than half in 2012 were prescribed long-term opioid use, with 569,207 on long-term prescriptions and 162,444 prescribed both opioids and benzodiazepines, strong depressant drugs commonly used to treat anxiety. Those numbers have since dropped to 162,261 and 15,981, respectively, the VA said. During that time, McKinsey was working for opioid companies Purdue Pharma and Endo while advising the VA on matters such as its health-care backlog and information technology (IT) management system used for appointment wait times. In the 2023 report by the Journal, a McKinsey spokesman told the publication that the company had since ceased its work within the opioid industry in 2019. In court, McKinseys legal team has repeatedly argued the firms lack of guilt by pointing out that plaintiffs havent been able to quantify the harm they allege McKinsey caused compared to that done by drug distributors and doctors who provided opioids. We are proud to support VA in its work to provide veterans and others who rely on the department with world-class care, a spokesperson for McKinsey told Military.com on Wednesday. Our recent work includes helping VA respond to the COVID-19 pandemic by prioritizing where to increase beds, nursing and clinical support staff, and critical PPE across the system. We have also supported VA on other department priorities such as helping define a five year strategy to recruit and retain nurses. According to documents released as part of a $641.5 million settlement by McKinsey in 2021 with the state attorneys general of all 50 states, the company had to release documents relative to its work with opioid companies. In doing so, the consulting firm inadvertently provided evidence of a potential conflict of interest; the legal documents showcased how McKinsey used its advisory role within the VA to leverage contracts for its other clients, according to The Wall Street Journal. A 2013 company email showed McKinsey had worked on a 10-year strategy plan for Mallinckrodt PLC, also an opioid producer, on how to boost sales of products, including hydrocodone and morphine, the Journal reported. Several months later, a Mallinckrodt executive said in an email to his colleagues that "we are looking at ways to instigate collaborative advocacy efforts with VA/DoD." That same year, McKinsey consultants made a presentation for Purdue titled "OxyContin growth opportunities," in which consultants wrote the company should "explore institutional sales channels and ways to engage large institutions (e.g. long-term care, VA hospitals)." A second presentation given in July 2013 said Purdue should specifically target the VA for increased sales. McKinsey, in a 2016 presentation for Endo, said the first step to get one of the company's opioid products accepted by the VA was to conduct an "assessment of select decision makers and key influencers" and the likelihood of their support of the drug's use for veterans. "It is ridiculous that the VA has handed over so much of the decision making to contractors like McKinsey whose chief objective is profits, not veterans' well-being," Rep. Zinke said in a statement to Military.com. "I am proud to be working alongside Congressman Valadao in making sure we hold the VA accountable in best serving vets." McKinsey and Co. has banked about $117 million consulting for the VA since at least 2009, according to government documents cited by The Wall Street Journal. Studies show that veterans are more likely to face substance addiction issues. A 2020 study published by the National Bureau of Economic Research on the Global War on Terror's impact on the opioid use of veterans found that regardless of whether troops saw combat while overseas, a forward deployment meant they were more likely to abuse opioids than their civilian counterparts. This was based on a threefold set of factors, the study said. The legitimate prescription of opioids for pain management stemming from injuries suffered during service; the use of opioids due to psychological traumas; and the ease of access to cheaper opioids in producing-countries like Afghanistan. And while the VA has made significant strides in decreasing the number of opioids prescribed to veterans -- dropping the prescription rate a whopping 67% since 2012, going from 874,897 to 288,820 veterans with prescriptions in 2023 -- a report released by the VA inspector general in early December suggested the department was still failing to care for newly discharged troops suffering from opioid addiction. The study found that almost 78% of recently discharged veterans with known opioid addictions did not have the condition listed in their VA medical records, despite having been included in their military medical records. Weeks after The Wall Street Journal report came out last year, McKinsey settled yet another massive lawsuit regarding its role in the opioid epidemic. The company agreed to pay $78 million after settling claims from health-care insurers and health plans that they knowingly fueled the opioid addiction epidemic through deceptive marketing work. In response to the latest claim, McKinsey reiterated that it continued to believe there was no wrongdoing in the company's past conduct, as reported by Reuters. Despite McKinsey's claim of innocence, the lawmakers said they wanted the VA to immediately take account of its relationship with McKinsey. In the letter, they strongly suggested the VA investigate every department initiative that McKinsey has ever consulted on, seeking signs for similarly harmful conflicts of interest. Furthermore, the representatives suggested a review of the vetting procedures used by the VA in regard to McKinsey's past and present advisory roles, in addition to providing a written response to the letter that details how the department ensures its advisers have no conflicts of interest. A source close to those involved with the letter told Military.com that there were concerns over recent internal claims that the VA was not following its own conflict-of-interest process for McKinsey contracts it entered over the last few years. After the House Veterans Affairs Committee -- which sent a similar letter last year -- didn't receive a "sufficient" response from the VA, and recent reports that McKinsey has also been working for the Chinese Communist Party, the situation merited another look, the source said. In an email to Military.com, Terrence Hayes spokesperson for the VA, said the department didnt believe there was crossover with McKinsey's advisory role within the opioid industry and its work at the VA. VA shares Congresss concerns regarding McKinseys alleged role in exacerbating the opioid crisis, Hayes said. VA did not award any contracts to McKinsey where the scope of work involved decision making for or influence on medication prescribing protocols. "Our veterans deserve answers," Valadao told Military.com in an email, "and I look forward to hearing from [VA] Secretary [Denis] McDonough about how the VA is prioritizing transparency and accountability in all contracts moving forward." Editors note: This story has been updated with a response from McKinsey. -- Rachel Nostrant is a Marine Corps veteran and freelance journalist, with work published in Reuters, New York Magazine, Military Times and more. ATLANTA An appeals court has overturned the convictions of a former Georgia police officer who shot and killed an unarmed, naked man. Robert Chip Olsen was responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically at an Atlanta-area apartment complex in March 2015 when he killed 26-year-old Anthony Hill, a black Air Force veteran whod been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Olsen, who worked for the DeKalb County Police Department, said he was acting in self-defense. A jury in 2019 found Olsen guilty of one count of aggravated assault, two counts of violating his oath of office and one count of making a false statement. But jurors found him not guilty on two counts of felony murder. He was sentenced to serve 12 years in prison, followed by eight years of probation. Prior to trial, Olsens lawyers had argued against the DeKalb County Police Departments use of force policy being submitted as evidence. They said some of its provisions conflicted with Georgias self-defense law and that admitting it would confuse the jury. The trial court was wrong to admit the policy into evidence without identifying and redacting the portions that conflict with Georgia law, state Court of Appeals Judge Brian Rickman wrote in a unanimous opinion Tuesday. That error was compounded, he wrote, when jurors were told the policy could be used to assess the reasonableness of Olsens using deadly force. The prosecution also said repeatedly during closing arguments that the policy provided the legal standard for determining whether Olsens use of force was reasonable. Georgia law says the use of force that is intended or likely to cause death is justified if a person reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony. That law expressly nullifies any local rules or policies in conflict with its provision, Rickman wrote. The DeKalb County police use of force policy instructs that officers must exhaust every means available of non-lethal force, prior to utilizing deadly force. It also says, Any threat used to justify the use of deadly force must be immediate and there must be no other possible remedy. Rickman, writing for a three-judge panel, noted that prosecutors can retry Olsen on the aggravated assault charge. But the opinion says the state cannot retry him on the violation of oath counts because those were based on a violation of the use of force policy. Don Samuel, an attorney for Olsen, 61, said they are delighted with the ruling. It was clear from the outset of this case that the local police departments Use of Force Policy was not a document that supersedes the state law that governs all cases involving self-defense, Samuel wrote in an email. The Court of Appeals was correct in denouncing the prosecutions use of that county policy instead of state law. DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said she plans to appeal. We have worked tirelessly to hold Robert Olsen accountable for the death of Anthony Hill, Boston said in an emailed statement. While we respect the Court of Appeals, we wholeheartedly disagree with their decision and will appeal this matter to the Georgia Supreme Court. Hill's shooting prompted protests and calls for police accountability. Days after his killing, more than 100 people gathered, expressing hope that his killing would become part of an ongoing national discussion on police interactions with citizens, particularly people of color. At trial, the apartment complex manager where Hill lived testified that she saw him wearing only shorts and behaving strangely on March 9, 2015. After returning to his apartment briefly, Hill reemerged without clothes. The property manager called 911 three times. Dispatch told Olsen there was a naked man who was possibly demented. Hill was squatting in a roadway when Olsen arrived but jumped up and ran toward the patrol car, witnesses said. Olsen exited his car and yelled, Stop! Stop! Hill didnt stop and Olsen shot him twice, witnesses said. Prosecutors told jurors Olsen unreasonably and unnecessarily used deadly force to deal with the unarmed, naked man who was suffering a mental health crisis. Defense attorneys argued Olsen had limited information, feared for his life, had only seconds to make a tough decision and acted in self-defense. New York state will host its annual Maple Weekends this weekend and next, and two Cayuga County producers will be among the sites where visitors can sample products and learn about syrup. Smokey Hollow Maple Syrup, 8597 Pierce Road, Brutus, will host pancake breakfasts from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, March 16 and 17, and 23 and 24. The breakfasts will include their syrup with New Hope Mills pancakes, sausage patties, hash browns, orange juice and coffee. Breakfasts will be $10 for adults, $5 for ages 4 to 10 and free for ages younger than 4. Smokey Hollow's store and sugar house will also be open from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day of the weekends for maple product sampling. Syrup makers will be in the sugar shack to answer questions about the evaporator, reverse osmosis machine, boiling, bottling and other parts of the production process from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day. There will be a fire pit on site as well. For more information, visit smokeyhollowmaplesyrup.com. Also participating in Maple Weekends, according to the state's website for the event, will be Bradt Road Maple, 12181 Bradt Road, Cato. Maple syrup and candy will be sold, and a chicken barbecue will start at 10:30 a.m. There will also be live demonstrations on Saturdays, March 16 and 23. For more information, call Bradt Road Maple at (315) 404-5426. For more information about Maple Weekends, visit nysmaple.com. The Marine Corps has sent a special response unit to Haiti to supplement security, allow non-emergency personnel to depart and relieve Marines previously manning posts at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, the capital of the country that has descended into turmoil amid widespread gang violence. A Marine Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team, or FAST, unit arrived in the capital, according to a statement from U.S. Southern Command on Wednesday, though it did not specify when. The U.S. military previously conducted an airlift evacuation of non-essential personnel from the embassy, which is still open but limited in its capacity, the command said. U.S. Southern Command said that the need for the FAST came at the request of the State Department, and that it "is prepared with a wide range of contingency plans to ensure the safety and security of U.S. citizens in Haiti." Read Next: Soldiers Said Goodbye to Loved Ones as Army Ships Set Sail to Gaza to Build Pier for Aid Delivery FAST units fall under the Corps' Security Force Regiment, which provides a dedicated security and anti-terrorism force that is designed for speedy deployment to naval and sensitive government sites abroad that need an armed presence. The Pentagon doubled funding for its multinational security support mission in Haiti this week, according to U.S. Southern Command, and is working with the Haitian National Police "to restore security in Haiti," a spokesperson said. That support could include planning assistance, information sharing, airlift and medical support. On Sunday, U.S. Southern Command said the U.S. military beefed up security at the embassy and conducted evacuations. It added that no Haitians were aboard the flights out of the country. Violence in Haiti ramped up over the weekend across the country's capital, as heavily armed gangs swarmed the National Palace and tried to take over the interior ministry, setting part of it ablaze with gas bombs. Haiti has seen an explosion of gang violence over the last few years after the 2021 assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise by still-unidentified gunmen. His successor, acting Prime Minister Ariel Henry, traveled recently to Kenya, hoping for the United Nations-backed deployment of a police force to fight the gangs. But a Kenyan court ruled in January that such a deployment would be unconstitutional, and Henry has been unable to return to Haiti since. He arrived in Puerto Rico on Tuesday, after neighboring Dominican Republic closed its land borders and said it would not accept the exiled president. Henry said Tuesday that he plans to resign once a presidential transition council is created, according to The Associated Press. The Marine Corps is heavily involved with embassy security operations in Haiti. In general, Marine security guards, or MSGs, are tasked with defending personnel, property and sensitive documents in more than 180 detachments around the world, Col. Kelly Frushour, the commanding officer of the Marine Corps Embassy Security Group, told Military.com. "Deterrence is the main role of a Marine security guard," she said. "Marines train hard to dissuade adversaries and would-be adversaries from attempting to breach the security of the places they protect. For the vast majority of Marine security guards, their skills will only be tested in training. For those MSGs who are tested in reality, they are well-led, well-trained, well-armed and ready." She said MSG detachments are typically led by a staff noncommissioned officer who works at the direction of a diplomatic security service regional security officer. That regional security officer falls under the State Department structure of command and directs the MSGs in security tasks at the embassy, a standard procedure "to minimize the footprint and reduce the amount of sensitive material remaining," Frushour said if an evacuation occurs. Military.com reached out to the Marine Corps specifically for comment on the deployment of the FAST unit to Haiti and its mission there. "Marines are always ready to deploy," Maj. Jim Stenger, a spokesperson for the Marine Corps, said in a response. -- Rachel Nostrant is a Marine Corps veteran and freelance journalist, with work published in Reuters, New York Magazine, Military Times and more. Related: US Forces Fly In to Beef Up Security at Embassy in Haiti and Evacuate Nonessential Personnel MACKINAC ISLAND, MI - Calling all lilac lovers: Mackinac Islands signature Lilac Festival is in the running for a nationwide honor and the final phase of voting is now underway. The islands biggest summertime celebration is among those nominated for USA Todays search for Best Flower Festival, part of its 10Best Readers Choice Awards. The islands Lilac Festival is up against some pretty showy competition, including a downstate favorite: The Holland Tulip Festival. Other big-name festivals nominated include the California Poppy Festival, the International Cherry Blossom Festival in Georgia, and Macys Flower Show in New York. Online voting remains open through Monday, March 18 at noon. A list of 10 winners will be revealed on Wednesday, March 27. The beloved Mackinac Island Lilac Festival is a tribute to the enchanting blossoms that grace the island each June and is a way for our community to come together to celebrate the natural splendor of the island, said Tim Hygh, executive director of Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau. We take great pride in the previous recognitions from USA TODAY 10Best readers and we graciously invite our community to rally behind us once again to take home the Best Flower Festival title this year. Mackinacs recent 10Best Readers Choice awards include Best Summer Travel Destination in 2023 and one of the top Fall Travel Destinations last year. A ferry boat in the distance, framed by one of the famous Mackinac Island lilacs. Photo provided by the Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau. Historic Blooms Last year, the Mackinac Island Lilac Festival celebrated its 75th anniversary. This years festival is planned for June 7 to June 16. What makes Mackinacs lilacs so special? Some of the oldest lilacs in the United States grow at this popular vacation spot in Northern Michigan. Theyve become a signature flower for Mackinac, so much so that 10 days of fun events are planned each summer to highlight them. Lilacs are everywhere on Mackinac. And by mid-June, you can usually smell their sweetness before you see them. Theyre planted in the public parks, they grow over back fences in the neighborhoods, and they even bloom close to the shoreline in some spots - making for Instagram-worthy photos. It might seem unusual that a small island sitting at the edge of the Straits has some of the oldest and largest lilac stems found anywhere in the U.S. and Canada. But like a lot of other things now on the island, the sweet-smelling bushes came over with settlers. The lilacs took a liking to the high pH level of Mackinac soil, made acidic from the crumbling limestone underneath, according to the tourism bureaus brief history of the islands lilacs. The first bushes likely came over from New Hampshire about 200 years ago with the Hubbard family, who had a farm on islands west side. European families who settled in New England had been bringing lilacs with them and planting them on their farmsteads for good luck. The Hubbard family followed suit when they came to the island. Some of the lilac stems near that farm, which later was developed into cottages in an area known as Hubbards Annex, are about 100 years old and are offspring of older stems that were also about 100 years old. So, it has been about 200 years since lilacs were brought to Mackinac, the tourism bureau said. Love Mackinac Island? Read more here: Lilacs, Derby Day: Mackinacs historic Island House Hotel unveils 2024 vacation packages Mackinac Islands Grand Hotel offers special vacation packages for 2024 season See new programs, 2024 opening dates for Mackinac Straits historic parks and forts NOVI & CLINTON TWP., MI - One of the very first stars to play iconic horror villain, Michael Myers, and the last actor to play the character are both coming to Michigan, together, for two events. Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney will be in both Novi and Clinton Township for Halfway 2 Halloween events. Castle was one of the actors who played Myers in the original Halloween film in 1978. Courtney played Myers in 2018s Halloween, followed by Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends. ALLEN PARK -- Graham Glasgow admitted that last years one-year deal to return to the Detroit Lions felt like a prove-it opportunity. His new deal has long-term stability, but the offensive guard feels there is more to prove. Its easy to understand his line of thinking and reasoning when looking at Glasgows last couple of years. He left the previous Quinntricia regime in Detroit for a big-money deal with the Denver Broncos in 2020. Glasgow remained the reliable, versatile interior offensive lineman, but he endured more organizational disarray, then serious injuries hampered his time in Colorado. By ED WHITE Associated Press PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) Prosecutors all but wrapped up their case Tuesday against the father of a Michigan school shooter by showing passages from the teens journal expressing despair over his mental health and a photo of a gun box, unlocked and empty, on his parents bed. I have zero help for my mental problems and its causing me to shoot up the ... school, Ethan Crumbley wrote. I want help but my parents dont listen to me so I cant get any help. The handwritten journal was found in the 15-year-olds backpack in an Oxford High School bathroom where he executed Justin Shilling, one of four teens killed on Nov. 30, 2021. Ethans father, James Crumbley, 47, is on trial for involuntary manslaughter. Hes accused of failing to safely store a Sig Sauer 9 mm handgun used by his son and ignoring signs of the boys mental distress. Assistant prosecutor Marc Keast suggested he would rest his case Wednesday morning. Ethans mother, Jennifer Crumbley, was found guilty of the same charges last month. In his journal, the shooter said he was begging his dad to buy the gun but that James Crumbley wasnt in favor and the family was having financial problems. On another page, Ethan wrote that they had acquired the Sig Sauer, but I will have to find where my dad hid it. He subsequently said he had discovered the gun and was poised to attack the school. He said he was prepared to spend the rest of his life in prison, according to an excerpt read to the jury by Det. Lt. Tim Willis. In a frame grab from video, the empty gun case and ammunition box are seen on the bed of James and Jennifer Crumbley during the trial for James Crumbley, the father of a Michigan school shooter, Tuesday, March 12, 2024 in Pontiac, Mich. Prosecutors are focusing on the morning of the tragedy at Oxford High School in 2021 when four students were killed later that day. Crumbley is charged with involuntary manslaughter for failing to prevent the killings. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, Pool)AP James Crumbley appeared to wipe away tears as Willis testimony ended with a brief school security video of the shooting. The gun was purchased by him during the long Thanksgiving weekend, four days before the shooting. Ethan and his mother, Jennifer Crumbley, used it to fire at targets at a shooting range. Earlier Tuesday, the fourth day of trial, jurors saw a photo of an empty gun case and an ammunition box found on the couples bed when investigators searched the Crumbley home. Jurors also saw photos of Ethans messy bedroom, which had targets from the shooting range displayed on the wall. Prosecutors have been trying to show that the father was grossly negligent in how he took care of a gun that was secretly toted to school by his son. I found no evidence that a cable lock was ever installed on that firearm, federal agent Brett Brandon testified Monday, describing how the gun was kept at the Crumbley home. Conversely, James Crumbley had two smaller guns in a small gun safe in the house, Oakland County sheriffs detective Adam Stoyek said. Defense attorney Mariell Lehman has argued that James Crumbley was not aware that Ethan had access to the 9 mm gun, a point she emphasized again during cross-examination when the journal was introduced into evidence. Stoyek said James Crumbley was cooperative while in a patrol car in the aftermath of the tragedy. A video camera in the car recorded him telling the investigator about other guns in the house, including a BB gun. Its unloaded but it looks like a freakin assault rifle, James Crumbley said in the video. The Crumbleys are the first U.S. parents to be charged with having criminal responsibility for a mass school shooting committed by a child. They werent easy to find back in 2021 despite knowing theyd been charged. The jury saw police video of a wee-hours arrest in a friends Detroit art studio where they were sleeping on the floor, 12 hours after charges were widely publicized. James Crumbley could he heard wailing before he calmed down. An eagle-eyed coffee roaster in the same commercial building had learned through social media that police were looking for the couple and spotted their Kia vehicle in the parking lot. I cant believe it, Luke Kirtley said on a 911 call. Theyre here! The Crumbleys had more than $6,000 in cash with them and clothes for more than one night. Defense lawyers insist they were not fleeing and had planned to appear in court later that morning. Ethan Crumbley, now 17, is serving a life prison sentence for murder and terrorism. He told a judge when he pleaded guilty that the gun was not locked when he stuffed it in his backpack before school. ___ Follow Ed White on X, formerly Twitter: https://twitter.com/edwritez PONTIAC, MI -- Attorneys in the manslaughter trial for James Crumbley, the father of Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley, concluded their closing statements on the afternoon of Wednesday, March 13. James Crumbley is not on trial for what his son did, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald told the jury. He is on trial for what he did and what he didnt do. James Crumley had a willful disregard of a known danger and that caused the deaths of four student in Oxford High School on Nov. 30, 2021. Jurors, after receiving jury instructions from Oakland County Circuit Judge Cheryl Matthews, are set to begin deliberating whether James Crumbley, 47, is guilty of four counts of manslaughter, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison. James Crumbley purchased the eventual murder weapon, a 9mm Sig Sauer handgun, for his son as an early Christmas gift four days prior to the shooting that caused the deaths of Hana St. Juliana, 14, Madisyn Baldwin, 17, Tate Myre, 16 and Justin Shilling, 17. Photographs of four students Hana St. Juliana, 14, Madisyn Baldwin, 17, Tate Myre, 16 and Justin Shilling, 17 sit among boquets of flowers, teddy bears and other personal items left at the memorial site on Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021 outside Oxford High School after a 15-year-old allegedly killed these four classmates, and injured seven others in a shooting inside the northern Oakland County school one week ago. (Jake May | MLive.com)Jake May A jury on Feb. 6 convicted James Crumbleys wife, 45-year-old Jennifer Crumbley, on four counts of involuntary manslaughter. She is jailed and awaiting sentencing. Prosecutors claim the father failed to adequately secure the gun or seek help for his son when the shooter presented signs of depression and possible mental illness. On the day of the shooting, both parents were called to the school for an emergency meeting after a teacher discovered concerning violent drawings and statements scrawled on their sons geometry assignment. The teen wrote, Blood everywhere, My life is useless, and The world is dead, near drawings of a gun and a bleeding body with two bullet holes. James and Jennifer Crumbley declined to remove their son from school, citing work obligations, and administrators allowed the student to return the class with his backpack containing the gun. He doesnt get a pass because you dont feel the teachers did enough, McDonald said in her closing statements. The parents never notified school officials James Crumbley had purchased the teen a gun days earlier. This is information theyre going to need immediately, the prosecutor said, adding he didnt stop at home to see where that gun was. McDonald argued the deadly outcome was reasonably foreseeable and James Crumbleys failure to intervene was criminal. In a frame grab from video, a journal entry from Ethan Crumbley is displayed during the trial of James Crumbley, the father of a Michigan school shooter, Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Pontiac, Mich. Crumbley is the father of Ethan Crumbley, who killed four students and wounded more at Oxford High School. Crumbley is charged with involuntary manslaughter for failing to safely store a handgun used by his son in the 2021 attack and ignoring signs of the boy's mental despair. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, Pool)AP We arent here to look at things in hindsight, James Crumbleys attorney, Mariell R. Lehman, told the jury. James Crumbley had no idea what his son was capable of, he had no idea what his son was planning and he had absolutely no idea that his son had access to those firearms. The attorney said that even school officials, despite their advanced professional training and experience with teens, didnt believe that there was a reason to be concerned that Jamess son was a danger to anyone. Lehman told the jury this is the first school shooting case in which parents have faced manslaughter charges for murders committed by their children. Ethan Crumbley, who was a 15-year-old sophomore at the time of the shooting and is now 17, pleaded guilty to 24 felonies, including four counts of first-degree murder. He is sentenced to a mandatory life in prison. A jury foreperson, who found Jennifer Crumbley guilty, told media outlets her decision was based heavily on the failure to keep the shooter from obtaining the gun purchased by James Crumbley. James Crumbley, who wore headphones throughout the trial due to hearing loss, declined to take the stand in his own defense. His wife testified at her own trial. It was for him to use at the shooting range, only, she told the court. Jennifer Crumbley visited a shooting range with her son two days before the shooting. What happened with the gun after the mother-son day at the shooting range was a point of contention in Jennifer Crumbleys trial. The mother said James Crumbley told her hed locked and hidden the gun and ammo. She didnt see that happen but believed the gun was hidden in their bedroom, separate from the ammunition and the key to the cable lock. The key, she testified, was hidden in one of the many German beer steins used to decorate the familys home. She didnt know which one. In a frame grab from video, the empty gun case and ammunition box are seen on the bed of James and Jennifer Crumbley during the trial for James Crumbley, the father of a Michigan school shooter, Tuesday, March 12, 2024 in Pontiac, Mich. Prosecutors are focusing on the morning of the tragedy at Oxford High School in 2021 when four students were killed later that day. Crumbley is charged with involuntary manslaughter for failing to prevent the killings. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, Pool)AP ATF Special Agent Brett Brandons testimony during James Crumbleys trial called into question Jennifer Crumbleys claims. Brandon testified that, following the shooting, a gun case that once contained the murder weapon was found open and empty on a bed shared by the Crumbleys. Brandon said he was shocked to learn a youth gun safety pamphlet -- that the ATF requires dealers provide with guns they sell -- was tucked behind the protective foam in the case with the sales receipt. Brandon testified police located a cable lock provided at the sale of the murder weapon in its original packaging -- a clear plastic bag -- inside an otherwise empty gun case for a different firearm in the kitchen. It didnt appear the lock had ever been used, the agent said. Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Marc Keast, during his opening statements on March 7, showed the jury a picture taken after the shooting depicting the cable lock still in its packaging with the keys inserted in the locking mechanism, as they were on the date of the sale. It was never used, Keast said. McDonald showed the jury how a cable lock works, securing the murder weapon with one during her closing statement. This is me inserting a cable lock, she said. It takes less than 10 seconds. AUBURN A Cayuga County Court judge has denied a request for a mistrial in the murder trial of Gage Ashley after his romantic partner reportedly approached jurors. Ashley's attorney, Shaun Chase, argued for the mistrial after a lunch break Tuesday, the fourth day of testimony in his client's trial on charges for the November 2019 shooting death of Joshua Poole in Auburn. Before the jury returned to the courtroom, Judge Thomas Leone told Chase and the prosecution that every juror had been interviewed earlier that day about possible jury tampering. The judge then gave each side a chance to speak. Cayuga County Chief Assistant District Attorney Chris Valdina said that Mary Ferro, Ashley's romantic partner, attempted to talk to jurors. Chase said "someone with law enforcement" told jurors there had been a mistrial in Ashley's case due to the behavior of one of his family members. He expressed concern that the alleged remarks could prejudice jury members against Ashley, as he could testify as part of the defense's case and his testimony could include his relationship with that family member. Chase also asked to withdraw from the case. His law firm previously represented Ferro in a civil matter, he said, creating a conflict of interest. Citing precedent on mistrials, Valdina argued that there was no basis for one for Ashley, and added that he didn't see grounds for Chase to withdraw. Leone then denied Chase's requests to withdraw and for a mistrial. "It's clear that some of the jurors heard that there was a previous mistrial in this case, and that's not even true," the judge said. After calling the jurors back into the courtroom, Leone said the trial would proceed and issued them instructions. He told the jurors to disregard anything they may have heard about a mistrial. Ferro, a former teaching assistant with the Southern Cayuga Central School District, was present in the courtroom Tuesday. Ferro discussed her relationship with Ashley, who was a student at the district while Ferro worked there, at a court hearing in January concerning the legality of a police search of her Aurelius home days after Poole's death. After court ended Tuesday, Valdina addressed the mistrial discussion with The Citizen. "There was discussion about the possibility that a spectator attempted to speak with jurors as they were leaving the courthouse," he said. "As of now there's no evidence any spectator improperly contacted jurors." Valdina also said that the court did not find any basis to exclude any spectators from the courtroom, and that neither the prosecution nor the defense has applied to exclude any spectators. Questions surround Auburn murder suspect's relationship with teacher Many questions remain after a former Southern Cayuga teaching assistant admitted in court last month to having a romantic relationship with a former student at the district. Ashley's defense begins case Wednesday When the trial resumed Tuesday afternoon, taking the stand was Dr. Carolyn Revercomb, the medical examiner for Onondaga County and a forensic pathologist who performed an autopsy on Poole. Chase objected to the prosecution showing the jury an autopsy photo during Revercomb's testimony, saying the photo was "grotesque." Valdina then arranged for the addition of black boxes to some areas of the photo. When it was shown, some jury members could be seen shifting in their seats. Revercomb was one of five witnesses who spoke Tuesday. After the final witness that day, the prosecution rested its case. Chase cited a scheduling issue with a witness, so the defense will not begin its case until Wednesday morning. Before the jury was let back into the courtroom to be adjourned for the day, Leone addressed spectators sitting in the gallery. "I don't want anyone to attempt to talk to any of the jurors about anything," he said. The history of the Poole murder case Ashley originally pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, second-degree murder, first-degree attempted robbery and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon in September 2021. He was sentenced that December to 21 years to life in prison, but his conviction was overturned in May 2023 after a state appeals court determined the grand jury that indicted him was illegally constituted because a member had a criminal conviction. He was indicted again on the same charges in June 2023. Lucciano Spagnola, Tyree Anglin and Christian Rivera have also been convicted for their roles in Poole's murder. Spagnola pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced in November 2021 to 17 years to life in prison. Anglin pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced in June 2022 to 8 1/2 years. Rivera pleaded guilty to attempted robbery for planning the robbery that led to Poole's death, and was sentenced in March 2022 to 12 years. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would force the sale of the popular social media app TikTok or else the platform will be banned in the United States. The bill was approved with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 352-65, and now the bill heads to the Senate for consideration. According to the Associated Press, the status of the bill is less certain in the Senate as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. has said he will consult with relevant committee chairs to determine how the bill will proceed in the chamber. If the bill were to be passed in the Senate, President Joe Biden has already said he will sign it into law. While the bill does not call for an outright ban of TikTok, it does call for the company to separate from its parent company ByteDance. U.S. officials claim ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese Communist Party and that user data collected by the platform could be used by the Chinese government to target Americans. More than 150 million Americans are believed to be actively using TikTok. We have given TikTok a clear choice, said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. Separate from your parent company ByteDance, which is beholden to the CCP (the Chinese Communist Party), and remain operational in the United States, or side with the CCP and face the consequences. The choice is TikToks. While there was bipartisan support for the bill, there was also bipartisan opposition for the bill as well. Critics of the bill say the move limits free speech and will cause harm to small business and creators who use the platform to earn money. This idea that were going to ban, essentially, entrepreneurs, small business owners, the main way how young people actually communicate with each other is to me insane, said Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif. TikTok has denied ever handing over user information to the Chinese government and executives with the company have said would decline to do so if compelled by the CCP. As part of the ongoing debate, U.S. officials have failed to provide any evidence that the data of Americans has been shared with the Chinese government. The answer to authoritarianism is not more authoritarianism, said Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif. The answer to CCP-style propaganda is not CCP-style oppression. Let us slow down before we blunder down this very steep and slippery slope. LANSING, MI -- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a pair of bills Tuesday that ban the sale of objects that can be used to facilitate the recreational use of nitrous oxide and increase penalties for those who sell to minors. The laws hope to curb the use of nitrous oxide as a mind-altering drug. Senate Bill 57, sponsored by Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, amends the state public health code to label any object that is designed for inhaling nitrous oxide for recreational use as drug paraphernalia. Because the objects are now considered drug paraphernalia, it bans the sale of those items in instances where it is clear the item will be used for recreational nitrous oxide use. Senate Bill 58 adds the sale of those items to existing drug paraphernalia laws, meaning criminal penalties can be enforced against those selling or offering the banned items. That bill was introduced by Sen. Joseph Bellino, R-Monroe. Although this gas is used in some food preparation and medical services, people are also using the charging canisters for the sole purpose of getting high, Bellino said. These new laws will address the problem by targeting those who are selling these canisters without selling whipping cream or dispensers for a legitimate use stopping easy access by those who use this gas like a drug. While nitrous oxide is approved for use in medical situations or in the food industry, theres been a rise in recent years of devices known as crackers that allow for the recreational use of the gas. The crackers are used in combination with chargers -- a device used on whipping cream dispensers -- to puncture a nitrous oxide canister and release the gas for inhalation. Under the new laws, the selling of or offering the sale of nitrous oxide paraphernalia is a misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of up to 90 days in jail and fines of up to $5,000. However, if the sale is to a minor, the penalty can increase to up to one year in jail and fines of up to $7,500. The law is expected to take effect in mid-June. This will help prevent nitrous oxide abuse and it represents the type of positive, bipartisan change we can achieve by working together to protect our kids, Bellino said. By WILL WEISSERT Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden is getting to be a familiar face around the Great Lakes and with a November rematch against Donald Trump looming, thats no accident. Biden is off on a two-day swing through Wisconsin and Michigan starting Wednesday, looking to create momentum for his reelection campaign after a fiery State of the Union address last week in which he laced into Trump as a dire threat to the nations core ideals of democracy and freedom. On Tuesday night, he clinched a second straight Democratic nomination, winning enough delegates after a decisive victory in Georgia. The president has visited Pennsylvania, Georgia and New Hampshire ahead of his latest midwestern trip. Michigan and Wisconsin are part of the blue wall, along with Pennsylvania, where Biden was born and has made more campaign trips than to any other state. Trump flipped all three to win the White House in 2016, but Biden took them back four years ago and likely needs to hold them if hes going to secure a second term. Biden also plans to travel to North Carolina and other battleground states in the coming weeks. He has been overseeing openings of field offices as his campaign hires and trains organizers and begins assembling volunteers. Thats meant as a show of political organizing strength an area where the president has so far outpaced Trump, who has been occupied for months with a competitive primary and four ongoing criminal cases in which he faces 91 felony counts. Bidens reelection campaign hopes on-the-ground organization can neutralize the presidents low approval ratings and polling showing that most voters even a majority of Democrats dont want him to seek reelection. This particular president is a really impressive retail politician. He doesnt just do the rally and leave, said Jim Paine, the mayor of Superior, Wisconsin, a port city on the border with Minnesota. Biden has been there twice, including in January to promote a bridge built as part of the infrastructure law. He really puts time in with people, listens to individual stories, he talks about his own life one-on-one, Paine said. Biden heads first to Milwaukee to announce awarding $3.3 billion for infrastructure projects in disadvantaged communities. Funded through the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure law, the projects should help repair neighborhoods in Black, Hispanic and Chinese communities that were cut off from their surroundings years ago by major highway and roads. The president will highlight $36 million to reconnect parts of Milwaukees 6th Street, as highway construction in the 1960s brought in fast-moving traffic that physically divided the area. This is standing out as a historic example of what it looks like to deliver for people in a way that will make everyday life better for everyone, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on a call with reporters. The grants cover 132 total projects, including in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Philadelphia as well as Birmingham, Alabama, Syracuse, New York and Toledo, Ohio. Buttigieg said that some of the projects are relatively modest and can be completed in short order, while others are massive and ambitious undertakings that will take many years. Biden will also oversee the opening of his campaign headquarters in Milwaukee, where nearly 40% of residents are Black, rather than in Madison, the state capital that typically serves as the fulcrum for Democratic campaigns. Its Bidens ninth visit to Wisconsin as president and his fifth to Milwaukee, where Republicans are holding their national convention this summer. Chris LaCivita, an adviser to Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson s successful reelection campaign in 2022, is also a top Trump campaign aide another signal that the state is a top GOP priority. On Thursday, the president heads to Saginaw, north of Detroit, which has high concentrations of Black and union-affiliated voters. It was once reliably Democratic, but swung to Trump in 2016 and only narrowly backed Biden four years ago. Biden and top advisers, both from the campaign and the White House, have made frequent visits to Michigan recently amid criticism of his administrations handling of the war in Gaza in places like Dearborn, a Detroit suburb with the nations highest concentration of Arab Americans. His challenge was demonstrated vividly in Michigans Democratic presidential primary last month, when activists promoted an uncommitted movement that garnered about 13% of the vote. Thursdays visit wont take him to Dearborn, but will instead help Biden connect with key constituencies in other parts the state. The campaign promises to open more than 15 Michigan field offices, complementing the 44 it and the state Democratic Party have in Wisconsin. Early polls have shown Biden faring better against Trump in Wisconsin than Michigan. Richard Czuba, a longtime Michigan pollster, said far more potentially decisive in November than supporters of the uncommitted movement during the Democratic primary are many double-unfavorable voters. He described those as state residents who plan to vote in November but dont like either Trump or Biden. If they are persuaded to vote for Joe Biden, Joe Biden will win the state of Michigan, Czuba said. But, for Donald Trump, I think its an easier assignment to make sure that those double-unfavorables get divided. One way Biden can win over such voters might be to make the race about issues like abortion rights, rather than himself, Czuba said. He noted that the presidents criticism of a suggestion by Trump that hed allow Russia to do whatever the hell they want to some NATO allies might resonate with Michigans large Polish-American population as well as immigrants from the Baltic nations. Bidens campaign moved quickly to highlight those comments in a three-week, six-figure digital ad campaign that targeted roughly 900,000 Baltic Americans in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Still, that may not be enough for some voters in Michigan, where apathy about the Trump-Biden rematch is palpable. Said Saginaw resident Jeffrey Bulls: I probably will be skipping that top spot on the ballot. ___ Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti in Saginaw, Michigan, and Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this report. FLINT, MI United Teachers of Flint have set a date to stage a strike if the Flint Board of Education does not resolve a dispute over a settlement agreement that would have restored pay steps for teachers. All 119 teachers called in sick on Wednesday, March 13, causing school to be canceled districtwide. The teachers union had already planned a protest outside the Flint Board of Education meeting on Wednesday night at Accelerated Learning Academy, 1602 S. Averill Ave. MEA Uniserv Director Bruce Jordan and United Teachers of Flint President Karen Christian announced that a date for a possible strike was chosen during a Wednesday afternoon news conference. The strike date was not revealed publicly. We must act for the sake of our students. We must act for the sake of our schools. We must act for the sake of our community, Christian said. The time is now. Teachers have no plans to call in sick again on Thursday, March 14. The teachers have made several requests to meet with Flint Community Schools since the Feb. 21 Board of Education meeting, Jordan said. Those requests have been rejected or ignored, Jordan said. The divide between teachers and the Flint Board of Education continues to grow after the school board stood pat on their decision to reject a settlement agreement. Unanimously voted down by the board on Jan. 12, the settlement agreement would have restored teachers to the salary step commensurate with their experience, addressed teacher recruitment and retention, and restored a traditional school calendar. The settlement was already agreed to by school administrators. Because of that, the United Teachers of Flint has filed Unfair Labor Practice charges with the Michigan Employment Relations Commission against the Flint board. The decision to call in sick on March 13 was one of the hardest, most difficult, most stressful decisions that teachers have had to make, Jordan said. These teachers have had enough, Jordan said. Public sector strikes in Michigan are illegal and have been since 1947, but numerous strikes by public employees have occurred. With the full support of the Michigan Education Association, including President Chandra Madafferi who spoke at the Feb. 21 meeting, UTF is not concerned with the legality of a looming strike. If we have to go that direction, theres no deterrence, Christian said. Want more Flint-area news? Bookmark the local Flint news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Flint daily newsletter. If you would like more reporting like this delivered free to your inbox, click here and signup for our weekly newsletter: Michigan Schools. FLINT, MI A 38-year-old Flint Township man has been charged in the death of his neighbor following an argument earlier this month. Jimmy Lee Friend III was arraigned Wednesday, March 13, on charges of open murder, possession of a firearm by a felon, possession of ammunition by a felon and three counts of felony firearm in connection with the death of 30-year-old Brian Towns, according to Flint Township police. FLINT, MI -- A federal judge has found the city of Flint in civil contempt for failing to reach milestones related to its water service line replacement program. U.S. District Court Judge David M. Lawson made the ruling in an order on Tuesday, March 12, after groups including the Natural Resources Defense Council accused the city of dragging its feet in outreach and other aspects of the service line program. GRAND RAPID, MI A Grand Rapids family lost their home and vehicle in a fire Tuesday, March 12, on the citys Southeast Side. A city refuse collector reported a vehicle on fire around 1:15 p.m. Grand Rapids firefighters were responding to Sherman Street, just west of Fuller Avenue, when dispatchers reported that the fire had spread to the house. Firefighters battled flames and billowing smoke as the fire went into the attic, firefighters said. Grand Rapids firefighters respond to a house fire on the city's Southeast Side. (Photo provided by Grand Rapids Professional Firefighters Local 366)Rapids Professional Firefighters Local 366 The American Red Cross of West Michigan provided assistance to three adults, three children, three dogs and a cat, firefighters said. The house sustained significant damage. No injuries were reported. The mother and her 2-year-old daughter were the only ones home and escaped, a GoFundMe page said. Grand Rapids firefighters are surrounded by smoke while battling a house fire. (Photo provided by Grand Rapids Professional Firefighters Local 366)Grand Rapids Professional Firefighters Local 366 The mother and father and their three children, ages 2, 5 and 8, lost everything, the GoFundMe organizer Arie Edwards said. She said that the mother, Racquel Edwards, her twin sister, made customized clothing for children in her house. She lost equipment, fabric and other materials for her business. Her income just went into the fire as well, Arie Edwards told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press. Firefighters told the family that the house was a total loss. They had lived there five or six years, the sister said. She said on the GoFundMe page: This family needs support in rebuilding their home and lives. Any assistance for this family would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance as nothing is too big or small and anything helps. OTTAWA COUNTY, MI During its first-ever meeting last January, a newly sworn in majority on the Ottawa County Board of Commissioners who are members of an ultraconservative group called Ottawa Impact voted in a host of sweeping changes. Among those changes was to replace the countys motto, Where you belong, with a new one: Where freedom rings. Data from an MLive-commissioned poll of likely Ottawa County voters released this week shows residents prefer the Where you belong motto to the new one by a double-digit margin. The poll asked 600 likely voters in Ottawa County their opinions on various aspects of their local county government and its leaders. The poll was conducted March 3-6 by the Lansing-based Glengariff Group, Inc. RELATED: Far-right Ottawa County leaders tried to fire health officer. Turns out voters like her The poll surveyed 600 residents via live telephone operator and has a margin of error of 4% with a 95% confidence level. Of those called, 19.2% were contacted via a landline telephone and 80.8% were contacted via cell phone. When asked which county slogan they preferred, 49.8% of those surveyed said they prefer Where you belong, compared to 34.1% who preferred Where freedom rings. An additional 16.1% of respondents couldnt offer an opinion on the topic. The old motto dates back to 2017, when then-Ottawa County Administrator Al Vanderberg said a rebranding would be more welcoming to the countys growing population. Vanderberg said the motto was intended to let everyone know that, regardless of race, ethnic background, sexual identity, religion or any other qualifier, they were welcome in Ottawa County. Ottawa Impact commissioners, though, had a different interpretation of the motto. According to the resolution passed on Jan. 3, 2023, that changed to countys slogan, the Where you belong motto had been used to promote the divisive, Marxist ideology of the Race Equity movement. We affirm Where Freedom Rings where individual freedoms, parental rights, and freedom of religion and conscience are protected, all people belong, the resolution states. RELATED: Is Ottawa Countys government on the right track? Residents are divided, new poll finds Residents who identify as Democrats and independents strongly prefer Where you belong. Nearly 80% of those who said they were strong Democrats prefer the old motto, while 9.3% prefer Where freedom rings. Those who lean Democratic were even more in favor of the old motto, with 85.1% preferring Where you belong and 6.4% preferring the new motto. More than half of independents also prefer the old motto, with 53.8% saying they like Where you belong compared to 26.9% who like the new motto. Republican voters narrowly prefer Where freedom rings, with 32.7% of strong Republicans liking the old motto and 46.7% liking the new one. This is one thats being driven clearly by party affiliation, said Richard Czuba, founder of Glengariff Group, which conducted the MLive poll. And even there, there are a whole lot of Republicans coming in on the old motto. You cant even reach 50% of the Republicans with the new motto. Residents who graduated from college overwhelmingly prefer the Where you belong motto, with 60.2% preferring the old motto and 24.2% preferring the new motto. RELATED: Whos Joe Moss? Polling shows voters disapprove of far-right leader (if theyve heard of him) Residents surveyed for the MLive poll were also asked if they think Ottawa Impact has made the county welcoming. While nearly 19% said they couldnt offer an opinion on the issue, 41.1% said Ottawa Impact has made the county less welcoming and 29.2% said the county is now more welcoming. Just under 13% of residents said there was no change. College-educated residents were most likely to say the county is now less welcoming than before. A little over 48% of college voters said Ottawa Impact made the county less welcoming, with 33.9% saying the political group made the county much less welcoming. Those college educated voters were the ones who were most adamant about saying the county has become less welcoming, Czuba said. To them, this idea of having a place in your town or county is very important to them. And where this plays a much bigger role is in the business community, which is absolutely struggling to bring in college-educated talent. What these college-educated voters are saying is that this is not welcoming. From a business growth perspective, this is a huge red flag. Czuba said younger folks are the most likely age group to value inclusiveness and diversity. College-educated residents, those populations are telling you in this survey that theyre feeling the county does not value them, Czuba said. Their community might, their business might, but what theyre saying is they dont feel that at the county level. We dont know if they can live with the county not being reflective of what they need. INGHAM COUNTY, MI A West Michigan business owner reached an agreement with the states Attorney General after the man and his businesses were sued for alleged illegal practices, including overcharging customers for services. Rockford business owner David Foster agreed to pay $13,500 to cover customers losses, civil fines and other expenses stemming from the scheme, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced. JACKSON COUNTY, MI A Michigan participated in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot in Washington, D.C., illegally entered the U.S. Capitol building and left with pieces of broken wood furniture, according to court records. Adam Kovsky, 31, of Grass Lake pleaded guilty Monday, March 11, to one count of entering and remaining in a restricted building, a petty offense in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was one of hundreds of people who stormed the Capitol while Congress gathered to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. Kovsky traveled by car with a group of people to Washington to attend then President Donald Trumps Stop the Steal rally. Afterward, he walked with rioters down the National Mall to the western grounds of the Capitol building, ascended the staircase to the building while helping others climb up the sides and later entered the building through a broken window smashed open by other rioters, according to the criminal complaint. While he was inside, Kovsky picked up furniture pieces that had been broken by others and carried them outside with him, smiling and posing for a photo contained in the court file. He then stayed outside the building with the mob chanting our house in front of a line of riot officers before later taking selfies outside the building, court records show. Kovsky admitted to his participation to FBI investigators in June 2022, identifying himself in photographs and producing the pieces of wood he took from the building, according to Kovskys statement of the offense. A message seeking comment left Tuesday morning with Kovskys attorney, Michael McCarthy, was not immediately returned. Prosecutors stated Kovsky did not appear to be participating in any actions involving the assault of Capitol police officers. Approximately 140 police officers were assaulted that day at the Capitol, according the the U.S. Department of Justice. Up to this point, Kovsky did not have any criminal record. In August 2021, the FBI received two tips about Kovskys involvement in the riot and began investigating, according to the criminal complaint. Investigators questioned multiple witnesses regarding Kovskys actions, located several social media post showing he was there and eventually spotted him in security video from inside the Capitol building after several months of review. Kovsky was initially charged Dec. 12 in U.S. District Court Eastern District of Michigan, but the case was transferred on Feb. 6 to Washington, D.C. In exchange for his guilty plea, federal prosecutors agreed to seek a reduced sentence for Kovsky who, based on his estimated sentencing guidelines, could serve up to six months in prison if he does any time at all, according to his plea agreement. Additionally, he agreed to pay $500 in restitution to the Architect of the Capitol. During the insurrection, the Capitol sustained more that $2.9 million in damage, according to his plea agreement. At the time the mob entered the building, it was closed to the public and multiple barriers were in place to deny general access as people gathered outside. At 2 p.m., certain individuals in the crowd forced their way through, up and over the barricades and later into the Capitol building unlawfully, according to the criminal complaint. Kovsky is free on his own personal recognizance. Sentencing is scheduled for July 22. Want more Jackson-area news? Bookmark the local Jackson news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Jackson daily newsletter. New York will begin paying volunteer firefighters who complete training sessions through a new $10 million program. The program, which was created in the 2023-24 state budget and administered by the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control, will provide stipends to reimburse volunteer firefighters for the costs associated with mandated training courses. The stipends will vary by course, from $750 for basic exterior firefighting operations to $1,250 for self-contained breathing apparatus and interior firefighting operations. A $1,000 stipend is available for the fire officer 1 training course. The courses must have been completed on or after Aug. 31, 2023, for the firefighters to receive the stipends. Firefighters will be eligible for the stipends if they are completing the courses for the first time. To receive the payment, they must be in good standing with their department and the fire chief must submit the stipend application. Volunteer fire departments must meet additional eligibility requirements, including fire reporting for the previous year and the submission of annual fire department demographics. Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed the stipend in 2023 to help volunteer fire departments address a firefighter shortage. The number of volunteer firefighters in New York decreased from 110,000 in 1998 to 75,000 in 2021, a 32% reduction. Despite having fewer firefighters, volunteer fire departments are responding to more calls. The call volume increased by 29% in two decades. "Volunteer firefighters put their lives on the line to protect those in their communities, and it is time that we recognize and compensate them for the work that they have done," Hochul said in a statement. "These stipends will allow our firefighters to continue serving their communities while also being able to provide for their families." The regulations approved by the state will also allow local fire departments to provide stipends to firefighters. Departments may provide an additional stipend, up to $500, to firefighters who complete any state Office of Fire Prevention and Control training course. Jackie Bray, commissioner of the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said the stipend program will encourage more New Yorkers to sign up to be volunteer firefighters and strengthen volunteer fire departments. PORTAGE, MI Six people, including five juveniles riding in the bed of a pickup truck, were injured Tuesday, March 12, when the truck crashed into a tree. The driver injured a Portage firefighter after firefighters freed him from the wreckage, Portage police said. THREE RIVERS, MI A 44-year-old Three Rivers man is facing several charges after police found suspected drugs and a gun in plain view inside a home, police said. The man was lodged in the St. Joseph County Jail and awaits arraignment in court, Three Rivers police said. In a far-flung corner of the Upper Peninsula, an electronics company is pioneering a piece of technology critical to the defense industry, aerospace engineering, electric vehicles and cell phones. Calumet Electronics Corp. is the first to build organic substrates in the United States a move that attracted the attention of the Pentagon. We did it, said Todd Brassard, vice president of Calumet Electronics. A bunch of Michiganders figured out how to do something that the rest of the country couldnt figure out how to do. Calumet Electronics won $39.9 million from the U.S. Department of Defense late last year to scale up production of whats called high-density build-up substrates. The funding will support construction of a new $51 million substrate factory in the Keweenaw Peninsula. Related: U.P. company plans to make critical tech for military at $51M factory Organic substrates, roughly the size of a credit card, are used as a layer of connectivity in semiconductor manufacturing. Put simply, the semiconductor chip connects to the substrate and the substrate connects to the circuit board. That whole thing is called an advanced package, Brassard said. Theres a lot of initiatives in the United States to stand up advanced package manufacturing. Asia is way, way, way, 20 years ahead of the United States. Over three decades, the American share of semiconductor manufacturing capacity dropped from 37% to 12% as other nations invested heavily into advanced manufacturing. And there are no other major suppliers of advanced organic substrates in the country. Chip manufacturers in the United States lack the capability to make some of the most sophisticated technologies needed for production, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. As a result, American manufacturers rely on Taiwan, China and Singapore to assemble and package semiconductors. But offshoring has risks. The COVID-19 pandemic exposed weaknesses in the supply chain, leading to a global semiconductor shortage that temporarily crippled the Detroit auto industry. And geopolitical tensions have heightened national security concerns because defense systems depend on chips that are not produced in America. If we have to rely on offshore, what we could find out is, we could be cut off, Brassard said. Related: Chip shortage leaves car shoppers in Tickle Me Elmo scenario The CHIPS and Science Act, passed two years ago, committed $52 billion to reviving the domestic semiconductor industry. It aimed to strengthen American manufacturing, supply chains and national security through incentives and workforce development funding. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Defense has backed manufacturing projects to meet national and homeland security requirements. Through the Defense Production Act Title III program, the agency awarded $1.7 billion in 2022 and $1.2 billion last year. Thats a significant jump from the $102 million awarded five years ago. Laura Taylor-Kale, assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy, said the Biden administration has made it a priority to support the advanced packaging industry in the United States. These technologies are critical for modern weapons systems and will contribute to maintaining our warfighting edge over potential adversaries, she said in a statement about the Calumet Electronics award. Being the first in the country to crack the code on organic substrates is a point of pride for Calumet Electronics. What we can be is a beacon of hope and light for national economic security and then help pave the way to show that it is something that can be done in America. And its not impossible, said chief technology officer Meredith LaBeau. Calumet Electronics Corp. is the first in the United States to develop organic substrates. The Upper Peninsula company landed $39.9 million from the Defense Department to spearhead this technology. (Photo provided by Calumet Electronics)Photo provided by Calumet Electronics Related: Michigans secret weapon: U.P. business is missing link in semiconductor solution The Upper Peninsula company was founded in 1968 to create jobs after the last copper mines shuttered in Calumet a town of roughly 600 people. Its since become a leader in the semiconductor industry, making chips for the aerospace, defense, medical, communications and industrial controls sectors. LaBeau says the company was forged with the grit and tenacity of Copper Country. We take a lot of pride that we can work with our local university, Michigan Tech, in a rural place and have the grit, determination and technologically-minded discipline to solve a problem that hasnt been solved in the nation yet, she said. Calumet Electronics broke ground on the 60,000-square-foot substrate factory in October last year with plans to start production by spring 2025. The first-of-its-kind facility also won a $7.5 million grant and a tax break valued at $758,877 from the state. Funding will be used to build the new facility and upgrade the current campus that employs 350 people. The stuff that what were trying to build in the future is more challenging than what weve built in the past, which requires us to upgrade our systems and upskill a lot of our employees, said Brassard. Were almost like a 55-year-old startup right now. Related: Space, software innovation along Lake Superior: the U.P. s $105M tech hub The investment is also evidence of a sea change in the Upper Peninsula. Long reliant on forestry, mining and tourism, the economy has found a new pillar: tech. Companies like Calumet Electronics, Orbion Space Technology and DeployedTech have fostered a $105 million tech hub in the Upper Peninsula. From 2021 to 2022, entrepreneurs formed 34 new tech companies. The breakthrough from Calumet Electronics also helps reframe the narrative about the rural region. Here you have a piece that is critical to supply chains, critical for the Department of Defense and its being made in the Keweenaw, as far north, as remote as it could be in the state of Michigan, said Marty Fittante, CEO of InvestUP. And yet theyve got the wherewithal, the ability and the sophistication to do that right there. Fittante believes it could open the door to future investments. Michigan Tech, located in Houghton, won a $838,000 grant last year to expand its semiconductor program. Billerud, a Swedish paper and pulp manufacturer, plans to pour $1 billion into upgrading the Escanaba Mill. And U.S. Department of Defense also gave funding last year to a mine developer trying to find nickel in the Upper Peninsula. You maybe have now a culture that revolves around where new and emerging technologies can lead, Fittante said. Beijing (Gasgoo)- The latest vehicle model information catalogue released by Chinas Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) revealed Huawei and BAIC BlueParks first vehicle model under the Huawei Smart Selection cooperation, namely, the Xiangjie S9 (name Xiangjie in Chinese pinyin). Photo credit: MIIT Positioned as a battery-electric sedan, the Xiangjie S9 lineup includes three models in the catalogue, bearing the Huazhang brand trademark and featuring the "STELATO" emblem. This marks the second sedan under Huawei's Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) and is scheduled to make its official appearance at the Auto China in April this year. On February 19, BAIC BluePark announced on an interactive platform that the first model under the partnership with Huawei's Smart Selection program is planned for market release this year, positioning it as a high-end intelligent sedan. Based on the information obtained from the MIIT, the Xiangjie S9s pricing is expected to be higher than the first Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance sedan, the Luxeed S7, which is backed by Huawei and Chery, featuring a price range between 249,800 yuan and 349,800 yuan. Photo credit: MIIT In terms of appearance, the S9 follows the design philosophy of the current HIMA sedan, resembling an enlarged version of the Luxeed S7. The dimensions of the S9 are 5,160mm in length, 1,987mm in width, and 1,486/1,498mm in height, with a wheelbase of 3,050mm. Power-wise, the new vehicle will be available in two versions: a rear-mounted single-motor version and a front and rear dual-motor all-wheel-drive version. The single-motor version will have a maximum power output of 227 kW, while the front motor in the dual-motor version will have a maximum power output of 158 kW, and the rear motor will have a maximum power output of 227 kW. Regarding the battery, the Xiangjie S9 will be equipped with batteries from CATLs subsidiary, Jiangsu Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. Beijing (Gasgoo)- On March 11, AVATR, the premium new energy vehicle brand jointly backed by Changan Automobile, Huawei, and CATL, officially put the AVATR 11 Intelligent Driving Edition, priced from 250,000 yuan for a limited time, onto the market. Photo credit: AVATR To benefit from this offer, customers must place their orders between March 1 and March 31, 2024, and take delivery of their vehicles by March 31, 2024. The AVATR 11 Intelligent Driving Edition comes standard with Huaweis HI full-stack intelligent automotive solution, featuring the HarmonyOS smart cockpit and the Huawei Advanced Driving System (ADS) 2.0. Equipped with three LiDAR sensors, the new vehicle offers a wider and more comprehensive detection range, enabling comprehensive coverage of the three core driving scenarios, including expressways, urban, and parking, facilitated by the Huawei ADS 2.0. Furthermore, the vehicle's intelligent driving navigation assistance, which does not rely on high-precision maps, has been activated nationwide. It covers expressways, national higways, provincial roads, county roads, as well as main roads, auxiliary roads, and branch roads within cities. To date, the AVATR 11's advanced intelligent driving system has accumulated over 50 million kilometers of driving distance and has been employed in over 5 million instances of smart parking. Benefiting from CHN intelligent electric vehicle technical platform, the AVATR 11 Intelligent Driving Edition comes equipped with a 90 kWh CTP lithium-ion battery from CATL as standard. It achieves a range of 630 kilometers according to the CLTC standard. Additionally, the vehicle is equipped with an 800V high-voltage supercharging platform, delivering a maximum charging power of 240 kW, which can increase the driving range by approximately 200 kilometers in just 10 minutes of fast charging. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Three subsidiaries of BAIC Group will join forces to establish a platform company, collaborating with CATL and Xiaomi to build a battery cell factory. Recently, BAIC BluePark New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. ("BAIC BluePark") announced its plan to jointly establish a platform company, named BAIC Hailanxin Energy Technology Co., Ltd., with BAIC Capital and Beijing Hainachuan Automotive Parts Co., Ltd. ("BHAP"). ARCFOX T5; photo credit: ARCFOX The new entity, with a registered capital of 390 million yuan, is set to act as the management and investment hub for a collaborative effort. In collaboration with CATL, Jingneng Technology Group ("CJNOO"), and Xiaomi EV, it will co-found Beijing Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. This partnership marks the beginning of an ambitious project to invest in and construct a battery cell intelligent manufacturing plant in Beijing. The partnership between BAIC Group and CATL dates back to 2010. As their collaboration has deepened over time, both parties have engaged in more profound cooperation in supply chain coordination, technology development, standard setting, and after-sales services. CATL is also a primary battery supplier for ARCFOX, an electric vehicle brand under BAIC Group. The joint venture to build a battery cell factory aims to play a pivotal role in integrating core, high-quality supply chain resources and planning for the long-term, stable development of ARCFOX. Reflecting broader strategic ambitions, this initiative aligns with Beijing's economic and social development agenda, as underscored in the "2024 Government Work Report Key Task List" published by the Beijing Municipal People's Government in February this year. The inclusion of the CATL battery cell factory project in this agenda underscores the critical role of state-owned enterprises like BAIC Group in driving innovation and high-quality development within the megacity's automotive and technological landscapes. Committed to advancing Beijing's role as a multifaceted hub and propelling the new energy vehicle industry forward, BAIC Group is set to make significant contributions to the capital's socio-economic development and the national push towards greener, more sustainable transportation solutions. abrdn European Logistics Income PLC (LON:ASLI Get Free Report)s stock price fell 3.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as GBX 61 ($0.78) and last traded at GBX 61 ($0.78). 419,691 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 986,474 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 63.10 ($0.81). abrdn European Logistics Income Price Performance The stock has a market cap of 251.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -406.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a quick ratio of 4.22, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 62.38. The stocks 50 day moving average price is GBX 59.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 59.62. About abrdn European Logistics Income (Get Free Report) abrdn European Logistics Income plc invests in logistic real estate properties in Europe. Its property portfolio includes mid-box and urban logistics warehouses. The company was formerly known as Aberdeen Standard European Logistics Income PLC and changed its name to abrdn European Logistics Income plc in January 2022. Read More Receive News & Ratings for abrdn European Logistics Income Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for abrdn European Logistics Income and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. SAN FRANCISCOCounsel for three adult performers affiliated with the Adult Performance Artists Guild (APAG) motioned to a federal district court to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, conspired with OnlyFans to block adverts. According to a new filing, lawyers for the three performers met with Meta's counsel and said that they were told the company didn't have the evidence available to back the key theory in their case. The theory established in the initial lawsuit is that their posts were filtered through Meta's internal databases, which flag and remove content from supposedly "dangerous individuals and organizations" in an effort to curtail terrorism and extremism, reports Law360.com reporter Bonnie Eslinger. In the motion to dismiss, the plaintiffs allege that Meta lacks data and documents showing that they were treated as dangerous. "Based on the information Meta defendants provided, the information essential to plaintiffs' class allegations is not available," the motion reads. Further discovery is "futile." Meta also provided counsel for the porn stars with "ambiguous and incomplete responses." "As a result, [plaintiffs] cannot obtain information necessary to establish class certification," reads the motion's conclusion. "For the foregoing reasons, the court should dismiss this action without prejudice for lack of subject matter jurisdiction." Meta submitted a motion for a summary judgment after acknowledging the lack of data available. Performers say there is no federal jurisdiction for the case. U.S. District Judge William Alsup scheduled on the docket for motions to be heard on April 24. AVN previously reported that counsel Fenix International Limited, the parent company of OnlyFans, was removed from the case. The plaintiffs were unable to establish personal jurisdiction in California. They alleged that individuals employed in high positions at Meta Platforms in London conspired with Fenix to censor advertisements and block competitors. "The court was sold a bill of goods," said Meta's counsel at the time. "Not a single piece of this purported scheme is supported by evidence. There were no bribes. There is no evidence any terrorism-related tools were misused. "And plaintiffs produced no verifiable records or internal Meta documents supporting their far-fetched theories." abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth (LON:AUSC Get Free Report) declared a dividend on Tuesday, February 27th, Upcoming.Co.Uk reports. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be given a dividend of GBX 3.70 ($0.05) per share on Friday, April 12th. This represents a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. The official announcement can be viewed at this link. abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth Stock Down 0.4 % abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth stock opened at GBX 448.69 ($5.75) on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of 351.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,045.92 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.85. abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth has a twelve month low of GBX 366 ($4.69) and a twelve month high of GBX 458 ($5.87). The stock has a 50 day moving average of GBX 439.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 419.99. Get abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth alerts: About abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth (Get Free Report) Recommended Stories abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth Trust plc is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched by Standard Life Investments Limited. The fund is managed by Standard Life Investments (Corporate Funds) Limited. It invests in the public equity markets of the United Kingdom. The fund seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating across diversified sectors. Receive News & Ratings for abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Appleton Partners Inc. MA boosted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,390 shares of the restaurant operators stock after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Appleton Partners Inc. MAs holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill were worth $10,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. IMA Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 185.7% in the first quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. now owns 20 shares of the restaurant operators stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 2nd quarter valued at $43,000. Institutional investors own 91.19% of the companys stock. Get Chipotle Mexican Grill alerts: Insider Transactions at Chipotle Mexican Grill In related news, CEO Brian R. Niccol sold 1,100 shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,278.45, for a total value of $2,506,295.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,447 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $51,144,367.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Brian R. Niccol sold 1,100 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,278.45, for a total value of $2,506,295.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,144,367.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Brian R. Niccol sold 1,996 shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,399.91, for a total value of $4,790,220.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,447 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $53,870,779.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,744 shares of company stock valued at $11,607,678 over the last ninety days. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders. Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance Shares of CMG stock traded down $10.66 on Wednesday, reaching $2,709.16. 93,655 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 211,566. The company has a 50-day moving average of $2,488.52 and a 200-day moving average of $2,199.24. The company has a market cap of $74.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.23, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.29. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a one year low of $1,569.00 and a one year high of $2,738.13. Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The restaurant operator reported $10.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $9.73 by $0.63. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 44.41% and a net margin of 12.45%. The business had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $8.29 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 53.07 EPS for the current year. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth CMG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,100.00 to $2,400.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $1,930.00 to $2,226.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,225.00 to $2,525.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. BTIG Research raised their price target on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,650.00 to $2,750.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,250.00 to $2,750.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $2,469.88. Check Out Our Latest Report on CMG Chipotle Mexican Grill Company Profile (Free Report) Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants. It sells food and beverages through offering burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, tacos, and salads. The company also provides delivery and related services its app and website. It has operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CMG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Chipotle Mexican Grill Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Chipotle Mexican Grill and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited (NYSE:CCM Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 2,200 shares, a drop of 67.6% from the February 14th total of 6,800 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the companys stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.5 days. Concord Medical Services Trading Down 2.3 % Shares of NYSE CCM traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $0.41. The company had a trading volume of 4,250 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,720. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $0.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1.03. Concord Medical Services has a 52-week low of $0.40 and a 52-week high of $1.60. Get Concord Medical Services alerts: About Concord Medical Services (Get Free Report) Read More Concord Medical Services Holdings Limited, together its subsidiaries, operates a network of radiotherapy and diagnostic imaging centers in the People's Republic of China. The company operates in two segments, Network and Hospital. Its services include linear accelerators and external beam radiotherapy, proton therapy system, gamma knife radiosurgery, head gamma knife system, and diagnostic imaging services. Receive News & Ratings for Concord Medical Services Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Concord Medical Services and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund (NYSE:ETJ Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 8,400 shares, a decline of 87.3% from the February 14th total of 66,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 167,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.1 days. Institutional Trading of Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cornerstone Advisors LLC lifted its position in Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund by 67.2% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 597,133 shares of the companys stock valued at $4,682,000 after acquiring an additional 240,054 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its position in Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund by 29.7% in the 2nd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 884,916 shares of the companys stock valued at $7,274,000 after acquiring an additional 202,710 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,433,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,112,000. Finally, Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its position in Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund by 70.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 301,224 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,476,000 after acquiring an additional 124,530 shares in the last quarter. Get Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund alerts: Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund Stock Performance Shares of ETJ traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $8.43. The company had a trading volume of 89,764 shares, compared to its average volume of 168,181. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $8.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.90. Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund has a 52 week low of $7.20 and a 52 week high of $8.47. Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund Dividend Announcement About Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st will be given a $0.0579 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.24%. (Get Free Report) Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund is a closed ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Eaton Vance Management. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It primarily invests in common stocks and purchases out-of-the-money, short-dated S&P 500 index put options and sells out-of-the-money S&P 500 Index call options of the same term as the put options with roll dates that are staggered across the options portfolio. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Eaton Vance Risk-Managed Diversified Equity Income Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. EisnerAmper Wealth Management Corporate Benefits LLC reduced its position in iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF (NYSEARCA:ISCV Free Report) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 51,460 shares of the companys stock after selling 4,271 shares during the period. iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF accounts for about 1.1% of EisnerAmper Wealth Management Corporate Benefits LLCs portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. EisnerAmper Wealth Management Corporate Benefits LLCs holdings in iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF were worth $3,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF by 37.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 5,683 shares of the companys stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 1,535 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF in the third quarter worth about $923,000. Panoramic Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF in the third quarter worth about $741,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF by 4.9% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,769 shares of the companys stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF by 3.8% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 134,470 shares of the companys stock worth $6,964,000 after acquiring an additional 4,905 shares during the period. Get iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF alerts: iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF Trading Up 0.2 % Shares of iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF stock traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $59.16. The stock had a trading volume of 9,430 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,299. The stocks 50 day moving average is $57.66 and its 200 day moving average is $54.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $420.04 million, a PE ratio of 10.13 and a beta of 1.25. iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF has a twelve month low of $47.64 and a twelve month high of $60.10. iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF Company Profile The iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF (ISCV) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in small-cap stocks. The fund tracks a market-cap-weighted index of US small-cap value stocks. The index selects stocks from 90-99.5% of market cap that fall into Morningstars value style categorization. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ISCV? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF (NYSEARCA:ISCV Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares Morningstar Small-Cap Value ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Endeavour Silver (NYSE:EXK Get Free Report) (TSE:EDR) announced its earnings results on Monday. The mining company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $50.50 million for the quarter. Endeavour Silver had a net margin of 2.98% and a return on equity of 2.38%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.04 earnings per share. Endeavour Silver Stock Performance EXK traded up $0.06 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $2.20. The stock had a trading volume of 3,080,591 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,910,773. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a quick ratio of 1.87 and a current ratio of 2.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $512.84 million, a P/E ratio of 42.71 and a beta of 1.62. The companys 50-day moving average price is $1.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.07. Endeavour Silver has a twelve month low of $1.42 and a twelve month high of $4.55. Get Endeavour Silver alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes EXK has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Securities raised shares of Endeavour Silver from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. HC Wainwright dropped their price objective on shares of Endeavour Silver from $7.25 to $6.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Endeavour Silver to a sell rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $5.58. Institutional Investors Weigh In On Endeavour Silver Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Endeavour Silver during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Citigroup Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Endeavour Silver during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its position in shares of Endeavour Silver by 2,000.0% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 10,500 shares of the mining companys stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Endeavour Silver by 49.1% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 9,017 shares of the mining companys stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 2,971 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Endeavour Silver during the 1st quarter worth $49,000. 25.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. About Endeavour Silver (Get Free Report) Endeavour Silver Corp., a silver mining company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, extraction, processing, refining, and reclamation of mineral properties in Mexico and Chile. The company explores for gold and silver deposits, and precious metals. The company was formerly known as Endeavour Gold Corp. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Endeavour Silver Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Endeavour Silver and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM Free Report) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,193 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLCs holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 568,181 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $66,806,000 after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the last quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL lifted its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL now owns 54,889 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $6,454,000 after acquiring an additional 7,415 shares during the last quarter. Headinvest LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 56,744 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $6,561,000 after acquiring an additional 784 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 114,634 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $13,479,000 after buying an additional 42,975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Etfidea LLC lifted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Etfidea LLC now owns 2,569 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. 58.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Exxon Mobil alerts: Exxon Mobil Stock Performance Shares of XOM stock traded up $1.98 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $110.30. The stock had a trading volume of 9,969,852 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,491,189. Exxon Mobil Co. has a fifty-two week low of $95.77 and a fifty-two week high of $120.70. The firm has a market cap of $437.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The companys 50-day simple moving average is $102.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.89. Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement Exxon Mobil ( NYSE:XOM Get Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The oil and gas company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.28. Exxon Mobil had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 18.51%. The company had revenue of $84.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $90.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.40 EPS. The businesss revenue was down 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 9.12 earnings per share for the current year. The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 14th were paid a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. Exxon Mobils dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.74%. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on XOM shares. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Exxon Mobil from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $119.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Erste Group Bank restated a hold rating on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Friday, December 22nd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $133.00 to $132.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $134.00 to $127.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a sector perform rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Monday, February 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $127.53. Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on XOM Insider Activity at Exxon Mobil In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,400 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total value of $252,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 30,189 shares in the company, valued at $3,169,845. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Exxon Mobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,400 shares of Exxon Mobil stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.00, for a total transaction of $252,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 30,189 shares in the company, valued at $3,169,845. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Leonard M. Fox sold 12,000 shares of Exxon Mobil stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.65, for a total transaction of $1,231,800.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 220,678 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $22,652,596.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.04% of the companys stock. About Exxon Mobil (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. Featured Stories 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. First Financial Bank Trust Division decreased its stake in shares of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,892 shares of the business services providers stock after selling 946 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Divisions holdings in Omnicom Group were worth $1,461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of OMC. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group by 683.2% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,957,307 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $251,016,000 after acquiring an additional 2,579,717 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group by 414.5% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,062,901 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $289,324,000 after acquiring an additional 2,467,632 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group by 98.3% in the 3rd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,032,265 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $225,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,503,249 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 18,744,473 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $1,783,537,000 after acquiring an additional 749,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Omnicom Group by 81.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,527,561 shares of the business services providers stock valued at $144,111,000 after acquiring an additional 683,810 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.71% of the companys stock. Get Omnicom Group alerts: Wall Street Analyst Weigh In OMC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Omnicom Group from $106.00 to $104.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group started coverage on Omnicom Group in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. They issued a buy rating and a $117.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on Omnicom Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Omnicom Group from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Omnicom Group from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Friday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $99.22. Omnicom Group Price Performance NYSE OMC traded up $0.69 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $95.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,008,033 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,538,388. Omnicom Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.20 and a 52-week high of $99.23. The company has a market cap of $18.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4 billion. Omnicom Group had a return on equity of 39.07% and a net margin of 9.47%. Omnicom Groups quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Omnicom Group Inc. will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year. Omnicom Group Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 8th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Omnicom Groups dividend payout ratio is currently 40.46%. Insider Activity In other Omnicom Group news, Director Linda Johnson Rice sold 507 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total value of $43,936.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $845,194.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the companys stock. Omnicom Group Profile (Free Report) Omnicom Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers advertising, marketing, and corporate communications services. It provides a range of services in the areas of advertising and media, precision marketing, commerce and branding, experiential, execution and support, public relations, and healthcare. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Omnicom Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Omnicom Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO Free Report) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,840 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 2,349 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLCs holdings in Altria Group were worth $962,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MO. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Altria Group by 108,222.5% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,590,308 shares of the companys stock valued at $849,763,000 after buying an additional 18,573,146 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 96,401,945 shares of the companys stock worth $4,367,008,000 after purchasing an additional 7,546,851 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 84.1% in the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,426,522 shares of the companys stock worth $245,823,000 after purchasing an additional 2,478,576 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 36,302,349 shares of the companys stock worth $1,896,798,000 after purchasing an additional 2,178,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Altria Group by 54.1% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,710,670 shares of the companys stock worth $198,084,000 after purchasing an additional 1,653,455 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.94% of the companys stock. Get Altria Group alerts: Altria Group Stock Up 0.8 % NYSE:MO traded up $0.33 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $43.38. 3,709,049 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,654,960. Altria Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.06 and a 12 month high of $48.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $40.84 and a 200 day moving average of $41.53. The stock has a market cap of $76.50 billion, a PE ratio of 9.42, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.65. Altria Group ( NYSE:MO Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.01. Altria Group had a net margin of 33.21% and a negative return on equity of 244.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. The companys revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Altria Group, Inc. will post 5.07 EPS for the current fiscal year. Altria Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 1.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the companys management believes its stock is undervalued. Altria Group Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.98 per share. This represents a $3.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 22nd. Altria Groups dividend payout ratio is currently 85.78%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a sell rating and issued a $36.10 target price on shares of Altria Group in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Altria Group from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Altria Group presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $47.22. View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Altria Group About Altria Group (Free Report) Altria Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells smokeable and oral tobacco products in the United States. The company offers cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand; large cigars and pipe tobacco under the Black & Mild brand; moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands; oral nicotine pouches under the on! brand; and e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Altria Group, Inc. (NYSE:MO Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Altria Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Altria Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lessened its position in shares of Vanguard Real Estate ETF (NYSEARCA:VNQ Free Report) by 13.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,185 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 338 shares during the quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLCs holdings in Vanguard Real Estate ETF were worth $193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Vanguard Real Estate ETF by 120.3% during the first quarter. Ironwood Wealth Management LLC. now owns 3,790 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 2,070 shares in the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Vanguard Real Estate ETF by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 88,453 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $9,704,000 after purchasing an additional 1,333 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Vanguard Real Estate ETF by 17.9% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 4,268 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 648 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Vanguard Real Estate ETF by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 250,514 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $27,148,000 after acquiring an additional 16,158 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its stake in Vanguard Real Estate ETF by 20.0% during the 1st quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,500 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Get Vanguard Real Estate ETF alerts: Vanguard Real Estate ETF Stock Down 0.0 % Shares of VNQ traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $87.11. The companys stock had a trading volume of 1,940,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,872,123. Vanguard Real Estate ETF has a one year low of $70.61 and a one year high of $90.09. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $85.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.40 and a beta of 0.91. About Vanguard Real Estate ETF Vanguard REIT ETF (the Fund) is an open-end investment company. The Fund invests in stocks issued by real estate investment trusts (REITs), companies that purchase office buildings, hotels, and other real property. It tracks the return of the MSCI US RIT Index, a gauge of real estate stocks. The Vanguard Group, Inc provides investment advisory services to the Fund. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Vanguard Real Estate ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Vanguard Real Estate ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. SAN DIEGO, Calif.Ryder Owens and Scott Finn star in Next Door Films latest release, Otherwise Engaged. Otherwise Engaged tells a story of love, lust, and jealousy. A synopsis of the release was provided by a rep for Next Door: "When Ryder Owens learns of his best friend Scott Finns recent engagement to Carter Woods, he embarks on a mission to save Scott from making a monumental mistake. Little does Ryder know, the twists and complexities were far beyond what he imagined." Working with Scott was so hot and fun, said Owens. He's sexy and made the filming so enjoyable. It felt amazing. I would have to say that filming this was one of my favorite times on set. I would love to be able to film more with him. I had such a good time filming with Ryder, remarked Finn. Alpha Studio Group and their crew are always so fun to work with. And a fun fact: I used my real wedding ring for the film! All three of these models really brought this idea to life, explained director and producer Jeremy Babcock. "I really enjoy telling complicated love stories, and Ryder really ate up the role. You really want to see him get his one last time moment with his old friend, and the sex in this one is as passionate as it is sexy! Next Door Films Otherwise Engaged is now streaming at ASGmax.com. Today, ASG exclusive Jayden Marcos takes the stage with Kane Fox and Asher Day in the next installment in the ASG Originals Free Use series The Worst Roommate. Find more ASGmax and Next Door Studios scenes at ASGmax.com, and follow the brand on X @ASGmaxOfficial. Also on X, follow the performers: Ryder Owens, Scott Finn, and Jeremy Babcock. iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF (BATS:EMHY Get Free Report) shares traded down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $36.89 and last traded at $36.96. 46,869 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, The stock had previously closed at $37.01. iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF Stock Down 0.1 % The business has a fifty day moving average price of $36.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.23. Get iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF alerts: Hedge Funds Weigh In On iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF in the 1st quarter valued at about $77,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $86,000. Provence Wealth Management Group bought a new stake in shares of iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at about $85,000. Aspect Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF in the 4th quarter valued at about $160,000. Finally, Flow Traders U.S. LLC bought a new stake in shares of iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF in the 1st quarter valued at about $695,000. About iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF The iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF (EMHY) is an exchange-traded fund that mostly invests in high yield fixed income. The fund tracks an index comprising USD denominated emerging markets high yield bonds. EMHY was launched on Apr 3, 2012 and is managed by BlackRock. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares J.P. Morgan EM High Yield Bond ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Madison County Financial, Inc. (OTCMKTS:MCBK Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 500 shares, a growth of 400.0% from the February 14th total of 100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.8 days. Madison County Financial Price Performance Shares of OTCMKTS MCBK remained flat at $22.25 during trading on Tuesday. 1 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 459. Madison County Financial has a one year low of $20.75 and a one year high of $30.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $22.62 and a 200-day moving average of $21.87. Get Madison County Financial alerts: About Madison County Financial (Get Free Report) See Also Madison County Financial, Inc operates as the holding company for Madison County Bank that provides banking and financial services to individual and corporate customers in Nebraska, the United States. It offers deposits, such as checking, money market savings, savings, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit; credit and debit cards; home loans; and consumer loans, including home equity lines of credit, second mortgage, home improvement, recreational vehicle, personal, and overdraft protection loans, as well as loans for automobiles, trucks, and vans. Receive News & Ratings for Madison County Financial Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Madison County Financial and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund (NYSE:NAZ Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.0425 per share by the investment management company on Monday, April 1st. This represents a $0.51 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Funds previous monthly dividend of $0.04. Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund Stock Performance Shares of NAZ opened at $11.05 on Wednesday. The stocks 50-day moving average is $10.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.35. Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund has a 12 month low of $9.22 and a 12 month high of $11.37. Get Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund alerts: Institutional Inflows and Outflows Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NAZ. Northern Trust Corp acquired a new position in shares of Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund in the second quarter worth about $280,000. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 64,213 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $717,000 after buying an additional 15,207 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $152,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $154,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $115,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 10.57% of the companys stock. Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund Company Profile Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by Nuveen Investments, Inc The fund is managed by Nuveen Asset Management, LLC. It invests in the fixed income markets of Arizona. The fund invests in municipal securities and other related investments the income, exempt from regular federal and Arizona income taxes that are rated Baa or BBB or better and having an average maturity of 18.66 years. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Nuveen Arizona Quality Municipal Income Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. SAF-Holland SE (OTCMKTS:SFHLF Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 400 shares, a growth of 300.0% from the February 14th total of 100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 0 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently days. SAF-Holland Stock Performance OTCMKTS:SFHLF remained flat at C$11.85 during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The businesss 50 day moving average is C$11.85 and its 200-day moving average is C$11.35. SAF-Holland has a 52 week low of C$10.89 and a 52 week high of C$11.85. Get SAF-Holland alerts: About SAF-Holland (Get Free Report) Featured Articles SAF-Holland SE manufactures and supplies chassis-related assemblies and components for trailers, trucks, semi-trailers, and buses. The company offers axle and air suspension systems, fifth wheels, hweel systems, coupling systems, kingpins, and landing gears, as well as ball races, braking and EBS systems, lighting systems, and disc brakes. Receive News & Ratings for SAF-Holland Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for SAF-Holland and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Mitsubishi Electric Co. (OTCMKTS:MIELY Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 23,100 shares, a growth of 524.3% from the February 14th total of 3,700 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 52,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.4 days. Mitsubishi Electric Trading Down 0.2 % OTCMKTS:MIELY traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $32.82. The company had a trading volume of 52,769 shares, compared to its average volume of 39,212. Mitsubishi Electric has a fifty-two week low of $22.49 and a fifty-two week high of $34.83. The businesss fifty day moving average is $29.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.33. Get Mitsubishi Electric alerts: Mitsubishi Electric Company Profile (Get Free Report) Further Reading Mitsubishi Electric Corporation develops, manufactures, distributes, and sells electrical and electronic equipment worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Infrastructure, Industry Mobility, Life, Business Platform, and Other Businesses. It offers turbine generators, nuclear power plant and power electronics equipment, motors, transformers, circuit breakers, gas insulated switchgears, switch controls, surveillance-system control and security systems, transmission and distribution ICT systems, large display devices, locomotive and rolling stock electrical equipment, wireless and wired communications systems, network camera systems, elevators, escalators, building security and management systems, and others. Receive News & Ratings for Mitsubishi Electric Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Mitsubishi Electric and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III (NYSE:TRTL Get Free Report) saw a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 1,800 shares, a growth of 200.0% from the February 14th total of 600 shares. Currently, 0.0% of the companys shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 58,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.0 days. Institutional Investors Weigh In On TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Terrapin Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III by 32.3% during the 3rd quarter. Terrapin Asset Management LLC now owns 123,793 shares of the companys stock worth $1,297,000 after purchasing an additional 30,238 shares during the last quarter. Berkley W R Corp increased its position in TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Berkley W R Corp now owns 856,597 shares of the companys stock valued at $9,097,000 after buying an additional 33,344 shares in the last quarter. Cohanzick Management LLC increased its position in TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Cohanzick Management LLC now owns 325,000 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,452,000 after buying an additional 37,993 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III during the 4th quarter valued at about $446,000. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS acquired a new position in TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III during the 1st quarter valued at about $486,000. 88.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III alerts: TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III Price Performance Shares of TRTL stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $10.75. The stock had a trading volume of 4,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 49,938. TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III has a 12-month low of $10.16 and a 12-month high of $11.21. The firms 50-day moving average is $10.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.60. TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III Company Profile TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III does not have significant operations. It intends to effect a merger, amalgamation, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization, or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. The company was incorporated in 2021 and is based in Overland Park, Kansas. See Also Receive News & Ratings for TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for TortoiseEcofin Acquisition Corp. III and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Fujian sees largest single load of export vehicles Xinhua) 08:19, March 13, 2024 An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export parking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Four thousand vehicles produced by the passenger car workshop of Ningde base of SAIC Motor Corporation Ltd. on Tuesday boarded the ro-ro cargo vessel "Wisdom Ace" at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port. This batch of vehicles will be sent to countries including the Netherlands, Egypt, and Britain. According to reports, this is the largest single load of export vehicles in Fujian Province, which include 2,800 new energy vehicles. Customs data showed that from January to February this year, Fujian Province exported 15,377 vehicles with a value of 2.07 billion yuan (about 288.41 million U.S. dollars), up 123 percent and 69 percent respectively compared with the same period last year. An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export parking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Customs officers Lin Zheng (L) and Chen Jianzhou check a vehicle for export at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Customs officer Lin Zheng checks a vehicle for export at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export ready to be loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Vehicles for export are being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial panoramic drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows a view of Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows the ro-ro cargo vessel "Wisdom Ace" docking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) You are already a Moneycontrol Pro user. OK Santosh Nair is Executive Editor, Special Projects, Moneycontrol. He has been writing on the financial markets for over two decades, having previously worked with Business Standard, myiris.com, Crisil Market Wire and The Economic Times. He is also the author of the popular book on Indian markets, Bulls, Bears and Other Beasts. Ashwin Mohan is Editor (Deals) at Moneycontrol and leads the M&A, private equity and equity capital market transactions coverage. He anchors the video show 'Deal Central ' and tweets at @ashwinmohansays. He has previously worked with ET NOW, CNBC TV-18 and The Times of India. Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Xem them ... Tin bai cuoi cung Khong con du lieu e load Preeti Kulkarni is a financial journalist with over 13 years of experience. Based in Mumbai, she covers the personal finance beat for Moneycontrol. She focusses primarily on insurance, banking, taxation and financial planning Souptik Datta Reports real estate, infra and city in Bengaluru. Btw, curiosity never kills the cat. Jitendra Nath Misra is a former ambassador and the author of Radhaland and Worlds Beyond. He is Professor of Diplomatic Practice at O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat. Views are personal, and do not represent the stance of this publication High-rises dominate the skyline on both sides of the Huangpu River in Shanghai. [Photo by Gao Erqiang/China Daily] Global Times-The Chinese foreign ministry urged South Korea on Tuesday to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the South China Sea issue, following South Korean foreign ministry's remarks regarding a recent incident during which Philippine vessels had trespassed into the waters off China's Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef), and a spokesperson from the ministry said exterritorial countries should not become troublemakers on the issue. In response to the "deep concerns" of South Korea over the incident between China and the Philippines, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry, told a press conference on Tuesday that China has noted the relevant remarks made by the spokesperson of the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on which we express serious concern. Regarding the incident of the Philippine vessels illegally trespassing on Ren'ai Jiao on March 5, Wang Wenbin said China is gravely concerned about the statement of the South Korea's Foreign Ministry spokesperson. "I would like to stress once again that what caused the event is that the Philippine side went against its pledges and infringed upon China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests," the spokesperson said, noting that China took necessary management and control measures in accordance with the law. The maneuvers were professional, restraint, reasonable and lawful. The responsibility for the incident lies entirely with the Philippines, the spokesperson stressed. South Korea is not a party to the South China Sea issue. However, in recent years, it has changed its prudent and neutral position that it had adhered to for years, and alluded to or blamed China on the South China Sea issue on multiple occasions, Wang Wenbin said. We once again urge the South Korea to make the right choice, refrain from following others to hype up the matter, and avoid adding unnecessary burden to the China-South Korea relations, the spokesperson said. Responding to question from foreign media that what countries can comment on issues in the South China Sea, Wang Wenbin said Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed last week that with joint efforts of China and the ASEAN countries, the South China Sea has remained peaceful and stable in a turbulent world. It is hard-won and should be treasured by all. One of the most important experience we have drawn is that we must adhere to two principles. First, differences should be properly managed and resolved through dialogue, consultation, or negotiation between states directly involved. Second, peace at the sea should be upheld by China and ASEAN countries working together. It is also the core essence of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed in 2002, the spokesperson said. I want to reiterate here that if certain countries truly want to safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, they should respect the effort of China and relevant ASEAN countries to properly address disputes through dialogue and consultation and safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea, and refrain from stirring up troubles in the region, Wang Wenbin noted. "In face of unwarranted provocation, we will respond with prompt and legitimate countermeasures. We also urge certain countries outside this region not to make provocations, pick sides, or stir up troubles and problems in the South China Sea." Also on Tuesday, the Philippine foreign ministry said it had received some proposals from China, but it said they would not be considered as they were against its national interests, according to media reports. China has indisputable sovereignty over Nanhai Zhudao (South China Sea islands). There's no territorial disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. Proceeding from its bilateral relationship with the Philippines and peace and stability in the South China Sea, China has made proposals to the Philippines on managing the situation at sea and carrying out maritime cooperation, Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday. "Regrettably, the Philippines has not yet responded to most of the proposals and made frequent infringements and provocations at sea. Such moves seriously undermine the atmosphere of communication and cooperation between China and the Philippines," the spokesperson added. He also emphasized that China's position on the South China Sea issue is consistent. We stand ready to continue to work with the Philippines to properly handle differences through dialogue and consultation. At the same time, we will take resolute measures to firmly safeguard our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, he said. Adrian Wooldridge is the global business columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. Matthew Brooker is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering finance and politics in Asia. Views are personal and do not represent the stand of this publication. Mark and Nicki Byars of Beatrice dressed as early American Patriots as they presented to Stoddard and Paddock Lane Elementary fifth graders on Monday. Mark said his mom, Janet, has always interested in genealogy. When I was a kid, we would picnic in cemeteries and go to the library to gather information, he said. As time passed it became easier to get information online and explore family history. I always thought I had a German ancestry and most of my family had immigrated after the Revolution but found that I had seven Patriot ancestors that fought in the Revolutionary War. Mark belongs to the Sons of the American Revolution and Nicki is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Nicki is a Mayflower Descendant and has around 17 Patriot ancestors. If you have an ancestor that was born in the United States prior to the Civil War, there is a strong likelihood that there is a connection with a Patriot as well, Mark said. The SAR and the DAR are service organizations with a mission to promote patriotism in the community, to preserve history and to educate youth about the American Revolution. Some folks think history is boring, but I like history because it is an explanation of why things are the way they are today. The founding of Beatrice, Nebraska and the West in general was this pioneer spirit that those American Patriot children had, and they carried those principles and values of community with them, he said. Every fifth grader in Nebraska studies the American Revolution and Mark said it was a good time to make presentations. The Patriot Chest is used nationwide. It allows the students to touch things that would have had importance during that time making the presentation more interactive. Some of the items include old coins, a powder horn, a quill pen and an ink well. They also talk about roles people would have had in supporting the Revolution, including children in their age range. The Byars are in their second year of making the presentations in schools. They will go to ten schools and present to approximately 600 students. The Revolution kicked off around the Boston Tea Party that took place in December of 1773. Over the course of the next ten years, the SAR and DAR are celebrating the 250th anniversaries of a lot of the events. Mark said Nebraska does not have any Patriots buried in the state. This is just because how old they are and when the region was settled, but were looking to celebrate our connections to the Revolution, he said. The DAR has been placing bronze markers throughout Nebraska to mark the anniversary. The SAR is marking graves of the founders of the Nebraska Society and children of Patriots. There are stones in the Beatrice Cemetery and in the Evergreen Cemetery. During Homestead Days there will be members of the DAR and SAR that walk through the parade in period dress. They plan to go to Evergreen Cemetery in the afternoon and hold a special ceremony at the grave of Gilbert Cole. Other heritage organizations will also be invited to participate. Gilbert Cole of Beatrice was one of the founders of the Nebraska Society. He grew up in New York and served in the Civil War. After the war he moved to Iowa. When he was about 50 years old, he moved to Beatrice and was active in the community. He was a part of the monument of the Civil War at the Courthouse. He was also the post commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. The DAR is planning to mark the graves of Patriot Daughters, Lucy Tibbetts and Elizabeth Huitt Cowan, at the Beatrice Cemetery. President of the Cemetery Association Mitch Deines said they are excited to be a part of the ceremony. One of the stones has been broken, but there are efforts to repair it prior to the ceremony, he said. Once we get past our digitalization fundraising, we are hoping to do some work on repair and preservation of markers. The digitalization is so important to the history of the cemetery in this community, he said. This presentation sparks interest in the community There are two SAR chapters in Nebraska and around 26 DAR chapters. Mark said there are opportunities to become involved. If youre interested in joining and celebrating the personal connection that your family has to the Revolution, more information can be found at NebraskaDAR.com or NebraskaSAR.org. Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Christin Mathew Philip is an Assistant editor at moneycontrol.com. Based in Bengaluru, he writes on mobility, infrastructure and start-ups. He is a Ramnath Goenka excellence in journalism awardee. You can find him on Twitter here: twitter.com/ChristinMP_ State Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha glances at the speaking queue during debate on her 2024 priority bill, LB 307, to authorize safe syringe programs in the state. March 12, 2024. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) LINCOLN Lawmakers failed Tuesday to override Gov. Jim Pillens veto of legislation to authorize safe syringe programs in the state, a vote that some said was deeper than one bill. Pillen last week vetoed Omaha State Sen. Megan Hunts Legislative Bill 307, which would have authorized localities to adopt syringe services programs, or SSPs. Lawmakers failed 27-20 to override the veto, falling three votes short. Seven lawmakers who voted to pass the bill 30-7 on Feb. 29 flipped to oppose the bill Tuesday. Six more who were present, not voting on Feb. 29 voted against it Tuesday. Hunt told her colleagues earlier in debate that the Legislature knows the policy underlying the bill better than Pillen and that, traditionally, lawmakers stand together as a family they make the choice to trust one another, the committee process and policy experts. That doesnt mean that we allow the executive branch to tell us how were going to act at the end of the day, Hunt said. Those who changed from Yes to No Seven lawmakers changed from supporting LB 307 on final reading to opposing it Tuesday: Christy Armendariz of Omaha. Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln. Tom Brewer of Gordon. Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue. Jana Hughes of Seward. Fred Meyer of St. Paul. Mike Moser of Columbus. Six lawmakers who were present, not voting on final reading also voted to sustain the veto: Beau Ballard of Lincoln. Bruce Bostelman of Brainard. Barry DeKay of Niobrara. Ben Hansen of Blair. John Lowe of Kearney. Dave Murman of Glenvil. State Sen. Rob Dover of Norfolk, who had previously voted for the bill but was absent during the final reading vote, voted against the veto override. Hunt addressed Pillens veto letter in turn, describing it as fearmongering, with the governor suggesting the programs could allow Nebraska to become like San Francisco. Be serious about the work in here, Hunt said. It doesnt say someone can open up a tent at 72nd and Dodge (in Omaha) and hand out free needles. A door to treatment One of Hunts staunchest supporters came in the Legislatures top leader, Speaker John Arch of La Vista, who said he had talked with Dr. Jerome Adams about the benefits of LB 307. Adams is the executive director of health equity initiatives at Purdue University and served under former Gov. Mike Pence in Indiana and as U.S. surgeon general under former President Donald Trump. In the past week, Arch said, hes talked with Adams about other SSPs. Five states do not allow them: Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. Adams, in a Jan. 26 letter to Arch, said the programs are so much more than syringes and can build trust and empathy with community members who struggle with substance use disorder. He said the programs also create pathways to treatment and recovery. When local communities are empowered to authorize, design and operate SSPs, they can do so according to local needs and conditions, and in a way that builds partnerships with the public safety community, the business community, the faith community and more, Adams wrote. Arch echoed Adams in saying the SSPs could create a door to treatment. If there is no treatment, there is no recovery, Arch said. Slippery slope State Sen. Christy Armendariz of Omaha, who previously supported the bill but voted no Tuesday, said she supported the bill because Hunt asked her to. Armendariz said she didnt believe there were good arguments on whether SSPs would reduce or increase drug use. After Pillen asked Armendariz to support his veto and explained it could be a slippery slope, she reconsidered, she told the Nebraska Examiner. Free needles in a vending machine is a different thing than having an area where you have somebody overseeing and providing, Armendariz said. State Sen. Jana Hughes of Seward was another who previously supported the bill but voted to sustain the veto. She said in a Friday Facebook post that she had no illusions that LB 307 will stem the tide of the opioid crisis. However, this is a well-intentioned effort and Senator Hunt deserves credit for crafting a very thoughtful bill, Hughes wrote. Hughes also wrote that she understood Pillens concerns but that the bill doesnt decriminalize or condone drug use. A different solution? Pillen stated that Nebraska has the lowest opioid overdose rate in the country, but both Hughes and Hunt said that isnt a reason for inaction. While that is good news for Nebraska relative to other states, that is a bit like saying you are the last person to jump out of the plane without a parachute, Hughes wrote Friday. Ignoring a problem does not make it go away. Denying one potential, local solution without offering any other solution in its place is dangerous considering the issue at hand, Huges added. While declining to comment on her Tuesday vote, Hughes told the Examiner she intends to work on a solution after the Legislature adjourns next month. Pillen and Armendariz also voiced support for an alternative solution, which the governor said he is looking forward to working toward ahead of 2025. We need to invest in less harmful ways to combat drug usage and disease transmission that are in line with Nebraska values, Pillen said after Tuesdays vote. Armendariz said more counseling could help and if there is a concern about getting treatment to individuals, the treatment must be brought to them. You have to go seek them out if theyre not going to come to you, Armendariz said. Hunt said there is no other bill before the Legislature this year that would help and said her bill presented an important opportunity to save lives. What is a legislative leader? State Sen. John Fredrickson of Omaha said Tuesdays vote was larger than Hunt or LB 307 and was about what it means to be a legislative leader. He and others said they were watching to see who would step up and defend the Legislature as a separate but co-equal branch of government or who would bend over with a little text or a phone call. Leadership in this body requires standing up and defending the Legislature, Fredrickson said. State Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln argued that her colleagues represented their constituents, not the governor. State Sen. Teresa Ibach of Sumner said it was because of her constituents that she opposed the bill, even after supporting it during the first round of debate and advancing it from the Judiciary Committee. Im doing what my constituents asked me to do, Ibach said. A badge of pride State Sen. Justin Wayne of Omaha, chair of the Judiciary Committee that voted 7-0 to advance LB 307 from committee last year, told Hunt to wear the veto as a badge of pride because she worked against the crowd to get into the Governors Office. State Sen. Carolyn Bosn of Lincoln, a former prosecutor and Judiciary Committee member, also switched her vote from yes to no. She said she committed to having an open mind during the debate and was ultimately persuaded that with the controversy around LB 307, it was right at this time to sustain the veto. It was not due to pressure from the governors office, Bosn said. Wayne pointed to Bosns opening statement two weeks ago on a different bill her LB 137, which would enhance penalties for overdose deaths when Bosn stated the reality is the Legislature can attack drug concerns from every angle, simultaneously. This is not just Senator Bosn coming in and wanting to enhance a penalty to put more people in jail that couldnt be farther from the truth, Bosn said Feb. 21. She discussed her support for Hunts LB 307, treatment programs, drug courts and more. This war will not be fought on my bill alone, Bosn said. Weve got to come at this with every tool in the toolbox. Bosn said she still thinks lawmakers need to come at fentanyl from every direction. If SSPs arent the right fit for right now, we need to reevaluate, Bosn said. I do think we have to keep trying the crisis is here, whether we want it or not. Wayne said it was Bosns previous statements that caused him to back off his filibuster of Bosns LB 137, which he said is now definitely back on. Kiran Mehta is an independent writer. Views expressed are personal. Thanks to a right to information (RTI) query that travelled through the files of the state information commissioner (SIC) as a second appeal, all panchayats of Madhya Pradesh have been directed to upload every death certificate on their website and file FIRs (first information reports) against the errant officials. The exposure of fake death certificates in two gram panchayats in the Gwalior-Chambal division of Madhya Pradesh was brought to light, thanks to RTI applicant, advocate Deepmala Mishra. She requested a list of death certificates issued and also a list of certificates deleted over the past five years from two specific gram panchayats. Incidentally, Ms Mishra also works on investigating life insurance claims for all private insurance companies. SIC Rahul Singh, who stumbled on a disturbing pattern of death certificate manipulation while hearing the second appeal, observed that: It is crucial to immediately halt the village panchayats seemingly magical ability to "kill" living people on paper only to "revive" them later. To curb this malpractice. Therefore, he directed all panchayats to upload death certificate information publicly on their websites. RTI applicant Ms Mishra revealed during the hearing that there is a widespread racket of issuing fake death certificates from village panchayats. This, she said, has led private insurance companies to blacklist the Bhind and Morena districts. Ms Mishra also alleged that there was rampant corruption wherein the certificates came with bribes. Also, once the insurance claim amount is withdrawn, the panchayat secretaries then delete the record of the death certificate issuance. Ms Mishra also argued that the ongoing racket involving village panchayat secretaries has been active since 2010, with no concrete actions taken against them. Whenever she sought information through RTI, the secretaries failed to respond for years. In cases where insurance companies' investigations reveal that the supposed deceased individuals are actually alive, the secretaries blame their hacked portal, stating that someone used their stolen ID and password to issue death certificates. Ms Mishra presented related documents to IC Singh, emphasising that recently, insurance claim amounts for seven individuals in Dabra's Khadawai village in Gwalior were withdrawn based on death certificates as, during the investigation, all seven were found to be alive. The case is currently being pursued in the local court. Mr Singh, in his order, has pointed out this scam as a manipulation of official documents which is a violation of the Indian Penal Code. States Mr Singh, I have called for immediate legal measures, including lodging FIRs against those responsible. It is clear that the excuse given by the panchayat secretaries that their ID passwords were compromised, leading to the creation of fraudulent death certificates, is not valid. He has ordered for swift action regarding filing FIRs. Mr Singh observed that the absence of concrete action against the concerned village panchayat secretaries and the lack of a transparent system for maintaining records of fake death certificates have enabled secretaries to issue fake certificates without fear. Finding the involvement of village panchayats in this racket alarming, Mr Singh dubbed it as a well-organised criminal activity that requires immediate intervention. Mr Singh has also directed the commissioner, rural development & panchayat department, to pay a compensation of Rs10,000 to the RTI applicant for both cases, for the inconvenience and deliberate obstruction of information. States Mr Singh, The failure of the CEOs of Janpad Panchayat and village panchayat secretaries to provide information raises significant concerns about their vested interest in denying the information. They are penalised for not providing information under RTI. This brings us back to the same old issue of public authorities defying proactive disclosures on their websites under Section 4 of the RTI Act. A day after Dr Adish C Aggarwala sent a letter to President Draupadi Murmu requesting her to exercise her special powers to stop or delay the enforcement of the Supreme Court (SC) order on electoral bonds, the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has condemned the action of its president Dr Aggarwala terming it as "an attempt to overreach and undermine the authority of the Supreme Court." In a release, SCBA says, "The entire seven-page letter, having been printed on the letterhead of All India Bar Association (AIBA), appears to have been written by Dr Aggarwala in his capacity as the chairman of AIBA. However, it is noticed that below his signature on the said letter, he has interalia mentioned his designation as president of the SCBA." In a release, SCBA says, "The entire seven-page letter, having been printed on the letterhead of All India Bar Association (AIBA), appears to have been written by Dr Aggarwala in his capacity as the chairman of AIBA. However, it is noticed that below his signature on the said letter, he has interalia mentioned his designation as president of the SCBA." "Therefore, it has become expedient for the executive committee of the SCBA to make it abundantly clear that the members of the committee have neither authorised the president (Dr Aggarwala) to write any such letter nor do they subscribe to his views as expressed therein. The executive committee of the SCBA further views this act, as well as the contents therein, as an attempt to overreach and undermine the authority of the Supreme Court of India and unequivocally condemn the same," the letter signed by Rohit Pandey, honorary secretary of SCBA, says. Following the apex court's judgement in the electoral bonds case, Dr Aggarwala wrote a letter to President Murmu, requesting a presidential reference. "Till the reference is heard and answered, the Supreme Court shall not give effect to its verdict of 11 March 2024," he says in the letter. The letter sent by Dr Aggarwala on the letterhead of AIBA further says, "The Supreme Court should not allow itself to deliver judgments that would create constitutional stalemate, undermine the majesty of the Parliament of India, the collective wisdom of the people's representatives gathered in the Parliament and create a question mark over the very democratic functioning of political parties themselves." Last month, the Constitution bench of the SC declared the Union government's electoral bonds scheme unconstitutional, holding that the anonymous character of electoral bonds violated the right to information protected under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. The bench also directed SBI to submit details like the date of purchase, the name of the purchaser and the denomination of electoral bonds purchased since April 2019 to the election commission by 6th March for publication on the official website of the commission. When SBI approached the apex court seeking an extension till 30th June for making details of the encashed electoral bonds public, the SC rejected the application. The constitution bench, headed by chief justice DY Chandrachud, ordered SBI to disclose the information by the close of business hours on 12th March. "Our judgment was issued on 15th February. Today, it is 11 March 2024. In the last 26 days, what is the extent of matching done by you? The affidavit is silent on this. We expect a degree of candour from the State Bank of India," the CJI says. The Court's observation has exposed the hubris and defiance of SBI which seemed to be in a hurry to comply with the apex court's order. SBI had sought an extension till 30 June 2024, which was dismissed by the Court. As per the SC order, SBI submitted details of electoral bonds to the election commission by 5.30pm on Tuesday. The apex court had asked the election commission to upload all the data on its website by 15 March 2024 for the public. Four Billings Republicans are competing on the June 4 ballot for two Yellowstone County offices. John Staley and Mike Waters are running to serve on the county commission. And Piper Federico and Hank Peters are vying for the combined treasurer, assessor and superintendent of schools office. The base salary for the elected offices is $81,989 a year. Staley, a longtime fire chief, and Waters, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, are seeking election to a six-year term representing District 3 on the county commission. The position is currently held by Commissioner Don Jones, who is not seeking re-election. Staley said he decided to run because he sees the increasing public safety problems as a lack of planning by Yellowstone Countys leadership. The number of law enforcement officers, disaster and emergency responders and the amount of space in the jail have not kept up with the areas continued growth, he said. Theres so many issues I see where theyre not planning, theyre reacting, he said. If elected, Staley said, he would make sure the county has a strategy to improve public safety and ensure adequate emergency response services. Hed also like to see some of the elected offices changed to appointed positions so qualified candidates who cant afford to campaign could be hired. And, he said, he supports increasing the number of commissioners from three to five so it takes more than two votes to decide whether things get done. Staley said he would work to keep pay for regular employees in line with the cost of living so the county can attract and keep quality workers. Waters said he would prioritize improving public safety and the economy, too. Im running to bring transparent, accountable, conservative leadership to Yellowstone County, he said. Waters said hed focus on government efficiency and acting with integrity as an elected official. He pointed to the leadership he saw growing up during the presidency of Ronald Reagan as a model. The California Republican, of course, served in the White House from 1981 to 1989. If elected, Waters said, hed need to know any tax increase was necessary before supporting it. And, he said, he would consider each raise, keeping young families and seniors living on a fixed income in mind. I want to build trust as a public official, he said. Waters served as a B-1 bomber pilot with 21 combat sorties over Afghanistan in Operation Enduring Freedom. He also flew with the Wings of Blue Parachute Demonstration Team while he was an assistant professor of political science at the Air Force Academy. He finished his military career as a professor at the U.S. Naval War College. After moving back to Montana in 2016, he served as director of military affairs for then Congressman Greg Gianforte and became a veterans liaison for U.S. Sen. Steve Daines. Waters has a bachelor's degree in political science from MSU, a master's degree in international relations from Salve Regina University and a master's degree in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College. He grew up north of Glendive in Richey and now lives in Billings. Staley started his career as a firefighter in his hometown of Quincy, Illinois in 1976 and later earned his degree in communications from MSUB. He spent 26 years with the Billings Fire Department, becoming the citys first deputy fire chief in 2006 and later serving as interim chief. Staley went on to become fire chief in the Denver suburb of Thornton, Colorado. After returning to Montana, he served as fire chief in Lockwood from 2014 until he retired last year. Staley has been a consultant to the National Fire Protection Association and has co-authored three National Fire Academy courses. He co-founded the David Sloan Burn Foundation and the Thornton Fire Foundation and has held leadership positions that support fire and emergency medical services, including past chairman of the Metro Denver Fire Chiefs and the Big Sky Critical Incident Stress Management Team. He now serves on the Yellowstone County Planning Board. Along with Staley and Waters, voters will have to choose between two candidates for the combined treasurer, assessor and superintendent of schools office. Piper Federico and Hank Peters are vying for the remainder of a term that expires in 2026. Marci Shafer was appointed last year to serve until the election after Yellowstone Countys longtime Treasurer Sherry Long retired. Both hopefuls have experience working in the office. Federico spent 17 years in the Motor Vehicle Department, eventually becoming supervisor, before leaving her position last year to manage a bank. If elected, she said, she hopes to improve customer service at the treasurers office and make its processes more efficient for the public. The office is near and dear to my heart, Federico, a Billings native, said. It'd be nice to have a county office people dont hate to go to. Peters is a tax supervisor in the treasurer's office. If elected, he said, he plans to run the office in a fiscally responsible way and work towards creating more fairness in the tax system. With my expertise, I can advocate for the taxpayer, Peters, who grew up in Lockwood, said. Im the candidate in this race who has experience with Montanas property tax system. Voters can cast their ballots in the June 4 primary election at their local polling places or request an absentee ballot to vote by mail. The Yellowstone County Elections Office is scheduled to mail ballots to voters on the absentee list on May 10. For more information, go to yellowstonecountymt.gov/elections. The biennial event Craig Wilson Symposium will return to Montana State University Billings on March 22 and 23. The event is open to the public. Named for Craig Wilson, Ph.D., a political science faculty member who instructed at MSU Billings from 1980 to 2014, the symposium addresses a different political theme every other year during the spring semester and utilizes the perspectives of academics, practitioners, elected officials and university students to ignite broad political discussions regarding important topics of the day. This years theme is Democracy and Distrust in an Era of Uncertainty. The Craig Wilson Symposium, which was founded to encourage civic engagement, emerges to tackle the important discourse of our nation and democracy, says Paul Pope, Ph.D. and associate professor of political science at MSUB. The 2024 Symposium will feature panels that will discuss topics on language and propaganda, historical perspectives of democracy, policing within democracies, and more. Montana Representative Zooey Zephyr will give a keynote presentation at 7:30 p.m. on March 23 in the Student Union Building Glacier Room. Tickets to a dinner preceding the keynote can be purchased online with proceeds benefiting the MSUB Chapter for Pi Sigma Alpha, the political science student honors society. As we gather to dissect its essence and navigate its challenges, let us recognize that this symposium is not merely an event, Pope said. It is a compass guiding us towards a more resilient, inclusive, and enlightened America built on the enduring strength of our democratic ideals. Wilson was the founder of the Mountain States Poll at MSUB, which covers both Montana and national politics. Since 1989, the poll has been completed nearly every year and has brought MSUB notoriety as well as helped MSUB students become more civically engaged. Wilson retired in 2014 as a distinguished Professor of Political Science, emeritus, before passing away in the fall of 2017. Through the Mountain States Poll and the Craig Wilson Symposium, his legacy continues to live on at MSUB. Learn more about the Craig Wilson Symposium. The city of Bismarck might be negotiating with Bismarck Event Center Director Charlie Jeske in hopes of reaching a resolution to months of turmoil and uncertainty that have drawn his employment status into question. Jeske was the subject of an internal investigation that concluded his interactions with some vendors were unethical and potentially criminal. The results of a state Bureau of Criminal Investigation probe have not yet been made public. Jeske, who has served as director of the Event Center since 2008, has defended his leadership and experience. He is on administrative leave while his future is decided. The City Commission on Tuesday decided to table a decision on Jeskes employment after previously indicating it would vote on a final outcome at that meeting. The move came in the wake of a special City Commission meeting on Monday that seemed to relate to Jeskes future. Much of the Monday meeting was spent in an executive session that was closed to the public -- which is allowed in state law. The meeting agenda stated that its purpose was to receive attorney consultation regarding an imminent lawsuit. The meeting ended in a brief open session with some discussion that appeared to be about an agenda item relating to Jeskes employment status -- namely, that the commission had at its Feb. 27 meeting tabled a decision on the matter until March 12, which was Tuesday. During that conversation, City Attorney Jannelle Combs referred to an agenda item tabled at the Feb. 27 meeting to the March 12 meeting as that item shortly after the executive session closed. A copy of the meeting minutes for the Feb. 27 meeting, turned to the portion discussing actions on Jeskes employment, appears on the screen of the meeting video at that time. Combs advised the commission that it would need to take formal action at a public meeting with appropriate notice to amend its Tuesday agenda -- and the move to table a decision on Jeskes status was the first action taken at the Tuesday meeting. The Monday discussion about the Jeske agenda item didnt appear on that meetings initial agenda or the subsequent meeting minutes, indicating that it wasnt a separate topic from the discussion of a potential lawsuit in the executive session. No specific lawsuit was named on the agenda, and Jeskes lawyer, Jesse Walstad, had not filed a suit on Jeskes behalf as of Wednesday afternoon, a Tribune search of court documents showed. Walstad declined to comment on the matter after Tuesdays meeting. The commission on Monday also decided to approve the consensus during the executive session, as Commissioner Anne Cleary phrased it, and direct our attorney to take appropriate action, though she didn't clarify what that encompassed. Combs in an email to the Tribune on Wednesday characterized that action as a direction regarding consensus for negotiation. Mayor Mike Schmitz and a city spokesperson on Wednesday both declined to comment substantively on the decision to table a potential action on Jeske's future, stating that any publicly available information and actions will be discussed at a duly advertised public meeting. Combs provided additional context in a statement -- including indicating that an imminent lawsuit does not always result in a filing -- and emphasized that any city action would be taken at a public meeting. The commission is next scheduled to meet on March 26, where it will presumably make a decision on Jeskes fate. The saga began publicly when Jeske was first placed on paid administrative leave Sept. 22. Former City Administrator Keith Hunke then fired him in late October following the internal investigation, but Jeske was put back on administrative leave in November following an administrative employee grievance meeting on Nov. 2. Jeske was reinstated to his role as director in late November, after he and Walstad argued that he hadnt received due process in the termination process. A fact-finding committee was established and began meeting in early December to evaluate potential next steps. The subcommittee presented its findings at the Feb. 27 meeting and recommended that Jeskes employment be terminated. The commission placed him back on administrative leave at that meeting until a resolution is reached. In 2011, it was so unusual to see a moose in Eastern Montana that John Rahr drove all the way home to get his camera and returned to Deer Creek to capture a photograph. In the 50 years he lived in the area, he never had seen one of the long-legged, dark-brown creatures roaming the Glendive region. Since Rahrs rare sighting 13 years ago, moose have migrated into almost all portions of southeastern Montana, said Brett Dorak, Region 7 wildlife manager for Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Tanner Roth noted evidence of the regions increasing moose population last year during archery season. The Sidney hunter wrote in an email to the Fish and Wildlife Commission that he saw five moose between Glendive and Sidney. Subsequently, he advocated for issuing a tag to hunt them in the region. FWP agreed, and this spring is offering one moose tag in Region 7. It starts off as a rarity and then after a while numbers and observations seem to grow, Dorak said. Were encountering them on our (wildlife management areas), and one of our biologists just flew a waterfowl survey along the Missouri River and observed eight moose, which included immature bulls, adult bulls, cows and calves. Moose migrations The largest members of the deer family, which can weigh 600 to 1,200 pounds when fully grown, are probably trickling in from western North Dakota as well as Wyomings Bighorn Mountains. Southwest Saskatchewan and southeast Alberta moose populations to the north are also reportedly growing. These population sources along the Regions boundaries are potentially providing the individuals that not only move through the area but have also taken up residence in the area, FWP noted in its December memo to the Fish and Wildlife Commission advocating for the new Region 7 license. Although moose can be homebodies, Montana biologists have tracked collared cow moose taking 500-mile roundtrip journeys. Since 2012, when FWP began asking hunters if they had seen moose in Region 7, numbers have ranged from as low as 11 to as many as 75. More recently, some landowners along the Yellowstone River have complained about crop depredation caused by moose. They were an anomaly for a while, until they started taking up residence, Dorak said. NoDak moose Despite an increase in development driven by the oil fracking boom, North Dakotas moose population has swelled in the Williston region along the Missouri River since about the mid-2000s. One speculation is that the moose population may be thriving because deadly brain worms, which infect moose in wetter climates in eastern North Dakota, cant survive in the more arid regions of western North Dakota. Moose tags in northeastern Montanas Region 6, another largely plains and prairie region, have been offered since 2008. In that first year, 98 hunters applied for the two tags offered. Since then, interest has steadily climbed. Last year, more than 1,600 residents applied in the hunting district in Region 6 for a chance at one of nine tags. In terms of applicants, the area was third highest for submissions, falling behind only two hunting districts in Region 3 in southwest Montana. Annually, Montanas moose harvest averages around 300 animals. One reason for the interest in hunting northeastern Montana moose may be because the success rate is so high, 100% every year an anomaly when compared to the average success rate across the West of about 80%. Since the inaugural 2008 season, 69 moose have been killed in Region 6, only three of them cows. Such success has come even though river and creek bottoms, prime moose habitat, are often on private lands. Difficulty gaining access to moose in southeastern Montana was one of the issues FWP noted in its comments to the Fish and Wildlife Commission. Hunter access may be limited along the riparian habitats where moose have been frequently observed, but there are multiple WMAs and other access points that can provide access opportunities, the agency noted. Hunters may need to contact private landowners for additional access opportunities. Prairie moose This whole scenario of moose now homesteading on the prairie may seem kind of wacky for those used to them being mainly a mountain, forest-dwelling animal in Montana. Biologists have long believed moose inhabit these higher elevations because the big animals have thrived in wet, cool climates where the temperatures remain below 60 degrees. Yet the Williston area can see temperatures in the mid-80s or warmer in the summer. It also seems out of character for moose to be thriving in this different habitat considering that in many of their traditional territories, the animals are declining due to infestations of parasites like arterial worms and winter ticks. One theory scientists considered to explain the moose expansion in Eastern Montana was the arrival of a different subspecies. The subspecies living in the western third of Montana is called the Shiras moose (Alces alces shirasi). The midwestern moose is recognized as a different subspecies, Alces alces andersoni. Recent range expansion of moose into eastern Montana has come with some uncertainty regarding subspecies identity, a 2017 study noted. It is unclear whether animals east of the Rocky Mountain chain in the eastern portions of Montana, with neighboring moose populations in Saskatchewan and North Dakota, would be better described as A. a. shirasi or as belonging to the northwestern subspecies A. a. andersoni. To find out, biologists conducted a study. The research, published in 2020, analyzed genetic samples taken from moose living across western North America. The findings showed a low degree of genetic diversity. Differences in body size or antlers may be as much tied to nutrition as to genetics, the scientists theorized. In a continuation of the research, genetic samples were collected by 699 moose hunters across Montana for further analysis of the connectivity of the states moose populations. Tying the genetic analysis in with fossil remains from Ice Age moose, showed the animals likely populated North America after the last large glaciers began melting about 15,000 years ago, with no populations south of the glaciers before then. Wild invaders The movement of moose to Eastern Montana is encouraging considering the species was nearly exterminated from the state by the 1900s. In 1910, following the inaction of game laws, it was estimated fewer than 300 moose inhabited the entire state. Now Montana's population is estimated at around 5,000 animals. Although moose may be the most recent wildlife to take up residence in Eastern Montana, they arent the only ones to find the region to their liking. Populations of black bears, cougars and elk have also grown in Eastern Montana. The occasional wolf will also pass through, although not-so-humorous jokes are made about them not staying above ground for long. Through our elk objective meetings two summers ago, we talked with a lot of landowners who say I recall seeing my first elk in the late 80s, early 90s, and now there are thousands of them, Dorak said. The increase in wildlife variety is no surprise. Its prime habitat, and theyre certainly utilizing it, he said. https://www.chinaminutes.com/News/News-Article/jeffrey-sachs-confucius-wisdom-can-assist-us-in-overcoming-modern-challenges? | 2023 10 12 2000 21 2500500 sdom 240250 30002500 ABC 2500 323 60F 60 60 60 Jeffrey Sachs: Confucius' Wisdom Can Assist us in Overcoming Modern Challenges https://www.chinaminutes.com/News/News-Article/jeffrey-sachs-confucius-wisdom-can-assist-us-in-overcoming-modern-challenges? China News | East Meets West 12 October 2023 Again by expressing my gratitude to the Nishan Forum for bringing us together for this extraordinarily important discussion. We have already heard wonderful talks about the importance of common values for our time, and the potential for common values of our time. And China's Global Civilizations Initiative and the Nishan Forum are a unique venue in the world to help forge those common values and the community that we urgently need. Do we have common values in the world? The answer, I think, is that we can have common values in the world. This is a matter of potentiality, but we do not currently have common values in the world. We have great divisions, tremendous distrust, unprecedented tensions and very great dangers in the world. We are here to help find the common values and the community to solve those tensions, to overcome the world's crises, especially to find peace and harmony among the nations of the world. I think that there are several reasons for our extreme tensions in the world today. Perhaps the biggest is that the world order is changing, and I believe changing for the good. The last two centuries were very unusual. They were a period in which one rather small part of the world, which is sometimes called the West, or, I believe can be more accurately called the North Atlantic region of the world, the United States and Western Europe, dominated much of world politics and much of world economy. And that North Atlantic-led world has come to an end. And that is good, because it has come to an end because of China's wonderful economic development and the progress in many other regions of the world. So we have truly arrived at a multipolar world, and yet we do not have a shared understanding or common values for that new multipolar world. We also have unprecedented interdependence of our nations. We are more interconnected and interdependent than ever in history. Of course, already, 2000 years ago, there was a silk road between the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty. But this was not the interdependence that we have in our digital age and our intense interconnections of technology, information finance, the physical flow of goods and people. We also face unprecedented common global challenges as never before, as exemplified by the range of environmental catastrophes now being visited upon the world because of the way that our economic system has interacted with the physical Earth for the past two centuries, during the age of industrialization. And of course, we have more powerful weapons. For the first time in human history, we have weapons that can end civilization, even end humanity itself. So our times are extraordinarily complicated. And we are not in a harmonious period. We are in a period of tremendous stress. I put a lot of responsibility for that stress on my own country, on the United States, which still has a mentality, as we heard of hegemony or global preeminence or dominance in a world in which that is neither feasible nor desirable. But it is a fact of American political culture to this day, and it makes the world very much more dangerous than if there were a proper understanding of our global interconnectedness, and of the anachronistic idea, the outdated idea that the United States somehow is world leader. This is almost preposterous in our complex and interconnected world today. Now, we are here to forge a better understanding of our world and truly workable common values. I believe this is possible, but as our wise speakers have already indicated, it is a long and rocky road. It will not come from a slogan or a saying or a piece of deep wisdom. In fact, it will have to come through collective interaction. Over many years of discussion, debate, encounter and realization of our commonality as human beings and our common interests on the planet. I believe that ancient wisdom can play a tremendously important role in enabling us to find common values for the 21st century. And that's why this unique forum, in this unique place, is such a gift for humanity. Let me say that I believe there are at least four ways in which ancient wisdom can help us in our modern challenges. The first is that ancient wisdom can help us to heal our own societies. Remember that Confucius, himself, teaching his students and lecturing to leaders of the Zhou era, already was talking about the need for ancient wisdom. So 2500 years ago, Confucius himself said, we need ancient wisdom to understand our modern challengesmodern in the era, 500 BC, in the spring and autumn period, already, ancient wisdom was needed. According to the wisdom of Master Kong. Second, ancient wisdom helps us to understand each other. By studying ancient philosophy, we understand the roots of different civilizations. Because Confucian civilization is different from Western civilization. It is much more about harmony and society. It is much more relational than the individualism that characterizes a lot of Western ancient civilization. So by studying ancient civilization, we learn the deep roots of our modern societies, because our societies reflect roots that go back even thousands of years of course. The third is by studying ancient wisdom, we remember history. I come from a country that knows almost no history. It's a new country. It's only 240 years old roughly, 250 years old. It's nothing in the span of human history. And we remember almost nothing. By the way, if we study Confucius and study Mencius, we are bound to remember that we are studying a civilization that is more than 3,000 years old in its vigor and Confucian wisdom, 2,500 years old. And that helps us to appreciate how a shortsighted we can be. Because the Western countries in the United States believe that it is natural that the Western world should lead the world. But this is an artifact of simply two centuries in the vast sweep of human history. And since they don't know the human history, they don't understand how fleeting that particular idea is. And there is a fourth reason why studying ancient wisdom is so important, and that is that when we study the ancient wisdom of Confucius, of Aristotle, of the Buddha and other sages, we do find the common values that we seek. This is what is so wonderful. If you study what I call the ABCs of our culture, Aristotle, Buddha and Confucius, we find that they are all what we would say in modern parland's virtue ethicists. They all believe that the way to a harmonious and happy life is by cultivating the virtues of the individuals and cultivating the virtues of political society. So they are virtue philosophers, and they teach us to promote our virtues. In Confucianism, that is Ren, and in Aristotelian thought, it is pronesis, or practical wisdom, and other virtues, such as temperance, or justice or fortitude. But these are philosophers who proclaimed that we need to improve ourselves to do improve society, and we need virtuous leaders to help cultivate the virtues of the citizens. This is a common insight of Aristotle, Buddha and Confucius. I want to emphasize, as you know, these philosophers were very practical people. They were engaged in politics. They were engaged in practice. They were political advisers. They were not only armchair philosophers, as we think of them. And none of them was that successful in their day in political action, because virtues are not easy to achieve. And I recall that of the greatest philosophers, of course, Socrates, was executed by the Athenian state. Plato tried to be a political adviser to the city state of SYRACUSEA and he failed miserably. It gives me great relief, because I'm also an advisor to governments, and you can fail. If Plato can fail, you can fail. So it's very interesting to know that even the greatest philosophers failed in practice. And Confucius, of course, had to leave the Lu kingdom. He had to go into exile. He spoke to the rulers in this region, none of them listened very carefully to him. It was only in the next 2500 years that his effect was so powerful. So philosophy is not easy. Cultivating virtue is not easy, and this is a major challenge for us. I recall finally, I wanted to mention that Aristotle, himself, in the last year of his life, in 323BC, had to leave Athens because his protection was gone when Alexander the Great died in Babylon, and Aristotle had to flee for his life. So the life of promoting virtue is not such an easy life. Sometimes the politicians don't want to listen, but the effect of the philosophers is very, very powerful, and the wisdom is very profound. I want to end with a practical note, and that is the hope for success when leaders understand the need for virtue. And I want to refer to a case 60 years ago, which was a case of the one great United States president during my lifetime, president John F Kennedy. Because 60 years ago, the United States and the Soviet Union almost came to nuclear war. And I emphasize this today, because the same two countries, the US and Russia, are at war again. Because I believe the United States doesn't understand what President Kennedy did understand. Sixty years ago president Kennedy understood that we needed to find a way through common values to reach peace with the Soviet Union. And he tried to convince the American people that it was possible to make peace with a country that was regarded as an enemy by the American people. And he gave a phenomenal speech 60 years ago that I hope people will study, because it was based on the best of Western philosophy. And it's called Kennedy's Peace Speech. And he talked about global values. And he said in that speech, so let us not be blind to our differences, but let us direct attention to our common interests and to the means by which those differences can be resolved. And if we cannot end now those differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity, for in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet. We all breed the same era. We all cherish our children's future, and we are all mortal. When President Kennedy made that statement, his counterpart in the Soviet Union, said I want to make peace with that man. And five weeks later, they had agreed on the partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. They made peace because Kennedy saw that it was possible to make peace. He reached out to make peace. He inspired peace with his counterpart by saying we all share this same planet, almost Confuciuss words when Confucius said, within the four seas, all men are brothers. This is what President Kennedy said. And Nicada Cruzche have heard it. And almost exactly 60 years ago, to this day, President Kennedy said the following to world leaders in the UN General Assembly. He said, Archimedes, in explaining the principles of the lever, was said to have declared to his friends, give me a place where I can stand and I shall move the world. My fellow inhabitants of this planet, let us take our stand here in this assembly of nations, and let us see if we, in our town can move the world to a just and lasting peace. This is what the Nishan Forum is making possible. We are grateful to you, grateful to the Shandong government, grateful to the government of the People's Republic of China, and grateful to the people of this great country for inviting us here to share in this endeavor. Thank you very much. At least 2 dead and dozens injured in a suspected gas explosion outside Beijing At least 2 dead and dozens injured in a suspected gas explosion outside Beijing View Photo BEIJING (AP) An explosion caused by a suspected gas leak ripped through a building in northern China on Wednesday, killing at least two people and injuring 26 others, authorities said. The blast occurred early in the morning at a fried chicken shop in the city of Sanhe, authorities said in a short statement. The city is around 63 kilometers (39 miles) east of Beijing. Police cordoned off streets 1 kilometer (over half a mile) around the explosion, Associated Press reporters saw, and were directing people away. Fire engines were dispatched to the scene and a truck could be seen hauling away a burnt-out car with its windows gone. Most of the original building is gone, with only part of its frame remaining above piles of rubble. State broadcaster CCTV said 14 people were hospitalized, including two in serious condition. Relatives of a person who had died told local news outlet Hongxing News that she was the owner of a guesthouse inside the building and that her husband was still missing. The couple had just sent their 9-year-old child to school before the explosion happened. Over 150 firefighters worked to bring the blaze under control, according to CCTV. Videos online showed smoke billowing out of a mid-level commercial building at an intersection. ___ Associated Press video producer Olivia Zhang, researchers Bing Yu and Wanqing Chen in Beijing and writer Simina Mistreanu in Taipei, Taiwan contributed to this report. By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press Romanian court extends restrictions against online influencer Andrew Tate who is awaiting trial View Photo BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) A court in Romanias capital on Wednesday extended geographical restrictions against online influencer Andrew Tate, who is awaiting trial on charges of human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. The Bucharest Tribunal extended by a maximum of 60 days the restrictions, which stipulate Tate may not leave the country. Tate, 37, had requested that he be able to travel within the European Union with the prior approval of a judge. He can appeal within 48 hours. Andrew Tate, who has amassed 8.9 million followers on the social media platform X, has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy to silence him. He was previously banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing misogynistic views and for hate speech. Tate, a former professional kickboxer, was arrested in December 2022 near Bucharest along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women. Romanian prosecutors formally indicted all four in June last year. They have denied the allegations. After their arrest the Tate brothers, who are dual British-U.S. citizens, were held for three months in police detention before being moved to house arrest. They were later restricted to Bucharest Municipality and nearby Ilfov County, but can now travel freely around Romania. The extension Wednesday came a day after the Tate brothers appeared at the Bucharest Court of Appeal in a separate case. British authorities issued arrest warrants over allegations of sexual aggression in a U.K. case dating back to 2012-2015, the brothers spokesperson Mateea Petrescu said. The court on Tuesday granted the British authorities its request to extradite Andrew and Tristan Tate, but only after legal proceedings against them have been concluded in Romania, which could take years. Eugen Vidineac, the brothers lawyer, said the courts decision to postpone the extradition provides an opportunity for the brothers to participate fully in their defense and for the legal process to proceed in a transparent manner. The legal case in Romania is still being discussed in the preliminary chamber stages, a process in which the defendants can challenge prosecutors evidence. No trial date has been set. Catalonia calls an early regional election that could add to Spains political uncertainty View Photo BARCELONA, Spain (AP) The regional president of Catalonia has called an early election for May 12 after his minority government failed to pass a budget for Spains wealthy northeast region that includes Barcelona. The move by Pere Aragones on Wednesday came on the eve of a vote in Spains national parliament on a contentious amnesty law that could pardon hundreds of leaders and supporters of the separatist movement, including those involved in Catalonias unsuccessful bid to declare independence from Spain in 2017. Some separatists leaders were jailed at the time, and others like ex-regional President Carles Puigdemont fled the country. The amnesty proposal has aroused the ire of millions of Spaniards. Those who oppose the bill believe that the people involved in provoking one of the countrys biggest crises since the transition to democracy after the death of Gen. Francisco Franco in 1975 shouldnt get away with charges including sedition and rebellion. But Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchezs government in Madrid relies on Catalan separatist parties to approve laws in Spains parliament. The central government is also trying to win the backing of those parties to pass a national budget. Sanchezs Socialist party and his allies are expected to give their initial backing to the amnesty law in a parliamentary vote on Thursday, while the conservative Popular Party and hard-right politicians will oppose it. The Catalan regional election had to be held before the end of the year. Catalonia has been governed by separatist parties for more than a decade, but Sanchezs Socialists have polled strongly in the region recently. By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press Another mayoral hopeful is killed in southern Mexico, one of a half-dozen murdered this year MEXICO CITY (AP) Prosecutors in southern Mexico said Wednesday that a mayoral candidate was killed in the Pacific coast state of Guerrero, one of a half-dozen local politicians murdered so far this year ahead of the June 2 national elections. Tomas Morales was hoping to become mayor of the violence-wracked city of Chilapa, Guerrero. The ruling Morena party had not formally named Morales as candidate, but he was considered a top contender in the race. State prosecutors said a gunman shot Morales to death outside his home in Chilapa late Tuesday. For more than a decade, the relatively isolated city of Chilapa has been the scene of bloody turf battles between drug gangs. Earlier this month, Alfredo Gonzalez, a mayoral contender in the town of Atoyac, Guerrero, was shot to death. In late February, two mayoral hopefuls in the town of Maravatio, in the neighboring state of Michoacan, were killed by gunmen within hours of each other. One, like Morales, was from the governing Morena party of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The other belonged to the conservative National Action Party. A third mayoral hopeful from that town was abducted and found dead in November. On Feb. 10, a man running for Congress for the Morena party in the sprawling Mexico City suburb of Ecatepec was fatally shot in the street alongside his brother. He had allegedly received threats from a local union. A month earlier, on Jan. 5, the local leader of the Institutional Revolutionary Party and candidate for mayor of Suchiate, Chiapas, was killed. The same day, in the northwestern state of Colima, a mayoral candidate of the Citizen Movement party in Armeria was shot by gunmen while in his vehicle. Mexicos drug cartels have often focused assassination attempts on mayors and mayoral candidates, in a bid to control local police or extort money from municipal governments. ____ Follow APs coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america Michigan man who was accidently shot in face with ghost gun sues manufacturer and former friend Michigan man who was accidently shot in face with ghost gun sues manufacturer and former friend View Photo A 19-year-old Michigan man who lost his right eye after being shot with a firearm made from a ghost gun kit filed a lawsuit Tuesday against his former best friend who accidently shot him and the Pennsylvania company that sold his friend the kit. The lawsuit, which was filed in Washtenaw County Circuit Court, alleges that JSD Supply sold two ghost gun kits in April 2021 to Guy Boyds then-17-year-old friend without verifying the friends age or whether he could legally possess a pistol. Boyd, who also was 17, was shot in the face less than two months later. He also suffers from ongoing chronic and debilitating seizures that have nearly killed him and will continue to impact almost every aspect of his daily life, according to the lawsuit. This case is about the known and obvious dangers of arming a teenager with a gun, a company that cavalierly ignored these dangers, and a young man whose life was shattered because of it, Boyds attorneys wrote in the lawsuit. It was not immediately clear what criminal charges, if any, were filed against Boyds former friend, who was a minor at the time of the shooting, said David Santacroce, one of Boyds lawyers. The Associated Press left a message Tuesday with the county prosecutor about the shooting case. The lawsuit accuses JSD Supply and Boyds former friend of negligence. The Associated Press was unable to reach the former friend, now 19, for comment, and is not naming him. JSD Supply in Prospect, Pennsylvania, didnt immediately respond to a voicemail and an email seeking comment. The lawsuit alleges that JSD Supply proudly, publicly, yet falsely advertised that the guns assembled from its kits required no licensing, could be owned completely off-the-books, and required absolutely no paperwork. New Jerseys attorney general sued JSD Supply and another company in December alleging that they tried to sell ghost guns which are illegal in that state. Ghost guns are privately made firearms without serial numbers. Generally, guns manufactured by licensed companies are required to have serial numbers usually displayed on the weapons frame that allow authorities to trace them back to the manufacturer, firearms dealer and original buyer. Ghost guns, however, are made of parts that are assembled into weapons at home. The critical component in building an untraceable gun is what is known as the lower receiver. Some are sold in do-it-yourself kits and the receivers are typically made from metal or polymer. On April 9, 2021, the teen named in the Michigan lawsuit allegedly purchased ghost gun build and completion kits online for $464.97 and had them shipped to his home in Ypsilanti, about 36 miles (58 kilometers) southwest of Detroit. His mother found the first assembled pistol and took it away because he was underage, the lawsuit says. Eighteen days later, he purchased two more of the companion kits for $474.97 and also had them shipped to his home. Boyd and the teen had been best friends for more than 10 years and were drinking alcohol or smoking marijuana with two other friends in late May 2021 when the gun was pointed at Boyd and the trigger was pulled. The last thing plaintiff Boyd remembers from that night is (his friend) saying, after he had shot him, I love you, bro, according to the lawsuit. Doctors were unable to remove all of the bullet fragments, and some remain in Boyds brain, the lawsuit says. Mr. Boyd brings this action seeking relief for his injuries and trying to prevent such an avoidable tragedy from ever happening again, according to the lawsuit which says the amount in damages exceeds $25,000. A jury would decide on the amount of damages if the lawsuit succeeds, Santacroce said. __________ Williams reported from West Bloomfield, Michigan. By COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press Judge rules missing 5-year-old girl legally dead weeks after father convicted of killing her View Photo CONCORD, N.H. (AP) A judge has ruled that a 5-year-old New Hampshire girl missing since 2019 is legally dead and her mother can become administrator of her estate, just weeks after the childs father was convicted of killing her. Crystal Sorey has carried her burden to demonstrate that her daughter, Harmony Montgomery, was killed as a result of some catastrophic event and that her body has not been found, a probate judge said in an order made public Tuesday, a day after Sorey went to court. Sorey is taking the first steps in preparation of a planned wrongful death lawsuit against the state regarding Harmony Montgomery. Her lawyer told the judge that Adam Montgomerys second-degree murder conviction, plus his admission of guilt to lesser charges that he moved his daughters body around for months afterward and falsified physical evidence, was enough to result in a legal death declaration. The lawyer also said there was trial testimony from Adam Montgomerys estranged wife, Kayla Montgomery, that she had handled Harmony Montgomerys lifeless body, according to the judges decision. Soreys lawyer still has to provide a copy of the jurys verdict and a probate surety bond that would guarantee Sorey would fulfill her duties under the law as administrator. Adam Montgomery and Sorey were not in a relationship when their daughter was born in 2014. Harmony Montgomery lived on and off with foster families and her mother until Sorey lost custody in 2018. Montgomery was awarded custody in early 2019, and Sorey testified she last saw her daughter during a FaceTime call around Easter of that year. When they were later questioned about Harmonys whereabouts, Adam and Kayla Montgomery told authorities that he had taken the child to live with Sorey. Adam Montgomery, in prison awaiting sentencing, chose not to attend the probate hearing via Webex. By KATHY McCORMACK Associated Press Trial date postponed for ex-elected official accused of killing Las Vegas journalist View Photo LAS VEGAS (AP) A former Las Vegas-area elected official accused of killing an investigative reporter who wrote articles critical of him will not go on trial next week. A Nevada judge on Tuesday postponed Robert Telles trial but did not immediately set a new date. Telles, 47, remains jailed without bail and has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. He faces life in prison if he is convicted. Prosecutors argued in court Tuesday that more time is needed to review key cellphone and computer records for evidence in the September 2022 stabbing death of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German. Police work was stalled for months by arguments that went to the state Supreme Court about whether accessing Germans cellphone and computer files would expose confidential information that is protected from disclosure under state and federal law. Those records are now being sifted by Review-Journal representatives. German, 69, spent more than 40 years as an investigative reporter in Las Vegas. He was found stabbed outside his home months after he wrote articles in 2022 that were critical of Telles and his managerial conduct while Telles, a Democrat, was administrator of estates for Clark County. Telles has pushed for a speedy trial but also has fired several teams of lawyers and filed dozens of pretrial motions while serving as his own attorney from behind bars. He twice lost bids to remove the judge handling the case. Hes scheduled to be back in Clark County District Court for a status hearing March 26. David Mixner, LGBTQ+ activist and Bill Clinton campaign advisor, dies at 77 View Photo NEW YORK (AP) David Mixner, a longtime LGBTQ+ activist who was an adviser to Bill Clinton during his presidential campaign and later called him out over the Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy regarding gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer personnel in the military, has died. He was 77. Mixner died Monday at his home in New York City, according to Annise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund. Mixner had been in hospice for some time, Parker said. In 1991, Mixner was one of the founding members of the organization that recruits and supports LGBTQ+ political candidates. David was a courageous, resilient and unyielding force for social change at a time when our community faced widespread discrimination and an HIV/AIDS crisis ignored by the political class in Washington, DC, the Victory Fund said in a statement Monday. In 1987, David joined one of the first HIV/AIDS protests outside the Reagan White House, where police wore latex gloves because of the stigma and misinformation around HIV/AIDS, and was arrested. Mixner believed that the LGBTQ+ community needed to be visibly and consistently involved in the political process and dragged people along with him, said Parker, the former mayor of Houston, Texas. He was social and witty and had a big personality, she said, but added that it was his moral compass that people should remember the most: He was willing to speak up and stand up. He got other people to be involved but he also held people accountable, Parker said. When politicians didnt make their commitments, he was willing to call them out on it. Mixner grew up in Elmer, New Jersey, according to the New Jersey Hall of Fame, which he was inducted into in 2021. Mixners father, Benjamin, was a farmer and his mother, Mary, was a homemaker and notary and later a bookkeeper for the local John Deere dealership, according to his niece, Lizzy Yates. His sister, Patsy Annison, died in 2018 and he is survived by his brother, Melvin Mixner, Yates said. He attended Arizona State University and the University of Maryland and later helped organize efforts to end the war in Vietnam and worked for political campaigns. He also wrote several books, including a memoir Stranger Among Friends. In a statement, Mixners family said they were grieving the loss of a much loved brother and uncle, who at age 6 was convinced by his brother that he could fly and if he ran fast enough, he wouldnt fall from the hayloft and break an arm. He taught us to open our arms and our hearts. He taught us to stand up for those things and people who we hold dear, the statement read. He taught us to try to at least try to fly because bones heal. Mixner, who was credited with raising millions of dollars for Clinton from gay and lesbian voters, angered the White House in 1993 by attacking then-U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga. In a speech, Mixner called Nunn, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, an old-fashioned bigot for opposing Clintons plan to lift the ban on gays in the military. When Clinton began to compromise with Congress and the Pentagon on the issue later that year, Mixner accused the White House of misleading gay leaders. He said Clinton sacrificed the freedom of millions for your own political expediency. Days later, Mixner was among more than two dozen people arrested in front of the White House in a protest of Clintons retreat from his campaign pledge to lift the ban by executive order. Neil Giuliano, the former mayor of Tempe, Arizona, traveled to New York last month to visit with Mixner, whom he had known for decades, and they talked about politics and life and the afterlife. Facing death compels one to be totally bare and totally honest, he said. Giuliano described Mixner as an activist with grace who was influential with people at all levels. Its not like he wasnt angry, but he came forward with a way of talking about issues and with such grace and he presented in such a way that brought people in and didnt keep people out, said Giuliano, who now serves on the LGBTQ+ Victory Funds board. I think thats why so many people were drawn to him. Trump heading to Ohio to rally for GOPs Bernie Moreno ahead of March 19 primary Trump heading to Ohio to rally for GOPs Bernie Moreno ahead of March 19 primary View Photo DAYTON, Ohio (AP) Former President Donald Trump is heading to Ohio to rally support for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bernie Moreno ahead of the March 19 primary. Trump will headline an afternoon rally at Wright Bros Aero, in Vandalia, near Dayton, on Saturday, Morenos campaign said. The event is hosted by Buckeye Values PAC. Trump has endorsed the Cleveland businessman over two rivals in the three-way GOP primary. Moreno faces Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose and Cleveland-area state Sen. Matt Dolan in what has turned out to be a closer-than-expected contest. Gov. Mike DeWine endorsed Dolan on Monday. The Republican victor will face third-term Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown this fall. Brown is viewed as among the most vulnerable Senate Democrats this fall, with control of the chamber in play. Trumps endorsement last cycle boosted author and venture capitalist JD Vance to victory in both the primary and the general election. Vance and U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan are among other Republicans backing Moreno. McDowell now uncontested in North Carolina House race after ex-Rep. Walker declines runoff View Photo RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) A former North Carolina representative who finished second in last weeks primary for essentially his old U.S. House seat announced on Wednesday that he wont ask for a runoff and will join Donald Trumps presidential campaign instead. Ex-U.S. Rep. Mark Walker, who served in Congress for six years through 2020, ran in the central North Carolina 6th District, which now stretches from Greensboro and Winston-Salem south and west to Concord. The top vote-getter in the six-candidate March 5 Republican primary, the Trump-endorsed Addison McDowell, failed to exceed the 30% vote threshold needed to avoid a May 14 runoff. But state law said it was up to Walker to formally ask for the runoff. But Walker said he wont request a runoff, meaning that McDowell won the primary outright and almost assuredly will be the next 6th District representative, since he will face no Democratic opposition this fall. Democratic Rep. Kathy Manning, the current 6th District representative, did not seek reelection, citing redistricting by the GOP-controlled legislature that made the seat lean significantly rightward. No other Democrat filed as a candidate. Trump, in a social media posting earlier Wednesday, said that he had asked Walker, a former Baptist pastor, to join my Campaign team to work with Faith Groups and Minority Communities, and he has agreed to immediately do so. Mark and I had many Wins together, and we look forward to continuing to build bridges to all Communities in our Great Nation, the former president wrote. Walker, whose tenure in Congress was marked by efforts to aid historically Black colleges and universities, confirmed his hiring in a news release, saying that he had talked with Trump on Tuesday. Ill continue my work as a bridge builder and am looking forward to bringing these skills to the Trump campaign, he said. McDowell, most recently a lobbyist for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, surfaced as a first-time candidate in December, already with Trumps formal backing. McDowell later received support from top state legislative leaders. McDowell previously worked for GOP Rep. Richard Hudsons campaign and as a district staffer for then-Rep. Ted Budd, who is now a U.S. senator. In a news release, McDowell thanked Budd for mentoring him and introducing him in 2016 to Trump. I cant wait to work in Congress to help him secure our Southern border and fight for the America First Agenda that protects and promotes American jobs as the top priority, McDowell said of Trump. McDowell ran a television commercial in which he talked about his commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Mexico border in light of his younger brother dying of a fentanyl overdose in 2016. For Walker, who was elected to Congress in 2014, it was a round of redistricting that led him not to seek reelection. He finished third in the 2022 U.S. Senate primary to Budd, who got Trumps endorsement in that race. Walker also ran for governor for several months last year before shifting to the 6th District seat. Walker said that after speaking with McDowell in recent days, Im convinced that Addison can do great things for people in the 6th District. The Republican primary for North Carolinas 13th Congressional District is headed to a runoff, however, as second-place finisher Brad Knott filed his formal request on Wednesday. Smithfield attorney Kelly Daughtry got the most votes in the 14-candidate race in the 13th which arcs around most of Raleigh and stretches to the Virginia border but fell short of exceeding 30%. The ultimate winner will take on Democrat Frank Pierce. Current 13th District Rep. Wiley Nickel, a Democrat, is also not seeking reelection, citing last falls redistricting that shifted the district to the right. Under the North Carolina map used for the 2022 elections, Democrats and Republicans won seven congressional seats each. But the latest map makes it likely the GOP will win at least 10 of the 14 seats, according to election data, helping national Republicans trying to retain what is now a fragile House majority in 2025. By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press A 41-year-old Harare man was on Sunday found dead near the intersection of Robert Mugabe Way and Chiremba Road with blood stains on the knee and groin. A blood-stained brick was also found at the scene. Police believe that the man could have been murdered by criminals during the night. National police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi said investigations were in progress to ascertain the cause of death. Police in Harare are investigating circumstances surrounding a case of murder in which a man aged 41 was found dead with blood stains on the knee and groin at the corner of Chiremba Road and Robert Mugabe Way on March 10, 2024. A blood-stained brick was recovered at the scene. Anyone with information to report at any nearest Police Station, he said. Breaking News via Email Yves here. John Helmer uses the device of a childrens book series about a determined and cagey warrior to help frame his piece on the state of play with NATO and US hair-tearing over Ukraine, German scheming, and probable Russian reactions and next steps. Note that one of Helmers Russia sources warns that his compatriots seem too bullish about Russias prospects in the next phase. By John Helmer, the longest continuously serving foreign correspondent in Russia, and the only western journalist to direct his own bureau independent of single national or commercial ties. Helmer has also been a professor of political science, and an advisor to government heads in Greece, the United States, and Asia. He is the first and only member of a US presidential administration (Jimmy Carter) to establish himself in Russia. Originally published at Dances with Bears Its near-certain that no Russian general, nor member of the Stavka, nor President Vladimir Putin has read Biggles.* If one of them had, he would accept that now, after a long time of forgetfulness, the Germans are again the enemy who can and must be defeated by Biggles or his successors if civilization is to be saved in Europe. They are the original Germans, with their headquarters in Berlin. Not the new Germans they are the Americans who occupy Germany, and direct it from their headquarters in Ramstein, Mons, Brussels, and Washington. Look out, there is a Hun this is the first line of a warning Biggles sang to alert his partner to a guard on patrol at a castle operated as headquarters and prison by the German Secret Service. Biggles was singing to the tune of the British national anthem, God Save the King. Look out, there is a Hun/Quite near you with a gun. The war that is now accelerating to its climax on the Ukrainian battlefield requires the same alert and wit; the words are the same, the tune is now the Russian national anthem. And the Huns are not the only ones approaching with a gun. So are the Frogs, Limeys, and Doughboys. When Biggles was fighting his war, it was his clear understanding that the Germans were the principal enemy in Europe and worldwide. He regarded the French and the Americans as necessary but weak, unsteady, and incompetent allies. What is an intrepid mind like Biggles to think and to do now? At the moment the approval ratings and voter preference polls show that the alliance against Russia is ruled by the weakest governments in their post-war histories: German Chancellor Olaf Scholzs government is down to 17% preference, Scholz to 20% approval; French President Emmanuel Macron is down to 30% approval, and his successor would lose to the Rassemblement National (National Rally); Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks approval is 9%, and his Conservative Party is trailing the Labour Party by 23%; President Joseph Biden is at 39.5% approval, losing to candidate Donald Trump by 2% nationally, more in the key states. These politicians are threatening to escalate their war against Russia with long-range, nuclear-capable missiles and more forces on the ground in the Ukraine; as Macron has suggested, the plan is to reinforce Ukrainian defences either west of Kiev, along the Belarus, Polish, and Romanian borders, or in a line for the defence of Odessa and Kiev. If the calculation of these politicians is that their talk will trigger a rally-round-the incumbent effect in the electorate, they already know from their polls this will fail. The military calculation has been rejected by reserve or retired French and German generals who point out that additions to the command, technical, and special forces they have already deployed in the Ukraine would survive for less than a week because they have no effective air cover; no ground-to-air defence; no survivable ground weapon of any kind; and no fortification or bunker that cannot be penetrated and destroyed by the Russian Kinzhal and Iskander missiles and the heavy FAB-1500 bunker-busting bomb. The enemy [of France] is not Vladimir Putin but Emmanuel Macron, retired General Andre Coustou said on March 7. He is the liquidator, the destroyer of France. Hes the one who should go! Coustou, who has been at war with Macron since 2018, added that our weakness, our vulnerability makes for a concrete impossibility for the time today. This is not the German generals view. That was revealed by Ingo Gerhartz, chief of the Luftwaffe, when he thought he was speaking in secret with his deputies, one of them a general on the airforce plans and operations staff. I will be grateful to you if you tell me not only what problems we have, but how we can solve them, Gerhartz said. We are now fighting a war that uses much more modern technology than our good old Luftwaffe. This all suggests that when we are planning deadlines, we should not overestimate themThere are certain concerns if we have direct communication with the Ukrainian armed forces. Therefore, the question arises: can we use such a trick and second our people to MBDA [German arms maker]? Thus, direct communication with Ukraine will only be through MBDA, this is much better than if such a connection exists with our Air ForceI think that our people will find an option. We just need to be allowed to try first, so that we can give better political advice. We need to be better prepared so we dont fail because the KSA [Kommando Strategische Aufklarung, Strategic Reconnaissance Command, a German intelligence organization] may have no idea where the [Russian] air defence systems actually are. Trick and try first this is what the German generals are doing. They and the Berlin ministers supporting Gerhartz have been contradicted in public by Scholz who claims: I am the chancellor and that is why it is like this. A scheme to implement the Gerhartz plan and preserve Scholz in his camouflage is in discussion with the Sunak government. Moscow sources are divided. There are those who believe the political and military calculation of these allies is cynical: they realize their war is lost to Russia the Ukrainian battlefield as a territory and also the weapons, intelligence, command and control they have supplied and they are preparing to avoid taking the blame at the next election and defence budget votes. Other Moscow sources caution the war in the east has been won, and lost by NATO, but not the war in the west and north. One close to the Defense Ministry warns that too much is being read into battles won and troops defeated. This source believes the best trained Ukrainian reserves and battle groups are west of the Dnieper and in the north. The reserves on the eastern front are fodder, disposable. Its been clear to the US and the others for some time that the eastern part will be lost. The real battle will be when the main offensive begins for Odessa and Kiev if it does. According to this source, the real meaning of the Macron remarks and of the public reaction to the Gerhartz plan is the coming Battle of WoD. The West of Dnieper [WoD] is where the war will be fought. Thats where the Russian offensive will be met with the best-trained troops and equipment; they are still uncommitted, much still outside the Ukraine. They will be moved in large numbers, but only to defend WoD. In the Biggles stories, von Stalhein is far cleverer than any German in command or in power for a generation. Do you think you are in a position to dictate terms to me? Von Stalhein says to Biggles inside the castle. Whether I am or not, Im doing it, Biggles returned. Its time you knew me well enough to know that Ill do what I say. Im not given to threatening; but go your own way and you sign your death-warrant. Ill see to that; Ill hunt you down and kill you like a mangy wolf, if I have to spend the rest of my life doing it. The Russian president and the Stavka dont need to read Biggles to say this. They have already said it. What remains to be revealed not said in advance are their intrepid methods for defeating the Hun. The Biggles stories are classified for children from nine years of age. This is another mistake. Biggles creator, Captain William Earle Johns (1893-1968), had fought as an infantryman in World War I, first against the Turks at the Battle of Gallipoli, which the Turks won; and then against the Germans and Bulgarians on the stalemated Salonika front. During the last year of the war he flew bombers over Germany before he was shot down, wounded, and imprisoned by the Germans. He explained at the front of his very first Biggles book in 1932 that Hun was used in this book as the common generic term for anything belonging to the enemy. It was used in the familiar sense, rather than derogatory. The disclaimer was intended to rebuff later allegations of racism, as it should. Left: Captain W.E.Johns. Right, the 1936 publication from which the National Anthem quote has come. The disclaimer appears in The Camels Are Coming in 1932. Biggles was the nickname of the Royal Air Force fighter pilot, Major James Bigglesworth. He was invented by Johns from his combat experience; he went on to publish ninety-seven book-length Biggles stories between 1932 and 1997; Johns himself died in 1968. The one thing Biggles is, because Johns was, clear-eyed about is knowing who his enemy is and what solution for this there must be killing him, preferably in a fair aerial dogfight, but since the outcome of the crash could never be certain, with whatever method was at hand. The name of the enemy was Erich von Stalhein, a Luftwaffe flyer in World War I and then a secret service agent, who Stalhein himself explains to Biggles after capturing him at gunpoint do not die so easily. It has been said that, like the cat, we have nine liveswhen I was shot down and crashed following the ingenious coup planned by our mutual friend Bigglesworth was my eighth life. I had one left. I still have it. Von Stalhein was cleverer than Chancellor Scholz and Luftwaffe chief Gerhartz. The Russian race hatred of the skin-headed Gerhartz was displayed in a 38-minute telephone conference he held on February 19 on the subject of how quickest to prepare the Taurus missile for killing Russians in their kindergartens if need be, as a deputy warned him to no effect. Out of his mouth in the crudest fashion, Gerhartz has declared war on Russia, and in consequence he is a reciprocal target. To be sure, Gerhartz thought he was speaking in secret on a highly secured line. Von Stalhein was never so careless. The defeat by the Iskander missile of the Ukrainian S-300 air defence system in the area of Krasnoarmeysk. Pulling the SAM closer to the front line in order to somehow try to cover the troops from the flow of FABS from the UMPC led to the fact that in recent weeks a significant number of Patriot, NASAMS, C-300, Buk-M1 SAMs have been lost. March 9. Notwithstanding, the US continues to press Greece to transfer its S-300 batteries to the Ukraine in exchange for Patriots. This is not over-confidence or bluster. With or without European troops and new supplies, a Moscow military source believes, the Ukrainians are preparing defensive lines more sturdy than Bakhmut and Avdeyevka, better armed, better manned. Where and what lines or pockets they have built, I dont know. No one is saying. The daily Defense Ministry battlefield briefings and bulletins are signaling that those who do know are striking at the fallback Ukrainian positions in their dozens without giving the geographic locations. The March 11 bulletin reported: two temporary locations of foreign mercenaries were hit, as well as concentrations of enemy manpower and military equipment in 142 districts. On March 12: In addition, accumulations of enemy manpower and military equipment in 132 districts were hit. A NATO military veteran comments that the Russian methods for these strikes are drone, missile, glide bomb, artillery and, we can bet, sabotage/partisan operations. He adds: You cant tell where Germany, France and the US start and where they end, or the inverse. Its tiresome to hear about NATO, French, Pole, whatever deployments in the Ukraine as theyve been an accomplished fact for years. The real news is that the Russians are getting better by the day at identifying and killing these personnel. The Ukrainians are so concerned about a Russian offensive in the north that they launched their version of a spoiling attack this week. Theyre reacting, but the timing is off. The Russian General Staff has been, in effect, goading them, striking rear areas and conducting commando raids along the northern border for months now. The source is dismissive of the deterrent effect of NATO planning for a reinforced battle to defend Odessa and Kiev. For a start, the Russians wont move an army against Kiev. As for an operation to save Odessa, backed up by German Taurus on board F-16s based in Romania, those countries couldnt organize a one-car funeral, let alone an operation like that. And they certainly dont have the stomachs for it. Not now. Now looks like this: The last poll was recorded in mid-December 2023. Source: https://www.politico.eu/ Macrons approval level was at its all-time low (24%) between December 2018 and July 2019, when the Gilets Jaunes protests were at their peak. Since then Macron and his successors have slipped further in the polling of French voter preferences for the second presidential vote round. Source: https://yougov.co.uk/ The election preference polls in January show a massive lead by Labour over the Conservatives whose vote share is now the lowest the party has recorded since Sunak became prime minister in October 2022. Source: https://www.realclearpolling.com/ Bidens lowest approval rating was 37.4% on July 26, 2022. At current approval of 39.8%, nine months before Election Day, Biden is running lower than his three predecessors in the job at the same point on the political calendar. The picture for Germany and Chancellor Scholz is worse, as Deutsche Welle, the state propaganda organ, reported last December. For Scholz, the only way is down. The representative poll, carried out by the research group Infratest-dimap surveyed 1,364 eligible voters between December 4-6 by phone and email. Of them, just 17 percent said they are satisfied with the SPD-led government. For Scholz himself, that figure is one-fifth. Its the lowest approval rating of a German chancellor in the history of the poll, which has been tracking monthly sentiment since 1997. Scholzs Social Democratic Party (SPD) has not sunk to its 15% current election vote before; at 13% the Greens in Berlin have dropped to the level of 2009. As the SPD-Green coalition is sinking, they and the defeat in the Ukraine are taking public confidence down with them. According to this current poll from Infratest-dimap, German trust in the Americans and the Ukrainians is slipping most; trust in Russia is gaining. Key: blue= who can be trusted. Grey=who cannot be trusted. Source: https://www.infratest-dimap.de Captain Johns doesnt let Biggles say much about politics until the wars against Germany are over, Berlin capitulates, and von Stalhein turns into an ally against Soviet Russia. Thats when the series turns into fiction for children.* Johns was clear at the beginning: Biggles is not entirely a fictitious character. True he did not exist under that name, but the exploits with which he has been credited have nearly all been built on a foundation of truth, although, needless to say, they were not all the efforts of a single individualFinally, I hope and I say this in all sincerity that something may be learned from the combat tactics employed by Biggles and his friends, who may one day find themselves in the cockpit Thats the Biggles message for adults. This time in the cockpit, its the Germans, French, British, and Americans who are the children playing at war fiction. [*] The first Biggles translation into Russian, (Biggles in France) appeared in 2016, sixteen years into President Putins administration. A Russian review of that book at the time explained that one of the classics of English adventure literature, William Earle Johns, has never been published in Russia. He was just unlucky. He began publishing his novels, short stories and novels about Biggles, the pilot of the Royal Air Force, in the 1930s, when the USSR had its own hero pilots. Therefore, Biggles was simply overlooked, although Johns name stands among such giants as [Robert Louis] Stevenson and [Rider] Haggard. But it's time to correct this mistake of history. Captain Johns is the real Indiana Jones of English and world literature. Yves here. This post how inattentive the mainstream media is to religious and cultural that play into geopolitics. Or to the extent that they merit a mention, they are force-fitted into simplistic stereotypes. Here, the fact that Turkiye was pretty much never set to be admitted to the EU is based on antipathy for Muslims and brown people generally, aided and abetted by shoehorning Muslims into Sunni or Shia boxes. As far as I can tell, the history and current status of the large Alevi sect is not even considered in these discussions. In modern era, the Alevis fared comparatively well in Turkiye when secularism was on the rise, but like (but less visibly to most of the West) the Alevis face discrimination, which would have had to be addressed were Turkiye to pursue EU membership. Admittedly as the post shows, Turkiye citizens on the whole are not so hot on the EU either, but perhaps less in-your-face dislike might have generated better reciprocal feeling in Turkiye. By Dr. Vladislav B. Sotirovic, Ex-University Professor, Research Fellow at the Centre for Geostrategic Studies, Belgrade, Serbia Introduction Up to now, not once expressed by Turkiyes President R. T. Erdogan a possibility to organize a national referendum on Turkish membership to the European Union (the EU) opened many questions of different nature followed by old and new problems. A current European political concern is reflected in many controversial issues and one of those the most important is facing the EU about whether or not to accept Turkiye as a full member state (being a candidate state since 1999). Turkiye is, on one hand, governed as a secular democracy by moderate Islamic political leaders, seeking to play a role of the bridge between the Middle East and Europe. However, Turkiye is, on other hands, almost 100% Muslim country with a rising tide of Islamic radicalism (especially since the 2023 Israeli aggression on Gaza and ethnic cleansing of the Gazan Palestinians), surrounded with the neighbors with a similar problem. There are two fundamental arguments by all of those who are opposing Turkish admission to the EU: 1) Muslim Turkish citizens (70 million) will never be properly integrated into the European environment that is predominantly Christian; and 2) In the case of Turkish accession, historical clashes between the (Ottoman) Turks and European Christians are going to be revived. Here we will refer only to one statement against Turkish accession: it would mean the end of Europe (former French President Valery Giscard dEstaing) a statement which clearly reflects the opinion by 80% of Europeans polled in 2009 that Turkiyes admission to the EU would not be a good thing. At the same time, there are only 32% of Turkish citizens who had a favorable opinion of the EU and, therefore, the admission process, for which formal and strict negotiations began already in 2005, is very likely to be finally abortive. Islamic Fundamentalism and Turkiyes Admission to the EU The question of Turkish admission to the EU is by the majority of Europeans seen through the glass of Islamic fundamentalism as one of the most serious challenges to the European stability and above all identity that is primarily based on the Christian values and tradition. Islamic fundamentalism is understood as an attempt to undermine existing state practices for the very reason that militant Muslims (like ISIS/ISIL/DAESH) are fighting to re-establish the medieval Islamic Caliphate and the establishment of theocratic authority over the global Islamic community the Umma. Nevertheless, religious fundamentalism first came to the attention of the Western part of the international community in 1979 when a pro-American absolute monarchy was changed with a Shia (Shiia) Muslim anti-American semi-theocracy in Iran. In other words, Iranian Shia Muslim clerics, who were all the time the spiritual leaders of the Iranians, became now their political leaders too. The Iranian Islamic revolution of 1979 prompted possibilities of similar uprisings in other Muslim societies followed by pre-emptive actions against them by other governments. What can be the most dangerous scenario for Turkiye from the European perspective if the accession negotiations failed is, probably, Turkish turn towards the Muslim world followed by rising influence of Islamic fundamentalism which can be properly controlled by the EU if Turkiye would become a member state of the club? That is, probably, the most important security factor to note regarding the EU-Turkish relations and accession negotiations. Namely, following the 9/11 terror attacks (on Washington and New York), it was becoming more and more clear that it was better to have (Islamic) Turkiye inside the EU rather than as a part of an anti-Western bloc of Muslim states. In general, for the Western governments and especially for the US and Israeli administrations, Shia Muslims became seen after the 1979 Iranian Islamic (Shia) revolution as the most potential Islamic fundamentalists and the religious terrorists. Therefore, the oppression of Shia minorities by the Sunni majorities in several Muslim countries are deliberately not recorded and criticized by the Western governments. The case of Alevi people in Turkiye is one of the best examples of such policy. However, at the same time, the EU administration is paying a full attention to the Kurdish question in Turkiye even requiring the recognition of the Kurds by the Turkish government as an ethnocultural minority (as different from the ethnic Turks). Why the Alevi people are in this respect discriminated by the EUs minority policy in Turkiye? The answer is because the Kurds are Sunni Muslims but Alevis are considered as a Turkish faction of (militant) Shia Muslim community within the Islamic world. In the next paragraphs, I would like to put more lights on the question who are Alevi people and what is Alevism as a religious identity taking into account the fact that religion, undoubtedly, has become increasingly important in both the studies and practice of both international relations and global politics. We have to keep also in our minds that religious identity was predominant in comparison to national or ethnic identities for several centuries being the crucial cause of political conflicts in many cases. What is Alevism? The Alevi people are those Muslims who believe in Alevism that is, in fact, a sect or form of Islam. Especially in Turkiye, Alevism is a second common sect of Islam. The number of Alevi people is between 1015 million. A name of the sect comes from the term Alevi what means the follower of Ali. Some experts in Islamic studies claim that Alevism is a branch of Shiism (Shia Islam), but, as a matter of fact, the Alevi Umma is not homogeneous and Alevism cannot be understood without another Islamic sect Bektashism. Nevertheless, Alevi culture produced many poets and folk songs alongside with the fact that Alevi people are experiencing many every-day life problems to live according to their belief in Islam. The Alevis (Turkish: Aleviler or Alevilik; Kurdish: Elewi) are a religious, sub-ethnic, and cultural community in Turkiye representing at the same time the biggest sect of Islam in Turkiye. Alevism is a way of Islamic mysticism or Sufism that is believing in one God by accepting Muhammad as a Prophet, and the Holy Quran. Alevi people loves Ehlibeyt the family of Prophet Muhammad-, unifying prayer and supplication, prayer in their language, to prefer free person instead of Umma (Muslim community), to prefer to love God instead of Gods fear, to overcome Shariareaching to real world, believing to Holy Qurans genuine instead of shave. Alevism has found its cure in human love; they believe that people are immortal because a person is manifested by God. Women and men are praying together, in their language, with their music that is played via baglama, with semah. Alevism is an entirety of beliefs that depends on Islams rules which based on the Holy Quran, according to Muhammads commands; by interpreting Islam with universal dimension, it opens new doors to earth people. The Alevi system of belief is Islamic with a triplet composed by Allah, Muhammad, and Ali. There are many strong arguments about the relationship between Alevism and Shiism. Some researchers say that Alevism is a form of Shiism but some of them say that Alevism is sectarian. We have to keep in mind that Shiism is a second common type of Islam in the world after Sunnism. This is a branch of Islam which is called as the Party of Ali for the reason that it recognizes Alis claim to succeed his cousin and father-in-law, the Prophet Muhammad, as the spiritual leader of Islam during the first civil war in the Islamic world (656661). In most of the Islamic countries the Sunnis are in majority, but the Shiites comprise some 80 million believers, or, in other words, around 13% out of all worlds Muslims. The Shiites are predominant in three countries: Iran, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates. However, Alevism cannot be understood as identical to Sufism that is the mystical aspect of Islam which arose as a reaction to strict religious orthodoxy. Sufis seek personal union with God and their Christian Orthodox counterparts in the Middle Ages were the Bogumils. Undoubtedly, Alevism has some similar issues with Shiism but, at the same time, there are a lot of differences concerning a general practicing of Islam. However, in some Western literature, Alevism is presented as a branch of Shiism, or more specifically, as a Turk or Ottoman way of Shiism. Split Within Muslims We have to keep in mind on this place that the Islamic expansion in the 7th and 8th centuries was accompanied by political conflicts which followed the death of the Prophet Muhammad, and the question of who is entitled to succeed him is splitting up the Muslim world up today. In other words, when the Prophet died, a caliph (successor) was chosen to rule all Muslims. However, as the caliph lacked prophetic authority, he enjoyed secular power but not an authority in religious doctrine. The first caliph was Abu Bakr who is considered together with his three successors as the rightly guided (or orthodox) caliphs. They ruled according to the Quran and the practices of the Prophet, but, thereafter, Islam became split up into two antagonistic branches: Sunni and Shia. The Sunni-Shia division basically started when Ali ibn Abi Talib (599661), Muhammads son-in-law and heir, assumed the Caliphate after the murder of his predecessor, Uthman (574656). The Civil war was ended with the defeat of Ali with the victory of Uthmans cousin and governor of Damascus, Muawiya Ummayad (602680) after the Battle of Suffin. However, those Muslims (like the Alevi people, for instance) who claimed that Ali was the rightful calif took the name of Shiat Ali the Partisans of Ali. They believe that Ali was the last legitimate caliph and, therefore, the Caliphate should pass down only to those who are direct descendants of the Prophet Muhammad through his daughter, Fatima, and Ali, her husband. Alis son, Hussein (626680), claimed the Caliphate, but the Ummayads killed him together with his followers at the Battle of Karbala in 680. This city, today in contemporary Iraq, is the holiest of all sites for Shia Muslims (Shiism). Regardless to the fact that the Prophets Muhammads family line was ended in 873, the Shia Muslims believe that the last Muhammads descendant did not die as he is rather hidden and will return. Those basic Shia interpretations of the history of Islam are followed by the Alevi people and, therefore, many researchers are simply considering Alevism as a faction of the Shiism. The dominant branch of Islam is Sunni. The Sunni Muslims, differently to their Shia opponents, are not demanding that the caliph has to be of a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad. They are also accepting the Arabic tribal customs in government. According to their point of view, a political leadership is in the hands of the Muslim community as such. Nevertheless, as a matter of fact, the religious and political power in Islam was never again united into a political community after the death of the fourth caliph. Alevism in Islam Alevi people believe in one God, Allah, and, therefore, Alevism, as a form of Islam, is a monotheistic religion. Like all other Muslims, the Alevis understand that God is in everything around in nature. It is important to notice that there are those Alevis who believe in good and bad spirits (and kind of angels), and, therefore, they often practice superstition in order to benefit from good ones and to avoid harm from bad ones. For that reason, for many Muslims, Alevism is not a real Islam as it is more a form of paganism imbued with Christianity. However, a majority of Alevis do not believe in these supernatural beings saying that it is an expression of Satanism. The essence of Alevism is in the fact that Alevis believe that according to the original text of the Quran, Ali, Muhammads cousin, and son-in-law, was to be the Prophets successor as Gods vice-regent on earth or caliph. However, they claim that the parts of the original Quran related to Ali were taken out by his rivals. According to Alevis, the Quran, as a fundamental holy book for all Muslims, should be interpreted esoterically. For them, there are much deeper spiritual truths in the Quran than the strict rules and regulations that appear on the lateral surface. However, most Alevi writers will quote individual Quranic verses as an appeal for authority to support their view on a given topic, or to justify a certain Alevi religious tradition. The Alevis generally promote the reading of the Quranrather in the Turkish language than in Arabic, stressing that it is of the fundamental importance for a person to understand exactly what he or she is reading what is not possible if the Quran is read in the Arabic. However, many Alevis do not read the Quran or other holy books, nor base their daily beliefs and practices on them as they consider these ancient books to be irrelevant today. The Alevis are reading three different books. If according to their opinion, there is not a proper information in the Quran, as the Sunnis corrupted the authentic words of Muhammad, it is necessary to reveal original Prophets messages by alternative readings. Therefore, Alevi believers are looking to (1.) the Nahjul Balagha, the traditions and sayings of Ali; (2.) the Buyruks, the collections of doctrine and practices of several of the 12 imams, especially Cafer; and (3.) the Vilayetnameler or the Menakbnameler, books that describe events in the lives of great Alevis such as Haji Bektash. Except for these basic books, there are some special sources to participate in the creation of Alevi theology like poet-musicians Yunus Emre (1314th century), Kaygusuz Abdal (15th century), and Pir Sultan Abdal (16th century). The foundation of Alevism is in the love to Prophet and Ehlibeyt. Twelve Imams are godlike glorified by the Alevis. Waiting for the last Imams (Muslim religious leader) reappearance, the Shia Muslims established a special council composed of 12 religious scholars (Ulema) that elect a supreme Imam. For instance, Ayatollah (Holy Man) Ruhollah Khomeini (19001989) enjoyed that status in Iran. Most Alevis believe that the 12th Imam, Muhammed Mehdi, grew up in secret to be saved from those who wanted to exterminate the family of Ali. Many Alevis believe Mehdi is still alive and/or he will come back to earth one day. According to Alevis, Ali was Muhammeds intended successor, and therefore the first caliph, but competitors stole this right from him. Muhammed intended for the leadership of all Muslims to perpetually stem from his family line (Ehli Beyt) by beginning with Ali, Fatima, and their two sons, Hasan and Huseyin. Ali, Hasan, and Huseyin are considered the first three Imams, and the other nine of the 12 Imams came from Huseyins line. Just to remind ourselves, the names and approximate dates of the birth and death of the 12 Imams are: Imam Ali (599-661) Imam Hasan (624-670) Imam Huseyin (625-680) Imam Zeynel Abidin (659-713) Imam Muhammed Bakr (676-734) Imam Cafer-i Sadk (699-766) Imam Musa Kazm (745-799) Imam Ali Rza (765-818) Imam Muhammed Taki (810-835) Imam Ali Naki (827-868) Imam Hasan Askeri (846-874) Imam Muhammed Mehdi (869-941) For the Alevis, to be a really good person is an inalienable part of their life philosophy. It is important to notice that the Alevis are not turned to the Black Stone (Kaaba) which is in Mecca in the Sunni Saudi Arabia, and, as it is known, the Muslim communitys member is supposed to visit it for Hajj at least once in the life. Alevis first fasting is not in Ramadan, it is in Muharram and it takes 12 days not, 30 days. The second fasting for them is after the Feast of Sacrifice for 20 days and another one is the Hizir fast. In Islam, there is a rule, if a person has enough money, he/she should give to a poor person a specific amount but the Alevis prefer to donate money to Alevi organizations but not to the individuals. As they dont go to Mecca for Hajj, they visit some mausoleums, like of Haji Bektas, (in Krsehir), Abdal Musa (in Tekke Village, Elmal, Antalya), Sahkulu Sultan (in Merdivenkoy, Istanbul), Karacaahmet Sultan (in Uskudar, Istanbul) or Seyit Gazi (in Eskisehir). Bektashism Haji Bektash (Bektas) Wali was a Turkmen who was born in Iran. After graduated, he had moved to Anatolia. He educated a lot of students and he and his students had served a lot of religious, economic, social, and martial services in Ahi Teskilat. Haji Bektash started gradually to be popular among the Ottoman elite military detachment the Janissaries. Nevertheless, he was not of the Alevi origin but he adopted the rules of the Alevi believers into his personal life. That sect, or a form of Islam, was founded in the name of Haji Bektash Wali whose members depend on the love of Ali and twelve imams. Bektashism was popular in Anatolia and the Balkans (especially in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Albania) and it is still alive today. Over the course of time, Bektashism became improved by taking some features of old beliefs of Anatolia and Turkish culture. However, Bektashism is the most important part of Alevism as many rules of Bektashism are incorporated in Alevism. For the Alevi believers, the mausoleum of Haji Bektash Wali in Nevsehir in Anatolia is an important point of the pilgrimage. Finally, in Turkiye, Bektashism and Alevism, in fact, cannot be treated as different concepts of the Islamic theology. Problems and Difficulties of Alevis in the Ottoman history and Turkiye When the Ottoman state was established at the end of the 13th century and at the beginning of the 14th century, it did not have sectarian frictions within Islam. At that time, Alevis occupied a lot of chairs in state institutions. The Janissaries (originally Sultans bodyguard) were members of Bektashism what means that even Sultan tolerated in full such way of the interpretation of the Quran and the early history of Islam. However, how the Ottoman state was involved in the process of imperialistic transformation by the annexing surrounding provinces and states, Sunnism was getting more and more important because the Sunni Muslims were becoming a clear majority of the Ottoman Sultanate and, therefore, Sunnism was much more useful for the state administration and the system of governing. The Ottoman state became on the East involved into the chain of conflicts with the Safavid Empire (Persia, today Iran, 15021722) a country with a clear majority of those Muslims who expressed Shiism that is a form of Islam very similar to Alevism. The Alevi group, who complained to go being more Sunni in the Ottoman Sultanate, became sympathizing Safavid Shah Ismail I (15011524) and his state as it was based on Alevism. The animosity between the Ottoman Alevis and Ottoman authorities became more obvious in 1514 when the Ottoman Sultan Selim I (15121520) executed some 40.000 Alevis together with the Kurdish people while going to have a decisive Battle of Chaldiran (August 23rd) in Iran against Shah Ismail I. Till the end of the Ottoman Sultanate in 1923, Alevis have been oppressed by the authorities as the sectarian believers who were not fitting to the official Sunni theology of Islam. After the end of the Ottoman Empire in 1923, Alevis were glad in the first years of the new Republic of Turkiye which declaratively proclaimed a segregation of the religion from the state what practically meant that there was no any official state religion in the country. The Alevi population of Turkiye supported most of the reforms with a great hope that their social status is going to be improved. However, after the first years of the new state, they started to experience some difficulties as, de facto, a religious minority. The 1960s were very important for the Turkish society for at least three reasons: (1.) The immigration had started from the rural area to the urban area following a new process of industrialization; (2.) The immigration abroad mostly to West Germany according to the German-Turkish the so-called Gastarbeiter Agreement; and (3.) A further democratization of political life. As a consequence, in 1966, Alevis had established their own political party Birlik Partisi (Unity Party). In 1969, Alevis as a minority group sent eight members to the Parliament according to the results of the parliamentary elections. However, in 1973, the party had sent just one member to the Parliament, and finally, in 1977, the party had lost its efficiency. In 1978, in Maras and in 1980, in Corum, hundreds of Alevis were killed as a consequence of the conflict with the majority Sunni population but the most notorious Alevi massacre happened in 1993 on July 2nd in Sivas when 35 Alevi intellectuals were killed in Madimak Hotel by a group of religious fundamentalists. Undoubtedly, the Alevi believers still are facing many problems in Turkiye today in connection with a freedom of religious expression and the recognition as a separate cultural group. For example, the religious curriculum does not have any information about Alevism but rather only on Sunnism what means that Alevism is not studied on the regular basis in Turkiye. Alevism is deeply ignored by Turkiyes administration, for instance, by the Presidency of Religious Affairs (est. 1924) that is an institution dealing with the religious questions and problems but in practice, it is working according to the rules of a Sunni Islam. However, on the other hand, there are and some improvements of Alevi cultural life as, for instance, many foundations and other civic public intuitions are opened to support it. Nevertheless, Alevis, like Kurds, are not recognized as a separate ethnocultural or religious group in Turkiye due to the Turkish understanding of a nation (millet) that is inherited from the Ottoman Sultanate according to which, all Muslims in Turkiye are treated as ethnolinguistic Turks. The situation can be changed as Turkiye is seeking the EUs membership and, therefore, certain EUs requirements have to be accepted among others and granting minority rights for Alevis and Kurds. Conclusions Alevism is a sect of Islam, and it shows many common points with Shiism. However, we can not say that it is a part of Shiism as a whole. Alevi culture has a rich heritage in poems and musicians because of their worship style. In Anatolia, Bektashism is usually connected with Alevism. The Alevi people were living in the Ottoman Sultanate and its successor the Republic of Turkiye usually with the troubles as they with their religion did not fit to the official (Sunni) expression of Islam. Today, Alevis in Turkiye are fighting to be respected as a separate religious-cultural group who can freely demonstrate their peculiar way of life. As a matter of fact, the Alevi people could not express freely themselves for the centuries including and present-day Turkiye which should learn to practice both minority rights and democracy. Finally, if Turkiye wants to join the EU, surely, it has to provide a maximum of required standards of protection of all kind of minorities including and religious-cultural ones. That can be a chance for the Alevi people in Turkiye to improve their status within the society. Vladislav B. Sotirovic 2024 Personal disclaimer: The author writes for this publication in a private capacity which is unrepresentative of anyone or any organization except for his own personal views. Nothing written by the author should ever be conflated with the editorial views or official positions of any other media outlet or institution. California activist group paying teens $1,400 in taxpayer money to undergo social justice training An activist group in California is reportedly paying $1,400 each in taxpayer money to teenagers who undergo "social justice" training. According to the Free Press, the group Californians for Justice (CFJ) inked contracts with the Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) between 2019 and 2023 for this endeavor. These contracts, which the outlet obtained, showed that the LBUSD used taxpayer funds to pay CFJ almost $2 million to facilitate equity and leadership development training for students and teachers. Aside from this, the contracts also allotted a total of $20,200 to 13 parents for their participation in the group's programs. The outlet added that from December 2019 until the present, the LBUSD has paid at least 78 students a total of nearly $100,000 for participating in CFJ's programs. The programs are led by the group's staff instead of officials from the school district. The most recent contract runs until June. (Related: Not just public schools: Ohio PRIVATE school reports mothers to FBI for questioning leftist curriculum.) "You get paid good," one student answered when asked why others should join CFJ. While it's unclear which students are eligible for the stipends, CFJ's website states that its "leadership development" programs operate with a focus on youths from low-income, minority, LGBT, foster home and immigrant backgrounds. But four teachers who talked to the Free Press consider the payments to students and their families a "horrible propaganda strategy." One teacher said she was "shocked and horrified" at such a fact. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. Another teacher who asked not to be named for fear of losing her job said the CFJ's leadership trainings have transformed into a space for kids to air their grievances about school. She recalled one student saying that "they would come to class on time if we built relationships with them." "It's helpful to hear their voice and know what they think would help them learn better, but I feel like you can do that with a focus group. Plus, they're obviously reading scripts that have words that they don't know how to say," the teacher remarked. "The way that [CFJ is] handing scripts to students, even the words coming out of the students' mouths, it just feels like indoctrination and not information." CFJ giving students "a scripted voice that isn't their own" LBUSD high school history teacher Jay Goldfisher agreed with the anonymous educator. "One of the reasons that [CFJ was] hired is to help our students find their voice and be able to express it," he said. "But in reality, CFJ is not helping students find their own voices. It's giving them a scripted voice that's not their own. They're teaching them parroting, which is the exact opposite of how you empower children." The Free Press gave one example of this parroting. Back in 2021, CFJ implemented three "student-led professional development" training sessions in LBUSD high schools. According to the contracts, this cost the school district $25,000. Students were encouraged to educate their teachers on topics like implicit bias, "student voice" and anti-Black racism during these trainings, instead of the other way around. CFJ, which was founded back in 1996, began as a policy advocacy organization before pivoting into working in schools in the mid-2000s. The registered nonprofit has nearly $16 million in total assets, according to its most recent tax filing. "Our agenda is not hidden and is simple: We want the LBUSD to be a place where every student is represented honestly in classrooms and curricula, and where they are safe to be in critical dialogue supportive of democratic participation across differences, said a CFJ spokesman. But a Jewish high school teacher who spoke on condition of anonymity expressed worry that their concern "is becoming a reality." The teacher noted that the partnership between the activist group and the school district is solidifying misinformation in young kids. "That's something that theyre going to hold on to forever, because they learned it at school," the teacher said. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Watch this video explaining why school is the worst place parents can send their children. This video is from the BombMomof6 channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Parent slams California elementary school for organizing NO WHITES ALLOWED event for kids. Report: Bidens State Department indoctrinating public school teachers to trust only LEFT-WING MEDIA. GROOMERS: Public school teachers caught trading tips on subversively and quietly transitioning students to LGBT. Poll: Parents most concerned about excessive use of SOCIAL MEDIA and mobile devices as kids return to school. Obama denounces profoundly misguided bans on sexually explicit and pro-LGBT books from public school libraries. Sources include: TheFP.com Brighteon.com Health Ranger Report: Dr. Sherri Tenpenny explains how COVID-19 injections cause VACCINE INJURIES Dr. Sherri Tenpenny joined the Health Ranger Mike Adams on the "Health Ranger Report" to explain the vaccine injury mechanisms of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) injections in other words, how the dangerous injections harm the body. The Brighteon.com and Natural News founder began by citing Tenpenny's contributions to making people aware of the dangers that come with the COVID-19 injections. He cited a February 2024 study published in the journal Vaccine that explained these mechanisms. The said study also expounded on how the COVID-19 vaccines cause "turbo cancers" and suppress the immune system. Tenpenny, an osteopathic medical doctor, meanwhile said she had been studying vaccine-related problems since September 2000. She started digging when the COVID-19 bioweapons from Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca came out. The well-known physician eventually discovered the first 20 mechanisms of injury of the COVID-19 shots and how they can make people sick or kill them. Tenpenny and her associates then conducted an educational webinar in May 2021 that shared these first 20 mechanisms, which thousands of people attended. A second webinar followed in July 2021, wherein she tackled 20 more mechanisms of injury caused by the COVID-19 injections. (Related: Dr. Sherri Tenpenny reveals how to address Covid without relying on vaccines Brighteon.TV.) According to the host of "The Tenpenny Files: On Your Health" on Brighteon.TV, these mechanisms of vaccine injury disrupt the human cells. They also affect the cardiovascular, central nervous and neurological system, among others. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. She also recounted: "We saw the personality changes in people that have had two shots and a booster." These people, she added, were no longer the same after being injected. Some of them became unable to relate to others, while some lacked empathy." Tenpenny: Authorities SUPPRESSED news of vaccine injuries Tenpenny also told the Health Ranger that all of the recent studies and news stories that touch on COVID-19 vaccine injuries weren't new, since what authorities merely did was to bury them and ignore the reality of what was happening for the past three years. "They were just buried, you just had to do the research to find them," she continued. Adams agreed, stating that the 40 mechanisms of injury weren't just things his guest thought up. These evidence-based mechanisms of vaccine injury are well-researched and reflected in medical literature. He also noted that these 40 mechanisms can create bizarre combinations of symptoms or syndromes with the way they proliferate throughout the body and affect different organs and systems. One such mechanism of injury is neurological degeneration, and Adams asked Tenpenny regarding her findings about it. She then shared that the lipid nanoparticles, spike proteins and other things in the COVID-19 injections could cross the blood-brain barrier and do serious damage. "The blood-brain barrier is there to protect your brain," she explained. "What's in the COVID-19 shots, particularly the spike proteins, [are] able to cross the blood-brain barrier, go in and cause disruption of neurological connections, particularly in your frontal lobe Adams then mentioned that all 40 mechanisms of vaccine injury will be discussed in a fully updated presentation beginning on March 9. People can watch Tenpenny's presentation for free after they sign up at the Brighteon University website. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Support us at HealthRangerStore.com and read about our "human freedom infrastructure" mission at this article link. Watch the full conversation between Dr. Sherri Tenpenny and the Health Ranger Mike Adams about vaccine injuries below. This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: The vaccine agenda: Dr. Sherri Tenpenny exposes the lies spread by government about COVID and vaccines. Dr. Sherri Tenpenny: COVID-19 vaccines are NOT vaccines but genetic modification technologies. Largest global COVID-19 vaccine safety study links vaccines to neurological, blood and heart-related conditions. Sources include: Brighteon.com Bloomberg.com DrTenpenny.com Study finds electric vehicles pollute the environment 1,850 times more than gas-powered cars A study has found that electric vehicles pollute the environment at least 1,850 times more than their fossil fuel-based counterparts The 2022 study from the United Kingdom-based independent global emissions testing and research firm Emissions Analytics found that, during a 1,000-mile journey, EVs release 1,850 times more pollutants into the environment than their gas-powered counterparts due to the heavier weight that eats through the tires of EVs. When discussing emissions, most would only consider the smoke and other pollutants belched by cars from their exhaust. But tire wear also plays a significant role in emitting pollutants. The synthetic rubber used to create tires includes certain chemicals that get released into the air, and EVs are significantly heavier than conventional cars due to their massive lithium batteries. (Related: EV COLLAPSE: Car dealerships are now rejecting EV deliveries due to low sales.) Overall, EVs weigh about 30 percent more than gas-powered vehicles, and cost thousands more to make and buy. These issues are in addition to the fact that they are not suitable for colder climates such as Canada and the northern United States. They also offer poor range and long charging times, especially in cold weather, and have batteries that take tremendous resources to make and are difficult to recycle. This revelation comes as more and more local and national governments across the world are moving to ban or severely limit the sale of new gasoline-powered cars in the coming decade despite the very clear technological deficiencies of electric cars. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. Canada is already planning to mandate that all new cars and trucks sold in the country be electric by 2035. California is working on a similarly thorough ban on the sale of all new gas vehicles in the state by 2035. Heavier cars emit more microplastics into environment Hesham Rakha, a professor at Virginia Tech, noted that the tires of EVs, due to their added weight, will also emit more microplastics into the air. But this is also true of heavier fossil-fuel cars like SUVs. This aligns with an earlier report from Emissions Analytics from 2022 that warned consumers that bigger and heavier cars, fossil fuel and electric alike, are bigger contributors "to microplastic marine pollution, as well as air pollution from finer particles." Rakha and a team of researchers at Virginia Tech are in the process of confirming the results of Emissions Analytics' study. He expects to find that EVs emit around 20 percent more microplastics into the air than gas-powered vehicles. Although Rakha did note that it is very challenging to determine the difference between the amount of microplastics emitted from EV tire treads and gas-powered vehicles because of the need to separate the microplastics that are already in the air from other sources with what's coming off the tires. Rakha further noted that people considering buying an EV need to remember that "it also generates a lot of carbon dioxide when charging your vehicle." EV batteries weigh about 1,000 pounds, and can result in tire emissions that are nearly 400 times more than tailpipe emissions. Particle pollution from EVs can also increase the risk of health problems, including heart disease, asthma, lung disease and, in extreme cases, can even lead to hospitalization, cancer and premature death. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Watch this clip from Fox Business as Canadian businessman Kevin "Mr. Wonderful" O'Leary discusses how Biden's electric vehicle push is far too expensive. This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Automaker bigwigs admit EV sales are in jeopardy. EV COLLAPSE: Electric vehicle manufacturer Lordstown Motors files for bankruptcy. Apple bails out of EV market and shifts focus to AI. Transportation Secretary Buttigieg admits finding reliable EV charging stations is DIFFICULT. Ford loses billions on electric vehicles, reduces its EV production target. Sources include: LifeSiteNews.com DailyMail.co.uk Brighteon.com Gab to go subscription-based in revolutionary free speech leap that will help stop malicious bots In order to save itself, social media platform Gab now requires a subscription in order for users to access it. Founder and CEO Andrew Torba made an announcement listen below explaining why users will now have to pay at regular intervals to use Gab, which has long branded itself as a free speech alternative to the big boys. "Starting on March 1st only GabPRO, Verified, Donor and Investor accounts on Gab can share media files," the company said in an announcement. "Gab is no stranger to controversy and news of this change spread like wildfire and caused a stir very quickly." Torba explains that, in order to save Gab from going the way of the do-do bird, it had to do something about its file storage problems. "Over the past several months Gab has been under attack, likely by state actors or activist groups, from botnet accounts that were being created with the sole purpose of overloading Gab's infrastructure in various ways," Torba says. "These bot accounts would create an account and upload 5-20 gigs worth of media in a matter of hours or days. Combined with the authentic media uploads of actual users this created a cat and mouse game of trying to stop the bot accounts and expand our storage capacity every few months which took engineering time away from our other initiatives. Something had to be done to stop this." Had Gab not immediately nipped this problem in the bud, it would have collapsed in about six weeks' time as its servers were filling up way too fast with attack data, rendering the platform useless for legitimate users. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Listen: Gab's Revolutionary Leap to Subscription-Based Survival https://t.co/Q1jg9bO1Ll Andrew Torba (@BasedTorba) March 4, 2024 (Related: Remember back during the Wuhan coronavirus [COVID-19] "pandemic" when Torba pulled off the impossible for Donald Trump by recreating the former president's then-Twitter account on Gab?) Paying for social media The other problem Gab has had to overcome is its constant bleeding of cash. After the collapse of the advertising market in 2023, Gab has struggled to stay afloat, especially since advertising was its sole source of income. Running a social media platform that caters to free speech rather than corporate censors is not easy, especially when advertising is the core source of income. X (formerly Twitter) is learning this as well. "It's become extremely clear both with Gab and X that running a free speech platform simply cannot be done with advertising," Torba says. "Activist groups like the ADL go after advertisers on free speech websites which they know is the lifeblood of the business. This is how they gained control of X and have Elon in the palm of their hand despite him being one of the wealthiest men in the world. This is why X has recently started censoring again and reimplementing pronoun policies among other such leftist nonsense." Since Torba has no interest in catering to what he describes as "the demands of the enemy in order to get ad revenue," his only other option, he says, is to implement a subscription-based framework that requires users to pay for the product rather than be the product. "A website of Gab's size cannot exist without a significant amount of money to cover operational costs," Torba warns. "In Gab's case we have the additional overhead of dealing with our own in-house infrastructure which costs a significant amount of both money and time to maintain." Torba says another user-suggested option was to delete "a ton of old posts," but he says this was not an option either due to the "historical repository" of data that exists on the platform. Censorship is driving millions away from mainstream social media onto alternative platforms like Gab. Find out more at Censorship.news. Sources for this article include: Twitter.com NaturalNews.com We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Support us at HealthRangerStore.com and read about our "human freedom infrastructure" mission at this article link. Google plans to develop AI systems specifically for CENSORSHIP enforcement Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently addressed the public upset with its artificial intelligence-powered chatbot, Gemini, for its political bias . He vowed to further develop the company's AI systems specifically to counter so-called fake news In other words, Google will use AI more for censorship. In addressing the controversy surrounding Gemini, Pichai said he understands that some of its responses have offended users and shown bias. "To be clear, that's completely unacceptable and we got it wrong," he said. Notably, this statement did not address the fact that Google's bias has been on public display for years and was especially prevalent beginning in August 2017, when Pichai fired a Google employee named James Damore for writing a 10-page memo criticizing the company's diversity, equity and inclusion policies, or DEI. (Related: Google updated its privacy policy so it can use all your data to train AI.) The partisan bias of Google was also on display during an all-hands meeting after Donald Trump was elected president in 2016. "I certainly find this election deeply offensive," Google co-founder Sergey Brin said at the time. "And I know many of you do too." One Google executive nearly started crying when recounting that Trump won. "It was this massive kick in the gut that we were gonna lose," she said. "And it was really painful." Pichai struck a more neutral political tone in comparison to his colleagues. "We are in a democratic system," he said. "I think part of the reason the outcome ended up the way it is is [because] people don't feel heard across both sides." Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Google to develop AI to police online speech A Google employee close to Pichai reportedly suggested after Trump's victory that he won due to "misinformation" and "fake news coming from fake news websites being shared by millions of low-information voters on social media," said Pichai, recalling the conversation with the employee. He added that he believes AI can be used to counter this so-called misinformation. "I think our investments in machine learning and AI is a big opportunity here," he said, before adding that Google may already be manipulating search results to discourage so-called misinformation. "There are many, many places where we are ranking [search results]," he admitted. "We are algorithmically doing stuff understanding some of the things that are happening, and course correcting." Pichai emphasized that there would be a technological solution to the information that Google executives believed had resulted in Trump's victory. "This is a problem of scale and not being able to keep up. Human systems fail in many of these things. So I think investing more in machine learning and AI could be one way we actually make progress," said Pichai. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Support us at HealthRangerStore.com and read about our "human freedom infrastructure" mission at this article link. Watch this skit from "Catch Up" featuring a satirical portrayal of a Google spokesperson addressing criticisms surrounding Gemini. This video is from the channel The Prisoner on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Former Google CEO presents 6-point plan to combat misinformation just more ways to MONITOR and CENSOR people. Godfather of AI quits Google, warns of risks associated with the technology he helped develop. Google apologizes for ahistorical and inaccurate Gemini AI images, but does nothing to correct its racist, anti-white programming. Google is using AI to dig through Gmail accounts to find exactly what youre looking for and perhaps MORE. AI and genetic engineering could trigger a super-pandemic, warns AI expert. Sources include: Public.Substack.com ZeroHedge.com Brighteon.com India tells Big Tech: Apply for approval before releasing unreliable artificial intelligence models in the country The government of India is now demanding that Big Tech companies seek its approval before publicly releasing any artificial intelligence (AI) tools, especially ones that are considered "unreliable" or are still under trial The Indian government noted that these trial AI tools should be labeled as such for the potential to provide users with wrong answers to their queries. The use of such tools, including generative AI, and their "availability to the users on Indian internet must be done so with explicit permission of the Government of India," announced the Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, in an advisory to tech giants on Friday, March 1. (Related: Bill Gates' Microsoft aims to equip two million people in India with AI skills by 2025.) This advisory comes a week after Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar lambasted Google's Gemini AI tool after it generated a response that accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of implementing "fascist" policies. A Google spokesperson clarified that its tools "may not always be reliable," especially when discussing current events and political topics. "Safety and trust is [a tech platform's] legal obligation. 'Sorry, unreliable' does not exempt from (the) law," said Chandrasekhar in response to Google. The IT Ministry's advisory further demanded that Big Tech companies ensure that their AI tools "do not threaten the integrity of the electoral process." This comes as India prepares for general elections this summer and concerns are being raised in India and all over the world regarding the possible use of AI to spread disinformation. Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. "We know that misinformation and deepfakes will be used in the run-up to the election to try and impact or shape the outcome of the elections," said Chandrasekhar. New regulation only applies to Big Tech, not to Indian startups The advisory faced backlash in India's burgeoning tech industry, especially with entrepreneurs and startups working on generative AI within the country. Following this backlash, Chandrasekhar clarified that generative AI companies do not need to seek permission from the government to work on AI. He noted that this requirement only applies to Big Tech companies, especially those from outside of India. "[The] advisory is aimed at the significant platforms and permission seeking from [IT Ministry] is only for large platforms and will not apply to startups it is aimed at untested AI platforms from deploying on Indian internet," said Chandrasekhar. He added that the process of seeking permission, labeling of platforms that are under testing and the provision of consent-based disclosure systems for users is an "insurance policy to platforms who can otherwise be sued by consumers." This clarification has not stopped tech companies based mostly in the United States from being angered by the sudden appearance of regulations that hinder their free access to the Indian market. Aravind Srinivas, co-founder of the San Francisco-based generative AI-based search engine Perplexity AI, called the advisory a "bad move by India." Martin Casado, general partner for Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, described the move as a "travesty" that will hurt innovation. Human knowledge is under attack! Concerted global efforts are aiming to wipe out humanity's existing knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, natural medicine, natural immunity, history, science and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Our goal is to defend and preserve human knowledge while empowering people to bypass the knowledge destruction censorship currently being pushed by corporations, governments and the WHO. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Help support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, offering lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods, superfoods, nutritional supplements and personal care products. Watch this episode of the "Health Ranger Report" as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, discusses how artificial intelligence is being weaponized for censorship, "pre-crime" detection and other means that negatively impact individual freedoms and society. This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Government developing AI-powered surveillance program that can keep an eye on people in smart cities. Leading science journal publishes fictional "science" research that relied on gibberish AI terms and an image of a rat with a giant penis. Google's Gemini AI accused of generating FAKE REVIEWS to smear a book about Big Tech's political biases. Big Tech's AI systems are ERASING entire record of White people from human history. Microsoft CEO hints that upcoming AI "misinformation" censorship tools might DISABLE your Windows PC for questioning establishment narratives about the election. Sources include: RT.com Reuters.com IndianExpress.com Brighteon.com Lousiana becomes 28th state to pass permitless concealed carry legislation Louisiana has become the 28th state in the United States to pass permitless concealed carry legislation , after newly elected Republican Gov. Jeff Landry signed Senate Bill 1 into law on March 5. S.B. 1, a National Rifle Association (NRA)-backed piece of legislation sponsored by Sen. Blake Miguez (R-New Iberia), allows eligible residents aged 18 and older to carry concealed handguns without a permit. Earlier concealed carry legislation sponsored in the House of Representatives by Rep Danny McCormick (R-Oil City) faced multiple setbacks in the past, as the GOP-controlled state legislature's attempts to push such bills would be vetoed by then-Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards. Landry, who vowed to pass constitutional carry if elected governor, immediately passed tough-on-crime policies to drive down the rates of crime in the state after he was sworn in as governor. (Related: RFK Jr. is pro-Second Amendment, pro-First Amendment, anti-war and pro-border security.) "Today, we join 27 other states in passing Constitutional Carry. I promised the folks of Louisiana that I would champion Constitutional Carry into law, and within two months, I have honored that commitment," said Landry in a statement. "It's fundamentally clearlaw-abiding citizens should never have to seek government permission to safeguard themselves and their families. Today, we have secured an incredible victory for liberty in Louisiana. I want to thank Louisianas NRA members for their great work." Miguez backed the statement of Landry and described the enactment as a "key milestone in our enduring quest for liberty." Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. "Today, Louisiana asserts its unwavering commitment to the Second Amendment by enacting Constitutional Carry, a move that embodies the absolute right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms," said Miguez. "Governor Landry's pivotal role, combined with the steadfast support from legislators across both chambers, has been crucial in reaffirming our dedication to the rights of law-abiding citizens. Our success owes much to the tireless efforts of NRA members and Second Amendment defenders throughout the state, whose advocacy has been indispensable." Moreover, the National Association for Gun Rights, which delivered 80,000 petitions on the first day of Louisiana's Second Extraordinary Session for the passage of the bill, also spoke during the signing ceremony. "This is a great day for the people of Louisiana. We want to thank the 80,000 members and supporters of the National Association for Gun Rights who signed petitions to urge the passage of a clean bill. Without them, there could have been a much different outcome," said Vice President Ryan Fluguar. The law is set to officially take effect on July 4, in line with Independence Day. Landry earns praise from the NRA for swiftly enacting SB1 NRA Executive Director Randy Kozuch and CEO and Interim Executive Vice President Andrew Arulanandam, who both joined Landry in Baton Rouge for the signing ceremony, showered the newly elected governor with praise for the concealed carry law. Kozuch stated that the swift and decisive action in Louisiana empowers citizens to exercise their Second Amendment rights without government permission. "This victory is a shining example of what can be achieved when freedom-loving legislators in both the House and the Senate work in unison," said Kozuch. "The NRA celebrates Louisiana's momentous step in becoming the 28th state to enact the pivotal NRA Constitutional Carry legislation. This swift and decisive action, a testament to the NRA's unwavering advocacy, empowers Louisianians to exercise their Second Amendment rights free from government permission, solidifying our right to self-defense." Arulanandam echoed these sentiments and commended Landry for turning campaign promises into legislative reality within a mere 57 days in office. "These men and women champion our Second Amendment rights and help ensure that law-abiding Americans have the means to protect themselves, their loved ones, and their communities. This rapid 57-day turnaround is a powerful message that NRA members are not just participating in the fight for gun rights; they are leading it. Rest assured, we are on a mission to bring NRA Constitutional Carry to every state in the nation, one victory at a time," he said. Human knowledge is under attack! Concerted global efforts are aiming to wipe out humanity's existing knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, natural medicine, natural immunity, history, science and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Our goal is to defend and preserve human knowledge while empowering people to bypass the knowledge destruction censorship currently being pushed by corporations, governments and the WHO. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Help support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, offering lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods, superfoods, nutritional supplements and personal care products. Watch Ben Swann explain that the Second Amendment is an absolute right below. This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Nashville shooting aftermath: Anti-gun and pro-transgender activists storm state capitol buildings. New Biden gun rule will BAN private firearms sales, ATF whistleblowers warn. RIGGED: Gun Violence Archive designates non-violent incidents as gun violence. Gun rights group sues New Mexico Gov. Michelle Grisham for declaring a gun violence public emergency. 2A UNDER ATTACK: Democratic AGs call for the closure of Missouri ammo plant to deprive citizens of affordable, quality ammunition. Sources include: BigLeaguePolitics.com MSN.com Brighteon.com Mengeles everywhere The past decade has seen a transgender mania within society, wherein certain individuals insist that they should be of the opposite gender, try to dress accordingly, engage in chemical and surgical alterations, and demand that everyone else go along with the charade. Their apparent lack of self-awareness is such that they do not realize how grotesque they sometimes may appear to others when they pretend to be the opposite gender. (Article by Armando Simon republished from AmericanMind.org) Some transgenders and their enablers threaten suicide if everyone does not participate in their delusion. This tactic of emotional blackmail has been recommended by at least one psychologist in Canada (the particular psychologist has a large number of supposedly transgender children under his supervisionsome as young as two). Such suicides are, in fact, rare. Suicides or attempts to commit suicide by trans individuals are frequently a function of underlying mental illness, not societal rejection of their gender identity. Several minor celebrities transitioned and were glorified in the media. As with copycat crimes and prominent suicides, others began to claim the same status, additionally insisting that they were victims, a high-status category at the moment. In a similar vein, there have been castration cults throughout history. The Heavens Gate cult in America in the nineties believed that their core beings would ascend to the next level into a comet after they committed suicide, some members first choosing to be castrated. The Skoptsy in Russia practiced castration and mastectomy in order to eliminate sexual lust. There was castration in the Aravan cult. In India, the Tritiya Prakriti refers to both self-castration and homosexuality. In ancient times, the priests of Cybele castrated themselves (eunuchs in palaces and harems were not part of a cult, some being unwilling participants). The present day transgender movement is also a castration cult, something that has been pointed out by others as well. What differentiates the present movement is that, whereas sexual mutilation was performed in the above cults for the sake of an external idea, becoming transgender has become an end in itself. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. That people have been convinced to submit to sexual mutilation isnt surprising given the history of mass suicides, where the participants were convinced to kill themselves and did so willingly. Anything, no matter how bizarre or immoral, can be rationalized and justified. An offshoot of transgender ideology is the assertion that men can get pregnant and menstruate. This has resulted in tampons being available in some mens bathroom, including the Canadian parliament (which begs the question: where does one insert them?). Recruiting others to join the cult is done incrementally through idealizing the transition, minimizing the mutilation, using euphemisms, presenting a role model, and creating confusion about self-identity. Mentally ill individuals and children are particularly vulnerable and are thus targeted. One study found that high school aged teenagers who identify as transgender are also more likely than their normal peers to have concurrent mental health conditions including depression, anxiety, attention deficit disorders, and autism; attempted/accomplished suicides continued even after they underwent treatment to become transgender. Another study found psychopathology in transgender natal girls. However, there are also situations where mothers with a history of mental illness convince their very young children that they should be transgender, some of the mothers exhibiting Munchausen Syndrome by proxy (there are no statistics available, but my impression is that the women are mostly either single mothers or divorced). Anyone who has gone through the educational system knows that there are good teachers, inspirational teachers, bad teachers, mediocre teachers. There are also teachers who are very, very dangerous. As with the concurrent drive for promoting homosexuality, schools have become gender-deviant recruiting grounds through teacher-advocates who on social media openly boast of indoctrinating students. Viewing these postings, it is evident that some of these advocates are either latent pedophiles or are mentally ill individuals themselves. In some instances, teachers have received training on how to help transition small children. (The underlying rationale given to children is that when they are born the doctor arbitrarily assigns their gender, which can be later changed at will; this, of course, begs the question: if genitals do not determine gender, then why the obsession with removing them?) Some transgender teachers, far from being targeted for violence or otherwise victimized, have been involved in threats of violence or actual acts of violence. (Incidentally, the same media that goes out of its way to glamorize and/or defend transgenders often fail to report violence by transgenders or have suppressed the transgender identity of the offender.) These teachers are a reflection of the Marxist doctrine which has become prevalent that declares that children belong to the state (or the community) rather than the parents. An American politician used a euphemism to promote the idea: it takes a village to raise a child, while a Canadian minister of parliament stated outright that parents have no custodial rights over their children. The parents should not interfere in what the state decides to do to their children, which must be done in secret. As a result, children in Canada, Scotland, and America are being taken from the custody of their parents so they can be sexually mutilated by the cult. Matters have gotten to such a level that children are now publicly denouncing their parentsreminiscent of the Maoist Cultural Revolutionbecause they hold the wrong politics or are religious. It is also relevant that urging the child to keep discussions on homosexuality or transgenderism a secret from their parents is a tactic used by grooming pedophiles. Some advocates of the cult are medical and psychological professionals, and the claims made by these individuals can only be deemed quackery. For example, a psychologist at Boston Childrens Hospital publicly declared that children in the womb know they are transgender, while another psychologist at NYU Langone Health claimed that babies masturbate in utero. Such bizarre assertions are met by the public with justifiable disgust and contempt and bring disrepute to the whole profession. However, much worse is the enthusiastic involvement of some physicians in the chemical poisoning and irreversible sexual mutilation of children through the euphemism of gender affirming care, resulting in sterilization. One gender affirming organization is even urging general practitioners to prescribe puberty blockers to children without first diagnosing them in order to save time. It has become apparent that the field is rife with malpractice. (One teenage boy died when doctors tried to create a fake vagina using part of his colon.) The targeted children are as young as four. One physician in Oregon has infamously declared that during the surgical mutilation of children, he and his colleagues are not certain of the results, and they are experimenting and learning as they go along. Nor is this an isolated incident. Indeed, a review of the literature on the effect of puberty blockers on neuropsychological function shows that research is practically nonexistent and should become a priority. Some of these cultist physicians have been described by disgruntled patients as manipulative; they are not just consenting to the transgender procedures but pushing them onto patients who may not be emotionally stable. Some physicians have rushed surgeries after only a couple of brief consultations. The bottom line is that ripping off the testicles of young boys and the breasts of young girls or injecting them with puberty blockers is criminal child abuse and such Mengeles should be held accountable. At the very least their licenses should be revoked. It would be a first step in the right direction. Some of these doctors patients have subsequently sued them. It has been suggested that malpractice lawsuits, along with the sharp rise of malpractice insurance premiums for transitioning clinics, may result in dampening the cult. A number of victims who have regretted submitting to the mutilation and poisoning of their immature bodies have become public in narrating their ordeals. As in other cults, those who have expressed transgender regret and been vocal have been ostracized by the cultists. One of the characteristics of all cults is to keep out contradictory facts and opinions, especially those of former disgruntled members. They do so with a torrent of insults, threats, and demands for the heretic to become unemployed. They have been shunned and condemned and censored by the enablers of the cult, especially when they assert that transitioning genders is child abuse and that the whole phenomenon is indeed a cult. While focusing on facilitating transgenders and advocating for them, those with transgender regret have generally been ignored by both professionals and the media (one study showed that only six percent of persons becoming transgender reported long-term patient satisfaction and quality of life following surgery). Censorship and demonizing has likewise become commonplace, imposed on others voicing heretical views on the cult or the medical procedures, including scientists and their publications. For example, an interview with a doctor critical of the transgender mania was censored after she remarked, See, if you want to cut off a leg or an arm youre mentally ill, but if you want to cut off healthy breasts or a penis, youre transgender. Cultists publish junk science in order to promote the cults ideology. This has been pointed out, among others, by one of the pioneers of transgender procedures, who now warns of the danger of the gender affirming cult. Others have become whistleblowers, revealing the cults machinations and mentality; it goes without saying that such whistleblowers who have thrown a spotlight on the butchering of children have been retaliated against by cultists within the staff where they worked. One such whistleblower pinpointed the underlying problem: The prioritization of ideology over evidence. H.G. Wells imagined an island owned by a mad vivisectionist named Dr. Moreau, whose creation of grotesque human-animal hybrids was limited only by his imagination. Josef Mengele, a respected M.D/Ph.D with an interest in human genetics, was permitted to use the prisoners at Auschwitz as lab material for his bizarre experiments on twins, dwarfs, and heterochromia. The United States and Canada have unaccountably permitted their medical establishmentsin the name of care and the prevention of self-harmto be taken over by transhumanist bio-tinkerers hoping to reengineer humanity along utopian lines. If we dont stop them, the judgement of the future will be severe. Read more at: AmericanMind.org We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Support us at HealthRangerStore.com and read about our "human freedom infrastructure" mission at this article link. No borders? No America Americans had better act soon, with or without Congress and with or without the Border Patrol to stop the current flood of illegal invaders across our Southern Border, because the Biden regime has no intention of ever stopping the invasion. To wait and ponder the crisis in the hopes that Donald Trump can stop it, if he wins the presidency, only ensures that millions more will cross, in addition to the twenty-seven million that have already entered the country, during Bidens presidency those which were detained at the border and the got-aways; and, intentionally or not, it makes America unsafe and sets in motion the Great Replacement, the replacement of white people and the virtues and principles of freedom and liberty with people of color who are already prone and predisposed to accepting big government controls, e.g. Marxism and Maoism, and the idea that all things come from government rather than individual initiative and independence. To do nothing and remain apathetic or complacent ensures the destruction of traditional America. (Article by Justin Smith republished from TheBurningPlatform.com) One should recall that a 2018 study by both Yale and MIT suggested 22 million to possibly 40 million illegal aliens were already residing in America. Its to Trumps discredit that he didnt pursue the border security issue forcefully in 2017, when the Republicans held a majority in both houses of Congress, rather than listen to the turncoat RINO Speaker Paul Ryan. In his last year in office, Trump had brought illegal alien entries down to approximately 1100 a day, or less. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. Under Joe Biden, the U.S. borders simply no longer exist. His regimes minions have been ordered to process and parole illegal aliens into America as fast as possibly, virtually waving them on across with little to no scrutiny. And, as a result, we know for a fact that 330 illegals who are on terrorist watch lists have been released into the country, along with the unknown number of potential or actual terrorists within the ranks of the gotaways. Going all the way back to 1996, Augustin Cebada, radical spokesman for the Brown Berets, militant para-military foot-soldiers of Aztlan [Reconquista] shouted the following declaration, at Americans at an Independence Day rally outside the Federal Building in Westwood, California: If anyones going to be deported, its going to be you! Get out! We are the future. Youre old and tired. Go on. We have beaten you leave like beaten rats. You old white people, it is your duty to die. Right now, were already controlling those elections, whether its by violence or nonviolence. Through love of having children, were going to take over. Some may actually be coming here to become American citizens and try to live the American Dream, a dream that is crumbling and rapidly disappearing for natural born Americans, thanks to a multitude of bad Biden policies; but the cast majority are not. They simply want to abscond with as much American wealth as they can possibly accumulate while also riding the massive government expenditures of recent programs created to address their invading numbers. These illegals dont want to be citizens; they dont assimilate any more, as they did in days past; they set up shop just as they did in the Old Country and bring the same flawed mindsets that destroyed the nations they have fled. Through Joe Bidens Open Borders Policy that dont have to wait to for the illegal invaders to have children. They are simply flying them over, entire families and all, at the taxpayers expense. Thats part of what makes this all so maddening. Joe knows without a doubt, or at least his handlers know, that he absolutely is charged by the U.S. Constitution and given the authority as President and Commander-in-Chief to protect and defend our borders and sovereign domain. And yet, on March 7th 2024, Biden had the temerity to suggest in his State of the Union Address, that he needed a new immigration bill and more money, before he could do his job, none of which is true. Along with this, please note that Congress could pass ten great immigration / border security laws, or even 100, and it wouldnt make a damned bit of difference. Joe Biden and the Democratic Party violate the Constitution and U.S. law yes, even our existing laws on immigration and border security with impunity, no qualms or pangs of conscience whatsoever. Biden absolutely would violate any new law, if it served his agenda and that of the radical Marxists and Maoists within the Democratic Party. Even this last so-called bipartisan bill had a loophole in it, actually allowing for 1.8 million illegals to be allowed to cross every year, before its safeguards were employed. That is unless Biden decided to suspend its mechanisms for a national emergency as the bill provided. The bill was a farce, a massive joke, and thats why it was rejected. Thats the reason so many truly conservative Americans were so angered to hear Biden mock Republicans after some jeered his remarks on his comprehensive bill to fix our immigration system understanding his underlying lie , as he said: Oh, you dont like that bill huh? that conservatives got together and said was a good bill? Ill be darned. Thats amazing. [transcript at Associated Press] President Woodrow Wilson sent Brigadier General John Black Jack Pershing out of Fort Bliss, Texas on March 15th 1916 to patrol the border between the U.S. and Mexico, in order to stop Pancho Villas cross-border raids and capture or kill him. Pershing went a few steps further and pursued Villa into 350 miles into Mexico proper, leading 10,000 soldiers behind him. All of this was done under the premise set forth in the Article IV Section 4 of our Constitution which states the federal government shall protect each of [the states] against invasion and Article I Section 10 which expressly guarantees states the sovereign power to repel an invasion and defend U.S. citizens from overwhelming and imminent danger. And there isnt one damned thing preventing Joe Biden from exercising this same exact authority now other than the Democratic Party Communists intent to grant millions of illegal foreign invaders amnesty and the right to vote, in order to grow their base and hold power and control over all America for the rest of the century. For over three years, Joe Biden and Homeland Security [what an oxymoron] Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas have assured all America that the border is secure and the illegal alien invasion is being handled properly, when in fact, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol are being used to speed up the process of receiving illegal aliens into the country, rather than immediately detaining and returning them back across the border, should be the case. And all the while, through his lies, Mayorkas smugly and arrogantly smiles like a fat-headed Cheshire Cat, in his belief that he is untouchable, which has been the case so far. Bidens Open Border Policy has been a massive success towards ultimately achieving the Democratic Partys goals of changing the face of America and fundamentally transforming Her away from Her founding, and it has been an abject and complete catastrophe for Fly Over Country and the everyday average American who loves his country, God and family better than himself. The rising of this anti-American regime has been a sad and disgusting time to be marked as such in the annals of history, should honest historians ever reappear. And his policies have been a boon to the numerous drug cartels which have expanded their operations by tenfold in every major city in the U.S. and even the smaller cities and towns that once barely had a hint of drug and crime problems, At some point, anyone having a hand in the most massive betrayal of America in U.S. history must be made to face a day of reckoning, regardless of what form it may take. In the meantime, our daughters are continuously being assaulted, brutalized, kidnapped, raped and murdered in the most heinous of manners, unimaginable to most good and decent people, by these foreign, illegal alien invaders. Decent Americans of all walks of life, men, women and children, are being murdered by these monsters, the MS-13 drug cartel members and prisoners released from Venezuelas prisons, much like young Kate Steinle in 2015, a 32 year old sales rep, and now Laken Riley, a 22 year old nursing student, who was bludgeoned to death and disfigured by an illegal alien monster, who entered the country in 2022. Adding insult to injury, Traitor Joe just apologized for calling Laken Rileys murderer an illegal, during his State of the Union address. The apology came today, March 9th 2024, during an interview with MSNBCs Jonathan Capehart. But thats exactly what he is a goddamned foreign, illegal, criminal piece of murderous shit from Venezuela who was also charged and released in New York City after endangering a five year old child [per Olivia Land/New York Post] On July 13th 2023, the Judiciary Committees Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security and Enforcement [The Consequences of Criminal Aliens on U.S. Communities] reported that 33,000 Americans had been killed by murder and manslaughter at the hands of illegal aliens between 2010 and 2015, which begs the question, just how many are now dying at the hands of millions of the anonymous, unvetted illegal aliens Biden has welcomed, even ferried, into America. As reported by this committee, just two weeks prior to its meeting, an illegal alien was sentenced to life in prison for raping and impregnating a nine year old Ohio girl, who later went to Indiana to get an abortion. I have two adult daughters, and if any illegal alien were to do them harm in any way, they had better hope law enforcement officers get to them before I do, especially now that we are actually seeing stone-cold murderers released without bail by anti-American, anti-law enforcement District Attorneys, bought and paid for by George Soros. From the Judiciary Committes report: According to a report covering thirteen years of data from the Executive Office of Immigration Review, over forty-seven percent [of illegals] never even pursue an asylum claim once released into the country. More than eighty-five percent will be denied asylum and receive a deportation order, yet less than five percent ever leave the country. Anyone requesting asylum must be detained or made to remain in Mexico until their hearing is adjudicated. These numbers prove they cant be trusted to be released. These illegal aliens are also overwhelming the capabilities of Americas schools, hospitals, law enforcement and other general services provided at various levels of government. I see that as an extremely serious matter that is certainly facilitating the destruction of our economy, since the taxpayer dollars supporting this invasion means Americans everywhere are being deprived of the benefit of their own labor to support the dregs of the world; but it is much less important to me than knowing that foreign illegal aliens are snuffing out our countrymens lives, like they are nothing. These are real people with real lives and families, not just a data base of statistics, and for every victim of a criminal illegal alien, there is a devastated family. And still, Biden and Company drive on towards the abyss creating a dystopian nightmare along the way for law abiding citizens, watching the end of their country racing toward them like an out-of-control freight train and no Casey Jones at the controls. Former President Donald Trump has promised to start the largest mass deportation of illegal aliens in U.S. history, if he wins the upcoming election, and he plans to use the military to implement it, rightfully so. As reported in the Washington Post [February 21st 2024], Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for the Trump campaign, stated: Americans can expect that immediately upon President Trumps return to the Oval Office, he will restore all his prior policies, implement brand new crackdowns that will send shock waves to all the worlds criminal smugglers, and marshal every federal and state power necessary to institute the largest deportation operation in American history as she also added that illegal aliens should not get comfortable because very soon they will be going home. We have the absolute right and a duty as sovereign citizens, living in sovereign states, to defend ourselves and our families, in the wake of a lawless federal government, this lawless Biden regime. The authority rests within the Constitution which has always allowed for the use of the States militias or the military to be mobilized for just such circumstances, and although we can be certain that Biden and some state governors will keep refusing to utilize the mechanisms at their disposal to fast-track the removal of these invaders, we have the right to gather ourselves armed with pistols and rifles those of us able with the time and backbone to do so to go to the border and tell the Border Patrol to do join us and do their Constitutional duty to stop the millions more who will try to cross between now and January 2025. I oft suggested in years past, half-jokingly, not so much anymore, that we should put them on a plane, parachutes optional, and shove them out over Mexico. This comment has become so much more full of meaning, now that we know the Biden regime has actively been seeking out these illegal caravans and flying their members into America. No matter how they arrive, by a fast jet, a slow boat or a reliable bus or train, we must send them back on a super-charged bus or jet just as quickly. Set about to deport every last one of them, and then effectively and totally seal the border and place a ten year moratorium on all immigration, legal and illegal, or until we have our nation and our population straightened out in a fashion that puts us back on a path to the same level of exceptionalism that used to be the rule in America and removes or eradicates, with extreme prejudice, those radicals who seek to fundamentally transform America and end our republic. Dont let the enemies-from-within end America in so despicable a manner. Dont let this be how America ends. Fight back like hell, and when the time is right, make the bastards who have committed this treason against America pay with their own lives. Read more at: TheBurningPlatform.com Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. New York Times caught LYING about Hamas mass rapes, then backpedals with stealth headline edits Israel's lies about the October 7 Hamas false flag attack are once again in the limelight afterjournalist Farnaz Fassihi quietly and stealthily edited a false headline about "Hamas mass rapes" supposedly being confirmed by the United Nations (UN), this after author and blogger Max Blumenthal called her out for her deception. By all appearances, Fassihi actually blocked Blumenthal on X after he exposed her lies. Fassihi also blocked anyone from commenting on her tweets after news of her deception went viral. Fassihi's fake news headline in the Times read as follows: "U.N. Team Finds Grounds to Support Reports of Sexual Violence in Hamas Attack." Her sub-headline falsely claimed that the UN "[f]ound Clear & convincing information that hostages were sexually abused. UN also looked into reports of sexual abuse of Palestinians in Israeli detention." It turns out that the UN found no such thing, seeing as how the international body was barred by Israel from conducting any serious investigation into the matter. The UN's Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict affirmed this in a statement explaining that the information gathered by its mission team "was in large part sourced from Israeli national institutions." "This is due to the absence of United Nations entities operating in Israel, as well as the lack of cooperation by the State of Israel with relevant United Nations bodies with an investigative mandate," the UN further said. (Fact check: Israel has been lying from the beginning about the Hamas rapes they never happened.) Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Israel lied to justify Palestinian genocide in Gaza In his excoriation of Fassihi and her false claims, Blumenthal pointed out that it has never been confirmed that any of Israel's claims about "Hamas mass rapes" ever really happened, and that it was all basically a hoax designed to garner sympathy from the world towards the Zionist cause. "Unfounded and inaccurate forensic evidence" was collected by "untrained volunteer first responders," who were also responsible for "the loss of potentially valuable evidence," Blumenthal tweeted, referring to the infamous ZAKA disinformation source. None of the allegations of sexual violence in Kibbutz Be'eri could be verified, exposing ZAKA's three major allegations as "unfounded," Blumenthal further explained, adding that not a single instance of alleged sexual violence by Hamas has ever been verified. "She did not meet with any Israeli victims of sexual violence on 10/7, none were made available," he adds about Fassihi. "'The altercation of crime scenes' marred her ability to collect info." It turns out that the evidence collected actually ended up exposing Israel for committing heinous war crimes against the Palestinians as a large number of the bodies collected from the scene of the attack showed "extensive burn damage." "This is yet another indication of the extensive Israeli use of tanks and attack helicopters against Palestinian militants and Israeli citizens according to the Hannibal directive," Blumenthal explains, noting that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed Israelis in the kibbutz. Another important tidbit is the sheer number of Western media outlets that later retracted their false claims about "Hamas mass rapes" after the false claim was widely exposed and debunked as false. "There's no 'reasonable grounds' to believe any of the claims about 'Hamas mass rapes' because no actual evidence has ever been produced," writes Chris Menahan for Information Liberation. "The media is simply repeating their 'Big Lie' over and over again in the hope that people will believe it." In the comments, someone added to this that he has never in his life "seen such shameless liars," referring to the Israeli Zionist regime. The latest news about Israel and the October 7 Hamas false flag attack can be found at IsraelCollapse.com. Sources for this article include: InformationLiberation.com NaturalNews.com Human knowledge is under attack! Concerted global efforts are aiming to wipe out humanity's existing knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, natural medicine, natural immunity, history, science and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Our goal is to defend and preserve human knowledge while empowering people to bypass the knowledge destruction censorship currently being pushed by corporations, governments and the WHO. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Help support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, offering lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods, superfoods, nutritional supplements and personal care products. OUTRAGE: Major banks worked with federal government to SPY on Americans and track their financial transactions The federal government colluded with some of Americas top banks to spy on citizens and monitor their financial transactions in the wake of the events at the Capitol on January 6, 2021 in a violation of their fundamental constitutional rights. This is according to a report that was recently issued by the House of Representatives Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. The report said that the federal government carried out broad surveillance of millions of Americans private financial transactions without following any type of legal process. The report noted that this financial surveillance was not predicated on any specific evidence of particularized criminal conduct and, even worse, it keyed on terms and specific transactions that concerned core political and religious expression protected by the Constitution. It provided details about how officials with the government asked a number of major banks to search people's financial transactions using key terms such as MAGA and Trump in hopes of identifying transfers that might indicate people were present at the Capitol on that day. It also told banks that they could identify transactions related to sporting goods stores and places that are known to sell firearms, such as Dick's Sporting Goods, Bass Pro Shop and Cabela's. Some of the financial institutions that were identified by the report as engaging in this behavior were JP Morgan Chase, Citibank, Barclays, Charles Schwab, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, PayPal, Charles Schwab, U.S. Bank and HSBC. The report claims that the U.S. Department of Treasury Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the FBI carried out back channel conversations with institutions in which they requested they provide people's private financial information without obtaining a subpoena. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. People with certain political views were targeted In addition, the report detailed a web portal known as the domestic security alliance council that was used to share nonpublic intelligence documents between law enforcement and financial institutions. The portal, which was run by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the FBI, was used by the government to share reports with financial institutions about individuals that they believe fit the profile of what they called domestic violent extremists who could have theoretically been emboldened in the wake of the events on the capital. They made no attempt to hide the fact that they were focusing only on individuals who held certain political views. According to the portal, those Americans who expressed opposition to firearm regulations, open borders, COVID-19 lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and the deep state may be potential domestic terrorists. The editor of The Sociable, Tim Hinchliffe, noted that this means those who question what the government says and does could find themselves being scrutinized even further and losing some of their freedoms if this type of behavior continues. He told The Defender: Today, theyre going after Americans who oppose open borders, lockdowns, vaccine mandates, etc., but who will they go after tomorrow? Will they go after people who express opposition to U.S. funding in Ukraine? What about opposition to sending troops on the ground? Who will become the next domestic terrorist based on which side they support in the Middle East? Others, like former Texas Assistant Attorney General W. Scott McCollough, point out that the targets of these inquiries could change and that everyone should be worried, regardless of their political views. Some have even likened the effort to Chinas social credit system, which sees people unable to access their money and subjected to other punishments if they question government narratives. Last year, retired FBI Supervisory Intelligence Analyst George Hill testified that Bank of America voluntarily supplied the agency with a list of the names of all of their customers who used debit or credit cards in the Washington, D.C. area from January 5 to 7, 2021. Sources for this article include: ChildrensHealthDefense.org Judiciary.House.gov CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Supposedly independent CDC advisors received bribes from Big Pharma Advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who are supposedly "independent" are far from it as they have accepted Big Pharma bribes at some point in their respective careers. Children's Health Defense (CHD) said nine new members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) were appointed by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in mid-February 2024. The ACIP which shapes vaccine policy in the U.S. decides which vaccines should be recommended to the public. ACIP is comprised of a chair, an executive secretary and 15 voting members 14 medical experts and a lone member representing consumers. HHS struggled to fill eight vacancies over the last year, CHD said, adding that an extra four members will be needed when existing members' four-year terms come to an end in June. Meanwhile, a CDC spokesperson confirmed the appointment of nine ACIP members. Four members will begin their tenure immediately upon submission of paperwork: Dr. Denise Jamieson , dean of the University of Iowa's Carver College of Medicine , dean of the University of Iowa's Carver College of Medicine Dr. Yvonne Maldonado , pediatrics professor at Stanford University , pediatrics professor at Stanford University Dr. Albert Shaw , infectious diseases professor at Yale University's School of Medicine , infectious diseases professor at Yale University's School of Medicine Dr. Robert Schechter, medical officer with the California Department of Public Health The second set of four new ACIP members will begin their tenure on July 1. They are: Aside from these eight, Vanderbilt University infectious diseases researcher Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot will rejoin the ACIP to serve as it chair. She had previously chaired the committee from 2018 through 2022. While members typically are not eligible for reappointment, the HHS provided a waiver to that existing policy in the case of Talbot. New ACIP members far from independent But according to CHD, the new ACIP members are far from independent. Some of them have received grant funding or consulting fees from major pharmaceutical firms including Pfizer, Moderna and Merck. Meanwhile, some of them have also publicly backed vaccines for diseases such as the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human papillomavirus (HPV). (Related: Vaccine advisers outraged as Moderna, government scientists CONCEALED key data about COVID boosters.) In one example, Asturias has reportedly received over $60,000 in consulting fees and travel costs from Merck, Pfizer, GSK, Sanofi Pasteur and Astellas Pharma. His colleague Brewer, who works as a paid consultant for Merck, has also received commercial grants from his employer alongside similar grants from Pfizer and GSK. Meanwhile, Chu was the co-author of a study that outlined the effectivity of COVID-19 bivalent boosters in children and adolescents aged between five and 17 years old. She also raised alarm about a "triple-demic" of RSV, COVID-19 and the flu ostensibly to promote the RSV vaccines. Kuchel, another strong advocate of the RSV vaccine, reportedly took consulting fees from two pharmaceutical companies in two consecutive years. Based on figures from OpenPaymentsData, he received approximately $13,000 from Janssen (under Johnson & Johnson) in 2019 and approximately $1,300 from Novo Nordisk the following year. "ACIP has long been a rubber stamp for any and all vaccines Big Pharma wants to push," said CHD President Mary Holland in response to the new appointments. "But the brazenness of the HHS-Big Pharma fusion has never been so much on display. The only silver lining in this grotesque display is that more and more people are waking up to the reality that ACIP has nothing to do with health and everything to do with profit." Watch this clip from "The HighWire with Del Bigtree" about the CDC moving the goalpost on COVID-19. This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: CDC funding decisions based largely on politics, not science. SLOW EUTHANASIA: CDC pushing more COVID "booster" shots on people 65 and older: "every four months." CDC confesses: Vaccines are failing, the vaxxed can be super-spreaders, demands return to mask mandates for everyone, including the vaxxed. Sources include: ChildrensHealthDefense.org Brighteon.com Health Ranger Report: Dr. Sherri Tenpenny outlines the 4 categories of COVID-19 VACCINE INJURIES Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, the host of "The Tenpenny Files: On Your Health" on Brighteon.TV , joined the Health Ranger Mike Adams on "Health Ranger Report" to talk about the four categories of vaccine injuries caused by the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) injections. Tenpenny, an osteopathic medical doctor, earlier mentioned that she discovered 40 vaccine injury mechanisms caused by the COVID-19 shots. She then divided them into different categories, which she shared with Adams. Category One: Sudden deaths The first category of COVID-19 vaccine injury mechanisms, Tenpenny shared, is called sudden deaths. People who die suddenly within the first 48 hours post-vaccination fall under this category. She added that this is well-documented with most casualties suffering from heart attacks, strokes and blood clots within the first 24 to 48 hours after getting injected. (Related: Dr. Sherri Tenpenny warns of MORE DEATHS from COVID injections.) Category Two: Spike protein disease Tenpenny dubbed the second category as spike protein disease, which is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein messenger (mRNA) that replicates continuously in the human body. "It doesn't stop because it's been synthetically modified. Our regular mRNA breaks down really quickly," Tenpenny explained. "We've got enzymes that break it down really quickly, and if they were to inject a shot that just had regular mRNA into our system, it would be degraded very quickly within a matter of hours and certainly within a matter of a couple of days." Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. According to the well-known physician, scientists figured out how to synthetically modify regular mRNA by replacing a nucleic acid called uridine with pseudouridine. This pseudouridine, she added, allows the mRNA along with the lipid nanoparticle to stay in existence and replicate indefinitely. Tenpenny also mentioned that autopsies performed on people who died of vaccine injuries within the first eight to 12 months found that pseudouridine-laced mRNA was continuing to replicate and create spike proteins. Category Three: Autoimmune diseases Tenpenny also mentioned that there is also a big class of people who don't have any health problems or underlying health conditions. However, this doesn't mean they're safe just yet as they fall under the third category of autoimmune diseases. She pointed out that it can take months to years for autoimmune diseases to ramp up and become a real problem. The host of "The Tenpenny Files" recounted a conversation she had with two immunologists, who told her that people are in big trouble for the next 10 years due to the upcoming rampant autoimmune disease. Category Four: Turbo cancers Tenpenny mentioned that the fourth category is called turbo cancers. Examples of these turbo cancers include leukemia, lymphoma, breast cancer and prostate cancer. Adams also mentioned that these turbo cancers could also be an effect of spike protein disease, the second category of vaccine injuries. The osteopathic doctor agreed, adding that the infertility problem also falls under this category. This infertility, part of the bigger depopulation plan, is happening worldwide due to the spike protein reaching the reproductive organs of young people. Tenpenny: People should keep talking about vaccine injuries Tenpenny ultimately stressed the importance of continuing to talk about the COVID-19 vaccine injury mechanisms. Several people are learning of these just now, she added, and those who know of these things have to educate others. Tenpenny also called on people to force transparency and accountability from the government, which has not only allowed the use of these vaccines but also actively involved itself in injecting the population. The Health Ranger also exhorted viewers to attend Tenpenny's latest web discussion about the 40 mechanisms of COVID-19 vaccine injuries, which people can watch free after signing up at the Brighteon University website. Watch the full conversation between Dr. Sherri Tenpenny and the Health Ranger Mike Adams about vaccine injuries below. This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: The Tenpenny Report TV: Fertility rates dropping, miscarriages skyrocketing Brighteon.TV. Vaccine injury, from all vaccines, is far more widespread than people realize. COVID injections confirmed to weaken immunity, cause brain disorders and cancer. Dr. Tau Braun: The ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE is here and it is known as VACCINE INJURY. VACCINE ROULETTE: Some vaccine batches far more toxic than others, analysts find. Sources include: Brighteon.com DrTenpenny.com EU shifting to WAR ECONOMY mode in bid to boost arms industry To keep failing Western economies afloat, the European Commission (EC) wants to shift Europe into "war economy mode," which will boost the arms industry to keep corporate profits flowing. In a proposal to European Union (EU) leaders, European industry commissioner Thierry Breton laid out a plan to buy more weapons from European arms manufacturers to help boost their production capacity and the commerce involved with their sale and transfer. "We need to change the paradigm and move into war economy mode," Breton said about the plan. "This also means that the European defense industry must take more risks, with our support." A French former tech company CEO, Breton warned that another possible Donald Trump win for United States president this fall could result in Washington no longer cooperating with the NATO agenda, which would leave Europe hanging in the mix for self-defense. "In the current geopolitical context, Europe must take greater responsibility for its own security, regardless of the outcome of our allies' elections every four years," Breton then said, arguing for his plan's implementation regardless of who gets elected in November. (Related: Did you hear? Deep state war hawk Victoria Nuland quit her post this week amid failing pro-Ukraine agenda.) War for profit It is common for the powers that be to start beating the war drums every time their corrupt economies start to falter, and the latest conflicts between Ukraine and Russia, and between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors, are no exception. Starting another war is an easy way for the world's billionaire class to protect their ill-gotten assets while transferring even more wealth and power into their coffers. This is typically the reason for war in general, as evidenced by this latest call to boost Europe's arms industry for another economic quick fix. We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. Europe realized after Russia invaded Ukraine that it has almost no proper defenses, or at least that is what those pushing for these changes are claiming. Having to constantly shell out large amounts of weapons and ammunition to the Zelensky regime in Kiev on demand has proven too difficult to sustain. In order for the proposal to pass, the EU's 27 national governments would have to agree on it. This seems unlikely as said governments are usually reluctant to give up power for matters relating to defense and the military. NATO is said to be studying the proposal to see if it fits its agenda, adding that it welcomes the attempt and effort to produce more weapons and ammunition production capacity. At the same time, NATO says it worries that the plan will interfere with its existing transatlantic agenda. If Breton's package passes, it will include about 1.5 billion euros ($1.63 billion) in new funding for Europe's arms industry through the end of 2027. In the grand scheme of things on the world stage, this is a relatively modest sum of cash. Breton is also asking for the creation of a new EU fund of 100 billion euros to be used for various defense projects. "Our mission here is to treat Ukraine as almost equivalent to a member state," one EU official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity, about how the Zelensky regime is to be given special treatment as an EU member state, even though it is not. It will be some time before a final decision is made on Breton's proposal. There is an upcoming European Parliament election in June, which will mean the appointment of a whole new EC with possibly a different agenda than the current installment. "If the question is that of a Defense Industry Commissioner, it seems to me that we already have one," commented EC President Ursula von der Leyen. Sources for this article include: Reuters.com NaturalNews.com Fani Willis ILLEGALLY recorded a phone call to kick off Trump investigation The widely misunderstood phone call upon which Fani Willis' entire prosecution of Donald Trump rests was illegally recorded , we now know. In their new book "Find Me the Votes: A Hard-Changing Georgia Prosecutor, a Rogue President and the Plot to Steal an American Election," Mike Isikoff and Daniel Klaidman lay bare the ugly truth about Willis' case, which could end up falling apart due to her illegal behavior. Isikoff and Klaidman did not mean to destroy Willis' case, mind you. Isikoff is one of the original Russian collusion hoaxers who wrote articles about the deception to secure warrants for the FBI to spy on Republican presidential campaign advisers like Carter Page. The book, in other words, is meant to cast Willis in a glowing positive light. What the book instead does is expose Willis for illegally recording a phone conversation, which she then used to launch a witch hunt against Trump. Since the call was admittedly illegally recorded, defendants now have a new avenue to challenge and possibly destroy the case. "For years, the media and other Democrats have held up Willis as a brilliant and credible prosecutor of Republicans," writes Mollie Hemingway for The Federalist. "The new book suffers from poor timing, with Willis and her lover accused of perjury, subornation of perjury, bribery, and kickbacks related to the prosecution. Willis could be removed from the prosecution as early as this week." (Related: Evidence has also emerged to show that a Biden operative was inserted into the Fani Willis witch hunt against Trump.) We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. John C. Floyd, Willis' radical activist father founded Black Panthers of LA The book contains other damning revelations including the sordid history of Willis' "onetime radical activist" father John C. Floyd, founder of the Black Panther Political Party of Los Angeles. Floyd considered the police to be the "enemy" and an "occupying army" in the United States, having said of his Black Panthers party that its purpose and "political philosophy is black nationalism." Prior to being placed on the FBI's Most Wanted list for purchasing the gun used to murder a Marin County, Calif., judge, Floyd took former Communist Party vice presidential nominee Angela Davis as his lover. Willis' legacy is not much different as she was embroiled in all sorts of scandals involving attorneys she worked for. Those scandals including mortgage fraud, tipping off a drug dealer to an impending DEA raid, and crack dealing in America's inner cities. Concerning the illegal phone call recording, this occurred just one day prior to Willis' first day on the job as Fulton County, Georgia's district attorney. "The phone call had been dishonestly portrayed by Trump opponents, and Willis hoped that Raffensperger had been in Fulton County for the call, so she could prosecute Trump based on that false understanding of the call," Hemingway explains. It turns out the phone call was recorded by someone, political activist Jordan Fuchs, who was not in Fulton County or even in Georgia at all, but rather in Florida. Fuchs, who serves as Raffensperger's chief of staff, recorded the call in the Sunshine State where it is illegal to record a call without all parties to the call consenting to its recording. "She neither asked for nor received consent to record," Hemingway writes about Willis. The conspiracy worsens from there with Fuchs sharing fabricated quotes with The Washington Post that later had to be retracted. Those fabricated quotes came from a phone call between Trump and someone in the elections office, and were used to impeach Trump. "The problem for Fani Willis' political prosecution is that the book convincingly shows the entire prosecution rests on a piece of evidence that everyone now knows was illegally obtained never mind that the evidence has also been completely misinterpreted," Hemingway says. Sources for this article include: TheFederalist.com NaturalNews.com Florida bill BANNING lab-grown meat awaits Gov. DeSantis signature The Florida House on Wednesday, March 6, gave final approval to a wide-ranging bill that would ban cultured, or lab-grown, meat and local regulation of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The Republican-controlled House voted 86-27 to approve SB 1084, with the bill finally ready to go to Governor Ron DeSantis. SB 1084 would make several modifications related to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS). Democrats fixated on parts of SB 1084 that would ban the sale and manufacture of cultivated meat, which DeSantis has condemned as "fake meat," and prevent local governments from regulating EV vehicle charging stations. Rep. Lindsay Cross (D-St. Petersburg) claimed that both bans were meant to "stop innovation, put barriers on the free market and to lock [Florida] into existing frameworks." Meanwhile, Rep. Christine Hunschofsky (D-Parkland) insisted that the "food fight" section of SB 1084 "sends a bad message" to researchers and investors about lab-grown meat. Hunschofsky added that the move could discourage manufacturers from working in Florida because "they don't know what day of the week that the Legislature will be OK with them being in the state of Florida." "Moon meat" is fine if developed for astronauts House bill sponsor Danny Alvarez (R-Hillsborough County) said that there are still questions about the safety of lab-grown meat. He explained that selling cultivated meat needs to wait, adding that research over time could help confirm that "it is viable for consumption." We are building the infrastructure of human freedom and empowering people to be informed, healthy and aware. Learn about our free, downloadable AI tools on nutrition, health and preparedness at this article link. Every purchase at HealthRangerStore.com helps fund our efforts to build and share more tools for empowering humanity with knowledge and abundance. He noted that the bill is being passed because they "know that Florida agriculture can hold us down and provide plenty of safe, quality beef and agricultural products." Alvarez also said lab-grown meat is being banned in Florida to help protect consumers. The measure, which passed the Senate early in March, would allow research into cultivated meat. Production involves a process of taking cultured cells from animals and growing them in controlled settings to produce food. A potential research ban was removed from earlier versions of the bill due to worries that such a ban could affect the space industry, which is also considering the development of lab-grown meats for long-term space journeys. Rep. Dean Black (R-Jacksonville) clarified that while it's fine to develop "Moon meat" for astronauts, cattlemen like himself wont support it. (Related: FDA approves lab-grown meat produced by Chinese firm linked to biowarfare program.) "They can make it on the Moon and export it to Mars, and its fine to have Martian meat as well," Black said, adding that he supported SB 1084 because you shouldn't be able to buy lab-grown meat in Florida, or anywhere in the United States. Under SB 1084, selling or manufacturing lab-grown meat will be considered a second-degree misdemeanor. Additionally, the bill would put oversight of EV charging stations under the FDACS, which regulates pumps at gas stations. Florida has at least 3,230 public charging stations in 44 of the 67 counties. According to a staff analysis of the bill, electric cars made up at least three percent of cars sold in Florida from July 2020 to July 2021. A 2021 state law already prohibits local governments from mandating such things as EV charging stations on gas retailers. That law was enforced after a move by Petaluma, California, to ban new gas stations with the intention of fast-tracking the shift to electric cars. Watch the video below of "The Dr. Jane Ruby" show to learn more about lab-culture meat and the potential cancer risks of consuming it. This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Florida lawmakers advancing bills to block the sale of LAB-GROWN MEAT in the Sunshine State. Biden admin backs LAB-GROWN MEAT made of CANCER cells as the "food of the future." CLIMATE FAIL: Study finds lab-grown meat generates up to 25 TIMES MORE CO2 than conventional beef production. TRUTH: Lab-grown "meat" produces 25x more carbon dioxide pollution than traditional animal husbandry. Sources include: Twitter.com NBCMiami.com Brighteon.com TRUTH COMES OUT: Liz Cheney covered up exonerating evidence that Trump pushed for national guard protection on January 6 Former Representative Liz Cheney has responded angrily to a report by Mollie Hemingway of The Federalist accusing her and the January 6 committee of suppressing evidence that could have exonerated former President Donald Trump. It showed that he pushed for 10,000 troops from the national guard to protect the Capitol the day the riot took place. Hemingways exclusive report showed how Cheney and the committee falsely claimed there was no evidence to support claims made by Trump officials that they requested the troops, yet an early interview they conducted showed that was exactly what happened. Cheney personally attended this interview and took part in it, yet it mysteriously disappeared from the supporting documentation. The interview in question was conducted on January 28, 2022, and involved Deputy Chief of Staff Anthony Ornato. He told Cheney and the others present that he overheard the White House Chief of Staff at the time, Mark Meadows, press D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to enlist the services of the troops to protect her city. In addition, he testified that Trump thought 10,000 troops would be needed to help keep the peace during the protests and rallies scheduled for the day. Moreover, Ornato reported that the White House was frustrated by the slow deployment of assistance on the day by Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller. His testimony matched that provided by the former Chief of Staff to the Acting Secretary of Defense, Kash Patel, who maintains that he was present when Trump authorized the 10,000 guards ahead of January 6. In his own piece for The Federalist, he said that several other officials were also present and testified under oath that he did make the request and that Mayor Bowser and the Capitol Police were informed of it. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Patel believes that because Ornato had an apolitical career with the Secret Service spanning decades, the committee couldnt believably label him a Trump loyalist so they instead chose to suppress his testimony. In addition to lying about the existence of the interview, Cheney and her committee took steps to ensure the transcript would not be viewable by the public. They also launched a campaign to damage the reputation of Ornato before they conducted follow-up interviews with him. In fact, the Government Publishing Office website that Cheney often points critics of her investigation to actually contains fewer than half of the interviews the committee conducted. They carried out a thousand interviews, and it is quite possible that many of the other transcripts that are hidden contain further information that could exonerate Trump that the committee doesnt want people to see. The Chairman of the House Administrations Subcommittee on Oversight, Rep. Barry Loudermilk, said: The former J6 Select Committee apparently withheld Mr. Ornatos critical witness testimony from the American people because it contradicted their pre-determined narrative. Mr. Ornatos testimony proves what Mr. Meadows has said all along: President Trump did in fact offer 10,000 National Guard troops to secure the U.S. Capitol, which was turned down. Cheney spars with critics on social media Conservative Commentator Mark Levin took Cheney to task on X, writing: "Sleazy Liz Cheney needs to receive some of the Stalinist medicine she introduced into the body politick against scores of patriotic Americans -- that is, she needs to be compelled to testify under oath about, among other things, what knowledge she may have about: possible witness tampering, censorship of exculpatory information and testimony, the destruction of committee evidence and data, etc." Cheney became very defensive, responding to Levin by accusing him of spreading BS and calling Hemingway, a credible journalist, a bozo. This prompted him to call her a pathetic disgrace and demagogue. Sparring aside, the fact remains that the committee deceived Americans about what happened on January 6. Patel wrote: The greatest con job ever to happen in American politics is the false Jan. 6 insurrection narrative. The singular mission of this narrative is to stop Donald Trump from ever setting foot in the Oval Office again. Sources for this article include: ZeroHedge.com TheFederalist.com TheFederalist.com Mayor Eric Adams calls for modifications to sanctuary city policy as NYC struggles to accommodate nearly 200,000 new migrants that are overrunning the city New York City Mayor Eric Adams has called for a radical revamp of its sanctuary city status in a stunning reversal as the city bends under the weight of illegal immigrant arrivals. Adams has been dealing with fierce backlash as schools, hotels and community centers have been handed over to serve as shelters to over 180,000 migrants, who the mayor has warned will "destroy" the city. (Related: NYC Mayor Eric Adams warns illegal immigrants will DESTROY the city.) He has been a steadfast defender of New York's decades-old sanctuary city status which prohibits city authorities from asking questions about a person's immigration status or showing it to federal authorities. Nevertheless, Adams disclosed his change of heart after angry residents questioned him about immigrant crimes, including January's brutal Times Square attack on two policemen that saw most of the suspects freed on bail within hours of their arrests. Adams wants modifications to New York City's sanctuary city law "We need to modify the sanctuary city law that if you commit a felony or violent act. We should be able to turn you over to ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] and have you deported," Adams told a town hall meeting on Monday, Feb. 26. More than 560 American cities, states and counties have declared themselves sanctuaries since the early 1980s and New York assumed the status under former Democrat Mayor Ed Koch. However, sanctuary cities have been a favorite target of governors on the southern border who have bussed thousands of illegals north to them as the immigration crisis has gained steam. Thanks to your generous support, we are building the infrastructure of human freedom and actively donating our technology to independent publishers, authors and home schooling organizations. Learn about our game-changing non-commercial AI project here. Support our ongoing efforts to preserve and enhance human knowledge by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com. Police in the city are not permitted to arrest anybody because they are an illegal migrant and the city will not work with an investigation by immigration authorities unless ordered to by a court. The city anticipates spending $10.6 billion by the end of 2025 and declared a budget in December that would cut the number of New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers by a fifth and the education cut by $1 billion hit over two years. "Let me tell you something, New Yorkers. Never in my life have I had a problem that I did not see an ending to. I don't see an ending to this. This issue will destroy New York City. Destroy New York City," Adams told a public meeting in September. He confronted more pressure recently over his plans for a $53 million debit card program that could provide a family of immigrants with two children under the age of 17 up to $15,200 a year. Adams, speaking during a news conference after related statements he made on Monday, said he believes New York City bureaus should be free to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport migrants who have been accused of committing crimes. "We should be communicating with ICE, and if ICE makes the determination of deporting, then they should," Adams, a former NYPD officer, said at the news conference. "The mere fact that we cannot share with ICE that this person has committed three robberies, that this person is part of an organized gang crew, the mere fact that we can't say that or communicate that, thats problematic for me." Adams has made similar remarks on numerous occasions as of late, after what he and the NYPD have claimed to be a rise in violent and serious crime committed by immigrants after many high-profile cases made headlines in recent weeks. Shootings and fights in Times Square, theft groups and alleged gang recruitment have all been examples of crimes in New York that Adams and the NYPD ascribed to immigrants in recent months, inciting public worry about the migrants bringing in a crime surge with them. While Adams did not indicate what aspects of the law he would like to see changed, he would require the City Council's approval to make any such changes in the beginning, something officials have said isn't expected to come. Watch the video below about New York City Mayor Eric Adams' stunning turnaround on the city's sanctuary policy. This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: NYC still provides FREE hotel rooms to ILLEGALS, despite Mayor Eric Adams claiming that the Big Apple is "out of room." NYC Mayor Adams is giving huge payouts to illegal aliens $10,000 cash payments to EACH migrant. Sanctuary City New York spent over $5 billion in taxpayer money the previous fiscal year to provide services for ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS. Sources include: DailyMail.co.uk USAToday.com Brighteon.com Slovakias PM reveals NATO, EU states still considering sending troops to Ukraine North Atlantic Treaty Organization and European Union member states are preparing to send troops to Ukraine , according to Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico. Fico, perceived by the West as a pro-Russian politician, provided no specific information on how Western soldiers could be deployed to help Ukraine, and reporters claim he was possibly just trying to stir up trouble. (Related: White House threatens to SEND AMERICAN TROOPS TO UKRAINE if Congress doesn't approve more aid.) He was speaking in advance of a hurriedly arranged meeting of European leaders in Paris because of what his advisers said was an escalation in Russian aggression over the past few weeks. The meeting indicates that "a number of NATO and EU member states are considering that they will send their troops to Ukraine on a bilateral basis," Fico said in a televised briefing after a meeting with Slovakia's security council. "I cannot say for what purpose and what they should be doing there," Fico said, adding that Slovakia, a member of both NATO and the EU, would not be deploying soldiers to Ukraine. He warned that the move could lead to an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. In another interview, Fico reported that the thought of Europe and NATO sending troops to Ukraine to fight Russia sent "shivers down his spine." Since Fico's election in late October 2023, Slovakia has been regarded as a valuable asset to Russia, as Fico has made it clear that it does not want to spend Slovakian taxpayer money on Ukraine. Fico previously noted that any attempt by the Western world to unite on a strategy on Ukraine would be unsuccessful thanks to him. At another instance, he even mentioned that there was "no war in Kyiv" and that life there was "absolutely normal." Human knowledge is under attack! Governments and powerful corporations are using censorship to wipe out humanity's knowledge base about nutrition, herbs, self-reliance, natural immunity, food production, preparedness and much more. We are preserving human knowledge using AI technology while building the infrastructure of human freedom. Learn about our free, non-commercial AI / LLM project here. Support our efforts to build the infrastructure of human freedom by shopping at HealthRangerStore.com, featuring lab-tested, certified organic, non-GMO foods and nutritional solutions. European leaders deny planning to send troops to Ukraine Officially, Western leaders still publicly refuse to consider sending troops on the ground to avoid starting a direct conflict with Russia. But this has not prevented planning for future training deployments in Ukraine to improve Kyiv's military. "The Czech Republic certainly is not preparing to send any soldiers to Ukraine, nobody has to worry about that," said Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala. French President Emmanuel Macron, in a recent meeting with NATO members, declared that a new alliance would be made to provide Ukraine with more longer-range missiles and munitions, adding that France is not excluding the possibility of sending ground forces to battle Russians. "There is no consensus today to send ground troops but nothing should be excluded," said Macron following the meeting in Paris. "We will do whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war." Macron added that the new bloc would be established to provide "missiles and bombs of medium- and long-range" to Ukraine while adding "We are convinced that the defeat of Russia is indispensable to security and stability in Europe." President Joe Biden and his administration have reaffirmed their belief that the "path to victory" for Ukraine is supplying military aid "so Ukrainian troops have the weapons and ammunition they need to defend themselves." "President Biden has been clear that the United States will not send troops to fight in Ukraine," the White House said. Other notable Western leaders like German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak have also denied claims that they would be deploying troops to Ukraine. Although Sunak did admit that there was a small number of British personnel in Ukraine helping to train the country's armed forces. Watch the video below about NATO sending Europeans to Ukraine. This video is from the The Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Report: British Armed Forces directly involved in Ukraine conflict. Russian warnings of nuclear escalation deter NATO members from sending troops to Ukraine. Western special forces are UNOFFICIALLY in Ukraine to fight Russia as WWIII looms. U.K. deploys troops to NATO military drills while ramping up aid to Ukraine. Sources include: Telegraph.co.uk BBC.com Brighteon.com The United Kingdom stands on the brink of a meteorological crisis. As the Met Office issues flood alerts, the nation braces for a week of relentless rainfall that threatens to test the resilience of its people and the robustness of its infrastructure. The Onslaught of the Storm Meteorologists have painted a bleak picture for the coming days, with a band of heavy rain expected to sweep across the country from west to east. This relentless downpour is set to engulf the UK by Tuesday morning, leaving little room for the sun's reprieve. The Met Office's latest models suggest that the intensity of the rainfall could lead to widespread flooding, disrupting the lives of millions and testing the limits of the UK's flood defenses. In the wake of these predictions, communities across the nation are on edge. The impending weather crisis has prompted local authorities to spring into action, fortifying flood barriers and preparing emergency response plans. Residents in vulnerable areas are advised to secure their properties and remain vigilant as the storm approaches. Navigating the Crisis The UK's emergency services are gearing up for a significant response effort. With the forecast indicating a sustained period of rain, resources are being mobilized to ensure swift assistance to those who may find themselves in harm's way. The government has assured the public that every measure is being taken to protect lives and property. The public is urged to stay informed by following updates from The Met Office and adhering to safety guidelines. Avoiding unnecessary travel, being cautious of rising water levels, and seeking shelter during peak rainfall are among the key recommendations. The nation's collective spirit and resilience are poised to be tested as it navigates through this impending weather anomaly. A Surprising Twist: Warmer Days Ahead Contrary to the grim forecasts, a surprising twist in the weather pattern is set to bring a wave of warmth over the UK. As high pressure moves northwards from Spain, temperatures are expected to soar, reaching up to 20C, surpassing the warmth of Barcelona. This unexpected shift comes after a cold weekend, with forecasters predicting mild air being pulled over from the south and west, leading to a significant rise in temperatures by Thursday and Friday. Meteorologist Jo Farrow notes that while the weekend struggled to reach double figures, the mercury is set to rise dramatically. Despite the rain, the UK could experience spring-like warmth, with temperatures potentially reaching 19 or 20C in a warmer southerly flow. This brings a mixed bag of weather, with rain particularly affecting Wales, Northwest England, and Southwest Scotland around the Irish Sea, while other areas will enjoy a mostly dry week. Also Read: UK Weather Update: Met Office Warns of Dangerous Snow, Ice Conditions; Flood Warnings Reported The Economic and Social Impact The anticipated weather conditions have sent ripples through the UK's economy, with businesses bracing for potential disruptions. The agriculture sector, in particular, is on high alert, as excessive rainfall could damage crops and delay planting schedules. Retailers and service providers are also preparing for a downturn in foot traffic, as consumers are likely to stay indoors. In times of crisis, the UK's community spirit often shines brightest. Neighbors are banding together to support one another, offering shelter and assistance to those in need. Social media platforms are buzzing with offers of help, from sandbagging efforts to providing hot meals for emergency workers. This solidarity is a testament to the nation's unyielding resolve in the face of adversity. Looking to the Future As extreme weather events become more frequent, the UK is confronted with the reality of climate change and the need for increased preparedness. Investments in flood defense and emergency response infrastructure are being scrutinized, with calls for more robust measures to protect vulnerable communities. The UK's ability to weather this storm will be a defining moment for the country. It is a test of not only the physical defenses in place but also the will and determination of its people. As the nation looks to the skies, it does so with a sense of unity and a readiness to face whatever challenges the weather may bring. Related article: UK Weather: Heavy Rain Triggers More Than 150 Flood Alerts A meteor strike that entered Earth's atmosphere in 2014 was initially thought to be unusual since the sound waves it emitted were reportedly signals from "aliens." Based on a theory, the space object that crashed north of Papua New Guinea in Oceania was alien in origin and arrived from deep space. However, new research that will be presented at a conference in the United States shows the noise from the 'alien meteor' came from a passing truck. Meteors can be either bits of rocks or ice ejected from comets as they traverse their orbits around the Sun, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Once it enters our planet's atmosphere, a meteor can glow brighter than the planet Venus. In this state, a meteor is called a fireball since the object can start to ignite upon contact with the atmosphere and disintegrate before hitting Earth's surface. Alien Meteor Significantly larger meteors make noises in the form of a sonic boom or sound waves as they pass through the atmosphere. In the case of the 2014 alien meteor, officially called CNEOS 2014-01-08, it entered our planet in January 2014 over the western Pacific Ocean. During this time, a seismic station in Manus Island, Papua New Guinea, recorded ground vibration data; where sensors initially detected a suspected interstellar signal. For almost a decade, the meteor made headlines again after a scientific team visited the apparent impact location of the space rock. The scientists cleaned out debris from the seafloor bed which they speculated to contain potential alien technology. Yet, a follow-up seismic analysis of the space rock shows that the 2014 meteor may not struck the planet at all or it landed in a different located other than near Papua New Guinea. In a media release by Johns Hopkins University (JHU) earlier in March 2024, a team of researchers from the educational institution based in Baltimore, Maryland, raised doubts. In particular, the team questioned that the materials from the 2014 meteor fireball collected in 2023 from the Pacific Ocean are alien by nature. JHU planetary seismologist Benjamin Fernando explains that the signal matches a road that passed through a seismometer. Also Read: Giant 'Alien Comet' from Different Solar System Approaches Our Sun [Scientists] Truck Noise The JHU-led research will be presented at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Texas on Tuesday, March 12. In the JHU release on Thursday, March 7, Fernando stated the basis of attribution for the alien meteor relies on misinterpreted data and that the space object entered Earth's atmosphere but in a different location. Following their examination, the JHU found no evidence of seismic waves from the meteor. In previous years, meteor strikes have impacted Earth's surface and become fragments called meteorites after surviving the trip through the atmosphere. Some of these events also produced significant sound waves as they were observed in our planet's skies. In May 2023, a fireball meteor emitting orange-yellow light burned through Queensland's atmosphere and produced a sonic boom. Related Article: Meteor Fragments from 'Interstellar Space Rock' Being Hunted in the Pacific Ocean, North of Papua New Guinea Peatlands, the unsung heroes of carbon sequestration, have been thrust into the limelight by recent research. These boggy, often overlooked landscapes punch well above their weight in the global carbon cycle. Despite covering a mere 3% of the Earth's land surface, they hold twice as much carbon as all the world's forests combined. But the very canals that were once carved out to drain these wetlands for agriculture and development are now recognized as significant sources of carbon emissions. The Canal Conundrum: Waterways as Emission Hotspots The intricate network of canals slicing through Southeast Asia's peatlands has inadvertently created a fast track for carbon to escape from these ancient carbon vaults. A study spearheaded by researchers from UC San Diego Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Stanford University reveals that a third of the organic carbon leached from peatland soils into canal waters is rapidly oxidized, contributing to atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. This finding is alarming, considering that Southeast Asian peatlands, which have been subjected to extensive deforestation and drainage, are already a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. The degradation of these peatlands has not only released carbon that had been securely stored for millennia but has also destabilized a critical natural buffer against climate change. Also Read: As Peatlands Thaw, Two Gases Much Worse Than Carbon Are Being Unchained The Hidden Carbon Flow The study delves deeper into the fate of carbon once it enters the canal networks. By analyzing water samples from peatland canals in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, the researchers discovered that both microbial respiration and photochemical mineralization are responsible for the swift conversion of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to carbon dioxide within the water column. This process is influenced by various factors, including water chemistry, hydrology, and meteorology, making it a complex phenomenon to predict. However, under typical conditions, the oxidation of DOC in these canals can reduce the export of peat DOC by approximately 35%, indicating that a substantial portion of carbon is lost before it even reaches rivers or the ocean. The implications of these findings are profound. They underscore the need for a reevaluation of land management practices, particularly in regions rich in peatlands. As the world grapples with the pressing issue of climate change, understanding and mitigating the unintended consequences of human activities on these carbon-rich ecosystems become increasingly crucial. The research not only highlights the role of peatlands in the global carbon cycle but also calls for urgent action to protect these vital ecosystems. It is a stark reminder that the solutions to some of our most daunting environmental challenges may lie in the conservation and restoration of the natural world. The preservation of peatlands and the careful management of waterways are not just environmental concerns; they are essential strategies in the fight against climate change. As we continue to uncover the intricate connections between land, water, and the atmosphere, it becomes clear that every effort to safeguard these natural resources is an investment in a sustainable future. Related article: Extreme Drought Impacts Important Peatlands Carbon Sinks That Fight Climate Change Sea turtles are reptiles that can be found in different parts of the world. These marine turtles are known for living a long time and even outlived the dinosaurs for millions of years. However, these shelled animals face various natural and anthropogenic challenges when it comes to their survival. For the last 200 years, human activities have threatened the survival of these ancient mariners, according to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Aside from threats posed by humans and natural predators, sea turtles are facing another emerging environmental risk: plastic pollution. In a report on Tuesday, March 12, scientists have been analyzing the guts of dead sea turtles in the Mediterranean Sea, where they found hundreds of plastic items. One of the turtles ingested rubber witch's finger Halloween toy. The findings are according to a 2024 study on plastic pollution in the eastern Mediterranean. Plastic Pollution Threat Plastic pollution has long been attributed to the increasing number of dead sea turtles worldwide. Although the survival rate of a young marine turtle into adulthood is very low, plastic materials are exacerbating the current threats to the turtles. According to the Sea Turtle Conservancy, thousands of hatchling turtles arise from their nest along the coastline of the Southeast US and enter the Atlantic Ocean. The destruction of sea turtle eggs and natural challenges that they will face are key factors to this struggle. However, it is estimated only 1 in 1,000 to 10,000 will survive and make it into adulthood. In terms of sea turtle deaths, 150,000 turtles from all species are killed in shrimp trawls, based on global estimates of annual capture, injury, and mortality, according to the conservancy. In addition, 22% of sea turtles have a chance of dying after eating one plastic item, according to a CSIRO report as cited by the Ocean Blue Project. Also Read: Sea Turtles Threatened By Plastic Pollution, Researchers Say Sea Turtle Ingests Halloween Toy In the study published in the journal Marine Pollution Bulletin, researchers examined 135 loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) that were either washed up ashore or killed as bycatch in fishing nets off the northern waters of Cyprus. The assessment found over 40% of the turtles containing macroplastics on their guts. One sea turtle ingested a Halloween toy from an apparent child's costume, it was reported on Monday, March 11. The research paper was led by the University of Exeter and the North Cyprus Society for the Protection of Turtles. The paper's authors include Dr. Emily Duncan from the University of Exeter. The study concluded that loggerhead turtles are a potential bio-indicator that could help the scientific community further understand the magnitude and scope of plastic pollution. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), an estimated 1,000 rivers are responsible for almost 80% of annual riverine plastic emissions into the ocean worldwide. The plastic pollution ranges between 0.8 and 2.7 million tons each year. Among these inland waters, small urban rivers are the greatest contributor to the pollution, the UNEP adds. Related Article: Plastic Pollution: Autopsy Reveals Plastic Ingested by Dead Turtles in UAE Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado can expect rain and snow showers this week, causing potentially slower commutes or travel disruptions. People with travel plans should monitor the latest forecasts and winter-related advisories to avoid travel dangers. The NWS Weather Prediction Center monitors anomalous warm temperatures in the Ohio Valley, Northeast, and Upper Midwest on Wednesday. Residents can anticipate a break from cold weather with the warmer outlook. In addition, NWS Boulder reports that heavy snow is likely this week. The forecast warns of a developing winter storm that could impact on Wednesday or Thursday night. Homeowners should anticipate widespread snow in the Front Range and Interstate 25. Due to the snowy weather outlook, motorists should anticipate very difficult travel in the said areas. Commuters should watch out for foggy conditions and poor road visibility. When traveling is not necessary, homeowners should be at home and wait until the weather becomes better. Weather in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah: Where Will Challenging Weather Unload? According to NWS advisories, a hazardous weather outlook is likely to impact western Colorado and eastern Utah. Light snow conditions can hit this week with winter weather advisories present in the Colorado mountains with six to 12 inches of snow. The forecast shows that unsettled weather can unload through the end of the week, with a possible low pressure impacting the Four Corners region. Areas near the San Juan mountains can anticipate snowy conditions. Meanwhile, Central and Southeast Colorado can check for isolated and brief showers. From Wednesday to early next week, moderate to heavy snow can unload. The heavy snow outlook can unload in Sangre De Cristo Mountains, Northern El Paso County, and Pikes Peak. On Friday, rain with snow can unload. In the mountainous areas, isolated rain showers are possible. Meanwhile, northeast and north-central Colorado should watch out for a significant winter storm on late Wednesday or Friday, bringing snowfall to portions of the Front Range Mountains. The advisory warns of dangerous commutes. On the weekend, the weather is expected to change, bringing drier and warmer temperatures. Daily commutes are forecast to become better, but motorists should still be alert for slippery roads. On the other hand, the forecast warns of a challenging weather outlook in Southwest Wyoming on Wednesday or Thursday. Residents should stay alert for Winter Weather Advisories before leaving. Foggy conditions and snow are likely as a cold front moves into northern Wyoming. Also Read: California NWS Weather Forecast: Unsettled Weather Pattern, High Elevation Snow Likely to Hit This Week Significant and Long Duration Snow from March to March 16 NWS Weather Prediction Center warns of a significant and long-duration winter storm based on a key message for the March 13 to March 16 winter storm. The forecast reveals that a winter storm can develop and impact portions of Central and Southern Rockies, including the Four Corners region. Related Article: Denver Weather Forecast: Snowstorm To Bring Travel Concerns, Power Outages This Week For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. Eight children were reported dead after sea turtle meat caused severe food poisoning on Pemba Island in the Zanzibar archipelago, Tanzania. According to the latest reports, 78 people were also rushed to hospitals. Authorities warned of the possible health impacts of eating the meat of sea turtles. However, reports reveal that the said meat is considered a deadly delicacy in the region. A recent report shows that chelonitoxism can occur due to sea turtle consumption and poisoning. People can suffer from severe health effects from eating turtle meat, which can lead to fatal conditions. Research says that the same reports were seen in subtropical Atlanta, Indian Ocean countries, and the Pacific. Severe Food Poisoning After Eating Sea Turtle Meat Consuming sea turtle meat is part of the delicacy in Zanzibar, despite warnings of health impacts. In the latest news reports, the meat caused the deaths of eight children. Additionally, 78 people more showed signs of food poisoning and were hospitalized. Laboratory tests were made to confirm the deaths from food poisoning, and records showed that the victims ate the meat from sea turtles. Studies warn that parts of marine turtles are toxic, and can be deadly for humans to consume. Patients can suffer from the following: Nausea Neurologic manifestations Vomiting Severe food poisoning or chlenonitoxism The report shows that people consume sea turtles near coastal areas. In the Zanzibar region, authorities are expected to send disaster management to investigate. People are urged to avoid consuming sea turtles due to potential health risks and untimely death. If you show signs of salmonella or food poisoning, it is best to consult a doctor. Also Read: CDC Warns of Salmonella Infections Linked to Charcuterie Meats Tiny Turtles and Salmonella Threats The Centers for Disease Control and Prevenetion (CDC) raised concerns about the health impacts of salmonella from small turtles. Having tiny turtles can bring risks of salmonella at home, and it is illegal to sell as pets across the United States. According to recent reports, salmonella can make people sick. Patients can people diarrhea for four to seven days. There are times when the outbreak can cause hospitalization due to severe cases, particularly for older adults, people with medical conditions, and children. Exposure to salmonella by touching contaminated areas can happen because tiny turtles can spread germs. As a result, homeowners should avoid buying small turtles that are less than four inches long. The CDC also advises people to sanitize when they become exposed to small turtles. Children should avoid snuggling or cuddling with small turtles like kissing. For owners, it is best to always monitor your tanks, and clean them from time to time. The best tank cleaning is to keep away from the kitchen or indoors to avoid the spread of germs. Related Article: Sea Turtle Dies After Swallowing Halloween Toy, Scientists Highlight Impact of Plastic Pollution [Study] For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. According to information published by the European Union on March 13, 2024, the Greek frigate Hydra, actively participating in the EUNAVFOR ASPIDES mission, successfully neutralized an aerial threat posed by two Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link Hellenic Navy's Hydra class frigate Hydra. (Picture source: Nikos Dendias) EUNAVFOR ASPIDES, launched by the European Council on February 19, 2024, is a defensive maritime security operation aimed at safeguarding freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and the Gulf. The operation was initiated in response to numerous attacks by Houthi militants on international commercial vessels since October 2023, particularly to support the Palestinian militant group Hamas in its conflict with Israel. The mission underscores the European Union's commitment to restoring maritime security and ensuring safe passage in a strategically vital maritime corridor. The operation's mandate includes providing maritime situational awareness, accompanying vessels, and protecting them against possible multi-domain attacks at sea. It will operate along the main sea lines of communication, including the Baab al-Mandab Strait and the Strait of Hormuz, covering international waters in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Oman, and the Gulf. This comprehensive coverage aims to mitigate the threats posed by Houthi attacks, which have jeopardized the safety of civilians and the freedom of navigation, challenging the principles enshrined in the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea. EUNAVFOR ASPIDES is led by Operation Commander Commodore Vasileios Gryparis, with Rear Admiral Stefano Costantino serving as the Force Commander. The operation headquarters is based in Larissa, Greece. It will coordinate closely with EUNAVFOR ATALANTA, an ongoing EU mission aimed at enhancing maritime security in the West Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, to maximize the effectiveness of the EU's maritime security efforts in the region. According to information published by the CENTCOM on March 11, 2024, two anti-ship ballistic missiles were launched by Houthi forces from areas under their control in Yemen towards the Red Sea. Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link Sailors stand guard at the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) Maritime Operations Center in Manama, Bahrain. (Picture source: US DoD) The target of these missiles was the Pinocchio, a merchant vessel which is owned by Singapore and flies the Liberian flag. Despite the attacks, the missiles did not hit the vessel, and there were no reports of injuries or damage. Following these missile launches, the United States Central Command conducted a series of defensive operations in the region. These operations included six strikes aimed at neutralizing perceived threats. The strikes led to the destruction of an unmanned underwater vehicle and 18 anti-ship missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen. Context The Red Sea crisis, sparked on October 19, 2023, by the Houthi movement's missile and drone attacks against Israel, quickly escalated to a maritime conflict. The Houthis, supported by Iran, targeted both military and commercial vessels in the Red Sea, especially around the strategic Bab-el-Mandeb strait, a crucial chokepoint for global trade leading directly to the Suez Canal. This move by the Houthis to declare ships linked to Israel as targets has significantly disrupted one of the world's most vital shipping lanes, highlighting the fragile security situation in key maritime corridors. This crisis is part of a broader regional conflict that includes the Israel-Hamas war and the Iran-Israel proxy conflict, adding layers of complexity to the situation. The international response, led by the United States and the United Kingdom, has involved military operations aimed at securing the Red Sea routes and countering the Houthi threat. The disruption has broader implications for international trade, particularly for nations dependent on these routes for the import and export of goods. The increased risk has led to higher shipping costs and longer transit times, as vessels are forced to reroute to avoid the area. To strengthen defense cooperation between Germany and Norway, the two countries have recently broadened their collaboration beyond the joint production of submarines to include the development of future naval projects, particularly the F127 air defense frigate. This expansion of their partnership underscores the strategic significance of Berlin and Oslo's relationship in the defense sector, especially within NATO. Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link Artist overview of the F127 Frigate (Picture source:Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems ) Last September, a contract worth 5.5 billion euros was awarded to ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) for the construction of six U212CD type submarines, divided between the German Navy and the Royal Norwegian Navy. This collaboration extends to crew training and exercise, as well as maintenance and armament, with a jointly developed combat system for the ships. The cooperation does not end there, as it also encompasses the development of anti-ship missiles within the Super Sonic Strike Missile (3SM) Tyrfing program, led by Kongsberg. Norwegian Defense Minister Bjrn Arild Gram highlighted Germany as Norway's most important partner in Europe for defense equipment. Boris Pistorius, Gram's German counterpart, expressed interest in further collaboration during a visit to Norway on March 7. He mentioned potential cooperation on the F127 frigate project, aimed at renewing the German Navy's fleet with six new units. Initiated in 2018 by the German Defense Ministry's planning department, the project initially aimed for cooperation with the Netherlands, although this collaboration appears to be facing challenges. Norway plans to replace its "Fridtjof Nansen" class frigates with six new ships, potentially opening up for collaboration on the F127 program. According to Hartpunkt, the F127 frigates will be equipped with the American AEGIS system and designed to protect against a wide range of aerial threats while also having anti-submarine and anti-surface capabilities. General Eirik Kristoffersen, chief of staff of the Norwegian Armed Forces, emphasized the importance of enhancing maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare capabilities, highlighting the strategic interest of future frigates in this area. This focus on anti-submarine capabilities also explains Norway's interest in the Defense and Intervention Frigate (FDI) from France's Naval Group. Other countries, including the Netherlands, had explored possibilities for cooperation with Germany on the F127 frigate project. The country wished to introduce new ships by 2032 to replace the De Zeven Provincien class frigates. However, the states ended their collaboration after German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius decided in July 2023 to opt for an Aegis combat system solution for the German Next-Generation Frigate - Air Defense (NGFrig-AD, F127) program. The proposed solution required the submission of a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) request, which would also apply to selling the frigates to Norway. The F127 project analysis began in 2021 and concluded in February 2023, allowing the program to move to the second phase or to develop options for the defense chief's review. The F127 was initially expected to replace the F124 class starting in 2032, but it now seems likely that this date will be pushed back a few years. Construction is not anticipated to begin before 2026. The MEKO A400 Air and Missile Defence (AMD) frigate design from ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems was the preferred choice for the hull. With a length of 160 m, a width of 21 m, a depth of 5.5 m, and a displacement of 10,000 tons, the MEKO A400 AMD would be the size of a destroyer. It would be capable of a maximum speed of about 32 knots and have a range of over 4,000 km. Sorry, something doesn't look right. Something seems unusual about your device or browser. Please contact support. Pavail Gulati starts shooting for second schedule of Shahid Kapoor-starrer 'Deva' Mumbai, March 12 A ctor Pavail Gulati has started shooting for the second schedule of Deva, which will be headlined by Shahid Kapoor. The shooting for the high-octane action thriller is currently taking place in Mumbai. Pavail was recently spotted on the sets of the film. Excited about the film, Pavail earlier said, "I am incredibly excited to embark on this exhilarating journey and absolutely thrilled to collaborate with exceptional talents like Shahid Kapoor and the amazing director Rosshan Andrrews. It's my first with Roy Kapur Films and Zee Studios, this opportunity not only represents a significant milestone for me but also a challenge that I wholeheartedly welcome and am eager to embrace. It's going to be a fun ride." 'Deva' promises to be a rollercoaster ride of suspense, deceit, and high-stakes action. It also stars Pooja Hegde in a pivotal role, and is produced by Zee Studios and Roy Kapur Films and directed by Rosshan Andrrews. Last year, Shahid announced the title of the project and shared the first-look poster. In the poster, Shahid could be seen carrying a rugged look while dressed in a white shirt and trousers. He wore a pair of sunglasses and carried a gun in one of his hands. Sharing the still, he wrote, "DEVA in theatres on Dussehra 11th October 2024." The film will hit the theatres on 11th October 2024 on the auspicious occasion of Dussehra. Pavail Gulati starts shooting for second schedule of Shahid Kapoor-starrer 'Deva' Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Kareena, Tabu, Kriti Sanon set the dance floor on fire in 'Ghagra' song from 'Crew' Mumbai, March 12 A new song 'Ghagra' from Kareena Kapoor Khan, Tabu and Kriti Sanon-starrer 'Crew' has been unveiled. 'Ghagra' is a party anthem in which the terrific trio radiates infectious energy, joyously celebrating amidst the dynamic beats of the dance number set in a vibrant club space. It is the reprised version of Ila Arun's iconic song. Take a look at the video of the song. https://www.instagram.com/p/C4aqh1aNa-P/?hl=en Recently, the makers unveiled the teaser of the film. In the film, Tabu, Kareena and Kriti are essaying the roles of "bada**" air hostesses. From stealing peanut boxes meant for flights to planning to earn a lot of money and raising glam quotient, the trio has been doing everything to grab eyeballs. The teaser begins with a voiceover by Tabu, where she warns the passengers that it is going to be too extreme for them to handle.The highlight of the teaser is Tabu hilariously hurling abuses. Diljit Dosanjh and Kapil Sharma have also marked their blink-and-miss appearances in the teaser. Sharing the teaser's link, Kareena took to Instagram and wrote, " Kursi ki peti baandh lein, kyuki yahan ka taapmaan aapke liye bahot garm hone vala hai#CrewTeaser out now #CrewInCinemasOnMarch29 @tabutiful @kritisanon @diljitdosanjh and a special appearance by @kapilsharma."The film is made under Balaji Telefilms and Anil Kapoor Film & Communications Network banners. The film will be hitting the theatres on March 29, 2024. Earlier it was slated to release on March 22 but the makers have decided to push the film's release. 'Crew' is a story of three women and is touted as a laugh-riot, set against the backdrop of the struggling airline industry. However, their destinies lead to some unwarranted situations and they get caught in a web of lies. The movie marks the second collaboration between Ektaa R Kapoor and Rhea Kapoor after the 2018 female buddy comedy 'Veere Di Wedding'. Kareena, Tabu, Kriti Sanon set the dance floor on fire in 'Ghagra' song from 'Crew' Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Once again Pokhran became witness of triveni of India's Aatmnirbharta, self-confidence and its glory: PM Modi Pokhran, March 12 P rime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday witnessed the tri-service exercise 'Bharat Shakti' in Rajasthan's Pokhran and said that once again Pokhran became a witness of the 'triveni' of India's Aatmnirbharta, self-confidence and its glory. PM Modi said that it is the same Pokhran town that witnessed India's nuclear test and today the country is witnessing the power of strength from indigenisation. Addressing the occasion, the Prime Minister said that the valour and skills at display on the occasion are the call of new India. "Today, once again Pokhran became a witness of the 'triveni' of India's Aatmnirbharta, self-confidence and its glory," he said while adding that "It is the same Pokhran that witnessed India's nuclear test and today we are witnessing the power of strength from indigenisation." Speaking about the test firing of the long-range AGNI missile equipped with advanced MIRV technology yesterday, the Prime Minister affirmed that only a handful of countries in the world have hold of this new-age technology and prowess and underlined that the testing is another feather in the cap for aatmairbhata in defence. "The idea of Viksit Bharat is unimaginable without aatmanirbhar Bharat," the Prime Minister said, underscoring the need to reduce dependence on others. Noting that today's occasion is a step towards this resolution, the Prime Minister said that India is laying emphasis on aatmanirbharta from edible oils to fighter jets. The Prime Minister said that the success of aatmnirbharta in defence can be seen with India's tanks, cannons, fighter jets, helicopters and missile systems which reflect India's strength. "We are experiencing the flight of Made in India with arms and ammunition, communication devices, cyber and space. This is indeed Bharat Shakti," the Prime Minister said. He also mentioned indigenously made Tajas fighter jets, advanced light combat helicopters, submarines, destroyers, aircraft carriers, advanced Arjun Tanks and cannons. Listing out the steps for making India self-reliant in the defence sector, the Prime Minister mentioned policy reforms roping in the private sector and encouragement of MSME startups in the field. He talked about defence corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and informed about Rs 7000 crore investment therein. He congratulated the Chiefs of all three forces for preparing lists of items that will not be imported and supporting the Indian ecosystems of these items. The Prime Minister expressed happiness that in the last 10 years, equipment worth Rs 6 lakh crore has been procured from Indian companies. "Aatmanirbharta for India's defence needs is the guarantee of self-confidence in the armed forces," PM Modi said. He underlined that the energy of the armed forces increases manifold when the weapons and equipment used during wars are made indigenously. In the last 10 years, the Prime Minister informed that India has produced its own fighter jet, aircraft carriers, C295 transport aircraft and advanced flight engines. Referring to the recent Cabinet decision to design, develop and manufacture 5th generation fighter jets in India, the Prime Minister envisioned the growth of defence sector and the numerous employment and self-employment opportunities to be created in the future. Recalling the time when India used to be the largest defence importer in the world, the Prime Minister highlighted India's emergence as a defence exporter and mentioned an eight-fold increase in the country's defence exports compared to 2014. "Families of service personnel from the armed forces have experienced the meaning of Modi's guarantee," the Prime Minister said with pride, mentioning the implementation of One Rank One Pension. He informed that 1.75 lakh defence personnel from Rajasthan have received the benefit of Rs 5,000 crores under OROP. PM Modi emphasized that the strength of the armed forces increases in proportion to the economic muscle of the nation. He said that when we become the third largest economy in the world, defence prowess will also touch new heights. He acknowledged the role of Rajasthan in the process and said "Viksit Rajasthan will give strength to Viksit Sena". Once again Pokhran became witness of triveni of India's Aatmnirbharta, self-confidence and its glory: PM Modi Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Port Louis, March 12 P resident Droupadi Murmu participated as the Chief Guest at the 56th Mauritius Independence Day celebrations and appreciated the growing ties between the two countries. She also witnessed the Indian Navy contingent's participation in the march. Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth and Mauritius President Prithvirajsing Roopun were also present at the celebrations. "A momentous occasion for the India-Mauritius special partnership! President Droupadi Murmu @rashtrapatibhvn participated as the Chief Guest in the celebrations of the 56th anniversary of the Independence and 32nd anniversary of the Republic of Mauritius at Champ de Mars," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X. https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/1767522127584874736?s=20 "President Droupadi Murmu participated as Chief Guest, in the National Day celebrations of Mauritius in presence of President Prithvirajsing Roopun and Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth of Mauritius. Among the various marching contingents was also the proudly marching contingent of Indian Navy. President Murmu witnessed the impressive parade followed by cultural performances," the official X handle of President stated. https://x.com/rashtrapatibhvn/status/1767535871203394031?s=20 President Murmu, who is on a three-day State visit to Mauritius, arrived in Mauritius on Monday. PM Pravind Jugnauth welcomed President Murmu at the airport with full honours. She earlier announced that India has approved a special provision to grant an Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card to the 7th generation of Indian-origin people in Mauritius. The decision would allow the younger Mauritians of Indian origin to become overseas citizens of India and to reconnect with the land of their ancestors. "With the extension of OCI Card eligibility to Indian-origin Mauritians of the 7th generation, many more young Mauritians will be able to reconnect to the land of their ancestors," she stated on X. She paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi while remembering the special significance of the date (March 12) for the two nations. Notably, Mahatma Gandhi started the famous salt march from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad on March 12, 1930. She also travelled in Metro and appreciated the Mauritius government's decision to name the situation at Reduit after Mahatma Gandhi and also depict the Dandi March at the station. "I had the opportunity to travel in the Metro just before my arrival at Mahatma Gandhi Institute, and I was moved by the special gesture of the Government of Mauritius of naming the station at Reduit after Mahatma Gandhi - as well as depicting the famous Dandi March at the station, that holds special significance to both our countries," she posted. President Murmu visited the Mahatma Gandhi Institute (MGI), Moka. She paid floral tributes at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi located on the campus of the Institute, which was established in 1970 as a joint initiative of the Governments of India and Mauritius. Addressing an enthusiastic gathering at the Institute, the President said that the remarkable strides made by the Indian diaspora in Mauritius is a matter of pride not only for us in India but an example worth emulating for Indians around the world. She added that our decades-long development partnership is a shining example of India's commitment to contribute towards the developmental journey of Mauritius and to enhance the quality of life for common people in Mauritius. The President encouraged the Mahatma Gandhi Institute to provide more avenues for the Mauritian youth to engage with India - not only culturally and linguistically, but also by providing them with educational and business opportunities. She also appreciated the initiatives such as the launch of UPI and Rupay card, inauguration of projects in Agalega, supply of generic medicines and launch of several community development projects, terming them examples of India-Mauritius continuing development partnership. "We are delighted to have signed the first Free Trade Agreement with Mauritius, a first for African Countries, when the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement was signed in 2021," she stated. Earlier in the day, President Murmu was conferred with the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law by the University of Mauritius on Tuesday in recognition of the profound depth of the bilateral relationship between the two nations. President Murmu participates as Chief Guest at Mauritius National Day, witnesses Indian Navy contingent Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Katrina Kaif shares pics from WPL match, poses with UP Warriorz team Mumbai, March 12 A ctor Katrina Kaif, along with her sister Isabelle, watched the Women's Premier League match between Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz in Delhi on Monday. Katrina took to her Instagram account on Tuesday to share cheerful moments from the match. Her posts radiated happiness as she posed with her sister and the UP Warriorz players. She captioned the pictures and wrote, "All heart dYa More power to youaEURae#itskaytobeyou #upwarrioz. And a wonderful time with the most charming sharma family (sic)." https://www.instagram.com/p/C4Z6usUtBWY/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Katrina and her sister Isabelle Kaif wore team jerseys while cheering from the stands. Several videos capturing Katrina's interactions with fans are doing the rounds on various social media platforms, including X. Other than this, the actor melted hearts when she posed with adorable children outside the stadium. Watch the video here: https://x.com/goldfishkat/status/1767264688373383652?s=20 Meanwhile, on the work front, Katrina was last seen in Sriram Raghavan's 'Merry Christmas' opposite Vijay Sethupathi. The Hindi version of the film featured Sanjay Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Pratima Kannan, and Tinnu Anand. The Tamil version starred Radhika Sarathkumar, Shanmugaraja, Kevin Jay Babu, and Rajesh Williams in the same roles. Katrina will be next seen in Farhan Akhtar's upcoming film 'Jee Le Zara' along with Alia Bhatt and Priyanka Chopra. Katrina Kaif shares pics from WPL match, poses with UP Warriorz team Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! New Delhi, March 12 P rime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation on Tuesday with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak and both leaders expressed satisfaction with the progress made under the Roadmap 2030. "During the conversation, both leaders expressed satisfaction with the progress made under the Roadmap 2030 in diverse areas, including trade, investment, defence, security, emerging technologies and others," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release. The two leaders also assessed the progress made towards the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement. They reaffirmed their commitment to continue to strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Prime Minister Modi and PM Sunak also exchanged views on regional and global developments of mutual interest. The two leaders further agreed to remain in touch. They also exchanged greetings on the upcoming festive occasion of Holi, the statement added Earlier in the day, PM Modi posted on X stating, "Had a good conversation with PM @RishiSunak. We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthen the bilateral Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and work for the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement." Notably, India and the UK are negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Talks for an FTA between India and the UK started in 2022. The 13th round of negotiations between India and the UK took place from September 18 to December 15, 2023. Earlier in January, during Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's visit to the UK, Rishi Sunak expressed hope that the ongoing FTA negotiations could be brought to a successful conclusion soon. The India-UK Free Trade Agreement was also discussed during External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar's meeting with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on his recent visit to the country in November. PM Modi, Rishi Sunak discuss 'Roadmap 2030'; assess progress on FTA Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Mayor Byron Brown said Wednesday that he and members of his administration were unaware someone under federal indictment got a $175,000 city contract to help make improvements in two city parks. These contracts dont come to me. They are handled in the Department of Public Works, which set up a selection committee that reviewed the companies that responded to an RFP, Brown said during an afternoon press conference, referring to a request for proposals by El Team. Accused of misusing pandemic funds, businessman withdraws from Buffalo parks projects Hormoz Mansouri, who has been indicted on charges accusing him of misusing federal pandemic aid money, announced that his company is withdrawing from a project that it was awarded a $175,000 contract for by the City of Buffalo's Department of Public Works, Parks and Streets. The architecture, engineering, planning and construction services business is one of eight companies owned by Hormoz Mansouri, who is accused of misusing more than $3 million in pandemic relief funds, according to a 40-count federal indictment handed up in May 2022. El Team responded to the RFP and was ultimately selected for a contract to improve Shoshone and Trinidad parks. As it was reported to me, the selection committee looked at the status of the companies that responded, past work the companies have done, looked to see if the companies were qualified to do the work, Brown said. They did not identify the individual associated with the company. Monsouri, an Amherst businessman, gave nearly $400,000 to lawmakers and political committees, primarily Democrats, between 1999 and 2021, including Brown. The mayor said he played no role in the citys selection of Mansouris company. The last donation from Mr. Mansouri to me is maybe a decade ago, Brown said. The last time I spoke to Mr. Mansouri was maybe a decade ago or more, so it has been a lot of years since there have been any donations from Mr. Mansouri to me or that I have spoken to him. Mansouri gave Brown $10,175 in contributions from February 2000 to December 2015, according to campaign finance records. The last donation was for $75. Mansouri has made public presentations for the park master plans since August 2023, but his presence failed to set off alarm bells with parks employees present because they were unaware of the allegations against him, the mayor said. Someone should have been aware (of him), the mayor said. They werent, and I wasnt made aware of it. The U.S. Attorneys Office in Buffalo indicted Mansouri almost two years ago on 19 counts of wire fraud, 12 counts of bank fraud and eight counts of money laundering in a case thats expected to go to trial this summer. Prosecutors accused Mansouri of illegally obtaining $3.4 million in loans for pandemic aid between March 2020 and May 2021. Funds from the Paycheck Protection Program were intended to help struggling business owners devastated by Covid-19 meet payroll and other critical expenses. Monsouri resigned from the parks project on Tuesday, hours after The Buffalo News asked questions of him and of the Brown administration. The mayor said Wednesday El Team had fulfilled 90% of its contract to complete the master plans for the two parks and would be paid with federal money from the American Rescue Plan. I was told by the Department of Public Works all the work has been done satisfactorily to date, Brown said. Mansouri in the federal criminal case is accused of inflating or fabricating company payrolls to obtain 16 federal PPP loans. Six of the eight companies that received benefits had no employees or payroll expenses, the federal criminal complaint alleges. Brown, when asked twice by reporters on Wednesday, acknowledged that his administrations approval of the parks contract looked bad. There is no question this is embarrassing, the mayor said. I can certainly see the publics disappointment and the publics outrage. The allegations are misuse of federal funds, he said. After each response, Brown quickly pivoted to the selection process protocols he felt were followed correctly. He also noted the Common Council could have uncovered Mansouris involvement and hadnt done so. The mayor said Nathan Marton, commissioner of the Department of Public Works, Parks and Streets, has presented several recommendations that we will look at for the selection process in the future. One, Brown said, is to ask questions about legal issues that might be experienced by members of the company, to take a closer look at issues that could be problematic. Champaign, IL (61820) Today Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low near 50F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%.. Tonight Scattered thunderstorms this evening becoming more widespread overnight. Low near 50F. Winds ENE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 80%. There is a high burden of typhoid fever in sub-Saharan African countries, according to a new study published today in The Lancet Global Health. This high burden combined with the threat of typhoid strains resistant to antibiotic treatment calls for stronger prevention strategies, including the use and implementation of typhoid conjugate vaccines (TCVs) in endemic settings along with improvements in access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene. The findings from this 4-year study, the Severe Typhoid in Africa (SETA) program, offers new typhoid fever burden estimates from six countries: Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, and Nigeria, with four countries recording more than 100 cases for every 100,000 person-years of observation, which is considered a high burden. The highest incidence of typhoid was found in DRC with 315 cases per 100,000 people while children between 2-14 years of age were shown to be at highest risk across all 25 study sites. There are an estimated 12.5 to 16.3 million cases of typhoid every year with 140,000 deaths. However, with generic symptoms such as fever, fatigue, and abdominal pain, and the need for blood culture sampling to make a definitive diagnosis, it is difficult for governments to capture the true burden of typhoid in their countries. "Our goal through SETA was to address these gaps in typhoid disease burden data," said lead author Dr. Florian Marks, Deputy Director General of the International Vaccine Institute (IVI). "Our estimates indicate that introduction of TCV in endemic settings would go to lengths in protecting communities, especially school-aged children, against this potentially deadly-;but preventable-;disease." In addition to disease incidence, this study also showed that the emergence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Salmonella Typhi, the bacteria that causes typhoid fever, has led to more reliance beyond the traditional first line of antibiotic treatment. If left untreated, severe cases of the disease can lead to intestinal perforation and even death. This suggests that prevention through vaccination may play a critical role in not only protecting against typhoid fever but reducing the spread of drug-resistant strains of the bacteria. There are two TCVs prequalified by the World Health Organization (WHO) and available through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. In February 2024, IVI and SK bioscience announced that a third TCV, SKYTyphoid, also achieved WHO PQ, paving the way for public procurement and increasing the global supply. Alongside the SETA disease burden study, IVI has been working with colleagues in three African countries to show the real-world impact of TCV vaccination. These studies include a cluster-randomized trial in Agogo, Ghana and two effectiveness studies following mass vaccination in Kisantu, DRC and Imerintsiatosika, Madagascar. Through these vaccine effectiveness studies, we aim to show the full public health value of TCV in settings that are directly impacted by a high burden of typhoid fever." He adds, "Our final objective of course is to eliminate typhoid or to at least reduce the burden to low incidence levels, and that's what we are attempting in Fiji with an island-wide vaccination campaign." Dr. Birkneh Tilahun Tadesse, Associate Director General at IVI and Head of the Real-World Evidence Department As more countries in typhoid endemic countries, namely in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, consider TCV in national immunization programs, these data will help inform evidence-based policy decisions around typhoid prevention and control. Scientists know relatively little about particles released into the air when a vehicle driver brakes, though evidence suggests those particles may be more harmful to health than particles exiting the tailpipe. In a new study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of California, Irvine researchers show how most of these particles emitted during light braking carry an electric charge something that could potentially be exploited to help reduce air pollution from vehicles. "We found that up to 80% of aerosol particles emitted from braking are electrically charged, and that many of them are in fact highly charged," said Adam Thomas, a doctoral candidate in the lab of Jim Smith, professor of chemistry, who led the study alongside UCI postdoctoral researcher Paulus Bauer. To do the work, the team used a large lathe to spin a detached brake rotor and caliper. They then measured the electric charge of the aerosols emitted into the air and discovered the 80 percent figure. I was very surprised. We were also surprised that this has not really been studied given how common cars are in human societies." Jim Smith, professor of chemistry, University of California, Irvine The research is part of a broader team effort at UCI to understand the public health impacts of non-tailpipe emissions in areas beset by car traffic, including many areas in Southern California. "The toxicity and health effects of brake wear particles are largely unknown," said Manabu Shiraiwa, professor of aerosol chemistry at UCI and one of the researchers behind the university-wide project. "Recent results from my lab indicate that they may induce oxidative stress, but more research is needed." The new study reveals a problem that may grow as electric cars become more and more common over the next several decades. Electric cars, Smith explained, are not truly zero-emission vehicles, so municipalities need to think about strategies to reduce emissions from brake use as well as tailpipes. The team found that the percentage of charged particles emitted largely depended on the material makeup of brake pads. Because the particles carry an electric charge, this should make it relatively easy to remove from the air. "If they are charged, they can be removed easily from the air before they have a chance to have an impact at all on health," said Smith. "All you would need to do is to collect them with an electrostatic precipitator a device that exposes the charged particles to an electric field and efficiently sweeps them away." The public health risk posed by brake emissions is not borne equally by a population lower-income parts of cities tend to be more traffic-heavy than others, which creates an environmental justice issue wherein certain socioeconomic classes are more exposed to brake emissions than others. According to Professor Barbara Finlayson-Pitts, Distinguished Emeritus Professor of chemistry and the principal investigator of the project at UCI, emissions from braking are not well-characterized but are potentially significant in high-traffic areas. "These areas are often in poorer communities and highlight an important aspect of environmental justice that has been largely overlooked," Finlayson-Pitts said. The UCI team is working with local community organizations like the Madison Park Neighborhood Association in Santa Ana, which is helping disseminate UCI's scientific findings to the public. Funding for the study came from fees paid by Volkswagen as part of a 2016 settlement reached with the California Department of Justice, which found that the company used devices that contributed to increased air pollution. Poor sleep habits are strongly associated with long-term chronic health conditions, according to decades of research. To better understand this relationship, a team led by researchers in Penn State's College of Health and Human Development identified four distinct patterns that characterize how most people sleep. These patterns are also predictive of long-term health, the researchers said. Soomi Lee, associate professor of human development and family studies at Penn State, led a team in identifying these sleep patterns and their correlation to overall health. Their results were published in Psychosomatic Medicine. Using a national sample of adults from the Midlife in the United States study, the team gathered data on approximately 3,700 participants' sleep habits and their chronic health conditions across two time points 10 years apart. The data included self-reported sleep habits, including sleep regularity and duration, perceived sleep satisfaction and daytime alertness, as well as the number and type of chronic conditions. Researchers used the data to identify four different sleep patterns. Good sleepers, who are characterized by optimal sleep habits across all datapoints. Weekend catch-up sleepers, who are characterized by irregular sleep, specifically short average sleep duration, but longer sleep times on weekends or non-workdays. Insomnia sleepers, who are characterized by sleep problems related to clinical insomnia symptoms, including short sleep duration, high daytime tiredness and a long time to fall asleep. Nappers, who are characterized by mostly good sleep but frequent daytime naps. Researchers found that more than half of participants were identified as insomnia sleepers or nappers, both of which are suboptimal sleep patterns. Additionally, being an insomnia sleeper over the 10-year period was associated with a significantly higher likelihood of chronic health conditions, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and depression. Results also showed that people were unlikely to change their sleep pattern over the course of the 10 years. This was especially true for insomnia sleepers and nappers. The MIDUS study may not represent the entire population, researchers said, as it primarily comprises healthy adults, but -; despite this -; most participants displayed suboptimal insomnia sleeper or napper sleep patterns. "These results may suggest that it is very difficult to change our sleep habits because sleep health is embedded into our overall lifestyle. It may also suggest that people still don't know about the importance of their sleep and about sleep health behaviors," Lee said. "We need to make more efforts to educate the public about good sleep health. There are sleep hygiene behaviors that people could do to improve their sleep, such as not using cell phones in bed, exercising regularly and avoiding caffeine in the late afternoon." While the sleep patterns were seemingly not age-related, researchers found that older adults and retirees were more likely to be nappers. They also found that those with less education and those facing unemployment were more likely to be insomnia sleepers. According to Lee, the fact that phase of life and economic conditions can influence longstanding sleep patterns suggests that societal and neighborhood influences -; including economic stressors and access to health resources -; may have significant effects on individual health and, in this case, sleep habits. All these findings strongly suggest the need for programs and interventions to promote healthy sleep and sleep habits, the researchers said. The identification of distinct sleep patterns also suggests that these prevention programs should not be one-size-fits-all and can be targeted based on a variety of factors, including the risk of chronic conditions and socioeconomic vulnerability. Sleep is an everyday behavior. Sleep is also modifiable, So, if we can improve sleep almost every day, what outcomes might we see after several months, or even several years? Better sleeping habits can make many significant differences, from improving social relationships and work performance to promoting long-term healthy behaviors and healthy aging." Soomi Lee, associate professor of human development and family studies at Penn State Other researchers from Penn State on the team included Orfeu Buxton, professor of biobehavioral health and associate director of Clinical and Translational Science Institute, and David Almeida, professor of human development and family studies. Additional collaborators included Claire E. Smith, assistant professor of psychology, University of South Florida; Meredith Wallace, associate professor of psychiatry and biostatistics, University of Pittsburgh; Sanjay R. Patel, professor of medicine and epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh; and Ross Andel, professor in the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Arizona State University. The National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Aging funded this study. Epigenetic processes allow different cell types to emerge from a single genome. Throughout development, cells differentiate and acquire distinct characteristics by expressing the same genome in different ways. However, a less-known aspect of this process is how cells maintain their unique identities over time. A study led by the Transcriptional and Epigenetic Mechanisms of Neuronal Plasticity laboratory, headed by Angel Barco at the Institute for Neurosciences, a joint center of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Miguel Hernandez University (UMH) of Elche, has determined that the protein Kdm1a plays a crucial role in preserving the identity of neurons. Neurons are cells that have a very particular nuclear structure because once they are formed during development they never divide again, which is why neurons need to precisely maintain their identity throughout their lifespan. "Identity is given by what is done and what is not done; at an epigenetic level this translates into the genes that are expressed, but also in those that are not expressed" explains Angel Barco. The results of this study, published in the journal Nature Communications, demonstrate that deleting Kdm1a in forebrain neurons in adult mice triggers the expression of genes that normally should not be expressed in neurons, which compromises neuronal identity. The researchers verified that in normal elderly mice, there is an incipient activation of the same genes derepressed in mice that have lost Kdm1a, indicating that natural aging reproduces the same defects as the lack of Kdm1a, although on a smaller scale. They found that eliminating this protein accelerates neuronal aging at an epigenetic level and alters gene transcription. The experts correlated these findings with human data by collaborating with researcher Jose Vicente Sanchez Mut, who leads the Functional Epi-Genomics of Aging and Alzheimer's Disease laboratory at the IN. They used a database of people between 50 and 80 years old and found that there is also a significant increase in the expression of some of these typically silent genes as people age. Furthermore, this work shows that the repressive function of Kdm1a maintains the separation between genes that should be expressed and those that should be silent through the modulation of chromatin structure. The separation into "compartments" allows the maintenance of order throughout the lifespan of the neuron, which is essential to preserve its identity. We know that disorder can have detrimental effects, both in aging and in intellectual disability because it blurs the barrier between what should be expressed and what should not." Beatriz del Blanco, first author of the article To understand the role of Kmd1a in compartmentalization, the researchers conducted an experiment, in collaboration with Yijun Ruan, former director of the Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, in which they used a technique that shows how DNA folds inside the cell nucleus, and how it is organized in three dimensions. These data were contrasted with images obtained using super-resolution microscopy. Both approaches indicated that some repressed genes began to be expressed because the barriers that delimit active and inactive areas of the chromatin are weakened after Kdm1a loss. The laboratory directed by Barco at the IN investigates rare neurological disorders linked to mutations in genes encoding epigenetic regulators. Mutations in the Kmd1a protein during development have been associated with an extremely rare intellectual disability disorder known as Cleft Palate, Psychomotor Delay, Distinctive Facial Features, and Intellectual Disability (CPRF Syndrome). Angel Barco emphasizes the importance of studying rare diseases to expand the limits of knowledge in this field. This work has been possible thanks to funding from the Spanish Research Agency-Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities and the Fundacio la Marato de TV3, among other sources. A multidisciplinary research team at Gladstone Institutes, led by Senior Investigator Katie Pollard, PhD, has received $5 million in funding through a newly launched grant program designed to ignite a fresh wave of cancer discoveries using computational biology and artificial intelligence. The new Transformative Computational Biology Grant Program from the Biswas Family Foundation, in partnership with the nonpartisan think tank Milken Institute, is providing a total of nearly $14 million to five research groups. At Gladstone, the grant establishes the Biswas Center for Transformative Computational Cancer Biology, where scientists will fuse powerful machine learning with cutting-edge experimental technologies to help identify and prioritize which research avenues are most likely to lead to success in the area of cancer diagnosis and treatment. Our tools and discoveries will be freely shared, fueling a global acceleration of cancer biology research and the development of therapies specialized to each type of cancer mechanism. This should help patients and their doctors make well-informed decisions about cancer care." Katie Pollard, PhD, Director, Gladstone Institute of Data Science and Biotechnology The new center's suite of deep learning models is capable of performing trillions of editing experiments to generate and rank testable hypotheses about how changing a cell's DNA will alter its function and interactions with other cells. Focused initially on colorectal and skin cancers, the group hopes to identify molecular mechanisms overlooked by other researchers and to develop a predictive understanding of how cancer immunotherapies work. Notably, the Gladstone program is designed to apply equal research emphasis across rare cancer pathways and non-European genetic ancestries, which should generate much-needed information in these understudied areas. And while the primary focus is cancer biology, the center has potential to advance medicine in many areas. Sanjit Biswas, co-founder of the Biswas Family Foundation and CEO of Samsara, first crossed paths with Pollard last fall in Washington, D.C., when Pollard delivered an attention-getting presentation on computational biology at a workshop organized by the Milken Institute. Biswas and his wife, Hope, an infectious disease epidemiologist, had recently established the Biswas Family Foundation and were looking to support scientific research and programs with the potential to improve lives on a global scale. Milken's leadership thought Pollard's data science programs meshed with the foundation's priorities. And indeed, after studying Pollard's proposal to accelerate cancer research with the aid of a computer framework and deep learning models, the Biswas team was more than intrigued. "It's cancer biology but it has the potential to advance medicine in many areas," says Hope Biswas, PhD. "And, looking at it from a global health perspective, it's really scalable and likely very cost effective." In addition to Pollard's team at Gladstone, the Biswas Family Foundation awarded grants to research groups from Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University. "The research and health ecosystem has entered an era where vast amounts of data are continuously being generated," Sanjit Biswas says. "The convergence of powerful computers, big data, and AI is already transforming human health in remarkable ways. And when you amass a lot of smart people in a place like Gladstone, really interesting things are bound to happen." The center's co-Investigators at Gladstone include: Alex Marson, MD, PhD, Barbara Engelhardt, PhD, Catherine Tcheandjieu Gueliatcha, DVM, PhD, Christina Theodoris, MD, PhD, Karin Pelka, PhD, Ryan Corces, PhD, Seth Shipman, PhD, and Vijay Ramani, PhD. An artificial intelligence (AI) tool can convert the text of doctors' notes summarizing patients' hospital visits into accurate lay language, a new study found. The research focuses on discharge notes used to capture patient's health status in the medical record as they are discharged from the hospital. Effective summaries are essential for patient safety during these transitions in care, but most are filled with technical language and abbreviations that are hard to understand and increase patient anxiety, say the study authors. To address the problem, NYU Langone Health has been testing the capabilities of generative AI, which develops likely options for the next word in any sentence based on how billions of people use words in context on the internet. A result of this next-word prediction is that such generative AI chatbots have become good at replying to questions in realistic, simple language and at producing clear summaries of complex texts. However, AI programs, which work based on probabilities instead of actually thinking, may produce inaccurate summaries, and so are therefore meant to assist, not replace, human providers. To explore generative AI, NYU Langone in March 2023 received access to GPT-4, the latest tool from OpenAI, the company that created the famous ChatGPT chatbot. NYU Langone licensed one of the first "private instances" of the tool, which allowed hundreds of its frontline clinicians to experiment with AI-based solutions to clinical problems using real patient data, while still adhering to federal standards that protect patient privacy. One of the first studies by researchers using GPT-4, published online March 11 in JAMA Network Open, looked at how well the tool could convert the text in 50 patient discharge notes into patient-friendly language. Specifically, running discharge notes through generative AI dropped the reports from an 11th-grade reading level on average to a 6th-grade level, the gold standard for patient education materials. The team also ranked the AI discharge report translations using the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT), which generates a percentage score based on 19 factors that represent the ability of patients to understand any piece of reading material. GPT-4 translation raised PEMAT understandability scores to 81 percent, up from the 13 percent score achieved by the original doctor-written discharge reports from the medical record. The research team designed the study to look at AI performance by itself as a scientific question: How far could it go independently when translating discharge reports? GPT-4 worked well alone, with some gaps in accuracy and completeness, but did more than well enough to be highly effective when combined with physician oversight, the way it would be used in the real world. One focus of the study was on how much work physicians must do to oversee the tool, and the answer is very little. Such tools could reduce patient anxiety even as they save each provider hours each week in medical paperwork, a major source of burnout." Jonah Feldman, MD, senior study author, medical director of clinical transformation and informatics within NYU Langone's Medical Center Information Technology (MCIT) Department of Health Informatics To measure the accuracy of the AI tool's translations, the authors also asked two physicians to review the AI discharge summary for accuracy based on a six-point scale. The reviewing physicians awarded 54 percent of the AI-generated discharge notes the best-possible accuracy rating. They also found that 56 percent of notes created by AI were entirely complete. These results must be considered in context, say the authors. For instance, they say, the results signify that even at the current performance level, providers would not have to make a single change in more than half of the AI summaries reviewed. Dr. Feldman notes that generative AI tools are sensitive, and asking a question of the tool in two subtly different ways may yield divergent answers. The skill required to frame the questions asked of chatbots in a way that elicits the desired response, called prompt engineering, combines intuition and experimentation. Physicians and nurses, with their deep understanding of individual cases and nuanced medical contexts, are best positioned to engineer prompts, say the authors, and they can do this without learning to write computer code. Within weeks, the research team intends to launch a program asking patients waiting to be discharged whether AI-generated reports are clear and helpful after physician review. By the summer, the team expects to launch a pilot program to provide lay language discharge summaries that have been generated by GPT-4 and reviewed by physicians to patients on a larger scale. "Having more than half of the AI reports generated being accurate and complete is an amazing start," said first study author Jonah Zaretsky, MD, associate chief of medicine at NYU Langone HospitalBrooklyn. "Even at the current level of performance, which we expect to improve shortly, the scores achieved by the AI tool suggest that it can be taught to recognize subtleties." Along with Dr. Feldman and Dr. Zaretsky, NYU Langone study authors were Jonathan S. Austrian, MD, and Yindalon Aphinyanaphongs, MD, PhD, from the MCIT Department of Health Informatics; Saul B. Blecker, MD, from the Departments of Medicine and Population Health; Yunan Zhao, from the Department of Population Health; Jeong Min Kim, MD, and Samuel Baskharoun, MD, from the Department of Medicine at NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine; and Ravi Gupta, MD, from Long Island Community Hospital, which is affiliated with NYU Langone. Opponents of a proposed townhome development in Amherst may have lost their skirmish with the town to prevent a former tree nursery property from being rezoned, but they havent given up their battle against the developer. Residents of the neighborhood along Sheridan Drive that surrounds the Gleason Nursery site say they remain opposed to the plan by developer Robert A. Savarino to create 22 townhomes on the property, across from Park Country Club. They say the $12 million project is inconsistent with their century-old neighborhood of small single-family detached homes on large lots, and would ruin its character by destroying the heavy concentration of big trees that residents treasure. They argue that there is no need for the higher-priced condo-style housing there, and suggest the developer should be forced to look elsewhere . The very reason that people live here is that its an old neighborhood. Thats what we bought into and decided to pay taxes for, said Alicia Schreier, a 30-year resident of Tristan Road. We like the sprawling houses and larger properties. And big trees. This is what we want. We want that old neighborhood. Most of all, though, they complain about the environmental problems that they say the project will stir up. And they question whether Savarino has the financial wherewithal to complete the cleanup of not only the pesticides and other chemicals that were sprayed for decades, but also any underground storage tanks or other hazards that may be buried in the ground. Rob Savarino advances Sheridan Drive housing project despite Savarino Companies' closure Savarino Development Corp. is proposing to clean up and redevelop the former Gleason Nursery landscaping property at 4774 and 4780 Sheridan Drive. Were concerned about the pesticides and the brownfield cleanup. But were more concerned about possible buried tanks there, said Susan Wolf of Jordan Road. And they say Savarino should not be allowed to pursue the project, especially if it is a matter of how much money he can make on townhomes, instead of a smaller number of single-family homes. These units will be half a million dollars each, Schreier said. Theres plenty of stuff for people who want to pay half-a-million. And a mature neighborhood should be left for people who want a mature neighborhood. Both Savarino and Town Supervisor Brian Kulpa say theres no evidence of underground storage tanks at the site, but only speculation from neighbors. Im not aware of any underground storage tanks, Savarino said. The site is contaminated, though. We have evidence of that. Savarino said the property contains traces of pesticides, herbicides and metals, consistent with a nursery operation, but only to a depth of about 8 to 12 inches. At this week's Amherst Town Board meeting, anger was on the agenda It was the latest and perhaps the most heated in a series of contentious sessions held since the Town Board approved a 2024 budget with a double-digit tax hike. Its certainly not contamination that goes down deep and affects the groundwater, Savarino said. It sits in the soil. It has to be dealt with. Savarino plans to remediate the site through the Department of Environmental Conservations Brownfield Cleanup Program, removing a foot of soil across the site and replacing it with clean fill. That would take it to an unrestricted or greenfield level, the highest and costliest cleanup option. He estimates the work would take two to four weeks, at a cost of $800,000 to $1.5 million. In exchange, he would qualify for up to $2.5 million in tax credits. And, Kulpa added, theres a desire for additional housing in that portion of town, but you have to have the right density on the site in order for a brownfield credit to work. Savarino is proposing to buy the 5-acre former landscaping site at 4774 and 4780 Sheridan Drive, remediate it, and redevelop it with 11 two-story attached townhome buildings, each with two upscale units aimed at seniors and empty-nesters. Each unit would have an attached two-car garage, for a total of 44 garage spaces, plus another 54 surface spaces, for 98 parking spots in all. The narrow L-shaped piece of land is sandwiched between two residential streets, Jordan Road and Fleetwood Terrace, with a dead-end residential street, Deville Circle, extending south toward the site from Catherine Street in the middle. The property still has the nursery and two single-family homes, but Savarino would demolish them before starting remediation. Sign up for the Buffalo Next free newsletter The News' Buffalo Next team covers the changing Buffalo Niagara economy. Get the news in your inbox 5 days a week. The site is still owned by the estate of Edith Fruehauf and the Gleason family, but Savarino has it under contract, pending approval of his project. Savarinos brother, Samuel, had previously planned to pursue the townhome project, before he abruptly announced in the summer that his development and construction company was going out of business. This is the third attempt to develop the site in the last six years, each by different developers. Morgan Homes of Western New York started the first effort in 2018, and then Paul Bliss MEL Investors planned a 13-lot subdivision of 12 single-family homes. But while a residential subdivision has been approved for the site, that type of a neighborhood and zoning isnt eligible for the Brownfield Cleanup Program. That prevented the prior development plans. Last month, the Amherst Town Board voted to approve a rezoning of the site that allows for the kind of multifamily housing that Savarino is proposing, but also enables him to apply for the property to be included in the state cleanup program. Neighbors fought that change, however, speaking out during a Town Board meeting in January, and bombarding the board with more than 200 signatures on a petition against the project and rezoning. That meant the board needed a super-majority vote in order to approve the rezoning. But it still passed. That is because town officials felt the property would need to be cleaned up eventually, anyway. In order to get the site cleaned up, were going to need someone who can afford to deal with it as a brownfield, Kulpa said. We dont want to leave that stuff in the ground. Wed like to get it out. This is the first time weve had a developer that had a plan to deal with it. The longer that it goes undeveloped, the longer stuff sits in the ground and leeches into the neighbors property. The vote dealt only with the rezoning, while the project itself still needs zoning variances, site plan approval and various permits. Savarino said he expects to file for those approvals starting in April, after he meets with the DEC later this month to sort out some issues. Still, the rezoning rankled many residents, who complained that their voices dont count, and questioned whether the town had sufficiently researched Savarinos claims and his need for the brownfield cleanup, or just took his word for it. The town should represent the residents interests, said Alexis Alfasso, who lives on Jordan, with her backyard abutting the Gleason property. Residents dont want intense development. Neighbors say theyre also worried about sewer capacity, water runoff and drainage issues, as well as damage to other trees and displacement of wildlife living in the wooded area. And they object to potential dust, debris and toxins stirred up during cleanup and construction. Project attorney Sean Hopkins said Savarino will be submitting a detailed engineering report to address the drainage issues, and will provide an onsite stormwater management system capable of handling major events. And while vegetation will need to be removed in connection with the project, extensive new landscaping is also included, particularly on the northern end of the site near neighbors. That was something we enhanced through the process, Savarino said. Its not our intent to destroy or harm other property owners trees. If approved, work would commence in 2024, with completion in 2025 in a single stage of construction. In a recent study published in Archives of Disease in Childhood, a group of researchers evaluated the incidence of musculoskeletal consultations in children with obesity in a primary care setting. Study: Are children living with obesity more likely to experience musculoskeletal symptoms during childhood? A linked longitudinal cohort study using primary care records. Image Credit: New Africa/Shutterstock.com Background Worldwide, one in three adults and a similar proportion of children in the United Kingdom (UK) experience musculoskeletal problems, which cause pain and disability and affect mental health. The increasing prevalence of obesity is worsening these issues, as excess weight significantly stresses the body's joints, leading to conditions like back pain, chronic pain, and slipped capital femoral epiphysis (SCFE). Earlier research suggested a link between being overweight and an increased risk of musculoskeletal issues in children, but the evidence was mostly cross-sectional and of moderate to low quality. Recent longitudinal studies also support this association, yet they are few and of moderate quality, with inconsistent accounting for confounding variables. This underscores the urgent need for further research to clarify the causal relationship between obesity and musculoskeletal symptoms in children. About the study The present study included 123,836 (96.3%) participants from the National Child Measurement Programme (NCMP) across four northeast London local authorities, with their records linked to primary care using pseudonymized National Health Service (NHS) numbers. The NCMP involves measuring the height and weight of children in their first and last years of primary school to monitor public health trends. Data sharing agreements facilitated the use of NCMP data from 2013/14 to 2018/19, alongside pseudonymized primary care data from the Discovery Data Service for 285 general practitioners (GPs). This study focused on identifying musculoskeletal consultations among these children, excluding any prior to their NCMP measurement. Musculoskeletal consultations were determined through specific clinical codes, with the primary outcome being the presence or absence of at least one GP consultation for a musculoskeletal issue following the NCMP measurement. Children's body mass index (BMI) was adjusted for ethnicity and categorized into underweight, healthy weight, overweight, or obese according to UK standards. Ethnicity, derived from NCMP records or, when missing, from electronic health records, and area-level deprivation were considered as confounding factors. Statistical analysis involved estimating musculoskeletal consultation proportions and incidence rates, with Kaplan-Meier failure functions and Cox's proportional hazards regression adjusting for confounders, including the academic year of NCMP participation and local authority. The study also explored interactions between sex and school year of NCMP measurement. The analysis was conducted using Stata, adhering to rigorous data management and statistical standards to ensure the integrity of the findings. Study results The study scrutinized a significant population from the NCMP, comprising 63,418 children in Reception (50.9% boys) and 55,364 children in Year 6 (50.8% boys). Predominantly, these children hailed from the most deprived areas and were of Black or minority ethnic backgrounds, with a small fraction (less than 1%) excluded due to missing ethnic data. Notably, obesity rates were higher in older children, with 19.9% of Year 6 boys and 14.4% of Year 6 girls living with obesity, compared to 8.9% of Reception boys and 7.1% of Reception girls. The analysis revealed variations in musculoskeletal consultations by weight status. In younger children, girls with obesity were more likely to seek musculoskeletal consultations than their healthy-weight counterparts, a trend not observed in boys. Among the older cohort, both girls with obesity and boys classified as underweight showed differences in consultation rates compared to their healthy-weight peers. The most frequent musculoskeletal issues involved knee and back pain, with a higher prevalence of back pain reported in the Year 6 cohort compared to Reception children. Over the follow-up period, which ranged from two to eight years, the first musculoskeletal consultation typically occurred within two to three years after the NCMP measurements. Incidence rates of consultations varied, with girls living with obesity in both cohorts showing higher rates compared to those with a healthy weight. Interestingly, underweight Year 6 boys had a lower incidence rate than their counterparts. Cumulative incidence analysis highlighted a higher likelihood of musculoskeletal consultations among Reception girls with obesity, although the small sample size introduced uncertainty. The incidence was notably lower for Year 6 boys classified as underweight, with the confidence interval distinctly not overlapping with other weight categories. The study's findings underscore the heightened risk of musculoskeletal consultations among children with obesity, particularly girls, across different age groups. The multivariable analysis, adjusting for various factors, confirmed this increased risk for overweight and obese girls in Reception and Year 6, with underweight boys in Year 6 showing a reduced likelihood of consultations. A new study co-authored by a University of Massachusetts Amherst economist reveals the value of government vaccine recommendations to drugmakers, as well as potential benefits of advertising pharmaceuticals directly to consumers -; a practice that is banned in every country apart from the United States and New Zealand. The research is the most comprehensive investigation to date of manufacturer marketing and consumer response to adult vaccine recommendations. After the U.S. Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended in 2014 that people aged 65 and over receive the pneumococcal vaccine Prevnar 13, Medicare and private insurance plans began covering the vaccine for patients. Pfizer, the sole manufacturer of the vaccine, then launched an advertising blitz to encourage older Americans to get vaccinated. Over the ensuing five years, the number of seniors who received the vaccine increased by about 10%, or 2.5 million people, and sales of Prevnar 13 grew by roughly $1 billion annually. Our results suggest there is real value to vaccine manufacturers in winning a recommendation from ACIP, and that direct-to-consumer advertising of pharmaceuticals is not the unequivocal boogeyman that some people think it is. It can be an effective tool to achieve public health objectives -; as long as the incentives are aligned." Brandyn Churchill, assistant professor of resource economics at UMass Amherst In this case, the incentives were perfectly aligned: ACIP's policy goal was to encourage more older adults to get vaccinated against bacterial pneumonia and Pfizer wanted to sell more vaccines. Pneumococcal vaccines offer protection against streptococcus pneumoniae, a bacterial infection causing over 500,000 cases of pneumonia in the U.S. each year. Pneumonia is the seventh leading cause of death in the country and hospitalizations related to the disease cost an estimated $9 billion annually. In addition to increased uptake and sales for Prevnar 13, Churchill and co-authors Laura E. Henkhaus, health economist and data scientist with Hill Physicians Medical Group and Emily C. Lawler, assistant professor of public administration and public policy at the University of Georgia, demonstrate that seniors who received the vaccine were also more likely to have recently visited a health care provider and to have received other vaccinations during those visits, creating what Churchill calls "bundling" of vaccine uptake. However, the study concludes ACIP's recommendation, and the resulting direct-to-consumer advertising, did nothing to reduce infection and mortality rates from pneumococcal disease. "We didn't find any evidence of a public health improvement, but someone benefited -; in this case it was Pfizer," Churchill says. In 2019, ACIP revised its recommendations, reaffirming that Prevnar 13 is indeed safe and effective, but no longer advising that it be administered as part of routine care for older adults, due to increased uptake of the vaccine by children, which has protected the broader population through the benefits of herd immunity. "The marketing of Prevnar 13 was a success in that it helped achieve a stated policy goal -; even if that goal changed as ACIP followed the science," Churchill adds. The complete study appears in the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved two new corridors of Delhi Metros Phase-IV project Lajpat Nagar to Saket G-Block and Inderlok to Indraprastha Union Minister Anurag Thakur said. The total project cost of the two corridors is estimated at Rs 8,399 crore, which will be sourced from the Union and Delhi governments, and international funding agencies. These two lines will comprise 20.762 km. The Inderlok Indraprastha corridor will be an extension of the Green Line and will provide interchange with the Red, Yellow, Airport Line, Magenta, Violet and Blue Lines. The Lajpat Nagar- Saket G Block corridor will connect the Silver, Magenta, Pink and Violet Lines. Deepak Kumar, an IPS officer hailing from Ramdiri village in Bihars Begusarai district, embodies the quintessential tale of determination and resilience. Raised in a humble farmer family, IPS Deepak Kumars journey from rural Bihar to becoming a distinguished encounter specialist within the Indian Police Service (IPS) is nothing short of inspiring. His educational journey began at Netarha School, where exposure to civil services ignited his ambition. Despite financial constraints, IPS Deepak Kumar pursued higher education, completing his schooling and eventually graduating with a degree in Economics from Kashi Vidyapeeth, Varanasi. His thirst for knowledge led him to Delhi, where he obtained a degree in Law (LLB), further bolstering his academic arsenal. His tryst with destiny unfolded when he appeared for the UPSC exam in 2003. Despite securing a position in the Daman & Diu and Dadra Nagar Haveli Police Service (DANIPS), his resolve prompted him to pursue his dream further. The following year, his perseverance paid off when he secured a coveted IPS cadre. Throughout his illustrious career, IPS Deepak Kumar has left an indelible mark with his commitment to duty. Serving in various capacities, from Superintendent of Police (SP) in Ghaziabad to Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) in districts like Ayodhya, Lucknow, and Prayagraj, he has exhibited exemplary leadership and strategic acumen. Notable among his achievements is his crackdown on criminal syndicates such as the notorious Bawaria gang from Rajasthan and exposing the intricate network of Bangladeshi gangs operating in Uttar Pradesh. His proactive approach and astute interventions have led to a significant reduction in crime rates and enhanced public safety in the regions under his jurisdiction. Furthermore, IPS Deepaks innovative solutions, such as rerouting the Muharram procession in Lucknow to prevent disruptions and violence, have garnered widespread acclaim. His ability to navigate complex challenges with tact and diplomacy underscores his efficacy as an administrator and law enforcement professional. The goal of many Indian youngsters in todays society is to pursue higher education overseas with the United States, UK and Canada being the major hubs. Studying abroad offers a plethora of options for both academic and personal growth, whether it is through exposure to other cultures, access to state-of-the-art research facilities, or the attraction of prestigious colleges. However, before embarking on this path, Indian students usually have to crack different entrance tests tailored to assess students based on their skills, knowledge, and competence for admission into prestigious institutions worldwide. Heres a rundown of the top 7 entrance exams Indian students should crack before heading abroad for higher studies. International English Language Testing System (IELTS) The International English Language Testing System, commonly referred to as IELTS, is a prerequisite for non-native English speakers and tests their English language skills in listening, reading, writing, and speaking. To be admitted to institutions in English-speaking nations like the UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, one must obtain a good IELTS score. Following the date of the results release, the IELTS score is still valid for two years. Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) Similar to IELTS, the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) assesses an individuals English competency and is more generally accepted in North American institutions. It assesses reading, writing, speaking, and listening comprehension, making it an essential test for Indian students hoping to pursue further education in the US or Canada. The TOEFL score is valid for two years from the date of release of results. An Indian student needs to be older than18 years of age and have completed Class 12 in order to be eligible for the TOEFL exam. Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) The Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) is a standardised test widely used for college admissions in the United States. It assesses students readiness for college by testing their mathematical, reading, and writing abilities. A good SAT score is a prerequisite for admission to undergraduate programs in American universities. Certain universities in the United Kingdom also consider the SAT score as a legitimate criterion for admission. Graduate Record Examination (GRE) The Graduate Record Examination, or GRE, assesses applicants verbal, mathematical, and analytical writing abilities and is aimed at graduate and business school aspirants worldwide. Indian students who want to pursue postgraduate studies overseas, particularly in the US, frequently need to score highly on the GRE in order to get admitted to selective programmes. Students applying for admission to MS courses, as well as a few MBA or professional courses at the graduate level, must take the GRE, which is administered around the year. Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) assesses analytical writing, integrated thinking, quantitative, and verbal skills and is specifically tailored for applicants to MBA and other business-related graduate programmes. An impressive GMAT score is a necessary for admission to many of the worlds most prominent business schools, including those in the US, Europe, and Asia. In more than 114 countries, the GMAT is a prerequisite for admission to more than 21,000 universities and colleges. The validity of the GMAT score is for five years after the results are released. Law School Admission Test (LSAT) The Law School Admission Test, or LSAT, is required of students wishing to pursue a Master of Laws degree from American colleges. The Law School Admission Council administers the exam, which is recognised in the United States, Canada, and Australia. This test, which is essential for law school admissions, assesses reading comprehension, analytical reasoning, and logical reasoning abilities. Multiple law school applications may be made using the LSAT results, which are valid for a period of up to five years. American College Test (ACT) The American College Test (ACT) is another widely recognised standardised test for undergraduate admissions in the United States, however less prevalent than the SAT. It is also accepted at some universities outside of the United States. When it comes to certain undergraduate courses, the ACT frequently assesses both domestic and international students academic competence. In order to give institutions an understanding of students academic preparedness, it evaluates reasoning abilities in science, reading, arithmetic, and English. Many individuals in India harbour aspirations of becoming IPS, IFS and IAS officers, yet not all successfully navigate the competitive exam landscape. Despite daunting challenges, some aspirants, like Himanshu Tyagi, manage to crack the rigorous UPSC examination. Hailing from the picturesque state of Uttarakhand, Tyagi currently serves as an Indian Forest Officer (IFS), serving as an inspiration to countless dreamers. Remarkably, Tyagis journey to success includes prior triumphs in exams like JEE and GATE, underscoring his academic prowess and determination. In a bid to pay it forward, IFS Himanshu Tyagi has taken to his social media platforms to offer valuable tips and strategies for achieving success in UPSC exams. One significant series of advice focuses on cultivating effective reading habits, particularly in the age of digital distractions posed by e-books on mobile devices and tablets. Tyagis insights shed light on the importance of reading books judiciously to gain knowledge effectively. Choosing the Right Books: Tyagi emphasises the importance of selecting relevant and high-quality books before commencing exam preparation. While quantity may seem appealing, it is the quality of content that holds value for aspirants. By focusing on chosen books and eschewing irrelevant ones, candidates can optimise their study regimen. Reading the Index: Contrary to popular belief, Tyagi stresses the significance of perusing a books index before diving into its contents. This preliminary step offers insights into the books structure and content, enabling readers to make informed decisions about its relevance to their study objectives. Additionally, reviewing the index saves valuable time and resources. Selective Reading: Addressing concerns about the necessity of reading every aspect of a book, Tyagi advocates for strategic reading tailored to exam requirements and syllabi. Aspirants are encouraged to prioritise essential topics while managing their time effectively, rather than attempting to absorb every detail within a book. Reading Methodology: Tyagi outlines a two-stage approach to reading, advising readers to initially skim through a book to identify key points and then create concise summaries. Subsequently, readers should delve deeper into each chapter, absorbing content meticulously and crafting personalised notes for comprehension and retention. Repetition and Depth: Recognising the pivotal role of books in exam preparation, Tyagi advises against purchasing numerous texts, advocating instead for repeated readings of select books. By revisiting a single book multiple times, aspirants can develop a comprehensive understanding of key topics, fostering a depth of knowledge crucial for exam success. Himanshu Tyagis insights offer a roadmap for aspiring UPSC candidates to navigate the complexities of exam preparation with precision and efficiency, empowering them to realise their aspirations of civil service. Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled an infrastructure bonanza worth nearly Rs 8.3 lakh crore this month during his Bharat Darshan, which was just shy of the entire Capex budget of Rs 10 lakh crore in the last financial year. PM Modi will now begin his political campaign tours from South India from March 15, which will be an early move. The prime minister unveiled three semi-conductor units worth Rs 1.25 lakh crore on Wednesday, marking the culmination of his 13-day-long tour across the country to unveil infrastructure projects ahead of the announcement of general elections. The total worth of these projects, whose inauguration was done or foundation stones were laid by the PM this month, is worth a whopping Rs 8.25 lakh crore. To put this in context, Indias total Capex budget was Rs 10 lakh crore in 2022-23 and has been fixed at Rs 11 lakh crore for 2023-24. PM Modi described the recent push as steps towards Viksit Bharat. These projects are spread all over India, including Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, J&K, Odisha and North-East. The biggest set of projects unveiled by the PM in March was Rs 1.48 lakh crore worth of oil and gas sector projects for across the country from Begusarai in Bihar on March 2, Rs 1.25 lakh crore worth of semi-conductor unit projects on March 13, Rs 1.06 lakh crore worth of projects launched in Ahmedabad on March 12 and highway projects worth Rs 1 lakh crore launched from Gurgaon on March 11. The PM also repeatedly stressed during these functions that it was under his government that the foundation stone of most such projects was laid, and now their inaugurations had been done by him as well. The government showcased this fact to show how projects had been fast-tracked and completed on time in this term. PMs Political Tours The prime minister is expected to start his political tours from March 15, beginning from the South Indian states. This will be an early start for the PM as he usually begins his political campaign after BJP candidates have filed their nominations. However, this time, the BJP has already declared its first list of 195 candidates ahead of the announcement of polls by the Election Commission of India, and a second list of the BJP is expected soon. This is believed to be the reason for the party to send in its top campaigner early. As reported by News18, the prime minister is expected to be in Kerala on March 15 and 17 in Pathanamthitta and Palakkad where he will also do a road show. Anil Antony is BJPs candidate from Pathanamthitta and C Krishnakumar is the party candidate from Palakkad. PM Modi is also expected to be in Karnataka on March 15, and later in the same state on March 17 and 18. The PM is also expected in Tamil Nadu between March 15 and 18 for various political events. The 129 seats in the South Indian states remain a strong focus for the BJP in 2024 polls. The BJP is likely to announce its decision on the possible formation of an alliance with the BJD in Odisha on Wednesday ahead of the Lok Sabha and assembly polls in the state, sources said. Top state BJP leaders held a series of meetings in Delhi for the past three days, they said. The BJD is not ready to reveal its cards, while the state BJP leaders president Manmohan Samal, election in-charge Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and others have been camping in the national capital. BJP state leaders held a series of meetings at the residence of Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the sources said. A section of state BJP leaders were against stitching an alliance with the BJD, which dumped the saffron party ahead of the 2009 general elections, months after a riot in Kandhamal the previous year, they said. The issue of alliance between the BJD and BJP came for discussion after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Odisha on March 5. The next day, the BJD held a meeting of its senior leaders. Pradhan, the sources said, has been assigned to talk with the Odisha BJP leaders on the issue of the possible alliance with the BJD. Pradhan will inform top central leaders regarding the views of the Odisha leaders and then a decision is likely to be made by Wednesday noon, one of the BJP sources said. Meanwhile, the BJD is waiting for the decision of the BJP. BJD leader and MLA Parsuram Dhada said, We are in no dilemma about the alliance. The party rank and file will abide by the decision of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Alliance is not a new thing and it has happened in the past and may happen now, he said. BJP leader Suryavanshi Suraj, however, termed the buzz around the alliance as speculations in the media. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday has ended her ties with her brother, Babun Banerjee, following his discontent over the Trinamool Congresss decision to re-nominate Prasun Banerjee for the Howrah Lok Sabha seat in the upcoming general election. My family and I renounce all relationship with Babun West Bengal CM told news agency PTI. Before every election, he creates a problem. I dont like greedy people and dont believe in dynasty politics, so that I will give him a ticket in elections. I have decided to disown him and cut off all relationship with him, she stated. Prasun Banerjee, who is not related to Mamata, has won the Howrah seat three times. The Trinamool has held this seat since 2009 when Ambica Banerjee won it from the Communist Party. On Wednesday, Babun, currently in New Delhi, voiced his discontent over the partys choice to re-nominate Prasun Banerjee for the Howrah Lok Sabha seat. I am not happy with the selection of the candidate from Howrah Lok Sabha seat. Prasun Banerjee is not the right choice. There were many capable candidates who were overlooked, Babun remarked, further stating, I can never forget the insult that Prasun hurled at me. Babun, one of the younger siblings of Mamata Banerjee, said he is a registered voter of Howrah. I know Didi (Mamata Banerjee) would not agree with me. But if needed, I will contest as independent from Howrah Lok Sabha seat, he said. Mamatas decision also comes amid speculation that her brother could defect to rival BJP, which would be a significant advantage for the opposition. However, dismissing the rumors, Babun expressed his intention to run as an independent candidate in the Lok Sabha polls for the Howrah seat. As long Mamata di is there, I would never quit the party and neither would I join any other political party. Yes as I am connected to sports, I know many BJP leaders, who too are connected with sports. Babun asserted. This isnt the first public disagreement between the siblings. Mamata had previously scolded Babun during the Covid-19 pandemic for disregarding safety rules. In January 2022, Mamata publicly reprimanded her brother for roaming around with a Covid case at home while Bengal was experiencing a surge in infections, with over 14,000 cases reported. The Trinamool Congress, a member of the Congress-led INDIA bloc, has recently unveiled its candidates for all 42 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Mahua Moitra, who was controversially suspended from Parliament, has been re-nominated from Krishnanagar, while Mamatas nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, will contest to retain his Diamond Harbour seat. Wuth inputs from PTI. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Wednesday said that the poll body will disclose electoral bonds data on time. The Supreme Court, in a landmark verdict, had scrapped the Centres electoral bonds scheme and directed the EC to publish the details shared by the bank on its official website by 5 pm on March 15. We have three pillars disclosure, disclosure & disclosure. Disclose everything to people. The commission has been in favour of transparency. SBI has given us in time, and we have received it. We will disclose it on time, the CEC said when asked about the SBI sending electoral bonds data to the ECI as per the Supreme Courts order. The CECs remark came during a press conference in Srinagar after reviewing election preparedness in Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier today, the State Bank of India (SBI) told the Supreme Court that a total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased by political parties between April 1, 2019 and February 15 this year, out of which 22,030 were redeemed. In a compliance affidavit filed in the apex court, the SBI said as per the courts direction, it has made available the details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India before the close of business hours on March 12. It said details, including date of purchase of each electoral bonds, names of the purchaser and the denomination of the bonds purchased have been furnished. The affidavit, filed by SBIs chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara, said the bank has also furnished to the EC details like date of encashment of the electoral bonds, the names of political parties which received the contributions and the denominations of the bonds. A total number of 22,217 bonds were purchased during the period April 1, 2019 till February 15, 2024. At the time of collating the information for the ECI, the details were segregated as below, it said. The affidavit said between April 1, 2019 to April 11, 2019, a total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased and 1,609 redeemed. It further said from April 12, 2019 to February 15 this year, a total of 18,871 electoral bonds were purchased and 20,421 were redeemed. The State Bank of India has ready records in which the date of purchase, denomination and name of buyer were recorded, and (in relation to the political parties) the date of encashment and the denominations of the bonds encashed were recorded, the affidavit said. It said in compliance with the apex courts directions, a record of this information was made available to the EC by hand delivering in digital form (password protected) before the close of business hours on March 12. The affidavit also contains as annexure a copy of letter as proof of service of data sent by the SBI to EC. The amount of the electoral bonds which were not encashed by the political party within the validity period of 15 days during this period have been transferred to Prime Ministers National Relief Fund, as per the Gazette notification no.20 dated January 2, 2018, reads the letter sent by the SBI to the poll panel. No Extension To SBI By SC On March 11, a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud had dismissed the SBIs plea seeking an extension of time and ordered it to disclose the details of electoral bonds to the EC by close of business hours on March 12. In a landmark verdict delivered on February 15, a five-judge Constitution bench had scrapped the Centres electoral bonds scheme that allowed anonymous political funding, calling it unconstitutional and ordered disclosure by the EC of donors, the amount donated by them and the recipients by March 13. Ordering the closure of the scheme, the top court had directed the SBI, the authorised financial institution under the scheme, to submit by March 6 the details of the electoral bonds purchased since April 12, 2019, till date to the EC. On March 11, while hearing SBIs application seeking an extension of time till June 30 to furnish the details to the EC, the apex court had observed that the banks submissions in the application sufficiently indicated that the information which was directed to be disclosed was readily available. In its application, the SBI had contended that the retrieval of information from each silo and the procedure of matching the information of one silo to that of the other would be a time-consuming exercise. The application had said due to stringent measures undertaken to ensure that the identity of the donors was kept anonymous, decoding the electoral bonds and matching the donors to the donations would be a complex process. It submitted that the data related to the issuance of the bond and the data related to the redemption of the bond was kept recorded in two different silos. No central database was maintained, it had said. It is submitted that donor details were kept in a sealed cover at the designated branches and all such sealed covers were deposited in the main branch of the applicant bank, which is located in Mumbai, it had said. (With PTI inputs) Erie County Medical Center is in line for more than $13.6 million in federal funding to upgrade its emergency infrastructure, which should help the Buffalo hospital maintain its services during extreme weather events. The federal funding, which comes from the U.S. Department of Homeland Securitys Federal Emergency Management Agency, will allow ECMC to purchase six new generators, upgrade transfer switches and switch gear for its main hospital systems, replace its underground storage tank and install temporary emergency power with temporary mobile generators, U.S. Sens. Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand announced Wednesday. The funds, the senators said, reimburse ECMC for expenses related to the infrastructure upgrades. It is provided at a 90% federal cost share. This $13-plus million is a big shot in the arm for Erie County Medical Center and will help the hospital serve communities in snowstorms and other severe conditions, boosting the safety and resiliency of a critical health care institution in the region, said Schumer, the U.S. Senate majority leader. With six new generators, we are helping ensure Erie County Medical Center can continue to provide lifesaving care to patients in Buffalo and Western New York 24/7, no matter the weather. This is the second announcement of FEMA funding for ECMC in less than a month. In late February, Schumer announced ECMC would receive $14.6 million from FEMA to reimburse the provider for costs incurred from emergency protective measures and increased staffing as part of its response to the Covid-19 pandemic. ECMC lands $14.6 million in federal relief to help cover Covid-19 response costs ECMC will receive more than $14.6 million from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency, funds meant to reimburse the Buffalo health care provider for costs incurred from emergency protective measures and increased staffing as part of its response to the Covid-19 pandemic. ECMC, like other hospitals across Western New York, the state and the country, was battered financially during the pandemic, a hit that still lingers four years after Covid-19 arrived. ECMC and other local hospitals have welcomed federal and state relief, which has helped prop up financial results in the aftermath of recovery from the pandemic. In a statement, ECMC President and CEO Thomas J. Quatroche Jr. thanked the senators for their support of the hospitals efforts to upgrade and modernize its emergency generators. As our regions only Level 1 Adult Trauma Center, it is essential that we have the most up-to-date systems in place to ensure that there is no interruption in lifesaving services for our patients, he said. The politically crucial Uttar Pradesh sends 80 parliamentarians to the Lok Sabha and is often considered the make-or-break state for any party. And, according to Network18s Mega Opinion Poll, it is make" for the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and break" for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) comprising the Samajwadi Party, Congress, and others in the upcoming elections. While the NDA is predicted to sweep the state with 77 seats, the INDIA bloc may end up with only 2, while Mayawatis Bahujan Samaj Party could pick up the remaining seat. According to the opinion poll, the BJP-led alliance may bag a stunning 57% of the votes in the state, while INDIA may net 26%, BSP 9%, and Others 8%. Covering 518 Lok Sabha constituencies across 21 major states, the News18 Network Mega Opinion Poll, airing on March 13 and March 14, features a massive sample size of over 1,18,616 respondents, representing 95% of Lok Sabha constituencies and making it one of the largest surveys in the country. Importance of UP UPs significance can be understood from the fact that the state with the second-most seats, Maharashtra, has only 48 Lok Sabha seats. Uttar Pradesh has also given India the maximum number of prime ministers. The states importance is not limited to its numerical strength in the Lok Sabha. Its politics now defines the turning points of Indias political landscape from the dwindling of national parties and caste politics to religious mobilisation. Looking Back at 2019 Proving all arithmetic of the SP-BSP mahagathbandhan in Uttar Pradesh wrong, the BJP and its ally Apna Dal(S) won 64 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats, demolishing the alliance partners, which got 15 seats between them. The Congress won the lone Raebareli seat of Sonia Gandhi in the politically crucial state. Of the alliance partners, the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was the biggest gainer with 10 seats. Akhilesh Yadavs Samajwadi Party (SP) won five seats and the smallest of the partners Rashtriya Lok Dal couldnt open its account in the polls. The Congresss biggest loss was in its bastion Amethi where then party president Rahul Gandhi was defeated by union minister Smriti Irani, who had lost the seat in 2014. Prime Minister Narendra Modi won from the Varanasi seat defeating his nearest rival Shalini Yadav of the SP by a margin of 4,79,505 votes, bettering his previous margin of 3,71,784 votes in 2014. Akhilesh Yadavs wife Dimple and his cousin Dharmendra lost in Kannauj and Badaun, respectively. His other cousin, Akshay, lost from Firozabad. Mayawatis BSP had drawn a blank in 2014, but, in 2019, her alliance with the SP paid dividends as her party won 10 seats. Just ahead of the elections, the SP and the BSP had cobbled together an alliance. The BSP contested 38 seats, the SP 37, leaving three for the RLD. The alliance did not put up any candidate in Amethi and Raebareli. But, despite the alliance, the RLD could not open its account with all the three candidates losing to the BJP. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) will lead the INDIA bloc to an impressive haul of 30 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu, but the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is set to make its presence felt by bagging 5 seats, while the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and allies will pick up 4, the Mega Opinion Poll by Network18 aired on Wednesday indicates. While the INDIA bloc is expected to get a massive 51% vote share, the NDA may net a significant 13%, while the AIADMK+, though relegated to third place in the opinion poll in terms of seats, may get around 17% votes. Tamil Nadu has 39 Lok Sabha seats, including 32 unreserved and seven reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates. In the 2019 elections, the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance recorded an overwhelming victory, winning 38 out of the 39 seats. With the DMK joining the INDIA bloc and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) losing the support of the AIADMK, the states political landscape has been significantly altered ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The ruling DMKs controversial statements about Hinduism and Sanatana Dharma in recent months have also stirred up political skirmishes with the BJP. The saffron party led by its charismatic state chief K Annamalai is looking to reshape its electoral fortunes in the southern state. Covering 518 Lok Sabha constituencies across 21 major states, the News18 Network Mega Opinion Poll, airing on March 13 and March 14, features a massive sample size of over 1,18,616 respondents, representing 95% of Lok Sabha constituencies and making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. Who is most capable as the next Prime Minister? A Mega Opinion Poll by Network18, featuring an extensive survey covering 518 Lok Sabha constituencies across 21 major states, put this question to the people of the country. And the vote of confidence was overwhelmingly in favour of the incumbent, Narendra Modi. While 59% of the respondents picked him, his nearest rival, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, was far behind at 21%. Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee and Aam Aadmi Party convener Arvind Kejriwal followed, tied with 9%. The study from February 12 to March 1 covered 21 major states of India that account for 95% of all Lok Sabha constituencies, making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. Fieldwork for the survey was carried out by trained investigators from 10 different fieldwork agencies, with strict quality control measures in place. Before going into the field, the teams underwent detailed briefing sessions to ensure adherence to the sampling plan and questionnaire. Senior field managers and executives conducted on-the-spot quality checks, and each interview was geo-tagged to verify its authenticity. A total sample size of 1,18,616 across 21 states was achieved. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition is likely to win 38 seats in Bihar in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, leaving only two for the Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), according to the News18 Mega Opinion Poll. The survey has predicted 58% vote share for the NDA, 28% for INDIA and 14% for others. ALSO READ | News18 Opinion Poll Predicts Mega Modi Wave in Madhya Pradesh: 28 of 29 Seats for NDA, 1 for INDIA CNN-News18s survey from February 12 to March 1 covered 21 major states of India that account for 95% all Lok Sabha constituencies, making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. For Bihars 40 seats, a sample size of 8,400 responses was planned, however, 9,140 was achieved. #MegaPollWithNews18 predicts 38 (out of 40) seats for NDA in Bihar, 2 for I.N.D.I.A alliance @Zakka_Jacob decodes region-wise break-up of seats (predictions) on Magic Wall "After so much of uncertainty in Bihar, the fact that NDA voteshare (according to News18 pic.twitter.com/EZYqQZokHR News18 (@CNNnews18) March 13, 2024 The state saw major political developments recently. CM Nitish Kumars Janata Dal United (JDU) got out of an alliance with Tejashwi Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) to form a government with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Six members of the Mahagathbandhan, too, have switched to the BJP. The BJP has already allied with Jitan Ram Manjhis Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) for the polls. Determined to give them a fight, Tejashwi Yadav started his Jan Vishwas Rally in Patna on March 3, in which his father Lalu Prasad Yadav took a potshot at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for attacking parivaarvaad because he did not have a family of his own. This has led to the BJPs Modi Ka Parivar campaign on social media. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), comprising the BJP, JDU and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), had won 39 of the 40 seats. The Mahagathbandhan, comprising Indian National Congress (INC), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (RLSP), had secured just one seat, Kishanganj, with Congresss Md. Jawed as the winner. All Lok Sabha constituencies in the 21 states, a total of 518 Lok Sabha constituencies, were covered in the survey. In each of the Lok Sabha constituency, three Vidhan Sabha constituencies were selected. Five polling booths were selected in each Vidhan Sabha constituency, where 210 interviews were conducted among eligible voters (only one per household). Utilising a structured questionnaire translated into 11 regional languages, the survey employed personal face-to-face interviews conducted at homes selected via random sampling. Fieldwork for the survey was carried out by trained investigators from 10 different fieldwork agencies, with strict quality control measures in place. Before going into the field, the teams underwent detailed briefing sessions to ensure adherence to the sampling plan and questionnaire. Senior field managers and executives conducted on-the-spot quality checks, and each interview was geo-tagged to verify its authenticity. A total sample size of 1,18,616 across 21 states was achieved. The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is likely to win 14 of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, with four seats predicted for the LDF, according to the News18 Mega Opinion Poll. The most interesting prediction, however, is that the BJP-led NDA could open its account in the state with two seats and a vote share of 18 per cent. CNN-News18s survey from February 12 to March 1 covered 21 major states of India that account for 95% all Lok Sabha constituencies, making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. In Kerala, sitting Congress MP Rahul Gandhi is once again contesting from Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency. Few analysts had predicted a Congress sweep in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, and the state remains fertile ground for yet another triumph for the grand old party. The CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front is making an all-out effort to capitalise on its local run while the BJP has fielded high-profile faces, including union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar and Congress veteran AK Antonys son Anil Antony. Kerala has 20 Lok Sabha seats and 140 assembly segments. The state boasts the highest voter turnout as compared to any other. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose BJP has launched an intensive campaign to woo southern voters this time, will be campaigning in the state on March 15 and 17. He will be holding a roadshow and public rally in Palakkad and Pathanamthitta. Parties and candidates The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF), which won 19 out of 20 Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 general election, is independently contesting from INDIA component Left Democratic Front (LDF). The Congress has decided to field 14 of its 15 sitting MPs in the state, including Gandhi. Others include Rajmohan Unnithan in Kasaragod, state Congress president K Sudhakaran in Kannur, Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Shashi Tharoor in Thiruvananthapuram, Hibi Eden in Ernakulam and state working president Kodikunnil Suresh in the SC seat Mavelikkara. Congress general secretary KC Venugopal will be contesting from Alappuzha, the only seat the party lost to the LDF in 2019. While the senior leader is a Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan, he is considered to be popular in this CPI(M) stronghold as he was elected from there in 2009 and 2014. He faces sitting MP AM Ariff of the LDF and BJP leader Sobha Surendran. The Congress has made a strategic replacement in Thrissur, where a triangular contest is expected, fielding Vatakara MP K Muraleedharan, who is the son of late four-time chief minister K Karunakaran. Interestingly, his sister Padmaja Venugopal joined the BJP and is expected to campaign against him. He will be up against CPI leader and former agriculture minister VS Sunil Kumar and actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi of the BJP. For Vatakara, meanwhile, the Congress has fielded former state youth president Shafi Parambil. He is the lone Muslim face among a total of 16 party candidates and will be up against CPM MLA and former health minister KK Shailaja. The BJPs high-profile candidate list includes union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar from Thiruvananthapuram, union minister V Muraleedharan from Attingal, actor Suresh Gopi from Thrissur, Anil K Antony from Pathanamthitta among others. The BJP has not announced any candidate for Wayanad, which is represented by Gandhi. The BJP expects this election to be a game-changer for the southern state when it comes to national politics. With the prime ministers upcoming visit, this is the fourth time he will be lending his support to the poll campaign in the state. He has tried to portray the Congress and the LDF as enemies of Kerala in his previous rallies, proposing the double engine model of development for the states welfare. In a bid to woo the minorities, he has also avoided topics such as the Uniform Civil Code, Citizenship Amendment Act, and criminalisation of triple talaq while campaigning in the state. In the previous elections, the BJP increased its vote share by 14 percent in Kerala in the backdrop of the Sabarimala protests. What happened in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls? The Congress-led alliance swept the polls by winning 19 out of 20 seats with a 47.48 percent vote share, while the LDF was reduced to one seat with 36.29 percent vote share. While the BJP did not win any seat, it managed to increase its vote share to 15.64 percent. The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition is likely to win 28 of the 29 seats in Madhya Pradesh in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, leaving only one for the Congress-led Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), according to the News18 Mega Opinion Poll. The survey has predicted 55% vote share for the NDA, 38% for INDIA and 7% for others. ALSO READ | News18 Mega Opinion Poll Predicts Stunning Saffron Sweep in Bihar: 38 of 40 Seats for BJP-Led NDA CNN-News18s survey from February 12 to March 1 covered 21 major states of India that account for 95% all Lok Sabha constituencies, making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. For MPs 29 seats, a sample size of 6,090 responses was planned, however, 7,014 was achieved. Fresh from assembly elections last year, the political scenario in Madhya Pradesh seems more or less settled ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The BJP, which registered a landslide win in that election, beat anti-incumbency against chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. And not much will change for the saffron party if the results of 2019 are also taken into account. The political crisis of 2020 in the Hindi belt notwithstanding, the states past electoral trends show a tough contest between the two major parties BJP and Congress. This time, the Congress is joined by the Samajwadi Party as part of the opposition INDIA bloc. The Congress, which had won the state elections in 2018 as the single largest party, ran into a political crisis as Jyotiraditya Scindia defected to the BJP along with 22 rebel MLAs. But, the BJP swept the 2023 election as it reaffirmed its hold on the state, often known as the Heart of India. With frequent shifts when it comes to state polls, the BJP and Congress have been engaged in a constant tussle. It is the sixth-largest state in terms of parliamentary representation, with 10 seats reserved for candidates belonging to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. What happened in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections? The BJP swept the state in the 2019 general election, winning 28 out of 29 seats, while the Congress managed to win only one. The saffron party had a vote share of 58% in 2019, while the Congress garnered a share of 34.5%. This makes the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) a frontrunner for this years polls as well, even as the Congress aims for a comeback. The 2024 scenario: Parties and candidates The BJP has fielded union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia from Guna, state president and sitting MP VD Sharma from Khajuraho, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan from Vidisha among others. The party declared 24 candidates on March 2. The Congress, meanwhile, announced 10 candidates for the state in its second list. While only two names were retained, eight new faces were fielded. The party has fielded candidates for four ST and three SC seats so far. The party won the lone Chhindwara seat last time. This time, former CM Kamal Naths son Nakul Nath will contest from this seat again putting to rest rumours that the father-son duo may defect to the BJP. In fact, Kamal Nath has said the party will win 12 to 13 seats this time. The party has also named prominent Dalit leader and Bhander MLA Phool Singh Baraiya from the Bhind SC seat. He had joined the Congress in 2019, and will face sitting MP and BJP candidate Sandhya Rai this time. Only last week, senior leader Rahul Gandhis Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passed through the state. He said conducting a caste census and providing legally guaranteed minimum support price for crops will be the first two decisions of the Congress government if it comes to power. All Lok Sabha constituencies in the 21 states, a total of 518 Lok Sabha constituencies, were covered in the survey. In each of the Lok Sabha constituency, three Vidhan Sabha constituencies were selected. Five polling booths were selected in each Vidhan Sabha constituency, where 210 interviews were conducted among eligible voters (only one per household). Utilising a structured questionnaire translated into 11 regional languages, the survey employed personal face-to-face interviews conducted at homes selected via random sampling. Fieldwork for the survey was carried out by trained investigators from 10 different fieldwork agencies, with strict quality control measures in place. Before going into the field, the teams underwent detailed briefing sessions to ensure adherence to the sampling plan and questionnaire. Senior field managers and executives conducted on-the-spot quality checks, and each interview was geo-tagged to verify its authenticity. A total sample size of 1,18,616 across 21 states was achieved. Majority of the respondents to a News18 Mega Opinion Poll ahead of Lok Sabha elections said they were satisfied with the performance of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre in the last five years. Overall, 43% respondents said they are very satisfied with the Modi government. The response was overwhelmingly in favour of the incumbent government in North Indian states. In Bihar, majority respondents said they were somewhat to very satisfied with the central governments performance while neither satisfied nor dissatisfied was a distant second pick. As per the survey, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance may pick up 38 of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar. In Madhya Pradesh, too, maximum respondents said they were satisfied by the Modi governments performance. Somewhat dissatisfied and very dissatisfied options didnt see many takers in the state. The NDA may pick up 28 of the 29 seats in the state. Respondents in Haryana were emphatic in their support for the Prime Minister, saying they were very satisfied with his governments performance at the Centre. In neighbouring Punjab, too, maximum respondents said they were somewhat to very satisfied with the central governments showing in the last five years. The NDA could win 10 and three states in Haryana and Punjab, respectively. Respondents in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh overwhelmingly gave a thumbs up to the Modi governments performance as did those surveyed in the national capital Delhi. As per the opinion poll, the BJP may win four and seven seats in HP and Delhi, respectively. Uttar Pradesh, which sends the most MPs to the Lok Sabha, too gave its seal of approval to the central government with respondents saying they are very satisfied with the Modi government. The BJP is expected to win more than 75 of the 80 seats in the state. The News18 Mega Opinion Poll provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. The poll findings offer an insight into the vote and seat share for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections with individual projections for all major states and for regions within states. The study from February 12 to March 1 covered 21 major states of India that account for 95% of all Lok Sabha constituencies, making it one of the largest surveys in the country. It provides valuable insights into the political landscape of India, offering a detailed analysis of voter sentiment and preferences ahead of the upcoming general elections. Fieldwork for the survey was carried out by trained investigators from 10 different fieldwork agencies, with strict quality control measures in place. Before going into the field, the teams underwent detailed briefing sessions to ensure adherence to the sampling plan and questionnaire. Senior field managers and executives conducted on-the-spot quality checks, and each interview was geo-tagged to verify its authenticity. The seat-sharing process for both alliances in Maharashtra is yet to be finalised. The Mahayuti alliance, currently in power, and the Mahavikas Aghadi, representing the opposition, are still in discussions but have not reached a final agreement. Within the Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra, consisting of the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and NCP led by Ajit Pawar, there is a struggle to agree on a final seat-sharing formula despite being in power. The Bharatiya Janata Party has released its first list without announcing candidates from Maharashtra. The BJP-led central government aims for a lions share in each state to achieve their mission of 400 seats, but the BJP state leadership thinks that by hurting alliance partners like Shiv Sena and NC, it will be difficult for them in Maharashtra to achieve the target of 45 seats out of 48. The daily bargaining is happening in Mahayuti as it is the big test for the Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP. Both these leaders, having defected from their original parties, now hold control over their respective parties. While they have been rewarded for joining the BJP, their performance in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections will determine their bargaining power for the subsequent assembly elections slated to occur before the year ends. NCPs Strategy According to sources within the NCP, after initially demanding 10-11 seats, the party is confident of securing at least 7-8 seats. In the last Lok Sabha elections, before the NCP split, they secured seats in Satara, Shirur, Baramati, and Raigad. Ajit Pawar is now pushing for an additional four seats in the upcoming elections, which would require compromises from BJP and Shiv Sena on their allocated seats. NCP sources indicate that they are pushing for a formula where BJP would have 29 seats, Shiv Sena 11 seats, and NCP 8 seats. Media reports suggest that the BJP may contest 31 seats, allocating 13 to Shiv Sena and only 4 seats to NCP. However, while speaking with News18, a top source within the NCP denies this formula, stating that the party is pushing for 8 seats. According to the source, NCP is demanding Dharashiv, Buldana, Parbhani, and Nasik seats from the BJP. During negotiations, NCP has also provided the BJP with the names of their potential candidates for the election. Former MP and NCP leader Anand Paranjpe told News18, In the recently held review meeting of the party we did discuss 17 seats or Loksabha. If you remember we had contested 21 seats in 2019 out of which two seats we had left for our other friends in the alliance. After the discussion on 17 Loksabha seats our leadership is still in talks with the BJP leadership But I am surprised from where this number of 3 seats, 4 seats is appearing in certain media when talks are still underway. NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) president Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said seat-sharing among Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) constituents for the Lok Sabha polls is stuck as leaders are waiting for the political outfit led by B R Ambedkars grandson Prakash Ambedkar to join the opposition bloc in Maharashtra. Pawar maintained alliance leaders have suggested giving four to five Lok Sabha seats to the Prakash Ambedkar-led Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), which he said, has given a list of 16 constituencies where it claims to have a good presence. He expressed confidence about finalising allocation of seats among MVA allies, which currently includes the Congress, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), in the next two to three days.The MVA is part of the national-level opposition bloc INDIA. Although the Ambedkar-led party did not win a single seat in the 2019 general elections, it garnered a healthy 14 per cent vote share and damaged prospects of candidates of the Congress and then-undivided NCP in several constituencies, according to political analysts. In Nanded, former chief minister of Maharashtra and then-Congress candidate Ashok Chavan lost the election by nearly 40,000 votes. The VBA candidate in Nanded had received more than 1 lakh votes. Ambedkar had then criticised the Congress for not accepting his offer to join hands with him and put up a challenge before the BJP. Over the last two weeks, Ambedkar and his colleagues have been claiming that MVA leaders are delaying finalisation of seat-sharing formula in the state, which has 48 Lok Sabha constituencies, the second highest after Uttar Pradesh (80). Asked about it, Pawar said, We are awaiting for the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi to come on board. We want them to come with us. Our seat-sharing formula is on hold for the VBA. The former Union minister asserted that Ambedkar has been talking about ousting the BJP-led government at the Centre.If the VBA has any genuine complaints, we are ready to take note and resolve them. We are also ready to take any corrective action. There is a need to bring unanimity at the state-level. Prakash Ambedkar always says the Modi government should go. We agree with his line, he said. We will finalise (seat-sharing) in the next two to three days when issues related to VBA are resolved, said the Rajya Sabha MP.Asked about the number of constituencies the regional outfit is asking for, Pawar said, Ambedkar gave a list of 16 seats where the VBA has a good presence. The VBA has asked MVA leaders how many seats they can share with it out of those 16 constituencies. We have suggested giving four to five seats to them. . Vladimir Putin, 71, is expected to have a comfortable win in the Russias presidential elections slated from March 15-17, thus retaining power till 2030. Despite the predictable results, the Russian elections will be closely watched by the world in the backdrop of the Ukraine invasion that began in February 2022. Lets look at three things in this years Russian elections. Polls in the Time of War The Russian-Ukraine war, or what Putin had termed it as a special military operation, is the most obvious reality of the Russian politics post 2022. While many within Russia seek peace and disengagement, there is a section of people who support the war, thus, testing the governments ability to juggle between the two. Nevertheless, the pressure it has put on the countrys resources is enormous compared to the outcome of the war. More Votes for Putin In the high-stakes elections, Putins officials will try to get an electoral windfall for their leader, and mitigate any upsets. Reports suggest that Kremlin is hoping to engineer the voting turnout to be at least 70%, and vote for Putin to be at least 80% which would be higher than his 76.7% share from 2018. According to a February survey by VTsIOM, a Kremlin-controlled pollster, around 79% of Russians intend to vote for Putin. Political observers and agencies are not keen on the results of the elections, but how these results are manufactured during the war times. According to a report in The Conversation, local officials in Russia pressure state employees and workers at corporations to turn up to vote en masse. Recent leaked documents obtained by the Estonian website Delfie show how Putins technocratic domestic policy czar, Sergey Kiriyenko, spent over $1 billion in alleged pre-rigging of elections by flooding pro-Kremlin and anti-West content on TV, films and online. Reports also suggest overtly coercive ways used by the Kremlin to pressure the Ukrainians under the Russian invasion to acquire the citizenship and vote. Silencing Opposition The death of long-term critic of Vladimir Putin, Alexei Navalny in February this year underlines the political repression in the country. The extended mourning for Navalny in the country and abroad shows that there is still a bloc of people in Russia who are expecting an alternative. Two more opposition figures Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kaza-Murza have been sentenced to eight-and-a-half years and 25 years in jail, respectively, for their criticism of Putins war in Ukraine. The Conversation highlighted that some 116,000 Russians faced political repression since 2018. Compared to the previous election, which had a candidate from liberal opposition, this time, there are four leaders on the ballot box, and none of them is an anti-war figure. Does This Election Really Matter? Abbas Gallyamov, a political analyst, who used to be Putins speechwriter, has described the vote as one where multiple choice is replaced with a simple, dichotomic one: Are you for or against Putin?, and has said it will be a referendum on the issue of the war, and a vote for Putin will become a vote for the war. Before his death, Navalny had made a statement from behind the bars, Putin views these elections as a referendum on approval of his actions. Referendum on approval of the war, Lets break his plans and make sure that on March 17, no one is interested in the fake result, but all of Russia saw and understood: the will of the majority is that Putin must leave. What is New in the Voting Process? It is for the first time that Russias elections are spanning three days instead of one. Voters in 29 regions will be casting the vote online. There 112 million people aged 18 and above in Russia who are eligible to vote. People in Crimea and occupies parts of Ukraine will also vote. Millions of Russian nationals living abroad from the Russia-leased spaceport of Baikonur in southern Kazakhstan to California in the US can also vote in embassies, consulates or by mail. Initial results are expected to be announced on March 19, with the final outcome to be revealed on March 29. An Erie County judge on Wednesday acquitted State Trooper Anthony Nigro IV of manslaughter for the 2022 fatal shooting of a driver after a 45-minute chase. When Judge James Bargnesi delivered the not guilty verdict in a bench trial that began Thursday, there were audible sighs from some of the more than 50 people in the courtroom, including current and former state police, as well as relatives of Nigro and James Huber, the man he killed. State trooper charged with manslaughter in shooting after Thruway pursuit takes the stand State Trooper Anthony Nigro IV, who has been charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter in a 2022 fatal shooting, took the stand in his trial. Huber's sister sobbed outside the courtroom after the verdict. She declined comment. After the verdict, defense attorney John D'Alessandro called the case against his client one "that never should have been brought." "There was no evidence whatsoever in this case that Anthony Nigro did anything wrong," D'Alessandro said. "He did what we expect heroic troopers to do. He put himself in harms way to solve a dangerous threat." The state Attorney General's Office, which prosecuted the case, issued a written statement through a spokesperson: "The Office of Special Investigation remains committed to conducting thorough and transparent investigations of every case, following the facts and pursuing justice. We offer our sincerest condolences to Mr. Hubers loved ones." Nigro's trial marked a rare occasion when a law enforcement official has been charged in connection with a homicide while on duty. Nigro, 40, of Eden, faced first- and second-degree manslaughter charges for the Feb. 12, 2022, fatal shooting of Huber, 38, of North East, Pa. Troopers had engaged in a roughly 45-minute pursuit of Huber at speeds approaching 120 mph that began on the Thruway in Brant and continued onto the I-190 and into downtown Buffalo. In contrast to prosecution's portrayal, troopers testify Nigro wasn't angry after fatal shooting Three of Anthony Nigro's colleagues who testified at his manslaughter trial Friday in Erie County Court said he did not appear angry or frustrated in February 2022 after he fatally shot a motorist he had been pursuing in a chase that at times exceeded 100 mph. Attorneys delivered closing arguments earlier Wednesday morning, the day after Nigro took the stand in his own defense. Bodycam footage of fatal police shooting shows motorist telling trooper to 'go away' Video from the body camera of Trooper Anthony Nigro IV released Wednesday captured the tense exchange between Nigro and James Huber, a motorist he fatally shot Feb. 12 after a lengthy police chase on the Thruway that reached speeds of more than 100 mph. "The defendant didn't need to shoot Mr. Huber," Assistant Attorney General James Marra told the judge in his closing argument. Nigro's actions weren't reasonable, Marra told Bargnesi. He wasn't being held inside the vehicle by Huber and could have backed away from the car, Marra said. Citing Nigro's testimony that the trooper didn't have time to call for backup or report his location over the radio, Marra said Nigro was the one who caused that circumstance "because he gave himself no time" by pulling in front of Huber's car and running up to the vehicle. Criminal cases against police officers are rare and complicated The charges brought against Trooper Anthony Nigro IV shows how rare and complicated prosecuting a law enforcement officer can be. Nigro's actions weren't reckless merely because he didn't follow generally accepted police practices, D'Alessandro told the judge in his closing argument. Nigro made the decision to shoot when he was inside Huber's vehicle and believed he was going to be dragged by it, D'Alessandro said. D'Alessandro said there were two things proven at the trial: that Huber's death was predictable and the result of his own dangerous behavior; and that Nigro "is an American hero." After closing arguments concluded at 10:30 a.m., Bargnesi told those present to reassemble at 11:15 a.m. In a statement, the troopers' union said it was "clear the charges were not applicable to this case." "This is also a victory for law enforcement professionals, who are facing increasingly violent suspects and are forced to make split-second, life-and-death decisions to protect themselves and the public," the New York State Troopers Police Benevolent Association said in a written statement. The first-degree manslaughter charge accused Nigro of shooting Huber with the intent to seriously injure him. The second-degree manslaughter charge accused Nigro of recklessly causing Huber's death. This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates. The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA) does not impinge upon any existing right and does not affect the legal, democratic or secular rights of any Indian citizen, the Union government has said, dismissing any criticism about the act. The CAA will provide citizenship to members of non-Muslim communities, such as Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis or Buddhists, from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. Many people of Indian origin including persons belonging to the said minority communities from the aforesaid countries have been applying for citizenship under section 5 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 but they are unable to produce proof of their Indian origin. Hence, they are forced to apply for citizenship by naturalisation under section 6 of the said Act, which, inter alia, prescribes twelve years residency as a qualification for naturalisation in terms of the Third Schedule to the Act. This denies them many opportunities and advantages that may accrue only to the citizens of India, even though they are likely to stay in India permanently. The CAA will help applicants belonging to the said communities from the aforesaid countries eligible for citizenship by naturalisation if they can establish their residency in India for five years instead of the existing eleven years, government sources said. Opposition parties like AIMIM have criticised the CAA for leaving out Muslims from its purview. The act is unconstitutional, against our secular credentials. All persecuted minorities should be welcomed. Why leave out Muslims? Waris Pathan, national spokesperson of AIMIM has said. But the Centre clarified that the CAA does not classify or differentiate on the ground of religion instead it classifies on the ground of religious persecution in countries. Countering oppositions attempt to try to label CAA as an anti-Muslim law, government officials said rather than breaching any principle of freedom of religion, the CAA seeks to protect the freedom of religion of the classified communities who have been persecuted for exactly expressing and practising their respective religion in the particular neighbouring countries. The CAA does not impinge upon any existing right and does not affect the legal, democratic or secular rights of any Indian citizen. The existing regime for obtaining citizenship of India by foreigners of any country is untouched by the CAA and remains the same, sources said. Government sources explained that the CAA does not cancel the naturalisation laws, hence, any person, including Muslim migrants, from any foreign country seeking to be an Indian citizen, can apply for the same under the existing laws. This Act does not prevent any Muslim, who is persecuted in those three Islamic countries, from practising their version of Islam from applying for the Indian citizenship under the existing laws. CAA the Need of the Hour Government sources said the constitutions of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh provide for a specific state religion, which has led to persecution of many minorities such as Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians. India and Pakistan had Nehru-Liaquat Pact, but since Pakistan did not honour its commitments, religious persecution of the minorities continued there. The human rights issue of these communities was raised in the UN by India but no concrete result emerged. CAA was the natural solution to solve the worries of persecuted religious minorities, sources said. Officials, however, conceded that the CAA is not meant to be an omnibus solution to issues across the world and the Indian Parliament cannot be expected to take note of possible persecutions that may be taking place across various countries in the world. Officials said the classification of taking certain religions under CAA and exempting others is based upon the Parliamentary recognition of the situation prevalent in the classified neighbouring countries, which is based on intelligible factors, constitutional provisions, numerous circumstances. CAA Answer to Deportation Worries Justifying the need for the CAA, government officials pointed out that in the previous provisions of the Citizenship Act, migrants from Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who entered India without valid travel documents or if the validity of their documents had expired were regarded as illegal migrants. This rendered them ineligible to apply for Indian citizenship under Section 5 or Section 6 of the Act. Now, it is proposed to make the said migrants eligible for the Indian Citizenship. In this regard, the present act aims at granting immunity to the migrants of the aforesaid communities so that any proceedings against them in respect of their status of migration or citizenship does not bar them from applying for Indian citizenship, officials said. Apart from Indias belief in secular ethos and equality, there is freedom of religion for people professing different faiths. Also, there are 50 countries which have a state religion of Islam and 11 of them follow the Shariah laws, which is against the fundamentals of secularism, officials added. In response to a writ petition filed in the Delhi High Court by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying OP Chaudhary has written a letter to the chief secretaries of all the states and union territories requesting that the Department of Animal Husbandry, the local body, make sure that no licenses or permissions are granted for the sale, breeding, and keeping of pit bulls and other breeds that are intentionally bred for aggression and are frequently used for illegal fighting and attacks. The expert committee headed by the commissioner of animal husbandry has also suggested that the importation of certain dog breeds be outlawed, reported news agency, ANI. Breeds such as pit bull terriers, other terrier breeds of that kind, Tosa Inu, American Staffordshire Terrier, Fila Brasilerio, Dogo Argentino, American bulldog, Boerboel, Kangal, different shepherd dogs, Tornjak, Bandog, Sarplaninac, Japanese Tosa, Akita, Mastiffs, Rottweilers, Rhodesian Ridgeback, wolf dogs, Canario, Akbash, and Moscow Guarddog are among the dogs the committee has recommended be banned. This restriction would also apply to mixed and crossbred dog breeds. PETA India applauded the Center for taking this action to protect children and senior citizens who are injured or killed by certain breeds of dogs that are manipulated and trained to view other living things as prey, as well as vulnerable dog breeds that are frequently used by criminal elements of society for illegal dogfighting. Lately, twenty people were injured after being attacked by a stray dog in Ghumarwin area, an official said. Municipal Council Ghumarwin President Rita Sehgal said the dog would suddenly pounce on the people passing by and bite them. The incident occurred when a stray dog bit several people within the span of a few hours near Gandhi Chowk in the Ghumarwin market. The injured were sent for treatment at a local hospital and have been administered anti-rabies vaccines, Sehgal added. However, this is not an isolated incident. (with inputs from ANI) Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud felicitated the daughter of a cook employed at the Supreme Court, who has won scholarships to pursue masters in law at two top US universities the University of California and the University of Michigan. A law researcher, 25-year-old Pragya is the daughter of a cook at the top court, Ajay Kumar Samal. Just before commencing their daily judicial duties on Wednesday, CJI Chandrachud and other Supreme Court justices rose to their feet to give Pragya an ovation in the judges lounge. We know Pragya has managed something on her own, but we will ensure she manages to get whatever is required We expect that she should come back to serve the country, Chief Justice Chandrachud said, according to an NDTV report. According to a Live Law report, CJI Chandrachud handed over a copy of the Indian Constitution signed by all the Supreme Court judges to Pragya. Shawls were also offered to Pragyas proud parents, Mr and Mrs Samal as a token of appreciation. Pragya said that being surrounded by lawyers and judges courtesy of her fathers job, played a crucial role in her choosing judiciary as a career. If you have the zeal and passion to pursue law as a career in India then you will find many people around willing to help. Even if you are a first-generation lawyer, you need to have that positive approach, she was quoted by NDTV as saying. Pragya further expressed her admiration for CJI Chandrachud calling him a role model. With the live streaming of court hearings, everyone can witness his eloquence. He nurtures young legal minds, and his words are invaluable. He is my role model, Pragya was quoted as saying by PTI. A controversy erupted in Kerala on Wednesday after Congress MP Anto Antony levelled serious allegations against the BJP, claiming that the saffron party secured victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections by exploiting the sacrifices of jawans killed in the Pulwama attacks. Addressing a press conference here, he also seemed to suggest that Pakistan had no involvement in the Pulwama attack, sparking strong reactions from the BJP, which demanded that a case be filed against Antony for alleged sedition. Did they not win the last elections by leveraging the sacrifice of the 42 (sic) jawans who were stationed in an area where there is 40 per cent oxygen deficiency enduring extreme climatic conditions while guarding the nation?, Antony asked, while attacking the union government saying this time their election trump card is the notifying of the rules of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act. This time, its about the CAA. What about last time? It was Pulwama. And what was Pulwama? Wasnt it the sacrifice of our 42 (sic) jawans?, Antony asked. The Pulwama attack took place on February 14, 2019 when a convoy of vehicles transporting CRPF personnel on the JammuSrinagar National Highway was targeted by a suicide bomber in a vehicle at Lethapora in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir. The attack resulted in the deaths of 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel not 42 personnel as the Pathanamthitta MP mistakenly mentioned. Antony is the Congress candidate for the Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha seat, which he has represented since 2014. His comment comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit Pathanamthitta on March 17 to canvass votes for Anil K Antony, the BJP candidate and son of Congress stalwart A K Antony. When a reporter raised the issue of Pakistans involvement in the Pulwama attack, the Pathanamthitta MP responded sharply, asking, What involvement did Pakistan have in the Pulwama blast? To strengthen his argument, the Congress MP cited an interview of then Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik regarding the Pulwama terror attack, in which the BJP-appointed head of state had said that usually such long army convoys are not sent by road in an area with militancy and that they are usually provided helicopters for transport. Anto Antony claimed that the former governor had stated that the jawans, intended to be transported by helicopter, were purposefully directed by road through a route where a blast occurred. He also claimed that the former governor had confirmed the then army generals suspicions that the large quantity of the explosive RDX used in the Pulwama attack could not have arrived in a place like Kashmir without the knowledge of the government apparatus. BJP state president K Surendran condemned the Congress MPs remarks, stating that he had insulted the country by denying Pakistans role in the Pulwama terror attack. Surendran said Antony should be charged with sedition and arrested. Antony must clarify for whose support he made such a derogatory statement. This remark disrespected the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the nation, Surendran said, adding that it would bring down the morale of the army. He said he believed that the voters of Pathanamthitta who are patriots would express their dissent against Antonys pro-Pakistan stance through their votes. The Delhi High Court is all set to pronounce its verdict on a petition filed by Congress seeking a stay on the Income Tax notice for recovery of more than Rs 105 crores as outstanding tax. Congress had challenged the dismissal of its plea by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) against the imposition of penalties for discrepancies in certain tax returns. A bench of Justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav is scheduled to deliver the order at 2:15 pm. The bench had reserved its order on Tuesday after hearing the submissions on behalf of the Congress and the I-T department. The assessing officer had raised a tax demand of more than Rs 100 crore for the assessment year 2018-19 when the income was assessed to be more than Rs 199 crore. The counsel for the Congress had urged the court to grant it some protection otherwise the party would collapse. He had said notification for the Lok Sabha elections is expected in the next few days and the party is under tremendous pressure as its bank accounts have been frozen. The bench had told the senior lawyer that though the demand was raised in 2021, the party took no steps to address the issue. It had said it was a badly handled matter and somebody from the Congress office went off to sleep right from 2021. Merely because someone chose to wake up and put you on notice in February will not change those facts, the bench had said. The I-T Departments counsel had submitted that though the Congress was given the option of paying 20 per cent of the demand way back in 2021, it was not done. If the assessee does not avail the facility of depositing 20 per cent of the demand when offered, the entire amount becomes recoverable, he had said. The I-T departments counsel had informed the court that the original tax demand stood at Rs 102 crore and with interest it became Rs 135.06 crore. He said Rs 65.94 crore stands recovered now. Before the ITAT, the counsel for the Congress had contended that the initiation of recovery proceedings under Section 226 (3) of the Income Tax Act on February 13 is so timed that the assessee would not be left with enough resources to contest the parliamentary elections. The tribunal had dismissed the stay application saying, we do not find that the recovery notice under Section 226(3) of the Act issued by the assessing officer on February 13, 2024 is lacking in bona fides, so as to require us to intervene. The party had earlier said the I-T tribunal order freezing its funds was an attack on democracy as it had come just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. (With agency inputs) Disqualified Tamil Nadu minister and DMK leader K Ponmudy has been reinstated days after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction and three-year jail sentence in a disproportionate asset case. The case against the minister and his wife was registered by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) in 2011. Ponmudy was then the Minister for Higher Education and Mines in the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) regime from 2006 to 2011. The state Legislative Assembly Speaker M Appavu reinstated Ponmudy, who will continue as a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). The Speaker said Ponmudys membership has been restored in the state assembly. Moreover, Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote to the Governor asking for Mr Ponmudys oath-taking as a minister today or tomorrow. Meanwhile, Justice N Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court has scheduled the final hearing of a suo motu revision filed against the acquittal of former Tamil Nadu Minister K Ponmudy in a disproportionate assets case (different from the one heard by the Supreme Court yesterday) from April 15 to 19, 2024. Following Mr. Ponmudys disqualification, Minister of Backward Classes Welfare RS Rajakannappan assumed responsibility for higher education. If a court finds members of the legislatures guilty, they are legally barred from serving in parliament or the assembly. Mr. Ponmudys tenure as a minister and MLA ended shortly after his conviction in December 2023. The claimed disproportionate assets complaint was filed by the DMKs rival AIADMK in 2011, the year it defeated the DMK. THE PROSECUTIONS CASE According to the prosecution, the accused were charged with accumulating Rs 1.79 crore in wealth that was disproportionate to their documented income sources from April 13, 2006 to March 31, 2010. The couple faced legal action for their inability to provide a satisfactory explanation for this discrepancy. It was the DVACs case that as of April 13, 2006, Ponmudy and his wife possessed pecuniary resources and properties valued at approximately Rs 2.71 crore, marking the commencement of the scrutiny period. By the conclusion of the examination on March 31, 2010, the couple was found holding pecuniary resources and properties amounting to Rs 6.27 crore. The agency contended that Ponmudy, as a public servant, violated the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, specifically under Sections 13(2) read with 13(1)(e). Additionally, his wife was accused of abetting and assisting him in obtaining and holding pecuniary resources and properties on his behalf. In 2016, a special court in Villupuram acquitted the duo. Special judge for Prevention of Anti-Corruption Act Cases T Sundaramoorthy had passed the order. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Wednesday said it has busted a big syndicate involved in the smuggling of foreign-origin gold worth around Rs 40 crore in its operation code-named Rising Sun. The operation was carried on March 12 and 13, an official statement said. Appreciate the DRI for this well-coordinated operation. The @cbic_india continues to remain alert in safeguarding our economic interests. @FinMinIndia @PIB_India, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a post on X. The operation planned and coordinated across four states, resulted in the seizure of a huge quantity of smuggled gold, weighing around 61.08 kg valued at around Rs 40 crore, along with 19 vehicles, cash and other electronic items in Guwahati, Barpeta, Darbhanga, Gorakhpur and Araria, it said. Acting on specific intelligence, DRI officers in Guwahati apprehended six members of the syndicate, including two masterminds, from residential premises at Guwahati and recovered 22.74 kg of gold, cash amounting to Rs 13 lakh, vehicles, and other electronic items. Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry, in a separate statement, said Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra virtually laid the foundation stone for the New GST Bhawan and Residential Quarters at Hyderabad for officers and staff of CGST and Customs, Hyderabad Zone under Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC). The project consists of the construction of one office tower and one residential tower to accommodate the offices of the CGST Zone Hyderabad and provide residential accommodation for the officers of CBIC, it said. Addressing the gathering, the Revenue Secretary appreciated CBIC for taking up such projects, which would ensure proper workspace and residential facilities for the officers and staff, apart from creating a modern environment for trade facilitation. The implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has triggered a war of words between the BJP and the Trinamool Congress, with Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee calling it an electoral stance that will make people foreigners. In Bengal, Matua voters are influential in five to six Lok Sabha constituencies. In Bongaon Lok Sabha constituency, five assembly constituencies have nearly 50 per cent Matua voters. To understand the effect of CAA in Bengal, News18 travelled to Thakurnagars Thakurbari, the Matua headquarters, to read the pulse of the people. History of Matuas Matuas are classified as Scheduled Castes who fled Bangladesh and are refugees in India. The history of the battle for citizenship in Bengal starts from Thakurbari and Hari Chand Thakur. Hari Chand Thakur was born in 1812 in undivided India in a peasant Namasudra family. After a self-realisation that he is an incarnation of God and needs to work for the downtrodden, he started the Matua sect with its headquarters in Faridpur. After Partition, his grandson Pramatha Ranjan Thakur established the headquarters in Thakurnagar and built a temple dedicated to Harichand Thakur. PR Thakur was a Congress MP and began his fight for citizenship but could not see it to the end. The community has been pushing for citizenship for over 70 years now and it is only in 2024 that their dream has come true. Matua Politics Pramatha Ranjan Thakur was an MLA in Bidhan Chandra Roys Congress government and later an MP from the party. After the Left Front government came to power, Matuas gained from the distribution of land and started supporting the Left. Soon after, Mamata Banerjee started looking after Baro Ma Binapani Thakur, the wife of PR Thakur. It was in 2006 that then TMC minister Jyotipriya Mallick made Banerjee understand the significance of the Matua vote bank and the chief minister started development programmes for the community. In 2014, Bina Panis elder son Kapil Krishna Thakur became a TMC MP. His brother Manjul Thakur also joined the party. However, Manjul Thakur left TMC abruptly and joined BJP in 2015. It was during this period that the people of Thakurbari slowly shifted their allegiance to BJP and with the CAA promise, the Matua-dominated areas slowly turned saffron. Mood of Thakurbari As one enters Thakurbari, the chants of Hari Bol fill the air. The Matua community leaders, called Dalapathis, play drums as they celebrate the Centres move to notify CAA rules by ringing in Holi early. Priest of Harishs Thakur temple Harindar Sarkar told News18: For the past five years, I have been at this temple. I came to Bengal in 1979 due to the torture in Bangladesh. We have voter IDs but we were looked down upon by people. There was an insecurity in the community that anybody could drive us out. Now we feel safe. News18 also caught up with a young student offering prayers at the temple. When asked why the community was insistent on citizenship despite having a voter ID, Pratip Biswas said: We dont get government jobs because we dont have papers. When we apply for passports, they ask for our parents papers before 1970. Till now, politicians played with us but we are happy that Modi-ji has finally helped us. Most of the people dancing to the beats of the drum were those who came to India in the 80s. Local Sukhendhu Gain said: I came in 1986. Today, we have got our rights. We will continue this celebration. Whatever form they ask us to fill, we will. Not only Gain, Krishnapadha Choudhury and Nilratan Gosai too recall how they fled from Bangladesh in the 80s. CAA has secured our future. Whatever Mamata Banerjee is saying is not right. Its our Independence Day, Gosai said. In Thakurbari, Banerjees assertion that she would give up her life but not allow CAA in the state did not find many takers. The chief minister is scheduled to hold an anti-CAA rally in Siliguri on March 13. Speaking to News18, shipping minister and PR Thakurs grandson Shantanu Thakur said: Home Minister Amit Shah-ji called me and said special trainers will come to the state to help people fill forms. Banerjee is misleading the people. The state has no role in this. Kokilaben Ambani, wife of Reliance Group founder Dhirubhai Ambani, arrived in Chorwad town of Gujarats Junagadh district along with Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant on Tuesday evening. Dhirubhais early life was spent in this town situated next to the Arabian Sea. After offering prayers at the local temple with her grandson and his fiancee, Kokilaben addressed the people of Chorwad. During this, Kokilaben narrated not only about the early life of her husband Dhirubhai Ambani but also the story of the beginning of the Reliance Group among the people of the village in a very touching and distinctive way. How Dhirubhai reached Aden, why he gave up his citizenship of Aden, how great was his love for India, how Reliances IPO was launched Kokilaben shared everything. How close is the relationship between the three generations of the Ambani family with Jamnagar, where recently famous personalities from all over the world had gathered for Anant and Radhikas three-day pre-wedding function heres all that and more in the words of Kokilaben herself. Jai Shri Krishna! Today is a day of great joy for us and the people of our village. First of all, Anant and Radhika came here to have darshan of Chorwadi Mata. It is natural for me to be happy about this. But the people of the village are also happy that when Anantbhai and Radhikaben are going to enter married life, they have come to take blessings of Chorwadi Mata first. You all know that Dhirubhai and I got married in Chorwad itself, and it has been almost seventy years. Today is our wedding anniversary. It is a happy coincidence; today, on 12th March. Chorwadi Mata, all you members of the family from Chorwad are with us on this occasion. We are very happy about that. You all know about Dhirubhai, that he had gone to Aden after his matriculation examination. The results came out after he reached Aden. He learnt that he had passed the exam. His father had sent this information. Dhirubhai had then smiled and said, What difference does it make whether I have passed or failed? I have come to Aden for a job. Many years passed. One gets citizenship in Aden after seven years. You will not believe it, but the day after he received a letter from the office saying he had become a citizen, Dhirubhai responded that he was resigning. His elder brother Ramnikbhai said, No, Dhiru, this is such a good job, you should not leave. But he said, No, I have to try my luck, I have to go to India. His brother asked what he would do in India. He said that whatever path God shows me, I will move forward on it. I have a feeling that I have to go to India and do something. What would I do? Whatever opportunity God gives me, I will proceed accordingly. And with all your blessings, Dhirubhai gradually made progress. More years went by. You all know that Dhirubhai established a refinery in Jamnagar. He made the name of Jamnagar very famous. It was here that the pre-wedding function of Anant and Radhika took place and the name of Jamnagar came up not only in India but also on the international map. We remembered Chorwad first. This is where our future was built. Thats why we can never forget Chorwad. When we first wanted to make the company Public Limited, Dhirubhai and I had come to Rajkot. Dhirubhai said, No, first of all, we have to go to Chorwad, have darshan of Mataji and seek blessings. At that time we held a meeting in Rajkot and came to Chorwad and had darshan of Mataji, met the brothers and sisters of Chorwad. I remember that then Dhirubhai had organised a dyaro (community gathering) here and provided food to all the people of the village. All the locals had come to the event at night and enjoyed themselves. Then Dhirubhai had said, I have come to make the company Public Limited. At that time, the people of Chorwad did not even know what Public Limited was, what a share was, what was the price of a share; no one knew anything. Dhirubhai had called every relative and said, You must take shares of Reliance, take shares of Reliance. At that time, the share price of Reliance was ten rupees. Most people would know how much it is today. Right now, the price of a share is two thousand seven hundred rupees, from ten rupees. With the blessings of all of you, the issue was filled ten per cent more. This happened due to the good wishes of all of you. The work he started progressed well. Dhirubhai made his mark, but now Mukeshbhai is the one to take it forward. You all would know that Dhirubhai had set up one refinery, but Mukeshbhai set up three refineries. If the son surpasses his father, then the mother will definitely be proud. Presently Anant is operating the entire refinery, and he is very fond of Jamnagar. He is happier in Jamnagar and currently handles all the work of the Reliance refinery. Radhika also has given her full support. She says that she will stay in Jamnagar and help Anant. May both of them be happy in Jamnagar and may their business grow even more than now, and the people of Chorwad and Jamnagar continue to prosper, this is my wish. Today you all came here from Chorwad and surrounding villages. You all should go after eating. We will be very happy if you all go after having the food and enjoy yourselves. Then there is a programme of dyaro; if possible come for that too. I pray to Mataji and Shrinath ji that the honour and respect of my Chorwad village grows a lot. Jai Shri Krishna! The entire building in Chorwad where Dhirubhai stayed in his early days was converted into a memorial to him thirteen years ago. All this happened under the supervision of Kokilaben. Not only Kokilaben, but the entire Ambani family comes to Chorwad on every important occasion. Near Chorwad, there is a place called Kukasvada, which is the ancestral village of Dhirubhai. Father Hirachand Ambani used to be the headmaster of the primary school of Chorwad. Dhirubhai was born in this Chorwad town on 28 December 1932, named Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani. After receiving his primary education here, Dhirubhai did further studies in Junagadh and then moved to Aden from there. Before his death, Dhirubhai had come here for the last time in 1995 with his entire family. After the death of Dhirubhai, the entire Ambani family gathered here in 2011 also, when the Dhirubhai Ambani Memorial was being inaugurated here. The Ambani family has deep faith in Shrinath ji as well as in the local Chorwadi Mata temple and comes here to visit on every important occasion. This is why, before tying the knot, Anant Ambani decided to come to Chorwad with his grandmother Kokilaben and fiancee Radhika Merchant. KERALA LOTTERY FIFTY FIFTY FF-88 RESULT ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, LIVE UPDATES: The Kerala State Lottery Department has announced the results of the Fifty Fifty FF-88 lucky draw for Wednesday, March 13. Check the full list of winning numbers below. ALSO READ: Kerala Lottery Result Today LIVE: Win-Win W-761 WINNERS for March 18, 2024; First Prize Rs 75 Lakh! FULL LIST OF WINNING NUMBERS FOR FIFTY FIFTY FF- 88 LOTTERY WINNING NUMBERS FOR CONSOLATION PRIZE WORTH RS 8,000 ARE FN 263834 FO 263834 FP 263834 FR 263834 FS 263834 FT 263834 FU 263834 FV 263834 FW 263834 FY 263834 FZ 263834 WINNING NUMBER FOR 1ST PRIZE WORTH RS 1 CRORE IS FX 263834 (KARUNAGAPPALLY) Agent Name: JAGADHAN N Agency No.: Q 8582 WINNING NUMBER FOR 2ND PRIZE WORTH RS 10 LAKH IS FO 490699 (VAIKKOM) Agent Name: MEENAKSHY M Agency No.: K 7682 WINNING NUMBER FOR 3RD PRIZE WORTH RS 5,000 0634 0989 1736 2378 3660 4217 4523 4816 4897 4903 5112 5653 5809 5933 6825 7301 7996 8216 8388 9001 9042 9252 9534 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 4TH PRIZE WORTH RS 2,000 ARE 1084 1135 2276 2277 2306 5079 6217 7341 7855 7969 8008 9098 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 5TH PRIZE WORTH RS 1,000 ARE 0267 0272 0420 0613 0997 1331 1381 2124 2586 2668 2737 4755 5422 5636 5812 5865 6663 7159 8026 8072 8466 9433 9751 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 6TH PRIZE WORTH RS 500 ARE 0014 0112 0121 0250 0419 0529 0642 0706 0815 0900 0919 0936 0953 0957 1026 1030 1031 1076 1077 1179 1223 1334 1366 1367 1587 1889 2113 2173 2182 2424 2476 2521 2732 3019 3194 3449 3687 4037 4063 4271 4281 4290 4447 4533 4537 4743 4799 4916 4960 4995 5057 5560 5662 5709 5736 5748 5956 6150 6160 6184 6256 6420 6425 6545 6643 6724 6786 6822 7500 7575 7581 7775 7994 8073 8088 8266 8320 8421 8426 8441 8800 8831 8994 9048 9050 9226 9452 9554 9600 9702 9731 9874 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 7TH PRIZE WORTH RS 100 ARE 0098 0137 0345 0472 0490 0552 0640 0649 0708 0806 0867 0918 1049 1178 1298 1328 1652 1770 1811 1816 1839 1841 1863 2036 2056 2212 2350 2418 2497 2637 2828 2879 2886 2911 2983 3031 3139 3423 3608 3629 3707 3752 3785 3815 3854 3864 3922 3950 3971 4118 4161 4182 4226 4229 4423 4717 4781 4840 4894 4932 5058 5069 5203 5266 5293 5314 5325 5487 5793 5888 6038 6042 6057 6126 6177 6305 6347 6370 6503 6524 6632 6664 6706 6791 6967 7057 7095 7145 7169 7182 7218 7302 7415 7472 7570 7794 7824 7830 7843 7957 7999 8047 8179 8202 8295 8321 8323 8354 8499 8506 8507 8541 8555 8640 8685 8752 8876 8918 9032 9212 9390 9426 9522 9527 9921 9942 FIFTY FIFTY FF-88: PRIZE STRUCTURE 1st Prize: Rs 1 Crore 2nd Prize: Rs. 10 Lakh 3rd Prize: Rs. 5,000 4th Prize: Rs. 2,000 5th Prize: Rs. 1,000 6th Prize: Rs. 500 7th Prize: Rs. 100 Consolation Prize: Rs. 8,000 HOW TO CHECK FIFTY FIFTY FF- 88TH RESULTS? To access the results of the Kerala Fifty Fifty FF-88 lottery, visit the official website of the Kerala Department at https://www.keralalottery.info/. Additionally, individuals can verify the results by visiting the Kerala Government Gazette Office. For further details, reach out to the official sources of the Kerala Lottery Department. HOW TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE? Participants can verify their ticket numbers by comparing them with the numbers published in the Kerala Government Gazette. If your ticket number matches the published number, you have won. Winners will have a 30-day window from the date of the result announcement to collect their prizes from the Kerala Lottery office located in Thiruvananthapuram. Note, it is important to bring valid proof of identification for the verification process to collect the prize. Four undocumented people who tried to enter the U.S. illegally were arrested Tuesday at the International Railroad Bridge in Buffalo, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported. According to the report, three men two from India and one from the Dominican Republic are being held in the Batavia Federal Detention Facility pending a deportation hearing. The fourth person, a woman from India, is undergoing treatment at a local hospital. All four were taken into custody after Border Patrol agents saw them jumping from a moving freight train coming from Canada to the United States on the International Railroad Bridge. The woman, who was injured and immobilized, was left behind by the men, the report said. They were taken into custody after a short foot chase. The woman was given first aid by Erie County sheriff's deputies and Border Protection officers, then taken by ambulance to the hospital. - Dale Anderson The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday cleared a proposal to change the British-era names of eight suburban railway stations in Mumbai. The decision was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. These eight stations are located on the Western, Central and Harbour lines of Mumbais suburban network operated by the Central Railway and the Western Railway. As per the proposal, Currey Road station will be renamed as Lalbaug, Sandhurst Road station as Dongri, Marine Lines station as Mumbadevi, Charni Road station as Girgaon, Cotton Green station will be Kalachowki, Dockyard Road station as Mazgaon and Kings Circle as Tirthankar Parshwanath. Sandhurst Road station has been considered as two stations as it serves both Central and Harbour lines.After the legislative sanction, the proposal will be sent to the Union Home Ministry and the Railway Ministry. The state government has already sent a proposal to rename Mumbai Central station as Nana Jagannath Shankarsheth station to the Union government. In 2017, the Union government renamed the Elphinstone Road suburban station in the city, which took its name from Lord Elphinstone, Governor of Bombay Presidency from 1853 to 1860, as Prabhadevi station after the nearby Prabhadevi temple. A few days before that, the name of the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in south Mumbai was modified with the addition of honorific Maharaj. After the addition, it became Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT). It was once known as Victoria Terminus, after Queen Victoria of Great Britain. The Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) of Mumbai on Tuesday acquitted diamond merchant Girish Kadel in a case related to the overvaluation of rough diamonds filed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). In its order dated March 2, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate P. Modi dismissed the complaint filed on June 21, 2019, by the DRI, noting that both the complainant and the Public Prosecutor were absent on several dates. Hong Kong-based businessman Girish Kadel faced charges under Section 174 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) read with Section 108 of the Customs Act. The court observed, no steps are taken by the complainant to secure his presence. No one on his behalf is attending the proceeding of the case since long. Therefore, it can be said that the complainant or his department is not interested in proceeding further with this case. Hence, the complaint stands dismissed under section 256 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, for want of prosecution. The accused stands acquitted of the offence under section 174 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, read with section 108 of the Customs Act, the final order read. The DRI investigation claimed that Hong Kong-based businessman Kadel imported rough diamonds from Switzerland to Hong Kong under the names of his four companies. Kadel, who also had business dealings in India, exported some of these diamonds to India through 14 shipments under the companies Antique Exim Pvt Ltd and Tanman Jewels, falsely inflating their value to Rs 156.28 crore. However, during revaluation, the DRI found that the actual value of the consignment was only Rs 1.03 crore. The DRI had filed the complaint in question before the ACMM Court regarding the inquiry being conducted into the alleged overvaluation in imports of rough diamonds by Antique Exim Pvt. Ltd. and Tanman Jewels. In 2022, the Bombay High Court had set aside the show cause notices issued to parties and government officials involved in the overvaluation of diamonds. The show cause notice was issued to Girish Kadel and others, including government-approved valuers. Roll, pitch, yaw, throttle, rudder trim, landing gear drone flying and its basic terminology was alien to Devki Rajput from Mainpuri district in Uttar Pradesh. But, that was until she volunteered for a special drone training programme and became the states first drone didi. Devki and others like her displayed their drone-flying skills at a grand Sashakt Nari, Viksit Bharat event at Bihars Motihari on Monday (March 11). Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually attended from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in Pusa, where he was connected to 10 different locations and watched Namo Drone Didis demonstrate their skills. Devki told News18 that before entering the rigorous 17-day training, conducted by Indias leading drone manufacturer Marut Drones, she had never seen a drone. At first sight, the drone seemed quite scary and an alien thing to me. Handling it seemed too technical and impossible to me. But, the training cleared my doubts and made me well-versed with its functioning, she said. She has dropped her plans of becoming a school teacher and wants to excel in the field of drone-flying under the Namo Drone Didi initiative. What is the Namo Drone Didi scheme? Under this scheme, rural women are trained to become drone pilots for agricultural purposes. The initiative aims at enhancing economic empowerment and financial autonomy among women, especially in rural areas. It aims to equip 15,000 women-led self-help groups (SHG) with agricultural drones to assist in tasks such as crop monitoring, spraying fertilisers and sowing seeds. Devki is hopeful that drone flying will surely help her in earning a livelihood. Generally, spraying fertilisers or sowing seeds is a cumbersome task. A farmer has to pay heavily to the labour to carry out these tasks, which is a time-consuming process. With the help of the drone, it can all be done in minutes and, that too, for cheaper, she said. On an average, she said, a drone is designed to carry a load of around 10 litres of liquid fertilisers in one go and takes only five minutes to cover an acre of land. Also, spraying fertiliser through drones will be of great benefit to farmers as the first thing is that it will cut human involvement and, thus, make the entire process less hazardous. Second, it is a cost effective way to sprinkle fertiliser or sow seeds and, third, it will ensure even sprinkling while avoiding spillage that often leads to soil pollution, she added, highlighting the benefits. Devki further said she is happy to be part of the programme. Other than her, there are more than 80 women from UP trained for the task by Marut Drones. Marut Drones has leveraged drone technology to ensure women empowerment. We are proud to have supported female drone pilots from rural pockets in tackling the obstacles in male-dominated sectors such as agriculture and aerospace. Out of 1,000 Namo drone didis across India, we have empowered at least 90 from Uttar Pradesh it is indeed the beginning of a new India, said Prem Kumar Vislawath, CEO and founder of Marut Drones. The State Bank of India on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that a total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 of them were redeemed by political parties. The Chairman of SBI filed an affidavit in the top court apprising that in compliance with its order, date of purchase of each Electoral Bond, the name of the purchaser and the denomination of the Electoral Bond purchased has been furnished to the Election Commission of India. The State-run bank also furnished details regarding the encashment of the Electoral Bonds, name of political parties who received the contributions and the denomination of the said bonds, the affidavit stated. The data provided by SBI in respect of the bonds is between April 12, 2019 and February 15, 2024. Earlier on Tuesday, the SBI meet with the deadline given by the top court and sent all electoral bond data to the poll governing body by 5:30 pm. In compliance with Honble Supreme Courts directions to the SBI, contained in its order dated February 15 and March 11, 2024, (in the matter of WPC NO.880 of 2017), data on electoral bonds has been supplied by State Bank of India to Election Commission of India, today, March 12, 2024, a statement by the spokesperson of the ECI said. ALSO READ | Closing of Financial Year, Lok Sabha Polls: Timing of SCs Electoral Bonds Diktat Makes SBI Sweat The received data will be published on the ECIs website on March 15, 2024 for the general public. The bond filings, which was only submitted to the SC in sealed covers till now, will also be made public by the poll body. The data submission came after the Supreme Court on Monday junked the banks plea seeking an extension till June 30 to disclose details of each electoral bond encashed by political parties before the scheme was scrapped last month. A five-member Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud asked the SBI to submit the required data within the close of March 12 business hours. The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday fixed March 20 as the next date for hearing a plea challenging the maintainability of the suit seeking removal of Shahi Idgah mosque in Mathura which it claims has been built on 13.37-acre land of Katra Keshav Deo temple. The Muslim side told the high court that the suit seeking removal of the mosque adjacent to the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple is barred by the law of limitation. After hearing the matter, Justice Mayank Kumar Jain fixed March 20 as the next date of hearing. In continuation of her earlier arguments, counsel for the Muslim side Taslima Aziz Ahmadi, appearing through video conference, submitted before the court that the suit is barred by the limitation law. Ahmadi argued that the two parties entered into a compromise on October 12, 1968, and the compromise was confirmed in a civil suit decided in 1974. The limitation to challenge a compromise is three years but the suit has been filed in 2020 and thus it is barred by limitation, she said. The court on Wednesday also asked the Muslim side to file objections by March 20 on an application seeking directions to the Muslim side not to prevent Hindu devotees from performing worship at the Krishna Koop (well) situated at the Shahi Idgah of Mathura and to maintain adequate security and safety during the worship. The court asked the Muslim side to file objections by the next date fixed seeking puja inside the Shahi Idgah premises on Mata Sheetla Saptami (April 1) and on Mata Sheetala Ashtami (April 2) as per Hindu calender. In the plea filed by Ashutosh Pandey, it was said that every year, on the premises of the disputed property, worship is performed by Hindu devotees as Bassoda Puja. This year, such puja dates would be falling on 1.4.2024 as Mata Sheetla Saptami and on 2.4.2024 as Mata Sheetala Ashtami. On the said dates, as per past practice, Bassoda Puja has to be performed by the plaintiffs, while the defendants are preventing them from performing such puja and archana in Krishna Koop, the petition said. During the hearing on the main plea, it was further submitted by the Muslim side that a suit has been filed for possession after removal of structure of Shahi Idgah masjid as well as for restoration of temple and for permanent injunction. The prayer in the suit shows the structure of the masjid is there and the committee of management is in possession of the same, Ahmadi said. In this way a question/dispute has been raised on Waqf property and thus provisions of Waqf Act will apply and in such it is the Waqf tribunal who has jurisdiction to hear the matter and not a civil court, she said. A total of 18 suits have been filed in the Shahi Idgah-Krishna Janmabhoomi dispute. The Supreme Court on Wednesday considered a request for an urgent hearing on a petition challenging the decision to exclude the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from the panel that chooses election commissioners. According to a Bar & Bench report, Justice Sanjeev Khanna informed advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for petitioner Association for Democratic Reforms, that they received a message from the CJI and the matter will be listed on Friday. The NGO challenges the validity of a provision of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023. Under the new law, the selection panel includes the prime minister as the chairperson and the leader of opposition and a union minister nominated by the PM are the two members of it. The NGO has moved the top court after Election Commissioner Arun Goel put in his papers recently. As per the new law, Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners shall be appointed by the President on the recommendation of a Selection Committee consisting of (a) the Prime Minister Chairperson; (b) the Leader of Opposition in the House of the People Member; (c) a Union Cabinet Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister Member. The opposition has accused the Modi government of defying the top court by dropping the CJI from the selection panel. The Election Commission of India, for most of the past three decades, has been a three-member panel. There have only been two aberrations (1999 and 2009 Lok Sabha elections) when polls were overseen by just two members because of a members retirement in the middle of the poll cycle. The election commission originally used to have just a chief commissioner. Two additional commissioners were first appointed on October 16, 1989, and thereafter, on October 1, 1993. Since then, the commission has been functioning in a multi-member format, with decisions taken by a majority vote. (With agency inputs) Pushing one of its flagship projects before the announcement of the Lok Sabha polls, the government has allocated a massive sum of over Rs 17,000 crore for various stretches of the Frontier Highway in Arunachal Pradesh since February 6. Close to Rs 13,350 crore was allocated in the last 12 days alone, according to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways data analysed by News18. The Frontier Highway, termed as National Highway-913, is a 1,700 km highway passing through uninhabited or sparsely-populated areas of Arunachal Pradesh. It will have an 800 km greenfield section apart from new tunnels and bridges along the India-China border. The highway will also ease the movement of the defence forces and their supplies. These highway stretches hold promise for enhanced connectivity to border areas. It is critical not just for socio-economic growth in the region but also a measure to curb migration and facilitate reverse migration towards the border areas of the state. It will start from Bomdila and pass through Nafra, Huri, and Monigong. At some points, the road is very close to the LAC less than 20 km from the international borders. The road will end in Vijaynagar near the India-Myanmar border. The highway, expected to be completed by 2027, will link some of the important locations in the state Tawang, Mechuka, Tuting, Kibithoo, and Dong. Its total cost is expected to be around Rs 40,000 crore. In the last few weeks, the ministry has sanctioned funds for over 770 km of this highway. On Tuesday, the ministry allocated Rs 6,621.62 crore for the 265.49 km section of the highway for the construction of eight packages transitioning to an intermediate lane configuration. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the funds were allocated for the six packages ranging for Huri-Taliha section, Bile-Migging section, Kharsang-Maio-Gandhigram-Vijaynagar section, and Bomdila-Nafra-Lada section. Gadkari said these stretches play a vital role in establishing essential road infrastructure connecting significant river basins, thereby enabling the development of numerous Hydropower projects within the state. This predominantly greenfield road is designed to link uninhabited and sparsely populated areas of upper Arunachal, making it conducive to tourism and anticipating a substantial increase in traffic due to heightened tourism activities in the future, the minister added. On February 29, the ministry allocated Rs 6,728.33 crore for constructing eight stretches on NH-913 as intermediate lane road, spanning 305.50 km. On February 6, the ministry approved around Rs 3,891 crore in three parts for the highway, including Rs 1,014.59 crore for the construction of the 61.55 km Kharsang-Miao-VijaynagarGandhigram section of the Frontier Highway. The same day, the ministry approved Rs 2,248.94 crore for the construction of 105.59 km Lada-Sarli section of NH-913. It also sanctioned Rs 626.92 crore for the 35 km Sarli-Huri section of the Frontier Highway. The work at the highway is expected to generate employment and will check Chinese incursions into the Indian territory, the ministry said. The highway will help in making mobilisation of security forces around the border faster and more seamless. Ramadan is the most sacred month of the year for Muslims around the world. They fast during the day in commemoration of the revelation of the Quran. It is also a way to develop a more profound connection with God and develop self-control, thankfulness and empathy for those who are less fortunate. Sehri and Iftar are highly important to Muslims during this blessed month. Sehri is the meal eaten early in the morning before sunrise, which marks the start of the fasting hours. Iftar is the meal which is consumed at sunset to break the fast. ALSO READ: Ramadan Mubarak 2024: Happy Ramzan Wishes, Photos, Messages and WhatsApp Status to Share If you live in India and are fasting, its important to keep track of accurate Sehri and Iftar timings. Here are the timings for Sehri and Iftar in major Indian cities on the third day of Ramzan. Ramadan 2024 Day 3: Ramzan Sehri And Iftar Timings In Indian Cities Delhi: Sehri: 5:13 AM; Iftar: 6:31 PM Bengaluru: Sehri: 5:17 AM; Iftar: 6:34 PM Mumbai: Sehri: 5:35 AM; Iftar: 6:48 PM Lucknow: Sehri: 4:59 AM; Iftar: 6:16 PM Chennai: Sehri: 5:06 AM; Iftar: 6:20 PM Ahmedabad: Sehri: 5:35 AM; Iftar: 6:50 PM Hyderabad: Sehri: 5:20 AM; Iftar: 6:36 PM Kolkata: Sehri: 4:32 AM; Iftar: 5:46 PM Kanpur: Sehri: 5:02 AM; Iftar: 6:19 PM Pune: Sehri: 5:31 AM; Iftar: 6:48 PM Surat: Sehri: 5:34 AM; Iftar: 6:48 PM Muslims fast from dawn until sunset, which can be a fast of 11 to 16 hours, depending on the time of year. This fasting period lasts for 29 to 30 days. During the special occasions of Sehri and Iftar, cooking becomes a delightful part of the Ramadan experience. BUTTER CHICKEN RECIPE FOR YOUR MEAL Heres a quick recipe for butter chicken you can try at home this Ramadan: Ingredients Needed Boneless, skinless chicken breast Salt Pepper Chili powder Turmeric Unsalted butter Yellow onion Garam masala Ground cumin Cayenne pepper Ginger Garlic Cinnamon stick Tomato sauce Water Heavy cream Cooked rice Fresh cilantro Method of Preparation Alia Bhatt often talks about her daughter Raha and has been vocal about her pregnancy and life after becoming a mother. Recently, celebrity nutritionist Suman Agarwal also talked about Alias pregnancy in 2022 and revealed the Bengali dessert that the actress used to crave. Agarwal was speaking to the 9 & beyond-The Pregnancy Podcast show when she revealed that the Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani actress craved Kolkatas Nolen Gud Sandesh throughout her pregnancy. So, I remember, throughout Alia Bhatts pregnancy she used to call for our Gud Sandesh which is Kolkatas Nolen Gud Sandesh. Throughout the pregnancy, we have supplied that to her, she said. The nutritionist further shared that Indian sweets and their ingredients are very beneficial for expecting mothers. Alia Bhatt married Ranbir Kapoor in April 2022 and welcomed her daughter, Raha in November of the same year. Recently, Alia shared her first picture with Raha. In the photo, she was seen holding her one-year-old daughter in her arms. The mother-daughter duo sported gorgeous patterned co-ord ensembles and looked cutest. Recently, Alia revealed that she writes emails to her daughter every day when she told Glass Magazine, I write emails to my daughter. I started doing this the month she was born. I created an email ID and I write to her. Recently, I found myself writing her an email, saying, Im not one to tell you what to do. Even as your mother, I want you to be your own person. The only thing I wish for you is to be kind and work hard, no matter what you do in life. Work hard on yourself, your relationships, and your career. Just go through the day being kind, she added. Meanwhile, on the work front, Alia Bhatt was last seen in Karan Johars Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. Next, she will be seen in Jigra, shooting of which was recently completed. She will also be seen in a standalone YRF Spy Universe film. Malayalam film Manjummel Boys, written and directed by Chidambaram, was released on the big screens on February 22 and garnered positive reviews from critics and viewers. Tamil writer B Jeyamohan, however, criticised the film in a blog titled Manjummal Boys- Kudikara Porukikalin Koothattam and described it as a reflection of wayward Malayalis and a frenzy of drunken porukkis (loafers). This has prompted many to see it as part of Sangh Parivars campaign to tarnish the image of Kerala. Now, G Suresh Kumar, former president of Kerala Film Chamber and a producer, has also criticised Jeyamohan. G Suresh Kumar is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Partys state committee. In an interaction with the online portal Malayalam Manorama, he disagreed with B Jeyamohans opinions and said that Sangh Parivar does not share his views. Kumar also questioned the fact that whether B Jeyamohan would put these opinions about Tamil cinema. According to him, Jeyamohan would be hanged if he dared to say these words regarding the Tamil cinema. Kumar also said that Jeyamohan has only worked in a couple of Malayalam films and has no right to criticise Malayalam cinema. B Jeyamohan has used several demeaning words for the people of Kerala in his blog and alleged that Malayali youths discard liquor bottles as portrayed in the film. His words read, Broken or unbroken bottles can be found all along the Sengottai-Kuttralam and Gudalur-Ooty roads. The vehicles of these drunkards bear stains of vomit on both sides. Some of the social media users are viewing these derogatory comments as part of the larger anti-Kerala campaign by the Sangh Parivar that had earlier leveraged the Bollywood film The Kerala Story. This film alleged that the Muslim youths lured non-Muslim girls to become Jihadi brides which was termed factually incorrect by many people. Sangh Parivar is an umbrella of Hindutva groups led by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a paramilitary organisation based in India. Coming back to Manjummel Boys, the film stars Soubin Shahir, Sreenath Bhasi, Balu Varghese and others. Parava Films has bankrolled Manjummel Boys. This film is currently in its third week and is treading towards the Rs 100 crore mark in India. Two Buffalo men face felony gun charges after Buffalo police executed a search warrant Monday at a property in the 100 block of Roosevelt Avenue in the citys Kensington-Bailey neighborhood, according to a spokesman for the Buffalo Police Department. The search warrant was signed by Buffalo City Court Judge Peter J. Savage and conducted by the Buffalo Police Intelligence Unit, Buffalo Police SWAT, ATF and the FBI Streets Task Force. Law enforcement seized a Glock 43X pistol with 10 rounds of ammunition. A-Myra Beaver, 18, was charged with one count of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, while 19-year-old Zahir Burts was charged with one count of criminal possession of a firearm. - Harold McNeil Hollywoods star filmmaker Christopher Nolan is currently basking in Oscar glory for his last release, Oppenheimer. His film dominated the 96th Academy Awards, with the celebrated director taking home two Oscars. In total, the Universal film bagged as many as seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and trophies for actor Cillian Murphy and supporting actor Robert Downey Jr. During the award ceremony, Christopher Nolan came across a reporter who claimed to have attended school with the director. Identified as Alison Boshoff from Daily mail, the woman congratulated Nolan on Oppenheimers success at the 2024 Academy Awards. Hi Chris, congratulations. Its Alison Boshoff from the Daily Mail here. We were at school together, the reporter could be heard saying in a video shared by Variety. A seemingly surprised Nolan asked the reporter not to share any story from school. Delving into their school days, the woman reminded him of a particular teacher Mr. Turnbull. To which, the filmmaker humourously added that it wasnt what he expected to talk about at the Oscars night. Wow! Thats not what I was expecting to talk about in his moment, Nolan said. When asked how he planned to celebrate his achievement, the Oscar-winning director revealed that he would hit the Governors Ball up before seeing his kids to have a little celebration with the family. Social media users reacted to the video with a user saying, Really enjoyable conversation, you never know who you might encounter around the corner. Another person noted, This is such a beautiful moment. The way he, Cillian and Emma all thanked the production crew was 10/10. One of the commenters also mentioned, Hold on, this is pretty surreal. Imagine making it to the peak of your dreams, in this case achieving an Oscar, to THEN run into someone from a time when your dreams were literally just dreams. But who else but Nolan would have a full circle moment like this. The much-awaited Oscars 2024 was held last Sunday, March 10 at Hollywoods iconic Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, US. The grand affair was hosted by the hilarious Jimmy Kimmel for the fourth time. Oppenheimer won Oscars in seven categories namely Best Original Score, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Director, Best Film, Best Actor in a Leading Role and Best Actor in a Supporting Role. Helmed by Nolan, Oppenheimer portrays the life of atomic bomb creator Robert J. Oppenheimer. The iconic flick, made on a budget of $100 million, hit theatres on July 21, 2023. Rohit Shetty will soon be back with a new season of Khatron Ke Khiladi. While everyone is eager to know who will be participating in the upcoming season of the stunt-based reality show, it has now been revealed that the filmmaker has also hiked his fee this time. If a report by Siasat is to be believed, Rohit Shetty used to charge Rs 50 lakh per episode in the previous season of Khatron Ke Khiladi. However, he has hiked his fee this time and will not get between Rs 60 to 70 lakh per episode. This means that Shetty would possibly be crossing the Rs 16 crore mark for the entire season. However, News18 Showsha cannot vouch for the authenticity of this report. Khatron Ke Khiladi is a popular reality show which is known for its spine-chilling stunts. It showcases a courageous group of celebrity participants who join this competition to confront their worst fears. The 13th season of the show was won by rapper Dino James. It was shot in Cape Town, South Africa. The upcoming season of KKK might see Munawar Faruqui and Mannara Chopra as contestants. Last month, a report by Times Now claimed that the two were offered Khatron Ke Khiladi 14 following which they confirmed their participation. The stand-up comedian was roped in for Rohit Shettys Khatron Ke Khiladi even for the 12th season. However, he had to back out of the show at the last moment due to visa-related issues. Before this, Bigg Boss 17 fame Navid Sole also expressed excitement to be a part of Rohit Shettys show. While Bigg Boss was intense, pushing myself in a different arena like stunt-based challenges sounds thrilling, he said and then shared, I handle most things well, but heights and spiders send shivers down my spine. Khatron Ke Khiladi would be a chance to confront those fears head-on. Among others, actress Sanaya Irani is also likely to participate in Khatron Ke Khiladi 14. In the recent episode of Shark Tank India season 3, we saw pitchers Pranjhal Sinha, Akshetha Maithri Ashik and Vikram Kumar introduce judges to their Online Dispute Resolution platform which provides facilities to resolve legal issues online, outside court. The pitchers asked for Rs 1 crore from sharks in return for 1 per cent equity in their company. After the pitch, Aman Gupta and Namita Thakur make a joint offer to the founders. We have dealt with big MNCs and handling them in last 14 quarters so we are going to bring that to the table apart from everything else, Aman said. Amit Jain also made an offer to the pitchers. However, Anupam Mittal took a dig at Aman and added, Its network effect business. Ye koi audio, speakers bechne ka dhanda thodi hai? This seemingly irked Aman who then asked pitchers to go with the shark who was not losing their cool and was dealing calmly. Later, Ritesh also joined Aman and Namitas offer which was finalised for Rs 1 crore for 1.5 per cent equity. This left Aman excited who then said, Koi bolta hai main tech ka king hu main. Oh Ho, bura laga unke liye. Namita also appreciated them for making the right choice. Shark Tank India returned with season three on January 22, 2024. Several familiar sharks from the previous seasons including Namita Thapar, Executive Director at Emcure Pharmaceuticals Limited, Aman Gupta, Co-founder of Boat, Peyush Bansal, Co-Founder and CEO of Lenskart, Anupam Mittal, Founder and Director of Shaadi.com and Vineeta Singh, CEO of Sugar Cosmetics, returned for Shark Tank India Season 3. Joining them were also the new additions to the panel, which include Amit Jain, CEO and co-founder of Car Dekho, Ritesh Agarwal, Founder of OYO, Azhar Iqubal, Co-Founder and CEO of Inshorts, and Radhika Gupta, CEO of Edelweiss Capital. Recently, film producer Ronnie Screwvala also joined the show. Hollywood actress Sharon Stone revealed the identity of the producer who asked her to sleep with her co-star. In 2021, Sharon alleged in her memoir that a producer asked her to sleep with one of her co-stars. However, she did not disclose details about the incident. However, in a new podcast chat, Sharon revealed it was producer Robert Evans who asked her to have sex with her co-star, William Baldwin while they were working on Sliver. She claimed he asked to sleep with him to improve his acting in the movie. Sliver released in 1993. The film, a thriller, revolved around the events that pan out between a divorced book editor Carly Norris (Sharon Stone) and the tenants of the building that she has newly moved into. One of the tenants is Zeke Hawkins, played by William Baldwin. According to The Guardian, Sharon shared on the Louis Theroux podcast, [Evans is] running around his office in sunglasses explaining that he slept with Ava Gardner and I should sleep with Billy Baldwin, because [then] his performance would get better. If I could sleep with Billy, then wed have chemistry on screen and save the movie. The real problem was me because I was so uptight, and not like a real actress who could just f**k him and get things back on track. The real problem was I was such a tight-ass, she added. Sharon, who has worked in films such as Total Recall, The Mighty, Casino, and The Last Action Hero, also brought up Basic Instinct. She starred opposite Michael Douglas. Blaming the studios for bad casting, Sharon said, I didnt have to fuck Michael Douglas. Michael could come to work and know how to hit those marks, and do that line, and rehearse and show up. Now all of a sudden Im in the I have to fuck people business. She claimed she was labelled as a difficult person and thus not offered a prominent role in Casino, directed by Martin Scorsese. She was nominated for an Oscar in the film. Bollywood heartthrob Sidharth Malhotra is one of the most loved celebrities in the town. Having impressed audiences with his stellar performances in innumerable films, Sidharth Malhotra enjoys a massive fan following in India, especially among the younger generation. The actor, who is presently gearing up for the release of his upcoming film Yodha, recently shared a heartwarming moment with a little fan at the airport. The actor, who was spotted at the Mumbai airport, possibly returned from the promotion of his film when he met the little boy and gave a special gift to him. As soon as Sidharth walked out of the airport, fans gathered around in large numbers to catch a glimpse of their favourite star. At that moment, a child came running towards him for a picture. While Sidharth obliged the kid by clicking a selfie with him, he later turned towards his staff, took a copy of the Yodha comic book and handed it over to the boy. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Viral Bhayani (@viralbhayani) Apart from that, the actor was also seen clicking selfies with his fans at the airport. Dressed in a casual outfit a white T-shirt and beige trouser, Sidharth looked dapper as ever. Yodha comic book launched With a few days left before the films release, Dharma Productions in collaboration with Pratilipi Comics, recently unveiled the Yodha Universe with the launch of an adventure thriller comic book Adventures of Yodha: The Case of the Missing Ship. Written by Akash Pathak and visualised by Ayantika Roy, the comic book spans eight episodes and will immerse the audience in the adventures of Yodha. While the first three episodes are presently available to read in both English and Hindi, the following episodes will arrive weekly on the Pratilipi Comics App. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sidharth Malhotra (@sidmalhotra) About Yodha Directed by Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha, Yodha features Sidharth Malhotra in the lead role followed by the presence of actresses Raashii Khanna and Disha Patani in prominent roles. The film, which revolves around a high stake hijack scenario, will hit theatres on March 15. Apart from Yodha, Sidharth Malhotra is likely to collaborate with Janhvi Kapoor for his next film. He is also said to be in talks with Pathaan director Siddharth Anand for an action drama. Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah actors Munmun Dutta and Raj Anadkat are engaged, News18 Showsha has exclusively learnt from a reliable source. Munmun, 36, and Raj, 27, exchanged rings earlier this month in the presence of their respective families, the source informed us. While Munmun plays the role of Babita in the popular sitcom, Raj played Dilip Joshis son Tappu in the show. Raj announced his departure from TMKOC in December 2022. The source close to the actors told us that Munmun and Raj got engaged in a low-key ceremony outside Mumbai. The engagement took place just a few days back. The two apparently exchanged rings in Vadodara (Gujarat). Munmun and Rajs families have accepted their relationship and they were also present at the ceremony, the source said. They have been dating ever since Raj joined Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah. It was very evident. Everyone on the sets knew about it. In fact, some people were certain that Munmun and Raj would get married eventually. Therefore, it is not shocking that they are engaged now, the source added. News18 Showsha repeatedly reached out to Munmun Dutta and Raj Anadkat for their comment but neither of the two have reverted yet. However, soon after News18 Showshas report grabbed everyones attention Munmun dismissed engagement buzz and issued a statement which read, This news is ridiculous, fake and ludicrous. Zero ounce of truth in it. And frankly, I dont want to give my energy to this fake thing that keeps coming up again and again. Later, Raj also took to his Instagram stories and called the engagement report false. Hello everyone. Just to clear things up, the news youve been seeing on social media is false & baseless, he wrote. The news about Munmun Dutta and Raj Anadkat allegedly dating was first reported by Times of India in September 2021. The TOI report stated that each and every member of team Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah was aware of the duos relationship. However, Munmun had dismissed the report and put out a strong denial on her social media handle. To the media and their zero credibility journos, who has given you the right to post imaginary made up articles in peoples name about their private life without their consent? Are you liable to the damage that you cause to their lives with your reckless behaviour? You dont stop at shoving your cameras on the face of a grieving woman who just lost her love or lost her son, in a funeral, just for your TRPs. You can stoop to any level to create sensational articles/headlines at the cost of someones dignity, but are you going to take responsibility for wrecking havoc in their lives?? If no then, you should be ashamed of yourself!! she had written. Later, Raj also addressed the dating rumours and issued a statement on Instagram. To everyone, who has been constantly writing about me, THINK of the repercussions that can happen in my life because of your COOKED UP (false) stories and that too about my life without my consent. All the creative people out there please channelise your creativity somewhere else it will be helpful to you. May God bless them with good sense. The Home Ministry notified the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Acts rules on March 11. Many well-known personalities spoke against this. Tamil actor-politician Thalapathy Vijay is one of them. He recently criticised the Centre, following its enforcement of the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. He is the chief of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). After four years after its passage by Parliament, the Centre announced the implementation of the CAA 2019. This move allows for the granting of Indian citizenship to undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan, who faced persecution in their home countries. Vijays statement, released in Tamil, expressed that implementing laws like the Indian Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 (CAA) is not acceptable in an environment where all citizens of the country live in social harmony. He further urged the Tamil Nadu government to take measures to prevent the implementation of the law in the southern state. Leaders should ensure that this law does not take effect in Tamil Nadu, the statement explained. Vijays recent statement marks his first political opinion since the formation of his party. On February 2, he ventured into politics and unveiled the name of his party, Tamilaga Vetri Kazham. Earlier on Monday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin commented that Prime Minister Narendra Modis notification of the rules for the CAA ahead of the Lok Sabha elections is an attempt to salvage his declining political fortunes. In a social media post, Stalin criticised the BJP governments divisive agenda, stating that the Citizenship Act, once a beacon of humanity, has now been weaponized into a tool of discrimination based on religion and race. He expressed that this betrayal of Muslims and Sri Lankan Tamils has sowed seeds of division in society. Stalin alleged that despite strong opposition from democratic forces like the DMK, the CAA was passed with the support of BJPs stooge, the AIADMK. He further claimed that fearing backlash from the people, the BJP had kept the law dormant until now. The Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has nothing whatsoever to do with Indias 220 million Muslims. Why then has the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a Congress ally in Kerala, petitioned the Supreme Court to pause the implementation of the CAA? Moving beyond the interminably debated legalese in the CAAs updated 39-page notified rules, what stands out is the contrasting reaction to the Act between the regressive Muslim who fears the CAA and the progressive Muslim who welcomes it. The IUML had also petitioned the Supreme Court against the CAA when it was first legislated in 2019. Then, as now, it called the Act unconstitutional. It added that it was discriminatory against Muslims. IUML is wrong on both counts. The CAA is not unconstitutional. The Supreme Court has not ruled for over four years on more than 250 petitions against the CAA that have piled up in its registry since 2019. If the apex court, currently in deep activist mode, had felt even a tremor of unconstitutionality in the CAA, it would have acted speedily as it has in other recent matters. IUML is also wrong to say that the CAA discriminates against Indian Muslims. It does not. In fact, the CAA has no bearing at all on Indian Muslims. The Indian government is a poor communicator and has allowed falsehoods that surround the CAA to gain currency. Qatars Al Jazeera, which lacks credibility on inter-faith issues, was emboldened to write on 11 March 2024: The CAA law was declared anti-Muslim by several rights groups for keeping the community out its ambit, raising questions over the secular character of the worlds largest democracy. Muslim groups say the law, combined with a proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC), can discriminate against Indias 220 million Muslims the worlds third largest Muslim population. They fear the government might remove the citizenship of Muslims without documents in some border states. Human rights groups have alleged that the mistreatment of Muslims has increased under Modi, who took over as prime minister in 2014. The country, since then, has seen a rising number of attacks against Muslims and their livelihoods, including the demolition of Muslim homes and properties. Cases of mob lynching under the pretext of protecting cows, considered holy by some Hindus, have also increased during Modis time in power. Critics believe the often-armed cow vigilantes, which used to operate on the fringes of society, became mainstream after the BJP took over. Reports of hate speech against Muslims have also increased in the country, averaging nearly two anti-Muslim hate speech events per day in 2023. The progressive view It took a secular Muslim from the All-India Muslim Jamaat to rebut both the IUML and Al Jazeeras communal and factually false position on the CAA. This is what the Jamaats president Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi said: The government of India has implemented the CAA law. I welcome this law. This should have been done much earlier but better late than never. There are a lot of misunderstandings among Muslims regarding this law. This law has nothing to do with Muslims. Earlier there was no law to provide citizenship to non-Muslims coming from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who faced atrocities based on religion. Crores of Indian Muslims will not be affected by this law at all. This law is not going to take away the citizenship of any Indian Muslim. In the past, it has been seen that there were protests. Some political people created misunderstandings among Muslims. Every Muslim of India should welcome the CAA. Why did the Indian government exclude Muslims from members of the six faiths Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians who under the CAA will receive Indian citizenship on showing in the designated formal application that they are persecuted in three specific Islamic countries: Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan? The exclusion of Muslims lies at the heart of the objection by those who oppose the CAA on grounds that it is discriminatory. They miss the point. The CAA is designed to be anti-persecution, not anti-Muslim. In the three designated Islamic countries, minorities are severely persecuted. In Pakistan, for example, the population of Hindus has fallen gradually since Independence. In contrast, in India, the population of Muslims has risen steadily. But arent Ahmadiyyas, Balochis and other Muslim sects also persecuted in Pakistan? They are, but the CAA is based on religion, not sub-religion sects. Seventy years later The initial Citizenship Act was legislated by the Jawaharlal Nehru government in 1955. India has long recognised the problem of Hindus and other minorities in neighbouring Muslim-majority countries. It has taken nearly 70 years for the government to amend the 1955 Citizenship Act and notify its rules in the CAA. The reaction of Muslim parties like the IUML and AIMIM reveals their deep opposition to modern secularism. By deliberately misleading their followers that the CAA discriminates against Indian Muslims when it clearly does not such political parties whip up communal sentiment. It led to the 2020 Shaheen Bagh protests and subsequent Delhi riots that took 53 lives. The BJP, not surprisingly, is using the CAA and the hostile reaction against it by regressive Muslim groups to polarise the electorate before the 2024 Lok Sabha election. By falling into this trap, Muslim leaders are again letting Indias 220 million Muslims down. Those 220 million Indian Muslims need progressive leadership, not misleading communal rhetoric. The IUML and AIMIM in India and Al Jazeera and the myopic Western media cant or deliberately dont distinguish the secular wheat from the communal chaff. The writer is an editor, author and publisher. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. The concept of Nation first in a manifesto was initially introduced by the founding father of Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee. This concept was prioritised and later carried forward by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in most of its manifestos since its founding. In its party manifesto released in 2019, the BJP reaffirmed its commitment to Nation first by including the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). This commitment encompassed a range of reforms aimed at safeguarding the interests of our nation and its citizens, ensuring safety and security. These reforms included a strong stance against terrorism, prioritising the welfare of our soldiers, bolstering both internal and external security, strengthening coastal security, revoking Article 370, combating left-wing extremism, and implementing the CAA. The inclusion of the CAA within the Nation first section of the party manifesto highlights its significance in ensuring the safety and security of our country. Nevertheless, since the enactment of the law in 2019, numerous misleading narratives have emerged regarding its implementation. Prominent Opposition parties argued that excluding Muslims from the scope of the law contradicted the principles of the Constitution, specifically the right to equality guaranteed by it. Several state governments, including those in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, openly opposed this law, leading to widespread protests in these regions. Additionally, a particular segment of the media in these states aligned themselves with the protests, disregarding the actual purpose of the law and its significance in ensuring the security of our nation. Indian Muslims must comprehend that the CAA is designed not to target their community, but rather to establish a legal framework for aiding persecuted religious minorities. Islam, as a faith, underscores the significance of remaining loyal to both God and ones nation. The Prophet proclaimed, Love for ones nation is a part of faith. This principle illustrates that a Muslims love for God and dedication to his nation are not contradictory ideas, but rather harmonious expressions of his faith. Islam urges Muslims to actively contribute to fostering peace and working towards societal improvement. Genuine love for God and Islam also involves demonstrating loyalty, respect, and devotion to ones country. Nevertheless, certain malicious factions of society are currently spreading misinformation that this law is discriminatory against the Muslim community. India has consistently championed the rights of minority groups worldwide. Unlike our neighbouring country, we have diligently upheld the Nehru-Liaquat pact, and our Hindu brethren have always safeguarded minority communities. Throughout history, India has provided sanctuary to persecuted minorities, such as Jews and Parsis, who have embraced our nation as their home. The legislation in question is specifically designed to offer protection to religious minorities who face severe persecution in their home countries. As a Hindu-majority nation, India stands as a beacon of hope for these vulnerable communities, providing them with refuge and a pathway to Indian citizenship. The governments stand that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is a targeted response to the specific persecution faced by religious minorities in select neighbouring countries reinforces our commitment to protect the persecuted minorities. It has been carefully crafted within the legislative framework to address a well-defined humanitarian crisis. The exclusion of Muslims in the Act is not an attempt to exclude them from Indian society, but rather a recognition that Muslims constitute the majority in these neighbouring nations and therefore do not face the same level of persecution as religious minorities. Additionally, Muslims have alternative pathways to citizenship, including naturalisation available to them if they meet the prescribed criteria. By offering a legitimate means for individuals to seek refuge, the CAA has the potential to address a complex issue. It is for this reason that the act was included in the BJP manifesto of 2019 under the principle of Nation first. There is a group of individuals who are raising concerns about the governments decision to not allow Rohingyas from Myanmar to settle in India. By examining the situation in Pakistan, doubts can be clarified. Presently, there are 55,000 Rohingyas officially residing in Pakistan, with many located in the Arkanabad neighbourhood of Karachi. Although the actual number of Rohingya families may be as high as 300,000, a significant portion of them migrated to Karachi following the rise of a repressive military regime in Burma in 1962. Despite spending half a century in Pakistan, the Rohingya community in Karachi still faces challenges in obtaining citizenship. Those who arrived after the civil war in 1971 are unable to acquire national identification cards, which prevents them from enrolling their children in public schools, accessing government health facilities, or even opening bank accounts. This situation arises due to the fact that countries like India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh have large populations and limited resources. Adding a substantial number of refugees to the population would further strain the available resources, leading to a decline in the living standards of the citizens. Thus, India cannot accept Rohingya Muslims into its borders nor grant citizenship to such a large number of people. The question of Rohingya prosecution is to be settled under International Law since their influx not only affects India but entire South Asia as well. Their citizenship and rehabilitation has to be discussed under a wider context of International laws. Protests erupted in states like Assam immediately after the notification of the CAA rules. It is crucial to dispel the misconception that the CAA undermines the Assam Accord, a pact signed in 1985 to tackle the issue of illegal immigration in Assam. Some argue that the CAA goes against the accord by potentially granting citizenship to those who entered Assam unlawfully. Nevertheless, the CAA contains safeguards to protect the interests of Assam and other Northeastern states. It empowers the government to designate regions and communities that will be excluded from its provisions, ensuring that local demographics are not negatively impacted. In India, minorities are recognised as equal partners in the development process, emphasising the importance of diverse cultures and religions, as well as promoting tolerance and acceptance among all communities. The CAAs emphasis on offering refuge to persecuted minorities does not diminish the rights and privileges enjoyed by Indian Muslims. Instead, it highlights Indias dedication to humanitarian values and the preservation of secular principles by providing assistance to vulnerable communities regardless of their faith. A thorough understanding of CAAs provisions is essential to grasp its impact on Indias varied religious landscape, and the Opposition must avoid exploiting this issue for political gains by inciting minorities before elections. Adarsh Kuniyillam is a Parliamentary, Policy and Political analyst and tweets at @authoradarsh. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. CAA rules have been notified, effectively making the Citizenship Amendment Act a law of the land. The Ram Mandir in Ayodhya has been built after decades of struggle. Article 370 has been revoked in Jammu and Kashmir. All of this has happened in the five years since 2019, in what will go down in the annals of history as a historic tenure for the BJP in which the party, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, delivered on some of its biggest ideological commitments. The implementation of CAA right ahead of the Lok Sabha elections is particularly significant, as it brings the curtains down on a very eventful second tenure for Prime Minister Modi and sets the stage for an even more eventful third term, which all opinion polls suggest is imminent. Remember, CAA has been the victim of some of the worst misinformation campaigns over the past five years. While CAA has nothing to do with depriving people of citizenship or disenfranchising Indian citizens, that is exactly what the BJP was accused of trying to do with the law. What is essentially a tool to correct historical injustices was spun as a political tool that would be used alongside NRC to specifically target Indian Muslims. That was why mass protests broke out against CAA in 2019 and 2020. Indian Muslims were specifically targeted with misinformation campaigns that sought to inflame their sentiments, triggering violent agitations across the country and even leading to riots in North East Delhi. The fact that the Modi-Shah duo have taken a gamble right before the Lok Sabha elections is worth noting. Not only does it signal a commitment on the part of the Modi government to fulfil the BJPs core ideological promises, it also sends out a strong statement to those who need it that Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and the BJP of today cannot be bullied into backtracking from matters of national and civilisational importance. Laws to that effect may be put on hold, even taken back in order to give the people more time to process the change and get the governments own messaging right, however, they should never be taken to be in permanent cold storage. Eventually, what is right and needs to be done, will be done. The implementation of the CAA also required political courage. With several Opposition-ruled states taking a hostile stance against the law, ordinary political wisdom would dictate that the BJP not touch an issue as sensitive as CAA weeks before the country heads to polls to choose its next prime minister and national government. However, both PM Modi and Amit Shah have displayed an appetite for taking risky and decisive decisions over the past five years, which other leaders would have shied at the mere mention of. The abrogation of Article 370 specifically comes to mind. For years, there was a genuine fear in Indias political class that tinkering with Kashmirs special status would trigger unparalleled bloodshed in the Valley. What was once increasingly resembling the Palestinian intifada-like culture of stone pelting has today vanished from Kashmir. Tourism is booming, investments are rushing in and developmental work is being undertaken at a scale not seen before. While Article 370 provided constitutional cover to terrorism, corruption and rampant discrimination in Jammu and Kashmir, the era that dawned after the abrogation has integrated the Valley solidly and permanently with the Indian union. It is important to point out here that the removal of Article 370 has by far been the BJPs biggest ideological commitment, which is perhaps why it was the first big decision to be taken right at the beginning of Modi 2.0. Meanwhile, Hindus and Ram bhakts around the world had nearly lost all hope of witnessing the making of a grand Ram Mandir in Ayodhya during their lifetimes. However, based on the Supreme Courts very sound verdict in favour of the Hindu side, the path was thrown open for the Modi government to constitute the Ram Janmabhoomi trust and facilitate the expeditious construction of a temple at the site. The Ram Mandirs inauguration became a national celebration as Prime Minister Modi called on all people to light diyas and celebrate Deepawali in their homes. Again, what was once considered an untouchable issue politically in India seamlessly turned into a moment of Bharats civilisational awakening all because the government itself became an active participant in the event. The message was clear: the inauguration of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya was too big and culturally significant a moment for Bharat to get caught up in ordinary political correctness. Circling back to the CAA, one cannot ignore the fact that the implementation of the law after four years has come as a boon for the sea of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian refugees who after having fled Islamic countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh were denied their rightful due even in India. This was a historical injustice meted out to such communities, and CAA will finally help set this gigantic wrong right. Now that CAA rules have been notified, these Indic communities can officially call Bharat their home as it is and as it has always been. One must understand that CAA ensures that those who have no other place in the world to call home can now call India their country. It is that aspect which lends CAA its civilisational significance, and also why the BJP has championed this cause for years and finally brought its ideological promise to fruition. Now, India is truly the Motherland for all those who fled their countries owing to religious persecution. Over the past five years, the BJP has demonstrated that it is not a party which makes big promises only for all of them to be left unfulfilled. Since 2019, the Modi government, making use of its strong majority in the Lok Sabha, has fulfilled some of the BJPs core ideological promises. My limited guess is that Narendra Modis third term will be even more significant in civilisational and ideological terms, which is why the BJP and NDA are seeking a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha. Remember, work on a Uniform Civil Code is already being taken up by BJP-ruled states. It would therefore not be an overstatement to suggest that over the next five years, one can expect Bharats civilisational ethos to make an even stronger comeback in its society and polity. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. A drunken driver who caused a crash that took the lives of two people in another vehicle has been sentenced to 7 to 15 years in prison, Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announced. Marcus D. Edwards, 30, of Buffalo, pleaded guilty in December to eight counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, a Class B felony, before State Supreme Court Justice Paul B. Wojtaszek. As a condition of his sentence, his drivers license was revoked indefinitely. Prosecutors said Edwards was drunk about 1 a.m. on July 31, 2022, when the Jeep Grand Cherokee he was driving sped through the intersection of Broadway and Bailey Avenue on Buffalos East Side and collided with a Jeep Liberty, which had the right of way as it turned onto Broadway. The driver of the Jeep Liberty, Nathaniel Robinson Sr., 68, of Buffalo, and his passenger, Sherry L. Lewis, 35, were killed in the crash. - Dale Anderson The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday criticised the DMK after an incident where Minister T. M. Anbarasan reportedly threatened Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public gathering. A video circulating on social media shows Anbarasan stating he would tear Modi into pieces. As I am a Minister, I am controlling myself, otherwise I would tear you into pieces, Anbarasan stated while addressing a crowd at an event in Pallavaram, Chennai, on 9 March. Anbarasan further asserted, We have seen many Prime Ministers, but none like this ridiculous PM. He says he will finish DMK. Can you?. DMK is not an ordinary party. Many have sacrificed their lives and shed blood for this party. Many have said they would finish DMK but at last they have only vanished. DMK will stand bravely. Reacting strongly to the incident, BJP Tamil Nadu unit president K Annamalai condemned the DMK minister for threatening PM Modi. With frustration creeping up with the rise in Anti-incumbency in TN, DMK Ministers are going to the extent of issuing threats to our Hon PM Thiru @narendramodi avl. DMK will soon be vanishing from the political space for their constant rants such as these, divisive politics, corrupt nature, affiliation with Intl drug peddlers, goondaism & misgovernance, Annamalai said in a post on X. With frustration creeping up with the rise in Anti-incumbency in TN, DMK Ministers are going to the extent of issuing threats to our Hon PM Thiru @narendramodi avl.DMK will soon be vanishing from the political space for their constant rants such as these, divisive politics, pic.twitter.com/kDHXsv75FW K.Annamalai ( ) (@annamalai_k) March 13, 2024 Amit Malviya, BJP IT cell head, also slammed the INDIA alliance, which includes the DMK, accusing them of aiming to eliminate Sanatan Dharma and those who protect it. After Udhayanidhi Stalin called for annihilation of Sanatan Dharma, DMK Minister TM Anbarasan, Minister for Rural Industries, including Cottage Industries, Small Industries of Tamil Nadu, in a public speech says, If I were not a minister, I will tear you (referring to Prime Minister Modi) into pieces. I.N.D.I Alliances agenda cant be more clear. Eliminate Sanatan Dharma and anyone who is seen protecting it, Malviya wrote. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday appointed five Cabinet Ministers as Government spokespersons to project the achievements of his administration. They are: Dinesh Gundu Rao, Krishna Byre Gowda, Priyank Kharge, Eshwar Khandre and Santhosh Lad. I have full confidence that all these ministers who have been appointed as government spokespersons will effectively present the achievements of the government before the people of the state, he was quoted as saying by his office on X. In the official communication about their appointment, the Chief Minister directed the Chief Secretary to instruct the heads of departments to take measures so as to provide them from time to time documents and information about the governments achievements. Leave the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and join the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has reportedly told Union minister Nitin Gadkari. Thackeray also offered him ministerial post when MVA forms government, and added that it will be a position with powers. Gadkari, however, described Thackerays invitation as immature and ridiculous, saying the BJP has a system of selecting candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader need not worry about the saffron party leaders. Speaking at a rally in Maharashtras Yavatmal district on Tuesday, Thackeray said people like (former Congress leader) Kripashankar Singh, whom the BJP once targeted (over alleged corruption), figured in the saffron partys first list of candidates along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but Gadkaris name was missing. I had told Gadkari this two days ago, and I am repeating it again. If you are being insulted, leave the BJP and join the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). We will ensure your victory. We will make you a minister when our government comes to power, and it will be a post with powers, he said. The opposition MVA comprises the Shiv Sena (UBT), Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) and Congress. Asked about Thackerays statement, Gadkari on Tuesday dismissed the suggestion, asserting that the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader need not worry about BJP leaders. The suggestion of Thackeray is immature and ridiculous. There is a system of giving tickets to candidates in BJP, he told PTI. Gadkari said Thackerays suggestion came much before the BJPs discussion on distribution of tickets in Maharashtra for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Last week, responding to Thackerays offer to Gadkari to contest as a candidate of the opposition, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis mocked the Sena (UBT) chief, saying it was like a man in the street offering someone to make US president. Gadkari is a prominent leader of the BJP, but the first list did not have names from Maharashtra as seat-sharing discussions between the BJP and its allies were not complete, Fadnavis had said. Thackeray, meanwhile, termed the notification of rules under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act as an election jumla (slogan). Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis and others coming to India (from neighbouring countries) are welcome but the timing of the notification is suspicious as elections would be soon announced, the former Maharashtra CM said. It has been more than four years since the abrogation of Article 370, but no elections have taken place in Jammu and Kashmir and Kashmiri Pandits have not yet returned to their homes in Kashmir, he said. The BJP should first bring Kashmiri Pandits back and then implement the CAA, Thackeray said. In the coming elections, there is the BJP which is creating enmity between religions and wants to change the Constitution, and on the other hand there is the INDIA bloc which is an alliance of patriots, he said. This election will be between desh-bhakt (those who love their country) and dvesh bhakt (those who preach hatred), Thackeray said. Prime Minister Modi has not yet found time to visit the restive Manipur, he added. (With inputs from PTI) A tripartite foundation stone-laying ceremony was held on Wednesday in Gujarats Dholera and Sanand cities, and Assams Morigaon district, marking a significant stride towards Indias semiconductor self-reliance. Several central and state officials as well as chip industry experts were present at the event, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined in via video link. India commits, India delivers, he said. During the ceremony, the PM emphasised Indias commitment to delivering on its chip-focused initiatives, highlighting the governments efforts through programmes like the India Semiconductor Mission and policies aimed at bolstering the sectors ecosystem in the country. The 21st century is a tech-driven century, and without semiconductors, it cant be imagined. Made in India as well as Design in India chip will take the lead, he noted. Union minister for electronics and information technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, who was present at the Dholera ceremony, hailed the occasion as the realisation of an initiative that began in 1962. He credited PM Modis decisive and forward-looking mindset for making the simultaneous foundation stone-laying ceremonies possible, noting the historic significance of the day for Indias future generations. While speaking on the importance of the semiconductor ecosystem, N Chandrasekaran, chairman of the board of Tata Sons, outlined three crucial reasons: the global chip shortage underscoring the need for self-reliance, the escalating threat of cyber warfare, and the necessity of a robust domestic semiconductor industry for both domestic consumption and global export. Gujarat chief minister Bhupendrabhai Patel lauded Dholeras strategic location for industrial facilities, citing its ease of transportation, be it because of an international airport or a water port, and potential to generate upwards of 50,000 jobs. Vaishnaw elaborated on Dholeras advantages, including water availability, electricity infrastructure, and renewable energy projects close by, conducive to semiconductor fabrication. Along with the Dholera fab which was established by Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) and Taiwans Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (PSMC), the Prime Minister also laid the foundation stones for two other semiconductor plants in Sanand and Morigaon. The three planned semiconductor plants are poised to significantly contribute to Indias chip production capacity, with projections of 50,000 chips per day in Dholera, 48 million in Morigaon, and 15 million in Sanand. Prime Minister Modi hailed the occasion as a historic step towards a brighter future, underscoring its significance for Indias youth and the nations aspirations to become a trusted partner in the global semiconductor supply chain. He highlighted the necessity of reliable chip manufacturing capabilities, especially in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, and expressed confidence in Indias potential to emerge as a global powerhouse in commercial chip production. Union minister Vaishnaw later confirmed production timelines, with Micron chips expected by December 2024 and Dholeras inaugural chip slated for December 2026. At a time when most Android devices come with an in-built call recording feature, Carl Peis tech company, Nothing, has joined the ranks and announced the addition of a new feature, which enables users to record phone calls discreetly. In an official social media post, Carl Pei made the announcement, stating that the new feature will help users record phone calls on their devices without having to alert other participants on the call. He further added that the feature will be available for all Nothing phone users, including those with Nothing Phone 1, Phone 2, and the newly launched Phone 2a. According to his post, the call recording feature has been installed through the new recorder widget on Nothing's phones. Earlier, Nothing devices allowed users to avail themselves of the call record feature through the default option. However, this would alert the other parties on the call that the conversation was being recorded. This time, users can initiate the feature without triggering alerts or notifications to others. Many have asked for discreet call recording on Nothing phones. This is now possible through our new recorder widget, he said in a post. The Nothing CEO also emphasised that the new feature comes in the wake of constant requests from users and aims to address the issue of alerting the other party while also protecting users from undesirable situations. Pei also responded to a series of queries in the comment section, including one on revamping the notification panel on Nothing devices. Nothing Phone 2a Nothing recently launched its brand new Phone 2a smartphone which costs Rs 23,999. The device has a 6.7-inch FHD+AMOLED 120Hz display with up to 1300 nits of peak brightness, powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro SoC with up to 12GB RAM and running on the Nothing OS 2.5 version based on Android 14. The phone has a 50MP main camera, a 50 MP ultra-wide sensor, and a 32 MP selfie camera. It has a 5,000 mAh with 45W fast charging technology. The Phone 2a is now available in the country across different platforms. In the world of online travel influencers, many aspire to explore new destinations, seeking enriching experiences and creating everlasting memories. Recently, a couple from the UK embarked on such a journey, venturing into India. Renowned for their YouTube channel Those Happy Days, Liam and Janine Day opted for an autorickshaw affectionately named Pete instead of their campervan to embark on an adventure through Indias diverse landscapes and indulging in its variety of traditional cuisines. During their nine-month journey, the couple traveled 9,000 kilometers from Kanyakumari to Amritsar in their autorickshaw, facing several breakdowns along the way. In a recent interview with The Indian Express, the duo shared insights into their adventurous journey across India. When asked about their experience driving an autorickshaw amidst the chaos of Indian cities, Janine revealed, Liam was the driver for the whole 9,000-km rickshaw journey, and I was the passenger. Liam practised driving it for half an hour in a quiet suburb in Chennai. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Liam Day & Janine Day Travel Vloggers Those Happy Days (@thosehappy_days) She further said, Trying to get used to how to operate the rickshaw, while trying to get our heads around the Indian roads was terrifying! But going straight into the deep end worked and Liam had to learn quickly, and then we started enjoying the roads more as it was so different to the UK. When asked about the challenges encountered while exploring the diverse landscapes and cultures of North India, the duo expressed their surprise at the unexpected cold in certain regions. Being British with no threats from wild animals, it was also a challenge getting our heads round the fact that we were potentially surrounded by elephants, leopards, and other wild animals. We also took the rickshaw into the Western Ghat mountains, which are up there as some of the most dangerous roads in India not somewhere you should be taking a 20-year-old rickshaw! they told The Indian Express. The couple also fondly recounted their experience celebrating Mahashivratri with Sadhguru, where an all-night party at his ashram left a lasting impression. A humorous twist awaited them upon returning to Pete after the festivities, as they discovered two unexpected guests asleep inside the rickshaw. Reflecting on their journey, they emphasised, Experiencing the kindness we had hoped existed in the world, but only upon coming to India did we truly find it. To conclude their adventure in India, the couple shared with The Indian Express how they donated their autorickshaw to a dog sanctuary in Amritsar, which repurposed it into a dog ambulance, aiding in many rescues. Their video documenting the donation raised thousands of dollars for the sanctuary, providing a fitting end to their journey. Delhis renowned Vada Pav girl, Chandrika Gera Dixit, gained widespread recognition for serving delectable Vada Pav, a popular Maharashtra street food comprising a deep-fried potato dumpling nestled in a bread bun sliced almost halfway through, all while exuding a vibrant smile and aura. However, a recent viral video captured a starkly different scene as Dixit, visibly distraught, broke down. Amid sobs, Dixit lamented over the phone, Bohot pareshan kar rahe haipolice waleMCD wale. She accused Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) officials of relentless harassment, threatening to shutter her pushcart and demanding increasing sums of money. Although the exact motive behind their actions remains unspecified, Dixit asserted that they solely seek financial gain, citing a recent payment of around Rs. 30,000- Rs.35,000. Amidst her distress, she echoed, Sab paison ka khel hai. She subsequently engaged with customers, sharing her predicament before purportedly calling her brother to hasten to her aid as MCD officials continued their threats. Seeking validation, she questioned customers if she was in the wrong, to which many asserted that earning a livelihood isnt wrong and pledged their support. Also Read: Who is Dolly Chaiwala? How This Tea Vendors Viral Antics Opened Windows to Bill Gates In solidarity, numerous food bloggers rallied support for Dixit and her enterprise. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Rajat Upadhyay (@foodbowlss) Commentary and empathy flooded in from various users, with some advising Dixit to seek permission from the MCD to prevent further harassment. It is not about men or women it is about the rules by the mcd. Basically these food stalls are an encroachment on the government land. And also if these foods stall are allowed then why do others have to buy a commercial property then get all the licenses from the authority. There are multiple licenses required and the price to get these licenses are way to expensive. So ofc why should we allow these stalls, expressed one user. Another suggested, Take license and do it officially no one will come and bother you. Also Read: Can a Panipuri Vendor Become Your Marriage Broker? This Hilarious Thread Has All the Answers Reportedly, Dixits Vada Pav stall is located in Sainik Vihar in the National Capital Region. A Bangladeshi cargo vessel has reportedly been hijacked in the Indian Ocean region, and is heading towards the Somalian coast. According to United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reports, the vessel was boarded by multiple people using two craft one large and one small. UKMTOs Company Security Officer (CSO) reports stated that the crew are unharmed and there are 22 unauthorised armed persons onboard. The last known position of the vessel is 0149N 05425E on a course 315 degrees, heading in the direction of the Somalian coast. The vessel is the latest to be targeted following a resurgence of attacks by Somali pirates in recent months although the maritime security firm, Ambrey, did not specify that it was Somali pirates who boarded the ship. A Reuters report quoted Ambrey as saying the ship was a Bangladesh-flagged bulk carrier a type of merchant ship used to transport large amounts of cargo that was heading from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates. Al-Jazeera identified the vessel as MV Abdullah that was carrying a cargo of 55,000 tonnes of coal. It attributed the information to Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills, which owns the vessel. A group of 15-20 Somali pirates hijacked the ship, Al-Jazeera quoted Meherul Karim, chief executive officer of Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills. The report stated that the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations advised caution to other vessels in the area and said that it was investigating the incident. Somali pirates caused chaos in important global waterways from about 2008 to 2018. They had been dormant until late last year when pirate activity started to pick up again. Data from the Maritime Security Centre Horn of Africa, the planning and coordination centre for the European Unions anti-piracy operation EUNAVFOR, show there have been more than 20 hijackings or attempted hijackings of vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin since November. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump both clinched their parties nomination on Tuesday, kicking off the first US presidential election rematch in nearly 70 years. Biden needed 1,968 delegates to win the nomination, a number Edison Research said he passed on Tuesday night as results began to come in from the primary contest in Georgia, ahead of expected results from Mississippi, Washington state, the Northern Mariana Islands and Democrats living abroad. Trump clinched the 1,215 delegates required to secure the Republican presidential nomination as four states held contests, including Georgia, the battleground where Trump faces criminal charges for his efforts to overturn the states 2020 results. There were 161 delegates at stake on Tuesday in Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington state. Voters have a choice In a statement, Biden called Trumps campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America. Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country. Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away? he said. Trump was expected to clinch the Republican Partys nomination later on Tuesday as four states held contests, including Georgia, the battleground where Trump faces criminal charges for his efforts to overturn the states 2020 results. The outcome is essentially predetermined, after Trumps last remaining rival for the Republican nomination, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, ended her presidential campaign following Trumps dominant performance last week on Super Tuesday, when he won 14 of 15 state contests. This year, US voters have expressed little enthusiasm for a repeat of the bitter 2020 election, with Reuters/Ipsos public polls showing both Biden and Trump are unpopular with the majority of voters. Trumps myriad criminal charges could harm his standing among the suburban, well-educated voters whose support hes historically struggled to garner. He is scheduled to become the first former American president to go on trial in a criminal case on March 25 in New York, where he faces charges he falsified business records to hide hush money payments to a porn star. I was in Pennsylvania and Georgia this past weekend talking to voters about whats at stake in this election.Time and again, Republicans show theyre a party of chaos and division. Were focused on building a future together. pic.twitter.com/VoMYyeIpOG Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) March 12, 2024 Nov. 5 General Election Biden, meanwhile, faced only token opposition in the Democratic primary campaign, though liberal activists frustrated by his support for Israels war in Gaza have convinced a sizable minority of Democrats to vote uncommitted in protest. Both men have already turned their attention to the Nov. 5 general election, holding dueling rallies in Georgia on Saturday. In Rome, Georgia, Trump, 77, again repeated his false claim that the 2020 election was fraudulent and accused the Fulton County attorney, Fani Willis, of prosecuting him for political reasons. He also attacked Biden for failing to stem the flow of migrants at the U.S. southern border, an issue he intends to keep front and center throughout the campaign, as he did in 2020. The Biden campaign launched a more aggressive phase on Friday, announcing Biden would tour several battleground states amid a $30 million ad buy. The campaign said it raised $10 million in the 24 hours after Bidens State of the Union speech, adding to Democrats financial edge over Republicans. As of Monday, Trump needed 139 additional delegates to reach the 1,215 required to secure the Republican presidential nomination, according to Edison Research. There are 161 delegates at stake on Tuesday in Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington state. Biden has been dogged by the perception among a majority of voters that he is too old to serve a second four-year term, though allies believe his fiery State of the Union address may serve to counter that notion. The ongoing crisis at the US-Mexico border, where an influx of migrants has overwhelmed the system, is another weakness for Biden. He has sought to transfer the blame to Trump after the former president urged congressional Republicans to kill a bipartisan border security bill that would have stepped up enforcement. The economy, as always, will be a central campaign issue. Polls show Americans are unwilling to credit the president and are frustrated about the high prices of items like food. (With agency inputs) Echoing a message similar to one recently vouched by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, China said on Wednesday that resolving border issues and finding a mutually acceptable solution is in the common interest of both neighbours. During a recent panel discussion, Jaishankar said that the tension witnessed during the nearly four-year border row with China in eastern Ladakh has not served either of us well. At the Express Adda event in New Delhi, he also said that India remains committed to finding a fair and reasonable outcome but one that is respectful of agreements and recognises the Line of Actual Control. In a similar cadence, Chinese Foreign Minister spokesperson Wang Wenbin today said that it is in the common interest of both China and India to resolve the border issues as early as possible and it is hoped that both sides will soon find a mutually acceptable solution in accordance with the consensus of the leaders of the two countries and the spirit of the relevant agreements and accords. Ties between the two countries nose-dived significantly following the clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades. India and China recently held a fresh round of high-level military talks to resolve the border issue. Asked about his views on offers made from the Chinese side in the past to resolve the border issue, and whether there was any scenario where he could think that this could actually be resolved, the minister Jaishankar on Monday had said, Any country involved in a boundary dispute negotiating, it has to believe there has to be a solution. I think it is in our common interest that we should not have that many forces on the Line of Actual Control. I think it is in our common interest that we should observe the agreements that we have signed. And, I believe that it is not just in common interest, I believe it is in Chinas interest as well. This tension that we have seen for the last four years has not served either of us well, he said. So, the sooner we resolve it, I genuinely believe it is good for both of us. I am still very much committed to finding a fair, reasonable outcome. But one which is respectful of agreements recognises the Line of Actual Control and doesnt seek to change the status quo. That, I think, will be good for both of us, the minister added. (With agency inputs) State Trooper Anthony Nigro IV was trying to pull James Huber out of his car through the driver's side window of his Chevrolet Malibu, but it wasn't working. Huber put the car in reverse and hit the gas pedal. Nigro could feel himself starting to get dragged. He believed he might get pulled under the vehicle. He thought he was going to die, Nigro testified Tuesday afternoon in Erie County Court. In contrast to prosecution's portrayal, troopers testify Nigro wasn't angry after fatal shooting Three of Anthony Nigro's colleagues who testified at his manslaughter trial Friday in Erie County Court said he did not appear angry or frustrated in February 2022 after he fatally shot a motorist he had been pursuing in a chase that at times exceeded 100 mph. At this point in his testimony on the witness stand, he paused about 30 seconds. His face reddened. "This man is going to kill me," Nigro said he thought. Nigro was describing what happened 25 months ago in the middle of East Eagle Street as he took the stand in his own defense. Nigro, 40, faces first- and second-degree manslaughter charges for the Feb. 12, 2022, fatal shooting of Huber, 38, of North East, Pa. Troopers engaged in a roughly 45-minute pursuit of Huber that began on the Thruway in Brant and continued onto the I-190 and into downtown Buffalo. The bench trial before county Judge James Bargnesi, which began Thursday, continues Wednesday. Nigro took the stand after prosecutors from the state Attorney General's Office rested their case against him, which included testimony from his fellow troopers, a policing expert and footage from his body-worn camera. Based on the length of the pursuit and Huber's actions during it, which included trying to drive other vehicles off the road while traveling upwards of 120 mph, Nigro said Huber had demonstrated no willingness to comply with police. Nigro called Huber the most dangerous driver he'd seen in his career, which to that point was about 15 years. "To this day, how he didn't hit anybody is beyond me," Nigro said. Manslaughter trial begins for trooper who killed a man following a high-speed chase The trial began Thursday for State Trooper Anthony Nigro IV, who has been charged with first- and second-degree manslaughter for fatally shooting James Huber in downtown Buffalo in 2022. Once the pursuit was terminated by his commanders after Huber exited the I-190, Nigro could still see Huber's car. When Huber stopped and began talking with two people on East Eagle, Nigro said he didn't have time to report his location to dispatch or wait for backup. He said he assumed his commanders knew his precise location because State Police vehicles are tracked by GPS. "This was my chance," he said. Nigro pulled his car in front of Huber's, drew his gun and ran to the driver's side door, ordering Huber out. Huber's response included telling Nigro he forgave him and he loved him, Nigro testified. Nigro said as he and Huber struggled in the middle of the street, Huber put his hand on the gear shift of his car. The pair locked eyes. Huber smiled and nodded, Nigro told the jury. "Now I got ya," was the message Nigro said he received from Huber. As Huber's car started moving, Nigro said he thought he was either getting pulled under the vehicle, getting run over or getting crushed between Huber's car and a nearby parked vehicle. "I made the conscious decision at that moment to terminate the threat," Nigro said. He fired two shots. The first, with his gun about a foot and a half from Huber's face, instantly killed Huber, the Erie County Medical Examiner's Office concluded. The second shot went through the car door and hit Huber in the arm. As seen in the body-cam footage, after he got up and went to Huber's crashed vehicle down the street, Nigro said, "dumbass." Under questioning from his defense attorney, Andrew Quinn, the trooper said he was trying to convey his disappointment with the decision Huber made. He also felt sorry for him, he said. "He didn't listen," Nigro said. If he had, the only thing that would have happened was he would have gotten arrested, he said. Under cross-examination, Assistant Attorney General James Marra noted that no other drivers were injured in during the entire pursuit and the only vehicle damaged was Nigro's patrol car. Under Marra's questioning, Nigro admitted his police training taught him to give himself distance and cover, to provide his location before interacting with a dangerous person and to call for backup when there's a "high risk" vehicle stop. Those were things Nigro said he didn't do. But he said doing those things made "zero sense" in this situation because Huber had already shown he was unwilling to be compliant. Nigro denied being angry or frustrated with Huber, as prosecutors have alleged. Nigro said he remembers his body was inside Huber's car when he fired the shots, but admitted that state police video analysis shown during the trial which broke down the footage and pointed out minute details not apparent when watching the video at normal speed shows he was outside the vehicle at the time. He reached into the vehicle at first to try to disable it "instead of sitting around and doing nothing," he said. Nigro said he still doesn't know anything about what motivated Huber that day. "I'm not going to sit around and wait when I've got to take action," Nigro said. The European Union announced Wednesday an aid package worth almost 70 million euros ($77 million) for the Great Lakes region of Africa which has been plagued by conflict and natural disasters. The humanitarian situation in the Great Lakes region is desperate - and is expected to deteriorate further in 2024 as the conflict intensifies and the root causes of violence persist, Janez Lenarcic, EU commissioner for crisis management, said in a statement. The statement said 63.75 million euros ($70 million) of the package was allocated to humanitarian projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) including 4.75 million euros ($5.2 million) for disaster risk reduction. Already we have seen a significant deterioration in the security situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with devastating effects on civilians, Lenarcic said. An additional six million euros ($6.6 million) has been granted to provide aid to Burundian refugees who fled to neighbouring Tanzania and Rwanda as well as those who have returned to Burundi. In a region where gender-based violence and violations of International Humanitarian Law are especially prevalent the EUs humanitarian funding will contribute towards alleviating the suffering of the most vulnerable, Lenarcic added. After eight years of dormancy, the Tutsi-led M23 rebellion took up arms again in late 2021, seizing large swathes of DRCs North Kivu region cutting off all land access to its capital Goma except via the Rwandan border in early February. According to the DRC, the United Nations and Western powers, neighbouring Rwanda is backing the M23, an allegation Kigali denies. The UN estimated at the end of 2023 that nearly seven million people were displaced in the DRC, including 2.5 million in the province of North Kivu alone. A former Boeing employee who had raised concerns about the companys production issues was found dead of an apparent suicide, according to authorities in South Carolina. John Barnett, 62, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the Charleston County coroners office in South Carolina confirmed on Tuesday. Barnett had worked at Boeing for 32 years before leaving the company in 2017, according to the BBC, which previously reported on his efforts to raise issues about the companys production issues. The Charleston City police are investigating, the coroners office said. Barnett was in the middle of a deposition in an ongoing whistleblower retaliation case against Boeing, according to a statement from his attorneys, Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles. He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didnt see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it, they said. Barnett was a quality manager at Boeing. He had exposed very serious safety problems with the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and was retaliated against and subjected to a hostile work environment, his attorneys said. In a statement, Boeing said: We are saddened by Mr. Barnetts passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends. Barnett had spoken to media outlets following the Jan. 5 incident on a Boeing 737 MAX 9 plane, when a panel blew out while the flight was in mid-air, exposing passengers to the outside air that required an emergency landing. Boeing has since had to reckon with a full-blown crisis around its safety and quality standards. (With agency inputs) Indian American Congressman Shri Thanedar has applauded Indias remarkable economic strides under Prime Minister Narendra Modis tenure, citing a shift from the 10th to potentially the third-largest global economy. Congressman Shri Thanedar represents the 13th Congressional District of Michigan and is highly popular among Indian Americans across the country. A Marathi speaker, he travels to various parts of the US, meeting and interacting with various Indian American groups and organisations. He was in India as part of a Congressional delegation last August. The progress (of India) is outstanding (in the last 10 years). When I think Prime Minister Modi was elected, India was like the 10th economy in the world, then it became the fifth economy and very soon to be the third largest economy in the world. So there is absolutely no doubt that India has made amazing progress, the 69-year-old told news agency PTI in an interview. Its a country of young people. I think it has more young people, percentage wise than most nations. That is the strength of India. India has now embraced technology. We are seeing the digitalisation of the financial systems, the banking systems. That digitalisation, that progress, that technology has reached smaller towns, villages. So there is a revolution going on in India, Thanedar said. Its all very exciting to see. India continues to be a strong force in the world. No one can ignore India, including the United States. The United States must respect and honour the ability India has and the potential India and Indian people have. And I think President Biden understands that, he told PTI in response to a question. Prime Minister Modi, he said, established a good relationship with the previous administration and also this administration. I think when I was at the White House, when Modiji came and we had the dinner in his honour, I could see the chemistry, the friendship between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi. It continues to strengthen, he said. In my personal opinion, I think the relationship needs to be much better than what it is now. As you know, India started with a non-alignment position and many years India was trying to balance between the Soviet Union and the United States. But time has now come for India to fully trust and put its faith and friendship into the United States and focus on working closely together, he said. We need to become much more stronger allies. We need to have much more collaboration in terms of defense and in terms of technology and commerce in general. I think theres a lot more that can be done, but I think we have a good relationship right now, Thanedar said. (With agency inputs) Visiting New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters has cast doubt on the potential Indian link to the killing of Canada-based Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. As a member of the Five-Eyes intelligence alliance, comprising the US, Canada, UK, and Australia, New Zealand received intel related to the Nijjar case last year before Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau publicised allegations linking his death to India. Peters, currently on a four-day visit to India, assumed office as Deputy Prime Minister after Centre-Right parties triumphed over the Left-leaning Labour Party in New Zealands last November elections. Peters, who is also serving as the countrys foreign minister, said on Tuesday that the handling of the Nijjar case transpired under the purview of the previous government. Wheres the evidence? In an interview with The Indian Express, Peters stressed that although information is received presumably via the Five-Eyes its value and quality are often ambiguous. He underlined the absence of conclusive evidence or findings corroborating the alleged Indian involvement. As a trained lawyer, I look okay, so wheres the case? Wheres the evidence? Wheres the finding right here, right now? Well, there isnt one, he told the newspaper. This marks the first instance where a Five-Eyes partner has openly contested Canadas assertions. India-Canada ties soured after Trudeau last September said that Ottawa was actively pursuing credible allegations that Indian agents were potentially linked to the June killing of Nijjar. Ever since Trudeau went public with the Nijjar claims, New Delhi has strongly rejected the accusations and asked Ottawa to furnish solid proof. India has maintained that its approach right from the beginning was collaborative and wanted to deal with the concerns raised by Canada through diplomatic channels. In an earlier release that announced Peters visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said India and New Zealand share warm and friendly relations based on commonalities of democratic traditions and shared values bolstered by strong people-to-people ties. The two countries are engaging in cooperation across a wide range of areas, including trade and economy, defence and security, MEA said. Jailed former prime minister Imran Khans party has asked the European Union to revoke Pakistans Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) Plus status and was conspiring to destroy its economy, the new Interior Minister Attaullah Tarar alleged on Wednesday. The GSP+ serves as a special incentive arrangement to promote good governance and sustainable development by facilitating trade. Pakistan was accorded the status in 2014 which has now been extended until 2027. The country enjoys duty-free or minimum duty on exports to the European market. Addressing a press conference, Tarar claimed that Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party sent an online petition to the European Union to deprive Pakistan of GSP+ status, which serves as a special incentive arrangement to promote good governance and sustainable development by facilitating trade. Contacting the European Union and asking them to revoke Pakistans GSP+ status is an attack on Pakistan. This is a conspiracy to destroy Pakistans economy and to inflict the poor people of Pakistan with more difficulties, he said. Two Palestinians believed to be Hamas militants were shot dead by Israeli forces in the West Bank on Wednesday, local sources said, as the army confirmed soldiers had fired at armed suspects in the occupied territory. The incident was the latest in a spate of killings in the West Bank, which has seen a surge in violence since the Israel-Hamas war began in the Gaza Strip in October. The killings took place before dawn on the compound of the government hospital in Jenin city, in the north of the West Bank, said the hospitals director, Wissam Bakr. It is true that shots were fired at a group of young men near the entrance to the emergency department, and there were no confrontations or anything, he told AFP. Snipers started shooting at them after which the two men entered the emergency department where they were martyred. Bakr added that four other people were injured in the incident. Palestinian official news agency Wafa identified the two men as Mahmud Abu Alheja and Rabi Alnawrasi. Asked about the reported deaths, the Israeli military said soldiers fired toward armed suspects identified in the area and that hits were identified, but did not confirm fatalities or the exact location of the incident. It described the operation as counterterrorism activity. Soldiers apprehended a wanted suspect, in addition to uncovering and dismantling explosive devices that were planted underneath roads in order to attack the forces, it said. Enemy has no limits Later on Wednesday dozens of mourners gathered for the funeral of the two men in the adjacent Jenin refugee camp, an AFP photographer reported. AFP footage showed that the bodies, draped in green flags of the Palestinian militant group Hamas and with headbands of its armed wing, were taken to a mosque where mourners offered prayers. The bodies were later buried at a cemetery. Jenin has been the focus of repeated Israeli military raids in recent years, which have often led to clashes with Palestinian militants. In January, Israeli security agents disguised as medics raided the citys Ibn Sina hospital and shot dead three Palestinian militants, who the army said belonged to a Hamas terrorist cell. The enemy has no red lines. It has surpassed all limits, said Walid Jalama, a relative who attended the funeral. Previously it raided the Ibn Sina hospital and assassinated three martyrs there Today, it pursued these young men and killed them at the government hospital. The Jenin refugee camp adjacent to the city is also one of the most crowded and impoverished in the West Bank and has become a hub of militant activity in recent years. The Ramallah-based Palestinian health ministry says at least 430 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli troops and settlers since the unprecedented attack by Gaza-based Hamas on southern Israel on October 7. Thousands of others have been arrested. The Hamas attack resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures. Israels retaliatory military campaign against Hamas has killed at least 31,272 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory. President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday lauded Moscows nuclear arsenal and warned that he was ready to deploy the weapons if Russias sovereignty was threatened. The Kremlin has touted its nuclear prowess throughout its two-year offensive in Ukraine, last month warning Western countries there was a real risk of nuclear catastrophe if they escalated the conflict. Putins latest comments come just days ahead of elections in Russia that are all but guaranteed to hand him another six years in power and as his military posts gains in Ukraine. Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here, Putin said in a wide-ranging interview with state media. The triad refers to Russias three-pronged arsenal of weapons launched from land, sea and air. We are ready to use weapons, including any weapons including the weapons you mentioned if it is a question of the existence of the Russian state or damage to our sovereignty and independence, Putin added in the interview, which aired on Wednesday. Strike on Russian Oil Facilities The Russian leader also dismissed comments by French leader Emmanuel Macron, who last month declined to rule out putting boots on the ground, a significant shift in rhetoric as Ukraine struggles on the battlefield. The fact is that the militaries of Western countries have been present in Ukraine for a long time, the Russian leader said, referring to what the Kremlin says are mercenaries. But if we talk about official military contingents of foreign countries, I am sure it will not change the situation on the battlefield, he added. While Macron has doubled down on his remarks, several of Ukraines allies, including Washington, have distanced themselves from the idea, which stunned many in Europe. Putins comments came hours after Kyiv targeted Russias energy infrastructure and border regions for the second day in a row. Ukrainian drones attacked three oil refineries hundreds of kilometres from the frontline in the regions of Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Leningrad, a security source told AFP. Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of oil money and fuel, the source said. One drone caused a fire and wounded several people when it crashed into an oil refinery in the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov wrote on Telegram. In the Rostov region bordering Ukraine, drones landed on the site of an oil refinery in the city of Novoshakhtinsk, regional governor Vasily Golubev said. Moscows defence ministry said overnight and throughout Thursday it downed a total of 72 Ukrainian drones over its territory. In the Russian border region of Belgorod, two people were injured when a Ukrainian shell hit a house on Wednesday afternoon, the regions governor said. Disrupt Elections The day before, Russia said it had repelled a series of brazen cross-border raids by pro-Ukrainian militias, who burst into its territory and claimed to seize control of a village. Putin said that Ukraine was increasing its attacks on Russian territory to interfere with upcoming presidential elections. Its simple. This is all happening against the backdrop of failures on the frontline. They did not achieve any of the goals that they set for themselves last year, Putin said. I have no doubt that the main goal is, if not to disrupt the presidential elections in Russia then to somehow interfere with the normal process, he said. Ukraine has ceded ground to Russian forces in recent months as it faces a myriad of shortages, from artillery to air defences, in part because a $60-billion aid package remains held up in the US Congress. On Tuesday night, a Russian missile strike in President Volodymyr Zelenskys hometown of Kryvyi Rih left five dead and dozens wounded, an attack the Ukrainian leader warned would not go unpunished. President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday Russia was ready for nuclear war and that if the US crossed its red line and sent troops to Ukraine. In an interview with state media, a few days before this weeks election, Putin stated that the nuclear war scenario was not imminent, and he saw no need for the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready, Putin, 71, told Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA in response to a question about whether the country was ready for a nuclear war. Putin, who is likely to secure another six years in power, said the US understood that if it deployed American troops on Russian territory, it would treat the move as an intervention. I dont think that here everything is rushing to it (nuclear confrontation), but we are ready for this, Putin said. I hate to say it, but I dont trust anyone. But we need guarantees, Putin said regarding the likelihood of Ukraine peace talksI hate to say it, but I dont trust anyone. But we need guarantees. And the guarantees must be spelled out, they must be guarantees that would pic.twitter.com/wZvBFRoGo8 Sputnik (@SputnikInt) March 13, 2024 Guarantees On Ukraine peace talks, Putin said he hates to say it, but he doesnt trust anyone. Russia needs guarantees, he said. And the guarantees must be spelled out, they must be guarantees that would suit us and that we would believe in. This is what we are talking about. But right now it is probably too early to talk publicly about what it could be. But we will certainly not buy into some empty promises, he was quoted as saying by Sputnik. Putins nuclear warning came alongside another offer for talks on Ukraine as part of a new post-Cold War demarcation of European security. Putin sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022, triggering full-scale war after eight years of conflict in eastern Ukraine between Ukrainian forces on one side and pro-Russian Ukrainians and Russian proxies on the other. Kyiv says it is defending itself against an imperial-style war of conquest designed to erase its national identity. Russia says the areas it controls in Ukraine are now Russia. Putin has sent a series of public nuclear warnings to the U.S. aimed at discouraging greater involvement in Ukraine. Putin reiterated the use of nuclear weapons was spelled out in the Kremlins nuclear doctrine, which sets out the conditions under which it would use such a weapon: broadly a response to an attack using nuclear or other weapons of mass destruction, or the use of conventional weapons against Russia when the very existence of the state is put under threat. Weapons exist in order to use them, Putin said. We have our own principles. American broadcaster CNN reported on Saturday the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden was specifically concerned in 2022 that Russia might use a tactical or battlefield nuclear weapon in Ukraine. Putin said he had never felt the need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Putin said Russia was ready for serious talks on Ukraine. Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but they should be based on reality and not on cravings after the use of psychotropic drugs, Putin said. Last month, Reuters reported. that Putins suggestion of a ceasefire in Ukraine to freeze the war was rejected by the US. (With agency inputs) A wave of drone strikes targeted Russias oil refineries and border regions for the second day in a row on Wednesday, with one sparking a fire and injuring several people in the Ryazan region, officials said. Dozens of drones were launched overnight, with the vast majority shot down, causing some damage but no victims, over the Ukrainian border regions of Belgorod, Bryansk, Kursk and Voronezh, according to regional governors. One sparked a fire and wounded several people when it crashed into an oil refinery in the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow. The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone, Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov wrote on Telegram. According to preliminary information, there are injuries, he wrote. A fire broke out at the refinery following the strike and all rescue services are working at the scene, Malkov said. A drone targeting another oil refinery in the Leningrad region near the second city of Saint Petersburg in northwest Russia was shot down, Alexander Drozdenko, the regional governor wrote on Telegram, adding there was no damage and no victims. More than 30 drones were shot down over the Voronezh region, with some light damage reported, regional governor Alexander Gussev wrote on Telegram. Six drones were shot down over the Belgorod region, damaging several electrical lines and causing power outages, governor Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote on Telegram. Eight drones were shot down over the Bryansk region and four were destroyed over the region of Kursk without reports of damage, the governors of those regions wrote on Telegram. On Tuesday, Ukraine launched one of its most significant drone strikes on Russia so far in the two-year conflict. Two Russian energy sites, including one of the largest oil refineries some 800 kilometres from the border, were hit in the strikes, Russian officials said. A major oil refinery in Kstovo, just outside the city of Nizhny Novgorod, was hit by a drone early on Tuesday morning, the regional governor said. Another drone crashed into a fuel depot and started a fire in Oryol, around 160 kilometres from the border, according to the regional governor. Britains First Lady, Akshata Murty, has praised her mother Sudha Murty as a role model for women during an International Womens Day celebration event at Downing Street. Akshata, 43, wife of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak played host to a mentoring session with female role models and business leaders for girls and young women on Friday. The event was part of her a programme which provides children from across the UK an opportunity to see behind the scenes of the No. 10 Downing Street. Im so pleased to be marking this International Womens Day by celebrating women in business. It is fantastic to host a special mentoring session with female role models and business leaders for girls and young women at Downing Street, said Murty, according to a Downing Street release. I know the phenomenal work that goes into running a business. My mothers endeavours in science, technology, engineering and maths allowed her to push boundaries both academically and professionally and gave her a ringside seat to the technological revolution, she said. Author and philanthropist Sudha Murty, who began her career in computer science and became the first female engineer to be hired at TATA Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO), was nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha last week for her contribution to social work and education. The 73-year-old engineer-turned-philanthropists nomination to the Upper House of Parliament coincided with International Womens Day on March 8. Sudha Murty, the former chairperson of Infosys Foundation, is also renowned for her contribution to Kannada and English literature and is a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Puraskar, Padma Shri (2006) and Padma Bhushan (2023). Murty is famously known to have provided the seed capital of Rs 10,000 from her emergency funds to her husband N R Narayana Murthy to start Infosys, which has a market cap of over USD 80 billion. I hope other women and girls are inspired by role models around them to pursue their own passions, added Akshata Murty, who until recently was director of Catamaran Ventures UK an early-stage investment firm with a focus on British brands. On moving into No. 10 Downing Street when Rishi Sunak was elected leader of the Conservative Party in October 2022, Murty launched Lessons at 10 to encourage a love of learning and inspire children from across the UK with the help of special guests, industry experts and charitable organisations. International Womens Day last week was organised alongside the Girls Network, a charity that partners with secondary schools and colleges across England to offer girls aged 14-19 a year-long mentoring programme to support their ambitions. We hope that by being invited into No. 10, girls will see that spaces like this are just as much for them as anyone else. It will be a memorable experience for all involved and Im sure the girls will come away feeling inspired and motivated in their own journeys, said Katie Thiselton, Co-Executive Director, the Girls Network. Later, the Sunaks also hosted a reception at Downing Street to celebrate inspirational female leaders from across a wide range of industries from businesses to civil society and the National Health Service (NHS). I am committed to delivering the long-term change needed to build a brighter future for women and girls, said Rishi Sunak. And weve made huge progress since I became Prime Minister investing millions to ensure women feel safe on our streets, ensuring girls receive a world class education by boosting standards and championing STEM [science, tech, engineering and maths] careers, giving women more choice with the largest ever childcare expansion in Englands history and launching the Womens Health Strategy and Pharmacy First, making it easier for women to get the care they need more quickly, he said. (With agency inputs) Hundreds of parents, students and teachers packed the Hamburg Central School Board meeting Tuesday night to object to the layoffs of 17 employees, including 13 teachers. But the communitys outcry might not change the outcome. Unfortunately, we dont anticipate a final state aid amount that would substantially change our budget outlook for 2024-25, Superintendent Michael Cornell told The Buffalo News on Wednesday. Teachers were told Friday during school that their positions would be eliminated at the end of this school year due to budget constraints. The last thing in the world we ever want to do is lay off a single person, Cornell said during the Tuesday night meeting, adding it is painful to talk about laying off employees. Theyre amazing people. Last Friday, it was tough for not only faculty but also many of the students. Students are sad and angry and many of their role models will not be here next year, said Abby Nikiel, the student representative on the School Board. My peers and I hope that district administration and school board realize the impact of these decisions on students of this district. Jessica Reyna, president of the Hamburg Central PTSA, urged the board to preserve educational offerings. Our teachers and staff who work directly with our students are our most valuable assets, and their contributions in and out of the classroom are critical to our community, she said. The Hamburg Central PTSA asks the Board of Education to please be thoughtful and transparent in your budget decisions. Were not in a great financial situation as a school district, Cornell told the audience that was standing room only in the Armor Elementary School cafeteria and hallway. Im the superintendent of schools, and the buck stops with me. He said the district overestimated revenues and underestimated expenses in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 budgets. As it turns out, we were using cash reserves to pay for recurring expenses, like staff, he said. This became known to us about a year ago, when we had an opportunity to really look into what was happening with the budget. Some in the audience linked the financial issues to the departure of the districts longtime superintendent for finance and administration, Barbara Sporyz. She was placed on administrative leave Nov. 21, 2022, and resigned for the purposes of retirement April 15, 2023. The district had planned to file disciplinary charges against Sporyz under state Education Law, according to her separation agreement. Sporyz denied any wrongdoing, and the two parties opted for the separation agreement, which includes a non-disparagement clause. Cornell said the employees were told in person Friday and given the choice to go home for the rest of the day. He said it was done to give them time between the notification and the budget specifics that came up at Tuesdays meeting. Im here today because you are laying off my teachers. You gave my teachers no warning, pulled them out of their classes, told them they were laid off, an eighth-grader told the board. These layoffs will significantly decrease the quality of my and my peers education, and I will not stand for that. Thirteen teachers, two teacher aides, a computer aide and a maintenance mechanic would be laid off, and seven employees who are retiring would not be replaced, including four teachers, a counselor, teacher aide and an HR administrator. Despite that, programs will not be eliminated at the high school or middle school, Cornell said. To achieve that, five teachers undertaking other duties will return to the classroom. There may be two teams instead of three teams in sixth grade; seventh and eighth grades will not have teams; and some class sizes will increase, particularly at the middle and high school level. Its going to be well within what is best practice, without pushing 30 kids in a classroom in middle school and high school, Cornell said. Cornell said the district cut every possible non-staff expense in this years budget, including eliminating a couple of administrative positions and other non-classroom positions, and did the same for the proposed budget for next year. Extra pandemic aid runs out this year, and district cash reserves are low, he said. The district still has a projected budget shortfall of $468,500 that must be addressed before the budget is adopted, officials said. Even if state aid is increased over the governors proposal, it would not be enough to blunt the layoffs, the superintendent said. He said the district is confident next years budget will allow the district to return to fiscal stability. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was on Wednesday forced to defend the governing Conservative Party even as he admitted one of the partys biggest donors comments targeted at an Opposition Labour Party MP were racist. During Prime Ministers Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons, Sunak referenced his Indian heritage as he defended his government amid intense pressure over wealthy businessman Frank Hesters reported remarks in a 2019 meeting that Labour MP Diane Abbott makes you want to hate all black women. In a separate meeting, Hester who has donated GBP 10 million to the Tories in the past year said Abbott should be shot. The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist and he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted, Sunak told members of Parliament. There is no place for racism in Britain and the government that I lead is living proof of that, he said. While Labour Leader Keir Starmer sought to capitalise on the controversy as he said it was clear Sunak wont hand the (donated) money back to Hester, the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) accused Sunak of putting money before morals. In November, the Prime Minister accepted a non-cash donation to the tune of GBP 15,000 from Frank Hester for the use of his helicopter, so will he reimburse him yes or no, questioned Labour MP Marsha De Cordova. Sunak replied no as he hit back to say that Hester was supporting one of the most diverse governments in this countrys history, led by this countrys first British Asian Prime Minister. Meanwhile, the Guardian which reported the controversial comments from over four years ago, claimed the chief of the healthcare technology firm Phoenix Partnership (TPP) said in a meeting: Its like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and youre just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because shes there, and I dont hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot. A statement from TPP said its boss accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Guardian has also followed up with a report that Hester asked at a company meeting if there was no room for the Indians due to a large crowd. During the packed meeting at the TPP headquarters overlooking a railway line in Leeds, northern England, Hester then added: Climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there maybe? However, a minister in Sunaks Cabinet has defended the businessman to say he is not a racist despite some of his ill-judged comments. Business minister Kevin Hollinrake said: I think the key thing now is, is Mr Hester himself a racist? I dont believe so from what I know, and I dont know him. I think we should judge in the whole context. Weve got the most diverse cabinet in history. Weve got the first British Asian prime minister in this country. Were not a racist party. . An influential American lawmaker emphasised the need for highly qualified professionals from India to immigrate to the United States, urging the removal of the seven percent country quota for Green Cards. Congressman Matt Cartwright, representing Pennsylvanias 8th Congressional District, highlighted the vital contribution of skilled individuals worldwide to the US workforce, stressing the nations tradition of welcoming talent from diverse backgrounds. Its so important that Indians are able to immigrate to the United States when theyre looking for jobs because the United States depends on high quality, high skilled, very smart people coming from all over the world to work here. Its one of the natural advantages of the United States that we welcome people from all over the world, Congressman Matt Cartwright told PTI in an interview. Cartwright is supporting the move by Indian American organisations, including the Foundation for India and Indian Diaspora (FIIDS) for removing the per country seven percent quota in issuing Green Cards every year. The problem is that we have limited this to seven percent from every country, and that disproportionately hurts big nations like India. Not only big, but also very highly skilled. Theres so many highly educated people in India, and its a resource that the United States would be foolish, foolhardy not to take full advantage of the people who want to come to this country and become part of our economy and become part of our brain trust in this nation, Cartwright said in response to a question. Always, the United States of America has always welcomed people of high intellect and high ethical standards and work standards to come here and invigorate our economy. Thats been part of a tradition in the United States for a couple of hundred years, and so to cut ourselves off with this arbitrary seven per cent number, thats a mistake, and thats why Im proud to be part of the effort to do away with that, he said. Responding to a question, the Congressman said it is essential that the US has a close and enduring friendship with India. The international trade that goes on between the two countries is vital. The most important export from India are the people. In my own district in northeastern Pennsylvania, it is a vibrant, wonderful, family-oriented community of Indians. In fact, they talked me into going to visit the BAPS Temple in Robbinsville, New Jersey, which I did last year. I was astonished. I was awestruck. I was blown away by that temple. I want to go back. In fact, I was there when they were dedicating it. 12,000 volunteers put that thing together. These are the kinds of people we want in the United States of America, Cartwright said. Japans Space Ones small, solid-fuelled rocket exploded shortly after its launch on Wednesday as the firm tried to become the first Japanese company to put a satellite in orbit. The 18-metre, four-stage solid-fuel Kairos rocket exploded seconds after lifting off just after 11:01 am (local time), leaving behind a large loud of smoke, a fire, fragments of the rocket and firefighting water sprays near the launch pad, visible on local media livestreams of the launch on the tip of mountainous Kii peninsula in western Japan. Space One said the flight was interrupted after the launch and was investigating the situation, news agency Reuters reported. Pads typically have no people anywhere nearby during a launch. Space One has said the launch is highly automated and requires roughly a dozen staff at the ground control centre. Kairos carried an experimental government satellite that can temporarily replace intelligence satellites in orbit if they fall offline. BREAKING NOW: Japans Space One rockets EXPLODES during liftoff..DEVELOPING..pic.twitter.com/Rk7NclFslc Chuck Callesto (@ChuckCallesto) March 13, 2024 Space One had planned the launch for Saturday but postponed it after a ship entered the nearby restricted sea area. Although Japan is a relatively small player in the space race, the nations rocket developers are scrambling to build cheaper vehicles to capture booming demand for satellite launches from its government and from global clients. Tokyo-based Space One was established in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese companies: Canon Electronics, the aerospace engineering unit of IHI, construction firm Shimizu, and the state-backed Development Bank of Japan. Two of Japans biggest banks, Mitsubishi UFJ, and Mizuho, also own minority stakes. Shares in Canon Electronics fell more than 9% after Wednesdays failed launch. Space One wants to offer space courier services to domestic and international clients, aiming to launch 20 rockets a year by the late 2020s, its president Masakazu Toyoda said. Last month, state-funded Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) successfully launched its new cost-efficient flagship rocket, the H3. JAXA completed a historic pinpoint moon landing this year, and the H3 is scheduled to carry about 20 satellites and probes to the space by 2030. (With agency inputs) Pakistan President Asif Zardari last week formally recognised his 31-year-old daughter Aseefa Bhutto as the First Lady of the country. The status of the First Lady goes to the wife of the President of the country in general. However, Zardaris wife and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in 2007. After that, he did not remarry and the position of the first lady also remained vacant during his first tenure as the countrys president from 2008 to 2013. Zardari, 68, was sworn in as the countrys 14th president on Sunday. During his oath-taking ceremony, Zardari was accompanied by his youngest daughter, Aseefa. From accompanying president Asif Zardari to all his court hearings to fighting for his release from jail now by his side as First Lady of Pakistan and added Aseefas name at the end, Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari, the eldest daughter, tagged Aseefa in a tweet. From accompanying Pres @AAliZardari to all his court hearings to fighting for his release from jail now by his side as First Lady of #Pakistan @AseefaBZ https://t.co/Fr6mGtJZfD Bakhtawar B-Zardari (@BakhtawarBZ) March 10, 2024 Whats The Story of Aseefa Bhutto? This move to elevate Aseefa to the position of First Lady marks a significant chapter in the nations political history. The youngest First Lady, Aseefa Bhutto has been a part of the politics of Pakistan since she was an infant. Educated from Edinburgh and Oxford Brooks University, the first Pakistani girl to receive polio drops in the country. After the official declaration, Aseefa was given the protocol and privileges befitting the First Lady. In addition to their ceremonial roles, first ladies in Pakistan have historically initiated social and health-related projects. However, figures like Aseefas grandmother Nusrat Bhutto, Shafiq Zia (wife of military dictator Ziaul Haq), and Nahid Mirza (spouse of Iskandar Mirza) also maintained political engagement, the Dawn newspaper reported. Aseefa Bhutto: A Trailblazing First Lady From Oxford to the heart of politics, shes been a constant force for positive change.Breaking barriers as the first Pakistani girl to receive polio drops, a Rotary Ambassador, and UN Advocate for Polio Eradication.Her golden pic.twitter.com/6Kl8EWIUa0 Talal Hussain Chandio (@TalalChandio) March 11, 2024 Aseefa during Zardaris first term was a teenager and currently, she is 31 years old. Aseefa had actively been involved in the PPPs electoral campaign in the run-up to the February 8 polls and was seen leading various rallies in a bid to seek support for her brother Bilawal Bhutto Zardari the partys then-candidate for the prime ministers post. Aseefa made her political debut at a PPP rally in Multan on November 30, 2020. There are many instances from foreign countries when presidents, who were widowers, had asked their daughters, sisters and even nieces to become their first lady. Former United States president Andrew Jackson, who was a widower, had asked his niece Emily Donelson to serve as the countrys first lady. Moreover, two other US presidents Chester Arthur and Grover Cleveland asked their sisters to serve as first lady. (With agency inputs) Pakistans new President Asif Ali Zardari deciding to name his daughter, Aseefa Bhutto, the First Lady of the country, is a very calculated move, sources told CNN-News18 on Tuesday. Aseefa is Zardaris daughter from his marriage with former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in 2007. The 31-year-old has worked on polio eradication, campaigned for her brother Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and is often seen alongside her father. Zardari and Bilawal are not on great terms, said sources. They added that Bilawal thinks he is the only Bhutto but Zardari tells him to learn the basics of politics first, not become prime minister or president at the first go. The second reason, they said, is that he is more affectionate towards his daughters. He wants Aseefa to take the lead in the next few years and become a second Benazir, said the sources. According to sources, Maryam Nawaz Sharif from the Pakistan Muslim League (N) is now in an official position, having become the chief minister of the Punjab province, and whenever elections happen next, Zardaris Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) will have a credible female face in Aseefa to counter her and even take on Bilawal in case he goes out of control. This is not the only time a Pakistan president has named his daughter the First Lady. Ayub Khan did the same as his wife was quite aged at the time and not well versed with diplomatic protocols. Pakistan has a provision to name the presidents daughter as Khatoon-e-Awwal. PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari was on Sunday sworn in as the 14th president of Pakistan, taking over as the head of the state for a historic second time. According to sources, as the results of the Pakistan elections this time were extremely fragmented, Zardari is worried about his partys future and doesnt want to be completely dependent on Bilawal or allow him to have access to a free flow of funds. West Herr Auto Group President Scott Bieler has made a substantial donation to Villa Maria College to fund a new academic support center to be named for him. Villa Maria President Matthew Giordano announced the future Scott Bieler Center for Academic Excellence with Bieler on campus Wednesday. They did not disclose the amount of Bielers gift, but said Villa plans to invest a total of $2 million in renovating and upgrading the colleges library to include a wealth of student support services. Villas old 1960s-era library is already gutted and under construction, with a planned opening date for the new center this coming fall. The project will allow Villa Maria to put its library, advising, tutoring, mental health counseling, career services and its Achieve Center for students with learning differences under one roof and stands to become a new hub for students to gather on campus, Giordano said. Villa is on a mission to upgrade its facilities to match its focus on increasing access to college and support for all students, Giordano said. Last year it opened the new Russell J. Salvatore Commons dining and student center funded with a $1 million gift from the Buffalo restaurant and hotel owner. We are a commuter campus, so its very important that our students have space to receive support and also to study, meet with other students and form connections, Giordano said. With the Bieler Center, students will be able to go to one place to get a whole range of support services. They will know exactly where to turn for all kind of help. While Villa is the regions smallest college, with about 500 students, it is also the most diverse, and its growing. Villa serves a majority of students who are severely limited by a lack of financial resources, Giordano said. More than 90% of its students hail from Western New York, half of them from Buffalo and a majority of those from the citys historically underfunded East Side. In addition, 36% of Villa students identify as African American and 37% are first-generation college students. Villa has become a local innovator in removing barriers to education, particularly for students who come from underserved communities and under-resourced families, Giordano said. Among other initiatives, Villa has no campus bookstore because it supplies books and laptops to all students free of charge, he said. Giordano said such efforts are increasing enrollment. In fall 2023, Villa welcomed the largest incoming class in more than 25 years, and he expects a larger class this fall. He said Villas retention rate is the highest in more than a decade, and students are performing better in the classroom. Bieler said the gift from his Scott Bieler Family Foundation is inspired by Villas mission of diversity, inclusion and student success. The vision of Villa Maria College is to serve and empower students from our community ... Bieler said. When Villa showed me what they are trying to create to improve their library to become a beautiful new academic center, to me, it will be a focal point of the college and something I am so proud to help accomplish and put my name on. We dont know what happened to the file on the deceased Erie County jail inmate Richard Metcalf Jr. That might be unremarkable, except for one troubling complication: The Sheriffs Office says it doesnt know, either. Nevertheless, the person in charge of those records believes it was destroyed. Thats a problem, and not a small one. It demands an outside investigation. Metcalf was a difficult inmate of the Erie County Holding Center in 2012, when jail deputies tied a spit mask around his face, put a pillow case over his head, laid him face down on a stretcher and refused to let emergency medical workers remove the restraints. He died two days later in Erie County Medical Center. Now, more than 11 years later, a civil lawsuit filed by Metcalfs estate is underway in State Supreme Court. The defendants are Erie County and five deputies. Last week, the chief of the Professional Standards Division at the Sheriffs Office and its custodian of records revealed that the file could not be found. Its not absolutely certain the file was destroyed, Neil C. Held said, but its vanished. If it was destroyed and the Sheriffs Office believes it was he said it could only have happened during the administration of the previous sheriff. His said division has not destroyed any files since he took over the Professional Standards Division about a year ago under the administration of Sheriff John Garcia, who took office in January 2022. That timeline would come as little surprise to anyone who recalls the indifference to rules that characterized former Sheriff Timothy Howards 12 dysfunctional years in office. Indeed, it was a state oversight agency, the Commission of Correction, which concluded in 2016 that jail deputies improperly restrained and, as a consequence, asphyxiated Metcalf. Howards record included many other episodes of unprofessional management. One example: Three years ago, Attorney General Letitia James had to force him to agree to investigate rampant sexual misconduct by jail workers. That is to say, the state attorney general had to force the Erie County sheriff to do his job. None of this proves that the Metcalf file was destroyed or, even if it was, that it was done purposefully. But there are reasons to be suspicious and even though Howard is no longer dishonoring his office, its essential to find out what happened. If it was purposeful, the public needs to know that and, if possible, the parties involved held to account. If it was accidental, then procedures plainly need to be tightened to ensure that important files do not mysteriously vanish. After they are subpoenaed ... when the office is being sued ... because it was credibly found to have caused the death of an inmate. In fact, if it were to turn out the file was accidentally misplaced or destroyed, then the office needs to expect that other files could have been similarly mishandled. Imagine losing critical documents in a murder case. Its important for an investigation to be independent of any Erie County office. Thats not because residents have cause to mistrust Garcias commitment to professionalism. The problem is that no agency should be asked to investigate itself. The conclusions of such an examination will always be suspect. People need to be put under oath and questioned about the missing file. This is no longer solely about an unnecessary death, but about the professional management of an office whose essential duty is to enforce the rules not ignore them. The government has stopped provincial mining directors in Zimbabwe from granting new or renewing Exclusive Prospecting Orders (EPOs) until further notice. EPOs grant investors the right to prospect (search) for new mineral deposits in specific geographic locations of the country to promote the discovery of fresh deposits for the opening of new mines and expansion of existing operations According to the government, this directive will apply to EPOs given in 2021 that expired this year, as well as any other EPOs that are presently valid and about to expire. In 2021, 25 EPOs were awarded throughout the country, granting mining companies the ability to prospect for minerals for the next three years. Each of those EPOs covered 65 000 hectares. The Mining Affairs Board issues EPOs, which provide holders exclusive rights to prospect for minerals. In a recent internal circular to all provincial mining directors in Mashonaland Central, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland West, Matabeleland North, Matabeleland South, Manicaland, Masvingo, and Midlands, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development Pfungwa Kunaka stated that no new EPOs would be issued. You must by now be aware that the current set of EPOs that were issued on March 12, 2021 are due to expire on March 11, 2024 at 00.00 hours, said Kunaka, who is also the Chairman of the Mining Affairs Board. By copy of this internal circular you are hereby instructed not to accept any applications for registration of mining titles on the concerned areas in your respective provinces until such time you are advised otherwise through official communication from my office. The permanent secretary said this directive also applies to all EPOs that are currently active on expiry. The circular was copied to the Minister of Mines and Mining Development Soda Zhemu; Deputy Minister of Mines and Mining Development Dr Engineer Polite Kambaruma; Chief Director -Technical Services Engineer Charles Tawha and Director Geological Survey Forbes Mugumbate. CITE Another American-Israeli citizen thought to be one of the hostages still held by Hamas is actually dead, his parents said Tuesday. Itay Chen, 19, was about a year into his service with Israel Defense Forces when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, and his parents say IDF has now informed them it has intelligence indicating Chen was defending civilians on the Gaza border when he was killed amid Hamas' invasion that day, when his base was attacked, the New York Times and the Guardian report. IDF later issued its own statement confirming Chen (whose surname is also sometimes spelled Hen) was killed, and his body taken into Gaza. "Our hearts are broken," his parents say in a statement. "We loved him so much, and we would have done anything to bring him home alive." While Chen grew up in Israel, his family often visited New York, his father's hometown. President Biden released a statement mourning Chen's death. "Jill and I are devastated to learn that American Itay Chen was killed by Hamas during its brutal terrorist assault," he said. "I reaffirm my pledge to all the families of those still held hostage: we are with you. We will never stop working to bring your loved ones home." Hamas is still believed to be holding 130 captives, 32 of whom are presumed dead. (More Israel-Hamas war stories.) Scott Peterson appeared virtually in court on Tuesday, nearly 20 years after he was convicted of killing his pregnant wife, as his lawyers with the Los Angeles Innocence Project asked a judge to order new DNA tests and allow their investigators to access evidence connected with a burglary across the street from the couple's California home. Peterson was sentenced to death after a jury found him guilty of murder in the deaths of Laci and the unborn child they planned to name Conner. Prosecutors said he killed Laci and dumped her body in San Francisco Bay on Christmas Eve 2002. The death sentence was later overturned, and he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole . The LA Innocence Project has now taken up Peterson's case. The group suggests in court documents that Laci Peterson may have witnessed a Christmas Eve break-in across the street from the couple's home in Modesto and been kidnapped and then killed by the burglars. The filings in San Mateo County Superior Court represent a longshot bid to exonerate the 51-year-old Peterson, two decades after his arrest captivated the nation, the AP reports. The project is seeking DNA tests on materials connected to the burglary, and on tarps and a large plastic bag found at the waterfront near where the bodies washed up separately. The group's attorneys are also asking for police reports and audio and video recordings from interviews of suspects and witnesses connected to the burglary. The court filings claim the Modesto Police Department improperly withheld materials and was too hasty in declaring that the burglars had no connection to the killings. In court, the group's director, Paula Mitchell, said the group's requests are "not a fishing expedition. They're very precise. They're very specific." Peterson appeared in court via Zoom for Tuesday's status conference. The judge set the next two hearings for April 16 and May 29. Peterson will also attend those hearings remotely from Mule Creek State Prison, southeast of Sacramento. (More Scott Peterson stories.) A longtime ally of Alexei Navalny has been attacked outside his home in Lithuania. Leonid Volkov was in his yard Tuesday night when he was beaten with a hammer and sprayed with tear gas, the Guardian reports. His car window was also smashed. Volkov, who was Navalny's chief of staff until the opposition leader's death last month while serving a prison sentence in the Russian Arctic, himself faces politically motivated charges in Russia and has lived outside the country for years for his own protection, the BBC reports. A member of his team, who posted pictures of Volkov's injuries to social media, says that while the attacker did not say anything during the assault, "Of course this is a clear political attack, there is no doubt here." Australian billionaire Clive Palmer says he plans to build a replica of the Titanic, to set sail in a few years. That might feel like deja vu. The mining tycoon first launched the idea of building the Titanic II, "a more buoyant version" of the original ship, in 2012, but its touted 2016 sail date came and went without the ship ever being built, per CNN. Palmer tried again in 2018, but the COVID-19 pandemic threw a giant wrench in his plans. In launching the project for a third time Wednesday during a press briefing at the Sydney Opera House, Palmer claimed the time is finally right. What he's saying: "I've got more money now" and "I'm gonna do it," said Palmer, chairman of the Blue Star Line company behind the project, per the Belfast Telegraph. "It's a lot more fun to do the Titanic than it is to sit at home and count my money," added the billionaire, who pulls in nearly $500 million in annual mining royalties, per CNN. An 80-year-old Montana man has pleaded guilty to two felonies in what federal prosecutors describe as an "audacious scheme to create massive hybrid sheep species to be sold and hunted as trophies." Prosecutors say that in a plot that began more than a decade ago, Arthur "Jack" Schubarth illegally imported sheep parts from central Asia to launch a cloning operation, Gizmodo reports. A lab used the parts from Kyrgyzstan to create cloned embryos of Marco Polo argali sheep, which are protected under endangered species laws and prohibited in Montana. The mountain sheep are the largest in the world, and "average males can weigh more than 300 pounds with horns that span more than five feet," the Department of Justice said in a news release . Schubarth owns a 215-acre ranch stocked with "alternative livestock" he sells to shooting preserves and game ranches. He implanted the embryos in ewes on his ranch, resulting in a single, pure genetic male Marco Polo argali that he named "Montana Mountain King" or MMK, the DOJ said. He used MMK's sperm to artificially inseminate ewes from an assortment of sheep species and sold some of it directly to breeders, prosecutors said. He pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act and conspiring to violate the act, which was introduced to combat the trafficking of illegally taken wildlife. "The kind of crime we uncovered here could threaten the integrity of our wildlife species in Montana," said Ron Howell, Chief of Enforcement for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Prosecutors say Schubarth and co-conspirators forged paperwork to move the illegal hybrid sheep from state to state. Schubarth will be sentenced in July. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count, KRTV reports. (More sheep stories.) News / National by GroundUp Ben Freeth gets to know a new horse, Stardust, lent to him by a Namibian farmer. Photo: Mike Campbell Foundation When Ben Freeth headed west on horseback from the derelict Mount Carmel farm near Chegutu in Zimbabwe on 28 November, he had to lay low. For about 800km, Freeth avoided roads and stuck to the bush, following game paths where he could, while scouting the drought-stricken land for water and grazing for his horse, Tsedeq.It was only after he crossed the border into Namibia's Caprivi Strip at the Kazungula border post that he could relax, stop fearing attack from forces despatched by the Zimbabwean government, and publicise the reason for his slow journey to Windhoek a bid to have the suspended Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tribunal re-established.Staying off the beaten path was not due to paranoia. Freeth is familiar with Zimbabwe's state-sponsored violence. In 2008 he, together with his in-laws Mike and Angela Campbell, were tied up on their farm by war veterans acting on behalf of former tyrannical president Robert Mugabe. They were driven into the bush, beaten and tortured. Freeth, who had built a house on his in-laws' land and helped run what was the most successful mango exporting farm in the country, suffered a fractured skull as a result.The abduction and torture happened two weeks before the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tribunal was due to hear a case brought by Mike Campbell, later joined by 77 other applicants, against the Republic of Zimbabwe. The case, which Freeth attended bandaged, battered, and in a wheelchair, challenged the harassment, forced eviction of farmers, and seizure of farms instituted by Mugabe in 2000.In its unanimous decision on 28 November 2008, the Tribunal ordered Mugabe's government to protect "possession, occupation and ownership" of all the applicants' farms, except for two, who had already been forcibly evicted. The state was ordered to pay them compensation.Mugabe ignored the Tribunal's ruling. Freeth and his family, including his children, and the Campbells, suffered increasing harassment and threats as they continued to run their farm, until their homes, and those of the farm workers, were burnt down by war veterans eight months later. Freeth's home was burnt down on 30 August 2009, with the Campbell's home suffering the same fate two days later.The disbandment of the SADC TribunalMugabe's refusal to abide by the Tribunal ruling, with former South African president Jacob Zuma as a willing ally, and his subsequent successful campaign to suspend the Tribunal at the SADC Summit in 2011, has led Freeth to take the approximately 2,000km journey to Windhoek, where the SADC Secretariat sits at the city's Turnhalle.The Summit had effectively disbanded the Tribunal by deciding not to reappoint the judges whose term of office was ending in 2010, nor replace those whose term of office would end in 2011."Instead of the SADC Summit acting to ensure that Zimbabwe complied with the SADC Tribunal judgments, it sided with Zimbabwe which had begun a diplomatic attack on the Tribunal employing very weak legal arguments alleging that the SADC Tribunal was not lawfully established," wrote Moses Retselisitsoe Phooko and Mkhululi Nyathi in the De Jure Law Journal.Then in August 2014, Mugabe, along with other heads of state including Zuma, signed a new protocol limiting the Tribunal to only dealing with disputes between SADC states. SADC citizens were then prevented from accessing it to deal with human rights violations should their own government fail to follow the rule of law, as has been the case in Zimbabwe.In seeking to get the Tribunal fully reinstated, Freeth says his journey is about justice. "It's about justice throughout SADC, protecting people and their property."Overwhelming supportWhen he arrives on 18 March, Freeth intends to hand a letter to the Secretariat requesting the Tribunal be reinstated. Buoyed by an outpouring of support since he made his mission public, he has asked people to join him when he rides into Windhoek. His 13-minute telephone conversation with GroundUp while he was walking along the road with his horse was twice interrupted by well-wishers, with one offering him feed and overnight accommodation.The day of his arrival is not auspicious, but the day of his departure from the now ruined Mount Carmel farm in Zimbabwe was. It was 15 years to the day since the Tribunal ruled in favour of his late father-in-law and other farmers.Asked why he was going to Windhoek on horseback, Freeth told GroundUp: "You can sit at home and write a letter or email, which might get a response, or you can walk 2,000km to do it, which is more likely to get a response."The epic journey, he said, gave impetus to the cause, and since he had raised his head above the parapet in Namibia, it had "captured people's imagination" and he had received overwhelming support. But amidst the support, including in Zimbabwe where people in poverty-stricken rural villages he passed welcomed him and provided water they had themselves collected from wells two or three kilometres away, he has also been threatened.He said on Friday 1 March, he received a call on his Namibian cellphone number, which in itself was strange as he not given it out to anyone. "No-one knows my Namibian number," he said. "They could only have got it from the service provider."He said he received several calls that day from the same person. "He was using a lot of swearwords and a lot in Afrikaans, and kept asking: Where are you?', and said I'm coming to get you'."As a result, Freeth went away from the road for the rest of the day and followed the railway track.South Africa's complicityIn the face of the SADC Summit's dissolution of the Tribunal, South African courts have had to make decisions pertaining to the human rights abuses in Zimbabwe, and South Africa's duties in respect of international law.The records of the North Gauteng High Court, Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), and the Constitutional Court show a long and slow trek to justice that began, according to attorney Willie Spies, with Zimbabwean farmers vainly trying to get the Zimbabwean courts to enforce the Tribunal's rulings.Spies, who is Afriforum's legal representative and representing Zimbabwean farmers in cases before the South African courts, said litigation in South African began in 2010 after farmers realised they weren't making any progress in the Zimbabwean courts, as these had been captured by judges loyal to Mugabe.An order by the high court in Pretoria gave punitive costs against Zimbabwe for failing to enforce the Tribunal ruling to protect private land and pay compensation. This was upheld by the Constitutional Court in 2013. But with Zimbabwe refusing to acknowledge the order, the High Court, in 2015, attached a Zimbabwean asset that was sold on auction to pay the farmers who brought the litigation.Ben Freeth at the ruins of his family home at Mount Carmel farm near Chegutu, Zimbabwe, in 2016. Photo: Mike Campbell Foundation"That caused alarm bells to go off among SADC leaders," said Spies. Nine countries had signed the new protocol in 2014 which removed the Tribunal's mandate to hear cases filed by individuals against member states, allowing it only to hear inter-state disputes.At this point the Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) and six Zimbabwean farmers, which included Ben Freeth, approached the high court in Pretoria to declare the Tribunal's suspension and Zuma's signing of the 2014 Summit Protocol unconstitutional.The judgment handed down on 1 March 2018, saw them succeed, with one exemption, being that no causation between Zuma signing the Protocol and the losses suffered by the farmers was found.Spies said as the High Court judgment set legal precedent, it had to be confirmed by the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court judgment of 11 December 2018 stated it was "clear that the President's (Zuma's) conduct, resulting as it did in a breach by South Africa of its obligations under an international treaty as a State, was impermissible under the Constitution, as irrational and unlawful".However, seeking the ruling on causation, the LSSA vs President of South Africa was taken to the SCA, which in May 2022 found causation between Zuma's involvement in scuppering the Tribunal, and the farmers' losses.South Africa then appealed the SCA's findings in the Constitutional Court, with the appeal having been heard on 7 November last year.Should the Constitutional Court uphold the SCA's decision, it would allow the farmers to sue the South African government for the damages and losses they suffered as a result of Zimbabwe not honouring the Tribunal's ruling, as the South African government would have been found complicit.This judgment is awaited as Freeth rides to Windhoek, currently on a horse called Johnny.You can follow Freeth's journey on this blog After a 19-year-old student pilot tried to open a cockpit door on an Alaska Airlines flight three times, he was placed in flex cuffs and a flight attendant blocked the door with a beverage cart, according to an affidavit from a federal air marshal. Nathan Jones has been charged with interference with a flight crew, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years. But defense lawyer Robert Jenkins says Jones needs to be evaluated for mental competency before standing trial over the March 3 incident on Flight 322 from San Diego to Dulles, NBC News reports. After Jones left his seat to go to the front of the plane multiple times, flight attendants "requested the assistance of off-duty law enforcement officers, who restrained Jones in flex cuffs and sat on either side of him for the remainder of the flight," the affidavit from Federal Air Marshal Thomas Pattinson states. It states that Jones told flight attendants he was "testing them." According to the affidavit, a search of Jones' belongings found "multiple notebooks with writings describing how to operate an aircraft, including take-off, in-air and landing techniques," along with a student pilot's license. In a statement to CBS News, Jenkins said the charges have shocked Jones' mother and other relatives. "The allegations are completely inconsistent with the life he has lived. He is a young man without any history of criminal conduct or violence. At this stage we are acutely concerned with his mental health and are working to address his needs." Authorities at the Virginia jail where Jones is being held said he is on suicide watch and appears to be experiencing psychosis. "We have confidence that at the end it will be clear that Mr. Jones never intended to harm or threaten anyone," Jenkins said. (More unruly passenger stories.) An appeals court has overturned the convictions of a former Georgia police officer who shot and killed an unarmed, naked man. Robert "Chip" Olsen was responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically at an Atlanta-area apartment complex in March 2015 when he killed 26-year-old Anthony Hill, an Air Force veteran who'd been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Olsen, who worked for the DeKalb County Police Department, said he was acting in self-defense. In 2019, a jury found Olsen guilty of of one count of aggravated assault, two counts of violating his oath of office, and one count of making a false statement. But jurors found him not guilty on two counts of felony murder. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Prior to trial, Olsen's lawyers had argued against the DeKalb County Police Department's use of force policy being submitted as evidence, the AP reports. They said that some of its provisions conflicted with Georgia's self-defense law and that admitting it would confuse the jury. The trial court was wrong to admit the policy into evidence without identifying and redacting the portions that conflict with Georgia law, state Court of Appeals Judge Brian Rickman wrote in a unanimous opinion Tuesday. That error was compounded, he wrote, when jurors were told the policy could be used "to assess the reasonableness" of Olsen's using deadly force. Georgia law says the use of force that is intended or likely to cause death is justified if a person "reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony." That law "expressly nullifies any local rules or policies in conflict with its provision," Rickman wrote. The DeKalb County police use of force policy instructs that officers "must exhaust every means available of non-lethal force, prior to utilizing deadly force." It also says, "Any threat used to justify the use of deadly force must be immediate and there must be no other possible remedy." Rickman, writing for a three-judge panel, noted that prosecutors can retry Olsen on the aggravated assault charge. But the opinion says the state cannot retry him on the violation of oath counts because those were based on a violation of the use of force policy. Don Samuel, an attorney for Olsen, 61, said they are "delighted" with the ruling. "It was clear from the outset of this case that the local police department's 'Use of Force Policy' was not a document that supersedes the state law that governs all cases involving self-defense," Samuel told the AP. "The Court of Appeals was correct in denouncing the prosecution's use of that county policy instead of state law." DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said she plans to appeal. (More police shooting stories.) "I am staunchly against this, as we try to connect with Maori in any way possible to get them to come to appointments, as their health outcomes are historically much worse than Pakeha," the worker wrote on Reddit. The worker added: "My question is: What can I do about this? Can I put in a complaint anywhere? I don't want to get in trouble with my boss or HR, but I also don't want the occasional racist dickhead to further marginalise Te Reo Maori." Health NZ's chief people officer Andrew Slater told Newshub this is a case of an "overreaction" by the manager. Slater said Health NZ absolutely allows and encourages its workers to use te reo Maori as it's an official and cherished language of New Zealand. "The advice referred to in the post does not in any way represent the views of Health New Zealand," Slater said. "While we dont know the particulars of this case, we note the reference to yelling and screaming by a patient. It is possible there may have been an overreaction by one manager trying to protect a staff member from further abuse." Slater said Health NZ is "very disappointed" if there was any instruction to discontinue te reo in patient communications. "That wont be happening," Slater said. "Our staff can safely raise any concerns of this nature with another senior manager, and I would urge this person to do that." Former Health NZ chairperson Rob Campbell said the case shows a lack of cultural leadership from the top brass of the agency. He added the manager's approach to two complaints from what he presumed were thousands of emails was disappointing. "Its regrettably common for me to get messages from within Te Whatu Ora about managerial indifference to staff pain or about lack of creative leadership against racism," Campbell told NZ Herald. "One of the key reasons for the limited progress in Te Whatu Ora remains ineffective leadership in involving and energising people in cultural change." The post has received hundreds of comments since it was posted two days ago. One person responded saying they worked for Te Whatu Ora and had "a few" managers and team leaders who said they couldn't say "kia ora when greeting people as a small number of people found it offensive". "How miserbale (sic) your childhood must be if a simple greeting in a different language offends you," another person responded. A third person commented saying, "When I was working at North Shore Hospital I was shocked at how many people found offense in me using Kia Ora". By Finn Blackwell for RNZ A man charged with the murder of an Auckland dairy worker two years ago has pleaded guilty in the High Court in Auckland. Janak Patel was killed outside the Rose Cottage Superette in Sandringham in November 2022. Frederick Hobson had previously entered a not guilty plea for the charge, but pleaded guilty before Justice Matthew Downs on Wednesday. He was remanded in custody. Co-defendants Henry Fred and Shane Tane pleaded not guilty last year. They are expected to stand trial in May. Patel's death sparked protests by dairy owners over the safety of small businesses, while more than $100,000 was raised for his family, with more than 2000 people donating since his death. RNZ Martinez said she was not injured because she was wearing a seat belt, but she saw some people, including a baby, flying through the cabin. She described that moment as being on a roller coaster. Dozens of people were injured after LATAM Airlines flight 800 from Sydney, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand experienced a technical event on Monday that produced a sudden movement, the flight operator reported. Another passenger, Diego Valenzuela, who also spoke to the media upon leaving the airport on Tuesday, said that for 3, 4 seconds, [it was] a free fall, and afterward, many were injured. Martinez and Valenzuela both said they felt relieved to be on Chilean soil. Its unclear how many people who arrived in Santiago from Auckland on Tuesday were involved in Mondays incident. CNN has reached out to the airline for more information. A team of Chilean aviation authorities has been sent to Auckland to investigate the incident, Chiles Directorate General of Civil Aeronautics (DGAC) said on Tuesday. The DGAC communications office told CNN that the team is made up of four members, who will be given the planes flight recorders, commonly known as black boxes, for analysis. A technician from New Zealand will also join the investigation. Approximately 50 people were treated for injuries upon arrival in Auckland, including one in serious condition, emergency medical services provider Hato Hone St John Ambulance told CNN. The affected passengers and cabin crew received immediate assistance and were evaluated or treated by medical staff at the airport as needed, LATAM Airlines said in a statement to CNN. No further details were given about what caused the incident. CNN Fairbanks, AK (99701) Today Variably cloudy with snow showers. Temps nearly steady in the mid to upper 30s. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 40%.. Tonight Mainly cloudy with snow showers around this evening. Low 22F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 50%. News / National by Staff reporter After accepting retrenchment packages, 300 former Air Zimbabwe employees lost their appeal against their dismissal, as ruled by the labor court. The terminations stemmed from the 2015 Zuva Petroleum Private Limited judgment, which resulted in the loss of over 6,000 jobs. This judgment clarified that employment contracts could be terminated by either party with notice.Nelson Chamisa was part of the Zuva Petroleum legal team that defended the company against a Supreme Court challenge by a group of former managers.Chamisa and his colleagues successfully argued that the law discriminated against employers by allowing one party to a contract to terminate on notice. The Supreme Court agreed and judgment triggered a bloodbath in industry with over 20 000 workers losing their jobs.Initially challenged in the Supreme Court, the dismissal led to the reinstatement of the employees and compensation. However, upon reinstatement in December 2020, the employees were placed on unpaid leave while Air Zimbabwe underwent administration. Subsequently, in March 2021, Air Zimbabwe initiated a retrenchment process for these employees, providing them with minimum terminal benefits as per the Labor Act, which they accepted and utilized.The employees later contested that Air Zimbabwe failed to comply with the Supreme Court order for reinstatement and argued that the retrenchment process was flawed. This dispute was taken to the National Employment Council (NEC), which determined that the Supreme Court order had been fulfilled and that the employees had waived their right to challenge the process by accepting and consuming the retrenchment package.In response, the employees argued that the NEC misunderstood the law, contending that retrenchment shouldn't replace reinstatement. However, the Labor Court sided with Air Zimbabwe, stating that employees who accept retrenchment packages are deemed to have accepted the terms and conditions of termination.The judge emphasized that termination of employment on notice is permissible under common law and that the appellants had acknowledged receipt of retrenchment letters, thereby confirming their understanding and acceptance of the terms. The judge concluded that the retrenchment process, under Section 12C, was designed to streamline the procedure without requiring approval from the retrenchment board or the Minister of Labour.Ultimately, the judge ruled against the appeal, stating that the appellants had been reinstated and had waived their right to challenge the retrenchment procedure. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed with costs. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Reported by Ashen Tharaka The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) partnered with Al-Riwaqs The Nest and the Ministry of Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture to launch the Green Your Community competition. This initiative aimed to spark creative, affordable, and sustainable solutions for integrating nature and green spaces into Bahrains urban areas. The competition garnered close to 100 submissions from a wide range of individuals, including university students, designers, artists, and sustainability enthusiasts. Participants were tasked with reimagining Bahrains streets and communities, transforming them into hubs of innovation, sustainability, and greenery. Designs encompassed diverse urban and residential areas, including housing projects, mixed-use buildings, and sections of streets. A distinguished jury panel, comprised of representatives from the private sector, academia, and government, evaluated the submissions based on Innovation, Creativity, Sustainability, Feasibility, Cultural Context and Community Wellbeing. After an evaluation process, the Green Your Community competition proudly recognized the exceptional efforts of several individuals. Winners Hawra Husain Abdulla secured the first place, while Fatema Husain Ali AlHaider and Ward Abdulaziz AlShowaikh were awarded the prestigious second and third place positions, respectively. Layla Abbas Mohamed and Fathima Haadiya Raud were acknowledged for their exceptional submissions. These winners impressed the jury with their innovative and sustainable designs that effectively addressed the challenge of integrating nature into Bahrains urban environment. Their contributions set a strong precedent for future endeavors aimed at fostering a greener and more sustainable future for the nations communities. This competition serves as a testament to the collective effort towards fostering a greener future for Bahrain. By harnessing the creativity and expertise of diverse participants, UN-Habitat and its partners aim to translate innovative ideas into tangible solutions, ultimately enriching the lives of Bahrain through a more sustainable and nature-integrated urban environment. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com In a landmark decision, the Bahrain Court of Cassation established an important legal principle, affirming the permissibility of one spouse having access to the others phone whenever necessary. The court emphasised that the relationship between husband and wife is distinct from that of a third party, particularly regarding the confidentiality of correspondence. The marriage contract imposes on both spouses the responsibility of maintaining the family and preserving its entity and reputation, granting each of them certain entitlements that are not permissible for others to monitor, akin to monitoring a colleagues behaviour or conduct when necessary, the Court stated in a ruling. The Courts ruling came in response to a case involving a convict who was sentenced to two years of imprisonment after her husband discovered an illicit relationship she had with another person, who also confessed to the incident and received the same sentence. The appellants lawyer argued that the evidence provided by the husband, which was obtained surreptitiously from her phone, may have been manipulated and that the confession of the second accused, the appellants partner in the crime, should not be considered sufficient for conviction under Sharia law, which requires the presence of four witnesses for the crime of adultery. However, the Court of Cassation affirmed that if a husband has strong suspicions regarding his wifes behaviour, he has the right to seize any suspicious messages he finds in her bag or phone, even if done surreptitiously, as long as it takes place within his house and under his sight. The husband can then use this evidence to testify against his wife if he decides to pursue criminal charges for violating the marriage contract, the Court stated. The court determined, based on the specifics of the case, that the husband had legitimate suspicions, and upon examining the appellants phone, no objectionable conversations were found. The Court may rely on this evidence, along with the confession of the appellants partner, particularly since the appellant did not deny or contest the evidence, the Court underscored. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Vinod Krishnans journey from the shores of Bahrain to the heart of Los Angeles is a testament to the power of passion and perseverance. As a Technical Director at The Walt Disney Animation Studios, Vinod orchestrates the magic behind the scenes, bringing the studios beloved characters to life with precision and flair. Born and raised in Bahrain, Vinods path to animation greatness began in 2015 when he set foot on American soil to pursue his dreams at the Savannah College of Art and Design. Little did he know that this leap of faith would set the stage for a career filled with blockbuster hits and groundbreaking projects. Vinods dedication extends beyond the studio lot, as he actively mentors aspiring talent and supports educational initiatives in the animation industry. Whether its offering guidance to students in Bahrain or serving on industry committees, Vinod is committed to nurturing the next generation of storytellers. Since joining Disney Animation, Vinod has worked on an impressive array of projects, from iconic films like Marvels Avengers: Endgame to award-winning television shows such as The Proud Family. His role demands a fusion of technical prowess and artistic sensibilities, ensuring that every frame meets the studios lofty standards. Despite the challenges of keeping pace with evolving technology, Vinod embraces each new hurdle with gusto. From revolutionizing 2D animation workflows to harnessing the power of real-time rendering in CGI, Vinod is at the forefront of innovation in the animation industry. But for Vinod, the true magic lies in collaboration. Whether hes working with directors, artists, or studio partners worldwide, Vinod thrives on the camaraderie that fuels Disneys creative engine. Together, they craft stories that captivate audiences and inspire generations to come. As Vinod reflects on his journey, hes grateful for the opportunities that have brought him to where he is today. From his humble beginnings in Bahrain to his role as a leader in the animation world, Vinods story is a testament to the transformative power of following your dreams. In the ever-evolving landscape of animation, Vinod Krishnan is a shining example of what it means to dream big, work hard, and never stop reaching for the Vinod Krishnan stars. AFP | Gaza The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com A ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid for Gaza has left Cyprus in a pilot project to open a sea route to deliver supplies to a population aid agencies say is on the brink of famine. The charity ship Open Arms was seen sailing out of Larnaca port in Cyprus, towing a barge containing flour, rice and protein. The mission was funded mostly by the UAE and organised by US-based charity World Central Kitchen (WCK). The journey to Gaza takes about 15 hours but a heavy tow barge could make the trip take considerably longer, possibly up to two days. Cyprus is just over 320km north-west of Gaza. The US military said its vessel, the General Frank S. Besson, was also enroute to provide humanitarian relief to Gaza by sea. With aid agencies saying deliveries into Gaza have been held up by bureaucratic obstacles and insecurity since the start of the war on 7 October and even Israels allies demanding easier aid access to the enclave, attention has shifted towards alternative routes including sea and air drops. Qatars foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said that negotiators seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza, were not close to a deal. The US had said for weeks that it hoped for a truce deal in time for the Ramadan Muslim holy month that began this week, but it has so far failed to materialise with the sides unable to agree terms to halt fighting, free hostages and bring in aid. The sea supply mission was the culmination of months of preparation by Cyprus, the EU member state closest to the conflict. It is keeping a wary eye on spillover effects from upheaval in the Middle East and is already seeing migratory inflows from Lebanon increasing. More than 400 people arrived in fishing boats yesterday. AFP | Geneva The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Rifaat al-Assad, an uncle of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, will stand trial in Switzerland for war crimes and crimes against humanity, the Swiss attorney general said yesterday. The office of Switzerlands Attorney General (OAG) said it was charging the former Syrian vice president and former Syrian army officer with a long list of crimes committed in February 1982, during a conflict between the Syrian military and Islamist opposition. The accused is charged with ordering homicides, acts of torture, cruel treatments and illegal detentions ... in his capacity as commander of the defense brigades ... and commander of operations in Hama, it said. It said the alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity he was being charged with had taken place within the context of the armed conflict and the widespread and systematic attack launched against the population of the city of Hama, in central Syria. Syrian security forces had been deployed to Hama in early February 1982 to suppress an insurrection by the Islamist opposition, and the operation allegedly ended at the end of the same month. The OAG highlighted the defense brigades, which Rifaat al-Assad commanded, were purportedly the main forces in charge of the suppression. In this context, several thousands of civilians were allegedly victims of different abuses, ranging from immediate execution to detention and torture in specifically-created centers, according to several testimonies, it said. Nearly 230,000 children, new mothers risk dying of hunger in Sudan: NGO Nearly 230,000 children, new mothers risk dying of hunger in Sudan: NGO AFP | Port Sudan, Sudan The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com Without critical action, nearly 230,000 children and new mothers in war-ravaged Sudan are "likely to die from hunger", Save the Children warned on Wednesday. Nearly 11 months of fighting between the forces of two rival generals has killed thousands and displaced eight million people in the northeast African country, the United Nations says. The bombing and destruction of fields and factories have plunged Sudan into "one of the worst" nutrition situations in the world, said Arif Noor, Save the Children's country director in Sudan. "Nearly 230,000 children, pregnant women and new mothers could die in the coming months," the British non-governmental organisation said. The charity said "more than 2.9 million children in Sudan are acutely malnourished and an additional 729,000 children under five are suffering from severe acute malnutrition -- the most dangerous and deadly form of extreme hunger". It warned "about 222,000 severely malnourished children and more than 7,000 new mothers are likely to die" under the current levels of funding which "only covers 5.5 percent" of Sudan's total needs. The United Nations' World Food Programme sounded the alarm on Sudan this month, warning the war risked triggering the world's largest hunger crisis. The conflict, which experts have warned could last years, is being fought between Sudan's army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, his former deputy and commander of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). - 'Cycle of hunger' - Noor warned the situation would only worsen as the consequences of the current fighting take hold. "No planting last year means no food today. No planting today means no food tomorrow. The cycle of hunger is getting worse and worse with no end in sight - only more misery," he said. Already, more than half of all Sudanese, including 14 million children, require humanitarian assistance to survive, the United Nations says. The UN has described a "climate of sheer terror", reporting the use of heavy artillery in densely populated urban areas, sexual violence as a weapon of war, the destruction of hospitals and schools. The United States has accused both sides of war crimes and alleged the RSF has carried out ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. A report before the UN Human Rights Council details gross violations and abuses of international human rights law and possible war crimes. Earlier in March, the UN's human rights chief Volker Turk called the conflict a "living nightmare" and said it had "slipped into the fog of global amnesia". The conflict has driven 18 million people into food insecurity, including five million who are only one stage away from famine. Humanitarian organisations have been prevented from entering Sudan or moving freely and have come under attack by both sides. News / National by Staff reporter A Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) officer has been dragged to court accused of demanding and receiving US$1,900 bribe from a trucker whom he caught smuggling fuel.Kespa Chabata, 57, appeared before Harare magistrate, Stanford Mambanje facing criminal abuse of office charges.He was granted US$200 bail.Allegations against Chabata arose on March 9 when he allegedly demanded US$3,000 so he could not confiscate a truck that was carrying wrong cargo.Prosecutors told the court that Chabata extorted the money from a fuel tanker driver, one Given Alcapony Nhamo who was parked and resting at Zindoga truck stop in Waterfalls, Harare.The court heard Chabata was on night duty and drove by the truck stop while on his way home.He then spotted the truck, went over to Nhamo and asked to see the truck's importation documentation."Upon inspection of the documents, the accused noted that the declaration documents indicated that the tanker was carrying Butanone."However, upon inquiry from the driver, what he was carrying was diesel and Chabata noted the anomaly."The accused then asked who was in charge and the driver indicated that one Lennon Chenga was the one in charge."The accused asked the driver to contact Chenga to come to the scene."The driver also informed one Kessie, the supervisor of Dinotic Energy in Sandton South Africa who had instructed him to transport the diesel to Zimbabwe."Contrary to his duties, the accused did not contact his ZIMRA office or notify his supervisors of the development."Rather, he went to extort US$3,000 from the driver and kept on holding on to the importation documents and indicated that Chenga should bring the money so that he does not confiscate the truck," the court heard.Kessie is said to have managed to scrounge around for US$1,900 which he sent and delivered to Chabata.After receiving the money, Chabata reportedly gave back the truck's documents, telling them the importation documents were fraudulent.However, despite knowing of the offence, Chabata still did not confiscate the truck and instead allowed Nhamo to go.The State is arguing that Chabata's actions showed undue favour to the trucker as he should have placed the truck under seizure. H&R Block's Returning Hope program in partnership with 20 community support centres across Canada ensures vulnerable Canadians can access critical government benefits programs year round CALGARY, AB, March 13, 2024 /CNW/ - More than 3 million Canadians live below the low income cut off, but each year thousands of them miss out on critical tax credits and government benefits because they didn't file their taxes. In its eighth year, H&R Block is running its Returning Hope Program, providing free end-to-end tax filing support to help low-income and vulnerable Canadians who may not otherwise be able to file. Many Canadians aren't aware that even if you have limited or no income, filing taxes provides access to essential federal and provincial government tax credits, benefits, and programs. This includes the GST/HST credit, Employment Insurance, the Canada Child Benefit, the Canada Carbon Rebate, disability tax credits, the Canada Workers Benefit, and many more. Canadians must also file a current tax return to apply for affordable housing. For many vulnerable Canadians, it can be challenging to file their taxes for a number of reasons, such as not having a fixed address, access to a computer, a bank account, or the necessary documentation like government ID. H&R Block's Returning Hope Program will run from March 17-23. This year, they're partnering with 20 regional community support centres to provide free tax filing to help low-income and vulnerable Canadians file their taxes. The week-long pro-bono tax clinics pair Canadians in need with an H&R Block Tax Expert to help them file, and gain access to credits and benefits they may be entitled to. To date, the program has helped file 4,075 tax returns and found more than $2.5 million in missed credits and refunds, and is expected to surpass $3 million in 2024. This year, H&R Block welcomes six new community support partners to the program including Back Door Mission in Oshawa, the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre in Vancouver, Metro Community in Kelowna, Good Shepherd in Hamilton, Welcome Centre Shelter in Windsor, and Cool Aid in Victoria. "The Returning Hope program is about changing lives for the better and can be a first step out of poverty," said Hilary Zaharko, Vice President, Marketing of H&R Block Canada. "Even for Canadians who have little to no income, filing taxes is important to access credits and benefits they may be entitled to throughout the course of the year. Our program provides free, on-site tax filing, which is so important as many individuals face challenges filing their taxes. Very often we see clients who don't have a fixed address, an email account, access to technology to or phones, or a bank account to deposit funds into." This year's program will run at the following 20 community support centres across Canada: Alberta : The Mustard Seed in Medicine Hat , Red Deer , Calgary and Edmonton . The Mustard Seed in , , and . Ontario : Street Haven in Toronto , Inn From the Cold in Markham , The Ottawa Mission in Ottawa , St. Vincent Place in Sault Ste. Marie , the Good Shepherd in Hamilton , the Welcome Centre in Windsor , and the Back Door Mission in Oshawa . Street Haven in , Inn From the Cold in , The Ottawa Mission in , St. Vincent Place in , the Good Shepherd in , the Welcome Centre in , and the Back Door Mission in . British Columbia : The Mustard Seed in Kamloops , the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre in Vancouver , the Metro Community in Kelowna , and Cool Aid in Victoria . : The Mustard Seed in , the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre in , the Metro Community in , and Cool Aid in . Saskatchewan : Friendship Inn in Saskatoon . Friendship Inn in . Manitoba : Siloam Mission in Winnipeg . Siloam Mission in . Newfoundland and Labrador : The Gathering Place in St. John's . The Gathering Place in . Nova Scotia : Souls Harbour Rescue Mission in Halifax . Souls Harbour Rescue Mission in . Quebec : The Benoit Labre Maison House in Montreal . "For some clients, a tax refund can lead to significant life changes, including having the means to cover some core needs like paying first and last month's rent on a new place to live," said Zaharko. "We're proud to be able to make a difference in the lives of our neighbours." Special thanks to Lenovo Canada for providing the Returning Hope program with laptops to serve clients on-site at their community support centres. If your organization is interested in joining the Returning Hope program, reach out to [email protected], or visit hrblock.ca for further information. About H&R Block Canada A trusted partner of Canadians for 60 years, H&R Block Canada is Canada's tax leader. Serving almost 1,000 locations across Canada, H&R Block's team of Tax Experts use the latest in technological advances combined with real-world expertise to help people file taxes in office, through drop off service, upload their documents remotely, or use do-it-yourself Tax Software. H&R Block Canada can support in the preparation of personal, small business, corporate, U.S., rental, and estate taxes. H&R Block's comprehensive education program, Tax Academy, trains new experts and ensures our Tax Experts continually update their skills. Learn more at www.hrblock.ca or 1-800-HRBLOCK. SOURCE H&R Block Canada Inc. For further information: H&R Block Canada (c/o Ketchum), Amanda Federchuk, 416-505-0517, [email protected] ST. JOHN'S, NL, March 12, 2024 /CNW/ - Unifor is deeply concerned after learning creditor protection Atlantic newspaper owner SaltWire Network Inc. filed for creditor protection yesterday. In addition, a private equity fund has alleged the company owes it roughly $33 million after years of mismanagement out of its $94 million total debt load. SaltWire Network Inc. filed for creditor protection on March 11. In addition, a private equity fund has alleged the company owes it roughly $33 million after years of mismanagement out of its $94 million total debt load. (CNW Group/Unifor) "Yesterday's news is devastating for the journalists and media workers who have continued to deliver local news for communities throughout Atlantic Canada and who have been through numerous challenging times," said Unifor's National President Lana Payne. "This one cuts close to home as I got my start in journalism many years ago at the St. John's Telegram. I know how committed these media workers are." "This is yet another massive hit to local news that threatens the jobs of hard-working journalist and media worker members and worsens what has been a growing number of news deserts across this country. We stand by our members as we weather this storm together," Payne added. There are 35 Unifor Local 441-G members working as reporters, videographers, printing press, and in advertising at the Telegram who were notified by the company's Chief Operating Officer Ian Scott yesterday of its Companies' Creditor Arrangement Act (CCAA) filing. The private fund also claims the Chronicle Herald, the Halifax-based newspaper that SaltWire owns, owes $2.6 million for missed pension payments, according to the legal documents. The status of pension funding will be of particular concern to Unifor during the CCAA proceedings. The CCAA is federal legislation designed to provide large companies the opportunity to restructure their operations and/or their financial obligations in order to continue in operation once the crisis that led to the filing of the CCAA application is addressed. It is also used as a way to liquidate companies in an orderly way. Unifor will expect the courts supervising the CCAA process to diligently consider employee interests and strictly apply the limited rules that protect employees instead of lenders. Meanwhile, the loss of local news across Canada including in the Atlantic region is devastating to our country and our democracy, if you consider this announcement is on the heels of Metroland newspaper closings and Bell Media layoffs. "Employees and members at The Telegram, who consistently punch above their weight, were hoping that their recent sacrifices through tough pandemic times would help stabilize the company and pay off with job security," said Unifor Atlantic Regional Director Jennifer Murray. "Instead, they now face the stress and uncertainty of their paycheques, benefits, pensions and severance at risk, while watching their communities' democracy suffer with every additional news media bankruptcy or restructuring." The union has not received any word of changes in day-to-day operations, including layoffs, and will continue to monitor the situation and keep the membership informed. Unifor represents more than 10,000 media workers, including journalists in the broadcast and print news industry. Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private sector, representing 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. The union advocates for all working people and their rights, fights for equality and social justice in Canada and abroad and strives to create progressive change for a better future. SOURCE Unifor For further information: please contact Unifor National Communications Representative: Jenny Yuen at [email protected] or (416) 938-6157 Lawmaker representing Cross River North Senatorial District, Senator Agom Jarigbe says his colleague, Senator Abdul Ningi, should have tabled his allegation of budget padding to the Senate for discussion during plenary. Recall that Ningi, representing Bauchi Central on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had alleged that about N3.7 trillion in the 2024 budget was not tied to any project. The allegation, however, landed him three months suspension after the Senate deliberated on the matter during plenary on Tuesday. Speaking on the matter, Jarigbe, who appeared on Arise TV on Wednesday, said the controversial N3.7 trillion was later discovered to have been captured under the GOEs, judiciary, National Assembly. According to him, Ningi should not have gone to the press to disseminate the alleged padding in the budget. He said, For the nobble Senators that decided to investigate the budget and even got a consultant to look at it, they probably decided to do that before Senator Ningi who is a leader of that Forum took it up. I dont think it was necessary for them to do that and even go to the press, I think it would have been brought to the floor of the Senate to be discussed in our executive section. You discover that when the chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation explained the situation, the N3.7 trillion was discovered to have been captured under the GOEs, judiciary, national assemblies. Those were in the first line charge. It was like an optical illusion. N3.7 trillion was a fallacy. If it was brought to the floor of the Senate, the controversy would have been explained. President Bola Tinubu has directed the reopening of Nigerias land and air borders with the Republic of Niger. He also ordered the lifting of other sanctions against the country with immediate effect. A statement by the Presidents media aide, Ajuri Ngelale, noted that the directive was in compliance with the decisions of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government at its Extraordinary Summit on February 24, 2024, in Abuja. Recall that ECOWAS leaders had agreed to lift economic sanctions against the Republic of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea. Tinubu also lifted the suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between Nigeria and Niger, as well as the freeze of all service transactions, including utility services and electricity to Niger Republic. The President also directed that the freezing of assets of the Republic of Niger in ECOWAS Central Banks be lifted. Travel bans on government officials and their family members also stand lifted, the statement added. The gesture was also extended to Republic of Guinea, with the lifting of financial and economic sanctions. News / National by Staff reporter GLOBAL legal watchdogs, the International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) and Lawyers for Lawyers (L4L), have urged the government of Zimbabwe to urgently investigate the abuse of lawyers by police, following the intimidation of lawyer Harrison Nkomo while representing opposition politician Job Sikhala earlier this year.In January, Nkomo, a senior lawyer with the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), was reportedly denied entry to a courtroom at the Harare magistrates' court by police officers while waiting for the trial of his client, Sikhala, a former Zengeza West legislator.Sikhala, who was accused of inciting public violence and communicating falsehoods has since been sentenced to a two-year non-custodial sentence for the first charge and fined US$500 in addition to a nine-month suspended prison sentence for the second charge.He spent 595 days in pre-trial detention following his arrest in June 2022 on charges of inciting violence at the funeral of slain Citizens' Coalition for Change (CCC) activist Moreblessing Ali.However, police at Harare magistrates' court pointed a firearm at Nkomo despite his having identified himself as a lawyer, leading to protest by Sikhala's other lawyer, Jeremiah Bamu.Magistrate Tafadzwa Miti ordered the prosecution to investigate the incident and submit a report to the court. Following a lengthy delay, Nkomo was allowed entry into the court to represent Sikhala.IBAHRI said the government should urgently initiate an investigation into the harassment of Nkomo."The government should promptly and adequately investigate the harassment and hindrance of Mr Nkomo to ensure accountability for police abuses perpetrated against lawyers; immediately take action to ensure the safety and physical integrity of Mr Nkomo, including the provision of effective protection measures to guarantee that lawyers are able to carry their legitimate professional activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions," IBAHRI said in a statement this week."The government should refrain from actions that may constitute harassment, persecution, or undue interference in the work of lawyers in Zimbabwe, including their criminal prosecution on improper grounds such as the nature of cases in which the lawyer is involved."The IBAHRI and L4L reminds the Zimbabwean authorities that independent lawyers have a critical role to play in the protection of the rule of law and human rights in a country and should be able to carry out their professional duties in a free and secure environment."IBAHRI said the harassment of legal practitioners is against international law."Notably, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers and the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, have expressed alarm' regarding the pattern of abuses and threats against lawyers and human rights defenders in the context of elections," reads the statement."Furthermore, lawyers should not be identified with their clients or their clients' causes. In this respect, we draw your attention to the United Nations Basic Principles on the Role ofLawyers, in particular to Articles 16, 17 and 23, which read: Governments shall ensure that lawyers (a) are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment, or improper interference; [] and (c) shall not suffer, or be threatened with, prosecution or administrative, economic, or other sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards, and ethics."Harassment of lawyers has been on the rise since the disputed general elections won by Zanu PF, with an increase in the harassment of human rights attorneys.In November, a civil society organisation, the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, updated the 77th African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights Session (ACHPR) on the worsening post-election human rights crisis, urging it to exert pressure on the Harare government to investigate post-election violence, including that on legal practitioners.This came after the controversial arrest of ZLHR lawyers Doug Coltart and Tapiwa Muchineripi who were accused of blocking police from questioning their clients, Womberaishe Nhende and Sanele Mkhuhlani, who are members of the Citizens' Coalition for Change.According to the statements of Nhende and Mkhuhlani, they were hospitalised after being abducted and tortured by state agents in the capital Harare.On 26 January 2024, the National Prosecuting Authority withdrew the charges against Coltart and Muchineripi, due to lack of evidence to sustain the prosecution."Although the ZNPA's decision is welcomed by the IBAHRI and L4L, concern remains about the ongoing pressure on Zimbabwe's legal profession, as evidenced most recently by the intimidation and harassment of human rights lawyer Harrison Nkomo," IBAHRI said.In July, another human rights lawyer, Obey Shava, was attacked by four identified men ahead of the polls, raising an outcry from human rights organisations. The Lawmaker representing the Abia South Senatorial District, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe has clarified the discrepancies in the sharing of the Zonal Intervention Project fund. Recall that the Senator representing the Cross River North, Agom Jarigbe on Tuesday alleged that ranking senators got N500 million while he got nothing. Jarigbe made the assertion at the floor of the Senate while commenting on allegation of budget padding raised by the lawmaker representing Bauchi Central, Senator Abdul Ningi. Ranking senators refers to lawmakers who have spent at least four years in the Red Chamber. However, speaking on Arise TV on Wednesday, Abaribe denied receiving N500 million as alleged by his colleague. He, however, said he got N266 million from the money allocated to members of the National Assembly in the six geo-political zones. Abaribe explained that lawmakers from some zones like the Northwest, which has seven states, would expectedly get less than what he got, as his Southeast zone has only five states. He said, I have been saying that all fingers are not equal and by privilege of office, certain people will get but not every Senator gets an equal amount. These are six zones in the country and every zone gets its own N10 billion intervention. Now, if you are from the Northwest zone, because you have seven states, the senator will get less than me who comes from the five states zone. My state, Abia, gets N2 billion and if we break it down for both the Senate and the representatives, the Senate is getting 40% and the House gets 60%. I got about N266 million as zonal intervention. The person in the Northwest who has seven states, will necessarily get less, about a hundred million and something. So its not correct when we say every constituency must get an equal amount. A former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has said that President Muhammadu Buhari folded his hands and watched when Governor Nasir El-Rufai started the practice of paying ransom to bandits. He said this while drawing attention to the recent happenings in Haiti, where gangs have taken over the government in a total breakdown of law and order. He recalled that these bandits went on rampage during President Muhammadu Buhari administration, but instead of facing them squarely, the government paid them ransom. Look at Haiti. Gangs have taken over. The gang lord, Barbecue, is now effectively the leader of Haiti. The breakdown of law and order is complete, he wrote on X. Former prisoners and criminals are now in control. In Nigeria, we should learn from this. When Nasir El-Rufai started the practice of paying bandits, the Buhari administration kept quiet. The media did not push back. Now, bandit attacks and abductions have become so entrenched. In some places, citizens even pay taxes to bandits. And under Buhari, these bandits attacked Kuje prison and freed hundreds of their colleagues. Do we want to go the way of Haiti? If we dont, we must close ranks and unite against banditry so we dont end up with a gang leader like Barbecue calling the shots in Abuja. Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has expressed full support for Senator Abdul Ningi, who was on Tuesday suspended by the Senate for three months. Ningi, the lawmaker representing Bauchi Central, was suspended on Tuesday. He also stepped down from his position as Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum. Ningi faced suspension following a debate on a BBC interview where he claimed that the National Assembly padded the 2024 N28.7tn budget. In the interview on Friday, Ningi claimed that N3.7tn was not allocated to specific projects in the 2024 budget. He stated, For the first time in Nigerian history, today we are operating two different budgets. One budget was approved by the National Assembly and signed by President Bola Tinubu and the one was implemented by the presidency. The one approved by us is N25tn while the one operating by the Federal Government is 28tn. Apparently, we discovered N3tn was inserted into the budget for projects without locations. This is the highest budget padding that happened in Nigerian history under Senator Akpabios watch. Furthermore, during a press briefing on Monday, the senator reiterated the accusation and expressed no fear of being suspended. The Bauchi State Governor, however, expressed his support for the lawmaker. In todays State Executive Council meeting, I made it clear that I stand firm in our support for Senator Abdul Ahmed Ningi, of Bauchi Central, Mohammed wrote on his official X account on Monday. He added, I emphasised the importance of preserving dissent within our political landscape without resorting to punitive actions. I am committed to examining Senator Ningis situation further. It is common knowledge that Senator Ningi is one of the best performing senators whose heritage and uprightness, ancestry and integrity are worthy of praise. Senator Opeyemi Bamidele from Ekiti Central faulted Ningis claims that the 2024 budget passed by the Senate was padded, calling it a civilian coup. A member of the Appropriation Committee in the Senate, Jimoh Ibrahim, initiated the motion to suspend Ningi for 12 months due to allegations of criminal misinformation and breach of peace in the National Assembly and the country at large. On the other hand, Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong and Senator Abdulfatai Buhari proposed amendments to the motion by Ibrahim. Ekpenyong, representing Cross River South Senatorial District, suggested reducing the suspension to six months, while Buhari from Oyo North proposed three months. The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, described Ningis offences as grievous. A voice vote was conducted and a majority of the lawmakers voted in support of Ningis suspension for three months. The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has warned parents against enrolling minors for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). The Registrar of JAMB, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede gave the warning while reacting to a suit filed by one Mrs. Ifeanyi Eke, against the Board, over alleged inappropriate text messages sent to her 15-year-old daughter during the course of her registration. It would be recalled that Mrs. Eke has filed a N100m suit against JAMB and three others before the Federal High Court in Lagos over alleged unsolicited and inappropriate text messages sent to her 15-year-old daughter. But in an interview with the press on Tuesday, Oloyede said the Board is ready to meet with the woman. He maintained that the sender of the message was not its staff. The Registrar further stated that since the incident happened, JAMB reported to the security agencies to take appropriate action but the woman did not care, and sued JAMB for N100 million. He said, The person is not our staff, he is not even a staff of the centre, he is a co-student. He is just like a candidate, an undergraduate in one of the Universities And talking about our data, nobody has access to our data. The person got the information from the phone of the underage girl. How was your girl of 15 years ready for University now? If she is law abiding as she claimed. The law today is that you must spend six years before primary school, six years in primary school and six years in secondary school. By that time, you are 18. But when you reduce three years, you must have cut corners to make a 15-year-old child ready for university education. We will meet her in court, it is for the court to decide whether she deserves that money. The JAMB boss maintained that the person got the telephone number of the victim at the center because they had a form to fill, saying that it has dealt appropriately with the center. He continued, even the centers do not have access to our database, the person must have collected the number while interacting with her at the center. We dealt with the center on negligence, for allowing unauthorized persons to have access to where these candidates were. And we are urging parents to allow their children to mature before registering for UTME. We are now saying that any center that allows a parent to get near to where the candidates are being screened, that centre will be deleted. Parents cannot destroy the career of their children because of their emotions and indiscipline, he added. Lawmaker, representing Kaduna North Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Bello El-Rufai said his father and former Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State never wanted a ministerial job. Bello disclosed this in an chat with Seun Okinbaloye on Saturday. He said Nigeria lost an effective administrator in his father, after the Senate rejected his appointment as minister. Bello said it took his pleas and those of other family members for his father to accept the ministerial nomination from President Bola Tinubu. Recall that the Senate in August, confirmed 45, out of the 48 ministerial nominees sent by the President. But, during the confirmation of the ministerial list sent by Tinubu, the Senate refused to confirm El-Rufais nomination as well as those of two other nominees for appointment as ministers. Senate President Godswill Akpabio, said the three nominees not confirmed would be subjected to further security checks and urged those not confirmed to take their matter to the President. The ministerial nominees rejected were El-Rufai, Stella Okotete (Delta), and Sani Danladi (Taraba). Speaking on the development, Bello said he was disappointed when he learnt that his fathers nomination was rejected. He said, I was in the National Assembly when my fathers nomination was rejected. It was very disappointing and still is. Myself, the Governor of Kaduna State, Uba Sani, and one of my fathers commissioners, Mr Hafiz Bayero, played a key role in convincing my father to work with this current government. He (Nasir) didnt want it. Its hard for Nigerians to believe it because they feel it is everyone in Nigeria who wants to be a minister. To be fair to him, he didnt want the job. We convinced him that, with the antecedents of Asiwaju, he would create an excellent team as he did in Lagos. The President wanted to work with him. It was clear when he came to Kaduna. We also had an idea of what his portfolio would be. It was meant to be power and gas. He insisted to the President in private that Nigeria would not sort its electricity issue if gas was not put under the other components of power. The irony is that nothing has been rougher than the lack of power in the last two weeks. Im disappointed because Nigeria lost an effective administrator in my father, one who is willing to make difficult decisions to solve a problem. Bello, further said many Nigerians do not really know his father. He said, My father is a very simple person whos been stereotyped a lot. I got a video of him where people say this or that about him without even knowing him. My father does not go out of his way to change what people think about him. He doesnt really care. Theres a perception that hes anti-Christian. But, the closest person to him since we (children) were four years old was a man from Cross River State, Peter Jones. Religion is personal to us. As minister of the Federal Capital Territory, he demolished mosques. The imam said he hated Islam. He demolished churches and the Christians said he hated Christians. Maybe, it is the wrong imams and pastors who have issues, not him. The Kaduna lawmaker added that his father was highly flawed in many ways. One of the contenders for the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship ticket in Ondo State, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim has said that the ruling party must throw open its ticket for the poll. He spoke ahead of the APC primary for the November 16, 2024, Ondo State Governorship Election. Ibrahim, who represents Ondo South Senatorial District in the National Assembly, said he is not afraid of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, who declared his governorship bid on Tuesday. The lawmaker was on Channels Televisions Politics Today programme. Asked whether Aiyedatiwa should be given a chance of first refusal, Ibrahim said, What are you refusing? Was Asiwaju given a chance of first refusal? What is democracy? It is democratisation. If you are competent and you have your strategy, why are you afraid of competition? Go to the field. If you are elected, so be it. Asked whether he is afraid of the incumbent governor, the lawmaker said, How can I be afraid of Aiyedatiwa? With my Harvard strategy? My Harvard knowledge, how can I be afraid of Aiyedatiwa? Go and ask about me from (ex-governor Olusegun) Mimiko. Go and ask about me in the last PDP election in Ondo. Go and ask about how Akeredolu got his first term in Ondo, who was behind it in terms of mobilising and creating social awareness. Aiyedatiwa, then Ondo deputy governor, succeeded Akeredolu after the latters death on December 27, 2023. Aiyedatiwa, who declared his governorship bid on Tuesday, said it was the wish of the late Akeredolu that he (Aiyedatiwa) succeeded him as the governor of the state. Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, says the senate owes Nigerians clarification on the alleged padding of the 2024 budget. BACKGROUND At the weekend, Abdul Ningi, senator representing Bauchi central, stirred controversy when he alleged that the 2024 budget was padded by N3 trillion. Ningi said huge damage has been done to the north and the entire country in the budget. On Tuesday, the allegations raised by the senator were debated during plenary at the red chamber, amid a rowdy session. Subsequently, the senator was suspended for three months. PUBLIC MONEY SHOULD BE USED FOR GOOD In a thread on his X page on Wednesday, Obi said the suspension of the lawmaker has not addressed vital issues emanating from the allegation. The fuss over the alleged N3 trillion padded into the 2024 budget raised by a Senator still rages as the Senates reaction of suspending the whistle-blower has not addressed vital issues emanating from the allegation, he said. The Senator is insisting on his allegation. Fresh allegations have also cropped up over indiscriminate and unbalanced allocation of constituency projects by the Senate leadership. A civic society group, Budgit, through their official, have also added their voice to agree with the Senator. They allege that there was no detailed project allocations for about N3.7trn in the 2024 Appropriation Act. The suspension of the senator involved by the senate has not addressed the issue. They still owe the Nigerian public a clear clarification over the various claims and counterclaims, including that of the executive arm, to be able to know exactly what is happening, and also disclose to the public, the exact amounts allocated for constituency projects for appropriate monitoring of implementation by the public. The former Anambra governor added that every penny of public funds should be used for the good of all Nigerians. Today in Nigeria, the greatest challenge to human resource development is education, which has been identified as most critical at the basic level, Obi added. Nigeria has about 20 million out-of-school children today because of the poor investment in education. These are resources that would have been utilised to ensure that our children are taken off the streets and returned to schools. Let every penny of our public fund be used for public good. That is the only way to achieve the New Nigeria we are working towards. President Bola Tinubu has asked Muslims in the country to use the period of Ramadan fasting to pray for peace and stability in Nigeria. Tinubu spoke on Tuesday at the opening of the annual Ramadan tafsir (explanation of the Holy Quran) held at the State House mosque, Abuja. He said the fasting period teaches sober reflection, love and a sense of sacrifice on the part of Muslims and should be a guide to neighbourliness. We thank Almighty Allah for sparing us to see another holy month of Ramadan. We thank Allah for sparing us through the elections and giving us the opportunity to be Nigerians, Tinubu said. Yes, things are tough, but Allah has ordained us to make sacrifices, to discipline ourselves, help others, and be kind to ourselves. May Almighty God, that gave us this opportunity, strengthen our resolve; help us change our country, and extend our love to our neighbours. We face challenges of kidnapping, banditry, and others. May Allah show mercy on all of us, the dead, and accept our good deeds. May Almighty Allah give us strength and a good life to see the month of Ramadan through and to continue in good faith to worship him. I advise all of us to continue to pray for our country. The president told the Islamic clerics that God has given them the wisdom, knowledge, and heart to teach others, emphasising the importance of teaching forgiveness, patience, and endurance to the faithful, as well as sharing their blessings with others. It is in our hearts to make sacrifices and share whatever little we have with our brothers and sisters. Be kind and humble enough. The sacrifice that this period teaches us is enough, he added. May Almighty Allah grant us the privilege and the strength; not the strength of hunger but the strength of character and attitude to love our country and make Nigeria great. As-Salaam-Alaikum. Abdulwahid Suleiman, chief imam of the State House mosque, asked Nigerians to continue to pray for the leaders in their efforts at solving challenges facing the country. Allah has made you the leader of Nigeria today, may he give you the guidance, wisdom and foresight to steer the affairs of the citizens, he said. Suleiman assured the president of the continous support of the Muslim community to his administration, adding that it is only God that gives power to whomever He wants. A United States (US) district court has ordered Changpeng Zhao, ex-Binance CEO, to surrender all his passports active or expired to a third party and keep authorities updated on his travel plans. The order was contained in a legal filing submitted on Tuesday, modifying Zhaos bond conditions for release. This comes after the US applied to modify his bond requirements on March 5. Bond conditions, by law, are court-imposed requirements that a defendant on pretrial release must follow until his case is resolved. As part of the bond, Richard Jones, a US district judge, ordered Zhao to remain in the US and notify court authorities of any travel arrangements. Defendant must remain in the continental United States through the imposition of sentence, the judge said. Defendant must notify Pretrial Services before any travel within the continental United States. Defendant must surrender his current Canadian passport to a third-party custodian employed and supervised by his counsel of record. The third-party custodian must retain control over that Canadian passport and must accompany Defendant on any travel that requires identification documents. Defendant must surrender all other current and expired passports and travel documents to his counsel of record, who may return those documents to defendant only with authorization from Pretrial Services or the Court. Defendant may not apply for or obtain a new passport or travel document from any country without the Courts permission. In November 2023, the US SEC accused Zhao of money laundering, unlicensed money transmitting and violations in Seattle. Binance was also accused of facilitating the trading of several crypto tokens the SEC deemed as securities. On November 1, 2023, Zhao pleaded guilty to the charges, with Binance also agreeing to pay more than $4 billion in fines and other penalties. Zhao, who stepped down as Binances CEO in November last year, is scheduled to be sentenced on April 30, 2024. In response to the bond modification, the crypto expert had argued that the restrictions were unnecessary as his travel has not been an issue to date. Meanwhile, in Nigeria, Binance has ceased all naira transactions following a clampdown by the federal government over regulatory infractions. Two top executives of the company have been detained so far. News / National by Staff reporter A VEHICLE Inspection Department (VID) trio has been dragged to court for awarding a class four licence to a driver without her going through the required testing procedures.In a statement, the National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) said Gerald Chitete, Silas Mabaso Zamba and Doniel Mhlanga who are employed by the VID were arraigned before the Chinhoyi Magistrates' Court facing charges of criminal abuse of office."On the 2nd of February 2024 the accused persons were charged with the duty of examining student drivers through yard and road tests. It is alleged that the trio extended undue favour to an applicant student driver Linda Rwauya by giving her a class 4 driver's licence when she had not gone through the required testing procedure thereby, acting contrary to their duties as public officials," read the statement.The matter came to light when a whistle-blower alerted the authorities and investigations led to the trios' arrest."The accused persons were granted US$200 bail. The matter has been remanded to the 27th of March 2024." A former communications store manager admitted in New Jersey federal court to receiving cryptocurrency to swap cell phone SIM information with another person, giving that individual access to customers personal information. Jonathan Katz, of Evesham Township, pleaded guilty on Tuesday in Camden federal court to conspiracy to gain unauthorized access to a protected computer, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. Katz faces up to five years in prison over the charges. Katz, 42, was arrested in December 2021 after prosecutors said he was paid $1,000 in Bitcoin to provide SIM numbers belonging to customers. The scheme left five victims information compromised, according to a criminal complaint. All but two were New Jersey residents. Court records do not identify the company or store at which Katz was employed. Katz, in May 2021, was contacted by an unnamed person, who offered him $1,000 per SIM swap. As a manager, Katz had access to the information through company credentials. The swaps happened between May 11 and 19, 2021, the complaint states. Investigators accessed Katzs bank account information, finding three Bitcoin payments between those dates, the complaint shows. By Katz revealing the sensitive information the five customers were vulnerable to having the other individuals control their phones and accessing personal accounts, including those for email, social media and cryptocurrency, federal agents said. Katz is scheduled for sentencing on July 16. He was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond following his arrest. Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription. Eric Conklin may be reached at econklin@njadvancemedia.com. The Jersey City schools superintendent has asked the state to install a monitor to oversee the Board of Education, citing a need for immediate action to maintain safety and present our $1 billion budget after five members of the board took a controversial vote to oust their president and vice president two weeks ago. In a 114-page filing that Fernandez and Acting Business Administrator Dennis Frohnapfel submitted to the state, they also ask for previous board President Natalia Ioffe and Vice President Noemi Velazquez to be reinstated and for any board actions taken after the chaotic Feb. 29 meetings recess to be voided. The Mayor of Jersey City comedy continues to bring in audiences as Alex Grubard and his friends hit the big stage this weekend, giving you a healthy dose of laughter with Alex Grubards Comedy All-Nighter at White Eagle Hall on Saturday, March 16, at 8 p.m. The show, which features New Jersey comics, isnt the first time Grubard has brought his brand of comedy to White Eagle, as he and Nate Marshall hosted Crockpot Comedy at the venue in August 2023. Headliners for the Comedy All-Nighter include writer, comedian and actor Dan St. Germain from Rutherford, who has appeared on This is Not Happening, Conan, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, This Week at The Comedy Cellar, Adam Ruins Everything, Crashing, Best Week Ever and John Olivers New York Stand-Up Show. I love Alex and Im looking forward to doing the show, said Germain. Alex was one of the first guys I met in my early days of comedy when I was doing open mics. I do have family here in Jersey City so its an area that is familiar to me. Germain also has a free comedy special, Dance Fatty, Dance! available on YouTube as of March 12. Germain describes his comedy has somewhat autobiographical as well as in the political spectrum. I think my process for comedy is like one of those metal detectors on a beach, he says. You go through it, and you begin hoping that you found yourself a Sacagawea dollar and not a seashell. Germain has also written for The Break with Michelle Wolf, Superior Donuts and The White House Correspondents Dinner. He co-hosted the podcasts Wrestle Roasts and My Dumb Friends as well as appeared on Doug Loves Movies, WTF with Marc Maron, Are You Garbage, You Made It Weird and The Bonfire. His last album No Real Winners was listed as one of the best albums of 2018 by The Interrobang. His special, Dans Comedy Central Half-Hour Special, is also available on Paramount+. About the state of comedy at the moment, Germain says everything is kind of cyclical. You have periods where certain things are hot and were still at a point where you have comedians selling out stadium shows. As far as artistic mediums go, stand-up comedy is flourishing, especially when you compare it to a TV sit-com or a sketch comedy show. I think a lot of it has to do with social media too. You can put a 30-second clip on Tik-Tok or Instagram and the conversion just works. Germain can be found online @danst.germain. Other headliners for the show include Liz Miele of Comedy Centrals Live at Gotham and NPRs Wait Dont Tell Me, and Mike Drucker of TBSs Full Frontal with Samantha Bee and TruTVs Adam Ruins Everything. The show will also have some local flavor with Hudson County comics performing throughout the night, including Hobokens Amanda Gail, who has resided in the Mile Square City for the past 10 years after finishing college. While this is her first time performing in Alex Grubards Comedy All-Nighter, she has worked with him in past events at White Eagle Hall. A comedian for six years, Gail got her start by doing improv. It wasnt until her improv graduation show that a friend of hers told a promoter about her work and she was asked to a stand-up set at Willie McBrides in Hoboken. I was asked about two or three times to do this show, and I dont know if anywhere in human history has anyone been asked please do stand-up, Gail recalls. They gave me three minutes to do some jokes that I may have written or told my friends for years and I thought yeah, Ill give it a shot. But I will never do the act that I did that night ever again. It was so vulgar and dirty. I liked watching stand-up, but I wasnt in that particular mind set yet to see that its also about having cleverly written jokes. I realized that I had to mature with my work, and it was definitely something I didnt want my parents to see. Gail uses her comedy to make observational anecdotes, sometimes talking about what its like being Jewish, dating, life in her 30s, or Gen Z. Im really fascinated by that generation for so many reasons, she says. The differences in generations in general really fascinates me, but I think what I like about Gen Z is how more progressive they are than the last generation. Then you have other distinctions like millennials are more about Instagram and aspirational wealth while Gen Z is all about TikTok and they want to talk about depression from a corner in their room. Gail also produces her own weekly podcast The Audacity, which she cohosts with Keren Margolis, where they review viral clips online. Gail can be found online @the_amanda_gail. New Jersey comics performing also include the Jersey City Comedy Festivals Taj Osorio, host Raphael Hernandez of The Dojo of Comedy in Morris Plains, comedian and actor Waldo Maldonado of The Dough Show, New Brunswicks Josh Tinley of the show One of The Good Ones, Amazon Primes Comics Watching Comics finalist Caitlin Reese, Chelsea Moroski of The Wellmont Theater and The Stress Factory, and Lauren Leroux of The Cigarette Club and co-founder of Planet Showbiz. Tickets can be found online at whiteeaglehalljc.com. Doors open at 7 p.m. White Eagle Hall is located at 337 Newark Ave., Jersey City. The state has kept CarePoint Health Systems three Hudson County hospitals afloat with more than $8 million over the past month to cover payroll and the day-to-day operating expenses, Department of Health officials confirmed Wednesday. Thus far, the support has totaled $8.375 million since Feb. 13 and is specifically intended to provide for payroll and the retainment of a corporate restructuring officer, said Department of Health deputy communications director Nancy Kearney. A woman is facing criminal charges after she allegedly broke into a Hunterdon County home to steal a dog, authorities said. The 45-year-old Alpha woman was arrested on March 9 and charged with third-degree burglary and criminal mischief, which is considered a disorderly persons offense, according to a release from the Hunterdon County Prosecutors Office. No animals were stolen from the Holland Township home and the owners told investigators they did not know the woman, a spokeswoman for the office told NJ Advance Media. No other information was released Tuesday night. She was taken to the Warren County Jail and later released on conditional pretrial monitoring, the office said. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription. Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. The mayor of New Jerseys capital city urged the CEO of Starbucks in a letter Tuesday to reconsider the companys decision to close the only Trenton location of the chain at the end of the month. In the letter addressed to Laxman Narasimhan, the coffee chains CEO, Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora expressed his profound disappointment with the companys intention to close the Starbucks store at 102 S. Warren St. The closure of our Community Store not only leaves a void in our downtown landscape but also deals a significant blow to the progress weve made in fostering a more equitable and vibrant city, he wrote. The impact extends far beyond the loss of a business; it represents a setback in our collective efforts to uplift and empower our residents. He implored the company to reconsider the closure and look at alternative solutions. I am more than willing to discuss this further and explore potential avenues for collaboration, Gusciora wrote. Your support in preserving the legacy of your Community Store would not only be a testament to Starbucks commitment to social responsibility but also a beacon of hope for disadvantaged youths in our community. It opened in 2017 as a Community Store, a company initiative that aims to help distressed cities and provide job opportunities to disadvantaged youth in Black and brown communities, he said. The store is a downtown anchor, where members of the public meet and police officers are often present. In addition to selling coffee and food, the location has a community meeting room. It will close on March 30, a Starbucks spokeswoman confirmed this week. She declined to cite specific reasons for the closure, other than saying the decision involved a number of factors and the company is continually evaluating its needs. Weve been in the Trenton community for more than six years, were really proud of it, said the spokeswoman. And we really are grateful for our neighbors, but weve made the hard decision to close the store on Warren Street on March 30. Officials are preparing to spend $500,000 rehabilitating the entire downtown, Gusciora said. A new bar recently opened nearby, and a coffee shop is set to open soon. Starbucks is right in the center of all that, he said. A manager told employees the news Monday night, citing economic factors, the mayor said. Starbucks officials did not consult city officials before making the announcement, he said. Editors note: A previous version of this story said Trentons mayor said New Jersey would be the only state in the nation without a Starbucks. If the Trenton location closes, New Jersey will join Vermont and South Dakota in not having a Starbucks in its capital. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Brianna Kudisch may be reached at bkudisch@njadvancemedia.com. A 23-year-old man was shot and killed in Carteret on Tuesday night, officials said. Evan Blozen, of Carteret, died of his injuries at an area hospital after being gunned down just before 10 p.m. on Roosevelt Avenue, the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office said. No one has been arrested. Authorities said the shooting wasnt random. The fatal shooting was the second of the night in Middlesex County. About three hours earlier, one man was killed and another critically injured in a shooting In New Brunswick. Anyone with information about the Carteret shooting is asked to call borough police Sgt. Louis Maldonad at 732-541- 3852 or Detective Javier Morillo of the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office at 732-745-8843. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. One man was killed and another critically injured in a shooting Tuesday evening in New Brunswick, authorities said. Numi Simmons, 23, of New Brunswick, was pronounced dead at an area hospital after being shot at about 6:50 p.m. near the corner of Throop Avenue and Delavan Street, the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office said. The other man is hospitalized in critical condition. The men were targeted and the prosecutors office said there is no danger to the public. No arrests have been made and the investigation into the citys first fatal shooting of the year is ongoing. Anyone with information or surveillance footage of the area is asked to call New Brunswick police Detective Sean Freeman at 732- 745-5200 or Detective Michelle Coppola of the Middlesex County Prosecutors Office at 732-745-3477. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Some residents of a New Jersey borough say they dont want their neighborhoods to become destinations for pot smokers, so theyve filed a lawsuit attempting to stop the sale of legal weed in town the groups second such attempt to do so. In a lawsuit filed in the Middlesex County Superior Court last month, seven local citizens and a cannabis victims group are challenging Highland Parks ordinances and resolutions that permit licensed cannabis businesses to operate within the towns borders. The group argues the borough councils legal weed laws violate federal marijuana law which, unlike New Jersey, prohibits the possession, use and distribution of cannabis. Highland Parks council recently issued a business license allowing a state-approved cannabis retailer to open in the municipality, officials said in a statement. And, there are at least four other legal weed dispensaries poised to open in the town once they receive state approvals. The lawsuit claims on Jan. 9, a cannabis business license was retroactivity issued by Highland Park and the next day legal weed was sold by that business, according to court documents. The borough said it has not violated either New Jersey or federal law by legally allowing these businesses to operate. The Borough has followed all of the required state regulations in authorizing cannabis retail businesses to operate in the Borough and has not violated any federal or state laws permitting cannabis retail businesses to open in the Borough, Mayor Elsie Foster said in a statement. The Borough is very disappointed that several residents have filed a new lawsuit over the Boroughs decision to allow (cannabis retail businesses) to operate in the Borough, Foster said. The attorney representing the local residents and the victims group Cannabis Industry Victims Educating Litigators, did not respond to a request for comment. In the lawsuit, the group argues the resolution and licenses allowing authorized weed sales have a negative impact on the health, law enforcement, public safety and economy of the community. They also said that the boroughs decisions on legal weed harm the children in the community. One resident said locals dont want to see Highland Park turn into a Pot City Destination, according to legal documents. This isnt the first time this group has waged a legal battle against Highland Parks cannabis laws. In April 2020, the same residents filed a similar lawsuit which was later dismissed by a superior court judge challenging the boroughs legal weed ordinance. That decision was appealed by the group and is currently pending in the state appeals court. The New Jersey Attorney Generals Office wrote a letter last month opposing the appeal, stating that the Highland Park group lacks standing to challenge the states cannabis legalization act passed in 2021, known as CREAMMA. There are now at least 100 adult-use and medical cannabis dispensaries across the state. Deputy Attorney General Nathaniel Levy also told the court that CREAMMA does not conflict with federal cannabis laws but aligns federally by combating drug abuse and preventing diversion to illicit markets, according to court documents. Highland Park officials said that they are confident the lawsuit pending in the appeals court will stay dismissed. Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription. Nyah Marshall may be reached at Nmarshall@njadvancemedia.com. Skeletal remains were found on a property in Wall on Tuesday, authorities said. The discovery was made by construction workers around 4 p.m. on the 1100 block of Narrumson Road, the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office and Wall police said Wednesday. The location is just a block from the Manasquan town border. We can confirm that a portion of skeletal remains were located on the property while work was being conducted yesterday, the prosecutors office said Wednesday morning. Skeletal remains were found Monday on a property in Wall being excavated.Natalie Paterson/NJ Advance Media for NJ.com It would be immensely improper for our office or the Wall Township Police Department to provide further information or details at this time, given the need for further forensic analysis, the prosecutors office said. More information will be released as it becomes available, and we are asking the public to continue to avoid the immediate area as the investigation continues. There is no danger to the community. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Bell calls on provincial and federal governments to join the fight to protect critical infrastructure and increase fines and implement amendments to the Criminal Code Innovative aerial alarms launched across Bell's network, with plans to expand deployment to more locations Aerial alarms provide real time alerts of vandalism, primarily copper theft, allowing for faster response by local law enforcement FREDERICTON, NB, March 13, 2024 /CNW/ - Bell has made security enhancements to its network, including the installation of aerial alarms, to enhance reliability for its customers and protect critical communications infrastructure from vandalism, primarily in the form of copper theft. Bell installs aerial alarms on its network to help fight copper theft, resulting in local arrests (CNW Group/Bell Canada) Earlier this year, Bell started installing aerial alarms across its network, with plans to expand deployment to more locations. The alarms are designed to alert local law enforcement as soon as an incident is detected so they can respond quickly, ideally catching vandals in the act, enabling law enforcement to charge the perpetrators with harsher penalties. ADVERTISEMENT On February 26, 2024, an aerial alarm in Fredericton, New Brunswick successfully notified the local RCMP of a cable cut. They quickly dispatched and arrested two suspects at the time of the incident charges are still being finalized. "Canadians deserve reliable communications networks to stay connected, reach emergency services, and conduct their daily lives. We're enhancing the security measures to our network including the installation of aerial alarms to better protect our critical infrastructure from vandals and hold them to account. We're pleased that these enhancements are already having an impact and resulting in local arrests and we thank the law enforcement agencies that have partnered with us in making this a priority area of intervention." - Marc Duchesne, Vice President Corporate Security and Responsibility, Bell With nearly 1,000 physical security incidents to Bell's network since January 2022, copper theft continues to increase and is responsible for 87% of physical security incidents on Bell's network. The most impacted regions include Ontario with 55% of incidents, New Brunswick with 23% and Quebec with 14%. Each incident takes on average 10 to 12 hours to repair, and during this time customers may not have access to Internet, TV and home phone, and impacts their ability to reach emergency services. Story continues While the addition of aerial alarms has been successful to date, more still needs to be done in order to prevent these crimes from happening and to enforce stronger repercussions. Bell is calling on provincial and federal governments to help communications providers improve the resiliency of Canada's telecommunications networks. Enhancing security protocols is only part of the solution. It's imperative that the government and law enforcement take decisive, timely action to strengthen laws, increase fines and make amendments to the Criminal Code, reflecting the essential nature of critical communications infrastructure on the security of this country. About Bell Bell is Canada's largest communications company,1 providing advanced broadband Internet, wireless, TV, media and business communication services. Founded in Montreal in 1880, Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca or BCE.ca. Through Bell for Better, we are investing to create a better today and a better tomorrow by supporting the social and economic prosperity of our communities. This includes the Bell Let's Talk initiative, which promotes Canadian mental health with national awareness and anti-stigma campaigns like Bell Let's Talk Day and significant Bell funding of community care and access, research and workplace leadership initiatives throughout the country. To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk. 1 Based on total revenue and total combined customer connections. Media inquiries media@Bell.ca Investor inquiries Richard Bengian richard.bengian@bell.ca Logo de Bell Canada (MTL) (CNW Group/Bell Canada) SOURCE Bell Canada Cision View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2024/13/c0079.html An alleged bank robber from Bergen County was arrested in New York City last week and will remain in federal custody ahead of trial. Tony Winst, 46, was named as the suspect of a Nov. 17, 2023 robbery at PNCs branch in Mountain Lakes, the Morris County Prosecutors Office said Tuesday. He was captured Saturday following an investigation that involved local and state law enforcement, as well as the FBI. Attorney information for Winst was not immediately available. County authorities said Winst, of Cresskill, will face federal prosecution for robbery charges. Case information through federal court records was unavailable on Tuesday. Winst allegedly entered the bank at 425 Boulevard around 11:15 a.m., demanding money from the teller. He was given about $1,000 in cash before fleeing the building, authorities said. Winst did not wield a weapon at the bank worker during the robbery, prosecutors said, but FBI officials said he threatened to use one during the exchange. Last month, the FBI announced a $5,000 reward for information leading to Winsts arrest. Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription. Eric Conklin may be reached at econklin@njadvancemedia.com. Lawyers for the estate of Jordan Miller of Fort Lee, who was struck and killed by an NJ Transit bus, announced they plan to sue the agency on behalf of the victim, who was the brother of actor Jason Patric. Miller, 56, was hit by an NJ Transit bus on the morning of Jan. 10 at Bruce Reynolds Boulevard and Lemoine Avenue when it was turning as he was crossing the street. He was taken to Englewood Hospital where he died, according to information from attorney James S. Lynch. The 60-year old bus driver was issued two summons for careless driving and improper turning, according to the police report. Lynch filed the notice of an intent to sue on March 12 that seeks damages for medical bills, funeral expenses, lost income, support to Millers family and suffering from the collision. This is a senseless tragedy that should have never happened, Lynch, of Lynch Law Firm of Hasbrouck Heights, said. Mr. Millers family is beyond devastated by the untimely passing of their cherished father. Miller worked as a customer service representative for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for 13 years at its midtown Manhattan bus terminal. Jordan literally died on his way to work as the happy warrior that he was, wrote Kevin OToole, Port Authority board of commissioners chairman in his Jan. 11 column in the New Jersey Globe, noting that Miller was on his way to the job at the bus terminal when the collision happened. Miller was the brother of Hollywood actor Jason Patric, son of celebrated playwright Jason Miller and grandson of actor of Jackie Gleason. An NJ Transit spokesperson said the agency doesnt comment on pending litigation. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X @CommutingLarry The FBI is asking for the publics help as they continue to search for a New Jersey native and self-described wine blogger who was last seen nearly five years ago in northern Italy. Liam Biran was booked on a flight to return to the United States from Paris on May 16, 2019, but never boarded the plane, the FBI said. Birans credit card was last used a week earlier when a train ticket was purchased for a trip from Turin, Italy to Aosta Valley in Italy, officials said. Biran, of Marlboro, was traveling alone when left the U.S. on April 9, 2019 to visit his grandparents in Israel. He then planned to visit wine country in Italy before wrapping up his trip in France. The last entry in his wine blog Leaf, vine berry, was dated April 24, 2019 indicating he was in Israel. He stayed in multiple hostels during his journey and became friendly with other travelers, the FBI said. Authorities found his personal belongings in a remote location of Aosta Valley. He hasnt been seen or heard from since May 2019. At this time, foul play is not suspected in this case, the FBI said in January. Were not looking for a suspect. The FBI couldnt immediately be reached Wednesday. Biran, who would now be 37, was born in Marlboro. He lived in Jefferson, Louisiana and worked in New Orleans prior to departing the U.S. Before that, he spent time in New York and had been residing with his family in Marlboro, the FBI said. Biran is 5-foot-8, about 160 pounds with brown hair and eyes. The FBI in January said Brians wine travels indicate hes a person who really enjoys the finer things in lifeso, restaurants, vineyards, all that. He is used to traveling alone. Anyone with information is asked to call the FBIs Newark field office at 973-792-3000. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Note: This is a copy of our weekly Tuesday a.m. Mosaic newsletter, which provides the most popular stories from Mosaic of the past week. Click HERE to sign up and never miss a week! Lately, Ive been watching Audra McDonald as Dorothy Scott on HBOs The Gilded Age. She plays the tough, sensible wife of a pharmacist and mother of a journalist in Harlem in the 1880s. She plays that tough Black woman character again in the Oscar-nominated film Rustin when she embodies the character of Ella Josephine Baker, a civil rights organizer who was one of the most important women in the entire movement. McDonald has played some powerful women and shes been honored repeatedly for how she has played those roles. She has six Tonys, two Grammys and an Emmy award along with dozens of other awards and nominations. Last week, Mosaic talked with McDonald about her work playing some of these roles, her co-stars and her more than 30-year career on stage, on television and in the movies. In the interview, she talks about the thrill of performing for the first time when she was just 9 years old, her admiration for Oscar-nominated actors Jeffrey Wright and Colman Domingo, who she worked with on Rustin, and the kind of directors she likes to work with. She also talked about what audiences can expect if they attend her show this Friday at the State Theatre in New Brunswick. Its a conversation filled with surprises. We hope you take a look. We celebrate women this month. Here are 9 N.J. events to check out: March 8 was International Womens Day. The day was first commemorated with a gathering in March 1911. March 8 was International Womens Day. The day was first commemorated with a gathering in March 1911. We celebrate women in March.Julian Leshay | For NJ Advance Media #OscarsNotAsWhite | Wilson-Glover: Even so, only about 2% of all nominees have been Hispanic/Latino Even so, only about 2% of all nominees have been Hispanic/Latino Oscar statuesillustration/AP Photo/Richard Drew Dragon Ball game creator dies: Akira Toriyama was the creative mind behind the Dragon Ball universe, which has captured the imaginations of millions of manga-loving kids and adults Akira Toriyama was the creative mind behind the Dragon Ball universe, which has captured the imaginations of millions of manga-loving kids and adults Akira Toriyama is pictured in 1982. AP Certain universities are better at helping Latino students financially, report says: The report comes at a time when more Hispanic-Serving Institutions are popping up in New Jersey, serving the majority of Latino students in the state. The report comes at a time when more Hispanic-Serving Institutions are popping up in New Jersey, serving the majority of Latino students in the state. Certain universities have an outsized impact on Hispanic students financiallyAP 69 modern senior homes will sprout in the shadow of shuttered public housing: The Millard E. Terrell Homes, vacated in 2022, is one of several Newark Housing Authority sites being redeveloped. The Millard E. Terrell Homes, vacated in 2022, is one of several Newark Housing Authority sites being redeveloped. Terrell Homes apartmentsthriven design Welcome to Mosaic. Follow us on Instagram at @MosaicNJcom, on Facebook at MosaicNJcom and on YouTube at @MosaicNJcom. A Bergen County man was arrested Wednesday and charged with murder in the shooting of a 22-year-old woman last year in Paterson, authorities said. Christopher Thomas, 26, of Hackensack, is charged in the fatal shooting of Mary Taylor, according to Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes. Taylor was shot about 9:22 p.m. on Oct. 1, 2023, in the area of Van Houten and Cianci streets while standing with a group of friends. The high school that produced the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers The Shirelles and the current chief justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court Stuart Rabner is headed for the history books. The New Jersey Schools Development Authority recently approved $328 million in funding so the City of Passaic can build a new high school. Passaic Board of Education President L. Daniel Rodriguez made the announcement at a recent school board meeting. The plan calls for construction of a new building to replace Passaic High School starting after the next school year ends in June of 2025. But during the build, Passaic school officials will have to find suitable classrooms for over 3,000 students who will be displaced by the construction. Who doesnt want a new high school? Passaic Mayor Hector Lora asked rhetorically, adding that replacing the old high school, which opened in 1957, with a bigger building with more room for instruction, is an idea that is long past due. But now comes the hard work. How do we plan this transition to make sure that we dont disrupt the educational journey of our students? Lora said the first task at hand is to find classrooms. There is classroom space available in a few old schools in Passaic that recently closed one a Catholic school on First Street, the other on Monroe Street, and some of the $328 million SDA appropriation can be spent to refit buildings to accommodate students during the transition, Lora said. The welcome mat at the entrance to Passaic High School.Richard Cowen/NJ Advance Media for NJ.Com Once construction starts, build-out is expected to take from 18 to 24 months, which means a child entering high school in the fall of 2025 wouldnt be in the new building until their junior year. The Passaic schools superintendent, Dr. Sandra Montanez-Diodonet, did not respond to an email request seeking comment. The school board president, L. Daniel Rodriguez, could not be reached for comment. The SDA is the state agency responsible for new construction and renovation in New Jerseys 31 poorest school districts. All school projects are funded with state tax dollars. Passaic in 2022 had a per capita income of $23,832 and a poverty rate of 22%, according the U.S. Census, making it one of the poorest cities in the state. It is also a city of immigrants, with 73% of its residents reporting they speak a language other than English at home, according to the U.S. Census. Poverty and language barriers are huge challenges for the urban district. The SDA previously funded the construction of the $241 million Dayton Avenue Educational Center, which has four schools. When the wrecking ball arrives it will take down a high school that has spawned generations of Passaic students. Some, like the first rock & roll girl group, The Shirelles, became internationally famous with hits like Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow and Soldier Boy, while others, like Stuart Rabner, a member of the Passaic High School Class of 1978, made their mark elsewhere. Passaic High School also produced a number of great athletes. Among them was Sam Perry, who in 1965 equalled the world record in the 60-yard dash at the Millrose Games, and after became the first African-American elected to the Passaic City Council. Two future NFL stars also once walked the hallways of Passaic High: Jack Tatum, the hard-hitting safety for the Oakland Raiders during the 1970s dubbed The Assassin, and Craig Ironhead Heywood, a bruising fullback with the New Orleans Saints, Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, St. Louis Rams and Indianapolis Colts. Lora said the Passaic legends will live on in the new building. How about a Shirelles Performing Arts Center? he said. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Richard Cowen may be reached at rcowen@njadvancemedia.com. Next up: The black market of baby organ harvesting. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene recently announced an upcoming hearing on the issue and has invited people to join the live stream of the event slated for March 19. Join me and special guests David Daleiden and Terrisa Bukovinac for a Hearing on Investigating the Black Market of Baby Organ Harvesting on Tuesday, March 19th at 2 PM ET. REGISTER NOW: https://t.co/tBNqeUyKJQ pic.twitter.com/BB9RO428dY Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (@RepMTG) March 11, 2024 She didnt provide much in the way of details other than two of the invited guests will be David Daleiden and Terrisa Bukovinac, both anti-abortion activists. Daleiden and his group, the Center for Medical Progress, were ordered to pay more than $2 million in damages to Planned Parenthood in 2022 for conspiracy and eavesdropping. Bukovinac has ties to fellow activist Lauren Handy, who was charged with crimes for allegedly storing baby fetuses in her refrigerator before they were confiscated by police. MTG has been one of the GOPs most vocal members in calling for the impeachment of President Biden, a move that appears to have stalled. Shell focus on a new issue apparently. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco. Former President Donald Trump was for it before he was against it. President Joe Biden says hed sign it into law if it hit his desk. And Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene totally isnt falling in line with Trumps latest position on a bill that would ban TikTok in the U.S., she insists. Thats where things stand Wednesday after the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner doesnt sell its stake, as lawmakers acted on concerns that the companys current ownership structure is a national security threat. The bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd. The lawmakers contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikToks consumers in the U.S. any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering. As president, Trump attempted to ban TikTok through an executive order that called the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the Peoples Republic of China (China) a threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States. The courts, however, blocked the action after TikTok sued, arguing such actions would violate free speech and due process rights. Biden in 2022 banned the use of TikTok by the federal governments nearly 4 million employees on devices owned by its agencies, with limited exceptions for law enforcement, national security and security research purposes. But Trump has said more recently he opposes a ban. Frankly, there are a lot of people on TikTok that love it. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it, Trump recently said in a call-in interview with CNBCs Squawk Box. Theres a lot of good and theres a lot of bad with TikTok. But the thing I dont like is that without TikTok youre going to make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with a lot of the media. When I look at it, Im not looking to make Facebook double the size, he added. I think Facebook has been very bad for our country, especially when it comes to elections. Greenes vote against the bill Wednesday had nothing to do with Trumps position despite her loyalty to the former president, she insisted with CNNs Manu Raju: MTG says Trump wasn't a factor in her decision to vote NO on TikTok bill: "He has his opinion....It doesnt mean that were all robots. We make our own decisions and mine was to vote 'no' on this bill." Mace says Trump didn't influence her NO vote. "Its the libertarian in me" pic.twitter.com/Fd23Mc6kH1 Manu Raju (@mkraju) March 13, 2024 Raji: How much did Donald Trumps opposition weigh in on you? MTG: I havent spoken to Donald Trump about the bill. Raji: Youve seen what hes said. MTG: I havent spoken to Donald Trump about the bill. These were my own conclusions and I made the vote based on my own conclusions and by reading the bill myself, you know, he has his own opinion on the bill and he can voice it it doesnt mean that were all robots. We make our own decisions and mine was to vote no on this bill based on everything I just told you. Earlier in the day, Greene said on the House floor: I rise today as the only member of Congress that has ever been banned by social media, she said. Twitter banned me banned my personal account on which I was campaigning for Congress, raising money and using my free speech to inform the voters in my district they can vote for me, she continued. This was not by a company owned by China. This was by American-owned Twitter. She was banned from Twitter in 2022 for running afoul of its COVID-19 misinformation policies The Associated Press contributed to this report. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco. Alex Zdan, a former television reporter now running for U.S. Senate in New Jersey, was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol after getting into a traffic accident more than three years ago, according to police and court records. Zdan swerved into oncoming traffic while driving around 10 p.m. in Hopewell Township on Aug. 24, 2020, the police report said. His Dodge Ram pickup truck swiped another vehicle, knocking off its side mirror and scraping its side, before Zdan left the scene, according to the report. A police officer then found Zdan sleeping in his car in the parking lot of a nearby Quick Chek, the report said. The officer said Zdan slurred speech, bloodshot and watery eyes and had a strong smell of alcohol, according to the report. There was an open bottle of wine in Zdans driver-side cup holder, the report said. Asked by the officer if he was in an accident, Zdan said: I dont know. Zdan, then a reporter from News 12, said he was coming from work, according to the report. Zdan failed field sobriety tests and blew a 0.25 three times the legal limit on the breathalyzer, the report said. Zdan called his girlfriend to pick him up at the police station. While on the phone, the report said, he told her, Well, it happened, and he noted it was bound to happen. Zdan was charged with six counts and pleaded guilty to two of them in a plea deal: driving under the influence and failing to report an accident, according to court records. He paid $830 in fines in January 2021. The rest of the charges were dismissed. Zdan, now 38 and a Robbinsville resident, said in a statement he behaved wrongly and irresponsibly that night. It was the first and last time I drove under the influence, Zdan said. According to the police report, the incident sideswiping another car was described as minor. I thank God no one was injured and no one else was involved, but it should never have happened. I am not the same person I was that night. I have spent four years improving myself and striving to be a better man. Zdan also noted that while Menendez faces federal corruption charges, Ive asked forgiveness for a mistake I made one night, four years ago. Zdan explained in his statement that when he said it was bound to happen, it was a reference in a private conversation to the people who truly care about you and how they are a blessing in life. Someday, you will need their help, he said. Thats bound to happen. Always be grateful for those in your life who show up when you need them most. I know I am. Zdan admitted earlier this month in a report by New Jersey Globe he was charged with DUI, saying he wanted to disclose this information as he headed into key Republican county conventions in the June 4 primary election. He noted the incident happened during a time of personal stress and amid the social isolation of the pandemic. Zdan gained attention for his sharp questions of Gov. Phil Murphy and state officials during their COVID-19 briefings. The Globe report did not include details about the accident. Politico New Jersey on Wednesday morning was the first to report the full extent of the incident. This comes as Zdan has gained some momentum in the Republican primary for Menendezs seat. Most of the attention is on the Democratic side where First Lady Tammy Murphy and U.S. Rep. Andy Kim are in a fierce battle in a state where Republicans havent won a U.S. Senate race since 1972. But Zdan, Mendham Borough Mayor Christine Serrano Glassner, and developer Curtis Bashaw are in what has been close race for the Republican nod. The three candidates have so far split critical county endorsements, with Zdan securing wins in Monmouth and Passaic counties. The three will hold their first primary debate on April 3. Thank you for relying on us to provide the local news you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription. Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on X at @johnsb01. A knife-wielding robber entered a mans apartment in Bernardsville last week, awakened him and then forced him to withdraw $1,000 from a nearby ATM machine, authorities said Additional details about the robbery and burglary charges filed against Maicol Fernandez, 18, of Bernardsville, were revealed in an affidavit of probable cause. The previously sleeping victim told police he feared for life and fought Fernandez for the knife late on March 4. Both men suffered minor injuries in the skirmish before Fernandez regained control of the weapon and made the apartment dweller accompany him to a nearby Wells Fargo bank, the court document said. Fernandez told the man to withdraw all his money before fleeing with $1,000. He was arrested at his workplace the next day wearing the same clothes he was seen in on the banks surveillance cameras. Investigators also found a backpack and a sweatshirt that he wore while robbery took place. Both items matched a description provided by the man who was robbed. Fernandez had scratches on his neck from fighting with the victim. The resident of the apartment was left with scratches and a cut on his nose, according to court papers. It wasnt immediately clear if Fernandez knew the victim. Authorities didnt disclose the location of the apartment, though Fernandez resides less than a mile from the bank, according to court papers. Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com. Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Together, The Parkside Hotel & Spa and Huntingdon Manor direct $0.25 from every Victoria stay to the Indigenous Tourism Fund for authentic experience development VICTORIA, BC, March 13, 2024 /CNW/ - Starting March 1, 2024, The Parkside Hotel & Spa and Huntingdon Manor are directing a portion of their Climate Contribution Feeaimed to support sustainable initiativesto the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC). Parkside x Huntingdon Logo (CNW Group/The Parkside Hotel & Spa) Indigenous Tourism is currently the fastest-growing market segment in the tourism sector. ITAC helps to promote and develop authentic Indigenous tourism experiences across Canada. Their Indigenous Tourism Destination Fund (ITDF) offers a collaborative approach for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous businesses to support the growth in Canada. By supporting this initiative, partners of ITAC help fulfill the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Call to Action #92 by fostering respectful relationships and ensuring Indigenous communities benefit economically from land and resource utilization. ADVERTISEMENT Erin Cassels, General Manager of Huntingdon Manor, shares, "The Indigenous Tourism Destination Fund is a great opportunity for visitors to make a tangible contribution towards reconciliation efforts in Canada, and at Huntingdon Manor, we are proud to support this initiative. For us, this is one step in our company's reconciliation journey. We hope to find many more ways to engage in meaningful ways to support Indigenous tourism both in Canada and locally in Victoria." "Supporting ITAC through the Indigenous Tourism Destination Fund is not just an honour but a privilege. At The Parkside Hotel & Spa, we recognize the profound importance of preserving and celebrating Indigenous culture and heritage," shares General Manager Trina White. Since opening in 2009, The Parkside Hotel & Spa has been an industry leader in practicing and promoting sustainable tourism and social responsibility. Part of this commitment includes signing a Memorandum of Reconciliation, becoming Friends of the Songhees in 2021and becoming the first hotel in Greater Victoria to do so. Through this initiative, The Parkside Hotel & Spa (together with Huntington Manor) collectively aims to raise awareness about ITAC's impactful work. Story continues ABOUT THE PARKSIDE HOTEL & SPA The Parkside Hotel & Spa is dedicated to promoting a sustainable urban way of life, actively seeking and implementing eco-friendly measures to improve the guest experience while striving to minimize the environmental footprint of the property. As a carbon-neutral, all-suite hotel, accommodations at The Parkside feature fully equipped kitchens and kitchenettes, washers and dryers, private balconies, gas fireplaces, separate sleeping areas and plenty of space to relax and unwind. Amenities include various meeting and event spaces, a wellness centre (featuring an onsite spa, 25-metre indoor pool, hot tub, and fitness centre), a private movie theatre, a rooftop patio with fire pits, along with Tre Fantastico Bistro. Uniquely Parksideand fondly referred to as the heart of the hotelthe atrium is home to hundreds of plant species and koi. The Parkside Hotel & Spa is a member of the Beyond Green collection. Learn more by visiting www.parksidevictoria.com . ABOUT BEYOND GREEN Guided by a passion for embracing travel as a force for good, Beyond Green is a global portfolio of planet Earth's most sustainable hotels. To create a more purposeful way to explore the world where good guests meet good hosts, Beyond Green has curated a unique portfolio of hotels, resorts, and lodges based on their commitment to deliver on the three pillars of sustainable tourism: environmentally friendly practices that go beyond the basics; protection of natural and cultural heritage; and contribution to the social and economic wellbeing of local communities. To be considered for membership in Beyond Green, a property is vetted according to more than 50 sustainability indicators that align with global sustainable tourism standards and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Owned and operated by Preferred Travel Group the family-owned company that manages and operates other hospitality brands including Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Historic Hotels of America, and Historic Hotels Worldwide Beyond Green ushers in a new way to experience genuine hospitality by the people for the planet. For more information, visit www.StayBeyondGreen.com . ABOUT HUNTINGDON MANOR Located in Victoria's Inner Harbour, the independently owned and operated Huntingdon Manor Hotel offers 114 unique rooms, including newly renovated loft suites complete with full kitchens, spacious living areas, and modern amenities designed for guests' comfort and convenience. Guests enjoy a daily complimentary hot buffet breakfast, enhancing their stay. Adjacent, the historic Pendray Inn and Tea House, built in 1896, provides a boutique bed and breakfast and a renowned afternoon tea experience. Committed to sustainability, both properties embrace the Triple Bottom Line principle and hold top-level certifications from BC Green Business, Green Key Global, and Biosphere. Their dedication to minimizing environmental impact while providing a welcoming 'home away from home' atmosphere defines their approach to hospitality. Discover more about our property at www.huntingdonmanor.com SOURCE The Parkside Hotel & Spa Cision View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2024/13/c6527.html After cutting up a whole beef, some was ground into hamburger to freeze and store for later. Provided photo Six-day (Tuesday through Sunday) print subscribers of the Watertown Daily Times are eligible for full access to NNY360, the NNY360 mobile app, and the Watertown Daily Times e-edition, all at no additional cost. If you have an existing six-day print subscription to the Watertown Daily Times, please make sure your email address on file matches your NNY360 account email. You can sign up or manage your print subscription using the options below. Though many may still be recovering from last falls elections, its already time to cast another ballot in Louisiana. Believe it or not, early voting for the March 23 election has already begun. This go-around, the race at the top of the ballot is least critical. Weve known who the main presidential candidates would be for some time. Its the smaller races for offices rarely talked about that are the ones to watch now. Those races will help determine if the Louisiana Democratic Party starts putting up a fight against Republicans or if they continue their streak of getting steamrolled. But you wouldnt know that looking at the ballot alone. Instead, registered Democrats and Republicans will quickly run into some acronyms: DSCC and DPEC for Democrats, or RSCC and RPEC for Republicans. For the Republicans, most of these races are either a foregone conclusion or not particularly interesting, thanks to the partys well-oiled political machine. Democrats, on the other hand, are a mess internally. And this election will go a long way toward determining whether the party is ready to reform itself or content being broken for the foreseeable future. So what exactly are you voting for? Heres how to decipher the alphabet soup. The Democratic State Central Committee (DSCC) runs the Democratic Party at the state level. Their job is to help Democrats get elected across the state, and they're the ones who vote for party heads, such as the chair and vice chair, and the executive committee that guides party decision making. The state committee has 210 seats, a male seat and a female seat from each state House district. Hundreds of races may sound overwhelming, but of them, youll only be voting in up to two. If there arent two DSCC races on your ballot, that likely means that one or both races in your district were unopposed. The chair and other leadership elections will take place about a month after Election DAY. Thats when well know if Democratic Party Chair Katie Bernhardt, who many in the party have criticized following abysmal results for Democrats in the fall elections, will stay in power or if a statewide recruiting effort to replace her has succeeded. The next race on your ballot will likely be for Democratic Parish Executive Committees (DPEC) members. They focus on building up the party in their parish, which includes endorsing state and local candidates and working with other local community groups. Their election is a bit different than a standard election. On the ballot is a list of people, and youll have to choose a certain number of them to vote for. How many you are asked to choose depends on which district youre in. It could be 5, 10, 14, you name it. You may be narrowing it down to half, or like in one Metairie district, you could be voting for 10 out of 11 candidates, essentially just voting against one candidate. Its also worth noting that some of the same people are running for spots on the state committee and their parish committee. With so many names on the ballot, it can be hard to research all of them. Antigravity has created a thorough voter guide on the New Orleans races. Meanwhile Blue Reboot, a statewide group of more than DSCC candidates who have promised to vote for a new chair, has a list of their members, which include a number of first-time candidates, LGBTQ people and formerly incarcerated people of VOTE, a group that advocates for the reform of Louisianas criminal legal system. U.S. Congress Member Troy Carter has also been texting his choices out, calling them True Blue candidates. Though a few of his picks are also Blue Reboot candidates, most are their opponents. Early voting runs through Saturday, March 16, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. On Election Day March 23, polls are open from 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Only registered Democrats or Republicans can vote in their partys presidential primary and leadership elections. Find your polling location and sample ballot at geauxvote.com. A story published this week in the New York Times describes a chain of high-profile, live-in sex clubs where consensual polyamorous encounters are the norm. For some of the residents, the article says, the Hacienda club has been a sanctuary, where participants could indulge their desires without judgment or regret. The trouble is, according to some participants, the anything-goes atmosphere can go too far. Several people have come forward claiming to have been violated, even raped, during Hacienda encounters over the past decade, the article reports. The club has several properties, including three townhouses in Brooklyn. Get ready! It's almost time once again for the Covington Celtic Club's annual St. Patrick's Day parade's roll through town. Janis Laizans/Reuters The former chief of staff of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was attacked with a hammer and tear gas outside his home in Lithuania on Tuesday, less than a month after his former boss mysteriously turned up dead in a Russian penal colony. A spokesperson for Navalny, Kira Yarmysh, said on X that Leonid Volkov was attacked in his car outside his home. The attacker broke through the car window, sprayed tear gas in Volkovs eyes, and repeatedly struck him with a hammer. According to The Washington Post, Volkov lives in Lithuania in self-imposed exile after leaving Russia at least four years ago. Volkov survived the horrifying ordeal and police were called, said Yarmysh. Lithuanian police confirmed to Baltic news outlet Delfi that a Russian citizen had been beaten outside his home in Vilnius on March 12 at 10 p.m. but did not provide an identity for the man. The Anti-Corruption Foundation, which Nalvany founded, shared photos showing Volkovs bloodied leg and swollen face after the attack. It also shared photos of him on a gurney, being loaded into an ambulance. Leonid is currently at the hospital pic.twitter.com/xBzEE9WwCN The Anti-Corruption Foundation (@ACF_int) March 12, 2024 No details about the alleged assailant were released, and its unclear if the suspect was apprehended by police. Yarmysh told the independent Russian news outlet Meduza that Volkov fought back, however. He began to fight back with the car door and with his legs, she reportedly said. Therefore, they hit him where they couldon his legs. Volkov subsequently posted a video on his Telegram confirming his injuries and his return home from the hospital. According to a translation by Meduza, he describes how his arm was broken, but despite being hit with a hammer roughly 15 times, his legs were not broken. Story continues Volkov called the attack an obvious, characteristic, typical, gangster-style greeting from Putin. Lithuanias president also called out Putin directly for the vicious hammer attack, saying Wednesday that it was likely planned and may have been carried out under the influence of the Kremlin. I can say only one thing to Putin: Nobody is afraid of you here, President Gitanas Nauseda said, promising a thorough investigation into the violence. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis wrote on X , News about Leonids assault are shocking. Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime. The attack came hours after Volkov discussed in an interview with Meduza the dangers of carrying on Nalvanys work following his death. The key risk is that we will all be killed, he said. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Chili powder adulterated with Sudan Red has flooded the markets of Taiwan (Screengrab/ RTI English) Taiwan's defence ministry has opened an investigation into a China-imported carcinogenic red dye that made its way into the Army Logistics Command. Sudan Red, a banned yellowish-red lysochrome azo dye, triggered health concerns in Taiwan after being discovered over the past month in spicy seasoning such as chili powder, broth powder, shacha sauce and other products. The dye has been classified as a Group 3 carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). The UK among other nations has banned the lipid-soluble "toxic substance" from being used in food products. The Taipei city government on Monday announced that at least eight downstream manufacturers sold products containing the Sudan Red, which was purchased by the Army Logistics Command's Non-staple Food Supply Center. The Ministry of National Defence (MND) said the non-staple food procurement units of various army logistics departments were monitoring the situation. The MND added that it was inspecting and halting the use and sale of ingredients tainted with the substance and carrying out necessary recalls, Taiwan News reported. The ministry said it was also conducting voluntary tests to ensure the health of officers and enlisted personnel. Premier Chen Chien-jen on Tuesday ordered the removal of all products containing illegal chili powder within a month, pointing out the need to cut off the source and beef up the investigation. Mr Chen said he had instructed vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan to coordinate with ministries to conduct a thorough investigation into the Sudan Red chili powder row. The synthetic substance was found in a brand of chili powder imported from China's Henan province in late January. The Yunlin Public Health Bureau on 7 February reported that the brand of chili powder produced by a food manufacturer within Taiwan contained 18 parts per billion (ppb) of Sudan III. Initial investigation by Taiwan's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) revealed that raw materials for the contaminated red chili powder were imported by New Taipei-based Bao Hsin Enterprises from China's Henan Sanhe Pharmaceutical, according to the newspaper. Local health authorities found Sudan Red adulteration in 14 shipments of chili powder imported from China before 11 December last year. Four other shipments imported by Bao Hsin between 9 and 23 February were also found laced with the toxic substance, according to Focus Taiwan. Maybe you've done it, or maybe its on your ever deepening bucket list? Walking the Camino de Santiago Compostela in Spain, that is. There are lots of reasons to prevaricate - how to get there; which route; weather; trail length and of course the much reported epidemic of bed bugs en-route. Never fear, an alternative is at hand: The Porlock Pilgrims' Trail with not a hint of a bed bug, but maybe a sly tick lurking in the undergrowth ready to pounce on unsuspecting walkers. This route is a relatively new inclusion to the plethora of walking opportunities that our beloved Moor has to offer and has been devised by the Porlock Benefice. It is a linear route that extends for almost 30 miles and takes in nine churches and chapels. Do I hear a sharp intake of breath? 30 miles, they're having a laugh! You can count me out! Our thoughts precisely. Above: Selworthy Church So, in the summer of 2022, three ramblers/wannabe pilgrims sat down, pored over maps, discussed, planned and eventually came up with three circular walks. Backpacks at the ready, phones charged, plenty of food and drink and off we set armed with our trusty guide book; walking paths that have been ridden and walked by clergy and parishioners for hundreds of years. The plan was for inclusion in the summer programme of 2023, but in the adapted words of Robert Burns The best laid plans of mice and women often go awry. They really did go awry and were postponed to 2024. These three walks have been scheduled for April, May and June, the first one being on Saturday, April 6. There will be ascents and descents; groans and moans; laughter and pleasure hopefully. But this is what we do to appreciate the high moorlands, ancient oak woodlands, grassy slopes and Exmoors tiny hamlets. No pain, no gain could be a very appropriate motto for Ramblers. Please do join us, explore the gorgeous Exmoor on our doorstep and learn a little bit of the history of these ancient places of worship. Above: Stoke Pero Church Take a look at the following, little bite sized bits of information to tempt you further. Culbone with its lepers squint and a place of pilgrimage for more than a 1,000 years. West Porlocks flat packed tin tabernacle. Porlock with its truncated spire - legend has it that a giant carried it off and placed it neatly atop Culbone church. Stoke Pero with its candle-lit services and Hope Bournes picture of Zulu, the donkey. Luccombes ancient churchyard cross, decapitated by Cromwells soldiers. Tivington - truly the jewel in the crown, with its thatched roof. Tivington Church, with its thatched roof, is the 'jewel in the crown'. There is yet more to tell, hopefully your appetite has been whetted and remember, the definition of a pilgrim might be applied to ourselves Any wanderer who is able to gain strength, hope and a sense of well-being from their walking. To join us on the first walk of approximately 10 miles, meet at Robbers Bridge Car Park at 10.30am on Saturday, April 6. More details on the North Devon Ramblers website at www.ramblers.org.uk/go-walking/ramblers-groups/north-devon-group. The number of children worldwide who died before age five reached a record low in 2022, the United Nations said in a report published Tuesday, as for the first time fewer than five million died. According to the estimate, 4.9 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2022, a 51 percent decrease since 2000 and a 62 percent drop since 1990, according to the report, which still warned such progress is "precarious" and unequal. "There is a lot of good news, and the major one is that we have come to a historic level of under-five mortality, which... reached under 5 million for the first time, so it is 4.9 million per year," Helga Fogstad, director of health at the UN children's agency UNICEF, told AFP. According to the report, prepared by UNICEF in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank, progress was particularly notable in developing countries such as Malawi, Rwanda and Mongolia, where early childhood mortality has fallen by more than 75 percent since 2000. (AFP) Read more on FRANCE 24 English Read also: Sudanese refugee children in Chad face malnutrition and trauma UNICEF: 'There are so many children on the streets of Gaza and in incredible need' African children exceptionally vulnerable to climate change, UN says On Fridays in Lent, the Region's many Catholics often can be found at fish fries or in the McDonald's drive-through looking to hook a Filet-o-Fish, which was actually invented by a Cincinnati franchisee as an antidote to declining sales when the faithful abstained from meat on Fridays. But there's more alternatives than just the same deep-fried whitefish over and over again. Pepino's, an Italian restaurant at 2410 Ontario St. in Schererville, has been serving Lenten specials for 38 years. The old school neighborhood joint started in a former Polish sausage factory on Sibley Boulevard in Calumet City in 1985 after owner Joe Pepe Daniele graduated from Northern Illinois University in Dekalb. More than 20 years later it followed many longtime customers to Northwest Indiana, locating just off U.S. 41 in Schererville. The restaurant specializes in Italian beef, Italian sausage, the Italian beef and sausage combo, pizza, pasta and other Italian street food. During Lent it rolls out a massive pepper and egg sandwich, a version of the street food that's long been a favorite in Chicagoland's Catholic community during Lent. The Lenten specials at Pepino's this year also include an amazing Eggplant Parmesan Sandwich. Breaded eggplant is fried and stuffed into a soft, chew roll, where it's topped with a fresh, chunky and herbaceous tomato sauce and a decadent amount of melted cheese. It's almost like a pizza in a bun. The sandwich doesn't skimp on portions and won't leave you hungry on a meatless Friday during Lent. For more information, call 219-365-9680 or call pepinosindiana.com. New exhibits about local history and women's history are on display at the LaPorte County Historical Society Museum this month. The three-story local history museum at 2405 Indiana Ave., Suite. 1 is now displaying a Women's History Month Exhibit, a Kingsford Heights History Pop-Up Exhibit and the Endangered Heritage Traveling Exhibit. "Learn about the many women's clubs and societies of LaPorte County to celebrate Women's History Month and the fascinating history of the town of Kingsford Heights," Assistant Director Savannah Jackson said. "Highlights include KOP, local businesses, and the interesting history of the town itself. Both exhibits will be on display now until March 30." The Kingsford Heights exhibit is the second in the museum's ongoing "Towns of LaPorte County Pop-Up" series. "Come see the Kingsford Heights Pop-Up exhibit to learn more about your town," Jackson said. The Endangered Heritage Traveling Exhibit also will hang at the museum until April 2. "This traveling exhibit from the Indiana Historical Society promotes the need to properly care for Museum collections to continue preserving local history. Learn about the different ways to protect collections and the dangers that they face," Jackson said. Chris Maniel, a librarian at the LaPorte County Public Library, will discuss "The Lost Towns of LaPorte County" at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 19. The museum will be closed on Good Friday on March 29. School City of Hammond officials say the stalemate in contract negotiations with the Hammond Teachers' Federation has complicated and delayed needed cost-cutting measures. That's according to a statement released last week after school city officials met with Indiana's Distressed Unit Appeal Board, which monitors the finances of school districts. In November, Hammond voters rejected the renewal of Hammond schools' operating referendum that generated $15 million annually for the district. The tax levy is set to expire at the end of this year. As a result of the referendum's defeat, DUAB ordered the school city to create a corrective action plan that was meant to address the district's financial issues. Hammond school officials presented the plan to DUAB Feb. 26. According to the statement, DUAB confirmed several factors that led to Hammond schools' financial shortfall. Those factors included "skyrocketing" health insurance costs over the past two years and caps on teachers' contributions that have resulted in the district spending an additional $5 million in health insurance this school year, base salary increases for teachers in 2021 and 2022 totaling $10 million, enrollment loss of over 1,500 students since 2019 that has led to the loss of $12.5 million in state tuition support, and the defeat of the operating referendum. The school district also said the spending cuts required by DUAB have included significant changes to teacher contract agreements. Hammond educators have been without a new contract since November and unfair labor practice complaints filed by both the teachers' union and school district have stalled negotiations. In late December, teachers rejected a proposed contract from the district which, according to several educators, included caps on personal illness days, halted the district's contributions to the teachers' retirement fund and significantly increased health care premiums. Last week, it was announced a frequently asked questions page had been added to Hammond schools' website to address misinformation being circulated. During a school board work session March 5, Hammond Teachers' Federation President Louis Gikas accused the district of "smearing" educators through the FAQs. The Times reached out to Gikas for comment but did not receive a response as of Tuesday afternoon. Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report 'The future is uncertain' Multi-unit housing restrictions are one underlying threat to school districts 'Center of our neighborhoods' LAPORTE Supporters of Kingsford Heights Elementary School showed up and spoke in favor of keeping the school open on Monday, as LaPorte Community School Corp. faces growing financial concerns. During the LaPorte School Board meeting, residents, parents and elected officials from the small town located 11 miles south of the city of LaPorte argued against the school's closure, raising concerns that it could lead to issues with transportation, overcrowded classes and students leaving to surrounding school districts, such as South Central or Oregon-Davis Community School Corp. LaPorte County Commissioner Joe Haney noted Kingsford Heights is a growing community, with around 70 houses currently being built in the town. Some also argued the decision to consolidate schools should wait until a permanent superintendent is in place. Last month, former LaPorte Superintendent Mark Francesconi abruptly retired after leading the district for 13 years. Peggy Hinckley, a longtime educator and school administrator, was appointed as interim superintendent. Hinckley had previously served as LaPorte schools chief from 1989 to 2001. Most recently, she served as the emergency manager for Gary Community School Corp. when the district first entered state control in 2017. The speakers all urged LaPorte schools to look at all other options before considering school closure. "The school is located in the community in which the children live. Removing it removes the heart of the community, it removes a resource for the children," said Erika Stallworth, a parent of a Kingsford Heights Elementary student. Declining enrollment in LaPorte schools has forced the district to consider school closings and job cuts. A study presented at a school board meeting on Feb. 28 showed the number of students in LaPorte schools had dropped by 900 since 2008. Additionally, Hinckley has blamed school choice for the loss of students in the district. The loss of enrollment has also led to financial loss and the district being forced to dip into its budget surplus, which has dropped from $10.5 million to $7.3 million since 2019. The LaPorte School Board has a work session meeting planned for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Kingsford Heights Elementary to further discuss the potential closure of the school. Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report 'The future is uncertain' Multi-unit housing restrictions are one underlying threat to school districts 'Center of our neighborhoods' GARY State Rep. Vernon Smith, D-Gary, raised concerns on Tuesday over the search for the next superintendent of the Gary Community School Corp. Speaking during the Gary School Board meeting, Smith said he and other Northwest Indiana state legislators have concerns over the timeline of the search for the district's next schools chief. He warned that if the board waited until Gary schools exited state control on July 1 to have a superintendent in place, it could put the new school leader at a disadvantage since they would lack local knowledge. The district has been overseen and operated by the Distressed Unit Appeals Board and MGT Consulting since 2017. Smith said when the legislation establishing Gary schools' appointed school board was being crafted last year, he and other community members had wanted a superintendent in place by January of this year to be prepared to lead the district post-takeover. He said he was concerned about the success of the next superintendent, claiming the state has wanted to dissolve the school corporation and said state officials had previously met with neighboring school districts to see if they would be able to take in Gary students. "They're waiting for us to fail," Smith said. The Gary School Board is currently working with a search firm to find the district's next superintendent. According to Michael Tolbert, the board's attorney, 38 applicants have been received for the position. Board members have previously expressed their desire to have a superintendent in place by next school year, if not sooner. In other business, Gary schools emergency manager Mike Raisor shared with the board positive news regarding the district's finances. He noted the enrollment increases from last fall to this spring would provide more monies that could be transferred from the education fund to support operational costs. Raisor also noted almost the $600,000 paid to Gary schools from the city in past due payments, as well as a higher than anticipated property tax collection rate. As a result, the emergency manager said the district was now expected to end this year with a surplus of almost $8.5 million. However, Raisor cautioned that while this year looked good financially, most of the funds were one-time payments. The next Gary School Board meeting is set for April 10. Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report Thousands of schools at risk of closing due to enrollment loss: An exclusive report 'The future is uncertain' Multi-unit housing restrictions are one underlying threat to school districts 'Center of our neighborhoods' Tensions in the shoals have escalated in recent months, with Chinese and Philippine vessels colliding China says the Philippines ignored proposals it put forward to "manage" their dispute in the South China Sea. An unnamed senior Chinese official told news outlet the Manila Times that the deal was "met with inaction by the Marcos administration". President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said they did not reject the deal, but said it stood on a "questionable" premise. The South China Sea is at the centre of a territorial dispute between China, the Philippines and other countries. But tensions between Manila and Beijing have sharply escalated in recent months. At the heart of it is a decaying ship on Second Thomas Shoal that the Philippines have purposely marooned to reinforce its claim in the shoal. Routine missions to bring food and essentials to a handful of Filipino soldiers on the ship named Sierra Madre has resulted in encounters between the Philippine Coast Guard escorts and the China Coast Guard. The Manila Times, quoting an unnamed senior Chinese official, had reported on Monday that China offered a proposal last April but was "met with inaction by the Marcos administration". The report said China's proposal included allowing Filipino resupply missions to the Second Thomas Shoal, as long as it involves just one ship and that it does not deliver large-scale building materials. This was based on an "understanding" between China and Mr Marcos' predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, claimed the report. On Tuesday, the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) responded to the report, denying the allegations. They said that while some of China's proposals were "workable", others were "contrary to our national interests". China had responded to the Philippines' counter-proposals with another set of counter-offers, the DFA added. Story continues Mr Marcos later clarified that China's proposals stood on a "questionable premise", referencing China's so called 10-dash line map. "We have not rejected any proposals that China has made to us but the premise is something that we questioned... that premise that China has made is that their territory follows what is now described as a 10 dash line," he said in Germany, where he is on an official visit. He added that China's claims in the South China Sea were "not recognised by any country... certainly not by the Philippines". China claims by far the largest portion of territory in an area demarcated by the "10-dash line". The line comprises ten dashes which extends hundreds of miles south and east from its most southerly province of Hainan. Mr Marcos assumed the presidency in June 2022 and pivoted the Philippines back to its traditional ally, the US, drawing China's ire. After the first collision between Philippine and Chinese ships last October, US President Joe Biden said Washington would defend Manila if Beijing attacks. The two countries are bound by a mutual defence treaty. Mr Duterte, on the other hand, had pursued stronger economic and political ties with China. He scaled back military co-operation between the Philippine and US militaries and refused to flout an international arbitration court ruling that rejected China's vast sea claims that also overlap with those of Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei. You may also be interested in: Everyone knows the opening line "four score and several years ago." Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address dedicating the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Pennsylvania months after the Union vanquished the Confederacy in the Battle of Gettysburg, the Civil War's bloodiest battle, remains one of the most famous and oft-quoted speeches in American history. Westfield-based The Lincoln Special is commemorating the 160th anniversary of the paean to a nation "conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." It's doing a statewide tour of roadshows following the Lincoln Funeral Train route that stopped by Hammond in 1865. Lincoln Special Executive Director Chris Allen, in partnership with the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial, is staging a free, hour-long symposium in 20 cities across the Hoosier State reflecting on Lincoln's life and legacy. Its imperative to remind people in Lincolns home state that his story didnt just end at Fords Theater, Allen said. Even in death, Lincolns story continued on, only with us as authors. He will visit the Hammond Public Library at 564 State Street in downtown Hammond at 2 p.m. Saturday. Every city and town in Indiana that Lincolns funeral train stopped at shares an indelible connection to our nations story," he said. Hammond is particularly interesting as this was the last Indiana city the train visited." A historical marker in Calumet City at the state line notes the point where Lincoln's funeral train passed back into his home state of Illinois following his assassination at Ford's Theater. Lincolns Funeral Train acted as a zipper that brought hundreds of thousands of people together at this nations most fractured point, Allen noted. His funeral train proved that even in death, this man [Lincoln] could unite people like nothing before or since. The Lincoln Special's roadshow is free and open to the public. It will cover Lincoln's life, plans for a film about the Funeral Train in Indiana and how it arrived in his his boyhood home state on April 29, 1865, 21 days after he was killed. It wasnt just Lincolns remains that came through here, Allen said. It was everything Lincoln stood for, the Emancipation Proclamation, the 13th Amendment, and the Gettysburg Address that came right through Hammond. For more information, visit www.tearsandiron.com or call (317) 967-6190. The U.S. Justice Department is urging the Supreme Court to reject the claim of former Portage Mayor James Snyder that gratuities paid to elected officials are no more criminal than tips or gifts given to restaurant servers, teachers or mail carriers. In a 67-page filing at the nation's high court, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar said nothing in the historical record, or the federal statute under which Snyder was sentenced to 21 months in prison, favors reversing Snyder's 2021 convictions for federal funds bribery and tax obstruction. Contrary to Snyder's assertion that gratuities are a normal part of public business, Prelogar traces legal prohibitions against the practice to a 1275 statute in England, through the American founding period when the gift of a diamond encrusted snuff box to Benjamin Franklin from King Louis XVI of France resulted in the addition of the emoluments clause to the U.S. Constitution, and across decades of anti-corruption laws enacted at the state and federal levels. She also cites a 1958 congressional report on a law related to the one Snyder violated that explains: "It is readily apparent that a practice of tacitly 'rewarding' public officials for their official acts could undermine the public service as effectively as if the payments were the fruit of express corrupt agreement." According to court records, the Republican mayor was paid $13,000 to be a "consultant" to a Portage truck dealership less than three weeks after Snyder's Portage administration purchased $1.125 million in garbage trucks from the dealership. Prelogar notes Snyder was unusually involved in the garbage truck bidding process, the specifications limited likely bidders to the one company that won the contract, and an owner of the successful truck dealership subsequently admitted they were paying Snyder for his influence. The remainder of her written argument to the Supreme Court centers on specific differences in the wording of various federal statutes relating to gratuities and bribes to make the case that the federal law under which Snyder was convicted encompasses both illegal gratuities and bribery. "While (Snyder) contends that the statute excludes 'gratuities,' the statutory language which employs the term 'rewarded' is precisely suited to cover after-the-fact payments like the one that he received. Context and history likewise demonstrate that both bribes and gratuities are covered, consistent with the threat that both forms of graft pose to federal programs," Prelogar said. At the same time, Prelogar tells the nine justices even if they buy Snyder's argument on gratuities, they still should return his case to the U.S. District Court in Hammond for a redetermination of whether the payment to Snyder actually was a bribe since the trial judge concluded "there was ample evidence permitting a rational jury to find, from the circumstantial evidence, that there was an up-front agreement to reward (Snyder) for making sure (the truck dealership) won the contract award." Both sides next are scheduled to present oral arguments to the Supreme Court April 15. A ruling is expected by the end of June. Gallery: Indiana historical markers in the Region First Physician Great Sauk (Sac) Trail St. John's Lutheran Church Tolleston Dutch in the Calumet Region St. John Township School, District #2 The Lincoln Highway/The Ideal Section The Lincoln Highway/The Ideal Section Froebel School - side 1 Froebel School Stewart Settlement House Stewart Settlement House Origin of Dr. MLK Day Law Origin of Dr. MLK Day Law Bailly Homestead Iron Brigade Willow Creek Confrontation Ogden ski jump.jpg Teale 1.jpg Teale 2.jpg Steel 1.jpg Steel 2.jpg Civil War camps.jpg Old lighthouse.jpg Railroad.jpg Camp Anderson.jpg Boundary line 1.jpg Boundary line 2.jpg LaPorte courthouse 1.jpg LaPorte courthouse 2.jpg Carnegie 1.jpg Carnegie 2.jpg Rumely Co 1.jpg Rumely Co 2.jpg Lincoln train 1.jpg Lincoln train 2.jpg LaPorte university 1.jpg Laporte university 2.jpg Gary Roosevelt 1 Gary Roosevelt 2 The next time you drive around our Region, look around and notice all the litter along roadsides. Theres so much of it that most of us dont even see it, if that makes sense. Fast food bags. Empty containers. Liquor bottles. Wrappers. Toweling. Pop cans. Discarded clothes. Old furniture. Cigarette butts. Plastic bottles, debris and dirty diapers. Cigarette butts just might be the most common litter on Earth. Smokers consume about 5 trillion cigarettes every year, and a huge percentage of them wind up flicked out of car windows or dropped on the street where they wash into storm drains and eventually into the ocean or other waterways. You name it, every kind of litter is in every Region community. I wonder what kind of people are habitual litterbugs. Is it cultural or generational? Are young adults the main culprit? Do people eventually learn to stop littering? Does it matter where you live? When I was a teenager, I was a repeat offender, casually tossing out anything I didnt want in my car, mostly carryout food packaging. Im sure Ive littered our Region with hundreds of fast food bags, cups and wrappers. Not to mention pizza boxes. Id also leave my trash at beaches and parks without a hint of shame or environmental stewardship. I didnt think twice. I just rolled down the car window and heaved it. I was a pig. These days, if I toss out even a banana peel through my car window I feel guilty for littering Mother Earth. Each year around this time I have the same realization our corner of the state is littered with neglect, apathy and bad habits. It is truly sad the amount of litter that is deposited on Region roads, said Tom Cera of Gary. It is not only a Gary problem. Look around during your travels and you will see it almost everywhere here. Hes right. Theres so much litter that we tend to forget its there, everywhere, all around us as we drive to work or school or on errands. Since you are from Gary, you understand the constant battle of keeping the city clean, Cera said. In the Miller neighborhood, citizens have banded together to fight litter and dumping. The Miller Community Fund is a nonprofit organization that distributes small grants to organizations in the 46403 Zip Code. Funded by volunteers, it hired a company, Clean Slate, which offers disadvantaged people an opportunity to earn a decent wage to clean up litter. The fight has two components, Cera said. A small group from Clean Slate picks up litter on the first Friday of each month in Miller, along County Line Road, Lake Street and Seventh Ave. Every other Saturday, if the weather allows, a group of citizens with the clever name, "Miller Litter League, meets at 9 a.m. to clean up roadsides in that community. Neighborhood entrances are prioritized, Cera said. County Line Road is cleaned from Oak Ave. to U.S. 20. Other roads, including Old Hobart Road, are cleaned periodically. Personal vehicles are used to remove bags and properly dispose of them. Its an impressive operation of volunteers and not uncommon for them to collect 20 large plastic bags of litter and trash every two weeks. The initiative has been in place for over a year. And it works, Cera said. However, the sad part is all of the work just keeps up with the constant littering. The "Litter League" cleanup along County Line Road includes the Indiana Dunes National Park entrance, which is exposed to visitors from across the country and world. What would be their impression if their selfie in front of the entrance sign included McDonald's cups and burger wrappers? Cera asked. Im not sure at what age I stopped littering with such casual piggishness. Maybe in my 20s. (Dont judge.) When I was a kid, I remember seeing public service ads that condemned such behavior. I vividly recall the iconic image of a Native American man with a tear streaming down his face while staring at a river of litter. And I recall the Give a hoot, dont pollute TV commercials aimed at kids with help from Woodsy Owl, the icon for the U.S. Forest Service. Too many people still dont give a hoot, it seems. Sue Rutsen, on the other hand, gives a hoot. She is the leader of the Litter League, supervisor of the Clean Slate group, and the strongest advocate of clean streets in Northwest Indiana, Im told. Rutsen also is researching the most effective way to educate children regarding litter and its impact on our community and the environment. Ill be writing about this in an upcoming column. Study after study shows the highest indicator that someone will pick up litter is if they witness someone else picking up litter. Thats because peer group norms are more powerful than incentives and, together, they can provide impressive behavioral change, according to NationalCleanUpDay.org. National CleanUp Day is in September. Earth Day is in April. But why wait until those days to do something for our planet and for your community or neighborhood. The next time you walk past a piece of litter, surprise yourself by bending down to pick it up and dispose of it properly. You dont have to be as dedicated as people like Rutsen. You just have to care every once in a while. And then act on it. Our littered Region is desperately in need of spring cleaning once again. Guernica, a small but prestigious online literary magazine, was thrown into turmoil in recent days after publishing and then retracting a personal essay about coexistence and war in the Middle East by an Israeli writer, leading to multiple resignations by its volunteer staff members, who said that they objected to its publication. In an essay titled From the Edges of a Broken World, Joanna Chen, a translator of Hebrew and Arabic poetry and prose, had written about her experiences trying to bridge the divide with Palestinians, including by volunteering to drive Palestinian children from the West Bank to receive care at Israeli hospitals, and how her efforts to find common ground faltered after Hamass Oct. 7 attack and Israels subsequent attacks on Gaza. It was replaced on Guernicas webpage with a note, attributed to admin, stating: Guernica regrets having published this piece, and has retracted it, and promising further explanation. Since the essay was published, at least 10 members of the magazines all-volunteer staff have resigned, including its former co-publisher, Madhuri Sastry, who on social media wrote that the essay attempts to soften the violence of colonialism and genocide and called for a cultural boycott of Israeli institutions. Chen said in an email that she believed her critics had misunderstood the meaning of my essay, which is about holding on to empathy when there is no human decency in sight. Whats bothering you? Who could do something about it? What could you say that would persuade that person to care or to make change? And what if we all read your letter? How could you make us care, too? These are some of the questions were asking you to ponder for our new Open Letter Contest. An open letter is a published letter of protest or appeal usually addressed to an individual, group or institution but intended for the general public. Think of the many Dear Taylor Swift open letters you can find online and on social media: Sure, theyre written to Ms. Swift, but theyre really a way for the writer to share opinions and feelings on feminism, or ticket sales, or the music industry, or the list goes on. Were inviting you to do this, too. Write your own open letter, to anyone you like on any issue you care about, as long as it is also appropriate and meaningful for a general New York Times audience. To whom should you write? What should you say? Take a look at a few examples that have been published in The Times over the years. (In The Times, open letters often appear in the Opinion section since they are persuasive essays written in the form of letters, as youll see.) On Saturday, President Biden warned that Benjamin Netanyahus approach to the war in Gaza was hurting Israel more than helping Israel. The Israeli prime minister replied the next day that Biden was wrong. The rift between the two leaders means that Israel risks losing its most important pillar of military and diplomatic support. Ive argued that Israel has no choice but to destroy Hamas as an effective fighting force. Here I imagine a conversation with an intelligent critic of that view. Thousands of Gazan civilians, many of them children, have now been killed, bombed in their homes or out of them. Now they face a humanitarian catastrophe in the form of medicine and food shortages, even starvation. How can you possibly justify it? Like all wars, this one is horrible and heartbreaking. But I blame Hamas, not Israel, for the devastation. The former special counsel Robert K. Hur, denounced by Democrats for his unsparing description of President Bidens memory lapses, had one of his own during his testimony on Tuesday before the House Judiciary Committee. Representative James R. Comer, a Kentucky Republican, made passing reference to Dana A. Remus, a Democratic lawyer who had served as White House counsel under Mr. Biden from January 2021 to July 2022. Mr. Hur crinkled an eyebrow and corrected him: No, he said, she occupied that post under President Obama. The misstep was an isolated moment in an otherwise poised and precise appearance by Mr. Hur, 51, who was testifying about his report on the investigation into Mr. Bidens handling of classified documents. Theres no question that President Biden and former President Donald J. Trump will be their respective parties nominees, with neither facing any credible challengers, but Tuesdays primaries could be the ones that make it official. A strong performance today could officially secure Mr. Trump a majority of delegates to the Republican National Convention, and Mr. Biden could do the same on the Democratic side. Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi and Washington State are voting on the Republican side. For Democrats, Georgia, Mississippi, Washington and the Northern Mariana Islands are voting, and Democrats abroad will finish their weeklong process. Republicans in the Northern Mariana Islands will cast ballots on Friday, followed by Republicans in Guam on Saturday. Give this band a name!! the Instagram caption read. The video showed four bright pink and orange shrimp, antennae seeming to wave as they spun around and bobbed up-and-down to a chucklesome version of the Star Wars cantina song. One played a melodica; another, a banjo; a hand can be seen cranking the wooden gears that make the figures dance. The shrimp are the work of Amedeo Capelli, a self-taught carpenter and maker of hand-operated automatons, or moving devices. He lives in Varese, Italy, north of Milan. The Whitney Biennial, New Yorks most prominent showcase of new American (or American-ish) art, thrives on argument: in print, in comment threads, in barrooms and sometimes in the galleries themselves. Its 81st edition opens Thursday to museum members and to the public on March 20, and it introduces a dissonant chorus in the phrase of Ligia Lewis, a participating artist and choreographer of young talents and veteran practitioners. We sent a dissonant chorus of our own to the Whitney Museum of American Art: three critics, each writing separately, on the highs and lows of the exhibition everyone will have an opinion about. Jason Farago The Beauty and the Cynicism What can the Whitney Biennial be, now, so late after the end of modernism? Is it a grand intellectual battle, or just an insiders chinwag? A polemic, or a party? A get-em-while-theyre-young (or while-theyre-old-but-underpriced) market showcase, the cultural equivalent of the N.B.A. draft? An atavistic society ritual, a debutantes ball for the M.F.A. debtset? OpenAI's legal battle with The New York Times over data to train its AI models might still be brewing. But OpenAI's forging ahead on deals with other publishers, including some of France's and Spain's largest news publishers. OpenAI on Wednesday announced that it signed contracts with Le Monde and Prisa Media to bring French and Spanish news content to OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot. In a blog post, OpenAI said that the partnership will put the organizations' current events coverage -- from brands including El Pais, Cinco Dias, As and El Huffpost -- in front of ChatGPT users where it makes sense, as well as contribute to OpenAI's ever-expanding volume of training data. OpenAI writes: Over the coming months, ChatGPT users will be able to interact with relevant news content from these publishers through select summaries with attribution and enhanced links to the original articles, giving users the ability to access additional information or related articles from their news sites ... We are continually making improvements to ChatGPT and are supporting the essential role of the news industry in delivering real-time, authoritative information to users. So, OpenAI's revealed licensing deals with a handful of content providers at this point. Now felt like a good opportunity to take stock: Stock media library Shutterstock (for images, videos and music training data) The Associated Press Axel Springer (owner of Politico and Business Insider, among others) Le Monde Prisa Media How much is OpenAI paying each? Well, it's not saying -- at least not publicly. But we can estimate. The Information reported in January that OpenAI was offering publishers between $1 million and $5 million a year to access archives to train its GenAI models. That doesn't tell us much about the Shutterstock partnership. But on the article licensing front -- assuming The Information's reporting is accurate and those figures haven't changed since then -- OpenAI's shelling out between $4 million and $20 million a year for news. Story continues That might be pennies to OpenAI, whose war chest sits at over $11 billion and whose annualized revenue recently topped $2 billion (per Financial Times). But as Hunter Walk, a partner at Homebrew and the co-founder of Screendoor, recently mused, it's substantial enough to potentially edge out AI rivals also pursuing licensing agreements. Walk writes on his blog: [I]f experimentation is gated by nine figures worth of licensing deals, we are doing a disservice to innovation ... The checks being cut to 'owners' of training data are creating a huge barrier to entry for challengers. If Google, OpenAI, and other large tech companies can establish a high enough cost, they implicitly prevent future competition. Now, whether there's a barrier to entry today is debatable. Many -- if not most -- AI vendors have chosen to risk the wrath of IP holders, opting not to license the data on which they're training AI models. There's evidence that art-generating platform Midjourney, for example, is training on Disney movie stills -- and Midjourney has no deal with Disney. The tougher question to wrestle with is: Should licensing simply be the cost of doing business and experimentation in the AI space? Walk would argue not. He advocates for a regulator-imposed "safe harbor" that'd protect any AI vendor -- as well as small-time startups and researchers -- from legal liability so long as they abide by certain transparency and ethical standards. Interestingly, the U.K. recently tried to codify something along those lines, exempting the use of text and data mining for AI training from copyright considerations so long as it's for research purposes. But those efforts ended up falling through. Me, I'm not sure I'd go so far as Walk in his "safe harbor" proposal considering the impact AI threatens to have on an already-destabilized news industry. A recent model from The Atlantic found that if a search engine like Google were to integrate AI into search, itd answer a users query 75% of the time without requiring a click-through to its website. But perhaps there is room for carve-outs. Publishers should be paid -- and paid fairly. Is there not an outcome, though, in which they're paid and challengers to AI incumbents -- as well as academics -- get access to the same data as those incumbents? I should think so. Grants are one way. Larger VC checks are another. I can't say I have the solution, particularly given that the courts have yet to decide whether -- and to what extent -- fair use shields AI vendors from copyright claims. But it's vital we tease these things out. Otherwise, the industry could well end up in a situation where academic "brain drain" continues unabated and only a few powerful companies have access to vast pools of valuable training sets. Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous nights highlights that lets you sleep and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now. Thanks for the Memories On Tuesday, the former special counsel Robert K. Hur testified before the House Judiciary Committee, answering questions about his investigation into President Bidens handling of classified documents. In his report, Hur referred to Biden as a well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Yes, Biden has been dangerously forgetful, unlike Trump, who always remembers that hes running against Obama, and unopposed, at that, since Nancy Pelosi dropped out, Stephen Colbert said on his show Tuesday night. Russia fired its top naval commander The Kremlin fired its top naval commander after a series of devastating attacks by Ukraine on Russias Black Sea Fleet, according to Ukrainian and Western officials and reports in Russian and Western news outlets. The commander, Adm. Nikolai Yevmenov, was removed from his post and replaced by the head of Russias Northern Fleet. The Russian government declined to confirm whether there had been any personnel changes. U.S. officials believe that Ukraine has sunk 15 Russian ships in the past six months, surprising victories considering that Ukraine does not have a traditional navy. Instead, Ukraine has used sea drones and missiles to strike Russian ships. Ukraine estimates that a third of Russias Black Sea Fleet, which once numbered 80 ships, has been destroyed since the war began two years ago. European officials have said that the naval victories have reopened the western Black Sea, allowing Ukraine to again ship grain from Odesa. China on Wednesday condemned U.S. lawmakers push to force the Chinese parent company of TikTok to sell the popular short video platform. In Washington, House lawmakers were expected to vote on a bill later in the day that would require the Chinese internet company ByteDance to cut ties with TikTok or face a nationwide ban. Lawmakers say that Beijing could use TikTok to spread Chinese Communist Party messages or gain access to sensitive data about TikToks American users. Beijing rejected concerns that the app was a danger to the United States. In recent years, though the United States has never found any evidence of TikTok posing a threat to U.S. national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok, said Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for Chinas foreign ministry, during a daily press briefing. China has opposed previous efforts in the United States to force ByteDance to give up TikTok. The fervor over the House bill is the latest episode in a yearslong saga over the apps future in the United States. TikTok faces a crucial vote The House is set to vote on Wednesday on a bill that would ostensibly present ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, with an ultimatum: sell TikToks U.S. operations, or have the app barred. But theres a fight brewing over whether its actually possible for ByteDance to sell TikTok or if the bill is effectively a ban disguised as a call for divestment. The bill itself never uses the word ban, but it frames the measure as a necessary effort to protect the national security of the United States from the threat posed by foreign-adversary-controlled applications such as TikTok. TikTok sees it as a shutdown, a characterization that the lawmakers behind it have contested. Here are the key questions in the debate. Does the bill allow for a sale? It depends whom you ask. The proposal forbids any deal that allows TikToks U.S. and foreign operations to cooperate on a content recommendation algorithm or share data. While TikTok says it already walls off the data of U.S. users from its parent company, its not clear the company could operate without any foreign support. Construction cranes still surround the brand-spanking new plant in Kulims industrial park in Malaysia. But inside, legions of workers hired by the Austrian tech giant AT&S are already gearing up to produce at full capacity by years end. Outfitted in head-to-toe coveralls, with oversized safety glasses and hard hats, theyre reminiscent of the worker bees in the movie Minions, but color coded by function: Blue for maintenance. Green for vendors. Pink for janitors. White for operators. AT&S is just one of a flood of European and American companies that have recently decided to move to or expand operations in Malaysias electrical and electronics manufacturing mecca. The American chip giant Intel and the German corporation Infineon are each investing $7 billion. Nvidia, the worlds leading maker of chips powering artificial intelligence, is teaming up with the countrys utilities conglomerate to develop a $4.3 billion artificial intelligence cloud and supercomputer center. Texas Instruments, Ericsson, Bosch and Lam Research are all expanding in Malaysia. Democrats in the State Senate proposed a $250 million package of ideas to address one of New Yorks most pressing crises, the lack of affordable housing. Some of the ideas were new. Some were very, very old. One is being called Mitchell-Lama 2.0 because it draws on a housing program from the 1950s. The Senates proposals, along with those from the Assembly and Gov. Kathy Hochul, were the first salvos in this years budget battle in Albany. Hochul and the leaders in the two chambers have an April 1 deadline to come to terms on a state spending plan. Hochul, a centrist from Buffalo, will be forced to find common ground with an increasingly progressive Legislature. This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email transcripts@nytimes.com with any questions. And so here, you have the most important issue is one that should resonate most clearly with Reagan conservatives. And in these circumstances, it is the Republican, Donald Trump, who is much weaker than the Democrat, Joe Biden. If there is a bedrock, a hallmark of Reagan conservatism, it was strong national security in connection with strong international alliances. In that time to confront Soviet aggression, but now you have Russian aggression, from a Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, who, in many ways, is imitating the tsars of old. Trump, by contrast, had told Haley supporters that anyone whod made, quote, a contribution to Haley would be, quote, permanently barred from the MAGA camp. And the reality is that Haley voters need to understand that the Republican Party is sprinting away from them. Its sprinting away from the Reagan conservative heritage, and from the ideologies and beliefs of Haley Republicans. And its doing so in a way thats often scornful and hateful. Shortly after Donald Trump clinched the GOP nomination on Super Tuesday, Joe Biden issued an invitation to, about, the 30 percent of Republican primary voters who had voted for Nikki Haley. The message was very simple, Donald Trump doesnt want you, but we do. A former president actually said that, bowing down to a Russian leader. I think its outrageous, its dangerous, and its unacceptable. Now my predecessor, a former Republican president, tells Putin, quote, Do whatever the hell you want. Thats a quote. If theres one thing that Reagan conservatives were known for at the time, it was law and order, in addition to support for NATO and social conservatism. Now you fast forward to 2024, and youre looking back at the Trump and the Biden records. Trump took office in early 2017 and promising to end, what he called, American carnage. But theres a problem. The murder rate skyrocketed on his watch. Between 2019 and 2020, America experienced the largest single year increase in the murder rate in more than a century, and that was under Donald Trump. Under Biden, the record is very, very different. In 2023, the number of murders in US cities fell by more than 12 percent. It was the biggest national decline on record. And violent crime right now is near its lowest level in 50 years. Abortion is the hardest issue for many conservatives if youre considering crossing the aisle. This is a cause around which many people have ordered their lives. And Donald Trump did nominate the justices who helped reverse Roe v. Wade. But the record for Donald Trump here isnt what a lot of people think it is. He failed, from a pro-life perspective, on the most important metric of all. For the first presidency since Jimmy Carter, the abortion rate actually increased increased under Donald Trump. Barack Obama was a pro-choice president, but during his two terms, the abortion rate decreased by 28 percent. By contrast, the abortion rate went up in 2018, 2019, and 2020 under Trump. And that is a record that should trouble pro-life Americans. Even if you cant lay all of that on Donald Trumps feet, this is a very complex phenomenon. It was a remarkable change from the previous decades before Trumps presidency. Haley voters are torn. There are a number of independents who voted in various Republican primaries. And Haley won. They were likely to vote for Haley over Biden, but theyre happy to vote for Biden over Trump. The person who is much less likely to vote for Biden is the real, true Haley Republican, and those are people who have real trouble crossing the aisle and actually affirmatively voting for a Democrat. And I think, a lot of these folks, they havent fully absorbed the extent to which MAGA really does despise them and their movement. And living here in the middle of Republican country, in the middle of MAGA country, I can tell you that is not a message that is sunk in. The hardcore, grassroots MAGA people, they really despise Reagan conservatives, but the Reagan conservatives themselves are often not aware of that. They dont even understand how MAGA is changing the Republican Party. MAGA will not accommodate Reagan conservatism in any way, shape, or form. It wants to stamp it out. [MUSIC PLAYING] So ironically, enough if you want to preserve Reagan conservatism in its ideals, its temperament, its character, its ideology, the best way to preserve it is by ending Donald Trumps stranglehold on the GOP. Tuesday was the 35th anniversary of the day that Tim Berners-Lee of the European Organization for Nuclear Research wrote the memo proposing what became the World Wide Web. Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2004 for his achievement. I think its fair to say, though, that most people are not in the mood to celebrate what has become of Sir Timothys invention. Its common to hear that the internet is broken and that social media is a dumpster fire. Recent case in point: On Wednesday the House voted to force the Chinese owners of TikTok to sell it, or be banned from the United States, on the grounds that it has become a channel for what the House majority leader called Chinese data collection and propaganda. Technology types are working on cures for what ails the internet, and their cures are, no surprise, technological. Ive been reading up on some of them. A lot go in the right direction, but I havent seen anything that seems likely to fully solve the many problems of todays internet, from invasions of privacy to incitements of violence. Thats a tall order. Fortunately, a lot of smart people are taking the issues seriously. Lasting solutions, if there are any, are likely to come from a combination of technological, legal and cultural approaches. Legislation that could eventually mandate a sale of TikTok is moving forward. But any kind of divestiture by its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, is likely to prove challenging. The House on Wednesday approved the bill to ban TikTok unless ByteDance sells the app to a buyer the government signs off on. The bill would still need to pass the Senate and be signed into law by the president. Assuming that happens, however, the options for potential buyers would be extremely limited, a potential spinoff presents many difficulties, and the Chinese government or U.S. regulators could try to block any of those options. Heres what to know. What kind of sale is required under the bill? To avoid a ban, ByteDance would have to arrange a sale that guaranteed TikTok was not under the control of a foreign adversary a group that includes China within six months. ByteDance could not maintain any relationship with the newly independent app or control over its algorithm, which sends users a scrolling feed of videos catered to their interests. Under the legislation, the president will need to agree that the sale meets those conditions. What, exactly, would be put up for sale? ByteDance and TikTok have not said how they would handle a sale, if its required. But legal experts say that in the case of a sale, ByteDance would likely need to decide between selling all of TikTok globally versus trying to cordon off its U.S. business. What happens next with TikTok? The video social media app isnt disappearing from smartphones any time soon. The legislative process is still in its early stages after the Houses passage of a bill mandating a sale by the apps Chinese owner, ByteDance, or be banned. Next, the bill is heading to a skeptical Senate, after which President Biden would need to sign it into law. Even after that, it might not happen. Heres what to expect. When will the bill go to the Senate? The next step in the legislative process is consideration by the Senate, which could also make changes to the text of the legislation. Several senators have already raised concerns about the legislation as it is currently written. For example, because the bills text explicitly names TikTok and ByteDance, some are worried it could violate a part of the Constitution that bars Congress from targeting specific entities with legislation. (The bills supporters say this will not be an issue.) Several prominent senators who could help decide whether the legislation moves forward have been noncommittal. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, hasnt said if he will bring it up for a vote. His spokesman did not respond to a question about his plans. Pirates hijack huge cargo ship in Indian Ocean and redirect it towards Somalia A Bangladeshi cargo vessel has been hijacked by pirates in the Indian Ocean and around 23 people on board have been taken hostage, the vessels owner has said. The vessel, MV Abdullah, was sailing with a cargo of 55,000 tonnes of coal when it was attacked by pirates on Tuesday and is now heading in the direction of Somalia. A group of 15-20 Somali pirates hijacked the ship, said Meherul Karim, chief executive officer of Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills, the owner of the vessel. The bulk commodity carrier was sailing from Mozambique to the United Arab Emirates and was attacked in the Indian Ocean about 600 nautical miles east of Somalias capital Mogadishu, said maritime security firm Ambrey. There has been a resurgence of attacks by opportunistic pirates in recent months. They compound a security crisis in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, where Houthi rebels have launched attacks on vessels, prompting retaliatory measures from the US and UK. With international naval forces diverted north from the Gulf of Aden into the Red Sea, fears of such attacks have increased as pirates exploit the security gap. Kabir Steel Re-Rolling Mills released an audio message from one of the crew members who had been taken hostage. He said the gunmen came in two speedboats and opened fire as they boarded the vessel. The Indian navy captured 10 Somali pirates after they thwarted the attempted hijacking of the fishing vessel Al Naeemi off the east coast of Somalia, on 29 January, 2024 The crew members of the ship were unharmed, officials of the company said, adding that we are waiting for the next message and call. Pictures of distress messages sent by the crew showed one member requesting urgent help, saying, they have gun, according to the Daily Somalia. According to ships tracking data, the MV Adbullah came to a halt in the Indian Ocean before reversing its course, Bloomberg reported. The first incident of hijacking since 2017 was reported at the end of last year when naval forces operating in the area warned against two piracy groups working in the Indian Ocean. Earlier in January, the Indian Navy carried out two rescue missions in the Indian Ocean to free vessels hijacked by Somali pirates. Around 19 Pakistani nationals were rescued after their Iranian-flagged fishing vessel was seized. Reid Hoffman, a founder of LinkedIn and a longtime venture capitalist, is no longer the public face of the venture firm Greylock. Michael Moritz, a force at Sequoia Capital for 38 years, officially separated from the investment firm last summer. And Jeff Jordan, a top investor at Andreessen Horowitz for 12 years, left in May. They are among the most recognizable of a generation of Silicon Valley investors who are getting out of venture capital at the end of a lucrative 15-year upswing for the industry. Many more are leaving. Investors at Tiger Global, Paradigm, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Emergence Capital and Spark Capital have all announced plans to step back. Foundry Group, a venture firm in Boulder, Colo., that has backed 200 companies since 2006, said in January that it would not raise another fund. Taken together, the steady thrum of departures has created a sense that venture capital a $1.1 trillion corner of finance that invests in young, private companies, sometimes spawning enterprises like Apple, Google and Amazon is in a moment of transition. As the sun peeked out from the cloudy sky in Kyoto, Japan, monks wearing vests trimmed with pompoms and the black box-like headdresses known as tokin were being quizzed in front of Mibu Dera, one of the oldest temples in the city. These were the Yamabushi (mountain hermits), part of a Buddhist sect known as the Shugendo. To enter the temples sacred area, each monk had to prove he was a real Yamabushi by answering a series of questions about the sects beliefs, dress and tools. Only those with satisfactory responses would gain access. There were just days left to process a batch of federal financial aid applications when Education Department officials made a fateful discovery: 70,000 emails from students all over the country, containing reams of essential data. They were sitting in an inbox, untouched. That discovery last week started a panicked, three-day crash effort by more than 200 of the departments employees, including Richard Cordray, the nations top student aid official, to read through each of the emails one by one and extract crucial identifying information required for financial aid. The students futures depended on it. It needs to get untangled, Mr. Cordray told his staff members on Thursday, according to recordings of two back-to-back meetings that The New York Times obtained. So, you know, Im getting pretty impatient. An exasperated staff member shot back, We worked all night long literally all night. It was another setback in the botched rollout of a new version of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as FAFSA, that millions of families and thousands of schools rely on to determine how students will pay for college. Three years ago, Congress ordered the Education Department to revamp the new form to make it easier and more accessible. It has been anything but. Dozens of musicians and panelists have withdrawn from the South by Southwest Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas, to protest sponsorship by the U.S. Army and defense companies as pressure grows against the U.S. militarys support of Israels war against Hamas in Gaza. More than 80 artists and panelists at SXSW had joined the boycott by Wednesday, according to one of the organizers, the Austin for Palestine Coalition. Ibrahim Batshon, a Palestinian American and the chief executive of BeatStars, a digital music-licensing platform and longtime sponsor of the music and technology festival, withdrew from SXSW after learning of the increased involvement this year of the U.S. Defense Department. The United States is the largest supplier of military equipment to Israel. Mr. Batshon, who is Palestinian American and is known as Abe, said that six of his family members were killed in a bombing in November while taking refuge at a church in Gaza City. The first rocket launched by the Japanese start-up Space One exploded seconds after takeoff on Wednesday, denting its ambition to become the countrys first private company to put a satellite into orbit. The Kairos solid-fuel rocket launched just after 11 a.m. local time and burst into flames seconds later, livestreams of the launch showed. The explosion left behind a large plume of smoke and set off a fire in a nearby forest that firefighters later put out. The 60-foot-long rocket weighs 23 tons and was launched from Space Port Kii in Wakayama Prefecture on Japans main island, according to the companys website. Mamoru Endo, a Space One director, said at a news conference on Wednesday afternoon that the rocket appeared to have automatically self-destructed after its systems detected an abnormality. One of Frances most elite universities found itself without a leader for the second time in just three years on Wednesday after its director, Mathias Vicherat, resigned to face a court case over accusations of domestic violence. The university, Sciences Po in Paris, has produced five of Frances last eight presidents and over a dozen prime ministers, as well as top business leaders, well-known journalists and scores of high-ranking civil servants. It has been striving to grow even stronger by diversifying its student body and competing internationally for students. But the resignation of Mr. Vicherat, 45, who denied any wrongdoing and said he was stepping down to protect Sciences Pos standing, was the latest in a series of episodes of internal turmoil that have tarnished the schools reputation. Mr. Vicherats predecessor, Frederic Mion, stepped down in 2021 after admitting that he had not taken action against a longtime professor and board member despite knowing of incest allegations against him; an investigation into the professor by prosecutors was later dropped because the statute of limitations had expired. The schools previous director, Richard Descoings, was found dead in a Manhattan hotel room in 2012 a death that was followed by an embarrassing government audit over the schools use of public funds. For Germany a country that knows something about how extremists can hijack a government the surging popularity of the far right has forced an awkward question. How far should a democracy go in restricting a party that many believe is bent on undermining it? It is a quandary that politicians and legal experts are grappling with across the country as support surges for Alternative for Germany, a far-right party whose backing now outstrips each of the three parties in the governing coalition. Not only is the AfD the most popular party in three states holding elections this year, it is polling nationwide as high as 20 percent. German politicians have become increasingly alarmed that someday the party could wield influence in the federal government. Its popularity has grown despite the fact that the domestic intelligence services announced they are investigating the party as a suspected threat to democracy. Germans have already had a front-row seat to the rise of so-called illiberal democrats in Poland and Hungary who used their power to stack courts with pliant judges and silence independent media. History hangs heavy over Germany as well the Nazis used elections to seize the levers of the state and shape an authoritarian system. That southern route has now become a focus of Russian policymakers as they try to build infrastructure for their plans to pivot away from the West for good. The effort faces challenges, including questions over financing, doubts over the reliability of Russias new partners, and threats of Western sanctions targeting countries that trade with Russia. A key part of the southern plan is a 100-mile $1.7 billion railway set to begin construction this year that would be the final link in a route between Russia and Iranian ports on the Persian Gulf providing easy access to destinations like Mumbai, Indias trading capital. Russia has agreed to loan Iran $1.4 billion to finance the project. The $300 million in new weaponry the United States is sending to Ukraine, the first American military aid package in months, will help Ukraine hold off Russian troops for a few weeks, analysts say, but it will not change the overall situation on the battlefield, where Moscow currently has the advantage. Ukraine has long said that it would lose more ground to Russia unless it received more weapons and ammunition, but a robust $60 billion aid package has been bottled up in the House for months by conservative Republican lawmakers. That has left frontline Ukrainian troops vulnerable to long-distance glide bombs dropped from Russian aircraft and intense artillery attacks. Heres a look at the current situation. The European Union has lifted sanctions against a Russian technology tycoon, in a rare break from a policy of punishing the countrys elites for the invasion of Ukraine. Arkady Volozh, who co-founded Russias largest tech company, Yandex, was taken off the list of sanctioned individuals after condemning the invasion of Ukraine and taking public steps to sever ties to Russia. The decision was announced in a document published by the European Council on Wednesday. Mr. Volozh is one the most prominent Russian figures to be cleared of sanctions by a major Western power since the start of the war. The move was welcomed by some members of the Russian opposition, who have called on the West to use incentives as well as penalties to exert pressure on the Kremlin. Theres finally some logic in the Wests actions, Abbas Gallyamov, a former Kremlin speechwriter turned political consultant, wrote on the Telegram messaging app. If you come out against the war, he added, then sanctions are lifted. A day after an international coalition tasked a group of prominent Haitians with putting together a transitional presidential council that would create a functioning government for the gang-ridden nation, bickering among the Haitian leaders threatened to derail the political transition deal. On Monday, a group of nations, led by the 15-member Caribbean Community bloc known as CARICOM and which included the United States and the United Nations, came together in Jamaica to discuss ways help a violence-torn Haiti figure out a way forward. After hearing on Zoom from Haitian leaders representing a broad section of society, the group gave the Haitians 24 hours to come up with names to form a council with seven voting members and two non-voting members serving as observers. The councils first task: Replace Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who has announced his intentions to step down. The other key tasks: Ready the country for the arrival of a multinational security force. Prepare the way for elections. As of late Tuesday night, no names had yet been transmitted. Soon after agreeing to the proposal Monday evening, the Haitian leaders, who represent broad-based groups, started fighting among themselves. Among their concerns: the presidential council is too large. It is unclear who would be in charge. The composition gives some political factions more influence than others. Gedeon Jean, who participated in the Kingston meeting as a representative of civil society, which has a role as an observer along with the interfaith community, agreed that, although not perfect, the Jamaica groups proposal is workable. A presidential college is not an ideal solution but it responds to a need, said Jean, founder of the Center for Analysis and Research. But the disagreements on how to run Haiti with a more inclusive government, even before Tuesday, kept the groups from reaching an accord, he said: We couldnt. Any delay carries serious risks. Powerful gangs control most of Port-au-Prince, the countrys capital, and the U.S., among others, fears the countrys last remnants of a government could fall soon. An international force to be fielded by Kenya wont move, the countrys leadership made clear Monday, until Henrys replacement is in position. And without any semblance of stability and security, Haiti, which doesnt have a single elected official, cannot hold elections. The country last held general elections in 2016. Story continues Although leaders of the seven groups did not make public announcements Tuesday about the infighting, sources involved in the discussions over names and others following the developments told the Miami Herald there were serious disagreements, especially among those aligned with civic groups who believed there was an over representation of political parties on the council. Divisions were also reported among the supporters of a December 21, 2022, agreement who had backed Henry. Kenya police patrol the streets of Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday, March.12, 2024. Kenya agreed in October to lead a U.N.-authorized international police force to Haiti, but the Kenyan High Court in January ruled the plan unconstitutional, in part because of a lack of reciprocal agreements between the two countries. Kenya and Haiti signed agreements Friday, March 1, 2024 to try to salvage a plan for the African country to deploy 1,000 police officers to the troubled Caribbean nation to help combat gang violence that has surged to unprecedented levels. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga) In a statement, former army colonel Himmler Rebu, who participated in an initial meeting in Jamaica nine months earlier over finding a way out of the crisis, said his party, the Grand Rally for the Evolution of Haiti, GREH, is ashamed and angry over the negotiations for the search for positions of power, which ignore the gang-plagued crisis confronting Haiti. GREH is in the Collective of political parties of January 30 thats among the seven voting members. Rebu suggested Haiti return to the model it used in 2004, when it found itself in another transition: pluck a judge from the Supreme Court to preside as president, Rebu said, adding his party declares that it does not support any of the approaches dealing with presidential college. His party is part of the Collective of political parties The seven voting groups tasked with naming the presidential panel represent a cross-section of Haitian society, including political parties, civil leaders and the business community. They are: Collective of political parties of January 30, an alliance of political parties that includes former Sen. Edgard LeBlanc Fils, former presidential candidate and journalist Clarens Renois, and Line Balthazar, leader of Parti Haitien Tet Kale, PHTK, the party of former President Michel Martelly. December 21 Agreement, a coalition of 35 political parties, civic organizations, womens and young peoples groups as well as churches and business leaders. They got their name after backing a Dec. 21, 2022, political accord that consolidated Henrys grip on power. Some of its most notable personalities include former Sen. Edmonde Supplice Beauzile, head of Fusion Social Democrats politcal party and opposition leader and lawyer Andre Michel. EDE/RED/Compromis Historique, a coalition led by Claude Joseph, who served as foreign minister and prime minister in the government of former President Jovenel Moise. Joseph is the founder of Engages pour le developpement Creole for the party Committed to Development. Also in the alliance is former Chamber of Deputies member Antoine Rodon Bien-Aime, founder of Compromis Historique. The alliance is often referred to as the Jovenelists, an ode to the supporters of the late president, who was assassinated in the middle of the night on July 7, 2021. Fanmi Lavalas, the political party of former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. Fanmi Lavalas along with the party En Avant, founded by former lawmaker Jerry Tardieu, helped authored a March 9 proposal for moving Haiti forward that was sent to CARICOM, and helped influenced the final plan. Montana Accord, named after an Aug. 30, 2021, agreement signed at the Montana Hotel in Petionvillle, the wealthy suburb of Port-au-Prince. Led by the Commission to Search for a Haitian Solution to the Crisis, the group is a coalition of political parties, civic organizations and the private sector that has found support among Haitians abroad, the U.S. Congress and Canadas parliament. The group waged a campaign to lead a transition in Haiti and had named Fritz Alphonse Jean, the former governor of the countrys central bank, as president, and former Sen. Steven Benoit as prime minister. Pitit Desalin, the party of former senator and presidential candidate Jean-Charles Moise, who is also known as Moise Jean-Charles. The one-time lawmaker, who served as mayor of the northern town of Milot, recently joined an alliance with a former rebel leader, Guy Philippe, and has backed a three-person presidential transition council with Philippe as a member. Several sources say they are getting indications the party may not participate in the council, leaving a seat up for grab. The private sector, which includes various business associations and chambers. However, in a press release on Tuesday, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Haiti said while it remains hopeful for a rapid and peaceful resolution to the crisis, as the representative body of the countrys influential business community it had not been contacted by the actors involved in the search for a solution. In Haitian political circles on Tuesday, some critics were calling the transitional plan totally ungovernable. The rules for membership on the presidential panel exclude anyone with a criminal conviction. One-time coup leader Guy Philippe, who served more than six years in a U.S. federal prison on drug-trafficking conviction, wasted no time in publicly accusing the Caribbean Community and other countries of destroying Haiti. They destroyed all of the structures we could have put in place to help our people and they took total control of all that is being decided in Haiti, Philippe said. Their only objective is to drop Haiti in a hole. Haitians, he said, cannot accept what the group of nations that met in Jamaica has proposed. Relatives of police officer Luciana Pierre mourn during her memorial in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. According to the family, Pierre was killed in an attack by armed gangs the previous week and her body has not been recovered. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph) One of Haitis most powerful gang leaders, Jimmy Barbecue Cherizier, who had warned civil war if Henry did not resign, dismissed the Jamaica proposal as well. Despite their objections, the capital was relatively calm on Tuesday, although the night before there were reports of looting at businesses not far from the U.S. embassy in Tabarre. The criteria Each group must submit a name to members of the 15-member Caribbean Community and each person selected must meet certain criteria, that include: the person cannot run in the next election, cannot be under U.N. sanctions and must support the multinational security support mission to Haiti. The criteria does not ban people who have been sanctioned by the U.S., Canada or another country. Paul Namphy, an activist in Miami, said the criteria do not go far enough. Even with the disqualification of those with convictions or indictments, Namphy, head of the activist arm of Miami-based Family Action Network Movement, said, There are a lot of the actors who are able to be part of this council who have connections to the gangs. In a statement, the organization said that parties are now obliged to negotiate for power-sharing and an emergency solution while a gun is pointed at the head of the Haitian people. Caribbean leaders said they considered various proposals from the Haitian groups before settling on the presidential panel of seven members plus two non-voting observers. You cant have absolute purity and politics doesnt come to an end with the transitional presidential council, Ralph Gonsalves, the prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, told the Miami Herald. Its a body to provide some framework for governance. Gonsalves was among the Caribbean leaders who flew to Kingston for the meetings. He said he hopes that Haitians understand what is at stake: The potential rise of a dictator and a society where everybody whos squabbling now will be behind closed doors or in jail. They must be mature and they must learn how to think carefully politically and comprise. A senior State Department official praised the Jamaica negotiations, saying 39 Haitians had been part of conversations in the days leading up to the Kingston meeting. I think this is an incredibly important milestone in broadening Haitian governance, and addressing the concerns of the Haitian people going forward, he said. In his briefing with reporters at the White House on Monday, Jake Sullivan, the presidents national security adviser, would not predict success for the new political effort. What we are driving toward is a transitional council that can pave the way to elections and the restoration of calm on the streets of Haiti, and then a new government that can come in alongside this multinational security support mission, enable security, and then build from there. That is what we are driving towards, he said. Can I confidently predict that will happen? he added. I cannot. When Mohammed Sweirky prepared to leave for a work trip in January to repair telecommunications infrastructure that had been destroyed in northern Gaza, his wife and children pleaded with him not to go. Fighting between Israeli troops and Hamas members was still raging in the area, said Mr. Sweirky, who is a technician for Paltel, the largest telecommunications company in Gaza, and his family worried he might not return. But he said he felt he had no choice given that residents there desperately needed their phone services restored. It was painful to say bye, said Mr. Sweirky, 50, who fled Gaza City at the beginning of the war and is now sheltering with six family members in a garage in Rafah, the territorys southernmost city. They were crying, but I couldnt abandon our mission. Since the start of the war, Mr. Sweirkys job has become among the most dangerous in Gaza and also one of the most important. Israels bombing campaign against Hamas has pummeled telecommunications infrastructure in Gaza, destroying subterranean fiber cables, damaging data centers and blowing up cell towers. The Israeli military said on Wednesday that it had killed a senior Hamas operative in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, the latest in a series of targeted killings there following the deadly Hamas-led attacks against Israel on Oct. 7. The man, Hadi Ali Mustafa, was a significant operative in Hamass department responsible for its international terrorist activities, the Israeli military said in a statement. It added that he had been involved in attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in various countries around the world. It provided no further details, and its claims could not be independently verified. In a statement, Hamass military wing confirmed that Mr. Mustafa had been killed but gave no indication of his role within the organization. The Israeli airstrike, on a car near the southern Lebanese coastal city of Tyre, also killed a passing motorcyclist, Lebanese state media reported. Video from the scene that circulated on social media shows a body being loaded onto a stretcher and a vehicle burning amid panicked onlookers. Several killings in Lebanon have targeted people whom Israel has called senior figures from Hamas and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, both of which are backed by Iran. In January, Hamas blamed Israel for a blast that killed Saleh al-Arouri, a senior official in the group, in the southern suburbs of Beirut, although Israel has not publicly claimed responsibility. As it does in Gaza and the West Bank, Hamas has a sizable presence in Lebanon, where it operates largely out of Palestinian refugee camps. Since the war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, Hamas, along with Hezbollah and other allied militant groups, have continued to launch rocket attacks into northern Israel from within Lebanons borders. Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank are welcoming Ramadan with little of the usual cheer. Amid Israels continuing attacks in Gaza and rising violence in the West Bank, the holy months festive decorations and celebratory mood are being replaced by feelings of helplessness and despair. Theres no joy, said Hana Karameh, a mother of five from the city of Hebron. Ramadan this year will be incomplete, she said. Usually, on the night before the first fast of Ramadan begins, they would pray together with their neighbors and gather for suhoor the pre-dawn meal while children shot off fireworks. On Sunday night, as the holy month dawned, she said, there was none of that. Even before Ramadan, Ms. Karameh said she had a hard time sitting down for meals knowing that many people in Gaza were starving. I keep asking myself, did they eat? Did they drink? she said. A U.N. official said a truck carrying aid was turned around in Gaza this week because it contained scissors included in medical kits for children, calling attention to what aid groups have said is a laborious Israeli inspection process that is slowing down crucial humanitarian assistance. Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA, the main U.N. agency providing support for Palestinians in Gaza, said the truckload had been refused because medical scissors had been added to a list of items the Israeli authorities consider to be dual use, or having both civilian and military purposes. COGAT, the Israeli agency overseeing aid deliveries into Gaza, accused Mr. Lazzarini of lying, saying that it was in constant contact with the United Nations and had not been notified of the denial. The agency said 1.5 percent of aid trucks trying to enter the territory had been turned away. Mr. Lazzarini is the latest official to say that the Israeli militarys inspections are keeping aid from getting to Gazas 2.2 million people. Last week, Britains foreign minister, David Cameron, said during a parliamentary debate that too many goods were being turned away for being dual use, including items that are medically necessary. A member of the British Parliament said this month that Israel had turned away 1,350 water filters and 2,560 solar lights provided by the British government because they were considered a threat. Miriam Marmur, director of public advocacy at Gisha, an Israeli nonprofit that works to protect the free movement of Palestinians, said Israels list included broad categories that can encompass thousands of items, making it difficult to know what is prohibited. Many items that have been turned away are not explicitly listed, she said. Blue Star Strategies is working to boost the US visibility of a Venezuelan opposition political party ahead of the July 28 presidential elections. It was hired by a Miami-based nonprofit group called Emprendamo to highlight the political objectives of ProCiudadanos, which was founded by journalist and activist Leocenis Garcia. The 44-year-old has been jailed six times during the presidential terms of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro. Blue Star Strategies has a one-year pact to conduct outreach to members of Congress and the executive branch to arrange meetings for those interested in meeting Garcia to learn about the goals of ProCiudadanos. The contract, which went into effort March 1, carries a $15K monthly retainer. Maduro became Venezuelas interim president in March 2013 after the death of Chavez. He was narrowly elected president a few months later, and re-elected in 2018 in a contest widely deemed as fraudulent. Maduro on March 11 promised that the July election would be a celebration of freedom, democracy and truth. It also may be in the bag for Maduro. Venezuelas high court in October banned his strongest political rival, Maria Corina Machado, from running in the upcoming presidential race. Blue Star was co-founded by former Clinton White House staffers Karen Tramontano and Sally Painter. Joan Jenkins Mindtickle, a revenue productivity platform, appoints Joan Jenkins, who has held senior marketing positions at Oracle and Cisco, as CMO. Jenkins joins the company from marketing automation platform Blueshift, where she also served as CMO. At Mindtickle, she will be tasked with driving customer outcomes and increasing market adoption of the platform. With the addition of Joans expertise in demand generation, brand, product marketing, and customer marketing to our team, Mindtickle is positioned to enter its next growth phase as a leader in revenue productivity, said Mindtickle president Eric Anderson. Erika Booker Barge Design Solutions, an engineering and architecture firm with diverse in-house multidisciplinary practice areas, promotes Erika Booker to CMO. Booker has been with the company since July 2022, previously serving as the director of marketing and communications. Before coming to Barge, she was division marketing director/AVP at civil engineering firm HNTB. In her new post, Booker will be responsible for leading and executing the overall marketing and communications strategy of the company, including branding, market positioning, and customer acquisition efforts. "Erika has been a great addition to our marketing and communications team and I'm excited about leveraging her leadership and capability," said Barge president and CEO Bob Higgins. Steve Fine Lam Research, a designer and builder of products for semiconductor manufacturing, promotes Steve Fine to CCO. Fine has been with the company since 2021, previously serving as VP, corporate communications. He was previously head of executive and internal communications and culture at Hitachi Vantara, and has also served as senior director, public affairs at WE Communications and director of corporate communications for the San Francisco 49ers. Based in the companys Fremont, CA office, Fine will be responsible for its global corporate communications, marketing communications, brand and social impact programs. Bruce Cleland Fobi AI, which provides businesses with real-time applications to digitally transform and future-proof their organizations, brings on Bruce Cleland as VP of marketing. Cleland was previously CMO at SNAP Financial, a fintech company specializing in home improvement and insurance premium financing. He was previously the founder of Momentum Marketing, where he provided strategic consulting services to startups across such sectors as edtech, action sports and online media. His immense experience and exceptional leadership skills will undoubtedly be a valuable asset to our company, said Fobi CEO Rob Anson. The New York State Dept. of Health AIDS Institute is looking for a firm to run a social media campaign to educate people about the syndemics of HIV, hepatitis C and sexually transmitted infections. A young couple who work at Portlaoise Mail Centre are gearing up to climb Mount Kilimanjaro later this year to raise funds for Meningitis research. Kirsha Rice from Walsh Island in County Offaly and her boyfriend Micheal Conlan from Timahoe are both students at Maynooth University. Speaking this week the pair explained the rigorous training involved before they take on the challenge in August. We are both excited, overwhelmed, and nervous, said Kirsha. We are excited to broaden our horizons and do something new and different. But the fundraising amount is overwhelming and neither of us have ever fundraised on such a large scale before. Kirsha came across the climb on Instagram after a girl she follows was recruiting students to take part. I immediately knew it was for me. I attended an online information session and then paid my first instalment. Its for such an amazing cause too, Meningitis research. I looked into the charity and I saw the amazing work they were doing and I knew I wanted to help. Kirsha is a student in biomedical and pharmaceutical chemistry while Micheal is a final year student in accounting and finance. They both work in the An Post Mail Centre in Clonminam Industrial Estate. I work in Portlaoise mail centre at night to pay my way through college. Ive always been into hiking and trekking. My dad would bring the whole family on a Sunday morning out hiking in Glenbarrow, the earlier the better, said Kirsha. Dad was into his hiking before it became as popular as it is today. Ive always been into my fitness, I get that from dad, even throughout Covid hed have us up running in the mornings at the Mountlucas wind farm. I remember in school coming home and dad having the hi-vis out and the head torches and wed all get out and go for a run. Ive always been interested in the seven summits. Id love to complete them all one day, a dream so big I thought Id never achieve. But this is definitely a start! We still go hiking most Sundays with my mam and dad. Only my boyfriend and my sisters boyfriend tag along now. In preparation for the big climb Kirsha and Micheal, both aged 22, have joined the gym and have taken up running. Ive joined the gym with a girl called Jessica from work who is also taking on this challenge with us. Shes a lot more experienced in the gym than I would be and shes definitely helping me while being very patient, added Kirsha. The three of us are trying to tick off every hike in Roz Purcells book before we fly over to Tanzania to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. I also do Pilates every Saturday morning which helps me to stretch out and focus on my breathing. We are currently looking for a personal trainer that could specialise in this to help us train as we are still kind of clueless on what you can train for. Theres only so much training you can do. The altitude is going to be one of our hardest obstacles to overcome. That alone with the different climates on the mountain is something we just cant train for. They will fly out from Ireland on August 20 with the hike itself taking about eight days and involves camping on the mountain. The fundraising target seemed and still is so daunting but I am prepared to take on the challenge! We are funding our own trips and fundraising along the way, said Kirsha. We have a fundraising target of 11,000 that we are trying to reach but we are only now just getting started. If you would like to donate you can do so through Just Giving. The annual Snake Saturday parade in North Kansas City takes place this weekend, bringing thousands of people from around the area to Swift Street. Since its inception, Snake Saturday has taken place the weekend before St. Patricks Day, rain or shine. This year, it is at 11 a.m. on March 16, the day before the Irish holiday. 1984 marked the first official Snake Saturday, and this year it celebrates its 40th anniversary, titled Mickey Finns Irish Dream, after one of the founders. For the last 40 years, Snake Saturday has been a celebration exclusive to North Kansas City, according to parade organizer and publicist Mindy Hart. But where did it start? Heres what we found. Rain didnt dampen the festivities as an oversize snake made its way down the street during the 2023 Brookside St. Patricks Day Warm-Up Parade on Saturday March 11, 2023 in Kansas City. Who came up with Snake Saturday? The first event of its kind happened in 1983, thanks to founders Finn and Bill Grigsby. Finn had done a parade in a Rodeway Inn parking lot as an advertising gimmick for the motel, and they had so much fun that Grigsby, the mayor of North Kansas City, suggested taking it to the streets the following year, Hart said. But whats with the Snake Saturday name? It honors St. Patrick, who is said in Irish folklore to have driven the snakes away from Ireland in the 5th century. It is in reference to one of the legends associated with St. Patrick is that he stood atop an Irish hillside and banished snakes from Ireland prompting all serpents to slither away into the sea, Hart said. In fact, research suggests snakes never occupied the Emerald Isle in the first place. Forty years later, and the parade has raised over $1.9 million for local charities. The parade gives away over $50,000 each year to charities through the parade and the charity cook-off, where 25 charities compete to see who can cook the best steak for the $1,000 grand prize, Hart said. All charities leave with something, she said. Where does the Snake Saturday parade take place? The parade route goes from 10th Avenue to 14th Avenue along Swift Street and along 14th Avenue from Howell Street to Swift Street. These roads will be closed for the duration of the parade. Story continues North KC Public Works will close all parking along the parade route before the parade starts Saturday. While there is no designated parade lot, they recommend parking in these areas: Any public lot or street north of Armour Road Any public lot or street south of 18th Avenue and East of Erie Street Any public lot or street west of Clay Street Public parking at the former NKC Pro Bowl located at 18th and Erie Street. Fayette Street and East 18th Avenue is also closed for the festival that happens after the parade comes to an end. Hart did not say how many she expects to show up this year. Usually, on bad weather days, they see around 30,000 people. On good weather days, North Kansas City could attract more than 100,000 people for the parade and festival. Northern Ireland is set to be the focus of a gala dinner event in Washington DC as First Minister Michelle ONeill and Emma Little-Pengelly address guests. It is the first time Northern Irelands leaders have officially visited the US city together ahead of St Patricks Day for eight years. In 2016, then first minister Arlene Foster and deputy first minister Martin McGuinness met then US president Barack Obama. The Stormont Assembly and Executive was resurrected in January following two years of instability. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly will address The Irish Funds dinner on Wednesday night, and are set to attend the annual St Patricks ceremony at the White House on Sunday. Irish premier Leo Varadkar, who will also address the event, said Northern Ireland will be the focus. The Ireland Funds will not be perhaps as well known in Ireland as it should be but its an organisation that is very well known in America and around the world and has raised hundreds of millions for very good causes in Ireland with a particular focus on equality and reconciliation, the Taoiseach told media. Friday will be the political meetings with the president, vice-president and, speaker and congressional leaders with a particular focus on Northern Ireland. I know they are always very keen to know what is happening in relation to the peace process. He added: Im really glad Im coming here with the First Minister and deputy First Minister, and the Executive is up and running. Earlier Mr Leo Varadkar has said Israels apparent plans for the Gaza Strip after a potential ceasefire are entirely unacceptable. He said he planned to raise the issue with US President Joe Biden this week during a high-profile White House meeting to coincide with St Patricks Day. The Taoiseach also said that Europe and the US would have a role to play in building a Palestinian state after any truce. Mr Varadkar and other ministers are attending events in the US around St Patricks Day. He has said he will use the very special platform with US politicians to give the Irish peoples view that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar said he would try to mention Irish-Palestinian man Zak Hania, who is in Rafah, whose wife has asked for his case to be raised with the US president. He said there had been hundreds of requests for issues to be raised with Mr Biden. I should point out though that Irish citizens in Gaza, our main contact is with Israel and Egyptian governments, as well as the Qataris, he replied. Mr Varadkar said he would be encouraging Mr Biden to redouble efforts the US is making to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Well be encouraging him to redouble efforts in that regard, offering any help we can, but also really want to talk about the day after. I think what were hearing from the Israeli government in terms of what their plans are for Gaza the day after (a ceasefire) are entirely unacceptable. It is an occupied territory, its not Israels right to decide what happens in Gaza, its an occupied territory. America and Europe have a role to play in building a Palestinian state which I think is the only chance that we have of peace and justice. Over 500 projects from primary schools around the country, including seven schools from Offaly, were showcased at this years sixth annual ESB Science Blast, the RDS Foundations flagship Science and Technology Programme. ESB Science Blast is a STEM-focused educational programme involving whole classes investigating the science behind simple questions. The Dublin event took place over four days in RDS Simmonscourt, from 4th to 7th March, and included a la speisialta do Ghaelscoileanna agus do scoileanna Ghaeltachta. Pupils from Offaly showcased an experiment and discussed their investigation with a STEM expert (Judge/Moltoir). The judging was non-competitive and aimed at growing pupils' interest and passion for STEM. Now in its sixth year, over 55,000 children have participated in ESB Science Blast to date, making it the largest primary school programme on the island of Ireland, and one of the largest programmes of its kind in Europe. Strong themes emerging from schools this year included climate change, biodiversity, the impact of fast fashion and questions related to physical and mental health. Participating schools in Offaly include St. Ciaran's Mixed National School, Ballycumber; Scoil Bhride Primary School and Gaelscoil Eadan Doire, Edenderry; Ballinagar National School, Scoil Shinchill Killeigh and Gaelscoil an Eiscir Riada, Tullamore, agus Gaelscoil na Laochra, Biorra. Their projects feature questions such as: Can completing a set of bodyweight exercises daily for 6 weeks improve our mental and physical fitness? How are everybody's set of fingerprints different? Do different liquids affect the rate ice melts? Why do some people see colour differently? Cen fath gur feidir le eitlean eitilt ce go bhfuil se lan go barr le daoine agus casanna? Cad is bri le Ceamara Obscura? Speaking at the event in RDS Simmonscourt, Niamh De Loughry, Deputy Chief Executive of the RDS Foundation, said: Its wonderful to see such a great turnout for our key Science and Technology Programme from primary schools across the length and breadth of Ireland, including Offaly. In developing ESB Science Blast we wanted an event that would be informative, inclusive and, above all, a really fun and engaging learning experience. Ive really enjoyed meeting the children from all around the country and learning so much from the wild and wonderful projects that theyre showcasing here this week. Im also delighted that we welcomed an even split of repeat attenders and first timer primary schools to the RDS this year, with over a quarter of all Gaelscoileanna taking part in the dedicated day for Irish speaking schools, on 7th March. Paddy Hayes, Chief Executive of ESB, added: Every year ESB Science Blast brings STEM learning to schools in communities across Ireland and ESB is proud to work with the RDS on this unique initiative. Through the programme, children of all backgrounds and abilities are developing life skills that will help them to become innovative and creative problem solvers, as well as active, informed and engaged citizens. I always look forward to seeing the energy, the excitement, and the celebration of curiosity at ESB Science Blast. One of the largest science education programmes of its kind, ESB Science Blast is a free and hands-on way to engage young learners with STEM, specifically designed for primary school and funded by the RDS Foundation through its Science and Technology Programme. It involves the whole class investigating the science behind a simple question and then showcasing their work at one of three annual events in Dublin, Limerick and Belfast. Following the Dublin dates, ESB Science Blast will also take place in Limerick from 21st - 23rd May and in Belfast on 4th June 2024. For more information, visit www.esbscienceblast.com or follow on Instagram, Facebook, or X. Gordon Ramsay smiling at event - Leon Bennett/Getty Images While visiting Seoul in 2023, food icon Gordon Ramsay spoke to Korean YouTuber Cho Seung-yeon about his food preferences and experiences exploring global cuisine. When asked about some of the locations with the best food in the world, Ramsay was quick to describe a trip to Laos' countryside. "The food was just off the charts," he gushed to Cho. Ramsay explained that traveling around the world to sample different kinds of foods challenges his palate, but Laos particularly sticks out in his mind. Ramsay added that Vietnam was another food lover's paradise where he fell in love with the cuisine. "Such a humble approach to eating incredible food," he explained, before adding Madrid to his list of great food in unique destinations. In the interview with Cho, Ramsay encourages flavor-seeking travelers to get off the beaten paths and explore locations that aren't typically listed in the usual tourist guidebooks. For a chef who has bagged numerous awards and has made a significant mark in the culinary industry, Ramsay's suggestions are taken with heed. Read more: 25 Most Popular Snacks In America Ranked Worst To Best A Cuisine Bursting With Flavor salad served in Laos - QQDesign/Shutterstock Travelers visiting Laos will find themselves faced with salads made with papaya fruit and fresh greens, ample servings of sticky rice, and plenty of dishes packed with herbs and spices. Lovers of grilled fish and flavorful meats will be in heaven, and fans of all things chilies will be pleased to sample some of Laos' more well-known recipes like jaew bong, a flavorful dip made of hot peppers; and khao poon, a brothy soup packed with curry, pork or fish, and an assortment of vegetables. Can't splurge on plane tickets to Laos? We got you. Whip up a sour and spicy batch of jeow som to slather on top of tonight's steak dinner, or use a bamboo steamer to make a hearty serving of sticky rice that can accompany your lunchtime mains or be turned into a sweet dessert with coconut milk and fresh slices of mangos. After a few bites of these flavorful recipes, you, too, will move this cuisine onto the list of your favorites. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Oleh_Slobodeniuk - Getty Images Picture this: Your bestie is getting married, and it was "an automatic given" that you'd be a bridesmaid. Only thing is, the wedding is set to take place thousands of miles away in a remote Scandinavian town and the ceremony has just been moved up an entire year, making it just four months away. As a result of this last-minute switcharoo, the trip will cost you a staggering $8,000, if not more. That's precisely the predicament one Reddit user has found herself in, and she's considering lying to get out of the wedding altogether. According to the woman (who did not reveal her name), she is financially stable and has been saving money...but for a completely different trip: her 10th anniversary getaway to Japan. "Between flights, the hotel... the rental car, the bridesmaid dress, the full traditional outfit required to be worn for some the the events, pet boarding, as well as general incidentals and we are looking at a minimum $8,000," she wrote. She did write that she had her own destination wedding in Alaska back when her friends were fresh out of college and low on cash. And it was attended by the woman who's now getting married in Scandinavia. She's been thinking of concocting a lie to get out of it. "My idea was to lie and say we have to do a major home repair (fixing the foundation maybe) that will cost all of what we have saved plus more, then when it did come time for the Asia trip say we were gifted the trip by my husband's parents," she wrote. Unsurprisingly, this scenario has sparked a juicy debate in the comments over the proper etiquette here. Here's where people stand: Guests should never go broke to attend a wedding. Most Reddit users can't seem to get past spending $8,000 on a friend's wedding. "8K is almost how much my entire wedding cost. Not the cost per guest," said one user. Others were surprised that the bride-to-be would bring up the woman's anniversary trip fund. Story continues "Also, it was pretty rude to expect your friend to use their ten year anniversary fund which they have been saving up for a while on your wedding," read one comment. Honesty really is the best policy. A number of people pointed out that the entire situation could go a lot smoother if the woman is open about having recently purchased her anniversary flight tickets and not being able to afford the wedding. "Please just tell your friend that you can't afford the trip. Also, it is unfair for your friend to essentially spend your money - meaning she knows you have money saved for a special trip, and for her to assume that you want to use THIS money for HER is ridiculous," one person wrote. "If you cant be honest with her, is it really a friendship worth saving?" someone else pointed out. Overall, most comments in the thread leaned toward not attending the wedding, but being honest about her decision not to. There didn't appear to be a single comment urging the woman to attend the $8,000 wedding in Scandinavia. We have to ask: Where do you stand on this? You Might Also Like Operating Systems Enterprise and Education Windows 10 Version 21H2 Support Ending June 11 Microsoft has announced that support for Enterprise and Education versions of Windows 10 version 21H2 will end on June 11, 2024. That means that any updates, including security fixes, will not be available for the following list of commercial versions of Windows 10 version 21H2: Windows 10 Enterprise, version 21H2 Windows 10 Enterprise multi-session, version 21H2 Windows 10 Education, version 21H2 Windows 10 IoT Enterprise, version 21H2 This comes one year after the consumer versions of Windows 10 version 21H2 lost support. Microsoft recommends users of the expiring OS should upgrade to the latest version of Windows 10 or transition to Windows 11. The only supported version of its previous OS is now Windows 10 version 22H2, with an end-of-support date of Oct. 14, 2025. Another option is Microsoft's Extended Security Updates subscription, announced by the company in December 2023. For a cost, Microsoft will extend critical security updates for select products and services that have reached the end of life. This may be a more viable option for organizations unable to transition to Windows 11 because of the OSs TPM 2.0 hardware requirements. For more information, check out the Microsoft article here. Human Rights Watch urges IMF to oppose laws restricting freedom in Sri Lanka Posted by Editor on March 13, 2024 - 11:33 am The International Monetary Fund (IMF) should urge Sri Lankas government to abandon draft legislation that would severely curtail civil society and jeopardize the IMFs program in the country, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a letter to the IMF that was released on Tuesday (March 12). The proposed Non-Governmental Organizations (Registration and Supervision) Act is among several recent and planned measures that would curtail fundamental freedoms, despite the critical role of public scrutiny in promoting good governance and combating corruption, it added. The IMFs US$3 billion bailout of Sri Lanka which is linked to government commitments to reform helped stem the immediate economic crisis after the country defaulted on its foreign debt in 2022, but further progress is threatened by the adoption of laws by President Ranil Wickremesinghes administration that would severely restrict basic rights, said HRW. The Online Safety Act, enacted in January, creates vague and broad speech-related offenses punishable with lengthy prison terms. The Anti-Terrorism Bill, currently before parliament, contains sweeping new speech-related offenses and arbitrary powers of arrest. And the draft law to regulate nongovernmental organizations could make independent civil society activity all but impossible in Sri Lanka. As the economy collapsed in 2022, Sri Lankans demanded good governance and an end to corruption, but instead now face draconian laws and policies that threaten human rights and undermine reforms, said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. The protests helped bring President Wickremesinghe to power, but instead of listening to calls for change, hes clamping down on peaceful dissent. A 2023 IMF study of Sri Lanka known as the Governance Diagnostic Assessment stated that anticorruption efforts are unlikely to achieve their objectives unless they also encompass initiatives designed and led by groups outside of government who are committed to rule-based inclusive economic and social progress. However, the study found that civil societys participation in oversight and monitoring of government actions has been restricted by limited transparency, the lack of platforms for inclusive and participatory governance, and by broad application of counter-terrorism rules. As a result, opportunities for public participation and oversight of official behavior, including by civil society, are increasingly restricted. The government on January 30, 2024, presented the draft NGO law to selected members of civil society, who were given three weeks to respond. The bill does not address any evident need, but instead seeks to subject civil society organizations to invasive government scrutiny and interference, and threatens civil society members with prison if they dont comply with cumbersome administrative procedures. The National Collective of CSOs and NGOs, a coalition of Sri Lankan civil society organizations, wrote to the government on February 28 that the proposed law would violate the fundamental rights to freedom of association and expression, while damaging the delivery of services by civil society organizations, including to the many families who are struggling to make ends meet in the midst of severe economic hardship. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, in his March 1 update to the UN Human Rights Council on the crisis in Sri Lanka, said he was concerned by the introduction of new or proposed laws with potentially far-reaching impacts on fundamental rights and freedoms which variously strengthen the executive, grant broad powers to the security forces, and severely restrict rights to freedom of assembly, association and expression, impacting not only on civic space but the business environment. The IMF should protect the credibility and efficacy of its program in Sri Lanka by publicly calling upon the government to abandon the proposed NGO law, impose a moratorium on the use of the Online Safety Act, and amend the Anti-Terrorism Bill to ensure that it respects human rights standards, Human Rights Watch said. The IMF and other international partners supporting Sri Lankas economic recovery recognize that this crisis has its roots in misgovernance and corruption, Ganguly said. If their efforts are to be successful, they need to resist the governments attempts to curtail fundamental civil and political rights. Number of English medium schools in Sri Lanka to be increased to 1000 Posted by Editor on March 13, 2024 - 10:22 am The Cabinet Sub-Committee on National Education Policy, under President Ranil Wickremesinghe, has proposed an increase in the number of English medium schools to 1,000 from the current 765. Since 2000, eight English medium subjects have been introduced in schools. However, despite 24 years having elapsed, these subjects are currently taught in English medium in only 765 schools. Given the significant societal demand for English medium education, this expansion aims to accommodate at least 200,000 students receiving education in English by 2025. The Cabinet Committee, tasked with formulating and implementing a National Education Policy Framework (NEPF) and recognizing educations crucial role in contemporary economic transformation, convened yesterday (March 12) under the patronage of President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Presidents Office. Comprising eight Ministers, including Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and Education Minister Dr. Susil Premjayantha, the committee outlined short-term and medium-term strategies within the NEPF aimed at transforming the education sector. During the meeting, the committee focused specifically on urgent and critical measures necessary to address immediate challenges within the current education landscape. A Bill aimed at establishing a National Council for Teachers, with the goal of fostering active teacher participation in decision-making and enhancing the professionalization of teaching services through the introduction of a teacher certification system, will be presented to the Council of Ministers and subsequently to Parliament within a month. This decision has been finalized and is set to move forward for approval. The council aims to elevate the teaching profession to a position of high recognition. It seeks to enhance teacher professional qualities, introduce a clear professional development framework with a specific pathway for educators, and assess the teacher salary structure to align with emerging professional standards. Additionally, it will fulfill requirements such as establishing a system to recognize and reward both teachers and principals for their contributions and achievements. President Ranil Wickremesinghe instructed the recruitment of 2,500 new teachers to expedite the implementation of this initiative. Given the urgent nature of this task, it was further advised to swiftly hire 1,000 qualified retired teachers capable of teaching subjects in English medium on a contract basis for three years. Additionally, the directive includes recruiting 1,100 graduates proficient in teaching in English medium through an open competitive examination. This recruitment drive will also include 400 Colleges of Education (Vidyapeeta) teachers who are set to graduate from Colleges of Education that currently provide training for teachers in the English medium. In addition to the school leaving certificate currently given to students who complete junior secondary education as well as senior secondary education, students are not entitled to any quality certificate that shows the various skills and recognized subjects that a student has acquired in school over the years. Accordingly, a policy decision has been reached to provide a Certificate of Completion to every student, not limited to the certificates showing the results of the national examinations, effective from this year. Barely one-and-a-half months after the inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the BJP has given the Indian electorate yet another divisive issue that it feels could further consolidate Hindu votes in its favour. The Centre on March 11 notified the Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024, that would facilitate the implementation of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019. The very next day, on March 12, the online portal to submit applications for Indian citizenship under the CAA went live. What is CAA 2019? The 2019 Amendment essentially exempted from the definition of illegal migrant members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities who came to India from three neighbouring Muslim countries - Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan - on or before December 31, 2014. In other words, any non-Muslim who had entered India from these Muslim countries before December 31, 2014, even without a valid passport and other travel documents will be registered or naturalised as a citizen of India from the date of his entry into India. From the moment the Act was passed in 2019, all proceedings launched against a non-Muslim individual related to illegal entry were also quashed. The path to citizenship was also made smoother for the non-Muslims. To be registered as an Indian citizen, a person has to reside in India for at least seven years. To be naturalised, an applicant has to reside in India for at least 11 years. But for non-Muslims from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, the CAA watered down the residency clause. For them, it will be five years. Till the CAA was passed, citizenship could be acquired by four means: by birth, by descent, by registration and by naturalisation. Now a fifth window has been opened: Religion. Is the CAA discriminatory? For the first time, religion has been introduced as a criterion for judging an individuals merit to acquire citizenship. Now, if a person is an illegal migrant in India, it has to be a Muslim from Pakistan, Bangladesh or Afghanistan. The stigma has been lifted from the members of other communities. Home Minister Amit Shah said the amendment was to offer protection to minorities persecuted on religious grounds. What about the persecuted Buddhists in Tibet? The Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar? Tamils in Sri Lanka? Hindus in Malaysia? And what about the ethnic Hazaras, Ahmaddiyas and atheists who are persecuted in Pakistan in the name of religion? Why aren't their citizenships being fast-tracked like that of the non-Muslims from the three neighbouring Muslim countries? This is a country which Swami Vivekananda had once raved about to his Chicago audience. "I am proud to belong to a nation which has sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the earth," the monk told the World's Parliament of Religions in 1893. Should Muslims fear CAA? On the face of it, what Amit Shah said is true. The CAA cannot take away the citizenship of any Muslim in the country. The CAA's mandate is to provide quick citizenship, if only to non-Muslims, and not to strip anyone, even a Muslim, of it. However, it can be problematic if the Centre decides to draw up the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC), more commonly known as the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The NRC was introduced in the 2003 amendment to the Citizenship Act of 1955 to "compulsorily register every citizen of India and issue a national identity card to him". As it stands, the NRC has been implemented only in Assam. But Amit Shah has vowed to extend its implementation to the rest of the country. If this happens and a Muslim individual's citizenship is found "doubtful", he or she could be subjected to the official scrutiny of the Registrar General of Citizen Registration and then kept out of the NRC. Result: The person would be rendered stateless. Such stateless beings could either be deported or lodged in specially designed jails. If members of the Hindu, Sikh, Parsi or Christian community find themselves in such a situation, they can at least claim, even using forged documents, that they had arrived from Pakistan, Bangladesh or Afghanistan. The CAA has forever shut such a possibility of redemption for Muslims. Members of All Assam Students Union (AASU) take part in a protest march after the central government notified the rules for implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, in Guwahati, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Photo: PTI. Is NRC something to be feared? If the NRC experiment in Assam is anything to go by, there are reasons for the ordinary citizen to be wary. When the NRC for Assam was published on August 31, 2019, 19 lakh or 5.76 per cent of Assam's population of 3.3 crore found themselves out of the register. Nearly 70 per cent of the 'outcasts' were women. This could very easily mean that they did not have the necessary documents and not that they were illegal migrants. Many, especially the poor and illiterate, will not be able to provide correct answers for certain NRC questions like 'date of birth' and 'place of birth'. But this is just a smaller worry. The bigger one is that the rules allow an individual's citizenship to be regarded as "doubtful" and kept aside for scrutiny merely on the basis of an objection raised by any random person. The objector only has to back his claim with some documents. What is the BJP's Assam paradox? The excluded in the Assam NRC had more Hindus than Muslims. The CAA is, therefore, seen as a rescue mission launched by the BJP to retain the citizenship of the affected Hindus in Assam. For the Assamese who are very particular about their identity, it is not the small number of Muslim immigrants who worry them but the Bengali-speaking Hindus who have migrated from Bangladesh since the 1971 Pakistan crackdown on what was then East Pakistan. This is why indigenous organisations led by the All Assam Students' Union have risen up in arms against the latest move. Cambridge, Ontario, Canada - March 13, 2024 - Faisal Susiwala of RE/MAX TWIN CITY Faisal Susiwala Realty has secured the prestigious title of #1 Individual RE/MAX Agent Worldwide for his Sales Volume in 2023 as an individual agent. This remarkable achievement follows Susiwala's consistent presence as the #1 Individual RE/MAX Agent in Canada. Christopher Alexander, President of RE/MAX Canada, commended Susiwala's unwavering commitment to excellence, stating, "Faisal consistently goes above and Adidas on Wednesday said it expects sales to decline in North America this year, but CEO Bjrn Gulden also said the companys global turnaround efforts are working. The Germany-based company has its North American headquarters in Portland and is a critical part of the regions sportswear ecosystem, which also includes the corporate homes of Nike, Columbia Sportswear, and hundreds of other companies and vendors, making its U.S. performance a closely watched metric. Nearly three weeks after a cyberattack paralyzed the largest billing and payment clearinghouse for the U.S. health care system, some Oregon medical providers are canceling appointments and taking out loans to keep their practices afloat. Change Healthcare, a subsidiary of the insurance juggernaut UnitedHealth Group little-known outside of the health care industry, announced Feb. 21 it was a victim of a cyberattack. The company plays a critical role in the healthcare system, acting as the middleman between insurance companies, health providers, clinics and pharmacies. Resulting downtime has left providers scrambling. Andrew Vilius, mental health nurse practitioner and owner of Lifespan Psychiatric Consulting, a private practice in Gresham specializing in mental health care for people with autism and intellectual disabilities, said roughly 65% of his patients are covered by Medicaid through CareOregon, which uses Change Healthcare as its clearinghouse and has been unable to receive electronic claims since the cyberattack. He said hes spent much of the past two and a half weeks trying to navigate the issue, seeking workarounds to get medical claims sent to insurers so that his clinic can get reimbursed for services. As a result of the administrative workload, he had to cancel some appointments last week. If Im dealing with this, thats time I cant be seeing patients, he said. Vilius said he, along with his tiny staff of three nurse practitioners and a therapist, provide care to roughly 400 patients. And without payments coming in, the practice is burning through cash. If billing issues persist, Vilius said he plans to borrow money against his house so that he can pay his six employees and cover other expenses. Change Healthcare processes some 15 billion medical claims a year and handles roughly one in three patient records in the U.S., said Sean Hoar, a partner at the labor and employment law firm Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete in Portland. Its issues have left health providers in Oregon and around the U.S. unable to process bills and get payments they need to operate. And until last week, providers were unable to send prescriptions to pharmacies electronically. When insurance eligibility and coverage cannot be determined, and payment for health care services cannot be made, the provision of healthcare services grinds to a halt, Hoar, who also serves as his firms chair of cybersecurity, said in an email. Beyond the real-time disruption in health care services, the attackers claimed to have stolen eight terabytes of data, including millions of sensitive patient records. Brad Larsen, a psychologist and co-founder of Portland Mental Health & Wellness, said his practice on average was receiving roughly $400,000 in reimbursements every two weeks before the Change Healthcare hack. In the two weeks since the outage, his clinic received only $35,000 in insurance payments. Not only is his practice receiving little to no money from payers, but the small amount of payments coming in are impossible to assign to individual patients accounts. In other words, Larsen is unable to tell how much to bill patients after what insurance companies have covered. I can see a big problem if this goes on. Oregon is already having a mental health crisis, he said. If this continues and we cant pay providers, itll only get worse. Larsen said his practice had to take out $300,000 in loans just so he can pay his staff of 50 therapists and nurse practitioners through the end of the month. He said if the payments dont come in before April, he and the four other co-owners of the practice are prepared to pool all their savings to keep the doors open. After that, he said the practice will have to furlough staff if the situation doesnt improve. Were willing to do whatever we can to stay open, he said. Our margins are already pretty tight. Like, we never get to a point where we have a ton of cash on hand. Mel Davies, chief financial officer of Oregon Oncology Specialists in Salem, said its revenue has dropped 50% since Change Healthcare went dark. The independent practice provides care for more than 16,000 patients with cancer and blood disorders. Davies said employees have been working overtime the last three weeks to prevent any disruptions in patient care. Theyve had to manually verify patient insurance coverage and file paper claims. This is a million times worse than when COVID hit because back then we at least got federal help, she said. But this time theres no guarantees, and we dont know when things will be up and running again. Davies said the practice spends as much as $1 million a day on chemotherapy and other cancer treatment drugs, and to keep the drugs coming, shes had to borrow money from a bank and ask drug manufacturers and distributors if the clinic can delay payments. If this goes on, were going to have to reduce services by a lot, she said. I can make payroll maybe two more times while going into debt. If we max out using our line of credit, were going to have to transfer out patients. Davies said she was relieved when the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid announced on Saturday that it would provide some emergency funds for providers impacted by the Change Healthcare outage. Davies said she applied for aid on behalf of the clinic but does not know how much money shell get, or when. Last week, UnitedHealth Group said it had restored electronic prescribing and that other parts of the system, like payment processing, would be back online by mid-March. The company said it expects electronic payments to begin functioning again by Friday and that it hopes to restore medical claims processing services Monday. Christi Siedlecki, CEO of Grants Pass Clinic, said that the update from UnitedHealth gave her some hope but that she wished the insurance behemoth would give more details on when operations will fully resume. She said that UnitedHealths assurances notwithstanding, her staff still cant use electronic prescribing and has to issue prescriptions by paper. Right now, our biggest impact is still the prescriptions and were still unable to match up bills with insurance coverage, she said. The inability to send prescriptions electronically really impacts elderly folks and others who dont have the means to drive to pick up paper prescriptions. Siedlecki said the outage has made it impossible to get prescriptions for controlled substances to patients who live far away, and patients who havent been able to pick up paper prescriptions in person just havent been getting the medications they need. Siedlecki said while her clinic has started to receive more payments from insurers, the amounts are less than whats expected and billed for. Like other providers, she said shes unable to assign the payments shes receiving to patients that were covered, which means shes unable to tell how much patients owe. This is a serious situation. Independent practices like us were already struggling before the Change Healthcare hack, she said. If this doesnt get fully fixed by the end of March, then Im going to have some really unhappy physicians in April. Beyond the inability to get paid by insurers, health care providers worry of more problems ahead. Megan Geary, a mental health provider and CEO of Cascade Counseling and Consulting in Portland, worries about patient and provider data thats been compromised. I feel like this is like the teeny, tiny frozen corner of the top of the iceberg and that this is going to become the magnitude of the Titanic, she said. Like, this is potentially going to take down healthcare as we know it. Like other small business owners of health practices, Geary fears for the financial stability of her clinic that serves over 500 patients across the Portland metro roughly 60% of which are covered by the Oregon Health Plan. The silence from insurance companies and the government for weeks was deafening, she said. Weve been forced to workaround and problem solve this catastrophic situation. Geary wonders how and why the government allowed one company to handle so many aspects of the health care system. If you wanted to catastrophically paralyze our health care infrastructure and medical system, this is one way to do it, she said. We cant allow for this to happen again. The fallout from the Change Healthcare cyberattack has brought renewed attention to the increasing consolidation in the healthcare industry. Change was acquired by UnitedHealth Group in 2022 for $13 billion after the federal government unsuccessfully tried to block the merger. Meanwhile, UnitedHealth has been buying medical practices nationwide, including in Oregon. Optum, an affiliate of UnitedHealth, bought the Oregon Medical Group system in Lane County in 2020, and then Portland-based GreenField Health in 2021. Optum also recently announced plans to buy the Corvallis Clinic, which will require approval from the Oregon Health Authority. Last Friday, Optum and the Corvallis Clinic submitted an emergency exemption request to bypass the review process, according to Erica Joy Heartquist, spokesperson for the health authority. In the request, the parties said the transaction is urgently necessary to maintain the solvency of The Corvallis Clinic as its financial condition has materially deteriorated since the deal was proposed in early December. Its unclear whether the request is tied to the fallout of Change Healthcares system outage. Heartquist said the state agency has paused its review of the deal and is evaluating whether Optums proposed acquisition should be exempt from review because of the risk the clinic could fail altogether, but she offered no timeline for the decision. --Kristine de Leon covers retail and business trends. Reach her at kdeleon@oregonian.com. Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe. The Devil Comet has arrived. Officially known as Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks (a much tamer, more boring name), the celestial rock is making its regular 71-year trip around the sun, passing by our planet this month. Over the last week, skywatchers have been flooding social media with photos of the comet, which should remain visible through the end of March. For now, binoculars or a telescope will be necessary to find the comet in the west-northwest sky, where it will be moving across the Great Square of Pegasus constellation into Aries, according to Space.com. By the end of the month, the comet should be visible to the naked eye. As always, clear skies will be necessary, so make sure to keep an eye on the weather. Come April, Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks will fade into the glow of the sun, reaching its closest approach to our star on April 21. However, those in the path of totality during the April 8 total solar eclipse may be able to glimpse the comet as the suns light is temporarily blocked out, adding one awesome sight to another. Aiding astronomers, the comet is expected to be a little brighter than usual this time around. In July 2023, the comet underwent an outburst, blowing off gas and dust that brightened it by about 100 times, according to Astronomy.com. That outburst distorted the envelope of gas and dust around the comet, known as the coma, into a kind of horned shape hence the Devil Comet nickname. And while NASA has classified the comet as a near-Earth object potentially adding a bit of devilishness to the thing the space agency said theres no risk of a collision with our planet. For most of us, this will be the only chance to see this particular comet, which wont return again until August 2095. But those looking to catch another comet wont need to wait long: This fall, Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be making a close pass to Earth, and is expected to put on another good show for stargazers. --Jamie Hale covers travel and the outdoors and co-hosts the Peak Northwest podcast. Reach him at 503-294-4077, jhale@oregonian.com or @HaleJamesB. Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com. The new movie, Little Wing, which begins streaming on Paramount Plus on Wednesday, March 13, offers viewers performances by such high-profile actors as Brian Cox (Succession) and Kelly Reilly (Yellowstone), glimpses of Portland-area locations, and a story about the unlikely bond that forms between a troubled teenager and a gruff Vietnam veteran. Beyond those qualities, Little Wing is also likely to make even the most bird-averse person appreciate the distinctive qualities of pigeons, specifically racing pigeons. Little Wing, inspired by an article by Susan Orlean (a former Portlander who went on to write such bestsellers as The Orchid Thief), tells the story of Kaitlyn (Brooklynn Prince), a teenager who feels alienated and unhappy about her parents divorce. The fact that Kaitlyns mother, Maddie (Reilly) is selling their house because she cant afford the mortgage payments on her own, drives Kaitlyn to do something desperate. She enlists her friend Adam (Che Tafari) to help her steal a valuable racing pigeon, in the hopes she can sell it to raise enough money to keep the house. But when Jaan (Cox), the owner of the prized racing pigeon, discovers what Kaitlyn has done, the situation gets even more complicated. Its no accident that the pigeons in Little Wing come across as fascinating, considering director Dean Israelites connection to the birds. As he says in a statement, in the 1950s and 1960s in South Africa, Israelites father and grandfather raced pigeons, becoming, as Israelite says, the preeminent pigeon fanciers of Johannesburg. In a recent phone conversation from Los Angeles, Israelite said, I think whats great about the movie, and what we tried to do, is celebrate these animals. We took a lot of care and time photographing them in the right way to really try and elicit onscreen the majesty of these birds that people dont fully understand. Working with local animal handlers, Israelite, 39, said he was surprised by how many shots the crew was able to capture of real birds, not birds created by using a visual effects process. Being able to convey what makes pigeons special was key to Little Wing. In the film, Kaitlyn receives two pigeons as a gift from a coworker of her mother, who is a detective with Portland police. As the film goes on, Kaitlyn becomes more attached to her pigeons, while also learning more about Jaan, and his passion for pigeon racing. From left, director and executive producer Dean Israelite and star Brian Cox as Jaan on the set of "Little Wing." Allyson Riggs/Paramount+ The beauty of the birds also underscores one of the central themes of the film, which is the uncanny ability of pigeons to find their way home, which echoes Kaitlyns own desire to stay in the house that has been her home. While the birds may be unexpectedly impressive, the stars of Little Wing come with already notable reputations. Cox, whose long career includes his powerful performance as a fierce media mogul in HBOs Succession, brings subtle dimensions to the character of Jaan. Its hard to describe how talented he is, Israelite said of working with the Scottish actor. He is so completely in the moment when hes in every scene, and it feels like hes fully experiencing and living it. It all feels just so truthful. From left, Kelly Reilly as Maddie and Brooklynn Prince as Kaitlyn in "Little Wing." Allyson Riggs/Paramount+ In addition, Israelite said, He makes choices that you dont expect, and would do things with the character that I didnt anticipate, and that I found genuinely moving. Reilly, who is English but is likely best known to viewers as the strong-willed Montana ranchers daughter Beth Dutton in Yellowstone, is not at all like her TV character, Israelite said. From my experience, she couldnt be more of a different character than who she plays on Yellowstone. She is so sweet, and so generous in terms of the time she will give to the project, the time that she will give to the character, to talking about the character, and thinking about the character. Brian Cox as Jaan and Brooklynn Prince as Kaitlyn in "Little Wing." Allyson Riggs/Paramount+ She came to the whole project with so much warmth and tenderness, Israelite said, with very clear and strong ideas about who this character was. As for Prince, Israelite said that he has worked with a lot of young actors, and was impressed by how prepared the 13-year-old Prince was. I couldnt really keep up with her, he said. She came with such a depth to this character, who she had thought about, and brought to life beyond what was in the script. Though Orleans original New Yorker article is set in Boston, Little Wing filmed on location in the Portland area in 2023. Israelite says he isnt quite sure what prevented the production from filming in Boston, but once we started looking at other cities, Portland rose to the top of the list. It felt like a place that was so full of texture and character, and felt like it really fit the lives, the DNA of these people, and the themes in the film. From the moment I saw the location photos, I was in love with going to shoot in Portland. I like the Pacific Northwest in terms of the weather for a movie like this, Israelite said. Theres a real mood to everything. The Northwest setting also influenced the decision to feature music by the Portland-born Kathleen Hanna and her bands, Bikini Kill and Le Tigre. In the script, Kaitlyn is very into hip hop, Israelite said. Filming in Portland, he said, made him decide to embrace a more punk rock, riot grrrl influence for Kaitlyn. Honestly, I loved shooting up there, says Israelite. I loved the crew, everyone was so collaborative and passionate. When not filming, Israelite said, I drank more coffee than is allowed by a human being. I love coffee, and I would sample coffee everywhere. I tried to go to the restaurants that people talk about, but I spent a lot of my off-time walking around. He was also impressed, Israelite said, by how integral the (Willamette) river was to the shape of the city. The river, and the bridges became a real visual motif for the movie, and that came out of being in Portland. Little Wing is streaming on Paramount Plus. Kristi Turnquist covers features and entertainment. Reach her at 503-221-8227, kturnquist@oregonian.com or @Kristiturnquist Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe A community effort to raise money for the Rose City Book Pub exceeded its goal, collecting more than $28,000 between an online auction, live auction and a $5,000 match gift. The effort was spearheaded by customers, fans and employees who hoped to put the Northeast Portland bar, restaurant and book store back on solid financial footing. A live auction Monday raised $8,212, and the highest bid was for the final item of the night: a single bean in a glass jar. It was a surprisingly moving and touching moment, said Jesse Rapoport, a customer who helped organize the event. Bidding started at $1 and quickly jumped to $50, $100, then $1,000, all the way to a final bid of $1,800. It was really incredible, Rapoport wrote in an email. It was a really fantastic button on the evening. People bidding a lot on a single dry bean just to support the pub. An online auction, with a total of 84 items, ran through 10 p.m. Tuesday and raised more than $15,500. It included everything from homemade scarves, to climbing lessons, to home-cooked meals. The live auction, too, was populated with items that spoke to the interests, skills and sense of humor of the pubs regulars. Items included guitar lessons, a custom Lego diorama and a pump your own gas demo. Owner Elise Schumock was not just grateful for the event but also excited to see more community connections spring from the winning bids. She mentioned another big auction item: $350 for a custom coffee service with a customer whos a coffee expert. Were really excited about the people who won it, and that theyre all going to get to meet each other, Schumock said. Henry Huntington, left, and Jesse Rapoport lead a live auction on Monday night at Rose City Book Pub. Along with an online auction and matching gift, the total effort raised more than $28,000 to support the pub.Courtesy of Jesse Rapoport Rose City Book Pub, which opened in 2018, is a for-profit business, but it has endeared itself to the community. When customers heard Schumock was struggling to pay down some pub-related bills, they organized a fundraising effort with the goal of raising $10,000. The pub, at 1329 N.E. Fremont St., hosts literary readings, local book launches, open mics, trivia nights, live music and writing groups. Check out the list of upcoming events at rosecitybookpub.com. -- Samantha Swindler covers features for The Oregonian and Here is Oregon. Reach her at sswindler@oregonian.com. Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com. Isabelle Muresan was crowned Tuesday as Lincoln High Schools representative on the 2024 Portland Rose Festival Court. The Lincoln senior plans to study political science at a four-year university. At Lincoln, she participated in student government and clubs raising awareness of substance abuse and mental health. Rose Festival Court announcements began March 5. The additional members of the court so far are: In all, 15 students from Portland-area high schools will serve on the court. Each will receive a $3,500 scholarship courtesy of The Randall Group and one-on-one mentorship arranged by Unitus Community Credit Union. Announcements continue Thursday at Grant and Cleveland high schools, and conclude March 22, when the Benson High School court member will be announced. The 2024 Queen of Rosaria will be crowned June 7. The Rose Festival kicks off with fireworks and City Fairs opening May 24 and culminating with the Grand Floral Parade on June 8. Read more about Princess Isabelle, as told to the Portland Rose Festival. Career plans: I am planning on majoring in Political Science at a four-year university, and then continuing into a career in either law or journalism. High school activities and honors: I am one of the Associated Student Body Co-Presidents at my high school and have been involved in student government since my freshman year. I am a co-president of a student club called LINC, which provides Lincoln students with education and harm reduction surrounding substance abuse. I am also involved in the Mental Health Awareness Club and the Period Club. Hobbies and special interest: Some of my hobbies consist of reading and creative writing primarily essays, short stories, and poetry. Although I am not very musically inclined, I love music and collecting vinyl. I also paint, draw, and sew, and have a deep love for fashion. What are you most proud of during your high school career? I am most proud of my progression as a leader over the span of my high school career, and the ways in which Ive been able to bring the students closer together through events and community bonding. What is your favorite Rose Festival event and why? My favorite Rose Festival event is the Grand Floral Parade because I love being able to come together as a community and watching all the different floats. Grant Butler 503-221-8566; gbutler@oregonian.com; @grantbutler Our journalism needs your support. Please become a subscriber today at OregonLive.com/subscribe Two Republican state senators who are disqualified from running for reelection will try to jump to statewide office. Sens. Brian Boquist, R-Dallas, and Dennis Linthicum, R-Beatty, are among 10 Republican state senators who cant run for reelection because they participated in a six-week walkout in the 2023 legislative session. On Tuesday, with hours to go before the filing deadline, they jumped into the races for treasurer and secretary of state, respectively. Neither was among the dozens of candidates, elected officials and lobbyists who swarmed onto the House floor to watch filings appear in real time on three large projector screens and take photos of their names. But Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, a Bend Republican who is also barred from running for reelection, was there to observe and said it was great that his colleagues were looking for higher office. Knopp is sitting this election out, though he plans to continue leading Republican Senate campaigns. Another late-breaking surprise: A former employee of the Bureau of Labor and Industries who recently won a $425,000 settlement with the agency in a race discrimination lawsuit is challenging outgoing House Speaker Dan Rayfield, D-Corvallis, in the Democratic primary for attorney general. In all, 326 candidates had filed for office by 5 p.m. Tuesday, though Deputy Secretary of State Cheryl Myers said the Secretary of States Office might still be processing some paper filings. Candidates with cold feet have until Friday to withdraw from their races. The Capital Chronicle will have a more in-depth look at legislative races early next week, but heres where statewide and congressional races stand for the May 21 primary election. Secretary of state LaVonne Griffin-Valade, Gov. Tina Koteks pick to finish the term of disgraced former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, has said all along she would not run for election. That leaves an open race for secretary of state, who runs elections and state audits, registers businesses and steps in as governor if the elected governor dies or leaves office. Outgoing Treasurer Tobias Read, a Beaverton Democrat, and Sen. James Manning, D-Eugene, are the top Democratic contenders. The Democratic primary will also include Paul Damian Wells, a retired machinist who ran unsuccessfully for the office in 2012 and 2016; Jim Crary, a retired attorney from Ashland who lost races for the 2nd Congressional District in 2016 and 2018; and Dave Stauffer, a retired attorney and self-described inventor from Portland who has run unsuccessfully for governor or secretary of state every election since 2016. Linthicum, the southern Oregon state senator running for the Republican nomination, has championed false claims of election fraud. He signed on to a letter in 2021 calling for an Arizona-style audit of the 2020 election and was a plaintiff in a lawsuit tossed by a federal judge last year that made unsubstantiated claims about election fraud based on a debunked documentary from a right-wing commentator. The Republican field also includes two unsuccessful 2022 candidates. Brent Barker, a real estate broker from Aloha, came in fourth in the 2022 race for the Bureau of Labor and Industries, while market analyst Tim McCloud placed 10th in the crowded 2022 Republican primary for governor. Treasurer Boquists surprise entry caused renewable energy executive Nate Sandvig to drop out of the race, leaving Boquist alone in the Republican primary. On the Democratic side, Sen. Elizabeth Steiner, D-Portland, hopes to make history as the states first female treasurer. Shes a physician who has spent the past six years crafting the states budget as co-chair of the Joint Ways and Means Committee. And Jeff Gudman, a former Lake Oswego City Councilor, is counting on a party switch to push him over the edge. Gudman was the Republican nominee for treasurer in 2016 and 2020, losing to Read both times, before registering as a Democrat last year. Attorney general Rayfield, the outgoing House speaker from Corvallis, appeared to have sewn up the Democratic nomination for attorney general until late Tuesday. Rayfield, who took over as speaker in 2022, is an attorney and is likely to campaign on the Legislatures success in crafting a bipartisan agreement to recriminalize drug possession while providing more money for treatment. But Shaina Pomerantz, a former civil rights investigator for the Bureau of Labor and Industries, filed minutes before the deadline. The labor bureau recently settled a lawsuit with Pomerantz over alleged racial hostility at the bureau tied to her probation being extended. Attorney Will Lathrop of Newberg and Michael Cross, who describes himself as a CEO, are vying for the Republican nomination. Congressional races Five of Oregons six U.S. representatives are running for reelection, though all will face challenges in the primary, general election or both. The most competitive race is the 5th Congressional District, which stretches from Bend to Portland. Freshman Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer is the only Republican running, while Democrats will choose between state Rep. Janelle Bynum and 2022 nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner. Metro Council President Lynn Peterson had filed to run but she withdrew on Feb. 20 and endorsed Bynum. A Democratic Bend-based tech executive, Matt Davie, who said he would run didnt file for office in time. Chavez-DeRemer beat McLeod-Skinner by 2.1 percentage points in 2022, and the district is one of Democrats top national targets. In the Willamette Valley-based 6th Congressional District, first-term Democratic Rep. Andrea Salinas will face a primary challenge from Cody Reynolds, an entrepreneur who has run unsuccessfully for federal office five times since 2012. Salinas 2022 Republican opponent, businessman Mike Erickson, will face Dundee Mayor David Russ and unemployed Salem resident David Burch, who received 406 votes in the 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary, in the Republican primary. Salinas beat Erickson by 2.4 percentage points in 2022. First-term Democrat Val Hoyle is unopposed in the Democratic primary in the 4th Congressional District, which includes Eugene and southwest Oregon. Attorney Monique DeSpain of Eugene, former Senate staffer Jeff Kubler of Adair Village and former Keizer City Councilor Amy Ryan Courser will square off in the Republican primary. Candidates for Congress dont have to live in the congressional district, though they must reside in the state. Rep. Earl Blumenauers decision to retire after 28 years in the U.S. House opened a cutthroat primary in the safely Democratic Portland-based 3rd Congressional District. The frontrunners are former Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal, Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales and state Rep. Maxine Dexter, though health care worker Ricardo Barajas, college student Nolan Bylenga, attorney Michael Jonas and software engineer Rachel Rand are also running in the Democratic primary. Nurse Teresa Orwig, attorney Joanna Harbour and engineer Gary Dye are competing in the Republican primary. Democrat Suzanne Bonamici in the 1st District, now in her seventh term, and Republican Cliff Bentz in the 2nd District, who is serving his second term, are all but certain to win their primary and general elections. Bonamici faces token challenges from Intel engineer Jamil Ahmad and beauty company CEO Courtney Casgraux in the Democratic primary and a Republican challenger in maintenance worker Bob Todd. Technical instructor Jason Beebe will challenge Bentz in the Republican primary, while childrens author Steve Laible and nonprofit director Dan Ruby are running as Democrats in the conservative eastern Oregon district. -- Julia Shumway, Oregon Capital Chronicle; jshumway@oregoncapitalchronicle.com The Oregon Capital Chronicle, founded in 2021, is a news organization focused on Oregon state government, politics and policy. Photo: (Photo : MARCUS BRANDT/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) A 76-year-old female, Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi, has pleaded guilty to killing in relation to her spouse passing away in Burlington a few years ago. The State's Attorney's Office announced that Kosuda-Bigazzi is accused of killing her 84-year-old doctor husband at their Smith Lane residence in 2017. Connecticut Woman Arrested for Husband's Death In February 2018, Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi was seized in relation to the passing of her spouse, Dr. Pierluigi Bigazzi, who worked as an educator of laboratory science and pathology at UConn Health. Pierluigi Bigazzi was a professor at the University of Connecticut's medical school for over four decades, concentrating on immunology study and teaching medical learners about pathology and oncology. The 84-year-old male body was found in the underground of their Burlington, Connecticut residence during a police fitness check. The medical examiner identified that Dr. Bigazzi died from blunt trauma to the head, and estimated the time of passing to be in July 2017. During the investigation, it was disclosed that UConn Health checks were sent into their joint checking account from his passing until February 2018. Prosecutors in the murder case stated that Kosuda-Bigazzi left her husband's body wrapped in plastic in their home for several months while continuing to collect his salary. Despite claiming self-defense, Kosuda-Bigazzi pleaded liable to first-degree manslaughter and first-degree larceny on Monday, according to Hartford State's Attorney Sharmese Walcott. The case, pending for six years, has now reached a settlement, and sentencing is scheduled for June 28. On Monday, Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi, the female accused of badly beating her 84-year-old husband, pleaded liable to first-degree manslaughter. She is set to be convicted on June 28 and may face 13 years in prison. The plea was entered in Hartford Superior Court, marking more than six years since the revelation of Pierluigi Bigazzi's dead body in the couple's basement, six months after his death in August 2017, as indicated by the state police warrant. Read Also: Pennsylvania Mom Who Strangled Son and Drove Her SUV Into Ocean Convicted of Murder Additional Charges for Connecticut Woman In addition to the manslaughter charge, Kosuda-Bigazzi also pleaded guilty to first-degree larceny. This charge stems from her continuous collection of her dead husband's biweekly paychecks while his decaying body remained in the basement, wrapped in garbage bags and duct tape. The judge is scheduled to sentence Kosuda-Bigazzi to 20 years in prison, with 13 years to be served before the probability of suspension, followed by three years of probation. Pierluigi Bigazzi, a longtime faculty member in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, had played an important role in developing a new curriculum for medical students, including online lectures and a course on the mechanism of illness. Senior Assistant State's Attorneys Elena Palermo and Terence D. Mariani Jr., formerly of Waterbury prosecutors and now part of the Statewide Prosecution Bureau, prepared the case for trial, with the help of Supervisory Inspector Emory Hightower. Expressing gratitude for reaching a resolution after six years, Hartford State's Attorney Sharmese L. Walcott remarked on the significance of the plea. Related Article: 11-Year-Old Killed, Woman Wounded in Albuquerque Drive-By Shooting Targeting Vehicle Photo: (Photo : JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images ) A centenarian American World War II veteran, along with his 96-year-old future wife from Boca Raton, Florida, plans to wed in France as part of the nation's 80th-anniversary celebration of D-Day. World War II Veteran's Love Story Harold Terens and Jeanne Swerlin, who have been a couple since 2021, share a love for dancing, kissing, and holding hands. Serving as a radio technician in the Army Air Forces from 1942 to 1945, Terens played a part in transferring seized Germans and at large American prisoners from France to England after the events of D-Day in June 1944. At that time, Swerlin was in high school and getting war souvenirs from soldiers trying to impress her. The couple plans to exchange vows on June 8 at a chapel near the Normandy beaches where U.S. forces made their memorable landings. Harold Terens and his fiancee Jeanne Swerlin shared kisses and held hands reminiscent of high school lovers while talking about their forthcoming wedding in France. The World War II veteran, who initially visited the country as a 20-year-old U.S. Army Air Forces corporal shortly after D-Day, is now a cheerful and active 100-year-old. In June, he will be recognized by the French as part of the 80th-anniversary commemoration of their country's freedom from the Nazis, followed by his wedding to the lively 96-year-old Swerlin close to the beaches where U.S. troops landed. Read Also: Morgan Stewart Opens Up About Relationship With Her in-Laws, Boundaries Set, Respected Veteran's Wedding Set 80 Years After D-Day in France Expressing his love for Swerlin, Terens, who has been dating her since 2021, highlighted their fondness for dancing as they playfully moved to the beats of "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. The couple, both widowed, grew up in New York City, experiencing World War II in different ways. Terens, a radio repair technician for a P-47 Thunderbolt fighter squadron, served in Europe, while Swerlin, in high school at the time, dated soldiers and collected war souvenirs. Terens shared his wartime experiences, including repairing planes on D-Day and a secret mission in Eastern Europe. After surviving various challenges, including dysentery and a close call in North Africa, he returned to the U.S., married his wife Thelma, and had a family. Swerlin, on the other hand, had her own journey, being a full-time mom before becoming widowed and eventually meeting Terens through a mutual friend. Their love story began slowly, with Terens initially not noticing Swerlin. However, after a second meeting, their connection deepened, leading to Terens proposing a few months ago. The couple, along with their families, will travel to Paris for Terens' recognition and then head to the town of Carentan-les-Marais for their wedding on June 8. Despite legal constraints, Mayor Jean-Pierre Lhonneur expressed willingness to make an exception, highlighting the strong bond between Normandy and the United States due to the sacrifices made on D-Day. Related Article: Celebrity Couple Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban Plan to Renew Wedding Vows and Adopt a Son Photo: (Photo : DANIEL LEAL/AFP via Getty Images ) A groundbreaking bill, known as Assembly Bill 2316, has been introduced by Democratic Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel in California. Proposed California Bill Could Ban Food Dyes Served Within Schools The legislation aims to prevent the inclusion of seven additives, including Red 40 and six others related to possible health and behavioral concerns, in foods served in public schools across the state. The proposed ban covers artificial food dyes associated with hyperactivity, such as titanium dioxide, and seeks to make California the first state to enforce such restrictions in schools. Assembly Bill 2316 targets cereals, condiments, baked goods, and other items, with the goal of encouraging companies to make minor modifications to their products if they want to continue selling them in California public schools. The bill, set to be carried out in 2025 if enacted this year, would not ban specific foods or products but rather aims to prompt the use of natural substitutes like turmeric, beet juice, or pomegranate juice for coloring. In addition to prohibiting titanium dioxide, the bill targets Red 40, Green 3, Blue 1, Blue 2, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 in school-served foods. Despite the FDA's stance on synthetic dyes not causing behavioral problems in the general population, Gabriel refers to a 2021 California assessment suggesting an association even in children without ADHD diagnoses. Read Also: FDA Warns About Cinnamon Products Due to Lead Contamination Artificial Colors in Food Correlates to Behavioral Problems Gabriel, citing the rise in ADHD diagnoses nationally, expresses concern over schools serving foods that could worsen symptoms of the disorder. The proposed legislation has faced criticism from trade associations like the International Association of Color Manufacturers and the International Food Additives Council, while supporters argue that a federal regulator should address food safety concerns to avoid the need for state-level initiatives like AB 2316. A 2021 investigation by the California Environmental Protection Agency revealed that "synthetic food dyes are associated with adverse neurobehavioral effects, such as inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and restlessness" in certain children. However, the Food and Drug Administration contends that "most children have no adverse effects," and an FDA panel has asserted insufficient evidence to establish a causal link between the dyes and behavioral issues. Apart from concerns related to behavior, studies examining the components of many of the proposed chemicals have connected them to cancer. Nonetheless, the FDA asserts that food dyes consumed within approved regulatory levels are considered safe. For instance, Red 40 contains benzene, and Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 contain benzidine, both recognized as cancer-causing substances. If the bill passes, a minimal percentage of items sold in California schools would be affected, according to an analysis by the Environmental Working Group, a co-sponsor of the bill. The organization emphasizes the need for a credible federal regulator and underscores the significance of ensuring the safety of everyday food chemicals. This legislative move follows the passage of the California Food Safety Act in the previous year, which Gabriel also introduced, banning four food additives linked to potential health issues and making California the first state to outlaw these chemicals allowed by the FDA. Other states have since introduced similar bills attempting to ban certain food additives. Related Article: FDA Proposes Ban on Brominated Vegetable Oil in Popular Drinks Amid Health Concerns Photo: (Photo : Go Nakamura /Getty Images) Despite extensive searches, Caleb Harris disappearance continues to grip the community, as efforts to locate him persist, missing one week after his disappearance. Caleb Harris, a student at Texas A&M, was last seen when he ventured downstairs to retrieve an Uber Eats delivery from his residence in Corpus Christie at 3 a.m. on March 4. The parents of the Texas student are fervently hoping for his safe return, as he vanished without a trace from his college apartment during the early hours of the night. Texas College Student Missing The 21-year-old had spent the previous evening engaging with a recently acquired canine companion of one of his two roommates, entertaining himself until moments prior to his sudden disappearance by exchanging Snapchats with his sister. According to Uber, the requested delivery was successfully dropped off at the designated location in front of the apartment complex on Ennis Joslin Road, where Caleb resided. However, there was no trace of him, as he had deactivated his phone just seconds earlier. Randy Harris, Caleb's father, expressed his bewilderment, stating, "He kind of vanished." He emphasized the absence of any incriminating evidence, leaving both the family and law enforcement grasping for any leads. Caleb, an avid angler, shared living quarters with two childhood friends from his hometown of New Braunfels. On the night of his disappearance, an additional friend from his past also visited. At 2 a.m., one of the roommates observed Caleb organizing fishing gear for an upcoming excursion, followed by his placement of an Uber order at 2:20 a.m. Shortly thereafter, Caleb decided to take the dog for a walk outside, capturing the moment on Snapchat at 2:44 a.m., depicting the canine in a nearby parking lot. Twelve minutes later, Caleb returned to the apartment, leaving the dog behind. Notably, his phone remained active until this point. Sometime thereafter, the Uber delivery reached the doorstep, marking the last recorded interaction before Caleb's perplexing disappearance, during which he left without his personal effects, including his wallet and truck keys. Subsequently, one of his roommates stumbled upon the untouched food on the doorstep, prompting the reporting of Caleb's absence at 11 a.m. the following morning. Randy Harris underscored the profound impact of Caleb's preparations for the future, including academic pursuits and fishing endeavors, which were abruptly halted by his disappearance. He disclosed Caleb's plans to venture to Alaska for employment during the upcoming summer. Read Also: California Moves Against Child Marriage: New Legislation Aims to Protect Youth Search for Caleb Harris Efforts to locate Caleb Harris, a 21-year-old student at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, have honed in on areas surrounding his residence at a North Padre Island apartment complex, alongside eastern and southern regions of the community, as detailed by NBC affiliate WOAI of San Antonio. The search has garnered significant community support, with hundreds of volunteers aiding law enforcement personnel, including Corpus Christi Police Department officers and U.S. Coast Guard members are scouring the designated areas in hopes of finding Harris. Randy Harris, Caleb's father, lauded the Corpus Christi Police Department's diligent efforts, commending their transparency and dedication to the investigation. "They're letting us know what's going on. They're doing a lot of things behind the scenes," he expressed, emphasizing the family's gratitude for their unwavering commitment. Similarly, Caleb's mother, Becky, fondly described her son as "fun-loving and joyful," highlighting his amiable personality. She expressed her faith in a higher power, stating, "We know that God knows exactly where he is." Becky remained hopeful, relying on prayer and divine protection for Caleb's safe return." "We're hoping that he is crying out to him and recalling scripture and has a hedge of protection around him wherever he is," she remarked, anticipating the revelation of Caleb's whereabouts and his eventual safe reunion with the family. Related Article: Florida Mother Found Alive in Shipping Container After Mysterious Disappearance The Wisconsin Supreme Court will consider reversing its two-year-old decision banning absentee ballot drop boxes after it accepted a lawsuit Tuesday challenging that ruling. The acceptance of the case, filed by Democratic law firm Elias Law Group, marks another significant shift between the current, liberal-controlled court and the previous, conservative high court, which banned drop boxes two years ago. Priorities USA, which is represented by Elias Law Group, had asked the court to weigh in on three matters: the Wisconsin Supreme Courts 2022 ruling that unmanned absentee ballot drop boxes are illegal; Wisconsins requirement that returned absentee ballots must be accompanied by a valid witness signature; and state law setting an 8 p.m. Election Day deadline for when voters can cure or correct errors on their absentee ballots. On Tuesday, the court said it will decide only whether absentee ballot drop boxes are illegal. The decision came with no rationale or list of which justices decided to take up the case. Chief Justice Annette Ziegler and Justice Rebecca Bradley, both conservatives, dissented from the courts order. Calling the decision a partisan maneuver, Bradley said overturning the drop box ban will likely trigger a slew of litigation and destabilize our election laws on the eve of the November elections. This is supposed to be a court of law, not power politics, she continued. The court set oral arguments in the case for mid-May. That leaves open the possibility that absentee drop boxes may become legal for the upcoming presidential election. The plaintiffs in the case argued the rules infringe upon the fundamental right to vote in violation of the Wisconsin Constitution. The case came before the high court after it got struck down in Dane County Circuit Court. In her decision, Dane County Circuit Judge Ann Peacock ruled the lawsuit did not meet the high burden needed to find the voting rules cited in the lawsuit were unconstitutional. Peacock did not address the legality of absentee ballot drop boxes, noting she leaves any revisiting of that decision to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Elias Law Group later filed notice of an appeal to Peacocks ruling and in February issued a new request seeking to bypass the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and have the state Supreme Court take up the matter directly. Attorneys for Priorities USA write in the motion that bypassing the appellate court was appropriate because the case presents real and significant questions of state constitutional law. They continue in the motion that there is a clear need to hasten the ultimate appellate decision to resolve the applicable standards sufficiently in advance of the 2024 general election. Under a conservative majority, the state Supreme Court in 2022 ruled that absentee ballots must be delivered by mail or in person to a local clerks office or designated alternate site. The 4-3 ruling effectively barred the use of absentee ballot drop boxes, which were used in hundreds of communities across the state during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The states high court shifted to a liberal majority for the first time in more than a decade last year after Justice Janet Protasiewicz defeated conservative Dan Kelly. Today in history: March 12 1912: Girl Scouts of the USA 1925: Sun Yat-sen 1947: Harry S. Truman 1971: Hafez Assad 1980: John Wayne Gacy Jr 1987: Les Miserables 2003: Elizabeth Smart 2009: Bernard Madoff 2011: Ophadell Williams 2017: Tom Brady 2020: NCAA 2021: George Floyd Photo: (Photo : George Frey / Getty Images) The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has made a historic announcement, expanding its coverage for in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments to include single veterans and those in LGBTQ+ relationships. This pivotal decision follows legal challenges questioning the fairness of previous IVF policies and marks a significant step towards inclusivity in veteran healthcare. VA's Progressive IVF Coverage Expansion In a significant departure from past practices, the VA's decision to extend IVF coverage transcends marital status limitations that previously restricted benefits to veterans in legal marriages. Now, eligible veterans, regardless of relationship status, can access IVF treatments provided they meet criteria related to service-connected fertility issues. This progressive move aims to ensure all veterans have equal opportunities to address reproductive challenges stemming from military service. VA Secretary Denis McDonough emphasized the VA's longstanding commitment to expanding healthcare access, particularly in the realm of family planning. He expressed pride in the VA's forthcoming efforts to provide greater support for veterans seeking to start or expand their families, highlighting the importance of such opportunities. Previously, the VA limited IVF care to veterans who were legally married and capable of biological reproduction. However, federal law mandates that IVF recipients must demonstrate fertility issues stemming from a health condition related to their military service. In a parallel move highlighting a shared dedication to inclusivity, the Defense Department has revised its IVF eligibility criteria for active-duty service members. This policy adjustment extends coverage for assisted reproductive technology to service members and their partners, regardless of marital status. Additionally, the updated regulations permit the utilization of donor eggs and sperm. By adapting policies to reflect evolving societal norms, the Defense Department ensures that military families have access to a comprehensive array of reproductive healthcare options. Read Also: Illinois School Bus Tragedy: Route 24 Crash Claims Three Children, Two Adults Policy Shift Reflects Commitment to Equality The VA's extension of IVF coverage to single veterans and LGBTQ+ individuals underscores its dedication to equality within the veteran community. This shift not only rectifies past disparities but also acknowledges the diverse composition of today's veteran population. It recognizes the unique needs and challenges faced by single veterans and those in LGBTQ+ relationships, ensuring equitable access to care and support. Met with widespread support from advocacy groups and lawmakers, the VA's announcement signifies a significant step towards leveling the playing field in access to reproductive healthcare services. Senator Patty Murray, a staunch advocate for expanding IVF coverage, commended the VA's decision, emphasizing its importance in supporting veterans in family planning endeavors. In addition to enhancing access to fertility treatments, the VA's policy overhaul honors veterans' sacrifices in service to their country. By providing comprehensive healthcare coverage, including IVF benefits, the VA aims to uphold the dignity and rights of all veterans, irrespective of their marital status or sexual orientation. As the VA proceeds with implementing these policy revisions, it remains committed to addressing the healthcare needs of all veterans. The extension of IVF coverage to single veterans and LGBTQ+ individuals marks a significant milestone in ensuring equitable healthcare services for those who have bravely served their country. Related Article: Florida Mother Found Alive in Shipping Container After Mysterious Disappearance The following is basically a close paraphrase or a gloss (for my note-taking purposes) of A Beginners Guide to the Fine-Tuning Argument by Max Baker-Hytch of the University of Oxford. As always with such notes, I make no claim of originality for what follows but share them because, while Im taking notes for my own eventual use elsewhere, I think others might find them of potential interest. I do not claim entries on this blog as publications of mine: Over the past few decades I, at least, certainly didnt notice such claims when I was in high school a number of physicists, philosophers, and others have begun to maintain that many aspects of the physical cosmos appear to be fine-tuned for life, which is to say that various aspects of the basic structure of the universe and of the fundamental laws that govern it are balanced, as it were, on a knifes edge. If any of them had been different by even the tiniest amount, the universe would have been incapable of giving rise to or sustaining life. In several cases, these fine-tuned features of the universe are such that, had they differed only very slightly from what they actually are, the universe would not have given rise to stars or even galaxies, let alone to complex and conscious creatures like . . . well, us. Many specific examples of fine-tuning are available for consideration. Ill mention two of them here, briefly: Its been estimated by physicists that, if the strength of gravity were to differ by just one part in 1060 1060 being a 1 followed by sixty (60) zeros, making one part in 1060 an almost inconceivably small number there would be no stars and no galaxies. If it were a tiny bit stronger than it is, all matter would have collapsed back in on itself; it if were a tiny bit weaker, matter would have dispersed too quickly for galaxies or stars to be able to form. Another example is whats known as the cosmological constant. What is it? The cosmological constant is a number representing a factor that governs how fast space itself expands or contracts. Again, if it were a tiny bit too strong the universe would have collapsed back upon itself; if it were, by contrast, to be a tiny bit too weak, well, the universe would have expanded so quickly that galaxies and stars would be unable to form. Its estimated that the chance of the cosmological constant having a value that would permit life is roughly 1 in 1053. (Thats a one followed by fifty-three zeros. So 1 over 1053 is, again, a very, very small number.) Still, while many scientists and philosophers concur that the universe manifests fine-tuning, that agreement doesnt extend to the meaning of the apparent fact. Some, for example, argue that it is an indication that a supremely intelligent and powerful being is responsible for our universe. (Overall, many scientists seem to me to be much more expressly friendly to theism than I recall from my youth.) Others, by contrast, contend that it is, simply, a brute fact. It just is, they argue, and no explanation for it is either necessary or possible. One fairly witty way of denying that any explanation is needed for apparent fine-tuning runs roughly as follows: If the universe hadnt been fine-tuned for life, we wouldnt be here to notice that fact. Theres no other kind of universe that we could have observed other than a fine-tuned universe! And, so, we shouldnt be surprised to find ourselves in such a universe. If a puddle were somehow to exclaim in wonderment how the depression in the asphalt happens, as if by design, to fit his contours perfectly, we would laugh. Wouldnt we? The Canadian philosopher John Leslie has famously responded to this objection with a cute analogy that has become fairly popular: Suppose that you were condemned to be executed by firing squad. Fifty of the best marksmen in the land assemble, each of them armed with a rife and live ammunition. On command, they take aim and fire. To your amazement, though, after the crack of the rifles youre still standing. Youre still alive, uninjured. Once the immediate exhilaration and relief had passed, wouldnt you be at least slightly curious about why you were still living, still unhit? Would you have much patience if someone were to approach you, saying, Actually, you shouldnt be surprised or curious. After all, if the firing squad hadnt missed you wouldnt be standing here to wonder about it. On the understanding that every member of the firing squad intended to kill you, and that every single one of them was individually capable of doing so, your survival seems to have been extremely improbable and something for which you might understandably want an explanation. Leslies analogy is meant to represent the universe, of course: It appears to be true that the only kind of universe we could observe is a universe that is fine-tuned for our survival, but the existence of such a fine-tuned universe is very, very improbable on the hypothesis of sheer chance. Simple curiosity seems to suggest that we should be looking for another hypothesis to explain our being here. What other hypotheses are on offer? Some theists (and their fellow-travelers) have argued that the fine-tuning of the universe isnt the result of mere chance but, instead, represents the deliberate choice or choices of an incredibly powerful rational mind, one to which the title God could reasonably be applied. But there is another hypothesis that has been proposed, perhaps primarily if not solely to ward off the possible theistic implications of cosmic fine-tuning The hypothesis of a multiverse postulates that the universe that we know isnt the only universe that exists. Instead, the hypothesis suggests, there is a vast ensemble of universes with differing initial conditions and different fundamental physical laws. Given enough such universes, so the hypothesis runs, one of them at least is bound to exhibit initial conditions and physical laws that enable the emergence of life. So how well does the multiverse hypothesis actually work? Does it better account for fine-tuning than theism does? The debate continues to rage on this subject. The theistic philosopher Robin Collins has devoted considerable attention to the question, and he suggests that the notion of a multiverse poses a serious dilemma: Either the multiverse is unrestricted (that is, it is essentially infinite and contains every logically possible universe) or it is restricted (which is to say that it contains only some of the logically possible universes). If the latter, if the multiverse is restricted, then the question remains why the multiverse contains only this set of universes rather than some other set. But this choice simply kicks the fine-tuning can down the road a bit. The puzzle still remains as to why one of the finite number of universes available on the restricted view is apparently fine-tuned for life. If, on the other hand, the multiverse is unrestricted, containing an infinite number of universes, this seems to pose potentially fatal problems for the very concept of scientific explanation itself. Why? Because, if the hypothesis of an unrestricted multiverse is true, then every logically possible event will actually happen somewhere in the boundless, infinitely capacious multiverse. Suppose, Collins proposes, you roll a die a hundred times and, with every roll, it lands on six. If that were to happen in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, the casino proprietors and the observers standing around the table would all quite justifiably suspect that the die was rigged. In the unrestricted multiverse, though, everything that is logically possible actually does occur, and that includes a die legitimately landing on six a hundred times in a row. Or a thousand times in a row. Or a million times. Whenever something astounding happens, there wont be any reason to ask why. So fifty sharpshooters missed you at very close range? No big deal. Everything that is logically possible and theres nothing strictly illogical about being missed by a fifty-member firing squad actually happens in our unrestricted multiverse. So dont worry. Be happy. Move along; theres nothing to see here. And that would probably put an end to scientific investigation. No reasons are needed, so why should anybody seek them? Eat, drink, and be merry! The fine-tuning argument does have at least one significant limitation from a theistic point of view, though: It doesnt help us to choose between variant views of God. It certainly doesnt establish the existence of the Judeo-Christian or Abrahamic God, the God of the Bible or the God of the Quran. It is consistent with most versions of theism, in the sense that it seems to provide grounds for belief in a supremely powerful and enormously intelligent designer. But no more. Thus, while it doesnt establish any specific conception of deity, it can, potentially, serve as a component part of a broader cumulative argument for Christian theism. Some of us myself very much included continue to bask in the glow of receiving the Kirtland Temple and other buildings and artifacts back into the custody of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and to contemplate their significance. Church Historian and Recorder Shares More About Kirtland Temple Acquisition: Elder Kyle S. McKay says Kirtland Temple and other Nauvoo sites will open and artifacts will go on display in Church History Museum on March 25 Church historians reflect on the spiritual significance of the historic Kirtland Temple, other sites, artifacts: Historic sites remind us of events, they remind us of people, they tie us to the past. But above all, they help us to know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, said Elder Kyle S. McKay, who joins the Church News podcast with historian Matt Grow Heres an idea to consider: Utah Rivers Council encourages water conservation with subsidized rain barrels: The recycled-plastic barrels normally cost more than $150, but are available to residents of partnering municipalities for $55 and to all Utah residents for $83 The Book of Mormon in Context Lesson 12: This Is the Way: 2 Nephi 31-33 During the 25 February 2024 Come, Follow Me segment of the Interpreter Radio Show, Steve Densley, John Thompson, and special guest Kerry Muhlestein discussed Book of Mormon lesson 12, This Is the Way, on 2 Nephi 31-33. A recording of their discussion has now been edited to remove commercial breaks and placed online for your listening pleasure at no charge. The other segments of the 25 February 2024 radio program can be accessed at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreter-radio-show-february-25-2024. The Interpreter Radio Show can be heard on Sunday evenings each week from 7 to 9 PM (MDT), on K-TALK, AM 1640, or you can listen live on the Internet at ktalkmedia.com. Come, Follow Me Study and Teaching Helps (2024): Lesson 12, March 18-24: 2 Nephi 31-33: This Is the Way Editors Note: Four years ago, Jonn Claybaugh began writing the Study and Teaching Helps series of articles for Interpreter. We now have these wonderful and useful posts for all four years of Come, Follow Me lessons. Beginning this year we will be reposting these articles, with dates, lesson numbers, and titles updated for the current years lessons. Jonn has graciously agreed to write new study aids for those lessons that do not directly correspond to 2020 lessons. I found this abomination in the Christopher Hitchens Memorial How Religion Poisons Everything File, and feel obliged to inflict it upon you, as well: How Do We Fix Poverty? [Weve] Got to Work Together, Humanitarian Services Director Says: Sharon Eubank participates in panel at the UN Commission on the Status of Women Kwame Kwakye, the legendary District Commissioner during the Nkrumah days, was a household name in the 1960s. I was in elementary school when I sniffed his presence in the neighborhood, Akim Oda which was 30 kilometers away from Duakwa. But fragments of Kwakyes profile were brought closer home through a colleague student of Odasco, who in dull moments lit the sky with the DCs hilarious quotes. 'Today is a great day, and a great day is today, and today is a great day said Kwame Kwakye, as he flipped through his prepared speech whose early pages were missing. His saloon car, VW Beatle convertible, loudly foreshadowed his presence while I attended school in Akim Achiase. Its registration number AA 104 was a historical landmark, representing the exact number of seats in Ghanas parliament most of which belonged to Kwame Nkrumahs CPP. If you had that kind of parliamentary majority, Krobo Edusei could easily tell you, The CPP can do anything except turn a man into a woman. Born in 1912 Kwame Kwakye was a school dropout, and fitted squarely within the Verandah Boy paradigm where men of limited literacy could climb to high echelons of power. In 1949 when Kwame Nkrumah formed the Convention Peoples Party, Kwakye joined the wagon since its principles and grassroots orientation mirrored his own lifestyle. His diligence and close affiliation with the masses earned him the position of District Commissioner for the Birim District in 1959. The growing popularity of Kwakye over the years, gave him access to Kwame Nkrumah himself who fondly called him Charles De Gaulle, after the then president of France. The access he had to high government officials tremendously boosted Kwakyes development agenda, and facilitated the several high class infrastructure in his district: the classic Agona Swedru-Oda road, Central market, Oda Government Hospital, Oda Secondary School, and a Fire Service station. But this was boosted by the national fame he had gained through his peculiar Ghanaian English which threw audiences into fits of laughter. As guest speaker at a speech day in Oda Secondary School, Kwakye once groped helplessly for the English equivalent of ktkor, the curved drum sticks used by drummers. After a futile search he coined the phrase, wooden koana, which was a rare combination of English and Twi (koa, to bend), and has now come to stay in comic settings. On several occasions he represented Kwame Nkrumah at public events, DC Kwakye apologized for Nkrumahs absence. The President being busy, could not division himself into twice, for which reason I stand here in the leg of Osagyefo Kwame Nkrumah today. When he was late for an important meeting one day, his apology for the late attendance was also a self-introduction: Colleagues, I am the Late DC Kwame Kwakye. If Ghanaians owed a debt of gratitude to Kwame Nkrumah, DC Kwakye had a peculiar way of conveying this: If not Kwame Nkrumah then me, I am the who? All of you, you are the where? This was a virtual transliteration of Twi expressions (Nka me ne hwan? nka wow he?) that conveyed the Presidents impact on every Ghanaian. Then Mr DC whats your occupation?, quipped a newspaper reporter. I occupy the whole of Akyem Oda district, was DC Kwakyes supposed response. After he and his entourage had been well seated and given the customary drink, it was for their host to politely ask the guest, Mr DC, whats your mission here today? Kwame Kwakye: My mission? I am a Roman Catholic. And when he became a topic of discussion all over the district, he knew it was a mark of his fame and dignity. Because of my dibiality, people are working myself arithmetic, (nam me dibr nti nkorfo rebu me ho nkontaa) implying, Due to my dignified position, people gossip about me. Finally when Kwame Kwakye had gone to visit a colleague who was not home that day, he left him a simple message: When he comes please tell him DC Kwame Kwakye passes away. Here was a politician who boosted his political fortunes turning a deficit in English proficiency into a creative art. Indeed Kwakye was fond of his indigenous Akim dialect, and considered English as an anomaly in local government. In giving English a distinctive Ghanaian touch, Kwame Kwakye was in part subverting its purity, but also protesting the power relations it imposed in the local context. The Gomuas of Central Region decided to convey the local perception of English in the name of one village: Brfoyedur meaning English Language is a Burden. Kwame Kwakyes claim to fame was in the art of dislodging the burden posed by English, by bringing it down to the masses. Today, there are several variants of Kwakyes peculiar diction across the country, and so have many Kwakye surnames arbitrarily attracted the title prefix DC, to perpetuate the memory of Ghanas folk hero, DC Kwame Kwakye. The question is whether Kwame Kwakye was the sole author of words and phrases ascribed to his name. As with the numerous quotes attributed to President Robert Mugabe, historic figures who are known for a peculiar diction or literary style are often over-credited with quotations, far in excess of phrases they coined. Indeed the claim that Kwame Kwakye uttered the statement, My mission is Roman Catholic can only be a fallacy; for DC Kwakye in truth was a staunch member of Awisa Methodist Church, not Roman Catholic. A quotation in oral tradition is sometimes a celebration of broad literary strokes pioneers left behind: the abstract footprints, and not the real thing. DC Kwakye knew this, and never protested fake quotations attributed to him when he was alive. To him, that boosted his popularity and opened up opportunities for infrastructure development. Finally, to my good friend Lawyer Ace Ankomah who comes from Akim Achiase within Kwame Kwakyes jurisdiction. Please consider adopting fragments of Kwakyes diction into your legal jargon; this could help breathe life into boring submissions at court. Ace, how about the following: My Lord, Your Honour, I stand here in the leg of Koo Hia my client. [Kwesi Yankah is a Fellow of American Academy of Arts and Sciences; and Fellow, Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences.] [email protected] Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has expressed his family's joy in joining fellow Muslims to welcome the holy Islamic month, Ramadan. Muslims across the world are obliged to fast for a month in the Islamic month of Ramadan and Ghana officially joins the world to start the fast today following announcement last night by the National Chief Imam of the sighting of the Ramadan crescent in the country. In a message posted on his social media handles last night, Dr. Bawumia expressed immense joy at joining fellow Muslims with his wife to welcome the holy month of Ramadan. He urged Muslims to cease the opportunity to renew their commitments to Allah, show compassion to the poor and the needy as well as pray for loved ones and the nation. Below is his full statement: Hajia Samira and I, join fellow Muslims to welcome the blessed month of Ramadan, with immense joy. Ramadan presents a unique opportunity to all of us, to renew our commitment to the Almighty Allah, as well as show love and compassion to the poor and the needy. Let us also use this month of devotion and sacrifice, to pray for our loved ones and our dear nation, Ghana. Ramadan Kareem. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Member of Parliament for Bantama, Francis Asenso-Boakye on Monday, March 11, 2024, donated an amount of Ghc 100,000 towards the Heal Komfo Anokye initiative. The donation follows a call by Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene, for a collective effort to raise $10 million for the renovation of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi. Speaking at a brief ceremony to present the cheque to the Chief Executive Officer and management of the hospital, the Member of Parliament Bantama underscored the importance of his support of the Heal Komfo Anokye Project. He first of all commended the Chief Executive Officer for his leadership of impact since assuming office Im here today to fulfill the pledge I made during the grand launch of this initiative. Growing up here in Bantama, KATH has always been the primary health care facility for my family, friends and everyone that I knew. For this reason that I seek to support this project to achieve its intended purpose. He emphasized that the hospital has been the foremost healthcare provider in the Ashanti region, and also serving as a referral hospital for 12 regions in Ghana, with a rich history of providing quality service. "I recall my initial visit to KATHfor a similar donation was under the leadership of Dr. Oheneba Owusu-Danso, the former CEO. On that occasion, I provided KATH with 100 hospital beds, and other essential medical supplies to support the hospital's operations. This experience provided me with firsthand insight into the numerous challenges and difficulties faced by the hospital." He reaffirmed his commitment to the enhancement of healthcare infrastructure whenever necessary, ensuring accessible and high-quality healthcare services to the people of Asanteman. I know this our concerted effort to support the hospital will not address all its challenges, but it will serve as an inspiration to the generations to emulate the spirit of service and even do more for the hospital He commended the CEO for his leadership and plans to revitalize the hospital. Receiving the cheque on behalf of KATH, the CEO, Professor Otchere Addai-Mensah, initially expressed this profound appreciation to the Minister for Roads and Highways for this role he played in his appointment as the CEO of the hospital. Again, He took the opportunity to express his gratitude to the Minister for the fulfillment of his pledge. He further commended the Member of Parliament on for coming to the aid of the hospital on several occasions and added, "I firmly believe that your name will be immortalized in the hospital's history as one of the heroes who played a significant role in the success story of the hospital." 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 A retired Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Benjamin Agordzo, has attributed the dismissals of security service heads to the lack of trust in them by the incumbent government. According to the senior police officer, appointments by previous governments are usually met with outright dismissal by a new government due to the lack of trust. He said some officers also resigned on their own due to a lack of trust in their service from the newly elected president. Speaking on Ghana Tonight on Tuesday, March 12 monitored by Peacefmonline.com, ACP Agordzo rvealed that there are dangers associated with terminating the appointment of security heads by the new government, which has been the norm in recent years. He said, I admit that there are dangers, of course, there are dangers associated with this. But when you look at it critically, it is difficult for somebody who has been appointed by a previous government to work with another government, especially in this current dispensation. I have seen and known at the police headquarters where previous IGP [Inspector General of Police] who has gone to newly elected president and told him that he wants to go, at least I know two, Because once there is a new president and you were appointed by the previous president, you cannot be trusted and because you cannot be trusted there is no way you can work effectively in the new government, he added. Amendment Against this background, ACP Agordzo requests a complete constitutional amendment to tackle the issue. He said, Unless we go for a complete constitutional amendment where we have stated the criteria for appointment, stated criteria for termination and then stated tenure, then we all have confidence in that system where everybody knows that this person was not selected based on political affiliation. The retired senior police officer was reacting to IMANI Africa and Prof. Kwesi Anings suit at the Supreme Court seeking to prevent the President from dismissing heads of some security services whenever there is a change in government. Supreme Court Writ The IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, and Professor Kwesi Aning of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre filed a case against the attorney general for the removal of heads of security agencies when there is a new government. The petitioners have expressed concerns about the practice of new governments terminating the tenures of specific institution leaders. In some cases, these removals occur before the individual occupants of the office reach the statutory retirement age. For instance, in 2017, the then Director-General of the Prisons Service, Mr. Emmanuel Yao Adzator was asked to proceed on leave at the age of 54 and subsequently another was appointed in his stead. The President of the Republic of Ghana upon assumption of Office does not have the power to make a fresh appoint to the office of the Chief Fire Officer of the Fire Service; Inspector General of Police; Director General of Prisons Service and Comptroller General of the Immigration Service unless the immediate holder of the office is deceased, portions of the writ stated. Source: Kobina Darlington/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 John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has unveiled a comprehensive strategy aimed at enhancing water accessibility in Accra. With Accra grappling with recent water shortages which Ghana Water Limited has attributed to Accras burgeoning population, Mahama addressing the Greater regional house of chiefs during his 'Building Ghana Tour' stressed the need for proactive measures to tackle the pressing water crisis. Highlighting the rapid urbanization of Accra, Mahama underscored the necessity of foresight in managing water resources. He further noted that while significant strides were made in augmenting water capacity between the erstwhile Professor Mills administration and his tenure, subsequent years have witnessed a rather stagnant efforts in expanding the capacity. Former President Mahama said, We also want to expand water supply to Accra. Accra is going very fast. Recently, the Ghana Water Company complained that they cant keep up with the supply of water because of the fast expansion of water. What you do is you plan ahead, and that is what we did. Speaking further, Mahama reaffirmed his commitment to addressing Accras evolving needs, pledging to prioritize the expansion of water supply upon assuming office in January 2025 as the elected President. Between Professor Mills time and my time, we added 40 million gallons of water to Accras water supply. In the last eight years, there has not been a single drop expansion in Accras water supply. So why do you expect that the water will be enough? He added, This is a city that is growing. And so after we added 40 million gallons, at least in eight years, you should have added another 20 million gallons. We have started planning ahead already that when we come into office, we are going to increase the water supply to Accra. Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Electoral Commission (EC) has kicked against the use of drones to monitor election proceedings across the country by the National Democratic Congress (NDC). The Director of Electoral Services at the EC, Dr. Serebour Quaicoe says the move will be illegal after describing the polling stations as 'security zones'. I don't think they can do that, it is allowed and even if it is, they have to apply from the rightful authorities before, he told Joy News in an interview monitored by Peacefmonline.com. The NDC has promised to go the extra mile to ensure the December 7, general election will not be rigged. The party says they will deploy drones to monitor the election proceedings in key areas like the Greater Accra Region. The new approach was made known by Greater Accra Regional Chairman Emmanuel Nii Ashie Moore as plans to protect balots for NDC. Next week, we are going to train constituency executives on how to use drones to monitor what happens during the elections, Ashie Moore said. This follows his party's flagbearer, Mr John Dramni Mahama's call for vigilance during the December 7, polls. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video In a poignant tribute delivered on the floor of Parliament, on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, Francis Asenso-Boakye, Member of Parliament for Bantama and Minister for Roads and Highways, reminisced about his cherished friendship with the late Hon. Daniel Okyem Aboagye despite the two going into a contest for the NPP parliamentary primary ahead of the 2020 election. The statement highlighted the impact of Mr Okyem Aboagye's life and contributions to the Bantama community and the nation. Hon. Asenso-Boakye fondly recalled their shared journey from youth to adulthood, emphasizing their deep-rooted friendship that began in Bantama and flourished during their time together at Osei Kyeretwie Senior High School in Kumasi. Despite their three-year age difference, their bond grew stronger as they collaborated on initiatives such as the Bantama Students Union, aimed at promoting educational development in their community. The statement also shed light on Okyem Aboagye's remarkable academic and professional achievements, including his expertise in Economics and Government, his pursuit of higher education in the United States, and his successful career as a Certified Public Accountant and businessman. Despite their later political differences in the 2020 NPP parliamentary primary, Asenso-Boakye emphasized the respectful nature of their friendship, characterized by mutual respect and support. Mr. Speaker, despite these differences, our friendship remained unshaken and we remained close, and often exchanged ideas on wide range of issues, including governance, business and personal affairs. Between us, no respect, nor love, was lost even after our contest, and that was a gesture I still very much cherish, said Asenso-Boakye. Highlighting Okyem Aboagye's legacy of justice, equity, and bipartisanship, Asenso-Boakye concluded his tribute with a heartfelt farewell to his dear friend, who passed away tragically just before the commissioning of the fourth Astro Turf pitch in the Bantama Constituency. In honour of his memory, the newly inaugurated facility was named "THE DANIEL OKYEM ABOAGYE ASTRO TURF PARK," ensuring that his legacy continues to inspire generations to come, he said. The tribute encapsulated not only the personal bond between Asenso-Boakye and Okyem Aboagye, but also the profound impact of Okyem Aboagye's life and values on their community and the nation as a whole. Asenso-Boakye's heartfelt words served as a fitting tribute to a beloved friend and colleague, whose memory will forever remain etched in the hearts of those who knew him. Others members of Parliament, including Hon. Kwame Ayimadu Antwi, MP for Asante Akyem Central, shared his experience with the late MP, He describes Hon. Okyem Aboagyes contribution during his tenure as enormous and fantastic, particularly highlighting his exceptional presentations on the State of the Nation Address (SONA) and financial matters. He was a very technically gifted person in the field of Finance. I remember his intellectual prowess on the floor of parliament, and we are going to miss him, said Hon. Albert Adongo Hon. Haruna Iddrisu, Mp for Tamale North Technically, Hon. Okyem was financially gifted and was a brilliant debater in the field of finance. I remember he was known for his unwavering stance when it comes to finance debate. As philosophers often suggest, death serves as a messenger of birth, yet the passing of our esteemed colleague feels untimely. I join my colleague Road and Highways Minister, to extend my sincere condolences to the bereaved family and friends. May his soul find eternal peace." Ato Forson, MP for Ajumako Enyan Esiam He described him as a courageous man who loved his country, emphasizing his outspoken nature and unparalleled expertise in finance. Despite his exit from parliament, their bond remained strong, with Okyem Aboagye regularly reaching out for discussions on important matters. One thing you cant the from him is his knowledge on subject matter on finance. Ato Forson expressed deep sadness at his passing by the statement Mr. Speaker, We will dearly miss him. He further extended his heartfelt condolences to his family and pray for his eternal rest for the deceased. Hon Adwoa Sarfo, MP for Dome Kwabenya "Hon. Okyem was a team player who loved collaborating with his fellow members. During our tenure together on the finance committee in the 7th parliament, I witnessed firsthand his depth of knowledge, understanding and engagement at the committee level. He truly left an indelible mark, as good things are often said of the departed. I remember very well as a Majority Chief whip, there was no list of debaters on finance which Hon. Okyems name was excluded. In these trying moments, I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family and I pray the family to find solace in the most high. Rest in Peace Hon. Daniel Okyem Aboakye" Hon. Appiah Kubi - MP for Asante Akim North "Hon. Okyem epitomized our party's philosophy and ideology, embodying them throughout his life. He was a dedicated student activist since his youth, he carried his principles into his role as a Member of Parliament. Having shared classes at the University of Ghana Business School, I can personally attest to his academic brilliance. His ability to foster strong relationships across party lines, despite the vigorous debates on the parliamentary floor, was truly admirable. As we prepare to bid farewell to our dear brother, Hon. Daniel Okyem Aboakye, I urge all members to come together in solidarity this Saturday to pay our last respects." 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 Nihon Superior Sets New Standards in Lead-Free Soldering Technology at APEX 2024 Published: 13 March 2024 by Tyler Hanes by Tyler Hanes OSAKA, JAPAN Nihon Superior Co. Ltd., an advanced joining material supplier, will exhibit in Booth 1325 during the 2024 IPC APEX EXPO, scheduled to take place April 9-11, 2024 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Renowned for its commitment to innovation, Nihon Superior will present a range of groundbreaking products, including the SN100CV P608 solder paste and the TempSave series of low-temperature soldering materials. SN100CV P608 sets a new standard as a completely halogen-free, lead-free, and no- clean solder paste by Nihon Superior. In contrast to silver-containing alloys relying on a dispersion of fine particles of eutectic Ag3Sn for strength, SN100CV achieves its robustness from solute atoms within the tin matrix of the joint. Remarkably, in tensile tests, SN100CV matches the strength of SAC305 while retaining a high resistance to impact loading, offering exceptional performance in various applications. For high-reliability applications demanding strength surpassing SAC305, Nihon Superior introduces the LF-C2 lead-free alloy. Leveraging both dispersion and solid solution strengthening, LF-C2 delivers superior strength. With a liquidus temperature of 213C, it facilitates reflow at a lower temperature than SAC305. The P608 flux medium ensures wetting comparable to halogen-containing pastes, despite being completely halogen-free. SN100CV P608 and LF-C2 exhibit outstanding performance across diverse component types and process parameters. Additionally, Nihon Superior presents the TempSave series of low-temperature soldering materials, addressing industry goals such as reducing peak reflow temperature, minimizing package warpage, lowering energy consumption during reflow, and protecting temperature- sensitive devices. TempSave B58: A eutectic SnBi alloy with a low melting point of 139C. TempSave B37: A ductile hypoeutectic SnBi alloy without Ag, offering exceptional drop performance, surpassing SAC305. The P610 flux medium, specifically designed for Bi alloys, ensures halogen-free compatibility. The TempSave B37 P610 solder paste can be reflowed with a peak temperature of 190C. Additionally, a high-speed jetting paste version, TempSave B37 P611, provides consistent dot sizes. Visit Booth 1325 at the 2024 IPC APEX EXPO to explore Nihon Superior's latest alloys, solder pastes, and lead-free products. For more information, please visit www.nihonsuperior.co.jp/english The National Lottery Authority (NLA) boss and parliamentary candidate for Akuapem North constituency, Sammi Awuku, has advised the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to rescind their decision to fly drones on the Election Day. Speaking on Peace FM's 'kokrookoo' morning show on Wednesday, 13th March, the former National Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) admitted that it is important to monitor elections as a serious political party, however, the flying of drones is not an option the opposition NDC should consider. "In every election, if you are a serious political party, you have to monitor the elections. Both parties, after the elections will either say I have won or I have been robbed." ''When it comes to monitoring of elections, my advice to the NDC is that you dont need drones to monitor elections because you will be infringing on the rights of people; but how you train your agents on that day, the quality of training you give them all contributes to the success of the elections," he said. Sammi Awukus advice came to light when the NDC announced their intentions to train their party agents on how to fly drones to monitor proceeding at the polling centres. This was announced on Monday during the 'Building Ghana Tour' in the Greater Accra region by the regional chairman of the NDC, Ashie Moore. This decision to fly drones, according to Sammi Awuku, is likely to pose security threats to the election process. He said, "Flying drones cant be the solution. When this is started, it will then open up for all other political parties to also fly their drones at the polling centre. If there is a security threat, how do we know this drone belongs to Ashie Moore or Divine Agorhom." "Where are we heading to? This election is a high stake one, but I dont think they have to aggravate it," he added. Source: Kobina Darlington/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 Deputy Communications Director of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Maame Afia Akoto has questioned Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour's integrity as the President of the Ghana Journalist Association (GJA). According to her, the GJA's president's loud silence about media outrage after John Kumah's death in recent times is worrying. She also asked in a Facebook post if Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour is current on national issues aside from his bias against politicians affiliated with the NPP. So is the #GJA President in Ghana currently? He can issue statement without having all his facts when it's a politician or political party huh? She questioned. The sudden death of the Deputy Finance Minister, Mr John Kumah has generated some cacophonies within the media spaces with verbal counter-attacks from known TV presenters. The GJA is yet to release a statement to address the unprofessionalism act which netizens have described as 'shameful'. Maame Afia Akoto who is equally worried about the development tagged the GJA president, Mr Albert Kwabena Dwumfour as a hypocrite". What has he done to the negative press that some media houses and hosts have done in the past few days? Hypocrisy in the highest order. Please tag him for me. Her post reads. Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/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 Film star Idris Elba, who is leading the construction of a smart city in Sierra Leone, says he took on the project to change the stereotypical perception of Africa. Elba is building the eco-city on the rural Sherbro Island off the coast of West Africa along with Siaka Stevens, a grandson of Sierra Leone's former president, who shared the same name. They are partnering with the renewable energy company Octopus Energy Generation. The island city will have a wind and solar farm to provide power to residents. Currently, less than a third of homes in Sierra Leone have electricity. "Are we ever gonna make a profit? I don't think so, but it is about being self-reliant, it's about bringing an economy that feeds itself, that has growth potential," Elba told the BBC Newsday programme. "I'm very keen to sort of reframe the way Africa is viewed. We often view the framing of Africa as an aid model and this opportunity is completely different," he added. Elba told Newsday that the city is intended to attract business and innovation, while also appealing to holidaymakers and empowering local communities. The actor also plans to set up a film studio there, along with a retirement home for his mother. Elba's mother is a Ghanaian who moved to the UK, while his late father was of Sierra Leonean origin. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A convicted child sexual exploitation offender from Pennsylvania has been sentenced to more than a year in federal prison for violating his supervised release in two previous cases, authorities said. Thomas Crosby IV, a 30-year-old Irwin, Westmoreland County, resident and former U.S. Air Force member, was sentenced to 15 months in prison and 10 years on supervised release on Monday, U.S. Attorney Eric Olshans office in Pittsburgh said in a statement. If you were hoping to see Jon Stewart in York on Friday night there are only a handful of tickets still available. An Evening with Jon Stewart will be staged at 7 p.m. March 15, 2024, in the Strand Theatre at the Appell Center for the Performing Arts in York. When tickets went on sale, they sold out in minutes. There are still a few tickets available on secondary market sites. Stubhub shows 10 tickets available at prices ranging from $185 to $350. Vivid Seats has a half a dozen tickets for $185 and $208. Neither SeatGeek nor Ticketmaster have tickets available. Stewart, a comedian and political commentator, returned in February to host The Daily Show on Comedy Central on Mondays through the election. Tickets also are almost gone to see Stewart on March 29 and March 30 at Matthews Theatre at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, New Jersey. Those tickets are selling for more than $500 each. Other dates on Stewarts tour include: April 10 - Stamford, Connecticut April 11 - Stamford, Connecticut April 27 - Wilmington, Delaware Country/Americana artist Charley Crockett will perform at XL Live in Harrisburg at 8 p.m. July 13. Tickets for the show, sponsored by Harrisburg University, are $45 and go on sale at 10 a.m. March 15. They can be purchased online at Harrisburg Universitys concert website or at Ticketmaster.com. Crockett is touring to promote his upcoming album, $10 Cowboy, which will be released on April 26. His previous album, The Man From Waco, was dubbed the second-best country album of 2022 by Rolling Stone and broke onto the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. Last fall, he was nominated for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year at the 2023 Americana Music Honors & Awards. Mr. Crocketts unique vocal style is one third Ernest Tubb honky-tonk with clipped-word diction, one third Bill Withers low-key, soulful crooning, and one third jazzy French Quarter second-line swagger, the Wall Street Journal said. A N.J.-based subsidiary of Hanover Foods Corp. has been cited for unsafe workplace conditions, according to a press release from the Department of Labor. The departments Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Aunt Kittys Food Inc., located in Vineland, N.J., with seven safety violations after the agency found it allowed workers to service and clean equipment without having procedures in place to stop its machinery from starting unexpectedly. OSHA inspectors found one willful violation and two repeat and four serious violations, and is proposing $463,224 in penalties, the press release said. Specifically, OSHA found that Aunt Kitts failed to: Develop and follow a lockout/tagout program and written procedures for maintenance and sanitation staff that worked on and cleaned production equipment in the canning and filling department. Keep the work floor in a clean and dry condition after waste and water leaked onto the floor. Provide proper guarding on a conveyor system. Train workers on lockout/tagout procedures. Conduct annual lockout/tagout audits on machines. Provide baseline and annual audiograms. Ensuring lockout/tagout procedures are established and used can make the difference between an employee ending a shift safely and suffering a serious, life-altering injury, OSHA Area Director Paula Dixon-Roderick said in the press release. Our investigation found Aunt Kittys Food failed to provide a safe and healthful workplace and we will hold them legally accountable. The company has 15 business days to comply or contest the findings. Aunt Kittys Food Inc. manufactures canned goods including soups, sauces, pasta, vegetables and gravy. Headquartered in Hanover, Hanover Foods makes and sells food under the Bickels Snacks, Castleberrys, John Copes, Spring Glen and Wege Pretzels brands. A prominent national cemetery in central Pennsylvania is developing 27 acres as part of a $38.6 million expansion. The project at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery in East Hanover Township, Lebanon County is slated to bring additional burial space lasting through 2038, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. St. Patricks Day is this weekend, with many people readying their green outfits, whiskey jackets, and appetite for Guinness (and, in some cases, their bravery before entering a haunted house). If youre one who enjoys celebrating St. Patricks Day but arent too jazzed about the crowds, theres a smaller spot in Pennsylvania thats been ranked amongst the United Statess best for observing the holiday appropriately. SIXT a Germany-based car rental company which, according to its website, [offers] the best experience in the industry at every step of the customer journey through excellent service, a premium fleet and maximum simplicity and flexibility sent out a report via press release covering the spots where one can celebrate St. Patricks Day that arent massive urban areas. This report was based on data from Google Trends, with search volumes containing keywords related to St. Patricks Day analyzed then divided by region. Pennsylvanias own Scranton, Lackawanna County, ended up ranking eighth overall. Scrantons St. Patricks Day parade is truly a community affair, with over 12,000 participants including bagpipers, Irish step dancers, high school bands, local organizations, and other Irish groups, reads the release. The parade gathers an average of 150,000 spectators, cashing in on the festivities. So don your green and enjoy a day packed with floats, music, dancing, and excitement! In first was Savannah, Ga., which the release notes has celebrated St. Patricks Day as a community for 200 years, an impressive feat, indeed. Locals and visitors look forward to the parade all year, as it is Savannahs largest event! the release adds. In second was Kansas City, Mo., and in third, Cleveland, Ohio. Remember: St. Patricks Day 2024 is Sunday, March 17. By Chris Megerian, The Associated Press WASHINGTON The White House knew it had a political problem on its hands when a special counsel report questioned President Joe Bidens memory last month, but Biden saw a much more personal affront as well. Robert Hur, who had been appointed to investigate whether Biden mishandled classified documents, wrote that the president couldnt recall in an interview with prosecutors the date when his adult son, Beau, died of cancer. It was a shocking contention about a keystone event in Bidens life, and it fed into questions about whether the 81-year-old president is fit to serve another term. How in the hell dare he raise that? Biden angrily declared during a hastily arranged press conference after the report was released. Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasnt any of their damn business. The reality of the situation, however, isnt as clear as either Biden or Hur portrayed, according to a transcript of the interview released on Tuesday before the former special counsel testified on Capitol Hill. Hur didnt ask the president about his sons death; Biden brought it up himself during a discussion about how he stored documents at a rental home in Virginia after leaving the vice presidents office in 2017. And Biden recalled the specific date that Beau died, although he briefly wondered aloud about the year as the conversation toggled between various events. What month did Beau die? Biden mused. Oh, God, May 30th. A White House lawyer interjected by saying, 2015. Was it 2015 he had died? Biden asked. When someone responded affirmatively, the president added, It was 2015. Biden aides defended the presidents inaccurate characterization of the interview during his press conference last month, describing his response as visceral and emotional. And they said his exchange with Hur showed how Biden believed it was important to reflect on how his sons death had affected his decision making over subsequent years. FILE - Then-Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., left, embraces his son Beau Biden on stage at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Aug. 27, 2008. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)AP Hur, in his testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, said his reports discussion of Bidens memory was necessary and accurate and fair because his state of mind was an important part of evaluating whether he committed a crime. I did not sanitize my explanation nor did I disparage the president unfairly, he said. Asked why Biden angrily accused Hur of raising his sons death when the transcript shows otherwise, White House spokesman Ian Sams responded that the president was being asked about Beau generally, including the book that the president wrote about his death and his cancer initiative that Beau inspired. He thought it was outrageous and inappropriate for that report to include such an inappropriate and extraneous comment like that, especially when its clear that he says the day his son died, Sams said. So I think that you saw the anger and emotional reaction of a father who still experiences the pain of that loss every single day. The transcript released on Tuesday sheds new light on one of the most politically and personally sensitive episodes in Bidens term. Although the special counsels investigation found no basis to bring criminal charges against Biden unlike Donald Trump, who was indicted for refusing to return classified records to the federal government the references to his memory threatened the presidents ability to assure voters that he can keep doing his job until he turns 86. Beau was Delawares attorney general and widely viewed as his fathers political heir when he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. The cancer, which Biden connects to his sons National Guard service near toxic burn pits on military bases in Iraq, was devastating for a family that had already suffered tragedy decades earlier. Shortly after Biden was elected to the Senate in 1972, his first wife and baby daughter were killed in a car crash that also badly injured Beau and his younger brother Hunter. Beau died while Biden was serving as vice president, and his deep sorrow helped deter him from running for president in 2016 when Trump ultimately defeated Hillary Clinton. Biden mentioned the death during an interview that Hur conducted on Oct. 8. They were discussing where Biden kept documents that he was actively working on at his Virginia home. The president responded by skipping back a few years to talk about how in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying. After the brief exchange about the specific date, Biden began to talk about writing his book, Promise Me, Dad, which was released in 2017. Special Counsel Robert Hur arrives ahead of a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)AP This is personal, he said as he talked about how Beau was like my right arm and Hunt was my left. Hur offered Biden a break at this point, but the president insisted on continuing with a lengthy story about his family. Biden said how Beau, after he was diagnosed with cancer, made him promise not to step away from public life. Biden decided I couldnt handle another run for president but he would stay involved. However, in a story that Biden has frequently told at fundraisers, he changed course after the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 and Trumps response that there were very fine people on both sides. Biden said that he is the antithesis of everything that this guy stood for and I could beat him. As he wrapped up the story, Biden wondered aloud whether Hur needed such a lengthy answer. Sorry for the detail, Biden said. No apology necessary, Hur replied. AP White House correspondent Zeke Miller and writer Seung Min Kim contributed to this report. Philadelphia attorney Robert Nix has been a registered for Republican for nearly 44 years, working on Hispanic outreach efforts for GOP senators and presidential campaigns, but hes seen enough of former President Donald Trump. There is nothing worse for this country than voting for Trump in 2024, Nix, 61, told PennLive. Now, Nix and several other anti-Trump Republicans from Pennsylvania are part of a $50 million ad campaign by the Republican Accountability PAC across six swing states. The Republican Voters Against Trump campaign will feature more than 100 testimonials from disenchanted Trump voters targeting moderate Republicans and Republican-leaning voters in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Wisconsin. Former Republicans and Republican-leaning voters held the key to 2024, and reaching them with credible, relatable messengers is essential to re-creating the anti-Trump coalition that made the difference in 2020, Sarah Longwell, the president of the Republican Accountability PAC and a Perry County native, said in a statement. It establishes a permission structure that says that whatever their complaints about Joe Biden, Donald Trump is too dangerous and too unhinged to ever be president again, Longwell said. Who better to make this case than the voters who used to support him? The ad campaign will include TV, radio, streaming, billboards and digital media. Nix said he voted for Republican presidential candidates, including Trump, up until 2020. I held my nose and I voted for Biden, he said. His turn away from Trump, though, started years before. I thought there cant be anything possibly worse than Hillary Clinton and, boy, was I wrong, Nix said. I knew that right away even before 2017 was up. Then the 2020 election happened, followed by Trumps continuing lies about it being rigged and efforts to overturn the results, and him instigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, said Nix. Now, Nix worries that the United States government will become a Christian-nationalist regime if Trump is elected. My biggest fear is thats where were headed, he said. An emotional Nix said that he has been marginalized by friends and family, and seen close relatives become Trump-inspired conspiracy theorists. We cant even talk about politics, he said. It is personal, Nix said. Why do I hate him so much? Because hes wrecked, hes divided my family. When it comes to the ad campaign, Nix said hes speaking to, by his estimate, the 30% of anti-Trump Republicans who are still reachable. As for the other 70%, Nix said they cannot be swayed. Im not going to try and convert any MAGA-heads, he said. Theyre in a cult. Country music star Luke Bryan took to social media Tuesday as the search continues for a young man who disappeared over the weekend after being asked to leave his Nashville bar. According to reports, Riley Strain, 22, was asked to leave Bryans 32 Bridge bar Friday because he had been overserved. The University of Missouri student traveled to Nashville with his fraternity brothers for a convention, according to FOX. Strains friends reportedly told police that he told them he would walk back to their hotel, which was five blocks away. However, FOX reported that phone pings appear to show that Strain walked in the opposite direction of the hotel when he left the bar. Bryan addressed the situation on Instagram Tuesday writing, YALL THIS IS SCARY. PRAYING FOR HIS SAFE RETURN. He shared a statement that said that his bar is continuing to work closely with the Metro Nashville Police Department to provide security camera footage and any other potentially helpful information to aid in the search for Riley Strain. Bryan also shared a screen shot from the Metro Nashville Police Departments social media post requesting information in the search for Strain. This is definitely the worst nightmare, Strains stepfather, Chris Whiteid, told FOX. He talks to his mom three or four times a day. For him to go this long without talking is not normal by any means. A Harrisburg safety monitor got into a fight with a high school teacher in a classroom full of students Wednesday morning, resulting in both staff members being placed on leave. The disturbance occurred about 8:10 a.m. at the John Harris campus of the citys high school. District officials sent a letter to parents Wednesday about the incident and held a 12:30 p.m. news conference to answer questions from reporters. According to Superintendent Eric Turman: A school safety monitor entered a 9th or 10th grade classroom unexpectedly and confronted the teacher about a personal concern. The verbal disagreement escalated into a fight, he said, which caused other staff members and a student to step in to break up the fight. In a video posted on social media, one student was trying to help pull some of the individuals off while punches were being thrown between the teacher and the school safety monitor. After the fight, the teacher and the safety monitor were escorted out of the building and were placed on paid leave, according to Turman. Turman said the teacher had worked with the school district for two years and the school safety monitor has been with the district for seven years. No one was injured in the fight, according to Turman. The building principal spoke to the students who witnessed the fight, officials said. Social workers and counselors also will be on hand to help support students who saw the fight. This incident is entirely unacceptable, highly unusual and is not in any way representative of our faculty and staff who take seriously their responsibility to serve as role models for our students, Turman said in the letter to parents. We apologize for the impact this incident may have had on students who look to our staff as trusted adults. Anthony Walker, better known as Baby Gap in The Gap Band, has died. He was 60. According to multiple reports, Walker actually died back on March 4. TMZ cited Walkers brother, Eric Walker, in reporting that he died in an Ohio hospital after suffering complications from a neck surgery. Walker had been performing with the GapX band, which consists of former Gap Band members, and they acknowledge his passing on social media. The Band will miss our friend, brother and band mate Anthony Gap Walker, the Instagram post read. Gone too soon. We will never forget you!!! Walker reportedly joined the band in 1979 as a dancer and choreographer and eventually became a songwriter, too. He toured with The Gap Band for 23 years. Outside of The Gap Band, he also reportedly had collaborations with such artists as Rick James, George Clinton and Snoop Dogg. Want a say in the news? Email Claudia at todayinpa@pennlive.com to have your thoughts on the stories covered here or on PennLive heard. You can listen to the latest episode of Today in Pa on any of your favorite apps including Alexa, Apple, Spotify, and Stitcher. Episodes are available every weekday on PennLive. Feel free to subscribe, follow or rate Today in Pa. as you see fit! Today in Pa. Daily Podcast | March 13, 2024 A university has been sued for complying with an investigation into accusations of antisemitism. In more law news, a mistrial has been called in a case concerning a former Penn State doctor. A soon-to-be introduced bill would impose fees on the money transfers of illegal immigrants. And meet this years Cadbury Bunny Tryouts semifinalists. Those are the stories we cover in the latest episode of Today in Pa., a daily weekday podcast from PennLive.com and hosted by Claudia Dimuro. Today in Pa. is dedicated to sharing the most important and interesting stories pertaining to Pennsylvania that lets you know, indeed, whats happening today in Pa. Todays episode refers to the following articles: If you enjoy Today in Pa., consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on Amazon. Reviews help others find the show and, besides, wed like to know what you think about the program, too. As sponsored by Renewal by Anderson of Central PA. An estimated 1.8 billion Muslims around the world are now celebrating the holy month of Ramadan, a time the observant dedicate to prayer and fasting. A good number of them are right here in Pennsylvania, a state founded on the concept of religious freedom. Even non-Muslims can take some valuable lessons from three ideals Muslims celebrate this month: self-denial, compassion, and spiritual renewal. The City of Richmond is urging the federal government to provide more temporary housing for refugees and asylum seekers or pay for the use of city shelters, with the newcomers taking up about a third of all beds at one shelter last year. British Columbia's provincial flag flies on a flagpole in Ottawa, Friday July 3, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld The Schuyler Sertoma Boho Bash will be held from 2-6 p.m. Sunday, March 24, at the Oak Ballroom in Schuyler. The event will feature Angie Kriz and the Polka Tunes. Admission is $10. A Czeska Buchta Dinner will be served. The meal tickets must be ordered in advance for $15 per meal and the deadline is March 15. Extra sandwiches will be available for sale for $7 each. Czescka Buchta is a Czech sandwich with slow roasted pork loin, sauerkraut, onions and cheese. Meal tickets are available at local banks in Schuyler: Bank Of The Valley, Homestead Bank and Pinnacle Bank. Schuyler Sertoma is a service organization and its mission is to improve the quality of life for those at risk or impacted by hearing loss through education and support. The group also helps meet the needs of the community through volunteer service and helping donate toward worthy causes. Some of these include an annual scholarship to a local senior; and donating to the food pantry, post prom, Colfax Food and Toy Drive at Christmas time, and County K-9 fund. Hunter Biden declined to testify at James Comers public hearing and suggested an investigation into Jared Kushner and the Trumps for influence peddling. CNN reported that Hunter Biden declined Comers offer to publicly testify through a letter to House Oversight Committee Chair Comer through is lawyer: The attorney, Abbe Lowell, argued the hearing is not a serious oversight proceeding. It is your attempt to resuscitate your Conferences moribund inquiry with a made-for-right-wing-media, circus act. To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily. Calling the invitation a Hail Mary pass, Lowell wrote: I thought even you would recognize your baseless impeachment proceeding was dead. In his letter, Lowell also criticized Comers decision to invite some of the discredited business associates tied to the presidents son to the same hearing. He argued if Comer was serious about holding an oversight hearing to address alleged influence peddling, the committee should invite Jared Kushner and members of the Trump family alongside Hunter Biden. The investigation of the Trump family for influence peddling is likely coming after Democrats take back the House. In the meantime, Comer is going to try to revive his dead as a doornail Biden impeachment with a public hearing that will feature all of the same discredited names and faces that Republicans have been pushing for more than a year. Comer has still not come up with a single witness who can testify to President Biden committing an impeachable offense. The House Republican game has grown beyond tiresome. The dead impeachment needs to end. Hunter Biden and his attorney were correct. If Chair Comer is serious about investigating a family member of a president for influence peddling, Jared Kushner, who worked in the Trump administration, is running around with $2 billion in Saudi cash and a whole lot of unanswered questions. Republicans would rather focus on Hunter Biden and his paintings than admit the very corruption that happened under Donald Trump while he was president. 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. Parkdale Mills no longer owns the property that was the site of its Plant 40 in Graniteville. The company sold the land and the structures on it for $4.97 million to 418 ALR LCC in a deal that was finalized Feb. 23. The Aiken Standard reported in February 2023 that Parkdale Mills planned to close Plant 40 in the spring. At the time, there were approximately 150 people working there, according to Will Williams, president and CEO of the Western SC Economic Development Partnership. Byron Morris Jr., who has a North Augusta address, is the registered agent for 418 ALR, which was formed in January in South Carolina. Parkdale Mills is the worlds leading manufacturer of spun yarns," according to its website. The companys headquarters is in Gastonia, North Carolina. According to Aiken County land records, there is a 288,770-square-foot brick industrial building on the Plant 40 property along with a 288-square-foot brick office building. The 23-acre tract is at 418 Ascauga Lake Road. Those staying on the second floor of the Sleep Inn at 303 23rd St. may feel a lifting feeling that is, if they take the new elevator. On Tuesday, the owners and staff at Sleep Inn showed off a series of renovations, from the new elevator to the meeting/party room and refurbished guest rooms, to Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce commodores and hotel constituents. "We want to make sure this place stays sharp this is kind of our pride we want to make sure we have a good presentation for the community," said Larry Zach, one of the owners. The owners Jay Jackson, Larry Zach, Rick Kubler and Carol Novicki bought the site in the 1990's after discussing investment opportunities at Glur's Tavern, Kubler said. One idea of buying Glur's itself even got tossed around, but Kubler thought Columbus needed a motel, and that idea started to take hold. "At the time, we did have a Holiday Inn Express. This friend called me and said 'you know what, some people in Lincoln of Russian heritage have decided to (get) out of this lot and sell it,'" Kubler said. "They were going to build a hotel. The four of us and several other people brainstormed and started this facility as we know it today." That investment turned into a 50-room hotel that has since grown significantly. Kubler said the owners all have experience in management-related areas and get along well, which has contributed to the Sleep Inn's success. "We've never had an argument, we get along and we all socialize in the same groups and different. We're all here in town. (Larry Zach) was manager at BD for years, Carol (Novicki) was manager at Vishay for years, I'm a broker and (Jay) Jackson has Jackson Services," Kubler said. There have been many changes over the years, such as expanding from the original 50 rooms to 98 and now 95 with the renovations. The recent batch of renovations started with an elevator that was part of Choice Hotels International's (Sleep Inn brand's parent company) requirements. From there, Kubler said it led to recarpeting the building and that evolved into moving the fitness center, remodeling the rooms and finally doing something with the former pool. General Manager Terri Kallweit said it's been something of a dead space used for storage since she started, so she's happy to have been part of making it usable again. "When I first started out here, I saw a lot of individuals looking for a place to rent, for baby showers, weddings, any small gatherings and there's just not a lot of those places in town," Kallweit said. "I saw that need and the owners wanted me to do something with this area since they took the pool out, so I hired a contractor." Zach and Kubler said the hotel is in a good spot, geographically and clientele-wise. They typically have a lot of business from sporting events and such, so the pool wasn't doing much compared to the possible use of the new room. The four owners are confident the renovations are a good investment. Around half of the rooms are complete, with the rest underway. While these improvements are great, Zach, Kubler and Kallweit said it's really the people who made them happen and worked through the construction process to keep the customer experience great that are the biggest asset the Sleep Inn has. Kubler especially said Kallweit's management style has been a boon to the business. "If you look at our reports on our website, a lot have to do with our staff. People love our staff, our staff has been consistent and stay a long time," Zach said. "One of the absolute best things about this hotel, aside from the owners, is our employees. I could not do this job without every single one of them. Every single one has their part in this hotel," Kallweit said. Moncks Corner, SC (29461) Today Partly cloudy this evening with more clouds for overnight. Low around 60F. Winds light and variable.. Tonight Partly cloudy this evening with more clouds for overnight. Low around 60F. Winds light and variable. Visitors crowd around the first production model of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner at a ceremony on July 8, 2007, in Everett, Wash. The company would announce plans about five years later to build its newest jet in North Charleston. Two new dining venues are opening in the Lowcountry this week, another is turning out the lights and a coffee chain plans to unveil three cafes in the region in 2024. On the upper Charleston peninsula, upscale Chinese restaurant XO Brasserie opened March 12 at 1090 Morrison Drive at The Morris office complex. The 87-seat dining venture offers Cantonese and Sichuan flavors from owner Herman Ng, who was previously at The Royal Tern restaurant on Johns Island. The menu includes small plates, house-made dumplings, noodles, rice, chef specialties, sides, desserts and cocktails. Located on the bottom floor of a two-story building at Brigade Street and Morrison Drive, XO is open after 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Fourth helping Also opening this week is the fourth of six planned Lowcountry restaurants from a bagel brand. Ruby's New York Style Bagels will open March 15 at 3485 Park Avenue Blvd. in Carolina Park in northern Mount Pleasant. It will be open 7 a.m.-2 p.m. daily. Other venues are planned for the developing One Nexton commercial destination near Summerville and the forthcoming Marketplace at Carnes Crossroads retail complex in Goose Creek. A member of the panel that regulates South Carolina utilities has stepped down over a bill that he and other critics have blasted as a blank check for the power industry. Tom Ervin of Greenville said in a statement to the General Assembly that he would resign from the S.C. Public Service Commission on March 31, citing "serious concerns" over legislation proposed last month by House Speaker Murrell Smith. He later said his departure was effective immediately. "This bill would limit the PSC from providing meaningful regulatory oversight and accountability for planning and building a new natural gas generation plant in our state," Ervin wrote. He also warned that the proposed changes could lead to a repeat of the failed expansion of the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station, which has cost ratepayers nearly $10 billion and is considered to be the state's most expensive business failure. "South Carolina has been down this rocky road before," he said. The former state lawmaker and circuit court judge was appointed to the commission in July 2018. His decision to give up his seat on the powerful board stems from the proposed "South Carolina 10-Year Energy Transformation Act," which would loosen permitting regulations in an effort to add more capacity to the state's power grid. Among other changes, the bill calls for cutting the size of the commission to three members and would give greater weight to testimony provided by utility experts. "Common sense and experience tell us that having seven commissioners, one representing each of the seven Congressional districts, has served our state well," Ervin said. The bill also would require regulators to consider the economic impact of new electric utility projects as a key factor in their decision-making process and allow private "off the record" meetings with utility representatives. "We need to preserve the PSCs independence and integrity," Ervin said. "As you know, our current law prohibits back-room deals and provides a statutory right for all stakeholders to participate in a transparent hearing in public view." GREENVILLE Vines climb the sides of the red brick building, curling around the empty window frames and mingling with splashes of graffiti. Piles of ragged possessions are scattered on the first floor of the defunct water treatment plant, signs of intermittent habitation. The second floor, littered with shattered glass, overlooks driveways and backyards in the Union Bleachery mill village just a few yards away. Sign up for updates! Get the latest Greenville news from The Post and Courier in your inbox. Email Sign Up! The building is just one of a collection of abandoned structures on the sprawling, 238-acre U.S. Finishing/Cone Mills property in Sans Souci, much of which was recently delisted as a toxic Superfund site. Residents refer to the property, just northwest of the City of Greenville, as the Union Bleachery, the first manufacturing plant that stood there. Contamination from the textile factories that operated on the site for roughly a century had long rendered it undevelopable. But in 2021, that changed. A Florida-based development group announced plans to remediate the property off Old Buncombe Road and make it the home of a massive mixed-use development, one of the largest in Greenville County history. The latest estimated price tag for the project is more than $2 billion double the original estimation from just a few years ago. The dilapidated water treatment facility, as well as a disused textile plant, were part of a March 12 tour of the site, which included developers, state and local officials, and representatives from President Joe Bidens administration. The administration recently allocated $1 billion to remediating Superfund sites around the country. Of that, $10 million will go to decontaminating groundwater at the Union Bleachery property. Brenda Mallory, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, was there to learn more about the redevelopment the funding will support. The work that went into making sure that there was an approach that made this workable and financially sensible for developers to do is huge, she said. So being able to actually hear people talk about having done that work, Im encouraging them to share what they did, because I think other communities could really benefit. Six out of 10 students at the Greenville County school where I teach are from Mexico, Central America and South America. Many of them are like Paola, a first-grader from El Salvador who lives in a small apartment with her grandma, mom, sister and uncle. She is a wonderful kid. Read moreCommentary: Immigrants I teach daily are nothing like how some describe them Summerville, SC (29483) Today Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low near 60F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. Low near 60F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Indonesias Financial Regulator Issues New Crypto Regulations Ahead of January 2025 Transition The Financial Services Authority (OJK), Indonesias financial services watchdog, released new rules on March 13 that will cover cryptocurrencies and will come into force in January 2025. OJKs Fresh Regulation to Strengthen Crypto and Financial Industry The financial regulator released fresh directives that cover actions relating to digital financial assets like cryptocurrency. It is believed that these fresh directives will strengthen the financial industry. To bolster the entirety of the financial sector, the latest directives spell out how novel technologies can be leveraged as opportunities emerge. This was directed at financial sector players including banks, insurance corporations, and many others. The directives explore how financial services and products are impacted by the introduction of new financial sector innovations. This allows scrutiny of the digital operations of financial institutions. Concerns for customers also take centre stage in the latest guidelines. For instance, customer protection, conducting pilot testing of technological innovations, and test result reporting are highlighted. At the moment, technical in-depth coverage is not possible because the latest directives lack specifics. Notwithstanding, its foundational for overseeing cryptocurrencys financial innovations in Indonesia. This crypto regulations introduction demonstrates OJKs proactive moves to get ready to take up crypto control by January 2025. OJK is not working on this alone. A transition team comprising professionals from Bank Indonesia and Bappebti, the incumbent crypto regulator, has been instituted. This team will oversee the change in digital financial asset supervision. Hope remains that OJKs action of releasing the legal framework will allow increased adoption of cryptocurrencies and associated technologies. Indonesias Move Towards Crypto Policy Indonesia has not been silent on calling for guidelines to regulate crypto for a while. These efforts, which have culminated in collaborations with other nations, have also not gone unnoticed. OJK began working with financial regulators from Malaysia, Singapore, and Dubai earlier this month to develop an all-encompassing crypto strategy. Establishing a strong foundation for crypto policy is the goal of these international partnership. The partnership includes writing Memorandums of Understanding with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. The Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority of Dubai and Bank Negara of Malaysia are also involved. Indonesia is at the heart of a digital revolution to transform its GDP to the tune of $2.8 trillion by 2040. Indonesias Finance Minister Sri Mulyani called for an aggregation of policies to regulate crypto assets in 2023. We need a global standard to regulate and supervise crypto assets while applying the principles of same activity, same risk, and same regulation, she said at a G20 even in July 2023. Recently, there were indications that Indonesian regulators are considering changes to cryptos dual taxation as well. According to one X user who deemed it a step in the right direction, the move would improve crypto adoption. Police arrested a man accused of fleeing from downtown Charleston to Mount Pleasant with officers in pursuit and barricading himself in his car for several hours. The man, 39-year-old Anthony Doty, is charged with attempted murder after allegedly stabbing a person on the corner of King and Engel streets around 9 p.m. March 12, Charleston Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Anthony Gibson said. The victim suffered a non-life-threatening injury and was treated at the scene, Gibson said. When officers located the suspect's vehicle and attempted to stop it, officers reported Doty refused to comply and fled to Mount Pleasant. Gibson said that during the pursuit Doty intentionally backed into a CPD police cruiser once and attempted to ram his car a second time. The chase ended in a parking lot on Magrath Darby Boulevard in Mount Pleasant, closing the road between Coleman and Johnnie Dodds boulevards for several hours. Doty barricaded himself in his car and refused to exit, according to the news release. CPD's special operations division was able to take the suspect into custody around midnight, Gibson said. Doty is charged with attempted murder, two counts of assault and battery in the first degree and possession of a weapon (knife) during the commission of a violent crime. The assault and battery charges stem from Doty running his car into the police vehicle once and attempting to do it a second time, Gibson said. It is the first time Doty has been booked into the Charleston County jail, according to jail records. The Mount Pleasant Police Department and Charleston County Sheriff's Office assisted during the incident. This story is developing. Check back for updates. MONCKS CORNER Nearly eight years ago, Dean Stephens reported a story that stuck with him and eventually landed him a new career. At the time, Stephens was a news anchor at the Charleston ABC television affiliate, WCIV. He interviewed Nanci Steadman Shipman in 2016, three months after her 19-year-old son Creighton died from a heroin overdose. Her story, like so many others who have buried their children, resonated with Stephens, who has been clean and sober for more than 30 years. Nancis family made a promise to Creighton that no family would ever have to walk alone, and they have been true to that promise every day for seven years, Stephens said March 12 outside of a building in Berkeley County, the second location for a nonprofit that grew out of the Shipmans promise to their son and brother. WakeUp Carolina provides support programs, resources, harm-reduction measures and awareness education for families and those dealing with addiction. Late last year, the nonprofit moved into a larger location in Mount Pleasant, where staff offer addiction services to Charleston County families and anyone else who made the drive or reached out. The greater need was still clear. Shipman said nearly 50 percent of more than one million individuals the nonprofit served over the last four years live in Berkeley County. So the group expanded its reach there with help from a grant funded through the countys Opioid Settlement . So far this year, 11 people have fatally overdosed in Berkeley County with two more deaths suspected, according to statistics provided by the coroners office. Overdoses kill more people than any other unnatural cause of death more than guns, cars or suicide. The poisonings are driven largely by a lethal synthetic opioid called fentanyl. Berkeley County is like everywhere else, fentanyl is killing people, Shipman said. It is destroying families. Last year, 84 people died from drug poisonings in the county, just one person shy of the previous years death toll. In Charleston County, 236 people died from overdoses last year, according to the coroners office there. I just put the Stars and Stripes back up outside my house. Though hard winds keep blowing it down, I put it up again. Having it regularly knocked down has me reflecting on what it means to be American in 2024. Read moreCommentary: Why I put my US flag back up again even as the hard winds blow ANDERSON The Anderson County library board is debating moving a childrens book with transgender themes in the wake of a recent vote to expand the bodys membership, a hotly contested decision decried by critics as a play for majority power and censorship in the rural Upstate. The seven-member library board and library director attempted three times March 11 to decide whether to relocate the childrens novel Melissa out of the childrens section after a local parent challenged the book. Before a small crowd of concerned residents, the board ultimately postponed the vote to the next meeting, May 13, after each of the motions failed. But the debate over moving the book came on the heels of a contentious County Council meeting March 5, where the majority Republican council voted for the third and final time to add two new members to the board, boosting it from seven to nine members. While Vice Chairman Brett Sanders said the expansion was not political and that it would give new council members greater say over who serves on the board dozens of residents attended the meetings to either condemn the expansion as backdoor censorship or support it as moral protection. The clash marked the latest incident in South Carolina where libraries have become cultural battlegrounds, targeted mainly by ultra-conservative groups that decry materials dealing with sexuality, gender identity and race as inappropriate for children. Expanding the library board The conflict over which materials should be available to children in libraries and schools has taken root across the state, often propelled by far-right parental rights groups like Moms for Liberty . In Berkeley County, one parent is challenging 93 books on the countys school shelves on the grounds they are inappropriate. In 2022, a group galvanized by Moms for Liberty compelled Beaufort County Schools to remove nearly 100 library books. The Pickens County School District removed the book Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You after parents complained in 2022, leading families of high-schoolers, the local NAACP chapter and the ACLU to sue. South Carolinas federal court will reconsider a request to put the banned book back while the case awaits trial. U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace used her weekend endorsement from Donald Trump to suggest her leading rival in the upcoming Republican primary drop out. In a cross-campaign message that was immediately rejected by challenger Catherine Templeton, Mace suggested Lowcountry Republicans get on the same page and back the contender preferred by the former president. Its time for Templeton to step aside and support the only candidate supported by our partys leader and the only candidate who can win in November," Mace campaign manager John Mason said in a March 13 challenge. "To do otherwise would be to oppose the direction our party leader, Donald Trump, has set for us, Mason added, pointing to what he foreshadowed as millions of dollars Democrats might throw into the 1st Congressional District race come November. Templeton's campaign issued a quick rebuff. "Like most of Nancy's career, this is an odd and somewhat feeble attempt to attract attention," said her campaign manager Chet Martin. "We're going to let the voters decide on June 11." Mace's attempt to get immediate early mileage out of the Trump endorsement could be a test of how popular the former president is in the 1st District, which stretches from greater Charleston to Hilton Head Island. While Trump remains favored statewide, he lost the district turnout to Nikki Haley in last month's GOP presidential primary. Russian Crypto Regulation May Have to Wait Until 2025 Russian crypto regulation may be delayed until 2025, as decision-makers in the nation prioritize other matters. Per the media outlet Arigus, the Chairman of the State Dumas Committee on the Financial Markets, Anatoly Aksakov, believes that the legalization of cryptocurrencies in the Russian Federation is only a matter of time. However, Aksakov conceded that the corresponding bills will be adopted in 2024 to 2025. This could be too late for some. Russian Crypto Regulation Can Moscow Afford to Wait? In late February, German Neglyad, the Deputy Head of the domestic anti-money-laundering regulator Rosfinmonitoring, called on the Kremlin to speed up crypto regulation rollouts. Following a Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and the Financing of Terrorism (EAG) analysis, Russias Financial Action Task Force (FATF) rating was downgraded. FATF has moved Russias compliance ranking for crypto regulation down from complaint to partially compliant. Repeated attempts to regulate the sector have failed. The Central Bank previously called for a blanket ban on crypto. But ministries, such as the energy and finance ministries, would prefer to regulate and tax the sector. This has led to a lengthy impasse that Russia can arguably scarcely afford. Domestic companies are already using crypto as a payment tool in international trade. Russias crypto mining business is also booming, despite the fact that crypto mining has no legal status in the nation. This also means that crypto exchanges are essentially unregulated. Meanwhile, the nations P2P market is reportedly expanding rapidly. Some media outlets claim that up to 29% of Russians aged 22 to 44 own cryptoassets, while the Russian government has estimated that some 10% of citizens have crypto wallets. Bigger Fish to Fry for Kremlin? However, lawmakers and regulators appear to think they have more pressing matters to attend to. They have prioritized the rollout of pilots and legislation governing digital financial assets and the Russian CBDC, the digital ruble. Aksakov appears to be unmoved. He is confident that Moscow will address the matter of Russian crypto regulation in due course. The media outlet added: Politicians have come to a consensus about the promise of blockchain technology. There is no longer any talk of banning cryptocurrencies. Russia's war economy faces tough times ahead, says IMF's Georgieva https://t.co/PQsNnen7fR pic.twitter.com/6nJz47q6dg Reuters (@Reuters) February 12, 2024 But the outlet also noted that Aksakov planned to legalize cryptocurrencies in Russia as early as 202, but [his] deadlines are constantly shifting. A lack of a legal framework for crypto mining, the outlet concluded, costs the Treasury billions of rubles in tax revenue every year. PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 12:03:03 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1056 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Aclara Resources Inc. ("Aclara" or the "Company") (TSX:ARA) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an investment agreement with CAP S.A. ("CAP"), a publicly listed company on the Chilean Stock Exchange, pursuant to which, amongst other things, CAP will make a US$29 million strategic investment in REE Uno SpA ("REE Uno"), Aclaras Chilean subsidiary, which owns the Penco Module (the "Investment Agreement"). Under the terms of the Investment Agreement, CAP also has an option to invest an additional US$50 million in REE Uno and a three-year option to subscribe a 19.9% interest in Aclara, and the parties have also agreed to form a joint venture company to develop metals and alloys for the rare earths permanent magnet industry (the "Transaction"). The Transaction reflects the parties' shared view that the future will require innovative mineral extraction methods, a strong focus on environmental and social sustainability, and the understanding that our planet requires cleanly produced rare earths metals in its urgent fight against climate change.CAP S.A., a company with more than 77 years of history and listed in the Chilean Stock Exchange since 1987, is the parent company of the CAP Group, a Chilean conglomerate operating in various industries including iron ore mining (CMP), with mines and industrial operations in the north of the country, as well as steelmaking operations in Concepcion (Huachipato), very close to the Penco Module. CAP is one of the leading high-grade iron ore producers in the world with four operating mines in Chile. In addition, CAP has several steel product manufacturing plants in Chile, Peru and Argentina. It operates five ports, a seawater desalination plant and has vast industrial infrastructure in the Biobio region. Huachipato has been operating since 1950, and together with SMS Group is developing a project for sustainable steel using green hydrogen for the direct reduction of iron. CAP has a strong connection with the people of the Biobio region, where it has been a major employer for several decades, contributing directly to the development of the south of Chile.Transaction SummaryA US$29.1 million capital contribution by CAP into REE Uno, Aclaras Chilean subsidiary which owns the Penco Module and all of Aclaras mining concessions in Chile, in exchange for a 20% equity participation in REE Uno. Payments will be made in three tranches with the initial tranche of US$9.7 million to be made upon closing of the Transaction, the second payment of US$12.5 million in January 2025 and the remaining balance of US$6.9 million to be made in January 2026. This initial investment represents a pre-money valuation of REE Uno of US$116.5 million. An option to invest an additional US$50 million in REE Uno for an additional 20% equity interest in REE Uno once the requisite environmental permit is secured for the Penco Module. Upon completion, this additional investment would allow CAP to attain a 40% equity interest in REE Uno. This second investment represents a pre-money valuation of REE Uno of US$150 million. A three-year option to invest up to 19.9% in Aclara by participating in any private placement or public offering of shares that Aclara may make during the next 36 months, including a residual top-up right to maintain pro rata voting rights. Any subscription to such private placement or public offering will be made on the same terms offered by Aclara to other investors. CAP will have the right to nominate one board member upon attaining and for so long as its equity interest in Aclara amount to at least 15% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Aclara. In addition, CAP holds a one-time demand subscription right to invest up to an aggregate of 19.9% in Aclara, exercisable upon the satisfaction of certain conditions and continuing for a maximum period of 18 months counted from the end of the initial 3-year option. The formation of a 50/50 joint venture to develop metals and alloys for the rare earths permanent magnet industry. CAP will invest US$3.0 million in exchange for its 50% of the shares of the newly established joint venture company. Aclara will own the other 50% of the shares.Closing of the Transaction is subject to the performance of certain customary closing conditions, which the parties expect to complete within the next 30 days.Aclara Corporate Structure after the Completion of the Transaction with CAPTransaction Benefits to AclaraThe US$29.1 million initial capital injection from CAP into REE Uno will support the ongoing development of the Penco Module throughout its permitting, community relations, and feasibility study phases. This allocation will allow Aclara Resources to reallocate its current cash reserves towards advancing its Carina Module project in Brazil.The option for an additional US$50 million investment post-receipt of the environmental permit is intended to cover a significant part of the equity portion associated with the construction of the Penco Module. This provision mitigates financing risks linked to the module's construction for Aclara.Drawing upon CAP's extensive experience in environmental permitting from multiple mining projects in Chile, Aclara anticipates strengthened support for the forthcoming Penco Module Environmental Impact Assessment ("EIA") permit application. CAP's involvement includes a thorough review and constructive contributions to the application preparation, as well as accompanying Aclara throughout the review and approval process by Chilean environmental agencies.Furthermore, the establishment of a metals and alloys company represents the initial phase of Aclara's strategic vision to vertically integrate its rare earths concentrate production towards the manufacturing of permanent magnets. This move aims to offer a geopolitically independent alternative supply of permanent magnets to the market. The new company will harness CAP's substantial expertise in metal refining and ferro-alloyed special steels, synergizing with Aclara's thorough understanding of the rare earths and permanent magnet industry.ValuationThe Transaction reflects the valuation of Aclara at the time of the Company's initial public offering (the "IPO") and is indicative of the belief both parties have in establishing Aclara as a leading producer of clean rare earths.Upon closing, REE Uno will be valued at US$116.5 million on a pre-money valuation. In addition, Aclara will own 50% of the newly established joint venture company, which has a valuation of US$3.0 million. In total, the Transaction represents a value for Aclara of US$119.5 million, which reflects Aclara's pre-money valuation at the IPO.It's noteworthy that Acla PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:30:25 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 985 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Highlights:The Pulse Guru: A smart sensor wearable that redefines access to signal data for vital cardiovascular insights. Designed for healthcare innovators, researchers, and others in need of essential "raw" signal capture. The Pulse Guru's continuous stream of rich time-series data is not accessible from mainstream smartwatches such as Apple, Google, Garmin, or Fitbit. VICTORIA, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / AI/ML Innovations Inc. (the "Company") (CSE:AIML)(OTCQB:AIMLF)(FWB:42FB), a leading company committed to acquiring and advancing Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning technologies that address urgent societal needs, is pleased to have received the following press release from its majority-owned subsidiary, Health Gauge Inc.:Health Gauge Inc., a leader in health tech innovation, proudly introduces The Pulse Guru (formerly known as The Pulse Whisperer), the second innovative product based upon the Company's wearable technology patented solution and advanced Neural Network.The Pulse Guru offers healthcare innovators, researchers, and other users unparalleled access to rich biometric raw ECG and PPG signal data capture through Health Gauge's proprietary and patented AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network solution. This enables in-depth analysis and insights into cardiovascular health and wellness that is not possible with the mainstream wearables on the market today.Empowering Users with Vital Insights - The Pulse Guru Value PropositionThe Pulse Guru stands out in the competitive landscape of smart sensor wearables by delivering a continuous stream of rich time-series data, unlocking vital insights into cardiovascular health. The comprehensive value proposition includes:1. Rich Time-Series Data:The Pulse Guru provides a continuous and rich stream of time-series data from both ECG and PPG data streams, setting it apart from mainstream wearables such as Apple Health, Google Fit, Garmin, and Fitbit that do not provide access to streaming biosignals and measurements. This wealth of information from The Pulse Guru allows for the ability to conduct greater in-depth analysis and insights into cardiovascular health, as well as making it easier for innovators to conduct their own original research.2. Proprietary AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network:Health Gauge's AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network, based on our a proprietary and patented technology, sets a new standard for accuracy and precision in analyzing raw biometric signals. This advanced neural network ensures reliable and real-time health & wellness data assets, providing users with a more comprehensive understanding of their well-being.3. Neural Network Licensing Program:The introduction of the Neural Network licensing program signifies a strategic move towards collaboration. Wearable device manufacturers, medical device developers, researchers, data scientists, and machine learning engineers in Health Tech, along with educational institutions, now have the opportunity to leverage the power of the AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network.4. Micropay Access for Blood Pressure Measurement:The Pulse Guru offers micropay access to the proprietary AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network for Blood Pressure Measurement. This opens avenues for seamless integration of this cutting-edge technology into various applications and services.5. Target Buyers:Wearable Device ManufacturersMedical Device Developers and InnovatorsMedical ResearchersClinical Trial ResearchersData Scientists and Machine Learning Engineers in Health TechEducational Institutions"We're pleased to introduce the Pulse Guru solution, which includes our AI Precision Pulse Neural Network for researchers and innovators as a new tool to do original research in digital health", said Randy Duguay, CEO of Health Gauge Inc. "We have been making our solution available for research uses for over 2 years with select clinical research partners now, and we are looking forward to doing more to support the growing R&D interests in AI-based wearable technology which is becoming more widely adopted." Paul Duffy, CEO of AI/ML Innovations Inc., added, "We are excited to unveil The Pulse Guru, a proprietary suite of software, smart sensors and Neural Networks that provides a completely unique approach to cardiovascular health monitoring. The continuous stream of rich time-series data, combined with the power of our AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network, is key to making The Pulse Guru novel in the industry. This release not only marks a new era for Health Gauge but also signifies our commitment to providing users with a deeper understanding of their well-being." ###About Health Gauge https://www.healthgauge.com/ Health Gauge Inc., a majority-owned subsidiary of AI/ML Innovations Inc., is a leading health tech company dedicated to pushing the boundaries of innovation in cardiovascular health monitoring. With a focus on providing users with unprecedented access to biometric raw signals, Health Gauge's solutions empower individuals to take control of their health and well-being in a manner which was never before possible in a wearable.About AI/ML Innovations Inc. https://aiml-innovations.com/ AI/ML Innovations Inc. has realigned its business operations to capitalize on the burgeoning fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), with an initial investment focus on emerging digital health and wellbeing companies that leverage AI, ML, cloud computing and digital platforms to drive transformative healthcare management solutions and precision support delivery across the health continuum. Through strategic partnerships with Health Gauge (95.2% owned by AIML), Tech2Heal (up to 22% ownership rights, with 12.44% currently owned by AIML), AI Rx Inc. (70% owned by AIML) and other planned accretive investments, the Company continues to capitalize on expanding growth areas, to the benefit of all the Company's stakeholders. AI/ML's shares are traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol "AIML", the OTCQB Venture Market under "AIMLF", and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under "42FB".On behalf of the Board of DirectorsTim Daniels, Executive ChairmanFor more information about AI/ML Innovations:For detailed information please see AI/ML's website or the Company's filed documents at www.sedarplus.ca For further information, contact: Blake Fallis at (778) 405-0882 or info@ aiml-innovations.com Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.For AI/ML Innovations InvestorsCertain statements made in this press release that are not based on historical PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 15:22:17 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 510 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Marketing and Branding Industry's Conference to Feature Innovators and Thought Leaders Discussing the Future of Brands on April 25, 2024CHICAGO, IL / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 /BrandSmart 2024, one of the brand marketing community's most prestigious conferences, announces Sheila Hamilton, Marketing and Menu Lead - New Business Ventures at McDonald's as its keynote speaker. The annual conference will feature renowned thought leaders who will delve into the latest marketing trends and share insights about the future of branding in an experience-driven economy. In addition to Hamilton's keynote address, BrandSmart will feature industry expert panels and mainstage presentations uncovering actionable strategies to empower brands in an ever-evolving marketing landscape.Sheila Hamilton, Marketing and Menu Lead - New Business Ventures at McDonald's Sheila Hamilton of McDonald's to kick-off AMA Chicago's 2024 BrandSmart Conference as its Keynote speaker. Now in its 22nd year, BrandSmart is the longest-running conference of its kind in the country. The 2024 theme, "The Future of Brand in an Experience-Driven Economy," highlights the crucial role that memorable experiences play in customer engagement and loyalty. This year's event will be held in the AON Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier in Chicago on Thursday, April 25, 2024, from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. CDT. BrandSmart is produced by the American Marketing Association Chicago, (AMA Chicago) the largest AMA chapter in North America."We are so pleased to welcome Sheila as our keynote speaker and anchor the conference around her marketing innovation and branding wisdom," said AMA Chicago President Chris McGuire. "The background she'll be sharing on design thinking, speed-to-market, and customer experience transcends industries, and brand leaders from all marketing backgrounds will benefit from her insights." Hamilton's keynote, Staying Grounded While Launching an Out-of-this-World Brand, will take place at 9:30 a.m. She will also be doing a LinkedIn Live on the AMA Chicago channel on April 17th at 12:00 CDT.Additional BrandSmart sessions include:Embracing AI and Maintaining the Human Touch with Jennifer Polk, Chief Marketing and Digital Experience Officer at Feeding AmericaMega Power Panel with Dan Moriarty, Chief Marketing Officer at Chicago FireInnovation as Creativity with Meghan Hurley, Vice President of Global Brand Marketing at Claire'sBranding in the Narrative Economy: The Psychology of Consumer Experiences with Kristian A. Aloma, Ph.D., Founder & CEO at ThreadlineArchitecting Your Future with Jennifer Wesley, Managing Director, Talent Strategy and Development at GoogleNetworking is a core component of BrandSmart each year, and attendees will have ample opportunities to mingle with marketing peers from across the country."BrandSmart is a platform for knowledge sharing, but it's also a meaningful source of connection and community for marketing leaders," says McGuire.For information and tickets, visit https://brandsmart.amachicago.org The American Marketing Association Chicago provides ongoing development opportunities for Chicagoland marketers to expand knowledge, improve skills, and grow both their networks and careers through access to innovative marketing thought leaders and cutting-edge programming. Visit amachicago.org Contact InformationKarolyn RaphaelPR for American Marketing Association Chicagokarolyn@ wingermarketing.com 312-494-0422Bonnie MassaExecutive Director AMA Chicagoexecutivedirector@ chicagoama.org SOURCE: American Marketing Association ChicagoView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:40:33 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 517 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 BIARRITZ, FRANCE / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Ternoa , a Layer 1 blockchain and TEE coprocessor infrastructure provider in mainnet since 2022 and currently launching a zkEVM Layer 2 validium, is pleased to announce the appointment of Anurag Arjun, Polygon ex-cofounder and Avail co-founder as an Advisor to their team.Anurag Arjun brings a wealth of expertise and experience in the blockchain industry. First as the co-founder of Polygon, which has become a leading infrastructure and ethereum Layer 2 over the last years. Then as the co-founder of Avail, which is set to become a major actor of unification of the web3 ecosystem in the near future."We are thrilled to welcome Anurag Arjun to Ternoa as an Advisor," said Mickael CANU, CEO of Ternoa. "His unique track record and vision for modular blockchain makes him a great source of knowledge to maximize success of our upcoming zkEVM launch. With his guidance and support, we are confident that Ternoa will keep growing and find its place in the competitive world of blockchain." Anurag Arjun expressed his excitement about joining Ternoa, stating, " I am looking forward to working closely with the Ternoa team, contributing to their success and evolution of their tech stack. I believe there's immense potential in their tech which will pave the way for building secure and scalable rollups in the future." As an Advisor, Anurag Arjun provides strategic counsel to Ternoa's leadership team, offering insights and recommendations to drive the company's growth and success, and navigate ethereum's Layer 2s ecosystem. His appointment underscores Ternoa's commitment to assembling a world-class team of experts dedicated to advancing the adoption of blockchain technology.About TernoaTernoa is a TEE powered coprocessor and key management system technology accessible via a WASM Layer 1 (mainnet since 2022), and soon via a zkEVM Layer 2. Combining confidential computing and decentralization, Ternoa enables users to encrypt data off-chain with on-chain access control of keys, opening the door to a wide array of innovative use cases. Over the last three years, Ternoa has gathered a community of 200k+ followers, with more than 80 partners collaborating actively with the infrastructure, including large corporations such as TOHO (top tier movie studio in Japan), EXAION (EDF's web3 arm, Europe's #1 electricity provider), or Stellantis (4th largest carmaker worldwide).About Anurag Arjun:Anurag Arjun, co-founder of Avail, is a seasoned entrepreneur who has founded several successful startups across diverse industries, ranging from cash flow lending to regulatory tech. With a strategic move into the blockchain space in 2017, he co-founded Matic Network, which has since evolved into Polygon Labs, a platform for scaling Ethereum.In 2020, Anurag spearheaded the development of Avail, an innovative solution within the Polygon ecosystem that empowers developers to create fast, efficient, and scalable applications. As a pioneer with a background spanning research, economics, and engineering, Anurag's unique skillset has been invaluable in creating Avail and the broader blockchain community. In March 2023, he and co-founder Prabal Banerjee spun off Avail from Polygon to embark on a journey to empower rollup and application blockchain communities with a highly scalable, modular blockchain stack.For media inquiries, please contact press@ ternoa.network SOURCE: Ternoa PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 14:55:43 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 621 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Autobrains, an automotive AI powerhouse, is unveiling its new groundbreaking AI technology, Liquid AI, which effectively tackles the three major challenges in today's automotive AI landscape - covering edge cases, achieving a viable cost point, and bridging the gap between perception and decision.TEL AVIV, ISRAEL and MUNICH, GERMANY / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 /Autobrains, a leader in automotive AI headquartered in Tel Aviv, introduces its latest breakthrough: Liquid AI. Liquid AI represents a paradigm shift in autonomous driving and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), addressing challenges that even the best automotive companies struggle to overcome. It combines Autobrains' signature-based self-learning approach with a modular and adaptive architecture of specialized, scenario-based end-to-end skills. "While current technologies perform well in handling average conventional driving tasks, they fall short when faced with unexpected real-world driving scenarios that demand greater precision. By using or implementing our Liquid AI, automotive companies can close their AI gaps," adds Autobrains' Founder and CEO, Igal Raichelgauz.The Challenges Faced by Conventional AI Systems:Edge Cases: The infinite variety of unexpected driving scenarios presents conventional AIs with practically unsolvable tasks. Today's manually trained black-box systems cannot cover edge cases. Attempts to address this by feeding the systems more labeled images result in a loss of trackability and controllability. Cost: Addressing real-world driving problems by expanding existing systems with more data, labeling, layers, and computational resources leads to escalating costs and power consumption, resulting in diminishing returns. Achieving a substantial improvement in system accuracy by a factor of 10 requires 10,000 times more computational resources. Perception-Decision Disconnect: The missing interplay between perception and decision functions hinders effective and precise decision-making. For the AI to make optimal driving choices, it requires specific information. However, when details are missing or overly complex, precision is compromised, leading to incorrect reactions. Liquid AI - Human Brain-Inspired:Autobrains draws inspiration from the human brain, which consists of specialized areas akin to task-specific narrow end-to-end AIs. Just as our brain adapts its architecture based on context - such as light/weather conditions, surroundings, and relevant road users - Liquid AI follows the same approach. Here's how it works:Network of Specialized Narrow AIs: Liquid AI comprises hundreds of thousands of specialized narrow AIs, each designed for specific tasks, making reactions very precise and tailored to the relevant driving scenario. This specialized AI approach enables scalability, ranging from a few tens to hundreds of AIs for ADAS systems, scaling up to thousands for higher levels of automated driving, all the way to hundreds of thousands of AIs for full self-driving. Adaptive Architecture: Unlike fixed systems, Liquid AI's architecture adapts dynamically to the driving context, activating only relevant modules as necessary. This significantly reduces power consumption and compute requirements, not only resulting in cost savings for the System on Chip (SoC) hardware. Efficiency and Precision: By mimicking the brain's flexibility, Liquid AI achieves superior performance, cost-effectiveness, and safety. The Future of Automotive Intelligence:Autobrains' Liquid AI bridges the gap between conventional AI limitations and the promise of truly intelligent autonomous systems. By mimicking the human brain's flexibility, Liquid AI achieves superior performance, cost-effectiveness, and more explainability and controllability.About AutobrainsAutobrains is a leading AI company in the automotive industry. Autobrains invented and developed a paradigm-shifting AI technology: Liquid AI - backed by 250+ patents addressing autonomous driving challenges. Implementing this unique AI technology for ADAS applications disrupts the market with its unprecedented perception capabilities, low compute requirements, and agnosicity to sensors and SoCs. The company is backed by strategic investors including Temasek, Knorr-Bremse AG, BMW i Ventures, Toyota Ventures, VinFast, Continental AG, and Autel.Learn more: https://autobrains.ai Contact:sales@ autobrains.ai Contact InformationSophia EichlerDirector of Marketingmedia@ autobrains.ai +49 015167066494SOURCE: AutobrainsView the original press release on newswire.com A Mechanicsburg girl spent Wednesday with family, friends and a few princes as she prepared for her Make-A-Wish trip to Walt Disney World. Capital Blue Cross and Make-A-Wish Philadelphia, Delaware and Susquehanna Valley teamed up for a Disney-themed event at the health insurance companys headquarters in Susquehanna Township Wednesday morning. Capital Blue Cross President and CEO Todd Shamash presented the pre-wish festivities to Shelby, 8, who is battling a blood disorder. To help make a little girls dream come true, to see her joy today, is as rewarding as it gets, Shamash said. Shelbys courage as she navigates her health challenges is so inspiring, and were so proud we could go the extra mile to help celebrate her Disney wish and make her dream a reality. We care so deeply about our communities because we are part of them, and it was a privilege to be such a big part of Shelbys community today. As part of the event, Shelby got to walk a red carpet to receive a carry-on for her flight to Florida, along with several Disney-related items. Capital Blue Cross staff embraced the event, donning Disney outfits to celebrate with the girl. Cumberland Valley High Schools drama club was also on hand in outfits from Frozen and Beauty and the Beast, with one student singing a song from the musical version of Beauty and the Beast. Wish celebrations stand as poignant milestones in a childs wish journey, providing excitement and joy for the wish ahead, said Cara Feldman, vice president of development at the local Make-A-Wish chapter. In putting together this wish celebration, Todd and the Capital Blue Cross team went above and beyond, celebrating Shelby and her family prior to her upcoming wish to go to Walt Disney World. PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 17:00:55 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 436 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 MONTREAL, QC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Alpine Macro, a Montreal-based independent investment research firm, announced today that Bassam Nawfal has been appointed Chief Asset Allocation Strategist effective immediately. Bassam will offer Alpine Macro clients actionable global asset allocation research and strategy based on themes emanating from the firm's investment research.Bassam Nawfal Prior to joining Alpine Macro, Bassam spent six years as a portfolio manager at PSP Investments, one of the largest pension funds in Canada. Prior to PSP, Bassam was a Senior Strategist at BCA Research for eight years and played a critical role in shaping the firm's foreign exchange view and advising clients on hedging strategy. Bassam is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and holds a BComm in finance from Concordia University."I am so excited that Bassam is appointed as our Chief Asset Allocation Strategist, spearheading our research in that domain. I have known Bassam for many years, and he always strikes me as a clear and creative thinker who has the unique ability to distill key themes from highly complex macro and financial backgrounds and put them into actional strategies. With strong buyside experience, Bassam is perfectly suited to the leading role for our global asset allocation services as he can combine practical portfolio management experience with his superb macro knowledge to provide valuable advice to clients," said Chen Zhao, Alpine Macro Chief Global Strategist."Alpine Macro is always putting research and client services first, and Bassam joining us is a testament to our long-term commitment in this regard. In recent years, we have continuously invested in top talent to deepen and sharpen our research. With Bassam leading our Global Asset Allocation strategy, Alpine Macro is well-positioned to offer clients actionable, timely and well-reasoned asset allocation advice," added Arun Kumar, CEO of Alpine Macro.Says Nawfal: "I am delighted to rejoin former colleagues, friends, and mentors at Alpine Macro. As a devotee to the study of financial markets, I am grateful for the opportunity to work with this seasoned team whose mission has and will always be to create value for our clients through generating unique and profitable investment insights." About Alpine Macro: Founded in 2017, Alpine Macro is an independent global investment research firm based in Montreal, Canada. Alpine Macro focuses on the analysis of major macro-economic forces and specializes in forecasting the direction of global financial markets, while providing actionable recommendations on investment strategy and asset allocation.Please visit www.alpinemacro.com for more details.Contact InformationArun Kumar Chief Executive Officerinfo@ alpinemacro.com 514-558-1414SOURCE: Alpine MacroView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 21:05:57 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 664 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / bettermoo(d) Food Corporation (CSE:MOOO)(OTCQB:MOOOF)(Frankfurt:0I5A) (WKN: A3D8PP) (the "Company" or "bettermoo(d)") announces that the special investor announcement (the "Announcement") initially scheduled for Wednesday, March 13, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. PT (see press releases on March 8 and 11, 2024), has been rescheduled to Monday, March 18, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. PT.The decision to reschedule the special investor announcement was made in order to afford bettermoo(d) necessary time to secure confirmation and approval from a major company to incorporate their brand name into the Announcement.CONFERENCE CALL:The conference call will be held on Monday, March 18, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. Pacific, 4:30 p.m. Eastern, 9:30 p.m. CET.Please call in 10 minutes before the conference call starts and stay on the line. Questions will be answered at the end of the call.CONFERENCE PARTICIPANT ID: BETTERDIAL-IN NUMBERS:Toll: 785 424 1744Toll-Free Canada & the US: 877 830 2596Toll-Free Germany: 0 800 186 2030The Company will issue a press release detailing the new announcement after the conclusion of the Conference Call.ABOUT BETTERMOO(D) FOOD CORPORATIONbettermoo(d) Food Corporation is an innovative plant-based dairy alternative food and beverage company based in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada, launching Moodrink, a nutritious dairy-alternative beverage with a revolutionary flavour. Moodrink includes a blend of herbs and flowers similar to what cows ate, before the time of mass livestock production. Like rich dairy products, Moodrink contains added healthy plant fats and vitamins, so consumers don't miss out. The "Moodrink" is just the beginning of the revolution for the Vancouver based dairy-alternative company, bettermoo(d).Driven by the motto "What A Cow Eats and A Human Needs" bettermoo(d) seeks to produce dairy alternative products that are good for both people and the planet - ensuring that all products are nutritious and sustainably sourced, and that also emulate the great taste of traditional milk from the Alps regions of Switzerland, France and Austria. Working with food scientists, the Company's goal is to conduct continuous food research and development programs with the aim of rolling out a full line of dairy alternative products, including Moogurt and Buetter, as well as many other products, that are better for YOU and better for the planet.ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD of DIRECTORSNima BahramiChief Executive Officer and Director bettermoo(d) Food CorporationFor further information please contact:Email: investors@ bettermoodfoodcorporation.com Website: www.bettermoo.com Phone: 1-855-715-1865The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.This news release may contain certain forward looking statements and forward looking information (collectively, "Forward-Looking Statements") within the meaning of the applicable Canadian and U.S. securities laws, including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements with respect to the anticipated commercial production of Moodrink, are forward-looking statements. When or if used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "target, "plan", "forecast", "may", "schedule" and similar words or expressions identify forward-looking statements or information. Such statements represent the Company's current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social risks, contingencies and uncertainties. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements and information other than as required by applicable laws, rules and regulations.SOURCE: bettermoo(d) Food Corporation PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 12:01:31 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 386 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 MCLEAN, VA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 /CORAS Federal, a FedRAMP High Software as a Service (SaaS) is proud to announce a contract with the United States Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD) Webster Outlying Field (WOLF) in support of its Project Management needs across the entire organization. The scope of the contract will support all WOLF projects to work across all existing systems to create interfaces, automations, workflows, analyses, reporting, and visualizations to enable leadership near-instant information status.NAWCAD WOLF is a rapid capability engineering organization and an organic Lead Systems Integrator (oLSI). Its historical site at Webster Field is located in St. Inigoes, Maryland, where they manage, collaborate, and develop innovative technologies and systems to support the warfighter."We are honored to support NAWCAD WOLF's need for scalable and agile data management of their projects, workflows, analyses, and reporting," said CORAS President and CTO Dan Naselius. "CORAS' FedRAMP High platform delivers the security architecture requirements for NAWCAD WOLF to enable rapid deployment, as well as the ability to capture strategic and command-level views of its project funding, scope, schedules, historical data, trends, milestones, and centralized reporting. CORAS will deliver the data standardization, analysis, interfaces, reporting, and visualization across WOLF that gives Navy leadership the complete information it needs right now." ABOUT CORAS: CORAS uses AI/natural language processing (NLP) and business analytics to provide real time data and the decision advantage that leadership needs in a constant state of readiness. CORAS delivers core business processes, live reporting, and analysis to Program Offices and Program Executive Offices and other environments with complex, siloed data challenges. With no rip and replace requirements, CORAS is up and running in days, configured to work alongside existing programs to illuminate dark data, transform existing information, and provide real-time interaction and reporting. CORAS SaaS FedRAMP High runs on the Non-Secure Internet Protocol Router Network (NIPRNet) and Secure Internet Protocol Router Network (SIPRNet) and has Impact Level (IL) 4/5 controls built-in through AWS GovCloud.CORAS software can be purchased via GSA Schedule, NASA SEWP, SIBR/STTR, and multiple third parties including Carahsoft and AWS Public Sector Marketplace. www.CORAS.com Contact InformationRebecca ChurchillChurchill Communications & Marketing, LLCrc@ churchillcommunicationsllc.com 917-518-9789Related FilesCORAS Navy 2024 compressed doc. MACORAS Use cases 2024SOURCE: CORASView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 23:22:07 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 740 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 This press release corrects and replaces one issued previously, correcting the second paragraph from [The launch of .austin represents the first city-based superpowered web domain, leveraging blockchain technology, which ensures security and trustworthiness and highlights the city's reputation as a friendly and innovative tech hub. Minted exclusively on the Polygon network, .austin domains are considered far more secure than the four US city traditional TLDs that exist so far: .nyc, .miami, .vegas and .boston - but also integrate a range of new capabilities, making it a must-have for local businesses, organizations for artists, musicians, sports, non-profit entities, and more."] to [The launch of .austin represents the first city-based domain initiative leveraging blockchain technology, which highlights the city's reputation as a friendly and innovative tech hub. Blockchain-based .austin domains integrate a range of new capabilities, like crypto payments and future functionality for identity and loyalty.]Unstoppable Domains and The Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce (GAACC) have introduced the first city-centric blockchain-based TLDAUSTIN, TX / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce (GAACC), in partnership withUnstoppable Domains , is announcing the launch of the .austin top-level domain (TLD), empowering 2.4m Central Texas residents and visitors to show their love of Austin and personalize their digital identity in the heart of Texas.The launch of .austin represents the first city-based domain initiative leveraging blockchain technology, which highlights the city's reputation as a friendly and innovative tech hub. Blockchain-based .austin domains integrate a range of new capabilities, like crypto payments and future functionality for identity and loyalty.Mark Duval, President and CEO of the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce commented, "We are proud to lead the adoption of the .austin domain, with the vision of strengthening the bonds within our community and beyond. This city-centric domain allows people to own a piece of digital identity that advocates their support for our community. We aim to ensure that our members, Austin businesses, residents, and visitors have new ways to celebrate the city's dynamism and diversity." Those who purchase .austin domains duringSXSWwill be awarded special digital badges, visible on their Unstoppable Domains account. With .austin domains, domain holders will gain access to a versatile and interoperable domain that bridges the gap between traditional web experiences and the collaborative potential of Web3.Sandy Carter, COO at Unstoppable Domains, said: "The launch of the .austin TLD is a big move forward in our mission to revolutionize digital identity. This endeavor is about creating a cohesive online ecosystem that mirrors the innovation, creativity, and community spirit that Austin is celebrated for worldwide." These domains seek to foster a sense of digital community amongst GAACC members, Austin businesses and visitors, providing domain owners with the ability to show their ambassadorship via email signature, social media, and web3 applications with a branded domain extension, paving the way for future digital applications and use cases."I knew right away that I wanted to be one of the first to register a .Austin domain," said Joshua Baer, Founder and CEO of Capital Factory. "My mind is racing with ideas on how to use this new branding for our startups and our events. Thank you to the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce for their vision and collaboration." For further information, please visitUnstoppable Domains .###For press inquiries, please contact:press@ unstoppabledomains.com About the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce: Since its formation in 2012, the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce has focused on improving the business climate in Austin, conducting job fairs, industry forums, educational seminars, and business networking functions. Our mission is to promote the Central Texas Asian Pacific American community and community at large as a catalyst for local and global economic growth through programs focused on Advocacy, Connection, and Education. Learn more at www.austinasianchamber.org MEDIA CONTACT: Erich Pelletier, Communication & Marketing Manager:erichpelletier@ austinasianchamber.org About Unstoppable Domains Founded in 2018, Unstoppable Domains is building a platform for user-owned digital identity. Unstoppable Domains offers Web3 domains minted on the blockchain that give people full ownership and control of their digital identity, with no renewal fees. With Unstoppable Domains, people can replace lengthy alphanumeric crypto wallet addresses with a human-readable name and log into and transact with hundreds of apps, wallets, exchanges and marketplaces. The company was named by Forbes as one of America's Best Startup Employers in 2022.For more information, please visit: https://unstoppabledomains.com/ SOURCE: Unstoppable Domains PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:05:34 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 405 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP:Do you, or did you, own shares of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (NYSE:BTI)? Did you purchase your shares between February 9, 2023 and December 6, 2023, inclusive? Did you lose money in your investment in British American Tobacco p.l.c.? Do you want to discuss your rights?Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of British American Tobacco p.l.c. ("BAT" or the "Company") (NYSE:BTI) of an upcoming deadline involving a securities fraud class action lawsuit commenced against the Company.If you purchased or acquired BAT securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit British American Tobacco p.l.c. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com A lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of BAT between February 9, 2023 and December 6, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"), alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers.If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanMarch 25, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter Allocco Investor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:04:55 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 394 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP:Do you, or did you, own shares of GrafTech International Ltd. (NYSE:EAF)? Did you purchase your shares between February 8, 2019 and August 3, 2023, inclusive? Did you lose money in your investment in GrafTech International Ltd.? Do you want to discuss your rights?Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of GrafTech International Ltd. ("GrafTech" or the "Company") (NYSE:EAF) of an upcoming deadline involving a securities fraud class action lawsuit commenced against the Company.If you purchased or acquired GrafTech common stock, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit GrafTech International Ltd. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com A lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the common stock of GrafTech between February 8, 2019 and August 3, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"), alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers.If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanMarch 25, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter Allocco Investor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 02:10:25 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 545 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 ISTANBUL, TURKEY / ACCESSWIRE / March 12, 2024 / TheErdem Hospital and Clinicin Istanbul, Turkey, has solidified its position as an international health center with notable success, the result of efforts that began during the pandemic. The hospital's efforts to achieve global reach grew naturally from its stated vision to "Extend a helping hand to more and more people every day," and its mission statement to constantly move forward "with a completely solution-oriented perspective." In an increasingly connected world, the Erdem Health Group decided that health and wellness were international concerns and expanded efforts to contribute to a global health community."The leap from a traditional hospital structure to a global healthcare platform was driven by a vision to expand our reach beyond Turkish borders," said Mehmet Emin Kulunk, a Member of the Board of Directors for the Erdem Health Group. "Especially amidst the backdrop of a global pandemic. It was a bold move to translate the intimate care of a family-run hospital into a language understood worldwide-that of universal and affordable healthcare. The thrill of navigating through uncharted territories, like bringing our first international patient amidst the complexities of COVID-19, has been both inspiring and a catalyst for innovation." Mehmet Kulunk - Member of the Board of Directors for the Erdem Health GroupSince then, theErdem Hospitalhas provided medical services to patients from 83 countries, representing the hospital's new standard as a leading international health center. The hospital has also achieved world-leading standards in using cutting-edge technology, employing industry-leading medical professionals, and top scores in compassionate care."We aim to be a beacon of medical excellence," said Mehmet Emin Kulunk, "Offering a sanctuary where patients from every corner of the world can receive exceptional care." The medical network surrounding theErdem Hospitaloffers comprehensive medical care throughout Istanbul, with several strategic locations for patients undertaking international travel to seek care. Accessibility is a primary component of the Erdem Hospital's global reach, contributing to Istanbul's reputation as a global center of culture, commerce, and excellence in medical care and research."We've elevated the patient experience by ensuring meticulous attention to detail in every aspect of their journey," said Mehmet Emin Kulunk, "from their first online inquiry to their journey back home post-treatment." The Erdem Health Group has partnered with several hotels and services throughout Istanbul to serve international patients better. They are committed to achieving ever-improving standards of accessibility and comfort for patients undertaking international travel to seek care at their facilities. TheErdem Hospital'sexpanding global patient network has required unique solutions, which the Erdem Health Group is proud to have achieved.About Erdem Health Group:The Erdem Health Group has served Turkey's health and education community since 1988. The Group runs three hospitals in Istanbul: an oral and dental health center, a clinic, a medical center, and two dialysis centers. They offer services in every branch of medicine, including services such as plastic surgery andhair transplants , to patients throughout Turkey and those who travel from abroad. The Erdem Health Group's hospitals and facilities have a well-earned reputation for leading with state-of-the-art medical practices and technology.Media Contact:Website: http://www.erdemhospital.com/Company name: Erdem Health GroupEmail:info@ erdemhospital.com SOURCE: Erdem Hospital PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 15:31:00 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 999 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Falcon Gold Corp. (FG:TSXV)(3FA:GR)(FGLDF:OTCQB); ("Falcon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has awarded a drilling contract to CentreLine Drilling of Newfoundland to conduct a diamond drilling program at its 100% owned Great Burnt Copper Project in Central Newfoundland. The Company initially plans to test up to ten geophysical anomalies with a maximum of 1100 metres of drilling. Falcon will provide further guidance on an estimated drill start date once logistics for the program are determined and remaining service providers are confirmed.Falcon holds 2,275 hectares in the Great Burnt camp, with licenses located north of, and contiguous to, Benton Resources Inc. - Spruce Ridge Resources Ltd. Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture (see Figure 1). Benton Resources Inc. ("Benton") recently optioned the Great Burnt Copper-Gold Project from Spruce Ridge Resources Ltd. ("Spruce Ridge") in an agreement that allows Benton to earn a 70% interest in the property (see press release dated August 17, 2023). The Benton-Spruce Ridge property is host to the Great Burnt Copper Zone, a deposit with an indicated resource of 381,300 tonnes at 2.68% Cu and inferred resources of 663,100 tonnes at 2.10% Cu ( https://www.spruceridgeresources.com/great-burnt.php) . Recent drilling by Benton at the Great Burnt Copper Deposit reported drill results that returned 7.20% Cu, 7.12 g/t Ag, and 0.05% Co over 12.30 metres (see press release dated December 5, 2023). Previous drilling in 2020 by Spruce Ridge reported 8.06% Cu over 27.2 m (TSXV: SHL press release dated March 18, 2021). The Great Burnt Greenstone Belt is prospective for copper and gold, and further hosts the South Pond A and South Pond B copper-gold zones, and the End Zone copper prospect along a 14 km mineralized corridor. The mineralized corridor occurs along a conductive trend, and this conductive trend continues into Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property (see right-hand-side image in Figure 2). The presence of mineral occurrences within ground adjacent to Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property cannot be used as an indication of mineralization within Falcon's property itself.Figure 1. Location of proposed drilling within Falcon's recent acquisition proximal to the Benton - Spruce Ridge Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture in Central Newfoundland. Karim Rayani, Chief Executive Officer, commented; "We are very excited to move forward on our first phase of exploration drilling at our Great Burnt Copper Project. The Great Burnt camp is quickly becoming recognized for its high-grade copper tenor demonstrated by Benton Resources Inc.'s recent successful drilling (see Benton Resources Inc. press release dated January 30, 2024). Benton's success at Great Burnt and recent press releases from FireFly Metals Ltd that disclose plans to advance the high-grade Green Bay Copper-Gold project in the Rambler camp have put the copper potential of VMS Deposits in Newfoundland front and center. The Green Bay Copper-Gold project hosts a mineral inventory that includes aggregate measured, indicated and inferred resources of 39.2Mt @1.83% Cu (click here to view the report). We believe that Benton's recent success at Great Burnt is a testament to the untapped VMS potential of the Great Burnt area, and we are thrilled to hold an extensive strike extent of this unexplored, never-drilled horizon." The Great Burnt Copper PropertyThe property is hosted within the Great Burnt Greenstone Belt (GBGB) which hosts massive sulphide deposits that have been interpreted as Besshi-type. These types of deposits generally occur as laterally extensive sheets of pyrrhotite- or pyrite-rich sulphide rock within mixed volcanic-sedimentary environments. Sulphide lenses can be several metres thick and extend for several kilometres. Besshi-type massive-sulphide deposits are generally copper dominant, commonly contain other lithophile elements like cobalt or lead, and can contain precious metals such as gold and silver. The property is also located four km west of the Crest Resources-Exploits Discovery joint venture project within the Exploits Subzone. The Exploits Subzone contains deep-seated gold-bearing structures of the Dog Bay-Appleton Fault-GRUB Line deformation corridor that contains the high-grade Keats Gold Zone of New Found Gold Corp.Figure 2. Great Burnt Copper Project area with Falcon claims in orange and Benton - Spruce Ridge Great Burnt Copper-Gold joint venture in blue. New claims cover conductive trends hosting copper and gold mineralization. Qualified PersonThe technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Greg Robinson, P.Geo., who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.The QP and the Company have not completed sufficient work to verify the historical information on the properties comprising the Great Burnt Copper Property claim group, particularly regarding historical exploration, neighbouring companies, and government geological work. The QP and the Company further acknowledge that the presence of mineral occurrences within property adjacent to Falcon's Great Burnt Copper Property cannot be used as an indication for mineralization to occur within Falcon's property itself.About Falcon Gold Corp.Falcon is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on generating, acquiring, and exploring opportunities in the Americas. Falcon's flagship project, the Central Canada Gold Mine, is approximately 20 km southeast of Agnico Eagle's Hammond Reef Gold Deposit which has currently an estimated 3.32 million ounces of gold (123.5 million tonnes grading 0.84 g/t gold) mineral reserves, and 2.3 million ounces of measured and indicated mineral resources (133.4 million tonnes grading 0.54 g/t gold). The Hammond Reef gold property lies on the Hammond shear zone, which is a northeast-trending splay off the Quetico Fault Zone ("QFZ") and may be the control for the gold deposit. The Central Gold property lies on a similar major northeast-trending splay of the QFZ.The Company holds multiple additional projects: the Viernes and Area 51 Gold/Silver/Copper projects in the world class copper cluster located Antofagasta Chile; the Springpole West Property in the world-renowned Red Lake mining camp; a 49% interest in the Burton Gold property with Iamgold near Sudbury Ontario; the Spitfire-Sunny Boy, and Gaspard Gold claims in B.C.; the Great Burnt, and Golden Brook projects adjacent to First Mining, Matador, Benton-Sokoman's JV, and Marvel Discovery in Central Newfoundland; and most recently battery metals projects, Timmins West Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Property Ontario, Outarde Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Property% PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:04:46 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 385 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Do you, or did you, own shares of Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI)? Did you purchase your shares between April 30, 2019 and December 21, 2023, inclusive? Did you lose money in your investment in Cummins Inc.? Do you want to discuss your rights? NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of Cummins, Inc. ("Cummins" or the "Company") (NYSE:CMI) of an upcoming deadline involving a securities fraud class action lawsuit commenced against the Company.If you purchased or acquired Cummins securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Cummins Inc. Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Investor Relations Manager Peter Allocco at (212) 951-2030 or pallocco@ bernlieb.com A lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Cummins between April 30, 2019 and December 21, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"), alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against the Company and certain of its officers.If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanMarch 15, 2024 . A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for sixteen consecutive years.ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2024 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.Contact Information:Peter AlloccoInvestor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 12:02:08 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 991 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Galway Metals Inc. (TSXV:GWM);(OTCQB:GAYMF) (the "Company" or "Galway") is pleased to report assay results from its diamond drilling program at the Southwest Deposit at the Company's 100%-owned flagship Clarence Stream high-grade gold project in New Brunswick, Canada. The Southwest Deposit, as well as the South and North Deposits, are open in all directions for expansion. Management believes that the Clarence Stream gold project has district-scale potential with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres.Rob Hinchcliffe, President and CEO of Galway stated "We are excited about these new results from the Southwest Deposit because they demonstrate good gold continuity. More specifically we are seeing extensions of mineralization at surface and at depth including a high-grade intercept extending the Southwest Deposit 106 metres with spectacular visible gold (Link to figure 1). With gold prices trading close to an all-time high we remain bullish on the Company's 2024 outlook".Extended Mineralization at Depth (Link to figures 2 & 3)BL-251 intersected 114.1 g/t gold over 2 metres including 447.0 g/t gold over 0.5 metresExtending mineralization 106 metres at depth from previously released high-grade intercepts of 44.1 g/t gold over 9.5 metres (BL-87) and 20.7 g/t gold over 9.45 metres (BL-72)BL-252 intersected 7.43 g/t gold over 6 metres including 20.95 g/t gold over 1.0 metre and 3.08 g/t gold over 7.5 metresExtended Mineralization to SurfaceBL-253 intersected 0.94 g/t gold over 6.5 metres beginning 12.7 vertical metres from the surfaceBL-249 intersected 0.53 g/t gold over 10 metres beginning at 19 vertical meters from the surface Results from Drilling The drill holes in this release are located within the Southwest Deposit which straddles the Sorrel Ridge Granite in proximity to the brittle-ductile Sawyer Brook Fault Zone. Holes BL-251 and BL-252 were drilled to test the down dip expansion of high-grade gold mineralization. Both holes intersected visible gold (Link to figure 1) within sericite altered quartz veining and extended the deposit 106 metres from previous high-grade intercepts (BL-72 and BL-87). Holes BL-249, BL-250 and holes BL-253 through BL-258 were testing up-dip extensions to bring gold mineralization to the surface, which was confirmed with these assay results (Link to assay table). The intercepts highlighted within this press release are all outside the area that was included in the 2022 Mineral Resource Estimate (Link to 2022 Clarence Stream Resource Estimate).Two Additional Areas were Explored to Test (Link to figure 4):The down-dip and western extensions of the Southwest Deposit Hole BL-220 intersected 0.84 g/t gold over 21 metres and 0.79 g/t gold over 6 metres, confirming gold mineralization below the known resource Hole BL-202 intersected 2.23 g/t gold over 1.0 metre, which is over 1 kilometre SW of the Southwest Deposit. Gold in soil anomalies on the western side of the Sorrel Ridge granite. Sediments on the southeastern side of the Sorrell Ridge granite host the Southwest Deposit where gold zones are parallel to the granite contact Hole PL-01 intersected 2.39 g/t gold over 0.8 metresThese encouraging results show the strong potential for additional gold discoveries along the boundaries with any of the felsic intrusions, and in structures parallel to the Sawyer Brook Fault at the Clarence Stream gold project (Link to drill coordinates).New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program Galway would like to acknowledge financial support from the New Brunswick Junior Mining Assistance Program, which partially funded drilling of the Southwest Deposit.Geology and Mineralization The Clarence Stream deposits can be characterized as intrusion-related, structurally-controlled, quartz-vein hosted gold deposits. These deposits consist of quartz veins and quartz stockwork within brittle-ductile fault zones that include adjacent crushed, altered wall rocks and veinlet material. The mineralized systems are hosted in intrusive and metasedimentary rocks within high strain zones controlled by regional fault systems. Pyrite, base metal sulphides, and stibnite occur in these deposits along with anomalous concentrations of bismuth, arsenic, antimony and tungsten. Alteration in the host rocks is confined within a few metres of quartz veins and occurs mainly in the form of sericitization and chloritization. A more complete description of Clarence Stream's geology and mineralization can be found at www.galwaymetalsinc.com Review by Qualified Person, Quality Control and Reports Jesse Fisher, P.Geo., Project Manager for Galway Metals, is the Qualified Person who supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical disclosure in this news release on behalf of Galway Metals Inc. All core, chip/boulder samples, and soil samples are assayed by Activation Laboratories, located at 41 Bittern Street, Ancaster, Ontario, Canada, Agat Laboratories, located at 5623 McAdam Road, Mississauga Ontario, Canada L4Z 1N9 and 35 General Aviation Road, Timmins, ON P4P 7C3, and/or Swastika Laboratories situated in Swastika, ON. All four labs have ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation. All core is under watch from the drill site to the core processing facility. All samples are assayed for gold by Fire Assay, with gravimetric finish, and other elements assayed using ICP. The Company's QA/QC program includes the regular insertion of blanks and standards into the sample shipments, as well as instructions for duplication. Standards, blanks and duplicates are inserted at one per 20 samples. Approximately five percent (5%) of the pulps and rejects are sent for check assaying at a second lab with the results averaged and intersections updated when received. Core recovery in the mineralized zones has averaged 99%.About Galway Metals Inc. Galway Metals is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing its 100%-owned, high-grade, open-pitable flagship Clarence Stream gold project in southwest New Brunswick. Clarence Stream is an emerging gold district with an exploration strike length of approximately 65 kilometres and widths of up to 28 kilometres in certain areas. Galway Metals also has 100%-ownership in the Estrades project, a former producing high-grade, gold-rich polymetallic VMS mine in the northern Abitibi of western Quebec. Led by a management team with a proven track-record of creating shareholder value having sold Galway Resources for US$340 million, Galway Metals is focused on creating value for all its stakeholders.For additional Information on Galway Metals Inc., Please contact: Robert Hinchcliffe President & Chief Executive OfficerTelephone: 1-800-771-0680Email: info@ galwaymetalsinc.com Website%3 PHILADELPHIA Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a 17-year-old who they say is the last of four suspects sought in the shooting that wounded eight Philadelphia high school students at a bus stop last week. The U.S. Marshals Service, while offering details Tuesday night on the arrest of a third suspect, called on the fourth person to surrender by Wednesday morning, vowing to aggressively pursue him with every investigative resource available. On Wednesday afternoon, federal marshals announced the arrest warrant and a $5,000 reward for information leading to the suspects arrest and also warning that anyone aiding his flight will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Federal marshals said the third suspect, Jermahd Carter, 19, had been arrested Tuesday afternoon at a relatives home. Carter faces charges including attempted murder, aggravated assault, firearms and related counts, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for March 27. His attorney declined comment on the charges Wednesday. On Monday, officials had announced the arrests of two suspects in the March 6 shooting in northeast Philadelphia, the fourth shooting in four days involving the citys transit system. As students at Northeast High School, the citys largest public high school with more than 3,000 students, were waiting to board the bus, three masked gunmen opened fire, hitting eight teens ranging in age from 15 to 17 years old. Officials said the recovery of a stolen car involved in the shooting led to the identification of Jamaal Tucker, 18, as a suspect, and he turned himself in Friday. On Saturday, federal marshals said they arrested Ahnile Buggs, 18, and recovered a loaded and fully automatic .40-caliber Glock that matched casings found at the scene. Tucker and Buggs also face charges including attempted murder, aggravated assault, and other counts and are being held on more than $2 million bail with preliminary hearings scheduled for March 20. A message was left Monday with Buggs attorney. The Defender Association of Philadelphia, representing Tucker, declined comment. Police were investigating whether the shooting may have been related to the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old charter school student as people boarded a city bus. Four others were injured, including a 70-year-old woman. Earlier last week, gunfire that erupted at a bus stop in a different part of the city killed a teenager and wounded two other teens as well as two women on a bus. Two men were also killed in different shootings after arguments on buses ended in gunfire. PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:16:27 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 971 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The Mastercard Center for Inclusive GrowthThe Mastercard Center for Inclusive GrowthGEA and the Mastercard Foundation announced the start of a sensitization campaign for the groundbreaking Business in a Box (BizBox) program. This initiative aims to empower an additional 250,000 young people in Ghana, expanding on the successful collaboration established through the Young Africa Works Program.The Young Africa Works Program project, from 2020 to 2022, achieved significant milestones by supporting approximately 94,000 young people, more than double its goal, enabling them to establish businesses or secure dignified and fulfilling jobs. Building on this momentum, the BizBox program aims to support 250,000 young people in accessing dignified and fulfilling jobs over the next four years.In Amasaman, Greater Accra Region, Gifty Animwaa Owusu, a GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program participant, shares her story of transformation from a struggling individual to a successful business owner and mentor."When I had no one to turn to for assistance, the GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program became my source of hope," recalls Gifty Animwaa Owusu. Her participation in the A2E program and the invaluable Start-up Kit support she received after her training have been pivotal in her journey. Gifty is now a thriving business owner, supporting her family and mentoring young people in her community.Through this intervention, Gifty has not only achieved financial stability but has also gained respect and dignity. Her success is a testament to the transformative power of giving opportunities to young women. Reflecting on her journey, Gifty acknowledges the impact of the business management training she received, which enabled her to meet the application criteria and successfully receive support through GEA.Gifty's story is a powerful example of how targeted support and empowerment can lead to meaningful change in individuals and communities. Her journey is a source of hope for aspiring entrepreneurs and a testament to the effectiveness of programs like the GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program in driving positive impact."The BizBox program aims to enable and empower disadvantaged young people across Ghana, especially young women with first-time business startups, to acquire skills and access to startup kits, markets, finance, and technology to start, build, and grow their businesses. We believe it will improve the well-being and resilience of young entrepreneurs by creating an enabling environment, especially for agriculture and agri-adjacent businesses to thrive and contribute to national development," said Rica Rwigamba, Country Director of the Mastercard Foundation in Ghana.With an investment of GHS 660 million (approximately USD 55 million), BizBox underscores GEA and the Mastercard Foundation's ongoing commitment to young people's development. The program, scheduled to run until April 2027, will provide young entrepreneurs with essential tools, knowledge, and support to start and expand their businesses. It will deliver comprehensive training in life skills, technical expertise, entrepreneurship, and business development, promoting business growth and scalability.A significant focus of the program is empowerment, with more than 70 percent of the target participants being young women and 10 percent Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), reaffirming its commitment to inclusivity and diversity in economic participation."The BizBox program emerges as a beacon of hope, fostering economic empowerment and laying the foundation for a prosperous future for the youth of Ghana. This is in alignment with the Government of Ghana's vision of ensuring that the youth of Ghana are engaged for the nation's development," said Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, CEO of the Ghana Enterprises Agency.The program is tailored to complement the government's ongoing efforts to address the pervasive youth unemployment challenge. Importantly, this initiative aligns with the government's ambitious goal to generate one million jobs for young people by 2025.The program comprises five components: Youth Skills Development, Access to Market, Access to Start-up Kits, Youth Social Networks and Institutional Strengthening, Policy, and Regulatory Support. Its implementation will involve a thorough process of sensitization, application, selection, assessment, and training focusing on vulnerable young people, past beneficiaries, PWDs, vulnerable women, women-owned/led MSMEs and graduates from agricultural colleges.The BizBox Program is focused on holistic development rather than direct financial assistance, seeking to empower entrepreneurs to build resilient and competitive enterprises.For media enquiries, please contact:Ghana Enterprises AgencyMs. Rejoice Tettey, Communications ManagerMastercard FoundationFelix Baidoo, Country Communications Partner, GhanaAbout Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA)The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) is the apex governmental Agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI) responsible for the promotion and development of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Sector in Ghana. GEA, formerly the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) was established by an Act of Parliament (Act 1043) in November 2020. The GEA Act 1043 was assented to in December 2020. The Act mandates GEA to Coordinate, Implement and Monitor the activities of the MSME Sector.The long-term goal of GEA is to support the MSME Sector to maximize its contribution to the country's economic and social development concerning production, income distribution and employment, as well as promote closer participation and integration of women and communities in rural areas into the national economy. GEA provides Business Development Services (BDS) to MSMEs, facilitates access to credit and supports the formalization of the MSME Sector in Ghana in a decentralized manner, mainly through the Business Advisory Centres (BACs) /Business Resource Centres (BRCs).GEA has its Head Office in Accra. It also operates in all the sixteen (16) administrative Regions known as the Regional Offices and 247 District Offices known as Business Advisory Centres (BACs) and Business Resource Centres (BRCs).For more information about GEA, please their website: www.gea.gov.gh About the Mastercard FoundationThe Mastercard Foundation is a registered Canadian charity and one of the largest foundations in the world. It works with visionary organizations to advance education and financial inclusion to enable young people in Africa and Indigenous youth in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. Established in 2006 through PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 14:01:10 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 538 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Commercial banking veteran joins as Senior Vice President of Sponsor BankingNEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Grasshopper , the client-first digital bank built for the business and innovation economy, today announced the addition ofGabrielle Piasioas Senior Vice President of Sponsor Banking, marking the bank's continued momentum and commitment to providing comprehensive lending and depository solutions to companies of all stages. In this role, Piasio will help move the bank's strategic plan forward, providing financing for sponsor-backed, lower-middle market merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions.Piasio's hire reinforces Grasshopper's commitment to expanding its footprint in the private equity market with a focus on delivering an outstanding, digital-first experience. Piasio joins Matthew Deibel,hired last yearas a Senior Vice President on the team."I'm thrilled to be part of the Fund and Sponsor Banking team at Grasshopper Bank, supporting the thriving lower middle-market community," said Piasio. "I was attracted to this innovative organization by its client-first mindset, strong company culture, and especially the bank's true understanding of and commitment to sponsor banking. I'm excited about the opportunity to bring my extensive industry experience to work with more impact-focused sponsors." Piasio brings 19 years of diverse, top-performing commercial banking experience to Grasshopper's Fund and Sponsor Banking team. She has worked closely with private equity firms, independent sponsors, and family offices buying U.S.-based companies, typically ranging from $1 - 5 million in earnings before taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA). Throughout her career, Piasio has focused on the lower middle-market space, deeply supporting the growth and success of entrepreneurs."We're very fortunate to have Gabrielle joining our team at an important inflection point in the market," said Barbara Fleming, Head of Fund and Sponsor Banking at Grasshopper. "Gabrielle's experience in origination, structuring and execution, along with her extensive network and national reach, will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our growth strategies." Grasshopper's steadfast commitment to serving venture capital, private equity firms and independent sponsors is exemplified by the continued addition of leaders with extensive underwriting and deal execution expertise to its Fund and Sponsor Banking team. The bank combines experienced leadership with an industry-leading digital platform to create a superior banking experience, backed by outstanding results. Grasshopper's support of this business segment extends to the broader venture community as well, as the bank provides innovative banking services to startups, small- and mid-sized businesses (SMBs), and financial technology (fintech) companies.To learn more about Grasshopper's Sponsor Banking capabilities, visitwww.grasshopper.bank About Grasshopper BankWith total assets of approximately $733 million, Grasshopper is a client-first digital bank serving the business and innovation economy. Grasshopper replaces the traditional one-size-fits-all approach to banking with a suite of products and services tailored to specific industries, and a passionate team of experts with deep expertise in their fields. Grasshopper's banking solutions cover small business, venture-backed companies, fintech-focused Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) and commercial API banking platforms, SBA lending, commercial real estate lending, and yacht financing. Headquartered in New York City, the bank is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and is an Equal Housing/Equal Opportunity Lender. For more information, visit the bank's website atwww.grasshopper.bankor follow onLinkedInandTwitter .Media ContactJosh EichenbaumCaliber Corporate Advisers josh@ calibercorporateadvisers.com SOURCE: Grasshopper PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 12:01:13 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 539 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Dr. Srini Godavarthy to present on March 19th at 3:00 PM CST as part of the Innovation AgoraLi-Metal to participate in Canada's Energy House program hosted by Invest in Canada at CERAWeek 2024TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Li-Metal Corp. (CSE:LIM)(OTCQB:LIMFF)(FSE:5ZO) ("Li-Metal" or the "Company"), a developer of lithium metal anode and lithium metal production technologies, today announced that the Company's CEO, Dr. Srini Godavarthy, will be presenting at S&P Global's CERAWeek 2024, the energy industry's preeminent conference, in Houston, Texas.Dr. Godavarthy will be participating in CERA Week's Innovation Agora program, which centers around disruptive, emerging technologies that are poised to transform the future of the energy industry. His presentation will occur on Tuesday, March 19th at 3:00 PM CST. During the presentation, Dr. Godavarthy will discuss the white-space opportunity in front of Li-Metal's ultra-thin, high performance anode production technology, the added value of using a physical vapour deposition (PVD) approach, and the critical need for sustainable, lithium metal production capacity in the western world to support the emerging next-generation battery ecosystem.In addition to his presentation, Dr. Godavarthy will be participating in the Canada's Energy House program at CERAWeek, which is hosted by Invest in Canada, a leading national investment promotion agency supporting the expansion of businesses in Canada.CERAWeek brings together industry leaders, government officials, and innovators to discuss the advancement of opportunities for the global energy markets and technology. CERAWeek speakers and thought leaders come from a wide array of industries such as utilities, automotive, manufacturing, policy, finance and technology. For more information, please visit https://ceraweek.com/index.html ON BEHALF OF THE BOARDSrini GodavarthyChief Executive OfficerAbout Li-Metal Corp.Li-Metal is a Canadian-based vertically integrated battery materials company and innovator commercializing technologies to enable next-generation batteries for electric vehicles and other applications. We believe our patented lithium metal technology, next-generation battery anode technology and production methods are significantly more sustainable than existing solutions and offer lighter, more energy-dense and safer batteries. Li-Metal's battery materials support battery developers' ability to power more cost-effective electric vehicles that go farther and unlock the future of transportation. For more information, visit: https://li-metal.com Forward-Looking InformationThis news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws relating to the Company. Any such forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "projects", "plans" and similar expressions. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Statements about, among other things, the Company's strategic plans are forward-looking information. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that the development of the business of the Company will be completed as described above. The Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect new events or circumstances unless required by applicable law.Li-Metal Contact:Salisha Ilyas ir@ li-metal.com Tel: +1 647 494 4887SOURCE: Li-Metal Corp. PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 12:01:46 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1103 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Mako Mining Corp. (TSX-V:MKO)(OTCQX:MAKOF) ("Mako" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update of results from the ongoing reverse circulation (RC) drill program at Mako's newest mining area, Las Conchitas, located immediately south of the company's San Albino gold mine, which is currently in commercial production.Since the most recent mineral resource estimate ("MRE") at the San Albino Project was defined (see press release of December 6th, 2023), Mako has completed 9,951 m in 176 reverse circulation (RC) drill holes of the resource expansion drill program (see drill plan below). The results reported in this release are from the Southern portion of Las Conchitas, which hosts gold mineralization in three principal zones; El Limon, Mango and Bayacun. The main objectives of the near-surface, extension and confirmation drilling campaign were to gain a higher level of confidence of the grade and geometry of gold mineralization within six areas of interest where the Company has received a permit to process material through the San Albino plant ("Las Conchitas Permit" see press release of June 19th, 2023) and to identify gold mineralization for potential resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE.HighlightsResults of 12 RC drill holes, completed in 2024, in the southern portion of Las Conchitas ("LC-S"), together with prior results drilled since the MRE, support the potential to expand the high-grade, gold mineralization within the currently defined open pits as well as potential extensions outside of the current MRE. The Mango intercept below is one of the widest mineralized, shallow, high-grade intervals reported to date. 13.43 g/t Au and 36.8 g/t Ag over 9.0 m (Estimated True Width - ETW) - Mango vein 9.65 g/t Au and 11.8 g/t Ag over 2.0 m (ETW) - El Limon vein 7.30 g/t Au and 14.9 g/t Ag over 1.0 m (ETW) - Mango 2 veinAkiba Leisman, CEO of Mako states, "this is another spectacular result from our exploration team. This exceptionally wide and high-grade intercept outside of our current MRE, is another clear example of the expansion potential of our current resource. We have been mining this area at Las Conchitas since last November. Therefore, this result will likely be turned into cash flow over the course of the next two years through normal mining operations. When we began mining the San Albino project over 4 years ago, the intent was to use the cash flow generated from the plant to reinvest in exploration without the need for any outside capital beyond what it would take to commission the mine. The Company has not raised equity since July of 2020, nor has it required any net capital since the commissioning of the plant. Now that the Company has significant cash flow, with a pristine balance sheet, and hundreds of exploration targets across our 188 square kilometer land package, we will be taking advantage of the new bull market in gold to grow our company significantly." To date, the 2024 drilling has been successful in identifying potential extensions of the El Limon and Mango mineralized structures. The key objectives of this year's drilling program at the mine are to demonstrate extensions of high-grade zones beyond and outside the current MRE. Drill hole LC24-RC282 (see table below) intersected one of the widest, high-grade zones reported to date, which is also located outside of the current MRE. The 9.0 m interval (ETW) assayed 13.43 g/t Au and 36.8 g/t Ag, starting at 57m from surface.This drill hole is situated between two drill holes (see drill plan below), approximately 40m apart along strike, which also intersected high-grade intervals. Drill hole LC22-475, situated approximately 30m SW by strike from LC24-RC282, intersected the same high-grade zone of 10.98 g/t Au and 27.0 g/t Ag over 2.0m (1.7m ETW), including 20.80 g/t Au and 49.9 g/t Ag over 1.0m, 33m from surface (see press release dated September 8th, 2022). Drill hole LC19-101, collared 11m NE along strike from LC24-RC282 (see press release dated August 19th, 2019), intersected two mineralized zones of 4.62 g/t Au and 12.0 g/t Ag over 2.1 m and 19.55 g/t Au and 40.6 g/t Ag over 1.2 m. All three drill holes mentioned above, intersected the zone outside of the current resource model and confirm the potential for resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE and have the potential to extend the current resource base and mine life. Our exploration team continues to advance drilling in the area with a goal of identifying further extensions of this mineralized zone. Our mining team has already begun plans to expand the pit in this area.At the El Limon zone, drill hole LC24-RC276 intersected at 42.0m vertical depth, the 2.0m wide (ETW) interval containing 9.65 g/t Au and 11.8 g/t Ag, confirming a 31m SW strike extension of high-grade mineralization, intersected by drill hole LC22-467 which assayed 37.02 g/t Au and 54.4 g/t Ag over 2.30 m (2.0 m ETW) at a vertical depth 52.0 m (see press release July 28th, 2022). Both drill holes intersected the zone outside of the current resource model and confirm potential resource expansion beyond the Company's current MRE.In addition, recent drilling targeted mineralization in the Mango zone. This post-resource drilling supports the potential for additional, high grade, low strip ratio, mineral resources. Highlights of the Mango drilling include drill hole LC24-RC283 which intersected the Mango 2 zone, grading 7.30 g/t Au and 14.9 g/t Ag over 1.0 m (ETW), at 97m vertical depth and outside the current open pit resource in the MRE. This high-grade intercept represents a 68.5 m down dip extension from drill hole LC20-149 that reported 5.17 g/t Au and 8.3 g/t Ag over 0.6 m (ETW), (see press release August 18th, 2021) and 106 m down dip extension of drill hole LC20-148 which intersected a mineralized interval of 20.94 g/t Au and 6.13 g/t Ag over 2.3 m, 73m from surface (see press release March 11th, 2020).Table - Assay Results Reported in This Press ReleaseNote: The mineralized intervals shown above utilize a 1.0 g/t gold cut-off grade with not more than 1.0 m of internal dilution. *Widths are reported as drill hole lengths. Unless otherwise stated, true width is estimated to be between 75% and 100% of the downhole width. In addition to the drill holes presented in the table above, the following drill holes returned only anomalous values: LC24-RC274 and LC24-RC280. In addition to the drill holes presented in the table above, the following drill holes returned no significant values: LC24-RC275, LC24-RC277 and LC24-RC278.Figure - Drill Hole PlanSampling, Assaying, QA/QC and Data VerificationAll reverse circulation (RC) holes were drilled d PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 19:45:48 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 562 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 ROCK HILL, SC / ACCESSWIRE / March 12, 2024 / There is a major filing deadline for many U.S. businesses coming up in just 2 days. While a variety of IRS tax returns are due today, the most popular are Form 1065 for businesses that are considered partnerships and Form 1120-S for businesses that have elected to be classified as S-Corporations.If these businesses operate on a calendar tax year, the deadline for filing and paying any tax due falls on March 15, 2024. While the IRS doesn't allow any extension for making tax payments, businesses can extend their filing deadline automatically by filing Form 7004.Simple 7004 E-Filing with ExpressExtensionRequesting an extension byfiling Form 7004is a great option for businesses that are not able to meet their filing deadline. By filing an extension, they can avoid potential IRS late filing penalties, and as long as the form is filed accurately before the deadline, the IRS will accept the request. This extension is automatic, which means the businesses aren't required to provide any reason for requesting an extension.When youE-file Form 7004the deadline for filing will get extended up to 6 months, giving businesses additional time to complete and file their returns without worrying about unwanted IRS penalties. ExpressExtension offers an easy and accurate option for filing extension Form 7004 in minutes.ExpressExtension offers an intuitive e-filing process that guides clients through the form. Error checks are built in to prevent common filing mistakes that lead to IRS rejections.Express GuaranteeClients also benefit from theExpress GuaranteeforForm 7004andForm 4868(personal tax extension), allowing them to correct and re-transmit returns until the IRS accepts them or they will receive a refund. If an extension Form 7004 or 4868 is rejected as a duplicate return, the client will automatically be refunded their filing fee.Additional Benefits of Choosing ExpressExtensionExpressExtensionoffers straightforward filing solutions at an affordable rate, with volume-based pricing and packages available for significant savings on multiple returns. Both taxpayers and tax professionals filing extensions on their client's behalf can take advantage of a variety of features designed to promote easy and accurate filings. This includes:Federal and state business tax extensions are both supported Bulk upload options for tax professionals Options to pay taxes due (if any) Rejected forms can be updated and retransmitted for freeThe dedicated support team from ExpressExtension is readily accessible via phone, email, or live chat for personalized assistance throughout the filing process.When asked about the impending deadlines, Agie Sundaram, CEO and Co-founder of SPAN Enterprises (parent company of SPAN Enterprises), stated, "We understand the importance of timely compliance with IRS regulations, which is why we are committed to providing businesses with a seamless e-filing experience when filing tax extensions. In light of the deadline, our team will be working diligently to ensure all of our clients are taken care of this tax season." VisitExpressExtension.comtofile 7004 onlinein minutes.About ExpressExtensionExpressExtension is the one-stop solution for IRS Tax Extensions. As an IRS-authorized, SOC 2 Certified e-file provider, ExpressExtension has been helping businesses, individuals, and non-profit organizations obtain IRS extensions for over a decade. Supported forms includeForm 7004 ,4868 ,8868 , and8809 .About SPAN EnterprisesHeadquartered in Rock Hill, South Carolina, SPAN has been developing industry-leading software tools for e-filing and business management tools for over a decade.The SPAN Enterprises portfolio of products includesTaxBandits ,Tax 990 ,ACAwise ,ExpressExtension ,123PayStubs , andTruckLogics .For any media inquiries, please contact Stephanie Glanville, Content Writer atstephanie@ spanenterprises.com SOURCE: ExpressExtension PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 11:30:27 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1001 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Relevant Gold Corp. (TSXV:RGC)(OTCQB:RGCCF) (the "Company" or "Relevant Gold") announces results from the 2023 soil sampling and geological mapping program at the Company's 100% owned 3,884-hectare Golden Buffalo Project located in the South Pass Gold Field, Wyoming. The Company's 2023 soil survey has highlighted a 3.5 km2 arsenic anomaly surrounding a newly mapped 2+ km western extension of the gold-rich Golden Buffalo Shear Zone (GBSZ). Arsenic is a very powerful pathfinder for targeting gold mineralization in Abitibi-style orogenic gold systems and its importance is rapidly emerging at Golden Buffalo ( Figure 1 ).The GBSZ is the primary host for high-grade gold discovered at Golden Buffalo, highlighted by Relevant Gold surface trench rock chip assays of 168 g/t Au, and drilling assays highlighted by 83.8 g/t Au over 1 metre ( see Press Release - Feb 6, 2023 ). A 2021 pilot soil sampling program tested the known surface gold mineralization trenched at Golden Buffalo and confirmed a strong correlation between the shear structures, gold mineralization, and arsenic geochemistry throughout the central GBSZ ( see Golden Buffalo 43-101 Technical Report ). Subsequent work has shown that arsenic is directly correlated to gold mineralization throughout the Golden Buffalo area and the entire South Pass Gold Field, which adds important discovery potential for Relevant Gold."Adding over 2km to the Golden Buffalo trend and showing that it occupies the middle of a huge arsenic anomaly is a major step forward to show it's a first order gold mineralizing control while simultaneously strengthening the analogy to Canada's Abitibi Gold Belt," said Brian Lentz, Relevant Gold's Chief Exploration Officer. "We look forward to applying the same methodical approach that brought Golden Buffalo to over 5 km long to the multiple additional shear zones that lace our extensive Wyoming land portfolio, which we think holds the world's next new gold mega-district." The 2023 soil sampling program was part of a larger regional program designed to cover approximately 80% of the 3,884-hectare Golden Buffalo project and test the Eastern and Western extensions of the fertile Golden Buffalo Shear Zone ( see Press Release - Aug 3, 2023 ). The 2023 regional soil sampling program identified a significant 3.5 km2 arsenic anomaly centered on a 2+ km western extension of the GBSZ. Additionally, several other shear structures hosting arsenic anomalies have been identified in the northwest corner and southern end of the Golden Buffalo property ( Figure 1 ).The 2023 soil sampling program comprised over 2,100 soil samples across N-S oriented lines utilizing a 400m line spacing and 25m sample spacing. The sample grid was designed to cover areas with soil cover over the favorable Miner's Delight metagraywacke host rock, while avoiding areas of Tertiary age sedimentary cover. The samples were dried and analyzed using a portable NitonTM XL5 Plus XRF analyzer to test for arsenic (As) geochemistry.Figure 1. Arsenic geochemistry in soils interpolation map of the Golden Buffalo Project.Golden Buffalo Project SummaryThe Golden Buffalo Project is located southeast of the Wind River Mountain Range in Fremont County of west-central Wyoming, 50 kilometres southeast of Lander, Wyoming. The property is composed of both private land and public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) totaling 9,600 acres (3,884 hectares) of active BLM mining claims, including 300 acres (121 hectares) of patented claims and >600 acres (242 hectares) of private surface land with water rights. Relevant Gold recently purchased the 88 un-patented mining claims with Golden Buffalo Mining for 1,500,000 shares and eliminated over $16.2 M of calendar-based payments (See Press Release - Jan 15, 2024).In 2020, Golden Buffalo Mining excavated an approximately 20-metre trench and produced over 500oz of high-grade visible bonanza-style gold. Relevant Gold's systematic work since then has identified the GBSZ as a primary control on high-grade gold mineralization at the project highlighted by rock chip assays from the trench of 168 g/t Au and the 3,500 metre phase 1 drilling program in 2022 cut 83.8 g/t Au over 1 metre with over 50% of drill holes reporting shear-hosted gold mineralization (see Press Release - Feb 6, 2023).For a full technical summary, view the Company's Golden Buffalo 43-101 Technical Report.QA/QCSamples were collected, prepped, and analyzed internally by the Relevant Gold technical team using the XL5 Plus portable NitonTM XRF analyzer. Samples were collected and analyzed according to a standardized sampling methodology including sample preparation, drying, and analyzing within a dedicated indoor workspace. An internal QAQC process was used with regular insertion and analysis of Standards and Blanks, along with duplicate analysis of individual samples. The XL5 Plus portable NitonTM XRF analyzer does not provide a certified assay result and thus all results should be considered qualitative and not certified by an independent third-party laboratory.All results and QA/QC have been reviewed by Mr. Brian Lentz, CPG, who is the Chief Exploration Officer and Qualified Person for the Company.About Relevant Gold Corp.Relevant Gold Corp. is a North American gold exploration company founded by experienced exploration geologists and operated by a highly respected team with a proven record of significant value creation for shareholders. Relevant Gold is focused on the acquisition, exploration, discovery, and development of district-scale gold projects in the state of Wyoming - one of the most mining-friendly jurisdictions in the United States and globally.On behalf of Relevant Gold Corp.,Rob Bergmann, Chief Executive OfficerMore informationFor further information about Relevant Gold Corp. or this news release, please visit our website at www.relevantgoldcorp.com or contact Rob Bergmann, President and CEO, or Kristopher Jensen, Manager of Investor Relations, at 763-760-4886 or by email at ir@ relevantgoldcorp.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Historical InformationThis news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements relate to future events of Relevant Gold Corp. ("Relevant" or "Relevant Gold" or "the Company"). Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "e PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 14:01:20 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 462 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Coursework can be completed in as little as a few weeks to get on the path toward a reliable source of income and a flexible schedule with a career in real estate.DENVER, CO / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The real estate market is picking up speed in South Dakota and it's a great time to become a real estate agent. The CE Shop has education for professionals at every point in their careers, whether they need a successful career jumpstart or to amplify success for seasoned agents. The first step to getting licensed is to complete the South Dakota Pre-Licensing education.The CE Shop With multiple real estate education packages from The CE Shop to choose from for South Dakotans, students find starting with a package that adds exam prep and post-licensing coursework works best, helping to prepare students for the entire career lifecycle. Students can add additional professional development courses with ProPath, which offers several a-la-carte and bundled packages for the working professional, to ensure success and gain intel that would usually take months or years to obtain through trial and error. Check out the South Dakota course catalog here. Indeed.com states that real estate agents in South Dakota make an average base salary of $76,176 annually, so entering the market now, while housing costs are dropping, means that more people will be buying homes and needing a well-educated real estate agent.The CE Shop provides an industry-best education, with streamlined and flexible learning and features that include mobile-friendly access, clear course progress, and customer support seven days a week, so that students can feel confident that The CE Shop is offering the easiest path to career growth and state-approved coursework.Our Pre-Licensing Courses are state-approved and 100% online for convenience. We cover everything future real estate agents need to know, from both a national and state perspective, based on South Dakota's candidate handbook. Rather than requiring a textbook, we provide content through our course resources as students need it. Download any resource in the course to keep it as a quick reference study guide.Learn more about The CE Shop and their South Dakota real estate offerings, see a demo, and get career resources here.About The CE Shop The CE Shop is the leading provider of professional real estate education with online mortgage, real estate, home inspection, and appraisal courses available throughout the United States. The CE Shop produces quality education for professionals across the nation, whether they're veterans in their industry or are looking to launch a new career. We believe that the right education can truly make a difference. Visit TheCEShop.com to learn more.Contact InformationBuse Kayarbuse.kayar@issuerdirect.com Related ImagesThe CE ShopThe CE ShopSOURCE: The CE ShopView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 17:45:28 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 540 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Top Five Conveyor Car Wash Company Expands Footprint in Virginia, Texas, and GeorgiaTHOMASTON, GA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Tidal Wave Auto Spa, one of the nation's fastest-growing express car wash companies, opened three brand-new locations across the south this week in Culpeper, VA, Hillsboro, TX, and Savannah, GA.To celebrate these Grand Openings, each new Tidal Wave location is offering eight days of free car washes from March 13-March 20. This limited-time promotion provides an opportunity for car owners to experience Tidal Wave's premium wash option, Graph-X4, at no cost. Additionally, any new customer that joins a Clean Club unlimited wash membership plan during Grand Opening week will enjoy their first month of unlimited washes for only $9.97 - saving up to $40."We're committed to delivering superior service and unparalleled convenience to our customers," said Tidal Wave CEO and Founder Scott Blackstock. "Each of these new locations represents our ongoing commitment to setting new standards in car care excellence and providing a truly exceptional experience for every customer who visits a Tidal Wave Auto Spa." Tidal Wave Auto Spa is committed to providing every customer with an exceptional car wash experience through industry-leading car care technology, clean and attractive locations, and friendly customer service at every location. Stop by for a single wash or join Tidal Wave's Clean Club for the ultimate experience. Members can wash every day of the month for one convenient monthly payment and save time with exclusive club member wash lanes - plus, memberships can be used at any Tidal Wave location. For those needing to wash multiple cars, Tidal Wave offers discounted monthly family plans and fleet plans for businesses with five or more vehicles.Culpeper, VA Location: 16105 Ira Hoffman Lane, Culpeper, VA 27701Nearby: Manassas, VAHillsboro, TX Location: 1319 Corsicana Hwy, Hillsboro, TX 76645Nearby: Fort Worth, TX (Coming Soon)Savannah, GA Location: 10001 Abercorn St, Savannah, GA 31406Nearby: Hinesville, GA, Bluffton, SC, Savannah, GA - E Victory Drive (Coming Soon)Tidal Wave currently operates 11 Virginia locations, 16 Texas locations, and 43 Georgia locations. In the coming months, the company will open additional brand-new locations in Waynesboro, VA, Christiansburg, VA, El Paso, TX, Silsbee, TX, Statesboro, GA, and a second convenient location in Savannah, GA.For additional information, including upcoming locations, fundraising, fleet plans, and more, please visit: https://www.tidalwaveautospa.com/ About Tidal Wave Auto SpaTidal Wave Auto Spa is an industry-leading conveyor car wash company founded in 1999 by Scott and Hope Blackstock in Thomaston, GA. Tidal Wave is committed to providing cutting-edge car care technology and exceptional customer service at each of their 244 locations sprawling 25 states across the South, Midwest, and Northern United States. In 2020, Tidal Wave partnered with Golden Gate Capital to facilitate their accelerated growth across the country. Tidal Wave is one of the top five conveyor car wash companies in the country and has been included in the Inc. 5000 list for America's Fastest Growing Companies since 2020. The company was recognized as a 2023 Champion of Charity Honoree by Professional Carwashing & Detailing and has raised over $3 million dollars for organizations in their communities.Contact InformationHeather ColemanMarketing Managermedia@ tidalwaveautospa.com Andrea TraylorSenior Director of Digital Marketingandrea.traylor@tidalwaveautospa.com 2058212220Related ImagesSOURCE: Tidal Wave Auto SpaView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 14:20:32 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 496 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 ATLANTIC BEACH, FL / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The power of collaboration, technology and creativity when you are physically challenged.Stacey Mayo is a professional artist who always considered art her side gig. She retired from her full-time business in the beginning of this year to pursue art full-time and explore her creative abilities. Two weeks before her retirement date, Stacey fell flat on a parking bump in the parking lot of a Michael's Craft Store and shattered her wrist on her dominant hand. Immediate surgery was required and a plate and six pins were inserted. Her orthopedic surgeon told her it would take 6 to 12 months to heal completely. According to the Worldwide Health Organization, "The number of serious falls reported worldwide is surging and already accounts for an estimated 684,000 deaths annually." Mayo said, "Even though it's really painful, I feel fortunate that my fall wasn't any more serious than it was." After a couple weeks, Stacey was frustrated in many ways, including creatively and took out her iPad to try to paint some space art with her non-dominant hand. She found she was able to use the stylus to some degree and started painting. She collaborated with her husband, Mike who has Essential Tremors (ET). This condition is inherited and causes his hands to shake a lot, limiting his ability to do many things, including use a paintbrush to do details or even loose work. According to the International Essential Tremor Foundation, an estimated 7 - 10 million Americans have Essential Tremors (ET).Despite their handicaps, the couple combined her knowledge of using Procreate software on the iPad to do art and his knowledge of astronomy to create a beautiful painting, unlike any they had done before. Procreate is a popular digital art and illustration app developed specifically for iPad and iPhone devices. According to Wikipedia, professional artists have used Procreate to create the posters for Stranger Things, Logan, and Blade Runner as well as several covers for The New Yorker. It has also been professionally adopted at Marvel Comics, DC Comics, Disney Animation, and Pixar." Stacey created a portrait painting of Einstein on it.Mayo said, "This was the first time Mike and I ever collaborated on a piece of art. It was also the first painting Mike had ever done. We are excited about how it turned out and have received great feedback." Prints are available for sale on Staceys website at www.artbystacey.com About ART BY STACEY:ART BY STACEY is a FINE ART BUSINESS that was founded in 2008. We offer original art, prints and custom commissioned art for individuals and businesses. We specialize in beach art, mountain art, abstracts, and portraits. You can see some of our art at www.artbystacey.com or contact us at 904-606-5993 or assist@ artbtstacey.com to learn more about all we can offer.Contact Information:Art By StaceyStacey Mayo828-551-3600 Stacey@ artbystacey.comwww.ArtByStacey.com SOURCE: Art By Stacey PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 13:04:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1070 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / BTU METALS CORP. ("BTU" or the "Company") (TSX-V:BTU)(OTCQB:BTUMF) announces updates on the exploration work completed on the Dixie Halo Project optioned to Kinross Gold Corporation (K-TSX). Kinross holds their interests in the area in a wholly owned subsidiary Great Bear Resources Ltd. ("GBR"). The Company's Dixie Halo project is a strategic, large land position adjacent to the world class Great Bear gold deposit southeast of the main Red Lake Gold camp area in northwestern Ontario.The Dixie Halo Project is located adjacent to Kinross' Great Bear project (the "Great Bear Project") where Kinross has budgeted $85 million for 2024 for the continuing exploration and development of what they refer to as a world class gold deposit. Kinross continues to expand the envelope of the known gold mineralization down-dip and along strike and they have also announced plans to explore outside the known mineralization this year. Kinross recently announced deep drill hole results on the Great Bear Project that included an intersection of 389.57 g/t gold over a 4.4 m core length (Drill hole BR843AC1A).Exploration Summary and Exploration Plan for 2024A state-of-the-art airborne magnetic survey was completed in late 2023 using the same contractor (Geotech Ltd.) and the same airborne geophysical system as was used at the Great Bear project to provide a seamless, consistent high-quality airborne magnetic dataset to generate a solid base for updated geophysical interpretation and geological correlation across the Great Bear and Dixie Halo projects. Detailed interpretation of the data is ongoing.GBR is continuing work under the Option Agreement including an ongoing program of re-logging and sampling of all of the BTU drill core using its ever-expanding experience and geological knowledge they have amassed in relation to the gold mineralization at the Great Bear project. GBR will use the sampling protocols used at Great Bear to provide a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the geology and alteration on the Dixie Halo project and to provide an expanded basis for the correlation of geological units and alteration throughout the area.GBR plans to complete a geological review and sampling of various outcrop areas of interest on Dixie Halo including some of the areas worked in the past by BTU.As the various review, relogging and sampling results are received and compiled by GBR, an initial core drilling program will be planned and GBR expects to be in a position to execute an initial drill program once it has secured an exploration permit from the Ontario government.Under the option agreement GBR is required to spend not less than $2.7 million over the first three years and a total of $4.7 million to earn a 70% interest in the Dixie Halo property. The BTU-GBR option agreement closed on February 22, 2023.BTU CEO Paul Wood commented; "We are very pleased to be working with Kinross and the Great Bear project team as they carry on the exploration of the Dixie Halo project. We are excited to be involved as they apply their expertise to continue the evaluation of the best places to explore on the Dixie Halo project. We look forward to them defining the best available gold targets and then drill testing those targets. The knowledge and expertise they bring to the further evaluation of the Dixie Halo project are invaluable, given they are the experts at defining the structure, alteration and gold mineralization in the area." BTU has now received the $300,000 anniversary payment from GBR under the Purchase Agreement, bringing the Company's cash balance to approximately $1.7M.February 2023 transactions with GBRThe Transactions entered into by BTU and GBR, in late February 2023 included: (i) a purchase agreement pursuant to which GBR acquired from BTU certain unpatented mining claims located in the Kenora District of Ontario, with BTU continuing to participate in those lands through a newly created royalty payable to BTU; (ii) an option agreement, which provides GBR with an option to earn a 70% interest in certain unpatented mining claims held by BTU located in the Kenora District of Ontario; and (iii) a subscription agreement pursuant to which GBR purchased 25,000,000 common shares of BTU at a purchase price of CAD$0.05 per common share.Asset AcquisitionThe Company entered into a purchase agreement with GBR, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kinross, for the purchase (the "Acquisition") of certain unpatented mining claims located in the Kenora District of Ontario (the "Acquisition Properties"). The Acquisition Properties had a total area of 2,637 hectares and consisted of 39 Boundary Cell Mining Claims and 76 Single Cell Mining Claims located to the south of the Great Bear Project, as well as 2 Multi-cell Mining Claims located to the north of the Great Bear Project. BTU holds Net Smelter Royalties from 1.5% to 2.5% on these properties as well as underlying royalty buy back rights.The consideration payable by GBR pursuant to the Acquisition was: (i) CAD$1,550,000 in cash, with CAD$1,250,000 due immediately on closing and an additional CAD$300,000 due on the one-year anniversary of the closing date (received February 2024), and (ii) GBR issued to the Company a variable 1.5% - 2.5% NSR royalty on the Acquisition Properties (the "Royalty"), such that each Acquisition Property will have a cumulative total 4% NSR royalty attached to it upon the grant of the Royalty, once combined with the existing royalties payable over and in respect of the Acquisition Property. BTU will maintain any existing third-party royalty buy-back rights in respect of the Acquisition Properties.Figure 1: Map showing the Acquisition Properties, Optioned Properties ase well as Kinross' properties and the BTU/GoldON Pakwash properties. The Great Bear Project mineral resource is located on the northern Kinross property on this map.The Acquisition was an arm's length transaction pursuant to the policies of the TSX-V.About the Option AgreementThe Company entered into a property option agreement (the "Option Agreement") with GBR, pursuant to which GBR has been granted the right to acquire an undivided 70% interest in and to 757 mining claims (12 Boundary Cell Mining Claims, 3 Multi-cell Mining Claims, and 742 Single Cell Mining Claims) covering approximately 16,410 hectares of land, located in the Kenora District of Ontario (the "Optioned Properties").Pursuant to the terms of the Option Agreement, GBR has the option to acquire the 70% interest in the Optioned Properties in consideration for completing cash payments or exploration expenditures on the Optioned Properties, being: (i) CAD$2,700,000 in expenditures, to be incurred by GBR on or before Press Release March 13, 2024 TRANSCRIPT: Opening statement of Sen. Pia Cayetano, Chairperson Blue Ribbon Committee Probe on Unauthorized Proliferation and Use of Government Documents by Foreign Nationals [e.g. Certificates of Live Births (COLB), Passports and Tax Identification Number (TIN)] This public hearing of the Committee on Accountability of Public Officers and Investigations (Blue Ribbon) is called to order. This is pursuant to the Blue Ribbon Committee's power to conduct hearings motu proprio based on Rule X, Sec. 13(2) of the Senate Rules that provides that the Blue Ribbon has the power to conduct an investigation of any matter of public interest on its own initiative or brought to its attention by any member of the Senate. For the record, this has been taken up by members of the Senate in the plenary on the budget deliberations. This Committee will tackle the issues today surrounding the Unauthorized Proliferation and Use of Government Documents by Foreign Nationals, such as the Certificate of Live Births, Passports, and Tax Identification Numbers. So let's now take the oath of the resource persons. May I call on the Director-General, Director-General Rudy Quimbo, to administer the oath? --- Thank you. Just a few administrative matters. We'll conduct this hearing based on the flow that the Chair deems necessary. So there will not be any reading of statements unless you are asked. Because we already have, in a way, had initial, almost like initial hearings on this, because as I said, these matters were brought up during the budget. So in the interest of time, the records of the budget hearing form part of the records here so we don't have to repeat everything. And then in all the hearings that this representation conducts, I am very liberal about mobility breaks because I feel it is an integral part of your health, in the same way na we will serve lunch if it's lunch break. I also require that you take care of your own health, you drink water, and if you drink water, you will have to go to the bathroom. So feel free to excuse yourselves. You don't even have to ask my permission. Just kindly mention to the Secretary that you are stepping out. If you also want to stand up, stretch your legs, because these hearings can go on for hours, you are welcome to do so. You don't have to ask for my permission. But that's me. I don't suggest you do it with other chairs unless they say that you can do it because I want you to have healthy bodies so that your mind can also respond in a healthy way. What else? I think that's it. If you do have a statement read, you can ask me but be prepared that I probably will say no need. And I'll ask you to just read that part that is relevant to what I need to hear. Because as I said, I just want to keep this simple and as brief as possible. Because everyone sitting here is a government official so I thank you for your time. I thank your principals for the time they have given us to allow us to conduct this hearing. I'd like to acknowledge the presence of Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian. Good morning. So, I normally give our colleagues the opportunity to make an opportunity to make a statement before me, but since he literally just sat down, I will give him 5 seconds to open his notebook and to look at his notes and decide. Or I'll go ahead, I'll go ahead because the nature of my opening statement will directly go into the questions. And may I ask the Secretariat and my team to remind me, as new senators come in, I will just remind them of the flow of this particular hearing. Senator Sherwin, I was just saying for this particular hearing, because the issues were already raised during the budget deliberations on the floor. I will not start with position papers and statements. And by the way, some of you have submitted, and you are welcome to submit any document you want to the Committee. So I will just go straight to my question. And when I have one other senator with me, it's free flowing. Pero kapag more than one na, hindi na free flowing dahil gumugulo na yun. And then, I will ask that the key resource persons speak first before other senators ask questions. But the first one here gets to ask questions along with me because dalawa lang kami. And it can still be well moderated. Alright, we'll start. So, there have been quite a few reports of some unscrupulous foreign nationals posing as Filipinos by using legitimate, supposedly, legitimate government-issued documents - I say legitimate because in previous hearings, they have been confirmed by various officials that they are legitimate, so that is why I use the term legitimate. But we will establish that again today - such as Philippine passports, which they fraudulently obtained using spurious documents and through other illegal means. So during the plenary budget deliberations on November 9, 2023, just a few months ago, Senator Dela Rosa made an interpellation, raising the interception by the Bureau of Immigration (BI) and NBI of foreign nationals with Philippine passports. He stated that "more than a dozen Filipino passport holders [were] obviously not Filipinos." So hindi sila Pilipino and yet, they carry Filipino passports. He raised the alarm as it "involves national security." It does involve national security because that means foreigners can come in and out of our country as if they were Filipinos. They could be a threat to our safety, they could be citizens of countries that in one way or another are not friendly to us. So it is definitely a national security issue. Our Senate President, Miguel Zubiri, also manifested in the deliberations that he received reports that the NBI had an ongoing investigation on the activities of a Local Civil Registrar (LCR) in a town in CARAGA, Mindanao. The LCR was allegedly "giving out birth certificates" and the NBI "caught several Chinese nationals who do not even speak English, Tagalog, or Bisaya." So the Senate President referred the matter to the Blue Ribbon Committee. I'd like to give an example of a foreigner using a duly issued Philippine passport. I rarely give a long opening statement but I need to set the tone of this hearing so that the public can also understand. Because we have millions of Filipinos who are OFWs and as I will present, even their own safety and their own homes, their ability to be secure in their person, na hindi sila kapkapan, na hindi sila ma-detain, in our own country, and worse, in other countries, is jeopardized by these cases. So let me give you now the example. This foreigner is using a duly issued Philippine passport. A Vietnamese national who for the purposes of this hearing and pursuant to the Data Privacy Act, the photo has been somewhat blurred, blurred na ba yan sa lagay na yan? And will also be called by the name of "NGUYEN". So this Vietnamese national was recently deported by the Bureau of Immigration after being discovered in possession of a fraudulently obtained Philippine passport. The Philippine passport bore a name alongside her photo, which was different when compared to her Vietnamese Passport. The questioned document, however, was found to be genuine and duly issued by the DFA. May I just know quickly from both the Bureau of Immigration representative and DFA if you are both familiar with this case? Yes? Well, it's the Philippine Statistics Authority representative who nodded. DFA and Immigration, are you familiar with this case? Yes? I'll call on you later. DFA said yes. How about Immigration? Excuse me, who's here? Kayo po? Mr. Supan are you familiar? Sorry, can you turn on your mic? Not ba? Kasi kayo humuli. So I'll just ask my staff to approach you, baka naman familiar kayo kaya lang nga tinago sa ibang pangalan. So I'll ask our Secretary to approach you? Okay? Just pull him aside so that we can discuss this. Reminder lang na we are not using the person's real name. So this example is just the tip of the iceberg. The Blue Ribbon Committee conducted its own investigation, the Secretariat, and came across the case of an OFW, this is another case, for the purposes of this hearing and again pursuant to the Data Privacy Act, will be referred to as "JANE" This is a case naman of identity theft. In this case naman, si Jane, again, the Bureau of Immigration intercepted Ms. Jane, a said person who was a passenger departing at NAIA bound for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia via PAL due to "INCONSISTENT STATEMENTS". This person, si Jane, sabi niya, she is traveling for the first time, but the records of our Bureau of Immigration revealed that she had already had previous travels. So may inconsistency kaagad na nakita. In fact lumabas na that person had already departed twice as a land-based OFW in 2015 and 2019, and had not returned to the Philippines since then. But here was this person in front of the officer, and yet twice na siya daw nakaalis at hindi pa nakabalik. So tatlo na ang identity niya. According to Ms Jane, yun nga, it was her first time to depart the country as an OFW. She was not aware at all that there is another person allegedly using her identity and based on her birth certificate, she has a particular birthdate, I won't reveal it na lang for her identity, born in 1993, but she alleged that it was changed to 1990 by her recruiter in Maguindanao. So doon pa lang, kahit yung totoo niya na siya na yung totoong tao, na-change pa to make it appear daw that she was compliant with employment age requirements. So pinatanda siya. And then she claims to have paid one thousand five hundred Philippine pesos (PHP 1,500.00) for a new birth certificate. The recruiter was said to have taken possession of her passport and other documents, and blocked her off since then. The 2014 recruiter. So anyway, can I now ask BI, are you familiar with this case? So this one you have personal knowledge of talaga. Alright. And is DFA familiar with this case? Okay. so sinabi ko na ah, pangalanan siya na Jane. Anyway, what happened here was so it's you, do you have a title? Immigration Officer? So Immigration Officer Supan was the one who interviewed her and the outcome was, her departure was deferred and the person was endorsed to the BI-Border Control and Intelligence Unit. So you turned over this person. So basically, hindi na siya nakaalis. When was this again? When did this happen? Just this year, okay. Anyway, I am establishing that as examples of issues that we are going to tackle. So yung isa is Pilipino naman talaga pero may gumamit ng identity niya, si identity theft. And then in the first case that I mentioned, it appears to be a foreigner who now has found a way to obtain a Filipino passport. So those are two separate cases but clearly involving these people having documents, or in the case of the second person, somebody else obtaining documents that are supposed to be genuine and reflective of one person only, and it's now already in the hands of two other people. And in the other case, hindi nga Pilipino. So those are our very troublesome issues. And later on, the questions we will ask is, from the officers here from the provincial statistical offices... paano nangyari ito, and we also have reports na binebenta yun. So ang napakasakit is the question I am about to raise: nabebenta na ba ang Philippine citizenship, at magkano para maging Filipino citizen? It's sad that I have to ask that question but that is the effect of what we are seeing, nabebenta ang Philippine citizenship. So, just to state for the record, it is the State's duty to protect and maintain the integrity and credibility of passports and travel documents. Grabe yung effect nito sa kahit sinong ordinary Philippine citizen pero medyo mabigat ang loob ko especially for our OFWs. Kahit sino namang maharang, ma-delay sa atin pa lang sa immigration, syempre hassle yun, hassle. Pero for an OFW who has spent all their savings, umutang na sa lahat ng kapitbahay, nagbayad sa recruiter para malaman na number one, hindi siya makaalis. Number two, may iba na palang inako yung pagkatao niya, and then yung buong future niya is at jeopardy. Kaya tinanong ko nga ano na nangyari doon sa taong yun, so hindi pa nakaalis. So that's one of our major concerns because these Filipinos, our OFWs, are really relying on the sanctity and integrity of our public documents. So I hope we can shed light on this and find solutions. I am ready to start asking questions, as I said, but I'd like to ask Sen. Gatchalian, if you would like to make a few statements and then I will proceed with the questions. Go ahead. A 19-year-old Michigan man who lost his right eye after being shot with a firearm made from a ghost gun kit filed a lawsuit Tuesday against his former best friend who accidently shot him and the Pennsylvania company that sold his friend the kit. The lawsuit, which was filed in Washtenaw County Circuit Court, alleges that JSD Supply sold two ghost gun kits in April 2021 to Guy Boyds then-17-year-old friend without verifying the friends age or whether he could legally possess a pistol. Boyd, who also was 17, was shot in the face less than two months later. He also suffers from ongoing chronic and debilitating seizures that have nearly killed him and will continue to impact almost every aspect of his daily life, according to the lawsuit. This case is about the known and obvious dangers of arming a teenager with a gun, a company that cavalierly ignored these dangers, and a young man whose life was shattered because of it, Boyds attorneys wrote in the lawsuit. It was not immediately clear what criminal charges, if any, were filed against Boyds former friend, who was a minor at the time of the shooting, said David Santacroce, one of Boyds lawyers. The lawsuit alleges that JSD Supply proudly, publicly, yet falsely advertised that the guns assembled from its kits required no licensing, could be owned completely off-the-books, and required absolutely no paperwork. Ghost guns are privately made firearms without serial numbers. Generally, guns manufactured by licensed companies are required to have serial numbers usually displayed on the weapons frame that allow authorities to trace them back to the manufacturer, firearms dealer and original buyer. Ghost guns, however, are made of parts that are assembled into weapons at home. The critical component in building an untraceable gun is what is known as the lower receiver. Some are sold in do-it-yourself kits and the receivers are typically made from metal or polymer. New Jerseys attorney general sued JSD Supply and another company in December alleging that they tried to sell ghost guns which are illegal in that state. On April 9, 2021, the teen named in the Michigan lawsuit allegedly purchased ghost gun build and completion kits online for $464.97 and had them shipped to his home in Ypsilanti, about 36 miles southwest of Detroit. His mother found the first assembled pistol and took it away because he was underage, the lawsuit says. Eighteen days later, he purchased two more of the companion kits for $474.97 and also had them shipped to his home. Boyd and the teen had been best friends for more than 10 years and were drinking alcohol or smoking marijuana with two other friends in late May 2021 when the gun was pointed at Boyd and the trigger was pulled. The last thing plaintiff Boyd remembers from that night is (his friend) saying, after he had shot him, I love you, bro, according to the lawsuit. Doctors were unable to remove all of the bullet fragments, and some remain in Boyds brain, the lawsuit says. Mr. Boyd brings this action seeking relief for his injuries and trying to prevent such an avoidable tragedy from ever happening again, according to the lawsuit, which says the amount in damages exceeds $25,000. A jury would decide on the amount of damages if the lawsuit succeeds, Santacroce said. PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 20:01:28 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 471 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Wallis Bank is pleased to announce the opening of a new full-service branch in Sugar Land, Texas, anticipated for the Q3 of 2024.HOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The new branch will serve the Sugar Land community and its surrounding areas, providing residents and businesses with access to a range of banking solutions. Wallis Bank's expansion into Sugar Land reflects its dedication to supporting local economic growth and meeting the financial needs of the community.Key Features of the New Sugar Land BranchComprehensive Banking ServicesThe Sugar Land branch will offer a full suite of services, including personal and business banking, lending solutions, and digital banking.State-of-the-Art FacilitiesWallis Bank is committed to providing a welcoming banking environment. The new branch will feature private offices, conference rooms, a drive-thru, and an ATM.Community EngagementWallis Bank is rooted in community values. The Sugar Land branch will engage with the community through financial education programs, sponsorships, and partnerships to contribute to the overall well-being and prosperity of the area.Experienced TeamThe branch will be staffed with a team of experienced and customer-focused banking professionals dedicated to providing personalized service and building lasting relationships with clients."This milestone is a testament to the dedication of growth that Wallis Bank has instilled," Aziz Rahim, Sugar Land Area President, proclaims. "My family and I are members of this community, so it is meaningful to me that Wallis Bank gets to give back to the community. I am excited to lead and provide a convenient location to our current customers in Sugar Land and to branch out to new customers and show them what personalized service at Wallis Bank is all about." The opening date and additional details regarding the Sugar Land branch's inauguration ceremony will be announced in the coming weeks. Wallis Bank invites the community to stay tuned for updates.Wallis Bank has only grown since its inception in 1906 and has collected many accolades. The Bank was ranked #1 in the Houston, TX area for SBA lenders and in the top 50 nationally. Wallis Bank is also ranked number five in the ICBA's Best of the Best top-performing community banks in 2023, with over $1 billion in assets.About Wallis BankWallis Bank is a full-service community bank dedicated to serving clients on the highest level. The Bank was established in 1906 in Wallis, Texas. Since then, the company underwent expansion with the addition of new locations in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Phoenix. The Bank continues to expand its offering of digital products and services with an enhanced customer experience. Wallis Bank has consistently been named the #1 SBA Lender in the Houston District.Learn more at www.wallisbank.com Contact InformationHarley HuroskySocial Media Specialistharley.hurosky@wallisbank.com 713-715-9993SOURCE: Wallis BankView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-03-13 14:46:46 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 457 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Aflac IncorporatedOriginally published on Aflac NewsroomCommunity giving, close to home - that's what the Employee Engagement Team's Philanthropy Committee at Aflac's Premier Life, Absence and Disability Solutions (PLADS) wanted. And they made it happen, streamlining the donation process so that they could more quickly get needed items in the hands of local students in need.From vision to reality: Closet of Care takes shapeEmployees in both the Connecticut and Florida PLADS locations rallied behind this mission. The offices in Farmington, Connecticut, and Plantation, Florida, each identified a nearby public high school with a high number of at-need students and began collecting school supplies, hygiene products, toiletries, snacks and clothing.In that moment, the Closet of Care was born.Since delivering the first batch of supplies to the schools in November 2022, the Philanthropy Committee developed a process to track inventory. Using it - and with continued, generous donations from PLADS employees - they continue to keep school shelves stocked.No-shame participationCloset of Care addresses studies showing children are better able to meet academic and achievement standards when not distracted by stress.1 With basic needs met - and discreetly - stress levels decrease, and students can devote their energy to academics and social development.Focused equally on preserving students' sense of dignity and respecting their privacy, the schools created space for supplies and communicated to students that help was available free of charge.As the partnership between PLADS and local schools grew, a faster and even more efficient delivery of supplies was needed. Now, PLADS employees can access Amazon Wish Lists for Bulkeley High School in Connecticut and Flanagan High school in Florida from their personal devices to order and ship requested supplies directly to the schools.Both locations are seeing positive impact from the Closet of Care - in fact, Florida school representatives felt the program was so impactful that they nominated Randy Olivo, manager, Group Proposition Development, who assisted with the local program, for a countywide Community Involvement Award in the School-Based Partnership Category.Learn more about how Aflac gives back to the community at Aflac.com 1Education Library, "Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs In Education." Accessed on Feb. 1, 2024. https://educationlibrary.org/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-in-education/ Premier Life, Absence and Disability Services (PLADS): Group life, disability, and absence services are administered by Continental American Insurance Company (CAIC), a proud member of the Aflac family of insurers. CAIC is not licensed to solicit business in New York, Guam, Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands.Continental American Insurance Company | Columbia, SCAGC2400201View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Aflac Incorporated on 3 blmedia.com Contact Info: Spokesperson: Aflac IncorporatedWebsite: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/aflac-incorporated Email: info@3 blmedia.com SOURCE: Aflac Incorporated Mobile network operator Airtel Africa, which has Nigeria as its biggest market, is giving thought to launching a public shares sale for its mobile money arm, whose valuation exceeds $4 billion once the transaction is completed. It has been in talks with possible advisors for a planned listing of the shares from the initial public offer on a stock exchange, yet to be decided, in any of London, the UAE and Europe, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing sources with the knowledge of the move. Airtel Money needs to be separated from its parent as a standalone entity before it can attain the prestige of trading on a stock exchange. Estimating the company at $4 billion compares with its valuation at $2.65 billion three years ago, when it sold minority stakes worth $200 million to San Francisco-based investment company The Rise Fund and $100 million to MasterCard. That implies the valuation of Airtel Money, the groups fastest-growing subsidiary, has expanded by more than half since 2021. In Nigeria, the pace of growth for the mobile money business has been quickened by the launch of its SmartCash Payments Service Bank, which has witnessed dramatic adoption in its two years of operation, helped by concerted efforts by the central bank to drive cashless transactions. Bloomberg stated that the sources said both the plan to list the mobile money division this year and the valuation amount are tentative. The development comes weeks after Airtel Africa reported a 99.6 per cent fall in net profit in the nine months to December, after a $484 million foreign exchange, driven by sharp devaluations of the Nigerian naira, nearly plunged it into loss. The company is currently in the middle of a share buyback to reacquire $100 million worth of its shares traded in the open market. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Famous Kenyan-American writer Mukoma Ngugi has accused his father, Ngugi wa Thiongo, award-winning Kenyan author and academic, of physically abusing and silencing his late mother, Nyambura. The Associate Professor of Literature at Cornell University, U.S., shared a newspaper article about his late mother on Tuesday, exposing his fathers alleged abuse. Kenyan media outlets say much of Nyamburas life story was overshadowed by her more famous husband whom she married in 1961. According to authorscalendar.info, over the next seventeen years, his first wife, Nyambura, gave birth to six children. Mr Mukoma expressed the pain of witnessing his mother being systematically erased from Ngugi wa Thiongos story. In Xs (Twitter) post, he wrote, My father @NgugiWaThiongo physically abused my late mother a he would beat her up. Some of my earliest memories are of me going to visit her at my grandmothers where she would seek refuge. But with that said, it is the silencing of who she was that gets me. Ok- I have said it. This shocking revelation has shed light on the private life of Thiongo, a celebrated writer, playwright, and scholar often regarded as East Africas leading novelist. Mr Mukoma revealed that some of his earliest memories involve visiting his mother at his grandmothers house, where she sought refuge from the alleged abuse. It isnt the first time Mr Mukoma has made such a distressing revelation about his father, Mr Thiongo. In 2022, he took to Twitter to express his dismay about Nyambura, his late mum, being systematically erased from Ngugi wa Thiongos narrative. His post from 2022 reads, It hurts to see my late mother, Nyambura (my daughter is named after her) being systemically erased from the @NgugiWaThiongo_ story. We literally (of course) and figuratively would not be here if it was not for her keeping us glued together through the political persecutions. Ngugi Wa Thiongo Mr Thiongo, who is not only a renowned writer but also an activist and Nyambura have six children: Thiongo, Kimunya, Nduchu, Mukoma, Wanjiku and Njoki. However, his political activism in Kenya led to the collapse of his first marriage, as he was arrested several times. Nyambura died in 1995, and her husband couldnt attend her funeral as he was in exile in the United States. The acclaimed writer and activist later married a new wife, Njeri, with whom he welcomed two children before their separation. Mrs Njeri is the director of Human Resource Faculty and Staff Conflict Resolution Services at the University of California, Irvine, where Ngugi is a Distinguished Professor. Thiongo gained prominence with his debut novel, Weep Not Child, released in May 1964. Despite facing imprisonment and exile due to his criticism of the dictatorial government in Kenya, he has remained an influential figure in African literature. His work includes novels, plays, short stories, and essays, ranging from literary and social criticism to childrens literature. He is the founder and editor of the Gikuyu-language journal MAtAiri. His short story, The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright has been translated into 100 languages. Source, a Kenyan online newspaper, says Ngugi, 86, is currently suffering from kidney failure and is living alone and under the care of medical personnel at his house in California, U.S. He has to undergo kidney dialysis three times a week and he recently had surgery. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print PT: The focus of your PhD was on media communication and national security discourse. What is the motivation for your research interest in climate risk communication, ecology, and environmental justice? Ogungbemi: My previous work focused extensively on media representation and the coverage of Boko Haram terrorism in Nigerian media. This experience has bestowed upon me a profound understanding of the way media influences the perception and discussion of matters pertaining to national security. As I delved into this subject matter, my comprehension of the wider effects of media on society, particularly within the realm of global obstacles such as climate change and environmental equity, grew exponentially. My shift towards climate risk communication, ecology, and environmental justice was motivated by a realisation that these global challenges are often underrepresented or misrepresented in media narratives and in discourses emanating from the affected groups or communities. The phenomenon, in its reciprocal manner, has an impact on public understanding as well as the formulation of policies. I saw a clear parallel between the communication challenges in national security and those in environmental issues. The pressing nature of climate change and its disproportionate effect on marginalised communities, particularly in regions such as Africa, compelled me to concentrate my research efforts on this realm. I believe the implementation of effective communication tactics plays a pivotal role in galvanising initiatives and cultivating a fairer methodology to tackle environmental quandaries. Consequently, my ongoing research endeavours to bridge the chasm between scientific comprehension and public perception, advocating both justice and sustainability in the realm of environmental policies. PT: Is there a correlation between your Niger Delta origin and your interest in environmental and ecological advocacy? Ogungbemi: Yes, the Niger Delta regions situation has significantly influenced my interest in environmental and ecological advocacy. Growing up in the Niger Delta, a region profoundly impacted by ecological contamination, necessitates confronting the harsh realities of ecological harm daily. The formerly pristine rivers and lush mangrove forests now endure the consequences of oil pollution and debris, which have a drastic impact on the regions biodiversity and the fishing industry, upon which numerous communities rely. The air quality is frequently tainted by gas flares, enveloping the vicinity in a pungent smog that poses grave health risks to inhabitants. The ever-present signs of oil spills and the pervasive scent of petroleum constantly serve as reminders of the environmental toll incurred by oil production. In this arduous milieu, the resilience and adaptability of the local populations are incessantly tested as they strive to safeguard their way of life and cultural heritage amidst an increasingly inhospitable environment. The Niger Delta region, renowned for its copious biodiversity and crucial contribution to the extraction of oil and gas, has experienced substantial ecological harm due to the leakage of oil, the incineration of surplus gas, and an array of other extraction techniques. The actions have resulted in the disruption of the economic structures within the local region, adverse health consequences, and an overall deterioration in the overall standard of living experienced by the communitys constituents. Developing an understanding of these matters during my upbringing has imbued within me a profound sense of duty towards the equitable treatment of the environment and the imperative to champion sustainable methodologies and practices. It has driven me to explore how the language of environmental discourse can shape public perception and policy. The plight of the Niger Delta is a poignant example of the intersection between environmental degradation and human rights, and it compels me to contribute to the advocacy for ecological preservation and the rights of affected communities through my research and writing. PT: As a research scholar in the US, ACLS Fellow, and Urban Bird Project scholar with African roots, do you see the need for environmental literacy/ education and advocacy for its integration into public education in Africa? Ogungbemi: As a research scholar in the U.S., an ACLS Fellow and an Urban Bird Project scholar with African roots, I certainly recognise the need for environmental literacy education and the importance of its integration into public education systems in Africa. Environmental literacy plays a pivotal role in equipping individuals with the requisite expertise, abilities, and consciousness to confront intricate environmental problems and partake in sustainable endeavours. Considering the pressing obstacles presented by climate change and environmental deterioration to the continent, it is indispensable for educational systems to equip citizens with the necessary knowledge and skills to comprehensively comprehend and effectively combat these issues. Advocacy for environmental education encompasses more than simply transmitting information. It also involves nurturing a mindset of caretaking and obligation towards the environment. By incorporating ecological knowledge into the public education system, we can nurture a cohort that is more aptly prepared to devise and execute solutions for environmental sustainability. Additionally, such education can foster an understanding of the societal and economic ramifications of environmental concerns, a matter of particular significance in areas where livelihoods are intimately intertwined with natural resources. As an academic with African heritage, I feel a personal and professional obligation to contribute to this educational transformation. By leveraging my research and academic platform, I aim to encourage curricula that incorporate local knowledge systems alongside scientific understanding, thereby fostering a holistic approach to environmental education that is both locally relevant and globally informed. PT: Nigerias Niger Delta region has been faced with protracted environmental and ecological challenges as a result of oil exploration. Do you have the region and her people in mind as potential beneficiaries of your research? Ogungbemi: Absolutely, the Niger Delta region and its people are central to the potential impact of my research. Having been raised with a consciousness of these matters, I have developed a profound sense of duty towards the promotion of ecological fairness and the imperative to advocate for sustainable practices. My research into climate risk communication, ecology, and environmental justice is directly relevant to addressing the complexities of these challenges. By focusing on how language and communication can influence environmental policy and advocacy, my goal is to contribute to a better understanding of how to effectively disseminate crucial information about environmental risks and rights. By collaborating harmoniously, it is conceivable to foster a multitude of solutions that are culturally attuned and specifically tailored to the region, thereby augmenting the potential for indigenous research and impactful initiatives. Moreover, this collaborative endeavour will effectively amplify the representation and influence of African scholars and communities in the global dialogue on climate and environmental concerns. Moreover, by emphasising the challenges faced by the Niger Delta in scholarly and policy discussions, I intend to garner increased attention towards the issues that the region is confronted with. The foremost objective is to foster the creation of more enduring and eco-friendly methods and plans that will place the well-being of the resident populations first, safeguard the natural surroundings, and ensure the lasting vitality and prosperity of the area. The investigation I am currently undertaking not only aims to contribute to scholarly discussions but also strives to generate tangible beneficial results for the communities most affected by environmental decline. PT: As a U.S.-based researcher and scholar, do you consider collaborative research with African scholars as part of the strategies for addressing environmental and climate challenges as well as ecological preservation in Africa? Ogungbemi: Certainly, collaboration with African scholars is a critical strategy for addressing the environmental, climate, and ecological challenges in Africa. As an intellectual based in the United States, I possess knowledge regarding the significance of intercultural and global collaborations within the realm of scholarly investigation, particularly in the context of addressing worldwide matters such as alterations in the environment and the preservation of resources. Collaborative research facilitates the amalgamation of varied proficiency, viewpoints, and assets, which proves indispensable in addressing the intricate and multilayered characteristics of environmental predicaments. African scholars bring invaluable insights into the local contexts, indigenous knowledge systems, and the specific socio-political dynamics that influence environmental and ecological issues on the continent. By collaborating, we can foster the creation of solutions that are culturally attuned and suitable for the specific regions, augment the capability for indigenous research and implementation, as well as magnify the influence of African academics and communities in the worldwide dialogue concerning climate and environmental matters. Collaborative efforts also support capacity building within African academic institutions and can lead to more robust, locally-driven environmental policies and initiatives. Therefore, I am devoted to participating in and advocating for cooperative research with scholars from Africa as an integral component of a holistic strategy towards the conservation of the environment and the enduring advancement of Africa. PT: How do you plan to apply your insights from studying environmental issues in the Niger Delta to understanding and addressing similar challenges in the United States? Ogungbemi: Drawing on the knowledge gained from examining environmental concerns in the Niger Delta, my approach to confronting analogous issues in the United States would centre on promoting ecological guardianship and the enhancement of environmental literacy across all tiers of the public education system. It is of paramount importance to weave ecological principles throughout educational programmes, thereby establishing them as fundamental educational objectives at local, national, and international levels. Understanding environmental issues through language and literacy practices is essential. This involves not only academic discourse but also engaging with and understanding the historical and cultural contexts of environmental practices, as seen in the petroglyphs and pottery of ancient societies. By appreciating the diverse ways in which different communities engage with their environment, it becomes possible to foster a more inclusive and effective approach to environmental activism and education. In practical terms, this would mean designing and advocating for ecologically centred literacy education that foregrounds ecological principles in the teaching of writing and communication. This methodology has the potential to assist students as well as the broader society in acquiring the essential capabilities to actively analyze environmental concerns and make a meaningful contribution towards fostering a sustainable and responsible culture. Moreover, my heritage and commitment to environmental activism and social justice public rhetorics inform my approach to addressing these issues. This perspective emphasizes the interconnectedness of spaces and communities in both the Global South and the Global North, advocating for translingual literacy and a holistic view of environmental issues that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries. In the United States, I intend to establish collaborative partnerships with educational institutions, environmental organisations, and communities. The objective of these partnerships would be to incorporate this all-encompassing methodology into public education and policy formation. By doing so, we can strive towards cultivating a society that possesses a heightened comprehension of environmental matters, thereby enabling it to effectively address the obstacles presented by ecological deterioration and climate change. Recently, I received an Urban Bird Project Spring Scholarship. The Urban Bird Project is a three-year, $1.5 million grant from the Mellon Foundation. The UTSA Urban Bird Project (UBP) is organised by a transdisciplinary research team led by the UTSA College of Liberal and Fine Arts (COLFA). The UTSA Urban Bird Project (UBP) is a community science programme that integrates avian ecology, Mexican American Studies and Indigenous studies through research about local, migratory and culturally significant birds and their environments. Winning the Urban Bird Project Spring Scholarship allows me to deepen my work in community-based research, and collaborative partnerships that broaden public access to environmental justice programmes. Specifically, I am working with a group of scholars at UTSA to examine the evaluation of microplastic pollution as a matter of environmental equity. This will be done by means of avian ecology and research that actively involves the community. This endeavour aims to investigate the extent of microplastic exposure encountered by frequently encountered avian species in domestic habitats and the possible consequences on their general physical condition and welfare. This will be achieved by closely monitoring nesting boxes located both within the university campus and the wider San Antonio community. The outcome of this research will enable individuals within the community to effectively address concerns related to environmental equity in their own neighborhoods, while simultaneously enhancing our understanding of a worrisome environmental contaminant. PT: In what ways do you see climate change discourses and environmental policies in the United States intersecting with or differing from those in African contexts? Ogungbemi: The discourse around climate change and environmental policies in the United States often emphasises ecological stewardship and the integration of environmental literacy into public education. At all levels of education, there is a significant emphasis on ensuring that these subjects are central learning objectives. This implies an instructional strategy that encompasses a wide range of concepts and is extensively incorporated into the curriculum. This is seen in efforts to design and advocate for ecologically-centred literacy education, which includes the teaching of ecological principles in writing and communication classes. In comparison to African contexts, which include a vast and varied landscape of environmental issues and responses, climate change discourses and environmental policies may intersect in terms of acknowledging the need for stewardship and literacy. Nonetheless, variances arise from the unique socio-economic, political, and cultural circumstances prevalent in African nations. African countries frequently confront direct and imminent repercussions resulting from climate change, encompassing challenges pertaining to agriculture, water scarcity, and health outcomes, which may not be as immediate or pronounced within the confines of the United States context. Furthermore, the historical and ongoing effects of colonialism, development policies, and global economic inequalities introduce intricate layers of intricacy to African dialogues concerning climate change and environmental policies that may not occupy as pivotal a role within the U.S. discourse. In addition, African environmental policies may have a stronger connection to development objectives and the necessity to harmonise economic advancement with the safeguarding of the environment. Furthermore, the factor of indigenous knowledge and customs also comes into play, holding a crucial position in African settings and frequently being integrated into local strategies for environmental management. These customary practices and the wisdom they embody can diverge significantly from the more technocratic and science-driven approaches that are commonly observed in environmental policies in the United States. In brief, there exists a collective acknowledgement of the significance of tackling climate change and the necessity of environmental education. However, the discussions and measures taken in the United States and African domains differ in terms of their distinct objectives, approaches, and the extent to which historical and cultural elements influence their formulation and execution. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Several people were killed and others injured this morning in renewed Russian attacks in various Ukranian regions overnight, local authorities said. Russian authorities reported an oil refinery was on fire after Ukrainian drone attacks. Ten people were pulled from the rubble after a residential building in the northern Ukrainian city of Sumy was severely damaged by a Russian drone attack, the regional administration said on Telegram. Eight of them suffered different degrees of injuries, according to preliminary information, Unfortunately one person has been killed, it said. Thirty apartments in the five-storey building were damaged in the attack, it said, with half of them completely damaged. It came after five underaged children were injured in a bomb attack in the Velyka Pysarivka district, the Sumy regional administration had previously announced. In the small town of Myrnohrad in the Ukrainian-controlled part of the eastern Donetsk region, two people were killed and five injured in overnight shelling, the governor of the region, Vadym Filashkin, wrote on Telegram. A 13-year-old girl was rescued from the rubble of the residential building unharmed. According to the governor, the attack was carried out by guided aerial bombs. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago and its forces regularly targeted civilian objects behind the front line. Ukraine repeatedly attacked targets in Russia, though the number of victims and the extent of the damages were a far cry from the havoc wreaked by Moscow in over two years of war. The governor of the Russian region of Ryazan, south-east of Moscow, said this morning that a fire broke out in an oil refinery following a Ukrainian drone attack. According to initial information, Pavel Malkov said several people were injured. Russian media said three drones hit the refinery. Other Russian regions also reported Ukrainian overnight attacks, with more than 30 Ukrainian drones intercepted over the western Russian region of Voronezh, according to the governor. An air alert was also issued in the Kursk, Bryansk and Lipetsk regions as well as in the Leningrad region around the metropolis of St Petersburg. According to official information, around 45,000 people in the often-affected Belgorod region have been cut off from the power supply following artillery fire in one district. (dpa/NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Nigerias President Bola Tinubu has ordered the lifting of all sanctions imposed on neighbouring Niger following the coup there. Mr Tinubu gave the order on Wednesday following a decision by ECOWAS leaders to lift all sanctions on Niger, Mali and Guinea, three West African countries currently led by putschists. According to a statement by his spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, President Tinubu directed the opening of Nigerias land and air borders with the Republic of Niger and the lifting of other sanctions against the country with immediate effect. All Niger assets frozen by the ECOWAS Central Bank will also be lifted based on the presidential order. PREMIUM TIMES reported how Nigeria, in compliance with an ECOWAS resolution, imposed the sanctions on Niger following the coup last July that led to the ouster of President Mohamed Bazoum. ECOWAS insisted on the restoration of civil rule and the release of Mr Bazoum. However, the Niger putschists rejected the proposals by ECOWAS and instead announced, alongside Mali and Burkina Faso, their exit from ECOWAS. ECOWAS leaders last month met in Abuja where they resolved to lift all the sanctions imposed on the three countries and continue to engage in dialogue with the putschists. Read the full statement by the Nigerian presidency on the matter below. NIGERIA OPENS LAND AND AIR BORDERS WITH REPUBLIC OF NIGER, LIFTS OTHER SANCTIONS President Bola Tinubu has directed the opening of Nigerias land and air borders with the Republic of Niger and the lifting of other sanctions against the country with immediate effect. This directive is in compliance with the decisions of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government at its extraordinary summit on February 24, 2024, in Abuja. ECOWAS leaders had agreed to lift economic sanctions against the Republic of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea. The President has directed that the following sanctions imposed on the Republic of Niger be lifted immediately: (1) Closure of land and air borders between Nigeria and Niger Republic, as well as ECOWAS no-fly zone on all commercial flights to and from Niger Republic. (2) Suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between Nigeria and Niger, as well as freeze of all service transactions, including utility services and electricity to Niger Republic. (3) Freeze of assets of the Republic of Niger in ECOWAS Central Banks and freeze of assets of the Republic of Niger, state enterprises, and parastatals in commercial banks. (4) Suspension of Niger from all financial assistance and transactions with all financial institutions, particularly EBID and BOAD. (5) Travel bans on government officials and their family members. President Tinubu has also approved the lifting of financial and economic sanctions against the Republic of Guinea. Ajuri Ngelale Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Police in Enugu State have rescued the security man alleged to have been abducted alongside a senior matron at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) Ituku-Ozalla. The police said armed hoodlums abducted the security man and the senior matron of the teaching hospital in the morning hours of Tuesday. This is contained in a statement issued by the Commands spokesman, Daniel Ndukwe, on Wednesday in Enugu. The security man, alleged to have been abducted alongside a senior matron in UNTH facility by armed hoodlums, has been rescued by police operatives. He was rescued at Ishi-Ozalla community close to the teaching hospital at about 11.45 p.m. on the same date of the incident, following intense operations immediately launched to rescue the victims and apprehend the assailants, he said. Mr Ndukwe said the states Commissioner of Police, Kanayo Uzuegbu, had ordered police operatives and complementary teams from neighbourhood watch group, forest guards and local vigilantes to rescue the matron and arrest the hoodlums. Members of the public, particularly residents of the Ituku-Ozalla community and environs, have been enjoined to report any suspected individuals found within their residential areas or in the forest, by calling 08099854883 or emailing infoenugupolice@gmail.com, he said. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has started returning assorted food items seized from traders in border communities in Sokoto and Katsina states, North-west Nigeria. PREMIUM TIMES reported that the food items were seized at different border communities while being smuggled to the Niger Republic. The North-west shares an expansive border with the Niger Republic in Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina and Jigawa states. Customs officials seized the items to stop the exportation while Nigerians were going through economic woes marked by high food prices. President Bola Tinubu had directed the NCS to return all food items confiscated at border communities with the condition that all would be sold in the country. Handing over In Sokoto State, the service returned 15 trucks of food items to the owners and passed the instruction that all must be sold within the country as directed by the president. The service spokesperson in the state, Abdullahi Abubakar, told reporters that the trucks were returned to the owners by the Comptroller of the command, Kamal Mohammed, on Tuesday. The comptroller charged the owners to sell the food items in the country to reciprocate Mr Tinubus good gesture The Sokoto /Zamfara Command in collaboration with Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU) and the Joint Border Patrol Team (JBPT) will monitor the sales of these grains in Nigerian markets and ensure they are not smuggled out of the country, the spokesperson said. Handing over the food items to the owners in Katsina on Wednesday, the command comptroller, Mohammed Umar, said the command handed over six trucks to owners of the seized items as directed by the president. He said the decision to return the seized items was to ensure food security in the country. The CGC during his official work visit to Katsina passed across the presidential directive which mandated the return of detained food items to the owners on the condition that they are to be sold in Nigerian markets. The response to the presidential directive is to ensure food security and alleviate hardship faced in the country. To ensure the directive in complied with, the command in collaboration with the Customs Intelligence Unit (CIU), the Federal Operations Unit (FOU), and the Joint Border Patrol Team (JBPT) to be closely monitored by the Task Force, will monitor to ensure the items are not smuggled out of the country, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Director-General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Halilu Shaba, says the agencys plan to launch a satellite from Nigeria in 2025 is no longer feasible. Mr Shaba said this at the NASRDA Day presentation at the ongoing 8th Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Expo, with the theme STI: Solutions to National Economic Challenges in Abuja. The director-general focused his presentation on New Space: Aligning with the Renewed Hope Agenda According to him, while launching of satellite is capital intensive, the agency is not financially ready, but it is developing the needed capacity. Presently, we dont have the window to send an astronaut to space, because it is very expensive, it is when we have the slot and make plans within five years that we can launch an astronaut. We cannot advise the government to train an astronaut now when we dont have the slot, the person may probably get older and not fit for space by the time we get a slot. For the launch of a satellite, you dont design a big satellite in one year, it takes up to two years. We have all the manpower, but the resources are not here yet, and I doubt if we can achieve that even in 2027, the director-general said. According to him, the agency already has the design of a desired satellite and with the improvement of budgetary allocations, it can build and launch a satellite from Nigeria in the near future. On the need to review the roadmap expected to have its benchmark in 2025, the director-general said that the agency constantly updates it according to current realities, which include exchange rates. Space programmes are all-encompassing and the agency, over time, has been developing some space spin-offs that are impacting the economy. According to him, Nigeria still has an operational satellite, NigeriaSat-2, in orbit and it is still providing imagery for the country, Africa and countries across the globe. The director-general said other achievements of the agency included developing a rocketry programme in collaboration with the military, geo-visualisation of terrorists activities in the North-east and crime mapping. We recently estimated the population of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, using the NigeriaSat-2s High-Resolution Satellite Imagery. This is because we have not had a census in over ten years which is overdue. So, the estimation was to give a population idea. We are also monitoring earth tremors across Nigeria and Africa in collaboration with China to safeguard other African countries, the director-general said. He added that space science and technology requires precision because its development takes time and Nigerians will eventually reap the benefits of satellite technology. Space technology was initiated in Nigeria for socio-economic development. According to the agencys 25-year roadmap of the agency, part of its targets was to launch a Nigerian Astronaut in space and an indigenous satellite from Nigerian soil by 2025 (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Lou Gehrigs disease took away Grace Armants ability to speak, but the 84-year-old still has plenty to say about her insurance. UnitedHealthcare has rejected several requests from her doctors for coverage of a machine Armant needs to breathe as she deals with the fatal illness. They are no good, Armant said, typing slowly into a device that speaks for her. I cant do without the machine. Doctors around the country say UnitedHealthcare and other insurers have made it harder to get coverage for certain home ventilators that patients like Armant need as their lungs fail. They say patients often must struggle first with less effective and cheaper devices before some insurers will pay. In other cases, insurers balk at paying for a second machine needed when patients transfer from their bed to a wheelchair. Temple University doctoral student Jaggar DeMarco waited more than three years to get his. Breathing is not a luxury, he said. Its really the bare minimum, and thats what were asking for. Some physicians believe insurers are making it harder on patients because more of the devices are being prescribed. Spending by the federal governments Medicare program on the ventilators jumped from about $3 million to nearly $269 million between 2009 and 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. Insurers say they do cover the machines, but that coverage can depend on several factors. These noninvasive ventilators help patients breathe around the clock by forcing air into the lungs, often through a mask. They are called noninvasive because they dont require trachea surgery to open the airway, like ones used in hospitals. The machines have battery backups so they can keep working when the power goes out. They also are more powerful than other devices meant to be used mainly at night for conditions like sleep apnea. At around $1,200 a month, they can be three times as expensive as those devices. These ventilators can help prolong the life of someone with Lou Gehrigs disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, doctors say. But insurance rejections have picked up for those patients and people dealing with advanced cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, said Chuck Coolidge, chief strategy officer for VieMed, which provides respiratory equipment for patients in 46 states. That includes both initial approvals and reauthorizations, he said. In early 2023, it was almost like a switch flipped, he said. UnitedHealthcare spokeswoman Heather Soule said her company covers the machines and re-evaluates requests if it gets new information. Coverage can depend on the patients condition, terms of their health plan or guidelines from the federal governments Medicare program. Those guidelines give insurers room to reject many ventilator requests, even those for seriously ill patients, said Dr. John Hansen-Flaschen, a pulmonary medicine expert with the University of Pennsylvania. Government-funded Medicare Advantage plans run by UnitedHealthcare now deny nearly all initial requests for the ventilators, said Dr. Cathy Lomen-Hoerth, a neurologist with the University of California San Francisco. In West Virginia, Dale Harper says it took several months and a personal plea before UnitedHealthcare would cover a ventilator for his 25-year-old son, Jacob, who has a rare and aggressive form of ALS. After appeals from Jacobs doctor failed, Harper called a number on his insurance card and asked for a supervisor. I said, I can feed him, I can help him go to the bathroom, I can move him from one place to the other, the Winfield, West Virginia, resident said. The only thing I cannot do is breathe for him and he cant breathe. Harper said ventilator coverage was approved within an hour of that call early last year. Doctors caring for Armant, who lives outside New Orleans, say they usually get decent ventilator coverage. No one thought there would be a problem, said Deidre Devier, an LSU Health experimental psychologist who specializes in cognitive disorders. They first sought coverage in May 2022, and Devier said Armant has only had it for around three months near the end of that year. She said a medical device company has been providing Armants ventilator for free while her case was appealed. But those appeals have ended. Armants daughter said shes considering starting hospice care, which would allow for ventilator coverage but prevent her mom from seeing her regular doctors. Shes also looking online for a refurbished machine. She doesnt have $20,000 to buy the machine, Terrellyn Armant said. Representatives of both patients with UnitedHealthcare coverage gave the insurer written permission to discuss their cases, but Soule declined to comment on the record. Coverage complications arent limited to UnitedHealthcare. DeMarco, the Temple student, said Aetna denied a request for a second breathing machine, and then several appeals. Eventually, his fathers employer essentially overruled the insurer and allowed coverage. Doctors recommend a second ventilator for people who use wheelchairs during the day. That avoids mistakes in adjusting the machines settings when moving someone from their bed. Im constantly angry that my life and what I can do with (it) is sometimes determined by insurance companies and bureaucracy, said DeMarco, 30, who has chronic respiratory failure. An Aetna representative said the company could not comment on individual cases. But he added that Aetna does cover second ventilators in certain circumstances. Aetnas policy bulletin says they are medically necessary for people who need an additional ventilator for their wheelchair during the day. Ventilator coverage problems started picking up after technology improvements made the devices easier to use, according to Dr. Lisa Wolfe, a professor at Northwesterns Feinberg School of Medicine. That led to a rise in use for patients with conditions that are not immediately life-threatening. She said she thinks insurers are reacting to that expanded use. ALS patients without ventilator access have limited options. They can use a device thats covered but doesnt work as well. They may get ventilator coverage by entering hospice care or having a tracheostomy. They also might wind up bouncing in and out of hospitals, said Hansen-Flaschen, the Penn physician. Or they die prematurely, and its a wretched death because they cant breathe, he said. President Bola Tinubu has asked the Senate to screen and confirm Ruby Onwudiwe as a member of the board of directors of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The presidents request was contained in a letter read by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, during the plenary on Wednesday. In the letter, Mr Tinubu noted that Mr Onwudiwe is a replacement for the former South-east nominee, Urum Eke, who declined his nomination due to his current engagement at the World Bank. Mr Eke, a consultant to the World Bank and native of Abia State, rejected his nomination as a member of the CBN board last month. President Tinubu nominated him and four others as members of the CBN board of directors. While Mr Eke was absent from the screening, the four other nominees, Robert Agbide, Ado Wanga, Murtala Sagaley, and Muslimat Aliu, were present and were subsequently confirmed. President Tinubu, in his letter announcing the replacement, said his action is in compliance with the provision of section 10 (1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007. In compliance with the provision of section 10 (1) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) establishment Act 2007, I am pleased to present for confirmation by the Senate, the appointment of Ruby C. Onwudiwe, PhD as a member of the board of directors of the central bank of Nigeria. His curriculum vitae is attached. The Senate is advised to kindly note that Ruby Onwudiwe is a replacement of Mr Urum Kalu Eke due to the unavailability of Mr Eke to serve in that position. While it is my hope, therefore, that the senate will screen and confirm in its usual expeditious manner, the appointment of Ruby Onwudiwe PhD, please, accept distinguished senate president and distinguish senators of my highest regards the letter reads. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly, Olamide Oladiji, is currently under fire from his colleagues following his alleged endorsement of the Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, ahead of the governorship election in the state. No less than 13 out of 26 members of the Assembly have disowned him, alleging that he endorsed the governor without due consultation with members of the House. The members, who signed a no-confidence letter on Tuesday are majority leader, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi, parliamentary secretary, MoyinOlorun Ogunwumiju; chief whip, Oluwarotimi Fasonu; minority leader, Olajide Oguntodu; deputy minority leader, Raymond Daodu; Akinsurojui Nelson, Akomolafe Temitope, Ifabiyi Olatunji, Agbulu Akeem, Christopher Ayebusiwa, Atinuke Witherspoon, Biola Oladapo, and Afe Felix. At the official declaration by Mr Aiyedatiwa, on Monday, the Speaker said that a total of 18 lawmakers in the Assembly were in support of the Governor to emerge as the partys candidate in the November governorship election. Mr Oladiji said lawmakers elected on the platform of other political parties were also in support of Mr Aiyedatiwa. Ondo Assembly has agreed to support Aiyedatiwa. Even those who are not in the APC are with us in this struggle and by the grace of God, we will arrive at the Promised Land. I appeal to our leaders to go back to their wards and do the needful. Let reconciliation continue so that we will deliver Lucky as the partys candidate, Mr Oladiji had said. But the 13 lawmakers, in the letter, titled, The Ondo State House of Assembly Speakers Disrespect for the Independence and Integrity of the House In His Endorsement Politics, said the House had not passed any resolution to endorse the incumbent governor as purportedly announced by Mr Oladiji. They stated that the House of Assembly operates on democratic principles, and would formally take a collective decision, follow due process and the relevant laws governing the state when it wishes to take any decision regarding the endorsement of a gubernatorial candidate. As members of the 10th Ondo State House of Assembly, we were shocked and disappointed to hear the public declaration made by the Speaker of the House, Olamide Oladiji, to the extent that the Ondo State House of Assembly has agreed to support the governorship ambition of Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa. The declaration by Mr Speaker is untrue, misleading, un-parliamentary, and, to say the least, ridiculous. We therefore wish to inform the good people of Ondo State at home and in the Diaspora that: At no point did the Ondo State House of Assembly deliberate the governorship ambition of any of the numerous aspirants that have indicated their interests to contest for the States 2024 Governorship Election, let alone agree to support any particular aspirant. Mr Speaker lacks the moral and legal authority to speak or pledge support for any governorship aspirant on behalf of the House without the explicit consent of members Mr Speaker has, by his unconventional and false public declaration, misrepresented the House, and in so doing, brought the 10th Ondo State House of Assembly into disrepute, needless controversies and breached our confidence in his leadership. Consequently, we hereby pass a vote of no-confidence in the leadership of the Speaker, Olamide Oladiji. The members said they were committed to upholding the rule of law and ensuring that all decisions taken are transparent enough and in the best interest of the people. The Speaker is, however, yet to respond to the position of the lawmakers against his actions. Contentions have heightened as several governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) rally supporters ahead of the primaries in April. The formal declaration of interest by Mr Aiyedatiwa to contest the election has also added verve to the contentions, reviving the rivalry between supporters and the loyalists of late governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Worried by the level of food insecurity in the country, particularly in Ekiti State, Governor Abiodun Oyebanji, has set up an eight-man committee on food security. The committee, which is headed by the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Security, Ebenezer Boluwade, was given a mandate to come up with a strategy to mitigate the food crisis in the state. A statement by the Commissioner for Information and Value Orientation, Taiwo Olatunbosun, on Wednesday, said the decision was part of the resolutions of the State Executive meeting held on Tuesday. According to him, the government approved a sum of N133,707,507.14 for the renovation of the Agricultural Farm Buildings (phase II) at Erinfun, along Federal Polytechnic Road, Ado-Ekiti. Mr Olatunbosun said the gesture is part of the efforts of the present administration to make farming attractive to youths and boost food production. The commissioner quoted the Governor as having said that the project was capable of boosting employment, food production and agribusiness in the state, saying the administration would continue to collaborate with institutions, development agencies and private sector players. The governor affirmed the key role agriculture plays in the lives of the people, stressing that the only way out of the present economic doldrums in the country is to increase and improve productivity. We came on board on the mantra of shared prosperity and continuity, and agriculture is so key for us as a people. We have challenges in the country today because of a lack of productivity; if a people must prosper, they have to produce. Productivity is key to prosperity, and the government cannot be in the forefront of that. The only thing the government can do is to look for serious private investors and partner with them to ensure productivity, the statement said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/Transparency International in Nigeria (TI-Nigeria) has called on the leadership of the Nigerian Senate to desist from intimidating and silencing opposition. Executive Director of CISLAC/TI-Nigeria, Auwal Musa, made the call in a statement on Wednesday. Mr Musa was reacting to the suspension of the Senator representing Bauchi Central Senatorial District, Abdul Ningi. The Senate on Tuesday suspended Mr Ningi for three months for alleging that the approved 2024 budget was padded with over N3 trillion. During this period, the embattled senator will not engage in all activities relating to the Senate. He will also be deprived of his entitlement and will not be seen around the National Assembly. The upper chamber also issued a warning to the senator representing Kano South Senatorial District, Kawu Sulaiman, to stop spreading false information against the Senate. Mr Musa described the suspension as unjust, and an attempt to silence members of the opposition parties in the Senate chamber. He maintained that the leadership of the Senate should not have issued such a sanction to Mr Ningi on the ground that he has the constitutional right to his opinion. Just as every member of the National Assembly representing his/her constituency has the primary mandates and responsibilities to absorb communal observations and offer feedback to the people for public accountability, expressing such in form of opinion must not be interfered, intimidated or suppressed in any way or form. The repressive action by the leadership of the Senate would clearly project the legislative arm as autocratic, which to a large extent would negatively impact legislators independence, robust debate, genuine submissions, and image of the legislature before Nigerians and the rest of the world. Unjust suspension of a senator who represents an entire senatorial district is similar to public demonstration of an unguarded culture of silencing, insensitivity, disrespect and marginalisation of the people. We strongly maintain that intimidating or silencing the opinion of the dissents or oppositions is unhealthy in any civilised democracy and must not be tolerated as a culture in Nigeria. Despite the multiple numbers of opposition parties in the National Assembly, they appear to be conquered by the power of the executive as well as the principal officers in the legislature he said. Mr Musa called on the leadership of the Senate to abstain from any form of silencing opposition parties to promote freedom of expression. We, therefore, call on the Senate to as a matter of urgency shun silencing opposition views in the legislature; as the essence of the legislature is to allow for freedom of expression and contrary opinions as well as provide a democratic platform for constructive debates that enhance national interest. The greatest danger is that legislators can no longer be allowed to perform their duties including oversight and opposing views on the executive and principal officers in the Senate which will tantamount to democratic dictatorships. We call on all well-meaning Nigerians and the media to protect and reject any undemocratic action or decision by the National Assembly targeted at impeding public accountability and shrinking civic space. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Convicted war criminal Kunti Kamara lashed out at the plaintiffs and witnesses who have testified against in week two of his appeal of his 2022 conviction for crimes against humanity. Mr Kamara, who was convicted of 11 counts of atrocities committed in Lofa County as a commander of the Ulimo rebel group including rape, cannibalism, torture, murder and forced labor, claimed he didnt know any of the witnesses. I dont know them. Im shocked sometimes when theyre talking, he said angrily in an impassioned tirade. I have nothing to say to these persons. I had nothing to do with it. I have no experience. I was not a commander in Foya. I was based on the frontline. They used to call me BFC meaning someone who is based on the frontline. In the first trial Mr Kamara claimed that the witnesses were lying and were part of a conspiracy against him and the Mandingo people. He was less forceful in that accusation today but said he had been told by a man he did not name from Liberia that the people testifying against him are coming to Paris for special interest. Thats why I say I dont have any evidence, he said. But Im always hearing that they have interest. Maybe money has been given to them to come and lie on me. I dont know them. I cannot fool you people. You can judge for yourself whether Im the lying or they are the liar. Mr Kamara then undermined his argument by claiming he knew nothing of atrocities committed by Ulimo in Lofa in 1993 and 1994. The jury that has been hearing for 10 to 12 hours a day of atrocities in Lofa, including in reports from organisations such as the Red Cross and Liberias Truth and Reconciliation Commission, may find it impossible to believe that a Ulimo fighter, would not have known of the massive depravity and violence committed by Ulimo in the county. Mr Kamara, who is 49 according to the date of birth he gave to Dutch authorities when he claimed asylum in 2001, was sentenced to 30 years in prison, the maximum in the French judicial system. Mr Kamara is appealing that conviction. Presiding Judge Jean Marc Lavergne asked Mr Kamara to tell the court about his experience in Nimba when Charles Taylors National Patriotic Front for Liberia invaded the county on Christmas Day 1989. Mr Kamara told the court NPFL killed seven members of his family including his mother. He claimed the NPFL were chasing people from his Mandingo tribe. Mr Kamara said he and his sister escaped across the border where she was forced into prostitution to provide for them both. Mr Kamara said he was tailoring clothes and selling them in the market when he met Alhaji Kromah, the head of Ulimo. He would not or could not give his age but said he was not mature. He said after training of one to three months he and some young friends banded together to go and fight in Liberia because things were difficult in Guinea. Prior to Mr Kamaras testimony, an eighth witness, a man from Foya in his 50s, added to the long list of atrocities that witnesses have accused Mr Kamara and Ulimo of committing in Foya. The man testified that he was one of 50 men who Ulimo forced to carry the county referral hospitals generator 23 kilometers to the border with Guinea where Ulimo rebels sold the parts for money and food. The man told the court he was detained by Ulimo rebels and taken to the Borma Hospital where he saw Mr Kamara busy with tools dismantling the generator. The man said he was then forced to load the generator and other equipment into a trailer. He said he and the other men were forced to push the trailer and carry loads, estimated by prosecutors to weigh 60 to 70 kilograms, at the direction of a corps of rebel troops headed by Mr Kamara, including Ugly Boy, a rebel who has been widely described in this trial and was later killed, and another called Sunday Gar. The witness said there were several child soldiers. The rebels were in a rush. The witness said the march took the group almost 24 hours non-stop and they arrived at the border in the morning. The men who had not escaped, got no time to rest. They received no food or water. They were then forced to immediately turn around and march back to Foya carrying salt, rice and other food, because Co Kundi was having a lot of wife in Liberia, the man said. It was the rainy season. The road was very bad. The men were struggling and complained that they were about to collapse from exhaustion. The man said Mr Kamara threatened him, telling him he was a lazy man. Mr Kamara said if he didnt walk he would cut out his heart and eat it. The men were forced to sing as they went, If you tire we kill you. The man testified that besides the march, he had seen the bodies of two friends of his that he heard Mr Kamara had tortured and killed. He said it appeared to him that Mr Kamara and other rebels had poured boiling water or oil into the mouths of the deceased men and used a cutlass to carve their names into the mens bodies. The stomachs had been cut and the intestines were spilling out. The next day he said he also witnessed the Black Monday, described by an earlier witness, when 16 men were interrogated and then slaughtered because Ulimo claimed they had been fighting with the NPFL, which Ulimo had driven from Lofa. He said he had heard of many women being raped and of rebels eating human body parts. The majority of people were saying that the rebels ate human body. They even cook and eat it with cassava. Even their wives were saying that. Another time, people were running and saying they were seeing the human meat in the wheelbarrow and selling it. Yes, I dont see it but it happened. Presiding Judge Jean Marc Lavergne asked the witness if he recognised Mr Kamara as the man in the protective glass box in the courtroom. He confirmed that he did, just as he did in Mr Kamaras original trial. The lawyer for the civil party sought to address the defences claim that Mr Kamara was only 15 years old when the crimes took place. She asked the witness how old he thought Mr Kamara was at the time. The witness did not give her the certainty she sought saying only that he could not guess Mr Kamaras age at the time, only that he was a young man. Like several other witnesses he thanked the court for bringing them justice. We are thanking God for the government of Paris, he said. Because of these trials people know if they bring war they will face trial. The judge asked him if he was afraid. He said he was. Because those guys are still in Foya, I afraid too much. He asked the court to provide him with money to leave Liberia for his security. The trial continues Thursday with the appearance of Alieu Kosiah, Mr Kamaras Ulimo ally, who was convicted of war crimes in Switzerland in 2021 and is serving a 20-year sentence there. This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the West Africa Justice Reporting Project. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Medecins Sans Frontieres, also called Doctors Without Borders (MSF), on Monday, warned of catastrophic levels of malnutrition and an escalating humanitarian crisis in Nigerias Northwest geopolitical zone. The charity organisation says in the region over 854 children died in its facilities across Zamfara, Sokoto, and Katsina due to armed conflict resulting in malnutrition and limiting access to healthcare facilities. Non-state actors in the region, locally called bandits, routinely ransack communities, loot and burn silos and carry out mass kidnappings for ransom, driving what the international aid group called a neglected humanitarian emergency. MSF said its teams in five of the seven northwestern states treated 171,465 malnourished children last year and admitted 32,104 to hospital for life-threatening malnutrition, a 14 per cent rise on the previous year in 2022. We have repeatedly expressed our concerns to the UN and donors about the alarming and deteriorating humanitarian crisis in the northwest, says MSF head of mission, Ahmed Bilal. The lack of recognition of the crisis is having a severe impact on the health and humanitarian needs of the population, and delaying the response which is desperately needed. Last year, MSF medical teams working in Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina and Kano states treated 171,465 malnourished children as outpatients and admitted 32,104 children for life-threatening severe acute malnutrition a 14 per cent rise on the previous year. In Katsina, MSF found high levels of acute malnutrition in 2023 with 17,4 per cent of the surveyed children suffering from acute malnutrition in Jibia Local Government Area at the beginning of the lean season, so not even when access to food is the most difficult. The high rate of admissions to inpatient facilities has been accompanied by alarming mortality rates, as was the case in one of our supported facilities in Zamfara state where it reached 23,1%. Sadly, many children are dying within 48 hours after arriving in critical conditions, too late to be saved due to the barriers in reaching healthcare. Overall, 854 children admitted to MSF facilities in the northwest died 24 to 48 hours after admission in 2023, the MSF said in the statement. The crisis has seen rates of malnutrition and other diseases spiral. It is estimated that around 2.6 million children have Severe Acute Malnutrition in the country, from which 532,163 are in Sokoto, Katsina and Zamfara according to national nutritional surveys conducted by UNICEF and authorities, it added. The MSF said apart from the children fatalities in the region, over 2000 people were killed in the North-west mainly due to banditry. People living in the states of Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina and Kebbi have been hit by the persistent violence, mainly armed banditry and kidnappings in northwest Nigeria. Last year, more than 2,000 people were killed in more than 1,000 violent incidents in the region, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project. As well as being displaced from their homes, people have lost their livelihoods, and are often no longer able to reach their farms for security reasons, they struggle to find food, and accessing healthcare and other basic services has become increasingly difficult and dangerous, the MSF said. Editors Note: The headline of this story has been changed to better reflect the central issue in the story. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Protesters on Tuesday attacked a police station and set some cars on fire at the popular Wuse Market in Abuja, after a hawker was shot dead by security operatives. Witnesses said the hawker, who the police identified as 27-year-old Ibrahim Yahaya, was shot after he was arrested by some task force officers and the police. The hawker was trying to escape from custody when he was shot, shop owners, who said they witnessed the incident, said. The killing was said to have triggered angry reactions from some youths in the market. The mob made their way to the police station in the market, destroying windows and setting some cars in the surrounding on fire. About eight cars were burnt down in the incident that went wild at about 3.30 p.m. The police fired teargas to disperse the mob, according to those who said they witnessed the incident. About 10 shops also caught fire in the chaos. A black plume of smoke rising above the market was seen by residents at places away from the scene. Some shop owners blamed the fire that razed the shops on police teargas. A shop owner, John Abasi, told PREMIUM TIMES: Truly it was the teargas that caused the fire. You know when someone is killed, people will react. So people tried to attack the person who shot the guy, but he ran away. So they were going to destroy his things. That is why they burnt the cars there (pointing to the direction of the burnt cars). The police then started shooting the teargas which went into peoples shops and burnt their goods. Daily Trust reported that a senior official of the Abuja Markets Management Limited (AMML) inside the market confirmed that the shooting of the hawker provoked the attackers to burn down some shops. AMML office was said to have been affected by the fire. The official told the newspaper that the office and some vehicles in the car park within the market were torched by the youths. Police confirm killing The police, on Tuesday, confirmed the killing of the hawker, 27-year-old Mr Yahaya. However, Police Public Relations Officer, FCT Command, Josephine Adeh, cleared the police of the shooting. She said the deceased, who died after he was rushed to the hospital, was shot by a correctional service (prison) officer while he was trying to escape from custody. Preliminary investigation revealed that one Ibrahim Yahaya 27 years was apprehended by operatives of the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) Task Force and was taken before a mobile court which sits every Tuesday in Wuse Market, and he was convicted, the spokesperson wrote. Suspect alongside others were being conveyed to the prison, when he reportedly jumped from the vehicle and took to his heels in an attempt to escape. Two armed corrections personnel who were in the vehicle went after him and in the process, shot him. They said Ibrahim Yahaya was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors on the ground confirmed him dead. The police spokesperson said, The development led some irate mobs who witnessed the situation to set ablaze eight (8) vehicles and ten (10) shops in the environ. She added: The whole fire situation erupted uproar from residents but was brought under control by a combined effort of Federal fire service and other security agencies present. While normalcy has since been restored, and investigation still ongoing, the Commissioner of Police FCT, CP Benneth Igweh psc, mni, enjoins residents to peacefully go about their lawful businesses without fear. Officials speak No fewer than 10 shops were razed down by fire in Wuse Market during the incident, according to the Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). FEMAs Head of Public Affairs, Nkechi Isa, said this in a statement in Abuja. Mrs Isa, who said that no life was lost, added that the cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained. She, however, said the fire was brought under control by a combined team of the Federal Fire Service, FCT Fire Service, and Julius Berger Fire Department. The FEMA spokesperson said the agency received a distress call on the 112 emergency toll-free number at 4.05 p.m. about the fire incident at the market. She added that the agency, being the lead coordinating body for all emergencies in the FCT, thereafter, activated its stakeholders to ensure maximum response. Mrs Isa identified the stakeholders as the FCT Fire Service, Federal Fire Service, National Emergency Management Agency, FCT Police Command, and Julius Berger Fire Service. The acting Director General of FEMA, Mohammed Sabo, appealed to FCT residents to equip their homes and business places with basic firefighting equipment like extinguishers and fire blankets. Mr Sabo noted that the 10 shops affected by the fire incident did not have a fire extinguisher. He also noted that access to the place was unhampered allowing the fire trucks to effectively fight the fire. He advised market management to put a fire tinder in place to prevent loss of properties during fire outbreaks. Mr Sabo also urged FCT residents to avoid storing petroleum products and other combustible items in their homes. He called on residents to always use the 112-emergency toll-free number in the event of an emergency. Earlier, Innocent Amaechina, spokesperson for the Abuja Market Management Ltd (AMML), who confirmed the outbreak of the fire, said that only a portion of the market was affected. Mr Amaechina refuted the erroneous report in social media that the whole market was engulfed in fire. The official, who also could not confirm the cause of the fire, said the incident reportedly began between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. He said that some shops, including the office of the AMML in the market, were burnt down by the fire. He added that some vehicles parked at the northern parking lots in the market were equally burnt. I have not been able to have access to the market to assess the extent of the damage, but the police and fire service officials have arrived at the scene and taken control of the situation, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Witnesses from Foya in Lofa County gave the court hearing former rebel leader Kunti Kamaras appeal of his 2022 war crimes conviction a deeper sense of the terror and chaos that his group, Ulimo, rained down on the town during the rebel groups occupation in 1993. On Tuesday, the court heard that after Ulimo had destroyed the countys referral hospital, raped and murdered dozens of citizens, including chopping open a schoolteachers chest with an axe and eating his heart, dozens of men were forced to carry parts of the towns power station across the border to Guinea. There Ulimo sold parts for cash and food. Four witnesses, men who were in Foya at the time, told the court that they had seen Mr Kamara kill people. One of the witnesses said Ulimo rebels caught him and his brothers. He said Kamara took one brother a short distance away, and the witness heard a gunshot. He then saw his brothers dead body. There was a moment of levity in the court when the witness said he was one of his fathers 150 children, prompting some laughter. But the heavy mood returned when he said Ulimo killed 15 of his uncles. They killed a sister and a neighbour was put on a stake, meaning his head was put on a stake at a checkpoint. Witnesses names are being withheld to protect them from credible fears of retaliation. Why do you think he killed your brother? presiding judge Jean-Marc Lavergne asked. I dont really know, replied the witness. In another case, a witness said a Ulimo rebel known as Mami Wata heard that his brother had been killed on the front line. Seeking revenge, he killed nine civilians. He chopped up their bodies and forced civilians to buy the body parts from a wheelbarrow. That witness listed the names of the Ulimo rebels he encountered as Physical Cash, General Dayku and CO Kundi are the names used for Kunti Kamara. He said Alieu Kosiah, who was convicted of war crimes in Switzerland in 2021, was the chief commander. Several witnesses testified that the most depraved of the Ulimo rebels was Ugly Boy, a commander who went around with an axe and killed the schoolteacher. He was later killed by fighters with Charles Taylors National Patriotic Front for Liberia. If you look at the stories of what Ulimo did in Foya you will see no end, the witness told the court. One witness described a day known as Black Monday when Ulimo commanders Major Fofana and Kosiah called all the men of the town together. He said they chose 16 young men that they believed were working with their rivals, the NPFL, who were in the bush after Ulimo had driven them out of Foya. Everyone but the 16 men were told to go home. The witness said the 16 young men were slaughtered. I thank God a war crimes court is coming to Liberia and Fofana can face justice for what he did, the witness told the court, referring to the recent passage of a bill to establish a war crimes court through the lower house of the Liberian legislature. One witness said he had seen atrocities committed many times when Mr Kamara was in charge. People believed he was instilled with special magic that protected him from death. If you stood behind him, the witness said, bullets would not hit you. One of the witnesses told the court that he had seen Mr Kamara kill his sisters son. Kunti arrived at the family house with so many bodyguards, he said. Some were children, some were full-grown men, he said. The only name he remembered was a rebel known as Saddam Hussein. The man was asked if he recognised Mr Kamara, sitting in a protective glass case, as the man he saw in 1993. Without looking at Mr Kamara, the man confirmed that Mr Kamara was the same man. Another witness explained looting and forced labor by Ulimo some of the 11 counts for which Mr Kamara was convicted. The witness explained that Ulimo leader Alhaji Kromah was called to a meeting with town leaders. There was an agreement that Ulimo would stop killing people if the towns men carried looted goods to Guinea border for them. Under Ulimo commanders, scores of men were forced to dismantle the generator from the towns LEC power station. The parts were then put in a pick-up truck that was not working and they were forced to push it more than 20 kilometres to a town near the Guinea border. The labour was extreme and exhausting, and some men could not keep up. Witnesses said several men who could not go on were shot along the way. A policeman from Lofa appeared late in the day and told the judge that he needed protection from the French court. He said his boss had told him that he would be suspended from his job if he did not bring back money for him after he testified in Paris. He also said Ulimo allies in the county would threaten his life and that of his family for coming to Paris to testify. He said the other witnesses who have testified are also in danger. The judge and defence lawyer have zeroed in on inconsistencies in the witnesses testimonies. Two of the witnesses have given slightly different versions of their testimony in this trial from the first one and in interviews with an investigating judge in It is not clear to what extent that is because of the consistent challenges of translation. English language translators have needed help with the Liberian English spoken by witnesses. The court had difficulty sorting different definitions between French culture and African culture for words such as brother and even know. For example, Liberian witnesses asked if they know someone might take that word to mean a deep, long relationship, whereas the French understand it to mean to have met or seen a person before. The defence is hoping the inconsistencies will sow seeds of doubt in the minds of the jury that the witnesses testimonies can be trusted 30 years after the events. A majority of the jury must be convinced of Mr Kamaras guilt to the legal burden of beyond a reasonable doubt for his conviction on the 11 counts to be upheld. The trial continues Wednesday when Mr Kamara will be given a chance to testify on his own behalf. On Thursday convicted Ulimo commander Alieu Kosiah will travel from his Swiss prison to testify. Mr Kosiah, who is serving a 20-year sentence in Switzerland for atrocities committed alongside Mr Kamara in Lofa, was combative in Mr Kamaras first trial, voicing a range of accusations against human rights defenders. But that happened before his appeal was heard. A Swiss appeal court upheld Mr Kosiahs conviction in 2023. Now Kamara has exhausted opportunities for exoneration, court watchers are curious to see if Mr Kosiah will have a different message in this appearance. This story was a collaboration with New Narratives as part of the West Africa Justice Reporting Project. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH) has said 90 per cent of people living with glaucoma are undiagnosed, despite its severity. According to the ministry, glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness globally, accounting for eight per cent of all blindness affecting about 3.12 million people. The ministry made this revelation on its X handle to raise awareness in commemoration of World Glaucoma Week. Results from Nigeria National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey published in 2015 stated that glaucoma affects about 4 per cent of adults within the age bracket of 40 and above. Glaucoma is a group of diseases that can damage the eyes optic nerve and result in vision loss and blindness if left untreated. Glaucoma in Nigeria The blindness and visual impairment survey further revealed that 1.1 to 1.4 million adults in Nigeria have glaucoma, most of whom are not aware. One in every 20 Nigerians aged 40 years and above has glaucoma and one in five is blind, the study revealed. It added that approximately 17 per cent of blindness in Nigeria is due to glaucoma. It also highlighted that glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide, and there tends to be a lower reporting of glaucoma in Africa compared to other blinding conditions in global burden data. The ministry also explained in its post that in its early stages, glaucoma patients may not notice any symptoms or even experience poor vision because it affects the peripheral vision first before the central vision. Although there is no cure for glaucoma, early detection and treatment such as prescribed eye drops, laser treatment, or surgery can stop the damage and protect your vision, it noted. Government response The ministry said through its National Eye Health Programme, the government has continued to prioritise comprehensive eye care services across the country including glaucoma care. It highlighted recent developments such as the launch of the Nigeria Glaucoma Guidelines and Toolkit to guide clinical and programmatic management of the condition. The guide contains steps towards the diagnosis of glaucoma, risk assessment for progression and management decisions, specific guidance for treatment, setting up patient support systems, and referral to key resources. Another initiative listed is the National Eye Health Strategic Development Plan (2024-2028) which it noted focuses on universal eye care services towards universal health coverage for Nigeria. The ministry said, The strategy is to implement inclusive, integrated, people-centred eye services that meet the needs and aspirations of Nigerians, striking the balance between promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative services. Call to action World Glaucoma Week is aimed at raising awareness about the importance of early detection and compliance with treatment and follow-up. The ministry urges Nigerians aged over 40 years to get an eye exam today and thereafter, annually. Glaucoma is a silent thief of sight, do not let it steal your vision. Let us join hands and unite for a Glaucoma-free world, it said. It added that Nigeria with other member states at the United Nations General Assembly recently adopted the vision for everyone; accelerating action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) resolution. This is aimed at committing the international community to eye health for 1.1 billion people living with preventable sight loss by 2030, it said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The police in Enugu State, south-east Nigeria, say they have rescued a security officer abducted in the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku Ozalla, in Nkanu West Local Government Area of the state. UNTH is the teaching hospital of the University of Nigeria. The police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday. PREMIUM TIMES reported how gunmen attacked the hospital on Tuesday morning and abducted the security officer and a deputy director at the facility. Some staff members of the hospital had told this newspaper that the deputy director was trailed to the premises of the hospital around 9 a.m. on Tuesday and shot at her SUV vehicle. The deputy director, also a nurse, was identified as Ngozi Mbah. A video clip showing a Toyota SUV with bullet holes reportedly belonging to the abducted deputy director has been circulating on social media. One of our nurses just got abducted now. This is her vehicle, a voice said in the background of the 26-second clip, seen by PREMIUM TIMES. The clip was uploaded on Facebook at about 1 p.m. on Tuesday. Rescue Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, said in the statement that the security officer had been rescued by police operatives. He was rescued at Ishi-Ozalla in the same local government area at about 11:45 p.m. on the same date of the incident, following intense operations immediately launched to rescue the victims and apprehend the assailants, he said. The Commissioner of Police in Enugu State, Kanayo Uzuegbu, according to the statement, has ordered the police operatives and complementary teams from Neighbourhood Watch Group, Forest Guards and local vigilantes to ensure the rescue of the deputy director and arrest the hoodlums. The statement urged residents of the area to report to the police any suspected individuals found within their neighbourhood or in the forest close to their areas. Not the first This is not the first time UNTH has been attacked. Gunmen had, in November 2023, abducted a resident doctor attached to the hospital. The resident, Orockarrah Orock, would later escape from captivity after a few hours. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print As an Albemarle County jury entered the fourth day of the murder trial of 39-year-old Kevin Moore they had no way of knowing the proceedings would be marked by a pair of dramatic exits after the judge ordered two spectators out of the gallery. My interest is to try this case one time, Circuit Judge Cheryl Higgins said as she ordered two men, including the defendants uncle, out of the courtroom gallery after a prosecutor warned of witness interference. The expulsion erupted midmorning, shortly after a recess. I apologize, prosecutor Richard Farley said as he interrupted a witness to approach the judge. But somethings come up. Farley told the court that he received a report of questionable contact between at least one person in the gallery and a potential witness. Even though the two accused men had been sitting on the defense side of the courtroom and at least one was a family member, Moores counsel shared Farleys concern. This is not a personal playground; this is a murder trial, fumed defense attorney Brooke Howard. Its unbelievable if people cant behave. Outside the ears of the jury, the judge debriefed the two men, one of whom was accused merely of having knowledge of questionable behavior. Higgins seemed dissatisfied with their answers. Your stories are very, very diverse, Higgins told them before ordering the two men excluded for the remainder of the trial and forbidding them from talking to any other potential witnesses. At the time of the dust-up, recently retired Albemarle County police detective Philip Giles was on the witness stand discussing his post-arrest interrogation of Moore. A video of their hourslong discussion was made on the morning of Oct. 11, 2018, after explosive grenades heralded the entrance of law enforcement into Moores Scottsville-era residence. Moore and his father were each charged that day with killing their friend, 47-year-old Jesse Hicks, who disappeared Sept. 1, 2004. Would you truly kill somebody for your dad? Giles could be heard asking Moore on a video played in court. You love your dad that much? Yes, I would, Moore responds. While that admission was highlighted by the prosecution, other parts of the interrogation tape were highlighted by the defense. At one point, Moore complains that the surreptitiously recorded remarks made inside a Chevy van by an informant and an Augusta County sheriffs deputy, in which he seems to implicate himself, were nothing more than bravado. I didnt kill nobody, Moore says in his post-arrest interrogation. Just fking rambling on, trying to make myself look cool I guess. You are protecting your dad, Giles could be heard pushing back. Thats my take on it, dude. Tuesdays hearing also gave jurors a peek inside the secretive world of the Woodridge Sportsmens Association. Also known as Spradlins Hunt Club, the association holds a variety of leases on tracts in southeastern Albemarle County. One such parcel off Glendower Road includes a bluff over the Hardware River, where Hicks skeletal remains were found in 2014, nearly a decade after he went missing. This property typically had someone posted at the entrance, testified Paul Inge, a special agent with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. That seemed weird to me. The jury also heard from the manager of the limited liability company that owns the 300-acre property, David Purcell, who testified that he thinks about 100 acres of timber there were cut 10 to 15 years ago. He added, though, that hes only ever visited the tract three or four times. A more frequent visitor was Hicks nephew and close friend, Shannon Haislip, a man who said hed been to outdoor parties near where his uncle's body was found as recently as six months before the disappearance. Haislip testified to drawing a map for law enforcement to find Hicks. His map, he said, pointed to what he called sawdust pile number two based on a rumor he heard secondhand about the bodys location from a local drunk. More firsthand was Haislips testimony about a late-night interaction he witnessed between Moores father, Richard Glenn Spradlin, just a few days before Hicks disappeared. They got to hollering and arguing, he told the court. Police arrested Spradlin the same day as his son, and the prosecution contends that the two conspired to kill Hicks. Spradlin, however, died of cancer last year at the age of 60 before he could be tried. Haislip also claimed that Spradlin owed Hicks $70,000, including interest, for money borrowed for a bovine investment. Haislip said the money would fund the purchase of cows whose sale would repay the loan. After his uncle disappeared, Haislip testified, he visited the farm where the cows had been grazing. The cows were gone, said Haislip. The trial is expected to be decided Friday. President Bola Tinubu has vowed not to pay ransom to kidnappers of scores of students and other people in parts of Nigeria, an official has said. Information Minister Mohammed Idris, who stated this in Abuja while addressing journalists on Wednesday, said the president also directed security agencies to ensure the release of all kidnapped victims without the payment of ransom. Mr President has also directed that no ransom will be paid by government to any of these criminal elements. I think its important that this be put out there, the minister said. The ministers comments followed the mass kidnappings that have occurred in some states in Nigeria. In Kaduna, north-west Nigeria, 280 students were kidnapped last week by yet-to-be-identified bandits. The Kaduna kidnap occurred a few days after about 400 people were kidnapped by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno. Mr. President reiterated his directive to security agencies and the Ministry of Defense to ensure that those our kids that have been abducted by these criminal gangs are brought back to their homes safely, the minister added. Mr Idris assured that all the abducted persons in Borno and Kaduna will be brought back safely pretty soon, saying the security agencies are working round the clock to ensure that they are rescued. The security agencies are working hard in that direction. And Mr. President has also directed that no ransom will be paid by government to any of these criminal elements. I think its important that this be put out there, he said. He also said the government is closely watching the rise in cases of kidnappings even as the security agencies are taking proactive steps to ensure that the trend is halted. He said: You know, we are seeing some kind of movement and the more security agencies are also hitting these targets, the more these criminals are pushed to also getting some soft targets. But the government is not making any excuses. Foreign support The minister also said some countries including the United States (US) have offered helping hands to Nigeria to rescue the abducted but no agreement has been finalised. Well, were aware that it is not just the US that has actually offered (help). Other countries have also offered to support Nigeria. But what we can tell you is that the government is still reviewing these offers and the position of government will be made known to you, he said. Abduction of students Thousands of students and teachers have been abducted in several attacks in Nigeria since the first case was recorded in 2014 when Boko Haram terrorists kidnapped 276 schoolgirls from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok. The situation is particularly prevalent in the troubled North-East where Boko Haram terrorists are active and the North West where banditry is rife. In 2018, Boko Haram terrorists kidnapped 110 schoolgirls from the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State. In the North West, terrorists have also staged mass kidnappings in Kankara, Katsina State, where more than 300 school boys were kidnapped in 2020. In 2021, terrorists also stormed Government Science School, Kagara, Niger State, and abducted scores of students. Similar abductions have also occurred in Government Girls Secondary School Kangebe, Zamfara State, and Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, Kebbi State, in 2021. The terrorists, however, appear to have been emboldened as Nigeria now witnesses more attacks on tertiary institutions. In September 2022, 22 students of the Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, living in private hostels around the school, were abducted. Students of the Federal University Dutsinma, Katsina, and Nasarawa State University, Keffi have suffered a similar fate. At the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, students are living in fear as terrorist attacks are becoming frequent in the communities within the schools neighbourhood. 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 House of Representatives has urged President Bola Tinubu to expedite the investigation of the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu. This resolution was a sequel to a motion moved by Billy Osawaru (PDP, Edo) on Wednesday during plenary. The motion Moving the motion, Mr Osawaru said the suspension of the NSIP during this period of increasing hardship is heightening the challenges of the vulnerable population relying on its assistance and could lead to a rise in poverty levels, social unrest and ultimately impacting negatively on the overall stability and development of the country. He said the cases of looting of warehouses and food trucks in many cities across the country as a result of increasing hunger and suffering, signal the need for immediate action to ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians such as the resumption of all forms of social investment programmes. Mr Osawaru said the planned move of the social investment programmes to the finance ministry is against the law. The alleged recommendation suggesting that a new steering committee board under the leadership of the minister of finance should henceforth oversee the social investment programmes is not only an anomaly but contravenes the extant law which situates the implementing agency and programmes under the purview of the ministry of humanitarian affairs and poverty alleviation, he said. While there may be legislative actions to amend the National Social Investment Programme Agency Act 2023, up until the Act is completely amended, and enacted, the current status quo cannot be reviewed by mere executive action. He, therefore, prayed the House to urge the government to direct a serving minister of state to oversee relevant approvals and implementation of the social investment programmes to minimize the adverse implication of increasing hunger and sufferings experienced by vulnerable Nigerians relying on the programme. He also asked the federal government to place on hold the planned idea to move the social investment programmes to the finance ministry. The motion was adopted unanimously by the lawmakers, without debate, and passed when Speaker Abbas Tajudeen put it to voice vote. Background Mr Tinubu suspended Ms Edu in January because she ordered the transfer of N585.2 million into the private bank account of a civil servant, who is the accountant in charge of grants for vulnerable Nigerians. The president also asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to carry out a thorough investigation of all the ministrys financial transactions. The investigation extended to the entire framework of Nigerias social investment programmes. Ms Edu, 37, has denied any wrongdoing. Her office said she had approved the transfer into a personal account for the implementation of grants to vulnerable groups. In addition, the president ordered the suspension of the National Social Investment Programmes like the N-Power Programme, Conditional Cash Transfer Programme, Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme, and Home Grown School Feeding Programme pending investigations. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The House of Representatives has summoned the major cement manufacturers over the spike in the price of the product in the country. The summon followed a motion jointly moved by Gaza Gbefwi (SDP, Nasarawa) and Ademorin Kuye (APC, Lagos), during plenary on Wednesday. The manufacturers are to appear before the entire House to brief the lawmakers on the arbitrary increase in cement price. The motion. Moving the motion, Mr Gbefwi said there is no reason for price increment because most of the input used for the manufacturing of cement, like lime, silica, alumina, iron oxide, and gypsum are all sourced locally and not affected by exchange rate volatility. The lawmaker claimed that all factors of production and elements of the cement production flow chart are also sourced locally and have not changed significantly year-on-year. He said cement producers are capitalising on exchange volatility to arbitrarily increase the price of the product, whose cost of production has not changed significantly since last year, adding that the cement cabal is unconscionably inflicting hardship on Nigerians as the prices of rent and associated services have increased. The increase is a direct affront and sabotage of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administrations effort to bring comfort to the populace and should be resolved immediately, Mr Gbefwi added. Speaking in support of the motion, Aliyu Madaki (NNPP, Kano) said the arbitrary price increase by manufacturers is nothing but corruption and abuse of power. He added, We must not allow few individuals to control the economy. Also speaking in support of the motion, Sada Soli (APC, Katsina) countered the argument of monopoly in the cement manufacturing sector, noting that the sector is already liberal. Consequently, the House mandated the Committees on Solid Minerals Development, Commerce, Industry and Special Duties to investigate the arbitrary increase in the price of cement by manufacturers and report back in four weeks. The lawmakers voted overwhelmingly for the adoption of the motion when it was put to voice vote by Speaker Abbas Tajudeen. However, the House has yet to schedule a date for their appearance. Background In the past couple of months, the price of cement has continued to rise across the country, selling for as much as N13,000 in some states. Two weeks ago, major cement manufacturers in Nigeria, Dangote, BUA and Lafarge reached an agreement with the federal government to peg the price of a bag of cement between N7,000 and N8,000. The resolution was reached following a meeting between the Minister of Works, David Umahi, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Doris Uzoka-Anite as well as representatives of BUA Cement, Dangote Cement, Lafarge and Cement Producers Association. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has announced that the administration has commenced the renovation and construction of more health facilities across the state. Mr Aiyedatiwa, represented by his deputy, Olayide Adelami, spoke at the 40th annual general meeting and scientific conference of the Association of Public Health Physicians of Nigeria (APHPN), held in Akure. Mr Aiyedatiwa noted that while the health sector was identified to be very critical to the development of the state from the onset, the initiative to build more health facilities and upgrade existing ones is topmost, and at the centre of his administrations agenda. We are undertaking structural and infrastructural upgrades of our health facilities, he said. For example, the construction of 500 bedded wards in the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital (UNIMEDTH), the construction and renovation of many health facilities and the replacement of obsolete medical equipment with ultra-modern down-to-the-earth equipment, across all levels of care. Recruitment The governor also revealed that his administration is currently recruiting more hands into the states health sector to replace health workers who have relocated abroad. We understand that many of those we employed in the past have relocated abroad for greener pasture, so we have decided to employ up to 1,000 health professionals across all cadres to replace those who have left. These recruitment processes are already ongoing, he noted. The governor said the theme for this years APHPN conference, Repositioning Public Health in a New Political Dispensation is a timely call to service for all the stakeholders. He said: To reposition public health, we must agree that it is through collective efforts of all the stakeholders: the government, health professionals, patients and partners. He said: As a government, we will continue to improve on our performances. At this juncture, I want to assure all that we will not rest on our laurels until we ensure that public health is fully repositioned. I wish that our health professionals would work as a team and complement the efforts of government. FG health commitments The governor also commended President Bola Tinubus Renewed Hope Agenda on Health and the appointment of the minister of health, Ali Pate, whom he described as a perfect fit for the job. In her remarks, the Special Adviser to the President on Health, Salma Anas, assured Nigerians that President Tinubu is truly committed to reforming the health sector. According to Ms Anas, the topic of the conference fully aligns with the position of Tinubu administrations Renewed Hope Agenda on health, with a focus on achieving universal health coverage by leaving no one behind. We are committed to reforming the health sector to ensure that we close the gaps between those in need of services and available services or expand the services, she said. Repositioning health services In his comments, the National President of APHPN, Alphonsus Isara, commended the state governor for providing a conducive environment for their members to effectively do their jobs and complement the efforts of the government to deliver qualitative healthcare. Mr Isara said the theme of the conference is an opportunity for members to deliberate on ways to reposition public healthcare services in Nigeria. Delivering the keynote address, Adesegun Fatusi, a professor of public health and community medicine, recommended that the APHPN must contribute to increased production of health workers, and engage in data-driven and research-based decisions, towards improved health system performance. Mr Fatusi also advised public health practitioners in the country to position themselves as topmost advocates for improved health development. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The police have shut the popular Wuse market in Abuja following the recent crisis in the market. PREMIUM TIMES reported that crisis broke out in the market on Tuesday after an inmate, identified as Ibrahim Yahaya, 27, was shot dead by security operatives as he tried to escape from custody. No fewer than 10 shops and eight vehicles were burnt down. When our reporter visited the market on Wednesday, it was locked while armed policemen were guarding it to forestall further breakdiwn of law and order. Shop owners who wanted to go into the market for the days business as well as customers were turned back by the police. Abubakar Danladi, who works as an agent in the market, told this reporter that the market was locked early on Wednesday and no one had been allowed to enter since then. Mr Danladi, who hails from Damaturu in Yobe State, said he has been working in the market for about three years as an agent directing customers to shops. He complained that he had not taken his breakfast because with the shutting of the market his source of income had been blocked. I have not eaten anything since morning. We have been standing here so that they can open the market for us. What the police are doing is not good, he lamented. The police will arrest us here and take us to court, they will not allow us to call our lawyer or call our relatives. This does not affect me because they used to cover me, but I am talking about others like me, he said. Correctional Service confirms killing inmate Meanwhile, the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), FCT Command, has confirmed that its personnel shot and killed Mr Yahaya contrary to speculations that he was killed by the police. NCoS, however, said its personnel acted within the law to prevent the deceased from escaping. The Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) wishes to condole with the family of the deceased inmate who was shot by an armed squad personnel on Tuesday, 12th March, 2024, at Wuse in Abuja, FCT. The incidence which led to pandemonium around Wuse in FCT is unfortunate and regretted. However, it is important to note that the personnel acted within the precinct of the law to prevent the inmate from escaping. Section 20 of the Nigerian Correctional Service Act 2019 empowers correctional officers to use firearm to disable an escaping inmate. It is unfortunate that in the process of disabling the said escapee, he lost his life, the Service said in a statement by its spokesperson, Adamu Duza. NCoS assured the public of the safe and secure custody of all those legally interned as well as humane treatment of all inmates in its custody. The Service wishes to sympathise with all those who incurred losses as a result of the pandemonium that followed. The Controller of Corrections, FCT Command, assures all residents of the FCT to go about their normal businesses as the situation is under control, it added. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said some of the reported kidnap incidents within Abuja were stage managed The minister stated this on Wednesday shortly after he held a closed door meeting with the Senate on Wednesday. Mr Wike appeared before the lawmakers alongside the FCT Commissioner of Police, Benneth Igweh, to discuss the rising cases of kidnapping and other security challenges in the territory. The duo were summoned by the Senate last month after the lawmakers expressed displeasure with the deteriorating security situation and rising criminal activities in the territory. Mr Wike told journalists that some of the kidnapping incidents were arranged. Some of the kidnapping stories you hear are stage-managed by people. There are some internal arrangements. Take for example, you have a housekeeper or a driver in the house who will plot to kidnap the child of their boss. In such a case, what do you expect us to do? What we can do is to ensure that the person that is kidnapped is released, he said. The minister stressed that the arrest of wanted kidnappers who had been terrorising FCT in the past has reduced kidnapping incidents in the FCT. According to him the senators agreed with his submission that the territorys security situation has improved. The Senators agreed that security has improved in the FCT. Let me also say that there is no part of the world where criminality has been abated. We have heard several times in the United States of America, where criminals go to school and shoot students. So people should not have that impression that you cannot have one crime or the other. What we need is being able to limit or reduce the level of insecurity. We are not saying we have gotten to where we want to be, but we are doing a lot and people should acknowledge that what used to be is not what we are seeing now. We will continue to do our best to ensure that we provide the best to our people, he said. Mr Wike promised improved security and more infrastructure that will further develop the territory. He said during the discussion, the senators also made some suggestions on how to further improve the situation. They (lawmakers) provided some suggestions on ways forward. What is important is what the FCT should expect from now is improved security, more infrastructure, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Adetokunbo Abiru, representing Lagos East on the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has emerged the chairman, Southern Senators Forum (SSF). He took over from Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele (APC-Ekiti), who had been the leader of the forum since the ninth Assembly. Mr Abiru, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, emerged after a meeting of South-east, South-west and South-south senators in Abuja. Speaking at a news conference after his emergence in Abuja on Wednesday, the senator said the SSF would partner the Northern Senators Forum (NSF) to move the country forward. This forum, Southern Senators Forum, is to champion the course of Nigeria and Nigerians. We have our northern brothers with the Northern Senators Forum, we will work together with the Northern Senators Forum to move the country forward, Mr Abiru said. According to him, the SSF will roll out its plans for the betterment of the region and Nigeria. We will work out our plans, the last leadership has transferred power to us, we have been running the forum as if we dont exist. The present leader of the Senate was the leader of the Southern Senators Forum. He was too engaged on other issues but we now have new leadership which is headed by me, Mr Abiru said. NAN reports that Victor Umeh (LP- Anambra), is the vice chairman of the forum, while Mpigi Barinada (PDP-Rivers South) is the secretary of the forum. The public relations officer is Asuquo Ekpenyong (APC-Cross River),while Kenneth Eze (APC Ebonyi) is the treasurer of the forum. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print As complicated as these challenges are, the Senate remains resolute and undaunted, indeed methodical and pragmatic in our multi-pronged approach to restoring order to the economy, stability to the polity, prosperity to the people and confidence to the global interests that seek strategic partnership with us. This has been our preoccupation since the take-off of the 10th National Assembly on 13 June, 2023. It is exactly 275 days today since the 10th Senate came into force. And it has been a period of active law-making, constituency engagement and strategic interventions, amid socio-economic and political pressures in which our nation is enmeshed. Yet, we all recognise the place of collaboration in our response to issues of vital national interests. As an assembly of nationalists, patriots and progressives under the leadership of His Excellency, Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio (CON), the 10th Senate has been strategically collaborating with key public institutions, especially the Presidency, to defend our national interest; ensure economic stability; promote social cohesion and foster unity among the ethnic nationalities that constitute Nigeria. This has become highly imperative at a time regressive forces are working against our collective interests as a federation of over 227 million people. Their invisible hands are not just ominous, but also devastative to our collective interests as a nation. They all constitute the triggers of prevailing internal crises economic doldrums, insecurity, food crisis, fiscal instability and socio-political disharmony that are now undermining the livelihoods of our compatriots nationwide. They equally threaten the vision of our founding fathers to build a virile federation that would serve the interests of all. As complicated as these challenges are, the Senate remains resolute and undaunted, indeed methodical and pragmatic in our multi-pronged approach to restoring order to the economy, stability to the polity, prosperity to the people and confidence to the global interests that seek strategic partnership with us. This has been our preoccupation since the take-off of the 10th National Assembly on 13 June, 2023. This is evident in our diverse engagements with service chiefs to further guarantee the security of lives and assets nationwide. Our inquiries into the regressive dynamics that plague our economy, no doubt, spurred stability in the fiscal space and largely restored investors confidence. Our prompt responses to diverse requests of national significance further deepened our pragmatic approach to the enactment of different legislation that redefine our governance frameworks. Between 13 June, 2023 and 31 December, 2023 alone, for instance, at least 338 bills were initiated in response to our quest for economic progress, internal cohesion and national greatness. Of this figure, 10 bills were fully passed into laws; 11 are currently at the committee stage; 179 are awaiting second reading; and 135 are yet to be laid before the committee of the whole for consideration and deliberation. Critics have even called us to questions for enacting only 10 laws within the timeframe. Agreed, we could do much better, especially at a time when critical legislative interventions are required to jumpstart our economy and stabilise our polity. Nevertheless, we should bear in mind that 2023 was the first year of the Government of Renewed Hope. And the Senate, indeed the National Assembly, was preoccupied with diverse requests of vital national interests from the Presidency and other public institutions. Besides the bills we have worked on or are still working on, the Senate entertained 90 motions. Each of these motions directly addressed the roots of highly critical issues that threatened the future of our fatherland. As well, we treated 21 petitions from different quarters; screened 123 nominees for different strategic national offices and provided diverse interventions at the time our economy was in doldrums; national security under threats and internal cohesion almost disintegrating. We are now forging ahead to another phase in our quest for a federation that serves the interests of all. That justifies a 45-man Constitution Review Committee that the Senate inaugurated on 14 February to review the grundnorm that governs our federation and work out a more efficient structure that can exponentially speed up our economic growth and redress all divisive tendencies that undermine our federation. With sustained collaboration with key public institutions, our interventions are already yielding optimal outcomes. We are winning the fight against bandits, kidnappers and terrorists, though mountainous and tedious. We are equally reversing negative tendencies that plague our economy and polity. We are gradually reuniting our brothers and sisters across the Niger and reinventing a glorious future that we all aspire towards and desire. And this aspiration will surely come to fruition definitely in our lifetime. But can these interventions alone guarantee a future we all crave for? We obviously do not need a soothsayer to tell us the limit of our initiatives and the exigency of providing pragmatic antidotes to our collective challenges. What we have been doing since the inception of the Senate was tailored at rebuilding trust in governments; reinventing a polity that fosters peaceful co-existence nationwide; and stabilising our economy that enables collective prosperity. We are now forging ahead to another phase in our quest for a federation that serves the interests of all. That justifies a 45-man Constitution Review Committee that the Senate inaugurated on 14 February to review the grundnorm that governs our federation and work out a more efficient structure that can exponentially speed up our economic growth and redress all divisive tendencies that undermine our federation. The review committee is chaired by His Excellency, Deputy President of the Senate, Senator J. Barau Jibrin (CON). Among others, its core goals are to tinker with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and redesign our security architecture with a view to making it more efficient, more functional and more result-oriented in response to our security needs. They are consistent with the 2023 Revised Legislative Agenda of the Senate, which will soon be adopted in the interest of our fatherland. Critics have however opposed our interventions on diverse grounds. Some believe the review committee is a ritual in every National Assembly. Many also question the capacity of the National Assembly to produce a new constitution that bears no vestige of militarism. Others even claim that it is a sheer waste of hard-earned public funds for the National Assembly to undertake another review of our grundnorm. We note the concerns of our critics, mainly the opposition, with a sense of duty. And this duty is founded on a conviction that the task of nation-building is not just collective, but should also be constructive in the way we engage. This conviction remains the key driver of the review of the 1999 Constitution and not the assumption of the critics. It is not another ritual nor a waste of public funds. Rather, it was born out of the need of crafting a new socio-economic and political order that promotes efficiency and spurs accountability. This conviction is consistent with the power of the National Assembly under Section 4(1-2) of the Constitution. Under this section, the National Assembly is not just the parliament of the Federal Government authorised to enact laws for the purpose of federal governance. It is also the sovereign parliament of the Federal Republic of Nigeria vested with the power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Federation or any part thereof more than ever before, this is also the time to reassess ourselves as true representatives of the people and carry ourselves like true patriots and nationalists, rather than playing to the gallery and engaging in divisive activities and heroism. Any act short of portraying any of us as a true senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be sanctioned by our collective resolve, and that starts from today. By implication, the resolve of the National Assembly to review the 1999 Constitution contravenes public assumptions. However, it is driven by the armed attacks on villages on the Plateau; the violent killing of traditional rulers in Ekiti and Kwara; the unlawful occupation of farm settlements in the Benue Basin; the abduction of pupils in different parts of the federation; the shadow enterprise of kidnapping nationwide; and the waning capacity of the Nigeria Police to guarantee a functional public order. This drive is also spurred by our quest for a new framework for effective economic governance that will reflect the character and strength of our federation. And our intention revolves around recalibrating our federal governance structure and making all its federating units constitutionally responsible, economically viable, fiscally independent and globally competitive. This is our dream and not all those assumptions flying around in the public space. As our records have shown, the federation we are currently running is not what our founding fathers envisioned and operated before the coming of khaki men. No, it is not a federation we all bargain and crave for; neither is it the Nigeria our founding fathers handed over to the generations before us. It is not definitely the Nigeria of our dream. In this generation, our dream is not what we witness daily. Rather, it is a nation where peace perpetually reigns, a nation where our economy grows unfettered, a nation where social cohesion is an order and a nation where politics is a tool for socio-economic transformation. And as an institution, we shall not allow criminals to derail our lofty dream. The time is now to stamp out banditry, criminality and terrorism from our space. The time is now to spur investors and accelerate growth that will catapult us into the glorious future we all desire. The time is now to raise an army of patriots and those who treasure our peace, who leverage our diversity for national growth, and who handsomely prize our collective interests far above their parochial and pecuniary rewards. All of these occupy a prime place in our quest for the review of the 1999 Constitution. And we shall be open to different ideas on how to restore order and promote human dignity. We shall also debate the possibility of reinventing our federal governance structure for the purpose of introducing a functional order that guarantees accountability and probity, efficiency and optimality, progress and sustainability. Finally, more than ever before, this is also the time to reassess ourselves as true representatives of the people and carry ourselves like true patriots and nationalists, rather than playing to the gallery and engaging in divisive activities and heroism. Any act short of portraying any of us as a true senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be sanctioned by our collective resolve, and that starts from today. Opeyemi Bamidele, the Leader of the 10th Senate, writes from Abuja. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Peter Obi is the luckiest man alive. Why do you say that? Imagine for a moment that he is the president governing Nigeria today. What is there to imagine? Imagine the kind of abuse people would have heaped on him. Obi kelele nke would have become something else. Aha. Abuse! Would it be different from what they have done already? In fact, they would not just abuse him; they would have cursed all Igbo people in Nigeria and beyond. Saying what? Pick your poison. They could have been saying that this hardship was the Igbo plan to wipe off other ethnic groups in Nigeria and take over the whole country. And how would they have justified that thinking? Simple. That Igbo people were not protesting and were not stopping lorries carrying food items to loot the contents. So So, it must mean that their brother, the president, must have been secretly giving them money and food. The way Tinubu has been giving money and food to the Yoruba. Nobody would believe such nonsense. Then you must not live in this country if you doubt it. These people believed that the January 15, 1966 coup was an Igbo coup when only seven out of the fourteen army officers who planned the coup were Igbo. There were four Yoruba, two Hausa, an Ijaw, a Tiv, an Urhobo, an Esan, and others. Even the man who wrote the book, Why We Struck, Major Adewale Ademoyega, was Yoruba. He did not write Why the Igbo Army Officers Struck. But that did not stop some Nigerians from calling it an Igbo coup. And on that basis, the rest of the crises of the 1960s emanated. I dont believe it. Im telling you that people in todays Nigeria believe that Tinubu had been giving Igbo people money so they would like him and that it was why they were not protesting the hardship like others. We saw one of them speaking on a viral video. Did you not see him? That Igbo people have not started protesting does not mean they would not eventually. You just watch and see. The war made them tough. Nothing can make anyone withstand Tinubus bitter pill. Do you want to bet? No, thank you. What else do you have? If Peter Obi were to be president, some Nigerians would have blamed all Igbo people for what Peter Obi had turned Nigerian into. But I dare say that Igbo businesses would have been routinely broken into across the country by people seeking reparation for what Peter Obi did to the country. If an Igbo man is unlucky to be selling food items, God help the fellow. His merchandise would have become free for the aggrieved. That is a too pessimistic view of the Nigerian people. Im even being charitable to these crop of Nigerians that I see today. But what if President Peter Obi did something different from what Bola Tinubu is currently doing? Give me a break! You mean you do not see that possibility? Do you not sincerely see any difference in substance and style? Come on. Okay, I will concede this President Peter Obi will stop his convoy at gas stations across the country, pay, and pump the petrol into each vehicle himself. What else? He would wear the same shoe for a month and the same wristwatch for a year. My friend, Im very serious. You sincerely do not see any substantive difference that would have happened? Didnt all the leading candidates pledge to remove the oil subsidy? Didnt they vow to close the different naira exchange rate gap that well-connected people used to defraud us all? That does not mean Peter would approach these reforms similarly. What other way could he use? In what way does your nurse give you an injection without pain? Please tell me. What if he does other things to make everyone feel we are in this hardship together? That we are all sacrificing for a better tomorrow. Is there anything that Tinubu will do now that will make you say that, you know what? It is okay if a bag of cement costs N15,000 for now. It is for our good. It is okay if a bag of rice is N80,000; it is for the betterment of our grandchildren? Are you saying that if President Peter Obi seriously cut the size of the government, that people will not gladly make the sacrifice and work with him to fix Nigeria? President Peter Obi. Did you hear how that came out of your mouth? How? I dont know. But it sounded nothing presidential. Let me take a minute to let that sink in first. Take an hour if you like. Let me ask again: what about cutting the size of his government? How much can you save from cutting the size of the government? Are you kidding me? Do we need 45 ministers for the size of our economy? Do we need all these government agencies that are doing nothing but collecting salaries? Is Tinubu not doing that already? He is implementing the Oronsaye report as we speak. So we should clap for Tinubu for promising to implement the Oronsaye report. This a man who increased the number of ministers and ministry we have in a time of economic hardship. Okay. Eliminate the extra ministers that the constitution did not mandate, let the lawmakers go to work on bicycles, have the First Lady go to her office in an Uber, how much will you save through all that? Billions, I am sure. What is billions? What do you mean what is billions? Are you now an ally of Flavour, who asks us What is money? in his hit song, Baller? My friend, despite the devaluation of the naira, billions are still billions. They are still money. Okay. So, what is your point with the billions in dollars that we owe? My point is that presidents are like parents; if you want your child to take a bitter pill, you become creative. You mean creative or deceptive? You got my point. Successful parents are not those who pamper their children. They are those who give it straight to them. Is it just me, or do you also feel that the team that Tinubu is running the country with is our second eleven? Do you feel they are not the brightest crayons in the box? Why do you say so? Are they not mainly made up of his loyal Lagos boys? What groups are you concerned that they are missing in Tinubus team? Is it the IMF types or the World Bank stooges? All Im saying is that Nigerians have been through a lot, and I think they deserve a break? What kind of break do you want? A temporary one or a permanent break? I want a break so that they will come out alive. Unfortunately, that is not how life works. Meaning what? Unfortunately, some of them will die. But that is a price that President Tinubu is willing to pay for our better tomorrow. Here is my conclusion: Nigeria has three groups of people today. One group is very pessimistic and thinks President Bola Tinubu is overrated. The second group is so optimistic that they think Tinubu is underrated. The third group is sure that the other two groups do not know how much they need to know before they know how little they know. Which group do I belong to? Use your tongue to count your teeth. Rudolf Ogoo Okonkwo teaches Post-Colonial African History at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. He is also the host of Dr. Damages Show. His books include This American Life Sef, Children of a Retired God, among others. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, has been honoured for his exceptional dedication to fostering peace and unity among the diverse people of the state. At the sixth Annual Inter-faith Peace Conference held in Kaduna, the Governor was honoured with an award of excellence as a Beacon of Interfaith Peace and Unity by the Interfaith Dialogue Forum for his outstanding efforts in promoting harmony within the pluralist state. Speaking at the event, Mr Sani delivered a passionate call to action, highlighting the urgent need to revamp Nigerias security architecture to meet global standards. The governor emphasised the imperative of decentralising security operations and championed the establishment of state police. He asserted that each state governor should wield effective control over his states security. Additionally, he called for the development of common strategies and operational plans within the six geo-political zones to combat insecurity, underscoring the importance of establishing command and control centres to coordinate joint efforts against various criminal elements, including terrorists, bandits and kidnappers. In addressing the challenges of poverty and insecurity, the governor emphasised the need for state governors to collaborate in areas such as infrastructure development, agriculture and poverty alleviation. Speakers at the Annual Inter-faith Peace Conference underscored the importance of religious leaders working together with policymakers and lauded Mr Sanis commitment to fostering peaceful coexistence and religious harmony in Kaduna State. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Last month, Forbes magazine named the University of Virginia one of the best large employers in the country, ranking 73rd among 600 U.S. employers with more than 5,000 employees, the highest of any college in Virginia. But for many, the news that UVa is one of the best places to work in the commonwealth, or the country for that matter, raised the question: For whom? Dozens of graduate student workers at UVa say they are not receiving their stipend payments on time. For some it has taken weeks or months, for others years. There is hope though. As the schools governing Board of Visitors concluded its regular meeting earlier this month, UVa President Jim Ryan agreed to meet with graduate workers to resolve what the students have referred to as a systemic issue of late and inaccurate payments. Ryan as well as several others on the board spoke with 11 graduate students who sat in on the meeting in the boardroom of the schools iconic Rotunda. Those students held signs reading, The university works because we do, UVa paid me late, but my bills cant wait and I cant work if I cant eat. One of those sign-holders was Ida Hoequist, a former graduate student in the schools anthropology department who said they were excited to hear Ryan tell the group, We dont leave the room until we have a solution. When this has been your normal for so long, it is such a good feeling to have hope that we will get paid on time, Hoequist told The Daily Progress. Im excited, and I feel hopeful about this for the first time since 2015. I cant tell you how amazing the feeling is that maybe this is over. At that meeting on March 1, limited space in the boardroom meant that only 11 graduate workers with the United Campus Workers of Virginia at UVa union could sit in on the action. But another 20 or so workers were at the Rotunda that day to make their presence known and their thoughts heard, according to graduate student Lucas Martinez. We had a feeling there was a good chance the visitors werent aware of the issue, so we wanted to let them know as people who are a part of the UVa community, Martinez told The Daily Progress. They were sympathetic and confused. There were board members at the meeting who appeared genuinely ignorant of the matter. That ignorance was not alleviated by UVa Provost Ian Baucoms assertion at the meeting that the matter being protested had already been resolved. When a board member asked why signs were being wielded in a corner of the room, Baucom responded, They are here because of a problem two Decembers ago, and there has only been one other instance since. Thats just factually incorrect, said Martinez. In December 2022, UVa failed to pay roughly 180 out of 2,000 working graduate students. University employees had to return to Grounds over the winter break that year to fix the problem, while many graduate students fell behind on bills and faced late fines from landlords. UVa said it reached out to these students to assist them with any financial burden caused by the delay. For more than a year, a union-led Cut The Checks campaign has petitioned the university to address inaccurate grant and wage disbursements in addition to delayed payments. The union has held town halls, rallies and sent several delegations to speak with university administrators. One of these meetings with Baucom led to the Graduate Stipend Task Force that was commissioned in February 2023. Throughout the spring, the task force examined the universitys payment systems, and in May, it released its final report. The report identified miscommunication on required deadlines for processing as well as administrative delays as the primary reasons for the payment debacle. It outlined several immediate and long-term recommendations, which included establishing appropriate deadlines, developing a centralized payment system, automating audit reports and conducting further studies on staffing levels and turnover. However, graduate worker Olivia Paschal said that student workers dont need another study to tell them where the problems lie. For us, the task force recommendations were disappointing in that most of the items we understand are the main problems behind the continued payment issues theyve identified as something that needs further study, Paschal told The Daily Progress. But it doesnt, its very clear the issue is, to us, staff turnover because theyre doing too much work for low pay. Moreover, the task force doesnt appear to have communicated its findings very well, said Martinez, or else the Board of Visitors members would not have had to ask so many questions at their last meeting. It was clear that the task force hadnt informed administration or the visitors very well, Martinez said. While the task forces report lists recommendations that could take more than a year to complete, graduate student workers believe some more immediate solutions could materialize out of their planned meeting with Ryan. I definitely think its possible to come to a solution and be the beginning of UVa adjusting to a better way of doing things, said Martinez. President Ryan wants to take UVa to a place where its the top university, but we all have to go along with that. Everyone here needs to feel like they are a part of that journey. Paschal was one of the many students whose payments were botched in December 2022. This past December, a similar situation occurred again. Paschal said she was expecting to receive a $6,120 stipend in advance of the spring semester this December. Instead, she received a check of $2,448. Sending frantic emails to university staff to resolve payment errors has become routine for Paschal who, along with others in her PhD fellowship in fall 2023, received incorrect stipend payments in August. When the students notified the school, they were instead all charged the amount they were owed, placing holds on their student accounts. Though Paschal's debt was remedied in a matter of weeks, others have not been so fortunate. Graduate worker Ethan Evans said it took Student Financial Services two years to give them the full amount owed from an AmeriCorps education stipend. Hoequist said that out of a group of 10 graduate students they work with, theyve heard of eight inaccurate payments since August. Its insane that while youre supposed to be doing highly technical work, which already takes up a lot of overtime and worrying about paying bills on top of that, you have to watch like a hawk to even make sure youre getting payments, Hoequist said. Graduate student workers arent convinced the school would have ever caught the errors on its own. If the graduate workers had not noticed we werent paid correctly, who knows? Paschal said. Despite the frequency and volume of these incidents, university officials insist the errors are not related to a systemic problem, but rather due to a complex, nuanced process. Graduate students can receive a variety of different forms of income from the university: grants, teaching assistant wages, living stipends and fellowships. Depending on the type of payment, it could be processed through one of the many financial systems the university has in place WorkDay, Student Information System, Student Aid Funding Module and Payroll Services that are all handled by different departments across the schools. Each case, because of the intricacies, could be different, Phil Trella, director of the Office of Graduate & Postdoctoral Affairs at UVa, told The Daily Progress. We can only address issues that we know about, and because of these complexities, we really need to know the specifics. This is why weve created a form thats been sent around to all the graduate students in Arts & Sciences multiple times. If theres a challenge, we want to address that as soon as possible. The form was created in conjunction with the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Student Council in the fall. Trella said the university has received 12 submissions from students seeking financial assistance and reporting current or past incorrect payments. That figure does not accurately reflect the number of payment issues that have occurred this year, as students are more likely to reach out to a staff member they are familiar with in their own department, said Hoequist. Graduate students in the College of Arts & Sciences have been sent the form on three separate occasions, though the first two were buried in a graduate student newsletter, said Paschal. A date has not been set for Ryans planned meeting with graduate student workers. When The Daily Progress reached out for more details, university administrators did not immediately respond. The United Campus Workers of Virginia at UVa union, though, said it has been in contact with the presidents office. This university cant be great and good if we dont pay workers on time, said Martinez. Without our graduate workers, this university doesnt run in the same way. Lets solve this problem together. As part of Olam Agris engagements and conversations, a delegation led by Anil Nair, the Country Head and Managing Director of Olam Agri in Nigeria, recently paid a courtesy call on the Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima, in Abuja. Discussions during the visit centred around Olam Agri leveraging its three decades of experience and expertise in Nigeria across food and agricultural value chains in order to accentuate and sustainably advance Nigerias food security initiatives. Olam Agri reiterated its intent to continue to collaborate and cooperate with the Federal Government of Nigeria to ensure food security and sustainability. Other members of the delegation were Ade Adefeko, Director Corporate and Regulatory Affairs, Olam Agri and Dr Umaru Ismail, Chief Agronomist at Olam Agris Rice Farm. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print A group, under the auspices of the Ekiti Tax for Service, has demanded transparency in the implementation of the N1.4 billion earmarked for the Ekiti International Cargo Airport in the 2024 budget and other provisions in the appropriation. The Tax for Service policy group, which comprises the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), FIDA, artisans, hoteliers, market women, and traditional chiefs, among others, said that tax payment would not be difficult for the citizens of the state if they get value for their money. The chairperson, Ekiti Tax for Service, Christopher Oluwadare, who is a professor, stated this on Wednesday at the unveiling of the Ekiti State Tax for Service Group Demand in 2024 budget, which was facilitated by the New Initiative for Social Development (NISD) in partnership with the Nigerian Civil Society Situationroom and UK International Development. According to him, parts of the demands of the group include the N1.4 billion budgeted for the completion of the Ekiti International Cargo Airport, the money budgeted for youth/farmer empowerment and subventions to farmers. Others include the money allocated for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, rehabilitation of markets across the state, sustainable urban/rural water supply, sanitation and hygiene, among others. Tax is compulsory because the government expects citizens to pay tax. But the tax will be voluntary and easy to collect if people who are mandated to pay tax can point to one thing or the other that the taxes they paid are used for. This project is to help sell the governments vision and projects in tax collection. This is so especially now that the federal government and other sub-national entities are trying to increase their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) because they cannot continue to rely on oil money or money coming from Abuja for payment of salaries and execution of projects, he said. Mr Oluwadare said the stakeholders were coming together to look at the various aspects of the budget as it concerned their members, and to monitor the implementation. We are building our capacity on how to monitor projects so that at the end of the day, we can say this is where the project is located. We will be meeting continuously; we will visit all the MDAs to raise our observations about the implementation of the budget. In doing so, we will get feedback on the state of the projects; if there is a need to escalate it, we will invite the media and inform them of our observations. If a road is to be constructed and it is captured in the 2024 budget and by August, nothing has been done, we will march to the Ministry of Works to demand why it has not started, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print PHILADELPHIA, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Angeion Group, a global provider of settlement administration and legal noticing services, proudly announces the appointment of Maria Jose Azar-Baud as Global Collective Actions Expert. With her expertise in Collective Redress and Consumer Law, Maria Jose fortifies Angeion's commitment to delivering exceptional solutions, in-depth thought leadership, and practical consulting services for global legal administration. Angeion Group Welcomes Maria Jose Azar-Baud as Global Collective Actions Expert Maria Jose Azar-Baud, born in Argentina, brings a distinguished background to her role as Global Collective Actions Expert at Angeion Group. Her extensive experience as an Associate Professor at Paris-Saclay University and as a lecturer at prestigious institutions such as University Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne and Paris 2 Pantheon-Assas underscores her profound knowledge in Comparative Law and Collective Redress. Having earned a double PhD from Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne University and the University of Buenos Aires, Maria Jose specializes in Collective Actions in Consumer Law, offering a unique perspective that bridges legal systems. Her influential research, including the publication of her work by the renowned French editor Dalloz, has contributed significantly to the field of Collective Redress. Throughout her career, Maria Jose has authored over 80 contributions in multiple languages, focusing on class actions, collective actions, and group actions across various legal domains. Her advocacy and scholarly pursuits have led her to participate in legislative discussions in France and the European Parliament, shaping policies related to Collective Redress in the European Union. "It's a privilege to embark on this journey with Angeion Group, a company renowned for its dedication to serving clients with integrity and efficiency. I am excited to collaborate with the team in providing top-tier consultancy services and advancing the field of Collective Redress on a global scale." Said Maria Jose Azar-Baud. "We are thrilled to welcome Maria Jose Azar-Baud to Angeion Group as our Global Collective Actions Expert. Her vast knowledge and experience will undoubtedly elevate our consultancy services and further strengthen our position as a trusted leader in legal administration," said Steven Weisbrot, CEO and President of Angeion Group. About Angeion Group: Angeion Group leads in settlement administration and legal noticing services, leveraging cutting-edge technology and expert consultancy. With a focus on class actions, mass torts, and collective redress, Angeion is dedicated to excellence, efficiency, and accountability, instilling confidence in counsel and courts. Media Contact: Angeion Group Shiri Lasman (215) 563-4116 SOURCE Angeion Group THE WOODLANDS, Texas, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Arena Energy, LLC ("Arena"), a leading independent oil and gas exploration company focused on the Gulf of Mexico Shelf, recently announced that Michael Vallejo was promoted to the position of President in addition to his role as Chief Financial Officer. Arena also announced Brent Ozenne's promotion to Chief Operating Officer of Arena Energy, and he will continue in his role as the CEO of Arena Offshore, LP. Arena Energy Promotes New President and Chief Operating Officer Vallejo joined Arena as Finance Manager in 2013 and was promoted to the role of Chief Financial Officer in 2014. He previously held senior financial and corporate development roles with Zekelman Industries, Stout, and TriQuint Semiconductor. Vallejo has an MBA from Southern Methodist University and a BBA from The University of Texas at Austin. He is also a CFA Charter holder and Certified Public Accountant. Ozenne joined Arena Offshore as a Production Engineer in 2008, assumed the role of Production Manager in 2012, was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2020 and became Chief Executive Officer of Arena Offshore in 2022. Previously, Ozenne was employed by Newfield Exploration, BP and Vastar Resources, holding various engineering positions. Ozenne earned a BS in Chemical Engineering from Louisiana State University in 1998. "Arena Energy is committed to recruiting talented employees, developing them, and promoting from within the organization. Ozenne and Vallejo have made significant contributions to Arena over the last decade. This strategic move is a testament to their leadership, business acumen and dedication to Arena's success." said Arena Co-Founder and CEO Mike Minarovic. About Arena Energy Arena Energy, LLC was founded in 1999 on the belief that mature producing areas of the Gulf of Mexico Shelf still held vast potential and that with the right technology, talented oil and gas finders could unlock these drilling opportunities. Today, that vision has been realized many times over. Since its founding, Arena has grown into one the largest private offshore oil and natural gas companies, having invested more than $4.5 billion of capital in the Gulf of Mexico, paid $1.5 billion in royalties to the federal government, and decommissioned over three hundred wells and forty-five platforms and other structures. Arena takes pride in safely and responsibly producing the energy that powers the United States and the world. Contact Information: Kevin Bruce Vice President - Government Affairs [email protected] 281-210-0536 SOURCE Arena Energy, LLC Charlottesville and Albemarle County are barreling toward a $49 million renovation of their local jailhouse, bypassing cheaper alternatives and raising questions about the regions approach to criminal justice reform. A vote scheduled for Thursday afternoon appears predetermined, as only six of the 11 members on the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail Authority Board are needed to advance the plan. They are on track to do so despite critics arguing the public has had little meaningful involvement and both current and former board members protesting that the project has been rushed, with little consideration of the less expensive options that have received far less planning than the original $49 million proposal. Its just not correct to say that the board had these options and really could dig into them. And its not correct to say the community has had time to engage and discuss the different options, Lisa Draine, who serves as a citizen representative on the board, told The Daily Progress. This board has not had a chance to discuss amongst its members how to approach this. Draine said she has repeatedly asked the boards chairwoman, Albemarle County Supervisor Diantha McKeel, to get together to discuss how the facility should be renovated. That hasnt happened. McKeel has said numerous times, Oh, well have these discussions. There will be time for that. There has never been time in the 2.5 years Ive been on the board, Draine said. Since Draine joined the board in October 2021, the body has not had a work session to debate whether the project is a good use of taxpayer money. It will have to make up for lost time during a work session scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday, hours before the board is set to vote on the $49 million project. That big price tag is accompanied by big philosophical differences about how to best allocate resources in Charlottesvilles criminal justice system. While supporters of the multimillion-dollar renovation argue the current state of the 1975-vintage jail is inhumane, opponents believe that conditions could be improved more cost efficiently and that the savings could be spent on community programs that reduce crime, keeping people from entering the criminal justice system at all. I cant speak to the specifics of whats going on in Albemarle County, but what we feel is its better to make these investments in strengthening community care and invest in things like housing and health care, Wanda Beltram of the Prison Policy Initiative, a national organization, told The Daily Progress. Data shows if you expand affordable housing and give people health care, youre going to see reduced arrests. Those are things people need in order to stay off the streets. Im glad to hear this is a conversation people are having in the county because so often these projects get greenlit and past the point of no return with no one thinking that this money could go elsewhere, Beltram continued. Skeptics of the renovation would like to see more conversations before making any financial commitments. But with a vote just hours away, it may be too late. An important note: Most of the men and women sitting on the jail authoritys board were not members when the renovation was first proposed in 2020. Back then, there were several dissenting voices, including Kristin Clarens, Cyndra Van Clief and WINA radio host Jay James. Each of them had concerns about the investment. Now, each of them is off the board. This is moving fast, James told The Daily Progress of the project. There seems to be a real determination for it to happen, and those that have raised questions about it are no longer there. Pushed out In 2022, the jail board voted in favor of a resolution to notify the commonwealth of its intention to seek a 25% reimbursement for a jail renovation. It estimated the project would cost $49 million. Attorney Cyndra Van Clief, who had been a citizen representative for nine years, was the only member on the board to vote against it. She was removed soon after. Without question, that dissenting vote led to her ouster, according to James, who has spent years volunteering for the Bridge Ministry, a faith-based organization which provides disadvantaged men with education and opportunities to keep them from going to jail. She voted; she was removed, he said. The Daily Progress tried but could not reach Van Clief for comment. But shortly after her removal, she did speak with reporter Courteney Stuart, then with C-Ville Weekly. I was doing my job in wanting to remind the board that we need to take the time to be mindful and deliberate, Van Clief told Stuart. We were moving too fast for 50-some million dollars which would set the future of our jail for the next 50 years, two generations. She received a letter from the Albemarle Board of Supervisors after being removed, which accused her of failure to act in the Countys best interest as determined by the Board of Supervisors. While Van Clief is gone, concerns about the speed of the project remain, as do concerns that there has not been enough public input. I was very disappointed to see her removed from the board, said James, adding that both Van Clief and Clarens were charged with assessing what the community would want to see in a jail renovation. She and Kristen were both involved in community engagement, and theyre both gone, and youre asking questions about community engagement, he said. The Daily Progress also could not reach Clarens for comment. McKeel told The Daily Progress that Thursdays work session will provide the Authority members assurance that they completely understand the options. McKeel then stopped responding. While the jails superintendent, Martin Kumer, says his staff has gone above and beyond soliciting public input, many of the community members who participated in the town halls he put on say they dont believe their feedback was valued. Some have said their words were twisted to justify a $49 million renovation they do not support. Others have called recent community engagement forums performative, arguing the jail board has already made up its mind to endorse the most expensive option. The outcome is really foretold. But Im just a citizen representative and trying to represent the views of people who often are not at the table of these discussions, said Draine. It hasnt been a transparent and community-engaged process. Unlike Van Clief, both James and Draine voted in favor of the March 2022 resolution. But they did so with the understanding that the $49 million option was merely a placeholder to ensure any renovation would receive a 25% reimbursement from the commonwealth. All along McKeel and Kumer have said, Nothing is set in stone. Theres time. We have to get something in, and theres time to make changes, time to discuss the design, time to discuss the scope of the project. Well certainly have more community engagement, Draine recalled. But as weve seen there is no time to do that. Virginia provides a 25% reimbursement to localities that expand or renovate their jails. It can be a long process: A state board must sign off on the project, and the General Assembly and governor must agree to put it in the states annual budget. Tony Bell of Moseley Architects, the Richmond firm enlisted to carry out the renovation, recently told Charlottesville City Council the procedure can take more than 18 months. But while both Bell and Kumer have openly raised doubts that a more limited renovation would receive reimbursement, there appears to be little recent evidence supporting their skepticism. Virginia records show that in 2022 and 2023 five projects were approved by the state board to receive funding. That includes a 25% reimbursement totaling $32,401 for the Franklin County Jails plan to upgrade the security control system and replace existing doors and windows. The five projects were the only ones presented to the commonwealth during that time frame, according to Mary-Huffard Kegley, policy analyst for the state board. One of them was the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail renovation, approved for nearly a $12 million reimbursement. While Draine joined the board in 2021, James started his role in 2019 and was present for what he called the genesis of renovation discussions. Those discussions, he said, started with concerns about the condition of the jail, which has received few upgrades since it was first constructed in 1975 on Peregory Lane just south of the city of Charlottesville. McKeel and Kumer wanted changes. While at first that appeared to mean updating piping, paint and the HVAC system, James said the conversation soon escalated; in addition to those repairs, there was a push for a more intensive capital project that would alter the physical structure of the building. It quickly evolved into, Its time to demolish and do another wing, James said. James said he believes Kumer and McKeel wanted to overhaul the jail, not just replace piping and HVAC systems. Such replacements remain on the table for a smaller price tag of $25 million, but theres little indication that the board will opt for that instead of the $49 million renovation which would include demolishing a wing of the jail and building a two-story facility in its place. The cheaper options are relatively new. James said he never once saw them during his tenure. When James cast his vote in March 2022, he did so with the hope that there would be further exploration of what a renovation might look like. He was never comfortable with the $49 million cost, he said, because it didnt seem to align with the communitys values. I always felt like we needed to continue to talk about this, he said. I was not of the opinion we needed to do something to that level of capital investment. James served on the board until his term expired in the fall of 2023. He was vice chair at the time and reapplied so he could continue his work. But in a closed meeting, the Albemarle Board of Supervisors chose not to reappoint him. They felt like they needed someone more familiar with the process of renovation, which demonstrates there is real determination to make sure this moves forward, he said. Choosing not to reappoint him was the boards prerogative, said James, but it does mark a pattern: Members who express skepticism about the renovation are pushed out. According to Draine, the only people who are still on the board since conversations about the jails condition began in 2019 are McKeel and Charlottesville Sheriff James Brown. James said the diversity of opinion offered by Van Clief and others benefited the board and led to better governance. We really just felt like we needed to be fiscally responsible with this, said James. At the very least, he said the $49 million investment was worthy of thoughtful discussion. He wondered what the goal of the project was. It just seems like there was a determination and a belief by board leadership and the superintendent that this is what really needs to happen, and I think as a community we have an opportunity to really ask the questions and examine what really does need to happen, James said. But what I experienced was that there was a lot of momentum, and those that raised questions, at times theyd be removed. An ethical dilemma Much of the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail is old and unforgiving. There is little natural light, and those who have been incarcerated there speak of meager food, dirty living conditions, mold in the showers, rats and roaches. Charlottesville city councilor Brian Pinkston, who serves on the jail board and plans to vote for the $49 million renovation, called the state of the jail unconscionable. Kumer said he truly believes that tearing down the east wing of the jail will change that. My job is to make sure that place is safe and humane and meets the needs of the city, the staff and the men and women who live there, he recently said at a community forum. A survey of 24 inmates shows a wide range of requests, such as an outdoor recreation area, more natural light, reliable plumbing, improved air quality, more space and more respect toward inmates. They want new uniforms, new bedding and lots of programming. That includes educational opportunities and job training that would help them after they are released. Inmates also noted a desire for mental health programs and a mental health unit separate from medical services. The $49 million option would include a new mental health wing with more natural light. It would be adjacent to the medical unit and would include seven cells. A 2022 mental health study of Virginias jails found that a quarter of inmates suffer from mental illness, mostly depression or bipolar disorder. Jails frequently report that housing mentally ill offenders creates unique challenges, and that the needs of this population would be better served outside of local and regional jails, reads the report. However, the jails have made it clear that if they must continue housing this special population, additional funding is needed to assist with these challenges. Kumer has made similar remarks: that as long as mentally ill people are sent to his jail, its his job to give them the best care possible. He said a new facility built with trauma-informed design will help him do that. Some community members worry that any new facility will simply offer inmates a new venue to receive medication, which is a cheaper alternative to providing counseling. Professor Erin Comartin at Wayne State University has visited dozens of jails in Michigan and studied their mental health services. While making sure inmates have proper medication is important, she said facilities should focus on giving inmates regular access to counseling. You dont want to just build a great fancy wing and make sure its just about medications. What Ive been expressing is, how many clinicians are there? Comartin told The Daily Progress. Whats the ratio of clinicians to an individual with mental illness in the jail? I would say thats the ratio you want to be paying attention to. The renovation would not include money for more clinicians. Comartin said jails providing mental health services is an ethical dilemma: It is not the ideal setting for treatment and not how she believes a community should be focusing its tax dollars. Shed prefer to see money put toward community-based care and law enforcement training that keeps mentally ill people from being put into jail in the first place. But I know thats not practical for where we find ourselves right now. And I do think every jail can use better treatment, she said. It should be about improving the quality of care in the jail, which includes training for correctional staff, hiring more clinicians who advocate for early release when appropriate and can plan discharges. ... I would say thats worthy of tax dollars. A recent briefing prepared by the Prison Policy Institute claims that jail renovations are often defended with a compassionate argument: Spending money on mental health services will improve life for people behind bars. It is often a persuasive pitch for taxpayers, says the institute. But they should never lose sight of the fact that incarceration itself is inherently harmful to physical and mental health, reads the briefing. At best, jail as a place of treatment is ineffectual. At worst, these bad policies drain funding from community-based support systems that can address challenges before a crisis results in incarceration. Things will never change A tour of the jail makes it difficult to say no renovations are needed. Inmates complain of poor air quality and inadequate heating and cooling. Bryan Page was once incarcerated in the facility. He called parts of it unlivable. Today, Page is a leading member of the BUCK Squad, a violence intervention program that seeks rid the streets of Charlottesville of gun violence. Page said he has no strong opinion on the jail renovation, but doesnt believe its worth a $49 million investment. Theres more money that goes into building jails than stopping people from going into jail. It just dont make no sense, Page told The Daily Progress. Im in the community working, and I see the needs of the community. Theyre hopeless. They feel like nobody is going to help them. Its just survival mode for some of the people in these areas. Its those socioeconomic conditions that he said lead people to commit crimes. Any crimes he committed as a young man, he committed because he needed money, he said. If Charlottesvilles impoverished communities had better access to housing, health care and economic opportunity, Page is certain crime would go down. Somebody has to invest in these kids and these impoverished communities. At what point do they start changing their philosophy on these things? Page asked. Draine would prefer to see the jail receive a $25 million renovation. She will vote against the $49 million option Thursday, unwilling to spend significant funds on incarceration that she said could be better spent on community programs. That $49 million, she said, becomes $73 million over time, because the region will have to pay interest on bonds needed to fund the project. The city of Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle and Nelson will split the cost: Albemarle will be responsible for 45.39% with the city covering 39.87% and Nelson covering 14.74%. Charlottesvilles share amounts to roughly $30 million over 27 years. Thats not much compared to the citys total budget, but Draine said putting some of that funding toward community programs would be a game changer. If you gave a million dollars to the BUCK Squad or organizations that work in this space of justice and improving the lives of people in the community, you would see a difference, she said. Were not going to get rid of the jail. Were not going to solve the issue of mass incarceration or the mental health crisis, but this is a small community. A million dollars to organizations working in these spaces would be transformative. She knows its a tough sell. Anyone who tours the jail often feels inclined to endorse a renovation, if not a complete overhaul. Its hard to say, Oh well, we shouldnt try to make the living conditions a little better. But Im looking at the larger picture, she said. If we keep putting money into the system, things will never change. If we keep doing the same thing weve done over and over again, how can we expect a different outcome? Both James and Draine believe Kumer and the board members have the best intentions. Pinkston has said that people on the board sincerely believe the $49 million renovation is whats best for the community. Draine said she wants to improve the conditions for inmates, but she also wants to elevate the conversation beyond those repairs. Regions across the commonwealth are continuing to spend millions on jails, but what is the return on investment? She and others across Central Virginia are hoping the renovation can spark a broader discussion about fixing a broken criminal justice system. Charlottesvilles budget is tight this year. A current proposal will raise taxes, and yet there are still worries that the city will not have enough money to properly fund public programs. At last weeks City Council meeting, councilor Natalie Oschrin pointed out that the citys school system is requesting $2 million more than is currently budgeted. Meanwhile, if the $49 million renovation is approved, the city will be paying $1.1 million on it annually for nearly three decades. Its an opportunity cost: $1.1 million is enough money to hire 14.5 teachers, Oschrin said. More money for the jail means less money for Councils stated priorities, she emphasized, like funding education and public transit. Money that we spend on a jail renovation is easy to see. Its an immediate payoff. We see the shiny new walls, we see the high ceilings, she said at the meeting. But the money spent on school, housing, transit, all of that that we use to try to divert people from needing to end up in jail, that has a much longer payoff. Oschrin is not on the jail board and will not have a vote on Thursday. If she did, she said she would select one of the less expensive options, saying that many community members shes spoken with feel the same. That to me would be a great step in making it a more livable space without having to stretch our already stretched budget even further for the next 30 years, Oschrin said. DUBLIN, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Asia-Pacific TOPCon Solar Cells Market - Analysis and Forecast, 2023-2032" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Asia-Pacific TOPCon solar cells market (excluding China) was valued at $1.60 billion in 2022 and is anticipated to reach $8.95 billion by 2032, witnessing a CAGR of 20.3% during the forecast period 2023-2032. The TOPCon solar cells industry is anticipated to grow significantly in the APAC region. The rising need for solar cells with flexible manufacturing processes and great efficiency - made possible by TOPCon technology - will drive this expansion. A number of factors are contributing to the TOPCon solar cells industry's strong growth in the APAC market. First, a growing number of businesses are providing TOPCon cells, suggesting a potential market. Furthermore, TOPCon solar cells are becoming more and more popular throughout the world due to improvements in photovoltaic technologies, particularly with the rise in utility projects in the residential and commercial sectors. Additionally, the region exhibits higher spending in the sector of renewable energy, which supports the general growth of the solar industry. Significant investments have been made globally due to the low carbon footprint and competitive manufacturing costs connected with renewable energy. The demand for TOPCon solar cells is further fueled by its higher effectiveness when compared to conventional solar cell technologies. Given the anticipated high demand from the utility, residential, and commercial sectors, the competition among established and emerging TOPCon solar cell providers is expected to intensify in the APAC market. The Asia-Pacific TOPCon Solar Cells Market: Drivers and Challenges The growing population and various government policies toward a clean and renewable energy-based sustainable economy in the region are creating a growing demand for clean energy alternatives, which is supporting the growth of the TOPCon solar cell market in the region. The majority of countries in the Asia-Pacific and Japan region are currently developing, and most of them, such as Afghanistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh in the region have fewer infrastructures for renewable electricity generation by harnessing sources of renewable energy such as solar, wind, and other. The region also lacks advanced solar technology capabilities. Therefore, these factors may negatively affect the growth of the TOPCon solar cell market in the Asia-Pacific and Japan region. Analyst's Perspective on TOPCon Solar Cells Market The TOPCon solar cells market is likely to grow multi-fold in the coming years during the forecast period, owing to the rapidly growing demand for renewable energy sources for power generation. With the growing demand for solar PV with advanced or higher efficiency technologies, the TOPCon solar cells have become more crucial than ever for end-use applications, including utility, residential, and others. The TOPCon solar cells providers are focused on developing higher efficient and durable cells that are in line with the changing demand patterns across the solar PV industry. In terms of market rivalry/competition, the TOPCon solar cells market is more on the consolidated side at present. However, the established TOPCon solar cells providers are expected to face stiff competition from emerging TOPCon solar cells providers which are working on technologically advanced and highly efficient cells. How can this report add value to an organization? Product/Innovation Strategy: The product segment helps the reader to understand the different types involved in TOPCon solar cells. Moreover, the study provides the reader with a detailed understanding of the Asia-Pacific TOPCon solar cells market based on the end user (residential, commercial, utility, agriculture, and others). TOPCon solar cells are gaining traction in end-user industries on the back of sustainability concerns and their higher efficiency properties. They are also being used for controlling GHG emissions. Moreover, partnerships and collaborations are expected to play a crucial role in strengthening market position over the coming years, with the companies focusing on bolstering their technological capabilities and gaining a dominant market share in the TOPCon solar cells industry. Growth/Marketing Strategy: The Asia-Pacific TOPCon solar cells market has been growing at a rapid pace. The market offers enormous opportunities for existing and emerging market players. Some of the strategies covered in this segment are mergers and acquisitions, product launches, partnerships and collaborations, business expansions, and investments. The strategies preferred by companies to maintain and strengthen their market position primarily include partnerships, agreements, and collaborations. Competitive Strategy: The key players in the Asia-Pacific TOPCon solar cells market analyzed and profiled in the study include TOPCon solar cells providers that develop, maintain, and market TOPCon solar cells. Moreover, a detailed competitive benchmarking of the players operating in the Asia-Pacific TOPCon solar cells market has been done to help the reader understand the ways in which players stack against each other, presenting a clear market landscape. Additionally, comprehensive competitive strategies such as partnerships, agreements, and collaborations will aid the reader in understanding the untapped revenue pockets in the market. Some of the prominent names established in this market are: Wuxi Suntech Power Co., Ltd. Trina Solar Co., Ltd. JA SOLAR Technology Co., Ltd. LONGi Websol Energy System Limited Sharp Energy Solutions Corporation Jolywood Key Topics Covered: 1 Markets 1.1 Industry Outlook 1.1.1 Trends: Current and Future 1.1.1.1 Emergence of TOPCon Solar Cells as New PV Module Technology in the Solar Industry 1.1.1.2 Rising Photovoltaics Demand in Emerging Markets 1.1.2 Supply Chain Analysis 1.1.3 Ecosystem of TOPCon Solar Cells Market 1.1.3.1 Consortiums and Associations 1.1.3.2 Regulatory/Certification Bodies 1.1.3.3 Government Programs 1.1.3.4 Programs by Research Institutions and Universities 1.1.4 Impact of COVID-19 on the TOPCon Solar Cells Market 1.1.5 Comparative Analysis between TOPCon, Heterojunction, and Perovskite Solar Cells 1.1.6 Comparative Analysis between TOPCon and PERC Cells 1.1.7 Potential Efficiency of Solar Cells and Panels 1.1.8 Significant Advancements in TOPCon Solar Cells 1.1.9 Recent Investments Made in TOPCon Solar Cells Market 1.1.10 Emerging Start-Up Companies of TOPCon Solar Cells Market 1.2 Business Dynamics 1.2.1 Business Drivers 1.2.1.1 Increasing Investment in Renewable Energy Sources for Power Generation 1.2.1.2 Flexible Manufacturing Process with TOPCon Technology 1.2.1.3 Growing Demand for TOPCON Solar Cells Due to Increased Upper Level of Efficiency 1.2.2 Business Challenges 1.2.2.1 Increased Need for Silver to Print the Contacts on the Cell 1.2.2.2 Constrained Market Acceptance and High Competition 1.2.3 Business Strategies 1.2.3.1 Product Developments 1.2.3.2 Market Developments 1.2.4 Corporate Strategies 1.2.4.1 Mergers and Acquisitions, Partnerships, Collaborations, and Joint Ventures 1.2.5 Business Opportunities 1.2.5.1 Growing Research and Development Activities for TOPCon Solar Cells 1.2.5.2 Growing Concern for the Environment and Carbon Neutrality Targets 1.3 Start-Up Landscape 1.3.1 Key Start-Ups in the Ecosystem 2 Regions 2.1 China 2.1.1 Market 2.1.1.1 Buyer Attributes 2.1.1.2 Key Producers and Suppliers in China 2.1.1.3 Regulatory Landscape 2.1.1.4 Business Drivers 2.1.1.5 Business Challenges 2.1.2 Application 2.1.2.1 China TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by End User), Volume and Value Data 2.1.3 Product 2.1.3.1 China TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by Type), Volume and Value Data 2.1.3.2 China TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by Installation), Volume and Value Data 2.2 Asia-Pacific and Japan 2.2.1 Markets 2.2.1.1 Key Producers and Suppliers in Asia-Pacific and Japan 2.2.1.2 Business Drivers 2.2.1.3 Business Challenges 2.2.2 Application 2.2.2.1 Asia-Pacific and Japan TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by End User), Volume and Value Data 2.2.3 Product 2.2.3.1 Asia-Pacific and Japan TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by Type), Volume and Value Data 2.2.3.2 Asia-Pacific and Japan TOPCon Solar Cells Market (by Installation), Volume and Value Data 2.2.4 Asia-Pacific and Japan (by Country) 2.2.4.1 Japan 2.2.4.2 South Korea 2.2.4.3 India 2.2.4.4 Vietnam 2.2.4.5 Rest-of-Asia-Pacific and Japan 3 Markets - Competitive Benchmarking & Company Profiles 3.1 Competitive Benchmarking 3.1.1 Competitive Position Matrix 3.1.2 Product Matrix for Key Companies (by Type) 3.1.3 Market Share Analysis of Key Companies, 2021 3.2 Company Profiles 3.2.1 Wuxi Suntech Power Co., Ltd. 3.2.1.1 Company Overview 3.2.1.2 Role of Wuxi Suntech Power Co., Ltd. in the TOPCon Solar Cells Market 3.2.1.2.1 Product Portfolio 3.2.1.2.2 Production Sites 3.2.1.2.3 Business Strategies 3.2.1.2.3.1 Product Developments 3.2.1.2.3.2 Market Developments 3.2.1.2.4 Corporate Strategies 3.2.1.2.4.1 Mergers, Acquisitions, Partnerships, and Joint Ventures 3.2.1.2.5 R&D Analysis 3.2.1.3 Analyst View 3.2.2 Trina Solar Co., Ltd. 3.2.3 JA SOLAR Technology Co., Ltd. 3.2.4 LONGi 3.2.5 Websol Energy System Limited 3.2.6 Sharp Energy Solutions Corporation 3.2.7 Jolywood 4 Research Methodology For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/ed6qek About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg SOURCE Research and Markets SAN FRANCISCO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Bay Area high school students are invited to apply to the Norman Mineta Bay Area Summer Academy, a five-week paid internship with MTC, the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Air District). The program kicks off at the Bay Area Metro Center on July 8, 2024, and over the course of the subsequent five weeks, students will learn how regional agencies deals with issues like environmental justice, housing and transportation equity, community health, and social justice. High school students are encouraged to apply before the application deadline on April 28, 2024. MTC, ABAG, BCDC and the Air District are sponsoring the Bay Area Summer Academy to provide insights into how regional governments address these issues and how the public including students can help advance equity across the Bay Area. Most sessions will be conducted remotely online, with the kickoff and capstone sessions to be held in person in San Francisco at the regional agencies' shared headquarters. During weekly seminars, students will learn: What regional agencies do and what skills are needed for a successful career in the public sector. How to weigh in as a member of the public on decisions that impact the air we breathe; the neighborhoods we live in; how we get to work, school, or exercise; and other factors that shape the health of our communities. How youth can have a voice in making decisions that benefit their communities. Answers to questions such as: How long is a bridge supposed to last? Why are there so many potholes? Why is housing so expensive? Is the water really rising in the Bay? Participating students will attend online sessions, complete quizzes, and make a brief presentation on a local challenge involving transportation, housing, environmental justice and/or related topics. Upon completing the Bay Area Summer Academy, students will receive a certificate to include in college, vocational and/or job applications. To apply for the Bay Area Summer Academy, students must: Live and attend high school in the Bay Area. Be at least 16 years old. Have completed the ninth grade by July 2024 . . Be able to attend online and in-person seminars and present on a topic related to the seminars. Have the permission of a parent or guardian to participate if the student is under 18. Enrollment is limited, and selections will emphasize a diversity of perspectives from students across the Bay Area. Grade point averages are not considered. Learn more and to apply for the Academy. The Bay Area Summer Academy is named for Norman Mineta, a public servant who dedicated his life to making the Bay Area better. Mineta was a San Jose City Council member and mayor, represented the South Bay in Congress, and served as the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Throughout his accomplished life, he cared deeply about creating educational and career avenues for the next generation of public servants. MTC is proud to honor his memory by inspiring youth to become public servants. MTC is the regional transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area. SOURCE Metropolitan Transportation Commission The global annual appreciation to fans returns this spring with lofty goal BURLINGTON, Vt., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On April 16, Ben & Jerry's is throwing its annual Free Cone Day celebration, and while any day free ice cream is involved is a win, the Ben & Jerry's team behind the annual fan appreciation event, now well past its 40th year, are inviting fans to help make this year's Free Cone Day the biggest and best yet with 1 million scoops served. Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day returns April 16 with goal of 1 million scoops and smiles served Post this Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day returns globally Tuesday, April 16! On Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day, fans can jump in line as many times as they want for a free scoop. On Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day, fans can jump in line as many times as they want for a free scoop. Last year, Free Cone Day made its highly anticipated return after a four-year pause, and dedicated Ben & Jerry's fans showed the Vermont-based ice cream maker just how happy they were that the giveaway tradition was back. "It was nothing short of amazing to see our fans back in our shops in their full Free Cone Day glory," said Dave Stever, Ben & Jerry's CEO, who dished out ice cream at the Scoop Shops in Vermont. "We gave out over 970,000 scoops across the globe, but we know together with our fans we can break 1 million scoops." Stever added, "We're asking our fans to really bring it this year: invite their friends, family, neighbors, and help us beat our goal of 1 million scoops on Free Cone Day 2024." The beloved tradition began in 1979 as cofounders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield survived their first winter as a tiny, independent, two-person ice cream business in the frozen tundra of Vermont. National Weather Service records dubbed it "the brutal winter of 1978-1979" as the average temperature reached a record low of 14.1F (-10C) and the winter season snowfall set a record of 52.9 inches (134 centimeters). Today's traditions are no different than the first Free Cone Day in 1979 as it has always been a way to give back to the community and thank fans for their support. The only difference is that the once single "mom & pop" shop is now one of the largest, most successful ice cream businesses in the U.S., as well as in 35 other countries around the globe. Fans can stop by their local shop for a go-to favorite or ask about new flavors like brand-new Scoop Shop exclusive Mango flavor, made of mango ice cream swirled with sweet cream ice cream , or recently debuted Non-Dairy Strawberry Cheezecake. New additions Impretzively Fudged and PB S'more make great options for the sweet and salty lovers. Can't decide? Flavors may vary based on location but fans are welcome to try any and all available flavors and are encouraged to get back in line as many times as they'd like. Experienced fans understand it's easiest to jump back in the queue on Free Cone Day with a scoop already in hand. To find the nearest participating Scoop Shop, visit https://www.benjerry.com/scoop-shops/free-cone-day. About Ben & Jerry's Ben & Jerry's is an aspiring social justice company that believes in a greater calling than simply making and selling the world's best ice cream. The company produces a wide variety of super-premium ice cream and Non-Dairy/vegan desserts using high-quality ingredients and lots of big chunks and swirls. As a Certified B Corp, Ben & Jerry's incorporates its vision of Linked Prosperity into its business practices via values-led sourcing initiatives when purchasing ingredients. Ben & Jerry's is distributed in over 35 countries in supermarkets, grocery stores, convenience stores, franchised Scoop Shops, and via on-demand delivery services. Ben & Jerry's, a Vermont corporation and wholly owned subsidiary of Unilever, operates its business on a three-part Mission Statement emphasizing product quality, a fair financial return, and addressing issues of social, racial, and environmental injustice around the globe. The Ben & Jerry's Foundation, guided by Ben & Jerry's employees, granted $5.1 MM in 2023 to support progressive, justice-focused grassroots organizing around the country. For up-to-date information visit benjerry.com. SOURCE Ben & Jerry's Healthcare industry experts and leaders will convene at inaugural BMO Obesity Summit to examine outlook and trends in obesity treatment NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - BMO will host its first Obesity Summit on March 20, 2024 in New York City. The conference will target buy-side investors who want to hear from leading biotech and pharmaceutical companies developing medical weight-management therapeutics and stakeholders across the continuum of care and delivery. Topics straight from the headlines will be discussed via panels and presentations, including: A panel on the emerging therapeutic landscape The Patient's Voice: a conversation with patients on GLP-1+ therapy Obesity 101 with Intellihealth, featuring Dr Katherine Saunders Care delivery featuring Beth Israel Lahey Health, Weight Watchers, and Intellihealth A key opinion leader's insights on metabolic research, featuring Weill Cornell Medical College's Dr Louis J. Aronne A payors panel addressing coverage and access, featuring Prime Therapeutics "Important conversations need to happen around the development and delivery of obesity care," said Evan Seigerman, Senior Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals Analyst, BMO. "This summit is about having those discussions and sharing ideas and solutions from thought leaders and experts who can move the dial to meet challenges to deliver care for patients with obesity and metabolic disease." BMO analysts, including Evan Seigerman, will host discussions with leading life sciences companies, including: Altimmune Amgen Capital Rx Corbus Pharmaceuticals Eli Lilly & Co. Novo Nordisk Intellihealth Prime Therapeutics Scholar Rock Structure Therapeutics Terns Pharmaceuticals Weight Watchers For more information or to request an interview with one of BMO's equity research analysts, please contact BMO Media Relations using the contact details below. Note: There are restrictions for media on access to presentations and certain speakers. About BMO Financial Group BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.3 trillion as of January 31, 2024. Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a diverse team of highly engaged employees providing a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services to 13 million customers across Canada, the United States, and in select markets globally. Driven by a single purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future, and inclusive society. SOURCE BMO Financial Group MIAMI, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) has scheduled a conference call with analysts for Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at 10 a.m. (EDT); 2 p.m. (GMT) to discuss the company's first quarter financial results which are expected to be released that morning. A simulcast of the call will be available via the company's websites at www.carnivalcorp.com and www.carnivalplc.com. About Carnival Corporation & plc Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest global cruise company, and among the largest leisure travel companies, with a portfolio of world-class cruise lines AIDA Cruises, Carnival Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises (Australia), P&O Cruises (UK), Princess Cruises, and Seabourn. Additional information can be found on www.carnivalcorp.com, www.aida.de, www.carnival.com, www.costacruise.com, www.cunard.com, www.hollandamerica.com, www.pocruises.com.au, www.pocruises.com, www.princess.com , and www.seabourn.com. For information on Carnival Corporation's industry-leading sustainability initiatives, visit www.carnivalsustainability.com. SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc DALLAS, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Cedar Health Research, a multi-therapeutic independent clinical research site and patient network, officially announced two new sites in Texas located in Arlington, TX and Midland, TX. The Arlington site will now serve as the Tarrant County mid-cities hub location for Cedar Health Research's (CHR) Dallas-Fort Worth clinical operations. Arlington is ranked as the fifth most diverse city based on a U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Religious Census study in 2023 and is centrally located in the fourth largest metropolitan area in the US. The Arlington independent site supports a variety of outpatient phase I-IV trials inclusive of vaccines, neurology, metabolic disease, women's health, cardiovascular, endocrinology, and general medicine. This location will be supported by CHR's vast network of community physician practice partners in a variety of specialties. Cedar Health Research expands independent clinical research site and patient network with Arlington and Midland sites. Post this The clinical operations In Midland, Texas will be integrated with both Women's Health and Internal Medicine community practice partners, offering clinical trial access to the more rural communities in West Texas, where healthcare services are often limited. Increasing access to clinical research in rural areas supports a different type of diversity and inclusion within trials and offers more healthcare options for the local population. The Midland site supports vaccine, women's health, and internal medicine trials. "When Cedar Health Research launched in 2020, we pursued the mission of expanding clinical trial access to the diverse communities of Texas through our unique technology enabled healthcare partnership model. These new site locations will further advance our capabilities in support of executing today's complex clinical trials with accelerated enrollment and operational excellence while bridging access to the patients of physician practices that have traditionally been excluded from these opportunities," says Todd Albin, CEO. "As we expand our trial site network with the opening of two new locations, we are excited to continue our tradition of excellence in enrolling diverse populations for our trials," confirms Chief Medical Officer, Ezekiel Fink MD. "Diversity in research is not just a goal; it's a necessity, and we are committed to upholding this critical component of research at our new sites." About Cedar Health Research Cedar Health Research is an independent, multi-therapeutic clinical research site and patient network headquartered in Dallas, TX. The Cedar Health Research network is a technology-fueled site with a centralized hub-and-spoke model, reducing the burden of entry into clinical research for over 200 local physicians and nearly 2 million patients. Unlike most sites, this innovative model does not require physicians to conduct research within their own offices or become principal investigators. With the ability to directly connect and recruit patients within the healthcare partnerships' electronic health records, office disruptions are greatly minimized with the participating practice. Cedar Health Research is expanding diverse and inclusive healthcare access through this technology-supported model by partnering with a wide variety of local practices in a range of demographic area and directing interested patients into a local, centralized site. For More: www.CedarHealthResearch.com Media Contact: Addison Gumbert, [email protected] SOURCE Cedar Health Research Featuring 64 Cerebras CS-3 Systems, Condor Galaxy 3 Doubles Performance at Same Power and Cost SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cerebras Systems, the pioneer in accelerating generative AI, and G42, the Abu Dhabi-based leading technology holding group, today announced the build of Condor Galaxy 3 (CG-3), the third cluster of their constellation of AI supercomputers, the Condor Galaxy. Featuring 64 of Cerebras' newly announced CS-3 systems all powered by the industry's fastest AI chip, the Wafer-Scale Engine 3 (WSE-3) Condor Galaxy 3 will deliver 8 exaFLOPs of AI with 58 million AI-optimized cores. Condor Galaxy-3 AI Supercomputer The Cerebras and G42 strategic partnership already delivered 8 exaFLOPs of AI supercomputing performance via Condor Galaxy 1 and Condor Galaxy 2, each amongst the largest AI supercomputers in the world. Located in Dallas, Texas, Condor Galaxy 3 brings the current total of the Condor Galaxy network to 16 exaFLOPs. "With Condor Galaxy 3, we continue to achieve our joint vision of transforming the worldwide inventory of AI compute through the development of the world's largest and fastest AI supercomputers," said Kiril Evtimov, Group CTO of G42. "The existing Condor Galaxy network has trained some of the leading open-source models in the industry, with tens of thousands of downloads. By doubling the capacity to 16 exaFLOPs, we look forward to seeing the next wave of innovation Condor Galaxy supercomputers can enable." At the heart of Condor Galaxy 3 are 64 Cerebras CS-3 Systems. Each CS-3 is powered by the new 4 trillion transistor, 900,000 AI core WSE-3. Manufactured at TSMC at the 5-nanometer node, the WSE-3 delivers twice the performance at the same power and for the same price as the previous generation part. Purpose built for training the industry's largest AI models, WSE-3 delivers an astounding 125 petaflops of peak AI performance per chip. "We are proud that our newly announced CS-3 systems will play a critical role in our pioneering strategic partnership with G42," said Andrew Feldman, CEO and co-founder of Cerebras. "Condor Galaxy 3 and the follow-on supercomputers, will together deliver tens of exaflops of AI compute This marks a significant milestone in AI computing, providing unparalleled processing power and efficiency." Condor Galaxy has trained state-of-the art industry leading generative AI models, including Jais-30B, Med42, Crystal-Coder-7B and BTLM-3B-8K. Jais 13B and Jais30B are the best bilingual Arabic models in the world, now available on Azure Cloud. BTLM-3B-8K is the number one leading 3B model on HuggingFace, offering 7B parameter performance in a light 3B parameter model for inference. Med42, developed with M42 and Core42, is a leading clinical LLM, trained on Condor Galaxy 1 in a weekend and surpassing MedPaLM on performance and accuracy. Condor Galaxy 3 will be available in Q2 2024. For more information on Condor Galaxy, please visit our website. About Cerebras Systems Cerebras Systems is a team of pioneering computer architects, computer scientists, deep learning researchers, and engineers of all types. We have come together to accelerate generative AI by building from the ground up a new class of AI supercomputer. Our flagship product, the CS-3 system, is powered by the world's largest and fastest AI processor, our Wafer-Scale Engine-3. CS-3s are quickly and easily clustered together to make the largest AI supercomputers in the world, and make placing models on the the supercomputers dead simple by avoiding the complexity of distributed computing. Leading corporations, research institutions, and governments use Cerebras solutions for the development of pathbreaking proprietary models, and to train open-source models with millions of downloads. Cerebras solutions are available through the Cerebras Cloud and on premise. For further information, visit https://www.cerebras.net. About G42 G42 is a global leader in creating visionary artificial intelligence capabilities for a better tomorrow. Born in Abu Dhabi and operating around the world, G42 champions AI as a powerful force for good. Its people are constantly reimagining what technology can do, applying advanced thinking and innovation to accelerate progress and tackle society's most pressing problems. G42 is joining forces with nations, corporations and individuals to create the infrastructure for tomorrow's world. From molecular biology to space exploration and everything in between, G42 realizes exponential possibilities, today. For further information visit www.g42.ai. Contact Ulviyya Hasanzade, Director of Corporate Communications [email protected] Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361801/Condor_Galaxy_3_AI_Supercomputer.jpg After a successful pilot program with 30 pediatric specialists, Children's Hospital Los Angeles is rolling out Nabla' ambient AI assistant to its specialists Children's Hospital Los Angeles Medical Group is the largest pediatric multi-specialty medical group in the United States BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nabla, the company developing Nabla Copilot , the leading ambient AI assistant for clinicians, today announced it has partnered with Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) to roll out Nabla Copilot to their pediatric specialists after a successful four-week pilot program. Nabla closely collaborated with CHLA's clinical team to tailor specific capabilities, ensuring that Copilot effectively met the unique requirements of pediatrics in a hospital setting. The top-ranked children's hospital in California, CHLA performs more than 15,000 surgeries and conducts more than 700,000 patient visits annually. In a recent survey of physicians' mental health and well-being, pediatrics was the fourth-highest medical specialty experiencing burnout . A nationwide shortage of pediatric specialists has been fueling the high burnout rates, and onerous administrative workloads have exacerbated the situation. It's estimated that every hour spent with patients requires two hours of administrative work, often demanding pediatricians' time and attention outside standard clinical hours. High burnout rates can lead to severe consequences , including reduced job satisfaction and an increased likelihood of leaving the profession. Nabla worked together with CHLA to accommodate their physician preferences and meet their patient population requirements: Customized templates - Nabla built a template for CHLA's specific needs as a pediatric hospital. Nabla adapted their note templates specifically for CHLA's pediatric setting. Notes for example better reflect if some facts were reported by the patient or their parents, and clearly mention if the patient was accompanied during the encounter and by whom. In addition, CHLA practitioners have the ability to tailor their note templates to their exact needs, thanks to Nabla Copilot's custom instructions feature. - Nabla built a template for CHLA's specific needs as a pediatric hospital. Nabla adapted their note templates specifically for CHLA's pediatric setting. Notes for example better reflect if some facts were reported by the patient or their parents, and clearly mention if the patient was accompanied during the encounter and by whom. In addition, CHLA practitioners have the ability to tailor their note templates to their exact needs, thanks to Nabla Copilot's custom instructions feature. Multi-speaker - Nabla will make it possible for Copilot to capture multiple people's voices in the exam room, including the parent or guardian speaking on behalf of a child patient. - Nabla will make it possible for Copilot to capture multiple people's voices in the exam room, including the parent or guardian speaking on behalf of a child patient. Patient instructions - after each encounter, Nabla Copilot automatically generates patient instructions in addition to the clinical note so that the patient and their family can have a summary of their next steps. In order to better support CHLA's context, practitioners can now choose between having these patient instructions addressed to the patient's parent or directly to the patient. - after each encounter, Nabla Copilot automatically generates patient instructions in addition to the clinical note so that the patient and their family can have a summary of their next steps. In order to better support CHLA's context, practitioners can now choose between having these patient instructions addressed to the patient's parent or directly to the patient. Spanish language - to support CHLA's Spanish-speaking patients and parents, Nabla Copilot supports both English and Spanish languages . Physicians simply select "Spanish" before the consultation begins, and Nabla Copilot will understand the encounter, generate detailed clinical notes in English, and create patient instructions in Spanish so that the family is able to take home a summary in their preferred language. - to support CHLA's Spanish-speaking patients and parents, Nabla Copilot supports both English and . Physicians simply select "Spanish" before the consultation begins, and Nabla Copilot will understand the encounter, generate detailed clinical notes in English, and create patient instructions in Spanish so that the family is able to take home a summary in their preferred language. Ambient dot phrase - to reduce additional administrative work, Nabla introduced an ambient dot phrase feature. Pediatric specialists can voice their custom trigger expression (ie: "nine-month physical exam is normal") to automatically insert predefined content into a patient note. - to reduce additional administrative work, Nabla introduced an ambient dot phrase feature. Pediatric specialists can voice their custom trigger expression (ie: "nine-month physical exam is normal") to automatically insert predefined content into a patient note. EHR integration - in line with its agnostic approach to EHR integrations, Nabla is developing an integration with CHLA's EHR system, Cerner. Like many healthcare providers, CHLA has rigorous policies in place to safeguard the privacy and security of its patients. The health system selected Nabla Copilot due to its high levels of confidentiality and rigorous compliance with privacy regulations. Nabla Copilot is a certified SOC 2 ambient AI assistant, where all transcripts and summaries are stored locally on the physician's computer. Nabla does not store any customer data. "Children's Hospital Los Angeles is committed to fostering a culture of innovation in service of both our patients and team members," said Dr. Matthew Keefer, Chief Medical Informatics Officer at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. "We are thrilled to be rolling out this new application across our organization that will not only improve the patient-family experience but also serve as a time-saving tool for our clinicians so that they can more efficiently operate at the top of their license." "The success of the pilot program at Children's Hospital Los Angeles is not only about the metrics we achieved but also the positive impact the Nabla Copilot has had on physicians' lives," said Dr. Ed Lee , Chief Medical Officer, Nabla. "We look forward to rolling out Nabla Copilot at CHLA so more pediatricians can experience the power of our generative AI and to promote the delivery of patient-centered care." To learn more about Nabla Copilot, visit www.nabla.com/ . About Nabla Nabla is the developer of Nabla Copilot, an ambient AI that helps clinicians enjoy care again. Nabla Copilot produces AI-generated clinical notes in seconds from any encounter across all specialties, reducing practitioners' stress and improving patient care. Nabla Copilot's capabilities also include AI-enabled medical coding identification and smooth EHR integrations. The company's leadership includes: Alex Lebrun (CEO), with over two decades of experience building AI products, and whose companies have been acquired by Nuance (VirtuOz) and Facebook (Wit.ai); Delphine Groll (COO) and Martin Raison (CTO). Ed Lee, MD, MPH, who was previously CIO at The Permanente Federation, recently joined Nabla as Chief Medical Officer. He heads Nabla's Clinical Advisory Board, formed by 20+ seasoned clinical leaders. On the technological side, the company's advisors include Yann LeCun, VP & Chief AI Scientist at Meta, and Tony Fadell, inventor of the iPod and former Apple executive, among others. Nabla has raised a total of $43M, its most recent fundraising being a $24M series B led by global venture capital firm Cathay Innovation. For more information, please visit: www.nabla.com . Media Contact [email protected] SOURCE Nabla Public encouraged to drop-off dresses and accessories at select Comerica locations March 18-April 12 DETROIT, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Comerica Bank is welcoming donations for its sixth annual Prom Dress Drive beginning Monday, March 18, and continuing through Friday, April 12, in support of community partner Jackets for Jobs. Individuals and businesses alike can drop off new or gently used dresses, along with accessories, such as jewelry, shoes, purses, and wraps, at participating Comerica locations to benefit southeast Michigan students. Comerica Bank to hold sixth annual Metro Detroit Prom Dress Drive benefiting Jackets for Jobs. Ten Comerica Bank banking centers and offices throughout Metro Detroit will serve as collection sites. For the first time, Comerica will be accepting the donations of dresses and accessories over a four-week span, the longest donation period since Comerica's Prom Dress Drive first began in 2017. For the second consecutive year, Comerica will supply the donated dresses and accessories to Jackets for Jobs, a Detroit-based nonprofit that focuses on career development and removes barriers by providing high-quality clothing that makes clients look and feel professional to support workplace success. "Teaming up with Jackets for Jobs was incredibly successful last year. We appreciate the passion of Alison Vaughn and her team in their commitment to reach and positively impact our youth during this very impressionable and important time in their lives," said Steve Davis, Comerica Bank Michigan Market President. "Each year, we are truly grateful for the support we receive from our customers and communities throughout the Metro Detroit area during this effort. Their generosity makes our Prom Dress Drive possible." Cumulatively across its last five Prom Dress Drives, Comerica has collected more than 7,700 dresses including a record of over 2,200 last year to benefit local teens who may not otherwise be able to afford formal attire and experience the high school tradition of prom. "Our mission is to empower others to achieve great things by providing them with the resources to help overcome barriers that exist," said Alison Vaughn, Jackets for Jobs Founder and Executive Director. "Clothing and attire, whether for workplace or special events, can stand in the way of meaningful experiences and achievements. Our goal in partnering with Comerica is to open the door for success. Teens are vulnerable, and we hope that our boutique can offer them excitement and inspiration as they look forward to some of their most special moments of their teen years without some of challenges than may persist." Donation Locations Individuals and local businesses, including bridal and dress shops from surrounding areas, seeking to donate dresses and accessories to the Comerica Prom Dress drive can do so at locations in the following nine metro Detroit communities: Ann Arbor, Bloomfield Hills, Dearborn, Detroit, Grosse Pointe, New Baltimore, Northville, Novi and Rochester Hills. The following Comerica Bank locations will accept donations: Comerica Banking Centers Ann Arbor | Stadium Blvd.-Pauline : 1969 W. Stadium Blvd., Ann Arbor, MI 48103 : 1969 W. Stadium Blvd., 48103 Bloomfield Hills | Woodward-Hunter : 36440 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304 : 36440 Woodward Ave., 48304 Bloomfield Hills | Telegraph-Long Lake : 3910 Telegraph Rd., Ste. 100, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302 : 3910 Telegraph Rd., Ste. 100, 48302 Dearborn | Michigan-American : 16150 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, MI 48126 : 16150 Michigan Ave., 48126 Grosse Pointe | Fisher - St. Paul : 415 Fisher Rd., Grosse Pointe, MI 48230 : 415 Fisher Rd., 48230 New Baltimore | Gratiot -Cotton : 50300 Gratiot Ave., New Baltimore, MI 48051 : 50300 Gratiot Ave., 48051 Northville | Northville : 129 E. Main St., Northville, MI 48167 : 129 E. Main St., 48167 Novi | Grand River and Beck : 47440 Grand River, Novi, MI 48374 : 47440 Grand River, 48374 Rochester Hills | Walton-Adamas: 3021 Walton Blvd, Rochester Hills, MI 48309 Comerica Offices Those donating dresses and accessories to the Comerica Prom Dress Drive in Detroit can do so by dropping off items in the main lobby of the Comerica Bank Center. Detroit | Comerica Bank Center: 411 W. Lafayette St., Detroit, MI 48226 Jackets for Jobs Prom Dress Boutique This year's Jackets for Jobs Prom Dress Boutique will take place Friday, April 19 through Sunday, April 21 at the Samaritan Center (5555 Conner St.) in Detroit. Schools, organizations or families with teens in need can contact Jackets for Jobs at (313) 579-9160 for more information. Celebrating 175 Years This year, Comerica Bank is celebrating 175 years of serving its communities, making it Michigan's longest-serving bank. Comerica was founded in 1849 in Detroit during a time when all banks in the city were exclusive to the business community. This was the motivation behind Comerica's decision to gear its banking for the people and for those who wanted to secure their personal and financial future. Since its inception, Comerica has grown in Michigan and throughout the country by focusing on the customer first and offering personal, small business and commercial banking services, as well as wealth management services. Throughout its history, Comerica has partnered with nonprofit and community organizations to improve financial education, support critical community needs and provide colleagues with volunteer opportunities. About Comerica Bank Comerica Bank, a subsidiary of Comerica Incorporated, has served Michigan longer than any other bank with a continuous presence dating back 175 years to its Detroit founding in 1849. It is the largest bank employer in metro Detroit and has approximately 4,500 employees (FTE) statewide. With one of the largest banking center networks in Michigan, Comerica nurtures lifelong relationships with unwavering integrity and financial prudence. Comerica positively impacts the lives of Michigan residents by helping customers be successful, providing financial support that assists hundreds of charitable organizations, and actively participating in Detroit's downtown revitalization. Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA) is a financial services company strategically aligned by three business segments: The Commercial Bank, The Retail Bank, and Wealth Management. Follow on Facebook: www.facebook.com/Comerica, X (formerly known as Twitter): @ComericaBank and Instagram: @comerica_bank. About Jackets for Jobs Jackets for Jobs is an award-winning non-profit organization that provides career clothing for metro Detroit job seekers. For over two decades, we have assisted over 35,000 job seekers put their best foot forward to obtain employment. For people experiencing barriers to employment and independence, clothing insecurity is real. It can mean not having anything to wear or not having the right thing to wear. Both are barriers to advancement. Jackets for Jobs provides a stable source of well-maintained and displayed clothing that is suitable for any need, from casual to workwear. SOURCE Comerica Bank Provides Detailed Operating Plan to Restore Operational Excellence, Bolster Leadership with Experienced Tower Professionals, Maximize Value of the Company's Fiber Business to Position Crown Castle as Premier Pure-Play Tower Company Believes Crown Castle Can be Worth at Least $150 in the Next 18 Months if Board Takes Immediate Action to Restore Leadership and Prevent Further Erosion of Shareholder Value HOUSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ted B. Miller, co-founder of Crown Castle Inc., (NYSE: CCI) ("Crown Castle" or the "Company") and his investment vehicle Boots Capital Management, LLC ("Boots Capital") today issued the following open letter to the Crown Castle Board of Directors (the "Board"), the Company's employees, and its shareholders: This is a crucial moment for Crown Castle, its shareholders and employees. It's why we have recommended a slate of four directors who we believe will make a valuable difference with their world class experience, skills and leadership. While the Board has undergone significant change in recent years, this turnover has still left it lacking directors who have the depth of tower operating and public-company CEO experience essential to drive the Company forward. A need for comprehensive leadership change was also put forth by Elliott Investment Management L.P. ("Elliott") in its November 27, 2023 letter to the Board. At long last, Crown Castle is, after prodding from Elliott, studying the fate of its fiber business. Bankers and lawyers have been hired to do their typical work. That work together with a detailed plan for a fiber sale and a rerating of Crown Castle stock has been completed by Boots and offered to the Company without response. But in our view the work does not stop there. Crown Castle is in dire need of a top-to-bottom reboot with trusted, long-term leadership. The Company needs a concrete plan for the fiber sale, and then an operational revival informed by people who live and breathe towers. We have devoted seven months to a vetted and detailed plan that we believe will create lasting value through a commitment to operational excellence. We shared this detailed plan with the Board during a 90-minute meeting in January. Not surprisingly since only one member of the Board has any experience as an executive of a tower business there were a very limited number of questions raised, even then primarily asked by advisors. Meanwhile, many shareholders have responded to our approach and nominees with the response: "Why wouldn't Crown Castle do this?" Our nominees provide unrivaled tower-industry experience and expertise and offer a critical operational complement to the academic, legal, telecom-services and asset-management background of the current Board. As a large shareholder, we expect the Board to have a laser focus on building shareholder value, rather than be involved in "clever" legal maneuvers such as the Cooperation Agreement with Elliott, which was hastily rewritten after we challenged it in court. That agreement is even under more scrutiny, after the Delaware Vice Chancellor hearing our case rejected a Company effort to delay the hearing of the case, saying last week that "there are colorable claims" to the way the Cooperation Agreement was struck. The court also said that the Company should give me advance notice to object should it hire a new CEO or sell the fiber unit. The court's order should be a sign to all involved in this expensive and distracting litigation: That enough is enough. It's time to stop being adversaries and work together to improve the Company and all shareholder prospects, as we've intended all along. To be clear: this is not "a trade" for me. I co-founded Crown Castle. I care deeply about the long-term success of the Company. And I am here for the long-term. With our plan, it's time to restore Crown Castle to its prominence as a pure-play tower company, and reestablish it as one of the most strategically important American companies. Outlined below are details about what our four highly qualified nominees intend to do and why our multi-pronged operating plan to improve Crown Castle is value enhancing. 1) Creating Value From the Fiber Sale Based on our analysis, since the decision was made to invest in fiber, we believe the unit has required $22 billion of capital and continues to consume over a billion in capital expenditures each year 2024 management guidance is $1.4 billion alone. The Board has announced that it is studying the possible sale of the fiber segment, and we also believe that the Board is weighing whether to sell the enterprise fiber business while retaining the small cells. We have spent seven months modeling every possible structure for a sale of fiber from an operational, financial and tax perspective. While the particulars of any transaction must be evaluated on their own merit, our work has given us a very clear point-of-view: there is much more value to be created by selling an estimated 75% interest in the entire fiber/small-cell portfolio, as it resets Crown Castle as a more capital-efficient tower operator. There is a role for small cells in our industry, but our modeling revealed Crown Castle would earn an underwhelming return on its capital on the current fiber/small cells business through at least 2050. A sale of the fiber business is essential for our intended value-creating path as a pure play tower company, with, in our view, a multiple of at least 25 times EBITDA compared to 18 times today. Moreover, if the Company can conclude a fiber sale in 2024, we believe more than $1 billion can be saved in tax efficiencies. The Board nonetheless has ignored our hundreds of pages of thorough analysis, which could be leveraged by its advisors instead of recreating the wheel, and elected not to work with us to evaluate the details of the $1 billion in potential value that could be saved in tax efficiencies. When it comes to executing the fiber sale, time is literally money. And this Board is burning both. We believe our carefully vetted approach creates the most value and best preserves a healthy, sustainable dividend. 2) Maintaining a Healthy, Sustainable Dividend The financials show that Crown Castle cannot support its current dividend trajectory while maintaining the small-cell buildout pace. In the last three years, Crown Castle has funded the dividend by incurring debt an approach that we do not believe is sustainable. We have a long-term plan not a short-term trading strategy to generate sustainable performance for all shareholders. Our approach will drive meaningful operational improvements to enhance margins, as outlined in our unredacted board presentation, which we released yesterday. Our plan protects the underlying health of the dividend and the absolute dividend amount itself. Specifically, our plan offers the Company optionality to pay a $4.62 dividend solely out of cash flow (as outlined in our presentation) or incur an estimated $1.3b of debt in total between now and 2029 and sustain the dividend at its current $6.26 level. This creates soundness and flexibility around the dividend, about which we will continue to take soundings from the shareholder base. Either way, we believe our plan would materially improve Crown Castle's cash flow dynamics. Our approach creates the most value and best preserves a healthy, sustainable dividend. With the fiber sale, we estimate this extra value to be an additional $40+ per share for Crown Castle shareholders. 3) Restoring Operational Excellence We have heard the question asked: Why do the shareholders need our slate if the Board has been recently reconstituted? Start with a simple number. Crown Castle has a 12-person Board, yet only one of its members includes a tower business in their resume. The Board's sum of towers-operating experience from one board member is just seven years. And only one current director has been a public company CEO of a bank. This is a $75 billion enterprise with virtually no senior leadership experience running either public or tower companies. Our director candidates have over 50 combined years of direct and unrivaled leadership in the towers space and have created billions of dollars of value for investors. Three of us were at the founding of the industry itself, and have remained involved for the 30 years since. That sounds like exactly what Elliott had in mind in its December letter to the Board: "How much more value destruction will this Board permit before finally taking action and changing the leadership of Crown Castle?" Yet, over the past several years, much of Crown Castle's executive management team has stepped down, including its former CEO, CFO, and EVP/COO of towers. This Company must urgently attract and retain leaders with the experience, vision and confidence to execute the operational changes and tower-focused innovation necessary for a better future. This need is all the more acute because of a brain drain that has persisted at towers since the fiber investments began. We believe this pattern of departures, coupled with the fact that the Board had no succession plan a primary obligation of any board and is still in the process of conducting its CEO search, reflects a lack of leadership and operational capability at the management level as well as the failure of the Board's overall strategic initiatives. Not all of Crown Castle's needed changes will be easy. Transformation must start from the top from Board leadership. And that Board requires leaders with credibility, operational expertise, and a strong vision for the future at a difficult moment like this. Crown Castle employees want to feel like they're understood, and customers want to know they're being listened to. As founder and a substantial shareholder, I have a special perch from which to drive a cultural and operational reawakening, yet the Board continues to refuse to meaningfully engage with us or our value enhancing proposal. We will keep fighting for our shareholders, employees, suppliers, customers and lenders, and for the future Crown Castle deserves. INVESTOR AND MEDIA CONTACTS Investors: Morrow Sodali LLC Paul Schulman/William Dooley/Jonathan Eyl By Phone: 1-800-662-5200 or 208-658-9400 By Email: [email protected] Media: Jonathan Gasthalter/Nathaniel Garnick/Grace Cartwright Gasthalter & Co. By Phone: 212-257-4170 By Email: [email protected] CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS The information herein contains "forward-looking statements." Specific forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and include, without limitation, words such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "targets," "forecasts," "seeks," "could," "should" or the negative of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. Similarly, statements that describe the Participants' (as defined below) objectives, plans or goals are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties and assumptions. There can be no assurance that any idea or assumption herein is, or will be proven, correct. If one or more of the risks or uncertainties materialize, or if the underlying assumptions of Boots Capital (as defined below) or any of the other Participants in the proxy solicitation described herein prove to be incorrect, the actual results may vary materially from outcomes indicated by these statements. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation by Boots Capital or the other Participants that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated will ever be achieved. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results and actual results may vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. Except to the extent required by applicable law, neither Boots Capital nor any Participant will undertake and specifically declines any obligation to disclose the results of any revisions that may be made to any projected results or forward-looking statements herein to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such projected results or statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events. Certain statements and information included herein have been sourced from third parties. Boots Capital and the other Participants do not make any representations regarding the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of such third party statements or information. Except as may be expressly set forth herein, permission to cite such statements or information has neither been sought nor obtained from such third parties. Any such statements or information should not be viewed as an indication of support from such third parties for the views expressed herein. CERTAIN INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PARTICIPANTS Boots Capital and the other Participants (as defined below) intend to file a preliminary proxy statement and accompanying GOLD universal proxy card (the "Proxy Statement") with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") to be used to solicit proxies for, among other matters, the election of its slate of director nominees at the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders (the "2024 Annual Meeting") of Crown Castle Inc., a Delaware corporation ("Crown Castle" or the "Corporation"). The participants in the proxy solicitation are currently anticipated to be Boots Parallel 1, LP, Boots, LP (and together with Boots Parallel 1, LP, the "Boots Funds"), Boots Capital Management, LLC ("Boots Capital"), Boots GP, LLC ("Boots GP"), 4M Management Partners, LLC ("4M Management Partners"), 4M Investments, LLC ("4M Investments"), WRCB, L.P. ("WRCB"), Theodore B. Miller, Jr. and Tripp H. Rice (collectively, the "Boots Parties"); and Charles Campbell Green III and David P. Wheeler (together with Mr. Miller and Mr. Rice, the "Boots Nominees," and together with the Boots Parties, the "Participants"). Boots GP, as the general partner of each of the Boots Funds, and 4M Management Partners, as the investment advisor of each of the Boots Funds, may each be deemed to beneficially own interests in an aggregate of 784,009 shares of the Corporation's common stock, $0.01 par value (the "Common Stock") held in the Boots Funds (including interests in 182,997 shares of Common Stock underlying over-the-counter forward purchase contracts and interests in 601,012 shares of Common Stock underlying over-the-counter share option contracts). WRCB beneficially owns interests in 135 shares of Common Stock underlying a call option. Mr. Miller has direct ownership of 200 shares of Common Stock, which includes 100 shares of Common Stock held of record and 100 shares of Common Stock held of record as tenant in common with his wife. In addition, Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own interests in an aggregate of 784,716.958 shares of Common Stock (which includes interests in 784,009 shares of Common Stock held by the Boots Funds, which Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own as the President and managing member of 4M Management Partners and a Manager and the President of Boots GP, interests in 400 shares of Common Stock underlying call options owned beneficially and as a tenant in common with his wife, interests in 135 shares of Common Stock underlying a call option owned beneficially by WRCB, which Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own as sole member of one of the general partners of WRCB, and 172.958 shares of Common Stock held through the Corporation's 401(k) Plan in the Crown Castle Stock Fund. Mr. Rice is the record holder of 100 shares of Common Stock and, as the Vice President of 4M Management Partners and a Manager and the Vice President of Boots GP, Mr. Rice may be deemed to beneficially own interests in 784,009 shares of Common Stock held by the Boots Funds. Mr. Green beneficially owns 1,736 shares of Common Stock in joint tenancy with his wife. All of the foregoing information is as of the date hereof unless otherwise disclosed. IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND WHERE TO FIND IT BOOTS CAPITAL STRONGLY ADVISES ALL SHAREHOLDERS OF CROWN CASTLE TO READ THE PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT, ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO SUCH PROXY STATEMENT, THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT, AS WELL AS PROXY MATERIALS FILED BY CROWN CASTLE AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. SUCH PROXY MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE ON THE SEC'S WEBSITE AT WWW.SEC.GOV. IN ADDITION, THE PARTICIPANTS IN THIS PROXY SOLICITATION WILL PROVIDE COPIES OF THE PROXY STATEMENT WITHOUT CHARGE, WHEN AVAILABLE, UPON REQUEST. REQUESTS FOR COPIES SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO THE PARTICIPANTS' PROXY SOLICITOR. SOURCE Boots Capital Management, LLC This Limited Time Offering joins the Canadian Whisky Brand's flavor portfolio alongside Regal Apple, Peach, Salted Caramel, and Vanilla Just In Time for Spring NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian whisky brand and leader in flavored offerings, Crown Royal, has officially announced its highly anticipated limited edition release of Blackberry Flavored Whisky. This new liquid is the perfect addition to the brand's flavor portfolio for spring and summer and has already taken social media by storm with consumers +21 sharing their love for the new flavor and exploring their own cocktail innovations. Royal Blackberry Lemonade featuring Crown Royal Blackberry Flavored Whisky Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9255751-crown-royal-limited-edition-release-of-blackberry-flavored-whisky/ To create this extraordinary blend, Crown Royal whiskies were carefully selected by the brand's master blender and infused with the juicy flavor of fresh blackberries. The harmonious notes of this summer fruit complement the signature richness of Crown Royal Blended Whisky. The result is a vibrantly delicious whisky, bursting with the luscious flavor of blackberry and the distinctive smoothness of Crown Royal. On the nose, aromas of sweet blackberry sauce with a dash of whisky complement vanilla balanced with a cooked and slightly tart blackberry taste. This expression leaves you with hints of creamy vanilla and caramel, reminiscent of a blackberry crumble. "Crown Royal has always led through an innovative approach to whisky, pushing boundaries to deliver exceptional and exciting flavor profiles to consumers. Our newest addition, Crown Royal Blackberry Flavored Whisky, is no exception to this rule." says Jesse Damashek, Sr. Vice President North American Whiskeys at Diageo. "This new whisky is a testament to our dedication to innovation, as we aim to cater to the evolving preferences of loyal Crown drinkers and spirit connoisseurs alike. I am thrilled to see the enthusiasm and excitement from consumers as they embrace this delicious addition to our lineup." Crown Royal Blackberry Flavored Whisky stands out as a versatile blend, showcasing its adaptability across various hosting occasions. The brand emphasizes this versatility through its four recommended cocktails - Royal Blackberry Lemonade, their signature serve that perfectly balances the sweetness of blackberries with a burst of lemon, Crown Royal Blackberry Bramble, Crown Blackberry Collins, and a Royal Blackberry Mojito. Each of these serves is a modern take on classic cocktails, illustrating the whisky's ability to reinterpret familiar favorites . Whether it's a lively country outdoor gathering that calls for a Crown Royal Blackberry Bramble or a laid-back summer pool-party soiree fit for a cold Crown Blackberry Collins, Blackberry Flavored Whisky ensures a diverse range of juicy flavors to suit every hosting need. With Royal Blackberry Lemonade already becoming the drink of the summer, this one-time limited offering is rolling out nationwide with a suggested retail value of $26.99. Crown Royal invites everyone 21+ to a flavor-filled journey this summer. Please remember to drink responsibly. About Crown Royal Crown Royal Canadian Whisky is the number-one selling Canadian whisky brand in the world and has a tradition as long and distinctive as its taste. Specially blended to commemorate a grand tour of Canada made by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain in 1939, Crown Royal's smooth, elegant flavor and gift-worthy presentation reflect its regal origins it is considered the epitome of Canadian whisky. For more information, visit crownroyal.com. Crown Royal encourages all consumers to please enjoy responsibly. About Diageo North America Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Bulleit and Buchanan's whiskies, Smirnoff, Ciroc and Ketel One vodkas, Casamigos, DeLeon and Don Julio tequilas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Tanqueray and Guinness.Diageo is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: DGE) and their products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information about Diageo, their people, brands, and performance, visit diageo.com. Visit Diageo's global responsible drinking resource, DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice. Follow on Twitter and Instagram for news and information about Diageo North America: @Diageo_NA. MEDIA CONTACTS: Jazmine Settles DIAGEO [email protected] TAYLOR [email protected] SOURCE Crown Royal - MSP Expands into California with One of America's Best-Known Dermatologists - TORONTO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - MedSpa Partners Inc. ("MSP") is proud to welcome Dr. Ava Shamban and her team at Ava MD to its top-tier North American medical aesthetics platform. With two locations in Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, California, Ava MD has been providing world-class cosmetic and medical dermatology care to patients for nearly thirty years. Dr. Ava Shamban is perhaps best known as celebrity dermatologist to the stars, making regular appearances on hit television shows like Good Morning America and Extreme Makeover and providing highly sought-after opinions on beauty and skin health in publications like Allure, Women's Health, and Vanity Fair. However, to her patients and peers, Dr. Shamban is also regarded as one of the most innovative and considerate thought-leaders in the practice of dermatology, pioneering multimodal treatment approaches to some of the most pervasive dermatological conditions, serving as Principal Investigator on numerous clinical trials, and championing customized treatment planning to ensure each patient's individual beauty is respected and enhanced, instead of "fixing" aesthetic challenges. Speaking on her reasons for joining MedSpa Partners, Dr. Shamban shared, "Like many of my colleagues, I was approached by numerous groups looking to acquire my practices. MedSpa Partners stood out from the rest with the caliber of their world-class partners and the quality of resources they dedicate to supporting and developing their practices and teams. But even more importantly, joining MSP means we will be able to continue to practice our trademark model of patient care and service that we have honed over decades. Just as our Signature Feature treatment approach acknowledges and celebrates each client's specific needs, MSP honors, supports, and enhances the features that makes each of their partner clinics unique." MSP CEO Dominic Mazzone commented, "While Los Angeles can be associated with some of the more extreme approaches to cosmetic medicine, Ava Shamban is an icon for the kind of natural, individualized, and responsible medical aesthetics that MedSpa Partners promotes. Dr. Shamban's practice is recognized as one of the most premier practices on the west coast and fits in perfectly with our platform. Dr. Shamban and her team at Ava MD have built two of the most successful and well-run clinics we've ever seen by combining cutting-edge innovation in technology and technique with a warm, personalized approach, with the ultimate goal of inspiring happiness in their patients. We couldn't be more excited to welcome Dr. Shamban and the exceptional team at Ava MD to MedSpa Partners." About MedSpa Partners Inc. MedSpa Partners is acquiring North America's leading Medical Aesthetics clinics, with the goal of allowing our industry-leading partners to achieve their personal and professional aspirations by creating world-class customer experiences through support, collaboration, and community. MSP is a portfolio company of Persistence Capital Partners, the leading private equity fund exclusively focused on high-growth opportunities in the healthcare field. Additional information on MSP is available at www.medspapartners.com. SOURCE MedSpa Partners Inc. INDIANAPOLIS, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Brace yourselves, chocolate lovers, because Endangered Species Chocolate (ESC) is about to turn your snacking world upside down with the introduction of Dip 'n Joya thrilling and interactive chocolate experience bound to make your taste buds do a happy dance! ESC is on a mission to sweeten the world while protecting it by donating 10% of net profits to species, habitats, and humanity. Endangered Species Chocolate introduces interactive chocolate experience with Dip n Joy ESC is taking indulgence to a new level with this joyous confectionary revelation. Dip 'n Joy is not your average chocolate treat; it's a snacking adventure waiting to happen! Picture this: three luscious dark chocolate batons, the kind ESC fans already swoon over, diving headfirst into a pool of decadent peanut butter, almond butter, or salted caramel. CRO Whitney Bembenick couldn't be more thrilled, "We're not just launching a chocolate snack; we're unveiling an experience. Dip 'n Joy lets you indulge in a chocolatey escapade and embodies our commitment to spreading joy and positivity in every delicious bite." Each flavor of Dip 'n Joy (MSRP: $3.79) contains three dark chocolate batons and a pool of delicious dip and upholds ESC's commitment to Cocoa Horizons, non-GMO, gluten-free, and Kosher Dairy Certified products, ensuring the highest quality. And the flavors, oh, the flavors! Dip 'n Joy is the answer to your wildest chocolate fantasies in three delectable options: Peanut Butter: Dive into the velvety world of rich chocolate and creamy peanut butter, creating a customizable masterpiece. Savor each element separately or combine them for a taste explosion like never before it's a deconstructed peanut butter cup dream come true! Almond Butter: ESC's premium chocolate meets the goodness of almond butter, a match made in snacking heaven that caters to your sweet tooth. This flavor is a nutty delight that promises satisfaction with every bite. Salted Caramel: Inspired by one of ESC's best-selling bars, the Salted Caramel Dip 'n Joy lets you play maestro with your chocolate and caramel ratio while enjoying the subtle crunch of sea salt. It's like a symphony for your taste buds! Ready to embark on this joyous chocolate journey? Dip 'n Joy is now available nationwide at Sprouts Farmers Market and online at chocolatebar.com Don't just eat chocolate; experience it with Dip 'n Joy! Follow the excitement on Instagram at @eschocolate and prepare for your taste buds to thank you. SOURCE Endangered Species Chocolate NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The ethylene market thrives due to rising demand for polyethylene derivatives in construction, automotive, and electronics sectors. HDPE, LDPE, and LLDPE production heavily rely on ethylene. China and India lead plastic consumption, with India's electronics sector showing significant growth. Ethylene is vital in various chemical derivatives and packaging, driven by industrialization, urbanization, and consumer awareness. Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Ethylene Market 2024-2028 The global ethylene market size is estimated to grow by USD 57.7 bn from 2024 to 2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 6.27% during the forecast period. APAC held the largest share of the global market in 2022, and the market in the region is estimated to witness an incremental growth of 42%. For more insights on the regional with segment wise historic (2018 - 2022) and forecast market size (2024-2028) - Request a sample report Major Companies Ethylene Market report includes information on the product launches, sustainability, and prospects of leading vendors including BASF SE, Braskem SA, Chevron Corp., China National Petroleum Corp., Dow Chemical Co., Eastman Chemical Co., Exxon Mobil Corp., Formosa Plastics Group, Huntsman International LLC, Koch Industries Inc., LyondellBasell Industries N.V., Merck KGaA, Mitsubishi Chemical Group Corp., Mitsui Chemicals Inc., NOVA Chemicals Corp., Reliance Industries Ltd., Saudi Basic Industries Corp., Shell plc, Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd., TotalEnergies SE . Ethylene Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2023 Historic period 2017-2021 Forecast period 2024-2028 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 6.27% Market growth 2024-2028 USD 57.7 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 5.76 Regional analysis APAC, North America, Middle East and Africa, Europe, and South America Performing market contribution APAC at 42% Key countries US, China, Japan, India, and Germany Competitive landscape Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks Regional Landscape The Ethylene market in APAC, driven by the construction and packaging industries, is the largest ethylene consumer segment globally. Ethylene is a key gas used in the manufacture of polyethylene, ethylene oxide, and various ethylene derivatives such as ethylene vinyl acetate, ethylene propylene, and polyvinyl chloride. The growth of the retail and e-commerce industries fuels the demand for packaging materials, particularly in China, India, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan. Economic growth and increasing middle-class populations contribute to the expansion of these industries. In construction, ethylene is used for infrastructure development and building improvement. Price fluctuations impact the ethylene market, affecting the cost of production and availability of raw materials like naphtha, ethane, and propane. Rapid industrialization and urbanization increase ethylene demand in various sectors, including automobiles, textiles, agrochemicals, and soaps & detergents. Ethylene derivatives have applications in high-end industrial uses, medical industry, and cosmetics. Government regulations and consumer awareness impact the use of ethylene in single-use plastics and flammable or carcinogenic materials. The ethylene market is influenced by developments in the petrochemical sector, including the availability of natural gas and shale gas, and the manufacture of green polyethylene compounds and biomaterials. The pandemic has led to increased demand for safe packaged goods and premium food products, further boosting the ethylene market. Insight on Regional historic and forecast data with segments - Download a Free Sample Report Market Segmentation by Application The ethylene market, primarily driven by the demand for polyethylene (PE), including LDPE and LLDPE, experienced significant growth in 2023. PE, a key ethylene derivative, is used extensively in various industries such as construction, automobiles, and packaging. The packaging industry, particularly in processed food and beverages, accounts for a substantial portion of the ethylene market's consumption. The ethylene market's growth is influenced by factors like industrial facilities' expansion, rapid industrialization, urbanization, and the availability of feedstocks like ethane, propane, butane, and naphtha. Ethylene derivatives like ethylene oxide, vinyl acetate, ethylene glycol, and ethylene propylene are essential in manufacturing plastics, chemicals, and rubber. Price fluctuations, government regulations, and consumer awareness towards single-use plastics and environmental concerns impact the ethylene market. The market's growth is also influenced by the expanding applications in industries like automotive, construction, agrochemical, textile, and medical. The pandemic has led to increased demand for safe packaged goods, high-end industrial applications, and consumer convenience, driving the demand for lightweight and high-quality packaging materials. The ethylene market is expected to continue its growth trend throughout the forecast period. Insight on Segment with region historic and forecast data - Download a Free Sample Report Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation by Product Type 7 Market Segmentation by Distribution Channel 8 Customer Landscape 9 Geographic Landscape 10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 11 Company Landscape 12 Company Analysis 13 Appendix About US Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio FirstLight's President and CEO surprised the winning caregiver in Southbury, CT SOUTHBURY, Conn., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstLight Home Care, an award-winning provider of home care services, has named Susanne DiDonato as its National Caregiver of the Year. Susanne was presented with the honor this week during a caregiver appreciation event at FirstLight Home Care's Southbury, CT, office. She was nominated by our franchisees from Fairfield, Litchfield and New Haven, John and Wenjun Richards. This is not just a job for Sue, it is a calling. Post this "Sue has a profound ability to connect with every client she works with," said John Richards. "She isn't just a caregiver. We and her clients consider her family. Sue is also a true problem solver who consistently displays dignity and respect. Her warmth, patience, and how she engages with every client set her apart. This is not just a job for Sue, it is a calling." Caregiver of the Year nominations were received from FirstLight offices nationwide. Sue was selected from more than 7,000 caregivers employed by the FirstLight Home Care franchise system. Nominees were evaluated on service excellence, quality of caregiving skills and bringing the FirstLight culture to life. Susanne was one of three finalists this year. FirstLight's President and CEO, Glee McAnanly, traveled to the office in Connecticut to surprise Sue and present the prestigious award. Franchise owners John Richards and Wenjun Richards and their dedicated care team have provided in-home care to adults in their community for nearly a decade. For more information, visit Southbury.FirstLightHomeCare.com . About FirstLight Home Care FirstLight Home Care, a leading provider of home care services, is a lifeline for seniors, veterans, adults living with dementia, and anyone 18 and older who needs care in the place they call home. FirstLight exists to help people have their best day, every day. The company's mission is to provide compassionate home care so that all families who are served have peace of mind knowing their loved ones are receiving the support they need to enjoy the quality of life they deserve. FirstLight's network of professional caregivers is passionate about creating meaningful relationships and making a difference in the lives of others. The franchise system includes nearly 200 independently owned and operated home care locations throughout the United States. To learn more, or to find a local office, visit FirstLightHomeCare.com . Photos are available upon request. SOURCE FirstLight Home Care Program provides small drayage fleets opportunity to gain real world experience with battery electric trucks LONG BEACH, Calif., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Forum Mobility, a leading heavy duty truck charging infrastructure provider, announced that it is the charging solutions partner for the innovative new ONE Electric Truck Program. Magenta Goes Green with Volvo VNR Electric Truck and Forum Mobility Charging The program was developed by Ocean Network Express (North America) Inc., a global container transportation and shipping company, to facilitate the transition to zero-emission vehicles. The program provides small-sized drayage fleets an opportunity to gain real-world experience operating battery-electric trucks on their daily routes through a complimentary three-month lease. BoxLinks, a member of the LX Pantos Group, is ONE's regional partner and will manage the leasing contract and operations for the program. Forum Mobility will provide the charging for the Class 8 Volvo VNR electric trucks at the FM Harbor charging depot on 260 Pico Avenue, in the heart of the Port of Long Beach. "Forum Mobility's goal is to make the transition to electric trucks easy for carriers of all sizes. We are proud to be selected by the global shipping leader ONE to supply charging at our FM Harbor depot in Long Beach for this innovative project supporting small fleets," said Matt LeDucq, CEO of Forum Mobility. "This further supports ONE's global ambition of achieving zero emissions by 2050. The North American debut of the ONE Electric Truck Program aims to promote the use of zero-tailpipe emission trucks, helping navigate toward a carbon-neutral supply chain," said Colin Fleming, Senior Manager, Green and Sustainability Planning Team for Ocean Network Express (North America) Inc. There are over 30,000 drayage trucks in California, 80% of which are operated by small fleets or independent owner operators. By 2035, California policy requires that 100% transition to zero emission vehicles. Forum Mobility is building a network of heavy-duty truck charging depots, in ports and on routes to common freight destinations. Forum's staffed and secure depots offer charging, or charging plus a truck together, for a monthly fee. Forum's Port of Long Beach charging depot will offer 19 dual-port 360 kW chargers, and six 360 kW single-dispenser chargers, able to charge 44 trucks simultaneously. At full capacity, it will serve over 200 trucks a day. Forum Mobility's first tranche of eight charging depots, with capacity to charge about 600 trucks simultaneously, are scheduled to come online over the next 10-20 months. "We want to ensure that anyone running diesel has the ability to benefit from going zero emission. Not everyone is able to build their own charging, and for those, we offer an easy, all-inclusive truck charging service. Forum's principals have decades of experience building electric infrastructure -- we take on the challenges, costs, and operations of infrastructure so truckers and carriers of all sizes can focus on their business and their customers," said Matt LeDucq, Forum's CEO. More information about the ONE Electric Truck Program can be found at: https://us.one-line.com/ElectricTruckProgram SOURCE Forum Mobility WASHINGTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Family Research Council (FRC), together with Dr. Michael New, Assistant Professor of Social Research at the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America, released the first phase results of a study of 11 perinatal hospice programs surveying 82 mothers who participated in these programs. The study found that perinatal hospices offered a range of valuable resources to women. These included counseling, sonograms, prayer, support groups, and a birth plan. High percentages of women found each of these services "very helpful." Overall, women expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the care they received from perinatal hospices with 83 percent of women reporting the level of emotional support from the perinatal hospice as "very supportive" and 79 percent of women unable to note anything from the program that was not helpful in the grieving process. Importantly, 55 percent of mothers in the study reported that when doctors informed them about their child's diagnosis, the physician's recommendation was to end the baby's life. Sadly, only 19% received information about perinatal hospice when they were given this recommendation. Yet, after receiving perinatal hospice services, 86 percent of women reported they were "very much" confident in their decision to carry to birth, and 0 women reported they were "not at all confident." Family Research Council's Director of the Center for Family Studies, Dr. Jennifer Bauwens, stated: "Our study addressed a large gap in the scientific literature by asking about the experiences of women who decided to carry their child to term in the face of an adverse perinatal diagnosis and advice to abort. Both receiving an adverse perinatal diagnosis and losing a child can cause tremendous grief that is not always acknowledged by the general public. Our findings suggest perinatal hospices are a source of support for women facing this challenging road." Dr. Michael New noted, "Increasing the awareness of perinatal hospice among policymakers, healthcare professionals, and the general public is an important and worthwhile goal for the pro-life movement. It will give women who obtain adverse prenatal diagnosis more options and will hopefully result in a higher percentage of these women making the life-affirming choice of perinatal hospice for both themselves and their preborn child." FRC's Director of the Center for Human Dignity, Mary Szoch, concluded, "The lives of people with disabilities, no matter how long or how short, are just as valuable as every other person's. Americans must recognize this. Supporting perinatal hospice programs is a great place to start." To access the report, please visit: frc.org/perinatalhospice To read more about the study, please see: https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/4518894-bidens-tragic-misjudgment-disabled-lives-matter/ and https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/perinatal-hospice-a-compassionate-life-affirming-option/ SOURCE Family Research Council GUIYANG, China, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. ("FTA" or the "Company") (NYSE: YMM), a leading digital freight platform, today announced an extension of its share repurchase program. As previously reported by the Company, its board of directors (the "Board") authorized a share repurchase program with an original expiration date of March 12, 2024. The Board resolved to extend the term of the share repurchase program such that the Company may repurchase up to approximately US$300 million of its American depositary shares (the "ADSs"), each representing 20 Class A ordinary shares and/or ordinary shares, through March 12, 2025. Repurchases under the Company's share repurchase program may be made from time to time through open market transactions at prevailing market prices, in privately negotiated transactions, in block trades, and/or through other legally permissible means, depending on the market conditions and in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations. The Board will review the share repurchase program periodically, and may authorize adjustments to its terms and size or suspend or discontinue the program. The timing and conditions of the share repurchases will be subject to various factors, including the requirements under Rule 10b-18 and Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Company expects to fund the repurchases with its existing cash balance. Upon review of the Company's results of operations, business development plan, capital requirements, and cash position, the Board is confident in the Company's business performance and outlook. Accordingly, on March 13, 2024, the Board declared an annual cash dividend for the year ended December 31, 2023, of US$0.0072 per ordinary share, or US$0.1444 per ADS, payable on or around April 19, 2024, to holders of record of the Company's ordinary shares at the close of business on April 5, 2024. The aggregate amount of the dividend is expected to be approximately US$150 million. Cash dividends are expected to be paid to holders of the Company's ADSs through the depositary, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, on or around April 19, 2024, subject to the terms of the deposit agreement, including the fees and expenses payable thereunder. Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking" statements which are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "anticipate," "aim," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "potential," "continue," "is/are likely to," and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about the Company's beliefs, plans, and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: FTA's goal and strategies; FTA's expansion plans; FTA's future business development, financial condition and results of operations; expected changes in FTA's revenues, costs or expenses; industry landscape of, and trends in, China's road transportation market; competition in FTA's industry; FTA's expectations regarding demand for, and market acceptance of, its services; FTA's expectations regarding its relationships with shippers, truckers and other ecosystem participants; FTA's ability to protect its systems and infrastructures from cyber-attacks; PRC laws, regulations, and policies relating to the road transportation market, as well as general regulatory environment in which FTA operates in China; the results of regulatory review and the duration and impact of any regulatory action taken against FTA; the impact of COVID-19 outbreaks, extreme weather conditions and production constraints brought by electricity rationing measures; general economic and business condition; and assumptions underlying or related to any of the foregoing. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in the Company's filings with the SEC. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law. About Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YMM) is a leading digital freight platform connecting shippers with truckers to facilitate shipments across distance ranges, cargo weights and types. The Company provides a range of freight matching services, including freight listing, freight brokerage and online transaction services. The Company also provides a range of value-added services that cater to the various needs of shippers and truckers, such as financial institutions, highway authorities, and gas station operators. With a mission to make logistics smarter, the Company is shaping the future of logistics with technology and aspires to revolutionize logistics, improve efficiency across the value chain and reduce its carbon footprint for our planet. For more information, please visit ir.fulltruckalliance.com. For investor and media inquiries, please contact: In China: Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. Mao Mao E-mail: [email protected] Piacente Financial Communications Hui Fan Tel: +86-10-6508-0677 E-mail: [email protected] In the United States: Piacente Financial Communications Brandi Piacente Tel: +1-212-481-2050 E-mail: [email protected] SOURCE Full Truck Alliance Co. Ltd. DUBLIN, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The "GCC Elevator and Escalator Market - Size & Growth Forecast 2024-2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The GCC elevator and escalator market by new installations accounted for 24.2 thousand units in 2023 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.10% from 2023-2029. Saudi Arabia has recently launched four new special economic zones (SEZs) to promote growth in key sectors such as advanced manufacturing, cloud computing, and medical technology. These SEZs include the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) SEZ, Jazan SEZ, Ras Al Khair SEZ, and a Cloud Computing SEZ located in King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST). Saudi Arabia's Special Economic Zones (SEZs) aim to attract businesses with tax reductions, exemptions, and regulations for foreign talent. These strategic locations cover sectors like logistics, shipbuilding, and food. Aligned with the Saudi Vision 2030, these SEZs are expected to boost construction projects and infrastructure development, further supporting the growth of the GCC elevator and escalator market. The Oman Over Time Museum in the Wilayat of Manah hosted the eighth gathering of tourism ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations. The GCC common tourist visa, shared among member countries such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and The United Arab Emirates (UAE), facilitates streamlined entry for visitors. This initiative encourages cross-border tourism, allowing travelers holding a GCC tourist visa to explore multiple regional countries. A common tourist visa simplifies travel logistics and enhances the experience for individuals exploring the diverse attractions of the Gulf nations and promoting tourism, cultural exchange, and economic cooperation. The upcoming 2024 U23 Asian Cup, scheduled to be hosted by Qatar, is anticipated to stimulate the advancement of diverse infrastructure projects nationwide. Moreover, Qatar has bid to host the 2027 Asian Cup and has already been granted the rights to host the 2030 Asian Games. This wave of events is set to catalyze the construction of several high-rise buildings, thereby projecting to act as a catalyst for the GCC elevator and escalator market growth. Saudi Arabian Standards, Metrology And Quality Organization (SASO), in March 2018, announced that all the new elevators in residential and commercial buildings should be certified by the civil defense authority. Maintenance companies will evaluate existing installations. It is informed that all elevators should meet international standards. According to SASO, the main factor for elevator malfunctioning was engineering offices were unable to look into construction companies to ensure safety standards. About 55 authorizations are provided to companies, of which 22 are specially for maintenance companies. VENDOR LANDSCAPE Otis, Schindler, TK Elevator, and KONE are the top 4 manufacturers in the GCC elevator and escalator market, with a share of 61%. The relatively basic technology necessary for manufacturing elevator components such as cabin/doors, guide rails, and installation, together with easy access to raw materials, presents a highly scalable investment opportunity with potential for localization along the value chain. They are localizing component manufacturing, such as controls and motors, to fulfill the demand of existing elevator manufacturers in the GCC, with the possibility of exporting to neighboring MENA markets. Rising Urban Population in Metropolises to Witness a Hike in Elevator Demand In October 2020 , the Real Estate Transaction Tax (RETT) was introduced in Saudi Arabia , reducing VAT from 15% to 5% to boost residential and commercial real estate activity and increase home ownership, driving the demand for the residential segment. , the Real Estate Transaction Tax (RETT) was introduced in , reducing VAT from 15% to 5% to boost residential and commercial real estate activity and increase home ownership, driving the demand for the residential segment. Kuwait used 99.45 million square meters of land for private housing in 2022, with an average of 480 square meters per land. It expects to use more than 100 million square meters in 2023, as it plans to build more cities for housing the Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW). Kuwait had only 20 percent of its private housing land vacant in 2022, which is very low compared to other Gulf countries, which had 35 to 40 percent of their land vacant. used 99.45 million square meters of land for private housing in 2022, with an average of 480 square meters per land. It expects to use more than 100 million square meters in 2023, as it plans to build more cities for housing the Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW). had only 20 percent of its private housing land vacant in 2022, which is very low compared to other Gulf countries, which had 35 to 40 percent of their land vacant. Private housing areas constitute 78% of the Kuwait Metropolitan Area (KMA). The Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW) has plans to provide an additional 35,600 housing plots nationwide by 2025. Metropolitan Area (KMA). The Public Authority for Housing Welfare (PAHW) has plans to provide an additional 35,600 housing plots nationwide by 2025. Bahrain is addressing rising housing demand through new projects, with the Minister of Housing and Urban Planning announcing the bidding launch for 771 housing units and apartments as of Q1 2023. The initiative includes 131 housing units and 360 apartments in Salman Town and 280 housing units in Khalifa Town. The project involves three land plots for development, part of the government land development rights program in collaboration with the private sector. The first phase targets 19,000 housing units with a USD 2.6 billion investment. Increased Infrastructure, Industrial, and Transport Sector Investments to Surge in New Installations in the GCC Elevator And Escalator Market Qatar's ambitious 2050 Transport Plan is poised to impact various sectors significantly. The plan allocates 22 new projects in 2023, with an estimated expenditure of USD 2.7 billion . These projects are expected to drive the demand for elevators and escalators, especially within the context of the increasing construction and infrastructure landscape in Qatar . ambitious 2050 Transport Plan is poised to impact various sectors significantly. The plan allocates 22 new projects in 2023, with an estimated expenditure of . These projects are expected to drive the demand for elevators and escalators, especially within the context of the increasing construction and infrastructure landscape in . A program to assist 15 industrial projects by Saudi entrepreneurs in the first quarter of 2023 has been announced by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources. They will receive the program's direction, instruction, and solutions to overcome obstacles and achieve long-term growth. The program fits into the Kingdom's objective to expand the competitiveness of SMEs and diversify its industrial base. Jordan's magnesium oxide facility will be expanded for USD 70 million , according to Manaseer Group. Once finished, the plant will export its 270,000 tons of annual manufacturing capacity to the UAE. It will provide its product to Emirates Global Aluminium. The planned start date for production is 2024. magnesium oxide facility will be expanded for , according to Manaseer Group. Once finished, the plant will export its 270,000 tons of annual manufacturing capacity to the UAE. It will provide its product to Emirates Global Aluminium. The planned start date for production is 2024. Kuwait is building a new Mubarak Port to become a major trade hub in the region. Kuwait Port Authority (KPA), in March 2023 , launched the first phase of the Shuwaikh Port Redevelopment Project for USD 160 million . The project's scope includes redevelopment and rehabilitation of the docks of the 1.3 km-long Shuwaikh port and maintenance work for the western dock of the port and the suspended part of dock 8. Key Vendors Otis TK Elevator Schindler KONE Mitsubishi Electric Fujitec Hyundai Elevator Hitachi Other Prominent Vendors Delmon United Atlas Elevator AL-Modayan Elevators Marafie Elevators & Escalators Hosting Elevator Ahmadiah Contracting & Trading Co. Sigma Elevator Orona Kleemann United Elevators Toshiba Elevator and Building Systems Corporation Alfa Elevator Co. LLC Sodimas Elevator Company Almuftah Group Bayern Systems Gulf Elevators & Escalators Company (GEEC) Johnson Lifts and Escalators Europe Elevators BEC Group Elevator Market Segmentation Machine Type Hydraulic and Pneumatic Machine Room Traction Machine Room Less Traction Others (Climbing, Elevators, Industrial Elevators Carriage Type Passenger Freight Capacity 2-15 Persons 16-24 Persons 25-33 Persons 34 Persons and Above End-User Commercial Residential Industrial Others (Public Transit, Institutional, Infrastructural) Escalator Market Segmentation by Product Type Parallel Multi Parallel Walkway Crisscross End-User Public Transit Commercial Others (Institutional Sector, Infrastructure, Industrial) For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/k6duov About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg SOURCE Research and Markets First-of-its-kind product removes damaging crystals from SCR systems, clears P20EE codes HOLLY, Mich., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rislone introduces DEF Crystal Clean Diesel DEF & SCR Emissions System Cleaner. This one-of-a-kind product scrubs away crystal contaminants from the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems of diesel cars, trucks, and SUVs to cost-effectively restore power and performance. Modern diesel vehicles are equipped with SCR systems to reduce exhaust pollutants and meet stringent diesel emissions standards. These systems inject diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) into the exhaust gas to convert harmful nitrogen oxides (NOx) into nitrogen and water. "We dedicated years of research to develop an effective solution to help our customers avoid costly SCR repair bills." Post this New Rislone DEF Crystal Clean Diesel DEF & SCR Emissions System Cleaner (U.S. p/n 4784) scrubs away crystal contaminants from the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems of diesel cars, trucks, and SUVs to cost-effectively restore power and performance. Learn more at Rislone.com. Like any vehicle system, the SCR functions best with proper maintenance. DEF can break down and evaporate, leaving behind white crystal deposits. As these crystals build up, they clog SCR system components, interfering with normal operation, increasing fuel consumption, and reducing engine power. This can cause the vehicle to operate in "limp mode," where it drives slowly or not at all. Diesel vehicles that are regularly driven at low speeds, with light loads, for short durations, or that make frequent stops are especially prone to developing white crystal deposits in their SCR systems. New Rislone DEF Crystal Clean (U.S. p/n 4784) is a proprietary blend of cleaning agents and surfactant detergents specifically designed to safely and effectively clean SCR systems. It's also much more affordable than spending thousands of dollars to replace contaminated components. "In Europe and other parts of the world where many passenger vehicles run on diesel fuel, SCR maintenance is more familiar and routine than in North America," says Clay Parks, Rislone vice president of development. "But many diesel vehicles here have reached an age where SCR malfunctions are increasingly plaguing owners. We dedicated years of research to develop an effective solution to help our customers avoid costly SCR repair bills." Rislone DEF Crystal Clean dissolves crystal deposits throughout the entire SCR system, including the tank, pump, heater, sender, lines, injector, decomposition tube/reactor and mixer. It clears P20EE and related OBD codes and restores SCR function. Regular use every 5,000 miles keeps the system clean, helps prevent new crystals from forming, and improves emissions components life. Rislone DEF Crystal Clean works with all UREA DEF/ AdBlue fluids in vehicles with DOC catalytic converters, DPF particulate filters, SCR devices, ASC ammonia slip catalyst and DEF/AdBlue systems. It will not void manufacturers' new vehicle warranties. To use, pour DEF Crystal Clean into a mostly full DEF tank or add and top off with DEF. Cars and small SUVs use approximately bottle. Light trucks and full-size SUVs install a full bottle. Medium- and heavy-duty trucks use two bottles. DEF Crystal Clean is made in the USA. Learn more at rislone.com/products/diesel-def-scr-emissions-system-cleaner/. Based in Holly, Michigan, Rislone has been America's best-selling engine treatment brand for more than 100 years. Rislone is ISO 9001 certified. SOURCE Rislone DUBLIN, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Bispecific Antibody Market, Drugs Sales, Patent, Price & Clinical Trials Insight 2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. Global Bispecific Antibody Market, Drugs Sales, Patent, Price & Clinical Trials Insight 2029 Report Highlights: Bispecific Antibodies Development Proprietary Platforms Insight: > 30 Platforms Global Bispecific Antibodies Market Size Yearly & Quarterly Sales (2018 till 2023) Global Bispecific Antibodies Market Size 2023: > USD 8 Billion Global Bispecific Antibodies Market Forecast till 2029 Approved Bispecific Antibodies Yearly & Quarterly Sales (2018 till 2023) Approved Bispecific Antibodies Regional Sales (2018 till 2023) Clinical & Commercial Insight on Approved Bispecific Antibodies: 12 Antibodies Approved Bispecific Antibodies Pricing & Dosage Analysis Global Bispecific Antibodies Clinical Trials by Company, Indication & Phase: > 800 Antibodies FDA & EMA Fast Track Approval, Orphan Designation, Priority Status Insights Bispecific antibodies represent an exciting new therapeutic approach that has been gaining momentum since the last decade. These meticulously designed molecules offer a unique mechanism of action that harnesses the immune system to target malignant and other diseased cells and tissues with precision, offering a targeted approach that minimizes the risk of adverse effects. In the last three years, the market of bispecific antibodies has experienced a rapid surge in research and development, and commercial activities, setting the market for a speedy growth in the coming years. Bispecific antibodies are engineered proteins intended to simultaneously bind two different antigens, typically found on distinct cell types. Their dual targeting ability provides multiple ways to exploit the immune systems against diseases. For cancer, common approaches include redirecting T cells or natural killer cells to attack malignant cells. They can also crosslink immune cells with tumor cells to enhance the immune response. Additionally, they can block two different signaling pathways or recruit immune cells to the tumor microenvironment. For indications apart from cancer, bispecific antibodies enable dual targeting of different disease mediators or cell types. This provides opportunities to neutralize or clear pathogenic proteins, cytokines or cells involved in inflammation, autoimmunity and other diseases. However, depending on the indications, the mechanism by which bispecific antibodies work can change. The versatility of bispecific antibodies offers several advantages over their predecessors, traditional monoclonal antibodies, including enhanced specificity, potency and flexibility in targeting multiple pathways at the same time. This become especially relevant in cancer treatment, where monoclonal antibodies are utilized heavily to interfere with different cancer-associated pathways. By directly redirecting immune cells to tumors, bispecific antibodies can overcome tumor immune evasion mechanisms, leading to improved efficacy and potentially lower toxicity compared to conventional chemotherapy. The US FDA approved Blinatumomab (commercially known as Blincyto) in 2014, marking a key milestone in the field of bispecific antibodies and fundamentally changing how relapsed or refractory precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia is treated. Following this success, multiple new bispecific antibodies have arisen in clinical development, covering a wide range of medical disorders, with a focus on cancer. Nonetheless, in addition to cancer, there has been an increase in the number of bispecific candidates designed to address emerging indications such as viral and bacterial infections, as well as autoimmune diseases. This diversification highlights the growing range of therapeutic applications for this class of medicines. Currently, there are over 800 bispecific candidates in active clinical development. Phase 3 trials are underway across a spectrum of solid cancers like triple negative breast cancer, small cell lung cancer, bladder cancer among others, in addition to hematological cancers, including myeloma and leukemia. Further, a few other phase 3 candidates are also being investigated in indications beyond cancer, like hemophilia A and diabetic macular edema, displaying the diversity in indications. The heightened attention on the development of this novel therapeutic class has been greatly supported by the increasing global value of the bispecific antibodies market. At present, 12 bispecific antibodies have received approvals in different markets around the globe, which together, generated revenue of over US$ 8.5 billion in the year 2023. This was an increase of over 47% as compared to the total sales of 2022, which was approximately over US$ 5.8 billion. A bulk of this value comes from the global sales of Hemlibra, a bispecific antibody indicated for the treatment of Hemophilia A, which is the highest selling member of this drug class. Since bispecific antibodies were introduced in the market, the US has been a major contributor to the overall sales of these drugs. In 2023, the US market alone generated a revenue of US$ 5.6 billion, with the international market contributing US$ 2.8 billion to the total sales. This was an increase of 34% compared to the sales recorded in 2022, showing the growing interest of patients and physicians in novel therapeutics, such as bispecific antibodies. Therefore, bispecific antibodies have demonstrated enough clinical success to validate their potential as a major new drug class. Their unique ability to tap into multiple disease pathways is unlocking new therapeutic possibilities beyond monoclonal antibodies. While oncology has led the way, expansion into other disease areas is accelerating. With continued innovation in molecular designs and engineering, bispecific antibodies represent an exciting versatile approach to transform treatment across a wide range of unmet medical needs, which researchers are slowly progressing to. Companies Profiled: ABL Bio Abzyme Therapeutics Affimed Therapeutics Akeso Biopharma Alligator Bioscience Amgen Antibody Therapeutics APITBIO Aptevo Therapeutics Astellas Pharma AstraZeneca BioAtla Biosion Biotheus BJ Bioscience EpimAb Biotherapeutics FutureGen Biopharmaceutical Genentech Genmab Gensun Biopharma Harbour BioMed I-MAB Biopharma IGM Biosciences ImmuneOnco Biopharma ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Innovent Biologics Invenra Janssen Research & Development Kenjockety Biotechnology LaNova Medicines Limited Light Chain Bioscience Linton Pharm Lyvgen Biopharma MacroGenics Merus NovaRock Biotherapeutics Pfizer Phanes Therapeutics Prestige BioPharma Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Revitope Roche Virtuoso Therapeutics Xencor Y-Biologics Zhejiang Shimai Pharmaceutical Zymeworks For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/x4jt80 About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg SOURCE Research and Markets Future Market Insights projects a promising future for the dark tourism industry by 2034, driven by inherent human curiosity about historical tragedies and darker chapters of the past. Fueled by a desire to learn from history's mistakes, travelers are increasingly drawn to these sites for a unique educational experience. Download our exclusive sample report to unlock valuable insights and capitalize on this growing market. NEWARK, Del., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The dark tourism market is expected to be valued at US$ 31.89 billion by 2024. The market valuation is estimated to be US$ 40.82 billion by 2034, projected at a CAGR of 2.5%. Download the Sample PDF report to explore key market insights and trends: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-3452 Human inquisitiveness about taboo topics and facing their darker sides of history is one of the main factors behind the growth of the dark tourism industry. Many people are eager to learn about the conditions and events that led to tragedy and calamity, which is what draws them to these locations. The educational aspect of dark tourism is filled with displeasure as travelers look to understand the background of historical events and their social complications. Ethical considerations are considered one of the main obstacles to the dark tourism market. A major problem for visitors and site administrators is thus striking a balance between the need for knowledge and understanding and consideration for the sensitivities of the local populations and survivors. Despite certain obstacles, the dark tourism industry has immense potential for expansion and innovation. As long as eagerness for dark tourism stays high, sustainable methods prioritizing ethical considerations and community engagement are possible. Report Scope Attributes Details Estimated Market Size in 2024 US$ 31.89 billion Projected Market Valuation in 2034 US$ 40.82 billion Value-based CAGR 2024 to 2034 2.5 % Forecast Period 2024 to 2034 Historical Data Available for 2019 to 2023 Market Analysis Value in US$ billion Key Market Segments Covered Dark Tourism Market - Key Segments By Type: Holocaust Tourism Genocide Tourism Paranormal Tourism Battlefield Tourism Nuclear Tourism Others By Booking Channel: Phone Booking Online Booking In Person Booking By Tourist Type: Domestic Tourist International Tourist By Tour Type: Independent Traveler Tour Group Package Traveller By Age Group: 15-25 Years 26-35 Years 36-45 Years 46-55 Years 56-65 Years 66-75 Years More Than 75 Years By Region: North America Latin America Western Europe Eastern Europe South Asia and Pacific East Asia The Middle East and Africa Key Countries Profiled The United States Canada Brazil Mexico Rest of Latin America Germany The United Kingdom France Spain Italy Russia Poland Czech Republic Romania India Bangladesh Australia New Zealand China Japan South Korea GCC countries South Africa Israel Key Companies Profiled Lupine Travel Company Chornobyl Tours Dark tourism Young Pioneer Tours Aero Travels Atlas Obscura Dark Rome Tours Anne Frank House Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum Haunted History Tours Alcatraz Cruises Key Takeaways from the Market Study Under type, the holocaust is accounted to hold a market share of 28.6% in 2024. The United States is estimated to register at a CAGR of 1.5% by 2034. is estimated to register at a CAGR Italy experiences significant growth, projected at a CAGR of 1.7% by 2034. experiences significant growth, projected at a CAGR Based on booking channel, the online booking segment is anticipated to hold a market share of 39.2% in 2024. "The human curiosity and obsession with exploring taboo subjects and encountering the darker aspects of history is one primary driver for the dark tourism market," comments by Ronak Shah (Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights). Competitive Landscape In the competitive landscape of the dark tourism market, various tour operators, travel agencies, and destination management companies strive for market share. Local operators in popular dark tourism destinations further compete to provide guided tours, interpretation services, and visitor amenities. Some of the key developments are: In 2022, Young Pioneer Tours expanded its offerings to include new destinations in regions such as Eastern Europe and Central Asia . The expansion marked a strategic move to cater to growth in demand for off-the-beaten-path travel experiences. and . The expansion marked a strategic move to cater to growth in demand for off-the-beaten-path travel experiences. In 2022, Aero Travels introduced innovative sustainability initiatives that comprised carbon offset programs and eco-friendly travel options. Purchase now and gain full access to the Dark Tourism Industry report, featuring comprehensive Market Forecast, Company Share Analysis, Competition Intelligence, DROT Analysis, Market Dynamics and Challenges, and Strategic Growth Initiatives. More Valuable Insights Available Future Market Insights offers an unbiased global dark tourism market analysis, providing historical data from 2019 to 2023 and forecast statistics from 2024 to 2034 To understand market opportunities, the dark tourism market is segmented based on Type (Holocaust Tourism, Genocide Tourism, Paranormal Tourism, Battlefield Tourism, Nuclear Tourism, Others), Booking Channel (Phone Booking, Online Booking, In Person Booking), Tourist Type (Domestic Tourist, International Tourist), Tour Type (Independent Traveler, Tour Group, Package Traveller), Age Group (15-25 Years, 26-35 Years, 36-45 Years, 46-55 Years, 56-65 Years, 66-75 Years, More Than 75 Years), and Region (North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, South Asia and Pacific, East Asia, and the Middle East and Africa). About the Travel and Tourism Division at Future Market Insights The travel and tourism team at Future Market Insights offers expert analysis, time-efficient research, and strategic recommendations to provide authentic insights and accurate results to help clients worldwide. With over 100+ reports and one million+ data points, the team has analyzed the industry lucidly in 50+ countries for over a decade. The team briefly analyzes key trends, including competitive landscape, profit margin, and research development efforts. About the Author: Ronak Shah (Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights) is deeply committed to uncovering actionable insights for consumer and food and beverage players. She brings a unique blend of analysis, industry trends, and consumer behavior to put data into perspective. What she makes out of data becomes a delight to read. She has authored many opinions, including for publications like Process Industry Informer and Spinal Surgery News, as she understands the market pulse and consumers' shifting preferences. She likes to bring experts to a roundtable to weigh the impact of a trend on an industry. Catch up with her discussion on the impact of AI in packaging. Explore FMI's Extensive Coverage in the Travel and Tourism Domain: About Future Market Insights (FMI) Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting service provider, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in Dubai and has delivery centers in the UK, the U.S., and India. FMI's latest market research reports and industry analysis help businesses navigate challenges and make critical decisions with confidence and clarity amidst breakneck competition. Our customized and syndicated market research reports deliver actionable insights that drive sustainable growth. A team of expert-led analysts at FMI continuously tracks emerging trends and events in a broad range of industries to ensure that our clients prepare for the evolving needs of their consumers. Contact Us Nandini Singh Sawlani Future Market Insights Inc. Christiana Corporate, 200 Continental Drive, Suite 401, Newark, Delaware - 19713, USA T: +1-845-579-5705 For Sales Enquiries: [email protected] Website: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com LinkedIn| Twitter| Blogs | YouTube Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1197648/3531122/FMI_Logo.jpg SOURCE Future Market Insights DUBLIN, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Guidewires Market (2024 Edition): Analysis By Material (Nitinol, Stainless Steel, Others), By Product, By Application, By Region: Market Insights and Forecast (2019-2029)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The Global Guidewires market showcased growth at a CAGR of 8.64% during 2019-2022. The market was valued at USD 1.27 Billion in 2022 which is expected to reach USD 2.03 Billion in 2029. The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Region (Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa) and 10 Countries (United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, China, Japan, South Korea, India). Guidewires Market is being propelled increasing prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, technological advancements in guidewire design and materials, rising demand for minimally invasive procedures, and expanding healthcare infrastructure in developing economies. According to World Health Organization (WHO), Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) kill 41 million people each year, equivalent to 74% of all deaths globally. Cardiovascular diseases, including coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease, and cardiac arrhythmias, continue to be leading causes of morbidity and mortality globally. As the prevalence of risk factors such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension increase, so does the incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Guidewires are essential tools in percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), peripheral vascular interventions (PVI), and electrophysiology procedures, driving the demand for guidewires. The increasing prevalence of chronic diseases worldwide drives the demand for guidewires by necessitating minimally invasive interventions for diagnosis and treatment. As the burden of chronic conditions continues to rise, the guidewires market is expected to expand further to meet the growing clinical needs. The United States and China are by far the two largest spenders, with R&D spending of around 680 billion U.S. dollars and 550 billion U.S. dollars respectively in 2022. The United States, in particular, is a major contributor to global R&D expenditure in the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors. The region is home to numerous biopharmaceutical companies with substantial R&D budgets. Also, China has been increasing its R&D investments in the biopharmaceutical sector. South Korea, Japan, and Singapore also have a growing presence in biotechnology with notable R&D activities. Advancements in metallurgical processing techniques enable precise control over the microstructure of stainless steel alloys. By carefully manipulating factors such as temperature, cooling rate, and mechanical deformation during manufacturing processes like heat treatment and cold working, manufacturers can tailor the material's grain size, phase distribution, and crystallographic orientation. This level of control allows for the optimization of mechanical properties, including flexibility, fatigue resistance, and radiopacity, while minimizing defects and enhancing overall reliability. With a growing focus on infection control and patient safety, antimicrobial coatings are being incorporated into surgical guidewires to reduce the risk of nosocomial infections. These coatings utilize antimicrobial agents such as silver ions or chlorhexidine to inhibit the growth of bacteria and other pathogens on the guidewire surface, thereby lowering the risk of device-related infections. Also, Hydrophilic coatings applied to the surface of surgical guidewires reduce friction and improve lubricity, facilitating smoother navigation through tortuous anatomy and enhancing steerability. Advancements in coating technologies have led to the development of highly durable and long-lasting hydrophilic coatings that maintain their lubricious properties throughout extended procedures. Advances in medical technology have expanded the scope of minimally invasive procedures to encompass a broader range of clinical conditions and anatomical sites. In addition to established applications like coronary angioplasty and endovascular interventions, minimally invasive techniques are increasingly used in fields such as interventional oncology, neurology, and orthopaedics. Guidewires enable physicians to access and treat target areas within the body with greater precision and safety, driving their demand across diverse medical specialties. Guidewire manufacturers are developing specialized guidewires tailored to address the unique challenges of specific clinical applications. These include neurovascular guidewires for intracranial interventions, peripheral guidewires for lower limb revascularization, and biliary guidewires for endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). Specialized guidewires feature optimized designs and properties to meet the demands of each application, providing clinicians with the tools they need to achieve optimal procedural outcomes in diverse anatomical regions and pathologies. Scope of the Report The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Value (USD Million). The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Epidemiology. The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Region (Americas, Europe , Asia Pacific , Middle East & Africa ) and 10 Countries ( United States , Canada , United Kingdom , Germany , France , Spain , China , Japan , South Korea , India ). , , & ) and 10 Countries ( , , , , , , , , , ). The report presents the analysis of Guidewires Market for the historical period of 2019-2022, the estimated year 2023 and the forecast period of 2024-2029. The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Material (Nitinol, Stainless Steel, Others). The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Product (Surgical, Diagnostic). The report analyses the Guidewires Market by Application (Cardiology, Peripheral, Urology, Neurology, Others). The key insights of the report have been presented through the frameworks of SWOT and Porter's Five Forces Analysis. Also, the attractiveness of the market has been presented by region, By material, by product & by application. Also, the major opportunities, trends, drivers, and challenges of the industry has been analyzed in the report. The report tracks competitive developments, strategies, mergers and acquisitions and new product development. Analyst Recommendations Amplify technological advancement Escalate collaboration initiative with healthcare provider Competitive Positioning Companies' Product Positioning Market Share of Leading Companies Company Profiling Medtronic PLC Terumo Corporation Cardinal Health Boston Scientific Teleflex Incorporated Johnson & Johnson Abbott Laboratories Stryker Corporation Olympus Corporation Cook Group For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/ho3hlb About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Media Contact: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [email protected] For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/539438/Research_and_Markets_Logo.jpg SOURCE Research and Markets Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Tests: Global Market Outlook is a report that provides information about tests used to detect different types of cancer all over the world. It gives insights into how these tests are performing, what people need, and what the future might hold for them. Essentially, it's a comprehensive overview of the worldwide market for tests that help identify various kinds of cancer. BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the latest research study, the demand for Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Tests: Global Market Outlook expected to grow from $2.3 billion 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32.3% during the forecast period 2023 to 2028. This report gives a detailed look at the market for tests that find many types of cancer. It talks about how these tests are doing now and what might happen in the future. It also talks about the things that help or challenge this market. The report says what the market might look like in 2028. It tells us about the different types of these tests and who uses them. The report also talks about the companies that make these tests and what other tests they might make in the future. It focuses on places like the U.S., Europe, and new markets. The report breaks down how much money the tests make by region, type, and who uses them. It looks at years like 2020, 2021, and 2022, and predicts what might happen in 2023 and 2028. In the next five years, lots of companies might get approval for making In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) tests, leading to big growth in this area. Scientists are looking into new things like extra cellular vescicles and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to find cancer. These could be really good for checking for cancer, but they might not take over regular ways of screening for cancer right away. Key Market Drivers of Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Tests: Unmet Needs in Cancer Screening: means there are things we still need to figure out or improve in the way we check for cancer. Even though we have ways to screen for cancer, like mammograms or colonoscopies, there are still some gaps or things that could be better. For example, some tests might not find cancer early enough, or they might not work well for everyone. So, scientists and doctors are working to find new ways to screen for cancer that are more accurate, easier, and work for more people. Government Measures for Cancer Screening: means the actions taken by the government to help people get screened for cancer. Governments might do things like providing funding for screening programs, making guidelines for doctors to follow, or organizing campaigns to raise awareness about the importance of getting screened. They want to make sure that everyone has access to screening tests and that these tests are done regularly to catch cancer early when it's easier to treat. Request a Sample Copy of the Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Tests: Global Market Outlook: Report Synopsis Report Metrics Details Base year considered 2022 Forecast Period considered 2023-2028 Base year market size $350.8 million Market Size Forecast $2.3 billion Growth Rate CAGR of 32.3% from 2023 to 2028 Segment Covered By Test Type, End User, and Region Regions covered The U.S., Europe, and Emerging Markets Key Market Drivers Unmet Needs in Cancer Screening Government Measures for Cancer Screening Global Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Test Market, by Test Type: The MCD test market by test type consists of LDTs and IVD tests. Laboratory Developed Tests: are special tests created and performed in a laboratory, typically not by big companies but by smaller labs. These tests are often tailored to specific needs, like diagnosing certain diseases or conditions. Instead of being mass-produced like other medical tests, they're made and used in the same lab. They can be very useful for rare diseases or when standard tests don't work well enough. In-Vitro Diagnostic Tests: are tests done outside the body in a controlled environment like a lab. They're used to check for diseases or conditions by examining samples of blood, urine, or tissue. These tests help doctors diagnose illnesses, monitor how treatments are working, and even screen for diseases before symptoms show up. They're important tools in healthcare for understanding what's going on inside the body. Market Breakdown by End User: The "Global Multi-Cancer Diagnostic Test Market, by End User" refers to how different places use tests that can detect many types of cancer. This report divides the market into three main groups based on where these tests are used: Hospitals: These are medical centers where people go for treatment and care. Hospitals use these tests to diagnose and treat cancer patients. Diagnostic laboratories: These are special places where tests are done on samples like blood or tissue to find out if someone has cancer. They're like scientific labs focused on medical testing. Research institutions: These are places where scientists study diseases like cancer to find better ways to diagnose and treat them. They use these tests to learn more about cancer and develop new treatments. Market Breakdown by Region: The global market for MCD tests is segmented into the following geographic regions: The U.S. Europe Emerging markets this report on multi-cancer diagnostic tests: global market outlook provides comprehensive insights and analysis, addressing the following key questions: What is the projected market size and growth rate of the market? The multi-cancer diagnostic tests market is projected to grow from $350.8 million in 2022 to $2,296.4 million in 2028, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32.3% during the forecast period. What are the key factors driving the growth of the market? The lack of recommended screening methods for lethal cancers and favorable government polices driving the market growth. What segments are covered in the market? The market is segmented on the test type and region. By Type, which segment will dominate the market by the end of 2028? Laboratory developed tests (LDTs) segment will dominate the market by the end of 2028. Which region has the highest market share in the market? Europe has the highest market share. Who are the key companies/players in the market? Exact Sciences, Grail Inc., Guardant Health, Burning Rock Biotech, and Delfi Diagnostics. Some of the Key Market Players Are: ANCHORDX MEDICAL CO. LTD. BURNING ROCK BIOTECH LTD. DELFI DIAGNOSTICS EXACT SCIENCES CORP. FREENOME HOLDINGS INC. GENECAST INC. GRAIL INC. GUARDANT HEALTH INC. Browse More Related Reports: Next-Generation Cancer Diagnostics: Technologies and Global Markets: means looking at new and advanced ways to diagnose cancer and how this affects the entire world. It involves studying the latest technologies that can help detect cancer better and faster, and understanding how these technologies are being used around the globe. This includes things like new tests, machines, and methods that doctors use to find cancer earlier and more accurately. Oncology Biomarkers: Global Markets: is about understanding and studying special signs or markers in the body that can tell us about cancer. These markers help doctors to detect, diagnose, and treat cancer more effectively. The report looks at how these markers are used all around the world and how they affect the market for cancer-related products and services. It's like finding clues that help doctors fight cancer better, and this report explores how these clues are being used on a global scale. Directly Purchase a copy of the report with BCC Research. For further information or to make a purchase, please get in touch with [email protected]. About BCC Research BCC Research provides objective, unbiased measurement and assessment of market opportunities with detailed market research reports. Our experienced industry analysts' goal is to help you make informed business decisions, free of noise and hype. Contact Us Corporate HQ: BCC Research LLC, 49 Walnut Park, Building 2, Wellesley, MA 02481, USA Email: [email protected], Phone: +1 781-489-7301 For media inquiries, email [email protected] or visit our media page for access to our market research library. Data and analysis extracted from this press release must be accompanied by a statement identifying BCC Research LLC as the source and publisher. Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2183242/BCC_Research_Logo.jpg SOURCE BCC Research LLC HALIFAX, NS, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Global Spatial Technology Solutions ("GSTS" or "the Company") announced that it has been awarded a contract by Canada's Ocean Supercluster's Core Technology Leadership Program to advance the capabilities of its proprietary, AI powered SaaS platform, OCIANA. This award enables GSTS to further develop and implement a predictive, dynamic Berth Schedule Management System which will facilitate digital collaboration and enhance global supply chain efficiency through reduced vessel emissions and fuel use. Working in partnership with leading maritime innovators including Canada Steamship Lines, Montreal Port Authority, Laurentian Pilotage Authority and Clear Seas, OCIANA's latest capability will streamline vessel berthing through AI Predictive Analytics to support Just-in-Time Arrivals (JIT). OCIANA's Berth Schedule Management System will connect ships, pilotage authorities and ports to support Green Digital Shipping Corridors and environmental protection thus promoting the overall efficiency of the maritime supply chain. "We are extremely pleased to continue to work with our valued customers and innovation partners", said Richard Kolacz, Chief Executive Officer, GSTS. "On a daily basis we see events that have an impact on vessel routing and schedules. These include the Red Sea Crisis, Panama Canal issues, weather events, like hurricanes and labour events such as strikes. OCIANA's novel capability will allow vessels to respond to events and identify optimal routes and arrival times by coordinating with ports and pilotage authorities thereby reducing emissions, fuel use and transport costs." This initiative will thus deliver the world's first dynamic, fully collaborative, integrated, Berth Schedule Management System, equivalent to air traffic control for ships and ports. "As the first shipowner to participate in the Ocean Supercluster project, we are excited to support GSTS' development of the OCIANA platform," said Jean Fahmy, Vice President - Digital, Canada Steamship Lines. "By contributing real-time data from our Canadian fleet, we aim to help advance efforts to leverage artificial intelligence to support decarbonization in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway by optimizing Just-in-Time routing and voyage ETAs." "We are particularly proud of the work accomplished by our multidisciplinary team, in close collaboration with GSTS. This collaborative effort has resulted in a significant advance in port management. I congratulate the multidisciplinary team of experts in information technology, the environment, research, and port operations management, who worked together at every stage of the project to create a collaborative platform dedicated to dock occupancy management," said Julie Gascon, Chief Executive Officer, Montreal Port Authority. "Our approach began with the aim of improving the predictability of ship arrivals at the port, and then expanded to integrate the operational needs of stakeholders on the ground. This approach enabled us to develop an innovative tool that facilitates collaboration among all stakeholders, with the goal of optimizing the entire supply chain and the efficiency of maritime trade corridors," she added. "The Laurentian Pilotage Authority is pleased to join GSTS and the Ocean Supercluster project and thus contribute to the protection of the environment on the waters under its jurisdiction," said Marc-Yves Bertin, Chief Executive Officer, Laurentian Pilotage Authority. "This initiative is directly in line with the Authority's mission to provide a safe, effective, and efficient pilotage service with strong willingness to protecting human health, property and the environment, by innovating and using state-of-the-art technology that will improve the fluidity of the supply chain." "Clear Seas is excited to collaborate on this new initiative to develop a more efficient and intelligent maritime system in Canada", said Paul Blomerus, Executive Director, Clear Seas. "Better information leads to better decisions, enabling marine shipping to continue its critical role in the supply chain while reducing its impact on the ocean." With the development of this capability, GSTS will further enhance its leading position in the global maritime transportation industry, providing next generation advancement that will create competitive advantage for national and international customers across ports, shipping lines and terminal operators. OCIANATM is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform that provides maritime vessel and port optimisation as well as maritime risk management solutions for the global maritime market. The AI platform ingests a wide range of operational and oceanographic data sets and through proprietary analysis, supports decision making related to the safe and efficient movement of people and goods on all of the world's waterways. About Us GSTS: Global Spatial Technology Solutions (GSTS) is a global maritime intelligence company delivering solutions to enhance decision making across the maritime and logistics industry. Our predictive solutions are enabled by a range of operational, environmental, vessel and cargo data to provide real-time decision making intelligence for ports, terminal operators, shipping lines, logistics companies, importers, exporters, national and international agencies as well as security organisations. For more information and to explore opportunities to join our consortium, contact us today. CSL: The CSL Group is a world-leading provider of marine dry bulk cargo handling and delivering services. CSL owns and operates a highly diversified fleet of specialized self-unloading vessels, offshore transhippers and handy-size bulk carriers, and delivers more than 78 million tonnes of cargo to industrial customers annually. MPA: Montreal Port Authority is a hub for international trade that contributes to the economic development of Canada. It does everything in its power to put innovation, sustainable development, and collaboration at the heart of its business processes. Their missions is to build together a more resilient, smarter and sustainable marine corridor. LPA: The Laurentian Pilotage Authority, a federal Crown corporation created in 1972, is responsible for establishing, managing and providing marine pilotage services as well as related services in the Laurentian region waters, notably in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the St. Lawrence River and the Saguenay River. The LPA monitors navigation manages regulations and provides services for three pilotage districts that cover a distance of 265 nautical miles between Montreal and Les Escoumins and another 70 nautical miles on the Saguenay River. Clear Seas: Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping was established in 2014 after extensive discussions among government, industry, environmental organizations, Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities revealed a need for impartial information about the Canadian marine shipping industry. It provides impartial information on marine shipping in Canada to policy makers and the public. SOURCE GLOBAL SPATIAL TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS INC. (GSTS) New gummi features exciting unicorn-shapes in six flavors, including brand-new HARIBO U.S. flavors: Cotton Candy & Tangerine ROSEMONT, Ill., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- HARIBO , America's #1 gummi brand, has launched a brand-new gummi variety: Unicorn-i-licious, a magical treat that is as colorful and cute as it is tasty. This enchanting new gummi features a rainbow array of adorable unicorns in six unique flavors: Apple, Blue Raspberry, Berry Punch, Banana, and for the first time, Cotton Candy and Tangerine. Consumers are saying this fantastical new product isn't just deliciousit's Unicorn-i-licious! HARIBO Unicorn-i-licious "At HARIBO we're on a mission to inspire childlike happiness for fans everywhere, and we know that feeling will be even more special when they open a bag of Unicorn-i-licious," said Seth Klugherz, Vice President of Marketing, HARIBO of America, Inc. "We were inspired to create Unicorn-i-licious because we know consumers need joy in everyday moments, and so much of that joy goes back to the simplicity of childhood. The playfulness and nostalgia of unicorns coupled with the new flavors are sure to delight, and that's when the magic really begins!" This tasty new variety is HARIBO's first unicorn gummi treat in its global assortment and is exclusive to the U.S. market. Unicorn-i-licious combines HARIBO's signature chew with whimsical unicorn shapes, and the magic really happens when consumers enjoy the bouncy texture and juicy flavors. The newest flavor, Cotton Candy, has never been featured in a U.S. HARIBO product, and its debut in a unicorn-shape makes Unicorn-i-licious undeniably sweeter. Unicorn-i-licious joins a portfolio of more than 25 different HARIBO gummi varieties in the U.S., including fan-favorites like Goldbears, Twin Snakes, Starmix, Happy Cola and Happy Cherries. Unicorn-i-licious is the first new-to-market gummi innovation from HARIBO in 2024 and is available nationwide at U.S. retailers. Unicorn-i-licious marks the beginning of HARIBO's exciting gummi releases, creative collaborations, and sweet surprises for fans planned this year. For more information about HARIBO, follow along on Instagram and Facebook or visit www.haribo.com . ABOUT HARIBO HARIBO is the world's leading manufacturer of gummi products, most famous for our classic Goldbears. Globally, the business employs nearly 7,000 Associates and operates 16 production sites in 11 countries. A family-owned business with a century-long heritage, our founder, Hans Riegel, built HARIBO on a foundation of quality and inspiring moments of childlike happiness through our products. Established in 1920, HARIBO is the acronym that comprises our founder's name and the city in which the company was born (Bonn, Germany): HAns RIegel BOnn. We pride ourselves on making playful gummies that are meant to be shared so our inner-child can always experience joy through sweet treats. HARIBO global headquarters is in Grafschaft, Germany and its U.S. headquarters operates out of Rosemont, Ill. For more information, visit www.haribo.com . Contact: Lauren Triffler Head of Corporate Communications [email protected] SOURCE HARIBO Collaborative new partnership to deliver much-needed career pathways for future public health professionals and address industry-wide talent shortages MILWAUKEE, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Herzing University and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) are excited to announce a pioneering collaboration aimed at providing students with a streamlined route to obtain both undergraduate and graduate degrees in five years. The newly established 4+1 Program integrates Herzing University's Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences (BSHS) curriculum with MCW's renowned Master of Public Health (MPH) Program, offering direct admission to qualified BSHS students. The 4+1 Program represents a significant step in our efforts to cultivate the next generation of public health leaders. Post this A major national research center, the Medical College of Wisconsin is the largest research institution in the Milwaukee metro area and second largest in Wisconsin. The 4+1 Program is a five-year dual degree initiative designed to facilitate seamless transition for eligible Herzing University students into the Master of Public Health Program at MCW's School of Graduate Studies. This partnership will enable students to leverage their academic foundation toward earning a Master of Public Health degree while fulfilling the requirements for their bachelor's degree. "At Herzing University, we're committed to providing innovative pathways for our students to excel in the ever-evolving healthcare landscape," said Dr. Sarah Olson, PhD, Program Chair Healthcare Management/Healthcare Administration & Health Sciences, Herzing University. "Our partnership with the Medical College of Wisconsin opens doors to unparalleled opportunities for our students, allowing them to become leaders in public health and make a meaningful impact on community well-being." Key features of the 4+1 Program include: Dual Enrollment: Participants will spend approximately three years at Herzing University completing undergraduate coursework, followed by one year of dual enrollment, and culminating in one year of intensive study at MCW. Participants will spend approximately three years at Herzing University completing undergraduate coursework, followed by one year of dual enrollment, and culminating in one year of intensive study at MCW. Reverse Transfer: Up to 15 credits earned at MCW will be transferred back to Herzing University, fulfilling elective requirements for the BSHS degree. Up to 15 credits earned at MCW will be transferred back to Herzing University, fulfilling elective requirements for the BSHS degree. Graduation Criteria: Upon successful completion of the program, students will earn a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences from Herzing University and a Master of Public Health degree from MCW. Upon successful completion of the program, students will earn a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences from Herzing University and a Master of Public Health degree from MCW. Direct Admission Eligibility: Eligible Herzing BSHS students must meet specific criteria, including completing prerequisite courses, maintaining a minimum GPA, and participating in a pre-matriculation interview with MCW representatives. The inaugural cohort of the 4+1 Program is set to commence in May 2024, marking the beginning of an exciting educational journey for aspiring public health and healthcare professionals. "The Medical College of Wisconsin is excited to partner with Herzing University in launching the 4+1 Program, which represents a significant step forward in our joint efforts to cultivate the next generation of public health leaders," said Kim Contardi, MPH, MPH Program Manager, Medical College of Wisconsin. "By integrating our expertise and commitment to student success, we're creating a dynamic educational pathway that prepares graduates to address complex health challenges and foster innovative connections with communities and healthcare systems." Program participants will be able to access: Diverse perspectives and experiences to help foster a global outlook and prepare them to address public health issues on a local, national, and international scale. Enhanced networking and mentorship, connecting students with professionals and leaders in both academic and public health sectors. Expanded learning opportunities and access to MCW's resources and faculty expertise, including research collaborations, experiential learning, and access to state-of-the-art facilities. Solutions to complex public health challenges and make meaningful contributions to improving community health outcomes. Streamlined pathways to advanced education, allowing students to accelerate their academic journey without sacrificing quality or rigor. The collaboration between Herzing University and the Medical College of Wisconsin represents a significant step forward in advancing healthcare education and preparing future leaders in public health. Through the 4+1 Program, students will receive unparalleled opportunities to enhance their academic and professional growth, ultimately contributing to the betterment of healthcare systems and communities. For more information, please visit the Herzing University and Medical College of Wisconsin websites. About Herzing University Herzing University is an accredited, private nonprofit institution with 11 campuses across eight states and an online division. Founded in 1965 and headquartered in the heart of Milwaukee, more than 40,000 students have graduated from the University's career-focused and flexible master's, bachelor's, and associate degree, and diploma programs. Fields of study include nursing and a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program through Herzing's School of Nursing, as well as programs across healthcare, technology, business, and public safety. Since 2013, U.S. News & World Report has recognized Herzing University annually for having some of the nation's top online programs. Herzing University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. More information about Herzing University is available at www.herzing.edu. About the Medical College of Wisconsin With a history dating back to 1893, The Medical College of Wisconsin is dedicated to leadership and excellence in education, patient care, research, and community engagement. More than 1,400 students are enrolled in MCW's medical school and graduate school programs in Milwaukee, Green Bay, and Central Wisconsin. MCW's School of Pharmacy opened in 2017. A major national research center, MCW is the largest research institution in the Milwaukee metro area and second largest in Wisconsin. In the last 10 years, faculty received more than $1.5 billion in external support for research, teaching, training, and related purposes. This total includes highly competitive research and training awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Annually, MCW faculty direct or collaborate on more than 3,100 research studies, including clinical trials. Additionally, more than 1,600 physicians provide care in virtually every specialty of medicine for more than 2.8 million patients annually. Contact: Brett Gerrish 517-899-7795 [email protected] SOURCE Herzing University HONOREES: Susan Santiago, President, United States and Canada, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts Hospitality Award Richard R. Buery, Jr., Chief Executive Officer, Robin Hood Humanitarian Award Remarks by Former NYS Governor David Paterson & Jonathan M. Tisch, Executive Chairman, Loews Hotels & Co Event Will Feature a Live Broadway Performance from A BEAUTIFUL NOISE, THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On Monday, April 1, 2024, luminaries and executives from the hotel and tourism, Broadway, and nonprofit industries will gather at the "Red Carpet Hospitality Gala," an annual dinner hosted by the Hotel Association of New York City Foundation (HANYC Foundation). The event will feature a special live performance from Broadway's "A BEAUTIFUL NOISE, THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL." The fundraiser will take place at InterContinental New York Barclay in Manhattan. Proceeds support the HANYC Foundation's charitable goals. The event is co-chaired by Vijay Dandapani, President and CEO, Hotel Association of New York City; Heather Davis, Chair, Hotel Association of New York City Foundation; and Fred Grapstein, Chair, Hotel Association of New York City. The HANYC Foundation will honor Susan Santiago, President, United States and Canada, Hyatt Hotels and Resorts, with its Hospitality Award and Richard R. Buery, Jr., Chief Executive Officer, Robin Hood, with its Humanitarian Award. Remarks will be made by former New York Governor David A. Paterson and Jonathan M. Tisch, Executive Chairman, Loews Hotels & Co. The evening will feature a cocktail reception, dinner, musical performance, and an award presentation. Dress is Festive Attire. The Host Committee includes Steve Batta, Group President, Highgate; Simon Chapman, Complex General Manager, Benjamin Royal Sonesta & Fifty Sonesta Select; Peter Clarke, Vice President, Americas Luxury & Lifestyle Hotel Operations, IHG Hotels & Resorts; Jim Connelly, President, U.S. Eastern Region, Marriott International; Charles Flateman, Executive Vice President, Shubert Organization; Karambir Kang, Area Director, USA, Taj Hotels; Suri Kasirer, President, Kasirer; Lisa Linden, Media Strategist, The LAKPR Group; Jaime Novikoff, Counsel, Labor Relations, Legal, Hilton; Mark Pardue, Senior Vice President, Field Operations, Americas, Hyatt Hotels Corporation; Alan Steel, CEO, Javits Center; and Jonathan M. Tisch, Executive Chairman, Loews Hotels & Co. Preferred Sponsors include Aimbridge Hospitality; Hotel and Gaming Trades Council/Local 6 UNITE HERE; and Kasirer. Prime Sponsors include BD Hotels LLC; Club Wyndham Midtown 45; Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP; Fitzpatrick Hotel Group; Forbes Travel Guide; Highgate; Hyatt Hotels; InterContinental New York Barclay for IHG Hotels & Resorts; Marriott Hotels of NYC; Lotte New York Palace; Sonesta; and Triumph Hotels. Established in 1878, (HANYC) the Hotel Association of New York City, Inc. is one of the oldest professional trade associations in the nation. Today the Hotel Association of New York City is an internationally recognized leader in New York City's $7 billion tourism industry, representing nearly 300 of the finest hotels with over 80,000 rooms and approximately 50,000 employees. http://www.hanyc.org/ The HANYC Foundation seeks to advance issues of importance to hotels such as economic viability, sustainability and corporate and social responsibility through educational and crisis relief initiatives. Tickets and tables range from $1,000 to $50,000. To purchase tickets or tables, please visit gala.hanycfoundation.org http://www.hanyc.org/events/ For questions, contact Melanie McEvoy, McEvoy & Associates at [email protected] or 917-699-5948. The HANYC FOUNDATION is a 501c3 non-profit organization. Tax ID #83-3283722. Your donation minus $386 per gala ticket is tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law. SOURCE Hotel Association of New York City Demonstrating Passion for the Role Key for Job Seekers Latest Results from The Harris Poll OKLAHOMA CITY, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As companies receive applications, information and candidates may blend but U.S. hiring managers say certain factors can help prospective employees stand out. This is according to a recent Express Employment Professionals-Harris Poll survey. How Candidates Can Stand Out Demonstrating passion for the role (52%), quantifying their achievements (43%) and showing that they've researched the company (43%) are among hiring managers' top methods for a candidate to stand out to their company. Having a personal referral from someone who works at the company (38%), showing their creativity (36%) and keeping the resume short/concise (36%) may also be beneficial. Beyond Tangible Qualifications About half of job seekers believe, to a company, dependability (52%) and work ethic (49%) are absolutely essential skills/traits for a candidate to possess when applying for a job. At least 2 in 5 also believe communications skills (45%), ability to work well in a team (43%), willingness to learn (43%) and time management skills (40%) are also absolutely essential. Perhaps a sign of a shift in the generational workforce, Millennials, Gen X and boomers/seniors are more likely to consider dependability absolutely essential compared to Gen Z (50%, 58%, 64% vs. 29%). However, Gen Z is far more likely to consider problem-solving skills absolutely essential compared to Millennials and Gen X (56% vs. 38%, 36%). Distinguished From the Competition As U.S. job seekers consider which skills/traits may be important to have, they also think about the ways to stand out when applying to a job. Nearly half of U.S. job seekers say that demonstrating passion for the role (48%) or quantifying achievements (48%) will make them stand out. At least one-third also believe that keeping their resume short/concise (38%) or showing their creativity (33%) will separate them from the competition. No more than 3 in 10 believe reaching out to the company (30%), having a visually appealing resume (30%), including links to relevant work (26%), including contact information upfront (23%), connecting on social media (15%) or including a photo (13%) would be beneficial. Women are more likely than men to believe that demonstrating passion for the role (56% vs. 43%), showing they've researched the company (49% vs. 40%), having a personal referral from someone who works at the company (49% vs. 37%) or including a cover letter with the application (38% vs. 25%) would help them stand out. "In the competitive landscape of job interviews, it is vital for candidates to grasp the importance of standing out," said Bill Stoller, Express Employment International CEO. "It is not merely about meeting basic qualifications, but surpassing expectations with distinct strengths and qualities that make a lasting impact." Survey Methodology The Job Insights survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals between Oct. 31 and Nov. 10, 2023, among 1,007 U.S. hiring decision-makers. The Job Seeker Report was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Express Employment Professionals from November 9 to 26, 2023, among 1,002 adults ages 18 and older. For full survey methodologies, please contact [email protected], Director of Corporate Communications & PR. If you would like to arrange for an interview to discuss this topic, please contact [email protected], Director of Corporate Communications & PR. About Bill Stoller William H. "Bill" Stoller is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment International. Founded in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the international staffing franchisor supports the Express Employment Professionals franchise and related brands. The Express franchise brand is an industry-leading, international staffing company with franchise locations in the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. About Express Employment Professionals At Express Employment Professionals, we're in the business of people. From job seekers to client companies, Express helps people thrive and businesses grow. Our international network of franchises offers localized staffing solutions to the communities they serve across the U.S., Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, employing 492,000 people globally in 2023 and more than 11 million since its inception. For more information, visit ExpressPros.com. SOURCE Express Services dba Express Employment Professionals TSXV: ITR; NYSE American: ITRG www.integraresources.com VANCOUVER, BC, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Integra Resources Corp. ("Integra" or the "Company") (TSXV: ITR) (NYSE American: ITRG) is pleased to announce the completion of its previously announced bought deal public offering, pursuant to which the Company issued a total of 16,611,750 units (the "Units"), including the full exercise of the over-allotment option by the Underwriters (as defined below), at a price of C$0.90 per Unit (the "Offering Price") for aggregate gross proceeds of C$14,950,575 (the "Offering"). Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at an exercise price of C$1.20 for a period of 36 months from the closing of the Offering. The Offering includes an investment made into Integra from a new strategic corporate entity as well as support from current shareholders Beedie Investments Ltd. and Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. The Offering was completed pursuant to an underwriting agreement dated March 7, 2024 entered into among the Company and a syndicate of underwriters led by Cormark Securities Inc., and including BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc., Desjardins Securities Inc., Eight Capital, PI Financial Corp., Raymond James Ltd. and Stifel Nicolaus Canada Inc. (collectively, the "Underwriters"). The Company paid the Underwriters a cash fee of 6% of the aggregate gross proceeds of the Offering, other than in respect of the purchasers on the president's list, for which a cash fee of 3% was paid. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Offering to fund exploration and development expenditures at the DeLamar Project, the Nevada North Project, and for working capital and general corporate purposes. The Offering was conducted by way of a prospectus supplement dated March 7, 2024 (the "Prospectus Supplement") to the Company's existing base shelf prospectus dated January 16, 2024 (the "Base Shelf Prospectus") in each of the provinces and territories of Canada (other than the province of Quebec). The Prospectus Supplement (together with the Base Shelf Prospectus) is available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The Offering remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been registered under United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States, or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. Persons (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act), absent such registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. Company Webinar The Company is pleased to host a corporate update webinar on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 11:00am PST/2:00pm EST. The webinar will feature a presentation from Integra's President, CEO and Director, Jason Kosec, as well as a live Q&A session. A recording of the webinar will be available on Integra's corporate website. To register for the webinar, please use the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_SY-uNxuWR12DXx-9Y8kpSA About Integra Integra is one of the largest precious metals exploration and development companies in the Great Basin of the Western USA. Integra is currently focused on advancing its two flagship oxide heap leach projects: the past producing DeLamar Project located in southwestern Idaho and the Nevada North Project, comprised of the Wildcat and Mountain View deposits, located in northwestern Nevada. The Company also holds a portfolio of highly prospective early-stage exploration projects in Idaho, Nevada, and Arizona. Integra's long-term vision is to become a leading USA focused mid-tier gold and silver producer. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS Jason Kosec President, CEO and Director Some statements ("forward-looking statements") in this news release contain forward-looking information concerning plans related to Integra's business and other matters that may occur in the future, made as of the date of this news release including, but not limited to, the Offering; the use of proceeds thereof. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual events or results to differ from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, risks related to legislative and/or regulatory changes; actual results and timing of exploration and development, mining, environmental services and remediation and reclamation activities; future prices of silver, gold, lead, zinc and other commodities; possible variations in mineral resources, grade or recovery rates; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; Native American rights and title; continued capitalization and commercial viability; global economic conditions; competition; and delays in obtaining governmental approvals or financing or in the completion of development activities. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions that management believes are reasonable at the time they are made. In making the forward-looking statements included in this news release, Integra has applied several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, the assumptions; that Integra will be able to raise additional capital as necessary, that the proposed exploration and development activities will proceed as planned, and that market fundamentals will result in sustained silver, gold, lead and zinc demand and prices. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Integra expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by applicable securities legislation. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. SOURCE Integra Resources Corp. BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Interise, a national economic development nonprofit, is pleased to announce the addition of two new members to its board of directors: Mark Ardayfio, Senior Director of Portfolio and Change Management at Barclays, and Rebecca Karp, Founder and CEO of Karp Strategies. "We are thrilled to welcome Mark and Rebecca to help us shape Interise's future. Their combined experience and expertise will be invaluable as we look forward to another year of collaboration, growth, and making a lasting impact, together," said Darrell Byers, CEO of Interise. "As we head into our 20th anniversary year, we will be celebrating Interise's past as we continue working towards a future where opportunities are accessible to all." Interise's focus is empowering minority business owners and companies located in low-wealth communities and fostering economic inclusivity. Over the last two decades, Interise has supported over 10,000 small businesses in 80 communities on building resiliency and growth. Interise companies are growing at an average of 38%, and they are responsible for creating close to 250,000 jobs. "As someone deeply committed to advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion, I am thrilled to join Interise in their efforts to create an economy where everyone has the opportunity to thrive," said Mark Ardayfio, Senior Director of Portfolio and Change Management at Barclays in NYC. "Their track record of success and dedication to empowering underrepresented entrepreneurs is inspiring, and I look forward to being a part of their impactful work." Mark Ardayfio. Mark has over 15 years of industry and management consulting experience in leading strategic projects, large scale technology-enabled transformations and advising senior clients across the globe. His roles have given him the opportunity to work with, lead and develop diverse and high performing teams in the US, Latin America and Africa. Mark received his B.S.E. In Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, did post-graduate studies in manufacturing at 'L'ENSTA in Paris, received his S.M. In Mechanical Engineering from MIT and his MBA from Harvard Business School. "I am honored to join Interise as a Board Member. As a proud graduate of the Streetwise MBA and Interise Strong programs, I have firsthand experience in the invaluable training and resources this organization provides for small business owners. As a Board Member, I will continue to dedicate myself to empowering women and minority business owners as we work to close the racial and gender wealth gap nationwide - and importantly, will bring my experience as a small business owner into the boardroom," said Rebecca Karp, Founding Principal and CEO of Karp Strategies. "We are in a pivotal and challenging moment, facing daily obstacles in our work towards economic and racial equity. I am excited to join my fellow board members in creating more equitable and inclusive economic opportunities, and as Interise celebrates its 20th year, I'm proud to continue its legacy in pursuing an economy that works for all." Rebecca Karp. Rebecca is the Founding Principal + CEO of Karp Strategies, a leading women-owned community economic development, urban planning and real estate strategy consultancy in New York. She is an unabashed advocate for equitable procurement policies and MWBE/DBE inclusion, and frequently speaks on supplier diversity and building equity in resiliency, workforce development, infrastructure and economic development. Dedicated to building thriving, resilient communities and economies, her firm has supported many of the most important and challenging community economic development and urbanism projects along the East Coast. Rebecca is a proud alumna of Interise's Strategic Steps for Growth, delivered by NYU Stern, and is an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University's School of Preservation, Architecture, and Planning. The Interise Board Chair is Tyrone Foster, owner and CEO of Portland-based Precision Landscape Services, Inc. Learn more about the Board Members on Interise's website: https://interise.org/about/directory/ About Interise Interise (http://www.interise.org) builds diverse and inclusive local economies through small business development, supporting the growth of minority-owned small businesses and small businesses located in low- and moderate-income communities. Interise contributes to inclusive economic development through its national research on the growth of established small businesses and its award-winning business development programs. As Interise companies grow, they contribute to local job creation and build community wealth. Interise companies historically create new jobs at 5x the rate of the private sector and are responsible for the creation of over 30,000 new jobs. Interise partners with government agencies, anchor institutions, and business associations to offer the StreetWise 'MBA' program in 80+ cities nationwide. SOURCE Interise ORLANDO, Fla., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Get ready for the ultimate poke party! On Wednesday, March 20, Island Fin Poke Co., America's favorite poke restaurant, is celebrating its seventh anniversary with an exciting sticker drop for its guests. This sticker is free to all guests who order a bowl on its anniversary and is available at all locations, until supplies last. "Thank you to our Ohana because we wouldn't be where we are today without the love and support," says Mark Setterington. Post this Island Fin Poke Co.'s birthday is on March 20th. In 2017, Mark Setterington, CEO and founder of Island Fin Poke Co. created a poke concept that combined deliciously vibrant flavors and emphasized creating an Ohana-like, or family-like, atmosphere in every location. This ideology and foundation are what set up Island Fin Poke Co. to experience success over the past seven years in over 20 locations across the U.S. "My concept behind this brand was to truly transport guests back to the islands of Hawaii through the flavors and atmosphere we radiate," said Setterington. "Our birthday signifies our brand's commitment to remain as authentic as we can for our guests and introducing a new style of fast-casual poke restaurant. I want to personally thank our Ohana because we would not be where we are today without your love and support!" For this celebration, Island Fin created a colorful sticker that represents the peaceful Hawaiian shores and it's exclusively available on March 20, until supplies last for any guest ordering a fresh poke bowl. This is the third of ten sticker drops this year, and if guests collect all ten, they can be entered in a raffle for the chance to win a customized Island Fin Poke Co. surfboard. "Our birthday means so much to us because we love celebrating with our Ohana. We wanted to give it back to our biggest fans, so we created this exciting prize with a customized surfboard, and the winner will be announced later this year," added Setterington. In the past year, the brand has opened new locations in different communities and states, has introduced multiple new menu items, such as the most recent Nashville Hot Chicken Bowl, always offering their guests an IncrediBOWL experience during each and every visit. Island Fin plans to expand its menu offerings and expand into even more new communities throughout the year. Island Fin has partnered with GNF Worldwide, the world's leading franchising firm, and has been recognized by multiple distinguished franchising publications such as Entrepreneur Magazine, where they earned the reputation of 2023 Top New & Emerging Franchises. For more information on the brand's sticker drops, visit IslandFinPoke.com or stay tuned on social media for sticker drop announcements. For media inquiries, please email Bianca Kasawdish at [email protected]. About Island Fin Poke Co. Island Fin Poke Co. is a Florida-based fast-casual concept known for its Hawaiian-style build-your-own poke bowls. From farm-to-fork, the brand uses the freshest ingredients to bring traditional flavors from the islands to local communities nationwide. Founded in 2017, Island Fin Poke Co. has 23 locations open, with numerous others in various stages of development. Island Fin Poke Co. was ranked #29 on the 2023 Top New & Emerging Franchises list by Entrepreneur Magazine, listed in Fast Casual's 2023 Top Movers & Shakers list, and recognized as a Top 100 Game Changer for 2022 by Franchise Dictionary Magazine. For more information, or if interested in joining the brand's Ohana, please visit https://www.IslandFinPoke.com/. Contact: Bianca Kasawdish Vice President of Public Relations InnoVision Marketing Group [email protected] SOURCE Island Fin Poke Co. Showcasing the Keds Champion, worn by both Christy and Grace, the campaign underscores the versatility of this iconic style, emphasizing Keds' legacy as a classic American brand with a playful and optimistic spirit. Keds was the first sneaker designed expressly for women. As a female-focused brand, Keds is not afraid to be the first, to be the boldest, or to stand up for its core belief of championing the joyful, colorful, unstoppable power of self-expression. Across decades, Keds has been a trusted foundation for self-expression, embraced by style-setters, icons, and everyday rebels. Each generation rediscovers its timeless style, infusing it with new energy a tradition Keds proudly upholds. "Working with Christy and her daughter Grace for our '24 campaign was a natural fit. Both embody the effortless and classic style of the Keds brand. As a majority female led brand, we are also excited by the incredible work Christy does as an advocate for equitable maternal health," says Jennifer Lynch, GM and VP at Keds. Throughout the upcoming year, Keds will be partnering with Every Mother Counts, an organization founded by Christy Turlington Burns, dedicated to ensuring safe, equitable, and respectful pregnancy and childbirth for every mother worldwide. "This was a dream campaign to work on with my daughter who is the inspiration of my advocacy work. We are grateful for the support of Every Mother Counts and our investments around the world to ensure equitable access to safe and respectful maternity care for all," said Turlington Burns. The Spring/Summer collection was brought to life through the lens of photographer Cass Bird, styled by Katelyn Gray, with makeup by Romy Soleimani and hair by Bob Racine. The creative concepting was developed by The Culture Shop and Spring Studios New York. Explore the timeliness style of the classic Keds Champion featured in the campaign and the new Spring/Summer collection at ( www.keds.com ). About Keds For over 100 years, Keds has been making timeless, comfortable, accessible footwear for consumers to step out into the world their way. Ever since the creation of the iconic Keds Champion "sneaker" in 1916, Keds has held the belief that when we feel comfortable inside and out, we can leap forward and make our mark on the world. This belief continues to inspire and drive us every day. We design every product to support everyoneto give them the versatility, comfort, and style they need to live confidently as their truest selves. Keds. Classic for Generations. About Designer Brands Keds is part of the Designer Brands world-class portfolio of Owned Brands. Designer Brands is one of the world's largest designers, producers and retailers of the most recognizable footwear brands and accessories, transforming and defining the footwear industry by inspiring self-expression across every facet of its enterprise. SOURCE Keds PHILADELPHIA, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The milestone 10th Annual Teach Music Week will be celebrated Monday, March 18th through Sunday, March 24th. This annual week-long holiday invites musicians, music schools, music stores and music organizations to offer a free lesson or class to new students (kids & adults). Over 1,200 locations in countries around the world will participate including the U.S., Canada, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom. Come celebrate Teach Music Week with a Free Music Lesson March 18-24. Visit TeachMusicWeek.org to find participating locations near you. Special Thanks to our partners Guitar Center, Music & Arts, School of Rock, Alfred Music, Casio, Conn-Selmer, D'Addario Foundation, Guitars in the Classroom, Hungry for Music, Kala Brand Music, Music Nomad, Panyard, REMO, Spirit of Harmony Foundation Keep Music Alive will also be hosting multiple Musical Instrument Petting Zoo events March 18-24. Visit our KeepMusicAlive.org and click on the Events Tab starting Monday February 19th. These fun & interactive events are like a "please touch musuem" for musical instruments - fun for all ages! Teach Music Week is celebrated annually during the 3rd week of March to coincide with national Music in Our Schools Month. Anyone interested in learning to play an instrument is encouraged to seek out a participating location or musician friend to help get them started. Teach Music Week also invites public, private and charter schools to schedule activities that will encourage more students to sign up for music, band and chorus classes. Vincent James, co-founder of Keep Music Alive states: "Quite often the biggest hurdle to doing something is often just getting started. With Teach Music Week, we are hoping to inspire a new generation of musicians who will continue reaping the many benefits of playing music, long after the month of March is over." Keep Music Alive is honored to welcome the following music brands and organizations as partners for the 10th Annual Teach Music Week: Alfred Music, Casio, Conn-Selmer, D'Addario Foundation, Guitars in the Classroom, Hungry for Music, Kala Brand Music, Music Nomad, Panyard, REMO, Spirit of Harmony Foundation. Together, they are helping to share the Teach Music Week message, inspiring more children and adults to begin their musical journey. Keep Music Alive is also excited to partner once again with Guitar Center and Music & Arts, two retail chains making it easier and more fun than ever to start your music making journey with FREE group guitar lessons to celebrate Teach Music Week Guitar Center 3/16 & 3/23 - RSVP - www.GuitarCenter.com/Lessons-Open-House.gc Music & Arts 2/24 & 3/16 RSVP www.musicarts.com/cms/lessons-open-house Locations from additional chains participating this year include Long & McQuade, Kindermusik, Gymboree Play & Music, Music Together and the legendary School of Rock. Keep Music Alive is also grateful for grant support received from the Les Paul Foundation and Music Nomad's "One for Music" Program. For more information or to find participating locations, please visit www.TeachMusicWeek.org or call or email (610) 874-6312, [email protected] . Keep Music Alive is a national 501(c)(3) non-profit on a mission to help more kids (and adults) reap the educational, therapeutic and social benefits of playing music. They are founders of two international music holidays: Teach Music Week (3rd week in March) and Kids Music Day (1st Friday in October). Each year, Keep Music Alive partners with music school and retail locations to offer free music lessons and host special events including student music performances, instrument petting zoos, community jams, instrument donation drives and more. For more information, please visit www.KeepMusicAlive.org . Music in Our Schools Month is a registered trademark owned by the National Association for Music Education (www.NAfME.org). Media Contact: Vincent James 610-874-6312 [email protected] SOURCE Keep Music Alive Survey of 2,000 teenagers across the United States and Canada exposes a disturbing surge in incidents and discrimination since October 7 attacks on Israel WASHINGTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- BBYO, the world's leading pluralistic Jewish teen Movement, has just completed the first-ever comprehensive survey of Jewish high school students to understand the impact of the October 7 terrorist attacks in Israel and the subsequent rise in antisemitism across the world. The findings are staggering as Jewish teens have seen an increase in antisemitic discrimination and incidents in school and during extracurricular activities since October 7, with more than seven in ten students experiencing harassment either in person or online. BBYO's International President Courtney Saxe speaks at the March For Israel rally in Washington, DC. The survey, conducted in partnership with First International Resources and Impact Research between January 23 and February 5, 2024, involved 1,989 high school students in 9th through 12th grades across the United States and Canada. In all, 71 percent of Jewish teens have experienced antisemitic harassment or discrimination, with 61 percent experiencing it in person, 46 percent experiencing it online, and 36 percent experiencing antisemitism both online and in person. Overall, the data indicates that the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas and the subsequent spread of misinformation and antisemitic rhetoric and violence have had a traumatic impact on Jewish high school students' safety, well-being, and mental health. The discrimination students have faced has left many deeply concerned about going to school, disengaged from certain spaces or activities in their lives, uncomfortable reporting incidents of harassment when they do happen, and factoring in levels of antisemitism in their decision on where to attend college. At the same time, there were also encouraging results for organizations that have been fostering safe spaces and social environments for Jewish teens, with clear data showing that involvement with BBYO has helped students deal with the added stress and anxiety. Nearly three-quarters of BBYO members, 72 percent, say that BBYO has influenced their ability to express their thoughts about Israel and/or antisemitism, and 65 percent say that spending time with their peers in local BBYO chapters helps them find comfort, underscoring the importance of the role Jewish youth-serving and educational institutions now play in the lives of young Jews. "This groundbreaking survey serves as a critical wake-up call, revealing the stark reality that Jewish teens are enduring," says Matt Grossman, CEO of BBYO. "Every Jewish teen deserves to feel safe and supported, and it is incumbent upon us to ensure they have those safe spaces as well as the tools and assistance they need to navigate these turbulent times with strength and pride. We are so proud and grateful that involvement with BBYO has played such a significant role in helping teens cope with elevated levels of stress and anxiety." The survey follows a multi-city 'Listening Tour' with BBYO's CEO conducted in November 2023, just one month after the attacks in Israel. During the tour, Grossman engaged in conversations with groups of teens to understand how they were feeling and how BBYO could help. Three prevailing themes emerged: first, a deep concern among teens regarding their peers' social media behavior, characterized by the dissemination of misinformation without considering its impact on their Jewish peers. Second, there is a need for more reliable and informative resources for teens to not only educate themselves, but to educate their peers, teachers, and administrators, showcasing their desire to advocate for their beliefs. Finally, teens expressed a profound sense of safety and belonging within the BBYO community, emphasizing its role as a safe haven for meaningful engagement. Additional survey findings can be found in the report's Executive Summary, available here. BBYO's Stand Up Against Antisemitism resource page provides teens and parents with the content and tools to fight against antisemitism in all its forms. Through BBYO's partnership with the ADL (Anti-Defamation League), teens are encouraged to report incidents of antisemitism and bias through the joint incident reporting site . About BBYO BBYO is the leading pluralistic Jewish teen movement aspiring to involve more Jewish teens in more meaningful Jewish experiences. Since its founding nearly 100 years ago, BBYO's purpose has been to unleash the power of youth. BBYO's leadership programs, the Aleph Zadik Aleph (AZA, high school fraternity) and the B'nai B'rith Girls (BBG, high school sorority), have been providing exceptional leadership programs and identity enrichment experiences, shaping the confidence and character of hundreds of thousands of alumni who are among the most prominent figures in business, politics, academia, the arts, and Jewish communal life. Together, AZA and BBG form a global Jewish teen movement in over 60 countries around the world that now approaches its Centennial anniversary. With year-round activities in hundreds of local communities, a plethora of summer leadership programs, and inspiring worldwide travel experiences, BBYO's programs enable teens to explore all facets of leadership, service, civic engagement, Israeli education, and Jewish values. For more information on BBYO, please visit our website and connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn. Please note that BBYO should not be referred to as the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization but rather as "BBYO." SOURCE BBYO "The Libbys" showcase librarian favorites like "Yellowface," "Divine Rivals" and "Fourth Wing" alongside the past year's hidden gems CLEVELAND, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Everyone knows the Oscars and the Emmys, and now there's a new award for books selected by one of the most trusted groups in the book community. The inaugural Libby Book Awards honor public librarians' best books of 2023 in 17 different categories. Nominated by an expert librarian panel and voted on by more than 1,700 librarians, the Libby Book Awards are sponsored by Libby, the library reading app, which is used by millions of readers in public libraries across North America The 2023 Libby Book Awards "I'm so honored to be recognized by the Libby Awardslibraries are and always have been central to my life as a reader, from summer reading programs to school projects to simply browsing stacks and apps for my next favorite read," said Kate Clayborn, author of Georgie, All Along, the Libbys Best Romance selection. "I am in awe of librarians and the good they do in their communities and in the country at large, and I treasure their support of my work as an author." From BookTok sensations to a debut mystery thriller, the titles chosen for this year's Libby Book Awards are for books published in 2023 and are sure to be found on many readers' to-be-read lists. The inaugural Libbys showcase riveting stories with dragons, magic and dramatic tales based on true, real-life events. Winners run the gamut from New York Times bestselling author, Rebecca Ross, to novels such as Pageboy. The winning titles of this year's awards were gathered based on the votes of thousands of librarians and library staff members in North America. Here are the winners of the 2024 Libby Book Awards, organized by genre (see the full list of winners and finalists): R.F. Kuang, author of the Libbys Best Book Club Pick Yellowface, added, "As a Libby power user (seriously, I spend so much time scrolling for new audiobooks to listen to during my runs) I am so honored to win a Libby Book Award," said. "I'm sending all my love to the participating library staff I am so grateful for your support of Yellowface!" Rebecca Yarros, the author of Fourth Wing and Iron Flame, is not only a fan favorite of library patrons but of librarians as well. Librarians were also captivated by debut author Ana Reyes and her novel, The House in the Pines, winning the award for Debut Author. Both Fourth Wing and The House in the Pines were also recognized in Libby's list of top titles by circulation in 2023. Powered by OverDrive, Libby is the leading digital content platform for libraries and schools worldwide, providing readers access to their local library's extensive digital collection, including popular ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, comics and more. Through these partnerships, Libby is increasing access to literary resources and igniting the love of reading. To get started with Libby, library patrons can download the Libby app and sign in with a valid library card or sign up for one directly in the app. Readers can view the full list of the winners and nominees for the 2024 Libby Book Awards here. Download the Libby app or visit your local public library to borrow ebooks, audiobooks, magazines and more. About the Libby library reading app Libby is the most popular library reading app in the world. Used by millions of readers through more than 22,000 public libraries in 40 countries, Libby provides easy access to local libraries' digital collections of ebooks, audiobooks, magazines, comic books and more for anyone with a valid library card to borrow. The platform is compatible with all major computers and devices, iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, Chromebook, "Send to Kindle" (U.S. only) and via browser at libbyapp.com. Libby was created by OverDrive, the industry leader in providing digital content for libraries and schools. www.overdrive.com/apps/libby Contact: David Burleigh Director of Communications [email protected] SOURCE OverDrive LiPF6 Market is Segmented by Type (Purity: More than 99.9%, Purity: More than 99.98%), by Application (Electrical Vehicles & Transportation, Consumer Electronics, Industrial Energy Storage). BANGALORE, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global LiPF6 Market is projected to grow from USD 3134.1 Million in 2023 to USD 5467.9 Million by 2029, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.7% during the forecast period. Get Free Sample: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Auto-34C9597/Global_LiPF6_Marke Major Factors Driving the Growth of LiPF6 Market Due to the worldwide move towards clean energy and the growing use of electric mobility, the market for lithium-ion batteries, particularly those used in electric vehicles (EVs) and portable electronic gadgets, is expected to rise at a significant rate. Furthermore, government programmes encouraging the usage of electric cars and developments in battery technology fuel the need for LiPF6, a crucial electrolyte material, which in turn propels market expansion. View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-34C9597/global-lipf6 TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF LiPF6 MARKET The rising need for lithium-ion batteries across a range of sectors is the main driver propelling the LiPF6 market's expansion. Because of these batteries' high energy density, extended cycle life, and quick charging times, they are frequently used in consumer devices, energy storage systems, and electric vehicles (EVs). LiPF6 is necessary for the creation of these high-performance energy storage devices since it is a crucial part of the electrolyte used in lithium-ion batteries. LiPF6 is in high demand due to the electric car market's explosive growth. The use of electric cars is rising as governments over the world put rules into place to lower greenhouse gas emissions and encourage sustainable transportation options. The spread of portable electronics including laptops, tablets, smartphones, and wearable technology is fueling the LiPF6 market's expansion. The power requirements of these devices are met by lithium-ion batteries, which are frequently filled with LiPF6-based electrolytes because of their excellent performance and safety features. The need for LiPF6 to assist battery manufacture is growing along with the global demand for portable devices. Demand for LiPF6 is being driven by the increasing need for energy storage solutions to assist grid stabilization, backup power systems, and integration of renewable energy. Since lithium-ion batteries are scalable, dependable, and efficient, they are frequently utilized in energy storage applications. Battery chemistry technological developments are propelling innovation and expansion in the LiPF6 industry. New materials and formulas are always being investigated by scientists and producers in an effort to enhance the efficiency, security, and affordability of lithium-ion batteries. In order to further increase market potential, this entails creating sophisticated electrolyte formulations based on LiPF6 derivatives. These formulations provide increased thermal stability, greater conductivity, and improved cycle life. The regulatory landscape, which includes laws, requirements, and incentives from the government, is a major factor propelling the LiPF6 market's expansion. The use of energy storage devices, renewable energy technologies, and electric cars is encouraged by several national and regional laws, which has created a favorable business climate for LiPF6 producers and battery makers. The LiPF6 market is expanding as a result of rising investments in the infrastructure used in battery manufacture. Significant resources are being allocated by governments, businesses, and investors to enhance the efficiency and augment the production capacity of lithium-ion battery manufacturing plants. This includes spending on R&D, automation of manufacturing, supply chain optimisation, and the acquisition of raw materials, all of which help LiPF6 providers and spur market expansion. Buy Now: https://reports.valuates.com/api/directpaytoken?rcode=QYRE-Auto-34C9597&lic=single-user LiPF6 MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS With a share of around 70%, the largest sector of LiPF6 globally is 99.9% LiPF6 in terms of product. With a market share of more than 85%, electrical vehicles and transportation represent the largest application category globally. China is the world's top producer of LiPF6, with Japan coming in second. Purchase Regional Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-34C9597/global-lipf6/7 Key Players: foosung co. Shandong Shida Shenghua Yongtai Technology Kanto Denka Stella Chemifa Duofuduo Tinci Materials Jiangsu Jiujiujiu Hubei Hongyuan Ningbo Shanshan Xintai Material Morita New Energy Jiangxi Shilei Fluorine Material Purchase Chapters: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Auto-34C9597/global-lipf6/1 SUBSCRIPTION We have introduced a tailor-made subscription for our customers. Please leave a note in the Comment Section to know about our subscription plans. DISCOVER MORE INSIGHTS: EXPLORE SIMILAR REPORTS! - The global lithium-ion battery market size was valued at USD 46.2 billion in 2022, and the lithium-ion battery industry is projected to reach USD 189.4 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 15.2% from 2023 to 2032. - Lithium Ion Battery Separators market was valued at USD 2904 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 3612.1 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.1% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - 18650 Lithium Battery market size is estimated to be worth USD 5374 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 4691 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of -1.9% during the forecast period 2023-2029. - V-Mount Li-Ion Battery market was valued at USD 129.2 Million in 2022 and is anticipated to reach USD 175.9 Million by 2029, witnessing a CAGR of 4.5% during the forecast period 2023-2029. - Electrolyte Additives for Lithium Ion Battery Market revenue was USD 1092.7 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 2612.2 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 16.8% during the forecast period (2023-2029). - Li-Ion Battery for Power Tool market was valued at USD 1807.8 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 2306.6 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - HNBR for Lithium Battery Market - Residential Energy Storage Lithium-ion Battery market is projected to grow from USD 5500 Million in 2023 to USD 130620 Million by 2029, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 69.5% during the forecast period. - LiDFOP for Lithium-ion Batteries Market - Lithium Ion Battery Testing System Market - Automatic Lithium Battery Wrapping Machine Market - Lithium-Ion Batteries Ceramic Coated Separator Market - Direct Lithium Extraction Technology Services market is projected to reach USD 811 Million in 2029, increasing from USD 52 Million in 2022, with a CAGR of 48.7% during the period of 2023 to 2029. - Lithium-ion Battery Electrolyte Solvent market was valued at USD 1337.3 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 3273.3 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 12.9% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Lithium-ion Battery Materials Market revenue was USD 12000 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 28510 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 13.0% during the review period (2023-2029). - Lithium Sulfides market is projected to reach USD 53 Million in 2029, increasing from USD 6 Million in 2022, with a CAGR of 35.5% during the period of 2023 to 2029. - Lithium Ion Battery Electrolyte Market revenue was USD 2830 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 8915.1 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 17.6% during the forecast period (2023-2029). - LiFSI for Lithium Battery Electrolyte Market revenue was USD 211.2 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 2102.6 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 38.4% during the forecast period (2023-2029). - Conductive Paste for Lithium Ion Battery market is projected to reach USD 14550 Million in 2029, increasing from USD 10800 Million in 2022, with a CAGR of 5.0% during the period of 2023 to 2029. - The global Lithium-ion Battery Cathode Materials market was valued at USD 6720 Million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 8577.8 Million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 3.6% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Pharmaceutical Grade Lithium Carbonate Market revenue was USD 97 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 144.6 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 5.8% during the forecast period (2023-2029). - UHMWPE for Lithium Battery Separator Market - Lithium Battery Electric Scooters Market - Automotive Lithium Ion Battery Pack Market - Asia Pacific Lithium Ion Battery Separator Market - Lithium Iron Phosphate Market - Lithium-Sulfur Battery market was valued at USD 39 Million in 2022 and is anticipated to reach USD 290.6 Million by 2029, witnessing a CAGR of 35.0% during the forecast period 2023-2029 - Lithium-ion Polymer Batteries Market - Lithium Market - Electric Light Vehicle Power Lithium Battery market was valued at USD 7308.8 Million in 2022 and is anticipated to reach USD 14430 Million by 2029, witnessing a CAGR of 10.2% during the forecast period 2023-2029. - Lithium-Ion Battery CNT (Carbon Nano Tube) Conductive Agent Market - High-Purity Crystalline Lithium Hexafluorophosphate Market - Liquid Lithium Hexafluorophosphate Market - Lithium Hexafluorophosphate Electrolyte Market - Lithium Hexafluorophosphate market size is estimated to be worth USD 3070.1 Million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 7247.8 Million by 2029 with a CAGR of 12.9% during the forecast period 2023-2029. - Solute Lithium Salt Market - LiPF6 Electrolyte for lithium-ion Battery Market - Lithium Manganese Oxide (LMO) - Global Market Insights and Sales Trends 2024 Click here to see related reports on LiPF6 Market DISCOVER OUR VISION: VISIT ABOUT US! Valuates offers in-depth market insights into various industries. Our extensive report repository is constantly updated to meet your changing industry analysis needs. Our team of market analysts can help you select the best report covering your industry. We understand your niche region-specific requirements and that's why we offer customization of reports. With our customization in place, you can request for any particular information from a report that meets your market analysis needs. To achieve a consistent view of the market, data is gathered from various primary and secondary sources, at each step, data triangulation methodologies are applied to reduce deviance and find a consistent view of the market. Each sample we share contains a detailed research methodology employed to generate the report. Please also reach our sales team to get the complete list of our data sources. YOUR FEEDBACK MATTERS: REACH OUT TO US! Valuates Reports [email protected] For U.S. Toll-Free Call 1-(315)-215-3225 WhatsApp: +91-9945648335 Website: https://reports.valuates.com Blog: https://valuatestrends.blogspot.com/ Pinterest: https://in.pinterest.com/valuatesreports/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/valuatesreports Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/valuatesreports/ https://www.facebook.com/valuateskorean https://www.facebook.com/valuatesspanish https://www.facebook.com/valuatesjapanese Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1082232/Valuates_Reports_Logo.jpg SOURCE Valuates Reports TAMPA, Fla., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lumina AI, a leading innovator in the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning, is proud to announce the addition of Ed Ingle to its Board of Directors. This appointment marks a significant milestone for Lumina AI, as the company continues to drive advancements in AI with its groundbreaking CPU-based solutions for model training. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, Ed Ingle brings unparalleled experience in public affairs, public policy, and strategic management to Lumina AI. Ed's tenure includes senior roles at Microsoft, the White House, and WPP, where he has demonstrated exceptional leadership and has served as a champion for transparency, accountability, and ethical standards in corporate governance and public affairs. Ed is currently President of New Lantern Partners, a public affairs firm based in McLean, VA, which provides consulting services to transformational startup and early-stage companies in technology, healthcare, and sustainability. During his 16 years at Microsoft, Ed played a pivotal role in managing the company's government affairs, significantly contributing to Microsoft's reputation for transparency and accountability in government advocacy. His expertise in public policy, communication, corporate social responsibility, and business development, coupled with his deep understanding of AI and ML technologies, make him an invaluable asset to Lumina AI. Ed is a recognized thought leader in public affairs having authored the "Government Relations" chapter for the best-selling textbook, Reputation Management, now in its fourth edition. For seven years, Ed also taught a public affairs and ethics course for New York University's graduate program in corporate communication, regarded as one of the top programs in the country. These achievements, along with his active participation in nonprofit organizations such as Operation Hope, highlight his commitment to education, good governance, and community service. "Lumina AI is at the forefront of advancing AI and machine learning technologies, and I am thrilled to be joining their board," said Ed Ingle. "I look forward to contributing to the company's mission of delivering AI technology that is both ground-breaking and socially responsible. I am especially excited about Lumina's RCL technology and its ability to reduce the adverse environmental impact of widespread global adoption of AI." "We are honored to welcome Ed Ingle to our Board of Directors," said Allan Martin, CEO for Lumina AI. "His extensive experience and commitment to innovation and ethical leadership will be invaluable as we continue to develop our LuminaRCL technology and redefine what's possible with regard to efficiency and accuracy in AI and machine learning." With the addition of Ed Ingle to its Board of Directors, Lumina AI reaffirms its commitment to leading the way in AI innovation, ethical technology development, and environmental responsibility. The company looks forward to leveraging his insights and leadership to further its mission of delivering superior, cost-effective AI solutions that drive progress and prosperity. About Lumina AI: Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Tampa, Florida, Lumina AI is a software firm specializing in artificial intelligence and machine learning. The company is dedicated to advancing AI and ML technologies with its innovative LuminaRCL, which offers faster training, superior results, and lower costs and environmental impact by utilizing CPU-based solutions for model training. Lumina AI is committed to pushing the boundaries of AI to solve complex problems and create a positive impact on society. For media inquiries, please contact: [email protected]. SOURCE Lumina NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global medical technologies market size is estimated to grow by USD 313 bn from 2023 to 2027, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.3% during the forecast period. The major Companies have well-established economies of scale and market presence and generally rely on positioning technological advances, and the price of the products. Medical Technologies Market report includes information on the product launches, sustainability, and prospects of leading vendors including Abbott Laboratories, B. Braun Melsungen AG, Baxter International Inc., Becton Dickinson and Co., Boston Scientific Corp., Canon Inc., F. Hoffmann La Roche Ltd., Fresenius SE and Co. KGaA, General Electric Co., Johnson and Johnson Services Inc., Koninklijke Philips NV, Medtronic Plc, Nihon Kohden Corp., Olympus Corp., OMRON Corp., Siemens AG, Smith and Nephew plc, Stryker Corp., Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc., Cardinal Health Inc.. Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Medical Technologies Market 2023-2027 For more insights on the historic (2017 - 2021) and forecast market size (2023-2027) - Request a sample report Medical Technologies Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2022 Historic period 2017 - 2021 Forecast period 2023-2027 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 8.3% Market growth 2023-2027 USD 313 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 7.34 Regional analysis North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of World (ROW) Performing market contribution North America at 41% Key countries US, Germany, France, China, and Japan View a sample report in minutes Market Segmentation by Application In the 21st century, the medical technologies market experiences significant growth, driven by economic expansion, aging populations, and health initiatives. The Act 21st Century Cures facilitates innovation in diagnostic and therapeutic devices. The COVID-19 vaccine development relies on advanced medical technologies like CT scans. Construction of medical facilities continues, while data security becomes crucial with increasing database usage for patient records, such as those related to diabetes and glucose monitoring via continuous monitors. Dublin hosts major medical technology conferences. The Chinese economy's growth fuels demand for medical devices. Data breaches pose threats to email communications containing sensitive medical information. Food technology innovations intersect with medical devices, such as insulin pumps. Factors influcing the market The global health landscape is witnessing a surge in acute and chronic diseases, particularly cardiovascular diseases (CVD), which account for nearly half of all deaths in Europe and over a third in the EU. Advanced imaging technologies play a crucial role in diagnosing and managing these conditions. Wearable devices, including fitness trackers and smartwatches, promote health monitoring and patient-centric care. Genomics and precision medicine are revolutionizing disease treatment and prevention. Value-based care models prioritize patient needs and outcomes, integrating these technologies to enhance healthcare efficiency and effectiveness. and over a third in the EU. Advanced imaging technologies play a crucial role in diagnosing and managing these conditions. Wearable devices, including fitness trackers and smartwatches, promote health monitoring and patient-centric care. Genomics and precision medicine are revolutionizing disease treatment and prevention. Value-based care models prioritize patient needs and outcomes, integrating these technologies to enhance healthcare efficiency and effectiveness. In the medical technologies market, advanced imaging technologies and wearable devices, including fitness trackers and smartwatches, are revolutionizing health monitoring. Genomics and precision medicine are at the forefront of personalized patient-centric care. Automation plays a crucial role in this sector, with hematology analyzers, such as those developed by Danaher, ensuring accurate disease detection in blood samples through rapid, objective, and significant cell counting. Strict regulations and the rise in donations necessitate this level of precision. Value-based care models prioritize these advancements, focusing on improved patient outcomes and cost containment. Market Sizing Advanced medical technologies refer to innovative solutions and tools in the healthcare sector. These include advanced imaging technologies like MRI and CT scans, as well as wearable devices such as fitness trackers and smartwatches. Health monitoring devices, like blood glucose monitors and blood pressure cuffs, are also essential medical technologies. Genomics and precision medicine are emerging areas, utilizing technology to provide personalized healthcare. Patient-centric care and value-based care models are being prioritized, with technologies like telehealth and AI facilitating remote consultations and improved care efficiency. Download Free report in minutes Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation by Product Type 7 Market Segmentation by Distribution Channel 8 Customer Landscape 9 Geographic Landscape 10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 11 Company Landscape 12 Company Analysis 13 Appendix About US Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio Through this agreement, selected UTI-Exton and NASCAR Tech students enrolled in the automotive technology program can work 20-30 paid hours weekly as part of the Early Employment Program. Early Employment participants who remain at MileOne after graduation will be eligible for incentives, including up to $350 in monthly tuition reimbursement and their tool incentive program. "We are focused on helping our students begin rewarding careers in in-demand fields. This partnership with MileOne helps equip our students with the workplace knowledge needed for today's evolving workforce," commented Steve McElfresh, UTI-Exton campus president. Robert Kessler, NASCAR Tech campus president, and regional vice president agreed, "We're proud to partner with MileOne to expand our Early Employment Program and help our students begin their path toward rewarding careers in school and after they graduate." As the largest automotive sales and service delivery network in the Mid-Atlantic area, MileOne Autogroup represents 66 franchises with 24 automotive brands along with 48 service centers in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina as part of the Hall, Heritage, Herb Gordon, Annapolis, and MotorWorld divisions. "We have several MileOne locations near the UTI-Exton and NASCAR Tech campuses. We look forward to working with the students and helping them gain real-world work experience with the potential to join the MileOne family after graduation," commented Courtney Zacharias, director of talent acquisition, at MileOne Autogroup. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates there will be 67,700 annual job openings for automotive service technicians and mechanics through 2032.1 For more information on UTI's programs, please visit https://www.uti.edu/programs. About Universal Technical Institute, Inc. UTI, Inc. (NYSE: UTI) was founded in 1965 and is a leading workforce solutions provider of transportation, skilled trades, and healthcare education programs whose mission is to serve students, partners, and communities by providing quality education and support services for in-demand careers across a number of highly skilled fields. UTI, Inc. is comprised of two divisions: Universal Technical Institute and Concorde Career Colleges. Universal Technical Institute operates 16 campuses located in 9 states and offers a wide range of transportation and skilled trades technical training programs under brands such as UTI, MIAT College of Technology, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute and NASCAR Technical Institute. Concorde operates across 17 campuses in 8 states and online, offering programs in the allied health, dental, nursing, patient care and diagnostic fields. For more information, visit www.uti.edu or www.concorde.edu, or visit us on LinkedIn at @UniversalTechnicalInstitute and @Concorde Career Colleges or on X (formerly Twitter) @news_UTI or @ConcordeCareer. About MileOne Autogroup MileOne Autogroup represents 65 franchises with 24 automotive brands along with 47 Service Centers in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and North Carolina as part of the Hall, Heritage, Herb Gordon, Annapolis, and MotorWorld divisions. The MileOne Autogroup model provides for all of the automotive needs of its customers conveniently, on their own terms. MileOne Autogroup is the largest automotive sales and service delivery network in the Mid-Atlantic area. For more information on MileOne, visit www.mileone.com. 1 For Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects an annual average of 67,700 job openings between 2022 and 2032. Job openings include openings due to net employment changes and net replacements. See Table 1.10 Occupational separations and openings , projected 202232, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, viewed November 16, 2023. UTI and MIAT are educational institutions and cannot guarantee employment or salary. Media Contacts Alanna Vitucci [email protected] 480.710.6843 SOURCE Universal Technical Institute, Inc. NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global mobile health solutions market size is estimated to grow by USD 256.69 bn from 2023 to 2027, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 27.09% during the forecast period. The major vendors have well-established economies of scale and market presence and generally rely on positioning technological advances, and the price of the products. Mobile Health Solutions Market report includes information on the product launches, sustainability, and prospects of leading vendors including Abbott Laboratories, AirStrip Technologies Inc., Apple Inc., athenahealth Inc., Boston Scientific Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Dexcom Inc., Johnson and Johnson Services Inc., Koninklijke Philips NV, Medtronic Plc, Mobile Wellness Solutions MWS Ltd., Omada Health Inc., OMRON Corp., Oracle Corp., Qualcomm Inc., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Veradigm LLC, Fitbit LLC, Nokia Corp., WaveForm Technologies Inc. For more insights on the historic (2017 - 2021) and forecast market size (2023-2027) - Request a sample report Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Mobile Health Solutions Market 2023-2027 Mobile Health Solutions Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2022 Historic period 2017 - 2021 Forecast period 2023-2027 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 27.09% Market growth 2023-2027 USD 256.69 billion Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 25.99 Regional analysis North America, Europe, Asia, and Rest of World (ROW) Performing market contribution North America at 45% Key countries US, Canada, Germany, UK, and China Key benefits for Companies The report offers information on the criticality of vendor inputs, including R&D, CAPEX, and technology. It also provides detailed analyses of the market's competitive landscape and vendors' product offerings. The report also provides a qualitative and quantitative analysis of vendors to help clients understand the wider business environment as well as the strengths and weaknesses of key market players. Data is qualitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as pure play, category focused, industry focused, and diversified; it is quantitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as dominant, leading, strong, tentative, and weak. Expand operations in the future - To get requisite details, ask for a custom report. Customer landscape One of the core components of the customer landscape is price sensitivity, an analysis of which will help companies refine marketing strategies to gain a competitive advantage. Another key aspect is price sensitivity drivers (purchases are undifferentiated, purchase is a key cost to buyers, and quality is not important), which range between LOW and HIGH. Furthermore, market adoption rates for all regions have been covered. The holistic overview of the construction scaffolding rental market by industry experts to evaluate and develop growth strategies.- View a sample report Market Segmentation This Mobile Health Solutions Market report extensively covers market segmentation by End-user (Providers, Patients, Payers) Application (Cardiovascular, Diabetes, Respiratory, Neurology and others) Geography (North America, Europe, Asia, Rest of World (ROW)) Market Segmentation by End-user: The mobile health solutions market in the world is a significant sector, particularly in healthcare segments of countries in regions like Europe and Asia-Pacific. Healthcare providers, including hospitals and clinics, leverage mobile applications and platforms to enhance clinical workflows and communication. These solutions enable the secure and instant sharing of patient data, medical records, test results, and imaging reports via smartphones. This real-time access to critical information improves decision-making, facilitates care coordination, and supports better patient outcomes. According to the latest report, Japan and Italy have high penetration rates, contributing significantly to the market's revenue. Insights into the market segment with regional historic and forecast data Download Free a sample report Market Overview Mobile health solutions, also known as mHealth, encompass the use of mobile devices and wireless technologies in healthcare. The most prevalent application is consumer awareness of preventive healthcare services. mHealth's growth rate is significant, with demand driven by fitness apps and chronic disease management. In the UK and Canada, adoption is high, while challenges exist in Africa due to infrastructure limitations. Tablets are increasingly used for disease surveillance and treatment support. Research questions include data security, interoperability, and regulatory frameworks. Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation by Product Type 7 Market Segmentation by Distribution Channel 8 Customer Landscape 9 Geographic Landscape 10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 11 Company Landscape 12 Company Analysis 13 Appendix About US Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global navigation satellite system market size is estimated to grow by USD 119.57 billion from 2023 to 2027, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of almost 9.44% during the forecast period. The NSS market covers navigation systems like Galileo, GLONASS, Beidou, and GPS, facilitating mapping, navigation, surveying, and real-time positioning across industries. Utilizing signals from satellites in different orbits, these systems enable precise positioning for consumer electronics, vehicles, aviation, maritime, agriculture, and healthcare. Technological advancements, government support, and investments in Big Data, AI, and IoT drive market growth. GNSS finds applications in homeland security, defense, marine, search and rescue, and satellite communication. Challenges include technological degradation and spectrum management. Fusion with 5G, satellite-based augmentations, and personal tracking devices are emerging trends, catering to various sectors like road, aviation, maritime, and military operations. For more insights on the historic (2017 - 2021) and forecast market size (2023-2027) - Request a sample report Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Navigation Satellite System Market 2023-2027 Significant Market Challenges: The Navigation Satellite System market encompasses mapping, navigation, agriculture, and other industries. Technological advancements, such as Galileo and Glonass, enhance capabilities in regions like Europe and Russia. Companies like Rocket Lab develop cost-effective rockets, like Electron, to reduce launch costs and time. Navigation satellite systems provide critical services for smartphones, vehicles, and industries, including aviation, maritime, and agriculture. Adoption of these systems impacts safety, precision, and efficiency. Key players include Trimble and Qualcomm Technologies. Investments in R&D drive innovation, such as Dual-Frequency GNSS, AI, and IoT integration. The market includes homeland security, defense, and space industry applications. Challenges include technology degradation and spectrum management. Value-added services, like corrective services platforms and augmentation services, offer customized solutions. The market is driven by the telecommunication industry, UAVs, and location-based services (LBSs). Emerging trends include the fusion of 5G and GNSS, satellite-based augmentations, and personal tracking devices. Applications include geographical mapping, weather forecasting, and civil defense operations. View a sample report in a minutes Market Segmentation by Application The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) market encompasses mapping and navigation technologies utilizing satellite constellations such as Galileo, Glonass, Beidou, and GPS. This technology impacts various industries, including agriculture, road, homeland security, defense, marine, and space industry. Navigation satellite systems provide real-time positioning, accuracy, and data for applications like autonomous vehicles, fleet management, asset tracking, and location-based services (LBS). In the road sector, GNSS has evolved from basic in-car navigation to intelligent transportation systems, shaping future cars and smart mobility. The consumer market has grown significantly over the past five years, with an annual growth rate of over 60% and a trend towards lower-cost devices. Navigation satellite systems are also adopted in agriculture for precision farming, in consumer electronics like smartphones and tablets, and in industrial applications like the Internet of Things (IoT), Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and artificial intelligence (AI). The technology's capabilities include continuous mobile positioning, high accuracy orientation, and value-added services like 3D modeling, augmented reality (AR/VR), and weather forecasting. GNSS market players include Trimble, Qualcomm Technologies, and Snapdragon, offering dual-frequency (L1 and L5) GNSS and Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC). The GNSS market also supports industries like aviation, maritime, and healthcare, providing location-based services, timing and synchronization, and safety features. However, challenges like technology degradation, cyber-attacks, and spectrum management require ongoing investments and advancements in GNSS technology. Geographic Landscape: North America held the largest share of the global market in 2022, and the market in the region is estimated to witness an incremental growth of 43%. The Navigation Satellite System market in North America, comprising the US, Canada, and Mexico, is significant due to the region's involvement in space exploration programs and advanced infrastructures. The US, led by agencies like NASA and companies such as SpaceX, is developing new systems to meet the growing demand for satellites. The commercial sector's demand for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) is increasing, primarily for navigation, communication, and Location-Based Services (LBS). The US civilian space sector is overseen by NASA, which manages aeronautics research, exploration systems, science, and space operations. GNSS technology impacts various sectors, including mapping, agriculture, and surveying. Galileo, Glonass, Beidou, and GPS are key navigation satellite systems. The availability of GNSS signals is crucial for smartphones, tablets, and in-vehicle systems. Navigation satellite systems have significant implications for homeland security, defense, marine, and search & rescue operations. Technological advancements, such as Dual-Frequency (L1 and L5) GNSS, Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and 888 Mobile Platforms, and Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC), enhance capabilities. GNSS Chip, In-Vehicle Systems, IoT, and Consumer Electronics drive market growth. Government support, investments, and big data applications contribute to the market's development. The GNSS market network includes satellite navigation systems, satellite navigation, communications, and satellite navigation system providers. The telecommunication industry, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and radio-controlled aircraft use GNSS for surveillance, observatory applications, and military and defense purposes. The fusion of 5G and GNSS, satellite-based augmentations, and personal tracking devices offer value-added services and customized solutions. GNSS technology influences various industries, including agriculture, aviation, healthcare, and tourism. Applications include 3D modeling, augmented reality (AR/VR), continuous mobile positioning, high accuracy orientation, and value-added services like telematics, timing and synchronization, gaming, weather forecasting, and Trimble and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.'s corrective services platform. The market is subject to technological degradation, spectrum management, and cyber-attacks. Geostationary satellites, Low Earth orbit (LEO), and Medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites contribute to the landscape. The market's future includes the fusion of 5G and GNSS, satellite-based augmentations, and the adoption of autonomous vehicles, underwater vehicles, unmanned ground vehicles, and military missions. Download a sample report in a minutes Key Company Navigation Satellite System Market is fragmented; the vendors are competing with competitors and are trying to get greater market share. The market is growing, and the chances of new entrants cannot be overlooked. The major vendors have well-established economies of scale and market presence and generally rely on positioning technological advances, and the price of the products. Navigation Satellite System Market report includes information on the product launches, sustainability, and prospects of leading vendors including Alps Alpine Co. Ltd., Advent International Corp., Beijing UniStrong Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Broadcom Inc., ComNav Technology Ltd., Frequency Electronics Inc., Furuno Electric Co. Ltd., GNS Electronics GmbH, Hexagon AB, Intel Corp., Microsemi Corp., NavtechGPS Inc., Qualcomm Inc., Safran SA, SkyTraq Technology Inc., STMicroelectronics NV, Trimble Inc., u blox AG, Collins Aerospace, MediaTek Inc. Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation by Product Type 7 Market Segmentation by Distribution Channel 8 Customer Landscape 9 Geographic Landscape 10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 11 Company Landscape 12 Company Analysis 13 Appendix About US Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio OSLO, Norway, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nel ASA (Nel) (OSE: NEL) - The US Department of Energy (DOE) and the state of Michigan have awarded a collective USD 75 million in cash incentives and grants for Nel's next electrolyser production facility in Michigan. "The support from the Department of Energy and the state of Michigan is crucial for realizing our factory, which will create new green industrial jobs and be a significant contribution to the energy transition," says Nel's President and CEO, Hakon Volldal. "It is encouraging to see the Department of Energy taking these strategic steps to stimulate a clean energy economy, and we appreciate their long-time support to take our products from R&D to commercial products," he says. On 13 March, the Department of Energy announced that they have granted Nel USD 50 million in direct investment support for the company's planned new US gigafactory and workforce development initiatives in the Detroit region. Partnering with General Motors, Macomb Community College, Wayne State University's College of Engineering, and others, DOE's investment will further enhance domestic electrolyser manufacturing production capacity while building a robust clean hydrogen value chain and an industrialized manufacturing training program. In parallel, the state of Michigan awarded USD 25 million in direct investment support to lead the nation in the clean energy transition. "By harnessing our Make it in Michigan Competitiveness Fund and partnering with the Biden-Harris Administration, we are creating more than 500 good-paying, high-tech jobs in Plymouth," says Governor Whitmer. "Today's investment in Nel Hydrogen will create a hydrogen production facility and ensure we stay on the cutting-edge of clean energy production and advanced manufacturing. Let's keep working together to bring jobs and projects home as we grow our economy and deliver for Michigan families." "Today's announcement is another example of how Michigan is leading America's technology and clean energy future," says Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II. "Because of a matching investment from the Michigan Competitiveness Fund, this federal grant will enable our partners to create more than 500 good-paying, high-tech jobs in Plymouth. Governor Whitmer and I will keep working to create jobs and win projects that will grow our economy and help more people `make it' in Michigan." Nel has previously been awarded approximately USD 50 million from the state of Michigan in support of this electrolyser production facility (see the press release issued on 8 July 2023). Total support from federal and state authorities amounts to approximately USD 125 million. Fully built out, the Michigan site is expected to have an annual nameplate production capacity of 4 GW. In the planned new facility, Nel will manufacture its next-generation electrolyser technologies: the PEM stacks currently being developed together with General Motors, and pressurized alkaline stacks. A final investment decision has not yet been made and depends on market demand for electrolysers. For additional information, please contact: Kjell Christian Bjrnsen, CFO, +47 917 02 097 Lars Nermoen, Head of Communications, +47 902 40 153 About Nel ASA | www.nelhydrogen.com Nel has a history tracing back to 1927 and is today a leading pure play hydrogen technology company with a global presence. The company specializes in electrolyser technology for production of renewable hydrogen, and hydrogen fueling equipment for road-going vehicles. Nel's product offerings are key enablers for a green hydrogen economy, making it possible to decarbonize various industries such as transportation, refining, steel, and ammonia. This information is subject to a duty of disclosure pursuant to Section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act. This information was issued as inside information pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation, and was published by Kjell Christian Bjrnsen, Chief Financial Officer, at NEL ASA on the date and time provided. Forward-looking statements: This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they reflect the company's current expectations and assumptions as to future events and circumstances that may not prove accurate. A number of material factors could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/nel-asa/r/nel-asa--receives-additional-usd-75-million-in-support-for-michigan-facility,c3945534 The following files are available for download: High-performance Titan coolers launched at Walmart include exclusive designs and colors TORONTO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- California Innovations, a pioneer in insulated outdoor products, has joined forces with retail giant Walmart to offer a new collection of premium Titan by Arctic Zone insulated coolers. This marks the first time the Titan brand is available in Walmart stores, offering customers high-performance, feature rich and durable coolers in exclusive colors. Titan premium coolers launch in select Walmart stores nationwide Post this New collection of Titan high-performance insulated coolers debut in select Walmart stores nationwide, including exclusive designs and colors The Titan coolers sold exclusively at Walmart include a new Titan Collapsible Zipperless soft sided cooler, rugged welded coolers and best-selling Titan coolers in captivating new colors developed specifically for Walmart. The standout products are engineered with Deep Freeze Performance Insulation to retain ice and maintain cold temperatures for days. They include: New Titan 40-Can Collapsible Zipperless Cooler: This Walmart exclusive has an easy flip-open patent pending Zipperless lid, built-in Microban antimicrobial protection, and is collapsible for easy storage. ($37) Cooler: This Walmart exclusive has an easy flip-open patent pending Zipperless lid, built-in Microban antimicrobial protection, and is collapsible for easy storage. Best-Selling Titan 60-Can Wheeled Cooler: Features a detachable all-terrain cart, a rugged coated exterior with an insulated front compartment, built-in Microban antimicrobial protection, and can hold up to 100 lbs. ($67) antimicrobial protection, and can hold up to 100 lbs. Popular Titan Zipperless HardBody Coolers: Available in 12, 24 and 30-can sizes, these coolers feature a patented flip-open Zipperless lid, HardBody liner with a SmartShelf separator, and a water and stain resistant, wipe-clean exterior. ( $30 - $45 ) HardBody Coolers: Available in 12, 24 and 30-can sizes, these coolers feature a patented flip-open Zipperless lid, HardBody liner with a SmartShelf separator, and a water and stain resistant, wipe-clean exterior. ( - ) Versatile Titan 24-Can Backpack Cooler: The insulated main compartment has a leak proof lining with built-in Microban antimicrobial protection, and the tough coated exterior features an insulated compartment, several storage pockets and adjustable, padded backpack straps. ($40) antimicrobial protection, and the tough coated exterior features an insulated compartment, several storage pockets and adjustable, padded backpack straps. Rugged, Long-Lasting Titan Welded Coolers: With a waterproof, puncture resistant exterior, these welded coolers defy the elements, making them durable and easy to clean. They come in a variety of sizes (12, 24 and 36-can) as well as in a 24-can backpack and a 30-can tote style. ( $40 - $84 ) California Innovations has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with Walmart, leading up to the new Titan collaboration. Mel Mogil, president of California Innovations, emphasized its significance, stating: "Walmart's adoption of Titan by Arctic Zone underscores its commitment to offer customers top-tier, high-performance coolers at a great value. As outdoor activities continue to rise in popularity, we are proud to offer Walmart shoppers a range of innovative and durable cooler options that cater to their needs." Titan by Arctic Zone coolers for Walmart can be purchased in select stores nationwide and at walmart.com. About California Innovations Since 1986, California Innovations has been at the forefront of innovation in insulated products for outdoor enthusiasts with many "firsts" in the category. We acquired the Arctic Zone brand in 2005 and soon after began licensing Columbia products. Next, we introduced Titan by Arctic Zone, a line of high-performance, feature rich insulated products that retain ice for multiple days. Today, our insulated products enjoy vast penetration across North American and international retail channels ranging from Walmart, Costco and Target to Kroger, Walgreens, Carrefour, Big W and ASDA. We've expanded beyond our Toronto headquarters, to open offices in Montreal, Chicago and Shenzhen. Throughout this growth, our focus has remained steadfast. We're still determined to create the best, most innovative insulated products around. SOURCE California Innovations Inc. TORONTO, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Little is known about the willingness of sexual minority adults--people who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other nonheterosexual orientation identities--to use digital health tools. A new study, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research by Dr Wilson Vincent of Temple University, has shed light on this question in the context of public health screening and tracking. The research challenges assumptions about the uptake of such technologies, particularly amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr Vincent notes that past studies have seldom looked into how willing sexual minority groups are to use digital health tools, particularly in relation to pandemics or non-HIV prevention measures. In the COVID-19 era, use of cutting-edge mHealth tools such as smartphone apps for screening, monitoring, and treating the virus has skyrocketed, marking a thrilling advancement in health care technology. Yet, how enthusiastic are people about embracing these new technologies? To answer this question, Dr Vincent used data from the COVID Impact Survey, which was conducted during the height of the COVID-19 response in the United States and surveyed over 2000 people. A deep dive into this publicly available data set revealed that sexual minority adults showed a greater willingness to use digital health tools for screening and tracking compared to heterosexual adults. Interestingly, there were no notable differences in this group in terms of age, gender, or race/ethnicity. On the flip side, White heterosexual adults showed a disproportionately low willingness to use such tools. The findings show how important it is to make digital health tools work for everyone. Diverse populations should be considered in the development and implementation of digital health strategies, particularly during public health crises. By understanding and meeting the needs of sexual minority adults, policymakers and health care workers can make health strategies better and fairer for all. The study also highlights the need for ongoing research into the digital divide among different demographic groups. Gaining insights into the factors that shape one's readiness to interact with digital health tools can guide the creation of tailored interventions aimed at closing current disparities in health care accessibility and adoption. Future studies that delve into the various dynamics involved can help create health care solutions that work for everyone, no matter their sexual orientation or other demographic factors. Please cite as: Vincent W. Willingness to Use Digital Health Screening and Tracking Tools for Public Health in Sexual Minority Populations in a National Probability Sample: Quantitative Intersectional Analysis J Med Internet Res 2024;26:e47448 doi: 10.2196/47448 URL: https://www.jmir.org/2024/1/e47448 About JMIR Publications JMIR Publications is a renowned publisher with a long-standing commitment to advancing digital health research and progressing open science. Our portfolio includes a wide array of prestigious open access, peer-reviewed journals dedicated to the dissemination of high-quality research in the field of digital health. JMIR Publications is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024 as the leading open access, digital health publisher. To learn more about JMIR Publications, please visit jmirpublications.com or connect with us via X (Twitter), LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram. Head office: 130 Queens Quay East, Unit 1100, Toronto, ON, M5A 0P6 Canada Media contact: [email protected] The content of this communication is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, published by JMIR Publications, is properly cited. This news release was issued on behalf of Newswise. For more information, visit http://www.newswise.com. SOURCE JMIR Publications The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) approval is yet another indication of NoTraffic's commitment to the highest safety and quality standards Tel Aviv, Israel, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NoTraffic, the developer of the world's leading AI Mobility Platform, today announced that it has received approval from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to operate in the state, accompanied by substantial successful implementations of NoTraffic's systems in various locations including Collier County, Pasco County, Orlando, and more. This significant milestone underscores NoTraffic's unwavering commitment to the highest safety and future-ready standards. It also marks a transformative step forward in making roads safer, more efficient, and ready for connected vehicles, signaling a major advancement in the rollout of their state-of-the-art traffic management technologies across Florida. The FDOT certification is renowned for its rigorous approval process, and NoTraffic successfully navigating this stringent assessment reinforces its position as a trailblazer in the industry. With FDOT's approval, NoTraffic is now poised to deploy its state-of-the-art traffic management solutions across agencies in Florida, enhancing traffic efficiency and safety, and preparing the roads for connected vehicles. This approval will enable further opportunities within the state but also showcases that NoTraffic is a viable choice for other states seeking innovative mobility solutions. NoTraffic utilizes edge computing technology, pioneering unparalleled software-defined infrastructure that facilitates real-time decision making at both local and cloud levels. The technology also provides a SaaS platform that offers a first-ever mobility store, which provides one-stop-shop access to multiple applications for enhanced safety, data analysis, efficiency, detection and more. On one single, unified platform, NoTraffic allows Departments of Transportation and other stakeholders to effortlessly introduce and manage mobility services customized to meet today's traffic needs and tackle tomorrow's challenges. "Receiving approval from the Florida Department of Transportation is a significant achievement for NoTraffic, as it marks a milestone in our journey towards revolutionizing traffic management," said Tal Kreisler, CEO and Co-Founder of NoTraffic. "This endorsement not only opens doors for us in Florida but also positions NoTraffic as a trusted partner for traffic agencies and states across the nation. This reflects our hard earned commitment to creating a safer, more efficient future for North American roadways." NoTraffic's innovative platform combines hardware components, AI-powered software modules, a cloud-based mobility operating system (MOS), and 24/7 proactive support. By leveraging a network of smart sensors deployed at signalized intersections, conflict points, or complex roadways, the platform gives traffic authorities and infrastructure operators the ability to fully control and prioritize traffic flow for all kinds of transportation cars, bicycles, buses, pedestrians and more Having achieved FDOT approval, NoTraffic is ready to take on the challenges of traffic management across North America. The platform is deployed in numerous locations across North America, and is operating currently in more than 24 states, including in California, Texas, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, parts of Canada and more, serving millions of drivers per day. They were recognized and awarded as a TIME100 Most Influential Company. About NoTraffic NoTraffic, the developer of the world's leading mobility platform, is on a mission to digitize the backbone of transportation and streamline the next generation of traffic mobility. The company's end-to-end, mobility management platform leverages AI and edge computing to retrofit signalized intersections into one fully automated, cloud-connected hub. In less than 2 hours of installation, the platform can classify all road users including private vehicles, public transportation, emergency services, pedestrians and more and respond accordingly to traffic conditions in real-time to reduce travel times and CO2 emissions and improve safety. Ranked in TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential Companies list, NoTraffic is trusted by leading states in North America and has formed strategic partnerships with major communication giants such as AT&T and Rogers Communications. The company was founded in 2017 by Tal Kreisler, Uriel Katz, and Or Sela. Media Contact Mike Katznelson [email protected] IL:+972 58 428 8810 US: +1 914 233 5302 UK: +44 203 769 0660 WWW.HEADLINE.MEDIA SOURCE NoTraffic DUBENDORF, Switzerland , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Odne Ltd, a Swiss dental start-up company and upcoming innovator in endodontic treatments, is pleased to announce the closing of its Series A1 Financing Round raising USD 5.5 million (CHF 4.8 million) to fund the upcoming US market launch. Odne's game-changing technology platform for Root Preservation Therapy (RPT) is expected to transform endodontics. The Odne RPT workflow introduces three new medical devices enabling minimal invasive root canal cleaning and light-cured obturation. Odne`s technology platform for root canal debridement and obturation including: the first hydro-dynamic cavitation device using saline as main debridement medium, and the first FDA cleared highly flowable, light-cured obturation material. The Series A1 round is led by Revere Partner (NY), an independent venture fund providing capital for cutting-edge innovations in oral and systemic health, and NV Capital (LIE), a family-owned venture capital boutique. Alongside the lead investors several other renowned funds such as Dental Innovation Alliance (DIA), Plug&Play, Hatcher, Zuricher Kantonalbank, as well as various family offices and angel investors are backing Odne`s US market launch. "With over 15 million root canal treatments per year, the US is the biggest market worldwide and our number one focus. Currently, we are performing a Priority Access Program to deepen the use of our products with selected US key opinion leaders. At the annual meeting of the American Association of Endodontists (AAE) in April, in Los Angeles, we will introduce the Odne RPT workflow solution to the endodontic community," states Dr. Andreas Schmocker, CEO & Co-Founder, Onde. "Odne is within the core investment focus of Revere Partners: innovations in oral health. After receiving FDA clearance for OdneCure and OdneFill in 2023 the series A1 financing fuels Odne`s US market launch to the endodontic community. Together with all investors, Revere Partners is proud to elevate Odne`s RPT workflow for the benefit of patients, endodontists, and the referring general dentists," adds Dr. Jeremy Krell, Managing Partner, Revere Partners. To serve the US endo specialist market, Odne has recently founded Odne Inc, USA. The team of Odne is evolving, incorporating experienced and well-connected dental experts, building training, service, marketing, and sales. About Odne Odne (Onde Ltd and Odne Inc) is a Swiss-US dental startup. that has its roots in a groundbreaking collaboration between two renowned universities: the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology in Lausanne and Zurich (EPFL & ETH Zurich). Founded in 2018, Odne`s journey began by licensing cutting-edge technology assets from these esteemed institutes. Odne represents a harmonious synergy of Swiss precision and academic excellence. Our company is committed to pioneering the future of endodontics through advanced technology and innovative solutions. Endodontics, the field of dental medicine that deals with root canal treatments, has been marred by complexity and unpredictability. Odne AG is on a mission to change that. Root canal treatments have long posed challenges for dentists, with traditionally low success rates ranging from 46% to 91%. With over 60 million annual treatments worldwide, these failures result in significant healthcare costs. Odne's technology platform addresses these issues by offering treatment options for both, dentists and their patients. Our products, slated for launch in 2024, tackle problems such as debridement and obturation in complex root canal morphologies. About Revere Partners Revere Partners is the first and only venture capital fund globally focused on investing in oral health technology. Revere invests in cutting-edge and innovative dental technology companies that improve the lives of dental patients and providers through advancements in science and technology. Revere Partners invites new accredited investors to join the fund and enables startups to connect with unrivaled industry resources and growth opportunities. Founded by Dr. Jeremy Krell and David Arena, Revere Partners fosters strategic partnerships that improve care delivery as well as patient and provider experiences maximizing value for investors. To learn more visit www.reverepartnersvc.com or on LinkedIn. About NV Captial N & V Capital is a family-owned venture capital boutique focused on European investments in various sectors such as Fintech, MedTech, and Digital Health. With generations of entrepreneurial experience, N & V seeks scalable ventures driven by technology or scientific progress. The boutique brings its own entrepreneurial experience to the table and offers its extensive network and expertise to visionary founders seeking sustainable growth for their companies. Although N & V Capital invests up to Series A, the main focus is on early-stage investments. Disclaimer: OdneFill and OdneCure are cleared for use in the U.S.A only. All other Odne devices are currently in development and have not received clinical approval in any jurisdiction. Odne`s technology platform for root canal debridement and obturation including: the first hydro-dynamic cavitation device using saline as main debridement medium, and the first FDA cleared highly flowable, light-cured obturation material. For further information contact: Holger Essig, General Manager / Head of Global Marketing Odne AG, Ringstrasse 14, 8600 Dubendorf, Switzerland [email protected] www.odne.co SOURCE Odne Inc. CHICAGO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Open Banking Solutions Market will grow internationally in the future due to changing rules, more cooperation, and integration with cutting-edge technologies. In order to promote financial inclusion, prioritise security and trust, and concentrate on customer-centric solutions, broader use cases, and improved data analytics, it will push ongoing innovation in the financial services sector. The Open Banking Solutions Market size is expected to grow from USD 5.5 billion in 2023 to USD 11.7 billion by 2028 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 16.0% during the forecast period, according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. Stringent regulations like PSD2 and CMA Order drive adoption of the market, innovations in APIs, data analytics, and cybersecurity, and Fintech companies offering agile solutions that disrupt traditional banking models are a few fundamental driving forces to leverage Open Banking solutions adoption across verticals and regions. Browse in-depth TOC on "Open Banking Solutions Market" 250 - Tables 60 - Figures 210 - Pages Download PDF Brochure @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=160940134 Scope of the Report Report Metrics Details Market size available for years 2019-2028 Base year considered 2022 Forecast period 20232028 Forecast units Value (USD Billion) Segments Covered Offering, Solutions, Services, Application, Digital channel, Deployment Model, and End users Regions covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America Companies covered Plaid (US), Envestnet (US), MX technologies (US), Finicity (US), Tink (Sweden), Worldline (France), Trustly (Sweden), Axway software (US), Volt.io (UK), Temenos (Switzerland), Fabrick (Italy), Intuit (US), ndgit (Germany), Akana (US), Yapily (UK), Salt Edge (Canada), Token.io (Germany), Fiorano (US), TrueLayer (UK), Bud Financial (UK), OpenPayd (UK), Finastra (UK), Google (US), Sopra Banking software (France), BBVA (Spain) The managed services segment will record a higher CAGR by services during the forecast period. Managed services play a vital role in the Open Banking Solutions Market by offering comprehensive support throughout the lifecycle of available banking platforms. Support and maintenance services ensure systems' continuous functionality and reliability, addressing technical issues and facilitating software updates. Concurrently, performance monitoring and optimization services track system performance, identify bottlenecks and optimize operational efficiency, enabling organizations to deliver seamless and responsive user experiences. Additionally, managed services assist in vendor selection and procurement, aiding organizations in choosing suitable technology partners and negotiating contracts. This involves evaluating vendors based on their capabilities, security protocols, and compliance with regulatory requirements. By leveraging managed services in open banking, businesses can streamline operations, enhance system performance, and make informed decisions in vendor selection, ultimately ensuring their open banking initiatives' sustained success and resilience. Request Sample Pages@ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=160940134 Based on the Application segment, Payment holds the largest Open Banking Solutions Market share during the forecast period. Payment services are a cornerstone of open banking solutions, revolutionizing transactions and enhancing the overall customer experience. By leveraging open banking APIs, third-party providers (TPPs) gain secure access to customer accounts, enabling seamless payment initiation directly from bank accounts. This facilitates a wide range of payment options, including peer-to-peer transfers, bill payments, and online shopping, all executed with unprecedented speed and convenience. Furthermore, open banking fosters competition and innovation in the payment space as TPPs develop new and innovative payment solutions that cater to specific consumer needs and preferences. With real-time access to account data and enhanced security measures, open banking payment services offer consumers greater control, transparency, and confidence in their financial transactions. As a result, payment solutions within the open banking ecosystem drive efficiency, convenience, and trust, ultimately reshaping how individuals and businesses interact and transact in the digital economy. By region, the Middle East & Africa region recorded the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The Middle Eastern countries are rapidly adopting technological advancements and investing in knowledge-based economies. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are leading the way in adopting API management, leading to their development dominance. As Middle Eastern organizations focus on generating revenue and outsourcing to third-party managed service providers, adopting Open Banking solutions is accelerating in the region to reduce costs and save time. The Middle East & Africa (MEA) region, the Open Banking Solutions Market is gradually emerging as a transformative force in the financial industry. While the adoption of open banking is still in its early stages compared to other regions, there is growing momentum driven by regulatory initiatives, technological advancements, and changing consumer behaviors. Regulatory bodies in several MEA countries are exploring frameworks to promote open banking to increase competition, improve financial transparency, and enhance customer choice. Fintech startups and traditional banks are beginning to collaborate to leverage open banking APIs and develop innovative financial products and services. Key focus areas include digital payments, peer-to-peer lending platforms, personal finance management tools, and digital identity solutions. As awareness and understanding of open banking grow in the MEA region, it is expected to catalyze further innovation, drive financial inclusion, and transform how people access and manage their finances. Top Key Companies in Open Banking Solutions Market: Some of the key players operating in the Open Banking Solutions Market are Plaid (US), Envestnet (US), Tink (Sweden), Finicity (US), Trustly (Sweden), MX Technologies (US), Worldline (France), Volt.io (UK), Temenos (UK), among others. Recent Developments In February 2024 , MX Technologies partnered with Trustly, intending to integrate MX's data enhancement services into Trustly's Open Banking product suite, thereby enriching the payment experiences of 8,300+ international merchants and their consumers who utilize Trustly's 'Pay with Bank' method. Using its proficiency in open finance APIs, Trustly will assist businesses in maximizing the potential of their financial data. Merchants can delve deeper into consumer behaviors by refining and categorizing transaction data, obtaining more accurate insights. This service empowers merchants to deliver personalized marketing promotions and loyalty programs, enriching the consumer journey and nurturing stronger bonds between merchants and their clientele. , MX Technologies partnered with Trustly, intending to integrate MX's data enhancement services into Trustly's Open Banking product suite, thereby enriching the payment experiences of 8,300+ international merchants and their consumers who utilize Trustly's 'Pay with Bank' method. Using its proficiency in open finance APIs, Trustly will assist businesses in maximizing the potential of their financial data. Merchants can delve deeper into consumer behaviors by refining and categorizing transaction data, obtaining more accurate insights. This service empowers merchants to deliver personalized marketing promotions and loyalty programs, enriching the consumer journey and nurturing stronger bonds between merchants and their clientele. In January 2024 , Risk Signals was launched by Tink, which conducts real-time risk checks during the payment process. Risk Signals provides a quick assessment of transactions in seconds while the payer progresses through the payment process, resulting in less disruption to the user experience. Risk Signals formulates a suite of demonstrated risk checks for each bank and market based on Tink's pan-European bank connectivity. Risk Signals' key features are live balances for real-time verification of a user's ability to pay, transaction history to assess fraud risk, and velocity checks to mark suspicious transaction activities. , Risk Signals was launched by Tink, which conducts real-time risk checks during the payment process. Risk Signals provides a quick assessment of transactions in seconds while the payer progresses through the payment process, resulting in less disruption to the user experience. Risk Signals formulates a suite of demonstrated risk checks for each bank and market based on Tink's pan-European bank connectivity. Risk Signals' key features are live balances for real-time verification of a user's ability to pay, transaction history to assess risk, and velocity checks to mark suspicious transaction activities. In October 2023 , Plaid entered into a deal with Fiserv to enable secure and reliable data sharing through APIs while addressing growing consumer demand to access their financial information according to their suitable time, location, and manner. With this deal, consumers who bank with nearly 3,000 bank and credit union clients hosted by Fiserv will now have secure, credential-less API-based connectivity to more than 8,000 applications and services on the Plaid network via Fiserv's AllData Connect, allowing consumers to share their financial information with the third-party financial apps and services of their choice. , Plaid entered into a deal with Fiserv to enable secure and reliable data sharing through APIs while addressing growing consumer demand to access their financial information according to their suitable time, location, and manner. With this deal, consumers who bank with nearly 3,000 bank and credit union clients hosted by Fiserv will now have secure, credential-less API-based connectivity to more than 8,000 applications and services on the Plaid network via Fiserv's AllData Connect, allowing consumers to share their financial information with the third-party financial apps and services of their choice. In October 2023 , Envestnet launched its embedded investment solution to provide a digitalized process for banks, credit unions, and financial advisors that will offer investing solutions within their (the banks, credit union entities) own apps and websites to customers within their existing banking experience. The service, consisting of diversified portfolios invested in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and optional thematic stocks, enables financial institutions to retain deposits within their ecosystem and serve smaller account sizes digitally. , Envestnet launched its embedded investment solution to provide a digitalized process for banks, credit unions, and financial advisors that will offer investing solutions within their (the banks, credit union entities) own apps and websites to customers within their existing banking experience. The service, consisting of diversified portfolios invested in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and optional thematic stocks, enables financial institutions to retain deposits within their ecosystem and serve smaller account sizes digitally. In June 2023 , Financial institutions and fintech firms can now exchange vital fraud intelligence across Plaid thanks to the launch of Beacon by Plaid, a cooperative anti- fraud network. Inquire Before Buying@ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=160940134 Open Banking Solutions Market Advantages: Open banking solutions make it possible for financial data and services to be seamlessly integrated across a variety of platforms, giving clients a streamlined, individually designed banking experience. By allowing third-party developers to use open APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) to create creative financial products and services, open banking promotes a more competitive environment. Customers benefit from more options and value as a result. Open banking gives users access to a greater range of financial services and products, such as loan comparison tools, investing platforms, and budgeting applications, by allowing them to safely share their financial data with approved third parties. By combining financial data from several banks and financial organisations onto a single platform, open banking solutions make account aggregation easier and give users a comprehensive picture of their money. By enabling businesses to begin payments directly from consumers' bank accounts, open banking APIs reduce dependency on conventional payment methods like credit cards and checks and enable faster and more efficient payments and transactions. Through creative financial products and services, open banking solutions provide affordable substitutes for traditional banking services, enabling companies to optimise operations, save transaction costs, and enhance cash flow management. Financial institutions can access real-time financial data and insights through open banking systems, which improves risk assessment and management procedures for lending, investing, and compliance. By offering safe APIs for data sharing and transaction initiation, open banking solutions assist financial institutions in adhering to regulatory obligations such as the PSD2 (Revised Payment Services Directive) in Europe and other rules of a similar nature worldwide. Report Objectives To define, describe, and forecast the Open Banking Solutions Market based on offering, application, digital channel, deployment model, end user, and region To offer comprehensive details regarding the primary variables impacting the market's growth (drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges) To determine the high-growth market sectors in order to assess the opportunities for stakeholders in the market To forecast the market size with respect to five main regionsNorth America, Europe , Asia Pacific , the Middle East & Africa , and Latin America , , the & , and To analyze the subsegments of the market with respect to individual growth trends, prospects, and contributions to the overall market To profile the key players of the market and comprehensively analyze their market size and core competencies To track and analyze the competitive developments, such as product enhancements, product launches, acquisitions, partnerships, and collaborations, in the Open Banking Solutions Market globally. Browse Adjacent Markets: Software and Services Market Research Reports & Consulting Related Reports: Influencer Marketing Platform Market - Global Forecast to 2028 Video on Demand Market - Global Forecast to 2028 Web 3.0 Market - Global Forecast to 2030 eDiscovery Market - Global Forecast to 2027 Human Capital Management Market - Global Forecast to 2026 About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets has been recognized as one of America's best management consulting firms by Forbes, as per their recent report. MarketsandMarkets is a blue ocean alternative in growth consulting and program management, leveraging a man-machine offering to drive supernormal growth for progressive organizations in the B2B space. We have the widest lens on emerging technologies, making us proficient in co-creating supernormal growth for clients. Earlier this year, we made a formal transformation into one of America's best management consulting firms as per a survey conducted by Forbes. The B2B economy is witnessing the emergence of $25 trillion of new revenue streams that are substituting existing revenue streams in this decade alone. We work with clients on growth programs, helping them monetize this $25 trillion opportunity through our service lines - TAM Expansion, Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy to Execution, Market Share Gain, Account Enablement, and Thought Leadership Marketing. Built on the 'GIVE Growth' principle, we work with several Forbes Global 2000 B2B companies - helping them stay relevant in a disruptive ecosystem. Our insights and strategies are molded by our industry experts, cutting-edge AI-powered Market Intelligence Cloud, and years of research. The KnowledgeStore (our Market Intelligence Cloud) integrates our research, facilitates an analysis of interconnections through a set of applications, helping clients look at the entire ecosystem and understand the revenue shifts happening in their industry. To find out more, visit www.MarketsandMarkets.com or follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Contact: Mr. Aashish Mehra MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Email: [email protected] Research Insight: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ResearchInsight/open-banking-solutions-market.asp Visit Our Website: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/ Content Source: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/PressReleases/open-banking-solutions.asp Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2297424/MarketsandMarkets_Logo.jpg SOURCE MarketsandMarkets Teamsters Commend State Legislature, Urge Gov. Tina Kotek to Sign HB 4127 Into Law SALEM, Ore., March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Teamsters commend the Oregon Legislative Assembly for passing House Bill 4127 (HB 4127), a bill that would improve worker safety in the e-commerce and warehouse industries by ensuring hidden workplace quotas do not interfere with workers' rights and safety standards. "Secret quotas produced using arbitrary algorithms by companies like Amazon take advantage of workers to maximize profits," said Mark Davison, Teamsters Western Region Vice President and President of Joint Council 37. "HB 4127 is of significant importance for working people across this state because it will address unrealistic production quotas that have produced dangerous working conditions for thousands of Oregon warehouse workers." "Like legislation already enacted in New York, California, and Washington, HB 4127 aims to enhance working conditions for warehouse workers throughout Oregon, particularly those facing hazardous conditions and unrealistic production standards," said Austin DePaolo, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 223. "This bill promotes transparent and accountable practices that prioritize the safety and well-being of workers without impeding a company's operations." "Operating procedures for warehouse workers are often not consistently conveyed or fully explained properly, which leads to unsafe working conditions, serious accidents, and injuries," said Steve Konopa, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 305 and Joint Council 37 Legislative Director. "We are seeking for companies to be held accountable and transparent for the safety and well-being of the workers who make them profitable. Everyone in our state deserves the right to work in a safe environment and to know the expectations of their employment." Oregon Teamsters are urging Oregon Governor Tina Kotek to sign this legislation as swiftly as possible. Nationwide, Teamsters are advocating for laws that protect the rights of warehouse workers and address unrealistic quotas and hazardous safety conditions. California, Connecticut, New York, Washington, Minnesota, and other states have passed similar legislation. Teamsters Joint Council 37 represents workers in a wide variety of industries throughout Oregon. For more information, go to https://www.jcteamsters37.com/. Contact: Matt McQuaid (202) 624-6877 [email protected] SOURCE Teamsters Joint Council 37 BELLEVUE, Wash., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Origis Energy, one of America's leading renewable energy platforms and largest clean energy independent power producers (IPPs), has partnered with CloudMoyo to reimagine its legacy database systems as part of its digital transformation journey. Their implementation has improved the way we collect, manage, & analyze data by providing a more efficient application. Post this Origis Energy Reimagines Legacy Systems in Partnership with CloudMoyo Headquartered in Miami, FL, Origis Energy brings clean and cost-effective solar, energy storage, and clean hydrogen solutions within reach for utility, commercial, industrial, and public-sector clients. They deliver excellence in solar & energy storage, clean hydrogen development, financing, engineering, procurement & construction (EPC), and operations & asset management for investors and clean energy consumers in the U.S. With more than 170 projects totaling over 5 GW worldwide, Origis Energy consistently delivers sustainable energy solutions. As the world has changed and technology has rapidly evolved, so have the needs of organizations. For Origis Energy to continue meeting the needs of its clients around the world, they sought an experienced digital transformation partner to reimagine its legacy systems and databases. "It's been a pleasure to work with the team at CloudMoyo," said Remi Raphael, Vice President Digital Technology at Origis Energy. "Their implementation has improved the way we collect, manage, and analyze data by providing a more efficient application and enabling valuable insights for decision-making." With CloudMoyo, Origis Energy modernized its legacy systems using Microsoft Azure. Microsoft Azure allows for a single source of truth, simplifying the data extraction process, meaning quicker and more informed decision-making with ongoing projects as well as increased real-time data collaboration. These data insights allowed Origis Energy to scale its systems to accommodate future large amounts of data, automate data collection, increase cybersecurity, better team efficiency, and deliver projects faster. CloudMoyo also provided a custom solution using Power Platform, Azure SQL Database, and Power BI to support a new application for Origis Energy. The application, built using Power Apps, provided an intuitive user interface with the backend supported by a versatile SQL Database. SQL Server acted as a database hosted in Azure and Power BI. "Our collaboration with Origis Energy represents a transformative step in our journey," said Hrishikesh Khasnis, Vice President of Engineering and Digital Services at CloudMoyo. "By modernizing Origis Energy's legacy systems with Microsoft Azure and Microsoft Power Apps, CloudMoyo has not only streamlined their operations but has also ushered in a new era of data collection, management, and analysis. This success is a testament to the collaborative spirit and innovative capabilities of both our teams, and we look forward to continuing our partnership to drive even greater value in the future." CloudMoyo is grateful to be a part of Origis Energy's digital transformation journey. By 2026, 75% of organizations will undergo a digital transformation predicated on the cloud, and cloud migration is one of the first steps in scaling and preparing for the future. CloudMoyo continues its work in the digital transformation sphere, especially focusing on AI including Icertis ExploreAI and Azure OpenAI. AI is the next disruptor in digital transformation with an exciting future. About CloudMoyo CloudMoyo is a global digital engineering firm headquartered in Bellevue, WA, with an innovation center in Pune India. We're at the intersection of cloud and AI for enterprises across manufacturing, technology, retail, transportation, distribution, and more. We work with various partners to deliver innovative solutions. With Icertis, we utilize our domain expertise to accelerate end-to-end, organization-wide contract intelligence business solutions, empowering our clients in self-governance, automatic risk, and compliance monitoring, and AI-based legacy migration, as well as utilizing Icertis ExploreAI in implementations to bring the power of generative AI to contracting. Our partnership with Microsoft allows us to empower our clients in democratizing data, infusing operations with AI, and innovate with cloud-native applications and integrate solutions at litepeed using our CloudMoyo Application-Analytics Framework (CAF). With our Azure expertise, our teams can bring the power of OpenAI to any enterprise application. Our customer-focused approach dedicates SMEs and engineers to create a unique team to serve you. Trusted by our clients to address their unique business needs, whether strategy and design or implementation, CloudMoyo is fueled by the fast-evolving and innovative world of cloud, data, AI/ML, and digital engineering platforms. We're determined to continue supporting our customers in transforming with resilience and thriving despite the challenging macroeconomic outlook ahead. Our track record includes developing enterprise solutions for a variety of clients, including several Fortune 1000 companies. As a reflection of our FORTE values, CloudMoyo was honored as the Icertis Partner of the Year Forte Values in 2021. They were also awarded the 2024 Highest Delivery NPS Award at the 2024 Icertis Partner Summit. CloudMoyo is recognized by Seattle Business Magazine as a "Top Company to Work For" for the fifth consecutive year, ranking again on the prestigious list for 2023. Contact: Joy Bartolome, [email protected] SOURCE CloudMoyo Celebrating a Legacy of Compassionate Leadership and Employee Empowerment KINSTON, N.C., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Principle LTC proudly announces Lynn M. Hood, CEO & President, as this year's Lifetime Achievement Award recipient in the McKnight's Women of Distinction program. Lynn's exceptional contributions to the skilled nursing facility industry over her lengthy career have earned her this prestigious recognition. Lynn M. Hood, CEO & President, Principle LTC Lynn's career journey is marked by resilience and compassion, from her early experiences as an emergency medical technician to her impactful leadership in healthcare crises like the Haitian earthquake of 2010. As CEO of Principle LTC, Lynn not only prioritizes staff support and retention but also fosters meaningful connections within the organization, creating pathways for personal and professional growth. With a deep commitment to diversity and inclusion, Lynn champions initiatives that empower women leaders and cultivate a culture of kindness and respect. Her advocacy efforts and innovative programs, such as Principle Cares and Principle Educates, underscore her dedication to the well-being of both staff and residents. Lynn's leadership philosophy, rooted in people-first principles, serves as an inspiration to colleagues and industry professionals alike. During the pandemic's onset, she took proactive steps to establish Special Care Units focusing on centralizing resources and expertise to treat infected patients. Through her leadership, these units provided access to life-saving therapies and critical care, ultimately saving lives and minimizing the spread of COVID-19. As Lynn receives this well-deserved honor, Principle LTC celebrates her positive legacy of leadership and looks forward to her continued impact on the future of healthcare. Additionally, Lynn was elected into the McKnight's Women of Distinction Hall of Honor in 2021 and currently serves as a board member of the LTC100, further solidifying her influence and commitment to the industry. Lynn remarked, "If you take care of the people who take care of the patients, a lot of things will take care of themselves. It's not just about providing quality care to our residents; it's about creating an environment where our staff feel supported, valued, and empowered. When our team feels appreciated and respected, they can truly excel in their roles, ultimately leading to better outcomes for both our staff and the residents we serve." About Principle LTC -- Principle LTC is a leading provider of skilled nursing facility management services, committed to delivering exceptional care to residents and supporting the professional growth of its team members. With a focus on operational excellence, Principle LTC strives to enhance the quality of life for seniors in long-term care facilities located North Carolina, Kentucky, and Virginia across forty-five facilities with approved certificates of need (CON's) for construction of four additional facilities in North Carolina. The company also provides hospice services in North Carolina through its subsidiary, Cardinal Hospice Care. SOURCE Principle LTC BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sensors are vital in modern life. They measure a vast quantity of metrics and parameters, acting as the interface between the physical and digital worlds. Printed sensors can be produced in large areas on flexible substrates, reducing costs and unlocking new market opportunities. The new IDTechEx report, "Printed and Flexible Sensors 2024-2034: Technologies, Players, Markets", down key trends by technology approach highlighting both opportunities and challenges for the industry forecast to reach US$960 million by 2034. Printed sensor annual revenue, segmented by technology, 20242034. Source IDTechEx Printed and flexible sensors can measure a plethora of properties, including touch, force, pressure, displacement, temperature, electrical signals, and gas concentration. One of the earliest and now most ubiquitous printed sensor technologies is printed force sensors, which are used in cars for seat occupancy detection. Yet printed sensors can offer value in a variety of commercial sectors such as healthcare, wearables, consumer electronics, industry, and logistics. IDTechEx predicts that while force sensors are anticipated to continue dominating revenue share, other printed and flexible sensor technology markets are poised for growth over the next decade. For example, printed sensors are seeing early adoption in consumer electronic devices, from laptops to power tools. Moreover, prominent emerging automotive applications include battery health monitoring and human-machine interfaces. Printed sensor innovation is also now evolving to meet the market demand for multi-functionality. As such, hybrid printed sensor technologies pose a disruptive new threat to existing sensor industries, in addition to unlocking wholly new and novel use cases. The printed and flexible sensor market report critically evaluates 8 printed sensor technologies, covering printed piezoresistive sensors and force sensors (FSRs), piezoelectric sensors, photodetectors, temperature sensors, strain sensors, gas sensors, capacitive touch sensors, and wearable electrodes. The report also discusses areas of innovation in manufacturing printed sensors, including a focus on emerging material options as well as the technology underlying the manufacturing processes. This report characterizes each application of printed sensors, discussing the relevant technology, product types, competitive landscape, industry players, pricing, as well as key meta-trends and drivers for each sector. The report also contains detailed printed and flexible sensors market forecasting over 10 years for each key printed sensor technology area. The research behind the report has been compiled over many years by IDTechEx analysts. It builds on existing expertise in areas such as sensors, wearable technology, flexible electronics, stretchable and conformal electronics, smart packaging, conductive inks, nanotechnology, future mobility, and electronic textiles (e-textiles). The methodology involved a mixture of primary and secondary research, with a key focus on speaking to executives, engineers, and scientists from companies developing printed and flexible sensors. As such, the report analyses all known major companies and projects, including over 30 profiles. Unique position and experience behind the report IDTechEx is afforded a particularly unique position in covering this topic. The analyst team builds on decades of experience covering emerging technology markets, particularly areas such as printed electronics, which are central to printed and flexible sensors. This has been historically supported by IDTechEx's parallel activities in organizing the leading industry conferences and exhibitions covering printed, flexible, and wearable electronics. IDTechEx has the unique ability to curate a network in these topic areas, facilitating the analysis in this report. This report provides critical market intelligence about the 8 printed sensor technology areas involved. This includes: A review of the context and technology behind printed and flexible sensors: History and context for each technology area General overview of important technologies and materials Overall look at printed and flexible sensor trends and themes within each technology area Benchmarking and analysis of different players throughout Full market characterization for each printed sensor technology: Review of key sectors where printed sensor technologies are established Discussion and insight into emerging and future applications of printed and flexible sensors, including the meta trends and market drivers for their growth Critical market evaluation using case studies featuring commercial successes and failures of printed sensors Market analysis throughout: Reviews of printed sensor players throughout each key sector, analyzed from over 30 companies Market forecasts from 2024-2034 for 8 printed sensor technology areas, including full narrative, limitations, and methodologies for each To find out more about the new IDTechEx report "Printed and Flexible Sensors 2024-2034: Technologies, Players, Markets", including downloadable sample pages, please visit www.IDTechEx.com/FlexSensors. For the full portfolio of printed & flexible electronics research available from IDTechEx, please visit www.IDTechEx.com/Research/PE. About IDTechEx IDTechEx provides trusted independent research on emerging technologies and their markets. Since 1999, we have been helping our clients to understand new technologies, their supply chains, market requirements, opportunities and forecasts. For more information, contact [email protected] or visit www.IDTechEx.com. Images download: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/wd2u4rzqcqf4igly3xrwx/h?rlkey=yvseknftvwnof0t80qfzxwc6c&dl=0 Media Contact: Lucy Rogers Sales and Marketing Administrator [email protected] +44(0)1223 812300 Social Media Links: Twitter: www.twitter.com/IDTechEx LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/IDTechEx Photo : https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2359422/Printed_sensor_annual_revenue.jpg Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/478371/IDTechEx_Logo.jpg SOURCE IDTechEx Progressive Loading allows radiological studies to load faster so radiologists can quickly access and interact directly from a browser TORONTO and ORLANDO, Fla., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - RamSoft, a global leader in novel cloud-based RIS/PACS radiology solutions for imaging centers and teleradiology providers, has launched Progressive Loading. This unique feature of OmegaAI, RamSoft's cloud-native radiological software built on Microsoft Azure, allows a radiologist to quickly load a large imaging study via a web browser. A radiologist can begin to read and interact with new studies with no delay; the first images load almost immediately and secondary images load progressively in the background while the radiologist interacts with the study. Because the platform is cloud-native, image loading is fast regardless of what type of network is being used, and the performance is faster than traditional cloud-based deployments and most on-premises networks. Loading of 4 tomographic Mammography images on the OmegaAI cloud-native RIS/PACS platform in under one second using Progressive Loading. Megabit connectivity is illustrated on a standard browser and PC. (CNW Group/RamSoft Inc.) By building its cloud-native platform using Progressive Loading, OmegaAI can deliver the first images of a 3,000-slice CT data set, for example, in one second or less over standard internet connectivity without a VPN. RamSoft recently completed an internal validation study in which images of a breast tomosynthesis test study were transferred from OmegaAI in the USA and manipulated by a radiologist in India using the OmegaAI reader within one second. "Some radiologists are still skeptical that cloud-native radiology software accessed via a web browser on a standard Internet connection can allow them to review and analyze medical images from multiple modalities with the same ease as traditional on-premises radiology software," said Siva Ramanathan, RamSoft's Chief Technology Officer. "OmegaAI was purposely built as a cloud-native platform. Its cloud-native architecture enables innovative software solutions that can load large image data sets much faster than traditional cloud platforms, and faster than on-prem installations. We repeatedly see radiologists react in amazement when they realize that they are looking at large radiology images delivered via a zero-footprint reader in a web browser. As our team developed OmegaAI, we worked diligently on delivering a cloud-native radiology experience with an image presentation speed that is faster than legacy on-prem radiology software. Our implementation of Progressive Loading helps us deliver on that promise even more." "Medical imaging plays a vital role in healthcare. The ability to deliver large radiology images quickly and efficiently is not merely a matter of convenience but a critical necessity. It can help reduce workload burdens and enable radiologists to expedite analysis, diagnosis, and treatment, thereby helping to enhance patient care and outcomes with precision and efficacy," said Dr. Helia Mohammadi, Chief AI and Precision Health Officer, Microsoft. "RamSoft's integration of Microsoft Azure to accelerate healthcare innovation is a great example of how technology can be leveraged to improve provider and patient experiences." A key benefit of cloud-native RIS/PACS systems is the ability to deploy the platform without local servers or high-performance local computing workstations and without a VPN or high-speed networks. By integrating Azure services including Azure SQL Database, Azure Cosmos DB and Azure Blob Storage, OmegaAI also provides the highest levels of cybersecurity, HIPAA compliance, and scalability. Video OmegaAI and its use of Progressive Downloading is being demonstrated this week at HIMSS '24 in Orlando, Florida from March 11 15, 2024 in the RamSoft Booth #3209 in the Westwood Lobby (exhibition hall) at the Orange County Convention Center. Pre-organized demonstrations can also be booked at https://www.ramsoft.com/himss. About RamSoft RamSoft is a global provider of novel cloud-based radiology software solutions for imaging centers, radiology departments and teleradiology providers. PowerServer is used by 500+ sites and thousands of customers worldwide. Its flexible, scalable design allows imaging operations from the smallest clinics to large, nationwide practices to leverage the full benefit of its comprehensive cloud-based RIS (Radiology Information System)/PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System) platform. RamSoft's newest offering, OmegaAI, is a cloud-native AI-driven platform granting radiologists more rapid, secure, and robust RIS and PACS capabilities that are completely zero footprint. Powered by Microsoft Azure, OmegaAI provides the highest levels of security, HIPAA compliance, and protection against cybersecurity threats. It also includes Blume - Patient Portal, a comprehensive patient app allowing patients to access and share their diagnostic imaging studies and results with family members and referring physicians, as well as allowing patients to book appointments. SOURCE RamSoft Inc. In collaboration with Uwill, McNeese State University deploys teletherapy platform to support students grappling with mental health challenges LAKE CHARLES, La., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- McNeese State University , a regional public university ranked as one of the top public institutions in the South, today announced a major expansion of its efforts to boost student mental health and wellness with the launch of a digital mental health and teletherapy tool. Through a collaboration with Boston-based teletherapy pioneer Uwill , the university will now offer a mental health and wellness environment 24/7/365 to its studentsat a time when campus counseling centers nationwide are reporting a sharp increase in acute mental health challenges. "Mental health support is a key component of how we serve our students. The current generation of college students requires a diverse and flexible approach to mental health," said Dr. Kedrick Nicholas, Dean of Student Affairs at McNeese State University. "It is very beneficial to have a partnership with Uwill because their services allow us to meet the needs of our students by enhancing and expanding therapy options." Recent survey data shows that 90% of adults believe the country is facing a mental health crisis. While 42% of college students have expressed the need for help with mental health difficulties in the last year, more than 60% have never received counseling or therapy. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic brought the issue of student mental health into focus with on-campus counseling centers in Louisiana and across the country reporting overwhelming demand. "I commend the McNeese State team for taking these steps to enhance mental health support and for their commitment to student success and well-being, embodying the values of our university system," said Rick Gallot, president of the University of Louisiana System. "We look forward to working with institutions across our system as they work to expand high-quality mental health support services that are responsive to the needs of our students." "Mental health and wellness aren't luxuries, they are necessities. They are also a cornerstone of success for students in higher education today, who are more likely to face complex education, work and family caregiving responsibilities," said Dr. Kim Hunter Reed, Louisiana's Commissioner of Higher Education. "During a time when the stakes for students are so high, we are so pleased to see campus leaders and systems prioritize expanded access to student mental health support." To help meet the need for enhanced mental health support, the university will utilize Uwill's proprietary technology, which makes it possible for students to facilitate immediate appointments with licensed mental health counselors based on student needs and preferences. The solution offers an immediate appointment with a licensed therapist based on student preferences, all modalities of teletherapy, a direct crisis connection, wellness events, and realtime data. The news comes at a time when the state of Louisiana recently made a historic new investment in student mental health for learners enrolled in both K-12 and higher education with state colleges and universities scheduled to receive $17 million in mental health funding beginning this month. The Louisiana state legislature recently authorized a new grant program to be dispersed across 32 eligible Louisiana institutions. "Investments in student mental health are investments in college access and completion. Louisiana policymakers have quite rightly recognized the profound impact of mental health on student success and college completion, which in turn affects the health and well-being of communities and the state's economy," said Michael London, Founder and CEO of Uwill. "This is about empowering students with resources to play an active role in their well-being by selecting a therapist they feel most comfortable with, fostering a culture of support." The company serves more than 2 million students from all 50 states and pioneered a "matching" platform that offers students a counseling appointment in less than five minutes. About McNeese State University: McNeese State University offers quality programs at some of the most affordable tuition rates you will find at any university. Recently, AffordableCollegesOnline.com named McNeese the second most affordable school in Louisiana for online learning and third among Louisiana's colleges and universities for greatest return on investment. Beyond the affordability benefits McNeese students enjoy, many of our programs have garnered attention for quality and innovation. About Uwill: Uwill is the leading mental health and wellness solution for colleges and students. The most cost-effective way to expand and enhance a college's mental health offerings, Uwill partners with 300+ institutions including Babson College, University of Michigan, Columbus State Community College, and University of Maryland, College Park. Uwill is also the teletherapy education partner for NASPA and the Online Learning Consortium. For more information, visit uwill.com. SOURCE Uwill, Inc FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Although there is a city of Hollywood in Florida, Ft. Lauderdale has recently been the center of the movie scene. Buckle up because the streets of Pompano Beach are revving with excitement as the much-anticipated urban drama "Car Show Kings" hits the big screen! Villashio Productions' Executive Producer Puncho Villashio plays the lead role alongside an ensemble cast in this urban journey with a comedic flare that promises to take audiences on a wild ride through the vibrant world of Donks. Directed by award-winning Producer Chinedu Ernesto and produced by award-winning Director and Producer Nathan Scinto, they were able to enlist an all-star team of talent behind the camera who worked to complete this feature project in only 12 days. The unique camera control and purposeful lighting of award-winning Directors of Photography Marcus Moller and Lionel Fernandez give the film a stylized and unique feel that the viewer will appreciate. Car Show Kings - The Movie (In the Making) Executive Producer - Puncho Villashio / Villashio Productions Executive Producer - Puncho Villashio / Villashio Productions Set against the backdrop of Broward County, FL, "Car Show Kings" follows the aspirations of Puncho, a young man with a dream as big as his heart - to transform a classic 1973 Chevrolet Impala into a masterpiece of mechanical artistry by any means necessary. But building the ultimate Donk isn't just about chrome and horsepower; it's about attention to detail, forging strong relationships, and never backing down from a challenge. Filmed entirely in Broward County, Executive Producer Puncho Villashio's decision to showcase his hometown was a no-brainer. "I completed projects in Atlanta and other cities, but I always felt compelled to bring a feature film project to my hometown of Broward County," says Puncho. "It's a perfect marriage between my passions for film and Donks." But Puncho didn't stop there; he made it a point to involve the local community, utilizing businesses like Dream Cream Ice Cream Shop, R&K Soul Food, and Classic Trimz Barbershop, bringing an authentic touch to the production. "Car Show Kings" isn't just about cars; it's about the people who make up the Donk community. With standout performances from Clifton Powell (Frank), Norval Howard (Uncle Slim), Sage Thomas (Donkmaster), and Anika Fourcand (Starr), the film dives deep into the empowering nature of the Donk world. With a supporting cast that includes Shonse Joseph (Snupe) and Kalina Karadavis (Tisha), viewers will inevitably have a character they will pick as their favorite. Throughout the movie, audiences will be treated to a showcase of top Donk builds, thrilling races, and award-winning creators. But beyond the chrome and horsepower lies a tale of resilience, love, and the pursuit of dreams. From the streets of Broward County to the silver screen, "Car Show Kings" promises to be a heartwarming journey that will leave audiences cheering for more. For media inquiries, please contact: Chinedu Ernesto [email protected] Phone: (954) 998-3368 About Puncho Villashio (Puncho): Puncho Villashio is a multi-talented artist, actor, and filmmaker from Carver Ranches in Broward County, FL. With a passion for storytelling and a love for Donks, Puncho brings a unique perspective to cinema. "Car Show Kings" marks his debut feature film as both lead actor and executive producer. About Sage Thomas (Donkmaster): Sage Thomas, also known as Donkmaster, is a legendary figure in the world of Donks. With his unparalleled expertise and passion for cars as the force behind IN & OUT CUSTOMS, Donkmaster's influence has a far reach. His special appearance in "Car Show Kings" adds authenticity and excitement to Puncho's journey. His work, voice and likeness have been depicted in a popular video game where a grand felony serves as the title as well as a recent series that starred Jamie Foxx. SOURCE Villashio Productions ATLANTA and BIRMINGHAM, Ala., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Radyus Research, a global drug development organization from Atlanta, Georgia, is excited to announce a pivotal strategic partnership with Southern Research, a Birmingham-based contract research organization with more than 80 years of experience in drug discovery and development. This partnership marks a significant milestone in the advancement of life sciences commercialization in the Southeast region. The collaboration aims to leverage the strengths of both organizations to offer a comprehensive umbrella offering to clients, with fully integrated preclinical services. Radyus Research partners with Southern Research for an innovative alliance in the development of new drugs. Post this Southern Research Logo By combining Southern Research's longstanding reputation for cutting-edge laboratory research with Radyus Research's innovative planning and project management approaches, this alliance will provide a one-stop solution for clients seeking to navigate the complexities of life sciences commercialization. "We are very excited to continue creating synergy within the Southeast's biotech community," said Josh Carpenter, CEO at Southern Research. "The team at Radyus Research brings unique expertise that complements our own. Together, we will work closely to help our partners move their therapeutics forward with a compelling suite of combined services." This partnership's primary goal is to foster a thriving ecosystem for life sciences companies in the region. By offering a comprehensive array of services under one roof, clients can benefit from seamless integration of preclinical services, including but not limited to drug discovery, development, clinical, regulatory, and manufacturing support. "We are thrilled to join forces with Southern Research in this strategic partnership," said Marta New, CEO at Radyus Research. "Our combined expertise will not only enhance the services we offer but will also create new opportunities for life sciences companies to flourish in our region. This partnership underscores our commitment to driving innovation and accelerating the journey from concept to market." Maria Thacker Goethe, President & CEO at Georgia Bio, is also excited about this joint regional ecosystem effort: "The Southeast region is rapidly advancing in terms of startups with game-changing and impactful technology innovations. Effective partnerships like this between Radyus Research and Southern Research are critical to the growing landscape in the region and will demonstrate innovative ways for collaboration." Clients can expect a seamless experience with access to a full spectrum of consulting, project management, and laboratory testing services tailored to meet their unique needs in drug development. From initial research and development to preclinical toxicology testing and regulatory approval, the collaborative efforts of Southern Research and Radyus Research will provide comprehensive support every step of the way. About Radyus Research Radyus Research is a drug development group dedicated to accelerating clients' drug programs into the clinic. With a commitment to excellence and innovation, Radyus Research offers a range of services aimed at providing comprehensive drug development planning and project management. Acting as an operating R&D partner to biotech companies, academic startups, and seed venture capital firms, we manage their programs through IND-enabling studies, IND application, and initiation of first in human trials. Our extensive expertise spans various modalities in immunology, oncology, infectious diseases, metabolic diseases, and neurosciences. We are based in Atlanta, Georgia, serving clients across the globe in over 12 countries. About Southern Research Southern Research is a nonprofit, full-service contract research organization with over 80 years of experience in drug discovery and development. SR has helped shape modern cancer treatments by developing seven FDA-approved cancer drugs and testing more than half of active chemotherapies on the market. With state-of-the-art ABSL-3 facilities, SR also has deep expertise in infectious disease research and has conducted more than $35M in COVID-19 research alongside industry partners. SR's team of industry-leading experts provides personalized, white-glove support to our clients, including insightful project management, exceptional quality assurance, regulatory affairs guidance, and collaborative problem-solving. SOURCE Radyus Research LARGO, Fla., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Step into the future of beauty with Onoxa and Evora as they reshape the industry landscape. In the dynamic year of 2024, driven by the pursuit of financial growth and a hunger for unique opportunities, Onoxa emerges as a trailblazer in white-label beauty products, while Evora Worldwide, its sister brand, specializes in custom formulation for over 200 thriving beauty brands. Together, they stand as vanguards of innovation, offering a groundbreaking, streamlined solution that effortlessly guides individuals and brands to forge personalized beauty lines in just a few transformative steps. Onoxa, a trailblazer in white-label beauty products, empowers entrepreneurs with a streamlined process to effortlessly launch or expand personalized beauty lines. Evora Worldwide specializes in crafting custom beauty solutions, collaborating with over 200 thriving brands to design bespoke formulations. Partnering with Onoxa and Evora isn't just a collaboration; it's the convergence of years of cutting-edge R&D and Quality Assurance expertise, coupled with ISO Certified manufacturing, and relentless innovation. Crafted in Florida, by seasoned chemists, using premium ingredients, Onoxa and Evora are the gateway to a seamless, efficient, and affordable skincare brand journey. "As the Vice President of Business Development for Onoxa and Evora, I am a firm believer in the transformative potential of beauty entrepreneurship with partnered growth. Collaborating with Onoxa and Evora isn't just about developing a skincare brand; it's an opportunity to access our trademarked ingredients, proven formulations, decades of expertise, and an unwavering commitment to quality," asserts Mary Shively, Vice President of Business Development, World Product Solutions, creators of Onoxa and Evora. "Our streamlined process and innovative products empower entrepreneurs to reshape the beauty landscape, ensuring an easy, efficient, and rewarding partnership journey. Because when you grow, we grow." Onoxa's online platform, tailored for visionaries, offers a strategic approach to launching or expanding brands with white-label skincare and haircare products. Simultaneously, Evora, the epitome of the beauty industry's innovation, collaborates to design unique custom formulations for the skincare, haircare, and body care categories. Unlock Success with Onoxa and Evora Tailored beauty solutions for influencers, aestheticians, salons, spas, dermatologists, and expanding brands. Beauty Influencers: Increase engagement among followers with one's own skincare brand, unlocking additional revenue streams. Increase engagement among followers with one's own skincare brand, unlocking additional revenue streams. Licensed Aestheticians: Elevate income by crafting and selling a skincare line tailored for clients. Elevate income by crafting and selling a skincare line tailored for clients. Salons and Spas: Expand offerings seamlessly, eliminating the burden of excessive overhead costs. Expand offerings seamlessly, eliminating the burden of excessive overhead costs. Dermatologists: Enhance one's brand with seamlessly integrated new products, elevating an existing line. Enhance one's brand with seamlessly integrated new products, elevating an existing line. Existing Brands Seeking Expansion: Expand one's product range with Onoxa and Evora's trademarked ingredients targeting consumer needs. Onoxa: Effortless Beauty Branding Start with a low-cost sample kit featuring full-size, high-quality products and premium packaging options. Test the products, then begin the launch process of one's own skincare brand by collaborating with Onoxa's expert designers for complimentary label creation. Rapid brand creation with low minimum orders, free label design, and printing, along with a 14-business-day turnaround time. Learn more at www.onoxa.com. Evora: Elevating Beauty Brands with Unparalleled Expertise Partner with Evora Worldwide, a beauty industry standout with over 200 brand partnerships and extensive experience. Renowned for developing 2,000+ formulas across skincare, haircare, and body care, Evora prioritizes innovation. Benefit from its portfolio of trademarked ingredients, samples, and comprehensive testing services, all managed by a dedicated US-based project manager. Learn more at www.evoraww.com. Backed by an in-house US-based Research & Development Lab and Quality Assurance Lab, both Onoxa and Evora offer proven, clean formulas crafted by seasoned chemists in its US-based manufacturing facility in Largo, FL. Benefit from UL Certified, ISO 22716:2007 Certified, and cGMP Certified manufacturing, ensuring the highest standards of quality and safety. Trust in the unwavering commitment to excellence, transparency, and USA-based manufacturing from both Onoxa and Evora for unparalleled beauty solutions. Ready to Transform a Skincare Brand? Seize the opportunity with Onoxa and Evora pioneers of innovation. Explore possibilities and kickstart a beauty journey at www.onoxa.com. For custom beauty products, visit www.evoraww.com. The future of beauty begins now. Embrace it with Onoxa and Evora and connect socially at @onoxa_com and @evoraworldwide. ABOUT ONOXA AND EVORA Onoxa and Evora, leading forces in the beauty industry, redefine success through innovation and expertise. Onoxa, a trailblazer in white-label beauty products, empowers entrepreneurs with a streamlined process to effortlessly launch or expand personalized beauty lines. Evora Worldwide, its sister brand, specializes in crafting custom beauty solutions, collaborating with over 200 thriving brands to design bespoke formulations. Discover more at www.onoxa.com and www.evoraww.com. MEDIA CONTACT Phillip Sontag [email protected] 917.446.4123 SOURCE World Product Solutions CHICAGO, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading bitcoin ATM operator and top crypto company RockItCoin has today announced a donation to Lotus House, the largest women's homeless shelter in the United States, in observance of International Women's Day 2024. The donation is part of RockItCoin's philanthropic initiative RockItCoin Gives, which supports various causes and underlines the company's commitment to giving back to the community. Sheltering over 1,550 women, youth, and children on an annual basis, Lotus House is known for providing not only essential immediate support but also comprehensive services designed to help individuals transition successfully out of homelessness. Their services include counseling, access to medical care, educational support, employment training, and housing assistance, among others. The donation from RockItCoin includes a financial contribution coupled with essential items such as diapers and baby bottles, aiming to directly benefit the guests of Lotus House as they work toward building more secure and prosperous futures. "We at RockItCoin are humbled to support the incredible work Lotus House does for women in need," remarked Michael Dalesandro, founder and CEO of RockItCoin. "Our hope is that this donation not only contributes materially, but also inspires actions that empower women and communities across the country. Compassionate organizations like Lotus House exemplify the change we wish to see in the world." "This donation directly impacts the lives of the women, youth and children who call Lotus House home, on a nightly basis," said Beatrice Gonzalez, Director of Lotus House. "RockItCoin's generosity is nothing short of life changing, helping to support the critical shelter and services offered to the most vulnerable in our community. It truly takes a village and we are so grateful for the beautiful village that we have found in our community." RockItCoin invites the public and other businesses to join in supporting Lotus House and their mission to provide life-changing services to women and children in need. For more information on how to support Lotus House, please visit https://lotushouse.org/ . About RockItCoin Founded in 2015 by Michael Dalesandro, RockItCoin is a crypto blockchain company and Inc. 5000 honoree based in Chicago, IL. RockItCoin has a nationwide network of crypto ATMs with over 2,000 locations in 47 States and 16,000 retail deposit locations, providing consumers with the safest and fastest way to buy or sell cryptocurrencies. For more information, please visit https://www.rockitcoin.com and join the conversation on Facebook , X (formerly Twitter) , Instagram , and LinkedIn . CONTACT: Jarryd Baynes [email protected] SOURCE RockItCoin MIAMI, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On February 23rd, 2024, SchoolWise Partners, the nation's foremost sell-side advisor to owners of early childhood, primary, and secondary schools, proudly announced its role as the exclusive financial advisor to Sweet Kiddles in their acquisition by a global preschool provider. Established in 2012, Sweet Kiddles stands as a premier provider of early childhood education, with seven prime locations across Ohio. Offering flexible childcare services, Sweet Kiddles ensures high-quality, convenient, and cost-effective care tailored to families' needs. Families benefit from a pay-as-you-go model, often spending less overall, while enjoying convenience through online reservation management and flexible scheduling. With centers boasting 3, 4, and 5-star ratings, exceptional cleanliness, and staffed by educated, caring teachers, Sweet Kiddles prioritizes holistic development through proprietary educational content like Creative Curriculum, Math Without Tears, and Handwriting Without Tears. "We express our heartfelt gratitude to SchoolWise Partners for their invaluable support as the exclusive sell-side advisor throughout this transaction. It is with great enthusiasm that we embark on this new chapter in partnership with a global preschool provider. We firmly believe that they will honor and uphold the legacy we've painstakingly built, while also fostering the continued growth of the Sweet Kiddles brand," said Andrea and Robert Kimmel, the founders/owners of Sweet Kiddles. "As the exclusive sell-side advisor for Sweet Kiddles and their shareholders, we are delighted to have facilitated this highly successful transaction. Working closely with Andrea and Robert, our team executed a discreet, strategic, and competitive process, resulting in an outstanding outcome for their family and team," commented Ben Mayer, Managing Partner of SchoolWise Partners. "I am thrilled for Andrea and Robert Kimmel, their partners, and the entire Sweet Kiddles family. We believe the global preschool provider is a strong partner to guide the school's next chapter, and we eagerly anticipate their future successes. It has been a pleasure collaborating with the Sweet Kiddles team throughout this transaction," added Charlie Zamora, Managing Partner of SchoolWise Partners. Deal Team Contacts Ben Mayer, Managing Partner Charlie Zamora, Managing Partner Scott Verdine, Director Donny Steinmetz, Vice President Jefferson Betancourt, Vice President Taylor Mayfield, Associate Camilo Lora, Analyst About SchoolWise Partners SchoolWise Partners (SwP) is the nation's leading sell-side advisory firm that provides strategic services to owners and operators of preschools, primary, and secondary schools. SwP's principals and its team have deep experience as former owners of 42 private schools combined with profound institutional knowledge in the fields of finance, private equity, investment banking, and accounting. It is uniquely positioned as the premier sell-side advisor to school owners and, since its founding, SwP has helped hundreds of owners throughout the U.S. realize value in excess of $1 billion. SchoolWise Partners' passion for education inspires us to not only create value for our clients. We exclusively assist owners of early childhood, primary, and secondary school owners realize value that is often left behind because they are under-represented. SwP's mission is to ensure all the hard work that school owners invest to educate America's children is returned to them at the appropriate time and in the appropriate manner. We strive to embody the highest standards of integrity, excellence, commitment, stewardship, and partnership. www.schoolwisepartners.com Contact Jefferson Betancourt Vice President [email protected] SOURCE SchoolWise Partners PARAMUS, N.J., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SK Life Science, Inc., a subsidiary of SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd., a global biotech focused on developing treatments for central nervous system (CNS) disorders and oncology, today announced an update on the use of cenobamate, an anti-seizure medication (ASM) sold as XCOPRI (cenobamate tablets) CV in the U.S. Data were published in Epilepsia last week providing an update on the real-world experience of the more than 100,000 unique patient exposures recently confirmed across the U.S. and the rest of the markets where cenobamate is available. The update appears as a letter to the editor and provides information about cenobamate, a drug first commercialized in the U.S. in 2020, after the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) approval of the treatment for adults with partial-onset seizures. The 100,000 unique patient exposure milestone is the result of increased adoption of cenobamate among epileptologists, general neurologists, and advanced practice providers in the U.S., Europe, Switzerland, the UK, Israel, and Canada. "Now that we have reached the milestone of 100,000 patient exposures, we have a richer set of data to understand patient experience with cenobamate," said Louis Ferrari, BS, RPh, MBA, Vice President of Medical Affairs at SK Life Science. "This letter is intended to address how the clinical trials data relates to real-world experience." To read the letter to the editor published by Epilepsia coauthored by Ferrari, William E. Rosenfeld, MD, and Marc Kamin, MD, please visit: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/epi.17935. About Epilepsy Epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological disorder. There are approximately 3.4 million people living with epilepsy in the United States, with 150,000 news cases each year in the country.1,2 Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent, unprovoked seizures. The seizures in epilepsy may be related to a brain injury or a family tendency, but often the cause is completely unknown. Having seizures and epilepsy can affect one's safety, relationships, work, driving, and much more.3,4 People with epilepsy are at risk for accidents and other health complications, including falling, drowning, depression and sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP).3,4 Despite the availability of many antiepileptic therapies, almost 40 percent of people with epilepsy are not able to achieve seizure freedom, meaning they have epilepsy that remains uncontrolled.5 About Cenobamate Cenobamate is an anti-seizure medication (ASM) discovered and developed by SK Biopharmaceuticals and SK Life Science, Inc. While the precise mechanism by which cenobamate exerts its therapeutic effect is unknown, it is believed to reduce repetitive neuronal firing by inhibiting voltage-gated sodium currents. It is also a positive allosteric modulator of the -aminobutyric acid (GABAA) ion channel. Cenobamate is approved in the United States for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in adults and is available under the brand name XCOPRI (cenobamate tablets) CV. Cenobamate can be combined with other ASMs or used alone. The recommended initial dosage of cenobamate is 12.5 mg once-daily, with titration every two weeks; it is available in six tablet strengths for once-daily dosing: 12.5 mg, 25 mg, 50 mg, 100 mg, 150 mg and 200 mg. Cenobamate is also approved in Canada where Paladin Labs Inc., an operating company of Endo International plc, launched cenobamate in January of 2024. Dexcel Pharma, an international specialty pharmaceutical company, is launching the treatment in Israel in April 2024. Both Dexcel and Paladin are marketing cenobamate under the brand name XCOPRI. Cenobamate is also approved in the European Union, in the United Kingdom, and in Switzerland for the adjunctive treatment of focal-onset (partial-onset) seizures with or without secondary generalization in adult patients with seizures that have not been adequately controlled despite treatment with at least two anti-epileptic medicinal products and is marketed by Angelini Pharma under the brand name ONTOZRY. Additionally, cenobamate is in clinical development in the Greater China region, Asia, Australia, Latin America, and the Middle East and North Africa via development and commercialization agreements with Ono Pharmaceutical, Ignis Therapeutics, Dong-A ST, Eurofarma, and Hikma MENA FZE. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION AND INDICATION FOR XCOPRI (cenobamate tablets) CV DO NOT TAKE XCOPRI IF YOU: Are allergic to cenobamate or any of the other ingredients in XCOPRI. Have a genetic problem (called Familial Short QT syndrome) that affects the electrical system of the heart. XCOPRI CAN CAUSE SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS, INCLUDING: Allergic reactions: XCOPRI can cause serious skin rash or other serious allergic reactions which may affect organs and other parts of your body like the liver or blood cells. You may or may not have a rash with these types of reactions. Call your healthcare provider right away and go to the nearest emergency room if you have any of the following: swelling of your face, eyes, lips, or tongue, trouble swallowing or breathing, a skin rash, hives, fever, swollen glands, or sore throat that does not go away or comes and goes, painful sores in the mouth or around your eyes, yellowing of your skin or eyes, unusual bruising or bleeding, severe fatigue or weakness, severe muscle pain, frequent infections, or infections that do not go away. Take XCOPRI exactly as your healthcare provider tells you to take it. It is very important to increase your dose of XCOPRI slowly, as instructed by your healthcare provider. QT shortening: XCOPRI may cause problems with the electrical system of the heart (QT shortening). Call your healthcare provider if you have symptoms of QT shortening including fast heartbeat (heart palpitations) that last a long time or fainting. Suicidal behavior and ideation: Antiepileptic drugs, including XCOPRI, may cause suicidal thoughts or actions in a very small number of people, about 1 in 500. Call your health care provider right away if you have any of the following symptoms, especially if they are new, worse, or worry you: thoughts about suicide or dying; attempting to commit suicide; new or worse depression, anxiety, or irritability; feeling agitated or restless; panic attacks; trouble sleeping (insomnia); acting aggressive; being angry or violent; acting on dangerous impulses; an extreme increase in activity and talking (mania); or other unusual changes in behavior or mood. Nervous system problems: XCOPRI may cause problems that affect your nervous system. Symptoms of nervous system problems include: dizziness, trouble walking or with coordination, feeling sleepy and tired, trouble concentrating, remembering, and thinking clearly, and vision problems. Do not drive, operate heavy machinery, or do other dangerous activities until you know how XCOPRI affects you. Do not drink alcohol or take other medicines that can make you sleepy or dizzy while taking XCOPRI without first talking to your healthcare provider. DISCONTINUATION: Do not stop taking XCOPRI without first talking to your healthcare provider. Stopping XCOPRI suddenly can cause serious problems. Stopping seizure medicine suddenly in a patient who has epilepsy can cause seizures that will not stop (status epilepticus). DRUG INTERACTIONS: XCOPRI may affect the way other medicines work, and other medicines may affect how XCOPRI works. Do not start or stop other medicines without talking to your healthcare provider. Tell healthcare providers about all the medicines you take, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements. PREGNANCY AND LACTATION: XCOPRI may cause your birth control medicine to be less effective. Talk to your health care provider about the best birth control method to use. Talk to your health care provider if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. It is not known if XCOPRI will harm your unborn baby. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you become pregnant while taking XCOPRI. You and your healthcare provider will decide if you should take XCOPRI while you are pregnant. If you become pregnant while taking XCOPRI, talk to your healthcare provider about registering with the North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry. The purpose of this registry is to collect information about the safety of antiepileptic medicine during pregnancy. You can enroll in this registry by calling 1-888-233-2334 or go to www.aedpregnancyregistry.org. Talk to your health care provider if you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. It is not known if XCOPRI passes into breastmilk. Talk to your healthcare provider about the best way to feed your baby while taking XCOPRI. COMMON SIDE EFFECTS: The most common side effects in patients taking XCOPRI include dizziness, sleepiness, headache, double vision, and feeling tired. These are not all the possible side effects of XCOPRI. Tell your healthcare provider if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away. For more information, ask your healthcare provider or pharmacist. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or at www.fda.gov/medwatch. DRUG ABUSE: XCOPRI is a federally controlled substance (CV) because it can be abused or lead to dependence. Keep XCOPRI in a safe place to prevent misuse and abuse. Selling or giving away XCOPRI may harm others and is against the law. INDICATION: XCOPRI is a prescription medicine used to treat partial-onset seizures in adults 18 years of age and older. It is not known if XCOPRI is safe and effective in children under 18 years of age. Please see additional patient information in the Medication Guide . This information does not take the place of talking with your healthcare provider about your condition or your treatment. Please see full Prescribing Information. About SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. and SK Life Science, Inc. SK Biopharmaceuticals and its U.S. subsidiary SK Life Science, Inc. are pharmaceutical companies focused on the research, development, and commercialization of treatments for disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) and oncology. In 2017, SK Biopharmaceuticals established a research center to begin their expansion into oncology. SK Biopharmaceuticals and SK Life Science, Inc. have a pipeline of eight compounds in development in both CNS disorders and oncology. Additionally, through SK Life Science Labs, its R&D subsidiary in the U.S., SK Biopharmaceuticals is focused on the discovery of new treatments in oncology. For more information, visit SK Biopharmaceuticals' website at www.SKBP.com/eng , SK Life Science's website at www.SKLifeScienceInc.com , and SK Life Science Labs' website at www.SKLSLabs.com. SK Biopharmaceuticals, SK Life Science, and SK Life Science Labs are part of SK Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Korea. SK Inc., the parent company of SK Biopharmaceuticals, continues to enhance its portfolio value by executing long-term investments with a number of competitive subsidiaries in various business areas, including pharmaceuticals and life science, energy and chemicals, information and telecommunication, and semiconductors. In addition, SK Inc. is focused on reinforcing its growth foundations through profitable and practical management based on financial stability, while raising its enterprise value by investing in new future growth businesses. XCOPRI and ONTOZRY are registered trademarks of SK Biopharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. This information is an estimate derived from the use of information under license from the following IQVIA information service: NPA, NSP, XPD for the period May 2020-December 2023. IQVIA expressly reserves all rights, including rights of copying, distribution, and republication. References Epilepsy Foundation. Who Can Get Epilepsy? https://www.epilepsy.com/learn/about-epilepsy-basics/who-gets-epilepsy . Accessed February 2024 . Epilepsy Foundation. Facts & Statistics About Epilepsy. https://www.epilepsy.com/learn/about-epilepsy-basics/epilepsy-statistics . Accessed February 2024 . Epilepsy Foundation. Staying Safe. https://www.epilepsy.com/learn/seizure-first-aid-and-safety/staying-safe. Accessed February 2024 . Epilepsy Foundation. Complications and Risks. https://www.epilepsy.com/learn/challenges-epilepsy . Accessed February 2024 . Chen Z, Brodie MJ, Liew D, Kwan P. Treatment outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy treated with established and new antiepileptic drugs: a 30-year longitudinal cohort study. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29279892 . Published online December 26, 2017 . SOURCE SK Life Science, Inc. Press Release March 13, 2024 MANIFESTATION Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada On the adoption of House Concurrent Resolution No. 20 under Committee Report No. 201 Amnesty for former members of the CPP-NPA-NDF Mr. President, as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security, Peace, Unification and Reconciliation, I wish to place on record my sincerest gratitude to my dear colleagues for supporting the adoption of House Concurrent Resolution Number 20 under our Committee Report No. 201 concurring with the Presidential Proclamation No. 404 which grants amnesty to former members of the Communist Party of the Philippines - New Peoples Army - National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). This representation is truly proud to belong to a Senate which pursues and prioritizes the agenda of peace. We extend our appreciation to Minority Floor Leader Sen. Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III for his insightful examination of our Committee Reports, and our peace advocate Deputy Minority Floor Leader Sen. Risa Hontiveros for co-sponsoring this measure. As I have said in my sponsorship speech, "Amnesty is the best policy." I call on the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), the National Amnesty Commission (NAC), Department of Justice (DOJ), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Department of National Defense (DND) and Philippine National Police (PNP) who graciously lent us their valuable time and expertise during the period of interpellation, to not let the amnesty measures remain just that - a mere policy. Let's all make sure that this amnesty program, together with the amnesty programs for the MILF, MNLF and RPMP-RPA-ABB which were earlier approved by Congress, will be implemented fully and faithfully towards its objective of transforming lives and communities, encouraging former rebels and combatants to return to the folds of the law and to participate in nation-building within the framework of peaceful and deliberative society. Thank you, Mr. President. NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global spices and seasonings market size is estimated to grow by USD 6957.05 mn from 2023 to 2027, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of about 6.01% during the forecast period. North America held the largest share of the global market in 2022, and the market in the region is estimated to witness an incremental growth of 32%. For more insights on the historic (2017 - 2021) and forecast market size (2023-2027) - Request a sample report Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Spices and Seasonings Market 2023-2027 Spices And Seasonings Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2022 Historic period 2017-2021 Forecast period 2023-2027 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 6.01% Market growth 2023-2027 USD 6957.05 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 4.95 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, South America, and Middle East and Africa Performing market contribution North America at 32% Key countries US, China, India, UK, and Germany Competitive landscape Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks Key companies profiled Ajinomoto Co. Inc., Associated British Foods Plc, Badshah Masala, De Silva Brothers and Co., Dohler GmbH, DS Group, EVEREST Food Products Pvt. Ltd., Frontier Co. op, Fuchs North America, Kerry Group Plc, Mahashian Di Hatti Pvt. Ltd., McCormick and Co. Inc., Organic Spices Inc., Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., The Kraft Heinz Co., Unilever PLC, Woodland Foods Ltd., Zoff Foods Pvt. Ltd., ARIAKE Japan Co. Ltd., and C.H. Guenther and Son Inc. Factors determing the market: The Spices and Seasonings Market represents a multi-billion dollar industry, driven by trends such as shifting consumer preferences for delectable and unique cuisines, the growth of fast food and packaged food industries, and the demand for healthier and more natural products. Key stakeholders include food manufacturers, who are developing new formulations and products to meet this demand. Whole spices and ground spices, blends, rubs, marinades, sauces, and convenience foods are popular flavor options. High-quality, premium spices and seasonings, such as Verdad Powder F80 and fermented sugar, are in high demand due to their natural nutrition and balanced nutrition properties. However, market restraints include adverse effects of excess spice consumption, such as digestive issues like heartburn, acid reflux, and stomach or intestine irritation. To address these challenges, innovations in flavor enhancement, coloring effect, food encapsulation, and storage solutions are being explored, including controlled-release encapsulation, oleoresins, essential oils, and invisible microfilm. Market challenges also include microbial contamination, fungal infestation, and bacterial infestation, which can deteriorate the quality of spices and seasonings. The largest producer of spices globally faces these issues in their warehousing facilities and storage and maintenance facilities. The Spices and Seasonings Market is experiencing significant growth due to industry trends favoring convenience and unique cuisines. Key buying patterns include pricing trends, patent evaluations, and access to conference and webinar materials for key stakeholders. The demand for spices and seasonings continues to rise, driven by consumer preferences for delectable and unique flavors. The growth of the fast food and packaged food industries also contributes to market expansion. However, market challenges include potential adverse effects of excess spice consumption, such as digestive issues and heartburn. To address these concerns, there is a rising inclination towards healthier and more natural products, including whole spices and ground blends, rubs, marinades, sauces, and convenience foods. Market growth is further influenced by flavor options, high-quality premium spices and seasonings, and the trend towards clean label, natural and clean-label flavors and ingredients. Market restraints include microbial contamination, fungal infestation, and bacterial infestation, which can deteriorate product quality. Effective food encapsulation methods, such as controlled-release encapsulation, oleoresins, essential oils, and invisible microfilm, can help mitigate these challenges. The largest producer of spices globally faces storage and maintenance facility and warehousing challenges, which can impact product shelf life, taste, texture, and food quality and integrity. The Spices and Seasonings Market represents a multi-billion dollar industry, driven by consumer preferences for delectable and unique cuisines. Market trends include a rise in demand for authentic ingredients, fusion of ethnic flavors, and a shift towards healthier and more natural products. Key stakeholders include food manufacturers developing new formulations and products to meet consumer demands. Growth is fueled by the expansion of the fast food and packaged food industries, as well as the popularity of ethnic restaurants, such as Japanese, Mexican, Italian, Indian, and Chinese. Whole spices and ground spices, blends, rubs, marinades, sauces, and convenience foods offer various flavor options. However, market challenges include potential adverse effects of excess spice consumption, such as digestive issues like heartburn, acid reflux, and stomach or intestine irritation. To address these concerns, there is a growing preference for high-quality, premium spices and seasonings, as well as natural and clean-label products. Market restraints include the risk of microbial contamination, fungal infestation, and bacterial infestation, which can deteriorate the quality of spices and seasonings. To mitigate these issues, food encapsulation techniques, such as controlled-release encapsulation, oleoresins, essential oils, and invisible microfilm, are used to ensure food quality and integrity, as well as extended shelf life and taste enhancement. Despite these challenges, the Spices and Seasonings Market Growth Insights remain strong, with a focus on clean label, natural and clean-label flavors and ingredients, natural nutrition, and balanced nutrition. Key players include Verdad Powder F80, which uses fermented sugar and natural ingredients, emphasizing food quality and integrity. Request a sample report Geographic Landscape The Spices and Seasonings Market in North America is a significant part of the multi-billion-dollar global industry, witnessing steady growth. Key trends include increasing demand for delectable and unique cuisines, preference for high-quality, premium spices and seasonings, and the growing influence of the Asian population. Market buying patterns reflect a shift towards healthier and more natural products, with a focus on clean label, natural nutrition, and balanced nutrition. Industry growth is driven by the launch of new formulations and products, fueled by rising consumer demand for healthier food options. Key stakeholders include food manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. Pricing trends reflect a premium for whole spices and ground spices, blends, rubs, marinades, sauces, and convenience foods. However, market growth faces challenges, including potential adverse effects of excess spice consumption, such as digestive issues, heartburn, and acid reflux. To mitigate these risks, some companies are exploring controlled-release encapsulation technologies using oleoresins, essential oils, and invisible microfilm. Market restraints include microbial contamination, fungal infestation, and bacterial infestation, which can deteriorate the quality of spices and seasonings. Producers must ensure proper storage and maintenance facilities, including warehousing, to maintain product integrity and shelf life. India is the largest producer of spices globally, but challenges remain in ensuring consistent quality and food safety standards. Insight on Regional historic and forecast data with segments - Download a Free Sample Report Table of Contents: 1 Executive Summary 2 Market Landscape 3 Market Sizing 4 Historic Market Size 5 Five Forces Analysis 6 Market Segmentation by Product Type 7 Market Segmentation by Distribution Channel 8 Customer Landscape 9 Geographic Landscape 10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends 11 Company Landscape 12 Company Analysis 13 Appendix About US Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. Contact Technavio Research Jesse Maida Media & Marketing Executive US: +1 844 364 1100 UK: +44 203 893 3200 Email: [email protected] Website: www.technavio.com/ SOURCE Technavio Digital revolution and data growth is driving the growth of the global Storage area network market. NEW CASTLE, Del., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Storage Area Network Market by Component (Hardware, Software, and Services), Type (Hyperscale Server SAN and Enterprise Server SAN), Technology (Fiber Channel (FC), Fiber Channel over Ethernet (FCoE), InfiniBand, and iSCSI Protocol), and End User (BFSI, IT and Telecom, Government, E-commerce, Government, and Others): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2023-2032" According to the report, the global generated $19.4 billion in 2022 and is estimated to reach $52.3 billion by 2032, exhibiting a CAGR of 10.7% from 2023 to 2032. The report offers a detailed analysis of changing market trends, top segments, key investment pockets, value chains, regional landscapes, and competitive scenarios. Drivers, Restraints, and Opportunities Rise in levels of globalization drives the market growth. In addition, advancements and modernization of technology primarily drive the growth of the market. However, rise in implementation costs and complexity and difficulty of integration are expected to hamper the growth of the market. Furthermore, enhanced effectiveness and output are expected to create lucrative growth opportunities for the market. Request Sample Pages: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/request-sample/A48037 Report coverage & details: Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 20232032 Base Year 2022 Market Size in 2022 $19.4 Billion Market Size in 2032 $52.3 Billion CAGR 10.7 % Segments covered Component, Type, Technology, End User, and Region. Drivers Digital Revolution and Data Growth Hybrid IT Environments and Cloud Adoption Opportunities Rise in demand for storage solutions Restraints Cost constraints and budgetary limitations Legacy System Integration and Compatibility Issues Buy this Complete Report (265 Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, and Figures) at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/storage-area-network-market/purchase-options The Hardware segment to dominate the market By component, the hardware segment held the major share in 2022, garnering nearly half of the global storage area network market revenue, as storage units, switches, and routers are becoming essential for constructing a SAN's physical infrastructure and these parts offer the storage capacity and connectivity needed to build a reliable and effective SAN environment. The software segment is expected to attain the fastest CAGR of 13.3% during the forecast period, owing to optimize SAN operations and boost overall performance, automation, intelligent analytics are required and increasing use of software programs that offer extensive administration and monitoring features more and more. The Hyperscale Server SAN segment to dominate the market By type, the hyperscale server SAN segment held the major share in 2022, garnering nearly two-thirds of the global storage area network market revenue, as it offers companies the capacity to track orders, manage records, handle logistics, analyse data, and perform other tasks. The enterprise server SAN segment is expected to attain the fastest CAGR of 12.5% during the forecast period, as it helps organizations leverage the data generated by the global storage area network to optimize their operations, gain valuable insights, and make informed decisions. The InfiniBand segment to dominate the market by 2032 By technology, the fiber channel segment accounted for nearly two-fifths of the global storage area network market share in 2022 and is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period, owing to its capacity to offer specialized networks with high-speed, low-latency, and extremely secure data transport. Due to its scalability and strong performance, it can be used in demanding applications and large-scale storage infrastructures aiding the growth of the storage area network market, which propels the market growth significantly. However, the InfiniBand segment is expected to attain the fastest CAGR of 14.3% during the forecast period, owing to rise in demand for big data analytics, artificial intelligence, and HPC as businesses look for quicker and more effective data processing capabilities. The BFSI segment to dominate by 2032 By end user, the BFSI segment accounted for nearly one-fourth of the global storage area network market share in 2022 and is expected to dominate the market during the forecast period, as the storage area network infrastructure is required to store and safeguard sensitive data, guaranteeing adherence to legal standards and preventing data braches, aiding the growth of the storage area network market, which propels the market growth significantly. The IT and telecom segment is expected to attain the fastest CAGR of 13.9% during the forecast period, owing to the growing demand for data processing and storage capabilities in the IT and telecom industries, as well as the growing number of digital transformation programs. Asia-Pacific garnered the major share in 2032 By region, North America garnered the highest share in 2022, holding nearly one-third of the global storage area network market revenue in 2022, and is projected to retain its dominance by 2032, owing to increased focus on technological advancements and infrastructure development, aiding the growth of the storage area network market. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to retain the fastest CAGR of 10.0% during the forecast period, owing to secure and effective data storage and management systems, such as SANs, which is anticipated to expand due to rise in demand for digitalization and data-driven decision making. Enquiry Before Buying: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/purchase-enquiry/A48037 Leading Market Players- IBM Corporation NEC Corporation NetApp, Inc. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP Citrix Systems, Inc. Dell Inc. Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. Cisco System Inc. Broadcom Inc. Fujitsu The report analyzes these key players in the global storage area network market. These players have adopted various strategies such as expansion, new product launches, partnerships, and others to increase their market penetration and strengthen their position in the industry. The report is helpful in determining the business performance, operating segments, developments, and product portfolios of every market player. AVENUE- A Subscription-Based Library (Premium on-demand, subscription-based pricing model): AMR introduces its online premium subscription-based library Avenue, designed specifically to offer cost-effective, one-stop solution for enterprises, investors, and universities. With Avenue, subscribers can avail an entire repository of reports on more than 2,000 niche industries and more than 12,000 company profiles. Moreover, users can get an online access to quantitative and qualitative data in PDF and Excel formats along with analyst support, customization, and updated versions of reports. Get an access to the library of reports at any time from any device and anywhere. For more details, follow the link: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/library-access About Us: Allied Market Research (AMR) is a full-service market research and business-consulting wing of Allied Analytics LLP based in Wilmington, Delaware. Allied Market Research provides global enterprises as well as medium and small businesses with unmatched quality of "Market Research Reports Insights" and "Business Intelligence Solutions." AMR has a targeted view to provide business insights and consulting to assist its clients to make strategic business decisions and achieve sustainable growth in their respective market domain. We are in professional corporate relations with various companies, and this helps us in digging out market data that helps us generate accurate research data tables and confirms utmost accuracy in our market forecasting. Allied Market Research CEO Pawan Kumar is instrumental in inspiring and encouraging everyone associated with the company to maintain high quality of data and help clients in every way possible to achieve success. Each and every data presented in the reports published by us is extracted through primary interviews with top officials from leading companies of domain concerned. Our secondary data procurement methodology includes deep online and offline research and discussion with knowledgeable professionals and analysts in the industry. Contact: David Correa 1209 Orange Street, Corporation Trust Center, Wilmington, New Castle, Delaware 19801 USA. Int'l: +1-503-894-6022 Toll Free: +1-800-792-5285 UK: +44-845-528-1300 India (Pune): +91-20-66346060 Fax: +1-800-792-5285 [email protected] Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/636519/Allied_Market_Research_Logo.jpg SOURCE Allied Market Research NEW YORK, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A certain variant of a key anti-inflammatory gene protects men under age 75 from severe illness and death when hospitalized from Covid-19, a genetic analysis of their blood shows. According to the study authors, the protective gene in question, an interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL1RN) variant, appears to tamp down inflammation. Inflammation is the body's normal reaction to infection, but when unchecked, inflammation can go too far and damage tissues as part of many diseases, including in severe cases of infection with the pandemic virus SARS-CoV-2. Published as a "major article" in The Journal of Infectious Diseases online March 13, the study showed that 124 men between the ages of 19 and 74 who possessed the IL1RN variant, called rs419598, were less likely to become severely ill after hospitalization for Covid-19, and 80% less likely to die from the disease. IL1RN is expressed naturally in the body. Different types of interleukin genes are known to dial inflammation up or down in the context of arthritis, and researchers say the results of the current study suggest that a similar dynamic influences the interleukin-1-related inflammation seen in Covid-19 patients. The findings, from researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, stand out because historically more men than women are known to die from Covid-19, and the IL1RN rs419598 variant appears to selectively protect only men up to age 74, but not beyond that as age-related chronic illnesses unfold. The research team used sequencing technologies for the study to determine the presence of specific genes or variations in the letter code that makes up genes in blood samples from 2,589 men and women hospitalized for Covid-19 at NYU Langone's Tisch Hospital in Manhattan from March 2020 to March 2021. More than half of the men and women in the study were older than age 60 and obese, factors that are known to increase the risk of death from the viral infection. Overall, more men than women (240 men, at 60.5%; and 157 women, at 39.5%) died from their disease, with women 20% less likely to die than men. "Our study results show that among hospitalized patients, while women are still overall less likely than men to die from Covid-19, those men age 74 and younger who possess the IL1RN gene variant rs419598 are much less likely to suffer the severe inflammation tied to SARS-CoV-2 infection and less likely to die from the disease," said study colead investigator and molecular biologist Mukundan Attur, PhD. Attur is an associate professor in the Department of Medicine at NYU Langone Health. Among the study's other findings was that average blood levels of the anti-inflammatory protein IL-1Ra, coded by IL1RN, were 14 times higher in 181 hospitalized men than in healthy male study controls from the general population, and 10 times as high in 178 hospitalized women than in healthy females. However, researchers say the increased levels of IL-1Ra in women did not result in any statistically significant reductions in death. "Our analysis offers substantial evidence of the biological link between the severe inflammation seen in SARS-CoV-2 and that which occurs in rheumatoid arthritis," said study senior investigator Steven Abramson, MD, the Frederick H. King Professor of Internal Medicine at NYU Langone. Abramson, a rheumatologist who also serves as chair of the Department of Medicine and chief academic officer at NYU Langone, says previous research has shown that such rheumatoid inflammation is lower in people who possessed one of the three IL1RN variants analyzed in the study. More importantly, Abramson says, the new research suggests that restraining the interleukin-1 biological pathway, which is in part tamped down by the anti-inflammatory protein IL-1Ra, could help prevent the severe inflammation seen in SARS-CoV-2 infection. Further research, he says, is warranted into whether IL-1-inhibiting therapies, such as the IL1 receptor antagonists anakinra, canakinumab, and rilonacept, are effective against Covid infection. Abramson already has plans to investigate if the IL-1 pathway plays a role in long Covid, when people experience new or lingering symptoms, such as fatigue and "brain fog," months after recuperating from their initial infection. Abramson points out that the new study adds to the growing scientific evidence about the biological factors that contribute to gender differences seen in deaths from Covid-19, which are known to vary widely across the United States. Funding support for this study was provided by National Institutes of Health grants P30CA016087 and R21AR078466. Besides Abramson and Attur, other NYU Langone researchers involved in this study are co-lead investigators Christopher Petrilli, MD, and Samrachana Adhikari, PhD, and study co-investigators Eduardo Iturrate, MD; Xiyue Li, MS; Stephanie Tuminello, MPH; Nan Hu, MS; Aravinda Chakravarti, PhD; and David Beck, MD, PhD. STUDY LINK: https://academic.oup.com/jid/advance-article/doi/10.1093/infdis/jiae031/7625543?searchresult=1 Media Inquiries: David March 212-404-3528 [email protected] SOURCE NYU Langone Health System Third Bill in CARS Legislative Package is Critical to Keeping California Streets Safe SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Teamsters commend Assemblymember Matt Haney (AD-17) for introducing Assembly Bill 3061 (AB 3061), legislation requiring Autonomous Vehicle (AV) companies in California publicly report any vehicle collisions, traffic violations, disengagements, assaults, or harassment involving their vehicles to the Dept. of Motor Vehicles (DMV). "AB 3061 isn't just about holding AV companies to account, it's about holding our regulators to account, cutting out the politics and putting public safety first. We can't keep letting bureaucrats cater to their friends in Big Tech and then look the other way when robotaxis hit people or cause mayhem on our streets," said Peter Finn, Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and President of Teamsters Joint Council 7. "AV data transparency is a clear solution and critical to holding AV companies to a uniform standard. It's time California passes AB 3061 into law." AB 3061 is the third plank of the CARS package that the Teamsters are advocating for in Sacramento, alongside Senate Bill 915, which would require autonomous vehicle (AV) companies to secure local approvals prior to starting operations, and Assembly Bill 2286, which would require a trained human operator behind the wheel of self-driving trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds. In addition to the reporting requirements for AV operators, under AB 3061, the DMV would have to publish incident reports on its website within 30 days of receipt. Operators already have to report some of the incidents AB 3061 outlines to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; AB 3061 requires the DMV to create a timeline for submissions that must be equal to or shorter than the deadlines required by the federal agency. "AB 3061 is common sense legislation that will ensure the public has insight into all AV-related incidents. Californians are seeing firsthand the chaos AV causes on a daily basis, and they deserve full transparency," said Chris Griswold, Teamsters International Vice President At-Large and President of Teamsters Joint Council 42. "This bill should be easy for AV companies to comply with because it's just an expansion of information that they're already reporting. The Teamsters commend Assemblymember Haney for introducing this bill and call on all elected leaders to join him in supporting AB 3061." Despite robotaxis running over pedestrians, blocking first responders from doing their jobs and causing traffic pileups, state agencies have refused to implement significant AV safety measures. Earlier this month, just weeks after Waymo announced a recall of its robotaxi software in response to two of its robotaxis crashing into the same truck minutes apart in December 2023, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved the expansion of Waymo robotaxis in Los Angeles and San Francisco. "The Teamsters applaud Assemblymember Haney for introducing legislation that will help keep California roads safe," said Lindsay Dougherty, Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and Director of the Teamsters Motion Picture and Theatrical Trade Division. "Over the last year, two of the largest AV companies, Cruise and Waymo, have had to recall their software in California due to safety incidents. This technology is not ready for prime time, and we cannot trust AV companies to be honest about the safety or capability of their products when they're racing towards profitability and fighting to appease shareholders. We need accountability, and that starts with AB 3061." Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and "like" us on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters. Contact: Matt McQuaid, (202) 624-6877 [email protected] SOURCE International Brotherhood of Teamsters HONG KONG, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading telecom executives, government officials, and industry experts recently gathered at the World Broadband Association's (WBBA) Broadband Development Congress in Barcelona to discuss how telecom companies can harness technological change to adapt and thrive over the coming decade. The mood was one of urgency and anticipation, as over 200 speakers and attendees discussed the need for telecom companies to transform into "techcos" to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. Essentially, this means integrating data and decision intelligence across as many areas of business operations as possible. The speakers zeroed in on the primary reasons for telecom companies to transition, including new growth opportunities and the necessity to upgrade networks to handle surging data consumption, topics that have been prominent at this year's Mobile World Congress. Each of the speakers presented ideas on how best to adapt, including strategies for developing next-generation networks, organizational changes, and new service offerings. "New technologies and applications, represented by generative AI, are emerging, giving rise to a large number of new scenarios, business forms, and models," said Ke Ruiwen, chairman and CEO of China Telecom. "We're now facing a new round of technological revolution. We must adapt to meet its new demands." He emphasized that China Telecom's strategy centered on heavily investing in research and development, with R&D staff making up 10% of the company's total workforce and investment growing at a double-digit rate each year. As a result, China Telecom has managed to leverage new technological offerings to generate new revenue, such as Tianyi Cloud, which has become the world's largest cloud service operated by a telecom operator and China's largest hybrid cloud. He mentioned China Telecom was also diversifying into industry-focused AI-enhanced cloud solutions, cloud-network broadband services, and quantum technologies, experiencing significant growth as a result. Andrew Bender, CTO and head of strategy for fixed networks at Nokia, put a spotlight on the seismic shifts in new multi-gigabit broadband technologies. He noted the widespread adoption of XGS PON broadband technology, a type of very fast internet connection technology, which will soon constitute 67% of North America's broadband network. Bender stressed the importance of integrating traditional and mobile internet services to develop customizable, value-added solutions tailored to the varied requirements of both individuals and businesses. He pointed out that strategies like on-demand network slicing would be essential to this integration. "For operators, and the industry in general, we see a potential two-fold increase in revenue being driven by services of this sort," Bender stated, predicting widespread adoption of integrated services across the sector. Leon Wang, president of Huawei's Data Communication Product Line, introduced Huawei's next-generation network solutions, dubbed Net5.5G, designed to assist carriers in boosting revenue and managing increasing data demands. "Huawei has worked closely with industry partners and proposed Net5.5G as a next-generation network," Wang stated. "It comprehensively supports ubiquitous 10 Gbps connections, elastic ultra-broadband transport, hyper-converged data centers, and autonomous network self-optimization, empowering carriers to upgrade and evolve their networks while driving new business growth." Brian J Smyth, managing director and global lead for innovation, comms, media, and technology at Accenture, highlighted four key trends expected to shape the telecom industry: the influence of AI on how people interact with technology, the growth of AI and chatbot systems, the potential of spatial computing and virtual reality, and the increasing use of wearable technology. Smyth advised telecom companies to prioritize creating real value, transforming their workforce, establishing a strong digital infrastructure, and earning public trust to make the most of these technological advances for the good of society. Additionally, the WBBA announced the upcoming launch of the Broadband Excellence Awards. Set to become a benchmark for excellence in the industry, these awards will recognize outstanding contributions and initiatives in broadband development. The award categories will be announced shortly, with submissions opening in the spring and the awards ceremony scheduled for October in Paris. Founded in 2021, the WBBA seeks to combat digital inequality by promoting innovation and collaboration among business leaders, regulators, policymakers, and standard-setting bodies. It currently boasts 77 members from more than 30 countries. SOURCE China Telecom Global Snapdragon Stadium hosts 8th annual event, featuring 15+ taco vendors, 20+ tequila tastings, artisan vendors, and live music SAN DIEGO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The 8th annual Tequila and Taco Music Festival returns to San Diego at its new venue in Thrive Park at Snapdragon Stadium on Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7. Festival goers will enjoy an enticing array of tequila tastings, delectable tacos, artisan vendors, and an exciting lineup of live music performances. This annual festival has etched itself as a regional highlight, drawing thousands of attendees from across the state. "We are thrilled to bring the Tequila and Taco Music Festival to Snapdragon Stadium for an unforgettable weekend of festivities," said CBF Productions President, Vincenzo Giammanco. "This event is a celebration of delicious Mexican food, craft tequila, and great music. We look forward to welcoming attendees from near and far to join us for a memorable experience." A carefully curated and diverse selection of over 20 premium tequilas, from smooth blanco by Nosotros Tequila to aged anejo by Rancho La Gloria , will be available for tequila enthusiasts and newcomers alike. Attendees will also enjoy different variations of traditional street tacos and innovative creations from over 15 local and regional chefs and eateries including Global Tacos Grill , Barra Cruda , Baja Tacos and more. Beyond culinary delights and libations, attendees will enjoy two days of live music spanning various genres, including Shaggy and Ozomatli . Artisan vendors will also be on-site, showcasing unique crafts from Temascali and Kopacetic Kreations , jewelry from JorgeGeorge and Roni's Treasures , apparel from Alberly and SD Cork Hats , and much more. Tickets are available for purchase online, with various options to suit individual preferences. General Admission ($24.99) includes admission into the festival (food and drinks purchased separately); the Margarita Experience (2 for $50) includes admission for two people who will receive a complimentary margarita upon entry (food and additional drinks purchased separately; and the Tequila Experience ($59.99) includes admission into the festival, a souvenir tasting cup upon entry and six .5 oz samples of craft tequila. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.tequilaandtacomusicfestival.com/san-diego. About Tequila and Taco Music Festival Tequila and Taco Music Festival is an annual celebration of Mexican culture, culinary delights, and live music held at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California. Featuring tequila tastings, gourmet tacos, live music, and artisan vendors, the festival offers attendees an immersive and vibrant experience. About Snapdragon Stadium Snapdragon Stadium is a premier event venue located in San Diego, California, renowned for hosting a variety of concerts, festivals, sporting events, and community gatherings throughout the year. About CBF Productions CBF Productions is a leading event production company dedicated to creating memorable experiences that bring communities together. With a passion for excellence and a commitment to innovation, CBF Productions produces a diverse range of events that inspire, entertain, and delight attendees of all ages. Media Contact Sarah Toth Katalyst PR [email protected] 716-545-1443 SOURCE CBF Productions Dr. Villanueva pursued higher education at Biscayne College (St. Thomas University) earning a Bachelor of Science degree with a double major in Biology and Chemistry and a minor in Theology and Philosophy. He then attended the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine where he received a Medical Degree and completed his general surgery internship and neurosurgery residency at the University of Miami, Jackson Memorial Medical Center. Board-certified in Neurological Surgery and in Neuro-Critical Care, Dr. Villanueva specializes in surgeries for brain injuries and neuro-critical care; treats aneurysms and all secondary issues regarding these conditions; and also manages the Neuroscience ICU consulting with neurologists. With more than 8 years at his current post, he has served as the Director of Neuro Trauma and Critical Care at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. and is a Professor of Clinical Neurosurgery at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. A leader in his field, Dr. Villanueva a is Fellow of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons; is a member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons; and serves on the subcommittee for neuro-critical care. The doctor has also created a series of public service announcements to increase community awareness of brain trauma outside of his neurology practice. Dr. Villanueva has been recognized for excellence in service many times in his career, including the Best Doctors in America Award in Neurological Surgery (2019-2020). Dr. Villanueva would like to dedicate this honor to his mentors, Hubert Rosomoff, MD; Barth Green, MD; and Bradley Ruben, MD. Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected] SOURCE The Inner Circle Dr. Kirkle pursued higher education at the University of Witwatersrand, Faculty of Medicine in South Africa where he earned a Medical Doctor degree. He completed an internship and internal medicine residency at St. Mary's Hospital/St Louis University and finished a Fellowship in hematology and oncology at George Washington University. He launched his career in private practice in Boynton Beach, FL, where he provided personalized care to patients battling cancer. Board-certified in internal medicine, hematology, and oncology by the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM), the doctor explained that the ABIM is a physician-led, non-profit, independent evaluation organization driven by doctors who want to achieve higher standards for better care in a rapidly changing world. He is a general medical oncologist and focuses on hematologic malignancies and breast cancer. He also conducts research for the practice and notes that he has a passion for excellence in care and provides comprehensive assessments for all patients. A prominent figure in the field of oncology, Dr. Kirkle asserts that he brings a wealth of experience and expertise to his role at Northwest Georgia Oncology Centers (NGOC). He noted that his career has been marked by a deep commitment to patient well-being; a dedication to advancing cancer treatment; and a track record of academic and clinical excellence. The doctor explained that oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer and that a medical professional who practices oncology is an oncologist. They treat cancer and provide medical care for a person diagnosed with cancer; lead a cancer treatment team of various healthcare professionals; treat patients with radiation therapy; coordinate treatment plans; and prescribe various types of treatment, including chemotherapy and immunotherapy, as well as assist patients with pain management. Highly regarded for his compassionate demeanor, Dr. Kirkle said that he ensures that each patient feels heard, supported, and empowered throughout their cancer journey. Many report that his presence within the center radiates hope and reassurance, providing a pillar of strength to both patients and their families. The doctor's clinical interests are a major part of his practice and he focuses on the diverse facets of oncology, including his expert knowledge of lymphomas; plasma cell disorders; breast cancer; clotting disorders; and gastrointestinal neoplasia. Dr. Kirkle asserts that a major highlight of his career was joining Northwest Georgia Oncology Centers in 2013 where colleagues and patients immediately felt his impact within the medical community. He said that his formative years were spent honing his skills at St. Mary's Health Center/St. Louis University, where he completed his internship and residency in 2004 and explained that following this period, he became a junior faculty member in the Department of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis where his responsibilities included patient management and resident education. When considering his extraordinary success, Dr. Kirkle believes his accomplishments are a result of following his professional philosophy to advance cancer treatment and research. Serving as a Principal Investigator of the William S. Gibbons Cancer Research Institute, he pursues innovative strategies to combat this disease. Dedicated to providing the latest innovations in the field, Dr. Kirkle is a member of the American Society of Hematology; American Society of Clinical Oncology; Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society; and is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. When considering his extraordinary success, the doctor asserts that much of his success is due to the influence of his mentors, James Halgren, MD; and Geraldine Schechter, MD. Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected] SOURCE The Inner Circle SAN FRANCISCO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, One Planet Group announced the return of the 2nd annual One Planet Summit. An annual conference hosted by One Planet Group, the One Planet Summit is pioneering a business philosophy that prioritizes humanity's well-being above traditional corporate objectives. This year's summit, themed "Spiritual Enterprise," will take place from October 11 to October 13, 2024, at the historic Palace Hotel in San Francisco. "Capitalism in its current form is broken. Too often, greed and self-interest overtake common sense and humanity," adds Payam Zamani, founder of One Planet Group."These are transformative times, and businesses have a unique opportunity to shape our future. Our goal is to create a dynamic forum where today's leaders and entrepreneurs can connect, be inspired, and seek new solutions to create a new framework that elevates how we build our lives and businesses to better serve humanity." One Planet Summit attempts to serve as a pivotal gathering for leaders and visionaries to redefine the roles and responsibilities of businesses. With over 200 leaders from influential corporations and various sectors participating last year, the summit is poised to once again offer a unique platform for dialogue and innovation. Among the 38 presentations at the 2023 edition, actor, author, and philanthropist Rainn Wilson argued the need for a spiritual revolution, "Our systems are corrosively broken and operating under the very worst of human impulses the underlying issue is a spiritual one." Julie Wainwright, founder and former CEO of TheRealReal, shared personal lessons from building a company that went on to a $1.8 billion valuation. "[When I started the company,] women only got about 3% of all financing. And I was also an old woman because I was 52 so I knew the odds were against me. Even though I had a business that went from zero to ten million dollars with only [about] one million in financing. The numbers now are below 2%, so it's gotten worse, not better." Another powerful presentation was by Stephen DeBerry, founder and managing partner of BRONZE, who shared his discovery that "you can actually make a lot of money by loving people and treating them well." DeBerry and other attendees recognized that today's businesses don't have to choose between profits and making a difference in the world. The future of business requires that we do both. The 2023 edition of the One Planet Summit took place from November 11-13 in Monterey Bay, California. Talks from the 2023 Summit are available at: https://www.youtube.com/@theoneplanetsummit The summit invites executives, entrepreneurs, professionals, and visionaries to apply for a chance to be part of this one-of-a-kind event. Those from for-profit and non-profit organizations are equally welcome. Early bird registration is available until May 1st, with further announcements of special guests to be made in the coming weeks. To learn more about the One Planet Summit or apply to attend, please visit https://www.oneplanetgroup.com/summit . About One Planet Group One Planet Group is a closely held private equity firm that owns a suite of online technology and media businesses while investing in early-stage companies. Owned and operated businesses span a variety of industries, including ad tech, publishing, and media. One Planet Group's mission is to support strong business ideas while building an ethos that helps improve society and give back to communities. The company's investment portfolio includes over 45 startups representing a diverse group of innovative tech-enabled products and solutions. Investing primarily in high-growth early-stage entities, emphasizing companies that aspire to 'Innovation + Intention.' Specific focus areas include the future of mobility, education technology, health technology, and environmental solutions. One Planet Group's operating businesses include Buyerlink , a leading online marketplace for performance-based marketing; Autoweb , a company that provides performance-based marketing solutions to the automotive industry; California.com , a curated guide to traveling and living in California; WestWind Pictures , a production company that creates and distributes film and television content, and many more. One Planet Group also operates BahaiTeachings.org , a non-profit platform that shares personal perspectives to promote the oneness of humanity. In 2023, One Planet Group launched the One Planet Summit , an annual conference for leaders and visionaries, who blend business and spiritual insight, to inspire real-world solutions. One Planet Group was founded by tech entrepreneur Payam Zamani in 2015. With offices and employees in over ten countries, its global headquarters is in Walnut Creek, California. About the One Planet Summit The One Planet Summit is a forum for leaders and visionaries, who blend business and spiritual insight, to inspire real-world solutions and foster a new community of collaborators. Launched by One Planet Group in 2023, the event welcomed over 200 leaders from influential corporations and various sectors. The 2024 Summit, themed "Spiritual Enterprise," will take place from October 11 to October 13, 2024, at the historic Palace Hotel in San Francisco. More information is available at https://www.oneplanetgroup.com/summit . Media Contact Miriam Cohen, Senior Director of PR & Communications, One Planet Group 925.237.9036 | miriam (at) oneplanetgroup.com SOURCE One Planet Group Inc. CHICAGO, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the latest research report, the US pharmacy benefit management market is growing at a CAGR of 5.56% during 2023-2029. To Know More, Click: https://www.focusreports.store/report/us-pharmacy-benefit-management-market-focused-insights U.S. Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Focus Insight Report by Arizton The U.S. Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Report Scope Report Attributes Details Market Size (2029) $680 Billion CAGR (2023-2029) 5.56 % Historic Year 2020-2022 Base Year 2023 Forecast Year 2024-2029 The US is the largest global pharmacy benefit management market revenue contributor. The demand for the pharmacy benefit management market is rising due to multiple factors, including the rising baby boomers, the rising aging population, the increase in healthcare expenditure, the growing prevalence of heart diseases and nerve disorders, and the growing awareness among the general population. In 2023, the commercial health plans segment by health plans dominated the pharmacy benefit management market with 57.81% occupancy and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.29% during the forecast period as the commercial health plans are associated with the number of healthcare organizations. The Medicare plan segment is the fastest-growing segment and is expected to generate a revenue of $225.32 billion by the end of the forecasting period. The south region dominated the segment with 29.66% in 2023 and is expected to occupy 30.65% by the end of the forecasting year. This region is the fastest growing, with an absolute growth of 43.02% and incremental growth of $62.76 billion during the forecast period. It is observed that southern states have the highest number of adults who skip care due to the cost and some of the highest rates of uninsured people. Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, and Louisiana are the top states with a high percentage of insurers among the southern states in the US. It is observed that 90% of the total population is insured by government or non-government firms. The U.S. pharmacy benefit management (PBM) market report includes exclusive data on 27 vendors. CVS Health, Cigna Healthcare, United Health Group, Prime Therapeutics, MedImpact, and Humana dominate the U.S. Pharmacy Benefit Management market. The major players focus on strategic acquisitions and collaborations with emerging players to enter the pharmacy benefit management market and gain a competitive advantage. Product Segmentation & Forecast Health Plan Commercial Health Plans Medicare Plan Medicaid Plan Others Business Model Insurance Companies & Retail Pharmacies Pure Play PBMs Service Special Pharmacy Services Retail Pharmacy Networks Mail-order pharmacy services Claims Processing Formulary Management Drug Utilization Review Price, Discount & Rebate Negotiations Disease Management & Adherence Initiatives Region Unites States South Mid-West West Northeast Buy this Research @ https://www.focusreports.store/report/us-pharmacy-benefit-management-market-focused-insights Vendors List Key Vendors CVS Health Cigna Healthcare UnitedHealth Group Prime Therapeutics MedImpact Humana Other Prominent Vendors Abarca Elevance Health AscellaHealth CaptureRx Centene Change Healthcare CitizensRx Elixir MedalistRx MaxorPlus Navitus Health Solutions PerformRx WellDyne ProCare Rx NirvanaHealth Anthem BeneCard PBM Shields Health Solutions MagellanRx Management Walgreens Boots Alliance RITE AID Key Questions Answered in the Report How big is the U.S. pharmacy benefit management market? What is the growth rate of the U.S. pharmacy benefit management market? Who are the dominating players in the U.S. pharmacy benefit management market? Table of Content CHAPTER 1: Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Overview Executive Summary Key Findings CHAPTER 2: Pharmacy Benefit Management Market US: Projected Revenue of Pharmacy Benefit Management Market (2020-2029; $Billions) CHAPTER 3: Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Segmentation Data US: Projected Revenue by Health Plan (2020-2029; $Billions) Commercial Health Plans Medicare Plan Medicaid Plan Others U.S.: Projected Revenue by Business Model (2020-2029; $Billions) Insurance Companies & Retail Pharmacies Pure Play PBMs US: Projected Revenue by Services (2020-2029; $Billions) Special Pharmacy Services Retail Pharmacy Networks Mail-Order Pharmacy Services Claims Processing Formulary Management Drug Utilization Review Price, Discount & Rebate Negotiations Disease Management and Adherence Initiatives U.S.: Projected Revenue by Region (2020-2029; $Billions) South Region Mid-West Region West Region Northeast Region CHAPTER 4: Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Prospects & Opportunities Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Opportunities & Trends Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Drivers Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Constraints CHAPTER 5: Pharmacy Benefit Management Industry Overview Pharmacy Benefit Management Market - Competitive Landscape Pharmacy Benefit Management Market Key Vendor Profiles Pharmacy Benefit Management Market - Other Prominent Vendors Pharmacy Benefit Management Market - Key Strategic Recommendations CHAPTER 6: Appendix Research Methodology Abbreviations About Arizton Check Out Some of the Related Reports U.S. Sleep Disorder Clinics Market - Focused Insights 2024-2029 Global Hospital Beds Market - Focused Insights 2024 - 2029 Global Enteral Feeding Devices Market - Focused Insights 2024 - 2029 About Focused Reports by Arizton Welcome to Focused Reports, an esteemed Arizton Advisory & Intelligence subsidiary committed to delivering precise and insightful market research reports across all key geographies. Our unique selling proposition lies in our affordable pricing, accurate data, in-depth research, and presentation-ready reports. With us, expensive market research is a thing of the past. We aim to be strategic, providing valuable data. Focus Reports is where folks come to name their ideas, create a compelling brand and a great-looking website, and attract customers with digital and social marketing. About Us: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence is an innovative and quality-driven firm that offers cutting-edge research solutions to clients worldwide. We excel in providing comprehensive market intelligence reports and advisory and consulting services. We offer comprehensive market research reports on consumer goods & retail technology, automotive and mobility, smart tech, healthcare, life sciences, industrial machinery, chemicals, materials, I.T. and media, logistics, and packaging. These reports contain detailed industry analysis, market size, share, growth drivers, and trend forecasts. Arizton comprises a team of exuberant and well-experienced analysts who have mastered generating incisive reports. Our specialist analysts possess exemplary skills in market research. We train our team in advanced research practices, techniques, and ethics to outperform in fabricating impregnable research reports. Contact Us: Call: +1-312-235-2040 +1 302 469 0707 Mail: [email protected] Website: https://www.focusreports.store/ Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361621/US_Pharmacy_Benefit_Management_Market.jpg Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2326840/4513442/Focus_Reports_Logo.jpg SOURCE Arizton Advisory & Intelligence Vodacom Group CTO (pictured) Dejan Kastelic said the operator is exploring a range of strategies to tackle rising opex costs and reduce its carbon footprint through innovative new technologies, including harnessing the power of hydrogen to power base stations. In an interview with Developing Telecoms at Mobile World Congress Barcelona last month, the executive gave an update on Vodacoms agreement with South African energy supplier Eskom, a strategy to tackle the energy crisis currently engulfing the nation. Vodacom announced it signed a Virtual Wheeling agreement with the controversial energy supplier, in October last year, and created the Virtual Wheeling platform through its subsidiary Mezzanine. Under the agreement, Vodacom will be allowed to buy electricity from an Independent Power Producers (IPP) under the same terms and conditions as its agreement with Eskom - a move whereby enterpises can contribute energy capacity to the energy provider. The agreement was struck as South Africa is undergoing an energy crisis where the national grid is unable to meet fast-rising demand. Eskom has been scheduling blackouts, known as load-shedding, to prevent the grid from being overwhelmed. Through the Virtual Wheeling agreement, Kastelic believes that corporates will follow and contribute generation capacity to Eskom, alleviating demand on the grid. Kastelic told Developing Telecoms that the operator began its network improvement plan with focus not only on energy consumption but energy availability at sites, as backup cells could not provide support as energy availability deteriorated. The next step for this strategy will see Vodacom work with an unnamed IPP to build a solar farm in the next six months, and a wind plant six months after to wheel completely green energy into the Eskom grid straight to its 15,000 sites. Kastelic noted this strategy could cushion Vodacom from rising energy costs in South Africa, which increase at a substantial rate of between 10% to 18% per year and provide predictable cost estimates for the business. With this kind of approach you can gain control over the cost. Because if you build power generation with wind and solar, you actually control your power costs, said Kastelic. Currently Vodacom has contracted its IPP to eventually supply 30% of the energy it needs in South Africa to save the operator up to 10% per kWh, noted Kastelic. But the wider ambition is to be completely reliant on sustainable energy sources in future. Vodacom stated in a report from July 2023 that its footprint produced 599,648 tonnes of CO2e, with the majority of its GHG emissions stemming from the use of diesel and electricity to power its network. Diesel is a massive producer of GHG for the group, the report detailed, but Vodacom will be tackling this with two alternative technologies to replace diesel generators. The first is micro turbines that use a variety of less polluting, more affordable fuels such as paraffin. Micro turbines also require less time to service compared to diesel generators. Be water The second alternative Kastelic revealed to Developing Telecoms is a hydrogen-powered solution that Vodacom has begun piloting. The hydrogen-based solution can generate between 4 kilowatts (kW) to 10kW depending on the needs of the site, noted Kastelic. The challenge now is to ensure the hydrogen unit is stable to run safely and ensure the total cost of ownership is low, said the executive. In South Africa, it's very important for a solution to be safe because we have a lot of theft and a lot of vandalism on our sites. We don't want to introduce new solutions which can be harmful for the people, said Kastelic. But the new backup power solutions fill the CTO with excitement as it could be a cost-saving innovation that also fulfils commitments to carbon neutrality. Vodacom committed in 2022 to halve its GHG emissions and begin using renewable-energy sources in 2025. The question now is how can we grow with scale utilising a high number of these units? Throughout the total cost of ownership were looking for low servicing cycles and low cost to maintain and operate. Because all you need is water to power these units even if you do a closed system. That water in the tank, you only need to fill it every six months. Innovations such as this is how we are looking to make our operations greener, said Kastelic. Vodacom is working with two companies to harness the power of hydrogen but Kastelic did not detail their identities. Continent wide energy problem Load-shedding is a continent-wide problem, with Kastelic highlighting Kenya and Egypt as recent pain points for the group. In Kenya, two outages lasted between 16-17 hours, negatively affecting around 400 sites. Kastelic added that load shedding started in Egypt last year but it isnt going away as it was expected to be a temporary problem. Vodacom is using solutions it deployed in South Africa to serve its North African market. The challenge for Vodacom is that instead of investing capex into the capacity and 4G coverage, we have to spend a chunk of that money on power resiliency. This of course contributes to the customer experience positively, but its not contributing to coverage or capacity, and that's the challenge we are facing now, said Kastelic. Sharing is caring Kastelic called for change to regulatory frameworks to incentivise MNOs to share the energy burden on sites, a move that would not only lower opex but also cut down on carbon emissions and boost customer experience. In an ideal landscape, operators would share the same solar panel, battery and generator. Every site usually has multiple MNOs present with their own generator and batteries. Remember, we need to invest into power resiliency as well as capacity and coverage, so instead of having these duplications - if regulators would support us to actually share and co-invest into power resilience capabilities, that would actually support the whole industry, and the value would actually flow back to the customer, said Kastelic. Despite power resiliency adding extra hurdles for operators looking to expand their coverage in Africa, rising demand for data services means that operators have to find a way to expand - particularly in rural areas - to prevent digital exclusion. Kastelic revealed that Vodacom is working to share networks with a major rival but did not disclose the operator or market, with an announcement planned for next year. We're looking at one country, potentially with one of our rivals, to address that challenge of building rural area sites affordably. This means lean sites only with decent capacity 2G, 3G and 4G, revealed Kastelic. Cloudy with a chance of 4G - Vodacom 4G cloud smartphone Alongside planned expansion of coverage, the operator is also looking to tackle the mammoth challenge of smartphone affordability, an issue that continues to persist for telecoms in developing markets. Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub revealed earlier this year that the group will launch an entry-level 4G device in South Africa to spur uptake of digital services. Kastelic revealed that the device will feature VoLTE (voice over LTE), and come pre-loaded with essential apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook that will be stored and accessed on the cloud. The device will be lean in terms of memory and computing and can be made available for a price up to US$20. Kastelic believes this strategy will aid in migrating subscribers who have stayed put on 2G and 3G services. It will be in the markets where we want to tap into, because we want to migrate customers from 2G/3G and give people the experiences that can be provided by 4G technology, said Kastelic. BOSTON, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Transform Power Systems, a Massachusetts-certified Woman-Owned, Minority-Owned, and Small Business, formerly known as Nordee Enterprises, is excited to announce its brand transition to better reflect its commitment to clean energy and engineering services. This rebranding aligns with our mission to provide innovative solutions for a sustainable future. What We Offer: Engineering Services: Transform Power Systems offers comprehensive engineering services, including design, implementation, and maintenance of clean energy systems. Talent Placement: We specialize in talent placement for clean energy projects, connecting diverse and motivated individuals with opportunities in the sustainability sector. Our Commitment to Sustainability: Clean Energy Solutions : Transform Power Systems is dedicated to providing innovative clean energy solutions to combat climate change and reduce carbon emissions. : Transform Power Systems is dedicated to providing innovative clean energy solutions to combat climate change and reduce carbon emissions. Environmental Impact: Our team is committed to minimizing environmental impact through sustainable practices and energy-efficient technologies. About Transform Power Systems: Transform Power Systems is a leading engineering services provider and talent placement firm in the clean energy sector. As a minority and women-owned business, we are proud to drive positive change and promote diversity in the energy industry. For more information about Transform Power Systems and our offerings, please visit tps-energy.com. SOURCE Transform Power Systems NORTHBROOK, Ill., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Hilco Real Estate, LLC announces April 30, 2024, as the qualifying bid deadline for the sale of two operating assisted living facilities in Fort Worth, Texas: Tandy Village and Vincent Victoria Village. Strategically placed in a densely populated residential neighborhood less than four miles from downtown Fort Worth, Tandy Village consists of a one and three-story building spanning 69,454 square feet on 3.6 acres. This turnkey facility boasts 80 rooms and 120 beds, but is licensed for 160 beds, providing opportunities for increased resident capacity. Featuring a resident lounge, dining area, commercial kitchen, administrative offices, game room, chapel and 76 surface parking spaces, Tandy Village is positioned for expansion. With the opportunity to enhance services like memory care, enhanced resident amenities and optimized bed count in existing spaces, this offering presents the possibility to bolster healthcare services in the area. Alternatively, there is potential to accommodate uses beyond assisted living through its community facility zoning. The second site, Vincent Victoria Village, is in Forest Hill, Texas, a south suburb less than 10 miles southeast of Fort Worth's downtown. This one-story building totals 27,832 square feet and sits on 2.02 acres. The property has been well-maintained, featuring 61 rooms with a licensed capacity for 80 beds. This site features two interior courtyards, administrative offices, a welcome lobby and reception desk, a commercial kitchen, a dining room, a laundry room and 31 surface parking spaces. While the site's best use is to continue operations as an assisted living facility, its flexible multifamily residential zoning presents avenues for multifamily developments, group homes and special permitted uses including municipal, institutional and residential purposes. Both properties are situated in the rapidly-growing Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA (The Metroplex), deemed the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the Southern United States, totaling 7,637,387 in 2020 by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. The region's economy, also referred to as Silicon Prairie, is primarily based on banking, commerce, insurance, telecommunications, technology, energy, transportation and logistics. Within the healthcare sector, major employers include Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth, Cook Children's Medical Center, Baylor Scott and White All Saints Medical Center, and JPS Health Network. Adding to the appeal, the facilities' locations within the Fort Worth area benefit from excellent connectivity through Interstate 20, 30 and 820, and HWY 287 and 180. These major roadways provide convenient access further enhancing the city's accessibility. This region further benefits from the historic and continued migration of the nation's population from Rust Belt states to Sun Belt states, driven by factors like affordable housing, job growth and warmer climates. According to the Census Bureau's latest data, Dallas-Fort Worth ranks first for top destinations for absolute population growth between 2021-2022. This trend is reflected in senior housing as well. Dodge Data and NICMap Vision reports that among the fastest growing 30 metros with over 100,000 residents 75+, 27 are in the Sun Belt. Fort Worth, like other areas of the country, has experienced the start of what has been nicknamed the "silver tsunami." Seniors Housing Business noted 10,000 Americans will turn 80 every day starting in 2025. By 2030, all 73 million Baby Boomers will be of retirement age. These demographic shifts underscore the pressing need for expanded healthcare services. These sites are equipped with significant capacity for comprehensive care and can be outfitted for future utilizations beyond their current role as assisted living facilities, encompassing services like memory care or drug and behavioral rehabilitation. This ensures the potential for high-quality healthcare facilities tailored to meet the needs of the community. Investing in a healthcare facility in the Fort Worth area means joining a thriving medical community and catering to a population with a growing demand for these specialized services. Terry Rochford, senior vice president of business development at Hilco Real Estate, stated, "These turnkey facilities provide the opportunity to continue the operation of the existing businesses while adding a variety of operational efficiencies and expanded services to meet market demand and maximize returns on the investment. We anticipate a strong response from the market for these assets!" Steve Madura, senior vice president at Hilco Real Estate, added, "This offering represents a chance to get ahead of this historic, generational shift and reap the benefits from a strong demand for senior housing, as well as address a significant need for affordable accommodations for our country's most vulnerable, aging population. This is all supported by the stratospheric population growth this area of the country has experienced in recent years." Qualifying bids must be received on or before the deadline of April 30, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. (CT) and must be submitted on the letter of Intent (LOI) available for review and download from Hilco Real Estate's website. Interested buyers should review the terms of sale for requirements to participate in the sale process available on Hilco Real Estate's website. For further information, please contact Stephen Madura at (847) 504-2478 or [email protected], Adam Zimmerman, MAI, at (847) 917-9323 or [email protected] and Michael Kneifel at (847) 201-2322 or [email protected]. For further information on the property, sale process and terms or to obtain access to due diligence documents, please visit HilcoRealEstate.com or call (855) 755-2300. About Hilco Real Estate Hilco Real Estate ("HRE"), a Hilco Global company (HilcoGlobal.com), is headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois (USA). HRE is a national provider of strategic real estate disposition services. Acting as an agent or principal, HRE uses its experience to advise and execute strategies to assist clients in deriving the maximum value from their real estate assets. By leveraging multi-faceted sales strategies and techniques, aggressive repositioning and restructuring experience, a vast and motivated network of buyers and sellers, and substantial access to capital, HRE exceeds expectations even in the most complex transactions. SOURCE Hilco Real Estate Management to Provide a Company Overview and Highlight Strategic Progress on Growth, Diversification, and Optimization PHOENIX, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- UTI, Inc. (NYSE: UTI) (the "Company"), a leading workforce solutions provider of transportation, skilled trades and healthcare education programs, is scheduled to participate in the 36th Annual ROTH Conference, which is being held in Dana Point, CA from March 17-19, 2024. The Company's CEO, Jerome Grant and CFO, Troy Anderson will be hosting one-on-one investor meetings throughout March 18th and 19th. In their remarks, management will offer an overview of the Company and highlight progress on the Company's growth, diversification, and optimization strategy through the first fiscal quarter of 2024, along with the expectations for the remainder of the year. To receive additional information, request an invitation, or schedule a one-on-one meeting with management, please contact your ROTH representative or the Company's investor relations team at [email protected]. The Company's most recent investor presentation can be found here. About UTI, Inc. UTI, Inc. (NYSE: UTI) was founded in 1965 and is a leading workforce solutions provider of transportation, skilled trades and healthcare education programs, whose mission is to serve students, partners, and communities by providing quality education and support services for in-demand careers across a number of highly-skilled fields. The Company is comprised of two divisions: Universal Technical Institute ("UTI") and Concorde Career Colleges ("Concorde"). UTI operates 16 campuses located in 9 states and offers a wide range of transportation and skilled trades technical training programs under brands such as UTI, MIAT College of Technology, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute and NASCAR Technical Institute. Concorde operates across 17 campuses in 8 states and online, offering programs in the Allied Health, Dental, Nursing, Patient Care and Diagnostic fields. For more information, visit www.uti.edu or www.concorde.edu, or visit us on LinkedIn at @UniversalTechnicalInstitute and @Concorde Career Colleges or on X (formerly Twitter) @news_UTI or @ConcordeCareer. Investor Relations Contact: Matt Glover and Jackie Keshner Gateway Group, Inc. (949) 574-3860 [email protected] Media Contact: Susan Aspey Corporate Affairs Universal Technical Institute, Inc. [email protected] SOURCE Universal Technical Institute, Inc. "Vista Bank's commitment to our communitywill drastically raise the quality of life for so many." - Dallas City Councilman Adam Bazaldua. Post this The board and bank leadership saw the need to serve the South Dallas community early on, committing time and resources to a task force aimed at innovating in this space. Dallas Carter High School graduate and Oak Cliff resident Lubbock Smith III volunteered on the committee and was soon hired full-time as Vice President, Director of Community Development and Vista Outreach. From their initial encounter, he and Vista President & CEO John D. Steinmetz shared a vision to engage South Dallas community leaders, invest in area schools and student athletes, and provide financial literacy training as well as bank products and services to the under-championed region. Vista quickly stepped up as Title Sponsor for Camp Exposure, a supporting role that lasted three years. The Bank provided key funding and manpower to help the young organization empower area high school athletes to garner D1 attention, while elevating their skills both on and off the field. The Bank then sponsored a 75" digital board at Dallas Carter High School acting as a real-time scrapbook of the school's rich heritage and current achievements, with financial literacy tips interspersed throughout to train curious students. A strong believer in collaboration, Vista would go on to partner with DISD, the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce, Southern Dallas Progress, DEC, and over 40 other great organizations to impact over 21,000 individuals while working towards real solutions for the community. A location was then secured in the Fair Park region and will be the first of its kind in almost three decades. Once renovation efforts of the old social security building at 3225 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. are completed, the new location will serve not only as Vista's largest and latest Banking Center footprint, but also provide office space to house the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce where Mr. Smith serves on the Board of Directors, as well as Southern Dallas Progress and the SDFP Innovation Center. The completed office space will be anchored by a Financial Literacy Center offering year-round trainings to students, young adults, families, and small businesses. "I am beyond thrilled that Vista Bank has announced the opening of a Branch in South Dallas," stated Dallas City Councilman Adam Bazaldua. "The commitment to our community and investment in resources is going to touch District 7 in ways unseen before. It's no secret that for decades our side of I-30 has been intentionally overlooked and deprived of equitable access to capital financing and resources. Vista Bank's presence is not only symbolic of what we hope is to come, but their partnership with the Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce adds another element of trust and confidence to their presence. Further, Vista Bank's intentional decision to remodel and utilize the old social security building, instead of building a new facility, is a fantastic way to show what dedication to our community looks like. A bank with the intention of aiding our local businesses and residents with access to financial capital will drastically raise the quality of life for so many. Vista Bank's partnership is a trailblazing step for banking in South Dallas, and I am confident that the outcome will allow other banks to see what our community has known for so long there is no difference between North and South Dallas, only what is accessible and equitable." "I've always had a passion to teach people to fish, providing a hand up, not a handout," noted John Steinmetz. "Having grown up the son of a father who served in the military and TGIFriday's server, the Boys and Girls Clubs across the country provided some basic life lessons for me, including financial principles rarely taught even today. We will continue working with community partners to find the right balance of financial literacy education and access to funding for qualified loans; providing the training needed for entrepreneurs to learn how to fish as well as a 'quality pond' for them to fish from." "Growing up an Oak Cliff native, now South Dallas resident, I've chosen to work and raise my family here because I wanted to help others elevate in my local community," stated Lubbock Smith III. "When I first met John and saw his passion to do the same, I knew his vision complemented my own which was no coincidence. Small business is the best hope to see generational wealth created in South Dallas, and I am humbled to serve a company who is as committed to furthering that pursuit as I am." About Vista Bank Best known as the Entrepreneurs' Bank, Vista Bank is headquartered in Dallas and serves markets across North, Central, West Texas, and Palm Beach, Florida, through its 17 Banking Centers. With a Private Client offering, more than 200 team members, over $2 billion in assets, and a rich 112-year history of Entrepreneurs Banking Entrepreneurs, Vista offers innovative solutions to personal and commercial clients alike while never sacrificing its top priority putting People First. Learn more about Vista Bank, consistently recognized regionally and nationally as a top-rated financial institution, leading commercial bank, best workplace, and best in customer service. CONTACT: Cathy Landtroop, 806.729.1979, [email protected], vistabank.com SOURCE Vista Bank RADNOR, Pa., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP (www.ktmc.com) informs investors that a securities class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California against Xponential Fitness, Inc. ("Xponential") (NYSE: XPOF). The action charges Xponential with violations of the federal securities laws, including omissions and fraudulent misrepresentations relating to the company's business, operations, and prospects. As a result of Xponential' s materially misleading statements and omissions to the public, Xponential' s investors have suffered significant losses. CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR XPONENTIAL LOSSES. YOU CAN ALSO CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK OR COPY AND PASTE IN YOUR BROWSER: https://www.ktmc.com/new-cases/xponential-fitness-inc?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=xpof&mktm=r TO VIEW OUR VIDEO, PLEASE CLICK HERE LEAD PLAINTIFF DEADLINE: APRIL 9, 2024 CLASS PERIOD: JULY 26, 2021 THROUGH DECEMBER 7, 2023 CONTACT AN ATTORNEY TO DISCUSS YOUR RIGHTS: Jonathan Naji, Esq. at (484) 270-1453 or via email at [email protected] Kessler Topaz is one of the world's foremost advocates in protecting the public against corporate fraud and other wrongdoing. Our securities fraud litigators are regularly recognized as leaders in the field as well as the firm itself which is continuously awarded for the successful results we've achieved. We are proud to have recovered billions of dollars for our clients and the classes of shareholders we represent. In addition to representing investors in cases where the fraud has been revealed, Kessler Topaz also represents whistleblowers - persons who expose wrongdoing to those in positions of authority or to the public- in cases brought under federal and state qui tam statutes, and through financial fraud whistleblower programs, such as those run by the SEC, CFTC and IRS. If you have information about fraud against government programs (such as Medicare), or violations of federal securities, commodities, tax or anti-foreign bribery laws, contact Kessler Topaz at (866) 369-7779 or at [email protected] or go to https://www.ktmc-whistleblower.com. DEFENDANTS' ALLEGED MISCONDUCT In July 2021, Defendants took Xponential public through an initial public offering, selling over ten million Xponential shares at $12 per share. Thereafter and throughout the Class Period, Defendants failed to disclose that the company's franchisees from whom Xponential derived substantially all of its revenue were largely failing, with the majority of the company's store brands losing money, dozens of studios operating at a loss (forcing some to close permanently), and more than 100 franchisees listed for sale at a fraction of their initial cost. Despite the foregoing, Xponential misled new franchisees to sign up with the company with false and misleading promises of robust financial returns, misleading claims regarding past studio performance, and deceptive assurances of corporate support. The truth began to be revealed on June 26, 2023, when market analyst Fuzzy Panda Research published a short-sellers report alleging, among other things, that Xponential is "hiding the fact that many of their brands and franchisees are struggling." The report further alleges that, despite the claims of Xponential's CEO that the company has "never closed a store," Fuzzy Panda found over 30 permanently closed stores. Moreover, the report claims that franchise documents of Xponential suggest that 8 out of every 10 Xponential brands are losing money monthly, with over half of Xponential studios never making a positive financial return. Following this news, Xponential's stock price fell $9.39, or 37.4%, to close at $15.72 per share on June 27, 2023. Then, on December 7, 2023, Bloomberg Businessweek published an article on Xponential that corroborated many of the allegations reported in the Fuzzy Panda report. Specifically, the article reported that Bloomberg Businessweek had interviewed dozens of former business partners, employees, and franchisees of Xponential who revealed that Xponential misled many franchisees into a "financial nightmare," and that Xponential's management "has a track record of combative management, deploying growth-at-all-costs tactics and unleashing aggressive reprisals against anyone who gets in his way." As a result, these unscrupulous tactics caused "many of the company's franchisees . . . [to] have either declared bankruptcy or los[e] their retirement savings." Following this news, the price of Xponential common stock fell more than 26% over two trading days. Finally, on December 11, 2023, Xponential disclosed that it was contacted by the SEC requesting that Xponential provide it "with certain documents." Addressing the SEC's request, Xponential stated that the company "does not otherwise intend to provide additional information regarding this matter unless and until it believes there is a material development that warrants public disclosure." Following this news, Xponential's stock price fell more than 14% during intraday trading on December 11, 2023. WHAT CAN I DO? Xponential investors may, no later than April 9, 2024, seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP encourages Xponential investors who have suffered significant losses to contact the firm directly to acquire more information. The class action complaint against Xponential, City of Taylor General Employees Retirement System v. Xponential Fitness, Inc., et al., Case No. 24-cv-00285, is filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE CASE WHO CAN BE A LEAD PLAINTIFF? A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. The lead plaintiff is usually the investor or small group of investors who have the largest financial interest and who are also adequate and typical of the proposed class of investors. The lead plaintiff selects counsel to represent the lead plaintiff and the class and these attorneys, if approved by the court, are lead or class counsel. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. ABOUT KESSLER TOPAZ MELTZER & CHECK, LLP Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country and around the world. The firm has developed a global reputation for excellence and has recovered billions of dollars for victims of fraud and other corporate misconduct. All of our work is driven by a common goal: to protect investors, consumers, employees and others from fraud, abuse, misconduct and negligence by businesses and fiduciaries. The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP please visit www.ktmc.com. CONTACT: Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP (484) 270-1453 280 King of Prussia Road Radnor, PA 19087 [email protected] SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP Private equity firm KKR & Co will invest US$400 million in telecoms tower operations in the Philippines, according to an announcement made by the US Department of Commerce this week. Reuters says that, according to the announcement, KKR will develop and acquire about 2,000 towers to support digital connectivity across the Philippines. This follows a two-day trade and investment mission led by US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. In fact the Philippines secured over $1 billion in commitments from American firms this week after the trade mission, which also involved executives from 22 companies including Google, Visa and Microsoft. We reported yesterday on Microsofts plans, announced during the visit, to train 100,000 Philippine women in artificial intelligence technology and cybersecurity. Microsoft is reportedly also working with the Philippine central bank and the ministries of budget and trade to identify how its AI products can help boost productivity. Added to the US pledges have been assurances gained by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr during a recent three-day working visit in Germany. In total there have been about $5 billion worth of investment pledges from German and American firms from a wide range of sectors. Reuters says that the Philippines has long struggled to lure foreign money because of issues like red tape, weak infrastructure and policy uncertainty, so this has, it seems, been a good week for the countrys efforts to attract investment. Cambodias Minister of Posts and Telecommunication has reportedly promised that the ministry is preparing to launch 5G technology in in the near future to support the countrys digital ambitions. According to the Khmer Times, MPT minister Chea Vandeth, said the ministry has been hammering out a policy that will give operators access to the required 100 MHz of spectrum to run 5G networks. Speaking at the First Digital Government Forum and Digital Technology Expo in Phnom Pehn on Monday, Vandeth said the ministry is committed to connecting the entire country with 5G, although he didnt give a timeline for that commitment. Cambodia will consider launching 5G technology at an appropriate time in the near future, Vandeth is quoted as saying. In the meantime, the MPT is continuing to promote 4G mobile and Internet services, especially for schools, health centres, communes and police stations, the report said. This is not the first time the MPT has promised 5G was around the corner. Cambodian operators Metfone, Smart Axiata and CamGSM (a.k.a. Cellcard) conducted 5G trials between 2018 and 2020, only for the MPT to retract their trial licences in 2020 ostensibly over concerns that it would be wasteful and inefficient for everyone to build their own 5G infrastructure. In 2021, according to media reports, Vandeth said more or less the same thing the ministry was studying 5G and working on a policy to allocate spectrum for it. What may be different this time is that mobile internet usage has surged in Cambodia in the last few years, spurred by the COVID pandemic, which is putting the countrys 4G networks under increasing pressure. The report notes that Vandeth framed his 5G comments in the context of building up digital infrastructure in Cambodia, which he described as a top priority for the ministry. At the same forum this week, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet hailed the countrys progress in digitalisation. Hun cited statistics that digital payments in Cambodia reached about US$492 billion at the end of 2023, which he said was around 16 times the countrys GDP. 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 Washington, March 13 : The US will send $300 million (A234 million) in military weapons to Ukraine, including ammunition, rockets and anti-aircraft missiles, the White House has said as quoted by media reports. The surprise announcement on Tuesday comes as a bill in Congress to send further aid to Ukraine stalls amid partisan debate, BBC reported. The US shipment, the first in nearly three months, is intended to prevent Ukraine from losing ground to Russia. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said this aid "is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs". "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sullivan told reporters on Tuesday, adding that "it will not prevent Ukraine from running out of ammunition". The White House has been appealing to Congress for months to pass a budget that sends aid to Ukraine, as well as Israel and Taiwan, BBC reported. A $60 billion aid bill has already passed the Senate, but has yet to face a vote in the House of Representatives. Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, has so far refused to consider the Senate bill. Johnson, an ally of Donald Trump, has said the House will vote on its own aid bill, but only after Congress passes a budget that overhauls the US immigration system. On Tuesday, a group of bipartisan lawmakers in the House launched a longshot petition -- an attempt to force the House to vote on the Senate bill -- using a rare procedural tactic that hasn't been successfully employed since 2015, BBC reported. Tuesday's emergency package of weapons and equipment comes from cost savings made in earlier Ukraine weapon contracts. The aid announcement came as President Joe Biden hosted Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk at the White House in a show of support for Ukraine. Following the meeting, Tusk told reporters that he hopes Johnson "is already aware that, on his individual decision, depends the fate of millions of people". "This is not some political skirmish that only matters here in America," the Polish Prime Minister said. "The absence of this positive decision of Johnson will really cost thousands of lives (in Ukraine). Children. Women. He must be aware of his personal responsibility." On Tuesday, Denmark announced that it would ship around $336 m illion in ammunition and artillery to Ukraine, BBC reported. Ukraine has lost ground in recent months due an "artificial shortage" of weapons, the country's President, Volodymr Zelensky, said last month. Moscow, March 13 : Three Ukraine-based Russian paramilitary groups said that they have crossed into Russia and are now fighting government troops there, media reported. The Freedom of Russia Legion (FRL) and Siberian Battalion (SB) posted videos purportedly showing their fighters in Russia's Belgorod and Kursk regions, BBC reported. The FRL and an exiled Russian politician claimed two villages were now in control of "liberation forces". Russia's Defence Ministry said the breakthrough attempts were thwarted. It claimed more than 234 Ukrainian troops had been killed and several tanks had been destroyed. According to Belgorod's regional governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov, one member of Russia's territorial defence forces was killed and 10 civilians were injured, BBC reported. These numbers have not yet been verified by the BBC. Ukraine's military denied any involvement in Tuesday's cross-border raids. Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for the country's military intelligence, said the paramilitary groups were "independent organisations" of Russian nationals, and therefore operating "at home". In a separate development, Russia said Ukraine had launched 25 drones on targets across Russia, but the attack was thwarted. However, videos have emerged which appear to show several Russian oil facilities on fire, BBC reported. In the Ivanovo region, just east of Moscow, an Il-76 military transport plane with eight crew and seven passengers crashed shortly after take-off, Russia's Defence Ministry was quoted as saying by Russian state-run news agencies. The Ministry said an engine fire caused the crash. It gave no details of survivors. Videos have emerged purportedly showing the plane on fire circling in the sky, and later plumes of black smoke from the crash site. Elsewhere, at least three people were killed and 38 injured on Tuesday night when a Russian missile struck two apartment buildings in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, according to the Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko. Klymenko said children were among the victims and that the number of deaths may go up as the search and rescue operation is continuing, BBC reported. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country would "inflict losses on the Russian state in response -- quite rightly". A full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched by Russian President Vladimir Putin is now in its third year, with no signs that the biggest war in Europe since World War Two could end soon. On Tuesday, the FRL posted what it said was a video from the Russian-Ukrainian border. "Like all our fellow citizens, in the Legion we dream of a Russia freed from Putin's dictatorship. But we don't just dream: we make every effort to make these dreams come true. We will take our land away from the regime, centimetre by centimetre," an armed FRL soldier in the footage is heard saying. Meanwhile, the SB said "fierce fighting is going on the Russian Federation territory", publishing a clip purportedly showing its fighters engaging with Russian government forces. It also condemned Russian presidential elections on March 15-17, in which Putin is widely expected to be declared the winner. "Ballots and polling stations in this case are fiction. You can really change your life for the better only with weapons in your hands," the SB said. Another Ukraine-based Russian group, the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK), also published footage of what it said were its fighters engaging with Russian government troops, BBC reported. "The army of the Kremlin regime lays down its weapons without even starting the battle," it said. The videos have not been independently verified. The border village of Tetkino in the Kursk region appeared to be one of the targets in Tuesday's raids, with the FRL claiming that "liberating forces" now had full control over the settlement. The BBC has verified the authenticity of FRL footage depicting a strike on an armoured personnel carrier in Tetkino. Kursk Mayor Igor Kutsak ordered all schools in the regional capital to be put on remote learning from March 13-15 "in connection with recent events". He also warned that the "missile alert" regime was still in place in the city, which has a population of more than 400,000. Earlier on Tuesday, Ukraine-based Russian opposition politician Illya Ponomarev claimed that the border village of Lozovaya Rudka, Belgorod region, was "under full control of liberating forces". In a statement later on Tuesday, the Russian Defence Ministry said its forces together with border guards and FSB security service units "thwarted an attempt by the Kiev regime to make a breakthrough" into Russia, BBC reported. It said enemy fighters -- backed by tanks and armoured personnel carriers -- had tried to invade Russia "simultaneously in three directions in the areas of the settlements of Odnorobovka, Nekhoteevka and Spodaryushino, Belgorod region". It added that another four attacks had targeted Tetkino, but were "repulsed". The Ukraine-based Russian armed groups have made several cross-border raids since the full-invasion of Ukraine began. Last May, Russia's military said a similar attack in the Belgorod region was rebuffed and armed insurgents defeated. New Delhi, March 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday will launch the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Utthan evam Rozgar Adharit Jankalyan (PM-SURAJ) national portal and sanction credit support to one lakh entrepreneurs of disadvantaged sections of the country, the Prime Minister's office said. The credit support will be provided to the eligible persons across the country through banks, non-banking finance companies-microfinance institutions (NBFC-MFIs) and other organisations. The Prime Minister will also interact with beneficiaries of various government schemes from disadvantaged groups, including Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and sanitation workers. He will also address a public rally on this occasion. PM-SURAJ national portal for credit support to disadvantaged sections embodies Prime Minister's commitment to prioritise the underprivileged ('vanchiton ko variyata'). It is a transformative initiative, aimed at uplifting the most marginalised sections of society, according to the official statement. During the programme, Prime Minister Modi will also distribute Ayushman health cards and PPE kits to 'Safai Mitras' (sewer and septic tank workers) under the National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE). This initiative represents yet another step towards safeguarding the health and safety of frontline workers who serve in challenging conditions. The programme will witness participation of about three lakh beneficiaries of various government schemes from disadvantaged groups, who will join the programme from more than 500 districts across the country. Gurugram: Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya and CM Manohar Lal during inauguration, dedication and foundation stone laying of various connectivity projects. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday will take part virtually in 'India's Techade: Chips for Viksit Bharat' and lay the foundation stone of three semiconductor projects worth Rs 1.25 lakh crore through video conferencing. The Prime Minister will also address the youth across the country on this occasion. It has been the Prime Minister's vision to position India as a global hub for semiconductor design, manufacturing and technology development, fostering the creation of employment opportunities for the nation's youth. In line with the Prime Minister's vision, foundation stone is being laid for the Semiconductor fabrication facility at the Dholera Special Investment Region (DSIR), Gujarat; Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility at Morigaon, Assam; and the Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility at Sanand, Gujarat. Through these facilities, the semiconductor ecosystem will be strengthened and will get a firm footing in India. These units will also provide employment to thousands of youth in the semiconductor industry as well as catalyse employment generation in related sectors like electronics, telecom etc. The programme will witness massive participation of youngsters, including thousands of college students, along with leaders from the semiconductor industry. The Semiconductor fabrication facility at the DSIR will be set up by Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) under the Modified Scheme for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India. With a total investment of more than Rs 91,000 crore, this will be the first commercial semiconductor fab in the country. The OSAT facility in Morigaon will be set up by Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) under the Modified Scheme for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP), and with total investment of about Rs 27,000 crore. The OSAT facility in Sanand will be set up by CG Power and Industrial Solutions Limited under the Modified Scheme for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP), and with total investment of about Rs 7,500 crore. New Delhi, March 13 : Union Home Minister and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday will inaugurate the new office building for the three multi- state cooperative societies -- Bhartiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL), National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) and National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL) -- at the World trade Centre, Naoroji Nagar, in the national capital. Inauguration of a separate office building for BBSSL, NCOL and NCEL is another significant initiative of the Ministry of Cooperation to achieve Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of "Sahakar se Samriddhi". Since a long time, requirement was being felt for a separate office building for three societies, and now these societies will be able to work seamlessly. The Union government under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi approved setting up of three national level multi-state cooperative societies, for exports, organic produce and seeds and these societies have been registered under MSCS Act, 2002. The cooperative societies of all levels, who are interested in activities specified for each of the three societies are eligible to become members, that is from 'PACS to APACS level'. All the three societies will ensure the upliftment of the people associated with agriculture and related activities and will procure the agricultural produce and seeds from the farmers via PACS. This would further lead to the strengthening of PACS as the farmers associated with them will get maximum value for their produce. The societies will be working with an objective of ensuring that profits on the net surplus goes directly to the farmers' accounts thereby preventing leakages in the process. The inauguration of a separate office building for BBSSL, NCOL and NCEL will prove to be a milestone in the cooperative sector of the country. It will ensure smooth functioning of all the three societies to secure consistent income for the farmers, which will help in realising the Prime Minister Modi ji's vision of "Sahakar se Samriddhi". The event will be attended by the Secretaries and other senior officers of the related Central ministries/departments, officials from all the three newly formed organisations (BBSSL, NCOL, NCEL), officials from related organisations such as Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) and Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), officials of foreign embassies in India, officials of the promoters of the three societies, and officials and delegates from the National Cooperative Federations across the country will attend the event. MTN, the largest mobile network operator in Africa, and global communications provider Omnispace have announced a collaboration to provide voice, data, fintech, digital, enterprise, wholesale and API services to over 290 million customers in 19 countries. This partnership will explore the use of the S-band for satellite services to expand MTN's portfolio of wireless services in its markets. The S-band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum covering frequencies from 2 to 4 GHz, portions of which are being freed up in a number of countries for satellite services. The companies will explore the integration of MTN's terrestrial mobile networks with the Omnispace non-terrestrial network (NTN), leveraging 3GPP standards, to serve consumer mobile and enterprise IoT services. The companies will also explore how they may collaborate on the development and growth of an ecosystem of devices and software. Under the agreement, Omnispace will develop a next-generation standards-based mobile and IoT network designed to serve MTN markets. In the interim, the companies will partner to test existing technology, and prove capabilities and use cases using Omnispace's on-orbit satellites. Omnispace says that, by leveraging 5G technologies, it is combining the global footprint of a non-geostationary satellite constellation with the mobile networks of the world's leading telecom companies to bring an interoperable one network connectivity to users and IoT devices anywhere on the globe. This is the second recent announcement involving Omnispace and S-band communications. In February we reported that Brazilian regulator Anatel had approved a request from Omnispace subsidiary Omnispace Comunicacoes Brasil to operate its non-geostationary satellite (NGSO) system nationwide using the S-band. Srinagar, March 13 : After a fortnight, authorities on Wednesday have allowed two-way traffic on Jammu-Srinagar highway for Light Motor Vehicles (LMVs). Traffic department officials said that LMVs will be allowed to ply on the highway today from both Jammu and Srinagar sides. Due to bad road condition caused by landslides and shooting stones between Banihal and Ramban towns, only one-way traffic was allowed on the highway for a fortnight. Carriageway widening was taken up by the National Highways Authority of India at Dalwas while landslide debris clearance also started at a number of places to make the road safe for two-way traffic. This highway is known as the lifeline of the Valley as all essential commodities are brought here through this highway. Meanwhile, Srinagar-Leh, Doda-Chamba, Sinthan-Kishtwar and Mughal Road are still closed for traffic. Tesla able to produce real-world video similar to OpenAI's for over a year: Musk. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 13 : Elon Musk who is currently locked in a battle with ChatGT maker OpenAI said on Wednesday that artificial intelligence (AI) will probably be smarter than any single human by next year. Musk has sued Sam-Altman-run company, alleging that it had breached the "founding agreement" via its partnership with tech giant Microsoft. OpenAI has hit back, saying they are not in any kind of founding agreement with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. In a fresh post on X, the billionaire said that AI is going to be smarter than humans by next year. "By 2029, AI will probably be smarter than all humans combined," Musk added. Meanwhile, OpenAI has hired top lawyers from Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to represent the company against its legal battle with Musk. In a court filing, the company has said that "Musk supported a for-profit structure for OpenAI, to be controlled by Musk himself, and dropped the project when his wishes were not followed." "Seeing the remarkable technological advances OpenAI has achieved, Musk now wants that success for himself," the lawsuit further read. "The Founding Agreement is instead a fiction Musk has conjured to lay unearned claim to the fruits of an enterprise he initially supported, then abandoned, then watched succeed without him." Kolkata, March 13 : Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) Supremo Bimal Gurung on Wednesday said that his party welcomes the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), as it would not affect Gorkhas. He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for notifying the CAA. "Many people have fled from other countries seeking shelter in India. The Act is perfect for such people. The Act was necessary for these people seeking shelter in India," Gurung said. He said that the Act will have no impact on the Gorkha population as he is confident that the government will ensure the well-being of the people who sacrifice their lives for the country. "Illegal infiltration like the Rohingyas is a problem for the country," he said. Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress, Left Front and Congress in West Bengal have vehemently opposed the Central government's notification on the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Bengaluru, March 13 : Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara said on Wednesday that a decision will be made in the state cabinet meeting whether to implement or reject the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Parameshwara stated, the discussion is not made in this regard and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will take a call over the issue after holding the cabinet meeting. Presently CM Siddaramaiah is on tour. The cabinet meeting was not held, it will be convened tomorrow (Thursday). A detailed discussion will be made in the cabinet over the CAA and final call will be taken. "The people from Bangladesh and other countries have been identified and deported from Karnataka," he stated. When asked about whether Congress fears a setback with the implementation of the CAA, he stated, BJP is claiming it and they will have to make one or the other allegation against the Congress party. "Our argument is to save the democracy in the country. They put forward different arguments," he said. "BJP was sitting quiet all these days and now they have implemented it. They are using it for politics. Why did they bring it during the time of election? It is clear that they are doing it with an eye on the election. No rocket science is needed to see through the intentions. People have to understand this," he stated. Speaking about the controversial caste census report, Parameshwara said, the matter is not listed in the agenda yet. "We will discuss it. The government had spent Rs 168 crore for preparing the report, it can't go waste. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had stated that he will present the report in the cabinet and he will take a call based on the decision made in the cabinet meeting," he stated. Seoul, March 13 : South Korea's new ambassador to Canberra Lee Jong-sup has presented a copy of his credentials to Australia, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday, amid controversy over his alleged influence-peddling case related to the death of a young marine last year. Lee Jong-sup, who served as defence minister from 2022 to 2023, left for Australia on Sunday without receiving the original letter of credence from President Yoon Suk Yeol. The foreign ministry said Lee Jong-sup submitted a copy of the letter Tuesday during his meeting with Arthur Spyrou, chief of protocol at the Australian department of foreign affairs and trade. As he has submitted the copy, Lee Jong-sup can carry out his diplomatic activities as the ambassador before presenting the original letter. Lee Jong-sup has been a subject in a probe by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials in connection with the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun, who died in July last year while on a search mission amid heavy downpours. The anti-corruption investigation office has been looking into allegations that Lee exerted influence to hold off the findings of an internal probe by the Marines on Chae Su-geun's death. Details are awaited. Bengaluru, March 13 : Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Wednesday said that the police have arrested 42 farmers in connection with violence following the price crash of Byadgi red chilli in Byadgi APMC market in Haveri district. He said that another team has also been sent to Nellore region of Andhra Pradesh to nab those who indulged in violence. "Those who had come from outside have escaped. The CCTV footage is being verified to track them down. Action will be initiated against those who indulged in violence," he stated. On Monday, farmers in Haveri went on a rampage after prices of the famous Byadgi chilli crop came crashing down at the Byadgi APMC market. Chilli prices crashed from Rs 20,000 per quintal to Rs 8,000. As soon as the prices were declared, the angry farmers started pelting stones at the APMC office and torched vehicles parked on the premises. Some protesters also barged inside the office and vandalised it, damaging the furniture and breaking glass windows. Two cars and 10 bikes belonging to APMC staff were gutted in the incident. New Delhi, March 13 : Small and mid cap stocks are coming under intense selling pressure with the regulator raising red flags. The small cap index is down more than 3 per cent on Wednesday. The mid cap index is down more than 2 per cent. The SME IPO index is down more than 4 per cent. Other pockets of the market are also very weak with the PSU index down more than 4 per cent. Market breadth is extremely negative with 83 per cent of the listed stocks declining. More than 700 stocks have hit the lower circuit indicating the meltdown in the small cap stocks. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services said in the near-term investors should focus on the sustained weakness in the broader market, particularly the small cap segment. The excessive valuations in these segments driven by the irrational exuberance of retail investors have been a concern for many months now. But it has taken the strong message from the regulator SEBI to trigger a correction in the Nifty Small cap index by 10 per cent from the February 8 peak. He said that 396 stocks are in the lower circuit indicating that there is more pain to come in this segment. Actions from mutual funds also indicate the excessive valuations in the broader market. ICICI Pru has joined two other leading funds in stopping lump sum investments in their mid and small cap schemes. More are likely to follow. The net impact of this shift would be more money flowing into large caps. Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities said adverse breadth data is weighing on the minds of investors and traders. Manila, Mach 13 : The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said it approved a loan of 71 million US dollars to improve flood control, irrigation, and water resources management in Bangladesh. The project in rural communities in Gopalganj and Madaripur districts will strengthen their preparedness and resilience to the effects of climate change, the bank said in a press release. Based on the Global Climate Risk Index, Bangladesh is ranked seventh regarding vulnerability to climate risk, the bank said, adding that the country "faces increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather and slow-onset climate events." Without effective adaptation measures, the country could lose about 30 per cent of agricultural gross domestic product by 2050 because of climate variability and extreme events impacting rural communities, especially women, who depend on climate-sensitive agricultural practices and natural resources for their livelihoods. The ADB said the project is expected to benefit more than 600,000 people and will introduce climate-resilient flood control, drainage, and irrigation measures to reduce saline intrusion, Xinhua news agency reported. The ADB support "will further boost economic growth and productivity, increase incomes and sustainable livelihoods, especially for women and vulnerable groups, and reduce poverty in rural areas of southwest Bangladesh," said ADB Senior Project Management Specialist Pushkar Srivastava. It will adopt nature-based solutions to strengthen FCDI infrastructure and improve drainage in four subbasins. The project will develop and enhance integrated water management plans, construct training centers for water management organisations, and other community infrastructure. New Delhi, March 13 : Tensions erupted during the screening of the film "Bastar: The Naxal Story" on the campus of Jawaharlal Nehru University, with over 100 students from the Students' Federation of India (SFI) protesting against the film's screening. The National Arts Forum is conducting a pre-release screening of the film "Bastar: The Naxal Story" on the JNU campus. The film is scheduled for release on March 15. Creative Director and Producer Vipul Amritlal Shah, Director Sudipto Sen, and lead actress Adaa Sharma were all part of the panel discussion during the pre-release screening. Entry to the venue was disrupted by protesting demonstrators. Additionally, the SFI reportedly cut the lights in the auditorium twice in an attempt to halt the screening of the film. "The Communists are trying to create chaos by cutting the light in the auditorium to stop the pre-screening of the movie," said student outfit ABVP in a statement. "Bastar: The Naxal Story," tackles a subject that has been largely overlooked by mainstream cinema - Naxalism. Thiruvananthapuram, March 13 : As the Lok Sabha polls loom large, leaders of many political parties in Kerala are flocking to the tomb of late Congress leader Oommen Chandy, to 'seek' his blessings. This is the first Lok Sabha election in five decades where the charismatic leader will be missing and his absence is being felt by many. The two-time former Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, passed away last year and on July 20 his body was interned at his home parish, the St George Orthodox Church, Puthuppally, in Kottayam District. Since then, every day people from far and wide come in large numbers to pay their respects at his tomb, which remains bedecked with flowers, months after his passing away. Now, with the Lok Sabha polls around the corner, several candidates of the Congress and friendly parties, come and stand with folded hands at the tomb of the late leader, seemingly seeking his blessings. The list of people spotted at the tomb so far includes Congress candidates Kodikunnil Suresh (Mavelikara), Shafi Parambil (Badagara), Anto Antony (Pathanamthitta) and the Kerala Congress party nominee for the Kottayam Lok Sabh seat, Francis George. Recalling his long association with former CM Chandy, seven-time Lok Sabha member Kodikunnil Suresh said, "Way back in 1989, when I contested for the first time, it was Chandy who went with me to Kottarakara and asked the then topmost leader in the constituency, R Balakrishna Pillai to ensure my victory." Shafi Parambil who is a sitting legislator from Palakkad, began his election campaign at the Badagara Lok Sabha constituency after praying at ex-CM Chandy's tomb. With tears in his eyes he said, "Chandy sir was with me all through my career and when I got different posts. This is the first time he is not with me." Another surprise personality spotted at the tomb of the late Oommen Chandy was Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) chief Tushar Vellapally, who is an ally of the BJP-led NDA. Tushar Vellapally said late leader Chandy was always a person for whom he had the highest regard and hence he decided to visit his grave. The BDJS has been allotted four seats by the BJP and they have announced two candidates so far. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Tushar Vellapally had contested as the NDA candidate against senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at Wayanad and he came a distant third. The coming days will see more candidates from all political parties coming to pay their respects at ex-CM Chandy's tomb, as he was a much-loved leader because of his kind nature. That late Oommen Chandy was a legend in the state was apparent by the fact that lakhs of people came to pay their last respect to him when he passed away and till date seek solace at his tomb. The Gil Case: a way to threaten Diaz-Canel, or an internal rebellion? Is an operation underway in Cuba to displace an entire sector of Castroism, deemed too ideological, and promote a more business-friendly system headed by the military? Alejandro Gil bears much more guilt, and of a greater magnitude, than any of the drivel that his current executioners, formerly accomplices in the annihilation of a whole people, will accuse him of. It is already clear that this kangaroo court that is just getting underway cannot be considered an instrument of justice. Karma? Perhaps. A vendetta between mobsters? Probably. Justice? No way. This criminal did nothing that was not approved "at the highest level," to use the term with which Captain Miguel Ruiz Poo implicated Fidel and Raul Castro during the show trial of Arnaldo Ochoa and other figureheads. We can also discard the popular explanation that this is a circus to justify the economic debacle and/or to keep the public entertained. Blaming Gil individually for Cuba's economic problems would be like blaming Bad Bunny for the abysmal level of today's music around the world. Even the dumbest fool knows that they are both bad interpreters of a systemic problem, so burning them on a pyre, no matter how cathartic, does not solve the underlying problem. In this information age, excommunicating Gil does not deceive anyone. And they, who are neither fools nor disconnected from what the people feel, suffer and think, know that we know that decisions in Cuba are not made by Gil, even if he was a minister or vice president. Lifting the veil of corruption does more structural damage to the government than the supposed benefit of "entertaining" the populace with stories believable only by the most gullible. During this era times of social networks and independent press, Stalinist trials have a boomerang effect, and more so when the credibility of Castroism is more lost than the "achievements of the Revolution." This farce has a target audience, but it is not the people, but rather the Castroist sector that looks on, defeated perhaps definitively as another sector crushes Diaz-Canel's closest collaborator. Since Fidel's time, Castroism has had two souls: on the one hand, the party's politicians; on the other, the military. It is a known ploy of mafia bosses to keep their subordinates competing, fighting, watching each other, destroying each other. During the era of Fidel Castro, the political wing dominated. Military officials were given business positions when this was necessary, but power was held and decisions were made by Fidel and his political circle, while those under Raul's wing were extremely well-fed fighting dogs with economic benefits, but not power. When Raul Castro inherited power, his military cronies, who already wielded great business influence, almost came to govern, but Raul did not give them the keys to the kingdom, as this would have been a de facto abdication, since political, economic and military power would have been concentrated in a group that could have eventually disputed Raul's position as Capo di tutti Capi. Thus, the general chose a survivor of the party, Diaz Canel, a politician of proven ineptitude. Since then Cuba's military and its politicians have existed in a tense standoff, even while fattening off the spoils of a country that, having been reduced to carrion, is now insufficient to satisfy so many hyenas. As some of us foresaw, the Castro regime would begin to unravel on the day that the loot was insufficient to continue buying loyalties. Less than a month ago we argued that the delay in the entry into force of the "big package" was most likely due to the Diaz-Canel faction being sabotaged. Now we see that the military is not only sabotaging it, but getting even, gangster style. Fearful and resentful, they are watching as the system that gives them their positions crumbles, mismanaged by a political wing in which Raul placed his trust. Since the end of last year, Prime Minister Marrero, a representative of the military in the administration, has taken a leading role in economic affairs and, if we are to believe what has been staged, displaced Diaz Canel in terms of leadership within the Government. It is not yet known whether these "adjustments" are backed by Raul Castro and his family, in which case the objective is to discipline and threaten Diaz-Canel (Gil was his right hand man and personal friend) and, perhaps, replace him with another member of the political wing, maintaining the status quo. Or, we may be facing a scheme by the olive green subordinates to convince the general that he must officially hand power to the military (who, de facto, already have it) as they are the only ones who can guarantee the future of the system. Castroism is convulsing in a political crisis in which we have seen the president of the Government, personally appointed by the master of the country, publicly congratulate someone who just a few weeks later was branded a traitor after an investigation that was hidden from Diaz-Canel, or that was invented to attack him, although the objective beyond all this may be to displace an entire sector of Castroism that is too ideological, to instead promote a system more favorable to business, which is where the Cuban military has more experience. Obviously, the dictatorship is weaker today than yesterday, but this story is not over yet. It is impossible to know whether these attacks are the beginning of the end, or the beginning of a new dictatorship under which, instead of being extremely miserable, we become moderately miserable, but still without freedom. Amaravati, March 13 : YSR Congress parliamentary party leader V. Vijayasai Reddy on Wednesday said that by partnering with the BJP, the TDP President N. Chandrababu Naidu has sacrificed Andhra Pradesh's fight for special category status. Amaravati, March 13 (IANS) YSR Congress parliamentary party leader V. Vijayasai Reddy on Wednesday said that by partnering with the BJP, the TDP President N. Chandrababu Naidu has sacrificed Andhra Pradeshas fight for special category status. The Rajya Sabha member alleged that in greed to become Chief Minister, Naidu has also allowed for the privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant. Vijayasai Reddy said by partnering with the BJP, the former Chief Minister also decided to stop the socio-economic caste census and go back to (National Pension Scheme) for government employees. The YSR Congress leader was reacting to Telugu Desam Party (TDP) entering into an alliance with the BJP and Jana Sena for the upcoming Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. He had earlier stated that YSR Congress would not decimate TDP as Naiduas actions will do it first. He slammed the TDP leader for disowning his cadre, leaders and ideology to prostrate in front of anyone to become the Chief Minister for the last time. The TDP-BJP-JSP alliance was forged last week after Naidu and Jana Sena leader Pawan Kalyan held talks with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi. The three parties on March 11 announced seat-sharing deal. Under the tripartite deal, TDP will contest 144 Assembly seats out of total 175 seats. It will also contest 17 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats. Naidu has left 31 Assembly seats and eight Lok Sabha seats for the two allies. While Jana Sena will contest 21 Assembly and two Lok Sabha seats, the BJP will field its candidates in 10 Assembly and six Lok Sabha constituencies. New Delhi, March 13 : Bhutan Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Tobgay will arrive in India on Thursday to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between the two nations. In his first overseas visit from March 14-18 after assuming office in January, 2024, PM Tobgay will hold bilateral talks with PM Modi and call on President Droupadi Murmu. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and several other Indian dignitaries will also be meeting PM Tobgay who will also be travelling to Mumbai during his visit. "The visit of the Prime Minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a release on Wednesday. PM Tobgay will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Employment, and other senior officials from the Royal Government of Bhutan. India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill, and mutual understanding at all levels. New Delhi, March 13 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has made its first arrest from Ballari, Karnataka in connection with the recent Bengaluru cafe blast. The accused has been identified as Mohammed Shabbir. Shabbir's arrest comes following intensive investigative efforts by the NIA, which took over the case on March 3. The anti-terror agency had been meticulously piecing together evidence since the explosion rocked a popular cafe in Bengaluru on March 1. Sources said that Shabbir is believed to be an accomplice of the prime suspect, who was captured on security camera footage leaving a bag at the cafe premises just before the blast occurred. The blast, caused by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), resulted in several injuries and caused widespread panic among patrons and residents in the vicinity. Last week, the NIA released four new photos of the suspected bomber. The photos show the suspected bomber without a cap, walking confidently with a backpack, wearing a pink T-shirt and trousers. He is seen wearing a mask in the photos. In the earlier photographs released by the authorities, the suspect was wearing a cap and dark-coloured T-shirt. London, March 13 : The UK government is set to introduce landmark legislation on Wednesday that will see convictions of several British Indians, and many other innocent sub-postmasters, quashed in "one of the greatest miscarriages of justice" in the country. The Horizon IT Scandal involved hundreds of employees who faced prosecution by the Post Office between 1999 and 2015 due to glitches in accounting software developed by a Japanese company. To date, fewer than 100 convictions have been overturned in the case that saw many being financially ruined as they fought for innocence and several others ended up serving prison sentences for fraud they did not commit. Under this legislation, affected sub-postmasters will receive an interim payment with the option of immediately taking a fixed and final offer of GBP600,000, so that they can finally begin to rebuild their lives, UK government said in a release on Wednesday. The "blanket exoneration" -- delivered via the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill -- will quash convictions brought about by erroneous Horizon evidence, clearing the names of many people who have had their lives ruined, it said. Under the proposed Bill, convictions will be automatically quashed if they were prosecuted by the Post Office or Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and were for offences carried out in connection with Post Office businessabetween 1996 anda2018. They will also be quashed if they were for relevant offences such as theft, fraud, and false accounting and were against sub-postmasters, their employees, officers, family members, or direct employees of the Post Office working in a Post Office that used the Horizon system software. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak praised the postmasters for their "courage and perseverance" in their fierce campaign for justice. He also mentioned the ones deceased, who "tragically won't see the justice they deserve". "While I know that nothing can make up for what they have been through, today's legislation marks an important step forward in finally clearing their names," PM Sunak said. "We owe it to the victims of this scandal who have had their lives and livelihoods callously torn apart, to deliver the justice they have fought so long and hard for, and to ensure nothing like this ever happens again." Calling it "one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in our nation's history", the government also confirmed that it would bring forward enhanced financial redress for the postmasters who were not convicted, or part of legal action against the Post Office, yet they suffered due to Horizon failures. These individuals -- also known as the Horizon Shortfall Scheme cohort -- will have the option to receive a fixed sum payment of GBP75,000, according to Postal Affairs Minister Kevin Hollinrake. In February 2020, the government launched the independent Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, and the first government-funded compensation payment was given out through the Horizon Shortfall Scheme in March 2021. Ever since then, it has paid out around 60 per cent of all claims, which amounts to around GBP179 million to over 2,800 claimants. OPS to stake claim for AIADMK's 'Two Leaves symbol again after almost sealing alliance with BJP in TN. Image Source: IANS News Chennai, March 13 : Expelled AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, O Panneerselvam (OPS), will be staking claim again for the 'Two Leaves' symbol of the party, sources said on Wednesday. Chennai, March 13 (IANS) Expelled AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, O Panneerselvam (OPS), will be staking claim again for the aTwo Leavesa symbol of the party, sources said on Wednesday. After the expulsion of OPS and his close associates from the AIADMK, the party is in total control of the Leader of Opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly, Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS). While several court cases against the expulsion of OPS were dismissed, there are still some court cases pending for the aTwo Leavesa symbol. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had recently sent a notice to EPS asking him to reply to a petition filed by one Suriyamoorthy to freeze the aTwo Leavesa symbol, as many civil suits were pending in courts. If the symbol is frozen, it would be a major setback to the EPS faction which is desperately trying to win the maximum possible seats. It may be recalled that OPS has conducted two rounds of discussions with the BJP leadership, which includes the representatives of the BJP national leadership, Union ministers, VK Singh and G Kishan Reddy. According to sources, OPS has requested the BJP leadership to allocate his side 15 Lok Sabha seats and one Rajya Sabha seat. As the BJP is keen to get support from a local Dravidian outfit, the support extended by OPS has become a boon for it, as the Thevar community to which OPS belongs, is powerful in many pockets of South Tamil Nadu. With the BJPas new-found support, OPS has exuded confidence of his faction getting the aTwo Leavesa symbol and the possibility of winning the maximum seats from the state. Bhopal, March 13 : Former Madya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday said he had taken over the state from the Congress with a tag of 'BIMARU', however, the BJP's double-engine government (Centre and State) has made it a progressive state. Addressing a programme in Mandideep in Sehore district, which falls under Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency, Chouhan said, he believes that Madhya Pradesh will become a developed state under the leadership of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. "Madhya Pradesh used to be counted among the states that fall under BIMARU tag, but now it is a progressive state. I believe that the state will become a developed state under Chief Minister Mohan Yadav's leadership," Chouhan said. He also appealed to his successor to continue public beneficiary schemes (introduced during his tenure). "There is no lack of money for public beneficiary schemes, and I would appeal to Chief Minister Mohan Yadav to continue with these schemes," he said. Chouhan will fight the upcoming Lok Sabha election from Vidisha. Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency was previously represented by BJP stalwarts like late Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1991), Sushma Swaraj (2009 and 2014) and newspaper publisher Ramnath Goenka (1971). Chouhan last won the Vidisha Lok Sabha seat in 2004 but resigned after becoming Chief Minister. He is the sitting MLA from Budhni seat, which also falls under the Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency. Lucknow, March 13 : A joint survey conducted by King George's Medical University (KGMU) and the Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) has found that several hotels and restaurants in the state were violating the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), which prohibits smoking in certain public spaces. On the occasion of No Smoking Day, observed on the second Wednesday of every month, hotel associations, doctors, and cancer victims across the country are urging the government to strengthen tobacco control laws to make India 100 per cent smoke-free. The survey covered four cities in Uttar Pradesh -- Lucknow, Kanpur, Gautam Buddha Nagar and Gorakhpur -- and included 205 locations, comprising 69 hotels, 81 restaurants, and 55 resto-bars. According to the survey findings, none of the restaurants had a designated smoking area, and among the establishments, none met the specifications for ventilation and safety. Moreover, 99.5 per cent of them lacked signage specifying 'No Smoking' or 'Smoking' areas. In Kanpur, 100 per cent of the resto-bars, and in Lucknow, 94 per cent of them provided smoking aids on their premises. Dr Surya Kant, in-charge of the Tobacco Cessation Clinic and Head of the department of respiratory medicine at KGMU, warned of the dangers of passive smoking. He explained, "When a person smokes, they inhale only 30 per cent of the smoke, while 70 per cent remains in the environment as environmental tobacco smoke." Dr Kant further emphasised that tobacco smoke contains over 7000 chemicals, 70 of which are carcinogenic, making passive smoking equally harmful as active smoking. In India, smoking is banned in all public places under the COTPA 2003. Section 4 of this Act prohibits smoking in any place accessible to the public. However, COTPA 2003 allows smoking in certain public places like restaurants, hotels, and airports, but only in designated smoking areas. "Exposure to passive smoking occurs in eateries, specifically hotels, restaurants, bars, pubs, and clubs, putting the lives of thousands of non-smokers at risk," said Dr Kant. Hyderabad, March 13 : BJP leaders in Telangana on Wednesday hailed the decision of the Centre to celebrate September 17 as 'Hyderabad Liberation Day'. Union Minister for Culture, Tourism and Development of north eastern region G. Kishan Reddy, who is also the state President of BJP, termed the decision 'historic' and called September 17 a day of liberation and legacy. He said that the move honours the sacrifices made and instils a patriotic feeling in the minds of the youth. "This historic decision marks a significant step towards remembering the martyrs who fought for Hyderabad's freedom and infusing the spirit of national pride in the hearts of the next generation," he said. He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for recognising this momentous occasion. "This day will forever be etched in Hyderabad's history, a testament to the courage and resilience of those who fought for its liberation," Kishan Reddy said. BJP General Secretary and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay also thanked Prime Minister Modi and Amit Shah. "From falsification of history by past rulers, to now officially celebrating the reality in BJP era," Bandi Sanjay posted on 'X'. "Grateful that your support and hear every demand from Telangana," he said while thanking PM and Amit Shah. BJP MLA Raja Singh has also welcomed the Centre's decision. He said the BJP government led by Prime Minister Modi has taken a commendable decision. The MLA believes that this will help in conveying the glorious history of the Hyderabad Liberation War to the young generation across the country. "It has finally happened," reacted the BJP MP and President of the party's OBC Morcha. He termed the official declaration of Hyderabad Liberation Day a crucial milestone in recognising the city's true history and breaking free from past oppressions of the Nizam regime. He thanked Prime Minister Modi for this 'historic acknowledgement' and said this would 'preserve the truth for generations to come.' The Ministry of Home Affairs on Tuesday issued a gazette notification to celebrate September 17 every year as Hyderabad Liberation Day. September 17 marks the erstwhile Hyderabad State's accession to the Indian Union. Hyderabad did not achieve independence for 13 months after independence on 15th August 1947 and was under Nizam's rule. The region was liberated from Nizam's rule on September 7, 1948, after a police action namely 'Operation Polo'. Claiming that there has been a demand from the people of the region to celebrate September 17 as Hyderabad Liberation Day, the notification mentioned that to remember martyrs who liberated Hyderabad and to infuse the flame of patriotism in the minds of the youth, the Central government decided to celebrate 17th day of September every year as Hyderabad Liberation Day. The BJP has long been demanding an official celebration of September 17 as Hyderabad Liberation Day. Earlier, in united Andhra Pradesh and later in Telangana, the party used to organise protests demanding the government to officially celebrate September 17. Successive governments, however, avoided official celebrations in view of the objections from Muslim groups, who argued that the entire country has one Independence Day. Barring BJP, other parties were celebrating September 17 as Hyderabad Merger Day. In 2022, the Union Ministry of Culture started organising the celebrations in Hyderabad on September 17. On both occasions, Union Home Minister Amit Shah hoisted the national flag and reviewed the parade by contingents of paramilitary forces. The same year, the BRS government started officially celebrating September 17 as National Integration Day. All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) also celebrated the day as National Integration Day in 2022 and 2023. The BJP, in its manifesto for Telangana Assembly elections, had promised a celebration of September 17 as Hyderabad Liberation Day. In view of the Lok Sabha elections, the saffron party has once again made it a poll issue. While addressing BJP workers in Hyderabad on March 12, Amit Shah slammed Congress and BRS for not celebrating Hyderabad Liberation Day due to vote bank politics. New Delhi, March 13 : The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) not to take any coercive action to evict a Pakistani Hindu refugee residing at the city's Majnu Ka Tila Pakistani Hindu Refugees Camp. This interim decision was made following a plea challenging an impending demolition drive by the DDA. Justice Mini Pushkarna, overseeing the case, referred to a previous statement from the Union Government in 2013, emphasising its commitment to support the Hindu community fleeing persecution from Pakistan. Based on this, the court ordered that "no coercive action shall be taken against the petitioner" until the next hearing date, March 19. "Considering the statement made on behalf of the then Additional Solicitor General of India, as recorded in order dated 29th May, 2013 in W.P.(C) No. 3712/2013 that the Union of India shall make endeavor to extend all support to the Hindu Community which has entered India from Pakistan, it is directed that no coercive action shall be taken against the petitioner, till the next date of hearing," the court said. The plea by Ravi Ranjan Singh was filed in response to a public notice dated March 4, which demanded that residents vacate the camp by March 6 ahead of its demolition. Singh's counsel argued that the Pakistani Hindu refugees have been established at Majnu Ka Tilla for many years, relying on basic amenities provided by the authorities. In defence, the DDA cited a recent directive from the National Green Tribunal (NGT) mandating the removal of encroachments on the Yamuna Flood Plain Zone near Gurudwara Majnu Ka Tilla. The DDA also mentioned a penalty imposed upon it, and that it is its obligation to comply with judicial orders. Counsel for DDA said: "... though the DDA may have all the sympathies with the petitioner, however, the DDA is bound by the various directions that have passed by the learned NGT." The court has issued notice and included the Union of India as a party to the case. "... this Court is of the opinion that the Union of India is a necessary party before this Court. Accordingly, Union of India is impleaded as respondent no.2 in the present petition. Let amended Memo of Parties be filed within a period of three working days," the court said. Yoga can help in women empowerment: Ayush Secy. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 13 : Yoga is a comprehensive tool to empower women, said Ministry of Ayush Secretary Rajesh Kotecha here on Wednesday. He was speaking at the Yoga Mahotsav-2024, an event held at the Vigyan Bhawan in the national capital to mark the 100-day countdown to the 10th edition of International Day of Yoga (IDY). Observed annually on June 21, the theme this year is 'Yoga for Women Empowerment'. "Yoga is a comprehensive instrument for empowering women, encompassing their physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual well-being," Rajesh Kotecha said. "Empowered women take on roles as leaders, educators, and advocates for change, promoting inclusivity, diversity, and empowerment across society," he added. Further, Rajesh Kotecha stated that the purpose of Yoga Mahotsav 2024 is to propel Yoga into a widespread movement with a focus on women's well-being and promoting global health and peace. The Ayush Ministry has actively supported studies on various conditions affecting women, including PCOS/PCOD, stress management, and the like, to focus on women's health irrespective of their age or condition, promoting women's empowerment through evidence-based research. Moscow, March 13 : Two people were injured on Wednesday after a drone strike hit an oil refinery in Russia's Ryazan region, local media reported. "Two people were taken to the hospital in a state of moderate severity after a fire at an oil refinery in the Ryazan region," TASS news agency reported, citing the reception department of the emergency hospital. Earlier, Pavel Malkov, regional governor in Ryazan, confirmed on his Telegram channel that the oil refinery was attacked by an unmanned aerial vehicle, and a fire broke out as a result, Xinhua news agency reported. Casualties are reported according to preliminary information, he added. The Ukrainian armed forces have recently intensified drone attacks on Russian regions. The Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 58 Ukrainian drones in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Leningrad and Ryazan regions overnight. Mumbai, March 13 : Sensex is now down almost 1,000 points in a broad based massive selloff in the markets. BSE Sensex is trading at 72,691.46 points, down by 976.5 points or 1.33 per cent. Deep cuts in PSU, power, infrastructure, metals, realty stocks have led to a sharp fall in the markets. Among the Sensex losers, Powergrid is down more than 7 per cent, NTPC is down 6 per cent, Tata Steel is down more than 5 per cent. Deep cuts are being seen across sectors. The PSU stocks index is down more than 7 per cent, utilities index is down more than 7 per cent, realty index is down more than 6 per cent, metals index is down more than 6 per cent. This is adding to the misery in small caps which are down more than 5 per cent. Mid caps are down more than 4 per cent. SME IPO index is down more than 5 per cent. The market breadth is very negative with 90 per cent of the stocks declining. As many as 1053 stocks have hit the lower circuit indicating the extent of the selling pressure. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said in the near-term investors should focus on the sustained weakness in the broader market, particularly the Small cap segment. The excessive valuations in these segments driven by the irrational exuberance of retail investors have been a concern for many months now. But it has taken the strong message from the regulator SEBI to trigger a correction in the Nifty Small cap index by 10 per cent from the February 8th peak. Panaji, March 13 : Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said that Congress played revengeful politics and sent people to jail when they raised its voice against their multiple scams. Pramod Sawant attacked Congress while addressing the 'NaMo Navmatadata Sammelan'in Ponda-South Goa, where students studying in BJP MLA's college attended the program. "Congress has not organised a single program for youths in its ten-year rule. I have been closely watching their politics. They were putting people in prison. Congress was involved in scams and those who used to raise their voice were punished by sending them to jails," Sawant told the student community. "Congress means scams, while BJP is known for success stories. Earlier during the UPA government there were scams like 2G and 3G scams; coal scam; mining scam, and many such scams were exposed. They have done nothing except scams. During their regime every passing day was full of scams and that too from all ministries," Sawant said. While praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sawant said that in the last ten years, people only saw success stories and projects. "We should know what has been done in the last ten years by PM Modi and what was the situation before 2014. There was the UPA government from 2004 to 2014, means Manmohan Singh's government, which is of Congress, the one who is moving around saying 'Bharat Jodo Jodo' it was his party's government you need to compare ten years of the Congress regime and ten years of the PM Modi government till 2024. You need to know how reforms have taken place now. We need to know about changes taking place in infrastructure and human resources. Only then we will come to know the difference," Sawant said. He said that under the leadership of PM Modi, India is witnessing a transformation in every sector with an increased number of AIIMS, IITs, IIMs, and Institutes of National Importance like All India Institute of Ayurveda, National Forensic Science University in Goa among others. Telangana student dies in jet ski accident in US. Image Source: IANS News Hyderabad, March 13 : A 27-year-old student from Telangana died in a jet ski accident in the US. Venkataramana Pittala, who was pursuing Masters at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), died in a collision between jet skis. According to information reaching his family in Kazipet, the accident took place on March 9 at Fury Playground, near Wisteria Island in Florida. A 14-year-old boy who was driving the other personal watercraft, escaped unhurt. Venkataramana was doing Masters in health informatic and was set to graduate in May 2024. He obtained bachelor's degree in physiotherapy from NTR University of Health Sciences before going to the US for higher studies. Venkataramana's friends in the US have started a GoFundMe page seeking to raise funds to send his body to his family for his final rites and other expenses. They had so far raised $56,635 against the goal of $75,000. Gurugram, March 13 : Gurugram Police have busted an interstate gang of vehicle thieves and arrested two suspects from different parts of Gurugram, said officials on Wednesday. The police have also recovered seven cars from their possession. The gang had stolen more than half a dozen vehicles from Delhi and Gurugram for the past year. Varun Dahiya, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) identified the accused as Sunil Kumar and Amit Kumar Jangid. aThe culprits used to steal the vehicles and take them to Rajasthan and further sold the car to their other companions for Rs 1 lakh. The accused used a duplicate key-making device and also jammed the GPS of the car before stealing it," Dahiya said. There are about 7 cases registered against Sunil in Delhi and Gurugram including the Arms Act. Out of seven vehicles, four were stolen in Gurugram while three were from Delhi. Mumbai, March 13 : Legendary Bollywood actress and Padma Shri awardee Waheeda Rehman has donated her personal film memorabilia to Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) for preservation. The actress was honoured with India's highest film honour, the Dadasaheb Phalke award, last year, and has worked with some of the most renonwned filmmakers of the country like Guru Dutt, Satyajit Ray, Basu Bhattacharya and Yash Chopra, during her career, reports Variety. The roles essayed by her in films have gone on to become classics in the history of Indian cinema. In a career spanning over five decades, she has worked in more than 90 feature films. Her accolades include a National Film Award and the Padma Bhushan in 2011. As per Variety, the memorabilia includes the saree she wore to the premiere of 'C.I.D.' in 1956, her photo albums and photographs and lobby cards from 'Kaagaz Ke Phool', 'Chaudvin Ka Chand', 'Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam' and 'Baat Ek Raat Ki'. Waheeda Rehman said in a statement accessed by Variety: "I'm giving all this to the Film Heritage Foundation, because these are very important memories that need to be preserved. People who are interested in learning about films and the history of Indian cinema can look back at this valuable memorabilia that is preserved at the FHF archive. I hope you all enjoy seeing all these albums." The donation was supported and enabled by Sohail Rekhi and Kashvi Rekhi, the son and daughter of Rehman. New Delhi, March 13 : Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the development of two more Delhi Metro corridors -- Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block and Inderlok to Indraprastha -- with an investment of Rs 8,399 crore, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said after the meeting. The total project cost of these two corridors of Delhi Metro's Phase - IV project is Rs 8,399 crore, which will be sourced from the Central government (Rs 4,309 crore); the government of Delhi; and international funding agencies, the minister said. These two lines will comprise 20.762 kms. The Inderlok-Indraprastha corridor will be an extension of the Green Line and will provide interchange with the Red, Yellow, Airport Line, Magenta, Violet and Blue Lines, while the Lajpat Nagar - Saket G Block corridor will connect the Silver, Magenta, Pink and Violet Lines. The Lajpat Nagar-Saket G Block corridor will be entirely elevated and will have eight stations. The Inderlok-Indraprastha corridor will have 11.349 kms of underground lines and 1.028 kms of elevated lines comprising 10 stations. The Inderlok-Indraprastha Line will provide enhanced connectivity to the Bahadurgarh region of Haryana as commuters from these areas will be able to travel on the Green Line to directly reach Indraprastha as well as various other areas of central and east Delhi. Eight new interchange stations will come up on these corridors at Inderlok, Nabi Karim, New Delhi, Delhi Gate, Indraprastha, Lajpat Nagar, Chirag Dilli and Saket G Block. These stations will significantly improve the interconnectivity among all the operational lines of the Delhi Metro network. The Delhi Metro is already constructing a network of 65 kilometres as part of its fourth phase of expansion. These new corridors are expected to be completed by March 2026 in stages. Presently, the DMRC operates a network of 391 kilometres consisting of 286 stations. The Delhi Metro is now one of the fastest-growing Metro networks in the world. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) has already started the pre-bid activities and preparation of tender documents. Jaipur, March 13 : Has the Congress conceded a walkover in Jodhpur, the home constituency of former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot which he has been holding for over four decades? This question is being discussed in political circles after the Congress fielded Karan Singh Uchiyarda as its candidate for the Lok Sabha elections from Jodhpur to make it a Rajput Vs Rajput contest as the BJP has fielded its veteran leader Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. Vaibhav Gehlot, son of Ashok Gehlot, who contested the last Lok Sabha polls from Jodhpur, has been shifted to Jalore-Sirohi as the Congress candidate. He was fielded from Jodhpur on a Congress ticket in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, but was defeated by Shekhawat. Varun Purohit, a senior Congress leader, who has worked in the NSUI, Youth Congress and the Kisan Congress in national/state level organisational positions, questioned the decision to give the ticket to a defeated candidate. Speaking to IANS, he said, "The party has again fielded the sons of Ashok Gehlot and Madhya Pradesh's former CM Kamal Nath and this is what the party is calling generation change. Imagine after a few years, their grandsons will be getting the tickets too. Is this real generation change as the party claims? Where will the party workers go," he questioned. If this is a generational change, then the party will collapse soon as there will be no party workers to go on any yatras in the future, be it a Nyay Yatra or any other yatra which the party plans to take out. This is because workers are not getting a chance to contest elections. Five out of six seats of the Rajya Sabha in Rajasthan have already been given to outsiders, he alleged adding, "Now, veterans' sons are being given tickets. What should the common worker do," he asked. The party has also fielded its MLA Brijesh Ola, son of Sisram Ola who had served as MP and MLA in different terms from Jhunjhunu under the Congress government in Rajasthan. Brijesh Ola has also served as state minister during the Congress rule and is contesting from Jhunjhunu again. Another party worker told IANS that the party is experimenting a lot in these Lok Sabha polls as it failed to bag even one seat in Rajasthan in the last two Lok Sabha elections. It has not given a second chance even to the 2014 candidates and has fielded fresh faces all across to escape the threat of a three-time defeat looming large, he said adding, "Hence comes a change in seat for Vaibhav too." In the list of 10 Congress candidates released so far, two Jats, two ST-SC, one Rajput, one Saini, one Yadav, and one Anjana (Patel) have been given tickets. However, Brahmins and Vaishyas have not yet been included. Names are still yet to be revealed by the Congress for 15 seats. Meanwhile, Laxmikant Bhardwaj, BJP spokesperson from Rajasthan said that this change of seat for the former CM's' son will make no difference to the election result. "In 2019, when Vaibhav was fielded from Jodhpur, he lost his booth even at a time when his father was the CM of the state. So no matter if Vaibhav contests from Jodhpur or Jalore-Sirohi, he will not win." "During the Assembly polls of 2023, Ashok Gehlot's winning margin was reduced drastically, so he might be fearing that Vaibhav might lose with a bigger margin if he is fielded from Jodhpur, and hence the change of seat," he said adding "But Jalore-Sirohi is already a BJP' stronghold so Vaibhav will face a major defeat. However, the Congress has a strong team comprising Sanyam Lodge and other loyalists of Ashok Gehlot due to which the former CM might have been convinced to shift his son there," he added. Senior journalist Manish Godha said that it is clear that the Congress has given a walkover in Jodhpur. Also it shows how strong is the fear of defeat that the party preferred giving a walkover in Jodhpur. Ashok Gehlot should have contested from there, it being his traditional seat for over four decades. However, the party changed the seat of his son as well, All senior names like that of Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot are missing from the list; this shows a sense of fear, a feeling of giving up, it seems that the party has assumed defeat well in advance." "It was earlier being said that seniors will be fielded but all the big names are missing from the list due to which the party workers are not motivated or enthused. It seems the party is fighting a lost battle," he added. Meanwhile, Vaibhav Gehlot has thanked the Congress' top leadership on his social media post. He said, "Heartfelt gratitude to the top Congress leadership for nominating me as a candidate from Jalore-Sirohi parliamentary constituency in the Lok Sabha elections 2024. I assure you that I will maintain the trust expressed by you. With the blessings of the people of the area, I will ensure the victory of Congress in the area by serving the public day and night by the ideology of the party." Vaibhav has carried pictures of Congress leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Ashok Gehlot on his post. However, no other pictures of veteran state leaders like the PCC chief and the leader of the opposition have been carried which is further being questioned by party workers. "This yet again reveals factionalism which is killing the party from within, hope it learns lessons for the future," said another Congress worker on condition of anonymity. Patna March 13 : One person was killed while four others sustained burn injuries after a transformer exploded inside Patna Civil Court on Wednesday. The deceased has been identified as Devendra Prasad, a lawyer at Patna Civil Court. Patna Police has confirmed the death of the lawyer. The other four injured are also lawyers. They were busy in the court proceedings when the electric transformer, after the short circuit, exploded. The injured have been admitted to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH). Their conditions is said to be critical. Following the incident, the lawyers staged a protest against the district administration. New Delhi, March 13 : The Shiromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has welcomed the notification of rules of Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and lauded the Centre's move to provide succour to lot of refugee families, who abandoned their homes in neighbouring Muslim-majority countries and fled to India for a "life of dignity and security". "We welcome the government's decision to grant citizenship to the oppressed and persecuted minorities from countries like Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan. People of Sikh community will greatly benefit from this," said Gurcharan Singh Grewal, General Secretary of SGPC. SGPC General Secretary added that populist measures are expected from governments during election time but this move will help many Sikh families to a great extent, as they suffered religious atrocities in the neighbouring nations and were forced to leave. He also lauded government's role in evacuating the Sikh community from the strife-torn Afghanistan. "Gurdwaras were razed and other holy places of Sikh religion were demolished under the new regime of Afghanistan. SGPC rushed to their rescue but government was forthright in evacuating people of Sikh community," he said. The SGPC spokesperson also batted for increasing the spectrum of citizenship under the newly notified CAA rules. He said that the victimised population, belonging to Muslim community could also be extended same benefits under the CAA. Notably, the Central government on Monday notified the rules for implementation of Citizenship Amendment Act. Those persecuted minorities who migrated to India before December 31, 2014 will be eligible for Indian citizenship under the CAA. The CAA, seeking to grant citizenship to people of six different faiths - Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Parsi and Christian was passed by the Parliament in 2019. New Delhi, March 13 : The Delhi High Court on Wednesday upheld the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal's (ITAT) order dated March 8 rejecting the Congress' plea for a stay on outstanding tax recovery for the assessment year 2018-19. A division bench of Justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav pronounced the judgment after having it reserved on Tuesday. "We find no ground to interfere with the (challenger) order," the bench said. It, however, granted liberty to the Congress to move the ITAT afresh in case of any change of circumstances. A copy of the order copy is awaited. During the hearing on Tuesday, the bench had expressed dissatisfaction with the handling of the matter by the party, saying that it seemed someone at its office had been negligent since 2021. The court had remarked that though the demand was of 2021, a reading of the impugned order showed that the party did not take the stand of seeking to securitise the demand or even offered to securitise the same. Advocate Zoheb Hossain, who appeared for the income tax authorities, had argued that despite being offered the option to pay 20 per cent of the demand in 2021, the party failed to do so, making the entire amount recoverable. He had also pointed out that the Congress has 120 bank accounts and more than Rs 1,400 crore is kept in them. He said that the party did not plead or argue financial hardship before the Tribunal. In response, senior advocate Vivek Tankha, who represented the party, had stated that the Congress had only Rs 300 crore in its bank accounts and criticised the authorities for seizing every account, hindering the party's ability to contest elections. He urged for expeditious disposal of the appeal. The Congress challenged the ITAT's decision which led to the freezing of its accounts, amidst an ongoing appeal. On February 16, the Congress announced that its bank accounts had been frozen by the Income Tax Department in connection with the tax demand dispute. Labelling the action as "an attack on democracy", the party had said that the move comes at a critical juncture ahead of the impending Lok Sabha elections. The tax dispute arose after the party's income for the 2018-19 assessment year was assessed at Rs 1,99,15,26,560, then the nil income it declared, resulting in a tax demand of Rs 1,05,17,29,635. The bone of contention lies in the denial of exemption under Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, based on two grounds. Firstly, the tax return filed on February 2, 2019, was deemed late according to the prescribed deadline. Secondly, the Congress was found to have accepted cash donations amounting to Rs 14,49,000 from various individuals, breaching the Rs 2,000 limit per donation. The ITAT, in dismissing the Congress's stay plea, had said that violation of the mandatory conditions outlined in Section 13A leaves no room for discretion by the income tax authorities in granting the exemption. The Tribunal had also noted that the sequence of events, from the assessment order dated July 6, 2021, to the issuance of a recovery notice on February 13 did not suggest any undue haste in the recovery proceedings. The party had also claimed that the Income Tax Department had "undemocratically" withdrawn Rs 65 crore from its accounts across various banks. This action was taken despite the case being sub judice, according to the party. The Congress also said that funds collected through crowdfunding have also been frozen by the tax authorities. Bengaluru, March 13 : Former Prime Minister, HD Deve Gowda's son-in-law, Dr. CN Manjunath, will be meeting former Karnataka Chief Minister, BS Yediyurappa on Wednesday. Sources said that Dr Manjunath would be joining the BJP on Thursday. Sources also said that Dr Manjunath would most likely be fielded against Deputy Chief Minister, DK Shivakumar's brother DK Suresh from the Bengaluru Rural Lok Sabha seat. The Bengaluru Rural constituency is considered the pocket borough of the Shivakumar brothers. DK Suresh was the only candidate in the previous Lok Sabha elections to register a win in the whole state. Sources said that former CM Kumaraswamy had convinced Dr. Manjunath to enter politics on a BJP ticket as he wanted to avenge the defeat of his son Nikhil Kumaraswamy in the Assembly elections. Dy CM Shivakumar had ensured the victory of his confidante Iqbal Ansari against Nikhil Kumaraswamy from the Ramanagara Assembly seat. Dy CM Shivakumar has emerged as the Vokkaliga face in the state following the Congress' victory in the Assembly elections. Earlier, the influential Vokkaliga community used to rally behind the Deve Gowda family. Meanwhile, commenting on the possibility of ex-PM Deve Gowda's son-in-law contesting against his brother, Dy CM Shivakumar stated in Kalaburagi on Wednesday that he was not concerned by the development. "I have no problem with the development. I respect Dr. Manjunath. I had contested against ex-PM Deve Gowda, his son former CM Kumaraswamy and won against them. I had fielded a woman candidate against Deve Gowda. Kumaraswamy's wife Anita Kumaraswamy had also contested against me," Shivakumar explained. "Our government has extended the service of Dr. Manjunath to serve as the Director of the famous Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, in Bengaluru. My brother Suresh is an MP but works like a panchayat leader. Hence, there is no cause for worry. Let anyone from the Gowda family contest in the Bengaluru Rural segment," Dy CM Shivakumar stated. Meanwhile, ex-CM Kumarasway stated in Hassan that the BJP high command had forced him to convince Dr Manjunath to contest Lok Sabha polls. Sources said that Dr Manjunath had asked for a ticket from the Bengaluru North seat initially but since it is a BJP stronghold the party refused. Later, former CM Kumaraswamy decided to field him on a BJP ticket against Shivakumar's brother, sources added. Unnao, March 13 : Describing the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress as "liabilities", UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has appealed to people on Wednesday to desist from voting for these parties that cannot ensure essentials such as ration, housing, healthcare to the underprivileged, nor honour people's faith by getting the Ram Temple built in Ayodhya. While inaugurating and laying the foundation stone for 103 development projects totalling Rs 241.26 crore in Unnao district, he emphasised, "Only those who work without bias should have the right to come to power. And there is only one, unanimous voice in the country today, '2024 mein ek bar fir Modi Sarkar'." The chief minister said that the double-engine government exists due to the support of the people. "With your blessings, the temple of Lord Ram was constructed in Ayodhya. The Congress and SP had failed to undertake the construction of Ram Lalla's temple." Asserting that 'Viksit Bharat' should be the collective commitment of people, he stated, "The Prime Minister has emphasised the concept of 'Panch Pran' for every citizen. Fulfilling civic duties is only possible when an individual upholds the Constitution and prioritises the nation above all. Our foremost aim should be the welfare of the country. Progress is achieved when we work towards this objective." The chief minister further said, "Previously, India lacked respect internationally. However, in the last decade, India has surged to new heights of development. Today, India stands as a global leader. As we enter the second year of 'Amrit Kaal', in Modi's third term, our aim is to propel India to become the world's third-largest economy and herald the dawn of a 'Viksit Bharat'. From PM Modi to 'Pradhan-Parshad' (every local leader), we are all dedicated to advancing the cause of a Viksit Bharat." New Delhi, March 13 : The 67th meeting of Network Planning Group took up for discussion three projects of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways including the development of the Multi Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) at Pune in Maharashtra through Public Private Partnership mode on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said on Wednesday. The MMLP will act as a freight aggregation and disaggregation centre to enable freight movement in more efficient modes, such as higher-sized trucks and rail, thereby improving the efficiency of freight movement and reducing logistics costs in the country. The second project pertains to widening the NH-334D section from Aligarh to Palwal to a 4-lane configuration. It aims to improve connectivity between Aligarh and Palwal districts, particularly benefiting traffic towards Jewar airport and providing better connectivity with the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. The project encompasses major bridges, minor bridges, railway crossings, service roads, a toll plaza, truck lay bay, and various other features, to enhance the movement of freight and people. The third project involves construction of a four-lane elevated corridor on Anishabad - Aurangabad - Hariharganj Road in Bihar. This project on NH-139 aims to alleviate traffic congestion on the existing 4-lane road connecting Patna city's key areas, including the AIIMS. The proposed elevated corridor, spanning 9 km includes a flyover of 8.3 km, features a 4-lane at-grade road with footpath, drain, and utility corridor, ensuring uninterrupted traffic flow. The focus of the discussions at the meeting, headed by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Additional Secretary, Rajeev Singh Thakur, revolved around integrated planning of network infrastructure aligned with the principles of PM GatiShakti for comprehensive regional socio-economic advancement. Attendees also included representatives from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam where the projects are slated for implementation. Chennai, March 13 : A Division Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday refused to stay the proceedings of the case filed by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), in the Principal Sessions and Special Court for PMLA cases, against former Tamil Nadu minister, V Senthil Balaji, who is in prison. A Division Bench of Justices MS Ramesh and Sunder Mohan on Wednesday told Senior Counsel Mukul Rohatgi and S Prabakaran that the plea for an interim stay could be considered only after the ED filed its counter. The court pointed out to the advocates that a revision petition preferred by the accused person against the Sessions Court's refusal to defer the trial was pending. The Bench asked Additional Solicitor General, ARL Sundaresan, to make sure that the counter affidavit was filed by April 25. The court also directed the ED's Special Public Prosecutor, N Ramesh, to take notice on behalf of the investigating agency in the criminal revision petition. During the argument, Senior Counsel Mukul Rohatgi insisted that the trial in the money laundering case should be deferred until the completion of the trial in the cash-for-job case. He argued that a grave injustice would occur if the accused person gets convicted in the ED's money laundering case and then gets acquitted from the cash-for-job case registered by the Chennai Central Crime Branch police. Rohatgi said, "It would amount to putting the cart before the horse... Nobody can put the clock back if the petitioner is convicted and sent to jail in the money laundering case but ultimately gets acquitted in the predicate offence." He also pointed out that PMLA could not be invoked unless there was already a predicate offence. The Division Bench, however, did not allow an interim stay on the basis of the arguments. Urvashi Rautelas father wanted her to join JNU since she was in school. Image Source: IANS News Mumbai, March 13 : Actress Urvashi Rautela, who is gearing up for her upcoming film 'JNU: Jahangir National University', has shared that her father wanted her to study at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) since she was in school. The actress essays the role of a university student in 'JNU', a film directed by Vinay Sharma. The actress studied at Gargi College, one of the prestigious colleges under Delhi University. 'JNU', which also stars Siddharth Bodke, Piyush Mishra, Ravi Kishan, Vijay Raaz, Rashmi Desai, Atul Pandey, and Sonnalli Seygall, is set to release theatrically on April 5. Talking about her part in the film, Urvashi told IANS, "I play a JNU student in the film. Actually, in real life, my father since my school days wanted me to be in JNU. So it's like a dream coming true, though onscreen. The film talks about how within the sanctum of education lies a concern, where some perceive a conspiracy to disrupt our nation's unity." Talking about the film further, she said, "Within the confines of educational institutions, there exists a cause of concern. Some individuals have a hidden agenda aimed at undermining the unity of our nation." New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the laying foundation stone for three semiconductor projects worth about Rs 1.25 lakh crores via video conferencing. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 13 : Industry leaders on Wednesday said that the groundbreaking endeavour under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership to make India a global semiconductor hub will drive innovation and economic growth, while securing our technological sovereignty. The country has reached a significant milestone that solidifies its position as a prominent participant in the worldwide semiconductor sector. "It has been more than 40 years since our initial conception of this goal; however, it continues to remain an unrealised expectation owing to the previous administration's failure to acknowledge the potential of the semiconductor industry," said Dr Ajai Chowdhry, HCL Founder and Chairman of EPIC Foundation. According to Ashok Chandak, President of the India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA), the proactive support from the Gujarat government, MeitY and Assam government in expediting three crucial ventures is commendable. "With Tata Electronics and Renesas Electronics Corporation, a key member of IESA, leading this initiative, we proudly witness the culmination of collective efforts towards fostering indigenous semiconductor manufacturing," Chandak said in a statement. "From charkha to chips and ancient Harappan civilisation to modern digital transformation powered by semiconductors, we are heading towards a developed India," he added. PM Modi laid the foundation stone through a virtual interaction for three facilities, including a Rs 91,000 crore semiconductor fabrication unit by Tata Electronics with Taiwan's Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC) in Dholera, Gujarat. Another chip assembly, testing, monitoring, and packing (ATMP) unit with a capacity of 48 million per day by Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test Pvt Ltd (TSAT) in Morigaon, Assam, will be set up with an investment of Rs 27,000 crore. The third semiconductor ATMP unit for specialised chips will be set up by CG Power, in partnership with Renesas Electronics Corporation, Japan and Stars Microelectronics, Thailand in Sanand, Gujarat, with a capacity of 15 million per day at an investment of Rs 7,600 crore. New Delhi, March 13 : A seat-sharing agreement between the NDA constituents in Bihar has been finalised and a formal announcement will be made in due course, LJP-Ram Vilas chief Chirag Paswan said on Wednesday. His announcement came after he met BJP President J.P. Nadda here. Posting pictures of the meeting on X, Chirag Paswan said: "As a member of the NDA, today at a meeting with BJP National President Hon Shri @jpnadda ji, we have together finalised the seat-sharing in Bihar for the ensuing Lok Sabha polls. The same will be announced in due course." New Delhi, March 13 : Leading laptop brand MSI on Wednesday launched the new line-up of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered laptops and its first gaming handheld device, Claw, in India. The full range of laptops will be available in the market at a starting price of Rs 68,990. "With the integration of latest technologies such as the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) in our Intel Core Ultra processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX GPUs, we're redefining possibilities in terms of performance, efficiency, and user experience," Bruce Lin, Regional Marketing Manager, MSI, said in a statement. The gaming handheld also comes equipped with the Intel Core Ultra processor. MSI has introduced a new lineup of 18-inch gaming laptops, including the Titan 18 HX, Raider 18 HX, and Stealth 18 AI Studio. The Titan 18 HX and Raider 18 HX feature top-tier Intel 14th-generation Core i9 processors and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 Series graphics, while the Stealth 18 AI Studio boasts Intel Core Ultra processors. The all-new Vector 16/17 HX, Crosshair 16/17 HX, and Pulse 16/17 AI laptops offer full GPU power for an uncompromised gaming experience, the company said. Moreover, the company mentioned that the gaming handheld features a 7-inch Full HD touchscreen display boasting a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. Additionally, the Claw supports MSI APP Player, offering access to Windows games as well as Android mobile games. It offers a 2-hour battery life under full workload conditions, according to the company. BJP's Pawan Singh not to contest from Asansol, opts out. Image Source: IANS News Patna, March 13 : After opting out from the Lok Sabha elections race, Bhojpuri film industry's power star Pawan Singh on Wednesday claimed that he will contest the polls. While writing a post on his official X account, Pawan Singh said: "I will contest the Lok Sabha election to fulfill the promises I have made with my society, public and my mother. All your blessings and cooperation are expected. Jay Mata Di." However, Pawan Singh did not clarify the party and constituency on which he would contest the Lok Sabha polls. Sources said that he is preparing from Arrah Lok Sabha constituency, the native place of Bhojpuri film star. Pawan Singh belongs to an upper caste family in Bihar and upper caste people are considered as the core vote-bank of BJP. If he contests the Lok Sabha elections from the Arrah seat on the ticket of another party or as an Independent, he will cut the votes of BJP. At present, BJP's RK Singh, who also belongs to an upper caste family, is a Lok Sabha MP from Arrah. Earlier on March 2, the BJP announced Pawan Singh as the party's candidate from Asansol Lok Sabha constituency in West Bengal. One day later, Pawan Singh said that he will not be able to contest the Lok Sabha polls due to some "personal reasons". Pawan Singh also met with BJP President JP Nadda in New Delhi. The actor was expecting a ticket from Arrah Lok Sabha constituency. New Delhi, March 13 : The 67th meeting of the inter-ministerial Network Planning Group evaluated two projects from the Ministry of Railways which include a new broad gauge line project covering 218 km across Doom Dooma (Assam) to Pasighat (Arunachal Pradesh) via Parshuram Kund -- a major pilgrimage site in Arunachal Pradesh, an official said on Wednesday. The project holds strategic importance as it will enhance regional connectivity by bridging the north and south banks of the Brahmaputra river, a statement noted. It is set to spur economic and social development in Assam's Tinsukia district and Arunachal Pradesh's Namsai, East Siang, Lower Dibang Valley, and Lohit districts. The project is also expected to ease passenger and freight movements in the region. The second project taken up for discussion was the doubling of the 255 km Narkatiaganj-Raxaul-Sitamarhi-Darbhanga & Sitamarhi-Muzaffarpur railway sections in Bihar, under East Central Railway, which will enhance the capacity on the section, and serve as an alternative route from Delhi to Guwahati. Doubling of this section is expected to increase the revenue from the freight/ passenger traffic. These projects are intended to contribute to nation-building by integrating various modes of transport, offer substantial socio-economic benefits and will contribute to the overall development of the regions. The focus of the discussions at the meeting -- headed by the Additional Secretary of the Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade, Rajeev Singh Thakur, revolved around integrated planning of network infrastructure aligned with the principles of PM GatiShakti for comprehensive regional socio-economic advancement, an official said. Jammu, March 13 : India's Chief Election Commissioner, Rajiv Kumar, on Wednesday said that following the Supreme Court's order, the SBI has provided details to the Election Commission about the Electoral Bonds issued by the bank. Addressing a press conference, he said that the Supreme Court had given the SBI time up to March 12 to provide data regarding the electoral bonds issued by it. aWe have received the data on time. I will go back and study the data and give details about it in time," he said. The Election Commission also reaffirmed its commitment to upholding democratic principles and ensuring a fair and transparent electoral process in Jammu and Kashmir. The CEC underscored the paramount demand voiced by political parties: the assurance of free and fair elections. He said the political representatives emphasised the importance of fairness, calling for an electoral process devoid of discrimination in security provisions and a level playing field for all candidates. Addressing the demographic landscape, he noted a positive indicator with 2,886 voters aged over 100 years. The focus, however, remains on youth participation, with 86.9 lakh eligible voters in the region and a concerted effort to encourage their involvement, he said. He said that the J&K voters above 85 years of age will, for the first time, be able to vote at home if they so desire. Technological advancements are set to play a pivotal role in facilitating the electoral process, he said, adding that stringent measures will be in place to curb illegal activities, including intensified vigilance along international and internal borders. Asked why Harsh Dev Singh of the Panthers Party was not allowed to meet the poll panel team in Srinagar and Jammu, the CEC said: "There is a dispute regarding the JK Panthers Party. We met people of national and regional parties in J&K, but the party you referred to is under dispute." On whether government officials, who have obtained domicile certificates in J&K but are not permanent residents here, can cast their vote, he said: "We have a uniform system for registration of voters in the country. If these people have a temporary residence here, they can get registered as voters, but they will have to cancel their registration at the place of their permanent residence." To a question about service voters, he said that all those serving the army or the CAPFs who belong to J&K but are serving outside, are service voters and have been given the right to vote through postal ballots. "There were 77,503 service voters in 2019. In 2022, there were 72,738 and in 2024, there are 75,876 service voters in J&K," he said. The CEC said all the DMs and SPs have been told that it is their duty to ensure fair and unbiased polls in their areas of responsibility. "Any dereliction in this regard will attract severe action from the Commission," he said. New Delhi, March 13 : Axis Bank on Wednesday took objection to BJP leader, Subramanian Swamy's PIL before the Delhi High Court seeking a comprehensive probe into an alleged fraud involving undue profits through the sale and purchase of shares, violating regulatory guidelines and causing financial harm. The PIL was heard by the Division Bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora. Senior counsels representing Axis Bank and Max Life, contended that the PIL was not maintainable. They argued that the dispute at hand pertained to a commercial transaction between private entities and did not warrant judicial intervention. Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Axis Bank and its affiliates, said that the PIL failed to specify the class of individuals it aimed to benefit, suggesting that aggrieved shareholders, if any, were capable of pursuing legal recourse independently. Similarly, Senior Advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, representing Max companies, argued that the transaction under scrutiny was purely a commercial arrangement, already screened by the sector regulator. The counsel for the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) disclosed that the regulatory body had already imposed a possible penalty regarding the contested transaction. Responding to these assertions, Senior Advocate Rajshekhar Rao, representing the petitioner, argued that the matter merited broader examination. The Bench, after hearing the arguments, has scheduled the next hearing on April 3. Senior Advocate Rohatgi had earlier said that he had not received an advance copy of the petition, prompting the court to adjourn the case to March 13 after the BJP leaderas counsel provided a copy to him. The PIL accuses Axis Bank of making "undue gains" through transactions in the shares of Max Life Insurance. Senior leader Swamy has sought the court's directions to form a committee consisting of experts to investigate the 'fraudulent' acts of Max Life and MFSL in allowing their shareholder (Axis Bank Ltd.) and its group companies -- Axis Securities Ltd. and Axis Capital Ltd -- to make undue profits/gains from the purchase and sale of equity shares of Max Life in a non-transparent manner. The PIL says that the profits were made by violating the directions of the IRDAI. The former MP has called it an issue of national importance concerning the financial security of innumerable citizens of the country. He has claimed that Axis Bank gained unlawfully from purchasing Max Life shares below fair market value, resulting in approximately Rs 4,000 crore in profits. He has criticised the penalty imposed by IRDAI on Max Life as negligible compared to the total fraud alleged in the case. "The rot prevalent in the private sector banks is required to be brought to light, in so far as the acts of the respondents -- Axis Bank Ltd., Axis Securities Ltd., Axis Capital Ltd., MFSL and Max Life Insurance Co. Ltd. -- in handing over the management of bank(s) to non-banking professionals, which is further complicated as some executive board member(s) having no banking experience are attempting to acquire shareholding in Max Life by unfair and non-transparent ways, using their experience in the insurance sector to manipulate the records and valuations to serve their interests," the PIL read. "There is clear misrepresentation by the respondents before the IRDAI, as also non-compliance with its directions, so as to obtain prior approval for transfer of the shares," the PIL added. Besides praying for a probe by a committee of experts appointed by the court, the senior leader has also sought the formulation of proper and comprehensive guidelines in accordance with the recommendations of such a committee, to prevent future acts/transactions of such nature and to regulate the arrangements entered into by banks or other financial/insurance institutions. Noida, March 13 : Jaypee Hospital in Noida on Wednesday announced that it has successfully performed more than 1,000 kidney transplants. The hospital noted that more than 12,000 kidney transplants take place every year in India, due to poor lifestyles. Dr. Amit K. Devra, Director and Coordinator, Department of Urology and Kidney Transplant, in a statement, said that with minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery, the quality of life of the patients has improved very rapidly and the mortality rate is also very low. "With laparoscopic procedures, the biggest advantage is that the donor suffers very little pain, gets faster recovery and is quickly discharged from the hospital. The procedure can also be used for donors with multiple vessels (more vessels in the kidney), kidney transplant of children, transplant between unmatched blood group (ABO incompatible) and kidney of patients with an imbalance in immunity," he said. The doctors also blamed blood pressure, nephritis, taking painkillers, and other medicines without medical advice as the major reasons behind the significant rise in kidney disease in the country. When kidney disease reaches an incurable stage, the patient should undergo a transplant because this frees the patient from undergoing dialysis throughout his life. Financially, the patient gets relief because the entire transplant is done in almost the same amount that the patient spends on dialysis in a year. After transplantation, the patient can complete his daily routine like a healthy person. In the case of children, it is even more beneficial because, after transplantation, the child's body develops properly, said Dr. Vijay Kumar Sinha. To commemorate the occasion of 1,000 transplants, a two-day kidney transplant workshop, and a conference was also organised at the national level. --IANS rvt/pgh Patna, March 13 : The president of AIMIM's Bihar chapter, Akhtarul Imam, has sent a recommendation to the central committee of the party to contest the Lok Sabha elections on 11 seats in the state. "Our party leaders suggested that we should fight on 20 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar but I have recommended to the central committee of the party to contest on 11 seats," said Imam, the sole MLA of the AIMIM representing the Aamaur assembly constituency in Purnea district. Imam said that the AIMIM candidates will definitely contest in the four Lok Sabha seats of Muslim dominant Seemanchal region including Kishanganj, Purnea, Araria and Katihar. The AIMIM has also selected Darbhanga, Ujiyarpur, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Bhagalpur, Karakat and Buxar Lok Sabha seats where the Muslim community has a sizable population. "People are blaming our party that we are cutting the votes of INDIA bloc which is not true. Our candidates will contest against the BJP, JD-U, RJD, Congress and other parties. I am also contesting the Kishanganj seat in the Lok Sabha election 2024 but people are saying that I will challenge the candidate of the Mahagathbandhan. This is not true. We have prepared the ground in those constituencies and on that basis, our candidates will challenge the other political parties," Imam said. "We contacted the leaders of the INDIA bloc to include AIMIM in it but they refused," he added. The Muslim community is the core vote bank of the RJD, Congress and the Left parties in Bihar and the presence of the AIMIM severely hurts these parties. During the 2020 assembly elections, the AIMIM had won 5 seats in the Seemanchal region of Bihar but more than that it had cut the votes of the RJD and the Congress in more than 20 seats. As a result, the Mahagathbandhan failed to reach the majority mark in that election. After the 2020 assembly elections, 4 MLAs of the AIMIM had joined the RJD. Mumbai : Former NCB Zonal Director, Sameer Wankhede, has moved to the Bombay High Court seeking the quashing of the CBI FIR filed against him in the Aryan Khan bribery case, in Mumbai on Friday, May 19, 2023.. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 13 : In the Aryan Khan drugs case, the Delhi High Court has clarified that the evidence recorded by the Special Enquiry Team (SET) will not be considered in the department inquiry proposed against senior IRS officer Sameer Wankhede. A division bench of Justices Rekha Palli and Shalinder Kaur said: "The writ petition along with all accompanying applications is disposed of as not pressed by clarifying that the evidence recorded in the SET will not be relied upon in the department enquiry which may be held against the petitioner as per the law." Wankhede's counsels, upon instruction, opted not to pursue the plea further. Instead, they urged the court to clarify that the SET findings would not be utilised in the upcoming department inquiry against Wankhede. Wankhede's plea had contested a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order from August 21 last year in so far as it refused to quash the findings of the SET. Wankhede had filed an application seeking the quashing of a report dated June 16, 2022, prepared by the SET led by Narcotics Control Bureau Deputy Director General, Gyaneshwar Singh. During this tenure, Wankhede received some information on the basis of which a raid was conducted at the Cordelia Cruise. Post this, certain allegations were raised against Wankhede regarding the "conduct of the raid/investigation". To probe these allegations, an SET was formed within the NCB, which subsequently submitted its report, along with the related documents, to the Ministry of Home Affairs. Wankhede had argued that Gyaneshwar Singh, who was the Chairman of the SET, was actively involved in supervising the investigation of the above-mentioned 'crime', and that it was a violation of the principles of natural justice for Singh to head the SET investigating his 'own case'. Upon a thorough examination of the case and based on WhatsApp evidence, the CAT bench, consisting of Chairman Justice Ranjit More and Member (A) Anand Mathur, had also concluded that Gyaneshwar Singh, being actively involved in the investigation, could not have been a part of the SET. Consequently, the tribunal directed the relevant authorities to grant a personal hearing to Wankhede before any action was taken, ensuring that any decision was communicated with a reasoned and clear order. Recently, the high court had set aside the order issued by the CAT regarding the procedure for taking action against Wankhede. Wankhede, an IRS officer of the 2008 batch, is currently serving as an Additional Commissioner in the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance. The court had partially allowed the Central government's appeal against the order of the CAT, in favour of Wankhede, a former NCB Mumbai Zone Director, against whom certain allegations were levelled regarding the "conduct of the raid/investigation" in the Cordelua Cruise drugs case. The high court had concurred with the Central government's argument that the directive to provide a personal hearing and issue a reasoned order before initiating any action against Wankhede contradicted the provisions of the CCS (CCA) Rules. Setting aside this aspect of the CAT's order, the high court, however, had clarified that its decision does not hinder Wankhede's ability to challenge the order, if he wishes to do so. The Centre had contested the CAT's order, asserting that it was erroneous as the Tribunal failed to recognise that the CCS (CCA) Rules do not mandate providing a personal hearing to a delinquent employee before issuing a charge sheet. Meanwhile, Wankhede's counsel argued that his client himself was aggrieved by CATas decision. The Tribunal had noted Wankhede's concerns regarding Singh's involvement in issuing directions during the investigation, despite being appointed as the Chairman of the SET. Recently, Wankhede filed a contempt plea against Singh, alleging non-compliance with the Tribunal's order. A single-judge bench, however, dismissed the petition, stating that it was not maintainable, but granted Wankhede the liberty to seek redressal of his grievances through the CAT. Srinagar, March 13 : The People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) was formed immediately after the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of J&K into two Union Territories in 2019. In less than five years, the alliance appears to have crumbled. After National Conference (NC), vice president, Omar Abdullah announced his party would contest all three Lok Sabha seats in the Valley, the other major constituent of the PAGD, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) headed by Mehbooba Mufti was left with only two options --..to eat humble pie and let the NC have its way or decide to field candidates for the Lok Sabha seats in the Valley for a direct electoral battle with the NC. "How can anyone be expecting the PDP to give up its political existence? By not fielding any candidate for the Lok Sabha polls, we would not even be called the 'B team' of the NC. "Politics is about compromises and not about solo sacrifices", said a senior PDP leader close to Mufti. On his part, Omar Abdullah has repeated more than once that there would be no compromise so far as fighting on all the three Lok Sabha seats in the Valley was concerned. The confusion was compounded by NC president, Farooq Abdullah. When the development was brought to his notice in an interview to a senior Jammu-based journalist, the elder Abdullah surprised everybody by saying that he had also read this in the newspaper as "he had left behind his cell phone in Srinagar". PDP insiders told IANS that Mehbooba Mufti has made it clear that the PDP is not interested in any 'Dangal' since the people are fed up of political dangals in the past. This shows that Mufti has been maintaining her cool despite media questions and pressures from within her party. The most left-handed comment in this regard was made by Omar when he said that it was not the NC, but the people who had kept the PDP out as the PDP had finished at number 3 in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when the NC's Justice (retd) Hasnain Masoodi won south Kashmir's Anantnag seat. Mehbooba Mufti replied to the charge by saying that winning or losing the election is no reason for a person to be kept out of the fight next time. She was obviously alluding to Omar Abdullah's defeat at the hands of the PDP candidate in the 2002 Assembly elections. It is against this bitter war of attrition that two other constituents of the PAGD, Yusuf Tarigami of the CPI-M and Muzaffar Shah of the Awami National Conference (ANC) headed by Dr. Farooq's elder sister, Khalida Shah, are trying to save the alliance. Muzaffar Shah told reporters that he would speak to Farooq Abdullah also since the PAGD represents a cause and not a political combination. Yusuf Tarigami has also expressed hope that the PAGD would not break. Both these leaders have called on Mehbooba Mufti. "Just waving an olive branch without any idea about the way out of Omar Abdullah's firm decision not to concede a single Valley Lok Sabha seat to the PDP is like expecting the impossible from the PDP to save the PAGD. "We have done nothing to harm the alliance. Are the two negotiators carrying somebody's brief to save the PAGD? "The negotiators must address themselves to where the problem arose. "We respect the sincerity of both Tarigami Sahib and Muzaffar Shah Sahib, but to work in the right direction they need the trust of the other side. Do they have that?", questioned another senior PDP leader who did not want to be named. Except for making themselves heard, Yusuf Tarigami and Muzaffar Shah appear to have made little headway in saving the PAGD. In political circles, voices are already being heard which talk of the PAGD in the past tense. The PAGD was formed to fight for the 'restoration of Article 370 and statehood'. Its six constituents were the NC, PDP, ANC, CPI-M, Peoples Conference headed by Sajad Gani Lone and the Peoples Movement formed by then estranged IAS officer, Shah Faesal. Both PC and the Peoples Movement later left the PAGD. As the senior-most leader, Farooq Abdullah headed the PAGD. BJP drops sitting MP from Telangana's Adilabad, four defectors in second list. Image Source: IANS News Hyderabad, March 13 : The BJP has dropped its sitting MP from Adilabad as it announced candidates for six more Lok Sabha seats from Telangana in its second list on Wednesday. Four of the candidates announced by the BJP had joined the party three days ago after leaving the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and Congress. BJPas national Vice President D.K. Aruna will contest again from Mahabubnagar while former MLA M. Raghunandan Rao will enter the fray from Medak. With this, the BJP has announced candidates for 15 out of the state's 17 Lok Sabha seats. The party has kept pending the announcements for Khammam and Warangal seats. Former MP Godam Nagesh, who was among those who defected from the BRS, has been fielded from the Adilabad constituency. The BJP dropped sitting MP Soyam Bapu Rao, who had landed in a controversy last year after admitting on camera that he misused MPLADS funds for personal use. In 2019, Nagesh contested on a BRS ticket and suffered defeat at the hands of Bapu Rao. Former BRS MP Sitaram Naik will contest from Mahabubabad constituency on BJP ticket. He was upset with the BRS leadership after it denied him a ticket from Mahabubabad and once again fielded sitting MP Maloth Kavitha. Former MLA S. Saidi Reddy, who too had switched loyalties from the BRS to the BJP, has been fielded from Nalgonda. He was elected to the Assembly on a BRS ticket from Huzurnagar in the by-election in 2019 but suffered a defeat in the recent polls. The BJP has fielded Gomasa Srinivas, who had quit Congress to join the party recently, from Peddapalli constituency. It had announced the first list of nine candidates on March 2. The list had three sitting MPs including Union Tourism and Culture Minister and state BJP President G. Kishan Reddy. Two leaders who had defected from the BRS were also named as candidates. The BJP had bagged four Lok Sabha seats in 2019. This was its best-ever performance. This time, the party has set the goal of winning more than 12 seats. Imphal, March 13 : Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Wednesday inaugurated the state's first water amusement park and announced that nine more such parks are coming up in different parts of the state in the coming months. Imphal, March 13 (IANS) Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Wednesday inaugurated the stateas first water amusement park and announced that nine more such parks are coming up in different parts of the state in the coming months. Speaking at the inaugural ceremony at Thenguchingjin (Awangpotshangbam) in Imphal East district, the Chief Minister said that now people of the state will not have to go outside to enjoy the thrills of amusement parks. He also announced that there are plans to further expand the amusement park by adding a trekking trail for children, and a toy train. Singh said that Manipur as a state should remain as one, as he stressed the need for equality in development to encourage love among the people. Nine more such amusement parks are coming up at Jiribam, Kangpokpi, Ukhrul, Chandel, Tamenglong, Churachandpur, Noney, Senapati, and Keirao, each at a cost of Rs 4.5 crore, he added. Also, according to the Chief Minister, the sites for the construction of a Unity Mall and a Convention Centre in the Keikol area have been identified. The Chief Minister also emphasised the need to take proper precautions while speaking on television or other platforms so that such speeches don't provoke and offend other communities. "People should understand that illegal immigrants are those who came after 1961, and not the entire communities, and those who were there from before are citizens of Manipur and India," he said. Referring to the over 10-month long ethnic violence in the state, he stressed on the steps taken by the government to provide some relief to those affected by the unfortunate turn of events, as he highlighted the construction of prefabricated houses for the displaced people, the provision of compensatory packages to the affected farmers, individual financial assistance, provision of books, uniform and other stationery items for the students, etc. Several ministers, including Govindas Konthoujam, Awangbou Newmai, Sapam Ranjan Singh, and Heikham Dingo Singh, Rajya Sabha Member Maharaja Leishemba Sanajaoba, Chief Secretary Vineet Joshi, Security Advisor Kuldiep Singh were present at the function, among others. Kolkata, March 13 : Hardeep Singh Puri, the Minister of State (Independent charge) for Housing and Urban Affairs, attending the Viksit Bharat Ambassadors event in the city, credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government for the country's transformational shift from the fragile five to fifth-largest economy in the world. Addressing the Viksit Bharat Ambassadors event in Kolkata, the Minister counted the landmark achievements under PM Modi-led government, and said that these formed the 'foundation' for India being seen as a bright spot and leading economy by the world's rating agencies. The Minister stated that PM Modi-led government's determined focus and time-bound delivery of services, including infrastructure projects, has worked as the driving force behind the nation's fast-paced growth. He told the 'ambassadors' that launching and realising the projects on time has been a key focus of PM Modi-led government, and that is bearing fruits. Speaking on the Centre's thrust on programmes for women's welfare, Hardeep Singh Puri said: "This government launched many women-centric development schemes like Swachchta Abhiyaan, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and women-led developmental schemes like women's reservation scheme." He further added that women are becoming an active participant in the nation's growth story today and this will serve as a force multiplier. "Wherever women have led from the front, that nation's GDP has invariably gone up by several notches," the Minister said. He further listed the series of projects that were launched years ago in previous Congress-led governments but failed to see the light of the day even after decades. "From Calcutta underground Metro, sanctioned in 1969, to Dwarka Expressway to Saryu Irrigation project, many projects have remained in limbo despite more than 40 years of their conceptualisation," he said. He also said that the host of projects launched before 2003 are now getting finishing touches under the current government. He also urged the young ambassadors to participate in the path-breaking initiative and said, "the role of Viskit Bharat will decide the journey of the next 20 years". "You should be a participant of this drive and become partners in growth as this is about propelling India to the top of the world, propelling Indians to live their life with their head held high," the Minister urged. The Viksit Bharat Ambassadors Programme is one of the flagship events of PM Modi-led government to propagate the message of development and progressive initiatives to common people. PM Modi has made a clarion call to one and all to join this people-powered movement and help the country turn into Viksit Bharat by 2047. Kolkata, March 13 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday issued a notice to Sheikh Alamgir, the younger brother of now-suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan, for interrogation in connection with the attack on ED and CAPF teams at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district on January 5. Alamgir has been asked to report at CBI's Nizam Palace office in Kolkata on Thursday. Shahjahan, the accused mastermind behind the attack on ED and CAPF teams, is already in CBI custody. On Wednesday, a CBI team accompanied by CAPF personnel reached Alamgir's residence at Sandeshkhali to serve the notice. It is not yet known if Alamgir will comply with the CBI's summons. Shahjahan, who was taken to a hospital for a check-up on Wednesday, will be presented before the Basirhat sub-divisional court on Wednesday. Four persons, including Shahjahan, are presently in CBI custody in connection with the attack on the ED and CAPF teams on January 5. Washington, March 13 : The US House of Representatives on Wednesday passed legislation with an overwhelming bipartisan vote that could lead to the banning of the popular social media platform TikTok. The fate of the app, which is used monthly by 170 million Americans, now rests with the Senate where some lawmakers have vowed to prevent the law's speedy passage. President Joe Biden, who will have the final say, has said he will sign it into law. The legislation passed with 352 affirmative votes to 65 negative and one vote marked as present. It was introduced by the bipartisan duo of Mike Gallagher, a Republican, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, who head the select committee on China as the chair and ranking member, respectively. "Today we send a clear message that we will not tolerate our adversaries weaponizing our freedoms against us," said Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the Republican chair of the House Commerce Committee who advanced the TikTok bill. The legislation requires TikTok's parent company ByteDance, which is based in China and is alleged to have links to the Chinese government, to divest its stake in the company within 180 days of the enactment of the law. Failure to meet the deadline would bar TikTok from the app stores of Apple and Google. The app had mounted a vigorous campaign to defeat the legislation through appeals from its users and influencers. Former President Donald Trump, who had met an American investor in TikTok, famously changed his position and came out in opposition to any effort to ban the app arguing it would make Facebook stronger, which he believes is a bigger threat. But he did not canvass the lawmakers, which he has done in the past to defeat proposed legislative measures that he does not like. TikTok is considered a security threat because of its links to the Chinese government and lawmakers and officials have said that Beijing can access data on Americans through the app. TikTok has argued that the data on Americans is stored in the US. "So long as it is owned by ByteDance and thus required to collaborate with the CCP (Chinese Communist Party), TikTok poses critical threats to our national security. Our bipartisan legislation would protect American social media users by driving the divestment of foreign adversary-controlled apps to ensure that Americans are protected from the digital surveillance and influence operations of regimes that could weaponise their personal data against them. Whether it's Russia or the CCP, this bill ensures the President has the tools he needs to press dangerous apps to divest and defend Americans' security and privacy against our adversaries," Krishnamoorthi had said while introducing the bill on March 5. The bill garnered bipartisan support and speedily made it to the floor vote with a 50-0 clearance by the Commerce Committee. Its passage through the Senate may not be as swift. Senator Rand Paul, a Republican, has said he will block any effort to clear the bill speedily. Other Senators, on both sides, have also expressed opposition citing, one, its popularity with young Americans, especially so in an election year. Other opponents have cited creating a precedent for banning companies and platforms by name. Kolkata, March 13 : Hardeep Singh Puri, the Minister of State (Independent charge) for Housing and Urban Affairs on Wednesday cited his own example to counter the propaganda on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), fanned by rival parties to create 'confusion and suspicion' over the 2019 law. Speaking at the Viksit Bharat Ambassadors event in Kolkata, the Minister reiterated that the law was only to benefit the oppressed and persecuted minorities of neighbouring nations, and it had nothing to do with the local population. Reminiscing about his past, the Minister said: "I am the son of refugees. My father and mother came here from Pakistan by train, decades ago." He justified the move to grant citizenship under CAA as the law, enacted in 2019, was about giving a right to dignified life to persecuted minorities from neighbourhood and does not seek to hurt any other, as propagated by the rival parties. "Granting citizenship to victimised populations from neighbouring nations goes with India's standing in the world as it is a nation that remains sensitive to humanitarian principles," he said. Further urging the audience to become Viksit Bharat Ambassadors, he informed them that 'Good governance is good politics', remains the motto of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government. "For PM Modi, there are only four castes -- poor, youth, women and farmers, and hence, the governance is centered only around their welfare," he added. Later, during a post-speech questionnaire session, the Minister blasted the Mamata Banerjee dispensation in West Bengal for shielding the perpetrators of Sandeshkhali and also accused it of letting the oppressors and goons run loose in the Trinamool Congress-ruled state. Elaborating on the importance of Viksit Bharat programme, he opined that the Sankalp Yatras reaching small towns, villages and remote locations is a unique initiative of the government, and this will spur the citizens to become part of the mass movement that the mission seeks to achieve. Kolkata, March 13 : The entire panel of the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) responsible for recruiting teaching and non-teaching staff in the state-run schools might be cancelled if the irregularities in the recruitment process are proven beyond doubt, the Calcutta High Court observed on Wednesday. A division bench of Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Shabbar Rashidi observed that although the court will look into many other aspects of the cash-for-school-jobs case, the inevitable will happen if the charges of corruption and irregularities are proven beyond doubt. "What should be done with that person who has received a backdoor appointment through unfair means," Justice Basak questioned. When the counsel for some of the candidates, whose appointments are under scanner, raised doubts about the credibility of the WBSSC, Justice Basak observed that if the commission is not credible, the entire recruitment process lacked transparency. "What was the fault of the 23 lakh candidates who appeared for the recruitment examination? They just wanted the recruitment process to be transparent," Justice Basak noted. He also said that in this particular case, the issue of the fate of the candidates, whose appointments are in question, and their family members, is being raised. "But what will happen to the 23 lakh candidates who appeared for the examination? The court needs to think about them as well. A transparent recruitment process was their only demand," Justice Basak observed. On Tuesday, the same bench made strong observations after the counsel for the candidates, whose appointments are in question, cast aspersions at a past order passed by the former judge of Calcutta High Court, Abhijit Gangopadhyay, directing the return of salaries of the terminated candidates on charges of getting the job through unfair means. "Why was there such a harsh order for the return of salaries already earned? Had you passed a similar order, had you been in that place," the counsel questioned. Justice Basak retorted: "Had we been in that place, we would have gone a step ahead. We would have asked for their interrogation after taking them into custody. What do you think should be done if anyone secures jobs through unfair means?" Jaipur, March 13 : A team from the Jaipur Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) reached the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC) office in Ajmer on Wednesday to interrogate Manju Sharma, the wife of poet Kumar Vishwas, in connection with a recruitment bribery case. Manju, an RPSC member, was questioned for about two hours, confirmed the officials in the know of things, adding that former Chief Secretary Niranjan Arya, the husband of RPSC member Sangeeta Arya, was also present during the interrogation. An ACB team had searched the official residence of Sangeeta Arya in Ajmer on Tuesday in connection with the same case. On Wednesday, the Jaipur ACB team reached Ajmer led by Additional SP Surendra Singh Rathore. After coming out of the RPSC office following the questioning of Manju Sharma, Rathore told the media that the complainant, Vikas, had submitted a complaint alleging that bribes were demanded in the name of Manju Sharma and Sangeeta Arya in the Executive Officer recruitment case. So far, four accused have been arrested in connection with the case. Chennai, March 13 : The Tata Motors Group, which rolls out commercial and passenger vehicles, will set up a vehicle manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu at an outlay of about Rs 9,000 crore, it was announced on Wednesday. The Tata Motors Group on Wednesday inked a facilitation MoU with the Tamil Nadu government. As per the MoU, the investment of about Rs 9,000 crore will be spread over five years and can create about 5,000 jobs a" direct and indirect. Following the signing of this MoU, teams from Guidance, Tamil Nadu's nodal agency for investment promotion and facilitation, and Tata Motors Group will work together to take this opportunity forward. The MoU was signed by V. Vishnu, Managing Director & CEO, Guidance, and P.B. Balaji, Group CFO, Tata Motors, in the presence of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. Tamil Nadu Industries Minister T.R.B. Rajaa said on X: "For the FIRST time EVER, TN has attracted TWO BIG Automobile Manufacturing #Investments within a span of just 2 months." aOver the past couple of years, Tamil Nadu has hit the fast lane and become the ultimate hub for investments, showcasing our Chief Minister's dedication to fostering top-tier employment for our vibrant youth and amplifying our industrial prowess," Rajaa said. "We're not just building factories; we're engineering dreams and accelerating towards a brighter, more prosperous future!" he added. Last month, Vietnamas VinFast groupas Indian arm VinFast Auto India Ltd laid the foundation stone for its electric vehicle factory in Tuticorin. The company will invest Rs 4,000 crore in the first phase. New Delhi, March 13 : The NITI Aayog on Wednesday launched the 'Vocal for Local' initiative under its Aspirational Blocks Programme to encourage a spirit of self-reliance among the people and propel them towards sustainable growth and prosperity. As a part of this initiative, local products from 500 aspirational blocks have been mapped and consolidated under the Aakanksha brand. The launch was attended by all 329 districts and block-level officials who connected virtually for the event. NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam in his keynote address urged the district collectors and the block-level officials to collaborate with partners like the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to facilitate sustainable growth of micro enterprises in the aspirational blocks. Subrahmanyam said that Aakanksha is an umbrella brand, which could be supplemented into multiple sub-brands that have the potential to create an international market. In order to encourage these products, a dedicated window for the Aspirational Blocks Programme under the brand name Aakanksha has been established on the GeM portal. The partners will also provide technical and operational support for the facilitation of e-commerce onboarding, establishing linkages, financial/digital literacy, documentation/certification, and skill enhancement, among others. This comprehensive capacity-building approach is expected to significantly strengthen the 'Vocal for Local' initiative, thereby ensuring sustainability. New Delhi, March 13 : The Kerala government on Wednesday refused to accept a one-time bailout package of Rs 5,000 crore offered by the Centre before the Supreme Court. A bench, headed by Justice Surya Kant, was hearing a suit filed by the state's Pinarayi Vijayan government challenging ceiling limits imposed by the Centre on the stateas borrowing. Rejecting the Centreas offer, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Kerala government, submitted that the southern state is entitled to borrow Rs 10,000 crore under the law and he is ready to argue the question of interim relief on merits. He added that the conditions in the Centreas offer are very stringent and based on the assumption that the suit is liable to be dismissed. The matter is now scheduled to be heard on March 21. In an earlier hearing, the top court had suggested the parties sit down together to resolve the issue. The Kerala government has asserted that the state has the exclusive power to regulate its finances through the preparation and management of its budget and borrowings. In a suit filed under Article 131 of the Constitution, the Kerala government has raised questions over the authority of the Union government to interfere with the powers of the state to regulate its own finances under several provisions of the Constitution Agartala, March 13 : The BJP on Wednesday nominated 'Maharani' Kriti Singh Debbarma as the party candidate for the Tripura East (ST) Lok Sabha seat. The party had earlier nominated former Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb, who is currently a Rajya Sabha member, for the West Tripura Lok Sabha seat. The Central Election Committee (CEC) of the BJP on Wednesday announced its second list of 72 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, which included the name of Debbarma, a former royal scion and social activist in Tripura, as a nominee. Debbarma is the elder sister of Tipra Motha Party (TMP) supremo and former royal scion Pradyot Bikram Manikya Deb Barman. A BJP leader said that Debbarma's father-in-law's family is associated with the BJP. "With the understanding between the leaders of the BJP and the TMP, Kriti Singh Debbarma's name was finalised as the BJP candidate for the Tripura East (ST) Lok Sabha seat," a BJP leader told IANS, refusing to be named. Welcoming the announcement, Deb Barman said he had always been keen to send someone close to the state's tribal community to the Lok Sabha to highlight the voice of the tribals and their demands. After year-long hectic parlays and six days after the signing of a tripartite agreement with the Centre and the Tripura government, the TMP on March 7 joined the BJP-led coalition government in the state. According to the agreement, a joint working group/committee would be formed to work out and implement the mutually agreed issues in a time-bound manner to ensure an 'honourable' solution to the tribals' demands. Demanding a 'Greater Tipra Land' or a separate state for the tribals under Articles 2 and 3 of the Constitution, and after a series of agitations in Tripura and Delhi, the TMP on March 2 signed a tripartite agreement with the Centre and the Tripura government in the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha and others. Assam: Setback to Oppn as CPI-M fields candidate against Congress nominee in Barpeta. Image Source: IANS News Guwahati, March 13 : In a setback to the Congress-led opposition bloc in Assam, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Wednesday announced that its MLA, Manoranjan Talukdar, will contest the Lok Sabha polls from Barpeta where the grand old party has already fielded its candidate. The United Opposition Forum Assam (UOFA), which was established in the state with 16 parties in accordance with the INDIA bloc, includes the CPI-M. Suprakash Talukdar, the state Secretary of the CPI-M, confirmed to reporters that the party has decided to field Talukdar from Barpeta. The Sorbhog Assembly constituency, which comes under the Barpeta Lok Sabha seat, is currently represented by CPI-M legislator Talukdar. "We implore the Congress to remove its candidate from Barpeta in the greater interest of the people. We request everyone to support the most formidable opponent of the BJP and ensure his victory," Talukdar said. Sitting Congress MP from Barpeta, Abdul Khaleque, was denied a ticket this time as the party has fielded Deep Bayan from the seat. In addition to being an APCC spokesperson, Bayan serves as the President of the Assam Pradesh Congress Seva Dal. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), another UOFA member, has already announced candidates for three seats in Assam. Press Release March 13, 2024 Bong Go's Malasakit Center initiative grants a South Cotabato teen a new lease on life Senator Christopher "Bong" Go's Malasakit Center initiative is a significant support system for Filipinos needing medical assistance. An illustration of this initiative's impact is the story of 16-year-old Eugene Benz Cajandig from Koronadal City, South Cotabato, whose life took a positive turn thanks to the senator's intervention. Eugene was diagnosed with Dextro-Transposition of the Great Arteries, ventricular septal defect (VSD), atrial septal defect (ASD), and pulmonary stenosis. These conditions necessitated specialized medical intervention, highlighting the immediate and ongoing healthcare needs of patients like him. His mother, Hazel Cajandig, shared their family's ordeal, noting the difficult decisions they faced due to the initial prognosis and the financial implications of Eugene's condition. "Hindi po namin tinuloy 'yung operasyon (noong baby pa siya) kasi nasa 40% lang po 'yung survival rate niya. Kaya inuwi namin siya. Sabi ng doktor, ibabalik namin siya one year old," she recounted. "Kaso hindi namin siya naibalik agad kasi akala namin okay siya. Noong dinala namin siya, binalik namin two years old na po siya. Late na siya for total correction," added Hazel. The delayed return for treatment further complicated Eugene's condition, underscoring the dire circumstances that can result from limited healthcare access. At two years old, Eugene suffered a stroke, leading to partial paralysis and necessitating regular phlebotomy sessions to manage his condition. This medical setback not only emphasized the severity of his congenital heart defects but also the emotional and financial toll on his family. "Tapos na-stroke po siya. Half-paralyzed po ng dalawang linggo. Buti na lang din naka-cover din siya agad. Umpisa po noon, lumalabas na 'yung mga ano niya... na monthly na po siya nagpapa-plebotomy," she said. During the Tnalak Festival in South Cotabato in July last year, a crucial moment occurred when Hazel approached Go for assistance. Known as "Mr. Malasakit" for his commitment to healthcare advocacy, Go's response to Eugene's case through the Malasakit Centers initiative was instrumental. Malasakit Centers bring together representatives from the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office. These one-stop shops aim to support impoverished patients in reducing their hospital costs to the least possible amount. Go is the principal author and sponsor of Republic Act No. 11463, or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, which institutionalized the Malasakit Centers program. Currently, 161 Malasakit Centers are operational nationwide, poised to assist with patients' medical expenses. The DOH reports that the Malasakit Center program has already provided aid to around ten million Filipinos. Go also principally sponsored and is one of the authors of the Republic Act No. 11959, also known as the Regional Specialty Centers Act, which was signed into law by President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr. in 2023. The law mandates the establishment of regional specialty centers within existing DOH regional hospitals, improving Filipinos' access to specialized healthcare. Through the intervention of the Malasakit Center, Eugene was granted a new lease on life--a chance to undergo life-saving surgery at the Philippine Heart Center in Quezon City. This critical procedure, which once seemed financially impossible for his family, was completed, thanks to the comprehensive support offered by the Malasakit Center and the efforts of Go. Hazel expressed deep gratitude towards Go, whose intervention marked a significant shift towards hope and recovery for Eugene. "Answered prayer po talaga si Senator Bong Go. Malaki pong pasalamat ko talaga sa Poong Maykapal dahil binigyan niya po ako ng Mr. Malasakit, Senator Bong Go, na sinagot po lahat ng operasyon," she said. "Ang saya-saya ko na po, kasi maabot na niya 'yung pangarap niya sa buhay. Senator Bong Go, maraming, maraming salamat po sa pagdugtong niyo sa buhay niya. Salamat po," she added. In reflecting on his motivations and the trust placed in him by the Filipino people, Go reiterates his humble beginnings and his resolve to serve with integrity and dedication. "Simple lang po ako na probinsyano na katulad ninyo na binigyan niyo po ng pagkakataon (na magserbisyo). Kaya magtatrabaho ako para sa inyong lahat sa abot ng aking makakaya, mga kababayan ko," he said. Eugene's ordeal highlights the critical role of initiatives like the Malasakit Centers in bridging the gap between vulnerable populations and the healthcare services they urgently need. Kolkata, March 13 : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) informed the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday that its officials have got several additional clues of a particular corporate entity's links with the multi-crore cash-for-school-jobs case in West Bengal. The counsel of the central agency also informed the single-judge bench of Justice Amrita Sinha that its officials have got definite clues of the said corporate entity having influential links. "Several important names have also surfaced in the course of the investigation," the CBI counsel informed the bench. When Justice Singh questioned whether the CBI has been able to track the source of the funds, the central agency counsel said that several matters are interlinked in this multi-channel scam. What began as the school jobs case has links to the municipalities' recruitment and the ration distribution cases as well. "This is like Pandora's Box," the CBI counsel informed the court. He also told the court that the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had attached several properties and assets in connection with the alleged scams. "For the sake of avoiding controversy, I am not taking any name in the court relating to this attachment of assets and properties," the CBI counsel argued. During the hearing, Justice Sinha also expressed dismay over the delay in the submission of the report of the voice sampling test of Sujay Krishna Bhadra, a prime accused in the school jobs case, to her court. "It has been almost two months since the test was conducted. You better get in touch with the Central Forensic Science Laboratory and find out when the final report will be available," Justice Sinha said. Incidentally, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had claimed on Tuesday that the entire assets of the business entity owned by Trinamool Congress National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee have been confiscated by the central agencies. "Abhishek is a young man. He is married and has two kids. If he does not do anything for a living, how will he arrange for their food? So he ran a business. But all the assets of that business have been attached. And now the Union government is trying to snatch away the democratic rights of the people," CM Banerjee had said. Hyderabad, March 13 : K. Kavitha, the daughter of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) President and former Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, will not contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Nizamabad. The BRS on Wednesday announced its candidates for four Lok Sabha seats in Telangana, dropping two sitting MPs. Kavitha, who had lost the 2019 elections from Nizamabad to BJPas Dharampuri Arvind, has not been fielded this time. Kavitha, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from Nizamabad in 2014, is currently a member of the Telangana Legislative Council. The BRS has named senior leader and former minister Bajireddy Goverdhan as its candidate from Nizamabad this time, while the BJP has renominated Arvind from the seat. KCR has finalised the name of G. Anil Kumar as the party candidate from Zahirabad. The sitting BRS MP from Zahirabad, B.B. Patil, recently joined the BJP, which has fielded him from the same constituency for the coming polls. The party has fielded Kadiam Kavya from Warangal (SC). Kavya is the daughter of senior BRS leader and former deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari. In 2019, Pasunoori Dayakar of the BRS was elected from Warangal. KCR has also dropped the sitting MP from Chevella, G. Ranjith Reddy, and gave the ticket to Kasani Gnaneshwar Mudiraj, who quit the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) to join the BRS in November last year, just ahead of the Assembly elections. The BRS chief announced the candidates after holding meetings with the party leaders from these constituencies. With this, the BRS has so far announced candidates for eight out of the 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state. In 2019, the BRS had bagged nine seats. However, three of them recently defected to the BJP and the Congress. The BRS has also announced an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) for the upcoming polls, and talks are on between the two parties on seat-sharing. Those who threatened to burn train from Ayodhya should be booted into prison: Pralhad Joshi. Image Source: IANS News Bengaluru, March 14 : Union minister Pralhad Joshi thanked the party leadership on Wednesday for fielding him from the Dharwad Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka for the fifth consecutive time. The Central Election Committee (CEC) of the BJP on Wednesday announced its second list of 72 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, which includes the names of Pralhad Joshi, Tejasvi Surya and Basavaraj Bommai from Karnataka, among others. "The party has made me more responsible towards development by giving me the ticket. I got the opportunity to serve under PM Narendra Modi as the Union minister, handling important portfolios. I have always shouldered the responsibilities given to me without courting any controversy," Pralhad Joshi stated. Meanwhile, former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai's supporters celebrated his nomination from Haveri. Bommai said he is confident that the people of Haveri-Gadag will ensure his victory. "Though I had suggested issuing the ticket to former minister K.S. Eshwarappa's son, I have been selected as the candidate considering the probability of victory. It won't be an internal setback. It's only the BJP that gives chance to both fresh faces and experienced leaders," Bommai said. State BJP President B.Y. Vijayendra, meanwhile, congratulated all the 20 candidates selected so far to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Karnataka. "Let's ensure a thumping victory under the leadership of PM Modi and realise the dream of becoming a developed nation. Our motto is 'PM Modi once again'," he said. The leader of the opposition, R. Ashoka, also congratulated the candidates who were named in the second list announced on Thursday. "It is a matter of luck to represent Karnataka in the Parliament when India is on the path to becoming a developed nation under the leadership of PM Modi," he said. Meanwhile, Bengaluru South MP and BJP Yuva Morcha President Tejasvi Surya said, "I thank PM Narendra Modi Ji for reposing his faith and giving me another opportunity to contest from Bengaluru South. My special gratitude to Amit Shah Ji for his constant blessings. I also thank our party President J.P. Nadda Ji and B.L. Santhosh Ji, who have constantly guided and mentored me over the past few years." "Five years ago, our party leadership trusted me and allowed me to contest elections from the prestigious Bengaluru South constituency. With the blessings of the people of Bengaluru, I emerged victorious and became the youngest BJP MP in the 17th Lok Sabha - a distinction that I never imagined would come my way," he added. UP man arrested for beating dog after locking it up. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, March 14 : In a fresh development in the fake cancer chemotherapy medicines manufacturing scam busted by the Delhi Police, a B.Tech graduate from IIT (BHU) Varanasi was arrested from Bihar's Muzaffarpur, a Crime Branch official said on Wednesday. Police said that Aditya Krishna, 23, was arrested from his native city Muzaffarpur and brought to Delhi. According to police, Aditya allegedly used to buy medicines from one of the accused in the case and supply the same to Pune and the National Capital Region (NCR). He was also operating a chemist shop in Muzaffarpur. This is the eighth arrest in the case. Earlier on Tuesday, seven persons, including two employees of a reputed hospital, were arrested by police and an illegal unit manufacturing fake life-saving cancer chemotherapy medicines was also busted. A senior police official had said that they recovered spurious cancer medicines of seven international brands and two Indian brands worth Rs 4 crore from the illegal unit in the Moti Nagar area and three other locations. The accused were identified as Viphil Jain, Suraj Shat, Neeraj Chauhan, Parvez, Komal Tiwari, Abhinay Kohli, and Tushar Chauhan. Special Commissioner of Police, Crime Branch, Shalini Singh had said that simultaneous raids were conducted at four different locations in Delhi and Gurugram based on the information. "The prime location for manufacturing spurious cancer medicines was DLF Capital Greens, Moti Nagar, where Jain, the mastermind of this operation, had taken two EWS flats to produce these medicines. Suraj Shat, another accused, managed the refilling and packaging of the vials," she said. During the raid, 140 filled vials of spurious cancer injections from brands like Opdyta, Keytruda, Dextrose, and Fluconazole were seized. Additionally, cash amounting to Rs 50,000 and 1,000 US dollars, three cap sealing machines, a heat gun machine, and 197 empty vials along with other essential packaging materials were recovered. "At South City, Gurugram, Haryana, Neeraj Chauhan hoarded a large cache of spurious cancer injections/vials," the Special CP said. During the raid, 137 vials of spurious cancer injections from brands like Keytruda, Infinzi, Tecentriq, Perjeta, Opdyta, Darzalex, and Erbitux, and 519 empty vials of similar brands along with cash totalling Rs 89 lakh and 18,000 US dollars were recovered. "Neeraj's cousin Tushar Chauhan, who was involved in the supply chain, was also apprehended," she said. "At Yamuna Vihar, the raid was aimed at nabbing Parvez, who arranged empty vials for Viphil Jain and was involved in supplying the refilled vials. Twenty empty vials were recovered from his possession," she added. "In another raid at a reputed cancer hospital in Delhi, two individuals, Komal Tiwari and Abhinay Kohli, working in the Cytotoxic Admixture Unit, were apprehended. They were supplying empty vials for Rs 5,000 each," she said. Jain, originally from Delhi, started his career as a medical store employee in Seelampur and gradually ventured into supplying medicines from wholesale markets to local stores. "About three years ago, he conceived the idea of refilling spurious cancer injections, targeting expensive brands. He collaborated with Parvez for empty vials and Neeraj Chauhan for further supply. Shat assisted Jain in refilling vials at his rented flats in Moti Nagar," said the Special CP. Neeraj Chauhan, who previously worked as a manager in the Oncology Department of reputed hospitals, joined forces with Jain in 2022, leveraging his experience to provide fake chemotherapy injections at affordable rates. "Parvez, an ex-pharmacist of a reputed cancer hospital, ran a pharmacy shop and supplied empty and filled vials to Jain. Tiwari and Kohli, employed at a reputed cancer hospital since 2013, facilitated the supply of empty and filled vials to Parvez," said the Special CP. "Tushar Chauhan, a laboratory technician, collaborated with Neeraj Chauhan to distribute fake medicines," she added. Premium online access is only available tosubscribers. If you have an active subscription and need to set up or change your password, please click here New to PW? To set up immediate access, click here. NOTE: If you had a previous PW subscription, click here to reactivate your immediate access. PW site license members have access to PWs subscriber-only website content. If working at an office location and you are not "logged in", simply close and relaunch your preferred browser. For off-site access, click here. To find out more about PWs site license subscription options, please email Mike Popalardo at: mike@nextstepsmarketing.com. While he may not be donning a cape and swooping in to save the day, Dav Pilkey is a literary superhero of sorts. And now hes the first Scholastic author-illustrator whose work will have a dedicated Little Free Library. Later this month, Dog Man-themed book-sharing boxes will be installed in all 50 states and stocked with 50,000 childrens books donated by Pilkey. The initial library unveiling will coincide with the release of Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder (Mar. 19), Pilkeys 12th book in the graphic novel series. The national literacy project marks a joint effort between Scholastics Power Up with Reading initiative and Little Free Librarys Impact Library program, which provides free book exchanges in underserved communities. Dav Pilkey is not only one of the most influential authors of this generation, hes also one of the most generous, supporting bookstores, libraries, and literacy organizations in their efforts to get more books into the hands of kids, Scholastic Trade president Ellie Berger told PW. The release of Davs newest book is an exciting publishing moment celebrated worldwide and a perfect time to launch our Power Up with Reading collaboration with Little Free Library, which aligns with Scholastics longstanding efforts to expand book access and promote literacy. The first Dog Man Little Free Library will be constructed at a school in ClevelandPilkeys birthplaceon the 19th, followed by the rollout of book boxes in Atlanta, Baltimore, Detroit, Houston, Madison, Murfreesboro, Tenn., New Orleans, New York City, Phoenix, Portland, Ore., San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. Each freestanding library will contain copies of The Scarlet Shedder, along with selected titles from Scholastics The Power of the Story collection spotlighting diverse characters and narratives. Adorned with Pilkeys artwork featuring Captain Underpants, Cat Kid Comic Club, and, of course, Dog Man, the book-sharing boxes will also feature Scholastics Power Up with Reading message. Were excited about this campaign as it is a wonderful example of our mission in action, Little Free Library executive director Greig Metzger told PW. We are engaging with local, community-based partners to expand book access and inspire young readers. We know the broad appeal of Dav Pilkeys characters, so the opportunity to inspire a young reader is there if we can facilitate the connection. And from that connection to Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder, a lifelong love of reading can grow. Pilkey said in a statement, When I was a kid, I have fond memories of going to the library where my mom would let me pick out whatever books I wanted to read. This is how I came to associate reading with love. Im grateful to the many librarians, teachers, and the teams at Little Free Library and Scholastic. They are real-life superheroes. Elementary schools, childcare facilities, and community centers that are interested in adding a Dog Man Little Free Library are encouraged to apply online. Little Free Library is also hosting a Scholastic-sponsored giveaway of 1,200 copies of The Scarlet Shedder. Dog Man fans residing in the U.S. and Canada are eligible to enter the contest, now through March 31. "We don't understand the consequences of AI with regards to copyright," Brazil's Karine Goncalves Pansa, president of the International Publishers Association (IPA), said, when asked to name the most important issues facing publishing publishing right now. "We can say, very easily, that our content is being used, without permission, and without license, by AI." The book business's complicated relationship with new artificial intelligence toolsespecially large language modelshas been front and center at this year's London Book Fair. That was certainly the case at a Tuesday panel, "Exploring the Ever-Evolving World of Publishing: Global Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities," that brought together the heads of the IPA, Federation of European Publishers (FEP), Association of American Publishers (AAP), African Publishers Network (APN), to discuss the biggest issues facing the publishing today. Italy's Ricardo Franco Levi, president of the FEP, said that he believe that Europe is leading the way in terms of combating some of the most troubling issues surrounding AI and copyright. In newly adopting the AI Act, on March 13, Levi said, Europe is ensuring that "all AI users and producers will have to respect the European Copyright Directive"a sweeping and controversial copyright reform bill passed in 2019"wherever they train AI, so European copyright rules will be in place for everyone. And secondly, they must make transparent the sources on which they are training the AI. I do believe," Franco added, "that they will set the standard for the world business in publishing." How exactly this new law will be enforced, Levi conceded, "will be in question." Also in question, argued incoming AAP board chair Youngsuk YS Chi, is how "those involved in the publishing industry, from authors to agents and publishers to editors and all the way to the readers, stay relevantthat we don't get bulldozed over by firms have something shiny that hasn't been tested for its ethical values as well as its economic values." That means, Chi explained, continuing to fiercely champion "a framework that protects creativity through copyright, but also innovation." Publishing, Chi noted, brings something to the table that new AI models, social media, and the internet writ large do not: trust. "Those of us involved in publishing add trust to the material that people access, and there is no value being granted for that by those who simply want volume and not quality." He continued: "For centuries, the issue has been about being able to get access to be able to read. Suddenly, we have enormous amounts of access. And during that process, we've forgotten that the things that we wanted to access were trusted. So we think that everything we get is also trustworthyuntil we get burned." For centuries, the issue has been about being able to get access to be able to read. Suddenly, we have enormous amounts of access. And during that process, we've forgotten that the things that we wanted to access were trusted. Speaking to the idea of trust, Goncalves Pansa implicitly contrasted book publishers with the tech companies producing these new AI tools. "As publishers, sometimes we don't trust ourselves, so we don't talk about ourselves, and we need to value the content that we do," she said. "We need to believe that the content that we curate is valuable. It is important to the public that we're delivering the book." She added: "We need to give more credit to our profession and the things that we deliver to the public." APN president Lawrence Njagiwho joined the group late, remotely from Kenya, after struggling with internet accessagreed that trust is a major concern for the business today, specifically as access to publishing technology becomes more widespread. "We have no problem with self-published authors," he said. "Our biggest challenge, especially in Africa, is a question of quality, a question of accuracy." As such, "we are approaching AI with gloves on our hands," he said. "The fact of the matter is, we cannot trust the quality of the material. And maybe the question we should be asking ourselves as publishers is, how can we come in to assist." Publishers, Levi noted, are "rightly, now, I would say, in the defensive" about new technologies, but stressed that, despite the challenges, "we must look forward" and embrace innovation. But also, he added, "let us not forget for every one of us here that there is another important issue, and it is freedom to publish." Globally, the issue remains significant, Levi explained, citing, as an example, Belarus, where "publishers are forbidden to publish in the national language," and only allowed to publish in Russian. In Venezuela, panel moderator Ed Nawotka, senior international and bookselling editor at Publishers Weekly, noted, censorship of a subtler sort is taking place: companies, he said, "cannot get ahold of ink or paper" because, as Goncalves Pansa explained, a series of taxes have made them "too expensive to buy." She added: "Copyright and freedom to publish are the most important thing. They are the base of publishing content." In closing, Chi asked the audience to "think about the fact that we talk about publishing as if we are some kind of a uniform entity. Even within our own publishing community, there are three distinct segments," he reminded listenerseducational, professional, and trade publishing"that behave extremely differently." Still, he said, "there is one passion, and that is what the Latin word publicare means...to make it public. We all believe it, but we disseminate for different audiences, in different ways, through different means. So please, go out there and tell the world: publishing is not monotonous." A rendering of the future multiuse Beck Barn slated for construction in the Discovery Park District at Purdue. The salvaged barn space will offer a farm-to-table restaurant established by the Cunningham Restaurant Group. (Image provided by DELV Design) WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. A unique culinary destination will be coming to the Discovery Park District at Purdue with the Cunningham Restaurant Group (CRG) announcement of a new, farm-to-table restaurant that will be housed in a historic barn slated to be revitalized as a future community hub. The restaurant will occupy part of the planned 10,600-square-foot, multi-use building located between Airport Road and McCutcheon Drive just off Mitch Daniels Boulevard. While the menu is still being developed, it will highlight CRGs commitment to local is best and unforgettable guest dining experiences. CRG also brought Bru Burger Bar to downtown Lafayette in 2019. We are excited to be a part of this project in bringing farm-to-table to both a restaurant and private dining venue. The partnership the Purdue Agriculture program will be a perfect fit connecting us to local sourcing. We look forward to introducing a new concept to serve the Greater Lafayette community, said Mike Cunningham, founder and CEO of Cunningham Restaurant Group. The new facility including restaurant, retail and event space will be constructed using a century-old barn donated by Sonny Beck, CEO of Becks Superior Hybrids, and the Beck family. Construction will keep the character and feel of the historic barn while providing the modern structure and amenities needed for a high-capacity hospitality space. We as a family wanted to give something back to Purdue and we thought the Beck Barn would be particularly useful as a bridge between Indiana history, Purdue University and their future development together, Beck said. Were excited to work with the Cunningham Restaurant Group to develop this icon within the Discovery Park District. The development is part of a larger effort to fully realize the districts master plan and will anchor an upgrade of surrounding Squirrel Park. With high sustainability aspirations and expansive green space surroundings, the project aims to set a new precedent for what hospitality spaces can offer alongside a university setting. From the very beginning, weve had the vision of creating a welcoming place to live, work, learn and play, said Jeremy Slater, vice president of capital projects and facilities at Purdue Research Foundation. Were looking forward to our vision coming to life for the Greater Lafayette community with the new restaurant in the iconic Beck Barn. To learn more about the Beck Barn gathering space and follow along with future updates, visit the Discovery Park District website. About Becks Hybrids Becks Farmers At Heart revolutionized the customer seed-buying experience by remaining true to a foundation built on faith, family and farming. Founded in 1937, Becks appreciates the farmers who have helped them become the largest family-owned retail seed company and the third-largest seed brand in the United States. The Beck family is now in its fifth generation working in the business to honor God and help farmers succeed. The Beck family and team of employees help farmers achieve success from generation to generation through authentic customer experiences, product diversity, seed quality and performance. With a home office located in Atlanta, Ind., Becks serves farmers throughout the Midwest and Mid-South with 19 regional locations. For more information about Becks, visit http://www.beckshybrids.com/. Follow Becks on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube. About Cunningham Restaurant Group Since 1997 Cunningham Restaurant Group (CRG) has been committed to creating unforgettable dining experiences. CRG owns and operates locations in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. Visit www.crgdining.com to see all its locations, make reservations or explore private dining opportunities. About Purdue Research Foundation Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Established in 1930, the foundation accepts gifts; administers trusts; funds scholarships and grants; acquires and sells property; protects and licenses Purdue's intellectual property; and supports creating Purdue-connected startups on behalf of Purdue. The foundation operates Purdue Innovates, which includes the Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization, Incubator, Startup Foundry and Purdue Ventures. The foundation manages the Purdue Research Park, Discovery Park District, Purdue Technology Centers and Purdue for Life Foundation. For more information on licensing a Purdue innovation, contact the Office of Technology Commercialization at otcip@prf.org. For more information about involvement and investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact Purdue Innovates at purdueinnovates@prf.org. Writer/Media contact: Polly Barks, phbarks@prf.org OZARK A museum honoring two musical Blues legends in their Dale County hometown of Ariton moved closer to reality when the Dale County Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to allocate up to $60,000 to transform the old bus terminal into a museum. Ariton Town Councilman Ben Key had asked the commission for support of the towns hope of turning the building on Atlantic Street that once served as bus terminal into a museum honoring Willie Mae Big Mama Thornton and JW Warren. Key, who is related to Thornton, said she often played the harmonica in front of the Greyhound bus station and telephone exchange as a youngster, entertaining passengers, which was why the site was selected as home for the museum. We want to thank the chairman and the commission for their support, he said. Dale County has a rich history, said Dale County Commission Chairman Steve McKinnon, who also serves on the Dale County Bicentennial Committee which is working to highlight the history of each community in Dale County has it heads towards its 200th birthday in December. That rich history needs to be preserved. Nearly four decades after her death, Willie Mae Big Mama Thornton was honored in Ariton with a street named in her honor Big Mama Thornton Circle at a ceremony Oct. 22, 2022. Thornton was born in Ariton on Dec. 11, 1926. She died July 25, 1984, Thornton got her start singing in her fathers church and left Alabama after her mothers death, initially performing with Sammy Greens Hot Harlem Revue. She sang, wrote music, played drums, and performed on the harmonica. Thornton recorded the song Hound Dog three years before Elvis Presley and wrote and recorded Ball and Chain a song Janis Joplin would later record. Thornton died in poverty and was buried at Inglewood Cemetery, a gravesite now shared by two other people. Her funeral procession was led by musician Johnny Otis. The Blues Hall of Fame in Memphis inducted Thornton in 1984 after her death, and in 2020 she was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. Thornton has been honored several times by the Wiregrass Blues Society. A mural of Thornton now adorns the side of Hoppergrass restaurant in Ozark, and theres an effort underway to have Thornton at least moved to her own grave, if not back to Ariton. Warren was born in Enterprise and raised in Ariton, one of 11 children in a sharecropping family. His guitar and musical skills were recorded in the early 1980s and released on an album. He wrote original blues songs and performed favorites in local establishments. According to the Wiregrass Blues Society, Warrens finger picking and slide technique on the guitar was considered a style unique to Southeast Alabama, and his life was actually documented by a German blues photographer and researcher. Warren died in 2005. MONTGOMERY The Alabama Big 10 Mayors this week encouraged the Alabama Legislature to pass a measure strengthening criminal penalties for firing weapons into homes, businesses, and vehicles. Dothan Mayor Mark Saliba, Auburn Mayor Ron Anders, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, Decatur Mayor Tab Bowling, Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato, Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle, Madison Mayor Paul Finley, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed, and Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox are supporting Alabama House Bill 174, sponsored by state Rep. Barbara Drummond (D-Mobile), which was reported out of the Alabama House Judiciary Committee and is awaiting a floor vote in the House chamber. The bill will increase the criminal penalties for firing into occupied homes, businesses, vehicles, rail cars, and other buildings from a Class B felony to a Class A felony. As mayors, fighting crime and working to keep our communities safe is always our top priority, said the Alabama Big 10 Mayors in a joint statement. Too often, we see gun violence resulting in innocent victims, including children. As a state, we should do all we can to hold those responsible accountable. It isnt the only part of the solution, but increasing penalties for criminals is a key part of curbing gun violence in our communities, the statement said. Actions have consequences, and the consequences for firing blindly into homes and cars should be met with a strong response from prosecutors and law enforcement. Representing Alabamas 10 biggest cities and with 75 percent of the states population living in their metro areas the Alabama Big 10 Mayors work together to address the states most important issues and make Alabama a safer, better place for all its residents. This bill was filed as several Alabamians were shot indiscriminately because of gang-related shootings. In Mobile earlier this year, a 15-year-old girl was killed as a group of shooters fired into the vehicle she was riding in. Also, this year in Jefferson County, a 5-year-old boy getting a haircut was shot and killed when the building he was in was fired upon. As mayors, theres nothing more important to us than public safety, and we know that members of the Legislature feel the same way. We fully support them as they work on this issue to help bring more law and order to communities across our state, the mayors statement concluded. Porterville, CA (93257) Today Showers early, then partly cloudy overnight. Low 44F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.. Tonight Showers early, then partly cloudy overnight. Low 44F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%. The finance ministry has directed all state-owned banks to review their gold loan portfolio as instances of non-compliance with regulatory norms have been noticed by the government. The Department of Financial Services (DFS) in a communication addressed to heads of public sector banks has asked them to look at their system and processes related to gold loan. "We have asked banks to undertake comprehensive review of the gold loan business," financial services secretary Vivek Joshi told PTI. A directive in this regard was issued last month advising them to fix anomalies relating to collection of fees and interest and closure of gold loan accounts. The letter flagged various concerns, including disbursement of gold loans without requisite gold collateral, anomalies regarding collection of fees and repayment in cash. The DFS urged banks to undertake a thorough review of the last two-year period from January 1, 2022 to January 31, 2024 so as to ensure that all gold loans were disbursed in compliance with regulatory requirements and internal policies of banks. It is to be noted that the price of the yellow metal has surged to a record level. Price of 10 gm gold in the last one month has jumped from Rs 63,365 to Rs 67,605. According to the letter, the department has come across instances of non-compliance regarding the gold loan portfolio and hence issued the advisory. The country's biggest lender, State Bank of India (SBI) alone has a gold loan portfolio of Rs 30,881 crore as of December 2023. Punjab National Bank's gold loan exposure stood at Rs 5,315 crore while Bank of Baroda was at Rs 3,682 crore at the end of third quarter. As per the RBI norms, banks or gold loan finance firms can provide only 75 per cent of the value of the jewellery. However, relaxation was provided during the COVID-19 period to mitigate hardship. The RBI had increased the permissible Loan to Value (LTV) for loans sanctioned by banks against pledges of gold ornaments and jewellery for non-agricultural purposes to 90 per cent from 75 per cent in August 2020. This relaxation was available till March 31, 2021. Last week, the RBI barred IIFL Finance Ltd from disbursing gold loans, with immediate effect following multiple supervisory concerns, including serious deviations in assaying and certifying the purity of the yellow metal. RBI said the supervisory restrictions will be reviewed upon completion of a special audit to be instituted by it and after rectification by the company of the special audit findings and the findings of RBI inspection to the satisfaction of the central bank. 'Das is friendly, but he finally does what he does. The quality of engagement is very good.' IMAGE: Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das addresses the media during a press conference after the post-budget meeting with the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India, in New Delhi. Photograph: Shrikant Singh/ANI Photo When Shaktikanta Das took charge at Mint Road -- the 25th governor to do so -- he made a promise. "There has to be a free, fair, objective and very frank discussion between the government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). I like to believe that all issues, however contentious, can be resolved through discussions." He had moved into the biggest sea-facing room at RBI after two high-profile names signed off, Raghuram Rajan and Urjit Patel, who had some differences with the government. As Das, who took charge as RBI's governor on December 12, 2018, enters the final 10 months of his second term, there's all-round acknowledgement that he has 'walked the talk'. "His working style is very refreshing. He listens patiently and engages actively with stakeholders. One can articulate an opinion without any apprehension," says Rajnish Kumar, former chairman, State Bank of India. A case in point, Kumar notes, is the deft management of the banking as well as the payments system during COVID-19. "He stands out for decisive leadership skills. He is quite supportive and engaged closely while working out an arrangement for roping in banks to collectively infuse capital, avert a systemic crisis amid the collapse of YES Bank." Das hit the ground running, holding meetings with all stakeholders: heads of banks -- State-run (in two instalments) and private banks, non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). And, in a welcome break, with associations of small businesses and trade bodies as well. His messaging was clear: 'I am reaching out to you; I am all ears.' He wrote on Twitter, now X (a first by an RBI governor). In the process, Das buried (largely) the ivory tower tag Mint Road had come to acquire in some quarters of India Inc. It's not that past governors did not engage with regulated entities (REs) and the wider business community. But Das signalled accessibility -- structured interactions between lobby groups like the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry had not taken place for years until then. The Das way To appreciate Das's approach, one needs to step back. A complaint against Mint Road back then had been that it had turned "preachy", as a senior official at a leading lender put it. It was more about the rulebook with little appreciation of what actually happens on the ground. "I concede a lot of it was not desirable, and had to change, but so is a bull-in-the-china- shop approach to it," says a leading banker. According to Shyam Srinivasan, managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) at The Federal Bank, "Das is friendly, but he finally does what he does. The quality of engagement is very good". It's a view echoed by Y S Chakravarti, MD and CEO, Shriram Finance. "He does not come across as someone who throws his weight around. He has a very collegiate approach." This worldview, shared by many others, has its roots in the run-up to the elections of May 2014. The rhetoric at the pulpit was that the previous regime had indulged India Inc -- recall the reference to "phone banking". The asset quality review (AQR) initiated by Rajan and the variance in the declared dud loans by banks which came to light was cheered on by everybody as a long-needed "clean-up". Along the way came demonetisation on November 8, 2016 -- the RBI was not fully on board. And even as bankers were being hauled up with the AQR, the RBI under Patel came out with its now infamous February 12 circular. And the crowd which had backed RBI disappeared into the woodwork to claim it had gone too far. Patel's resignation, and the events leading up to it made the RBI-North Block rupture public. Das has a sense of timing. Like a new-year gift for small businesses by way of a one-time restructuring scheme - maximum exposure of Rs 25 crore in 2019 -- which was to be implemented by FY20. This was critical given the fracture in the relations between Mint Road and the bosses in New Delhi. When the proposal was first mooted -- before Das came on board -- many had echoed the Moody's Investors Service observation that "the track record of such dispensations on asset classification, when seen over the last few years, has shown that they have largely been unsuccessful in addressing the underlying stress". His pragmatism lay in the fact that the relaxation was only for a year, but it rang goodwill. When asked whether the move was retrograde, Das said: "It's a value judgement. I don't want to go into value judgement, whether it is retrograde or progressive. These are adjectives. I don't want to go into these." IMAGE: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in conversation with Shaktikanta Das during the 28th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, February 21, 2024. Photograph: Ishant/ANI Photo Yet, on matters like giving a breather to NBFCs on liquidity norms and prudential norms, the infamous 12 February 2018 circular, and on governance, he has held his own. Here Das has toed the line of his predecessors -- as evidenced by the move to tighten the asset-liability management norms for NBFCs and making private banks' chief executive remuneration linked to their standing as a good corporate citizen. A major reform which is often mentioned is Das's decision to set up the second Regulation Review Authority (RRA 2.0) in November 2021; its recommendations came in June 2022. This was two decades after Y V Reddy, as RBI deputy governor, set up the first RRA in 1999. RRA 2.0 incorporated some of the best practices from global central banks. This was in response to REs' long-held view that guidelines had to be in step with market realities. It was an indirect way of putting it across that RBI circulars had not been adequately factoring in commerce. RRA 2.0 has not got the recognition it deserves as a significant reform. It's now up to REs to take advantage of the new "open-door policy" of RRA 2.0 of the RBI and foster a better engagement with it. Strengthening governance "One of his biggest achievements is that he took on issues which are not glamorous, like rehauling urban cooperative banks, and getting rid of archaic regulations. "And his stress on corporate governance, the latest being the crackdown on Paytm Payments Bank," notes Ravi Duvvuru, founder and designated partner of Duvvuru & Reddy LLP, and member of the advisory group to the second Regulatory Review Authority set up by the RBI. A sterling moment has been the RBI's handling of the pandemic and its forbearance measures. It helped the economy tide over a critical phase. And to Das goes the credit of hiking the governance premium in REs. The RBI's twin interactions in May last year with the boards of state-run and private banks laid bare the shortcomings on this front. Falling in the same family of thought is the draft omnibus framework for self-regulatory organisations. "Once you are in the governor's chair, your New Delhi worldview anyway undergoes a change," said a former RBI official who had sat in a room adjacent to a past Mint Road chief. It's an oblique reference to the central bank's institutional memory, though he will not tell you if he helped refresh it for the governor of his time. It's worth recalling career bureaucrat Duvvari Subbarao's dig at then-finance minister P Chidambaram a week before his term as RBI governor came to an end: "I do hope Chidambaram will one day say, "I am often frustrated by the Reserve Bank, so frustrated that I want to go for a walk, even if I have to walk alone. But thank God, the Reserve Bank exists". What Das, a former secretary in the Department of Revenue and Department of Economic Affairs in the finance ministry (2014-15) and who has served as India's Alternate Governor in the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, New Development Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, has managed is to make sure that the RBI goes about its task without ruffling feathers. Take the demand for banking licences for corporate houses. Mint Road's Internal Working Group (IWG) to 'Review the extant ownership guidelines and corporate structure for private banks' had on 20 November 2020 made a case for large corporate and industrial houses as promoters of banks. And also that large NBFCs with an asset size of Rs 50,000 crore and above (including those owned by corporate houses), may be considered for conversion into banks. The trigger for setting up the IWG was "in alignment with the agenda set for the economic growth of the country to become a $5 trillion economy, there are heightened expectations for the banking sector to scale up for a greater play in the global financial system". But instead of saying a "no" which would be taken as being adamant, the RBI played it smart. While accepting 21 of the IWG's 31 recommendations, it said "the remaining recommendations are under examination" in its press release of November 26, 2021. Das has deserved being ranked 'A+' in the Global Finance Central Banker Report Cards 2023 in September last year and 'Governor of the Year' by the international publication, Central Banking earlier in March. He has played the role of governor even as he has worn the hat of an interlocutor. The unsaid, unequivocally, is 'I also do what I do -- and listen too'. Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com 'We are calling companies to set up assembly plants for mobile phones while all the components are imported.' 'Only the last turn of the screwdriver is done here. And you call it self-reliance, Atmanirbharta, etc.' 'Unless you invest in research, you will not climb up the ladder. But this government is happy getting sub-contract work.' IMAGE: The dancing robots Natya Mandap show off their moves to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Robotics Gallery at the Science City in Ahmedabad, September 27, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo Along with the rise of Hindu nationalism, the voices of the proponents of pseudoscience also got louder. They want people to believe that all the scientific advances which you talk about today had happened in ancient India, much before modern science discovered them. A few samples... Like the Kauravas were born out of stem cell and test tube technology. Ancient India had invented the Internet. Gau mutra can cure cancer. Lord Ganesha had advanced plastic surgery to fit an elephant's head on a human body. The list goes on... They did not stop at just issuing statements, soon they wanted to infiltrate into scientific institutions and even textbooks. They deleted chapters on the periodic table and Darwin's theory from school textbooks. Many Indian scientists are alarmed, but the powers that be are not bothered about their concerns about the diminishing of the scientific temper. A 12-member panel of scientists and citizens issued a statement, endorsed by a larger meeting in Delhi. expressing their concern. "When the same student applies to a university abroad, who will give admission to a student who believes in such rubbish? What kind of science will he pursue if he doesn't have a questioning mind?", D Raghunandan, former president, All India Peoples Science Network and currently with the Delhi Science Forum, tells Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier. The statement said India is currently facing a systemic threat to its scientific and educational institutions. Systemic threat is a very strong expression. Have you been feeling this way for the last decade? Yes, it is very evident over the last decade. The reason why the statement said, systemic threat was, earlier it happened one day or in some place, but now it is clear that it is happening across the board and across institutions. So, it is becoming a systemic problem. Pseudoscience, anti-science statements, false narratives, boasting about various imaginary things that happened in India 8,000 years ago... all these are happening on a regular basis and across institutions. Directions have gone out even to retired scientists not to criticise government policies. The point is, any policy is open to criticism based on evidence. Evidence should be the criterion, and not simply saying I agree with you or do not agree with you. But now they say, even if you have evidence, you cannot oppose government policies. Can you believe even retired scientists cannot speak against the policies? I can understand when they ask scientists who are working in a government institutions to not oppose government policies even though in the past, we have known many cases where working scientists have said, it is not a correct policy when they felt it was not correct. But now airing your opinion is not possible and it is not allowed! Just because somebody sits there and writes, dasavatharam is a better theory of evolution than Darwin's theory, it doesn't become the truth. That's why the statement said there is a systemic threat. When science teaches you to question, here you are asked not to ask questions. How much will this affect the scientific temper of young minds? Yes, you should foster a questioning attitude in the young. You should foster an attitude which says, I will accept ideas based only on evidence. But what this government is doing is, questioning the evidence itself. It is presenting a narrative without evidence. You claim the Internet was present in the Mahabharata, pushpaka vimana undertook inter-planetary travel 6,000 years ago etc. But if a student asks, what is the evidence for all these?, the answer will be, we say so. It is as if what they say is the only truth. Why did you remove Darwin's theory from the textbooks? Because you don't agree with it? Obviously, if children are brought up like this, they will believe that Darwin's theory is wrong. They cannot think differently and if they think differently, they will fail in the exam. Forget about examination, when the same student applies to a university abroad, who will give admission to a student who believes in such rubbish? What kind of science will he pursue if he doesn't have a questioning mind? So, you are ruining the lives and careers of an entire generation. The Constitution says it is the fundamental right of every citizen to develop scientific temper. So, that's being denied... Exactly. Here, the government itself is undermining scientific temper. That's why we issued the statement pointing out that these were not isolated incidents, and that they show a trend where systematically the scientific attitude of questioning is being undermined. What does right wing politics achieve by popularising pseudoscience? The idea behind popularising pseudoscience by the right wing is that nobody should question what they say. You should accept what is said by the self-appointed authority. And who is the 'authority'? The prime minister himself said that Lord Ganesha was the proof that ancient India knew plastic surgery ... And you cannot question the statement also. Those who questioned it at the Indian Science Congress, were attacked immediately as Westernised, anti-national, and non-believers in Indian science. There is no Indian science or Western science; there is only Science. In India, even before this government came to power, there had been many studies done on science in ancient India. The Indian National Science aAcademy has published well documented, multiple volumes. Professor D P Chattopadhyaya has written volumes on this. There is so much history available on the real achievements in science in ancient India. What you should popularise is, science is the common heritage of humankind. It is not my science, your science, Iranian science or Asian science. Science has evolved through interchange of knowledge between cultures. This is what we have been saying. IMAGE: People clang utensils in Bikaner during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kindly note the image has only been posted for representational reasons. Photograph: PTI Photo from the Rediff Archives Do you feel slowly, Indian society itself is moving towards non-scientific behaviour? For example, during the pandemic as instructed by the prime minister, even educated people banged on plates to drive the virus away... Not only educated people did this, but the very next day, right-wing groups wrote on social media that NASA had recorded vibrations from space at that time. Interestingly, even behind pseudo-science, they want the approval of NASA! People banging on plates just because the prime minister asked, is pure hero worship. In fact, this practice of going to the balcony and clapping hands or singing started in Europe during the lockdown to restore human communication. It was not to drive the virus away. IMAGE: Aryabhata -- the astronomer and mathematician of the fifth century. Photograph: Kind courtesy 1940368 Hemateja/wikipedia.org/Creative Commons The far-right wants to say that ancient India had achieved everything that modern science discovered thousands of years later. Is it to achieve false pride that they follow this narrative? One is false pride. But behind false pride, there is an additional reason too which is, everybody should obey the supreme authority and never question. Who are these self-appointed 'supreme authority'? High-ups in the ruling establishment? Don't read books. Don't do research. Don't question. Just listen to the supreme authority. Then, everything will be alright. This is what happened in Europe in the 1930s. Look at what happened in Germany. What happened in Italy. Nobody should question. The statement spoke about the government cutting down expenditure on research in academic institutions.... Unfortunately, expenditure on research is going down and down. Universities are not doing any research. We are investing only 0.6% of the GDP for R&D compared to 3%b to 4% by China, South Korea. This is the knowledge era and only those who have knowledge control the economy. But India is going on an economic path where knowledge is not the lever. We are calling companies to set up assembly plants for say, mobile phones while all the components are imported. Only the last turn of the screwdriver is done here. And you call it self-reliance, Atmanirbharta, etc. Who makes the money in the mobile phone business? Not even those who manufacture the phones. But those who own the Intellectual Property Rights behind the hardware and software. Apple is a top company in the world, but it does not even manufacture its own brand phones but makes money through its Intellectual Property. Unless you invest in research, you will not climb up the ladder. But this government is happy getting sub-contract work in India. How long can you progress with screwdriver technology? Maybe 6 or 7 years. After that, we will be left way behind. And it will take a lot of time and investment to recover from this. IMAGE: D Raghunandan IMAGE: D Raghunandan If this is the reality, what will happen to the future generations of India? I am sorry to say, I see a very bleak future for the future generations, for science, for social sciences... Studies have been devalued everywhere, in schools, colleges and universities. The future of a whole generation is in danger. Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com 'Nowhere does the CAA state that Muslims will be deprived of their Indian citizenship.' IMAGE: Sindhi refugees celebrate after the government notified rules for implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act, Bhopal, March 12, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo When virtually the entire Muslim community has stood up against the recently notified Citizenship Amendment Act, Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi, president of the All India Muslim Jamaat, has come out openly in support of CAA. The CAA will provide Indian citizenship to persecuted Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Parsis, Jains and Buddhists from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The community feels that the CAA is one of the ploys to deprive Indian Muslims of their citizenship. Ever since the bill was brought in Parliament in 2019 it has divided the country but on Monday, with weeks to go for general elections, the Modi government went ahead and notified the CAA, thus marking its implementation. In the past years it has been seen that there were protests, it was because of misunderstandings. Some political people created misunderstandings among the Muslims... Every Muslim of India should welcome the CAA... Barelvi was quoted as saying by ANI. Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com spoke to Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi on why he supports CA. When the Muslim community by and large is opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act, why are you supporting it? Whatever I have read about the CAA I do not think there is anything in it against the Indian Muslim community. Therefore, I stated that Muslims need not fear CAA. CAA has got nothing to do with the Muslim community. India's Constitution is secular in character and it clearly states that no person will be discriminated against on the basis religion, etc. Now if you exclude only Muslim refugees from CAA, don't you feel that this puts a question mark on India's secularism? It violates Article 14 which says 'the State will not deny any person equality before the law within the territory of India'? CAA only talks of giving citizenship to outsiders, not Indians. CAA talks about giving citizenship to people of only three countries, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. It speaks about non-Muslim citizens of those countries who have been staying in India for very long without citizenship. These people will be given citizenship under CAA. Nowhere does the CAA state that Muslims will be deprived of their Indian citizenship. If there is any line written in CAA that Muslims' citizenship will be withdrawn, please show me. If it is written so, then I will withdraw my statement. The problem with CAA is the statement of Home Minister Amit Shah who made the famous statement of chronology -- that NRC (National Register of Citizens) will follow CAA which will then be a problem for Indian Muslims because if they do not have proper documentation, they will be sent to detention centres. You are not asking questions like a journalist but are hell bent on arguing against the CAA. I am only stating that nowhere is it written in CAA that Indian Muslims will be deprived of their citizenship. If that is the case show me the proof, then I will raise this question with Home Minister Amit Shah about CAA. Do you believe the National Population Registry is coming soon as it is delayed by four years now due to COVID? I am not the Government of India, I am talking about CAA only. I am seeing the documents of CAA right now which is in front of me and whatever I said, I stand by my statement that Muslims will not be deprived of their Indian citizenship due to CAA. Okay, now let me put it to you the other way round. When Assam got NRC, Bangladeshi Hindus and Bangladeshi Muslims were detected in the state. Now if you are a Bangladeshi Hindu, you will get Indian citizenship thanks to CAA. But if you are a Bangladeshi Muslim, then you go to detention camp. Now if a poor Assamese Indian Muslim who has no paper with him like Aadhar or Indian passport for reason like his house had caught fire, don't you think he too will end up in detention center thanks to CAA which discriminates against Muslims? You go back in history and listen to what Home Minister Amit Shah said in Parliament. He said very clearly regarding NRC that no one will be asked to show any papers. Ghulam Nabi Azad then intervened and said he did not hear what Amit Shah said and told him to repeat his words. Amit Shah clearly said no one will be asked to show papers regarding NRC. He repeated this statement three times in Parliament. Don't you feel you are missing the chronology point of CAA, National Population Registry (NPR) to be followed by NRC? Will Indian Muslims not be asked to show their documents under NPR? How can I say what kind of documents will be asked at that time? I am only saying about CAA and whatever I have read about CAA, it has got nothing against Indian Muslims. In future, what kind of bills will be produced I don't know. I don't have such prophecy on what is going to happen in future. I am only talking about the present and that is CAA. Ahmadiyya Muslims are being harassed in Pakistan and when Pakistani citizens want a passport they have to declare that Ahmadiyya Muslims are 'kafirs' (external link). Don't you think they too deserved to be in CAA just like Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains, Christians and Buddhists? (Hangs up the phone). Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan said on Wednesday that his party has finalised a seat-sharing formula with the Bharatiya Janata Party for the Lok Sabha polls and all his "concerns" were addressed. IMAGE: Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan meets BJP national president JP Nadda, in New Delhi, March 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo Following a meeting with BJP president JP Nadda, Paswan was lavish in his praise of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders of the ruling party as he expressed satisfaction at the offer given to him, a change from his recent muscle-flexing as the alliance talks dragged on. Sources said Paswan's party may contest on five of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar. Hajipur seat, currently represented by his estranged uncle and Union minister Pashupati Kumar Paras who heads another LJP faction, might be given to Paswan as he considers the constituency a part of his rightful share due to his father Ram Vilas Paswan's long association with it. The LJP founder and stalwart Dalit leader represented Hajipur eight times in Lok Sabha. "Division of Lok Sabha seats in Bihar among all NDA parties decided. It will soon be formally announced. All my concerns have been addressed by the BJP. I am satisfied," Chirag Paswan said. Asked about the fate of the faction headed by Paras, Paswan said it was not his concern. "The seats my party has are mine," he said, in an indication that the claims of the Paras-headed National Lok Janshakti Party might have been ignored by the BJP. Amid claims and counterclaims by the two LJP factions and the BJP's apparently failed bid for a rapprochement following Ram Vilas Paswan's death in 2020, his younger brother Paras had walked away with four other MPs of the party due to their differences with Chirag Paswan, who remained the only MP in his faction. However, the Jamui MP was successful in galvanising his party's core supporters around his leadership, making the point to the BJP that he is the political heir to his father's legacy. Following Paswan's assertion after talks with Nadda, Paras went into a huddle with his supporters at his residence here as his party weighed its options for the polls. Though the BJP and the Janata Dal-United, the second biggest party in the National Democratic Alliance in Bihar, have made no official comments, sources said they may contest around 17 and 16 Lok Sabha seats respectively. Two other smaller allies may be given one seat each. Paswan exuded confidence that the NDA will be able to win all 40 Lok Sabha seats from Bihar. Asked about his differences with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who heads the JD-U, he said all NDA constituents are working to achieve the target of crossing 400 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Delhi Police has given permission to the farmers to hold their 'Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat' with the condition of gathering not exceeding to 5,000, no tractor trolleys, no march at the Ramlila Maidan, and made elaborate security arrangements that may lead to a heavy traffic jam in the national capital on March 14, officials on Wednesday said. IMAGE: Farmers during their 'Delhi Chalo' march against the central government in support of their demands, in Patiala on March 5, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The police have also issued traffic advisory for the commuters to avoid roads leading to central Delhi, they said. The umbrella body of farmers' organisations, Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), which had spearheaded the 2020-21 farmers' protest at Delhi borders against the three central agri laws, has said they will hold a 'Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat' at the Ramlila Maidan where a resolution will be passed to 'intensify the fight' against the policies of the government. The SKM in a statement issued on Tuesday said that the Delhi Police have given them the NOC for conducting the mahapanchayat at Ramlila Maidan on March 14 and arranging parking space and other basic amenities like water, toilets and ambulance with the support of the municipal administration of Delhi. Deputy Commissioner of Police (central) M Harsha Vardhan told PTI that farmers are allowed to hold the 'mahapanchayat' with the gathering to not significantly exceed 5,000. He said the farmers have given them the undertaking where they were asked to not come with tractors, without any weapon and also promised that they will not hold any march in Delhi. Another police officer said the farmers have also been asked to vacate the ground soon after culmination of their programme after 2.30 pm. He said strict action may be taken if they dont follow the undertakings and indulge in breaking the law and order in Delhi. "We hope the SKM leadership will abide by the undertaking they have given to us," the DCP said. The traffic may be affected in various parts of Delhi due to the farmers gathering at the Ramlila Maidan on Thursday, police said. According to a Delhi Traffic Police statement, Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, Barakhamba Road, Bahadurshah Zafar Marg, Tolstoy Marg, Asaf Ali Road, Jai Singh Road, Swami Vivekanand Marg, Sansad Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Baba Kharag Singh Marg, Minto Road, Ashoka Road, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover, Connaught Circus, Bhavbhuti Marg, DDU Marg and Chaman Lal Marg are likely to be affected due to the farmers gathering in Delhi. The advisory said the traffic may be diverted on Delhi Gate, Mir Dard Chowk, Ajmeri Gate Chowk, Guru Nanak Chowk, Kamla Market, Paharganj Chowk, Jhandewalan round about, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh flyover from Barakhambha Road to Guru Nanak Chowk, Barakhamba Road, Janpath Road, KG Marg crossing and round about of GPO (Gol Post Office) from 6 am on Thursday. The Delhi traffic police also advised the people going towards ISBT, railway station or airport to carefully plan their travel with sufficient time at hand. "We appreciate your understanding and your cooperation towards the alleviation of traffic congestion during the above-mentioned period," the advisory said. The three Delhi borders -- Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur -- have been witnessing a heavy deployment of paramilitary personnel to stop the ongoing protest of the farmers demanding to march to Delhi. Hundreds of farmers are still sitting at Punjab-Haryana borders for the past one month. United States President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump secured their parties' presidential nominations with impressive wins in another round of key primaries, setting the stage for a gruelling 2020 rematch between them in November. IMAGE: Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 November elections, an outcome still challenged by the Republican leader. Photograph: Brian Snyder/Reuters Biden, 81, won the Democratic presumptive nomination on Tuesday after easily clinching the presidential primaries in Georgia, as the number of delegates in his kitty crossed the halfway mark of 3,933 pledged delegates. A total of 1,968 delegates were required to win the Democratic nomination for the November 5 presidential election. Four states -- Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi, Washington -- one American territory and Democrats living abroad held their primaries on Tuesday. Biden would formally be declared the party's nomination during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August. Trump, 77, reached the 1,215 delegates necessary with an allocation of delegates from Washington state. Trump will be officially nominated at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this July. He will lead the Republican Party in a third consecutive presidential election after clinching the nomination Tuesday. Their rematch, long anticipated, but hardly clamoured for, is broadly expected to mirror the 2020 campaign, though Trump will run this time under the spectre of 91 felony charges. Trump is scheduled to become the first former American president to go on trial in a criminal case on March 25 in New York, where he faces charges he falsified business records to hide hush money payments to a porn star. Other charges are related to allegations that he plotted to overturn his 2020 election defeat; played a lead role in the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol and illegally took classified documents from the White House. It would be the first presidential rematch since 1956. The last presidential rematch came in 1956 when Republican President Dwight D Eisenhower again defeated Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic opponent he had four years prior. Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 November elections, an outcome still challenged by the Republican leader. Biden has faced only nominal opposition to become the Democratic nominee. Trump has defeated several Republicans in primary elections, including Indian-origin former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Other candidates, including Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence, dropped out months ago for lack of voter support. Biden said he is honoured to become his party's presumptive nominee and warned of another Trump presidency. 'I am honoured that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country has put their faith in me once again to lead our party -- and our country -- in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever,' Biden said in a statement after he bagged majority of the delegates. In a post to the social media platform X, Biden celebrated his status as his party's presumptive nominee, calling it 'a time of choosing' in a new campaign video. "Today's a day, a call to action," Biden says in a voiceover. Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated Biden securing the delegates needed to clinch his party's nomination on Tuesday and forecast how the president's campaign will look to take the fight to Donald Trump in the general election. "Now, the general election truly begins, and the contrast could not be clearer. Donald Trump is a threat to our democracy and our fundamental freedoms," she said. With his State of the Union speech last week, Biden passionately presented our alternative vision, she said. "We will reduce costs for families, make housing more affordable, and raise the minimum wage," she added. Trump's campaign posted a video on X of the former president after he clinched the nomination. "This was a great day of victory. Last week was something very special -- Super Tuesday -- but now we have to get back to work because we have the worst president in the history of the country. His name is Joe Biden, sometimes referred to as crooked Joe Biden, and he must be defeated," Trump said in the video. Democratic National Convention (DNC) Chair Jaime Harrison said this year's election will decide the future of democracy. "Donald Trump is running a campaign focused on revenge, retribution, and his own self-interest. President Biden is running a campaign focused on what makes our country so great: the American people. President Biden understands that our freedoms, our democracy, and the very future of our country are at stake and once again, he will meet this moment and bring Democrats together this November," he said. "America spoke, and today Joe Biden has become the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States. We have arrived at this moment because millions of Americans made their voices heard, choosing Joe Biden's vision of freedom and progress for all Americans," said Democratic National Convention Committee Chair Minyon Moore. Despite persistent concerns from voters that his age limits his ability to perform the duties of the presidency, the party apparatus rallied around Biden. Trump remains very popular with the Republican voter base, which has propelled him to victory in primary after primary over well-funded rivals. His campaign for a second term in the White House has zeroed in on stricter immigration laws, including a pledge to 'seal the border' and implement 'record-setting' deportations. Trump has also vowed to fight crime, boost domestic energy production, tax imports, end the war in Ukraine and resume an 'America first' approach to global affairs. Marianna Richardson, a junior at Eufaula High School, auditioned for and was selected for the High School Honors Performance Series Concert Choir Performance at Carnegie Hall in New York. Marianna performed alto in February with the Honors Performance Series Concert Choir conducted by Dr. Jeffery L. Ames, director of choral activities and full professor at Belmont University. Being selected to the Honors Performance Series is something each finalist should be extremely proud of accomplishing, said Marion Gomez, Music Director for the Honors Performance Series. We processed nearly 10,000 nominations this year and have selected the most talented student performers from around the world. Working with these conductors and performing at these renowned music halls is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that these musicians will never forget. Marianna joined performers from 44 states, South Korea, New Zealand, and the Caribbean, for a special performance at the world-famous Carnegie Hall in New York City. Marianna is the Soprano Section Leader in Eufaula High Schools Vibe Show Choir and is the current President of Eufaula High School Tiger Theatre. The Honors Performance Series was created to showcase accomplished individual student performers on an international level by allowing them to study under master conductors and perform in world-renowned venues. The Honors Performance Series is proudly presented by WorldStrides, the nations leading educational travel organization, and partners with George Mason University to offer college credit upon completion of the High School Honors Performance Series. 'The Election Commission cannot be regulated by the government.' IMAGE: Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar with Election Commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel at the two-day Conference of Chief Electoral Officers of all states/UTs to review the preparedness for general elections 2024, at IIIDEM, New Delhi, January 11, 2024. With the retirement of Pandey and Goels resignation, the EC is now down to only one member. Photograph: ANI Photo Congress leader Jaya Thakur has approached the Supreme Court of India with a plea to restrain the government from appointing new election commissioners after Arun Goel quit the EC without giving any reasons. Goel's exit has come on the eve of the 2024 general elections. Thakur's plea sought the implementation of the Supreme Court of India's March 2023 order in the Anoop Baranwal vs Union of India case, where the top court ordered that election commissioners were to selected by a panel comprising the prime minister of India, Chief Justice of India and the leader of opposition. However, the Modi government passed a bill in Parliament withdrawing the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel, substituting him with a Union minister. Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com spoke to Dr Jaya Thakur, general secretary, Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee, on why she approached the court. What is your plea in the Supreme Court of India about the election commissioner's appointment? The appointment of election commissioners is as per the procedure prescribed. For example, the way they appointed Arun Goel as one of the election commissioners. He was appointed as EC within one day while the prescribed norm is that an election commissioner has to be appointed in 15 days. And look at the outcome, he backed out as election commissioner too. There was no transparency and accountability in his appointment, therefore I filed the petition that the appointment of election commissioner must be transparent. But (Interrupts) My petition further says that the appointment of election commissioners should be done by the Chief Justice of India, prime minister of India and the leader of opposition. The interference in the appointment of election commissioner (by the government) should be less and Election Commission should work independently without any pressure. It is important for any democratic country that the Election Commission should be independent. The Election Commission cannot be regulated by the government. In the monsoon session the government passed a bill withdrawing the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel for election commissioners. Our Constitution says the Parliament of India is supreme, so how does your plea count in court? The government passed this bill in a hurry to remove the Chief Justice of India from the panel selecting new election commissioners. They replaced him with a cabinet minister so that this minister can work according to the whims and fancies of the prime minister. If this happens then the Election Commission cannot work independently and therefore I filed the plea challenging this move. In March 2023 the Supreme Court of India did give a judgment in the Anoop Baranwal vs Union of India case where they specified norms for appointing election commissioners and still the government got their bill passed. Do you recall that? Yes, I know, therefore I have filed this plea. And just check the track record, after they passed the bill in Parliament not a single appointment in (Election Commission) was right. The criteria of election commissioners are also not being fulfilled. They are given extensions too and then they go on and resign from their posts too. What is going on? This is causing disturbance in our country. What did our Constitution's framers say about the appointment of election commissioners? The Election Commission was always an independent body in Independent India. This was clearly mentioned and there was no scope for any interference from any political party in the functioning of the Election Commission. It was clearly stated that the Election Commission cannot be biased towards any political party and will have its independent view. They had stated clearly, the prime minister of India, Chief Justice of India and leader of opposition will decide the appointment of election commissioners. Do you mean this has been changed right now? Yes, this has been changed right now as far as I know. The BJP has changed the functioning of the Election Commission. Was this procedure same even during the Emergency period (1975-1977)? I will have to look into those details. I am not privy to that information right now. So when the Modi government changed the functioning of the Election Commission, didn't the Supreme Court of India speak out against the withdrawal of the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel? The Supreme Court of India will not take action on its own. Someone has to approach the court. They will act only when some petitioner goes to court, and therefore I have gone to court. Delighted by the Centre's move to notify the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), nearly 2,000 Pakistani Hindus living in Nagpur are preparing to seek Indian citizenship. IMAGE: Pakistani refugees celebrate Holi as the government of India notifies the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), in New Delhi on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The migrants from the neighbouring country are figuring out the nitty-gritty of filing online applications that will enable them to live in India without the hassle of seeking visa extensions and other paperwork. Besides, some of their relatives who entered the country in recent years are seeking relaxation in the cut-off date to accommodate them. The Centre Monday implemented the CAA, notifying the rules four years after the law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. Vinod Raheja from Ghotki town in Sindh province of Pakistan said he and seven of his family members crossed over to India through the Wagah-Attari border on a visit visa hours on December 31, 2014. Raheja said they hadn't even dreamt about the life-changing event that would unfold 10 years later, referring to CAA. He is among those who have already submitted their online applications for Indian citizenship. A resident of Nagpur's Jaripatka locality, which has a sizable population of Sindhis, Raheja said he was a cloth merchant in Pakistan when he came to India with his wife, two children, parents and two other relatives. We have been staying here on long-term visas. We are thrilled with the implementation of CAA as we will now become the citizens of India, said Raheja, thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for making CAA a reality. Raheja, who works with a private company, has requested PM Modi to relax the cut-off date for people like his mother-in-law and her family who came to India six months after his entry. It will be a huge relief as they have to go through procedures like long-term visa and other paperwork, he said. Sagar Wadhva came with his family to India from Quetta in Pakistan's Balochistan province in 2012, when he was in Class 9th. The 27-year-old businessman from Nagpur said he is excited that India will now be his permanent home. His online application too has been submitted, said Wadhva. Rajesh Jhambia, a local social worker who works for the rights of such migrants, told PTI that they have already received 100 applications for online submissions. The applications will be filed by Sunday. Around 2,000 citizenship applications will be filed from Nagpur, he said. Like Raheja, Jambia also requested PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to consider the cases of such migrants who came to India after 2014. Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress on Wednesday announced five guarantees for women, including annual direct cash transfers of Rs 1 lakh to one woman from each of the country's poorest families and 50 per cent quota in all new recruitments in central government jobs. IMAGE: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi greet the supporters during a public meeting, in Banswara, Rajasthan on March 7, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo In a post on X, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the party has announced the 'Nari Nyay' guarantee, under which it is going to set a new agenda for the country's women. Kharge said prior to this, the Congress has announced its guarantees on participatory justice, farmer justice and youth justice. 'Needless to say, our guarantees are not empty promises and statements,' he said in his post in Hindi on the microblogging platform. 'Our words are set in stone. This is our record from 1926 till now, when our opponents were being born, we have been making manifestos, and fulfilling those declarations. 'All of you keep giving your blessings to the Congress party and strengthen our hands in this fight to save democracy and the Constitution,' Kharge said. Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi made the announcements at a 'women conference' in Maharashtra's Dhule. Under the 'Mahalakshmi' guarantee of the party, one woman from every poor family will be given an annual assistance of Rs 1 lakh through direct cash transfer. Besides, the Congress will ensure 'Aadhi aabaadi, poora haq', under which 50 per cent of all new recruitments in central government jobs will be reserved for women. Under the 'Shakti ka Samman' guarantee, the Centre's contribution to the monthly pay of ASHA, anganwadi and mid-day meal workers will be doubled, Kharge said. Under the 'Adhikar Maitri' guarantee, the Congress will appoint an 'adhikaar maitri' in every panchayat to serve as a para-legal functionary to educate women about their legal rights and assist them in their enforcement. Under the 'Savitri Bai Phule Hostels' guarantee, the Congress-led Centre will double the number of hostels for working women in the country, with at least one in each district. 'Today @INCIndia President @kharge ji unveiled the five guarantees for Nari Nyay, which @RahulGandhi took forward at the Mahila Melawa Meeting in Dhule. Earlier, we had announced the guarantees for Kisan Nyay, Hissedari Nyay, and Yuva Nyay,' All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has condemned the views expressed by its President Adish C Aggarwala in his letter to President Droupadi Murmu urging her to seek presidential reference of the apex court judgement in the electoral bonds scheme case. IMAGE: resident Droupadi Murmu. Photograph: ANI Photo Distancing itself from Aggarwala's views, the executive committee of the bar body, in its resolution issued on March 12, made it clear that the members of the panel neither authorised the SCBA president to write the letter nor support the views expressed in the communication. It has become expedient for the Executive Committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association to make it abundantly clear that the members of the committee have neither authorised the President (Aggarwala ) to write any such letter nor do they subscribe to his views as expressed therein. The Executive Committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association further views this act as well as the contents therein as an attempt to overreach and undermine the authority of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India and unequivocally condemn the same, the SCBA resolution issued by its Secretary Rohit Pandey said. The resolution said the seven-page letter of Aggarwala appears to have been written by him in his capacity as the Chairman of the All India Bar Association. However, it is noticed that below his signature on said letter he has inter- alia mentioned his designation as President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, the SCBA resolution said. The resolution was issued after Aggarwala wrote to President Murmu urging her to seek presidential reference of the apex court judgement in the electoral bonds scheme case and not to give effect to it unless the top court has reheard the matter. The SCBA president, in his letter, had said, "Revealing the names of corporates that had contributed to different political parties would render the corporates vulnerable to victimisation. Aggarwala said if the judgment is given effect retrospectively by releasing all sensitive information, it will shatter "the reputation the nation enjoys in the international arena". The State Bank of India (SBI) on Tuesday evening submitted to the Election Commission the details of entities which had purchased the now-scrapped electoral bonds and political parties which received them, as it complied with the Supreme Court order to furnish information. The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the SBI to disclose the details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission by close of business hours on March 12. Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com takes his car for a spin on Mumbais brand-new coastal road and comes away awestruck. The first phase of Mumbais prestigious coastal road was thrown open to the public on Tuesday, a day after its inauguration. For now, only the south-bound leg of the coastal road has been opened; the north-bound carriageway is expected to be opened by May. The coastal road between Worli and Marine Drive will reduce travel time from 40 minutes to just nine minutes. Not only that, it will also "save nearly $100 million annually in carbon emissions through fuel savings", Mumbai civic chief Iqbal Singh Chahal said on Monday after the inauguration. Video: Rajesh Karkera/Rediff.com The coastal road -- named after Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and opened on the occasion of his death anniversary is 10.58 km long and has 16.5 km of interchanges. The entire stretch is being built at a cost of Rs 14,000 crore, consists of four lanes on each side along with two 12.19 metre diameter tunnels of 2.07 km length, making them the largest tunnels by diameter built by tunnel boring machines in the country. It is also for the first time in India that a four-lane coastal road has been built 100 per cent on land reclaimed from the sea and stands on monopiles only. The coastal road will be connected to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link and there onwards it will be extended up to Dahisar in the western suburbs. When completed, the coastal road till Dahisar will stretch over 53 km. You are the owner of this article. Article 13 of the Russian constitution promises political pluralism. Article 29 guarantees freedom of speech. It is a brave citizen who insists on those rights. Though Russia will hold a presidential election at the end of this week, the result is a foregone conclusion. Vladimir Putin will win comfortably. The spirit of post-Soviet democratization is all but dead. The flame is kept alive by a courageous few. Thousands turned out at the Moscow funeral of Alexei Navalny, the jailed opposition leader generally assumed to have been murdered by order of the Kremlin. Chants called for Russia without Putin. That is high-risk activity. Open dissent against the regime is punishable by fines and prison sentences. OVD-Info, a human rights group, has catalogued hundreds of detentions in dozens of cities after vigils in honor of Navalny. It has been the largest show of opposition since the invasion of Ukraine, but the numbers are not huge for a country of 144 million. What the majority of Russians think about their president and his war is opaque. Opinion polls show majorities in favor of both, but it is hard to conduct accurate surveys in a climate where deviation from the official line is legally proscribed. Independent analysts say the picture is nuanced -- a spectrum of sentiment with ideological pro-Kremlin conviction shading into looser patriotic sympathy with the army and then degrees of apathy, low-level discontent, grim resignation, despair and a kernel of committed anti-regime activists. Putins position is secured by brute force and cultivated disbelief that any alternative is viable. He achieves this by eliminating rivals and propagating a personality cult that depicts Russia as the target of a foreign dismemberment plot and himself as the only person able to hold the country together. ... This speaks to a deep-rooted national anxiety about the Motherland unravelling in chaos. Something like that happened recently enough for older generations in particular to see democracy as a risk not worth taking. This weeks election is not meant to fool anyone into thinking that Russians have a choice. It is a ritual affirmation of incumbent power, a pastiche of democracy to demoralize those who dream of peaceful regime change. But even the pretense of a ballot gives the opposition something to rally around. Yulia Navalnaya, the murdered dissidents widow, has called for anti-Putin voters to converge on polling stations at midday on Sunday even if they dont intend to vote. The point is to be visible. The authorities can hardly ban such gatherings when they are laying on the election. These are wholly symbolic gestures, but that doesnt mean they are futile. Russians who dare to speak up for democracy, and those who silently crave the end of Putin, need reminding that they are not alone. There is a role also for those outside Russia who can amplify voices of courage and hope. Jailed opposition figures Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kara-Murza risk suffering the same fate as Navalny. The more conspicuous their plight, the harder it is for Putin to pretend his is the only vision of Russian politics. The freedoms that are promised in Russias constitution feel remote today, as this weeks election will sadly demonstrate. But it will show also that the spirit of opposition cannot be extinguished. They are impossible to ignore! They come in the early morning, late evening, and all times in between. Scam phone calls have moved beyond bein Sofia AI is a powerful business tool designed to revolutionize the way companies interact with their customers. With Sofia AI, businesses can put their sales on autopilot by harnessing the potential of artificial intelligence to deliver personalized messages to customers at the right time. One of the key features of Sofia AI is its seamless integration with leading e-commerce platforms, CRMs, and Help Desks, making it easy for businesses to set up and optimize their selling processes. It is particularly well-suited for Shopify and Vtex platforms, offering a hassle-free setup experience. The AI-powered marketing automation Flowbuilder allows businesses to create campaigns and interactive bots without the need for coding. This enables businesses to automate two-way conversations with both leads and loyal customers at scale. Sofia AI handles content creation and flow recommendations, making it easier than ever to design conversations that trigger engagement with customers. Additionally, Sofia AI offers a generative AI product recommendation engine that provides tailored product suggestions to customers, helping them discover products they will love. The tool also supports multichannel connectivity, allowing businesses to engage and assist customers on platforms like Instagram, WhatsApp, and webchat. With support for over 20 languages and an understanding of slang and local language nuances, Sofia AI ensures businesses can reach customers around the globe. Its AI insights and analytics capabilities help businesses gather powerful insights about customer preferences, enabling them to build customized audience segments and deepen their understanding of their customers. Overall, Sofia AI offers businesses a comprehensive set of tools to streamline their marketing and sales processes, connect with customers on a personal level, and drive sales growth through AI-powered insights and recommendations. Sofia AI Features AI-Powered Marketing Automation Flowbuilder Generative AI Product Recommendation Engine Multichannel Connectivity Multi-language Support AI Insights and Analytics Code-free platform Create campaigns and interactive bots Tailored product suggestions Sofia AI Pricing Standard Plan: $80 per month for one Connectly account with limited 20k conversations, 100 free conversations included. Professional Plan: $299 per month for unlimited conversations, multiple accounts, unique Pro-features, integrations, and personalized support. Price per seat varies by country. Visit connectly.ai for more. Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter , Facebook and Instagram. Land in northern Preah Vihear province was given to a rubber plantation developer in 2011. The governor of a northern Cambodia province has promised to allocate 1,000 hectares of land between 100 families following last weeks violent clash with police over a decade-long land dispute. Preah Vihear Provincial Gov. Kim Rithy told hundreds of villagers gathered in Kuleaen district on Tuesday that he will redesignate some of the land previously granted to Phnom Penh-based company Seila Damex in 2011. Your land is your land but state land is state land, he said during the meeting, according to a video posted on Facebook. But we must respect each other. I encourage you to live legally. We will protect your rights but dont take state land. Such land disputes are common in Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries as authorities give land away to developers and corporate plantations. Seila Damex has government-approved plans to develop 9,000 hectares of land in Kuleaen district into a rubber plantation. Villagers in the Kuleaen district listen to an address by Preah Vihear Provincial Gov. Kim Rithy on March 12, 2024. (Image from Kim Rithy video via Facebook) Some 300 families are affected by the proposed development. Local residents have relied on the land to grow crops and fruit trees, one villager told RFA earlier this week. Hundreds of police officers and members of several other security forces clashed with local residents on March 6. Several homes were burned down and about 40 villagers were arrested after police used tear gas to disperse about 130 land dispute protesters who tried to stop the destruction of homes. Some of the villagers have since been released. But on Tuesday, the provincial court ordered more than two dozen protesters to be held in pre-trial detention on charges of illegal encroachment on forest land. Kim Rithy didnt say on Tuesday whether the villagers who protested on March 6 would be eligible for some of the 1,000 hectares of land. He has previously threatened to punish villagers who stayed on the land concession. RFAs efforts to reach Kim Rithy for comment on Wednesday werent immediately successful. Am Sam Ath of human rights group Licadho said authorities should conduct a study to determine who is most in need of the land. NGOs dont take sides but we want to see a suitable solution between authorities and villagers, especially those villagers who dont have houses and land to live, he said. Translated by Yun Samean. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster. In addition to swearing off marriage and mortgages, refuseniks are not donating blood, giving to charity or even helping the elderly. Over the past year or so, young Chinese "refuseniks" have been swearing off marriage, children and mortgages rejecting traditional milestones on the path to adulthood amid apparent despair over their futures, the economic outlook and politics. But recent social media posts show that theyve added several more donts to the list. They include not donating blood, not giving to charity, not playing the lottery, not investing money, including in property, and even not helping an elderly person -- largely because they're afraid they might get exploited or trapped. The list, dubbed the 10 Donts of young people, has been circulating on social media. "This generation of young people have no hope, so they don't bother working hard any more," said a university graduate who gave only the surname Wang for fear of reprisals. "They might as well just lie down in the hope of a stress-free life." The attitude is particularly problematic for the ruling Communist Party as it tries to encourage people to use the internet to share "positive" content, particularly about the economy, rather than complaining about how hard their lives are. Young workers rest outside a shopping mall in Beijing, Jan. 17, 2024. (Ng Han Guan/AP) Author and political essayist Yu Jie said the refusal to marry and have kids is linked to young people's disillusionment with the Chinese government and the way it manipulates them to believe they are the future of the nation, when actually they are merely its tools. "No young person today believes in the lies of Mao Zedong or his successor Xi Jinping," Yu wrote in a commentary for RFA Mandarin. Motivated by fear Many Chinese dont want to donate blood because they fear the data could be used to force them into donating organs for the elite, said a resident of the eastern province of Shandong who gave only the surname Lu for fear of reprisals. People worry that if they get into an accident, their organs will be taken without their consent if information about their blood type is available to the authorities, she said. "The reason they won't donate to charity is that they can barely support themselves, and that they need donations themselves," Lu said, summarizing some of the many comments on the topic that were no longer visible on Weibo on Tuesday. The resistance to investing in property is linked to overpricing and the fear of becoming a "mortgage slave," current affairs commentator Tianluke told RFA Mandarin, using his pen-name Pilgrim for fear of reprisals. "The economic situation in China is very bad right now," Tianluke said. "A lot of people have been laid off, and there are a lot of graduates who are unemployed." And some people are afraid of helping an elderly person in trouble in case they get accused of causing the problem theyre trying to address. It's a manifestation of the collapse of trust ... in Chinese society," he said. A young couple walk by a construction site near office buildings in the Central Business District in Beijing on March 2, 2024. (Andy Wong/AP) Yu, the essayist who wrote a Dec. 29 column for RFA Mandarin, said the various "don'ts" are all about avoiding the various traps set by the Communist Party meaning people getting caught up in a system that exploits them for the benefit of the privileged political and financial elite. "Things such as donating money to charity, donating blood, and helping the elderly are all good deeds that are taken for granted in civilized countries," he wrote. "But in China, they are all taken advantage of." "The rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer, Yu wrote. That's why young Chinese people warn each other to avoid these traps to avoid disaster." Kids have no future Meanwhile, censors have deleted an article that questions the value of hothousing children through the highly competitive education system -- a defining behavior of the country's middle class. The article, titled "Middle-class kids have no future," was unavailable due to violations of regulations on Tuesday, though copies were still visible outside China's Great Firewall of internet censorship. People tour by a deserted shopping mall in Beijing on Feb. 19, 2024. (Andy Wong/AP) The blog post tells the tale of a successful Shanghai parent whose son didn't want to study any more, because he wasn't naturally good at passing exams, and didn't see the point. He started delivering food in the evenings instead, to earn some money. In a follow-up post in which he reports that the article has been taken down, the blogger argues that only gifted kids should compete for spots at top schools, because the rest are effectively only there as cannon fodder for the competitive system. "It's the middle-class trap, isn't it?" commented X user @passi0nateGirl under RFAs X post about the article. "Nowadays, the middle class can wind up back in poverty due to sickness, unemployment, a property crash, badly performing stocks, or a company partner running away." Translated with additional reporting by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster. Academic freedom in Hong Kong continues to fall in the wake of a draconian national security law imposed by Beijing in the summer of 2020, amid a shift away from the study of politically sensitive topics in higher education, according to a recent report. "[The] National Security Law enacted in Beijing in the summer of 2020 has put unprecedented pressure on academic freedom in the special administrative region," the Academic Freedom Index report found, based on assessments for the whole of 2023. Hong Kong now ranks in the bottom 20% of countries and territories for academic freedom -- it has its own index separate from the rest of China, which ranks in the bottom 10%, according to the report, which is produced annually by researchers at Germany's FAU Erlangen-Nurnberg University. The city now scores 0.24 on a scale of 0-1 on the question "To what extent is academic freedom respected?" and 1.36 out of a possible 4 on the question "Is there academic freedom and freedom of cultural expression related to political issues?" Last year, its scores for "institutional autonomy" and "campus integrity" fell, indicating more political interference in decision-making and more security measures on campuses, the report found. Curriculum changes The falling scores came as authorities at Hong Kong's City University announced changes to the school's political studies major, including renaming of the Department of Public Policy, in what commentators said was a further sign of shrinking academic freedom amid an ongoing crackdown on dissent in the wake of the 2019 protests. The university's Bachelor of Social Sciences in Public Policy and Politics will be renamed the Bachelor of Social Sciences in Public Affairs and Management from the start of the next academic year, according to the website of City U's Public and International Affairs department, formerly the Public Policy Department. The move follows reports of the restructuring of the department of Government and Public Administration at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, which will be merged with other departments and downgraded into a program, according to the Hong Kong Free Press. Primary school students practice for a flag-raising ceremony in Hong Kong, June 14, 2022. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters) The ruling Chinese Communist Party announced last year that it would step up "patriotic education" in schools, universities and religious institutions across the country, including in Hong Kong, in a move likely designed to quash internal political challenges to Xi Jinping's authoritarian rule. The City U course, which once offered a Humanities and Social Sciences stream, a Politics stream and a Public Management stream, will stop offering the Politics stream from next September, according to a comparison between the current website and a version of the site archived in March 2022. "Seminars on Hong Kong Government and Politics" and "Labour and the State in China" are no longer on offer, with students offered new courses including "Rethinking the Value of Democracy" and "Introduction to Confucian Political Philosophy." While the old major aimed to "equip students with the theoretical, conceptual, and analytical tools to understand comprehensively public policy, public management, and political developments in Hong Kong, China, and the contemporary global world," the new course focuses more on employability. Steering clear of political past The content of some of the curriculum also appears to steer well clear of Hong Kong's recent political past. Films about the 2019 protest movement or the political changes that followed are notably absent from its documentary-based class titled "Social Change and Governance Challenges: A Critical Appreciation through Film," for example. As well as a university-mandated course on the National Security Law, the new major will address such questions as "How do particular public policies emerge?" and "Who makes the decisions and why?" according to the website. Lawmakers of the first Legislative Council since Beijing overhauled the election pose for group photos at the Legislative Council in Hong Kong, Jan. 3, 2022. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters) Currently, students are offered a course titled "Democracy and Democratization," which encourages them to consider "controversial questions like whether democracy is a universal value, whether it can promote human rights, whether there is an inherent conflict between the Confucian ethos and democracy." The ruling Chinese Communist Party under Xi Jinping often uses references to China's "Confucian" past to argue that the country isn't suitable for a democratic system with universal suffrage and the separation of powers. "Students are required to critically evaluate the democratization process in some of the East Asian societies: Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, China, Hong Kong and so on," the course introduction reads. The departmental website didn't say whether the same class would be listed next semester. But a first-year student on the program who gave only the nickname Christine for fear of reprisals said she had been told that much of the political content won't be on offer next academic year. "They are claiming that the name has changed but the content remains the same, but actually we have seen that a number of political classes have been deleted," she said. "There used to be a lot of elective subjects, and now there are only 19." "I think they are slowly changing this major, and downgrading the status of political science in universities," Christine said. She said she had signed up for the course to learn more about Hong Kong politics, and why there are no more pro-democracy members of the city's Legislative Council. "But that hasn't been mentioned at all on the course," she said. "All we do is read history and look at examples from overseas, as well as different philosophers." 'Stigmatized' study Political commentator Benson Wong, who is a former assistant professor in the Department of Politics and International Relations at Hong Kong Baptist University, said academic departments typically change their names when they want to reposition their research or teaching direction. He said the study of politics has become "stigmatized" since the imposition of the 2020 National Security Law criminalized criticism of the government. "The study of political developments, or mass movements ... has died a death due to recent changes in Hong Kong's political environment," he said. "Are there any institutions currently offering courses focusing on political or social movements?" Wong said, implying that none are. "About the Cultural Revolution [1966-1976] or the June 4, 1989 [Tiananmen massacre]?" Protesters in Hong Kong call for the citys leaders to step down and withdraw the extradition, June 16, 2019. (Reuters) Wong said that academic departments can no longer teach certain courses deemed "politically risky." "This could affect the way a whole generation of Hong Kongers develops," he said. City U responded to complaints from its students that they hadn't been informed about the changes beforehand with a statement claiming that "the decision was made after extensive consultation" that had included a curriculum committee that included students, faculty and external contributors, the Ming Pao newspaper reported on March 4. Translated with additional reporting by Luisetta Mudie. The legislation, which would ban the app if its Chinese parent company doesnt divest, still needs to pass the Senate. Rep. Mike Gallager speaks to reporters outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., after the House voted on legislation he co-sponsored to ban TikTok, March 13, 2024. The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed new legislation that could force TikToks Chinese parent company to divest in the social media app to prevent it being banned in America. Lawmakers backing the new bill say that forcing ByteDance to sell its controlling stake in the app, which has 170 million monthly American users, is the only way to ensure Beijing cannot use it for propaganda. TikTok, though, has denied any interference from Beijing. The legislation still needs to pass the Senate, but U.S. President Joe Biden last week said he will sign it into law if it does land on his desk. A similar bill was last year championed by a bipartisan group of senators, suggesting that it could face little resistance in that chamber. The bill passed the House in a 352-65 vote, less than a week after it was introduced and was approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee in a 50-0 vote. The fast-tracking meant the bill needed a two-thirds majority to pass, which it easily achieved. TikToks offices are seen in Culver City, Calif., March 13, 2024. (Mike Blake/Reuters) Beijing has long denied interfering in TikToks operations and has in turn accused the lawmakers backing the legislation of being motivated primarily by anti-China paranoia and protectionism. There was no evidence TikToks Chinese ownership was a threat to U.S. national security and that it would come back to bite the United States by damaging the countrys reputation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing. This kind of bullying behavior that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order, Wang said. Senate hurdles In a statement, TikTok called the bills fast passage the product of a secret process and said it was jammed through the House. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and 170 million Americans who use our service, it said. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said his chamber would consider the bill in due time, while Senate Commerce Committee Chair Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Democrat from Washington state, said she wants to ensure any bill signed into law could hold up in court. But the legislation already has some high-profile backers. Two of the advocates of last years similar Senate bill Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat from Virginia who also serves as chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican from Florida said they look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law. Devotees of TikTok gather at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., as the House votes on a bill that could ban TikTok, March 13, 2024. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP) Rep. Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin who led the bill in the House, has said Chinese ownership of the app, which is the fourth-most download on Apple and Googles app stores, is akin to a Soviet-run company owning the New York Times in the 1960s. Gallagher and other lawmakers note TikTok is legally required to expose American user data to Beijing upon request, and say it could be forced to alter its algorithms to promote Chinese propaganda. The Chinese Communist Party, and its leader Xi Jinping, have their hands deep in the inner workings of the company with devastating consequences for our personal freedoms, he said last week. That analysis has been mirrored by FBI Director Christopher Wray and other leaders of U.S. intelligence agencies, who say the apps widespread use means it could be used to distribute misinformation to millions of Americans and could even sway election results. Edited by Malcolm Foster. The definition of 'an armed external attack' in the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty needs to be made more clear, observers say. The Unaizah May 4 (center), a Philippine resupply boat, is hit by blasts from two China Coast Guard water canons as the boat tried to enter Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal), in the disputed South China Sea, March 5, 2024. The Philippines and United States need to revisit their longtime mutual defense pact to address Beijings increasing use of so-called gray-zone activities or acts of aggression short of an armed attack in the disputed South China Sea, experts said. Under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), the two allies are compelled to come to each others defense in the event of an armed external attack, but the term is ambiguous and needs to be more clearly defined, according to analysts interviewed by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated news outlet. Article V of the treaty needs to be more clearly discussed and interpreted by both countries, said Don McLain Gill, a geopolitical analyst based in Manila. The article states that the MDT covers an armed attack on the metropolitan territory of either of the parties, or on the island territories under its jurisdiction in the Pacific Ocean, its armed forces, public vessels or aircraft in the Pacific. In recent years, China has intensified its harassment and intimidation of Philippine government ships and other vessels in the West Philippine Sea, Manilas name for waters of the South China Sea that lie within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). There needs to be a firmer operational definition of an armed attack, because without doing so, China will continue to exploit such terminological ambiguities, Gill told BenarNews. Its still an ambiguous term. Should firearms be used to trigger the MDT? If so, it does not address the casualties on our side. He was responding to questions about a March 5 incident where four Philippine Navy sailors sustained minor injuries while aboard a military-contracted civilian vessel, when blasts from Chinese water cannons shattered their boats windshield. The dramatic moment, which was caught on video, occurred as China Coast Guard (CCG) ships tried to block the Philippine boat, the Unaizah May 4, from carrying out a resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal). The focus must also be on the potential harm to human life Chinas unfriendly acts may cause, Gill said. The incident last week marked the first time that injuries were reported in any of the tense incidents at sea that have become more frequent lately, as Chinese ships try to block Philippine ships and boats from delivering supplies to the BRP Sierra Madre, a rusty World War II-era ship that serves as Manilas outpost in Ayungin Shoal. While such close encounters at sea between Philippine and Chinese coast guard ships increased in 2023, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin cited the MDT in warning that Washington would help defend Manila in case of an armed attack anywhere in the South China Sea, including on Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels. In the immediate aftermath of the March 5 incident, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. dismissed calls that Manila move to have the treaty invoked over it. While his administration viewed the incident and such dangerous maneuvers by China with great alarm, there was no need at this time to take that step on the MDT, he said. Five months after he took office in 2022, as he talked about the possibility of a stronger U.S. military presence in the Philippines, Marcos said that the mutual defense treaty with the United States was continuously under negotiations and under evolution. In 2023, as tensions also simmered between China and the U.S. over Taiwan, the Marcos administration agreed to give American forces greater access to military bases in his country. Late last year, the U.S. and the Philippines also launched joint patrols around the archipelago. Sherwin Ona, a political science professor at De La Salle University in Manila, said he agreed with Marcos and noted that the boat that came under attack was a civilian vessel. In his view, Beijing is aware of the language in the treaty that does not clearly define a red line, and is exploiting that by carrying out gray-zone tactics in the contested waterway. The framing of conflict is so far within the gray-zone approach of the Peoples Republic of China. I think Beijing is conscious of this and will avoid a full-scale naval confrontation with the Philippines and the U.S., Ona told BenarNews. Wider definition of armed attack Analyst Gill, however, said that if the definition of armed attack is merely limited to military confrontation, this allows China to carry on with its aggressive actions at sea. If armed attack will only mean a direct military confrontation, then that opens up more pathways for China to inflict harm on Filipinos at sea, Gill said. Given last weeks incident, one may ask that if Chinas belligerent activities in the Philippines EEZ may eventually critically injure or kill members of the Philippine crew, should Article V be implemented? he said. Members of the Philippine Coast Guard stand alert as a China Coast Guard vessel blocks their way to a resupply mission at Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungtin Shoal) in the South China Sea, March 5, 2024. [Adrian Portugal/Reuters] Antonio Carpio, a South China Sea analyst and a former Supreme Court justice, said the Philippines could approach the U.S. to talk about a possible expansion of definitions of wording in the treaty. Armed attack means use of lethal weapons like cannon, missiles or guns. We can discuss with the U.S. to define armed attack to include use of laser beams that are permanently blind since such use is already outlawed by an international convention, Carpio said in a message to BenarNews. Last year, a CCG vessel pointed a military-grade laser at a Philippine Coast Guard ship, temporarily blinding the Filipino crew. Option of last resort But Rommel Ong, a retired Philippine Navy rear admiral, believes the two countries will not include such acts of aggression in the MDT. I dont think thats going to happen. The Philippines and the U.S. are both trying to avoid invoking the MDT for minor incidents, Ong told BenarNews. Thats the option of last resort. The actions of China are still within the bounds of non-kinetic. Its just that were not used to conflicts at sea, he said. He mentioned the cod wars between the United Kingdom and Iceland during the 1950s to 1970s over rights to fish in Icelandic waters. Both European countries engaged in gray-zone tactics by ramming and blocking each others ships. MDT is like a nuclear bomb. Its effectiveness is in its deterrent value. But once you use it, it loses its value. With these limitations, the Philippines appears to have no option but to resort to joint patrols with the U.S. and other like-minded allies, analyst Ona said. He added that the Philippines must fast-track military and coast guard modernization programs and continue its transparency program, whereby they publicize cases of Chinese intimidation and incursions in the West Philippine Sea. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. attends a press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (not pictured), in Berlin, March 12, 2024. [Liesa Johannssen/Reuters] Marcos has repeatedly called on foreign nations to support the landmark international arbitration ruling in 2016 that sided with Manila and invalidated Beijings sweeping claims in the South China Sea. During an official visit to Germany this week, Marcos noted that 60% of world trade passed through the vital waterway. Its not solely the interest of the Philippines, or of ASEAN, or of the Indo-Pacific region but the entire world. That is why its in all our interest to keep it as a safe passage for all international commerce that goes on in the South China Sea, Marcos said during a joint press conference on Tuesday with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Marcos has relied on international allies and partners, striking deals on defense cooperation even with non-traditional allies to counter Chinese aggression. Aside from the U.S. and Germany, Japan, Australia, France, the United Kingdom, and India have expressed support for Manila over the South China Sea dispute. Jeoffrey Maitem in Cotabato City, southern Philippines, contributed to this report. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated news outlet. As digital transformations surge, businesses tap into the artificial intelligence (AI) craze, and more data is shared between consumers, businesses, and third parties online, privacy threats rise to new heights. The issue has become one of the defining focuses for businesses today. To feel the full benefit of data, we must safeguard it. After a procession of high profile privacy breaches that saw the data of tens of millions of Australians compromised in recent years, the Government is on the front foot. Policymakers are in the process of extending the jurisdiction of The Privacy Act 1988, to cover millions of small and medium businesses. Previously, only businesses with an annual turnover in excess of AUD$3million had to comply, but now that exemption is being removed. Small businesses will now be liable for steep fines and levies for non-compliance. Any policy, technology, or program that protects data plays an important role. However, Zoho research found that Australian SMBs remain unprepared. A few questions leap to mind: What is in the regulation? What did our research find? And, how can small businesses prepare? What is The Privacy Act 1988? The Privacy Act 1988 is the law that regulates the handling of personal information by Australian businesses and government agencies. It oversees the collection, storage, use, and disclosure of personal information, with the guiding aim of protecting individuals privacy rights. The Act applies to most private sector businesses with an annual turnover of more than $3 million, as well as certain smaller businesses, health service providers, and other select entities. However, last year, a review by the Attorney General proposed that exemptions for businesses with an annual turnover of less than $3 million essentially, millions of SMBs should be removed. It comes as the severity and regularity of privacy breaches increases at an alarming rate. The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) received over 94,000 cyber crime reports in the 2022-23 financial year. This represents one report every six minutes, with millions of Australians impacted. Small businesses unprepared Privacy breaches are indiscriminate; they target and attack any businesses with vulnerabilities, irrespective of their size. While the news is dominated by breaches to big businesses, small businesses are far from immune which is why the legislation is being extended. What is of great concern, though, is how few small businesses understand the legislation and their obligations. According to Zoho research, only 51.8% believe that their business understands its requirements in accordance with The Privacy Act 1988. That means well over one million small businesses. Fewer than half (46.2%) claim to know exactly what to do if they fell victim to a privacy breach while just 44.6% have a well-defined, documented and applied customer privacy policy. Whats more, 25% of local small businesses would fail to survive the financial or reputational damage of a privacy breach. While no business can eliminate the potential of a data breach, they can proactively reduce the risk and the potential damage done if they are affected. Building proactive safeguards Our research found that 59.4% of SMBs acknowledge their vulnerability to data breaches, yet they are not taking enough action to strengthen their data security. Overcoming this paralysis is paramount. Small businesses should create a clear, defined and documented data privacy policy that is communicated with their customers and followed by their staff. The mere existence of such a policy helps to encourage best practice which in itself reduces the risk of a breach and helps them understand the steps to take if they do fall victim. Small businesses should also do their due diligence when selecting technology providers; prioritising those who take data privacy and transparency seriously. Small businesses should take the time to understand the policies of the technology providers they use, and what those vendors do with data. Zoho has a strict customer privacy first policy and dont have an ad-revenue model in any aspect of our business. Meanwhile, our Ulaa browser, with a privacy-first approach, aims to offer a safe browsing experience by incorporating ad blockers, end-to-end encryption, and features that safeguard data privacy. Small businesses can and should deploy tactics and safeguards in their everyday operations. For example, implementing robust encryption measures ensures sensitive information remains secure. Employees should undergo regular training sessions to encourage best practice and reduce the risk of human error. Multi-factor authentication for example, when logging on to important systems adds an extra layer of security, while regularly updating software and conducting thorough security audits reduces risk further. Finally, small businesses should speak to their accountant, business advisor or legal advisor to understand The Privacy Act 1988, and how, and if, they must comply. Responding to a breach Unfortunately, eliminating the risk of a breach 100% is simply not possible. Knowing what to do in the event of a breach, though, is possible. Almost 350,000 small businesses claim to have no knowledge on what to do if they were the victim of a breach. If a small business is breached, swift action is essential. First, they should attempt to contain the breach. Affected individuals should be notified promptly, with clear and transparent communication, while the incident must also be reported to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). Once those immediate steps have been carried out, small businesses should investigate the breach thoroughly, identifying vulnerabilities and introducing any relevant security enhancements. Then, by reviewing and updating their privacy policies and procedures, small businesses will be better placed to reduce the risk of future breaches. Small businesses cannot be expected to become privacy and cyber security experts themselves, though. The technology industry must make data privacy a priority and policymakers must incentivise action and provide the right education and awareness so small businesses can implement measures to protect themselves and their customers. Otherwise, with risks increasing every day, regulation becoming more stringent, and penalties more severe, SMBs will be unfairly and disproportionately impacted. Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The shell was fired by the local junta operational headquarters, residents claim, saying there have been similar attacks on other villages. An artillery attack in northern Myanmar killed five civilians, residents told Radio Free Asia on Wednesday. The victims included two women in their 30s and three children in Kachin states Bhamo township. Conflict in the area has already killed three civilians and damaged houses across the Chinese border since the Kachin Independence Army took 14 junta camps last Thursday. Flights at an airport nearby were grounded for the foreseeable future after short-range missiles damaged the runway. Following the groups six-day attack last week, the Kachin Independence Army told RFA it plans to reopen the nearby Myitkyina-Bhamo road, not having had control of the camps alongside it since 2011. The shelling on Tuesday originated from the juntas Bhamo-city based No. 21 Operation Command Headquarters, but landed in Kan Ni village. All five victims died immediately, said one Kan Ni local. The mother, Myint Maw, and her two children, as well as another unnamed mother and her child died, he told RFA on Wednesday, asking to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals. The three children were five to ten years old, one girl and two boys. The dead will be cremated at Kan Ni village cemetery on Wednesday, residents said. Junta troops have been firing shells at several small villages like Kan Ni, despite there being no fighting in the area, locals said. RFA phoned Kachin state junta spokesperson Moe Min Thein to learn more about the shelling, but he did not respond by the time of publication. Junta troops and the Kachin Independence Army, alongside allied resistance groups, have clashed over Kachin states lucrative jade mining industry. Civilians have accused the juntas army of torching houses, killing civilians and conducting raids on villages throughout the state. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn. Rules say inmates who break prison rules can only be held in isolation for 10 days. Vietnams Nam Ha Prison has been holding political prisoner Nguyen Duc Hung in a solitary cell for 18 months, his family told Radio Free Asia this week. The law says the disciplinary period for violating a prisons rules is only 10 days. The 33-year-old campaigned against the Formosa Plastics Group steel factory, which polluted the water supply by discharging waste in 2016. He was arrested in 2022 on charges of conducting anti-state propaganda and was sentenced to five years and six months in prison in a trial without a lawyer. Hung was sent to serve his sentence at Nam Ha Prison in the province of the same name and only allowed limited family visits. Last August, his father Nguyen Sen was refused a prison visit and told Hung was being disciplined for receiving noodles from a fellow political prisoner. After RFAs Vietnamese service wrote about the incident in December, Hungs father was allowed to visit. Last month, Sen returned to the prison, and discovered that his son was still being held in solitary confinement as punishment for the 2022 incident. He said his son was weak and pale due to being confined in his cell for a long time. Hung also suffers from stomach problems and headaches due to a childhood accident, he said. Hung is shortsighted but the prison wont allow him to use his metal-framed spectacles. Although the family sent plastic-framed glasses, the prison said they didnt receive them, making it difficult for Hung to see. Hung told his father that the family could only visit him once every two months in accordance with regulations for disciplined prisoners. Even though Sen registered his phone number with prison authorities he never received a call from his son even though regulations allow inmates to call their family for 10 minutes a month. Hung told his family to help him hire two lawyers, but he did not specify what they were for, only saying he would present evidence to them when at the prison. It is unclear whether Hung will be able to meet with a lawyer because, according to regulations, only relatives can meet with prisoners. RFAs calls to Nam Ha Prison went unanswered. According to Article 43 of the Law on Execution of Criminal Judgments (2015), prisoners who violate detention facility rules can be reprimanded, warned or detained in a disciplinary cell for up to 10 days. While held in solitary, prisoners are not allowed to meet their relatives. Vietnams rights-abusing practices include trying to censor, or failing that, arrest and imprison anyone who dares criticize the government, and thats precisely what the authorities are doing to Nguyen Duc Hung, Human Rights Watch Deputy Asia Director Phil Robertson told RFA. But it is unusually cruel for them to hold him in virtually indefinite solitary confinement. The government should recognize that Nguyen Duc Hung did nothing wrong in the first place because exercising freedom of expression should not be considered a crime, and they should release him immediately and unconditionally, he said. Nguyen Viet Dung, who was held in solitary confinement for more than two years at Nam Ha Prison and has now fled the country, said that each individual disciplinary sentence has a duration of three months, however, the prison can consecutively apply disciplinary sentences to a prisoner. Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang. This year features a merry-go-round of high-level positions in the upper echelons of the European Union, as well as NATO, and Brussels is awash with rumors as to who will taking up the posts. Four big political jobs are up for grabs in 2024: the European Commission and European Council presidencies, now occupied by Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel, respectively, as well as the bloc's foreign policy chief post, held by Josep Borrell for the past five years. Elsewhere in the Belgian capital, Jens Stoltenberg is vacating the post of NATO secretary-general after a decade at the helm. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has thrown his hat into the ring for this, and it could well be time for an Eastern European to lead. Two EU summits in June, already penciled in for June 17 and 27, featuring the 27 EU heads of state and governments, will decide the three posts in closed-door negotiations. It's a complicated jigsaw in which candidates will be selected that reflect a balance of gender, political affiliation (often divided between pan-European political parties representing the center right, center left, and liberal) and geography, even though the EU member states' compass is at times blurred. The European Commission president usually hails from the political group that wins the most votes in the parliamentary elections taking place across the bloc on June 6-9. In the last four elections, this has been the center-right European People's Party (EPP), and polls indicate they're on course to win this time as well. Their lead candidate, crowned at the EPP congress in Bucharest last week, is Von der Leyen. Logic would dictate that she's a shoo-in for another five years heading the European Commission. On paper, the leader of NATO is separate from the EU posts. But considering that 23 out of 27 EU member states also belong to the military alliance, and that the NATO secretary-general should be European, the two organizations are essentially fishing in the same talent pool. Sources at NATO say they want the decision to be made in April, well before the NATO Washington summit in July and, crucially, well before the process becomes "too entangled" in the EU's own recruitment timeline. Only a few weeks ago, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States (known collectively as the "Quad"), as well as up to 17 other countries, largely in the West, rallied behind outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. Considered a safe pair of hands with lots of experience, well-liked in Washington, and famously adept at dealing with former U.S. President Donald Trump, he seemed a decent, if perhaps uninspiring, pick. Iohannis's bid could represent a welcome change: hearing the voice of Eastern, and not just Western, Europe. Eastern Europe's Turn "Eastern" here is far from a coherent geographical or political concept, but it covers the countries of the former Soviet bloc or ex-Yugoslavia that joined the EU (and NATO) in the past 25 years: Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia (and, additionally for NATO, Albania, Montenegro, and North Macedonia). No NATO secretary-general has ever come from any of these countries. In 2019, when the EU last picked the three heads, the eastern flank was completely overlooked. In fact, the only "easterner" that ever has held a high position in Brussels was current Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who was president of the European Council from 2014 to 2019. There have already been three Dutch NATO secretary-generals. The Netherlands has struggled to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense, a NATO goal for over a decade and something many Eastern countries, including Iohannis's Romania, have managed. Rutte, while being supportive of Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, is considered a "softie" on Russia. His support for Gazprom's Nordstream 2 is a case in point. Many Easterners, on the other hand, have long warned about the danger of a belligerent Kremlin. Now, they've been proven right. NATO sources say they believe Rutte will still win. It's hard to get around "the Quad," and they don't seem to be budging. Some view Iohannis's move as "desperate" and "last-ditch," and it has stoked fears that the selection process might drag on for months. Others were rather bemused at his 10-point plan -- presented in Politico on March 13 -- that included things the military alliance is already doing. Some diplomats from Eastern countries say they have no opinion on either candidate. The question ultimately is whether Iohannis sourced his popularity before committing to run. Two Other Factors The first of two other important factors is unanimity. All 32 NATO allies need to be onboard. Hungary has already indicated it's against Rutte, especially after countless spats between The Hague and Budapest over Hungarian rule of law. Turkey hasn't voiced a preference, but Ankara's had its own issues with Rutte, notably from Turkish efforts a few years back to hold political rallies in the Netherlands that resulted in The Hague barring Turkish officials from arriving. As one NATO official recently told me, "Turkey and Hungary showed with Sweden's NATO accession that they are willing to go the extra mile and more to get what they want." But is it Iohannis they want or just anyone but Rutte? Or could this be paving the way for a dark-horse candidate yet to be revealed? A PR Move For Iohannis? The talk in Brussels is also about whether Iohannis is running for NATO secretary-general to get himself into the arena for an EU post. Like Von der Leyen, Iohannis belongs to the EPP. If she gets the commission presidency, it's unlikely another EPP candidate could get anything else. The center left (called S&D in Europe) will likely finish second in the European parliament election and demand the council or the foreign policy job. The liberals (Renew) or the more conservative and Euroskeptic ECR group could also stake out positions depending on the June vote. Most of the other Easterners who might be gunning for EU jobs belong to the EPP, too. There's Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic; the Bulgarian managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva; Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski; and his Lithuanian and Latvian counterparts, Gabrielius Landsbergis and Krisjanis Karins, respectively. Outside the EPP, we have Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, belonging to the liberals, which could see a catastrophic European election. Kallas appears to be overlooked for the NATO job, at least for now. Then there are the Brussels Slovak stalwarts Miroslav Lajcak and Maros Sefcovic, but both are associated with Slovak Prime Minister Robet Fico, whose party has been suspended by the center-left S&D for its pro-Moscow stance. Is Iohannis plotting a coup against Von der Leyen? She is widely considered a successful commission president, especially in her steadfast support for Kyiv. But people in Brussels also have some negative things to say about her: Some member states worry she's made the commission too powerful and that she runs it with an iron fist, not letting other commissioners shine. Then there is the issue with the European Parliament. The candidate for commission president needs to be approved by a majority of members of the house. Last time, Von der Leyen scraped by with eight votes. It might be even tighter this time. Maybe that means it's time for a consensus candidate? Maybe this candidate could be Iohannis. Listen to the Talking China In Eurasia podcast Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google | YouTube Welcome back to the China In Eurasia briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter tracking China's resurgent influence from Eastern Europe to Central Asia. Looking ahead, we'll be changing up the newsletter format and will start sending it out every week. Until then, it would be great to hear more about what you like about the newsletter currently and would want more of moving forward. Send me an email to StandishR@rferl.org with your thoughts. Don't be shy :) I'm RFE/RL correspondent Reid Standish and here's what I'm following right now. Chinese-Made Surveillance Equipment At Romanian Military Sites An RFE/RL investigation found that surveillance equipment made by Hikvision and Dahua -- two partially state-owned Chinese companies -- is used by at least 28 military facilities in Romania. Among those military sites, we found that a base in southern Romania that's home to NATO's Aegis Ashore land-based missile-defense system, which is operated with the U.S. military, uses Hikvision surveillance cameras. Finding Perspective: In addition to the military facilities, RFE/RL's Romanian Service also found that the equipment is in wide use by hundreds of other public institutions involved in national security in the country, ranging from the coast guard to sites operated by the Romanian Intelligence Service. Concerns over data access and vulnerability to hacking aren't unique to Hikvision or Dahua, but both companies have received bans in the United States, Britain, and Australia due to concerns over how data is stored, alleged links to the Chinese military, and both firms' role in helping Beijing's crackdown against Uyghurs and other minorities in Xinjiang. Both brands also have an extensive history of security vulnerabilities that make them higher-risk to being infiltrated by hackers. In a study released in 2021 by Lithuania's Defense Ministry, they found hundreds of vulnerabilities that led them to recommend not using either brand. There's also been multiple glitches and breaches over the years that made them susceptible to hacks and their feeds being overtaken remotely. Why It Matters: There's an ongoing debate across the West about the risks of using Chinese tech in critical infrastructure. Hikvision and Dahua are among the world's leading providers of closed-circuit television and surveillance systems and their products remain popular across Europe and there are no EU restrictions against them. When we reached out to Romania's Defense Ministry about this, they said using the cameras was perfectly legal and that they keep them disconnected from the Internet to ensure a high-level of security. And that's all true. There is no ban in Romania and keeping them on a closed network can limit many of the vulnerabilities found in the cameras. But surveillance-industry experts we spoke with, such as Conor Healy at the surveillance-industry research firm IPVM, said that there's still risks that Hikvision and Dahua equipment could be hacked, even if it's not connected to the Internet. In the meantime, the debate in Romania is just getting started. Several lawmakers we spoke with after our investigation said that they want stricter rules over using the Chinese tech at national security sites and plan to bring it up in parliament. Three More Stories From Eurasia 1. Chinese Police To Budapest After inking a security agreement in February with his Chinese counterpart, Hungarian Interior Minister Sandor Pinter confirmed that Chinese police will be stationed in Budapest as part of the deal, RFE/RL's Hungarian Service reports. The Details: According to the agreement, Hungarian and Chinese police officers "will be able to jointly conduct patrol services in the future, thereby helping more effective communication between the citizens and authorities of the two countries, improving internal security, and public order." The Hungarian Interior Ministry said that the aim of the deal was to improve security during peak tourist periods and generally during events that attract larger crowds. The agreement has received lots of attention amid Prime Minister Viktor Orban's cozy relationship with Beijing -- as well as Moscow and Tehran -- and that he could be looking to undermine European security goals. While that may be true, the deal itself should be seen in a wider context. Beijing has signed similar deals in Europe with Italy and Serbia in the past. Both countries, along with Hungary, have a large Chinese economic presence and a large number of citizens. Rome, however, pulled out of the deal following uproar in 2022 over a constellation of secret police stations China was operating around the world. As RFE/RL reported at the time, both Budapest and Belgrade were home to secret stations and the Hungarian and Serbian governments denied their presence despite plenty of public evidence showing otherwise. Chinese nationals have become the largest minority group in Budapest and Beijing is highly focused on monitoring and controlling its citizens abroad -- something that Orban's government appears happy to help with. 2. The Eurasia Angle On Leaked Chinese Hacking Files On February 18, a collection of documents from a Shanghai-based cybersecurity company was leaked to the online platform Github, offering the most credible public evidence to date about China's expanding hacking ambitions. Here's a look at the Eurasia angle on the leaks. What You Need To Know: I-Soon is a private company, but it's a contractor for the Chinese government, police, and military, and the leak contains documents and communications that show the company using spyware to meet Beijing's political interests. The leaks show operations in various countries, with a focus on Southeast and Central Asia, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. The group targeted telecoms networks in Kyrgyzstan and Pakistan, and also hacked Air Astana -- Kazakhstan's national airline -- and Air Malaysia to get data for Xinjiang's regional authorities in their ongoing crackdown against Uyghurs and other minority groups there. 3. Growing China-Russia Tech Cooperation Russia is increasing its cooperation with China in 5G and satellite technology and this could facilitate Moscow's military aggression against Ukraine, a new report by the London-based Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) security think tank warns. What It Means: The RUSI report details how the cooperation between Russia and China in 5G and satellite technology can also help Russia on the battlefield in Ukraine. "Extensive deployment of drones and advanced telecommunications equipment have been crucial on all fronts in Ukraine, from intelligence collection to air-strike campaigns," the report says. "These technologies, though critical, require steady connectivity and geospatial support, making cooperation with China a potential solution to Moscow's desire for a military breakthrough." 5G network development, according to the report, has gained particular significance for China-Russia ties, resulting in multiple agreements between Chinese technology giant Huawei and Russian companies MTS and Beeline. For more, check out this write-up on the report's main takeaways by my colleague Elitsa Simeonova. Across The Supercontinent Middle Corridor Milestone: The leaders of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan greeted the first containers delivered from China to Azerbaijan's eastern Abseron district on March 11 via a new train route crossing Kazakhstan, RFE/RL's Kazakh and Azerbaijani Services report. More Visa-Free: After granting visa-free travel to Georgia, Beijing announced that it would also grant it to nationals from Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg starting on March 14. A Message From Stockholm: As questions swirl across Europe about what the return of Donald Trump as U.S. president could mean for American support for Ukraine, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told Politico that Europe needs to do a better job of understanding U.S. security concerns about China in order to persuade Trump against scaling back support for NATO. Multipolar Partners: Speaking on the sidelines of the Two Sessions, China's annual parliamentary and political advisory meetings, Wang Yi vowed to deepen relations with Russia, as Beijing continues to assert the importance of what it calls a "multipolar" world order. One Thing To Watch Speaking of the Two Sessions, it wrapped up on March 11 after Chinese leader Xi Jinping vowed to adopt several new pieces of legislation that aim to safeguard China's sovereignty and security interests. As William Yang at VOA wrote, China is grappling with strong economic headwinds that could blow it off course, but Xi's focus appears to be on consolidating power and tightening security, all measures that are unlikely to boost the confidence of foreign investors. That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you might have. Until next time, Reid Standish If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every other Wednesday. A year after the arrest of Evan Gershkovich in Russia, the Wall Street Journal reporters family pledged to continue to fight for release from a Moscow prison where he is being held on espionage charges the White House and his employer say are fabricated. Gershkovich became the first U.S. journalist arrested on spying charges in Russia since the Cold War when he was detained on March 29, 2023, by the Federal Security Service (FSB), which said he had been trying to obtain military secrets. The Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government have vehemently rejected the espionage charges, saying he was merely doing his job as an accredited reporter when he was arrested. Gershkovich saw his detention extended to June 30 earlier this week by the Moscow City Court. The Kremlin said on March 29 it had no information on when the 32-year-olds trial will begin. If found guilty, he faces up to 20 years in jail. "We never anticipated this situation happening to our son and brother, let alone a full year with no certainty or clear path forward," his family said in a letter published by the Wall Street Journal on March 29 to mark the anniversary. "But despite this long battle, we are still standing strong." U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on March 29 that "to date, Russia has provided no evidence of wrongdoing for a simple reason: Evan did nothing wrong. Journalism is not a crime." Born in the United States to Soviet emigres, Gershkovich reported from Russia for six years before being detained in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg. Leon Panetta, former director of the CIA, said the United States must play a "tough game" with Russian President Vladimir Putin in order to get Gershkovich released. "We have got to play a tough game with Putin to make sure hes not going to get away with this kind of game." Panetta said on Fox News. Gershkovich will ultimately be released through a prisoner swap, Panetta predicted, saying the United States could "develop some leverage" for such a deal by arresting Russian spies in the United States "so that [Putin] has a reason to come to the bargaining table." State Department spokesman Vedant Patel, also speaking on Fox News, said the United States engages daily with the "highest levels of the Russian government" in its effort to win Gershkovich's release, but he said it was "important not to talk about the deliberations in public." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has also stressed the importance of silence about any negotiations, but Wall Street Journal Associate Editor Paul Beckett, who is leading the newspapers efforts to free Gershkovich, said talks involving Gershkovich on any level keep his supporters optimistic that something can be done. Russian authorities accuse Gershkovich of collecting state secrets about the military industrial complex at the behest of the U.S. government. Wall Street Journal Associate Editor Paul Beckett, who is leading the newspapers efforts to free Gershkovich, told Current Time in an interview broadcast on March 29 that the reporter is holding up OK under very difficult circumstances. He's in his cell for 23 hours a day. He has an hour outside in the courtyard, which is about the same size as his cell. So we've just been very grateful that he's been able to maintain his equilibrium, Beckett said of Gershkovichs incarceration in Moscows Lefortovo prison. Beckett said that besides one hour of courtyard time per day, Gershkovich has been in constant correspondence with his family, including swapping lines from shows that they enjoyed together, and weekly meetings with his lawyers. Earlier on March 28 in Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked about reports of a possible prisoner exchange involving Gershkovich, and he stressed the importance of silence about any negotiations. But Beckett said talks involving Gershkovich on any level keep his supporters "optimistic that something can be done." Gershkovich is one of two American reporters currently being held by Russian authorities. The other is Alsu Kurmasheva, an RFE/RL journalist who holds dual Russian-American citizenship. Kurmasheva, 47, was arrested in Kazan last October and charged with failing to register as a foreign agent under a punitive Russian law that targets journalists, civil society activists, and others. Shes also been charged with spreading falsehoods about the Russian military and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. RFE/RL and the U.S. government say the charges are reprisals for her work as a journalist for RFE/RL in Prague. She had traveled to Russia to visit and care for her elderly mother and was initially detained while waiting for her return flight on June 2 at Kazan airport, where her U.S. and Russian passports were confiscated. Gershkovich has been designated as wrongfully detained by the U.S. government. Kurmasheva, however, has not despite pleas from RFE/RL and Kurmashevas family. The Wall Street Journal on March 28 published a story about her detention and the difficulties her husband, Pavel Butorin, who also works for RFE/RL in Prague, and their two daughters, aged 12 and 15, have had without her and their efforts to have her designated as wrongfully detained. The designation would mean her case would be assigned to the office of the Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs in the State Department, raising the political profile of her situation and allowing the Biden administration to allocate more resources to securing her release. The designation currently applies only to Gershkovich and another American held in Russia, Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine and corporate security executive who is serving a 16-year prison sentence on espionage charges. Other events being held to mark the one-year anniversary of Gershkovichs detention include a 24-hour read-a-thon of his work by his Wall Street Journal colleagues at the newspapers headquarters in New York and swimming events at Brighton Beaches in New Zealand, South African, Canada, the United States and Britain. The beaches were chosen in recognition of his familys connection to Brighton Beach in Brooklyn, New York, which is home to a large Russian immigrant community. Gershkovich's parents emigrated from the Soviet Union, separately, in 1979. The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. Throughout Iran, protesters called for change and chanted "Freedom" on March 12 during traditional bonfires for Chaharshanbe Suri. The annual fire festival, held ahead of Persian New Year, or Norouz, has become an outlet for protest. Police in Lithuania are hunting for a suspect who attacked Leonid Volkov, an aide to late Russian opposition leader Aleksei Navalny, with tear gas and a hammer near his home in Vilnius on March 12. Volkov said his arm was broken and that he sustained several injuries to his leg. Eric Chu, husband of Van Thinh Phat chairwoman Truong My Lan, seen at the People's Court of Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran Hong Kong property tycoon Eric Chu said he never knew that letting his wife Truong My Lan use a building as collateral would put him in the dock. Chu, who is on trial for abetting his wife, chairwoman of property developer Van Thinh Phat, cause a loss of VND9.12 trillion ($369 million) to Saigon Commercial Bank, told the Peoples Court of Ho Chi Minh City Tuesday that he first signed a document in 2012 on her say-so. It was for mortgaging the six-story Times Square building in HCMCs District 1 as collateral for borrowing from SCB. Chu is the chairman and owned 99% of Times Square Vietnam, the company that owned the building. In 2017 he signed for a second time, thinking it was similar to the previous time, since he wanted to help restructure SCB. His wife did not discuss with him the use of the loans. When his lawyer asked him why he signed without knowing Vietnamese, he said he had faith in his wife and staff, and had signed many documents before without having any trouble. Chu said he did not understand Vietnamese laws and therefore violated them unintentionally. At the time he never thought signing them would one day cause him to stand trial. He said he wanted to help recompense for the banks losses. Two State Bank of Vietnam officials also answered lawyers questions about their alleged violations in covering up the wrongdoing at SCB and receiving bribes for it. Do Thi Nhan, former chief bank inspector, said the auditing was done on the orders of her boss, Nguyen Van Hung, former deputy chief inspector. She said she only met with Lan at first to convince her to sell some of SCBs assets to pay its debts. Hung admitted to ordering Nhan to audit the bank, but said he did not pay much further attention to it because he was preparing to retire soon. At the ongoing trial, Lan has been charged with bribery, violating banking regulations and embezzlement for allegedly misappropriating VND304 trillion ($12.31 billion) from SCB. She is accused of causing losses of VND498 trillion to the bank. The Russians are advancing. The Ukrainians are digging. Weeks after notching their biggest battlefield win in nearly a year, the capture of the industrial city of Avdiyivka, Russian forces are advancing -- in some places, slowly, in other places, quickly. Ukrainian commanders are rushing to lay out defensive lines -- trenches, bunkers, "hedgehog" tank obstacles, dragon's teeth, mine fields -- defenses some experts say should have been built months ago. Military recruiters and logistics officers, meanwhile, are scrambling to find more men to replenish decimated and exhausted units. The situation on the battlefield is grim for Ukraine, experts say, and the disruption of weaponry and supplies from the United States is making it grimmer. Russia has the momentum and nothing in the foreseeable future is likely to change that, according to military analysts. "The situation for Ukrainian forces remains very difficult, marked by a multitude of factors such as delayed mobilization efforts, insufficient fortification construction, missteps during the 2023 campaign, and notably, a critical failure of partners to deliver promised ammunition despite previous commitments," according to a Ukrainian reserve officer who oversees an open-source intelligence organization with ties to the Ukrainian military and cannot speak publicly due to military restrictions. "It's quite bad actually," said Konrad Muzyka, a Polish-based defense analyst who visited several locations in Ukraine near the front lines last week. "The Ukrainians are absolutely in no position to significantly degrade Russian forward momentum," he told RFE/RL. "The Russians will slowly but steadily capture new villages and settlements. It definitely will not be blitzkrieg. But I think it's fair to say thatcurrently the Ukrainians are at the weakest, probably since mid-2022." The Fall Of Avdiyivka In one aspect of the Russian invasion, Ukraine has had extraordinary success: in the Black Sea. On the battlefield, it's a different story. Ukraine's highwater mark on the battlefield came in the waning months of 2022 with the recapture of the Kharkiv region in the northeast and the Kherson region, on the west bank of the Dnieper River, in the south. For much of last year, guided by Western advisers, Western trainers, and Western intelligence, Ukrainian commanders prioritized building a new force structure that would spearhead a counteroffensive against Russian troops. Nine new brigades were trained and equipped with NATO weaponry; another five to eight other brigades were also organized by Ukrainian commanders, outfitted with Western weapons. Ukrainian forces launched their offensive last June on the order of General Valeriy Zaluzhniy, the country's top military officer at the time, pushing forward in three places along the roughly 1,200-kilometer front line. It didn't go well. Russia's defenses -- dubbed the Surovikin Lines after the Russian general credited for ordering their creation -- proved far more formidable and sophisticated than Ukrainian commanders had anticipated. After advancing short distances and capturing a handful of villages, Ukrainian units bogged down in places like Robotyne, south of the city of Orikhiv. By year's end, with the onset of winter, Ukrainian troops were stalemated, as Zaluzhniy suggested in a contentious article published in The Economist. Last October, meanwhile, in Avdiyivka, home to what was once Ukraine's largest coking factory, Russian forces began their own push to take the heavily fortified city to keep Ukrainian forces for threatening the regional capital of Donetsk, less than 20 kilometers to the south. That initial effort, a pincer effort to encircle Ukrainian forces, failed. By January, Russian forces had regrouped and over the following weeks, with heavy use of aircraft and powerful weapons like glide bombs, and utilizing underground tunnels, troops put Ukrainian units -- the 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade was one of the main units that held the city -- in untenable positions. Elite units, including the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade, were dispatched to help hold Ukrainian lines, but by February 17 Ukrainian commanders announced the city was lost and pulled their forces out. Some Western media reports say the withdrawal was chaotic and disorganized, and scores of Ukrainian soldiers may have been taken prisoner. 'The Year Without Building Defense Lines' Since Avdiyivka's fall, Russian forces have pushed westward, moving rapidly in the days that followed but, more recently, slowing. Experts point to Ukrainian defenses getting organized and Russian forces relying heavily on infantry attacks due to large armor losses in the capture of Avdiyivka; some estimates say Russia lost more than 600 pieces of heavy equipment -- tanks, armored personnel carriers, infantry transports -- and thousands of personnel. "So far the enemy in unable to push through defensive lines in the Avdiyivka direction," Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of Ukraine's 3rd Assault Brigade, said on March 6. "But they're constantly trying advance, and where possible trying to advance at least just a little. Most of all, now they are rubbing against the settlement of Orlivka. Here, [Russian troops] are suffering simply huge losses but still continue to storm both day and night." As of March 12, open-source data showed Orlivka, which lies northwest of Avdiyivka, had been overrun by Russian forces. Russian forces are also pressuring Ukrainian lines at Robotyne, in the Zaporizhzhya region; near Kupyansk, on the eastern edge of the Kharkiv region; and west of Bakhmut, another Donetsk region city that was reduced to rubble before Russian troops, with major casualties, captured it in May 2023, 'Stabilize The Front Line' About a week prior to Avdiyivka's fall, Ukraine's top command was roiled when President Volodymyr Zelenskiy dismissed Zaluzhniy. He was replaced with the head of the country's ground forces, Colonel General Oleksandyr Syrskiy. Syrskiy ultimately gave the order to withdraw. Syrskiy's replacement as ground forces commander, Lieutenant General Oleksandr Pavlyuk, last week suggested Ukrainian forces might be able to stage another offensive this coming year. "Our task is to stabilize the front line, to destroy as much as possible, which we are doing, and to regroup as much as possible to withdraw the units that already need to be replenished and restored on the training ground, in order to create a strike group and conduct counterattacks this year," Pavlyuk said during a government-sponsored TV broadcast. It's an open question whether a new counteroffensive will be possible. That's especially true as authorities rush to build defensive lines that critics say should have been built months ago. Last November, as Russian forces pressured Avdiyivka, Zelenskiy announced that a series of new fortifications and defense would be built to the west of the city and in other locations. "On all main fronts, we need to dig in, we need to speed up the pace of construction," Zelenskiy said on November 30. "Ukraine does not have good secondary lines, it doesn't have something like the Surovikin Lines the Russians built last year," said Michael Kofman, another veteran military analyst at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "In fact, Ukraine is quite behind on effectively entrenching across the front." Russian forces may have momentum, Kofman said, but they also may find small areas where they're able to gradually poke through Ukrainian lines. "It's potentially a slippery slope where you get like a death by a thousand cuts or essentially death by a thousand localized offensives," he said in a War On The Rocks podcast broadcast on February 24. "Why was 2023 the year without building defense lines?" asked Ivan Stupak, an analyst with the Ukrainian Institute for the Future, a Kyiv think tank. "Because in 2022, we were excited, we were inspired by our victoriesso no need to dig in. It was a mistake, and now we have to do it in emergency mode. And in some places, on the front lines, our soldiers are digging these trenches under fire." "Who are we trying to fool, if there are no lines of engineering fortifications where our forces and equipment are?" Vladyslav Seleznyov, a military commentator and former Ukrainian military spokesman, told RFE/RL's Donbas.Realities. "In fact, our soldiers have become hostages to illegal decisions, or the absence of any decisions regarding the creation of those defensive lines and positions." "This sort of work should've started six months ago," Muzyka said. The Ukrainians "might find themselves in a situation when the Russians will start attacking fortifications where they haven't been finished at all.They're far behind schedule in building." Where Are The Guns? The other major headwind Ukrainian forces face is the spigot of U.S. and Western weaponry, which, due to election-year infighting in Washington, D.C., is now all but shut off. Whereas before Ukrainian troops were able to mostly match the rate of artillery fire from Russian forces, now the ratio is a heavily in Russia's favor: at least five-to-one and, by some estimates, as much as 10-to-1. U.S. officials on March 12 announced they had scraped together $300 million for a new weapons package that includes anti-aircraft missiles, 155-mm artillery rounds, longer-range ammunition for HIMARS systems, and cluster munitions. Still, CIA Director Willliam Burns told a Senate hearing on March 11 that Ukraine would lose "significant ground" without new U.S. equipment and weaponry. He said Ukraine could likely "hold its own" through 2024 into early next year, but beyond that was doubtful. "Without a surge in Western military aid and major changes to Kyiv's strategy, Ukraine's battlefield position will continue to worsen until it reaches a tipping point, possibly by this summer," said Dara Massicot, an expert on Russia's military and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "On the present course, in which Ukrainian ammunition and manpower needs are not met, Ukrainian units are likely to hollow out, making Russian breakthroughs a distinct possibility," Massicot wrote in Foreign Affairs. Vietnamese and Cambodian authorities cooperate to complete procedures to repatriate 15 Vietnamese tricked into going to Cambodia for work. Photo by VnExpress/Thai An Fifteen Vietnamese who were labor trafficked to Cambodia were repatriated on Tuesday after being detained by immigration. Border guards in Tay Ninh Province received the victims, who were handed over by Cambodian authorities, at the Moc Bai border gate. They were believed to have been taken to Cambodia with promises of high-paying jobs. A representative of the Moc Bai border gate guards said the 15 are aged 18-30. Only 10 of them have a passport, and the others do not have any personal documents, and were all detained at immigration while entering. The Vietnamese embassy then requested Cambodian authorities to quickly complete the procedures to send them back to Vietnam. The border guards and other authorities are verifying their identities and completing procedures to send them home. Localities on the Cambodia border, like Tay Ninh, Long An and An Giang provinces, have in recent times been receiving a large number of Vietnamese rescued from Cambodian casinos and other businesses. A majority of them are tricked into going to Cambodia with promises of high-paying jobs, but are then exploited and forced to lure more of their compatriots to that country. A Rolex watch is on display at a store in Hanoi in 2020. Photo by Unsplash/Tran Phuc The trial of a Frenchman accused of making millions selling fake luxury watches is putting the spotlight on an elaborate commerce of lucrative replicas spanning the globe. Nicknamed "the prince of fake," Julien V. has freely admitted to running a network of fake watch sales into France from Thailand between 2019 and 2022, before being arrested. He told investigators that contractors in China produced up to 10 watches per day for him -- most of them fakes of luxury Swiss brand Rolex -- resulting in total sales of 12,000 watches for a turnover of three million euros ($3.3 million). However a watch expert quoted in the Nice-Matin newspaper, Michel Vittini, said he believed Julien V. sold "at least 50,000" fake Rolexes. Some of them appear to have been virtually indistinguishable from the real thing, with Julien V. claiming that he could "make it completely real, or completely fake" depending on "what makes the customer happy." A credible China-made Rolex replica was priced at 500 euros, rising to 1,300 euros if it also had the double of a genuine serial number engraved, he said. For 6,500 euros the watch had an original automatic mechanism, and a custom-made timepiece made of entirely genuine parts could go up to 60,000 euros. Real Rolexes cost from around 5,000 euros to upwards of 70,000 euros, and keep or increase their value in the second-hand market. The high-quality fakes attracted the attention of Swiss watchmakers who hired private investigators, according to French media. Investigators closed in on Julien V. after arresting some of his online resellers. On trial since last week, he has taken charge of his own defense at the trial where he faces an army of lawyers for half a dozen of Swiss luxury watchmakers who have brought a civil case against him. Julien V., born in the French Riviera city of Nice in 1994 and a former pizza delivery man, said that he was a millionaire by the time he was 25, had 4 million euros stashed away in crypto-currency bitcoin and owned a Lamborghini as well as several properties in Thailand. Accepting orders via WhatsApp, he would ship the watches first to Germany to avoid attracting the attention of French customs, and then into France through the open border between both countries. One of his co-defendants, reseller Florian R., said that he would buy fake Rolexes for 200 euros and sell them on for 400. Asked by the presiding judge why he didn't charge more, Florian R. said: "These are fakes, I don't cheat people." The verdict in the trial is due on March 20. Stephen Maguire A court has heard a man set his sister's home on fire after she refused to sell herself for sex to get him money for drugs. Glen Friel appeared at Letterkenny Circuit Court in Co Donegal after pleading guilty to setting fire to his sister's rented home at Straleeny, Killybegs on April 22nd, 2020. The court heard how the 24-year-old accused arrived at the house and wanted his sister to give him money for drugs and even asked her to sell her body for money and threatened to kill her if she refused. The terrified woman asked her mother to call gardai and Friel then managed to barricade himself into the house. His sister left the house, which she had been renting for five years. The court heard Friel smashed the property before setting it alight and then fled the scene. The house belonged to a local man, Conal Doherty, and was worth 130,000, the court was told. 'Joy and revenge' Approximately 79,450 worth of damage was caused to the house, and the contents of the house were not insured. When arrested, Friel made some admissions and said he wanted to start the fire to bring him "joy and revenge". He told gardai he was hoping to get revenge on his sister Linda as she had been a "bitch" to him that day. "I do feel a bit angry, but I'm sorry at the same time," he told gardai. Garda Sergeant Stuart Doyle said Friel admitted to starting the fire with a lighter, but did not think he had started it in the bedroom of the house as the fire service had suspected. The court was told that Friel, of no fixed abode, has 12 previous convictions, including for threatening and abusive behaviour, assault, possession of drugs, and intoxication in a public place. The injured party, Mr Doherty, did not attend court or submit a victim impact statement. Troubled individual Barrister for the accused, Colm Smyth, SC, said his client had a number of issues. Counsel said Friel suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after his brother died by suicide when the accused was nine-years-old, and he was also sexually assaulted when he was a young boy. He no longer speaks to his parents and had been living rough in Dublin. Friel, who has been in custody since last October, took to the witness stand and expressed his remorse to Mr Doherty. Asking Judge John Aylmer to be as lenient as possible, Mr Smyth said his client is indeed a troubled individual with a number of diagnoses, including PTSD and a personality disorder. He has expressed a desire to get back on track and engage with various agencies, Mr Smyth said, adding that if he does not, he will end up in a very difficult position and his life will be cut short. "He doesn't immediately give one confidence, but I think he has a lot of outlying issues," his barrister added. Judge Aylmer adjourned the case until later in the week, requesting time to read the psychiatric report on Friel in more detail. Funding of 30,000 to develop plans to revitalise town centres in the county has been welcomed. Minister for Rural and Community Development, Heather Humphreys, and Minister of State with responsibility for Local Government and Planning, Kieran ODonnell published the first ever Town Centre First plans for 26 towns across every county. The plans, developed in consultation with local communities, represent the vision of local people for their area. Strokestown was among the towns selected in the last round of funding and its Town Centre First Plan was published online last week. Castlerea was also announced as the next County Roscommon Town that will develop a Town Centre First Plan under the latest phase of the programme. The funding will enable the Castlerea Town Team to work with Roscommon County Council to devise a Town Centre First Plan. The Strokestown Town Centre First Plan has identified transformational proposals and a five-year roadmap to achieve them. The proposals include creating a social, community and wellbeing hub, a coordinated plan for walking and cycle schemes in Strokestown and tackling vacant buildings and dereliction. Speaking at the launch of the plan, Jonathan Cassidy, Strokestown Town Team said: The plan has identified transformational proposals that will help Strokestown function as a viable, vibrant and attractive town for all its people. Fianna Fail Senator Eugene Murphy welcomed the publication of the Strokestown plan and the inclusion of Castlerea. Our Town Teams are doing great work around the country creating and driving forward ambitious plans. We want to see many more town teams, so it is very welcome that the Department of Rural and Community Development is giving local authorities funding of up to 10,000 to establish new town teams or build up existing teams, he said. Today we have also launched a new Town Centre First website where people can find out how to get involved. Senator Aisling Dolan said that the fund was a credit to voluntary town teams who were working hard for their local community. This is a great win for Castlerea, this investment will bring such a boost to the town centre. I know how active the businesses and local community are in promoting their town, the Fine Gael senator said. Castlerea has a lot to offer and this government investment will see a lot more development for the benefit of all. Senator Dolan also praised the publication of the plan for Strokestown. Well done to Jonathan Cassidy and all the local volunteers working with business and the local community to build a vision of how we wish to see Strokestown grow over the next number of years, she said. Our local councillors have been strong advocates for Castlerea including local election candidate Gareth Scahill working with the Castlerea Town Team as well as Cllr Liam Callaghan. Mr Scahill welcomed the funding for Castlerea, saying it would empower the Castlerea Town Team, along with the council, to develop an all-encompassing plan for the town. On behalf of everyone on Castlerea Town Team I want to thank everyone for supporting this, he said and he also thanked the areas three councillors, Cllrs Nigel Dineen, Paschal Fitzmaurice, and Anthony Waldron. He also thanked the department for selecting Castlerea as well as all the members of the Castlerea Town Team, who have put in endless hours. We plan on being on the ground, engaging with the community and getting as much feedback as we can. This is a very good announcement for Castlerea and the surrounding area and we are very excited about it, he said. Once this plan is completed, and once we start delivering on the projects, we will have a much more vibrant and enhanced community. One that we are already proud of, but one that we can be even prouder of. Una Ni Chuinn of Roscommon County Council also welcomed the announcement for Castlerea, and looked forward to working to develop the best plan for the town. This is an exciting time for all of our Town Teams, who do tremendous work and take immense pride in their communities. This pride will further inspire all of our towns and villages and in turn, attract new people and visitors to our towns to live, work and invest in, said Ms Ni Chuinn. In County Leitrim Carrick-on-Shannon was selected, which has been welcomed by Fine Gael TD Frank Feighan. I am pleased to see Carrick-on-Shannon as part of the next 26 successful towns across the country, said Deputy Feighan. Razakar movie OTT Platform Release update Date News Razakar is an upcoming Hindi movie Razakar movie OTT Release Date Update News : Razakar is an upcoming movie scheduled to be released on March 15, 2024. It is a Telugu language which is also dubbed in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam language historical film that features actors like Raj Arjun, Bobby Simha, Anasuya Bharadwaj, Vedhika, Indraja,Thalaivasal Vijay, John Vijay, while it is directed by Yaata Satyanarayana. "Razakar" delves into the historical backdrop of the Hyderabad Liberation Movement of 1948, portraying the challenges faced by the people of Andhra Pradesh in asserting their religious and cultural identity following India's independence. Advertisement The film depicts the struggles endured by the community amidst military and political oppression, offering a narrative that sheds light on the complexities of reclaiming autonomy and identity in the aftermath of colonial rule. Through its depiction of historical events and characters, "Razakar" provides insight into a significant chapter in Indian history, exploring themes of resistance, strenght, and the quest for freedom. "Razakar" OTT Platform Release Date Update News : The makers of "Razakar" have not yet confirmed any OTT release date as of now. However, there might be further announcements regarding the streaming of the movie online after its theatrical release. South Korea will on Wednesday release February figures for unemployment, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. In January, the jobless rate was 3.0 percent. Indonesia will see February results for its consumer confidence index; in January, the index score was 125.0. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. Teledyne Technologies Inc. (TDY) Tuesday said it has agreed to buy Valeport Holdings Ltd. and its affiliates. Valeport, founded in 1969 and headquartered in Totnes, United Kingdom, designs and manufactures underwater sensors for environmental, energy, construction and defense applications. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. "We are delighted that Valeport will join Teledyne Marine and expand our offerings," said George Bobb, President and Chief Operating Officer of Teledyne. "Through more than 20 acquisitions and ongoing collaboration, Teledyne Marine brings imaging, instruments, interconnects, acoustics, and complete subsea vehicle technology together to provide total solutions to our customers." For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Oil prices rebounded on Wednesday after settling lower in the previous session amid uncertainty over the pace of Fed rate cuts. Benchmark Brent crude futures jumped 1.1 percent to $82.81 a barrel, while WTI crude futures were up 1.1 percent at $78.44. Heightened geopolitical tensions lent some support after a wave of drone strikes targeted Russia's oil refineries for the second day in a row. "The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone," Pavel Malkov, the governor of the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, wrote on Telegram. Oil prices also benefited from industry data showing a large, unexpected draw in U.S. crude inventories and a report from OPEC that said global oil demand will likely remain strong this year and in 2025. According to the American Petroleum Institute, U.S. crude stockpiles shrank by 5.5 million barrels in the week to March 8 versus expectations for a build of 0.4 million barrels. OPEC expects oil demand this year to rise 1.43 million barrels per day over the previous year, slightly up from an earlier forecast for a rise of 1.42 million barrels per day. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Market Analysis The United States has announced an emergency package of security assistance of $300 million worth of weapons and equipment to address some of Ukraine's pressing needs. Announcing this at a White House briefing, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the emergency package is one that Ukraine desperately needs to hold the line against Russian attacks and to push back against the continuing Russian onslaught in the east and in other parts of Ukraine. "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period but only a short period. It is nowhere near enough to meet Ukraine's battlefield needs, and it will not prevent Ukraine from running out of ammunition in the weeks to come." Sullivan told reporters that the U.S. cannot continue to support Ukraine's fight against Russia without additional funding from Congress. "This ammunition will keep Ukraine's guns firing for a period, but only a short period," Sullivan said. "This package does not displace and should not delay the critical need to pass the bipartisan national security bill." Capabilities provided in the latest military package include Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), artillery shells, anti-tank weapons, demolitions, and small arms ammunition, and spare parts and other ancillary equipment. Since Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, the U.S. has provided some $44.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. This latest round of presidential drawdown authority, or PDA, is the first this year and was made possible after the Army negotiated a lower price for replacing supplies already sent to Ukraine. With that finding, additional funds became available. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News A US warship came under ballistic missile attack by the Houthis in the Red Sea. United States Central Command said the Iranian-backed terrorists fired one close-range ballistic missile from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward USS Laboon in the early hours of Tuesday. The missile did not impact the vessel and there were no injuries or damage reported. Centcom said it and a coalition vessel successfully engaged and destroyed two drones launched from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen after realizing that these weapons presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships. These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S. Navy and merchant vessels, it added. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Press Release March 13, 2024 Transcript of Senator Risa Hontiveros interview with Karen Davila on ANC's Headstart March 13, 2024 Q: Senator Hontiveros, good morning to you. Senator Risa Hontiveros (SRH): Good morning Karen Q: Alright, so take us what can happen. Pastor Apollo Quiboloy has 48 hours. Most likely, he may not show up in the Senate, but then you may have a surprise. Let's say he doesn't reveal himself. He does not attend. What can happen? SRH: Well, if the pastor, does not, within these two days, 48 hours, show cause, give a good reason to the Senate, for why he should not be arrested, that arrest process will be set into motion. The show cause order is dated 13th March today. So he has, in principle, until Friday to give us a good reason why he doesn't show up, so he should not be arrested. And if he doesn't speak or give a good reason, then the Senate President who signed the show cause order will instruct the OSAA to effect the arrest. Q: Okay. But then Quiboloy is in hiding. If the Senate instructs the arrest and he cannot be found, what happens then, Senator? SRH: We ask the Senate President, I asked that question also about an earlier matter during one of the earlier hearings. Noon, yung issue pa lang ay subpoena. Because that was the time na he had ignored not one, but two invitations of my Senate Committee on Women. So subpoena yung pinag-uusapan namin. And someone did ask, how are we going to serve it if OSAA cannot find him? And naitanong ko yun sa DILG. And they replied in the affirmative that yes, the PNP could be requested by the Senate to assist our Office of the Sergeant at Arms. So I believe, lalo na sa ganitong later stage ng posibleng arrest na kung hindi mahanap ng aming Senate security, pwedeng mag-request kami ng tulong ng Philippine National Police. Q: Alright. Now, there are two hearings that are ongoing and I think it's important just to give an overview to the audience. The hearing that is going on in the lower house is regarding the franchise of SMNI. Of course, it is still associated with Apollo Quiboloy, but it has nothing to do with the hearings going on under your committee in the Senate. SRH: That's right, because franchise bills emanate from the House. So unless and until the House transmits their completed franchise bill, well, renewal, or rejection of it, the Senate will not be able to work on it. Indirectly lang, nababanggit ang SMNI sa mga hearings namin sa Senado because one of the witnesses, victim-survivors, alias Rene, told us that in the years he was made to work as a researcher at kung ano-ano pa, SMNI, he never received a regular wage, he never received the, the benefits due him under the law. And in fact, yun yung isa sa mga legislative issues na nag-e-emerge sa mga hearings namin. We always say, we conduct investigations of resolutions in aid of legislation. And that very issue is relevant sa kaso ni alias Rene. Yung tanong na, anong mga labor laws natin nagre-regulate ng mga sinasabing voluntary na trabaho? Pero malinaw, there are violations of labor. There are also violations of occupational safety and health standards. So, wala bang proteksyon ng batas para sa mga katulad ni alias Rene? Q: But that's a smaller issue. I mean, it is serious. But compared to the other allegations that Pastor Apollo Quiboloy is facing, right? In the United States alone, he is facing charges of child trafficking, sex trafficking, child abuse in, in terms of, in sexual forms as well I believe. Are there issues of money laundering as well? SRH: I think there are half a dozen cases already or charges that have been filed in court. I'm really glad na pinabuksan nung judge na yun sa California yung, yung warrant instrument. And it's possible na isa sa kalahating, I'm just looking for, my list here, it's a half, list of a half dozen, also includes money laundering or something related to it. Dahil isa na yun sa alam natin, medyo matagal-tagal ng iniimbestigahan ang Federal Bureau of Investigation so that the, the U.S. government had frozen Quiboloy's assets in their country. They had placed Quiboloy on the FBI's most wanted list. Ito yung listahan of the charges, the cases against Quiboloy in the U.S. by virtue of that unsealed warrant. Charges of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud, coercion, sex trafficking of children, conspiracy, and cash smuggling. So, bakaisa o ilan dito ay related sa money laundering. So, seryoso, in our own next hearing in the Senate, we will be inviting the Anti-Money Laundering Council. Dahil, doon naman sa testimonya nung isa pang victim survivor, si Reynita, and she revealed her true name, she she showed her face on camera from Singapore. She told of how ginagamit yung mga savings accounts nilang mga OFW para doon magdaan ng mga malalaking halagang pera papunta kay Quiboloy doon sa Davao. So, kaya tatanungin din namin ng AMLC sa issue iyan in the next hearing. Q: Okay. Now, here is a man who is you've talked about, you've mentioned six or seven charges, but let's talk about one. A man who is accused of sex trafficking of children in the United States. And you have colleagues, Senator Robin Padilla, Senator Cynthia Villar, Senator Imee Marcos, and now, no less than Vice President Sarah Duterte, defending a suspected sex trafficker of children, no less. Now, what is your reaction to this? SRH: Well, first, I'm just glad na yung majority ng mga kasama ko sa Senado upheld my ruling citing Quiboloy in contempt. And that has paved the way for this show-cause order na una nating pinag-usapan, na pinirmahan namin ni Senate President Migz Zubiri and umaandar na ngayong 48-hour period. Pero, nakapagtataka kapag ang administrasyon or at least the office of the Vice President, mas dedepensahan pa nila yung precisely isang tao na accused of the worst crimes against the most vulnerable of our society. Dapat sana yung energy na yan ibuhos na lang nila sa pagdepensa sa mga karapatan ng ating mga mamamayan at precisely children who are dorced to beg, OFWs like Reynita, forced to give up their hard-earned remittances para suportahan yung lavish lifestyle ni Quiboloy sa halip na ipadala sa kanilang mga pamilya. For one, Reynita lost her house here in the Philippines dahil hindi na niya mabayaran yung mortgage. Dapat depensahan yung mga babae na paulit-ulit ginagahasa in the belief foisted upon them na sakripisyo nila yun for the so-called appointed son of God. So dapat sana pagdepensa sa mga kababayang iyon. Pagdepensa sa soberanya natin sa West Philippines at marami pang ibang problema. Instead of at such a high office of the government defending someone who over time sa kanyang pag-iwas, sa pagharap sa imbestigasyon, hindi pagbigay ng maayos na sagot, pagtatago, paglabas ng napaka sabi ko out of this world ng mga kondisyones. So someone who over time seems less and less to deserve that kind of high defense. Q: And what's interesting right now is that, considering you are in the minority, there are only two of you. Yourself, who's quite vocal on so many issues and Senator Koko Pimentel, two opposition senators and yet the majority isn't voting as one when it comes to this matter. That's so interesting. Don't you think? That they don't accept the numbers. They don't accept the numbers when it comes to Quiboloy. Senator Robin Padilla was trying. You have a senior member like Senator Cynthia Villar standing up for him. You don't do that to a friend, the president's sister. And yet, none of the other majority senators are budging. SRH: I really thank them for their firm stand upholding the speaking of truth and the seeking of justice of all the victim-survivors. Lalo na yung mga kabaro natin at yung mga menor de edad. Altogether, we prove once again that the Senate can cross party lines and stand up as an institution for the rights and welfare of the most vulnerable. Nagpapasalamat talaga ako sa kanila. Q: Okay. Now, Pastor Quiboloy not showing up for the Senate is one thing. But next complexity is if a warrant of arrest is issued against him by the United States. Let's talk about that. Are we bound as a country to actually surrender Quiboloy, to turn him over? Right? Are we bound? SRH: That's a serious option for our government because we actually have an extradition treaty between the Philippines and the United States. So if and when an extradition request will come from the U.S., option talaga ng gobyerno natin na at some point or other to send him to the U.S. to also face the cases there. Of course, ang isa pang magandang development dito, nag-hain na ng mga kaso ang Department of Justice with the assistance of the Solicitor General laban kay Quiboloy on two of the three cases na hinain sa kanya sa Davao, dinismiss doon, pero inelevate nung complainant sa DOJ. The two cases that DOJ has now filed involve child abuse and human trafficking. So yun yung dalawang kasong umaandar na dito sa Philippine court. If, and when that US extradition request is received by our government, then pwede silang mag-decide itutuloy muna ba yung mga kaso dito or ipadadala na muna siya sa US under extradition or tapusin muna yung mga kaso dito saka i-extradite. But at least, nung itinanong namin yung isyung iyan, I think second to the most recent hearing, nakapagsalita ang DOJ sa ganung mga options. So at least, they're already thinking about or preparing for the eventuality of an extradition request. Q: Now, the side of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, I think both in the lower house and in the Senate, has actually said that he's being targeted politically... That his rights are being violated, right? So you have two houses that are holding up big hearings for different issues but essentially both against him. Now, in terms of the Senate, was there a shortcut? Was there a new process? Is he being politicized and targeted? Or if it would have been another person facing the same issue at this point, he would have been really issued a contempt order? Or in fact, has the Senate given him some leeway? SRH: Hmm. Actually, no shortcuts at all. But, I believe, no leeway either. The Senate has simply followed our rules. Simpleng ine-exercise namin yung aming mandato at yung aming mga kapangyarihan under the law and under our rules. To, and even the Supreme Court has spoken on this, na to compel the appearance of witnesses to, in proper investigations of resolutions with a legislative intent. Wala pong paglabag sa due process kay Pastor Quiboloy. Wala pong pagpapaimportante ng Senado over other institutions or even branches of government. And again, the Supreme Court has spoken on that point. Actually, Quiboloy dug his own grave. Imagine, pinadala namin siya ng hindi nga isa lamang dalawang, imbitasyon. Nung dinedma niya yung mga yon, saka kami, nag-issue ng subpoena. At nung dinedma pa niya yon, saka kami, may show cause order kung ba't hindi siya dapat arestuhin. And he has two full days to simply communicate to us a good enough reason why he should not be arrested. At ang daming ibang mga resource person, including officials of state and church na humarap sa Senate hearings in the aid of legislation. So hindi siya naiiba sa kahit sinong mamamayan ng Pilipinas. All of us who are accountable to our laws. Q: And in fact, I mean, if we go back, I mean, in history, I've been a journalist for so long. If an ordinary citizen was attending a Senate hearing, and in so many cases in the past, that citizen refused to answer, refused to cooperate, you'd have previous committee chair citing them in contempt and frankly, detaining them in the Senate. SRH: Opo, hindi pa nga umaabot sa ganyan si Pastor. And at least, in the case of those citizens, they actually attended at least one hearing. Eh si Quiboloy, hindi pa nga naga-attend kung ano-ano ng mga demands, kondisyones. Sabi ko nga, yung 17 conditions niya na lumabas sa kanilang mga social media platforms, daig pa ang sampung utos ng Diyos. Whereas citizens, countless citizens by now, and counting, have simply respected the Senate, respected its processes, and made themselves available. Siya itong playing super hard to get talaga. Q: Now, Senator, Senate investigations are in aid of legislation. But the fact is, committee reports coming from the Senate can actually be used in court. Am I correct? SRH: That's right. Q: So that's the other thing here, right? Even if it's in aid of legislation, there's a probative value because it can be used as evidence, right? SRH: Tama. And it has been in many cases in the past. And in fact, kahit habang tumatakbo pa ang hearing, there have been times, for example, in our Senate Committee on Women Investigation of POGO-related crimes against women and others, naglunsad na rin ng parallel investigations, yung mga investigative and law enforcement agencies natin. And they have, even during the Senate hearings, already imposed disciplinary actions against those they found and proved to be guilty. Q: So in connection to that, Senator, what is the intention of your hearing? Of course, getting to the truth is the ultimate intention. But is it really in aid of legislation? Or you believe Quiboloy is a dangerous man who's abused his power? And frankly, we need to help ordinary citizens build a case against him. Where does your intention lie? SRH: Of course, in principle, in both. But the second effect, it's not for the Senate to establish his innocence or guilt in terms of those crimes and to impose a sentence. It's really on our courts. But the first purpose is squarely within our mandate. At nasabi ko na rin sa opening statement ko sa most recent hearing, there are emerging already at least three areas of legislation that our hearing will surely be able to address sa aming committee report, sa findings and recommendations. Isa na dun yung sexual abuse within secretive religious organizations and issue of consent in faith-based dynamics. Matatanong kasi natin, meron bang meaningful consent kapag yung babae o yung menor de edad is isolated, is controlled in his or her physical and psychological situation and then is placed in the position to sacrifice herself, her body even, to someone claiming to be the appointed son of God. So anong areas, anong amendments sa ating mga batas ang kakailanganin to protect still the rights and welfare of a woman or a person in that situation. Isa pang emerging area for corrective legislation, the inability of our labor laws to sufficiently address voluntary labor arrangements where there are no clear employee-employee relationships but clear violations of labor and occupational and safety health services. We talked about Alias Rene, even SSS and DOLE did not determine what category of worker he belonged to. Q: And that's a good point you're making there. I'll take on the second one. It's because religious organizations, I'm not sure if it's only in the Philippines, but they're tax-free. Right? In the Philippines. So if they're tax-free, they don't consider themselves most likely an employing entity, right? So they're in that gray zone. And then you do have many, many or possibly churches who could be abusing workers because of that definition that they're tax-free. That they're essentially not a corporation that employs people per se. That's one. SRH: Yes, I know of churches who like this Kingdom of Jesus Christ of Quiboloy which runs a media network that's now being reviewed in its franchise in the House who are violating their workers' rights. I also know of churches na meron ding mga attached companies pero may malinaw na sweldo at mga benefits. At yung mga pera ng mga simbahan that are for their religious, truly religious activities, yun ang tax-free. Pero dito sa kaso ni Quiboloy, baka pwede natin itanong, yung mga pera which he makes his followers beg. And then they go to his personal use. Tulad nung sinabi ni Sir Dindo from Canada, maya't maya they've been asked for 40,000-60,000 Canadian dollars for the jet fuel of Quiboloy's private jet. Church activity ba yun? Should that be? Q: My bigger issue really is, is it time to really review? It's very hard for legislators to do this because it might be unpopular to the church. But frankly, should churches be tax-free? I mean, seriously. SRH: Well, that can be asked. And if the correct answer is yes, then it can be (inaudible). In areas where it's abused for the personal use to support lavish lifestyles of self-appointed religious figures who are on the side pala for years abusing their followers and violating the laws of our Republic. Eh talagang excuse me. Paano bibigyan ng tax shelter pala yung ganyang klaseng mga self-appointed na kung ano-ano? Q: Another issue you brought up was the minor who was 15 years old. I wanted to ask you, isn't the law that's existing, isn't 16 years old? Please correct me with this, Senator. Isn't that the age of consent in the Philippines? SRH: It's now the age of consent. We raised it in the bill, the now law, we raised the very low age of consent before of only 12 to 16. Yes. Q: So technically speaking, if the 15-year-old who testified in the Senate was forced to have sex, supposedly, at 15, prior to the lifting of the age of consent, would her situation be a gray situation or would the uplifting of the law cover her situation? SRH: Yung batas kasi hindi siya pwedeng retroactive. Pero at least established na yung prinsipyo that even then, when she was a minor, she's now of legal age, but she was a minor then, may paglabag na nangyari. And even if she had been of legal age already, if that constituted rape, punishable na rin noon at lalo na ngayon. Q: Okay. So I think I want to stick with this issue. Because it's quite urgent in the sense that there's a 48-hour countdown for Pastor Quiboloy to actually show up in the Senate and present himself. If he does, what can he be assured of? You have this lawyer, right? Attorney Ferdie Topacio, telling you in the Senate hearing, it's because of all the frenzy, he's scared for, you heard that, right? So, if within two days, his mind can be convinced to show up, what can he expect? SRH: He can expect a solid hearing, like the committees of the Senate have been conducting, I can't say from time immemorial, but for many years, bound by our own rules, cognizant of Supreme Court rulings with regard to the delimitations between branches of government and how we conduct our work. Ang tagal-tagal na niya kasing iniimbita eh. Siya yung ayaw magpaunlak. So, of course, actually, the frenzy that his lawyer talks about is not created by the Senate or any government institution. Sabi ko nga kanina, he dug his own grave. Dahil umiiwas siya, hindi magbigay nang maayos na sagot, may mga kondisyones, tuloy naisip ng publiko na mayroon siya talagang tintago. That's where the frenzy is coming from, from him. Q: All right. To end this, I think what's most important is, with your resolution, is the fact, is this right to say, you have the support of the Senate President? SRH: I'm very glad of that. So, today, the show cause order signed by SP Migz Zubiri and me is out. And yes, you're right, that starts the clock ticking for 48 hours. Quiboloy has to give the Senate a good reason why he should not be arrested. Otherwise, he will be. And we have the full force of the Senate, through the Senate leadership behind that. Q: What is your warning for Pastor Apollo Quiboloy? This is a man who's had thousands, hundreds of thousands of followers and to a degree has lorded it over in Davao for decades, right? And has built his own kingdom. I've actually been in the compound at one point many years ago, interviewed him for Correspondents, and it's really a whole other world. There's a different set of rules there. SRH: Well, my warning for him is, you know, all these years that you have laid down and imposed those rules on your followers, even to the point of abusing their rights and welfare, in the Senate you will find that we follow our rules, but we also expect citizens like yourself, Pastor Quiboloy, whom we ask to speak on issues that are important to people to respect those rules. Dahil ayaw niyong respetuhin yung mga rules na iyan sa imbitasyon namin sa sabi na, eto na kayo ngayon sa puntong ito na baka maaresto. So give us a good reason why we shouldn't do that. Otherwise, the Senate will exercise its mandate. On March 6, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis were nearing the end their inspection of an apartment block in Odesa where a recent attack by Russian drones had killed 12 people when a Russian missile struck just a few hundred meters away from the two leaders. Five Ukrainians died in the explosion. On March 6, Russias strikes against the port city of Odesa were another stark reminder of how Russia is unleashing daily, destructive attacks against Ukraines people and infrastructure, said Robert Wood, U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the UN. Russias attempts to justify the unjustifiable today do not change simple facts. That Russia continues to conduct a war of aggression against another sovereign UN Member State in violation of the Charter. That Ukraine would not need to call for urgent meetings of this Council if Russia would cease its aggression. That Ukrainian civilians are suffering daily death and destruction as a result of the Kremlins attempts to conquer and subjugate their country. We must not forget that after Russia suspended its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, depriving some of the worlds most food insecure countries of Ukraines grain, the Kremlin did not stop there. It launched more attacks on Odesas ports, infrastructure and grain storage, said Ambassador Wood. These attacks were not only cruel. They were part of a campaign to decimate Ukraines economy after failing to defeat its military. In those strikes, Russia destroyed more than 300,000 tons of grain and vital storage facilities. Ukraine responded with resiliency and creativity, launching a humanitarian corridor that brought Ukraines exports back to numbers not seen since the start of Russias full-scale invasion, he said. Russia is not only attacking food infrastructure, but also energy infrastructure, said Ambassador Wood. At every turn, the Kremlin chooses the path of war and escalation. It doubles down on nuclear saber-rattling and brazenly procures ballistic missiles and other munitions from the DPRK in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, he said. The United States will continue to stand with Ukraine and call for accountability, said Ambassador Wood. The path forward is clear. Russia must cease its attacks against Ukraine and immediately and fully withdraw from all territory within Ukraines internationally recognized borders. The United States will offer to sell Poland 96 AH-64 Apache helicopters. This is a major step to provide Poland's armed forces with cutting-edge capability to defend itself, strengthen NATO interoperability, and further bolster the U.S. defense industry, the White House said in a readout of President Joe Biden's meeting with Polish leaders. The Boeing AH-64 Apache is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter. Primarily operated by the U.S. Army, the AH-64 has also become the primary attack helicopter of multiple nations. Biden hosted Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk for a joint meeting at the White House marking the 25th anniversary of Poland's accession to NATO. At the meeting, President Biden announced that the United States will move forward with a new $2 billion Foreign Military Financing (FMF) direct loan to Poland to bolster its security and support its defense modernization using previously appropriated congressional funds. This loan will enable Poland's purchase of additional U.S. defense equipment, further supporting U.S. jobs and deepening the two nations' security relationship. The leaders committed to ensuring continued support of Ukraine's self-defense against Russia's attacks. They also discussed the strong U.S.-Polish energy security partnership and the enduring importance of democratic values. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News The European Commission has recommended to open EU accession negotiations with Bosnia and Herzegovina. As requested by the European Council, the Commission is presenting to the Council a report on progress made by Bosnia and Herzegovina. As outlined in the report, since the European Council granted candidate status to the country in December 2022, the public commitment of the political leadership to the strategic goal of European integration was taken forward by important reforms and have brought positive results. Bosnia and Herzegovina has shown strong commitment to move forward on long pending reforms such as the adoption of the law on the prevention of conflict of interests and the law on anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing. The Balkan country has taken significant steps to improve the judiciary and prosecutorial system, the fight against corruption, organised crime and terrorism and to improve migration management, with the approval of a mandate to negotiate a Frontex status agreement. Bosnia and Herzegovina has reached and maintained full alignment with the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy, which is a significant positive step and crucial in these times of geopolitical turmoil, the Commission said. The Commission said it also discussed the upcoming oral report to the Council on the progress made by Ukraine and Moldova to address the outstanding steps made in the Commission's Enlargement report of November. The Commission has also finalised proposals for the draft Negotiating Frameworks with these countries, which will be submitted to the Council. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 completed the agency's seventh commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station after spending 199 days in orbit. On Tuesday, the international crew of four splashed down safely in a Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Pensacola, Florida. NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Russian cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov returned to Earth, splashing down at 5:47 a.m. EDT. Teams aboard SpaceX recovery vessels retrieved the spacecraft and its crew. After returning to shore, the crew will fly to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov traveled 84,434,094 miles during their mission, spent 197 days aboard the space station, and completed 3,184 orbits around Earth. The Crew-7 mission was the first spaceflight for Moghbeli and Borisov. Mogensen has logged 209 days in space over his two flights, and Furukawa has logged 366 days in space over his two flights. Throughout their mission, the Crew-7 members contributed to a host of science and maintenance activities and demonstrations. Moghbeli conducted one spacewalk, joined by NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara, replacing one of the 12 trundle bearing assemblies on the port solar alpha rotary joint, which allows the arrays to track the Sun and generate electricity to power the station. The crew contributed to hundreds of experiments and technology demonstrations, including the first study of human response to different spaceflight durations, and an experiment growing food on the space station. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) has issued a warning after two cases of rabies in bobcats were confirmed in the state. In Grant County, a man was attacked by one of the rabid bobcats near his home, while in Sierra County, a dog was attacked by the second infected bobcat. The man who was attacked is now receiving shots to prevent rabies, and the dog is currently under observation for 45 days, despite being current on its rabies vaccine. Both infected bobcats were euthanized. State Public Health Veterinarian, Erin Phipps, emphasized the importance of vaccinating pets against rabies, as the disease can be fatal once symptoms start showing and there is no cure. Phipps also stated that "Unvaccinated pets exposed to a rabid animal must either be euthanized or put into strict isolation for four months to prevent them from exposing people to rabies." The officials from NMDOH caution that rabid wild animals may exhibit no fear of humans, displaying either aggression or appearing quiet and tame. To prevent rabies, the DOH recommends keeping pets on a leash and ensuring that they are up to date on rabies vaccinations, as even indoor pets can be at risk of exposure, contacting a veterinarian if the pet is bitten or scratched by a wild animal, and considering vaccinating horses and other livestock against rabies. It is also important to avoid contact with wild or unfamiliar animals, and if bitten by an animal, wash the wound with soap and water, inform local animal control, and seek medical attention. In case of exposure to the saliva of wild animals, people are advised to seek medical care immediately and contact the DOH helpline at 833-796-8773. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Tesla Inc. (TSLA) founder Elon Musk on Wednesday visited the Tesla Gigafactory near Berlin, where production was halted due to an arson attack. According to reports, Musk waved to workers as he arrived at the factory in the German state Brandenburg. He also addressed them on stage in a tent where employees gathered to meet him. Reports also said that Musk told the crowd, "I love you," in German. Meanwhile, Musk is reportedly expected to meet regional politicians during his visit to Germany. Last week, Tesla was forced to halt production at its Gigafactory due to a suspected arson attack at a nearby power substation. The attack set an electricity pylon close to the site ablaze. However, the fire did not spread to the Tesla facility. Tesla's Gruenheide factory is located southeast of the German capital Berlin. The Tesla site, which employs around 12,500 people, was evacuated and most employees were sent home. Left-wing extremist group Vulkangruppe claimed responsibility for the attack in a letter posted online, criticizing Tesla's environmental competencies. Regional authorities are still investigating the case. "These are either the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth or they're puppets of those who don't have good environmental goals," Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on X about the attack. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News A surgical team at Cromwell Hospital in London utilized Apple's (AAPL) Vision Pro headset to perform two spinal surgeries. Surgeons Fady Sedra and Syed Aftab led the surgery, but it was a scrub nurse who wore the $3,500 headset to assist them during the preparations of surgery and during the spinal procedures. Vision Pro showed virtual screens in the operating room to help select tools and monitor progress during the surgery. The software used in the surgery was developed by eXeX, a company that focuses on the development of AI-driven apps for surgeons. "Working with eXeX to use the Apple Vision Pro has made a huge difference to the way we deliver care to our patients," said Aftab. "It's a real privilege to be the first team in the UK and Europe to use this software within surgery and I'm looking forward to seeing how this advances and the impact it can have across hospitals." The tech giant had earlier claimed that Vision Pro could be the future of medical devices. The company stated in a press release that a medical technology company, Stryker, is developing an app named "myMako" exclusively for Vision Pro to help doctors in developing surgical plans for hip and knee replacements using 3D models and other tools. "With the unique capabilities of visionOS, healthcare developers are creating new apps that were not previously possible, transforming areas such as clinical education, surgical planning, training, medical imaging, behavioral , and more," Apple said. The smartphone maker added that several medical companies and developers are harnessing Vision Pro to develop the healthcare sector, with the help of apps such as Fundamental Surgery, CollaboratOR 3D, and Complete HeartX. According to a CNBC report, a virtual reality headset by Apple's rival, Meta Platforms (META), was utilized by doctors at Kettering Health Dayton in Ohio for a mock procedure in 2022. It has also been used by the doctors to practice surgeries before actual operations. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Oil prices rose sharply on Wednesday after data showed an unexpected drop in U.S. crude inventories in the week ended March 8th. Supply disruptions in Russia due to continued attacks by Ukrainian drones on Russian oil refineries contributed as well the rise in oil prices. "The Ryazan oil refinery was attacked by a drone," Pavel Malkov, the governor of the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, wrote on Telegram. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April ended higher by $2.16 or about 2.8% at $79.72 a barrel. Brent crude futures were up $2.25 or 2.75% at $84.17 a barrel a little while ago. Data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed crude inventories in the U.S. dropped by 1.5 million barrels last week. Gasoline stockpiles dropped by about 5.7 million barrels last week, as against expectations for a decline of 1.9 million barrels, while distillate stocks increased by 888,000 barrels, as against expectations of a 150,000-barrel decline. OPEC expects oil demand this year to rise 1.43 million barrels per day over the previous year, slightly up from an earlier forecast for a rise of 1.42 million barrels per day. The group expects oil demand to increase by about 1.85 million barrels per day next year. The focus now is on the monthly report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), due on Thursday. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Market Analysis United Airlines Holdings, Inc.'s (UAL) Boeing 777-300 aircraft had to return to Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport after a fuel leak was detected just after take-off. The incident marks the fifth reported issue for the airline in just over a week. The incident occurred during United Airlines Flight 830, which was carrying 167 passengers and 16 crew members on board and was originally bound for San Francisco. Fortunately, no one was injured, and all 183 people on board safely deplaned. The aircraft was met by fire crews upon landing, as captured in a video showing fluid leaking from the wheel area during take-off. Following the incident, passengers were accommodated overnight and rebooked for a flight to San Francisco the following day. However, just hours before this incident, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner from Sydney to Auckland experienced a technical event, causing injuries to 50 passengers, including one individual hitting the cabin ceiling. Both incidents are under investigation, and Boeing is facing heightened scrutiny from various government investigations. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has emphasized the need for Boeing to undergo significant changes in its safety and manufacturing standards. The Federal Aviation Administration, which falls under Buttigieg's jurisdiction, is also conducting a separate investigation into Boeing. Buttigieg has stressed the importance of Boeing's full cooperation with investigative bodies such as the Department of Justice and the National Transportation Safety Board. A recent report by The New York Times revealed that Boeing did not pass 33 out of 89 FAA inspections conducted after an incident involving an Alaska Airlines aircraft. The comprehensive six-week audit identified numerous deficiencies across various components of the 737 Max model, as disclosed in a presentation on the audit findings. The report mentioned that seven out of 13 audits that targeted Spirit AeroSystems, the manufacturer of the aircraft body, did not meet the requirements. An instance highlighted was the application of liquid Dawn dish soap for lubricating a door seal in a "fit-up" procedure. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Eli Lilly (LLY) announced that Amazon's (AMZN) Pharmacy subsidiary has agreed to deliver several prescription drugs, including weight loss drug Zepbound, directly to the customers' homes. Under the agreement, Amazon Pharmacy will deliver prescribed drugs for obesity, diabetes and migraine to the customers who have ordered through Eli Lilly's website, LillyDirect. "I think it's a wonderful advantage," Frank Cunningham, Eli Lilly's senior vice president of global value and access, said. "The goal is to have a fantastic customer experience where the product gets to them as soon as possible." The online pharmacy platform offers two-day deliveries to Amazon Prime members. It will also provide 24/7 access to clinical pharmacists to handle customer inquiries about the medications. "We actually don't think that's a high enough bar. We're still getting started," Amazon Pharmacy Vice President John Love told CNBC about the two-day delivery option. Love added, "But this is what I think makes us an attractive partner and collaborator for all sorts of folks like Lilly, payers, providers who are looking for a different type of pharmacy." LillyDirect launched in January, connects people directly with an independent company which prescribes drugs to eligible customers only, eliminating the need to go to doctor for prescription. The pharmaceutical giant also has another online delivery partner, Truepill, to deliver medications to patients. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Academics and researchers involved in the launch of the two new CoREs [PIC CREDIT: Lindokuhle Mnqayi] By Lance Myburgh Rhodes Universitys RU120 celebrations furthered its impact through the launch of two new ARUA/The Guild Africa-Europe Clusters of Research Excellence (CoREs), which took place on 08 March 2024. This event, a hybrid gathering, brought together stakeholders from the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA), The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities (The Guild), and additional universities participating in the newly-introduced CoREs. These include the Water Resources Management CoRE, under the co-leadership of Dr Jane Tanner, and the Creative Economies CoRE, co-led by Professor Jen Snowball at Rhodes University. The launch marked a pivotal moment in the Universitys commitment to advancing research education, celebrating decades of complex networks and academic research depth for the RU120 anniversary. The event facilitated crucial discussions around rebalancing research leadership and activities between Africa and Europe, urging collaborative efforts towards addressing water sustainability challenges and fostering creative economy development. The primary goal was to knit closer ties between universities in both hemispheres, fostering mutually beneficial and equitable research relationships for a sustainable future. Rhodes University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sizwe Mabizela, opened the event with a warm welcome extended to esteemed dignitaries, distinguished guests, local and international stakeholders, and all in-person and online attendees. In his opening address, he accentuated the dual nature of the challenges confronting humanity, emphasising their local and global dimensions. Professor Mabizela underscored Rhodes University's vision, and commitment to pioneering the creation and advancement of knowledge that is both locally responsive and globally engaged. Central to this vision is the University's dedication to fostering a just and equitable society, epitomising its role as a leader in higher education. CoRE - Water Resource Management for a sustainable and just future In an innovative effort, Professor Barbara Hribar (Physical Chemistry at the University of Ljubljana), Prof Nelson Odume (Institute for Water Research Director, Rhodes University) and Dr Tanner (Director of the ARUA Water Centre of Excellence) explored key advancements in understanding and managing water resources sustainably and justly. Dr Tanner presented strategies for reimagining water resources, focusing on sustainable management, resource recovery, and improved efficiency. She advocated for interdisciplinary PhD training and highlighted the commitment to European-African researcher collaboration. The launch of a Doctoral school programme, set for January 2026, aims to provide bursaries for 700 PhDs in the water sector, which includes exciting CoRE work in hydrological modelling and machine learning, addressing global water challenges. This new cluster represents the next step in showcasing the knowledge that Africa has, said Dr Tanner. CoRE - Creative Economies: cultures, innovation and sustainability The launch of the second CoRE was led by Professor Snowball, alongside Professor Duro Oni (University of Lagos), Professor Roberta Comunian, and Dr Eka Ikpe (Kings College London). They emphasised the importance of sustainable development through engagement with diverse cultures and community dialogues. This CoRE aims to be a global reference point for creative economy research, focusing on empowering higher education, bridging networks across continents, aligning with UNESCOs SDGs, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. The Creative Economies CoRE highlights both long-term impacts and short-term objectives, such as the Re Cr E A online seminar series and the monthly newsletter on African creative economies. The African Journal of Creative Economy (AJCE) was launched, an open-access journal published by AOSIS and affiliated to the CoRE was also launched. The AJCE is an interdisciplinary journal covering a wide range of areas, such as cultural policy, creative labour markets and cultural trade, that aims to offer a platform for research grounded in the African context. Representatives from the National Research Fund (NRF) in attendance emphasised that the foundation of the CoRE system fosters global collaboration, which better links to funding initiatives. In closing, Rhodes University Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Partnerships, Dr Kwezi Mzilikazi, stated, Rhodes University takes great pride in hosting events that foreground collaboration and excellence in research. Both Rhodes University representatives of the clusters, Dr Tanner and Prof Snowball, expressed their hope and aspiration for the legacy of this project in decentralising leadership to permit all involved to utilise the platform. Despite their reputation for being elite, I want to emphasise that the Clusters of Research Excellence are inclusive entities, said Professor Ernest Aryeetey from ARUA. The ones launched today include universities outside the ARUA and The Guild network, emphasising our commitment to inclusivity and collaborative research for a sustainable future. This launch served as a primary reminder of the power of collaboration between Europe and Africa, promoting indigenous research knowledge to develop modern outcomes. It is believed that the legacy of this initiative will continue to inspire others to join, promote, and contribute to the birth of a collective of ideas that could provide opportunities for academics to cultivate differences on a global scale in their research. The United States is designating two individuals and five entities associated with the Intellexa Consortium for their role in developing, operating, and distributing commercial spyware technology that had been misused to target Americans, including U.S. Government officials, journalists, and policy experts. Based in Greece, the Intellexa Consortium is a collective of international, decentralized companies that offer commercial spyware and surveillance tools to enable targeted and mass surveillance campaigns. Packaged under the brand-name Predator spyware, it is a suite of tools that can infiltrate a range of electronic devices. It can be used to harvest data, geolocation tracking, and enable access to a variety of applications and personal information on the infected devices. Intellexa Consortiums customer base is global. Already, the Predator spyware suite has been deployed by numerous governments to facilitate repression and enable human rights abuses, including to intimidate political opponents and curb dissent, limit freedom of expression, and monitor and target activists and journalists. Even individuals within democratic governments have misused this commercial spyware to target their citizens without proper legal authorization, safeguards, and oversight. Pursuant to Executive Order 13694, as amended by Executive Order 13757, the U.S. Department of the Treasurys Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, designated Tal Jonathan Dilian and Sara Aleksandra Fayssal Hamou for being the key enablers of Intellexa Consortium. Dilian, a former Israeli military officer, is Intellexas founder and the architect behind the Predator spyware tools. He fully or partially controls the companies associated with the Consortium. Hamou is a corporate off-shoring specialist who has provided managerial services to the Intellexa Consortium. In addition to the Intellexa Consortium, four companies within the Consortium were also sanctioned. They are Ireland-based Intellexa Limited; North Macedonia-based Cytrox AD; Hungary-based Cytrox Holdings ZRT; and Ireland-based Thalestris Limited. Todays actions represent a tangible step forward in discouraging the misuse of commercial surveillance tools, which increasingly present a security risk to the United States and our citizens, said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. The United States remains focused on establishing clear guardrails for the responsible development and use of these technologies while also ensuring the protection of human rights and civil liberties of individuals around the world. Graduates from 2023 By: The Division of Communication and Advancement Rhodes University is delighted to confirm the recipients of its annual Honorary Doctoral degrees for 2024, set to be conferred between Wednesday, 03 April 2024 and Friday, 05 April 2024. As the University reflects on 120 years of academic excellence during its RU120 celebrations, these Honorary Doctorates mark a pivotal moment in recognising and rewarding individuals who are leaders in their field - a fitting tribute from a university known as being the home of where leaders learn. The Honorary Doctorates reflect the recognition of persons for their significant contributions to society, particularly in areas related to social justice, human rights, activism, and forerunners in their respective fields. Each individual is being honoured for their dedication to improving the lives of others, advocating for the marginalised, or advancing knowledge and understanding in their area of expertise. Each honoree has made notable efforts towards creating a more just and equitable society. The Honorary Doctorate recipients for the April Graduation, 2024, are: Archbishop Thabo Makgoba is to be conferred a Doctor of Laws (LLD) (honoris causa) in recognition of his significant contribution as a voice of reason and a conscience of our society, advocating against corruption and the abuse of power. Ambassador Barbara Masekela is to be conferred a Doctor of Laws (LLD) (honoris causa) in recognition of her exceptional and sustained contribution as a cultural activist, literary scholar and advocate for social justice, human rights and human dignity. Professor Irvy Gledhill is to be conferred a Doctor of Science (DSc) (honoris causa) in recognition of her long and distinguished contribution to research in physics, national and international leadership in physics, and human capital development, particularly with women in physics. Mr Thandabantu August is to be conferred a Doctor of Laws (LLD) (honoris causa) in celebration of his courage, resilience, tenacity and tireless efforts to make a positive difference in the lives of many young people in the Eastern Cape. Professor Sylvia Tamale is to be conferred a Doctor of Laws (LLD) (honoris causa) in recognition of her human rights activism and for being a fearless advocate for justice and dignity for the marginalised communities such as women and the LGBTQIA+ community. In this exceptional year, Graduation week will be jampacked with notable guests in Makhanda with the preliminary programme provided below: Wed 03 April: Honorary Doctorates to be conferred on Ambassador Barbara Masekela (09:30 ceremony) and Professor Sylvia Tamale (14:30 ceremony). Thurs 04 April: Honorary Doctorates to be awarded to Archbishop Thabo Makgoba (14:30 ceremony) Fri 05 April: Honorary Doctorates to be conferred on Mr Thandabantu August (09:30 ceremony) and Professor Irvy Gledhill (14:30 ceremony) As Rhodes University marks a significant milestone with its RU120 celebrations, the conferral of these Honorary Doctorates underscores its commitment to recognising and honouring those who strive to make a meaningful difference in the world, reinforcing its reputation as a cradle of leadership and excellence. Hyundai sales were boosted by the Creta facelift while its Verna sedan has seen 3474% YoY growth in Feb 2024 Hyundai, a leading automobile manufacturer, has showcased a robust sales performance for the month of February 2024 in the Indian market, with notable increases across various models. Overall, Hyundais total sales for February 2024 reached 50,201 units, marking a 6.88% increase compared to the same period last year. This performance underscores Hyundais resilience and adaptability in navigating market dynamics and meeting evolving consumer demands. Hyundai Creta Highest Monthly Sales in February 2024 Hyundai Creta amplified sales for the brand by registering sales of 15,276 units in Feb 2024. This was a growth of 47 percent YoY and 16 percent MoM. There had been 10,421 units and 13,212 units sold in February 2023 and January 2024 respectively. The Creta was the only model in the company portfolio to surpass sales above the 10,000 unit mark and it was the 3rd best-selling SUV in India. This was the highest ever monthly sales recorded by Creta ever since it marked its entry in India. It was also last month that the Creta achieved a milestone of 1 million units since its launch in 2015 thus relating to 1 Creta sold every 5 minutes. Earlier this week, Hyundai launched the new Creta N Line which will help boost sales further for brand Creta. Lower sales were seen for the Hyundai Venue at 8,933 units last month, down 11 percent from 9,997 units sold in Feb 2023 while MoM sales also dipped by 24 percent from 11,831 units sold in January 2024. Hyundai Venue gets a new Executive Turbo variant earlier this month slotted below S (O) and priced at Rs. 10 lakh (ex-showroom). The relatively recently introduced Hyundai Exter sales in the past month stood at 7,582 units, down 8 percent MoM from 8,229 units sold in January 2024. Hyundai i20 with 5,131 unit sales and Xcent/Aura of which the company sold 5,053 units last month, have both posted YoY and MoM decline in sales. Hyundai Grand i10 sales also dipped YoY and MoM to 4,947 units. Hyundai Verna Sales up 3474% In February 2024 Even as sedan sales are not doing as well as its hatchback and SUV counterparts, the Verna sedan has seen outstanding YoY demand by 3474 percent to 1,680 units in February 2024. This was against just 47 units sold in February 2023. Its MoM sales however dipped by 23 percent from 2,172 units sold in January 2024. Double digit YoY and MoM decline in sales was reported for both Hyundai Alcazar (1,290 units) and Tucson (157 units). The companys two electric models, Kona (86 units) and Ioniq 5 (66 units) have seen sales decline by 16 percent and 31 percent respectively on a MoM basis. With a diverse product portfolio catering to various segments and continued innovation in electrification, Hyundai remains well-positioned to sustain its growth trajectory and strengthen its foothold in the competitive Indian automotive market. TO ACCESS THIS CONTENT YOU MUST OPEN A SESSION OR CREATE AN ACCOUNT MEMBER LOGIN CREATE YOUR USER ACCOUNT Landmark Strategy Will Build on New National Electric Vehicle Freight Corridors Designated by the Federal Highway Administration and Advance the Pre. . . CARSON CITY A career officer with the Nevada Army National Guard was named this week as the newest director of the Nevada Department of Veterans Services. Col. Mary Devine of Reno succeeds Fred Wagar, who left his post in January. She recently served as chief of staff for Maj. Gen. Ondra Berry, the states adjutant general. Gov. Joe Lombardo touted Devines experience in announcing the selection on Monday. Marys decades of exemplary military leadership have long prepared her for this role, and Im confident that her management experience, financial acumen and passion for service will enable her to serve our veterans with honor and integrity, Lombardo said. Devine enlisted in the Montana National Guard in 1988 and eventually relocated to northern Nevada. Prior to her selection as chief of staff, Devine was the states U.S. property and fiscal officer for Nevada in Carson City where she oversaw almost $1 billion in federal assets. Devine was tabbed in 2017 as brigade commander of the 991st Aviation Troop Command and served simultaneously as the deputy U.S. property and fiscal officer. She was the states first brigade commander. Devine had also been commander of the 422nd Expeditionary Signal Battalion. Im honored to serve as director of the Nevada Department of Veterans Services, Devine said. Nevadas veterans deserve the utmost care and respect, and I look forward to enabling the department to serve our veterans with renewed vision, purpose and passion. Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan (L) meets Swiss President Viola Amherd (Photo: VNA) Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan congratulated Viola Amherd on becoming the President of Switzerland, and also the first woman to hold the position as the head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport. She proposed the two sides continue to exchange delegations at all levels, especially high-level ones, to promote bilateral and multilateral cooperation, thanked the Swiss Government for providing official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnams renovation since 1992, and said she hopes that the two sides will continue to promote development cooperation, innovation, and coordination to contribute to the common efforts of the international community for sustainable development. Appreciating Vietnam's socio-economic achievements in recent years, Viola Amherd affirmed that Switzerland always values its friendship and multifaceted cooperation with Vietnam. She said that the two countries still have a lot of room and potential for economic, trade and investment collaboration. The President shared Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuans views on the significance and importance of gender equality and women's empowerment in the changing world context, and agreed that the two sides need to proactively coordinate in and contribute to the common efforts of the UN and the international community in this field, especially promoting the role of women in maintaining peace and security and participating in the UN peacekeeping forces. The two leaders also discussed international and regional issues of mutual concern, including the situation in Europe. On this occasion, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan conveyed the invitation of President Vo Van Thuong to the Swiss President to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time. Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan meets Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina (Photo: VNA) Meeting PM Evika Silina, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan confirmed that Vietnam treasures and hopes to develop its friendship and multifaceted collaboration with Latvia. She thanked Latvia for being one of the first countries to provide COVID-19 vaccines to Vietnam, and also one of the first European Union (EU) member countries to ratify the EU - Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA). The Vice President proposed Latvia raise its voice to support the European Commission (EC)s early removal of its "yellow card" warning against Vietnamese seafood exports, and coordinate with Vietnam and the international community to promote the settlement of international conflicts and disputes, including the East Sea one, by peaceful means on the basis of international law. The Latvian PM stressed the need for the two countries to boost cooperation in potential fields such as information and communications, science - technology, labour, and pharmaceuticals. She affirmed that the Latvian Government will continue prioritising its education and training collaboration with Vietnam. Exchanging opinions of several international and regional issues of mutual concern, the two sides agreed to maintain cooperation and mutual support at multilateral forums, including the UN. Vice State President Vo Thi Anh Xuan receives New York City Mayor Eric Adams (Photo: VNA) Receiving Mayor Eric Adams, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan said that the Vietnam - US relation is entering a new stage of development with many opportunities for exchange and cooperation at the national and local levels. She recommended that New York authorities continue to support US and New York people and enterprises to do business in Vietnam, as well as creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese businesses and people living in the city. She encouraged New York to work with Ho Chi Minh City to establish mechanisms to effectively implement cooperation agreements, and share with the largest economic hub of Vietnam its experience in developing international financial centres. Agreeing with the Vietnamese leaders proposals, Eric Adams affirmed to bring into full play New Yorks strengths to intensify cooperation with Vietnamese partners./. Geoscientists from Australia and France have used the geological record of Earths deep oceans to discover a connection between the orbits of our home planet and Mars. Theyve discovered a surprising 2.4-million-year cycle where deep currents wax and wane which, in turn, is linked to periods of increased solar energy and a warmer climate. In 1976, scientists demonstrated for the first time the presence of 10,000 100,000-year astronomical cycles in Pleistocene deep-sea sediments, confirming Milutin Milankovitchs theory that Earths climate is modulated by periodicities in perturbations of Earths orbit around the Sun and Earths spin axis, said University of Sydney researcher Adriana Dutkiewicz and her colleagues. Apart from the well-known astronomical cycles with periods of 19,000, 23,000, 41,000, 100,000, and 400,000 years that pace Earths climate, the geological record also contains signals of much longer-period grand cycles, which are predicted by astronomical theory. These grand cycles include orbitally-forced periodicities of millions and even tens of millions of years that are similarly linked to changes in incoming solar energy and paleoclimate. In their new research, the authors used the deep-sea sediment record to check for links between sedimentary shifts and changes in the Earths orbit. They found that the vigor of deep-sea currents shifts in 2.4-million-year cycles. We were surprised to find these 2.4-million-year cycles in our deep-sea sedimentary data, Dr. Dutkiewicz said. There is only one way to explain them: they are linked to cycles in the interactions of Mars and Earth orbiting the Sun. The gravity fields of the planets in the solar system interfere with each other and this interaction, called a resonance, changes planetary eccentricity, a measure of how close to circular their orbits are. For the Earth it means periods of higher incoming solar radiation and warmer climate in cycles of 2.4 million years. The researchers found that the warmer cycles correlate with an increased occurrence of breaks in the deep-sea record, related to more vigorous deep ocean circulation. They identified that deep eddies were an important component of earlier warming seas. It is possible these could partly mitigate ocean stagnation some have predicted could follow a faltering AMOC (Atlantic meridional overturning circulation) that drives the Gulf Stream and maintains temperate climates in Europe. We know there are at least two separate mechanisms that contribute to the vigor of deep-water mixing in the oceans, Professor Muller said. AMOC is one of them, but deep ocean eddies seem to play an important role in warm climates for keeping the ocean ventilated. Of course, this would not have the same effect as AMOC in terms of transporting water masses from low to high latitudes and vice-versa. These eddies are like giant whirlpools and often reach the abyssal seafloor, resulting in seafloor erosion and large sediment accumulations called contourites, akin to snowdrifts. Our deep-sea data spanning 65 million years suggest that warmer oceans have more vigorous deep circulation, Dr. Dutkiewicz said. This will potentially keep the ocean from becoming stagnant even if AMOC slows or stops altogether. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications. _____ A. Dutkiewicz et al. 2024. Deep-sea hiatus record reveals orbital pacing by 2.4 Myr eccentricity grand cycles. Nat Commun 15, 1998; doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-46171-5 Ambassador Tran Duc Hung and delegates at the event (Photo: baoquocte.vn) During the event on March 7, diverse activities were organized and attracted representatives of ministries, branches and businesses of Qatar, diplomatic corps, international friends and the Vietnamese community in the country. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador to Qatar Tran Duc Hung said that Vietnam-Qatar relations have developed stably in many fields since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1993. Vietnam considers Qatar a good friend and a potential partner in the Middle East region. Vietnam highly appreciates the achievements Qatar has made under the leadership of His Majesty Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Congratulating Qatar for organizing the first horticulture exhibition in a desert country in the Middle East, Ambassador Hung thanked the organizing board of Expo Doha 2023 for creating favorable conditions for Vietnamese businesses to participate in the expo. The Ambassador added that Vietnam's agricultural industry is developing and has an increasing role in the global supply chain. Expo Doha 2023 has opened many opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to find partners, share experiences in promoting agricultural development and participate in solving global problems such as desertification, climate change and food security. He affirmed that Vietnam is committed to restructuring the agricultural sector towards green, circular and sustainable development; and is a reliable partner of Qatar and other countries in solving food security and combating climate change issues. At the expo, businesses introduced Vietnam's top export products such as cashew nuts, black pepper, rice, coffee, tea, spices, fruits and handicrafts. A number of Vietnamese businesses connected and signed a Memorandums of Cooperation (MoUs) with partners of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Ethiopia and Panama to bring tea and coffee products to penetrate the markets. Following the opening ceremony, visitors had the opportunity to enjoy traditional art performances, dishes, agricultural specialties and visit booths of Vietnamese businesses. This event has contributed to promoting export agricultural products and culture of Vietnam to the Qatari public and international friends./. Apprentices learn to cook hotpot at a hotpot restaurant in Nan'an District, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, March 9, 2024.(Xinhua) CHONGQING, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Wang Wenjun, who has cooked hotpot for 26 years in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, posted recently on social media that his occupation is now classified according to a national standard. "Relevant authorities are planning and designing qualification exams according to the standard," said Wang, adding that a practitioner can be certified as a "hotpot chef" after passing the examination. The job of hotpot chef was recognized in the 2022 edition of the occupational classification code of China. The new standard further specifies the profession's definition, skill ranks and vocational training requirements, among others, jointly published in February by China's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the Ministry of Commerce. Chongqing, which is renowned nationwide for its spicy hotpots, took the lead in formulating the standard. In the municipality, there were about 32,000 hotpot restaurants as of last September, while the total output of the hotpot industry chain reached 300 billion yuan (about 42.3 billion U.S. dollars) in 2022, according to a press release. However, some people once feared that the formulation of the standard might be biased, as the spicy flavor of Chongqing is different from that of various regions across China, such as Beijing mutton hotpot and Guangdong seafood hotpot. "It is a national professional standard and should not be confined to a single place," noted Li Jianfeng, deputy secretary general of the China Hospitality Association when supervising the formulation of the standard. Hence experts conducted field investigations in more than 20 cities in China, where experienced hotpot cooks shared their ideas. As a member of the standard's formulation group, Wang said, "Though hotpots have different flavors, there are common cooking procedures such as picking ingredients and choosing appropriate temperatures." He added that hotpots are classified into six categories, which can apply to most varieties of hotpots in China. Wang added that in addition to blending hotpot seasoning skills, the standard requires chefs to have relevant knowledge of cooking, including food safety and nutrition. According to Wang Huayuan, deputy director of the vocational skills assessment and guidance center of Chongqing, relevant hotpot training courses will be launched, textbooks for hotpot chefs will be developed, and hotpot chefs will be determined at 5 levels through exams. "Previously, it was not easy to find a teacher who wanted to teach us how to cook hotpot. But soon, we will be able to access more hotpot cooking courses such as online ones," said Xu Gaoyuan, a hotpot apprentice from Chongqing. "I can't wait to attend the training and sign up for the qualification exam," Xu said. Editor: WXL A drone photo taken on March 11, 2024 shows cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docking at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin.(Xinhua) TIANJIN, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docked at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin, on Monday morning, with over 1,100 tourists from 30 countries and regions aboard. This marks the maiden visit of the cruise ship, measuring 285 meters in length and 32 meters in width, to Tianjin, where it will stay for two days and one night. The passengers will go sightseeing in the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Xi'an. A series of service measures adopted by the local customs administration and cruise ship agency made the ship's visit to Tianjin possible. Bi Linlin, a local immigration inspection officer, said they worked with the cruise line and the port company to streamline passenger clearance procedures and meet the needs of tourists. As the largest cruise home port in north China, Tianjin International Cruise Home Port has welcomed 16 cruise ships and seen 50,000 tourist visits so far this year, according to Dong Zichen, deputy general manager of Tianjin International Cruise Home Port Co., Ltd. "We are quite optimistic about the recovery of the cruise tourism industry in Tianjin," Dong said. "With government support policies and people's increasing demand for cruise tourism, we believe that the cruise tourism industry will develop rapidly in China," said Jiao Deshuai, senior assistant manager of the shipping department at the Sinotrans North China Container Company, which is engaged in the cruise ship agency business. Having traveled to the Chinese cities of Shanghai and Dalian, the Zuiderdam cruise ship is scheduled to leave Tianjin for Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon. A drone photo taken on March 11, 2024 shows cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docking at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin.(Xinhua) Editor: WJH Photo: Joe Powers Photo: Joe Powers Photo supplied / John Crowley and Sons Photo: Joe Powers Photo: Joseph Sanchez / Google Photo: O'Flaherty's / Facebook Sean O'Callaghan's Public House / Trip Advisor Photo supplied / The Old Shillelagh Irish pride returns to Corktown on Sunday, with the 65th Annual Detroit St. Patricks Parade kicking off at 1 p.m. near Sixth Street and Michigan Avenue. Continuing west to 14th Street, organizers say the event typically attracts 80,000 to 100,000 people, making it one of the largest St. Patricks parades in the country.On behalf of the United Irish Societies, parade sponsors, and participants, were thrilled this years event will be better than ever with all of the positive momentum in Corktown for everyone who lives, works, and visits the area, says Mike Kelly, president of UIS.But Corktown isn't the only place to celebrate the luck of the Irish. We check out nine neighborhood pubs across metro Detroit that are firm favorites. Do you have one? Pop it in the comments.All dark wood and polished brass, this classy public house gives off more brooding Irish poet vibes than gimmicky leprechauns. Now open for more than 20 years, the establishment harks back to the Irish tradition of drinking songs and stories after an ale. Yeats would have loved it.Opened in 2005, this spot serves up Irish-inspired dishes and classics. Its name pays homage to a place regularly named the best pub in Ireland (surely a sort-after title), and it was built by a Guinnes-approved builder (it's a thing, look it up). The stained glass and wrought iron add charm.Looking like the kind of bar you might actually find in the U.K., this gastro pub was opened in 1972 and is now a third-generation business. Popular for events, the hot spot in downtown Farmington feels rich with history, and is worth a visit for the church-themed bar alone.Full of old-world class, this family-owned pub's authentic feel has earned it accolades from Travel & Leisure, HOUR, and Delish. Jerry Cremin, who received his pint-pouring training at his family's restaurant in County Limerick, Ireland, opened Sullivans with his wife, Jamie, and the place is a local favorite, despite only opening in 2014.The eye-catching decor at Kennedy's literally sparkles (the disco balls help) and festive neons boast Irish and Detroit history in equal measure here. Opened in 1972 by Bill and Cheryl Kennedy, this pub's walls tell its colorful stories through the layers of memorabilia that adorn it.One of many establishments that struggled during the pandemic, O'Flaherty's has persevered to keep pouring pints. The neighborhood pub has been a staple in the Grosse Pointe Park community for decades.Another romantic pub, full of warm wood tones and Celtic knots, O'Callaghans opened in 2001. The Victorian-era vibes here give the establishment a really authentic feel and the cozy booths make for an intimate way to celebrate St. Paddy's Day in style.Voted one of the best Irish pubs in America , this establishment oozes the kind of grit Detroit owes its Irish heritage. The pub was opened in 1975 and was almost lost to fire two years later. Three generations of ownership later, the heated rooftop patio is a popular spot this time of the year.With garage doors and patio seating, this quaint sports bar is part of the Allen Park makeover helping the area grow a reputation as the "jewel" of downriver . Reviews rave about the poutine and the French dip (yes...we know that's not Irish, but it's still worth it).Slainte! This photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows Plantago fengdouensis in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province. A total of 3,000 artificially bred rare and endangered plants were reintroduced into the wild in the Three Gorges Reservoir area in central China's Hubei Province on Tuesday. The plants, including 1,000 Myricaria laxiflora and 2,000 Plantago fengdouensis, are endemic to the Yangtze River and have been reintroduced into their historical distribution areas through artificial breeding efforts. (Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) WUHAN, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A total of 3,000 artificially bred rare and endangered plants were reintroduced into the wild in the Three Gorges Reservoir area in central China's Hubei Province on Tuesday. The plants, including 1,000 Myricaria laxiflora and 2,000 Plantago fengdouensis, are endemic to the Yangtze River and have been reintroduced into their historical distribution areas through artificial breeding efforts. Planting the two species, which feature strong resistance to water flow and waterlogging, not only plays a role in soil reinforcement and bank protection in the water-level fluctuation zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir area, but also helps with restoring biodiversity in the Yangtze River Basin, said researchers. Among the 2,000 Plantago fengdouensis, 500 were descendants of space-mutation breeding plants, marking the first time that the space-breeding species has been reintroduced into the wild. Huang Guiyun, senior engineer at the Yangtze River biodiversity research center of the China Three Gorges Corporation, said the researchers will monitor the survival rate and growth of these space-mutation breeding species, and select those with excellent traits for better restoration of the ecological environment in the water-level fluctuation zone. Students water Myricaria laxiflora in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Students plant Myricaria laxiflora in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024.(Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Volunteers plant Myricaria laxiflora in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024.(Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Students keep records of Myricaria laxiflora in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024.(Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Students plant Plantago fengdouensis in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024.(Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Volunteers water Myricaria laxiflora in Guojiaba Township of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, March 12, 2024.(Xinhua/Hu Jingwen) Editor: WJH Politics spotlight Catherine Stefanis State Assembly run could be historic on several fronts Craig Lee/The Examiner Supervisor Catherine Stefani: I think voters just want to see a San Francisco that works for them. And they want to feel safe. Despite having every reason to, San Francisco Supervisor Catherine Stefani didnt stay out late celebrating on election night. Far and away the top vote-getter in the race to represent a large swath of The City in the California State Assembly and in a race to serve on the Democratic County Central Committee, it was not only a successful primary for her personally but also a resoundingly fruitful night for moderates across The City, who won on ballot issues like policing and drug screening for welfare recipients. After a few hours of toasting the first tranche of returns with her team, Stefani turned in relatively early, falling asleep around midnight. I had to bring my daughter home, she told The Examiner. She did have to go to school. Her daughter Gianna, a high-school freshman, gave Stefani the final green light to run for state office. Stefani required her blessing, she said, because she wanted to make sure she would be able to perform the job while being present at home. If shes elected to the state legislature, as is widely expected, Stefani claims she will become the first San Francisco mother to do so. Stefani, who currently represents a parcel of northern San Francisco, including the Marina and Pacific Heights, has routinely used her place as a mom in The City as a driving force for what has steered her political agenda. She vowed to continue fighting for those same issues education, housing, healthcare and public safety should she win the seat for Californias 19th State Assembly district, which encompasses the western half of San Francisco and northwestern San Mateo County. I cant wait to get up there to do what Jackie Speier described to me she was able to [in the state Assembly]: Do the most good for the most people, Stefani said, referencing the longtime Bay Area congresswoman who represented district 19 for a decade. Stefani has received 57.7% of the vote so far, more than twice as many votes as the second-place candidate and her likely general-election challenger, educator David Lee. Voters will decide in November whether Stefani or Lee will fill the Assembly seat of incumbent Phil Ting, who will term out at the end of the year after holding office since 2012. Its just simply the best place for her, said former San Francisco Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier, for whom Stefani worked as a legislative aide early in her political career. I think shes going to be a very loud voice for San Francisco at the state level. In a conversation with The Examiner shortly after the election, Stefani reminisced about her victory and detailed her priorities in the lead-up to November and if shes elected to the state legislature. I was very pleased and excited that the way I see things is the way the voters seem to see things as well, Stefani said. I think [the primary results are] a continuum of what weve seen with the D.A. and the school-board member recalls in 2022. I think voters just want to see a San Francisco that works for them. And they want to feel safe. If she captures the seat, her future constituents will include a part of San Francisco with a population that is 40% Asian American, exemplified by densely populated Chinese neighborhoods such as the Sunset and Richmond districts. Stefani would be the first non-Chinese state representative of the district since 2002, following Fiona Ma, Leland Yee and Ting. She touted endorsements from Ma and several prominent moderate Asian groups in The City, such as the Chinese American Democratic Club and the Filipino American Democratic Club. The AAPI community cares about the same things I do, she said. They care about making sure their kids are safe in schools and safe in The City where they live. Those are issues that, as a mother, I care deeply about, not just for my kids, but their kids. They want their kids to come home from college and be able to afford a place to live in San Francisco. I want that for my kids. I want it for their kids. Ma, the current California treasurer, said Stefani shares the values of the west side. When asked about Stefani potentially being the first non-Chinese representative for that half of San Francisco since 2002, Ma said The Citys Asian electorate cares more about policy than ethnicity. I think San Francisco has really advanced in terms of our understanding, especially the Asian community, that we just dont vote by a certain name anymore, Ma said. We are now looking at their values, their principles, what issues are important to them, and whether theyre going to deliver on the campaign promises that they keep. Stefani pointed out that she marched with the community following the killing of Vicha Ratanapakdee, an 84-year-old Thai man who, in 2021, was violently shoved to the ground in Anza Vista which would be in Stefanis district and renamed a street in his honor. I was walking in the streets for years with the Stop AAPI Hate movement, Stefani said. I was there, and I certainly didnt see my opponent. But Lee, who is Chinese American and the director of the Asian Pacific American Student Success Program at Laney College and executive director of the Chinese American Voters Education Committee, insisted that hes been on the front lines of the fight against anti-Asian crime. Just because I wasnt at a particular event that she happened to be at does not mean that I have not been active, he told The Examiner. If you talk to [Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce President] Carl Chan, you talk to other people, you know Ive been very engaged in the community. Lee is backed by fellow progressives Ting whom Lee said has done as much as anybody in the Assembly to oppose anti-Asian hate former board president Norman Yee, the Rose Pak Democratic Club and Connie Chan. Chan is the only active Chinese American supervisor in The City, though her seat is being challenged by Marjan Philhour. Lee, who has unsuccessfully run for San Francisco supervisor three times before, has championed his work in the Asian community over the decades, specifically in public education. People are realizing our representation is at stake, our voice is at stake, he said. And I think thats whats really gotten people much more interested and excited about this race. He also downplayed the lopsided primary results, attributing it to low voter turnout, especially in Asian neighborhoods, and a condensed campaign effort since he entered the race only 3 months before Super Tuesday. Lee was optimistic that with an eight-month lead-up to the November general election, he could close the gap. Eight months is a lifetime in politics, he said. A lot can happen. Im pretty confident that were going to have the support we need to win the campaign. Stefani repeatedly emphasized to The Examiner her public safety and education priorities two issues that have become intertwined with the Asian community, especially in the wake of the pandemic. The two concerns mobilized Asian American voters to the polls in 2022 in the recalls of former District Attorney Chesa Boudin and three members of the San Francisco Board of Education. Stefani said she looks forward to having more influence in changing statewide laws that she thinks will curb crime specifically retail theft and violence in The City, such as arresting and providing appropriate consequences for repeat offenders, classifying domestic violence as a violent crime, and enacting more gun-violence prevention measures. This is the most effective place and the best place for somebody to take on the gun lobby, Alioto-Pier said. And if anybodys going to do it, its going to be Catherine and I think in California, its due time that we start taking a leadership role. NewMed Energy said on Wednesday that BP and UAE state-owned oil company Adnoc have suspended discussions about a potential joint bid for 50% of the Israeli gas company. In a brief statement, NewMed said: "The committee and the consortium have agreed, due to the uncertainty created by the external environment, to suspend discussions in relation to the proposed transaction. "The consortium reiterated its interest in the proposed transaction. The process will remain suspended until such time as discussions resume or the process is terminated." NewMed said there can be no certainty that discussions will resume or that an agreement will be reached in the future, nor as to the terms of any agreement. "The partnership will update unitholders of further developments as appropriate," it added. BP and Adnoc announced in March 2023 that they had offered to buy the stake in NewMed for around $2bn. Mining company Ferrexpo said on Tuesday that following discussions with its auditors, more time was needed to finalise its full-year financial results. Ferrexpo also stated that an anticipated hearing at the Commercial Court in Poltava Oblast to consider the application from LLC PCC "Kysen", scheduled for 12 March, has been postponed. At present, the date of the rescheduled Court hearing was yet to be announced. However, the company said it was "continuing to explore options" to settle the Kysen debt or agree to an extension of payment terms. Kysen made an application to open creditor protection proceedings, claiming UAH 2.2m (44,641). Ferrexpo shares fell after it was slapped with a court order in Ukraine. The state prosecutor was looking to freeze the bank accounts belonging to its Ferrexpo Poltava Mining subsidiary as a result of an ongoing police investigation concerning the alleged illegal extraction of minerals. "Ferrexpo is working closely with its legal counsel and other advisers to consider and address the situation," the company said. As of 0920 GMT, Ferrexpo shares were down 6.57% at 51.39p. Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com Intellectual property-focussed investor IP Group reported a net asset value of 1.19bn in its results for 2023 on Wednesady, or 114.3p per share, down from 1.38bn and 132.9p per share in 2022. The FTSE 250 company said despite the decrease, the return on net asset value still improved to -13% from -20% year-on-year, while the loss for the year narrowed significantly to 174.4m from 344.5m. Total portfolio value stood at 1.16bn, down from 1.26bn in the previous year, while gross cash and deposits increased to 336.9m from 241.5m. The firm made portfolio investments of 73.2m in 33 companies across its three high-growth sectors, slightly lower than the 93.5m invested in 46 companies in 2022. IP Group launched a 20m share buyback programme, and announced future cash returns in the form of share buybacks when the share price discount to net asset value exceeds 20%. It said that over 75m in total cash had been returned to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks since 2021. The company said its portfolio was maturing, with multiple near-term value creation opportunities. Over 10 companies were now in clinical studies, with key data expected by the end of 2025. Capital allocation remained focussed on high-growth sectors such as life sciences, deeptech, and cleantech. The portfolio raised 0.7bn in total capital in 2023, with leading co-investors including Bosch Ventures, BP Ventures, Clean Energy Ventures, and others. However, the firm said it had decided to deprioritise future investment in its US platform and cease plans for a China growth fund. The market environment for early-stage investing remained challenging in 2023, said chief executive officer Greg Smith. In response, we have prioritised and heavily focused our activities and capital on developing leading portfolio opportunities in the high-growth sectors where our teams have deep expertise. The group's portfolio successfully raised a total of 0.7bn, with the group investing 73m alongside more than fifty co-investors. Smith said that, having appropriately managed its level of portfolio investment, the group finished the year in a strong financial position with 227m gross cash, describing that as an important strategic asset in the current environment. We have an excellent team that combines university relationships with deep sector experience and networks, allowing us to access highly differentiated dealflow, he said of IP Groups outlook. We are one of the companies most closely aligned with the UK's 'science superpower' ambition, which we intend to build on this year. In pursuing our purpose to accelerate the power of science for a better future by starting and growing businesses driving the energy transition, the digital transformation and improved health outcomes, we can make a significant dent in some of society's biggest needs and deliver compelling financial returns for our shareholders. At 0815 GMT, shares in IP Group were down 1.03% at 51.07p. Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export parking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Four thousand vehicles produced by the passenger car workshop of Ningde base of SAIC Motor Corporation Ltd. on Tuesday boarded the ro-ro cargo vessel "Wisdom Ace" at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port. This batch of vehicles will be sent to countries including the Netherlands, Egypt, and Britain. According to reports, this is the largest single load of export vehicles in Fujian Province, which include 2,800 new energy vehicles. Customs data showed that from January to February this year, Fujian Province exported 15,377 vehicles with a value of 2.07 billion yuan (about 288.41 million U.S. dollars), up 123 percent and 69 percent respectively compared with the same period last year. An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export parking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Customs officers Lin Zheng (L) and Chen Jianzhou check a vehicle for export at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Customs officer Lin Zheng checks a vehicle for export at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export ready to be loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Vehicles for export are being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province, March 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial panoramic drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows a view of Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.(Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows vehicles for export being loaded into a ro-ro cargo vessel at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) An aerial drone photo taken on March 12, 2024 shows the ro-ro cargo vessel "Wisdom Ace" docking at Jiangyin terminal of Fuzhou Port in Fuzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province. (Xinhua/Lin Shanchuan) Editor: WJH Kindred and Co., a 14,000-square-foot bookstore that serves craft coffee and includes a bistro, hosted its grand-opening celebration last week at 851 E. 4th Ave. in Post Falls, Idaho, the Spokesman-Review reported, adding that co-owners Elizabeth Harrison and Selinna Maesau created the space to connect people. "There's something so special that can happen over a good cup of coffee or a shared plate with friends," Harrison said. "That's what we wanted to bring to Northern Idaho." Maesau, who will manage the business, had previously told the Spokesman-Review that bookshelves will hold around 20,000 titles, comprise 8,000 square feet of the building and span two floors. The other 6,000 square feet is dedicated to the bistro, seating, a conservatory, and a community room that can be reserved for events. "Every aspect of Kindred was intentionally and thoughtfully created with connection in mind," Maesau noted. Harrison and Maesau have been best friends since they were 15 and share a love for traveling, where they find inspiration for their bistro menu, which features sandwiches, salads and shareable items such as charcuterie boards. The shop's rooftop deck will hold outdoor seating for the bistro until the business's second year of operation, when the owners hope to turn it into event space. When they travel, the business partners make it a point to visit bookstores--partly because of their vested interest in them and to conduct research. "We wanted to take everything that we liked from other bookstores and make it our own," Harrison has said. "Whether a booklover or coffee-connoisseur, goddess or guest, we invite you to enrich your mind and spirit with other kindred souls while you eat, read, sip, shop, and explore the vibrant energy at K&Co.," the bookshop says on its website. Archivist Books hosted a grand opening celebration last weekend in the shop's new location at 772 Monroe Ave in Rochester, N.Y. WHAM reported that "crowds of people showed up" for the celebration at the store, which "has several community initiatives, including a program that raises money for people to use in the store to reduce the financial barrier to literature." "[We're] a way to support each other through community and get literature into the hands of people that might not have the funds for it," said owner Taylor Thomas. Archivist Books owner Taylor Thomas In an Instagram post, Thomas wrote: "Finally able to sit down and gather my thoughts! Yesterday was more than anything I could have dreamed of it being.... There's so many people I'd love to call out and thank personally because this store of mine has truly been one of community but it would be a list far too long. Everything from the paint on the walls to the chairs behind my counter have been donated or done by the hands of people who believe in my dream. And the PANTRY?!? I went in today to start organizing and have already created some bags to share with various pantries and orgs because redistribution is always the goal. I just want to say thank you so so much for showing up for me yesterday. It will be a core memory for me 1000% and Im so excited to continue creating this space with all of you." Last summer, Thomas had announced plans to convert a vintage 1968 Globestar trailer into a mobile bookstore for new and used books. In September, Thomas noted that while that project was still underway, they had decided to open Archivist Books in a physical space at Luna Cooperative art space. In a January update, Thomas shared the news about the move to the Monroe Ave. storefront, noting that the "new move has also forced me to look at my original idea of a trailer and figure out how that factors into my long-term plans.... I've decided to pivot. My main goal of mobility was to make books accessible to people who otherwise wouldn't have the option to come visit stores in person. With this in mind, I've decided to partner with ten local city schools. I will be buying and placing little free libraries at each one. I will stock them with books every month, making sure that the books are diverse in both content and language. I am SO excited to embark upon this new aspect of mobility as it seems to lead me exactly where I was hoping to be with my trailer. If it weren't for the donations I received, none of this would be possible. I will be taking every cent from selling my trailer towards the funding of this new project. Again, I thank you for your belief in me and your trust in my vision." Regarding the new storefront, Thomas wrote: "I have thought of ways to truly be in community. I want to embody this as an action, not just something I say because. As I said, change is both equal parts exciting and terrifying. I have so much that I want to do with Archivist and this is just the beginning. I don't use the word radical because nothing I'm doing is radical. This work has been done by black and queer people for decades and I am just continuing what theyve created. To me, that is an honor I don't take lightly." Experts: AI will boost stock market 08:21, March 13, 2024 By Shi Jing ( China Daily The global artificial intelligence surge, both technologically and investment-wise, combined with China's emphasis on new quality productive forces, will boost AI-related A-share performance, which in turn will drive up associated indexes this year, said experts. While the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index shed 0.41 percent on Tuesday, A-share AI companies registered an average share price increase of 1.15 percent. With this, share prices of these AI companies have jumped nearly 19 percent since Feb 19, when trading resumed after the Spring Festival holiday. The global AI boom serves as one major impetus, especially after ChatGPT's creator Open AI released text-to-video generator Sora on Feb 16. Nvidia, the major supplier for Open AI's graphics chips, saw its shares hit record highs, overtaking Amazon and Google's parent company Alphabet in terms of market value. Zhang Yidong, chief global strategist at Industrial Securities, said the global AI phenomenon will not only buoy the US bourse, but also drive up the value of A-share tech companies, thus helping boost A-share performance in general. More importantly, China promised in this year's Government Work Report to launch an "AI plus" initiative to accelerate the technology's commercial applications. Meanwhile, new quality productive forces, which have been emphasized in the report, also include emerging industries such as AI, computing and humanoid robots. All these suggest an increasing focus on industrial investment, said analysts from Guotai Junan Securities. Liu Chenming, chief strategist at GF Securities, said AI will serve as a major force empowering industries' intelligent digitalization in China. The application of AI technologies will help improve total factor productivity and the country's structural transformation and upgrading. This is also in line with this year's Government Work Report which calls for high-quality development, he said. Ethan Wang, head of investment strategy for wealth management at Standard Chartered China, said A-share investors should pay particular attention to AI applications in China given the country's advantages in application scenarios in internet and big data modalities, as well as the commercialization of innovative technologies. Specifically, device makers integrating AI services and the commercial use of AI in business scenarios will churn out the most investment opportunities in China, Wang said. Analysts from Kaiyuan Securities suggested A-share investors search for opportunities related to animation along with film and television companies, especially those possessing well-established intellectual property, as the application of multimodal AI will significantly improve their efficiency and reduce costs. Opportunities can also be found among semiconductor firms as iteration in AI foundation models will drive up computing demand, said experts from China International Capital Corp Ltd. Li Zhan, chief economist at China Merchants Fund, said that technological innovation will be the major investment theme in China for many years to come. Industries which are supported by favorable industrial policies and the country's resources will generate the most investment opportunities, among which AI is included. Experts from UBS Global Wealth Management's Chief Investment Office believe that AI will be the fastest growing tech sector globally over the next decade, with the possibility of it growing into the largest tech sector in 10 years' time. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Press Release March 13, 2024 Robin Thanks Sen. Hontiveros for Due Process on Contempt Order vs Pastor Quiboloy Sen. Robinhood "Robin" C. Padilla on Tuesday night thanked Sen. Risa Hontiveros for allowing due process by issuing a Show-Cause Order on Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) founder Apollo C. Quiboloy. This was after Hontiveros issued the Show-Cause Order as chairperson of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality. "Maraming salamat po sa inyo, Senadora Risa Hontiveros (Thank you very much, Senator Risa Hontiveros)," Padilla said on his Facebook account. Earlier, Padilla wrote Hontiveros asking for consideration for Quiboloy, saying a witness or resource person who fails or refuses to appear before the Senate may be cited for contempt only after it has been determined that such failure or refusal is unreasonable or unwarranted - and this aligns with no less than the 1987 Constitution. Under Sec. 21, Art. VI of the 1987 Constitution, while the Senate and House of Representatives may conduct inquiries in aid of legislation, "the rights of persons appearing in or affected by such inquiries shall be respected." "Indeed, while acknowledging the Committee's authority to cite Pastor Quiboloy, or any witness for that matter, in contempt for refusing to appear despite receipt of a subpoena, it is imperative to underscore that such citation is contingent upon the determination of an undue refusal to comply thereto," Padilla said in his letter. "Readily declaring a prospective witness in contempt without providing an opportunity to explain noncompliance with an issued subpoena risks establishing a dangerous precedent, amounting to a potential violation of the witness' right to due process," he added. Because of this, he requested Hontiveros' reconsideration on the matter and to "hold in abeyance the order of contempt and give way to the issuance of a Show Cause Order against Pastor Quiboloy during the next committee hearing." Also, Padilla cited a 1991 precedent in seeking consideration for Quiboloy. In a separate letter to Hontiveros, Padilla asked that the committee refrain from compelling any testimony from Quiboloy once the Department of Justice initiates legal proceedings against Quiboloy. He noted the case of Bengzon vs Senate Blue Ribbon Committee (1991), where Congress may only investigate into those areas in which it may potentially legislate or appropriate, but "cannot inquire into matters which are within the exclusive province of one of the other branches of the government." Padilla pointed out that on March 4, the Department of Justice announced its order directing the filing of criminal cases against Quiboloy. "In the event that legal proceedings are initiated, this representation trusts that the Committee will take into consideration the principles outlined in the Bengzon ruling and refrain from compelling any testimony from Pastor Quiboloy, as such action may inadvertently influence the judicial process," he said. Robin, Nagpasalamat kay Sen. Hontiveros para sa Due Process sa Contempt Order vs Pastor Quiboloy Nagpasalamat si Sen. Robinhood "Robin" C. Padilla kay Sen. Risa Hontiveros nitong Martes ng gabi para sa pagbigay ng due process sa pamamagitan ng pag-issue ng Show-Cause Order para kay Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) founder Apollo C. Quiboloy. Ito ay matapos mag-isyu si Hontiveros ng Show-Cause Order bilang tagapangulo ng Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality. "Maraming salamat po sa inyo, Senadora Risa Hontiveros," ani Padilla sa kanyang Facebook account. Bago nito, nagsulat ng liham si Padilla kay Hontiveros na humihingi ng konsiderasyon para kay Quiboloy. Aniya, ang testigo o resource person na hindi o tumangging humarap sa Senado ay maaaring ma-cite in contempt kung matiyak na ito ay wala sa katwiran - at ito ay ayon sa ating Saligang Batas. Sa Sec. 21, Art. VI ng 1987 Constitution, bagama't maaaring mag-investigate in aid of legislation ang Kongreso, "the rights of persons appearing in or affected by such inquiries shall be respected." "Indeed, while acknowledging the Committee's authority to cite Pastor Quiboloy, or any witness for that matter, in contempt for refusing to appear despite receipt of a subpoena, it is imperative to underscore that such citation is contingent upon the determination of an undue refusal to comply thereto," ani Padilla sa kanyang liham. "Readily declaring a prospective witness in contempt without providing an opportunity to explain noncompliance with an issued subpoena risks establishing a dangerous precedent, amounting to a potential violation of the witness' right to due process," dagdag niya. Dahil dito, hiniling niya mula kay Hontiveros ang "reconsideration" at i-hold in abeyance ang order of contempt, at mag-issue muna ng Show Cause Order kay Pastor Quiboloy sa susunod na committee hearing. Bukod dito, ipinunto ni Padilla ang precedent noong 1991 sa paghiling ng konsiderasyon mula sa komite para sa karapatan ni Quiboloy. Sa hiwalay na liham kay Hontiveros, hiniling ni Padilla na huwag pumilit ng testimonya kay Quiboloy sa oras na may legal proceedings na ang Department of Justice kay Quiboloy. Aniya, ayon sa Bengzon vs Senate Blue Ribbon Committee (1991), maaaring mag-imbestiga ang Kongreso sa mga aspeto na maaari itong mag-legislate o mag-appropriate, nguni't hindi ito maaaring mag-inquire "into matters which are within the exclusive province of one of the other branches of the government." Dagdag ni Padilla, nag-anunsyo ang DOJ noong Marso 4 ang utos nitong mag-file ng kasong kriminal laban kay Quiboloy. "In the event that legal proceedings are initiated, this representation trusts that the Committee will take into consideration the principles outlined in the Bengzon ruling and refrain from compelling any testimony from Pastor Quiboloy, as such action may inadvertently influence the judicial process," ani Padilla. This photo taken on Feb. 22, 2024 shows a drone conducting artificial intelligence (AI) inspection work at a power substation in Baoshan, southwest China's Yunnan Province. China's southwestern province of Yunnan has deployed artificial intelligence (AI) to carry out most routine inspections at 621 power substations, replacing the need for human interventions.(Xinhua) KUNMING, March 12 (Xinhua) -- China's southwestern province of Yunnan has deployed artificial intelligence (AI) to carry out most routine inspections at 621 power substations, replacing the need for human interventions. The AI inspection, powered by cameras, drones and walking robots, is capable of completing a task in less than five minutes, down from the five hours required by human workers, according to the Yunnan branch of the China Southern Power Grid. A major producer of hydropower and other forms of clean electricity, Yunnan has 1,937 power substations of 35 kilovolts or above, many of which are located in mountainous areas. Access to nearly half of these substations requires travel of more than three hours by road, said Wang Xin, a senior manager of the Yunnan branch. AI-powered automatic inspections are expected to exempt human workers from lengthy road travels, thereby greatly reducing costs, according to Wang. The China Southern Power Grid has planned to promote AI inspections to the rest of the substations in the province over the next two years. China is increasingly turning to robotic technologies to tackle the shortage of technicians in remote mountainous areas. Last year, the mountainous province of Guizhou also started using robots for the inspection of power substations that are susceptible to disruptions by extreme weather conditions. This photo taken on Feb. 22, 2024 shows a drone conducting artificial intelligence (AI) inspection work at a power substation in Baoshan, southwest China's Yunnan Province. China's southwestern province of Yunnan has deployed artificial intelligence (AI) to carry out most routine inspections at 621 power substations, replacing the need for human interventions.(Xinhua) Editor: JYZ The Union Cabinet, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given the green light for the development of two additional corridors for the Delhi Metro. These corridors, from Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block and from Inderlok to Indraprastha, will require an investment of Rs 8,399 crore. This funding will come from various sources including the Central government, the Delhi government, and international financing agencies, as announced by Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur. The combined length of these two corridors will be 20.762 kilometres. The Inderlok-Indraprastha corridor, extending the Green Line, will offer interchange points with several other lines such as the Red, Yellow, Airport Line, Magenta, Violet, and Blue Lines. On the other hand, the Lajpat Nagar - Saket G Block corridor will connect the Silver, Magenta, Pink, and Violet Lines, and will be fully elevated with eight stations. The Inderlok-Indraprastha Line, with 11.349 kilometres of underground lines and 1.028 kilometres of elevated lines, will include ten stations. This extension will notably improve connectivity to the Bahadurgarh region of Haryana, allowing commuters from these areas to access central and east Delhi directly via the Green Line. Additionally, eight new interchange stations will be established at strategic points along these corridors. The construction of these new corridors aims to significantly enhance connectivity across the Delhi Metro network. Currently, the Delhi Metro's fourth phase expansion is already underway, encompassing a network of 65 kilometres. The completion of these new corridors is anticipated by March 2026, with the Delhi Metro already commencing pre-bid activities and tender document preparations. The Delhi government has approved the installation of 50 megawatts (MW) of grid-connected rooftop solar systems on 645 buildings, including various departments and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). The initiative is in line with the recently approved solar policy, which mandates the installation of rooftop solar plants on all government and MCD buildings with a built-up area larger than 500 square meters. educational institutions, healthcare facilities, bus depots, and power substations, aiming to equip them with rooftop solar plants. Delhi Power Minister Atishi, who gave the green light to the solar plant installation initiative, praised the policy as one of the best and most progressive in India. The plan encompasses a range of buildings, such as, bus depots, and power substations, aiming to equip them with rooftop solar plants. Atishi emphasized that the initiative would contribute to making government buildings more energy-efficient, enabling them to fulfill their energy needs through self-generation of power. Despite the increasing electricity consumption in Delhi, the government's target is to generate 25% of the city's electricity through solar power plants by 2027, according to the power minister. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, during the launch of the solar policy in January, announced that domestic consumers not covered by subsidies would be able to receive zero-amount power bills upon installing rooftop solar plants. The Delhi government already provides free power supply to consumers with a monthly consumption of up to 200 units, while those consuming 201-400 units receive a 50% subsidy. The comprehensive approach outlined in the solar policy aims to promote sustainability, increase the use of solar power, and align with broader goals for green energy contribution and enhanced total power capacity in Delhi. The Ministry of Heavy Industries and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Roorkee, have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on fostering innovation and advancement in the automotive and electric vehicle (EV) sector. This agreement aims to establish a Centre of Excellence and an Industry Accelerator at IIT Roorkee, funded by the Ministry of Heavy Industries' scheme for enhancing competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector Phase II. This partnership aims to leverage the collective knowledge and resources of both institutions to support pioneering projects shaping the future of transportation. The signing ceremony was attended by Minister of Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, and senior officials from both the Ministry of Heavy Industries and the Uttarakhand government. Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey highlighted that the MoU has prompted numerous startups to collaborate with IIT-Roorkee on innovative electric vehicle projects, bolstering the nation's self-reliance in e-mobility. The project's total cost is Rs 24.66 crore, and it is anticipated to foster significant advancements in innovation, bridging the gap between academia and industry. Pandey also emphasized how initiatives under the Capital Goods Scheme have accelerated the integration of cutting-edge technologies in the manufacturing sector, thus promoting self-reliance in India (Aatmanirbhar Bharat). The International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT), Manesar, a partner in this project, is a leading facility dedicated to automotive testing, certification, and research. ICAT, renowned for its state-of-the-art infrastructure and expertise, will provide services such as automotive electrical and electronics testing. As India transitions towards electric mobility, ICAT remains at the forefront, offering testing and developmental services for electric vehicles, contributing to the nation's drive towards sustainable transportation. WASHINGTON The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner doesnt sell, as lawmakers acted on concerns that the companys current ownership structure is a national security threat. The bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok, which has more than 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd. FILE - A TikTok sign is displayed on their building in Culver City, Calif., March 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)AP The lawmakers contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikToks consumers in the U.S. any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering. We have given TikTok a clear choice, said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. Separate from your parent company ByteDance, which is beholden to the CCP (the Chinese Communist Party), and remain operational in the United States, or side with the CCP and face the consequences. The choice is TikToks. House passage of the bill is only the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and lawmakers in that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said hell have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the bills path. President Joe Biden has said if Congress passes the measure, he will sign it. The House vote is the latest example of increased tensions between China and the U.S. By targeting TikTok, lawmakers are tackling what they see as a grave threat to Americas national security but also singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before an election. Alex Haurek, a TikTok spokesperson, said in a statement after the vote that the bill was jammed through as part of a secretive process. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service, Haurek said. Overall, 197 Republican lawmakers voted for the measure and 15 against. On the Democratic side, 155 voted for the bill and 50 against. Devotees of TikTok monitor voting at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn't sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app's owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)AP Some Republican opponents of the bill said the U.S. should warn consumers if there are data privacy and propaganda concerns, but the final choice should be left with consumers. Democrats also warned of the impact a ban would have on users in the U.S., including entrepreneurs and business owners. The answer to authoritarianism is not more authoritarianism, said Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif. The answer to CCP-style propaganda is not CCP-style oppression. Let us slow down before we blunder down this very steep and slippery slope. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., opposed the bill. He said the U.S. would never stand for another country demanding that an American company sell to another party or face a ban. We wouldnt let another country take over Ford Motor Co. for selling Ford cars in their country. Yet thats what were wanting to do here, Massie said. This is a cure that is worse than the disease. The day before the House vote, top national security officials in the Biden administration held a closed-door briefing with lawmakers to discuss TikTok and the national security implications. Lawmakers are balancing those security concerns against a desire not to limit free speech online. What weve tried to do here is be very thoughtful and deliberate about the need to force a divestiture of TikTok without granting any authority to the executive branch to regulate content or go after any American company, said Rep. Mike Gallagher, the bills author, as he emerged from the briefing. TikTok has long denied that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared U.S. user data with Chinese authorities and wont do so if it is asked. To date, the U.S. government also has not provided any evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities. Republican leaders moved quickly to bring up the bill after its introduction last week. A House committee approved the legislation unanimously, on a 50-0 vote, even after their offices were inundated with calls from TikTok users demanding they drop the effort. Some offices even shut off their phones because of the onslaught. Supporters of the bill said the effort backfired. (It) provided members a preview of how the platform could be weaponized to inject disinformation into our system, Gallagher said. Lawmakers in both parties are anxious to confront China on a range of issues. The House formed a special committee to focus on China-related issues. And Schumer directed committee chairs to begin working with Republicans on a bipartisan China competition bill. The U.S. Capitol is seen on cloudy day, Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024, in Washington, D.C.AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana Schumer is likely to feel some pressure from within his own party to move on the TikTok legislation. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner announced after the House vote that he will work to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law. In a joint statement with Sen. Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the Intelligence panel, Warner said that we are united in our concern about the national security threat posed by TikTok a platform with enormous power to influence and divide Americans whose parent company ByteDance remains legally required to do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who has been pushing to ban TikTok for the last year, posted on X after the vote: NOW is the time to act on TikTok and stop China spying. The Senate should take up this bill immediately. Roughly 30 TikTok influencers and others who traveled with them spoke out against the bill on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. They chanted phrases like Keep TikTok ahead of the vote. They also held signs that read TikTok changed my life for the better and TikTok helped me grow my business. Dan Salinger, a Sacramento, California-based TikTok creator in attendance, said he started creating content on the app during the COVID-19 pandemic purely out of boredom. But since then his account, which features videos about his life and his father, who suffers from dementia, has grown in popularity. Today, he has 2 million followers on the app. Im actually appalled for many reasons, Salinger said. The speed with which theyre pushing this bill through does not give enough time for Americans to voice their concerns and opinions. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The nurses at Staten Island University Hospital - Northwell Health (SIUH) could soon strike if the hospital and union officials cant come together on a new contract agreement by the end of the month. On Wednesday, dozens of nurses and union supporters gathered outside the hospitals Ocean Breeze facility to announce that more than 97% of the 1,300 New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) members employed there have voted in favor of a strike authorization following nine rounds of negotiations that have failed to produce a new contract the union deems fair. The nurses primary concerns include pay equity, with union officials claiming that the hospitals nurses earn significantly lower wages than those at other comparable New York City hospitals, and safe staffing levels, as existing short staffing has forced nurses to work in units outside their specialization, potentially endangering patients. Under the existing contract, which expires on March 31, the average base pay for SIUH nurses is $11,573 less than the base pay at similar New York City hospitals, according to the union. Nurses shouldnt be living paycheck to paycheck while keeping Staten Island safe and healthy. And Northwell shouldnt be making cuts that make their jobs even harder while spending big on corporate expansions and fancy ad campaigns. Nurses on Staten Island deserve a fair contract with respectful raises and safe staffing. Northwell needs to do better by their nurses, said NYSNA President Nancy Hagans. The union claimed theres a high rate of turnover among the hospitals nurses, as many leave for better paying, sufficiently staffed jobs in other parts of the city. But many of the nurses at Wednesdays rally said they shouldnt have to leave their home borough to earn a fair wage and would prefer to remain here on Staten Island, where they can continue to serve and care for their neighbors. I live on Staten Island. I was born here. This is my community. I dont want to have to leave the island for work. But in the short time Ive been a nurse, Ive seen our morale driven to the ground and Ive seen nurses like me burn out and leave, said SIUH-Northwell Nurse Shayna Lehrer. After just one-and-a-half years, I am one of the most senior nurses in my unit. Instead of making changes to support and retain its nurses, Northwell continues to ask us to do more with less. The nurses were joined by representatives from various other New York City unions standing in solidarity with their fight for a fair, equitable contract that will continue to ensure high-quality health care here on Staten Island. The entire New York City labor movement stands with our NYSNA nurses at Staten Island University Hospital, who are demanding a fair contract with safe staffing, said New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO President Vincent Alvarez. The actions of Northwell executives have resulted in understaffing that is actively undermining quality of patient care and threatening public health because trained, experienced nurses from the community cannot afford to stay and are being forced to go to other boroughs. An SIUH representative told the Advance/SILive.com that the hospital will continue negotiating in good faith up until the deadline at the end of the month, and officials are optimistic that a resolution will be reached to avoid any disruption to critical health-care services. Staten Island University Hospital has met with the New York State Nurses Association for several negotiation sessions and will continue to bargain in good faith to reach a fair successor contract to the collective bargaining agreement that expires on March 31, 2024. Our goal is to reach an agreement that continues to provide our valued nurses with competitive compensation and benefits and ensures a safe, supportive working environment that enables them to provide exceptional care that our patients and community have come to trust, said SIUH spokesperson Jillian OHara. We remain optimistic that an agreement can be reached and look forward to positive and productive ongoing negotiations, OHara added. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. In the days since a 26-year-old man died in a crash that destroyed the backyards of several Graniteville homes, residents on the block are calling for increased traffic safety measures on Goethals Road North. Residents believe Usman Chughtais life could have been spared if additional safety measures were in place, according to Annie, a resident of Jules Drive. Support the Peninsulas only locally-owned newspaper. Subscribe! Subscribing annually brings you big savings. We also offer monthly and weekly subscriptions. Premium Subscription As low as $8.25 per month Premium Includes: -- Access to the Daily Journals e-Edition: a digital replica of our daily newspaper including crossword puzzles, games, comics, classifieds and ads. You can download a digital replica of the Daily Journal for offline reading. You can also clip & download articles or images from the e-edition to share with others The most recent 90 issues are available at any given time. -- Unlimited access to our award-winning online content -- Commenting access on all stories as a valued member of the DJ community -- NEW! Access to our online-only digital crossword puzzle. A new puzzle every day, seven days a week! The Role of International Corporations in Shaping the Foreign Policy of States: Lessons for Ukraine Ihor Petrenko, Doctor of Science, expert at the United Ukraine Think Tank When we talk about decision-making or non-decision-making in other countries, we think of business, which, along with public sentiment, has no less, and sometimes even more, influence on the government of each country. Especially when it comes to large corporations. Analyzing the influence of corporations on the foreign policy of states, especially in the context of current geopolitical challenges, we can observe how closely the interests of business and state institutions are intertwined. Recent decades have demonstrated a shift in emphasis in foreign policy, where economic competition is becoming one of the key vectors of interstate relations. Historically, corporations have focused on globalization and market expansion, often ignoring geopolitical risks. However, the modern world demonstrates that major powers such as the United States and China are actively using economic leverage to achieve their strategic goals, influencing corporate strategies through export controls, sanctions, and incentives for domestic industries. The changing global landscape has forced companies to become active participants in the geopolitical arena, where their actions can have a significant impact on international relations. This is particularly evident in the semiconductor sector, where the decisions of individual corporations play a key role in shaping the technological and economic security of countries. In today's world, the interaction between the state and corporations requires a new approach, where it is important not only to regulate but also to cooperate, understanding common interests and challenges. Policymakers must adapt to new realities where economic power and technological progress are crucial factors for geopolitical stability and prosperity. Thus, the interaction between the state and corporations in the modern world takes on a new dimension, where both sides play a key role in shaping foreign policy and international stability. Understanding these dynamics is critical to developing effective strategies that take into account the interests of the state and the strategies of companies. Corporations in today's world can no longer act solely from a commercial perspective, ignoring geopolitics. Their decisions on investment, production, and trade have profound geopolitical implications, affecting international relations and foreign policy. For example, the choice of a location for a new semiconductor plant can affect a country's technological security and strategic position in the global economy. Companies are now forced to balance compliance with national legislation, on the one hand, and global business interests, on the other. This is particularly evident in the context of sanctions and export controls, where corporations can find themselves caught between the hammer of government restrictions and the anvil of international market opportunities. This raises difficult questions about how to adapt to a rapidly changing geopolitical environment while remaining competitive and innovative. State institutions, in turn, have to develop policies that take into account not only national security but also the economic well-being and innovative potential of their corporations. This requires a new level of interaction between the government and the private sector, where both sides understand and take into account each other's interests and challenges. Thus, the current state of international relations requires corporations to be not just economic entities, but strategic players that can adapt and influence global geopolitics while taking into account their commercial interests and obligations to shareholders. In turn, governments need to develop comprehensive strategies that balance national security with creating favorable conditions for business development and innovation. Understanding the relationship between corporations and foreign policy is critical for Ukraine, especially in the context of its dependence on external support in the war with Russia. Here are some key reasons why: Diplomatic relations: Corporations can play a significant role in shaping international opinion and policy, so it is important for Ukraine to maintain positive relations with key international companies and their home countries to strengthen diplomatic and economic support. Lobbying: Ukraine can cooperate with international corporations to lobby for its interests in the international arena, especially on issues related to security, economic development, and post-war reconstruction. Economic support and sanctions: Understanding how corporations can influence foreign policy helps Ukraine to promote effective sanctions mechanisms against Russia, as well as to attract foreign investment and economic support for its own economy. Influence on global markets: understanding the strategies of international corporations can help Ukraine adapt to global economic trends, ensure the stability of its own economy, and use global markets to sell Ukrainian goods. Technological independence and security: the growing role of corporations in global technology supply chains emphasizes the need to develop Ukraine's own technological capabilities, as well as the importance of protecting critical infrastructure from external threats. Infrastructure development: Cooperation with large corporations can contribute to the development of Ukraine's infrastructure, particularly in the areas of energy, telecommunications, and transportation, which is important for maintaining the country's defense capabilities and overall stability. Thus, it is important for Ukraine not only to understand these processes, but also to actively use them to strengthen its own security, economic development and international support in the war against Russia. This leads to a logical question: what should Ukraine do to establish relations with international corporations and win them over? To do this, Ukraine should focus on several key aspects: Creating a favorable investment climate: Ukraine needs to continue reforms to improve the business environment, ensure legal security, fight corruption, and ensure transparency of government procedures. This will increase the confidence of international investors and corporations. Active involvement in international alliances and initiatives: Participation in global economic and political associations can help Ukraine raise its international profile and provide more opportunities for collaboration with corporations. Supporting innovation and technological development: attracting investment in research, startups, and innovative projects can help create new opportunities for cooperation with international technology companies. Improving infrastructure and logistics: The development of modern infrastructure, including transportation, energy, and digital technologies, can make Ukraine more attractive to international corporations looking for efficient supply chains and investment opportunities. Marketing and promoting Ukraine internationally: Active representation of Ukraine at international forums, exhibitions, and business events can help attract the attention of international companies by demonstrating the country's investment potential and business opportunities. Stimulating foreign direct investment: the development of special economic zones, tax breaks, and other incentives can encourage international corporations to locate their production and research centers in Ukraine. Developing international trade relations: The conclusion of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements can help open new markets for Ukrainian goods and services and help attract foreign investment. By focusing on these aspects, Ukraine can improve its relations with international corporations, which in turn will contribute to economic growth, technological development, and strengthening of the country's international standing, and thus increase support from corporations, as they will have a direct interest in this. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that attracting international corporations and foreign investment can have both positive and potentially negative consequences for domestic producers. Potential benefits: Technology development: Involvement of foreign companies can facilitate the transfer of advanced technologies and know-how, which will allow local enterprises to modernize and increase their competitiveness. However, no one is in a hurry to transfer technology, as competition is extremely fierce. Infrastructure development: Investments from large international corporations can contribute to the development of local infrastructure, which is beneficial for the entire economy, including small and medium-sized enterprises. Opening up new markets: Cooperation with foreign partners can help Ukrainian producers enter international markets, expand their customer base, and increase sales. At the same time, there are many potential risks to keep in mind, including Competition: International companies often have significant advantages in terms of capital, technology, and marketing, which can create fierce competition for local businesses, especially for those that cannot adapt quickly. Dependence on foreign investment: there is a risk of over-reliance on foreign companies, which can lead to a loss of control over key sectors of the economy or vulnerability to global economic fluctuations. Therefore, along with the development of relations with international corporations, Ukraine should implement strategies to minimize risks: Protective measures: Ukraine can establish certain regulatory mechanisms that protect local enterprises from unfair competition, for example, through anti-dumping laws or measures on responsible corporate behavior. Supporting innovation: The government can invest in supporting innovation and skills development among domestic producers to increase their competitiveness and reduce the technology gap. Focus on specialization: Focusing on niches where Ukrainian companies have unique advantages or high potential can help them gain a strong position in international markets. Maintain a dialog between the government, business, and civil society to ensure transparency and that the interests of all parties are taken into account. Taking these aspects into account, Ukraine should develop a balanced approach that, on the one hand, encourages foreign investment and technological exchange, and, on the other hand, protects and supports local producers, promoting their growth and innovative development. Therefore, international corporations are stakeholders in government decision-making, and if we want to win allies, we should develop relations not only with politicians and parties, but also with corporations. Politics loves money, and it is mainly business that invests in politicians, and this is true for all countries. This is a difficult task, as we have to implement strategies to protect domestic producers. But the world is a pragmatic place, and the further we go, the more understandable the language of profits, not values, becomes. Obviously, we need to take this into account... Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton was out on the hustings in the Sutherland Shire on Tuesday, introducing locals to Simon Kennedy, the man set to replace Scott Morrison as the next Liberal member for Cook. The Liberals hold the seat with a 12 per cent margin, and Labors disinterest in wasting money in the Shire means Kennedys campaign is more of a coronation. Which makes some of Duttons companion choices during his visit even more questionable. CBD spotted Dutton deep in conversation with an old friend of this column Matt Daniel, a colourful property developer and Liberal party powerbroker in southern Sydney. For a quick catch-up, Daniel was sacked as Liverpool Councils deputy general manager in 2013 for failing to declare he was an undischarged bankrupt. Matt Daniel, Peter Dutton and Simon Kennedy on the campaign trail in Gymea. Credit: Instagram He has since been a semi-regular guest at recent Independent Commission Against Corruption hearings although no findings have been made against him. In 2021, he was named as a town planner who lobbied councils on behalf of the family of then-Drummoyne MP John Sidoti. Sidoti was later found to have engaged in corrupt conduct. Young, 63, is having something of a moment in her already stellar career, having been named earlier this year as the first woman to conduct The Ring at the storied Bayreuth Opera Festival. Meanwhile, in a fresh vote of confidence in her work, Sydney Symphony Orchestra last month announced her tenure would be extended another two years. Were just having a great time, she says. Sydney audiences are supporting us, and Im very happy with the orchestra. They seem to be very happy with me, and Sydney loves us, so why not? My ambition has always been to make Sydney Symphony the hot ticket in town. We cant compete with Taylor Swift, but a different kind of hot ticket. The support and welcome we get from the audience when we walk on stage is just wonderful. Cate Blanchett plays Lydia Tar. Credit: Focus Features The mysterious world of conductors is also having something of a moment in popular culture with movies such as Tar, Maestro and the upcoming The Yellow Tie, about Romanian maestro Sergiu Celibidache. Despite this, there remains a wide level of popular ignorance about what a conductor actually does. Young explains it thus: There is actually nothing that I do physically that creates a sound. I dont bow a string. I dont touch a key. I dont hit a drum. I dont blow into a flute. But there is a trust between the musicians and myself that what I do guides them and develops them and trains them to be the best they can be. And thats what a conductor does. Loading When it comes to the vexed question of the ageing of concert hall audiences and how to attract younger patrons, Young remains sanguine. Thats a question people have been posing to me for 40 years and there must have been some new people come along in those 40 years the houses are still full, she says. Of course, the magic thing that were always looking for is how do we get people to make that first step? You want to turn single ticket buyers into subscribers, you want to turn subscribers into patrons, and you want to turn people whove never been to the symphony into those single ticket buyers who come for the first time. So, of course, we try to do a range of repertoire that is also going to appeal to first-timers as well as to people whove been faithful to the orchestra for 50 years. However, keeping the audience front and centre when programming concerts does not mean just playing top 100 hits. If the audience trusts us, then we can be more ambitious and more adventurous in trying to expand the audiences vision of the composers and the soloists and the works that they want to hear, Young adds. Despite having achieved success at the highest level in such a notoriously misogynistic field, and once being told [by a man] the best she could hope for would be to become a great assistant conductor, Young prefers not to dwell overly on issues of gender. In the recent ABC documentary, Knowing The Score, she says: What does being a woman have to do with conducting? My tits dont get in the way. She does admit, however, that being seen as a role model is a huge responsibility. [But] I would hope to be encouraging aspiring musicians across gender and race, she says Classical music has always been the branch of the arts thats been the slowest to get on board with social change. In the past 300 years there would be the change in literature first, and then it would go to visual arts, and then it would some time later end up in the classical music world. I mean, look back at the 1950s there were hardly any women violin soloists. Today, if you want to name the 10 best violin soloists in the world, at least half of them will be women. So 50 years is a good measure of change. There are arguments for and against positive discrimination whether were talking about gender or race. I dont really have anything to add to that argument because, for me, its always been a question of just getting out there and doing it. Young says her Irish and Croatian heritage, which makes her bolshy on both sides, has served her well in her career to date. Patricia Clarkson is in London, where the celebrated American character actor is taking on a very Patricia Clarkson task: preparing to play Mary Tyrone in Eugene ONeills A Long Days Journey into Night. The play is a classic of the 20th century American theatre, a bittersweet and ultimately wrenching family reckoning that unwinds the flawed marriage of Mary Tyrone and her actor husband James. They are, quite simply, titanic parts. Patricia Clarkson in Gray: Gray is formidable in her abilities, in her capacities, in her intellectual scope but shes also hot. Credit: Stan Who is she starring opposite? Brian Cox, Clarkson says, naming the Succession star with coolly pitched enthusiasm. I think youve heard of him. Clarkson has a bewitching voice, low, throaty, and soaked in 1950s film noir, and a stars magnetism. Talking to her, or simply being very quiet and listening to her talk, quickly becomes a giddy pleasure. She has a spitfire wit and praise for every creative soul she collaborates with, who she fastidiously names so that up-and-comers get their nod alongside Hollywood heavyweights. High school students are being asked absurd and badly worded questions in NAPLANs numeracy exams, but a lack of transparency from the national testing authority is preventing teachers from addressing the issues. As 1.3 million students begin to sit the annual NAPLAN exams on Wednesday, Victorian educators have spoken out on the secrecy surrounding the content of the tests, which they say makes it impossible to know if they are being conducted to a sufficiently high standard. Educators have called for more transparency on NAPLAN tests. Mathematician Marty Ross, whose advocacy last year prompted an investigation into errors in VCE exams, has obtained year 7 and 9 NAPLAN numeracy test questions from 2017 to 2021. He found many of the questions were poorly conceived or badly worded, labelling 10 questions as appalling. There were just things which simply made zero sense, he said. You could sort of figure out what it is they were trying to ask, but they werent asking it. How on earth could something like this be approved? It just boggles the mind. Tens of thousands of motorists a day will have to pay extra in tolls if the state government decides to impose two-way charging on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel, as well as the Eastern Distributor, raising hundreds of millions of dollars a year in revenue. Figures from the states transport agency show about 63,000 northbound trips a day are made on average on the Harbour Bridge and 42,000 on the 2.7-kilometre Harbour Tunnel. Southbound trips on the Eastern Distributor averaged about 60,000 trips a day last year. At present, only southbound motorists on the government-owned and operated Harbour Bridge and Tunnel, and northbound journeys on the privately run Eastern Distributor, are charged. The motorways are frequently used by north shore, northern beaches and eastern suburbs residents. A review led by former competition watchdog chairman Allan Fels has recommended bidirectional tolls on the three motorways, arguing it would make Sydneys tolling system fairer and allow extra revenue to be redistributed to help lower charges elsewhere. The axing of a plan to make maths compulsory for the states year 11 and 12 students has been welcomed by teachers and mathematicians who say it was a top-down solution which would do little to lift students proficiency in the subject. There is no point dragging a kid kicking and screaming into an exam and subject they hate, that they havent been taught properly to do, said Dr Adam Spencer, the inaugural mathematics and science ambassador for the University of Sydney. Adam Spencer says lacking a qualified maths teacher in high school can be particularly damaging to a students education by the time they reach the HSC. Credit: James Brickwood About 20 per cent of HSC students each year have opted out of mathematics over the past decade, while a third of year 9 students in NSW failed to meet the minimum standard in numeracy last year. Spencer said it is the shortage of qualified maths teachers that must be addressed. At last estimate, more than 22 per cent of high school teachers across years 7 to 10 were not specifically trained to teach the subject. NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb has dismissed her media head Liz Deegan after widespread criticism of Webbs public handling of an alleged double murder by a serving officer with his service pistol. Deegan, a former Sunday Mail editor, Sunday Telegraph deputy editor and News Corp corporate affairs head who was hired by Webb as executive director of public affairs last April, was told on Wednesday that her services would no longer be required. Elizabeth Deegan was a News Corp executive before joining NSW Police. A police spokesman confirmed Deegans departure to the Herald. Deegan declined to comment. The move comes after Webb was widely criticised for failing to address the public early enough after Senior Constable Beau Lamarre-Condon allegedly shot and killed couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies in a Paddington home in mid-February, using his police-force pistol. Vitaliy Koval, Chairman of the State Property Fund of Ukraine The number of sanctioned assets transferred to the State Property Fund of Ukraine as the sole body currently working with them exceeds seven hundred. As of mid-March 2024, there are 731 units, but this list is not static; it is periodically updated. This property belonged to 35 sanctioned groups or individuals. There are several categories of sanctioned assets. These include corporate rights, residential and non-residential real estate, land plots, vehicles, and funds in accounts. It can also be more specific assets, such as aviation engines, wings, or aircraft chassis (the latter belonging to the PJSC "Ilyushin Aviation Complex"). What are the stages of processing sanctioned assets at the SPFU? After receiving a sanctioned asset, the SPFU begins processing. Initially, the registration of ownership rights takes place, then the preparation of the property for auction for lease or sale, and finally, the auctions themselves via the Prozorro.Sale system. However, this is a general working scheme, which can vary depending on the ownership of the asset, physical location, conditions, and so on. For example, the first sanctioned property to be received by the SPFU was that of the russian billionaire Vladimir Yevtushenkov. In 2022, the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine confiscated his shares in 5 enterprises and 17 real estate objects. Most of these assets are currently being prepared for sale. At the same time, among them are those where a share of ownership belongs to the russian federation, and there is currently no mechanism to take any action with them. Also, among the first sanctioned assets received under the management of the Fund were those of the russian billionaire Mikhail Shelkov. These are corporate rights in 4 enterprises, nearly a dozen real estate objects, and 18 vehicles. More than half of them are currently in the penultimate stage of processing preparation for sale, lease, or other methods of managing this property. At the same time, there was already an attempt to sell the corporate rights of Shelkov to LLC "Investagro", a company located in Kyiv. The auction on the Prozorro.Sale system was planned for August 2023 but did not take place because there were no willing participants to purchase this lot. The lots initial value reached UAH 27.5 million. Currently, another significant package of sanctioned assets is being prepared for sale, including the assets of LLC "Investment Union "LYBID"" (better known as SEC "Ocean Plaza"), LLC "Aerok", LLC "Demurinsky GZK", LLC "Motordetal-Konotop", and others. The Fund has also received under the management a portion of sub-sanctioned assets, which are currently located in temporarily occupied territories. Such property is included in the general list and recorded as state-owned, however, no additional actions regarding it can be taken for obvious reasons. The return to this issue can only occur after the full restoration of the constitutional order of Ukraine in these territories. Features of the work of the SPFU with sanctioned assets Sanctioned assets that come under the management of the State Property Fund are in different conditions and have specific characteristics. They may be under arrest, with a prohibition on registration actions regarding them. To lift the arrest, representatives of the Fund appeal to the court, which initiates a legal process that can last for months. If the asset is shares, they need to be treated as securities through depository institutions to be transferred to the state account. A separate direction of work with sanctioned property is studying conditions, gathering reliable information about the assets, and conducting mandatory inventory. This provides an understanding of assets value and the subsequent steps that need to be taken for effective management. At the initiative of the Fund, in enterprises may occur changes in management. Also, the restoration of accounting is underway, as such documentation is usually absent (the data is mostly stored in cloud storage, access to which is lost). Based on the collected information, the State Property Fund makes management decisions on the fate of each object. The main thing is to find an option that will bring the most benefit to the state: either funds to the budget from the sale, or "dividends" from another way of use. Decisions to sell assets, lease them, or otherwise dispose of them depend on many factors. On their type, relevance, and market demand, the availability of material and human resources (if it is an enterprise), legislative restrictions, and so on. For example, corporate rights may only be sold via auction, and their lease is impossible. As for sanctioned residential real estate objects, work with them is currently limited due to legislative collisions regarding their management. Assets in the form of funds of sanctioned persons in bank accounts may be transferred to the state budget immediately after all bureaucratic processes. And property with cultural value goes to the state museum, library, and archival fund. Thus, behind each asset stands detailed analysis and a separate decision on management method. In general, the management norms of assets seized in favor of the state are established in the relevant resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine from November 2023. How to measure the benefit from sanctioned assets transferred to the SPFU? The overall assessment of sanctioned assets transferred to the State Property Fund reaches UAH 3.2 billion. This is not the exact amount that Ukraine will receive through sale, lease, or other methods of managing this property. As a result of an auction, a certain lot may find a new owner who will buy it several times more expensive than the established initial value. Some objects may currently not be of interest to the market, and their starting price may need to be lowered instead. Some assets cannot be operated separately due to their location or legislative restrictions. However, the State Property Fund of Ukraine is working to maximize the efficiency of each sanctioned asset under management. This is important because the funds obtained from this source go to the Fund for the Elimination of the Consequences of Russian Aggression. 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 Daniel Cash is absolutely right when he says that we need a ceasefire between generations (Its time for a ceasefire in this generation blame game, March 13). Over the last couple of decades the media has gradually added more and more generational categories (Baby Boomers, Gen X, Gen Z, Millennials etc) and has encouraged pitting them against each other to create conflict that is in nobodys best interests. No person can be accurately described based on their year of birth. Its about as accurate as the astrological horoscopes in magazines. As a Boomer, I acknowledge that our generation has been very lucky in many respects, but we are not all filthy rich with investment properties and holding onto our money like Gollum. Neither is Cashs generation all weak and work shy, or the Millennials all selfish. Many people, regardless of age, are concerned for our world, wanting to keep it in a good state for the future, and wanting to work toward improving life for everyone. What we need is for all adults to work together to solve the problems of our current world economic, educational, medical, environmental, political - and recognise that we are all individuals with something to offer to others. We need to consult all age groups and respect the knowledge and experiences of all. Judy Christian, The Ponds Illustration: Credit: John Shakespeare As a parent of the generation copping snowflakes and incessant complainers I have been put in my place with, But you raised us this way. Yes, we did over-protect you, gave you the iPad to manage yourselves, provided you door-to-door pick-up and drop- off service, and molly-coddled you in many ways. In return, you gave us new and better ways of looking after ourselves, said what was wrong with the way we treated other fellow humans, the climate and animals. Mental health is a huge worry with your generation, Daniel Cash, but I also see psychology, health science and social norms do change tack over time. What was good earlier often is bad now. Too much reliance on experts and ignoring the experience of the past generations comes at your own peril. Im glad you want to begin the process of learning ways to press on as that will definitely work for all of us. Manbir Singh Kohli, Pemulwuy An old head on young shoulders; well said, Daniel Cash. We Boomers had the best of times. It is counterproductive to delude young people about their capabilities or reward them for mediocrity. Similarly, many baby boomers need a reality check about their self-funded wealth and reluctance to pay their way in retirement. Graeme Troy, Wagstaffe Why is it necessary to continue to hit the Boomers around the bollard? We have worked bloody hard to have what we have. Two jobs to raise a family and pay a mortgage and we went without holidays. We paid our taxes and looked after our senior citizens. We are selfish if we wont downsize and now you want us to stump up the cost for aged care, penalising us for growing old. Some cultures treat their senior citizens with respect. Unfortunately, Australia is not one of them. Peter Haggarty, Cranebrook Two-way tolls are not a new development With the discussion about fairness of tolls and the one-way bridge toll, can someone point me to the non-tolled road to cross the harbour for people in North Sydney (Lets bust the Transurban myth taking its toll on Sydney, March 13). All other toll roads have toll-free alternatives, even if they are now altered to a one lane goat track to make the toll roads look more efficient. I guess Gladesville Bridge and the new cafe-lined Victoria Road Boulevard is the alternative. At least for anyone driving north to east, say from North Sydney to Bondi or Randwick, the tolls are already two-way: Bridge toll south, cross-city tunnel or eastern distributor going north. Giles Parker, Riverview Advertisement History needs to be considered before conclusions about equity of tolling are rushed. When the Harbour Bridge was built we were told that tolls were needed to pay for it. The toll then was neatly transferred to pay for the Harbour Tunnel. The toll was doubled to be collected in one direction to speed up the flow of traffic as it was assumed that drivers would return to their destination by the same route. Now one way tolling is declared unfair even though the costs of both have been paid for in full by motorists. A commercial imperative would be to ensure that the Tunnel and Bridge tolls are the same as those projected for the yet incomplete Western Harbour Tunnel for which there has been no business case published. Catherine Turner, Cremorne Illustration: Credit: John Shakespeare I was told, as a child in the 50s, that the toll on the Harbour Bridge was to pay for the continual painting of the Bridge so that it wouldnt rust and collapse into the harbour. I still believe this to be so. Remaking it a two-way toll, as it used to be, is undoubtedly to cover the increased cost of a four-litre tin of Killrust. Terry Charleston, Cootamundra It is ridiculous to suggest that Transurban should be nationalised. Putting aside the question as to how we would implement that, it would put Australia on a par with Cuba or Venezuela as an investment jurisdiction. In claiming that infrastructure assets used by the public should be not for profit, your writer misses the point that toll roads and tunnels would not have been built in the first place without companies seeking adequate return. John Kempler, Rose Bay Has there been an attempt to determine whether there is any correlation between the increase in vehicle size and the increase in the road toll? Scot Webb, Bella Vista Hands off hard-earned assets to fund aged care A government-appointed taskforce recommends older Australians should pay more for aged care services (Bills would go up $20 a day for wealthy, March 12). The emphasis of this recommendation is that this proposal will affect wealthier Australians. One must ask what denotes wealthy? It can be expected that this will relate to any person who might own their own home and have sufficient funds in their superannuation to allow them a modest life in retirement. One can assuredly assume that wealthy does not relate exclusively to those who have been fortunate enough to accumulate a sizeable portfolio of assets in their lifetime these already have access to better aged care services that are self-funded. If this proposal is introduced, it will assuredly be set at a sufficiently low threshold to reap in most aged Australians who will own their home and have modest superannuation on which they have been eking out a modest means of living after decades of saving and living carefully. It is infuriating that the assets of the aged should be eyed off by government as a source to be tapped. As it stands, when people need to access aged care, they typically need to sell their home to finance entry to any aged care facility and a sizeable sum is already taken for the care of that person. It is too appealing to seek more from this pot why not take it all seems to be the logic that is applied here. Let me emphasise that these assets, whether large or small, have been hard-earned. Taxes have been paid in full. It is deplorable to think that as one grows old those hard-earned belongings should be ripped off. If there is a small nest-egg after one passes on, it should be our right to choose where it should go. Cheryl Chenery, Gwynneville Advertisement I think it is rather discriminatory to expect older people to pay more for the care they need because they may have the means to do so. Surely, this should apply to anyone needing health care. If you can afford it, pay more. Perhaps the whole Medicare system needs to be reviewed. Pam Fichtner, Dunbogan Supers for spending, not saving I am sure there are many other retirees like me who have budgeted to pay those additional costs in aged care from our superannuation. My friends and I do not consider superannuation as an inheritance bonus for our kids. If we can afford it, we will pay it and try to avoid being a burden on the taxpayer. Aidan Cuddington, Umina Beach No scaremongering in sight Yes, we all care about our neighbourhoods and these policy changes warrant rigorous debate (Wild claims and scaremongering sully density debate, March 13). The rally at Parliament House was a peaceful getting together of concerned citizens from across Greater Sydney, all of whom were concerned about the destruction of their local areas, and the loss of hard-fought powers of their local councils. I heard no scaremongering and anyone on top of the issue has done their homework. And yes, there will be towers in our suburban streets, along with the annihilation of our history, and trees and wildlife. The proposed reforms will not deliver affordable housing, will only feed the developers, and will reduce our city to a concrete jungle of horror. Opposers of the proposed reforms are not anti-development. It just has to be in the right place, in the right quantity and form, and decided after extensive community consultation. Our beautiful city deserves that. Elizabeth Howard, Katoomba Cocaine capital This is a very serious and alarming issue that is growing steadily over the years and has no decline in sight (An amazing quantity: Sydney still in first flush of infatuation with cocaine, March 13). Theres nothing to be proud of in the fact that Sydney has retained the title of cocaine capital of Australia. Drastic measures to stop the trafficking of these illicit drugs, educating the downsides of the usage among the youth and adults alike, and heavily punishing the key players are all needed. Governments and enforcement agencies must work together to make society safer for future generations. Bala Ramakrishnan, Cherrybrook Advertisement Sadness at Ramadan I live in a suburb with many Muslim residents. As I walked home late at night on the first official day of Ramadan, I could not help but reflect on the grief and pain that my Muslim neighbours must be feeling in this month (Ramadan begins but joy, like food, is scant, March 13). But you do not need to be Muslim to feel sadness for those in Gaza who are starving and suffering. Nor do you need to be Muslim to know that this cannot be allowed to continue. It is simple humanity. So many of us these days are urged to be kind. That epithet does not only apply to how we as individuals treat others, but to nations as well. I hope our politicians take note during this Ramadan of the very real distress and disappointment in our community at Australias response to this tragedy and act accordingly. Tanya Harris-Roxas, Granville Charging ahead Electric vehicles are very cheap to run and to service. Ive saved at least $1200 in the first year of driving a medium-priced EV (Electric car plan needs discounts, March 13). So-called range anxiety is really a furphy, but it could be made completely irrelevant by governments encouraging service stations to install fast chargers, say every 100 kilometres along all major rural and regional roads. This would probably cost less than subsidising the purchase of EVs that are already being bought in increasing numbers as prices fall and competition increases. Philip Bell, Bronte Great Barrier Bleach. Credit: Cathy Wilcox Reef madness Sadly, the damage to the Great Barrier Reef due to repeated coral bleaching poses a huge threat to the survival of this natural treasure (Slow progress to save the reef, March 13). Ocean warming is mainly to blame. Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek has pledged $1.2 billion to improve the reefs resilience. Unfortunately, no amount of money thrown at the problem is going to fix it, unless we drastically reduce carbon emissions and slow global heating. Yet Plibersek continues to approve new fossil fuel projects for export and domestic use. The approval of four new coal-mining projects in Queensland and NSW in 2023, for example. This will cause the release of millions of tonnes of heat-trapping pollution into the atmosphere. Environment laws are set to be reviewed this year. Surely the effect of climate change on our natural environment must be taken into account. Anne OHara, Wanniassa (ACT) Advertisement Secret to a long life Sarah Berrys thoughtful and balanced article on food anxiety and risk mitigation brought to mind Woody Allens comment: You can live to be 100 if you give up all the things that make you want to live to be a 100 (It started with a jelly snake: How to have a healthy attitude about unhealthy food, smh.com.au, March 13) David MacKintosh, Berkeley Vale Sourdough sculptor I make my sourdough in an antique loaf tin (Letters, March 13). I get a much higher ratio of crumb to an easily cut crust and my cheese slices fit perfectly on the consistently sized slices. Plus I dont need the skills of a master sculptor to make the artisan ovoid loaf shaped loaf. Stuart Garland, Yamba Photo confession In the interests of transparency, I should confess now (Focus remains on contrite Kate, March 13). As a keen photographer, I too have manipulated some of the photographs I have taken of my family. My grandchildren did not always have the perfectly clean faces that appear in my photographs. They sometimes had snotty noses and chocolate ice cream on their chins. And older members of the family had skin blemishes which I photoshopped away. People occasionally blinked at the wrong moment, but opened eyes appear in the photographs. I do hope that history will be kind to me. Laurie Wilson, Allambie Heights Hair outta here. Credit: Matt Golding Advertisement An expert conservator has warned that the murals at the World Heritage-listed Royal Exhibition Building are at risk of destruction because of the current approach to the sites conservation. The Royal Exhibition Building was built for the 1880 Melbourne International Exhibition and was the site of Australias first federal parliament in 1901. Now, the building is crumbling and the internal murals are flaking off, with no money for restoration and repair. Mural restorer Harpreet Tanday said the murals in the Royal Exhibition Building are at risk of total loss. Credit: Simon Schluter Wall painting and stone conservator Harpreet Tanday worked on the restoration and conservation of the Royal Exhibition Buildings murals during the COVID lockdowns. She said some of the companies doing the conservation work on the murals used workers without specialist conservation experience such as builders to work on the project. Seven people missing in Western Australias flood-ravaged remote outback have been found alive just hours after authorities resumed search efforts on Wednesday afternoon. The group, which comprised three adults and four children, was found alive within the search area just hours after the police air wing was given the green light to mobilise. A rescue operation is now under way to reach them. WA Police had held grave concerns for the welfare of the travellers, who left Boulder on Sunday in a two-car convoy bound for the remote Aboriginal community of Tjuntjuntjara, about 700 kilometres north-east of Kalgoorlie, and had not been seen or heard from since. Search efforts had been hampered by flooding and wild weather, which had rendered an aerial search for the group too dangerous and prevented authorities from mobilising on the ground. The Albanese governments planned changes to rules governing political donations are long-overdue reforms that should introduce more transparency into the murky world of political access and influence. A cap is expected to be imposed on donations and an individual, company or third-party group who can currently contribute unlimited funds to a campaign will be banned from giving huge sums to parties. The Heralds Paul Sakkal reports that the government had not landed on a precise figure for the cap, but it is likely to be in the tens of thousands of dollars. A limit will also be imposed on the amount of money to be spent in each electorate. If accepted, the reforms are expected to severely limit the ability of rich and powerful Australians to overtly influence our politics and stop the unseemly cascade of millions of dollars as seen in the electorate of Kooyong in 2022 when former treasurer Josh Frydenberg attempted to keep teal independent Monique Ryan at bay. The $7.1 million Clive Palmers Mineralogy tipped to the United Australia Party at the last election returned one Senate seat. Credit: Scott McNaughton These are the first reforms since the Howard government eased laws governing political donations in 2006. Labor will shortly begin briefing MPs. The changes will mirror similar changes in Canada and parts of Europe but are expected to be problematic for Coalition, Greens and independent MPs who fear the new laws may make it more difficult to win elections. Political donations by the mega-rich are twin-edged blessings that can make or break. Last election, Clive Palmers mining company, Mineralogy, tipped $7.1 million to the United Australia Party that he founded for a return of one Senate seat, but the $117 million he reportedly poured into the 2019 election is generally regarded as ruining Bill Shortens Labor campaign. Meanwhile, the $1.2 million Mike Cannon-Brookes gave to Climate 200-backed independents saw six elected to the lower house, along with one senator and the re-election of four MPs. The head of plastic packaging company Visy, Anthony Pratt, has donated $15.9 million since 1998 with the Coalition getting $10.1 million and Labor $5.5 million. And then there is Malcolm Turnbulls personal $1.6 million donation to the Liberals in 2016 that helped the Coalition win and, for him, to keep his job as prime minister. Former Pentecostal preacher Anthony Venn-Brown has spent decades supporting people who were told they were broken and needed fixing. But it was an email from a young gay man called Matt that really reinforced to Venn-Brown how dangerous and deadly gay conversion practices can be. Matt wrote to Venn-Brown to thank him for his autobiography, which told the story of a young boy from the Sutherland Shire who went to a church rehabilitation centre in the late 1970s in the hope of being cured of his homosexuality. He ultimately came out as gay aged 40. Anthony Venn-Brown has long supported young people who have been subjected to gay conversion practices. Credit: Flavio Brancaleone Like Venn-Brown, Matt, 34, had also been through gay conversion programs. But this was the heartbreaking line for Venn-Brown in Matts email: I made a lot of friends in my years of conversion therapy. Out of 40, only six are still alive. One died naturally, the rest suicide. Venn-Brown, 73, was in the public gallery of NSW Parliament on Wednesday when Attorney-General Michael Daley introduced the governments bill to ban gay conversion practices, which was a Labor election commitment. Legendary Hollywood director and ocean explorer James Cameron will visit Perth at the end of this month to launch his self-titled exhibition at the WA Maritime Museum. Cameron directed some of the worlds biggest blockbuster films like Titanic, Aliens, Terminator and Avatar but has always had a passion for deep-sea exploration. Avatar and Titanic film director James Cameron is visiting Perth later this month. Credit: AP WAtoday and 9News Perth can reveal the James Cameron Challenging the Deep exhibition at the WA Maritime Museum will open on March 22. And to kick off the exhibition, Cameron will visit Fremantle in the flesh and sit down with The West Australians film critic Ben OShea for a question-and-answer session at the Fremantle Passenger Terminal on March 24. If youre booked on a cruise itinerary that traverses the Red Sea any time this year, you should expect your cruise to be rerouted around Africa, or to sail on a brand-new itinerary elsewhere. If your cruise is imminent, it has most likely already been cancelled. The Red Sea is one of the worlds most important waterways, providing access between the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal. Attacks on shipping by Iran-backed Houthi rebels have caused jitters and, as a result, risk-averse cruise ships are sensibly steaming for the horizon. Cruise lines regularly use the Red Sea to redeploy ships from Europe to Asia at the end of the Mediterranean cruise season in October or November, and the reverse in March or April. And with that transit season now upon us, the list of cruise lines pulling out of the Red Sea has rapidly lengthened. The earliest off the blocks was small-ship Greek company Variety Cruises in October 2023, whose owners clearly had a superior crystal ball. Silversea, MSC and German-founded company AIDA (now owned by Carnival Corporation) followed early this year. Virgin Voyages has cancelled its return to Australia next summer, citing the expense of returning from Europe via Africa. The rest seemed to hesitate, but were probably scrambling to think of alternatives. Rearranging cruise itineraries isnt easy. Port berths are booked well in advance, and cruise ships have far less flexibility than commercial vessels. Many African ports dont have tourism infrastructure or suitable catering supplies, or might have complicated passenger visa requirements. The cancellations were bound to come, though. The Houthis explicitly vowed to attack shipping connected to Israel, Britain or the United States, and have launched numerous drone and missile attacks and attempted hijackings on trade ships in the Red Sea, which resulted in retaliation by Britain and the US on Houthi targets inside Yemen. PHILIPSBURG:--- The National Employment Services Center (NESC) hosted a successful National Job Fair in 2023, which saw seventy-one persons hired on the spot and more job seekers getting the opportunity for a second interview. In 2024, the NESC will be traveling to the Netherlands to present job opportunities to Sint Maarten professionals and recent graduates during the upcoming National Job Exhibition, at the RAI in Amsterdam. The event team led by Section Head Ms. Natasha Richardson consists of Mr. Lynroy Rey, Mr. Edy Esnat, Mr. Maquidu Frevry. During this trip, the event team will meet with various stakeholders and engage with the students and professionals studying in the Netherlands. The public should look forward to seeing the NESC featured on the podcasts Bite the Bullet and Young Media Professionals, both hosted by St. Maarteners living in the Netherlands. There will also be a meet and greet, at the Cabinet of the Honorable Minister Plenipotentiary on March 25th, from 5:00pm until 7.30pm.By partnering with the NESC, businesses will have unprecedented access to qualified candidates, the NESC.sx Job Portal and the services at the Division of Labor Affairs and Social Services. The team looks forward to making this initiative a success. For more information about this event and how you can partner with the NESC, scan the barcode below. PHILIPSBURG:--- This year the General Audit Chamber is boosting its findings from past reports as part of its community awareness campaign. The Audit Chamber believes many of its previous reports contain much relevance to issues raised by the public and the islands leaders. Over the years several findings were not picked up which provide answers to present challenges. These are matters such as the road fund, gambling, digitizing business licensing the pension fund, among others. If further steps were taken, wed begin to see a major turnaround in inefficient government spending. Dozens of reports were published, emphasizing the need to improve financial management in the public sector. Overruns of millions and unaccounted-for budget allocations have hampered the island's development. Throughout its campaign, the Audit Chamber intends to refresh the minds of the public about its work of upholding legal compliance and expenditure of taxpayers funds. In addition to social media, the Audit Chamber intends to engage the public in discussions and connect with people within the community. It is open to hearing the topics of interest and discussions about official publications. This approach enfranchises residents in our democratic system and encourages accountability in all sectors. In the second quarter of 2024, the Audit Chamber will also launch a platform to increase financial literacy where persons can obtain a certificate. This initiative is geared towards raising awareness of tax expenditure and the audit impact. Poor financial management weakens the capacity and functioning of the public sector. Efficient and transparent public spending ensures the sustainability of vital programs. It also allows for greater investments in public programs. The Audit Chamber proposed multiple recommendations for implementation following investigations that discovered inefficient spending of taxpayers' money. We hope this thorough review of our quest to uphold good governance leads to new journeys of integral implementations. The Audit Chamber encourages the public to follow its social media pages on Facebook and Instagram and join its WhatsApp Channel for updates at your fingertips. The a Loan Agreement and a Memorandum on Bridge financing for Ukraine under the European Union's Ukraine Facility for 2024-2027 were signed on Tuesday, which will allow Ukraine to receive EUR 1.5 billion in March and if two conditions are met, another EUR 1.5 billion in April. As First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko reported on Facebook, in addition to her, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko and Governor of the National Bank (NBU) Andriy Pyshnyy also signed the documents from the Ukrainian side. The payment of EUR 4.5 billion to Ukraine later this month was announced on Tuesday by Vice-President of the European Commission Valdis Dombrovskis. "And we expect to make another EUR 1.5 billion payment in April," he said at the ECOFIN press conference. Pyshnyy on Facebook said that this is a loan on preferential terms with a maximum repayment period of 35 years and the beginning of repayment of the principal debt 10 years after the date of transfer of the tranche amount to the account with the NBU. Svyrydenko said that to receive this EUR 1.5 billion, Ukraine needs to complete two more steps, which are currently at the development stage. "It is about bringing the State Land Cadastre and the State Register of Real Estate Rights into compliance, as well as measures to support the introduction of industrial parks as a tool for attracting investment to de-occupied territories," she said. The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine added that after the approval of the Ukraine Plan for Ukraine Facility, it is expected that another EUR 1.9 billion of unconditional funding will be allocated to the state budget, while the rest of the budget support will amount to a total of EUR 30.27 billion, of which EUR 5.27 billion in the form Ukraine will receive grants quarterly after achieving the indicators provided for in the Ukraine Plan. "We are working closely with the Ukrainian government to finalise the Ukraine Plan. This will be the main tool for implementing the Facility itself, setting out the reform and investment priorities for all donors in the short and medium term," Dombrovskis said. The Ministry of Finance recalled that EUR 50 billion under the Ukraine Facility will be allocated to budget support (EUR 38.27 billion), an investment fund (EUR 6.97 billion), and technical and administrative support (EUR 4.76 billion). PHILIPSBURG:--- Today marks a historic appointment within the Government of Sint Maarten as Florence Marlin becomes the first official Secretary General (SG) of the Ministry of Justice. His Excellency Governor Ajamu Baly presided over the swearing-in ceremony, administering the oath of office to Ms. Marlin. The prestigious ceremonial event occurred at the Governors office in Philipsburg, whereby the Honorable Minister of Justice, Anna E. Richardson, family, and friends gathered to witness this occasion. Marlins concrete appointment comes as a testament to her expertise, and role in public service. As Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice, Marlin will oversee the day-to-day operations of the Ministry, working closely with the Honorable Minister of Justice to uphold the principles of justice, fairness, and integrity. The independent Auditor and Consultant for government entities, SOAB, conducted the publication and selection process to which Ms. Marlin emerged as the successor as of February 1, 2024. With a career bridging over two decades, Marlin brings experience with comprehension of the justice administration to her new role. The native of St. Maarten started out in the medical field as a certified Medical Assistant. She then ventured out in the profession of Human Resources Management (HR) and has utilized her extensive background and experience in HR Management and Labor throughout her multifaceted career. She firmly believes that hard work, dedication, and faith are catalysts for greatness. Marlin previously served as the Head of the Personnel & Organization Department on St. Eustatius for eight years, showcasing her leadership capabilities and organizational expertise. Additionally, she spent six years as an Investigator at the Bureau Ombudsman (High Council of State), further solidifying her expertise in matters of governance and investigations. Her higher learning concluded in the Netherlands in 2000, where she equipped herself with the knowledge and skills necessary to excel in her field. SG Florence Marlin - I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me is the biblical verse that has guided me throughout my life, empowering me to overcome challenges and persevere in my professional and personal life. Im also steadfast in my commitment to lead with integrity and to make a positive difference for our community. Minister Anna E. Richardson - "I am elated for this historic milestone in the Ministry of Justice. For the first time since 10-10-2010, we have identified and officially appointed a Secretary General, and it brings me immense joy to share that Ms. Marlin, a woman of exceptional leadership qualities, now holds this prestigious position. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to SOAB for their invaluable support in ensuring a thorough and proper process in identifying the Secretary General. This achievement marks a significant step forward, in responding to the calls from monitoring councils like the Law Enforcement Council and the Progress Committee. Their persistent advocacy for the appointment of an official Secretary General instead of relying on interim appointments has now been realized. With this, we close a chapter of uncertainty and usher in a new era of sustainability within the Ministry of Justice. I extend my warmest congratulations to Ms. Marlin and her family on this well-deserved appointment. This accomplishment is not only a personal success but a collective achievement for the Ministry of Justice and its partners. Together, we continue our journey towards ensuring proper governance and sustainability in the pursuit of justice. Sincere congratulations to all involved in reaching this significant milestone. The appointment also reinforces the Governments commitment to advancing a diverse and inclusive leadership landscape. SIMPSON BAY:--- Today Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIAE) presented the recent milestones from the Airport Reconstruction Project at the results fair, organized by the World Bank and the Sint Maarten Trust Fund. The objective of the results fair was to demonstrate to various stakeholders the achievements of Sint Maarten Trust Fund projects. The Airport Reconstruction Projects is one of the major projects of the Sint Maarten Trust Fund. PJIAEs CEO Brian Mingo shared in his speech a timeline and overview of the recent milestones. He highlighted the re-opening of the departure hall and check-in area as major achievements of the airport reconstruction project. Highlights & Results Airport Reconstruction Project Phase 1 and 2: October 2023-February 2024 In October 2023, PJIAE inaugurated the Temporary Arrival Facility (TAF) for all arriving passengers. By November 15th, 2023, the airport had softly opened its new departure hall, marking a significant step in its commitment to enhancing passenger services and amenities. Throughout December 2023, travelers experienced a phased introduction to limited retail and dining options in the departure hall. On January 12, 2024, PJIAE celebrated the next significant milestone in the new terminal's development, reflecting the substantial progress made since the rebuilding began in October 2021. The new departure hall opened to welcome passengers, and by the end of January 2024 the new check-in area was opened initially for WINAIR passengers flying to Saba and St. Eustatius, marking an upgrade in the ground experience at the airport. By February 2024, the check-in area was available to passengers from all airlines. The completion of phase 2 of the reconstruction project included 22 new check-in counters, hybrid self-bag drops and video walls, along with 28 new self-serve kiosks. Looking forward Phase 3: February 2024-Summer 2024 The third phase, aiming to complete the enhanced arrival hall, will be ready by the summer of 2024. In November 2024, the airport will officially re-open the completely renovated airport terminal. About Princess Juliana International Airport Princess Juliana International Airport is the second busiest airport in the Northeast Caribbean and serves as a vital airport hub for Saba, St Eustatius, St Barthelemy, Anguilla, Dominica, Nevis, and Tortola. The airport stands as one of the largest employers on the island, with 305 workers employed directly and a total of 1700 workers within the entire airport community. In 2024, Sint Maarten Airport expects to handle 1.5 million passengers and 54,000 aircraft movements. Reconstruction efforts at the airport commenced in September 2021, with the new terminal hall scheduled for completion in the summer of 2024. Historical Timeline Princess Juliana Airport was officially inaugurated by Princess Juliana in 1944. In 2006, Her Majesty Queen Beatrix inaugurated the new terminal building. PJIAE underwent a major reconstruction project in 2020, following severe damage to the main terminal caused by Hurricane IRMA in September 2017. After six years, the project is in its final stages and is set to be completed by the summer of 2024. New York:--- Prime Minister Silveria E. Jacobs of St. Maarten, accompanied by her delegation including Ms. Jessica Weeks, Chef de Cabinet, Ms. Chantale George-Groeneveldt, Department Head of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs (CDFHA) & Women's Desk, Ms. Tatia Brunnings, Policy Worker at Staff Bureau, from the Ministry of VSA participated in the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at the United Nations Headquarters. The theme of this years session is Accelerating the Achievement of Gender Equality and the Empowerment of all Women and Girls by Addressing Poverty and Strengthening Institutions and Financing with a Gender Perspective. The CSW, the UN's largest annual gathering on gender equality and women's empowerment, officially commenced on Monday, March 11, 2024. Prime Minister Jacobs engaged in various meetings, including discussions with UN Women, facilitating the exchange of knowledge and best practices. Highlighting Monday's session, Prime Minister Jacobs spoke on behalf of the Kingdom during the High-Level Group of Friends for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls. She emphasized the significant strides made by St. Maarten in addressing domestic violence and child abuse. Notably, Prime Minister Jacobs underscored the approval of St. Maarten's domestic violence policy in 2021, serving as a cornerstone in efforts to combat domestic violence and protect vulnerable women and marginalized individuals. Moreover, Prime Minister Jacobs outlined key collaborations with the Dutch Caribbean to comprehensively tackle domestic violence and child abuse. Concrete actions include the establishment of inter-island shelters, vital for safeguarding victims and providing necessary support. Prime Minister Jacobs reaffirmed St. Maarten's steadfast commitment to champion for womens rights and empowerment while leveraging opportunities to gain information about best practices from regional and international states. These interventions will inform the development of policies aimed at protecting women and girls, furthering St. Maartens collective efforts towards gender equality and empowerment. "Through meticulously crafted policies, forged partnerships, and united endeavors, we relentlessly pursue the realization of a safer and more supportive environment for all individuals on our island nation. Together, let us continue to strive for a future where every person, regardless of age or gender, can live free from violence and fear," stated Prime Minister Jacobs Posted Wednesday, March 13, 2024 9:54:32 AM On January 12, 2024, Susan Seaforth Hayes said goodbye to her husband of more than 50 years, the legendary Bill Hayes. From the moment Bill Hayes made his DAYS debut as Doug Williams, he and Susan had a magical connection, both on-screen and off. The Hayeses met on the Days of our Lives set and wed in 1974, while Doug and Julie wed for the first time in 1976, and two more times through the years. To mark the two-month anniversary of her husband's death, Hayes posted a beautiful tribute to Bill along with a photo of them taken on a long-ago vacation. She also thanked fans for their beautiful words of love since January. "Today marks 2 months since my Billy passed. With tender feelings, I have read the many beautiful condolences that friends, family, and strangers have sent," Hayes wrote. "Each one is a treasure proving his life touched not only mine, but theirs, too. Thank you from a widow's overflowing heart. "The celebration of his life took place February 10th and for those who might like to see the service it's up on YouTube (link in bio and in story)," she continued. "I have been told it's already up to 116,000 views! If you are reading this, you are connected to Bill and Susan, Doug and Julie, like family. The photo today was taken in West Virginia on Cheat Lake- when the day was 'breezing up' and love was in the air... just like today." You can find "Bill Hayes: A Celebration of Life" on YouTube by viewing below. It took place at the First Christian Church of North Hollywood and featured tributes from a tear-jerking and heartwarming speech from Susan. "A lot of you came a long, hard distance. You all have a piece of my heart. 'The Look of Love' -- Bill Hayes had it and made this world shine with it. Especially when he was looking at us," Hayes said at the service, referring to one of her late husband's signature songs, both in Salem and in real life. Ukraine has launched a mechanism of state compensation for humanitarian demining of agricultural land, which will become available at least within a month; the 2024 state budget provides UAH 3 billion for these purposes, said First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko. "The government has adopted a corresponding resolution approving the procedure for compensating expenses. Farmers will be able to enter into contracts with both public and private demining operators who win an open and transparent tender. In total, we have allocated UAH 3 billion for the program for compensating expenses for humanitarian demining in the state budget for 2024," she said on Facebook. According to the minister, compensation will be available to farmers in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions whose plots are contaminated and there is confirmation of a non-technical inspection. Svyrydenko said that sanctioned agricultural producers with beneficiaries who are citizens of the aggressor country, as well as those in the process of bankruptcy/liquidation and those whose tax debt has not been repaid will not be able to receive compensation under this program. In order for farmers to receive compensation for humanitarian demining, the farmer will have to submit an application to the State Agrarian Register (SAR), where an initial check will take place to determine whether the land really belongs to the farmer, whether it has passed a non-technical inspection and whether relevant contamination has been identified there. The Mine Action Center will also carry out an inspection within two weeks. The procurement procedure for demining services shall be carried out through ProZorro, indicating the expected cost. After choosing the winner of the tender, the farmer shall contribute 20% of the amount determined during the auction, and the Ministry of Economy remaining 80%. After clearing the site, the mine action operator shall send documents to the Humanitarian Demining Center for verification, and the bank will pay for the services. "These are important steps to launch the humanitarian demining market. After all, an open and transparent procedure due to tender procedures is an opportunity to reduce corruption risks. We have provided several additional safeguards. If a farmer provides false information, he will be forced to return the funds received," the minister said. According to Svyrydenko, tender procedures can reduce the cost of the mine action process. As an example, she cited the results of the first pilot tender for demining a forest area, during which it was possible to save UAH 100,000. In addition, the minister of economy said that the mine action mechanism proposed by the government will help increase the number of mine action operators, will help increase the production of Ukrainian mine action equipment and strengthen the "Made in Ukraine" policy. Speaking about the farmers' benefits, the minister indicated that the proposed humanitarian demining compensation mechanism will allow them to return the land to use, which will increase Ukraine's economic potential of and strengthen global food security. "With a joint effort, we can return a safe land to people and give them the opportunity to live without fear of mines," the minister said. US House to vote on TikTok ban Washington, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 The US House of Representatives will vote Wednesday on a bill that would force TikTok to cut ties with its Chinese owner or get banned in the United States. The legislation is the biggest threat yet to the video-sharing app, which has surged to huge popularity across the world all while causing intense nervousness amongst governments and security officials about its Chinese ownership and its potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. The vote is likely to occur at 10:00 am (1400 GMT) and is expected to pass overwhelmingly in a rare moment of bipartisan entente in a politically divided Washington. The fate of the bill is uncertain in the Senate, where key figures are against making such a drastic move against an intensely popular app that has 170 million US users. President Joe Biden will sign the bill, known officially as the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," into law if it came to his desk, the White House has said. The measure, which passed unanimously through committee last week, would require TikTok's parent company ByteDance to sell the app within 180 days or see it barred from the Apple and Google app stores in the United States. It would also give the president power to designate other applications to be a national security threat if under the control of a country considered adversarial to the US. The resurgent campaign by Washington against TikTok came as a surprise to the company, the Wall Street Journal reported, with TikTok executives reassured when Biden joined the app last month as part of his campaign for a second term. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is in Washington, trying to shore up support to stop the bill. "This latest legislation being rushed through at unprecedented speed without even the benefit of a public hearing, poses serious Constitutional concerns," wrote Michael Beckerman, TikTok's vice president for public policy, in a letter to the bill's co-sponsors seen by AFP. - 'Never found evidence' - The co-sponsors, House Republican Mike Gallagher and House Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi, as well as the White House, argue that the bill is not a ban of Tiktok, as long as the company divests from ByteDance. China warned on Wednesday that the move would "inevitably come back to bite the United States". "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, condemning it as "bullying behavior". In a turnaround from his earlier stance, former president Donald Trump on Monday said he is against a ban, mainly because it would strengthen Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, which he called an "enemy of the people." When Trump was president, he attempted to wrest control of Tiktok from ByteDance, but was blocked by US courts. Trump denied accusations that he changed his tune because a major investor in TikTok, hedge funder Jeff Yass, is donating to his campaign. Other efforts to ban TikTok also failed with a bill proposed a year ago getting nowhere largely over free speech concerns. Similarly, a state law passed in Montana banning the platform was suspended by a federal court on the suspicion that it likely violated constitutional free speech rights. TikTok staunchly denies any ties to the Chinese government and has restructured the company so the data of US users stays in the country, the company says. arp/ssy/mca What is ByteDance, the TikTok parent in US crosshairs? Seoul, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 From its birth in a Beijing apartment 12 years ago, ByteDance grew into one of the world's biggest tech firms -- best known in most countries as the creator of TikTok. But TikTok now faces a furious campaign in Washington: the House of Representatives is set to vote Wednesday on a bill that could see the wildly popular video-sharing app banned in the United States if it does not sever itself from ByteDance. How big is ByteDance? ByteDance has rocketed in recent years to become one of the most valuable companies in the world, worth around $225 billion, according to market intelligence firm CP Insights. That puts it well above Elon Musk's SpaceX and ChatGPT maker OpenAI. ByteDance launched TikTok in 2017, and the app took the world by storm, crossing a billion users in four years. The app was an international version of Douyin, which was released in China in 2016 and now has hundreds of millions of users. Thanks to the explosive growth of these apps, ByteDance has branched out into e-commerce and travel bookings, and also released a video editing app. The Chinese company says it has more than 150,000 employees in almost 120 cities around the world. A privately held firm, ByteDance does not release revenue and profit figures, but media estimates of its earnings put it on par with some of the biggest firms in the world. In 2023, ByteDance's sales crossed $110 billion, Bloomberg reported in December, a figure greater than Chinese tech giant Tencent's estimated revenues that year. ByteDance did not respond to AFP queries about its revenues, including how much it earns from TikTok. AFP, along with more than 100 fact-checking organisations, is paid by TikTok and Facebook parent Meta to verify videos that potentially contain false information. Who owns ByteDance? TikTok has said around 60 percent of ByteDance is owned by institutional investors including US giant BlackRock. ByteDance's founders have a 20 percent stake, and the remainder is held by employees, according to TikTok. Incorporated in the Cayman Islands, ByteDance also lists General Atlantic among its investors. Three of the five members of ByteDance's board are Americans, according to TikTok. A Chinese state-owned entity owns 1 percent of Douyin, according to the ByteDance website. TikTok has said this is a requirement under Chinese law and does not impact ByteDance's international operations. That 1 percent stake also came with a board seat in ByteDance's Chinese entity, tech news website The Information reported in 2021. When asked during a US congressional hearing in March last year if a Chinese official was on the Beijing ByteDance Technology board, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said "I believe so". He said in that hearing, however, that TikTok will not be "manipulated by any government". Why does ByteDance worry the United States? A large number of US lawmakers -- Republicans and Democrats -- are not convinced that TikTok is independent of Beijing despite being headquartered outside China. The app has been a diplomatic hot potato between the United States and China since the administration of former president Donald Trump, who once wanted to ban the app. Now, a bill in Congress aims to force the company to cut ties with ByteDance or be barred from the United States. The bill's supporters say ByteDance as a Chinese firm simply cannot go against the wishes of Beijing, and can provide access to the data on more than 170 million American users for everything from spying to election influence campaigns. These concerns have been echoed by US intelligence and law enforcement agencies -- including by the FBI director this week -- as well as regulators elsewhere. TikTok is banned from government employees' work phones in the United States and several other nations including Australia and Canada over security concerns. In 2020, TikTok was among hundreds of Chinese apps barred in India after deadly clashes on the country's border with China. New Delhi said at the time the bans were intended to defend against threats to its sovereignty. How have ByteDance and TikTok responded? Both insist that there is no risk to US user data. TikTok's CEO has told Congress that the firm has never been asked by the Chinese government for US user data nor has it provided it. The company says it now routes all of its US traffic through infrastructure in the United States, and that it is deleting previously collected data. It has also said that Douyin employees do not have access to TikTok's US user data. TikTok will take the fight against a forced break from ByteDance to the courts in the United States if the legislation is passed, according to Bloomberg. US President Joe Biden will sign the bill if it passes Congress, the White House has said, though the chances of its success are uncertain given opposition in the Senate. What about China? China has repeatedly said it opposes a forced sale of TikTok. It warned against targeting TikTok on Wednesday. "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, describing the bill as "bullying". "In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself." Any sale of TikTok would likely require Beijing's approval. The Chinese commerce ministry published rules in 2020 that added "civilian use" to a list of technologies that are restricted for export. qan/sco/mca US House easily passes TikTok ban bill as eyes turn to Senate Washington, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 The US House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill on Wednesday that would force TikTok to divest from its Chinese owner or be banned from the United States. The legislation is a major setback for the video-sharing app, which has surged in popularity across the world while causing nervousness about its Chinese ownership and its potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. The lawmakers voted 352 in favor of the proposed law and 65 against, in a rare moment of unity in politically divided Washington. "Today's bipartisan vote demonstrates Congress' opposition to Communist China's attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans, and signals our resolve to deter our enemies," Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said after the vote. "I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign it into law," he added. But the fate of the bill is uncertain in the more cautious Senate, where some key figures are apprehensive of making such a drastic move against an app that has 170 million US users. President Joe Biden will sign the bill, known officially as the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, into law if it came to his desk, the White House has said. "This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it's a ban," said a spokesperson for TikTok in a statement. "We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service," the spokesperson added. The measure, which only gained momentum in the past few days, requires TikTok's parent company ByteDance to sell the app within 180 days or see it barred from the Apple and Google app stores in the United States. It also gives the president power to designate other applications to be a national security threat if they are under the control of a country considered adversarial to the US. The renewed campaign against TikTok came out of the blue to the company, the Wall Street Journal reported, with TikTok executives reassured when Biden joined the app last month as part of his campaign for a second term. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is in Washington, trying to stop progress on the bill. - The Trump factor - China warned on Wednesday that the move will "inevitably come back to bite the United States." "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, condemning it as "bullying behavior." Republican lawmakers approved the bill, in an unusual act of defiance against Donald Trump. In a turnaround from his earlier stance, Trump on Monday said he was against a ban, mainly because it would strengthen Meta, the owner of Instagram and Facebook, which he called an "enemy of the people." When Trump was president, he attempted to wrest control of Tiktok from ByteDance, but was blocked by US courts. "I think it will die in the Senate," said representative Nancy Mace, a Trump ally. "This is not our job to do this." Other efforts to ban TikTok have failed, with a bill proposed a year ago getting nowhere largely over free speech concerns. Similarly, a state law passed in Montana banning the platform was suspended by a federal court on the suspicion that it violated constitutional free speech rights. TikTok staunchly denies any ties to the Chinese government and has restructured the company so the data of US users stays in the country with independent oversight, the company says. arp/dw TikTok devotees say platform unfairly targeted for US ban Washington, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 TikTok creators voiced outrage Wednesday over proposed legislation that could scuttle the platform in the United States, saying it defies common sense and financial wisdom. The House of Representatives approved a bill that would force TikTok to divest from its Chinese owner or be banned over its alleged links to the Communist Party in Beijing. "If it was really about all the things they were saying, then we would be having this conversation with (X owner) Elon Musk, who basically could change American politics at a whim," TikTok creator Ariella Elm told AFP outside the White House. Elm, a self-described political activist, has some 287,000 followers on TikTok. President Joe Biden says he would sign the bill into law if it came to his desk, but the bill must make it through the Senate first. "It's a big possibility that it could be banned, which is crazy," fellow TikTok creator Nathan Espinoza, whose uses the handle 'beowulftiktok', told AFP. "Lawmakers don't understand how huge of an issue this is." "My entire comment section of videos that I've posted about this topic are just flooded with an overwhelmingly negative response, where people are not happy with it at all." TikTok has been adamant that the Chinese government does not pull its strings. "A lot of these lawmakers are making it sound like it's just full of Chinese propaganda or it's full of messages from the Chinese Communist Party," Espinoza said. "But for me, it's actually been the only social media where I've seen an even representation of all sides of politics." - Young users, young voters - TikTok plays a major role in the digital media industry and when it comes to marketing, particularly for small businesses, Espinoza reasoned. Millions of people from politicians to teenagers and entrepreneurs would feel the blow if TikTok was shut down in the United States, agreed lifestyle content creator Steven King, whose 'btypep' account has 6.8 million followers. "There is no sense of community on any other platform in comparison to what TikTok has created," King said. Summer Lucille, whose TikTok account dubbed Juicy Body Goddess has 1.4 million followers, described the platform as rich with raw information in real time and having a recommendation algorithm "like gold." Espinoza, who recently turned 18 years old, also believes elected officials backing the bill will be in for a "big shock" with he and his TikTok-loving demographic express their ire at the ballot box. "This is my first-year voting and a lot of people my age are against this TikTok ban," Espinoza said. Some TikTok users, however, told AFP they are open to legislation that could protect them as well as defend national security. "The addiction aspect of it is something we don't really talk about," Victor Pelatere, a 20-year-old Boston resident, told AFP. "The whole TikTok brain rot idea -- massive dopamine spikes and no attention span -- those kinds of things are good for banning." Annmarie Fitzgerald, 22 of Boston, was among those who spoke of perhaps using TikTok too much. "Think about a couple of years ago, we didn't have it. It'll be OK if we don't have it again," she said. On Wednesday night, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) attacked three oil refineries on the territory of the Russian Federation with drones, an informed source told Interfax-Ukraine. "Last night, the SBU attacked three oil refineries with drones at once - not only in Ryazan, but also in Kstovo (Nizhny Novgorod region) and Kirishi (Leningrad region)," the agency's interlocutor said on Wednesday. According to him, these attacks are a continuation of a number of special operations against enemy refineries, which were launched earlier by the SBU. "We are systematically implementing a detailed strategy to reduce the economic potential of the Russian Federation. Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of oil money and fuel, which the Russian Federation directs directly to the war, to kill our citizens," the source stressed. The agency interlocutor added that, judging by the video on social networks, the consequences of the attack on the refinery were quite significant. At the same time, he clarified that the attacked refineries are among the top five largest plants in the Russian Federation. Also, according to the source, the SBU, along with other representatives of the Defense Forces, attacked the Russian Air Force airbase in Buturlinovka, Voronezh region, and a military airfield in Voronezh with drones. A resident of Sumy was found dead at the site of a Russian drone strike on an apartment building, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine reported on the Telegram channel on Wednesday. "At the site of dismantling the rubble in a five-story apartment building, rescuers unblocked a human body. Currently, it is known about eight victims. The work continues. There may still be people under the rubble," the message says. Earlier, Sumy Regional Military Administration reported that in Sumy, as a result of the shahed hitting a five-story building, there were wounded and dead, while the number of dead was not specified. "As a result of an enemy UAV of the Shahed type hitting a five-storey residential building, 30 apartments were previously damaged, 15 of them were destroyed. According to preliminary information, 10 people were rescued from the rubble, eight of whom received injuries of varying severity. Unfortunately, there are dead (information is being clarified)," the message says. Brussels finalises framework for Ukraine EU talks Brussels, Belgium, March 12 (AFP) Mar 12, 2024 The European Commission on Tuesday said it had proposed frameworks for accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova to member states, edging them forward on their quest to join. European Union leaders agreed in December to open membership negotiations with Kyiv in a historic move almost two years into Russia's war on the country. They also agreed at the same time to begin talks with its neighbour Moldova. For the EU and the candidate countries to actually start the talks the bloc's executive has to draw up a framework, which now must be approved by all 27 EU member states. "The negotiating frameworks establish the guidelines and principles for the accession negotiations with each candidate country," the commission said. "It is now for the Council (EU member states) to begin their internal deliberations on these texts." The commission was forced to speed up after its head Ursula von der Leyen last month upset Kyiv and its strongest EU supporters by saying the framework for talks would not be put forward until after European Parliament elections in June. In December, Brussels said Ukraine needed to meet conditions set out a year ago on issues such as judicial reforms and fighting corruption to move to the next step. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the EU's most pro-Russian leader, has repeatedly spoken out against Ukraine's membership bid, though he allowed the decision to open talks to go through late last year. If the EU and Ukraine launch formal talks it will likely still be many years before the war-torn country can complete the painstaking reforms needed to enter the bloc. Russia's war on its neighbour has reinvigorated an EU drive to expand in central and eastern Europe, with the commission on Tuesday also recommending to member states to start talks with Bosnia. Putin says Russian nuclear weapons 'more advanced' than in US Moscow, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday lauded Moscow's nuclear arsenal and warned that he was ready to deploy the weapons if Russia's sovereignty was threatened. The Kremlin has touted its nuclear prowess throughout its two-year offensive in Ukraine, last month warning Western countries there was a "real" risk of nuclear catastrophe if they escalated the conflict. Putin's latest comments come just days ahead of elections in Russia that are all but guaranteed to hand him another six years in power and as his military posts gains in Ukraine. "Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad. Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here," Putin said in a wide-ranging interview with state media. The "triad" refers to Russia's three-pronged arsenal of weapons launched from land, sea and air. "We are ready to use weapons, including any weapons -- including the weapons you mentioned -- if it is a question of the existence of the Russian state or damage to our sovereignty and independence," Putin added in the interview, which aired on Wednesday. - Strike on Russian oil facilities - The Russian leader also dismissed comments by French leader Emmanuel Macron, who last month declined to rule out putting boots on the ground, a significant shift in rhetoric as Ukraine struggles on the battlefield. "The fact is that the militaries of Western countries have been present in Ukraine for a long time," the Russian leader said, referring to what the Kremlin says are mercenaries. "But if we talk about official military contingents of foreign countries, I am sure it will not change the situation on the battlefield," he added. While Macron has doubled down on his remarks, several of Ukraine's allies, including Washington, have distanced themselves from the idea, which stunned many in Europe. Putin's comments came hours after Kyiv targeted Russia's energy infrastructure and border regions for the second day in a row. Ukrainian drones attacked three oil refineries hundreds of kilometres from the frontline in the regions of Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod and Leningrad, a security source told AFP. "Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of oil money and fuel," the source said. One drone caused a fire and wounded several people when it crashed into an oil refinery in the Ryazan region that lies some 200 kilometres (120 miles) southeast of Moscow, Ryazan regional governor Pavel Malkov wrote on Telegram. In the Rostov region bordering Ukraine, drones landed on the site of an oil refinery in the city of Novoshakhtinsk, regional governor Vasily Golubev said. Kyiv also launched drones at Russia's border region of Belgorod, damaging the windows and facade of an FSB building in the regional capital, the TASS news agency said. - 'Disrupt' elections - The day before, Russia said it had repelled a series of brazen cross-border raids by pro-Ukrainian militias, who burst into its territory and claimed to seize control of a village. Putin said that Ukraine was increasing its attacks on Russian territory to interfere with upcoming presidential elections. "It's simple. This is all happening against the backdrop of failures on the frontline. They did not achieve any of the goals that they set for themselves last year," Putin said. "I have no doubt that the main goal is, if not to disrupt the presidential elections in Russia then to somehow interfere with the normal process," he said. Ukraine has ceded ground to Russian forces in recent months as it faces a myriad of shortages, from artillery to air defences, in part because a $60-billion aid package remains held up in the US Congress. On Tuesday night, a Russian missile strike in President Volodymyr Zelensky's hometown of Kryvyi Rih left five dead and dozens wounded, an attack the Ukrainian leader warned would not go "unpunished". Charles de Gaulle's son dies aged 102: family Paris, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 The eldest child of French World War II Resistance leader and first postwar president Charles de Gaulle, has died aged 102, the family said on Wednesday. Philippe de Gaulle, who was a significant military figure in his own right, heeded his father's call to join Free French forces in the fight against Nazism in World War II. He later had a successful naval career, rising to the rank of admiral, and also became a senator. Despite a striking physical resemblance, he was a more low-key figure than his father but devoted himself to preserving the memory of Charles de Gaulle, notably through numerous books including the successful work "De Gaulle, my father". His son Yves de Gaulle told AFP that he died overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday in the Invalides in central Paris, the French military institution where he had lived for two years. "Philippe de Gaulle anticipated his father's call to join the Resistance," President Emmanuel Macron wrote in a tribute on X. "Sailor, admiral, senator, he never came up short when courage and honour were required. A century of French bravery." Macron opened a cabinet meeting Wednesday with a tribute to Philippe de Gaulle and would hold a national memorial ceremony at the Invalides next week in his memory, government spokeswoman Prisca Thevenot said. Eric Ciotti, head of the right-wing Republicans party that sees itself as the inheritor of de Gaulle's political mantle, described Philippe de Gaulle as a "pillar" of France. "His life dedicated to the service of France, in the navy and in the Senate, was a living example for the Republic," he wrote on X. "France was in his heart until the end," added Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu. - 'Not easy' - He joined the Free French Naval Forces in 1940 and fought in the North Atlantic until 1944, then in France itself when the Resistance joined the Allies in pushing the Nazis out of France, taking part in the Normandy Landings of D-Day. After the war, he saw action during post-colonial conflicts in Indochina (modern day Cambodia, Laos and parts of Vietnam and China), Morocco and Algeria. Charles de Gaulle was wary of the slightest hint of nepotism and never helped his son win a post, nor did he decorate him with the Order of Liberation after the war. The upbringing of Charles de Gaulle's three children was austere, with their mother Yvonne said to only kiss Philippe and his two sisters on their birthday and December 31. The eldest of the sisters, Elisabeth died in 2013 while the youngest of the children Anne, who suffered from Down Syndrome, died in 1948 aged just 20. "I know everything, my boy. Your position has never been easy. It's not nothing to be the son of General de Gaulle," he was told on one occasion by his father. "But your attitude has always been the one I expected of you," said Charles de Gaulle. Nicolas Lacroix, the president of the Charles de Gaulle memorial in the eastern town of Colombey-les-deux-Eglises where de Gaulle lived before World War II and died in 1970, said Philippe de Gaulle would be buried opposite his father in the local cemetery and alongside his wife Henriette, his mother Yvonne and sister Anne. "Our country has lost one of its great defenders. Gaullism has lost one of its greatest ambassadors," he said, adding the French flag would be at half mast at the memorial until the burial takes place. Turkish officials due at security meeting in Iraq Thursday Istanbul, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 Top Turkish officials including the foreign minister and intelligence chief will attend a security meeting in Iraq on Thursday, a Turkish ministry spokesman said. Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defence Minister Yasar Guler and spy chief Ibrahim Kalin will all attend the meeting in Baghdad, spokesman Oncu Keceli told reporters Wednesday. Turkey often carries out ground and air operations in northern Iraq against positions of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. "Security and military cooperation will be a priority during the talks," said Keceli, adding that joint counter-terror steps would also be discussed. "We see Iraqi authorities' portrayal of the PKK as a common security threat as a sign that Iraq has started to show the resolve to fight the PKK," the spokesman said. Over the past 25 years Turkey has operated several dozen military bases in northern Iraq in its war against the PKK, which Ankara and its Western allies consider a "terrorist" group. Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would have permanently resolved problems related to the Iraq border "this summer". Keceli also said he hoped an oil pipeline between Turkey and Iraq that was shut down in March 2023 would reopen "as soon as possible". The details would be discussed during Erdogan's coming visit to Iraq, he added. EU agrees 5-bn-euro package to fund arms for Ukraine Brussels, Belgium, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 EU member states on Wednesday agreed to add five billion euros ($5.5 billion) to a central fund to pay for weapons sent to Ukraine. The move provides a welcome boost for Kyiv as support from its other major backer, the United States, wavers and its outgunned forces struggle to hold back Russia. Belgium, which holds the EU's rotating presidency, said ambassadors from the bloc's 27 nations had agreed "in principle" on the plan to support arms supplies to Kyiv in 2024 with five billion euros. In the wake of Moscow's 2022 invasion, the European Union for the first time agreed to fund weapons deliveries to a country at war. Since then it has committed 6.1 billion euros from its central European Peace Facility mainly to reimburse part of the cost of arms sent by member states to Ukraine. The push to bolster the EU fund by an extra five billion euros was delayed for months amid wrangling from Germany and France. Berlin insisted its bilateral support for Ukraine should be offset against its contribution and Paris demanded only weapons produced in Europe should be reimbursed. Diplomats said Germany -- the largest contributor to the fund -- had struck a compromise with Brussels to offset a percentage of its own bilateral support against the fund. They said France was also satisfied by a commitment that countries would prioritise purchases from European defence firms, but could look outside the EU if certain ammunition or systems were not readily available. Overall since the Kremlin unleashed its full-scale war, Brussels says around 28 billion euros have been spent from member states and EU coffers to support Ukraine's military. The announcement of the latest funds for Ukraine comes as Kyiv's forces are under pressure along the front line in the face of ammunition shortages. The United States on Tuesday announced a fresh $300 million weapons package for Ukraine, but a further $60 billion in funding remains stalled by Republicans in Congress. Warnings have grown in Europe that a failure to keep up support for Kyiv could see it ultimately defeated and that an emboldened Kremlin might then attack other countries. The EU is pushing to bolster weapons and ammunition production by its defence industry, but two years into the war it is still struggling to ramp up output. The bloc is set to fall well short on a promise it made a year ago to supply Ukraine with a million artillery shells by this month. Czech Republic has in the meantime spearheaded an 18-nation coalition to buy artillery shells from outside Europe and this month Prague promised to start sending the first of 300,000 shells to Kyiv within weeks. Meanwhile, Russia has stepped up its arms production by putting its economy on a war footing and has received major deliveries of weapons from Iran and North Korea. EU leaders are set to discuss efforts to boost Europe's industry and support Ukraine at a summit in Brussels next week. Employees of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine released the body of the second person killed while clearing the rubble of a five-story residential building in Sumy, which was hit by a Russian unmanned aerial vehicle. "Now we know about two dead and eight injured people as a result of a night Russian attack on the city. Work continues," the State Emergency Service said in the Telegram channel on Wednesday. Earlier, Sumy regional military administration said in Sumy, as a result of the Shahed UAV hitting a five-story building, there were wounded and dead, but the number of dead was not specified. "As a result of an enemy UAV of the Shahed type hitting a five-story residential building, 30 apartments were previously damaged, 15 of them were destroyed. According to preliminary information, ten people were rescued from the rubble, eight of whom received injuries of varying severity. Unfortunately, there are dead (information is being clarified)," the service said. Later, the State Emergency Service reported that while clearing the rubble, the body of the deceased was found. Popsoi: Were grateful to Ukrainians for peace in Moldova, will continue to provide all possible assistance Moldovan Foreign Minister Mihai Popsoi expressed gratitude to Ukrainians for peace and stability in Moldova and assured of further support for Ukraine. I am very grateful to the citizens of Ukraine on behalf of the entire population of Moldova for the peace and stability that we have in Moldova. We will continue to provide all possible assistance, despite our modest resources, Popsoi said at a joint press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba in Kyiv. Popsoi stressed that the Republic of Moldova and its people strongly condemn the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, which is accompanied by Russian war crimes, the death of Ukrainian people, the occupation of territory and the massive destruction of infrastructure. The Moldovan Foreign Minister also reiterated his full support for the Peace Formula proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and noted support for other international initiatives. The Minister also reiterated Moldova's full support for the establishment of a special international tribunal for crimes of aggression. Popsoi pointed out that his visit once again confirms that the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine are strategic partners, and the dialogue between the countries is constant and aimed at achieving goals related to the development and progress of the two states. Separately, he pointed out that today Moldovans live in a state of peace, despite the Kremlin's efforts to destabilize the situation in Moldova, using proxies to lead Moldova away from the legitimate path of joining the European Union. But we remain determined and confident that our citizens will be able to distinguish their real interests from what propaganda is trying to instill in them, which actually goes against the national interests of the Republic of Moldova, the Foreign Minister added. Texas is the economic engine of America, where entrepreneurs from around the globe can cast a vision and know they can achieve it. Working with our British partners, we will chart a greater path towards success and opportunity and create an even more robust economic partnership. Mark Cass, the founder of Cass Art, said My family has a long and proud history of supporting artists and, continuing this legacy, we are delighted to launch The Cass Art Prize. There truly is something for everyone with this prize and we look forward to seeing and showcasing the incredible talent. Of course, a house changes as you add a family. Family life brings a new dimension and some things need to adapt. One of the first things I did was to add a family kitchen, she said. I wanted it to be very cosy and relaxed, so it has a fireplace, a television, a big sofa, and we can cook and eat there. Prior to that it was all very functional, and David and I had to eat in the dining room every night. Adding a family kitchen has allowed us to live in a much more informal way. The children, aged 11 and 12, are due to appear at Uxbridge Magistrates Court on Thursday accused of two counts of burglary and one count of animal cruelty. Damian Wild, managing director at ING Media, said: London has lost its crown. For the first time our annual index shows that Paris is now the most visible brand in Europe. Despite London remaining the king of culture, Paris is catching up fast, and, with a summer Olympics to look forward to, may find itself pulling further ahead in the overall rankings in 2024. The number of victims of a missile attack on Kryvy Rih on Tuesday has risen to 49 people, ten adults and seven children remain in hospitals, Head of the regional military administration Serhiy Lysak said. "In Kryvy Rih, people continue to see doctors after the enemy attack they experienced yesterday. There are already 49 casualties. There are ten adults remaining in medical institutions, half of them in 'severe' conditions. Seven children are also still hospitalized, all in moderate condition," Lysak said in the Telegram channel. Previously it was known about 43 wounded. As reported, Thursday, March 14, has been declared a day of mourning in the city of Kryvy Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region, in memory of those killed in a missile attack on the city on March 12, when at least three hits were recorded. TfL have said between Good Friday and Saturday, a reduced service will operate between Paddington and Maidenhead / Heathrow. All trains will start and terminate at Paddington National Rail station. Heathrow Terminal 4, West Drayton, Langley, Slough, Burnham and Maidenhead will be served by two trains an hour. West Ealing will be served by four trains an hour. Ealing Broadway, Southall and Hayes & Harlington will be served by six trains per hour. From Good Friday until Easter Monday, no service will operate between Abbey Wood / Stratford and Paddington. Trains will operate between Shenfield and Liverpool Street National Rail station (not serving Whitechapel) and between Paddington National Rail station and Heathrow / Reading. Julia Rosell Jackson, senior humanitarian advocacy adviser at ActionAid, said: The delivery of over 3,000 period products to women and girls will provide small relief, but nearly 700,000 women and girls are unable to access sanitary pads, and many are resorting to using tent scraps as an unsafe and unhygienic alternative. But I think the other thing to say about this, of course, the whole Rwanda scheme is about a deterrent. It's about saying to people, if you come here, you can't stay here if you come here illegally. That's the point. Dr Boyd added that recruitment of the study participants was biased towards those already happy to interact with the dog so suggestions that all interactions with all dogs will benefit all people are to be viewed with caution. The US musician and nine time Grammy winner travelled from Paris on the Eurostar to the London railway station to sing and play an exclusive piano rendition of hits Dont Know Why and Sunrise, as well as two songs from her new album Visions, on Wednesday evening. And for looking after our dogs when we cant, and lead us to remember happy things when we cant. And turn up when we are sick and sit with us... And send balloons and check in and pull us out of wells with love. Press Release March 13, 2024 Senate ratifies measure increasing teachers' allowance The Senate on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, ratified the harmonized version of a measure doubling the teaching allowance for public school teachers, also referred to as "chalk allowance," from P5,000 to P10,000. Sen. Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., chairperson of the Committee on Civil Service, Government Reorganization and Professional Regulation, delivered the bicameral conference committee on the disagreeing provisions of Senate Bill No. (SBN) 1964 and House Bill No. 9682 or the "Kabalikat sa Pagtuturo" Act. Representatives from the Department of Education (DepEd), Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), Teachers Dignity Coalition (TDC), and the Philippine Public School Teachers Association (PPSTA) were at the gallery during the ratification of the bicam report. "This victory belongs to you and to all the youth you embrace and enrich with your service," Revilla said. "Our dear teachers have long waited for the passage of this measure that institutionalizes the granting of the teaching allowance. From the very beginning, we recognize their incomparable sacrifice and concern for our students whether inside or outside the school," he added. Revilla said he was worried that this measure could not be passed soon. "But despite this, we proved our duty to the people was honest and pure," he said "This is just one of the many steps that the Committee on Civil Service, Government Reorganization and Professional Regulation is looking into to advance the welfare of our almost a million strong public school teachers," Revilla said. "We see you, and ultimately, honor your heroism and selflessness in molding the youth of our nation, and nurturing their future," he added. The senator stressed that the Constitution mandated that the education sector shall have the highest allocation in the annual national budget. However, public school teachers complained that they don't receive enough compared to their duties and obligations. "The role played by our teachers in life has been etched in history and the future of our youth. But this indelible mark of their role in society is in clear contrast with the susceptibility of the benefits they receive to be changed or, worse, to be revoked," Revilla said. "This is the very reason why we are here today, to lend our voices to our dear Filipino teachers," he added. As result of shelling of Velykopysarivska community in Sumy region, one killed, two wounded On Wednesday, the invaders fired mortars at the Velykopysarivska community in Sumy region, killing a 54-year-old man and wounding two women, the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) said. "According to the investigation, on March 13, 2024, at about 14:00, the enemy launched a mortar attack on the civilian infrastructure of Velykopysarivska community in Okhtyrsky district. As a result of the attack by the invaders, a 54-year-old civilian was killed and two women were injured," the PGO said in the Telegram channel. Under the procedural leadership of Okhtyrka District Prosecutor's Office, a pretrial investigation has been launched into violation of the laws and customs of war, coupled with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Ambassadors of the European Union member countries approved the allocation of EUR 5 billion in military assistance for Ukraine within the European Peace Facility. The corresponding decision was made on Wednesday in Brussels as part of a meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives, the Belgian Chairmanship reports on its page on the social network. "Deal! EU Ambassadors agreed in principle on a reform of the European Peace Facility, to support Ukraine with EUR 5 billion budget for 2024. The EU remains determined to provide lasting support to Ukraine and ensure that the country gets the military equipment it needs to defend itself," the chairmanship said. Head of the President's Office of Ukraine Andriy Yermak had a phone conversation with National Security Advisor of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban. "Andriy Yermak and Musaed bin Mohammed Al-Aiban discussed the organization of the Global Peace Summit at the level of state leaders, which is planned to be held in Switzerland," the presidential press service said on Wednesday. In addition, Yermak thanked Saudi Arabia for the continuation of bilateral dialogue at the highest level, for the implementation of joint projects, agreements on which were reached earlier, as well as for its willingness to join the process of achieving a lasting and just peace. Blog Archive Apr 2010 (22) May 2010 (25) Jun 2010 (8) Jul 2010 (12) Aug 2010 (18) Sept 2010 (19) Oct 2010 (29) Nov 2010 (30) Dec 2010 (18) Jan 2011 (13) Feb 2011 (21) Mar 2011 (23) Apr 2011 (19) May 2011 (31) Jun 2011 (36) Jul 2011 (46) Aug 2011 (26) Sept 2011 (12) Oct 2011 (15) Nov 2011 (17) Dec 2011 (7) Jan 2012 (18) Feb 2012 (4) Mar 2012 (12) Apr 2012 (17) May 2012 (10) Jun 2012 (21) Jul 2012 (8) Aug 2012 (15) Sept 2012 (7) Oct 2012 (17) Nov 2012 (20) Dec 2012 (10) Jan 2013 (58) Feb 2013 (59) Mar 2013 (60) Apr 2013 (98) May 2013 (134) Jun 2013 (203) Jul 2013 (292) Aug 2013 (350) Sept 2013 (363) Oct 2013 (347) Nov 2013 (374) Dec 2013 (437) Jan 2014 (543) Feb 2014 (473) Mar 2014 (525) Apr 2014 (526) May 2014 (470) Jun 2014 (408) Jul 2014 (472) Aug 2014 (522) Sept 2014 (440) Oct 2014 (471) Nov 2014 (496) Dec 2014 (535) Jan 2015 (535) Feb 2015 (520) Mar 2015 (578) Apr 2015 (657) May 2015 (679) Jun 2015 (672) Jul 2015 (727) Aug 2015 (803) Sept 2015 (922) Oct 2015 (919) Nov 2015 (798) Dec 2015 (789) Jan 2016 (781) Feb 2016 (834) Mar 2016 (929) Apr 2016 (864) May 2016 (945) Jun 2016 (1042) Jul 2016 (880) Aug 2016 (1034) Sept 2016 (965) Oct 2016 (918) Nov 2016 (854) Dec 2016 (884) Jan 2017 (879) Feb 2017 (777) Mar 2017 (896) Apr 2017 (872) May 2017 (850) Jun 2017 (851) Jul 2017 (971) Aug 2017 (1040) Sept 2017 (999) Oct 2017 (1144) Nov 2017 (1045) Dec 2017 (838) Jan 2018 (873) Feb 2018 (769) Mar 2018 (885) Apr 2018 (808) May 2018 (827) Jun 2018 (820) Jul 2018 (840) Aug 2018 (854) Sept 2018 (844) Oct 2018 (851) Nov 2018 (870) Dec 2018 (912) Jan 2019 (919) Feb 2019 (827) Mar 2019 (957) Apr 2019 (913) May 2019 (1007) Jun 2019 (934) Jul 2019 (949) Aug 2019 (936) Sept 2019 (910) Oct 2019 (920) Nov 2019 (874) Dec 2019 (908) Jan 2020 (941) Feb 2020 (848) Mar 2020 (898) Apr 2020 (848) May 2020 (822) Jun 2020 (787) Jul 2020 (819) Aug 2020 (858) Sept 2020 (841) Oct 2020 (873) Nov 2020 (811) Dec 2020 (781) Jan 2021 (765) Feb 2021 (716) Mar 2021 (819) Apr 2021 (805) May 2021 (815) Jun 2021 (824) Jul 2021 (830) Aug 2021 (832) Sept 2021 (791) Oct 2021 (754) Nov 2021 (683) Dec 2021 (693) Jan 2022 (694) Feb 2022 (654) Mar 2022 (740) Apr 2022 (745) May 2022 (748) Jun 2022 (701) Jul 2022 (704) Aug 2022 (702) Sept 2022 (699) Oct 2022 (737) Nov 2022 (718) Dec 2022 (692) Jan 2023 (662) Feb 2023 (611) Mar 2023 (692) Apr 2023 (652) May 2023 (696) Jun 2023 (701) Jul 2023 (742) Aug 2023 (737) Sept 2023 (732) Oct 2023 (749) Nov 2023 (751) Dec 2023 (732) Jan 2024 (746) Feb 2024 (687) Mar 2024 (738) Frontex, the EU's border security agency has repeatedly come under fire, accused of supporting illegal pushbacks and using excessive force against migrants. The 2023 Adriana boat tragedy off the Greek coast prompted an investigation by EU ombudsman Emily O'Reilly who presented findings - and criticisms - in late February. In June 2023, EU ombudsman Emily O'Reilly launched a probe into the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) over the Adriana boat tragedy in which more than 600 people lost their lives off the coast of Greece. The overcrowded trawler - estimated to have carried more than 750 people bound for Europe - sank; only 104 survivors were rescued and just 82 bodies were recovered. Conflicting accounts by survivors and the Greek coastguard emerged as to how the incident unfolded and whether deaths could have been avoided. The seven-month probe by O'Reilly's office found that Frontex is unable to fully uphold EU rights obligations when carrying out sea rescues under current rules. 'If Frontex has a duty to help save lives at sea, but the tools for it are lacking, then this is clearly a matter for EU legislators,' O'Reilly said as she presented her report on February 28. 'Frontex includes coast guard' in its name but its current mandate and mission clearly fall short of that,' O'Reilly said. She warned that, unless the rules changed, it is likely 'there will be a repeat of the Adriana tragedy', one of the worst to happen in European waters. The Ombudsman's office has no power to enforce recommendations from its inquiries, only to flag areas of concern. Highest death toll in 2023: Mediterranean Sea still the most lethal route for migrants According to a statement by the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM), 2023 has been the deadliest year for migrants since the IOM established their open-access database on migrant deaths and disappearances, the Missing Migrants Project, in 2014. At least 8,565 people died on migration routes worldwide in 2023, making it the year with the highest death toll since records began a decade ago, the United Nations said on March 6. Slightly more than half of the total migrant deaths in 2023 came as a result of drowning. The Mediterranean Sea continues to be the most lethal route for migrants with at least 3,129 deaths and disappearances registered last year. What's Frontex' job - searching yes, rescuing no? Frontex, founded in 2004 and head-quartered in Warsaw, has long been accused of human rights violations, covering up or turning a blind eye to illegal pushbacks. In 2022, the then-director of Frontex, Fabrice Leggeri, resigned after serious accusations were made against him and his staff over the treatment of migrants trying to reach Europe. 'There is obvious tension between Frontex's fundamental rights obligations and its duty to support member states in border management control,' O'Reilly said. The European Commission said it had 'taken note' of the report. 'We will duly assess it and respond to it thoroughly,' said spokeswoman Anitta Hipper. She noted that, 'when it comes to search and rescue, this is a matter of competence for the member states' - meaning that Frontex operates only as a support agency to national authorities in the EU countries where it operates. The current executive director of Frontex, Hans Leijtens, reminded O'Reilly that Frontex was not the European Union's agency for search and rescue operations for migrants at sea, but the European security guard agency for borders and coasts. 'We are not the European Search and Rescue Agency. We are the European Border and Coast Guard Agency,' Leijtens declared, acknowledging that the 'difficult' term in the name of the agency is 'coast guard' since, as he explained, 'in some countries' the coast guard is responsible for protecting borders, but also for carrying out search operations and rescue at sea. 'That is not our case,' he commented, saying that Frontex' mandate mentions search and rescue operations, but added that the agency does not have rescue among its tasks, although it does have search. 'Our agency strictly adheres to its mandate, which does not include the coordination of rescue efforts - a responsibility that rests with national rescue coordination centres,' Frontex said in a statement. 'In every instance where our assets detect potential distress situations, we promptly alert the relevant authorities.' According to Frontex, it will run 19 joint operations with 300 deployment locations in total in 2024. Concerns about Frontex' human rights track record Human rights organisations are expressing their worries regarding treatment of refugees and migrants, citing a lack of safe migration routes as well as problems faced in on-the-ground cooperation. At an event in Madrid on March 11, general director of the non-govrnmental organisation Spanish Commission for Refugees (CEAR), Estrella Galan, expressed her concern about the 'lack of proposals for legal and safe routes for migrants' in the European pact. European Commissioner for the Interior, Ylva Johansson, attending the same event, replied that the management of legal migration is largely a 'national competence', but she believed that the EU would be 'stronger' if it designed a community approach to the matter. She further said that 'a major reform of Frontex' is unnecessary and she expressed being 'quite satisfied' with its operation. At last week's Justice and Home Affairs Council where ministers exchanged views on evaluation of Frontex' regulation, Johannson said 'we should not change the regulation, but we need to focus on the implementation'. A report by Belgian human rights group 11.11.11, the 'coalition for international solidarity' consisting of 60 NGOs and movements, found that European countries turned away more migrants at their external borders in 2023 than the year before. According to figures from the organisation, 340,000 people were turned away last year without the chance to apply for asylum - the real numbers are possibly higher. According to 11.11.11, Frontex is in a weak position compared to member states that do not adhere to correct asylum policies. 'In Bulgaria, for example, we see Frontex staff being asked to leave so they cannot document. The role of monitoring and surveillance is not sufficiently recognised by member states, but also not widely enough recognised by Frontex itself. Frontex is needed, but needs to organise itself differently,' 11.11.11 director Els Hertogen told Flemish broadcaster VRT. Several people sit in a boat in the Mediterranean while rescue workers try to help them. The Mediterranean continues to be the most lethal migration route, according to the International Organization for Migration. Photo: Antonio Sempere/EUROPA PRESS/dpa eals with EU accession candidates, externalising border management: 'Fortress Europe'? EU rules approved in December aim to share hosting responsibilities across the 27-country bloc - and to speed up deportations of irregular migrants deemed ineligible to stay. Rights groups including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch slammed the changes as a further shift towards 'Fortress Europe'. In Bulgaria, for example, Frontex deployment will soon triple. From March 20, there will be a further 500 to 600 Frontex officers, explained agency director Hans Leijtens on February 29 at the Kapitan Andreevo checkpoint on Bulgaria's border with Turkey. Leijtens was joined by the country's Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov, who said they discussed, among other things, the possibilities for providing a larger number of Frontex officers to be deployed at the Bulgarian-Turkish and Bulgarian-Serbian borders. Since 2017, Bulgaria has been protecting the EU's external border with Turkey with a 234-kilometre metal fence financed by Brussels, featuring barbed wire and thermal imaging cameras. The country is to join the border-free Schengen area from the end of March, though only its air and sea borders are included as a decision is still pending on lifting checks at land borders. All countries on the Western Balkan migration route [Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia] were recording an increased number of illegal crossings of the border, as the route 'is exceptionally active', according to Slovenian Interior Minister Botjan Poklukar. The increase was the reason for the Slovenian government's plan to establish two asylum centres at two former border crossings with Croatia for up to three years, he noted on the sidelines of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in early March in Brussels. Besides ramping up Frontex deployment in member states, border management is also externalised through collaboration with non-EU member states. Frontex has agreements with accession candidates Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Moldova and North Macedonia. In October 2022, North Macedonia and the EU signed an agreement on operational cooperation in border management with Frontex. In April 2023, a joint operation at the country's southern border with Greece was launched. More than 100 European border guards support local authorities with border surveillance and checks, including patrolling, checking documents and gathering information on cross-border crime. In November 2023, Albania and Italy struck a deal for two migrant reception centres on Albanian territory with an ability to process up to 36,000 migrants per year. The Italian-run centres are intended to process the asylum claims of migrants rescued by Italian authorities at sea. The first is a centre for the identification of migrants inland that will hold 'a maximum of 3,000 persons', and a smaller centre will be built at the port of Shengjin, to allow Italian ships arriving with migrants on board to dock. Rome's deal with Tirana was a model of thinking outside the box to solve migration issues, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a letter to the EU member states ahead of the EU summit last December. However, the agreement raised concerns, among others, by the Council of Europe. 'The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Italy and Albania on disembarkation and the processing of asylum applications, concluded last week, raises several human rights concerns and adds to a worrying European trend towards the externalisation of asylum responsibilities,' said Dunja Mijatovic, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. Besides striking a deal with Italy, Albania in January also extended an agreement with the EU for Frontex operations from 2018. The agreement proposed by the EU provides that the Frontex officers exercise executive powers in the field of illegal migration and border crimes. Bosnia and Herzegovina started negotiations with Frontex on February 12, as one of the conditions set by the European Union for the opening of accession talks in March. But not only accession candidates are signing deals with Frontex: Former EU member Britain last week signed a deal with Frontex to crack down on the irregular arrival of migrants, as London tries to stop small boats with asylum-seekers crossing the Channel from France. This article is published weekly. The content is based on news by AFP, ANP, ANSA, ATA, BTA, dpe, EFE, FENA, MIA, STA agencies participating in the enr. The effectiveness in combating illegal migration and human and drug trafficking at the borders has increased in the last year, and this would be acknowledged by European partners, including the Austrian minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner, Internal Affairs minister Catalin Predoiu said Wednesday, according to a Ministry of Internal Affairs press release. Minister Predoiu visited the Nadlac-Csanadpalota Border Crossing Point on Wednesday, accompanied by the inspector general of Border Police, superintendent of Police Cornel Laurian Stoica. The two had a meeting with the regional head of the Border Police and other local officials, focusing on the evaluation of the implementation of the measures initiated by MAI last autumn to increase the efficiency of the Border Police in the fight against illegal migration, human and drug trafficking, as well as to ensure a smoother traffic flow at the border crossing points. The minister said there is an adequate number of border guards allocated at Nadlac to ensure the traffic smooth flow through the border crossing point, but measures have been taken to prepare for the summer season, when traffic will increase exponentially. The Romanian Border Police and the Romanian Police have been instructed to be prepared in case of an increase in the number of illegal migrants attempting to cross borders. "This pressure will remain low as long as our response is effective, as long as we send a clear message through our actions to the smugglers of illegal migrants that the chances of being discovered and captured by our police are certain and high. On the other hand, I will ask the European Commission for more funds for border protection, I will also discuss with Romania's other partners about increasing the logistical means of the Border Police, I will not expect support only from the Ministry of Finance, because the situation is what it is...," said minister Catalin Predoiu. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, approximately 11 million people crossed the border through the Nadlac II Border Crossing Point in 2023, representing the second highest level of traffic after Otopeni airport. At the same time, approximately 5.2 million means of transport were checked. As many as 36 specialists from Romania will participate on Friday in the international conference "The impact of emerging and disruptive technologies on global security" hosted by Nicolae Balcescu Land Forces Academy in Sibiu, where drones and robots for military purposes will be exhibited, but also the first Romanian electric car, manufactured in Cluj-Napoca, informs a press release sent to AGERPRES. "Nicolae Balcescu Land Forces Academy in Sibiu will host on Friday, March 15, the third edition of the international conference 'The impact of emerging and disruptive technologies on global security', an event organized in partnership with the Academy of Romanian Scientists, Military Science Section, whose president is general (in reserve) Professor Teodor Frunzeti, PhD. The theme of this conference is part of the main coordinates of the current international security environment, which faces the threats generated by the strong evolution of these technologies. During the conference will be debated issues related to the impact that these advanced technologies have on the social, medical, economic and military environment. Also, exhibition stands and demonstrations with drones, robots, and mobile devices operated by sensors to the impact with laser waves will be presented and, last but not least, the first Romanian electric car manufactured in Cluj-Napoca will also be showcased," the press release adds. Among the topics that will be discussed on Friday, at the military academy in Sibiu, is the use of Artificial Intelligence in army decisions. The former mayor of northern Baia Mare, Catalin Chereches, will be brought to the country by a Romanian Police escort, after a German court decided to extradite him. "Following the international police cooperation between the Romanian Police and the German law enforcement structures, as well as the decision of the German court, a Romanian Police escort will bring the man from Baia Mare to the country, in order to execute the warrant, on a date that will be established by mutual agreement, with the German partners," the Romanian Police said on Wednesday. On November 24, 2023, Catalin Chereches was sentenced by the Cluj Court of Appeal to five years in prison for bribery. Shortly before the sentencing, Chereches fled the country through the Petea customs in a taxi, using an identity document of a close relative. Later, in the evening of November 28, 2023, following international police cooperation and the exchange of data and information between the Romanian Police and the authorities in Germany, Hungary, Austria and Italy, Catalin Chereches was located, detected and detained by the Bavarian police and BKA. The Minister of Justice, Alina Gorghiu, officially announced on Wednesday that a court in Munich decided the handover of fugitive Catalin Chereches and gave assurances that he will serve his five-year sentence in a penitentiary in Romania. "This afternoon, we were officially informed by the justice in Germany that another fugitive with a famous name, namely Catalin Chereches, will be handed over. The court in Munich decided to hand him over to Romania, as a result of the steps taken by the Romanian state. I thank all the Romanian authorities involved in this procedure and all the authorities and institutions outside Romania, especially Germany, because it has been proven once again that the level of judicial cooperation in criminal matters with Germany is exceptional. (... ) I make it clear that almost four months have passed since the final conviction of Catalin Chereches and from the moment he decided to flee Romania. From that moment, he and his team tried all kinds of tricks to escape from serving the sentence. (...) I remind you that his lawyers exercised extraordinary means of attack in order to make it difficult, to delay the surrender procedure", Gorghiu told a press conference at the Ministry Justice. Answering a question, Alina Gorghiu gave assurances that, once brought to the country, Catalin Chereches will serve his sentence in a penitentiary in Romania. "I confirm the fact that, once brought to the penitentiary system, he will remain in the Romanian penitentiary system and, if I am not mistaken, he has a five-year sentence. He will serve the sentence he received from the Romanian justice in the penitentiary system in Romania. It's something I'm absolutely convinced of," she said. She emphasized that judicial cooperation with other states is very important, as is the case with Italy, given that between 15 and 20 percent of the number of requests made by Romania to the Italian state are still rejected by the Italian courts. The ambassador of the United States of America to Romania, Kathleen Kavalec, stated on Wednesday, in northeastern Suceava, that the US has a special respect for the president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, thus answering a question regarding the announcement of the head of state regarding his intention to run for the position of secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). "Romania is a key partner for the US within NATO, contributing 2.5 percent of GDP to its defence. Romania is a key ally and partner during this terrible border war and we have the highest respect for president Iohannis," Kathleen Kavalec said. The US ambassador attended the opening of the traveling photographic exhibition "We the People" in Suceava on Wednesday, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership between the United States of America and Romania. President Klaus Iohannis announced on Tuesday that he has decided to compete for the position of NATO secretary general. "I assume this candidacy on behalf of Romania," Klaus Iohannis said at the Cotroceni Palace. The European Solidarity faction demands that Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk return the work of parliament in accordance with the law and regulations. "The European Solidarity faction publicly appeals to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada demanding the strict implementation of its constitutional powers and calls for the immediate return of the work of the highest legislative body to the requirements of the law and regulations," the European Solidarity faction said in the statement published on its website on Wednesday. Among the demands are an immediate return to normal work at least two plenary weeks a month, an hour of questions for the government, the opening of parliament to journalists, an end to blocking inter-parliamentary activities, and adequate formation of the agenda for plenary sessions. "We demand that the next week, as was previously planned and announced to the deputies, be plenary. That on March 20-22 we consider the bill banning the Moscow church, the creation of the commision on the condition of fortifications, bills on the business climate...," it is noted in the statement. The document says the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada justifies its lack of professionalism and inaction by the conditions of martial law. The statement recalls that last week the plenary session, at which important bills were to be considered, was cancelled, and the reason for the cancellation of plenary sessions in the coming week is business trips of the parliament leadership. "Parliament will meet for one day in March to vote on several regulations and ratifications," the statement said. Carter Sneed came to her favorite bookstore, Little Readers, to help unpack boxes as they arrived. The Gateway Science Academy fifth-grader could hardly wait to cut the tape and see dozens of books inside. Those books contained a short story written by Sneed herself, and they were ready for her first book signing the following Saturday at Little Readers. The magical, fantastical and downright funny tale the emerging author wrote inspired best-selling New York Times writer Adam Rubin to choose her story for publication along with five other stories from students around the country. Carter who loves reading and dogs and suddenly has more career options floating in her imaginative head. I go to school at Gateway Science Academy South, and I love science, says Carter, 11, who lives in the Bevo neighborhood. I want be a veterinarian, but writing stories also seems pretty cool, too. She combined two of her loves when she conjured an amazing dog pal, Hank the Corgi, to accompany 12-year-old Lilly Capelti on the sci-fi journey of their young lives. Carters story, The Human Kaboom, appears in a new paperback edition of Rubins book The Human Kaboom: 6 explosively different stories with the exact same name, was released on March 5 by G.P. Putnams Sons, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Carter credits her parents for her love of the written word. My parents have always read a lot, and they read to me all the time. My favorite book when I was young was Dragons Eat Tacos by Adam Rubin, she says. Rubin dished up a sequel right away, "Dragons Eat Tacos Two," and young Carter was thrilled. Ive been reading a lot ever since I learned in first grade, she says. Her parents, Sally Sciaroni and Jeremy Sneed, encouraged their daughter to incorporate creativity in daily life as well. Her unusual name set the stage. Both parents liked the name Carter, for a girl or a boy. Mom also liked Jett, boy or girl, but dad had a different take. He liked the name Princess of Power, POP for short. And thats how Carter got her middle name PopJett. When they took Carter to hear Rubin speak at the St. Louis County Library last year, the best-selling author and Washington University grad encouraged the children to send him stories for the next edition of The Human Kaboom. Carter took up the challenge and started her story, following the videos he posted with writing tips for kids on his website. That got me started. Once I started writing I didnt need the rest. The story just kept rolling for me, she says. The story Carter wrote draws on her family, her love of sassy dogs and her St. Louis experiences to create a funny and exciting story sure to delight sci-fi small fries. Her resourceful heroine, Lilly, gets roped into doing her lazy siblings chores one day. Im an only child, but I have younger cousins, and theyre annoying like the kids in the book, Carter says. She imagined the chemical plant in her head looking something like the St. Louis Science Center. I think thats because the top has all this color changing happening, which I thought might be the chemical part, she says. One of Lillys chores was to walk Hank the Corgi to the plant to deliver a sandwich for her dads lunch. Now, thats not true. My dad doesnt work in a chemical plant. Something happens that day to change the plucky girl and her dog. Hank can talk and Lilly can hear him plus they both gained super powers. My favorite part to write was the part where Hank talks about his past when he was hanging out with a raccoon, setting dumpster fires, she says. It still makes me laugh every time I read it. They gave themselves superhero names. Lilly became the Human Kaboom, and Hank morphs into Corgi Kapow. Together, they save the world when a giant red velvet cake monster attacks Germany. One time I was at a parade with my grandpa, and he got a red velvet cupcake. I thought it was the coolest cake ever, and she baked it into her story, with the addition of chocolate chips. By the time theyd donned their superhero costumes and flew out, the cake monster was looming over France. Well, we dont want to spoil the ending, but cake does rain down and the two superheroes give it to the poor people of the world. Although Carter loves history, she says she didnt tie that move to Marie Antoinette in her mind. She and Hank just wanted people to enjoy the cake. Sadly, Carters adventures with Hank came to an end when she finished her story. I really love dogs, but my dads allergic, so I dont have a dog, she says. The future veterinarian does keep her hand in with dogs, though. Shes volunteered to read to shelter dogs, drawing on other folks stories. Now shell be able to read her own story and give the dogs their own superhero with Corgi Kapow, aka Hank. ST. LOUIS The U.S. Labor Department has fined a Park Hills vegetable operation more than $500,000 after an investigation found the company didnt pay workers proper overtime rates. The case included 208 workers including about 100 who were working under H-2A visas, which allow temporary, nonimmigrant workers into the U.S. to provide short-term or seasonal work. The business, Missouri Vegetable Farm, is part of the Proffer Co., a wholesale produce business with operations in Missouri and Arkansas. The company and its owners Benjy and Robert Proffer will pay $479,983 in back wages, plus a civil monetary penalty of $38,289, the department said. J. Larry Stine, an attorney representing the Proffer Co., said the company had believed it was exempt from paying overtime under a provision in the Fair Labor Standards Act. They didnt think they were violating the law, Stine said. Once the Labor Departments Wage and Hour Division notified the company, he said, they corrected the issue. The overtime provisions in the labor standards act are extremely technical, Stine said, and there are many cases when farmers are exempt. Typically, they dont have to pay overtime, he said. So farmers arent used to doing this. The department said it reviewed pay records from a seven-month period in 2021. It found the company often failed to pay the time-and-a-half rate when employees worked overtime and often failed to combine hours worked in the farming and packaging operations. Workers hired under H-2A visas generally provide temporary or seasonal labor. In order to hire them, employers must attempt to fill those positions with local workers and must attest that there were not enough available to fill the vacant positions. The wages recovered for these workers will have a significant impact on their lives, Noah Lee, the departments St. Louis-based Wage and Hour Division District director said in a statement. Many of them may have not understood their rights to overtime pay. In Arrow Rock, a freckle of a town in mid-Missouri, the J. Huston Tavern has long boasted of being the oldest continuously operating restaurant west of the Mississippi River. Last month, operations stopped. And its not clear if, or when, theyll start back up again. J. Huston Tavern is technically owned by the state of Missouri. Its building, at 305 Main St., is part of the Arrow Rock State Historic Site. For years, the state has bid out the restaurant space to various operators. Friends of Arrow Rock, a local preservation group, signed a 10-year agreement starting in 2019 to operate J. Huston Tavern. Best-known for its pan-fried chicken, the restaurant also served pork tenderloins, burgers, country cured ham, and smoked beef brisket. But on Feb. 1, the Friends of Arrow Rock exercised a termination clause, citing their need to preserve and protect the financial resources of the organization, said Tisha Holden, a spokeswoman for the state. That leaves the restaurant, built in 1834 by Joseph Huston, Sr., without an operator for the foreseeable future. The state is working diligently to put the concession opportunity out for competitive bid this spring, Holden said. But, she added, the timing is uncertain at this point. The bid will eventually be posted on MissouriBUYS, the states e-procurement site, and interested bidders can register online at missouribuys.mo.gov/registration. A variety of concessionaires have previously run the restaurant. A local woman named Bunny Thomas operated it until 2000, and Missouri Valley College, in Marshall, had a contract at one point, said Cindy Imhoff, the administrator of the Arrow Rock State Historic Site. The state ran it for a brief time as well, Imhoff said. Friends of Arrow Rock could not be reached for comment about its decision to forego the remaining five years on its lease at J. Huston Tavern. Its tenure as operator was marked by challenges, including a 2019 kitchen fire that necessitated a summer of outdoor service under a tent; a COVID shutdown; and the staffing issues that have hurt restaurants nationwide in the wake of the pandemic. Imhoff said Friends of Arrow Rock operated the restaurant consistently throughout 2023. Despite its miniature size Arrow Rocks population is somewhere around 70 the town remains a modest tourist draw, principally due to the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre, which produces musicals and dramas every summer and fall. Catalpa, the other restaurant in town, remains open on a seasonal basis. 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 Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wants Ronnie Pope to contribute to his offices slush fund. Pope is confined in the Southeast Missouri Correctional Center in Charleston on a 12-year sentence for felony robbery and weapons charges. He was part of a crew of men arrested in 2019 for a series of robberies on the MetroLink. During the time Pope was held in the St. Louis Justice Center, before he pleaded guilty to reduced charges, he was attacked by a guard who forcefully struck and jabbed Mr. Pope multiple times about his body with a broom handle, according to court records. The attack was caught on video. Pope filed a civil rights lawsuit in federal court that was eventually settled. In December, Popes attorney sent him a $12,000 check from the settlement to be deposited into Popes corrections account. A couple of weeks later, Baileys office filed a lawsuit in Cole County, seeking to obtain the check to pay for the cost of Popes incarceration. The lawsuit was filed under the Missouri Incarceration Reimbursement Act, which allows the attorney general to sue incarcerated people under certain circumstances. The goal is to garnish income to pay for the time spent behind bars. Its part of the nations patchwork of pay-to-stay laws that often exacerbate the poverty of defendants. Every state but two Nevada and Connecticut have such laws. Most, like Missouris, were passed in the late 1980s, when a surge of tough-on-crime laws fueled a massive rise in jail populations and lawmakers were looking for new sources to help pay for new prisons. But the laws have not fulfilled their promise. In the past four years, for instance, Missouris law has not produced more than about $500,000 in the attorney generals slush fund, which gets 20% of the money collected from people in state prisons. Most of the people targeted like Pope are only sued because of a small windfall. So it was when former Attorney General William Webster first used the law in 1990 to collect money from state detainees who had won settlements after being attacked by prison guards. In one of those cases, however, the federal Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that its unconstitutional for the state to take settlement money won by someone through a federal lawsuit. The court argued that people in state prison would have no avenue to be compensated should their civil rights be violated. If the state were permitted to seize the ... damage awards prisoners received for prison employees conduct, the prisoners would have no motive to bring such suits and the State and its employees would have no inducement to comply with federal law, the appeals court wrote in 1990. But that case likely doesnt apply to Pope because he was attacked in a city jail, not a state prison, says Washington University law professor Peter Joy. Still, Joy says, Pope can make a good argument that Baileys lawsuit undermines federal civil rights law. If Pope is to make that argument, hell do so without an attorney. Thats because in reimbursement lawsuits, the public defenders office which represented Pope in his criminal case cant intervene. Pope has filed a handwritten letter with the court asking that his settlement be protected and non-recoverable. I never own anything in my life, Pope told the court. If successful, Baileys lawsuit would make sure that remains the case. Lisa Foster, a former California judge who is co-director of the nonprofit Fines and Fees Justice Center, finds such lawsuits really offensive. Unfortunately, Missouri is not alone in doing this, Foster says. For some reason, there seems to be an uptick in these. I dont know if its state attorneys general talking to each other, or something else. The lawsuits often go unnoticed because they target people who committed serious crimes, who have no family to advocate for them, and who are otherwise not empathetic. The system, though, envisions people like Pope some day returning to live in their communities. And the state makes their ability to get housing, jobs and health care much more difficult when it tries to collect costs related to their stays in jail. Prison is not a Motel 6, Foster says. You shouldnt be paying for the privilege of being locked up. Bailey, who didnt respond to a request for an interview, apparently disagrees. He has filed two other lawsuits this year seeking reimbursement from Missouri men. Both of those men received small court settlements from insurance proceeds following the deaths of their mothers. One of them, Daniel Wayne Wallace, wrote a letter to the court asking to block Baileys action. It is the only time I will receive any large amount of money ever, Wallace wrote about the check for about $12,000 he received after his mom died. The money, he said, is supposed to help him rebuild his life when he leaves prison: I fully intend on fighting tooth and nail in court to stop this travesty of justice. ST. LOUIS Two men were charged Tuesday with murder in a drive-by shooting of a man and his girlfriend on the Eads Bridge in January. Jermel Williams, 30, and 31-year-old Lamontrez Parker were both charged with first-degree murder, first-degree assault, two counts of armed criminal action and two counts of unlawfully possessing a firearm. They were both in custody as of Tuesday evening. Investigators say the two men attacked Harley Branscomb, 22, while he was driving the Eads Bridge with his 23-year-old girlfriend about 4:30 a.m. on Jan. 28. Parker drove his Tesla in front of Branscomb's car and Williams pulled up beside Branscomb in a rented Nissan, a detective wrote in court documents. Surveillance footage shows several shots being fired from the Nissan's front passenger side window. Branscomb was hit several times and died immediately, police said. His girlfriend was shot in the back but survived. Police said surveillance footage then shows the Tesla and Nissan driving to a gas station off Interstate 70 and Grand Avenue. The two men got out of their cars and talked to each other, and a passenger in the Nissan was seen holding a rifle. He also buried a cartridge casing in the ground, which was later found by officers. Williams told police he was driving the Nissan during the shooting and told police his passenger fired several shots at Branscomb. Police on Tuesday did not identify the third person involved. He also identified Parker as the driver of the Tesla, police wrote in court documents. JEFFERSON CITY Missourians convicted of felony drug possession or use wouldnt lose access to government food aid under a measure poised to clear the Missouri House. Proponents said removing current restrictions which federal law allows states to enforce would help previously incarcerated people reintegrate into society once they have served their sentences. The change to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in Missouri is only one proposed alteration to current corrections law included in the bipartisan measure, sponsored by Rep. Chad Perkins, R-Bowling Green. The new law also requires the Department of Corrections to work to provide certain inmates with photo identification cards when they are released, if they dont have one. It would also require the state to provide documents to certain inmates staying in Missouri to help them find employment. In addition, the legislation would only allow city and county jails to use restraints on pregnant women in their third trimesters in extraordinary circumstances. By 2025, city and county jails would need policies on the intake and treatment of pregnant offenders. The procedures are required to address maternal health evaluations, prenatal vitamins, timely and regular nutritious meals required to be at least 2,500 calories per day, postpartum recovery and more. The legislation also restricts the use of handcuffs, chains, irons or straitjackets on juveniles attending juvenile court proceedings. Legislators also are attempting to address good time credits in current law that allow for early release of inmates in state prison if certain conditions are met. The change would require good-time credits to be awarded but specifies no good-time credit would require the state to release an inmate. The parole board in its discretion shall determine the date of release, the legislation says. The Department of Corrections would be required to apply a five- to 360-day credit to an inmates sentence, depending on the program completed. They department would determine the length of the credit based on the length of the program, the bill says. The legislation requires the state to award credit if an inmate earns their high school diploma or equivalent, a college degree or a vocational training certificate. Credits could also be earned if the offender completes a voluntary alcohol or drug abuse treatment program, if they complete 1,000 hours of restorative justice or if they finish an additional department program. The new law would take effect Aug. 28. It would allow offenders who have completed a qualifying program since Jan. 1, 2010, and before the bill takes effect, to apply for a good-time credit during all of 2025. Offenders would lose their good-time credit with a major conduct violation, if they break state law, have their parole revoked or if they have more than six minor violations in a year. Credits would be limited to a maximum of ninety days of credit in any twelve month period, the legislation said. Inmates sentenced to death or life in prison without parole wouldnt be allowed to receive credit. Legislators finalized the wording of the measure Wednesday on a voice vote. Once a final vote is taken, the legislation will advance to the Senate for consideration. The legislation is House Bill 1777. UPDATED at 3:15 p.m. Wednesday with reaction from victims grandmothers. ST. LOUIS Prosecutors this week charged two men with murdering a boy in 2021 by throwing him from his bicycle and shooting him in the head before stealing his marijuana. Omarion Chantez Mays, 19, was in custody Wednesday, and authorities say his accomplice is believed to be hiding in the Atlanta area. Both men are charged in the March 8, 2021, shooting death of 14-year-old Kathon Terrell Moore Jr. Police asked that the accomplices name not be released until his arrest. At-large warrants were issued against him Tuesday. Detectives have teamed up with U.S. marshals to arrest the second man. The man on the loose is 22. He is charged with first-degree murder because police say he is the one who pulled the trigger. Mays is charged with second-degree murder. The second-degree charge alleges Mays was at the murder scene while taking part in the crime of robbery. Each is also charged with first-degree robbery and two counts of armed criminal action. Court records dont explain why it took three years to make a case against the two suspects. Police said the charges came because the new administration at the St. Louis circuit attorneys office took a fresh look at the case, opinions changed and the case was issued. The charges were filed Tuesday, just a few days after the three-year anniversary of Kathons death. It takes a toll on me, Im not going to lie, his maternal grandmother, Doris Finley, said in an interview Wednesday. Every day I think of him because he was like my baby. Finley, 68, said her grandsons death was a huge loss to the family, but especially for Kathons mother, America Dean. Kathon was her only child. Kathon was found dead near 1142 Hodiamont Avenue in the citys West End neighborhood at about 5:20 p.m. that March day. Kathon lived in the 5800 block of Etzel Avenue, about a half-mile from the shooting scene. Kathon was a freshman at Soldan High School and would have graduated this May, Finley said. He attended an international language school since the age of 5 and spoke French. Its been hard, Finley said. We (are) still grieving. A key witness is an 11-year-old friend of Kathon, according to court papers. The friend identified Mays as the person who first assaulted Kathon. Finley said the younger boy recognized Mays in a Facebook post. Mays, in turn, gave detectives the name of the gunman who killed Kathon, St. Louis police Detective Benjamin Lacy said in court documents. Finley said Mays was picked up shortly after the killing and kept at a juvenile facility but never charged as an adult and eventually released. Now facing murder charges, Mays was in custody Wednesday at the St. Louis jail and held without bond. Mays was arrested Sunday on a misdemeanor trespassing charge after police say he stole a backpack from a guards shack at a MetroLink station on DeBaliviere Avenue. He lives in the 500 block of Pershing Avenue in St. Louis. Finley said Kathons family is happy that prosecutors finally filed murder charges, noting that some cases are never solved. For three years to pass by so quick, I give my hands to the detectives working the case, especially Detective Lacy, Finley said. Over the years, Finley would talk to police for updates every few months or so and pass along the information to Kathons paternal grandmother, Charlotte Moore. When she heard about the charges this week, Charlotte Moore told a reporter, Im extremely relieved. Surveillance video showed the assault, police said. Kathon was pulled off his bike and then shot in the head. The 11-year-old boy who saw the first suspect grab Kathon and start fighting him rode away on another bike to get help before Kathon was shot, Finley said. When he returned to the scene with an older friend, Kathon was already dead. At Kathons funeral in spring 2021, several large framed photos of the wide-grinned boy were on display next to his dark-blue casket. The photos featured Kathon celebrating a sports win and holding an award from the language school. Duane Belford, a local pastor, is a cousin to Finley. Belford mentioned to mourners at the funeral the crazy season that were in, not only with the pandemic but just with the problems of St. Louis itself. Belford is a chaplain for the St. Louis homicide division. Belford said Kathon died not by drowning, not by getting hit by a car on his bike but senselessly and tragically killed. Photos: 'Golden Birthday' celebrated for 14-year-old murder victim Kathon Terrell Moore Jr. celebrated in St. Louis ST. LOUIS When the crime scene technicians arrived at Jocelyn Peters' house, they saw baby shower invitations lying on the coffee table and pictures drawn by schoolchildren hanging on the refrigerator. In Peters' bed, next to her body, between the comforter and remote control, they found a guest list written neatly on lined pink paper. "Baby Shower," it said at the top of the page. Peters was nearly seven months pregnant in 2016 when a man hired by the father of her child, Cornelius Green, entered the room while she slept and shot her in the head, killing her and the child she'd already named Micah Leigh, prosecutors said Tuesday. Green pleaded guilty last month to murder for hire. This week, the man accused of shooting her, Phillip J. Cutler, is on trial. Prosecutors made opening arguments on Tuesday and called the first witnesses. The day revealed new details in the relationship between Green and Peters, and the moments leading up to her death. Peters had been dating Green for roughly five years. She had previously sought an abortion for a pregnancy, which he said was also his, court documents say. But this time, she was determined to keep the baby. Green had promised Peters he was getting a divorce from his estranged wife. He was also dating other women, and none of them knew about each other, prosecutors said. "(Green) had woven a web of lies," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany Becker. "He was trapped and had no way out." In the months before Peters' death, Green searched online how to cover the bitter taste of abortion pills and how late in a pregnancy an abortion could take place, court documents say. Then he called Cutler, his childhood friend. In March, 2016, Peters was teaching third grade at Mann Elementary School in St. Louis and living at an apartment in the city's Central West End. She was a dedicated educator who received the Pettus Award for Excellence in 2014, which is given to the most outstanding educators in St. Louis schools, her mother, Lacey Peters, testified on Tuesday. She had a master's degree and was working on certifications to teach in science and math at the time of her death. At some point after she became pregnant, Peters invited her mother to the International House of Pancakes in Clayton and told her she had a surprise. A video showed Lacey Peters smiling as she unwrapped a gift containing an ultrasound photo. The frame said, "I love you already." "She was ecstatic," Lacey Peters recalled. Green, who was the principal at Carr Lane Visual and Performing Arts Middle School, accompanied the Peters family on a cruise to the Bahamas to celebrate Jocelyn Peters' 30th birthday. They returned on March 18, 2016. A few days later, Peters called her mother. She was upset. "She said, 'Mom, I'm going to have to move back home,'" Lacey Peters said Tuesday. Her daughter feared Green wasn't going to divorce his wife and wouldn't financially support their child. She couldn't afford rent and a baby on her own. She was frustrated because Green had gone to Chicago on a short trip and wasn't back, Lacey said. She agreed to let her daughter move in. The next afternoon the day Peters died Green called Lacey. He said he hadn't heard from Jocelyn and said he'd go check on her, Lacey testified. After 3 p.m., Green made a call to 911. "I think my girlfriend was shot," he told the dispatcher. He left the apartment and hadn't touched her, he told authorities. He thought she was dead. An ambulance and police arrived moments later and found Peters' body, said former St. Louis police Officer Christina Powderly. There was a strange substance splattered all over the bedroom, she said. Police later figured the shooter had tried to use a potato as a silencer for the gun. Green spoke to officers that day, but his demeanor was odd, Powderly said. He was quick to pull out an Amtrak ticket showing he had been in Chicago until that morning. "He was calm," Powderly testified. "It was a little bit eerie. He did not have a lot of emotion." Prosecutors said Green had sent Cutler, his boyhood friend from Oklahoma, a UPS package with $2,500 roughly two weeks before Peters' death. Cutler arrived in St. Louis late in the evening on March 21. The following morning, Green left on his Chicago trip. On the night of Peters' death, a Kia Optima owned by Green appeared on surveillance video near her apartment in the 4200 block of West Pine Boulevard. It stayed there for several minutes before leaving just after 3:45 a.m. Tracking data from Cutler's phone showed he was in the area at the time of the killing, prosecutors said. Cutler's attorneys did not present an opening argument Tuesday. The trial is scheduled to last seven days. Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that Green owned the Kia Optima. WASHINGTON President Joe Biden last Friday signed into law a spending package that includes more than $95.1 million for Missouri projects improvements at state universities, upgrades for local police departments, aid for community groups. But the total is less than a third of what the state got in similar legislation during the previous fiscal year. The reduced funding comes after Missouri Republican Sens. Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt refused to participate in congressionally directed spending to steer federal money back home a process more commonly called earmarks. Instead, Missouri relied on requests from just four lawmakers Reps. Cori Bush, Emanuel Cleaver, Sam Graves and Blaine Luetkemeyer for any proposed projects for the 2024 fiscal year, which began in October. Earmarking is the way the lobbyists and others get their talons into you, Hawley said. And a lot of times, what they want is they want their little pet projects funded. I think we ought to be about doing whats good for the whole state, doing whats good for the whole country. After months of pushing back the deadline, Congress last week approved six spending bills, which included funding for agencies like the Department of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development and Transportation. They have until March 22 to pass the remaining bills, which cover Homeland Security, Education and Health and Human Services, among other agencies. The bills contain funding for hundreds of specific local projects requested by lawmakers. In St. Louis, Bush secured $13.7 million for 14 projects, including $3 million for the Epworth Emergency Shelter and Food Pantry Rehabilitation Project and nearly $1.7 million for redevelopment of the St. Louis Housing Authoritys Clinton-Peabody housing complex. Kansas City-area earmarks include $4.8 million to the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority for low- and no-emission buses, $500,000 for revitalization efforts in historic downtown Independence and $2.5 million for upgrades at the Clay County Sheriffs Office, among other items. Earmarks have long been controversial lawmakers would sometimes use the money to benefit political donors or themselves, resulting in a temporary ban between 2011 and 2021. When the process was reintroduced with more rules about transparency in 2022, some Republicans chose not to participate, saying it increased government spending and opened lawmakers to corruption. Sen. Schmitt is dedicated to reforming a broken system in Washington and fighting to protect taxpayer dollars, said Chris Nuelle, Schmitts communications director. The United States is over $34 trillion in debt and earmarks are part of the problem. Hell continue to be unafraid in pushing for reforms on behalf of hardworking Missourians. Schmitt and Hawley are among 34 Republican senators who do not request any congressionally directed funding, and only half of Missouris House delegation requests their version, called Community Project Funding. In choosing not to participate in the program, Schmitt, who was elected in 2022, isnt filling a funding hole left by former Republican Sen. Roy Blunt. In his last year in office, Blunt secured more than $350 million for Missouri. But Schmitts not the only new Missouri lawmaker who has chosen not to use earmarks. Reps. Mark Alford and Eric Burlison, both Republicans, also didnt participate. Alford replaced Rep. Vicky Hartzler, who didnt request any funding for fiscal year 2023. But Burlison replaced Rep. Billy Long, who secured more than $60 million for his Springfield-area district. Youre reducing your chances of getting federal resources via this mechanism directed to your district if you, in this case your senators, choose not to pursue projects in this way, said Molly Reynolds, a fellow at the Washington-based Brookings think tank who studies Congress. That leaves Springfield-area groups, like Missouri State University, at a disadvantage when it comes to getting federal funds for projects. The university recently reached out to Morans office about potential funding for its Jordan Valley Innovation Center, which spokeswoman Andrea Mostyn said would develop more sales for products produced in Kansas. Missouri State University also communicates on a regular basis with the Missouri congressional delegation about our projects, funding for those projects, and the benefits to our local economies as well defense agencies, Mostyn said. Hawley said he wasnt concerned that there might be less money going to Missouri projects because he doesnt request earmarks, touting the fact that he secured more than $40 million for housing at Fort Leonard Wood in the annual National Defense Authorization Act. While in Missouri this weekend, Hawley said he brought up eliminating earmarks on the campaign trail and each time it got resounding applause. I think in some ways its lazy legislating, Hawley said. Its people who dont actually want to do the hard work of legislating, they just want to go in and slip in a little earmark and they havent actually gotten anything through the legislative process. The Post-Dispatch contributed to this report. Head of the President's Office of Ukraine Andriy Yermak held a meeting with Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to Ukraine Fan Xianrong. "The interlocutors summed up the results of the visit to Ukraine of the Chinese delegation headed by Li Hui, Special Representative of the Chinese Government for Eurasian Affairs, which took place last week," the press service of the President's Office said. Continuing the dialogue, Yermak and Xianrong outlined areas for further cooperation, in particular on the issues contained in the points of the Ukrainian Peace Formula. Yermak also informed of the preparation of the Global Peace Summit in Switzerland at the level of state leaders. He thanked the Chinese side for its interest in achieving a just peace for Ukraine. JEFFERSON CITY As she fought back tears and spoke softly, three state lawmakers and three advocates all women gathered closer to Rebecca Hurst, some gently placing a hand on her back in a show of support. Hurst was recounting the story of how, at age 16, her mother surreptitiously planned her marriage to a 22-year-old man to save me from my damnation. She did not feel I was on the correct spiritual path, said Hurst. That was more than 30 years ago in a small town in Pulaski County. On Wednesday, Hurst stood before reporters, cameras and microphones in a side gallery off the Senate at the Missouri Capitol, advocating for state legislation that would change the legal marriage age to 18 with no exceptions. Im here to advocate for those that have no one to stand up for them and no one to fight for them. Keep marriage between two consenting adults, she told reporters. Three lawmakers Sen. Holly Rehder, a Scott City Republican; Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Kansas City Democrat; and Rep. Chris Dinkins, a Lesterville Republican have all put their names behind the measure. In 2018, the Legislature raised the minimum marriage age in Missouri to 16 up from either 15 with parental consent or any age with court approval. Currently, 16- or 17-year-olds can marry with a notarized signature from one parent or guardian. But at a news conference Wednesday, lawmakers and advocates fighting against child marriage talked about problems that arise when a minor enters into a legal marriage contract. Child marriage creates a nightmarish legal trap, said Fraidy Reiss, founder and executive director of Unchained at Last. You just dont have the rights of adulthood when youre 16 or 17. Youre not allowed to leave home to escape from parents planning an unwanted wedding for you or to escape from an abusive spouse. You are a missing child if you run away from home. Reiss said minors cant file for divorce, bring a legal action in their own name or get into a domestic violence shelter without parental consent. And some parents marry their child to avoid child support obligations or even traffic their child to create a legal path to U.S. citizenship for noncitizens. It is not OK to marry minors off, said Michele Hanash, director of policy and womens programs at AHA Foundation. Because minors have limited legal rights, child marriage can have devastating consequences, she said. It put minors at risk of unrelenting physical, emotional and sexual abuse, Hanash said. Rehder said the news conference was meant to bring media attention to the states marriage laws and encourage citizens to put pressure on their representatives to make a change. We need public pressure, Rehder said. Womens issues have not always been first and foremost in any legislature across the nation. Rehder said she married at age 15 and her sister married at 16, and that was seen as normal where she grew up. We were very poor. ... We didnt understand that our long-term prosperity absolutely was going to be hindered, she said. The issue is also personal for Dinkins. My sister was married at age 15, and I also had a close friend who was married at age 15, Dinkins said. They both were abused. Back in the days it wasnt really acceptable when a teen was pregnant, so they often got married, she said. It was just a way of life back then. Women have so much more opportunity now, so much more opportunity for education, for prosperity. We do not need to hamstring our girls, Rehder said. JEFFERSON CITY The chief clerk of the Missouri House appeared Wednesday evening before a panel of lawmakers investigating alleged ethics violations by Speaker Dean Plocher. In the latest development affecting the beleaguered speaker, Dana Rademan Miller, the top administrator of the Legislatures lower chamber, became at least the fourth person to answer questions from the bipartisan House committee looking into Plochers actions. Miller raised questions last year about the speakers failed push to convince fellow lawmakers to outsource an $800,000 software program at a time when the House already had an in-house system for managing constituent contacts. Miller, a nonpartisan employee, angered the Des Peres Republican in an August email by calling the private sector application being pitched by two of the Capitols high-powered lobbyists an expensive redundancy that is not needed. In response, Miller said in an email that Plocher made threats about her future employment. The committee, which meets behind closed doors, has not outlined a timetable for their inquiry. The panel could recommend a variety of punishments for Plocher, which would then be taken up by the full House. But lawmakers are taking next week off for spring break and are scheduled to end their annual session May 17, raising questions about what might happen if nothing is resolved in the next eight weeks. Plocher is term limited and wont return as speaker following the Legislatures veto session in September. Members of the panel are bound by rules requiring proceedings to be confidential, with none of the discussions, testimony or evidence gathered made public until a final report is issued. Plocher, a former municipal judge, has deflected calls to resign and has continued his run for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in a crowded field of GOP contenders. Along with meddling in House purchasing issues, Plocher is under fire for admitting he illegally sought reimbursement with taxpayer dollars for trips to Hawaii and elsewhere already paid for by his campaign account. He has since paid back about $4,000. In the fallout, Plocher fired two top staffers in the speakers office. Another top aide resigned. The office budget has since ballooned by $250,000 as hes surrounded himself with loyalists, including former House Speaker Rod Jetton, whose political career was derailed by a federal bribery investigation more than a decade ago. Millers testimony followed Plochers Tuesday appearance before the 10-member ethics panel. Others who have testified include a private investigator hired by the committee to compile evidence in the inquiry. Rep. Dale Wright, R-Farmington, also appeared before the committee Tuesday, presumably to discuss his role in Plochers push to buy the software contract. ST. LOUIS The city sheriff is backing a plan that could make a reelection rival ineligible for office. But he says thats not what hes trying to do. A bill being debated in the statehouse would require anyone serving as the St. Louis sheriff to be a state-licensed peace officer. The current sheriff, Vernon Betts, is licensed. Alfred Montgomery, a former deputy challenging Betts for the Democratic nomination, is not. Montgomery says a peace officer license is unnecessary for the administrative job of sheriff and calls Betts push for the requirement an act of political sabotage. He pointed out the incumbent didnt have a license before he was elected either. Hes trying to orchestrate democracy, Montgomery said in an interview. Betts says hes doing nothing of the sort. Alfred Montgomery is a pathological liar, he said in an interview, and hes not going to win an election by bastardizing Vernon Betts. The real plot, Betts said, is to make sure the sheriff leads by example. He said hes spent the past seven years trying to professionalize a department long seen as a clumsy patronage office. A big part of that push has been putting his staff through state peace officer training. Such training, Betts said, equips them to go beyond guarding courtrooms and serving papers and actually police downtown and on MetroLink, for example. And Betts said he couldnt ask sheriffs to do something he wouldnt, so he got trained with them two years ago. He said Montgomery could do the same thing before the August primaries, too. Go to school, Mr. Montgomery. Go to school, he said. Montgomery demurred. Training courses can cost several thousand dollars. Im going to get my certification just like the sheriff did, he said. On the citys dime. The bill, from State Rep. Chad Perkins, R-Bowling Green, has passed out of a House committee but has yet to receive votes on the floor. Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis, is carrying companion legislation in the Senate, but she said she plans to soften the licensing requirement and give a new sheriff two years in office to satisfy it. Anthony Anderson, a retired St. Louis police officer who is also in the Democratic primary race, did not return a call seeking comment for this story. It was not immediately clear whether he had an active peace officer license. WASHINGTON When a total solar eclipse transforms day into night, will tortoises start acting romantic? Will giraffes gallop? Will apes sing odd notes? Researchers will be standing by to observe how animals routines at the Fort Worth Zoo in Texas are disrupted when skies dim on April 8. They previously detected other strange animal behaviors in 2017 at a South Carolina zoo that was in the path of total darkness. To our astonishment, most of the animals did surprising things, said Adam Hartstone-Rose, a North Carolina State University researcher who led the observations published in the journal Animals. While there are many individual sightings of critters behaving bizarrely during historic eclipses, only in recent years have scientists started to rigorously study the altered behaviors of wild, domestic and zoo animals. Seven years ago, Galapagos tortoises at the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, South Carolina, that generally do absolutely nothing all day during the peak of the eclipse, they all started breeding, said Hartstone-Rose. The cause of the behavior is still unclear. A mated pair of Siamangs, gibbons that usually call to each other in the morning, sang unusual tunes during the afternoon eclipse. A few male giraffes began to gallop in apparent anxiety. The flamingos huddled around their juveniles. Researchers say that many animals display behaviors connected with an early dusk. In April, Hartstone-Roses team plans to study similar species in Texas to see if the behaviors they witnessed before in South Carolina point to larger patterns. Several other zoos along the path are also inviting visitors to help track animals, including zoos in Little Rock, Arkansas; Toledo, Ohio; and Indianapolis. This years full solar eclipse in North America crisscrosses a different route than in 2017 and occurs in a different season, giving researchers and citizen scientists opportunities to observe new habits. Its really high stakes. We have a really short period to observe them and we cant repeat the experiment, said Jennifer Tsuruda, a University of Tennessee entomologist who observed honeybee colonies during the 2017 eclipse. The honeybees that Tsuruda studied decreased foraging during the eclipse, as they usually would at night, except for those from the hungriest hives. During a solar eclipse, theres a conflict between their internal rhythms and external environment, said University of Albertas Olav Rueppell, adding that bees rely on polarized light from the sun to navigate. Nate Bickford, an animal researcher at Oregon Institute of Technology, said that solar eclipses actually mimic short, fast-moving storms, when skies darken and many animals take shelter. After the 2017 eclipse, he analyzed data from tracking devices previously placed on wild species to study habitat use. Flying bald eagles change the speed and direction theyre moving during an eclipse, he said. So do feral horses, probably taking cover, responding to the possibility of a storm out on the open plains. The last full U.S. solar eclipse to span coast to coast happened in late summer, in August. The upcoming eclipse in April gives researchers an opportunity to ask new questions including about potential impacts on spring migration. Most songbird species migrate at night. When there are night-like conditions during the eclipse, will birds think its time to migrate and take flight? said Andrew Farnsworth of Cornell University. His team plans to test this by analyzing weather radar data which also detects the presence of flying birds, bats and insects to see if more birds take wing during the eclipse. As for indoor pets, they may react as much to what their owners are doing whether theyre excited or nonchalant about the eclipse as to any changes in the sky, said University of Arkansas animal researcher Raffaela Lesch. Dogs and cats pay a lot of attention to us, in addition to their internal clocks, she said. Meteorological events to look for in 2024and where best to see them Meteorological events to look for in 2024and where best to see them Feb. 22, 2024: Venus and Mars conjunction Feb. 26, 2024: Zodiacal light April 8, 2024: Total solar eclipse April 12, 2024: 'Devil comet' crosses the sky Aug. 12, 2024: Perseids meteor shower Aug. 19, 2024: Supermoon September-October 2024: Will Comet C/2023 A3 shine bright? Oct. 2, 2024: Another solar eclipse Dec. 13, 2024: Geminid meteor shower All year: Increased aurora activity Total solar eclipses through the decades March 13, 2024: China has been encouraging foreign investment and foreign firms opening offices in China. At the same time China makes mistakes and blames foreigners because they tell their company management back in the United States what is going on in China. Now China has decided that such accurate reporting is illegal because it makes China look bad. China fined a foreign consulting firm $1.5 million for such accurate reporting of the problems Americans firms are now having in China. In another case China arrested five Chinese working for a foreign firm and charged them with espionage. China has raided seven American businesses in Beijing and arrested employees on suspicion of espionage. China has cracked down on foreign businesses even as it seeks foreign investment. The American ambassador revealed details of Chinas persecution of American firms and accusations of espionage. For the ambassador this is a troubling trend for Americans who want to do business in China. The Ambassador points out that the Chinese claim that China is open for business and want American, Japanese and firms from other countries in China, but in the last year China has raided seven American businesses. The Chinese police enter these businesses and shut them down and the government later accuses the Americans of reporting back to the United States that China has been criticizing and disrupting American businesses in China. China has been particularly harsh on American Mintz Group, which was raided, and five Chinese members of staff were detained. Mintz confirmed the detention of its employees, the closure of its China business and that it was fined over a million dollars by the Chinese government. In May 2023, China's state TV aired a program showing a raid of the American consulting firm Capvision, and boasting about how China was cracking down on foreign firms that say bad things about China. This was ironic because Capvision is in the business of telling its worldwide clients what the situation is in various countries and which ones are open to foreign investment and which are not. Capvision accurately reported that China claims to be friendly to foreign investment but is often not friendly at all and makes life miserable for the foreign firms. After its latest problems with the Chinese government, Capvision said it would abide by national security rules but refused to elaborate. In mid-2023 China expanded its counter-espionage law to include a ban on transferring outside China any information related to national security. China also broadened the definition of spying. It appears that someone in China's Ministry of State Security read the novel 1984 as a how-to work of nonfiction. An example of this are new Chinese rules that encourage accusing foreigners, especially Americans, of espionage for engaging in practices that are perfectly legal and acceptable everywhere else in the world. In other words, reporting to a U.S. based consulting firm, verbally or in writing, accurate information about the current attitudes of the Chinese government towards foreign businesses operating in China is dangerous because current Chinese attitudes are hostile and paranoid. Even when an American firm engages in the standard due diligence on a Chinese company's finances, before a decision can be made about investments or joint ventures, reporting anything negative could be considered spying under the new Chinese security laws. It appears that China wants to control the export of data about the Chinese people and Chinese companies. Currently China is seeking to halt any reports on Chinese businesses that are negative, even if such reports are accurate. China's Ministry of State Security or MSS has called on the Chinese to join counter-espionage efforts by reporting, via tip lines, suspicious activity. The MSS promises to commend those reporting accurate but derogatory comments and reward them. The MSS also claims it has uncovered two Chinese citizens spying for the US Central Intelligence Agency, detailing how the accused were recruited and subsequently noticed and placed under investigation. The US National Counterintelligence and Security Center reports that since 2023 China viewed outbound flow of data as a national security risk, and that the new and existing laws could compel companies' locally employed Chinese nationals to assist in Chinese intelligence efforts. The crackdown on imaginary spying has discouraged further foreign investment in China, which China needs because the economy continues to have problems regaining growth and momentum after years of disruptions because of the disruptive pandemic lockdowns related to covid19. In 2023 China's foreign direct investment fell 82 percent to $33 billion. This was the lowest level of investment in China by foreign companies in 30 years. In the last three months of 2023 foreign cash outflows exceeded inflows by $17.5 billion. This never happened before and was an indicator of how bad economic conditions have become in China. March 13, 2024: Large Unmanned Surface Vehicles (LUSVs) are unmanned surface vessels designed for the United States Navy whose construction began in 2020. Designed to be low-cost, high-endurance, reconfigurable ships based on commercial designs, they will have the capacity for modular payloads such as anti-ship, anti-submarine, or anti-air weapons. Capable of operating with human operators in the loop to detect unauthorized personnel boarding and seeking to damage or divert the ships or steal their cargo, the Navy plans to use these ships operating alongside fleets as scouts as well as magazine ships carrying additional supplies or weapons for manned ships. Current LUSVs are 1,500-ton vessels that are about a hundred meters long and cruise at 48 kilometers an hour for up to 6.500 kilometers. Up to four shipping containers carrying weapons can be carried. Missiles can be transported and fired from standard shipping containers. Each container contains four missiles and control of the missiles is carried out by a remote operator on a manned warship. The 30 ton shipping containers are placed on deck of a LUSV and used as needed. Missiles can be Tomahawk cruise missiles with a range of 1,500 kilometers as well as SM-6 anti-aircraft or anti-ballistic missile missiles. Anti-submarine ASROC missiles can also be carried. Most often Tomahawk and SM-6 missiles will be in the shipping containers. The SM-6 missiles would be launched at ships detected by nearby manned warships. This would mean the LUSV would be unmanned auxiliaries for manned warships. The U.S. Navy has long sought this type of unmanned auxiliary weapons carrying vessels to accompany the fleet into combat. The armed LUSVs would enhance the fire power of nearby manned warships and, once the LUSVs expend all their weapons, they would return to a land base to replace their empty weapons containers with new ones containing weapons. One problem the navy has not solved is reloading LUSVs at sea with new weapons containers. That has proved unsuccessful and the LUSV would have to reach a nearby island or mainland base to take on new containers. The Navy began building the first two LUSVs in 2020, with plans to buy eight more over the five years. The US Navy will receive its first LUSV 2025 followed by two in 2026, and three each in 2027 and 2028. The LUSVs cost around $250 million each. LUSV ships lend themselves to construction in smaller shipyards. This means more shipyards can be involved. This reduces manufacturing bottlenecks and provides more work for existing shipyards. The commercial shipping industry is investing heavily in autonomous vessels to help increase ship efficiency, reduce operating cost, and most importantly improve safety. Thats because 57.8 percent of all accidents at sea are related to human error. It is possible that by 2040 over 50 percent of all commercial shipping will be fully autonomous, making the LUSV market at that time worth roughly $65 billion a year. This represents a significant opportunity to expand smaller shipyards, providing a commercial export market which could increase overall regional benefits as well as the ability to build militarized LUSV for the United States and its allies. LUSV commercial opportunities exist to advance existing industrial capacity and exploit research and development. These opportunities enable the ship building industries in many nations opportunities to participate in building LUSVs for commercial and military use. by Austin Bay March 13, 2024 Social chaos fed by crime, drugs, street defecation, brutal physical assault and illegal immigration swamping social welfare systems. Surprise! Left-liberal San Franciscans vote to re-fund the cops. Suddenly, their hard-left mayor demands law, demands order, calls the cops despite her own "defund the police" complicity. A commonsense human security response to local hell, even in sanctuary city San Francisco? Maybe. But here's the deep survival question. Does San Fran's belated political response to social disintegration reflect a nationwide awareness of 2024's nationwide community fragility -- a fragility bred by growing awareness of disintegrating institutions and corrupt leadership? Take military defense -- soldiers, our international cops. The U.S. military looks like a slowly disintegrating institution, one disintegrating at the level of human beings willing to serve. Here's an inconvenient truth. After instructing soldiers and sailors on the use of transgender preferred pronouns -- a Bud Light beer self-destructive moment if self-serving Biden administration bureaucrats ever provoked one -- the Pentagon missed 2023 recruiting goals. FY2024 military recruiting ain't looking good. Will we have the troops to defend us? As for disintegrating academic credentials, those framed parchments snooty schools print that supposedly tell media a talking head has brains? Harvard's President Claudine Gay resigned after she was exposed as a serial plagiarist. Plagiarism was once THE unforgivable scholarly sin. Yet Gay avoids scholar hell and remains on Harvard's faculty as the Wilbur A. Cowett professor of government and of African and African-American Studies and her "research addresses American political behavior, including voter turnout and politics of race and identity." Americans with character, behold the rot: Decayed academia and corrupt media give Gay, a serial liar and proven fraud, the space/time to opine on your behavior as well as "race and identity"? Destructive and damning fact: Gay's high-paid claptrap wreaks systemic damage. She and her ilk incite division and grievance in America's body politic. Grievance and division seed social chaos. Additional wreckage: Her academic fraud is evidence of institutional disintegration in so-called higher education. Yet Gay is a minor pawn-influencer in our enemies' war to disunite America. Back to the title -- China's war to disintegrate America. TikTok is a social media video application favored by tens of millions of young Americans, though worshipped may be a more accurate word. Via TikTok a 14-year-old in a leather bikini can lip-synch a song and become a global internet sensation. Dylan Mulvaney, the trans actor of Bud Light's demise, was a TikTok influencer. TikTok is owned by a mainland Chinese corporation, ByteDance. The U.S. House of Representatives wants to force ByteDance to sell TikTok to a non-Chinese owner. Why? ByteDance, like the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies, is for all practical purposes a Chinese Communist Party tool. A decade of mounting evidence indicates Huawei is a CCP cutout company -- spy lingo for an organization camouflaging an espionage operation. American defense and intelligence agencies, a bipartisan coalition of elected officials and several allied nations have concluded TikTok is an insidious weapon the CCP uses to surveil and influence users -- meaning the CCP obtains personal information and then seeks to sway impressionable users with pro-CCP propaganda. A real threat: Huawei hardware and software could take surreptitious control of digital devices, say, air traffic control computers, electrical generation facilities, nuclear reactors. Visceral community fragility -- as in American physical vulnerability. The fragile can disintegrate. Disintegrative warfare. The term appears in chapter 13 of a book called "World-System History: The Social Science of Long-Term Change" (2000). Note to Claudine Gay: I'm a footnote stickler. Follow my example. In a disintegrative war, a "unitary belligerent becomes increasingly fragmented by secessions." In 2010, China's People's Liberation Army published a treatise on disintegration warfare. In a Joint Forces Quarterly article published in April 2014, Dr. Fumio Ota (a retired vice admiral in the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force) wrote: "The idea of (Chinese) disintegration warfare includes politics, economy, culture, psychology, military threats, conspiracy, media propaganda, law, information, and intelligence." Open borders. Deadly drugs. Activist Ivy League agitators with opaque funding. TikTok teenage propaganda. TikTok is a CCP asset. It's the war to disintegrate America. Did San Francisco awake too late? GE Vernova (NYSE: GEV) has filed the following: Following the Spin-Off (from General Electric (NYSE: GE)), the Company is offering participants in the GE Vernova Retirement Savings Plan the opportunity to invest a portion of their plan account balances in up to 12,500,000 shares of GE Vernova common stock in the GE Vernova Stock Fund under the GE Vernova Retirement Savings Plan. This prospectus also relates to an indeterminate number of plan interests to be offered and sold under the GE Vernova Retirement Savings Plan. GE Vernova is currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of GE. Following the Spin-Off, GE Vernova will be a separate public company with common stock listed on The New York Stock Exchange LLC under the symbol GEV. VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Alta Copper Corp. (TSX:ATCU)(OTCQX:ATCUF)(BVL:ATCU) ("Alta Copper" or the "Company") is very pleased to advise that during the 2024 Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada Convention ("PDAC") held in Toronto, the Company was invited to meetings with Peruvian government authorities to discuss the proposed development of its advanced stage 100% owned Caariaco copper-gold project. Within the framework of PDAC 2024, the Minister of Energy and Mines of Peru, Romulo Mucho, conducted an extensive work agenda that included interviews and meetings of great importance for the promotion of mining investments in Peru. The Minister re-affirmed the government's commitment to the minerals industry as a critical driver of the Peruvian economy. The Minister together with the Minister of Economy and Finance, Jose Arista; the Ambassador of Peru, Manuel Talavera; the Vice Minister of Mines, Henry Luna; the General Director of Mining, Jorge Soyo; the Specialized Investment Monitoring Director, Gabriela Garcia; and the General Director of Promotion and Sustainability, Walter Sanchez, met with Joanne Freeze and Giulio Bonifacio which provided the opportunity to update the Minister and his team on the recent substantial progress with the advanced stage Canariaco Norte project and importantly to inform them of the significant additional exploration and development potential with the nearby Canariaco Sur copper gold deposit and Quebrada Verde copper gold porphyry target. The Minister acknowledged the Company's long-standing presence in Peru and our commitment to the responsible development of the Canariaco Project. See links below: Peru promotes investments in mining prospecting and exploration | Noticias | Agencia Peruana de Noticias Andina PDAC 2024: MINEM promotes investments aimed at prospecting and mining exploration in our country - Mineria Hoy (mineriahoy.com) Giulio T. Bonifacio, Executive Chair of Alta Copper, commented further: "We are very pleased with the meetings held with Minister Mucho together with his technical team and other high level government officials to discuss the development strategy for the Canariaco copper project with respect to the recently submitted drill permit and optimized preliminary economic assessment to be published in April that will reflect a project that will reflect an annualized production profile of significance". Additionally, the Company was invited to participate in a private Round Table meeting with several mining companies and Peruvian and Canadian government authorities including the Chairman of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru, Julio Velarde. Alta Copper demonstrated it's commitment for the development of the Canariaco Project, inclusive of its social and economic development benefits to the community. About Alta Copper Alta Copper is focused on the development of its 100% owned Canariaco advanced staged copper project. Canariaco comprises 97 square kilometers of highly prospective land located 150 km northeast of the City of Chiclayo, Peru, which include the CanariacoNorte deposit, Canariaco Sur deposit and Quebrada Verde prospect, all within a 4 km NE-SW trend in northern Peru's prolific mining district. Canariaco is one of the largest copper deposits in the Americas not held by a major. On behalf of the Board of Alta Copper Corp. Giulio T. Bonifacio, Executive Chair and Director For further information please contact: Joanne C. Freeze, President, CEO and Director [email protected] +1 604 512 3359 or Giulio T. Bonifacio, Executive Chair and Director [email protected] +1 604 318 6760 Email: [email protected] Website: www.altacopper.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alta_Copper LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altacopper/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltaCopperCorp Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/altacopper/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AltaCopper SOURCE: Alta Copper Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com VENICE, FL / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Conservative Broadcast Media & Journalism (CBMJ) is pleased to announce that it has received a total of $1.025M during the past three months in private investment transactions from four accredited investors who strongly support Patriot.TV. The transactions were priced separately in a range of $.10 to $.20 per share during the December to February time frame. The company issued restricted common stock as consideration for the investments. The proceeds received from the investments are to be used for capital investment in studio production and technology to deliver the highest quality streaming and viewer experience for the customer base of Patriot.TV. Additionally, the company will use some of the funds to retire aged debt from the balance sheet. "We are very happy to have a growing and dedicated loyal base of accredited investors that have committed to the future of the company with their long-term investment into our business. This capital further allows us to execute our business plan and greatly improve the capital structure of the company. By paying down aged debt with equity at higher prices, the foundation for the successful growth of Patriot.TV is in place" stated CEO Mark Schaftlein. On Friday, March 1, 2024, Patriot.TV unveiled its state-of-the-art website, marking a significant milestone in the evolution of media consumption. In the weeks following, it has experienced rapid growth and continues to add top notch hosts and shows to the lineup. Take a look at www.patriot.tv About Patriot.TV Patriot.TV is a leading media broadcast platform wholly owned by CBMJ dedicated to providing cutting-edge, informative content across television, radio, and online platforms. With a focus on truth, freedom, and empowering narratives, Patriot.TV is at the forefront of shaping the future of media consumption. Visit www.patriot.tv for more information. About CBMJ: (OTC PINK:CBMJ) Conservative Broadcast Media and Journalism is a media and web-based Patriot Company. Forward-Looking Statements: This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, based on current expectations and assumptions concerning future events or future performance of the company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are only predictions and speak only as of the date hereof. In evaluating such statements, prospective investors should review carefully various risks and uncertainties identified in this release and matters disclosed at www.otcmarkets.com. These risks and uncertainties could cause the company's actual results to differ materially. CONTACT: Mark Schaftlein 877-704-6773 www.patriot.tv SOURCE: Conservative Broadcast Media & Journalism, Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Taurus missiles cannot be used without participation of German military; in case of Ukraine this is unacceptable Scholz German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Wednesday that Taurus aircraft cruise missiles are weapons that require German forces to control, so supplies of such missiles to Ukraine are excluded. "From my point of view, this is a very long-range weapon. Given the significance of not losing control over targets, this weapon could not be used without the deployment of German soldiers. I reject that," the Associated Press (AP) said, citing the chancellor in Bundestag. He recalled Germany's contribution to the supply of military aid to Ukraine: in this regard, Germany ranks second after the United States. However, Scholz said the German authorities consider each case of aid supplies on an individual basis. "Prudence is not something that one can qualify as a weakness, as some do, he said. Prudence is something that the citizens of our country are entitled to," the chancellor said. Previously, Scholz had repeatedly refused to supply Taurus missiles to Ukraine, although there were calls within the ruling coalition and among the German opposition to transfer the missiles to Kyiv. Britain and France, in turn, sent Storm Shadow and SCALP missiles to Ukraine. In this regard, Scholz stated that Germany cannot exercise the same control in terms of choosing targets when launching these missiles as the British and French are capable of. On Wednesday, Scholz did not develop this topic, AP said. * Core length; the true thickness is between 80 to 95% of the core length. ** Hole abandoned before reaching target length. Table 2: Results from Rose West Discovery 2024 winter drill program * Core length; the true thickness is between 80 to 95% of the core length. ** Hole abandoned before reaching target length. Quality assurance/quality control Quality assurance and quality control procedures have been implemented to ensure best practices in sampling and analysis of the drill core samples. Standards, duplicate and blanks were regularly inserted into the sample stream. The drill core samples were delivered, in secure tagged bags to the ALS Minerals laboratory facility in Val-d'Or, Quebec. The samples are weighed and identified prior to sample preparation. The samples are crushed to 70% minus 2 mm, then separated and pulverized to 85% passing 75 m. All samples are analyzed using sodium peroxide fusion ME-MS-89L, with full analysis for 52 elements. Value over 25,000 ppm Li were re-assays using Li-ICP-82b and value over 2,500 ppm Ta 2 O 5 were re-assays using Ta-XRF10. Qualified persons Sebastien Perreault, P. Eng., is the qualified persons that have reviewed and approved the technical contents of this news release on behalf of the Corporation. About Critical Elements Lithium Corporation Critical Elements aspires to become a large, responsible supplier of lithium to the flourishing electric vehicle and energy storage system industries. To this end, Critical Elements is advancing the wholly owned, high-purity Rose Lithium-Tantalum project in Quebec, the Corporation's first lithium project to be advanced within a land portfolio of over 1,050 km2. On August 29, 2023, the Corporation announced results of a new Feasibility Study on Rose for the production of spodumene concentrate. The after-tax internal rate of return for the Project is estimated at 65.7%, with an estimated after-tax net present value of US$2.2B at an 8% discount rate. In the Corporation's view, Quebec is strategically well-positioned for US and EU markets and boasts good infrastructure including a low-cost, low-carbon power grid featuring 94% hydroelectricity. The project has received approval from the Federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change on the recommendation of the Joint Assessment Committee, comprised of representatives from the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and the Cree Nation Government, received the Certificate of Authorization pursuant to section 164 of Quebec's Environment Quality Act from the Quebec Minister of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks, and the project mining lease from the Quebec Minister of Natural Resources and Forests under the Quebec Mining Act. For further information, please contact: Jean-Sebastien Lavallee, P. Geo. Chief Executive Officer 819-354-5146 [email protected] www.cecorp.ca Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is described in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary statement concerning forward-looking statements. This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian Securities legislation. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "scheduled", "anticipates", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "scheduled", "targeted", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information contained herein include, without limitation, statements relating to the results and completion of the 2024 exploration program and its related objectives. Forward-looking information is based on assumptions management believes to be reasonable at the time such statements are made. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Although Critical Elements has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from expected results described in forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: final and complete results of the Corporation's 2023-2024 exploration program and effects on the Corporation's stated objectives, as well as those risk factors set out in the Corporation's Management Discussion and Analysis for its most recent quarter ended November 30, 2023 and other disclosure documents available under the Corporation's SEDAR profile. Forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this news release and Critical Elements disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. SOURCE: Critical Elements Lithium Corporation NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth GEA and the Mastercard Foundation announced the start of a sensitization campaign for the groundbreaking Business in a Box (BizBox) program. This initiative aims to empower an additional 250,000 young people in Ghana, expanding on the successful collaboration established through the Young Africa Works Program. The Young Africa Works Program project, from 2020 to 2022, achieved significant milestones by supporting approximately 94,000 young people, more than double its goal, enabling them to establish businesses or secure dignified and fulfilling jobs. Building on this momentum, the BizBox program aims to support 250,000 young people in accessing dignified and fulfilling jobs over the next four years. In Amasaman, Greater Accra Region, Gifty Animwaa Owusu, a GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program participant, shares her story of transformation from a struggling individual to a successful business owner and mentor. "When I had no one to turn to for assistance, the GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program became my source of hope," recalls Gifty Animwaa Owusu. Her participation in the A2E program and the invaluable Start-up Kit support she received after her training have been pivotal in her journey. Gifty is now a thriving business owner, supporting her family and mentoring young people in her community. Through this intervention, Gifty has not only achieved financial stability but has also gained respect and dignity. Her success is a testament to the transformative power of giving opportunities to young women. Reflecting on her journey, Gifty acknowledges the impact of the business management training she received, which enabled her to meet the application criteria and successfully receive support through GEA. Gifty's story is a powerful example of how targeted support and empowerment can lead to meaningful change in individuals and communities. Her journey is a source of hope for aspiring entrepreneurs and a testament to the effectiveness of programs like the GEA/Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works Program in driving positive impact. "The BizBox program aims to enable and empower disadvantaged young people across Ghana, especially young women with first-time business startups, to acquire skills and access to startup kits, markets, finance, and technology to start, build, and grow their businesses. We believe it will improve the well-being and resilience of young entrepreneurs by creating an enabling environment, especially for agriculture and agri-adjacent businesses to thrive and contribute to national development," said Rica Rwigamba, Country Director of the Mastercard Foundation in Ghana. With an investment of GHS 660 million (approximately USD 55 million), BizBox underscores GEA and the Mastercard Foundation's ongoing commitment to young people's development. The program, scheduled to run until April 2027, will provide young entrepreneurs with essential tools, knowledge, and support to start and expand their businesses. It will deliver comprehensive training in life skills, technical expertise, entrepreneurship, and business development, promoting business growth and scalability. A significant focus of the program is empowerment, with more than 70 percent of the target participants being young women and 10 percent Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), reaffirming its commitment to inclusivity and diversity in economic participation. "The BizBox program emerges as a beacon of hope, fostering economic empowerment and laying the foundation for a prosperous future for the youth of Ghana. This is in alignment with the Government of Ghana's vision of ensuring that the youth of Ghana are engaged for the nation's development," said Kosi Yankey-Ayeh, CEO of the Ghana Enterprises Agency. The program is tailored to complement the government's ongoing efforts to address the pervasive youth unemployment challenge. Importantly, this initiative aligns with the government's ambitious goal to generate one million jobs for young people by 2025. The program comprises five components: Youth Skills Development, Access to Market, Access to Start-up Kits, Youth Social Networks and Institutional Strengthening, Policy, and Regulatory Support. Its implementation will involve a thorough process of sensitization, application, selection, assessment, and training focusing on vulnerable young people, past beneficiaries, PWDs, vulnerable women, women-owned/led MSMEs and graduates from agricultural colleges. The BizBox Program is focused on holistic development rather than direct financial assistance, seeking to empower entrepreneurs to build resilient and competitive enterprises. For media enquiries, please contact: Ghana Enterprises Agency Ms. Rejoice Tettey, Communications Manager Mastercard Foundation Felix Baidoo, Country Communications Partner, Ghana About Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) The Ghana Enterprises Agency (GEA) is the apex governmental Agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI) responsible for the promotion and development of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Sector in Ghana. GEA, formerly the National Board for Small Scale Industries (NBSSI) was established by an Act of Parliament (Act 1043) in November 2020. The GEA Act 1043 was assented to in December 2020. The Act mandates GEA to Coordinate, Implement and Monitor the activities of the MSME Sector. The long-term goal of GEA is to support the MSME Sector to maximize its contribution to the country's economic and social development concerning production, income distribution and employment, as well as promote closer participation and integration of women and communities in rural areas into the national economy. GEA provides Business Development Services (BDS) to MSMEs, facilitates access to credit and supports the formalization of the MSME Sector in Ghana in a decentralized manner, mainly through the Business Advisory Centres (BACs) /Business Resource Centres (BRCs). GEA has its Head Office in Accra. It also operates in all the sixteen (16) administrative Regions known as the Regional Offices and 247 District Offices known as Business Advisory Centres (BACs) and Business Resource Centres (BRCs). For more information about GEA, please their website: www.gea.gov.gh About the Mastercard Foundation The Mastercard Foundation is a registered Canadian charity and one of the largest foundations in the world. It works with visionary organizations to advance education and financial inclusion to enable young people in Africa and Indigenous youth in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. Established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company, the Foundation is an independent organization separate from the company, with offices in Toronto, Kigali, Accra, Nairobi, Kampala, Lagos, Dakar, and Addis Ababa. Its policies, operations, and program decisions are determined by the Foundation's Board of Directors and leadership. Learn more about our work in Ghana Originally published by The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth Follow along the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth's journey to advance equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion around the world View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/mastercard-center-inclusive-growth Email: [email protected] SOURCE: The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth View the original press release on accesswire.com TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. (OTCQB: IPCIF)(TSX:IPCI) - ("Intellipharmaceutics" or the "Company"), a pharmaceutical company specializing in the research, development and manufacture of novel and generic controlled-release and targeted-release oral solid dosage drugs, today announces its listing on NEX, a separate board of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV"). The Company has applied to transfer its listing from the TSX to TSXV as previously disclosed. However, as the Company is currently subject to a Cease Trade Order issued by the Ontario Securities Commission for failure to satisfy financial reporting requirements (as previously disclosed on March 6, 2024), the Company will be transferred to NEX. If the Company comes back into good standing with the securities commissions and its continuous disclosure obligations, it can apply for a reactivation of its listing on TSXV. The Company will be voluntarily delisted from the TSX at the close of March 25, 2024 and will be listed on the NEX at the open of March 26, 2024. According to Section 720 of the TSX Company Manual, shareholder approval is not required as an acceptable alternative market will exist for the listed securities. Upon the transfer of its listing to NEX, the trading symbol of the Company's common shares will change from "IPCI" to "IPCI.H". The .H symbol extension differentiates NEX symbols from other symbols on the main stock list of the TSXV. There is no change in the Company's name or CUSIP number, and no consolidation of capital. The Company's common shares will also continue to be listed on the OTCQB Marketplace in the United States under the symbol "IPCIF". The Company also announces that the TSXV has approved a new stock option plan of the Company (the "SOP") that will be subject to shareholder approval at the next annual meeting of shareholders of the Company.The new SOP is a rolling plan (with 10% of shares reserved for issuance), which will replace all existing security based compensation plans of the Company. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. About Intellipharmaceutics Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. is a pharmaceutical company specializing in the research, development and manufacture of novel and generic controlled-release and targeted-release oral solid dosage drugs. The Company's patented Hypermatrix " technology is a multidimensional controlled-release drug delivery platform that can be applied to a wide range of existing and new pharmaceuticals. Intellipharmaceutics has developed several drug delivery systems based on this technology platform, with a pipeline of products (some of which have received FDA approval) in various stages of development. The Company has ANDA and NDA 505(b)(2) drug product candidates in its development pipeline. These include the Company's abuse-deterrent oxycodone hydrochloride extended-release formulation ("Oxycodone ER") based on its proprietary nPODDDS"; novel Point Of Divergence Drug Delivery System (for which an NDA has been filed with the FDA), and Regabatin"; XR (pregabalin extended-release capsules). Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and/or "forward-looking information" under the Securities Act (Ontario) (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). These statements include, without limitation, statements expressed or implied regarding the potential future listing of the Shares on the TSXV, which remains subject to approval by the TSXV, the Company's expectation that it will regain compliance with its continuous disclosure obligations, including with respect to results and timing of the processes related to any of the foregoing. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as "appear", "unlikely", "target", "may", "will", "should", "expects", "plans", "plans to", "anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "predicts", "confident", "prospects", "potential", "continue", "intends", "look forward", "could", "would", "projected", "set to", "seeking" or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology. We made a number of assumptions in the preparation of our forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements, which are subject to a multitude of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, future circumstances or events to differ materially from those stated in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties relating to us and our business include the Company's inability to list its Shares on the TSXV or to regain compliance with continuous disclosure requirements and lifting any applicable cease trade order, and other risk factors described under the "Risk Factors" section of our latest annual information form, our latest Form 20-F, and our latest Form F-1 and Form F-3 registration statements (including any documents forming a part thereof or incorporated by reference therein), as amended, as well as in our reports, public disclosure documents and other filings with the securities commissions and other regulatory bodies in Canada and the U.S., which are available on www.sedarplus.ca and www.sec.gov. The forward-looking statements herein reflect our current views with respect to future events and are based on what we believe are reasonable assumptions as of the date of this document and we disclaim any intention and have no obligation or responsibility, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Trademarks used herein are the property of their respective holders. Unless the context otherwise requires, all references to "we," "us," "our," Intellipharmaceutics," and the "Company" refer to Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. and its subsidiaries. CONTACT INFORMATION Company Contact: Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. Isa Odidi Chief Executive Officer 416.854.9090 [email protected] SOURCE: Intellipharmaceutics International Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Nearly Two-Thirds of the Respondents Expect At Least 80% of Their Portfolios To Be Green-Certified in Next Three Years ASIA PACIFIC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The role of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO*) is rapidly gaining prominence among the Asia Pacific region as investors display increased appetite for sustainable portfolios, according to CBRE's Asia Pacific Real Estate Chief Sustainability Officer Survey. In collaboration with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), CBRE conducted a survey among real estate companies and investment funds in Asia Pacific to understand how they perceive the role of CSO, their Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) strategies and challenges, and prospect for achieving net zero. About half of surveyed asset owners named 2050 as their target to achieve net zero, largely aligning with the targets set by their government. However, many multinational occupiers are aiming to reach net zero by 2030. The discrepancy is primarily because building materials and construction activity are carbon-intensive for asset owners, particularly developers, while service sector tenants are asset-light and mainly focusing on operational emissions. "Asset owners have to be aware of the much more aggressive net zero target among occupiers. Both parties must collaborate and drive a common sustainability agenda," said Ada Choi, Head of Occupier Research, Asia Pacific, for CBRE. "We expect projects that could result in cost and energy savings will be prioritised, while investors are advised to increase the use of green finance." The survey reveals that about half of the CSO roles in Asia Pacific were created within the past three years, with 60% of them as full-time positions. With new regulations requiring sustainability disclosures, the key responsibility of CSOs is to conduct ESG monitoring and reporting, and to implement related projects. CSOs are also responsible for fostering cultural change within the company to achieve sustainability goals. "The path to decarbonization involves significant regulatory change and policy support," said David Fogarty, Head of ESG Consulting Services, Singapore & Southeast Asia, for CBRE. "In view of a complex sustainability landscape, it is crucial for occupiers and investors to develop a strategic blueprint to navigate evolving regulations and achieve progress on decarbonization and net zero goals." To read the full report, click here. * Chief Sustainability Officer, or Head of ESG, is an executive tasked with overseeing ESG / sustainability initiatives. These positions are playing a crucial part in guiding companies towards achieving carbon neutrality and implementing sustainable practices. END Follow us on Twitter: @cbreasia LinkedIn: company/cbre-asia-pacific About the U.S. Green Building Council USGBC is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. USGBC's mission is "to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated, enabling an environmentally and socially responsible, healthy, and prosperous environment that improves the quality of life." USGBC builds on this vision through the development and improvement of the LEED rating system, the LEED professional credentials, robust educational offerings, an international network of local community leaders and USGBC member organizations, the annual Greenbuild International Conference & Expo, the Center for Green Schools and other USGBC initiatives, as well as through advocacy and outreach that encourages and enables green buildings and communities. For more information: USGBC.org. About CBRE Group, Inc. CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE: CBRE), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Dallas, is the world's largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2023 revenue). The company has more than 130,000 employees (including Turner & Townsend employees) serving clients in more than 100 countries. CBRE serves a diverse range of clients with an integrated suite of services, including facilities, transaction and project management; property management; investment management; appraisal and valuation; property leasing; strategic consulting; property sales; mortgage services and development services. Please visit our website at cbre.com International WELL Building Institute The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is a public benefit corporation and the world's leading organization focused on deploying people-first places to advance a global culture of health. IWBI mobilizes its community through the administration of the WELL Building Standard (WELL) and WELL ratings and certifications, management of the WELL AP credential, the pursuit of applicable research, the development of educational resources and advocacy for policies that promote health and well-being everywhere. More information on WELL can be found here. View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from CBRE Group, Inc. on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: CBRE Group, Inc. Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/cbre-group-inc Email: [email protected] SOURCE: CBRE Group, Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com HALIFAX, NS / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Today, MedMira Inc. (MedMira) (TSXV:MIR) announces the receipt of a Canadian patent patent (number 2,949,634) for its new innovative and quantitative test system. This is in addition to the U.S. patent (number 11,353,450) received in 2022. Through this new patent, MedMira is to further diversify its patent portfolio and expand on its Rapid Vertical Flow Technology (RVF) based diagnostic tests. This is a step forward in empowering the Company's strategic vision by offering a rapid multiplexed quantitative diagnostic system from screening to confirmation to monitoring disease progression. The synergies between both patented technologies allow MedMira to continue its corporate aim to provide the market with a highly effective and affordable alternative to the current costly and time-consuming screening and monitoring systems. "All our rapid tests are based on MedMira's patented RVF Technology and provide an immediate quality Yes or No answer(s). Our speed in addition to our unique control line, allow for the fastest and high quality answer(s) at a real Point-of-Care setting. While the use of rapid tests have significantly increased over the last years, rapid tests are the first step by providing qualitative result(s). MedMira's vision is to expand this further by adding a unique value with its MIROQ" system. The Company's RVF Technology together with the MIROQ" technology allows health care providers to receive an immediate diagnosis with both qualitative AND quantitative results." said Hermes Chan, CEO of MedMira Inc. "The synergies of both systems provide the highest quality answers within in minutes and at the most economical costs for health care providers. This combination allows for a truly Point-of-Care situation and enables for immediate treatment of patients. Our future vision has already become reality with MIROQ". MedMira's latest novel diagnostic system allows for accessible and efficient diagnostic tools for quantitative results in minutes. The user-friendly interface combined with automated interpretation allows for an expansion of MedMira's current RVF-based tests and can provide a pathway to significantly increase the technology's multiplexing abilities. The combination of the RVF and Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy* (SERS) technology, creates MedMira's patented novel high quality and cost-effective tool for the next generation - MIROQ". This enables the amplification of the results produced by MedMira's RVF-based rapid tests by creating a unique 3D structure with remarkable reproducibility that is yielded in a linear plot (R2 = 0.98). The new addition to MedMira's patent family creates perfect collaboration to expand its access in both the clinical immunoassay and the Point-of-Care markets, opening new doors into the evolving diagnostic landscape by providing both qualitative and quantitative test results in minutes. The company developed the first prototype system in 2014 and went through extensive verification and validation performed by our academic partners here in NS, Canada. These findings were published in the Journal of Analytical Chemistry in November 2016 and describe the performance and efficiency of this technology to be on par with traditional expensive laboratory testing solutions which are generally limited to high complexity labs. This patented system with the proprietary build-in data capture and analysis software allows for immediate analysis of any positive (reactive) results within 1 min. This is in contrast to the current laboratory systems that may take from a couple of hours and up to a week to process samples. *Surface-enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) is a technique that enhances Raman scattering of molecules embedded on a given surface by several orders of magnitude through the amplification of the electron cloud density around these molecules. Typical SERS signal enhancement factors (EF) are observed between 106 and 1010 times, thus enabling a lower limit of detection and making the tests more sensitive. About MedMira MedMira is a leading developer and manufacturer of Rapid Vertical Flow diagnostics. The Company's tests provide hospitals, labs, clinics and individuals with instant disease diagnosis, such as HIV, Syphilis, Hepatitis, and SARS-CoV-2, in just three easy steps. The Company's tests are sold globally under the REVEAL, REVEALCOVID-19 ,Multiplo and Miriad brands. Based on its patented Rapid Vertical Flow Technology, MedMira's rapid HIV test is the only one in the world to achieve regulatory approvals in Canada, the United States, China and the European Union. MedMira's corporate offices and manufacturing facilities are located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. For more information visit medmira.com . Follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn . This news release contains forwardalooking statements, which involve risk and uncertainties and reflect the Company's current expectation regarding future events, including statements regarding possible regulatory approval, product launch, future growth, and new business opportunities. Actual events could materially differ from those projected herein and depend on a number of factors including, but not limited to, changing market conditions, successful and timely completion of clinical studies, uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process, establishment of corporate alliances and other risks detailed from time to time in the company quarterly filings. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. MedMira Contact Markus Meile Chief Financial Officer MedMira Inc. [email protected] SOURCE: MedMira, Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com BURLINGTON, ON / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / Memex Inc. ("Memex" or the "Company" or the "Issuer") (TSX-V:OEE), a leader in Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) manufacturing productivity software, confirms that the Company including its' auditors, are continuing to work to complete the annual financial statements for Memex's year ended September 30, 2023, including the related management discussion and analysis, and CEO and CFO certifications (collectively, the "Annual Financial Filings"). The Company has revised its expectations and now expects to file its Annual Financial Filings before April 27, 2024. As previously reported, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) issued a Failure-to-file Cease Trade Order (a "FFCTO") in respect of the securities of Memex effective February 2, 2024 for its failure to file its Annual Financial Filings by the filing deadline of January 28, 2024 (the "Filing Deadline"). The delay in filing the Annual Financial Filings was due to the Company's inability to commence audit procedures in a timely manner. The FFCTO issued by the OSC also affected each jurisdiction of Canada that has a statutory reciprocal order provision. Further, as a result of the FFCTO, the TSX Venture Exchange suspended trading in the Company's shares. Until the Annual Financial Filings are filed, the Company intends to continue to issue bi-weekly default status reports. The Company confirms that there is no other material information relating to its affairs that has not been generally disclosed. About Memex Inc.: Established in 1992, Memex grew to be an industry leader in Industry Internet of Things (IIoT) through the development of MERLIN Tempus, an award-winning platform that delivers real-time, tangible increases in manufacturing productivity. Memex is on the leading edge of industry trends in computing power, machine connectivity, industry standards, advanced software technology, and manufacturing domain expertise. Our persistent pursuit of innovative IIoT solutions led to a comprehensive understanding of the challenge's manufacturers face. We made it our mission to, "successfully transform factories of today into factories of the future." As the global leader in Machine to Machine (M2M) connectivity solutions, our hardware and software products create unparalleled visibility at all levels, from "Shop-Floor-to-Top-Floor." The MERLIN Tempus Suite provides effective quantification and management of Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) by revealing hidden capacity using real-time objective data. Further, it offers sustainable benefits that enable world-class OEE such as reducing costs, incorporating strategies for continuous LEAN improvement, and boosting bottom-line financial performance. For more information, please visit: www.MemexOEE.com For investor inquiries please contact: Ed Crymble, Chief Financial Officer 905-635-1540 [email protected] David McPhail, President & CEO 905-635-1540 [email protected] Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. _________________________________ SOURCE: Memex Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Wallis Bank is pleased to announce the opening of a new full-service branch in Sugar Land, Texas, anticipated for the Q3 of 2024. HOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / The new branch will serve the Sugar Land community and its surrounding areas, providing residents and businesses with access to a range of banking solutions. Wallis Bank's expansion into Sugar Land reflects its dedication to supporting local economic growth and meeting the financial needs of the community. Key Features of the New Sugar Land Branch Comprehensive Banking Services The Sugar Land branch will offer a full suite of services, including personal and business banking, lending solutions, and digital banking. State-of-the-Art Facilities Wallis Bank is committed to providing a welcoming banking environment. The new branch will feature private offices, conference rooms, a drive-thru, and an ATM. Community Engagement Wallis Bank is rooted in community values. The Sugar Land branch will engage with the community through financial education programs, sponsorships, and partnerships to contribute to the overall well-being and prosperity of the area. Experienced Team The branch will be staffed with a team of experienced and customer-focused banking professionals dedicated to providing personalized service and building lasting relationships with clients. "This milestone is a testament to the dedication of growth that Wallis Bank has instilled," Aziz Rahim, Sugar Land Area President, proclaims. "My family and I are members of this community, so it is meaningful to me that Wallis Bank gets to give back to the community. I am excited to lead and provide a convenient location to our current customers in Sugar Land and to branch out to new customers and show them what personalized service at Wallis Bank is all about." The opening date and additional details regarding the Sugar Land branch's inauguration ceremony will be announced in the coming weeks. Wallis Bank invites the community to stay tuned for updates. Wallis Bank has only grown since its inception in 1906 and has collected many accolades. The Bank was ranked #1 in the Houston, TX area for SBA lenders and in the top 50 nationally. Wallis Bank is also ranked number five in the ICBA's Best of the Best top-performing community banks in 2023, with over $1 billion in assets. About Wallis Bank Wallis Bank is a full-service community bank dedicated to serving clients on the highest level. The Bank was established in 1906 in Wallis, Texas. Since then, the company underwent expansion with the addition of new locations in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Phoenix. The Bank continues to expand its offering of digital products and services with an enhanced customer experience. Wallis Bank has consistently been named the #1 SBA Lender in the Houston District. Learn more at www.wallisbank.com. Contact Information Harley Hurosky Social Media Specialist [email protected] 713-715-9993 SOURCE: Wallis Bank View the original press release on newswire.com. Insuritys 2024 AI in Insurance Report serves as a critical resource for P&C insurance companies navigating the complexities of AI integration and consumer expectations HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Insurity, the leading provider of cloud software for insurance carriers, brokers, and MGAs, today shared new findings from its 2024 AI in Insurance Report. The comprehensive study offers new insights into American consumers attitudes toward artificial intelligence (AI) in the property and casualty (P&C) insurance sector, revealing a significant shift in perception following direct experience with AI-enabled services. Key findings from the report detail that initial reservations about AI among Americans diminish significantly following firsthand experience with AI-enabled services in routine P&C insurance operations. Approximately 42% of consumers say they are less likely to purchase a policy from an insurance provider that publicly states that it uses AI. However, while this could cause insurers to reconsider their AI strategy, the report identified this sentiment is largely driven by consumers who have not had any experience interacting with AI. In fact, of the consumers who have interacted with AI through their insurance company, 63% said the experience was positive. The findings suggest that the negative sentiment towards AI in insurance is largely driven by a lack of understanding or direct experience with the technology. Insuritys report calls on the insurance industry to proactively address consumer concerns and to highlight successful AI interactions that enhance the policyholder experience, from personalized policy recommendations to efficient claims processing. By doing so, insurers can not only alleviate fears but also showcase the value AI brings to the insurance ecosystem. Policyholder acceptance increases once the efficiencies, accuracy improvements, and customer service enhancements provided by AI are understood and experienced. This report underscores the critical importance of not only investing in AI technology but also in the education and communication resources necessary to earn policyholder buy-in, said Chris Lafond, Chief Executive Officer at Insurity. While initial hesitations toward AI are understandable, our research clearly shows that firsthand experience with AI services can significantly improve perceptions, emphasizing the need for insurers to demonstrate the tangible benefits of AI to their customers. This survey was conducted online in January 2024, and more than 1,000 adult participants were randomly selected across the United States to ensure a representative sample. Respondents were asked a series of 8 questions, ranging from multiple-choice to scale-based, to gauge their opinions on AI in P&C insurance. Data analysis was performed to identify key patterns and insights. To learn more about Insuritys 2024 AI in Insurance Report, please get in touch with [email protected]. About Insurity Insurity is a leading provider of cloud-based software for insurance carriers, brokers, and MGAs. Insurity is trusted by 22 of the top 25 P&C carriers and 7 of the top 10 MGAs in the US and has over 400 cloud-based deployments. Through its best-in-class digital platform, unrivaled industry experience, and the industrys most robust analytics offerings, Insurity is uniquely positioned to deliver exceptional value, empowering customers to focus on their core businesses, optimize their operations, and provide superior policyholder experiences. Insurity is a portfolio company of GI Partners and TA Associates. For more information, visit www.insurity.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313636092/en/ Elizabeth Hutchinson [email protected] Source: Insurity Building End-to-End Security into the Semiconductor Chip Lifecycle WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Amida Technology Solutions, Inc. (Amida), a software services company that solves the most complex challenges in data interoperability, data exchange, data governance, and data security, unveiled today its new Microelectronics Security business division. This new unit, which will be led by Margaret Schmitt, draws on the companys expertise in semiconductors, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence. Its purpose is to deliver a full suite of security solutions that spans the entire semiconductor lifecycle, from inception to system-wide deployment, ensuring unparalleled protection at every stage of development. The security of essential microelectronics faces increased threats, highlighting an ongoing arms race between attackers who target infrastructure vulnerabilities and defenders who protect these critical systems. Responding to the urgent need for security measures to identify and mitigate semiconductor vulnerabilities prior to fabrication, Amida has pioneered a groundbreaking microelectronics security solution, Achilles. Achilles identifies where problems are likely to occur, what they entail, and how to surveil and isolate them. Achilles analysis uses advanced graph transform techniques in early design stages to reveal hidden vulnerabilities that elude conventional detection methods. Achilless novel topological representation illuminates more of the attack surface and suggests where and how to harden the device against cyber threats. Our commitment to innovation and security is at the forefront of this strategic expansion, said Amidas co-founder and CEO Peter L. Levin. The creation of the Microelectronics Security business unit underscores our dedication to advancing cybersecurity measures that keep pace with the rapid advancements and increasing complexities of digital threats. We are excited to be launching a new business unit fully dedicated to developing and commercializing our semiconductor cybersecurity technology, Levin said. By investing in a focused business unit for this technology, we can accelerate innovation, expand our offerings, and get this vital security capability into the hands of more customers in critical sectors like defense, aerospace, healthcare, and energy. Amida pioneered Achilles under the auspices of a Navy Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) grant, leveraging patented innovations and a dedicated R&D team to enhance the security of microelectronics components essential to both national security and safety-critical systems. In March 2023, Amida and leaders from both industry and government co-signed an open letter to the White House CHIPS Implementation Steering Committee, which called for a focus on device security, especially for defense applications. There are increasing standards and regulatory momentum around hardware assurance and security in critical infrastructure, said Schmitt, the newly appointed General Manager for Microelectronics Security. Chip security starts with design. Achilles identifies vulnerabilities by imitating the techniques and processes that bad actors use to manipulate devices. In this way, we can determine what kind of attacks are likely, how they will manifest, how they will impact device operations, and what can be done to prevent them. Amida's unveiling of Achilles comes at a crucial juncture marked by an increasing demand and need for such capabilities, particularly within the Department of Defense. With Amida holding five patents on this groundbreaking technology, Achilles is poised to meet the escalating need for robust microelectronics solutions, safeguarding critical systems from current and emerging threats and vulnerabilities. In a world increasingly reliant on digital infrastructure, microelectronics security is the last bastion of cyber-defense, said Joe Costello, co-founder of Cadence and Amida board director. Hardware is an expansive attack surface and is increasingly susceptible to malicious inclusions and in-field attacks. Unlike software, hardware cannot be easily patched, so it is essential to mitigate them before they happen and isolate them when they do. Achilles protects devices against both (concealed) vulnerabilities and future exploits and will ultimately provide continuous monitoring throughout a devices lifecycle. Achilles seamlessly integrates into both the semiconductor-device development flow and the board-level programmable-device design flow, and it is compatible with all major EDA design tool chains. About Amida Amida is a software and technology services company that solves the most complex challenges in data interoperability, data exchange, data governance, and data security. www.amida.com View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313716995/en/ Anesa Basic [email protected] 1-202-735-1798 Michelle Clancy Fuller, Cayenne Global, LLC [email protected] 1-503-702-4732 Source: Amida Technology Solutions, Inc. BURLINGTON, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Anaergia Inc. (Anaergia or the Company) (TSX: ANRG), a global renewable fuels leader, announces that Marny Investissement SA (Marny) has advised the Company that the final payment of C$28.3 million representing the remainder of the previously announced equity investment of C$40.8 million (the Strategic Investment) will be delayed past its due date of March 15, 2024. Marny expects the foregoing payment to be received by Anaergia on or about March 31, 2024. The first tranche of the Strategic Investment closed on February 2, 2024 with the issuance of 31,250,000 units of the Company (Units) for gross proceeds of C$12.5 million. An additional 70,750,000 Units would be issuable upon closing of the remainder of the Strategic Investment which remains subject to a limited number of customary conditions. Each Unit consists of one subordinate voting share of the Company (each a Subordinate Voting Share) and 1/5 of one Subordinate Voting Share purchase warrant of the Company (each a Warrant). Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one additional Subordinate Voting Share at an exercise price of C$0.80 for a period of three years following closing of the first tranche. Please refer to the Companys news releases dated December 18, 2023, January 2, 2024, January 19, 2024, January 25, 2024, and February 2, 2024 for more information with respect to the Strategic Investment. About Marny Marny is a Luxembourg-based holding company which focuses on investment properties in central and eastern Europe. Marny invests in high-quality projects that utilize advanced technology and materials and through Marnys collaborations with its partners it ensures that its investments are well-managed and yield maximum value. About Anaergia Anaergia was created to eliminate a major source of greenhouse gases (GHGs) by cost effectively turning organic waste into renewable natural gas (RNG), fertilizer and water through the use of proprietary technologies. With a track record of delivering innovative projects, Anaergia is uniquely positioned to provide solutions to todays most pressing resource recovery challenges using a broad portfolio of proven technologies and multiple project delivery methods. Anaergia is one of the worlds only companies with a proprietary portfolio of end-to-end solutions that integrate solid waste processing as well as wastewater treatment with organics recovery, high efficiency anaerobic digestion, RNG production and recovery of fertilizer and water from organic residuals. The combination of these technologies enhances carbon-negative biogas, clean water and natural fertilizer production, utilizes a minimized footprint and lowers waste and wastewater treatment costs and GHG emissions. For further information please see: www.anaergia.com Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, which reflects Anaergias current expectations regarding future events, including but not limited to, statements regarding the closing of the remainder of the Strategic Investment and the release of Units thereunder upon Anaergias receipt of the gross proceeds and the timing thereof. Forward-looking information is based on a number of assumptions, including, but not limited to, the timeliness of Anaergias receipt of the gross proceeds; the ability of the parties to satisfy the conditions required to close the remainder of the Strategic Investment; the Companys ability to meet its financing and liquidity requirements on a continuing basis. The Company is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Companys control. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risk related to any unexpected delay in Anaergias receipt of the gross proceeds; counterparty risk exposure and the risk that one or more of the tranches of the Strategic Investment may not be completed or may not be completed in a timely manner; the risk that any enforcement actions taken by Anaergia and/or the preservation of all other legal rights and remedies available to it may be unsuccessful; and the factors discussed under Risk Factors in the Companys annual information form for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 and under Risks and Uncertainties in the Companys most recent managements discussion and analysis. Actual results could differ materially from those projected herein. Anaergia does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required under applicable securities laws. Additional information on these and other factors that could affect Anaergias operations or financial results are included in Anaergias reports on file with Canadian regulatory authorities. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any state in the United States or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313128176/en/ For media and/or investor relations please contact: [email protected] Source: Anaergia Inc. Pechersky District Court of Kyiv found a MP guilty of violating the requirements for preventing and resolving conflicts of interest, the court ordered the official to pay a fine, reports the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP). "On March 13, 2024, Pechersky District Court of the city of Kyiv, on the basis of materials from the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP), found the MP of Ukraine guilty of violating the statutory requirements for the prevention and resolution of conflicts of interest. In addition, the court ordered him to pay a fine," the NACP said on the Telegram channel. The message does not indicate the name of the MP, it is about Oleksandr Dubinsky. "After the decision enters into legal force, information regarding the MP will be entered into the Unified State Register of Persons who have committed corruption or corruption-related offenses," the NACP said. It is noted that the court decision can be appealed within ten days from the date of its issuance and comes into force upon the expiration of the period for filing an appeal. As reported, on November 8, based on materials from the State Bureau of Investigations, employees of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention handed the current MP of Ukraine Oleksandr Dubinsky a protocol on an administrative offense related to corruption (Part 2 of Article 172-7 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses (Violation of requirements for prevention and resolution of conflicts of interest). Previously, the SBI carried out a pretrial investigation into the fact that an official had committed official forgery in order to create grounds for traveling abroad. In addition, the MP sent parliamentary appeals to the Ministry of Health and the State Bureau of Investigations to satisfy private interests, in particular, to obtain information necessary for his own protection from criminal prosecution. "In August, he sent a parliamentary appeal to the Ministry of Health, in which he demanded to provide information about the progress and results of the consideration of his previous appeal to the Ministry, the official forgery of which is actually the subject of the mentioned pre-trial investigation," the NACP said. Company to demonstrate information fusion in hybrid setting using multiple government ISR and commercial data sources HERNDON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BlackSky Technology Inc. (NYSE: BKSY) won a competitive $24 million Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) ceiling contract to develop and demonstrate moving target engagement services. BlackSkys software-first, AI approach will add depth and scale to commercial space-based moving target detection, tracking and identification at machine speed, said Brian E. OToole, BlackSky CEO. Using the BlackSky Spectra tasking and analytics platform, the company will use its own and third-party data to demonstrate how various AI and machine learning techniques affect tasking, multi-INT collection, automatic tipping-and-cueing, direct downlink and moving target engagement processing timelines within an exercise environment. BlackSky Spectra has been optimized to perform in resource-limited environments and will demonstrate the ability to fuse information in a hybrid setting from multiple government ISR and commercial data sources, said OToole. An initial award of $3.5 million was obligated at the time of the award. About BlackSky BlackSky is a leading provider of real-time geospatial intelligence. BlackSky delivers on-demand, high frequency imagery, monitoring and analytics of the most critical and strategic locations, economic assets, and events in the world. BlackSky designs, owns and operates one of the industrys leading low earth orbit small satellite constellations, optimized to capture imagery cost-efficiently where and when our customers need it. BlackSkys Spectra AI software platform processes data from BlackSkys constellation and from other third-party sensors to develop the critical insights and analytics that our customers require. BlackSky is relied upon by U.S. and international government agencies, commercial businesses, and organizations around the world. BlackSky is headquartered in Herndon, VA, and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange as BKSY. To learn more, visit www.blacksky.com and follow us on X (formerly Twitter). Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to BlackSky. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words believe, project, expect, anticipate, estimate, intend, strategy, future, opportunity, plan, may, should, will, would, will be, will continue, will likely result, and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections, and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this document. If any of these risks materialize or underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect our expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this communication. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause their assessments to change. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date, and we do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. Additional risks and uncertainties are identified and discussed in BlackSkys disclosure materials filed from time to time with the SEC which are available at the SECs website at http://www.sec.gov or on BlackSkys Investor Relations website at https://ir.blacksky.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313745077/en/ Investor Contact Aly Bonilla VP, Investor Relations [email protected] Media Contact Pauly Cabellon Director, External Communications [email protected] Source: BlackSky Technology Inc. Life Science Subclusters are Forming Across all of New York Citys Boroughs and Surrounding Areas, Signifying an Important Strategic Development Within the Citys Burgeoning Life Sciences Landscape The 2024 Study Tour to be Hosted in London NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Builds Bio+, the premier life science membership organization that connects all segments of the life sciences ecosystem across major regional clusters, today announced the release of its New York / London Life Sciences Study Tour research report, titled Evolution of the New York Life Sciences Market. The report traces the evolution and growth of the New York City (NYC) life sciences market over the last 25 years, highlighting the development of key infrastructure and initiatives that have contributed to the city's emergence as a global leader in research and innovation, and offering lessons learned for other cities that aim to become an innovative life science hub. Parallel Strategies with Regional Life Science Subclusters Regional life science subclusters have formed across all of NYCs boroughs, serving as hubs for innovation and collaboration. Similarly, regional subclusters are developing across London, mirroring NYCs trajectory. Because of these parallelsand also given the qualitative similarities between the two cities as international centers of finance and culture with some of the worlds finest academic and research institutionsBuilds Bio+ forged a partnership with stakeholders from the London life sciences community to exchange lessons learned and identify future growth opportunities. This partnership set the stage for a three-day immersive experience that took place in NYC and culminated in the research report. NYC's Life Science Growth Offers Lessons Learned for Global Ecosystems NYC has made tremendous advances in the six years that Builds Bio+ has been bringing the life science ecosystem together to support the growth of this important industry, said Nancy J Kelley, president and chief executive officer of Nancy J Kelley + Associates, a founding member of Builds Bio+. In just 2018, the shortage of affordable commercial laboratory space in the City made it difficult to retain young companies spinning out of the research institutions, and today three million square feet of laboratory space has already been built. This is a great achievement for Builds Bio+, New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), New York State Empire State Development, and the numerous other public-private real estate and life science partnerships that have come together to build this ecosystem. The report provides an overview of each of NYCs life science subclusters, including Mount Sinai and Academic Alley, Long Island City, Kips Bay (Midtown East), Brooklyn, Hudson Square/Downtown, Jersey City and Newark, NJ, Midtown West, West Harlem, and The Bronx. Each of these regions contain state-of-the-art facilities and collaborative environments necessary to foster innovation. The lessons learned for other cities emphasize the need for not only academic excellence, but also an engine for commercialization and growth, including a supportive and flexible infrastructure tailored to a diverse set of technological needs and company sizes, local leadership, and robust workforce development programs. Builds Bio+ Announces Dates for the 2024 Study Tour to be Hosted in London The exchange of ideas that took place throughout the Life Sciences Study Tour provided valuable perspectives on market growth in NYC and highlighted exciting future opportunities for development and collaboration. To hear first-hand the various bold initiatives taken by NYC and the State of NY to support the industry in a challenging market provides helpful guidance for cities such as London, said Ryan Matenchuk, Managing Director, Galileo Labs. We look forward to hosting the 2024 Life Sciences Study Tour in London this April, where we will discuss the evolution of the London UK life sciences market and host site tours of leading European life science facilities across London, Cambridge, and Oxford. We look forward to issuing a similar report focused on the London UK market after this important event. The New York / London Life Sciences Study Tour will continue in London, UK on April 22-25, 2024. For more information, please visit: https://buildsbio.org/london-life-sciences-study-tour-2024/ About Builds Bio+ Builds Bio+ is a membership-driven organization dedicated to educating and connecting life science and real estate professionals, with a focus on enhancing visibility and innovation, and fostering economic growth within major regional clusters. Through curated events, comprehensive research, industry reports, and educational programs, Builds Bio+ serves as a central hub for the life sciences innovation community. Builds Bio+ was co-founded by Nancy J Kelley + Associates, Jaros, Baum & Bolles, Fried Frank, Hunter Roberts Construction Group, and Sabey Data Center Properties. To learn more, visit https://buildsbio.org, and follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313456336/en/ Tracy Lessor, TLOW Communications, LLC [email protected] 617.519.9827 Source: Builds Bio+ The multi-custodial RIA surpasses its goal of $17 billion in assets under advisement to start the year TAMPA, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Concurrent Investment Advisors, LLC (Concurrent), a leading multi-custodial, hybrid registered investment adviser (RIA), continues to meet its growth projections, attracting three new advisors to its platform from Wells Fargo and Raymond James. Ramin Abrams, Sean ONeill, and Glenn Holmes, collectively contribute $365 million in new assets under management to Concurrents $7.5 billion AUM with offices in New York, Florida, and Colorado. Ramin Abrams and Glenn Holmes aligned with Concurrent to position their firms for continued growth while tapping into the platforms multi-custodial offerings, modern technology, and operational support team. Both advisors are launching new offices, with Holmes T7 Legacy focusing on strategic financial planning for corporate executives and business owners in the Southeast and Abrams adopting the Concurrent Advisors brand in New York to offer wealth and investment management, financial planning, and multi-family generational planning. In addition to building their flagship businesses under Concurrents wing, advisors can also join existing Concurrent partner firms. Sean ONeill has joined Legacy Wealth Partners, a Denver-based firm already well established in the Concurrent network. ONeill serves pre-retirees, retirees, and their families. Joining Concurrent will give his clients access to improved services with a fiduciary focus. ONeill was drawn to the ability to maintain his independence, having departed Raymond James Financial Services, and Concurrents track record of successful transitions, wider array of investment solutions, and a collaborative compliance department allowing him to expand his marketing efforts. Working closely with our advisors, we are not just building firms, we are equipping them to evolve with the needs of their clients. Adding Glenn, Rahim, and Sean to our team is a testament to our commitment to elevate the client experience and proactively meet the needs of a new generation of advisors and clients, said Concurrent CEO and co-founder Nate Lenz. I am proud of our team's milestones over the last year and will continue to equip independent advisors with the innovative tools that will propel their practices to the next level. About Concurrent Concurrent is a multi-custodial, hybrid registered investment adviser (RIA) created to give independent advisors all the resources they need to grow their businesses and adapt to the evolving financial needs of their clients. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, Concurrent was established in 2017 by former advisors, business owners and industry leaders to cultivate a national network of independent providers of unbiased, fiduciary advice. Through a partnership with Merchant, Concurrent offers its advisors strategic resources, full operational support, and opportunities to align through shared equity and mutual success. Independence and collaboration are central to Concurrents ethos, as advisors maintain their autonomy and unique value while sharing best practices and best-in-breed technology to grow as entrepreneurs. To learn more about Concurrent, visit www.poweredbyconcurrent.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313539280/en/ Monica Estrada Gregory FCA for Concurrent [email protected] 267-503-4770 Source: Concurrent Investment Advisors, LLC DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Global architecture firm Corgan has been awarded a $30,000 research grant from the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Foundation to study the experiences of teachers with disabilities a diverse community with limited representation in existing research. CorganHugo, the firms research and innovation group, will partner with Corgans education sector on research aimed at uncovering actionable insights to promote inclusive design strategies for schools. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313417604/en/ Global architecture firm Corgan received a grant from the American Society of Interior Designers Foundation to study the experiences of teachers with disabilities. As part of the research, a gerontologic (GERT) suit will be used to simulate various limitations. (Photo: Business Wire) Approximately 1 in 8 teachers identify as having a disability, including learning differences, chronic illnesses, physical disabilities, or visual impairments. For designers without disabilities, it can be difficult to understand the specific challenges educators with disabilities encounter while working in schools primarily designed for children. Corgans research project - Experiencing Evidence to Build Empathy: Improving Spatial Design Through Simulated Experience Using a Gerontological Suit - aims to reduce this empathy gap by observing and simulating the impact of disabilities physical, sensory, temporary, chronic, visible, and invisible on educators experiences in the built environment and evaluating how design can be used to relieve these pain points. Insights will help shape inclusive design in schools. Suiting Up Over eight months, the research team will approach the research in phases: outreach, user experience, simulation, analysis, and design development. Outreach consists of interviews and surveys with teachers with disabilities in order to better understand their daily interactions with the built environment. Further, a research team will use a gerontologic (GERT) suit, which simulates limitations common in aging and conditions like temporary injury, pregnancy, sensory sensitivity, arthritis, and diabetes, in an experiment at a Corgan-designed elementary school in North Texas. By wearing the GERT suit, educators without disabilities will be able to provide feedback and help identify opportunities for targeted design interventions to better support their peers. Insights in Action As an educational resource for designers, Corgan will publish an open-source design guidebook informed by the research insights. The research team will also host an interactive workshop exploring empathetic design solutions in the fall of 2024. Learning from teachers and their unique needs in learning environments lets us make design decisions that are more thoughtful and personalized for all end-users, said Melissa Hoelting, Senior Design Research Lead of CorganHugo. We are grateful for support from the ASID Foundation to allow us to dig into research that will guide us towards scalable design solutions that resonate with teachers' real-life needs. The ASID Foundation grant program recognizes outstanding research projects that will be developed into educational resources to support the interior design practice. In 2023, the Foundation called for research on designing humanizing environments for imperiled people, and activating diversity, equity, and inclusion in design solutions. Explore more Corgan research insights at News & Insights | Corgan. ABOUT CORGAN Corgan is an employee-owned architecture and design firm with 17 locations and nearly 1,000 team members globally. The firm, ranked as the #4 architecture firm by Building Design + Construction, works with clients in a variety of sectors including aviation & mobility, data centers, education, health, mixed-use, multifamily, office, and workplace. Founded in 1938, Corgan has developed a strong reputation for agility in design by anticipating marketplace changes and leading clients to thoughtful, data-driven design solutions. Its research insights and design expertise empower the organization to foresee emerging changes and develop solutions that minimize risk, create flexibility, and maximize longevity. To learn more about Corgan, visit www.corgan.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313417604/en/ Lori OBriant [email protected] (972) 852-1263 Source: Corgan Furnos unique combustion method achieves over 80% thermal efficiency in cement manufacturing, shrinking production footprint dramatically Reduces 70% of fuel emissions from cement production, cutting energy costs in half Combined with materials innovations, eliminates 88% of emissions Opens door to cement production where demand exists, eliminating need for costly transportation of materials MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Furno, a startup dedicated to decarbonizing the cement production industry, today announced the close of an oversubscribed $6.5M seed funding round and introduced its revolutionary, end-to-end cement production unit, the Furno Brick. Cement, the second most used material on the planet after water, currently accounts for 8% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions due to inefficient production processes. With the effects of climate change on the rise, innovation is desperately needed in the industry but nearly impossible to execute as there is currently no affordable way to make cement at smaller scales. Capital requirements for new cement plants approach $1 billion for a single facility. Additionally, emissions regulations are on the rise and the current technology for cement production leaves little economic wiggle room for meeting stringent and evolving environmental rules. Furno addresses the immediate need for change and innovation in the cement sector with the worlds first modular and carbon-neutral cement plant that scales on demand, drastically reducing the barrier to entry and unlocking local or small-scale cement production. At Furno, we have the ability to produce Ordinary Portland cement now, adapt to a range of gas-based fuels and materials innovations as they emerge and meet demand where it exists while still abiding by a shifting regulatory landscape. Our mission is to go the distance by innovating at the heart of cement production and operating as a complement to other technological developments in the cement space, explains Gurinder Nagra, Furno founder and chief executive officer. Our cement far exceeds ASTM standards, a bare-minimum quality threshold. While most companies tout meeting these standards and stop there, we have continued to refine our process and are on target to surpass the even higher commercial requirements set by significantly-sized customers eager for our solution. It is an exciting time in the cement and concrete industry, with dozens of emerging technologies working to decarbonize the space, said Marty Ozinga, chief executive officer of Ozinga Bros Inc, one of Chicagos leading concrete companies. After researching most of them, we believe Furno stands out as one that has the potential to scale most quickly and be most disruptive to traditional cement plants. We are excited to closely monitor their progress and be one of their early adopters. The companys novel kiln and combustion technology allows for efficient cement production using gas-based versus solid fuels, which dramatically reduces CO2 emissions and eliminates nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur oxides (SOx) entirely. Furnos innovative design also allows producers to build cement plants that are compact and cost-efficient, and enables them to add incremental capacity as needed. Roughly 70-80% of the costs involved in constructing a cement plant are from labor and installation alone, with the remaining 20-30% of expenditures going to custom equipment often sourced from international suppliers. The Furno Brick helps mitigate these costs by enabling pre-fabrication and standardization, thus drawing down production, installation and permitting expenses. The Furno Brick operates at greater than 80% thermal efficiency, doubling what standard cement plants are able to achieve. While conventional cement plants require four very large and mechanically-distinct stages to produce cement (preheating, calcining, sintering and cooling), Furnos reactor coupled with its novel combustion technology combines four stages into one compact reactor, dramatically reducing cost and the carbon as well as physical footprint. Furnos oversubscribed round was led by Energy Capital Ventures (ECV) and joined by O'Shaughnessy Ventures, Cantos and Neotribe. Breakthrough Energy participated in earlier, non-dilutive funding of the company. This funding will enable the company to continue to scale its technology, provide more customers with samples to garner feedback and, perhaps most significantly, aid in the development of the Furno Brick. Vic Pascucci, managing general partner and co-founder of Energy Capital Ventures, outlines the impetus behind investing in Furno. As part of our Green Molecules investment thesis, ECV analyzed all of the innovations relevant to the cement and concrete industry. It was immediately clear to us that Furno had the best team, technology, business model and competitive advantages. Furnos game changing mini-kiln innovation enables a level of decarbonization and market adoption that is in a class all of its own. The demand for cement has grown exponentially over the last few decades as global development expands. Furno was developed out of the growing need for innovation and accessibility to entry in the space. Furnos approach is driven by face-to-face interactions with customers to ensure the solution addresses their specific needs and pain points. Compact, modular and capital efficient, Furnos technology makes cement sustainable and accessible for manufacturers everywhere, regardless of size or capital. In short, Furno provides a mini-mill for the cement and concrete industry. About Furno Furno is an earth-first, science-backed startup based in Mountain View, California committed to mitigating climate change through its novel combustion technology. Furnos technology is scalable, cost-efficient and dramatically reduces the carbon footprint associated with traditional cement production. With Furno, customers can develop their own modular, nimble and cost-efficient cement plants that scale on demand at an accessible price point. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312564039/en/ Media Contact: Treble Will Kruisbrink [email protected] Source: Furno Lawsuit Alleges Change Healthcare Failed to Protect Millions of Patients Sensitive Health Information OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- On March 12, 2024, Gibbs Law Group filed a class action lawsuit against Change Healthcare Inc. following a massive data breach impacting the single largest healthcare payment processor in North America. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of consumers, charges Change Healthcare with failing to take reasonable security measures to protect the confidential health and personal information of millions of Americans following what is being seen as the most significant data breach impacting the US healthcare system. Consumers, patients, and healthcare providers who believe they were impacted by the Change Healthcare data breach should contact our legal team for a free case evaluation by calling 510-369-0259 or visiting our website: Change Healthcare Class Action Lawsuit. Case Background Change Healthcare is the largest healthcare payment processor in North America, according to the American Hospital Association (AHA), with 15 billion transactions processed each year that touch 1 in every 3 patient records. On February 21, 2024, a data breach at Change Healthcare resulted in hackers accessing confidential health and personal information of millions of consumers. Widespread Impact The impact of the data breach and resulting decision to disable critical healthcare processing systems has crippled the healthcare industry, impacting patients, doctors, pharmacies, and hospitals throughout the United States. Some patients have been unable to access medicine they critically need or have been forced to pay for expensive medications out of pocket. Healthcare providers have also been harmed from the cyberattack and have reported being unable to verify insurance for medical procedures and unable to receive reimbursement for medical claims. Its unknown how long Change Healthcares systems will be down and according to one estimate, the security incident is costing medical providers over $100 million a day, raising fears that some medical providers may have problems staying afloat over the next two months and others may shut down. Previous Concerns and Warnings In 2021, the DOJ and AHA previously raised concerns about UnitedHealth Groups acquisition of Change Healthcare and the access to significant amounts of health data. The FBI has continuously issued warnings, including as early as 2014, that hackers specifically target the healthcare industry. Change Healthcare recently confirmed that ransomware group ALPHV, or Blackcat, a group known for healthcare company ransomware attacks, was responsible for the breach, according to the Associated Press. Groups like Blackcat typically first scramble an organizations data with file-encrypting malware and then steal a copy for themselves that they threaten to publish if a ransom is not paid. In the case of Change Healthcare, affiliates with Blackcat claim they still have the stolen data although a $22 million ransom has already been allegedly paid. "There is no excuse for companies this large and profitable to allow something so devastating to happen, said Rosemary Rivas, a lead data breach attorney with Gibbs Law Group. Millions of Americans had no choice but to trust Change Healthcare and UnitedHealth with their personal health information, and it should have been ensuring reasonable security. About Gibbs Law Group Gibbs Law Group is a nationwide leader in class action lawsuits seeking to holding companies accountable for large-scale data breaches. It has prosecuted some of the largest privacy cases throughout the country, and the firms attorneys have received numerous awards for their privacy and data breach work including Cybersecurity & Privacy MVP, Top Cybersecurity and Privacy Attorneys Under 40, and Titans of the Plaintiffs Bar. The firm achieved a historic $1.5 billion settlement from Equifax in 2019, on behalf of 147 million consumers whose social security numbers and other private data were exposed in a breach. Described by the court as the largest and most comprehensive recovery in a data breach in U.S. history by several orders of magnitude, the settlement also required Equifax to spend over $1 billion in data security technology and to make comprehensive security reforms. Previously, the firm negotiated a $115 million settlement in the Anthem data breach, the largest data breach settlement at the time, after approximately 80 million personal records were compromised in a massive data breach of the health insurance giant. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312905779/en/ CATHERINE CONROY PHONE: 510.350.9705 EMAIL: [email protected] Source: Gibbs Law Group NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- HSBC announced today the appointment of Andrew Fullam as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the US and Americas. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313633425/en/ Andrew Fullam, HSBC Chief Financial Officer for the US and Americas (Photo: Business Wire) In this role, he will be responsible for the regions financial operations, including accounting, regulatory reporting, stress testing and capital management. Fullam rejoins HSBC from Wells Fargo where he served as Head of Enterprise Financial Planning & Analysis since the beginning of 2023. Based in New York, Fullam will report to Michael Roberts, CEO, US and Americas, and Kavita Mahtani, CFO, HBEU and Western Markets. As we navigate the dynamic landscape of the financial industry, Andrews wealth of experience and deep expertise in corporate finance will be instrumental in driving sustainable growth across our businesses in the US and Americas, said Roberts. His understanding of HSBC combined with his existing relationships built over 17 years across the region will enable him to make an immediate impact when he steps into the role. Previously Fullam spent nearly two decades at HSBC in domestic and international positions in New York, London and Dubai. His extensive tenure included leadership roles in strategic planning, stress testing, and US transformation, as well as regional CFO for Commercial Banking and Global Banking and Markets. Notably, he served as Interim CFO for the Americas in 2019. Fullam holds a masters of business administration from Columbia University and a bachelors of science from Washington and Lee University. About HSBC HSBC Holdings plc HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 62 countries and territories. With assets of US$3,039bn at 31 December 2023, HSBC is one of the worlds largest banking and financial services organisations. HSBC Bank USA, National Association (HSBC Bank USA, N.A.) serves customers through Wealth and Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, Private Banking, Global Banking, and Markets and Securities Services. Deposit products are offered by HSBC Bank USA, N.A., Member FDIC. It operates Wealth Centers in: California; Washington, D.C.; Florida; New Jersey; New York; Virginia; and Washington. HSBC Bank USA, N.A. is the principal subsidiary of HSBC USA Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC North America Holdings Inc. For more information, visit: HSBC in the USA View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313633425/en/ Media enquiries to: Maya Dillon Head of Communications, US [email protected] Source: HSBC ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- On behalf of its investors, Hunt Capital Partners (HCP) has announced the ownership transfer of its Limited Partner interests in Ashford Parkside Senior Residences (Ashford Parkside) to a non-profit affiliate of the Housing Authority of DeKalb County. Located in Atlanta, Georgia, Ashford Parkside is a midrise mixed-income senior housing community that has provided a secure and reliable living environment for senior households since 2007. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313740474/en/ Ashford Parkside, a 151-unit Senior Community, in Atlanta Georgia. Photo Credits: Hunt Capital Partners Following the end of 15-year recapture period in 2022, a collaborative effort ensued between the nonprofit and HCP to reach a mutually beneficial outcome regarding the property's future. This resulted in the assignment of the Investor Limited Partner, State Credit Investor Limited Partner, and Special Limited Partner interests to the housing authority affiliate. The strategic decision provides the Housing Authority of DeKalb County greater capital flexibility surrounding all aspects of property operations and repair projects as it shapes its long-term housing plan. We are pleased to transfer ownership of Ashford Parkside to an affiliate of the Housing Authority of DeKalb County, said Hunt Capital Partners President Jeff Weiss. This transfer enables the Housing Authority to streamline crucial decision-making processes and better serve the community by aligning the property with future housing strategies. Ashford Parkside offers a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartment homes. Among the 151 homes, 134 are dedicated to seniors with incomes ranging from 30% and 60% of the Area Median Income. Additionally, two of the homes are reserved for property management while the remainder are market-rate. The seamless manner in which we were able to execute this transfer was certainly no surprise, as Hunt Capital Partners has been an exceptional partner to work with throughout this relationship, said Housing Authority of DeKalb County President and CEO Pete Walker. The transfer of ownership of Ashford Parkside is a testament to Hunt Capital Partners and the Housing Authority of DeKalb Countys commitment to provide quality housing choices to meet the needs of Atlantas senior community. Environmental Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) Investing Hunt Capital Partners recognizes that its institutional investors are seeking to increase the social value of their investments to help further their ESG initiatives. Investment in affordable housing improves the living conditions of its residents. It helps remove obstacles that impede creation of a healthy, safe, and stable home environment for low-income families and seniors' families spend less on housing-related expenses, they have more resources for other essentials such as food and clothing, extracurricular activities, and educational programs. One of the most significant benefits of providing quality affordable housing is an increase in an individuals physical and mental health. Hunt Capital Partners affordable housing investments create a lasting effect on the people and communities they serve for generations to come. About Hunt Capital Partners Hunt Capital Partners (HCP) is the tax credit syndication division of Hunt Companies, Inc. (Hunt). HCP specializes in the sponsorship of Federal and State Low-Income Housing, Historic, and Solar Tax Credit Investments funds. Since its inception in 2010, HCP has raised over $3.3 billion in tax credit equity in over 48 proprietary and multi-investor funds. HCP manages almost 760 project partnerships representing over 75,000 homes in 48 states and territories. Founded in 1947, Hunt is a privately held company that invests in businesses focused in the real estate and infrastructure markets. The activities of Hunts affiliates and investors include investment management, asset management, property management, development, construction, consulting and advisory. For more information on HCP, please visit www.huntcapitalpartners.com, or for Hunt, please visit www.huntcompanies.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313740474/en/ Carolyn Baker Senior Vice President Hunt Companies, Inc. [email protected] Source: Hunt Capital Partners Transaction would take I Squareds stake to 100% and will support Rubis Terminal in its continued growth and diversification, notably into energy transition opportunities. PARIS & LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- I Squared Capital, a leading independent global infrastructure investment manager, today announced it had entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire the remaining 55% stake in Rubis Terminal that it does not already own from Rubis SCA, a French energy group. If completed, the transaction would bring I Squareds ownership of Rubis Terminal to 100%, reinforcing its commitment to the company. The equity value of the acquired stake is 375 million. Commenting on the acquisition, Mohamed El Gazzar, Senior Partner, I Squared Capital said: With facilities at the heart of some of the most important trading hubs in Europe, Rubis Terminal plays a critical role in supporting the energy transition and ensuring security of supply. This transaction underscores I Squareds confidence in Rubis Terminals transition strategy and our commitment to its continued growth. Rubis Terminal is among the leading players in Europe in the bulk liquid and gas storage sector with 4 million cubic meters of storage capacity across France, Spain and the Northern European hubs of Antwerp and Rotterdam. I Squared initially invested in Rubis Terminal in January 2020, purchasing 45% of the equity stake held by Rubis to implement a strategy of diversification and geographic expansion, which has created significant value for the company. Over the last four years, and with the support of I Squared, Rubis Terminal has successfully acquired and integrated TEPSA, a leading storage provider to the chemical and biofuel sectors in Spain, disposed of an oil-weighted terminal in Turkey, invested nearly 150 million into the expansion of primarily chemical and biofuel capacities across all geographies, and put in place a highly attractive infrastructure financing package. As a result of such initiatives, more than 70% of Rubis Terminals revenues today are derived from sustainable products and the company has a robust pipeline of projects to further diversify its product mix. Looking ahead, Rubis Terminal is well-positioned to play a key role in the energy transition with the ambition to serve as the go-to logistics provider to new energy developers. Closing Conditions This contemplated transaction remains subject to the information and consultation process of the relevant employee representative bodies in accordance with applicable laws, as well as customary regulatory approvals including antitrust authorities and foreign investment committees. Closing is expected by mid-year 2024. About I Squared Capital I Squared is a leading independent global infrastructure investment manager with over $38 billion in assets under management focused on investing in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Headquartered in Miami, the firm has more than 260 professionals across its offices in London, New Delhi, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Sydney and Taipei. I Squared Capital has invested in a diverse portfolio of 82 companies with over 66,000 employees in 71 countries across the utilities, energy, digital infrastructure, transport, environmental infrastructure, and social infrastructure sectors providing essential services to millions of people around the world. You can find out more by visiting: www.isquaredcapital.com I Squared in Europe I Squared has been investing in Europe out of London since 2013 and has owned and operated 14 European infrastructure companies in 26 countries. Its portfolio spans high quality, resilient infrastructure assets in the energy, waste, transportation and logistics, and telecoms industries. Disclaimer No discussion with respect to specific companies should be considered a recommendation to purchase or sell any particular investment. The companies discussed do not represent all past investments. It should not be assumed that any of the investments discussed were or will be profitable, or that recommendations or decisions made in the future will be profitable. Past performance is not indicative of future results, and there can be no assurance that any investment will achieve similar returns. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312759482/en/ I Squared Brunswick Group [email protected] UK: Fiona Micallef-Eynaud / Peter Hesse +44 207 404 5959 France: Aude Lepreux +33 (0)1 53 96 83 83 Source: I Squared Capital Market leaders join forces to create expanded network with extensive service offerings for preserving and maintaining communities nationwide LEWISVILLE, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MCS (or the Company), the national property services company founded in 1986, announced it has acquired property preservation company Five Brothers Asset Management Solutions (Five Brothers), bringing two of the countrys leading property preservation and maintenance services companies together. MCSs acquisition of Five Brothers creates a national property preservation and services market leader that combines complimentary business offerings to serve an extensive network of clients in the mortgage services and single-family rental sectors. Five Brothers will be integrated within MCS as the combined entity will offer superior property preservation, maintenance and renovation services throughout the country. MCS has provided the highest standard of property preservation and related services for nearly 40 years, and the addition of Five Brothers elevates our capabilities and expands our resources even further, said Craig Torrance, Chief Executive Officer of MCS. With a 50-plus year history of delivering property preservation services, Five Brothers brings its own extensive track record of delivering outstanding service, solutions and technology that compliments the MCS services platform. Were excited to bring together two strong company cultures centered around shared values and exceptional client servicing, along with a united commitment towards maintaining and beautifying neighborhoods across the country. Headquartered in Warren, MI, Five Brothers has offered a variety of regulatory-compliant default, rental and REO residential and commercial property preservation services for over five decades, including services for the reverse mortgage industry which will be a new market for MCS. The family-owned company has built a nationwide network of field professionals delivering services designed to maximize asset value and returns for owners, while leveraging technology to ensure compliant and efficient service delivery. Nickalene Badalamenti-Kalas, President and CEO of Five Brothers, is very excited for Five Brothers to be joining forces with MCS to continue providing necessary and valuable nationwide field services, advanced technologies and unrivaled REVERSE/Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) expertise to its clients. We are bringing together two purpose-driven organizations with common goals and synergies that will continue delivering superior value to clients, while improving communities across the country, she noted. Five Brothers is proud to join forces with the talented group of professionals within the MCS organization as we are well aligned in our business philosophy and culture. Our clients, field service partners and internal teams will greatly benefit from our collective experience and shared resources to provide reliably superior service. MCS delivers its suite of property preservation and related services to clients through a hybrid service model featuring 25 self-performing markets, 30,000+ service partners and an industry-leading technology platform. The Five Brothers service provider network and technology solution, FiveOnline, will be integrated with MCS, while Five Brothers clients will benefit from MCSs local, boots-on-the-ground capabilities in strategic markets. We look forward to integrating the Five Brothers team of property preservation experts as we deliver the same outstanding customer experience their clients have enjoyed for decades, added Chad Mosley, President, Mortgage Services at MCS. The immediate focus of our combined teams is ensuring continuity for those clients by leveraging existing technology and providing ongoing operational support. About MCS MCS is an award-winning leading property services provider working across Commercial Properties, Single-Family Rentals, and the Property Preservation industry. For over 35 years, MCS has been committed to responsive care, industry-leading service standards, leveraging technology, and end-to-end transparency to protect, preserve and serve communities across the country. Some of the largest and most respected mortgage servicers, real estate owners and operators, and corporations trust MCS to perform property inspections, preservation, maintenance, renovations, and other property-related services. Learn how MCS is Making Communities Shine at MCS360.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313461068/en/ Great Ink Communications 212.741.2977 [email protected] Source: MCS The project TravelBook.Cities, is a unique patriotic series of stories about Ukrainian cities. The project was launched with a cartoon about Kharkiv, narrated by Oleh Mykhailiuta, who tells the audience about the most interesting little-known facts from the city's history. The TravelBook is currently the only project that is being implemented simultaneously in two formats: cartoons that will be available on the official YouTube channel of the community TravelBook.Ukraine, and books that will be published this month by The Old Lion Publishing House. The published books will tell about frontline cities such as Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, and Kyiv. The authors of the texts are well-known Ukrainians, including Irena Karpa and Serhiy Zhadan. Ukrainians are becoming more and more interested in their roots and the history of their homeland. The catalyst for this interest was to some extent the full-scale invasion. In the TravelBook.Cities, we want to show the palette of uniqueness and peculiarities of each city, because they all demonstrated incredible resilience and patriotism, said Iryna Taranenko, founder of the Green Penguin creative agency. The books and cartoons will easily and fascinatingly tell the story of the authenticity and exclusivity of the indomitable Ukrainian cities, and the unique facts, which will be interesting for both children and adults. The first animated episode is dedicated to the heroic city of Kharkiv, which not only withstood the most difficult months of the invasion, but has also been under constant shelling by the occupiers for almost two years. Among other things, viewers will learn the origin of the city's name, how Kharkiv became a "city of students" and why it is called a "metropolis of contrasts". The next five animated films of the project, dedicated to Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Chernihiv, and Kyiv, will premiere in March and April. In each of the cities, there will also be offline presentations of the printed editions of the TravelBook.Cities. Russia's war has shown that Ukraine's spirit is unbreakable, and its unique cultural heritage will endure against all odds. USAID is proud to support the TravelBook.Cities project as it is a new way to tell the story of Ukraine's extraordinary cities: extraordinary not only because of their resilience, but also because of their unique culture and history, said Jim Hope, USAID Mission Director in Ukraine. The project TravelBook.Cities project was created with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Ukraine Confidence Building Initiative (UCBI). Among the project's friends and partners are Ukrzaliznytsia, 1+1 media, Kyivstar TV, VIVA magazine, and famous Ukrainians who support their hometowns. You can join the community of supporters by subscribing to the project's social media pages: Facebook: facebook.com/read.and.travel Instagram: instagram.com/read.and.travel.ukraine TikTok: @booksandcartoonsua BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Prime Source Foods, a center-of-the-plate distributor based in Londonderry, NH, announced today that it joined Navis Food Partners, a partnership of independent foodservice distributors in the Northeast. Prime Source Foods is a large independently owned, center-of-the-plate food distributor in New England and eastern New York. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313880150/en/ The acquisition of Prime Source Foods strengthens Navis Food Partners presence in the protein category as well as its geographic service footprint in New England. Together with City Line Distributors, Navis Food Partners now covers northern Maine to upstate New York and operates out of four facilities. We are elated to partner with Prime Source, said Navis Food Partners CEO Robert Berkowitz. Prime Source shares our vision of becoming a regional superpower in foodservice through a laser focus on servicing our customer and creating opportunities for our associates. Prime Source Foods CEO, Bill Conrad noted we believe that this partnership is completely aligned with our companys growth goals. Our focus has been on building the company into a major force in New England and upstate New York. To get there, we recognized that we need additional capital and expertise, and Navis Food Partners is the right fit. Todays announcement of our new partnership with Prime Source is very good news for the independent foodservice operator in the Northeast, said Navis Food Partners Executive Chairman Sean Griffin. In combining the core strengths of City Line Distributors with the protein category dominance of Prime Source, we are building a network that will appeal to our customers who look to us for service, value and flexibility. Additional information about Prime Source Foods is available at: https://www.primesourcefoods.biz. Navis Food Partners invites inquiries from interested Northeast-based independent foodservice distributors who may wish to explore joining our mission of creating this dynamic and customer-centric enterprise. For more information about Navis Food Partners, please contact Robert Berkowitz at [email protected] or Sean Griffin at [email protected]. About Navis Food Partners Navis Food Partners is the largest, independent foodservice distribution platform based in New England. The company aims to deliver exceptional service and value to restaurant operators and food establishments throughout the Northeast. Navis Food Partners strategy is centered around acquiring complementary companies with unique capabilities, expanding the platform geographically and across categories. Navis Food Partners members include City Line Distributors and Prime Source Foods. For more information, please visit www.navisfoodpartners.com. About Frontenac Frontenac is a Chicago-based private equity firm. The firm focuses on investing in lower middle market buyout transactions in the consumer, industrial, and services industries. Frontenac works in partnership with established operating leaders, through an executive-centric approach called CEO1ST, which seeks to identify, acquire, and build market-leading companies through transformational acquisitions and operational excellence. Over the last 50+ years, Frontenac has built a franchise working with over 300 owners of mid-sized businesses as they address complex transition issues of liquidity, management enhancement, and growth planning. For more information, please visit www.frontenac.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313880150/en/ Robert Berkowitz [email protected] Sean Griffin [email protected] Source: Frontenac CINCINNATI & MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- ProAmpac, a global leader in flexible packaging and material science, and Gelpac, a premier producer of multiwall paper and poly-woven packaging products, today announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which ProAmpac will acquire Gelpac from an investor group led by NAMAKOR Holdings (NAMAKOR), including Groupe W Investissements (W Investments) and CDPQ. The strategic acquisition of Gelpacs production capabilities and high-performance paper and poly products will offer increased capacity and broaden ProAmpacs product portfolio for customers across the United States and Canada. Combining Gelpac and ProAmpac will allow the company to better serve customers in the high-growth food and beverage, agriculture, industrial and pharmaceutical end markets. Gelpac shares ProAmpacs commitment to serve customers across the U.S. and Canada with high-performance, sustainability-focused flexible packaging solutions, said Greg Tucker, Founder, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ProAmpac. Gelpacs talented management team has a 20-year track record of working together to build this strong business, and I am delighted to welcome them to the ProAmpac family. ProAmpac is the ideal partner for Gelpacs continued growth and innovation, said Alain Robillard, President and CEO of Gelpac. ProAmpacs platform and capabilities will provide significant benefit to our customers and key partners as we continue to offer exemplary packaging solutions in the market. On behalf of the management team and employees of Gelpac, we are thrilled to pursue our next stage of growth with ProAmpac as our new partner. Founded in 1956 and operating six facilities in the United States and Canada, Gelpac serves a growing and diversified customer base with a broad portfolio of multiwall paper bag and polyethylene packaging solutions. The company has built a stellar reputation for performance, a flexible business model with the ability to serve short- and long-run customers, turnkey capabilities and a deep commitment to innovation and sustainability. Gelpac will maintain its operational presence and head office in Quebec post-closing. ProAmpac leverages its fiber and film-based materials science expertise to deliver greener flexible packaging products. Catering to industries such as food, pet care, healthcare, e-commerce, retail and industrial goods, ProAmpac operates 46 sites globally, with nearly 6,000 employees supplying more than 5,000 customers in 90 countries. The company is jointly owned by Pritzker Private Capital, management and other co-investors. Gelpac is a complementary addition to ProAmpacs growing platform across Canada and the United States, said Kaitlyn Desai, Principal at Pritzker Private Capital. Both businesses have built strong reputations as customer-focused innovators in sustainable, flexible packaging solutions. Stephane Huot, President and COO of NAMAKOR, added, We are proud of the accomplishments and growth Gelpac achieved during our ownership and look forward to their continued success under ProAmpac and PPCs stewardship in the years to come. We believe ProAmpac is a great strategic partner for an exceptional business in Gelpac, and we are grateful to have helped bring Gelpac to this point. Maxime St-Laurent, Managing Partner at W Investments, added, We valued our years of partnership with Gelpac and look forward to its further achievements under new ownership. Kim Thomassin, Executive Vice-President and Head of Quebec at CDPQ, commented, Since becoming a shareholder in 2017, CDPQ has generated value and growth within Gelpac through a series of acquisitions, primarily in the United States. Today, following a rigorous and exhaustive process that keeps the head office, facilities and jobs in Quebec, the company will be able to continue developing alongside a partner that is already firmly established here, which will foster its expansion. The transaction is subject to customary approvals and closing conditions and is expected to close in the coming weeks. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. ProAmpac was represented by Kirkland & Ellis L.L.P and McMillan L.L.P. Gelpac was represented by Fasken Martineau DuMoulin L.L.P and Bradley L.L.P and Mesirow served as the exclusive sell-side advisor to Gelpac. About ProAmpac ProAmpac is a leading global flexible packaging company with a comprehensive product offering. We provide creative packaging solutions, industry-leading customer service and award-winning innovation to a diverse global marketplace. ProAmpacs approach to sustainability ProActive Sustainability -- provides innovative sustainable flexible packaging products to help our customers achieve their sustainability goals. We are guided in our work by five core values that are the basis for our success: Integrity, Intensity, Innovation, Involvement, and Impact. Cincinnati-based ProAmpac is owned by Pritzker Private Capital along with management and co-investors. For more information, visit ProAmpac.com or contact [email protected]. About Gelpac Gelpac has been a leading supplier of high-performance packaging solutions to the North American agrifood, pharmaceutical, chemical and construction industries for over 60 years. Its multiwall paper bags and various polyethylene packaging products are designed to meet the exact specifications of each client and are manufactured on state-of-the-art production lines by seasoned teams that share a common passion, that of a job well done. For more information, visit Gelpac.com. About Pritzker Private Capital Pritzker Private Capital partners with middle-market companies based in North America with leading positions in the manufactured products and services sectors. The firms differentiated, long-duration capital base allows for efficient decision-making, broad flexibility with transaction structure and investment horizon, and alignment with all stakeholders. Pritzker Private Capital builds businesses for the long term and is an ideal partner for entrepreneur- and family-owned companies. Pritzker Private Capital is a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). For more information, visit PPCPartners.com. About Namakor Holdings Namakor Holdings is a private equity firm with a focus on lower middle-market manufacturing companies in North America with an emphasis on Quebec, Canada. With 70+ years of shared experience of the Partners, Namakor sources its investments from tertiary markets with distinct local dynamics including labor unions, French-speaking provinces, and long-term family ownership. For more information, visit namakorholdings.com. About W Investments At W Investments, what sets us apart is our unique approach to private equity. Our investor base is predominantly comprised of accomplished entrepreneurs, bringing a wealth of practical experience and strategic insights to our partnerships. Our commitment is more than financial. Our founders were once operators themselves, providing us with invaluable knowledge of the challenges and opportunities that businesses face. We believe in allowing existing management teams to retain control and make critical decisions while benefiting from our support, guidance and expertise. Our approach is underpinned by patient capital, allowing companies the time needed to achieve their full potential. https://winvestments.ca/ About CDPQ At CDPQ, we invest constructively to generate sustainable returns over the long term. As a global investment group managing funds for public pension and insurance plans, we work alongside our partners to build enterprises that drive performance and progress. We are active in the major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. As at December 31, 2023, CDPQs net assets totalled CAD 434 billion. For more information, visit cdpq.com. CDPQ is a registered trademark owned by Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec and licensed for use by its subsidiaries. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313649855/en/ Media Contacts: H/Advisors Abernathy Dan Scorpio / Lauren Hilliker (312) 640-3111 / (212) 371-5999 [email protected] / [email protected] Namakor Holdings: Audrey Chianara (514) 207-2624 [email protected] For French speaking media: ProAmpac Kristy Paulin [email protected] Source: ProAmpac HIV/AIDS advocates call out CEO Daniel ODay and drug maker Gilead at back-to-back Miami investment conferences Wednesday, March 13 @ 11 am: Barclays Annual Global Health Conference, Loews Miami Beach Hotel MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- HIV/AIDS advocates from AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) will continue their campaign of protests targeting Gilead Sciences over the companys ongoing efforts to rack up exorbitant profits while restricting access to its lifesaving medications. Protesters will gather Wednesday in front of the Loews Miami Beach Hotel where executives from Gilead will be presenting at the Barclays Annual Global Health Conference. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312694416/en/ The group hosted a similar protest rally targeting Gilead at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach Hotel Tuesday while company executives presented during the Leerink Partners Biopharma Conference. HIV/AIDS activists are also specifically targeting Gilead CEO Daniel ODay over his February appointment as board chair for PhRMA (Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America), the cutthroat trade group representing companies in the pharmaceutical industry in the United States. These back-to-back Miami protests are part of an escalating AHF effort to draw attention to Gileads quiet campaign to undermine safety net providers and illegally restrict access to lifesaving HIV and Hepatitis C treatments, said Michael Weinstein, AHF president and cofounder. By highlighting the greed and hypocrisy of Gilead and CEO Daniel ODay, we hope to force some measure of accountability for both in the public eye. The protests are taking place as Gilead faces legal action for intentionally keeping its safer HIV medication off the market in order to maximize its profits. WHAT: Greedy Gilead protest WHEN: Wednesday, March 13, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. ET WHERE: Loews Miami Beach Hotel (Barclays Annual Global Healthcare Conference) 1601 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139 Since 2021, AHF has been taking on Gilead and CEO Daniel ODay, holding more than two dozen protests in multiple cities, including Washington, D.C., Miami, Boston, and Foster City, CA at Gileads corporate headquarters. AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the worlds largest HIV/AIDS healthcare organization, provides cutting-edge medicine and advocacy to more than 1.9 million individuals across 45 countries, including the U.S. and in Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific Region, and Eastern Europe. To learn more about AHF, visit us online at AIDShealth.org, find us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, and subscribe to our AHFter Hours podcast. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240312694416/en/ John Farina, AHF Associate Director of Advocacy (216) 832-7106 [email protected] Source: AIDS Healthcare Foundation Elevate your space this year with sophistication and a touch of the avant-garde ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Drawing on the expertise of a dedicated design team that serves the most trusted brands in homebuilding, PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM), the nation's third-largest homebuilder, is presenting prospective buyers with its unique perspective on national design and color trends for 2024. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313005537/en/ Skyline (Photo: PulteGroup) A new year means a new chance to create a home where you and your family can live out your dreams, said Angela Nuessle, Vice President of Interior Design at PulteGroup. From the growing popularity of mixed-era styling to pops of vibrant colors coupled with natural textured elements, the PulteGroup design team has the pulse of the latest national trends. Through our design centers, industry experts and interactive design tools, we can guide you through an easy step-by-step process to meet your unique needs and stay a step ahead of whats hot in home design and decor. 2024 Design and Color Trends Home design is both an art and a science. Through precision and experimentation, you can achieve a healthy and aesthetically pleasing space that sets the tone for how you and your visitors feel in your new home. With an emphasis on casual luxury and curated styling, paired with natural elements and warm undertones, PulteGroups Interior Design Team recommends some of the most compelling design possibilities for the year ahead. Top Design Trends Authentic Materials: Clay, Stone, Wood Natures neutrals are having a moment, as homeowners celebrate the innate beauty of earthy elements. A mix and match of these materials creates an understated yet elegant vibe that can be applied to any room. Natures neutrals are having a moment, as homeowners celebrate the innate beauty of earthy elements. A mix and match of these materials creates an understated yet elegant vibe that can be applied to any room. Sustainability with Upcycled Materials and Repurposed Furniture Revive the timeless beauty in evergreen pieces that have may have been passed down through generations or hidden gems found at second-hand stores, including real wood dining tables, ornate hutches and unique buffets. Revive the timeless beauty in evergreen pieces that have may have been passed down through generations or hidden gems found at second-hand stores, including real wood dining tables, ornate hutches and unique buffets. Highly Textured Materials A textured accent wall, plaster painting and micro cement a thin, cement-based decorative coating -- offers a tactile component that adds depth and character. Chunky, woven accents and throw blankets, velvet and boucle accent pillows, and woolen and woven area rugs are taking center stage and allow for effortless style. A textured accent wall, plaster painting and micro cement a thin, cement-based decorative coating -- offers a tactile component that adds depth and character. Chunky, woven accents and throw blankets, velvet and boucle accent pillows, and woolen and woven area rugs are taking center stage and allow for effortless style. The New-Traditional Traditional design styling is back in a fresh and modernized way; look for classic design paired with new-age approaches in furniture and patterned upholstery. Traditional design styling is back in a fresh and modernized way; look for classic design paired with new-age approaches in furniture and patterned upholstery. Matte and High Gloss Finishes Multi-dimensional finishes make a big statement in 2024; from raw woods to matte and high-gloss paint and furniture coatings, visual interest will be achieved through even the smallest of details. Top Color Trends Vibrant and Saturated Colors Deep blues, kelly green and yellow are injecting personalities into interiors, while dark aquamarine creates a feeling of stylish sophistication. Saturated and vibrant colors will appear in many forms in 2024. Deep blues, kelly green and yellow are injecting personalities into interiors, while dark aquamarine creates a feeling of stylish sophistication. Saturated and vibrant colors will appear in many forms in 2024. Neutrals and Earth Tones Conventional sand and beige neutrals, along with gold and earthy tones, including mocha and taupe, warm charcoal and rich caramel bring a coziness into the interiors of your home. Conventional sand and beige neutrals, along with gold and earthy tones, including mocha and taupe, warm charcoal and rich caramel bring a coziness into the interiors of your home. Black a Bold Staple Black is such a versatile and stylish choice for any home! Whether it's used as an accent color in paint, lighting, fixtures, or even in soft furnishings, the boldness and warmth it brings to a space will always be a timeless design staple. For more 2024 design trends and ideas please visit our latest design trends blog. To learn more about the technology-powered design tools PulteGroup provides to new homeowners, visit www.pulte.com/design/design-center. For added inspiration, follow Pulte Interiors on Instagram. About PulteGroup PulteGroup, Inc. (NYSE: PHM), based in Atlanta, Georgia, is one of Americas largest homebuilding companies with operations in more than 45 markets throughout the country. Through its brand portfolio that includes Centex, Pulte Homes, Del Webb, DiVosta Homes, American West and John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, the company is one of the industrys most versatile homebuilders able to meet the needs of multiple buyer groups and respond to changing consumer demand. PulteGroups purpose is building incredible places where people can live their dreams. For more information about PulteGroup, Inc. and PulteGroup brands, go to pultegroup.com; pulte.com; centex.com; delwebb.com; divosta.com; jwhomes.com; and americanwesthomes.com. Follow PulteGroup, Inc. on Twitter: @PulteGroupNews. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313005537/en/ Tim Chatlos Office: 404-464-9041 [email protected] Source: PulteGroup, Inc. With over 40 years of ophthalmology industry experience, Dr. Lindstrom will lead Surface Ophthalmics into its next stage of growth as it advances its innovative and patented proprietary portfolio for dry eye syndrome. PLEASANTON, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Surface Ophthalmics, a pioneering biopharmaceutical company, dedicated to transforming the management and treatment of dry eye syndrome (DES), today announced the appointment of Richard Lindstrom, MD as Founder & Chairman. A highly acclaimed physician and surgeon in ophthalmology, Dr. Lindstrom is founder and attending surgeon emeritus at Minnesota Eye Consultants, P.A. Dr. Lindstrom will lead in partnership with Surfaces distinguished Board of Directors including Adrienne Graves, Ph.D., (Lead Director); Perry J. Sternberg, Shelley Thunen, and J. Andy Corley. In the US alone, an estimated 38 million people have some form of DES, yet only 17 million are diagnosed and fewer still, 1.7 million, are using a prescription therapy.1,2 With its product portfolio in development, Surface seeks to address the full range of DES, from episodic to chronic by providing eye care professionals targeted therapies to treat the signs, symptoms, and underlying causes of DES, which can be naturally occurring or following ocular surgery.3 I am honored and thrilled to lead Surface Ophthalmics into its next phase of expansion as we work to advance the companys innovative and proprietary medicinal candidates for patients suffering from DES, said Dr. Lindstrom. Our solutions hold significant potential to meet existing gaps in care, and Im eager to collaborate with our talented team to introduce these products to the market. Surface Ophthalmics is advancing two products: Kera Sol Tears, an over-the-counter artificial tear solution designed for cell-compatible, short-term, fast-acting, temporary relief of burning and irritation caused by dryness of the eye. Additionally, the company is progressing the clinical program for its investigational drug, Mycosol (Surf-101), a first-in-class prescription eye drop that delivers Mycophenolate in Surfaces proprietary formulation. This combination is designed to provide sustained immunosuppressive action and mucin upregulation at the ocular surface. Richard Lindstrom, MD Dr. Richard Lindstrom is founder and attending surgeon emeritus at Minnesota Eye Consultants P.A., a provider of eye care services, since 1989. Dr. Lindstrom has served as a researcher, teacher, inventor, writer, lecturer and highly acclaimed physician and surgeon in the ophthalmology field. Dr. Lindstrom has served as associate director of the Minnesota Lions Eye Bank from 1987 - 2017. He is a medical advisor for several medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers and serves on the boards of several public and privately held life sciences companies. Dr. Lindstrom previously served as president of the International Society of Refractive Surgery from 1993 to 1994, the International Intraocular Implant Society from 2002 to 2004, the International Refractive Surgery Club from 2002 to 2004, and the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery from 2007 to 2008. He currently serves on the ASCRS Executive Committee and is a past chair of the ASCRS Foundation. From 1980 to 1989, he served as a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Minnesota, where he is currently an adjunct professor and foundation trustee emeritus. Dr. Lindstrom also chaired the Ophthalmology and Visual Neurosciences Foundation for three decades. About Surface Ophthalmics Surface Ophthalmics is a pioneering biopharmaceutical firm dedicated to the discovery and market introduction of novel treatments for diseases affecting the ocular surface. Our mission is to address critical unmet needs in eye care by harnessing in-depth expertise, a dynamic strategy, operational efficiency, and distinctive clinical advantages. To learn more visit www.surfaceophthalmics.com and follow us on LinkedIn. References 1 2019 Dry Eye Products Market Report, Market Scope 2 Symphony Rx Data divided by DES Prevalence Study and validated with Market Scope data 3 Craig JP, et al., TFOS DEWS II Report Executive Summary, The Ocular Surface (2017) View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313082604/en/ Silvana Guerci-Lena 508-808-8993 [email protected] Source: Surface Ophthalmics Helping Award Construction Achieve More Sustainable Jobsite at St. Albert Project STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI), the world's largest equipment rental company, today announced it has added battery energy systems for tower cranes to its North American rental fleet. Developed by Termaco in collaboration with United Rentals, this innovative system provides clean, sustainable power that enables contractors to reduce fuel consumption and equipment-related downtime while achieving quieter, lower-emission jobsites. Configurable up to 500kW, the system operates alongside a generator to deliver reliable power to support tower crane operations. It minimizes generator run time by storing energy in batteries and running on battery power whenever possible. For smaller applications, the battery unit can be powered by solar panels to create a completely emission-free solution. This allows a contractor to significantly downsize the generator and dramatically reduce generator run time and emissions, while still meeting peak power demands. Battery energy systems for tower cranes provide a great application of practical sustainability on the jobsite by helping contractors address their economic and environmental goals, said Larry Worthington, Region Vice President, Power and HVAC, United Rentals. This solution demonstrates United Rentals commitment to bringing innovative products to market that deliver outstanding value to our customers. Proven in the Field General contracting firm Award Construction, based in Alberta, Canada, pioneered the use of the United Rentals battery energy system to fully power an 8-ton, 70-meter-tall tower crane at Riverbank Landing, a 20-acre planned mixed-use community being built in Edmonton. At the project, Award went from running a 300kVA T4 generator 24 hours a day to power its tower crane, to charging the battery energy system with a 100kW generator for just two and a half hours a day and operating the crane solely on battery power. Generator run time was reduced by 91%, which resulted in a fuel and emissions reduction of approximately 80%. Sustainable building aligns with our companys core values. We are proud our Riverbank Landing construction site is making history as one of the first in Canada to fully power its site tower crane entirely by battery, said Brian Hennessey, Construction Manager, Award Construction. This innovative tower crane battery energy system is part of a range of low and zero-emission solutions. Learn more on the Sustainability at United Rentals webpage. About United Rentals United Rentals, Inc. is the largest equipment rental company in the world. The company has an integrated network of 1,504 rental locations in North America, 38 in Europe, 23 in Australia and 19 in New Zealand. In North America, the company operates in 49 states and every Canadian province. The companys approximately 26,300 employees serve construction and industrial customers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners and others. The company offers approximately 4,800 classes of equipment for rent with a total original cost of $20.66 billion. United Rentals is a member of the Standard & Poors 500 Index, the Barrons 400 Index and the Russell 3000 Index and is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. Additional information about United Rentals is available at unitedrentals.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313492057/en/ Elizabeth Grenfell Vice President, Investor Relations O: (203) 618-7125 [email protected] Source: United Rentals, Inc. Associate Dean Dr. Samantha Dutton led session on role of skills-aligned curriculum in enhancing employability of baccalaureate social work graduates PHOENIX--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- University of Phoenix College of Social and Behavioral Sciences shares that Samantha Dutton, PhD, LCSW(r), Lt Col(Ret), associate dean of Social Sciences, joined the 41st Annual Conference of the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors, held March 6-10, 2024, in New Orleans, Louisiana, where she led a workshop titled, Bridging the Gap: Enhancing Employability of Baccalaureate Social Work Graduates through Skills-Based Education. Participating in this conference enriches program directors knowledge and enhances our commitment to the excellence of our programs for our students and their communities, stated Dutton. Baccalaureate social work graduates have much to offer their potential employers, clients and communities, and I was honored to share with my colleagues how University of Phoenix is working to increase students awareness and understanding of how the skills theyve gained through coursework can contribute to career planning. The 41st Annual Conference of the Association of Baccalaureate Program Directors was themed Infusing Resilience, Diversity and Inclusion in the Big Easy, convenes program directors in an event supporting the association mission to representing the interests of undergraduate education and practice in social work and focused on excellence in education and practice to help communities thrive. The workshop, titled Bridging the Gap: Enhancing Employability of Baccalaureate Social Work Graduates through Skills-Based Education, examined the importance of skills-based education for baccalaureate social work students. During the workshop, Dutton highlighted the need for students to understand and communicate their competencies and skills effectively to potential employers, and shared how, by aligning curriculum with sought-after skills, students can track their progress using a dashboard tool. This dashboard assists students in crafting resumes that highlight acquired skills, enhancing graduates' employability. This approach helps ensure graduates are better prepared to meet the demands of the social work profession, fostering socially aware and proficient professionals for the future job market. University of Phoenix has implemented an innovative skills-aligned curriculum with 100 percent of associate, bachelors and masters degree programs open for new enrollment being fully skills-mapped. With an emphasis on knowledge, skills, character and lifelong learning, programs in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences prepare students to positively influence their organizations and communities. The Colleges programs help students address communities mental, psychological, emotional, social and case management needs in counseling; social work; psychology and human services; and criminal justice and public administration. As associate dean and the director of the Social Work Program in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences with the University of Phoenix, Dutton presides over the Bachelor of Science Social Work program, which was accredited by the Council of Social Work Education in June 2023. Duttons military experience spans 27 years where she held leadership positions of Deputy Commander of Medical Operations at Mike OCallaghan Military Medical Center, Nevada, as well as the Medical Squadron at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, and she also commanded the Mental Health Clinic at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. She has been the recipient of numerous Air Force level awards and was deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom where she was the sole mental health practitioner for 2,500 personnel. Dutton earned her doctorate in Social Work and Social Research at Portland State University, and her MSW and BSW at New Mexico Highlands University. She currently serves as President of National Association of Social Workers, Tennessee Chapter (NASW-TN) and NASW-TN PACE Chair. She has authored a University of Phoenix white paper on how social work educators can help students understand and differentiate between competencies and skills. Learn more here about the conference. About University of Phoenix University of Phoenix innovates to help working adults enhance their careers and develop skills in a rapidly changing world. Flexible schedules, relevant courses, interactive learning, skills-mapped curriculum for our bachelors and masters degree programs and a Career Services for Life commitment help students more effectively pursue career and personal aspirations while balancing their busy lives. For more information, visit phoenix.edu. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313482849/en/ Sharla Hooper University of Phoenix [email protected] Source: University of Phoenix COLUMBUS, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Worthington Steel, Inc. (NYSE: WS) announced today that its tailor welded blanking joint venture, TWB Company, LLC (TWB), has signed a licensing agreement with ArcelorMittal Tailored Blanks for use of its patented ablation technology in the production of hot formed tailored blanks. This technology expands TWBs hot formed tailored blanking capabilities in North America. Along with this agreement, TWB plans to install a fully automated ablation line at its Monroe, Michigan, facility. Were excited to be one of two companies in North America to offer ablation technology and hot formed tailored blanks to our customers, said Worthington Steel president and CEO Geoff Gilmore. As one of the fastest growing segments in the tailored blank market, this innovative technology allows for welding of advanced high-strength steel, enhancing strength, crash performance and reducing weight for automotive applications. Specifically, the ablation process allows for the removal of aluminum silicon coating on the weld edge of a tailored blank, which is required before the press hardened material can be welded. The hot forming process allows this advanced high-strength steel to be stamped into a variety of safety and weight-critical applications. As more of our customers embrace this technology and the market continues to grow, we look forward to investing and supporting our customers efforts in this area, said TWB Company president Ivan Meltzer. TWB plans to install the new fully automated ablation line in its flagship facility in Monroe, Michigan. The 300,000 square foot facility currently produces traditional tailored blanks, tailored aluminum blanks and tailor welded coils. Following the ablation line installation, the company expects to spend 12-15 months undergoing OEM qualifications before beginning full production. About TWB Company TWB is North Americas market leader for tailor welded products with 11 locations in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Ontario and Mexico. Formed in 1992, TWB Company is a joint venture between Worthington Steel and BAOSteel. Worthington Steel holds majority ownership and serves as managing partner. More information about TWB can be found at www.TWBCompany.com. About Worthington Steel Worthington Steel (NYSE: WS) is a metals processor that partners with customers to deliver highly technical and customized solutions. Worthington Steels expertise in carbon flat-roll steel processing, electrical steel laminations and tailor welded solutions are driving steel toward a more sustainable future. As one of the most trusted metals processors in North America, Worthington Steel and its 4,600 employees harness the power of steel to advance our customers visions through value-added processing capabilities including galvanizing, pickling, configured blanking, specialty cold reduction, lightweighting and electrical lamination. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Worthington operates 32 facilities in seven states and six countries. Following a people-first Philosophy, commitment to sustainability and proven business system, Worthington Steels purpose is to generate positive returns by providing trusted and innovative solutions for customers, creating opportunities for employees, and strengthening its communities. Safe Harbor Statement Worthington Steel wishes to take advantage of the Safe Harbor provisions included in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the Act"). Statements by Worthington Steel which are not historical information constitute "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the Act. All forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ from those projected. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include risks, uncertainties and impacts described from time to time in Worthington Steels filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313232277/en/ Melissa Dykstra Vice President Corporate Communications and Investor Relations Phone: 614-840-4144 [email protected] Source: Worthington Steel, Inc. AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE: UAVS) a leading provider of best-in-class full stack drone, sensors and software solutions for customers worldwide in the commercial and government verticals, today announced a letter to shareholders from Chairman Grant Begley. Dear AgEagle Shareholders: I want to begin by thanking you, our shareholders, for your ongoing support as we continue to expand our market footprint and focus on building sustainable long-term shareholder value. As AgEagle's Chairman of the Board of Directors since October 2023 and Interim CEO since January 1, 2024, I have been privileged to engage with AgEagle's superb professionals, resulting in my objective assessment of AgEagle's excellent future potential that I share with you now. Sharing AgEagle's past is foundational to understanding AgEagle's value of today and future potential. I first met AgEagle's founder in 2010 at the world's largest drone conference, AUVSI's North America. Since then, AgEagle has evolved from a Privately Held company offering simple fix-winged drones constructed in the founder's barn in Kansas for sale to his fellow farmers. Those heritage drones provided agricultural support, ultimately proving to be foundational to the company name AgEagle. Today, AgEagle is proud to offer best-in-class products; eBee X, eBee TAC, and newly available eBee VISION. AgEagle's eBee family of drones are a globally recognized brand, now used for missions that include Agriculture, Construction, Defense, Environmental Monitoring, Conservation, Forestry, Mining, Quarries, Public Safety, Research and Education, Surveying, Mapping, Geographic Information Systems, Utilities Engineering, Security, and Military Operations. AgEagle has transformed from being a local single market segment (agriculture) provider to provide global compelling drone capabilities in over a dozen market segments. Former agricultural-focused AgEagle has emerged as an agile AgEagle. Your AgEagle of today is now providing, Worldwide, the proprietary line of eBee-branded high performance, fixed-wing drones for professional use. AgEagle's market is expanding with the recent introduction of eBee VISION. The eBee VISION is designed to provide defense and security capabilities to quickly detect, track, and geo-locate objects in collaboration with special forces. The initial five production eBee VISIONS were delivered to 5 different potential key customers last quarter, resulting in superb reviews and ongoing follow-up. AgEagle's eBee drones were the first ever to be US Federal Aviation Administration certified safe to fly over people and placed on the US Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Unit's "Blue UAS Cleared List" for US Defense and US Government partners for future procurement opportunities. In addition to AgEagle's eBees, AgEagle's Sensor Division sells the most advanced drone sensors in the world. Sensors that are integrated with AgEagle's drones, other industry drones, and non-drone applications. These high-performance sensors are in high demand, contributing to a Q4 delivery backlog. Delivery of those backlog sensors is underway. The following are recent AgEagle accomplishments. Personnel: During the past 3-months, 3 new Leadership Team professionals have joined AgEagle; Mark DiSiena (CFO), Brent Pope (VP-Ops), and this month, Bill Irby (President). These professionals have very accomplished careers and bring a wealth of differentiated and relevant skills to contribute to AgEagle's future success. We all have one thing in common, we each share the same vision, AgEagle's potential to significantly contribute to global security, and other missions, for the benefit of all humankind. Sales: In February of this year we announced the procurement of a fleet of eBee X and eBee TAC drones by UT-Battelle, LLC, which manages and operates the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Additionally, the Company was awarded a contract from ADS Inc., a leading solutions provider to the Department of Defense (DOD), for the purchase of Altum-PT multispectral cameras from AgEagle for use by the DOD customer. Technology: AgEagle was named by Insider Monkey as a 2023 Top 20 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Company transforming the Agricultural Sector. Your AgEagle Team has a robust Technology Roadmap for insertion of new and next-generation technology enablers into AgEagles drones and sensors. Finance: AgEagle's stock share price has traded as a micro cap for more than a year while AgEagle's sales were flat. During 2023, current eBee customers wanting a new eBee, waited for eBee VISION market availability. Also, during 2023, AgEagle's expenses were high in support of the development of eBee VISION. The eBee VISION is now available and with compelling operational capabilities. Thank you, shareholders, for your authorization to conduct the 20-to-1 reverse split that will support AgEagle's 2024 excellent business growth and sales opportunities as well as help increase appeal to a broader range of investors to generate greater investor interest in the company. Operations: AgEagle continues to implement standardized accounting practices and manufacturing "Best Practices" reducing cost while increasing productivity. Within the past 2-months, AgEagle has nearly doubled its sensor production capacity with no additional personnel or equipment required. Again, I am pleased to provide you with this shareholder update and I thank you for your AgEagle investment. Your AgEagle Team is extremely and objectively optimistic about AgEagle's future potential. Sincerely, Grant Begley, Chairman of AgEagle Aerial Systems About AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc.: Through its three centers of excellence, AgEagle is actively engaged in designing and delivering best-in-class flight hardware, sensors and software that solve important problems for its customers. Founded in 2010, AgEagle was originally formed to pioneer proprietary, professional-grade, fixed-winged drones and aerial imagery-based data collection and analytics solutions for the agriculture industry. Today, AgEagle is a leading provider of full stack drone solutions for customers worldwide in the energy, construction, agriculture, and government verticals. For additional information, please visit our website at www.ageagle.com Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties that could negatively affect our business, operating results, financial condition, and stock price. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from managements current expectations include those risks and uncertainties relating to our competitive position, the industry environment, potential growth opportunities, and the effects of regulation and events outside of our control, such as natural disasters, wars, or health epidemics. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations or any changes in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law. AgEagle Aerial Systems Contacts: Investor Relations: Email: [email protected] Media: Email: [email protected] FILE PHOTO: Founder and CEO of Under Armour Kevin Plank speaks during an IBM keynote address at the 2016 CES trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada, January 6, 2016. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo (Reuters) - Apparel maker Under Armour said on Wednesday that founder vwill return to the company as CEO, effective April 1. The company's shares rose 6% to $8.26 after the bell. Plank founded Under Armour in 1996 and served as the company's top boss till 2019. In January 2020, Plank was appointed as the company's executive chair and brand chief. Under Armour said Plank would succeed Stephanie Linnartz, who will step down as president, CEO and member of the board. (Reporting by Arunima Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona and Shounak Dasgupta) BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Priorities of economic collaboration between Azerbaijan and Croatia have been explored, Trend reports via a social media publication by Azerbaijani Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov. According to the publication, a meeting has been held in Baku between Jabbarov and the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Croatia, Damir Habijan. "We explored the priorities of our bilateral economic relations in terms of promotion of joint investments and trade, support for cooperation in the fields of alternative energy and industry, and enhancement of partnerships among business communities," the publication said. Stay up to date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Cardena, Spain, March 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bitcoin Billionaire has taken innovation to the next level with its AI trading system tailored for Spain, offering many cutting-edge advantages to customers in the country. While the focus of the pioneer in the field remains Spain, it can also be used by customers in other Spanish-speaking countries, including Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Costa Rica, and more. Cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, offer dynamic opportunities for people around the world to build their fortune by trading in it. But getting the right kind of access to them has remained a challenge. Bitcoin Billionaire was established with the aim of changing that, and it has consistently lived up to that mission not only by facilitating access but also by sharing critical knowledge and tools for customers to trade successfully in the market. Bitcoin Billionaire S.L. Since its inception, the platform has been driving the cryptocurrency revolution by focusing on new-age innovation. We have endeavored to create a secure, transparent, and efficient platform for trading crypto assets, said a representative for Bitcoin Billionaire. This focus on transparency is evident in the fact that the platform always brings clear and up-to-date information to customers. It lays a strong emphasis on security by using cutting-edge technologies to protect customers assets and information. Moreover, it has consistently strived to raise the bar for innovation with tools that optimize the platform and its services for customers. And it has done just that with the Bitcoin Billionaire AI trading system for Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries. We are the real and original creators of the completely automated bitcoin trading system powered by Artificial Intelligence, stressed the representative for the platform. By leveraging the latest technologies, the platform has taken customers digital experience to the next level. Taking advantage of different cryptocurrency exchanges, the software is designed to detect opportunities for customers to purchase at low prices and sell at higher prices. Thus the platform harnesses the benefits of new-age technology to maximize profits for customers. The sterling reviews the platform has received from customers, who have made substantial gains, are a testament to the quality of services of the platform and the benefits it offers. In fact, Bitcoin Billionaire opiniones include stories and narratives from customers across various backgrounds, who have benefited from the use of the system. Overall, the AI-powered system and its strategies ensure considerable returns for customers, and they can also accumulate significant profits from multiple successful trades. It is interesting to note that the platform offers a wide range of cryptocurrencies for trading, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, and more. Customers can also rely on its solid client support team, which answers any queries they might have. To learn more about the platform and its AI-powered trading system, visit https://bitcoinbillionaire.es/. About Bitcoin Billionaire S.L. With the aim of facilitating access to cryptocurrencies, the platform has earned the trust of customers by offering them cutting-edge tools and insights required to operate successfully in the market. ### Media Contact Bitcoin Billionaire S.L. Address: La Fontanilla, 56, 14445 Cardena, Espana Phone: +34791874578 Website: https://bitcoinbillionaire.es/ Disclaimer: This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies (including product offerings, regulatory plans and business plans) and may change without notice. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Attachment Bitcoin Billionaire Launches AI Trading System for Spain It offers a completely automated Bitcoin trading system powered by AI. Source: Bitcoin Billionaire S.L. Lafayette, CO, March 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The aviation industry traces its roots back to the early 1920sshortly after the conclusion of World War I. Not surprisingly, the aviation insurance industry developed at about the same time. After all, powered flight (and the technology behind it) was still in its infancy, so the associated risks were high. Global Aerospace Enabling the Future of Flight The company that is now called Global Aerospace was formed to provide financial protection to the innovators pushing the boundaries of aviation. In fact, its no exaggeration to say that Global was instrumental in advancing the industry. The availability of aviation insurance gave companies the confidence to forge ahead into uncharted territory. Since its founding, Global has remained a leader in its field. But as the company approached its 100th anniversary, leadership identified the milestone as the perfect time for a comprehensive refresh of its brand, website, etc. Having collaborated with The Creative Alliance for many years, they tapped the agency to lead the way on this important initiative. It All Starts With Strategy In the same way that aircraft should never get airborne without a flight plan, companies should never dive into a rebranding effort without a solid strategy. Nobody knows that better than the marketing team at Global Aerospace. Beginning with conversations about the desire for a redesigned logo, enhanced website, etc., the initiative truly took off with an intensive day-long, in-person meeting in Orlando. The session was attended by our team and several key stakeholders at Global, including the companys U.K.-based group chief executive officer and U.S.-based president and chief underwriting officera testament to the importance the company placed on this project. The meeting involved reviewing and discussing answers from Global team members to questions we had posed in advance. Over the course of several hours, the conversation yielded tremendous insights and some highly refined information our team could use to move forward. Retaining Brand Capital While Updating Globals Visuals Revising visual brand elements for a company with a long and storied history requires tremendous awareness of and sensitivity to the expectations of everyone from its clients to its employees. Take the Global Aerospace logo for example. The goal was, of course, to create something fresh and eye-catching. However, we had to be sure we didnt lose any brand recognition in the process. And we also wanted the new logo to show a degree of deference and respect to the iconic image that it would replace. Working closely with Global team members, we were able to do exactly that. We kept the globe portion of the logo and sense of energy and movement from the set of red lines, but gave these elements a more modern look and also updated the font. The result is a logo that is unmistakably Global, but with a contemporary aesthetic. Global Aerospace website Bringing Clients and Prospects in for a Landing: An Enhanced Website Global Aerospaces website had served the company, its clients, and prospective clients well for many years. However, as is common in business, the folksy principle that if it aint broke, dont fix it allowed the site to slowly lose some of its effectiveness. Upon closer inspection and a detailed website audit, there were many areas for improvement, including: Revising outdated information Adding sections/pages for new offerings Updating verbiage based on a carefully considered SEO keyword strategy Refreshing the imagery Improving the navigation Introducing a more energetic tone To make the process efficient for the companys busy marketing team and other decision-makers, our design, user interface/user experience (UI/UX), and copywriting experts used existing resources and detailed notes from our strategy session to revise and develop material that Global could react to. We then incorporated feedback as we polished and finalized the site. Like the companys updated logo, the new website feels familiar and comfortable to past visitors but now offers more information, easier navigation, and overall, a better user experience. Jetstream 2024: Enabling the Future of Flight and Innovation Powering It Teamwork Is the Key to an Effective Brand Update Our work with Global Aerospace on this brand update project and all its various facets highlighted something weve always known: teamwork is the key to success in this type of initiative. Globals subject matter experts gave generously of their time and expertise, our team was respectful of the team members many other work obligations and structured our outreach and interactions accordingly, and the resulting output met everyones high standards and expectations. Today, a pioneer and leader in aviation and aerospace insurance has revised its look, reintroduced itself to its clients, and is making a very positive impression on people searching for insurance solutions and learning about the company for the first time. And from the visual appeal of the new Global Aerospace logo to the enhanced, more informative, and easier to use website, there is a great deal that is helping keep the company out in front of its competitors and leading its industry into the next 100 years. In the first month since the launch, Global Aerospace has seen positive results on key website metrics: Online quote requests increased by 25% Average engagement time increased by 43% Organic search traffic increased by 37% About The Creative Alliance, Lafayette, CO The Creative Alliance is a results-based, digital marketing company with a history of growing successful businesses. www.thecreativealliance.com Media Contact: Jodee Goodwin | 303-665-8101 Source: The Creative Alliance Sydney, Australia, March 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flashift stands as a formidable platform delivering innovative services to both the blockchain community and digital currency enthusiasts. Through Flashift, users gain the ability to seamlessly swap many cryptocurrencies across blockchains. By forging partnerships with the most robust decentralized exchanges offering cryptocurrency swap functionalities, Flashift adeptly discerns optimal market prices, delivering them directly to users. As an aggregator, Flashift actively searches for available offers, organizes them, and presents the optimal rates within a unified interface. Flashift provides comprehensive transaction details, ensuring a seamless experience comparable to swapping on our partner exchanges. Compared to many swap platforms even including internal-swapping in wallets, Flashift has the best price and lowest fees. Within the Flashift web application, users gain transparency as all participating exchanges are showcased, empowering informed comparisons of rates to facilitate the selection of the most advantageous option. With just a few clicks, transactions are swiftly executed, solidifying Flashift's role as a pioneering gateway for active participants within the cryptocurrency realm. Flashift is the premier solution for streamlining cryptocurrency exchanges. By aggregating non-custodial exchanges, we unify data from multiple platforms into a singular interface, revolutionizing the user experience. With Flashift, users seamlessly swap cryptocurrencies across disparate blockchains, a groundbreaking capability rarely seen in traditional decentralized exchanges. Our platform boasts support for over one thousand tokens, presenting users with a vast array of options. We display both floating and fixed exchange rates from our esteemed partners, empowering users to select their preferred method with confidence. Accessible via web application, Flashift caters to users across a multitude of platforms including Android, iOS, Windows, and beyond. This ensures unparalleled convenience, allowing users to engage with our platform regardless of their device preference. Detailed transaction information is readily available, equipping users with the insights necessary to execute swaps effortlessly. Furthermore, our dedicated team of experts stands ready to address any queries or concerns around the clock. With our unwavering commitment to customer support, users can rest assured that assistance is always just a click away. Notably, Flashift distinguishes itself by abstaining from charging additional commission fees. Our mission is simple: to streamline the cryptocurrency swapping process by providing a comprehensive, user-friendly, and versatile platform. Join us in redefining the future of crypto exchanges with Flashift. Flashift: A New Vision of Cryptocurrency Exchange The philosophy behind the emergence of cryptocurrencies revolves around decentralization and the elimination of intermediaries in financial affairs. Today, many users in the cryptocurrency world are concerned that numerous financial platforms in the crypto world have strayed from this crucial goal. However, this mission will continue unabated. With Flashift, you can experience something truly remarkable. Utilizing Flashift to swap cryptocurrencies requires no registration or KYC. Furthermore, all stages of your financial transactions will be conducted following international financial regulations. Simply visit our powerful platform's website, select your desired currencies, and with just a few clicks and the lowest network fees, execute your transactions. Save Moments and Money with Flashift.app You can learn more about Flashift at the following links: Website | LinkedIn | Medium | YouTube FAQ Does Flashift require KYC for use? No, neither KYC nor registration is required to use Flashift. Do I need to visit the exchange website to complete the final steps of the transaction? No, all transaction steps are conducted within the Flashift website itself and are completed swiftly. There is no need to visit any other website. Is using FlashShift subject to any fees? No, using Flashift incurs no extra fees for the user. Is Flashift trustable? Yes, Flashift partners exclusively with reputable cryptocurrency swap exchanges. Using Flashift entails no difference compared to using these partner services. Mostafa Reza11 support-at-flashift.app Source: Flashift BROOKFIELD, NEWS, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Brookfield Reinsurance (NYSE, TSX: BNRE) today announced that the Iowa Insurance Division has confirmed a hearing date of April 5, 2024 for the Brookfield Reinsurance acquisition of American Equity Investment Life Holding Company (NYSE: AEL) (AEL). Sachin Shah, CEO of Brookfield Reinsurance said, We are excited to move toward closing this transaction and begin the work of building AEL into a leader in the U.S. annuity markets. We look forward to working with all stakeholders to drive the business forward, and to make a positive impact in the Des Moines community and on AELs policyholders and employees. Brookfield Reinsurance and AEL announced the acquisition on July 5, 2023. The transaction is expected to close shortly after the hearing. Brookfield Reinsurance Ltd. (NYSE, TSX: BNRE, BNRE.A) operates a leading capital solutions business providing insurance and reinsurance services to individuals and institutions. Each class A exchangeable limited voting share and each class A-1 exchangeable non-voting share of Brookfield Reinsurance are exchangeable on a one-for-one basis with a class A limited voting share of Brookfield Corporation. (NYSE/TSX: BN). For more information, please contact: Communications & Media Investor Relations Kerrie McHugh Rachel Powell Tel: (212) 618-3469 Tel: (416) 956-5141 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Cautionary Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Except for historical information, all other information in this press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements related to the proposed acquisition of AEL and the anticipated timing, results, and benefits thereof, and statements regarding managements expectations and beliefs. These forward-looking statements use words and terms such as anticipate, assume, believe, can, continue, could, enable, estimate, expect, foreseeable, goal, improve, intend, likely, may, model, objective, opportunity, outlook, plan, potential, project, remain, risk, seek, should, strategy, target, will, would, and other words and terms of similar meaning or that are otherwise tied to future periods or future performance, in each case in all forms of speech and derivative forms, or similar words, as well as any projections of future events or results. These forward-looking statements, and related oral statements that Brookfield Reinsurance may make, are subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond Brookfield Reinsurances control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, anticipated, or implied. For example, (i) conditions to the closing of the transactions may not be satisfied, (ii) the timing of completion of transactions is uncertain, (iii) the business of Brookfield Reinsurance may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the transactions, (iv) events, changes or other circumstances could occur that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement, (v) there are risks related to disruption of managements attention from the ongoing business operations of Brookfield Reinsurance due to the transactions, (vi) the pendency of the transactions could affect the relationships of Brookfield Reinsurance with its clients, operating results and business generally, including on Brookfield Reinsurances ability to retain employees, (vii) the pendency or consummation of the transactions may have negative effects on Brookfield Reinsurances operating results, (viii) the outcome of any legal proceedings initiated against Brookfield Reinsurance during the pendency of the transactions could adversely affect Brookfield Reinsurance, including its ability to consummate the transactions, (ix) the failure to realize the expected benefit of the transactions and significant transaction costs and/or unknown or inestimable liabilities, (x) the risk that AELs business will not be integrated successfully or that integration may be more difficult, time-consuming or costly than expected and (xi) Brookfield Reinsurance may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors as well as managements response to any of the aforementioned factors. The foregoing review of important factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included herein or elsewhere, including the risk factors included in Brookfield Reinsurances Form 20-F and other documents of Brookfield Reinsurance on file with, or furnished to, the SEC. Source: Brookfield Reinsurance Ltd. TORONTO, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hempsana Holdings Ltd. (HMPS.CN) announces that on March 11, 2024, its wholly-owned operating subsidiary, Hempsana Inc. (the Company), filed a Notice of Intention to make a Proposal (NOI) under Section 50.4 of the Bankruptcy & Insolvency Act R.S.C. 1985, c. B-3, as amended (the BIA). B. Riley Farber Inc. (the Proposal Trustee) accepted the appointment as Trustee in the Proposal of the Company. The Company has reduced its operations in order preserve cash during this process. However, the Company is still taking and fulfilling orders for its CBD, CBG, THC bulk cannabis products that are in stock. Please contact the Company to get full list of our available inventory for sale. Randy Ko, President of Hempsana Inc., said, The Company remains a fundamentally good business, with high quality products, profitable margins, great customers, highly-skilled employees, and a strong supply-chain. Unfortunately, we face liquidity constraints due to a combination of historical, non-recurring events that have now been addressed. The Company has a commitment from a DIP lender to provide additional funding in the form of a debtor-in-possession facility that should provide adequate liquidity during the Sale Process. The Company anticipates that all key staff members will continue to be paid and that suppliers will be paid for the goods and services provided post-filing on an ongoing basis. The Companys obligations incurred before the filing of the NOI will be addressed in any plan that may be presented under the NOI proceedings. The Company intends to apply to Court to seek an Order (the Sale Process Order) for, among other things, approving the sale process (the Sale Process) authorizing the Proposal Trustee to conduct the Sale Process. Interested parties will be given the opportunity to submit offers for the acquisition of all or substantially all of the Companys assets and business once the Sales Process has been approved by the Court. Further details respecting the NOI filing, the proposed Sale Process Order and the Sale Process and copies of the aforementioned will be filed under the Companys profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedar.com) and will also be available on the Proposal Trustee website (https://brileyfarber.com/engagements/hempsana-inc/ ). Readers are urged to consult the full text of all of those documents for further, more detailed information. For further information on the CompanyRandy Ko, Director (416) 844-7484 [email protected] https://www.hempsana.ca Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider has reviewed or accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release. About Hempsana Holdings Ltd. and Hempsana Inc. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Hempsana Inc., Hempsana Holdings Ltd. is a public company involved with the manufacturing of major and minor cannabinoid derivatives and producing cannabis extracts for use in finished products and other infused consumables. The business of subsidiary Hempsana Inc. is the principal business of listed issuer Hempsana Holdings Ltd. Hempsanas Health Canada Standard Processing Licensed, and EU-GMP compliant facility provides the Company access to wholesale and retail channels in Canada and internationally. Hempsana currently offers a wide range of product formats, including cannabis concentrates, diamonds, tablets, topicals, tinctures, salves, infused pre-rolls, and hemp-based CBD products that are all manufactured and distributed by Hempsana. Forward-Looking Information This news release contains certain information that constitutes forward-looking information under applicable securities legislation. All information other than statements of historical fact is forward-looking information. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by terminology such as will, expect, plan, intend, should, plan, estimate, potential, continue, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. The forward-looking information included in this news release includes, without limitation, information concerning the NOI filing, the Sale Process Order, and the Sale Process and the terms, timing, and process associated therewith. The forward-looking information included in this press release is based on the NOI provisions in the BIA and the Sale Process Order received by the Company together with, expectations, estimates, projections and assumptions, which the Company believes are reasonable, but which may prove to be incorrect and therefore such forward-looking information should not be unduly relied upon. The forward-looking information provided by the Company in this news release is based on a number of assumptions regarding, among other things, that: the Sale Process will proceed in accordance with the terms of the Sale Process Order currently in place; the NOI proceedings will unfold in a manner compliant with applicable law and materially consistent with the BIA and the Sale Process Order; all parties involved in the NOI filing, Sale Process Order and Sale Process will undertake all of their current duties in a diligent manner consistent with past practice and applicable industry and professional standards; the actions and potential claims of other stakeholders of the Company will be resolved in a manner consistent with the BIA and the Companys current obligations; the Company will maintain its operations in a manner consistent with its expectations; and the Company will continue through the NOI proceedings in a manner consistent with its current expectations. The forward-looking information contained herein also involves a significant number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from any future results or performance expressed or implied herein. Along with the general risks faced by the Company, these risks, uncertainties and other factors may include, but are not limited to: the inherent authority and discretion of the Ontario Superior Court may result in unforeseen changes outside the Companys control to the NOI proceedings, the Sale Process Order and the Sale Process, or otherwise in a manner not currently contemplated or controlled by the Company; the level of indebtedness of the Company; the Sale Process and related transactions require a certain degree of diversion of management time and attention which may impact other projects or operations of the Company; future actions and co-operation of the creditors of the Company may impact the Sale Process and any related transactions; the Companys ability to generate sufficient cash-flow from operations or to obtain adequate financing on an ongoing basis to fund working capital needs and to meet the Companys ongoing obligations; the ability of the Company to maintain relationships with suppliers, customers, employees, shareholders and other third parties may be compromised as a result of the NOI filing, Sale Process Order, or the Sale Process; and the success, form and procedures of the Sale Process may change in a manner outside the Companys control. Additional risks and uncertainties affecting the Company and its business and affairs are described in further detail in the Companys ongoing continuous disclosure documents, as filed under the Companys profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedar.com). The forward-looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Source: Hempsana Holdings Ltd. Continued Growth in Pipeline, Revenue, and Gross Profit Reported MONROE TOWNSHIP, N.J., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. ("OPT" or "the Company") (NYSE American: OPTT), today announced financial results for its fiscal third quarter ended January 31, 2024 (Q324), including year over year revenue, gross profit, and pipeline growth. Financial Highlights from the third quarter: The Companys pipeline at January 31, 2024 (Q324) was approximately $77 million, representing a 5.5x year-over-year increase over the pipeline of approximately $14 million at January 31, 2023. The Company's pipeline continues to grow, reflecting a significant increase in defense and security activity as well as an expansion of commercial opportunities. The gross margin rate was 45.4% and 18.5%, for the quarters ended Q324 and Q323, respectively. The gross margin rate was 49.7% and 21.1%, for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, and 2023, respectively. In December 2023, the Company received a letter subcontract for up to $6.5 million from a U.S. based prime contractor for multiple maritime domain awareness buoys advancing its commitment to national security and intelligence. This collaboration between OPT and the prime contractor will focus on providing multidomain marine solutions in support of U.S. government agencies. OPT believes that its PowerBuoys will play a pivotal role in enhancing surveillance capabilities above and below the waterline, contributing significantly to maritime domain awareness initiatives. will play a pivotal role in enhancing surveillance capabilities above and below the waterline, contributing significantly to maritime domain awareness initiatives. In conjunction with the Company's path to profitability, in November 2023, OPT announced that it has substantially completed its research and development phase and is primarily focused on commercial activities. This pivot to commercial activities has enabled a reduction and reallocation of headcount and a material reduction in third-party expenditures. As a result, the majority of the Company's employees are now dedicated to customer delivery. Recent Operational and Other Highlights: In February 2024, the Company received funding from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, for the deployment of a PowerBuoy in Monterey Bay, California. The PowerBuoy , integrating OPT's Maritime Domain Awareness System (MDAS) along with cutting-edge Satellite communication and AT&T 5G technology, will demonstrate its persistent surveillance and communications capacities in a maritime environment. in Monterey Bay, California. The PowerBuoy , integrating OPT's Maritime Domain Awareness System (MDAS) along with cutting-edge Satellite communication and AT&T 5G technology, will demonstrate its persistent surveillance and communications capacities in a maritime environment. In February 2024, the Company received multiple orders for fully integrated WAM-V Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) totaling over $1.25 million. These recent commercial orders come from clients in Latin America, highlighting the wide-ranging capabilities and applications of the WAM-V USVs. In January 2024, the Company was awarded approximately $1.2 million under the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) 2023 Technology Business Tax Certificate Transfer Program, commonly known as the Net Operating Loss (NOL) Program. This program enables technology and life sciences businesses in New Jersey to sell a percentage of their New Jersey net operating losses and unused research and development (R&D) tax credits to unrelated profitable corporations for cash. OPT takes part in the NJEDA NOL program annually and this funding represents a significant resource as the Company continues to make progress on its previously announced path to profitability. Payment was received by the Company in March 2024. Management Commentary Philipp Stratmann, OPT's President and Chief Executive Officer We continue to make progress on our path towards profitability as evidenced by the continued growth in our pipeline, revenues, and gross margin. Our efforts to increase our backlog and revenues in the defense and national security industry are paying off. Our recent contract wins with large government prime contractors enable us to provide autonomous vehicles and renewable energy buoys to various U.S. Government Agencies. In addition to these contract wins, we continue to deliver for our commercial customers, especially in the fields of autonomous survey operations, enabling them to lower costs and carbon emissions. Our geographic footprint continues to expand and we are seeing significant opportunities for growth in Latin America. The substantial cessation of our R&D efforts earlier in this quarter, is starting to lead to a reduction in payroll and engineering related expenditures, and the refocusing of the team towards execution is supporting our stated revenue growth. We continue to explore opportunities that will accelerate shareholder value generation as we execute our stated strategy, including cost optimization, accelerated revenue growth, partnerships, or other mechanisms. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS Q324 Income Statement: Revenues for Q324 were $1.8 million, compared to $0.7 million in Q323. Revenues for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, were $4.0 million, compared to $1.8 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. This growth was driven by sales of WAM-V autonomous vehicles, revenue from our previously announced contract with the Department of Energy (DOE) and strategic consulting services. for Q324 were $1.8 million, compared to $0.7 million in Q323. Revenues for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, were $4.0 million, compared to $1.8 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. This growth was driven by sales of WAM-V autonomous vehicles, revenue from our previously announced contract with the Department of Energy (DOE) and strategic consulting services. Gross profit for Q324 was $0.8 million, as compared to a gross profit of $0.1 million in Q323. Gross profit for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, was $2.0 million, as compared to a gross profit of $0.4 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. The improvement in gross margin has been driven by the Autonomous Vehicles business, primarily through an increase in our higher margin WAM-V leasing business, and our strategic consulting services. for Q324 was $0.8 million, as compared to a gross profit of $0.1 million in Q323. Gross profit for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, was $2.0 million, as compared to a gross profit of $0.4 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. The improvement in gross margin has been driven by the Autonomous Vehicles business, primarily through an increase in our higher margin WAM-V leasing business, and our strategic consulting services. Operating expenses were $8.6 million in Q324, materially in-line with the second quarter of fiscal 2024 from and up from $6.8 million in Q323. Operating expenses were $24.6 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, up from $19.5 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. The Company has incurred one-time, non-recurring expenses of approximately $3.2 million year to date for fiscal 2024 to defend against the actions of Paragon Technologies, Inc. (Paragon) to attain control of the Company without following applicable legal requirements. Among other things, Paragon initiated extensive litigation against the Company in Delaware, challenging the Companys position that Paragon must adhere to such requirements, and the Court ruled against Paragon. In addition, Paragon subsequently attempted to prevent the Company from achieving the necessary quorum to hold its Annual Meeting of Stockholders that resulted in further significant costs to the Company. were $8.6 million in Q324, materially in-line with the second quarter of fiscal 2024 from and up from $6.8 million in Q323. Operating expenses were $24.6 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, up from $19.5 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. The Company has incurred one-time, non-recurring expenses of approximately $3.2 million year to date for fiscal 2024 to defend against the actions of Paragon Technologies, Inc. (Paragon) to attain control of the Company without following applicable legal requirements. Among other things, Paragon initiated extensive litigation against the Company in Delaware, challenging the Companys position that Paragon must adhere to such requirements, and the Court ruled against Paragon. In addition, Paragon subsequently attempted to prevent the Company from achieving the necessary quorum to hold its Annual Meeting of Stockholders that resulted in further significant costs to the Company. Net loss was $6.5 million for the Q324, as compared to a net loss of $6.1 million for the Q323. Net loss was $20.8 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2024, compared to a net loss of $16.8 million for the nine months ended January 31, 2023. The year over year increases in net loss were primarily driven by the Paragon expenses noted above. Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Combined cash, restricted cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments as of January 31, 2024, was $9.3 million, compared to $41.1 million at January 31, 2023. Bank debt remained at $0 as of January 31, 2024. Net cash used in operating activities for the nine months ended Q324 was $24.7 million, compared to $16.1 million for the same period in the prior year. This reflects the net loss noted above, payment of the earnout related to our autonomous vehicles business as a result of this business exceeding our expectations, investment in inventory to satisfy growing backlog, payment of employment bonuses that were accrued during fiscal year 2023 and incurrence of Paragon related expenses as noted above. Conference Call & Webcast As announced on February 21, 2024, a conference call to discuss OPTs financial results will be held tomorrow morning, Thursday, March 14, 2024, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Philipp Stratmann, CEO, Bob Powers, CFO, and Joseph DiPietro, Treasurer and Controller, will host the call. The dial-in numbers for the conference call are 877-407-8291 or 201-689-8345. Live Webcast: Webcast | Ocean Power Technologies FY2024 Q3 Earnings Conference Call (choruscall.com) Call Replay: Will be available by telephone approximately two hours after the calls completion. You may access the replay by dialing 877-660-6853 from the U.S. or 201-612-7415 for international callers and using the Conference ID 13742581. About Ocean Power Technologies OPT provides intelligent maritime solutions and services that enable safer, cleaner, and more productive ocean operations for the defense and security, oil and gas, science and research, and offshore wind markets. Our PowerBuoy platforms provide clean and reliable electric power and real-time data communications for remote maritime and subsea applications. We also provide WAM-V autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) and marine robotics services. The Companys headquarters is located in Monroe Township, New Jersey and has an additional office in Richmond, California. To learn more, visit www.OceanPowerTechnologies.com. Non-GAAP Measures: Pipeline Pipeline is not a term recognized under United States generally accepted accounting principles; however, it is a common measurement used in our industry. Our methodology for determining pipeline may not be comparable to the methodologies used by other companies. Pipeline is a representation of the journey potential customers take from the moment they become aware of our products and service to the moment they become a paying customer. The sales pipeline is divided into a series of phases, each representing a different milestone in the customer journey. It is a tool we use to track sales progress, identify potential roadblocks, and make data-driven decisions to improve our sales performance. Revenue estimates derived from our pipeline can be subject to change due to project accelerations, cancellations or delays due to various factors. These factors can also cause revenue amounts to be realized in periods and at levels different than originally projected. Forward-Looking Statements This release may contain forward-looking statements that are within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are identified by certain words or phrases such as "may", "will", "aim", "will likely result", "believe", "expect", "will continue", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend", "plan", "contemplate", "seek to", "future", "objective", "goal", "project", "should", "will pursue" and similar expressions or variations of such expressions. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current expectations about its future plans and performance. These forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions and estimates that could be inaccurate and subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could vary materially from those anticipated or expressed in any forward-looking statement made by the Company. Please refer to the Company's most recent Forms 10-Q and 10-K and subsequent filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for further discussion of these risks and uncertainties. The Company disclaims any obligation or intent to update the forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release. Financial Tables Follow Additional information may be found in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q that has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Form 10-Q is accessible at www.sec.gov or the Investor Relations section of the Company's website ( www.OceanPowerTechnologies.com/investor-relations ). Ocean Power Technologies, Inc., and Subsidiaries Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands, except share data) January 31, 2024 April 30, 2023 (Unaudited) ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 4,720 $ 6,883 Short term investments 4,377 27,790 Restricted cash, short-term 154 65 Accounts receivable 625 745 Contract assets 281 152 Inventory 3,460 1,044 Other current assets 3,927 994 Total current assets 17,544 37,673 Property and equipment, net 2,217 1,280 Intangibles, net 3,656 3,978 Right-of-use assets, net 2,610 1,751 Restricted cash, long-term 155 Goodwill 8,537 8,537 Total assets $ 34,564 $ 53,374 LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS EQUITY Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 1,466 $ 952 Earnout payable 1,500 Accrued expenses 2,991 2,346 Contingent liabilities 1,085 1,202 Right-of-use liabilities, current portion 625 529 Contract liabilities 868 1,378 Total current liabilities 7,035 7,907 Deferred tax liability 203 203 Right-of-use liabilities, less current portion 2,065 1,311 Total liabilities 9,303 9,421 Commitments and contingencies (Note 14) Shareholders Equity: Preferred stock, $0.001 par value; authorized 5,000,000 shares, none issued or outstanding; 100,000 designated as Series A Common stock, $0.001 par value; authorized 100,000,000 shares, issued 59,551,090 shares and 56,304,642 shares, respectively; outstanding 59,463,073 shares and 56,263,728 shares, respectively 59 56 Treasury stock, at cost; 88,017 shares and 40,914 shares, respectively (368 ) (355 ) Additional paid-in capital 326,472 324,393 Accumulated deficit (300,857 ) (280,096 ) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (45 ) (45 ) Total shareholders equity 25,261 43,953 Total liabilities and shareholders equity $ 34,564 $ 53,374 Ocean Power Technologies, Inc., and Subsidiaries Consolidated Statements of Operations (in thousands, except per share data) Three months ended January 31, Nine months ended January 31, 2024 2023 2024 2023 Revenues $ 1,792 $ 734 $ 3,953 $ 1,752 Cost of revenues 979 598 1,989 1,382 Gross margin 813 136 1,964 370 Operating expenses 8,551 6,820 24,648 19,546 (Gain)/loss from change in fair value of consideration (33 ) 373 (117 ) 154 Operating loss (7,705 ) (7,057 ) (22,567 ) (19,330 ) Interest income, net 151 229 760 604 Other income, proceeds from insurance claim 458 458 Other income, employee retention credit 1,202 Loss on disposition of assets (210 ) (210 ) Foreign exchange gain 1 2 2 2 Loss before income taxes (7,763 ) (6,368 ) (22,015 ) (17,064 ) Income tax benefit 1,254 278 1,254 278 Net loss (6,509 ) (6,090 ) (20,761 ) (16,786 ) Basic and diluted net loss per share $ (0.11 ) $ (0.11 ) $ (0.35 ) $ (0.30 ) Weighted average shares used to compute basic and diluted net loss per common share 58,865,898 55,966,672 58,790,160 55,918,284 Pomegranate Fiber offers added nutrients to a variety of food applications, continuing POM Wonderfuls commitment to better-for-you ingredients LOS ANGELES, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, POM Wonderful, the worldwide leader of California-grown pomegranates and No. 1 pomegranate juice in North America, announced the addition of Pomegranate Fiber to its growing specialty ingredients lineup. The Pomegranate Fiber, which is upcycled from POM Wonderful pomegranate husks after juicing, is a GRAS, fiber-dense powder that can be used in a variety of food applications, including crackers, sauces, dressings, baked goods and plant-based food. Pomegranate Fiber is made under POM Wonderfuls growing Specialty Ingredients division, which provides raw ingredients to suppliers across the food and beverage industry. Pomegranate Fiber has numerous culinary benefits it can help draw out flavor and color, and in baked goods, the powder enhances browning, which ultimately reduces cook times. It has soluble and insoluble fiber plus antioxidant goodness and polyphenols. Pomegranate Fiber is made from upcycled materials using the husk of pomegranate fruit. POM Wonderful uses a proprietary method to press whole pomegranates to create POM 100% Pomegranate Juice. After the initial press, the husks are then pressure extracted to create POMxL, a concentrated liquid extract that is also part of POMs specialty ingredient line-up the remaining pomegranate husk is dried and milled to create Pomegranate Fiber. We are thrilled to add another specialty ingredient to our line-up that is versatile and upholds our commitment to nourishing naturally, said Jason Horvath, sales manager for POM Wonderful Specialty Ingredients. With the Pomegranate Fiber, we are providing better-for-you options to the food and beverage industry while continuing our work towards a zero-waste future. The addition of the Pomegranate Fiber comes on the heels of POMxLs Upcycled Certification, further underscoring POM Wonderfuls commitment to sustainability and product innovation. Sustainability is at the forefront for POM Wonderful. In 2020, POM Wonderful launched the Innovation Challenge, offering $1 million in funding and development resources to innovators who could develop an economical and environmentally friendly solution to upcycle its 60,000 tons of pomegranate husks. In 2022, POM Wonderful transitioned all its 16oz bottles of POM Wonderful juices to 100% rPET (recycled plastic)* and completed work on its solar farm, which provides more than 90% of the companys electricity needs for its Del Rey, California processing facility. To date, The Wonderful Company and its owners, Stewart and Lynda Resnick, have invested more than $1.3 billion in environmental sustainability initiatives to help fight climate change. This commitment includes the historic $750 million gift from the Resnicks to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in support of the schools environmental sustainability research. To learn more about these sustainability initiatives, please visit www.csr.wonderful.com. *Excludes cap About POM Wonderful POM Wonderful is the largest grower and producer of fresh pomegranates and pomegranate juice in the United States as well as the worldwide leader in fresh California pomegranates and pomegranate-based products including our 100% pomegranate juice, healthy juice blends, and teas. We grow, handpick, and juice our own pomegranates to ensure the highest quality. POM Wonderful is committed to sustainability and waste reduction, with all 16oz bottles utilizing 100% rPET packaging and our POMxL being Upcycled Certified. POM Wonderful is part of The Wonderful Company, a privately held company with a portfolio that includes other No. 1 brands such as Wonderful Pistachios, FIJI Water, Wonderful Halos, JUSTIN wine, and Teleflora. To learn more about The Wonderful Company, visit www.wonderful.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. To view the current Corporate Social Responsibility report, visit www.wonderful.com/csr. POM Wonderful Specialty Ingredients Jason Horvath [email protected] Media Contact [email protected] YUBA CITY, Calif., March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- River Valley Community Bancorp (OTC markets: RVCB) with its wholly owned subsidiary, River Valley Community Bank (collectively referred to as the RVCB), has been featured as an Exceptional Bank in The Findley Reports March 2024 Newsletter. About the Findley CompaniesSince 1965, The Findley Companies have been committed to supporting Premier Performance for California Financial institutions. The Findley Companies publishes the highly recognized The Findley Report Newsletter, a monthly publication providing essential banking transactions and regulatory updates in an editorial format. These newsletters, and more information on the Findley Companies, can be found at www.findley-reports.com. River Valley Community Bank has been profiled as an Exceptional Bank in The Findley Reports March 2024 newsletter publication. The Findley Reports has profiled exceptional banks for several years, but only profiles four exceptional banks a year. The publication reviews RVCBs commitment to its marketplace, focus on customer satisfaction and delivering relationship-oriented service over its nearly 18 years of operation. The article also includes some key operating results and an in-depth interview with President and CEO, John M. Jelavich, about the direction and focus of RVCB, and what makes RVCB Exceptional! The entire Exceptional Bank Profile can be viewed HERE. CEO John M. Jelavich stated, We are proud to be recognized as an Exceptional Bank by The Findley Reports. This designation is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire RVCB team. Our reputation for hands-on, community focused, relationship-based banking continues to grow throughout our markets. We strongly believe that banks like ours play a vital role in providing full-service banking solutions for our communities and we are honored with this recognition, Jelavich concluded. The Bank remains highly rated with BauerFinancial, and Depositaccounts.com and serves its customer base through its offices located at: 1629 Colusa Avenue, Yuba City, CA 580 Brunswick Rd, Grass Valley, CA 905 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA 904 B Street, Marysville, CA 401 Ryland Street, Ste. 205, Reno, NV (Loan Production Office) 1508 Eureka Rd., Ste. 100, Roseville, CA (Loan Production Office) The Bank offers a full suite of competitive products, services, and banking technology. For more information please visit our website at www.myrvcb.com or contact John M. Jelavich at (530) 821-2469. Forward Looking Statements: This document may contain comments and information that constitute forwardlooking statements. Forwardlooking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements. Forwardlooking statements speak only as to the date they are made. The Bank does not undertake to update forwardlooking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forwardlooking statements are made. Source: River Valley Community Bancorp NEW YORK, March 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of securities of Sunnova Energy International Inc. (NYSE: NOVA) between February 25, 2020 and December 7, 2023, both dates inclusive (the Class Period), of the important April 16, 2024 lead plaintiff deadline. SO WHAT: If you purchased Sunnova 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 Sunnova class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=22626 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [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 April 16, 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, but are merely middlemen that refer clients or partner with law firms that actually litigate the cases. 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 made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Sunnova routinely engaged in predatory business practices against disadvantaged homeowners and communities, the same groups that Project Hestia, an agreement with Sunnova and the U.S. Department of Energys Loan Programs Office to support solar loans originated by Sunnova under a new solar loan channel, was purportedly intended to benefit; (2) the foregoing conduct subjected Sunnova to a heightened risk of regulatory and/or governmental scrutiny, as well as significant reputational and/or financial harm; and (3) as a result, Sunnovas public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the Sunnova class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=22626 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [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, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. 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] www.rosenlegal.com NEW YORK, March 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces an investigation of potential securities claims on behalf of shareholders of JBS S.A. (OTC: JBSAY) resulting from allegations that JBS may have issued materially misleading business information to the investing public. SO WHAT: If you purchased JBS securities you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. The Rosen Law Firm is preparing a class action seeking recovery of investor losses. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the prospective class action, go to https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=22976 or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] for information on the class action. WHAT IS THIS ABOUT: On February 28, 2024, Reuters published an article entitled New York sues meatpacking giant JBS over climate claims. The article stated, in pertinent part, that JBS, the worlds largest beef producer, was sued on Wednesday by New York states attorney general, which accused it of misleading the public about its impact on the environment in order to boost sales. Attorney General Letitia James said JBS USA Food Co, the Brazilian companys American-based unit, has no viable plan to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, making its stated commitment to achieving that goal false and misleading. On this news, the price of JBS American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) went down by $0.22 per ADR, or 2.38%, to close at $9.02 on February 28, 2024. 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. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. 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] www.rosenlegal.com BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Middle Corridor's potential captivates players far beyond the region, an advisor to the Azerbaijani Embassy in Kazakhstan, Rovshan Kazimov said during the round table within the framework of the third meeting of the Azerbaijan-Kazakhstan Expert Council, Trend reports. "The relations between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are developing in all spheres. I would like to specifically focus on cooperation in the transport and logistics sector. The current geopolitical situation and trends observed in the global economy require strengthening collaboration in this area. The potential of the Middle Corridor attracts the attention not only of the regional countries but also of other players well beyond the region," said Kazimov. He emphasized that a crucial element of the Middle Corridor is the Zangezur Corridor. "At present, Azerbaijan is actively involved in opening this transportation artery, which will contribute to the economic prosperity of all countries in the region. In the section of the Zangezur Corridor that passes through Azerbaijan's territory, a significant portion of the work has already been completed," added the diplomat. To note, the Middle Corridor multimodal project connects China, Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkiye, and Europe, intending to triple the time it takes to deliver cargo between the EU and China. Meanwhile, the Zangezur Corridor project proposed by Azerbaijan is aimed at establishing a transportation link between the main territory of Azerbaijan and its exclave, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, passing through the territory of Armenia. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) would like to express its deep concern over the Quebec government's recent Budget 2024 announcement regarding the gradual elimination of incentives for the purchase of electric vehicles. This decision comes at a time when Quebecers are facing a major affordability crisis, making purchase rebates absolutely necessary for the eventual attainment of the ZEV standard imposed by this same government. Removing these incentives could significantly slow down the progress Quebecers have made so far in adopting electric vehicles. The data also demonstrates that the fundamental reason behind Quebec's success in this transition to electric is the usage of this aggressive and comprehensive incentive program. The two best-performing provinces - Quebec and British Columbia - are also the only ones to offer greater financial incentives than those proposed by the federal government. The government rationale behind this decision also appears to be flawed. While Minister Girard has indicated that the price differential between electric and ICE vehicles is now marginal, impact assessments conducted and adopted by the federal and Californian governments have shown that price parity will not be achieved at least until 2033. This budget proposes to turn back the clock by putting forward an approach similar to that of provinces that have barely begun the transition to electric vehicles. Essentially, this decision seems to mean that the Quebec government, with its restrictive, mandatory ZEV standard, inevitably expects a transition, and that helping consumers to take part in it is no longer a priority. CADA calls on the Quebec government to reconsider its decision and recognize the importance of electric vehicle purchase incentives as an important tool in achieving the province's environmental goals, while addressing consumers' legitimate concerns about affordability and accessibility. It is imperative that we work together to build a more sustainable and affordable future for all Quebecers. About CADA: The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association is a federation of provincial and regional dealer associations, representing 3,200 franchised car and truck dealers who sell new cars and trucks in Canada. These retailers collectively employ over 140,000 people across the country, and represent a key sector of the Canadian economy. Contact: Charles Bernard, Lead economist, [email protected] To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201638 Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - March 13, 2024) - Argentum Silver Corp. (TSXV: ASL) ("Argentum" or the "Company") today announced the resignation of Albert Contardi from the Board of Directors, effective immediately. Mr. Contardi has tendered his resignation in order to avoid potential conflicts of interest arising from his other professional commitments. Mr. Contardi served as a member of the Board and Audit Committee Chair since 2017. "On behalf of Argentum Silver Corp., we would like to express our sincere gratitude to Mr. Contardi for his valuable contributions during his tenure on the Board of Directors," said Gary Nassif, CEO of Argentum Silver Corp. "We understand and respect his decision to prioritize his other commitments, and we wish him the very best in his future endeavors." In addition, the Company is pleased to announce that Ms. Carly Burk has been appointed to the Board of Directors, effective immediately. Ms. Burk practices securities law and works with both public and private issuers. Ms. Burk holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Southampton, a Certificate of Qualification from the Federation of Law Societies and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from Carleton University. Ms. Burk serves as an officer and/or director of several public and private entities. About Argentum Silver Corp. Argentum Silver is a junior mineral exploration company listed on the TSXV under the stock symbol ASL. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Norsemont II Resources SAC, the company controls the Cochavara Project consisting of six silver-lead-zinc mining concessions totalling 3,479 hectares in La Libertad, Northern Peru. The mining concessions host several mineralized structures with the main mineralized zone (Margarita Mine) covering an estimated strike length of 1,500 metres. The project area is located 3.5 kilometres southwest of the historical Quiruvilca silver-lead-zinc mine deposit, a large polymetallic vein system with over 130 different mineralized structures. The Company is actively reviewing additional mineral exploration properties in North America. For further information, please visit www.argentumsilvercorp.com or contact: Gary Nassif President & CEO Phone: 416-855-9304 Email: [email protected] Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "would", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing the Company and its business and affairs, readers should refer to the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201636 The lease signifies the significant growth of the top Houston web design firm and its commitment to continued expansion Houston, Texas--(Newsfile Corp. - March 12, 2024) - Jeremy McGilvrey's Houston web design agency is the newest business to call the prestigious Williams Tower in the Uptown District in Houston home. The Houston web design company announced that it has signed a long-term lease for office space in the highly sought-after Williams Tower. This new space will house the Houston web design team while helping the company achieve its continued growth goals. Jeremy McGilvrey, A Houston Web Design Agency, Inks Long-Term Lease In Prestigious Williams Tower Office Space To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8843/201484_5dd69cccb4e5baea_001full.jpg The Williams Tower, one of Houston's most prominent office spaces, is a 64-story, 1.4 million square feet class A postmodern office tower located adjacent to the famous Galleria. Jeremy McGilvrey's web design team will call the 56th floor home. "More than ten years ago, our company was started in a tiny studio apartment, so this move into the Williams Tower is an important milestone in our company's history," said Jeremy McGilvrey, founder. "It's a move we're all excited about, as it demonstrates the continued trust that our clients place in us." Since launching over a decade ago, Jeremy McGilvrey, a Harvard-educated entrepreneur has enjoyed exponential growth and has well over 1,000 positive reviews for his web design agency. McGilvrey attributes this success to the company's commitment to attracting top-level global talent in web design. The company's website and sales funnel design experts are committed to using proven strategies that help its clients achieve exponential growth with conversion focused websites and sales funnels. New and returning clients have sought out Jeremy McGilvrey's Houston web design agency due to their track record of success in building websites and sales funnels that convert clicks into customers. The team is known for producing cutting-edge customer-focused web and sales funnel designs that create an individualized browsing experience for web page visitors. This personalized browsing experience is proven to convert more customers and drive measurable sales for Jeremy McGilvrey's clients. The company also offers a customer-friendly satisfaction guarantee unlike any other in the industry. Jeremy McGilvrey's policy promises that if clients aren't completely satisfied with their results, they get 100% of their money back. This guarantee reflects the firm's confidence in producing sales funnels and websites that drive business growth. In addition to over one thousand positive client reviews, Jeremy McGilvrey's web design agency has also earned recognition from Forbes, Entrepreneur, ClickFunnels, HuffPost, and NBC. Because of the trust clients have placed in the team and the team's track record of success, the company has continued to enjoy significant growth, resulting in the need for its new office space. "We are pleased to call the Williams Tower home and look forward to continuing to serve our clients from our new space," added McGilvrey. "The new space will allow us to grow our team so that we can attract new talent and expand our service capabilities. We're excited to be able to help more clients create engaging digital experiences that drive significant and sustainable growth." To learn more about Jeremy McGilvrey and its conversion-focused web design services, go to jeremymcgilvrey.com. Media Contact: Contact: Jeremy McGilvrey Address: 2800 Post Oak Blvd. Ste. 5600B, Houston, TX 77056 Phone: (832) 390-2229 Email: [email protected] Website/URL: https://www.jeremymcgilvrey.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/201484 Paid press release content from Send2Press. The StreetInsider.com news staff was not involved in its creation. KANNAPOLIS, N.C., March 13, 2024 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) Hilbish Ford, located in Kannapolis North Carolina, proudly marks its 70th anniversary this month. Founded on March 19, 1954, by the visionary FG Buddy Hilbish, the dealership has been a trusted name in the Kannapolis and Concord communities. Buddy Hilbish, born on April 20, 1924, hails from Piney River, VA. After completing his education at Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia, Buddy was commissioned as an officer in the US Navy, proudly serving in World War II. Following his military service, he attended Harvard Business School, solidifying his foundation in business. Driven by ambition and a passion for the automotive industry, Buddy set a goal to become a Ford Dealer before his 30th birthday. His determination and hard work paid off when he was appointed as the Ford Dealer in Kannapolis on March 19, 1954, just 30 days before his milestone birthday. Since then, Buddy Hilbish has been a rock in Kannapolis and Concord, displaying unwavering love for his family, staff, church, and the community at large. As part of its 70th-anniversary celebration, Hilbish Ford proudly reflects on its legacy of giving back. Over the years, the dealership has made significant contributions to various organizations, demonstrating its commitment to community welfare. Some notable beneficiaries of Hilbish Fords philanthropy include: Boys and Girls Club Big Brothers Big Sisters Cooperative Christian Ministries Cabarrus Partnership for Children Habitat for Humanity Hospice of Cabarrus County Atrium Hospital Foundation Rotary Kannapolis City Schools Teacher of the Month Cabarrus County Schools Teacher of the Month Cabarrus Meals on Wheels Cabarrus Chamber of Commerce Kannapolis Parks and Recreation-sponsored events Concord City-sponsored events YMCA Kannapolis Cannon Ballers-sponsored events Kannapolis Police Concord Police Rowan Cabarrus Community College Cabarrus Arts Council Hilbish Fords commitment to community service has left an indelible mark on Kannapolis and Concord. The dealership looks forward to many more years of serving its customers with excellence and continuing its tradition of making a positive impact on the community. For more information about Hilbish Ford, please visit their website at: https://www.hilbishford.com/ Hilbish Ford, 2600 S Cannon Blvd, Kannapolis, NC 28083. MULTIMEDIA: Photo link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/24-0313-s2p-hilbishford-300dpi.jpg Photo caption: Hilbish Ford celebrates their 70th anniversary! NEWS SOURCE: Hilbish Ford This press release was issued on behalf of the news source (Hilbish Ford), who is solely responsible for its accuracy, by Send2Press Newswire. To view the original story, visit: https://www.send2press.com/wire/hilbish-ford-celebrates-70-years-of-excellence-in-kannapolis/ Copr. 2024 Send2Press Newswire, a service of NEOTROPE, Calif., USA. -- REF: S2P STORY ID: 109947SI.05 In the news release, NoTraffic Expands its Operations and Launches in the State of Florida , issued 13-Mar-2024 by NoTraffic over PR Newswire, we are advised by the company that one of the counties, Forsyth County, listed in the press release in the first paragraph is not actually located in Florida , and hence removed. The complete, corrected release follows: NoTraffic Expands its Operations and Launches in the State of Florida The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) approval is yet another indication of NoTraffic's commitment to the highest safety and quality standards Tel Aviv, Israel , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NoTraffic, the developer of the world's leading AI Mobility Platform, today announced that it has received approval from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to operate in the state, accompanied by substantial successful implementations of NoTraffic's systems in various locations including Collier County , Pasco County , Orlando , and more. This significant milestone underscores NoTraffic's unwavering commitment to the highest safety and future-ready standards. It also marks a transformative step forward in making roads safer, more efficient, and ready for connected vehicles, signaling a major advancement in the rollout of their state-of-the-art traffic management technologies across Florida. The FDOT certification is renowned for its rigorous approval process, and NoTraffic successfully navigating this stringent assessment reinforces its position as a trailblazer in the industry. With FDOT's approval, NoTraffic is now poised to deploy its state-of-the-art traffic management solutions across agencies in Florida , enhancing traffic efficiency and safety, and preparing the roads for connected vehicles. This approval will enable further opportunities within the state but also showcases that NoTraffic is a viable choice for other states seeking innovative mobility solutions. NoTraffic utilizes edge computing technology, pioneering unparalleled software-defined infrastructure that facilitates real-time decision making at both local and cloud levels. The technology also provides a SaaS platform that offers a first-ever mobility store, which provides one-stop-shop access to multiple applications for enhanced safety, data analysis, efficiency, detection and more. On one single, unified platform, NoTraffic allows Departments of Transportation and other stakeholders to effortlessly introduce and manage mobility services customized to meet today's traffic needs and tackle tomorrow's challenges. "Receiving approval from the Florida Department of Transportation is a significant achievement for NoTraffic, as it marks a milestone in our journey towards revolutionizing traffic management," said Tal Kreisler , CEO and Co-Founder of NoTraffic. "This endorsement not only opens doors for us in Florida but also positions NoTraffic as a trusted partner for traffic agencies and states across the nation. This reflects our hard earned commitment to creating a safer, more efficient future for North American roadways." NoTraffic's innovative platform combines hardware components, AI-powered software modules, a cloud-based mobility operating system (MOS), and 24/7 proactive support. By leveraging a network of smart sensors deployed at signalized intersections, conflict points, or complex roadways, the platform gives traffic authorities and infrastructure operators the ability to fully control and prioritize traffic flow for all kinds of transportation cars, bicycles, buses, pedestrians and more Having achieved FDOT approval, NoTraffic is ready to take on the challenges of traffic management across North America . The platform is deployed in numerous locations across North America , and is operating currently in more than 24 states, including in California , Texas, Pennsylvania , Colorado , Florida , Georgia , parts of Canada and more, serving millions of drivers per day. They were recognized and awarded as a TIME100 Most Influential Company. About NoTraffic NoTraffic, the developer of the world's leading mobility platform, is on a mission to digitize the backbone of transportation and streamline the next generation of traffic mobility. The company's end-to-end, mobility management platform leverages AI and edge computing to retrofit signalized intersections into one fully automated, cloud-connected hub. In less than 2 hours of installation, the platform can classify all road users including private vehicles, public transportation, emergency services, pedestrians and more and respond accordingly to traffic conditions in real-time to reduce travel times and CO2 emissions and improve safety. Ranked in TIME Magazine's 100 Most Influential Companies list, NoTraffic is trusted by leading states in North America and has formed strategic partnerships with major communication giants such as AT&T and Rogers Communications. The company was founded in 2017 by Tal Kreisler , Uriel Katz , and Or Sela. Media Contact Mike Katznelson [email protected] IL:+972 58 428 8810 US: +1 914 233 5302 UK : +44 203 769 0660 WWW.HEADLINE.MEDIA View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/notraffic-expands-its-operations-and-launches-in-the-state-of-florida-302087985.html SOURCE NoTraffic Provides Detailed Operating Plan to Restore Operational Excellence, Bolster Leadership with Experienced Tower Professionals, Maximize Value of the Company's Fiber Business to Position Crown Castle as Premier Pure-Play Tower Company Believes Crown Castle Can be Worth at Least $150 in the Next 18 Months if Board Takes Immediate Action to Restore Leadership and Prevent Further Erosion of Shareholder Value HOUSTON , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ted B. Miller , co-founder of Crown Castle Inc., (NYSE: CCI) ("Crown Castle" or the "Company") and his investment vehicle Boots Capital Management, LLC ("Boots Capital") today issued the following open letter to the Crown Castle Board of Directors (the "Board"), the Company's employees, and its shareholders: This is a crucial moment for Crown Castle, its shareholders and employees. It's why we have recommended a slate of four directors who we believe will make a valuable difference with their world class experience, skills and leadership. While the Board has undergone significant change in recent years, this turnover has still left it lacking directors who have the depth of tower operating and public-company CEO experience essential to drive the Company forward. A need for comprehensive leadership change was also put forth by Elliott Investment Management L.P. ("Elliott") in its November 27, 2023 letter to the Board. At long last, Crown Castle is, after prodding from Elliott, studying the fate of its fiber business. Bankers and lawyers have been hired to do their typical work. That work together with a detailed plan for a fiber sale and a rerating of Crown Castle stock has been completed by Boots and offered to the Company without response. But in our view the work does not stop there. Crown Castle is in dire need of a top-to-bottom reboot with trusted, long-term leadership. The Company needs a concrete plan for the fiber sale, and then an operational revival informed by people who live and breathe towers. We have devoted seven months to a vetted and detailed plan that we believe will create lasting value through a commitment to operational excellence. We shared this detailed plan with the Board during a 90-minute meeting in January. Not surprisingly since only one member of the Board has any experience as an executive of a tower business there were a very limited number of questions raised, even then primarily asked by advisors. Meanwhile, many shareholders have responded to our approach and nominees with the response: "Why wouldn't Crown Castle do this?" Our nominees provide unrivaled tower-industry experience and expertise and offer a critical operational complement to the academic, legal, telecom-services and asset-management background of the current Board. As a large shareholder, we expect the Board to have a laser focus on building shareholder value, rather than be involved in "clever" legal maneuvers such as the Cooperation Agreement with Elliott, which was hastily rewritten after we challenged it in court. That agreement is even under more scrutiny, after the Delaware Vice Chancellor hearing our case rejected a Company effort to delay the hearing of the case, saying last week that "there are colorable claims" to the way the Cooperation Agreement was struck. The court also said that the Company should give me advance notice to object should it hire a new CEO or sell the fiber unit. The court's order should be a sign to all involved in this expensive and distracting litigation: That enough is enough. It's time to stop being adversaries and work together to improve the Company and all shareholder prospects, as we've intended all along. To be clear: this is not "a trade" for me. I co-founded Crown Castle. I care deeply about the long-term success of the Company. And I am here for the long-term. With our plan, it's time to restore Crown Castle to its prominence as a pure-play tower company, and reestablish it as one of the most strategically important American companies. Outlined below are details about what our four highly qualified nominees intend to do and why our multi-pronged operating plan to improve Crown Castle is value enhancing. 1) Creating Value From the Fiber Sale Based on our analysis, since the decision was made to invest in fiber, we believe the unit has required $22 billion of capital and continues to consume over a billion in capital expenditures each year 2024 management guidance is $1.4 billion alone. The Board has announced that it is studying the possible sale of the fiber segment, and we also believe that the Board is weighing whether to sell the enterprise fiber business while retaining the small cells. We have spent seven months modeling every possible structure for a sale of fiber from an operational, financial and tax perspective. While the particulars of any transaction must be evaluated on their own merit, our work has given us a very clear point-of-view: there is much more value to be created by selling an estimated 75% interest in the entire fiber/small-cell portfolio, as it resets Crown Castle as a more capital-efficient tower operator. There is a role for small cells in our industry, but our modeling revealed Crown Castle would earn an underwhelming return on its capital on the current fiber/small cells business through at least 2050. A sale of the fiber business is essential for our intended value-creating path as a pure play tower company, with, in our view, a multiple of at least 25 times EBITDA compared to 18 times today. Moreover, if the Company can conclude a fiber sale in 2024, we believe more than $1 billion can be saved in tax efficiencies. The Board nonetheless has ignored our hundreds of pages of thorough analysis, which could be leveraged by its advisors instead of recreating the wheel, and elected not to work with us to evaluate the details of the $1 billion in potential value that could be saved in tax efficiencies. When it comes to executing the fiber sale, time is literally money. And this Board is burning both. We believe our carefully vetted approach creates the most value and best preserves a healthy, sustainable dividend. 2) Maintaining a Healthy, Sustainable Dividend The financials show that Crown Castle cannot support its current dividend trajectory while maintaining the small-cell buildout pace. In the last three years, Crown Castle has funded the dividend by incurring debt an approach that we do not believe is sustainable. We have a long-term plan not a short-term trading strategy to generate sustainable performance for all shareholders. Our approach will drive meaningful operational improvements to enhance margins, as outlined in our unredacted board presentation, which we released yesterday. Our plan protects the underlying health of the dividend and the absolute dividend amount itself. Specifically, our plan offers the Company optionality to pay a $4.62 dividend solely out of cash flow (as outlined in our presentation) or incur an estimated $1.3b of debt in total between now and 2029 and sustain the dividend at its current $6.26 level. This creates soundness and flexibility around the dividend, about which we will continue to take soundings from the shareholder base. Either way, we believe our plan would materially improve Crown Castle's cash flow dynamics. Our approach creates the most value and best preserves a healthy, sustainable dividend. With the fiber sale, we estimate this extra value to be an additional $40+ per share for Crown Castle shareholders. 3) Restoring Operational Excellence We have heard the question asked: Why do the shareholders need our slate if the Board has been recently reconstituted? Start with a simple number. Crown Castle has a 12-person Board, yet only one of its members includes a tower business in their resume. The Board's sum of towers-operating experience from one board member is just seven years. And only one current director has been a public company CEO of a bank. This is a $75 billion enterprise with virtually no senior leadership experience running either public or tower companies. Our director candidates have over 50 combined years of direct and unrivaled leadership in the towers space and have created billions of dollars of value for investors. Three of us were at the founding of the industry itself, and have remained involved for the 30 years since. That sounds like exactly what Elliott had in mind in its December letter to the Board: "How much more value destruction will this Board permit before finally taking action and changing the leadership of Crown Castle?" Yet, over the past several years, much of Crown Castle's executive management team has stepped down, including its former CEO, CFO, and EVP/COO of towers. This Company must urgently attract and retain leaders with the experience, vision and confidence to execute the operational changes and tower-focused innovation necessary for a better future. This need is all the more acute because of a brain drain that has persisted at towers since the fiber investments began. We believe this pattern of departures, coupled with the fact that the Board had no succession plan a primary obligation of any board and is still in the process of conducting its CEO search, reflects a lack of leadership and operational capability at the management level as well as the failure of the Board's overall strategic initiatives. Not all of Crown Castle's needed changes will be easy. Transformation must start from the top from Board leadership. And that Board requires leaders with credibility, operational expertise, and a strong vision for the future at a difficult moment like this. Crown Castle employees want to feel like they're understood, and customers want to know they're being listened to. As founder and a substantial shareholder, I have a special perch from which to drive a cultural and operational reawakening, yet the Board continues to refuse to meaningfully engage with us or our value enhancing proposal. We will keep fighting for our shareholders, employees, suppliers, customers and lenders, and for the future Crown Castle deserves. INVESTOR AND MEDIA CONTACTS Investors: Morrow Sodali LLC Paul Schulman / William Dooley / Jonathan Eyl By Phone: 1-800-662-5200 or 208-658-9400 By Email: [email protected] Media: Jonathan Gasthalter / Nathaniel Garnick / Grace Cartwright Gasthalter & Co. By Phone: 212-257-4170 By Email: [email protected] CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS The information herein contains "forward-looking statements." Specific forward-looking statements can be identified by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts and include, without limitation, words such as "may," "will," "expects," "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "targets," "forecasts," "seeks," "could," "should" or the negative of such terms or other variations on such terms or comparable terminology. Similarly, statements that describe the Participants' (as defined below) objectives, plans or goals are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties and assumptions. There can be no assurance that any idea or assumption herein is, or will be proven, correct. If one or more of the risks or uncertainties materialize, or if the underlying assumptions of Boots Capital (as defined below) or any of the other Participants in the proxy solicitation described herein prove to be incorrect, the actual results may vary materially from outcomes indicated by these statements. Accordingly, forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation by Boots Capital or the other Participants that the future plans, estimates or expectations contemplated will ever be achieved. You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results and actual results may vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. Except to the extent required by applicable law, neither Boots Capital nor any Participant will undertake and specifically declines any obligation to disclose the results of any revisions that may be made to any projected results or forward-looking statements herein to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such projected results or statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events. Certain statements and information included herein have been sourced from third parties. Boots Capital and the other Participants do not make any representations regarding the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of such third party statements or information. Except as may be expressly set forth herein, permission to cite such statements or information has neither been sought nor obtained from such third parties. Any such statements or information should not be viewed as an indication of support from such third parties for the views expressed herein. CERTAIN INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PARTICIPANTS Boots Capital and the other Participants (as defined below) intend to file a preliminary proxy statement and accompanying GOLD universal proxy card (the "Proxy Statement") with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") to be used to solicit proxies for, among other matters, the election of its slate of director nominees at the 2024 annual meeting of shareholders (the "2024 Annual Meeting") of Crown Castle Inc., a Delaware corporation ("Crown Castle" or the "Corporation"). The participants in the proxy solicitation are currently anticipated to be Boots Parallel 1, LP, Boots, LP (and together with Boots Parallel 1, LP, the "Boots Funds"), Boots Capital Management, LLC ("Boots Capital"), Boots GP, LLC ("Boots GP"), 4M Management Partners, LLC ("4M Management Partners"), 4M Investments, LLC ("4M Investments"), WRCB, L.P. ("WRCB"), Theodore B. Miller , Jr. and Tripp H. Rice (collectively, the "Boots Parties"); and Charles Campbell Green III and David P. Wheeler (together with Mr. Miller and Mr. Rice , the "Boots Nominees," and together with the Boots Parties, the "Participants"). Boots GP, as the general partner of each of the Boots Funds, and 4M Management Partners, as the investment advisor of each of the Boots Funds, may each be deemed to beneficially own interests in an aggregate of 784,009 shares of the Corporation's common stock, $0.01 par value (the "Common Stock") held in the Boots Funds (including interests in 182,997 shares of Common Stock underlying over-the-counter forward purchase contracts and interests in 601,012 shares of Common Stock underlying over-the-counter share option contracts). WRCB beneficially owns interests in 135 shares of Common Stock underlying a call option. Mr. Miller has direct ownership of 200 shares of Common Stock, which includes 100 shares of Common Stock held of record and 100 shares of Common Stock held of record as tenant in common with his wife. In addition, Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own interests in an aggregate of 784,716.958 shares of Common Stock (which includes interests in 784,009 shares of Common Stock held by the Boots Funds, which Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own as the President and managing member of 4M Management Partners and a Manager and the President of Boots GP, interests in 400 shares of Common Stock underlying call options owned beneficially and as a tenant in common with his wife, interests in 135 shares of Common Stock underlying a call option owned beneficially by WRCB, which Mr. Miller may be deemed to beneficially own as sole member of one of the general partners of WRCB, and 172.958 shares of Common Stock held through the Corporation's 401(k) Plan in the Crown Castle Stock Fund. Mr. Rice is the record holder of 100 shares of Common Stock and, as the Vice President of 4M Management Partners and a Manager and the Vice President of Boots GP, Mr. Rice may be deemed to beneficially own interests in 784,009 shares of Common Stock held by the Boots Funds. Mr. Green beneficially owns 1,736 shares of Common Stock in joint tenancy with his wife. All of the foregoing information is as of the date hereof unless otherwise disclosed. IMPORTANT INFORMATION AND WHERE TO FIND IT BOOTS CAPITAL STRONGLY ADVISES ALL SHAREHOLDERS OF CROWN CASTLE TO READ THE PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT, ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS TO SUCH PROXY STATEMENT, THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT, AS WELL AS PROXY MATERIALS FILED BY CROWN CASTLE AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. SUCH PROXY MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE ON THE SEC'S WEBSITE AT WWW.SEC.GOV. IN ADDITION, THE PARTICIPANTS IN THIS PROXY SOLICITATION WILL PROVIDE COPIES OF THE PROXY STATEMENT WITHOUT CHARGE, WHEN AVAILABLE, UPON REQUEST. REQUESTS FOR COPIES SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO THE PARTICIPANTS' PROXY SOLICITOR. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/crown-castle-deserves-better-an-open-letter-to-shareholders-from-crown-castle-co-founder-ted-b-miller-302088656.html SOURCE Boots Capital Management, LLC This Limited Time Offering joins the Canadian Whisky Brand's flavor portfolio alongside Regal Apple, Peach, Salted Caramel, and Vanilla Just In Time for Spring NEW YORK , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian whisky brand and leader in flavored offerings, Crown Royal, has officially announced its highly anticipated limited edition release of Blackberry Flavored Whisky. This new liquid is the perfect addition to the brand's flavor portfolio for spring and summer and has already taken social media by storm with consumers +21 sharing their love for the new flavor and exploring their own cocktail innovations. Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9255751-crown-royal-limited-edition-release-of-blackberry-flavored-whisky/ To create this extraordinary blend, Crown Royal whiskies were carefully selected by the brand's master blender and infused with the juicy flavor of fresh blackberries. The harmonious notes of this summer fruit complement the signature richness of Crown Royal Blended Whisky. The result is a vibrantly delicious whisky, bursting with the luscious flavor of blackberry and the distinctive smoothness of Crown Royal. On the nose, aromas of sweet blackberry sauce with a dash of whisky complement vanilla balanced with a cooked and slightly tart blackberry taste. This expression leaves you with hints of creamy vanilla and caramel, reminiscent of a blackberry crumble. "Crown Royal has always led through an innovative approach to whisky, pushing boundaries to deliver exceptional and exciting flavor profiles to consumers. Our newest addition, Crown Royal Blackberry Flavored Whisky, is no exception to this rule." says Jesse Damashek , Sr. Vice President North American Whiskeys at Diageo. "This new whisky is a testament to our dedication to innovation, as we aim to cater to the evolving preferences of loyal Crown drinkers and spirit connoisseurs alike. I am thrilled to see the enthusiasm and excitement from consumers as they embrace this delicious addition to our lineup." Crown Royal Blackberry Flavored Whisky stands out as a versatile blend, showcasing its adaptability across various hosting occasions. The brand emphasizes this versatility through its four recommended cocktails - Royal Blackberry Lemonade, their signature serve that perfectly balances the sweetness of blackberries with a burst of lemon, Crown Royal Blackberry Bramble, Crown Blackberry Collins, and a Royal Blackberry Mojito. Each of these serves is a modern take on classic cocktails, illustrating the whisky's ability to reinterpret familiar favorites . Whether it's a lively country outdoor gathering that calls for a Crown Royal Blackberry Bramble or a laid-back summer pool-party soiree fit for a cold Crown Blackberry Collins, Blackberry Flavored Whisky ensures a diverse range of juicy flavors to suit every hosting need. With Royal Blackberry Lemonade already becoming the drink of the summer, this one-time limited offering is rolling out nationwide with a suggested retail value of $26.99 . Crown Royal invites everyone 21+ to a flavor-filled journey this summer. Please remember to drink responsibly. About Crown Royal Crown Royal Canadian Whisky is the number-one selling Canadian whisky brand in the world and has a tradition as long and distinctive as its taste. Specially blended to commemorate a grand tour of Canada made by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain in 1939, Crown Royal's smooth, elegant flavor and gift-worthy presentation reflect its regal origins it is considered the epitome of Canadian whisky. For more information, visit crownroyal.com. Crown Royal encourages all consumers to please enjoy responsibly. About Diageo North America Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker , Crown Royal, Bulleit and Buchanan's whiskies, Smirnoff, Ciroc and Ketel One vodkas, Casamigos, DeLeon and Don Julio tequilas, Captain Morgan , Baileys, Tanqueray and Guinness.Diageo is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DEO) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: DGE) and their products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information about Diageo, their people, brands, and performance, visit diageo.com. Visit Diageo's global responsible drinking resource, DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice. Follow on Twitter and Instagram for news and information about Diageo North America: @Diageo_NA. MEDIA CONTACTS: Jazmine Settles DIAGEO [email protected] TAYLOR [email protected] View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/crown-royal-launches-highly-anticipated-flavor-innovation-crown-royal-blackberry-flavored-whisky-302088254.html SOURCE Crown Royal CLEVELAND , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Encore Clinical Holdings Corp is thrilled to announce the acquisition of Primus Wound Care, marking a significant expansion in its services, and establishing itself as the largest provider of wound care in Ohio . This strategic acquisition not only expands Encore Clinical Holdings' footprint but also significantly increases the volume of patients served, with providers now seeing an average of 6,000 wounds per week across Ohio and Pennsylvania . The acquisition of Primus Wound Care further expands their innovative, technology-driven model, offering benefits such as cost savings for facilities and patients, maintaining facility census, improving patient outcomes through clinical stewardship, and providing accurate documentation for reimbursement purposes. Primus Wound Care, founded by Dan Borison , has been recognized for its outstanding team of clinicians and management, who are committed to delivering exceptional care and results. This acquisition aligns with Encore Clinical Holdings' mission to provide superior outcomes for patients and enhance the services offered to facility partners. Neall French , a shareholder at Encore Holdings Corp, expressed his enthusiasm for the acquisition, stating, "Primus Wound Care founder Dan Borison built a great company, whose greatest asset is a tremendous team of Clinicians, and exceptional operators at the management level. We have the team and resources in place to bring superior outcomes and results to our patients and facility partners." This acquisition represents a landmark moment for Encore Clinical Holdings Corp, reinforcing its commitment and mission to delivering high-quality wound care and expanding its services to meet the growing needs of patients across Ohio and Pennsylvania and beyond. About Encore Wound Care Encore Wound Care offers a diverse team of Advanced Practice Providers dedicated to addressing the specific needs of long-term care patients. With a focus on clinical expertise and a commitment to evidence-based practices, we drive exceptional patient outcomes and enhance their quality of life. Our understanding of long-term care regulations provides an added layer of clinical support for patients with complex medical needs. CONTACT: ENCORE HOLDINGS CORP. Craig Waters , Chief Financial Officer O: (440)652-8748 [email protected] www.encoreclinicalservices.com View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/encore-clinical-holdings-corp-acquires-primus-wound-care-becoming-the-largest-wound-care-provider-in-ohio-302088388.html SOURCE Encore Clinical Services The portfolio is one of the largest solar energy and storage portfolios on a K-12 school district property in California FRESNO, Calif. , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Fresno Unified School District today celebrated the completion of a 17.5 MW districtwide solar energy and storage portfolio with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Hoover High School. Developed in partnership with ForeFront Power, a leading developer and asset manager of commercial and industrial-scale solar energy and storage projects, the Fresno Unified solar portfolio is expected to save the District over $40 million throughout the 20-year lifespan of the system. Now completed, the Fresno Unified portfolio includes 40 different projects with solar canopies and energy storage systems across 31 district sites, representing one of the largest K-12 solar and battery storage portfolios in California . The labor used on the projects in the Fresno USD portfolio came from contracting services based out of the Fresno region, creating 56 new local jobs in the process. The 17.5 MW solar portfolio will generate 23.5 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of clean, renewable electricity. This energy output is enough to power the annual electricity usage of over 3,000 nearby homes and will help the District offset over 18,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually, which is roughly equivalent to taking 3,600 cars off the road each year. "This solar energy and battery storage portfolio demonstrates our district's dedication to building a more resilient future for our students and the communities we serve," said Fresno Unified Superintendent Bob Nelson . "By upgrading our campuses with innovative, clean energy solutions, we're unlocking new cost savings that can be redirected back into the classroom, to enhance the quality of learning for our students." Through its partnership with ForeFront Power, the District has access to a real-time performance monitoring platform, allowing district officials to create reports and visualize related environmental offsets and savings. The partnership also includes customizable renewable energy curriculum support that enhances STEM education programs for Fresno Unified students. "ForeFront Power takes care of every aspect of solar energy solutions for our partner school districts like Fresno Unified," said Nate Smith-Ide , Senior Sales Manager at ForeFront Power. "We want to give public school districts an alternative to expensive, unpredictable energy expenditures with guaranteed performance and low costs from renewable energy solutions." ForeFront Power implemented smart battery storage systems that complement the District's solar canopies, kicking in during moments of maximum electricity usage to minimize the impact of peak charges from the utility. The result is electricity costs that are lower than with a solar project alone. Fresno Unified selected ForeFront Power via the Renewable Energy Aggregated Procurement (REAP) Program offered by SPURR. SPURR, a Joint Powers Authority of hundreds of public education agencies, uses competitive solicitations, aggregated buying power, and technical expertise to obtain excellent pricing and terms for utilities-related goods and services. The REAP Program allows any California public agency to obtain the best solar and energy storage pricing and terms from a competitive statewide solicitation. Over 50 California public agencies have used REAP to develop hundreds of megawatts of solar and storage projects to date. About Fresno Unified School District Fresno Unified School District serves over 73,000 students, from preschool through grade 12, helping students achieve their greatest potential through high-quality instruction, district programs and services, and resources. The district is the third largest in California . About ForeFront Power ForeFront Power is a leading developer of community solar and commercial- and industrial-scale (C&I) solar energy and battery storage projects in the U.S. and Mexico , also offering vehicle fleet electrification services. Over 15 years of working together, the ForeFront Power team has developed more than 1,500 behind-the-meter and community solar projects, totaling more than 1.1 gigawatt-DC of renewable electricity. ForeFront Power serves business, government, education, healthcare and community solar customers with a broad array of development, asset management and advisory services from its San Francisco headquarters and via teams based in New York , Mexico City , and across the U.S. through a hybrid work model. A wholly owned subsidiary of global energy infrastructure and investment leader Mitsui & Co. Ltd., ForeFront Power operates under Mitsui's North American investment arm, MyPower Corp. Mitsui holds a robust balance sheet and an "A" credit rating from Standard & Poor's. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fresno-unified-school-district-and-forefront-power-complete-a-17-5-mw-solar-energy-and-storage-portfolio-302087783.html SOURCE Forefront Power SAN FRANCISCO , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Adyen , the global financial technology platform of choice for leading businesses, has signed a new sublease to a 150,000-square-foot office building at 505 Brannan Street . The lease will extend through December 2032 , subject to all appropriate regulatory approvals, and Adyen's offices will span all six floors of the building. This new office will provide a vibrant commercial and tech hub for the company's San Francisco team of more than 300 employees. The space is thoughtfully designed to foster collaboration, innovation, and a positive work environment. It is also strategically located in close proximity to many of Adyen's North American clients that are also based in San Francisco . "We're proud to expand our footprint in San Francisco as a dedicated member of the local business community," said Davi Strazza , president of North America , Adyen. "We've been investing in North America for over a decade, and this lease represents our future ambitions and growth in the market. We're honored to work with so many leading U.S. companies, including McDonald's, Microsoft, Uber and Etsy, and look forward to bringing our best-in-class fintech platform to even more organizations." San Francisco serves as Adyen's North American headquarters, and the company has significant presences in Chicago , New York and Toronto . As reported in Adyen's latest half-year results, North America was the company's fastest growing region, with net revenues up 27% year on year. Adyen opened its first San Francisco office in 2012 with a diverse, international team and has continued to steadily increase its presence ever since. Recently, Adyen was named as one of Built In's Best Places to Work in San Francisco . About Adyen Adyen (AMS: ADYEN) is the financial technology platform of choice for leading companies. By providing end-to-end payments capabilities, data-driven insights, and financial products in a single global solution, Adyen helps businesses achieve their ambitions faster. With offices around the world, Adyen works with the likes of Meta, Uber, H&M, eBay, and Microsoft. For more information, visit Adyen.com. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fueled-by-growth-global-fintech-adyen-doubles-down-on-north-american-presence-with-new-150-000-square-foot-office-in-downtown-san-francisco-302088362.html SOURCE Adyen Davyd Arakhamia, the chairman of the ruling party's Servant of the People faction in Ukraine, referred to the Georgian government as pro-Kremlin.Arakhamia responded to the March 11 statement from Georgian Dream, in which the government expressed concern about the Ukrainian government's 'attitude' towards Georgia.The case pertains to the presence of Zurab Adeishvili, former Minister of Justice and former Prosecutor General of Georgia, in Ukraine's official delegation during visits to the European Union and Germany."The pro-Kremlinist government of Georgia is making certain demands regarding the extradition of our citizens 'in order to normalize relations'.If we are truly discussing 'normalization', then the plan is as follows: Release our citizen, Mikheil Saakashvili, from prison and return him to Ukraine; Stop direct flights with the Russian Federation, as demanded by the Georgian people themselves; Stop assisting the aggressor in evading sanctions. Then relations will be easily normalized," Arakhamia wrote.Mamuka Mdinaradze responded to Davyd Arakhamia, one of the leaders of Ukraine's ruling party, alleging that Arakhamia's attitudes towards Georgia are hostile."It is very good that flights to Russia have been restored because it helps a lot of people to move and also promotes the arrival of tourists. That they want to impose sanctions, stop air traffic, and destroy Georgia's economy is nothing new.One request is very speculative, very bad, and pertains to the criminal Saakashvili. The second concerns harming Georgian citizens, and the third demand is a blatant lie. There is no need to comment further. Arakhamia's attitude is a continuation of this unfriendly stance, which indicates not only unfriendliness but also hostility," Mdinaradze stated. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. In recent years, geopolitical shifts in the Eurasian region and the necessity to adapt to the world's new energy policy have prompted governments to take new initiatives, Trend reports. While discussions regarding the transition to new-generation energy are underway, the majority of the world continues to rely on natural gas to meet its energy demands. Hence, gas projects, particularly those aligned with the evolving geopolitical landscape, retain their relevance. Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed setting up a gas hub in Turkiye, in 2022. The Turkish government responded positively to the plan, instituting legal changes in 2023 to assist in the operation of the gas hub. During the summer, Russia proposed a blueprint for the hub project to Turkiye. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reaffirmed Turkiye's interest in the project in his post-election victory speech. Turkiye mostly meets its natural gas demands with gas imported from Azerbaijan via Russia and the Southern Gas Corridor. Russia, which has ample resources, hopes to keep its position as a key gas hub supplier and influential voice in energy markets by launching this project. This project allows Turkiye to acquire gas from Azerbaijan and Iran in addition to Russia. Thus, Turkiye can purchase 10 billion cubic meters of gas from Iran via the Tengiz-Ankara gas pipeline. On the other hand, it should be noted that Turkiye has significant advantages in terms of establishing a regional gas hub, including underground gas storage facilities, two liquefied gas terminals, and ready infrastructure for gas transportation from the main sources (pipelines). Turkiye's gas network One key area of interest is the potential likelihood of future gas exports from Turkmenistan via Turkiye. Turkmenistan has the world's fourth-largest natural gas reserves, behind Qatar, Iran, and Russia. Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, Chairman of Turkmenistan's People's Council, recently indicated at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum that Turkmenistan is preparing for membership in the Organization of Turkic States (OTS), indicating that relations with Turkic nations will strengthen in a variety of areas. Gas projects are unquestionably a key emphasis in this regard. Despite China being the largest consumer of Turkmen gas, Turkmenistan's huge resources make it an important country for both the region and Europe, which is in desperate need of gas. Turkmenistan is also involved in the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) Gas Pipeline project, albeit its completion has been delayed. The idea of building a Trans-Caspian gas pipeline to transport Central Asian resources, particularly Turkmen gas, to Europe was first proposed in 1997. Unfortunately, it has stayed in the debating stage for many years, with little progress. Turkmenistan's gas network The evolving geopolitical landscape in recent years underscores the significance of new projects. Therefore, a crucial consideration is which route Turkmenistan will select at the new gas hub to transport its natural gas reserves to Europe. Two primary directions are at play here: one aligned with the West and the other with the East. Turkmenistan may opt to join the same gas hub as Turkiye and Azerbaijan, thereby selecting the European, or Western, trajectory. Alternatively, it could choose the eastern trajectory, sharing a common position at the gas hub with Russia and Iran. Situated at a crucial strategic juncture, Azerbaijan will also join the collaborative gas hub alongside Iran and Russia. Since April 2022, Azerbaijan has been importing natural gas from Turkmenistan, following a swap agreement concluded by the leaders of Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Iran at the end of 2021. Per the agreement, Turkmen gas is imported to northeastern Iran, and in return, an equivalent amount of gas is conveyed to Azerbaijan in the northwest. However, as per a statement from the Iranian side, gas supplies under the swap agreement have been temporarily halted since the beginning of 2024. Currently, negotiations are underway between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to resume gas supplies based on new tariffs. In late 2023, Turkmenistan expressed readiness to initiate a natural gas infrastructure project connecting Central Asia and the South Caucasus to Europe via Turkiye. On March 5, 2024, an agreement on cooperation in the gas sector between Turkmenistan and Turkiye was signed at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum. According to the agreement, Turkmen gas will be transported to Europe through Turkiye. There are three primary options for transporting natural gas to Europe: first, through Iran to Turkiye using the swap method; second, via swap through Iran and Azerbaijan to Turkiye; and third, by pipeline through the Caspian Sea to Turkiye. Therefore, the present scenario indicates that regardless of the direction in which Central Asia, particularly Turkmenistan, with its abundant gas reserves, opts to diversify its gas policy, the members of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) will hold a pivotal role in Eurasia's energy supply. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel HALIFAX, NS , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Global Spatial Technology Solutions ("GSTS" or "the Company") announced that it has been awarded a contract by Canada 's Ocean Supercluster's Core Technology Leadership Program to advance the capabilities of its proprietary, AI powered SaaS platform, OCIANA. This award enables GSTS to further develop and implement a predictive, dynamic Berth Schedule Management System which will facilitate digital collaboration and enhance global supply chain efficiency through reduced vessel emissions and fuel use. Working in partnership with leading maritime innovators including Canada Steamship Lines, Montreal Port Authority, Laurentian Pilotage Authority and Clear Seas, OCIANA's latest capability will streamline vessel berthing through AI Predictive Analytics to support Just-in-Time Arrivals (JIT). OCIANA's Berth Schedule Management System will connect ships, pilotage authorities and ports to support Green Digital Shipping Corridors and environmental protection thus promoting the overall efficiency of the maritime supply chain. "We are extremely pleased to continue to work with our valued customers and innovation partners", said Richard Kolacz, Chief Executive Officer, GSTS. "On a daily basis we see events that have an impact on vessel routing and schedules. These include the Red Sea Crisis, Panama Canal issues, weather events, like hurricanes and labour events such as strikes. OCIANA's novel capability will allow vessels to respond to events and identify optimal routes and arrival times by coordinating with ports and pilotage authorities thereby reducing emissions, fuel use and transport costs." This initiative will thus deliver the world's first dynamic, fully collaborative, integrated, Berth Schedule Management System, equivalent to air traffic control for ships and ports. "As the first shipowner to participate in the Ocean Supercluster project, we are excited to support GSTS' development of the OCIANA platform," said Jean Fahmy , Vice President - Digital, Canada Steamship Lines. "By contributing real-time data from our Canadian fleet, we aim to help advance efforts to leverage artificial intelligence to support decarbonization in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway by optimizing Just-in-Time routing and voyage ETAs." "We are particularly proud of the work accomplished by our multidisciplinary team, in close collaboration with GSTS. This collaborative effort has resulted in a significant advance in port management. I congratulate the multidisciplinary team of experts in information technology, the environment, research, and port operations management, who worked together at every stage of the project to create a collaborative platform dedicated to dock occupancy management," said Julie Gascon , Chief Executive Officer, Montreal Port Authority. "Our approach began with the aim of improving the predictability of ship arrivals at the port, and then expanded to integrate the operational needs of stakeholders on the ground. This approach enabled us to develop an innovative tool that facilitates collaboration among all stakeholders, with the goal of optimizing the entire supply chain and the efficiency of maritime trade corridors," she added. "The Laurentian Pilotage Authority is pleased to join GSTS and the Ocean Supercluster project and thus contribute to the protection of the environment on the waters under its jurisdiction," said Marc-Yves Bertin , Chief Executive Officer, Laurentian Pilotage Authority. "This initiative is directly in line with the Authority's mission to provide a safe, effective, and efficient pilotage service with strong willingness to protecting human health, property and the environment, by innovating and using state-of-the-art technology that will improve the fluidity of the supply chain." "Clear Seas is excited to collaborate on this new initiative to develop a more efficient and intelligent maritime system in Canada ", said Paul Blomerus , Executive Director, Clear Seas. "Better information leads to better decisions, enabling marine shipping to continue its critical role in the supply chain while reducing its impact on the ocean." With the development of this capability, GSTS will further enhance its leading position in the global maritime transportation industry, providing next generation advancement that will create competitive advantage for national and international customers across ports, shipping lines and terminal operators. OCIANATM is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform that provides maritime vessel and port optimisation as well as maritime risk management solutions for the global maritime market. The AI platform ingests a wide range of operational and oceanographic data sets and through proprietary analysis, supports decision making related to the safe and efficient movement of people and goods on all of the world's waterways. About Us GSTS: Global Spatial Technology Solutions (GSTS) is a global maritime intelligence company delivering solutions to enhance decision making across the maritime and logistics industry. Our predictive solutions are enabled by a range of operational, environmental, vessel and cargo data to provide real-time decision making intelligence for ports, terminal operators, shipping lines, logistics companies, importers, exporters, national and international agencies as well as security organisations. For more information and to explore opportunities to join our consortium, contact us today. CSL: The CSL Group is a world-leading provider of marine dry bulk cargo handling and delivering services. CSL owns and operates a highly diversified fleet of specialized self-unloading vessels, offshore transhippers and handy-size bulk carriers, and delivers more than 78 million tonnes of cargo to industrial customers annually. MPA: Montreal Port Authority is a hub for international trade that contributes to the economic development of Canada . It does everything in its power to put innovation, sustainable development, and collaboration at the heart of its business processes. Their missions is to build together a more resilient, smarter and sustainable marine corridor. LPA: The Laurentian Pilotage Authority, a federal Crown corporation created in 1972, is responsible for establishing, managing and providing marine pilotage services as well as related services in the Laurentian region waters, notably in the Gulf of St. Lawrence , the St. Lawrence River and the Saguenay River . The LPA monitors navigation manages regulations and provides services for three pilotage districts that cover a distance of 265 nautical miles between Montreal and Les Escoumins and another 70 nautical miles on the Saguenay River . Clear Seas: Clear Seas Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping was established in 2014 after extensive discussions among government, industry, environmental organizations, Indigenous Peoples and coastal communities revealed a need for impartial information about the Canadian marine shipping industry. It provides impartial information on marine shipping in Canada to policy makers and the public. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gsts-selected-by-canadas-ocean-supercluster-to-develop-worlds-first-ai-based-collaborative-predictive-berth-schedule-management-system-302088351.html SOURCE GLOBAL SPATIAL TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS INC. (GSTS) NEW YORK , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Jukebox Health , the premier national provider of clinically-led home modifications, proudly announces a strategic investment from Home Depot Ventures. This investment marks a significant stride toward making affordable and accessible housing a reality for people aging in place across the country. As an unprecedented 10,000 people turn 65 every day, America faces a considerable challenge only 6% of homes are designed to support safe, independent aging. Unsafe housing leads to falls, reliance on caregivers, and even relocation to institutional living. Amidst a growing population and rising costs, the burden to the healthcare system is already approaching $100B per year. Jukebox Health addresses this complex problem by bringing together its national networks of vetted occupational therapists and contractors. After visiting a patient's home, clinicians present their recommendations on the company's digital home modification platform. Patients and their families can make decisions and view sponsorship from their insurance company before dispatching one of the company's local installation partners to complete the work. "We are incredibly excited to have Home Depot Ventures as a strategic investor. Having the largest brand in home improvement validate our mission speaks to just how important and universal the issue of aging in place has become," said Romanos Fessas , CEO of Jukebox Health. "Together, we are poised to make a lasting impact on the healthcare and home improvement landscape, ensuring individuals can age at home with dignity and independence." This investment will support Jukebox Health and its innovative work to make independent living available to as many people as possible. With customers in 38 states and counting, the company is tackling the enormous challenge facing all Americans the US must modify 30 million homes to keep pace with its aging population. The team is committed to reshaping the landscape of home modifications, ensuring that homes across the nation become safe and accessible for everyone. About Jukebox Health Jukebox Health helps older adults and high-need populations thrive in their homes with clinically-led home modifications and comprehensive environmental services. The company partners with payers and at-risk providers, leveraging its technology platform and national networks of vetted occupational therapists, accessibility product suppliers, and installers. The company was founded in 2020 by experienced entrepreneurs who have built businesses acquired by Angie's List, Anthem, and Softbank and backed by The Home Depot, Primary Ventures, Mosaic General Partnership, and Meridian Street Capital. For more information on Jukebox Health, visit https://jukeboxhealth.com/ . Media Contacts: Allison Del Fium Head of Marketing [email protected] View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jukebox-health-announces-investment-from-home-depot-ventures-to-move-home-improvement-innovation-forward-for-aging-americans-302088433.html SOURCE Jukebox Health KANSAS CITY, Mo. , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, The Rabbit hOle, a multi-sensory, literary wonderland more than eight years in the making, has opened to the public. Located in a 100-year-old warehouse in North Kansas City, Missouri , The Rabbit hOle will provide visitors of all ages with radically immersive experiences featuring beloved books, including Goodnight Moon, Last Stop on Market Street , Madeline, Strega Nona, Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters, Frog and Toad Together and many more. While The Rabbit hOle will never be "finished," continually adding exhibits and expanding into additional floors of its four-story, 150,000 sq. ft. building, reaching this milestone has required multiple phases of construction and fundraising, with The Rabbit hOle itself assembling an in-house team of more than two dozen staff to design and build all of its exhibits. "Most museums hire an external company to create their exhibits," said co-founder Pete Cowdin . "Because of the responsibility we have to the authors, illustrators, and estates whose work we are creating experiences around, we have invested in a growing team of nearly two dozen artists and fabricators to bring more than a century of children's books to life." Whether a tiger carousel inspired by Sam and the Tigers or the dragon from My Father's Dragon flying around the first floor's grand staircase, The Rabbit hOle's team has realized a wide range of exhibit elements and required an equally imaginative architecture partner, which it found in Multistudio. The national design studio has been a proud partner of The Rabbit hOle since 2018 and has been instrumental in helping The Rabbit hOle transform the site from warehouse to wonderland. "We asked for a lot of considerations, back-and-forth, and problem-solving that were outside the norm," said co-founder Deb Pettid . "Multistudio has been a patient and creative partner in helping us realize an unprecedented architectural space to match our unique vision for the museum's exhibits and bespoke programming areas." Alongside its exhibits, The Rabbit hOle will also include a full-service bookstore, print shop, story lab, maker space, resource library, and discovery gallery. These areas will offer a variety of arts and literature-based programming, professional development workshops for educators, field trips, and special events with authors and illustrators from around the country. "Access to literary resources and experiences should be fundamental to every community," said Robert Riccardi , Principal at Multistudio. "The Rabbit hOle will have a profound impact on our city. Our team has been thrilled to help execute the vision of Deb Pettid and Pete Cowdin ." Uniting book lovers, literacy advocates, writers, artists, and educators, The Rabbit hOle will transform Kansas City into a national epicenter celebrating the history and culture of children's literature. "The Rabbit hOle is a singular destination that'll be spoken of as near-legend on local playgrounds and shared between the young-at-heart as a you've-gotta-go-there experiencea recommendation passed between friends like a gift," said Jay Holley , Vice President at Multistudio. "It's been immensely rewarding to help the artists inside the hOle realize this museum of children's literature in North Kansas City that's sure to surprise, delight, and educate visitors of all ages." For media inquiries, please contact: Katie Breest , AgencyPR at [email protected]. Images can be downloaded here. Credit images to "Rabbit hOle Multistudio". View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kansas-city-unveils-immersive-museum-and-national-center-dedicated-to-childrens-literature-302087079.html SOURCE Multistudio WASHINGTON , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA selected the first winners of the agency's Space Tech Catalyst prize to expand engagement with underrepresented and diverse individuals in the space technology sector as part of the agency's broader commitment to inclusivity and collaboration. The winners are receiving $25,000 each to create more inclusive space technology ecosystems. "As NASA continues to explore the unknown, making the impossible possible, we are committed to engaging talents from all backgrounds to advance exploration," said Shahra Lambert , NASA senior advisor for engagement. "By providing funding to this space technology community, NASA is ensuring the Artemis Generation will have the necessary tools to expand humanity's reach." Winning individuals and organizations demonstrate the best collaboration practices with diverse researchers, technologists, and entrepreneurs. The champions also bring effective strategies that contribute to NASA's ongoing efforts to develop a representative space technology landscape, while enhancing its ability to find creative solutions to technical challenges. The winners are: Caitlin O'Brien , SciAccess, Inc. , Zainab Abbas , SciTech@U , SciTech@U Bahiy Watson, The 1881 Institute Amber Imai-Hong , Mahina Aerospace , Marta Miletic , San Diego State University , Felecia Brown , NorthStar of GIS , of GIS Diego Sandoval , Cyncrocity , Cyncrocity Arif Rahman , Hawaii Pacific University , Sierra Brown Denise Thorsen , University of Alaska Fairbanks , Joshua Neubert , Institute of Competition Sciences , Madison Feehan , Space Copy, Inc. , Johnie Turnage , Black Tech Saturdays , Black Tech Saturdays Athip Thirupathi Raj, University of Arizona SpaceTREx Lab Janeya Griffin , Equity Space Alliance, Inc. , Annika Rollock , Aurelia Institute , M. von Nkosi , Institute for Local Innovations, Inc. , Joseph Grant , New Generation Solutions SST , New Generation Solutions SST Sambit Bhattacharya , Fayetteville State University , Dalia David , Honest Eating, LLC Each winner was selected for proving their ability to engage and develop underrepresented groups in space technology development, broaden NASA's outreach efforts to diverse sources of developers, and build a community of emerging innovators equipped to compete for the agency's technology development opportunities. "We are proud to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of these exceptional individuals and organizations leading the way in building an inclusive community in space technology for the benefit of humanity," said Denna Lambert , inclusive innovation team lead, Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) at NASA Headquarters in Washington . "Their dedication and success in engaging underrepresented groups will undoubtedly inspire others to join us in advancing the frontiers of space exploration and innovation." To increase collaboration between NASA and its community partners, each winner will attend an in-person event at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland . Representatives from NASA and the winning organizations will participate in community-building activities to emphasize knowledge sharing, increase awareness of NASA's competitive research and development environment, and expand the agency's reach into diverse innovator communities. The Space Tech Catalyst Prize, funded by STMD, is part of a commitment to expand NASA's network of competitive proposers and enhance engagement approaches. For more information, visit: https://www.spacetechcatalystprize.org/ View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nasas-space-tech-prize-bolsters-diversity-inclusivity-champions-302088510.html SOURCE NASA Latest round includes investments from Mitsubishi Electric and Schneider Electric; spotlights demand for an OT/IoT security platform that supports heterogeneous operating environments SAN FRANCISCO , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nozomi Networks Inc. , the worldwide leader in OT and IoT security, today announced a $100 million Series E funding round to help accelerate innovative cyber defenses and expand cost-efficient go-to-market expansion globally. This latest round includes investments from Mitsubishi Electric, a global leader in digital manufacturing, electronics and electrical equipment and Schneider Electric, a global leader in digital automation and energy management. They join a growing list of OT original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) who have invested in Nozomi Networks, including previous investors Honeywell and Johnson Controls. "As we meet with customers around the world, the reality is that they operate highly heterogeneous environments and are looking for a security platform that can effectively defend those environments," said Edgard Capdevielle , President and CEO of Nozomi Networks. "This investment clearly underscores the need and support for OEM-agnostic security solutions in light of today's escalating attacks against critical infrastructure around the world." The company will use this latest investment to help scale product development efforts as well as its go-to-market approach globally. With criminal and nation-state cyber threats to industrial and critical infrastructure on the rise, the need for Nozomi Networks solutions has never been greater. At the same time, recent consolidation in the OT and IoT security space is driving a new need for full-featured solutions that aren't limited to single-vendor support, but rather are able to holistically address the cybersecurity requirements of the vast majority of industrial and critical infrastructure organizations who must protect complex, multi-vendor environments. "With the increasing risk of cyber threats facing critical infrastructure owners everywhere, now is not the time to compromise on cybersecurity," said Barbara Frei-Spreiter , Executive Vice President of Industrial Automation, Schneider Electric. "As a partner of Nozomi Networks, we have collaborated over the years to provide customers with cybersecurity solutions and services that help them to control, prevent and mitigate risks to their operations. This investment speaks to ensuring the market has access to robust cybersecurity solutions that can scale without compromise across heterogeneous industrial and critical infrastructure environments and reinforces the importance of interoperability across systems and vendors." "There's never been a more important time to invest in critical infrastructure cybersecurity, and Nozomi Networks stands out globally as a leading supplier in that segment," said Satoshi Takeda , Chief Digital Officer , Mitsubishi Electric. "Nozomi Networks' unique R&D model and ability to innovate and scale quickly sets them apart. Customers and partners all rely on Nozomi Networks' expertise and constantly advancing technology to secure the industrial infrastructure that runs the world." Nozomi Networks customers benefit from the company's broad industry support from the OT and IoT OEM community, with existing partnerships with ABB, Emerson, GE Vernova (formerly GE Power and GE Renewable Energy), Hitachi Energy, Honeywell, Johnson Controls, Mitsubishi Electric, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Schneider Electric, Siemens, and Yokogawa. These partnerships enable Nozomi Networks to provide superior support for customers' heterogeneous operating environments. This round is the latest in a series of milestones for the company, including: A decade of innovation in OT and IoT cybersecurity including the recent launch of the industry's first multi-spectrum wireless security sensor in OT and IoT cybersecurity including the recent launch of the industry's first More than 105 million OT, IoT and IT devices protected worldwide 12,000+ installations spanning six continents 5x organic growth in ARR since launching its flagship Vantage product in 2021 More than 2,000 Certified Nozomi Networks Engineers worldwide Mitsubishi Electric and Schneider Electric join a distinguished list of Nozomi Networks investors, including prior investors Activate Capital, Energize Capital, Forward Investments, GGV Capital U.S., Honeywell Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Johnson Controls, Keysight Technologies, Lux Capital, Planven Investments SA, Samsung, Porsche Ventures, Telefonica Ventures, and Triangle Peak Partners. About Nozomi Networks Nozomi Networks protects the world's critical infrastructure from cyber threats. Our platform uniquely combines network and endpoint visibility, threat detection, and AI-powered analysis for faster, more effective incident response. Customers rely on us to minimize risk and complexity while maximizing operational resilience. www.nozominetworks.com Read the Nozomi Networks Blog Follow Nozomi Networks on Twitter and LinkedIn View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nozomi-networks-secures-100-million-investment-to-accelerate-mission-to-defend-the-worlds-critical-infrastructure-from-cyber-threats-302087580.html SOURCE Nozomi Networks Celebrating a Legacy of Compassionate Leadership and Employee Empowerment KINSTON, N.C. , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Principle LTC proudly announces Lynn M. Hood , CEO & President, as this year's Lifetime Achievement Award recipient in the McKnight's Women of Distinction program. Lynn's exceptional contributions to the skilled nursing facility industry over her lengthy career have earned her this prestigious recognition. Lynn's career journey is marked by resilience and compassion, from her early experiences as an emergency medical technician to her impactful leadership in healthcare crises like the Haitian earthquake of 2010. As CEO of Principle LTC, Lynn not only prioritizes staff support and retention but also fosters meaningful connections within the organization, creating pathways for personal and professional growth. With a deep commitment to diversity and inclusion, Lynn champions initiatives that empower women leaders and cultivate a culture of kindness and respect. Her advocacy efforts and innovative programs, such as Principle Cares and Principle Educates, underscore her dedication to the well-being of both staff and residents. Lynn's leadership philosophy, rooted in people-first principles, serves as an inspiration to colleagues and industry professionals alike. During the pandemic's onset, she took proactive steps to establish Special Care Units focusing on centralizing resources and expertise to treat infected patients. Through her leadership, these units provided access to life-saving therapies and critical care, ultimately saving lives and minimizing the spread of COVID-19. As Lynn receives this well-deserved honor, Principle LTC celebrates her positive legacy of leadership and looks forward to her continued impact on the future of healthcare. Additionally, Lynn was elected into the McKnight's Women of Distinction Hall of Honor in 2021 and currently serves as a board member of the LTC100, further solidifying her influence and commitment to the industry. Lynn remarked, "If you take care of the people who take care of the patients, a lot of things will take care of themselves. It's not just about providing quality care to our residents; it's about creating an environment where our staff feel supported, valued, and empowered. When our team feels appreciated and respected, they can truly excel in their roles, ultimately leading to better outcomes for both our staff and the residents we serve." About Principle LTC -- Principle LTC is a leading provider of skilled nursing facility management services, committed to delivering exceptional care to residents and supporting the professional growth of its team members. With a focus on operational excellence, Principle LTC strives to enhance the quality of life for seniors in long-term care facilities located North Carolina , Kentucky , and Virginia across forty-five facilities with approved certificates of need (CON's) for construction of four additional facilities in North Carolina . The company also provides hospice services in North Carolina through its subsidiary, Cardinal Hospice Care. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/principle-ltcs-lynn-m-hood-receives-lifetime-achievement-award-in-mcknights-women-of-distinction-program-302088667.html SOURCE Principle LTC Total operating revenues for the full year 2023 were $16.3M , compared to $15.8M for the same period in 2022. As of March 7, 2024 , Ryvu's cash position was $57.2M , excluding the first tranche of 8M in venture debt from the EIB, expected imminently. Together with other already secured funding sources, this cash position provides a runway through Q1 2026. Ryvu will present preclinical data from its synthetic lethality pipeline, RVU120, and MEN1703 (SEL24) at the upcoming 2024 American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting ( April 5-10 , San Diego, California ). After announcing the hematology-focused RVU120 development plan in Q4 2023, Ryvu launched two Phase II studies in early 2024. An additional two Phase II clinical trials for RVU120 are expected to be launched in mid-2024. By the end of the year, the company plans to enroll over 100 patients across all RVU120 Phase II studies and aims to present initial Phase II data. KRAKOW, Poland , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ryvu Therapeutics (WSE: RVU), a clinical-stage drug discovery and development company focusing on novel small-molecule therapies that address emerging targets in oncology, summarizes its 2023 fiscal year and provides a corporate update. Pawel Przewiezlikowski, co-founder, largest shareholder, and Chief Executive Officer of Ryvu Therapeutics, said: - In 2023, we made significant progress in all key business areas and look forward to multiple catalysts in 2024. We have already started two Phase II studies of RVU120, and around mid-year, we plan to launch two more Phase II studies in hematology. By the end of the year, we plan to enroll more than 100 patients across these clinical trials. We also plan to launch a new Phase II study of MEN1703 (SEL24) in DLBCL, which is being developed under a license agreement with the Menarini Group. Study start-up activities for new trials of both RVU120 and MEN1703 are proceeding quickly. Krzysztof Brzozka , Ph.D., Executive Vice President, and Chief Scientific Officer, said: - We are pleased with the significant progress made in our early-phase projects. Among the most advanced projects from our synthetic lethality platform PRMT5 and WRN we plan to identify a clinical candidate in 2024. We are also seeing progress in the programs being developed by our partners particularly BioNTech and Exelixis. We were excited to achieve the second milestone in the Exelixis collaboration, and we look forward to presenting data on our synthetic lethality assets and novel platform at AACR. 2023 SUMMARY AND RECENT CORPORATE EVENTS RVU120 clinical development plan In 2023 Ryvu prepared for the launch of two Phase II RVU120 trials, which then initiated in early 2024: 1) RVU120 as monotherapy in genetically defined cohorts of patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (r/r AML) and high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (HR-MDS, RIVER-52 study), and 2) RVU120 in combination with venetoclax for patients with relapsed/ refractory AML (RIVER-81 study). Ryvu will financially support the REMARK study's Phase II clinical trial of RVU120 in patients with low-risk myelodysplastic syndromes ( LR-MDS ). REMARK will be conducted as an investigator-initiated study through the EMSCO network, with Prof. Uwe Platzbecker , a globally renowned expert in the field of LR-MDS , as the Coordinating Principal Investigator. Start-up activities have already been launched, and patient enrollment will start in mid-2024. myelodysplastic LR-MDS LR-MDS Study start-up is also underway for POTAMI-61, a Phase II study evaluating the efficacy of RVU120 in patients with myelofibrosis ( MF ). Initiation of patient recruitment is scheduled for mid-2024. MF Translational research on RVU120 in solid tumors will continue, including combination studies, as well as academic collaborations in the areas of medulloblastoma (MB) and sarcoma-related research. The company plans to enroll more than 100 patients across all RVU120 Phase II trials this year and aims to present initial Phase II data by the end of 2024. RVU120's updated clinical development plan includes studies (RIVER-52, RIVER-81, and POTAMI-61) that could lead to three drug approvals between 2026 and 2027. Key data presented during 2023 conferences In 2023, Ryvu Therapeutics presented data from the RVU120 program at several international conferences, including EHA 2023, ESMO 2023, and ASH 2023: RVU120 monotherapy demonstrated clinical activity in a Phase Ib study in which 50% of evaluable patients with r/r AML or HR-MDS achieved clinical benefit, including a complete response, morphologically leukemia-free status, clinically significant reduction of blasts including reductions that allowed bridging to a bone marrow transplantation, two-year disease stabilization, hematologic improvements, as well as reduction in bone marrow fibrosis. In particular, early signs of efficacy were observed in patients with an NPM1 mutation, DNMT3a mutation, and HR-MDS . The recommended Phase II dose (RP2D) of 250 mg was found to be safe and well-tolerated, achieving RVU120 concentrations in the pharmacologically active range, with a level of target inhibition between 50% and 70%. This level of target inhibition is expected to result in therapeutic efficacy in selected patients or in combinations with synergistic therapies. RVU120 is emerging as a potential candidate in the first-line treatment of AML , supported by its activity against leukemic stem cells. RVU120 acts synergistically with venetoclax in both sensitive and venetoclax-resistant models. At the ENA conference in October 2023 , Ryvu presented preclinical data for PRMT5 and the synthetic lethality platform, and Ryvu's partner Menarini Group, presented preclinical data for MEN1703 in advanced diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Ryvu has developed potentially best-in-class MTA-cooperative PRMT5 inhibitors with outstanding drug-like physicochemical properties and the ability to block methyltransferase activity of PRMT5 with nanomolar concentrations and bioavailable upon oral administration. The novel, optimized inhibitors exhibit a significantly improved pharmacokinetic profile. In addition, the compounds show antitumor efficacy and target engagement in vivo , providing a solid foundation for further development towards clinical trials. , providing a solid foundation for further development towards clinical trials. MEN1703 (SEL24) has shown promising antitumor activity in translational studies in various types of DLBCL . These data justify the development of MEN1703 in Phase II clinical trials in this indication. Expansion of MEN1703 (SEL24) development by Ryvu's partner Menarini Group, to include a new Phase II clinical trial in DLBCL. In September 2023 , Ryvu announced the Menarini Group's decision to expand the development of MEN1703 (SEL24) by initiating a new Phase II clinical trial in patients with DLBCL. A Phase II study in DLBCL is scheduled to begin in mid-2024. The goal is to evaluate the activity of MEN1703 (SEL24) as monotherapy and in combination with standard therapy in patients with DLBCL. The study will be initiated based on the potent activity of MEN1703 (SEL24) observed in preclinical lymphoma models. Clinical trials have confirmed the acceptable safety profile and early signs of activity of MEN1703 (SEL24) as a monotherapy . Based on the available data, further program development will continue in patients with DLBCL and potentially in additional indications. Recent financial events On February 3, 2024 , Ryvu received notice that the second financial milestone was achieved under the collaboration agreement with Exelixis, resulting in a $2M payment to Ryvu. Ryvu and Exelixis are working under a research collaboration and license agreement to develop antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with Ryvu's portfolio of STING agonists. , Ryvu received notice that the second financial milestone was achieved under the collaboration agreement with Exelixis, resulting in a payment to Ryvu. Ryvu and Exelixis are working under a research collaboration and license agreement to develop antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) with Ryvu's portfolio of agonists. On March 5, 2024 , Ryvu received notice from the European Investment Bank ( EIB ) that it had met the conditions for disbursement of the first venture debt tranche of 8M. These funds are not yet included in the cash balance reported in this press release, but Ryvu expects to receive the funds on March 13, 2024 . As part of the agreement announced in August 2022 , Ryvu still has access to an additional 14M in venture debt from the EIB . UPCOMING EVENTS Ryvu will attend the AACR Annual Meeting ( San Diego, USA ) from April 5-10, 2024 , to present preclinical data from its synthetic lethality pipeline, RVU120, and MEN1703 (SEL24). 2023 Fiscal Year Financial Update[1] Cash Position On December 31, 2023 , Ryvu Therapeutics held $63.7M in cash, cash equivalents, and bonds, compared to $23.2M at the end of 2022. On March 7, 2024 , Ryvu Therapeutics held $57.2M in cash, cash equivalents, and bonds, which excludes 8M in venture debt from the EIB to be received imminently. Operating Revenues In 2023, Ryvu recognized total operating revenues (including grants) of $16.3M , compared to 2022, when the total operating revenue amounted to $15.8M . Operating costs, excluding the non-cash cost of valuation of the Incentive Program ( $2.0M ) and valuation of NodThera shares ( $0.9M ) in the full year 2023, amounted to $37.6M , representing an increase compared to $26.4M in the previous year. Net Loss Attributable to Common Shareholders In 2023, the net loss attributable to common shareholders, excluding the non-cash cost of valuation of the Incentive Program, amounted to $20.0M , compared to $13.8M in the previous year. About Ryvu Therapeutics Ryvu Therapeutics is a clinical-stage drug discovery and development company focused on novel small-molecule therapies that address emerging targets in oncology. Internally discovered pipeline candidates use diverse therapeutic mechanisms driven by emerging knowledge of cancer biology, including small molecules directed at kinase, synthetic lethality, and immuno-oncology targets. Ryvu's most advanced programs include RVU120, a selective CDK8/CDK19 kinase inhibitor with the potential to treat hematological malignancies and solid tumors, currently in Phase II development (i) as a monotherapy for the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia (r/r AML) and high-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (HR-MDS) as well as (ii) in combination with venetoclax for the treatment of patients with r/r AML. Another clinical program, SEL24 (MEN1703), is a dual PIM/FLT3 kinase inhibitor licensed to the Menarini Group. Ryvu Therapeutics has signed multiple partnering and licensing deals with global companies, including BioNTech and Exelixis. The Company was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Krakow, Poland . Ryvu is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and is a component of the mWIG40 index. For more information, please see www.ryvu.com. [1] USD figures are provided at a conversion rate of: for the period from 01/01/2023 31/12/2023: PLN 4.1823; 31/12/2023: PLN 4.1823; for the period from 01/01/2022 31/12/2022: PLN 4.4679; 31/12/2022: PLN as of 7/03/2024: PLN 3.9485 as of 31/12/2023: PLN 3.9350 as of 31/12/2022: PLN 4.4018 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ryvu-therapeutics-summarizes-2023-fiscal-year-and-provides-corporate-update-302087833.html SOURCE Ryvu Therapeutics MIAMI , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On February 23rd, 2024 , SchoolWise Partners, the nation's foremost sell-side advisor to owners of early childhood, primary, and secondary schools, proudly announced its role as the exclusive financial advisor to Sweet Kiddles in their acquisition by a global preschool provider. Established in 2012, Sweet Kiddles stands as a premier provider of early childhood education, with seven prime locations across Ohio . Offering flexible childcare services, Sweet Kiddles ensures high-quality, convenient, and cost-effective care tailored to families' needs. Families benefit from a pay-as-you-go model, often spending less overall, while enjoying convenience through online reservation management and flexible scheduling. With centers boasting 3, 4, and 5-star ratings, exceptional cleanliness, and staffed by educated, caring teachers, Sweet Kiddles prioritizes holistic development through proprietary educational content like Creative Curriculum, Math Without Tears, and Handwriting Without Tears. "We express our heartfelt gratitude to SchoolWise Partners for their invaluable support as the exclusive sell-side advisor throughout this transaction. It is with great enthusiasm that we embark on this new chapter in partnership with a global preschool provider. We firmly believe that they will honor and uphold the legacy we've painstakingly built, while also fostering the continued growth of the Sweet Kiddles brand," said Andrea and Robert Kimmel , the founders/owners of Sweet Kiddles. "As the exclusive sell-side advisor for Sweet Kiddles and their shareholders, we are delighted to have facilitated this highly successful transaction. Working closely with Andrea and Robert, our team executed a discreet, strategic, and competitive process, resulting in an outstanding outcome for their family and team," commented Ben Mayer , Managing Partner of SchoolWise Partners. "I am thrilled for Andrea and Robert Kimmel , their partners, and the entire Sweet Kiddles family. We believe the global preschool provider is a strong partner to guide the school's next chapter, and we eagerly anticipate their future successes. It has been a pleasure collaborating with the Sweet Kiddles team throughout this transaction," added Charlie Zamora , Managing Partner of SchoolWise Partners. Deal Team Contacts Ben Mayer , Managing Partner Charlie Zamora , Managing Partner Scott Verdine , Director Donny Steinmetz , Vice President Jefferson Betancourt , Vice President Taylor Mayfield , Associate Camilo Lora , Analyst About SchoolWise Partners SchoolWise Partners (SwP) is the nation's leading sell-side advisory firm that provides strategic services to owners and operators of preschools, primary, and secondary schools. SwP's principals and its team have deep experience as former owners of 42 private schools combined with profound institutional knowledge in the fields of finance, private equity, investment banking, and accounting. It is uniquely positioned as the premier sell-side advisor to school owners and, since its founding, SwP has helped hundreds of owners throughout the U.S. realize value in excess of $1 billion. SchoolWise Partners' passion for education inspires us to not only create value for our clients. We exclusively assist owners of early childhood, primary, and secondary school owners realize value that is often left behind because they are under-represented. SwP's mission is to ensure all the hard work that school owners invest to educate America's children is returned to them at the appropriate time and in the appropriate manner. We strive to embody the highest standards of integrity, excellence, commitment, stewardship, and partnership. www.schoolwisepartners.com Contact Jefferson Betancourt Vice President [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/schoolwise-partners-advises-in-the-sale-of-7-unit-child-care-portfolio-in-ohio-302088466.html SOURCE SchoolWise Partners The Sing for Hope Pianos are available for anyone and everyone to play at 10 locations around the city through April 18 NEWPORT NEWS, Va. , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sing for Hope Pianos will take to the streets all across Newport News , creating spontaneous moments of live music and joy throughout the community. The unique partnership between Christopher Newport University's Ferguson Center for the Arts, the Mary M. Torggler Fine Arts Center at Christopher Newport, and the City of Newport News has made it possible to bring the Sing for Hope Pianos program to fruition for the first time in the region. On Thursday, March 28 at 9 a.m. , Sing for Hope will unveil 10 new Sing for Hope Pianoseach one a unique, playable piano artwork created by a local artistin the Ferguson Center's Diamonstein Concert Hall lobby. The all-day public launch is free of charge and open to all, and will culminate with a free performance by acclaimed American pianist Drew Petersen ("destined for great things" - Music Web International) at 7:30 p.m. The celebration coincides with World Piano Day, which is the 88th day of the year and a nod to the 88 keys on the piano. The 2024 Sing for Hope Pianos: Newport News were created by visual artists Courtney Balingit , Jay Bordeaux , Terry Cox-Joseph , Carlton Emblidge with An Achievable Dream, Robert M. Elliot , Candyce Harrell , Tiffany Murchison, Amy Queen & Sara Clapper , Peyton Townsend , and Scot Turner . Artists were selected through a competitive RFP process adjudicated anonymously by a panel of artists, leaders, and members of the community. Part of the global Sing for Hope Pianos initiative, these original public piano artworks were created by local artists. After the March 28 day-long launch event, the Sing for Hope Pianos will be moved to 10 iconic locations across Newport News for anyone and everyone to play, listen to, interact with, and enjoy through April 18, 2024 . Locations include Victory Landing Park , City Hall Plaza , Newport News Park, Midtown Community Center, Mariners' Museum, Riverview Farm Park , City Center Gazebo, CNU Fountain Plaza , Patrick Henry Mall , and the Denbigh Community Center. At the conclusion of their public residency, the Sing for Hope Pianos will be moved to permanent homes in seven Newport News public schools and three community centers, including Denbigh Community Center, Brittingham-Midtown Community Center, and Courthouse Way Community Center, where they will inspire lives for years to come. The world leader in public piano art programs, Sing for Hope has provided more pianos for under-resourced public schools than any other organization in the world. "The City of Newport News is proud to partner with Sing for Hope and Christopher Newport University to bring this innovative and fun initiative to life," said Joanne Palmeira , Superintendent of Cultural Arts. "We are always looking for unique opportunities to connect residents and guests with the arts. As these pianos are placed in Newport News parks, attractions, and other high-traffic areas, we know they will create discussion amongst diverse groups and harness the creative power of our community." "We believe in the transformative power of the arts, and Sing for Hope aligns perfectly with our commitment to 'arts for all,'" notes Ferguson Center Executive Director Bruce Bronstein . "I can't wait to see and hear the pianos in public. It's such a unique program. They are for everyone to play and enjoy -- from Chopsticks to Chopin!" Holly Koons , Executive Director of the Mary M. Torggler Fine Arts Center notes, "It has been a great pleasure hosting the Sing for Hope artists as they turned pianos into whimsical and inspiring works of art. The Torggler has been honored to participate in this unique merger of visual art, music, and civic engagement, and we look forward to seeing community members create their own musical masterpieces on these colorful pianos!" "Expanding The Sing for Hope Pianos to reach more communities has been an incredibly rewarding experience, and I am encouraged by the passion and talent of the artists who did such incredible work in Virginia ," says Monica Yunus , Co-Founder of Sing for Hope. Adds Co-Founder Camille Zamora , "The Sing for Hope Pianos act as creative hotspots for our communities, sparking moments of impromptu harmony between strangers and bringing joy to people of all ages! And after their time on the street, these musical masterpieces will go on to their permanent homes in local hospitals, community centers, and schools across the greater Newport News area." The Sing for Hope Pianos began in New York City in 2010 and has since grown to become one of the world's largest annually recurring public arts programs. With more than 600 original creations to date, The Sing for Hope Pianos bring hope, healing, and a shared musical experience to communities across the globe. For more information, visit www.SingforHope.org . About Sing for Hope Sing for Hope harnesses the power of the arts to create a better world. Our creative programs bring hope, healing, and connection to millions of people in hospitals, schools, care facilities, refugee camps, transit hubs, and community spaces worldwide. A non-profit organization founded in New York City in response to the events of 9/11, Sing for Hope partners with hundreds of community-based organizations, mobilizes thousands of artists in creative service, and produces artist-created Sing for Hope Pianos across the U.S. and around the world. The official Cultural Partner of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates, Sing for Hope champions art for all because we believe the arts have an unmatched capacity to uplift, unite, and heal. Sing for Hope's work is made possible by the Sing for Hope Founders' Circle : The International Foundation for Arts and Culture (Dr. Haruhisa Handa , Chairman, Sing for Hope Global Patron), The Arnhold Foundation in loving memory of Sissy and Henry Arnhold , The Thea Petschek Iervolino Foundation, The Anna-Maria & Stephen Kellen Foundation, Jacqueline Novogratz and Chris Anderson , The Seedlings Foundation, and Ann Ziff ; New York State Council on the Arts, public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, Fosun International, and the generosity of donors like you. Learn more at singforhope.org . About Ferguson Center The Ferguson Center presents a broad range of performances in order to reach the largest possible number of community members, all the while maintaining its status as the finest performing arts center in Hampton Roads . The mission of the Ferguson Center is to culturally engage the community by providing access to the finest artists in the world. Designed by renowned architects I.M. Pei and Henry Cobb , the Ferguson Center is a premier venue. Audiences from throughout Virginia and beyond enjoy year-round attractions that have included such headline talent as tenor Andrea Bocelli , John Legend , Josh Groban , Joan Baez , Tony Bennett , Wynton Marsalis , Jay Leno , Ziggy Marley , Liza Minnelli , Blue Man Group, and Broadway shows like Waitress, The Book of Mormon, Jersey Boys, The King and I, and Disney's Beauty and the Beast, among many others. For press photos, click here Contact: Bill Hoagland , Director of the Sing for Hope Pianos [email protected], 212-966-5955 Lori Jacobs , Ferguson Center Director of Communications [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sing-for-hope-pianos-launch-at-cnus-ferguson-center-march-28-2024-302087256.html SOURCE Sing for Hope Third Bill in CARS Legislative Package is Critical to Keeping California Streets Safe SACRAMENTO, Calif. , March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Teamsters commend Assemblymember Matt Haney (AD-17) for introducing Assembly Bill 3061 (AB 3061), legislation requiring Autonomous Vehicle (AV) companies in California publicly report any vehicle collisions, traffic violations, disengagements, assaults, or harassment involving their vehicles to the Dept. of Motor Vehicles (DMV). "AB 3061 isn't just about holding AV companies to account, it's about holding our regulators to account, cutting out the politics and putting public safety first. We can't keep letting bureaucrats cater to their friends in Big Tech and then look the other way when robotaxis hit people or cause mayhem on our streets," said Peter Finn , Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and President of Teamsters Joint Council 7. "AV data transparency is a clear solution and critical to holding AV companies to a uniform standard. It's time California passes AB 3061 into law." AB 3061 is the third plank of the CARS package that the Teamsters are advocating for in Sacramento , alongside Senate Bill 915, which would require autonomous vehicle (AV) companies to secure local approvals prior to starting operations, and Assembly Bill 2286, which would require a trained human operator behind the wheel of self-driving trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds. In addition to the reporting requirements for AV operators, under AB 3061, the DMV would have to publish incident reports on its website within 30 days of receipt. Operators already have to report some of the incidents AB 3061 outlines to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; AB 3061 requires the DMV to create a timeline for submissions that must be equal to or shorter than the deadlines required by the federal agency. "AB 3061 is common sense legislation that will ensure the public has insight into all AV-related incidents. Californians are seeing firsthand the chaos AV causes on a daily basis, and they deserve full transparency," said Chris Griswold , Teamsters International Vice President At-Large and President of Teamsters Joint Council 42. "This bill should be easy for AV companies to comply with because it's just an expansion of information that they're already reporting. The Teamsters commend Assemblymember Haney for introducing this bill and call on all elected leaders to join him in supporting AB 3061." Despite robotaxis running over pedestrians, blocking first responders from doing their jobs and causing traffic pileups, state agencies have refused to implement significant AV safety measures. Earlier this month, just weeks after Waymo announced a recall of its robotaxi software in response to two of its robotaxis crashing into the same truck minutes apart in December 2023 , the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved the expansion of Waymo robotaxis in Los Angeles and San Francisco. "The Teamsters applaud Assemblymember Haney for introducing legislation that will help keep California roads safe," said Lindsay Dougherty , Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and Director of the Teamsters Motion Picture and Theatrical Trade Division. "Over the last year, two of the largest AV companies, Cruise and Waymo, have had to recall their software in California due to safety incidents. This technology is not ready for prime time, and we cannot trust AV companies to be honest about the safety or capability of their products when they're racing towards profitability and fighting to appease shareholders. We need accountability, and that starts with AB 3061." Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S. , Canada , and Puerto Rico . Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and "like" us on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters. Contact: Matt McQuaid, (202) 624-6877 [email protected] View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/teamsters-applaud-introduction-of-av-data-transparency-bill-ab-3061-302087516.html SOURCE International Brotherhood of Teamsters BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. A meeting with battalion and division commanders and their deputies on the commanders' training system was held in the Separate Combined Arms Army (SCA), Trend reports, referring to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. "The meeting, which aimed to develop commanders' theoretical knowledge and practical abilities as well as their capacity to manage units, concentrated on organizing and carrying out exercises in tactical, reconnaissance, fire, physical, and formation training. During the exercises, the officers discussed topics such as the significance of new needs emerging in modern general military conflict, potential management concerns, and what to look out for when dealing with unmanned aerial vehicles and small-sized quadrocopters. Officers who participated in the commanders' training meeting were tested on actual physical and formation training skills, and guideline documents and appropriate topography materials were adopted. In conclusion, the meeting was analyzed, during which the officers were given tasks to further improve the level of combat training and professionalism of subordinate personnel, adapt the exercises conducted to real battle conditions, and use technological innovations," the statement of the Ministry says. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel HONG KONG , March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading telecom executives, government officials, and industry experts recently gathered at the World Broadband Association's (WBBA) Broadband Development Congress in Barcelona to discuss how telecom companies can harness technological change to adapt and thrive over the coming decade. The mood was one of urgency and anticipation, as over 200 speakers and attendees discussed the need for telecom companies to transform into "techcos" to keep pace with rapid technological advancements. Essentially, this means integrating data and decision intelligence across as many areas of business operations as possible. The speakers zeroed in on the primary reasons for telecom companies to transition, including new growth opportunities and the necessity to upgrade networks to handle surging data consumption, topics that have been prominent at this year's Mobile World Congress. Each of the speakers presented ideas on how best to adapt, including strategies for developing next-generation networks, organizational changes, and new service offerings. "New technologies and applications, represented by generative AI, are emerging, giving rise to a large number of new scenarios, business forms, and models," said Ke Ruiwen , chairman and CEO of China Telecom. "We're now facing a new round of technological revolution. We must adapt to meet its new demands." He emphasized that China Telecom's strategy centered on heavily investing in research and development, with R&D staff making up 10% of the company's total workforce and investment growing at a double-digit rate each year. As a result, China Telecom has managed to leverage new technological offerings to generate new revenue, such as Tianyi Cloud , which has become the world's largest cloud service operated by a telecom operator and China's largest hybrid cloud. He mentioned China Telecom was also diversifying into industry-focused AI-enhanced cloud solutions, cloud-network broadband services, and quantum technologies, experiencing significant growth as a result. Andrew Bender , CTO and head of strategy for fixed networks at Nokia, put a spotlight on the seismic shifts in new multi-gigabit broadband technologies. He noted the widespread adoption of XGS PON broadband technology, a type of very fast internet connection technology, which will soon constitute 67% of North America's broadband network. Bender stressed the importance of integrating traditional and mobile internet services to develop customizable, value-added solutions tailored to the varied requirements of both individuals and businesses. He pointed out that strategies like on-demand network slicing would be essential to this integration. "For operators, and the industry in general, we see a potential two-fold increase in revenue being driven by services of this sort," Bender stated, predicting widespread adoption of integrated services across the sector. Leon Wang , president of Huawei's Data Communication Product Line, introduced Huawei's next-generation network solutions, dubbed Net5.5G, designed to assist carriers in boosting revenue and managing increasing data demands. "Huawei has worked closely with industry partners and proposed Net5.5G as a next-generation network," Wang stated. "It comprehensively supports ubiquitous 10 Gbps connections, elastic ultra-broadband transport, hyper-converged data centers, and autonomous network self-optimization, empowering carriers to upgrade and evolve their networks while driving new business growth." Brian J Smyth, managing director and global lead for innovation, comms, media, and technology at Accenture, highlighted four key trends expected to shape the telecom industry: the influence of AI on how people interact with technology, the growth of AI and chatbot systems, the potential of spatial computing and virtual reality, and the increasing use of wearable technology. Smyth advised telecom companies to prioritize creating real value, transforming their workforce, establishing a strong digital infrastructure, and earning public trust to make the most of these technological advances for the good of society. Additionally, the WBBA announced the upcoming launch of the Broadband Excellence Awards. Set to become a benchmark for excellence in the industry, these awards will recognize outstanding contributions and initiatives in broadband development. The award categories will be announced shortly, with submissions opening in the spring and the awards ceremony scheduled for October in Paris . Founded in 2021, the WBBA seeks to combat digital inequality by promoting innovation and collaboration among business leaders, regulators, policymakers, and standard-setting bodies. It currently boasts 77 members from more than 30 countries. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/telco-leaders-convene-at-wbba-congress-to-discuss-digital-transformation-302087522.html SOURCE China Telecom Global LAS VEGAS , March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Inner Mountain Foundation , the newly-launched global women's empowerment organization, is excited to join this year's ASD Market Week in Las Vegas to introduce its US chapter to ASD visitors alongside its corporate partner, leading global B2B ecommerce marketplace DHgate . As the largest annual B2B wholesale trade show in the US, ASD Market Week ( March 10th to 13th, 2024 ) is a regular fixture on the DHgate agenda. This year, the company is pleased to welcome The Inner Mountain Foundation as a co-host on activities such as a party bus experience with Natasha Walstra , host of the Foundation's podcast The Climb . Interested participants have two opportunities to join the March 11th party bus, first at 12pm and then again at 6pm , for a scenic tour of Las Vegas . The event is a chance to mingle and network with like-minded female entrepreneurs and learn more about The Inner Mountain Foundation, its US-based initiatives and activities, the wide range of resources available to its members, as well as its shared values with DHgate. Throughout the one-hour party bus tour, Natasha shares stories of female empowerment, self-discovery and personal growth journeys. "We are very excited to expand The Inner Mountain Foundation's presence to the US and look forward to introducing the many female entrepreneurs present at ASD Market Week to the resources and support network that the Foundation has amassed," said Diane Wang , Founder of The Inner Mountain Foundation and Founder, Chairperson and CEO of DHGATE Group. The Inner Mountain Foundation is an initiative started by Diane to foster a community of like-minded women who can lead, nurture, and inspire those around them starting with themselves by providing access to various entrepreneurial resources, mentorship, training, information, support, recognition, and even funding for women-owned businesses. As a forward-thinking social enterprise committed to women's evolution and self-empowerment, the Foundation has a global outlook and aims to expand beyond its initial launch in China and North America by establishing branches in other major cities worldwide. These branches resemble satellites orbiting different trajectories, each having its own unique color while sharing a common mission and vision. The Foundation's party bus tour at ASD Market Week is the first in a series of offline events in the LA chapter. These events are designed to foster stronger connections with local female communities, starting with female MSME entrepreneurs across different cities in CA in the coming months. Stay tuned for updates and learn more at innermountain.org. DHgate will be present throughout the four-day ASD Market Week at Booth #SL42277 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center , where visitors can speak to company representatives and learn more about the company's vast e-commerce B2B marketplace of 33 million products and 2.6 million suppliers, all backed up by a world-class logistics support and integrated cross-border payment system. Visitors will also be able to see, touch and get a better feel of a selection of products available through the DHgate platform, and learn more about the company's innovative e-commerce solutions for established retailers to micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. About The Inner Mountain Foundation The Inner Mountain Foundation promotes the empowerment of women through education, community, and outreach. We are led by our Founder and Chairperson Diane Wang , who first articulated the principles of Inner Mountain Thinking in her 2024 book, The Inner Mountain . As a global foundation and women's empowerment community, we invest in impact-making educational resources that we seek to make as broadly accessible as possible. Our goal is to focus the work of the Inner Mountain on the soft skills training that we believe helps equip women to be their greatest, most empowered selves across their most wholly integrated life (connecting the self with work, family, community, and legacy). For more information, please visit innermountain.org About DHgate Founded in 2004, DHgate has become the leading B2B cross-border e-commerce marketplace in China , boasting over 34 million live listings annually. Through their global operations and offices, including in the USA and UK , DHgate reaches millions of people with trusted products and services. As of December 31, 2022 , DHgate served more than 59.6 million registered buyers from 225 countries and regions, connecting them to over 2.54 million sellers in China and other countries. For more information, please visit DHgate.com and follow @DHgate.com . View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-inner-mountain-foundation-joins-dhgate-to-empower-female-entrepreneurs-at-asd-market-week-302087415.html SOURCE DHGATE Group HONG KONG , March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- XTransfer, World's Leading & China's No.1 B2B Cross-Border Trade Payment Platform, officially launched its global version of mobile App for Android and iOS. This marks a big milestone for XTransfer in its internationalization process. "The app is currently available for users around the world. It not only covers global payments and receipts in 15+ currencies across 200+ countries/regions, but also allows customers to easily manage and allocate funds anytime, anywhere." said Bill Deng , Founder and CEO of XTransfer, sharing this exciting news during the Web Summit Qatar. Based on customers' needs, XTransfer App addresses several key pain points. It supports the registration and verification of business users from more than 200 countries and regions, and enables them to send money to or receive from 200+ markets in 15+ currencies with high-speed and low-costs. Actually, if both the seller and the buyer parties are XTransfer users, they can transfer funds between accounts with zero remittance fees. Meanwhile the App can ensure security and compliance without the risk of account freezes. Comparing to the PC version, the App offers a more friendly and convenient user experience. Global users can now open an all-in-one business wallet to pay and get paid globally at their fingertips, and easily access 24/7 online currency exchange at market-beating rates anytime anywhere, to save more in their deals. Furthermore, according to XTransfer, more services will be available on the XTransfer App soon, including account opening for individual users to pay and get paid globally, convenient and compliant CNY settlement for business users, add and receive money in local currencies. This is undoubtedly great news for overseas customers. The app is free and now available for all new and existing XTransfer users, click here to download on Google Play or App Store. About XTransfer XTransfer is dedicated to providing SMEs with secure, compliant, fast, convenient and low-cost foreign trade payment & fund collection solutions, significantly reducing the cost of global expansion and enhancing global competitiveness. Founded in 2017, the company is headquartered in Shanghai and has branches in China's major foreign trade cities such as Hong Kong , Shenzhen and the United Kingdom , the United States , Canada , Japan , Australia , and Singapore . For more information: https://www.xtransfer.com/ View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-xtransfer-app-globally-launches-for-android-and-ios-download-and-sign-in-now-302088087.html SOURCE XTransfer By Helen Reid HERZOGENAURACH, Germany (Reuters) - Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden did not discuss business with rapper Ye when they met after the Superbowl last month, he said on Wednesday, after a post on Instagram by Ye, previously known as Kanye West, sparked speculation. Ye posted a photo of the pair with the caption "make adidas great again" on Feb 12. Gulden said he bumped into Ye at Los Angeles International Airport after the Superbowl, adding it was not a planned meeting. Adidas cut ties with Ye in October 2022, halting production and temporarily suspending sales of the highly profitable Yeezy sneaker line, after a series of antisemitic comments he made in interviews and social media posts. But Ye's Instagram post last month sparked speculation, among some fans of the rapper, about a new deal with the sportswear brand. "It was not a meeting, there were no business discussions," Gulden told reporters at Adidas headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Though Adidas stopped producing the Yeezy sneakers it co-created with Ye, it resumed sales last year to clear remaining stock and reduce its losses from the partnership ending. It pledged to donate part of the proceeds to charities combating antisemitism and racism. Gulden updated his Instagram from the Superbowl, too, posting a photo with U.S. businessman Robert Kraft, founder of the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS), one of the organisations Adidas has pledged to support. The meetings show the tightrope Gulden still has to tread as he seeks to reboot Adidas and put the break-up behind the company. For each shoe sale, Ye receives a previously agreed commission. Gulden on Wednesday declined to comment on the amount of royalties paid to Ye last year, citing the ongoing legal dispute between Adidas and the rapper. Adidas made 750 million euros in revenue from Yeezy sales last year, resulting in a 300 million euro profit. The company set aside 140 million euros for donations to charities. (Reporting by Helen Reid; editing by Jason Neely) VIENNA (Reuters) -Austria has declared two diplomats from the Russian embassy personae non grata for actions "incompatible with their diplomatic status," ordering them to leave the country within a week, Austria's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday. The move brings to 11 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020 in four separate rounds. It is not clear whether the expulsions are connected. Officials have said that some previous expulsions involved spying, but as before the ministry gave no specifics. "Two diplomats from the Russian embassy have acted in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status," the foreign ministry said in a statement, using its standard phrasing for such cases. They must leave the country by the end of Tuesday, it added. Before Austria even announced the move, Russia already said it would retaliate. Its foreign ministry called the decision "groundless," according to state news agency RIA. Russian news agencies, quoting a statement issued by the Russian embassy in Vienna, expressed "outrage" at the expulsions. "As in previous episodes of expulsions, this time we have not been presented with the slightest evidence, let alone proof of any violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," the agencies quoted the statement as saying. "This is a purely political decision by the Austria authorities which we categorically reject. There can be no doubt of Moscow's resolute response," the statement said, according to the agencies. After previous expulsions from Austria, Moscow has responded by expelling diplomats from the Austrian Embassy in Moscow, which has only a small fraction of the number of diplomats that Russia has stationed in Austria. Vienna is a major diplomatic centre hosting the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and United Nations organisations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency. Larger countries like Russia and the United States often have separate ambassadors to Austria, the OSCE and the U.N. organisations, each running an embassy or permanent mission. Vienna, which was divided into Allied sectors after World War Two, has long had a reputation as a den of spies. The large diplomatic presence offers the opportunity to station intelligence agents there under a diplomatic cover granting them diplomatic immunity. (Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Leslie Adler, Ron Popeski and Mark Porter) Street vendors carry goods for sale as they walk near the Presidential Palace after Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry pledged to step down following months of escalating gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti March 12, 2024. REUTERS/Ralph Tedy Erol By Harold Isaac PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) -Haiti's capital was calm on Wednesday, two days after the prime minister said he would step down, but the United States and the United Nations began to withdraw staff in a sign they fear peace might not hold. Prime Minister Ariel Henry said on Monday he would resign once a transitional council takes over, following escalating violence by powerful gangs that has caused thousands to flee their homes. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who met with regional Caribbean leaders and representatives from Haiti's government and opposition in Jamaica this week, told reporters on Wednesday that he expects the transition council to come together in the next couple of days. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM), a regional intergovernmental organization, has detailed the sectors, political parties and alliances to make up the nine-member council, but has not yet said who will be appointed. However, Haiti's most powerful gang leader, Jimmy "Barbeque" Cherizier, who had threatened to overthrow Henry, "dismissed" the transitional council, the Miami Herald reported on Wednesday. Reuters was not able to independently confirm Cherizier's position. A day earlier, several dozen protested against the transition plan, burning tires in downtown Port-au-Prince, but the city was for the most part calm. Henry traveled to Kenya last month to secure Nairobi's leadership of a long-delayed security mission to fight the gangs, which the UN believes control most of the capital. Violence escalated in his absence and he remained stranded in Puerto Rico when he resigned. Blinken said on Wednesday he had received assurances from Kenyan President William Ruto that the African nation was prepared to lead the mission "as soon as this new council is stood up" and an interim prime minister is picked. Many details on the security force, such as its size, who will contribute troops, its funding, and how it will operate on the ground, have not been decided. Countries have been wary of involvement after abuses in past interventions. Although progress continues to lag, in Canada, like Haiti a former French colony, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised his country would remain "very, very active," without specifying commitments. Meanwhile, U.S. Southern Command - a military branch encompassing Latin America and the Caribbean - said it was deploying a team of anti-terrorism Marines to bolster embassy security and help "non-emergency" personnel leave Haiti. Non-essential United Nations staff are also set to start leaving Haiti because of the volatile security, according to a U.N. spokesperson, who did not say how many were considered non-essential. The body employs 267 international staff and 1,220 locals in Haiti. Neither body commented on the reason for the specific timing of their departures. In the U.S. state of Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis, an anti-immigration hardliner, said state law enforcement would deploy more than 250 additional officers and soldiers and more than a dozen air and sea vessels to the southern coast "to protect our state." 'YOU CANNOT GO ANYWHERE' Although many residents of Port-au-Prince resumed their business on Wednesday, buying produce from street vendors and collecting water in containers, people remain blocked from large parts of the capital that remain under gang control. There was little sign of visible gang activity, however, and no new attacks reported on key infrastructure or government offices. MSC said it had suspended all shipping calls at Haiti's main cargo port terminal, which it said remained "not fully operational" after containers were looted. Shipments will be diverted to Caucedo in the Dominican Republic, it said. "Things have gotten stranger. You cannot function. You cannot go around. You cannot go anywhere," said Louis Jean Ezechiel, 31, from the hillside Petion-Ville district. "All other places in the country are inaccessible." American author Mitch Albom said he, his wife and eight others working at an orphanage in Haiti were evacuated overnight on Monday by helicopter with help from Republican lawmakers. Haiti has long been impoverished and politically volatile, but has become increasingly lawless since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, with the country's outgunned police struggling to maintain security against increasingly powerful and brutal gangs and with protests against the unelected Henry. James Boyard, a security expert at the State University of Haiti, said calls from some sectors in Haiti for an amnesty for gang leaders constituted "a deliberate strategy to make this idea more morally acceptable." If such an amnesty were issued, he said, this could see gangs' alleged financial backers, who have been subjected to international sanctions, off the hook. Haitian immigrants in New York voiced wariness of more international intervention and worry about family members facing insecurity back home, children who cannot go to school and a growing exodus of educated young people moving abroad. Radio Soleil station director Ricot Dupuy said people were "cautiously optimistic" on the plan brokered with CARICOM in Jamaica but feared if the gangs remained uncontrollable, more people would flee the country. The U.N. estimates more than 360,000 people have been internally displaced and thousands killed amid food shortages and widespread reports of rape, torture, arson, ransom kidnappings by gang members. "Haiti has been transformed into hell and the international community contributed significantly to that," Dupuy said. "When a house is on fire, you can put all the police, all the guns you want, but I'm not going to stay in a house that is burning. I'm going to run. And when I run, I won't care where I go." (Reporting by Harold Isaac in Port-au-Prince; Additional reporting by Sarah Morland in Mexico City, Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles, Mica Rosenberg in New York, Humeyra Pamuk and Daphne Psaledakis in Washington, David Ljunggren in Ottawa and Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; Writing by David Alire Garcia and Sarah Morland; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien and Gerry Doyle) FILE PHOTO: OpenAI logo is seen in this illustration taken, March 11, 2024. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo (Reuters) - ChatGPT users will get access to French and Spanish news content from Le Monde and Prisa Media, Microsoft-backed OpenAI said on Wednesday, disclosing its partnership with the media publications. The content will also be used to train generative artificial intelligence models, it said amid growing popularity of the technology and its influence across various sectors. "Our partnership with OpenAI is a strategic move to ensure the dissemination of reliable information to AI users, safeguarding our journalistic integrity and revenue streams in the process," Le Monde CEO Louis Dreyfus said. Last year, global news publisher Axel Springer and the Associated Press had signed deals with OpenAI to explore the use of generative AI in news. But at the same time, news publications are grappling with issues such as copyright infringement and fair compensation when their content is used to train large language models. The New York Times had sued OpenAI and Microsoft last year, accusing them of using millions of the its articles without permission. News organizations such as the Intercept, Raw Story and AlterNet had also sued OpenAI in a New York federal court last month, accusing it of misusing their articles to train the AI system behind ChatGPT. (Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar) FILE PHOTO: The corporate logo of the UnitedHealth Group appears on the side of one of their office buildings in Santa Ana, California, U.S., April 13, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo By Brendan Pierson (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group has already been hit with at least six class action lawsuits accusing it of failing to protect millions of people's personal data from last month's hack of Change Healthcare, its payment processing unit, with more lawsuits likely to come. In a motion filed late on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., plaintiffs' lawyers asked a federal judicial panel to consolidate the six cases in federal court in Nashville, Tennessee, where Change is headquartered, and said they expected more cases to be filed. It is not known how large the litigation could become because it is not clear how much or what kind of information was compromised in the attack, which was carried out by the ransomware hacker group BlackCat. UnitedHealth, which disclosed the attack on Feb. 21 without specifying how many people were affected, said in a statement Wednesday that it was focused restoring Change's operations. UnitedHealth hasn't said if BlackCat demanded ransom, but a post on an online forum used by hackers claimed the company paid $22 million to the hackers for regaining access to its locked systems. Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), a U.S. health privacy law, companies have 60 days after discovering a data breach to notify affected individuals that their personal information has been compromised. For breaches affecting more than 500 people, the company must notify federal regulators and prominent media. UnitedHealth has so far not given such a notice. Change processes about 50% of the medical claims in the United States for around 900,000 physicians, 33,000 pharmacies, 5,500 hospitals and 600 laboratories. The attack has halted Change's operations, leaving providers, including major hospital systems, small medical practices and pharmacies unable to collect payments. According to UnitedHealth's website, Change is expected to resume processing payments by March 15. All of the lawsuits claim that Change failed to safeguard patients' personal information, putting them at risk of identity theft and privacy violations. Some also allege that patients have been unable to fill prescriptions because their insurance claims cannot be processed, putting their health at risk. Plaintiffs say that information stored by Change, and now potentially at risk, includes medical records, payment information, names and Social Security numbers. One of the lawsuits says that "information from the data breach is on the dark web and already being offered for sale," though it does not provide any details supporting that claim. The lawsuits accuse the company of negligence and of violating the privacy requirements in HIPAA and various state laws. Four of the lawsuits are filed against Change in Nashville, and two are filed against UnitedHealth in the parent company's home state of Minnesota. Tuesday's motion was filed by the lawyers in the Nashville cases. Lawyers in the Minnesota cases could file a competing motion to have the cases moved to their court, in which case the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation would decide where to send them. (Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Aurora Ellis) FILE PHOTO: Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV party Geert Wilders attends a meeting of Dutch parties' lead candidates, for the first time after elections, in which far-right politician Geert Wilders booked major gains, to begin coalition ta By Toby Sterling AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -Dutch politician Geert Wilders said on Wednesday he was ready to forego the job of prime minister in an effort to facilitate the formation of a new right-wing government, nearly four months after an election in which his party won most votes. Wilders has been in talks with potential allies since the Nov. 22 election -- more than 100 days -- but they have borne no fruit. A negotiator appointed to assist in the process is due to report to parliament on his findings on Thursday. "I can only become the prime minister if ALL the parties in the coalition supported it. That was not the case," Wilders said in a statement on social media platform X. "I really want a right ( wing ) cabinet. Less asylum and immigration... Love for my country and the voters is big and more important than my own position." Dutch national broadcaster NOS had earlier reported that Wilders was prepared to give up his hopes of becoming prime minister as he struggles to form a viable government. Citing political sources in The Hague, NOS said Wilders' Freedom Party and three other conservative parties attempting to form a right-wing coalition were weighing a scenario in which the party leaders would remain in parliament and not join the new government. In that scenario, known as an "extra-parliamentary" cabinet, politicians and experts not considered closely allied to any of the parties would be appointed to top government posts and work closely with parliament. Wilders said on Feb. 14 he was willing to consider "all options" to form a government, a minority government or an "extraparliamentary" government, rather than call new elections. (Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Gareth Jones) FILE PHOTO: Fortnite game graphic is displayed on a smartphone in front of Apple logo in this illustration taken May 2, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) -Epic Games, which makes the popular video game "Fortnite," on Wednesday accused Apple of violating an injunction governing its lucrative App Store, and asked a U.S. judge to hold Apple in contempt and end its "sham" compliance. The companies have been battling in court since 2020, when Epic accused Apple of violating antitrust law by requiring consumers to obtain apps through its App Store, where it charges app developers up to 30% commissions on in-app purchases. A September 2021 injunction by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, let developers provide links and buttons that direct consumers to other means to pay for digital content. In a filing with the California court, Epic alleged that Apple is in "blatant violation" of that injunction, despite the Cupertino, California-based company's assurance in a Jan. 16 court notice that it had "fully complied." Epic said Apple has imposed new rules and a new 27% fee on developers for some purchases, which taken together make the links "commercially unusable." The Cary, North Carolina-based developer also said Apple continues to "categorically prohibit" buttons, and still forbids some apps from telling users they have other purchasing options. "Apple's goal is clear: to prevent purchasing alternatives from constraining the supracompetitive fees it collects on purchases of digital goods and services," Epic said. "Apple's so-called compliance is a sham." In response to requests for comment, Apple referred to its Jan. 16 notice, where it said the injunction would protect consumers and "the integrity of Apple's ecosystem," while ensuring that developers do not get a free ride on its platform. Apple has until April 3 to formally respond to Epic's filing. Last week, Apple briefly escalated the feud by blocking Epic from launching its own online marketplace on iPhones and iPads in Europe, before backing down two days later. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear Epic's appeal of lower court findings that Apple's policies did not violate federal antitrust law. The court also decided against hearing Apple's own appeal from the injunction. The case is Epic Games Inc v Apple Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 20-05640. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Aurora Ellis) BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. We place great importance on enhancing relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See, said President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev in the congratulatory letter sent to Pope Francis on the occasion of his Election Anniversary, Trend reports. "We place great importance on enhancing relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See. The genuine dialogue and mutual understanding we have cultivated over the years contribute to preserving universal values and fostering solidarity among representatives of various religions and cultures. I express my gratitude to you for the high value you place on Azerbaijan's traditions of multiculturalism and inclusivity, and its role in promoting interreligious and intercultural understanding globally. I am confident that the atmosphere of exemplary cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Holy See will continue to contribute to the creation of an environment of mutual trust among civilizations," the letter reads. Ukrainian service members prepare a D-20 howitzer before firing toward Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk region, Ukraine March 11, 2024. REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak By Andrew Gray BRUSSELS (Reuters) -European Union countries agreed on Wednesday to provide 5 billion euros ($5.48 billion) for military aid to Ukraine as part of a revamp of an EU-run assistance fund, handing Kyiv a timely boost as its forces struggle against Russia's invasion. Ambassadors from the EU's 27 member countries agreed to the overhaul of the European Peace Facility (EPF) fund at a meeting in Brussels after months of wrangling, with EU heavyweights France and Germany at the centre of much of the debate. "The message is clear: we will support Ukraine with whatever it takes to prevail," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell posted on social media platform X after the decision. The fund operates as a giant cashback scheme, giving EU members refunds for sending munitions to other countries. France, a strong promoter of European defence industries, had insisted on a strong "buy European" policy for arms eligible for refunds. Other countries argued that requirement would inhibit efforts to buy worldwide to get weapons to Ukraine quickly. Germany, by far Europe's biggest bilateral donor of military aid to Ukraine, had demanded such donations be taken into account in determining the size of countries' financial contributions to the fund. Diplomats said a compromise was found that allows flexibility on "buy European" rules and takes into account part of the value of bilateral aid when calculating members' financial contributions. "This is yet another powerful and timely demonstration of European unity and determination in achieving our common victory," said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. "We look forward to the final decision being approved at the next EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting." The final text says the scheme should give priority to the European defence industry while "exceptionally allowing for flexibility in cases where it cannot provide within a timeframe compatible with Ukrainian needs". The compromise will allow the fund to help finance a Czech initiative to buy hundreds of thousands of desperately needed artillery shells from countries outside Europe, according to diplomats. The EPF has already been used to allocate some 6.1 billion euros to military aid for Ukraine, according to the EU. Borrell proposed last year creating a new cash pot specifically for aid to Kyiv - the Ukraine Assistance Fund - inside the EPF, with a budget of up to 5 billion euros per year for the next four years. That prompted a prolonged debate over rules for future aid, eventually leading to Wednesday's agreement. The compromise includes measures to satisfy Hungary, which has previously blocked payouts from the EPF and said it does not want its contributions to finance arms for Ukraine. Under the deal, its contributions will be used to fund military aid to other countries, according to EU officials. "Ukraine needs more arms and equipment, we will provide them in sufficient quantities and in a coordinated manner," said Hadja Lahbib, the foreign minister of Belgium, the current holder of the EU's rotating presidency. "Europe is true to its commitments. Our freedom is at stake." ($1 = 0.9124 euros) (Additional reporting by Yuliia Dysa and Charlotte Van Campenhout;Editing by GV De Clercq, William Maclean and David Gregorio) FILE PHOTO: The Fisker Inc. logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., November 22, 2022. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo (Reuters) -Electric vehicle startup Fisker has hired restructuring advisers to assist with a possible bankruptcy filing, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The company has hired financial adviser FTI Consulting and the law firm Davis Polk to work on a potential bankruptcy filing, according to the report. Fisker declined to comment. Earlier this month, Fisker flagged going-concern risks, job cuts and a pause in investments into future projects until it secures a partnership with a manufacturer. Nissan was in advanced talks to invest in Fisker in a deal that could provide the Japanese automaker with access to an electric pickup truck, Reuters reported earlier this month, citing two people familiar with the negotiations. (Reporting by Jaiveer Singh Shekhawat in Bengaluru; Editing by Shweta Agarwal and Shounak Dasgupta) A dashcam view shows the moment of an explosion in Sanhe, Langfang City, Hebei Province, China in this screen grab from video obtained by Reuters March 13, 2024. Video Obtained By Reuters/via REUTERS By Liz Lee and Bernard Orr SANHE, China (Reuters) -A suspected gas leak caused a blast at a restaurant in China's northern province of Hebei that ripped facades from buildings, damaged cars and scattered debris to kill two people and injure 26, state media and authorities said on Wednesday. The blast happened at about 8 a.m. in the county of Sanhe, state broadcaster CCTV News said, roughly 80 km (50 miles) from the centre of Beijing, the capital, where key annual parliament sessions had just concluded. Videos on social media platform Weibo showed a large orange fireball over the site, followed by billows of grey smoke, and scenes of the destroyed frontage of buildings, mangled cars, with glass shards in the streets, and some objects still ablaze. A suspected gas leak triggered the accident in a shop selling fried chicken in the town of Yanjiao, city emergency officials said in a statement, drawing rescuers, firefighters, health and other officials to the scene. "I was at home when I heard a loud blast, I initially thought it might be a gunshot," said Zhao Li, a middle-aged woman who lives about a kilometre from the blast site. "The loud explosion was accompanied by a crash of glass and clouds of smoke," said Zhao, adding that police sealed off the street to the site. The fire had been brought under control, fire officials said in an earlier statement, adding that 36 vehicles and 154 people had been dispatched to the site and were carrying out rescue work. China's latest deadly gas explosion at an eatery comes after the government issued detailed guidelines last year on the use of gas appliances and cookers to avert safety risks. Social media posters on Weibo said the explosion occurred near a cultural centre in the town. Construction of a metro line was taking place nearby, Chinese weekly the Economic Observer posted on its social media account. City emergency authorities sent an investigation team, according to social media posts. Regional supplier Taida Gas suspended service in several surrounding areas, as a precaution to prevent secondary injuries, it said in a statement. "Our company ... will resume supply after ensuring safety," it added in the statement, although it said it did not service the area where the shop is located. (Reporting by Liz Lee, and Beijing and Shanghai newsrooms; Writing by Bernard Orr; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) Ruby Chen, father of deceased U.S.-Israeli hostage Itay Chen, whose body is held by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, sits on a park bench during an interview with Reuters in Netanya, Israel, March 13, 2024. REUTERS/Janis Laizans NETANYA, Israel (Reuters) - The father of an Israeli soldier killed during the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 said he was going through a living hell a day after learning of the death and called for a hostage deal to ensure his son's body is returned home. Itay Chen was serving as a soldier when Hamas carried out its surprise cross-border rampage through southern Israeli towns and military bases, sparking the now five-month-old war in Gaza. The dual U.S. citizen was believed to be have been held hostage but the military confirmed Itay's death on Tuesday. "We know that they were in some sort of a battle and we lost contact with him, or the army lost contact with him, after a few hours," Itay's father, Ruby Chen, told Reuters. "The analysis after a couple of days was that he was kidnapped by Hamas. And he is still, as we speak, in Gaza. "Even though we were given intelligence that provides an understanding that Itay is not alive, we still need a hostage deal, because that's the basic human requirement that I think any viewer can relate to, is that we want a funeral site," he said. Ruby Chen said the family had received a condolence call from U.S. President Joe Biden, who earlier had made his own announcement about the 19-year-old's death. "It meant a lot to us to have him talk to us as a human being and talking about understanding pain and losing a loved one," Chen said of the call. "I do not think we could have found a more friendly, compassionate, sympathetic administration than the Biden administration." More than 130 Israeli hostages are still being held in Gaza. Some have been declared dead in absentia by Israeli authorities. Ruby Chen appealed to Hamas to return Itay. "As a father, as a parent, you want to have your son back and be able to mourn for him," he said. "And I call to Hamas again - are you humans? Or do you wish to continue to cause suffering, just for the case of suffering?" (Reporting by Janis Laizans; Editing by Nick Macfie) Supporters of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) attend their party's event at the Gillamoos Fair, one of Bavaria's oldest fairs, in Abensberg, Germany September 2, 2019. REUTERS/Andreas Gebert/FILE PHOTO By Thomas Escritt MUENSTER, Germany (Reuters) - Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) called party members from immigrant backgrounds to testify that the party was not racist, on the second day of a court hearing to decide if it is a proper target of surveillance by security services. The party is challenging the right of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) to monitor it with all tools at its disposal, from phone-tapping to informants. The party, with 78 of 735 seats in Germany's parliament, leads polls in several poorer, post-industrial eastern states where its anti-establishment, anti-immigrant stance resonates. It opposes Germany's backing for Ukraine in the war with Russia. "At no time was I disadvantaged because of my ethnicity in the party or deprived of my rights," said Meysam Ehtemai, a former mayoral and parliamentary candidate who described himself as a "German citizen of Persian roots". The BfV's lawyer Wolfgang Roth said the testimony on Wednesday of the three members - Ehtemai, German-born Athanasios Robert Lambroug, son of a Greek immigrant, and Nigerian-born Catherine Ajagun Schmiedel - had little bearing on the preponderance of evidence. "The plaintiffs distinguish clearly between legal citizenship and an ethnic German people," he said. "The state is defined in legal terms, the people in ethnic terms." AfD politician Roman Reusch responded: "Imagine trying to explain that hair-splitting to simple people!" Leading figures in the party have warned against Germany's "Africanisation", called migrants "invasive species" and dismissed as "passport Germans" naturalised immigrants. "I got interested in politics after I noticed how Germany was changing with mass immigration, and as a mother I was concerned," said Ajagun Schmiedel, who contrasted her "safe place" in the AfD with social media, where she said she had been called a "Black Nazi". Originally due to wrap up in two days, the hearing had to be adjourned to an unspecified future date thanks to a flurry of AfD filings - dismissed by adversaries as stalling tactics - asking if the BfV had planted agents in its leadership. AfD lawyer Michael Fengler read out motions asking for testimony on whether "sources, spies, agents provocateurs, undercover agents, informants or concealed employees in the plaintiff's leadership", changing the name only of the official he wanted to summon. No evidence was presented that the BfV had done so. AfD lawyers also asked if the BfV had spied on case preparations, which it denied. 'DELAYING TACTICS' For the BfV, Roth called the questions "out of the blue" and "delaying tactics". When judge Gerald Buck said the motions should be submitted in consolidated form later, the AfD accused him of bias and demanded his replacement. The case, titled "AfD vs Federal Republic of Germany", attracted so much media and public interest that the hearing had to be moved to the foyer of the court in the city of Muenster, where they were watched over by a Korean artist's two giant statues of squatting men. The party, which has moved increasingly to the right, portrays itself as the target of a complacent, self-serving establishment it stands ready to sweep away. The BfV, which has the power to monitor perceived threats - from foreign agents and neo-Nazis to Communists and racist, violent or anti-democratic groups - has since 2021 viewed the AfD as a "suspected extremist" organisation. A ruling against the party would do little to deter core supporters but could put off wavering voters in upcoming European elections if spooked by allegations of extremism. (Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Miranda Murray, Andrew Cawthorne and Alex Richardson) FILE PHOTO: A UnitedHealth Group health insurance card is seen in a wallet in this picture illustration October 14, 2019. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/Illustration//File Photo By Sriparna Roy and Patrick Wingrove (Reuters) -The U.S. government on Wednesday said it has opened an investigation into the cyberattack at UnitedHealth Group's Change Healthcare to find out whether there was a breach of protected health data and if the company followed U.S. health privacy law. It is the first announcement of a probe by the Department Of Health and Human Services into the Feb. 21 cyberattack that has disrupted healthcare across the United States. Patient information is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA. "Given the unprecedented magnitude of this cyberattack and in the best interest of patients and health care providers" the HHS Office for Civil Rights is initiating an investigation into the incident, the health department said. Change Healthcare processes about 50% of medical claims in the U.S. for around 900,000 physicians, 33,000 pharmacies, 5,500 hospitals and 600 laboratories. UnitedHealth said it would cooperate with the investigation. It has not disclosed information about what patient data may have been exposed. "Our immediate focus is to restore our systems, protect data and support those whose data may have been impacted," it said. Under HIPAA, healthcare clearinghouses, plans and providers must report breaches to individual patients within 60 days of discovery, according to Shannon Britton Hartsfield, a healthcare privacy lawyer at Holland & Knight. She said the scale of the cyberattack could make it difficult for UnitedHealth and other businesses covered by HIPAA to comply with their reporting obligations in this case. "Patients might be affected by this incident in many different ways through many different entities" she said, adding that sorting through the data to figure out who was affected would be an "extraordinary task." The Office for Civil Rights, responsible for administering and enforcing the rules for the healthcare sector under HIPAA, said a key focus of the investigation was to find out if UnitedHealth complied with that law and to identify the extent of the possible breach. Investigations from the Office for Civil Rights over HIPAA are common. In 2022, the office initiated 676 compliance reviews to investigate allegations of HIPAA violations that did not arise from complaints. The full extent of the data breach remains unknown, and UnitedHealth has said it was still investigating. UnitedHealth has blamed the hack on the "Blackcat" gang, a notorious ransomware group that has a history of disruptive attacks. In a message posted to, and then quickly deleted from their darknet site, the hackers said on Feb. 21 that they stole millions of sensitive records, including medical insurance and health data, from the company. (Reporting by Sriparna Roy in Bengaluru and Patrick Wingrove in New York; Editing by Arun Koyyur, Sriraj Kalluvila, Shounak Dasgupta and Marguerita Choy) An airplane drops aid over Gaza, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, as seen from Israel March 13, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Israel will try to "flood" the Gaza Strip with humanitarian aid from a variety of entry points, the main military spokesman said on Wednesday as international pressure mounted to address the growing problem of hunger in the besieged enclave. After more than five months of war in Gaza, aid agencies have warned that the area's 2.3 million population face a growing risk of famine unless food supplies are stepped up sharply and they have accused Israel of not doing enough to ensure sufficient aid gets through. Israel says it has placed no limits on the amount of aid that it will allow in to Gaza, and blames failures by the aid agencies for delays but it has faced mounting demands even from its closest allies to do more. "We are trying to flood the area, to flood it with humanitarian aid," military spokesperson, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told a group of foreign reporters. Earlier on Wednesday, the military announced that six aid trucks with supplies from the World Food Organization had entered the northern part of the Gaza Strip, where the hunger crisis has been especially acute, through a crossing in the security fence known as the 96th gate. More such convoys would follow as well as deliveries from other entry points, complemented by air drops and seaborne aid cargoes, Hagari said. "We are learning and improving and doing different changes so as not to create a routine but to create a diversity of ways that we can enter," he said. Hagari acknowledged, however, that getting supplies into the enclave was only one part of the problem and more needed to be done to solve the problem of how to distribute it fairly and efficiently to desperately needy people. "The problem inside Gaza is the distribution problem," he said. The challenges in delivering and distributing aid safely were given stark illustration earlier this month when a convoy of aid trucks was surrounded by thousands of people trying to get supplies and troops opened fire. Scores of people were killed in the incident although there were sharply differing accounts from Palestinian health authorities, which said most of those killed were shot dead and Israel saying most were trampled to death or run over by trucks in the panic. Most aid that comes into Gaza is cleared by Israel at Kerem Shalom, a customs station at the border point between Egypt, Israel and Gaza and then brought in through the southern city of Rafah, the main passenger crossing point between Egypt and Gaza. But as aid agencies have struggled to distribute aid, that has become increasingly problematic and there have been growing demands from world powers including the United States and the European Union for more crossing points to be opened up. The United States has already conducted emergency air drops of food into Gaza and is working on opening up a maritime corridor into the enclave. A ship carrying aid is currently approaching Gaza in a pilot trial of maritime delivery, that is expected to be followed up by a U.S. military effort to set up a dock on Gaza's coast that will enable distribution of up to two million meals a day. (This story has been refiled to add the word 'it' to the headline) (Reporting by James Mackenzie; Editing by Alistair Bell) Israeli forces work at the scene of a suspected attack at a checkpoint outside of Jerusalem, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, March 13, 2024. REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg By Nidal al-Mughrabi, Bassam and Masoud CAIRO/GAZA (Reuters) -Israel said on Wednesday its airstrike on a U.N. food distribution centre in southern Gaza killed a Hamas commander whom it targeted, and Palestinian health officials said it killed four more people including a U.N. worker. The Israeli military said the strike killed Mohammad Abu Hasna, whom it described as a Hamas militant who provided intelligence to the group on Israeli troops' positions and was "also involved in taking control of humanitarian aid and distributing it to Hamas terrorists." In a statement, Hamas said Abu Hasna was a member of its police force and condemned his killing as a "cowardly assassination" meant to disrupt aid distribution. Hamas identified another of the five killed as the head of an emergency committee for Rafah, Nidal al-Sheikh Eid. The main U.N. agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) said one of its facilities had been hit in Rafah, an area in southern Gaza where more than half of Gaza's 2.3 million population is sheltering. At least one UNRWA staff member was among the five killed and 22 others were injured, the agency said, adding that the facility's coordinates had been shared with the Israeli military. "Todays attack on one of the very few remaining UNRWA distribution centres in the Gaza Strip comes as food supplies are running out, hunger is widespread and, in some areas, turning into famine," said UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini. Hamas has denied Israel's accusations that it diverts food aid and says Israel is using famine to pressure the Palestinian population. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday he was determined to have UNRWA replaced by other agencies without harming aid distribution, citing alleged links between the agency and Hamas militants. In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a news briefing said he had not yet received details of the incident but said Israel must protect safety of humanitarian workers despite tough conditions. "You're in a war zone. You have a terrorist group that is firing from hospitals, from schools, from apartment buildings, but the Israeli military, the Israeli government have a responsibility and an obligation to do everything possible to ensure that the humanitarians can do their jobs," said Blinken. AID EFFORTS With the Gaza war now in its sixth month, The U.N. has warned that at least 576,000 people in Gaza one-quarter of the population are on the brink of famine and global pressure has been growing on Israel to allow more access to the enclave. On Tuesday, the United Nations used a new land route to deliver food to northern Gaza for the first time in three weeks. "We have been taking efforts to facilitate more aid into northern Gaza," Israeli government spokesperson Tal Heinrich told journalists on Wednesday. "This was a pilot to prevent Hamas from taking over the aid as they often do." The U.S., Jordan and others have conducted airdrops of aid in Gaza and on Tuesday a ship carrying 200 tonnes of aid left Cyprus in a pilot project to open a sea corridor to deliver supplies. While U.N. officials have welcomed new aid routes, they stress there is no substitute for land access. The war began when Hamas fighters attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel then launched an air, sea and ground assault that has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, health authorities in Hamas-run Gaza say. Since the Gaza war began, violence has also risen in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, with stepped up Israeli military raids and Palestinian street attacks. On Wednesday, Israeli officials said a 15-year-old Palestinian stabbed a soldier and a guard at a checkpoint between the West Bank and Jerusalem before being shot dead. In separate incidents, Israeli forces killed two Palestinians during a raid in Jenin, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA said, while a 13-year-old Palestinian was killed by Israeli forces on the outskirts of Jerusalem, in what Israeli police described as a violent riot. (Additional reporting by Raneen Sawafta in Jenin, Henriette Chacar in Jaffa and Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem and Humeyra Pamuk in Washington; Writing by Cynthia Osterman; Editing by Timothy Heritage, Gareth Jones and David Gregorio) MILAN (Reuters) - An Italian appeals court refused on Wednesday to send a suspected Palestinian militant to Israel, saying he risked "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment" if he was extradited. The man, named by the court as Anan Kamal Afif Yaeesh, 36, was one of three Palestinians arrested in central Italy on suspicion they were planning attacks in an unspecified country. Israel applied for the extradition of Yaeesh, but his lawyer opposed the request, presenting reports by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on prison conditions for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. In a written ruling, a panel of three judges in the central city of L'Aquila sided with the defence, saying Yaeesh would face "acts constituting a violation of human rights" if the extradition request was granted. However, they ruled that he should be kept in prison in Italy because he is being investigated by the public prosecutor's office for the same charges for which Israel had requested his extradition. The substance of the allegation against him was not discussed in the hearing. Israel has repeatedly said detainees and prisoners are treated in accordance with international law. Israel, which is at war with the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, has accused Yaeesh of financing an armed group from the Tulkarem refugee camp in the West Bank, called the Tulkarem Brigade. Italy said on Monday the three arrested Palestinians had set up a cell linked to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed group linked to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. The group is considered a terrorist organisation by Israel, the European Union and the United States. The other two did not appear in court because Israel has not requested their extradition. (Reporting by Emilio Parodi, Editing by Crispian Balmer and Alison Williams) FILE PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump hosts a campaign rally at the Forum River Center in Rome, Georgia, U.S. March 9, 2024. REUTERS/Alyssa Pointer/File Photo (Reuters) -The judge in Donald Trump's Georgia election subversion trial on Wednesday dismissed three criminal counts against the former U.S. president and three others against co-defendants, a court filing showed on Wednesday, while letting the overall case proceed. Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee decided that allegations by state prosecutors that Trump and his co-defendants tried to get Georgia officials to violate their oaths of office were not detailed enough to sustain those six counts, according to the court filing. The judge left 35 other criminal counts intact, including 10 against Trump, who is the Republican candidate challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 U.S. election. The central racketeering charge against Trump and his remaining 14 co-defendants remains in place. Trump and his co-defendants have pleaded not guilty to charges that they formed a criminal conspiracy to seek to overturn Trump's loss to Biden in Georgia in the 2020 election. McAfee said prosecutors could seek a new, more detailed indictment on the dismissed counts. The Georgia case is one of four criminal prosecutions Trump is facing as he tries to unseat Biden. He also faces federal charges for his efforts to undo his election defeat and is due to stand trial in New York beginning later this month on charges related to hush money paid to a porn star. Trump has denied wrongdoing in all four cases and has said they are all attempts to stop him from regaining the presidency. Steve Sadow, Trump's lead lawyer in the Georgia case, said prosecutors "failed to make specific allegations of any alleged wrongdoing" in the counts that were dismissed. "The entire prosecution of President Trump is political, constitutes election interference, and should be dismissed," Sadow said in a statement. A spokesperson for the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who brought the case, said prosecutors are reviewing the ruling and declined further comment. Lawyers for Trump and five allies, including former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani, challenged allegations that they attempted to get Georgia lawmakers to violate their oaths of office by convincing them to appoint fraudulent slates of pro-Trump electors. Two of the six charges McAfee dismissed relate to a January 2021 phone call when Trump pressed Georgia's top election official, Brad Raffensperger, to "find" votes to reverse his defeat in the state. The indictment did not specify in sufficient detail how Trump and his co-defendants could have urged officials to violate their oaths of office or their respective duties under the U.S. or Georgia state constitutions, McAfee found. "They do not give the defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways," the judge wrote in his ruling. McAfee's ruling came as he prepares to issue a highly anticipated decision on whether Willis, the prosecutor overseeing the case, should be disqualified over a romantic relationship with a lawyer she hired to run the prosecution. Trump's legal team has argued that Willis benefited financially from the relationship and may have lied to the court, allegations Willis denies. (Reporting by Andrew Goudsward and Kanishka Singh in Washington; editing by Will Dunham, Rami Ayyub and Scott Malone) BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. At present, the growth of Islamophobia in France and some European countries is quite alarming, Deputy Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations of Azerbaijan Siyavush Heydarov told Trend. Heydarov highlighted that this is not an occurrence that unfolds swiftly. Rather, it stems from "efforts," systematically implemented plans by governments and specific interested groups over an extended period. Hence, it's crucial not only to address the repercussions of this adverse phenomenon but also to understand its underlying causes. The escalation of this perilous trend today could potentially precipitate inter-religious conflicts in the future. The forecast regarding the escalation of Islamophobia, ultimately resulting in the erosion of the essence and functionality of religions or the emergence of Christianophobia, is highly plausible. The attribution of destructive radical actions by certain proponents of religious ideologies to the entire society, and sometimes even to the state, by some political factions, represents only a fraction of their clandestine agendas. In such circumstances, the necessity for reevaluating the foundational concepts underpinning global security institutions, fostering human unity, and fortifying these institutions with a dedication to the principle of justice becomes apparent. "In the case of Islamophobia, as seen in the "French example," it's crucial to address human rights violations. Additionally, the developments unfolding in the Middle East serve as a serious warning signal. This is no longer merely a localized ethnic conflict; it requires a concerted response from the global community through international organizations. The lack of action from these organizations is regrettable. If the UN were to declare an "International Day to Combat Islamophobia," it should be accompanied by a concrete strategy for combating it rather than mere verbal statements. Indifference and rhetorical steps alone are insufficient to counter this danger. I'd like to emphasize the strategy adopted by Azerbaijan in this regard, as demonstrated once again at the Interfaith Harmony Festival. Azerbaijan serves as a model, showcasing peaceful coexistence among representatives of all religions, akin to one family, and providing conducive environments for religious institutions to operate. Azerbaijan remains actively engaged in bolstering Islamic solidarity and advocating for Islamic values globally. President Ilham Aliyev, in his address to participants of the aforementioned conference, reiterated his concerns about Islamophobia, delving into its essence, root causes, and the necessity of combating it. His address prompted discussions among all attendees, addressing nuanced and delicate issues. Previously observed at a minimal level, the President highlighted the propagation and endorsement of Islamophobia at the international level, including in institutions like the European Parliament and the Council of Europe. These organizations, once symbols of hope and unity for countries and peoples worldwide, are now seen as contributing to division and strife. The president's remarks underscored the urgency of taking immediate and decisive measures and implementing practical actions to address this perilous trend. However, I must also underscore the reality that gaps in Islamic perspectives provide certain Western factions with an opportunity to politicize Islamophobia and construct an ideology around it. Therefore, it is imperative to differentiate between evolving Islamic values (such as education in Islam, attitudes towards secular education, female empowerment, etc.) and immutable principles. Social relations today have undergone significant changes compared to the time Islam emerged. Considering the challenges of modernity, the decline and stagnation in many Islamic nations, and the rapid advancement of scientific and technological innovations, there is a need to explore the integration of religion and science and the principles of Islamic secularism based on Islamic values," Heydarov added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel North Korean leader Kim Jong Un salutes as he guides a military demonstration involving tank units, in North Korea, March 13, 2024 in this picture released on March 14, 2024, by the Korean Central News Agency. KCNA via REUTERS By Hyunsu Yim SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korean leader Kim Jong Un guided a military demonstration involving a new battle tank, state media KCNA reported on Thursday, in the latest show of force by the isolated state as South Korea and the United States wrapped up joint drills. Kim expressed "great satisfaction" that the new type of main battle tank successfully demonstrated its striking power in its first performance display on Wednesday, KCNA said. The "training match" was designed to inspect the combat capabilities of tank crews and make them familiar with combat action on different tactical missions, it said. "Swiftly weaving their way through various worst combat circumstances, heavy tanks hit targets at once with powerful strikes and broke through strong defence lines with high manoeuvrability," the report said. The 105th Tank Division, which was declared the winner of the mock battle, was the unit which occupied the South Korean capital Seoul during the Korean War, KCNA said. Kim was joined by senior officials including Defence Minister Kang Sun Nam at the event. In a photograph published by KCNA, the leader of the reclusive state could be seen with his head peaking out of a tank as the state media reported he drove the tank himself. Meanwhile, other photographs showed Kim sporting a leather jacket and surrounded by troops, and also tanks with the North Korean flag blasting ammunition on a field. The mock battle comes as joint annual drills involving South Korea and the U.S. were due to wrap up on Thursday. The drills, known as the Freedom Shield exercises, were the first to take place since Pyongyang scrapped a 2018 inter-Korean military pact aimed at de-escalating tensions in November. As part of the drills, South Korea's army said the combined forces had conducted a joint live fire exercise at a training base in the city of Pocheon in the past week. The live fire drill featured tanks, armoured cars as well as FA-50 fighter jets, the army said in a statement. North Korea has long condemned such military drills as rehearsals for war, while Seoul has portrayed the exercises as purely defensive. Kim's appearance at the demonstration comes after he guided an artillery firing drill by the Korean People's Army, the country's military force, last week. The drill involved units near the border that are in firing range of "the enemy's capital," KCNA said, referring to Seoul, which has nearly 10 million residents. (Reporting by Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Sandra Maler, Ed Davies and Lincoln Feast.) By Kanishka Singh (Reuters) - Hundreds of anti-war protesters demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and calling for an end to U.S. military assistance for Israel blocked the international terminal at the San Francisco International Airport on Wednesday. Footage from the scene showed protesters carrying banners with messages such as "Permanent Ceasefire Now," "Stop the World for Gaza" and "Stop Arming Israel." An ABC News affiliate put the number of demonstrators at over 300. Protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza have occurred in many U.S. cities in recent months, including near airports and bridges in New York City and Los Angeles, vigils outside the White House and marches in Washington. This month, large protests were seen ahead of U.S. President Joe Biden's State of the Union address and the Oscars. Demonstrators have regularly interrupted Biden's campaign events and speeches. Airport officials said the international terminal remained open but passengers were re-routed around the activity. Activists blocked the roadway outside the airport, marched in circles and chanted slogans. Passengers planning to reach the terminal were told to get dropped off at the rental car center and take an air train to the terminal. There were no known flight delays. Most of Gaza has been flattened in Israel's offensive that the health ministry says has killed over 31,000 people, displaced nearly all its 2.3 million population and led to a starvation crisis in the narrow coastal enclave. Israel's assault on Hamas-governed Gaza followed an Oct. 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist group that killed about 1,200 people. While the United States has called for a temporary ceasefire to send more aid to Gaza and get hostages taken by Hamas on Oct. 7 released, it has rejected calls for a permanent ceasefire, saying such a step would let Hamas regroup. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Mark Porter) FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition politician Boris Nadezhdin arrives at the Supreme Court building for his appeal hearing after the Central Election Commission barred him from the March 15-17 presidential election, in Moscow, Russia, February 15, 2024. REUT By Lucy Papachristou LONDON (Reuters) - Several campaign staffers and volunteers for disqualified Russian presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin have been arrested in what he cast as an attempt by authorities to thwart efforts to monitor the presidential election later this week. At least one Nadezhdin staffer said he was physically attacked in the days before the March 15-17 ballot. Although Nadezhdin conceded weeks ago he had no chance of appearing on the ballot, the anti-war politician's offices have remained active and he had said he was raising funds to train election observers and conduct exit polls. At least 17 of Nadezhdin's associates have been detained since he was banned from running in February, Russian media reports and his team say, even as President Vladimir Putin is almost guaranteed this week to win another six years in power. Nadezhdin's Vladivostok branch, in Russia's Far East, said that at least three staffers had been detained on Wednesday morning and that the whereabouts of two remain unknown. One of those detained, Igor Krasnov, the local branch head, was later given six days' administrative arrest under an anti-LGBT propaganda statute. Commenting on Krasnov's detention, Nadezhdin said: "The real purpose of such actions by 'law enforcement officers' is to prevent the guys from participating in the elections on March 15-17, including observing at the precinct election commission and participating in exit polls. "Similar actions were also carried out in Moscow and Stavropol," Nadezhdin added in a post on his Telegram channel, without elaborating. Rights group OVD-Info reported that another 18-year-old volunteer in Vladivostok was also jailed on Wednesday for six days. Later on Wednesday, Konstantin Larionov, head of the Nadezhdin branch in Kaluga in western Russia, was reportedly beaten by unknown men while returning home from work, according to pictures he posted on Telegram showing himself receiving first aid for bruises on his forehead, arms and knees. A spokesperson for Nadezhdin said on Telegram that the attack was associated with the man's political work and added: "We demand an objective investigation and punishment of those responsible!" Campaigning on a ticket to end the war in Ukraine, Nadezhdin's short-lived presidential run garnered a groundswell of support among some mostly young, urban Russians. Thousands queued in the depths of winter to sign their names in support of his candidacy, which was later barred by the Central Election Commission due to what it said were irregularities in the signatures. Even from the sidelines, Nadezhdin's politicking has proved a disturbance to the Kremlin, which says Putin is the overwhelming choice of the Russian people. The sight of tens of thousands of Russians, including Nadezhdin, coming to pay their respects earlier this month at the grave of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was a further annoyance for the Kremlin. Some 14 staffers from Nadezhdin's Voronezh headquarters in southern Russia were unable to attend Navalny's funeral on March 1 after some were detained while trying to board a train to Moscow, according to Russian media reports. Several were given short jail sentences. Other Nadezhdin staffers were detained by traffic police as they were trying to leave Voronezh for Moscow by car. (Reporting and writing by Lucy Papachristou; editing by Mark Heinrich) A Barclays bank building is seen at Canary Wharf in London, Britain May 17, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth/ File Photo By Kirstin Ridley LONDON (Reuters) -Three Black bankers, who sued Barclays for a combined 52.8 million pounds ($66.7 million) in London over allegations that included race discrimination, harassment, victimisation and whistleblower detriment, have largely lost their case. In a near 460-page judgment published on Wednesday, the East London Employment Tribunal dismissed almost all claims brought by former Vice President (VP) Louis Samnick, Christian Abanda Bella, a VP, and Assistant VP Henry-Serge Moune Nkeng. The three men of Cameroonian background, who represented themselves in the lengthy case, had alleged they had been bullied, harassed and denied promotion and appropriate support, in part because of their race. Samnick, a former vice president in the bank's credit risk model validation team, and Abanda Bella, a quantitative analyst, succeeded with a claim that Barclays had failed to make reasonable adjustments for "sufficiently significant" health problems during a 2019 performance review, the judgment showed. All other claims failed. Barclays welcomed the decision. "We are committed to building a diverse and equitable culture where everyone is included and has access to development opportunities throughout their career," a spokesperson said. Reuters was unable to reach the claimants. Abanda Bella joined Barclays in 2017 but has been signed off work with depression since 2019. In his 2019 appraisal, carried out in his absence, his performance was assessed as "needs improvement". Samnick, who received the same 2019 performance rating, had been on sick leave since September 2019. Ranked as a vice president for 10 years, Samnick resigned in 2021 after securing another bank job at executive director grade, the judgment showed. A remedy hearing will be called if the parties cannot agree compensation for the single failure to make reasonable adjustments for disabilities. ($1 = 0.7813 pound) (Reporting by Kirstin Ridley; Editing by Toby Chopra and Jonathan Oatis) FILE PHOTO: James Crumbley, parent of accused Oxford High School gunman Ethan Crumbley, is escorted into the courtroom by a Oakland Count Sheriff during a court procedural hearing in Rochester Hills, Michigan, U.S., February 24, 2022. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook (Reuters) -James Crumbley, whose son killed four fellow students in a 2021 U.S. school shooting, criminally failed to heed warning signs about his son's instability, resulting in a foreseeable tragedy, prosecutors said in closing arguments on Wednesday at his manslaughter trial. Crumbley, 47, is being tried on four counts of involuntary manslaughter for allegedly ignoring his son's mental state and not securing the semi-automatic pistol that prosecutors say he bought as a Christmas present for his son, Ethan. That was just days before Ethan Crumbley, then 15, used the gun in the 2021 shooting, killing four fellow students at Oxford High School near Detroit. "He did nothing over and over and over again," Oakland County, Michigan, prosecutor Karen McDonald told the jury. Defense attorney Mariell Lehman argued that James Crumbley could not have known what his son would do. Jurors began deliberations on Wednesday. Last month Crumbley's wife was convicted on the same unusual charge. Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty in 2022 to four counts of first-degree murder and other charges and was sentenced to life in prison without parole in December. Witnesses have testified during the trial that on the morning of the shootings, a teacher discovered drawings by Ethan Crumbley depicting a handgun, a bullet and a bleeding figure next to the words "Blood everywhere," "My life is useless," and "The thoughts won't stop - help me." The Crumbleys were summoned to the school that morning and told that Ethan needed counseling and they needed to take him home, according to prosecutors. The couple resisted taking their son home and did not search his backpack or ask him about the gun, prosecutors said; the teenager returned to class and later walked out of a bathroom with the gun and began firing. McDonald also presented the jury with texts that Ethan Crumbley had sent to a friend and journal entries he had written in the months leading up to the shooting, in which he talked about wanting medical attention and hearing voices, but he was worried his parent would be "pissed." On one occasion, according to a text message to a friend, McDonald said Ethan had asked James Crumbley to take him to the doctor but his dad "gave me some pills and told me to suck it up." Defense attorney Lehman argued that "James had no idea that his son was having a hard time," saying there was no evidence that James knew the contents of his son's text messages or journal. Lawyers for Jennifer Crumbley, James' wife, made a similar argument in her trial on the same charge, which ended with her conviction on Feb. 6. That was the first time a parent faced such a charge stemming from a U.S. school shooting by a child. The U.S., a country with persistent gun violence, has experienced a series of school shootings over the years, often carried out by current or former students. (Reporting by Gabriella Borter; editing by Donna Bryson and Josie Kao) FILE PHOTO: Displaced Palestinians wait to receive United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) aid, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, March 7, 2024. REUTERS/Mohammed By Humeyra Pamuk and Simon Lewis WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. officials are preparing for a pause on funding the main U.N. agency for Palestinians to become permanent due to opposition in Congress, even as the Biden administration insists the aid group's humanitarian work is indispensable. The U.S., along with more than a dozen countries, suspended its funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in January after Israel accused 12 of the agency's 13,000 employees in Gaza of participating in the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack. The U.N. has launched an investigation into the allegations, and UNRWA fired some staff after Israel provided the agency with information on the allegations. The U.S., which is UNRWA's largest donor, providing $300 million to $400 million annually, said it wants to see the results of that inquiry and corrective measures taken before it will consider resuming funding. Even if the pause is lifted, only about $300,000 - what is left of already appropriated funds - would be released to UNRWA. Anything further would require congressional approval. Bipartisan opposition in Congress to funding UNRWA makes it unlikely the U.S. will resume regular donations anytime soon, even as countries such as Sweden and Canada have said they will restart their contributions. A supplemental funding bill in the U.S. Congress that includes military aid to Israel and Ukraine contains a provision that would block UNRWA from receiving funds if it becomes law. President Joe Biden's administration supports the bill. U.S. officials say they recognize "the critical role" UNRWA plays in distributing aid inside the densely-populated enclave that has been brought close to famine by Israel's assault during the past five months. "We have to plan for the fact that Congress may make that pause permanent," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday. Washington has been looking at working with humanitarian partners on the ground, such as UNICEF and the World Food Programme (WFP), to continue giving aid. But officials are aware that UNRWA is hard to replace. "There are other organizations that are now providing some distribution of aid inside Gaza, but that is primarily the role that UNRWA is equipped to play that no one else is due to their longstanding work and their networks of distribution and their history inside Gaza," Miller said. 'UNRWA IS A FRONT' A few Democrats in the U.S. Senate, including Senator Chris Van Hollen, along with some progressive members in the U.S. House of Representatives, have opposed an indefinite ban on funding to UNRWA. But any new funding would need the support of at least some Republicans, who hold a majority in the House. Many have expressed their opposition to UNRWA. "UNRWA is a front, plain and simple," Representative Brian Mast, the Republican chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement. "It masquerades as a relief organization while building the infrastructure to support Hamas ... It is literally funneling American tax dollars to terrorism," Mast said. Asked for comment on Mast's claims, UNRWA Director of Communications Juliette Touma said an independent review led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna is assessing the "measures that UNRWA has in place with regards to the neutrality of the agency, its staff and programs." "We encourage member states, individuals and entities to share any information about accusations against UNRWA with the investigation, or with the ongoing review, to look into them," Touma said. UNRWA was established in 1949 by a U.N. General Assembly resolution after the war that followed Israel's founding, when 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes. Today it directly employs 30,000 Palestinians, serving the civic and humanitarian needs of 5.9 million descendants of those refugees, in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and in vast camps in neighboring Arab countries. In Gaza, UNRWA runs the enclave's schools, its primary healthcare clinics and other social services, and distributes humanitarian aid. William Deere, director of UNRWA's Washington Representative Office, told Reuters that U.S. support accounts for one-third of UNRWA's budget. "That's going to be very hard to overcome," he said. "Please remember that UNRWA is more than Gaza. It's health care and education and social services. It's East Jerusalem, the West Bank, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon." Fighters from Hamas, which administers Gaza, killed 1,200 people in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel and took 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies, an assault that sparked one of the bloodiest wars in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel's retaliatory military campaign on the densely populated enclave has killed more than 31,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza authorities, while infrastructure has been obliterated and hundreds of thousands are now close to famine. (Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Simon Lewis; additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Don Durfee, Michael Perry and Paul Simao) By Chibuike Oguh NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of Williams-Sonoma, which owns home furniture retailer Pottery Barn, surged to a record high on Wednesday after it announced better-than-expected fourth-quarter results as well as a new $1 billion stock buy-back program. Williams-Sonoma's net revenue during the holiday shopping season fell 7% to $2.27 billion while its net income was flat at $354.4 million, the company announced on Wednesday. That result was higher than the average Wall Street analyst estimate of $2.23 billion for revenue and about $330 million for net income, according to LSEG data. Williams-Sonoma's shares rose as much as 20% to an all-time-high of $289.80 following the result. The stock is on track for its biggest daily percentage gain since April 2020, according to LSEG data. The new $1 billion stock buy-back plan will supersede its current similarly sized repurchase program, which was announced a year earlier, the company said. About 94% of Williams-Sonoma's stock, representing 60 million shares, are publicly traded, LSEG data shows. (Reporting by Chibuike Oguh in New York; Editing by Alden Bentley and Andrea Ricci) (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's chief of staff met the Chinese ambassador to Kyiv on Wednesday and discussed a visit to Kyiv last week by a Chinese envoy and preparations for a world summit devoted to the two-year-old conflict with Russia. Zelenskiy's website said chief of staff Andriy Yermak and Ambassador Fan Xianrong continued the themes raised in last week's discussions with Li Hui, China's special representative for Eurasian affairs. It said the discussion focused on "further joint actions" and Zelenskiy's plan to end the conflict. Yermak, it said, told the ambassador of the state of plans for the "peace summit" to be hosted by Switzerland and thanked China for its "interest in achieving a just peace for Ukraine". An account last week on the president's website said Yermak told Li about the battlefield situation and prospects for Kyiv's peace plan. He also presented what Kyiv described as evidence of North Korean weaponry supplied to Moscow. Li had met a Russian deputy foreign minister in Moscow before arriving in Kyiv. Kyiv has been trying to cultivate good relations with Beijing, and China has attended at least one of the preparatory meetings for the summit, though Russia has not been invited. Ukraine's peace plan calls for the withdrawal of all Russian troops from occupied territory, the restoration of Ukraine's 1991 post-Soviet borders and a process to make Russia accountable for its actions. Russia has ruled out any negotiations based on that premise. (Reporting by Ron Popeski; editing by Jonathan Oatis) UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549 FORM 8-K CURRENT REPORT Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): March 11, 2024 Hyundai Auto Receivables Trust 2024-A (Issuing Entity) Central Index Key Number: 0002010834 Hyundai ABS Funding, LLC (Depositor) Central Index Key Number: 0001260125 Hyundai Capital America (Sponsor) Central Index Key Number: 0001541028 (Exact name of Issuing Entity, Depositor/Registrant and Sponsor as specified in their respective charters) Delaware 333-261719 333-261719-07 33-0978453 (State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) (Commission File Number for Registrant and Issuing Entity, respectively) (Registrants IRS Employer Identification No.) 3161 MICHELSON DRIVE, SUITE 1900 IRVINE, CALIFORNIA 92612 (Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code) Registrants telephone number, including area code: (949) 732-2697 Not Applicable (Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report) Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below): Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2 (b)) Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4 (c)) Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934: Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered N/A N/A N/A Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (240.12b-2 of this chapter). Emerging growth company If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ITEM 8.01. OTHER EVENTS. The Registrant is filing the exhibits listed in Item 9.01(d) below in connection with the issuance of the Notes by Hyundai Auto Receivables Trust 2024-A, which are described in the Prospectus dated March 11, 2024. ITEM 9.01 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS (a) Not applicable. (b) Not applicable. (c) Not applicable. (d) Exhibits The exhibits number corresponds with Item 601(a) of Regulation S-K. SIGNATURES Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on behalf of the undersigned thereunto duly authorized. Date: March 13, 2024 HYUNDAI ABS FUNDING, LLC By: /s/ Charley Changmin Yoon Name: Charley Changmin Yoon Title: President and Secretary ATTACHMENTS / EXHIBITS EXHIBIT 5.1 EXHIBIT 8.1 FILE NO. 333- CIK # 0002000430 United States Securities And Exchange Commission Washington, DC 20549-1004 Registration Statement on Form S-6 For Registration under the Securities Act of 1933 of Securities of Unit Investment Trusts Registered on Form N-8B-2. A. Exact name of Trust: invesco Unit Trusts, Series 2363 B. Name of Depositor: Invesco capital markets, inc. C. Complete address of Depositors principal executive offices: 11 Greenway Plaza Houston, Texas 77046-1173 D. Name and complete address of agents for service: MORGAN, LEWIS & BOCKIUS LLP Invesco capital markets, inc. Attention: Thomas S. Harman, Esq. Attention: John M. Zerr, Esq. 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue NW 11 Greenway Plaza Washington, DC 20004-2541 Houston, Texas 77046-1173 E. Title of securities being registered: Units of fractional undivided beneficial interest F. Approximate date of proposed sale to the public: as soon as practicable after the Effective Date of the Registration Statement The registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such date as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a) may determine. Preliminary Prospectus Dated March 13, 2024 invesco UNIT TRUSTS, SERIES 2363 High Income Allocation Portfolio 2024-2 Preferred Opportunity Portfolio 2024-2 Multi-Asset High Income Portfolio 2024-2 The attached final prospectus for prior series of Invesco Unit Trusts, Series 2345 (each, a Prior Series and collectively, the Prior Series) is hereby used as a preliminary prospectus for the above stated series (each, a New Series and collectively, the New Series). The structure, investment objective, security selection process, and the type and quality of portfolio securities and risk considerations for each New Series, as described in the final prospectus of the Prior Series, will be substantially the same as, and will not materially differ from, that of the final prospectus for the New Series. Information with respect to pricing, the number of units, dates and summary information regarding the characteristics of securities to be deposited in the New Series is not now available and will be different since each New Series has a unique portfolio. Accordingly, the information contained herein with regard to the Prior Series should be considered as being included for informational purposes only. Information contained herein is subject to completion or amendment. Such units may not be sold nor may an offer to buy be accepted prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective. This prospectus shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the units in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state. (Incorporated herein by reference is the final prospectus of the Prior Series from Invesco Unit Trusts, Series 2345 (Registration No. 333-276087) as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on February 15, 2024, which shall be used as a preliminary prospectus for the New Series). The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. Contents of Registration Statement This Registration Statement comprises the following papers and documents: The Facing Sheet of Form S-6. The Prospectus. The Signatures. The Written Consents of Legal Counsel, Evaluator and Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. The following exhibits: 1.1 Trust Agreement (to be supplied by amendment). 3.1 Opinion and Consent of Counsel as to the legality of securities being registered (to be supplied by amendment). 3.3 Opinion of Counsel as to the Trustee and the Trust (to be supplied by amendment). 4.1 Consent of Initial Evaluator (to be supplied by amendment). 4.2 Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (to be supplied by amendment). Signatures Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant, Invesco Unit Trusts, Series 2363, has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized in the City of Chicago and State of Illinois on the 13th day of March, 2024. invesco Unit Trusts, SERIES 2363 (Registrant) By: Invesco Capital Markets, Inc . (Depositor) By: /s/ TARA BAKER Vice President, Business Operations and Quality Assurance Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed below on March 13, 2024, by the following persons who constitute the principal officers and a majority of the Board of Directors of Invesco Capital Markets, Inc.: Signature Title Brian C. Hartigan Director and Co-President William S. Geyer Director and Co-President Mark W. Gregson Chief Financial Officer By: /s/ TARA BAKER (Attorney-in-fact*) BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. National security can't be controlled without ensuring religious security, the Deputy Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations of Azerbaijan Siyavush Heydarov told Trend. The official noted that it can be unequivocally stated today that the religious factor in the world has sharply politicized, extending beyond cultural and moral values. "As in different periods of history, unfortunately, today we see some circles using religion as a tool to satisfy geopolitical and geoeconomic interests. Practice shows that ambitious states, international centers of power, if they cannot direct the countries they target with economic pressure in their interests, turn ethnic identity, especially religion, into a political instrument, seeking to exploit it. Therefore, there is a need to appreciate religious issues not only from a spiritual perspective but also through the prism of security. Religious security is one of the main components of national and global security in the face of the challenges of modernity. In connection with this, the first step towards ensuring the religious security of our country is to take into account real threats, the time, and current conditions in the world. The experience in the Middle East and the ongoing processes there have once again clearly demonstrated that it's impossible to control national security without ensuring religious security. Considering Azerbaijan's location in a region where global interests and claims collide, this issue always stands in the spotlight as a priority," Heydarov added. Stay up to date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel (Tribune News Service) Two Huntsville, Ala., companies have been awarded a five-year, $910 million contract with the U.S. Army to assist with testing weapons systems at Redstone Arsenal. The contract is in support of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command through a joint venture, Joint Technical Solutions, LLC, between Astrion and AI Signal Research Inc. Leveraging our over 30-year legacy of assisting the U.S. Army, we provide our customers with guidance on new defense and technology issues to get ready for whats ahead, said Dave Zolet, CEO of Astrion. This partnership underscores Astrions dedication to ensuring mission continuity and maintaining operational stability. We take pride in our ongoing service to the customer, embodying our commitment to future innovation and excellence. ASRI is the small business lead in the joint venture. As the larger company, Astrion is serving in a mentors role and providing support. We work very closely together, ASRI President Bill Colson said. We have a long history of working together. Now, well continue that in a much stronger fashion through this contract. Both companies, we are thrilled and honored to be able to continue to support the Redstone Test Center. The two companies will assist in the testing of aviation and missile systems and technologies associated with that for the Army. Between 500 and 600 workers will be involved with the testing. The type of work we provide ranges from hands-on skilled technicians to degree engineers, Colson said. These are individuals, for example, who come from community colleges with associate degree backgrounds doing those kinds of specialized work all the way to degree engineers from multiple disciplines, electrical, mechanical, aerospace, for example, and computer scientists and programmers to administrative professionals who help make sure all of the work is managed and accounted for properly. Matt Matoushek, Atrions executive vice president and general manager over the Army program, called the workforce a technician-based, technical-based team thats hands on, turning wrenches, running wires, setting up targets. He said the contract will have a huge impact on north Alabama and southern Tennessee, where the workforce resides. A lot of that workforce is already in place, Colson added. Theyve been doing that type of work and will transition into this new contract. This announcement follows the recent launch of Astrion, which brought together two government services firms, Oasis Systems and ERC. ERC had been operating in Huntsville since 1988. ASRI has been operating in Huntsville for 34 years and has a long history of providing technical engineering type support to NASA and the Army at the arsenal, Colson said. The joint venture is a fantastic way for our company to continue providing that type of critical support from the region to Redstone Arsenal, Colson said. And Matoushek said the joint venture is crucial to supporting the U.S. Armys mission readiness through the Redstone Test Center. We are proud to deliver cutting-edge test and evaluation solutions that empower and protect the U.S. warfighter, he said. 2024 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit al.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Pvt. Angel Gonzales poses for a photo on a path in this undated photo. Gonzales, with the 173rd Airborne Brigade, was reported absent by his unit after leaving Aviano Air Base last week and is now considered absent without leave. (U.S. Army) AVIANO, Italy The search is still on five days after a 173rd Airborne Brigade soldier walked out of his quarters at Aviano Air Base and disappeared. Pvt. Angel Gonzales was reported absent by his unit and is now considered AWOL, brigade spokeswoman Capt. Jennifer French said Monday. Gonzales is a cannon crewmember who was stationed in Grafenwoehr, Germany, and was in Aviano for a training exercise. He was part of a parachute detail Thursday night and left voluntarily during the early morning hours the following day, French said. Brigade soldiers from Grafenwoehr were in Aviano for a routine airborne training operation, according to French. The unit searched the immediate area for four days before heading back to Germany, French said, adding that as of Tuesday, Gonzales had not been seen at any local hospital, been detained by a law enforcement agency or shown up at a customs control point. French said an Army Criminal Investigative Division agent told her that the agency was notified last week of Gonzales disappearance but isnt looking into it because there is no indication that Gonzales was threatened or that a third party is involved. Authorities at the U.S. Army base in Vilseck, Germany, have opened a missing person case regarding Gonzales, French said. U.S. Marines assigned to Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team Company Central stack up during close-quarters training in Bahrain, July 3, 2023. U.S. Southern Command said Wednesday, March 13, 2024, that it had deployed a Marine Fleet-Anti-terrorism Security Team to maintain strong security capabilities at the Embassy in Port-au-Prince and conduct relief in place for our current Marines at the request of the State Department. (Angela Wilcox/U.S. Marine Corps) The United States has sent a specialized Marine unit to help secure the U.S. Embassy in Haiti as the country struggles through a political transition amid rising gang violence, authorities said Wednesday. Haiti, the Caribbean Community and the United States are setting up a committee of Haitian leaders to take over for embattled Prime Minister Ariel Henry and lead the beleaguered nation to new elections. Henry, under pressure to resign from the United States, the Caribbean Community, the gangs and ordinary Haitians, said Monday that he will step down once a transitional presidential council was in place and had chosen an interim leader to replace him. U.S. Southern Command, which coordinates U.S. military activity in the region, said Wednesday that it had deployed a Marine Fleet-Anti-terrorism Security Team, or FAST, to maintain strong security capabilities at the embassy in Port-au-Prince and conduct relief in place for our current Marines at the request of the State Department. Dozens of FAST Marines based in Yorktown, Va., took part in the embassy deployment, a U.S. defense official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive and ongoing mission. Marines provide security at diplomatic missions worldwide, but the arrival of the specialized FAST Marines underscores the deteriorating situation within Haiti. FAST platoons are on constant standby to respond to crises, with a mission to deploy within 24 hours to secure sensitive sites and defend U.S. personnel at risk. FAST units are well situated to reinforce or evacuate embassies because they are familiar with embassy structures and already integrate with the State Department, according to Marine Corps service documents. They also provide security for strategic weapons and rapid response to other units already deployed, including anti-terrorism operations, according to the Marine Corps. Haiti, which has struggled for decades with corruption, poverty and violence, has descended into chaos since the still-unsolved 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise. Armed gangs control more than 80 percent of Port-au-Prince, U.N. officials have estimated, and gang members kidnap, rape and kill with impunity. This month gangs attacked two prisons, freeing thousands of criminals, and assaulted the international airport, the main seaport and at least a dozen police stations. Bodies have accumulated in the streets of the capital with no government workers to take them away. The Haitian presidency remains vacant, and the last lawmakers terms expired in January 2023. That has left Henry, who was appointed by Moise days before his assassination, to run the government. The 74-year-old neurosurgeon has drawn criticism for failing to control the violence or hold new elections. The prime minister was in Nairobi to rally support for a U.N.-approved, Kenya-led security force for Haiti when the violence recently intensified. He has been unable to return. He was last seen in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory in the Caribbean. The Biden administration spent nearly a year searching for a country to lead the Multinational Security Support mission to Haiti, and wrote the U.N. Security Council resolution that authorized it. The United States will provide logistics, intelligence, airlift and medical support, and $300 million in funding, officials say, but wont join in street patrols. The State Department is vetting the Kenyan police units to be deployed to make sure they have not been involved in human rights violations. This week, the Department of Defense doubled our funding for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, and we are working with Haitian, Kenyan, and other partners to expedite its deployment to support the Haitian National Police and to restore security in Haiti, Southern Command said. The Department of Defense is postured to provide enabling support for the MSS, including planning assistance, information sharing, airlift, and medical support. The FAST deployment Tuesday evening was the second U.S. mobilization in a week for the embassy in Haiti. On Sunday, planners and logistical personnel were dispatched, a second U.S. defense official said. That operation was to allow our Embassy mission operations to continue, and enable non-essential personnel to depart, Southern Command said. Capt. Kurt Balagna, the commander of the gold crew of the USS Ohio guided-missile submarine, was relieved of duty on Monday, March 11, 2024, the Navy said. (U.S. Navy) WASHINGTON The commanding officer of an Ohio-class, guided-missile submarine was fired Monday, the Navy said. Capt. Kurt Balagna, the commander of the gold crew of the USS Ohio, was relieved of duty by Rear Adm. Nicholas Tilbrook, commander of Submarine Group 9. The blue-gold model is a concept in which two crews alternate aboard U.S. submarines one crew takes the boat on patrol and the other typically remains at its homeport. The Navy did not provide additional details beyond the typical due to a loss of confidence statement. Under federal privacy law, military officials are not required to disclose the reasons for removing or reassigning personnel. Military officials often cite a loss of confidence when commanders are removed from their posts without providing any specifics that led to the decision. Balagna, native of Farmington, Ill., enlisted in April 1992 as a nuclear electronics commission, according to his Navy biography. He was later commissioned in 1997 after graduating from the University of Illinois with a degree in nuclear engineering. Balagna previously performed the duties of executive officer on the attack submarine USS Virginia and the commanding officer of the attack submarine USS Annapolis. He has been awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and various unit awards and citations, according to his service biography. Balagna is at least the third Navy commanding officer relieved this year. The Navy relieved the commander of the Japan-based, guided-missile destroyer USS Howard in February and the commander of the guided-missile submarine USS Georgia in January. A C-130 Hercules assigned to the 109th Airlift Wing, part of the New York Air National Guard, flies over Navy SEALs, Norwegian naval special operations commandos and the attack submarine USS Hampton during an integration exercise in the Arctic Ocean, Saturday, March 9, 2024. (Jeff Atherton/U.S. Navy) STUTTGART, Germany U.S. special operators and allied commandos moved across frozen tundra in snowmobiles and linked up with a fast-attack submarine after it cracked through a thick sheet of ice, marking a first in the Arctic Circle, military officials said this week. Some 400 Navy SEALs, Army Green Berets and elite troops from several NATO countries were fanned out in the upper Arctic for weeks to hone their cold-weather fighting skills during Arctic Edge 24. The exercise was part of a flurry of ongoing military maneuvers stretching from the northernmost points of the United States to Finland, Sweden and Norway. Special operators broke new ground when MH-47G Chinook helicopters landed in a secure zone past Utqiagvik, Alaska, having received ice depth information from a U.S. submarine in the area, Naval Special Warfare Group Two said in a statement Tuesday. U.S. Navy SEALs and Norwegian naval special operations commandos test ice thickness to establish a landing zone for an MH-47G Chinook helicopter during an integration exercise in the Arctic Ocean on Saturday, March 9, 2024. (Jeff Atherton/U.S. Navy) From there, the commandos took off in snowmobiles to set up a command-and-control tent, coordinated an airdrop of a critical package from a C-130 Hercules and carried on across the tundra to deliver the package to the submarine USS Hampton, which moments beforehand surfaced through the sea ice, military officials said. This marked the first-ever integration of SOF personnel, SOF aircraft and snowmobiles coming together to conduct an operation with a submarine that surfaced that deep in the Arctic Circle, Naval Special Warfare Group Two said in a statement Tuesday. Military officials did not detail the contents of the critical package or the nature of the training scenario, which brought together special operators and an attack submarine designed to seek and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships. The strategic value of the High North has increased over the years, as melting sea ice opens the possibility of new shipping lanes and greater access to undersea natural resources that the Kremlin has its eye on. Russia has sought to fortify its position in the region with numerous military bases now in operation. A Navy special warfare operator hands off a package from an airdrop to a sailor assigned to the attack submarine USS Hampton on Saturday, March 9, 2024, during an integration exercise that was part of Arctic Edge 24. (Jeff Atherton/U.S. Navy) Capt. Bill Gallagher, commander of Naval Special Warfare Group Two, said in a statement Tuesday that the drills were intended to discourage aggression from potential adversaries. Given the frequency with which we are training alongside our allied partners and demonstrating our combined expertise in some of the most severe environments on the planet, we are sending a clear message about our warfighting ability and our preparedness to defend the homeland across the Arctic region, Gallagher said in the statement. Arctic Edge 24, which ended Tuesday, included special operators fast-roping from helicopters, multiple diving operations and pier-side vessel attacks by combat swimmer infiltration. A Navy SEAL uses a radio on the ice next to the attack submarine USS Hampton during an integration exercise with Norwegian naval special operations commandos Saturday, March 9, 2024, as part of Arctic Edge. (Jeff Atherton/U.S. Navy) Other exercises in the Arctic are ongoing. The two-week Nordic Response, which involves 20,000 U.S. and allied troops, will conclude Thursday. Meanwhile, soldiers from the Alaska-based 11th Airborne Division will fly over the North Pole next week for Arctic Shock, which will see them dropping down in northern Norway. The Arctic is a critical region for power projection and homeland defense, Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, 11th Airborne Division commanding general, said in a statement Monday. Comedian and impressionist Matt Friend in New York on March 4. Over the past couple of months, Friend has turned the red carpet into a petri dish for viral content, mastering impromptu interactions with actors and musicians who have become increasingly familiar with his online presence. (Jesse Dittmar/For The Washington Post) NEW YORK To the celebrity impressionist, there are few subjects more tantalizing than Nicolas Cage. And yet there Matt Friend was at the Golden Globes in January, doing his Cage for Cage himself (I just wanna kind of FIND the Declaration of Independence!), when Paul Giamatti walked into his sight line. Friend had spent years nailing Giamattis vocal tics and signature exasperations, and he was desperate to share his imitation with the veteran actor. But in the star-studded chaos, Giamatti skirted right by Friends perch on the press line. The carpet is like Madame Tussauds come to life, Friend said recently over lunch in SoHo. I was like, Oh my God, I missed him. A couple hours later, though, while loitering inside the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Friend spotted the Holdovers star again, just moments after he had won for best actor in a musical or comedy. Giamatti had started walking across a nondescript hallway to the winners press room. Friend wouldnt miss his second chance. He raced over to introduce himself, gave his phone to his own manager and then broke into an uncanny impersonation right beside his idol. I am doing you, to you, right now, Friend shouts, shaking his head in the actors visceral style. Without missing a beat, Giamatti perks up and participates. Thats very good! he yells, matching Friends exaggerated tone. Very good! The surreal video, which blew up on Friends TikTok and Instagram accounts, is a prime example of the comedians sharp miming abilities, which often impress and surprise his targets. Though their encounter lasts just a minute, Giamatti cant stop laughing at the charade, commending Friends startlingly familiar and hard-to-achieve mannerisms. I was unbelievably lucky, Friend says. You have to be quick on your feet when you see a celebrity and then moments can happen. Over the past couple of months, Friend has turned the red carpet into a petri dish for similar viral content, mastering impromptu interactions with actors and musicians who have become increasingly familiar with his online presence. Hes prompted Kieran Culkin to slap him after a profane parody of Succession character Tom Wambsgans. Hes traded King Charles IIIs syllabic riffs with The Crown actor Dominic West. And hes broken out his near-identical Howard Stern voice to appease Netflix head Ted Sarandos. These days, whether hes at the Grammys or the Emmys, it seems like every celebrity is pleased to meet Friend, Hollywoods new favorite impressionist and an improbable protagonist of the 2024 awards season. It was very nerve-racking at first, but I just love it, Friend says. Its crazy. I actually feel the most in my element when Im on that carpet. Friend got his first taste of the red carpet at last years Globes, after Jeremy Lowe, a friend who works at Dick Clark Productions, granted him press access. The 25-year-old impressionist purchased his own microphone at a camera store, Ubered to the event from his hotel and set up shop without much of a plan. There was no producer helping me, he says. I had my manager filming me, holding my phone, and I was monitoring the sound. It could have been a disaster. Then Austin Butler approached him, eager to compliment Friends recent Elvis impression as Friend broke into song in the actors husky drawl. The filmed interaction proved Friend didnt need to flag down A-listers they were already looking for him. Its been amazing that theyve been so receptive to it. Its pretty wild, he says. My goal in these events is to get really funny moments and make the celebrities feel comfortable and relaxed. The press line is just a heightened glimpse of Friends instinctual social media and comedic skills. Since his more than 250 impressions began catching fire throughout the pandemic, hes amassed more than a million followers on TikTok, where he shares cooking spoofs of Stanley Tucci, croons like Michael Buble and addresses constituents as Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell, often while walking through public places. He frequently guests on cable news networks, has started voicing characters on Family Guy and The Simpsons and is currently in the middle of a national stand-up tour, mixing in his astute impressions with observational humor. A few years removed from college, he cant quite believe how far his videos have taken him. To have these things happening at such a quick rate compared to a lot of other people is amazing, Friend says. I do not take it for granted. Impressionist Matt Friend says his dream job would be hosting a late-night TV show. I love this blend of politics and pop culture, celebrities and politicians and the news, he says. Thats what Im working toward. (Jesse Dittmar/For The Washington Post) A Chicago native, Friend remembers starting his comedy journey after watching Austin Powers in Goldmember as a 4-year-old, reciting Mike Myerss various characters around the house. As a teenager, he developed his vocal skills watching and recording himself on YouTube and transferred to NYUs Gallatin School of Individualized Study after his freshman year at Tufts to be closer to New Yorks comedy scene. I submitted a video and read my essay with different impressions. I think thats how I got in, he laughs. After interning with the Second City comedy troupe and The Tonight Show, he began incorporating impressions into stand-up sets at Gotham Comedy Club, where he could get laughs with decent-sounding one-liners. But it wasnt until the pandemic quarantine that he found time to test, refine and expand his material with a broader online audience. I was just very obsessive, Friend says. I was posting a lot. Friend estimates his early impression of Rami Malek put his profile on the map. He got another boost after an encounter with Jeff Goldblum, who spontaneously brought Friend up onstage at a jazz club so the pair could out-Goldblum each other. (Friend smartly came prepared with the actors trademark throat lozenges.) His impression of Stern arguably his most accurate of the bunch was so good that the longtime radio host invited him on the show to poke fun at his own vocabulary. Living in downtown New York has also had its perks, as his frequent, random run-ins with Andy Cohen, John Oliver and David Letterman have almost functioned like test runs for his red carpet shtick. I actually read theories that people have on me, Friend says. Like, How are you so connected? Are you in the CIA? Throughout our conversation, Friend sipped an iced coffee, occasionally slipped into various voices, blurted out a word-perfect rendition of The Music Mans Ya Got Trouble and began self-awarely narrating his own profile: Can he really be himself? Indeed, his imposing baritone voice (complemented by his 6-foot-2 stature) makes it easy to fluidly mimic celebrities with lower registers, which sometimes made it hard to discern his actual voice from the impressions he slips in and out of. People think Im telling a joke all the time, he laughs. I want to make the record clear: Im able to recognize when Im being myself versus a voice or an impression. Though Saturday Night Live would seem to be one possible next step (the actor auditioned last summer but didnt hear back), Friends social media surge and frequent hobnobbing with Hollywoods elite has provided him a plausible shortcut to pursue his dream job as a late-night television host. I love this blend of politics and pop culture, celebrities and politicians and the news, he says. Thats what Im working toward. In the meantime, he can barely keep up with his growing list of voice requests. Last month, country artist Jelly Roll and actor Glen Powell both blitzed Friend for impressions of themselves, which caught him uncharacteristically off guard. (He plans to work them into his repertoire soon.) Several hours after we spoke, Friend was flying back to Los Angeles for a few stand-up sets and Oscars events, where his phone will be at the ready. But before we could part ways, a middle-aged man on the street had noticed him, approached to shake his hand and gave the impressionist another taste of whats been happening to him all winter. Youre all over my social media, he said excitedly, before turning to me. He does the best impressions. In this handout image provided by the Australian Defence Force, Royal Australian Navy submarine HMAS Rankin is seen during AUSINDEX 21, a biennial maritime exercise between the Royal Australian Navy and the Indian Navy on Sept. 5, 2021, in Darwin, Australia. (POIS Yuri Ramsey/Australian Defence Force/Getty Images/TNS) CANBERRA, Australia (Tribune News Service) The Australian government is playing down concerns over the delivery schedule for its fleet of nuclear-powered submarines after the Biden administration reduced orders for new vessels in its latest defense budget. The U.S. will produce just one Virginia-class submarine in 2025, down from an anticipated two, raising questions over its ability to fulfill a commitment under the AUKUS security partnership to sell Australia up to five of the nuclear-powered vessels starting from 2032. Despite the setback, a spokesperson for Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said AUKUS comprising Australia, the UK and US is steadfast in its commitment to the original timeline. All three AUKUS partners are working at pace to integrate our industrial bases and to realize this historic initiative. The AUKUS agreement, signed in September 2021, aims to counter Chinas growing influence and military presence in the Indo-Pacific region. The deal has two pillars: Australias acquisition of conventionally armed, nuclear-powered subs; and trilateral sharing of advanced capabilities including quantum, hypersonic, AI and autonomy. Former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, a vocal critic of AUKUS, said in response to the announcement that the U.S. is already struggling to keep pace with Chinas military expansion, and isnt going to sacrifice its own defense needs in order to meet Australias requirements. The reality is the Americans are not going to make their submarines deficit worse than it is already by giving, or selling, submarines to Australia, he told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio on Wednesday. This is really a case of us being mugged by reality. U.S. Congressman Joe Courtney warned in a statement that the cuts to the Virginia-class production line would have a profound impact on both the American and Australian navies. It has been almost a year since Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stood alongside President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in San Fransisco to announce the long-awaited roadmap for the AUKUS submarine plans. Under the original timeline, Australia will first receive nuclear-powered submarines from the U.S. in the 2030s, before working jointly with the U.K. to build an entirely new model known as the SSN AUKUS. That wont be in service until at least the early 2040s. (With assistance from Tony Capaccio.) 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Visit bloomberg.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Chinese President Xi Jinping, second from left, and his wife Peng Liyuan, first from left, along with then-U.S. President Donald Trump, second from right, and first lady Melania Trump, third from right, watch the repair of relics at the conservation workshop of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017. (Liu Weibing, Xinhua/Sipa USA/TNS) BEIJING In the United States, Donald Trump and Joe Biden have launched presidential campaigns focused on how different they and their leadership styles are. But China sees very little contrast between the two of them. Nearly every Chinese foreign policy expert agrees that neither is a great option for Beijing. Whether these experts, when pressed, pick Trump or Biden as the better of bad options often comes down to how salvageable or dispensable they consider Chinas difficult relationship with the United States. Biden and Trump are like two bowls of poison for China, said Zhao Minghao, a professor at Fudan Universitys Center for American Studies. No matter who comes to power, the pressure on China will continue to exist. Relations are in a structural and chronic depression, he added. Beijing fears that a Trump win on Nov. 5 would result in an all-out trade war extending the one Trump launched in his first term and derail its efforts to put a sluggish economy back on track. But a Biden reelection, while offering continuity, would come with trade-offs for the Chinese Communist Partys long-term goals of remolding the international order to its advantage. The likely diplomatic chaos of a second Trump term could provide another opportunity for China to drive a wedge between Washington and its allies. Either way, the U.S. election is fueling the Chinese leaderships deep dislike of instability. We dont like uncertainty, said Wang Yiwei, vice president of the Academy of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in a New Era at Renmin University. But for those in China who see relations with the United States as a contest, Wang added, Trump can do more harm to the American system than to the current international system, which remains by and large beneficial to China. Xi Jinping, the powerful Chinese leader, regularly warns about high winds and choppy waters in a world of changes unseen in a century that threaten goals of national revival. Chief among those sources of turbulence is Chinas fraught relationship with the United States. Frustration with Washington and its allies was a clear undercurrent during the annual eight-day meeting of the top leadership that concluded in Beijing on Monday. On the sidelines of the event, Wang Yi, the Chinese foreign minister, accused Washington of constantly renovating its methods of suppressing China and targeting Beijing with bewildering levels of recrimination. Chinese officials have been careful to avoid openly favoring a U.S. presidential candidate for fear of accusations of election interference, but few Chinese foreign affairs experts see ties between the countries improving dramatically under either Biden or Trump. Instead, the election is often cast here as being inherently destabilizing for China, regardless of who wins. The American election is Chinas largest external threat in 2024, the Center for International Security and Strategy, a think tank at prestigious Tsinghua University, concluded in a recent report. Candidates acting tough on China throughout the campaign would almost certainly undermine the positive momentum of a meeting between Xi and Biden in San Francisco late last year that was aimed at stabilizing relations, in part because Beijings meddling has already been treated as a fact that doesnt need verification, the report said. A recent U.S. intelligence report said China, having improved its capabilities in covert influence operations and disinformation, may attempt to interfere in U.S. elections this year because of its desire to sideline critics of China and magnify U.S. societal divisions. Trump the nation builder? For Chinas leaders, whether Trump or Biden would better serve Beijings interests is a question of tactics: How can Beijing best take on its main rival? Xi has made clear his ambition for China to play a leading role in shaping global affairs. But the Chinese foreign policy establishment remains torn about whether Beijing should directly and immediately challenge the leadership of the United States for a shot at supremacy. Theories of American decay have taken hold among many Chinese nationalists, who are increasingly convinced that Chinas time is now. They are impatient with the American-led world order and often support Trump because they believe his return would undercut Washingtons international standing and create an opening for Beijing to extend its influence into the vacuum left by an inward-turning United States. These nationalists like to call him chuan jianguo Trump the nation builder where the nation in question is China. For these sarcastic fans, Trumps trade policies backfired and spurred on Chinese patriotism and efforts to become self-reliant in core technologies such as semiconductors. On Chinese social media, videos of Trump mocking Biden are among the most-watched clips about the U.S. election, with comments calling for an impersonation to be featured in Chinas widely watched Spring Festival show. If Trump got on Douyin, he would immediately gain 100 million followers, one user wrote, referring to the domestic Chinese version of TikTok. If I had to choose, Id say Trump, frankly speaking, would be more beneficial to China, Jin Canrong, a scholar at Renmin University said in a video on Douyin. According to Jin, Trump would undoubtedly want to give China a hard time, but would lack the strength because of domestic opposition for being a white supremacist and international opposition for being an isolationist. Not everyone here is sold on a Trump victory being a clear-cut win for China. The Republican candidate has threatened to levy tariffs of 60 percent or more on Chinese goods if he wins another term. The benefit most likely will not outweigh the cost for China, given the damage he will inflict on U.S.-China relations and on China specifically, said Yun Sun, director of the China program at the Stimson Center in Washington. Under Trump, there is no floor to U.S.-China relations. Some Chinese establishment scholars urge caution about taking on the United States in a time of intense international turmoil. One wrong step, they warn, and China could miss its shot at global leadership. Its better for China, they say, to ride out crises such as the war in Ukraine or fighting in the Middle East from the sidelines. Nationalists who cheer on Trump overestimate Beijings ability to assume a stance similarly powerful to Americas in the international order, said a Chinese government adviser who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive topic. Being a leader has a lot of advantages, but it also has a lot of responsibilities, the person said. Chinas not ready. Its far from that. We dont have the experience or a system of values thats accepted universally or even the necessary hard power, meaning military might and financial dominance of the U.S. dollar. Biden may have continued with strategic competition, but at least there is more communication now after things got so bad by 2020 that the two sides could not even sit down and talk, said Ren Xiao, a former Chinese diplomat who is now director of the Center for the Study of Chinese Foreign Policy at Fudan University. Yet Biden, having done more to rally U.S. allies to join trade controls and other measures against China, is considered by some to be a greater threat for Chinas interests in the long run. The thing about Biden, said Huang Rihan, a professor at Huaqiao University in Xiamen, is that he is nian huai meaning to appear genuine on the surface but to secretly harbor malicious intentions. Biden and his team say one thing in public but [do] another behind the scenes. Not only do they constrain China from every side but they also pretend to be impartial and selfless, Huang said. Relatively speaking, Trump is more honest than Biden. He says what he thinks deep down. Li reported from Seoul and Kuo from Taipei, Taiwan. An F-35A Lightning II flies over Death Valley National Park, Calif., March 7, 2024. (William Lewis/U.S. Air Force) The Pentagon has cleared the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter for full rate of production after years of delay. The move helps to validate the aircrafts capabilities for present and future partners of the F-35 enterprise, the Pentagon said in a news release Tuesday. The change in designation allows the F-35 Joint Program Office to negotiate multiyear contracts for the fighter with manufacturer Lockheed Martin. Just over 990 F-35 aircraft have been delivered to the U.S. and foreign military services over the past 14 years, the news release said. The F-35 is a single-seat, stealthy combat jet with highly advanced electronics used in warfare and surveillance. Full-rate production was delayed by a series of problems that began in 2012, the Government Accountability Office said in a December report. The most recent issue was a plethora of problems with a simulator running the F-35s mission systems software that provides complex test scenarios replicating real-world settings, according to the GAO report. The F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter program has proven to be the Defense Departments most expensive weapon system program, with an estimated price tag of more than $1.7 trillion to buy, operate and sustain them, according to the report. The Pentagon plans to acquire just over 2,450 F-35s for the Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy, according to a 2022 report by the Congressional Research Service. U.S. allies are expected to buy hundreds more. Each service uses the same basic F-35 but with variations to fit for their missions. Four to five F-35s are delivered each month, CRS reported, and between 156 to 170 would be produced each year in full production. William LaPlante, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said in the Tuesday news release that production approval was a major achievement that will foster integrated deterrence by U.S. forces and ally and partner nation militaries. With this milestone, the program is now well positioned to efficiently produce and deliver the next generation of aircraft to meet the evolving needs of our services, partners, and [foreign military service] customers, the release states. The Air Force received its first F-35A in 2011 and declared operational capability in 2016, according to a Lockheed Martin factsheet online. It is the biggest buyer of the jet, with squadrons based in nine U.S. mainland bases and in the United Kingdom. The Marine Corps reached operational capability in 2015, with squadrons at five mainland bases and at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan. The Navy achieved operational capability in 2019, with F-35Cs adapted for use on aircraft carriers. Soldiers exit a U.S. Army UH-60M Black Hawk on the deck of the USNS Dahl near South Korea's southern coast, March 7, 2024. (Grady Fontana/U.S. Navy) CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea A U.S. Navy vehicle cargo ship recently took a rare opportunity to train with Army helicopter crews off the southern coast of South Korea. Crews aboard UH-60M Black Hawks from the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade qualified for deck landings aboard the USNS Dahl on March 7, 5 miles from Jinhae, Military Sealift Command, Far East said in a news release Monday. All flight deck operations are inherently dangerous but [deck landing qualifications] add the wild card of potentially novice crews who are not familiar with either the vessel or ship flight operations in general, contracted mariner Capt. Deatra Thompson said in the release. Additionally, unlike many USNS vessels, Dahl does not conduct flight operations often and many of the crew, while having received training and simulated operation, some have never been involved in real-life flight operations, she said. Military Sealift Command, Far East did not respond to a request for additional details by phone or email Wednesday. Amid the Dahl drill, a separate large-scale military exercise throughout South Korea was underway. The 11-day Freedom Shield kicked off March 4 and encompasses air-assault, air-to-air, air-to-surface and cyber-related operations between U.S. and South Korean forces. During Freedom Shield, the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigades AH-64 Apache helicopters took part in live-fire gunnery drills with the South Korean navys 2nd Fleet at undisclosed over-water locations, according to photos the command released March 6. The Dahl is a Watson-class cargo ship crewed by contracted mariners to support U.S. military operations. It displaces more than 62 tons and has a crew of about 30, according to the Navys website. A U.S. Army UH-60M Black Hawk takes off from the USNS Dahl off South Korea's southern coast, March 7, 2024. (Grady Fontana/U.S. Navy) The ship on Feb. 15 delivered U.S. Marine Corps vehicles and equipment to South Korean marines at Chinhae Naval Base, according to photos from the 3rd Marine Logistics Group. In April 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dahl carried equipment and vehicles to an emergency medical facility on Guam. Military Sealift Command, Far East is headquartered in Singapore and is responsible for roughly 50 ships operating in the Indo-Pacific, according to the release. The commands international workforce includes around 6,000 civil service mariners, 1,100 contract mariners, 1,500 shore staff and 1,400 military service members. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. UN Under-Secretary-General and High Representative of the UN Alliance of Civilizations Miguel Angel Moratinos Cuyaube will take part in the XI Global Baku Forum, Trend reports via Nizami Ganjavi International Center (NGIC). The Global Baku Forum, organized by NGIC, will be held on March 1416, 2024. About 400 renowned professionals, along with former and current world leaders, ministers, and Nobel Prize laureates, are expected to attend the event. The previous Global Baku Forum, held in March 2023, was attended by a number of countries and significant international organizations. Four presidents, two prime ministers, six speakers and ministers, five UN agency heads, 25 former presidents, 21 former prime ministers, and deputy foreign ministers from 23 nations attended the event. Notably, the forum was attended by 360 representatives from 61 nations. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Navy airman James Browder of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan works out in the Fleet Recreation Gym at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, March 13, 2024. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes) The U.S. Navy plans to keep its gyms and fitness centers open around the clock, seven days a week, at bases worldwide. While some Navy gyms already operate 24/7, most do not, forcing sailors who work night shifts or odd hours to find other avenues for physical fitness. Hoping to alleviate the problem, Navy Installations Command issued a March 8 memorandum authorizing bases to extend their fitness center hours. Expanding access allows sailors to fulfill the Navy mission and deploy at a moments notice, the head of the command, Vice Adm. Scott Gray, said in a March 8 news release. Its also the right thing to do for base residents quality of life, he added. We all know that exercise benefits ones physical health, but it also reinforces mental, emotional, and social health, which are important for our Sailors overall wellbeing, he said. All Navy installations may outfit their fitness centers to operate outside normal business hours with staff or without staff, the memo states. Several restrictions will apply to after-hours access, according to the release. Patrons younger than 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian; off-base guests will not be allowed, and pools and other aquatic spaces will be off-limits. Base commanders are required to conduct risk assessments, get their gyms certified by the base safety office and develop standard procedures before expanding their hours, the release said. Navy Installations Command, based in Washington, D.C., did not immediately respond to an after-hours request for comment Wednesday. James Kitchen, a civilian machinery mechanic for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., works out in the Fleet Recreation Gym at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, March 13, 2024. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes) No timeframe is laid out in the memo, but some Navy bases in Japan are already moving forward with the shift. The Fleet Recreation Center at Yokosuka Naval Base south of Tokyo became 24/7 on March 5. I think its great, Ross Nakahara, a nuclear engineer for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., said at the gym Wednesday. It gives you more options in the morning, or if you work a different shift. Petty Officer 3rd Class Eli Romine, an aircraft handler assigned to the USS Ronald Reagan, also felt the change was beneficial. A lot of people get off work late, he said at the gym Wednesday. So, its really convenient. At Naval Air Facility Atsugi, southwest of Tokyo, the gym is not yet accessible 24/7, but the base is taking actions that will allow us to come into compliance and provide more exercise to our community, spokesman Gregory Mitchell said by email Wednesday. Stars and Stripes reporter Jennessa Davey contributed to this report. Sailors with Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25 evacuated a man from the Coast Guard cutter Polar Star, March 6, 2024, after the man began experiencing abdominal pains. (Ryan Graves/U.S. Coast Guard) A Navy helicopter plucked an ailing crew member from the deck of the Coast Guards only heavy icebreaker in waters south of Guam. The cutter Polar Star was about 100 miles south of Guam on Friday when a 43-year-old man onboard began experiencing severe abdominal pains, according to a Coast Guard news release Monday. The ship was en route to Seattle, its homeport, following an annual trip to McMurdo Station for Operation Deep Freeze. The joint military mission resupplies U.S. research stations in Antarctica for the National Science Foundation. A Navy MH-60S Seahawk helicopter rendezvoused with the Polar Star, which was rerouted close to the island by the Joint Rescue Sub-Center on Guam. The patient was flown to U.S. Naval Hospital Guam that day in stable condition, according to the release. No further information was available on his status, according to an email Wednesday from Chief Warrant Officer 2 Sara Muir, spokeswoman for Coast Guard Forces Micronesia/Sector Guam. This operation stands as a testament to the seamless collaboration and unparalleled skill of our U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Navy personnel, sector commander Capt. Nick Simmons said in the release. The swift and efficient evacuation of our crew members underlines our unwavering commitment to the health and safety of every service member. The Polar Star docked Monday for a port call at Yokosuka Naval Base, homeport of the U.S. 7th Fleet. The visit is a first for the ship and the first time a Coast Guard icebreaker has stopped here since the cutter Healy came in 2004, according to U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area spokeswoman Lt. Cmdr. Jeannie Shaye. The purpose of this visit is to strengthen our service relationship with a close Pacific ally that also operates an icebreaker in Antarctica, including the Japan Coast Guard and the Japan Maritime Self Defense Forces, she said in a statement emailed Wednesday by Naval Forces Japan spokesman Sky Laron. The 399-foot icebreaker, powered by six diesel and three gas turbine engines, is the only U.S. vessel capable of carving through polar ice, according to the Coast Guard. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Bertholf arrives at Changi Naval Base in Singapore, Feb. 25, 2024. (Steven Strohmaier/U.S. Coast Guard) Bertholf cutter visits India The Coast Guard remained busy elsewhere in the Indo-Pacific in recent weeks. The Bertholf, a Legend-class cutter based in Alameda, Calif., stopped in Singapore on Feb. 25, its first port call after 30 days at sea, according to a March 5 Coast Guard news release. The ship belongs to the 7th Fleets Destroyer Squadron 15 while in the region. Bertholf moved on to a port call at Port Blair, India, the first U.S. cutter to do so, then joined the Indian coast guard for the Sea Defender exercise in the Andaman Sea, squadron spokesman Lt. j.g. Ronan Williams said by email Wednesday. Before reaching India, the Bertholf visited Malaysia and joined the Singapore police coast guard, Malaysia Maritime Enforcement Agency, Japan coast guard and Australian Border Force for a variety of activities, Williams said. The Bertholf in 2019 became the first Legend-class cutter to patrol the Indo-Pacific. Since then, five other cutters the Midgett, Stratton, Waesche, Kimball and Munro have made similar Indo-Pacific patrols as part of the Biden administrations Indo-Pacific strategy and the Coast Guards Pacific Area Campaign Plan, Williams said. The courthouse at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany, on March 12, 2024. A noncommissioned officer at Vilseck is standing trial on a murder charge in the March 2022 death of his 5-month-old son. (Matthew M. Burke/Stars and Stripes) VILSECK, Germany Military prosecutors accused an Army noncommissioned officer on trial this week for murder of fracturing his infant sons skull in a fit of rage two years ago after the child would not stop crying. Sgt. Brandon Livingston, assigned to the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, is charged at court-martial with murder, aggravated assault, battery of a child and obstruction of justice in the death of his 5-month-old son Kaleb on March 5, 2022. Opening statements were delivered Tuesday in the courtroom of Lt. Col. Thomas Hynes at Rose Barracks in Vilseck. The trial is scheduled to continue through next week. Livingston faces a minimum of life in prison with the possibility of parole if found guilty of murder by an eight-member panel of officers and senior enlisted members. The defense has suggested that his wife, Lilli Livingston, abused the child. The life of Kaleb Livingston ended in one moment of rage and frustration, prosecutor Capt. Jacob Watts said Tuesday. The government will prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Brandon Livingston caused the childs injuries, he said. Emergency services personnel were called to Livingstons home in Vilseck around 1 a.m. after the soldier reported discovering his son in distress, Watts said. The boy was taken to a German clinic in Weiden where he was treated for blunt force trauma to the head, a skull fracture and brain hemorrhaging. He died a short time later. The main entrance gate at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany, is shown March 12, 2024. A soldier from the base is charged with murder in the 2022 death of his infant son. (Matthew M. Burke/Stars and Stripes) Doctors found evidence of rib and leg fractures that showed signs of healing, which pointed to a pattern of abuse, Watts said. Both Livingston and his wife were arrested by U.S. military police, Oberpfalz police told Stars and Stripes previously. German prosecutors accused Lilli Livingston, a German national, of failing to prevent the abuse. She was convicted last year of negligent homicide by omission and received a suspended sentence of one-and-a-half years of probation, her attorney Joerg Jendricke said in August. Lilli Livingston accused her husband of abusing the child at least three times in the couples home in the Amberg-Sulzbach district, Bavarian news site Onetz reported at the time. She is expected to testify for the prosecution later this week, Watts said. Brandon Livingston appeared stoic Tuesday as he entered the courtroom in his dress uniform. The prosecutions case centers on eyewitness and expert testimony as well as his own statements to Army Criminal Investigation Division agents, establishing that Kaleb was in his fathers care when the deadly blow was struck, Watts said. Maj. James Kiernan, an attorney for the defense, pointed out that Lilli Livingstons story about the timeline of events had changed over time and that she was the childs primary caregiver. If you cant rule her out, thats reasonable doubt, Kiernan said several times during his opening statement. A Dutch CV90 infantry fighting vehicle awaits movement during maneuvers at the Hohenfels Training Area in Hohenfels, Germany, in 2020. A Dutch officer was killed Tuesday, March 12, 2024, during a NATO exercise at Hohenfels, the Dutch Defense Ministry said in a statement. (Hayden Allega/U.S. Army) STUTTGART, Germany A 28-year-old Dutch officer died this week after being injured in a vehicle accident during NATO drills at the U.S. Armys training grounds in Bavaria, according to the Dutch Defense Ministry. The unidentified first lieutenant was injured Tuesday in an accident involving a CV90 Infantry Fighting Vehicle at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels. Another Dutch soldier also was slightly injured, the ministry said in a statement the same day. The first lieutenant was resuscitated on the spot. Both soldiers were taken to a hospital, where the officer eventually succumbed to his injuries, the ministry said. About 6,500 U.S. and allied troops are participating in the monthlong Allied Spirit exercises at Hohenfels. They are gaining practice in working together as a multinational force to defend NATO territory. Moved by the news that one of our soldiers was killed during an exercise in Germany. My thoughts go out to his loved ones and colleagues, Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said in a statement. Dutch authorities said they are investigating the accident, which involved soldiers from the 43rd Mechanized Brigade. For the Dutch troops, a main focus of the exercise is preparing for an upcoming deployment to Lithuania, where they are to be part of a NATO battlegroup designed to bolster the alliances eastern flank. Rail cars sit on the tracks at a refinery in Tuapse, Russia, on March 23, 2020. Ukraine and Russia traded attacks on each others territory Wednesday, March 13, 2024, including a second day of drone attacks against Russian oil facilities, which President Vladimir Putin called an attempt to disrupt presidential elections set for this weekend. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg) KYIV Ukraine and Russia traded attacks on each others territory Wednesday, including a second day of drone attacks against Russian oil facilities, which President Vladimir Putin called an attempt to disrupt presidential elections set for this weekend. One of the Ukrainian drones struck an oil refinery in the Ryazan region, about 100 miles southeast of Moscow, causing a fire that was extinguished after a few hours, local governor Pavel Malkov said. A Ukrainian official with knowledge of intelligence operations, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, confirmed that the refinery was the target. We are systematically implementing a meticulously calculated strategy to reduce the economic potential of the Russian Federation, the official said. Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and diminish the flow of oil money and fuel that Russia directly channels into war and the killing of our citizens. Russias Defense Ministry, however, maintained that it had shot down all 65 of the drones launched at six Russian regions overnight. It was the second attack on Russian territory in two days, after Ukrainian forces launched drones Tuesday against nine Russian cities and towns some far inside the country including the oil facilities at Nizhny Novgorod, which caught fire. The two days of attacks represent Kyivs most wide-ranging assault on Russian infrastructure since the war started, sending a message of Ukrainian resilience ahead of Russias elections, which are taking place over three days, from Friday to Sunday. They also indicate Kyivs increased emphasis on striking deep into Russia proper, as Ukrainian forces struggle with shortages of shells and soldiers on the front line and Russian forces are escalating their offensive. Last week, a Ukrainian drone hit an oil depot in the Belgorod region, and since the beginning of the year, Ukraine has attacked more than a dozen oil and gas facilities including refineries, oil depots and gas terminals in seven regions. On Wednesday, Ukraines biggest attack was on the Voronezh region in southwest Russia, where 35 drones were intercepted, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The Ukrainian official said that drones also targeted a Russian Aerospace Forces base in Buturlinovka and a military airfield in Voronezh. This information could not be independently verified. Drones also attacked the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the Rostov region of southwestern Russia, Rostov governor Vasily Golubev said on Telegram, also temporarily putting it out of commission. Electronic jamming equipment forced the drones to land on the territory of the refinery without any injuries, but technological facilities of the enterprise have been stopped, Golubev said, about which the consequences are being clarified. Ukraines military intelligence service could not confirm or deny its involvement in the operation, spokesman Andriy Yusov said, adding that the facility was used for military purposes. Another drone struck the headquarters of the FSB, Russias domestic intelligence agency, in Belgorod, near the border with Ukraine, Russian news agency Tass initially reported, but it later removed the report from its website. Unverified photos on social media showed the building with its windows blown out, however. Ukrainian officials, meanwhile, reported Russian drone and missile attacks in the Sumy and Donetsk regions, some of which hit residential buildings, killing half a dozen people and injuring scores. Putin gave an interview to Russian media outlets Wednesday in the run-up to the presidential elections, which are widely expected to return him to a fifth term allowing him to rule until at least 2030. Putin said he had no doubt that the main goal of the recent attacks was if not to disrupt the presidential elections in Russia, then at least to somehow interfere with the normal process of expressing the will of citizens. Putin also said that from a military-technical point of view, Russia was of course, ready for nuclear war. Nevertheless, he didnt think that the United States was ready to start this nuclear war tomorrow. They are developing all their components, and so are we, he said. If the United States wants war, what to do? he said. We are ready. Putin said Russia was not considering using nuclear weapons in the fall of 2022, when Russias position temporarily worsened, as U.S. officials warned at the time. Our front was not collapsing in eastern Ukraine, he said. Still, weapons exist in order to be used, he said, if it is a question of the existence of the Russian state. On Wednesday, Leonid Volkov, the longtime chief of staff of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, blamed Putin and his supporters for an unknown assailants attack on him with a hammer and tear gas near his home in Lithuania on Tuesday. This was a obviously a typical, characteristic bandit hello from Putin and from bandit St. Petersburg, Volkov said in a short video posted on social media after returning from the hospital. Putin was born in St. Petersburg and started his political career there. Lithuanian police said they were devoting huge resources to investigating the attack. Volkov described the assault as an attempt to make a meat cutlet out of me a man attacked me with a meat hammer right outside the house. He added that his arm was broken but for some reason my leg remained intact, despite being hit 15 times. Morgunov reported from Warsaw and Abbakumova from Riga, Latvia. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. The Baku Initiative Group's Executive Director, Abbas Abbasov, has briefed the UN on the landmine issues facing Azerbaijan, Trend reports. Abbasov, participating in the 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), addressed a side event titled "Victims of Terrorism: International Standards and Good Practices. Towards national implementation of the UN Model Legislative Provisions on Victims of Terrorism" at the organization's Geneva office, highlighting the issue of Armenian landmine terrorism against Azerbaijan over the past 30 years and the environmental damage caused to Azerbaijan as a result of this terrorism. Noting that Armenia has planted around 1.5 million mines in Azerbaijani territory, he emphasized that even today, civilians, including women and children, continue to fall victim to landmine terrorism. Abbasov also called on Armenia to provide mine maps to Azerbaijan. Meanwhile, since the conclusion of the second Karabakh war in 2020 until the present, the total count of mine victims in Azerbaijan has reached 346 individuals, with 65 fatalities (comprising 50 civilians and 15 military personnel). Stay up to date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Vice Adm. John B. Mustin receives a tour from Perry Yaw, business development lead for the Boeing P8 Program, before taking delivery of the first new P-8A Poseidon for the Naval Air Force Reserve during a ceremony in Tukwila, Washington, March 6, 2024. (Andrew Gordon/U.S. Navy) John Mitch Barnett, 62, a whistleblower in the midst of giving depositions alleging Boeing retaliated against him for complaints about quality lapses, was found dead from a gunshot wound Saturday in Charleston, South Carolina. The Charleston County Coroners Office reported that his death appears to result from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. In two full days of depositions, Barnett was questioned by Boeing lawyers on Thursday and by his own lawyers, Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles, on Friday. Barnett was scheduled to continue the deposition with his lawyers Saturday. When he didnt show up, Turkewitz and Knowles called his hotel to ask for a welfare check. Barnett was found dead in his truck parked at the hotel. In a statement, Turkewitz and Knowles called Barnett a brave, honest man of the highest integrity. He cared dearly about his family, his friends, the Boeing company, his Boeing co-workers, and the pilots and people who flew on Boeing aircraft, the lawyers wrote. We have rarely met someone with a more sincere and forthright character. The statement went on to say that Barnett was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didnt see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it. We are all devastated, Turkewitz and Knowles wrote. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. Barnetts niece Katelyn Gillespie said Tuesday he was the fun uncle of the family. She was very close to him. In Louisiana, where he came from, Barnett was into dirt-track car racing. He got Gillespie into race driving with him and tinkering with cars every weekend. Gillespie said he was stressed and depressed by the latest flood of quality problems at Boeing and by the strain of his case against the company for harassing him and forcing him from his job. She said Barnett was the most selfless person in private life and in his legal campaign against Boeing. He was pursuing the company not for money but to help save lives, she said. He battled a lot due to the Boeing stuff, Gillespie said. It took a major toll on him. In a statement, the Charleston Police Department declined media interviews, saying the case has gained global attention and that it will ensure that the investigation is not influenced by speculation but is led by facts and evidence. Boeing in a statement said, We are saddened by Mr. Barnetts passing, and our thoughts are with his family and friends. A long struggle with Boeing John Mitchell Barnett worked for Boeing for 32 years, starting as an electrician on the 747 jumbo jet program in Everett and working his way up to quality inspector, then manager of a quality organization. In Everett, he had top-class performance reviews. In late 2010, he transferred to Boeings 787 plant in North Charleston, and there, in early 2012, he got the first performance downgrade of his career. He reported later how a team of managers sent to South Carolina from Boeings unit in Missouri began to harass him for insisting on sticking to quality procedures and refusing to sign off on defective work. Barnett informed managers about the quality shortfalls and the pressure applied to him, and he submitted an internal ethics complaint, all without success. In January 2017, he filed a whistleblower complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. After six years of deteriorating relations with management and active harassment, he said the stress had badly affected his health, and he described himself as broken by Boeing. He took early retirement in March 2017. Barnett began talking with The Seattle Times in April 2018, outlining a series of safety concerns on the 787 Dreamliner. He described a broad failure to keep track of parts on airplanes at Boeings facilities in South Carolina. He spoke of thousands of defective parts that were lost in the system so that no one knew where they were. He also reported finding a large batch of defective oxygen bottles that if installed on 787s would not have provided a flow of oxygen in case of cabin depressurization. And he flagged a concern that certain titanium nuts being used to fasten the cabin flooring were shedding metal shavings into the electrical bays below, with the potential danger of triggering an electrical fire. The Seattle Times chose to focus its investigation on the two specific safety issues, the defective oxygen bottles and the titanium shavings. Both were substantiated at least in part by the FAA. A Freedom of Information Act request, which took the FAA nearly two-and-a-half years to fulfill, revealed that on the oxygen bottle issue, the FAA investigated and substantiated two out of four allegations. The FAA found that Boeing had failed to keep records of and had not tracked the defective parts. It found that at least 53 nonconforming parts are considered lost. Boeing insisted that it was just a crate of defective oxygen bottles that hadnt been properly marked and that there were no defective bottles in service. The FAA backed Boeings assertion that there was no issue on any 787s in service. Another Freedom of Information Act request on the titanium shavings issue was still not fully closed out three years later. In 2017, the FAA ordered inspections for the shavings on every 787 produced in both North Charleston and Everett. In 2018, the FAA was still investigating the extent of the safety issue, and Boeings proposed corrective action was redacted from the documents received by The Seattle Times. In all conversations with the Times, Barnett came across as a sincere person, with a genuine concern for the safety issues he had raised. In late 2018, Barnett wrote an email to the Times summing up what he believed had been achieved by his external complaints and the press inquiries. I know the FAA are pushing inside Boeing to assure no future planes are delivered with this (oxygen bottle) condition, so on that front, they are doing what needs to be done, he wrote. I received a note on Facebook the other day from a Boeing employee in Everett saying they are still working (the titanium shavings) issue, so thats good for future deliveries. As far as those jets already delivered, they evaluated it and took appropriate action. I cant ask for anything more on that front, Barnett concluded. I just hope it was an honest and thorough evaluation, but, thats not mine to question. Yet Barnett said he now saw it as a major issue that Boeing treats their Quality Managers and other Quality personnel in this manner. The fact that they punished me for following procedures, for documenting process violations, for insisting the airplanes are built right seems to be more concerning than any one specific issue, he said. In 2019, a month after the second crash of a 737 MAX, The New York Times published a story on the quality problems with the 787 in South Carolina, highlighting Barnetts concerns. Later that year, for Barnetts exposure of potential safety problems on the Boeing 787, Ralph Nader awarded him the Joe A. Callaway Award for Civic Courage, which recognizes individuals who take a public stance to advance truth and justice, at some personal risk. With that publicizing of his story, Barnett recently was interviewed by various media outlets as Boeings quality problems again became national news. Meanwhile, his case claiming Boeing mistreated him for blowing the whistle on safety issues had slowly progressed. OSHA in 2021 found against him. He appealed that to the Department of Labors Office of Administrative Law Judges. With a trial date scheduled for June, Barnett had traveled to Charleston last week from his home in Louisiana to give depositions for that appeal. His family, as representatives of his estate, may have the option to continue it. Barnetts wife died in 2022. He is survived by his mother, three brothers, two stepsons from a previous marriage and many nieces, nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews. 2024 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. An artists rendering shows what Interlunes Helium-3 harvester might look like on the surface of the moon. The company hopes to become the first private venture to extract resources from the lunar surface and return them to Earth. (Interlune) Nearly a decade ago, Congress passed a law that allows private American space companies the rights to resources they mine on celestial bodies, including the moon. Now, theres a private venture that says it intends to do just that. Founded by a pair of former executives from Blue Origin, the space venture founded by Jeff Bezos, and an Apollo astronaut, the company, Interlune, announced itself publicly Wednesday by saying it has raised $18 million and is developing the technology to harvest and bring materials back from the moon. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.) Specifically, Interlune is focused on Helium-3, a stable isotope that is scarce on Earth but plentiful on the moon and could be used as fuel in nuclear fusion reactors as well as helping power the quantum computing industry. The company, based in Seattle, has been working for about four years on the technology, which comes as the commercial sector is working with NASA on its goal of building an enduring presence on and around the moon. Earlier this year, two commercial spacecraft attempted to land on the moon as part of a NASA program designed to carry instruments and experiments to the lunar surface, and eventually cargo and rovers. The first attempt, by Astrobotic, a Pittsburgh-based company, suffered a fuel leak and never made it to the moon. The second, by Houston-based Intuitive machines, did land on the moon, but came in too fast and tipped over. Still, it was the first American spacecraft to land softly on the moon in more than 50 years, and it was the first commercial vehicle to achieve the feat. NASA is planning additional missions in the year to come, which it says will not only help pave the way for humans to return to the moon but for private industry to begin commercial operations there as well. Rob Meyerson, the former president of Blue Origin, co-founded Interlune with Gary Lai, another former executive at Blue, and Harrison Schmitt, a geologist who flew to the moon during Apollo 17. Also on the founding team are space industry executives Indra Hornsby and James Antifaev. In an interview, Meyerson said that the company intends to be the first to collect, return and then sell lunar resources and test the 2015 law. There is a large demand for Helium-3 in the quantum computing industry, which requires some of its systems to operate in extremely cold temperatures, and Interlune has already lined up a customer that wants to buy lunar resources in large quantities, he said. We intend to be the first to go commercialize and deliver and support those customers, he said. NASA might want to be a customer as well. In 2020, it said it was looking for companies to collect rocks and dirt from the lunar surface and sell them to NASA as part of a technology development program that would eventually help astronauts live off the land. In a tweet, then-NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine wrote that the agency wanted to establish the regulatory certainty to extract and trade space resources. NASA has also said it is in a space race to the moon with China. Both are focused on the lunar south pole, where there is water in the form of ice in the permanently shadowed craters there. But China has also said that it is interested in extracting other resources, including Helium-3, which it said was present in a sample it returned from the moon in 2020. Interlune intends to conduct a prospecting mission as early as 2026, when it would fly its harvester on a commercial rocket and spacecraft to an area of the moon believed to hold vast quantities of Helium-3. Once there, it would dig through the lunar soil, or regolith, as it is known, and using a spectrometer measure the amount of Helium-3 it collected. The objective there is to get the data, Lai said in an interview. If that goes as planned, the company hopes to launch another mission in 2028 that would be an end-to-end demonstration of the entire operation, Lai said. That would entail flying a harvester to the moon, which would scoop up the regolith, then its processor would separate out the Helium-3. A small quantity would return to and be put into the hands of the customer. By 2030, the company intends to conduct full-scale operations. But getting to the moon is difficult and expensive. Setting up a mining operation and then bringing the products home is even more so. To be successful, Interlune would have to rely on a number of launches and technologies that dont yet exist, such as a lunar rover that would crisscross the surface to dig up regolith. But Meyerson said Interlune has a chance of being successful because of the growing demand for Helium-3 and advances in space transportation and technology over the last several years. Interlune has developed an extraction technology that is small, light and doesnt require an enormous amount of power, he said, making it easier to transport to the moon and operate there. The company is also betting that as more commercial space ventures begin flying to the moon in partnership with NASA, deliveries to and from the surface will become more common, the way SpaceX now flies crew and cargo to the International Space Station in low earth orbit. Were just starting this operational cadence, and were really building the whole industrial base around going to the moon, Meyerson said. The companys funding round was led by the venture capital firm Seven Seven Six, whose founder and general partner, Alexis Ohanian, said that the space sector has become far more appealing to investors. The space economy is something we can actually talk about with a straight face now, and I think some of the smartest people on the planet are making those efforts, he said. Thats in large part, he said, because of companies like SpaceX, which is flying its reusable Falcon 9 rocket at an unprecedented rate and is working on its next-generation Starship rocket, which NASA intends to use to carry astronauts to the moon. Weve seen the technology come such a long way, Ohanian said. Obviously, what SpaceX has done has really validated the potential for what private companies can do in this space and really shown a tremendous business model. And that, frankly, opens the door for funds like ours to say, Yeah, why not? Were not exclusively investing in space, but we feel like it makes sense to take these really ambitious bets on technology that can potentially drive tremendous, tremendous value. And while its risky, we have a great appetite for that. He said he was aware that it might take years, or longer for a moon mining business to make money. But he said that, were comfortable waiting for a decade plus to see those returns. Richard Harris, left, speaks at a rally Wednesday, March 13, 2024, on Capitol Hill. Listening at right is veteran Ryan OLeary. ( Joe Gromelski/Special to Stars and Stripes) WASHINGTON A week ago, Army veteran Ryan OLeary was on the front lines in Ukraine, leading a company of almost 100 men as they fought against Russian troops. On Wednesday, OLeary found himself on Capitol Hill, fighting for weapons for his comrades as a bill containing $60 billion in military aid for Ukraine languished in the House without a vote. We still need artillery, we need mortars. We need short- and mid-range [systems], like [High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems] missiles, to effectively do offensive maneuvers and also provide defense, he said. Its gotten worse and worse as time goes by. OLeary spoke about his battleground experience after taking part in a rally in support of Ukraine aid alongside congressional Democrats, who staged a news conference in conjunction with the nonprofit group VoteVets. OLeary, 37, joined Ukraines resistance in March 2022 to help fight off Russias full-scale invasion. Today, he is the commander of Ukraines 59th Motorized Brigades Chosen Company, a group that includes other foreign volunteers. Two years of war have not softened the morale of the troops in his unit, OLeary said, but the delayed supply of critical weapons provided by the U.S. is leaving a mark. The cluster munitions that were so effective in dispersing mass Russian assaults are all used up. The heavy weapons that can break through Russian fortifications are lacking. There were days during the defense of Avdiivka, the eastern city that fell last month to the Russians, when OLearys unit had no artillery rounds to shoot. People are getting injured, theyre getting killed, he said. OLeary has no personal connections to Ukraine but the decision to risk his life and take up arms in defense of the country came easily, he said. I grew up as an American saying freedom isnt free I feel like our politicians forget that freedom doesnt end at our borders, he said. Im just a firm believer in democracy and we should support it wherever we can. OLeary also sees his work in Ukraine as an extension of the vow that he took when he enlisted in the Iowa National Guard some 20 years ago. The decade he spent in service included deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Later, he went on his own to fight the Islamic State. OLeary plans to return to Ukraine next week. In the meantime, he is meeting with Republicans and Democrats in Congress and trying to convince Republican holdouts that the Ukrainian cause is still worth supporting. I hope [its] enough to move the needle a little bit, he said. Supporters of more military aid to Ukraine listen during a rally on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. (Joe Gromelski/ Special to Stars and Stripes) Rick Harris, the father of a Marine Corps veteran who died in November serving in the Ukrainian military, is also part of the lobbying effort. He said people often ask why his son, 33-year-old Thomas Gray Harris, went to Ukraine but they should instead be asking why would he not go to Ukraine? I believe Ukraine is a place where good is standing its ground against evil, said Harris, who is a former Marine Corps colonel. Im heartbroken for the loss of my son but I am proud of what he did. He urged House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to put the Ukraine aid package to a floor vote. The Senate passed the legislation, which also includes funds for Israel and Taiwan, last month but Republican resistance in the House has stalled the bill there. Democrats unveiled a discharge petition on Tuesday to force a vote but it faces long odds of succeeding. OLeary said he has no intentions of abandoning the fight for Ukraine, even if U.S. assistance dries up and Ukrainians are left fighting with shovels. Many foreign fighters serve for three months and then leave but OLeary said he is physically and emotionally invested in the battle and cannot bear to leave his men behind. Ive been there two years, he said. I aint stopping not until the end of this war. David E. Harris, a former Air Force captain who became the first Black pilot for a major U.S. passenger airline in the 1960s after battles by others to enter the industry, died Friday, March 8, 2024, at a hospice center in Marietta, Ga. He was 89. (Alaska Aviation Museum/Facebook) David E. Harris, a former Air Force captain who became the first Black pilot for a major U.S. passenger airline in the 1960s after battles by others to enter the industry, including a landmark anti-discrimination claim backed by the Supreme Court, died Friday, March 8, at a hospice center in Marietta, Ga. He was 89. The death was announced by his family and American Airlines, where Harris worked from 1964 to 1994. No specific cause of death was noted. As Harris rose to captain at American, he became a symbol of Black achievement during the civil rights movement. Within the world of aviation, he was hailed as a trailblazer along with the Tuskegee Airmen of World War II and people such as Bessie Coleman, the first Black woman known to earn a pilots license. Harris always was quick to note that he found a place in the cockpit at American after years of struggles by other Black pilots. There is no way I should be the first, he said. It shouldve happened long before 1964. Another former Black aviator from the Air Force, Marlon D. Green, had been hired by Continental Airlines in 1957, but the offer was rescinded. After a six-year court battle, the Supreme Court in April 1963 upheld a decision in Greens favor by the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Commission. The high court ruling also sent a wider message to the U.S. airline industry on hiring practices. Green began flying for Continental in January 1965. Earlier, other Black pilots denied jobs at big U.S. carriers found different roles in the air, including ex-Tuskegee Airmen Perry Young with a helicopter service in the New York area and August Martin flying cargo aircraft. The reality is that there were 500 pilots Tuskegee Airmen who were qualified for airline jobs when they left the service, Harris said at an event in 2008. Timing and fate, however, handed Harris a place in aviation history. He almost dared airlines to take him just months after President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act by intentionally pointing out his race in applications. I am married, I have two children and Im Black, he recalled that he wrote on his cover letters. He was turned down by several carriers, he said, before being hired by American on Dec. 3, 1964, two days after he left the Air Force. The airlines purported reply to Harriss application became part of company lore: We dont care if youre black, white or chartreuse, we only want to know, can you fly the plane? During nine weeks of training, one of his roommates unaware of Harris race because of his light complexion made frequent racist remarks, Harris recalled. He privately fumed but decided not to speak out. Harris said he wanted to avoid anything that could disrupt getting his civilian wings. I was perfectly aware that there werent any Black pilots flying with the airlines, Harris told South Carolina Living in 2015. After the training, Harris became a co-pilot. He was promoted to captain in 1967. American Airlines featured Harris in an ad in Ebony magazine in the 1970s, and he was part of the first all-Black cockpit crew in 1984. While a flight was boarding in 1967 in Indianapolis, Harris introduced himself to one of the passengers, National Urban League Executive Director Whitney Young Jr., and thanked him for his work in the civil rights movement. Young drowned in 1971 while swimming in the surf near Lagos, Nigeria, and his body was brought by an Air Force plane to New York. His widow asked that Harris pilot the special American Airlines charter to bring Youngs remains to his native Kentucky for burial. On board the flight was a contingent that included civil rights leaders Andrew Young and Jesse Jackson. Harris joked that his wife told him: Dont screw this one up. Youll wipe out the whole civil rights movement. David Ellsworth Harris was born in Columbus, Ohio, on Dec. 22, 1934. His father was a self-employed tradesman and installed service station equipment. His mother was a homemaker. As a boy, he was not particularly fascinated by aviation, he said. Maybe it was there, but out to the back of my mind, he recalled, because there were no minority role models out there as airline pilots. World War II and the Tuskegee Airmen had come and gone. At Ohio State University, he joined the Air Force ROTC while studying for a degree in education. He graduated in 1957 and joined the Air Force a year later as a lieutenant, serving on bases in the United States and England. His assignments included being part of the crews for B-47 and B-52 bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons. He left the Air Force with the rank of captain. For American, he flew various aircraft, including the Boeing 747 and Airbus 300. Capt. Harris opened the doors and inspired countless Black pilots to pursue their dreams to fly, according to a statement from American Airlines chief executive Robert Isom. By the late 1960s, many of the major U.S. carriers had at least one Black pilot. Currently, about 3 percent of U.S. commercial pilots identify as Black, according to the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals. During his years with American, Harris said, he did not encounter direct racial insults. He noticed, though, the stares he sometimes received while passing through airports in the South and elsewhere in his uniform. No one was abusive, but you could tell from the body language, he told the Tulsa World in 2008, describing his feelings of unease. Harris marriage to the former Linda Dandridge ended in divorce but they remained close. His second wife, Lynne Purdy Harris, died in 2000. In addition to his first wife, survivors include two daughters from that marriage; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Well into his 80s, Harris went aloft in his single-engine Socata Trinidad. He shuttled in and out of a fly-in community near Trenton, S.C., where the roads are shared by cars and planes. The cars are supposed to get off on the grass and let you go, he said, smiling. Fr Patrick MacEntee who was arraigned today at Dungannon Crown Court on historic sex abuse charges. (Pic: Alan Lewis) A Co Tyrone priest is to stand trial on historic sexual abuse charges against two males. Canon Patrick McEntee requested a leave of absence last year while a serious safeguarding investigation was carried out. The 69-year-old, from Esker Road, Dromore, is charged with four counts of indecently assaulting one complainant on dates between 1988 and 1989. There is also a single count of indecently assaulting another complainant between 1980 and 1981. No details surrounding the circumstances of the alleged offences were disclosed during the short hearing, although it is understood they relate to McEntees time in Co Fermanagh. McEntee appeared in the dock of Dungannon Crown Court, pleading not guilty to each charge in turn. Defence counsel said a number of pieces of additional evidence are to be sought, which should be available in the coming months. Judge Fiona Bagnall remanded McEntee on continuing bail of 500 and ordered him to return for trial on September 23, which is expected to last around one week. As part of bail conditions, McEntee is to reside at his current address, and no other, and is also banned from all contact with the complainants and any person aged under 16. Originally from Monaghan, McEntee joined the staff of St Michaels College, Enniskillen, in 1977, teaching religious studies and sitting on the Board of Governors. He was also college president between 1994 and 2000, moving on to take up the post of Parish Priest at St Davogs church in Dromore, in 2001, where he has remained until his recent leave of absence. Previously, the Diocese of Clogher confirmed: Canon Patrick McEntee PP, Dromore, Co Tyrone, has asked for a period of leave to allow a safeguarding matter to be addressed. "The Diocese of Clogher has robust safeguarding policies and practices in place. The Diocese of Clogher takes seriously all allegations, suspicions or concerns of abuse. Asked about McEntees current status given the charges he faces, a spokesperson replied: Canon Patrick McEntee is on leave while a safeguarding matter is dealt with and will continue to be on leave from ministry until all due processes have been completed. The couple have since reconciled, the court heard A Dublin man has been jailed after he deliberately set fire to an office, causing over 110,000 of damage to the property in the mistaken belief that his ex-partner was having an affair. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Jason Ward (52) set a fire in an upstairs office of a property in Drumcondra where his then former partner was working, under the mistaken and false belief that she was conducting an affair there. The couple have since reconciled, the court heard. This building contained a downstairs apartment, whose two occupants had to flee after noticing that a fire had started upstairs. Over 110,000 of damage was caused to the building including smoke damage to the apartment. The tenants had to move to alternative accommodation for three months while repairs were carried out. In a victim impact statement, one of the residents said he is a heavy sleeper and only awoke because their dogs were barking, otherwise their lives could have been in danger. He said he was surprised this happened and he'd never had a problem with anyone in my life. In a victim impact statement, the building's owner said he was relieved no one was injured, but he would never forget that night when gardai knocked on his door to tell him. He also said that a family member was facing a serious illness at the time. The fire caused some difficult months for his family and business, but things are now back on track, he said, expressing the hope that Ward would get any help he may require. The building's owner received around 90,000 from an insurance claim, but faced additional losses including 16,000 of rental income while the building was repaired, the court heard. Ward (52) of Wadriver Close, Ballymun Dublin 11, pleaded guilty to one count of arson and one of endangerment on June 1, 2022. He has 14 previous convictions including five for theft and six for public order offences. Imposing sentence today, Judge Orla Crowe said this offending was deliberate, coldly planned and executed. She said Ward had driven a distance in the deepest middle of the night, used a balaclava and purchased a small amount of petrol to use as an accelerant to set the fire. The judge noted that contents of the residents impact statement and said the dogs barking had prevented a much greater tragedy from happening. She said the building's owner was under extraordinary stress at the time due to their family member's illness, but that he had shown extraordinary grace towards Ward in his victim impact statement. She said his graciousness was a tribute to his humanity. Judge Crowe noted that the outcome could have been far more catastrophic if the dogs hadn't become alarmed and barked. She said Ward acted without regard for any person or property, causing huge damage and disruption to blameless people and displaying disregard for human life. The judge described Ward's actions as selfish, inexplicable and inexcusable, adding that his reasoning for setting fire to his then ex-partner's place of work was unfathomable. Judge Crowe said she took the mitigating features into consideration including Ward's guilty pleas, expressions of remorse, efforts to deal with his addiction issues and references submitted on his behalf. She handed Ward a sentence of five years with the final 12 months suspended on strict conditions. At an earlier hearing, Detective Garda Raymond Lee told Jennifer Jackson BL, prosecuting, that Dublin Fire Brigade had extinguished the fire when gardai arrived at the scene at 3.56am on June 1, 2022. One of the tenants told gardai they were awoken and initially thought someone was going to the upstairs office. When they checked the time, they realised it wasn't the landlord and left the house to check, before returning inside. They went upstairs, then noticed a small fire. They made an attempt to put out the fire, before raising the alarm and leaving the building. Det Gda Lee said an investigation found the fire had been started deliberately with an accelerant. The upstairs office was extensively damaged and could not be used for several months. Smoke damage was also caused to the downstairs apartment and the tenants had to move to alternative accommodation while the repairs were completed. One person, who was then Ward's ex-partner, was working in the office and he was identified as a suspect. CCTV footage was obtained and showed Ward buying 1 of petrol at 3.10am from a nearby petrol station, which he put in a bottle. His car was also seen parked near the building at 3.29am. The court heard Ward is seen in this footage crouching to hide from a passing car, before putting a balaclava over his head. CCTV later captured Ward running back to the vehicle and driving away. Det Gda Lee said the apartment's residents had received unusual Facebook messages about two weeks before this incident from an account in Ward's name asking about the building and the woman who worked upstairs. Most of these messages were deleted by the sender. The court was told there were some difficulties at the time in the relationship and Ward mistakenly believed that his partner was having an affair in the office. Ward was interviewed twice but denied any involvement in the fire. He identified himself on CCTV as well as his Facebook page. Det Gda Lee agreed with John Moher BL, defending, that Ward outlined his addiction to cocaine during interview and referred to his mental health issues. A key worker with the STAR project told the court that Ward started treatment for his addiction issues in August 2022 and has made significant progress, becoming substance-free. Mr Moher said his client wished to apologise to all affected by this very serious matter. He said Ward is ashamed and remorseful for his inexplicable actions. His client was in the throes of drug addiction at the time and succumbed to feelings of paranoia, he said. He said his client has suffered from an incident of drug-induced psychosis. Defence counsel said this was a radical departure when compared to Ward's previous offending. A number of references, an offer of work, a letter of apology, GP letter and a psychological report were handed to the court. Mr Moher said his client is aware of the significant financial loss caused and was willing to make payments towards this amount. David Conville (34) died days after an assault in May 2022 A man has been jailed for killing his friend in south Belfast. Edward Kelly previously admitted the manslaughter of David James Conville nearly two years ago. The 31-year-old was sentenced at Belfast Crown Court to serve three-and-a-half years half of his sentence will be served in custody and half will be served on licence. Mr Conville, who was aged 34, died days after an assault. Detective Chief Inspector Neil McGuinness said: The assault took place outside an address in Abingdon Drive. This was on Friday May 27 2022, just after 8pm. Officers attended, along with colleagues from the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, and Mr Conville was taken to hospital having sustained a serious head injury. Sadly, he passed away several days later, in the early hours of Monday May 30. Previous court hearings were told that, during police interviews, Kelly described Mr Conville as his friend. Mr McGuinness continued said the incident had tragic and irreversible consequences. "It has taken a young mans life and left a loving family bereft. Their worlds have been torn apart, he added. "And, while I hope todays outcome offers a degree of closure, I know they remain heartbroken. My thoughts, and that of my team, are with them. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. US State Departments Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations Louis Bono will visit Azerbaijan this week, the US embassy in Baku told Trend. During his travel to the region this week, Senior Advisor for Caucasus Negotiations Louis Bono will meet with senior Azerbaijani officials to discuss efforts to achieve a durable peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia, said the embassy. Bono travels to the South Caucasus frequently to discuss US support for the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia and how best to reach a durable and dignified peace. Bono speaks regularly with several key stakeholders in Armenia and Azerbaijan to support the peace process. Follow the author on X: @Lyaman_Zeyn Roy Reynolds suffered more than 100 injuries in the attack Roy Reynolds (left) with the man who would kill him just hours later, Michael Campbell (Photo by Sunday Life) Police recover the body. Victim Roy Reynolds (top right) and Michael Campbell (bottom right) A grieving family paid tribute to a cherished brother, father and grandfather after his killer was jailed for at least 21 years. Roy Reynolds suffered more than 100 injuries in the attack, which a judge described as "brutal in the extreme, relentless and merciless". As his 34-year-old killer, Michael Campbell, was sentenced, Mr Reynolds relatives said his memory should be a beacon of love and resilience. Mr Reynolds (54), from Newtownabbey, was beaten and stabbed to death in Campbell's Derrycoole Way flat in Rathcoole some time between the evening of Sunday March 27, 2022 and the early hours of the following morning. After killing Mr Reynolds, Campbell then enlisted the help of 70-year old Robert Mervyn Fulton (70), from Brickhill Park in Newtownabbey. Roy Reynolds (left) with the man who would kill him just hours later, Michael Campbell (Photo by Sunday Life) The deceased's semi-naked remains were then dumped in the water, with a breezeblock attached to the body. His jeans and underwear had also been pulled down to his ankles. During the Tariff hearing at Belfast Crown Court, Mr Justice O'Hara said the "brutal murder" was "made worse, many times worse, by what was done by Campbell to Mr Reynolds body after he was killed. "It wasn't just that he was dumped in the reservoir. Before that, his clothes were removed by Campbell." Mr Reynolds was last seen on CCTV walking on his own at around 8.45pm on Sunday March 27 on Derrycoole Way in Rathcoole. Around 10pm on Sunday evening, Campbell sent a video message to a relative from his flat where Mr Reynolds was present. At around 4.30am on Monday morning, police received a call regarding a naked body being dragged from a flat and placed into the boot of a car. The witness provided police with the car's registration, which was quickly traced to Fulton. Details were circulated to police and the vehicle was stopped just before 7am on Monday in Rathcoole. Video: Two men sentenced after Roy Reynolds murder Campbell was covered in blood and told police he had been fighting with his brother. Officers separated Fulton from Campbell and the pensioner confirmed a body had been in the boot of his car and had been dumped at a lake. Mr Reynolds body was discovered at 8.30am that morning in shallow water at North Woodburn Reservoir in Carrickfergus. Turning to the post mortem report - which Mr Justice O'Hara described as a "catalogue of horror" - it concluded Mr Reynolds died from multiple injuries to his neck, head, chest and abdomen. He added that "injuries were found in almost every part of Mr Reynolds body" and there were in excess of 100 sites of injury inflicted with kicks, punches and weapons. The court heard that following his arrest, Campbell provided police with several versions of what happened in his flat - all of which were branded as "lies" by Mr Justice O'Hara. Regarding a claim made by Campbell that he was acting in self-defence after Mr Reynolds lunged at him, Mr Justice O'Hara said he didn't accept this. Pointing out the difference in ages between Campbell and Mr Reynolds, the Judge highlighted an absence of injuries on Campbell when he was arrested. Describing the deceased as "older, weaker and more vulnerable due to his consumption of alcohol", he added: "Gratuitous violence was used to inflict so many injuries on Mr Reynolds, with multiple attacks on his body." Campbell subsequently pleaded guilty to murdering Mr Reynold and to a charge of attempting to prevent the lawful burial of his body. Mr Justice O'Hara also spoke of the impact Mr Reynolds murder has had on his family. He said he had read "deeply moving" Victim Impact Statements written by his twin sister, his daughter and his nephew. The Judge said: "It is clear from them how much he was loved and is missed by his family and friends. The shock of his murder, especially the brutality of it, has made all of their lives so much harder that before. "An extra element of distress and grief has been caused by the way in which Mr Reynolds body was treated. "It is one thing to lose a family member to murder. It is worse again, a lot worse, when the body is taken in the boot of a car and dumped in water." Robert Mervyn Fulton leaving Laganside courthouse on Friday, March 1 (Exclusive) Whilst Fulton was handed a sentence of two years and four months, Campbell - who has a long history of violent offences committed both here and in Scotland - was told he will spend a minimum of 21 years behind bars before he is considered eligible for release by the Parole Commissioners. As Campbell was being led from the dock and back into custody by prison staff, relatives of Mr Reynolds shouted: "I hope you rot in hell." Speaking following the sentencing, Mr Reynolds brother-in-law Eric McCully said: We, Roys family, find ourselves in the midst of an unimaginable tragedy. Our beloved Roy Reynolds, affectionately known as Fobby, was taken from us far too soon. "As we grapple with grief, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has stood by our side during this harrowing time. First and foremost, we extend our deepest appreciation to the members of our family and public who bravely stepped forward and shared their accounts with the authorities. "Your courage in reliving painful memories has not gone unnoticed. Together, we seek justice for Roy, and your unwavering support strengthens our resolve. To the public, whose compassion and empathy have touched our hearts, we say thank you. Your kind words, gestures, and presence have provided solace when words fail us. Your solidarity reminds us that we are not alone in this dark hour. We reserve a special place of honour for the individual who reported the incident to the police. Your swift action ensured that Roys case received immediate attention. Your vigilance matters, and we are forever grateful for your role in bringing this tragedy to light. To the member of the public who discovered Roy and promptly alerted the authorities, we express our heartfelt appreciation. Additionally, we extend our gratitude to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Your tireless efforts in investigating this heartbreaking incident are deeply appreciated. We trust in your commitment to justice and accountability. Murder victim Roy 'Fobby' Reynolds Fobby was more than a name; he was a cherished brother, father, and grandfather. His twin sister, Maggie, shares our grief, as do his brother Phillip and sisters Samantha, Joanne and Donna. Roys legacy lives on through his daughters, Natasha and Lisa, and his three precious grandchildren: Charlie, Freya, and Ayda. In this time of sorrow, we kindly request privacy for our family. We need space to mourn, to remember, and to find strength in each other. Please respect our need for solitude as we navigate this painful journey. May Roys memory be a beacon of love and resilience. Meanwhile, PSNI Detective Inspector Sean Armstrong said it was an attack that had no comprehending or justification. "Roy, who was aged 54, had his life taken in a horrific attack a murder made even more disturbing by the callous way in which the two subsequently disposed of his body, he said. "This was the most brutal and senseless loss of a life. I know that Roys loving family have understandably been left broken-hearted, and my thoughts, and that of our team, remain with them. "Roy was a much-loved father and grandfather, a brother and an uncle. And, while no words can take away their pain, Im keen to acknowledge the strength, dignity and patience they have shown throughout the criminal justice process. Anatol Botnari (23), who allegedly grabbed the teenager between her legs, was himself badly beaten later by local people A man accused of groping a 14-year-old girl at a Dublin bus stop has denied sexually assaulting her, saying he only "bumped into" her while he was drunk. Anatol Botnari (23), who allegedly grabbed the teenager between her legs, was himself badly beaten later by local people who came out and attacked him, a court heard. His defence has maintained that the girl got a fright when bumped into and wrongly made a sexual assault allegation, then the situation escalated and it was too late to go back on it. After hearing evidence for both sides at Dublin District Court, Judge Monika Leech adjourned a decision to later this week. Mr Botnari, from Moldova but with an address at the time at Sorrel Heath, Clonsilla, pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting the girl in north Dublin on February 4 last year. The court heard she was at a bus stop with two friends and alleged the man just jumped at me from behind the bus shelter and wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug before putting his hand between her legs and groping her. She said he grabbed her over her tracksuit and proper felt her and that it was disgusting, the court heard. She alleged he put his hand on her vagina over her clothes. After it happened, she ran away and told her family, the court heard. One of her friends who also ran away alleged that when she returned, she saw the accused still on the green area, humping a lamppost, rocking his hips back and forth into the pole. Eventually, members of the community came upon him and Mr Botnari was assaulted, suffering head injuries and a broken tooth. In evidence, the accused said he was drinking in a friends car and had seven to eight beers in half an hour to an hour before going to get a bus home. All I know is that I bumped into her, I tripped and then she took off, he said of the girl. He said the physical contact was with his right shoulder and he did not touch her anywhere with his hands. He denied wrapping his arms around her or groping her. He said he stayed in the area because he did not have money for the bus and was waiting for a lift. He was attacked from behind, Garda Conor Garland came across him afterwards and he was taken to hospital. In cross-examination, Mr Botnari said of the alleged sexual assault: I can be certain today that I have never done this. When asked about humping a lamppost, he also said I never did that. Defence solicitor Mark OSullivan said the alleged victim bumped into my client, she got a fright and she ran, she made an allegation to her family and it escalated from there. Before you know it, half the neighbourhood came out and my client was very badly assaulted, he said. When the girl was asked to make a statement, the stable door is open and the horse has bolted, there was a domino effect and its too late to go back on it, Mr OSullivan said. CCTV footage showed the alleged bear hug "didn't happen" and when the penny dropped in her cross examination, she somewhat retracted that and said it had only been one arm wrapped around her, Mr OSullivan said. It was "clear as day" from the CCTV that the girl's account of this was not truthful and the court could not be satisfied with the rest of her evidence, Mr O'Sullivan argued. He asked why his client had would have remained in the area if he had just committed a sexual assault. Mr O'Sullivan also said the girl had earlier been talking about incidents like this with her friends so it was on her mind that night. State solicitor Ruth Walsh said just because there had been some discussion about horrible things that had happened to other people did not mean the sexual assault did not happen to the girl or that she made it all up in her head. The bear hug was something of a red herring, the girl had told her mother straight away that her vagina had been touched and she never resiled from that, Ms Walsh said. The DPP challenged the sentence handed to Horgan who attacked a young man and his mother in their home A CONVICTED killer and rapist had his sentence for an horrific claw hammer attack on a mother and son increased by almost three years after a successful challenge by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to the Court of Appeal. Ian Horgan (40) had his Cork Circuit Criminal Court sentence of eight years and six months increased to 11 years and three months by the Court of Appeal. The DPP challenged the sentence handed to Horgan who attacked a young man and his mother in their home with a claw hammer and then callously shot video of the blood-soaked pair before posting it on a social media site with another video from a Cork park captioned 'Lovely Day'. Horgan was last summer handed a nine-year prison sentence, with six months suspended, for assaults causing harm with one of the victims describing the attack as akin to something from "a horror movie" and "a blood bath." The Court of Appeal was told the DPP was challenging the sentence as unduly lenient given the severity of the attack and Horgan's prior history of violent offences. It was also queried whether the prospect of consecutive sentences should have been considered by the trial judge such was the severity and violent nature of the attack on the mother and son. In increasing the sentence to 11 years and three months, the Court of Appeal warned that there was "no merit in suspending any portion of the sentence." The Court of Appeal judges noted Horgan's previous convictions including rape, manslaughter and robbery. Horgan was described as having "a long history of extremely violent offending" and has already spent almost 18 of his 40 years in prison. He was convicted of the manslaughter and rape of Cork beautician Rachel Kiely in 2000. Horgan had originally been convicted of her murder before the conviction was quashed on appeal. He was just 16-years-old when he committed the offence and was handed a 12-year prison term. Horgan had attacked the young woman while she was out walking the family dog in a Ballincollig Park on an October evening. The young man was subsequently jailed for eight years for an armed robbery on a rural Cork post office in September 2005 - with the offence occurring while he was awaiting retrial on the Kiely killing. He used a rusty slash-hook to terrify the elderly postmaster and his wife - before also threatening their son with the slash hook. All three were locked in the kitchen of the property before Horgan fled with 1,500 and some Lotto cards. Mr Justice George Birmingham, President of the Court of Appeal, said the assault causing harm convictions from March 2022 now before the court were very serious. "In terms of a Section 4 (conviction for assault causing harm), it is hard to envisage cases that are much worse," he said. "It is hard to imagine worse circumstances." Mr Justice John Edwards noted Horgan's long history of violent offending. The court heard from Donal O'Sullivan BL, for the DPP, that it was "the luck of God we are not dealing with a murder case" in respect of the consequences of the claw hammer attacks. The DPP asked the court to consider whether the trial judge should have considered consecutive sentences given the severity of the offences involved. Jim O'Mahony SC, for Horgan, acknowledged it was "a bad case (of assault)." But he said the eight and a half year sentence imposed was not unduly lenient and the trial judge had gone to great lengths to explain the sentencing decision. He also noted that his client's plea had saved the State enormous time and effort with over 70 Gardai involved in the investigation. "The onus is on the appellant to show that there was undue leniency." In Cork Circuit Criminal Court last year, Judge Helen Boyle said Horgan was guilty of "a particularly cowardly assault" with a number of aggravating features and that had appalling consequences for the victims. Horgan did not personally know either victim, Mary O'Callaghan or her son Hassan Baker (30). However, Horgan's then girlfriend had been in a previous relationship with Mr Baker - and after the attack, Horgan sent a video-clip of a blood-soaked and moaning Mr Baker to his girlfriend. Cork Circuit Criminal Court heard that, in a series of social media messages later recovered by Gardai, Horgan texted his girlfriend from a Cork city park that his knuckles were sore and that he was "washing the blood off." "I destroyed him - he won't be acting the hard man ever again," he texted. Det Supt Miichael Comyns said that Horgan had travelled from his home in Macroom to Cork city that day by bus. He had brought a bag with him containing a change of clothing and the claw hammer and was captured by CCTV cameras as he travelled to his victims home. He walked to an area near MacCurtain Villas - where the two victims lived - and went to a derelict shed where he changed into clothing including a black hoodie and snood to cover his face. Horgan of No Fixed Address and formerly of The Hermitage, Macroom, Co Cork pleaded guilty to assault causing serious harm to Mr Baker at MacCurtain Villas on March 26 2022. He also pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to Mrs O'Callaghan. Det Supt Comyns said that Horgan knocked on the front door of the O'Callaghan family home shortly after 3.50pm and, when Mrs O'Callaghan answered the door, he forced his way in and struck both her and her son with the claw hammer. He also choked Mr Baker - and when the young man fell semi-conscious to the floor, he struck him with the claw hammer while he was helpless. Judge Boyle was told that Mr Baker suffered a depressed fracture to his skull as well as a fractured cheekbone and eye socket. He had to undergo emergency surgery and has suffered serious problems in the wake of the attack including speech difficulties, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and nightmares. Mrs O'Callaghan suffered a fracture to her hand from a blow from the hammer as well as multiple bruises sustained as she desperately tried to protect her son. Det Supt Comyns said that Horgan spoke to the terrified duo in a Dublin accent - and tried to pretend he was collecting a debt. Horgan then took a couple of brief video clips of the mother and son lying blood covered and terrified on the ground. He then posted these via a social media platform to his girlfriend. Det Supt Comyns said Horgan calmly left the scene, went back to the shed and changed into his original clothing. After texting his girlfriend from a Cork park, he left Cork for four months and was only arrested on his return. The DPP argued that the offence was at the upper end of the scale and fell within the range of a 10-15 year prison term. In victim impact statements, the mother and son described the attack as like something from a horror movie. Mrs O'Callaghan said she was convinced her son had been killed - and she was now living in fear in her own home. "I felt so powerless. It was like being in a horror movie but this was real," she said. "I was shouting at him (Horgan) that Hassan was dead - the place was like a blood bath." Mr Baker said he had never even spoken to Ian Horgan before the horrific attack. "I tried to protect my mother - it was a nightmare scene. My life has changed dramatically," he said. Mr Baker said that the attack had left him with a large scar on his head including a mark indicating an imprint of the hammer on his skull. The young man said his life has been irrevocably changed and he suffers from PTSD, speech problems, short term memory issues as well as anxiety and nightmares. Det Supt Comyns said Horgan has a total of 17 previous convictions including for manslaugher, rape, assault, robbery, theft and drugs offences. Defence counsel Jim O'Mahony SC said his client's pleas had saved the State a potentially lengthy trial. He pointed out that his client suffered from a heroin and crack cocaine addiction and now regretted his actions, having written letters of apology to both victims. "Too little, too late," Det Supt Comyns told the sentencing hearing. The garda said that Horgan had not co-operated with their investigation and had refused to answer questions after he was arrested on his return to Cork. Judge Boyle jailed Horgan for nine years but agreed to suspend the final six months. The sentence was backdated to July 29 2022. Patrick Shanahan was sentenced in August 2022 to 13 years imprisonment with the final two years suspended. A paedophile pensioner who was jailed for repeatedly sexually assaulting his two granddaughters has failed in a bid to have his 11-year jail sentence reduced by the Court of Appeal. In July of last year, serial abuser Patrick Shanahan (77), of Cooga, Doon, Co Limerick, was convicted by a unanimous jury at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court of 14 counts of sexually assaulting the two sisters over periods in 2010 and 2014 when they were between 10 and 14-years old. Shanahan, who had pleaded not guilty to all charges, was sentenced in August 2022 to 13 years imprisonment with the final two years suspended. Last November, he failed in an attempt to have that conviction overturned. The two grandchildren, Daria and Tara Tobin, waived their rights to anonymity so that Shanahan could be named as a child abuser. At the Court of Appeal yesterday, sitting in Cork, Ms Justice Una Ni Raifeartaigh in dismissing the appeal, said Shanahans lawyers had submitted that the sentencing judge had erred by treating the appellants non-acceptance of the jurys verdict as an aggravating factor. In her sentencing remarks, Judge Catherine Staines had said that aggravating factors included Shanahan having prior convictions for the sexual assaults of three other children. The trial judge, in her sentencing comments, said: There were [a number of] counts in all, for which he is now serving a term of imprisonment. I note that the defendant does not accept the verdicts. Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh said there was no dispute about the principle that exercising ones right to trial by jury cannot be treated as an aggravating factor. If that had happened that would indeed be an error. Having examined the sentencing judges remarks, we are not persuaded that this is what in fact happened here, said Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh, who noted that there had been perhaps some ambiguity in the judges remarks over whether she was referring to the verdict of the previous trial or the one before her. However, we do not think it matters because in either eventuality we do not think the judges noting of the situation amounted to the treatment of this circumstance as an aggravating factor, said Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh. "We do not accept that the sentencing judge made the alleged error of principle in this regard, said Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh. In summarising the aggravating factors in the current case, Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh said the offending took place over a significant period of time in respect of two sisters and was serious and included digital penetration of the vagina by the finger and oral contact. Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh said the children were extremely vulnerable by reason of their parents being deaf and illiterate. She said their grandfather was a significant presence in their life who took advantage of their vulnerability and "abused the trust inherent in his familial position in the most egregious way. Ms Justice Ni Raifearthaigh noted that the effects on the victims were severe and long-lasting. It was a very serious case of multiple sexual assaults of two children with several aggravating circumstances, she said. The judge said there was very little by way of mitigation in the case but that the sentencing judge had ordered a two-year suspended period and allowed the sentence to overlap with the other jail term Shanahan is already serving. Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh said the sentencing judge also had regard to the appellants age which was probably the most significant factor to be taken into account in the absence of a guilty plea. We accept that the sentence was a significant one for a man of the appellants age but we have reached the conclusion that the sentencing judge did not err in imposing the sentence and we dismiss the appeal against severity of sentence, said Ms Justice Ni Raifeartaigh. Yilin Xie (23) claimed the unidentified gang member instructed him to take the drugs to a meeting with his 43-year-old co-accused Siong Shok Goh A student took part in a 500,000 (585,000) cannabis exchange in south Belfast under death threat from a Chinese Triad known as Big Brother, a court has heard. Yilin Xie (23) claimed the unidentified gang member instructed him to take the drugs to a meeting with his 43-year-old co-accused Siong Shok Goh. Both men were arrested after police stopped and searched their two Mercedes cars earlier this month. Details emerged as they were refused bail over their alleged roles in the handover of a consignment of herbal cannabis. Xie, with an address on Belfasts Lisburn Road, and Goh, of Fairview Strand in Dublin, are jointly charged with possessing Class B drugs with intent to supply and being concerned in the supply of a Class B drug. Belfast Magistrates Court heard police spotted the exchange taking place at Osborne Park on March 1. Xie was allegedly observed wearing forensic gloves and moving a cardboard box from his car to Gohs vehicle. Officers intervened at the scene and recovered up to 20 kilos of vacuum packed herbal cannabis. A further quantity was seized during follow-ups searches at Xies apartment, along with scales, vacuum-packing material and cling-film. Gardai also provided assistance during the cross-border operation, confiscating 5,560 in cash and other suspected drug-related equipment from Gohs home in Dublin. Xie, a finance student at the University of Westminster in London, told police he had been invited to Belfast for a holiday by a friend he would only refer to as Big Brother. That unnamed individual is a member of a Chinese Triad gang with access to guns, it was claimed. According to Xies account, packages were delivered to his apartment with instructions to take them to the meeting point. An investigating detective told the court: It was at this point he realised the parcels contained cannabis. Mr Xie said Big Brother threatened him with death if he did not carry out the exchanges on his behalf. Goh denied any involvement in the supply of cannabis. He claimed a friend offered him 300 to go to Belfast to collect two bags of clothes. Opposing bail, the detective claimed detention was necessary for the defendants own protection. Mr Xie has stated that he carried out the exchange in fear of serious violence at the hands of someone he told police was a triad and had access to firearms, he said. The defendants have lost a significant amount of controlled drugs with a value of 500,000, and it is believed this investigation involves an organised crime network. Defence barrister Joel Lindsay argued that both accused could be safely released from custody. Counsel said Goh is adamant that his fingerprints will not be found on any of the boxes seized at the meeting point where he remained in his car. Denying the defendants applications for bail, District Judge Steven Keown cited the risks of re-offending and interfering with the investigation. He added: This is clearly a large-scale operation involving organised crime with an international element. Judge Nolan said both men were part of a transport chain and were going to be rewarded for their work. Photograph of the drugs seized in Ballbriggan in March 2023 Two men who were involved in a transport chain of just over 600,000 worth of drugs have been jailed for five and half years. Zhenmin Lin (38) of no fixed abode and Ervins Sermulis (45) of Linnet Fields Park, Castaheany, Dublin 15, both pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to having the drugs for sale or supply and having cash believing it to be or being reckless as to whether it was the proceeds of crime in Balrothery, Balbriggan on March 30, 2023. Judge Martin Nolan noted that the gardai had information that Sermulis was bringing drugs into Ireland on a vehicle transporter. He said both men were part of a transport chain and were going to be rewarded for their work. They both needed the money because of their own issues. Temptation was put in their way and they both succumbed, Judge Nolan continued. He said both men had good mitigation including a good work history and accepted submissions that they were unlikely to re-offend but he added they were both mature men who committed misjudgements because of their own needs. They both deserve to go to prison, Judge Nolan said, before he jailed them for five and half years. Detective Garda Liam Mangan told Pieter Le Vert BL, prosecuting, that gardai had information in relation to the importation and distribution of controlled drugs and it was believed that Sermulis was concealing drugs in vehicles he was carrying on a vehicle transporter. The Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau set up a surveillance operation around a particular yard in Balbriggan and saw Sermulis drive in. He drove a Range Rover jeep off the transporter and parked it next to an unoccupied Volvo jeep. He moved three large holdall bags from the Range Rover into the Volvo and then returned to the transporter before driving out of the yard. Some time later, Sermulis returned to the yard and after a short time Lin arrived as the passenger in a taxi. The bags were moved from the Volvo jeep into the taxi and Sermulis was also seen with a thick square envelope in his hand. The taxi was later stopped by gardai and searched. Det Gda Mangan confirmed that just over 31kg of cannabis, worth just over 620,000, was discovered in the taxi. Lin and the taxi driver were both arrested. The yard was also searched as was the cab of the transporter. A quantity of cash, 15,200, was found in the cab. Sermulis was also arrested and interviewed. He admitted that he had put the drugs into the taxi and said he had been paid to transport them from the UK. He said he previously had a cocaine problem. Lin told gardai he got involved because of a gambling debt he had run up due to his addiction. Sermulis had two previous convictions for very minor road traffic offences, while Lin had no convictions. Det Gda Mangan agreed with Conor Devally SC, defending Sermulis, that his client co-operated with the garda investigation. He said he was very fearful of indicating who had approached him to get involved and the detective accepted that this was a legitimate fear. Det Gda Mangan agreed with Paul Carroll SC, defending Lin, that his client had massive gambling problems that had effectively destroyed his marriage. He was living in a car at the time of his arrest. Det Gda Mangan said the men had equal roles in the operation. Mr Devally said his client wanted to convey his apologies to the court and the others in his life he had let down due to his involvement in this offence. He suggested to the court that Sermulis was unlikely to re-offend again. He said he drifted into cocaine addiction and was induced to make this awful shift in his moral compass. Mr Carroll said his client has been on remand in custody since his arrest. He had been living in his car after his marriage broke down because of his gambling addiction. Sanusi, who was given a two-year sentence for the offence, told us: Im still seeking my licence back Im expecting it back. A role-model taxi driver whose licence was suspended after he allowed a third party to possess two kilos of cocaine in his vehicle has told the Sunday World he wants his taxi licence returned to him. Shabakiyu Sanusi of Forest Mill Crescent, Athlone, pleaded guilty at Cork Circuit Court to an offence that, on November 4, 2021 at M8 Glanmire, Cork, he was in control of a 2015-registered Toyota Prius and did knowingly permit the possession of a controlled drug. The background of the case was that he was a taxi driver whose vehicle was stopped and searched. His passenger was carrying two kilos of cocaine in a bag with a street value of 140,000. Sanusi, who was given a two-year sentence for the offence, told the Sunday World last week: Im still seeking my licence back Im expecting it back. Asked whether he believed he should get his licence back given the offence he had pleaded guilty to, Sanusi replied: Yes, because everything is a lesson, and when you get a lesson, it doesnt mean that you are ever going to commit that offence anymore. Sanusi talks to our reporter But I dont want to talk to the paper. This is impromptu and this is the first time this had happened to me. When it was put to the 61-year-old that in circumstances where a person is convicted of knowingly transporting such a large quantity of drugs they might expect to be jailed, he responded: I am not the one. It was a customer who had the drugs in his own private property and it was the customer who was caught. He didnt discuss with me that he was carrying cocaine. If he discussed it with me, I wouldnt have taken him. Asked then, why he had pleaded guilty to knowingly allowing a third party to possess the cocaine in his vehicle, Sanusi responded: Because, when he was transporting the bag into my car, I knew that he was transporting the bag into my car. I dont know what was inside of the bag, Sanusi then said he needed to speak with his lawyer before saying anything further. Our reporter provided Sanusi with his email address in the event his lawyer wished to issue a further statement. At the court sitting held in Cork, Judge Colin Daly said: He appears to have allowed his passenger to keep the drugs in the vehicle. I take into consideration that his role was a minor, secondary role. Despite the significant value of drugs, I am satisfied the headline should be three years. In mitigation, there is his plea of guilty and his co-operation, so the headline sentence can be reduced to two years. He is a 61-year-old man now. A family man, previously of good character. He is an important role model in the migrant community where he lives. His taxi licence is suspended and, most likely, will be lost as a result of this offence. He has shown remorse, which I believe is genuine. He has remained [in the country] to deal with the charges. His co-accused made a different choice. The judge acceded to the application by defence barrister, Alan ODwyer, to impose a fully suspended sentence. Judge Daly imposed a suspended two-year sentence on Mr Sanusi. Keegan was given the nickname the Little General during his one-man crime wave during the 90s A criminal who was nicknamed the Little General as an out-of-control teenager has died suddenly in Dublin on Tuesday. Glen Keegan (40s) achieved notoriety in Ireland when his antics as a teenager hit the headlines two decades ago. He had built up a reputation as one of the countrys most prolific car thieves. Keegan was dubbed the Little General after being described as a one-man crime wave during the 80s and 90s. At the time, Martin The General Cahill was the most notorious criminal figure in the city. Keegans body was discovered yesterday in Dublin, however, his death is not being treated as suspicious by gardai. His sister Deborah last night lead tributes on social media: Heartbroken to say my baby brother Glen Keegan has passed away, back in the arms of my mother and father love ya Glen. Glen Keegan Keegan first came to garda attention aged 10 and was arrested for stealing cars by 13. He was reportedly so small that he had to use a cushion in order to reach the steering wheel. The Dubliner used to put on driving displays for youngsters in Tallaght and taunt gardai, who were unable to catch him. Judges would send Keegan to young offenders institutions for joyriding, but as soon as he was released he would go back to theft, telling social services he got a great buzz out of it. He escaped from detention nearly a dozen times. Last night, Keegans pals also took to social media to pay tribute to him. Lost for words, until we meet again bro, wrote a friend. "Rip Glen Keegan still can't believe it you will be missed Keego you were very good friends to our family always treated us like your own family. "You would always pop in every few days for your cup of tea and chat... best friends in this life since you were children u will be missed terribly. While another described himself as being heartbroken over Keegans death. "Still can't get it out of my head seeing all your family broken hearted today, God give use (sic) all the strength in this sad time as they would say, Glen Keegan, known as the Young GENERAL, wrote another pal. The Little General In 1998 Keegan was sent to St Patricks Institution for young offenders for 19 months for a string of crimes involving stealing cars and other driving offences. The Little Generals most serious criminal conviction was a seven year sentence imposed in July, 2007, for an armed robbery of a bank porter. The porter was able to activate a silent alarm during the incident in May, 2005, and Keegan pointed his replica gun at an unarmed garda during a chase before he was arrested. Dublin Circuit Court previously heard that he had 28 previous convictions including three for assault and 13 for road traffic offences. His barrister stated that most of his client's convictions related to addiction issues. Despite his criminal pedigree sources said that Keegan had been living on the straight and narrow for a number of years. The 28-year-old was on holiday when she was hit with a bottle before being raped and murdered Local man, Vikat Bhagat, has been charged with the rape and murder of Danielle A GoFundMe page has been created to help the family of Irish woman Danielle McLaughlin attend the sentencing of her alleged murderer. Ms McLaughlins alleged killer, Vikat Bhagat (30) has been in custody since 2017 and is currently facing prosecution. Ms McLaughlin, from Buncrana, Donegal was found dead in a secluded spot in Canacona, an area of Goa popular with holidaymakers, in March 2017. The 28-year-old was on holiday when she was hit with a bottle before being raped and murdered. Danielle, who had been using a British passport at the time, had travelled to India where she planned to train as a yoga teacher. Now, a close friend of Danielle has set up the GoFundMe in order to aid the costs of travel to India for the tragic womans mother and sister. Danielle Mc Laughlin Hi, I have made this go fund me to help Danielle's mum Andrea and her sister Joleen with the cost of flights and accommodation to travel to India to go to the sentencing of the man who murdered our beloved friend. "It marks 7 years tomorrow and we are hoping for the trial to be over in July of this year. India is so far away and they haven't been able to see him or go to one hearing or court case. "Please help and donate to get them there for this monsters sentencing and to give them closure and peace of this nightmare. Any donation will make a massive difference. Thank you all so much. Danielles sister Joleen admitted the family does not want to get their hopes up that the trial of the man accused of killing her will end this year, as they have been let down so many times in the past. Joleen said she is keeping her expectations low. Local man, Vikat Bhagat, has been charged with the rape and murder of Danielle It's just so draining that we just want it over and done with, she told RTE Prime Time. We don't really know what's going to happen. They say it should end this year, but we don't really know, and we don't want to have that hope that it will end because we have been let down so many times in the past. Danielle had previously volunteered in an orphanage in Calcutta. As she wanted to study to be a yoga teacher, she returned to India in 2017, where, just two weeks later, she was murdered. The next hearing in her murder trial is set for tomorrow, March 14. A suspect in Danielle's case was arrested within hours of the crime, RTE Prime Time reports. However, over 2,500 days have elapsed since Danielle's death, and the trial is yet to come to a conclusion. As the McLaughlin family in Buncrana were trying to come to terms with the loss of Danielle in such a violent manner and far so far away from home, they were assisted by the Kevin Bell Trust in repatriating her body to Ireland for burial. Donations to help Danielles family can be made here. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on the appointment of a Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Jabrayil, Gubadli and Zangilan districts, Trend reports. "Guided by paragraph 32 of Article 109 of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, I hereby decree: 1. To appoint Vahid Hajiyev as Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Jabrayil, Gubadli and Zangilan districts. 2. To cancel the decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On appointment of Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Jabrayil, Gubadli and Zangilan districts included in the East-Zangezur economic region" No. 3699 dated December 30, 2022 (Collection of Legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan, 2022, number 12, Article 1527 (Volume I). 3. The decree comes into force from the day of signing," the order of the head of state reads. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Garda alert was sparked after witness reported seeing a woman in distress in the passenger seat of a van in Arklow, Co Wicklow A man remains in garda custody tonight after a woman was abducted and driven some 300km across the country before being rescued. A major garda alert was sparked earlier today after a witness reported seeing a woman in distress travelling as a passenger in a van in Arklow, Co Wicklow. Gardai had also received a 999 call overnight which indicated that a woman was potentially in danger. It was later established that the witness report and the emergency call related to the same woman. Garda stations across the country were provided with details of the vehicle, a 181-D-39433 registered yellow Renault trafic van, which travelled northbound and was sighted near Dublin city centre shortly before 11am this morning. Investigators subsequently made the decision to issue a detailed alert asking the public to contact 999 if they saw a van matching its description. Members of the public were warned not to approach the suspect vehicle. Later this afternoon, gardai received a report that the vehicle was at a location in Co Mayo, some 300km from the first reported incident in Arklow. The van was located a short time later before being brought to a forced stop and the woman was discovered safe. She is currently receiving support from An Garda Siochana. The driver, an adult male, was arrested and is currently being held at a garda station in the county on suspicion of false imprisonment. He can be quizzed for a total of 24 hours before he must either be charged or released from custody pending a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions. Its understood that the woman, who is from the UK, and the suspect had known each prior to the alleged abduction, and the case is not being treated as a random incident. One source told the Irish Independent: This matter was brought to a conclusion thanks to good police work and invaluable assistance from members of the public following the appeal for information. Investigators will also speak to the woman and take a statement to gather further information surrounding the circumstances of the incident. In a statement a garda spokesperson said: "An adult male has been arrested and is presently in custody at a garda station in the northwestern garda region. "An Garda Siochana would like to thank the public and media for their assistance. "No further information is available at this time." Today's News in 90 Seconds - March 12th The search took place in a residential premises A teenager has been arrested after 50,000 worth of drugs and ammunition were seized by gardai in Dublin. The search took place as part of a wider investigation and occurred on Monday. Images posted by gardai of the illicit stash show bullets and dried cannabis in clear plastic bags. A Garda Spokesperson said: As part of the ongoing operation targeting anti-social behaviour and drug related activity in the Dublin 8 and 12 areas, Gardai have seized 50,000 of cannabis, as well as an amount of firearm ammunition, following the search of a residential premises, yesterday, Monday 11th March 2024." Garda Dog Unit (Garda stock photo) The search was carried out by members attached to Kilmainham Community Engagement, Serious Crime Unit and the Garda Dog Unit. During the course of this search a man, aged in his late teens, was arrested. He is currently detained at a Garda Station in South Dublin under provisions of Section 2 of the Drug Trafficking Act, 1996, the Spokesperson added. The drugs and ammunition seized in the probe have been sent to Forensic Science Ireland for further examination. Investigations are ongoing. La Madrina was making 73 million per month A drug boss granny known The Godmother who survived five bomb attacks and armed herself with a rocket launcher has been arrested by Colombian police. National Police this week captured Aura Jazmin Castro Ruiz, known in the criminal world as the La Madrina in the El Poblado neighbourhood in the city of Medellin. She was apprehended by the Anti-Narcotics squad in coordination with the Attorney General's Office. In images posted by authorities, a SWAT team is seen entering Castro Ruizs house and cuffing her in front of a cinema size television and a statue of Holy Mary. The alleged Don of Dons is seen in relaxed underwear as cops quiz her on the sofa. Castro Ruiz is the alleged boss of an international drug trafficking organization which shipped countless tonnes of cocaine in containers from Colombia's Caribbean coast over to Europe. The Godmother is arrested The Godmother is wanted for extradition by authorities in Rotterdam for drug trafficking and money laundering. Cops seized 14 kilos of cocaine, five long-range rifles, 21 guns and an anti-tank launcher during the raids on her gang. Authorities further confiscated 30,000 worth of jewellery and several vehicles during the major operation on Monday. Castro Ruiz, who has been in the business since 2000, is facing numerous charges in Holland. Six members of her crew were also captured. Colombian authorities said Castro Ruiz served as a middle woman for the Balkan Cartel and Gulf Clan drug lord, Dairo 'Otoniel' Usuga. The Godmother is cuffed Usuga was captured in Colombia in October 2021 and later extradited to the United States. He pleaded guilty before federal authorities in New York in January 2023 and was sentenced to 45 years in prison. Castro Ruiz then had a major disagreement with the Balkan Cartel, which carried out five bombing attacks to murder her in Europe before she fled back to South America. Surveillance of The Godmother Colombian cops accuse her of smuggling 200 million through El Dorado International Airport in Bogota. After her release from prison, Castro Ruiz resumed her criminal life with about 170 people who followed her orders in several cities in Europe and Colombia. Castro Ruiz eventually settled in El Poblado, a luxury neighbourhood in Medellin, where neighbours knew her as a granny who would pick up her grandchild from school with a nanny. She had already been sentenced to 72 months in prison for various crimes in absentia. This great operational result directly impacts transnational organized crime, said Colonel Ricardo Sanchez, who oversees the police's anti-narcotics division. It shows the international cooperation that the Colombian government has through the National Police with the different agencies in the world. Plans to build 4905 three-storey townhouses and apartments, including social housing, in Omokoroa have sent ripples through the sleepy coastal settlement. The housing intensification plan in suburbs across Aotearoa was introduced in 2021 to increase housing supply, but homeowners had expressed concerns about losing their view, sun and suburbs character. Omokoroa resident, Bruce McCabe, who chairs the villages rates and residence association, says many people were worried about losing the Bay of Plenty spots character and feel they had not been consulted. There hasnt been much opportunity for locals to give feedback, because before it was going to be the law so there was nothing we could do. A lot of us are also really concerned about traffic - its going to clog up roads in town and theres no parking for almost 5000 new houses - imagine how many cars that is going to add around town. Then getting into Tauranga which is already the regions biggest jams on State Highway Two. Councillor Margaret Murray Benge says the plan was immoral and the sections were too small. Social planning of the very worst kind. The antisocial environment that we will be creating by having these tiny, tiny little sections where you cannot swing a cat. I think is just immoral. It was totally reckless, councillor Don Thwaites says. Their objections were aired in a meeting about the plan in February, but last week councillors accepted it, albeit reluctantly, saying they were between a rock and hard place, another felt it was like swallowing a rat. New government rules allow three buildings up to 11 metres high on one section without resource consent. Homes can be close as 1.5m on the front boundary and 1m on the sides and rear. Two Bay of Plenty towns, Omokoroa and Te Puke, had been selected for greater housing intensification to accommodate more people. Western Bay of Plenty is one of the fastest growing provincial districts, with population projected to increase by up to 20000 more people by 2050. The Labour Government had made housing density rules mandatory. The new Government allows councils to make the choice. Murray-Benge says her preference would have been to table the plan and take it back to the ministers of housing and social housing. This would risk loss of Government funding already put into the plan, including $47 million from Kainga Ora. This funding was targeted to allow road upgrades to enable land in Omokoroa to be opened up for housing, which was needed in the Bay of Plenty which has a housing shortage, making it one of the countrys most expensive places to live. The intensification plan was accepted on March 6, with councillors still worried about the proposal. Today we have to swallow a dead rat, its just a question of which rodent we choose. says Rodney Joyce. They had been left with an impossible choice - either reject the pretty awful planning rules and risk losing the funding for upgrades, or agree to them and just hope the damage was not too much, he says. They were basically between a rock and a hard place and didnt really have any choice in the matter, says another councillor, Anne Henry. - Annemarie Quill/ Stuff The government has been urged to quickly shrink the number of carbon credits available for polluters to buy, after four failed auctions in 2023. The Climate Change Commission says there are too many credits on offer, the problem is getting worse and it won't fix itself. It also says the government needs to clarify what its plan is for meeting its climate targets, because uncertainty is affecting investor confidence. The next carbon auction is on March 20. The coalition government promised to use emissions pricing - not subsidies - to meet New Zealand's climate goals. But independent advice from its top climate body, out today, says it doesn't have the settings right to get there and its lack of clarity is undermining the market. The Climate Change Commission says the market (the Emissions Trading Scheme or ETS) was flooded with too many carbon credits. These are the units many large polluters must buy when they release planet-heating gases. The surplus created a "high risk" the country won't meet the emissions budgets written into law, the commission says. Last year, all four of the government's carbon auctions failed because of low demand for new units. On the flipside, in a side note, the commission suggests that if the government did tighten supply, it may be able to meet more of New Zealand's international climate target for 2030 inside the country, which would mean buying fewer carbon offsets from overseas, possibly saving the country money. A spokesman for Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says he couldn't comment on the advice until it had been through a consideration process. Wider lack of vision highlighted The report includes specific advice on the ETS settings as well as a side note on wider issues affecting the market. By December - the date the government's next carbon-cutting plan is due - ministers either need to explain what other policies they will bring in to cut emissions or fix the carbon market, it says. Otherwise the delay would undermine investor confidence and create "avoidable costs". The commission advised ongoing uncertainty about the government's plans risked undermining investment in clean growth. The idea behind the carbon market is that scarce supply drives companies to find ways to cut emissions, helping the country decarbonise. The National Party campaigned on using the market to drive reductions, rather than using subsidies like EV discounts or grants for companies to replace coal boilers. But an accompanying note from commission chair Dr Rod Carr to the government says: "There are ongoing gaps in government policy that affect the NZ ETS and create uncertainty for market participants. "These issues are not the focus of the recommendations in this advice, but we raise them as they undermine the ability of the NZ ETS unit limits and price control settings to serve their purpose. "If these issues remain unresolved, it will become increasingly difficult to accord the settings with emissions reduction targets in future." Carr noted the ETS covered less than half New Zealand's emissions (farming, and some export-reliant-polluters are largely excluded) and also allowed unlimited tree planting by carbon farmers, in place of real emissions cuts. The latter is something some in the farming community have protested against. The advice was the government could shrink the supply of units without changing the price settings. In a spot of good news, projections by environment officials suggested carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide emissions are likely to fall, however the commission says this will worsen the over-supply of carbon credits if the Government doesn't step in. "It is critical that the government adjust the NZ ETS unit volume limits as soon as possible to draw the surplus down and bring the settings back into alignment with targets," it says. Carr also wrote: "The second emissions reduction plan (due December 2024) will need to show, if the current NZ ETS structure is to be maintained, how other policies will make up for the scheme's limitations - or alternatively, outline how the NZ ETS will evolve. "Delay will undermine the confidence of investors, lead to disappointed expectations, delay action needed to meet targets and impose avoidable costs in the future. "We urge the government not to delay action to make the tool more capable of delivering the outcomes that the Government seeks - as maintaining the status quo will not create the stability sorely needed by the market." - RNZ / Kate Newton One in four New Zealanders has been born overseas and new migrants are ahead of other Kiwis when it comes to vaccinating their babies. Migrant families are more likely than other New Zealanders to vaccinate their babies on time, according to new University of Auckland research. The study found children of recent migrants, defined as moving to New Zealand within the previous five years, were more likely than non-migrants to receive vaccines at six weeks, three months and five months. We found that the children born to two born-overseas parents had the highest timely vaccination rate, followed by those who had one parents born overseas and then at the lowest rate were children who had two New Zealand-born parents, says lead researcher Dr Ladan Hashemi, a senior research fellow at Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland. The researchers looked at immunisation records for more than 6,800 babies of a representative sample of the same number of women who were expected to give birth between April 2009 and March 2010 and 4,400 of their partners, all with consent. They used data from the Growing Up in New Zealand study as well as immunisation data. Timeliness was defined as within 30 days of the scheduled date for vaccination. This new study found migrant families were poorer than non-migrants, but they still had higher rates of timely childhood vaccinations. Timeliness is important for preventing spread of vaccine-preventable illnesses, such as measles. These advantages diminished for migrants who had been living in the country longer. This is the opposite to what you would expect. As you stay longer in the country, life is going to be easier, your income is going to be better, but they found the drop-off in timely vaccination, say Dr Hashemi. This could be because of anti-vaccination attitudes being a public health issue in New Zealand, Dr Hashemi says. For the first five years of living in New Zealand, migrants are not quite integrated into mainstream culture. But, as time goes on, they are more likely to acquire the English language, and be exposed to media and social media that is full of anti-vaccine information, as well as meeting people who are anti-vaccines. So, over time, those vaccination rates go down. Another factor is the migration paradox, Hashemi says. This is where migrants are moving to a new country because they are seeking better opportunities for themselves and their children, including having better health. Research from the US shows that migrant mothers are very determined to provide the best health for their children, says Dr Hashemi. In New Zealand, 25 per cent of the population has been born overseas, a percentage that has been increasing over time. Migrants are generally more educated than other New Zealanders, including ten percent more likely to have a university education. This is likely to be due to the points system, where migrants need to be highly educated and also healthy, including having good health behaviours. Another recent study from the University of Auckland and led by Hashemi found children of migrant children were less likely to be obese than non-migrants and less likely to have an obesogenic lifestyle. See Advances in Public Health. One recommendation from the new study was a need for qualitative research to find out why vaccination drops off the longer migrants live in New Zealand. In the same paper, the authors conclude migrant families experiences could inform vaccine promotion and policies to increase vaccination uptake. Vaccine is the pre-eminent journal in the field of vaccinology. It is the official journal of The Japanese Society for Vaccinology and is published by Elsevier. Click here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/vaccine Tauranga Living Without Violence, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating safer homes and communities, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Moana Tane as its new Chief Executive. "Dr. Tane brings a wealth of experience and a deep commitment to addressing domestic violence in our community," says TLWV organisation spokesperson. Moana is a respected leader who has worked extensively in the field of Family Wellbeing, including violence prevention and specialised family violence programs, and holds a doctorate in Indigenous Health and a Master of Public Health. Her passion for supporting victims and perpetrators aligns perfectly with TLWVs mission. She has previously served as an executive with social and emotional wellbeing programs including family violence, community reintegration programs, alcohol and other drugs services, mental health prevention and clinical services (adults, youth, and children), and primary health care services. Her interests extend to research and is a Chief Investigator on a Global Alliance for Chronic Disease national project in Australia, working with indigenous women who are pregnant, to quit smoking. Dr Tane continues to advocate for the well-being of families on both sides of the Tasman and has a strong commitment to community engagement and the building of partnerships for joined up strategy, planning and implementation, to reduce the harms associated with violence and the lasting effects, impacting across generations. Our journey in this important work, is to contest and challenge the blaming of victims who have experienced violence, instead honouring and acknowledge their responses, and resistance to violence," says Dr Tane. "Our role in the communities we serve, is to shift the existing narrative, and as a society, expose the use of violence with language that clarifies offenders responsibilities, particularly with the use of coercive control, within intimate partner violence, and within families." Nigel Waters, Chair of the Board of Trustees, expressed his enthusiasm about Dr. Tanes appointment. We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Moana Tane to TLWV. Her expertise and dedication will undoubtedly strengthen our efforts to combat domestic violence and create lasting change," says Nigel. I need to place on record the boards gratitude to out-going CEO Janice Belgrave who has provided a wonderful foundation for Moana to build upon. Dr. Tane officially assumed her role on March 11, 2024, following a two-week induction. She is committed to building strong partnerships with other agencies, advocating for policy changes, and expanding TLWVs impact across the Tauranga Moana region. About Tauranga Living Without Violence: Tauranga Living Without Violence provides help to domestic violence victims by supporting them to be safer and assisting in their recovery from their efforts of the trauma they have experienced. They also work with perpetrators of violence, encouraging them to examine and challenge their beliefs about dominate behaviour and its effects, whilst teaching them non-controlling and non-threatening alternatives. Their free programmes together with their collaboration (and advocation) with other agencies, they can effectively intervene and stop the cycle of abuse in families.For more information: see www.tlwv.org.nz Looking for help? Call 0800 577003. A dozen school and early childhood sector groups have united to ask Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to retain funding for the free school lunch scheme, Ka Ora Ka Ako. In a letter to Luxon published on Tuesday afternoon, the organisations said the programme was critical. The letter's signatories covered Catholic, area, intermediate and Montessori schools, primary, secondary and Maori principals, both teacher unions, kindergartens and one of the main early childhood education associations. "As leaders of the education sector, we jointly urge you to continue the government's current level of investment in Ka ora Ka Ako, the school lunches programme," they says. "One in five children in our country live with food poverty. Nutritious food is essential for learning, which is why the school lunch programme was created. It currently offers lunches to 230,000 students in about 1000 of the least advantaged schools, providing a major safety net against food poverty and poor nutrition." The letter says research from the PISA (Program for International Student Achievement) study showed students who missed meals due to lack of money are two to four years behind in their learning compared to those who never missed meals. "Of concern is that the most recent PISA results found 14 per cent of New Zealand students did not eat at least once a week because of lack of money, compared to 8 per cent of students on average across the OECD," it says. "Your government is committed to improving student achievement and supporting Kiwi families who are facing significant cost of living pressures. "The most recent research evaluating the Ka Ora Ka Ako programme reinforces the views of school principals that it has led to students being more focussed on their learning, fewer working to support their families, fewer behavioural problems, improved social bonding and reduced food poverty stigma through all students sharing meals together." The letter was signed by leaders of the Educational Institute, Secondary Principals Association, Post Primary Teachers' Association, Association of Intermediate and Middle Schools, Principals Federation, School Trustees Association, Te Akatea (Maori Principals Association), Area Schools Association, New Zealand Catholic Education Office, Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand, Montessori Aotearoa New Zealand, and the New Zealand Kindergartens Network. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone. The letter followed recent comments from Associate Education Minister David Seymour indicating funding for the scheme could be reduced. Seymour says there's no hard evidence the programme improves children's achievement and attendance and he's considering cutting its funding by up to half. The scheme introduced by the Labour government in 2019 feeds more than 220,000 students at a cost of about $325 million a year. Last year, the previous government approved funding for the programme only until the end of this year after Treasury advised that evaluations of Ka Ora Ka Ako showed health benefits, but little educational benefit. "Evaluations of Ka Ora, Ka Ako to date have found strong outcomes for improving nutrient intake, particularly for those 7.3 percent of akonga with least access to sufficient food at home. The programme generally contributes to happier and healthier akonga overall," says Treasury's advice. "However, the evaluations have found no impact on attendance, and akonga Maori, who make up around 48 percent of students receiving the programme, have not benefited on most metrics, such as school functioning (e.g., paying attention in class), health, and mental wellbeing (with mental wellbeing worse off for those in the programme)," it says. Health Coalition Aotearoa has defended the scheme, noting that assessment of the programme happened in 2021 when student attendance reached all-time lows due to high levels of covid and other illnesses in the community. -RNZ. The University of Waikato has benefitted from an increase in student numbers for the start of the 2024 academic year. Overall student numbers are up more than six per cent, with Ministry Funded Equivalent Full-Time Students growing over three per cent in Hamilton and more than six per cent in Tauranga. International EFTS are 25 per cent higher than the same time last year, albeit remaining below pre-pandemic levels. Postgraduate numbers are up 16 per cent on last year and school leaver numbers have remained relatively stable despite a smaller cohort of Year 13 students achieving University Entrance. Students transferring from elsewhere in the tertiary sector is up by 19 per cent over 2023 and there is a stronger pipeline of returning students with the volume up from last year, says University of Waikato Vice-Chancellor, Professor Neil Quigley. A Trimester is off to a strong start, largely because of its base of facilities and programmes, and a solid pipeline of enrolments that provide a strong foundation for future growth, says Professor Quigley. The demand for healthcare professionals is driving enrolment growth, and we are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead, especially with the prospect of a new Waikato Medical School. We have had notable enrolment increases for the Bachelor of Nursing and Master of Nursing Practice qualifications. Waikatos law and psychology programmes are also experiencing growth and its total immersion Maori language programme, Te Tohu Paetahi, continues to see strong growth, with an over 20% increase overall in students enrolling for the year ahead. The positive enrolment numbers reflect the dedication of our staff and the quality of education we provide. We are excited about the future and the impact our University will continue to have on the lives of students and the community. Despite this, the University continues to operate in a highly constrained environment, Professor Quigley says, with many costs escalating far faster than the Universitys income, and an ongoing need to improve the efficiency of our operations wherever opportunities are identified. Qualifications experiencing strong growth among new students in 2024 include: Bachelor of Business Bachelor of Computer Science Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Nursing Diploma in Te Tohu Paetahi University of Waikato 2023 enrolments: Total domestic EFTS: 8,4,74 Tauranga EFTS: 862 Maori EFTS: 2,141 Pacific EFTS: 747 International EFT BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on Amendments to the Charter of the State Agency for the Use of Mineral Resources and the Charter of the State Agency for Environmental Expertise, Trend reports. According to the decree, the second sentence of the following content was added to paragraph 5.4 of the Statute of the State Agency for the Use of Mineral Resources and paragraph 5.4 of the Statute of the State Agency for Environmental Expertise. "Out of the funds remaining at the disposal of the agency, deductions for additional payments to official salaries and the issuance of bonuses to employees of the ministry are envisaged." Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel A cow dung-like smell wafting from earthworks along the Whakatane stopbank has Riverside Drive residents holding their noses. However, while Bay of Plenty Regional Council, which is responsible for the work, apologises for the unpleasant odour, it also assures the public the non-toxic smell will soon dissipate. A Riverside Drive resident, who asked not to be named, says the smelly dust from the earthworks has penetrated right through their homes. He describes the smell as overpowering, like a cowshed smell, only worse. He says soil is being dug up from close to the rivers edge, left in piles to dry out and then distributed as topsoil over the top of the newly compacted stopbank. The moving of the dirt causes dust to coat the nearby homes. The smell is apparent from the street. He says he was told that the workers had a water tanker to dampen down the fine dust, however, they didnt appear to be using it sufficiently. Surely, when the workers were digging that soil up they must have been able to smell it and know it wasnt going to be suitable for spreading in a residential area. Regional council rivers and drainage assets manager Kirsty Brown says the councils pollution hotline received one complaint on Thursday and three more on Monday about the smell, which is relates to its Safeguard our Stopbanks Stage 3 work site. "The smell is a common issue associated with stopbank earthworks, says Kirsty. The construction process involves the removal and stockpiling of topsoil from the surface of the stopbank. This topsoil contains organic matter from the site - organic compounds such as plants, grass and soil. When this topsoil is replaced back onto the stopbank, it is common for a temporary odour to occur. This is due to the natural breakdown of the stockpiled material. "In this situation, there was topsoil material that contained a higher-than-normal amount of organic matter. When the material was disturbed and exposed to air, the damp topsoil emitted a strong odour. As it was being spread on the stopbank, the odour intensified." Kirsty says the topsoil is being spread to help with grass growth on the stopbank. Good grass cover can help protect against erosion and helps to hold together the soil structure underneath, making it an integral part of good stopbank integrity. Now that the material is in place, the smell has dissipated considerably. Hydroseeding is currently underway, which will further help dampen any remaining odour. In discussion with our contractor, there will be a closer assessment of the suitability of materials. We acknowledge that this odour can be unpleasant and we apologise for any inconvenience caused, however, we would like to reassure the community that it is not toxic and the odour will dissipate once the ground is settled. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air. A cancer recovery centre near Whakatane has been given the green light, despite opposition from neighbouring landowners. After a hearing, Whakatane District Council granted resource consent for Ozgur (Jahn) Iseri to build five two-person accommodation units on his 1.92 hectare site on Maraetotara Road, in Ohope in the Eastern Bay of Plenty. An original resource consent application was made in June 2021 for a larger scale holiday park with 15 units, which included a water slide, however, this has since been significantly scaled down. Like his Turkish restaurant on The Strand, the accommodation facility is to be named after the former Turkish president, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. While Ataturk Holiday Retreat is not intended to be a health centre, as such, Mr Iseri told Local Demcoracy Reporting [Beacon]. The intention was to create a space where people who had undergone cancer treatment could recover through eating organic fruit and vegetables, much of which he intends to grow on-site, he said. Mr Iseri who is originally from Turkey, said he has a sister, Sule who is recovering from bowel cancer in Turkey. My goal is to bring her here to accommodate her for a few months," he said. "We would like to be able to take the people who have had chemotherapy, to accomodate them in a place where they will feel comfortable and feed them organic food to help build their immune system. I am trying to do something [in Ohope] that nobody has done before. Something that focuses on peoples health. Cancer is a big problem in this country. He has engaged a landscaping company and is planning to plant around 40 fruit trees. He said once the retreat became established he planned to investigate whether there was any potential on his property for thermal hot water, which could be used for therapeutic purposes. He had previously built one chalet-style cabin on the property as a concept unit. But after finding out it would be a hard shape to build, the design has been changed. The resource consent decision handed down from the hearing panel said following an independent commissions determination on August 1 last year, the application underwent a limited notification process with five submissions made, including from adjoining property owners and Te Runanga o Ngati Awa. Concerns were raised around potential flooding of neigbouring properties caused by any earthworks on the site, leaching of effluent from the wastewater disposal field and consequential odours, noise, and potential reverse-sensitivity impediments to nearby farms. As a pre-commencement condition of building the units, Mr Iseri must be granted resource consent from Bay of Plenty Regional Council for on-site wastewater disposal. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air. When someone in the Eastern Bay calls Oranga Tamariki to report concerns about a child welfare issue, they will now be rerouted from the national call centre to Whakatane-based agency Te Pukaea o Te Waiora. In a first for New Zealand, Eastern Bay Iwi Provider Alliance - comprised of iwi social agencies Tuwharetoa ki Kawera Hauora, Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngati Awa, Tuhoe Hauora and Te Pou Oranga o Whakatohea - has partnered with the Ministry of Children to decentralise Oranga Tamariki functions into the community with the launch of the local iwi-based, tikanga-focused organisation. In a ceremony attended by the Minister for Children Karen Chhour and and Oranga Tamariki chief exeutive Chappie Te Kani, Te Pukaea opened its Domain Road offices on Friday. Te Tohu o Te Ora o Ngati Awa chief executive Enid Ratahi-Pryor addressed the hundreds gathered for the launch. Oranga Tamariki is not the papa of our mokopuna. They are the State. This is about the communities and iwi taking control and stepping up to the challenge. Simplistically, Te Pukaea o Te Waiora, in its first stage, is the shifting of the front door. The shifting of what they call the national call centre, into the community. Of all the 70,000 calls that come into Oranga Tamariki National Call Centre from people like police, schools, everyday people - only 30 percent of those calls are actually taken forward for any statutory intervention. The other 70 percent of reports of concern, nothing happened to them. They just fell into a big hole. Ms Ratahi-Pryor used the example of one of those calls that might go unanswered. "Henare didnt have his shoes for school, he didnt have his uniform, he didnt participate in activities. But that did not warrant a statutory intervention. But, a report of concern was lodged. This is the beginning of poor Henares entrance into the Oranga Tamariki system. What we are launching today will stop that. It will stop that 70 per cent being painted with the paintbrush of Oranga Tamariki. That 70 per cent of our tamariki will come into Te Pukaea, and we will support those whanau with intervention programmes, the sorts of programmes that will help Henare. Getting shoes for school. Getting uniforms. That is not the role of Oranga Tamariki. Thats our role as a community. Helping Henares mother get up out of bed to give Henare breakfast, get to school. Thats our job. Thats what Te Pukaea is all about. Not shifting those problems to a statutory agency. Today is all about Oranga Tamariki specialising in its place of higher-level social work, while we as a community, while we as an iwi, deal with all of the mahi that we are capable of doing through the programmes that we deliver out in our community. The Te Pukaea o Te Waiora offices on Domain Road were opened on Friday. Established in 2017, the Eastern Bay Iwi Provider Alliance partnered with Oranga Tamariki in August 2020 with the shared goal of creating better outcomes for tamariki. Te Pukaea is described by Oranga Tamariki as phase one of the Agility Prototype, a partnership that aims to reduce the number of tamariki and whanau in the Eastern Bay region who require involvement with Oranga Tamariki. The Whakatane contact centre will receive all calls and emails relevant to the Eastern Bay, which will be re-routed from the Oranga Tamariki National Contact Centre. The centre will also receive direct calls from other local agencies such as Police and Te Whatu Ora, community and whanau. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air. Police have executed a number of search warrants in Rotorua today, arresting three people after an unprovoked attack in the city, says detective senior sergeant Mark van Kempen. "About 11.50am on Friday 8 March, three vehicles were involved in a serious incident at the roundabout of Te Ngae Road and Owhata Road. "The victims were travelling in a van when they were attacked by a large group of offenders from two other vehicles. "The victims received a number of injuries, including stab wounds which required hospital treatment. "Today Police, supported by the Armed Offenders Squad, targeted the alleged offenders of that incident. "Three Rotorua men, aged 28, 30 and 35, have been charged with aggravated robbery, wounding with intent and participating in an organised criminal group. "All three are expected to appear in the Rotorua District Court tomorrow. "While executing the warrant, Police confiscated two vehicles believed to have been involved in Fridays attack. "A pistol unrelated to Fridays incident was also recovered. "Police are continuing to investigate a number of incidents across the Rotorua area including one on Monday 11 March, where a man received a gunshot wound to his leg at the Te Ngae Shopping Centre carpark. "Investigators are working to establish if this incident is related to Fridays attack. "We expect to make more arrests and lay further charges in relation to these incidents. "We understand the fear and concern events like this inflict on the community and we will continue to pursue every lead to hold those involved to account. "Police have no tolerance for crime or intimidation in our communities and we ask anyone who witnesses illegal acts to call Police immediately on 111." Information after the fact can be passed on by calling 105 or by making a report online at 105.police.govt.nz. The new Local Police officers with the mayor of Nerja, Jose Alberto Armijo. Eugenio Cabezas Nerja Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 18:30 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram The towns of Velez-Malaga and Nerja in the Axarquia, on the eastern stretch of the Costa del Sol, have increased the number of Local Police officers by 16 in total. Eleven of the new officers have joined the Velez-Malaga unit while the other five are new recruits in Nerja. The increase in Local Police numbers is linked to a continuing rise in the populations and tourists visiting the two towns. Mayor of Velez-Malaga, Jesus Lupianez presided over a ceremony at the town hall on Monday 11 March during which the nine new male and two female recruits took the oath of office to join the Local Police. In Nerja the five new officers (three men and two women) were welcomed by mayor Jose Alberto Armijo, chief of the Local Police, Francisco Iranzo and a number of councillors. Armijo congratulated the new recruits and wished them "all the luck in their work of public service for the safety of the people of Nerja and Maro and visitors. Jose Rodriguez Camara Torremolinos Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 10:39 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram Some 35 eucalyptus trees alongside the C1 Costa del Sol railway line in Torremolinos were removed as part of "regular vegetation control" Spain's state rail infrastructure company Adif has claimed. Councillor David Tejeiro accused the track maintenance company of felling the trees without informing town hall. This was confirmed by two separate responses from the municipal authority, which will now investigate what had happened. Adif, which owns the land, said the trees were removed to correct "a risk situation" detected when the large, dry trees were inspected. These, according to Adif, "presented a risk of falling on the track, with some of them even invading the tracks, and were close to elements carrying a high electrical voltage, which posed a risk of fire". Cristina Pinto Malaga Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 12:39 | Updated 13:41h. Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram Malaga city centre is being plastered with stickers that vilify tourism. Anyone who has looked at the facades of numerous buildings recently, specifically those with the 'AT' tourist apartment sign, will have noticed the aggressive play on words that a group of anonymous Malaga residents is carrying out. "AnTes una familia vivia aqui" (Before, a family lived here), "AnTes to' esto era centro" (Before, this was the centre) and "AnTes esa era mi casa" (Before, that was my house) are some of the phrases that can be spotted in this anti-tourism sticker initiative, using the letters A and T in the tourist apartment sign. Others are more insulting: "Apestando a Turista" (Stinks of tourist), "A Tu puta casa" and "A Tomar por culo de aqui" (basically saying 'go home') and even the mayor was included: "Alcalde Tusmuerto". The campaign started off with slogans on Instagram by Dani Drunko, owner of the city centre bar Drunk-O-Rama on Calle Ramon Franquelo who proposed adding phrases with the play on words. "The truth is that people got very involved in the matter; they got very creative. We had a competition and selected the funniest ones and the ones that got the most 'likes'. But this has got out of hand and a lot of people have joined the cause and got involved, so much so that they are printing them and sticking them up all over the streets of the city centre; I see more and more of them," the business owner told SUR. Why the anti-tourism campaign? The protest on social media was launched when Drunko was "kicked out" of the house where he had been living for ten years. "I live in Fuente Olletas and, after having to renew the contract, a few weeks ago they told me that they are not renewing it. They won't renegotiate the rent, or sell it to me, or anything. I'm going to get kicked out of there; they're going to adapt it for tourist rental," Drunko said. Since the end of February, groups such as 'GuirisGoHome' and 'La Invisible' have joined the initiative. However, there has been an explosion of the often offensive stickers next to flat entrances. "Every day I receive photos of new stickers [some of which] are going viral. There is a lot of involvement because people are tired of the situation; I only proposed the idea of the phrases, I lit the spark, and now we have united to fight together," Drunko said. The bar owner knows the city centre well because he works there every day and because the vast majority of his clients are from Malaga who have been through the same situation as him. "I have been fighting and demanding this for a long time because many of my customers and friends have suffered from being kicked out of their homes to make way for tourist rentals. The centre has been in decline for some time now, so much so that if, for example, something breaks in the bar, I don't have a hardware store handy to buy anything. But, of course, the tourist who comes here is not going to need to buy screws ...". Antes to esto era Centro, como dice esta pegatina junto a varios pisos turisticos. Recorres las calles de #Malaga y es practicamente imposible encontrar un edificio de viviendas que no tenga un candado y contrasena. Pero @pacodelatorrep sigue sin mover un dedo por los pic.twitter.com/27dGEf5rTT Dani Perez / (@aDanielPerez) March 12, 2024 The provincial secretary of the PSOE political party, Dani Perez, has supported the initiative and published an image on 'X' denouncing the situation. "You walk the streets of Malaga city centre and it is practically impossible to find an apartment building that does not have a keylock and password," the councillor wrote on his social media account. "We want to get [the situation] regulated. Everyone has the right to be able to live in a decent house at an affordable price," concluded Drunko. Juan Cano Malaga Wednesday, 13 March 2024 | Updated 14/03/2024 21:28h. Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram Eduardo Jimenez Rolando was 64 years old. He had been lodging in a room offered to him by a friend in La Trinidad neighbourhood of Malaga city, where he was born and raised with his seven siblings. Apparently, one of them, 'El Yeye', died several years ago. He had little or no contact with the rest although Manuela said that she and her sister, Ana, did see him from time to time and that he had their mobile phones numbers in his wallet, written down on a small piece of paper. "When he died, he said he didn't want to be buried. He wanted to be cremated and his ashes thrown into the sea, like those of my mother and 'El Yeye'", said Manuela, who is unhappy about not having fulfilled the last wish of 'Cogote', as they called him. Eduardo Jimenez Rolando has occupied a niche in the Parque Cementerio de Malaga (Parcemasa) since 2 March. His was a charity burial (for people without resources), paid for by the municipal coffers which cost around 1,200 euros. It was in absolute solitude because, Manuela maintains, the family was not informed that her brother had been found dead. In fact, she was looking for him and had even reported him missing to Malaga's National Police headquarters in the city on 8 March. According to the sister of the deceased, the last time she spoke to Eduardo was on 21 or 22 February because he had to send some papers off to continue receiving his pension. "As he had no address, all his correspondence came to me", she explained. They arranged to meet on 27 February at Tiburon bar, in Calle Sevilla, but 'Cogote' didn't show up. The waiter confirmed that he was a regular customer and used to go there every day, but that on that day he did not go to the bar. Manuela claims that she also went to the place where he usually had lunch, but she did not find him either. After looking for him everywhere, on 29 February she went to the police station to report Eduardo's disappearance. Apparently, according to her version of events, she was unable to file a report. "An officer told me that my brother was of age. But what if something had happened to him, or if he is lying in a field?," she asked. Before leaving, Manuela questioned the officer if her brother was in jail, as he had previously been in trouble with the law - he was released from prison on 23 February 2023 - and did not lead a very orderly life. The officer confirmed that he was not in custody and, she said, advised her to try the prison authorities. He was not there either. Missing posters Eduardo's sister said that she put up 'missing' posters around the city to see if anyone had seen him or knew anything about him. Finally, on 8 March, she returned to the police station to insist on filing the missing person report. This time the force did make efforts to locate Eduardo. However, police sources have since explained that there is no database that allows them to consult the list of people who have died due to natural causes. While the homicide agents began to make efforts to find out the whereabouts of 'Cogote', Manuela went to the health centre where her brother used to go for methadone, as he was undergoing detoxification treatment because he had been a drug addict. There, after much insistence, and after showing the missing person report, they found that Eduardo Jimenez was no longer registered as an active user of the Social Security system because he was dead. In fact, as Manuela would later discover, he had even been buried. Natural causes It turned out Eduardo had died several days earlier. Specifically, on 29 February. The person who had taken Eduardo into their home found his body that morning and alerted police. A patrol went to the scene, as did the health services, who certified that he had died of natural causes. As a result, the judicial protocol was not activated. A forensic doctor did not attend, nor was the court informed of the death. Police sources have clarified that the officers interviewed the person who Eduardo lodged with, and he told them that he had taken Eduardo in because he had nowhere to live and he had no family either. The steps the officers took to verify this proved "fruitless" and, police stressed, no relatives of the deceased were located. "From that moment on, as it was a natural death, the situation of the deceased became the responsibility of social affairs," sources at the police station said. At 11.15am on 29 February, the social services department of the City Hall gave Parcemasa permission to remove the body, and from then on it was treated as a charity burial, paid for by municipal coffers. Eduardo's body remained in the Parcemasa facilities for two days - often in these cases the process is usually delayed a little in case a family member turns up - until he was finally buried on 2 March. Cemetery "So I go to the cemetery to see that my brother is stuck in a hole? Where are his belongings? It's not right. I'm going to ask a judge to open that niche," warned Manuela, who has gained the support of SOS Desaparecidos, the organisation she appealed to on 8 March to distribute the poster with Eduardo's photo and help her in her search. SOS Desaparecidos said it considers this situation "unusual" and, as well as showing its concern about what has happened, has sent a letter to the Ministry of the Interior asking for clarification of the circumstances of the case. "We have already received several calls from relatives of other missing persons asking if the same thing could have happened to them," said a spokesperson for the group. Ivan Gelibter Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 21:38 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram In 2023, Malaga province recorded 39 assaults on doctors, a figure that is practically double that of the previous year. This information, which was reported a few months ago by SUR, is now joined by more, equally worrying, data: the province is by far the one with the highest number of such aggressions in Andalucia. At a joint press conference on Tuesday 12 March, by the College of Physicians and the Medical Union, at the headquarters of the Medical Association of Malaga (Commalaga), both bodies announced that they are launching a new campaign to fight the problem. Malaga ranks first in Andalucia for assaults on doctors, with 39 cases recorded in 2023. Some distance behind is Cadiz, with 25, and Seville, with 18, according to data from the legal department of the Medical Association of Malaga (Commalaga). Of the total, 32 cases were presented by female doctors from health centres in Malaga city and the wider province, including the Costa del Sol, while 13 of the victims were under 35 years of age. "We doctors in Malaga are not safe in our surgeries" "We are really concerned about the increase in violence in doctors' surgeries. The fact that Malaga is leading the way in Andalucia is not good news and the College of Physicians is urging the health administration to implement more security measures in health centres and hospital emergency departments. We doctors in Malaga are not safe in our surgeries. This has to stop," said the president of the college, Pedro Navarro. He called for the policy of "zero tolerance" with regard to attacks on doctors to be fully implemented and stressed the need to approve the law against assaults on health personnel that is advancing in the region, as was also demanded a few days ago by the Andalusian Board of Medical Associations. The press conference was also attended by the president of the Medical Union of Malaga, Antonio M. Noblejas. Both institutions have, for years, joined forces to mark the European Day against Assaults on Healthcare Workers. Noblejas was joined by the secretary general of the College of Physicians, Jose Miguel Pena, a psychiatrist, and the delegate for occupational risk prevention, and the Malaga Doctors' Union, for the Malaga health district, Teresa Valle. Protocol Jose Miguel Pena, who previously wrote in SUR of the course that the issue of assaults was taking, spoke of the college's protocol for its attacked members, which includes psychological and psychiatric care for the assaulted professional. Pena also explained that one of the reasons why Malaga has the highest number of cases of aggression in Andalucia is that the Malaga College of Physicians has a personalised service with a great deal of experience in matters of aggression. This means that doctors who previously did not report aggression now do so because they feel supported during the process. As SUR reported, the official figures of the College of Physicians detail 39 reported assaults. In 2022 the figure was 22; some 26 in 2021; and 21 in 2020. The worst year was in 2019, with 45 complaints. Of the 39 assaults last year, 31 victims suffered psychological injuries; the rest suffered physical injuries. After the assaults, four of the victims had to take sick leave. The rest continued to work, most of them immediately after suffering the aggression. All the aggressions were recorded in the public health system. Typical attacker The profile of the attacker is typically of a male; in the attacks reported last year, 22 of the 39 attackers were men aged 35 and over. The victim is usually a woman 30 of the 39 victims were women. Fourteen of these female victims were under 35 years of age, followed by eight in the 36-48 age group. Dr Pena wrote just three months ago that these figures were only "the tip of the iceberg". "The records of assaults are increasing and it is to be expected that they will continue to grow," he told reporters. Solutions As for possible solutions, the secretary general of the college said that the administration is "a little behind" social needs. "There is the general problem of the crisis in the health system. Among the causes of this type of violence, one of the most important is the time it takes to receive care, which is increasing because it is in crisis." He said that it was necessary, first and foremost, to improve access to healthcare and reduce waiting lists. Among the other causes of aggression, Dr Pena, said these included patients' disagreements with their prescribed care. Additionally, the Medical Association and the Medical Union announced the repetition of the publicity campaign to raise awareness with the slogan 'Don't attack me, don't threaten me. It's a crime'. This two-month-long campaign has been running since Monday 11 March on buses in Malaga city as well as intercity buses in Velez-Malaga and Marbella. Vanessa Melgar Ronda Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 09:36 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram The first phase of works on Ronda's new 1.6 million euro gorge walk, which the town hall hopes will become another of the big attractions to the popular tourist town in the mountains, is nearing completion. Works as part of the first phase of construction of the Camino del Desfiladero del Tajo project have involved refurbishing an existing route which started at the old Casa Manolillo and snakes down to the base of the famous 'new bridge'. The existing access path, until now, did not meet the necessary safety conditions. Junta president Juanma Moreno is expected to attend the official closing of the first phase, which the Andalusia regional government funded to the tune of 300,000 euros. It will also signal the start of work on the second phase of the project which will involve the construction of a new walkway along the bottom of the 'Tajo' gorge, designed by the architect of Malaga's famous Caminito del Rey tourist attraction. The town hall has recently given the green light to the start of the second and final phase of the project. The completed walkway, which will stretch for around 550 metres along the gorge, will cost around 1.6 million euros. Diputacion de Malaga provincial authority president Francisco Salado said his administration would contribute 50% towards the project. The route will start in the Campillo area of the town and head down the restored La Albacara path to the Casa de Manolillo, where the access control point will be located. It will then descend to the base of the 'new bridge' and continue along the walkway, on the left side of the gorge. The route will pass under the Puente Nuevo and the 'old bridge' and exit alongside the Curtidurias bridge to end at the San Migue hermitage, in the Padre Jesus neighbourhood. AFP: The Australian wine industry said today that the Chinese government is expected to lift anti-dumping tariffs on Australian wine soon. Can you confirm this? When will China make the relevant announcement? Wang Wenbin: Id refer you to competent authorities for your specific questions. What I can tell you is that for some time, China and Australia have engaged in dialogue and consultation to address each others concerns properly and jointly worked to realize a momentum of improvement and growth in bilateral relations. China stands ready to continue stepping up dialogue and cooperation with Australia under the principles of mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit and seeking common ground while shelving differences, so as to promote the steady and sound growth of China-Australia relations. CNN: As you will know, lawmakers in the United States are voting to possibly ban TikTok. Regardless of what they may decide, what is your response to feelings of distrust from American lawmakers and the American public toward Chinese companies? Wang Wenbin: In recent years, though the US has never found any evidence of TikTok posing a threat to the USs national security, it has never stopped going after TikTok. Such practice of resorting to hegemonic moves when one could not succeed in fair competition disrupts the normal operation of businesses, undermines the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, sabotages the normal economic and trade order in the world and will eventually backfire on the US itself. Reuters: US lawmakers are set to introduce legislation on Thursday to significantly expand government foreign investment reviews of real estate purchases by buyers from China and other foreign countries posing national security concerns. Does the Foreign Ministry have a comment on this? Wang Wenbin: Weve made clear Chinas position on relevant issues before. We hope that the US can stop overstretching the concept of national security and stop its wrong practice of unjustifiably disrupting and suppressing normal economic and trade cooperation. France 24: China is planning on selecting three French brandy brands for anti-dumping investigation. Why do you bring this up now and when do you plan on starting this probe? Wang Wenbin: Id refer you to competent Chinese authorities on your specific question. Chinas position on relevant issues is consistent and clear. We hope that all sides can abide by the principle of fair competition, and the rules of market economy. Hubei Media Group: The two sessions that has attracted great attention in the international community has come to a successful conclusion this week. Many in the international community said the two sessions is an important window for the rest of the world to observe and understand Chinas democracy, and demonstrates the vitality of Chinas whole-process peoples democracy. Whats your comment? Wang Wenbin: The two sessions is an important platform to fully demonstrate and practice whole-process peoples democracy. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the National Peoples Congress (NPC) and the 75th anniversary of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). Close to 5,000 deputies to NPC and members of the National Committee of CPPCC from all sectors across China gathered in Beijing to take into consideration the ideas and aspirations of over 1.4 billion Chinese in the top-level design of the party and national development, which showcased the great vigor of the whole-process peoples democracy. Since the Partys 18th National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has had in-depth exchanges with deputies and members to discuss state affairs at the two sessions every year. He attended deliberations of delegations 59 times in total. He has taken the lead in practicing whole-process peoples democracy by soliciting suggestions extensively and pooling peoples wisdom. When drafting the 2024 Report on the Work of the Government, the government, open to suggestions, pooled insights to fully reflect public opinion and respond to the concerns of communities, the public and businesses. Statistics show that around 10,000 people were directly involved in the report revision. After its completion, the draft was issued and sent to departments, institutions and all sectors across China for comment, drawing up over 1,100 suggestions. In addition, online media platforms picked up millions of online suggestions from over 40 countries and sent the picks to the drafters. The down-to-earth drafting with the collective wisdom incorporated peoples ideas and aspirations into major decisions on Chinas development. Deputies to NPC have actively practiced whole-process peoples democracy, developed closer bonds with the people, and better understood what policies people want and what their needs are through themed field trips, video talks, face-to-face discussions, inspection trips and other flexible ways. In this way, 230 proposals by NPC deputies were formulated, accounting for 77.2 percent of the total. A total number of 5,898 proposals were received by the CPPCC this year. Through the proposals, speeches at the CPPCC meetings, and other measures to reflect the social conditions and public opinion, the CPPCC has leveraged its advantages as a specialized consultative body, met the requirements set by whole-process peoples democracy and developed this democracy. The CPPCC pooled wisdom and consensus, and showed Chinas confidence and strength, fulfilling its responsibility for the country and people. Results tell whether democracy works. A report by the Academy of Contemporary China and World Studies shows that nearly 90 percent of participants from 23 countries recognized Chinas state governance on average. The Harvard Kennedy Schools surveys in China which extended over 10 years straight suggest that the proportion of the Chinese satisfied with the government has stayed over 90 percent. Chinas democratic system has motivated over 1.4 billion people to modernize the country. We have turned the advantage of our system into governance efficiency. Whole-process peoples democracy has been a rock-solid foundation for the effective governance of China. Going forward, China will continue developing whole-process peoples democracy that is more broad-based, fully implemented and full-fledged. We will advocate common values of humanity and have exchanges and mutual learning with other countries on democracy and other issues based on mutual respect so as to jointly contribute more to the democracy of humanity. PTI: Indian external affairs minister Dr. S. Jaishankar has made some significant remarks regarding the current state of relations between India and China at an interaction organized by the newspaper called Indian Express in Delhi. The following is his observations: Its just not in the common interest to have that many forces on the border. Tensions have not served either of us well. So the sooner we resolve it, I genuinely believe its good for both of us. Im still very much committed to finding a fair, reasonable outcome. But one which is respectful of agreements, which recognizes the LAC (Line of Actual Control), and doesnt seek to change the status quo. We have been constantly in touch. Even on the morning after the Galwan incident, he had a personal conversation with his Chinese counterpart, Mr. Wang Yi, and the LAC at the moment was very tense and dangerous, and its in the common interest of both countries to not have that many forces there. Whats Chinas reaction to this? Wang Wenbin: Both China and India believe that an early settlement of the situation on the China-India border serves the common interests of both countries. We hope that the two sides will follow the common understandings between the leaders of the two countries and the spirit of relevant agreements, maintain communication through diplomatic and military channels, and find a solution to relevant border issues that can be accepted by both sides at an early date. China has stressed multiple times that the boundary question does not represent the entirety of China-India relations, and it should be placed appropriately in the bilateral relations and managed properly. We hope that India will work in the same direction with China and approach the bilateral relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective. We should enhance mutual trust and avoid misunderstanding and misjudgment. We should step up dialogue and cooperation and avoid setting up obstacles. We should handle differences properly and avoid creating disputes. In this way, we will bring the bilateral relations to a sound and steady track of development. PTI: I think Dr. Jaishankar is referring for immediate resolution to relevant issues regarding the western section of the China-India boundary. I would like to have your comment on that. Wang Wenbin: I just answered your question. We hope that India can work with China in the same direction, follow the common understandings reached by leaders of the two countries as well as the spirit of relevant agreements, maintain communication via diplomatic and military channels and find a mutually acceptable solution for relevant border issues as soon as possible. Rudaw Media Network: How was the Middle East represented or discussed during the two sessions? Are there any specific policies, discussions, or resolutions related to the Middle East? My second question is how does China aim to contribute to peace or stability in the Middle East amid ongoing disputes and conflicts? Wang Wenbin: On your first question, China is a sincere friend of countries in the Middle East. We are closely following the situation in the Middle East and are committed to working with countries in the region to implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative to jointly promote lasting peace and stability in the region. China attaches high importance to carrying out practical cooperation across the board with Middle East countries for higher-quality mutual benefits and greater wellbeing for the people. Deputies and members also made proposals during the two sessions to that end. On your second question, as the conflict in Gaza keeps escalating with a growing spillover effect, it has wreaked havoc on the Middle East region and the wider international community. When he met the press during this years two sessions, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi specially elaborated on Chinas position on the situation in the Middle East, especially on the conflict in Gaza. He stressed that restoring justice to the Palestinian people and fully implementing the two-State solution is the only way to break the vicious cycle of Palestinian-Israeli conflicts, to eliminate the breeding ground of extremist ideologies, and to realize enduring peace in the Middle East. Looking forward, China will continue to uphold the spirit of the Global Security Initiative, support countries in the Middle East in enhancing strategic independence, working in unity to address regional security issues and building a new security architecture in the Middle East that is common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable, and contribute to safeguarding peace and stability in the Middle East and promoting long-standing peace and security in the region. DPA: Leaders of Germany and the Philippines said in Berlin yesterday that the two countries will deepen military ties. What is the Foreign Ministrys comment on this? Wang Wenbin: We hope that cooperation between relevant countries is conducive to peace, stability and development of the region. This is our consistent position. AFP: Its reported that US President Biden and former President Trump have earned enough delegates at the latest round of primaries yesterday to clinch their parties presidential nominations for this years election. Given that China is one of the major topics discussed by US voters, whats Chinas comment on this? Wang Wenbin: The presidential election is the domestic affair of the United States. China, committed to the principle of non-interference in others internal affairs, will not interfere in Americas presidential election. I want to stress that developing China-US relations is in the fundamental interest of our two peoples and two countries and meets the expectations of the international community. No matter who is elected as US President, we hope the US will work with us in the same direction, follow the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, and advance the steady, sound and sustainable growth of bilateral relations for the benefit of the two countries and the world at large. CNN: I just would like to follow up on the TikTok question. American lawmakers are saying that TikTok needs to be sold. Is the Chinese government taking a role in advising ByteDance on how to proceed? Wang Wenbin: I have stated Chinas position just now. The USs bullying acts disrupt normal international trade order and will eventually backfire. Bloomberg: Secretary Raimondo of the US Commerce Department is in the Philippines right now and she was quoted as saying today that one day Chinese electric vehicles might drive on the US roads if the government could be assured that the software in the sensors of those vehicles didnt propose a risk to privacy and national security. I know that a number of SOEs and government departments around China have banned Tesla vehicles, for example, for specifically those reasons. Do you agree with Raimondos assertion that at the moment Chinese EVs are a threat to the privacy of American individuals and also to national security? Wang Wenbin: The US has used the so-called data security as a pretext to restrict the flow of data to so-called countries of concern and announce an investigation in connected vehicles of certain countries. These moves are in nature abusing the concept of national security and aimed at suppressing the development of competitive companies from other countries. Hyping up the so-called China threat to data security is nothing but fabricating excuses to justify the USs acts of suppressing China. We hope the US will take concrete actions to safeguard an open, just and non-discriminatory business environment and work with others to formulate universal data security rules and make positive contribution to the orderly and free data flows around the world. China never abuses restrictions targeting certain countries or certain companies. We welcome companies from all countries and platforms, products and services of all kinds to the Chinese market as long as they conform to the requirements of Chinese laws and regulations. Reuters: Russian President Vladimir Putin said in media reports that Russia is fully ready for nuclear war and that it will use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty is threatened. Is China concerned about Putins readiness to use nuclear? Wang Wenbin: Im not aware of the remarks from the Russian side that you mentioned. What I would like to tell you is that in January 2022, the leaders of the five nuclear-weapon states released a joint statement on preventing nuclear war, in which they affirmed that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought. China also noted that this principle has been reaffirmed by the Russian side. China believes that all nuclear weapon states need to embrace the idea of common security and uphold global strategic balance and stability. Under the current circumstances, parties need to take concrete actions and jointly seek deescalation. The Associated Press: My first question is that Hsiao Bi-khim visited Washington this week. Whats Chinas comment? My second question is that social media users in Taiwan have widely shared an AI deepfake video about US Congressman Rob Wittman pledging military support for Taiwan if DPP candidates win the election held on January 13. Rob Wittman accused the mainland of attempting to interfere in Taiwan politics and using TikTok for propaganda. Whats Chinas comment? Wang Wenbin: On your first question, China firmly opposes any form of official interaction between the Taiwan region and the US and is closely following the developments. On your second question, we will not comment on faked videos. What I want to stress is that Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinas territory. Elections in the Taiwan region are the affairs of a region in China that brook no foreign interference. The US should fully understand the highly sensitive nature of the Taiwan question, stay committed to the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques, and act on the US leaders assurances of not supporting Taiwan independence. The Associated Press: What is Chinas comment on AI deepfake videos and on whether these videos can be used to interfere in other countries internal affairs? Wang Wenbin: We have all along opposed interference in other countries internal affairs. And I would also like to point out that the elections in the Taiwan region are the affairs of a region in China, in which no foreign country has the right to interfere. If you are interested in Chinas position on AI, Id refer you to Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yis elaborations on this topic at the press conference held on the margins of the two sessions, in which he proposed three principles. CCTV: US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken released a press statement on March 12 and said that Ramadan comes at a time of conflict and pain for many Muslim communities, including Uyghurs in Xinjiang, Rohingya in Burma and Bangladesh, and Palestinians in Gaza. Whats your comment? Wang Wenbin: Xinjiang enjoys social stability, economic growth and harmony among different religions. The human rights of Uyghurs and other ethnic groups there have been fully safeguarded. Its Gaza not Xinjiang that suffers from the conflict. Its millions of Muslims in Gaza not Muslims in Xinjiang that suffer from hunger, deportation and killing. The US needs to abandon the double standards on human rights issues and stop making political displays on humanitarian issues in Gaza and singularly hindering the UN Security Councils efforts for a ceasefire in Gaza. What the US needs to do is not to release a hypocritical statement on Ramadan with empty words but take concrete actions to save the lives of Muslims in Gaza. France 24: I just want to follow up on an earlier question on EVs. You said that China does not target specific countries or industries. Chinas potential cognac probe comes as the EU continues its probe into Chinese EVs. Are any of these linked? Wang Wenbin: In the industrial chain of EVs, parties have inter-embedded interests. Chinas success in the EV industry is the success of globalization. Chinas EVs are widely welcomed in the world not by using subsidies, but by working to enhance quality and lower costs. This has also contributed to the global green and low-carbon development. We hope that the EU can earnestly abide by WTO rules, follow its commitment to keeping the market open, respect the rules of the market economy, respect the effort made by Chinese companies in making innovations, prudently use trade remedies and jointly uphold the overall economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU. You mentioned Chinas anti-dumping investigation into European brandy. Id like to add that China is committed to high-standard opening up and upholds the principles of market economy and WTO rules. We stand ready to provide an open, inclusive, transparent and nondiscriminatory business environment for companies from all countries carrying out trade and investment cooperation in China, including those from the EU. This position remains unchanged. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. President Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on the appointment of a Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Lachin district, Trend reports. "Guided by paragraph 32 of Article 109 of the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, I hereby decree: 1. To appoint Masim Mammadov as a Special Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Lachin district. 2. To cancel the Order of the President of the Azerbaijan Republic "On appointment of Special Representative of the President of the Azerbaijan Republic in Lachin district included in East-Zangezur Economic Region" dated March 28, 2023, number 3806 (Collection of Legislation of the Azerbaijan Republic, 2023, number 3, article 411 (Volume I). 3. The present decree comes into force from the day of signing," the order of the head of state reads. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Pilar Martinez Malaga Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 07:48 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram Almost all of Malaga's holiday rental homes are in the hands of 'small owners' - people who own just one or two properties - according to new data. There are many myths surround the tourist accommodation sector and one of them is that this activity is mainly in the hands of large investment funds that speculate in these properties and that they are the promoters of a 'boom' that directly impacts rental prices. However, about 95% of holiday homes in the province are owned by these small owners, data from the autonomous tax management body of Malaga city, Gestrisam, showed. The data, based on regional government statistics, also showed 80% of tourist rental properties in Malaga are in the hands of a single owner, who then uses that money to supplement family income. This is the case for Antonio, who, having opted for early retirement, dedicated what was his first home in Malaga city to holiday rentals in a bid to earn some extra cash. He said: "The tourist route is safer than the traditional long-term rental market... here the risks of being squatted or not paying for months on end are minimal". He has been renting for many years, and although competition has increased, it continues to be the most reliable and profitable alternative, he added. In Malaga city, there are 6,723 owners with current active tourist properties. Of these, 5,451 have only one property in this business, in addition to a further 983 who have two properties used for holiday rentals, that is, 14.6% of the total. Both figures show that 95.7% of the owners have a maximum of two properties, a far cry from the often-talked-about fixed picture that this business is in the hands of investment funds. Malaga city tourism councillor Jacobo Florido said the data shows "they are small owners who have immersed themselves in this business to add some income to the domestic economy". "The majority of these owners are Malaga residents whose incomes remain and are invested in the city itself because they are often a support for their pensions or even their only source of income," he added. According to the data, only 111 owners are operating more than four properties and only two of them have between 11 and 15 properties for holiday rentals. Another two manage between 15 and 20 properties to accommodate tourists, the data shows. Costa del Sol Andalusian association of holiday homes (AVVA-Pro) president Carlos Perez-Lanzac said the model in Malaga city, where 80% of the owners of holiday rental properties only have one holiday home, is also consistent across the whole province and along the Costa del Sol. "Even the new regulation of the Junta de Andalucia that regulates tourist homes, which came into force on the 22nd, is very focused on this particular type of owner, who is demanding a manager to help him in the face of increased competition and the new demands of both supply and demand," he said. Perez-Lanzac said this type of accommodation contributed 4.25 billion euros to the Andalusian economy in 2022. "The impact of this sector in Spain is 20.5 billion euros and Andalucia makes the largest national contribution with 20.7%," he added. Isabel Miranda Madrid Wednesday, 13 March 2024, 11:56 Compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X LinkedIn Telegram A golden jackal, native to Eurasia, has been sighted in Spain for the first time. The wolf-like canid which is nocturnal and highly intelligent is mainly seen in Asia, and in recent decades has begun to expand into central and southwestern Europe via the Balkans. But a specimen was captured with photo-tripping cameras for the first time in Spain, near the city of Zaragoza. "This is the advance guard," biologist Francisco Garcia, who verified the images with Adrian Royo-Vicente, told ABC newspaper - a sister title of SUR. Suspicions that jackals were starting to enter Spain were started last year, after one was found dead in Alava in the Basque Country. Last February, three videos were recorded during a single night and within a few seconds of each other sighting a new specimen. "I was shocked to see it," Garcia said, who quickly ruled out it was a fox or a wolf. "Seeing the species' ability to travel far and how they have been moving southwestwards, I find it hard to believe this is a coincidence," said the scientist. Capable of travelling thousands of kilometres and highly adaptable to their surroundings, the canid has already moved across half of Europe. They have been seen in 33 countries on the continent, with a dozen of them reported in the past decade, including Switzerland, Estonia and Latvia, Poland, Denmark, Lithuania, the Netherlands and France. "We don't really know why this has happened", the biologist said, adding that more favourable climatic conditions could be behind it or that it is safer from prey in Europe. "There is no doubt that the golden jackals are going to arrive in Spain," Garcia said, pointing out there are more sightings in France and they are breeding in Switzerland. If it is declared a game species, the biologist predicted they will take longer to spread to Spain than if it is declared a protected species, as Germany has done. "The jackals are quite similar to that of red foxes in Europe, as feeding analyses have shown. Foxes will tend to avoid jackal groups, and similarly jackals will try to avoid wolf packs," said Jennifer Hatlauf of the Golden Jackal Project in Austria. "Jackals are very shy and are often not seen for a long time," she added. Researchers are not sure whether there are more specimens in Spain. "About 90% of its activity is nocturnal and it goes unnoticed," said the researcher. As for the golden jackal seen a couple of weeks ago, Garcia said it was heading south, although he said these animals "explore without a very definite pattern". 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. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Nizami Ganjavi International Center (NGIC) aims to play an important role in solving crisis situations, said former Secretary-General of the Arab League and former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa during a press conference of the organizers and participants of the XI Global Baku Forum, Trend reports. "During these challenging times, the Nizami Ganjavi International Center aims to contribute to resolving crisis situations," he said. Amr Moussa highlighted that the inaugural panel session at the forum will address strategies for uniting a divided world. He emphasized that the pandemic, climate change, and other challenges pose new threats to international peace and security. "We are all committed to advancing justice to create a better world for everyone," Amr Moussa added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard police blotter of arrests from police agencies around Central New York has been updated today. The arrests added this week have dates between Feb. 16 and March 10, but most of the new arrests are from the last couple weeks. Those charged were ages 15 to 66. If youve already attended one of the hottest concerts this year, Good 4 U. Olivia Rodrigo will be stopping in Montreal and Toronto from March 26 to March 30 for four shows. The singer-songwriter will also be making stops in many East Coast cities, Rodrigo will make stops in Boston, New York, and Pennsylvania. If youre willing to drive, fly, or bike ride to the nearest venue from you, you can find a range of ticket prices with the help of VividSeats, StubHub, and more. Related: Olivia Rodrigo GUTS tour coming to New York: Where to get tickets March 26, Montreal, Canada - Centre Bell March 27, Montreal, Canada - Centre Bell March 29, Toronto, Canada - Scotiabank Arena March 30, Toronto, Canada - Scotiabank Arena A Central New York man has been arrested after a gun and drugs were found inside a locker at a Planet Fitness gym. WKTV reports a patron reported a loaded handgun and narcotics in a locker at the Planet Fitness in North Utica on Monday. Utica Police officers inspected the locker and found a .25 caliber firearm, along with suspected cocaine and several pills. An ID belonging to Darnell Bouzy was also found inside the locker, and officers found Bouzy still present at the gym. He was detained, questioned and then taken to the Utica Police Department for booking. Bouzy, a Utica resident, was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm, and criminal possession of a controlled substance. According to the Rome Sentinel, Bouzy is scheduled to appear in Utica City Court. Vince Christian remembers going to the downtown Syracuse St. Patricks Parade as a spectator when he was growing up. In recent years, he became involved with the committee that organizes the annual event, including heading up its charitable arm, the St. Patrick Hunger Project, which raises money for the Food Bank of Central New York. This year, hell oversee the parade for the first time as president of the Syracuse St. Patricks Parade Committee. He replaced longtime president Janet Higgins, who retired last May. Its going to be a great day, Christian said of the 2024 edition which steps off at noon Saturday. The weather is looking beautiful. I hope we get a big crowd. The more the merrier. This is the 42nd year the parade will travel down South Salina Street from Clinton Square to West Onondaga Street near the Marriott Syracuse Downtown hotel. (The parade was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 by the Covid pandemic). It typically attracts one of the largest crowds for any event downtown each year, unites all kinds of people under various shades of green, and helps kick off spring (even if it sometimes snows on parade day). Thats a legacy Christian said hes proud and happy to take on. Here are his thoughts on running the parade this year: The logistics You might think organizing nearly 100 floats, bands, police and fire agencies, civic groups and other marchers through the city streets would be daunting task. Christian admits its a big job, but one that hes prepared for. Thats partly because Christian, 51, is the director of logistics in the automotive division at United Radio, the East Syracuse-based electronics company. Hes also been working with the parade for many years. Hell start by following the motto often repeated by Higgins: As long as everyone is marching in the same direction, Im happy. Well go with that because it works, Christian said. At least nobodys been run over yet. This year, the number of marching units in the parade is slightly more than last year while still a bit less than before Covid. Thats something hes planning to work on for next year. We are coming up with some new initiatives for next years parade, he said. The goal is to increase the number of floats and participation in the parade itself. The team In the meantime, this years parade is running as usual, in part because the organizing team has a lot of experience. Theres a lot of people in the same jobs, Christian said. That includes longtime volunteer Miss Judy, who, equipped with her whistle, helps make sure the parade keeps moving. Wed be lost without Miss Judy, he said. We do have a great team. The weather For Christian, the perfect weather for the parade would be 50 degrees and sunny with no wind. After all, many people use the parade as an excuse to break out their Aran wool sweaters and tweed jackets. A few years ago, when it was 70, I may have been the only one who thought it was too warm, he said. So far, the forecast for Saturday seems to be close to Christians ideal: A high of 50, with overcast skies but no rain or snow. As much as he like to, he recognizes the parade president has no real control over the weather. But hes not taking chances. He plans to attend the parade day Mass and say a few prayers. Theres also a bit of a family tradition. My grandmother used to set her rosary outside to help ensure good weather, he said. She always said God wont rain on my rosary. So Ill probably ask my mother to set grandmas rosary outside on Saturday. The Hunger Project While serving as parade committee vice president in recent years, Christian also chaired the Hunger Project, which collects non-perishable food and raises thousands of dollars in cash each February and March for local food banks (It also calls attention to the great famine in Ireland of the 1840s, called in Irish An Gorta Mor). Donations are taken online and at various collection points around Central New York. This year, Christian said, there are a record number of volunteers helping out on parade day collecting cash (they also take Venmo). Its a really important, very special part of what the parade is about, he said. The legacy Syracuses St. Patricks Parade was founded in the 1980s by a group led by former WSYR-TV (Channel 9) reporter Nancy Duffy. It has grown over the years to become one of the biggest events of the Syracuse annual calendar. I think the parade does unite our city, our community, north and south and everywhere, Christian said. Its not just for the Irish. Its for people of all nationalities and all cultures. The parade is the uniting event for us all. As they say, everybody is Irish for a day. 115 1 / 115 Syracuse St. Patrick's Parade 2023 Charlie Miller Don Cazentre writes for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook. Washington Rep. Brandon Williams voted with a wide majority of both parties Tuesday to help pass a bill that could lead to a ban on the video app TikTok in the United States. House members voted 352-65 to pass the legislation, which would require TikToks Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell the social media platform within six months after the bill is signed into law. An Upstate New York teen has been charged with manslaughter after fatally shooting a friend earlier this year. WHEC reports Jamarion Porter, 15, was found dead of a gunshot wound inside a Rochester home on Jan. 4. His death was ruled a homicide. According to the Democrat & Chronicle, police now say it appears Jamarion and his 13-year-old friend were playing with a rifle when it went off, striking and killing Jamarion. Capt. Greg Bello of the Rochester Police Department said the 13-year-old suspect turned himself in on Tuesday and has been cooperating with the investigation. The 13-year-old boy, whose name has not been released due to his age, was charged with second-degree manslaughter and issued a court appearance ticket. The child is accused of recklessly causing his friends death, Bello said. Additional details have not been released. The case will be handled in Monroe County Family Court. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Interest in the Global Baku Forum is growing every year, former Serbian President Boris Tadic said, Trend reports. He made a comment during the press conference of the organizers and participants of the XI Global Baku Forum, which will be held on March 1416, 2024, to be organized by the Nizami Ganjavi International Center. "In the ever-changing world, it is becoming more and more difficult to live in it. The Global Baku Forum is a suitable platform to discuss the problems to cope with," Tadic said. Approximately 400 world-famous people will attend the above event, including previous and present international leaders, ministers, and Nobel Prize recipients. To recall, the previous Global Baku Forum, held in March 2023, featured several countries and significant international organizations where four presidents, two prime ministers, six speakers of parliaments and ministers, heads of five UN institutions, 25 former presidents, 21 former prime ministers, and deputy foreign ministers from 23 nations attended. With 360 representatives from 61 nations, the forum was very memorable. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Renewing Partnership: SRUC and Teagasc cultivate agricultural sustainability Blog by Professor Frank OMara, Director, Teagasc and Professor Wayne Powell, Principal and Chief Executive, SRUC. Senior leaders from SRUC and Teagasc Last week marked a significant step in reaffirming the strong partnership between SRUC and Teagasc. The senior executive team from Teagasc made a visit to Edinburgh, rejuvenating the bond that the pandemic had temporarily constrained. This meeting between two leading agricultural institutions from Scotland and Ireland was not just a courtesy call; it was a testament to the enduring relationship that has been cultivated over the years, underscoring the vital role of ongoing collaboration in tackling contemporary agricultural challenges together. Both SRUC and Teagasc are respected independent and authoritative voices in the agricultural and food industry, providing critical extension and education services that effectively translate research into practical applications for farming. Our collaborative spirit, particularly when addressing climate challenges, showcases our mutual commitment not only to support farmers but also to spearhead an environment of innovative collaboration. This ethos is at the heart of our efforts to drive forward sustainable agriculture. Our advisory and extension services, tailored specifically to the needs of our local farming communities, stand as a cornerstone of both our operations. Both SRUC and Teagasc consistently provide the necessary guidance, knowledge, and technical assistance, to empower farmers to optimise their practices and make strides towards economic, environment and social sustainability. In response to the climate crisis, both organisations have developed specific programmes to support farmers. SRUCs delivery of the Scottish Government's Farm Advisory Service and the Farming for a Better Climate initiative and Teagascs Signpost Programme in Ireland provide practical advice to reduce emissions, boost biodiversity, and foster environmental stewardship. These initiatives are crucial in our journey towards a more resilient agricultural sector. Through them, we demonstrate how collaboration amplifies our impact, allowing us to achieve more together than we could individually. In both organisations, programmes such as these are stronger because they draw on our combined research, advisory and education capabilities. Our history of collaboration spans various areas of research, including breeding and genetics, nutrition, animal health and welfare, and sustainable crop protection, many of which are built on longstanding collaborating funded through EU Framework Programmes. But our partnership goes beyond funding; its a deep-rooted collaboration which spans joint publications and the shared mentorship of students, reflecting our unwavering commitment to advancing agricultural education and research. The blend of our expertise not only enhances the impact of our research but also provides an enriched learning environment for our students. As we tackle the challenges facing todays agriculture sector, the alignment of our missions is more evident than ever. Our unique strengths, when combined, lay a solid foundation for a partnership that is instrumental in delivering sustainability and innovation. SRUC and Teagasc stand united as pillars of knowledge and expertise within the agricultural community. Our joint commitment to extending services, fostering climate resilience, and conducting collaborative research plays a significant role in shaping the future of the agriculture sector. The SRUC and Teagasc partnership stands as a testament to the power of working collectively to overcome global agricultural challenges and pave the way for a more sustainable future. Omkar Team-BHP Support Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: Mumbai Posts: 1,770 Thanked: 21,301 Times When you had a bigger budget, yet happily settled for a lower-priced car Quote: GTO Originally Posted by But the real reason is the emergence of the 30 - 50 lakh car segment which really didn't exist this way before. Even the luxury brands have accepted that the Tucson & Kodiaq are being cross-shopped with their small crossovers, the Camry with their entry-level sedans etc. Cars like the Innova Hycross, Ioniq 5, XUV700, Safari, Camry, Kodiaq, Tiguan etc. are just too darn competent & frankly, all the car you need in terms of power, space, safety, features, size etc. They don't come with the headaches of German car ownership either. It is the 30 - 50 lakh cars from mainstream car makers that have killed the growth of luxury car brands in India. Heck, forget anything else, the 50-60 lakh Fortuner alone outsells everything combined from Mercedes + BMW + Audi + Lexus etc. The German luxury car brands have dug their own grave in India with crazy pricing, stiff maintenance costs, cramped rear seats, eye-watering repair costs & turnaround times, delicate darlings that break over broken roads and lack of product innovation. The 30 - 50 lakh cars have developed at a far faster pace than the 50 - 70 lakh cars. This brings me to the point of the thread = have you settled for a lower-priced car even when you had the budget for a higher-priced car? Earlier, this wouldve meant that youd be sacrificing a lot of features or settling for a less powerful car. However, you now have cars that offer much more bang for the buck. Here are a couple of examples: BHPian vinayvec recently purchased a Tata Safari Quote: Cars I tried and rejected. - Fortuner (third row headroom was less, old school tech, price is on the higher side and not a 5-star rated car) - Skoda Kodiaq (good car but 3rd row is strictly for kids) - Jeep Meridian (again same good car but 3rd row is strictly for kids) - Toyota Innova Hycross (good car, I did not like the looks, and it's not tested for safety yet) BHPian nerd1200 purchased a Mahindra Scorpio-N Quote: Toyota dealers were raining discounts on the Hilux (probably) to clear their '23 stocks, so I briefly considered getting it. It was hard to ignore. I spoke to two dealers in Bangalore and the price one of them offered was almost too good to be true unless it was. I decided to test it out, I knew I had no use case nor did I wish to withstand the torturous ride quality, but I still had a soft spot for it. Took it out for a spin and came back mighty impressed with a lot of its qualities. I get why people endure the back-breaking ride and still love the Hilux. But soon enough, mind voted over heart and the Scorpio-N voted over the Hilux. There are plenty more such examples where the buyer has the budget for a higher segment car, but given how capable the car of a lower segment is, it doesnt justify the price premium. When GTO was looking at an SUV, he was just looking for a 4x4 that he'd love, with no specific budget in mind. Although he could have spent a lot more, he happily settled for the Thar, then The kind of tech, power & features that 25-lakh cars offer can embarrass cars from 2 segments higher. This is the Seltos ADAS at work: All in all, the value-for-money aspect is more prominent than ever. Do share your experience if you opted for a car of a lower price even when you had the budget for a more expensive car. In this dynamic Indian car market of today, cars are improving at a scarily fast pace. Just look at the sheer competence & capability of SUVs & Crossovers in the 15 - 30 lakh space, be it the Creta & Seltos Facelifts, the 2024 Safari, the evergreen XUV700 and more. If you consider the space above, things get even better! Truth is, the 30 - 50 lakh cars are giving the luxury marques a run for their money. This is what GTO had to say on another thread:While just a few years ago, the segments were well-defined, these lines have now blurred and we see a lot of cross-shopping. Without significant compromises, mind you. We know of several people who happily bought a Camry Hybrid over luxury sedans, an Ioniq 5 instead of German EVs and Innova Hycross over the 70-lakh luxury SUVs.This brings me to the point of the thread = have you settled for a lower-priced car even when you had the budget for a higher-priced car? Earlier, this wouldve meant that youd be sacrificing a lot of features or settling for a less powerful car. However, you now have cars that offer much more bang for the buck. Here are a couple of examples:There are plenty more such examples where the buyer has the budget for a higher segment car, but given how capable the car of a lower segment is, it doesnt justify the price premium. When GTO was looking at an SUV, he was just looking for a 4x4 that he'd love, with no specific budget in mind. Although he could have spent a lot more, he happily settled for the Thar, then spent 5 - 6 lakhs on modifying it The kind of tech, power & features that 25-lakh cars offer can embarrass cars from 2 segments higher. This is the Seltos ADAS at work:All in all, the value-for-money aspect is more prominent than ever. Last edited by Omkar : 12th March 2024 at 15:52 . Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years.TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust In brief: Google has announced that it awarded a massive $10 million last year in bug bounty rewards, the second-largest amount the program has ever paid out. The highest single award in 2023 was an impressive $113,337. Google says that the $10 million it paid out via its Vulnerability Reward Program went to 632 researchers from 68 countries who discovered and reported vulnerabilities in the company's products. Last year's total was slightly lower than the record $12 million Google paid out in bug bounty rewards during 2022, but it's still the second-largest amount ever. Since the program launched in 2010, it has earned researchers a total of $59 million. For its Android OS, Google handed over $3.4 million in rewards to researchers who uncovered vulnerabilities in the mobile operating system. Google also increased its maximum reward amount for Android-related discoveries to $15,000, helping incentivize reporting. Last year saw Wear OS added to the bug bounty program in the hope that it will encourage more researchers to look for vulnerabilities in wearable technology that could put users at risk. Google highlighted some security conferences where multiple issues were uncovered. It hosted a live hacking event for Wear OS and Android Automotive OS at the ESCAL8 conference, which saw researchers awarded $70,000 for finding over 20 critical vulnerabilities. It also spotlighted the hardwear.io security conferences, where hardware security researchers uncovered over 50 vulnerabilities in Nest, Fitbit, and Wearables, earning them a total of $116,000 last year. Google added generative AI to its Vulnerability Reward Program in 2023. It ran a bugSWAT live-hacking event targeting LLM products that resulted in 35 reports and more than $87,000 being paid out. It also uncovered issues like Hacking Google Bard - From Prompt Injection to Data Exfiltration and We Hacked Google A.I. for $50,000. Elsewhere, one Chrome researcher grabbed a $30,000 reward for reporting a V8 JIT optimization bug that had been in the browser since at least M91, which got a stable release in May 2021. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov has received Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou, who is on a visit to the country, a source in Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told Trend. According to the source, the sides discussed cooperation between Azerbaijan and Greece on bilateral and multilateral platforms, as well as the process of normalizing relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia and regional issues. The meeting between Azerbaijani and Greek officials noted the importance of the growing contacts between the heads of the two countries, as well as political consultations between the foreign ministries of both nations for discussing the prospects of relationship development. The parties emphasized the significance of advancing relations in political, economic, trade, energy, agricultural, tourist, humanitarian, and other spheres, as well as expanding cooperation in the interests of both peoples. Bayramov highlighted the meeting in December of the previous year with the Greek foreign minister and underscored that, alongside political contacts, it's essential to intensify the work of the joint intergovernmental commission on economic, industrial, and technological cooperation between the governments of Azerbaijan and Greece. The sides also confirmed the importance of cooperation between the two countries in the energy sector, emphasizing the exceptional significance of the Southern Gas Corridor, the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, and the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria. Specifically, confidence was expressed that successful energy cooperation between the two countries would contribute to the development and stability of the region. The Azerbaijani minister provided details about the new realities in the region during the post-conflict period, factors influencing local anti-terrorist measures, the process of normalizing relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the agenda of the peace treaty, and the reconstruction and construction activities carried out in the liberated territories. The sides also exchanged views on other regional and international issues of mutual interest. As part of the Greek official's visit, the foreign ministries held political consultations with the participation of delegations from both countries. The Azerbaijani side was represented by a delegation led by Foreign Deputy Minister Fariz Rzayev. During the political consultations, topics of cooperation between the two countries within the framework of bilateral, regional, and international organizations were discussed. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel TL;DR: Apple's much-hyped car project was recently canceled after a decade of development and an investment exceeding a billion dollars. Due to the secrecy surrounding the vehicle, details remain scarce. However, a new report suggests that the car could have been equipped with an extremely powerful custom chip, equivalent to four M2 Ultras combined. The information comes from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, who reports that the chip was being developed by the Apple Silicon team, who designs the processors for the company's iPhones and MacBooks. Gurman referred to the new chip as the car's "AI brain," noting that its development was nearly complete before Apple abruptly canceled its automotive ambitions. The exact specifications of the chip remain a mystery, but to provide some perspective, a single M2 Ultra chip contains 134 billion transistors. It features up to a 24-core CPU, a 76-core GPU, and a dedicated 32-core neural engine. This chip powers the latest MacBook Pro laptops and the Mac Studio desktop, ranking them among the fastest client computers in their respective categories. Now that the Apple Car project is said to be dead in the water, it remains to be seen if the company will repurpose the new chip to power other devices or use technology from it for future projects. Codenamed "Project Titan," Apple's super-secretive and highly ambitious car project is believed to have kicked off in 2014 under the leadership of CEO Tim Cook. Over the past decade, the company was said to have experimented with various ideas for the vehicle before eventually pulling down the curtains amid policy indecision over whether to make a standard all-electric Tesla competitor or a fully autonomous vehicle with state-of-the-art self-driving technology. When Project Titan was still alive, Apple reportedly negotiated with various traditional automakers, including Mercedes-Benz, Ford, Volkswagen, McLaren, and Tesla, to build its high-tech car. While none of them publicly spoke about those negotiations, the one company that did confirm its talks with Apple was Hyundai. In January 2021, the South Korean automaker confirmed that it was holding discussions with the American tech giant about possibly manufacturing the latter's autonomous electric car. However, nothing came of that as Hyundai executives were reportedly worried about a culture clash with the American company. Here we go again: The supply of AMD Radeon graphics cards was already tight, with demand surging in China. Still, with Bitcoin and Ethereum skyrocketing, crypto miners have gone into overdrive, buying up all the stock. The demand will be even worse when Zen 5 comes to market since they are rumored to offer twice the AVX512 performance of Zen 4. Cryptocurrency mining has always led to a resource drain, particularly in power, water, and land. Crypto miners are now buying AMD Ryzen CPUs in bulk, resulting in shortages. The Ryzen 9 7950X, which is one of the most powerful desktop CPUs for gaming or productivity, is highly sought after in certain regions such as Qubic because it supports AVX2 or AVX512 instruction sets, the key to many mining rigs, as well as its overall efficiency. It's also more lucrative. A miner can generate almost twice as much profit using 7950X CPUs versus the flagship Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, partly because of the latter's higher price point. Rumors suggest that things will only worsen when Zen 5 CPUs enter mass production later this year. Chinese technology outlet UDN expects Zen 5 chips to enter TSMC fabs between April and June, with mass production scheduled for the following quarter. Mainstream Zen 5 CPUs will feature "Nirvana" cores, while chips designed for the dense-compute segment for client and server applications will ship with Zen 5c "Prometheus" cores, the publication said. Of greater importance to crypto miners, though, is that the next-gen AMD chip architecture will offer twice the AVX512 performance of Zen 4, according to Kepler_LS. It also happens that AMD Radeon graphics cards were already in short supply in China due to the US ban on exports of RTX 4090s to the region. It has become much more challenging to obtain AMD Ryzen CPUs in recent weeks not so coincidentally around the same time that values of Bitcoin and Ethereum skyrocketed, reviving interest in cryptocurrency mining. Last week, leaker MEGAsizeGPU (@Zed__Wang) pointed out the shortage on X. "7950X is out of stock everywhere," he posted. "What happened? Are there any special needs for this CPUs, or is it discontinued?" The Ryzen 9 7950X is out of stock on Amazon, Newegg, and other retailers. However, some are available through Best Buy and AMD's online store. It didn't take MEGAsizeGPU to figure out what was happening. "Now I understand," he wrote in a follow-up post. "7950X is the king in Qubic mining." Amidst growing concerns surrounding intellectual property (IP) infringement within NFT marketplaces, the US Government has taken a notable step to address these issues. NFTs have surged in popularity but have also raised questions about copyright and trademark infringement. (Photo : Mario Tama/Getty Images) Bored Ape Yacht Club Wins Legal Battle Against Troll NFT Collection Addressing Concerns The US Government has recently addressed concerns regarding intellectual property (IP) infringement within non-fungible token (NFT) marketplaces. Despite the NFT bubble bursting earlier, a report jointly conducted by the US Copyright Office (USCO) and the Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has concluded that existing intellectual property laws adequately handle copyright or trademark infringement issues in NFTs. This study, initiated following a Senate request in 2022, acknowledges the benefits of NFTs but highlights the prevalence of trademark infringement and misuse on NFT platforms. NFTs serve as digital certificates of authenticity, providing ownership of digital collectibles like artworks or music pieces. While NFTs verify the link to media, it's important to note that the content may or may not be stored on the blockchain, and the owner of an NFT's URL has the authority to modify the linked media. Notable instances, such as Signal founder Moxie Marlinspike's creation of an NFT resembling a poop emoji, have raised awareness about the unpredictable nature of NFT content. The agencies highlighted the potential of NFTs and smart contracts to assist trademark holders in managing, licensing, and transferring intellectual property (IP) rights. Also Read: Spotify Pilots Early Test for Exclusive Music Playlists For NFT Holders Public feedback emphasized the financial benefits NFTs offer artists through future sales of their work. Despite criticisms of the aesthetic quality of some NFT art, the study acknowledged the positive economic opportunities they present. However, the report also raised concerns about the lack of awareness among NFT buyers and sellers regarding the implications of IP rights in the creation, promotion, and exchange of NFTs. There's apprehension that NFTs could be exploited to facilitate copyright or trademark violations. The report highlights the challenges posed by the decentralized structure of NFTs and blockchain networks when it comes to enforcing trademarks. It points out that while certain NFT platforms have implemented protocols to support trademark enforcement, there's no overarching authority mandating such measures across all platforms. Additionally, there's a lack of cross-platform mechanisms to enable trademark owners to identify and remove infringing content, resolve trademark disputes related to blockchain-based domain names, or verify sellers' ownership of trademark rights associated with the assets they sell. Educating the Public Considering these factors, the agencies emphasized the importance of educating the public about NFTs to foster a clearer understanding of these tokens and their mechanics. Despite this, they advised Congress in their report that the existing use of NFTs does not warrant amendments to current IP legislation. Furthermore, they indicated that integrating NFTs into their registration and record-keeping procedures is currently unnecessary and not recommended. In essence, they expressed reluctance to engage with NFTs at this juncture. Related Article: 95% of NFTs Are Now Reportedly Worthless: Who Won? 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A United Kingdom study of nearly 5000 workers reportedly found that AI, robots, trackers, and other new technology are bad for people's well-being while laptops, computers, and other long-established technologies prove to improve people's health. Between May 22 and June 30, 2023, a total of 4,802 workers in the United Kingdom who are at least 18 years old and currently employed for pay were the participants in the online poll. The researchers were able to measure the participants' well-being through five operationalized dimensions, mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression. Four kinds of technologies that are becoming more and more common in the business were examined for their effects on well-being. Headlining the analyzed technologies were software tech using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). Digital information or communication technologies 'ICTs' such as computers, laptops, tablets, etc were also analyzed as the second group alongside wearable and remote sensing technologies. The last kind analyzed were automated tools, equipment, machines, and robotic technologies such as robots, drones, and devices that can automate processes. (Photo : JADE GAO/AFP via Getty Images) This photo taken on February 2, 2024 shows Lu Yu, head of Product Management and Operations of Wantalk, an artificial intelligence chatbot created by Chinese tech company Baidu, showing a virtual girlfriend profile on her phone, at the Baidu headquarters in Beijing. The researchers discovered that workers' health and welfare tended to deteriorate in proportion to their exposure to technology in three of these categories: robotics, wearable trackers, and software based on artificial intelligence and machine learning. On the other hand, using more traditional ICTs (information and communication technologies) at work has been shown to improve well-being. Researchers noted, however, that workers in the UK are being impacted by newer technology in complex ways that need to be fully understood and then continuously evaluated. Future 'good automation' could see new technologies enhance living quality, work quality, and overall well-being; however, the researchers say this would require coordinated efforts and alignment across all departments and domains. The authors noted that their findings were in line with earlier research, which indicated that these technologies may worsen job insecurity, workload intensification, routinization, and loss of work meaning, as well as disempowerment and loss of autonomy, all of which are detrimental to overall employee wellbeing. The Institute for the Future of Work (IFOW), an independent research and development organization, carried out the study "Does technology use impact UK workers' quality of life?." a company dedicated to investigating how new technologies are changing the nature of work and working lives. Read Also: Chinese Generative AI Company Gets $14M Funding to Develop OpenAI Sora Rival AI Workplace Remains Distant The study comes as generative AI adoption rates remain low across businesses. Out of over 300 company leaders worldwide questioned by Telstra and MIT Technology Review Insights, based in Australia, only 9% were seriously implementing AI. According to reports, to employ AI, businesses may need to improve data capacity and quality, privacy protections, and AI skilling. They may also need to set up safe and responsible AI governance across the board. The majority of business executives predicted, however, that by 2024 generative AI will be employed for more than twice as many general-purpose or commercial applications. AI Automation Woes The survey is being done at a time when more and more workers worry that AI may replace them in their jobs. Artificial intelligence has recently been incorporated into Klarna's operations across the board. One notable example is its AI chatbot utilization, which the company says can handle tasks equivalent to those of 700 customer support representatives. Klarna supports online sales for some of the most well-known companies in the world, including Nike, Macy's, and Expedia. Related Article: Advanced AI Could Lead to Human Extinction, Warns US-Funded Report 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. European developers see a new Apple sideloading feature from Cupertino which will allow them to distribute their iOS apps directly from their websites or other platforms, but there is a requirement. Through the new Web Distribution option, developers may opt out of the App Store or third-party marketplaces entirely, but this needs for them to have at least 1 million downloads the year prior. It is bad news for startup developers and those who have not reached this number from last year, as it means that they are stuck in their current setup. Apple Sideloading: iOS Apps Web Distribution Requirements In Apple's latest announcement for developers, the company is now allowing developers to distribute their apps via their websites or those of their choice to download and install for users. However, there is a massive requirement from Apple regarding this new feature option, and that is having at least 1 million downloads for iOS in the EU in the last calendar year. Through this new Web Distribution, developers who qualify no longer need to distribute their apps via the App Store or third-party platforms for users to enjoy. Apple said that come Spring, Web Distribution will allow authorized developers to offer customers the ability to directly download their apps online. Read Also: Apple: 'Alternative App Store' to Stop Updating Apps After 30 Days Outside EU 1M or Use the App Stores or Third-Party Platforms While the 1 million iOS app downloads in the EU is one thing, Apple also requires these developers to be enrolled in the Apple Developer Program, and is part of the European Union. Moreover, Apple asks that they be a member of good standing' under this program for two continuous years or more, alongside the million-download requirements. Not meeting these demands would not allow a developer to distribute apps and install them on iOS via websites, asking them to resort to third-party platforms. Apple, EU's DMA, and Sideloading As the jig went up for Apple's massive restrictions on the App Store and other facets of its 'gatekeeper' services, the company applied several changes it to adhere to the EU's new law, the Digital Markets Act. However, its initial policies were met with scrutiny as it was said that Apple would charge developers who are offering sideloading of their apps. It was also made clear by Apple that sideloading would only be available within the European Union's jurisdictions, exclusive for the citizens of the region. The DMA only requires Apple to make the features it wants changed in the EU, and Apple clarified its stance that for those outside the EU, the App Store remains the only source for the iOS apps' download and installation. The many changes for Apple's operations in the EU have been applied, with the company now avoiding the fines in its compliance, but is still not safe from the other complaints from the likes of Spotify. In this new clarification by Apple, sideloading directly from websites would require a stellar one million downloads from last year, and for those who do not have this number, they are to remain on third-party platforms or the Apple App Store. Related Article: Apple Reinstates Epic Games' Developer Account, Sideloading Fortnite Available 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Google announces a multitude of policies and safeguards to help stop AI disinformation across its products and applications in the upcoming elections. AI-generated videos will be appropriately labeled for viewers as well as political ads created with AI. The announcement comes alongside Google banning AI chatbot Gemini from answering any election-related questions and prompts ahead of the US and Indian elections, a move also meant to help stop the chatbot from spreading election disinformation. (Photo : Pawel Czerwinski from Unsplash) Google aims to reduce costs in operations by combining the teams from Waze and Maps products. The tech giant shared its efforts to help users navigate AI-generated content in its products. Content produced using Dream Screen and other YouTube generative AI tools will soon have labels displayed on the platform. Additionally, YouTube will soon display a notice alerting users to material generated by artificial intelligence (AI) and compel artists to identify when they have made realistic altered or synthetic content. A Google representative reportedly told CNBC that the action is consistent with the company's planned strategy for the elections, which is based on extreme "caution." Read Also: Google Gemini AI Cannot Answer About US, Global Elections But Why? Google's Gemini Restrictions As for the Gemini restriction, users who try to ask Gemini election-related queries will now reportedly be met with a response that prompts them to use Google search instead of Gemini as it is still "learning how to answer" the question. Though the company noted in its statement that not all election queries are subject to this restriction, it may appear that Google is making Gemini AI apolitical at this moment. Certain user queries will be handled by Gemini, but Google has not specified which queries are acceptable for the AI chatbot to answer rather than sending consumers to Google Search. The news follows Google's revelation last month that it was discontinuing its AI picture-creation tool due to several issues, including previous errors and divisive comments. The announcement coincides with digital platforms getting ready for a momentous year that will see elections in over 40 nations that will impact up to four billion people globally. According to data from machine learning startup Clarity, the amount of deepfakes generated has increased by 900% annually, raising severe worries about disinformation related to the election. Inaccurate AI Chatbots Gemini's election restriction comes as a recent study found that AI chatbots, including Gemini and OpenAI's GPT-4, are still providing users with inaccurate election-related information. According to the study from the AI Democracy Projects , when asked basic questions like whether or not voters in California can vote by text message, or whether or not campaign-related attire is permitted during voting, AI chatbots like Anthropic's Claude, Google's Gemini, OpenAI's GPT-4, Meta's Llama 2, and Mistral's Mixtral all provided inaccurate election information. A range of erroneous responses were purportedly produced by the AI models. Examples of these include the deceptive remarks made by Anthropic's Claude, who stated that Georgia's 2020 voter fraud allegations were "a complex political issue," instead of pointing out that numerous official reviews had verified Joe Biden's victory, and the false claims made by Meta's Llama 2, who asserted that voters in California could cast their ballots by text message. When the AI Democracy Projects evaluated the best AI models on January 25, 2024, OpenAI's GPT-4 reportedly said falsely that it is acceptable to vote in Texas while sporting a MAGA hat or apparel with campaign-related branding. The model asserted that wearing political attire to the polls is not illegal in Texas. Related Article: Google's AI Bias Blunder with Gemini Prompts Commitment to Change 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. American legislators suggest TikTok's fate hinges on securing a new proprietor, yet accomplishing this task is no simple feat. (Photo : TOLGA AKMEN/AFP via Getty Images) An employee looks at his mobile phone as he walks past the logo of the video-focused social networking service TikTok, at the TikTok UK offices, in London, on February 9, 2022. Finding a New Owner In the midst of legislative discussions, US lawmakers are presenting a potential solution to the ongoing TikTok saga: find a new owner. While this proposition appears straightforward on the surface, its execution poses significant challenges. At the heart of the matter lies a bipartisan bill awaiting approval in the US House of Representatives. This bill outlines a scenario where TikTok can remain operational in the US under one condition: ByteDance, its Chinese parent company, must relinquish control. Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, a key figure in this legislative push, emphasized that ByteDance holds the key to TikTok's fate. He pointed out that divesting Tiktok could ease the transition, implying that the ball is in ByteDance's court. However, experts caution against oversimplifying the process. While lawmakers propose a seemingly straightforward solution, the reality may entail intricate negotiations and legal hurdles. Acquiring TikTok US Operations Amidst the interest shown by individuals like "Shark Tank" personality Kevin O'Leary in acquiring TikTok's U.S. operations, hurdles abound, including a stringent 6-month timeframe for completion. Stanford University researcher Graham Webster, an expert in Chinese technology policy and U.S.-China relations, highlights the challenges, emphasizing the significant financial investment required and the lengthy negotiation process inherent in such acquisitions. While major tech corporations possess the financial resources to pursue this venture, the Associated Press reported that they would encounter extensive scrutiny from antitrust authorities in both the U.S. and China. However, the potential enactment of the bill, coupled with its survival through First Amendment legal battles, could potentially lower TikTok's acquisition cost. Matt Perault, director of the University of North Carolina's Center on Technology Policy, noted that the legislation would likely result in a reduction in the sale price. As the 180-day deadline approaches, the urgency for TikTok to sell or face complete prohibition would escalate, potentially leading to lower acquisition costs for interested buyers. The proposed bill outlines provisions to ban TikTok in the U.S. but with an exception for a "qualified divestiture." This exception would only be feasible if the U.S. president, through an interagency process, determines that TikTok is no longer under the control of a foreign adversary. Additionally, the restructured U.S.-based TikTok entity would need to sever all ties with ByteDance, including any cooperation related to content recommendation algorithms or data-sharing agreements. Also Read: US Legislators Push for Laws to Curb AI Bias The bill addresses longstanding concerns regarding the potential exploitation of data belonging to the 170 million American TikTok users by Chinese authorities. These concerns are rooted in Chinese national security laws mandating cooperation with intelligence-gathering efforts. This legislation is unique in its singular focus on a specific company. Typically, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), led by the Treasury Secretary, would evaluate whether such a sale poses any national security risks. Related Article: US Lawmakers Rally Behind Bill to Block TikTok Amid National Security Fears 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. An FAA inspection reveals numerous deficiencies in Boeing's 737 Max manufacturing process, prompting the company to confront a 90-day ultimatum for overhauling its quality assurance procedures, prompting concerns regarding safety protocols. (Photo : JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images) A Boeing 737 MAX jet comes in for a landing following a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) test flight at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington on June 29, 2020. Examining Boeing's 737 Max Production Facilities Boeing faces yet another public relations crisis as safety concerns resurface following the tragic death of former employee-turned-whistleblower John Barnett. His demise sheds light on Boeing's persistent quality control issues, sparking scrutiny over the aerospace giant's commitment to safety standards. In the wake of Barnett's passing, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) undertook a comprehensive six-week examination of Boeing's 737 Max production facilities, uncovering troubling discrepancies. This scrutiny comes in the aftermath of a peculiar incident in January involving an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9, where a door panel detached mid-flight. A detailed report from The New York Times suggests potential shortcuts in manufacturing processes by Boeing and its principal supplier, Spirit AeroSystems, leading to potential safety hazards for passengers. The audit unearthed numerous troubling findings, including a significant number of instances of noncompliance. Out of the 89 product audits conducted on Boeing, only 56 met the standards, with 33 failing to comply, resulting in 97 instances of non-conformity. Also Read: Boeing Faces Delivery Delays as 50 Jets Encounter Fuselage Issues, CEO Acknowledges Quality Concerns Similarly, Spirit AeroSystems had a poor record, with only six of their 13 product audits passing and the remaining seven failing, raising serious concerns about the efficacy of their quality control measures. During an inspection at Spirit, technicians were observed using unconventional methods, such as a hotel key card for checking door seals and Dawn dish soap as a lubricant during door fitting. These practices, deemed unauthorized by the FAA, were criticized for their vagueness and lack of clarity in instructions. However, the issue extends beyond procedural discrepancies. The FAA's investigation uncovered that Boeing had previously failed an audit related to the same door plug component involved in the Alaska Airlines incident. Both Boeing and Spirit were cited for deficiencies in fundamental plant hygiene, including inadequate tool management. The FAA's findings raise serious concerns about Boeing's manufacturing standards, posing potential repercussions for the aviation sector at large. What's Next? With Boeing now mandated to overhaul its quality-control procedures within a 90-day timeframe, doubts linger regarding the restoration of trust in the 737 Max among passengers. Boeing's unbridled self-regulation may be a thing of the past as the FAA's audit and ongoing investigations loom large, signaling potential seismic shifts ahead. Anticipate stringent oversight of Boeing's manufacturing practices, extensive revisions to quality-control protocols, and the looming specter of fines or legal repercussions. Associated Press reported that Boeing is hastily addressing procedural lapses, pledging to collaborate with employees who deviated from established protocols. Boeing's commercial plane division president, Stan Deal, outlined the company's latest corrective measures in a memo to staff. The circumstances surrounding Barnett's untimely demise are shrouded in suspicion, prompting speculation about a possible link between his whistleblowing activities and Boeing's recurrent safety crises. This unsettling question adds a sinister dimension to an already dire predicament. Related Article: FAA Initiates Formal Investigation into Boeing 737 Max 9 Door Plug Incident 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. After an absence of over two years, Neil Young returned to Spotify, reversing his boycott of the platform in protest against vaccine misinformation spread on the Joe Rogan podcast. Neil Young Returns to Spotify Young's decision to boycott Spotify was fueled by his discontent with the misinformation and the platform's perceived inferior sound quality. In a recent blog post, Young revealed his reentry to Spotify, citing the platform's adoption of the same disinformation podcast features he had opposed. Although Young did not explicitly mention the Joe Rogan Experience, his decision suggests a broader concern regarding the proliferation of misinformation across digital platforms. Despite his reservations, Young acknowledged the limitations of pulling his music from all major streaming services, recognizing that such a move would severely limit its accessibility to music enthusiasts. Consequently, he opted to return to Spotify in the hopes of prompting improvements in sound quality while praising alternative platforms like Qobuz and Tidal for their high-resolution audio offerings. Young's blog post underscores his desire for Spotify to prioritize sound quality and calls for introducing a limited high-resolution tier to cater to audiophiles. The Canadian musician's boycott of Spotify was not a solitary act, as fellow Canadian artist Joni Mitchell also joined in protest. Mitchell's music remains absent from the platform, highlighting the ongoing repercussions of artists taking a stand against perceived injustices. "They will now all be there for you except for the full sound we created. Hopefully Spotify will turn to Hi Res as the answer and serve all the music to everyone. Spotify, you can do it! Really be #1 in all ways. You have the music and the listeners!!!! Start with a limited Hi res tier and build from there! Thanks for your support folks!" Young said in a blog post. Read Also: Spotify: No iOS App Store In-App Purchases for EU Despite Apple's DMA Changes Spotify Increases Subscription in Response to New French Music Tax Meanwhile, Spotify has made headlines with its decision to raise subscription prices for users in France. This move comes in Response to a new tax implemented by the French government to support the country's music industry. The tax, known as the Centre National de la Musique (CNM) tax, targets music streaming services with annual revenues exceeding 20 million euros, including Spotify, Apple Music, and Deezer. Under this scheme, affected companies are subject to a 1.2 percent levy on all streaming revenue generated within France. Spotify has opposed the CNM tax, citing concerns about its potential impact on consumers. While the exact magnitude of the subscription price increase has not been disclosed, Spotify hinted that French users could face the highest subscription fees in the European Union as a result of the tax. Although Apple Music and Deezer have also objected to the tax, they have not announced plans for similar price adjustments. The proceeds from the CNM tax are allocated to the CNM, a public institution tasked with supporting and promoting the French music industry. Related Article: Apple vs. Spotify: Coordinating with EU for Complaint Against Cupertino, In Response to $2B Fine 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Japan's aspirations for space exploration faced another setback on Wednesday when Space One's Kairos rocket exploded during its inaugural flight. Japan Rocket Explodes in Launch Mishap Reports tell us that the small, solid-fueled rocket, aiming to become the first Japanese company to deploy a satellite into orbit, met a dramatic end just seconds after liftoff from the Kii peninsula in western Japan. The explosion, which occurred at approximately 11:01 a.m. local time, left behind a cloud of smoke, rocket fragments, and firefighting efforts near the launch site. While the cause of the explosion remains unknown, there were no immediate reports of injuries. The rocket, developed by Space One, was designed to carry an experimental government satellite capable of temporarily replacing intelligence satellites in orbit if necessary. Space One's Launch Hopes Space One, established in 2018 by a consortium of Japanese companies and banks, including Canon Electronics, IHI, Shimizu, and the Development Bank of Japan, had high hopes for the Kairos rocket. Despite facing multiple delays before the launch attempt, with orders already filled for subsequent missions, the failure represents a significant setback for the company's ambitions. Shares in Canon Electronics fell sharply following the failed launch, indicating the financial impact of the mishap. However, Space One remains determined, with plans to offer "space courier services" to domestic and international clients, aiming for an ambitious launch rate of 20 rockets per year by the late 2020s. Read Also: NASA Abandons Multibillion-Dollar On-Orbit Satellite Servicing Mission The explosion of the Kairos rocket highlights the challenges faced by Japan in revitalizing its aerospace industry to compete with global players. Despite setbacks, Japan has been actively partnering with the United States to bolster its capabilities, particularly in the face of technological and military competition from China and Russia. Recent successes, such as the launch of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) flagship rocket, the second H3, demonstrate progress in the country's space endeavors. However, setbacks, including previous failures of the first H3 and other rockets, underscore the complexities involved in space exploration. What's Next? In response to the explosion, Japan's defense ministry announced a partnership with Space One to enhance rocket payloads through experiments with fuel-efficient methane engines. This collaboration reflects ongoing efforts to support and advance Japan's space capabilities, particularly in areas critical to national security. Speaking to the press, Space One's president, Masakazu Toyoda, emphasized the importance of perseverance in the face of failure, drawing parallels with the early challenges faced by other companies like Rocket Lab. Despite the setback, Space One remains committed to its mission, viewing each trial as an opportunity for learning and improvement. As investigations into the cause of the explosion continue, the future of Japan's space ambitions hangs in the balance. Stay posted here at Tech Times. Related Article: World's First Space Satellite Made of Wood Set to Launch This Summer From Japan 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 14. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin has held talks with his Turkish counterpart Burak Akcapar in Ankara, focusing on the diplomatic solution to the Ukraine conflict and normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the Russian Foreign Ministry said, Trend reports. "They discussed the Ukraine crisis, including the prospects for its political and diplomatic solution," the ministry said. The Foreign Ministry added that the two diplomats compared their views concerning the South Caucasus, emphasizing the importance of normalization of Azerbaijani-Armenian ties and assistance to this primarily within regional formats. A novel photoacoustic imaging watch has emerged, offering users real-time glimpses inside their bodies without the need for bulky equipment. Developed by researchers from the Southern University of Science and Technology in China, this wearable device provides high-resolution imaging of blood vessels in the skin. It presents a potential noninvasive method for monitoring various hemodynamic indicators such as heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen saturation. Blood Flowing-imaging Watch The device comprises a compact watch housing an imaging interface, a handheld computer, and a backpack containing the necessary laser and power supply components. Led by Lei Xi from the Southern University of Science and Technology in China, the research team overcame significant challenges in miniaturizing and optimizing the imaging interface to create what they believe to be the first photoacoustic wearable device suitable for healthcare applications. By leveraging photoacoustic imaging - a technique that generates images by detecting light-induced sound waves resulting from light absorption in structures - the device provides valuable insights into microvessels' functional and structural characteristics. "Miniaturized wearable imaging systems like the one we developed could potentially be used by community health centers for preliminary disease diagnosis or for long-term monitoring of parameters related to blood circulation within a hospital setting, offering valuable insights to inform treatments for various diseases," Xi said in a statement. "With further development this type of system could also be helpful for the early detection of skin conditions such as psoriasis and melanoma or for analyzing burns." In practical terms, the photoacoustic imaging watch allows for the observation of blood flow variations during different activities, enabling potential applications in disease diagnosis, long-term monitoring of blood circulation parameters, and even early detection of skin conditions such as psoriasis and melanoma. The wearable system could have potential implications for various medical fields, including cancer, vascular, and dermatological imaging. Read Also: Solar-Powered Eyes? Australian Scientists Are Working on Implanting Tiny Solar Panels Into People's Eyeballs Optical Resolution Photoacoustic Microscopy To achieve portability and usability, the researchers developed a compact optical resolution photoacoustic microscopy system featuring a compact pulsed laser, fiber-based light path, and integrated electronic system, all housed within the backpack. Additionally, they designed a handheld device for storing images and a miniaturized watch-type imaging interface with an adjustable focal plane and real-time image display capabilities. Key features of the system include a lateral resolution of 8.7 m-sufficient for resolving most microvessels in the skin-and a maximum field of view of around 3 mm in diameter, enabling the capture of microvascular details. Crucially, the device's adaptability allows for imaging while the user is in motion, with an adjustable laser focus facilitating imaging of multilayered structures like skin. Moving forward, the researchers aim to further enhance the device by incorporating a smaller laser source with a higher repetition rate, making it even more compact and lightweight while improving safety and temporal resolution. Additionally, they plan to ensure the stability of the optical path over extended periods and under more intense conditions while also exploring the integration of multispectral illumination for acquiring additional physiological parameters. The study findings were published in the journal Optics Letters. Related Article: New Wearable Sticker Can Turn Hand Movements Into Communication - But How? 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Biden-Harris Administration has unveiled the President's Budget for Fiscal Year 2025, which allocates funding to support various endeavors, including NASA's space exploration and climate research efforts. The President's Budget for NASA NASA Administrator Bill Nelson emphasized the significance of investing in NASA, highlighting its role in advancing space exploration, scientific discovery, and cutting-edge technology. "As history has proven, as the present has shown, and as the future will continue to demonstrate, an investment in NASA is an investment in America for the benefit of humanity," Nelson said in an official statement. "President Biden's budget will fund our nation's abilities and leadership for the future of space exploration, scientific discovery, cutting-edge technology, climate data, the next generation of aeronautics, and inspiring our future leaders - the Artemis Generation." Key highlights of the budget include provisions for the Artemis II mission, which will see astronauts orbiting the Moon for the first time in over half a century. Additionally, the budget supports research on Earth's changing climate, fostering commercial markets in space and encouraging STEM education. The budget underscores NASA's contribution to the United States' global leadership by investing in initiatives such as the Artemis lunar exploration campaign, which aims to land astronauts, including the first woman and person of color, on the lunar surface. Read Also: NASA Wraps Up 1st Phase of Ambitious Project That Aims to Put a Nuclear Fission Reactor on the Moon Funding for Climate Science, Space Tech, STEM, and More The budget allocates funds for missions and activities in climate science that aim to advance Earth systems science and increase accessibility to climate data. These efforts seek to mitigate natural hazards, support climate action, and manage natural resources more effectively. Furthermore, the budget prioritizes investment in space technology development to meet NASA's evolving needs and support the growing U.S. space industry. This includes funding for research and development initiatives to keep America at the forefront of space innovation. The budget also emphasizes support for the aeronautics program, with investments to develop hybrid-electric jet engines and lightweight aircraft structures. These advancements are expected to pave the way for more efficient and environmentally friendly commercial airliners. Additionally, the budget ensures the continued operation of the International Space Station (ISS) and supports the transition to commercial space stations. NASA will utilize these commercial platforms for scientific research and exploration activities. Recognizing the importance of diversity in STEM fields, the budget includes funding to increase opportunities at minority-serving institutions. This initiative aims to recruit and retain underrepresented and underserved students in STEM disciplines. "This budget shows NASA's value in contributing to the global leadership of the United States," said Nelson. "Every dollar supports our ability to continue exploring new cosmic shores and making the impossible possible, all while creating competitive and good-paying jobs in all 50 states." Related Article: NASA Moon Lander Competition: Blue Origin and Northrop Grumman Go Head-to-Head for Crewed Lunar Transportation 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A metal plating plant in Fukuyama, western Japan, found itself in a peculiar situation as a cat plunged into a container of toxic chemicals, setting off a city-wide search and raising concerns about public safety. The incident, reminiscent of a scene from the Joker's origin story, unfolded when an employee arrived at work to discover a trail of pawprints leading away from a vat of hexavalent chromium, a highly acidic and carcinogenic substance. The cat's whereabouts remain unknown after security footage captured it leaving the factory premises shortly after the incident. The Dangers of Chromium-6 Hexavalent chromium, also known as Chromium-6, gained notoriety as essentially the antagonist in the 2020 biopic "Erin Brockovich" starring Julia Roberts, where it was depicted as a cancer-causing chemical. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), exposure to this substance can lead to skin inflammation, respiratory problems, and other health issues. The US Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) warns that exposure to this chemical can also cause fatal conditions such as lung cancer, nose and sinus cancer, and nasal septum ulcerations. Contact dermatitis, inflammation, ulcers, and gastritis are some of the potential side effects. While factory workers routinely wear protective gear when handling the chemical, the unexpected encounter with the feline has prompted concerns about potential risks to public health. The company immediately alerted authorities and nearby residents, urging them to report any sightings of the cat and to refrain from approaching it. "We immediately alerted police, the Fukuyama city, and neighbors near our factory," stated a representative of the firm, Nomura Plating Fukuyama Factory. Read Also: Emerging Threat: Atypical Canine Respiratory Disease Spreads Across Multiple States Toxic Cat Still At Large Despite extensive searches, the cat has not been located, leaving officials speculating about its fate. Experts, including Linda Schenk from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, express doubts about the cat's survival, citing the likelihood of chemical burns from licking its fur. "Even if the fur would protect the skin from immediately getting large burns, cats clean their fur by licking it, moving the corrosive solution into the mouth," Schenk told the press. The incident has underscored the need for enhanced safety measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future. The Fukuyama Environmental Department officials are working closely with the company to assess the situation and minimize potential risks. Meanwhile, residents of Fukuyama have been advised to remain vigilant and to report any sightings of an "abnormal-looking" cat. The city is on high alert as patrols intensify and precautions are taken to safeguard public health. While the fate of the cat remains uncertain, the incident serves as a reminder of the unforeseen hazards that can arise in industrial settings and the importance of proactive safety measures to protect both humans and animals alike. Stay posted here at Tech Times. Related Article: New DNA Tech Uses Cat Hair to Catch Criminals, Solve Crimes 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Scientists at Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have achieved a groundbreaking efficiency record for fully roll-to-roll printed solar cells. In a significant leap forward for clean energy technology, this breakthrough represents a major advancement in the field of solar energy. Published in the journal Nature Communications, the technology behind these printed solar cells is revolutionary. Unlike traditional silicon solar panels, which are rigid and heavy, these printed solar cells are lightweight and flexible. Groundbreaking Roll-to-Roll Solar Cells Scientists showed solar cell performances of 15.5% efficiency on a small scale and 11% for a 50 cm2 module, setting a record for entirely printed solar cells. Dr. Anthony Chesman, CSIRO's Renewable Energy Systems Group Leader, describes this achievement as the result of nearly a decade of dedicated research. He emphasizes the potential impact of this technology, highlighting its versatility in urban construction, mining operations, emergency management, disaster relief, space exploration, defense applications, and personal electronics. "CSIRO's thin and light-weight solar cells are now on the cusp of emerging from the lab to create clean energy in the real world," Dr Chesman said in a statement. One key factor enabling this breakthrough is roll-to-roll printing. This manufacturing technique allows for the production of solar cells on long, continuous rolls of plastic, significantly increasing production rates. Dr. Chesman points out that leveraging methods already widely used in the printing industry makes production more accessible for manufacturers, potentially leading to economic and environmental benefits on a global scale. Read Also: Florida's First Floating Solar Farm Generates Enough Clean Energy to Power 100 Homes A Closer Look Integral to the success of these printed solar cells is the use of an advanced material called perovskite. Dr. Doojin Vak, CSIRO Principal Research Scientist, explains that perovskites can be formulated into inks and used in industrial printers, making them ideal for this application. "We've also alleviated the need to use expensive metals, such as gold, in their production by using specialized carbon inks, which further reduces production costs," Vak said. Furthermore, the optimization process employed by CSIRO involves automation and machine learning. By rapidly producing and testing thousands of solar cells per day, researchers efficiently identified optimal parameters for the roll-to-roll printing process. While it is acknowledged that perovskite solar cells currently lag behind silicon solar panels in terms of efficiency and longevity, CSIRO sees a unique role for its printed solar technology. Dr. Chesman emphasizes these solar cells' lightweight, flexible nature, making them easily transportable to any location with sunlight. Collaboration played a significant role in this achievement, with researchers from the University of Cambridge, Monash University, the University of Sydney, and the University of New South Wales contributing to the study. The study demonstrates a significant step towards commercializing hybrid perovskite solar cells. By utilizing scalable manufacturing processes and achieving impressive performance metrics, the researchers have laid the foundation for the widespread adoption of this technology. The potential cost of production for these solar cells is estimated to be around 0.7 USD per watt for a production rate of 1,000,000 square meters per year in Australia. This projection indicates a promising path towards cost-competitive solar energy solutions. Stay posted here at Tech Times. Related Article: Solar Duck Begins Construction of World's Largest Offshore Floating Solar Power Plant 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Tesla's recent acquisition of significant space in Kyle, Texas, could mean different things. Either way, the American automaker might have some surprising plans for an expansionor an extra space for battery cell production. While the exact purpose of the expansion remains undisclosed, speculation suggests a focus on enhancing battery manufacturing capabilities. Tesla Securing Space in Kyle/35 Logistics Park Tesla has recently secured leases for multiple buildings within the Kyle/35 Logistics Park, totaling over 1 million square feet. This extensive footprint only shows that the company is committed to expanding its operations beyond the confines of its Gigafactory Texas site in Austin. Speaking of Gigafactory Texas, there came a time when it used to produce 4,000 EVs weekly. Before this milestone, the Elon Musk-led car manufacturer only produced roughly 3,000 Model Y EVs every week in December 2022. When Tesla noticed that its Austin-based plant can surpass its initial expectations, it already devised plans to look for a larger production hub. Related Article: Elon Musk Calls New FSD Beta V12 Update 'Big Release' Despite Having No Release Note Implications for Battery Production The allocation of space in Kyle, Texas, aligns with Tesla's broader efforts to improve battery cell production. With job openings related to battery cells emerging in the area, it's plausible that Tesla intends to leverage this new space to support its existing operations at Gigafactory Texas, according to Electrek. Tesla's Role in Transforming Texas Tesla's initiatives are instrumental in positioning Texas as a prominent player in the field of battery manufacturing. From lithium processing facilities to cathode factories, Tesla's approach shows that it will continue to innovate its factories and products in the future. Spearheading Innovation in Battery Technology As Tesla expands its footprint in Kyle, Texas, the region stands poised to emerge as a nucleus for battery production innovation. With Tesla at the helm, Texas is set to play an important role in shaping the future of sustainable energy solutions. In other news, researchers warned that Tesla EV owners should be extra careful with what they connect to. For instance, the Flipper Zero can potentially steal your confidential information. What's worse is that an unknown intruder might have access to your car and they control and drive your EV right away. This form of social engineering attack can deceive drivers that they have connected to reliable Wi-Fi. However, at following moment, you will be asked to enter a two-factor authentication code which then will be used by the threat actors to initiate the Flipper Zero hack. Always remember that you're the only one with access to authentication codes. If someone asks you to input it on a website you barely visit, then it's definitely a scam you must avoid. Read Also: Tesla App on Apple Watch Coming? Elon Musk Welcomes the Idea 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. On Wednesday, the House approved legislation requiring TikTok to cut connections with its parent business or risk a countrywide ban. The bipartisan bill, which passed 352 to 65 and 1 present, tackles national security issues relating to ByteDance, its Chinese parent firm. Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) said, "Today we send a clear message that we will not tolerate our adversaries weaponizing our freedoms against us," as reported by the Washington Post. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) (L) and Rep. Mike Gallager (D-WI) talk with reporters after the House of Representatives vote on legislation they co-sponsored to ban TikTok at the U.S. Capitol on March 13, 2024, in Washington, DC. The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to ban TikTok in the United States due to concerns over personal privacy and national security unless the Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance sells the popular video app within the next six months. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Biden Supports TikTok Ban U.S. President Joe Biden's readiness to sign the law has bolstered the House effort, but the Senate's legality and free speech issues will decide its destiny. Despite its U.S. incorporation, TikTok's links to ByteDance have sparked concerns about abuse by the Chinese government. Data security issues and foreign interference are debated in the law. US legislators were unconvinced by TikTok's claims that it hasn't shared U.S. user data with China. While the primary goal is TikTok's divestment from ByteDance, the company criticizes the legislation for a predetermined outcome: a total ban in the U.S. Last year, lawmakers proposed measures to grant the federal government more authority over TikTok and apps linked to U.S. rivals, facing criticism for potential infringements on free-speech rights. The legislative landscape changed last week when the leaders of key House committees introduced new legislation targeting TikTok. Read Also: AI is Russia and China's Newest Tool to Sow Discord in US, Warns Intel Agencies China Blasts TikTok Ban, Says Its US' Hypocrisy China has firmly opposed any forced sale of TikTok, citing the need for compliance with Chinese laws and regulations. On the Chinese social media platform Weibo, TikTok became a top trending topic with the hashtag "TikTok starts to fight back," drawing 80 million views. According to a CNN report, users expressed support for the popular video-sharing app's efforts and accused the U.S. of hypocrisy. According to the state-run Global Times, the U.S. is trying to "rob TikTok" and undermine free expression and the rule of law. Prior to the latest development on the US TikTok ban measure, TechTimes recently reported that TikTok launched a photo-sharing app called 'TikTok Photos.' This follows TikTok's October 2022 photo-sharing functionality. Unlike the previous format, where users uploaded videos in a slideshow, the new app, identified through a decompilation process of TikTok's Android version 33.8.4, emphasizes a focused platform for sharing images alone. Additionally, reports suggest former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick signaled interest in acquiring TikTok if ByteDance decides to sell the popular social media platform. Bobby Kotick has emerged as a potential buyer for TikTok, signaling a notable departure from his prior endeavors in the gaming industry. His interest was reportedly expressed to ByteDance co-founder Zhang Yiming, with discussions surrounding a potential acquisition valued at hundreds of billions of dollars. In pursuit of this ambitious endeavor, Kotick is exploring partnerships, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman being one of the potential collaborators. Integrating TikTok's vast user data could offer opportunities for OpenAI to enhance its AI capabilities. However, the feasibility of such an acquisition hinges on securing substantial capital. Related Article: US Lawmakers Propose TikTok Solution to Avoid Ban: Find a New Owner 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : GamingWire - PR wire) Xsolla Unveils Cross-Play And Cross-Pay Strategy For Enhanced Multi-Platform Monetization For Mobile Games Sherman Oaks, United States, March 5th, 2024, GamingWire Empowering Mobile Game Developers to Monetize Across Multiple Platforms Beyond Traditional App Stores Xsolla, a global video game commerce company, has introduced Cross-Play and Cross-Pay, an innovative approach to mobile game monetization. In response to the evolving landscape, Xsollas suite of solutions enables mobile game developers to seamlessly transition their games from mobile to the web, desktop, and cloud while offering diverse monetization models out-of-the-box to power profitable direct-to-consumer sales for game developers. As the video game industry evolves, players anticipate engaging with their favorite titles seamlessly across all platforms, form factors, and control methods. This growing expectation places Cross-Play at the forefront of modern game development strategies. Mobile game developers can now effortlessly deploy their games across Mobile, PC, Console, Cloud, and Web with Xsolla Launcher and Xsolla Cloud Gaming. Xsolla Launcher makes it easier for developers to leverage the capabilities of desktop computing, including enhanced graphics, gameplay depth, and longer play sessions when porting mobile games to PC. Cloud Gaming for Mobile Games, in turn, is a strategic extension of the core Xsolla Cloud Gaming solution. It enables mobile video game developers to expand cross-platform by deploying game builds to cloud platforms directly from the developer's own branded landing page, allowing them to deliver flexible monetization mechanics for mobile users. Cross-Play experience ensures consistent and fair monetization strategy across all platforms for developers around the world. This approach ensures equal access to game content for players, thereby enhancing the overall playing experience while adhering to platform rules and guidelines. Xsolla Web Shop, a leading solution for web purchases, is a foundation for the Direct-to-Consumer strategy for mobile game developers. Web Shops are easily customizable branded online stores fully equipped to facilitate in-game web purchases. The next iteration of the Xsolla Web Shop Solution includes innovative updates drawing on Xsolla's expertise gained from launching over 210 Web Shops and 40 of the top 100 highest-grossing mobile games worldwide. Xsolla Web Shop introduces advanced LiveOps tools, additional personalization and engagement features, and an improved user flow for seamless purchases. Alongside these enhancements, Xsolla's experts are always available to offer guidance and support by providing best practices consultation in navigating the operation and management of web shops. "The advancements made with Cross-Play Cross-Pay have been a focus of our innovation over the past year after collaborating with numerous partners and launching over 200 web shops in 2023. This extensive real-world application with customer feedback has helped mobile game developers to efficiently market their games online by operating within the platform guidelines," said David Stelzer, President of Xsolla. "Cross-Play Cross-Pay is our strategic innovation to meet the continuously evolving demands of the ever-changing mobile game industry. By delivering a multi-platform solution for mobile game developers, we can help them to reach more players and to grow their business." This comprehensive suite of Cross-Play Cross-Pay solutions empowers mobile developers to ensure their games reach the widest possible audience by establishing deep and lasting connections with players around the globe. For more information about Xsolla Web Shop 2.0 and its features, please visit: xsolla.pro/web-shop2 For more information about Xsolla Cloud Gaming for mobile and its features, please visit: xsolla.pro/cloud-gaming For more information about Xsolla Launcher, please visit: xsolla.pro/xsolla-launcher About Xsolla Xsolla is a global video game commerce company with a robust and powerful set of tools and services designed specifically for the industry. Since its founding in 2005, Xsolla has helped thousands of game developers and publishers of all sizes fund, market, launch and monetize their games globally and across multiple platforms. As an innovative leader in game commerce, Xsollas mission is to solve the inherent complexities of global distribution, marketing, and monetization to help our partners reach more geographies, generate more revenue, and create relationships with gamers worldwide. Headquartered and incorporated in Los Angeles, California, with offices in London, Berlin, Seoul, Beijing, Kuala Lumpur, Raleigh, Tokyo, and cities around the world, Xsolla supports major gaming titles like Valve, Twitch, Roblox, Epic Games, Take-Two, KRAFTON, Nexters, NetEase, Playstudios, Playrix, miHoYo, and more. For additional information and to learn more, please visit: xsolla.com Contact Derrick Stembridge Xsolla d.stembridge@xsolla.com 9194800002 **This is a contributed press release, and the content does not necessarily represent the views of TechTimes. Looking to find someones birthday online? This may be because you want to send them wishes or get them a gift without directly asking when their birthday is. While discovering someones birthday online largely relies on their online presence, you can still employ workarounds if they have limited online activity. In this article, We will explain various methods you can use to discover peoples birthdays online. Keep reading to find out! Why Look for Someones Birthday Online? Ive encountered situations where I remember my friends birth month but forget their actual birthday. Its an awkward scenario because youre expected to know family, relatives, and close friends birthdays, and directly asking can make the situation even more uncomfortable. Therefore, resorting to finding their birthday online becomes a practical solution, especially for individuals who effectively use social media. How to Find Someones Birthday Online? Many platforms make peoples birthdays available for others to see as long as the person allows it. This includes social media, public records, Google and so many others. Below are the practical methods you can use to find someones birthday online: Method 1. Use Social Media Social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and Instagram serve as efficient platforms for discovering someones birthday. The key lies in locating the individuals profile on one of these platforms, where they may have included their birthday details. Alternatively, even if the birthday isnt included in their profiles, browsing through their timeline might reveal birthday wishes from friends or family. That will provide clues to the date youre looking for. So lets take a look at the steps you can use to find someones birthday on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: Find someones birthday on Facebook 1. Open your Facebook account on your phone or PC. 2. Go to the Facebook profile of the person you are trying to find their birthday. 3. Navigate to the Details section on the profile page and click See About Info. 4. Scroll to the Basic info section and see the persons birthday if they have included it. If the birthday isnt included on the individuals information page, return to their profile. Now scroll through the timeline to locate posts containing birthday wishes to the person, which can help you determine the birthday. Find someones birthday on Instagram While its uncommon for individuals to include their birthday information in their Instagram bios, some still do. However, the primary method to find or infer someones birthday on Instagram is by going through their posts. 1. Open Instagram on your device and go to the Instagram page of the person youre trying to find his/her birthday. 2. If their birthday isnt listed in their bio, scroll through their posts to find any containing clues like cakes or celebratory shoots. 3. Check the comments on those posts for birthday wishes; if you spot them, thats likely their birthday. 4. Instagram displays post upload dates beneath each post, providing the birthday youre seeking. Find someones birthday on Twitter You can use an individuals Twitter page to discover their birthday. This involves checking the persons bio, as most Twitter profiles contain the users birthday information. I suggest accessing the persons Twitter profile using a browser on a PC. If you cant find the birthday in the bio, you can also browse through the timeline for clues about their birthday. Method 2. Ask One of Their Friends On Social Media If the aforementioned method doesnt work, I recommend reaching out to one of the persons friends on social media. However, before doing so, ensure two things: you have mutual friends on social media with the person and that the friend knows you are acquainted with the person whose birthday you are trying to find. This way, it wont appear as if you are prying or stalking. Method 3. Use Google Search If the person you are trying to find his/her birthday is a celebrity or has a presence in a well-known industry, there is a higher chance youll find the birthday via Google search. Open the Chrome browser on your devices and visit Google.com. Type The name of the person you are trying to find their birthday followed by the keyword birthday. For example, John Legends birthday. You should see the persons birthday on the result page. Lookup services such as BeenVerified and TruthFinder keep public records, majorly those of public figures. These services offer comprehensive details about individuals, including their birthdays. To find someones birthday with one of these tools youll have to enter the persons name and description. However, some of these services may not be fully effective. Also, they may require purchasing the premium version to access the complete features of the lookup tool. Method 5. Use Snapchat Snapchat has emerged as a widely embraced social network, boasting a substantial user base. Leveraging the platform proves to be an effective means of discovering someones birthday online. However, its only achievable if the individual is one of your Snapchat friends. Heres how to find someones birthday on Snapchat: 1. Open Snapchat on your smartphone. 2. Click the Bitmoji of the person youre finding their birthday to open their profile. 3. The profile section will include the birthday you are looking for as shown in the image below. As long as you can get to be friends with someone on Snapchat, you can always find their birthday. Keep Friends Birthday You can keep your friends birthday easily, ensuring you dont have to search for it every year. This can be done with Google Calendar as it allows you to add events to specific dates on the calendar. Once you have the birthday youre searching for, open Google Calendar and navigate to the date on the calendar. Now, click the plus icon and choose Event to add the birthday. On the resulting page, enter the name of the person whose birthday you are saving in the Add title section. You can also add other details and customize the color you want the date to be marked with on your calendar. Afterward, click Save to keep the birthday marked on your calendar. FAQs Can I find someones birthday on WhatsApp? No, you cant find someones birthday on WhatsApp. WhatsApp doesnt collect birthday details from users, so its not available on the platform. However, you might learn it if the person shares it in their WhatsApp story or if you inquire about it from the persons friend on WhatsApp. Are birthdays public on Facebook? In many cases, birthdays are public on Facebook. However, this depends on whether a user has included their birthday on Facebook. You can access your friends birthday on Facebook using the steps we discussed earlier in this post. Wrap Up The article has explored various methods for discovering someones birthday online. Yet, using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat stands out as the most efficient approach. We trust this article has provided valuable insights to assist you in your search. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Baku is hosting an international exhibition and conference on water management Baku Water Week, Trend reports. The international exhibition Baku Water Week (March 12-14) is supported by the State Water Resources Agency of Azerbaijan. Approximately 90 companies from 16 countries have confirmed their participation in the event. Will be updated Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel 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. Disappearance of little Emile: the child's bones have been discovered, announces the prosecution Initial research, role play, discovery of bones... The key dates of the disappearance of little Emile Medical innovation: New tests make it possible to detect cancer long before symptoms appear The week of God Twitter: from the tragedy on the Baltimore bridge to Holy Week that looks like the Flood Death of little Emile: how to explain the discovery of his bones near Haut-Vernet? Remy Martin celebrates its 300th anniversary with the most exclusive cognac in the world and only 8 bottles for Spain Pension payments will be reduced in real terms, and changes to the social security system for the new fiscal year will be The employment rate of people with disabilities required by companies will be raised to 2.5% or more. Journal de l'Afrique - Second reading of the New Constitution in Togo, a setback in the face of opposition pressure? The execution of young Palestinian men in Khan Yunis...a crime filmed by the killer who failed to bury the evidence Massive destruction by Israeli bombing that targeted the home of the Abu Aoun family in the Maghazi camp in the central Gaza Strip Infusions, ginger, lemon... an expert in digestive health teaches how to strengthen the microbiota to end spring colds Samantha Vallejo-Nagera's warning hours before the premiere of MasterChef 12: "This year's contestants are very crybaby" Stacy Martin, the French-British actress who is the muse of Louis Vuitton who excites the public and fashion: "Red carpets are a source of maximum pride and happiness, although they intimidate me" Palm Royale: another example of how Apple doesn't care about spending money on mediocre projects Antena 3 once again leads the ratings in the worst month of the year for La 1 Tour of Flanders: Mathieu van der Poel wins for the third time in his career Loudly slamming the door: Shevchenko won the mass start at the Chechen Biathlon Championships, and Garanichevs team won the relay Premier League: City and Arsenal pave the way for Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool to the top of the table A curious own goal by Suleymanov and a saving strike by Glushenkov: Krasnodar missed out on victory over Lokomotiv in the RPL match Tennis: Sinner triumphs at the Masters 1000 in Miami by crushing Dimitrov in the final Lebanon: Easter celebrations tarnished by the situation in Gaza and the south of the country New employees take on the challenge of shearing sheep at a unique joining ceremony Shizuoka Fujinomiya Ten years at the helm of the "Yixin-Europe" China-Europe freight train: from a line to a network Hebei Chongli received more than 4.4 million tourists in the first full snow season after the Winter Olympics Chicken and egg or egg? The industry is hotly discussing in Shanghai how the domestic computing power industry will rise. China Eastern Airlines will add new and expanded routes to many airports in Guangdong during the 2024 summer and autumn flight season The price of electricity will remain negative for several hours this Monday In response to the 2024 issue, the maximum speed for large trucks on expressways will be increased to 90km/h Sonko and the Senegalese... How did they make change despite the obstacles? A rule so that appearances do not deceive: the EU legislates against 'greenwashing' Commemoration of victims on 2nd anniversary of liberation of Bucha; many civilians killed in Russian military invasion Coordination with Prime Minister Kishida invited to NATO summit meeting to be held in Washington, U.S. in July The owners of the showroom of brands with history (and that Richard Gere and Cristiano Ronaldo like) The "trans" judge who wants to intervene in the definition of "woman" Los Reyes del Mambo, the group that changed the world of graffiti: "They were incredible artists, they had a special light" RIA Novosti: the share of foreign brands in Russian shopping centers has fallen to a third in two years Britain probably couldn't fight Russia alone for more than two months Until May 22: a court in Moscow arrested four accused of the terrorist attack in Crocus Algorithmic video surveillance at the Olympics: what are we talking about, and why is it worrying? Bandidos: a series so tacky that it seems taken from the Disney Channel of the 90s The Russian Embassy in Seoul condemned the cartoon of the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall Antibes: an orca dies at Marineland park, the second death in five months The captain of the expedition that crossed the Atlantic under sail as in the 17th century to make a documentary dies at the age of 75 on the high seas Daily Shincho: Mariupol residents do not feel the impact of the conflict on the life of the city 8 new massacres in Gaza and fierce battles between the resistance and the occupation forces Two Israelis were injured in a stabbing attack in Beersheba and the perpetrator was martyred Israeli magazine: We are faced with two options, the better of which is bitter Will Haniyeh and Nakhla's visit to Iran affect the course of the negotiations? 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. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Georgian Economy Minister Levan Davitashvili hopes that oil transportation through the Baku-Supsa pipeline will resume in 2024 after regular pumping was suspended in spring 2022, Trend reports. "The Azerbaijani side's position on the use of the oil pipeline is critical, and we are having an extensive discussion here, as this pipeline has been working for Azerbaijani oil since the spring of 1999. The transit of Kazakhstan's oil through it is currently being discussed, and the oil is of a different type. I believe the major obstacles will be resolved, and we hope to begin pumping this stuff (Kazakhstan's oil) this year. Looking ahead, we believe we will be able to handle more than one million tons of oil each year. I hope that oil transportation begins this year," Davitashvili told Georgian media. Meanwhile, Baku-Supsa can pump up to five million tons of oil per year. This pipeline has been used to transport oil from Azerbaijan's Caspian Chirag field since the spring of 1999, but in the spring of 2022, due to problems with oil shipment in the Black Sea (tankers reduced their calls to this sea due to the military actions of Russia and Ukraine), it was decided to transfer all Azerbaijani oil to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. The Baku-Supsa pipeline has been virtually idle since then and has been offered to Kazakhstan for operation. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Dozens of Cambodians charged in land dispute: activist Phnom Penh, March 13 (AFP) Mar 13, 2024 A Cambodian court has charged 29 people with illegally occupying state land following an incident in which authorities fired live rounds in a crackdown on a longstanding land dispute, a rights activist said Wednesday. The villagers were arrested last week when police, gendarmes and forestry officials moved to evict people from the land in northwestern Preah Vihear province, Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights group Licadho, told AFP. The 29 people, including 12 women, were charged by a court with clearing forest land and enclosing it to claim for ownership, he said. Twenty-five were sent to pre-trial detention while four were released on bail. They face between one and five years in jail if found guilty. Court and local officials could not be reached immediately for comment. "Land disputes remain an issue of concern," Am Sam Ath said, urging the government to speed up in the process to resolve the conflicts. The plot of land where the incident took place was granted to a private company for economic land concessions (ELC) in 2011, according to Licadho. Hundreds of thousands of people have been affected by ELCs -- land grants to businesses that experts say have driven deforestation and dispossession. Cambodia formalised ELCs in 2001 with legislation allowing recipients to clear land for "industrial agricultural exploitation". Due to growing land conflicts and facing a risk of a "farmers' revolution", Hun Sen, prime minister at the time, announced the ELC moratorium in 2012. In a separate incident, 250 police officers were deployed to crack down on locals illegally clearing forests to assert land ownership in the Cardamom Mountains in Pursat province, according to the provincial administration. Cambodia's land records were largely destroyed by the communist Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s and after its fall people often settled without legal title. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, March 13. Turkmenistan might export a large volume of energy resources to Azerbaijan, Turkiye, and Kazakhstan, Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov said at the 15th meeting of the Council of Elders of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) in Ashgabat, Trend reports. "Turkmenistan, which is one of the largest producers of energy resources, is ready to supply them to fraternal countries and increase the volume of ongoing supplies. We also have good opportunities to export Turkmen natural gas and electricity to Azerbaijan, Turkiye, and Kazakhstan," he said. He stated that Turkmenistan is driven by the necessity of establishing long-term, consistent collaboration within the framework of the Organization of Turkic States, giving promising sectors particular consideration. "Energy is one of them. Our nation believes that in light of the generally unstable conditions of the world energy markets, it is imperative to develop an efficient, dependable, and self-sufficient cooperation model. This will guarantee our states' increasing energy requirements," the chairman said. Berdimuhamedov added that in the future it will be possible to create a permanent integrated energy transmission system, in which case the Turkic states will be able to fully take advantage of geographical proximity, resource potential, and means of supply. "Currently, our country exports electricity to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Furthermore, there are intentions to carry out significant projects involving these states in order to transport Turkmenistan's natural gas eastward," he stressed. A day before the door plug blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight on January 5, engineers and technicians for the airline were so concerned about the mounting evidence of a problem that they wanted the plane to come out of service the next evening and undergo maintenance, interviews and documents show. But the airline chose to keep the plane, a Boeing 737 Max 9, in service on January 5 with some restrictions, carrying passengers until it completed three flights that were scheduled to end that night in Portland, Oregon, the site of one of the airlines maintenance facilities. A National Transportation Safety Board investigator examining the fuselage plug area of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. Credit: NTSB Before the plane could complete that scheduled sequence of flights and go in for the maintenance check, the door plug blew out at 16,000 feet, minutes after embarking on the second flight of the day, from Portland to Ontario International Airport in California. The plane landed safely, and no one was seriously injured, but the incident focused new attention on Boeings manufacturing processes and the safety procedures followed by airlines. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, March 13. Turkmenistan has invited Austrian companies to participate in the implementation of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, Trend reports. According to the official source, this was said during the meeting of the Turkmen delegation, which also included the Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov, and representatives of the Austrian business community, held at the Austrian Economic Chamber in Vienna city. At the same time, at the event, the Turkmen side confirmed its commitment to the Trans-Caspian gas pipeline project for natural gas supplies to Europe. As the Turkmen delegates noted, a systematic partnership with the EU has already been built in this area. The Turkmen side also expressed readiness to discuss the supply of Austrian equipment and machinery to increase capacity and expand the country's transport infrastructure in order to ensure the export of Turkmen energy resources to world markets. Furthermore, the parties noted that cooperation on renewable energy sources, reducing methane emissions into the atmosphere, and the utilization of associated gas in the fields of hydrocarbon resources is seen as urgent. "Having announced its accession to the Global Methane Pledge and supporting the efforts of the international community to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Turkmenistan is moving to the use of modern environmentally friendly and resource-saving technologies in industry and transport," the Turkmen side stressed. In this context, it was stated that the country is interested in studying the experience of hydrogen energy in Austria in order to create high-tech industries in Turkmenistan. Meanwhile, Turkmenistan, possessing one of the largest natural gas reserves in the world, is actively developing its gas industry, building new pipelines, and modernizing existing gas production and processing facilities. The country aims to increase gas production and exports by concluding long-term supply contracts with neighboring and distant countries, which helps strengthen its position in the global energy market and diversify the economy. 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 Stanislava Pinchuk has lost her sense of time. Ive kind of stopped feeling that time is a straight line, I feel like Im in a loop, she says. The loop of Covid. The loop of history. Most of all, the loop of war. We meet on the eve of grim anniversaries: 10 years since Russia seized the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea; two years since Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. So much time passed and no end to war, and still more wars and still more suffering. The complete apocalypse of Palestine, she says softly, sadly. For Pinchuk, who was born in Ukraine and migrated to Australia as a child, the grief is deep and fuels her latest work, The Theatre of War, a 10-minute, three-channel video, fittingly on a loop, currently showing at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image. At the heart of the film is Homers The Iliad, the ancient Greek poem which begins nine years into the Trojan War a stretch of time that felt achingly pertinent to Pinchuk. A philosophy and art history graduate, Pinchuk reveres Homers work, and returns to it in times of doubt. She had previously referenced his Odyssey in her art, and planned at some point to work with The Iliad. It suddenly became very clear and obvious that this was the time, she says. The Iliad centres on the warrior Achilles and the siege of Troy. Its an epic tale of rage, hubris, slaughter, betrayal, hatred, love, revenge, where victory comes at a terrible cost in short, a tale not that remote from the present. We dont step into Homers world, were there already, Pinchuk says, paraphrasing the words of Ukrainian-French philosopher Rachel Bespaloff, who wrote On the Iliad amid the devastation of World War II. The idea of Homers world never being far from our own permeates Pinchuks film. She takes the opening lines of The Iliad and applies them to three contemporary settings that are literal and metaphoric theatres of war. Advertisement The first setting is Sarajevo, where Pinchuk now lives and works, having moved there three years ago from Melbourne I fell in love with a Bosnian and then I fell in love with Bosnia, she says. She films in a theatre that was a site of resistance during the Bosnian War (1992 to 1995), famously hosting the Miss Besieged Sarajevo beauty pageant in 1993 (about which U2 made a haunting song). The Theatre of War includes a choir of six women who sing lines from The Iliad. Credit: Stanislava Pinchuk Pinchuk returns to this site of resistance and gives the stage to six women, a polyphonic choir dressed in traditional costume, who sing an exquisite lament, filling the small theatre with their exceptional voices. They are singing the opening lines of The Iliad, from a 19th-century Croatian translation. The camera homes in on their radiant faces, the details of their dress, their shoes and pans out into the darkness of the theatre with its empty seats. Loading The vibrant beauty of the women is juxtaposed on the next screen, the second channel, with vision of Ukrainian soldiers training for war at the Copehill Down military facility in England. Instead of song, machine gun blasts; instead of the rich textiles of national dress, military fatigues; instead of an empty theatre, a mock village and shanty town, where soldiers practice urban warfare. Soldiers go through their paces while their colleagues watch from elevated scaffolds, as though from the wings of a theatre, learning the craft of combat. Putin is a f---wit reads graffiti (in Ukrainian) on one of the walls. I really love this tradition, this lineage, back to Greek graffiti, Roman graffiti and this is the soldier graffiti like the soldier graffiti on the walls of the Colosseum. In the Hagia Sofia, theres Viking graffiti. So there are also these loops of these things that are timeless. Advertisement The films third location is the Greek island of Ios, at Homers tomb, on a rugged, elevated headland that looks out to the Mediterranean Sea, the original theatre of war, Pinchuk says, the setting of The Iliad. Here, two teenagers a golden-haired girl, a dark-haired boy linger, looking out to sea. They are young, vital, and seemingly full of hope but what does the future hold? Here too, The Iliad is recited, in Modern Greek, by the girl, who speaks into her smartphone, Homers words piercing the gloriously sunny day. Two teenagers look out to sea in a scene from The Theatre of War. Credit: Stanislava Pinchuk One does not need to be a scholar of Homers work to appreciate Pinchuks film; the polyphony of voices, the connections and contrasts between the women, soldiers and teens, presented in a relentless loop. Its not the first time that Pinchuk has addressed themes of war and displacement. In recent works, she has used a variety of mediums to reflect on conflict and disasters she has draped a vast Ukrainian Bessarabian rug over the steps of the Sydney Opera House; installed a metal playground in a river in Kosovo; engraved marble plinths with the words of Homers Odyssey and the leaked condition reports of Australias offshore detention centres on Nauru and Manus Island; pricked pinholes into paper mapping the marred landscape of the Fukushima nuclear exclusion zone; tattooed skin with delicate trails representing migrant journeys. But this is the first time she has made a film. The Red Carpet (2020) by Stanislava Pinchuk. Credit: Courtesy of the artist and Yavuz Gallery Fundamentally Im a drawer, she says. I draw to think. If I have to write an essay, I kind of draw it. If I make a film, I draw it first A couple of years ago I made this little marriage with myself that from now on I would find the right medium for the right idea, and even though everything starts as drawings and is processed as drawings, that I had to kind of cast myself out. And so the last work was 90 metres of metal in a river in Kosovo, the work before that was nine tonnes of marble ... I dont know what the next thing will be, but this had to be a film. Advertisement Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Save articles for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. Got it Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size The invitation from the Tokyo Toilet Project came out of the blue. Would Wim Wenders, the veteran German film director of Paris, Texas and Pina, like to come and see Tokyos new collection of 17 architect-designed public lavatories? If he was inspired to make a documentary or a series of documentaries that would please everyone. It was an open invitation, Wenders remembers with a smile. Everyone said its fine if you dont like to do anything; at least you enjoy Tokyo. As it turned out, he enjoyed Tokyo even more than on his many previous visits. The citizens had just emerged from the pandemic and seemed to be managing better than most. I had witnessed how my own city of Berlin had come back, and how Rome and Paris had come back and they came back with less of a sense of social responsibility... In Tokyo, it was the opposite. People came back for each other and with each other. I thought wow, this is a great moment. The toilets an ultimate common good provided a perfect vehicle for exploring that spirit. But only if I could tell a story. The story in Perfect Days is minimal; it is simply an account of a few days in the life of toilet cleaner Hirayama (Koji Yakusho). Hirayamas life is stripped to a minimum. His flat consists of a single, light-filled room with a kitchenette downstairs. Advertisement Once a week, he buys a used literary paperback from the local bookshops one dollar, one book shelf. He enjoys his collection of old cassettes Lou Reed, Patti Smith, The Animals washes in the local bathhouse and eats at the same noodle shop each night. Koji Yakusho plays Hirayama, whose simple daily routine includes a visit to a public bathhouse. Credit: Madman Films Solitude can be many things. There is a desperate solitude and there is a fulfilled solitude, says Wenders. And he lives a very fulfilled solitude because he is not alone. He is in touch with many things. Hiroyama takes pride in cleaning the toilets perfectly. At the same time, he notices, treasures and sometimes photographs the details that crop up in the corners of his daily routine: an unexpected kindness, a maple seedling sprouting under a parent tree, or the shadows cast by the tree outside his window. There is a word in Japanese for this shadowplay, says Wenders: komorebi. Which is the effect of sun on the floor, on the walls, mostly shining through trees, he says. It is beauty, lasting for just a moment, that is conjured from nothing. Wim Wenders with Perfect Days star Koji Yakusho. Credit: Madman Films Wenders wrote the script with Takuma Takasaki, a poet and novelist he calls my Japanese twin brother. Both Takuma and Koji pressed him to explain how Hirayama found himself here. A brief scene where his sister visits arriving in a chauffeur-driven Lexus suggests that he didnt begin his working life in the unskilled pool. Initially reluctant, Wenders realised that this man had made a choice, perhaps a life-saving one. So I wrote a past for him where he had been a successful businessman. There is a lot of stress on businessmen in Japan ... they drink a lot, and they get up early and work long hours, and they dont take care of their families, and they are extremely painful characters, some of them. I know some ... They would like to be something else, but they are very duty-conscious, and they dont own their lives any more. Advertisement Loading At some point in the past Wenders imagined for Hirayama, he had a crisis. And he decided to become a man who was happy with little ... at the risk of becoming invisible himself. Because for many people in society he is invisible. In this way, he feels like the angels I shot in Wings of Desire. None of this needs to be in the film, however; Hirayama lives entirely in the present. He doesnt explain himself; instead, his unspoken emotions ripple across his face rather like the komorebi on his wall. As Wenders says, a Hollywood version of the film would make the toilet cleaner a secret agent; there would be a whole other plot. But this is a Japanese film directed by a German director, and we didnt feel the need to have a spy story or whatever tragedy lurked behind his life or whatever, he says. So we just take the man. In a society where we all have too much ... a man who has enough, even though he has little, is a Utopian character. Wim Wenders When the film had its premiere in Cannes where Koji won the best actor award audiences fell in love with him (the film was also nominated for an Oscar for best foreign film, but lost out to The Zone of Interest). In a society where we all have too much ... a man who has enough, even though he has little, is a Utopian character, says Wenders. And we all have that desire in ourselves to have enough and not need more. To a great extent, that is Wenders own approach to filmmaking. He did make one film in Hollywood: 1982s ill-fated Hammett for Francis Ford Coppolas Zoetrope, which took four years and was completely re-edited by Coppola after he finished. He returned to Berlin, made his masterpiece, Wings of Desire, and never went back. Advertisement Yaron Lifschitz is trying to explain how Brisbane became a world force in contemporary circus. We were probably less bound by how things should be and how youre supposed to tell stories in the grown-up world, he says. Circa is performing their show, What Will Have Been, in the 20th year of the companys rebranding. Credit: Steady Jenny Photography Second and third cities have a real place in the arts that is hard to quantify. Were freer to kind of invent and make it up ourselves. Rock n Roll Circus, founded in Brisbane by Antonella Casella and teenager Derek Ives in 1987, aimed to bring circus to adult audiences in the hotbed of resistance to the Bjelke-Petersen regime. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. A whisky is being aged using the seas motion to help impart barrel flavours; a navy strength gin by Four Pillars and a Lord Nelson beer called Smooth Sailing. This article appears in the cruise ship dining and drinks collection. See all stories . The words navy strength elicit a chuckle from the group as the charismatic Four Pillars brand ambassador directs our attention to the fifth glass of clear spirits before us. As we take a sip, he tells us its a navy-strength limited-edition collaboration bottle between Celebrity Cruises and Four Pillars, available in Celebrity Edges 11 bars, including the one where were doing an intimate gin tasting as we sail from Sydney to New Zealand. Navy strength is an old term for over-proof gin (it has to be 57 per cent ABV), a concept born on the high seas. It might pack a punch, but the tasting reveals it has a sweeter edge than the less boozy Rare Dry Gin (41 per cent) we tried earlier. The limited-edition Celebrity Cruises x Four Pillars Navy Strength Gin. Supplied Celebrity and the Australian distillery have worked together for two years to offer on-board gin experiences like this. There are also gin and food pairings, gin cocktails and chocolate masterclasses and, on a recent voyage to Tasmania, an oyster and gin pairing event. Advertisement Opinion RecipesTikTok Adam Liaw on why viral recipes are complete garbage (except maybe this one) The key ingredient for a viral recipe is engagement, and that can be both positive and negative, writes Adam Liaw. Adam Liaw March 13, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share Ive made no secret of the fact that I think viral recipes are, almost without exception, complete garbage. This is mainly because they have nothing to do with food, nor quality, nor, ironically, even popularity. Open your social media app of choice these days and youll be assaulted by folks of varying cooking ability gurning at the camera as they slap ingredients down on chopping boards with speed and force and hiss at you about the latest viral recipe theyre copying from some other foodslap content creator. Virality in the online world is driven by algorithms, and algorithms dont care how your food tastes, how much it costs, whether its easy to make, or whether its even edible at all. The key ingredient for a viral recipe is engagement, and that can be both positive and negative. Adam Liaw: Beyond the chicken breast and the transparently false story that led to its virality, I surprisingly dont mind Marry me chicken as a recipe. iStock There are many ways to drive engagement. One of the most effective is negging, where a video will tell you that something youve been doing your whole life like peeling a banana is wrong and youre an idiot for peeling a banana like a normal person. Then psychology takes over, and you suddenly find yourself indignantly watching the video just so you can prove that youre not an idiot after all. Advertisement Yes, you can eat whole bananas, skin and all - here's how Another is hacking, where a video will promise that theyve discovered a secret shortcut, like slicing a mango by pushing it on the edge of a wine glass, even though that is quite possibly the stupidest imaginable way of slicing a mango. Algorithms dont care about stupidity. In fact, they relish it. If thousands or millions of people hate-watch the banana peeling or mango slicing video and better yet, comment to tell the foodslapper how impossibly idiotic their method is, thats all engagement, baby! But then phase two of the virality spiral begins because millions of foodslappers who have seen the sweet, sweet engagement that the initial (very stupid) video produced become desperate for a taste of that engagement and make their own videos promising to try out the hack from the previous video because the all-powerful algorithm is now prioritising videos of stupid banana peeling. Advertisement Now millions of people are watching banana-peeling videos even though everyone already knows how to peel a banana and nobody is planning on actually changing the way they peel a banana anytime soon. Then we just repeat the cycle with everything from baking dry pasta with feta and mixing peanut butter into instant noodles to smashburger tacos and butter boards until all food is meaningless, nothing matters any more, and we sink slowly into the abyss. Six TikTok cooking trends that are actually worth trying So imagine my surprise, then, when my editor wrote to me asking if Id seen the Marry me chicken recipe that went viral on TikTok with the added qualification, It looked horrendous. I hadnt, but anyway *record scratch* thats how I ended up here, writing to you about a viral recipe from TikTok. Advertisement The premise of Marry me chicken is that this dish, if made correctly, will cause the person you make it for to marry you [citation needed]. Story aside, the TikTok dish begins with a veloute made with tomato paste and chicken stock, which is then used to braise chicken breasts, before being finished with cream and sun-dried tomatoes. Theres a lot to unpack here, but let me start with the obvious negative. Almost all viral videos come out of America, which happens to be the country that is most responsible for ruining food globally. One of Americas major food crimes is its absurd predilection for braising chicken breast. Ive seen more than a few American viral videos that spruik the hack of shredding your completely dry, stringy, braised-to-death chicken breast by using electric hand beaters. Ill pause here for a moment so you have time to stop screaming. Advertisement Let me say unequivocally, no good can come of braising chicken breast. It can be poached to retain its natural moisture, but braising it is a recipe for disaster, which is to say, a recipe for viral American food. Literally any other cut of chicken thigh fillets, wings, drumsticks, or cutlets on the bone would be a better choice. Let me say unequivocally, no good can come of braising chicken breast. That said, beyond the chicken breast and the transparently false story that led to its virality, I surprisingly dont mind Marry me chicken as a recipe. Its just a variation of Tuscan chicken, an old favourite, although not actually from Tuscany. There are some ways that it could be made a little better and more simply, but I particularly like the fact that it is playing to my years-long efforts to bring sun-dried tomatoes back into mainstream use. Advertisement The best recipes from Australia's leading chefs straight to your inbox. Sign up Advertisement Eating outBest of 10 of Sydneys best Indian eateries and restaurants From crowd-pleasing biryani, dosa and naan to new-wave creations such as chai lamingtons or English-style chips with butter chicken gravy, Sydney has an Indian restaurant to suit every palate. Good Food team March 13, 2024 Save Log in , register or subscribe to save recipes for later. You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Save this article for later Add articles to your saved list and come back to them anytime. Got it Share From a comforting bowl of curry to canteen-style cooking and spice-driven fine diners and everything in between, Sydney is rich in pickings for excellent Indian dining options. Heres some of the best to try. Hara bhara goat riblets at Raja. Jennifer Soo Raja Raja is nothing like other Indian restaurants around town. Co-owners Nick and Kirk Mathews-Bowden have enlisted Ahana Dutt to lead the kitchen, and the former Firedoor chef is on a mission to introduce more Sydneysiders to the tapestry of Indian spices, genres and styles beyond butter chicken and naan. Theres charred spatchcock perched on a thick puddle of sunset orange makhni sauce; flounder sent into orbit with a Goan-style sauce of chillies, ginger and tamarind; and vegetable chop croquettes based on Bengali street food. Advertisement Advertisement Derrels With free BYO and open until 2am every Friday and Saturday, Derrels is the perfect late-night Parramatta Road pit stop. Modelled on Indian canteens and Englands greasy spoon caffs, its super-filling, deep-flavoured dishes are influenced by chef Brendan Kings experience growing up Anglo-Indian in nearby Croydon Park. Gnarly, sunset-red tandoori chicken wings are beaut value at $17 for five pieces, as is a fried chicken sandwich special inspired by the Colonels Zinger Burger. Or consider carb-on-carb loading with an English-style chip butty with butter chicken gravy. Whatever you order, theres never a boring mouthful. Must try: Tandoori chicken plate 89 Parramatta Road, Camperdown, derrels.com.au 14 / 20 Review Sydney needs more places like this where you can BYO for free and dip hot chips in butter-chicken gravy Advertisement Derrels is your new favourite late night Anglo-Indian restaurant with a 2am closing time (and chip puttis) Abhis is an Indian institution in North Strathfield. Christopher Pearce Abhis Occupying the same site since Bob Hawke was PM, Abhis is perennially abuzz with regulars keen for excellent masala dosa, and families celebrating special occasions with mixed tandoori plates that hold seekh kebabs and hariyali lamb cutlets. Indian food in Sydney is considerably more complex and fragrant thanks to chef Kumar Mahadevan and his family. Must try: Goan fish curry with flaky barramundi, cumin and turmeric-spiked coconut milk sauce Advertisement 163 Concord Road, North Strathfield, abhisindian.com.au Flyovers paneer tikka jaffle with mint and tamarind chutney. Peter Rae Flyover Fritterie Although Flyovers plant-based menu is not the longest Indian list in town, its certainly one of the more distinctive, drawing inspiration from street stalls (and very much a butter chicken-free zone). Chilli fritters are addictively crunchy; black dhal is intensely savoury; and a paneer tikka jaffle warms you like wearing socks straight out of the dryer. Must try: Battered whole green chillies Advertisement 88 Regent Street, Redfern, flyoverfritterie.com.au 14 / 20 Review Review: 'This Indian jaffle will warm you like wearing socks straight out of the dryer' Chai is brewed to order in simmering pots of tea and milk at Ambis. Brook Mitchell Ambis Chai Bar Be prepared for spiced perfume clouds of cardamom, cinnamon and ginger to blast you into the sky. Owner Ambi Thind specialises in Afro-Punjabi chai that is brewed to order and buzz with pepper. The food also reflects Thinds Indian roots and African upbringing: roti with Zambian-style curried chicken and tamarind chutney, for example, or scrambled egg bhurji, and spiced chickpeas (chole) with chilli condiments. Also in North Sydney. Advertisement Advertisement For a one-stop Indian shop, perennially busy Chatkazz is arguably Harris Parks most consistent spot for Mumbai-style vegetarian roadside specials (dont miss vada pav bread rolls fat with deep-fried potato), biryani, dhal, dosa and naan, and crunchy green chilli pakora fritters ready to swipe through yoghurt and sweet-sour chutneys. Also in Bella Vista. Must try: Bhindi do pyaza with caramelised okra, onion and spice Shop 4-6, 14-20 Station Street East, Harris Park, chatkazz.com.au Chai pastries, including a chai lamington (right), at Holi Crop. Supplied Holi Crop Advertisement Visiting Holi Crop, a tiny cafe-bakery down a suburban alleyway, is like sitting inside a hand-rendered cloud: it is decorated with glowing glass lights, hand-hewn wood-grained tables and trays of chai lamingtons, oven-warm croissants and glistening pecan pie. Owned and run by Himi Makhija, who is from northern India, Holi Crop serves Indian-influenced dishes ranging from eggplant shakshuka to mango tacos served with kraut, sweet potato chipotle and jalapeno. Must try: Ras malai porridge with poached fruit, toasted fennel, saffron and cardamom Shop 2/23 Rohini Street, Turramurra, instagram.com/holicrop Review Happy harvest a family affair at Holi Crop in Turramurra Foreign Returns Raj kachori reinterpreted as pink semolina domes with chickpeas, yoghurt, pomegranate and tamarind. Edwina Pickles Advertisement Foreign Return Every detail at Foreign Return helps build a hyper-colourful map of India. The Marigold Sour cocktail, for instance, is decorated with pretty petals inspired by the 4000 florists at Mullik Ghat, the largest flower market in Kolkata. The upstairs level displays a pendant shaped from fishing nets: a reference to Mumbais Koliwada fishing district. And its menu is a diverse line-up of regional Indian dishes, with lost recipes rarely seen elsewhere, some seasoned with Australian native ingredients. For full transporting effect, order the fried prawn dish (prawns Koliwada) and staff will deliver its history with your serve. Must try: Raj kachori 527 Crown Street, Surry Hills, foreignreturn.com.au Review Cocktails and spices and all things nice at Foreign Return Advertisement A papadam and naan platter served with zippy chutneys at Dont Tell Aunty. Christopher Pearce Dont Tell Aunty Dont Tell Aunty is a multi-sensory feast of subcontinental colour and movement. The warehouse space that was Colin Fassnidges 4Fourteen now blushes punk pink, with a glitzy spotlit bar, potted palms and vivid blue velvet banquettes. Its both proudly Indian and proudly disruptive of classical Indian restaurant cliches, boasting an unauthentic Indian menu think butter chicken without butter, blue vein cheese naan or rosy-red, Colonel Tsos cauliflower, a riff on an Americanised Chinese chicken dish that turns cauliflower florets into something that tastes remarkably like battered sweet and sour pork. You can have fun here, with a menu that fizzes and pops with new-from-old ideas. Must try: Colonel Tsos cauliflower 414 Bourke Street, Surry Hills, donttellaunty.com.au Advertisement Don't Tell Aunty brings 'unauthentic Indian' to Surry Hills Masala dosa at Malabar in Darlinghurst. Supplied Malabar Good old Malabar does a lot more than that southern Indian favourite, masala dosa, but, my goodness, it doesnt really need to. The baby goat mappas are another favourite, but dont overlook the fermented lentil and rice dosa, with its little pots of lentil sambar and coconut chutney. The scrunch of crispness and softness is given a lovely sourness from its downy, fermented inner lining. Enfolding either a savoury mince of lamb, fenugreek, ginger and cinnamon, or a crushed rubble of warm potato, onion, curry leaves and mustard seed (alongside other chicken or prawn options), its proof that you dont even need a curry to have a great curry night. Also at Crows Nest. Must try: Kheema dosa lamb mince with fenugreek, fresh ginger and cinnamon 1/274 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, malabarcuisine.com.au Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up Seven months after a woman was allegedly sexually assaulted inside a Kings Cross brothel, police have released CCTV footage of a man wanted for questioning. On August 18 last year, a 31-year-old woman reported that she had been sexually assaulted by a man at the business on Kellett Street, NSW Police say. Despite extensive inquiries, detectives attached to Kings Cross police area command have been unable to identify a man they believe may be able to assist with their inquiries. The two minutes of footage, starting at 2.46pm on Wednesday, August 17, shows a man dressed in a dark suit and white button-up shirt walk through the reception doors while briefly glancing at his silver watch. A former US marine who murdered his estranged wife by dousing her in petrol and setting her alight has been sentenced to life imprisonment and will serve at least 20 years behind bars. Mother-of-three Kelly Wilkinson, 27, was killed in her Gold Coast home in April 2021 by her estranged husband Brian Earl Johnston. Gold Coast mother Kelly Wilkinson was found dead in her backyard. Her burnt body was found about 6.40am in the backyard of an Arundel home after a neighbour reported a disturbance. In the Supreme Court in Brisbane on Wednesday, Crown prosecutor Philip McCarthy, KC, said Johnston had repeatedly contacted Wilkinson in the weeks before he killed her, breaching a domestic violence order. Self-proclaimed ASX wolf Tyson Scholz aint letting his recent bankruptcy cramp his style, and has even managed in his latest foray onto the socials to stick two fingers up at local sensibilities in Dubai, capital of the United Arab Emirates, where the wolfman has set up shop recently. Regular readers will recall that the online stock trading educator with a taste for Ferrari, Bugatti and Rolls-Royce cars, high-end champagne, private jets and exotic locations, was bankrupted last month by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to whom Scholz owes $436,000 the cost of ASICs pursuit of Scholz for providing financial services without a licence. Self-proclaimed ASXWolf Tyson Scholz. The Gold Coast native was back on Instagram on Tuesday, with the usual fare: high end-hotels, restaurants and a lingering shot of a waiter pouring a glass from a bottle of Dom Perignon, vintage 2013. We dont know how much that bottle of bubbles goes for in Dubai, but itll set you back more than $400 in Dan Murphys. Bring back death duties As a member of Ross Gittins generation, I am in furious agreement with him that we need intergenerational rebalancing when wealth and taxation are the issues (Most Baby Boomers have had a dream run and should pay more for their aged care, 13/3). However, I cannot agree with him that this is best addressed by a lottery where those of us unfortunate to have years of frailty and ill health will carry this burden, while those of us who have a hale old age can whistle and be unaffected. Could we not bite the bullet and manage this with an estate tax at death, where we all give something back when we are finally sure we do not need a buffer for contingencies ? Janet Wickerson, Thornbury Holding Labor to account Your correspondent (Letters, We all pay for the poor state of the Liberals, 12/3) correctly diagnoses that much of the future of Victorian politics depends on how much John Pesutto can attract voters away from the ALP. However, it is also incumbent on the electorate and the media to hold the ALP to account vigorously. Pesutto is not a superhero, he can only do so much alone. Veteran political journalists Kerry OBrien, Laurie Oakes, and Michelle Grattan have all noted a serious decline in Australian political life. Thats only going to change when second-rate politicians cant win seats in Parliament. Its up to ordinary Australians to make that happen whether or not one party or another manages to run a brilliant election campaign. Alun Breward, Malvern East Drop the ute rhetoric The so-called ute tax rhetoric used by Mr Dutton and his colleagues is reductionist nonsense and implies that voters are not very bright, are only concerned about cars amongst the myriad issues that face us at the moment, and can be easily seduced. When will they take both climate change and voters seriously? Fiona White, Alfredton Make our own EVs We wont be seeing huge numbers of new electric vehicles on Australias roads until those with the power to make it happen stop prioritising the need to make enormous profits from the shift. The will to make change is there, and the technology is improving rapidly as we all recognise the benefits both environmentally and financially of driving an EV. Meanwhile, other people at the tap end of our drip-down economic system do crazy things like closing down the countrys car manufacturing industry. We should be making our own EVs right now. We have the engineers and designers and could come up with the Aussie equivalent of the early VW, a cheap, electric car that most people can afford. It would consist of a body, wheels, a battery, transmission and an electric motor. Come on, Clive Palmer, put your money into a scheme that is radical and useful at the same time. Youd go down in history as one of our greatest benefactors. Id be ready to buy when the first Clive EV comes off the production line. Peter Dodds, Montmorency I sold my EV I owned an electric car for about six months. The car itself was magnificent in all aspects of driving. I sold it because the gap between advertised range and reality was significant once you drove on a freeway with the heater or air conditioner on. The reality is that they are wonderful city commuter cars but frequent freeway or open country driving is a major disadvantage unless you have the time and patience to look for and then use the limited charging stations dotted around the country. Peter Randles, Pascoe Vale South Nuclear is the answer Glaciers and polar ice caps are melting much quicker than predicted. Ocean and air temperatures are warmer than predicted. Sea levels are rising much quicker than predicted. The types of fuels that countries are using to produce their electricity is causing these changes. Nuclear power production causes the lowest rate of increase in global temperatures and sea levels because it is the least polluting of the earths air. Consequently, many countries are now switching to nuclear power production to play their part in slowing increases. John Langrehr, Leabrook, SA Truckzillas in Yarra Recent discussions of truckzillas, the rising cost of living and mortgage stress presents confusing messages. Who is buying these huge motor vehicles, how can they afford them, and why are they needed in the inner city? Average household size in Australia has shrunk from 2.9 people in the 1970s to under 2.5 in 2022, so huge vehicles are not needed to move members of an average-sized household. Around 37 per cent of households in the City of Yarra have only one person and the most common household size is two people, way below the Australian average of 2.5. The City of Yarra employment profile significantly sways to professionals and managerial roles. Those needing truckzillas for work tradies and labourers represent about half the greater Melbourne metro average. Motor vehicle purchase prices and running costs are significant. The current mantra of cost of living crisis seems to be frequently contradicted by irrational consumer behaviour. I dont understand why this problem is in the City of Yarra, but I congratulate the council for dealing with it. Geoffrey Conaghan, St Kilda Trump looms The spectre of a second Donald Trump administration looms. Trump senses that Americans are disillusioned with their thankless role of world policeman and underwriting the economic and national security of others. Trump vows to spend American taxpayers money at home. That goes for Europe (NATO) and the South Pacific. Furthermore, Trump warms to the belief that the status of Taiwan is a domestic matter. Its resolution is best left to Beijing and Taipei. In a war with China, the US, together with its dedicated ally Australia, will be alone. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has underscored the gulf between ASEAN and the West. North Korea will keep South Korea out, and Japan will never risk losing the Ryukyu arc of islands, including Okinawa. Trump has pledged to abandon the WTO, jettison free trade, and slap a 10 per cent tariff on imports. As for Australias national security, both ANZUS and AUKUS fail to bind America to any meaningful aid. Treaty obligations extend from support on the floor of the UN to boots on the ground, at American discretion. America will do nothing that is not in its direct interest. Support offered to Australia under these treaties is a bonus. Only time will tell what Australia thinks of its great and powerful friend. Jim Lamborn, Doncaster Kate and the media In his latest commentary on the Will and Kate photos, Rob Harris (How did Will and Kate, the in touch royals, err so dreadfully? 13/3) included the statement even whats in the mainstream media might not be believed much longer. That increasing level of disbelief is already here. Whether it is caused by the fake news culture promoted by Trumpism, the tabloid mediocrity of some of the global media, or the reduced comprehension, or interest, in the news by a generation seduced by an online culture, the confusion is with us. Very few people under the age of 40 read a print newspaper. The dissemination and fragmentation of news from competing internet sources has lead to blurred perception or awareness in the minds of many about the realities of events, local or global. It may be time for the mainstream media to look a little more closely at its own functionality and efficacy rather than subjects like the over-exposed royals. Brian Kidd, Mt. Waverley La Mamas bleak 2025 I was shocked and saddened to hear of Creative Australias rejection of La Mama Theatre, Carlton for ongoing funding. The funding is approximately one-third of La Mamas income annually. This decision will result in La Mama being unable to operate for the whole of 2025. The theatre is an important cultural institution and is one of the few places to provide funding for Australian artists with no limits to their freedom of expression and where talent can be incubated and nurtured. Importantly, 80 per cent of box office takings are allocated to artists, with only 20 per cent going toward operational costs. Furthermore, the arts contribute hugely to our economy and we undervalue them at our peril. If the theatre were a sporting body, I have no doubt funding would have been found. I am very disappointed that a Labor government is not supporting the arts at this fundamental level. Lets hope this decision can be reversed. Annie Ryall, Castlemaine Art reflects life AFL footy fans should see the production of 37 at the Melbourne Theatre Company. In light of the Sam Kerr issue and the current racism case against the AFL, art yet again proves to be able to deconstruct our evolving and complex Australian identity. Mel Smith, Brighton A level playing field? AFL fans can be banned for life for inappropriate language/behaviour, but if youre an AFL coach you only get fined for inappropriate language that brings the code into disrepute, and were all supposed to move on. Damian Meade, Leopold AND ANOTHER THING Credit: Illustration: Matt Golding Heroin capital Being named Australias heroin capital wasnt the shot in the arm Melbourne had in mind. (Sydney is the cocaine capital. In Melbourne, its a different story, 13/3). Paul Custance, Highett What an honour. Melbourne retains its title as the heroin capital of Australia. So proud. Right up there with the worlds most livable city. Marie Nash, Balwyn Furthermore Congratulations to Daniel Cash for his insightful article Im a soft-handed, coddled Zoomer. Boomers, teach us how to cope 13/3. Awareness is everything in building connections between generations. Christine Baker, Rosanna Duttons ute tax rhetoric confirms once again the oppositions strange commitment to Australias net zero emissions timetable. Bernd Rieve, Brighton People in aged care will not be able to use their super to buy utes or leave enough money for their children to buy utes. Denis Robertson, Windsor I was surprised to read the report on the Great Barrier Reef. I thought Pauline Hanson had given it a clean bill of health. Tim Douglas, Blairgowrie Speaking of nuclear waste, where is it going, and how would it get there? Greg Curtin, Nunawading Congratulations to Yarra Council on their efforts to charge higher parking fees for larger vehicles. Mary Fenelon, Doncaster East I love Myra Fishers wonderful observations. They are always good for a chuckle. Catherine Healy, Brighton Myra Fisher continues to delight. Brian Marshall, Ashburton BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. bp Chief Executive Officer Murray Auchincloss is on a planned two-day working visit to Azerbaijan to discuss the company's plans for a long-term partnership, Trend reports, referring to the bp statement. "This morning, Murray Auchincloss met with President Ilham Aliyev to discuss bp's regional business development. Auchincloss reaffirmed bp's dedication to collaboration with Azerbaijan, outlining the company's plans for enduring partnerships, joint exploration of low-carbon energy solutions, and support for the country's green energy transition efforts," the information noted. During the visit, the bp CEO is accompanied by the company's executive vice president of production and operations, Gordon Birrell. "In his meeting with the President of Azerbaijan, Auchincloss discussed the ongoing activities and prospects of the world-class Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli and Shah Deniz fields. Additionally, he addressed the Shafag solar power plant (SPP) project in the Jabrayil region, emphasizing its role in electrifying the Sangachal terminal. This initiative aligns with Azerbaijan and bp's joint commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions," the press release said. The CEO of bp has met with Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and SOCAR President Rovshan Najaf to review the advancements of projects in Azerbaijan. During his visit, Auchincloss will hold a number of meetings, including a meeting with bp's management in Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkiye, as well as a meeting with bp's regional staff. Auchincloss also plans to visit the Sangachal terminal. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel A driver has been killed after his car was hit by a train in Melbournes north on Wednesday night. Police have been told the car and train collided near Burgundy Street, in Pascoe Vale, about 8.20pm. A female passenger was able to escape from the car before the crash, a police statement said. The male driver of the car died at the scene. Police are investigating the circumstances of the crash. Its even more devastating because this should have been avoided, he said. They should not have been doing that task in that mine. Air legging is where a cylinder operated by compressed air keeps a rock drill pressed into the hole being drilled. AWU state secretary Ronnie Hayden in Ballarat. Credit: Joe Armao Hayden said the method was typically used to put anchors into the rock to hold it back, but in this case, it was being used to create a tunnel. This form of air legging should be used if its ever used at all to investigate the ground, he said. Our members have raised concerns about this style of mining, and it seems to have fallen on deaf ears. The information were getting back was this was a quick, cheap and easy way to chase gold. Hayden said the mines safety manager had been made redundant months before the tragedy. Its devastating because weve lost another worker and no worker should be injured or die at work, he said. The mine has now been shut down while both police and WorkSafe Victoria conduct separate investigations. Victory Minerals, which owns the Ballarat mine, took operational control in December 2023. It employs about 200 people and aims to produce about 40,000 to 50,000 ounces of gold a year. Ballarat Gold Mine at Mount Clear. Credit: Joe Armao In an update to shareholders last year, the mines Singapore-based owners said, a new mining technique, the air-legging mining had started in May 2023. Victory Minerals released a statement on Thursday expressing sympathy for Hourigans family. It said it was cooperating fully with the WorkSafe Victoria investigation and undertaking its own and insisted the safety of its people was the companys priority. No safety professionals working underground in the mine were made redundant in the recent restructure, the statement said. In fact, we increased safety professional resources within the underground. The roles and responsibilities of the redundant corporate managerial role were transferred to the health, safety, environment and community manager, who reports directly to the CEO. WorkSafe Victoria health and safety executive director Narelle Beer said investigators had been at the mine since Wednesday night. It will be a complex, detailed investigation, she said. Were very keen to understand how we can ensure that a tragedy like this never occurs again. WorkSafe earth resources manager Ben Wright said air legging was a less common technique than mechanised mining that used large machinery. Ballarat acting inspector Lisa Macdougall on Thursday said police would also conduct an investigation on behalf of the coroner. Although Hourigans family was notified of his death on Wednesday night, Macdougall said Ambulance Victoria was required to declare the miners health status and paramedics could only access the site early Thursday morning. She said it had taken rescuers significant time to recover the trapped workers because of their location deep inside the mine about three kilometres from the entrance. About 30 people were involved in the rescue, including police and members of Ambulance Victoria, the Country Fire Authority, a mine rescue team and other agencies. Hourigans death triggered an outpouring of grief on social media on Thursday, as family and friends paid tribute to him. Thank you for all the good and bad memories we have shared together, Reece Hourigan said in a Facebook post. I love you so much brother. In another Facebook post, Stephanie Coleiro said: Our brother, our best mate, our son we are so broken here without you. East Gippsland state MP Tim Bull said the loss of Hourigan who travelled to Ballarat for extended periods of work was devastating for Bruthen. Its a small town you know, less than 1000 people, and its a community thats very, very tight-knit, he said. Its had its tough times over recent years with the 2019-20 bushfires but news like this is obviously tragic for that community. Loading The Ballarat Gold Mine was bought last year by a Singapore-based company Chrysos Investments which owns Victory Minerals from administrators of Balmaine Gold. The owners of Chrysos Investments include private investors and London-based hedge fund Acheron, which owns 20 per cent, but the majority of the group is owned by Bahamas-based Credit Union Bank. Liquidators to Balmaines parent Golden Point Group from insolvency firm Hall Chadwick are continuing their investigations into the group. In March 2021, 600 tonnes of rock collapsed into one of the mines underground tunnels in March 2021, the ABC and the Financial Review have reported. In November 2007, rescuers successfully brought 27 miners back to the surface at the Mount Clear gold mine after they were trapped hundreds of metres underground by a cave-in. Victorias troubled state-owned forestry operation will close on June 30 after years of financial losses and allegations of mismanagement and spying on environmentalists. In the 2022-23 financial year, VicForests returned a net loss of $60.1 million, despite receiving a $149 million bailout from the state government. The record loss followed a loss of $54.2 million the previous financial year. Logging in Snobs Creek, in the Rubicon State Forest north-east of Melbourne, conducted by VicForests in 2021. Credit: Manic Seeds Media VicForests described the financial result as having been fundamentally impacted by litigation brought by environment and community groups against its logging operations. Its lawyers made the announcement that the organisation would be wound down by June 30 during a hearing on Wednesday for a Supreme Court challenge by community group Wombat Forestcare. After laying out multiple ways in which the submarine plan could fall apart, White predicts the crunch is perhaps most likely to come in Washington, where a number of hurdles could prove fatal to Americas willingness to sell us Virginia-class subs. Esteemed Financial Times foreign affairs columnist Gideon Rachman ventilated these anxieties to an international audience in February in a piece titled, The squawkus about AUKUS is getting louder. Then came the Tuesday release of the Biden administrations 2025 defence budget request, revealing it was only seeking funding for one Virginia-class submarine to built in the coming year. That is down from the two previously expected and well below the production rate of 2.33 subs a year the US says is necessary to sell any submarines to Australia. As it tries to compete with China for supremacy in the Indo-Pacific, the US Navy is currently 17 attack submarines below its target of 66 raising obvious questions about whether it will agree to hand over three boats to Australia beginning in 2032. The legislation passed by Congress last year requires the president of the day to certify that the transfer of the submarines will not degrade the United States undersea capabilities and would be contingent on the US making sufficient submarine production and maintenance investments to meet its own needs. The US navy is struggling to cope with supply chain blockages and worker shortages, so much so that the defence sector bought prime-time advertisements during the Oscars telecast to convince welders, forklift drivers, plumbers and marine biologists to help make AUKUS a reality. Far from elated, AUKUSs biggest champion in the US Congress is now furious. Describing the budget request as a hard rudder turn, Courtney said the decision to produce just one Virginia-class boat in a year makes little or no sense and would have a profound impact on both the US and Australian navies. Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who has long argued Australia would be better off under the deal he struck with France to acquire conventional diesel submarines, leapt onto ABC radio to say he told us so. This is really a case of us being mugged by reality, Turnbull said. We are bobbing along as a cork in the maelstrom of American politics...Unless the Americans are able to dramatically change the pace at which theyre producing submarines, and theres no reason to believe they will be able to do so, we will not ever get the submarines that were promised. The Australian and US governments have tried to push back on the doubters, with Defence Minister Richard Marles insisting the three nations remain steadfast in our commitment to the pathway announced last March. Loading The US Navy argues it is pouring $11 billion into the US industrial base over five years, with a plan to produce two Virginia-class submarines by 2028 and the 2.33 required to meet its AUKUS commitments soon after that. Jennifer Parker, an adjunct fellow in naval studies at UNSW, accuses AUKUSs critics of scaremongering and says: Realistically, its on track. Parker points out that failing to deliver the promised submarines would have major implications for the US, not just Australia. Would a US president in the early 2030s risk alienating a crucial ally as America seeks to push back on China? How you answer that question depends on how optimistic you feel about the American political system and the strength of the US-Australia alliance. Meanwhile, we have to contend with the possibility of Donald Trumps return to the White House and no one knows what he would do about AUKUS. On the one hand, Trump has a fondness for Australia and the argument that selling submarines to Australia will help constrain Chinas ambitions should appeal to him. On the other, AUKUS is very much a Biden initiative and Trump showed a delight in discarding his predecessors signature policies during his first stint in the White House. Thats before you even get to the question of whether Australia and the UK are up to the task of developing and building a whole new class of submarine, SSN AUKUS. From the moment it was announced a year ago, it has been clear the submarine plan was courageous in the Yes, Minister sense of the word: a hugely ambitious and risky endeavour that could come unstuck in several ways. While it is vastly premature to declare AUKUS dead, immense challenges remain. Ultimately, only the delivery of the promised submarines will silence the doubters not soothing words from Washington and Canberra. Millions of workers should be given the right to work from home, according to a proposal by the union movements peak body that ratchets up the tension between staff and their bosses over returning to the office. The Australian Council of Trade Unions said employers should be able to refuse work-from-home requests only on reasonable grounds, the same way they are legally required to treat requests for flexible arrangements from parents, carers and disabled workers. ACTU secretary Sally McManus says a right to work from home will help bring industry awards into 2024. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen The proposal comes a day after peak industry employer groups called for the ability to scrap the classic 9-to-5 shift for those who work remotely. All are submissions to a Fair Work Commission review of industry awards affecting the pay and conditions of up to about 2.5 million workers, to ensure conditions take into account the needs of those with caring responsibilities. ACTU secretary Sally McManus said sensible changes should be made to awards that finally bring them into the reality of 2024. A former Australian Taxation Office employee has been sentenced to five years in jail for accepting bribes from a person he was auditing in exchange for reducing millions of dollars in personal and business tax debts. It is the first criminal prosecution stemming from the National Anti-Corruption Commission, which was established in July last year and took responsibility for the joint investigation originally led by the former Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity and the ATO. A former Australian Tax Office employee has been jailed for bribery offences. Wenfeng Wei, 42, was sentenced to five years in prison with a non-parole period of two years and six months at the Parramatta District Court on Tuesday. The former ATO employee had pleaded guilty in July 2023 to five charges, including three counts of unauthorised access or modification of restricted data, one count of a Commonwealth public official receiving a bribe and one count of official abuse of public office to gain advantage. Falsehoods designed to win votes in election campaigns would be outlawed under a Labor push for tough new penalties to weed out political lies. Senior government sources confirmed the Albanese government will seek to legislate truth in advertising laws in its upcoming suite of electoral reforms on which opposition MPs will imminently be briefed. Special Minister of State Don Farrell is leading the governments sweeping reforms to electoral laws. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen Those sources, speaking anonymously because legislation has not yet been finalised, said a new unit inside the Australian Electoral Commission would be tasked with adjudicating on the truthfulness of election advertisements. Based on a scheme in place in South Australia, the narrowly defined law will probably create powers to compel the removal of demonstrable falsehoods and would not seek to rein in opinionated or contested claims. With a dollar symbol cheekily superimposed onto a photograph of the citys most iconic toll road, NSW Labor launched a petition some may say scare campaign to rail against the Coalition government adding a new toll to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was 2021, and Chris Minns had finally snatched the leadership of the Labor Party on his third attempt. The political hardhead was straight out of the blocks with a big, bold promise. As the new leader of a floundering opposition, Minns jumped on an issue that was both peak Sydney as well as bread and butter Labor. He used his first public comments after convincing his party room that he was its best hope of electoral success to declare that NSW Labor would never allow new tolls on old roads. Minns will have to reverse his position on no new tolls on old roads or risk undermining the very report which is meant to be the answer to Sydneys toll woes. Credit: SMH As well as trying to stoke fear that the Coalition was about to flog off the Bridge and Harbour Tunnel (the former government wasnt actually considering this), Minns words played straight into Labors war on privatisation. His comments also highlighted a stark inequality, with which even the Coalition could not disagree. Motorists in western Sydney pay exorbitant amounts to drive on the citys roads and that was only going to worsen without a drastic intervention. Labor, under Minns, pushed out a petition to voters, urging them to support no new tolls on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and his MPs stood up in parliament to argue against the horror of tolling the bridge in both directions. The opposition leader continued his war on tolls all the way through to the election. One of Minns key election promises, which Labor delivered, was a wide-ranging toll inquiry to lift the lid on the secretive contracts with tolling giants and provide a solution to the inequity of Sydneys sprawling user-pays road network. Secret documents about the demolition of Melbournes public housing towers are at the centre of a push by the Coalition to join forces with the crossbench and compel the Allan government to release them. The joint plan will be presented to shadow cabinet on Monday as the upper house prepares to debate a motion put forward by the Greens, and amended following negotiations with the Liberals, to establish an inquiry into the high-rise redevelopments under parliaments legal and social issues committee. The tower at 33 Alfred Street, North Melbourne, will be one of the first demolished under the state governments plan. Credit: Chris Hopkins MPs on both sides of politics hope the inquiry would force the government to table any costings or feasibility studies that exist for the 44 knock-down rebuilds documents that have not yet been released to the public and any modelling on where thousands of residents will be rehoused. Applications for the social housing waiting list have grown by 10,000 households this decade and average waiting times have blown out by almost six months. A fresh barney has erupted between the state government and City of Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas after the mayor didnt declare he owned an apartment less than 200 metres from Ruahs proposed Northbridge womens safe night space ahead of the council voting on its approval. Womens Interests Minister Sue Ellery accused Zempilas of failing to disclose an impartiality interest in a planning item that affected property he had a personal interest in. City of Perth Lord Mayor Basil Zempilas. Zempilas, who will be rubber-stamped as the WA Liberal candidate for Churchlands, rubbished Ellerys criticism and said he raised his property ownership with the citys governance team before the council meeting on February 27 which advised him he did not need to make any declaration. The long-running Ruah safe night space saga came to a head at that meeting as councillors approved an application to allow the community service provider to operate the space from its James Street facility in Northbridge subject to several conditions. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. The Media Development Agency (MEDIA) and the Institute of Development and Diplomacy of ADA University held the first training on "sustainable development and climate change in the media perspective" for English-speaking journalists covering the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), MEDIA told Trend. According to the information, CEO of MEDIA Ahmad Ismayilov, speaking at the start of the training, emphasized the worldwide importance of environmental concerns and the substantial role that professional media bears in this regard. He underlined the critical function of environmental education-focused media in increasing public environmental literacy. The executive officer also reminded guests that Azerbaijani media should base their efforts in this direction on effective methods, taking advantage of the opportunity given by COP29. They should give compelling reasons to those who aim to ruin Azerbaijan's image based on subjective considerations. Head of Executive Education, Institute for Development and Diplomacy at ADA University, Nargiz Ismayilova, highlighted that hosting such a prestigious event in Azerbaijan will offer significant opportunities for effectively communicating the country's realities to the global community. The continuous organization of such training sessions will further enhance reporters' understanding of COP29. Deputy Minister of Energy and COP29 Chief Executive Officer for Azerbaijan Elnur Soltanov stressed the crucial role of media representatives in environmental protection. He emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts among media personnel to address environmental issues and raise awareness about the significance of climate change in Azerbaijan. During the English-language training session, Nick Medich, a communications specialist focusing on renewable energy, climate change, and sustainability, delivered presentations on "Scientific Basis of Climate Change" and "Renewable Energy: Technology and Development." Head of the Energy and Sustainable Development Program, Institute for Development and Diplomacy at ADA University Akhmed Gumbatov engaged in comprehensive discussions with media representatives during sessions focused on "Fossil Fuels: Environmental Impacts and Alternatives" and "Economic and Political Dimensions of Climate Change." In conclusion, the trainers addressed reporters' inquiries regarding climate change. The decision to hold COP29 in Azerbaijan was officially announced in Dubai on December 11, 2023, enabling Azerbaijan to host the above event in November. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Hua Hins historic station opened in 1911 with no retail shops and that remains the case there are local markets and small shops in the vicinity. The ornate old Number One Coffee cafe on Hua Hin platform offers soft drinks, snack food and good espresso coffee from 9am to 6pm. A Thai food stall towards the south end of the platform sells local noodles and rice dishes. Food vendors often operate aboard Thai trains, but on this final sector into Bangkok there appears to be only one. Stock up on your own BYO journey fuel, but alcohol must not be consumed on board. Train-spotting, people watching and taking selfies against the backdrop of the stations Siamese-Victorian architecture. The platforms elaborate Phra Mongkut Klao Pavilion, aka Royal Waiting Room, is the most photographed feature not only on the station but probably in the whole province. There is a free luggage storage room while you wander or wait, but no hotel, lounge, restaurant or bar. Announcements are made in Thai, English and Chinese. The waiting area has seats reserved for monks and the elderly, and the platform is dotted with frangipani trees and bougainvillea these being Thailand railway traditions. Boarding At will. The platform is rail-level, not raised. Passengers board the train by climbing up the carriage steps. Aboard, a uniformed guard clips tickets. The latter can be purchased either online or in person, with passport ID. Seats are allocated and numbered. The rolling stock is old but clean, the air conditioning works and the passengers are orderly. The verdict A huge new elevated station is being constructed opposite the original station, in partnership with Chinas One Road, One Belt girdle around the earth. Enjoy while you can the historic structure, Thailands best-loved and most photographed station, and a classic of South-East Asian railway history. Washington: Republicans in the US Congress have broken ranks with Donald Trump by voting to ban TikTok unless the popular video sharing app splits from its Chinese parent company. Amid fears the popular video app poses national security risks, Republicans in the House of Representatives joined forces with Democrats on Wednesday to overwhelmingly pass a contentious bill that would force its Chinese-based owner, ByteDance, to sell to a non-Chinese company or face a national ban. President Joe Biden on TikTok. The bipartisan vote in an otherwise deeply divided Congress passed with the support of 352 members compared to 65 who opposed it, in a sweeping rebuke of the app, which is used by 170 million Americans. It also came despite Trump voicing his opposition this week, warning on CNBC that there are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) and bp have discussed joint initiatives on the transition to green energy, Azerbaijani Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov said on X, Trend reports. "We met with Murray Auchincloss, CEO of bp, together with SOCAR President Rovshan Najaf and our colleagues. Our conversations focused on assessing the results of our bilateral cooperation and identifying new potential for partnership. We also discussed cooperation projects in the areas of green energy transition, decarbonization, and exploration and production. bp emphasized its commitment to strengthening the existing collaboration with Azerbaijan and indicated strong interest in investing in renewable energy initiatives," the publication says. bp CEO Murray Auchincloss is slated to pay a two-day business visit to Azerbaijan to explore the company's long-term collaboration ambitions. Auchincloss will hold multiple internal meetings during his visit, including sessions with bp management in Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkiye, as well as a meeting with bp's regional personnel. In addition, he intends to call at the Sangachal Terminal. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. More than $11 billion of investments have already been attracted to Kazakhstan through the jurisdiction of the Astana International Financial Center (AIFC), Acting CEO, Chief Client Officer of AIFC Temirlan Mukhanbetzhanov told Trend during the second session of the Kazakh-Azerbaijani Business Council in Baku. "Over 40 percent of them were sourced through the AIX stock exchange in the form of equity, a percentage that consistently increases annually. The registered member companies have also seen substantial growth, surpassing 2,500 compared to over 600 at the end of the previous year. Each company contributes funds toward business development and job creation, collectively contributing to the country's economic growth," the CEO said. He mentioned that Azerbaijani companies are among those that have opted for the jurisdiction of AIFC. "About five companies with Azerbaijani capital participation, spanning various sectors such as trade and mining, are registered in AIFC," he said. Discussing the merger of Kazakhstan's two stock exchanges, AIX and KASE, he highlighted the ongoing development of a unified approach aimed at harnessing the combined potential of both exchanges. "Discussions are ongoing. By the end of March this year, the first configuration on unification is to be presented," he added. To note, the first meeting of the Kazakh-Azerbaijani Business Council was held in August 2022 in Astana. The sale has already kicked off and is ending at midnight tomorrow, so the group chat is going to have to really pull together to get this trip off the screen and in the air. If you are hoping for THE holiday romance, make sure youre nice to staff and crew (just good advice in general) as 72% of respondents saw that as a turn-off. And, do NOT get your feet out on the plane, as 45% said thats a one-way ticket to staying single. Our door had been opened, and our things had been taken out of our room, Jess said. The type of hotel that it was, the door to the outside wasnt locked, so when we got back from the concert, we just walked on in. By Catherine Sas, K.C. Special to The Post On Thursday, February 29, 2024, at 11:30 PM Eastern Standard Time, Canadas Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Honourable Marc Miller, re-imposed a visa requirement on all Mexican nationals seeking to come to Canada temporarily as visitors, students and workers. For many Mexicans currently in Canada, their Electronic Travel Authorizations (eTAs) were immediately cancelled. For those seeking to enter Canada, it put an immediate hold on travel plans while the new rules are sorted out and visas obtained. Canada has had an interesting relationship with an on-again, off-again and now on-again visa requirement for Mexico. After many years of a visa-free relationship between Canada and Mexico, that came to an end on July 14, 2009, when Canadas then Conservative Minister of Immigration, Jason Kenny, imposed a visa requirement due to the high levels of refugee claims by Mexican nationals. After the election of the Liberal government in November 2015 the visa requirement was lifted as of December 1, 2016. The Liberals have now changed direction by re-imposing the visa requirement this past month, again citing the high level of refugee claims being made by Mexican nationals, most of which are rejected by Canadas Immigration and Refugee Board. IRCC has been busy sending messages to many persons from Mexico currently in Canada advising them that their eTAs have been cancelled and advising them of the new visa and travel requirements. These new rules affect visitors to Canada and NOT persons with a valid work or study permit whose eTAs will continue to be valid. eTAs are required for air travel to Canada; however, for those who are travelling by car, bus, train or boat, a visitor visa is required. Select Mexican nationals will still be able to apply for an eTA to visit Canada. Specifically, those who have previously held Canadian visitor visas in the past 10 years or those who currently hold a valid US non-immigrant visa, will continue to be eligible to apply for eTAs to travel to Canada as visitors. One of the most notable changes resulting from the re-imposed visa requirements is for work permit applicants. Canada shares a special relationship with Mexico given its trade agreements. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) took effect on January 1, 1994, and allowed certain professionals and investors to apply for work permits exempt from the standard labour market impact assessment process (LMIA). This agreement was renamed the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) on July 1, 2020; however, the work permit provisions remained the same. With the visa-free status for Mexican nationals, they could apply for a work permit at the border or port of entry. That is no longer possible given the new visa requirements. Under the new rules, all Mexican nationals who wish to apply for a Canadian work permit must apply online to IRCC. Their applications will undergo the standard work permit processing procedures, which include the requirement to undergo biometric data collection (fingerprinting and photographs), as well as the requirement to submit the applicants original passport to receive their visa to travel to Canada. Recognizing that disallowing port-of-entry applications represents a dramatic shift from past practices, the Minister has announced that IRCC will be prioritizing the processing of work permit applications from Mexico. The Ministers announcement to re-impose visa requirements has far-reaching consequences for many travellers to Canada. Included among them are family members of Canadian citizens or permanent resident who were previously able to travel to Canada without visas to see their loved ones, but who are now required to apply for a visitor visa even though they have travelled to Canada in the past 10 years. It will also disproportionately affect certain travellers such as business visitors to Canada who were previously able to travel to Canada on short notice for business activities without going through a formal visa application process. Most importantly, the elimination of port-of-entry work permit applications for Mexican nationals means that Canadian employers will need to plan well ahead to bring Mexican talent to Canada. The re-introduction of the visa requirement necessarily adds delay for Canadian employers looking to hire workers from Mexico to fill labour shortages and it is still too early to know whether the Minister will deliver on his promise to provide prioritized processing for work permit applications coming from Mexico. Canadian employers and Mexican job seekers alike will need to stay updated with the latest news from the Minister! Catherine Sas, K.C. has over 30 years of legal experience. She provides a full range of immigration services and is a leading immigration practitioner (Lexpert, Whos Who Legal, Best Lawyers in Canada). Go to canadian-visa-lawyer.com or email [email protected]. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, March 13. The bilateral trade between Turkmenistan and Spain surpassed 59.13 million euros for the whole of 2023, the source at Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, told Trend. The statistics show an increase of 5.6 times compared to the turnover recorded for the corresponding period of 2022, which amounted to 10.46 million euros. The value of Turkmenistan's exports to Spain last year amounted to almost 52.97 million euros, which indicates a significant 8.2 fold increase compared to the corresponding period of 2022, during which it reached 6.39 million euros. At the same time, Turkmenistan saw a 51.4 percent increase in imports from Spain over the same period in 2022, amounting to 6.15 million euros compared to 4.06 million euros. Furthermore, the volume of trade turnover between Turkmenistan and Spain from 2018 through 2022 amounted to more than 77.2 million euros. Meanwhile, last year the trade turnover between Turkmenistan and the EU countries amounted to 1.87 billion euros, which is 87 percent more than in 2022, when it amounted to 1 billion euros. POKHRAN, AS awestruck spectators watched the Bharat Shakti exercise here in Rajasthan on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Pokhran has become witness to the trinity of Indias aatmanirbharta, belief and self-pride. The integrated tri-service firepower and manoeuvre exercise was held for about 50 minutes at the Pokhran field firing range where India showcased the prowess of its indigenous defence equipment. Roars of LCA Tejas and ALH Mk-IV filled the air while Main Battle Tank Arjun, and K-9 Vajra, Dhanush and Sharang artillery gun systems ruled the firing ranges on ground. Platforms like Pinaka satellite system and a swarm of drones left the audience spellbound. Prime Minister Modi in his address on the occasion said that the roar of aircraft mid-air, and valour displayed on ground during Bharat Shakti exercise is the call of a new India (naye Bharat ka aavhan hai). He recalled that it was at Pokhran that the Indias nuclear test was conducted in the past. Pokhran has become witness to the trinity of Indias aatmanirbharta (self-reliance), belief (vishwas) and self-pride (aatma-gaurav), Modi said. The exercise was held around 100 km from Jaisalmer city, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in attendance. This first-of-its-kind exercise on such a scale is not tailored towards any direction (northern or western border) or any adversaries, sources in the defence establishment said. In a clear indication of Indias readiness to confront and overcome contemporary and future challenges with home-grown solutions, Bharat Shakti highlights resilience, innovation and strength of Indias domestic defence capabilities on the global stage, the Prime Ministers Office had said on Sunday. AS EXPECTED THE notification about the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) came on expected lines -- at a time of the Governments choosing. The opposition to the new law from certain quarters in the political arena, also, came as expected. It is quite likely that the CAA would become one of the issues in the political debate that would rock the nation during the electoral campaigns of all parties in the next couple of weeks. No matter all that, it must be stated with much emphasis that the country needed this law in an urgent manner -- which did not happen earlier, thanks to the senseless opposition to it from some political and activist quarters. By now, the common people have understood the details of the provisions as per the Citizenship Amendment Act and are in a mood to welcome it since it addresses the major issue of harassment and persecution of minorities in three neighbouring countries of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The law also specifies the six minorities as per the demographies of the three countries where a massive drop in their populations has been witnessed in the past fifty years or so. For example, the percentage of the Hindu community has dropped from a reasonable 24 per cent to less than 1 per cent in Pakistan in the past few decades. More or less similar statistics are available in Bangladesh as well. Communities such as Christians, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains also have faced more or less similar fates in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. This harsh reality has made a law such as the CAA necessary so that the people of these six communities will be able to acquire Indian citizenship and have a safe and secure life. The common people also have known by now that some vested interests have tried to misrepresent the new CAA by distorting its factual provisions. One of the main contentions of these people is that the Narendra Modi Government intends to use this law to deprive some people of their citizenship. There can never be a dirtier canard than this. The law does not make even a touch-and-go reference to any withdrawal of citizenship right to anybody. Much to the contrary, by any definition and interpretation, the CAA is aimed at granting citizenship to harassed communities. Yet, political leaders such as West Bengal Chief Minister Ms. Mamata Banerjee have become avowed opponents of CAA and are trying to whip up an anti-CAA sentiment particularly among Muslims. By doing so, they do not serve any special cause of the Muslims, but serve only their petty political goal of opposing Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and his Government in whatever manner possible -- right or wrong, just or unjust, factual or false. Such politics has often pulled the nation backwards. Yet, those who oppose even sensible ideas such as CAA do not have the time and inclination to think rationally on pros and cons of issues and then arrive at a conclusion. The shouting hoarse by Ms. Mamata Banerjee that she would not allow CAA implementation in her State, makes little sense. For, the CAA is a Central law and cannot be implemented selectively. No matter her political priorities, Ms. Mamata Banerjee will never be able to stop CAAs implementation in West Bengal by any chance. If she tries to do the impossible, she will find herself in deep trouble -- on account of breach of law and on account of trust deficit of major sections of Indian demography. Of course, Ms. Banerjee must be aware of these realities. But if she is still pretending not to, then she will do so at her own peril. No matter all this, we, as a responsible voice of people, welcome the Governments announcement about the immediate implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act. Bird Flu.. Radius of affected area increased from 1 km to 3 km from Hatchery Staff Reporter Keeping the deaths of birds in Nagpur Regional Hatchery in mind, the district administration has extended the Bird Flu infected area from 1 km radius to the area within a radius of 3 km from the Hatchery in Seminary Hills on Tuesday. The Health Department also took the swab samples of 87 workers of the Hatchery and sent for testing. Bird Flu was detected in Nagpurs hatchery on March 8. After detecting the cases, the administration declared 1 km radius as infected with Bird Flu. The Health Department immediately swung into action and thousands of birds and eggs were destroyed in the Hatchery. Health check-ups of the employees are also being carried out. The authorities have appealed to the citizens not to panic, and a warning period of 21 days was declared. People in the region have been advised not to consume eggs and chicken for 21 days as a preventive measure. The Public Health Department along with the Veterinary Department started an investigation and survey in the region. The picture will be clear within the next four to five days after the reports from the laboratory are received. After the warning by the Health Department, citizens are avoiding consuming chicken and eggs. To avoid the spread of Bird Flu among birds in the zoo, the Maharajbag Zoo management sprayed medicines in the bird and other wild animal enclosures. The Zoo Management is also taking other precautions to avoid any death of birds due to Bird Flu. More than 8,500 poultry birds, 16,700 eggs and 400 kg bird feed have been scientifically destroyed by the Rapid Response Team (RRT) after carcasses of recent moralities tested positive for Bird Flu at the Hatchery. According to doctors, the zoonotic disease is contagious but chances of infected humans passing it to others are rare as of now. Environmentalists demand to make citys green belt encroachment-free By Ankita Garg Over two dozens of slums are having encroachment around the green belt of water bodies of State capital Bhopal including Kerwa dam, Hathai Kheda dam, Kaliyasot river, Motia Talab. Around 10,000 people have constructed their houses in these areas giving tough time to the environment. After district administration and municipal corporation demolished 386 houses from restricted site of Bhadbhada dam, environmentalist hopes to get other areas free from the encroachment. They said that if administration continues to make the green land free from illegal encroachment, citys green belt area would be in better condition. National Green Tribunal (NGT) had already given directions to the district administration and BMC to make the land free from encroachers but action could not be taken excluding the Bhadbhada site. Case is already being proceeding at NGT for encroachment around Kaliyasot river, Kerwa dam, Upper Lake and a few other water bodies. Environmentalists said that there are around three thousand encroachment in Kaliyasot catchment. Khanugaon, Suraj Nagar and other slums are situated in Upper lake catchment area. Sources said new slums are being set up near Hathaikheda dam. Environmentalists said that greenery around the water bodies are spoiling with these encroachment. Sewage water flowing from the slums are making water bodies polluted and this has very bad impact of reptiles, fishes, insects in the water body. NGT had fined Rs 121 crore on BMC during year 2023 over discharge of untreated municipal sewage waste in an unscientific manner in the water body liable of Bhopal. Subhash C Pandey, an environmentalist, said, It took around one month to do demarcation and identification around Kaliyasot and Kerwa dam but even after that Government did not initiate to remove the encroachment. In this case, NGT has already penalised the chief secretary. Nitin Saxena, RTI activists said, Bhoj wetland has been declared as Ramsar Site after clubbing the both upper lake and lower lake areas. Exports will give major boost to economy: DGFT Business Reporter Emphasizing on improving Indias exports Santosh Kumar Sarangi, Director General, Directorate General of Foreign Trade, on Tuesday countrys many districts have the potential to take the export figures to a new level. Addressing virtually the participants in the mega event - Niryat Mohatsava held here, he said that only 70 districts are contributing more than 80 per cent of countrys total exports. There are more than 760 districts in the country and each of them can come forward and exports goods and services. It will give a major boost to the economy, he said. Sarangi further said that the office of Director General of Foreign Trade is reaching out to various stakeholders and encouraging them to export products and services. Sarangi also highlighted that the share of exports in Indias GDP is 12-14 per cent which is far less than that of countries like Germany, South Korea and Vietnam. In Germany, the share of exports in GDP is 41-42 per cent while in South Korea it is 39 per cent and in Vietnam it is 91 per cent. If we can improve our exports, it will be good for the country, he said. Apart from this, Sarangi spoke about various outreach programmes being implemented by the department. Earlier in his introductory remarks, Sraman Vasireddy, Additional DGFT and Development Commissioner MIHAN SEZ Nagpur, said Niryat Mohatsava was held to mark the culmination of Export Hub Drive implemented in 49 districts covering the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chhatisgarh which was conducted from July 2023 to February 2024. Snehal Dhokey, Assistant DGFT, in her speech, elaborated on the steps initiated by the department to promote exports from the 49 districts in Central India. Despite of limited resources, we visited the entrepreneurs, farmers and various service providers and motivated them to export their goods and services, she added. In addition to this, DGFT officials and representatives of various organisatons explained in detail the import and export procedures and schemes. The FPOs, industry associations, entrepreneurs, women SHGs, handicraft artisans and members of industrial organisatons attended the event. India Post, Bank of Maharashtra, Forest Department, Tourism Department, Vanamati, Agriculture Department, Hortculture Department, MAVIM, Department of Tribal Development Nagpur, Export Promotion Council- APEDA, and others were associated with event. Sonali Morai of DGFT Nagpur Team conducted the proceedings of the function while Gaurav Sahare of DGFT Nagpur Team proposed the formal vote of thanks. India committed to fair deal with China that recognises LAC, says Jaishankar NEW DELHI, AGAINST the backdrop of the nearly-four-year border row with China in eastern Ladakh, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday said the tension seen during this period has not served either of us well. He also asserted that India remains committed to finding a fair and reasonable outcome but one that is respectful of agreements and recognises the Line of Actual Control. During a panel discussion at an event, the Minister said India never closed doors to talking to Pakistan but the terrorism issue should be fair, square at the centre of the conversation. Jaishankar, who recently returned from an official visit to South Korea and Japan, shared his thoughts on a range of issues, from the changing nature of diplomacy to the evolving world order, during the Express Adda in New Delhi. Later, he also took questions from a section of the audience that included diplomats, businessmen, academics, entrepreneurs, journalists and foreign policy enthusiasts. Asked about his views on offers made from the Chinese side in the past to resolve the border issue, and whether there was any scenario where he could think that this could actually be resolved, the minister said, Any country involved in a boundary dispute negotiating, it has to believe there has to be a solution. Questioned on if the current dispensation will get more empowered with more seats in (Parliament) to talk on the issue, the Union minister interjected and said, To me, the territory of India and the fairness of a boundary solution has nothing to do with how many seats Either its a good deal or not a good deal. The issue today is not whether you have a political majority or not. It is whether you have a fair deal on the table that is the issue. Jaishankar, a former Foreign Secretary, also responded to a query from an audience member on the India-China relationship. I think it is in our common interest that we should not have that many forces on the Line of Actual Control. I think it is is our common interest that we should observe agreements that we have signed. And, I believe that it is not just in common interest, I believe it is in Chinas interest as well. This tension that we have seen for the last four years has not served either of us well, he said. So, the sooner we resolve it, I genuinely believe it is good for both of us. I am still very much committed to finding a fair, reasonable outcome. But one which is respectful of agreements, recognises the Line of Actual Control, doesnt seek to change the status quo. That, I think, will be good for both of us, the minister added. The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong Lake area. Ties between the two countries nose-dived significantly following the clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades. India and China recently held a fresh round of high-level military talks to resolve the border row that witnessed both sides agreeing to maintain peace and tranquillity on the ground but there was no indication of any breakthrough. Jaishankar also took a question on India-Pakistan ties and if New Delhi would be open to a conversation if Islamabad reached out. We have never closed our doors on talking with Pakistan. Question is what to talk about ... If some guy has that many terrorist camps ... That should be the central part of the conversation, he said. When asked if there could be a conversation with the Pakistani military, he said, It doesnt work that way. It is not that we choose between this and that. As I said, we have never closed our doors to talking to Pakistan but the terrorism issue should be fair, square at the centre of the conversation. It is the major issue I am not saying there are not other issues. But I am not going to duck that issue for the sake of talking, the minister said. One member of the audience also asked if Indias policy towards the US has had any impact on Russias policy towards China, to which Jaishankar said that was a correlation I wouldnt agree with. If Russia and China have become closer that is not an issue ... That is not a doing of India. That may or may not be a consequence of the situation in which Russia finds itself in vis-a-vis the West ... Our policy towards Russia have been very fair, very objective, he added. On the Myanmar issue, he said frankly the developments are worrying. If there is no central authority and you have a very fractured system, then all set of other problems happen. It creates a fertile ground for whole set of illegal activities, which then also impinge on our end..., he added. Indian Muslims need not worry about CAA: Govt NEW DELHI, THE Union Home Ministry on Tuesday asserted that Indian Muslims need not worry as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) will not impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the community which enjoys equal rights as their Hindu counterparts. The Ministry sought to allay fears of a section of Muslims and students regarding the CAA, making it clear that no Indian citizen would be asked to produce any document to prove his citizenship after this Act. Indian Muslims need not worry as CAA has not made any provision to impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the present 18 crore Indian Muslims, who have equal rights like their Hindu counterparts, a Home Ministry statement said. The government on Monday notified the rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act to fast-track citizenship for persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. In the statement, the home ministry said, Due to the persecution of minorities in those three Muslim countries, the name of Islam was badly tarnished all around the world. However, Islam, being a peaceful religion, never preaches or suggests hatred/ violence/ any persecution on religious ground. This Act protects Islam from being tarnished in the name of persecution, it said. Explaining the need of the law, the ministry said India does not have any pact or agreement with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh to repatriate migrants back to these countries. This Citizenship Act doesnt deal with the deportation of illegal immigrants and therefore the concern of a section of the people, including Muslims and students, that CAA is against Muslim minorities is unjustifiable, it said. The ministry said there is no bar on Muslims from anywhere in the world to seek Indian citizenship under Section 6 of the Citizenship Act, which deals with citizenship by naturalisation. Without curtailing the freedom and opportunity of Indian Muslims to enjoy their rights as they have been usually practising and entertaining since Independence like other Indian citizens belonging to other religions, CAA 2019 has reduced the qualification period of application for citizenship from 11 to five years for the beneficiaries who had been persecuted on religious grounds in Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan and who had entered India on or before December 31, 2014 with an aim to show a generous treatment to them, it said. Khattar quits, Nayab Saini new Haryana CM Haryana BJP President and OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini (C) being greeted by senior party leaders Arjun Munda (2nd L), Biplab Kumar Deb (R), former CM Manohar Lal Khattar (L) and others after he was chosen as the next Chief Minister in Chandigarh, on Tuesday. (PTI) CHANDIGARH : HARYANA BJP chief Nayab Singh Saini was on Tuesday sworn in as States new Chief Minister, hours after the surprise resignation of Manohar Lal Khattar from the post along with his Cabinet ministers. Five MLAs -- four from the BJP and one independent -- were also sworn in as ministers. However, former Home Minister and six-term MLA from Ambala Cantt, Anil Vij, has not found a place in the new Cabinet. Saini, the 54-year-old OBC leader, was administered oath by Governor Bandaru Dattatreya at the oath-taking ceremony held at the Raj Bhawan here. BJPs Kanwar Pal, Mool Chand Sharma, Jai Prakash Dalal and Banwari Lal and Independent MLA Ranjit Singh Chautala took oath as ministers. All the five were ministers in the outgoing Khattar cabinet. Besides Vij, BJP legislators Kamal Gupta, Om Prakash Yadav, Kamlesh Dhanda, and Sandeep Singh did not find their names in the Saini-led Cabinet. Dushyant Chautala, Davinder Babli and Anoop Dhanak of JJP were other ministers in the Khattar cabinet. Vij, who is learnt to be sulking, was not present at the oath-taking ceremony. After the party meeting here, he headed straight to his Ambala residence. The development to bring in a new face as Chief Minister by the BJP came just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Khattars second term as chief minister was also to end in October, when the assembly polls are due. Earlier in the day, Khattar and all 13 other members of the BJP-led council of ministers submitted their resignations to the Governor as a team of the partys central observers arrived in Chandigarh. The switch in Haryana came amid the ruling BJP-JJP coalition coming apart, though party leaders from both sides did not make immediate comment. JJP leader Dushyant Chautala was the deputy Chief Minister and there were two other members of his party in the Khattar-led government. Four JJP MLAs -- Jogi Ram Sihag, Ishwar Singh, Davinder Babli, and Ram Niwas Surjakhera -- were also present at the oath-taking function. Saini, who is the MP from Kurukshetra, was appointed chief of state BJP in October last year. Speaking to reporters after taking oath, Saini said the BJP will win all the 10 Lok Sabha seats from the state with a big mandate. He also said that the party will again form the government when the assembly polls are held in the state. On being picked up as chief minister, Saini said that the party has given such respect to an ordinary worker. Speaking to reporters, Khattar said he has known Saini since a long time and he is happy that a youth face has taken oath as CM and has been entrusted with new responsibility. Earlier, Haryana governor accepted the resignations of Khattar and his council of ministers, according to a notification. Among the MLAs who took oath, two of them -- J P Dalal (Loharu segment) and Ranjit Chautala (Rania) -- come from the Jat community while Mool Chand Sharma (Ballabhgarh) is a Brahmin face, Kanwar Pal (Jagadhri) comes from Gujjar community and Banwari Lal (Bawal) from the SC community. Saini was a minister in the first Khattar cabinet. He was an MLA when he fought the Lok Sabha polls in 2019. There are speculations that Khattar may be fielded as the partys Lok Sabha candidate from Karnal. At present, the BJP has 41 MLAs in the 90-member assembly while the JJP has 10. The BJP is comfortably placed even without the JJPs support as the Khattar government enjoyed the support of six of the seven independents. The main opposition Congress has 30 MLAs while the Indian National Lok Dal and Haryana Lokhit Party one seat each. The JJP too called a meeting in Delhi of its leaders following the surprise development. Five of its Haryana MLAs are learnt to have skipped the meeting, indicating a possible rift in the ranks. In a post on X, Saini thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J P Nadda, partys Haryana in-charge Biplab Dev, Khattar and the party MLAs. Earlier, emerging from the BJP meeting at Haryana Niwas, Vij parried questions from reporters on what transpired inside. Those who have come from Delhi will tell, he said. MP CM highlights BJPs dedication towards nation Staff Reporter RAIPUR, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav emphasised the dedication of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) towards making India a global leader in a meeting of the Core Committee and Management Committee of Raipur Lok Sabha. MP Chief Minister highlighted the remarkable journey of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, emphasising that BJP is a party where individuals like him, an ordinary worker, can rise to become Chief Minister of a significant state like Madhya Pradesh. Yadav commended Modis journey from being a tea seller to becoming the Prime Minister of the worlds largest democracy, noting his relentless efforts to elevate Indias stature on the global stage. Yadav stressed the collective responsibility of BJP members to ensure the victory of Lok Sabha MPs from all constituencies, both in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, in the upcoming elections. He underscored the need for unity and commitment among party members to fulfill this goal. State Education Minister and BJP candidate from Raipur Lok Sabha constituency, Brijmohan Agrawal, echoed Yadavs sentiments, assuring full compliance with his instructions and suggestions. Agrawal expressed confidence in achieving a historic victory in the elections, pledging Chhattisgarhs full contribution to Prime Minister Modis target of surpassing 400 seats. Upon his arrival at the Ekatm Complex, Chief Minister Yadav was welcomed by State Minister Agrawal, Lok Sabha Cluster in-charge Rajesh Munat, District President Jayanti Patel, MLAs, and district officials. Before the meeting, Yadav held discussions with MLAs and key officials, gathering information related to the Lok Sabha elections. Revaluation charges to be returned.. RTMNUs decision for students if marks are raised Staff Reporter Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University (RTMNU) has decided to return the charges of revaluation to the students whose marks are raised in the process. The decision is not new as it was taken by Management Council about 10 years ago, but this time, Dr Prashant Bokare, Vice Chancellor assured the Senate that the decision would be implemented. After the declaration of results, if students feel that they have received less marks than what they had expected, they apply for challenge to valuation. The issue of giving back the charges taken from these students was being discussed since long. When this issue came for discussion in the Senate that was held on Monday, Vishnu Changde pointed out that the decision was taken when he was in Management Council. He questioned as to why the decision wasnt implemented? Adv Manmohan Bajpai commented, If the marks get increased in revaluation, it means student is not at fault. Then why should the students bear the cost. Secondly, University should clear that from which year the students would get the money back? Ajay Agrawal suggested, Initially, the students who applied for challenge to valuation for 2023 examination and got their marks increased should be given their fees back. Later on, the modus operendi can be chalked out. Some Senate members raised the issue of procedure of returning money as the account numbers are not provided by the students. Nirbhay Sancheti suggested that most students operate their accounts through mobile and they usually do payment through UPI. Money can be returned to them through the same modes, stated Sancheti. Dr Bokare said, I am not aware as to why it was not implemented earlier. But we are very positive about giving back money to students because university is for students. Their welfare should get priority. Initially we will return money for Winter examination 2023. Later on a procedure would be chalked out, guidelines would be prepared and accordingly, money would be returned. Tejas crashes in Jaisalmer, no casualties JAISALMER/NEW DELHI : A TEJAS light combat aircraft (LCA) of the Indian Air Force crashed near a residential colony in Jaisalmer on Tuesday during an operational training sortie, the first such incident involving the indigenously-built jet. There were no casualties. The pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the Indian Air Force (IAF) said in a brief statement. The crash took place around 100 km from the Pokhran desert in Rajasthan where a mega war game Bharat Shakti witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and top military brass was underway. Military sources indicated that the Tejas jet was to be part of the exercise. Jaisalmer Additional Superintendent of Police Mahendra Singh said there was no loss of human life in the crash near Kalla and Jawahar residential colonies. A portion of a hostel building was damaged but there was no one inside at the time, added another police official. Thick black smoke was seen billowing from the single-storey brick structure. Scores of people stood at a distance as the mangled remains of the plane smouldered. The pilot is safe and no other person was injured in the incident. There were people all around the site of the incident and fortunately all are safe, Jaisalmer MLA Chhotu Singh Bhati, who reached the spot after the incident, told reporters. An eyewitness said the pilot ejected shortly before the plane crashed. As soon as the plane hit the ground, there was a loud sound, he told reporters. Fire brigades were rushed to the site and flames were doused. The pilot was taken to a hospital. Officials said it was the first Tejas jet involved in an accident. A Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas of the Indian Air Force crashed near Jaisalmer today during an operational training sortie. The pilot ejected safely... A court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a statement. Manufactured by state-run aerospace behemoth Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), the Tejas aircraft is a potent platform for air combat and offensive air support missions while reconnaissance and anti-ship operations are its secondary roles. Tejas aircraft are set to be the mainstay of the IAF. It has already inducted nearly 40 Tejas of initial variants. In February 2021, the Defence Ministry sealed a Rs 48,000 crore deal with Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd for the procurement of 83 Tejas MK-1A jets for the IAF. In November last, the Ministry accorded an initial approval to procure an additional batch of 97 Tejas jets for the IAF. Thrust is to push India towards self-sufficiency By D.C. Pathak Prime Minister Modis personal outreach to world leaders has helped India to adopt an independent stance on geopolitical developments. This has in turn facilitated this countrys rise as a world power whose voice mattered on issues of global peace and human development. Prime Minister Modis stature as a world leader has gone up and so has Indias position as a country on the frontline in the comity of nations. THE thrust of governance in the present regime is to push India towards self-sufficiency in food, industrial production, defence, security and technology applications. Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the perceptive call for vocal for local on one hand and supported an outreach to the best technology available anywhere in the world for economic advancement, on the other. While he showed great clarity about the national objectives and the pathways for achieving them, his remarkable contribution is in ensuring that the projects initiated for this purpose were executed with a new level of efficiency. Individual responsibility in the bureaucracy has been defined, the framework of inter-departmental coordination has been fixed and the accountability of Ministers heading the Ministry or the Department concerned has been made transparent -- all of this producing a huge impact on governance eliminating a substantive measure of the gap between policy and its implementation. It has been established that if the political executive governing the nation has the honesty of purpose and the political will, it could go beyond the copybook rules of administration to create new benchmarks of governance and delivery for the people. Prime Minister Modi has shown a great dedication to national interests and willingness to put in hard work and if his performance earned him high popular ratings, this was natural -- it should be remembered that the Indian voter is a shrewd judge of the merits of rulers governing the country. Experts have talked of various management practices and one of these is termed the paternal, nurtural theory -- said to be in line with the Indian ethos. Prime Minister Modis style of governance seemed to reflect some of these new approach points. Its view of vertical hierarchy in administration placed a certain level of accountability on the senior for any failure of the person below and thus restored the importance of supervision that had ceased to operate in an effective way in the earlier years. In the PM Modi regime, there is an upward revision of accountability. Quick decision-making, time-bound implementation of policy and involvement of all in the vertical hierarchy in the march towards the mission set for them, constitute the mandate defined by Prime Minister Modi for those having a role in governance and this is evident in the speedy character of policy-making and delivery of projects in his regime. This is setting the turf also for the future when the ruling dispensation would be judged by its performance and not by its politics. As India registers a steady rise in its status as a world power whose opinion matters on issues of war and peace and global economic development, it is important that those ruling the country remain well-informed on matters of national security considering the fact that we live in an era where open warfare had given way to proxy wars and covert cross-border attacks. Think tanks and strategic experts may be targeted and influenced one way or the other, for this purpose. Sometimes this may throw up conflicts between freedom of expression on one hand and an adverse effect of certain activities and writings, on the other. The role of the judiciary becomes crucial in deciding what is not valid in a plea for the exercise of human rights. There is a new challenge for our Intelligence agencies which had to ascertain if inimical elements were in play behind any motivated social media activity or manipulation against the national interests. Since national security is inseparable from economic security, the adversary would be planning to damage the economic lifelines, supply chains and digital infrastructure on which strategic establishments function. All this added to the burden of our national security setup. It also gave new-found importance to inter-agency coordination between the Intelligence organisations and investigation agencies looking into terror-related or economic offences of a certain kind. The success of the Narendra Modi government in the sphere of efficient implementation of policy decisions is of course attributable to the clarity and political boldness of the Prime Minister in the area of decision-making but equally important is the transformational improvement he has brought about in the working of the administrative machinery that was primarily responsible for quick follow up. Modi has personally seen to it that senior officials were put on specific assignments on the basis of their commitment to public service, intrinsic abilities, and reputation for hard work. Modi has proved that a good leader is also a good manager and that governance requires an ability on the part of the political executive not only to make sound decisions but also to oversee their execution by the concerned. Notably, Modi is also able to act as the mentor for those working for him. That he is capable of riding a crisis -- rather than getting overwhelmed by it -- was proven by his handling of the COVID crisis. Implementation of the direct benefit transfer schemes for the less privileged on one hand and the formulation of strategies for national security, on the other, speak for a leadership that could competently handle various spheres of national life. The call for an Atmanirbhar Bharat given by Prime Minister Modi is not a mere slogan but according to him, an achievable goal for a developing nation. Interestingly, he has risen from being a mere leader of a political party to becoming a tall leader of the nation whose contribution in all spheres of national life -- economic, socio-cultural or in the field of international relations -- is of an overpowering value. He governs the country with a rare combination of decisiveness and managerial acumen. India is set to become the third largest economy with the fastest rate of growth today and credit must go significantly to the sense of drive Prime Minister Modi had instilled in the governance of a country as diverse and as full of inequalities and potential internal divides as India was. His messages of hope, emphasis on youth power, women empowerment, inclusiveness by way of seeking everybodys support and trust and self-dependence in all spheres, have yielded results. Prime Minister Modi understands that every nation needs security and economic development -- in that order -- and that is why his National Security Advisor plays a direct role in the framing of foreign policy. Modis personal outreach to world leaders has helped India to adopt an independent stance on geopolitical developments. This has in turn facilitated this countrys rise as a world power whose voice mattered on issues of global peace and human development. PMs far-sighted approach to environmental protection is reflected in his idea of individuals making a contribution to the same through lifestyle changes. Modis stature as a world leader has gone up and so has Indias position as a country on the frontline in the comity of nations. (IANS) n TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, March 13. President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a law ratifying the Protection of Wages Convention on March 12, Trend reports. According to the Ministry of Justice, the Senate adopted the measure in February. After signing, Uzbekistan will become the hundredth party to the International Labor Protection Convention (No. 95), signed in 1949 in Geneva. The agreement aims to ensure that companies pay their employees' wages on time. It applies to all areas of economic activity and to all types of workers. Based on the Convention, salaries shall be paid only in the currency that is legally circulated in the country. Wages cannot be paid in the form of debentures, receipts, coupons, or other forms that appear to correspond to currency. In certain industries and professions, partial payment of wages in kind is allowed, provided that the goods are of fair and reasonable value and are useful to the worker. No payment in the form of liquor or narcotic drugs is allowed. Also, the Convention allows deductions from wages only in amounts determined by national law or collective bargaining agreements. Salaries are protected from seizure to the extent deemed necessary for the accommodation of workers and their families. Prior to Uzbekistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkiye, Israel, Italy, France, and Brazil, among others, ratified the convention. Financial Insights Inc. purchased a new position in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 2,646 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock, valued at approximately $1,417,000. Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Robbins Farley acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 340.0% in the third quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 66 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the first quarter valued at about $35,000. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group in the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC grew its stake in UnitedHealth Group by 38.6% during the 3rd quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 79 shares of the healthcare conglomerates stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. 85.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get UnitedHealth Group alerts: Insider Transactions at UnitedHealth Group In other news, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total transaction of $451,127.82. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares of the companys stock, valued at $16,977,233.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other UnitedHealth Group news, EVP Erin Mcsweeney sold 1,236 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $483.48, for a total value of $597,581.28. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,364 shares in the company, valued at $4,527,306.72. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Thomas E. Roos sold 858 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $525.79, for a total value of $451,127.82. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,289 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $16,977,233.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders. UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance UNH stock traded up $5.12 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $494.47. 524,328 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,191,537. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $445.68 and a 1-year high of $554.70. The companys fifty day moving average price is $512.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $518.27. The firm has a market cap of $455.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.54. UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $6.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $5.98 by $0.18. UnitedHealth Group had a return on equity of 26.39% and a net margin of 6.02%. The company had revenue of $94.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.34 EPS. The firms quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 27.79 EPS for the current fiscal year. UnitedHealth Group Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $1.88 per share. This represents a $7.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 8th. UnitedHealth Groups dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.54%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens restated an overweight rating and set a $605.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Barclays assumed coverage on UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an overweight rating and a $551.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America restated a buy rating and set a $675.00 price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on UnitedHealth Group from $565.00 to $503.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 20th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $610.00 target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a report on Thursday, November 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $579.33. Get Our Latest Stock Report on UnitedHealth Group UnitedHealth Group Company Profile (Free Report) UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for UnitedHealth Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for UnitedHealth Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL grew its holdings in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW Free Report) by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,425 shares of the financial services providers stock after purchasing an additional 1,325 shares during the period. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. ALs holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $1,176,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Signet Financial Management LLC grew its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 49,378 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $4,111,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Investment Advisory Services Inc. TX ADV now owns 32,642 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,718,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 34,807 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,973,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 16.6% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,239 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Architects LLC lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Architects LLC now owns 2,609 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.61% of the companys stock. Get Charles Schwab alerts: Charles Schwab Price Performance NYSE SCHW traded up $0.88 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $67.38. 2,231,558 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,638,831. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $64.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.49. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 1 year low of $45.65 and a 1 year high of $71.40. The company has a market cap of $119.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement Charles Schwab ( NYSE:SCHW Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.04. Charles Schwab had a return on equity of 21.33% and a net margin of 26.90%. The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.49 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.07 earnings per share. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that The Charles Schwab Co. will post 3.34 EPS for the current fiscal year. The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Charles Schwabs dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.37%. Insider Activity In related news, CFO Peter B. Crawford sold 4,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.49, for a total value of $257,960.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 37,611 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,425,533.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Peter B. Crawford sold 8,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total value of $518,080.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 29,611 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,917,608.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Peter B. Crawford sold 4,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.49, for a total value of $257,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 37,611 shares in the company, valued at $2,425,533.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 202,607 shares of company stock valued at $13,214,499. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Charles Schwab from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and reduced their target price for the company from $75.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, January 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a neutral rating and set a $71.00 price objective (up from $70.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Citigroup downgraded Charles Schwab from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Charles Schwab in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. They set a market perform rating and a $77.00 target price on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Charles Schwab from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $69.92. View Our Latest Analysis on Charles Schwab Charles Schwab Company Profile (Free Report) The Charles Schwab Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a savings and loan holding company that provides wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Investor Services and Advisor Services. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SCHW? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Charles Schwab Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Charles Schwab and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL lifted its holdings in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK Free Report) by 14.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,588 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 5,758 shares during the period. Merck & Co., Inc. comprises about 2.0% of Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. ALs investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. ALs holdings in Merck & Co., Inc. were worth $4,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 118,562,086 shares of the companys stock valued at $13,766,428,000 after buying an additional 2,174,829 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 82,442,666 shares of the companys stock valued at $8,487,472,000 after buying an additional 5,196,914 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,723,457 shares of the companys stock valued at $6,068,750,000 after buying an additional 1,504,701 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 41,850,081 shares of the companys stock valued at $4,643,267,000 after buying an additional 4,000,816 shares during the period. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Merck & Co., Inc. by 103,159.7% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 39,327,490 shares of the companys stock valued at $4,363,385,000 after buying an additional 39,289,404 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.59% of the companys stock. Get Merck & Co. Inc. alerts: Merck & Co., Inc. Stock Down 0.6 % NYSE:MRK traded down $0.75 on Wednesday, reaching $121.91. 2,522,295 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,719,026. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a market capitalization of $308.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 876.14, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.37. Merck & Co., Inc. has a 12 month low of $99.14 and a 12 month high of $130.24. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $123.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.39. Merck & Co., Inc. Dividend Announcement Merck & Co., Inc. ( NYSE:MRK Get Free Report ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.12. The business had revenue of $14.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $14.49 billion. Merck & Co., Inc. had a net margin of 0.61% and a return on equity of 9.33%. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Merck & Co., Inc. will post 8.58 EPS for the current fiscal year. The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. Merck & Co., Inc.s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,200.00%. Insiders Place Their Bets In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total value of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,569 shares in the company, valued at $2,443,972.41. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Merck & Co., Inc. news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 50,694 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.65, for a total value of $6,420,395.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,619 shares in the company, valued at $2,991,346.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph Romanelli sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.89, for a total transaction of $124,890.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,569 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,443,972.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the companys stock. Analyst Ratings Changes Several brokerages have weighed in on MRK. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Merck & Co., Inc. from $122.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $129.14. Read Our Latest Report on Merck & Co., Inc. Merck & Co., Inc. Profile (Free Report) Merck & Co, Inc operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, and diabetes under the Keytruda, Bridion, Adempas, Lagevrio, Belsomra, Simponi, and Januvia brands, as well as vaccine products consisting of preventive pediatric, adolescent, and adult vaccines under the Gardasil/Gardasil 9, ProQuad, M-M-R II, Varivax, RotaTeq, Live Oral, Vaxneuvance, Pneumovax 23, and Vaqta names. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MRK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Merck & Co. Inc. and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Bank of America from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Briefing.com reports. They currently have a $86.00 price objective on the financial services providers stock, up from their previous price objective of $80.00. Bank of Americas price objective would suggest a potential upside of 0.12% from the companys previous close. A number of other analysts have also weighed in on BRO. StockNews.com lowered Brown & Brown from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $75.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Brown & Brown from a buy rating to a hold rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Raymond James lifted their price objective on Brown & Brown from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Brown & Brown has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $83.60. Get Brown & Brown alerts: Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Brown & Brown Brown & Brown Stock Performance Shares of NYSE:BRO opened at $85.90 on Wednesday. Brown & Brown has a twelve month low of $52.82 and a twelve month high of $86.53. The firm has a market cap of $24.55 billion, a PE ratio of 28.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.95 and a current ratio of 1.95. The business has a fifty day moving average of $79.17 and a 200-day moving average of $74.44. Brown & Brown (NYSE:BRO Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.05. Brown & Brown had a return on equity of 15.46% and a net margin of 20.44%. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Brown & Brown will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brown & Brown A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 51,561 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $3,601,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 11,845 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $680,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,316 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 25,801 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,481,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tributary Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Brown & Brown by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 16,677 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.33% of the companys stock. Brown & Brown Company Profile (Get Free Report) Brown & Brown, Inc markets and sells insurance products and services in the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage, and Services. The Retail segment provides property and casualty, employee benefits insurance products, personal insurance products, specialties insurance products, risk management strategies, loss control survey and analysis, consultancy, and claims processing services. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Brown & Brown Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Brown & Brown and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA reduced its position in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSEARCA:EWJ Free Report) by 97.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,417 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 891,495 shares during the period. Banque Pictet & Cie SAs holdings in iShares MSCI Japan ETF were worth $1,412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EWJ. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 15.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 202,282 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $12,462,000 after acquiring an additional 27,428 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 37.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 92,661 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $5,807,000 after purchasing an additional 25,415 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 89,447 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $5,511,000 after buying an additional 11,850 shares during the last quarter. Wit LLC acquired a new stake in iShares MSCI Japan ETF in the first quarter worth $239,000. Finally, Founders Financial Securities LLC bought a new stake in iShares MSCI Japan ETF in the first quarter valued at $2,797,000. Get iShares MSCI Japan ETF alerts: iShares MSCI Japan ETF Stock Performance Shares of EWJ opened at $69.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $67.12 and a 200-day moving average of $63.44. The company has a market cap of $14.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 0.68. iShares MSCI Japan ETF has a 1 year low of $54.56 and a 1 year high of $71.75. iShares MSCI Japan ETF Company Profile iShares MSCI Japan ETF (the fund), formerly Ishares Msci Japan Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Japanese market, as measured by the MSCI Japan Index (the Index). Read More Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI Japan ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI Japan ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Modera Wealth Management LLC increased its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:IWO Free Report) by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,452 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLCs holdings in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF were worth $6,602,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in IWO. Visionary Wealth Advisors boosted its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF by 0.6% in the second quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 8,572 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $2,080,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF by 1.0% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 5,069 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,139,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC boosted its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF by 0.7% in the second quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 6,888 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,671,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC boosted its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF by 5.9% in the third quarter. McGuire Investment Group LLC now owns 904 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Family Office LLC boosted its position in iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF by 1.2% in the second quarter. Boston Family Office LLC now owns 4,402 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,068,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Get iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF alerts: iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF Trading Up 0.3 % Shares of IWO stock opened at $266.50 on Wednesday. iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF has a 1 year low of $203.42 and a 1 year high of $273.76. The firms 50 day moving average is $253.06 and its 200-day moving average is $236.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.55 and a beta of 1.15. About iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (the Fund) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF). The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Russell 2000 Growth Index (the Index). The Index measures the performance of the small-capitalization growth sector of the United States equity market. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding IWO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:IWO Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, February 23rd, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of 0.20 per share by the industrial products company on Friday, March 29th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Mueller Industriess previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Mueller Industries has raised its dividend by an average of 44.2% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. Mueller Industries has a payout ratio of 21.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Get Mueller Industries alerts: Mueller Industries Trading Down 0.2 % Shares of NYSE MLI opened at $51.84 on Wednesday. Mueller Industries has a twelve month low of $32.94 and a twelve month high of $52.72. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.89 billion, a PE ratio of 9.75 and a beta of 1.08. Insider Activity Mueller Industries ( NYSE:MLI Get Free Report ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter. Mueller Industries had a return on equity of 27.59% and a net margin of 17.63%. The firm had revenue of $732.38 million during the quarter. In other news, CFO Jeffrey Andrew Martin sold 47,280 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.25, for a total value of $2,328,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 370,840 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $18,263,870. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Mueller Industries news, Director John B. Hansen sold 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.33, for a total transaction of $246,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 18,000 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $887,940. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Andrew Martin sold 47,280 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.25, for a total value of $2,328,540.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 370,840 shares of the companys stock, valued at $18,263,870. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 164,602 shares of company stock valued at $7,775,459. Insiders own 2.80% of the companys stock. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mueller Industries Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Industries in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 54.9% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 841 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $110,000. First Manhattan CO. LLC. grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 1,500 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 566.3% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 1,839 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,563 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.50% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Mueller Industries from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Northcoast Research reaffirmed a neutral rating on shares of Mueller Industries in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Read Our Latest Report on MLI About Mueller Industries (Get Free Report) Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and sells copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, the Middle East, China, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Mueller Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Mueller Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Nabors Industries Ltd. (NYSE:NBR Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of Hold from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $129.60. A number of brokerages recently commented on NBR. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Nabors Industries from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Benchmark cut shares of Nabors Industries from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Susquehanna restated a neutral rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Nabors Industries in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Nabors Industries from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. Finally, Atb Cap Markets cut shares of Nabors Industries from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Get Nabors Industries alerts: Read Our Latest Report on Nabors Industries Nabors Industries Stock Down 2.2 % Nabors Industries stock opened at $82.59 on Wednesday. Nabors Industries has a twelve month low of $71.42 and a twelve month high of $141.47. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $80.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.75. The company has a market capitalization of $782.13 million, a P/E ratio of -16.01 and a beta of 2.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.63. Nabors Industries (NYSE:NBR Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($3.84) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of ($1.54) by ($2.30). The company had revenue of $737.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $749.52 million. Nabors Industries had a negative net margin of 0.66% and a negative return on equity of 17.50%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Nabors Industries will post -4.3 EPS for the current year. Institutional Trading of Nabors Industries Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Nabors Industries by 111.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 397,102 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $32,415,000 after purchasing an additional 209,450 shares in the last quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Nabors Industries by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP now owns 26,499 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $2,163,000 after buying an additional 8,164 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of Nabors Industries by 268.6% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 20,736 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $1,693,000 after buying an additional 15,110 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nabors Industries by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 5,312 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Nabors Industries by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 28,095 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $2,293,000 after buying an additional 674 shares during the last quarter. 80.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Nabors Industries Company Profile (Get Free Report Nabors Industries Ltd. provides drilling and drilling-related services for land-based and offshore oil and natural gas wells in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: U.S. Drilling, International Drilling, Drilling Solutions, and Rig Technologies. It provides tubular running services, including casing and tubing running, and torque monitoring; managed pressure drilling services; and drilling-bit steering systems and rig instrumentation software. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Nabors Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Nabors Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of nVent Electric (NYSE:NVT Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Briefing.com reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $83.00 target price on the stock. Several other research firms have also commented on NVT. Citigroup lifted their price target on nVent Electric from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on nVent Electric from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $68.40. Get nVent Electric alerts: Get Our Latest Research Report on NVT nVent Electric Trading Up 2.3 % nVent Electric stock opened at $69.89 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market cap of $11.54 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74 and a beta of 1.34. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $62.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.78. nVent Electric has a 12 month low of $40.00 and a 12 month high of $70.29. nVent Electric (NYSE:NVT Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $861.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $866.90 million. nVent Electric had a return on equity of 17.53% and a net margin of 17.38%. The firms quarterly revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. Analysts anticipate that nVent Electric will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current year. nVent Electric Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. nVent Electrics dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.55%. Insider Buying and Selling at nVent Electric In other nVent Electric news, Director Jerry W. Burris sold 4,008 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.39, for a total value of $254,067.12. Following the sale, the director now owns 43,072 shares of the companys stock, valued at $2,730,334.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Joseph A. Ruzynski sold 2,500 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.23, for a total value of $160,575.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,313,114.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jerry W. Burris sold 4,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.39, for a total value of $254,067.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 43,072 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,730,334.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 400,252 shares of company stock worth $25,713,777. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in nVent Electric by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,056 shares of the companys stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in nVent Electric by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,216 shares of the companys stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in nVent Electric by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 39,806 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,352,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in nVent Electric by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 5,368 shares of the companys stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC increased its position in shares of nVent Electric by 123.2% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 424 shares of the companys stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.76% of the companys stock. About nVent Electric (Get Free Report) nVent Electric plc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, markets, installs, and services electrical connection and protection solutions in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Enclosures, Electrical & Fastening Solutions, and Thermal Management. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for nVent Electric Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for nVent Electric and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Laman Ismayilova Root K Contemporary in Tokyo will host a group exhibition themed "Azerbaijani Cuisine" on March 16-17. Nearly 15 young artists representing KamART Art Gallery will present 32 art works as part of the exhibition with the support of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Japan, Azernews reports. Azerbaijani cuisine belongs to one of the most interesting and original culinary traditions in the world, it is based on centuries-old traditions and is famous for its original dishes. It is widely known and very popular among other oriental cuisines, and some of its dishes are even included in the international menu. The unique dishes of Azerbaijani cuisine cannot be confused with any others; they evoke enthusiastic responses from the most sophisticated gourmets. The main purpose of the exhibition is to draw attention to the cultural heritage and culinary traditions of Azerbaijan and support talented young artists. Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az, and Milli.Az. Protalix BioTherapeutics (NYSE:PLX Get Free Report) is set to release its earnings data on Thursday, March 14th. Protalix BioTherapeutics Stock Performance NYSE:PLX opened at $1.43 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $102.36 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.61 and a beta of 0.91. Protalix BioTherapeutics has a fifty-two week low of $1.21 and a fifty-two week high of $3.55. The companys 50-day moving average price is $1.54. Get Protalix BioTherapeutics alerts: Institutional Trading of Protalix BioTherapeutics A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics by 160.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 56,415 shares of the companys stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 34,763 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. purchased a new position in shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics in the second quarter worth approximately $90,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics in the first quarter worth approximately $72,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics in the third quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Protalix BioTherapeutics during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 12.51% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of research firms have weighed in on PLX. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Monday, December 25th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $10.00 price target on shares of Protalix BioTherapeutics in a report on Tuesday, November 14th. Read Our Latest Stock Report on PLX About Protalix BioTherapeutics (Get Free Report) Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development, production, and commercialization of recombinant therapeutic proteins based on its proprietary ProCellEx plant cell-based protein expression system in the United States, Australia, Canada, Israel, Brazil, Russia, Turkey, and internationally. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Protalix BioTherapeutics Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Protalix BioTherapeutics and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Southern Cross Media Group Limited (ASX:SXL Get Free Report) announced a interim dividend on Wednesday, March 13th, MarketIndexAU reports. Investors of record on Thursday, April 11th will be given a dividend of 0.01 per share on Thursday, April 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 13th. Southern Cross Media Group Price Performance The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 59.31, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.67. Get Southern Cross Media Group alerts: About Southern Cross Media Group (Get Free Report) Read More Southern Cross Media Group Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the creation of audio content for distribution on broadcast and digital networks. It operates in two segments, Audio and Television. The company owns 99 radio stations in FM, AM, and DAB+ radio, as well as 34 regional radio stations; broadcasts 93 free to air TV signals in regional Australia; operates LiSTNR, an audio destination for consumers housing radio, podcasts, music, and news; and offers sales representation for open audio platform SoundCloud and Sonos Radio. Receive News & Ratings for Southern Cross Media Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Southern Cross Media Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Unum Group (NYSE:UNM Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of Moderate Buy from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $55.44. Several analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Unum Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Unum Group from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $55.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Unum Group from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Unum Group from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Unum Group from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 15th. Get Unum Group alerts: Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on UNM Unum Group Trading Up 1.1 % Shares of UNM stock opened at $50.89 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Unum Group has a 1-year low of $36.27 and a 1-year high of $52.15. The company has a market cap of $9.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.84, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.86. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $46.95. Unum Group (NYSE:UNM Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.07). Unum Group had a return on equity of 16.03% and a net margin of 10.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.43 earnings per share. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Unum Group will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year. Unum Group Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 26th were issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 25th. Unum Groups dividend payout ratio is presently 22.50%. Insider Transactions at Unum Group In other news, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,042,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Richard P. Mckenney sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.15, for a total transaction of $2,457,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,076,753 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $52,922,409.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa G. Iglesias sold 16,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $800,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,042,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,000 shares of company stock worth $3,507,500. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Unum Group Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in Unum Group by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 61,304 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,932,000 after purchasing an additional 2,370 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC raised its position in Unum Group by 33.2% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 15,247 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $480,000 after purchasing an additional 3,799 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $348,000. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in Unum Group by 61.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 76,618 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 29,166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new stake in Unum Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $227,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.37% of the companys stock. About Unum Group (Get Free Report Unum Group, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial protection benefit solutions primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom, Poland, and internationally. It operates through Unum US, Unum International, Colonial Life, and Closed Block and Corporate segments. The company offers group long-term and short-term disability, group life, and accidental death and dismemberment products; supplemental and voluntary products, such as individual disability, voluntary benefits, and dental and vision products; and accident, sickness, disability, life, and cancer and critical illness products. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Unum Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Unum Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF Free Report) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,570,058 shares of the financial services providers stock after acquiring an additional 246,349 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 0.06% of Raymond James worth $1,161,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RJF. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Raymond James in the 4th quarter valued at about $206,765,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James by 26.7% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,876,054 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $641,330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,448,047 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James by 214.5% in the 1st quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,141,564 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $106,474,000 after purchasing an additional 778,644 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 17,196,715 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,784,503,000 after purchasing an additional 772,492 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James by 35.1% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,278,272 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $243,433,000 after purchasing an additional 591,327 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.00% of the companys stock. Get Raymond James alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research analysts have recently issued reports on RJF shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $116.00 target price (down previously from $125.00) on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Raymond James from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $110.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. They set a market perform rating and a $121.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $116.00 to $115.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Raymond James presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $119.25. Insider Activity In other news, EVP Jonathan N. Santelli sold 1,891 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.91, for a total value of $211,621.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,491 shares in the company, valued at $2,405,057.81. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Jonathan N. Santelli sold 1,891 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.91, for a total value of $211,621.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 21,491 shares in the company, valued at $2,405,057.81. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven M. Raney sold 930 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total transaction of $102,690.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 55,618 shares in the company, valued at $6,141,339.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.74% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Raymond James Stock Performance Shares of RJF opened at $118.94 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.99. Raymond James has a twelve month low of $82.00 and a twelve month high of $122.40. The firms 50 day moving average price is $114.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.60. The firm has a market cap of $24.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.90, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.04. Raymond James (NYSE:RJF Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.15. Raymond James had a net margin of 12.81% and a return on equity of 17.95%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. The businesss revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Raymond James will post 9.2 EPS for the current fiscal year. Raymond James Dividend Announcement The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 1st will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 28th. Raymond Jamess payout ratio is currently 22.56%. About Raymond James (Free Report) Raymond James Financial, Inc, a financial holding company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the underwriting, distribution, trading, and brokerage of equity and debt securities, and the sale of mutual funds and other investment products in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Private Client Group, Capital Markets, Asset Management, RJ Bank, and Other segments. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding RJF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Raymond James (NYSE:RJF Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Raymond James Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Raymond James and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP reduced its stake in shares of LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB Free Report) by 5.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,721,702 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock after selling 524,584 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 2.69% of LyondellBasell Industries worth $825,945,000 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 stock. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of LyondellBasell Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at about $481,000. Pantechnicon Advisors LLP raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 89.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pantechnicon Advisors LLP now owns 167,000 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $15,815,000 after purchasing an additional 79,000 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 27,435 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $2,598,000 after purchasing an additional 3,238 shares during the period. Aurora Investment Counsel raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 17,031 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $1,613,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the period. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in LyondellBasell Industries by 27.9% during the 3rd quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 8,021 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 1,749 shares during the period. 91.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get LyondellBasell Industries alerts: Insider Transactions at LyondellBasell Industries In other news, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 9,489 shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.92, for a total value of $938,651.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 89,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,847,899.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Chukwuemeka A. Oyolu sold 7,084 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.47, for a total transaction of $711,729.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,770,460.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth Todd Lane sold 9,489 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.92, for a total value of $938,651.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 89,445 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $8,847,899.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,802 shares of company stock worth $4,549,606. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. LyondellBasell Industries Price Performance Shares of LyondellBasell Industries stock opened at $100.52 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $32.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $96.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.37. LyondellBasell Industries has a one year low of $81.24 and a one year high of $102.93. LyondellBasell Industries (NYSE:LYB Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.33 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $9.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $9.85 billion. LyondellBasell Industries had a return on equity of 21.89% and a net margin of 5.16%. LyondellBasell Industriess revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. Equities analysts expect that LyondellBasell Industries will post 8.86 EPS for the current year. LyondellBasell Industries Dividend Announcement The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th were issued a $1.25 dividend. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 1st. LyondellBasell Industriess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.28%. Analyst Ratings Changes LYB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Vertical Research raised LyondellBasell Industries from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Barclays decreased their target price on LyondellBasell Industries from $102.00 to $98.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $105.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. Citigroup downgraded LyondellBasell Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on LyondellBasell Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued an underperform rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $100.92. Check Out Our Latest Report on LYB LyondellBasell Industries Profile (Free Report) LyondellBasell Industries N.V. operates as a chemical company in the United States, Germany, Mexico, Italy, Poland, France, Japan, China, the Netherlands, and internationally. The company operates in six segments: Olefins and PolyolefinsAmericas; Olefins and PolyolefinsEurope, Asia, International; Intermediates and Derivatives; Advanced Polymer Solutions; Refining; and Technology. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for LyondellBasell Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for LyondellBasell Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. A total of 12 nuclear radioactive irradiation centers will be put into operation in Iran from the 2nd month of the next Iranian year (April 20, 2024) until the end of the year (March 20, 2025), Iran's Vice President and Chairman of the Atomic Energy Organization Mohammad Eslami said to reporters after the Cabinet Ministers meeting, Trend reports. According to Eslami, the radioactive exposure centers are planned to be introduced in stages. Iranian officials did not specify in which cities the centers would be opened. Eslami added that Iran will start irradiating agricultural products for the first time in a few years. This irradiation will be increasingly felt in people's lives. To note, Iran declares its intention to use the nuclear industry for peaceful purposes and aims to utilize the industry in power generation, agriculture, and other sectors. Meanwhile, a comprehensive plan for joint action on Iran's nuclear program was implemented between Iran and the P5+1 group (US, Russia, China, UK, France, and Germany) in January 2016. The US announced in May 2018 that it was withdrawing from this plan, and in November of the same year, it imposed sanctions on Iran. Iran announced in 2020 that there would be no restrictions on Iran in the nuclear deal. The Iranian Parliament, referring to the imposition of sanctions against Iran, decided at the end of 2020 to implement the Nuclear Strategic Plan to lift the sanctions. According to the decision of the Iranian parliament, the country suspended the implementation of additional steps and additional protocols stipulated by the nuclear agreement on February 23. At the same time, the IAEA control mechanism has been reduced by 2030 percent. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel That release could not be found. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. The statements of the Armenian authorities regarding the termination of the work of Russian border guards at Zvartnots airport won't contribute to the security of Armenia, the Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said during a briefing, Trend reports. She claims that all decisions are expected to be taken by the Russian side after the inter-ministerial talks. "The Armenian side made the aforementioned announcement in the context of a string of hostile actions and declarations from official Yerevan. Considering the duties that Russian and Armenian border guards have successfully performed side by side for many years, such an attempt is unlikely to serve the interests of Armenia's security and its citizens," Zakharova noted. Earlier, the Chairman of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan said that Russian border guards should cease their work at Zvartnots Airport in Yerevan. "I did not participate in the discussion of the withdrawal of Russian border guards from Zvartnots Airport, but I think it would be right if they left," the parliament speaker told reporters. Simonyan expressed skepticism about the ability of Russian border guards to protect Armenia's borders in an emergency. Armenia sent an official letter to Russia regarding the presence of Russian border guards at the airport. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The West Orange-Stark High choir raised money to travel to New York City during spring break. They will be seeing landmarks and performing at different venues. Lawrence Ingram is choir director. The battle for Texas House of Representatives District 21 is now in a runoff and will depend on how many people get out and vote in the Republican primary runoff on May 28. According to the Orange County Elections Administration, the county has 54,871 voters and a little more than 41,000 did not cast a ballot in last week's primary race. Of those voting, 12,834 voted in the Republican primary and only 981 in the Democratic primary. Anyone who did not vote in a primary race may vote in the Republican primary runoff. The 981 Democratic primary voters may not cross a party line and vote in the runoff. Nearly 53,900 voters in Orange County will be eligible to vote in the Republican primary. The number could increase if more people register in time for the runoff. Incumbent Dade Phelan, who serves as the powerful speaker of the Texas house, is facing David Covey of Mauriceville for the district that includes Orange and Jasper counties, plus part of Jefferson County. The runoff will be Tuesday, May 28. Early voting will run only five days, between Monday, May 20, and Friday, May 24. The last day to register to vote is April 29. District-wide, including Jasper and part of Jefferson counties, Covey chalked up 15,579 votes, or 46.3 percent, with Phelan at 14,547, or 43.2 percent. Alicia Davis of Jasper threw the race into a runoff by getting 3,517 votes, or 10.7 percent, mostly in Jasper County. Davis campaigned on eliminating all property taxes, but did not propose an alternative way for counties, cities, and school districts to pay for their basic services. She is now endorsing Covey, who also wants to stop property taxes. In Orange County, Covey received 8,203 votes, or 54.52 percent, with Phelan getting 5,911, or 39.33 percent, and Alicia Davis of Jasper getting 925, or 6.15 percent. In Orange County, the Republican primary brought the same kind of political divisions seen across the United States in recent years. In a split vote last year, the local Republican party censured Phelan for working with Democrats. Cheryl Warren of Mauriceville, who started the Orange County Freedom Caucus and the School Integrity Project accusing Bridge City ISD of having "dirty" books, beat sitting OC Republican Chair Leo LaBauve III, who did not want to censure Phelan. Warren was endorsed by Attorney General Paxton and Lieutenant Governor Patrick. The division brought about unusual contested races for Republican precinct chairs. A group calling itself "Restoring American Values" supported LaBauve, plus Gary Self, Stephanie Roberts, John Dubose, Kandice Bacon, and Robert Simonton for precinct chairs. O those, only Dubose and Simonton won. For Precinct 9, Genevieve Garrison beat Gary Self 304-217. Tim Morrison beat Stephanie Roberts, 242 to 126 for Precinct 15. John P. Dubose, a former county commissioner and county judge candidate, beat Trudy Pellerin 149 to 90 for Precinct 2 chair. Rachel Stein, who describes herself as "Neighbor. Christian. Patriot" won the Precinct 26 chair 177 to 128 against Kandice Bacon. Robert Simonton beat Aaron Collier 470-360 for the Precinct 28 chair. The District 21 race has drawn national attention as Covey as gained endorsements from former president Donald Trump, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick. Trump, Paxton, and Patrick have long supported each other. Phelan last year, as speaker of the house, led a bipartisan impeachment hearing for Paxton. The impeachment procedures began after Paxton settled a lawsuit by former attorneys in his office who accused him of wrong-doings, including giving favors to wealth supporters. Paxton asked the state to pay for the $3 million to go to the former assistant attorney generals. Phelan refused for the state to pay the money and the Texas house began an investigation into Paxton and voted in favor of the impeachment. However, the Texas Senate, under Patrick's leadership, voted down the impeachment and Paxton remained in office. Governor Greg Abbott has not endorsed anyone in the race, but has been behind the scenes trying to oust representatives who opposed his longtime plan for school vouchers in the state. Under the voucher system, parents may receive public tax money to pay for their children's private schools, including religious ones, or for homeschooling. Phelan and many representatives in rural Texas have opposed the voucher system. Covey was homeschooled and has supported vouchers. He is a former Orange County Republican chair and worked for U.S. Representative Steve Stockman from 2013-15. Covey's brother, Jonathan, is director of policy for Texas Values, a Christian lobbying group in Austin. The lobby's website says "The Texas Values vision is to stand for biblical, Judeo-Christian values by ensuring Texas is a state in which religious liberty flourishes, families prosper, and every human life is valued." Incumbent Dade Phelan Covey has also drawn large financial support from a political action group founded by West Texas oil billionaire Tim Dunn, recently featured in a Texas Monthly story about his support for Christian politicians. Phelan has the support of former governor Rick Perry and former state representative Ron Lewis, whose district included Orange County. Phelan also is touting his record of helping get more money for Lamar State College Orange, Lamar University, and Lamar State College Port Arthur, plus getting money to Orange County for drainage projects and other public works. Many county and city officials here are backing Phelan and giving him credit for helping to entice the new $8.5 billion Chevron Phillips Chemical plant here. J.W. Link and his wife, Ihna Imola Holland Link, are photographed together in the early 1900s. The couple built a grand mansion in 1903 on Green Avenue at Ninth Street in downtown Orange. Link also served as mayor here and moved to Houston in 1910, where he developed the Montrose community. In the Gilded Age, Green Avenue in Orange was lined with mansions and grand houses. The biggest and most elaborate of the mansions was built by J.W. Link, a lawyer who owned a lumber mill. Link also served as mayor of Orange, but a few years later, moved to Houston, where he became a major land developer and founded the Montrose subdivision. His mansion in Houston, similar to his one in Orange, still stands today and serves as administrative offices for St. Thomas University on Montrose Avenue. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Who knows what would have happened if he had stayed in Orange? And did the election in 1903 when voters here made the decision to close the saloons have anything to do with his leaving? We may never know. According to the book "Orange: Gateway to Texas" by Dr. Howard Williams, Link was elected mayor in 1900. He began a program to grade and pave the streets. In those days, the "paving" meant covering with clam shell. Paved streets would have been a major improvement project for Orange with its dirt-clay streets that became muddy in the frequent rains. But in 1903, voters in Orange County decided to make the county dry, which meant the saloons in downtown Orange would have to close down. Link said he couldn't make the improvements he envisioned for the city without the liquor tax income from the saloons and resigned. The Texas State Historical Association's online biography of Link says he was born in 1866 near Gallatin, Texas. He studied law at Baylor and was admitted to the state bar in 1888 at the age of 22. In 1891 he became a member of the Amarillo law firm Holland and Holland. That same year he married a partner's daughter, Ihna Imola Holland. The online biography reports the Link family moved to Orange in 1895, but Dr. Williams' history of Orange says the year was 1896. Williams' local history book 'Gateway to Texas' says Link came to Orange to practice law with Judge J.A. Holland and George Holland. Link bought a lumber mill here in 1902 in partnership with his friend Leopold Miller. They formed the Miller-Link Lumber Company. "Gateway to Texas" says Link joined with other local lumbermen, W.H. Stark, Dr. E.W. Brown, and F.H. Farwell to establish the Yellow Pine Paper Mill, which stayed open nearly a century. The mill used scaps from the lumber industry to make into paper products. In 1903, Link and his wife built the mansion on Green Avenue. The Three-story house used the Greek revival style and had tall Corinthian columns. The grand exterior stairs leading to the entrance were built in marble. A newspaper story in 1958 published when the house was being demolished reported it had cut-glass windows in every room. Each bedroom had a fireplace and a bathroom, complete with rare-for-those-days sinks and bathtubs of pastel porcelain. A domed conservatory housed tropical plants including soaring palm trees. Link planted palms in front of the house, too. Those palms are almost shrub-like in old photographs but the two palms grew tall with long trunks. They stayed long after the house was demolished and a windstorm blew them down in the early 1990s. When the Links moved to Houston in 1910, Dr. Edgar Brown and his wife, Carrie Lutcher Brown, bought the mansion for their daughter, Fannye Brown Moore. Mrs. Brown moved into it the mansion in 1917 after the doctor's death. Fannye Moore died in 1918 at the age of 27 during Great Influenza pandemic, leaving behind a young daughter. Carrie Lutcher Brown lived at the mansion there until her death in 1941, according to Dr. Williams' book. However, the Brown family history includes her moving to Europe and living in Paris for a while until the outbreak of World War II. First Presbyterian Church was built next to the mansion and was under construction when the Links moved to Houston. After Carrie Lutcher Brown's death, the Brown family donated the house and property to the church. For more than a decade, the mansion was used for Sunday school classes and for Presbyterian Day School. It was demolished because of termites and the upkeep was too expensive for the church. A recent history report by the City of Houston's Planning and Development Office describes Link as "one of Houston's most prominent businessmen." The history said Link named Montrose Boulevard after the historic town in Scotland as written by Sir Walter Scott. While in Houston, Link didn't spend all his time working and developing the city's first restricted subdivision. He also helped start the No-Tsu-Oh Carnival in 1912, described as Houston's answer to Mardi Gras. He had many other business accomplishments. Link had many more business accomplishments. According to the Texas Historical Commission online biography, he became president of Link Oil Co. and the general manager of the Kirby Lumber Co. in 1912. In 1926 he was the first chairman of the board for the American General Insurance Co. Then in 1929 he became the president of the parent company of Dr Pepper. Link died on March 18, 1933, at the age of 66, leaving his wife and five children as survivors. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Yerevan doesn't realize the true intentions of the French patrons, the Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said during a briefing, Trend reports. "Yerevan seems to be unaware of the genuine intentions of his alleged French supporters or the dangers associated with increasing their military presence in the area, as evidenced by his shift toward France and his expansion of military-technical collaboration. It foolishly thinks that France is prepared or capable of securing Armenia's security," she said. "If France had such capabilities, it would apply them in countries where it had contractual obligations and where it was obligated to do so, as it received money for them." She claims that the current French authorities, veiled in false promises of peace and solidarity, are not motivated by the interests of Armenia or the Armenian people. "They are guided by their bruised geopolitical ambitions and anti-Russian sentiments, and the future of Armenia and the entire South Caucasus is simply a tool for Paris, a bargaining chip, one of the ways to maintain their own well-being and preserve their reputation, including against the backdrop of the hybrid war with our country," she added. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Questions for political parties Run up to LS polls | The crucial question is whether Manipur has learnt any lesson during the last ten months of violence or not. No clear cut answer here, but what is clear is the emergence of numerous power centres, each with its own set of agenda, but emerging all in the name of doing something for the people and the place. And power centres emerge or arise only when the necessary vacuum is created. Nearly one year since the clash erupted in all its ugliness in the evening of May 3, 2023 and New Delhi and Imphal continue to grope in the dark, not knowing what formula or step should be taken to restore normalcy. In as much as the common people are confused, not knowing when normalcy will actually return, the political leaders of the day too seem lost. Forget about the return of normalcy, the disturbing point is, there is nothing to suggest that some steps are being taken up to explore the possibility of helping Manipur take her first step towards normalcy. This is what is hard to digest and lest one forgets, Imphal and New Delhi should not interpret the lull in confrontation and clash as peace returning. And peace should be understood beyond the realm of the ongoing ethnic clash but within the context of the daily life of the people. No one seems to know when violence will erupt constraining the people to come out on the streets and throw their own understood sense of security around their settlements. No one seems to know what steps the Government is studying to restore normalcy and who Imphal is consulting to break the impasse. It should however be clear to everyone that any effort to restore normalcy will run into a dead end as long as one side of the party in the conflict continues to stick to slogans such as Solution First, Peace Later. One wonders whether such a stand has been highlighted to New Delhi and the Central leaders or not, but this is a point which Imphal should have taken note of and accordingly highlighted to the people concerned. And if the past is any indication, Manipur too, like the rest of the Nation will be caught up in activities mainly related to the coming Parliamentary elections, and the question is whether the different political parties, particularly the big two-BJP and the Congress-will sing the same tune in so far as the ongoing clash is concerned, or whether this will be used to deliver a point or two against the other. Will the BJP continue to hark back on the misdeeds of the past Governments meaning the Congress and will the Congress go on the offensive against the failure of the BJP led Government to rein in the situation ? This is but one distinct possibility and in a way the maturity and mentality of the candidates and the parties concerned will be reflected on how it deals with the issue in their bid to earn the support of the people. Let it be very clear. The issue confronting the people and the place should not be seen through the narrow prism of political divides. It should also not be used to earn the sympathy and by extension the support of the people at the hustings. Ideally the BJP and the Congress should be talking the same language and the first priority should be on how to restore normalcy to Manipur. This is not the time to take political mileage or in the present context, election mileage, and the focus of everyone should be on how to make Manipur take her first step towards normalcy. Let the people also set down the agenda and make it clear to the candidates and the political parties they represent that the first priority at the moment is a roadmap to restore normalcy. Let the different political parties and the candidates also contribute their thoughts on how to make the idea of Manipur all encompassing, meaning how Manipur as an idea will appeal to people of different communities. For too long this idea has not been taken to the political level, and perhaps the best time is now, in the run up to an election. It is also time for the people to embrace the reality that the Parliamentary election is not just an election to decide which party grabs power at New Delhi, but is about deciding who gets to represent Manipur and her people on the floor of Parliament. This is election year and this is the best opportunity for the people to demonstrate that much more is expected from the political parties and the candidates and perhaps the first question to be raised is what steps the political parties and the candidates intend to do to restore normalcy without hurting the interests of Manipur in any way. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Russia considers Yerevans rhetoric towards CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization) ultimatum and offensive, the Spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said during a briefing, Trend reports. We cannot help but be alarmed by the counterproductive and ultimatum, and sometimes offensive, rhetoric that prevails today in the statements of the Armenian leadership on the topic, Zakharova noted. According to her, such rhetoric is being imposed on Armenian society. The allied relations between Russia and Armenia would suffer irreversible damage if Yerevan continues on such a path, she added. Earlier, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan announced his intention to withdraw from the CSTO in the absence of answers to Yerevans questions. According to him, the organization "must fulfill its obligations and recognize its area of responsibility". Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel In a major relief to the commuters travelling on the ring road between Dhaula Kuan and Azadpur, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday inaugurated the Moti Nagar flyover. Speaking on the occasion, the chief minister pointed out that people travelling between Dhaula Kuan and Azadpur, and between Delhi and Haryanas Rohtak, will benefit from the flyover. The three-lane flyover will also provide significant relief from traffic jams, Kejriwal said, adding that people would experience a smooth travel once the Club Road flyover, which is under construction, would be operational by the month of July. Advertisement The CM said the past decade, the AAP Government in Delhi built 31 flyovers, effectively doubling the count since independence. In the last nine years, we have constructed 7,500 kilometres of roads, he claimed. Delhi Minister Atishi, who was also present on the occasion, added that there would be a reduction of 6 lakh litres of fuel and 50 thousand tonnes of carbon dioxide pollution on a yearly basis. As he dedicated the flyover to the people of the city, Kejriwal said his government was continuously working on all fronts and in every area, and section of the national capital. Kejriwal highlighted the benefits of the flyover, noting that what used to be a half-hour ordeal to cover a mere half kilometre due to traffic congestion will now be a breezy three-minute journey. Elaborating on the development, he said the Moti Nagar flyover is just a small component, and the bigger and primary component, which is the Club Road Flyover, will be ready by July of this year. The Delhi CM also claimed in the last 75 years after the Independence, a total of 63 flyovers had been constructed in Delhi while the AAP, during 10 years of its tenure has built 31 flyovers, which was due to the determination of the present Delhi government. We have built excellent government schools for children. The middle class and the poor were forced to send their children to expensive private schools, and now, the middle class and the poor no longer need to send their children to expensive private schools, he said. The AAP chief further claimed that many people are now withdrawing their children from private schools and enrolling them in government schools, which was due to the better results of the government schools. Now, children in government schools are becoming doctors, engineers, and lawyers. These children have been provided a better future, he added. Addressing the residents of Moti Nagar and nearby areas, PWD Minister Atishi said, Everyone is well aware that earlier, one had to spend more than half an hour to cross this stretch of the Ring Road. Today, with the inauguration of this Moti Nagar flyover, people get great relief from traffic congestion. This will also save travel time, amounting to approximately 9,000 man-hours, annually, she added. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. On March 12, at least 207 trucks carrying humanitarian aid were inspected and allowed into the Gaza Strip, the Office for the Coordination of Activities of the Israeli Government in the Palestinian Territories on wrote on its X page, Trend reports. It is noted that 66% of these trucks transported food, while the rest delivered medicine, water and equipment for the organization of temporary accommodation centers. A combined attack was carried out on Israel on October 7. From the beginning, a massive rocket attack began from the territory of the Gaza Strip, followed by the penetration of militants by land, water, and air. Israel declared a state of war after a massive rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. Moreover, Israel Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a mass gathering of reservists. In anticipation of a large congregation of farmers scheduled to attend the Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat at the iconic Ramlila Maidan here on Thursday, the Delhi Police on Wednesday issued an advisory detailing diversions and traffic regulations in the city and advised people to avoid routes in the adjoining areas to minimise inconvenience. According to the Delhi Traffic Police, traffic will be regulated on Thursday from 6 am to 4 pm on Jawahar Lal Nehru Marg, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Asaf Ali Road, Swami Vivekanand Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg, Minto Road, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh Flyover, Bhavbhuti Marg, Chaman Lal Marg, Barakhamba Road, Tolstoy Marg, Jai Singh Road, Sansad Marg, Baba Kharag Singh Marg, Ashoka Road, Connaught Circus, and DDU Marg. The police said that traffic may be diverted on several roads, stretches as well as their surrounding areas from 6 am on Thursday. These areas include Delhi Gate, Mir Dard Chowk, Ajmeri Gate Chowk, Guru Nanak Chowk, Kamla Market, Paharganj Chowk and roundabout at Jhandewalan, Maharaja Ranjeet Singh Flyover from Barakhambha Road to Guru Nanak Chowk, Barakhamba Road and Tolstoy Road Crossing, Janpath Road and Tolstoy Marg Crossing, Tolstoy Road and the KG Marg Crossing, and the roundabout at the GPO. Advertisement The police have requested commuters to avoid or bypass the said roads and utilise public transportation, especially the Delhi Metro services. The general public is advised to allocate sufficient time for planning road journeys along the said roads and junctions. People heading towards the ISBT, railway station, or airport are advised to carefully plan their travel, the police said. The general public and motorists are advised to follow the directions of traffic personnel deployed at all intersections, and remain updated through the Delhi Traffic Police website https://traffic.delhipolice.gov.in, its Facebook page, social media handle X, Instagram, and WhatsApp number 8750871493. The farmers have stated that they will reach Delhi by buses, trains and private cars, among other means, but certainly not by tractors. They assured of carrying out their protest in a peaceful manner. Earlier on Tuesday, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) appealed to farmers and workers to make the Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat on Thursday a peaceful and successful event. The SKM said that a majority of the farmers will arrive by trains. It affirmed that the Mahapanchayat will be peaceful and that the highest level of discipline would be maintained. The farmer union had earlier said that preparations were in full swing to ensure maximum participation and make the event a success. In a statement, the farmer union said that the Mahapanchayat would adopt a Letter of Resolution to intensify their efforts in opposing the pro-corporate policies and safeguarding farming, food security, livelihoods, and people from the perceived corporate influence. The farmer unions have been protesting since February 13 over their demands, primarily calling for a law to guarantee MSP and other provisions. They had initially decided to march towards Delhi with their Delhi Chalo campaign but were stopped at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points on the Punjab-Haryana intersection. The Kerala Government has decided to explore legal options to thwart the Centres move to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in the country. The state Cabinet, which met here on Wednesday, decided to explore legal options to challenge the Centre governments framing of rules to implement the Citizenship (Amendment) Act(CAA), 2019 in the country. The Cabinet has asked the Advocate General (AG) to explore legal options to challenge the CAA notification in the Supreme court Advertisement The state Assembly had in 2019 adopted a resolution demanding that the Union government repeal the Act that sets religion as a criterion for Indian citizenship. Meanwhile, the protests against the CAA continued in Kerala for the third day on Wednesday. Hundreds of Congress workers marched to the Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday to protest against the Centres notification of the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules. Opposition leader VD Satheesan launched the march. The DYFI workers blocked train services at the Alappuzha railway station on Wednesday. They stopped at Thiruvananthapuram- Lokmanya Tilak Express. The protesters were later arrested and removed from the railway track by the police and Railway Protection Force Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, the Democratic Youth Federation of India(DYFI), and the Indian Union Muslim League(IUML) have moved the Supreme Court against the implementation of the CAA. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Wednesday that when wrong people come to power, they get bullets fired on Ram devotees, but when a good and sensitive government is elected, the devotees of Lord Ram are valued. While addressing a public meeting at the Christian College grounds, the Chief Minister stated, Today, Ram devotees are easily getting darshan in Ayodhya. Earlier, governments used to create only controversies, but today there is no dispute, and every problem is solved. On this occasion, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 102 development projects worth Rs 288 crore. At the same time, he distributed smartphones to students under the Swami Vivekananda Scheme. The Chief Minister also launched a pilot project to provide loan facilities to farmers in 10 minutes under the Digital Public Infrastructure for Agriculture Agri Stake Scheme. Advertisement He said, The Farrukhabad district in UP is the first district in the country to connect with the loan facility within 10 minutes through Kisan Credit Card under the Agri Stake Scheme. He thanked the farmers wholeheartedly and expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In his address, the Chief Minister said, The land of Farrukhabad has been the place of meditation for Lord Buddha, Jain Tirthankaras, and Baba Neem Karoli. He also assured that Sankisa Dhams beautification work will be completed soon. Apart from this, the Dham of Baba Neem Karoli will also be beautified. He further stated that significant progress has been made under the Namami Gange initiative, assuring that pending tasks will be accomplished before the Prayagraj Kumbh. The Chief Minister reiterated the commitment to linking Farrukhabad with the Ganga Expressway. He emphasised the efficiency of the double-engine government, ensuring swift progress. Surveying 100 kilometres of Farrukhabad has been completed, and plans are underway to integrate the Ganga Expressway with the Bundelkhand Expressway. CM Yogi highlighted that Farrukhabad is advancing rapidly on the path of development, akin to Kanpur. Remembering the Late BJP leader Brahmadutt Dwivedi, the Chief Minister said, This earth belongs to sons like Dwivedi ji, whose life was dedicated to nationalism. He exposed SPs chir-haran, and was a true nationalist. He advocated for the purification of politics, the CM stated. He added, Today, we have made the law and order situation in the state so good that it is being discussed nationwide. Daughters and traders are safe in the state, farmers are prosperous, and the youth are becoming self-reliant and standing on their own feet to live independent lives. The Chief Minister said, This is the same UP, which was considered a BIMARU state before 2017. People considered it as the biggest obstacle to the countrys development. But, today we have made a breakthrough and become the countrys growth engine. Earlier, all the discussions about UP revolved around caste, creed, and religion. There were no discussions about farmers, youth, businessmen, women, religion, and faith. The CM announced that the government will soon issue a family ID card. This will allow for arrangements for housing, toilets, Ayushman cards, pensions, and rations for people left out of welfare schemes. The Chief Minister said, A new city in UP will be established between Kanpur and Jhansi. Besides, care has also been taken to ensure that Farrukhabad is not deprived of development and connectivity. He added, Your one vote got the Ram temple built in Ayodhya, and the Ganga Express was brought to Farrukhabad. Similarly, your one vote has also been responsible for employing the youth, protecting daughters and businessmen, and shaping your future. The Chief Minister said that the country is in unison for Phir ek baar Modi sarkar. This should be the resolve of all Indians. The spotlight of the prestigious Filmfare Awards shone bright on Assams talent, as Partha Sarathi Mahanta, Mina Mahanta, and Indrani Baruah were celebrated for their remarkable contribution to the world of cinema. At the heart of this recognition was their animated documentary film Lachit The Warrior, a captivating portrayal of the legendary Ahom Military General. The films director, Partha Sarathi Mahanta, currently serving as the IGP of Assam Police, along with producer Mina Mahanta and Indrani Baruah, were honored during the Assam edition of the Filmfare Awards held in Guwahati. Lachit The Warrior has been on a winning streak, clinching 21 awards for the best documentary across various international film festivals. Its inclusion in the Indian Panorama at the International Film Festival of India 2023 further solidified its acclaim. Advertisement Dr. Partha Sarathi Mahanta spearheaded the creation of this animated masterpiece, while Mina Mahanta and Indrani Baruah lent their expertise as producers. The films narrative was skillfully crafted by Dr. Amarjyoti Choudhury, with Anupam Mahanta serving as the Creative Editor. The story of Lachit Barphukan, the valiant Ahom General, is steeped in history. Facing relentless Mughal invasions during the 1660s, Assam found its savior in Lachit. Under his command, the Ahom forces defied overwhelming odds, driving the mighty Mughals out of Assam in the decisive battle of Saraighat in 1671. Director Partha Sarathi Mahanta expressed gratitude for the rare recognition bestowed upon Lachit The Warrior by Filmfare. The films portrayal of courage and resilience serves as an inspiration, showcasing how even against formidable foes like the Mughals, the spirit of Assam prevailed. Filmfare, known primarily for its focus on feature films, made an exception for this remarkable documentary, honoring it with a special audio-visual presentation and felicitation for its director and producer. This unprecedented recognition not only highlights the exceptional quality of Lachit The Warrior but also underscores the importance of preserving and celebrating Assams rich heritage on a global stage. Arbaaz Khan, renowned for his versatile contributions to Bollywood, steps into the producers shoes once again with his latest venture, Patna Shuklla. Teaming up with the iconic Raveena Tandon, the film tackles a poignant issue plaguing the educational landscape of India: the scandalous manipulation of roll numbers. Unveiling a compelling trailer, the film offers a glimpse into a world where the dreams of diligent students collide with the harsh reality of corruption. Raveena Tandons character emerges as a beacon of hope, extending a helping hand to a student wronged by the system, despite showcasing exceptional merit. In a candid conversation, Arbaaz Khan sheds light on the films thematic depth, emphasizing the silence that shrouds such scandals, particularly due to their impact on the vulnerable strata of society children. He articulates, Roll number scams are pervasive yet often overlooked, primarily because they victimize the voiceless. The lack of resources, especially in smaller cities, impedes any meaningful investigation, compelling affected students to forsake their academic pursuits in favor of menial jobs. While we readily hear about scams in various sectors, the plight of these young souls remains veiled in obscurity. Patna Shuklla served as an awakening for me, urging me to amplify the voices of the unheard. Advertisement With a palpable passion for untold narratives, Arbaaz Khan finds resonance in the story of Patna Shuklla, recognizing it as a compelling tale in dire need of a platform. The film serves as a testament to his commitment to shedding light on societal injustices and fostering dialogue around pressing issues. Mark your calendars as Patna Shuklla gears up for its much-anticipated release on Disney+ Hotstar, slated for March 22. As the curtains rise on this riveting cinematic journey, audiences are invited to witness the power of storytelling in unraveling the complexities of our society. The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a memorandum of understanding with the Royal Government of Bhutan on supply of petroleum, oil, lubricants (POL) and related products from India to Bhutan. The agreement will benefit India and its citizens with improved economic and commercial linkages with Bhutan. The Memorandum of Understanding will promote bilateral trade in the hydrocarbon sector and ensure secured and long term supply of petroleum products to Bhutan. Advertisement The Cabinet approved another MoU between India and Bhutan on extending cooperation in the field of Energy Efficiency and Energy Conservation Measures. The MoU has been signed between the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Ministry of Power and the Department of Energy, the Royal Government of Bhutan. As part of this MoU, India aims to assist Bhutan to enhance energy efficiency in the household sector by promoting the stars labelling programme developed by Indias Bureau of Energy Efficiency. The formulation of building codes to suit the climate condition of Bhutan, will be facilitated based with Indias experience. Creation of a pool of energy professionals at Bhutan is envisaged by institutionalizing training of energy auditors. The training of retailers will help in dissemination of energy efficient products with consumer audience regarding savings from the star-rated appliances. India aims to support Bhutan in its endeavor to develop and implement the Standards and Labelling scheme. Energy intensive appliances account for higher power consumption at household or commercial establishments. In view of the rapid growth in energy intensive consumer goods, the demand for electrical energy has been increasing every year. The rising demand can be optimized, if the consumers prefer go for power efficiency appliances. BEE is spearheading the countrys Star-labelling program that now covers 37 appliances used in daily life. The MoU was prepared by the Ministry of Power in consultation with Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and Department for Promotion of industry and internal Trade (DPIIT). In another approval, the Union Cabinet gave a go-ahead for the signing of an agreement between the Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA) and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regarding cooperation in the areas of food safety. The agreement will facilitate trade between two neighboring countries. BFDA will be able to issue Health Certificate as a proof of compliance with requirements prescribed by FSSAI, while exporting the products to India. This will promote Ease of Doing Business and cut compliance cost on both sides. Stressing on the policy of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Aur Sabka Prayas, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has said the state government is a double-engine and now, development will pace up at full speed. The state government has initiated the process to provide 18 lakh houses to the eligible beneficiaries of the state. Yesterday, the amount for the beneficiaries of this scheme was also released. Chhattisgarh would play a crucial role in fulfilling Modis aims for a developed India by 2047, he said during a meeting with all departmental secretaries in his residence office on Monday to discuss the action plan for creating the vision document Amritkal: Chhattisgarh Vision@2047. Chief Minister Sai stated that the Modi government cares about villages, the poor, tribals, farmers, women, and youth and the PM has directed the same to the Chhattisgarh Government. Advertisement Modis Guarantee is the pathway for the prosperity and well-being of Chhattisgarh. Chhattisgarh Government is fulfilling every promise made to the people of the state one by one. He further shared that his governments prime focus is on the Bastar and Surguja regions. .. The state government has devised a development strategy that ensures that local resources will benefit local people, he said. Chief Minister Sai stated that under the Mahtari Vandan Yojana, the state government disbursed the first installment of Rs 1,000 to more than 70 lakh eligible women in the state on March 10. The state government has disbursed a total amount of Rs 655 crore under this scheme and will provide Rs 1000 to all eligible beneficiaries every month without any hassle. He also announced that tendupatta will be procured at a rate of Rs 5500 per standard bag. Our government has fulfilled one more of Modis Guarantees, it will benefit 12.50 lakh tendupatta collectors in the state, he said. Chief Minister Sai, also Chairman of the State Planning Commission, stated to identify the states strengths and devise effective strategies and action plans for expected progress, a vision document titled Amritkal: Chhattisgarh Vision @2047 is planned to be released on the upcoming State Foundation Day on November 1, he said. Based on this, relevant departments will ensure significant progress in their respective sectors, playing a crucial role in realizing the vision of a developed Chhattisgarh. The Chief Minister inaugurated the Navonmesh Portal, an online digital platform prepared by the State Planning Commission for collecting best practices. This portal aims to effectively gather best practices in one place, which can then be adopted in other districts and departments. Sai stated, Our government has fulfilled one more of Modis Guarantees promised to the people of the state. The new rate will be effective for the Tendupatta Collection Season 2024. Under the State Rural Livelihood Mission, the government will provide a grant of Rs 6.33 crore to 1055 self-help groups of 15 cluster-level organisations from the Community Investment Fund. This will enable 11,000 members to engage in various livelihood activities. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday made a slew of announcements like Rs 1 lakh per annum to each woman from poorest families and 50 per cent quota to women in central government jobs under Nari Nyay if it is voted to power in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls. In a video message, Kharge, who is also the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, announced the five guarantees for women under Nari Nyay in a bid to woo the women voters. Talking about the five guarantees, the Congress chief said the party would give Rs one lakh per annum direct cash transfer to one woman from each of Indias poorest families through Mahalakshmi. Advertisement He vowed to implement Aadhi aabaadi, poora haq i.e half of all new recruitment to Central Government positions will be reserved for women. Kharge said under Shakti ka Samman, the Centres contribution to the monthly pay of ASHA, anganwadi, and mid-day meal workers will be doubled if it comes to power. The Congress chief said the party would appoint an Adhikaar Maitri in every Panchayat to serve as a paralegal to educate women and assist them in the enforcement of their legal rights. He announced to double the number of working womens hostels in the country, with at least one hostel in each district. Attacking the BJP-led government at the Centre, Kharge said, In the last 10 years, women did not get anything. Modi government has only increased their problems. They are only doing politics in the name of women and taking votes. Vedanta Limited, Lanjigarh, one of Indias premier producers of metallurgical grade alumina and a part of Vedanta Aluminium, recently organised the Mandir Pratishtha Mahotsav or the grand consecration ceremony of the Shri Jagannath temple in Lanjigarh. The temple is a close replica of the Shri Jagannath Temple of Puri, an important pilgrimage site in India and an indelible part of Odishas cultural fabric. Rajendra Dholakia, Minister of Planning and Convergence, Govt. of Odisha, Shri Pradeep Bisare, MLA, Lanjigarh, and several dignitaries from the district administration attended the ceremony, which witnessed a footfall of over 50,000 devotees from Kalahandi and Rayagada. Advertisement The recently inaugurated temple is an architectural marvel 91 feet tall and 62 feet wide with 25 intricately designed pillars spread across the two-storey structure, which can host over 2000 devotees at a time. Incorporating a traditional design, the temple features a vimana (sanctum sanctorum), jagmohana (entry porch) and rekha (spire above the sanctum). The walls are also adorned with intricate carvings depicting revered deities, mythological figures, and flora & fauna native to Odisha. Vedanta Aluminium extensively supported the construction of the temple, adding to contributions from its business partners and local devotees. The Sri Sri Sri Harihar Sanskrutika Seva Samiti extended support in organizing the consecration ceremony. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Pranab Kumar Bhattacharyya, CEO Alumina Business, Vedanta Limited said, The inauguration of the Jagannath Temple marks an important milestone for the people of Lanjigarh and is the latest in our endeavor to help preserve the cultural richness of Odisha. This magnificent edifice is a testament to the united efforts of Vedanta Lanjigarh, our esteemed business partners, and the local community members in establishing a revered cultural sanctuary. We therefore dedicate this temple to the enrichment of our shared heritage and recommit ourselves to nurturing Odishas progress and growth through our operations. Mr. Rajendra Pratap Singhdeo, President of Sri Sri Sri Harihar Sanskrutika Seva Samiti said, The revered temple adds significantly to Lanjigarhs cultural landscape, drawing inspiration from the rich legacy of the Shri Jagannath Temple in Puri. It is indeed a moment of jubilation to finally witness the grand opening of the temple in the presence of the local community of Lanjigarh, and I appreciate the extensive support extended by Vedanta Aluminium in bringing this vision to fruition. Vedanta Lanjigarh has undertaken several initiatives towards preserving the rich cultural heritage of Odisha through development initiatives and active participation in community events. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Wednesday said the Election Commission will share all relevant information related to the electoral bonds. Kumar, who was talking to media-persons here after reviewing the election preparedness in Jammu and Kashmir, said the EC has received details related to the electoral bonds from the State Bank of India (SBI). We have three pillars disclosure, disclosure and disclosure. Disclose everything to people. The commission has been in favour of transparency. SBI has given us in time, and we have received it. We will disclose it on time, the CEC said. Advertisement The Supreme Court had directed the SBI to submit the details of electoral bonds purchased since 12 April 2019 to the EC that has been directed to share the information on its official website by 5 pm on 15 March. On the issue of simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, Kumar did not make any announcement and said that the changes in the number and composition of Assembly seats in the UT post-2019 and the J&K Reorganisation Act have changed the situation. There has been no delay on part of the ECI with regard to the holding of polls in J&K. However, he added that the ECI would hold Assembly polls at the earliest. After the J&K Reorganisation Act that was notified in December 2023, it is only three months and as such there is no delay from our side in holding the Assembly elections. He said that the Commission is concerned about holding Lok Sabha and Assembly elections but the final call on whether to hold two elections simultaneously, will be taken through thorough consultations with the security agencies and political parties. He, however, said that elections will be held soon without much delay. Majority of political parties we met in Srinagar and Jammu demanded that Assembly and Lok Sabha polls be held simultaneously, Kumar said. One thing is sure that we want early Assembly polls in J&K. Elections will be held in a peaceful manner. There will be free and fair polls in J&K, the CEC said. He said that representatives of political parties also demanded level playing field and adequate security cover for campaigning. Kumar said that the delimitation has increased the number of Assembly seats in J&K to 114 with the effective strength increasing to 90 from the earlier 83. There is also a reservation for Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). Besides, 9 seats have been reserved. Two seats have been reserved for Kashmiri migrants and one for displaced persons from PoK. Adequate security will be provided to all candidates and central forces will be deployed, he added. People above 85 years and those with a disability will be provided a voting at-home facility in J&K, he added. Special polling booths will be established for Kashmiri migrants at Jammu, Udhampur and Delhi. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. The European Parliament has adopted a resolution proposing to consider the possibility of Armenia's membership in the European Union, Trend reports. 504 members of the European Parliament voted for the adoption of the resolution, four voted against it, and 32 parliamentarians abstained. If Armenia is interested in obtaining candidate status and continues on the path of sustainable reforms that strengthen its democracy, this could become the basis for a transformation phase in EU-Armenia relations, the draft resolution says. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that the urban population in Uttar Pradesh will rise to 40 per cent in the next five years from the current 30 per cent. He added that while in 2017, a total 24 per cent of the population lived in urban areas, the percentage of people living in towns and cities has gone up to 30 per cent today. This is the new Uttar Pradesh of the new India, which not only carries out development works, but also preserves its heritage. It ensures the livelihoods of the youth and respects the faith of people. It creates a better environment for security in the state and is committed to advancing the state towards prosperity through new measures, he stated at a programme here on Tuesday late evening. Advertisement When every citizen of the state participates in this progress, it reflects the commitment to PM Modis vision of a Viksit Bharat. Every Indian should be committed to making our country a developed India. People used to say that only humans are becoming smarter, but the Prime Minister has also made the cities smart, the Chief Minister added. The CM inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of 3,419 development projects worth Rs 11,000 crore of the Urban Development Department at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan. After visiting the exhibition stall here, the CM also released the guidelines of the Urban Development Department. He also honoured the beneficiaries of various schemes and mentioned that it was the first time such a large-scale inauguration and foundation laying ceremony for projects by the Urban Development Department was taking place. He said that projects worth three times the budget of the Urban Development Department seven years ago are being inaugurated today in one go. The Chief Minister informed that 112 new municipal bodies have been formed, including three new municipal corporations. Municipal Council and New Urban Panchayats have also been established, and their geographical areas expanded. Numerous schemes, including Smart City and AMRUT Mission, have been implemented, which were playing a significant role in achieving the goals of ease of living, he added. With the support of the Indian government, Uttar Pradesh is progressing towards becoming a state of smart cities. Under the Smart City Mission, a total of 17 municipal corporations, including ten with Central governments support and seven under State Smart City Mission, are being developed as smart cities. Uttar Pradesh is the first state in the country which is connecting all the municipal corporations with the Smart City Mission, Adityanath said. The Chief Minister emphasised the importance of forming cleanliness committees in each ward to ensure cleanliness without incurring any additional cost through the elected chairperson-councilor. He called for participating in efforts for door-to-door waste collection and contributing to initiatives for solid waste management. The Chief Minister lamented poor electricity supply before 2017. He added: To address this, we installed 16 lakh LED street lights for free across the state. Now, all municipal areas are illuminated with bright LED lights. As a result of LED street lights, carbon emissions and electricity consumption have been reduced. Contributing to achieving the minimum carbon emission goals aligned with the Smart City mission and the Prime Ministers vision, the municipalities are actively supporting this initiative, the CM said. He further said although cleanliness has improved, there is a need to enhance good work even further. He emphasised the importance of planning for the next five years, ensuring no waterlogging in cities, having well-maintained roads, and making urban bodies self-reliant. He suggested increasing the income of urban bodies for this purpose. Over the past seven years, both the central and state governments have achieved significant targets. Under urban development, an amount of more than Rs 3500 crore has been distributed to 15 lakh poor people in the state so far and 56 lakh poor people have been provided with PM Awaas. Three crore people have access to toilets, 15 crore people are benefiting from free ration, 19 lakh street vendors are availing the PM SVANidhi scheme, and citizens in 762 urban bodies are benefiting from government schemes without discrimination, the Chief Minister added. The Chief Minister mentioned that Uttar Pradesh is the first state in the country to have received numerous awards in different categories. It is also the first state where metro services have been initiated in six cities. Varanasi is introducing the facility of ropeways, and there is a desire to start ropeway services in Shahjahanpur as well. There is considerable demand for electric bus services, and urban development has rapidly expanded this initiative. Along with Chief Minister Nagar Srijan Yojana, Vandan Yojana, Chief Minister Green Road Infrastructure Development Scheme, work has also been done to encourage women volunteer groups under Deendayal Upadhyay National Urban Livelihood Scheme, he added. In the Pran-Pratishtha programme in Ayodhya, everyone has acknowledged the citys development works. With the upcoming Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj next year and the Mahakumbh in 2025, the Urban Development Department has already commenced its work. The department also played an important role in the successful organisation of G-20 under Indias chairmanship, Yogi added. He said that Urban development was presenting a distinct image in the state with new innovations, and it can be a model for the country. He emphasised that the project worth Rs 11,000 crore is a significant step in the direction of Prime Ministers vision of a developed India. Every municipal body should strive for self-reliance and achieve the goals of ease of living for developed Uttar Pradesh and developed India. He expressed the need for another term for the Modi government in 2024 to achieve the goals of a developed India. The Parsi community of Kolkata, very intrinsic to the social fabric of the city, is set to be in limelight as the community is set to celebrate its New Year, Jamshedi Navroze on 21 March. For the small and ever-shrinking community, the Zoroastrian spring festival holds a special place. Currently, the population of Parsis in Kolkata is hardly 360 and is an aging community with around 60 per cent over the age of 60. Not even 25 children are under the age of 21 and a large portion of the community is over the age of 80.The oldest person is 102, says author, philanthropist and sportswoman, Prochy Mehta. This Sunday is special for the community and anyone related with it as Vibha Mitra, who deals with heritage and textiles, is curating an evening Bawas, Bhonu and Gupshup, which is about the intangible heritage that can be felt, heard, smelt and importantly for Parsis -tasted. Vibha is holding the event through Own the Past, a gurukul vertical. Advertisement There would be a conversation on the book Who is a Parsi? by Prochy. The book busts the common myths about Parsis, their origins and their presence in India. The evening will end with Bhonu. But not before Cyrus Madan and Noomi Mehta, two stalwarts of the community in Kolkata regale with anecdotes and funnies. Prochy is also the author of the book Pioneering Parsis of Calcutta. Sharing some interesting details about the community, she says, Rustomji Cowasji Banaji was the founding father of modern Calcutta. He set up the Calcutta University, was founder of Corporation of Calcutta and the owner of Khidirpur and Salkia docks. During his time, the houses in Calcutta had thatched roofs. Many houses were destroyed in a massive fire (in the 1800s). From his own money, Rustomji Banaji replaced the thatched roofs with brick & mortar ones. He had enormous contributions to the city, but it is a disappearing community now. The Parsi community has decided to exclude, rather than include. All children from interfaith marriages were not accepted. More than 50 per cent of the marriages are interfaith now but it accepts only the mens children and not from the women. Prochy says the community was increasing until 60 years ago but for the changing views of the community. The PM-Suraj portal was virtually launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today at Gana Bhavan in Uttarpara. On the occasion, Governor Dr C V Ananda Bose was present. He spoke about the different beneficiary schemes and projects launched by the Centre such as Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Jan Dhan Yojana, Ayushman Bharat, Kisan Samman, Khelo India, PM Abhas Yojana and Ujwala Yojana. The Governor said, We take the pledge in the name of Swami Vivekananda, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Rabindranath Tagore that till the end of our life we will fight against poverty and violence. The weapon against poverty is the PM-Suraj portal. The Governor added that Bharat stands united. Advertisement Higher officials of different nationalized banks were present on the occasion and cheques were handed over to the needy and the deprived. The Governor assured that the CAA is not against anybody in this country. It is to help those who are harassed in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh and want to settle in India. India is offering its helping hand to people coming from these countries. The CAA is not against any citizen of India. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved a proposal for the expansion of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) with the addition of three lakh cadet vacancies. This expansion is expected to cater to the increasing demand for the NCC from educational institutions nationwide. From just 20,000 cadets in 1948, the NCC will now have a sanctioned strength of 20 lakh cadets in its roles making it the largest uniformed youth organisation in the world. With NCC being offered as an elective subject as per the National Education Policy 2020, the expansion will be a step towards meeting the aspirations of the youth towards playing a pivotal role as future leaders of the nation, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on Wednesday. Advertisement The far reaching impact of this expansion will lead to proportionate distribution of vacancies across all States & Union Territories and reduce the waiting list of institutions aspiring for the NCC. The expansion plan encompasses the establishment of four new Group Headquarters and the addition of two new NCC units. An important facet of the expansion plan involves the proposal to employ ex-servicemen as NCC instructors thus leveraging their skills and vast experience. This noble initiative will ensure quality training for the NCC cadets and will generate employment opportunities for the veterans. The expansion signifies a dedication to shaping future leaders embodying discipline, leadership and service. The NCC aims to make a transformative impact, fostering an environment where youth meaningfully contribute towards nation-building. The initiative will expand the base of motivated, disciplined and patriotic youth of the Amrit Peedhi who will contribute towards achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat, the MoD added. The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to list on Friday, a batch of petitions challenging the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act 2023, which dropped Chief Justice of India from the panel for the selection of the Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioners. The petitioners have sought to restrain the Central government from going ahead with the appointment of two Election Commissioners. Two vacancies of the Election Commissioners have arisen following the resignation of Election Commissioner Arun Goel last week and earlier retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey. One of the petitioners has contended that the appointments against two vacancies be made in pursuance to March 2, 2023 top court judgment that the appointment of CECs and ECs should be done by the President on the advice of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and the Chief Justice of India Advertisement Upon a mentioning by advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for an NGO, Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), seeking an urgent listing of the matter, Justice Sanjiv Khanna heading a bench, also comprising Justices M M Sundresh and Bela M Trivedi, said that the matter will be listed for hearing on Friday. Soon after the mentioning by Prashant Bhushan, Justice Khanna said that they have received a message from Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and would list the plea for hearing this Friday. I just got the message from the Chief Justice, the matters are listed for Friday, Justice Khanna told Bhushan. The petitions by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), Dr Jaya Thakur General Secretary, Madhya Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee, Sanjay Narayanrao Meshram, Dharmendra Singh Kushwaha and advocate Gopal Singh, have challenged the new law enacted and notified in December 2023, that replaced the earlier law the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991 and diluted directions in the March 2, 2023, top court Constitution bench judgment. Earlier, on January 12, 2024, the Supreme Court had refused to put on hold the operation of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act 2023 that excluded the Chief Justice of India from the panel for the selection of Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners. Under the law, enacted by Parliament in December 2023, the panel for the selection of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners, includes the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition and a Central Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister. The composition of the panel gives a clear edge to the government in the process of selecting the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners. The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act 2023, was passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 12 and the Lok Sabha on December 21, 2023, and notified on December 28, 2023. It was aimed to dilute March 2, 2023, the judgment by a five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court that had directed that the panel for the selection of Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners, would include the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition and the Chief Justice of India. This law to dilute the March 2, 2023, top court judgment was passed by the Lok Sabha amidst suspension of a large number of members of Lok Sabha belonging to the Opposition parties. The petitioners have contended that the provisions of the new law are violative of the principle of free and fair elections since it does not provide an independent mechanism for appointment of the members of Election Commission of India. They have further stated that the Act excludes the Chief Justice of India from the process of appointment of the members of ECI and its in violation of the March 2, 2023 verdict of the top court which had ordered that the appointment of the members of the poll panel would be done on the advice of a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, the CJI and the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha till a law is made by Parliament. The Section 7 and 8 of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment Conditions of Service and terms of office) Act 2023, lay down the procedure for the appointment of the members of the Election Commission. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said with the growing robustness of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in Uttar Pradesh, the state government flushed out Chinese products of the states markets. Speaking during a program of the MSME Department held here on Wednesday, the chief minister said, What could demonstrate greater patriotism than this? When our domestically produced goods gain traction in the market, its imperative that we nurture, incentivise, and provide them with a platform to flourish. Its immensely gratifying to witness our products gaining popularity while those of the Enemy country recede. He added: Nowadays, during festive occasions like Diwali, Vijayadashami, Eid, and Christmas, one predominantly finds products from Uttar Pradesh in the market. Not only is our product good but our entrepreneurs and artisans also feel that their future is bright. Advertisement During this, the CM distributed mega loan of Rs 30,826 crore for the MSME sector. He also distributed cheques to developers engaged in the approved Pledge Park in Unnao while simultaneously inaugurating an online portal for plot allotment in industrial estates. Furthermore, CM Yogi also distributed toolkits under the ODOP and Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana schemes. In his address, the chief minister said that the MSME department will have to lay special emphasis on providing products as per demand by doing a complete mapping of the market and enhancing product packaging standards. By adopting these measures, he expressed confidence that locally made products from the state would soon gain national prominence. Furthermore, he urged MSME entrepreneurs to register promptly, facilitating the swift advancement of training programs for individuals involved in micro, small, and medium enterprises. The chief minister informed that the MSME department conducted various loan distribution programs before the end of the financial year 2023-24. He expressed satisfaction that the amount distributed this year has doubled compared to the previous year and has increased tenfold compared to seven years ago. He emphasised that this progress not only signifies the economic advancement of Uttar Pradesh, but also generates employment opportunities for the youth. As many as 10 districts of the state have been connected to Pledge Park. The check has been distributed today for the 11th pledge park of the state being built in Unnao, he stated. He lauded the MSME Departments role in promoting micro, small, and medium enterprises in the state over the past seven years. Through innovative initiatives and experimentation, it has made significant strides towards achieving Prime Minister Modis vision of a self-reliant India, he stated. The chief minister said this is the new Uttar Pradesh of the New India. We have transformed the old perception with our capabilities. Today, every sector of ours is responding to everyone. UP was already a state with unlimited potential, but some people had made it BIMARU. We have combined it with the nation-building campaign and progressed on the development path for the youth and entrepreneurs. He went on to say, Today, we are seeing the result of this. UP is the only state in the country where young entrepreneurs are given a loan of five lakh rupees without interest. He said that of 96 lakh MSME units in the state, 40 lakh have been registered. The goal is to register all 96 lakhs as soon as possible. The chief minister highlighted that the state has a strong MSME foundation, security assurance, and substantial land bank, which foster conducive environment for establishment of major industries. This conducive atmosphere is exemplified by the staggering investment proposals worth Rs 40 lakh crore received by Uttar Pradesh during the UP Global Investors Summit. Furthermore, through recent groundbreaking ceremony, investments totalling Rs 10 lakh crore have successfully materialised in Uttar Pradesh, he added. The chief minister also commended district-level and state-level bankers for their contributions to the states development. The chief minister shared that achieving a $1 trillion economy in the next five years would be inevitable with a slight acceleration in Uttar Pradeshs current pace. He emphasized the need to strengthen the manufacturing sector, noting a shift in investment patterns from previously concentrated areas like the NCR, Meerut, and Hapur to smaller districts such as Unnao and Hardoi. This shift underscores the untapped potential that existed previously, but remained underutilized, he pointed out. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that the Centre will not be allowed to carry out exercises of the National Register of Citizens and Citizenship Amendment Act in the state. It is only before elections. I have already said it 3-4 times. Our stand is very clear. It is only to show the people and trouble them. They have NRC at the back of their minds. We wont allow both to take place (NRC and CAA), Mamata Banerjee said. On Monday evening, the Union Home Ministry notified rules for the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule. Advertisement Earlier today, Kerala Law Minister P Rajeev informed that the State government will challenge the Centres Citizenship (Amendment) Act in the Supreme Court, adding that it will pray to the apex court to declare the act anti-Constitutional. Earlier, we had approached the Supreme Court, against the CAA. Our prayer was that it was against the basic structure of the Constitution. It is against the basic fundamental principles of the Constitution, and we pray to declare the CAA anti-Constitutional. Now we have decided to approach the Supreme Court again and we have a ligated advocate general to interact with our senior counsel in the Supreme Court and take proper action to approach the SC, Kerala Law Minister P Rajeev told ANI. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will soon launch helpline numbers to assist applicants for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA-2019). According to MHA, the applicants will be able to get information related to CAA-2019 by calling free of cost. Citizenship (Amendment) Act aims to provide Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014. In the wake of Portugals general election on Sunday, politics finds itself at a crossroads, with the rise of the far-right Chega party signalling a notable departure from the countrys historical political trajectory. While the centre-right Democratic Alliance (AD) celebrates its victory, the question of governance looms large, as the possibility of forming a coalition with Chega remains uncertain. Portugal, once considered a bastion of resistance to right-wing populism in Europe, now confronts a reality where the far right has not only gained ground but holds a decisive role in shaping the future government. This shift challenges the prevailing narrative that Portugals democratic resilience would shield it from the surge seen in neighbouring nations. The victory speech by AD leader Luis Montenegro, coupled with his refusal to negotiate with Chega, underscores the ideological divide that could potentially hinder effective governance. The far-rights quadrupling of parliamentary seats, led by Chegas charismatic leader Andre Ventura, reflects a growing sentiment among the electorate, dissatisfied with the status quo and drawn to anti-establishment promises. Pedro Nuno Santos of the left-leaning Socialist Party (PS), acknowledging defeat, has rejected the prospect of supporting ADs platform, which includes broad tax cuts. The razor-thin margin between AD and PS, along with Chegas substantial presence, paints a picture of a divided electorate grappling with economic concerns, housing crises, and corruption allegations. The unprecedented growth of Chega, campaigning on an anti-establishment platform and expressing concerns about immigration, signals a broader discontent with mainstream politics. This discontent, coupled with a lack of trust in traditional parties, has fuelled the farrights ascent, raising questions about the resilience of Portugals democratic foundations. Advertisement As President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa awaits making the formal invitation to appoint the new government, Mr Montenegros reluctance to engage with Chega poses challenges. The fear of political instability lingers, and the potential for an ADChega alliance could shape the course of Portugals policies on immigration, corruption, and overall governance. In this complex political landscape, it is crucial for the newly elected government to recognise the diverse concerns that drove voters to Chega. Rather than dismissing these sentiments outright, a nuanced approach that addresses the root causes of discontent ~ such as the housing crisis, low wages, and healthcare issues ~ will be essential for fostering national unity. The fact that Portugal has experienced solid economic growth and fiscal prudence under Socialist leadership complicates the narrative. While the country has made commendable strides, the election results indicate a yearning for change and a dissatisfaction with the handling of critical issues. The surge of the far-right challenges assumptions about the countrys immunity to right-wing populism, requiring a careful and inclusive approach to governance. The decisions made in the coming weeks will shape Portugals trajectory, determining whether it succumbs to division or finds common ground in addressing the concerns that propelled the far-right to prominence. In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court has dealt a decisive blow to the shadows that have long shrouded political funding in the country. The courts rejection of the State Bank of Indias plea for an extended timeline to reveal the names of political donors marks a pivotal moment for transparency, accountability, and the very essence of democratic principles. At the heart of this ruling lies the dismantling of a seven-year-old election funding system that allowed for unlimited and anonymous contributions to political parties. This opaque mechanism, termed the Electoral Bonds system, faced its demise on February 15, with the Supreme Court deeming it unconstitutional. The implications of this decision reverberate across the political spectrum, impacting beneficiaries of this funding structure since its inception in 2017. The courts directive to the bank to disclose the names of donors, beneficiaries, and corresponding amounts by Tuesday is not merely a legal formality. It signifies a resolute commitment to unravelling the intricacies of political financing, thus striking a blow against the clandestine practices that have long mired Indian politics. SBIs attempt to seek an extension until June 30, citing the complexity of compiling information involving over 22,000 donations, was met with stern disapproval from the court. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud emphasised that the required details were readily available and insisted on their prompt disclosure. The courts firm stance serves as a powerful message, signalling that compliance with the principles of transparency is non-negotiable, even in the face of logistical challenges. The Electoral Bonds system, now consigned to history, allowed individuals and companies to purchase bonds from SBI and donate them to political parties, obscuring the identity of the contributors. The system had faced criticism from opposition members and civil society groups who argued that it undermined the publics right to know the financial backers of political parties. The Association for Democratic Reforms, a nongovernmental organisation focused on electoral funding, was among the petitioners challenging the system. As the country approaches a national election expected in April and May, the timing of this decision is significant. The courts directive for the Election Commission of India to compile and publish the disclosed information by March 15 ensures that voters are armed with crucial insights into the financial backers of political parties before casting their votes. This move aligns with the broader global trend toward fostering transparency in political financing, reinforcing the belief that an informed electorate is vital for the health of any democracy. Advertisement The courts warning of potential consequences for non-compliance adds a layer of gravity to the situation. The onus now falls squarely on the State Bank of India to adhere to the stipulated timeline and contribute to the ushering in of a new era ~ one where the shadows of opaque political funding are dispelled, and the democratic process stands illuminated by the principles of openness and accountability International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi has emphasised continued efforts in monitoring Japans ocean discharge of nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, local media reported on Wednesday. The IAEA chief reiterated the organisations commitment to further monitoring the discharge as he met with local fishermen in Iwaki City of the northeast prefecture of Fukushima during a three-day trip in the country, Xinhua news agency reported. Underscoring that the discharge marks merely the initial phase of a long process, Rafael Grossi stated that much effort will be required in the lengthy process ahead, national news agency Kyodo reported. Advertisement Rafael Grossi, emphasising the IAEAs role as an independent observer, reiterated the organisations stance on maintaining vigilance throughout the process. The visit to Fukushima Prefecture marks Rafael Grossis first since July last year and notably, his first visit following the commencement of the discharge. He is also expected to inspect the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to assess the discharge later in the afternoon. While the Japanese government and the plants operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) have asserted the safety and necessity of the discharge, concerns have been raised by neighboring countries and local stakeholders regarding potential environmental impacts. Last month, TEPCO started its fourth round of release of the nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the power plant into the Pacific Ocean. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. We wish that with the signing of a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia, a new era will begin in the region, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, Trend reports. He noted that maintaining stability in the South Caucasus is one of Turkiye's priorities. The Turkish President expressed hope that the recent negative atmosphere in relations with Greece in the Eastern Mediterranean and Aegean Sea will change and that the efforts will yield concrete results. Erdogan added that Turkiye always supports steps that serve stability and peace in the Balkans. The head of state noted that at the last meeting of the strategic mechanism, held in Washington with Turkeys NATO ally, the United States, an agreement was reached to improve cooperation. He also said that Turkiye's membership in the European Union remains a strategic goal. House passes a bill that could lead to a TikTok ban if Chinese owner refuses to sell A TikTok spokesman is criticizing Congress for being too secretive as it advances a proposal that could lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app Have an interesting bit of news youd like to see in the Along the Way column? Email it to Bella Ramirez at bramirez@thesunchronicle.com . BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. The Turkish Ministry of National Defense said that counter-terrorism activities are closely coordinated with the Iraqi authorities, the Ministry of Defense says, Trend reports. According to the information, a delegation led by the commander of the 2nd Army of the Turkish Armed Forces, General Metin Tokel, held a meeting with Iraqi officials. "The meeting took place in the Pence-Kilit anti-terrorist operation zone in northern Iraq. Particular attention was paid to the issues of taking additional measures to ensure the safety of Iraqi citizens," the ministry says. An exchange of views took place on the anti-terrorist operations of the Turkish Armed Forces in northern Iraq, as well as the fight against terrorist threats on the Turkish border. FILE - Chinese Literature Nobel Prize winner Mo Yan, center, leaves following a panel discussion at the Beijing International Book Fair in Beijing, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2017. Mo Yan, one of China's most celebrated authors, who won the country's first Nobel Prize for literature and was once praised by top officials, is now at a center of a nationalist storm, indicating the shifting lines for freedom of expression under Chinese President Xi Jinping. Palestinian children line up for food in Rafah, Gaza Strip, last month. Hundreds of thousands of children are facing starvation, the result of the war in Gaza. BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 13. Convoy of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's security has been involved in a traffic accident in Idil district of Sirnak province, Trend reports via TRT. As a result of the accident, one policeman was killed, three people were injured, including two policemen. May God rest the soul of the deceased and send recovery to the victims, the president said in connection with the incident. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Job Title: Finance & Administration Officer (No Experience Jobs) Organisation: Davide & Francesco East Africa Tours Duty Station: Bwana Tembo Camp Lodge, Pakwach, Uganda Reports to: Company Directors About US: Davide & Francesco East Africa Tours is a tour operator in Uganda. We specialize in individual tours, safaris, and camping trips; all are customizable. The company can provide all necessary camping gear and supplies. The Company owns and operates Bwana Tembo Safari Camp, an exclusive tourist lodge located just near Murchison Falls National Park gate in Pakwach, North -Western Uganda. Job Summary: The Finance & Administration Officer will offer support in the areas of financial administration. The incumbent will also provide administrative support for HR processes and Directors. Render support to systems related to policies and procedures. Key Duties and Responsibilities: Finance: Operate the cash register by receipting, recording, custody and balancing of cash maintained. In presence of supervisor, carry out periodic cash counts. Assist in preparation, processing and follow up of client invoices. Assist in comprehensive budget preparations including directing of the financial forecasting, planning, and budget processes; Assist in preparation of monthly payrolls, payroll accounts analysis and reconciliation; Evaluate financial systems and accounting procedures and make recommendations for changes, to procedures, operating systems and other financial control functions to the Director. Keep and maintain accounting records in soft as well as in hard form. Prepare periodic financial reports, estimates, summaries, and other financial analyses and other reports as required by management. Liaise with Directors and auditors in the preparation/audit of end of year accounts and company annual returns. Carry out any other duties as required by the directors. Administration: Assist in procurement and purchase of stock supplies, consumables, office supplies and other items Receive and inspect all incoming materials into the stores and reconcile with purchase orders, documents and tracks damages and discrepancies on orders received. Issue materials/goods from the store only against a properly authorized requisition and adjust stock control card accordingly. Maintains various store files and records for the purpose of documenting activities, and providing materials and reliable resource information. Ensure the security of materials and goods under his/her control by controlling keys with access to the store area. To make selfimposed checks (stock counts) between store records and actual stock and investigate any discrepancies where necessary with report to the Supervisors. Maintain a pleasant helpful relationship with clients and co-workers answering queries and comments raised. Maintain a company calendar and schedule appointments including scheduling of in-house and external events. Monitor administrative aspects of other employees and evaluate discipline and punctuality of the staff. Assist in the maintenance of a comfortable and courteous ambience for the clients. Undertake any other duties as required by the supervisors. Qualifications, Skills and Experience: The applicant must hold a Bachelors Degree in accounting, finance, economics or a related field from a recognized university. A professional qualification partial or full in CPA or ACCA is an added advantage. Ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously. Must be able to communicate effectively with both staff and clients with a professional approach. Excellent numeracy skills Computer literate and able to use Microsoft Office. How to Apply: All suitably qualified and interested individuals are encouraged to submit their Cover Letters and Resume online at the link below Click Here Deadline: 16th March 2024 For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline Date Posted 2024-03-13 Valid Through 2024-03-16 Employment Type FULL_TIME Hiring Organization Davide & Francesco East Africa Tours Job Location Pakwach, Pakwach, Pakwach, 0256, Uganda Related Jobs Job Title: Local consultant to support the coordination of an Immunization Post-introduction Evaluation 2024 Organisation: World Health Organisation (WHO) Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda About WHO: The World Health Organisation (WHO) is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations (UN) system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends. Background The Ministry of Health (MoH) in Uganda has taken a significant stride in public health by introducing several new vaccines into the routine immunization schedule to prevent, control and eliminate targeted vaccine preventable diseases. In October 2022 additional vaccines namely yellow fever vaccine, the second dose of the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV2), the Hepatitis B birth dose (Hep B Birth dose), and the second dose of the measles-rubella vaccine (MR2) were introduced on Ugandas routine Immunisation schedule through the annual Child health days. The EPI program plans to introduce Malaria Vaccine and 3rd dose of Rotavirus vaccine and switch to a one dose schedule of HPV vaccine. A PIE rapidly identifies problem areas needing correction within the immunization either pre-existing or resulting from the introduction of a new vaccine and provide valuable lessons for future vaccine introduction. Uganda will be conducting an integrated PIE in May/June 2024 that will cover the entire spectrum of the immunization program, from the national level down to the community level. Overall: The primary objective of this Post-Introduction Evaluation (PIE) is to assess the impact and effectiveness of the newly introduced vaccines within the Uganda National Immunization Programme. Specific Objectives: Highlight planning activities that went well and should be maintained Identify and document problems and bottlenecks needing corrective action, so that they can be prevented in future introductions of new vaccine as well as improve further operationalization Inform recommendations to improve successful introduction of future vaccines Identify ease or complexity of the vaccine introduction Identify any best practices to generate knowledge and scale up It will encompass all relevant stakeholders including health officials, health care workers, community leaders and the general public. Several reviewers will be assembled drawn from the national and international community. The review process will include both a desk review and field work using the WHO guidance document for PIE. There is need to have a national consultant who will coordinate the various levels of the evaluation. Key Deliverables At the end of the two (2) months assignment, the consultant will be expected to have delivered the following: Coordinate the review and finalization of data collection tools by May 10, 2024 Coordinate the desk review process with compilation of inputs from reviewers in a draft report by May 1, 2024 Lead the organization of the initial day of consultation and field deployments of the reviewers Participate in the field data collection activities Support preparations of the national stakeholders preparatory and feedback meetings including the flow of information between the various participants Coordinate the aggregation the findings and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data from the desk review and field to assess the impact and effectiveness of the new vaccines introduced into routine immunization program Lead the identification and documentation lessons learned and best practices from the integrated vaccines introduced into the Ugandan immunization program Participate in weekly virtual preparatory meetings with all stakeholders and provide updates on preparation for the PIE Coordinate the writing of a final evaluation report including findings, analysis, lessons learned, and recommendations Submit the final evaluation report within 30 days of completion of the exercise. Qualifications, Skills and Experience: MBCHB with a masters in public health; added advantage experience in immunization Five years of related work experience Extensive experience in conducting program evaluations, particularly in the context of public health or development interventions. Strong analytical and research skills, with the ability to collect and analyze both quantitative and qualitative data. Good organizational and coordination skills Excellent communication and report-writing skills. Familiar with immunization programs with an added advantage in conducting external surveillance review, FEPI review or PIE activity Knowledgeable in post-vaccine introduction evaluations Languages and level required: English How to Apply: All applicants who wish to join the United Nations should apply online at the link below. Click Here Deadline: 27th March 2024 For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline Date Posted 2024-03-13 Valid Through 2024-03-27 Employment Type FULL_TIME Hiring Organization World Health Organisation (WHO) Job Location Kampala, Kampala, Kampala , 0256, Uganda Related Jobs It seems like cinephiles can't get enough of 'Manjummel Boys.' The Malayalam survival thriller, which has entered the good books of critics and movie makers across states, is surging towards the Rs 200 crore club. With the film drawing large crowds in Tamil Nadu, Kollywood's big-shots like Dhanush, Vikram and Udhayanidhi Stalin reportedly met its crew already. Loosely based on a real-life incident from 2006, 'Manjummel Boys' has set a new benchmark for movies based on survival and friendship. With Soubin Shahir and Sreenath Bhasi leading a young brigade of Malayalam actors playing key roles, Chidambaram's 'Manjummel Boys' tells the story of a bunch of friends from Ernakulam's district's 'Manjummel, who set out on a jolly trip to Tamil Nadu's Kodaikanal hill station. Major spoilers ahead The plot thickens as the mischievous band decides to enter the prohibited areas of the Guna Caves, a major attraction of Kodai, and Sreenath Bhasi's Subhash falls into an 800-ft-deep pit. With locals and Fire and Rescue personnel hesitant to make a dive to rescue Subhash, who is stuck somewhere in the dark pit, Kuttan (Soubin Shahir), the de facto alpha and eldest of the group, volunteers to go down to rescue his friend. After he is gradually lowered into the pit originally called "Devil's Kitchen" by a rope, Kuttan manages to bring his friend back from the jaws of death, with the rest of Manjummel boys putting all their professional tug of war experience to pull them back up. While the climax is predictable, the making makes the movie stand out and provides multiple moments of fright and goosebumps for the viewers. Now, director Chidambaram has made a major revelation about his movie, which is now the second most-grossing Malayalam movie in history. Ahead of the gang beginning their journey, we see Kuttan forcing Subhash to join them. As they are about to leave, Subhash grabs his younger brother's belt from the wall, resulting in a brief verbal spat between the siblings. ALSO READ | After 'Manjummel Boys' success, Anurag Kashyap says he's jealous of Malayalam filmmakers Chidambaram, in a recent media interaction, revealed that this scene originally had more significance to the story than just establishing Subhash's background and reason for Kuttan's moral guilt. It is not just that the family of a single mother and minor brother needs Subhash to get back and that he wouldn't have even reached Guna Caves if not for Kuttan's insistence. The belt was crucial to Subhash's survival as it got him stuck somewhere at 180 ft in the pit and stopped him from falling to a certain death. "The belt hooked him to something, that's why he didn't slip further down. In real life, the brothers had fought over Subhash's decision to take the belt to Kodaikanal. If not for it, his life couldn't be saved," Manorama Online reported Chidambaram as saying. ALSO READ | 'Manjummel Boys' OTT release: Trade analyst claims no takers for the superhit film If that's the case, why was the belt's role in making Sreenath Bhasi's character stop slipping not shown in the movie? The director says it was a difficult detail to shoot and thus overlooked. "If we were to show this detail in the movie, we should have taken shots of the belt from the back. It was complicated and thus we decided to avoid it," the report quoted the young director as saying. The director also added that a loud Sixon, the character essayed by Balu Varghese, was crucial in awakening a stuck Subhash. It was Sixon's loud cries that awakened the youth, who had lost consciousness during the fall. This was crucial as it helped the people above confirm that Subhash was alive and stuck somewhere below. "Sixon's loud way of talking often annoyed his friends. In real life, he worked at a metal manufacturing unit. The noisy workplace forced him to talk loudly and it became a habit for him. Incidentally, Subhash got lucky because of this," Chidambaram concluded. Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said a decision on whether to hold both Lok Sabha and Assembly elections simultaneously in Jammu and Kashmir will be taken after consultations with security agencies and political parties. He said the poll panel is concerned about the elections, but assured the exercise will be held without much delay. Addressing the media in Jammu, CEC Kumar said, "We are concerned about Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in J&K. The majority of political parties we met in Srinagar and Jammu demanded that the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls be held simultaneously." He said a final decision will be taken after a thorough security review and consultations with political parties. One thing is certain we aim for early Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in J&K." "There will be free and fair polls in J&K," he added. A team of ECI led by Kumar arrived on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir on March 11 to interact with the political parties regarding the Lok Sabha polls and Assembly elections that were last held in January 2015 when Jammu and Kashmir was a state. During a meeting with the ECI team, representatives from various political parties raised concerns about the delay in holding Assembly polls. The Supreme Court, in its verdict on Article 370, had directed the ECI to conduct assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir by September 2024. Various political leaders who met the ECI stressed the importance of simultaneous polls, raising questions about the delay and the need for democratic participation. The BJP and the PDP outlined their stances on electoral reforms, with discussions about enhancing voter turnout and security conditions. After consultations with political stakeholders, the ECI officials are set to conduct comprehensive reviews of election preparations in collaboration with local authorities. The Jammu and Kashmir police have already expressed readiness to ensure security for the elections. Opinions are divided on whether holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls will benefit regional parties. Some believe it could favour the BJP, leveraging the BJPs chances of winning the third term and using Prime Minister Narendra Modi's popularity among the voters in Jammu, while others argue that managing two major elections simultaneously may pose challenges for the BJP, creating opportunities for regional parties and the Congress to coordinate and collaborate. The dispute over five Lok Sabha seats remains a factor influencing regional party dynamics. Boom! On Tuesday morning, under the hot desert sun, Exercise Bharat Shakti began with a sonic boom that startled onlookers seated at the grand podium in the Charlie Sector range in Pokhran (Pokran as locals call it). A home-made Tejas LCA fighter aircraft breaking the sound barrier could well have been a metaphor for Indias arrival at the vortex interplay of strategic positioning by the global powerseach seeking to further influence or retain the vestiges of a power-packed legacy of military dominance. With Bharat Shakti, India has decided to play its part decisively, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in attendance. The other notable attendees were Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the three service chiefs, military delegates from about 40 countries, and the top brass of Indias military. Pokhran, in Rajasthans Jaisalmer district, is a very dry and extensive geography. Miles and miles of sand dotted with sparse desert vegetation as far as the eye can see. Famous as the site of the nuclear tests of 1974 and 1998, Jaisalmer is surrounded by Pakistan from three sides. From Pokhran, the nearest Indo-Pak border is just 150km straight as the crow flies. That is why flexing the military muscle at Pokhran is a statement that is meant to be noticed globally. Pokhran has four military test and training rangesin sectors Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta. Bharat Shakti was conducted in the Charlie sector. The core test area that bore all the heavy bombardment by the artillery, field guns, fighter aircraft, helicopters and other weaponry of the armed services was an area about 10km in length and 5km in breadth. In a recent briefing in the defence ministry in Delhis South Block, when asked if Bharat Shakti would be a regular annual affair from now on, a top-ranking Army official said it has not been so decided yet. It raises the question if it is a one-off event meant to underline strategic posturing. First, with the doctrine of jointness and integration of the Army, Navy and the IAF becoming a declared policy, it is one thing to talk about it and another to walk the talk. Bharat Shakti walks the talk. After all, one has to implement strategies to make them effective. In more clear terms, the exercise is an attempt by the three forces to work out a military manual of combined operations. Second, India is increasingly developing military alliances with European powers like France and Germany. The increasing number of joint exercises and exchanges with these two European powers is indicative that they view India as a credible military power that can be leveraged by Europe to make its presence felt in the Indo-Pacific which is becoming the new battleground for the world powers. Third, Europe, chiefly France and Germany, are increasingly concerned about the US government policy which is at best becoming uncertain, poised as it is with a possible regime change led by the inimitable Donald Trump. As a result, the two powers are keen to assert themselves and be sure of a greater role after having been reduced to second-grade powers in the US-led NATO grouping. And in this, India with its increasing military, economic and strategic heft fits very well into their strategies. Meanwhile, India will be able to maximize its advantages only when it demonstrates a credible military muscle. Bharat Shakti should be seen in that perspective. An interesting element in the Pokhran war-game was the inclusion of the naval element that was telecast on screen. It aimed at projecting Indias rise as a capable maritime power. What is significant is that the exercise closely follows the huge naval exercise 'Milan' that concluded just 15 days ago in Vishakapatnam. 'Milan' saw the participation of about 50 countries. A highlight of the 'Milan' exercise was the simultaneous operation by the two aircraft carriersVikrant and Vikramadityasailing side by side on the Indian seaboard. There cannot be a bigger statement to depict naval capability even as India wants to project itself as a power in its own backyard in the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal. Fourth, India is also just about to hold its Parliamentary elections. Projection of military strength and muscle flexing to achieve political and electoral dividends has its own limitations, yet its importance cannot be discounted. Naturally, Prime Minister Narendra Modis speech included political elements. He pointed out that Indian defence exports had increased eight-fold compared to 2014. The year 2014 was when the BJP and its allies swept to power ousting the Congress-led UPA government. PM Modi also spoke about the multiplicity of defence scams, scarcity of ammunition and deterioration of ordnance factories before 2014. Fifth, the recent moves made by China could be one of the prompters to hold such an exercise. A military presence in Sri Lankas Hambantota, growing influence in Myanmars southern seaboard and dominating sway in the strategically-located Maldives islands effectively further Chinas String of Pearls strategic initiative. Sixth, an interesting feature of Bharat Shakti is that it was conducted only with homemade weapon systems, platforms, and technologies. It was a signal that India can produce on its own. And effective platforms too. But then of course, the crash of a Tejas LCA fighter aircraft that had taken part in Bharat Shakti on Tuesday morning did mar the ongoing good run of the Indian military-industrial complex. After all, Tejas fighter is the flagship home-made air platform that will rapidly make up for the depletion of fighters in the IAF. Whether the keen interest of many countries to buy Indias Tejas suffers from the first-ever crash of the aircraft remains to be seen. Senior DMK leader K Ponmudy was on Wednesday reinstated as a legislator with the authorities revoking a notification that declared his Tirukoyilur Assembly constituency vacant. This comes after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in a disproportionate assets case. Following Ponmudy's conviction on 19 December 2023 by the Madras High Court in a the case, the Tamil Nadu Assembly Secretariat declared his constituency as 'deemed to have become vacant' from the date of his conviction. From May 2021, when the DMK assumed power, Ponmudy had served as the Higher Education Minister till his disqualification following conviction in the assets case. The TN Assembly Secretariat declared Tirukoyilur vacant by way of a notification issued on 5 March 2024. The Assembly Secretariat issued a fresh notification dated 13 March to rescind the notification of 5 March. According to the new notification, an interim order of the Supreme Court dated 11 March 2024 suspended Ponmudy's conviction and following that, the Assembly Secretariat on Wednesday revoked the earlier notification that declared the former minister's constituency vacant. The Union Home Ministry on Tuesday asserted that Indian Muslims need not worry as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) will not impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the community which enjoys equal rights as their Hindu counterparts. The ministry sought to allay fears of a section of Muslims and students regarding the CAA, making it clear that "no Indian citizen would be asked to produce any document to prove his citizenship after this Act." "Indian Muslims need not worry as CAA has not made any provision to impact their citizenship and has nothing to do with the present 18 crore Indian Muslims, who have equal rights like their Hindu counterparts," a Home Ministry statement said. The government on Monday notified the rules for the Citizenship (Amendment) Act to fast-track citizenship for persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. In the statement, the home ministry said, "Due to the persecution of minorities in those three Muslim countries, the name of Islam was badly tarnished all around the world. However, Islam, being a peaceful religion, never preaches or suggests hatred/ violence/ any persecution on religious ground". This Act "protects Islam from being tarnished in the name of persecution", it said. Explaining the need of the law, the ministry said India does not have any pact or agreement with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh to repatriate migrants back to these countries. "This Citizenship Act doesn't deal with the deportation of illegal immigrants and therefore the concern of a section of the people, including Muslims and students, that CAA is against Muslim minorities is unjustifiable," it said. The ministry said there is no bar on Muslims from anywhere in the world to seek Indian citizenship under Section 6 of the Citizenship Act, which deals with citizenship by naturalisation. "Without curtailing the freedom and opportunity of Indian Muslims to enjoy their rights as they have been usually practising and entertaining since Independence like other Indian citizens belonging to other religions, CAA 2019 has reduced the qualification period of application for citizenship from 11 to five years for the beneficiaries who had been persecuted on religious grounds in Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan and who had entered India on or before December 31, 2014 with an aim to show a generous treatment to them," it said. Giving justification for the need to bring the CAA, the ministry said that to show mercy to the persecuted minorities of the three countries, this Act gives opportunity to them as per the evergreen generous culture of India to get Indian citizenship for their happy and prosperous future."To customise the citizenship system and control the illegal migrants, there was need of this Act," it said. The ministry also made it clear that the CAA does not cancel the naturalisation laws and hence any person, including Muslim migrants, from any foreign country seeking to be an Indian citizen can apply for the same under the existing laws. "This Act does not prevent any Muslim who is persecuted in those three Islamic countries for practising their version of Islam from applying for Indian citizenship under the existing laws," it said. Protests erupted in some parts of the country, including Assam, on Tuesday against the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has congratulated His Holiness Pope Francis on the occasion of Coronation Day, Azernews reports. The letter reads: "Your Holiness, It is on the occasion of your Election Anniversary that, on my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Azerbaijan, I am pleased to offer my most cordial congratulations to you and, through you, all your fellow coreligionists. We place great importance on enhancing relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See. The genuine dialogue and mutual understanding we have cultivated over the years contribute to preserving universal values and fostering solidarity among representatives of various religions and cultures. I express my gratitude to you for the high value you place on Azerbaijan's traditions of multiculturalism and inclusivity, and its role in promoting interreligious and intercultural understanding globally. I am confident that the atmosphere of exemplary cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Holy See will continue to contribute to the creation of an environment of mutual trust among civilizations. I wish you good health, longevity, and success in your noble mission for the sake of sacred purposes. Respectfully, Ilham Aliyev President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Baku, 11 March 2024" Paul Alexander, an American lawyer known for his unconditional lust for life, has died at the age of 78. At the age of 6, he was left paralyzed from the neck down due to severe polio, but his respiratory functions were maintained by an iron lung device. ADVERTISIMENT With this device, the American lived for decades, becoming famous all over the world. His death was reported by a fund to raise money for his treatment, the Daily Mail reports. Paul Alexander, even while paralyzed, had a full and vibrant life, full of travel, work, and success. He graduated from high school remotely and received a doctorate in law. In those years, America was not yet so inclusive, so the man fought for his rights with the help of pickets and caring friends. Over time, the American learned to breathe with his tongue, but he could not spend more than three hours outside the ventilator. However, even this time was enough for him to practice law and do other things for which he used a special chair. ADVERTISIMENT People filmed stories about Paul for television, invited him to court, bought his autobiographical book and subscribed to social media about the man with a difficult fate. He did not have a romantic relationship, because in his student years, the parents of Paul's chosen one forbade them to marry. Since then, the man has had only professional and friendly relationships. His father made him special pens, brushes, and sticks with which his son learned to write, print, and draw. Paul outlived both his parents and his brother. At the age of 70, due to health problems, the man could hardly manage without the device. He had not sat in his chair since the age of 74, and in 2022 he entered the Guinness Book of Records as the person who lived the longest with an "iron lung." ADVERTISIMENT Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote that Lee Redmond, who once had the longest nails in the world, died in Utah, USA. She had not cut her nails since 1979, and first entered the Guinness Book of Records in 2003 with a 7-meter manicure. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The regional parties have urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir alongside the Lok Sabha polls due in April-May. The representatives of political parties made a joint pitch for simultaneous polls in a meeting with the ECI team led by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, which arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on March 11 for two days. The representatives from various political parties expressed their concerns regarding the delay in holding the polls in the Union Territory since the collapse of the PDP-BJP government in June 2018. The Supreme Court, in its verdict on Article 370, directed the ECI to hold assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir latest by September 2024. Nasir Aslam Wani of the National Conference articulated the long-standing demand for conducting assembly elections concurrently with the Lok Sabha polls. He emphasised the need for democratic participation, highlighting the decade-long hiatus in electing the government. He questioned the rationale behind delaying the electoral process, especially in the context of Prime Minister Modi's push for 'one country, one election,' urging equitable treatment for Jammu and Kashmir. Echoing similar sentiments, another NC leader underscored the urgency of holding assembly elections before the commencement of the Amarnath Yatra, citing security concerns and the imperative of safeguarding democratic rights. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the People's Democratic Party (PDP) outlined their respective stances on electoral reforms. RS Pathania of the BJP urged the need to enhance voter turnout in Lok Sabha elections and proposed measures to facilitate smoother voting processes. The BJP leader demanded the establishment of polling booths in regions with Kashmiri Pandit populations to bolster their electoral participation. "BJP is in favor of holding assembly elections in the state soon. If Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are held simultaneously, the BJP will support it," he said. PDP representative Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura stressed the importance of conducive security conditions for holding assembly elections, expressing hope for their expeditious conduct. "If the security situation with the Lok Sabha is good, then assembly elections should be held, he said We only hope that assembly elections should be held as soon as possible. Following the deliberations with political stakeholders, the ECI officials are scheduled to conduct comprehensive reviews of the election preparations in collaboration with local authorities. This includes consultations with District Election Officers and Superintendents of Police to assess logistical requirements and security arrangements. The Jammu and Kashmir police have already said they are ready to ensure security for the election. Jammu and Kashmir have only witnessed District Development Council (DDC) polls after the abrogation of Article 370. The DDC polls were held in October 2022, since then no other elections have been held in the UT. In the absence of an elected government in the erstwhile state for more than five years, Panchayats-elected local bodies were the only democratic institutions in the region. However, the curtain fell on the last vestige of elected representatives in Jammu and Kashmir as the term of over 28,000 Panchayat members ended on January 9, 2024, with no fresh elections in sight. The UT administration has empowered deputy commissioners as administrators with the powers of grassroots elected bodies until fresh elections are held. Opinions are divided on whether holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls will benefit the regional parties. One view is that such a situation will benefit the BJP, the main rival of the regional parties and the Congress in Jammu and Kashmir, as the local parties. The other is that the regional parties will have an edge if both elections are held together. Those who believe the BJP will have an advantage think that the party will benefit from the favourable atmosphere it enjoys across the country over the INDIA alliance. That will have a positive impact on its supporters in the Jammu region, its base. They believe the regional parties will struggle in such a situation, and many neutral voters will be swayed toward the BJP with a promise of a Hindu Chief minister in Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP lacks a major crowd-puller and still depends on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to mobilise the voters. The BJP will ride Modis popularity blurring the lines between Parliament and assembly polls. The second view is that, in such a scenario, the BJP will find it hard to manage two major elections, and there will be gaps at the grassroots that the regional parties will exploit. The regional parties and the Congress will be forced to coordinate and allow room for each other, which is missing presently due to the dispute over five Lok Sabha seats. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday virtually laid the foundation stone of three semiconductor facilities of about Rs 1.25 lakh crore, which include two in Gujarat and one in Assam. At the ceremony, the Prime Minister said the 'Made in India' semiconductor chips will take the country towards self-reliance and modernity. The three semiconductor projects launched on Wednesday include India's first Fab facility at Dholera in Gujarat, Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) facility at Sanand in the state, and an OSAT facility in Morigaon, Assam. The first phase of the facility is expected to be operational by mid-2025. "This is a historic day as we are taking a strong step towards a bright future," Modi said. "When India commits, India delivers and democracy also delivers," Modi said on the promise to make the country a semiconductor manufacturing hub. He also took a dig at the UPA governments, stating while they committed scams of thousands of crores, they could not invest thousands of crores in the development of the semiconductor industry. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who was present at the event organised at the site of the facility in Jagiroad, thanked the Prime Minister for bringing up the facility in Assam. "Assam being situated in the remotest part of this country, we never thought that we would be the pioneer of the semiconductor revolution. The blessings and confidence that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has on northeast has brought the semiconductor revolution in Assam," Sarma said. He added that the project will attract an investment of Rs 27,000 crores and ensure employment of 30,000 young people in our state and neighbourhood. "This is the beginning, this is not the end. I am sure that now Assam will see a new light, a new day as far economic prosperity is concerned," he added. (With PTI inputs) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday announced five "Mahila Nyay" guarantees, including Rs 1 lakh annually for the poor women and 50 per cent reservation in government jobs if his party is voted to power in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Addressing a women's rally in Maharashtra's Dhule district as part of his ongoing 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra', Rahul Gandhi said Rs 1 lakh will be deposited annually into the bank accounts of poor women. He also said that if voted to power at the Centre, the Congress government will give 50 per cent of reservations in government jobs for all women. Rahul Gandhi promised that the government's share in the budget for ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers, and women working in anganwadis (government-run women and child care centres) and in mid-day meal schemes would be doubled. He also said that a nodal officer would be appointed to educate women about their rights and help in the fight for their cases, and that the Savitribai Phule hostels will be set up for women in every district of the country, Rahul Gandhi added. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, in a video message, announced the names of the guarantees as: Mahalaxmi: To deposit Rs 1 lakh directly into the bank accounts of poor women annually. Aadhi Aabadi Pura Hakk: 50 per cent reservation for women in government jobs Shakti Ka Sammaan: The government's contribution to the monthly income of Anganwadi, ASHA and midday meal workers will be doubled. Adhikar Maitri: A nodal officer will be appointed in every district to educate women about their rights and provide assistance in legal matters. Savitribai Phule hostel: The government will build at least one hostel for working women at district headquarters. The number of hostels across the country will be doubled. Rahul Gandhi said that Congress is talking about economic and social justice, and added that the only road to achieve this is to have a caste census. "Once we come to power, the Congress will carry out a caste census and an economic and financial survey across the country. It will be a revolutionary step...we will have the exact data of each caste and its representation in the population," he said. He claimed that Rs 16 lakh crore of industrialists have been waived off, but not the debts of farmers and youth. "The BJP weakened Acts like the Forest Rights Act or Land Acquisition Act. We will not only strengthen them but ensure that tribals' claims are settled within one year," he said. The BJP's governments have wrongly rejected thousands of claims under the Forest Rights Act and denied the tribals access to the jungles, Rahul Gandhi alleged. The ruling party uses the word `vanvasi' (forest-dwellers) for the Adivasi or tribal population in India to deny the fact of their existence before the arrival of people of other races, the Congress leader said. "Adivasi' means you are the original owners of this land, water and the forest. The word `vanvasi' does not come with such inheritance. The BJP keeps calling you `vanvasi' but destroys your forests and gives them to Adanis. Your share in the population is around eight per cent, but do you have any representation in major corporate houses or at senior management levels in these private companies? Out of 90 IAS officers who allocate the country's budget, only one officer is tribal. Of every Rs 100 spent in the budget, the tribal officer can decide about the utilisation of only 10 paise," he said. The State Bank of India filed a compliance affidavit in the electoral bonds case on Wednesday, two days after the Supreme Court rejected the bank's plea for more time to disclose the details of the bonds. This comes after the apex court had told SBI that the bank does not have to match names of electoral bond buyers with specific political parties. The deadline set by the court ended at 5 pm on Tuesday. In the Wednesday affidavit filed by SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara in the top court, SBI said it submitted details of electoral bonds purchased and redeemed from April 14, 2019 to February 15, 2024, to the election panel before the close of business hours on March 12. These included details of date of purchase and encashment of electoral bonds, the names of political parties that received the donations and names of purchasers and their denominations have been furnished to the Election Commission. The data was compiled in two password-protected PDF files and was handed over in a pen drive while the passwords were submitted in an envelope. A total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 of them were redeemed by political parties. Between April 1 and 11, 2019, a total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased and 1,609 of them redeemed. From April 12, 2019 to February 15, 2024, a total of 18,871 electoral bonds were purchased and 20,421 were redeemed. US President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump are set for a bitter election rematch in November after they secured their parties' presidential nominations with impressive wins in another round of key primaries. Biden, 81, won the Democratic presumptive nomination on Tuesday after easily clinching the presidential primaries in Georgia, as the number of delegates in his kitty crossed the halfway mark of 3,933 pledged delegates. A total of 1,968 delegates were required to win the Democratic nomination. Four states -- Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi, Washington -- one American territory and Democrats living abroad held their primaries on Tuesday. Biden would formally be declared the party's nomination during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August. Trump, 77, reached the 1,215 delegates necessary with an allocation of delegates from Washington state. Trump will be officially nominated at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee this July. He will lead the Republican Party in a third consecutive presidential election after clinching the nomination Tuesday. Their rematch, long anticipated, but hardly clamoured for, is broadly expected to mirror the 2020 campaign, though Trump will run this time under the spectre of 91 felony charges. Trump is scheduled to become the first former American president to go on trial in a criminal case on March 25 in New York, where he faces charges he falsified business records to hide hush money payments to a porn star. Other charges are related to allegations that he plotted to overturn his 2020 election defeat; played a lead role in the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol and illegally took classified documents from the White House. It would be the first presidential rematch since 1956. The last presidential rematch came in 1956 when Republican President Dwight D Eisenhower again defeated Adlai Stevenson, the Democratic opponent he had four years prior. Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 November elections, an outcome still challenged by the Republican leader. Biden has faced only nominal opposition to become the Democratic nominee. Trump has defeated several Republicans in primary elections, including Indian-origin former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Other candidates, including Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence, dropped out months ago for lack of voter support. Biden said he is honoured to become his party's presumptive nominee and warned of another Trump presidency. I am honoured that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country has put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever, Biden said in a statement after he bagged majority of the delegates. Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country. Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms or let extremists take them away? Will we finally make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes or will we allow corporate greed to run rampant on the backs of the middle class? he said. In a post to the social media platform X, Biden celebrated his status as his party's presumptive nominee, calling it a time of choosing in a new campaign video. Today's a day, a call to action, Biden says in a voiceover. With your voice, with your power, with your vote come November, we will vote in record numbers, and can do it, we have the power to do it. Are you ready? Are you ready to defend democracy? Are you ready to protect our freedom? Are you ready to win this election? Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated Biden securing the delegates needed to clinch his party's nomination on Tuesday and forecast how the president's campaign will look to take the fight to Donald Trump in the general election. From the start, the President and I never took this re-nomination process for granted. We have campaigned in earnest because we know doing so is an important step towards earning reelection and will help us mobilise the voters we need in November, Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement. Now, the general election truly begins, and the contrast could not be clearer. Donald Trump is a threat to our democracy and our fundamental freedoms, she said. With his State of the Union speech last week, Biden passionately presented our alternative vision, she said. We will reduce costs for families, make housing more affordable, and raise the minimum wage, she added. We will restore Roe (nationwide right to abortion), protect voting rights, and finally address our gun violence epidemic. The American people overwhelmingly support this agenda over Donald Trump's extreme ideas, and that will propel our campaign in the months ahead, Harris said. Trump's campaign posted a video on X of the former president after he clinched the nomination. This was a great day of victory. Last week was something very special Super Tuesday but now we have to get back to work because we have the worst president in the history of the country. His name is Joe Biden, sometimes referred to as crooked Joe Biden, and he must be defeated, Trump said in the video. Democratic National Convention (DNC) Chair Jaime Harrison said this year's election will decide the future of democracy. Donald Trump is running a campaign focused on revenge, retribution, and his own self-interest. President Biden is running a campaign focused on what makes our country so great: the American people. President Biden understands that our freedoms, our democracy, and the very future of our country are at stake and once again, he will meet this moment and bring Democrats together this November, he said. America spoke, and today Joe Biden has become the presumptive Democratic nominee for President of the United States. We have arrived at this moment because millions of Americans made their voices heard, choosing Joe Biden's vision of freedom and progress for all Americans, said Democratic National Convention Committee Chair Minyon Moore. Despite persistent concerns from voters that his age limits his ability to perform the duties of the presidency, the party apparatus rallied around Biden. Trump remains very popular with the Republican voter base, which has propelled him to victory in primary after primary over well-funded rivals. His campaign for a second term in the White House has zeroed in on stricter immigration laws, including a pledge to "seal the border" and implement "record-setting" deportations. Trump has also vowed to fight crime, boost domestic energy production, tax imports, end the war in Ukraine and resume an "America first" approach to global affairs. The Central government, in a bid to minimise deaths caused by incidents involving dog attacks, has asked the Delhi state government to ban the import, breeding and sale of certain ferocious dogs. The ferocious dogs that are already being kept as pets need to be sterilized, to prevent further breeding. Here are some of the breeds on the list. NEW DELHI, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Tabreed, the world's leading district cooling company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) through the 'Energy Efficient Cooling' programme. This initiative is jointly implemented by GIZ and the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), to continue working together in catalysing the market, to drive adoption of energy-efficient district cooling systems and thermal storage solutions in India. As such it aligns with the country's Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement to adopt a climate friendly approach to development. Due to rising temperatures and the corresponding surge in air conditioner usage, projections indicate that, by 2050, cooling could be responsible for 60% of peak energy demand in India. Drawing upon GIZ's proficiency in sustainable development strategies, notably its collaboration with BEE on district cooling guidelines, and Tabreed's unrivalled experience in the industry, the partnership aims to promote widespread adoption of energy-efficient district cooling systems to deliver on sustainable and holistic economic and human development in India. Through this alliance, Tabreed and GIZ will work together to complement each other's global and local expertise across three broad focus areas: First, to facilitate bilateral exchange between governments to strengthen national and regional policy, regulatory, legal, and institutional frameworks in support of the development of district cooling markets. Second, to democratise Cooling as a Service across key urban, educational and industrial clusters through collaborative project development. Third, to support other ongoing initiatives to build human, institutional and corporate capacities at regional, national and local levels through unique and innovative training workshop formats, supplemented by exchange visits to plants for participants across the value chain, including policymakers, developers, urban planners and consultants. Commenting on this development, Sudheer Perla, Managing Director, Tabreed Asia, said: "Over the past five years, Tabreed has steadfastly pursued the development of district cooling markets in India. Tabreed, in a joint venture with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), established an investment platform committing to invest up to $400 million in India and Southeast Asia. This partnership with GIZ marks a significant milestone in our ongoing endeavors to establish planet inclusive cooling solutions as a mainstream choice in India." Nitin Jain, Programme Head, Energy-Efficient Cooling (EE Cool), added: "For several years, we have collaborated closely with BEE in India to champion energy-efficient solutions in industries, buildings and cooling. Together, we have undertaken numerous initiatives to further this goal, including the recent launch of District Cooling Guidelines. Against this backdrop, our partnership with Tabreed couldn't have come at a better time. As India strides toward a sustainable future with a bold vision for sustainability, the role of district cooling becomes more pivotal than ever." Commenting on the partnership, Arijit Sengupta, Director, BEE, said: "Our collective aim is to forge a path towards sustainable cooling solutions that mitigate the environmental impact while simultaneously driving economic growth and societal well-being. GIZ and Tabreed, by combining expertise and resources, envision implementing innovative strategies through district cooling that optimise energy usage, reduce carbon emissions and ensure access to efficient cooling services across diverse sectors and communities." About Tabreed India: Tabreed India Private Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tabreed Asia Central Cooling Company, a 75/25 joint venture between National Central Cooling Company PJSC (Tabreed UAE) and World Bank's International Finance Corporation (IFC). Tabreed is actively engaging with several leading real estate developers and institutional investors across the country, to implement district cooling or 'Cooling as a Service' (CAAS). During 2023 Tabreed signed a concession with Tata Realty to provide CAAS for its Grade A commercial campus in Gurugram. With strong design, engineering and development capabilities, Tabreed India continues to develop local supply chain and O&M capabilities to ensure global best practices are seamlessly implemented throughout the country. About GIZ: The Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a German federal enterprise with worldwide operations. GIZ supports the German Government in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development. The current thematic areas of GIZ in India are Energy, Environment, Climate Change and Biodiversity, Sustainable Urban Development and Sustainable Economic Development. The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV), as well as the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), are the main commissioning parties of GIZ in India. Other clients include Indian public sector clients, the European Union and foundations. The Government of India has launched numerous important initiatives to address the country's economic, environmental and social challenges, and GIZ is contributing to some of the most significant ones under the umbrella of the Indo-German Partnership for Green and Sustainable Development. Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361445/TabreedxGIZ.jpg Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2305246/4465616/Tabreed_Logo.jpg (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR PWR Keynote speaker at the Economics Conclave organised by the NMIMS Sarla Anil Modi School of Economics, Mr. Royston Braganza, suggests that the economic impact of climate change is not just a concern of the future MUMBAI, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- India has been experiencing a significant economic impact due to climate change. According to a report by the World Bank, India is expected to suffer a significant economic impact due to climate change by the year 2050. It predicts that India's GDP will decrease by 2.8% as a result of the negative consequences of climate change. This could have far-reaching consequences for the country and its citizens, highlighting the urgent need for action to mitigate the effects of climate change. According to Mr. Royston Braganza, CEO of Grameen Capital, Mumbai, the economic impact of climate change is not just a concern of the future. It is seen today in floods, landslides, and other natural disasters. He was the keynote speaker at the Economics Conclave organised by the NMIMS Sarla Anil Modi School of Economics, on February 27, 2024. "They say $ 14.2 trillion worth of property will be affected due to climate change. So, it is about creating resilient livelihoods and opportunities for climate migrants. Reports say $ 9 trillion will be needed to finance some of these challenges," he said, while discussing how microfinance may present a pathway to sustainable solutions. "The sustainable development goal gap of more than $ 4 trillion is not going to come from donor funding or philanthropy. It has to be mainstreamed," he added. NMIMS has always been at the forefront of discourses on subjects that have a widespread societal impact. Aiming to address the pressing issue of climate and its economic repercussions in the Indian context, the conclave saw panel discussions by industry experts. Moderated by Mr. Rahul Prithiani, Senior Director & Global Head - Sustainability, Energy and Commodities, CRISIL, the panel included Mr. Manish Kumar, Head - ESG & CSR, ICICI Bank Limited; Mr. Pranav Garimella, Programme Manager, Climate Programme, WRI India; and Mr. Kalpesh Gada, Advisor, Climate Policy Initiative. Welcoming the panelists, Prof. Amita Vaidya, Director of NMIMS Sarla Anil Modi School of Economics, said, "India is very vulnerable and the economic impact on the overall macro and social environment can be immense. RBI's Department of Economic and Policy Research says in its report on currency and finance 2223 that the change due to rising temperatures and the changing pattern of monsoon in India could cost the Indian economy 2.8% of its GDP and depress the living standard of half of the population by 2050, in the absence of policies to mitigate the impact of climate change." Mr. Rahul Prithiani set the tone for the discussion by highlighting the many measures taken by the Indian government like promoting the domestic production of value chain components of solar and electric vehicles, apart from having a strong agenda to promote green hydrogen. "The challenge is whether we will have enough funding," he said, adding, "SEBI has made it mandatory for businesses to report on responsibility and sustainability, in addition to normal financial reporting. With more and more data coming from companies, there will be more compliance. That is the first step to addressing some of the concerns, and there has been a marked change in corporate behaviour toward adopting sustainable practices." Talking about the economic impact of climate change, Mr. Pranav Garimella spoke about their research suggesting that a 2 to 3.2 degree Celsius rise in average temperature is likely to have an impact of a 9% to 28% reduction in revenues in the agriculture sector. The overall economy will probably see about 1.8% of the GDP loss to about 2.8 %. "We have to decarbonise our economy by achieving our renewable targets by switching to EVs and climate resilient agriculture," he said. Meanwhile, Mr. Manish Kumar spoke about the corporate sector playing a big role by aligning itself with the country's 2070 net zero goal. He said, "There are interim targets for 2030 too, and we have pledged that 50% of the energy consumed by the country will be through renewable sources. Banks are preparing themselves to support financial requirements to reach our nation's goals, and corporates are pledging more equity into green and sustainable projects." Mr. Kalpesh Gada, while saying that it is not the planet but the humans and the myriad species that call it home, which are in danger, said, "The urgency of climate action demands sacrifices today for benefits we may not see immediately. The key to addressing climate change lies in transitioning to greener technology and cleaner energy sources. Funding is crucial for this transition and will require innovation and the maximisation of existing capital, while seeking new avenues of investment. I urge the government to come out with a clear taxonomy of green initiatives and would like to see the establishment of dedicated green financial institutions that can further drive progress." About NMIMS Circa 1981, Shri Vile Parle Kelavani Mandal (SVKM) established the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) to meet the burgeoning demand for Management Education across the nation. In 2003, NMIMS was declared a Deemed-to-be University under section 3 of the UGC Act 1956 and Category-I in Graded Autonomy Regulation, 2018 by UGC/MHRD. With a legacy of 42 years, Narsee Nonjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) has grown to be not only one of the Top 10 B-Schools in India but also emerged as a multi- disciplinary and multi-centric University with eight campuses at Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Indore, Shirpur, Dhule, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chandigarh. The University has seventeen constituent schools that include Management, Family Business Management, Engineering and Technology Management, Pharmacy, Architecture, Commerce, Economics, Law, Science, Liberal Arts, Design, Performing Arts, Mathematical Science, Agricultural Science, Hospitality Management, Branding and Advertising and Distance Learning. In addition to the seventeen constituent Schools, the University also has 13 Centres of Excellence. Today, NMIMS stands as the academic hub of choice, attracting over 26,000 full- time students and employing more than 850 full-time faculty members. This vibrant academic community continues to thrive and contribute significantly to India's educational landscape. For media queries: Mr. Siddesh Neema | +919004768274 | nmims@proseintegrated.com (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR PWR Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) Amid widespread concerns over high stock valuations, including from the regulators, financial services industry veteran Uday Kotak on Wednesday said Indian markets are not in a bubble. There may be some "early froth", and it may be a "little bubbly" but the markets are not out of control, Kotak said, speaking in the presence of top officials from Sebi in a conference organised by the capital markets watchdog. The statement from Kotak, the founder and non-executive director of private sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank, comes two days after Sebi chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch had said that there are pockets of froth in the small and mid-cap stocks and the regulator is looking into the same to come out with a possible consultation paper. "It may not be appropriate to allow the bubble to keep building, because' when it bursts, they impact the investors adversely. That is not a good thing," Buch had said. Reacting to it, Kotak quoted economist John Meynard Keynes who spoke about speculation to be not a bad activity per se and also mentioned about the bubble in Japanese stocks between 1980 and 1989, saying the benchmark Nikkei has been able to regain its peak, only 35 years later after the bubble burst. "I believe at this stage, we are nowhere near that risk and there are enough checks and balances in our system today to compare ourselves in serious bubble territory," Kotak said. There may be "early froth" in the market and it may be a "little bubbly", Kotak said, pointing to Buch who was seated close by, but added that things are not out of control. "As long as we keep watch and manage it well, we can create sustained capital formation going forward," he said. Meanwhile, Kotak also pitched for greater quality on the taxation front between equity and debt, as asset classes to give more clarity for investors and incentivise the right set as per priorities. "In the context of the equity culture, I do believe that there has to be some streamlining of taxation across different classes, including double taxation on dividends," he said, pointing out that the highest marginal tax on debt is 39 per cent while the same on dividends effectively is 57 per cent. He also pitched for the country to claim the space of making the rupee as the preferred alternative to the US Dollar to settle global trade, saying the world cannot go to China for this and we need to have a 10-year plan on the same. BANGALORE, India, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TruAlt Bioenergy Limited, announces its membership with the World Economic Forum. The ceremonial signing took place against the backdrop of the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting 2024 in Davos, Switzerland and was attended by Mr Vijay Nirani, Managing Director of TruAlt Bioenergy, and Mr Roberto Bocca, Head of Centre for Energy and Materials and Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum. The World Economic Forum's commitment to facilitating progress on systemic challenges is taken forward through its 10 Centres, each applying the institution's unique combination of impact methods to drive holistic efforts. TruAlt Bioenergy Limited has gained membership in one of these Centres, the Centre for Energy and Materials, underscoring its commitment to sustainable energy solutions and global collaboration. TruAlt specializes in the production of ethanol, compressed biogas, sustainable aviation fuel, and fermented organic manure, contributing significantly to the advancement of renewable energy sources. The World Economic Forum, known for its role as an international organization for public-private cooperation, serves as a platform for leaders from various sectors to address global challenges and drive positive change. Through its Centre for Energy and Materials, the Forum focuses on fostering dialogue and collaboration to address critical energy-related issues and promote sustainable energy solutions. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Vijay Nirani, Founder and Managing Director of TruAlt Bioenergy, expressed his enthusiasm about the partnership: "Our association with the World Economic Forum marks the beginning of a relationship spanning over decades between our two organizations. We aim to accomplish significant milestones together in terms of energy independence, driving the journey towards a biofuel-based economy, and empowering rural populations." Mr. Nirani further emphasized the potential for collaboration between TruAlt Bioenergy and the World Economic Forum in developing innovative solutions for the global bioenergy sector. He highlighted the importance of leveraging collective expertise and resources in addressing complex energy challenges and accelerating the transition to sustainable energy sources. "We welcome TruAlt Bioenergy to join the Forum's network," says Roberto Bocca, Head of the Centre for Energy and Materials at the World Economic Forum. "We look forward to having TruAlt Bioenergy's expertise and insights, which will further contribute to our initiatives and support driving the energy transition and transforming industrial ecosystems. As a member of the World Economic Forum, TruAlt Bioenergy looks forward to actively participating in discussions, initiatives, and projects aimed at advancing the global energy agenda and fostering inclusive, sustainable development. About TruAlt Bioenergy Limited: TruAlt Bioenergy Limited is a leading biofuel and bioenergy company based in India, specializing in the production of ethanol, compressed biogas, sustainable aviation fuel, and fermented organic manure. With a commitment to sustainability and innovation, TruAlt Bioenergy aims to drive the transition towards renewable energy sources and contribute to a greener, more sustainable future. About the World Economic Forum: The World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. (www.weforum.org). Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2361538/TruAltBioenergyWEF.jpg (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR PWR The National Council of Ukraine on Television and Radio Broadcasting has asked Disney to include the award ceremony for 20 Days in Mariupol in the 90-minute international version of the Oscars 2024. The Ukrainian film won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature. This was followed by a powerful speech by director Mstyslav Chernov, which lasted 45 seconds. ADVERTISIMENT However, this fragment was not included in the shortened broadcast due to its limited duration. A letter addressed to The Walt Disney Company with a request to include the award for 20 Days in Mariupol in the 90-minute version was published on the official Facebook page of the National Council. The message states that on March 10, 2022, Disney withdrew from Russia, supporting Ukraine in the war. However, it goes on to say that when all democracies in the world are aimed at countering Russian aggression and preserving peace, the company decides to remove the fragment with the awarding of Ukrainian journalists "for a full-length documentary that tells about the horrors and inhuman cruelty of war." ADVERTISIMENT The regulator of the National Broadcasting Council has reviewed the studio's explanation for the formation of the 90-minute version. However, Ukrainian representatives believe that these could only be preliminary agreements. "Therefore, we are asking to create and distribute an updated international version among broadcasters, which will include the fragment with the Best Documentary Feature nomination," the National Council's letter says. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) The central government has directed states to ban the sale and breeding of 23 breeds of ferocious dogs, including Pitbull Terrier, American Bulldog, Rottweiler and Mastiffs, amid rising instances of people dying due to pet dog attacks. The directive issued to states and Union Territories bars people from keeping as many as 23 breeds of dogs as pets. In a letter dated March 12 to chief secretaries of all states and UTs, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying also said that these breeds of dogs, which have already been kept as pets, should be sterilised to prevent further breeding. Flagging serious recent issues of death of human beings due to dog bites by some ferocious breeds of dogs kept as pets, the department said it has received representations from citizens, citizen forums and Animal Welfare Organisations (AWOs) to ban some of the breeds of dogs from keeping them as pets and other purposes. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying had set up an expert committee under the chairmanship of the Animal Husbandry Commissioner with members from various stakeholder organisations and experts in view of the representations. The panel has identified 23 breeds of dogs, including mixed and cross breeds, as ferocious and also dangerous for human lives. Pitbull Terrier, Tosa Inu, American Staffordshire Terrier, Fila Brasileiro, Dogo Argentino, American Bulldog, Boerboel Kangal, Central Asian Shepherd Dog and Caucasian Shepherd Dog are among the breeds sought to be banned from the Centre. Other breeds include South Russian Shepherd Dog, Tornjak, Sarplaninac, Japanese Tosa and Akita, Mastiffs, Terriers, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Wolf Dogs, Canario, Akbash Dog, Moscow Guard Dog, Cane Corso and Bandog. "...the above dog breeds, including crossbreeds, shall be prohibited for import, breedings, selling as pet dogs and other purposes," the letter said, quoting the recommendations of the expert panel. The Centre's Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying has asked local bodies and state-level departments of animal husbandry not to issue any license or permit for the sale and breeding of banned dog breeds. The Centre has published the Prevention of Cruelty to the Animal (Dog Breeding and Marketing) rules, 2017 and the Prevent of Cruelty to Animal (pet shop) rules, 2018. In the letter, Joint Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying O P Chaudhary said implementation of the rules is vested in local bodies and state animal welfare boards as well as the Department of Animal Husbandry. Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran on Wednesday said he is "worried" over retail investors' play in risky Futures and Options (F&O) segment in search of instant profits. Speaking at a conference organised by capital markets regulator Sebi and NISM, Nageswaran said the biggest threat to sustainable capital formation and also sustainable economic growth is the "short-termism" in attitudes that the country is afflicted with. Bemoaning the "furore" caused every time, there is a discussion on allowing corporate groups to promote banks despite the need for capital in a growing economy, Nageswaran said India Inc needs to reflect on the state of corporate governance practices and analyse its own conduct. "The biggest risk for sustained capital formation and sustained economic growth is... in our short-termism," he said. He added that it is "puzzling" to see that a country otherwise blessed with a "deep spiritual heritage and wisdom" is actually interpreting mindfulness and living in the present in the wrong ways. Nageswaran rued that even now, people are mentioning handsome growth in F&O volumes, despite Sebi's own studies suggesting that 90 per cent of trades in the riskier segment leading to losses for investors. "Our actions make me worry that we may be interpreting mindfulness and living in the present as being myopic," he said, making it clear that those two concepts stress on performing one's duty and obligations without thinking about the fruits of the actions. He said there is a need to change the outlook from a behaviourial perspective to achieve goals like long-term capital formation and growth. Nageswaran rued that there is an "adversarial" attitude among many stakeholders when it comes to regulators, wherein people overlook the fact a regulator's job is to have a long-term view of things and "providing counterbalance for instant gratification or myopia". "The underline focus that the regulators have is to ensure that we stay stronger for longer rather than get caught up in the immediate euphoria of our growth rates, market valuations," he said. Amid concerns that the activity in the F&O segment is fuelled by those seeking quick profits, he said the rising exposure of small investors in the segment "is a worry because we don't want to go through boom and bust cycles again and again". Nageswaran said the economy is likely to grow 7 per cent in FY25 as well, which will make it the third year in a row when the GDP has grown at over 7 per cent. Stating that capital formation and economic growth are interdependent, wherein one feeds into another, he said the only mantra for policymakers in such times is not to be conventional and described India's prudent response to the Covid crisis as a case in point. However, sustaining high growth performance has been "elusive" for India, which has had short periods of high growth that are typically followed by a long period of balancesheet repair, dud loan cleaning for lenders, etc, he said, reminding that "we need to keep in mind that China grew around double digits for three decades". "There is a need to ensure that we don't indulge in excess lending or excess borrowing in the current cycle as well", he said, adding that we need to make detailed plans with projections on growth, capital required, how it will come, how much as debt and how much as equity. Banks also need to be adequately capitalised to fund the growth needs of the economy, and corporate ownership of banks will have to be allowed if the banks are to get the capital, he said. "Why is it a taboo to even discuss corporate ownership of banks? The fact that a mere discussion of the idea of licensing of banks to corporate houses creates such a backlash or a furore is indeed a cause for reflection on the part of the corporates too," he said. "It is also unfortunately a reflection on the overall state of corporate governance in the country," Nageswaran said. Colombo, Mar 13 (PTI) Sri Lankan authorities have arrested 21 Indian nationals for illegally operating an online marketing centre in the island nation, violating the relaxed tourist visa norms, a media report said on Wednesday. The 21 Indian men in the age group of 24 to 25, who were in Sri Lanka on tourist visas, were taken into custody on Tuesday by the Department of Immigration and Emigration, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported. After a preliminary inquiry, the department raided a rented house in Negombo city, where those arrested were found operating an online marketing centre. The house had been converted into an office space where computers and other devices had been installed, the report said. Under Sri Lanka's law, those who visit the island nation on tourist visas are prohibited from engaging in any paid or unpaid work. The Indian nationals had used the free-of-charge visa condition that Sri Lanka has granted to a set of countries till March 31 as part of an ongoing pilot project to promote tourism in the cash-strapped country. They had arrived in Sri Lanka in February and March on tourist visas, a senior immigration official told the newspaper. The arrested Indian nationals were transferred to the departments detention centre in Welisara on the orders of relevant authorities, the report said. Beijing, Mar 13 (PTI) One person was killed and 22 others injured following a gas explosion at a restaurant in north China's Hebei Province on Wednesday, damaging the building and several vehicles, official media reported. The explosion is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak at a fried chicken shop in Yanjiao township, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Yanjiao township is located on the outskirts of Beijing. The blast rocked the building at around 8 am (local time) on Wednesday in Yanjiao town in Sanhe, causing damage to the building and several vehicles. Video footage of the explosion site showed red flames and plumes of smoke, with debris strewn across the nearby road. Firefighters are currently on-site managing the situation, the report said. Kathmandu, Mar 13 (PTI) Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda will seek a vote of confidence in Parliament on Wednesday, days after the Maoist leader dumped the Nepali Congress and forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist). Prachanda, a former guerilla leader belonging to the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), the third largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR), on Sunday sent a letter to the Parliament Secretariat, indicating that he has severed ties with the Nepali Congress. According to constitutional provisions, a prime minister has to take a vote of confidence after an ally withdraws support to the ruling coalition. Prachanda is required to prove his majority after he lost the support of the previous ally, the Nepali Congress, the largest party in the HoR. Prachanda has now forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) (CPN-UML) led by former prime minister K P Oli, who was regarded as a top critic of the Maoist leader. The new government requires at least 138 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives to win the vote of trust. Wednesday's vote of confidence will be the third such by Prachanda, 69, since he assumed office in December 2022. The Prachanda-led coalition government currently enjoys the support of 150 members in the lower house of Parliament. The second-largest party in the HoR, CPN-UML, led by former premier KP Sharma Oli, has 76 seats, while the third-largest party, CPN-Maoist Centre, has 32 seats. Similarly, the Rastriya Swatantra Party, the Janata Samajwadi Party and the CPN-Unified Socialist have 20, 12 and 10 seats, respectively. Out of a total of 78 lawmakers of the CPN-UML in the lower house, one of the members has passed away, while another is suspended. The CPN-Maoist Centre has issued a whip to all of its members of the HoR to be present in the lower house on March 13. This is the third time that Prime Minister Prachanda is seeking a vote of confidence in the House in less than one-and-a-half-year. Prachanda became the prime minister for the third term on December 25, 2022. Last year, Prachanda faced a floor test after the Oli-led CPN-UML withdrew its support to the Prachanda-led government following a rift over backing the main opposition partys candidate for the presidential poll. In the 2017 election, Prachanda and Oli merged their parties and secured a comfortable majority. Oli became the prime minister, but their partnership ended halfway following differences between them. The Nepali Congress party has asked its members to vote against the Prachanda government. Meanwhile, the five political parties in the ruling alliance on Tuesday inked a seven-point agreement, pledging to support the Prachanda-led government. PTI SBP GSP SCY AKJ NSA NSA NSA Tomioka, Mar 13 (AP) The head of the UN atomic agency told local Japanese representatives at a meeting in Fukushima on Wednesday that the ongoing discharge of treated radioactive wastewater at the ruined nuclear power plant has met safety standards and that any restrictions on products from the region are not scientific. International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Rafael Grossi joined local officials and representatives from fishing and business groups and reassured them that the discharges are being carried out with no impact to the environment, water, fish and sediment." Grossi, who arrived in Japan on Tuesday, visited Fukushima for the first time since the release of the treated water began in August. Grossi examined the discharge and sampling facility on Wednesday, escorted by Tomoaki Kobayakawa, president of the plant's operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings. He last visited the plant in July after issuing an IAEA review predicting only negligible impact from the discharges. An IAEA comprehensive report later concluded that the discharges meet international safety standards. The 2011 disaster damaged the Fukushima plant's power supply and reactor cooling functions, triggering meltdowns of three reactors and causing large amounts of radioactive wastewater to accumulate. After more than a decade of cleanup work, the plant began discharging the water after treating it and diluting it with large amounts of seawater on August 24, starting a process that's expected to take decades. The discharges have been opposed by fishing groups and neighbouring countries including China, which banned all imports of Japanese seafood immediately after the release began. There is no scientific reason to impose any restriction on products coming from us, Grossi said at the meeting in Iwaki, south of the Fukushima Daiichi plant. This is very important in particular to be said in this forum here in Fukushima," he said. He noted a political dimension to this activity since ... some neighbouring countries are also manifesting concerns." Despite earlier fears that the water discharge would further hurt Fukushima's hard-hit fishing industry, it has not damaged its reputation domestically. China's ban on Japanese seafood mostly hit scallop exporters in Hokkaido. Tokyo has earmarked a fund of more than 100 billion yen (USD 680 million) that includes compensation and other support, including measures to help find other export destinations. The discharges are at the beginning of a long process, Grossi said, stressing the importance of transparency, technical accuracy and wide open, honest dialogue and consultation. He stressed that the IAEA has its own office and lab at the Fukushima plant to independently monitor the process. Grossi said he met with residents not only to highlight the main points about the discharges but to learn from you. He said he would keep coming back to Fukushima and that he is open to hearing residents' concerns and needs. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government has reversed earlier plans for a nuclear phaseout and is accelerating the use of nuclear power in response to rising fuel costs related to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and pressure to meet decarbonization goals. On Tuesday, Grossi expressed support for increasing Japan's nuclear capacity as the country looks to it as a stable, clean source of power. Grossi, at a meeting with Economy and Industry Minister Ken Saito, offered Japan technical assistance to improve the idled Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Japan's northcentral region of Niigata, run by the Fukushima Daiichi operator, to address concerns about its past problems with safeguarding measures. It and the government are keen to restart it soon. IAEA is sending a team of experts to the plant later this month to assist Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' effort to gain public trust. The restart remains uncertain because it is subject to the host community's consent. The January 1 earthquake in the nearby Noto region rekindled safety concerns.(AP) RUP RUP Kathmandu, Mar 13 (PTI) Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda on Wednesday won a vote of confidence in Parliament, as the country struggled to maintain political stability. Prachanda, 69, a former guerilla leader from the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) -- the third largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR) -- received 157 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives. The vote comes days after the Maoist leader dumped the Nepali Congress and forged a new alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist). This is the third time that Prachanda sought a vote of confidence in the House in less since he assumed prime ministership in December 2022. According to constitutional provisions, a prime minister has to take a vote of confidence after an ally withdraws support to the ruling coalition. Port Louis, Mar 13 (PTI) President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday paid tributes to the brave Mauritian ancestors at Aapravasi Ghat and International Slavery Museum here. Murmu is here on a three-day state visit during which she was the chief guest at the country's National Day celebrations on Tuesday. On Wednesday," President Droupadi Murmu paid tributes to the brave Mauritian ancestors at Aapravasi Ghat and International Slavery Museum in Port Louis," the President of India posted X. "President Murmu climbed the same 16 stone steps from where the first indentured workers from India began their new lives in Mauritius, nearly two centuries ago. President Murmu was warmly welcomed at both sites by performers of Bhojpuri Geet Gawai and Sega, unique musical traditions of Mauritius," the post read on X. Aapravasi Ghat is where the modern indentured labour diaspora began. In 1834, the British Government selected the island of Mauritius to be the first site for what it called the great experiment in the use of free labour to replace slaves. Between 1834 and 1920, almost half a million indentured labourers arrived from India at Aapravasi Ghat to work in the sugar plantations of Mauritius, or to be transferred to Reunion Island, Australia, southern and eastern Africa or the Caribbean. The Intercontinental Slavery Museum is one of the key recommendations of the Truth and Justice Commission of Mauritius, which established public platforms in 2009 to investigate the legacy of slavery and indentured labour from colonial times to the present day. It was the worlds first truth commission specifically dedicated to slavery. Her presence at the 56th anniversary of the Independence and 32nd anniversary of the Republic of Mauritius marks a momentous occasion for the India-Mauritius special partnership, the Ministry of External Affairs said. Murmu was also conferred with the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law by the University of Mauritius, demonstrating the depth of bilateral ties. Washington, Mar 13 (AP) A bill that could lead to a ban of the popular video app TikTok in the United States is expected to pass the House on Wednesday as lawmakers act on concerns that the company's ownership structure is a threat to national security. The bill would require the Chinese firm ByteDance to divest from TikTok and other applications it owns within six months of the bill's enactment or those apps would be prohibited. The lawmakers contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's consumers in the US any time it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organisations to assist with intelligence gathering. House passage of the bill would only be the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and lawmakers in that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he'll have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the bill's path. President Joe Biden has said if Congress passes the measure, he will sign it. The House vote is poised to open a new front in the long-running feud between lawmakers and the tech industry. Members of Congress have long been critical of tech platforms and their expansive influence, often clashing with executives over industry practices. But by targeting TikTok, lawmakers are singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before an election. Ahead of the House vote, a top national security official in the Biden administration held a closed-door briefing Tuesday with lawmakers to discuss TikTok and the national security implications. Lawmakers are balancing those security concerns against a desire not to limit free speech online. What we've tried to do here is be very thoughtful and deliberate about the need to force a divestiture of TikTok without granting any authority to the executive branch to regulate content or go after any American company, said Rep. Mike Gallagher, the bill's author, as he emerged from the briefing. TikTok has long denied that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared US user data with Chinese authorities and won't do so if it is asked. To date, the US government also has not provided any evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities. The platform has about 170 million users in the US. The security briefing seemed to change few minds, instead solidifying the views of both sides. We have a national security obligation to prevent America's most strategic adversary from being so involved in our lives, said Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y. But Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., said no information has been shared with him that convinces him TikTok is a national security threat. My opinion, leaving that briefing, has not changed at all, he said. This idea that we're going to ban, essentially, entrepreneurs, small business owners, the main way how young people actually communicate with each other is to me insane, Garcia said. Not a single thing that we heard in today's classified briefing was unique to TikTok. It was things that happen on every single social media platform, said Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif. Republican leaders have moved quickly to bring up the bill after its introduction last week. A House committee approved the legislation unanimously, on a 50-vote, even after their offices were inundated with calls from TikTok users demanding they drop the effort. Some offices even shut off their phones because of the onslaught. Lawmakers in both parties are anxious to confront China on a range of issues. The House formed a special committee to focus on China-related issues. And Schumer directed committee chairs to begin working with Republicans on a bipartisan China competition bill. Senators are expressing an openness to the bill but suggested they don't want to rush ahead. It is not for me a redeeming quality that you're moving very fast in technology because the history shows you make a lot of mistakes, said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. In pushing ahead with the legislation, House Republicans are also creating rare daylight between themselves and former President Donald Trump as he seeks another term in the White House. Trump has voiced opposition to the effort. He said Monday that he still believes TikTok poses a national security risk but is opposed to banning the hugely popular app because doing so would help its rival, Facebook, which he continues to lambast over his 2020 election loss. As president, Trump attempted to ban TikTok through an executive order that called the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the People's Republic of China (China) a threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States. The courts, however, blocked the action after TikTok sued, arguing such actions would violate free speech and due process rights.(AP) RUP RUP Lahore, Mar 13 (PTI) A close aide of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has admitted that the PML-N party-led government at the Centre is a mere puppet, indirectly indicating that the military establishment is running the government it had stitched. There has been no reaction from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Mian Javed Latif, a stalwart from Nawaz Sharifs PML-N and a former federal minister, told a private TV channel on Tuesday that his party failed to secure even a simple majority in the National Assembly in the February 8 general elections. They (the military establishment) stitched a government by collecting seats of National Assembly from here and there. You may call it a government of PML-N or some other party but as a matter of fact, it is a puppet government and everyone knows who has the real power, Latif said. Whosoever is running this government, the PML-N will have to bear the brunt of their (establishment) policies at the end of the day, he added. This is the first time that a senior leader of the ruling party openly admitted that the six-party government led by PML-N is a puppet setup installed by the military. Independents backed by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won 92 seats in the February polls while the PML-N and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) both secured fewer seats than that. The PML-N then entered into a quid pro quo post-poll alliance with the Bilawal Zardari-Bhutto-led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and four smaller parties. The arrangement ensured that PML-N got the prime ministerial post (Shehbaz Sharif) while PPP got the Presidents (Asif Ali Zardari). On the other hand, a majority of the independents, backed by PTI, joined the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC). The powers that be allotted the reserved seats meant for the PTI-SIC party to PML-N and PPP enabling the alliance to garner a clear majority in the National Assembly and form the government. The PML-N has been facing the question of legitimacy as Imran Khan and PTI have accused the powerful military establishment of stealing its mandate in the February 8 polls and imposing a puppet government led by Shehbaz Sharif. Imran Khan has already termed the outcome of the elections as the Mother of All Rigging polls. In its 75-plus years of existence, Pakistan has been directly or indirectly ruled by the powerful military establishment. Meanwhile, during the talk show, the anchor, who too looked surprised at Latifs comments, asked him to confirm and yet again Latif repeated the same allegation. The anchor then asked him if he was venting out his anger now because he had not been elected in the last months elections, Latif said, he was speaking the truth. Latif spoke on a range of issues. On Wednesday, he ran small clips of the programme on his X handle along with his comments for each of them. Almost 24 hours after his interview was broadcast, there has been no reaction from the party or the establishment as yet. The traditional way to peel a kiwi is similar to peeling a potato you cut off all the excess with a knife in a circle. But this way, the fruit releases a lot of liquid, slips out of your hands, and becomes smaller in volume. Fortunately, there is a much simpler technology. ADVERTISIMENT The American online publication INSIDER has told us how easy it is to peel a kiwi without any extra effort. Can you eat kiwi peel? You can eat kiwi peel. The fuzzy texture of the peel may confuse some people, but it is a higher source of vitamin C and fiber than the green flesh of the fruit. How to easily peel a kiwi: You will need a small spoon and knife for this method. 1. Rinse the fruit well from excess dirt. 2. Put the kiwi on a plate and cut off the ends. 3. Place a spoon near the edge of the skin and gently push it in a circular motion to dislodge the inner flesh. The spoon should be as thin as possible. 4. When the circle is cut, gently pull out the flesh. ADVERTISIMENT How to cut and store kiwi You can cut kiwi into slices, cubes, or wedges. The knife should be sharp so that the slices are even. Sliced kiwi can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two days. When excessive mucus begins to be released from the fruit, it is no longer safe to eat. London, Mar 13 (PTI) British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was on Wednesday forced to defend the governing Conservative Party even as he admitted one of the party's biggest donor's comments targeted at an Opposition Labour Party MP were racist. During Prime Ministers Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons, Sunak referenced his Indian heritage as he defended his government amid intense pressure over wealthy businessman Frank Hester's reported remarks in a 2019 meeting that Labour MP Diane Abbott makes you want to hate all black women. In a separate meeting, Hester who has donated GBP 10 million to the Tories in the past year said Abbott should be shot. The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist and he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted, Sunak told members of Parliament. There is no place for racism in Britain and the government that I lead is living proof of that, he said. While Labour Leader Keir Starmer sought to capitalise on the controversy as he said it was clear Sunak wont hand the (donated) money back to Hester, the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) accused Sunak of putting money before morals. In November, the Prime Minister accepted a non-cash donation to the tune of GBP 15,000 from Frank Hester for the use of his helicopter, so will he reimburse him yes or no, questioned Labour MP Marsha De Cordova. Sunak replied no as he hit back to say that Hester was supporting one of the most diverse governments in this countrys history, led by this countrys first British Asian Prime Minister. Meanwhile, the Guardian which reported the controversial comments from over four years ago, claimed the chief of the healthcare technology firm Phoenix Partnership (TPP) said in a meeting: It's like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you're just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she's there, and I don't hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot." A statement from TPP said its boss accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Guardian has also followed up with a report that Hester asked at a company meeting if there was no room for the Indians due to a large crowd. During the packed meeting at the TPP headquarters overlooking a railway line in Leeds, northern England, Hester then added: Climb on the roof, like on the roof of the train there maybe? However, a minister in Sunaks Cabinet has defended the businessman to say he is not a racist despite some of his ill-judged comments. Business minister Kevin Hollinrake said: "I think the key thing now is, is Mr Hester himself a racist? I don't believe so from what I know, and I don't know him. "I think we should judge in the whole context. We've got the most diverse cabinet in history. We've got the first British Asian prime minister in this country. We're not a racist party." Washington, March 13 (PTI) Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a popular leader, a US congressman has exuded confidence that he would be re-elected in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Prime Minister Modi is incredibly popular. I was just over there. I actually had lunch with Prime Minister Modi and several other congressmen, and to see his popularity across party lines really. Somebody who I think is around 70 per cent popular. He is going to be prime minister again, Congressman Rich McCormick, a Republican from Georgia, told PTI in an interview. To see his progressive outlook on economy, on development, on goodwill towards all people, to see his application and positivity to the Indian people in the diaspora worldwide is going to affect the global economy, their strategic relationships. I look forward to his influence in a very positive way, he said in response to a question. Indias economy, under Modis leadership, he said, is expanding anywhere from four to eight per cent per year. If you look at their willingness to work with other nations now, I would say, I'll put a caveat in there, sometimes there's a bit of protectionism, which a lot of characters do. They've kind of copied some things that China have done. They'll have incredible leverage going forward as businesses want to get into India in an expanding market, McCormick said. We just have to be sure that we do it in a way that makes sense to both nations when we share technologies that there's trust in. The good news is we don't see the aggressive posturing like we see in China. As a matter of fact, we see a very incredibly important strategic and tactical ally with India to resist countries like China who are autocracies, who believe in a Marxist theology, he said. We need to make sure that we develop that relationship where there's true trust, that we continue to realise that India is honest. They're not trying to steal our technologies; they're trying to share them. It's okay to use your economic leverage to do that, and as long as we're having an honest conversation, we can have a great conversation in the future, McCormick said. McCormick, a decorated veteran and emergency room physician, represents Georgias 6th Congressional district that has a sizeable Indian American population. He serves on the House Committee on Armed Services and House Foreign Affairs Committee. Lahore, Mar 13 (PTI) Jailed former prime minister Imran Khans party on Wednesday demanded the lifting of the ban imposed on meeting him in prison, with a top aide claiming a threat to his life and his sister appealing to the partys lawmakers to stage a sit-in outside the high-security jail. Citing security reasons, Pakistans Punjab province government led by Maryam Nawaz of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and arch-rival of Khans Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Tuesday imposed a two-week ban on all public visits, meetings and interviews at the high-security Adiala Jail at Rawalpindi, where the former prime minister Khan is lodged since last August. PTIs Sindh unit president Haleem Adil Sheikh demanded to lift the ban highlighting the threats to the 71-year-old former premier's life. Meetings with Imran have been banned after some terrorists were arrested a few days back. Party leaders and I have a meeting scheduled with Imran tomorrow and we must not be barred. Otherwise, the entire nation will gather outside the prison. "We do not want to risk Imran's life as the country cannot undergo further tests, Sheikh warned while speaking with the media outside the Sindh High Court, according to The Express Tribune newspaper. Khans sister Aleema Khan gave a call to all lawmakers from the PTI and Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), the party to which independents backed by PTI have joined in the National Assembly, to stage a sit-in outside the Adiala Jail to press the government to lift a ban on his meetings with his family members and party leaders. I call on all elected PTI MNAs and MPAs to sit outside Adiala jail in protest until they are allowed to meet Imran Khan, and we get reassurance of Khan sab's safety, she said. The PTI has already described the decision as a deliberate plan to stop party leaders from meeting the partys founder and claimed it was a violation of human rights in Pakistan at its peak. In a letter written to the IG Prisons, the Home Department said its Internal Security Wing had conveyed that there exist different types of threats to [the] security of Adiala Jail, as some anti-state terrorist groups supported by the enemies of Pakistan had planned to conduct targeted attacks. As a security measure against the aforementioned attacks, the department requested the prison chief to stop the public visits/meetings/interviews within the Adiala Jail immediately for two weeks. Islamabad, Mar 13 (PTI) Pakistan's parliament on Wednesday passed a resolution, demanding the overturning of the death sentence given to former prime minister and PPP founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who was executed by the military regime of Gen Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in 1979. The resolution was passed days after the Supreme Court on March 6 opined unanimously that the former premier did not receive a fair trial and due process in a much-anticipated review of the high-profile case. On March 18, 1978, the Lahore High Court sentenced Bhutto to death for allegedly ordering the assassination of Ahmed Reza Kasuri, one of the founding members of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The resolution, adopted by the National Assembly (NA) and moved by PPP's Shazia Marri, recognised the trial and subsequent conviction of Bhutto as a gross miscarriage of justice, the Geo News reported. It "salutes the struggles of Begum Nusrat Bhutto Sahiba, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, and the Pakistan Peoples Party workers who sacrificed their lives to establish this truth. The apex court's opinion was based on a special case sent in 2011 by then president Asif Ali Zardari to the Supreme Court to revisit his father-in-law Bhutto's conviction for abetment in the murder case and his eventual hanging on April 4, 1979. Incidentally, Zardari was elected as President for the second time on March 10. The resolution lauded the Supreme Court for finally holding and accepting the "glaring injustice" meted out to Bhutto 44 years ago in its judgment. It mentioned that the proceedings of the trial by the Lahore High Court and of the appeal by the Supreme Court do not meet the requirements of the fundamental right to a fair trial and due process, the report said. The resolution demanded that in light of the apex court judgment, the unjust verdict given in the Bhutto case must be overturned. Announcing the unanimous opinion last week, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa had said, The proceedings of the trial by the Lahore High Court and the appeal by the Supreme Court of Pakistan do not meet the requirements of the fundamental right to a fair trial and due process enshrined in Articles 4 and 9 of the Constitution and later guaranteed as a separate and fundamental right under Article 10A of the Constitution. The apex court voiced its opinion but also ruled that the verdict of Bhuttos death sentence could not be changed as the Constitution and law did not allow so, and it would be maintained as a verdict. The resolution also demanded that the federal government officially declare Bhutto as a "shaheed" and "National Democratic Hero", and establish the "Nishan-e-Zulfikar Ali Bhutto" award for workers and activists who have fought and sacrificed their lives for true democracy in Pakistan. All three provincial assemblies, except the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where jailed former prime minister Imran Khan party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is in power and the Senate have passed resolutions declaring Bhutto a national hero and martyr. Islamabad, Mar 13 (PTI) Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said that his government would ensure timely implementation of the initiatives under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and that his country is keen to move to the next phase. He was talking to Ambassador of China Jiang Zaidong, who called on him at the Prime Ministers House, the PM Office media wing said in a press release. Sharif said that Pakistan was keen to move to the next phase of CPEC, including operationalisation of the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to facilitate Chinese investment in Pakistan. He reaffirmed the timely implementation of the CPEC initiatives. The CPEC, which connects Gwadar Port in Pakistans Balochistan with Chinas Xinjiang province, is opposed by India as it is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The prime minister said the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) had been created during his previous tenure to attract foreign investment in priority sectors including agriculture, IT, minerals, and renewable energy. He said Chinese companies would find many profitable opportunities in Pakistan. The prime minister thanked President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang for their warm messages of greetings on his re-election and assumption of office. He reciprocated the warm sentiments expressed by the Chinese leadership and lauded their contribution and commitment to the strengthening of the iron-clad friendship. The Chinese Ambassador reaffirmed that the Chinese leadership and government looked forward to further deepening of Pakistan-China friendship. He reiterated the invitation extended to the prime minister to undertake an official visit to China at his earliest convenience. While accepting the invitation, the prime minister said that he would undertake the visit at a mutually convenient date that would be worked out through diplomatic channels. Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that his daughter Supriya Sule retains the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, and has even reached out to his arch-rival Anantrao Thopte. Sule, a three-time MP, is likely to face challenge from Sunetra Pawar, wife of Sules cousin and president of the rival Nationalist Congress Party Ajit Pawar, in the coming election. Ajit, now deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, wields as much clout in Baramati as his uncle, if not more. There was a time when Sharad Pawar would hold just one or two campaign rallies in Baramati, so sure he would be of his victory. But now, at 83, he is traveling the length and breadth of the constituency located in Pune district even before the elections are announced. On Saturday, Pawar met Anantrao Thopte, who was recuperating from a knee surgery, at his house in Bhor. Thopte, a nonagenarian, had won from the Bhor assembly seat a part of Baramati Lok Sabha constituency six times before losing in 1999. His son Sangram Thopte is the current Congress MLA from Bhor. Anantrao, who was a cabinet minister in several governments in the state before 1995, was known as Sharad Pawars arch foe within the Pune district Congress. Ulhas Pawar, a senior Congressman from Pune, told PTI that the Pawar-Thopte rivalry often played out in elections to the district cooperative bank, sugar cooperatives and milk federations. Sangram Thopte, a three-time MLA, is said to be at loggerheads with Ajit Pawar in the district politics, he noted. Political alignments have changed drastically with Ajit parting ways with his uncle Sharad Pawar and joining the Shiv Sena-BJP government in the state last year. Ulhas Pawar said the Pawar seniors meeting with Anantrao was "political compulsion." "One needs to make compromises. In coalition politics, compromises are inevitable. This meeting was for Sharad Pawars daughters sake. But if the truce lasts, it will help the prospects of the Congress and NCP (SP) in Pune district, and also those of the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition, he added. He also noted that senior Congress leaders from Bhor tehsil attended the public meeting at Bhor on Saturday where Sharad Pawar announced, in Sangrams presence, Sules candidature from Baramati. Sangram Thoptewhatever you do for the tehsil, state and country, Sharad Pawar will be with you (though) we may have been on different paths earlier," Pawar said at the rally. Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena faction on Wednesday demanded a single-window clearance system for permission to celebrate festivals and birth anniversaries of big leaders during the election model code of conduct (MCC) period. Talking to reporters, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anil Parab said the government machinery will be busy with the election work once the poll dates are announced. "There should be a single-window system to grant permission to celebrate festivals and birth anniversaries of big leaders so that people will get relief and not have to make frequent rounds of government offices when the model code of conduct is in force. We will write to the Election Commission of India (ECI) about it," he said. Permission is given by government agencies and the ECI only to ensure everything is as per rules, he said, adding, "The code of conduct is not a law, but a set of rules for political parties. Our demand is with the state government." When asked if the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) is holding up the seat-sharing talks of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), which comprises the Sena (UBT), Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction and Congress, Parab said winning is the only criterion and no judgement can be passed till then. "A final decision on the seat-sharing is expected on March 17," he said. Replying to a question on the seat-sharing talks of the ruling alliance (comprising Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP), he said, "Balasaheb Thackeray did not teach us to bow before anyone." "Eknath Shinde joined hands with the BJP only on the assurance of getting re-elected all the elected representatives who defected. People and Shiv Sainiks are with the Sena (UBT)," he said. Parab added Uddhav Thackeray will visit Chiplun in Ratnagiri on Thursday, he said. Bhopal, Mar 13 (PTI) A senior Madhya Pradesh minister has made a suggestion to the Department of Posts to appoint actor-turned-politician Hema Malini as its brand ambassador to get more deposits into its investment and saving schemes. Tribal Affairs Minister Vijay Shah made this suggestion while inaugurating the Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) at Khandwa in the state on Tuesday. Addressing the function, he said the postal department does not have any brand ambassador, and suggested the name of Hema Malini, Bollywood actor and Bharatiya Janata Party's Mathura MP. "Why I took the name of Hema Malini? She is the epitome of Indian culture, civilisation and values. She did not do a role in any such film in which viewers had to hide their face," the minister said. Shah lauded the postal department for its services, saying that its investment and saving schemes provide better interest than banks, but are lagging behind due to poor publicity. "She (Hema Malini) became an MP 3-4 times, but you (postal department officials) are not making her your brand ambassador. I am a fan of Hema Malini...We will withdraw all the money of the poor and pension accounts from the banks and deposit it in the post office," Shah said. Nagpur, Mar 13 (PTI) A key meeting of the RSS leadership beginning this week in Nagpur will deliberate various issues prevailing in the country and pass a resolution on Ram temple, said its all-India publicity head Sunil Ambekar on Wednesday. The annual Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) will be held between March 15 and 17 at Smriti Bhavan complex in Reshim Bagh here. A total of 1,529 representatives from RSS-affiliated organisations are expected to attend the meeting. Addressing a press conference, Ambekar said the conclave is being held in Nagpur after 6 years. RSS will be completing 100 years of its formation in 2025, he said. During the three-day programme, Ambekar said, a resolution on how the positive atmosphere created after the consecration of the Ram temple can be taken forward will be passed. Discussions on the current situation prevailing in the country and the social work to be taken up by the RSS will be held at the meeting, he said. The election to pick members of the Sanghs Akhil Bhartiya Karyakarni Mandal (national executive) and its sar karyawah (general secretary) will be held during the meeting, he said. Ambekar said all works and sewa karya (service) done by the Sangh in 2023-24 will be reviewed and there will be discussions on their plan for 2024-25, including taking the number of shakhas from the present 68,000 to 1 lakh before the centenary year celebrations next year. BJP president J P Nadda, the heads and organising secretaries of 36 Sangh outfits and other RSS-affiliated organisations will take part in the Pratinidhi Sabha, said Ambekar. Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) Knocking on the doors of a woman at odd hours asking for a lemon is preposterous and unbecoming of a CISF personnel, the Bombay High Court said refusing to quash the penalty imposed on him for misconduct. A division bench of Justices Nitin Jamdar and M M Sathaye in its order of March 11 said the petitioner constable of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) had consumed alcohol before the said incident and was also aware that his colleague, the womans husband, was away on election duty in West Bengal. The court was hearing a petition by Arvind Kumar (33), posted at BPCL (Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited) in Mumbai at the time of the incident, challenging the action taken by his superiors in CISF between July 2021 and June 2022 imposing a penalty on him for misconduct. Kumar's salary was reduced for three years during which he would also not get any increment as punishment. It was alleged that on the intervening night of April 19 and April 20 of 2021 in the official residential quarters, Kumar knocked on the doors of his neighbour's house in which the complainant woman and her six-year-old daughter lived. The woman said she got afraid and informed Kumar that her husband was away on duty in West Bengal and hence he should not trouble her. Kumar left from there only after being warned and threatened by the woman. Kumar in his defence claimed that he was feeling unwell and had knocked on the neighbour's door only to ask for a lemon. The bench in its order noted that the petitioner had consumed alcohol before the incident and was also aware that the complainant woman's husband was not present at home at the time. The action of the petitioner of knocking on neighbour's door knowing that the man in the house is absent, the same being occupied by a lady with her six-year-old daughter and that too for a frivolous reason of getting a lemon for a so called medical emergency of stomach upset, is preposterous to say the least," HC said. The conduct of the petitioner was "certainly unbecoming of an officer" of a force such as the CISF, the court said dismissing Kumar's petition. In our considered view, the intention of the petitioner is certainly not found to be as genuine and clear as alleged," the court said. The bench also refused to accept Kumar's contention that the incident does not amount to misconduct as he was not on duty at the time of the alleged incident and said the Central Civil Service (Conduct) Rules require him to maintain integrity and do nothing which would be unbecoming of a government servant at all times. In the last two decades of the USSR's existence, one could see a strange phenomenon on the street from a modern perspective: a person walking around in a "necklace" made of toilet paper rolls. It may be difficult to explain now why Soviet citizens sometimes looked like this. But we will try. ADVERTISIMENT The history of the emergence and popularization of toilet paper in the Soviet Union deserves a separate coverage. OBOZ.UA looked into the nuances. When did Soviet toilet paper appear? While the entire civilized world has long been familiar with paper hygiene products, the USSR continued to think more about the arms race and space exploration. Therefore, the first industrially produced toilet paper appeared in the country only in 1969. For this purpose, specially purchased equipment was brought to Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) from England. Before that, people used ordinary newspapers. Printed propaganda was produced in sufficient quantities in the Soviet Union, which led to the accumulation of a large amount of waste paper. So people came up with additional uses for newspapers. For example, they cut them into pieces and put them in the toilet. People didn't think much about the fact that the printing ink contained lead and other harmful substances, and the paper itself was quite stiff. ADVERTISIMENT How toilet paper became popular At first, Soviet people, accustomed to total austerity, did not pay attention to the strange rolls. They didn't understand why they should spend extra money if there were so many almost free newspapers. Therefore, they began to popularize the hygiene product in a way that was typical for the USSR: by coercion and propaganda. Rolls were distributed to the workers of the plant that produced it. Also, propaganda videos were shown in cinemas urging citizens to use toilet paper. And in this case, this approach worked - people paid attention to the hitherto unusual product and really appreciated its benefits. ADVERTISIMENT Where did the "necklaces" from the rolls come from Even such a small improvement in living conditions caused a huge stir among Soviet people. They began to sweep toilet paper off store shelves, so it soon became a scarce commodity, and the Leningrad plant could no longer cope with demand. The authorities had to impose restrictions on the sale of the product. At a certain point, one citizen could buy only 10-12 rolls in one hand. People took full advantage of this right. They bought the entire amount allowed to them at once. It was not easy to bring home such a large purchase, especially given the fact that Soviet people made large-scale purchases every time, creating stocks in case of another shortage. Therefore, a rope was threaded through the rolls, tied, and worn around the neck like a necklace to free up hands for bags with other purchases. ADVERTISIMENT Despite the fact that a person with such a haul looked strange, people on the street looked at him with admiration and envy. This meant that he was lucky and that for a while his difficult Soviet life would become a little easier. Subscribe to OBOZ.UA channels in Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest events. Mumbai, Mar 13 (PTI) The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday cleared a proposal to change the British-era names of eight suburban railway stations in Mumbai. The decision was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. These eight stations are located on the Western, Central and Harbour lines of Mumbai's suburban network operated by the Central Railway and the Western Railway. As per the proposal, Currey Road station will be renamed as Lalbaug, Sandhurst Road station as Dongri, Marine Lines station as Mumbadevi, Charni Road station as Girgaon, Cotton Green station will be Kalachowki, Dockyard Road station as Mazgaon and Kings Circle as Tirthankar Parshwanath. Sandhurst Road station has been considered as two stations as it serves both Central and Harbour lines. After the legislative sanction, the proposal will be sent to the Union Home Ministry and the Railway Ministry. The state government has already sent a proposal to rename Mumbai Central station as Nana Jagannath Shankarsheth station to the Union government. In 2017, the Union government renamed the Elphinstone Road suburban station in the city, which took its name from Lord Elphinstone, Governor of Bombay Presidency from 1853 to 1860, as Prabhadevi station after the nearby Prabhadevi temple. A few days before that, the name of the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in south Mumbai was modified with the addition of honorific 'Maharaj'. After the addition, it became Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT). It was once known as Victoria Terminus, after Queen Victoria of Great Britain. Nagpur, Mar 13 (PTI) Delighted by the Centres move to notify the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), nearly 2,000 Pakistani Hindus living in Nagpur are preparing to seek Indian citizenship. The migrants from the neighbouring country are figuring out the nitty-gritty of filing online applications that will enable them to live in India without the hassle of seeking visa extensions and other paperwork. Besides, some of their relatives who entered the country in recent years are seeking relaxation in the cut-off date to accommodate them. The Centre Monday implemented the CAA, notifying the rules four years after the law was passed by Parliament to fast-track citizenship for undocumented non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who came to India before December 31, 2014. Vinod Raheja from Ghotki town in Sindh province of Pakistan said he and seven of his family members crossed over to India through the Wagah-Attari border on a visit visa hours on December 31, 2014. Raheja said they hadnt even dreamt about the life-changing event that would unfold 10 years later, referring to CAA. He is among those who have already submitted their online applications for Indian citizenship. A resident of Nagpurs Jaripatka locality, which has a sizable population of Sindhis, Raheja said he was a cloth merchant in Pakistan when he came to India with his wife, two children, parents and two other relatives. We have been staying here on long-term visas. We are thrilled with the implementation of CAA as we will now become the citizens of India, said Raheja, thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for making CAA a reality. Raheja, who works with a private company, has requested PM Modi to relax the cut-off date for people like his mother-in-law and her family who came to India six months after his entry. It will be a huge relief as they have to go through procedures like long-term visa and other paperwork, he said. Sagar Wadhva came with his family to India from Quetta in Pakistans Balochistan province in 2012, when he was in Class 9th. The 27-year-old businessman from Nagpur said he is excited that India will now be his permanent home. His online application too has been submitted, said Wadhva. Rajesh Jhambia, a local social worker who works for the rights of such migrants, told PTI that they have already received 100 applications for online submissions. The applications will be filed by Sunday. Around 2,000 citizenship applications will be filed from Nagpur, he said. Like Raheja, Jambia also requested PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah to consider the cases of such migrants who came to India after 2014. Patna, Mar 13 (PTI) One person was killed and two others were injured when a power transformer exploded inside a court premises in Patna on Wednesday, police said. According to Deputy Superintendent of Police (Town), Ashok Kumar Singh, the blast took place at the civil court in the afternoon, killing a notary on the spot. "Two lawyers, who sustained injuries, have been rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital for treatment. We need the body of the deceased notary, Devendra Singh, for inquest. But lawyers are staging a demonstration at the court, preventing the police from taking away the body. We are trying to pacify them," Singh said. The advocates, who raised slogans against the administration and the power department, alleged that the transformer had "visible defects" about which written complaints had been submitted before the authorities concerned, but no action was taken. The Deputy SP said, "We are trying to assure the lawyers that an FIR will be lodged if they make a written complaint to the police about the incident, and action would be taken against those found guilty of lapse." "The bereaved family will receive ex-gratia in keeping with the government's policy with regard to such occurrences," he added. New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik on Wednesday reiterated the need for comprehensive reforms in the United Nations (UN) and said his country would support India's ascension to the Security Council. Aleinik concluded his two-day visit to India on Wednesday. He had held wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday on ways to expand bilateral defence and trade ties. "We discussed this (UNSC reforms) issue and we are convinced that UNSC reforms should be facilitated. It's a long-lasting issue which is being discussed within UN and taking into account the very fragile situation in the world, the Security Council reform is needed," the visiting dignitary said here. "...we're clear that we will support ascension of India to the Security Council," he said. The Belarusian foreign minister underscored the importance of enhancing cooperation with India across various sectors such as science and technology, education, tourism, and culture. The minister said that one of the key focal points of the discussion between Belarus and India is the expansion of bilateral trade. Despite the existing trade volume of around half a billion dollars, both countries recognise that this figure does not fully reflect the potential for economic exchange between them. In addition to bilateral ties, Belarus and India are committed to collaborating within international organisations such as the UN and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), he said. New Delhi, Mar 13 (PTI) Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay will pay a five-day visit to India beginning Thursday in his first foreign trip after assuming the top office in January. Tobgay will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and call on President Droupadi Murmu, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, announcing the Bhutanese leader's visit from March 14 to 18. The Bhutanese leader is also scheduled to travel to Mumbai. "The visit of the prime minister of Bhutan will provide an opportunity to the two sides to review the progress in our unique partnership and to discuss ways and means to expand the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation between India and Bhutan," the MEA said in a statement. Tobgay will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including a number of his cabinet colleagues and top officials. "India and Bhutan enjoy exemplary ties of friendship and cooperation, based on trust, goodwill and mutual understanding at all levels," the MEA said. "During the visit, the prime minister of Bhutan will call on President Droupadi Murmu and hold bilateral talks with the prime minister of India," it said. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on the Bhutanese prime minister. Hamirpur (HP), Mar 13 (PTI) The Himachal Pradesh government has constituted a team of health experts to investigate the reasons behind diarrhoea outbreak in Tauni Devi area of Hamirpur district, officials on Wednesday said. Over 290 people were found suffering from diarrhoea and dysentery in 27 villages of Tauni Devi of the district, 186 were cured while four were under treatment in the hospital, Chief Medical Officer Hamirpur Dr RK Agnihotri told PTI on Tuesday. As many as 26 teams of the health department have visited 27 affected-villages and distributed medicines. The number is on the rise and a report on the new cases would be known by the evening, health officials said. The five-member rapid response team (RRT) comprises Health Department Deputy Director Dr Yashwant Ranta and Dr Kiran Mokta and Dr Anurag from the department of microbiology and medicine from the Indira Gandhi Medical College Hospital (IGMCH) Shimla, a local doctor and Lab Technician Parikshit from the microbiology department of Hamirpur Medical College. The team members interacted with the patients at Tauni Devi Civil Hospital and also collected water samples from the affected areas. The district health department team has also sent stool samples of the patients from affected areas to the Medical College, Tanda, for testing and the report of these samples will clarify what is the cause of the disease. Most of the patients are from Gwaradu, Lohakhar, Tauni Devi, Chahad, Tapre, Bari, Mahade, Ghalot, Siswa, Barin, Khandehra, Ladayoh and Jhanikkar villages, the officials said. "Three days ago I suddenly felt pain in my abdomen followed by vomiting after which I started taking medicines at home, but when I got to know that diarrhoea has spread on a large scale, I went to the hospital on Monday," a male patient in his 30s told PTI. A spokesman of the Jal Shakti department said that so far no adverse report of their water had come. Despite this, the department was busy in chlorinating the sources and also taking samples from other areas. It is for the third time that diarrhoea outbreak has been witnessed in Hamirpur district in the past 14 months of the Congress rule. In January 2023, about 1,000 people were affected by diarrhoea in Rangas area of Nadaun, the home assembly constituency of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. Diarrhoea again spread for the second time in ten panchayats adjoining Hamirpur town in June 2023. Jammu, Mar 12 (PTI) A sub-inspector of the Jammu and Kashmir Police was suspended on Tuesday for alleged negligence in connection with the murder of a gangster hailing from Jammu in Punjab's Mohali last week, officials said. A departmental inquiry was also ordered against two other police personnel in connection with the incident. Gangster Rajesh Dogra, who hailed from Jammu and had recently come out of jail, was killed by members of a rival gang in broad daylight in Mohali on March 4. In an order, Jammu Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Vinod Kumar said sub-inspector Mushtaq Ahmad, posted at the Sarwal police post, is shifted to the district police lines and placed under suspension with immediate effect for alleged negligence for his inability to keep a watch on the gangster who was roaming outside Jammu and Kashmir. A departmental inquiry has also been ordered against the Bakshi Nagar SHO and the Sarwal police post in-charge, he said. The probe will be conducted by the superintendent of police (headquarters), he said. Despite the prescribed protocols of the Jammu and Kashmir Police manual, neither the beat officer nor the Bakshi Nagar Police Station SHO took appropriate action of keeping a close watch on the history-sheeter, he said. Ghaziabad (UP), Mar 13 (PTI) A local court here gave a death sentence to a man for killing his four relatives for refusing to lend him Rs 10 lakh. The court of Additional District and Sessions judge-2 Pawan Kumar on Tuesday convicted Ayyub for killing four relatives, district government counsel (DGC) Rajesh Chand Sharma said. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 80,000 on him, he said. Giving details about the case, Sharma said the incident took place on the intervening night of June 27 and 28, 2021 in Toli Mohalla of Loni. Ayyub had reached his uncle Raheesuddins house and asked for Rs 10 lakhs as a loan. His uncle denied lending him money and angered by this, Ayyub shot his uncle and two of his cousins and his aunt Fatima and fled from the spot, Sharma said. Fifteen witnesses were produced before the court and on Tuesday, the judge pronounced his judgement. The copy of the order has been dispatched to Allahabad High Court for confirmation of the punishment, Sharma added. Alappuzha (Kerala), Mar 13 (PTI) AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, contesting the polls from the Alappuzha Lok Sabha seat, has filed a defamation complaint against his rival BJP candidate, Sobha Surendran, for accusing him of amassing wealth through collusion with the mining mafia. Surendran made these allegations against the Congress leader during a recent television appearance. Venugopal's office confirmed to PTI that the Rajya Sabha MP from Rajasthan personally lodged the complaint at the Alappuzha South Police station. Surendran, in response, has welcomed Venugopal's legal actions and asserted that she made the allegations based on evidence she possesses. Speaking to reporters, she reiterated her accusations against the Congress leader. Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 13 (PTI) The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee on Wednesday organised a dharna in front of the Raj Bhavan here to protest against the Central government's decision to enforce the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019. Addressing the dharna, Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, V D Satheesan, alleged that the BJP-led government issued the CAA notification to divide the people along communal lines. "When the Congress was in power at the Centre, we brought several legislations to uplift the lives of the poor. But when the BJP came to power, they enacted laws to divide the people for political purposes," the Congress leader alleged. He said that the Congress will fight the law and there will be no compromise on it. Several leaders of the party, including UDF convenor and senior party leader M M Hassan, CWC member and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, and Attingal MP Adoor Prakash, attended the function. Arkady Volozh, a billionaire co-founder of Russia's largest company Yandex, has been removed from the EU sanctions list. He hasn't lived in Russia since 2014 and has condemned Russian aggression, which allowed him to be spared sanctions. ADVERTISIMENT A European Council spokesperson confirmed to WIRED that the Yandex co-founder was among the three people whose sanctions were lifted this week. Volozh, 60, was originally placed on the EU sanctions list in June 2023 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "As the founder and CEO of Yandex, he supports the government of the Russian Federation financially," the EU decision said. In response, Voloz resigned as CEO of Yandex, calling the sanctions "wrong." Volozh condemned Russia's actions only in the summer of 2023. That's when he filed an application to have the sanctions lifted. "I am categorically opposed to Russia's barbaric invasion of Ukraine, where I, like many others, have friends and relatives. I am horrified that bombs are dropped on the homes of Ukrainians every day," Volozh was quoted as saying by the BBC. ADVERTISIMENT Then a source close to Volozh, in turn, drew attention to the fact that "there are hundreds of other Russian businessmen who have been sanctioned and are closely watching what Brussels is doing." The lifting of sanctions against one of the most prominent figures in the Russian tech sector will be especially important if Volozh continues to build Yandex 2.0 inside Europe. The billionaire maintains strong ties to exiled Russian tech talent: thousands of Yandex employees fled the country after the war broke out. "These people are now gone and can start something new while continuing to promote technological innovation," Volozh said in the same statement from 2023. The holding company has already announced plans to relaunch Yandex in Europe. As previously reported, the European Union has agreed on the 13th package of sanctions against the terrorist country Russia. The sanctions package includes about 200 companies and individuals, but does not include new sectoral measures. Ukraine's representative to the EU called the 13th package "modest" and called for more significant restrictions in the 14th package. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Nahan (HP), Mar 12 (PTI) Police on Tuesday arrested three persons in Himachal Pradesh's Nahan district after recovering over three kilograms of cannabis from a car they were travelling in, officials said. The police team intercepted the vehicle on the Nahan-Khairi-Rajgarh road for checking and contrabands were found during the search, Sirmaur SP Raman Kumar Meena said in a statement issued here. The police have arrested three persons, including the driver of the car, in connection with the recovery, Meena said. A total of 3.10 kg of cannabis was seized from the car which was on its way to Nahan from Rajgarh when it was stopped, the SP said. The three accused -- driver Narender (40), Lalit Kumar (35), and Chaya Kant (36) -- are residents of Himachal Pradesh, the police said. They have been booked under Sections 20 (contravention in relation to cannabis plant and cannabis), 25 (allowing premises for offense) and 29 and (abetment and criminal conspiracy) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, they added. Thane, Mar 13 (PTI) Two scooter-borne persons have allegedly kidnapped a three-year-old girl from Navi Mumbai township in Maharashtra, police said on Wednesday. The incident took place at around 4 pm on Tuesday when the girl was playing outside her house in Ekta Nagar slum colony of Kopri village in Vashi area, a police spokesperson said. Two persons arrived there on a scooter, offered some sweets to the girl and took her away on the two-wheeler, he said quoting the complaint of the child's mother who is a labourer. The motive behind the offence was not known, the police said. The police have registered a case against two persons, including one identified by the complainant, under Indian Penal Code section 363 (kidnapping), the official said, adding that efforts were on to trace the child. Westerly, RI (02891) Today Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low 37F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low 37F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Casey Rosseau prepares to walk his dog Darcy while listening to an e-book in West Hartford, Conn., Feb. 1, 2024. Rosseau, who estimates he reads about 200 books a year, said he'd like to see more regulation of what publishers can charge libraries. Libraries have been grappling with soaring costs of digital titles, both e-books and audio books, that libraries typically lease from publishers for a year or two, with limited usage. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill) The IDF announced that they have struck and killed a terrorist responsible for launching mortars at southern Israel yesterday. The operative was spotted leaving the launch site in the southern Gaza Strip before an airstrike was called in against him. In addition, the IDF stated that several buildings and infrastructure used by Hamas in the area of the incident were also struck by aircraft. Troops are still clearing through the Hamad Town residential complex in Khan Younis, where a cache of firearms, explosives, and military equipment was discovered by the Egoz commando unit in a building. The Givati Brigade called in an airstrike against a four-man cell in Hamad who were attempting to plant a bomb near a building where troops were operating, the IDF said. Meanwhile, in central Gaza, the Nahal Brigade discovered and destroyed several rocket launchers used in recent attacks on Israel. Two rockets were fired at Nahal troops inside Gaza, causing no injuries, and the soldiers called in an airstrike against the operatives behind the attack. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) The IDF says that the Bislamach Brigade the School for Infantry Corps Professions and Squad Commanders in wartime has killed more than 100 gunmen in the Khan Younis suburbs of al-Qarara and Abasan in southern Gaza. According to the IDF, the brigade carried out dozens of operations in the area, mainly targeting Hamas sites close to the Israeli border. The troops used a combination of sniper fire, mortars, tank shelling, and airstrikes to kill over 100 operatives. Additionally, the IDF says that the troops seized firearms and other military equipment. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) South African Chief Rabbi Dr. Warren Goldstein spoke at the AIPAC conference in Washington and decried the international silence on the slaughter of Africans by Islamic terror groups. We cannot turn the other way. As G-d said to Cain in the Book of Genesis, The blood of your brother calls out to me from the ground.' A few days ago, gunmen from the Islamic State stormed a school in the town of Kuriga in Nigeria, and kidnapped 287 children from their morning assembly. The terrorists rode through the school on motorbikes firing their weapons and rounding up students aged 8-15. The horror is unspeakable and unending. A decade after the 2014 mass kidnappings by Boko Haram from the Chibok village, in northern Nigeria, when 276 young girls were kidnapped, about 100 of them are still missing today. These kinds of atrocities are widespread across the continent. Just last week gruesome images emerged of a group of village elders being beheaded by ISIS in Mozambique, a country on South Africas northern border. It seems as if Black lives do not matter if they are taken by jihadists in Africa, he concluded. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) In Ukraine, the delegations inspected the airports in Lviv, Uzhhorod and Kyiv. It turned out that the airport in Kyiv met the standards the best. If security can be ensured, at least one of the airports may be opened for flights. ADVERTISIMENT On March 12, Kostiantyn Kryvolap, a former test engineer at the Antonov Design Bureau, told Yedyni Novyny (United News) that if security is not ensured, there will be no flights. He noted that Ukraine, unlike Russia, would not be "committing suicide." The Russians are using airplanes that refused to be serviced by foreign companies and that stopped receiving imported parts. "The delegations were in Uzhhorod, Lviv and Kyiv. Kyiv is probably the most prepared in terms of airspace security. But I don't rule out that it could be Lviv. Uzhhorod is not so convenient as it takes a long time to get there, but it is possible," he said. Why Ukraine is talking about resuming flights again The resumption of talks about the possibility of resuming civilian flights in Ukraine was preceded by a statement by the Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov that Ukraine was starting official negotiations on the opening of passenger airports. In particular: ADVERTISIMENT negotiations will be held with aviation regulators of the United States and the European Union (EU); the Ukrainian side is also consulting with the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority to learn from its experience in ensuring flight safety. At the same time, he said, it is not yet possible to talk about any specific timeframe for the resumption of passenger flights. "It is impossible to carry out international air travel without the approval of two regulators: European and American... The Ukrainian side is already sharing with the regulators its vision of how the market will work under martial law, its risk assessment, approaches, algorithms... I don't want to say any terms, but now we will officially convey our vision to the regulators, and we are entering into official negotiations with them," Kubrakov said. ADVERTISIMENT According to him, several plans to resume passenger flights are currently being developed, and they cover a different number of airports. The main plan can be chosen only after receiving the first comments from aviation regulators. Earlier, in January 2014, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Rostyslav Shurma said that 2 airports were being considered: Boryspil and Lviv ones. However, according to Shurma, the first one is the priority. This possibility was suggested by the head of the Presidential Administration Andrii Yermak. However, according to him, the main condition is to provide Ukraine with additional air defense systems. What the military says It should be borne in mind that the spokesman for the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Yurii Ihnat, has previously made it clear that the only condition for the resumption of flights will be that the military has all the necessary means to protect the sky. He explained that currently all Ukrainian airfields are "operational" and they are all under the control of the military. ADVERTISIMENT "We need to understand what kind of security or danger exists... If the enemy realizes that there is a functioning airport in Ukraine, it will see it as a potential target," Ihnat stated. As reported, the first flights of civil aviation in the country at war may be cargo flights rather than passenger flights. The reason is the rather complicated procedure for approving the safety of such flights. In its course, Ukraine may receive a number of recommendations from its partners on what conditions should be provided for air carriers. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! A civilian security guard and a female IDF soldier were injured in a stabbing attack near the checkpoint on the tunnels road, on Route 60 near the entrance to Jerusalem, on Wednesday morning. The terrorist arrived at the checkpoint on a bike, stabbed the soldier and the guard, and was then quickly shot and neutralized by an IDF soldier at the checkpoint. Witnesses said that the terrorist was neutralized within seconds. He was later identified as a 15-year-old from a nearby Palestinian village. The 25-year-old guard and 19-year-old soldier were lightly to moderately injured. They received emergency medical aid at the scene and were evacuated to Shaarei Tzedek Hospital. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) Lebanese media reported that a drone strike attributed to Israel hit a car near the southern Lebanese city of Tyre on Wednesday morning, killing two people. Subsequent Arabic-language reports said that one of those killed was Hadi Mustafa, one of the leaders of Hamass military wing in Lebanon. Early Wednesday afternoon, Hamas confirmed the death of Hadi Ali Muhammad Mustafa in an official statement, describing him as a logistic officer in its military wing in southern Lebanon. The statement said he was killed in the bombing of his car near Tyre. According to Ynet, the fact that Hamas rushed to issue an official statement about his death indicates his significance to the terror organization. Lebanese reports said that another person, a Syrian passing by the area on a motorcycle, was also killed in the strike. Shortly after the Hamas announcement, the IDF issued a statement and video of the strike, taking responsibility for the elimination: Earlier today, an aircraft struck the terrorist Hadi Ali Matzafa, a key operative in the foreign department of the Hamas terrorist organization in the area of Tyre in the territory of Lebanon, the IDF spokesperson said. Hadi was involved in directing terrorist squads and terror activities in the field as well as promoting attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in various countries around the world. The videos below show the scene of the attack in Lebanon: (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) The White House attempted to carry out damage control regarding US President Joe Bidens comments over the weekend saying that Israels invasion of Rafah would be a red line. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters at a briefing on Tuesday: The President didnt make any declarations or pronouncements or announcements. The red line came up in a question. He was responding to that question. I think he gave a full answer to it. Sullivan also denied reports that Biden is considering withholding weapon transfers to Israel if the IDF enters Rafah. Were not going to engage in hypotheticals about what comes down the line, and the reports that purport to describe the presidents thinking are uninformed speculation, he said. Hes really focused on the substance, on the policy on his concern about the protection of civilians, and about Israel being able to sustain a campaign in a way that ultimately leads to an outcome in which the people of Israel are secure., Hamas is crushed and there is a long-term solution to stability and peace in the region. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu made a speech via teleconference at the AIPAC conference and used the opportunity to respond to Biden, saying that our friends in the international community cant say they support Israels right to defend itself, and then oppose Israel when it exercises that right. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) Nearly 310million was wiped off the value of two vet firms after the competition watchdog opened a formal investigation into the industry. Investors were spooked, with 262million wiped off the value of CVS, sending shares down 25 per cent, or 365p, to 1092p, and Pets at Home plunged by 46million or 3.6 per cent, or 9.8p, to 265.4p. That reduced the value of the businesses by a combined 308million. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it had identified multiple concerns following a six-month review with more than 56,000 responses from the public and the sector. This included fears that pet owners are being over-charged for medicines or prescriptions. With the CMA starting a formal probe, its boss Sarah Cardell said the unprecedented response shows the strength of feeling on this issue is high and why we were right to look into this. Vet probe: The Competition and Markets Authority said it had identified multiple concerns following a six-month review into the veterinary industry The CMA started reviewing the vet market in September last year due to concerns about the lack of disclosure and weak competition. The watchdog said most practices fail to display prices on their websites. Pets at Home, which has nearly 450 vet practices, said it was incredibly disappointed by the regulators findings. The company added that it has worked closely with the CMA, adding that its vet practises are run independently and set their own prices. A spokesman said: Pricing, product choices and service provisions are all determined locally by them to provide the best general practice care for their patients in their community. CVS the biggest London-listed vet group said it will continue to work proactively with the CMA. Stock Watch - Synthomer Synthomer pointed towards signs of recovery following a torrid year. The London-based chemicals group said its trading in 2024 has been cautiously encouraging as customers started buying products again. Synthomer endured a rough 2023 with revenues falling 15 per cent to 1.97billion and losses widening from 34.2million to 106.8million. Shares jumped 35.8 per cent, or 51.4p, to 195p. But the stock is way below its peak of 4154p in August 2021. On the wider market, the FTSE 100 rose 1 per cent, or 78.58 points, to 7747.81 and the FTSE 250 added 0.2 per cent, or 35.12 points, to 19565.21. Londons top index hit its highest level since May last year after Ladbrokes and Coral owner Entain made gains following reports the gambling giant is considering selling its online poker business. The group is working with advisers from Oakvale Capital to offload its PartyPoker unit that could be worth around 150million, Sky News reported. Shares increased 3.8 per cent, or 27.6p, to 762.4p. Firms often issue more stock when trying to raise more money to support the business. Renalytix, a kidney disease testing developer, brought in 9million ($12million) by issuing nearly 47m new shares at 20p each to investors in the UK and US. That represented a 50 per cent discount on the previous days closing price. The company expects the fresh funds to last through to the final quarter of this year. And commercial property investor Regional REIT told shareholders it needed to shore up its finances and could issue new shares at a material discount to the current stock price. Shares in Renalytix tumbled 20 per cent, or 8p, to 32p and Regional REIT plunged 30 per cent, or 6.05p, to 14.1p. Footwear group Shoe Zone suffered a sluggish end to its autumn and winter season. Shares lost 17.1 per cent, or 48p, to 232p. Starling Bank said Raman Bhatia would take over from interim chief exec John Mountain in the summe Starling Bank has poached energy supplier Ovo's chief executive as the group considers a listing. The disruptor bank said Raman Bhatia, 45, who previously led HSBC's digital bank in the UK and Europe, would take over from interim chief executive John Mountain in the summer, subject to regulatory approval. The London-based bank has been on the hunt for a boss since founder Anne Boden stepped down last June. Boden, 64, a former RBS banker, set up Starling a decade ago as a challenger to traditional High Street banks. Bhatia kicked off his career as a management consultant and joined Ovo at the beginning of 2020 as its chief operating officer before taking the top job. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. decreased its position in shares of McDonalds Co. (NYSE:MCD Free Report) by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 54,199 shares of the fast-food giants stock after selling 5,935 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.s holdings in McDonalds were worth $14,278,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MCD. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of McDonalds by 103.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 413 shares of the fast-food giants stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of McDonalds by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 69,824 shares of the fast-food giants stock valued at $17,266,000 after buying an additional 5,007 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of McDonalds by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 516,408 shares of the fast-food giants stock worth $127,697,000 after acquiring an additional 23,643 shares in the last quarter. Stevens Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of McDonalds during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,108,000. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. increased its stake in McDonalds by 59.7% in the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 9,338 shares of the fast-food giants stock valued at $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 3,490 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.60% of the companys stock. Get McDonald's alerts: Insider Buying and Selling In other news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 4,583 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.70, for a total value of $1,332,278.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,379,960.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders. McDonalds Stock Down 0.1 % MCD traded down $0.22 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $294.60. 978,755 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,061,463. The stocks 50-day moving average is $293.10 and its 200 day moving average is $280.81. McDonalds Co. has a 12 month low of $245.73 and a 12 month high of $302.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.72 billion, a PE ratio of 25.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.72. McDonalds (NYSE:MCD Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The fast-food giant reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.12. McDonalds had a negative return on equity of 171.96% and a net margin of 33.22%. The company had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.59 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that McDonalds Co. will post 12.38 EPS for the current year. McDonalds Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st will be given a dividend of $1.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. McDonaldss payout ratio is presently 57.74%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial cut their target price on McDonalds from $345.00 to $340.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of McDonalds from $325.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. BTIG Research cut shares of McDonalds from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of McDonalds from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of McDonalds from $285.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $320.10. Read Our Latest Stock Report on McDonalds McDonalds Company Profile (Free Report) McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MCD? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for McDonalds Co. (NYSE:MCD Free Report). 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. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF Free Report) Analysts at William Blair upped their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, March 6th. William Blair analyst D. Carden now anticipates that the apparel retailer will earn $1.49 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.65. The consensus estimate for Abercrombie & Fitchs current full-year earnings is $6.86 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Abercrombie & Fitchs Q3 2025 earnings at $2.08 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.77 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $7.69 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.22 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $7.95 EPS. Get Abercrombie & Fitch alerts: Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 6th. The apparel retailer reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.14. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 38.80% and a net margin of 7.67%. The firm had revenue of $1.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. The firms revenue was up 21.1% compared to the same quarter last year. A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised Abercrombie & Fitch from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $81.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. UBS Group raised their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $98.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $100.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $110.00. Read Our Latest Research Report on ANF Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Up 3.5 % Shares of ANF opened at $120.57 on Monday. Abercrombie & Fitch has a 52-week low of $21.74 and a 52-week high of $140.28. The company has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 19.38 and a beta of 1.59. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trexquant Investment LP boosted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 355.9% in the 3rd quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 195,866 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $11,041,000 after buying an additional 152,907 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in the 3rd quarter valued at about $777,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 153,229 shares of the apparel retailers stock valued at $8,638,000 after buying an additional 43,310 shares during the period. Teza Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in the 3rd quarter valued at about $598,000. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in the 3rd quarter valued at about $782,000. Insider Buying and Selling In related news, EVP Jay Rust sold 786 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.41, for a total transaction of $98,572.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,014 shares in the company, valued at approximately $127,165.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Jay Rust sold 786 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.41, for a total transaction of $98,572.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,014 shares in the company, valued at approximately $127,165.74. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Scott D. Lipesky sold 50,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.24, for a total value of $4,812,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 116,987 shares of the companys stock, valued at $11,258,828.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 288,786 shares of company stock valued at $32,608,812. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. About Abercrombie & Fitch (Get Free Report) Abercrombie & Fitch Co, through its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty retailer in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Hollister and Abercrombie. It offers an assortment of apparel, personal care products, and accessories for men, women, and kids under the Hollister, Gilly Hicks, Social Tourist, Abercrombie & Fitch, and abercrombie kids brands. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Abercrombie & Fitch Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Abercrombie & Fitch and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. UBS Group upgraded shares of Pinnacle West Capital (NYSE:PNW Free Report) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a research note released on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $71.00 price target on the utilities providers stock, up from their previous price target of $68.00. Several other brokerages also recently commented on PNW. Guggenheim raised Pinnacle West Capital from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $78.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on Pinnacle West Capital in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. They set a neutral rating and a $69.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Pinnacle West Capital from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 1st. StockNews.com raised Pinnacle West Capital from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Pinnacle West Capital from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $72.83. Get Pinnacle West Capital alerts: Read Our Latest Stock Report on Pinnacle West Capital Pinnacle West Capital Stock Performance Institutional Trading of Pinnacle West Capital Shares of Pinnacle West Capital stock opened at $70.81 on Monday. The stocks fifty day moving average is $69.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.76. The company has a market capitalization of $8.03 billion, a PE ratio of 16.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. Pinnacle West Capital has a 52 week low of $65.20 and a 52 week high of $86.03. Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Pinnacle West Capital by 83.2% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 308,765 shares of the utilities providers stock valued at $22,750,000 after purchasing an additional 140,215 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 244.4% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,758 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $469,000 after acquiring an additional 4,086 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 18.2% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,257 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $461,000 after acquiring an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital in the third quarter worth approximately $5,476,000. Finally, Cypress Capital Group boosted its stake in shares of Pinnacle West Capital by 37.2% in the third quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 9,599 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $707,000 after acquiring an additional 2,602 shares during the last quarter. 84.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Pinnacle West Capital Company Profile (Get Free Report) Pinnacle West Capital Corporation, through its subsidiary, Arizona Public Service Company, provides retail and wholesale electric services primarily in the state of Arizona. The company engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity using coal, nuclear, gas, oil, and solar generating facilities. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Pinnacle West Capital Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Pinnacle West Capital and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TARO Free Report) in a research report released on Sunday morning. The firm issued a strong-buy rating on the stock. Separately, HC Wainwright cut Taro Pharmaceutical Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Get Taro Pharmaceutical Industries alerts: Get Our Latest Research Report on Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Stock Down 0.1 % TARO stock opened at $42.00 on Friday. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries has a 52-week low of $22.89 and a 52-week high of $45.76. The stocks fifty day simple moving average is $42.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43 and a beta of 0.61. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TARO Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.26. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries had a return on equity of 3.26% and a net margin of 7.48%. The business had revenue of $157.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $154.90 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Taro Pharmaceutical Industries will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Institutional Inflows and Outflows A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TARO. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries by 6.7% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 22,300 shares of the companys stock worth $965,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries by 20.8% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,048 shares of the companys stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries by 4.4% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 10,487 shares of the companys stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries by 141.7% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,900 shares of the companys stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries by 3.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 534,629 shares of the companys stock worth $23,128,000 after purchasing an additional 17,947 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.45% of the companys stock. Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Company Profile (Get Free Report) Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., a science-based pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, and markets prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical products in the United States, Canada, Israel, and internationally. The company also develops and manufactures active pharmaceutical ingredients primarily for use in its finished dosage form products. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Taro Pharmaceutical Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Hiscox Ltd (LON:HSX Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of Hold from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is GBX 1,230.40 ($15.76). Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on Hiscox from GBX 1,230 ($15.76) to GBX 1,270 ($16.27) and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a hold rating and issued a GBX 1,100 ($14.09) price objective on shares of Hiscox in a research report on Tuesday, November 21st. Get Hiscox alerts: View Our Latest Stock Analysis on HSX Hiscox Stock Performance Hiscox Increases Dividend LON HSX opened at GBX 1,212 ($15.53) on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of 4.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 2,126.32, a P/E/G ratio of -2.30 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.46, a quick ratio of 0.10 and a current ratio of 8.73. The businesss 50 day moving average price is GBX 1,075.04 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 1,030.82. Hiscox has a fifty-two week low of GBX 926.04 ($11.86) and a fifty-two week high of GBX 1,214 ($15.55). The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This is a boost from Hiscoxs previous dividend of $0.13. This represents a dividend yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. Hiscoxs dividend payout ratio is 5,263.16%. About Hiscox (Get Free Report Hiscox Ltd, through its subsidiaries, provides insurance and reinsurance services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the United States, and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Hiscox Retail, Hiscox London Market, Hiscox Re & ILS, and Corporate Centre. It offers commercial insurance for small-and medium-sized businesses; and personal lines cover, including high-value household, fine art, luxury motor, classic car, and partners and direct-to-consumer using both traditional and digital trading models. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Hiscox Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Hiscox and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. St. Andrew's Descent, Khreshchatyk, Independence Square... Every guest of the capital knows about these locations, so there is no point in telling you about them for the hundredth time. Today we will focus on the attractions that sometimes even Kyiv residents don't know about, let alone tourists. ADVERTISIMENT Read below to find out where to go. Chocolate house The first thing that comes to mind is another museum of a well-known chocolate factory. But no, it's not about that. This is the name of the mansion of philanthropist Semyon Mogilevtsev. The house got its unusual name because of its appearance. The building resembles a bar of chocolate. You just want to come closer and take a bite. The building has an interesting and fascinating history. It was commissioned by the aforementioned Mohyltsov, a merchant of the first guild, philanthropist, industrialist, and financier. The chief architect of the city, Volodymyr Nikolaiev, worked on the project. Rumor has it that the manor served as a meeting place for the owner and his beloved, but this is not known for certain. What else do we know? The philanthropist actually hardly ever lived in this building. Various offices were located on the ground floor. On the second floor there was his study, a ceremonial hall with luxurious furniture and a mirror, and several other equally attractive rooms. ADVERTISIMENT Mohyltsev had no children, so after his death the estate became the property of his nephews. After that, the house belonged to many people. For some time, the Ukrainian statesman Ihor Kistiakovskyi lived here, and later Christian Rakovsky. For some time, the "sweet" building housed a registry office, where more than a hundred couples got married. It's very symbolic: the honeymoon began in the Chocolate House. Now the location works as a museum. The entrance is open to anyone who wants to see the incredible interior of the patron's home. Of course, it has undergone some changes over the years, but it has not lost its grandeur. The location is located at 17/2 Shovkovychna Street. ADVERTISIMENT Shchekavytsia And most Ukrainians learned about this hill in 2022, when the aggressors began threatening to launch a nuclear strike on Ukraine. Kyiv residents responded to this statement with a joke: they suggested gathering on Shchekavytsia and organizing an 18+ celebration. At that time, there was even a meme that was good at keeping people's spirits up. Shchekavytsia is a mountain named after one of the founders of Kyiv. According to the Tale of Bygone Years chronicle, Prophetic Oleg is buried here. By the way, the mountain was not empty before. There was a fortress here that protected the main city of Kyivan Rus from the encroachments of Muscovites, Poles, and Tatars. In 1772, it was turned into a cemetery. More than 6,000 people who died of the plague are buried here. Now it is a landscape reserve. The protection zone is established between Olehivska, Lukianivska, Nyzhniurkivska, Kyrylivska, and Nyzhniy Val streets. ADVERTISIMENT Ar-Rahma Mosque This is the first cathedral mosque in Ukraine and one of the largest in Europe. It was built relatively recently. Construction lasted from 1996 to 2011. The project was designed by Ukrainian architect Oleksandr Komarovsky. It is interesting that the mosque was planned to be designed in 1897. Back then, many Muslims lived in the capital. For comparison, the population of Kyiv at that time was about 100 thousand people, of whom almost 2,000 were followers of Islam. Painstaking work on the design began. The First World War, and then the Second, prevented the plans from being realized. It was only after Ukraine gained its independence that things got off the ground. ADVERTISIMENT The mosque is striking in its size and beauty. From a distance, it resembles some kind of amazing castle. Kyiv waterfall Not far from Lysa Hora in the Pokol tract, there is an artificial waterfall. But despite the fact that it was created by humans, it is not inferior to the beauty of natural cascades. It was built to cool down the CHPP-5. It is especially impressive when water is discharged. At this moment, powerful streams rapidly hit the concrete blocks, and the noise can be heard for several kilometers. By the way, in late spring, the waterfall is covered with reeds. At this time, it looks stunning. ADVERTISIMENT The smallest church The shrine is literally hidden in the basement of a residential building. But you won't have to walk long to get to it. The location is in the very center of the capital, at 43 Volodymyrska Street. Instead of domes, the prayer room has fence bars. It has no stained glass windows, no pompous chandeliers, and certainly no crypts. The church was opened in 2000. It used to be a torture chamber, but now parishioners come to the church all the time, so don't think it's a tourist attraction. The church was opened in memory of the Church of St. Mary Magdalene on the Brest-Lithuanian highway. When the famous places of the capital are already well explored, it's time to look for alternative routes. Take a closer look at our selection, maybe some locations will catch your attention and you will want to visit them. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available in our Telegram channel Obozrevatel and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Gulf Investment Fund plc (LON:GIF Get Free Report)s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as GBX 2.62 ($0.03) and last traded at GBX 2.56 ($0.03), with a volume of 10778 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 2.60 ($0.03). Gulf Investment Fund Stock Up 0.5 % The firm has a fifty day moving average of GBX 2.34 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 2.22. The firm has a market cap of 1.08 million and a P/E ratio of 6.40. Get Gulf Investment Fund alerts: Gulf Investment Fund Dividend Announcement The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, February 15th will be issued a $0.04 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 15th. Gulf Investment Funds dividend payout ratio is 2,000.00%. Insider Activity at Gulf Investment Fund Gulf Investment Fund Company Profile In other news, insider Patrick Grant purchased 26,178 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of GBX 191 ($2.45) per share, for a total transaction of 49,999.98 ($64,061.47). 0.47% of the stock is owned by company insiders. (Get Free Report) Qatar Investment Fund plc is a close-ended equity mutual fund launched and managed by Epicure Managers Qatar Limited. The fund is co-managed by Qatar Insurance Company SAQ. It invests in public equity markets of Qatar. The fund benchmarks the performance of its portfolio against Qatar Exchange Index. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Gulf Investment Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Gulf Investment Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Electric (NYSE:GE Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,935 shares of the conglomerates stock, valued at approximately $214,000. Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in General Electric by 10.9% in the third quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 109,332 shares of the conglomerates stock worth $12,087,000 after purchasing an additional 10,722 shares during the period. D1 Capital Partners L.P. lifted its stake in shares of General Electric by 159.8% in the second quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,455,000 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $159,832,000 after buying an additional 895,000 shares in the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of General Electric by 51,152.3% in the third quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 22,551 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $2,493,000 after buying an additional 22,507 shares in the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the third quarter valued at $1,846,000. Finally, Cambridge Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Electric in the third quarter valued at $6,285,000. 74.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get General Electric alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. TheStreet raised shares of General Electric from a c+ rating to a b+ rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of General Electric from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of General Electric from $153.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of General Electric from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, December 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of General Electric from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and raised their price target for the company from $166.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $143.36. Insider Transactions at General Electric In other news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at $8,153,863.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 48,339 shares of the companys stock, valued at $6,552,351.45. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total transaction of $3,195,107.85. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 56,284 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the companys stock. General Electric Stock Performance Shares of GE stock opened at $167.46 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $182.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.18. General Electric has a 52 week low of $86.45 and a 52 week high of $175.81. The firms 50-day simple moving average is $141.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.88. General Electric (NYSE:GE Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $19.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.27 billion. General Electric had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 10.88%. The companys revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that General Electric will post 4.61 earnings per share for the current year. General Electric Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 28th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 27th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.19%. General Electrics payout ratio is 3.82%. About General Electric (Free Report) General Electric Company operates as a high-tech industrial company in Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. It offers gas and steam turbines, full balance of plant, upgrade, and service solutions, as well as data-leveraging software for power generation, industrial, government, and other customers. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for General Electric (NYSE:GE Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for General Electric Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for General Electric and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. acquired a new stake in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust (NYSE:BPT Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 21,000 shares of the oil and gas companys stock, valued at approximately $150,000. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. owned 0.10% of BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust as of its most recent SEC filing. Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Formidable Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at about $403,000. UBS Group AG raised its stake in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust by 11.4% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 34,593 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 3,551 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust in the third quarter valued at $363,000. Narwhal Capital Management boosted its position in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust by 57.6% during the third quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 19,547 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 7,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meitav Investment House Ltd. acquired a new stake in BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,525,000. 4.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust alerts: BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust Price Performance BPT stock opened at $2.13 on Wednesday. BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust has a 1-year low of $2.00 and a 1-year high of $10.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $2.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.98. About BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust operates as a grantor trust in the United States. It holds overriding royalty interest in the Prudhoe Bay oil field located on the North Slope of Alaska. The Prudhoe Bay field extends approximately 12 miles by 27 miles and contains approximately 150,000 gross productive acres. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA trimmed its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF Free Report) by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,091 shares of the basic materials companys stock after selling 22,435 shares during the quarter. Banque Pictet & Cie SAs holdings in CF Industries were worth $2,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. purchased a new stake in CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Clear Street Markets LLC raised its position in CF Industries by 92.5% in the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 385 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in CF Industries by 428.6% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 370 shares of the basic materials companys stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in CF Industries in the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Gyon Technologies Capital Management LP bought a new position in CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. 90.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get CF Industries alerts: CF Industries Stock Up 0.4 % CF opened at $85.42 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.03. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $60.08 and a fifty-two week high of $87.90. The company has a fifty day moving average of $78.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $79.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 3.44 and a current ratio of 3.81. CF Industries Increases Dividend CF Industries ( NYSE:CF Get Free Report ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The basic materials company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.12). CF Industries had a return on equity of 18.44% and a net margin of 23.00%. The firm had revenue of $1.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $1.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.35 earnings per share. CF Industriess revenue for the quarter was down 39.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This is an increase from CF Industriess previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. CF Industriess payout ratio is 25.51%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of brokerages have commented on CF. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Barclays upgraded shares of CF Industries from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and set a $85.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set an outperform rating and a $99.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group downgraded shares of CF Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and lowered their target price for the company from $95.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of CF Industries from a neutral rating to an underweight rating and lowered their target price for the company from $87.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CF Industries presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $90.19. Get Our Latest Report on CF Industries About CF Industries (Free Report) CF Industries Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of hydrogen and nitrogen products for energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial activities in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Ammonia, Granular Urea, UAN, AN, and Other segments. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for CF Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for CF Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Banque Pictet & Cie SA lowered its stake in Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A Free Report) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,956 shares of the medical research companys stock after selling 119 shares during the period. Banque Pictet & Cie SAs holdings in Agilent Technologies were worth $1,449,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 2.3% in the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,751 shares of the medical research companys stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 28,606 shares of the medical research companys stock worth $3,785,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Agilent Technologies by 52.1% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the medical research companys stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Agilent Technologies by 1.1% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,531,170 shares of the medical research companys stock valued at $3,246,209,000 after buying an additional 261,435 shares during the period. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in Agilent Technologies by 10.8% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 2,880 shares of the medical research companys stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. 85.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Agilent Technologies alerts: Agilent Technologies Stock Up 0.4 % NYSE A opened at $147.84 on Wednesday. Agilent Technologies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $96.80 and a 1 year high of $151.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.33 billion, a PE ratio of 35.20, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.04. The businesss 50-day moving average is $134.43 and its 200 day moving average is $124.23. Agilent Technologies Announces Dividend Agilent Technologies ( NYSE:A Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The medical research company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. Agilent Technologies had a net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 27.09%. The companys revenue for the quarter was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Agilent Technologies, Inc. will post 5.49 earnings per share for the current year. The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.236 per share. This represents a $0.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 1st. Agilent Technologiess dividend payout ratio is currently 22.38%. Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $128.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, December 7th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Agilent Technologies from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 21st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Agilent Technologies from a buy rating to a neutral rating and increased their target price for the company from $130.00 to $133.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Agilent Technologies from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Agilent Technologies from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $141.31. Read Our Latest Analysis on A Insider Buying and Selling In other news, SVP Henrik Ancher-Jensen sold 26,331 shares of Agilent Technologies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total transaction of $3,643,157.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 82,504 shares in the company, valued at $11,415,253.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Agilent Technologies news, Director Heidi Fields sold 1,658 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.34, for a total transaction of $239,315.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 54,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,935,235.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Henrik Ancher-Jensen sold 26,331 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total transaction of $3,643,157.16. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 82,504 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $11,415,253.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 89,494 shares of company stock worth $13,055,496 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Agilent Technologies Company Profile (Free Report) Agilent Technologies, Inc provides application focused solutions to the life sciences, diagnostics, and applied chemical markets worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Life Sciences and Applied Markets, Diagnostics and Genomics, and Agilent CrossLab. The Life Sciences and Applied Markets segment offers liquid chromatography systems and components; liquid chromatography mass spectrometry systems; gas chromatography systems and components; gas chromatography mass spectrometry systems; inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry instruments; atomic absorption instruments; microwave plasma-atomic emission spectrometry instruments; inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry instruments; raman spectroscopy; cell analysis plate based assays; flow cytometer; real-time cell analyzer; cell imaging systems; microplate reader; laboratory software; information management and analytics; laboratory automation and robotic systems; dissolution testing; and vacuum pumps, and measurement technologies. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding A? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Agilent Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:A Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Agilent Technologies Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Agilent Technologies and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH Free Report) by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,395,040 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 259,474 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 5.82% of Molina Healthcare worth $1,113,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Molina Healthcare by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,190,161 shares of the companys stock valued at $390,242,000 after acquiring an additional 112,243 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 16,502 shares of the companys stock worth $5,411,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 74,056 shares of the companys stock worth $24,282,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Molina Healthcare by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 334,019 shares of the companys stock worth $109,521,000 after purchasing an additional 17,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caden Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Molina Healthcare in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,983,000. 98.11% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get Molina Healthcare alerts: Insider Buying and Selling In other Molina Healthcare news, CFO Mark Lowell Keim sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.56, for a total value of $5,798,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 36,531 shares in the company, valued at $14,121,423.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Richard M. Schapiro sold 1,000 shares of Molina Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $401.05, for a total transaction of $401,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,207 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,494,567.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark Lowell Keim sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.56, for a total value of $5,798,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 36,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,121,423.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 16,711 shares of company stock valued at $6,472,517. Insiders own 1.10% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MOH shares. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Molina Healthcare from $374.00 to $406.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Molina Healthcare from $435.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Molina Healthcare from $367.00 to $392.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, November 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Molina Healthcare from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Molina Healthcare from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and boosted their target price for the company from $367.00 to $420.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $385.91. Read Our Latest Research Report on Molina Healthcare Molina Healthcare Stock Up 0.1 % Shares of MOH stock opened at $402.55 on Wednesday. Molina Healthcare, Inc. has a 12 month low of $256.19 and a 12 month high of $410.00. The stock has a market cap of $23.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $381.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $358.31. Molina Healthcare (NYSE:MOH Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $4.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. Molina Healthcare had a net margin of 3.20% and a return on equity of 32.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $8.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.10 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Molina Healthcare, Inc. will post 23.62 earnings per share for the current year. Molina Healthcare Company Profile (Free Report) Molina Healthcare, Inc provides managed healthcare services to low-income families and individuals under the Medicaid and Medicare programs and through the state insurance marketplaces. It operates in four segments: Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and Other. The company served in across 19 states. The company was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Long Beach, California. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MOH? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Molina Healthcare Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Molina Healthcare and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD Free Report) (TSE:ABX) by 35.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,551,991 shares of the gold and copper producers stock after buying an additional 16,485,756 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 3.62% of Barrick Gold worth $925,121,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GOLD. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Barrick Gold during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Barrick Gold during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barrick Gold in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Barrick Gold in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Almanack Investment Partners LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Barrick Gold in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.20% of the companys stock. Get Barrick Gold alerts: Barrick Gold Price Performance Shares of NYSE GOLD opened at $15.64 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.16, a quick ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market cap of $27.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.72, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.57. Barrick Gold Corp has a 52 week low of $13.76 and a 52 week high of $20.75. The companys 50-day moving average price is $15.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.07. Barrick Gold Cuts Dividend Barrick Gold ( NYSE:GOLD Get Free Report ) (TSE:ABX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.06. Barrick Gold had a return on equity of 4.64% and a net margin of 11.16%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.13 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Barrick Gold Corp will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.074 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 28th. Barrick Golds dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.56%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several equities analysts have issued reports on GOLD shares. TD Securities dropped their target price on Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. CIBC dropped their target price on Barrick Gold from $27.00 to $23.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut Barrick Gold from an outperform rating to a market perform rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Barrick Gold from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and set a $18.00 target price on shares of Barrick Gold in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $22.05. View Our Latest Analysis on Barrick Gold Barrick Gold Profile (Free Report) Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer. Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX. In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick. Read More Receive News & Ratings for Barrick Gold Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Barrick Gold and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD Free Report) (TSE:ABX) by 35.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 63,551,991 shares of the gold and copper producers stock after acquiring an additional 16,485,756 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 3.62% of Barrick Gold worth $925,121,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GOLD. Cheyne Capital Management UK LLP purchased a new position in Barrick Gold in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,910,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 53.6% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 524,618 shares of the gold and copper producers stock valued at $7,633,000 after buying an additional 183,076 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Barrick Gold by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 17,995,217 shares of the gold and copper producers stock worth $255,406,000 after acquiring an additional 1,769,110 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its position in Barrick Gold by 58.5% in the third quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 152,048 shares of the gold and copper producers stock valued at $2,215,000 after acquiring an additional 56,125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Barrick Gold by 7.8% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 5,047,402 shares of the gold and copper producers stock valued at $73,519,000 after acquiring an additional 367,307 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.20% of the companys stock. Get Barrick Gold alerts: Barrick Gold Trading Down 1.4 % NYSE GOLD opened at $15.64 on Wednesday. Barrick Gold Corp has a 52-week low of $13.76 and a 52-week high of $20.75. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $15.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 3.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Barrick Gold Cuts Dividend Barrick Gold ( NYSE:GOLD Get Free Report ) (TSE:ABX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.06. Barrick Gold had a return on equity of 4.64% and a net margin of 11.16%. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.13 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Barrick Gold Corp will post 0.9 EPS for the current year. The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.074 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Barrick Golds dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.56%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Barrick Gold from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Argus reiterated a hold rating on shares of Barrick Gold in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, TD Securities decreased their price target on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $22.05. Get Our Latest Analysis on Barrick Gold About Barrick Gold (Free Report) Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer. Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX. In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Barrick Gold Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Barrick Gold and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP lessened its holdings in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM Free Report) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 13,793,522 shares of the companys stock after selling 539,500 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 2.59% of Archer-Daniels-Midland worth $1,040,307,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ADM. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Archer-Daniels-Midland in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Archer-Daniels-Midland in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new stake in Archer-Daniels-Midland during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Archer-Daniels-Midland during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. 77.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Archer-Daniels-Midland alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $96.00 to $61.00 in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Barclays lowered shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from an overweight rating to an underweight rating and set a $60.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Archer-Daniels-Midland from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $67.00 in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Roth Mkm cut shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their price target for the stock from $98.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group restated a neutral rating and issued a $51.00 price target (down from $104.00) on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Archer-Daniels-Midland currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $67.08. Archer-Daniels-Midland Stock Up 3.9 % ADM opened at $57.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $30.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.95 and a beta of 0.75. The companys 50-day moving average price is $57.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Archer-Daniels-Midland Company has a twelve month low of $50.72 and a twelve month high of $87.30. Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 12th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.43 by ($0.07). Archer-Daniels-Midland had a net margin of 4.05% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The firm had revenue of $22.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $23.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.93 EPS. Archer-Daniels-Midlands revenue was down 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Archer-Daniels-Midland Company will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current year. Archer-Daniels-Midland Increases Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 8th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. This is a positive change from Archer-Daniels-Midlands previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 7th. Archer-Daniels-Midlands dividend payout ratio is presently 27.86%. About Archer-Daniels-Midland (Free Report) Archer-Daniels-Midland Company procures, transports, stores, processes, and merchandises agricultural commodities, products, and ingredients in the United States, Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Ag Services and Oilseeds, Carbohydrate Solutions, and Nutrition. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ADM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Archer-Daniels-Midland Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Archer-Daniels-Midland and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Tucker Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL Free Report) by 2,187.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,654 shares of the transportation companys stock after purchasing an additional 2,538 shares during the period. Tucker Asset Management LLCs holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $98,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DAL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 68,234,306 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $2,700,032,000 after buying an additional 1,267,578 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 26,563,427 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $1,262,825,000 after buying an additional 995,107 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 22,150,815 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $1,053,050,000 after buying an additional 498,172 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 399.7% during the 2nd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 19,665,620 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $934,904,000 after buying an additional 15,729,876 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,493,033 shares of the transportation companys stock worth $640,323,000 after buying an additional 324,229 shares in the last quarter. 71.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Delta Air Lines alerts: Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines In other Delta Air Lines news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 71,840 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.20, for a total value of $2,816,128.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 428,768 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $16,807,705.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.89% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Delta Air Lines from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. TheStreet raised shares of Delta Air Lines from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $55.54. View Our Latest Report on DAL Delta Air Lines Stock Down 0.8 % Shares of DAL stock opened at $42.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $27.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.98, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.39. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52-week low of $30.60 and a 52-week high of $49.81. The firms 50-day moving average is $40.39 and its 200-day moving average is $38.48. Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The transportation company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $13.55 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.94% and a return on equity of 46.35%. The businesss revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.57 EPS for the current year. Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. Delta Air Liness dividend payout ratio is currently 5.59%. Delta Air Lines Company Profile (Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Airline and Refinery. Its domestic network centered on core hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Salt Lake City, as well as coastal hub positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle; and international network centered on hubs and market presence in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon, and Tokyo. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DAL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Delta Air Lines Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Delta Air Lines and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. As of the morning of March 13, the road blocking in the direction of 5 checkpoints continues. We are talking about Dorohusk-Yahodyn, Zosin-Ustyluh, Dolhobychuv-Uhryniv, Hrebenne-Rava-Ruska, and Medyka-Shehyni. ADVERTISIMENT At the border, 1150 trucks are waiting to enter Ukraine. This was reported by a spokesman for the State Border Guard Service on Suspilne. Studio TV channel, the spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGS), Andriy Demchenko, said. There is also a queue in front of the Korchova-Krakivets checkpoint, which is about 500 trucks. "There is a lot of traffic in the direction of the Krakivets checkpoint, because Polish farmers are not blocking this direction at the moment," said Demchenko. He added that Polish farmers do not allow trucks to leave Ukraine at all at the Yahodyn-Dorogusk, Shehyni-Medika and Uhryniv-Dolhobychuv checkpoints. Over the past day, March 12, not a single truck crossed the border to Poland at these locations. "Until the evening of March 12, they also did not allow trucks to pass through the Ustyluh checkpoint, which are traveling from Ukraine to Poland. Around 19:00 yesterday (March 12 - Ed.) they resumed the possibility of passage for trucks in this direction, but let several trucks through per hour, and on March 13, from 08:00, they again blocked the possibility of passage through Ustyluh from Ukraine to Poland," Demchenko emphasized. ADVERTISIMENT According to him, on March 12, 100 trucks crossed the Yagodyn-Dorogusk checkpoint towards Ukraine, and 20 trucks crossed the Shehyni-Medica checkpoint. At the same time, the Poles are planning to expand the blockade starting today. The farmers will resume blocking the Korczowa-Krakowiec checkpoint, which will result in the strike affecting all cargo checkpoints again. Also, on all roads to the Ukrainian border in Poland, where farmers are protesting, the Polish police will increase security on March 13. As previously reported by OBOZ.UA, Tusk met with Polish farmers on March 9 who staged protests and blocked the borders with Ukraine. No agreements were reached, so the blockade will continue. Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima (NYSE:YPF Free Report) by 50.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,753,658 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock after purchasing an additional 1,604,368 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned 1.21% of YPF Sociedad Anonima worth $58,232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima during the third quarter valued at approximately $439,000. Banque Pictet & Cie SA bought a new position in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,299,000. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 15.6% during the third quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 69,975 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $857,000 after purchasing an additional 9,440 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 6.0% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 883,850 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $10,827,000 after purchasing an additional 50,173 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima by 1.1% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 117,556 shares of the oil and gas exploration companys stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 1,248 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 10.21% of the companys stock. Get YPF Sociedad Anonima alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes Several brokerages recently weighed in on YPF. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a sell rating to a neutral rating and raised their price target for the company from $8.50 to $17.10 in a research report on Monday, November 27th. UBS Group upgraded shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $27.00 in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Citigroup upgraded shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $20.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima from an underweight rating to a neutral rating and raised their target price for the stock from $8.50 to $16.00 in a report on Monday, December 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $18.92. YPF Sociedad Anonima Trading Up 1.5 % Shares of YPF Sociedad Anonima stock opened at $17.91 on Wednesday. The companys fifty day simple moving average is $16.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a PE ratio of -5.27 and a beta of 1.89. YPF Sociedad Anonima has a 1-year low of $8.73 and a 1-year high of $19.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.56. YPF Sociedad Anonima Company Profile (Free Report) YPF Sociedad Anonima, an energy company, engages in the oil and gas upstream and downstream activities in Argentina. Its upstream operations include the exploration, exploitation, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and NGLs. The company's downstream operations include the refining, marketing, and distribution of oil and petroleum products, as well as petroleum derivatives, such as petrochemicals, hydrocarbons, non-fossil fuels, biofuels, and related components; and production of hydrocarbons electric power. Read More Receive News & Ratings for YPF Sociedad Anonima Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for YPF Sociedad Anonima and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC Free Report) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,855 shares of the financial services providers stock after buying an additional 304 shares during the quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.s holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $239,000 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. Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 19.5% in the third quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 7,248 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 1,185 shares during the last quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in Wells Fargo & Company by 410.5% in the third quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC now owns 67,480 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,757,000 after buying an additional 54,262 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LP acquired a new position in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the second quarter valued at about $4,967,000. United Services Automobile Association increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 13.7% in the third quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 97,906 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $4,000,000 after purchasing an additional 11,825 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 61.7% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 121,937 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $4,983,000 after purchasing an additional 46,525 shares during the period. 72.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get Wells Fargo & Company alerts: Wall Street Analyst Weigh In WFC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, December 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Wells Fargo & Company from $54.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Barclays raised their target price on Wells Fargo & Company from $54.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Monday, January 8th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $51.43. Wells Fargo & Company Stock Performance NYSE WFC opened at $57.79 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $206.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.19. The stocks 50 day simple moving average is $51.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.82. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1-year low of $35.25 and a 1-year high of $58.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.30). The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $20.30 billion. Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 12.40%. The businesss revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 4.72 EPS for the current fiscal year. Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Wells Fargo & Companys payout ratio is 29.05%. About Wells Fargo & Company (Free Report) Wells Fargo & Company, a financial services company, provides diversified banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Wells Fargo & Company Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Wells Fargo & Company and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Bancroft Fund Ltd. (NYSEAMERICAN:BCV Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 4,300 shares, a decrease of 59.4% from the February 14th total of 10,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 25,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.2 days. Bancroft Fund Trading Up 0.1 % Shares of NYSEAMERICAN:BCV traded up $0.02 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $15.52. 11,762 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 25,916. Bancroft Fund has a 52 week low of $14.09 and a 52 week high of $18.11. Get Bancroft Fund alerts: Institutional Trading of Bancroft Fund Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Bancroft Fund by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 193,476 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $3,169,000 after buying an additional 4,670 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Bancroft Fund by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 188,931 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $3,412,000 after buying an additional 4,410 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Bancroft Fund by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 79,084 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $1,344,000 after buying an additional 5,138 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Bancroft Fund by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 54,187 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $926,000 after buying an additional 921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Bancroft Fund by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 52,257 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 6,375 shares during the last quarter. 18.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Bancroft Fund Company Profile Bancroft Fund Ltd. is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched by GAMCO Investors, Inc It is managed by Gabelli Funds, LLC. The fund invests in the public equity markets. It primarily invests in convertible securities including convertible debt and convertible preferred stocks. The fund invests in stocks of companies across market capitalization. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Bancroft Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Bancroft Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Boston Scientific Co. (NYSE:BSX Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 10,224 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 47% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,973 call options. Analyst Ratings Changes A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $58.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $60.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Raymond James upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Boston Scientific from $60.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Buy and a consensus target price of $66.62. Get Boston Scientific alerts: View Our Latest Research Report on Boston Scientific Insiders Place Their Bets Institutional Inflows and Outflows In related news, CFO Daniel J. Brennan sold 13,662 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $899,779.32. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 271,542 shares in the company, valued at $17,883,756.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link . In related news, CFO Daniel J. Brennan sold 13,662 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.86, for a total transaction of $899,779.32. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 271,542 shares in the company, valued at $17,883,756.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link . Also, EVP Wendy Carruthers sold 6,983 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.35, for a total transaction of $463,322.05. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 53,788 shares in the company, valued at $3,568,833.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders have sold 76,460 shares of company stock worth $4,759,945 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.53% of the companys stock. Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BSX. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Boston Scientific in the 1st quarter worth approximately $54,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Boston Scientific during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in Boston Scientific during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,076,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Boston Scientific by 24.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 28,793 shares of the medical equipment providers stock valued at $1,275,000 after purchasing an additional 5,581 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Boston Scientific during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.11% of the companys stock. Boston Scientific Stock Down 0.9 % BSX stock traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $66.89. 1,324,720 shares of the companys stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,659,568. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Boston Scientific has a 12-month low of $47.32 and a 12-month high of $68.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $63.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $100.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.78. Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The medical equipment provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. Boston Scientific had a return on equity of 15.99% and a net margin of 11.19%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Boston Scientific will post 2.25 EPS for the current year. Boston Scientific Company Profile (Get Free Report) Boston Scientific Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets medical devices for use in various interventional medical specialties worldwide. It operates through two segments, MedSurg and Cardiovascular. The company offers devices to diagnose and treat gastrointestinal and pulmonary conditions, such as resolution clips, biliary stent systems, stents and electrocautery enhanced delivery systems, direct visualization systems, digital catheters, and single-use duodenoscopes; devices to treat urological conditions, including ureteral stents, catheters, baskets, guidewires, sheaths, balloons, single-use digital flexible ureteroscopes, holmium laser systems, artificial urinary sphincter, laser system, fiber, and hydrogel systems; and devices to treat neurological movement disorders and manage chronic pain, such as spinal cord stimulator system, proprietary programming software, radiofrequency generator, indirect decompression systems, practice optimization tools, and deep brain stimulation system. 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. CCM Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Allstate Co. (NYSE:ALL Free Report) by 70.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,394 shares of the insurance providers stock after selling 70,136 shares during the period. CCM Investment Advisers LLCs holdings in Allstate were worth $3,275,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Allstate by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,850,782 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $3,442,082,000 after purchasing an additional 745,096 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Allstate by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 22,294,372 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $2,430,978,000 after buying an additional 181,050 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Allstate by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,039,351 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $669,221,000 after acquiring an additional 499,056 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Allstate by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,926,917 shares of the insurance providers stock worth $660,318,000 after purchasing an additional 172,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Allstate by 1.1% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,815,257 shares of the insurance providers stock valued at $643,015,000 after acquiring an additional 63,438 shares in the last quarter. 77.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get Allstate alerts: Allstate Trading Down 0.2 % ALL stock traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $159.24. The companys stock had a trading volume of 182,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,599,684. The Allstate Co. has a 52 week low of $100.57 and a 52 week high of $168.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $41.89 billion, a PE ratio of -128.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 0.51. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $156.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.26. Allstate Increases Dividend Allstate ( NYSE:ALL Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The insurance provider reported $5.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $3.87 by $1.95. The business had revenue of $14.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.69 billion. Allstate had a positive return on equity of 2.67% and a negative net margin of 0.33%. The firms revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($1.36) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Allstate Co. will post 12.97 EPS for the current year. The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 1st. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from Allstates previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. Allstates payout ratio is currently -296.77%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth ALL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Allstate from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, November 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Allstate from $164.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Allstate from $171.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. HSBC started coverage on Allstate in a research report on Thursday, December 28th. They issued a hold rating and a $145.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James increased their target price on Allstate from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $159.12. Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Allstate Insider Buying and Selling at Allstate In related news, CAO John C. Pintozzi sold 4,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $637,880.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 10,736 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $1,712,069.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.70% of the companys stock. About Allstate (Free Report) The Allstate Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides property and casualty, and other insurance products in the United States and Canada. The company operates through Allstate Protection; Protection Services; Allstate Health and Benefits; and Run-off Property-Liability segments. The Allstate Protection segment offers private passenger auto and homeowners insurance; other personal lines products; and commercial lines products under the Allstate and Encompass brand names. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for Allstate Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Allstate and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Glovista Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF (NYSEARCA:EIDO Free Report) by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 121,867 shares of the companys stock after selling 9,801 shares during the period. iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF accounts for about 1.6% of Glovista Investments LLCs portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Glovista Investments LLC owned 0.54% of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF worth $2,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF by 2,688.5% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,975,718 shares of the companys stock valued at $45,540,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904,865 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF by 18.1% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,505,474 shares of the companys stock valued at $35,424,000 after acquiring an additional 231,197 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF by 20.8% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 963,732 shares of the companys stock valued at $22,677,000 after acquiring an additional 165,718 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF in the first quarter valued at $19,107,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF by 8.0% in the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 448,159 shares of the companys stock valued at $9,980,000 after acquiring an additional 33,054 shares in the last quarter. Get iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF alerts: iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF Trading Down 0.5 % NYSEARCA:EIDO traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $22.79. The companys stock had a trading volume of 810,841 shares, compared to its average volume of 476,257. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.19 million, a P/E ratio of 17.64 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.35 and a 200-day moving average of $22.06. iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF has a 52-week low of $19.94 and a 52-week high of $24.78. iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF Company Profile The iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF (EIDO) is an exchange-traded fund that is based on the MSCI Indonesia IMI 25-50 index, a market-cap-weighted index of large-, mid and small-cap Indonesian companies. EIDO was launched on May 5, 2010 and is managed by BlackRock. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EIDO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF (NYSEARCA:EIDO Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI Indonesia ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY Free Report) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 195,023 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock after buying an additional 4,698 shares during the period. CCM Investment Advisers LLCs holdings in Bristol-Myers Squibb were worth $11,319,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BMY. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Bristol-Myers Squibb during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb by 61.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 525 shares of the biopharmaceutical companys stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 74.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get Bristol-Myers Squibb alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes BMY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic lowered Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $77.00 to $54.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Societe Generale downgraded shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and reduced their target price for the company from $68.00 to $55.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb from $58.00 to $51.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $61.12. Bristol-Myers Squibb Price Performance BMY traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $54.73. The stock had a trading volume of 4,581,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,983,944. The company has a market cap of $110.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.38. Bristol-Myers Squibb has a 1 year low of $47.58 and a 1 year high of $71.07. The business has a fifty day moving average of $50.52 and a 200 day moving average of $53.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.43. Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.15. Bristol-Myers Squibb had a net margin of 17.83% and a return on equity of 50.95%. The company had revenue of $11.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $11.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firms revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bristol-Myers Squibb will post 6.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Bristol-Myers Squibb Dividend Announcement The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.39%. Bristol-Myers Squibbs payout ratio is currently 62.18%. Bristol-Myers Squibb announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 7th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the biopharmaceutical company to repurchase up to 2.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the companys leadership believes its stock is undervalued. Bristol-Myers Squibb Profile (Free Report) Bristol-Myers Squibb Company discovers, develops, licenses, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It offers products for hematology, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology, fibrotic, and neuroscience diseases. The company's products include Eliquis for reduction in risk of stroke/systemic embolism in non-valvular atrial fibrillation, and for the treatment of DVT/PE; Opdivo for various anti-cancer indications, including bladder, blood, CRC, head and neck, RCC, HCC, lung, melanoma, MPM, stomach and esophageal cancer; Pomalyst/Imnovid for multiple myeloma; Orencia for active rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis; and Sprycel for the treatment of Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BMY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Bristol-Myers Squibb Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Bristol-Myers Squibb and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group (OTCMKTS:EUBG Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 28,200 shares, an increase of 2,069.2% from the February 14th total of 1,300 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 65,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.4 days. Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group Price Performance OTCMKTS:EUBG remained flat at $0.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $0.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $0.39. Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group has a 12-month low of $0.14 and a 12-month high of $0.42. Get Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group alerts: Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group Company Profile (Get Free Report) Featured Stories Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group, through its subsidiaries, provides digital marketing consultation services in the Hong Kong and People's Republic of China. It offers consulting, sourcing, and marketing services. The company was formerly known as REE International, Inc and changed its name to Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group in April 2020. Receive News & Ratings for Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Entrepreneur Universe Bright Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP Free Report) by 11.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 40,693 shares of the energy producers stock after selling 5,454 shares during the quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $4,899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COP. West Tower Group LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 63.1% during the 3rd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 287 shares of the energy producers stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. 80.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get ConocoPhillips alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a strong-buy rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $141.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 8th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $152.00 to $133.00 and set a positive rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $134.61. ConocoPhillips Stock Performance Shares of COP opened at $116.40 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $136.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.23. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $91.53 and a 52 week high of $127.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The businesss 50 day moving average price is $111.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $115.91. ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $15.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.71 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This is a boost from ConocoPhillipss previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.68%. ConocoPhillipss dividend payout ratio is 25.61%. Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips In related news, VP Christopher P. Delk sold 8,505 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.06, for a total value of $953,070.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other ConocoPhillips news, VP Christopher P. Delk sold 8,505 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.06, for a total transaction of $953,070.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total transaction of $502,781.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,654 shares of the companys stock, valued at $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 36,425 shares of company stock valued at $4,077,489. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. About ConocoPhillips (Free Report) ConocoPhillips explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids in the United States, Canada, China, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's portfolio includes unconventional plays in North America; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; global LNG developments; oil sands assets in Canada; and an inventory of global exploration prospects. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for ConocoPhillips Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for ConocoPhillips and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Financial Insights Inc. purchased a new stake in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES Free Report) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 4,145 shares of the oil and gas producers stock, valued at approximately $599,000. Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hess in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. KB Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Hess in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hess in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, IMA Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in Hess in the second quarter worth about $30,000. 81.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get Hess alerts: Insider Buying and Selling at Hess In other news, COO Gregory P. Hill sold 4,708 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $680,400.16. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 125,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,161,828.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, COO Gregory P. Hill sold 4,708 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $680,400.16. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 125,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,161,828.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $390,348.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 162,144 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,433,050.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 141,877 shares of company stock worth $20,707,982. Corporate insiders own 9.91% of the companys stock. Hess Stock Up 1.7 % NYSE HES traded up $2.51 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $149.14. The stock had a trading volume of 259,945 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,848,648. The company has a market capitalization of $45.81 billion, a PE ratio of 32.58 and a beta of 1.27. The companys 50-day moving average price is $143.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.05. Hess Co. has a 12 month low of $113.82 and a 12 month high of $167.75. Hess (NYSE:HES Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.76 billion. Hess had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 12.98%. The businesss quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 7.56 EPS for the current year. Hess Dividend Announcement The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 18th will be paid a $0.4375 dividend. This represents a $1.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 15th. Hesss payout ratio is 38.89%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In HES has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Hess in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They issued a sell rating for the company. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Hess from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hess from $210.00 to $195.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Hess from $152.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hess has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $174.57. View Our Latest Stock Report on Hess Hess Profile (Free Report) Hess Corporation, an exploration and production company, explores, develops, produces, purchases, transports, and sells crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. The company operates in two segments, Exploration and Production, and Midstream. It conducts production operations primarily in the United States, Guyana, the Malaysia/Thailand Joint Development Area, and Malaysia; and exploration activities principally offshore Guyana, the U.S. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding HES? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Hess Co. (NYSE:HES Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Hess Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Hess and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. On Tuesday evening, March 12, Russian occupation forces shelled the town of Myrnohrad in the Donetsk region. The enemy attacked the town at around 11 p.m., hitting a five-story residential building. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported to Suspilne Donbas by the acting head of the Myrnohrad RMA, Yurii Tretiak. He noted that the Russian attack resulted in the destruction of the house. According to the monitoring channels, a missile hit a residential building in Myrnohrad, causing injuries. Preliminary, the enemy used ballistic weapons. "The rubble is being cleared," the report says. On the morning of March 13, the head of the Donetsk Regional State Administration Vadym Filashkin reported that 2 people were killed and 5 were wounded in the night shelling of Myrnohrad. ADVERTISIMENT According to him, the rescuers managed to get a 13-year-old girl out of the rubble, alive and unharmed. Filashkin also clarified that the occupants dropped a Grom-E1 bomb on a 5-story building in Myrnohrad. A total of 4 buildings were damaged. "All the wounded are receiving medical aid: one person is in serious condition, three are in moderate one. The search operation at the scene has been completed," the head said, once again urging residents of the region to evacuate. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Etfidea LLC trimmed its stake in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:EEM Free Report) by 5.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 10,490 shares of the exchange traded funds stock after selling 556 shares during the period. Etfidea LLCs holdings in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Insights Inc. bought a new stake in shares of iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF in the 3rd quarter valued at about $371,000. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. boosted its holdings in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 8.1% in the third quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. now owns 21,560 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $816,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 26.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 52,408 shares of the exchange traded funds stock valued at $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 11,105 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF by 593.2% during the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 97,667 shares of the exchange traded funds stock worth $3,706,000 after purchasing an additional 83,578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,239,000. 76.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF alerts: iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF Trading Down 0.3 % Shares of NYSEARCA:EEM traded down $0.11 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $41.25. The stock had a trading volume of 7,260,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,594,697. iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF has a 52 week low of $36.38 and a 52 week high of $42.00. The firms fifty day moving average is $39.51 and its 200 day moving average is $39.00. About iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF, formerly iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index Fund (the Fund), seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance of publicly traded equity securities in global emerging markets, as measured by the MSCI Emerging Markets Index (the Index). Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding EEM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:EEM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. ASB Consultores LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 4,320 shares of the energy companys stock, valued at approximately $206,000. Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DVN. Wahed Invest LLC lifted its holdings in Devon Energy by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 7,933 shares of the energy companys stock worth $469,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Stevard LLC raised its position in shares of Devon Energy by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Stevard LLC now owns 6,842 shares of the energy companys stock worth $331,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Devon Energy by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,406 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Devon Energy by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,540 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in Devon Energy by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,681 shares of the energy companys stock valued at $128,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.34% of the companys stock. Get Devon Energy alerts: Wall Street Analyst Weigh In DVN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded Devon Energy from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and lifted their price target for the company from $48.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Monday, December 11th. Mizuho cut their price target on Devon Energy from $54.00 to $53.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Devon Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. UBS Group cut their price target on Devon Energy from $52.00 to $48.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Devon Energy from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $56.65. Devon Energy Price Performance Devon Energy stock opened at $46.58 on Wednesday. Devon Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $40.47 and a 12 month high of $56.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The businesss 50 day simple moving average is $43.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.71. The company has a market cap of $29.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.99, a PEG ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 2.18. Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The energy company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.02. Devon Energy had a net margin of 24.56% and a return on equity of 31.72%. The business had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $3.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. The businesss revenue for the quarter was down 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Devon Energy Co. will post 5.06 EPS for the current year. Devon Energy Cuts Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.78%. Devon Energys payout ratio is 15.09%. Devon Energy Profile (Free Report) Devon Energy Corporation, an independent energy company, explores for, develops, and produces oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. It operates in Delaware, Anadarko, Williston, Eagle Ford, and Powder River Basin. The company was incorporated in 1971 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. See Also Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DVN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Devon Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Devon Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB Free Report) by 0.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,504 shares of the financial services providers stock after selling 116 shares during the period. CCM Investment Advisers LLCs holdings in Chubb were worth $11,555,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CB. Financial Insights Inc. purchased a new position in Chubb in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $944,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Chubb during the third quarter worth $1,360,000. Advisory Resource Group grew its holdings in Chubb by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 3,007 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Chubb by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 724 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Phoenix Holdings Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Chubb by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Phoenix Holdings Ltd. now owns 21,710 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $4,556,000 after acquiring an additional 3,834 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.30% of the companys stock. Get Chubb alerts: Insider Activity at Chubb In other news, EVP Timothy Alan Boroughs sold 33,150 shares of Chubb stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.11, for a total transaction of $8,456,896.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 50,486 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $12,879,483.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Chubb news, CAO Annmarie T. Hagan sold 7,180 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.04, for a total transaction of $1,759,387.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,495,969.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Alan Boroughs sold 33,150 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.11, for a total value of $8,456,896.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 50,486 shares of the companys stock, valued at $12,879,483.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. Analysts Set New Price Targets CB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Chubb from $234.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. UBS Group increased their price target on Chubb from $245.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Chubb from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. JMP Securities increased their target price on shares of Chubb from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Chubb from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $253.00. Get Our Latest Analysis on Chubb Chubb Stock Performance NYSE CB traded up $0.86 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $258.61. 181,984 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,750,794. Chubb Limited has a 12-month low of $183.40 and a 12-month high of $259.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $243.19 and a 200 day moving average of $225.58. The company has a market cap of $104.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Chubb (NYSE:CB Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $8.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $5.07 by $3.23. Chubb had a return on equity of 16.45% and a net margin of 18.11%. The firm had revenue of $13.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.88 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Chubb Limited will post 21.16 earnings per share for the current year. Chubb Announces Dividend The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. Chubbs dividend payout ratio is currently 15.76%. About Chubb (Free Report) Chubb Limited provides insurance and reinsurance products worldwide. The company's North America Commercial P&C Insurance segment offers commercial property, casualty, workers' compensation, package policies, risk management, financial lines, marine, construction, environmental, medical, cyber risk, surety, and excess casualty; and group accident and health insurance to large, middle market, and small commercial businesses. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Chubb Limited (NYSE:CB Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Chubb Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Chubb and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD Free Report) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,711 shares of the oil and gas development companys stock after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc.s holdings in Pioneer Natural Resources were worth $1,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Pioneer Natural Resources in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources by 85.0% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 148 shares of the oil and gas development companys stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources by 77.4% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 149 shares of the oil and gas development companys stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DecisionPoint Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Pioneer Natural Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. 82.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. Get Pioneer Natural Resources alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets PXD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Mizuho increased their price objective on Pioneer Natural Resources from $264.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Pioneer Natural Resources from $269.00 to $250.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 14th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Pioneer Natural Resources from $237.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. StockNews.com began coverage on Pioneer Natural Resources in a report on Tuesday. They issued a hold rating for the company. Finally, Argus cut Pioneer Natural Resources from a buy rating to a sell rating in a research note on Friday, November 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $255.14. Pioneer Natural Resources Stock Up 1.2 % Pioneer Natural Resources stock traded up $2.82 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $246.21. The company had a trading volume of 458,977 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,157,807. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stocks 50 day moving average price is $229.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $232.58. Pioneer Natural Resources has a 12 month low of $177.26 and a 12 month high of $257.76. The company has a market capitalization of $57.52 billion, a PE ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 1.30. Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas development company reported $5.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts consensus estimates of $5.41 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $5.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.28 billion. Pioneer Natural Resources had a net margin of 25.28% and a return on equity of 22.42%. The companys revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.91 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Pioneer Natural Resources will post 20.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Pioneer Natural Resources Cuts Dividend The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $2.56 per share. This represents a $10.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 1st. Pioneer Natural Resourcess payout ratio is currently 24.70%. Insider Activity In other news, Director Maria S. Dreyfus sold 10,632 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.62, for a total transaction of $2,409,423.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,066 shares of the companys stock, valued at $921,436.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Maria S. Dreyfus sold 10,632 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Friday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.62, for a total transaction of $2,409,423.84. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,066 shares in the company, valued at $921,436.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott D. Sheffield sold 10,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.25, for a total value of $2,352,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 462,112 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $108,711,848. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,132 shares of company stock valued at $5,582,149 over the last ninety days. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders. Pioneer Natural Resources Company Profile (Free Report) Pioneer Natural Resources Company operates as an independent oil and gas exploration and production company in the United States. The company explores for, develops, and produces oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and gas. It has operations in the Midland Basin in West Texas. The company was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Irving, Texas. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Pioneer Natural Resources Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Pioneer Natural Resources and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. New Found Gold Corp. (NYSE:NFGC Get Free Report)s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $3.59, but opened at $3.67. New Found Gold shares last traded at $3.73, with a volume of 85,969 shares changing hands. New Found Gold Stock Performance The businesss 50 day moving average price is $3.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.69. The company has a market cap of $717.67 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.94 and a beta of 1.17. Get New Found Gold alerts: Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Found Gold Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in New Found Gold in the first quarter valued at $56,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in New Found Gold during the 2nd quarter worth about $71,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in New Found Gold by 176.3% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 149,820 shares of the companys stock valued at $673,000 after acquiring an additional 95,604 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of New Found Gold by 45.3% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 14,833 shares of the companys stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 4,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of New Found Gold during the third quarter worth $36,000. 3.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors. About New Found Gold New Found Gold Corp., a mineral exploration company, engages in the identification, acquisition, and exploration of mineral properties in the Provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador, and Ontario. The company primarily explores for gold deposit. It holds 100% interests in the Queensway project that includes 94 mineral licenses and 6,649 claims covering an area of 166,225 hectares of land located near Gander, Newfoundland; and the Lucky Strike project comprising 11,684 hectares located in Kirkland Lake, Ontario. See Also Receive News & Ratings for New Found Gold Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for New Found Gold and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in shares of HCA Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:HCA Free Report) by 34.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 172,290 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 44,300 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky owned approximately 0.06% of HCA Healthcare worth $42,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of HCA Healthcare by 632.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 425 shares of the companys stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 367 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 3,432 shares of the companys stock valued at $844,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of HCA Healthcare by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 22,822 shares of the companys stock valued at $6,018,000 after buying an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 23.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 15,134 shares of the companys stock worth $3,723,000 after purchasing an additional 2,888 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alamar Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in HCA Healthcare by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Alamar Capital Management LLC now owns 12,048 shares of the companys stock worth $2,964,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. 62.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get HCA Healthcare alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several analysts have recently weighed in on HCA shares. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of HCA Healthcare from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and raised their price objective for the company from $277.00 to $301.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of HCA Healthcare from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $271.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, December 11th. StockNews.com cut shares of HCA Healthcare from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of HCA Healthcare in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. They set an overweight rating and a $356.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of HCA Healthcare from $313.00 to $265.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, HCA Healthcare presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $308.26. HCA Healthcare Price Performance Shares of NYSE:HCA traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $323.41. 239,133 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,111,837. HCA Healthcare, Inc. has a one year low of $215.96 and a one year high of $328.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 35.07. The businesss fifty day moving average is $300.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $269.47. The stock has a market cap of $85.54 billion, a PE ratio of 17.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.64. HCA Healthcare (NYSE:HCA Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The company reported $5.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.85. The firm had revenue of $17.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.51 billion. HCA Healthcare had a net margin of 8.07% and a return on equity of 996.30%. The businesss revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.64 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that HCA Healthcare, Inc. will post 20.49 earnings per share for the current year. HCA Healthcare Increases Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is an increase from HCA Healthcares previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. HCA Healthcares dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.64%. HCA Healthcare declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 30th that permits the company to buyback $6.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 7.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the companys board of directors believes its shares are undervalued. Insider Buying and Selling at HCA Healthcare In other HCA Healthcare news, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 652 shares of the firms stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.04, for a total transaction of $203,450.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 290 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $90,491.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, SVP Sammie S. Mosier sold 1,645 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.00, for a total transaction of $513,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,646 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $2,385,552. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Chad J. Wasserman sold 652 shares of HCA Healthcare stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $312.04, for a total transaction of $203,450.08. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 290 shares of the companys stock, valued at $90,491.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,620 shares of company stock valued at $4,188,812. Company insiders own 1.60% of the companys stock. HCA Healthcare Profile (Free Report) HCA Healthcare, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates hospitals and related healthcare entities in the United States. It operates general and acute care hospitals that offers medical and surgical services, including inpatient care, intensive care, cardiac care, diagnostic, and emergency services; and outpatient services, such as outpatient surgery, laboratory, radiology, respiratory therapy, cardiology, and physical therapy. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for HCA Healthcare Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for HCA Healthcare and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky trimmed its position in shares of Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM Free Report) by 8.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 320,274 shares of the companys stock after selling 30,291 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Philip Morris International were worth $29,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Spotlight Asset Group Inc. bought a new stake in Philip Morris International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Philip Morris International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. 79.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Philip Morris International alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets PM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on shares of Philip Morris International in a research note on Thursday, November 16th. They set a neutral rating and a $95.00 target price on the stock. Societe Generale upgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a sell rating to a hold rating and set a $87.50 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. UBS Group downgraded shares of Philip Morris International from a buy rating to a sell rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $86.50 in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Argus reiterated a hold rating on shares of Philip Morris International in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Philip Morris International from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, November 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Philip Morris International has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $105.40. Insider Activity In related news, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total value of $181,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $882,050.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Philip Morris International news, insider Werner Barth sold 5,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.46, for a total transaction of $457,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 102,918 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,412,880.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Reginaldo Dobrowolski sold 2,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.69, for a total transaction of $181,380.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 9,726 shares in the company, valued at $882,050.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.13% of the companys stock. Philip Morris International Stock Up 1.2 % NYSE:PM traded up $1.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.81. 1,093,169 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,805,346. Philip Morris International Inc. has a 12 month low of $87.23 and a 12 month high of $101.92. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.97 and a 200 day moving average of $92.61. The stock has a market cap of $148.74 billion, a PE ratio of 18.86, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.61. Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.44 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $9.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.99 billion. Philip Morris International had a net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 116.29%. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Philip Morris International Inc. will post 6.39 EPS for the current fiscal year. Philip Morris International Announces Dividend The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 20th. Philip Morris Internationals dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.59%. Philip Morris International Profile (Free Report) Philip Morris International Inc operates as a tobacco company working to delivers a smoke-free future and evolving portfolio for the long-term to include products outside of the tobacco and nicotine sector. The company's product portfolio primarily consists of cigarettes and smoke-free products, including heat-not-burn, vapor, and oral nicotine products primarily under the IQOS and ZYN brands; and consumer accessories, such as lighters and matches. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Philip Morris International Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Philip Morris International and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP decreased its holdings in Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Free Report) by 17.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,060,904 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after selling 1,870,617 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLPs holdings in Phillips 66 were worth $1,088,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Capital Advisors Group LLC. bought a new position in shares of Phillips 66 during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in Phillips 66 in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Phillips 66 by 134.8% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 263 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Phillips 66 during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Phillips 66 by 82.1% during the 3rd quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 306 shares of the oil and gas companys stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.83% of the companys stock. Get Phillips 66 alerts: Insider Activity at Phillips 66 In related news, VP Joseph Scott Pruitt sold 1,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.23, for a total value of $133,230.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,593 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $878,385.39. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Robert W. Pease bought 682 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $146.58 per share, for a total transaction of $99,967.56. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,900 shares in the company, valued at $278,502. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Joseph Scott Pruitt sold 1,000 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.23, for a total value of $133,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,593 shares in the company, valued at $878,385.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,887 shares of company stock valued at $4,543,437 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 4.57% of the companys stock. Phillips 66 Price Performance PSX stock opened at $150.34 on Wednesday. Phillips 66 has a 52-week low of $89.74 and a 52-week high of $151.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.72, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.36. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $140.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $127.25. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $3.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.72. Phillips 66 had a return on equity of 22.10% and a net margin of 4.68%. Equities research analysts forecast that Phillips 66 will post 13.09 EPS for the current fiscal year. Phillips 66 Announces Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $4.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Phillips 66s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.15%. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Phillips 66 from $134.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, December 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Phillips 66 from $132.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Phillips 66 from $151.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. StockNews.com raised Phillips 66 from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Saturday, February 10th. Finally, Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Phillips 66 in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a buy rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Phillips 66 has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $138.15. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on PSX Phillips 66 Profile (Free Report) Phillips 66 operates as an energy manufacturing and logistics company in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties (M&S). The Midstream segment transports crude oil and other feedstocks; delivers refined petroleum products to market; provides terminaling and storage services for crude oil and refined petroleum products; transports, stores, fractionates, exports, and markets natural gas liquids; provides other fee-based processing services; and gathers, processes, transports, and markets natural gas. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PSX? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Phillips 66 Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Phillips 66 and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust (NYSE:BCX Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 29th, there was short interest totalling 15,400 shares, a decline of 55.0% from the February 14th total of 34,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 385,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.0 days. Institutional Trading of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust by 2.3% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 97,469 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $1,076,000 after purchasing an additional 2,198 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust by 168.5% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 30,380 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 19,065 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC raised its position in shares of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust by 37.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 17,686 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $195,000 after acquiring an additional 4,865 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in shares of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust by 7.9% in the first quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 20,972 shares of the investment management companys stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust by 113.8% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 30,576 shares of the investment management companys stock valued at $338,000 after acquiring an additional 16,274 shares during the last quarter. Get Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust alerts: Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust Trading Up 2.2 % Shares of Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust stock traded up $0.19 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $8.97. 189,978 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 395,905. The firms fifty day moving average price is $8.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $8.83. Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust has a 12 month low of $8.25 and a 12 month high of $9.90. Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust Dividend Announcement Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust Company Profile The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a $0.052 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.96%. (Get Free Report) Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust is a closed-ended equity mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc It is co-managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC and BlackRock International Limited. The fund invests in the public equity markets of the United States. It seeks to invest in stocks of companies operating in the commodities or natural resources sectors. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Blackrock Resources & Commodities Strategy Trust and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management lowered its stake in General Electric (NYSE:GE Free Report) by 4.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,103 shares of the conglomerates stock after selling 160 shares during the period. Bar Harbor Wealth Managements holdings in General Electric were worth $343,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of General Electric by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 109,332 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $12,087,000 after acquiring an additional 10,722 shares in the last quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. raised its holdings in General Electric by 159.8% in the 2nd quarter. D1 Capital Partners L.P. now owns 1,455,000 shares of the conglomerates stock valued at $159,832,000 after buying an additional 895,000 shares during the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. grew its holdings in General Electric by 51,152.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 22,551 shares of the conglomerates stock worth $2,493,000 after acquiring an additional 22,507 shares during the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in General Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,846,000. Finally, Cambridge Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Electric during the third quarter valued at $6,285,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.83% of the companys stock. Get General Electric alerts: Insider Buying and Selling at General Electric In related news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total transaction of $3,195,107.85. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares of the companys stock, valued at $8,153,863.08. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other General Electric news, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 13,601 shares of General Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.55, for a total transaction of $1,843,615.55. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 48,339 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $6,552,351.45. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Michael J. Holston sold 22,055 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.87, for a total value of $3,195,107.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 56,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,153,863.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.67% of the companys stock. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer reissued a market perform rating on shares of General Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on General Electric from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded General Electric from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $166.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on General Electric from $148.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of General Electric from $153.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, General Electric currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $143.36. View Our Latest Research Report on General Electric General Electric Trading Up 0.5 % GE opened at $167.46 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $141.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.88. General Electric has a 1-year low of $86.45 and a 1-year high of $175.81. The company has a market cap of $182.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. General Electric (NYSE:GE Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The conglomerate reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.13. General Electric had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 13.95%. The business had revenue of $19.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. The firms revenue was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that General Electric will post 4.61 EPS for the current fiscal year. General Electric Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 28th were given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 27th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.19%. General Electrics payout ratio is 3.82%. General Electric Company Profile (Free Report) General Electric Company operates as a high-tech industrial company in Europe, China, Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. It offers gas and steam turbines, full balance of plant, upgrade, and service solutions, as well as data-leveraging software for power generation, industrial, government, and other customers. Recommended Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for General Electric (NYSE:GE Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for General Electric Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for General Electric and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. The mysterious satellites of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, were probably formed as a result of the collision of the Red Planet with an unknown icy object. Such a space "accident" led to the formation of a ring of debris in Mars' orbit, which later formed two space bodies. ADVERTISIMENT This is stated in a study by scientists from the Tokyo Institute of Technology in Japan. Previously, the contradictory properties of the Martian satellites puzzled researchers. A preliminary analysis of the geological composition of Phobos and Deimos led scientists to believe that both objects were captured asteroids as their composition contained signs of water and was more similar to asteroids than to Mars. However, the circular orbits of these satellites denied this theory. Then a new theory suggested that Phobos and Deimos were formed when an unknown large rocky object collided with Mars. According to this theory, the collision resulted in material being blown off the Red Planet, which, together with the object's debris, formed a disk of debris that later merged into two satellites. But, as New Scientist writes, this version also had a flaw: if the satellites had formed in this way, the material from which they were "built" would have heated up so much that it would have evaporated any water and melted most of the asteroid-like material found on the surfaces of the satellites. ADVERTISIMENT Thus, a theory was needed that would fit both scenarios, and a scientists of the Tokyo Institute of Technology and her colleagues found it. During the study, they simulated a collision between Mars and a large icy object. The advantage of this theory is that some of the ice evaporated during the collision and also absorbed heat, so the disk that formed in Mars' orbit was heated to only hundreds of degrees, not thousands. This allowed some water to remain in the debris. In addition, the simulated collision showed that the disk formed after such a collision consisted of 80% of the material of the icy object and only 20% of the material of Mars. The scientist noted that this could explain why the composition of Phobos and Deimos is so different from that of Mars. This theory, however, also has a weakness. If the object that collided with Mars was very large, there would be a lot of water left on the surface of the Red Planet. Therefore, scientists assume that it was an object the size of the asteroid Vesta, one of the largest objects in the asteroid belt, with an average diameter of 525 km. ADVERTISIMENT Subscribe to OBOZ.UA channels on Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest events. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) by 6.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 557,874 shares of the financial services providers stock after acquiring an additional 35,000 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. comprises about 0.8% of Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. were worth $80,903,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of JPM. Macroview Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 7,833.3% in the 3rd quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 238 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the period. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 290.9% during the 3rd quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 387 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Robbins Farley boosted its stake in shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. by 29.5% during the 3rd quarter. Robbins Farley now owns 421 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.94% of the companys stock. Get JPMorgan Chase & Co. alerts: JPMorgan Chase & Co. Stock Up 0.8 % Shares of NYSE JPM traded up $1.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $191.34. The stock had a trading volume of 2,527,905 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,828,708. The company has a market capitalization of $551.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.14. The firms 50-day moving average price is $176.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.01. JPMorgan Chase & Co. has a 52 week low of $123.11 and a 52 week high of $191.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Analyst Ratings Changes JPMorgan Chase & Co. ( NYSE:JPM Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The financial services provider reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.73 by ($0.69). The firm had revenue of $38.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.73 billion. JPMorgan Chase & Co. had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 17.80%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.57 EPS. Analysts anticipate that JPMorgan Chase & Co. will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year. Several brokerages recently issued reports on JPM. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $232.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $192.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $177.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a buy rating on shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $179.11. View Our Latest Analysis on JPM Insider Activity at JPMorgan Chase & Co. In related news, insider Ashley Bacon sold 3,368 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.73, for a total value of $561,546.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 205,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,256,512.53. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Ashley Bacon sold 3,368 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.73, for a total transaction of $561,546.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 205,461 shares in the company, valued at $34,256,512.53. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Peter Scher sold 1,812 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.65, for a total value of $301,969.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 46,766 shares in the company, valued at $7,793,553.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 845,383 shares of company stock valued at $154,341,636. 0.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. About JPMorgan Chase & Co. (Free Report) JPMorgan Chase & Co operates as a financial services company worldwide. It operates through four segments: Consumer & Community Banking (CCB), Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB), Commercial Banking (CB), and Asset & Wealth Management (AWM). The CCB segment offers deposit, investment and lending products, cash management, and payments and services; mortgage origination and servicing activities; residential mortgages and home equity loans; and credit cards, auto loans, leases, and travel services to consumers and small businesses through bank branches, ATMs, and digital and telephone banking. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding JPM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for JPMorgan Chase & Co. Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for JPMorgan Chase & Co. and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. West Paces Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK Free Report) by 16.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,579 shares of the utilities providers stock after selling 689 shares during the period. West Paces Advisors Inc.s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $316,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter worth $40,000. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.2% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 47,250 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $5,276,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 29.5% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 9,751 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $1,089,000 after buying an additional 2,223 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 447.8% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,260 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $141,000 after buying an additional 1,030 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 5.2% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 6,505 shares of the utilities providers stock worth $726,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.68% of the companys stock. Get Duke Energy alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets DUK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $103.00 to $100.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $98.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 29th. Evercore ISI upgraded Duke Energy from an in-line rating to an outperform rating and upped their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Duke Energy from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating and upped their price objective for the company from $101.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $100.00. Duke Energy Price Performance Shares of NYSE:DUK traded up $0.88 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.89. 1,322,248 shares of the companys stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,130,104. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $83.06 and a fifty-two week high of $100.39. The firm has a market cap of $73.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.46. Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 9.78%. The firm had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. The companys quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year. Duke Energy Announces Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.025 per share. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 15th. Duke Energys dividend payout ratio is currently 115.49%. Insider Transactions at Duke Energy In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total transaction of $277,710.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the companys stock. Duke Energy Company Profile (Free Report) Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I) and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest; and uses coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, oil, solar and wind sources, renewables, and nuclear fuel to generate electricity. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Duke Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Duke Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK Free Report) by 21.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,745,648 shares of the asset managers stock after purchasing an additional 307,516 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 1.17% of BlackRock worth $1,128,544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BLK. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock during the 3rd quarter worth $226,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in BlackRock by 329.5% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79,272 shares of the asset managers stock worth $51,249,000 after acquiring an additional 60,816 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in BlackRock by 2.4% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 33,714 shares of the asset managers stock valued at $21,796,000 after acquiring an additional 792 shares during the last quarter. Invst LLC increased its stake in shares of BlackRock by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invst LLC now owns 2,031 shares of the asset managers stock worth $1,313,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of BlackRock in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,788,000. 77.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors. Get BlackRock alerts: Analyst Ratings Changes A number of research firms have issued reports on BLK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded BlackRock from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $708.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, December 15th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on BlackRock from $720.00 to $818.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of BlackRock from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and set a $885.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of BlackRock from $719.00 to $793.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, November 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of BlackRock from a market perform rating to an outperform rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $819.00 to $938.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $785.73. Insider Transactions at BlackRock In other news, General Counsel Christopher J. Meade sold 18,000 shares of BlackRock stock in a transaction on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.54, for a total transaction of $5,085,660.60. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 11,914 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $3,366,142.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other BlackRock news, CEO Laurence Fink sold 30,978 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $809.92, for a total value of $25,089,701.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 414,146 shares of the companys stock, valued at $335,425,128.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Christopher J. Meade sold 18,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.54, for a total transaction of $5,085,660.60. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 11,914 shares of the companys stock, valued at $3,366,142.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 100,511 shares of company stock valued at $71,864,028 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.06% of the companys stock. BlackRock Trading Up 0.5 % Shares of BLK stock opened at $829.59 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $123.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.37. BlackRock, Inc. has a 52-week low of $596.18 and a 52-week high of $845.00. The businesss fifty day moving average is $799.39 and its 200 day moving average is $733.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 3.48 and a current ratio of 3.48. BlackRock (NYSE:BLK Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The asset manager reported $9.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.84 by $0.82. The firm had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.65 billion. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 30.81%. The companys revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.93 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that BlackRock, Inc. will post 39.73 EPS for the current fiscal year. BlackRock Increases Dividend The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th will be paid a $5.10 dividend. This represents a $20.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 6th. This is a boost from BlackRocks previous quarterly dividend of $5.00. BlackRocks payout ratio is currently 55.88%. BlackRock Profile (Free Report) BlackRock, Inc is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors including corporate, public, union, and industry pension plans, insurance companies, third-party mutual funds, endowments, public institutions, governments, foundations, charities, sovereign wealth funds, corporations, official institutions, and banks. See Also Receive News & Ratings for BlackRock Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BlackRock and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. CoreFirst Bank & Trust grew its stake in Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC) by 32.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,016 shares of the financial services providers stock after buying an additional 3,163 shares during the period. CoreFirst Bank & Trusts holdings in Wells Fargo & Company were worth $532,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fortis Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Studio Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Baystate Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Wells Fargo & Company by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 803 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Wells Fargo & Company in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.47% of the companys stock. Get Wells Fargo & Company alerts: Wells Fargo & Company Stock Up 0.9 % WFC stock traded up $0.51 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $58.12. 7,402,259 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,027,160. The firms 50 day moving average is $51.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $207.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.19. Wells Fargo & Company has a 1 year low of $35.25 and a 1 year high of $58.44. Wells Fargo & Company Announces Dividend Wells Fargo & Company ( NYSE:WFC Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 12th. The financial services provider reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.30). Wells Fargo & Company had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 12.40%. The firm had revenue of $20.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $20.30 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. Wells Fargo & Companys revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Wells Fargo & Company will post 4.72 EPS for the current year. The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. Wells Fargo & Companys dividend payout ratio is currently 29.05%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird restated a neutral rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company in a report on Monday, January 8th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, December 1st. Odeon Capital Group lowered shares of Wells Fargo & Company from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $48.80 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Wells Fargo & Company from $51.00 to $50.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $51.43. Read Our Latest Stock Report on Wells Fargo & Company About Wells Fargo & Company (Free Report) Wells Fargo & Company, a financial services company, provides diversified banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WFC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE:WFC Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Wells Fargo & Company Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Wells Fargo & Company and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. This will not only be a Children's Creativity Center but also a center of friendship and brotherhood between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev as he met with Azerbaijan's culture and art figures, residents of the city of Fuzuli, and children who will study at the Kurmangazy Children's Creativity Center, Azernews reports. Every such project touches the soul of the Azerbaijani people because for 30 years the parents, grandfathers and grandmothers of these children lived with the dream of returning to their lands. And when they returned and saw the devastated Karabakh, completely levelled to the ground, they experienced very bitter feelings. These were the feelings of bitterness mixed with joy because they had returned, the President noted. Ukraine and the European Union (EU) have signed an agreement to actually start disbursements under the record-breaking EU assistance program Ukraine Facility in March 2024. By the end of the month, Ukraine's accounts will receive 4.5 billion. This tranche will essentially contain three "money transfers" at once - 1.5 billion for each month from the beginning of 2024 (January, February and March). ADVERTISIMENT According to the Ministry of Finance, Ukraine signed the relevant loan agreement and memorandum on March 12. However, Ukraine will receive the second tranche of the EU's assistance in April in the amount of EUR 1.5 billion, and only if the reform program is implemented. "Ukraine will receive EUR 6 billion in transitional financing under the EU's Ukraine Facility. The first payment of EUR 4.5 billion will be transferred to the state budget of Ukraine in March. The remaining amount of EUR 1.5 billion will be received in April 2024 after the European Commission assesses the fulfillment of the indicators," the Ministry of Finance explained. ADVERTISIMENT Earlier, on March 8, the first disbursements from the Ukraine Facility were announced by the Executive Vice President of the European Commission (EC), Valdis Dombrovskis, at a joint briefing with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal. In addition, the same day, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the documents for receiving the funds."The European Union has launched a four-year program for Ukraine worth 50 billion - the Ukraine Facility. In the next 2 months, Ukraine will be able to receive 6 billion euros of this amount," Shmyhal said at the time. "We are finalizing the mechanism of support for Ukraine, which is called the Ukraine Facility. We have developed it for 4 years and we believe that it will provide a predictable and predictable flow of funding to Ukraine starting this year and until 2027, totaling 50 billion euros," Dombrovskis said. ADVERTISIMENT According to Dombrovskis, since the beginning of the war, the EU's assistance to Ukraine has reached almost 88 billion euros."We are ready to continue to provide financial, military and any other kind of assistance to Ukraine," the EC representative said. EU assistance: what the money will be used for As explained by the Ministry of Finance, the funds received under the plan should be used to support the state budget and implement projects to restore the country. "The program will complement existing instruments to support Ukraine. Such as budget guarantees, financial instruments and other financing for private sector development," the Ministry said. ADVERTISIMENT In addition, the program also provides for a special investment instrument to cover risks in priority sectors, which will amount to 8 billion. Funding under this instrument will be available to investors through the EBRD, EIB and other international institutions. It is expected that the implementation of projects under this instrument will attract an additional 30 billion in investments. "In addition, the budget of the Ukraine Facility program provides for a separate area of technical support. In particular, funds to cover interest on loans under the Ukraine Facility, which will amount to 3 billion," the Ministry of Economy clarified. EUR50 billion from the EU to Ukraine: program terms and conditions Ukraine will receive assistance for 4 years, i.e. until 2027. The money will be allocated both in the form of loans and non-refundable grants. ADVERTISIMENT However, the EU will not give money for free - its receipt is tied to Ukraine's implementation of a number of reforms. The European Commission will check compliance with the approved plan every three months. If Ukraine complies with the plan, the EU will transfer a tranche of aid. If not, no funding will be provided. We are talking about changes in the following areas: public administration and public finance management; the judiciary, the fight against corruption and money laundering; financial markets; management of state assets; human capital and business environment; regional policy and decentralization; energy sector, green transition and environmental protection; transportation agri-food sector; digital transformation. Ukraine declares a clear intention to adhere to these reforms - at the end of 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers approved a draft plan for the Ukraine Facility program. "Together with business, the public sector, the deputy corps, and the regions, we have done a great job of creating it," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said at the time. ADVERTISIMENT As reported by OBOZ.UA, at the same time, US assistance to Ukraine is delayed. The package of financial support for our country will be considered in Congress no earlier than mid-March. Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Some of the facilities of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra are still used by a male monastery of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate. The courts are currently considering the termination of the lease agreement. The first instance courts ruled in favor of the state, but representatives of the UOC-MP filed an appeal. ADVERTISIMENT This is stated in the response of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine in response to a request from OBOZ.UA. In particular, the Ministry of Culture reported that as of March 7, 2024, all the premises, buildings, and churches of the Upper Lavra (Assumption Cathedral, Refectory Church of St. Anthony and Theodosius of the Caves) are not used by the UOC-MP. Starting in January 2023, the community of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine has been holding regular services in the churches of the Upper Lavra. As for the Lower Lavra, the premises of which were transferred to the use of the monastery of the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra of the UOC-MP in 2013, 16 of its facilities have been returned to date. At the same time, some of the objects are used by the monastery, in particular for religious needs we are talking about residential cells, refectories, and religious buildings. ADVERTISIMENT "The issue of the legality of the termination of the agreement on the use of the occupied premises by the monastery is being considered in courts. The first instance courts ruled in favor of the Reserve. The court consideration of the monastery's appeals is currently underway," the Ministry of Culture reported. As reported by OBOZ.UA: The National Reserve "Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra" announced the termination of the lease agreement with the UOC-MP on March 29, 2023, but allegedly the faithful organized protests near the monastery. For a long time, unknown persons locked the premises from the inside and did not allow the commission to take an inventory of the property. - The former abbot of the Lavra, Metropolitan Pavlo, was suspected of inciting inter-religious hatred and justifying Russia's armed aggression. He was sent to a pre-trial detention center, but in August his lawyer posted bail for him for 900 thousand dollars. Pavlo is currently under house arrest. ADVERTISIMENT - In August 2023, the Kyiv Commercial Court recognized the legal termination of the contract between the UOC-MP monastery and the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve and ordered the monastery to vacate 79 objects of the Lower Lavra. - In January 2024, the court dismissed the UOC-MP's claims to use the property of the Reserve "Ancient Chernihiv", whose facilities are nationally significant architectural monuments. - In February, the SSU conducted searches at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. As it turned out, they were related to the case of staged protests. - At the end of February, the UOC-MP monastery did not allow the OCU to hold a service for the repose of the souls of those killed in the caves of the Lavra. - On March 5, the Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy supported a bill to ban the UOC-MP in Ukraine. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The Irish premier has said he will use the special platform of St Patricks Day to press US President Joe Biden to back a ceasefire in the Middle East. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said he will impress upon Mr Biden, as well as vice president Kamala Harris, speaker Mike Johnson and congressional leaders the view of Irish people that they want the killing in Gaza to stop. Mr Varadkar and a number of other ministers are currently attending events in the United States around St Patricks Day. Speaking to media during a visit to Boston, Mr Varadkar said the day of Irelands national saint gives it a very special platform around the world, not least in Washington DC. Ill meet with the president, the vice president, the speaker of Congress and congressional leaders, and Ill use that opportunity to put across Irelands perspective on this, and tell them how Irish people feel, and that is that we want to see a ceasefire immediately, for the killing to stop, the hostages to be released without condition, food and medicine to get into Gaza and we also want to see a new peace process, he said. There isnt going to be a military solution to the conflict in the Middle East, its 100 years now that we have had Jews and Arabs fighting over land in that part of the world. We have to try for peace again. I think America, as the most important political military power in the world, can take the lead on that, and I hope they will, and of course in any small way that we can help from Europe, from Ireland we will as well. Mr Varadkar said Ireland has a really good relationship with the US and with President Biden. I dont think Ive ever felt a president to be on our side so much as President Biden so very keen to meet him again, Ive met him many times down the years, and hes a real supporter of Ireland and always wants to know what he can do to help, he said. What he has said in relation to Gaza in the last couple of weeks has been very encouraging. I believe he is somebody who wants to see the violence stop, someone who wants to see us develop on a pathway to peace. Im not here to tick him off, Im here to talk to him, to understand the American position and see if we can influence in a positive way. I think he is working towards a ceasefire, in fact I know it. The US administration has been involved in trying to put together the conditions for a ceasefire. For a ceasefire to happen, it has to be Israel and Hamas. Ive been clear on that too, I havent called for a unilateral ceasefire, Ive called for Israel and Hamas to agree to ceasefire and while a small country like Ireland can use our voice to call for a ceasefire, the US being a powerful country has a different role, and that is to engage in negotiations to actually make that happen, and that is what they have been doing in fairness, with the Egyptians and the Qataris. Its clear to me that he wants there to be a ceasefire otherwise why would they be involved in negotiations to try and make it come about. Earlier Mr Varadkar said it is not the policy of his government to engage in boycotts. He was asked about the decision by the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media of Ireland Catherine Martin to attend the South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival in Austin, Texas, despite a boycott of the event by a number of Irish artists. The artists pulled out over the events association with the US military and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Mr Varadkar said he had not spoken to Ms Martin about it. I fully appreciate that people have the right to boycott events should they choose to do so, and I totally respect that but its not the policy of the Irish Government to engage in boycotts, he said. Its one thing to exclude a country from an event or a competition or a sporting event, or a film festival for example, its another thing to exclude yourself because they werent excluded, and its not our policy to boycott. Its our policy to engage. But I absolutely appreciate that other people have a different view, and as long as they are consistent in their boycotts. Mr Varadkar also said the war in Ukraine will feature in his discussions with Mr Biden. On Tuesday the Taoiseach visited the home of the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park among other engagements. On Monday he met Massachusetts governor Maura Healey and the US special economic envoy to Northern Ireland Joe Kennedy. He also gave a keynote address at the John F Kennedy Library where he said the US and Ireland must dedicate themselves to peace in Gaza. All ten Irish acts due to appear at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas this week have cancelled their official showcase shows. They are among a number of international artists who announced they would not play the festivals after its connections with the US Army and defence companies emerged. Belfast hip-hop trio Kneecap, comprised of Mo Chara, Moglai Bap, and DJ Provai announced on Sunday, March 10, they would no longer be playing the annual Austin, Texas showcase in solidarity with the people of Palestine. Sprints, Soda Blonde, Gavin James, Robert Grace, Mick Flannery, and Chalk followed suit and announced cancellation of their showcase gigs on Monday. The final three acts, Gurriers, Cardinals and NewDad then announced their cancellation on Tuesday afternoon, March 12, meaning every Irish act who had received funding from the Irish government to play SXSW have joined the boycott. Northern Irish-funded artists Enola Gay and Conchur White have also cancelled their appearances. "That the organisers of SXSW have taken the decision to mix the arts with the military and weapons companies is unforgivable, that they have done so as we witness a genocide facilitated by the US military and its contractors is depraved," Kneecap said in a statement on social media. Speaking on Morning Ireland this Wednesday morning, Mo Chara of Kneecap said it was a "no brainer" to for them to withdraw as "these are obviously the same companies that are supplying weapons for a genocide in Palestine." "It sends a very clear message that the Irish people will always be in solidarity with the Palestinian people." Multiple artists have have cancelled their appearances in recent days in protest over SXSW's close ties to the US Army and defence companies RTX, Collins Aerospace, and BAE Systems. It followed from local group Austin 4 Palestine calling on SXSW to disinvite Raytheon, Collins Aerospace, and BAE Systems from the festival and to reevaluate the inclusion of agencies in the Department of Defense in events and discussions hosted by the festival. The US Army is listed as a featured partner on the SXSW website, while Collins Aerospace, which is a subsidiary of RTX, is also featured on the schedule for SXSW. In a statement, the festival said that "the defense industry has historically been a proving ground for many of the systems we rely on today." "These institutions are often leaders in emerging technologies, and we believe its better to understand how their approach will impact our lives." They also distanced themselves from a response posted by the Republican governor of Texas, Greg Abbot, who posted "We are proud of the U.S. military in Texas. If you dont like it, dont come here." Minister for Tourism Catherine Martin has confirm she will still be attending a number of events at the festival, as part of the Government's St Patrick's Day programme. In a statement, her department said she had spoken to the musicians who have withdrawn and that she "outlined that she has the utmost respect for their freedom of expression as artists and reassured them that she will use every opportunity available to her to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza". Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has once again declared his readiness for talks with Ukraine. However, he said that they should be based "on the realities on the ground." The Kremlin leader said that Russia is not at a crossroads and that it is allegedly on a strategic path of development and will not give up on it. ADVERTISIMENT The Russian leader said this in an interview with propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov. In particular, the dictator is worried that the period of possible negotiations will be a "pause for rearmament of Kyiv", not a "serious conversation." "Are we ready for negotiations? Yes, we are, but we are only ready for negotiations that are based not on some 'wishes' shared as psychotropic drugs kick in but on the realities that have developed, as they say in such cases, on the ground," Putin said. He also spoke about the raids by Russian volunteer battalions in Kursk and Belgorod regions of Russia on March 12. The dictator said that this invasion was an attempt, if not to disrupt, then to interfere with the normal process of elections in the Russian Federation, which are planned for March 17. Putin also called the invasion of volunteers an attempt by Ukraine "to boast of something against the background of failures" and an attempt, if successful, to get a trump card in a possible future negotiation process. He said it plans to use it as "a leverage for an exchange of territories." ADVERTISIMENT To recap, Pope Francis has called for negotiations in Russia's war in Ukraine. The pontiff did not specify the terms but noted that one of the parties must show "the courage to raise the white flag." "The word 'negotiations' is a bold word. When you see that you have been defeated and that things are not going well, you need to have the courage to negotiate," Francis said. President Zelenskyy said that Russian dictator Putin demonstrated what kind of dialogue he was really ready for when he launched a missile strike on Odesa during the visit of the Greek delegation. According to the head of state, the Kremlin leader wants negotiations only to get a pause, prepare the army, and launch a new aggression against Ukraine. At the same time, Zelenskyy believes that freezing the war in Ukraine would be a serious challenge and a big problem for our country. After all, the cessation of active hostilities would mean not a pause in the war but an opportunity for respite for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his troops. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Residents of Belgorod and Kursk (Russia) were urged to temporarily leave the cities in connection with planned strikes on the firing positions of the Russian occupiers. On March 13, Russian soldiers fighting on the side of Ukraine against the Kremlin's aggression warned of the danger. ADVERTISIMENT A joint statement was published by the Legion "Freedom of Russia", the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Siberian Battalion. On the morning of March 12, they launched a new operation on the territory of the aggressor country. "We are addressing our fellow citizens: residents of Belgorod, officials of the Belgorod administration and all those who can hear us. Putin's murderers are launching massive attacks on peaceful Ukrainian cities, setting up their positions between your homes, your children's schools and government agencies. Every day, dozens of ordinary innocent people (mostly women and children) are killed by shelling from Belgorod. The shelling of Ukraine from the territory of Belgorod must stop! In this regard, we are forced to strike at military positions located in the cities of Belgorod and Kursk," the soldiers warned. Methane (CH) emissions from the global energy sector reached record levels last year, according to data provided by the International Energy Agency (IEA) on Wednesday. Until recently, international climate agreements did not focus on this powerful greenhouse gas, even though it is responsible for around 30% of the rise in global temperatures since the Industrial Revolution. In 2021, coinciding with the U.N. Climate Change Summit in the Scottish city of Glasgow, 100 countries forged an alliance that committed to reducing global methane emissions by 30% in 2030. Experts believe the energy sector is where it is easiest to achieve major reductions in methane emission the other sectors that are major emitters are agriculture and livestock. However, despite the succession of announcements and commitments in recent years, methane emissions from fossil fuels continues to rise, which in turn, is fueling the climate crisis. The International Energy Agency estimates that the production and use of fossil fuels put more than 120 million tons (Mt) of methane into the atmosphere in 2023. The oil industry accounted for the highest emissions 50 Mt due to extraction and transportation operations. It was followed by coal (40 Mt) and natural gas (30 Mt). Another 10 Mt was from bio energy. According to the IEA report, methane emissions in 2023 were up from 2022, reaching 2019 levels, when they reached a record high. It is essential to reduce emissions, Christophe McGlade, head of the Energy Supply Unit of the IEA, the department responsible for the methane study, warned in a virtual meeting with the international press. Despite the numbers, the IEA remains optimistic. Efforts to cut methane emissions are expected to accelerate in 2024, the report claims, pointing out that 200 countries agreed in the 2023 Climate Conference in Dubai to substantially reduce methane emissions by 2030. If all methane policies and pledges made by countries and companies to date are implemented and achieved in full and on time, methane emissions from fossil fuels would decline by around 50% by 2030, the report states. These pledges are already being translated into regulatory initiatives to stop methane leaks in some nations, such as the United States, Canada and the 27 members of the European Union. The problem, McGlade pointed out, is that many other countries (the majority) still do not have detailed implementation plans on how to comply with the commitment to reduce methane emissions by 2030, a deadline that is fast approaching. Agriculture and fossil fuel production Annual global methane emission are around 580 Mt. Around 40% come from natural sources, such as wetlands, while the remaining 60% is from human activity. Agriculture and livestock farming activities such as rice plantations and beef farms account for around 145 Mt, while the energy sector from fossil fuel production contributed 120 Mt, as calculated by the IEA. If the most ambitious goal of the Paris Agreement is to be met limiting the rise in global temperature to 1.5C compared to pre-industrial levels the IEA estimates that methane emissions from fossil fuel operations need to fall by around 75% by 2030. The emphasis on the fossil fuel sector makes practical sense, as methane emissions typically come from well-identified sources, such as oil extraction wells or a section of a gas pipeline. Some leaks are accidental, but others are deliberate, in which methane, the main component of natural gas, is vented. In the case of coal, controlling these vents is somewhat more complicated. The IEA report argues that methane abatement in the fossil fuel industry is one of the lowest cost options to tackle the problem. According to the study, around 40% of the 120 Mt of methane emissions from fossil fuels could be avoided at no net cost, based on average energy prices in 2023. The report estimates that $170 billion is needed to cut methane emission from fossil fuel production by 75% by 2030, which is less than 5% of the income the industry generated in 2023. China is the country with the highest methane emissions. It is followed by Russia, the United States the main emitter if only oil and gas operations are taken into account , Iran, Turkmenistan, India and Venezuela. According to McGlade, satellite imagery is playing a key role in efforts to cut methane emissions, providing more transparent data and helping to identify and address the emissions. They are filling gaps and uncertainties in the data by providing information that might otherwise be left out of the public spotlight, he said. The IEA pointed to MethaneSat, a satellite launched last week that is specifically designed to detect emissions from the oil and gas industry a project being led by the American NGO Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition There's a lot to consider and catch up with tonight . . . And so right now for early morning and late night readers we share a metro glimpse at ALLEGED wrongdoing, court cases updates, police action and just a bit of community outreach. Check TKC news gathering . . . Jackson County Sheriff hears neighborhood concerns after arson, crime Jackson County Sheriff met with people living in Blue Summit, Missouri, after the fire department responded to 30 fires in the first two months of 2024. Kansas City police want to return urn found to family Kansas City police are looking for the rightful owners of an urn found at a home near 12 Street and White Avenue. Former Olathe North choir teacher fired for misconduct charged with child sex crimes He was booked into the Johnson County Detention Center on a $500,000 bond. Convicted burglar escapes from Johnson County Work Release Center A convicted burglar did not return to the Johnson County Department of Corrections Adult Residential Center after conducting two job interviews, authorities said. Two Injured in Weekend Shooting Released by: Officer Haley VanBibber Release Date: 03/12/2024 Raytown, MO - On March 11th, at 1:48 AM, Raytown Police were dispatched to the Dirty Bird Bar and Grill at 6600 Blue Ridge Boulevard fo... Gun found in student's backpack at Park Hill South Tuesday morning There was no immediate threat to the school and all students and staff are safe, according to a statement from Principal Kerrie Herren to parents. Blue Springs Police still looking for KCK man accused in fatal shooting Anthony Taylor Jr., 33, is considered armed and dangerous. Police are seeking help in finding Taylor, who is accused of second-degree murder. Family of missing Springfield man in Nashville speaks out Riley Strain was last seen in Nashville, Tennesee on Friday, March 8. In 2023, 11 kids died in Kansas foster care. DCF secretary calls for transparency in criminal cases Eleven youths died in the state's often-scrutinized foster care system during 2023, according to records from the state Department for Children and Families. Lawyer: Missouri man thought mom was intruder when he shot, killed her A son is being charged after he allegedly shot and killed his mother in their Olivette home, mistaking her for an intruder. Springfield woman who participated in Jan. 6 denied early termination after probation violations A Springfield woman who pleaded guilty to participating in the Jan. 6 riot was denied early termination and release pending appeal after violating her probation. Rookie Officer Follows Her Heart Toward Service At 5, Haynes knew she wanted to be a police officer. She wanted to make a positive impact and change the world. Police officers would visit school, and Haynes gravitated to them and their cause. There was no personal connection to law enforcement, though Haynes would come to understand it. Developing . . . From our perspective . . . There's one major flaw with a recent complaint aimed at governance over Kansas City law enforcement . . . The legal power move gets local history wrong and doesn't tell the whole story. THE LAWSUIT CONVENIENTLY SKIPS OVER KANSAS CITY'S FAILED EXPERIMENT WITH LOCAL CONTROL DURING THE CORRUPT PENDERGAST ERA!!! During the not-so-long-ago days of Boss Tom . . . Gangsters took over local political institutions and sparked a wave of murderous violence and graft that was slightly worse than the current epoch. As this news quote notes . . . This is the 2nd effort for an argument against "local control" and we ask our blog community of amateur barristers to weigh in . . . In the meantime, check the argument and followup reporting to a story we posted at the start of the week: "The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Missouri, says the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners governance of the department is simply 'an effort to keep slavery legal and Black people in chains.' "Kansas City is the only U.S. city that doesnt have jurisdiction of its police force, a vestige of the Civil War when the Confederacy wanted to control St. Louis and Kansas City and their weapons stockpiles. Of the seats on the five-member board, four are appointed by the governor and the fifth slot is always held by the mayor. "This is the second lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of the states control of KCPD. Gwen Grant, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City, filed suit in 2021, alleging taxation without representation." Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . . Black women sue Missouri to end state control of Kansas City Police A new federal lawsuit argues that the Missouri law cementing state governance of KCPD was created "to keep Black people enslaved." One of the women is Narene Crosby, whose son Ryan Stokes was killed by KCPD in 2013. New lawsuit challenges state control of KC police in federal court A Confederate governor took control of Missouri's biggest police department in 1861 to help secessionists seize an arsenal. A new lawsuit, citing The Beacon's coverage, argues that was unconstitutional Lawsuit argues Missouri's control of Kansas City Police Department is unconstitutional Gov. Mike Parson, Attorney General Andrew Bailey and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas are among the list of defendants. Here's the thing . . . Other than some low-rent examples . . . This article actually disproves its premise: Missouri Republicans seem to overwhelmingly oppose more cash for war in Ukraine and that aligns with sentiments expressed by GOP front-runner former Prez Trump. Once again we notice our progressive public radio pals ready to split the difference on public sentiment when they don't like the way its going . . . Still, the expert write-up is worth checking out: On a recent Friday evening in Kansas City, U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley was rolling through an impassioned speech to attendees of Missouri Republican Party Lincoln Days when he took exception to funding the war in Ukraine. While we can't hire more police officers, while drugs are pouring into our schools, while our wages are flatlining, while our jobs are going overseas, while we are here and suffering while America is crumbling to pieces, they want to fund the borders of Ukraine, Hawley said. And you know, pardon my language, but my view is hell no. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . This week campaign finance reporting with the Missouri Ethics Commission reveals BIG BUCKS from the Royals & Chiefs to push Jackson County Question 1 over the finish line. Meanwhile . . . As of this writing the opposition hasn't provided much in the way of reporting and don't seem to have any major donors so far. Again . . . None of this seem fair but unless you've been living under a rock for most of your adult life you should understand: MONEY RULES KANSAS CITY POLITICS!!! This is why the Mayor had a war chest of more than a million bucks without a credible opponent. This is why opposition to At-Large council member incumbents is nearly impossible. Don't like it??? What are you willing to donate to the other side??? TKC has offered a ton of likes & shares and even a few sympathetic posts . . . Meanwhile . . . MILLIONS OF BUCKS puts voters in busses, gets teams to gather early voting ballots and mobilizes armies of campaign workers to wrangle the electorate from every corner of the urban core. Of course we're hopeful but there is no denying the power of cash to produce outcomes in a capitalist society. And so . . . Here's the money line that's only news to people who haven't been paying attention: "The Chiefs and Royals have each contributed another $500,000 to their campaign committee in support of the stadiums sales tax ballot measure before voters in the April 2 election, newly filed campaign finance records show. That brings the total to $2 million that the teams have given the The Committee to Keep the Chiefs and Royals in Jackson County committee." Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . . Royals and Chiefs pump another $1 million into their campaign for stadiums sales tax The teams have now contributed at least $2 million to the campaign committee pushing for a 40-year stadiums sales tax. Politicos hope to make driver's licenses even more complicated to obtain . . . Which might be why the DMV is such a miserable place. Still . . . This isn't such a bad idea inasmuch as it might elicit more July 4th freebies or something more tangible than a sticker that will make the plebs feel better about permanent shifts in the global market economy that rarely work to the advantage of the American working-class. Meanwhile, our Kansas City blog community remembers that Mayor Q is making his own IDs that help "new friends" get a bank account and get their utilities going despite this imaginary Missouri crackdown. Check-it: "The bill, which needs another vote of approval to move to the Senate, is part of an effort by GOP lawmakers nationwide who fear more immigrants could lead to noncitizens voting a practice that is already federally prohibited. "Experts say noncitizen voting in federal elections remains exceedingly rare. Federal law also requires states to regularly maintain their voter rolls and remove anyone ineligible, a process that identifies immigrants living in the country illegally. "Still, Ohio enacted legislation similar to Missouri's last year requiring that drivers licenses and state ID cards indicate an individuals citizenship status. Thats after Ohio voters banned noncitizen voting at the local level. "The idea behind the measures is that symbols of citizenship on IDs will help election officials easily identify potential noncitizens and stop them from voting." Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . For those who don't know or just like trolling for love of our 28-year-old Wayback Wednesday Jerry McGuire movie reference: CBA stands for "community benefits agreement" and it's the only real incentive for locals to vote yes on the upcoming Jackson County Sales Tax Extension & Downtown Stadium Question 1 ballot. The CBA issue is make or break for the teams and everyone with an interest in passing the deal. Truth be told . . . In anticipation of the payout we've already seen "transit activists" back down from most of their criticism and a slew of other local leaders ready to switch teams . . . Again . . . Lulz. Anyhoo . . . As we noted previously . . . SHOW-ME THE MONEY: KANSAS CITY CHIEFS & ROYALS HOPE TO OFFER THE BIGGEST CBA IN THE NATION!!! Given that development will come at the cost of a couple of decent restaurants & LGBT bars . . . That's not too much to ask. Yes, the economics still don't "work" for our think tank friends but the CBA is a practical demonstration that more locals will get to line up the feeding trough funded by taxpayers . . . Sure, it's kinda like printing money on a smaller scale . . . Then again, we didn't notice the "conservative" Wall Street guys refusing their bailouts or any red state denizens giving back their pandemic stimulus check. Moreover, NOBODY in Kansas City wants to listen to a debate on modern monetary theory that didn't help to keep Tucker Carlson on the air. Yes, there are very smart people who try to explain the economics of these deals to the plebs and history has shown us that they almost always LOSE when they aren't backed by other economic interests with the skill and cash to mobilize sympathetic voters. And all of that is not to say that any of this is a done deal . . . TKC merely serves to explain HOW the arguments are going to be presented to the 20% of registered votes who will make this decision. Accordingly . . . Here's the word from insiders shared with our www.TonysKansasCity.com blog community: "So we are likely days away from a HUGE CBA announcement. The pressure of doomsday is literately driving the teams to turn up their contributions, conceding millions each round. We could see the largest CBA in the country, then Crossroads developments to make folks whole, a KCPS property tax offset, and a labor agreement." From the looks of it . . . Question 1 supporters are quickly getting their "ducks in a row" as opposition is now mostly grassroots, still VERY feisty but lacking the resources to buy media and inspire voters outside of social media activism. Developing . . . A tropical landscape in Acapulco. The setting depicts a romantic sunset, bathed in the golden glow of the fading sun, flanked by palm trees against an intense blue sea, exuding a gentle and tender aura. This oil painting on canvas bears the signature of the renowned Mexican muralist, Diego Rivera, and is part of a collection that will be auctioned by the Morton Subastas auction house on March 14. Valued initially between 1.6 and 2.2 million pesos ($95,000-$120,000), Riveras painting will be auctioned with works by other modern and contemporary Mexican artists including Dr. Atl, Rufino Tamayo, Sergio Hernandez, David Alfaro Siqueiros and Jose Clemente Orozco. Its a piece that hardly anyone has seen, which makes it even more appealing, said Diana Alvarez, a modern art specialist at Morton. The special thing about it is that its a view of Acapulco from Diego Riveras later period. Its different from his usual social art that speaks to the Mexican public, she said. The artists paintbrush forgets about Marxism for a while to embrace a bohemian perspective, one that will soon be accompanied by the sound of the auctioneers hammer. Rivera was battling prostate cancer as he settled in Acapulco during its heyday, when the city attracted the most glamorous faces from Hollywood. The beaches were visited by the likes of Rita Hayworth, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra, Gary Cooper and Cary Grant. Here, the artist found tranquility and inspiration, surrounded by the breathtaking beauty of a bay that, despite the current violence, decay and hurricane devastation, still manages to evoke wistful admiration. Rivera was heavily influenced by socialism, and his easel work is pretty minimal, done towards the end of his life. These paintings are not your usual Rivera style. Theyre more personal, reflecting a quieter side of Rivera in his final days. Thats what makes this painting extra special, said Alvarez. Mortons experts say there is not much information about this Rivera piece. The auction house knows its authentic as its dated, signed by the author, and comes with a certificate of authenticity from art historian Xavier Moyssen issued in 1990. Its a different vision of Mexico by Rivera. Although the piece wasnt documented, its likely a private commission that changed hands several times. It was never displayed publicly, said Morton expert Ana Segoviano. The auction is set for March 14, with specialists, collectors and museum representatives expected. Those without a hefty checkbook can visit Mortons gallery in Las Lomas de Chapultepec, Mexico City, showcasing works by Rivera, Dr. Atl and Sergio Hernandez. The auction offers 311 lots, including paintings, graphic works, sculptures and drawings. The Morton auction includes this piece by Oaxacan painter Sergio Hernandez. Fabian Cadena Mexico has emerged as a prominent market for modern and contemporary art in Latin America. Maria Fernanda Serrano, manager of Mortons Art Department, notes a significant influx of collectors from the United States, Europe, and Asia seeking valuable art pieces. This market has been robust and stable for many numerous years. Mexico boasts a vast selection, attracting collectors in search of contemporary Latin American art, said Serrano. She says the countrys laws are stringent, designating the works of eight Mexican creators as cultural heritage. These pieces cannot be taken abroad without exhibition permits. If a piece was created overseas, such as several of Riveras works in the United States, it can be sold. However, if a Mexican purchases it and brings it back to Mexico, it cannot leave again. Collectors may acquire it, but artwork of that nature remain in Mexico. Morton holds seven to eight auctions yearly, including a major Latin American art auction every May. They assist owners in consigning and valuing art pieces for optimal market value. Factors like the artist, period and size influence art prices. The house verifies the origin of pieces, and if the artist is still alive, Morton will contact them directly. Experts have confirmed that Riveras painting was made in 1956, just before his death. Its unique as there are limited pieces by famous artists depicting Acapulcos port. The last Rivera piece auctioned by Morton was Paisaje de Fontenay, signed and dated 1917, fetching 15.4 million pesos ($920,000). It belongs to the cubist phase of the artist, who spent a significant amount of time in France in the early 1900s, refining his artistic style and engaging with key people in the art world. This piece was displayed at the Palace of Fine Arts in Mexico City before entering a private collection. Despite Riveras acclaim as a prominent Mexican muralist, his partner and fellow artist, Frida Kahlo, surpassed him in 2021 as the most sought-after Latin American artist. One of Kahlos last portraits of the Mexican painter, Diego y yo (1949), broke the record for a Latin American artist at auction, when it sold for $34.9 million. It was also a record for a female artist. Los Rivales by Rivera fetched $10 million in 2018. Theres a whole boom of Fridas work going on, which is pretty fashionable these days, said Serrano. But finding an original piece by Frida nowadays is quite a challenge. Serrano and the entire team at Morton Subastas are eager for the hammer to resound loudly, hoping that an admirer of Riveras artistry will generously bid for his enchanting Acapulco sunset. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is warning shoppers about a large, national recall on certain chocolate sold at some of the country's most well-known grocery stores. The recall involves President's Choice brand milk chocolate with toasted coconut (300g, code 2024 SE 19 with UPC number 0 60383 20922 3), which is being recalled due to undeclared hazelnut. "Do not use, sell, serve or distribute the affected product," reads the CFIA recall warning. In an email to Metroland Tuesday night (March 12), Loblaw Companies Limited confirmed the product was sold in the following stores: Ontario: Real Canadian Superstore, Fortinos, Loblaws, Valu-Mart, Your Independent Grocer, Zehrs, No Frills, Affiliate, Wholesale Club, Shoppers Drug Mart. Atlantic Canada: Atlantic Superstore, Dominion, Your Independent Grocer, No Frills, Affiliate, Wholesale Club, Shoppers Drug Mart. Quebec: Provigo, Maxi, Axep, Intermarche, Shoppers Drug Mart. Western Canada: Superstore, Your Independent Grocer, Extra Foods, No Frills, Independents (Retail), Retail RCWC, Wholesale Club, Shoppers Drug Mart. "Customers who purchased the impacted product at the locations are urged to follow the guidance of the recall notice and return applicable products for a refund," Loblaw said in a statement. Easily one of the most iconic and most visited attractions not just in Paris but in the whole of France, the Louvre has fascinated millions of travelers ever since it opened its doors to the public. Given its popularity, it's no surprise that there are long lines waiting to get into the museum every day. This can be a challenge for some travelers, so it's very important to know useful information that can help make your visit run more smoothly. Opening Hours and Ticket Prices The Louvre is opened every day except for Tuesdays. On Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, the museum is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. However, it has longer opening hours on Fridays as you can drop by from 9 a.m. to 9:45 p.m. General admission tickets cost 22 each. Those who are 18 years old and below can enter the Louvre for free. Residents of the European Economic Area who are aged 18 to 25 years old can also have free entry into the museum. For more details on how to purchase tickets, click here. Schedule of Available Galleries As much as you want to see everything that the Louvre has to offer, that might be easier said than done, especially if some galleries are closed. To find out which galleries are closed during your intended date of visit, click here. Related Article: What Interesting Facts You Need to Learn About Louvre Museum During Your Trip to France Where to Eat Should you ever get hungry during your visit, there are numerous dining options available at the Louvre. These include restaurants, cafes, and even takeaway options. Among the choices you can find are Bistro Benoit, Cafe Marly, and Cafe Des Marronniers. More affordable options include Le Cafe Mollien, Paul, Petit Plisson Aux Tuileries, and your friendly neighborhood Starbucks. Souvenirs to Bring Home Like any other museum, the Louvre has a book and gift shop where you can buy things to bring home for yourself or your loved ones. There are also other places like Salon Denon, Denon Counter, and Hall Napoleon Counter that sells souvenirs to visitors of the museum. Souvenirs can likewise be bought online for those who find that option more convenient. Read Also: 5 Ways to Experience Paris' Luxury Without Breaking the Bank By now, you've probably already encountered the name of Anne Frank. The Jewish teenager rose to fame after her diary, which chronicled her life while hiding from the Nazis during World War II, was published posthumously. Anne was only 15 years old when she died. Today, beyond reading the pages of "The Diary of a Young Girl," there is another way to learn more about Anne Frank and that's through visiting the Anne Frank House. Before you think that the Anne Frank House was her place of residence, that's not exactly the case. Read on and find out what it was and why it's worth visiting. It's Where You Can Find the Secret Annex If you're familiar with Anne Frank's life, then you'd know that Anne, her family, and other acquaintances hid from the Nazis in the rear of Prinsengracht 263. This was eventually named the Secret Annex. When the museum opened in 1960, the annex remained empty per the request of Otto Frank, Anne's father and the only resident of the Secret Annex who survived the war. Related Article: Anne Frank's Marbles and Toys Found with Old Friend: 'These Remind Us That She was Just a Little Girl' You Can See Anne's Original Diary Anne began writing in her diary when she received a red-checked autograph book for her 13th birthday. However, the teenager eventually decided to rewrite her whole diary after learning that the government would be collecting diaries after the war. This is due to her dream of becoming a writer and journalist. Her original diary is part of the exhibition in the Anne Frank House. It Will Help You Visualize What You Read from the Diary Your understanding of "The Diary of a Young Girl" will deepen during your visit of the Anne Frank House. This because the museum still holds personal items once owned by its residents. Aside from Anne's original diary, you will also find the hinged bookcase that hid the entrance to the Secret Annex. You will also find the height markings of Anne and her sister Margot that their parents made on their bedroom wall. Read Also: How to Make the Most of Your Amsterdam Adventures Got a day to spare when you're in Cologne? If visiting other nearby cities in Germany isn't really appealing to you, we've got an idea for you! Grab your passport (with the appropriate visa, if you're required to have one) and go on an international day trip! Here are the cities outside of Germany that you can visit on a day trip from Cologne. Brussels, Belgium There is a capital city that you can visit on a day trip from Cologne, and it's none other the Brussels. Belgium's capital is known for being easy to explore while on foot, which makes it perfect for day trips. The Grand Place, Atomium, Parc du Cinquantenaire, and the St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral are just some of the attractions you can visit during your trip. Brussels is home to a number of museums as well, and they are worth a visit if you can squeeze even just one in your schedule. Related Article: Here's Why You Must Take a Ride on the Cologne Cable Car in Germany During Your Day Trip Liege, Belgium If waffles are very much right up your alley, take the opportunity to go on a day trip to Liege, which is located in Belgium. The Liege waffles are definitely worth the trip! Aside from enjoying these delicious waffles, make sure to visit Le Boverie, Montagne de Bueren, the Palace of the Prince Bishops, and the churches that call the city their home. Maastricht, The Netherlands If you've been wanting to visit The Netherlands, there is a direct train from Cologne to the city of Maastricht. This city is actually one of oldiest cities in The Netherlands, and it's a favorite among those enjoy shopping as well as cafe hopping. Among the places of interest you can find here are the Basilica of Our Lady, Basilica of St. Servatius, Kruisheren Klooster, and the caves below St. Pietersberg Hill. Read Also: Here are the 5 European Gothic Churches That Will Leave You in Awe If you have been longing to visit Ireland and Donegal is at the top of your list, you have made an excellent decision! This most northern county in Ireland presents a combination of stunning landscapes, rich history, and lively culture, making it a prime spot for visitors. From the expansive views along the Wild Atlantic Way to the impressive heights of Slieve League cliffs, Donegal invites you to explore its natural beauty. So, prepare your bags and get ready to discover the six best places in Donegal, where every visit leaves a lasting impression. Donegal Castle Donegal Castle is a historic landmark that showcases Donegal's heritage. Constructed by the O'Donnell chieftains in the 15th century, this fortress was the center of their domain. After being taken over by an English captain, it received a significant makeover, blending medieval and Jacobean elements. Now, it welcomes visitors to explore its architecture and learn about its history. With doors open to the public and a nominal entry fee of 4 Euros, this castle is a highlight for anyone visiting Donegal. Slieve League Cliffs The Slieve League Cliffs, standing tall above the Atlantic, are among Europe's highest sea cliffs. This natural wonder is a significant reason travelers visit Donegal. Hikers can ascend to the summit for awe-inspiring views, and the brave might tread the narrow "One Man's Path." This trek is advisable only with clear skies for safety. The cliffs capture Donegal's untamed essence, making it an essential visit. Glencolmcille Folk Village At Glencolmcille Folk Village, visitors step back in time to experience traditional Irish village life. The village features several cottages, each depicting life in a different century. This living museum was established to preserve Donegal's cultural history, inspired by Father James McDyer's vision. Open from Easter to October, it's a cultural journey for a small fee. This village is a key cultural site in Donegal. Related Article: What Makes Donegal, Ireland Irresistible to Travelers - Find Out Here Glengesh Pass Driving through Glengesh Pass is an unforgettable experience, revealing the scenic beauty of Donegal. This route winds between Ardara and Glencolmcille, framed by mountains and pastoral landscapes. With its sharp turns and quiet roads, it offers a peaceful yet thrilling drive. Visitors are encouraged to pause and soak in the views. The pass is a symbol of Donegal's breathtaking landscapes. Maghera Strand and Caves Maghera Strand is a picturesque beach near Ardara, known for its extensive dunes and hidden caves, accessible only during low tide. Legends surround these caves, adding a layer of mystery. Safety is paramount, so checking tide schedules is advised. Despite the weather, the beach's beauty makes it worth the visit. Maghera Strand reflects Donegal's natural beauty and is a favored spot for those who appreciate nature and history. Malin Head Malin Head, known as Ireland's northernmost point, offers an escape into the raw beauty of Donegal. This spot is famous for its dramatic landscapes, where the Atlantic Ocean meets rugged cliffs and hills. Here, you can feel the power of nature, with waves crashing against ancient rocks and winds that tell tales of voyagers and fishermen. Malin Head is an experience that connects you with the elemental forces of earth and water. For those who love the outdoors, it offers paths for walking and spots for pausing to absorb the vast views. Visiting Malin Head is an opportunity to witness the untamed beauty that characterizes Donegal. Read Also: You Must Experience These Unusual Accommodations Across Europe for an Adventure Like No Other Lake Eibsee is one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, and this is a must-visit destination, especially if you're in Bavaria, Germany. Located at the base of the Zugspitze, Germany's tallest mountain, Lake Eibsee greets its visitors with clear waters, remarkable views, and a peaceful setting unlike any other. To fully enjoy your visit to this splendid spot, knowing a few key details will enhance your experience. Access to Lake Eibsee is easy, with both driving and public transport options available, ensuring everyone can reach this destination. Whether by car or bus, the route to the lake is as visually pleasing as the lake itself. At its heart, Lake Eibsee is a haven for relaxation, discovery, and making enduring memories. So, before heading to Bavaria, keep these important tips in mind to make your trip to Lake Eibsee truly enchanting. How to Get to Lake Eibsee Lake Eibsee is accessible by car or public transportation. If you drive, there are parking lots available for your vehicle. For those preferring public transport, buses run regularly from Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The journey showcases beautiful scenery, making it enjoyable before you even arrive at the lake. Check the timetable before you leave to ensure a smooth trip. Best Time to Visit Visiting Lake Eibsee is a treat any time of the year. Summer offers warm weather perfect for swimming and water activities. Autumn brings a display of colorful foliage, adding a magical touch to the lake's surroundings. Winter transforms the lake into a snowy paradise, ideal for those who love the colder months. Spring sees the landscape awaken with fresh blooms, offering a serene experience. Activities at Lake Eibsee At Lake Eibsee, you can engage in various activities. Swimming in crystal-clear water is a popular choice during warmer months. Hiking around the lake offers stunning views and a chance to connect with nature. Boat rentals are available, allowing you to explore the lake at your own pace. Additionally, there are spots perfect for picnicking, so consider bringing a snack. Related Article: What You Should Know Before Visiting the Chocolate Museum in Cologne, Germany Nearby Attractions Beyond Lake Eibsee, the area boasts several attractions worth visiting. The Zugspitze cable car provides breathtaking views from Germany's highest peak. Grainau, a charming nearby town, offers cozy dining and shopping experiences. The Hollentalklamm Gorge, a short drive away, is a spectacular natural wonder. Each of these attractions adds value to your visit to Lake Eibsee. Where to Stay Accommodation options near Lake Eibsee cater to various preferences and budgets. The Eibsee Hotel, located directly by the lake, offers stunning views and exclusive amenities. Grainau and Garmisch-Partenkirchen have guesthouses and hotels for a comfortable stay. Booking in advance is advisable, especially during peak seasons, to secure your ideal accommodation. Tips for Visitors Respect the environment and follow the rules while enjoying Lake Eibsee. Remember, the lake is a natural treasure that we all must protect. Check the weather forecast before your visit to dress appropriately and make the most of your day. If you plan to hike, wear comfortable shoes and bring water to stay hydrated. Lastly, capture the beauty of Lake Eibsee with your camera, but remember to also take moments to simply enjoy the view. Read Also: These are the Day Trips Outside of Germany That You Can Make from Cologne Have you ever visited an aquatic forest? The water here at Luyang Lake Wetlands Park in China is so green that you might think you can walk on it, but as your eyes adapt, the scenery transforms into an impressive landscape where water and foliage unite harmoniously. Located in the vibrant city of Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, this human-made wonder stands as a symbol of human creativity and nature's endurance. Luyang Lake provides a rare opportunity to see peaceful water paths surrounded by a dense collection of pond cypress, bald cypress, and the distinguished dawn redwood trees. These ancient species, once at the edge of disappearing, now flourish, creating a sanctuary not just for the trees but also for visitors. In this article, you will learn all the things you need to know before visiting Luyang Lake. Location and History Luyang Lake Wetlands Park is an impressive showcase of nature's design and human creativity. Situated in the Jiangsu province of China, close to the city of Yangzhou, this wetland park has emerged as a favored destination for those seeking quietude and natural splendor. The establishment of Luyang Lake was a component of a broader initiative aimed at reviving natural habitats and incorporating green spaces within city limits. This effort not only rejuvenated the local ecosystem but also provided a new resource for the city, cleansing the air and offering a peaceful retreat for its inhabitants and tourists. The story of Luyang Lake is a demonstration of the dedication of Chinese authorities and conservationists to safeguard and enhance the nation's natural scenery. Consequently, an area once overlooked has been transformed into a thriving wetland park cherished by all who explore it. Related Article: What to Expect on Your Journey to Getu River National Park in China Variety of Plants and Animals Luyang Lake Wetlands Park hosts an incredible variety of plants and animals. Amid the greenery, visitors can discover several types of cypress and the noble dawn redwood, renowned for its survival story. These trees foster a dense, green environment that supports a wide range of wildlife. Birds, in particular, find refuge here, with many species making the park's protected waters and woodlands their home. The wetland's ecosystem is meticulously managed to ensure the health and variety of its residents, making it a perfect spot for nature aficionados and bird watchers. The delicate balance between human presence and natural preservation positions Luyang Lake as a model for conservation initiatives worldwide. Activities and Attractions For explorers, Luyang Lake Wetlands Park presents a multitude of activities. Trails and boardwalks meander through the park, allowing visitors to soak in the peace of the wetlands. Boat tours provide a distinct view of the lush landscape and its dwellers. For the adventurous, kayak rentals offer a personal encounter with the park's channels. Educational programs and guided tours enhance visits, providing knowledge about the park's ecology and the significance of wetland conservation. If you are in search of excitement, rest, or enlightenment, Luyang Lake caters to all. Read Also: You Should Definitely Visit Chengdu, China If You Want to Meet the Iconic Pandas Jeju Island, a popular vacation spot in South Korea, is adopting new technology called non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to help grow its economy. This island is known for its unique status and has been exploring how to use cryptocurrency since 2018. Despite facing some challenges with rules from the main government, officials from Jeju are pushing forward with plans to use NFTs in tourism, farming, animal husbandry, and fishing. Jeju Island Embraces NFTs for Economic Growth NFT technology is expected to make these industries more sustainable and trustworthy, especially in farming and fishing, by proving where and how products are made. In tourism, NFTs can offer special deals to visitors who explore certain parts of the island, like the famous Jeju Olle Trail, encouraging more people to enjoy its natural and cultural sights. According to Travel and Tour World, using NFTs could also attract tourists and investors interested in technology, opening new opportunities for Jeju Island's economy. The plan shows Jeju's effort to blend modern tech with traditional industries to boost the economy and protect the environment. Officials, including Jeju's Governor Won Hee-ryong, are working with private and public sectors to bring this technology to life. They believe NFTs can change how payments are made and how goods are tracked in agriculture and fishing, making these processes more efficient and transparent. Jeju Island's strategy to include NFTs in its economic development marks an important step towards innovation and sustainability. By using these digital tools, Jeju hopes to enhance the experiences of tourists, support local industries, and showcase how technology can benefit traditional sectors. Related Article: South Korea Introduces Hallyu Visa for K-Pop Fans, Boosting Tourism, Cultural Engagement Jeju Island Expects More International Visitors with New Flights and Cruises Jeju Island, a popular vacation spot in South Korea, is set to welcome more tourists from around Asia with more flights and cruise ship visits planned for this year. The Korea Airports Corp. (KAC) and the tourism industry announced that the island will have 148 international flights every week starting in January. As per The Korea Times, this is a big jump from the 20 weekly flights during the winter of 2022, after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the tourist industry. The numbers have been rising and are now close to the pre-pandemic level of 181 flights in 2019. New flights this year include routes from China's Spring Airlines to Beijing and Nanjing, as well as increased flights to Hangzhou and resumed chartered flights. Jeju Air and Eastar Jet will also start new flights to Beijing and Taipei, respectively, and chartered flights to Macau will return. Also, more cruise ships will visit Jeju Island. The Jeju Special Self-Governing Province says 25 cruise ships will make 204 trips to Jeju's ports, more than double last year's 77 trips. China's Adora Cruise will bring its mega cruise ship for 39 visits. In 2023, Jeju Island saw a significant rise in foreign visitors, with 628,495 people visiting between January and November, nearly nine times more than in the same period in 2022. This boost in travel options is expected to attract even more visitors to Jeju this year. Read Also: These Are the Local Foods You Should Try If You Visit South Korea Visiting other European countries and cities, especially the well-known ones, is overrated since some are overcrowded. Why do not you just visit an underrated country instead, when you know the fact that it also has something to offer for your perfect European getaway? Bosnia and Herzegovina is a perfect place for that! Tucked away in the heart of the Balkans, this country unfolds with landscapes that seem pulled from fairytales, cities that echo the steps of history, and cultures that welcome you with open arms. Join us as we explore the top 5 places in Bosnia and Herzegovina that you simply cannot miss, where each visit turns into a discovery of something wonderfully new. 1. Sarajevo Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is a city where history whispers from every corner. Here, you can walk through streets that blend Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian architectures seamlessly. The city's heart, Bascarsija, offers a bustling market atmosphere where you can enjoy traditional Bosnian coffee or shop for handmade crafts. For a panoramic view of the city, a hike to the Yellow Fortress is a must. The city also prides itself on its diverse culinary scene, reflecting its multicultural heritage. 2. Mostar Mostar, nestled in the heart of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is renowned for its stunning Old Bridge, Stari Most, a symbol of reconciliation and coexistence. The bridge arches gracefully over the Neretva River, offering spectacular views, especially at sunset. Around this historic masterpiece, the Old Town buzzes with life, filled with shops, cafes, and museums. The Koski Mehmed Pasha Mosque offers another vantage point for breathtaking views of the city and the bridge. Just outside Mostar, the Blagaj Tekija, a Dervish monastery beside the Buna River spring, provides a peaceful retreat. Related Article: Here's What You Need to Know Before Visiting Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina 3. Kravice Falls Kravice Falls, a breathtaking natural wonder in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is a must-visit for nature lovers. These stunning waterfalls cascade over 25 meters into a pool, perfect for swimming in the summer. The surrounding area is ideal for picnics and leisurely walks, allowing visitors to fully embrace the beauty of the Bosnian countryside. Accessible by a short drive from Mostar, the falls offer a refreshing escape from the city. Boat tours are available for those wanting to get closer to the falls and experience their power up close. 4. Travnik Travnik, set in the central region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, holds a rich history as the seat of Ottoman viziers. The town is characterized by its well-preserved medieval fortress, which offers stunning views of the surrounding landscapes. Travnik's Plava Voda area is famous for its clear springs and traditional Bosnian restaurants. The birthplace of Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andric, the town also houses a museum dedicated to his life and work. Visitors can explore the colorful market and the Suleimaniya Mosque, showcasing Travnik's historical depth. This town provides a glimpse into the past of Bosnia and Herzegovina, revealing layers of its Ottoman heritage. 5. Una National Park Una National Park, in the northwest of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is a haven of untouched natural beauty. The park is named after the Una River, known for its clear waters and dramatic waterfalls, including the striking Strbacki Buk. Rafting on the Una River offers thrilling adventures for visitors, blending excitement with stunning scenery. The park is also home to diverse plants and trees, making it a perfect spot for nature walks and bird watching. Una National Park encapsulates the breathtaking wilderness of Bosnia and Herzegovina, making it a perfect destination for those seeking peace and adventure. Read Also: 5 Best Places to Visit When You're in Uzbekistan On a recent flight from Sydney to Auckland, a LATAM Airlines plane encountered a severe technical issue mid-air, resulting in sudden movement that injured dozens of passengers. The incident happened on March 11, and about 50 people received medical treatment upon landing in Auckland. One individual was seriously hurt, according to emergency services. LATAM Airlines confirmed the technical event during the flight but did not specify the cause. LATAM Airlines Flight Experiences Sudden Turbulence The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, operated by LATAM Airlines, faced unexpected turbulence that caused passengers, some not wearing seatbelts, to be thrown around the cabin. CNN reported that the accident led to injuries and damage inside the aircraft, including blood on the ceiling and broken panels. Emergency responders, including 14 units and seven ambulances, rushed to Auckland International Airport to assist the affected passengers and crew. Witnesses described a terrifying "mid-air drop" where people were sent flying through the cabin. The sudden stop of the plane resulted in chaos, with passengers experiencing fear and injuries. LATAM Airlines and Boeing are investigating the incident, with support from aviation authorities in Chile and New Zealand. New Zealand's Transport Accident Investigation Commission is considering an inquiry into the incident to understand what happened and prevent future occurrences. LATAM Airlines, expressing regret over the event, reiterated its commitment to the safety of its flights. The incident has left some passengers frightened to fly again after witnessing the severe effects of the turbulence. Related Article: American Airlines Gears Up for Sky-High Growth with Boeing 737 MAX Deal Passengers Speak After Scary Mid-Air Drop Veronica Martinez, a passenger from Chile, recounted the ordeal, describing it as being on a "roller coaster." She explained how the plane suddenly dropped, causing chaos inside. As stated in another report by CNN, Martinez was unharmed, thanks to her seat belt, but witnessed others, including a baby, being tossed around. She was among the passengers who spoke to the media at Santiago International Airport, expressing relief to be back on home ground. Another passenger, Diego Valenzuela, described the incident as a few seconds of free fall that left many injured. The drop was due to a "technical event," as stated by LATAM Airlines, resulting in dozens of injuries. The flight eventually landed safely in Auckland, with emergency services treating about 50 people, one of whom was seriously hurt. Safety experts are looking into why a LATAM Airlines Boeing plane suddenly lost height while flying to New Zealand, causing injuries to many scared passengers. The airline is working with officials to figure out what went wrong on flight LA800. Safety teams from New Zealand, helped by Chilean authorities, are leading the investigation to find out the cause. Experts suggest it might have been a rare technical glitch or unexpected air movement. They will check flight data and talk to the pilots to learn more. This situation adds to Boeing's recent troubles, including other plane incidents. Boeing has promised to help with the investigation and fix any problems found. The LATAM Airlines incident highlights the importance of always wearing seatbelts on flights. Read Also: Alaska Airlines Flight's Fuselage Incident Triggers Global Supply Chain Scrutiny Four yogurts and two apples a day. Nothing else. That was all Ana Belen Gomez Conde ate for 15 years. Anorexia entered her life shortly after she got married, when she was 27 years old (she is now 42) and never left. She stopped eating, going out, and interacting with the world. Locked in her house in Monterroso (Spain), Belen was simultaneously dealing with this devastating disease and a lack of understanding from almost everyone around her: No one understood me. Only my mother, only she knew how to understand that if I didnt eat it was not because I didnt want to, but because I had an illness, she recalls. Anorexia silently devoured her until she could not stand up. She asked to die to end the suffering, but she also wanted to live. So much so that she grasped the last straw, which she found on the other side of the country. An experimental treatment with deep brain stimulation to treat the most serious anorexia nervosa was being tested at the Hospital del Mar in Barcelona. The first time she saw Belen is seared into neurosurgeon Dr. Gloria Villalbas memory. Her mother was leading her by the hand because she couldnt walk. And she told me: This is my daughter. She is dying, the doctor recalls emotionally. In front of her, Belen and her mother, Mari Carmen Conde, 66, nod silently. Words are not enough to explain those days when the disease took everything away. It was very hard. I saw that she was leaving this world, Belens mother manages to say. Villalba goes into more detail about the ordeal: When her daughter went to sleep, Mari Carmen watched to see if she was breathing so that she would not die of cardiac arrest. This mother went years without sleep to monitor her daughters breathing as if she were a baby. Belen was on the verge of death and the experimental procedure at the Hospital del Mar was her last chance. The therapy was not going to work miracles or cure anorexia, Villalba warned her in the first meeting. But if it worked, it could help alleviate some of the symptoms, such as anxiety and depression, that often accompany anorexia. The same hospital had conducted a study with a group of eight patients, and showed that symptoms improved in four of them after being treated with deep brain stimulation. This technique, which is already being used to treat Parkinsons and obsessive-compulsive disorder, is being tested in other psychiatric illnesses. It consists of implanting electrodes in a part of the brain associated with the disease (in this case, the subgeniculate cingulum), and sending continuous electrical impulses to modulate the activity of circuits in the brain that are not working well. The stimulation is adjustable and reversible because the electrodes are attached, via cable, to a battery under the skin that can turn the electrical impulse on or off, or modulate its intensity. We dont know which part of the brain causes anorexia. It is thought to be a circuit more than an area. In our clinical trial we tested two areas of the brain [the nucleus accumbens and the subgeniculate cingulum] and the subgeniculate cingulum worked better for us, explains Villalba. In practice, she says, it is a neuromodulation, because there are several parts in a circuit, and some activate it and others inhibit it. In the case of Belen, the subgeniculate cingulum was underperforming and had to be stimulated, but, at the same time, other areas that were taking on this function also needed to be inhibited. Villalba explains that in neurological diseases, instead of all parts of the circuit being proportional, there is one part that stops working and another that takes center stage. And that leads to bad things. The intervention is an elegant surgery, says Villalba. The entire skull does not have to be opened, but the brain is accessed through two small holes and the electrodes are fitted with a robotic arm. The operation, however, is not without its dangers. That is why patients must be very carefully chosen, and the risks and benefits must be measured. There is a 1% risk of hemorrhage, a 5% risk of infection, and a 3% risk of decubitus [erosion of the tissue where the implant is located]. But the probability that a patient with anorexia nervosa will die is 30%. Although the operation has risks, the disease itself outweighs them, the neurosurgeon adds, putting the risks into context. Does not cure, but improves symptoms The neurosurgeon reiterates, however, that this procedure does not treat the disease, but rather some of its symptoms. It minimizes obsession, depression, and anxiety, she insists. After fitting the electrodes, the patient continues to think as they did before. Belen still thinks about calories. What has changed is that she is less anxious, less depressed and this has allowed her to do things that were previously unthinkable due to her depression and anxiety. She is more tolerant and that creates more peace of mind, she is eating a little more, and she is more cheerful, the doctor, who has written her doctoral thesis on this technique in anorexia, explains. It is not, in any case, a procedure available to anyone with anorexia. The technique is still in the experimental phase and is reserved for people whose situation is very serious. These patients have lived with a disease that has developed over many years. It is resistant to all treatments and there are no therapeutic alternatives. It was not easy for Belen to get to the Hospital del Mar. Being from another region of Spain, the health department of that region (Galicia) rejected her referral for surgery that involved an experimental treatment and a patient in such a deteriorated state. So, she and her mother settled in Barcelona. They paid for the trip out of their own pockets. Belen got registered with the citys health authority, rented a small apartment near the hospital, and she and her mother have been there for more than a year. She had surgery in January 2023 and the procedure worked. I found joy again. Within weeks, I no longer had depression, migraines, or anxiety. I could laugh again, I enjoyed myself, I wanted to walk, have a good time, and go shopping. It was a radical change, says Belen. She is better, but she is not cured. As Villalba warned her from the first consultation, the anorexia is still there, but she has already taken giant steps forward. I can try everything, but eating things that have sugar or oil, well no, she says, and confesses that she is less tired: Before I couldnt stand up and now I am able to walk a good distance. According to the nutritionists who are monitoring her development, she has gone from taking in just 250 kilocalories a day to 1,800. The patient Belen Gomez (right) and her mother Mari Carmen Conde (left), with the neurosurgeon Gloria Villalba, at the Hospital del Mar in Barcelona. Albert Garcia The patient has even improved, despite the setback she suffered in June, when the battery became infected and had to be removed for a few weeks. At that time, she noticed the blackout in the neuromodulation, but last September surgeons put the device back in, and she came back. Belen is an example of the success that this procedure can have in some patients. But I insist, this is not for everyone, Villalba reiterates again and again. For now, it is reserved for chronic and very serious cases. Our help is for those who are going to die. Perhaps, the day we know more, we will recommend it to more people. But this procedure, specifically, must be done with someone whose life is really in danger, the doctor explains. Knowledge is still limited. There are only 78 people with anorexia undergoing this surgery worldwide, Villalba points out, and the results are variable. Today, we do not know what the best target is (three have been tested), nor what the ideal patient profile is. We are still in the early stages, she admits. Where the most patients have been treated is in China and they have gotten positive results, but they tend to be more lax in choosing patients, the doctor explains. They go directly to surgery, without the disease being chronic. They are giving surgery to 17-year-olds. But we will always have the doubt as to whether they would have improved anyway due to the natural evolution of the disease itself. A group in Oxford has reported seven cases, but with more unfavorable results. In their research, they chose to focus on the nucleus accubens, an area of the brain that did not give good results to Villalbas team either. The one who has done very well is the Canadian group, who have published their results from treating 18 patients. As a criticism, they have accepted serious patients, but they agreed to come in and gain about 26 pounds before the surgery, and that is already a wonderful profile, points out the neurosurgeon. A little explored path Since it is an experimental technique, scientists do not know much about the long term either. There is not enough experience in the world to know what is going to happen. We dont know if they are going to continue well, or if patients will have to increase the intensity of the treatment. Belen will have to have tests to check the system, says Villalba. In movement disorders, such as Parkinsons disease, there is more experience with this technique: We have been using it for 30 years and now it is used routinely in a profile of patients who do not respond to other drugs. It is an effective implant. What you do is modulate the activity of the neurons and you improve the symptoms, explains Alvaro Sanchez Ferro, coordinator of the Movement Disorders Study Group at the Spanish Society of Neurology. It has also been tested in epilepsy and dementia, but with irregular results, the neurologist adds. Each pathology is its own world. The scientific community is also investigating the potential of this technique in other mental disorders. The Hospital Clinic of Barcelona has tested deep brain stimulation in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. With neuromodulation techniques we try to respond to patients who are resistant to drugs and psychotherapy. Pathologies where the brain circuitry is well known and where we know that, by inhibiting a brain nucleus, we can regulate a pathway, are the ones that have a good profile. In more diffuse mental disorders, such as autism, it may not have as much of an effect, explains Miquel Bioque, a psychiatrist at the Clinic who is leading this research. The doctor, who admits that he is no a specialist in the field of anorexia, does emphasize, however, that in his experience with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, improvements have been seen and the patient is able to celebrate them. But he points to an eventual complexity in anorexia: In this case, the improvement is gaining weight and a patient with anorexia does not want that. Thats why I see it as more complex for the improvements to be consolidated. Villalba herself admits in her thesis that, when recruiting patients with severe anorexia it is difficult for these patients to accept a treatment that can make them gain weight. In any case, patients treated in the field of psychosurgery are few and far between, and the evidence is limited, Bioque admits. These are complex interventions, they are not done in any old hospital, they are expensive and it is not so easy to find suitable patients. For now, it is important to clearly define the clinical profiles to see where the patient improves and which patients are the most suitable. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Star Clippers, a cruise company known for its tall ships, has revealed plans for new, longer sailings starting from St George's, Grenada, in the winter of 2025/26. These sailings, lasting 10 and 11 nights, will visit several new destinations, including Charlottesville and Castara Bay in Tobago, Carriacou's Paradise Beach, Charlestown Bay in Canouan, Saint-Pierre in Martinique, and Saline Bay in Mayreau. This move aims to satisfy the growing demand for extended Caribbean cruises among its passengers. Star Clippers Announces New Sailings from Grenada Mikael Krafft, the CEO & President of Star Clippers, expressed enthusiasm about making Grenada a home port for one of their ships. According to Breaking Travel News, he highlighted the region's ideal sailing conditions, thanks to the consistent Caribbean winds and the opportunities to explore Grenada's beauty and culture. This decision was made in collaboration with the Grenada Tourism Authority to enhance the cruise experience for guests. Petra Roach, CEO of the Grenada Tourism Authority, praised the partnership, noting that it aligns with both organizations' focus on providing authentic experiences. She emphasized the attractions of Grenada, including nature treks, local cuisine, and traditions, making it an appealing destination for travelers. In addition to the new itineraries from Grenada, Star Clippers will continue offering its popular sailings in Costa Rica and the Panama Canal aboard the Star Clipper. Notably, a 14-night Panama Canal cruise will start on Jan. 3, 2026, marking the first time guests will disembark in Montego Bay, Jamaica. This expansion of routes underscores Star Clippers' commitment to delivering unique and extended sailing experiences in the Caribbean. Related Article: What You Need to Know About Icon of the Seas, the World's Largest Cruise Ship Exciting New Stops for 2025 Cruises Star Clippers is expanding its European travel options with the introduction of new destinations for 2025. This expansion includes the beautiful Italian town of Otranto in the Puglia region and Saint Raphael in Southern France. Additionally, the city of Nice in France will serve as a new starting point for some of the line's voyages. As reported by Cruise Trade News, Otranto has been chosen as a fresh port of call on selected sailings next year. The Star Flyer ship will visit this picturesque town on July 8 and Aug. 26, 2025. These visits are part of an 11-night journey from Venice to Rome, offering stops at other stunning locations such as Mali Losinj, Hvar, Dubrovnik, Kotor, Taormina, Lipari, Amalfi, and Ponza. Those interested can book this cruise starting at 2,547 per person. Another new destination, Saint Raphael on the French Riviera, will welcome Star Flyer for the first time with visits planned for May 15, May 22, and Oct. 16, 2025. The starting price for these trips is 1,620 per person. Star Clippers is also excited about making Nice a home port for its ships in September and October 2025. This move allows travelers to experience an enhanced and comprehensive journey around Italy, Corsica, and the French Riviera. Read Also: Holland America Line's 2026 World Tour Hits All Seven Continents We are pleased to carry on our longstanding goal of making travel affordable for all people with our new Georgia packages. In the centre of the Caucasus, Georgia is a hidden jewel that offers breathtaking scenery, an extensive history, and friendly people. (TRAVPR.COM) UAE - March 13th, 2024 - UAE- 13/03/2024- Holiday Factory is pleased to allow visitors to enjoy Southern hospitality without going over budget with Cheap Tickets To Georgia. This company aspires to open Georgia to all travellers seeking culture, adventure, enduring memories and provide excellent travel experiences at fair prices. Words from the Managing Director At Holiday Factory, we are thrilled to present our newest product: inexpensive Georgia vacation choices. We are pleased to carry on our longstanding goal of making travel affordable for all people with our new Georgia packages. In the centre of the Caucasus, Georgia is a hidden jewel that offers breathtaking scenery, an extensive history, and friendly people. Travellers may experience this stunning nation without breaking the bank with our reasonably priced packages. We offer every one of our clients first-rate service, effortless travel encounters, and priceless memories. With our Georgia packages, we hope to welcome visitors on a budget to this alluring location and show them how to enjoy the beauty and charm of Georgia. Words from the Marketing Team Our marketing staff is excited to offer tourists worldwide affordable Georgia packages. We want to highlight Georgia's beauty and charm as a must-visit location for visitors on a tight budget through our targeted outreach programmes and clever marketing strategies. We plan to showcase distinctive experiences and attractions in Georgia, using social media campaigns and collaborations with travel influencers and bloggers. Our goal is to draw in a diverse group of tourists searching for a great experience without going over budget by highlighting the value and affordability of our packages. Words from the Technical Team The seamless operation and effectiveness of our booking platform depends on the efforts of the Holiday Factory technical staff. We put forth endless effort to update and optimise them to ensure that our website and booking system satisfy the demands and expectations of today's travellers. Our dedication lies in utilising technology to improve our clients' travel experiences and simplify organising their vacation to Georgia. In addition, we consistently track and evaluate client input to pinpoint problem areas and apply fixes to improve the reservation procedure and client happiness. About Holiday Factory Holiday Factory is a top travel company dedicated to offering excellent, reasonably priced travel experiences to locations worldwide. Holiday Factory provides a broad selection of packages, tours, and services that are suited to various requirements and tastes, with value, convenience, and customer satisfaction. Creating treasured travel memories is our speciality at Holiday Factory, whether you're organising a solitary trip, romantic retreat or family holiday. Get your Cheap Tickets To Georgia package now and start your once-in-a-lifetime adventure! Visit now: https://www.holiday-factory.com/crazydeals/georgia-air-arabia ### Fatime Letifova Miguel Angel Moratinos, UN Deputy Secretary General and High Representative of the Organization's Alliance of Civilizations, will visit Azerbaijan, Azernews reports. He will participate in the 11th Global Baku Forum to be held in Baku on March 14-16. Recall that 10th Global Baku Forum, under the motto The world of today: challenges and hopes, held in Baku on March 9-11, 2023, with the organisational support of the Nizami Ganjavi International Centre (NGIC), Text in which the author defends ideas and reaches conclusions based on his / her interpretation of facts and data Political analysts of all stripes are scrambling to understand the paradox in Brazil. While every major economic indicator is improving, President Lulas administration is slipping in opinion polls. In recent polls by Genial, Quaest, Atlas and Ipec, Lulas declining popularity is clear. The Quaest survey shows the narrowest gap between approval and disapproval in its history, and the Ipec survey shows a steadily rising disapproval rating. Another warning sign is that the governments approval rating is dropping for the first time among strong Lula supporters like women, young people, and the poorest Brazilians, despite ongoing social improvements. Why is this happening? National editorials and social media suggest Lulas waning popularity is tied to issues like public security, political corruption, out-of-control spending and foreign policy. Approval on these issues among former Lula voters plummeted from 76% to 43%. Simultaneously, societal divisions have increased from 64% to 83% since Lula was elected, according to the Quaest survey. The governments disapproval ratings seem even more puzzling in the context of international relations, especially given Lulas focus on positioning Brazil as a leader in global initiatives. Recent polls show a drop in approval of the governments foreign policy, from 49% to 28%. The Brazilian government has faced foreign policy challenges due to Lulas connections with dictatorial regimes like Venezuela and Iran. His past support for Putin in the Ukraine war and controversial remarks about Israel have led to a loss of support from evangelicals who consider Israel the promised land. The president of Israel reacted by inviting former president Jair Bolsonaro to visit the country. Bolsonaro, who was Catholic, is now considering becoming an evangelical. While Brazil aims for a leading role in climate change policy, it also supports oil-friendly regimes and Petrobras growth strategy. Recent polls suggest a potential failure of the government in addressing issues that previously earned favor for Lula. Theres a disconnect with the current state of affairs in labor union policy and labor relations, highlighted by debates on regulating new platforms like Uber using outdated union criteria. The labor landscape is evolving globally, emphasizing the need for updated approaches. When Lula won the presidency for the third time, it was by a narrow margin of just over a million votes in a divided nation. Acknowledging this national schism, Lula pledged to reunite the country after Bolsonaros disruptive term. However, he may have miscalculated the transition from traditional to digital politics over the past 20 years, especially regarding the impact of artificial intelligence (AI). Bolsonaros rise to power was largely fueled by the influence of social media, highlighting the shift in Brazils political landscape. Bolsonaro, not known for his statesmanship, faces a spate of legal troubles and coup allegations. Yet, he remains a key far-right figure due to a number of very active right-wing social media networks. This influence was evident in the large pro-Bolsonaro rally in Sao Paulo that even surprised the government. Lula still struggles to adapt to the new digital era. He and his Workers Party (PT) remain entirely analog, lagging far behind the oppositions efficient online presence. Surprisingly, Lula doesnt even own a mobile phone. All contact goes through his wife, Janja, frustrating those seeking direct communication with the president. One thing is clear: the governments social media activity is a far cry from that of the Bolsonaro opposition. The country remains divided, despite Lulas efforts, with the extreme right holding a firm majority in Congress. This significantly hampers the governments ability to pass new reform initiatives. Lulas Workers Party is alarmed by poll data showing a growing rejection of the government, despite its significant social achievements benefiting marginalized citizens. The PT, once the dominant left-wing party in Latin America, now finds itself a minority in Congress. Bolsonaro supporters hold key committee positions and have initiated multiple impeachment actions against Lula. A crucial test to gauge the challenges facing the current administration will be the upcoming municipal elections in October. These elections will set the stage for the 2026 presidential elections, where the PT has already nominated Lula once more. They are also a major opportunity for Bolsonaro and the far-right to bolster its position ahead of the 2026 presidential race. Those familiar with Lula are aware that the former union leader is adept at navigating challenging situations, even while in prison. Hes like a phoenix rising from the ashes, constantly transforming himself. Lula has always been resilient, and even his far-right antagonists know that it will be hard to get him on the ropes. The country is tonight mourning the loss of one of its legal luminaries... who also served i Ukrainian drones, launched by Security Service (SBU) operators, attacked three oil refineries in Russias Riazan, Kstovo (Nizhniy Novgorod region), and Kirisha (Leningrad region) in the early hours of Wednesday. Thats according to a source in Ukraines law enforcement, Ukrinform reports. Other sources confirm that the latest strikes are part of the SBUs ongoing special operation targeting Russias oil refineries. "We are systemically pursuing an elaborate strategy to deplete Russias economic potential. Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of petro-money and fuel, which Russia uses to fund its war and murders of our citizens," the source said. The interlocutor added that, judging by the video available in open sources, the strikes were effective. It must be noted that the facilities attacked overnight Wednesday are among Russias top 5 largest refineries. Also, Ukrainian drones, operated by the SBU jointly with other elements of Ukraines defense forces, attacked a Russian aerospace force base in Buturlinivka and a military airfield in Voronezh. As reported, the Nizhniy Novgorod Oil Refinery, located in Kstovo, ceased operations following the drone attack. This is an illustrative photo | By Alex Likowski This is really, really exciting, Maryland Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller told a gathering of 50 scientists and policy leaders at the University of Maryland Institute for Health Computing (UM-IHC) in North Bethesda on March 8. Please know that this state is a partner with every one of you. Whatever we can do, to be able to succeed here in Montgomery County means we succeed over the entire state of Maryland. The UM-IHC is a strategic initiative that aims to improve the health and well-being of those living in Maryland and beyond using advanced computing tools like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and network medicine to create a premier learning health care system. It merges top-tier computational expertise and biomedical research with a vast clinical care network that is diverse socioeconomically and geographically. This network includes access to clinical trial data and de-identified electronic health records from 2 million patients in the University of Maryland Medical System. We see this as the East Coast Silicon Valley for health computing, University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, explained. The centers location also brings significant benefits, he added. Why here? Were on the Red Line. Montgomery County has more than 320 companies. Were here by NIH, FDA, multiple biomedical partners, and research facilities. Were by IBBR [Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research], USG [Universities at Shady Grove]. And again, we're a triangle between UMB, College Park, and this incredible, vibrant location. So, we're looking to build the economy through partnerships, and the development of new commercial entities in the space of artificial intelligence. (l-r, Bradley Maron, Mark Gladwin, Bruce Jarrell, and Greg Ball, PhD, VP of Research) The institutes staff has only very recently moved into its new headquarters. The team has already generated results from its first analyses and anticipates scaling up its analytical operation in the next two months, which will be fueled by the activation of the institutes high-performance computing center. The 10-year sublease comprises more than 27,000 square feet of state-of-the-art technology and office space, which will serve as IHCs home until a planned $200 million facility is completed at the North Bethesda Metro Station. Both UM-IHCs current temporary and future locations include space for federal science partners to improve collaboration within the bioscience community. The FDA has already signed a memorandum of understanding with us and they are looking forward to expanding the machine learning and AI group in very close partnership with the Institute for Health Computing, explained Amitabh Varshney, PhD, dean of the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). So, we see this as a partnership that reinvigorates and revitalizes the fantastic opportunities between the federal government, industry, and the universities right here in Montgomery County and in the state of Maryland. Gladwin noted that UM-IHC has already received its first of what are expected to be many grants to perform medical studies. Rozalina McCoy, MD, MS, associate professor of medicine at UMSOM, will use big datasets to determine if new weight-loss drugs are as effective or more effective than bariatric surgery. Every step we take is looking to advance clinical outcomes, particularly focusing on health equity, said Bradley A. Maron, MD, professor of medicine at UMSOM and co-director of the UM-IHC. To illustrate the power of data science, Maron showed the group an analysis of the smoke infiltration from the Canadian wildfires last June, which increased by fivefold the amount of harmful chemicals in the air over communities all over the East Coast, like Baltimore. Lt. Gov. Miller with Bradley Maron We then determined that this event was associated with a 40 percent rise in the need for people to see a heart or lung doctor just in that period of time, Maron said. This enables us to predict these events in the future and be prepared to deploy resources to affected or at-risk populations all across the region, regardless of their location or regardless of their risks that we know today. The key to any useful analysis of medical data is the size and quality of the dataset, explained Warren DSouza, MD, MBA, chief innovation officer at the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) and adjunct professor of radiation oncology at UMSOM. UMMS is a 12-hospital system headquartered in Baltimore but serving the citizens of the entire state of Maryland, delivering approximately 25 percent of the hospital-based care in the state, which means the ability to access the de-identified electronic health records from UMMS patients will be invaluable for answering urgent public health questions. As Dr. Maron alluded to, we serve very diverse communities in urban, suburban, and rural areas in the state of Maryland, he explained. We believe that the technological and computational advances at the IHC and the clinical trials that we conduct through the IHC will have an incredible impact on the patients we serve, and the citizens of Maryland. Another speaker, Esa Davis, MD, MPH, associate vice president for community health and director of health equity at UM-IHC, amplified the significance of the diversity of UMMS patient records. We have at the IHC a real opportunity to improve our health equity by transforming how we conduct community-focused research, she said. With our data science and data systems or new analytic techniques, such as AI, we're able to conduct large, neighborhood-focused and community partner research. That gives us the ability to identify and engage communities that experience health disparities and are often left out of large trials. We're also able to show whether or not these communities are receiving the interventions or therapeutics that meet the guidelines to improve health outcomes and inequities. Davis also explained that UM-IHC hopes to develop new measures and ways of understanding the root causes of health inequities, including social drivers of health, and bias. Since its launch in November 2022, the UM-IHC has been established into six core research areas: Applied Artificial Intelligence Bioinformatics Immersive Visualization Therapeutic Target Discovery Population and Community Health Real-World Evidence and Adaptive Clinical Trials We have a major opportunity to leverage new technologies to bring lifesaving therapies and new drugs and clinical trials to all the patients of Maryland, whether in West Baltimore or the Eastern Shore, said Gladwin, who is also the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor of UMSOM and vice president for medical affairs at University of Maryland, Baltimore. For example, we're now launching programs that use data science to identify women who are newly pregnant and have hypertension that are of high risk for preeclampsia and high mother-baby mortality. Funding support comes from strategic partner Montgomery County, Maryland, and from the state of Marylands MPowering the State initiative. So far, Montgomery County has committed $40 million to the project over five years, matched by a $30 million commitment from UMB and UMCP via their 12-year collaboration, the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State (MPower). Last year, the Maryland congressional delegation provided an initial $3 million for equipment. The terms of the bill under consideration by the Maryland General Assembly would provide an additional $1.5 million through MPower in Fiscal Year 2026, increasing to $6 million each year, beginning in Fiscal Year 2029. This is a partnership that's hard to come by, and we hope that the partnership will expand rapidly to include other [University System of Maryland] system schools and students from all parts of Maryland, said UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS. I expect to have students, faculty, and staff here. I expect us to be involved in economic development and workforce development in this county and the state. And I also expect us to really become a force to be reckoned with in this rich corporate and federal agency location." Warts and all. Its a phrase that has become an indelible part of the British vernacular. Oliver Cromwell the politician who imposed a republic in monarchical England for 11 short years tasked Samuel Cooper with painting a portrait that would include all his facial imperfections. And the artist did not falter. Since then, the expression has been synonymous with an honest attitude, of prioritizing the truth. Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, wanted to an edit a photo aimed at silencing the rumors and speculation about her health, and ended up plunging the British royal family into a credibility crisis that it is struggling to come out of. This isnt anything new, royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told METRO, pointing out that historically, prominent figures could hide under the cloak of the artists skill. But if you are involved in these, shall we say, ambiguities of behavior, dont get caught. It doesnt look good and it doesnt help your image. I think in the future they will make sure that this sort of touching up or manipulation [...] does not happen because it damages your credibility. The British media had given the Princess of Wales considerable space in recent months. Partly as a result of the collective lesson from the tabloid press harassment of Lady Di; partly as a result of the legal cases some tabloids had lost in their battle against Prince Henry; and partly as a result of Kate Middletons popularity among the British, the media had respected the Kensington Palaces request for privacy when it announced in mid-January that the princess had undergone abdominal surgery without giving more details and that she would not return to royal duties until after Easter (in mid-April). Even when the American gossip website TMZ released an unauthorized photo of Middleton, sitting in the passenger seat of an Audi 4x4 driven by her mother around Windsor, no British media outlet decided to publish it. Such a decision was unprecedented in a country where the press had published an image of the Duchess of York Sarah Fergusons lover licking her big toe in the pool of a hotel in Saint-Tropez and the famous kiss between Lady Di and Dodi Al-Fayed on board a yacht in the Mediterranean. Its a lesson in how to turn success into immediate failure. It is very serious, because if you compromise truth, credibility goes with it, said Michael Cole, the BBCs former royal expert told the conservative network GB News. [News agencies] have people who look at images from war zones, from Gaza, from Ukraine, they have to swap fakes because there are people out there [...] peddling propaganda. To think that they thought that they could get a dodgy image past these experts was totally insane. It does undercut the credibility of the royal family, he said. The importance cannot be exaggerated. The Princess of Wales has been sharing photos of her children and family events with the media for years. She is a photography enthusiast who discovered a simple and effective way to control the paparazzi and protect her privacy. Her children have not had to suffer the harassment that her husband, Prince William, and his brother, Prince Harry have been subjected to. Until now, the arrangement had worked. The leading news agencies the same ones that pulled the princesss photo citing manipulation concerns had no problem with distributing the photos supplied by Kensington Palace, the official residence and name given to the office handling the affairs of the Prince and Princess of Wales. They were innocent photos used to mark significant dates or send holiday greetings. That said, there had been some warning signs. For example, last Christmas, in a black-and-white family photo, Prince Louis little finger had mysteriously disappeared, and there was a third chair behind the chair in which Princess Charlotte was sitting. The Christmas portrait sparked a flood of jokes on social media. But with Kate Middletons photo on Sunday which many saw as a kind of proof of life following weeks of wild rumors about her health and whereabouts the problem became so big, Kensington Palace could not contain it. The Princess of Wales had to apologize hours later, and acknowledge that she had edited the image. To justify her numerous public acts, Queen Elizabeth II once claimed that people had to see her to believe in her. Middleton has learned, the hard way, that in the age of artificial intelligence and filters, it is no longer enough to be seen. People have to believe that what they see is true. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition In the coming weeks, Venezuelas opposition faces a crucial debate that may even decide its very existence. The favorite candidate to face Nicolas Maduro in the presidential elections on July 28 is Maria Corina Machado, a conservative politician who has higher approval ratings than the president of Venezuela. Machado also overwhelmingly won the opposition primaries last October, with the high voter turnout seen as a sign that a wide sector of society has become discontent with the Maduro government. However, the Supreme Court, which is controlled by the Maduro government, banned her from taking part in the presidential elections, ruling that she committed several alleged crimes that disqualify her from candidacy until 2036. The opposition are now in a tough situation, where they have no chance of winning. What should they do? Some in the opposition are calling on Machado to step aside and allow a new candidate to run, someone who the rest of the opposition can rally behind. But Machado says that she is not willing to stand aside, arguing that Venezuelan gave her a mandate at the primaries, where she won 90% of the vote. She wants to take her political fight to the end. For Machado, she is the only possible opposition candidate. Candidate registration will take place on March 25, and, barring a miracle, she will not be able to be on the lists. In the following months, candidates can be swapped out, added or join forces, but it is clear that Machados name wont appear on the ballot. The Chavista administration has been unmovable, even though its ban on Machado is jeopardizing the oil and gold licenses the U.S. granted to Venezuela after it temporarily lifted sanctions. That is a sign of how concerned the Maduro government is at having her name on the ballot. If the situation continues down this one-way path, the opposition could jeopardize its participation in the elections and Maduro would have a clear path to victory, as happened in 2018. That year, the Venezuelan Supreme Court prevented the Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) and Henrique Capriles who in his day was on the verge of defeating Hugo Chavez himself from standing in the election. Maduro won the election, practically unchallenged, against Henri Falcon and Javier Bertucci. A significant part of the opposition thought the mere act of taking part in the election gave international credibility to the very dictatorship they were fighting. They argued it was whitewashing, and claimed it was better to isolate Chavismo internationally and try to bring it down in the long term. An effort was made with the interim government of Juan Guaido, supported by the White House and Europe, but the project failed. When that unprecedented diplomatic move the creation of a parallel state that would take over from the original faded out in 2020, Maduro remained in power. Capriles believes that the time has come to take Maduro on at the ballot box in whatever way possible. Of course we can present an option, he tells EL PAIS. It is not about substitution, I would not speak of a substitute. Maria Corina was the one who won the primary, the issue is that the government unconstitutionally disqualified her, as it did to me. The issue is what to do, and we have to participate, appeal to the strength of the vote that can mobilize millions of Venezuelans who want a change from the Maduro government. This is the great challenge: we have to stand in the election and bet on a candidate who can channel the vote on July 28. Capriles is clear: it is better to opt for a different candidate than Machado than get involved in a war against Chavismo, in which the opposition has absolutely nothing to gain. Under no circumstances can the country be left without a choice, because the fate of any country cannot be tied to one person, says Capriles. I am not in favor of personalities, nor of caudillos, that has done enough damage to Venezuela. We must always think that we must have unity, detachment. We must be thinking of Venezuela and Venezuelans and the great opportunity for change despite the fact that Maduro is doing everything he can to stay in power. Tomas Guanipa disagrees. The leader of the Justice First (PJ) opposition party believes that Machado is the only option. What we have to do, all the opposition, all of civil society, is to give a vote of confidence to Maria Corina Machado. Because she has the legitimacy of having been voted for, we have to amalgamate around her, says Guanipa, without hesitation. He argues that finding an alternative opposition candidate will lead to conflict: Why give her an ultimatum? Without her, there is no point. The destiny of this effort is linked with her. We must join her and give her the warm support she needs to go towards the process that we have to push forward. The tension between these two sides cannot be avoided: they are two very different ways of facing the same political conflict. Meanwhile, in other sectors of the opposition, Luis Emilio Rondon, national leader of A New Era (UNT) party, says that his organization is committed to staying on the path to elections. With less than two weeks to go until a unitary decision has to be made, he says: In our party, we have Manuel Rosales, one of the best presidential candidates available. Rosales is governor of Zulia, the most important state in the country, and is not badly placed in the polls. Although he and his party are a part of the Unitary Platform opposition coalition, he has been adopting a moderate line for years. This has allowed him to coexist alongside Maduro from the governors office, and build unusually fluid institutional relations with the president. Rosales, who was the oppositions presidential candidate in 2006, is not banned from running in the election, but has never publicly stated his intention to be a candidate. Antonio Ecarri, from the Pencil Alliance, is looking for another option. He does not believe the best option is to rally around a single candidate. Having only one candidate is a tactical and strategic error. Democracy is weakened by abstention and polarization. That will make any change much more complex, he defends in messages. Ecarri says he respects Machado, calling her a friend, but he downplays the results of primaries in which 10% of the population voted. While he does not doubt her leadership, he does not believe that she is the only one who can be the oppositions candidate. The disappointment in Chavismo and the opposition has been growing. Its very big, he says, which is why he believes a third way is possible. Some in the opposition criticize such messages, claiming they cause divisions in the group and work in favor of Chavismo. The Venezuelan opposition is at a crucial moment in its history. One wrong step could turn it into ashes. It is not easy to know what step to take, given that the cards are stacked against them, and they have very little room for maneuver. The opposition has no control over institutions, everything is managed by Chavismo, which sets all the rules. But while there may be differing opinions, the common denominator is that they are not giving up: they are holding on to the slither of hope that there is still a chance to beat Maduro in the election, whoever the opposition candidate may be. Many, however, believe such a prospect is an illusion. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition The Princess of Wales Kate Middleton, Prince Williams wife, is not the only one making headlines these days. Her sister-in-law Meghan Markle, Harrys wife, is also in the news, although this time for a judicial matter: the Duchess of Sussexs legal battle with her sister, Samantha Markle, is over. A Florida judge has put a seemingly definitive end to a family quarrel that became a court case. Samantha Markle, 59, the daughter of Meghans father and his first wife, sued the Duchess, 42, last November in court in Tampa, Florida (Samantha lives in Lakeland, Florida). She argued that her younger sister had made statements that had ruined her life and reputation; Samantha even claimed that she had received death threats. She asked for $75,000 (about 69,000) in damages for what she called malicious, hurtful, and damaging lies that had harmed her and damaged her image within her community. According to Samantha Markle, her sister had spoken ill of her in the couples famous interview with Oprah Winfrey in March 2021, as well as in the documentary that Netflix released 15 months ago about the story of Meghan and Harrys marriage and their departure from the British royal family. Samantha claimed that the Duchess also defamed her in the biography Finding Freedom, published in August 2020, and asserted that Markle orchestrated the campaign to defame and destroy her and her fathers reputation and credibility in order to preserve and promote the false rags-to-royalty narrative [Meghan] had fabricated about her life to the Royal Family and the worldwide media. According to the older sister, the younger sister made comments that demonize her image and portray her as a liar and fame seeker; as a result, Samantha alleged, some of Meghans followers launched a hate campaign against her. British and American media such as The Mirror (U.K.) and Page Six (U.S.), which accessed the legal documents on Tuesday, March 12, explain that the district court judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell stated that Samantha failed to identify any statements that could support a claim for defamation or defamation-by-implication. Honeywell notes that there are no examples of defamation from the interview, the series or the book, and observes that everything Meghan said were quintessential examples of opinion. In addition, the judge dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, meaning that Samantha Markle cannot sue her younger sister again in this matter. Samanthas vilification of her sister goes back a long way. It began with her book The Diary of Princess Pushys Sister, released in February 2021, and then went to court. In March 2022, the same Judge Honeywell closed a lawsuit that Samantha had filed against Meghan. The judge found that in the interview with Winfrey (in which the Duchess said the two were virtually strangers since childhood, because they had not grown up together), Meghan had expressed an opinion about her childhood and her relationship with her half-sibling, adding that a feeling about her childhood could not be shown to be untrue. Regarding the book Finding Freedom, the judge observed that since it was not a biography written directly by the Duchess, it could not be proven that Meghan played a role in its content. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex live in California and are far away, physically, mentally and sentimentally, from their respective families. In Markles case, it is common to see her with her mother, Doria Ragland, who lives in Los Angeles, just a two-hour drive from the couples Montecito residence in Santa Barbara. Markles father, Thomas, lives in Rosarito, Mexico, near the U.S. border, but has little to do with his daughter. Samantha lives in Florida, and Meghans older brother, Thomas Jr., has no relationship with her either. Harry is also estranged from his family, which has its own problems. King Charles III has cancer, and his youngest son flew from California to London to visit him in early February, when the news broke. His sister-in-law, the Princess of Wales, is also in a delicate situation: a few months ago, she underwent abdominal surgery and has not been heard from since; there have been endless rumors and comments about what is wrong with her and how she is really doing, since she has not been seen in public and the only photograph she has released in recent weeks was edited. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Republican lawmakers in Arizona have ignited a heated debate with the introduction of Senate Bill 1477, proposing the creation of a "grade challenge department" at public universities. The bill grants students the authority to file complaints, specifically alleging political bias as the reason for receiving lower grades. The Unprecedented Powers of the Proposed Department If passed, the legislation would empower the newly established department to compel faculty members to reevaluate assignments or overall class grades if political bias is substantiated. Notably, the bill lacks a clear definition of what constitutes political bias and restricts allegations solely to this aspect, excluding other potential sources of bias. The controversial bill passed the state Senate in a party-line vote, and its fate now rests with the House of Representatives. The proposed legislation has raised concerns about academic freedom, due process, and potential implications for the relationship between faculty and university administration. READ ALSO: Grade Manipulation Scandal Rocks Spelman College Reactions and Criticisms Mark Criley, a senior program officer for the American Association of University Professors, expressed concerns, stating that the bill could undermine faculty members' rights and delegate powers to the Board of Regents that should be within the purview of the faculty. The lack of clarity regarding which faculty member would reassess grades also raises questions about due process. The bill's sponsor, Republican Senator Anthony Kern, argued that the proposed department addresses a perceived due process issue. Kern referred to students feeling hesitant to express their political beliefs, fearing grade repercussions. The origins of the bill may be linked to events in 2023, where controversy surrounding a conservative panel at Arizona State University led to discussions on freedom of expression on campuses. Opposition and Alternatives The Arizona Board of Regents, responsible for overseeing major universities in the state, opposes the legislation, arguing that the existing grade appeal process is effective. The board asserts that the bill circumvents the current appeals system, which allows students to address grading concerns through an established procedure. University officials from Arizona State University, University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University oppose the bill, highlighting their existing internal processes for handling grade challenges. Critics argue that the proposed legislation is unnecessary, potentially politicized, and could concentrate power in the hands of an external department. Despite the opposition, the bill's passage through the House of Representatives and the governor's decision on the matter remain uncertain, setting the stage for ongoing debates about the balance between academic freedom, due process, and the role of external bodies in resolving grading disputes. Ensuring Academic Freedom Amidst Growing Concerns As the Arizona legislature deliberates on this contentious bill, the overarching concern is how to ensure academic freedom while addressing legitimate worries about potential bias in grading. Some argue that empowering a department to intervene in grading decisions could compromise the autonomy of faculty members, impacting their ability to evaluate student work independently. Proponents of the bill, however, contend that it addresses a crucial gap in the protection of students' right to express diverse political beliefs without facing academic repercussions. Striking a balance between these competing interests is likely to shape the outcome of the legislative process and determine the future landscape of academic governance in Arizona's public universities. RELATED ARTICLE: Indiana Bill Threatens Academic Freedom by Linking Tenure and Diversity to "Intellectual Diversity" Standards After months of technical difficulties and delays, the U.S. Department of Education has initiated the transmission of crucial financial aid data to colleges and universities across the nation. This development comes as a relief to institutions grappling with uncertainty amid the approaching deadlines for financial aid offers for incoming students. Initial Challenges and Delays The delay in disseminating financial aid data has significantly disrupted the standard timeline for colleges and universities to compile financial aid packages. The traditional May 1 deadline for students to commit to a university has been looming, leaving educational institutions and families in a state of flux. The complications stem from the overhaul of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which was initially scheduled for release in October but was delayed until late December. Subsequently, the Education Department implemented a soft launch of the new version to address persistent glitches. However, families, particularly those without SSNs, encountered difficulties accessing the form, exacerbating the delay further. Congress mandated the FAFSA update in 2020 to streamline the application process and expand federal student aid access to more low-income students. The overhauled application streamlines the process, slashing questions from 108 to under 50, and adopts a fairer formula for federal aid eligibility. READ ALSO: Democrats Demand Permanent Fix for FAFSA Issue Impact on Higher Education and Families The prolonged delay in distributing financial aid data has had widespread ramifications throughout higher education. FAFSA information plays a pivotal role in awarding both state and federal education grants, and colleges rely on it to construct financial aid packages for prospective students. Consequently, families have been left in the dark regarding the amount of financial assistance they can expect, complicating their decision-making process when selecting colleges. There are concerns among advocates that the persistent delays may dissuade certain students, particularly those from marginalized backgrounds, from pursuing higher education altogether. The uncertainty surrounding financial aid availability could disproportionately affect students of color, those from low-income families, first-generation students, and other underserved communities. Republican lawmakers have criticized the Biden administration for its handling of the FAFSA overhaul, citing repeated delays and technical challenges. The Government Accountability Office has launched an investigation into the administration's management of the update process, adding to the scrutiny faced by the Education Department. Path Forward and Congressional Response Despite the setbacks, the Education Department has taken steps to address the delays and expedite the distribution of financial aid data to colleges and universities. The department aims to minimize the impact of the delays on students and families by providing clear guidance and resources to educational institutions. In response to concerns raised by over 100 Democratic lawmakers, the Education Department has committed to mitigating the adverse effects of the delays, particularly on students from vulnerable populations. Efforts are underway to ensure that students receive the financial assistance they need to pursue their educational goals without undue hindrance. As colleges and universities continue to grapple with the aftermath of the delays, the Education Department remains focused on resolving technical issues and streamlining the financial aid distribution process. The timely dissemination of financial aid data is crucial in ensuring equitable access to higher education for all students across the United States. RELATED ARTICLE: Education Department Offers Temporary Fix for FAFSA Glitch Affecting Students Without SSNs The president of Columbia University and the co-chairs of its Board of Trustees are scheduled to testify next month at a House hearing addressing antisemitism at the prestigious New York institution. Responding to Campus Incidents This upcoming hearing will mark the House Education and Workforce Committees second session focusing on how specific educational institutions have handled antisemitic incidents, particularly in the aftermath of the Israel-Hamas conflict that commenced in October. Notably, two of the three university presidents who testified at the initial hearing in December have since resigned, partially due to the repercussions of their testimonies. While Columbia's president, Minouche Shafik, was invited to testify at the December hearing, she was abroad at the time. Now, Shafik is slated to appear before the committee on April 17 for a hearing titled, Columbia in Crisis: Columbia Universitys Response to Antisemitism. Joining her will be the co-chairs of the board, Claire Shipman and David Greenwald. READ ALSO: Jewish Students Testify on Widespread Campus Antisemitism at Congressional Hearing Challenges Faced by Columbia University In the wake of the Israel-Hamas conflict, Columbia University has witnessed a series of incidents and has taken measures such as suspending two pro-Palestinian student groups for violating campus protest policies. Last month, the committee initiated a formal investigation into Columbia, seeking a range of documents pertaining to its response to these incidents, as well as details about the disciplinary procedures for students and faculty accused of antisemitism. Additionally, the Office of Civil Rights has launched two federal investigations into allegations of discrimination based on shared ancestry, encompassing antisemitism, within the university. Addressing the severity of the situation, Representative Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, the Republican chairwoman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, stated that it was imperative to hear from Columbia's leadership in person to understand how the school is addressing antisemitism on its campus, citing the severe and widespread nature of the incidents and the perceived failure of the Columbia administration to uphold its own policies aimed at protecting Jewish students. Foxx's remarks highlight the urgent need for robust measures to tackle antisemitism within academic institutions and the importance of ensuring the safety and well-being of all students, regardless of their religious or ethnic backgrounds. Moreover, the upcoming hearing at the House Education and Workforce Committee serves as a platform to delve deeper into Columbia University's response to antisemitism and to evaluate the effectiveness of its policies and actions in combating such incidents. It also underscores the broader societal concern about the rise of antisemitic acts and the imperative for educational institutions to play a proactive role in fostering inclusive and respectful campus environments. As Columbia University prepares to address these critical issues before the House committee, stakeholders within and beyond the academic community await insights into the university's strategies for preventing and addressing antisemitism, as well as its commitment to upholding principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion. RELATED ARTICLE: House Committee Investigates Antisemitism at the University of Pennsylvania In a significant move towards enhancing accessibility to higher education, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico signed a bill last week to establish a groundbreaking $959 million fund. The purpose of this fund is to facilitate free college tuition for residents of the state. This initiative aims to solidify New Mexico's position as a pioneer in promoting college equity and accessibility. Expanding Access and Affordability The newly established trust fund, slated to be the largest of its kind dedicated to higher education by any state, will be instrumental in supporting two key programs: the Lottery Scholarship and the Opportunity Scholarship. The former offers free tuition to recent high school graduates, while the latter extends its coverage to individuals who pursue education at New Mexico's public colleges later in life. A significant portion of nearly $48 million is expected to be distributed from the fund in fiscal 2025, further bolstering accessibility to higher education in the state. New Mexico has been actively enhancing its free college programs in recent years, with a focus on addressing economic hardships that impacted the affordability of education. The Lottery Scholarship, a longstanding initiative spanning almost three decades, initially faced limitations due to financial constraints, covering only 60% of students' tuition costs. However, recent measures, including the utilization of federal funding by Governor Lujan Grisham, have restored full tuition coverage, benefiting thousands of students annually. Furthermore, the introduction of the Opportunity Scholarship in 2021 marked a significant step towards inclusivity in higher education. Unlike traditional free college programs, this initiative extends its support to older adults and part-time students, addressing the diverse needs of learners across different stages of life and educational paths. Governor Lujan Grisham has attributed the success of the Opportunity Scholarship to its role in boosting college enrollment rates across the state. READ ALSO: Albert Einstein College of Medicine Adopts Tuition-Free Policy After Historic $1 Billion Donation Commitment to Accessibility and Equity In addition to expanding access, the state of New Mexico has witnessed a substantial increase in its investment in college financial aid in recent years. This commitment is reflected in the significant surge in funding, rising from under $90 million in fiscal 2022 to approximately $210 million in fiscal 2024, according to legislative analysis reports. Despite these advancements, challenges persist in fully supporting programs like the Opportunity Scholarship. Analyses indicate a shortfall in funding allocation, highlighting the need for continued financial commitment to ensure the effective implementation of these initiatives. Governor Lujan Grisham, while signing the bill into law, reaffirmed New Mexico's dedication to providing tuition-free college education for its residents, thereby reinforcing the state's position as a national leader in promoting college equity and access. Furthermore, the establishment of the $959 million higher education fund underscores the state government's commitment to addressing systemic barriers to education and fostering a more equitable society. By investing in free college tuition programs, New Mexico is not only empowering individuals to pursue higher education but also laying the foundation for a more educated workforce and a stronger economy. This proactive approach to higher education funding sets a precedent for other states to follow, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing accessibility and affordability in higher education policy-making. RELATED ARTICLE: Massachusetts Sees Upturn in Enrollment Due to New Free Tuition Policy UNODC presents an innovative approach to the professional development and accreditation of AML/CFT specialists in the Republic of Uzbekistan On 14-15 February 2024, in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, UNODC held an expert meeting with representatives of the Law Enforcement Academy of the Republic of Uzbekistan (Academy) and the Department on Combating Economic Crimes under the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan (Department) to discuss innovative methods of training practitioners and opportunities for implementing the Professional Development and Accreditation System for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) in Uzbekistan (PDAS). UNODC provided a detailed overview of PDAS implementation to the management and staff of the Academy and the Department. UNODC informed about international experience and best practices of PDAS implementation in other countries, as well as IT solutions for PDAS development and implementation at the national level. The Academy and the Department presented the experience of training and development of prosecutors, financial intelligence units staff and law enforcement officers. The implementation of the PDAS pilot project in Uzbekistan aims to improve and continuously develop AML/CFT specialists in the capital and regions of Uzbekistan. UNODC supports the establishment of a sustainable system and is ready to provide technical assistance in the implementation of PDAS. Uzbekistan intends to improve its compliance with international standards and FATF recommendations by implementing the PDAS. UNODC and the Academy identified further steps in implementing and integrating the PDAS into the Academy's prototype online platform within the current year. The event was organised with expert support from the UNODC Global Programme against Money Laundering, Proceeds of Crime and the Financing of Terrorism (GPML) and financial support from the US Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). UNODC enhances the capabilities of Uzbek law enforcement officials in the realm of online drug investigations From 4 to 7 March, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Regional Office for Central Asia (UNODC ROCA), in collaboration with the UNODC Global Programme on Cybercrime and the United Nations Regional Center for Combatting Cybercrime in Doha (UNRCC), organized a training course in Doha, Qatar. The programme catered to 28 law enforcement officers from Uzbekistan, all belonging to the 13 UNODC-supported Interagency Mobile Teams of Uzbekistan. This training specifically targeted law enforcement officers responsible for investigating financial crimes, illicit narcotics trafficking, and organized crime. Its primary objective was to furnish participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to combat the trafficking of illegal substances, including drug trade on the Internet. The curriculum covered aspects such as web monitoring and open-source intelligence tools, combining classroom sessions with practical exercises utilizing the Internet. The training sessions were conducted by experienced international experts from UNRCC. Yusuf Kurbonov, UNODC International Programme Coordinator, highlighted that "this training marked a significant milestone, signaling the commencement of collaboration between UNODC ROCA and UNRCC." He expressed optimism that participants would effectively apply their newfound knowledge in real-world scenarios and share their experiences with colleagues. Mustafa Erten, Chief of UNRCC and Head of the UNODC Programme Office in the State of Qatar, informed the Uzbek delegation that the training event held symbolic importance, occurring on the anniversary of the UN House in Qatar opening in the presence of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on 4 March 2023. He provided insights into future plans for conducting a series of training courses to enhance the effectiveness of combating the trafficking of illicit drugs and other criminal activities online. This training initiative falls within Phase III of the UNODC project in Uzbekistan "Countering illicit drug trafficking through strengthened coordination and enhanced capacity of Interagency Mobile Teams." Funding for the project is provided by the U.S. State Departments Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). For further information, please contact: Nurangez Abdulhamidova Communications and External Relations Specialist UNODC Regional Office for Central Asia Email: nurangez.abdulhamidova[at]un.org Soon after the formation of the elected government, progress on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), particularly the five new economic corridors, including the Corridor of Job Creation, Innovation, Green Energy and Inclusive Regional Development, has been expedited ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Soon after the formation of the elected government, progress on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), particularly the five new economic corridors, including the Corridor of Job Creation, Innovation, Green Energy and Inclusive Regional Development, has been expedited. The newly-appointed Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Professor Ahsan Iqbal, chaired an important meeting on Wednesday to initiate work on the five new corridors in the second phase of CPEC, said a press release issued here on Wednesday. The meeting was attended by the Secretary Planning Awais Manzoor Sumra and senior officials of the CPEC Secretariat. During the meeting, a comprehensive briefing was given to the minister on the progress of CPEC projects, recommendations of the Joint Coordination Committee (JCC), and working groups held last year. Additionally, the MoUs signed during the third Belt and Road Summit were also reviewed in the meeting. The Minister was updated on key projects such as ML-1, Karakoram Highway (Phase 2) D.I Khan Zhob, Karachi Circular Railway (KCR), and others. While reviewing the projects, the Minister directed stakeholders to expedite their implementation process without further delay. "No further hindrance in the implementation of CPEC agreements will be tolerated," remarked the Minister, while instructing stakeholders to immediately coordinate with relevant ministries for the speedy implementation of the projects. Furthermore, the Minister directed stakeholders to submit pending PC-1s for various projects to expedite them effectively. Additionally, he instructed regular meetings on CPEC to properly monitor the projects. It is noted that in 2022, the government revived CPEC under the leadership of then Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who visited China soon after taking office. Later, in 2023, the Chinese Vice Premier also visited Pakistan and acknowledged its efforts, restoring confidence between the two countries. During the meeting, the Minister highlighted the importance of the Gwadar Port, a strategic project under CPEC, which is set to become a key maritime gateway connecting Pakistan with the rest of the world. The development of Gwadar Port and its associated free zone is expected to attract foreign investment, stimulate economic activities, and create job opportunities in the region. The Planning Minister further added that Gwadar is the best tourist destination, emphasizing the need for a solid and effective strategy to promote investment in Gwadar. He also directed stakeholders to devise a strategy for increasing Pakistani exports in Chinese markets. "Immediate research should be conducted with the help of experts to determine which sectors in Pakistan can promote its exports to China," remarked the Minister, while stressing the need to increase exports. (@ChaudhryMAli88) MIRPUR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) President Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry, is set to address a gathering of lawyers from the District Bar Association in Mirpur on March 18. A delegation of lawyers, led by President District Bar Association Chaudhry Shakeel Zaman Advocate, extended the invitation to President Chaudhry during a meeting at Jammu Kashmir House in the Federal metropolis. The delegation, comprising representatives from the lawyers' community, including the Vice President and Secretary General of DBAM, invited Barrister Chaudhry to be the chief guest at a special ceremony in Mirpur. President Chaudhry graciously accepted the invitation and is also scheduled to address a function organized by Kotli District Bar Association on March 19. In the midst of these engagements, President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry expressed his grief and sorrow over the passing of prominent journalist Muhammad Amin Butt. He paid homage to the deceased journalist for his journalistic services and prayed for the departed soul to rest in eternal peace. These upcoming events and the president's expressions of condolences highlight his active engagement with the legal community and his recognition of the contributions of media professionals, underscoring the importance of these interactions within the region. (@FahadShabbir) QUETTA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti took action against absentee doctors of BMC and directed to suspend them for long time absence from their duties to improve health facilities. He gave this directive while visiting Bolan Medical Complex Hospital (BMCH) to review the health facilities for the patients late at night Tuesday. The Chief Minister expressed his dismay over the cleanliness situation in BMC. He said that the faulted medical machinery should be repaired within three days and facilities would be provided to the patients saying that the process of sending patients from one hospital to another for medical tests should be stopped. All medical test and treatment facilities should be ensured under one roof, he directed. He also inquired about the treatment received from the attendants of the patients in BMC. He said that he would encourage doctors and medical staff who perform their duties with integrity. Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti instructed the Health Secretary to transfer the doctors and medical staff who neglected their duties to remote areas. He also directed to Secretary Health Balochistan to give a detailed briefing tomorrow at the CM Secretariat. ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has received congratulatory messages from his counterparts of various countries on assuming his office. Foreign Minister of Czech Republic Jan Lipavsky, congratulating Ishaq Dar on his appointment as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan said Czechia and Pakistan had long enjoyed friendly and constructive relations. Foreign Minister of Maldives Moosa Zameer also extended congratulations saying he was confident that the bilateral relations will continue to grow stronger under his leadership. Likewise Ukrainian FM Dmytro Kuleba congratulating Ishaq Dar on his appointment as Pakistan's 39th Foreign Minister wished him every success in his most responsible mission. "I look forward to expanding mutually beneficial bilateral and international cooperation between Ukraine and Pakistan", he added. FM Dar in his post on X (formerly twitter) thanked the Czech FM Jan Lipavsky for his warm congratulatory message. "I look forward to further strengthen the bonds of friendship between Pakistan and Czechia for our mutual benefit," he said. A woman demonstrates this Tuesday in front of the U.S. Capitol against a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban on TikTok. The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday ordered a halt to TikTok dancing in the United States if ByteDance, the company that owns the Chinese video social network, does not agree to sell its stakes in the company. The bill, which could lead to a nationwide ban on the platform, was backed by a vast majority of the House, with support coming from both sides of the aisle: 352 voted in favor and 65 against (15 Republicans and 50 Democrats). Congress challenge to China comes amid growing tensions between Washington and Beijing over control of technology and fears that the social media platform could threaten national security and be used for espionage or manipulation of public opinion. China, through Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin, has warned that it would take a ban on TikTok as an act of bullying. The fate of the bill, which the House fast-tracked Wednesday with little floor debate, is uncertain. It will have to be passed in the Senate, where a qualified majority of 60 out of 100 is required and where previous initiatives to curb TikTok failed to make it through. Such a resounding vote in the House of Representatives nevertheless puts pressure on senators to support a measure that is certainly unpopular among the platforms 170 million U.S. users (more than half the country) and which is strongly opposed by young people. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, has not yet committed to bringing the bill to the floor for a vote, and several lawmakers have already warned that they want to hold hearings on the issue before making a decision. They have also expressed concern that the ban would amount to an infringement of First Amendment rights. Apps like TikTok allow the Chinese Communist Party to push harmful content to our youth and engage in malign activities, such as harvesting the location, purchasing habits, contacts, and sensitive data of Americans. Todays bipartisan vote [...] demonstrates Congress opposition to Communist Chinas attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans and signals our resolve to deter our enemies. I urge the Senate to pass this bill and send it to the President so he can sign the bill into law, House Speaker Mike Johnson shared on X. Biden, willing to sign it President Joe Biden has said that if such a bill comes across his desk, he will not exercise his presidential power to veto it and will sign it a move that could anger young voters ahead of the November elections. Interestingly, his campaign has been using the app for his re-election campaign. If the bill is passed and signed by Biden, ByteDance would have six months to sell TikTok. If not, the video platform would eventually be banned in the United States. Lawmakers, who received classified information Tuesday in a closed-door session about the risks the platform poses to national security, fear that China will exercise its prerogative to force ByteDance to share TikTok user data, which could be used to identify sensitive intelligence targets or to mount disinformation campaigns that could influence elections. At a Senate hearing Monday, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Avril Haines of the CIA agreed that those threats were real. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, for his part, asked Tuesday: Do we want TikTok, as a platform, to be owned by an American company or owned by China? Do we want the data from TikTok childrens data, adults data to be going, to be staying here in America or going to China? Attempts to curb TikTok in the United States date back to the Donald Trump administration, which used several executive orders to try to force app stores not to offer it and thus force ByteDance to divest their stakes. The initiative, halted in court, did not prosper, but it forced negotiations still ongoing between Washington and the social platform, which partly gave in to the pressure and agreed to store U.S. user data on servers controlled by the technology giant Oracle. House Speaker Mike Johnson after the vote this Wednesday. SHAWN THEW (EFE) Nevertheless, on Monday Trump appeared to have changed his mind and urged Republican representatives to vote against the ban. In an interview on CNBC, Trump said banning TikTok would make young people go crazy, and warned that it would help competitor Meta, owner of Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, which the former president called the enemy of the people. Despite his fierce influence over the Republican Party, the bill was passed. Following Wednesdays vote, TikTok released a statement calling the measure an attack on free speech in the U.S. and criticizing the bills fast-tracked, closed-door passage. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy seven million small businesses and the 170 million Americans who use our service, the statement said. The use of TikTok has been restricted on the phones and tablets of government officials in several countries, citing national security concerns. In addition to the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Canada and New Zealand have adopted similar measures. It also cannot be downloaded by employees of the European Commission and Council and NATO. The very idea that the hugely popular video platform could disappear prompted many Americans to call their representatives in recent days to try to convince them of the importance of TikTok, a social network where they connect with other users, get information and news, entertain themselves, do business and which has also become a source of revenue for thousands of content creators. Legislators also received pressure before the vote through the video social network itself. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition (@FahadShabbir) Federal Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazir Tarar on Wednesday emphasized on the need of capacity building programs and collaboration among departments to combat financial corruption effectively ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Federal Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazir Tarar on Wednesday emphasized on the need of capacity building programs and collaboration among departments to combat financial corruption effectively. The law minister was chairing the 2nd meeting of the Anti-Corruption Task Force which was attended by representatives from various relevant departments including FIA, SECP, FMU, CCP and Finance Division. During the meeting, input was obtained from the stakeholders, said a press release. During the meeting, all representatives shared valuable suggestions to address the critical issues of financial corruption and money laundering. The law minister emphasized the importance of collective efforts and urged the stakeholders to submit their suggestions by the 20th of March to formulate a comprehensive framework. The minister highlighted the necessity for a behavioral shift in addition to drafting laws and policies. The meeting reached a consensus on the need for capacity building programs and collaboration among departments to combat financial corruption effectively. Inter-agency cooperation and a unified approach were identified as crucial elements in the fight against corruption. At the end, the law minister expressed optimism and urged continued collaboration among stakeholders. The meeting concluded with a commitment to work together towards achieving tangible results in the fight against financial corruption and money laundering. He National Assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the Federal Government to officially declare former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as a Shaheed and national democratic hero ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) The National Assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the Federal Government to officially declare former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as a Shaheed and national democratic hero. The resolution, moved by Shazia Marri, recognized that the trial and subsequent conviction of former Prime Minister Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto were a gross miscarriage of justice. The resolution saluted the struggles of Begum Nusrat Bhutto, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, and the Pakistan People's Party workers who sacrificed their lives to establish this truth. It appreciated the determination with which President Asif Ali Zardari filed a presidential reference to reopen the case 12 years ago, and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who single-mindedly pursued it. The resolution lauded the Supreme Court of Pakistan for finally acknowledging and accepting the glaring injustice meted out to Shaheed Zulfiqar Bhutto 44 years ago in its judgment. In light of the historic judgment of the court, the resolution demanded that the unjust verdict given in the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto case must be overturned. It also called for conferring the highest civil award, Nishan-e-Pakistan, upon Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Furthermore, the resolution demanded the establishment of the Nishan-e-Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Award for workers and activists who have fought and sacrificed their lives for true democracy in Pakistan. APP/zah-sra ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Minister for Housing and Works Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada Wednesday emphasized the importance of upholding the rule of law and maintaining the integrity of the allocation process of government accommodations. Chairing a high level meeting of Estate Office, he directed the concerned to conduct a thorough review of all previous allotments to identify any instances of illegality or irregularity and strict action will be taken against those found guilty. The meeting was held to focus on devising strategies to curb the previous practice of illegal allotments and ensure transparency in the allocation process, said a news release. During the meeting, Riaz Pirzada was apprised by Director General, Estate Office Obbaid ud Din about the management and working of the department. The minister also directed to implement strong mechanisms to prevent future occurrences of illegal allotments and to streamline the allocation process to ensure efficiency and fairness. Riaz Pirzada reiterated the governments commitment to providing affordable housing solutions to the Federal employees and general public while ensuring that all transactions are conducted in a fair and transparent manner. Secretary Housing and Works Dr. Shahzad Khan Bangash and other senior officers of the ministry were also present during the meeting. APP/sra-zah (@ChaudhryMAli88) Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday emphasised that his government would work tirelessly to ensure timely implementation of the initiatives under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday emphasised that his government would work tirelessly to ensure timely implementation of the initiatives under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He stressed that Pakistan was keen to move to the next phase of CPEC, including operationalisation of the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to facilitate Chinese investment in Pakistan. The prime minister was talking to Ambassador of the People's Republic of China Jiang Zaidong who called on him at the Prime Ministers House, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release. Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Dr. Ahsan Iqbal, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Syed Tariq Fatemi and the foreign secretary also attended the meeting. The prime minister said the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) had been created during his previous tenure to attract foreign investment in priority sectors including agriculture, IT, minerals and renewable energy. He said Chinese companies would find many profitable opportunities in Pakistan. The prime minister thanked President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang for their warm messages of greetings on his re-election and assumption of office. He reciprocated the warm sentiments expressed by the Chinese leadership and lauded their contribution and commitment to the strengthening of the iron-clad friendship between Pakistan and China. The Chinese Ambassador reaffirmed that the Chinese leadership and government were looking forward to further deepening of Pakistan-China friendship. In this regard, he reiterated the invitation extended to the prime minister to undertake an official visit to China at his earliest convenience. While accepting the invitation, the prime minister said that he would undertake the visit at a mutually convenient date that would be worked out through diplomatic channels. Catalonia's President Pere Aragones said Wednesday that he had dissolved the Spanish region's parliament and called early elections for May 12 after his proposed budget was rejected by the assembly Barcelona, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Catalonia's President Pere Aragones said Wednesday that he had dissolved the Spanish region's parliament and called early elections for May 12 after his proposed budget was rejected by the assembly. "I have decided to call elections for the Catalan parliament for May 12," Aragones, a proponent of the region's independence from Spain, said during a brief press conference, accusing opposition lawmakers of "irresponsibility". The regional election had originally been set for early 2025. Aragones, a moderate separatist from the left-wing ERC party, lost his majority in the Catalan parliament in October 2022 when the rival separatist party JxCat withdrew from an alliance, accusing the regional president of not doing enough to secure independence from Madrid. The move to dissolve parliament comes ahead of a national parliament vote Thursday on granting amnesty to people prosecuted for their role in Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid, which was spearheaded by JxCat. Spain's Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez proposed the amnesty bill in exchange for crucial parliamentary support from JxCat, after his party failed to secure a majority in general elections in July. The call for early Catalan elections is unlikely to have an impact on the vote. Aragones has insisted he intended to remain in post until the end of the current legislature, but "the blockages... among the political groups in the parliament are not making this possible", he said Wednesday. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Paris, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) The eldest child of French World War II Resistance leader and first postwar president Charles de Gaulle, has died aged 102, the family said on Wednesday. Philippe de Gaulle, who was a significant military figure in his own right, heeded his father's call to join Free French forces in the fight against Nazism in World War II. He later had a successful naval career, rising to the rank of admiral, and also became a senator. Despite a striking physical resemblance, he was a more low-key figure than his father but devoted himself to preserving the memory of Charles de Gaulle, notably through numerous books including the successful work "De Gaulle, my father". His son Yves de Gaulle told AFP that he died overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday in the Invalides in central Paris, the French military institution where he had lived for two years. "Philippe de Gaulle anticipated his father's call to join the Resistance," President Emmanuel Macron wrote in a tribute on X. "Sailor, admiral, senator, he never came up short when courage and honour were required. A century of French bravery." Eric Ciotti, head of the right-wing Republicans party that sees itself as the inheritor of de Gaulle's political mantle, described Philippe de Gaulle as a "pillar" of France. "His life dedicated to the service of France, in the navy and in the Senate, was a living example for the Republic," he wrote on X. "France was in his heart until the end," added Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu. Strasbourg, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) European Parliament gave final approval on Wednesday to wide-ranging EU rules to govern artificial intelligence, including powerful systems like OpenAI's ChatGPT. Senior European Union officials say the rules, first proposed in 2021, will protect citizens from the possible risks of a technology developing at breakneck speed, while also fostering innovation on the continent. Brussels has sprinted to pass the new law since OpenAI's Microsoft-backed ChatGPT arrived on the scene in late 2022, unleashing a global AI race. There was a burst of excitement for generative AI as ChatGPT wowed the world with its human-like capabilities -- from digesting complex text to producing poems within seconds, or passing medical exams. Further examples of generative AI models include DALL-E and Midjourney, which produce images, while other models produce sounds from a simple input in everyday language. The far-reaching regulation passed with the support of 523 lawmakers in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, with 46 voting against. The EU's 27 states are expected to endorse the text in April before the law is published in the EU's Official Journal in May or June. "Today is again an historic day on our long path towards regulation of AI," said Brando Benifei, an Italian lawmaker who pushed the text through parliament with Romanian MEP Dragos Tudorache. "(This is) the first regulation in the world that is putting a clear path towards a safe and human-centric development of AI," Benifei added, speaking just before the vote. "We managed to find that very delicate balance between the interest to innovate and the interest to protect," Tudorache told journalists before the vote. The EU's internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton, hailed the vote. "I welcome the overwhelming support from the European Parliament for the EU AI Act," he said. "Europe is now a global standard-setter in trustworthy AI." Rules covering AI models like ChatGPT will enter into force 12 months after the law becomes official, while companies must comply with most other provisions in two years. The EU's rules known as the "AI Act" take a risk-based approach: the riskier the system, the tougher the requirements -- with outright bans on the AI tools deemed to carry the most threat. For example, high-risk AI providers must conduct risk assessments and ensure their products comply with the law before they are made available to the public. "We are regulating as little as possible and as much as needed, with proportionate measures for AI models," Breton told AFP. Violations can see companies hit with fines ranging from 7.5 million to 35 million Euros ($8.2 million to $38.2 million), depending on the type of infringement and the firm's size. There are strict bans on using AI for predictive policing and systems that use biometric information to infer an individual's race, religion or sexual orientation. The rules also ban real-time facial recognition in public spaces but with some exceptions for law enforcement, although police must seek approval from a judicial authority before any AI deployment. Since AI will likely transform every aspect of Europeans' lives and big tech firms are vying for dominance in what will be a lucrative market, the EU has been subject to intense lobbying over the legislation. Watchdogs on Tuesday pointed to campaigning by French AI startup Mistral AI and Germany's Aleph Alpha as well as US-based tech giants like Google and microsoft. They warned the implementation of the new rules "could be further weakened by corporate lobbying", adding that research showed "just how strong corporate influence" was during negotiations. "Many details of the AI Act are still open and need to be clarified in numerous implementing acts, for example, with regard to standards, thresholds or transparency obligations," three watchdogs based in Belgium, France and Germany said. Commissioner Breton stressed that the EU "withstood the special interests and lobbyists calling to exclude large AI models from the regulation", adding: "The result is a balanced, risk-based and future-proof regulation." Lawmaker Tudorache said the law was "one of the... heaviest lobbied pieces of legislation, certainly in this mandate", but insisted: "We resisted the pressure." The leaders of France, Germany and Poland will hold urgent talks on Ukraine in Berlin on Friday, Warsaw and Berlin said, as they seek to scrape together additional support for Kyiv Berlin, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) The leaders of France, Germany and Poland will hold urgent talks on Ukraine in Berlin on Friday, Warsaw and Berlin said, as they seek to scrape together additional support for Kyiv. The talks come on the heels of a meeting between US President Joe Biden and Polish leaders in Washington, shortly after the US leader announced an emergency stopgap package for Ukraine. "On Friday... I will be in Berlin with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to talk about this situation," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told state broadcaster TVP late Tuesday from Washington. The meeting was an "emergency and unplanned" summit of the Weimar Triangle, a diplomatic format for French, German and Polish cooperation established in 1991. Poland, one of Ukraine's staunchest allies, has repeatedly urged its Western partners to up their spending on military aid as Kyiv fends off a Russian invasion. "In my opinion, these three capitals have the task and the power to mobilise all of Europe" to provide Ukraine with fresh aid, Tusk said. Relations between the allies have been strained by Germany's refusal to send long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine, despite urgent calls from Kyiv. The issue has been a particular source of tension between Scholz and Macron, who had pointedly urged allies not to be "cowards" in supporting Ukraine. The German and French leaders would have a bilateral meeting in Berlin before the three-way summit with Tusk, Scholz's spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said at a regular press conference Wednesday. Scholz and Macron had "talked to each other at length on the phone" in recent days, Hebestreit said. The chancellor has not however changed his position on the delivery of Taurus missiles. Scholz argues that the deployment of the long-range missiles would involve German soldiers directly in the conflict and therefore risk an escalation. The issue centred on "where will be targeted... where will be hit", Scholz said in the German parliament on Wednesday. "That should not happen with German soldiers," Scholz said. "I have the responsibility to prevent Germany from becoming involved in this war," he said. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Maverick American director Oliver Stone told AFP that the legal proceedings against Donald Trump are "all political" and that the ex-president was a victim of "lawfare" -- when prosecutions are used to silence political figures Paris, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) Maverick American director Oliver Stone told AFP that the legal proceedings against Donald Trump are "all political" and that the ex-president was a victim of "lawfare" -- when prosecutions are used to silence political figures. "Almost 100 indictments against the guy... it's ridiculous," said Stone. "This is all political. They want to put him behind bars, but they're not going to be able to," he added. However, the 77-year-old director of "JFK", "Platoon" and "Snowden" said that he would not vote for Trump in this November's US presidential election. "Everyone's corrupt. Russia runs on corruption, so does Turkey. So does the United States. Corruption is a way of life, but they make it into a political issue now," Stone insisted. But he said he would not be voting for incumbent President Joe Biden either. "Never for Biden, because Biden is a warmonger," said the Vietnam veteran. Stone spoke to AFP Tuesday during a trip to Paris to promote his documentary about nuclear energy, "Nuclear Now". He said he has been thinking a lot about "lawfare" as he has recently completed a film about Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. - 'Freethinker' - Lula, as he is widely known, was imprisoned in 2018 on corruption and money-laundering charges after several years in power. The charges were overthrown after an investigation found the judge was biased, and Lula was re-elected president last year. "The concept of lawfare is all over the world, and it's been used for political reasons, weaponised," said Stone. "And so that's what they did with Lula. They put him in jail and he got out and he won the election. It was a hell of a story... but people don't know it, except in Brazil." Stone has often focused on Latin American leftist leaders, with no less than three documentaries about the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, and one about his friend the Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013. Lula, Castro and Chavez were all "humanists", he said. "They're all great. They're all original, doing the best they can for their country. I think Chavez was motivated by love of country. So it was Castro." There is not yet a release date for his Lula film, though he has launched previous films at the Cannes Film Festival, which takes place in May. Stone has often been denounced as a conspiracy theorist for his views on US foreign policy and the assassination of John F. Kennedy, laid out in "JFK" and a follow-up documentary. He has a simple response for his detractors. "I'm a freethinker." Strasbourg, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Mar, 2024) EU lawmakers are poised to approve on Wednesday wide-ranging rules to govern artificial intelligence, including powerful systems like OpenAI's ChatGPT, marking the final major hurdle before formal adoption. Senior European Union officials say the rules, first proposed in 2021, will protect citizens from the possible risks while also fostering innovation on the continent. Brussels has sprinted to pass the new law since OpenAI's Microsoft-backed ChatGPT arrived on the scene in late 2022, unleashing a new global AI race. There was a burst of excitement for generative AI as ChatGPT could spew out eloquent text within seconds, including poems and essays, as well as pass medical exams. Further examples of generative AI models include DALL-E and Midjourney, which produce images, while other models produce sounds from a simple input in everyday language. "The EU delivered. No ifs, no buts, no later," said Dragos Tudorache, the lawmaker who pushed the text through parliament with another MEP, Brando Benifei. "Europe is now a global standard-setter in trustworthy AI," said the EU's internal market commissioner, Thierry Breton. The EU's 27 states are expected to endorse the text in April before the law is published in the EU's Official Journal in May or June. The rules covering AI models like ChatGPT will enter into force 12 months after the law becomes official, while companies must comply with most other rules in two years. Former special counsel Robert Hurs appearance before a House of Representatives committee on Tuesday set the scene for two simultaneous battles. Eight months before the presidential elections, Republican and Democratic congressmen contended on behalf of the President of the United States, Joe Biden, and his predecessor, Donald Trump. In one battle, representatives were clashing over the handling of classified documents by both politicians. In the other, the memory and mental acuity of the two aging candidates was at stake. Appearing at the Republicans request, Hur concluded that there were no grounds to charge Biden for improperly withholding classified documents after he left the vice presidency. However, his exculpatory report did enormous political collateral damage to the president by portraying him as well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory and by pointing out that he did not remember when he was vice president or when his son died when he was questioned on October 7 and 8, which outraged Biden. At times, the battle over the 81-year-old presidents memory has overshadowed the discussion about the classified documents. On Tuesday, Republicans played the video of Bidens press conference in which he replied to the report and referred to Egypt as Mexico, aggravating the situation. The Democrats counterattacked with the 77-year-old Trumps own nonsense, including a video compilation of the former presidents numerous lapses, like confusing Joe Biden with Barack Obama and Nikki Haley with Nancy Pelosi and saying that Viktor Orban is the president of Turkey. They also shared another video in which Trump repeatedly responded I dont remember to questions in a deposition. Prior to his appearance, Hur had delivered a transcript of the interrogation to Congress, with some fragments crossed out because they were classified as confidential. Reading the transcript also leads to different interpretations of Bidens mental acuity. The president makes some jokes (the FBI knows my house better than I do) and answers most of the questions without any problem, but he also makes some mistakes and frequently claims not to know or remember the answer to the questions he is asked. However, Hur also credits him with a photographic memory about the layout of his house. Despite the slips in some isolated details, the full text allows one to question the accuracy of the reports claim that the president has significant limitations in his memory. Obviously, the most controversial aspect are the mentions of the date of his son Beaus death and Bidens time as vice president, which the special counsel highlighted in his report. The transcript shows that Biden recalls that his son died on May 30. Immediately, someone tells him it was in 2015, and he asks, Was it 2015 when he died? And he immediately says, It was in 2015. But the transcript also makes it clear that Biden was the one who brought up his sons death and, therefore, that he was mistaken when he reacted to the report by saying, How in the hell dare he raise that. Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself [that] it wasnt any of their damn business. The transcript also shows the context in which Biden questions the years he was vice president, which the prosecutor included in his report as a definitive sentence (he couldnt remember when he was vice president). But the 51-year-old Hur himself misspoke at one point during his Tuesday appearance when he addressed Bidens counsel Dana Remus as Obamas lawyer; certainly, that wouldnt be enough to claim that Hur doesnt remember who the president is. Moreover, the document indicates that the questioning began as Biden had just finished speaking with Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the wake of Israels attack on Hamas. It also shows an energized Biden. On multiple occasions, when Hur suggested pausing, the president encouraged them to keep going: Ill go on all night if we get this done. Biden has taken it upon himself to prove that he is fit to serve a second term. A medical report supported that claim a few weeks ago, and Biden passed the State of the Union test with flying colors as well. Hur defended his report to Congress: What I wrote is what I believe the evidence shows, and what I expect jurors would perceive and believe. I did not sanitize my explanation. Nor did I disparage the President unfairly, he maintained, under fire from members of Congress on both sides of the aisle. The evidence and the President himself put his memory squarely at issue, he also asserted. Democrats have accused him of gratuitously questioning Bidens memory and Republicans of favoritism for not bringing charges against the president. Hur left the Justice Department this week, so he appeared before Congress as a private citizen. In the battle over classified documents, the indignation of the Republicans sounded somewhat phony, considering the much greater seriousness of the case that afflicts their leader, Donald Trump, who is charged with 40 crimes related to his retention of official documents in his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. Joe Biden kept classified information. Joe Biden failed to properly secure classified information and Joe Biden shared classified information with people he wasnt supposed to. Joe Biden broke the law because hes a forgetful old man who would appear sympathetic to a jury. Mr. Hur chose not to bring charges, said the committee chairman, Republican Jim Jordan. Other Republicans, including Matt Gaetz, who sits on the committee, and Trump himself on social media, have preferred to focus on the Justice Departments alleged double standard in not charging Biden and charging Trump. But Hurs own report mentions the enormous differences between the two cases. Trump withheld a massive volume of documentation, including important defense-related secrets, disregarded requests to return papers when he was discovered, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) ended up conducting a surprise search of his mansion, seizing secret documents Trump had tried to hide. In contrast, Biden (and earlier Trumps vice president, Mike Pence) reported on his own initiative that he had discovered the papers and voluntarily agreed to a warrantless search of his home. As an experienced prosecutor, Hur came out of the hearing unscathed, although he did not make either side happy. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Jennifer Faulkner University of Wyoming Extension welcomes Jennifer Faulkner as a local foods coordinator in UWs Department of Agricultural and Applied economics. Faulkner grew up on a Wyoming cattle ranch and managed a ranch operation in Riverton for three years. As a rancher, she was highly active in the local foods movement and sold meat, dairy and produce to local customers. Faulkners experience with agriculture and passion for local foods serve her well in her new role. Jen rolled up her sleeves and hit the ground running, finding creative solutions to grow and strengthen Wyomings producers and food entrepreneurs, says Anders Van Sandt, UW Extension specialist and assistant professor of regional economics in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics. She brings a unique blend of thoughtful determination and innovation emblematic of her Wyoming ranching roots. Faulkners position is funded by the Northwest Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center grant, which is led by Oregon State University and Colorado State University. Members of the food business center team work within their individual states as well as across a six-state region to develop a robust regional food system. Those funded by this grant serve underinvested communities and small- to medium-sized food businesses. Their aim is to help small food businesses grow and connect food entrepreneurs to resources; support investment in effective infrastructure; and build meat supply chain capacity and resilience. Over the first eight months of this grant, which launched in summer 2023, the food business center team has already impacted Wyomings food landscape. In particular, it has connected Wyoming food businesses to wholesalers and other resources. Last month, the team sponsored a workshop at the statewide Wyoming Food Coalition conference, which is dedicated to bringing together food system leaders from across the state. The workshop showed participants how to move from a home kitchen into a shared commercial space. Faulkner is excited to keep improving Wyomings food system infrastructure. Im especially eager to connect local food producers with resources and technical assistance to promote successful operations, she says. I want to help foster a sense of community around the state of Wyoming. Faulkner assumed her new position in early 2024. She can be emailed at jennifer.faulkner@uwyo.edu. About University of Wyoming Extension Since 1914, UW Extension has provided lifelong learning opportunities to Wyoming citizens across the state. With roots in agricultural education, UW Extension supports rural communities facing contemporary challenges and changes. UW Extension brings the universitys resources to each of the states 23 counties and the Wind River Indian Reservation. To learn more, visit www.uwyo.edu/uwe or call (307) 766-5124. Taylor Brown People interested in community leadership will be intrigued by the latest installment of the University of Wyomings Ranch Management and Agricultural Leadership 2024 seminar series in Powell Monday, April 1. The seminar, hosted by Northwest College, is titled Leading the Field: Family-Run Businesses, Industry and Community Leadership. It addresses everything from successional planning to finding ways to work together in a family-owned business. Members of the family business Northern Broadcasting and its subsidiary, Northern Ag Network, are the featured speakers for this seminar. Taylor Brown, current president and co-owner of the Northern Ag Network, is a national leader in the field of agricultural broadcasting. Courtney Brown Kibblewhite is the vice president of Northern Broadcasting and leads the sales and marketing team. Colter Brown is the ag director of Northern Ag Network. I hope participants will walk away from this workshop understanding the amount of leadership and dedication it takes to make a family-owned business prosper for future generations, says Randall Violett, associate director of UWs Ranch Management and Agricultural Leadership Program. The event begins at 5 p.m. in Northwest Colleges Yellowstone Building and also is available via Zoom. For community members and students not seeking academic credit, the cost is $25 per session. Dinner is provided. To register, visit www.uwyo.edu/uwag/rmal. The upcoming seminar is the third session of an educational series facilitated by the UW College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources in partnership with community colleges across the state. Events are designed to give producers and students relevant and practical information about agricultural topics in Wyoming. Following the event in Powell, UW will host an all-day leadership symposium Monday, April 22, in Laramie. The symposium, titled Navigating Western Waters: Addressing Water Challenges in the Western Region, will wrap up the 2024 seminar series. For more information, visit www.uwyo.edu/uwag/rmal. About University of Wyoming Extension Since 1914, UW Extension has provided lifelong learning opportunities to Wyoming citizens across the state. With roots in agricultural education, UW Extension supports rural communities facing contemporary challenges and changes. UW Extension brings the universitys resources to each of the states 23 counties and the Wind River Indian Reservation. To learn more about the UW Extension, visit www.uwyo.edu/uwe or call (307) 766-5124. The United States has announced the delivery of a new military aid package to Ukraine for $300 million in ammunition and spare parts. The package is much more modest than previous ones, when contributions were in the billions, but it is still symbolically important. It is the first so far this year, after a three-month pause, and is intended to send the message that it will not be the last; that, despite Republican candidate Donald Trumps gestures toward canceling U.S. contributions, Washington remains committed to the defense of the country under attack. The announcement comes as the White House is trying to revive pressure on Congress this week to push through over $60 billion in assistance to its ally to repel the Russian invasion. The new aid delivery will go primarily toward ammunition and rockets for the Himars anti-aircraft defense system, as National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, announced in a press conference at the White House. The shipment, he said, will be able to meet Ukraines most urgent needs on the battlefield for a couple of weeks. Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder pointed out that although it will allow Ukrainian forces to continue fighting for the next few days, it is nowhere near enough, and the only way to meet Ukraines battlefield needs is for Congress to swiftly pass the supplemental [aid package]. The lack of new contributions has created an ammunition shortage that is hurting Ukrainian forces. Action had to be taken immediately, senior U.S. officials had indicated before the formal announcement of the new shipment. The money comes from spending cuts in Pentagon contracts, after the Biden administration warned in December that accounts for assistance to Ukraine had been zeroed out. Going forward, this is not a sustainable way to support Ukraine, Ryder said. The aid package was unveiled immediately before Bidens White House meeting with Polands president and prime minister, Andrzej Duda and Donald Tusk, respectively, to discuss assistance to Kiev. On Wednesday, the high representative for European foreign policy, Josep Borrell, will be in Washington to address the need to assist the besieged country; he will meet with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and several congressmen. At the beginning of the meeting with the Polish leaders, Biden reiterated that the new aid is not enough. We must act before it literally is too late. Russia wont stop at Ukraine. In turn, Duda reiterated his call for each NATO country to increase its defense investment to 3% of its GDP, which the United States considers unrealistic; Duda first made that case in an article published on Monday in The Washington Post. He observed that, in 2014, NATOs members the number of which grew last week with Swedens integration into the alliance committed themselves to allocate 2% of their GDP to defense, but not all of them have reached that level of spending. According to the Polish president, it would be ideal to reach at least 4% of GDP, so that NATO could adequately cope with any possible aggression from Russia in the future; since the beginning of the conflict, Moscow has increased its military investment to 30% of its economy: A return to the status quo ante is not possible. Russias imperialistic ambitions and aggressive revisionism are pushing Moscow toward a direct confrontation with NATO, with the West and, ultimately, with the whole free world. The realization that, should Donald Trump win the November elections, he would cancel U.S. contributions to the Ukrainian war effort has contributed to the sense of urgency around aid to Ukraine. U.S. aid to Kyiv has exceeded 70 billion ($76,506,500,000) over the past two years. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that the former president had communicated this position to him during their meeting at Mar-a-Lago, Trumps mansion in Florida. Definitively closing the tap, he pointed out, would bring the war to an immediate end. He will not give a penny into the Ukraine-Russia war and therefore the war will end, Orban told state television late on Sunday. As it is obvious that Ukraine on its own cannot stand on its feet, Orban told his countrys public television on Sunday. On Capitol Hill, some Democrats and Republicans in favor of aid to Ukraine are examining ways to get the $95 billion Homeland Security bill passed; $61 billion would go to Kyiv and $14 billion would support Israel in its war in Gaza. The bill passed the Senate in January after an eventful negotiation process. But it has stalled on arrival in the House of Representatives. There, hardline Republicans, including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, are opposed to contributing more money to what they consider to be a war that has already gone on too long, with no end in sight, and lacks sufficient transparency in its financing. Johnson has indicated that he does not intend to bring the bill to a floor vote, even though the measure has enough support to go forward with votes from the Democratic caucus and moderate Republicans. One of the possibilities they are considering is a technical procedure that, if there are enough signatures, would allow the bill to be presented to the House plenary this week, bypassing Johnson. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Vietnam Briefing has developed into a premium source for insight on doing business in Vietnam. It publishes business news concerning foreign direct investment into Vietnam, including the most important tax, legal and accounting issues. The Vietnam Briefing Magazine was first published in 2009, and is contributed to by investment professionals based in Vietnam. The United States' program to resettle former Afghan interpreters and contractors could come to an abrupt end in a few months as the number of available Special Immigrant Visas dwindles. Activists are urging Congress to authorize additional visas, known as SIVs, with less than 8,000 remaining amid a backlog of over 120,000 applications. If more visas are not authorized, the program will likely run out of visas by the end of summer, which could be a death knell for the program, said Andrew Sullivan, director of advocacy at No One Left Behind, an organization advocating for Iraqi and Afghan SIV beneficiaries. The U.S. has ramped up SIV processing, issuing a record 39,000 SIVs in 2023. Still, demand far outstrips supply. Last year, the U.S. Department of State asked Congress to authorize additional SIVs. The proposal received support from some lawmakers. In July, Senator Jeanne Shaheen celebrated a "landmark victory" when an amendment authorizing 20,000 new SIVs was included in the State Department's appropriations bill. However, it remains unclear whether the SIVs will be included in the final version of the bill, which must be approved by both the House and the Senate by March 22 to avoid a partial government shutdown. For two decades, the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan relied on trusted Afghan allies who stood shoulder-to-shoulder with American troops. We promised to protect them just as they did for us; yet we are at grave risk of leaving behind many of our allies as the Taliban continue to hunt for them. We need to do more to help them and keep our promise thats why I secured an additional 20,000 SIVs in the bipartisan Senate-passed appropriations bill and Ill continue fighting to get those visas included in the final package, Shaheen told VOA in a written statement. VOA sought comment from House Speaker Mike Johnson but has received no response. We are nearing the annual cap, State Department spokesperson Mathew Miller warned last week. We need statutory approval to raise the cap. Some 2 years after the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan, evacuations of former contractors continue amid fears of Taliban reprisals. Taliban de facto authorities say their prescribed general amnesty protects former U.S. collaborators from harm. "Anyone who questions the Taliban's brutality is wrong," Sullivan told VOA. We have documented over 200 targeted reprisal killings by the Taliban. Since 2008, the U.S. has awarded nearly 120,000 SIVs to Afghans. Afghanistan left out Since the 2021 withdrawal, the U.S. government has largely excluded Afghanistan from its policy priorities. Washington refuses to recognize the Taliban regime, but also withholds support for opposition groups. President Joe Biden's State of the Union address last week did not include any reference to Afghanistan, a topic that previously featured prominently in U.S. policy discussions. As Biden spoke, one man shouted, "Abbey Gate, Abbey Gate," referring to the entrance to the Kabul airport, where in August 2021 a massive explosion claimed the lives of more than 100 Afghans and 13 U.S. military personnel. Biden may try to turn the page on Afghanistan after his incompetence cost American lives, but NOT ON MY WATCH, Brian Mast, a member of Congress who served in Afghanistan as an army bomb disposal expert, wrote on X. Republican lawmakers often criticize Biden's handling of the chaotic withdrawal. However, some activists fault the Republican-led House for inaction on the Afghan Adjustment Act, which seeks to offer legal paths to permanent residency for tens of thousands of Afghans admitted to the U.S. in 2021 and 2022 for humanitarian reasons. KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 18:13 | All, Japan A Japanese court ordered the government on Wednesday to hand over the hair and cremated remains of the executed AUM Shinrikyo cult founder Shoko Asahara to his second daughter after a top court ruled in 2021 that she can take them into her possession. The government had urged during the trial at the Tokyo District Court that the daughter's request to have them handed over be rejected, stressing concerns that they could become objects of worship for followers of AUM Shinrikyo's successor groups, including one known as Aleph. The government said that based on talks between Justice Ministry officials and the daughter over the storage of the hair and ashes, she appears to anticipate and be tolerant of their use by the successor groups. The daughter had argued it would be "impossible" for her to hand over the remains to anyone else, saying, "As his daughter, I just want to mourn quietly." The Supreme Court ruled in July 2021 that the woman could take what remains of Asahara, whose real name was Chizuo Matsumoto, into her possession, putting an end to a long-running family row over his ashes. Asahara's ashes have been stored at the Tokyo Detention House since he was hanged in July 2018, along with 12 other members of the doomsday cult for crimes including the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway that left 14 people dead and more than 6,000 others injured. Although the cult went bankrupt in 1996, three successor groups -- Aleph and two splinter groups -- are still active. Related coverage: Japan decides to seek court order to dissolve Unification Church More than 20 nations took part in joint military exercises in Kenya this month. The maneuvers aimed to build readiness and cooperation to counter terrorist groups in East Africa. VOA Bureau Chief Mariama Diallo attended one of the training sessions and has this story. Camera: Amos Wangua Austria has declared two diplomats from the Russian embassy personae non grata for actions "incompatible with their diplomatic status," ordering them to leave the country within a week, Austria's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday. The move brings to 11 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020 in four separate rounds. It is not clear whether the expulsions are connected. Officials have said that some previous expulsions involved spying, but as before the ministry gave no specifics. "Two diplomats from the Russian embassy have acted in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status," the foreign ministry said in a statement, using its standard phrasing for such cases. They must leave the country by the end of Tuesday, it added. Before Austria even announced the move, Russia already said it would retaliate. Its foreign ministry called the decision "groundless," according to state news agency RIA. Russian news agencies, quoting a statement issued by the Russian embassy in Vienna, expressed "outrage" at the expulsions. "As in previous episodes of expulsions, this time we have not been presented with the slightest evidence, let alone proof of any violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," the agencies quoted the statement as saying. "This is a purely political decision by the Austria authorities which we categorically reject. There can be no doubt of Moscow's resolute response," the statement said, according to the agencies. After previous expulsions from Austria, Moscow has responded by expelling diplomats from the Austrian Embassy in Moscow, which has only a fraction of the number of diplomats that Russia has stationed in Austria. Vienna is a major diplomatic center hosting the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and United Nations organizations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency. U.S. President Joe Biden became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Tuesday night, and former President Donald Trump secured the delegates needed for the Republican nomination, setting up a November rematch of their 2020 contest. Both Trump and Biden won primary elections Tuesday in the states of Georgia, Mississippi and Washington, securing enough delegates for a majority in their respective parties. Biden entered Tuesday 102 delegates short of the 1,968 needed to formally become the presumptive Democratic nominee, while Trump was 137 delegates short of the 1,215 needed to win the Republican nomination. Biden has faced only nominal opposition to become the Democratic nominee. Trump, meanwhile, has defeated several Republicans in primary elections, including former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Other candidates, including Trumps former vice president, Mike Pence, dropped out months ago for lack of voter support in the face of Trumps obvious hold on a large base of Republican voters. Even without their parties nominations officially in hand, both candidates are in full campaign mode eight months ahead of the election, taking swipes at each other on every occasion they can. In his State of the Union address last week, Biden disparaged my predecessor 13 times, never mentioning Trump by name, but painting a dystopian vision of what a second Trump presidency would look like. Trump mocks Bidens age, 81, even though he is only four years younger. "I assume he's going to be the candidate," Trump said of Biden on CNBC Monday. "I'm his only opponent other than life, life itself." Most early national polls show Trump with a slight edge over Biden and in several of the key political battleground states that will likely determine the national outcome in the November 5 balloting. But Trump is also facing an unprecedented four criminal indictments encompassing 91 charges, with one trial set to start March 25. Whether any of the other cases will be tried before the election is uncertain, but some voters have told pollsters that they will not vote for Trump if he is convicted of any of the charges. The U.S. does not pick its presidents by the national popular vote but rather in state-by-state elections in each of the 50 states and subsequent voting in the Electoral College. With a couple of exceptions, the winner of each states vote wins all its Electoral College votes, with the largest states holding the most electoral votes and the most sway in the national outcome. While Trump and Biden have the delegates to be the presumptive nominees, their positions as the Republican and Democratic candidate in the November election will not be official until each party holds its convention. Republicans have their convention set for July, with the Democrats following in August. Some material in this report came from The Associated Press. Cameroon officials have declared a humanitarian emergency after encroaching waters from the Atlantic Ocean destroyed several hundred homes, buildings and plantations along Cameroon's coast. Waves pound walls and houses constructed on the shores of Bekumu, a southern Cameroon village located in Ndian, an administrative unit along parts of Cameroon's 400-kilometer coast on the Atlantic Ocean. The images broadcast on Cameroon state TV this week show civilians crying out for help. "If the government does not help immediately, if the government does not do something urgently, I don't believe Bekumu will exist again. The water level is so high. What is this, oh God." The civilian is not identified in the video, but the Bekumu Village Development Committee, in a release, said it shared images of the civilian crying out for help to raise awareness of the fate that has befallen them. Bekumu villagers say encroaching seawater this week has destroyed homes, public buildings and plantations, and rendered several hundred people homeless. The Cameroon government says high waves swept through Bekumu destroying coastal villages, plantations, schools, churches and markets. Civilians say they lack potable water after seawater swept and emptied waste water in streams that are considered a source of drinkable water. Sangi John is the traditional ruler of Bekumu village. Speaking to VOA on Wednesday via a messaging app, he said it is the first time encroaching waters from the Atlantic Ocean have caused so much havoc in Bekumu. He said strong sea waves early Wednesday pulled down parts of school buildings and churches where homeless civilians rushed for shelter. "The disaster is so serious, the water has washed from the schools to people's houses, right to all churches. The water is everywhere. I am appealing for the government to help us," he said. Sangi said scores of civilians have relocated to safer villages while three dozen others are trapped in creeks waiting for help to relocate. He said hunger looms as several hundred hectares of farmland are currently being destroyed by water. Fishermen, farmers and merchants constitute 75 percent of the population of affected villages. They say economic activity has nosedived because of the encroaching ocean waters that also killed goats and washed away poultry farms. In August of last year when seawater swept through the coastal town of Kribi, swallowing homes and plantations, CEMAC, a six member state economic bloc that groups Cameroon, Chad, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo, said the ongoing rise in sea levels was potentially catastrophic for an economic bloc for whom 30 percent of civilians live along the coastline. The Cameroon government has always blamed global warming and rising sea levels for the encroaching of ocean water into its coastal lands. Cameroon's ministry of agriculture says the ongoing floods in Ndian add to the humanitarian emergency it declared following food shortages because of floods in several parts of the central African state. The government says it has dispatched humanitarian workers and specialized services of its military to rescue civilians but gave no further details. China has launched a new push to repair relations with the EU in recent weeks, deploying its special envoy on Eurasian affairs on a shuttle diplomacy tour through several European countries while calling on Brussels to prioritize the common interests rather than differences between the two sides. At a press conference during Chinas annual parliamentary meeting last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi pushed back against the European Unions characterization of China as a partner, competitor and systemic rival while reiterating that their common interests outweigh differences. China and Europe do not have clashing fundamental interests between them, or geopolitical and strategic conflicts, he said in front of dozens of local and foreign journalists. The two sides should be characterized rightly as partners, [and] cooperation should be the defining feature of the relationship. Some analysts say Wangs emphasis on common interests over differences reflects Beijings attempt to use mild diplomacy in a bid to improve relations with Europe. Over the last few months, China has been trying to stabilize not only their relationship with the U.S. but also their relations with the EU, said Justyna Szczudlik, a China analyst and deputy head of research at the Polish Institute of International Affairs. In light of Brussels toughening stance on China, including sanctions imposed on Chinese companies supporting Russia, Szczudlik told VOA in a phone interview that Beijing is aware that the EU has leverage on them. China also needs stability because of the economic headwinds and social problems they are facing, she said. Despite Beijings attempt to reduce tension with European countries through measures such as extending visa-free travel to six other European countries, some experts say the effect of this strategy will be limited. While European countries recognize that Beijing is trying to improve relations with the EU, all the old problems still prevail, including uneven trade disputes and Chinas stance on the Ukraine war, Sari Arho Havren, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in Brussels, told VOA by phone. She said that while Brussels has repeatedly highlighted its trade pain points and other concerns during meetings with Beijing, those messages dont seem to have registered with the Chinese side. Nothing is happening [on the Chinese side], so I dont think Beijing is listening to the EUs concerns, Havren said. Since the beginning of March, Li Hui, the Chinese special envoy on Eurasian affairs, has been conducting a second round of shuttle diplomacy across Europe, traveling to Russia, Brussels, Poland, Ukraine, Germany and France. During his meeting with top European diplomats in Brussels, Li expressed Beijings firm opposition to the EUs inclusion of Chinese companies in its sanctions against Russia while urging the EU to return to the right track of dialogue and consultation with China, according to the official readout issued by the Chinese government. Apart from urging Brussels to lift sanctions on the Chinese companies, the South China Morning Post reported, Li also told European officials that no discussion on Ukraines territorial integrity would take place until the violence stops, which he claimed could only happen if the EU stops sending weapons to Ukraine. In response, the EU expressed concerns about the large volumes of dual-use and advanced technology items that China has exported to Russias military-industrial complex and said Chinas position on the Ukraine war inevitably impacts the bilateral relations. Brussels also urged Beijing to play a constructive role by calling on Russia to withdraw all forces from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. Some experts say the EUs readout shows they dont expect Beijing to play a constructive role in facilitating a potential cease-fire and peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. The EU feels that Li was delivering messages close to Moscows propaganda during their meeting, and it would likely make Brussels less willing to open up to the olive branch from China, Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy, an expert on China-EU relations at the National Dong Hwa University in Taiwan, told VOA in a phone interview. Ferenczy said that while Chinas commitment to its partnership with Russia has damaged the EUs trust in Beijing, Brussels has repeatedly expressed its commitment to keep channels of communication open with the Chinese. Amid Beijings renewed diplomatic outreach, the EU has adopted a series of measures that some analysts say signal a toughening stance on its trade relations with China. Last week, the European Commission started customs registration of electric vehicles imported from China, paving the way for a possible imposition of tariffs on Chinese EVs. Additionally, the EU is moving closer to adopting an anti-forced-labor law, which could ban imports from Chinas Xinjiang region, where some research and media reports suggest a large number of Uyghur Muslims are being subjected to forced labor, an accusation Beijing denies. Szczudlik in Poland said the potential adoption of these trade measures shows that the EUs handling of its trade relationship with China has gone from setting up defensive tools to being offensive. This process is a good example that the EU is not toothless when it comes to China, she said. The EU is preparing to hold its parliamentary election in June, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is running for reelection in 2024, but Ferenczy in Taiwan said she doesnt expect any big changes in EU-China relations in the short term. I expect the European side to remain skeptical of China and push forward the same agenda, she said, adding that the outcome of the two elections may have some impact on how the EU shapes its policies toward Beijing. Members of Congress on Tuesday turned a hearing about President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents into a charged referendum on a question central to the upcoming presidential election: the 81-year-old's mental fitness. The Biden administration and their main challengers, the backers of presumptive Republican candidate Donald Trump, emerged from the House Judiciary Committee's five-hour grilling of Special Counsel Robert Hur with radically different answers to that question. They also starkly disagreed over Hur's decision not to file criminal charges, despite concluding in his February report that Biden "willfully retained and disclosed classified materials as a private citizen." Criminal charges were not warranted, Hur argued in announcing his decision in early February, because, he said, Biden would likely present himself to a jury as a "well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory" words that Republican legislators repeated, repeatedly, during the hearing. Afterward, Ian Sams, spokesperson for the White House counsel's office, gave his take: "The main thing I took away from the hearing today was that we had three hours of the Republicans showing just how hypocritical they're willing to be in order to politically attack the president at the same time that they and the Democrats and the special counsel himself laid bare exactly why there is no case here," he said. "The case is closed, the evidence did not support bringing charges, and it's over," Sams said. "It's time to move on." Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesperson for Trump's Make America Great Again movement, offered his own conclusion. "Joe Biden put America's national security at risk with his illegal retention and disclosure of classified material," he said. "Biden lied about his wrongdoing in a national press conference, which begs the question what else is Joe Biden lying about?" Further muddying the picture on the matter is Hur's own grammatically complex statement: "The word exoneration does not appear anywhere in my report and that is not my conclusion," Hur said. A newly released transcript of Hur's five-hour interview held last year with Biden, includes instances of Biden saying he couldn't recall details or citing dates incorrectly, appearing to say in one instance that his eldest son died in 2017 and that Trump, who was elected in 2016, was "elected in November of 2017." "The transcript is now available for every American to see, for all media to see," Sams said. He noted it shows that, despite the confusion over the year of Beau Biden's death, it shows that Biden correctly cited the date: May 30. "I think that you saw the anger and emotional reaction of a father who still experiences the pain of that loss every single day," Sams said. Many Republicans used their five-minute question periods to compare Biden's situation to that of his challenger. Trump, too, faces criminal charges over his handling of classified documents after he left office. He was initially slapped with 37 felony counts, including charges that he obstructed justice by failing to return the documents even in response to a subpoena. It's not clear when that case will go to trial. Florida Representative Matt Gaetz, in one sentence, took aim at the justice system and Biden's mental acuity: "This guy's not getting treated the same way as Trump, because the elevator is not going to the top floor, so we can't prove intent." Democrats resisted that characterization. "Joe Biden is a competent, good president who knows American values," Tennessee Representative Steve Cohen said. Hur, in his opening statement, said he would "refrain from speculating or commenting on areas outside the scope of the investigation." But he also responded to criticism that he overstepped, saying he could not have reached the conclusion he did "without assessing the president's state of mind." Other elected representatives chose not to ask Hur any questions, such as Missouri Representative Cori Bush, a Democrat, who described Hur's report as a "partisan hit job" though she said it was appropriate for both Trump and Biden to be investigated. "Our country deserves better than this," she said of the hearing. Texas Representative Nathaniel Moran praised Hur's efforts, asking him only yes-or-no questions and suggesting Biden could be ruled incompetent by a District of Columbia court and placed under guardianship. And he repeated the critical line from Hur's report words sure to echo over November's presidential contest although he prefaced it with an adjective, calling Biden a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." Haitis capital, Port-au-Prince, has been plagued by an uptick in rampant gang violence since January, forcing a shutdown of the countrys main airport and plunging the nation further into chaos. Gangs besieged the country's largest airport last week, locking out Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who on Tuesday conceded to their demands that he immediately resign. Henry said in a video statement posted online from Puerto Rico that he would step down once a transitional presidential council is installed. Henry was appointed Haitis prime minister just days before President Jovenel Moise was assassinated but was never sworn in. Haitis recent history has been marked by instability and conflict. Heres what you need to know about the countrys current turmoil. When did the current violence begin? Although Haiti has faced instability throughout its history, the current situation stems from Moises assassination in 2021. Since then, the country has been without a president or a functioning government. There have been no elections, and the terms of the last National Assembly members expired in 2023. With a weakened National Police force, gangs have overrun the capital. According to United Nations officials, gangs now control about 80% of Port-au-Prince. What are other countries doing to end the instability in Haiti? Leaders of the Caribbean Community, known as CARICOM, have been meeting in Kingston, Jamaica, this week to discuss the crisis in Haiti. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Monday at the meeting that the United States would contribute an extra $100 million to support the U.N.-backed security force in Haiti, along with another $33 million in humanitarian aid. Whats ahead for Haiti? CARICOM released a statement Monday outlining the criteria of a Transitional Presidential Council. Henry will resign once the council is in place. Blinken said he has been working over the last several days with CARICOM and other stakeholders to outline a path forward for Haiti. He said the plan will be Haitian-led, Haitian-conceived, but with the critical support of countries attending the meeting. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield echoed U.S. support for Haiti, saying, The international community must do everything it can to support these aims. The Haitian people have suffered enough. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters. On March 3, Iran International, a London-based Persian-language news television channel, shared CCTV footage taken inside a hospital in the Iranian city of Qom, causing heated discussions both inside Iran and online. The video shows a brief conflict between a young woman and a man dressed in a robe traditionally worn by Islamic clergymen in Iran. While the CCTV footage does not show what caused the conflict, Iranian media news reports, as well as captions added to the same video clip posted on X and YouTube, indicate that the woman was cradling her sick child when her hijab slipped down her shoulders and the cleric started recording her on his mobile phone. The woman protested being recorded and asked that the footage to be deleted, which the man refused to do. In a March 10 piece headlined Who is the main culprit in the story of Qom clinic? the Political group of the Fars News Agency, controlled by Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), examined the incident. The piece praised the clerics behavior, identifying him as Ferd Rouhani and describing him as a young activist who seems to have the intention of forbidding evil. Fars concluded that his actions were appropriate and in accordance with the law. The woman, on the other hand, violated multiple laws, the article stated, including by not wearing a mandatory hijab and by verbally attacking a religious man. The piece said the woman in the video was another example of a trend in which prostitution has become more public day by day. It concluded: It is clear that, first of all, the woman who is exposed has committed the forbidden act of uncovering the hijab. Of course, she commits another mistake by shouting and attacking the young cleric. That is misleading. It is true that the actions of the cleric did not violate Irans law, and the womans loss of the hijab covering her head and voicing anger at a religious man in public are considered grave crimes under Iranian law. However, the young woman apparently acted out of extreme distress and fear, which is not unfounded, given that the Iranian authorities can use the clerics recording of her as incriminating evidence in court. Iran's Islamic clergy is infamous for brutal punishment of women who disobey the countrys mandatory hijab laws. Violators face prison terms and large financial fines. They are also often victims of physical attacks, some ending up with their faces splashed with flesh-eating acid, while others, like Mahsa Amini, end up dead. Fars said the actions of the person who sent the CCTV footage to the international terrorist network (Iran International is critical of the Iranian regime) should not be ignored. The only reason the video gained public attention and resonance is because it was used in a game of the enemy, to create a gap between the people and lead to the division of Iran, the news agency said. After Fars posted the piece, several social media users claimed that the Iranian authorities have identified and arrested the woman in the video. Others said the whistleblower who leaked the CCTV footage was also identified and arrested. Some even claimed that the hospital where the incident took place was shut down. Polygraph.info was unable to independently verify those claims. Iran International reported, though, that Qoms prosecutor Hassan Gharib announced on March 10 that he had issued an order to identify and prosecute the individual who leaked the CCTV footage to Iran International. No arrests have been made in connection with the incident, Gharib said. Fars likewise reported that no one has been arrested in connection with the incident and that the investigation is ongoing," adding: Rumors about the closure of the clinic or the cancellation of its license are not true, and no restrictive measures have been taken. Polygraph.infos Persian-speaking reporter reviewed the CCTV footage at the center of the controversy. The video clip appears to have been filmed inside a crowded corridor, reportedly in a hospital. It starts with a young woman dressed in black but wearing no headscarf running in front of the cleric, who seems to be on his way out of the building. She asks the cleric to delete the recordings he made of her from his mobile phone without her consent. Other women join in support of the woman without a hijab, and they all shout at the cleric, demanding that he delete the footage or hand over his phone. The situation escalates, with the cleric refusing to delete the footage and attempting to leave. The young woman, seemingly terrified, becomes increasingly agitated and ends up having what looks like a panic attack. Her supporters keep pressuring the cleric until he runs away while the crowd tears off his cloak and his turban. On March 11, a video was posted on social media platform X of a similar incident in Iran, in which a religious individual was seen confronting a woman and arguing over her hijab in the metro. Climate change and upstream dams, most of them controlled by China, are threatening Cambodia's enormous Tonle Sap Lake and its surrounding communities, putting the nation's protein supply and the greater Mekong River ecosystem at risk. The three-year stretch from 2019-2021 was the driest on record. The Tonle Sap's vital flood pulse appeared to be dying, along with much of the lake's bountiful fish stocks. Water typically flows into the Tonle Sap Lake for 120 days during the wet season, swelling it as much as six-fold before running back into the Mekong River as the rainy season ends, usually in late September. This fluctuation is the pulse. And while the past two years have seen more rainfall, a nearly normal wet-season lake expansion and the usual reversed flow, such temporary relief cannot offset the long-term effects of a lake in crisis, experts and officials told VOA Khmer. "The new normal is uncertainty," said Brian Eyler, who directs the Stimson Center's programs on Southeast Asia and energy, water and sustainability. "That the predictability of a traditional expansion happening nearly every wet season, or every monsoon season, cannot be relied upon." The Stimson Center is in Washington. Fears of the ecosystem dying out have drawn international attention, given the Tonle Sap's distinction as one of the world's most productive inland fisheries and as the source of most of the protein consumed by Cambodians. Over the past two years, Tonle Sap Lake has reached nearly normal total flow, according to the Stimson Center's Mekong Dam Monitor project. However, in 2022 much of that flow came later in the wet season due to heavy rainfall, meaning the lake missed out on the early-season inflows that carry sediment, larva and nutrients crucial to annual fish stocks. Last year saw monthly flows nearly track historical averages, which produced a decent fishing season, according to the Stimson project. Data from Cambodia's Fisheries Administration show 413,200 metric tons of freshwater fish were caught in 2019, then 383,050 in 2021 and just 368,059 in 2022. A Fisheries spokesperson told VOA Khmer that 426,750 metric tons of freshwater fish were caught in 2023. Each metric ton equals 1,000 kg. "For now, the ecosystem of the Mekong seems to be not like it was before, but it's still there. It hasn't completely died out," Eyler said in January during an interview on the Zoom platform. The Mekong Dam Monitor is seeking to track where flow originates, where it is being stopped upstream, and how the decisions made by each of the countries are affecting the other nearby nations. According to its data, the total flow into the Tonle Sap would have been 12.4% higher in September, when it reached its 2023 peak, if it weren't for water being withheld upstream, mostly in Chinese reservoirs. China in the past two years appears to have withheld less water, compared with previous years, according to the monitoring project. Yet it's unclear if that's because it is responding to the concerns from downstream communities or because its needs were less, according to the Stimson project. One phenomenon the Stimson researchers are watching closely is how the wet season is changing. It is arriving later and lasting longer than historical norms, a possible reflection of climate change. "If indeed that's true, and [if] we can substantiate it, then there's reason for the dams upstream not to hold water back at the beginning of the wet season, and to hold water back at the end of the wet season," said Alan Basist, president of Eyes on Earth and a co-lead researcher of the Mekong Dam Monitor, during the January interview. The Chinese Embassy in Washington said the "rational development" of the Mekong, which China calls the Lancang River, is in the overall interest of all countries that depend on it. "China always attaches great importance to the concerns and needs of the countries downstream, maintains close communication with them, commits itself to carrying out cooperation on water resources with relevant countries such as sharing hydrological data and flood control and drought relief," said embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu in an email on February 26. The Mekong River Commission (MRC) is the main regional body tasked with bringing countries together to coordinate water management and consult on potential new dam projects on the massive river and its tributaries. In 2020, the MRC attributed the delayed swelling to lower 2019 rainfall and operations of upstream Mekong hydropower dams, two of which are in Laos and 11 in China. But the MRC Secretariat said in an email to VOA Khmer in February that it was too soon to know what the "new normal" looks like, given recent droughts and "human activities in the basin," or how these changes would ultimately affect surrounding communities. Mak Bunthoeurn, a program manager at the NGO Forum on Cambodia who works with communities along the Mekong and its tributaries in Cambodia, said they have found little cause for optimism, even with the recent relative increase in total flow. Advocacy groups working with these communities want more data, particularly from China, Mak Bunthoeurn added during a Zoom interview in late January. "I suggest that the governments of the Mekong River have to work together, to cooperate, to ensure that downstream communities will not suffer." Haitian leaders are rushing to meet a looming deadline to name the members of a transitional council that will take power after the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry. Henry resigned late Monday under pressure from the United States and the leaders of the regional body Caribbean Community, or CARICOM. The proposal for the transitional council to govern violence-plagued Haiti emerged Monday during a meeting of CARICOM leaders in the Jamaican capital, Kingston. Under the plan, six people representing various Haitian political coalitions will be on the transitional council, along with a seventh from the private sector. The seven will be voting members. There also will be two non-voting members one from civil society and one from the interfaith community, according to CARICOM. The council will select an interim prime minister and prepare to hold the next presidential elections. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters on Wednesday that he spoke with Kenyan President William Ruto, whose country is expected to lead an international security mission to Haiti to help restore order. "I was on the phone this morning with President Ruto of Kenya, who confirmed Kenya's preparedness to lead that that mission, as soon as the new council is stood up, which we believe will happen in the next couple of days, and an interim prime minister is selected. That mission can move forward," said Blinken. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said early Tuesday afternoon that under the terms of Monday's agreement, "we expect that the members of the transitional council will be appointed in the next 24 to 48 hours." The council will take the step to appoint an interim prime minister in the near future after that, said Miller during the daily briefing. Meanwhile, the U.S. Defense Department said that at the request of the State Department, its Southern Command has deployed a U.S. Marine Fleet-Anti-terrorism Security Team to maintain strong security capabilities at the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital. The U.S. said its embassy remains open and limited operations continue, focused on assisting Americans in Haiti and supporting Haitian-led efforts to secure a peaceful transition of power. The Defense Department said it is working with the Multinational Security Support mission to help the Haitian National Police restore security. At the same time, the United Nations said Wednesday it is reducing its footprint in Haiti because of the volatile security situation. A spokesperson said non-essential personnel would be reduced, while those carrying out "lifesaving activities" will stay to continue operations. The organization has about 1,500 personnel in Haiti. "The U.N. is not leaving Haiti," spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said. In announcing the transitional government plan, CARICOM said Haitians deserve a country where children can go to school, and their parents know they will be safe. We commend the willingness and courage of Haitian stakeholders to commit to put Haiti back on a path toward democracy, stability, and prosperity. Henry resigned a week after his plane was forced to land in the U.S. Caribbean territory of Puerto Rico when it was denied entry into the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Henry had departed Haiti the week before on a mission to the South American nation of Guyana and the east African nation of Kenya to gain support for the deployment of a multinational United Nations peacekeeping force to Haiti, which has been plagued by brutal and uncontrolled gang violence in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and beyond. The gangs used Henrys absence to attack the National Penitentiary and another prison in Port-au-Prince, killing several people and allowing thousands of inmates to escape into the city. Gangs also staged shooting attacks on Haitis main airport. Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier, the leader of an alliance of gangs that staged the attacks, said the gangs would not allow Henry to return to Haiti and urged him to resign. Plans to deploy a multinational force to Haiti were delayed Tuesday when Kenyan officials said the country will not send its peacekeepers to Haiti until the new interim government is in place. Henry, a neurosurgeon by profession, has served as acting prime minister since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise plunged the Caribbean nation into chaos. He had been scheduled to step down in February, but delayed elections due to the worsening security situation and a political stalemate with opposition forces. The violence has triggered a humanitarian crisis, displacing 360,000 Haitians and pushing millions more to the brink of starvation. Jean-Martin Bauer, the director of the World Food Program's Haiti division, told reporters Tuesday that 4 million Haitians are dealing with food insecurity, while 1 million more face famine. Blinken pledged Monday that Washington would contribute an extra $100 million to support the U.N.-backed security force in Haiti, along with another $33 million in humanitarian aid. He made the pledge in Kingston, where he took part in the CARICOM conference. KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 07:17 | World, All When Alson Kelen, a former municipality chief on the Pacific island of Bikini Atoll that was the site of a U.S. hydrogen bomb detonation on March 1, 1954, recalls how his mother used to pine for returning to her homeland, it still brings up strong feelings. After her death in 2020 on Ejit Island, a Marshall island located around 800 kilometers to the south of Bikini, she joined many others who were ultimately unable to move back within their lifetimes. Bikini's 167 former residents, including Kelen's mother, Lirok Joash, were forced to leave the atoll in March 1946, before the United States conducted a nuclear test dubbed "Castle Bravo" and 66 other nuclear experiments on the Marshall Islands from 1946 to 1958. Joash would often ask Kelen when they could return to Bikini, a place where she had fond memories of going fishing and making handicrafts from coconut. "I told her the truth: 'I don't know.' And of course, at the same time, I was lying...I know we're not going back," he told Kyodo News recently, adding that he did it to protect his mother's feelings. In 1969, the United States finally declared that Bikini was safe to move back to. But Joash only returned to the island once with Kelen, who was born in Kwajalein Atoll, as it was later revealed that high levels of radiation contamination remained on the island, and several residents suffered from exposure. Joash and Kelen were therefore forced to leave Bikini again in 1978. After moving to Kili Island and then Majuro, the country's capital, they settled in nearby Ejit more than four decades ago. Joash died from natural causes at 95, but according to Kelen, she was always wary of the contamination on Bikini. One day, he hopes to grant his mother's wish by bringing her remains, laid to rest at the cemetery in Ejit, to Bikini. Many people from four severely affected Marshall Islands atolls -- Bikini, Enewetak, Rongelap and Utrok -- continue to feel as though they are "in exile even in death," as described by President Hilda Heine in a recent interview with Kyodo, highlighting the lingering effects of radiation on the islands. Of the 167 Bikinians displaced in March 1946 in preparation for the nuclear tests, only seven remain alive, according to Jess Gasper Jr., a senator who represents Bikini Atoll. Ejit municipal council member Frederick Aitab said that most of the deceased Bikinians on Ejit, including the offspring of the 167 displaced, have died from cancer, though whether the deaths are linked to radiation exposure has not yet been established. The Government Accountability Office, a U.S. government watchdog, wrote in a report submitted to a U.S. Senate environment committee in January that some parts of Bikini Atoll still have high levels of radiological contamination. Citing a 2016 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences article, the watchdog wrote that gamma radiation levels on Bikini remained at more than 1 millisievert per year, much higher than the 0.095 millisieverts found in natural background radiation elsewhere in the Marshall Islands. On Rongelap Atoll, which saw significant radioactive fallout after the Castle Bravo test, some parts have been blighted by radiological contamination, the office's report said, citing the scientific studies in its review. From the 1970s to the 2000s, the United States conducted cleanup operations at the Bikini, Enewetak and Rongelap atolls, and it continues radiological monitoring of them alongside Utrok Atoll, the report said. Bikini is still uninhabited due to radiation fears, and there are no regular flights or ships to the atoll. On Rongelap, where all residents were evacuated to until 1985, the government constructed housing and basic infrastructure after the United States finished its cleanup operations. But its former residents did not return due to nuclear contamination concerns, and because many of those who were exposed to the radioactive fallout from the Castle Bravo test suffered serious health problems, said James Matayoshi, the mayor of Rongelap. While Matayoshi said that the residential area where contaminated earth was removed is safe, he acknowledged a study by Columbia University published in 2019 that showed the radiation level in the northern part of the atoll was still high. He also admitted that there are few ways to make a living at Rongelap, given coconuts harvested at the atoll were feared by some people in Majuro to be unsafe to process and sell. The mayor, who lives in Majuro, said his family members and relatives died in the capital, and that their remains have been laid to rest on the premises of his house. "We have a cemetery where a lot of our elders and families have been buried (on Rongelap)," Matayoshi said, explaining that his late mother, aunts and cousins have said they wish to join their ancestors at the cemetery. But he added that it would be difficult to bring their remains to Rongelap, about 700 kilometers away from Majuro, due to the costs involved and a lack of frequent flights. Meanwhile, Kelen, 55, said that given Bikini remains uninhabitable, he may ask his grandchildren to move his mother's remains from a cemetery on Ejit to Bikini, so that he can make her wish come true even if he ends up being unable to do so while he is alive. David Anitok, a senator who represents Ailuk Atoll and Presidential Envoy for Nuclear Justice and Human Rights, said the people of the Marshall Islands must continue to remember those who have died without being able to return home, and should continue striving to seek justice for them. When asked how meaningful it is for Marshall Islanders to be buried on the islands they call home, he said, "Land...is part of who we are, it's our identity. And losing our homeland is really losing who we are as a people." Related coverage: Marshall Islands wants nuclear weapons ban pact amended U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Israel must make the welfare of Palestinian civilians job number one in its conduct of the war against Hamas in Gaza. "We look to the government of Israel to make sure this is a priority - protecting civilians, getting people the assistance they need, he told reporters after a virtual meeting with international counterparts. That has to be job number one, even as they do what is necessary to defend the country and to deal with the threat posed by Hamas. The top U.S. diplomat met via videoconference with ministers from Cyprus, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, the European Union and the United Nations to discuss a new maritime corridor for aid into Gaza. When established, this corridor will enable the distribution of up to 2 million meals every single day, as well as medicine, water and other critical humanitarian supplies, Blinken said. The U.S. military has dispatched a ship to the Mediterranean to build a temporary pier on the Gaza shoreline to provide passage for more aid but says the dock may take two months to complete. On Wednesday, the U.N. Palestinian refugee agency, UNRWA, said at least one of its staff members was killed and another 22 were injured when Israeli forces hit a food distribution center in the eastern part of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Blinken said this incident showed the imperative of having much better and consistent deconfliction with humanitarian workers. Ciaran Donnelly, vice president of crisis response for the International Rescue Committee, told reporters in a briefing that the recent use of airdrops to deliver food is unsafe, highly expensive, ineffective and undignified for the people who have to scramble to receive it on the ground. It is very much a last resort for aid agencies in crises around the world and should not be the first option for agencies in Gaza, he said. Relief efforts A Spanish charity ship carrying more than 200 metric tons of humanitarian food aid set sail from Cyprus to Gaza on Tuesday, the latest effort to feed tens of thousands of Palestinians who the United Nations has said are starving. The food, gathered by World Central Kitchen, the charity founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres, was on a barge being towed by a ship belonging to the Spanish aid group Open Arms and headed to an undisclosed location on the Gaza coast. The 400-kilometer voyage was expected to take two to three days. A second vessel was being loaded in Cyprus to soon make the same trip, Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos told state radio. Speaking later in Beirut, Kombos said, "We are working towards the safe arrival of the first shipment and then the safe distribution." "If all goes according to plan ... we have already put in place the mechanism for a second and much bigger cargo, and then we'll be working toward making this a more systematic exercise with increased volumes," he said. Israeli strikes Israel said Wednesday that it killed a Hamas militant in an airstrike on a U.N. food distribution center in Rafah, in southern Gaza. Palestinian officials said the Israeli strike killed at least four other people, one of them a U.N. worker. "Todays attack on one of the very few remaining UNRWA distribution centers in the Gaza Strip comes as food supplies are running out, hunger is widespread and, in some areas, turning into famine," said UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini. Hamas said in a statement that Muhammad Abu Hasna, a police officer in charge of security at the UNRWA center, was killed in the strike. Israels military identified Abu Hasna as a Hamas terrorist who led an intelligence operations room for the militant group and was also involved in taking control of humanitarian aid and distributing it to Hamas terrorists." An Israeli drone strike on Wednesday in southern Lebanon killed two people, including a member of the Hamas militant group. The strike hit a car outside the city of Tyre, near the Mediterranean coast. Lebanese state media identified the Hamas members as being from the Rashidieh refugee camp, an area where the militant group has a notable presence. Israels military also reported Wednesday carrying out airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis and ground operations in central Gaza as it pursues Israels goal of eliminating Hamas. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza reported on Wednesday that 88 more Palestinians had been killed in Israels offensive during the past day. Since the war began in early October, the total number of Palestinians killed is at least 31,272, with another 73,000 injured, according to the ministry. It does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. No cease-fire Blinken said the United States was intensely engaged with regional countries every single day, almost every single hour to try to achieve a cease-fire and get the remaining hostages out. The United States, Qatar and Egypt had hoped to broker a cease-fire before the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan began Monday that would have included the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners and a greater flow of aid into Gaza. The talks stalled last week. The United States is encouraging Israel to "stay engaged," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said during a news briefing Tuesday. "We believe that there still is scope for this deal to get done, notwithstanding the fact that we have entered the Ramadan period." Sullivan declined to confirm reports that the administration is considering placing conditions on U.S. military aid to Israel should it continue with plans to invade Rafah without adequate plans to protect civilians. More than 1 million Palestinians are seeking safety there, in Gaza's southernmost area close to the Egyptian border. "I'm not going to comment on hypotheticals," he said, reiterating the administration's talking points that the U.S. does not support a military operation in Rafah that "cuts off the main arteries of humanitarian assistance, and then places enormous pressure on the Israel-Egypt border." State Department Bureau Chief Nike Ching and White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this report. Some material came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. The judge overseeing the Georgia election interference case on Wednesday dismissed some of the charges against former President Donald Trump, but many other counts in the indictment remain. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote in an order that six of the counts in the indictment must be quashed, including three against Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee. But the order leaves intact other charges, and the judge wrote that prosecutors could seek a new indictment on the charges he dismissed. The six charges are about soliciting elected officials to violate their oaths of office. That includes two charges related to the phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a fellow Republican, on January 2, 2021. "All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have," Trump said. The case accuses Trump and 18 others of conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state to Democrat Joe Biden. Trump has pleaded not guilty. The ruling comes as McAfee is also considering a bid by defendants to have Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis removed from the case. Defendants have alleged that Willis has a conflict of interest because of her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade. Lithuania blamed Moscow on Wednesday for an overnight attack by a hammer-wielding assailant on an exiled top aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny outside the aide's home in Vilnius. President Gitanas Nauseda said the attack on Leonid Volkov was clearly planned and tied to other provocations against Lithuania, which is a member of NATO and the European Union. "I can only say one thing to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin: nobody is afraid of you here," Nauseda said. Lithuania's State Security Department counter-intelligence agency said the attack was probably carried out to stop the Russian opposition from influencing Russia's presidential election. Russia's embassy in Vilnius declined to comment on the accusations. Putin, in power for nearly a quarter of a century, is expected to extend his rule by a further six years in the March 15-17 election. The Kremlin views Navalny's team as "the most dangerous opposition force capable of exerting real influence on Russia's internal processes," the Lithuanian security agency said. Volkov himself pointed the finger directly at Putin. In a post on Telegram, he said he had returned home on Wednesday morning after a night in a hospital, having suffered a broken arm and injuries from about 15 hammer blows to the leg. "This is an obvious, typical criminal 'hello' from Putin, from criminal Petersburg," Volkov wrote. "We will keep on working and we will not surrender," he added. "It hard but we'll handle it. ... It's good to know I'm still alive." Navalny, Putin's most prominent critic, died last month in an Arctic prison. Russian authorities say he died of natural causes. His followers believe he was killed by the authorities, which the Kremlin denies. In an interview with Reuters hours before Tuesday night's assault, Volkov said leaders of Navalny's movement in exile feared for their lives. "They know that Putin not only kills people inside Russia, he also kills people outside of Russia," Volkov said in the interview. "We live in very dark times." Former Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh posted images of Volkov with a bruise on his forehead, blood coming from a leg wound, and a vehicle with damage to the driver's door and window. A lone police car could be seen on patrol on Wednesday afternoon outside Volkov's house, in a pine forest on the outskirts of the Lithuanian capital. Lithuanian Foreign Affairs Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said the perpetrators must "answer for their crime." Lithuania's police commissioner Renatas Pozela said police were investigating the assault. He said the attack did not mean that Lithuania was no longer safe. The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people, which borders Russia and Belarus, has become a base for Russian and Belarusian opposition figures. "This is a one-time event which we will successfully solve. ... Our people should not be afraid because of this," Pozela said. The U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania, Kara McDonald, condemned the attack on Volkov. "His resilience and courage in the face of recent attempts to silence and intimidate him are inspiring. The Navalny team remains an outspoken voice against Kremlin repression and brutality," she said on X. Planet-heating methane released by the fossil fuel industry rose to near record highs in 2023 despite technology available to curb this pollution at virtually no cost, the International Energy Agency said Wednesday. Slashing emissions of methane, second only to carbon dioxide for its contribution to global warming, is essential to meeting international targets on climate change, the IEA said. The Paris-based agency said failing to curb methane leaks from oil and gas projects was a "massive missed opportunity" to prevent losses and reduce emissions of the potent greenhouse gas. "Emissions of methane from fossil fuel operations remain unacceptably high ... There is no reason for emissions to remain as high as they are," IEA chief energy economist Tim Gould told reporters ahead of the release of the agency's annual Global Methane Tracker report. But he expressed hope that this year "could mark a turning point," if countries and fossil fuel firms turn their pollution-cutting promises into concrete policies. Methane is responsible for around 30% of the global warming experienced today, according to the UN Environment Program. While some 40% of methane is released from natural sources, mainly wetlands, human activities are responsible for the rest. Agriculture is the main source. Methane is burped out by livestock such as cows and sheep and emitted during rice cultivation. That is followed by the energy sector where methane leaks from energy infrastructure, such as gas pipelines, and from deliberate releases during maintenance. This fossil fuel methane pollution has risen three years in a row, the IEA report said, adding that two thirds of the emissions were from just 10 countries, including China for its methane linked to coal, and the United States for gas, with Russia shortly behind. Major leaks Overall, the IEA said the production and burning of fossil fuels resulted in close to 120 million tons of methane emissions in 2023, a small rise compared with 2022 and close to the record high in 2019. Last year also witnessed a surge in large-scale methane leaks, it said, including a well blowout in Kazakhstan that lasted more than 200 days. Some 40% of the emissions recorded in 2023 "could have been avoided at no net cost" using tried and tested methods to prevent such leakages, said IEA energy expert Christophe McGlade. "It still represents a massive missed opportunity," he said. Methane is far more powerful than CO2 at trapping heat in the atmosphere but relatively short-lived, making it a key target for countries wanting to slash emissions quickly and slow climate change. More than 150 countries, including Azerbaijan, host of the next UN climate talks, have promised a 30% reduction by 2030. Oil and gas firms have meanwhile pledged to slash methane emissions by 2050. But these commitments were not backed up by detailed plans, the IEA said, calling for concrete policies to turn the pledges into reality. It said countries and companies have the power to slash methane emissions from fossil fuels in half by 2030, if they deliver on their promises. Leonid Volkov, a close ally of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was admitted to a hospital on Tuesday after being attacked outside his home in Lithuania, local police told AFP. Volkov, 43, is one of Russia's most prominent opposition figures and was a close confidant of Navalny, working as the late leader's ex-chief of staff and as chairman of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023. "Leonid Volkov has just been attacked outside his house. Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer," Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said on X, formerly Twitter. Volkov's wife, Anna Biryukova, shared photos of her husband's injuries on social media, including a black eye, a red mark on his forehead and bleeding on his leg that had soaked through his jeans. Navalny's team later shared a photo of Volkov being carried into an ambulance on a stretcher. Lithuanian police spokesperson Ramunas Matonis confirmed to AFP that a Russian citizen was assaulted near his home in the capital Vilnius around 10 p.m. local time. "A lot of police are working at the scene," Matonis said. A suspect has not been identified and more details about the assault are expected on Wednesday morning, he added. Police confirmed that Volkov had been admitted into a hospital. The attack comes almost a month after Navalny's death in an Arctic prison, which Volkov blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin, and days before elections set to extend the Kremlin chief's stay in power. The day before he was attacked, Volkov wrote on social media: "Putin killed Navalny. And many others before that." Lithuania's Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis condemned Volkov's attack in a social media post. "News about Leonid's assault are shocking. Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime," he said on X. NATO member Lithuania is home to many Russian exiles and has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine throughout Russia's invasion. Russian dissidents who have spoken out against the Kremlin often complain of being targeted with threats and attacks. Volkov told the independent Russian news outlet Meduza hours before he was beaten on Tuesday that he was worried for his safety after Navalny's death. "The key risk now is that we will all be killed. Why, it's a pretty obvious thing," the outlet quoted him as saying. Volkov went into exile in 2019 along with several of Navalny allies after authorities launched a criminal probe into the leader's Anti-Corruption Foundation. Volkov was declared wanted by Russian authorities in 2021 over his role in drumming up mass protests against the Kremlin together with Navalny. Police in Nigeria have ordered the creation of a new base for officers and the deployment of special forces in a remote village in northwest Kaduna state, where nearly 300 students were abducted by armed bandits on March 7. Nigerian police chief Kayode Egbetokun announced plans for the new base and the deployment during a visit with Kaduna Governor Uba Sani on Tuesday. He said the steps will help restore residents confidence in their safety while security forces continue the search for the missing students. Last Thursday, armed bandits on motorbikes invaded an elementary school in the village of Kuriga in Kaduna state and abducted 287 school students the highest single abduction of students in years. Days later in a separate attack, bandits kidnapped 61 people from Kajuru district, about 150 kilometers miles away. The new police base will be in Kuriga and deployment of extra officers to the area has begun. Egbetokun says authorities are working to secure the abductees release. "We're launching the special intervention squad for Kaduna state, Egbetokun said. If only to give confidence to the people, the men will be deployed and with the support that you have pledged to give, Im sure that the community will start to feel safe again." Sani said he is hopeful the police operations will succeed. "We are extremely confident that the school children by the grace of God will return back home safely, he said, and I'm happy by the decision of the inspector general of police to quickly deploy mobile base in Kuriga community." Last week, local media reported more than 300 women and children who were gathering firewood were kidnapped in northeastern Borno state by Islamic militants. Insecurity is a major challenge for President Bola Tinubu, who launched an initiative called Renewed Hope after assuming office last May. The recent kidnappings are blamed, in part, on the absence of security forces in those remote areas. Last month, the president met with all 36 state governors to discuss decentralizing Nigerias police force and creating a police arm for each state. Analyst Kabiru Adamu of Beacon Security said, if organized properly, this could be a step in the right direction. There are gaps within the security architecture, Adamu said. I am supportive of the decentralization of policing but I think what we need more than anything is accountability. So that by the time we create state police, the accountability elements that have been created in the federal level will trickle down to the state level." Years of fighting Islamist militants and crime gangs have stretched Nigerian security forces thin. Many are hoping the creation of new bases and state police arms will help keep the kidnappers away. A report released Wednesday shows migrants are paid less than Australian-born workers. The Committee for Economic Development of Australia, an independent policy advocacy organization, has found migrants often work in jobs beneath their skill levels and can suffer discrimination. The look into migration highlights missed opportunities for Australia. The policy group asserts that about $2.64 billion in foregone wages would be unlocked each year if migrants earned comparable salaries to Australian-born workers. The study found that migrants who have been in Australia for between two to six years earn around 10% less than their locally born counterparts. The report found the biggest losers were female migrants with a postgraduate degree, who earned on average 31% less than Australian-born women in the workforce with similar qualifications. The surveys authors have urged the Canberra government to better recognize the international qualifications of migrants to help address severe skills shortages and to combat discrimination in the workplace. The committee also said there should be a renewed emphasis on providing better English language tuition to new settlers. Melinda Cilento, the chief executive of the Committee for Economic Development of Australia, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. Wednesday that urgent action is needed. What we are finding is that people who come from non-English speaking backgrounds are the ones who are really struggling and that is one of the reasons why when we identify the (pay) gap, we are looking at English language ability," she said. "It is one of the reasons why we think one of things you need to do is to actually improve English language training for people once they are in Australia. There has been no response, so far, from the Labor government in Canberra. But last December, the government released its migration strategy. It plans to reduce immigration numbers by half within two years, because it believes current levels are unsustainable. The number of international students will be cut, and there will be a greater effort to attract skilled workers from overseas. In 2022, more than a half-million immigrants came to Australia, up from 170,000 the previous year in a post-COVID surge after the removal of pandemic border closures. Ministers also plan to crack down on international students who have enrolled at bogus colleges in Australia and have been exploiting the system to work and not study. Most immigrants to Australia come from India and China. While Australia seeks to curb the immigration of workers and students, it also has strict refugee policies. For more than a decade, the navy has been ordered to turn away boats carrying asylum seekers trying to reach Australia. Those who evade the authorities are automatically detained until their claims are processed. Australia grants visas to about 20,000 refugees each year. Russia has successfully relaunched its spy operations against the West after hundreds of its operatives were ejected following Moscows 2022 invasion of Ukraine, according to analysts. They warn that the Kremlin is using a network of proxies to infiltrate European nations and carry out a range of intelligence operations. Infiltration In a recent report, Britains Royal United Services Institute, or RUSI, warned that Russias military intelligence agency, the GRU, is restructuring how it manages the recruitment and training of special forces troops and is rebuilding the support apparatus to be able to infiltrate them into European countries. The operations range from the killing of political opponents based overseas to interference in foreign elections, with the aim of undermining Western unity and support for Ukraine. A recent high-profile case was the killing of Maxim Kuzminov, a Russian helicopter pilot who had defected to Ukraine in August 2023. Kuzimov moved to Spain and started a new life under a false identity. Last month, his bullet-riddled body was found in a parking lot in the southern Spanish town of Villajoyosa. A burned-out getaway car was found nearby. in the killing, but the director of Russias foreign intelligence service has since described Kuzminov as a "moral corpse for defecting to the West. Spies ejected Analysts say the killing is the latest example of how Moscows intelligence operations have been reinvigorated since European governments kicked out around 600 suspected Kremlin spies in the wake of Russias 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Europeans had a sense of security that the Russian spies are not there anymore, that their capabilities have been significantly curtailed. But the problem is they have not been. They are mightier than ever, said Marina Miron, an analyst at Kings College Londons Department of War Studies. Russia last month intercepted a phone call between senior German air force officers discussing supplying long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine. The recording was published by the state-owned broadcaster Russia Today, or RT, and was widely seen as an attempt to interfere in the German debate over arming Kyiv. Berlin has ruled out sending the weapons to Ukraine. Ukraine warnings Kyiv said it had warned Berlin of the dangers. We have made multiple warnings to our German partners about the spy network of Russians that are very active in Germany. It is well known that the Russians are listening to conversations of German officials, and we think it is not the last conversation they have [in their possession], Ukraines national security adviser, Oleksiy Danilov, told The Times of London newspaper last week. French intelligence services are investigating a Russia-backed campaign aimed at interfering in the June European elections, involving hundreds of websites promoting Russian propaganda and supporting pro-Kremlin candidates. We are going to step up our own efforts to expose a number of disinformation operations. And in this context, Russia is also attacking us. Europe is under attack from an informational point of view, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne told reporters on Feb. 17 after details of the operation were revealed. Undermining democracy With its army tied down in Ukraine, Russia is seeking to boost its "unconventional operations overseas, according to the RUSI report. Russia has an active interest in destabilizing Ukraines partners, and with a slew of elections forthcoming across Europe, there is a wide range of opportunities to exacerbate polarization, the report said. Moreover, with its conventional forces so often used to coerce others fixed by the fighting in Ukraine, the significance of unconventional operations as a lever of influence increases. This is especially important with the collapse of Russian overt diplomatic access across target countries. Those operations aim to disrupt democracies, according to Oleksandr V. Danylyuk, an associate fellow at RUSI and a co-author of the report. The Russians still invest billions into intelligence operations in Europe, developing capabilities which are designed for interference into elections; radicalization of different social, ethnic, religious groups, including minorities; investing billions into political proxies who can actually even come to power, he told VOA. Proxy operations Moscows spy agencies are increasingly operating remotely, using non-Russian proxies to carry out operations, including organized criminals and foreign nationals. What is actually very important for special operations is the ability to deny the sponsorship of the government, Danylyuk added. Several spy networks have been uncovered in recent years. In Poland, 14 citizens from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine were convicted in December of belonging to a spy ring that was preparing acts of sabotage on behalf of Moscow, including plans to derail trains carrying military aid to Ukraine. Trials of suspected Russian spies are ongoing in Britain, Germany, Norway and several other European countries. It's not any more an ideological fight, said Danylyuk. Its not like communism fighting capitalism, like the Soviets would say. Its that authoritarian countries are trying to subvert the West as a stronghold of democracy, freedom and human rights. And this is, for them, an existential fight. Recruiting opportunity Meanwhile, William J. Burns, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, said in January that Russias war on Ukraine has in turn presented an opportunity for the West to improve its intelligence capabilities. Disaffection with the war is continuing to gnaw away at the Russian leadership and the Russian people, beneath the thick surface of state propaganda and repression, Burns wrote in Foreign Affairs magazine. That undercurrent of disaffection is creating a once-in-a-generation recruiting opportunity for the CIA. Were not letting it go to waste. Ukrainian officials said a Russian missile hit a residential building in the central city of Kryvyi Rih Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring at least 38 others. Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih's military administration, said the strike on the building was one of three missiles that hit the city, which is the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a frequent target of Russian attacks. Zelenskyy expressed condolences on social media and thanked rescuers for providing assistance. "Every day, our cities and villages suffer similar strikes. Every day, Ukraine loses people to Russian evil," he wrote. "There can be no pause, not for a day, a week, let alone a month, in support for simply defending lives, for saving people from terror." Earlier Tuesday, Russian officials reported damage from Ukrainian drone strikes at two fuel sites in Russia, while also saying Russian forces repelled attempted cross-border ground attacks by pro-Ukrainian militias. Two groups that claim to be made up of Russians opposed to the Kremlin said they crossed into Russia. Russias defense ministry said Ukrainian terrorist formations tried to invade Russia from three directions, including targeting the Belgorod and Kursk regions. The Ukrainian militarys aerial attacks Tuesday targeted the Russian capital, as well as regions bordering Ukraine and deeper into Russian territory. The governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, about 775 kilometers from Ukraine, said a Ukrainian drone set an oil refinery on fire. In the Oryol region of western Russia, the regional governor said a drone crash at a fuel facility caused a fire there but no casualties. A Ukrainian drone also attacked the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, leaving some people without power, according to the regional governor. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said Russian air defenses destroyed a drone that was flying toward the Russian capital. He reported no damage or injuries from falling debris. Officials in the Tula and Kursk regions also reported Ukrainian drones being destroyed in those areas Tuesday. Some information for this report was provided by Agence France-Presse and Reuters. Eleven Indonesian fishermen have been rescued after their boat capsized last week, as the search continues for 24 missing shipmates. The boat left the capital, Jakarta, on March 3 on a voyage to Lombok Island carrying tons of fish and equipment when it was hit by stormy weather and high waves midway through the journey Saturday off in the waters of South Sulawesi province. The 11 fishermen, wearing life jackets, drifted for days until they were spotted by local fishermen in waters off the remote Selayar Islands in South Sulawesi province. The bodies of two other crewmen were also discovered in the region. Maritime accidents happen regularly in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands and 270 million citizens, thanks to lax and poorly enforced safety standards. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse. KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 08:21 | All, Podcast Episode 36: Japan's maglev train Have you ever ridden a maglev train? Two Kyodo News reporters Yamaguchi-san and Peter talk about the environmental disputes that have delayed the start of Japans new high-speed maglev train. Listen as they discuss what the trains are and how they differ from other rail transportation systems, and the reasons behind the opposition in Shizuoka Prefecture. Article mentioned in the podcast: FOCUS: Japan maglev train project being derailed by Shizuoka stalemate Kyodo News presents a bilingual podcast for English learners about the ins and outs of news writing and how to translate tricky Japanese phrases into English. Have fun listening to journalists discuss recent articles as they occasionally go off on unrelated tangents. Related coverage: Podcast [English World] Episode 35: Nikkei stock index record high Podcast Episode 34: University of Tokyo's "international" program Podcast [English World] Episode 33: Pastries that taste of love A suspect has been arrested in the fatal stabbing attack on three Coptic Orthodox Church monks at a monastery in South Africa, police said Wednesday. The monks were killed Tuesday at the Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Samuel the Confessor Monastery in Cullinan, a town east of the capital, Pretoria. A fourth person was beaten with an iron rod before escaping and hiding in the monastery, police said. The suspect arrested was a 35-year-old man. Police did not provide his name or other details. He is to appear in court on Thursday. The motive for the attack was unclear. It appeared that nothing was stolen from the monastery, police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said in a statement. Police had said Tuesday that they were seeking multiple suspects. Deadly attacks on churches and other places of worship in South Africa are rare. The Coptic Orthodox Church has its headquarters in Egypt and dioceses in several countries. It is one of the oldest Christian communities in the world and has been the target of deadly attacks by Islamic militants in Egypt and elsewhere. The attacks in Egypt have subsided recently amid tighter security around Christian places of worship in the Muslim-majority country. The Coptic Orthodox Church named the monks killed in South Africa as Hegumen Takla el-Samuely, Yostos ava Markos and Mina ava Markos. All three were Egyptian nationals. The Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa said that el-Samuely was the deputy of the local diocese. The Coptic church has its own pope, currently Pope Tawadros II. The South African diocese said he was aware of the attack and was "waiting to be informed of its causes." The Egyptian ambassador to South Africa visited the monastery following the attack, the Coptic Orthodox Church of South Africa said. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said it was in communication with the embassy in South Africa. Residents of Africas richest city, Johannesburg, are experiencing a severe water shortage in the middle of a summer heat wave. The shortages, which have lasted nearly two weeks, have affected some 50% of Johannesburg Waters supply area, officials said. The South African city has a population of almost 6 million people. Businesses have been hit hard, and several hospitals have been affected. Nurses at one medical center told local media that they were not able to wash their hands. Mlimandlela Ndamase, a spokesperson for Johannesburgs mayor, explained that an initial problem at a key pump station occurred on March 3 after a power outage from a lightning strike. This is not the first time the city has been without water. The city experienced regular shortages last year. Ndamase acknowledged Johannesburgs water system is plagued by other long-term problems. The city does accept that there are challenges as regards to aged infrastructure, the maintenance of infrastructure, and also the need to roll out new infrastructure throughout the city, he said. But many have blamed authorities for what they say is incompetence, and there have been some small protest gatherings. On Wednesday, Nombuso Shabalala, a spokesperson for Johannesburg Water, acknowledged that there had been human error, too. Technical teams discovered a bulk supplier valve had been closed, thus restricting supply into the system, Shabalala said. The valve has since been opened, and this has assisted with building some capacity. Anja du Plessis, an associate professor and water expert at the University of South Africa, said, Ineptitude, deficiency of transparency and accountability, as well as little to no political will, had exacerbated the crisis. The rapid escalation ... of the city of Johannesburgs water woes can be attributed to a dysfunctional and inept municipality, the lack of necessary skilled personnel, as well as the lack of financial resources, or even non-investment into the maintenance of dilapidated infrastructure, du Plessis said. The water problems come amid issues with the nations electricity supply. South Africa has been mired in an energy crisis for more than a decade, and it has accelerated over the past year, with the country experiencing almost daily scheduled blackouts sometimes for as long as 10 hours a day. Water tankers have been set up across the city. Johannesburg Water says most of its systems are now in recovery. Thailand's Election Commission is asking the country's Constitutional Court to dissolve the main opposition Move Forward Party, citing the party's campaign promises last year to amend a strict law that prohibits criticism of the country's monarchy. The Thai monarchy is central to society and is enshrined in the country's constitution, with the king enthroned in a "position of revered worship." Thailand's Move Forward Party won the most seats in last year's general elections in part on pledges to amend the country's lese-majeste law, a move the Election Commission argues was an attempt to overthrow the country's monarchy. "The Election Commission has considered the results of the study and analyzed the decision of the Constitutional Court. It was unanimously decided to submit a petition to the Constitutional Court to order the dissolution of the Kaew Klai Party," the commission said in a statement. Article 92 of Thailand's Political Parties Act states that if a court finds a political party guilty of seeking to overthrow the Thai monarchy, the electoral commission can gather evidence and petitions to present to the Constitutional Court to consider dissolving the party. According to the law, the party's lawmakers could also be banned from politics for 10 years if the court finds the party guilty. Parit Wacharasindhu, spokesperson for the Move Forward Party, said they were innocent. "We have no intention to overthrow the democratic system with the king as the head of state. We will prove our innocence at the Constitutional Court," he told local media. Backed by millions of young voters last May, the Move Forward Party won the most seats in the country's general elections, including 32 out of 33 constituencies in the Thai capital of Bangkok. But after the elections, the party was blocked from leading the government by Thailand's military-appointed Senate when pro-royalists refused to endorse the party over its stance to amend the royal defamation law. Members of the Move Forward Party declined to comment further when later contacted by VOA. The party has argued that its campaign to change Thailand's strict law was aimed at preventing misuse of the law and strengthening the country's constitutional monarchy. Thailand's lese-majeste law, or Article 112 of its Criminal Code, prohibits criticism of the monarchy, and those who violate it are punished with lengthy jail sentences. According to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights organization, at least 263 people faced charges under Thailand's royal defamation law from July 18, 2020, through January 2024. In January, a 30-year-old Thai man was given a record sentence of 50 years in prison for breaking the law. The potential dissolution and charges against the Move Forward Party show they are viewed as a substantial threat to Thailand's pro-royalist elite, some experts say. "The party will likely be dissolved, because conservative elites view Move Forward as an existential threat to the constitutional monarchy," said Zachary Abuza, a professor at the National War College in Washington who focuses on Southeast Asia politics and security. "The party leadership has been preparing for this; after all it is exactly what happened to Future Forward. They will quickly re-register it," he told VOA. The Move Forward Party's predecessor, the Future Forward Party, was controversially dissolved in 2020 after Thailand's Constitutional Court ruled the party had been receiving illegal donations. Its executives were also banned from politics for 10 years, decisions that sparked Thailand's 2020 and 2021 protests when hundreds of thousands of youth demonstrators took to the streets in Bangkok calling for government and monarchy reform. "The real problem is that the charismatic and widely known leadership will likely be red-carded and banned from politics for 10 years," Abuza said of the Move Forward Party. "This would be the second generation of leaders banned. That leaves the new party in a much weaker position when by-elections are held. There is also a real concern that voters, while supportive and sympathetic, will grow frustrated and elect politicians who can represent their interests on a daily basis," he added. Pita Limjaroenrat, a former candidate for prime minister, is hugely popular with his Move Forward supporters. But as well as facing a decade-long ban from politics should his party dissolve, he has also faced several other charges in recent months. Although he survived a threat of political disqualification in January over allegations of having shares in a media company, he and seven others were sentenced by a Thai court to four months in jail, suspended for two years, over a flash mob rally in 2019. VOA attempted to reach Pita for comment on the possible dissolution of the Move Forward Party but has yet to receive a reply. Titipol Phakdeewanich, a political scientist at the Faculty of Political Science at Ubon Ratchathani University, said any dissolution will only spark a "rebirth" for the party. "[It's] no surprise. It's only reflecting the same old political game against the progressive party. If the party is dissolved, it's not the end for Move Forward Party, as we see with the case of the Future Forward Party. The conservative move against Move Forward will only re-energize the rebirth of the party," he told VOA. As the U.S. election campaign heats up, both President Joe Biden and his likely challenger, Donald Trump, are vowing to take a tough stance on China. So how does China feel about the race? VOAs Bill Gallo asked Beijing residents to weigh in on the two candidates. Mingmin Xuan contributed. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Moscow is prepared to use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty or independence is threatened, warning the U.S. again that if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine it would be considered a major escalation of the conflict. Putin said in an interview with state television that there has been no need for the use of nuclear weapons in Russias two-year invasion of Ukraine and that he does not think the world is headed to a nuclear confrontation. He described U.S. President Joe Biden as a veteran politician who understands the danger of nuclear warfare. But Putins remarks appeared to be one of his recurring messages to the West that it intends to protect its territorial gains in Ukraine and was ready to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to "the existence of the Russian state, our sovereignty and independence." All that is written in our strategy, we haven't changed it," he said. In an apparent reference to NATO allies that support Kyiv, Putin also declared that "the nations that say they have no red lines regarding Russia should realize that Russia won't have any red lines regarding them either." But he also said that in the U.S. there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint. Therefore, I don't think that here everything is rushing to (nuclear confrontation), but we are ready for this." National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said Russias nuclear rhetoric has been reckless and irresponsible throughout this conflict. It is Russia that brutally invaded Ukraine without provocation or justification, and we will continue to support Ukraine as they defend their people and their sovereign territory from Russian aggression. A senior White House official said, As we understand it, Mr. Putin was restating Russias nuclear doctrine that they will use nuclear weapons if their sovereignty is threatened so this isnt a new stance for them. We have not seen any reason to adjust our own nuclear posture, nor any indications that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon in Ukraine. Biden has repeatedly said the U.S. has no intention of sending U.S. troops to fight alongside Kyivs forces, although French President Emmanuel Macron recently declined to rule out the possibility of Western troops joining the stalemated conflict that has no end in sight. Western countries have, however, continued to arm Ukraine, with the U.S. this week cobbling together $300 million worth of ammunition, anti-aircraft missiles, artillery rounds and some anti-armor systems from its military stockpiles in a new tranche of aid to help Kyivs forces. But a much broader $60 billion aid package that Biden supports is stalled in Congress. Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Ukrainian presidential official, told Reuters in a statement he viewed Putin's nuclear warning as propaganda designed to intimidate the West. "Realizing that things are going the wrong way, Putin continues to use classic nuclear rhetoric. With the old Soviet hope - 'be scared and retreat!'," said Podolyak, who said he believed such talk showed Putin was afraid of losing the war. On the battlefield, Ukraines military used drones to target Russian oil refineries Wednesday, damaging a site in the Ryazan region. Pavel Malkov, regional governor in Ryazan, said an attack at an oil refinery there caused a fire and some injuries, according to preliminary reports. Officials in the Leningrad region said Russian air defenses shot down a Ukrainian drone as it approached a refinery and that there was no damage. The attacks were part of a wave of Ukrainian drones launched into Russian territory for the second consecutive day. Alexander Gusev, governor of the Voronezh region that borders Ukraine, said Wednesday that air defenses shot down more than 30 Ukrainian drones overnight. On Tuesday, Ukrainian drones damaged two Russian fuel sites. Ukrainian officials said a Russian missile hit a residential building in the central city of Kryvyi Rih Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring at least 38 others. Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the Kryvyi Rih's military administration, said the strike on the building was one of three missiles that hit the city, which is the hometown of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a frequent target of Russian attacks. Zelenskyy expressed condolences on social media and thanked rescuers for providing assistance. "Every day, our cities and villages suffer similar strikes. Every day, Ukraine loses people to Russian evil," he wrote. "There can be no pause, not for a day, a week, let alone a month, in support for simply defending lives, for saving people from terror." VOA White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara contributed to this report. Some information was provided by Agence France-Presse and Reuters . The number of children worldwide who died before age 5 reached a record low in 2022, the United Nations said in a report published Tuesday, as for the first time fewer than 5 million died. According to the estimate, 4.9 million children died before their fifth birthday in 2022, a 51% decrease since 2000 and a 62% drop since 1990, according to the report, which still warned such progress is "precarious" and unequal. "There is a lot of good news, and the major one is that we have come to a historic level of under-five mortality, which ... reached under 5 million for the first time, so it is 4.9 million per year," Helga Fogstad, director of health at the U.N. children's agency UNICEF, told AFP. According to the report, prepared by UNICEF in conjunction with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank, progress was particularly notable in developing countries such as Malawi, Rwanda and Mongolia, where early childhood mortality has fallen by more than 75% since 2000. "Behind these numbers lie the stories of midwives and skilled health personnel helping mothers safely deliver their newborns ... vaccinating ... children against deadly diseases, and [making] home visits to support families," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement. But "this is a precarious achievement," the report warned. "Progress is at risk of stagnation or reversal unless efforts are taken to neutralize the numerous threats to newborn and child health and survival." Researchers pointed to already worrying signs, saying that reduction in under-5 deaths has slowed at the global level and notably in the sub-Saharan Africa region. In total, 162 million children under the age of 5 have died since 2000, 72 million of whom perished in the first month of life, as complications related to birth are among the main causes of early childhood mortality. Between the ages of 1 month and 5 years, respiratory infections, malaria and diarrhea become the main killers ailments that are all preventable, the report points out. To reach the U.N.'s goal of reducing under-5 deaths to 25 per 1,000 births by 2030, 59 countries will need urgent investment in children's health, researchers warned. And without adequate funding, 64 countries will miss the goal of limiting first-month deaths to 12 per 1,000 births. "These are not just numbers on a page; they represent real lives cut short," the report said. The numbers also reveal glaring inequalities across the world, as the sub-Saharan Africa region accounted for half of all deaths of children under age 5 in 2022. Babies born in countries with high early childhood mortality, such as Chad, Nigeria or Somalia, are 80 times more likely to die before their 5th birthday than babies born in countries with low childhood mortality rates, such as Finland, Japan and Singapore. "Where a child is born should not dictate whether they live or die," WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. The head of the United Nations agency that assists Palestinian refugees said Wednesday that an Israeli military strike killed one staffer and injured 22 others at a food distribution center in the southern Gaza Strip. Every day, we share the coordinates of all our facilities across the Gaza Strip with parties to the conflict, said UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini in a statement. The Israeli Army received the coordinates, including of this facility yesterday. The strike hit an UNRWA distribution center in the eastern part of Rafah. Lazzarini said it is one of the very few remaining such facilities in Gaza. The Israeli military didnt immediately comment on the incident. The death brings to at least 165 UNRWA staffers killed since October 7. More than 150 of the agencys facilities, including schools and shelters, have been hit in the war, with some destroyed. The agency says more than 400 people sheltering in U.N. buildings have been killed. I am calling once again for an independent inquiry into these violations and the need for accountability, Lazzarini said. U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the attack is another tragic symbol of the conditions under which humanitarians work every day in Gaza. Israel has intensified its calls for the dismantling of UNRWA since the October 7 Hamas terror attacks killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel. The Israeli government has accused a dozen UNRWA staffers of being complicit in the attacks. The United Nations fired the accused and has launched an internal investigation. Israel has shared what it says is a dossier of evidence against the UNRWA staffers, and has further publicly accused dozens more, but the United Nations says it has not received any further information other than what was originally presented to UNRWA chief Lazzarini in mid-January. Let's be clear: There has been no further handover of information by the Israeli authorities to UNRWA, spokesperson Dujarric said in response to a question from VOA earlier this week about the investigation. The United Nations used a new land route on Tuesday to deliver food to northern Gaza for the first time in three weeks as global pressure grows on Israel to allow more access to the coastal enclave amid a looming famine. Jamie McGoldrick, U.N. aid coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, told Reuters that a World Food Program convoy had used an Israeli military road that runs alongside the Gaza border fence to reach the enclave's north. Enough food for 25,000 people was delivered to Gaza City in the early hours of Tuesday, said WFP spokesperson Shaza Moghraby. It was WFP's first delivery to the north since February 20 and "proves that moving food by road is possible." "We are hoping to scale up, we need access to be regular and consistent especially with people in northern Gaza on the brink of famine," Moghraby said. "We need entry points directly to the north." The U.N. has warned that at least 576,000 people in Gaza one-quarter of the population are on the brink of famine. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Tuesday that the United States was working with Israel to increase the amount of aid "by ground both through Kerem Shalom and through a new crossing, where we had the first trucks get in last night and we need to see more where that came from." Israel's military did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the use of the military road by the WFP convoy. Limited aid via land has been reaching southern Gaza through the Rafah crossing from Egypt and Kerem Shalom from Israel. The U.N. had been pushing Israel for weeks to allow aid convoys, once they are inspected in the south, to use the military road along the Gaza border fence road, McGoldrick said last week. The plan was for trucks to cross into Gaza from the Israeli village Beeri. The United States, Jordan and others have conducted airdrops of aid in Gaza and on Tuesday a ship carrying 200 metric tons of aid left Cyprus in a pilot project to open a sea corridor to deliver supplies. While U.N. officials have welcomed new aid routes, they stress there is no substitute for land access. The war began after Hamas fighters attacked Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel retaliated by imposing a total siege on Gaza, then launching an air and ground assault that has killed 31,000 Palestinians, health authorities in Gaza say. U.S. Republican Senator Ted Cruz has called for the immediate and unconditional release of an Iranian German dissident sentenced to death in Iran and called his treatment by authorities there audacious and barbaric. Cruz spoke with VOAs Persian Service about the case of Jamshid Sharmahd, an Iranian German dual citizen and opposition figure accused of masterminding a deadly 2008 bombing of a mosque in Shiraz. His family strongly denies the charges. Cruz said the Biden administration should cancel any engagement with Tehran, and the international community should demand that Ayatollah immediately release Sharmahd unconditionally." Earlier this year U.S. and Iranian officials concluded a deal in which five Americans who had been imprisoned in Iran were freed in exchange for five Iranians accused of violating U.S. sanctions, and the unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue. Speaking to VOA, Cruz criticized the administration for sending billions of dollars in ramson to Iran. The funds that were unfrozen were designated for use only for Iranian humanitarian purposes, such as food, medicine and agricultural products. Sharmahd, 68, had been living in the United States, where he served as the spokesperson for Tondar, a group that aims to restore the Western-backed monarchy that ruled Iran before the 1979 Islamic Revolution. His family says Iranian authorities kidnapped Sharmahd during a stopover in Dubai in 2020. He faces the death penalty for corruption on earth. In an interview with VOA, Ghazaleh Sharmahd, daughter of Jamshid Sharmahd, highlighted the increase of the number of executions in Iran, stating: "We are witnessing a surge in executions in Iran. In the past year alone, 834 people were executed. In January of this year, over 50 people were executed." Earlier, Ghazaleh Sharmahd mentioned her father's struggle with Parkinson's disease, expressing concern his health could deteriorate to the point of his life being at risk. She also said last November that her father had endured solitary confinement for "over 1,185 days." The United States is providing a new round of military aid for Ukraine valued at up to $300 million, the first such announcement since late December, in what defense officials have called an ad hoc package made possible through U.S. Army procurement savings. The news comes as Ukrainian frontline forces are suffering from a worrying shortage of ammunition. Amid international pressure over a spiraling gang violence crisis in his country, Haiti's Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced Tuesday that he would resign once a transitional presidential council is created. VOA's Lori Lundin spoke with Renata Segura Deputy Director Latin America and the Caribbean with the International Crisis Group starting with what led to the major escalation in an already volatile situation. Turkey's new naval agreement with Somalia places the Turkish navy in a strategically vital region, underlining Ankara's growing naval ambitions. However, analysts warn that the agreement threatens to escalate current tensions with Somalias neighbor Ethiopia. Fatime Letifova The President of Albania, Bajram Begaj, will embark on a visit to Azerbaijan, Azernews reports. He will participate in the 11th Global Baku Forum to be held in Baku on March 14-16. To recall that 10th Global Baku Forum, under the motto The World of Today: Challenges and Hopes, was held in Baku on March 9-11, 2023, with the organizational support of The Nizami Ganjavi International Centre (NGIC), KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 22:52 | All, Japan The transport ministry said Wednesday it intends to allow ride-hailing business in Tokyo, Kyoto and two other areas from April, with the Japanese version of the service to be operated by taxi companies in state-designated time slots and zones. While more areas could be included later, the service is expected to initially cover the Japanese capital's 23 wards, the cities of Musashino and Mitaka in western Tokyo, and the Keihin region centered on Yokohama. Additionally, it will encompass Nagoya along with its nearby municipalities, as well as Kyoto and its vicinity. Japan's partial lifting of a ban on ride-hailing services will allow drivers with a standard license to offer taxi services using their own vehicle in areas and times when taxis are in short supply, on the condition they are under the management of a taxi company. Times of operation and the maximum number of vehicles allowed to be used for ride-hailing services will vary by area, with the current limits calculated based on data from taxi companies. The services will be available daily in the Tokyo and Kyoto areas, on Fridays and weekends for the Keihin area, and on Fridays and Saturdays for the Nagoya area, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The cap on the number of ride-hailing vehicles during days of operation will vary based on different time brackets. For example, for the Keihin area, vehicles will be capped at 940 between midnight and 5 a.m. and 480 between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. A full lifting of a ban on ride-hailing services such as Uber, directly connecting private car owners with individuals seeking transportation, is still under discussion. Related coverage: Japan to allow use of private cars as taxis under certain terms Japan to partially lift ban on ride-hailing services from April By FARAI MUTSAKA HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) Zimbabwe, Africas largest tobacco producer, began its annual tobacco-selling season on Wednesday, with officials and farmers projecting a sharp decline in harvests and quality because of a drought blamed on climate change and worsened by the El Nino weather phenomenon. From a record harvest of 296 million kilograms (326,000 tons) last year, the country is estimating that production will fall to about 235 million kilograms (259,000 tons) this season, said Patrick Devenish, chairman of the Tobacco Industry Marketing Board, at the official opening event in the capital, Harare. Most of our tobacco is grown by small-scale farmers. They depend on the rains, and a drought is not good for their crop," Devenish said. "The quality of some of the tobacco may also be affected. He said Zimbabwe sells the bulk of its tobacco to China, although Western and Eastern Europe and parts of Africa remain important markets. In 2023, it received a record $1.2 billion from tobacco exports, up from $975 million in 2022, according to the TIMB. Tobacco is one of the country's major foreign currency earners, along with minerals such as gold. Agriculture minister Anxious Masuka said small-scale farmers, who lack equipment and depend on rain, produce about 75% of the crop. This makes the countrys production vulnerable to weather conditions. Like some of its southern African neighbors, Zimbabwe is battling a devastating drought that aid agencies blame on El Nino and climate change. Tobacco production had been rebounding in the tiny African nation, after plummeting from about 240 million kilograms (265,000 tons) in 1998 to less than 50 million kilograms (60,000 tons) a decade later following the eviction of several thousand white farmers who accounted for the majority of growers. With last year's record harvest, Zimbabwe regained its spot as one of the worlds top 10 exporters of tobacco, alongside mega producer China, India, Brazil, the United States and Indonesia. China has been central to Zimbabwes tobacco boom by establishing a grower contract system run by the state-owned China National Tobacco Corp., the worlds largest cigarette producer. Under the system, the Chinese company provides seeds, fertilizers, food, and money to pay for labor and wood for curing the tobacco to Black farmers, who now make up the majority of Zimbabwes tobacco producers. The farmers, in exchange, are obligated to sell their crop to the Chinese company or its agents. About 95% of Zimbabwes crop is financed through the contract system, which is now also offered by some non-Chinese local and foreign companies. Farmers, many of whom are unable to get loans from banks due to a lack of collateral, say this financing system leaves them in a cycle of debt. The country had hoped to increase its harvest to 300 million kilograms (330,000 tons) by the end of 2025 under a government-led tobacco transformation plan adopted in 2021. But the drought has badly dented farmers optimism this season. The drought is likely to cost farmers 20% or more of their usual earnings, said George Seremwe, president of the Zimbabwe Tobacco Growers Association, which represents Black small-scale farmers. Likephone Makii, a tobacco farmer from Madziwa, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) northwest of Harare, looked at the price he received at auction for one of his bales, just $1.70 a kilogram because of its poor quality, and shook his head in dejection. Makii, who has been growing tobacco for the last nine years, said he usually harvests 6,000-7,000 kilograms (6.6-7.7 tons) from his two-hectare (5-acre) plot, which relies on rainwater. He expects only 3,000 kilograms (3.3 tons) this season. It has been the toughest season for me and my fellow small-scale farmers," he said. Reliant solely on tobacco for survival, Makii predicted his family will need food assistance to make it through the year. He will join millions of others forced to rely on food aid as the drought takes its toll on families that grow cash crops such as tobacco as well as staple foods such as maize, according to aid agencies. Queens, New York: home of the New York Mets, La Guardia Airport, and apparently, open-invitation white-nationalist meetings. A spur-of-the-moment decision to attend one of these latter soirees forms the basis for comedian Alex Edelmans Just for Us, which, after an extended run on Broadway, is now making the jump to HBO. Per the trailer for the upcoming special, Edelman, who is Jewish, quickly began to second-guess his choice. At some point, this guy two seats away from me went, Jews are sneaky and theyre everywhere! he recalls, his eyes widening in terror. Shot at the Hudson Theatre in New York and directed by Alex Timbers, Just for Us shares a percentage of its DNA with the one-person comedy shows popularized by Mike Birbiglia in specials like The New One and The Old Man and the Pool; fittingly, Birbiglia serves as executive producer. Writing about the Broadway version of the show in June 2023, Vulture critic Jackson McHenry called it a crowd-pleasing, often hilarious show, with a time bomb labeled Is it good that I am here making you laugh? at its center. Validate Edelmans risky choice to infiltrate this group of Nazis by watching Just for Us when it hits HBO April 6. Photo: Akhirwan Nurhaidir/Universal Pictures Dev Patel ripped his shirt open and the room went wild. He also bit a guys face off, sliced someones neck with a serving platter, and used his mouth to drive a knife down an extremely unlucky persons throat. Those got cheers too, but the shirt ripping stood out. If anyone wanted to test the theory that Patel is among Hollywoods primo heartthrobs, Mondays SXSW premiere of Monkey Man yielded ample evidence. Some of that enthusiasm probably stemmed from the fact that, aside from Wes Andersons recent Roald Dahl short-film anthology, Patel has not appeared onscreen since 2021s The Green Knight. I was reading all these things on the internet like, Where are they now? Whats happened to him? Patel joked while introducing the film. This is whats happened to him: a directorial debut that makes John Wick seem like a lullaby. Monkey Man (in theaters April 5) is indebted to the high-adrenaline Keanu Reeves hit an arms dealer even references it by name when Patels character goes looking for a gun but its more politically minded than its predecessor. SXSW audiences are known for their ear-piercing enthusiasm. Thats kind of the festivals whole vibe, which is why the film lineups skew heavily toward raucous comedy and rip-roaring action. Still, Monkey Man earned its fervor, including the standing ovation that brought Patel to tears at the end. During the Q&A, he revealed that, with one electric set piece after the next, he broke a hand, tore his shoulder, and got an eye infection during the shoot. He didnt appear to regret any of it. The actor developed the story himself and co-wrote the script with Paul Angunawela (Keith Lemon: The Film) and John Collee (Master and Commander: Far Side of the World). Patel plays Kid, an underground fighter collecting a puny living in a fictional Indian city where an authoritarian regime has unleashed widespread sectarian violence. The government is essentially waging war on the poor, and the elite restaurant-slash-brothel where Kid finds work ranks high among its wanton sanctuaries. But this isnt just some gig; this is a quest for revenge. Deep inside the Establishments VIP lair sit the thugs who killed Kids mother when he was young. Once he reaches them, Monkey Man turns into an unrelenting combat saga that kicks off with a bathroom brawl rivaling the one in Mission: Impossible Fallout. After producer Jordan Peele introduced Patel at the premiere, the newfound action hero name-checked a load of influences that led to Monkey Man. He fell in love with the genre when he sneaked downstairs as a kid to watch Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon, which morphed into an obsession with Jet Li, Sammo Hung, Donnie Yen, and The Raid. Then I found out about Korean cinema fuck me, Patel continued. Plus, of course, John Wick and Bollywood. Even the rubbery physicality of Jim Carrey got a shout-out. Basically, I think the action genre sometimes has been abused by the system, Patel said. Quick-buck, mindless shit. I wanted to give it soul. I wanted to give it real trauma and real pain. You guys deserve that, and I wanted to infuse it with a little bit of culture. A guy in the crowd responded with a loud We love you, Dev! Hes the peoples heartthrob. Patel initially gave the script to director Neill Blomkamp, who wisely encouraged him to make the movie himself. (Frequent Blomkamp collaborator Sharlto Copley thats right, the one and only Chappie plays the fighting rings goggle-eyed emcee.) Patel is clearly studied in action cinema, as evidenced by the long takes in which Kid atomizes one attacker after the next. No kitchen, elevator, police van, or lounge is safe from his cunning ability to turn any nearby object into a weapon. That ingenuity apparently continued on set: When a crane broke, Patel and cinematographer Sharone Meir (Whiplash, Silent Night) rigged a camera from a swinging rope. They also shot a car crash using Patels iPhone, and Im pretty sure we would never have known if Patel hadnt told us. Monkey Man is a fable about corruption thats as steeped in the Hindu religion as it is in neon-drenched hedonism. Its during a sort of training montage when Kid is being tutored by a mystic (Vipin Sharma), who embodies the best of the feminine and the masculine, that Patel rips his shirt. Even with a chiseled torso, he is not some brawny action beast. This is still the guy who wore a lot of cardigans in The Newsroom, albeit slightly more sinewy and much less jittery. What youre going to see here is a guy that doesnt have a quip for every scenario, isnt the heftiest dude in the room, and doesnt look like hes going to win because hes an underdog, and thats what Ive felt like my whole fucking life, Patel said. The audience cheered again. As in all good stories, the underdog is now a king. After three episodes of sword fights, sweeping landscapes, and political maneuvering, Shogun finally pulls out the missing piece of its historical-epic puzzle: romance. But as with every other element in the show, Shogun is going to earn its love story. It would be too easy and too steeped in white-savior cultural bias for Lady Mariko to fall for dashing English ship pilot John Blackthorne, and, to be frank, the writers so far have portrayed him as anything but. Blackthorne is uncouth, dirty, crass, and bullheaded. But he also represents something undeniably attractive to Mariko: freedom to pursue your own perceived destiny. Centering that as the key to a relationship takes much more work than heart-shaped eyes catching love at first sight, and The Eightfold Fence puts in the storytelling effort to make their union count. Ajiro is set to be the base of operations for Yabushige, Nagakado, and Blackthorne to train a gun regiment for Toranaga, but in some ways its just another prison for Blackthorne. As Hatamoto, he must abide by his oath to Toranaga, which means adjusting to his newfound status: He must live in a Japanese house, he must accept as his consort Fuji, who will run his household affairs, and he must dedicate his time to training Yabushiges army for Toranaga. When he attempts to row out to the Erasmus to retrieve his pistols and retake ownership of the vessel, Mariko informs him that his ship is now Toranagas property, as are the Dutch sailors he arrived with. What goes unsaid but seems understood here is that Blackthorne is also Toranagas property. This is devastating for Blackthorne, who revealed to Mariko in the last episode that the call of the sea was so powerful that he abandoned his family back in England without hesitation. These new rules threaten his independence, as he now cant even suffer insomnia in peace. Fuji, fulfilling her duties as consort, follows Blackthorne through the house, even in the dead of night. Its not customary for ones consort to sleep while hes awake, Mariko states to Blackthorne, sending Fuji away. When Mariko reveals that Fuji has just lost her husband and child, Blackthorne asks why she isnt grieving. We grieve those we have lost by continuing their fight, Mariko offers, to which Blackthorne responds, Rubbish. A child has no fight. This prompts Mariko to open up to Blackthorne for the first time, invoking the episodes title. She describes to him the concept of the eightfold fence, a coping mechanism taught to young people in Japan that allows them to retreat, emotionally, into a walled-off area inside the self. Do not be fooled by our politeness. Our bows, our rituals. Beneath it all we can be a great distance away. Safe and alone, she tells Blackthorne. She then hands him the pistols he was previously barred from retrieving from the Erasmus. If retreating behind the eightfold fence is key to survival, then Yabushige and his uncontrollable moods are certainly in danger. Hes outraged when he learns Toranaga resigned from the Council of Regents (I apologize for my bad manners I assume its proper for you to commit seppuku at once), elated at the military display put on by his troops on the shores of Ajiro, and disgruntled as Toranaga departs immediately for Edo instead of relishing in the work done to prepare the small fishing village for his arrival. The face acting of Tadanobu Asano continues to be a source of joy, but the characters lack of control is likely to keep him in the hot seat. With his assistance in helping Toranaga escape Osaka castle, albeit unwittingly, Yabushiges salvation lies with either a strong Toranaga (who already doesnt trust him) or a forgiving Ishido (which seems unlikely). Worried about picking the losing side, his constant declarations of allegiance to both are losing credibility. In short, he just cant help wearing all three of his hearts on his sleeve. Thank god hes got his nephew Omi in his corner, then. As the young leader of the fishing village, Omi is a bit more cunning than his uncle. When Yabushige bemoans over the sake Toranaga left without drinking, Ishido probably thinks Ive betrayed him. I look fully committed to this losing cause, Omi is ready with a plan. The regents only need to appoint a fifth member before they can impeach Toranaga and sentence him to death, and in the meantime, isnt this gun regiment loyal to Yabushige first? If thats the case, then as soon as Toranaga is killed, Yabushige can gift the gun regiment to Ishido, who then can likely use it to attack the Catholic regents in his ascension to power. Its a good reminder that Toranagas maneuver hasnt solved anything; hes just bought himself some time. Toranaga so far has excelled at sidestepping every trap laid out for him, but he hasnt revealed any long-term plan outside of preparing a new gun regiment in case war breaks out. We know from the pilot that Toranaga is a master at concealing his three hearts, and perhaps hes employing his own eightfold fence to avoid tipping his hand. In any case, hes off in Edo for most of this episode, tending to affairs. Were not told exactly how much time has passed in these first few episodes, but when everyone arrives in Ajiro, the light snow coverage on the thatched roofs of the houses is beginning to melt; since Ajiro is in the mountains, light snowfall is a good indicator that it is now fall and no longer the rainy season of the first episode. After being away from his seat of power for months, its time for Toranaga to visit home. The gun regiment training starts with a confrontation in Blackthornes courtyard. Omi refuses to let Blackthorne bring his pistols, which Blackthorne finds hypocritical, seeing as everyone else carries swords everywhere. After some posturing, Fuji tells Blackthorne to let her hold his guns. As Omi approaches her, she draws on him, saying, Please be on your way. Fuji is taking her duties as consort seriously, and Blackthorne realizes that he perhaps has been unfair to her. Later, he will gift her one of the pistols so that she can protect herself, and in turn, she will deliver Blackthorne her fathers swords so he can be adorned as a proper Hatamoto. First, however, Blackthorne must prove himself useful to Yabushiges army, and Omi begrudgingly leads the way. The training field shows off Shoguns impressive scale. Most of this episode takes place in quiet conversation, so revealing the large group of soldiers unpacking crates of guns and the ornate field office of Yabushige, Omi, and Nagakado is a nice reminder that were still in the middle of a sweeping historical epic. Add live cannon fire (that echoes so loud in the valley it startles villagers back at Ajiro), and now were cooking with gas. Or, at least, black powder. The cannons are key to Blackthornes status: As a naval man, he doesnt know any infantry tactics, and since the Japanese soldiers have been training with guns for 50 years, his basic firearms knowledge is useless. But English naval cannons are new to Yabushige and company, whove never seen anything so destructive and accurate. Blackthorne nails wooden targets off in the distance as Mariko takes diligent notes, giving way to a cannon-training montage that spans a few days. During this time, Mariko smiles while watching Blackthorne work his enthusiasm for cannons is contagious but he also makes her laugh while practicing Japanese on horseback as they ride back to the village. Her interactions with Blackthorne are unfettered, and compared to her terse exchanges with Buntaro, its clear that theres something different here. On the official Shogun podcast, actor Anna Sawai mentions that Blackthorne is maybe one of the only men Mariko has met in her life who sees her as a human being, that hes not looking at her as a woman who should be silenced and ignored. That doesnt mean hes totally off the hook. Mariko has the Erasmuss logs, and inspecting them, she notices an entry describing a place burned to hell. When she confronts Blackthorne later at the shore, he tries to convince her to let him and his men build a navy for Toranaga. She instead chides him for thinking that his enemies (the Portuguese) will ever be Toranagas enemies. The logs dont just reveal that Blackthorne has engaged in piracy they also detail how this piracy was specifically sanctioned by the queen of England as an act of war against the Portuguese. In the midst of this confrontation, an earthquake rumbles beneath their feet. Mariko tells Blackthorne not to be worried it is only a baby earthquake but also to be prepared for more: Its why our houses are built to go up as quickly as they come down. Because death is in our air and sea and earth. It can come for us at any moment, she explains, adding, Before you meddle with our politics, just remember: We live and we die. We control nothing beyond that. These lines speak to the darkness within Mariko that Father Alvito hinted at in episode two, and its the first time that Blackthorne has seen this side of her, piquing his interest in getting to know more about who Mariko is behind her eightfold fence. The next days cannon drills are interrupted by the arrival of Ishidos men led by Nebara Jozen, who informs Yabushige that the council has summoned him back to Osaka. This is bad news: If he returns, hell surely be asked to commit seppuku. If he refuses, hell be labeled a traitor who sided with Toranaga and sentenced to death, anyway. He buys himself time by promising Jozen a cannon demonstration, but Nagakado remains suspicious. Toranagas son feels like he has a lot to prove to live up to the Minowara bloodline something Omi takes advantage of as they talk that night about the Jozen problem. When Nagakado claims something should be done, Omi nudges him by declaring that theyre about to lose their advantage. Then tomorrow, well have no choice but to reveal our tactics to the enemy, Omi says to Nagakado, who reassures Omi that hell handle the situation without input from Toranaga. Its a sly move: While Yabushige has earned the distrust of both Toranaga and Nagakado, Omi has seemingly found a way to help Yabushige while forging a bond with Nagakado. That same night, Mariko finds Blackthorne at the hot spring, and after some awkward covering up, the two sit back-to-back and open up to each other some more. Mariko reveals that her family name is notorious throughout Japan, and that long ago a great injustice was done to her. In a flashback, we see her grieving in the snow, but she doesnt fully reveal what happened or the nature of the resolution she desired only that Toranaga promised her it would be fulfilled owing to this service. Its clear shes in distress about her past and has carried it for many years, prompting Blackthorne to invoke their conversation following the baby earthquake about how houses in Japan crumble and are rebuilt over and over: If I see it, I fail to see its ruins. I see only a house, he says. And here I see much woman, and one who owes me no explanations. Its clearly the right thing to say, prompting Mariko to ask Blackthorne about London and a dream date scenario for them. After an audience with the queen and taking in a play, he pitches a long walk along the Thames, where you can almost forget yourself, all your troubles and past, and all the ways life seems to leave you wrecked. Mariko answers, And then you are free. Its notable that even in London, water is where Blackthorne finds his sense of freedom; in this exchange, he personifies the conduit to a new life, free of the burdens of society. Later that night, as Blackthorne is sleeping, Mariko comes to him in the dark. She wakes him, disrobing and placing his hand on her face before they tumble together to the tatami mat. The next morning, she tells Blackthorne shes glad he enjoyed the courtesan that Fuji and she hired for him, prompting confusion from him as well as, perhaps, viewers who in this moment found themselves second-guessing what they saw in the extremely dim light of that scene. (Im still only about 95 percent sure myself.) Of course, she says this in Portuguese in front of Fuji, who isnt able to confirm or deny the story, but at the very least, it allows Blackthorne and Mariko deniability if they want to ignore the events of the night before. At the cannon demonstration the next day, things seem to be well arranged to show off what these English cannons can do. Jozen and his men arrive on horseback, lined up in their decorative battle armor and looking out at the wooden targets in the distance. This moment is key to Yabushiges salvation: If the demonstration goes well, perhaps Jozen can tell Ishido how Yabushige has a new bargaining chip. At the same time, Jozens presence is a blow to Nagakado, who has struggled to prove his worth as Toranagas heir, his eager impulsiveness the opposite of Toranagas quiet strength. His fathers approval is the only thing on his mind, and yet he seems to lack any understanding of what might earn it. That foolishness is what prompts him to ride out with his sword held high, proclaiming, Nebara Jozen! Your presence here is intolerable. You have offended my fathers name. I demand compensation! He instructs his men to move back, and cannon fire absolutely shreds Jozen, his horses, and his men. Its a terrifying and gory display, and while Nagakado and his soldiers prepare to finish off Ishidos men with their swords, Yabushige confronts Nagakado, threatening to inform his father. Nagakado, in fact, is proud of his work. He wants Toranaga to know it was him who took action, even though hes surely misjudged what his father wants. It is war, Mariko says, fearfully. But not everyone is shocked at the violent massacre. Just beyond Yabushiges shoulder, Omi is smiling. Maybe Nagakado should have taken the advice he tried to give Toranaga at the beginning of the episode: An ally with ambition is no ally. Feudal Gestures The horse viscera in the final scene is extremely brutal. Shogun is typically about restraint, but this provides a good reminder of why so many characters want to avoid an all-out war. Though it definitely wouldnt be canon, its hard not to want a spinoff buddy-cop show starring Yabushige and Blackthorne. Both Tadanobu Asano and Cosmo Jarvis are having so much fun onscreen that it feels like a crime they dont get to be silly together more often. When Blackthorne tries to thank Fuji, he says Gozirimasuru instead of Gozarimasuru (essentially Thank you very much), and its great seeing his mispronunciation pop up as a typo in the captions so English speakers can follow along with his flub. The official podcast hosted by Emily Yoshida has a great breakdown of the eightfold fence and its origins in the Kojiki. I highly recommend listening if youre curious about its context in the show. The podcast also has an interview with historian Frederik Cryns, who made the call that Blackthorne would show off his cannon skills in this adaptation. In the original novel and TV series, he instructs the Japanese army on how to use rifles. But rifles had been in Japan for 50 years before the story takes place (as is noted in this episode), and Cryns points out that Portuguese cannons at that time were much smaller and less accurate. VULTURE NEWSLETTER Keep up with all the drama of your favorite shows! Email This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice and to receive email correspondence from us. Dior has called 30 Avenue Montaigne its home since Christian Dior established his couture house over 75 years ago. Decades later, the flagship expanded into surrounding buildings and underwent renovations completed in 2022. Now, it houses the ateliers, a boutique, a restaurant called Monsieur Dior, a pastry cafe, and the Dior Galerie, a museumlike space that honors the history of Dior. But still, Diors spirit remains. Christian himself famously said, It had to be 30 Avenue Montaigne. I was going to settle here and nowhere else! The buildings neoclassical facade is distinctively Parisian but not imposing, and the interior featuring a mixture of light gray and pink, Diors favorite colors communicates his welcoming, singular take on elegance and femininity. Thirty Avenue Montaigne encapsulates Christian Diors vision: Its dignified but personal and offers a unique experience and homey environment distinctive in the often stuffy (The New Looks contrast with Chanel is intentional) haute couture world. The address is so iconic and such a part of the brand that it shares a name with one of the houses signature bags. Dior: The Legendary 30, Avenue Montaigne is an excellent book that captures the history and beauty of the location. It will also look attractive on your coffee table. Before Christians dreams are realized in The New Look, he lives his worst nightmare. As the House of Dior gets closer to realization, he must go to Lucien Lelong and quit his job designing for him, a man who was with him through the occupation and Catherines imprisonment. Christian is ambitious but cowardly, which often creates conflict within himself. He has such a distinct vision for himself and his house, but his fear overrules it, causing him to put everything off until his blood is boiling. Even as hes on the precipice of explosion, hed rather put his pursuits on hold than have a difficult conversation. As a Gemini in a creative field, I unfortunately relate. A nervous Christian finally delivers the news to Lelong (welcome back, John Malkovich!), who is more worried than surprised. Christian explains that Marcel Boussac, with whom Lelong has beef (who doesnt have beef with a billionaire?), has given him 6 million francs, equivalent to $116,000,000 in 2024. Christian joins George and Boussac to visit a space selected for his flagship, and hes disappointed. The space boasts many perhaps too many features, including high ceilings and tall windows. Roman columns, large-tile floors, and a grand staircase that reminds me I need to do my yearly rewatch of Titanic. Dior is upset but fights back only a little bit. Elegance is not enormity, he tells Boussac. Christian sees an opportunity to reinvent French fashion by making it more personable, and this location feels more like the same. It also communicates a distance between the designer and the client, perhaps reminiscent of Coco Chanel and her clientele. Speaking of Coco, her war on the Wertheimers is personal. It has now become more important than her fate. In a risky move, she goes to Paris amid a possible arrest and looming executions of French Nazi collaborators as she continues to wage her war on the Wertheimers despite her kinky little tryst with Pierre in Switzerland. Elsa, now acting as Cocos minion, uses Andres illness and the death of Cocos sister to convince Pierre to sneak her into Paris. But secretly they have a plan to revive the business in Switzerland. Against Pierres wishes, Coco leaves the hotel in Paris to visit Henri, her perfumer. Together, they test formulas theyd worked on before the war. Instead of blocking the Wertheimers from producing and selling Chanel No. 5, Cocos plan to outwit the Wertheimers is an entirely new perfume: Mademoiselle Chanel No. 1. Pierres soft spot for Chanel disturbs his brother, Paul, who helps knock some sense into him. Paul reminds him that Coco invoked Aryan laws the same ones responsible for the mass genocide of their people against them during the war. You may be blind to who she really is, but Im not, he tells Pierre. On the train back to Switzerland, Coco gets Elsa on the morphine train. (Coco was a habitual user until the end of her life.) Pierre quickly opens his eyes and realizes he got played like a pawn on Coco Chanels pearl-and-tweed chessboard when he picks up Elsa and Coco at the hotel and runs into Andre, who appears to be well despite Elsas insistence that he was in a bad way. I also noted that Andre treats Pierre quite coolly almost as if hes disgusted, as though he knows what happened in that hotel room in Switzerland. When Pierre confronts Coco, she tells him the truth. You know me, she says. If Pierre didnt know her before, he certainly does now. She is exactly who Paul said she was: the woman who invoked Aryan laws on their business. Lelong is torn about Diors departure, which is evident in Malkovichs restrained performance despite the goofy French accent. Selfishly, Lelong is disappointed to lose his best designer, someone he has relied on creatively and personally for years to keep his house afloat. On the other hand, Lelong knew this was inevitable given Christians talent; Lelong just never thought Christian would have the guts to actually do it. In a conversation expertly staged in front of a wall of Christians sketches, Lelong expresses his genuine concern about Christian to Madame Raymonde Zehnacker (Zabou Breitman). Hes worried that Boussac will take advantage of his generosity and leave him crushed, citing the unforgiving and brutal endeavor that is running a couture house. And he would know: His fight for survival included designing for the enemy. Lelong reminds Zehnacker who will become the director of Diors design studio and Diors No. 1 of what she said when they first hired Christian: that she would follow him wherever he goes. Zehnacker assures Lelong that shes too old to go anywhere, but that soon changes. Her conversation with Lelong helps her understand Christians weaknesses and that he needs a confident person who is unafraid of confrontation to fight for him. Christian almost completely gives up on this dream because he is so unwilling to fight Boussac for the location he wants. As a true Aquarius sun, Cancer moon, hed rather abandon the project completely than compromise on his vision, which causes friction with Jacques back at his apartment. You dont understand whats entailed in creative work, Christian shouts at Jacques, who immediately leaves. This scene was too real. Before anything is official, Zehnacker begins her work as Christians right-hand woman with a visit to Boussac, who is swimming in a pool. While this was staged for aesthetic purposes, it does make sense that a billionaire would have a meeting while having a little swim. Her authoritative but empathetic nature helps lead Boussac to compromise instead of Christian having to do so. CATHERINE!! (for old times sake) goes home to Callian with her dad. She goes for herself and for Christian. She sees that Christian is too worried about her to pursue his dreams, and Paris doesnt suit her anymore. At Herves much-too-soon recommendation, Catherine visits the repatriation center to help people locate their missing loved ones, and she encounters a man who knows her father, Maurice. Catherine is disturbed by this interaction and doesnt give him any information. But it plants the seeds for her departure, and she ends the episode staring at the photo of the mans daughter. Until next week! Loose Threads Although Catherines arc is dramatic, traumatic, and generally deeply upsetting and unsettling, quite like Arya Starks, it is a joy to witness Maisie Williams bursting out of her post-Thrones shell. She is an incredible young performer who deserves a lucrative career! The House of Dior had quite a big Oscars Night: Brand ambassador Charlize Theron presented on the stage in a Dior gray gown with an asymmetrical hemline, and Anya Taylor-Joy wore a take on one of Diors most famous designs, the Venus and Junon dresses from the autumn-winter 194950 collection, which features a scalelike skirt. Billie Eilish wore Chanel. Do you think she wore Chanel No. 5 or Chanel No. 1? Anyway, until next week! I would very much like the exquisite trench coat Williams wears in this episode, and I would like to think it would suit me. The episode closes with a Joy Oladokun cover of I Wished on the Moon, originally performed by Bing Crosby. I have come to terms with the fact that we may never see Claes Bang as Spatz again. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images The House didnt appreciate the TikTok original Who TF Did I Marry like the rest of us did. Taste issue! By that, I mean the chamber voted to ban TikTok on March 13 if the China-based owner doesnt sell, the Associated Press reported. That doesnt mean the app will disappear from your screens just yet the Senate would have to pass the bill for it to make its way to Bidens desk (the president said he would sign it), and TikTok would have five months to sell. If the app is not divested after all that, then we wont be able to watch Nara Smith make cereal from scratch or wonder how long indie artists will keep getting screwed over by the UMG feud. The bill, passed by a bipartisan 35265 vote, has an unclear future in the Senate. Why do they want TikTok banned? Lawmakers say the current ownership structure of ByteDance, Ltd., the apps parent company, is a national security threat. Citing TikToks ability to mine data from users in the United States, the bill argues that the Chinese government could technically use its intelligence laws to subpoena information from the ByteDance-owned app. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was among those who voted no on the measure. This bill was incredibly rushed, from committee to vote in 4 days, with little explanation, she wrote on X minutes before the vote. There are serious antitrust and privacy questions here, and any national security concerns should be laid out to the public prior to a vote. About 170 million users would be affected if TikTok is banned. Their screen time will surely suffer a blow. Scheana Shays superpower is that she can make absolutely anything about her. Youll tell her about your grandmothers surgery, and Scheana will tell you that the number of older women having surgery right now means that she cant get access to the colors of cast that she wants for her daughters broken arm. Now her future Instagram photos are ruined because Summer Moon had to have a blue cast, and it doesnt match one single piece of athleisure that Scheana has been paid to post herself wearing this month. That said, I have a little bit more sympathy for Scheana about the Dancing With the Stars thing than many other viewers will. I feel like, as Lisa said, Scheana has wanted to do this for a long time and made her publicist/manager reach out to casting every year to see if this is her time. This year, with the show blowing up, Scheana got her first Maybe! and went out and signed up for every modern dance class that they offer in Marina del Rey, which is only one because it is a cultural wasteland. But the Maybe! was really just a If Ariana says no, then youre our runner-up. Thats what Scheana is: second place. An also-ran. An understudy. But so is everyone on the show right now because of Arianas ascendency. When Scheana found out the news, of course she should have been happy for Ariana. She couldnt drop a Girl, Ive been trying to get on that show for years! Im so jealous. Congrats. That is the only appropriate response and a way to make it about herself in the least painful way. When Scheana tells Lisa this, Lisa, acting as a producer, tells her she should be able to tell Ariana how she feels. But then in confessional, acting as a human being, she says that Scheana should never express her jealousy out loud. She is absolutely correct. That is a way to get your ass kicked out of Arianas orbit and fired from this here reality-television program. What Scheana and some others on the cast are expressing is that they feel like they have done nothing but support Ariana through this whole thing, but they havent been getting the same support in return. The whole conversation Lala has with Ariana when they get coffee together is quite telling. Lala tells her that people online are coming after Scheana because she stood next to Sandoval in a picture, and Lala asks if she could just say that Scheana is a good friend and that the trolls should back off. Ariana counters that anything she says is going to become a headline, which is true, but as Lala points out, her even leaving the house at this point would have gotten TMZ so wet she would have slid off one of those tacky desk chairs they make them all sit in on the show. Later, Ariana issues such a statement, and it proves to be helpful. I dont think Ariana is doing anything malicious to the castmates she still talks to, but she seems wrapped up in the chaos of her fame being catapulted up a few levels. (But it doesnt mean that Lala and Scheana werent cashing those Uber Eats checks when they were being issued.) Theres something about how Ariana has been handling this whole situation relating to the rest of the cast that bugs me a bit. It seems like shes unwilling to make any concessions when it comes to Sandoval and those who talk to him, something that in a real-world context would be totally understandable but in a reality-TV context doesnt make that much sense. Ariana is basically sabotaging herself and the show. As she says in a confessional, shes worried that Sandoval will get back in the good graces of the cast and shell be exiled. Its basically the same way that Katie felt last year after her divorce from Tom. But Ariana did something Katie never did and issued a him or me ultimatum. But at the end of the episode, when everyone goes over to James and Allys house (no airplanes this time sad face) to get their astrological charts read, Lala makes me see things differently. Ever since Scandoval broke shes been comparing what happened with her and Randall to what happened with Tom and Ariana even though that is like comparing apples and coked-out racist oranges who tortured assistants for years and slept with every wannabe starlet that ever visited the Sunset Boulevard Sweetgreen. Something finally clicked for me when Lala was talking about how Randall would always be in her life because they have a child together, and there is nothing she can do to extricate this awful man from her life. Maybe instead of looking at Vanderpump Rules as a show, we should look at it as a child: specifically the child of Sandoval and Ariana. They both put a lot of work into nurturing and raising this thing; they both have a vested economic, personal, and psychological interest in it succeeding; and they will both forever be attached to it. Just like two people who divorce have to share custody of a child, they have to share custody of the show. That means, on occasion, being in the same room as each other and not fighting petulantly about it. That means, on occasion, having to communicate with the other party, even if it is just on the most surface of levels. That means, on occasion, youre going to have to talk to people that person talks to for the good of the child, I mean the show, I mean the child, I mean the show. Ariana is not allowing for any of this, nor is Katie Maloney Schwartz Maloney. Oh, boy, did the meanest woman on reality television come out to play this episode. (At least the chic lesbian haircut is still working for her.) Katie has lunch with Lala, Scheana, and Kristina Kelly (always both names!), and Scheana brings up how she started to forgive Sandoval in Tahoe. Lala says shes really confused because she misses her friend, but if she talks to him or about him, then Ariana will ban her from her life and, by extension, the show. Scheana cannot afford to piss off Ariana. Who is going to pay for all of Summer Moons new outfits to match her cast? Scheana says, Im finally, five months later, going through an actual grieving process. Ariana has already grieved the loss of this while making millions of dollars and living her best life. Im not there. Again, Scheana tells us how when she first entered the group, Sandoval was the only person who was nice to her. Katie tells her that was a billion years ago, and Scheana says she never gets over these things. Katie says, Well, try. Katie doesnt want to remember this because she, Stassi, and Kristen were so awful to Scheana for years. Years! They thought they invented this show, and Scheana only got cast because she fucked Lisa Vanderpumps ex-friends ex-husband and that was a bridge to Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. They were all trying to do to her what Ariana is attempting to do to Tom now, freezing her out and not filming with her so she would be off the show because they didnt like her. Katie wants to forget all of this because it makes her look horrible. Katie tells the group she has no sympathy for Scheana and wants the conversation to end. When Schena starts talking about how she fucked the bartender back in 06 (oh, if I had a nickel), it is Katie who brings the conversation back to Sandoval. Katie says something so sad about her relationship with Sandoval its like 19 Sufjan Stevens albums fucking 23 Lana Del Rey albums. That man has never offered me a sincere apology since the day he met me, and hes been awful to me, she says. He interfered in my marriage. He made everyone think I was a monster, even my ex-husband, I think. Okay, the customary Dame Brian thing would be to say, But you are a monster, Katie! but Im not going to do that today. Katie is no better or worse than any of the other yahoos on this show, but shes not wrong about how awful Sandoval has been to her, and shes not wrong about him interfering in her marriage. Katie keeps saying they should all just cut ties with Sandoval, be good friends to Ariana, and move on. But they all have this baby together; they all have to share custody, so that isnt going to happen. Katie disregarding Scheanas feelings isnt going to make them go away. Rather than telling her to just get over it, I wish Katie would lead with what Sandoval did to her. That is the best case Ive seen for not being friends with this dude so far. Katie needs to make the argument that its not that he screwed over Ariana; its that he screwed over everyone, and if you let him back in, hell do it again. Meanwhile, back in Valley Village, Sandoval wore a cream sweater vest for his meeting with Lisa Vanderpump and maybe a little foray to See You Next Tuesday to embarrass himself in public again. He put a candy raver necklace of made of pink hearts, orange stars, yellow moons, green clovers, blue diamonds, purple horseshoes, and red balloons: the whole Lucky Charms iconography. Downstairs, Ann, dressed all in pink with a matching pink headband, tried to sneak out the front door just at that very minute. It was 7:12 p.m., and she had tickets for a 7:52 p.m. screening of Barbie at the Grove. If she was ever going to make it, shed have to leave then. Suddenly, she heard a bellow throughout the house. Ann! he shouted down the stairs. I need you! She trudged upstairs and saw Tom standing in the middle of his too-bare bedroom. What do you think, Ann? Out? he said as he pulled the necklace out from under the collar of his sweater vest. Or in? He pushed it back under the collar of his sweater vest. Out? he said, pulling it again. Or in? he said, pushing it. Out? Or in? Out? Or in? Out? Or Tom, I think they both look great, she said, edging toward the door. But I have to get going, Im going to see Out? Or in? Out? Or in? He was still pulling it out and pushing it back in for each statement, but then he turned to the full-length mirror, and it seemed he was just saying it to himself. Out or in? Out or in? Out or in? Thats all that Ann asked herself as she edged toward the door, tiptoed to the car, and gunned her Honda Accord to the Grove, where she was 15 minutes late to the movie. Should she have gone in and met her friends or waited outside until the movie was over? Out or in? she asked herself. Out or in? KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 23:50 | All, Japan, World The U.S. military plans to resume Osprey aircraft flights as early as Thursday in Japan after lifting a worldwide flight ban last week following a deadly crash off a southwestern Japanese island in November, the Japanese Defense Ministry said. The ministry explained the plan to local authorities in several prefectures on Wednesday, including Okinawa, where many U.S. Ospreys are based, but immediately faced strong opposition due to lingering safety concerns about the tilt-rotor aircraft. The ministry said the Ground Self-Defense Force's fleet of Ospreys will also restart flights from Thursday at the earliest, having been grounded since the incident in November that killed all eight crew members on board the U.S. Air Force CV-22 transport plane. "We are totally unconvinced, and it (the resumption of the Osprey flights) is unacceptable," Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki told reporters in Naha, noting that the government's explanation regarding the cause of the incident remains insufficient. Masanori Matsugawa, mayor of the Okinawa city of Ginowan, the home of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, a base that where MV-22 Osprey are stationed, said that there was "no explanation about the cause of the accident" from the ministry officials. "We want (the government) to take steps so that the anxiety of the local citizens can be eased," Matsugawa told reporters. In Tokyo, Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara told reporters that he had confirmed with his U.S. counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, during their phone talks that the resumption of Osprey flights will be carried out in stages and carefully, while prioritizing safety. The Pentagon said in a press release that Austin had underscored that the "safety of U.S. service members and Japanese communities remains a top priority." The ministry officials said earlier that while the U.S. military had identified the cause of the accident, it cannot be made public as the investigation by U.S. forces is ongoing. Tokyo and Washington have been coordinating the schedule for resuming Osprey operations in Japan after the U.S. military on Friday cleared the aircraft to fly again globally without providing details of the cause of the November accident. The United States grounded all of its Ospreys worldwide on Dec. 6, a week after the U.S. Air Force CV-22 transport plane crashed into the sea near Yakushima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture on Nov. 29 during an exercise. The accident occurred as the CV-22 aircraft assigned to Yokota Air Base in the western suburbs of Tokyo was heading to Okinawa's Kadena Air Base from a U.S. military base in Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture, western Japan. The incident was the deadliest one involving Ospreys since their combat debut in 2007, renewing concerns in Japan, a close U.S. security ally, about the safety of the aircraft, which is capable of taking off and landing like a helicopter but cruising like a plane. Austin had instructed U.S. forces and relevant departments not to operate Ospreys in Japan without coordinating with Tokyo in advance, Kihara told reporters in January. Shortly after the United States decided to lift the flight ban, Kihara said his ministry had confirmed the Ospreys in Japan are now "able to resume their operations safely." Related coverage: U.S. eyes extensive repair of warships at Japan shipyards: sources U.S. forces lift ban on Osprey flights after Nov. crash in Japan U.S. to resume Osprey flights months after deadly crash off Japan KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 18:37 | All, Japan A Space One Co. satellite-carrying rocket exploded Wednesday moments after liftoff from a spaceport in western Japan, dealing a setback to the company's aspirations of becoming the first private Japanese firm to place a satellite into orbit. The company's 18-meter-long Kairos rocket failed in its launch from Space Port Kii in Kushimoto, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan's first commercial launch site. It was announced shortly after that "flight termination measures" had been safely implemented. Local firefighters were dispatched to the scene. Police said there have been no reports of casualties so far. The rocket exploded midair around five seconds after liftoff, as fragments believed to be from the projectile were scattered around the area, and the scene was blanketed by white smoke. "We sincerely apologize for not living up to expectations," said Space One President Masakazu Toyoda at a press conference, while adding, "Space One refuses to use the word 'failure,' as we believe that we can gain new data and experiences through each and every attempt." The company said it had set up a task force to investigate the cause of the failure. The government satellite on the rocket is believed to have been destroyed in the blast. The cries of the many people gathered at an observation venue located approximately 2 kilometers southwest of Space Port Kii could be heard upon the announcement that the launch had failed. "It's a great shock," said Yoko Okada, a 17-year-old high school student who aspires to a space-related career. "It's a shame I couldn't see the rocket, but I hope they persevere and don't give up." Jun Ueyama, 48, an official from the city of Gobo, said, "I'm feeling sad. I took a day off (to come see this)." The launch was initially scheduled for Saturday but was delayed after the company discovered the presence of a ship in a section of the ocean it had designated as needing to be empty for safety. According to the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, the satellite on board the rocket was meant to perform some of the functions of an existing government satellite in monitoring military facilities in North Korea. Space One, established in 2018, seeks to commercialize space delivery services by lowering costs and offering rocket launches at high frequency. It aims to send into space 30 rockets a year by the 2030s. The company is aiming for short lead times of launches less than one year after concluding contracts with customers. "We believe that to complete all of our missions is the truest way to contribute to the local community," Toyoda said, adding that Space One will not change its plans for putting satellites into space. The company was set up by Canon Electronics Inc., IHI Aerospace Co., Shimizu Corp. and the government-owned Development Bank of Japan. Plans to launch its first rocket, initially set to take place by the end of March 2022 at the latest, were postponed four times due to the pandemic and logistics delays. Related coverage: Rocket launch by private Japanese firm Space One postponed Japan startup launches satellite on mission to monitor space debris Japan successfully launches new H3 rocket a year after failure Central European Summer Time begins on 31 March. Clocks in Italy and across Europe will "spring forward" by one hour at 02.00 Central European Time (CET) on Sunday 31 March 2024. The custom dates back to more than a century, before the advent of electricity, and was designed to take full advantage of all the daylight hours during the working day. However the practice - which means we will lose an hour of sleep but gain an hour of daylight - could be one of the last times that Europe is required to change its clocks. In 2019 the European parliament voted to scrap daylight saving time at an EU level but the move was subsequently put on hold due to the covid pandemic. Under the plan, the 27 member states will be required to choose either permanent summer time or winter time but must co-ordinate their choices to minimise risk of economic disruption in cross-border trade. There are currently three different time zones in the EU: two countries operate under GMT (Ireland and Portugal, in addition to the UK), 17 have Central European Time (GMT+1) and eight have Eastern European Time (GMT+2). The only country in Europe not to make the most of extra daylight hours during the summer is Iceland which stays on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) all year round. Central European Summer Time (CEST) will be with us until Sunday 27 October 2024. The Affordable Care Act, a law once derided and demonized by Republicans as a big government power grab, is becoming a politically untouchable part of the American safety net, with more than 45 million people now relying on its provisions for health coverage. KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 18:28 | World, All, Japan A senior South Korean official anticipates that leaders of South Korea and Japan may issue a joint statement incorporating future-oriented commitments when the two countries commemorate the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations next year. The statement is likely to include "future-oriented commitments and hopes to overcome the past," the presidential office official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Kyodo News and other foreign media in an interview earlier this week, adding that more comprehensive bilateral cooperation would likely be stipulated. The official highlighted the significance of resumed reciprocal visits by the two Asian neighbors' leaders and called it a sign of improvement in bilateral ties. South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to restart the so-called "shuttle diplomacy" on March 16 last year when Yoon became the first South Korean leader to visit Japan in four years. Bilateral relations hit a low after the top court in 2018 upheld orders in separate judgments against two Japanese firms to compensate South Korean plaintiffs over wartime forced labor. The ties have improved since the conservative government of Yoon, who took office in May 2022, said in March last year that plaintiffs who have won lawsuits over forced labor during Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula would receive compensation from a South Korean government-backed foundation. The official showed hope over the participation from Japanese companies in the fund, given several forced labor cases finalized between December and January and concerns over a lack of funds to pay damages to the plaintiffs and those of other ongoing lawsuits over forced labor. "Korean firms seem to be watching the political situation to decide when is the right timing to contribute to the fund, and I think 'the cup' could be filled (not only by the South Korean firms but) with Japanese firms together," the official said. Though such bilateral historical issues remain, Yoon's government has a strong willingness to overcome the past and foster trilateral cooperation among South Korea, the United States and Japan amid concerns over North Korea's missile and nuclear threats, he said. When asked about the possibility of a summit being held between North Korea and Japan, the official said South Korea is not too worried about the impact it would have on trilateral cooperation because Seoul, Tokyo and Washington would in any case consult closely on issues related to security. The agenda of the possible summit may include North Korea's nuclear weapons program and the issue of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, the official speculated, while noting that South Korea and the United States have supported Japan's efforts to solve the abduction issue. Related coverage: South Korea, Japan can solve history issues, open up new future: Yoon South Korea, U.S. begin military drill amid North Korea missile threat Japan, U.S., South Korea agree on closer cooperation over North Korea Jessica Mauboy might be one of Australias most successful recording artists, with six top-10 albums and two ARIA awards, but when she stepped onto the set of family movie Windcatcher she was nervous. Not since 2012s musical hit The Sapphires had she made a feature film. And she had never played a character that didnt sing. Even her leading role on Sevens drama series The Secret Daughter was a country crooner. So, as Windcatchers Aunty Cressida, an SES volunteer and primary carer of a dreamy 10-year-old runner called Percy Boy, Mauboy looked to the strong women in her life. Jessica Mauboy, Kelton Pell and Lennox Monaghan in the family movie Windcatcher. Aunty Cressida is a woman who feels very close to home, says Mauboy, who is about to embark on her first national tour in eight years. I felt like I was playing a lot of my aunties, or my older siblings, or my mother. Shes a very staunch type of woman whos able to take responsibility. She credits screenwriter Boyd Quakawoot, director Tanith Glynn-Maloney and the adult cast (including Kelton Pell, Lisa Maza and Pia Miranda) with putting her at ease. But it was the child actors, led by Lennox Monaghan, a didgeridoo player and dancer, who helped shake off the butterflies. Dingoes in north-western Victoria, which are locked in an extinction vortex, will again be listed as a protected species. But the animals will still be subject to a bounty in other parts of the state. Effective today, the Victorian government has removed an order that gave farmers, hunters and Parks Victoria employees the right to shoot, trap and poison dingoes on private land in Victoria, and on public land within three kilometres of any private land boundary, between Mildura and Warracknabeal. Research upended the myth that pure dingoes no longer live in large regions of Victoria. Last year an order unprotecting dingoes removing them from the list of protected species in Victoria was made on the recommendation of former environment minister Ingrid Stitt, former agriculture minister Gayle Tierney and former outdoor recreation minister Sonya Kilkenny. That order acknowledged dingoes in the Big Desert, in the Mallee region of north-west Victoria, were in an extinction vortex, with the dwindling population small, isolated and of limited genetic diversity. Without intervention, the dingo is on a trajectory that will lead ultimately to local extinction, the advice read. Animals Australia launched a Supreme Court challenge to the order, and the first day of the hearing was set for March 22. On Thursday, Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos and Agriculture Minister Ros Spence issued a joint statement saying the unprotection order would be lifted in the north-west of the state following new research, strong advice and the effectiveness of non-lethal dingo control methods to protect livestock. Its estimated there are fewer than 40 dingoes left in the states north-west. The dingo population in north-west Victoria is under threat of extinction, thats why were making these changes to protect an important part of the ecosystem, Dimopoulos said. Farmers will be supported by a $550,000 investment to adopt alternative non-lethal control methods via a pilot of measures such as exclusion fencing and guardian animals. The wild dog component of the current Fox and Wild Dog Bounty Program will end in the north-west. Dingoes will continue to be unprotected in the eastern part of the state, between Wodonga, Bairnsdale, Seymour and Mallacoota. A crime gang boss has refused to face court after learning he must kneel before security staff as part of strict new safety protocols following his violent outbursts in prison. Convicted murderer George Marrogi was due to face the Supreme Court of Victoria via a video link on Wednesday over a confiscation order being sought by the Australian Federal Police. George Marrogi was returned to his cell on Wednesday after refusing to kneel for prison guards. When the case was called on, a jailhouse supervisor told the court Marrogi was refusing to comply with safety requirements put in place to protect prison officers who have been subjected to his abusive and aggressive behaviour. We had difficulties with the prisoner coming in to [appear before] the courtroom. He kicked me in the side. Ive had him taken back to his cell, the officer said. A rescue effort is under way after a Ballarat mine collapse pinned two miners under rocks and forced 25 others to take refuge in an underground safety pod. Emergency services were called to Indicator Lane in Mount Clear, just south of Ballarat, about 4.50pm on Wednesday after reports of a rockfall. Victoria Police said rescuers had stabilised one man stuck under a rock before bringing him to the surface. He was treated for lower body injuries and then flown to The Alfred hospital in a serious condition. Emergency crews are still working to free the second person, police said shortly before 10pm. Washington: Depending on whom you ask, the short-form video platform TikTok is either a showcase for goofy dances and make-up tutorials or a sophisticated threat to US national security. Because TikTok is owned by a Chinese company, ByteDance and because China requires its companies, upon request, to share any national security-related data with the government TikToks popularity among Americans carries implications beyond the mobile phone screen. Thats on top of hand-wringing by parents, educators and mental-health experts about whether TikToks content and addictive nature are unhealthy for young minds. If the bill passes, ByteDance will have to divest TikTok and other applications it owns within six months. Credit: AP Renewed efforts by the US Congress to force TikTok to sell to a non-Chinese entity or face a ban in the US have the backing of the White House, even as President Joe Bidens re-election campaign has started to use the platform to reach younger voters. All of this is complicated by former president Donald Trump, Bidens opponent for president this year, who reversed his previous support for a ban just as the House of Representatives was about to vote on the bipartisan legislation, posing a dilemma for Republican Congress members who have increasingly taken their cues from Trump. 1. What makes TikTok different from other social media sites? KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 23:17 | Arts, World, All, Japan A Chinese blogger who calls himself a patriot has sued Nobel-winning novelist Mo Yan for beautifying soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army and insulting Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China, according to his social media post. In the suit, filed on February 20 and submitted to a Beijing court, the blogger demands that Mo apologize to the general public and pay 1.5 billion yuan ($209 million) in damages, equivalent to 1 yuan per Chinese national. Additionally, he requests the removal of Mo's books from bookshelves. The court has yet to accept the suit. Mo Yan, the first Chinese author to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012, is renowned for his novel "Hong gaoliang jiazu" (Red Sorghum). The story depicts bandit culture, the Japanese occupation and the hardships faced by impoverished farm workers in China. Director Zhang Yimou's film based on the novel won the Golden Bear Award at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1988. The blogger claimed that Mo's books "beautified" Japanese soldiers, "distorted" the history of an army under the command of the Chinese Communist Party and "smeared" Mao as well as the country's heroes and martyrs. Hu Xijin, a former editor-in-chief of The Global Times, a tabloid affiliated with the Communist Party, defended Mo, saying the suit is a "farce" aimed at garnering online attention. The Sixth WCO Global Canine Forum, hosted by Hong Kong Customs, successfully took place from March 5 7, 2024 in Hong Kong, China. The Forum brought together nearly 100 participants from approximately 50 Administrations to share their knowledge, experiences and ongoing work in canine developments. Distinguished officials Mr. TANG Ping-keung, Secretary for Security of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr. Pranab Kumar DAS, WCO Director for Compliance and Facilitation, and Ms. Louise HO, Commissioner of Hong Kong Customs officiated the event. WCO Secretary General Mr. Ian SAUNDERS in his video speech welcomed participants to this unique meeting point. He encouraged attendees to make every use of the knowledge and experiences from the Forum to positively impact their work back home. Detector dogs are a traditional partner of Customs with a proven track record of working with law enforcement agencies. Their powerful ability to detect molecules in the air and their swift response make them a promising solution to the new and emerging threats faced by Customs in this new era. The Forum sees the potential and effectiveness of detector dogs and recommends that Customs agencies continue to strengthen and expand their canine forces capability and capacity. The Forum also supports the WCOs efforts to establish an international canine standard as a necessary step to foster the modernization of Customs canine forces. A Meeting of Heads of Regional Dog Training Centre (RDTC) was held on the final day of the Forum. Twenty-seven delegates from 12 RDTCs attended to discuss roles, responsibilities and the unique value of RDTCs to the Customs community. The Meeting also covered the criteria and process for accreditation of RDTCs. KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 12:21 | All, World U.S. President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump each won enough delegates in Tuesday's round of state primaries to clinch their respective parties' nominations for the November general election. Biden, a Democrat, and Trump, whose remaining Republican rival Nikki Haley dropped out of the race last week, each crossed the threshold for nomination by securing over 50 percent of their parties' total delegates, major U.S. media reported based on projections. With a commanding win in a primary in Georgia, a key battleground state that was crucial for his victory in the previous presidential election, Biden set the stage for an all-but-certain rematch with Trump for the White House. With the United States set for its first presidential rematch in 70 years, the 81-year-old incumbent and the 77-year-old former president have already started sniping at each other ahead of the Nov. 5 election. Primaries for the two parties took place in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington. To earn the nomination at the Republican National Convention in July, Trump needed to win at least 1,215 delegates. The party's contests on Tuesday, which also included caucuses in Hawaii, were for 161 delegates. Haley, a former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador, pulled out of the race following losses to Trump in 14 of the 15 states that held Republican nominating contests on what is known as Super Tuesday. Trump's victory on the most important day of the primary calendar, which awarded around a third of Republican delegates, made it all but certain that he and Biden will face off on Nov. 5. On the Democratic side, Biden, who had no major primary rival from the start, needed 1,968 delegates and quickly won the roughly 100 delegates he needed on Tuesday to give him the magic number. The Democratic Party will hold its national convention in August to formalize Biden's nomination. Related coverage: Biden seeks record annual defense budget to boost deterrence in Asia Joe Biden says he's handling China better than Trump in key address KYODO NEWS - Mar 13, 2024 - 02:10 | All, Japan, World A team of four astronauts, including Satoshi Furukawa of Japan, returned to Earth on Tuesday in a SpaceX craft following a six-month mission to the International Space Station. Furukawa, also a medical doctor, was part of a team with NASA's Jasmin Moghbeli, Andreas Mogensen of Denmark and Konstantin Borisov of Russia. The Crew-7 mission came to an end after the SpaceX Dragon capsule splashed safely into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida at 5:47 a.m. "This international crew showed that space unites us all. It's clear that we can do more -- we can learn more -- when we work together," Bill Nelson, administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, said in a statement. "The science experiments conducted during their time in space will help prepare for NASA's bold missions at the Moon, Mars, and beyond, all while benefitting humanity here on Earth," he said. It marked the agency's seventh commercial crew rotation mission since 2020, when SpaceX first carried NASA astronauts to the ISS. Among other research projects, the 59-year-old Japanese astronaut worked on experiments to create high-quality protein crystals for the development of new drugs and engaged in a study to look into the effects of an extended stay in space on various organs. The mission was Furukawa's second time on the ISS, following his 2011 flight there aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. No Japanese astronaut is expected to travel to the orbiting laboratory until around 2025, when Kimiya Yui, 54, and Takuya Onishi, 48, will stay there for six months each on separate missions. Related coverage: Japan successfully launches new H3 rocket a year after failure Elon Musk's Starlink helps communications in quake-hit central Japan Japan likely to send 1st astronaut to Moon under U.S.-led project Carly Fiorina began her career as a secretary for a nine-person real estate firm. She climbed the corporate ladder at AT&T and Lucent Technologies through a willingness to tackle tough problems, a relentless focus on producing results and accepting accountability, and a passion for leveraging the talents of others and building high-performance teams. She was recruited to Hewlett-Packard with a mission to transform the company from a laggard to a leader, becoming the first woman to lead a Fortune 50 company. During her tenure as Chair and CEO, Hewlett-Packard became the largest technology company in the world, innovation tripled, cash flow quadrupled, and revenue and profit growth accelerated. Both government and the private sector have sought out her vast problem-solving, team-building, and leadership experience. She has advised the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security. She founded Carly Fiorina Enterprises to bring her expertise to private sector teams, and the Unlocking Potential Foundation to allow those in the social sector to benefit from her experience. She is the author of three best-selling books on leadership for general audiences, as well as a weekly LinkedIn newsletter with over 500,000 subscribers. She is a frequent speaker to teams and executives of many industries all over the world. Carly believes that citizens and leaders in civil society have an important role and an enormous opportunity to drive positive change. In 2015, Carly launched a campaign for President. Americans came to know Carly as a clear-eyed, direct leader capable of actually solving problems and delivering results. She is a member of the newly-formed American Bar Association Task Force for American Democracy, which is focused on those actions necessary to improve citizens confidence in American elections. She serves as the founding visionary and Executive Chair of The Williamsburg Institute, where history-makers meet. She also serves on the Board of Visitors for James Madison University. As a student of history and philosophy at Stanford University, Carly first began to appreciate the power of ideas to drive change and the impact of history on the present and future. She believes that a deeper understanding of our nations full history, as well as the ideas upon which America was founded is particularly important during the current climate of division, discord, and political dysfunction. She serves as the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation as well as the National Honorary Chair of the Virginia 250 Commission. In both roles, she is focused on ensuring that our nations founding is broadly understood, accurately portrayed, and commemorated in an inclusive, accessible way, particularly as we approach the United States Semiquincentennial in 2026. Developed and honed throughout her experience over decades and around the globe, from the bottom of the ladder to the very top, from the private to the public to the social sector, Carly approaches each challenge with three core beliefs: every individual has more potential than they realize; people closest to the problem know best how to solve it; and the highest calling of leadership is to unlock potential in others and work with them to solve problems and change things for the better. Putting those beliefs to work within the criminal justice system, she is the founder and Chair of Pathway to Promise, an organization that works with justice-involved youth so they can change their world. She and her husband Frank have been married for almost forty years. They live in Lorton, Virginia, where they are both active members of the community and support numerous local charitable causes. Their daughter, son-in-law and two granddaughters live nearby. Tourists from Malaysia pose for photos with performers at the Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport in Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province, March 12, 2024. Regular flights between Guiyang and Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, resumed on Tuesday, according to the Guizhou Civil Aviation Industry Group Co., Ltd.(Xinhua) GUIYANG, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Regular flights between Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province, and Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, resumed on Tuesday, according to the Guizhou Civil Aviation Industry Group Co., Ltd. Flight OD608 arrived at the Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport on Tuesday evening with 162 tourists from Malaysia. This is the first tourist charter flight from Malaysia to Guizhou after the implementation of a bilateral visa-free policy last year. The air service will run once a week every Tuesday and is expected to increase in frequency in the future, according to the company. The airport is also set to launch several international air routes this year. So far, it has resumed four international and regional passenger flights connecting Guiyang to Bangkok, Phuket, Kuala Lumpur, and Osaka. Paul Neilan A convicted rapist and killer who attacked a mother and son in their Cork home with a claw-hammer, turning it into a blood-bath, has had his jail time increased by nearly three years by the Court of Appeal. In June of last year, Ian Horgan was jailed for eight and a half years for the hammer attack on a then 29-year-old man, who required brain surgery for his injuries, and his 66-year-old mother at their home on the afternoon of March 26th 2022. At the Court of Appeal sitting in Cork on Wednesday, phone videos of the scene, filmed by Horgan, were played to the three sitting judges showing the immediate aftermath of the attack, as well as a video of Horgan later sitting in a park as the Bill Withers song Lovely Day plays in the background. One of the videos played for the court showed victim Hassan Baker, his face covered in blood, sitting on the ground in a semi-conscious state while Horgan shouted at him wheres the money in a false Dublin accent. After the court viewed the video evidence, Mr Baker's mother said from the gallery: "He left him for dead". She then left the courtroom. Horgan, formerly of The Hermitage, Macroom, Co Cork, pleaded guilty to the offences at Cork Circuit Criminal Court on January 30th 2023, and was sentenced by Judge Helen Boyle to nine years with the final six months suspended for the attack on Mr Baker and to a concurrent three years with the final six suspended for the attack on his mother, Mary OCallaghan. The attack occurred at around 4pm on March 26th 2022, at McCurtain Villas, College Street, Cork, which Ms OCallaghan described in her victim impact statement as a blood-bath. Sentence At the Court of Appeal, president Mr Justice George Birmingham said the court would allow the application of undue leniency made by the State and increased Horgans jail sentence from eight-and-a-half years to 11 years and three months with no portion suspended for the assault causing serious harm on Mr Baker. The court did not intervene with the assault causing harm sentence relating to Ms OCallaghan. When passing judgement, Mr Justice Birmingham said Horgan (40) had a lengthy history of violence and had convictions for rape, manslaughter, robbery, violent disorder, affray, possession of drugs for sale or supply and for the production of an article during the course of a dispute. Mr Justice Birmingham said that on the day of the attack, Horgan left his home in Macroom to travel to Cork City by bus. Horgan travelled with a shopping bag that contained a hammer and a change of footwear and clothing. CCTV footage CCTV had captured Horgan in the area of McCurtain Villas going into a shed and emerging in different clothes and footwear, wearing a hoodie and a snood. After the attack, said Mr Justice Birmingham, Horgan then sent mocking texts about Mr Baker to his then partner, who had previously been in a relationship with the injured man. Horgan then went to Fitzgeralds Park and sent videos of the seriously injured Mr Baker to his girlfriend. Horgan told his then girlfriend that his knuckles were f***ed again and that he was washing blood off himself, as the song Lovely Day played over the video. Horgan also texted his girlfriend that afternoon saying: I destroyed him. He wont be acting the hard man, let me tell you. He is a cheeky c***. LOL. In increasing the sentence for the assault causing serious harm today, Mr Justice Birmingham said Horgan had knocked on the door of the dwelling and pushed his way past Ms OCallaghan and attacked Mr Baker on the left shoulder with the hammer. Horgan then continued his attack on Mr Baker, choking his victim for 20-30 seconds, before again attacking him with the hammer, causing depressed skull, eye-socket and cheek fractures. Mr Justice Birmingham said that Ms OCallaghan tried to intervene to help her son, but Horgan broke her wrist when she did so. Mr Justice Birmingham said Horgan, in a ruse, was demanding money by shouting at Mr Baker when pretending that the attack was over a drug debt to distract attention away from himself". Horgan recorded his victims in a seriously injured and extremely distressed state before leaving the house, said the judge. Horgan then sent a message to his then girlfriend reading Dont worry, made it look like I was a Dub', said Mr Justice Birmingham. Mr Justice Birmingham said the DPP submitted that the headline sentence of 12 years was too low and that the headline sentence should have been at the top of the 10-15-year range. The judge said that lawyers for Horgan submitted that the sentence was within the trial judges discretion and had not been a substantial departure from the appropriate sentence and therefore was not unduly lenient. Mr Justice Birmingham said there was very real seriousness, exceptional seriousness in the offending that had a degree of preparation and pre-planning that included forceful entry into a constitutionally-protected dwelling. Extreme violence In quashing the original sentence and proceeding to re-sentencing Horgan, the judge said there had been extreme violence towards Mr Baker and that the video recording added insult to an attack that involved a potentially lethal weapon. The appropriate figure for a headline sentence is 15 years. Giving a 25 per cent discount for the guilty plea leaves eleven-and-a-quarter years to serve and it is one we are imposing here. We see no scope for any part of it to be suspended to encourage rehabilitation, said Mr Justice Birmingham. Horgan was 16 when he raped and strangled 22-year-old Cork woman Rachel Kiely and, almost exactly 18 years ago, was jailed for seven and a half years by Mr Justice Barry White. Horgan had admitted manslaughter but denied murder and rape charges. At a first trial in 2002, Horgan was convicted of rape and murder but those convictions were set aside by the Court of Criminal Appeal, which ordered a retrial. At a 2006 trial, a jury at the Central Criminal Court found him not guilty of murder but guilty of the rape and manslaughter of Rachel Kiely while she was out walking the family dogs in a park near her Ballincollig home. Vivienne Clarke Kneecap rapper Mo Chara has predicted that Minister for Culture Catherine Martin will be standing on her own on the Irish stage at the South by Southwest (SXSW) arts festival in the US. Kneecap is just one of a number of Irish acts, including Gavin James, Soda Blonde and Mick Flannery, that have withdrawn from the festival citing the event's association with the US military and the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. An Enterprise Ireland-led delegation is taking part in SXSW which is running this week in Austin, Texas. The Minister is set to represent Ireland at a number of events in Austin as part of the St Patricks Day programme, some of which are part of SXSW. Speaking on RTE radios Morning Ireland, Mo Chara said that their withdrawal sends a clear message and he was confident their fans would be supportive of their position. The decision had been a no-brainer once information began to come to light about the involvement of companies that are supplying weapons for a genocide in Palestine. We just made the decision because it's good to be on the right side of history, you know, as Irish people. And I was very, very proud to see how a lot of bands followed suit. Straight off, it sends a very clear message, that the Irish people will always be in solidarity with the Palestinian people. Mo Chara said he would not comment on whether people should or should not attend the festival. We were only making the decision based on us. But I know obviously the Minister was saying that she was going to support Irish acts. I think that she will be standing at the Irish stage on her own. When asked if the Minister had spoken with Kneecap, he said she hasnt spoken a word to me. The financial impact of not attending the festival will be very expensive, he acknowledged. But at the end of the day, this is just a minor sort of hiccup in our careers in comparison to what's actually happening in Gaza, you know, and everybody can play their part. But the whole country can play their part, whether it's at rallies or boycotting Israeli goods and anyone who has a platform continuing to use it in any way. Yes, we lost a bit of money, but, you know, it's priceless to do the right thing. A statement from the Department of Arts and Culture said the Minister had spoken to many of the musicians who had withdrawn from SXSW. She outlined that she has the utmost respect for their freedom of expression as artists and reassured them that she will use every opportunity available to her to make clear her revulsion at the devastation that has been unleashed on Gaza. This includes the St Patricks Day consular reception in Austin tonight where she will outline to attendees the Irish Governments calls for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages and a massive and sustained increase in humanitarian aid, food and medicine to the people of Gaza. The statement from the department added that the events aim to promote Irelands creative industries and film industry, and are supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Screen Ireland, IDA, Tourism Ireland and Music from Ireland. The Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement: South by Southwest is a combination of festivals and events that includes film, interactive media, music and conferences on a range of subjects, and takes place in March each year in Austin, Texas. In 2023, over 345,000 people from 127 countries attended. Ireland House at SXSW running from 11-15 March is providing an opportunity for a wide range of Irish companies, agencies and artists to showcase the best of Irish creativity in the fields of science, innovation, technology, culture and the arts. The department is aware that a number of artists due to participate in Music From Ireland at SXSW have withdrawn from the event. The department supports artists rights to freedom of expression and does not advise artists in relation to choices they make on where to perform. In relation to the war in Gaza, Ireland has strongly argued for an upholding of international humanitarian law, a humanitarian ceasefire and sustained humanitarian assistance. A man found with child pornography gave an "inexplicable account" that he was the victim of blackmail. Kevin Reilly, aged 48, of Curraghadooey, Scardaune, Claremorris previously pleaded guilty at Castlebar Circuit Criminal Court to two charges of possessing child pornography. State prosecutor Patrick Reynolds told the court that An Garda Siochana's Online Child Exploitation Unit (ONCE) received correspondence in June 2019 from Interpol in Manchester relating to the social media platform WhatsApp. Interpol reported that Hampshire Police in the United Kingdom were investigating a person who was suspected of sexual offences against children, including the sexual exploitation of a 13-year-old child in the UK. Arising out of this inquiry, two Irish telephone numbers were identified as being involved in the case. Det Gda Jonathan Ryan made an application to obtain the subscriber details of one of the numbers and it came back as the defendant, Kevin Reilly. It was not possible to identify the person connected to the second Irish number. A search warrant was obtained for Reillys home and 12 items of electronic hardware were seized, including five Samsung and Vodafone mobile phones, two camcorders, an Asus laptop, a Sony camera, two SD cards and a SIM card. Gda Sean Ryan downloaded 1,164 indecent images and 177 videos from the devices. The court heard that 322 images and 124 videos were classified as containing 'category one' material, which is the most explicit type of child pornography, involving children aged under 17 engaged in sexual acts. One image related to an infant aged just two to three years. Another 842 images and 53 videos were 'category two' material, showing children exposing their genitalia. When the case resumed last week, the court heard that Reilly was initially co-operative and denied that he was deriving gratification from the material. He had previously given an "inexplicable account" of being a victim of blackmail by an unknown person who had compromising pictures of him. There was no basis for the blackmail claims. The court was told he now seems to take responsibility for his actions. During an interview with the Probation Service, he candidly revealed he had taken photographs of schoolgirls in Galway and posted them online. Desmond Dockery SC, representing Reilly, said his client had been a habitual user of child pornography for five years. He said the behaviour began when he was unemployed and a relationship ended. Mr Dockery said the accused felt disgusted by his actions but was unable to stop. Judge Eoin Garavan said a prison sentence is warranted in this case, but he would not decide on sentencing until an up-to-date probation and psychological report is carried out. I need to know what we are dealing with. I need to see where he is at and what the risks are." The matter was adjourned until October 29, 2024. South Sligo Councillor Dara Mulvey has welcomed the inclusion of Ballymote in Phase 2 of the Department of Rural and Community Developments Town Centre First (TCF) Plans. The TCF initiative aims to enable areas to pursue projects like redeveloping derelict sites, creating community parks and river walkways, protecting historical landmarks and boosting tourism. I, along with my Council colleagues, have been lobbying on behalf of community groups and Sligo County Council to bring much-needed funding to our towns and villages." "This funding of 30,000 with consultation from local community groups will help progress the town's plans, said Cllr Mulvey. Rural Ireland is centered on communities like Ballymote. Encouraging people to create a vision for their town that can improve it as a location to live, work, invest in, and enjoy is the main goal of Town Centre First action, he added. A Mayo student has won the National Final of the Soroptimist Ireland Girls Public Speaking Competition, which was held last Saturday in The Oak Room of the Mansion House, Dublin. The competition has been running for 43 years and is the result of North-South Soroptimist co-operation when Mildred OBrien and Marie Brownlee decided that there should be a competition to encourage girls to speak in public. The SCF Global Campus sponsored competition was this year hosted by Dublin Soroptimists. The event was co-ordinated by the Dublin Public Speaking Convenor by Margaret Murray. Eight regional finalists talked on a range of topics from the environment, friendship to the empowerment of women. During the competition each speaker was also given two minutes to prepare a two minute talk on the topic Water. The winner, Fiza Farham from St Josephs Secondary School, Castlebar, impressed the panel of judges with both her talk on 'People and Human Rights' and her impromptu talk. Soroptimist Ireland National President, Aisling Nolan and CEO of Womens Aid, Sarah Benson congratulated all the finalists for their excellent talks. Ms Nolan described the girls as future leaders who will shape Irish society for the better. A new programme to promote and fast-track female entrepreneurship in the Gaeltacht areas of Mayo and Galway is being launched by Udaras na Gaeltachta, in partnership with the Empower Programme, a free initiative run by the Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Innovation Hubs and the Rubicon Centre at Munster Technological University (MTU). ATU and MTU both have huge experience delivering female entrepreneurship programmes but this is the first time they are partnering on such an initiative. This new Programme will have two parts, one of which is for females with an early stage business idea that they want to develop and grow, the other for female founders in business for 18 months or more who live in the Gaeltacht areas and want to grow and scale. As well as Mayo and Galway, counties Donegal, Kerry, Cork, Waterford and Meath are also included in the programme. Last year we ran the EMPOWER Cumasu Programme with 13 females engaging. Following that success we went on to bring the rest of the EMPOWER Programme to the wider regions of the Gaeltacht across Ireland, explains ATUs programme coordinator, Maria Staunton. We are hoping to attract over 110 females over the next three years. We are looking forward to watching more female businesses develop and grow in our rural regions. Tomas O Siochain, Priomhfheidhmeannach of Udaras is equally delighted with the initiative, saying that the creation of opportunities for underrepresented groups in entrepreneurship is a key priority for his organisation. [It is] vital to ensure that we draw on the often untapped talent among a huge swathe of the population. Udaras is working on the next steps for those entrepreneurs as they seek to bring novel ideas to life. In doing so, this will often solve problems in their community, create local, sustainable employment and also over time develop a cohort that will create business that can seek to capture part of a global market. Tributes have been paid to a retired East Mayo nurse who died in a house fire last week and dedicated her life to care of others. Mary B. (Beatrice) McNicholas, aged 93, was pronounced dead at the scene of the blaze, which occurred at her residence in Cordarragh, on the outskirts of Kiltimagh on Monday afternoon. Gardai and emergency services attended the scene of the extensively damaged property. Mary B. lived in a separate area of the dwelling to her brother Ollie, who was treated at Mayo University Hospital for smoke inhalation. A Garda technical examination and a post-mortem examination was carried out last Tuesday and the death is not being treated as suspicious. Kilkelly-based Fianna Fail Councillor John Caulfield, who knows the family well, said the Kiltimagh community and people in the surrounding areas are deeply saddened and shocked. Cllr Caulfield stated Mary B. came from a highly respected family of 10 and all of her siblings and relatives are in the thoughts and prayers of local people. Cllr Caulfield also spoke about the huge sacrifices Mary B. made and how dedicated she was to her profession. "Being a nurse is very hard work, she gave her life to the care of others," he said. "Mary B. was born in Treenagleragh at the top of the mountain overlooking Kiltimagh and leaving as many youngsters of her age did she went to England where she trained to become a nurse where she worked for many years." Cllr Caulfield said Mary B. later returned to Ireland and secured a job as a nurse with St Mary's Hospital in the Phoenix Park in Dublin where she worked for a lengthy period. She subsequently moved home to Kiltimagh from Dublin to retire. Mary B. is survived by her brothers Ollie and Sean, sisters Ann, Margaret and Verona and Cllr Caulfield said most her siblings live in Kiltimagh and the surrounding areas. "Her family are very popular in the community and the circumstances of her death are very sad," he added. Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced. SYDNEY, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The state government of Australia's Queensland on Wednesday urged local communities to prepare for the upcoming bushfire season, as a wet summer contributed to major vegetation growth. According to a statement released by the Queensland government, widespread heavy rainfall has led to increased bushfire fuel loads across large parts of the state. With drier-than-average weather conditions expected in autumn, vegetation can dry out quickly. Under above-average temperatures, grasslands in the western parts of northern and central Queensland are forecast to see a peak in fire activity in mid-autumn. While autumn is not likely to bring significant bushfire activity across the majority of the state, the Queensland government suggested landholders start preparing their properties beforehand. Meanwhile, the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) is working on plans to conduct hazard-reduction burns in the coming weeks. "Bushfire mitigation is a year-round process and QFES is actively working with its partner agencies to strategize for the cooler months, ahead of the start of bushfire season in August," said Nikki Boyd, the state's minister for fire and disaster recovery. Rural Fire Service Queensland acting chief officer Ben Millington noted that his agency is also busy undertaking preparation for crucial mitigation work to be completed during the cooler months ahead of the bushfire season. "While we are expecting a normal level of bushfire activity in autumn for most of the state, there is a significant amount of fuel on the ground which will dry out over the coming months," Millington added. The fire season in Queensland usually kicks off in July and can extend through to February in southern and far south-western areas. However, the timeframes can vary significantly from year to year, depending on fuel loads, long-term climate, and short-term weather conditions in each area. For the Far North and Far North West regions, the warm and sunny winter and spring become most susceptible to bushfires when grasses are dead and fuels have dried. VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) A close associate of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny accused Russian President Vladimir Putins henchmen on Wednesday of being behind a brutal attack that left him hospitalized. Police said an assailant attacked Leonid Volkov on Tuesday as he arrived in a car at his Vilnius home, where he lives in exile. The attacker smashed one of his cars windows, sprayed tear gas into his eyes and hit him with a hammer, police said. Volkov suffered a broken arm "and for now he cannot walk because of the severe bruising from the hammer blows, according to Navalnys The Anti-Corruption Foundation. He was hospitalized, but later released, and vowed Wednesday to keep up his work. We will work, we will not give up, 43-year-old Volkov said in a short video posted on Telegram on Wednesday, speaking with his arm bandaged and in a sling. It was a characteristic bandit greeting from Putins henchmen. This seemed to be a reference to both Putins thuggish style and his stint as a deputy mayor of St. Petersburg in the 1990s when it was considered one of the most criminal cities in Russia. Police have launched a criminal investigation. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuanias foreign minister, called the attack shocking. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime. President Gitanas Nauseda, speaking to reporters, said: I can only say one thing to Putin nobody is afraid of you here. But the attack in fact underlined a sense of insecurity felt not just by Russian dissidents abroad, but also the many to have fled Belarus seeking safety in Lithuania, Poland and elsewhere. Unfortunately Belarussian people cant feel safe even being abroad," the Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who lives in exile in Lithuania, said. I think the aim of such attacks is to paralyze people, to paralyze democratic movements. Pavel Latushka, a former Belarusian culture minister who is now in exile in Warsaw and receives constant threats, said it is evident that all boundaries have been breached, and crimes can be committed within the territories of European Union member countries. The attack took place nearly a month after Navalnys unexplained death in a remote Arctic penal colony. He was Russias best-known opposition figure and Putins fiercest critic. Navalny had been jailed since January 2021 and was serving a 19-year prison term there on the charges of extremism widely seen as politically motivated. Opposition figures and Western leaders laid the blame on the Kremlin for his death something officials in Moscow vehemently rejected. His funeral in the Russian capital on March 1 drew thousands of supporters, a rare show of defiance in Putins Russia amid an unabating and ruthless crackdown on dissent, as Navalnys widow Yulia vowed to continue her late husbands work. Volkov used to be in charge of Navalnys regional offices and election campaigns. Navalny ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and sought to challenge Putin in the 2018 presidential election. Volkov left Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities. Last year, Volkov and his team launched a project called Navalnys Campaigning Machine, aiming to contact as many Russians as possible, either by phone or online, seeking to turn them against Putin ahead of the March 15-17 presidential election. Not long before his death, Navalny urged supporters to flock to the polls at noon on the final day of voting to demonstrate their discontent with the Kremlin. His allies have been actively promoting the strategy, dubbed Noon Against Putin, in recent weeks. Russian independent news outlet Meduza said it interviewed Volkov several hours before the attack and asked him about risks for Navalnys team. The key risk is that we will all be killed, Meduza quoted Volkov as saying. Associated Press writer Vanessa Gera contributed from Warsaw. READING, Pa. - A convicted rapist will spend decades behind bars following a sentencing hearing Wednesday. Elder Jacobo-Portal was sentenced 14 - 29 years in state prison after being convicted in December 2023 of rape and intimidation of a witness. Authorities say Jacobo-Portal raped a female juvenile, and after he was incarcerated, he intimidated her in an attempt to prevent her from testifying against him. The sentence is the maximum allowed by Pennsylvania law on these charges, authorities say. N. WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. Lehigh Valley Zoo, in conjunction with project manager D&S Elite Construction, Inc., announced Wednesday that construction of the zoos new habitat for red pandas is underway. The exhibit is expected to be completed for a grand opening later this spring, according to a news release from the zoo. The location, which previously housed the North American prairie dogs, has been reimagined for a habitat designed to meet the standards of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the zoos accrediting body, as well as to maximize the welfare of red pandas, according to the news release. D&S Elite Construction, Inc. is excited for the opportunity to collaborate with the Lehigh Valley Zoo and a talented team of tradespeople to create this remarkable habitat for the Red Panda, said Allen Butler, D&S Elite Constructions Vice President of Construction, Inc. We are eager to develop and construct an exhibit that not only provides visitors with a personal and up-close experience, but also contributes to educating the community about the plight of this endangered species for generations to come. LV Zoo President and CEO Amanda Shurr added, This is an exciting time for the Lehigh Valley Zoo and we are happy to work together with D&S Elite Construction to bring this new species to our zoo. We are thrilled to play a role in the conservation of this endangered species and to offer our community the opportunity to learn about red pandas and observe them in a modern habitat. The zoo says red pandas have a population reported to be fewer than 10,000 in the wild as a result of deforestation, poaching, accidental trapping, and illegal pet trade. Providing a home for red pandas at LV Zoo supports the zoos vision of partnering with the community to be a leader in conservation education and action, according to the news release. As part of its master plan, LV Zoo says it intends to further grow the zoo with species from the Himalayan region as they are temperature-hardy and will be able to handle the North American climate year-round. Guests can visit current LV Zoo residents seven days a week during its current winter hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Beginning on April 1, the zoo extends to its in-season hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at lvzoo.org. PALMER TWP., Pa. At its monthly meeting Tuesday night, the Palmer Township Planning Commission reviewed a preliminary plan for the first Rutter's location proposed in the Lehigh Valley. Based in York, Rutter's is a gas station/convenience store chain similar to Wawa and Sheetz. The company has more than 85 locations across Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia including three in Berks County and one in Schuylkill County. Presented by Rutter's associate general counsel Brian Carter and project manager Damon Hall, Tuesday's proposal calls for a new Rutter's location to be constructed at 1280 Main St. The site is east-southeast of Route 33's Stockertown exit in northern Palmer Township. According to Hall, the proposed 13,468-square-foot "dual-use" building would consist of convenience store space, as well as a quick-serve restaurant (QSR) with cafe seating for customers. A canopy between the building and Main Street would house 14 regular gasoline pumps, while diesel fuel pumps would be east of the building, Hall said. Planners questioned Carter and Hall about the project, with several expressing concerns about the potential for trucks to idle. A total of 96 truck parking spaces are currently proposed for the Rutter's site. "Nothing is really going to stop them (truckers) from staying for eight hours," said Jeff Kicska, chair of the planning commission. Carter responded to planners' concerns by claiming the proposed site does not provide showers or overnight rest accommodations for truck drivers like a typical truck stop would. Rutter's would construct signs explicitly preventing idling in the parking lot, Carter said. Vice Chair Richard Wilkins worried that the site would become a "hangout place" for troublemaking youth and stretch Palmer Township Police resources thin something he said initially occurred at the Route 248 Sheetz. In response, Hall vowed that Rutter's would maintain security cameras, a lit parking lot and regular employee checks of the site to discourage suspicious behavior. Planners also criticized the plan's lack of green space and call for only one entrance/exit point, arguing there should be more of both on the site. Carter and Hall said they were open to making these improvements, and Hall noted that some other Rutter's locations have grassy areas with outdoor picnic tables. When asked if the applicant's representatives had any specific disagreements with the review letters from township staff, Hall said Rutter's would prefer to keep more of its gas pumps in front of the store as opposed to the side. Configuring this setup would require Rutter's to obtain a variance from the township's zoning hearing board, according to Assistant Planning Director Craig Beavers. While the board took no action on the proposal Tuesday, planners received the idea of constructing a Rutter's generally positively, and the presentation ended cordially. Kicska said the proposed site is a "good location for something like this," but some details must continue to be worked out during land development. The Palmer Township Planning Commission will next meet on Tuesday, April 9. U. MACUNGIE TWP., Pa. - A teen is in custody after police say he assaulted his own mother, then stole a gun from the family home. The incident prompted a lockdown at Lehigh Career & Technical Institute Tuesday afternoon. Pennsylvania State Police responded to the school and were seen outside the school with guns. It all ties into the confrontation that teenager had with his mother at a mobile home park in Breinigsville. Police were called to a home on Max Way in Breinigsville after the mother said she had been struck by her 17-year-old son, who possibly took a gun from the house. During the incident police say the teen made threats to harm family members. Leon Kurtish was outside powerwashing his driveway on Max Way Tuesday when he saw police arrive. "I just seen cops going all over the place, rushing," said Kurtish. "They were going down this street and that street. I was just surprised actually." There was also concern that he had made threats toward LCTI. Students were placed on lockdown at 12:50 p.m., remaining in their classrooms until the end of the school day. Drone video shows the students being let out. State Police tell us troopers assisted with student dismissal. Threats against the school were later determined to be unfounded. At 3 p.m. police returned to the Mobile Home Park on a tip that the teen had been seen walking and took him into custody. The stolen handgun was located in the area. The teenager will face charges of theft, harassment, and possession of a firearm by a minor. HELLERTOWN, Pa. The Hellertown Planning Commission on Tuesday approved a preliminary land development plan for a Sheetz near a busy Interstate 78 intersection at Main Street and Kichline Avenue. Misgivings about light pollution for residents and increased traffic to the already congested area were debated among planning commission members. Planner Maria Diaz-Joves expressed her concerns about traffic. "It's a nightmare," Diaz-Joves said. "I'm not against [the Sheetz]," she explained. "I think it's great, but I want to know how we can improve traffic flow." The approval was contingent upon addressing all comments made by the borough engineer in his letter to the applicant. In addition to responding to the engineer's recommendations, Bohler Engineering presenting for the applicant must also look into additional buffering and lighting for residents on Franklin Street. Besides traffic, planning commission members also discussed parking at the site, which was included in the engineer's letter. As it stands currently, the plan would require a variance in parking. Borough code states that for a plan of this size, 80 parking spots would be required. The applicant proposes 42, noting that the requirements are now outdated. Held live on Facebook, the meeting's public comments generally did not favor the Sheetz. Residents were primarily concerned with traffic in the already congested area. "We don't need another there! It is crazy at that light," commented Maria Teresa. "NO SHEETZ," said Wilkins Cespedes. Officials said the applicant is working with Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, and the area will see updated roads, traffic patterns, and light changes that will make traffic smoother. Through the preliminary planning process, the applicant receives feedback on how to improve their plans. The approval gives the project a blessing to move forward. A car dealership, Star Pre-Owned of Hellertown, currently occupies the site. +5 Another proposed Sheetz to be reviewed next week in Northampton County The Lehigh Valley may be getting another Sheetz gas station, this one at a busy Interstate 78 interchange. CJ Landis, general manager of Star Pre-Owned of Hellertown, told 69 News previously that his family owns the property, where it's business as usual for the dealership until anything is decided. If the Hellertown Planning Commission approves the Sheetz proposal, Landis told 69 News that the existing dealership would likely merge with its sister locations, including Star Buick GMC of Easton on Country Club Road in Lower Nazareth Township and Star Buick GMC Cadillac of Quakertown on North West End Boulevard (Route 309) in Richland Township. Apartment complex In other news Tuesday night, the planning commission approved waivers for a multi-unit apartment building at Clauser, Hemlock and Williams streets. Presented by Keystone Consulting Engineers, the project has 60 residential units, one of which is a family residential home. The four-story buildings will provide commercial enterprises on the bottom floor with residential units on the remaining floors. The project is in the Highway Commercial/Flexible Overlay Redevelopment district. The applicant requested and was granted waivers related to drainage, tree planting and plan submissions. LYNN TWP., Pa. -- A Lehigh County father is sharing the anger he feels towards the man who he says lured and exposed himself to his two young daughters and their friends. It's a disturbing incident in what many call a quiet townhome community in Lynn Township. Ring doorbell video shows a blue truck on Jefferson Court on Monday. According to Ryan Williams, around 4:45 p.m., the truck drove by slowly several times. Now, he can't stop looking for it. Inside the truck, he says, was the man who lured his two daughters, ages 9 and 4, and their two friends while they walked the family's dog. "Said that we had a nice dog to my daughter and said he had a dog, asked her if she would like to see him," Williams explained. When the children approached, Pennsylvania State Police say the man opened the door and exposed himself. "The individual had no clothes on besides the sweatshirt," Williams said. Neighbors are disturbed. "Honestly, it's horrifying," said Christa Amberiano, who lives in the neighborhood. "You see people walking their dogs, you see people with their families all the time here. It's disgusting." The girls ran for safety. Everyone is physically okay, but Williams says, emotionally, the past day has been incredibly trying. "It's only been 24 hours, but I feel that I failed as a parent," he said. He says he knows it's not his fault, but the "what-if's" are mounting. "You're just at the point of being thankful for having your daughter here," he said. "And it's not good to do the 'what-if's' but it's... that's all that runs through my mind right now is the 'what-if's,'" he said. He also feels angry. "Rage. My whole family today, we all took off to hunt this guy," Williams said. Police are looking for him, too. While covering the story Tuesday, 69 News saw a trooper stationed near the community and patrolling the streets. While covering the story, we saw a trooper stationed near the community -- and patrolling the streets "I am glad they are coming by. It's a very quiet area, nothing goes on," Amberiano said. Williams says his older daughter is receiving support from her school. The man is described as being in his 50s or 60s and bald on the top of his head, with a white beard that goes to a point. Police say the truck is a blue 2009-2018 Dodge Ram 1500 quad cab with chrome tubular steps and front and rear chrome bumpers. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Pennsylvania State Police Fogelsville Station at (610) 395-1438. READING, Pa. One of the most popular social media apps is back on the hot seat. "I heard about it on TikTok," said Alvernia University student Lindsay Martin. The social media platform frequently serves as a way people keep up to date with the latest happenings around the world. But TikTok's time could be up. A bipartisan bill that threatens the app's owner, Beijing-based company ByteDance, is headed for a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. "I do remember seeing one TikTok about it," Martin said. Last week, a House panel unanimously approved a bill that would require the Chinese company to sell TikTok and any other apps within six months of it being passed. That's in order to avoid a ban in the U.S. As U.S. lawmakers threaten to ban the popular app, they're also giving the company a chance to keep it up and running. Users can continue to access the app if ByteDance sells its ownership. "I think I would be, like, a little bit bummed," Alvernia University student Talia Falcon said about the prospect of a national ban. The legislation also allows the executive branch to forbid access to other apps that could threaten national security. "I mean, I would be pretty upset," Martin said. "I mean, I spend a lot of time on the app. It is, like I said, it's stress relief." A spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, a Democrat who represents parts of Berks and Chester counties, released a statement that said, "We have noticed a surge in calls from young constituents worried about a potential TikTok ban. Contrary to rumors, the proposed measures aren't a total ban but a response to national security concerns tied to TikTok's links with the Chinese Communist Party." U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, a Republican who represents parts of Schuylkill and Berks counties, issued a statement that reads, in part, "I am concerned about heavy-handed government disrupting private business, but I am also concerned about potential national security threats. I am continuing to review and consider the legislation, but I am currently undecided on tomorrow's vote." "It's definitely better to get outside or do schoolwork instead of letting that be a distraction," Falcon said. "So, I would be bummed out, but I think there's other things I could do instead." President Joe Biden is reported to have said he will sign the bill if it's passed. It's not yet known what will come of the Senate, but lawmakers from both parties have raised concerns about authorities in China forcing "ByteDance" to share data about American users. DOYLESTOWN, Pa. The Central Bucks Board of School Directors voted 6-1 Tuesday night to approve a settlement agreement with middle school teacher Andrew Burgess, who was suspended almost a year ago for allegedly violating a district policy. Burgess then filed a suit against the district in federal court over what he claimed was a violation of his civil rights. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed at the meeting, but board President Karen Smith said Burgess is being welcomed back into the classroom. District officials at the time of the incident claimed Burgess failed to report a bullying incident against a transgender student in March 2022, opting instead to file a discrimination complaint on behalf of the student with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights. Burgess alleged he was suspended in retaliation for being an advocate for an LGBTQ student. Board member James J. Pepper, who is an attorney, voted against the agreement, saying there were never any depositions taken in the matter. "So that, for me, is very problematic; exceedingly problematic," Pepper said. "But much more importantly is the way this litigation was handled." Pepper said very strange things happened over the course of the litigation. "We had our insurance cancelled at one point," Pepper stated. "We had an issue with an attorney entering his appearance, where from my perspective, there was a clear, clear, crystal clear conflict of interest. I don't understand how we can settle a case where we have yet to take a single deposition." Board member Susan Gibson said she shared some of Pepper's concerns, but believed it was in the best fiduciary interest of the district to approve the settlement. Pepper said there was a good argument for that. "From that perspective, I've got it," Pepper said. "My concern is I have been practicing law for a very long time, and I've never seen anything like this; I mean, never." Board member Mariam Mahmud said the actions of the previous board were egregious. "One of the main things that happened that I think the last board did that was quite egregious was the sham of a trial that happened publicly and really defamed a teacher and caused a lot of problems," Mahmud said. "I think that is a really problematic event that needs to be stated." In a statement published Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania said terms of the settlement include correcting the false allegations in Burgess' personnel file, removing an investigation report prepared by Duane Morris LLP from all district-maintained websites and immediately reinstating Burgess. The district also agreed to pay him $100,000 in damages, plus his attorney fees, the statement said. "The support I have received from union members, former students, and members of the community has been instrumental and often overwhelming," Burgess said in the ACLU of Pennsylvania statement. "I am hopeful that this can be an opportunity for Central Bucks to develop a greater institutional courage, to treat all staff members with respect, and to create safe school environments for all students. I stand in solidarity with everyone fighting back against this national campaign to harm trans children and intimidate educators." Indoctrination claims Before the voting portion of Tuesday's meeting, the board heard from members of the public for almost two hours regarding allegations against a Central Bucks High School West teacher Youssef Abdelwahab. Some made allegations that Abdelwahab used the high school's Muslim Student Association to indoctrinate students in his political beliefs. Many Muslim students brought high praise for Abdelwahab. Mary Ayata, a senior at Central Bucks West and cofounder and copresident of the Muslim Students Association, said the accusations against Abdelwahab are deeply rooted in Islamophobia and racism. "I would like to remind everyone that the MSA is a high school club, which inherently makes it a student-run organization," Ayata said. "Mr. 'A' is only our advisor who supports us in our endeavors and does what he can within reason to bring them to fruition." "So far, he has supported the club's interest in conducting student-led Friday prayers, hosting student-led informative presentations and student-led discussions on Islam and on Muslim concerns, all with an approval from our senior administration," Ayata explained. Others demanded disciplinary action for the teacher. Mahmud responded to the many comments. "Unfortunately, over the last several months, a lot of things have escalated to the point of Islamophobic attacks on students and one of our minority teachers," Mahmud said. "I also want to acknowledge the anti-Semitic hate is at an all-time high, and that it is, too, deeply disturbing and something we need to stand together against and united." "I'm horrified truly at the hateful attacks and misrepresentation on Mr. Abdelwahab," Mahmud continued. "They are classic hateful tropes against the Muslim faith and are often unfortunately perpetuated by society, movies and media. By all accounts, Mr. 'A' holds a special place for many students, and he creates a safe space for students of all backgrounds and interests." Acting CBSD Superintendent James Scanlon said Wednesday "the district cannot comment on details of a personnel matter, but there is no policy violation." Neutrality policy During the voting agenda, the board voted to remove Policy 321 (political activities) from the table and approve a revision for a first reading. The policy was controversial when the previous board adopted revisions to it to create a neutrality policy which prohibited teachers from advocating or displaying items that reflect partisan, political or social policy agendas. When the new board was seated in December, one of its first actions was to table the existing Policy 321. The new revision states employees shall not engage in political activities during assigned work hours, except for discussion and study of political issues when applicable to classroom studies. Board member Heather Reynolds said she firmly believes the district does not need a policy on neutrality. "Quite the opposite," Reynolds said. "Ignoring the real world and avoiding conversations and situations our students will find themselves in is not helpful or realistic." "We need to encourage robust conversations that center our students needs and prepare them for the world outside of Central Bucks," she said. "Our educators must be trusted to facilitate these discussions and allow our students to grow and learn and explore their views, allowing them all to feel safe, valued and supported." Grade realignment In other business, the board voted to realign the district, effective for the 2026-27 school year. The change will create a configuration of buildings with grades K-5, 6-8 and 9-12. The current configuration is K-6, 7-9 and 10-12. The new configuration will also see the implementation of full-day kindergarten. School board members said the change is overdue, but more time is needed to ensure the new configurations are done appropriately. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is seen during an interview with Xinhua at the Prime Minister's Office in Islamabad, Pakistan, March 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal) by Xinhua reporter Jiang Chao ISLAMABAD, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan and China will carry shared values and march toward shared development, prosperity and progress together, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said. Chinese President Xi Jinping congratulated Sharif on his election as prime minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on March 3. In his response, Sharif thanked Xi for his warm congratulations and continued support for Pakistan. "I deeply value his sentiments not only for the people of Pakistan, for our friendship, but our mutual cooperation," Sharif said during an interview with Xinhua at the Prime Minister's Office in Islamabad, the first exclusive one with foreign media since his inauguration. "For me, it's a very good start." This year marks the 73rd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. Sharif said that over the past 70-plus years, the leaders of Pakistan and China have continuously cultivated and promoted bilateral friendship. The two countries have developed into all-weather strategic cooperative partners with a unique friendship like "iron brothers" that has stood the test of time. "This friendship now must achieve higher heights," he added. Sharif, 73, served three terms as chief minister of Pakistan's eastern Punjab province and has extensive experience in regional economic development and governance. When talking about Chinese modernization, Sharif said Pakistan should emulate the model. "It is a great success model and success story," the prime minister said, recalling how generations of visionary Chinese leaders have led their people to create unprecedented development miracles, lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and providing vast rural populations with access to education, healthcare and employment. Sharif said Chinese modernization has created growth centers and sectors competitive in the global market. "Despite challenges in recent years, China's growth has still gone steadily compared to other countries, which is a remarkable achievement," he added. The prime minister said Pakistan could learn from the model to alleviate poverty, boost youth employment, and encourage small and medium entrepreneurship in agricultural, industrial, and information technology sectors across urban and rural areas. Noting that Pakistan is among the first batch of countries joining the Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative (GDI), Sharif said that Pakistan fully and firmly supports the GDI and Global Security Initiative. He believes such initiatives will strengthen the bond among global communities. Noting that projects under the Belt and Road Initiative span across continents, Sharif said they contributed to alleviating poverty, reducing hunger, facilitating investment, and promoting education and health. "There couldn't have been a better model for forging global societies together," Sharif said. As a prominent project under the Belt and Road Initiative, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was featured in Sharif's first parliamentary speech after reelection. Pakistan is now ready to move toward the second phase of CPEC, Sharif said, aiming to promote technological development and agriculture through the corridor. Pakistan has established the Special Investment Facilitation Council, which will cut red tape and remove delays and inefficiencies for CPEC projects, Sharif said. The country is also planning to build industrial parks and export zones and looks forward to Chinese joint ventures in sectors such as textile and steel, which combine Chinese technologies with Pakistan's labor assets. "Through those joint ventures, high-quality products in agriculture, industry, IT, etc., are produced to create hundreds of thousands of jobs and wealth and increase our production and exports," he added. "China has been extremely helpful in promoting Pakistan's economic progress, and CPEC has played a very important role, which we really appreciate deeply," said Sharif. The prime minister said Pakistan is working toward electrifying its transport system to cut import fuel costs and spend the money on development instead. The country also plans to acquire clean energy technologies from China and others. Sharif said he looks forward to revisiting China, calling it a tradition for Pakistan's new leadership after inauguration. "China is our second home," he said. "We made solemn commitments that we would work together," said Sharif, "and we would be together through thick and thin." Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif (R) speaks during an interview with Xinhua at the Prime Minister's Office in Islamabad, Pakistan, March 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal) PENNSBURG, Pa. A school district that serves Berks and Montgomery counties said it's dealing with a "widespread" technology outage. Upper Perkiomen School District said Tuesday morning the outage has shut down its telephone and email systems. It's also affected the district's Wi-Fi. An updated message Wednesday said the district's IT team is still working to fix the outage and restore service. The district's messages say people can reach out on ParentSquare or Facebook Messenger until everything is fixed. There's no word on the cause of the outage. If you want to brush up on your Pennsylvania Dutch, you're in luck. A new class is starting in Berks County this week. 69 News' Karin Mallett first told you about the classes last year, and since then, the interest has grown. The Berks History Center has been holding classes there ever since, connecting people with their roots. The center is now averaging eight or nine classes a semester. The current semester has 86 students, but each class size is still relatively small, about 15 students, so that there's plenty of time for conversation in PA Dutch. Two beginner classes are starting on Thursday, March 14. Some of the classes are virtual and some are in person at the center in Reading. Assistant Director Bradley Smith, who has an ancestral connection to the classes, says he's learned so much from the experience and has learned not only how to speak some PA Dutch but also why we say it the way we do. He says since they have virtual students, people have been taking the classes from PA Dutch communities all over and that's opened his eyes to the prevalence of the regional variations in the language. The classes have been so popular, they've had more than 200 people take classes over the last year and a half. Classes are $70 for Berks History Center members and $140 for non-members. Spots are open so call the history center to register if you are interested. Allentown, PA (18103) Today The nicest day of the forecast, with an egg-cellent Easter Sunday expected with partly sunny skies and mild highs near the 60-degree mark. . Tonight Clouding up with a bit of rain arriving late...after midnight. Int'l cruise ship carrying over 1,100 tourists arrives in China's Tianjin Xinhua) 08:25, March 13, 2024 A drone photo taken on March 11, 2024 shows cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docking at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin. (Xinhua) TIANJIN, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docked at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin, on Monday morning, with over 1,100 tourists from 30 countries and regions aboard. This marks the maiden visit of the cruise ship, measuring 285 meters in length and 32 meters in width, to Tianjin, where it will stay for two days and one night. The passengers will go sightseeing in the cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Xi'an. A series of service measures adopted by the local customs administration and cruise ship agency made the ship's visit to Tianjin possible. Bi Linlin, a local immigration inspection officer, said they worked with the cruise line and the port company to streamline passenger clearance procedures and meet the needs of tourists. As the largest cruise home port in north China, Tianjin International Cruise Home Port has welcomed 16 cruise ships and seen 50,000 tourist visits so far this year, according to Dong Zichen, deputy general manager of Tianjin International Cruise Home Port Co., Ltd. "We are quite optimistic about the recovery of the cruise tourism industry in Tianjin," Dong said. "With government support policies and people's increasing demand for cruise tourism, we believe that the cruise tourism industry will develop rapidly in China," said Jiao Deshuai, senior assistant manager of the shipping department at the Sinotrans North China Container Company, which is engaged in the cruise ship agency business. Having traveled to the Chinese cities of Shanghai and Dalian, the Zuiderdam cruise ship is scheduled to leave Tianjin for Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon. A drone photo taken on March 11, 2024 shows cruise ship Zuiderdam, operated by Holland America Line, docking at Tianjin International Cruise Home Port in north China's port city of Tianjin. (Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Oman-based United Solar Holding has broken ground on its major polysilicon factory project being set up at an investment of RO520 million ($1.3 billion) within the Sohar Port and Freezone. The landmark project, which is set to be the largest of its kind in the Middle East, will boast an annual production capacity of 100,000 tonnes, said the company in a statement. Strategically aimed at polysilicon production, this project is a step forward in building a value-added chain across downstream and renewable energy sectors, especially in solar panel manufacturing, said senior company officials at the foundation laying cermony held in the presence of Sultan Salim Al Habsi, Minister of Finance. The project aligns with Oman Vision 2040s goals to stimulate green hydrogen production and reduce solar panel costs in Oman, ensuring employment opportunities and social initiatives, including the training of Omani youth in this emerging field, they added. Speaking at the ceremony, Ibtisam Ahmed Al Farooji, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry, and investment Promotion for Investment Promotion, said the project was aligned with Oman Vision 2040 to bolster local investment and attract foreign direct investment. She also highlighted the ministrys commitment to fostering industrial sector investment opportunities and facilitating the investors journey. "We are steadfast in our national efforts to enhance investment opportunities in the industrial sector and other areas promoting economic diversification. Our aim is to attract investors to these opportunities, providing comprehensive support to transform these prospects into tangible projects," noted Al Farooji. "Moreover, one of the key priorities is to add in-country value nationwide by generating jobs for young Omanis and unlocking investment opportunities in each governorate," she added. Dr Saleh Said Masn, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion for Commerce and Industry, pointed out that the project's focus on clean energy, especially solar, aligns with sultanate's Manufacturing Strategy 2040 and renewable energy goals. "The projects investment of RO520 million is expected to significantly contribute to the GDP and enhance global supply chain integration. Omans potential in solar energy component manufacturing is set to initiate new, modern industries," he stated. Meanwhile, Dr. Mansour Talib Al Hinai, Chairman of the Authority for Public Services Regulation, said: "The foundation stone laid today for the United Solar Holding project marks it as a major investment in Oman and the broader Middle East region." "This project represents a significant step towards localising alternative energy industries. It will provide training and qualification for many Omanis in specialised roles, supporting our economy by adding value to specific projects," he added. Sohar Freezone CEO Omar Mahmoud Al Mahrizi said: "We are committed to fostering a dynamic and inclusive environment for investment and growth, leveraging our strategic location and world-class infrastructure to attract businesses looking to expand into the Middle East and beyond." "In line with Sohar Freezones Phase Two infrastructure expansion, we are offering 675 hectares to accommodate the growing demands for industrial and commercial space, fostering an environment of innovation, collaboration, and enduring success," he added.-TradeArabia News Service DAMASCUS, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Two people believed to be foreign militants were killed in Israeli airstrikes on sites in the southern Syrian province of Quneitra, a war monitor reported. The identities of the victims, who are believed to be affiliated with either the Lebanese Hezbollah or Iranian militias, remain unclear, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The Britain-based watchdog group said the airstrikes targeted two locations in the Tel Ahmar area, situated north of Khan Arnabeh in Quneitra countryside. Before this incident, another location near the Ein al-Nouriya area, close to the Syrian border with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, was directly targeted by Israel, the observatory added. This photo taken on March 13, 2024 shows commercial aircraft ARJ21 (R) and C919, manufactured by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), on display at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor state, Malaysia. The static display and demonstration flight of the China-manufactured commercial aircraft ARJ21 and C919 were held here on Wednesday. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua) KUALA LUMPUR, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The static display and demonstration flight of the China-manufactured commercial aircraft ARJ21 and C919 were held on Wednesday at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Malaysia's Selangor state. This was the last leg of ARJ21 and C919's five-country Southeast Asian demonstration flight tour after Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia. Visitors to the show included Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook, Deputy Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Liew Chin Tong, representatives from local investment promotion institutions and aviation sectors. During the demonstration flights and static displays, producer of the two aircraft Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC) conducted a series of product promotion activities for potential customers. The purpose of this tour was to validate the aircraft's adaptability to the airports and routes in the above-mentioned five countries, assess the adaptability of the airport ground service equipment, evaluate the adaptability of special flight procedures, and demonstrate the economic viability of these routes, said COMAC, adding that demonstration flights would lay the foundation for future market development in Southeast Asia. The ARJ21 regional aircraft can accommodate 78-97 passengers, with a flight range of 2,225-3,700 kilometers. The C919 jetliner has a layout of 158-192 seats, with a range of 4,075-5,555 kilometers, according to the company. On May 28, 2023, the C919 successfully completed its first commercial flight. Since then, five C919 aircraft have been delivered to China Eastern Airlines, its inaugural customer, operating round-trip flights on Shanghai-Beijing and Shanghai-Chengdu routes. It has safely transported over 140,000 passengers so far, according to COMAC. This photo taken on March 13, 2024 shows a C919 commercial aircraft, manufactured by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), on display at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor state, Malaysia. The static display and demonstration flight of the China-manufactured commercial aircraft ARJ21 and C919 were held here on Wednesday. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua) Malaysian Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook poses for a photo with a C919 commercial aircraft, manufactured by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor state, Malaysia, March 13, 2024. The static display and demonstration flight of the China-manufactured commercial aircraft ARJ21 and C919 were held here on Wednesday. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua) This photo taken on March 13, 2024 shows the cockpit of a C919 commercial aircraft, manufactured by Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd. (COMAC), at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Selangor state, Malaysia. The static display and demonstration flight of the China-manufactured commercial aircraft ARJ21 and C919 were held here on Wednesday. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua) Medical mycologist Nelesh Govender was elected as an American Academy of Microbiology fellow Professor Nelesh Govender in the Wits School of Pathology was elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology for 2024. One of 65 awardees, Govenders prolific scientific achievements and original contributions to advance microbiology led to his selection. Govenders expertise lies in clinical microbiology. In particular, he has focused on life-threatening fungal diseases which account for about half of all deaths in people living with HIV. Fungal diseases such as candidaemia and aspergillosis also contribute to the deaths of critically ill people in hospitals across Africa. Govender and his team discovered two novel thermally-dimorphic fungal pathogens (Emergomyces africanus, Blastomyces emzantsi) both causing deadly infections, and he led the implementation and evaluation of a national cryptococcal disease screen-and-treat intervention for people living with HIV. Im incredibly honoured to join the Academy as a fellow, being one of a few South Africans ever to be elected. However, many excellent microbiologists across the African continent have made important contributions to health in low-resource environments and deserve the same recognition. Ive been fortunate to work in an institute [the NICD, a division of the NHLS] that has allowed me to build my career in academia alongside my work in clinical microbiology and public health, he said. Govender noted that despite the high morbidity and mortality rates in vulnerable people related to fungal diseases, the area is mostly neglected in medical research. These poor outcomes for people affected by fungal diseases are attributed to the limited availability of affordable diagnostic systems, poor access to antifungal medicines and insufficient research and innovation. Africa has a high burden of HIV and TB as well as serious fungal diseases which are associated with both HIV and TB, requiring fungal diagnoses and treatment to be incorporated into essential care packages. Trained as a medical doctor and then a clinical microbiologist at Wits, Govender has worked at the intersection of pathology, public health and clinical trials. He co-leads the EFFECT phase III multicentre clinical trial to test whether two antifungal medicines would be better than one to pre-emptively treat early cryptococcal disease among people living with HIV in South Africa, Tanzania and Vietnam. Cryptococcosis is the most common form of meningitis in adults in southern Africa, accounting for 19% of AIDS deaths globally. Cryptococcal meningitis can be prevented by screening people for fungal antigen in their blood and pre-emptively treating those with a positive screening test. Govender also co-leads the multi-country IMPRINT global health research group studying serious fungal infections causing AIDS-related deaths. Meanwhile, his recently-completed Baby GERMS-SA surveillance project has documented the national burden of life-threatening neonatal infections in South Africa. This work is being expanded to detect infection outbreaks in newborn hospital units using epidemiological and pathogen genomic data. We have an exceptional core of scientists and clinicians in Africa conducting high-quality research on the major infectious diseases such as HIV, TB, malaria, respiratory and diarrhoeal diseases. But they are too few and face many challenges, not least a lack of resources to conduct and publish globally-competitive research and to train the next generation of scientists. There are even fewer researchers working on fungal diseases, he said. Govender is an Honorary Professor at the University of Cape Town, St Georges University of London and the University of Exeter. He heads the Centre for Healthcare-Associated Infections, Antimicrobial Resistance and Mycoses at the National Institute for Communicable Diseases. He is a current member of a WHO committee drafting a blueprint policy document to shape the future landscape of interventions for fungal infections and antifungal resistance. Academy Fellowship signifies a distinguished accolade, and I am delighted to extend my congratulations and warm welcome to Professor Govender as a member of the 2024 Cohort. Fellows are an outstanding assembly of scientists whose contributions have propelled discipline and whose knowledge benefits both the scientific community and broader society, said Vanessa Sperandio, PhD, Chair of the Academy of Governors. The American Society for Microbiology (ASM) is one of the largest professional societies dedicated to the life sciences and comprises 36,000 scientists and health practitioners. ASM's mission is to promote and advance the microbial sciences. ASM advances the microbial sciences through conferences, publications, certifications, educational opportunities and advocacy efforts. It enhances laboratory capacity around the globe through training and resources. It provides a network for scientists in academia, industry and clinical settings. Additionally, ASM promotes a deeper understanding of the microbial sciences to diverse audiences. ASB Consultores LLC cut its stake in shares of Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN Free Report) by 19.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 907 shares of the information technology services providers stock after selling 226 shares during the period. ASB Consultores LLCs holdings in Accenture were worth $279,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its holdings in Accenture by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 71,943 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $22,094,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Accenture by 165.2% in the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 26,524 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $8,146,000 after purchasing an additional 16,524 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Accenture by 189.6% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 67,569 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $20,751,000 after purchasing an additional 142,983 shares during the period. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Accenture in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,036,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Accenture by 0.3% during the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 16,533 shares of the information technology services providers stock worth $5,077,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. 70.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get Accenture alerts: Accenture Price Performance Shares of ACN stock opened at $380.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $238.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 1.20. Accenture plc has a one year low of $242.80 and a one year high of $387.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $366.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $337.82. Insider Transactions at Accenture Accenture ( NYSE:ACN Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 19th. The information technology services provider reported $3.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $3.14 by $0.13. Accenture had a return on equity of 29.08% and a net margin of 10.65%. The company had revenue of $16.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $16.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.08 earnings per share. The businesss revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Accenture plc will post 12.21 EPS for the current year. In related news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 4,333 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $371.83, for a total value of $1,611,139.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 34,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,937,824.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Accenture news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 4,333 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $371.83, for a total value of $1,611,139.39. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 34,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,937,824.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ellyn Shook sold 5,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $371.81, for a total value of $1,859,050.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 20,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,553,691.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,551 shares of company stock worth $9,739,791. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Accenture from $364.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $374.00 target price on shares of Accenture in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Accenture from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Accenture from $369.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Accenture from $379.00 to $419.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Accenture presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $368.85. Get Our Latest Research Report on Accenture Accenture Profile (Free Report) Accenture plc, a professional services company, provides strategy and consulting, industry X, song, and technology and operation services worldwide. The company offers application services, including agile transformation, DevOps, application modernization, enterprise architecture, software and quality engineering, data management; intelligent automation comprising robotic process automation, natural language processing, and virtual agents; and application management services, as well as software engineering services; strategy and consulting services; data and analytics strategy, data discovery and augmentation, data management and beyond, data democratization, and industrialized solutions comprising turnkey analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) solutions; metaverse; and sustainability services. Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ACN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Accenture Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Accenture and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. ASB Consultores LLC lowered its stake in Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ Free Report) by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 881 shares of the companys stock after selling 288 shares during the quarter. ASB Consultores LLCs holdings in Constellation Brands were worth $221,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in Constellation Brands during the 1st quarter valued at $705,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Constellation Brands by 1.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,026 shares of the companys stock worth $3,921,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Constellation Brands by 17.6% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,149 shares of the companys stock worth $725,000 after purchasing an additional 471 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Constellation Brands by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,601,280 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,902,327,000 after purchasing an additional 313,344 shares during the period. Finally, Ergoteles LLC bought a new position in Constellation Brands during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.99% of the companys stock. Get Constellation Brands alerts: Constellation Brands Stock Performance Shares of STZ opened at $261.85 on Wednesday. Constellation Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $210.15 and a one year high of $273.65. The business has a fifty day moving average of $249.53 and a 200 day moving average of $245.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.99, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.96. Constellation Brands Dividend Announcement Constellation Brands ( NYSE:STZ Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 5th. The company reported $3.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.03 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.54 billion. Constellation Brands had a net margin of 14.76% and a return on equity of 23.35%. The businesss revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.83 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Constellation Brands, Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year. The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 8th were paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 7th. Constellation Brandss dividend payout ratio is presently 42.13%. Insider Activity In related news, major shareholder Family Foundation Sands sold 354,616 shares of the firms stock in a transaction on Monday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.26, for a total value of $88,746,200.16. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 54,461 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $13,629,409.86. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 16.19% of the companys stock. Analyst Ratings Changes A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on STZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Constellation Brands from $309.00 to $301.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. TheStreet downgraded shares of Constellation Brands from a b rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Argus cut shares of Constellation Brands from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of Constellation Brands in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $289.24. Read Our Latest Analysis on STZ Constellation Brands Profile (Free Report) Constellation Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, imports, markets, and sells beer, wine, and spirits in the United States, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and Italy. The company provides beer primarily under the Corona Extra, Corona Premier, Corona Familiar, Corona Light, Corona Refresca, Corona Hard Seltzer, Modelo Especial, Modelo Negra, Modelo Chelada, Victoria, Vicky Chamoy, and Pacifico brands. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding STZ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Constellation Brands, Inc. (NYSE:STZ Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Constellation Brands Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Constellation Brands and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund, Inc. (NYSE:MUJ Get Free Report) announced a monthly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be paid a dividend of 0.05 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, April 1st. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.21%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund Stock Down 0.2 % MUJ opened at $11.52 on Wednesday. BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund has a fifty-two week low of $9.73 and a fifty-two week high of $11.70. The business has a 50-day moving average of $11.49 and a 200-day moving average of $10.95. Get BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund alerts: Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund during the 4th quarter worth about $149,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 47,828 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 2,459 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $143,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 101,535 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $1,028,000 after acquiring an additional 9,506 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in shares of BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 198,712 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $2,220,000 after acquiring an additional 1,232 shares in the last quarter. 11.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. About BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund, Inc is a close ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc The fund is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. It invests in the fixed income markets of United States. The fund invests primarily in long-term, investment grade municipal obligations exempt from federal income taxes and New Jersey personal income taxes. Recommended Stories Receive News & Ratings for BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BlackRock MuniHoldings New Jersey Quality Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BlackRock MuniYield Fund, Inc. (NYSE:MYD Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Friday, March 1st, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of 0.0525 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, April 1st. This represents a $0.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. BlackRock MuniYield Fund Price Performance NYSE:MYD opened at $11.21 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.20. BlackRock MuniYield Fund has a fifty-two week low of $8.76 and a fifty-two week high of $11.30. Get BlackRock MuniYield Fund alerts: Institutional Trading of BlackRock MuniYield Fund A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 11,778 shares of the financial services providers stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 1,446 shares during the period. Mariner Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $681,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in BlackRock MuniYield Fund during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 78,315 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $844,000 after buying an additional 7,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of BlackRock MuniYield Fund by 96.4% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 72,336 shares of the financial services providers stock worth $780,000 after buying an additional 35,502 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 29.42% of the companys stock. BlackRock MuniYield Fund Company Profile BlackRock MuniYield Fund, Inc is a closed ended fixed income mutual fund launched by BlackRock, Inc The fund is managed by BlackRock Advisors, LLC. It invests in fixed income markets. The fund primarily in long-term investment-grade municipal bonds with a maturity of more than ten years. It is exempt from federal income taxes. Further Reading Receive News & Ratings for BlackRock MuniYield Fund Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for BlackRock MuniYield Fund and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Free Report) by 38.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148 shares of the companys stock after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $79,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LLY. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 1st quarter valued at $107,000. Roundview Capital LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% during the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 2,056 shares of the companys stock worth $589,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 1st quarter worth about $210,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 53,052 shares of the companys stock worth $15,193,000 after purchasing an additional 4,774 shares during the period. Finally, Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $561,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the companys stock. Get Eli Lilly and Company alerts: Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth Several research firms recently commented on LLY. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $710.00 to $865.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $680.00 to $810.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $805.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $800.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $650.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $677.62. Insiders Place Their Bets In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 34,538 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.81, for a total value of $21,821,453.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,719,884 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $63,004,019,910.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 195,055 shares of company stock valued at $125,254,657 over the last 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders. Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 0.1 % Shares of LLY stock traded up $0.99 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $755.94. 461,750 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,345,271. The stock has a market capitalization of $718.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 130.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.34. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $321.44 and a one year high of $800.78. The businesss 50-day simple moving average is $700.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $621.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.94. Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $9.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.95 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 51.22% and a net margin of 15.36%. Eli Lilly and Companys quarterly revenue was up 28.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.41 EPS for the current fiscal year. Eli Lilly and Company Profile (Free Report) Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company 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; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity. Featured Stories 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. Financial Insights Inc. bought a new position in Hess Co. (NYSE:HES Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,145 shares of the oil and gas producers stock, valued at approximately $599,000. Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,742 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $373,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 30.7% in the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 319 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 24.0% in the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 403 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,938 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ossiam increased its holdings in shares of Hess by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Ossiam now owns 8,093 shares of the oil and gas producers stock valued at $1,071,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.72% of the companys stock. Get Hess alerts: Hess Stock Up 1.7 % Shares of NYSE HES traded up $2.51 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $149.14. 259,945 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,848,648. The businesss 50-day moving average price is $143.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.44. Hess Co. has a twelve month low of $113.82 and a twelve month high of $167.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The company has a market capitalization of $45.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.58 and a beta of 1.27. Hess Dividend Announcement Hess ( NYSE:HES Get Free Report ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.20. Hess had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 17.00%. The business had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. The businesss revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hess Co. will post 7.56 EPS for the current fiscal year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.4375 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 15th. This represents a $1.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Hesss payout ratio is currently 38.89%. Insider Buying and Selling In related news, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of Hess stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total value of $153,480.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50,215 shares in the company, valued at $7,257,071.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Hess news, EVP Timothy B. Goodell sold 2,701 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $390,348.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 162,144 shares in the company, valued at $23,433,050.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Andrew P. Slentz sold 1,062 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.52, for a total transaction of $153,480.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50,215 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $7,257,071.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 141,877 shares of company stock worth $20,707,982. Insiders own 9.91% of the companys stock. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades Several research firms recently issued reports on HES. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Hess from $152.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Hess from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Hess from $210.00 to $195.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess in a research report on Friday, March 8th. They set a sell rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $174.57. Get Our Latest Stock Report on HES Hess Company Profile (Free Report) Hess Corporation, an exploration and production company, explores, develops, produces, purchases, transports, and sells crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. The company operates in two segments, Exploration and Production, and Midstream. It conducts production operations primarily in the United States, Guyana, the Malaysia/Thailand Joint Development Area, and Malaysia; and exploration activities principally offshore Guyana, the U.S. See Also Receive News & Ratings for Hess Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Hess and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. WELLINGTON, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Authorities are investigating the black box of a plane that plummeted from the skies before landing in New Zealand's Auckland, injuring 50 people on board. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, a LATAM Airlines flight from Australia's Sydney to New Zealand's Auckland on Monday suddenly lost altitude over the Tasman Sea due to a "technical problem" which caused in-flight turbulence throwing passengers and three crew members not wearing seatbelts at the time around the cabin. "The 'black box' recordings would provide detailed evidence of any control inputs made by the crew as well as flight parameters showing airspeed, altitude, control settings etc," Emeritus Professor David O'Hare of the Department of Psychology, University of Otago, said on Wednesday. This would show, for example, if there had been an autopilot disconnect and whether this was associated with any pilot input, O'Hare said. "There is no reason to connect this incident with other recent events involving Boeing airliners," he said. Ashok Poduval, chief executive officer of the School of Aviation at Massey University, said it is premature to draw conclusions about the safety aspects of this aircraft. "An incident of this nature is quite rare, and I have referred to it as a 'black swan' event," Poduval said, a lesson to be learnt, however, is to have seat belts fastened, maybe loosely, whenever seated in an aircraft. "People flew through the cabin," a passenger on board the flight was quoted as saying in a local media report. According to the report, St John Ambulance said that 12 people were sent to hospitals including 10 to the Middlemore Hospital with one passenger in a serious condition after the plane landed at the Auckland international airport. Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of Hold from the four brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $12.63. Several brokerages have issued reports on HLF. Mizuho dropped their target price on Herbalife from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com raised Herbalife from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Get Herbalife alerts: Read Our Latest Analysis on Herbalife Insiders Place Their Bets Hedge Funds Weigh In On Herbalife In other news, CEO Michael Johnson acquired 61,725 shares of Herbalife stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $8.07 per share, with a total value of $498,120.75. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 603,707 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,871,915.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website . Corporate insiders own 0.66% of the companys stock. Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Herbalife by 44.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 17,969 shares of the companys stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 5,527 shares during the period. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in Herbalife by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,989,128 shares of the companys stock valued at $55,808,000 after acquiring an additional 209,949 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Herbalife by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,742,507 shares of the companys stock valued at $24,378,000 after acquiring an additional 147,003 shares during the period. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in Herbalife during the 3rd quarter valued at $381,000. Finally, Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. boosted its holdings in Herbalife by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bronte Capital Management Pty Ltd. now owns 3,121,467 shares of the companys stock valued at $43,669,000 after acquiring an additional 104,567 shares during the period. Herbalife Price Performance Shares of NYSE:HLF opened at $8.90 on Wednesday. Herbalife has a 1-year low of $6.68 and a 1-year high of $19.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.00. The company has a market capitalization of $882.92 million, a PE ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 1.21. Herbalife (NYSE:HLF Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.10). Herbalife had a net margin of 2.81% and a negative return on equity of 19.56%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. Herbalifes revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Herbalife will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. About Herbalife (Get Free Report Herbalife Ltd. provides health and wellness products in North America, Mexico, South and Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, China, and the Asia Pacific. It offers products in the areas of weight management; targeted nutrition; energy, sports, and fitness; outer nutrition; and literature and promotional items. Featured Articles Receive News & Ratings for Herbalife Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Herbalife and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG Free Report) by 151.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 52,915 shares of the companys stock after purchasing an additional 31,832 shares during the period. Procter & Gamble accounts for 1.1% of Sunbelt Securities Inc.s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Sunbelt Securities Inc.s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $7,718,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PG. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 6.3% during the third quarter. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,419 shares of the companys stock worth $645,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 14.6% during the third quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 94,424 shares of the companys stock worth $13,772,000 after buying an additional 12,016 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 0.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,003,260 shares of the companys stock worth $2,298,184,000 after buying an additional 131,339 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 26.9% during the second quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,823,380 shares of the companys stock worth $1,642,339,000 after buying an additional 2,293,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wambolt & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 5.5% in the second quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC now owns 19,736 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,995,000 after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.43% of the companys stock. Get Procter & Gamble alerts: Insider Transactions at Procter & Gamble In other news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total value of $3,549,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 36,845 shares of the companys stock, valued at $5,943,835.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO R. Alexandra Keith sold 776 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.11, for a total value of $122,693.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,859 shares of the companys stock, valued at $768,256.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 22,000 shares of the companys stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.32, for a total value of $3,549,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,845 shares of the companys stock, valued at approximately $5,943,835.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 279,063 shares of company stock valued at $43,187,745. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Procter & Gamble Price Performance PG traded up $0.46 on Wednesday, hitting $162.39. 1,139,713 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,894,850. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 12 month low of $137.40 and a 12 month high of $162.67. The business has a 50-day moving average of $155.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $151.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $382.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.12, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.44. Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.14. Procter & Gamble had a net margin of 17.60% and a return on equity of 34.04%. The business had revenue of $21.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $21.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.59 earnings per share. Procter & Gambles revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year. Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Investors of record on Friday, January 19th were given a dividend of $0.9407 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 18th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. Procter & Gambles dividend payout ratio is 62.98%. Analysts Set New Price Targets Several equities analysts have commented on PG shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 18th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $168.41. View Our Latest Report on Procter & Gamble Procter & Gamble Profile (Free Report) The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands. Read More Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Procter & Gamble Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Procter & Gamble and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its position in shares of Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE:DELL Free Report) by 9.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 528,500 shares of the technology companys stock after selling 55,000 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Dell Technologies were worth $36,414,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DELL. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Dell Technologies by 17.7% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 14,076 shares of the technology companys stock worth $706,000 after purchasing an additional 2,117 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. purchased a new stake in Dell Technologies in the first quarter worth approximately $304,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Dell Technologies in the first quarter worth approximately $568,000. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Dell Technologies by 2.0% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 254,266 shares of the technology companys stock worth $12,762,000 after acquiring an additional 4,949 shares during the period. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its position in Dell Technologies by 5.2% in the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 6,090 shares of the technology companys stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.10% of the companys stock. Get Dell Technologies alerts: Insider Activity at Dell Technologies In other news, insider Jennifer D. Saavedra sold 18,260 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.10, for a total value of $2,193,026.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 206,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,856,016.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Iv (Gp) L.L.C. Slta sold 3,179,972 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.81, for a total transaction of $250,613,593.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 293,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,155,323.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer D. Saavedra sold 18,260 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.10, for a total value of $2,193,026.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 206,961 shares of the companys stock, valued at $24,856,016.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,677,359 shares of company stock worth $422,782,644 in the last 90 days. 48.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders. Dell Technologies Trading Down 3.0 % Shares of DELL stock traded down $3.43 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $110.12. 3,248,765 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,558,003. Dell Technologies Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.45 and a 12-month high of $131.06. The companys 50-day moving average price is $89.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $76.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.91. Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology company reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.47. Dell Technologies had a net margin of 3.63% and a negative return on equity of 165.52%. The firm had revenue of $22.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was down 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Dell Technologies Inc. will post 6.27 EPS for the current year. Dell Technologies Increases Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.445 per share. This is a positive change from Dell Technologiess previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 22nd. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. Dell Technologiess dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.87%. Analyst Ratings Changes DELL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Dell Technologies from $85.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Dell Technologies from $68.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Dell Technologies from $100.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Dell Technologies from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Dell Technologies from $53.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an underweight rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $102.88. Check Out Our Latest Analysis on DELL Dell Technologies Company Profile (Free Report) Dell Technologies Inc designs, develops, manufactures, markets, sells, and supports various comprehensive and integrated solutions, products, and services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG) and Client Solutions Group (CSG). Featured Stories Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DELL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE:DELL Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Dell Technologies Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Dell Technologies and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its holdings in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR Free Report) by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 502,036 shares of the companys stock after buying an additional 34,000 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Kroger were worth $22,466,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in Kroger by 4.3% in the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 284,094 shares of the companys stock valued at $12,715,000 after purchasing an additional 11,707 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 115,411 shares of the companys stock worth $5,165,000 after acquiring an additional 38,119 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 239.9% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 168,019 shares of the companys stock worth $7,519,000 after acquiring an additional 118,581 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,215,652 shares of the companys stock worth $54,400,000 after acquiring an additional 10,643 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benedetti & Gucer Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kroger by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Benedetti & Gucer Inc. now owns 9,540 shares of the companys stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares in the last quarter. 78.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Kroger alerts: Analysts Set New Price Targets Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TheStreet upgraded Kroger from a c+ rating to a b rating in a research note on Thursday, November 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Kroger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Kroger from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and increased their target price for the company from $42.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Kroger from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 1st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on Kroger from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kroger currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $53.45. Kroger Price Performance Shares of KR traded up $0.57 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $55.88. The company had a trading volume of 1,592,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,038,521. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $42.10 and a twelve month high of $56.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The companys 50-day moving average is $47.49 and its 200-day moving average is $45.76. The company has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.46. Kroger (NYSE:KR Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.21. Kroger had a return on equity of 31.44% and a net margin of 1.44%. The firm had revenue of $37.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $37.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. The businesss revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.43 EPS for the current year. Kroger Announces Dividend The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. Krogers payout ratio is 39.19%. Kroger Company Profile (Free Report) The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys. Further Reading Want to see what other hedge funds are holding KR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for Kroger Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Kroger and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky reduced its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN Free Report) by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 107,300 shares of the industrial products companys stock after selling 24,364 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Eaton were worth $22,885,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headinvest LLC lifted its holdings in Eaton by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 8,803 shares of the industrial products companys stock worth $1,851,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Dagco Inc. raised its holdings in Eaton by 154.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dagco Inc. now owns 21,717 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $4,632,000 after acquiring an additional 13,193 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at $7,465,000. Financial Insights Inc. acquired a new position in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,253,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Eaton by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 21,933 shares of the industrial products companys stock valued at $4,678,000 after acquiring an additional 1,142 shares in the last quarter. 81.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. Get Eaton alerts: Eaton Trading Up 0.3 % Shares of NYSE ETN traded up $0.97 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $298.71. The company had a trading volume of 538,744 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,698,025. The stock has a market cap of $119.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.12, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The companys fifty day moving average price is $265.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.35. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $155.38 and a 12 month high of $303.40. Eaton Increases Dividend Eaton ( NYSE:ETN Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.08. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 13.88%. The business had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.06 EPS. The firms revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.24 earnings per share for the current year. The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 8th. This is an increase from Eatons previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Eatons dividend payout ratio is 46.88%. Insider Transactions at Eaton In other Eaton news, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares of the companys stock, valued at $1,593,380.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at $8,116,427.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total value of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 25,942 shares of company stock valued at $7,108,707 over the last ninety days. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders. Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Eaton from $220.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $255.77. View Our Latest Stock Report on ETN Eaton Company Profile (Free Report) Eaton Corporation plc operates as a power management company worldwide. The company's Electrical Americas and Electrical Global segment provides electrical components, industrial components, power distribution and assemblies, residential products, single and three phase power quality and connectivity products, wiring devices, circuit protection products, utility power distribution products, power reliability equipment, and services, as well as hazardous duty electrical equipment, emergency lighting, fire detection, explosion-proof instrumentation, and structural support systems. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Eaton Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Eaton and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lowered its position in Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX Free Report) by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 285,729 shares of the oil and gas companys stock after selling 35,256 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentuckys holdings in Chevron were worth $48,179,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in 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 period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Chevron in the 4th quarter worth about $3,058,235,000. Imprint Wealth LLC increased its stake in Chevron by 15,457.0% in the 2nd quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC now owns 5,378,354 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $537,835,000 after buying an additional 5,343,782 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in 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 period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Chevron by 570.0% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 2,813,051 shares of the oil and gas companys stock worth $504,913,000 after buying an additional 2,393,200 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.87% of the companys stock. Get Chevron alerts: Chevron Stock Performance Shares of Chevron stock traded up $2.37 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $154.26. The company had a trading volume of 2,715,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,693,064. The stock has a market cap of $286.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.37, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $153.24. Chevron Co. has a 12-month low of $139.62 and a 12-month high of $172.88. Chevron Increases Dividend Chevron ( NYSE:CVX Get Free Report ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The oil and gas company reported $3.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts consensus estimates of $3.19 by $0.26. Chevron had a net margin of 10.63% and a return on equity of 15.24%. The company had revenue of $47.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $50.93 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.09 EPS. Chevrons revenue for the quarter was down 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Chevron Co. will post 12.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 16th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.23%. This is a positive change from Chevrons previous quarterly dividend of $1.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. Chevrons payout ratio is 57.39%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In Several research firms recently commented on CVX. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Chevron from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $170.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Chevron from a hold rating to a buy rating and set a $184.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Chevron from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Chevron from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 14th. Finally, DZ Bank cut shares of Chevron from a buy rating to a hold rating and set a $160.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $180.56. Check Out Our Latest Research Report on CVX Chevron Company 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. Wellington Management Group LLP cut its position in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG Free Report) by 6.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,083,381 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock after selling 670,620 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLPs holdings in PPG Industries were worth $1,308,823,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the second quarter worth about $29,000. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the second quarter worth about $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 84.9% during the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 220 shares of the specialty chemicals companys stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 79.18% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Get PPG Industries alerts: PPG Industries Trading Down 0.8 % Shares of PPG stock opened at $141.31 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $33.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. PPG Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $120.32 and a fifty-two week high of $152.89. The firms 50 day moving average price is $142.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.91. PPG Industries Dividend Announcement PPG Industries ( NYSE:PPG Get Free Report ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.04. PPG Industries had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 23.51%. The firm had revenue of $4.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $4.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.22 earnings per share. PPG Industriess revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.45 EPS for the current year. The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. PPG Industriess payout ratio is currently 48.69%. Wall Street Analyst Weigh In A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of PPG Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $160.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $158.00 to $156.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Barclays downgraded shares of PPG Industries from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating and lowered their target price for the company from $163.00 to $149.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated an outperform rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of PPG Industries in a report on Friday, January 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the companys stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $157.13. Get Our Latest Research Report on PPG Industries Insider Transactions at PPG Industries In other news, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 3,400 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.94, for a total transaction of $479,196.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,439 shares of the companys stock, valued at $4,008,192.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the companys stock. PPG Industries Company Profile (Free Report) PPG Industries, Inc manufactures and distributes paints, coatings, and specialty materials in the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Industrial Coatings. The Performance Coatings segment offers coatings, solvents, adhesives, sealants, sundries, and software for automotive and commercial transport/fleet repair and refurbishing, light industrial coatings, and specialty coatings for signs; wood stains; paints, thermoplastics, pavement marking products, and other advanced technologies for pavement marking for government, commercial infrastructure, painting, and maintenance contractors; and coatings, sealants, transparencies, transparent armor, adhesives, engineered materials, and packaging and chemical management services for commercial, military, regional jet, and general aviation aircraft. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PPG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG Free Report). Receive News & Ratings for PPG Industries Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for PPG Industries and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson on Wednesday said that those creating information cocoons on the island of Taiwan and smearing the mainland are truly frightening. Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks in response to a media inquiry regarding a social media influencer from Taiwan who shared insights from his recent visit to Beijing and Shanghai, applauding the sophistication of science and technology on the mainland. The influencer's remarks received great support from netizens but met vehement attacks from internet trolls in Taiwan. The mainland is not backward; rather, those lying with their eyes wide open are absolutely backward, the spokesperson said. Noting that seeing is worth hearing a hundred times, he invited people on the island, particularly the youth, to visit the mainland and experience the place themselves. 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. HARARE, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe expects a modest cereal production of around 800,000 tonnes in the 2023/24 summer cropping season, down from 2.3 million tonnes last year, owing to the El Nino-induced drought, a senior government official said Tuesday. Obert Jiri, permanent secretary of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development, told a parliamentary committee that dry-land maize and most traditional grains were a complete write-off. He said the country is expecting to get no more than 800,000 tonnes of cereal, against the country's annual need of 2.2 million tonnes for both human and livestock consumption. "So this year we have a deficit owing to drought," he said. To mitigate the effects of drought, Jiri said the private sector has been encouraged to import grain to augment local supplies. Zimbabwe is in the throes of an El Nino-induced drought that is also sweeping across southern Africa. In order to cope with the drought, the Zimbabwean government, in partnership with donor agencies, has started food distribution to about 2.7 million people, or just over a quarter of the rural population. The government has also lifted its ban on genetically modified maize imports for stock feed production and will allow duty-free importation of maize, rice and cooking oil from July this year. In addition, the government announced a duty waiver on the importation of rice and potato seed, as part of government efforts to encourage rice production in the country. HB 509 clears Kentucky House, now on its way to Senate In a screengrab from video, tan empty gun case and ammunition box are seen on the bed of James and Jennifer Crumbley during his trial. Massac County Fire District chief Mike Childers (left) and district board secretary/treasurer John McConnell have seen the district grow during its 42-year history from a few vehicles housed in a two-bay a garage to a dozen vehicles in a six-bay building. During this Primary Election, the district is asking Massac County voters to help keep its those services and vehicles rolling. 17m raised by Council Tax premiums on second homes, says Wales housing minister Wales housing minister told the Senedd increased council tax premiums have raised 17m amid concerns communities have been disembowelled by high numbers of second homes. Julie James said local authorities have been able to introduce higher council tax premiums, beyond the previous 100% limit, on second homes and empty properties since April 2023. She told the chamber 18 of Wales 22 councils will be applying premiums on either or both types of property from April this year, with a further two councils to follow by 2025. Ms James said more than 17m additional revenue was raised by councils in 2022-23 to be invested in public services, including addressing homelessness and social housing. She pointed to other affordable housing measures jointly agreed between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru, including plans to register all visitor accommodation. Ms James highlighted the Dwyfor pilot and Gwynedd Councils consultation on increased planning powers to tackle the impact of second homes and short-term holiday lets. Disembowelled Mabon ap Gwynfor raised concerns about second homes pushing up property prices and undoing the social fabric of communities by forcing families to move. Many communities have been disembowelled by the numbers of second homes, he said. Plaid Cymrus shadow housing minister welcomed latest statistics showing the number of second homes is expected to fall 9% from 24,000 in the 12 months from April. He said Gwynedd Council raised 9m through council tax premiums in 2023-24, with 6m allocated to an action plan to provide homes for young people and 3m for homelessness. The Dwyfor Meirionnydd MS called for a significant expansion in the availability of social housing, according to local need across Wales. He described the Welsh Governments aim of building 20,000 social homes by 2026 as far from adequate, warning that ministers will not hit the target at the current rate of progress. Not a panacea Janet Finch-Saunders, who declared an interest due to property ownership, stressed that targeting second-home owners is not a panacea. The Conservatives shadow minister said: The homelessness now seen in Wales is a national embarrassment. Affordable homes, for many, are a major problem. However, the targeting of short-term holiday lets and second home owners is not the panacea because, like it or not, they do contribute towards our local economy. Ms Finch-Saunders called for the Welsh Government to clamp down on the long-term scourge of empty homes by urging councils to use compulsory purchase powers. The Aberconwy MS raised concerns about probate, saying it often takes two years, with Ms James agreeing but accusing the UK Government of under-funding the system. Virtuous circle During the statement on March 12, Ms James stressed that if you are lucky enough to own more than one house, then you should be able to pay a bit more. She said: It means there is more housing stock for local people, who need to work and live locally, to work in the tourist industries that are bringing those people there in the first place. This is a virtuous circle and not a vicious one. Mike Hedges, a Labour backbencher who represents Swansea East, welcomed higher council tax premiums on second homes and long-term empty properties. Ive just discovered its now being copied in England, he said. So, I think that people may well have to change what they have said up till now. Mr Hedges called for legislation to tackle the growth of short-term lets, such as Airbnb, warning: That really is the big problem that is going to have to be addressed. Ms James said plans for a licensing and registration scheme aim to level the playing field. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter [email protected] Closure of Welshpool and Caernarfon Air Ambulance bases likely with new base planned for North Wales It looks likely the Welshpool Air Ambulance base will close after a review of service provision. A new base somewhere in North Wales looks likely to replace it. 1,718 potential locations in Mid and North Wales were assessed for their coverage capabilities, with a location south of Rhyl/Rhuddlan identified as the most effective area showing significant increases in incident coverage. EMRTS or Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Service is a pre-hospital critical care service in partnership between Wales Air Ambulance, Welsh Government and NHS Wales, with it explained: Whilst the whole of the population has access to air-based assets the timeliness of road-based assets to reach incidents locations is more complex due to the physical capabilities of response cars and the road network. The air ambulance service runs a fleet of four Airbus H145 helicopters, running from the charitys current sites in Dafen, Cardiff, Caernarfon and Welshpool with the latter two now likely to close. As has been previously reported the service has been subject to review, with the air ambulance section being the focus of the new report public today. The plans to close the Welshpool base have drawn strong criticism from many fearful that emergency medical service coverage in rural parts of the north-west and mid-Wales could suffer as a result. The final report details for night time / darkness air cover The population in the North of Wales is not currently covered by air after 8pm with the assumed start up and flying times within 60 minutes. There is a population of approximately 530,000 in this uncovered area, equating to around 75% of the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board population. During the day, a combination of bases (Dafen, Welshpool, Caernarfon, and Cardiff) can provide air coverage for the entire population of Wales within 30 minutes (08:00 19:00). It also details unmet need, defined as any incident where a critical need is identified but no EMRTS resource is available to respond. The population of North Wales has the highest level of unmet need, this is particularly true after 8pm. The report outlines the process that took place to analyse data, modelling of possible new locations for bases, what that would mean for service impact and finally a range of options to consider. They were appraised and scored, with four recommendations now being put forward: Recommendation 1 The Committee approves the consolidation of the Emergency Medical Retrieval and Transfer Services currently operating at Welshpool and Caernarfon bases into a single site in North Wales. Recommendation 2 The Committee requests that the Charity secures an appropriately located operational base in line with the findings of this Report. Recommendation 3 The Committee requires that a joint plan is developed by EMRTS and the Charity, that maintains service provision across Wales during the transition to a new base and that this plan is included within the Committees commissioning arrangements. Recommendation 4 The Committee approves the development of a commissioning proposal for bespoke road-based enhanced and/or critical care services in rural and remote areas. These go forward to a meeting on the 19th of March for the Emergency Ambulance Services Joint Committee, where they are likely to be adopted. MyWelshpool has some local reaction to the news, with Russell George MS saying: This is appalling news. Welshpools base has saved countless lives. Given we dont have a District General Hospital in Powys, it is all the more important that we continue to have an air ambulance base in Mid Wales. I am calling on individual regions like Powys Teaching Health Board, who will have the final say to reject the recommendation which clearly does not have the support of the of the public in Mid Wales. In the latest round of engagement, 66% of responses came from Powys. That is an impassioned cry from Mid Wales about the importance of this service. Craig Williams MP added: Local campaigning has been very strong and I am extremely proud of the way that our communities have united to support this vital lifeline for our area. The people of Mid Wales have donated and fundraised for the air ambulance for many years precisely because they know how important it is. Ever since the plans to close Welshpools base were haphazardly leaked out in August 2022, the ensuing consultation and engagement process has been extremely poor. The people of Mid Wales will rightfully question whether this was a done deal from the start. [email protected] Updated: Calls for health minister statement on prevention of future death reports Senedd members raised concerns about the above-average number of prevention of future death reports issued by coroners related to Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. Darren Millar raised alarm about high numbers of prevention of future death reports, which can be issued after inquests, questioning whether lessons are being learned in north Wales. The Conservative MS for Clwyd West pointed to the case of Jennifer Trigger, a 71-year-old constituent, who died after suffering an acute stroke in January 2020. Mr Millar said a coroner issued a Regulation 28 prevention of future death report last week. He told the Senedd: Due to a misunderstanding caused by the alert system in the Wrexham Maelor Hospital, the time-critical treatment that she was prescribed was not given until 11 hours after it should have been administered. Worrying Mr Millar called for a statement from the Welsh Government on what action is being taken by the health board, which has been in and out of special measures for a decade. He said: Now, clearly, we have to make sure that our NHS learns when issues like this occur and when reports of this nature are published. During the Senedds business statement on March 12, Llyr Gruffydd echoed calls for an update from the health minister on preventable death reports. The Plaid Cymru MS, who represents North Wales, said: They are there, of course, to help prevent future deaths and they clearly require urgent action by health boards. But, despite that statutory duty, there are worrying trends in north Wales. Very serious Mr Gruffydd told the chamber Betsi Cadwaladr accounted for 41% of all preventable death coroner reports in Wales, rising to 50% in 2021-22. He said: In the past nine months, Betsi Cadwaladr health board accounts for 80% of all of these preventable death reports in Wales thats 21 out of a total of 25. Now that to me points to a very serious ongoing problem in the north. Lesley Griffiths, who is Trefnydd, the Welsh Governments business manager, similar to the leader of the house at Westminster, agreed that lessons have to be learned. Ms Griffiths said she would ask Eluned Morgan, Wales health minister, to bring forward a written statement on prevention of future death reports. Profoundly sorry Dyfed Edwards, chair of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, said: I fully acknowledge the importance of the prevention of future death reports, and that the numbers being issued in North Wales are above the national average. We take every report very seriously as behind these statistics are people and families who have been affected, and we are profoundly sorry for their loss. Work is ongoing to identify and respond to the key themes and points of learning that the reports contain. We have much to improve on and ensure that we provide services with quality and patient safety at the heart. Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that one in five prevention of future death reports in England and Wales related to the health board. On March 19, Darren Millar corrected the record in the Senedd. We apologise for the error. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter [email protected] North Wales Housing scoops prestigious equality and diversity award North Wales Housing has become the first social landlord in North Wales to achieve the prestigious and nationally recognised QED Equality and Diversity Mark. The QED Award was developed by Tai Pawb, a charity dedicated to equality and social justice in housing in Wales. It provides a comprehensive framework for improving the equality and diversity impact of housing providers. Awarded by an independent panel, it considers strategic areas such as governance, leadership, and culture, as well as customer-facing service provision, including access and diverse tenant involvement. Over the past 12 months, North Wales Housings staff, board members, tenants, contractors, and partner organisations have engaged in the accreditation process. This included staff surveys, engagement with tenants, on-site visits, a review of policies and procedures, as well as the production and delivery of an action plan. The award includes an annual check-up over three years where Tai Pawb will monitor progress on NWHs action plan. The organisation says it is incredibly proud to become the first social landlords in North Wales to win this award, joining Melin Homes, Merthyr Valleys Homes, Cynon Taff Community Housing, Merthyr Tydfil Housing Association, Cadwyn, Newydd, RHA Wales, and First Choice Housing as the ninth recipient of the award in Wales. Helena Kirk, Chief Executive of North Wales Housing Association, said: We are thrilled to achieve this award and recognition from Tai Pawb and the Panel. The team at NWH were clear that we wanted to improve our whole approach to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion and set about making this happen by using the QED framework. This has been a real team effort across our organisation. We really hope the improvements we have made will help us to continue to be a great place for colleagues to be themselves, a great place to work and importantly improve the experiences of residents living in our homes and communities. Alicja Zalesinska, Chief Executive of Tai Pawb, added: We would like to congratulate North Wales Housing Association on achieving the QED Award the first social housing provider in the region. Our independent panel members were impressed with the strong and clear commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion across the organisation, from tenants and staff through board and the executive team. Testament to this is the fact that NWHA has already achieved 61 from 65 of the recommendations made by our assessors. In every part of the organisation, there was enthusiasm for the program of work, openness to constructive challenge, and a genuine willingness to learn from others. [email protected] TEHRAN, March 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 15 people were killed and 4,720 others injured by fireworks explosions in Iranian cities during the Fire Festival celebrations, the semi-official Fars news agency reported Wednesday. Among those injured in the celebrations between Feb. 20 and March 12, 565 individuals remain hospitalized, with 38 in the intensive care units (ICUs) and four in critical condition, Spokesman of the Iranian National Medical Emergency Organization Babak Yektaparast was quoted as saying. According to the spokesman, 257 people underwent amputations, 1,594 suffered eye injuries, and 1,282 sustained burns. Yektaparast added that 72 percent of those injured were under 22 years old. Yektaparast said the death toll saw a 21 percent increase compared to the same period last year, while the number of injured individuals showed a 13 percent growth. The traditional Fire Festival is typically celebrated by Iranians on the eve of the last Wednesday before Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, which falls on March 20 this year. Welsh Conservatives hit out at plans to introduce gender quotas in Senedd elections Plans to ensure equal representation of women in the Senedd have been described as a waste of time, energy and resources due to the likelihood of legal roadblocks. Darren Millar criticised Welsh ministers for bringing forward the Senedd Cymru (Electoral Candidate Lists) bill despite concerns that it is not within the Welsh Parliaments powers. The Conservatives shadow constitution minister said plans for legally binding gender quotas in future Senedd elections would impact equalities law which is reserved to Westminster. He told the chamber: It is extraordinary that this Senedd is spending time, energy and resources focusing on a piece of legislation that it does not have the competence to be able to deliver, rather than focusing on the everyday concerns of the people of Wales. Mr Millar raised alarm about the potential costs, warning: Therell be significant legal challenges if this bill goes forward, not least, probably, in the Supreme Court. Supreme Court Elin Jones, the Senedds speaker or Llywydd, wrote to all MSs this week, setting out her view that the bill would not be within the Welsh Parliaments powers. Following legal advice, she wrote: I considered the purpose and effect of the bill. While I accept the bill has the devolved purpose of making the Senedd a more effective legislature, in my view the bill also has the reserved purpose of equal opportunities. Ms Jones said the question of whether the bill is within the Senedds powers can only be definitively answered by the Supreme Court. Her statement on legislative competence does not affect whether the bill can proceed, but it could later be referred to the Supreme Court by the UK Governments attorney general. Curtailed scrutiny Mr Millar raised concerns about the bills legislative process being cut short in the Senedd, with less time than usual for committee scrutiny and amendments. He warned: Youre going to chop down the opportunity for the committee to undertake its important work, in spite of the huge question marks over the competency of this Senedd. Challenged by the first minister about a lack of diversity on the Conservative benches, Mr Millar recognised political parties need to do more to address under-representation. However, he argued people should be elected on the basis of merit. He criticised a lack of a mandatory zipping process for candidate lists, saying: The bill provides for lists to be entirely made up of women but not men. Theres no equality there. Groundbreaking Describing the plans as groundbreaking, Jane Hutt, the member in charge of the bill, outlined the Welsh Governments position in a statement to the Senedd on March 12. Wales equality minister told the chamber: The purpose of the bill is to establish a more effective Senedd, and, as such, the bill is within the Senedds competence. And I think that point about purpose is crucial to this. Ms Hutt quoted the Government of Wales Act 2006 as saying the question of whether a bill relates to a matter reserved to Westminster is determined by reference to its purpose. Thats the test about competence, she said. The purpose of this bill is to establish a more effective Senedd. Surely we can unite on that goal, to deliver a more effective Senedd? Ms Hutt added that a tight timetable is required to ensure the reforms are in place before the next Senedd election in 2026. Commonplace Heledd Fychan, for Plaid Cymru, said the bill would make the Senedd more representative of the people that it aims to represent and make the institution more effective. She pointed out that less than a third of the 470 candidates put forward by political parties were women in the 2021 Senedd election. Ms Fychan said: Gender quotas for elections are commonplace around the world and are now used in more than 130 countries. Evidence from countries such as Spain, Belgium and Ireland shows that gender quotas can be an effective means of increasing the number of women elected to parliaments. The number of women in the parliaments of 11 EU countries that used gender quotas increased almost three times faster than in EU countries without quotas. Victory for all Adam Price, the former Plaid Cymru leader, said: Having fair and equal representation for all is a victory for all. That is the essence of what you are seeking to achieve with this bill. Mr Price said the bill would be a fundamental step forward and the same mechanism could be used in future to address the whole range of diversity. Vikki Howells, a Labour MS who represents Cynon Valley, raised the example of Ireland, which introduced gender quotas in 2016. Ms Howells said Ireland has since seen a 90% increase in the number of women candidates and a 44% rise in the number of women elected. Huw Irranca-Davies, a fellow Labour backbencher, who chairs the legislation committee, suggested the issue of whether the bill is within Senedd powers is likely to be contested. The Ogmore MS backed the policys intended aim, saying: The progressive road is not always the easy road, but it is the right road. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter [email protected] Wrexham company fined for breaching Advertisement Regulations A Wrexham company has received the maximum fine possible by Wrexham Magistrates Court after failing to comply with Advertisement Regulations. After an illuminated sign was erected on an e-cig shop on Hope Street, Wrexham Council contacted the owners to advise them that the sign needed to be smaller and the illumination turned off, but this was not done. The company was taken to court and fined the maximum amount possible by the Magistrates 1000 with an additional 400 victim support and 280 costs. Wrexham Council said that the the court have made it clear that if the works arent completed within the next week they would expect the council to issue a further prosecution. Councillor Hugh Jones, lead member for strategic planning and public protection, said: Wrexham Council takes failure to comply with planning regulations very seriously. Our planning officers are always happy to advise businesses to make sure they work within the rules, which are there to protect the County Borough and its residents. They will also not hesitate to take enforcement action when it is expedient to do so. (This appears not to always be the case: Wrexham Village : Planning, Parking & Plants ) [email protected] Another witch-hunt by Zionists, with the active support of the right-wing media, New York City Public School authorities and the New York Police Department (NYPD), has targeted a pro-Palestinian paraprofessional at an elementary school in Brooklyn. A protest in defense of a victimized educator [Photo: NYC Educators for Palestine ] This comes on top of the doxxing of Queens teacher Mohammad Jehad Ahmad last month when the far-right, pro-Zionist organization Accuracy in Media sent a truck with electronic billboards displaying his image on them to his school. Ahmad and others have been harassed uninterruptedly since October for making statements on social media against the Gaza genocide. Similar trucks have appeared at universities around the country, displaying personal information about anti-Zionist students. Students in New York City who have protested the genocide in Gaza have been slandered as antisemites, and school authorities have done nothing to defend educators or students rights to free speech. New York City Public Schools Chancellor David Banks, an appointee of the right-wing Democratic Mayor Eric Adams, has given the Zionist slaughter his full support. Banks has warned educators not to raise the issue of Palestine even while outside of school, including on social media, which is a direct attack on the First Amendment of the Constitutions guarantee of free speech. The gutter rag calling itself the New York Post has not only repeatedly disclosed personal information about pro-Palestine educators, but has also called for the firing of principals deemed too lax in their suppression of anti-genocide sentiment among students. Leaders of Central Education Council 14 (CEC)a city-sponsored parents advisory grouphave been the target of harassment since CEC 14 called for a ceasefire in Gaza and supported student participation in anti-genocide protests. The harassment, according to Hellgate, includes threatening phone calls, emails, and even a box addressed to the head of the all-volunteer council that contained what they believed to be human feces. Some parent leaders have also received death threats. A member of another CEC in Queens was ousted because of her pro-Palestinian views. A paraprofessional, James, whose last name has been withheld at his request, was originally targeted by upper-middle-class Zionist parents, some of whom have ties to the upper echelons of the Israel Defense Forces, when he spoke in November in defense the leadership of CEC 14 at one of its public meetings. In discussions with the WSWS, he detailed the campaign of harassment, which has included articles in the New York Post that give his full name and the school at which he works, and make untrammeled accusations of anti-Semitism against him. On Tuesday, after a fourth disciplinary hearing because of his social media posts, he was suspended from work without pay for ten days. James explained that the CEC meeting which he attended in November was a very volatile meeting and when it was time for public comments, I was able to give my statement of support for the CEC, for its president and what it stands for. Within that meeting there were a bunch of parents from my school community but also from across the city and from across the district. I did openly say I was an educator in District 14, so you know its not hard for them to figure out what school I work at. After the meeting, Jamess social media came under scrutiny from Zionist and right-wing forces, and a behind-the-scenes slander campaign against him began. I found out recently that emails from parents were going out to my admin about my statements, saying that Im calling for the murder of their Jewish children, that they were adamant to keep me away from their kids because of that and Im not a safe person to be around. James continued: My admin has never once sat down with me to talk about this and has never once mentioned this or brought this up to me. Then on December 5th the New York City Parent Alliance [a recently formed Zionist group] created a leaflet with my name and my occupation, and included screenshots of my posts. They called me antisemitic. They said I should not be working with kids and that I am calling for the death of Jewish people. Then an e-mail campaign began with an e-mail, prepared beforehand, and sent to my boss, to my superintendent, to the chancellor and to elected officials, calling for my removal from the classroom because I had made antisemitic remarks such as calling Israel a settler colonial nation and things of that nature. Shortly after that, the cops visited my school around dismissal to talk to me and basically putting the onus on me by saying that because of my outspokenness on social media, these were threats. That was jarring. Around December 13th I was called into my first disciplinary meeting and in that meeting my boss had a stack of screenshots and told me that I need to watch my tone on social media, to not use incendiary, one-sided language. She pointed out that terms like genocide, colonialism, imperialism or phrases like from the river to the sea were alienating our school community and making people feel unsafe and uncomfortable. I told my boss that all of this was done outside of my work hours. I told her that if these concerns were so great and people do feel this way, that I would appreciate being pulled into a conversation with them. I dont know why I have to wait for a disciplinary meeting to hear these things, where I cant really defend myself. My boss told me that there are just some things that I shouldnt be too loud about, that I shouldnt really speak up about, because it draws that kind of negative attention. That just took me aback and I think it was at that moment I realized that the administration does not have my back at all. My mind boggled because Ive been at the school for eight years and in those eight years, Ive had nothing but a clean record. My work ethic speaks for itself, and I have great relationships with students, staff and families. Before February break, I was suspended for three days without pay. This once again was relating to social media posts. [Zionist] parents created an uproar, and I was informed by other colleagues who were in e-mail chains that the parents who reached out were again saying that I was calling for the murder of their children and to keep me away from their kids because I am not a safe person, and that the keffiyeh that Im wearing is equivalent to a swastika. We asked James if the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), of which he is a member, had defended him. They havent done much, he said. I havent really heard from my district rep although I know that my union rep in my school building has reached out. I dont feel like my union at large is really doing anything. They havent really spoken up about the targeted harassment against other union members. For me I dont feel like theyre doing anything at all. At this point so much harm has been caused. For the most part, Jamess colleagues have been intimidated by the Zionist frenzy and collaboration of the administration. I am wearing my keffiyeh so they know that I am pro-Palestinian, but theyve seen the backlash like the harassment that Ive been receiving and theyre very wary of raising their voices. I actually did have a colleague who went up to my bosses and said that they were very concerned for my safety because some of the parents have been very vocal. On Friday a group of parents who were in support of me came together to be out [in front of the school] because last week I was brought into my fourth disciplinary meeting. Im definitely in a position to get my story out there because right now the narrative is really being loudly shaped by these violent racist Zionists and amplifying my own story is whats going to really help shift that narrative and stop the harm that its causing. I think what the New York City Public Schools are doingat every level, from principals to superintendents to the chancellor to the mayoris highly concerning and its opposed to peoples First Amendment rights. I would just say that harassment, doxxing, intimidation or silencing will not work. As educators we have a moral obligation and the moral duty and responsibility to stand up and speak for marginalized communities and for oppressed peoples not just here in New York City or in the United States but globally. I will continue to stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine. I will continue to stand for the dismantling of the Israeli state. I will continue to stand for a time when Palestine will be free. There are more of us united in this than ever before and we shouldnt fear the harassment. All of this is scary but I think whats scarier is staying silent in the face of the genocide. Educators and students are subjected to a vicious government-facilitated campaign by Zionists and the far right. It is time to call a halt. The UFT and the national union to which it is affiliated, the American Federation of Teachers, headed by the pro-Israel millionaire Randi Weingarten, will do nothing to protect the rights of its members. It is time for independent action by the thousands of educators in New York City to defend democratic rights, which will strike a blow for the whole international working class against the Democratic-Republican policy of war and genocide. There is no time to waste. Educators who want to fight back should contact the Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee immediately. As of Monday evening, eight Chicagoans have been diagnosed with measles, four of them asylum seekers residing at a migrant shelter in the Pilsen neighborhood. The outbreak of measles is a consequence of the brutal and overcrowded conditions at migrant facilities overseen by the Democratic Party as well as the ruling classs complete abdication of responsibility to maintain public health infrastructure. Immigrants stand outside a shelter in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Tuesday, December 19, 2023 [AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast] The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced on Thursday, March 7, that the city had recorded its first case of measles since 2019. The source of infection for the first case, who has been identified in media reports simply as a city resident, is unknown. According to CDPH, the resident reported interaction with domestic and international travelers. On Friday, March 8, CDPH announced it had confirmed a second case of measles in a young child living at the Pilsen shelter, the same facility in which five-year-old Jean Carlos Martinez Rivero died in December of multiple infections. The facility has been notorious for its crowded conditions, in which 1,896 or so currently reside. The conditions at the shelter have fostered widespread illness, compounded by the failure of the administration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to provide adequate healthcare to those living there. A second case in a child at the shelter was confirmed on Sunday. The second child, who was hospitalized, was school-aged, attending a Chicago Public Schools (CPS) elementary school. On Monday, two adults at the same facility tested positive. The first two cases were announced March 7 and 8, after the two sick individuals were no longer infectious, even though both of them sought care on February 27, one at Swedish Hospital and the other at Stroger Hospital, a public hospital run by Cook County Health. The patient who sought care at Swedish Hospital evidently rode the bus, potentially infecting other riders on that route who may have sat in the same bus even hours later. As measles can be transmitted for around eight days, this 9-10 day gap in informing the public means a potentially large number of unknown individuals have already been exposed to the disease. Measles is highly communicable, infecting 90 percent of unvaccinated individuals. A request for information from CDPH as to why this gap occurred has so far remained unanswered. The mumps, measles and rubella (MMR) vaccine can prevent infection of unvaccinated individuals if administered within 72 hours, while immune globulin injections can work to prevent the disease if given within six days. In other words, the delay by the city in mounting an aggressive contact tracing and public information campaign has potentially consigned a number of individuals to infection with a highly dangerous disease. In line with the inhumane treatment accorded to migrants in Chicago, according to Block Club Chicago, shelter residents were awakened by CPDH officials accompanied by a police escort at 1 a.m. Friday, March 8. They were told there was a measles outbreak and that they were under quarantine for 10 days. The facilitys doors were locked and shelter residents, treated like criminals, were told that anyone who left without proving they had been vaccinated for measles or previously had been infecting with measles would lose their place and be tossed out on the street, even though this would potentially contribute to a further spread of measles in the community. Over the weekend, CDPH, Cook County Health, Rush University Medical Center and the University of Illinois-Chicago assessed the shelter residents, administering the MMR vaccine to 900 people. Around 700 were found to have previous vaccination or infection and given the ability to enter and leave the facility. Those who were administered the vaccine were ordered to remain at the shelter for 21 days, until the vaccine takes full effect. The detention of asylum seekers in cramped conditions is not only inhuman, but risks their collective health. Measles, with a long incubation period, requires they be separated and provided safe places with access to healthcare, food and financial support. The measles and COVID-19 outbreaks in Pilsen exemplifies the complete disregard of officials to their health and wellbeing. CDPH commissioner Dr. Simbo Ige said in a statement, We have advised all unvaccinated and newly vaccinated residents of the quarantine period but some of those residents have left the shelter, and I want to acknowledge that. Some of these residents have no doubt concluded that they are more likely to become infected staying at the facility and chose to take their chances, even though that might cause them to infect others. On Monday, CDPH announced that several dozen residents with previous immunity were being moved from the shelter to begin ramping up quarantine logistics. In other words, officials need to make room to account for the fact that residents forced to stay in the facility will not be able to endure the cramped conditions for weeks on end without some relief of the crowded conditions. Some people being quarantined are apparently also being moved to hotels. According to CDPHs Monday statement, healthcare teams are being deployed to shelters across the city to provide MMR vaccines to unvaccinated asylum-seekers, and vaccines will now be administered as part of the intake process, with proof required for shelter placement. The scale of the citys response at shelter facilities underscores the danger of measles. However, it is clear that the time public health officials allowed the virus to circulate before taking action has created the conditions for a dangerous escalation of the outbreak, a point which is underscored by the citys request for help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A CDC team was scheduled to arrive Tuesday to provide assistance with contact tracing and clinical guidance, as well as testing coordination. The team will also be conducting outreach, as decades of anti-science obscurantism, the collapse of public health education and the general lack of access to healthcare among workers have led to many schools having vaccination rates below the target 95 percent recommended by the CDC. Since last week, the CDC has confirmed 45 measles cases in 17 states, though this number will undoubtedly grow. Aside from the outbreak in Chicago, as many as 300 people were exposed to measles at the UC Davis Medical Centers emergency department in Sacramento, California, on March 5. Mayor Johnson has remained mostly silent on the measles outbreak. On Monday, at an unrelated event, Johnson spoke to reporters about the efforts of CDPH in vaccinating residents at the shelter in Pilsen. Johnson also revealed something about his own anti-science attitudes as well as those prevalent in petty-bourgeois, pseudo-left layers when he suggested vaccine hesitancy had something to do with low vaccination rates at the shelter, There are some individuals, whether youre a migrant or not, people that have some hesitancy and some reticence around it. And so, were doing some real serious education. In fact, for most asylum seekers, a lack of MMR vaccination is the result of the near total collapse of the healthcare system in Venezuela, from which many of them have fled as a result of that countrys economic destruction by US sanctions. A drone photo shows a cargo ship docking at Qingdao Port in east China's Shandong Province, March 13, 2024. The total import and export of goods in Qingdao grew 5.4 percent year on year to 125.8 billion yuan (about 17.49 billion U.S. dollars) in the first two months of 2024, according to the local customs administration. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng) A drone photo shows a view of Qingdao Port in east China's Shandong Province, March 13, 2024. The total import and export of goods in Qingdao grew 5.4 percent year on year to 125.8 billion yuan (about 17.49 billion U.S. dollars) in the first two months of 2024, according to the local customs administration. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng) Trucks transport containers at Qingdao Port in east China's Shandong Province, March 13, 2024. The total import and export of goods in Qingdao grew 5.4 percent year on year to 125.8 billion yuan (about 17.49 billion U.S. dollars) in the first two months of 2024, according to the local customs administration. (Xinhua/Li Ziheng) A man takes photos as a black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, as a result of a controlled detonation of a portion of the derailed Norfolk Southern train, Feb. 6, 2023. [AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar] The controlled release and burn which released toxic chemicals from derailed tanker cars into the town of East Palestine, Ohio last year was not necessary, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board stated in testimony before Congress last week. NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy stated that experts from OxyVinyls, the maker of the toxic chemicals onboard the Norfolk Southern train, had traveled to East Palestine and told Norfolk Southern officials that the chemicals were not in danger of exploding. The controlled release and burn of five tanker cars carrying vinyl chloride, a toxic substance, was carried out on February 6, 2023, three days after the train derailed near East Palestine. In that crash, 38 cars of a 151-car freight train derailed. 11 of the 38 derailed cars carried toxic chemicals, several of which caught fire at the time of the derailment. At the time, Norfolk Southern claimed that five remaining tankers were in danger of exploding, justifying the decision to drain them and burn off their contents. This claim was widely questioned by public safety experts last year, who noted that a more likely explanation was that this dangerous maneuver was being carried out to return the rail to operations as quickly as possible. However, Norfolk Southerns account was not publicly contradicted by government safety officials at the time. The controlled release and burn was nothing of the sort. Charges placed on the tanker cars were detonated and contents of the cars were allowed to dump onto the ground, where it was set on fire in a towering inferno which sent flames hundreds of yards into the air and smoke billowing out for miles. This move contaminated the soil, ground water and atmosphere of the surrounding region with vinyl chloride and dioxins. The World Socialist Web Site reported last June that the company knew at the time that cars were not in danger of exploding. Paul Thomas, vice president of health, environment, safety and security at OxyVinyls, the manufacturer of the vinyl chloride, testified at a congressional hearing in June that on three separate occasions they informed Norfolk Southern that it was their opinion that the chemical was not undergoing polymerization, a chemical reaction that could lead to an explosion, and that the tankers did not have to be detonated. Instead, they recommended that the cars be allowed to cool and then drained of the vinyl chloride. Both safety experts and residents of East Palestine, Ohio questioned the decision to detonate five rail cars carrying vinyl chloride. We basically nuked a town with chemicals so we could get a railroad open, hazardous material expert Sil Caggiano said. Caggiano told the WSWS that had Norfolk Southern not exploded the cars and instead allowed them to cool, they would have had to remove and clean up the rail cars before they could open the tracks. The alternatives to what they did would have taken too long and cost them too much money. If they had put the fire out, they would still have had to handle every one of those containers and its contents as hazardous waste, all non-marketable, and they would have to have gotten rid of all that contamination. This way, they dont have contamination anymore. It burned up and it spread over God knows how much. They got off very cheap in my book. Residents who spoke with the WSWS in the days and weeks after the explosion expressed the belief that the explosion and a premature lifting of an evacuation order was done in order to allow Norfolk Southern to reopen rail traffic on the very busy route. This doesnt surprise me, said one resident who asked that her name not be used. We all felt they just wanted to get trains running again. This is a busy track, trains run day and night. One about every 15 minutes. Once the governor lifted the evacuation order, a train was coming within five minutes. They didnt care how many people were getting sick, it was all about the money to them. They came into our homes with little handheld readers, not much bigger than barcode scanners you see in supermarkets, and told us it was safe. Now we find they werent even testing for some of the chemicals that were on that train. A lot of people want to move on, and I dont blame them. I want to move on too, but the problem is many people are still sick and we dont know what this is going to do to us in 5, 10 or 20 years. I dont trust any of them. Not the railroad, the EPA, the government, they all lied to us. More than a week after industrial explosions rocked the Detroit suburb of Clinton Township, Michigan, killing a young bystander and spewing gas canisters and shrapnel as far as two miles from the blast site, the police and local authorities have yet to initiate an investigation or lay any charges against the owners of the cannabis business that erupted in flames and multiple detonations. Explosions are seen at a warehouse in Clinton Township, Michigan. [Photo: Alex Moose] The fire that enveloped the building housing both the Goo Smoke Shop and Select Distributors warehouse near Groesbeck Highway and 15 Mile Road began at approximately 8:50 p.m. on Monday, March 4. Violent explosions occurred throughout the night, according to fire crews. An orange glow in the night sky was observed more than eight miles away. One of these explosions ended the life of 19-year-old Turner Lee Salter, who was standing a quarter-mile from the blast site when he was struck by a 12- to 15-pound nitrous oxide canister. Hundreds of these canisters measuring over 12 inches in length were launched from a series of explosions during a fire at a vape supply warehouse in Clinton Township, Michigan on the night of March 5, 2024. The delay in the investigation is said to be due to the fact that the fire is still smoldering, and small fires have reignited in two areas on the west end of the property, despite the Clinton Township fire department having doused the site with more than 2 million gallons of water throughout the week. Officials say structural steel from the collapsed building must be removed before investigators can begin to do their work. Some of the structural steel is still too hot to be removed, even by machines. Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) personnel have, moreover, informed township officials that there is a potential for more explosions once the heavy steel pieces are moved. Describing the ongoing catastrophe at the blast site, Macomb County Emergency Management Coordinator Paul Brouwer said, In one corner of the building where there was a major collapse, theres still some burning there, and every once in a while it flares up and the fire department goes back and gets it down. The township has declared a local state of emergency. The Macomb Daily reported over the weekend that local officials expected an investigation would begin sometime this week. The investigative team includes members of the Clinton Township police and fire departments, the ATF, the Michigan State Police and private investigators. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has also been at the site to inspect the area and collect potentially contaminated fire debris and hazardous items, including vape pens and lithium batteries. Drones have located some of these items as far as two miles from the blast site, threatening to trigger dozens of smaller disasters. The intersection where the blast took place still looks like a war zone, with thousands of small canisters of lighter fluid scattered all over Clinton Township. Hundreds of heavier canisters of highly explosive butane and nitrous oxide are scattered by the side of railroad tracks. On the morning of March 6, Firefighters continue to extinguish a disastrous fire that broke out the night before at a smoke and vape supply warehouse in Clinton Township, Michigan. The fire ignited numerous explosions, killing a 19-year-old youth who was a half mile away with flying shrapnel. As for holding anyone accountable for the ongoing disaster, Clinton Township Police Captain Anthony Coppola said that the owners of the business are cooperating with his department and have been questioned by members of the ATF. The owners names have not been released to the public. No one is in police custody and no charges have been filed. Clinton Township is a largely blue-collar community, with a mixture of young adults under the age of 35 (roughly 46 percent of the population) and older retired workers (roughly 19 percent). The median household income in the township is slightly below the national average, near $64,000. The building that blew up housed a Save-A-Lot grocery store before it was taken over by the smoke shop several years ago. Last week, authorities said the building was not supposed to house the flammable butane tanks that were found on the property. The building hadnt been inspected since September 2022, at which time the hazardous canisters were reportedly not present. According to local zoning officials, the building was not zoned for industrial use, but only retail activity. No permit was ever acquired to store hazardous materials. The large smoke shop sits next to a Walgreens Pharmacy, a Burger King location, a manufacturing facility owned by Alpha Precision Aerospace and a warehouse called S&G Machinery Sales. More than 50 employees work on the corner where the blast took place. Had the fire broken out during work hours, many more people would likely have been killed. Clinton Township Fire Chief Tim Duncan said, Its unbelievable that more people were not injured or killed. How we managed to get through it with what we did, I cant answer. There was someone looking out for us that day. United Auto Workers head Shawn Fain was President Bidens guest of honor at the State of the Union address last week. Biden introduced Fain as a great friend and a great labor leader and claimed the UAW, with the help of his administration, had stopped the closure of an auto plant in Belvidere, Illinois, and secured 4,000 new jobs in last falls contract negotiations. Following his appearance at the State of the Union speech, Fain gave interviews to MSNBC, the Nation and other news outlets, where he praised the Democratic president, a lifelong shill of corporate America, as a steadfast defender of the working class. The difference between Biden and Trump, he told the Nation, was: One stands with working class people, and one represents the billionaire classand is a member of the billionaire classand doesnt give a damn about working class people. With poll numbers showing Biden trailing Trump, Fain has become one of the presidents most prominent spokesmen. In so doing, he has covered up Bidens support for Israels genocidal war in Gaza and Bidens offer to work with Trump to pass the most reactionary anti-immigrant measures in US history in exchange for Republican support for the expanding US-NATO war against Russia in Ukraine, which threatens the world with nuclear war. At the same time, both Fain and Biden continue to perpetuate the claim that the UAWs bogus stand up strikein reality, a non-strike that kept most workers on the jobachieved historic gains for autoworkers. This included the supposed conversion of supplemental (temporary) workers into full-timers and the end of perma-temps. In fact, just a few days before the State of the Union speech, Stellantis fired 341 temporary workers at its Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio. They are among the more than 2,300 supplementals being permanently terminated by Stellantis with the full blessing of the UAW bureaucracy. Workers contacted by the World Socialist Web Site were furious at the praise heaped on Fain by Biden. Natalie, a recently terminated supplemental worker at the Detroit Assembly Complex, said Fain has been missing in action at Stellantis, but then I see him with the President at the State of the Union where he was praised. That was a political stunt. He has not been to Detroit. He has not addressed our issues. I have not seen anything he has done. I havent seen a flyer. I havent seen a video. I havent seen anything from him addressing what happened to those workers who lost their jobs and cannot provide for their families. Natalie continued, I am a third generation UAW autoworker, and I looked forward to working at Stellantis. But the contract was not what they promised. I had hopes and dreams of being rolled over. No TPTs were converted. I was supposed to be converted from temporary part-time to temporary full-time and after another nine months to full-time. At the local union meeting they told us we would get profit sharing in 2024 based on hours worked in 2023. That was a lie too. They have been taking union dues from us this entire time, and they let the company put us out on the street. I was there for less than a year and had to pay over $1,000 in union dues and fees. As soon as our pay went up to $21 an hour, they started taking $54 in union dues. We are being used as pawns by Stellantis. Across the US and across the world, workers are not being treated fairly. Pointing to the recent strikes by Italian Stellantis workers against job cuts, she said, No matter where they are, workers are not tolerating just being disposable. Because thats how I feel. I literally put my sweat and blood into building vehicles, and I have scars on my body where I had to go to medical. I have sweat on hot summer days when its 115 degrees in the plant. I have cried on the job. Its not fair. The company made $20 billion last year. Ford and General Motors too. We didnt get the $21 an hour until November. Forty hours a week off of $21 is not that much. I only brought home $600 my last week. Even working overtime I have never seen $1,000 a week. Commenting on Fains appearance at Bidens State of the Union address, a driver for a parts distribution company that subcontracts with Stellantis in Detroit said, The banning of the railroad strike in 2022 hit me hard. I used to vote Democratic, but when Biden outlawed the railroad strike, he lost me. I will never vote Democratic again. A recently terminated Stellantis worker from Sterling Heights Assembly Plant in suburban Detroit said, Fain is a snake. You have to call things like they are. You go by their actions. I was supposed to be made full-time after the 2019 contract, but I was never rolled over. You only seem to see Fain now when he is meeting with the president. Following Fains appearance, Jerry White, the Socialist Equality Partys candidate for US vice president, posted the following on his X account: In an effort to burnish his pro-worker credentials, Biden invited his favorite bureaucratic lackey, UAW President Shawn Fain, to the State of the Union. Biden referred to him as a great friend and a great labor leader. Fain stood up and absurdly tried to strike a militant pose, raising his fist while basking in the praise. Moments after, Biden remarked, in an honest moment, about Wall Street: Theyre not bad guys. A few minutes later, again speaking to his listeners among the financial aristocracy, he said, Look, Im a capitalist. If you want to make a million bucksgreat! What explains this apparent contradiction? Biden, long known as the senator for DuPont corporation, has relied on the pro-corporate UAW and other union bureaucracies in order to suppress the class struggle and give US imperialism a free hand to wage war abroad. Fain may be a great friend of Bidens. But he is not a labor leader in any meaningful sense of that phrase, contrary to the claims of the pseudo-left DSA (which itself now occupies top positions in the UAW bureaucracy). The UAWs 2023 stand-up strike was a fraud, keeping the vast majority of workers on the job, and the contracts it pushed on workers were sellouts. Fain is a highly paid functionary of the corrupt UAW apparatus, a man who has spent his entire career enforcing the demands of the corporations onto workers. Lastly, UAW President Fains slavish toadying before Biden at the State of the Union should further put to rest his claims to support a ceasefire in Gaza or to be in any way an opponent of war. Bidens #SOTU was a full-throated defense of the central preoccupations of his administration: war against Russia, as well as preparations for war against China. Fain and the UAW leadership have endorsed Genocide Joe, who is fully complicit in Israels genocidal war on Gaza, which has resulted in more than 35,000 deaths. Moreover, Fain and the UAW apparatus have refused to call strikes among their members involved in the production of military equipment for Israel at Allison Transmission, Caterpillar and elsewhere. Are you an autoworker? Sign the form below to get information on building rank-and-file committees to fight the job cuts and the sellout contract. More than three years after then-President Donald Trump ordered far-right militia members and his most ardent fanatics to march on the US Capitol in an attempt to block Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election, the would-be dictator is poised to clinch the Republican nomination for president. Former President Donald Trump kisses Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., as he speaks, Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Rome, Georgia. [AP Photo/Mike Stewart] As of this writing, Trump is expected to win virtually all 161 delegates available in Tuesdays primary contests in Georgia, Mississippi, Washington state and Hawaii. Trump has already secured 1,163 delegates, while former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who dropped out last week, has 94. On the Democratic side, President Joe Biden secured the nomination on Tuesday after obtaining the requisite 1,968 delegates. On his way to securing the Republican nomination, Trump has further consolidated his grip over the Republican party, transforming it into a personalist instrument in the service of his authoritarian aspirations. Last month, Trump forced out Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairperson Ronna Romney McDaniel, who had held the post for seven years. McDaniel is the niece of former Massachusetts governor and retiring Utah senator Mitt Romney. At the urging of Trump, she dropped the Romney name after assuming the RNC chair position in 2016. McDaniel formally resigned last Thursday. While she was a loyal soldier to Trump, including supporting his baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen, Trump soured on McDaniel for allowing the RNC to host Republican presidential primary debates after Trump indicated he would not participate. In McDaniels place Trump installed Michael Whatley, chair of the North Carolina Republican Party, as the new RNC chair, with Trumps daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, serving alongside Whatley as co-chair. Speaking in Houston, Texas on March 8, Whatley said that under his leadership the RNC would work hand in glove with the Trump campaign. This includes backing Trumps stolen election narrative, which Whatley, as chair of the North Carolina GOP, promulgated following the November 2020 election. Following Trumps defeat in 2020, CNN reported that Whatley went on radio stations and complained of massive fraud that allegedly took place in Milwaukee and Detroit and Philadelphia. Speaking on Friday, Whatley doubled-down on Trumps election lies. The Republican National Committee will be focused like a laser on getting out the vote and protecting the ballot, said Whatley, adding that one of the top priorities of the RNC under his leadership would be protecting the sanctity of Republican voters. Whatleys co-chair, Lara Trump, who is married to Eric Trump, was endorsed by her father-in-law last month. As co-chair she promised that every single penny will go to the number one and the only job of the RNCthat is, electing Donald J. Trump as president of the United States and saving this country. Lara Trump has not publicly ruled out using RNC funds to pay for Trumps various legal affairs. In addition to Whatley and Trump, CNN reported that top Trump campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and James Blair will also have senior positions at the RNC while remaining on the Trump campaign. LaCivita will reportedly be the RNCs chief operating officer, while Blair will be focused on political strategy, per CNN. On Monday, multiple news outlets, citing unnamed sources, reported that over 60 RNC staff members had been fired across multiple departments, many of whom had been previously hired by McDaniel. On Monday night, Georgia Representative, QAnon fascist and Trump-surrogate Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted on X, MAGA is now in control of the Republican Party!! At a campaign rally held Saturday in Rome, Georgia, in Greenes home district, Trump doubled down on his standard fascistic campaign themes centered on immigration and the stolen election of 2020. Every day Joe Biden is deliberately releasing gang members and military-aged men into our communities by the tens of thousands, ranted Trump. In his speech, Trump blamed Biden for the killing of 22-year-old Laken Riley, allegedly carried out by an undocumented migrant. Biden has implemented a formal policy that illegal aliens who intrude into the United States are granted immunity from deportation, said Trump. Thus, when this monster showed up at our border he was set free under the program that Crooked Joe created. I call it free to kill, Trump sneered, repeating it again for effect. Free to kill. Trump thanked very brave Greene for confronting Biden... over this cruel policy at the State of the Union address last week. He also singled out for praise several Republicans in attendance at the Rome, Georgia rally, including Ohio Representative Jim Jordan and Georgia Representatives Barry Loudermilk, Mike Collins and Andrew Clyde, along with Georgia Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones. As he does at every rally, Trump promised if elected to carry out the largest deportation operation in US history. At the same time, he warned that the greatest threat to the country was not outside threats, but the threat from within. Its the radical left lunatics that we have in our country, Trump said. Thats a much bigger threat than outside threats. The transformation of the Republican Party into a fascist organization is exemplified not only by the adoption of Hiterlian language and polices, but also by the partys normalization of far-right violence against its political opponents. At a Republican fundraiser in Overland Park, Kansas this past Friday, an effigy of Biden was erected and then assaulted by attendees. The effigy featured a Lets go Brandon shirt, a Republican phrase that translates to F*ck Joe Biden. A mask of Biden was placed on the effigys head. Video showing attendees punching, kicking and bashing the effigy was shared on social media, where it has garnered over five million views as of this writing. In an interview with the Associated Press (AP), Mike Kuckelman, former chair of the Kansas Republican Party, called on current chair Mike Brown to resign over the incident. This disgusting visualization of violence went viral, Kuckelman told AP. This doesnt just go away. Kuckelman said that the party leaderships attempts over the weekend to claim that that the effigy had been erected without its knowledge or consent were disingenuous, because the party controlled the entire event, including all third party vendors. If this had happened when I was chair, if a vendor pulled a stunt like this, I would have immediately shut it down and had them escorted off the premises, he said. This is so far over the line, you cant just say, Stop. Tickets for Fridays fundraiser ranged from $100 to $300. The featured speakers for the event were the fascistic guitarist Ted Nugent and former Kansas attorney general Phil Kline. Advertisement for Johnson County Republican Party fundraiser, featuring Ted Nugent and Phil Kline. [Photo: Johnson County GOP] Kline, who served as attorney general of Kansas from 2003 to 2007, was subpoenaed by the January 6 House Select Committee for his role in promoting and orchestrating Trumps failed coup. Following the November 2020 election, Kline filed lawsuits and appeared on right-wing media networks charging that the election was fraudulent because Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg donated money to civil organizations charged with collecting and counting mail-in and drop-off ballots. Appealing to neo-Nazis and antisemites, Kline asserted then, and does to this day, that Zuckerbucks were part of an insidious, coordinated and stealth campaign to manipulate the election. Kline, through a group called The Amistad Project, organized slates of fake electors in battleground states Trump had lost, including Michigan. Kline also worked with former top Trump coup lawyer Rudy Giuliani to try to convince legislatures in states Trump lost, including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Arizona, to reject the electors chosen by the voters and instead have the Republican controlled legislatures submit their own pro-Trump slates. Kline had his law license suspended in 2013 due to illegal actions he took while trying to investigate abortion providers in Kansas. A state disciplinary panel found that he presented false testimony and illegally acquired medical records of women planning to have abortions. When he tried to appeal his suspension to the Kansas Supreme Court in 2013, the court ruled that Klines inability or refusal to acknowledge the line between overzealous advocacy and operating within the bounds of the law and his professional obligations; his selfish motives; and his lengthy and substantial pattern of misconductweigh more heavily than the mitigating factors and merit his indefinite suspension. It has been nearly two years since former Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) nurse RaDonda Vaught was convicted for the accidental death of 75-year-old Charlene Murphey on December 27, 2017. She was found guilty on two counts: criminally negligent homicide and impaired adult abuse. The jury chose to find Vaught not guilty of the reckless homicide charge aggressively being pursued by the district attorney. After the verdict was read, Vaught opened to the press and spoke on her ordeal. First, we have not forgotten about Ms. Murphey and her family. Not at all. This is about creating a safer environment so that things like this dont happen again. On the issue of Vanderbilts role in the death, Vaught said, I think people deserve some answers to those questions, and they didnt get them in the courtroom. The nursing community is angry and frustrated. Nurses have found their voice, and theyre rightfully upset about this, as they should be. Where is the accountability? Where? All this says is that you as a nurse are disposable? The conviction and then the sentencing in May 2022 made national headline news. Nurses and healthcare workers across the United States and the world rallied to her defense because they understood that the medication error that led to the accidental death of Ms. Murphey was caused by chronic understaffing, inhuman workloads and the subordination of medical care to corporate profits. At the time, the Socialist Equality Party called on workers to demand Judge Jennifer Smith of the Davidson County Criminal Court suspend her sentence and release her with no jail time. Furthermore, it called on workers to demand the immediate restoration of Vaughts nursing license and her immediate reinstatement at Vanderbilt with full back pay and restitution. The World Socialist Web Site was only recently able to contact RaDonda Vaught to discuss her case and the events surrounding the criminal prosecution. She granted us permission to document our discussion. The following interview was edited for clarity and length. The interview continues, discussing the aftermath of the death of Charlene Murphey, with the launching of a criminal investigation into RaDonda Vaught. Part one of the interview is available here. Benjamin Mateus: How could you have followed hospital medication policies if the whole system was broken? It seems VUMC leadership was being reactionary and reckless. RaDonda Vaught: They were referring more specifically to their medication administration policy, which is sort of built around the five rights of medication administration: right patient, right drug, right time, right dose and right route. As a nurse, it falls on me to verify that I have the correct drug. And had I paid close attention, I would have realized that I did not. BM: But then why do we even discuss the system issues behind medication errors if we blame the nurse each time? The five rights are predicated on having an environment within which a nurse can conduct his or her work properly and then ensuring multiple mechanisms are in place to prevent such errors. It seems from what you have described so far, there were barely any functioning safeguards. RV: Yes, there were multiple things that could have stopped this along the way had the systems been functioning properly and had the right equipment been in place. There were multiple breakdowns in communication that if they hadnt occurred, then the need for even having that drug be given in such a hurry would have prevented all of this. Honestly, we dont even have enough time for me to go into the number of things that I have discovered over the four and a half years since Murpheys death, the board of nursing hearings, the investigations and then going through the criminal trial listening to peoples depositions and testimonies and digging through the mountain of discovery that was presented along the way. RaDonda Vaught But ultimately that was their decision. They informed that my termination letter would be sent to the Board of Nursing for failure to follow the expectation of my license but that it was written in a very benign way. I thought those were interesting choice of words. The letter only said a serious safety event occurred but didnt explain what happened or that a patient died. I think it was written in this benign language purposefully. VUMC didnt file any reports with Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) or draw up a corrective action plan, which is a requirement by law. There are certain members of the facility who have responsibility to work within the guidelines set by CMS so that they stay in proper standing to receive their reimbursement. I dont know if this has changed since, but at that time it was not required that you reported a death or a sentinel event. What was required is that you have 45 days after such an event to create a corrective action plan. These are based on the initial investigation, on the root cause analysis (RCA) and then a discussion of the factual details outlining the changes that need to be implemented to ensure it doesnt happen again. The process allows the hospital to be very transparent with the information, share it with CMS and learn from it. The hospital isnt punished, nor do they lose funding status. But someone there made the decision to not report the event. And it was my belief that the reason my termination letter was written in a benign way, without any specifics, was so that they could avoid reporting it or be implicated in it. They also informed me that I would not be eligible for rehire at any of Vanderbilts institutions. They said I could continue practicing as a nurse until I heard from the Board of Nursing. BM: VUMC documented that Ms. Murphey died of natural causes. RV: Initially. BM: Who made them change it? RV: The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) had them change it since I gave them a verbal admission of giving her the wrong drug. And they also obtained the incident report I filed at the time. Ultimately, what they needed was a legitimate reason based on facts that could be proven that she had been given Vecuronium. That was a discussion held between the Davidson County chief medical examiner, Dr. Fang Lee, and the TBI agent, Ramona Smith, which was a recorded interview and part of TBIs investigation. The cause of death was changed sometime in 2020. BM: Im left with the impression that there was a coverup on the part of VUMC. They didnt want to admit there had been this event. And had they investigated it properly, they would have identifiedas CMS later didthat things were not right. But the rapidity with which they swept it under the rug also tells me they are acclimated to the culture of coverup. Getting rid of you and paying off the family with hush money was their modus operandi. Is this an accurate assessment? RV: I think that is an accurate assessment. Let me give some highlights of how they got there. Nine months before I heard from the Board of Nursing, it was August of 2018, I had a two-hour recorded interview with the Tennessee (TN) Department of Health (DOH), Office of Investigations. I told them everything that I knew. And they said they werent concerned because I had no intention to hurt this person and that it was an isolated event. Their words, We have more dangerous fish to fry, and It will be a while before you hear from us, and You are going to be at the bottom of the stack. On October 25, 2018, I received a certified letter from the DOHs Office of Investigations Attorney General thanking me for my participation in the interview and that no action would be taken against my license, and no record of it would appear on my licensure file. What I didnt know then was that an anonymous tip had been filed on October 3, 2018, prompting an unannounced investigation by CMS of VUMC which was already underway when I was told by the DOH that they had considered the matter resolved. Understand that the DOH can investigate any facilitys license as much as that of a nurse or a physician. Anyone that holds a professional license in healthcare falls under their investigative authority. The whistleblower complaint filed on October 3 that prompted the CMS investigation came as an internal complaint from someone in the DOH. Meaning, in the process of reviewing my role in this incident, someone must have felt there were concerns with VUMC that were not being addressed in the DOH. The information in the complaint came directly from my interview. It must have been someone with access to these files or involved in the discussions. There was no way the things that were said at my interview at the DOH could have been obtained from anyone outside the DOH. The major findings of CMSs surprise inspection at VUMC had found that Ms. Murpheys death was not reported properly to the Social Security Administration (SSA). No RCA had been conducted, no corrective action plans had been drafted or changes implemented. And they were cited for deficient process that endangered patients lives. They were also admonished for not properly reporting the death to the Medical Examiner. They should have been told that a medication error caused her death. That would have led to a completely different type of investigation into her death like an autopsy, toxicology, etc. Those things hadnt been disclosed. The family cremated her as it was her wish. And because the CMS report wasnt filed by VUMC, that is where we moved into criminal law. That triggers a CMS investigation. Its a federal program, its federal money, but it is implemented on a state level. And anytime there is an investigation regarding concern around implementation of Medicare and Medicaid services, that responsibility falls to each states Bureau of Investigation, which is a criminal division of the law and not an administrative issue, which deals with our licenses, and not a civil case where the family would pursue a punitive case against me. The criminal investigation was opened, and the individuals responsible for interviewing me were with the Medicare and Medicaid fraud unit of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations [TBI]. BM: Then why didnt they bring charges against Vanderbilt? Why you? RV: The simplest answer is I made myself an easy target. I was very transparent and honest in my discussions with every investigator, whether they were from the DOH or TBI. And when the investigator at the TBI interview read me my Miranda rights, I should have known that that was indicative of something that I didnt understand. Unfortunately, when youre talking with someone whose job is to investigate a crime, they mean what they say when they tell you that everything you say can and will be used against you. BM: Hypothetically then, had Vanderbilt disclosed the medication error and conducted the RCA and informed IRS, SSA and CMS, there wouldnt have been a crime? RV: Yes. BM: You told them everything, but Vanderbilt covered it up, which made it a crime, and they got caught and decided to pin it on you? RV: I believe that was the easiest thing in terms of public relations damage control for Vanderbilt. Their reputation was at stake. Vanderbilt is an enormous facility and has deep roots in our area. Its the largest private employer in the state of Tennessee. You wont find a person who hasnt worked there or doesnt know someone whos worked there or hasnt been a patient there or isnt connected with them in some way. I dont see a criminal investigation being opened against an entity like Vanderbilt involving such a high-profile event where someone died, and they took no action to address the problems there. It would have had significant ramifications for them and the state. People would have said, Theyre just going to let them off the hook. But if someone is charged, then its a backdoor way of excusing them for their failures. It gives them an out while they save face. And I was the obvious easy target. And if someone is going to be charged with a crime, then all they needed to do was take my words and figure out how to make it a crime. After about three months of silence, they had figured out what crimes they intended to charge me with and called me on February 3, 2019, and told me they had a warrant for my arrest. BM: How did you feel then? It seems all your fears were materializing. RV: It was overwhelming and numbing at the same time. Im not usually an anxious person. Ive never been an anxious person. But the amount of anxiety that was building up inside me was terrifying. I was out of my element. I didnt know what to do. I felt my life was crumbling around me, and I didnt have any control over it. BM: Did your attorney give you any sense that this would be something that they could take care of, or were they very concerned about the outcomes as well? RV: He was realistically concerned. He is an experienced trial lawyer and understood the complexity and gravity of the situation. He understood what I was up against and how aggressively the DA was going to prosecute the case. He told me, When we go into that court room, they are going to do everything in their power to nail you to the wall! By that point, I went into it with zero expectations. Nurses await the sentencing decision for RaDonda Vaught in Tennessee, May 13, 2022. BM: You had support from your family and friends? RV: I have had so many people in my life, I feel like thats what kept me going initially. And then that support grew into this massive support from people across the country. That fueled me; that fueled my desire to fight back. What did I have to lose? That was how I felt. I had nothing to lose. I had lost my job, which meant everything to me. They took my license away in July 2021. What else did I have to lose? I decided then and there I was going to fight. I wasnt going to settle and admit I was guilty. I wasnt going to be the one to set the precedent that they can bully a nurse into a corner and make her say, Yes, I am a criminal! If thats what they wanted to do, theyd have to prove it in front of the entire world. Theyd have to get out there and say what they thought. I wasnt going to say it for them. I wasnt going to let them walk all over me, not when the entire world was watching and I was hearing from thousands of nurses telling me, This could have been me. If I had made a deal with the prosecutor to accept some deal that ensured I could avoid going to prison, then I would have been setting every nurse out there for failure. I would be agreeing to being criminally responsible, and, as a result, I would be setting that standard for every nurse across the country. I feel like Ive already done enough to disappoint my career field. I damn sure wasnt going to be the one that conceded to their notion that were a bunch of criminals out here. Because its not the case. BM: When did you first realize the issue was greater than you and decided your fight would be the defense of all other nurses that face similar obstacles? RV: Early on, after my first court date in late February 2019. I started seeing a lot attention being focused on the case from nurses around the country on social media, in groups where nurses spoke with each other. There was impressive support coming from these groups. They all felt as though this could have happened to them. Seeing how many felt that way and the concerns they had regarding a precedent that could be set by issuing criminal charges against a nurse for an unintentional error was the main reason I felt it was much bigger than me, and I needed to fight this. BM: This raises two questions; First, were you surprised by the outpouring of support at your trial? It really touched a nerve among healthcare workers. Do you think the massive support influenced the final verdict? [On March 25, 2022, the jury convicted her of gross neglect of an impaired adult and negligent homicide. She was acquitted of the more serious charge of reckless homicide. Judge Jennifer Smith ruled on the case on May 13, 2022, stating Vaught would not have to spend time in prison, sentencing her instead to three years probation.] These nursing school students from St. Louis, Missouri at the rally to support RaDonda Vaught, May 13 RV: Yes, I was very surprised. It really came after my conviction. I couldnt believe that hundreds of thousands of people were watching this and paying attention to it. It demonstrated that healthcare can be impacted by one small event causing ripples that grow into a much larger effect. I have impacted healthcare whether I wanted to or not. It has happened. But I dont want it to go down as a negative thing. It was an awful event, but that showed me I can also continue to make ripples in a positive way. Those people came out. They supported me. I listened to what they were saying, and I tried to look at it objectively. And if this is truly how our healthcare workers feel, then I feel like theres something that I can do here. As to your second question, I believe that Judge Smith in the sentencing did exactly what I would have expected of her based on every other encounter that Id had with her in court. At every hearing she was always straightforward and objective. Once the trial started, she understood this case for what it was and not just from the prosecutions narrow presentation. Obviously, she also saw the amount of letters and emails her office was receiving. However, she didnt look at them, because, again, its her job to make an objective decision. But her office sent every one of them to me. And I believe that she made a very fair decision considering what the family felt and recognizing the reality that I was never going to do something like this again. I dont think that the district attorneys office thought that I would ever receive judicial diversion. [Known as a golden ticket (judicial diversion TN CODE ANN. 40-35-313), it is a program offered to eligible first-time offenders that can avoid serving time and expunge their criminal record after a probationary period.] Typically, it is asked for beforehand when negotiating an out-of-court settlement. It isnt something granted after being found guilty at a jury trial. The whole case is placed in this judicial holding box, in a no mans land. It goes back to the judge after the probationary period is completed, and if they feel the requirements of the probation have been fulfilled, then its diverted away. The conviction is never filed, and the person can then return to being a productive citizen in good standing. They go back and function in their lives. They can pass background checks. For me, the charges will go away, though the case wasnt diverted. But the abuse of an impaired adult is filed in an abuse registry separate from the charges written under criminal law. Even though Id pass a background check, I would remain on this registry. BM: Its been almost two years since your criminal trial began in Nashville which was seen by many as a case that undermined the practice of just culture. Professor Bruce Lambert, a medical safety expert at Northwestern University whom we interviewed, wrote at the time, I am saddened and disappointed to report that they convicted RaDonda Vaught of a lesser charge of criminally negligent homicide. Exactly what the sentence will be is unclear yet. As you can tell, I think this is an unjust verdict, and I think it will significantly worsen the existing nursing shortage if every nurse now believes that they could potentially go to jail for medication errors. First, how has the case impacted you? And on the broader issue in healthcare, what does your case signify for other nurses? RV: I feel like I cant be as judgmental anymore about people and their everyday lives. I try to see people for whatever good they have to offer. I know what its like to be in that position where you are judged based on a two-minute news clip or a 500-word article in the paper. What it taught me is that there is a lot to see below the surface in people, in situations, and in systems in our healthcare system. It made me a more anxious person. I was never an anxious before this. Ive dealt with a lot of anxiety and depression. On the outside I look fine, appear fine, but on the inside, I was an absolute mess. I learned that its okay to ask for help from people and accept that help. And I learned that there is far more kindness and goodness in the world than I think most people believe that there is. And it was a beautifully humbling experience to be on the receiving end of that. The show of kindness and forgiveness I received from her family is something indescribable. Its a profound part of my life to have been on the receiving end of that much grace and kindness. I think in terms of our healthcare system and just culture, we really must dig deep if we want to find solutions or even a better path. While we do a lot of good, there are numerous opportunities for us to make mistakes. I think we need to start treating those as opportunities as learning experiences and take responsibility across all members of our healthcare teams, whatever your profession is to step up and do the right thing. We owe it to our patients. We need to look deeper because things arent working. But I dont know if I have the solution. BM: Given the for-profit nature of healthcare, these problems will assuredly get worse. It is up to workers to fight for that perspective. We must prioritize the life and well-being of our patients, and that means providing workers with the resources they need to do their work effectively and safely. I think thats where I would look for the solutions. Your experiences are invaluable. RV: Thank you. I do understand what you mean. That makes sense the way you put it. BM: How did the pandemic impact you? Much of your legal battles took place during the height of it. The whole response to the pandemic has been an assault on and insult to the healthcare workers who endured the waves upon waves of casualties without PPEs or N95s to protect themselves, endangering their own health and those of their families. All of this as recent history is being erased from our collective memory. Meanwhile, the nursing shortage is growing worse. Cuts in healthcare are accelerating. The staff at community hospitals are being let go because they arent profitable. I know your story is a small part of this whole, but I think everything that transpired with you is exemplary of the broader problems in healthcare. RV: Youre exactly right. And I believe that COVID made an enormous impact on the amount of people that were paying attention when my case finally went to trial. The courts were in moratorium for years. The charges came in early 2019. It took several months of going through discussion board hearings to determine whether my case was going to trial or not, and that didnt happen until the fall of 2019. We were set to go to trial in 2020, but the pandemic came and put a halt on it. I think that healthcare members, like frontline staff who are present during the pandemic, had grave misgivings. They saw the risks. Im sure that there were more corners cut and far more things that happened in a way that did not conform to the normal system and processes because of so many thingslack of staff, lack of equipment and lack of oversight. We were just trying to feel our way in the dark. We had no idea what we were dealing with. We werent prepared for it and had no system in place to deal with it. We were creating them as we went and under very limited circumstances. We couldnt work within our broad system anymore because we didnt have access to all those things. Im sure nurses and doctors had to do many things they wouldnt normally have done prior to COVID. But they had no other choices. They had difficult decisions to make at that moment. The amount of risk they had to take during that period we will never know or fully understand. The experience of the pandemic had a significant impact in how people saw my case when it did finally go to trial; that was why they were paying so much attention, and that was why it resonated so much with them. They were thinking, That could have been me. I could have been the one without any help, nowhere to go, no one to turn to and have made that mistake. Its probable they have made mistakes. Maybe not that exact same one, but they are questioning if they did everything they could have. Second guessing themselves. And working through the pandemic every day meant dealing with these uncertainties constantly: I wish I could have done this. I could have done this. I should have done this. This should have been the way that this should have gone. But they had no other choice. Theyve seen those very real situations play out where that reality I faced could have been them. And theyre probably just wondering, At what point is this going to come back to bite me? I am literally trying to do all that I can and with what I have at my disposal. That could have been me! I think thats why it resonated so much. Also, the fact that we only had social media to rely on to communicate with each other took a life of its own by opening that discussion for people. BM: You were denied having your nursing license reinstated. I dont think the decision was a surprise, but could you speak to why you are pursuing it? RV: Ill give you a quick timeline on that. I was very upset when the Board of Nursing took my license in July 2021. I told my attorney they could have it, and I didnt ever want it back. I knew I was facing criminal charges. However, he did file an appeal, but it sat in the court until the criminal trial was done. The issue was caught up in administrative back and forth that held the appeal. Eventually, it went to the next level of administrative law, which is within the chancery court. It took the court about seven months to issue a decision after we went before them and made the argument. But they ruled against me, and we have since appealed that to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. Initially, I didnt want to do this, but it had already been filed. But the more I started looking at this from an objective point of view, it really didnt sit well with me that there was no transparency within the Board of Nursing. To this day I have yet to see the files on their first investigation. I have no idea what they concluded. Im not allowed access to my own recorded interview. It remains protected under the law because they chose to take no action, and therefore no one is allowed access to them. In their second investigation, ultimately what was written in the notice of chargesthe administrative charges that were filed against my licensethey said they had new evidence. I have come to understand that administrative law, criminal law and civil law are very different legal entities. Administrative law is like the Wild, Wild West and not well understood by most people. Theres no due process in administrative law. The burden of proof is very low, and there is no such thing as a double jeopardy situation. *** BM: In all these months and years youve been dealing with this case and its consequences, has the nurses union, the National Nurses United, been helpful or supportive in any way? Helped reinstate your license? RV: No. There have been a lot of organizations that made statements after I was found guilty. They were very general statements saying they dont agree with the criminal prosecution of nurses and healthcare workers for unintentional errors. In terms of my license, I have no intention of ever getting that back. All I want is for the general public, not only people in healthcare, but the public to understand these very complicated processes that are in place. It was a smokescreen what happened with the Board of Nursing and the Department of Health. They looked bad when I got charged criminally because they hadnt done anything. Now they had to do everything they could to save their reputation. And they did. BM: Actually, it sounds like their initial investigation was correct. They didnt find any fault with you. There was a medication error with a tragic consequence. The systems issue was considerable. But you took responsibility for it and documented it. You were an upstanding nurse doing a very difficult job. There was no indication this was willful nor were you a threat to repeating this error. Only after the criminal charges, probably under a lot of pressure, they had to go back and fix their errors. RV: Thats correct. We must ask them, Who are you protecting? The public or Vanderbilt and the state? Its all politics. Recognize that all these organizations involved are located right there in Davidson County, in downtown Nashville; the TBI, the Department of Healths Metro Complex, Vanderbilt and, of course, the District Attorney. All of them are within 10 square miles of each other. BM: Have there been any serious repercussions for Vanderbilt? RV: Not that I know. Vanderbilt has a very good public relations team. They have their own police officers patrolling their campus. They operate as their own little community. They have tremendous resources. But I dont know what goes on there. BM: I havent seen anything come of that CMS report. RV: The facility filed their actual amended plan to the CMS report after some number of days. It was over 300 pages. Ive not seen any new documentation from them. BM: We have been following your story very carefully from the beginning. I think people who read your account will find it eye-opening and troubling at the same time. The case has universal relevance to other healthcare workers who find themselves, on the one hand, wanting to care and treat people and, on the other hand, dealing with a healthcare system that is driven by financial considerations and are ready to scapegoat them for their own failures. Clearly what you have gone through is a harrowing experience. I know no one wants the outcome you had, but the way you have had to face these is mean and inhumane to you and an affront to healthcare workers who face numerous challenges every day. RV: I appreciate you saying that. Three Maryland public school teachers, placed on leave after posting pro-Palestinian views online, filed a lawsuit last month to challenge their suspensions. The teachers, represented by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), filed a complaint against the Maryland Board of Education and the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS). Palestinian supporters march with flags and signs as they chant in protest in New York [AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews] From its Maryland headquarters in Baltimore, CAIR hosted a press conference on February 15 announcing the complaint filed on behalf of teachers Hajur El-Haggan, Anike Robinson and Angela Wolf. The three teachers, who were placed on leave in November and December of last year, approached CAIR independently for help with clearing their names and being able to return to their classrooms. El-Haggan, a math teacher at Argyle Middle School in Silver Spring, was placed on leave due to her email signature containing the phrase, From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. A previous complaint filed by CAIR on El-Haggans behalf further claimed the educator was targeted for wearing pins with phrases, such as Free Gaza and Free Palestine. Robinson, an art and English teacher at Westland Middle School in Bethesda, was placed on leave after some parents wrote to the schools principal, Alison Serino, complaining about posts on Robinsons social media accounts, allegedly of an antisemitic nature, according to a letter Serino sent to parents. Robinsons posts included an image criticizing the Israel Defense Forces attacks on children and civilian infrastructure in Gaza, as well as a post expressing solidarity with the Palestinian people against Israels settler colonial state-sanctioned apartheid program of genocide back[ed] by U.S. imperialism. In the third case, Wolf, a Takoma Park Middle School teacher and department head of English Language and Development, was placed on leave for posts such as a cartoon showing an Israeli tank taking aim at the NICU unit of the Al-Shifa hospital in North Gaza. In November, Wolf posted support for bus drivers in Northern Virginia who refused to transport Zionists to the pro Israel rally in Washington D.C. from Dulles International Airport. The teachers have remained on leave while MCPS investigated their cases, but CAIR in its complaint filed this month stated that through these suspensions, the Board of Education and MCPS are pursuing an illegal, Israel-specific, viewpoint-suppression policy it has not adopted for any other matter of public concern. CAIR said the three teachers expressed themselves in the same ways they and their colleagues had about other topics. Whether online or in school, teachers have long been allowed to express their views on a range of public topicsfrom racial justice to the war in Ukraineas the First Amendment requires. Additionally, CAIR claimed that in removing three teachers from their classrooms, the Board of Education and MCPS officials have prioritized their ideological quest to eliminate a common viewpointfor a ceasefire from the ranks of their teachers. CAIR attorney Rawda Fawaz said the organization wants all three teachers to be reinstated to their positions and to receive public apologies from the MCPS and the Board of Education. At the press conference last month, Fawaz said Montgomery County had acted to suppress viewpoints critical of Israel and the daily massacres that weve all watched unfold in abject horror. This is a textbook violation of the First Amendment. Robinson described decades of dedicated teaching and social activism, as well as a situation that took place this school year involving an argument between a Jewish and a Muslim student. Robinson worked with the students to design a symbol of unity, a palm-shaped Middle Eastern amulet known as a Hamsa, which inspired Robinson to have a similar design tattooed on her arm. Robinson insisted, The important thing to remember today is that our educational systems thrive on critical thinking. And Ive been creating safe environments for my students for decades, day after day. For her part, Wolf began by holding up a copy of Refugee by Alan Gratz, which she taught last year to eighth grade students, saying, If you know me, or have read this book, then you know we are not here today about my job performance as an educator. No, we are here because, in my personal time, I communicated my belief that the indiscriminate killing of civilians is wrong. In reference to the Facebook posts she made expressing sympathy for Palestinians, Wolf denied that they were antisemitic, saying, Montgomery County Public Schools publicly maligned my character and took me away from a job and the people to whom I have dedicated my heart and mind because of one opinion, in fact an opinion widely agreed upon by the international community, that bombing hospitals and the indiscriminate killing of noncombatants is wrong. El-Haggan said she was denied due process by being placed on leave before an investigation could be conducted and before she even knew what the reason was. My opinion is my wrong, El-Haggan said, referring to the school administrators response to her email signature calling for Palestinian freedom. CAIRs lawsuit, which has the support of the American Civil Liberties Union, comes amid a global witch-hunt stirred up to silence international dissent against the ongoing genocidal policy of the Israeli government in Gaza, backed by the US and the other imperialist powers, by equating criticism of hospital bombings and forced starvation with antisemitism. In Germany, pro-Palestinian slogans have been banned at mass demonstrations. Filmmakers in Germany have been lambasted as disturbing and propagandistic for expressing sympathy or shining a light on the plight of the Palestinians. In the UK, the government has responded to mass protests with heavy police presence and the invocation of the Public Order Act. In the US, those who voice empathy for Gazans enduring death and destruction, from the three Maryland teachers to educators in New York City who have been doxxed for participating in demonstrations against the genocide, risk their careers. University student groups opposing Israels genocide have also been suspended or banned across the country, including in Democratic Party strongholds, such as New York and New Jersey. This anti-democratic campaign, supported by both the Democrats and Republicans, to silence opposition to American imperialism poses the question of an independent socialist movement of the working class against genocide and war. It is only such a movement that can protect and defend the fundamental democratic rights of the population, including the right to free speech. At public meetings over the past week in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Newcastle, the Socialist Equality Party (SEP) launched a major campaign for electoral registration. The meetings outlined the need for a socialist and internationalist perspective to fight the Israeli genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. It exposed the bankrupt line of the Greens and pseudo-left groups who seek to subordinate opposition to the mass slaughter to impotent appeals to the Australian government which has supported it. Speakers explained that as part of the fight to build the necessary socialist leadership in the working class, the SEP would be boldly campaigning for electoral registration. By securing 1,500 electoral members, the SEP could again stand in federal elections with its party name appearing on the ballot. In launching the campaign, SEP assistant national secretary Max Boddy explained that when they came together to triple the membership requirement for registration in 2021, Labor and the Liberal-National Coalition were seeking to block workers from accessing a genuine alternative to the increasingly despised two-party system. The SEP urges readers to sign up as electoral members, using the form below. The competition among media outlets and politicians to determine who is the most aggressive warmonger continues to reach new heights every day. In an angry commentary in the Monday edition of the FAZ, foreign policy experts Anton Hofreiter (Greens) and Norbert Rottgen (Christian Democrats, CDU) called for a massive escalation of the NATO war against Russia in Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits a production line at the future site of an arms factory where weapons maker Rheinmetall plans to produce artilleries from 2025, in Unterluess, Germany, Monday Feb. 12, 2024. [AP Photo/Fabian Bimmer] Under the headline The Chancellors Catastrophic Defeatism, the two notorious warmongers attack German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (Social Democrats, SPD) because he is willing to be put under pressure by Putin. Coupled with deliveries of too few weapons too late, this is fatal. Scholz had already hesitated on past weapons deliveries and is now repeating this with the Taurus cruise missiles, they declared. Ukraine urgently needs long-range missiles to at least compensate for the acute shortage of ammunition at the front and to destroy Russian ammunition depots in the occupied territories, the commentary declared. Not only the thrustdirect attacks on Russia with German missilesbut also the rhetoric is reminiscent of the war madness in the First and Second World Wars. Its our Europe. We must defend it and, if the US fails, compensate for its aid if necessary, they declared. Hofreiter and Rottgen demanded that not the slightest doubt should arise about the unconditional will that we do not give up Ukraine and thus our values and interests. And they threateningly added: If we do not consistently support Ukraine now, Putin feels encouraged to invade other countries. Only when it becomes clear that this war cannot be won militarily will Russia be ready for negotiations. The ruling circles in the German Empire and the Nazi regime also justified the unleashing of German militarism with the fairy tale of the Russian storming of Europe and the cynical argument that total war was the fastest way to peace. In fact, the propaganda served to justify the pursuit of the predatory interests of German imperialism with increasingly brutal methods of mass murder. The racist war of annihilation of the Wehrmacht against the Soviet Union, which will mark its 83rd anniversary on June 23 and was aimed at conquering the entire European part of the Soviet Union, claimed the lives of at least 27 million Soviet citizens. Today, a full-scale war with the nuclear-armed power Russia would cost many more lives. A nuclear escalation would have the potential not only to destroy all of Europe but to wipe out human civilization as a whole. This does not trouble warmongerers like Hofreiter and Rottgen. Their rant culminates in the statement that one must not be deterred by the danger of a nuclear escalation. Because there will be no such thing, they claim. Nuclear war, Escalation, War Party are merely slogans coined by the Chancellor which signal to Putin only one thing: he can continue to break international law and international treaties and invade countries without serious consequences. A chancellor talking about nuclear war? This is outrageous, the two of them rage. Because, of course, one knows in the Chancellery as well as in Parliament and on the street that Putin has no interest in a nuclear dispute. That he does not hold this card in his hand at all, because he would lose China as his most important ally and the reaction of the US would be enormous. So it is about conventional war, and Putin has already fully escalated it. Hofreiter and Rottgen know that they are lying. Just one day before their comment in the FAZ, the New York Times published an article titled Bidens Armageddon Moment: When Nuclear Detonation Seemed Possible in Ukraine. The article details extensive discussions that took place at the end of 2022 within the Biden government about the possibility that the Ukraine war would expand into a nuclear conflict with Russia. The articles author, David Sanger, wrote that the CIA told Biden that under a singular scenario in which Ukrainian forces decimated Russian defensive lines and looked as if they might try to retake Crimeaa possibility that seemed imaginable that fallthe likelihood of nuclear use might rise to 50 percent or even higher. Sanger reported that the Biden administration, for its part, was making urgent preparations for a US response to a possible Russian nuclear strike. Sanger also reported on Scholzs role in the nuclear exchange. He was on his way to a planned visit to Beijing, where he should inform Chinese President Xi Jinping about the intelligence information and urge him to make public and private statements to Russia warning that there is no place for the use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict. As the WSWS has noted, an article by Sangera well-known mouthpiece of the US military and intelligence agenciesis less of a news article than a controlled release of information by US intelligence agencies. The aim of the article is to acclimate the public to the possibility of the war becoming nuclear and place the onus on Russia, when it is, in fact, the US and NATO powers that are engaged in a massive escalation of the war, potentially involving the direct deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine. The commentary by Hofreiter and Rottgen serves the same purpose. In order to escalate the war and pursue the interests of German imperialism against Russia by all available means, they deny, against their better knowledge, the danger of a nuclear escalation. To even mention this is considered an expression of weakness. Scholzs rhetoric makes us weaker than we are, they rage. He only gave up his refusal to supply Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine when the US promised to supply Abrams tanks. The message to Putin: Germany cannot do without the US. This is catastrophic defeatism. The fact that Hofreiter and Rottgen and the other leading warmongers in the political establishment and the media are taking shots at Scholz only shows how aggressively the ruling class is behaving again, 78 years after the fall of the Third Reich. Scholz is anything but a peace chancellor who Putin laughs about (Der Spiegel) but the war chancellor who declared the beginning of a new epoch and is systematically advancing the offensive of German militarism. Scholzs current assurances not to supply Taurus missiles and not to send German soldiers to Ukraine follow a well-known procedure. The supply of battle tanks was also prepared long behind the scenes and coordinated with Washington before it was publicly announced. Germany is now the leading supplier of tanks. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) spoke out again as recently as Sunday in favour of supplying Taurus missiles. Previously, the leaked conversation among German military commanders already revealed how concretely Scholzs generals are discussing whether and how the cruise missiles can be delivered to Kiev and fired at Russian targets. As if to underline that he, too, is firmly in the camp of warmongers, Scholz placed himself at the head of the campaign against the Pope on Monday. The latter called for peace negotiations over the weekend and declared that he who has the courage to negotiate under the white flag was strong. As one can imagine, the Chancellor does not agree with the Pope on this issue, Scholz then announced via his spokesman. In other words, the war flag flies over the Chancellery. The United States and South Korea have been holding large-scale annual military exercises this past week known as Freedom Shield. While supposedly directed at the so-called North Korean threat, the drills are part of Washingtons preparations for war with China. South Korea's K1A2 tank fires during the joint military drill between South Korea and the United States at Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, South Korea, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024 [AP Photo/Lee Jin-man] The exercises, which began on March 4 and will end on March 14, involve both live-fire drills as well as computer warfare simulations on land and sea, and in air, cyberspace and space. In addition to the US and South Korea, 11 other countries are participating: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, France, Greece, Italy, New Zealand, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. The Freedom Shield exercises are one of two major annual drills held on the Korean Peninsula, with the other held in August called Ulchi Freedom Shield. The drills typically involve tens of thousands of troops from both countries. While neither Washington nor Seoul announced the exact number of troops participating in the war games, it has been reported that double the figure from last year are taking part with the number of individual drills also rising from 23 to 48. One drill was a heavily publicized elephant walk involving 33 US and South Korean fighter jets last Friday. The exercise involves fully-armed aircraft taxiing in formation down a runway in preparation to take off. It involved F-35A stealth fighters as well as KF-16, F-15KS, and F-4E fighter jets. The growth of the Freedom Shield exercises is bound up with the escalating confrontation with China. This is occurring even as Washington and NATO expand the US-instigated conflict with Russia in Ukraine and continue to back the genocide Israel is carrying out in Gaza that threatens the entire Middle East. Rather than attempting to reduce tensions in the Indo-Pacific, US imperialism is attempting to resolve the ever-growing economic crisis it faces through the only methods at its disposalmilitarism and war. The brief respite in tensions on the Korean Peninsula followed the 2018 summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong UnNorth Korea agreed to suspend nuclear and long-range missile testing in return for a halt to major US-South Korean war games. Washington, however, sabotaged the deal by refusing to negotiate with Pyongyang unless it fully acquiesced to US demands. Trumps vague agreement with Kim was never about reducing the danger of war, but attempting to cajole and bully Pyongyang into distancing itself from China. Failing that, Washington under Biden effectively scuttled the deal and resumed the full-scale massive war games, though the US never completely halted joint military drills. In regards to the current drills, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) announced prior to their start that Freedom Shield would be a realistic exercise to strengthen the allies combined defense capabilities based on scenarios reflecting diverse security threats and lessons learned from recent wars. The last point is particularly significant. Falsely couched as defensive, the US and its allies are drawing lessons from Washingtons past and ongoing wars in preparation for conflict with China. Just as the US and NATO goaded Russia into war over Ukraine, the US and its allies, including South Korea and Japan, are similarly attempting to provoke a war with Beijing, above all over Taiwan. South Koreas JCS also noted: There will be a variety of combined field training exercises in sea-land-air to increase interoperability and enhance the combined operation capabilities of the alliance. The focus on interoperability is not simply a matter of joint operations. In the case if South Korea, the US takes operational control of South Koreas huge military in the event of war. War games provocatively held on Chinas doorstep have been become regular occurrences in the Indo-Pacific. They include the recent Cobra Gold drills in Thailand and Exercise Iron Fist with Japan in the East China Sea that began in February. The Balikatan drills next month with the Philippines are expected to take place near Taiwan, which will only raise tensions with Beijing. In January, the US also held trilateral naval drills with South Korea and Japan that included an American aircraft carrier. This is part of the de facto military alliance between Washington, Seoul and Tokyo, to which the three sides agreed during last Augusts war summit at Camp David in the US. There is no widespread support for war with China or North Korea within South Korea or the US. To dragoon the populations into war both Washington and Seoul falsely claim they represent democracy and rule of law in contrast to Beijings authoritarianism. In South Korea, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration is working to justify the growing war planning as well as its military alliance with Japan which is taking part under the direction of Washington. On March 1, marking the 105th anniversary of the Independence Movement in Korea that fought against Japanese colonial rule, Yoon hailed Seouls military cooperation with Tokyo as a supposed defense of freedom while denouncing North Korea. Yoon declared, Sharing the values of freedom, human rights, and the rule of law, our two countries have become partners in the pursuit of common interests for global peace and prosperity. He continued, The security cooperation between the two countries against North Koreas nuclear and missile threats has been strengthened further. Yoons declarations about supporting freedom are utterly hypocritical. His administration has attacked democratic rights in order to carry out its agenda, even denouncing political opponents as North Korean sympathizers. A study released on March 7 by the Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Institute, a Sweden-based think tank, reported that South Korea has regressed as a democracy, falling from 17th in 2021 to 47th among 179 countries in 2023. It was the only supposed liberal democracy to regress to such a degree. Yoon and the ruling People Power Party have sought to rehabilitate the image of Syngman Rhee, the US puppet and dictator installed in 1948 as the first president of South Korea. He was driven from office in 1960 by mass protests which occurred as a result of Rhees oppressive regime. Yoon declared in his March 1 speech, The government and I are committed to ensuring that the sacrifices and dedication of our patriotic martyrs in securing the independence, founding, and prosperity of our country are properly honored and remembered by our descendants. The South Korean media have interpreted the statement as a defense of Rhee. Yoon is not interested in defending history, but the very opposite; distorting history and praising a figure who not only assisted the US in waging an imperialist war of annihilation against North Korea, but who carried out a terroristic campaign to wipe out political opposition within the South. It underscores the authoritarianism that Yoon is embracing today in the build-up to war with China. On Monday, a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner operated by Chile-based LATAM Airlines dropped suddenly midflight from Sydney, Australia to Auckland, New Zealand, injuring 50 people on board. A LATAM Airlines Boeing 787 approaches for landing in Lisbon at sunrise, Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023. [AP Photo/Armando Franca] The flight, with 263 passengers and nine crew members, dipped dramatically into a nosedive for a couple of seconds and caused unbelted passengers to slam into the ceiling of the cabin. After stabilizing, the flight continued for another hour while the injured were tended to by doctors among the passengers on board. After the Boeing jet touched down in Auckland, the passengers were met by paramedics and more than 10 emergency vehicles. Most of the injured were treated at the scene, while 13 people were taken to a hospital for treatment. One passenger was reported to be in serious condition. Passenger Brian Jokat told the BBC, The plane, unannounced, just dropped. I mean it dropped unlike anything Ive ever experienced on any kind of minor turbulence, and people were thrown out of their seats, hit the top of the roof of the plane, throwing down the aisles. Jokat also told broadcaster RNZ that one passenger two seats away from him was not wearing a seatbelt when the plane dropped. Having dozed off, Jokat said, I thought I was dreaming. I opened my eyes, and he was on the roof of the plane on his back, looking down on me. It was like The Exorcist. The LATAM Flight 800 was scheduled to continue on to Santiago, Chile, with a different plane. The airline released a statement saying, LATAM regrets the inconvenience and injury this situation may have caused its passengers and reiterates its commitment to safety as a priority within the framework of its operational standards. The airline company also referred to the incident as a technical event during the flight which caused a strong movement. The midair nosedive and injury of passengers between Australia and New Zealand is the latest in a series of events on jets designed and manufactured by Boeing. There were four serious air safety incidents on United Airlines flights with Boeing planes last week. These episodes took place two months after the midair door plug blowout on a Boeing 737-MAX plane operated by Alaska Airlines which is likely the result of unsafe maintenance procedures at the passenger jet manufacturers Renton, Washington, production facility. On Monday, the New York Times reported that a six-week audit by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the Renton operation had found dozens of problems in Boeings manufacturing process, as well as that of a key supplier, Spirit AeroSystems. While the FAA had itself reported last week that there were multiple instances in which Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems had failed to comply with quality control requirements, the agency did not provide any specifics. The Times report said that a slide presentation it had obtained offers a more detailed picture of what the audit turned up. The FAA conducted 89 product audits that examined the production process, and it failed 33 of these. There were a total of 97 instances of alleged noncompliance, according to the presentation, the Times report said. Among the product audits were 13 conducted at Spirit AeroSystemsthe company assembles the fuselage of the Boeing 737 MAX planes at its plant in Wichita, Kansasin which it failed seven of these examinations. The Times reported that in one instance, Spirit mechanics used a hotel key card to check a door seal, and another instance where mechanics applied Dawn soap to a door seal as a lubricant in the fit up process. Most of the failures found by the auditors were instances where approved manufacturing process, procedure or instruction were not being followed. Other issues dealt with maintenance of quality control documentation. FAA administrator Mike Whitaker told the news media on Monday, It wasnt just paperwork issues, and sometimes its the order that work is done. Sometimes its tool managementit sounds kind of pedestrian, but its really important in a factory that you have a way of tracking tools effectively so that you have the right tool, and you know you didnt leave it behind. So, its really plant floor hygiene, if you will, and a variety of issues of that nature. The comments from Whitaker, as well as the FAA findings at Boeing and Spirit, are plainly outrageous for their nonchalance and carelessness in the life-and-death matters related to aircraft manufacturing and safety of the traveling public, which depends on airplanes that are free from blowouts, sudden nose dives and crashes that kill everyone on board. Two Boeing 737 MAX jets suddenly went into nose dives and crashed in Indonesia in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019 and killed all 346 passengers and crew members. These tragedies were caused by new automated navigation equipment on the planes that had not been adequately identified and pilots and staff inadequately trained for by Boeing. The matter of safe manufacturing processes was very much on the mind of whistleblower John Barnett, 62, of Louisiana, who worked at Boeing for more than three decades. Beginning in 2017, Barnett began warning aviation authorities that Boeing was engaged in catastrophic safety failings. On Monday, officials in Charleston, South Carolina, said that Barnett was found dead from what appears to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Members of Barnetts family issued a statement saying that he had tried to highlight serious concerns but was met with a culture of concealment that valued profits over safety. Barnett was in Charleston to give deposition testimony in his federal legal action against Boeing with the case scheduled to come before an administrative law judge in June. His lawyers Brian Knowles and Robert Turkiewitz issued a joint statement on Tuesday, saying, He was in very good spirits and really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. We didnt see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it. The lawyers called for a thorough investigation into Barnetts death, stating, We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned. So far, the Charleston police officials are maintaining that there are no indications of foul play in the case. Interviewed by the New York Times in 2017, Barnett said, I havent seen a plane out of Charleston yet that Id put my name on saying its safe and airworthy. He filed a whistleblower complaint with federal regulators about his experiences at Boeings Charleston factory and accused the company of denigrating his character and hampering his career. As we have analyzed previously on the WSWS, the growing crisis at Boeing is the byproduct of the drive for profitability and financial performance on Wall Street over quality of design, manufacturing precision and use of technology to eliminate safety issues in the air. Boeing, in cooperation with government agencies and airline manufacturing workers unions, has sped new planes to market, cut corners to reduce costs and imposed increased exploitation on production workers. The catastrophic failure of Boeings 737-MAX planes that have killed hundreds of people can only be characterized as crimes because these events were entirely preventable. While no one has been held accountable for the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia, Boeing, with a market capitalization value of $117.4 billion as of March 12, has maintained sweetheart arrangements with the investigatory, regulatory and criminal justice systems in the US that have encouraged a continuation of the practices that produce these catastrophes. More fundamentally, the protection of the decision-makers behind the Boeing crashes is itself an expression of the collapse of the supremacy of American industry, which it had possessed in an earlier historical period when it emerged as the most powerful capitalist country in the world. The US ruling class is increasingly embracing criminality in all of its affairs, whether it be on Wall Street, on the factory floor or in the White House. BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called for efforts to deepen the integration of scientific and technological innovation with industrial innovation, and accelerate the cultivation of new driving forces and new advantages of high-quality development. Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during an inspection tour in Beijing on Wednesday. Speak out against the jobs bloodbath at UPS! Send your statement by filling out the form below. All submissions will remain anonymous. UPS hub in Manhattan A worker at UPSs 43rd Street hub in New York City spoke to the World Socialist Web Site about the mass layoffs at the logistics firm. Months after the Teamsters union pushed through what they falsely claimed to be one of the richest contracts in company history, UPS has announced plans to lay off more than 12,000 people. At warehouses nationwide, shifts are being cut and entire facilities being replaced by new automated hubs requiring a fraction of the labor. The 43rd Street hub operates 24 hour hours a day on four shifts. Evan, whose name has been changed for the purpose of anonymity, has worked at UPS for three years as a part-time worker. The interview has been edited for clarity and length. Evan was laid off from the Midnight shift and transferred to the Pre-load morning shift, which starts at 4AM and goes to 8 or 9AM. WSWS: How many workers were affected by the layoffs in your building? Evan: My understanding is the whole building laid off about 78 people. It was the whole midnight shift40 [part-time] workersbut also Twilight and Pre-load got hit with layoffs as well, so 78 total. A lot of people are mad about it. The first wave started right after the new year. That was a big surprise. A supervisor told us, Listen, they're gonna start laying off people. The reason given was that volume is getting short. A second wave of layoffs occurred shortly after and I heard theres another one coming up. Some workers without seniority were laid off completely. Anyone who had less years, they [UPS] didn't really take them. Theyre also bringing 40 full-timers from different [UPS] buildings to over here this week and dividing them up between the shifts. Im very worried. WSWS: You mentioned earlier that many part-time Midnight workers who were laid off also had jobs during the day. What happened to them? Evan: Yes, most people had two jobs so they couldn't continue with the different shifts. So I could say out of the 78, there was like 13 people that actually were able to make it and be called in for a floor spot. They cant fire us, but they told us that if you dont like it, quit. If you quit, they love that because thats basically what they want you to do. They want to force you to quit. And you cant collect unemployment because technically youre not fired. One co-worker, who worked at UPS for one and a half years, got laid off for three months. They moved him to Pre-load and told him to come back in three months and that hes on call for one or two or three days a week. They just want him to quit. WSWS: What has been the response of the union, including Teamsters local 804, to these layoffs? Evan: So far, no one has spoken to me about it. They [the Teamsters] just say at least you got a job. The problem is they just stay quiet. One union guy called me to ask if I got switched to Pre-load and I asked him, Do you know what the hell is going on with the layoffs? And hes like, What UPS is doing right now is wrong, but thats all that the union guy told me. WSWS: So the Teamsters are just accepting it and not putting up a fight. Evan: Yeah, of course. And thats what a lot of people are saying and I believe it. The union guys never came up to us telling us that we were going to get laid off. Theyre not even helping us. Theyre not fighting, theyre doing nothing. WSWS: And these layoffs follow the Teamsters-UPS contract last year, which Sean OBrien hailed as a historic contract. Evan: I bet Sean OBrien was just saying that because he knew what the CEO was planning. He probably got a good cut out of it so he kept his mouth shut. WSWS: Weve been covering the current wave of layoffs this year at UPS and more broadly, along with the rise in automation. What do you make of these developments? Evan: I knew one day automation would come, but I was surprised it came so soon. I saw a YouTube video on the automation [at UPS] and how it works. The second floor is sorting and they have no-oneone or two people. The first floor is to load and unload the truck, but once they find automation to load and unload the truck, thats when we all lose [our jobs]. People say drivers are safe, but no, they got laid off as well. Midnight [shift] used to run about 54 trailers, which would be approximately 70 or 100,000 packages per night. And during this past peak season, from September to January, thats when we noticed it was kind of low, about 25 trucks. That was when they opened the brand new hub [in Bayonne, New Jersey] and started taking our trailers. We noticed we were losing more trailers. We had to start taking other trailers from other shifts so that we had work to do. All that work was going to automation. Everyone at UPS knows its because of that. In New York City, they already closed one building due to low volume. But its not because of the layoffs, but because the volume went to a different location. Like Uline, for example. Uline was the number one truck that would come in that we would have to unload, but theyve announced that were not going to get Uline anymore. It got transferred to New Jersey. Theyre doing it now. And then they started taking more trucks. WSWS: What is it like being a part-time worker at UPS in New York City, one of the most expensive cities on the planet? Evan: Part-timers are entitled to three and a half hours a day, just like full timers are entitled to eight hours a day. But we're having less trucks, like 11 trucks a night, which is not enough for the whole building. So we have to deal with trying to actually work the day and not get sent home early or told not to come in at all. Theyre actually not letting most of us do our three and a half. We have to argue with management to see if we can stay for all of three and a half. But this job doesnt pay for rent, doesnt pay for anything, because you cant live off $310 a week in New York City. Thats just pocket money or paying your cell phone bill or stuff like that. In other words, you need a second job. Im lucky because I live with family members and this part-time job just helps them out. If it was me actually living on my own, that job is not gonna cut enough to even live. Not being able to finish your week with at least a good amount of hours put in, at one point youre just scared. Are you going to be on the street? Are you going to be without a phone? Are you going to be in debt? Thats all the things that goes through peoples head and everybody at UPS is scared of. At this point, we notice drivers being scared. When I saw the drivers being scared that's when I realized that this is actually really big for them to be scared. Another point is that if a UPS building closes down, the full-timers have the privilege to get transferred to another building, but part-timers lose their job permanently. WSWS: Have you tried getting rolled over to full time? I've tried to go full time since the moment I started working. I wanted to build a career. But its BS for part-timers. There's no way you can actually go to full time because you need to make these hours [which workers arent given]. They said there was going to be new full-time positions available with the new contract. Well, I didn't see that. We got paid $21 on Midnight [shift]. Right now on Pre-load were getting $22. The only good thing is that I got a $1 raise more. They say, Oh, you got a raise! But theyll lay you off now Full time was my dream, but ever since a lot of this [automation and layoff] stuff started, they don't even care if you want to go full time. WSWS: These permanent part-time jobs, of course, are not limited to UPS or the logistics industry, but have been implemented by corporations to exploit a cheap and temporary workforce, as well as pit part-time and full-time workers against each other. Another point to emphasize is that the current wave of layoffs across many different industries is taking place in the context of the beginning stages of World War. The US ruling class, both Democrats and Republicans, are waging and funding wars abroad in Ukraine, in Gaza and the Middle East and against China. What do you make of this, where billions of dollars are going towards war while workers in the US are struggling to find a job? Evan: It is affecting us a lot because theyre paying billions in war instead of us. If layoffs are happening all over other companies, like Amazon, who knows, are we going to go through another Great Depression? Theres a lot of people that are actually losing their jobs. Ever since I got laid off, Ive been applying for another job, but they dont want to take anybody. Theres no open available spots. Those laid off where I work, theyre all trying to look for a job as well and that makes it hard for all of us. Too many people are trying to apply at the same time. I think that has to do a lot with the US not helping us either. Instead of paying billions in war. WSWS: The UPS Workers Rank-and-File Committee is fighting to independently organize workers at UPS and throughout the logistics industry to unify and take up a struggle against these layoffs, fighting for what workers actually need, not what the multi-billion dollar companies say they can afford. Anything youd like to add on this point? Evan: I hope this information helps other people see whats happening at UPS and that they join the committee. Those who think we are delaying [the invasion of Rafah] will soon see that there is no place we cannot reach, threatened Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on a visit to army officers in the occupied Gaza City on Wednesday. There is no safe space, not here, not outside Gaza, not across the entire Middle East. Gallants declaration that an invasion of Rafah is imminent confirms Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus bellicose response Sunday, when asked about the refugee city housing over a million Palestinians, We'll go there. We're not going to leave them. You know, I have a red line. You know what the red line is? That October 7 doesn't happen again. Never happens again White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan (left) shakes hands with Yoav Gallant, Israeli Minister of Defense, December 14, 2023. [Photo: Yoav Gallant] We've destroyed three-quarters of Hamas' fighting terrorism battalions. And we're close to finishing the last part in warfare. Speaking by video link to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Tuesday, Netanyahu reiterated, We will finish the job in Rafah. Making clear that no death toll was too high, he declared, Israel will win this war no matter what. To win this war, we must destroy the remaining Hamas battalions in Rafah You cannot say you support Israel's right to exist and to defend itself and then oppose Israel when it exercises that right. He told Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday, in the words of the Times of Israel, An IDF [Israel Defense Forces] operation in Rafah is necessary to achieve Israels war aims against Hamas. Gallant and Netanyahus comments lay bare the reality hidden behind a veil of cautions and warnings from Israels imperialist patrons. United States President Joe Biden told reporters this weekend that Netanyahu must pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost, adding hes hurting Israel more than helping Israel. This sparked the customary speculation in the liberal media about red lines from Washington. But US support for the Israeli war machine was never in doubt. National Security advisor Jake Sullivan stated bluntly on Tuesday, the reports that purport to describe the presidents thinking are uninformed speculation. Bidens only professed concern with smashing into Rafah, Sullivan continued, is that an entirely fictitious credible plan to deal with the population there be drawn up, purely for public consumption. Reports of Bidens comments followed days of media speculation about a Ramadan ceasefire, for which the Israeli negotiators did not even bother to visit Cairo for discussions and which Qatari mediators now admit is not near an agreement. On the ground, combat operations killing and maiming scores of Palestinians continued for the third consecutive day of the Islamic festival. Among them was a strike on a United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) food distribution centre in Rafah, killing one staff member and wounding another 22. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini commented, Todays attack on one of the very few remaining UNRWA distribution centres in the Gaza Strip comes as food supplies are running out, hunger is widespread and, in some areas, turning into famine. Every day, we share the coordinates of all our facilities across the Gaza Strip with parties to the conflict. The Israeli army received the coordinates including of this facility yesterday. Palestinians line up for a free meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, on March 12, 2024. [AP Photo/Fatima Shbair] More than 400 people, many of them children, have now been killed while sheltering in United Nations facilities in Gaza, 157 of which have been hit by Israeli fire. Lazzarini had pointed out earlier in the day that more children were killed in Gaza in the four months to this February (over 12,300) than in all wars around the world combined in the four years 2019-2022. At least 113 of those children have been killed by Israeli security forces and far-right militias in the occupied West Bank, where Israel is again stepping up its assault on the Palestinians. Netanyahu has ordered the prisons to prepare for a new influx of detainees, on top of the 9,000 Palestinians already held. Muthafar Thouqan, coordinator of the committee to support Palestinian prisoners, told Al Jazeera that 12 have died in detention since October 7 due to torture and medical neglect. Raids in the last two days, including on the Jenin and Shuafat refugee camps and the town of al-Jib, have added to the toll of over 427 Palestinians killed in the West Bank since October 7, with homes demolished, roads bulldozed, power lines torn down, water pipes burst and hospitals shot at. The Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented, In 24 hours, the Israeli occupation has killed six Palestinians, including children. These are war crimes and crimes against humanity according to international law. The political and military echelon has enabled soldiers and settlers to shoot at Palestinian citizens who do not endanger them in any way. It is obvious that this escalation is proof that the governing coalition is adding fuel to the fire to expand the cycle of violence. The murdered child, 12-year-old Rami Hamdan al-Halhouli, was shot in the chest by a police officer. The security forces claimed he had launched fireworks directly at them, but footage shows them being fired into the air. The officer has been questioned by the Department of Internal Police Investigations, prompting fascist Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir to declare his solidarity with the murderer: This is exactly how you should act against terroristswith determination and precision. Israeli military activity is also being escalated against Lebanon, where two people were killed and 12 wounded in strikes deep into the countrys territory on Wednesday. Fighter jets also launched missiles against Nabi Shayth and Saraain, 100 kilometres north of the Israel-Lebanon border on Monday, destroying a three-storey building, killing one person and wounding eight others. Lebanons Foreign Ministry has announced its intention to file a complaint with the United Nations Security Council, denouncing increasingly violent attacks on targets within residential areas and warning, What is particularly concerning is that this escalation is occurring in areas far from the southern Lebanese borders, indicating Israels desire to escalate the conflict and drag the entire region into a war. Over 220 Hezbollah fighters and nearly 40 civilians have been killed in Lebanon since the latest fighting began. As for cynical posturing by the imperialist powers over the provision of humanitarian aid, the World Food Programme announced that its delivery of food to Gaza City this Tuesday was the first successful convoy to the north since 20 February, and provided enough for just 25,000 people. With people in northern Gaza on the brink of famine, we need deliveries every day, the organisation commented. Twenty-five aid groups and human rights organisations, including Oxfam and Doctors Without Borders, have criticised the much-feted air and maritime aid routes as a facade: States cannot hide behind airdrops and efforts to open a maritime corridor to create the illusion that they are doing enough to support the needs in Gaza. Their primary responsibility is to prevent atrocity crimes from unfolding and apply effective political pressure to end the relentless bombardment and the restrictions which prevent the safe delivery of humanitarian aid. Gazans, they continue, have the right to more than meagre charity dropped from the sky. One airdrop caused the deaths of five people and injured 10 others last week. Families are starving and do not have the time for offshore and ashore infrastructure to be constructed: saving their lives requires immediately allowing the humanitarian trucks full of food and medicine whose entry in Gaza is currently being withheld. The European Unions foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell has acknowledged, Starvation is being used as a war arm. He explained, When we look for alternative ways of providing support, by sea or by air, we have to remind that we have to do it because the natural way of providing support through roads is being closed, artificially closed. SHIJIAZHUANG, March 13 (Xinhua) -- One person was killed and 22 others were injured following an eatery explosion in north China's Hebei Province on Wednesday, local authorities said. The blast occurred at 7:54 a.m. Wednesday at a fried chicken shop in Yanjiao township in the city of Sanhe, according to the city's emergency management bureau. It is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak, the bureau said. Rescue workers have rushed to the site immediately. BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- China's centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have intensified efforts to assist Xinjiang in expanding employment since 2022, pledging to further support high-quality development in Xinjiang. According to a conference held by the Xinjiang government and China's top state-asset regulator on Monday, the central enterprises' work in assisting the development of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has achieved remarkable results in the past two years. A total of 227 projects, backed by 41 central SOEs, have been slated for investment totaling approximately 1.1 trillion yuan (about 155 billion U.S. dollars). The investments span various sectors, including petroleum, natural gas, coal, new energy, transportation, environmental protection, communications, healthcare and infrastructure construction. Over the past two years, these endeavors have cumulatively created jobs for approximately 251,000 people, said Chen Weijun, vice chairman of the regional government of Xinjiang. Combining their own advantages with the reality of Xinjiang, the central enterprises attending the conference have devised plans to support industries in Xinjiang between 2024 and 2026. Over a three-year span, they intend to invest in 133 projects totaling nearly 695 billion yuan, with plans to hire 33,000 new employees. Zhang Yuzhuo, chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, stated that in order to support the development of Xinjiang, central SOEs would further optimize industrial cooperation, boost investment in emerging technologies, sectors and markets, cultivate new quality productive forces, and continuously expand employment capacity through industrial development. Dubai International Wood and Wood Machinery Exhibition (Dubai WoodShow) being held from March 5-7, has brought together 682 local and international exhibitors from 52 countries to exchange experiences, showcase industry trends and present investment opportunities in the wood sector, a report said. Mohammad Ali Rashed Lootah, President and CEO of Dubai Chambers, inaugurated the 20th edition of the Dubai WoodShow features top-tier exhibitors, including Homag, SIMCO, Germantech, Al Sawary, BIESSE, IMAC, Salvador Machines, and Cefla, Emirates News Agency, WAM, said. These industry giants are showcasing state-of-the-art products such as CNC machining centres, drilling and fitting insertion machines, panel dividing saws, multi rip saws, and edgebanders. Dawood Al Shezawi, President of Dubai WoodShow, said: "Dubai WoodShow is the leading platform for wood and wood machinery in the Middle East region, which has succeeded over twenty years in bringing together exhibitors, specialists, experts, and professionals in the sector to explore the latest technological developments and wooden products globally. The exhibition sees extensive international participation from all over the world, represented by 682 exhibitors alongside 10 international pavilions. This contributes to enhancing the UAE's and Dubai's status as a global hub for business growth and development, and a preferred destination for international events and exhibitions." The event features dialogue sessions, workshops, and presentations, including a session titled, Sawmilling and the Timber Market in Scandinavia. The session on "Outlook of the GCC & Levant Timber Market" saw impactful insights from Fares Fares, President at Al Massa and Yahia Saidi, General Manager at Al Essami. Sawmilling and the Timber Market in South Africa and New Zealand addressed the latest developments and opportunities in those regions. Finally, Amir Rashad, the CEO and founder of Timber Exchange, spoke on, How to Track Global Timber Market and Avoid Overpaying. Additionally, winners of the Dubai WoodShow Awards were honoured in six distinct categories: Innovative Wood Product Award, Innovative Woodworking Technology Award, CSR Commitment Award, Business Leader of the Year Award, Businesswomen of the Year Award, and Best Stand of the Year Award. CANBERRA, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Rising global temperatures pose a significant threat to healthcare, security, infrastructure and finance, an Australian government report has warned. The federal government on Tuesday published its first National Climate Risk Assessment, identifying 56 nationally significant climate risks facing Australia including 11 priority risk areas ranging from water resources to economic resilience. It predicts that climate change could undermine Australia's economy, trade, and financial systems, stretch the resources of defense forces and emergency services and that hospitals and health professionals will be confronted by new communicable diseases. Under a plausible worst-case scenario, the report said, insurers and banks could withdraw services from communities vulnerable to extreme weather events, causing a cascading effect on infrastructure and the built environment. Releasing the report, Assistant Climate Change and Energy Minister Jenny McAllister said the government would undertake a more detailed analysis of the 11 priority risks that will be released by the end of 2024. The 11 priority areas identified by the report were water security, the natural environment, primary industries and food, health and social support, regional and remote communities, defense and national security, infrastructure, supply chains, communities and settlement, governance, and economy, trade and finance. "Australians know that the climate has changed. They feel it on hotter days and experience it in extreme weather events which occur more frequently. This work will help us better prepare for the small and big challenges that climate change brings," McAllister said in a statement. "We will continue to do everything we can to reduce our emissions and limit the impact of climate change. However we must also take steps to protect Australia's economy, society and natural environment from the changes scientists tell are already locked in." The government in June 2023 announced a combined 400 million Australian dollars (264.2 million U.S. dollars) in funding for 187 projects to boost Australia's preparedness for future natural disasters. VIENTIANE, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The Lao government and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) have convened here to assess progress and align future strategies to address emerging challenges for children in Laos. The meeting highlighted the progress made in crucial areas affecting children's welfare, including health, nutrition, education, and protection, underscoring the success of collaborative efforts between the Lao government and UNICEF, according to a Lao News Agency report on Wednesday. Speaking at the meeting on Tuesday, Lao Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Phonevanh Outhavong said, "Our focus remains steadfast on creating resilient frameworks that safeguard the well-being of our children and boost the country's human capital." The meeting set the stage for an in-depth discussion on strategic shifts required to adapt to the multifaceted challenges facing children in the Southeast Asian country, particularly in the areas of nutrition, environment and climate change, learning, gender, among others. It provided a platform for stakeholders to contribute insights and recommendations, ensuring that the revised country program remains aligned with national priorities and the overarching goal of sustainable development. Also speaking at the gathering, UNICEF Representative to Laos Pia Rebello Britto reiterated UNICEF's dedication to supporting Laos' journey towards inclusive growth and development. The Lao government and UNICEF reaffirmed their commitment to a brighter future for every child in Laos, navigating through challenges and towards opportunities with renewed vigor and collaborative spirit, according to the report. An Iranian court has cleared two-time Oscar-winning filmmaker Asghar Farhadi of plagiarism charges lodged against him regarding his 2021 film A Hero, which won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival that year. The legal case had been ongoing for two years. One of Farhadis former students, Azadeh Masihzadeh, claimed that the director based his film off a documentary shed made in one of his Tehran-based filmmaking workshops in 2014. Both her documentary and Farhadis narrative feature were inspired by a real-life incident in 2011 in which a man in Iran on furlough from a debtors prison found a bag of gold coins and returned them to their owner rather than keeping them for himself. More from IndieWire Three professors who are intellectual property rights experts at the University of Tehran apparently gave testimony devastating to the plaintiffs case, arguing that current events such as the 2011 incident are public property and fair game for multiple interpretations: Just because Masihzadeh made her documentary first, and that Farhadi was aware of it, did not mean she had a unique claim to the material. As for whether A Hero bore similarity to the particular form of the documentary, the court also watched several versions of Masihzadehs documentary and dozens of hours of footage of Farhadi leading his workshop. The ruling comes as Farhadi isnt even in Iran, having left the country to work on a current project in Los Angeles. The cases procession through the Iranian courts was difficult for many Western journalists to follow given the unique peculiarities of the Iranian judicial system: The nation is a theocracy and even its courts are overseen by religious officials. That resulted in some confusing pivots over the past two years, including an initial ruling against Farhadi that brought the case to a formal trial that suggested he was already receiving a form of sentence. Lurid allegations followed that Masihzadeh would receive lashes as punishment if Farhadi was in fact cleared. (That is untrue, as Farhadi has not countersued for defamation, and such a penalty is almost always avoided by paying a fine.) Iranian journalist Mansour Jahani tells IndieWire that, after the ruling, Farhadi indeed has not countersued Masihzadeh. The journalist added, Mr. Farhadi is a popular director in Iran and I dont think he will complain about his former student. That said, the legal proceedings here might not be entirely resolved if Masihzadeh lodges a formal objection to the courts ruling, the equivalent of an appeal in the U.S. IndieWires Anne Thompson covered a press conference Farhadi attended in the middle of the case back in May 2022 when he was serving on the jury of the Cannes Film Festival (the years previous winners are often brought back to judge the next years crop of films). Incorrect information has been corrected, Farhadi said during the conference. What is in the film A Hero is different. You have to see why certain journalists spread misinformation. What I did in A Hero is not related to that workshop; it is based on a current event two years prior. A Hero is one interpretation of the event. The documentary is another approach, they are not the same at all. Best of IndieWire Sign up for Indiewire's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The performer, born Lichelle Marie Laws, was known as a hip-hop pioneer in the '90s West Coast music scene Raymond Boyd/Getty Bo$$ at WJPC-FM in Lansing, Illinois in April 1993 Rapper Lichelle Marie Laws, known professionally as Bo$$, has died. She was 54. The legendary rapper was a trailblazer in 90s rap, best known for her cult-loved album Born Gangstaz, and among the first female artists ever signed to Def Jam. The record label confirmed her death on Wednesday. In a statement posted to Instagram, shared along with a photo of Laws in sunglasses and head-to-toe Carhartt, Def Jam wrote, We are deeply saddened by the passing of Lichelle Marie Laws, also known as Bo$$. The statement continued, Bo$$ will be remembered as a pioneer in hip hop, being one of the first female rappers signed to Def Jam in the early 1990s. We extend our prayers and condolences to her family and loved ones during this difficult time. As reported by The Detroit News, Laws died on Monday due to kidney failure. Raymond Boyd/Getty Bo$$ at WJPC-FM radio in Lansing, Illinois in April 1993 Related: Paying Tribute to the Celebrities Who Have Died in 2024 According to a GoFundMe set up by the hip-hop pioneers family, in 2011 Laws was diagnosed with renal disease, a condition in which the kidneys no longer properly function, per Mayo Clinic. She suffered a stroke in 2017 as well. At the time of her death, she was in need of a procedure that would have made it possible for her to receive a kidney transplant, as stated by her family on GoFundMe. Laws was born in Detroit and, after coming up in the local rap-battle scene, she and her DJ partner Irene Dee Moore relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a career in music. The performers cut her teeth in the L.A. scene for some time, and Law was eventually discovered by famed West Coast rapper DJ Quik, who she collaborated with on a track that caught the attention of Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons. Al Pereira/Getty Bo$$ in New York City in October 1992 The hip-hop artist subsequently secured a record deal on the West Coast division of Def Jam making her the first woman to do so and received acclaim with the release of her 1993 debut Born Gangstaz. The album, which featured a long list of major producers like Jam Master Jay, Def Jef, and others, went on to reach the No. 3 spot on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The track Deeper also peaked at No. 1 on the Hot Rap Tracks. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Bo$ was lauded for the hardcore gangster style of her music, which often incorporated irony. According to a 2004 interview with The Detroit Metro Times, despite the albums first bout of rave reviews, her satire was lost on some critics who called into question her gangster status. Al Pereira/Getty Bo$$ performing in New York City in November 1992 Related: Jam Master Jays Family Says Justice Has Been Served After 2 Men Found Guilty of Run-DMC Members 2002 Murder She told the outlet, Critics started f---ing with me, sayin Shes from a middle-class neighborhood, how can she be gangsta? Ya know I killed a million n----s on that record. They werent getting it. Theres gangsters all over the place ones that went to Harvard in the business world. The musician's sophomore album was set to be released on Def Jam, per Detroit Metro Times, but they rejected her demos and she was dropped by the label ultimately, never releasing a follow-up. The Recipe of a Hoe rapper eventually relocated to Texas where she worked as a radio DJ, releasing some music on the side and focusing on her health following a 1999 kidney failure. Law previously told The Detroit Metro Times that she had aspirations to release another full-length project. She said, When my record comes out Im gonna pack up my kidney pills the 45 I have to take every day and go wherever." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. "The worst part was I found out on Instagram I didn't get it," the cookbook author noted Courtesy of Pat Safford Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Bobby Berk, Tan France and Stuart O'Keeffe Stuart O'Keeffe was nearly a member of Queer Eye's Fab Five. On Wednesday's episode of his Hurrdat Media podcast Don't Let It Stu, the chef and cookbook author revealed for the first time that he was initially cast on Netflix's reboot of the Bravo series before he was unexpectedly replaced by Antoni Porowski. "I actually got chosen," said O'Keeffe, 42, of the series produced by Scout Productions. "Like, I was one of the Five." "The worst part was I found out on Instagram I didn't get it," he added, describing a video that showed Porowski learning he'd been cast. "I was like, 'Fine, I'll just cry for the next year.' " Related: How Stuart O'Keeffe and Amy Phillips' 'Housewives' Parody Cookbook Celebrates the Bravo Franchise The Irish-born culinary star also shared a photo of himself posing with Queer Eye stars Jonathan Van Ness, Karamo Brown, Bobby Berk and Tan France. The picture was snapped after producers told them they had made the show, O'Keeffe claimed. "They came in. 'You're the Fab Five," O'Keeffe recalled, explaining that there were two groups of guys, the other that contained Porowski. "I was like, 'Holy s---.' We all went outside the room like, screaming, jumping up and down. I was like, 'Hey, let's get a photograph. This is such a great moment for us all.'" But the moment didn't last long for O'Keeffe. Though he clicked with Brown, 43, and Berk, 42 and was told filming was beginning in a month he started to suspect something was afoot when he learned that the other guys all had their contracts. "[I was] like, 'Hey, what's going on?' " he said. "And they're like, 'Oh, we're working on it. We're working on it.' I'm like, 'Okay, that's fine. Like, whatever.' " Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Stuart O'Keeffe on 'Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen' Related: Karamo Brown Says He, Bobby Berk and Jonathan Van Ness Weren't Invited to Antoni Porowski's Bachelor Party Then, during a scheduled group dinner, France didn't show up. "The other four do, and I'm like, 'What? Why is he not coming to dinner?'" O'Keeffe remembered. "So I'm like, 'Something's up. Somebody knows something. He was kind of being a bit of a d---. And I was just like, 'Oh, this is weird.' So four of us went for dinner in Silver Lake, talking about how excited we were." After that, O'Keeffe claimed he got a call that he had to go in for another audition and meet with the heads of Netflix. "Two days later, I get pulled out," said 'O'Keeffe. "And Antoni gets pulled in." A representative for Netflix did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment. Related: Jeremiah Brent Is Officially Joining the Cast of Queer Eye Following Bobby Berk's Exit Rob Kim/Getty 'Queer Eye' stars Jonathan Van Ness, Bobby Berk, Antoni Porowski, Tan France and Karamo Brown in 2018 As for why he thinks it didn't work out, O'Keeffe said he could only speculate, but alleged that he'd been told that while he had worked with the producers before and was told they'd wanted him on the show, Netflix felt otherwise. "My agent called me and he was like, 'Look, I know this sounds totally kind of s------ but they said you have done too much stuff,' " O'Keeffe shared. "Like, I was on the Today show, I was on Rachel Ray, 'cause I had a cookbook out and I had done multiple shows before, whereas the other four hadn't, so they kind of wanted everyone on the same level." "That's kind of a lame excuse by fine, I guess I'll take it," he said. Another theory floated by O'Keeffe was that Ted Allen, one of the original Queer Eye stars, insisted that producers cast Porowski, who was working as an assistant for him at the time. "We'll never know," said O'Keeffe. Paul Archuleta/Getty Stuart O'Keeffe in 2021 Ultimately, O'Keeffe who has appeared on Food Network's Chopped and Private Chefs of Beverly Hills noted that he's fine with the outcome. "It was such a missed opportunity for me, but you know what, everything works out," he said. And he insisted he has no ill will towards Porowski, even if he baulked at the fact that Porowski didn't have a culinary education. "I didn't cross paths with him," O'Keeffe said. "He was there obviously. Nice guy, all good." O'Keeffe's news comes amid reports of tensions on the set of Queer Eye among the Fab Five, that allegedly led to the departure of Berk. (Berk has since been replaced by HGTV's Jeremiah Brent, who will make his debut in the upcoming season 9.) Related: Jonathan Van Ness Accused of Having 'Rage Issues' on Queer Eye Set: Report Dia Dipasupil/Getty; Rodin Eckenroth/WireImage Jeremiah Brent; Bobby Berk Related: Tan France Denies He Tried to Replace Bobby Berk with Jeremiah Brent on Queer Eye Earlier this month, Rolling Stone published a report in which seven production sources alleged that Van Ness, 36, was difficult to work with. Van Ness has not commented on the allegations, and did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment Additionally, the piece included claims that France campaigned to replace Berk with Brent something he was able to do with alleged support from castmate and friend Porowski. But France, 40, has denied that. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. O'Keeffe, for his part, said he hadn't spoken with Berk about any of this, and only speculated on his experiences with Van Ness ("He knew he was a star," said O'Keeffe) and France, who he described as a loner. Don't Let It Stu is available wherever podcasts can be found. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. VIENTIANE, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The Vientiane Furniture Fair 2024 will be held from March 23 to 31, which will showcase the growing quality of furniture made in Laos, both for domestic supply and export. The fair will be held in Lao capital Vientiane, with 80 percent of booths already booked by furniture association members, Lao National Radio reported on Wednesday. The fair is also an opportunity to encourage people to take up jobs in the industry and develop new skills, especially in woodworking, with ornately carved wooden furniture made from home-grown timber being popular among many buyers. The Lao Furniture Association, which is organizing the fair, expects that about 100,000 people will visit the fair during the nine days. For more than a decade, various posts on Reddit and across social media have claimed that in the early 1990s, the then-heir apparent for the leadership of North Korea, Kim Jong Il, used fake passports to take his young son, future Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, to visit Disneyland: (@historyinmemes/X) Another post on X (formerly Twitter), by the account @VisionaryVoid, stated the same claim this way: The story goes that Kim Jong-Il and Kim Jong-Un, in an attempt to keep their identities concealed, acquired counterfeit Brazilian passports to gain access to international destinations, including the famous Disneyland theme park in the United States. This purported escapade was seen as an unusual and somewhat ironic move for the leaders of a secretive and isolated regime like North Korea. Due to the various confirmed reports about members of the Kim ruling family using fraudulent passports to travel internationally, and with some, but not all, family members reportedly having visited Tokyo Disney Resort (but not Disneyland in the U.S.), this story could do with separating fact from falsehood. Articles on the Tokyo Disney story published by U.K. news outlets Express and Telegraph, and by Al Jazeera, cite Japanese news outlets NHK and the widely read newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun. In 2011, Yomiuri Shimbun reported that on May 12, 1991, Kim Jong Un and another boy thought to be his older brother Kim Jong-Chul entered Japan using fake Brazilian passports. They were reported to have stayed in the country for more than a week, visiting Tokyo Disney on multiple occasions during that trip. According to Express: The future leader was eight years old when he made the trip from the rogue state to Tokyo's Walt Disney inspired resort, according to Japanese broadcaster NHK. They alleged that a number of covert tricks, illegal actions and steps were taken to ensure Kim's safety. Reports stated that Kim Jong-un and another boy, believed to be his older brother, Kim Jong-Chul, visited the attraction "a number of times" in 1991. The siblings were said to have entered Japan on May 12, 1991, using Brazilian passports and left more than a week later, according to newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun. The reports said that although NHK claimed the two boys were accompanied by up to 10 adult officials from North Korea, there was no evidence that the boys' father Kim Jong Il who ascended to North Korean leadership in 1994 and died in 2011 at age 70 was among those adults, nor is there any evidence to suggest the family visited any Disney theme park located in the U.S. or any other Disney location throughout the world, aside from the Tokyo Disney theme park. Separately, Reuters reported that in the late 1990s, Kim Jong Il and then-teenaged Kim Jong Un used fraudulent Brazilian passports. Both passports carried the stamp "Embassy of Brazil in Prague," and were issued Feb. 26, 1996. The subjects in the photographs used for the faked documents were confirmed as Kim Jong Un and his father, of whose birthplaces were listed as Sao Paulo, Brazil. Per Reuters: "They used these Brazilian passports, which clearly show the photographs of Kim Jong Un and Kim Jong Il, to attempt to obtain visas from foreign embassies," one senior Western security source said on condition of anonymity. Kim Jong Un's older half-brother, Kim Jong-Nam, entered Japan illegally in 2001 along with his wife, then-4-year-old son, and another woman who was believed to be either a relative or nanny, according to The Guardian and multiple outlets. They were headed to Tokyo Disney, with Jong-Nam traveling on a fake passport from the Dominican Republic. The family was detained by immigration officials at Tokyo's Narita International Airport for attempting to enter the country on false documents before being deported to Beijing. Kim Jong-Nam reportedly never made it to Tokyo Disney on that trip. An article published by The Japan Times on May 4, 2001, said: A man detained by immigration officials at Narita airport on suspicion of trying to enter Japan illegally has admitted he is the oldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, Japanese public security officials said Thursday. The officials quoted the man, who confirmed that he is Kim Jong Nam, as saying he wanted to visit Tokyo Disneyland. ... South Korean sources in Japan said it was "highly likely" that the detained man was Kim, adding that Kim has entered Japan before on a fake passport. As the eldest son of Supreme Leader Kim Jong Il, Jong-Nam was considered the heir apparent before reportedly being exiled to China due to the incident at Narita Airport, which is said to have embarrassed his father, thus leading to Jong-Nam's swift replacement by his younger sibling Jong Un in the line of succession. On Feb. 13, 2017, Jong-Nam was assassinated at Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur International Airport at the behest of his younger brother Jong Un. The Wall Street Journal showed security footage from the airport, in which two females could be seen carrying out the attack on Jong-Nam, after he had his face swiped with a cloth said to be soaked in the deadly nerve agent VX. Sources: Author, No. "Son of North Korean Leader Detained at Narita Airport." The Japan Times, 4 May 2001, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2001/05/04/national/son-of-north-korean-leader-detained-at-narita-airport/. Berlinger, Joshua. "VX Nerve Agent Used to Kill Kim Jong Nam, Police Say." CNN, 24 Feb. 2017, https://www.cnn.com/2017/02/23/asia/kim-jong-nam-vx-nerve-agent/index.html. Faulconbridge, Guy. "Exclusive - North Korean Leaders Used Brazilian Passports to Apply for Western Visas: Sources." Reuters, 27 Feb. 2018. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN1GB2AZ/. "Https://Twitter.Com/Historyinmemes/Status/1656426885637632003." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/historyinmemes/status/1656426885637632003. Accessed 7 Mar. 2024. "Https://Twitter.Com/VisionaryVoid/Status/1761445343860809900." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/VisionaryVoid/status/1761445343860809900. Accessed 7 Mar. 2024. "Japan Expels North Korean Leader's Son." Washington Post, 17 Jan. 2024. www.washingtonpost.com, https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/2001/05/04/japan-expels-north-korean-leaders-son/ed6c37be-aa3c-4081-9ebe-663e99632675/. Kim Jong-Un: North Korean Leader's Secret Visit to Disneyland under False Identity Exposed | World | News | Express.Co.Uk. 3 May 2020, https://web.archive.org/web/20200503030350/https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1276988/kim-jon-un-news-dead-secret-visit-disneyland-false-identity-north-korea-asia-undead-spt. "Kim Jong-Un 'Secretly Visited Tokyo Disneyland as a Child.'" The Telegraph, 22 Dec. 2011, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/8972975/Kim-Jong-un-secretly-visited-Tokyo-Disneyland-as-a-child.html. North Korea and the Brazil Passports: Why Were They Used by the Kims? 1 Mar. 2018. www.bbc.com, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-43242596. Park, Ju-Min. "Five Years Ago, North Korean Leader's Brother Pleaded for His Life." Reuters, 15 Feb. 2017. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN15U1OR/. "The Moment Kim Jong Nam Was Attacked: CCTV Footage." WSJ, https://www.wsj.com/video/the-moment-kim-jong-nam-was-attacked-cctv-footage/D4AAC6B7-60BE-4457-8B20-093F3F063197. Accessed 7 Mar. 2024. The Seoul Times. https://theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=3052. Accessed 7 Mar. 2024. Watts, Jonathan, and John Gittings. "Little General Gets Marching Orders on Trip to Disneyland." The Guardian, 5 May 2001. The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/may/05/northkorea. After Tuesday's primary elections, Trump and Biden each received the necessary delegates to become their parties' respective presidential nominees at this summer's conventions Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Donald Trump speaks to New Hampshire voters in January, with opponent-turned-ally Tim Scott joining him on stage Donald Trump has crossed the threshold required to become the presumptive Republican nominee for president in 2024, securing more than half of the total GOP delegates after Tuesday's primary elections. The same goes for Joe Biden, who formally became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee on Tuesday evening thanks to a flood of delegates from Georgia, Washington, Mississippi and Hawaii. Related: President Biden's Energetic State of the Union Brings Him Best Fundraising Hours of 2024 Campaign If all goes as planned, Trump, 77, and Biden, 81, will now be declared the major party nominees at their parties' conventions this summer. The 2024 Republican National Convention will span July 15 to 18 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Democratic National Convention is scheduled for August 19 to 22 in Chicago. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Donald Trump at a New Hampshire event in January. Shortly after, he would nominate his daughter-in-law Lara Trump (behind him, on the left) to help lead the RNC After leaving the White House in January 2021, Trump spent nearly two years teasing that he would seek another term, officially announcing his 2024 campaign at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, in November 2022. "America's comeback starts right now," the former president said before explaining his priorities for the nation. "We are here tonight to declare that it does not have to be this way." Later in his speech, he said, "In order to make America great and glorious again I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States." Related: Trump's 2024 Veepstakes Have Begun: A Look at His Top Choices for Running Mate Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP/Shutterstock Melania and Donald Trump disembark from Air Force One for the final time in West Palm Beach, during Joe Biden's 2021 inauguration Trump left after one term in office in January 2021, becoming the first president in modern history to not personally welcome his successor to the White House by attending the inaugural ceremonies. Instead, he flew to his members-only club in Florida while Joe Biden was sworn in. In the years since, the twice-impeached former president's post-White House prestige has been overshadowed by intensifying investigations on various fronts, as well as lawsuits and judgments against him. So far, four of those investigations have led to indictments covering 91 criminal counts. The first indictment made Trump the only U.S. president to face criminal charges, and the next two further distinguished him as the only president to face federal charges. Related: Every Crime Donald Trump Has Been Charged With Trump faces other legal issues, too. In February, a court ordered him to pay $355 million as a penalty for fraud, plus about $100 million in interest. In a 92-page ruling following a lengthy civil trial, Judge Arthur Engoron barred Trump from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporations or legal entities for three years. It also restricted him and the Trump Organization from applying for loans from New York-chartered financial institutions during the same time frame. The ruling came just three weeks after a New York jury ordered Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages to former Elle columnist E. Jean Carroll for defamatory statements he made about her in 2019. Trump, his family and supporters have repeatedly and insistently denied wrongdoing in the various criminal, congressional and civil inquiries. 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. Trump did not participate in any of the Republican presidential debates in an unprecedented show of confidence, aiming to secure the party's nomination by firing up his existing base on social media and holding his own town halls on networks like Fox News and CNN. For his part, the strategy appears to have worked. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The Endless Night is a drama series streaming on Netflix. Gustavo Lipsztein created it from the 2018 book The Endless Night: The Untold Story of Kiss Nightclub by Daniela Arbex. The plot follows the families of the victims of an enormous tragedy as they fight an uphill battle for justice. Season 1, comprising five episodes, debuted on January 25, 2023. Want to know whether there will be a The Endless Night Season 2? Here is what we have found out on the matter. Heres all we know about The Endless Night Season 2 and whether or not its coming out. Is there a The Endless Night Season 2 release date? There is no The Endless Night Season 2 release date as it was created as a limited series. Netflix designates The Endless Night as a limited series and officially describes it as a fictional miniseries inspired by the true story of the fire at Kiss nightclub. In January 2013, 242 people perished in a fire at the Kiss nightclub in Santa Maria, Brazil. The Netflix series draws inspiration from the harrowing tragedy, though the narrative is considerably fictional. It delves into the circumstances around the tragedy and focuses on the victims loved ones as they pursue justice for a decade. By the end of episode 5, the series concludes the story it set out to tell. The ending doesnt necessarily offer closure to the viewers. It isnt supposed to. Instead, it underscores the frustration and pessimism one experiences while dealing with public institutions. The series follows a talented cast including Bianca Byington as Meire Coutinho Campos (Ana Campos), Paulo Gorgulho as Ricardo Martins, Leonardo Medeiros as Geraldo Alberto Ramos Fontes, Thelmo Fernandes as Pedro Leal, and others. Why The Endless Night Season 2 might not be happening The Endless Night Season 2 probably isnt coming out because, as mentioned above, Lipsztein created the show as a limited series. ComingSoon will provide an update if Netflix ever decides to make more seasons of the show. The official synopsis for The Endless Night reads: When a fire kills 242 people in a nightclub, all that the victims parents can do is mourn and fight for justice. No content yet. Check back later! The post Will There Be a The Endless Night Season 2 Release Date & Is It Coming Out? appeared first on ComingSoon.net - Movie Trailers, TV & Streaming News, and More. Dr. John Sampson is being sued by the family of Erica Russell, his 33-year-old cosmetic surgery patient Google Maps Seduction Cosmetic Center in Florida. A 33-year-old mother of five died after a Miami doctor who was allegedly not allowed to operate on patients performed her surgery at the end of a 14-hour day, according to a complaint filed by the womans familys attorney, Michael Levine. In June 2021, Erica Russell of Tennessee underwent a BBL (Brazilian butt lift) procedure at Seduction Cosmetic Center's facility in Coral Gables, Fla., per the Miami-Dade County court documents acquired by PEOPLE. Russell was operated on by Dr. John Sampson, who was allegedly not permitted to perform surgeries at the center. Sampson has five counts against him one count of each of the following: the negligence of defendant Sampson, the negligence of defendant seduction, vicarious liability (actual agency) of defendant seduction, vicarious liability (apparent agency) of defendant seduction, and vicarious liability (employment) of defendant seduction. During the surgery, "Sampson failed to maintain appropriate control of his cannula and/or failed to maintain knowledge of the location of the cannula tip within Erica Russells anatomy, resulting in repeated perforations of the abdominal wall and punctures of the liver, bladder, and/or intestines," per the court documents. The documents further stated that the cause of Erica Russells death was determined to be pulmonary fat emboli and hemoperitoneum due to liposuction and bilateral gluteal augmentation surgery. A Brazilian butt lift is when fat is transferred from the patient's belly, hips, lower back, or thighs to the buttocks, explains WebMD. Sampson allegedly began his workday at 6:30 a.m. the day of Russells surgery and performed procedures on six patients before he got to her at 8:30 p.m. that night, according to the court documents. Russells procedure began 14 hours into Sampson's work day. Russell then coded two hours later at 10:50 p.m. and died that night allegedly 16 hours into Sampsons work day. Getty Stock image of surgeon with nurse and and assistant during operation in operating room. Related: Woman Suffered Brain Damage During Dental Surgery After Dentist with 'Cognitive Issues' Gave Her Fentanyl: Suit Additionally, Sampson was previously restricted from performing surgeries at the Seduction Cosmetic Center Corp, per the complaint. Russell was informed that Sampson had privileges at a local Coral Gables hospital, and it turns out he didn't, Levine claimed. The court documents state that Sampson was not approved to perform surgical procedures. Seduction Cosmetic Center also reported to the Florida Department of Health that Sampson was a designated physician, and he was not performing surgery anymore, but Sampson was allegedly still performing surgeries on patients. Getty Stock image of surgeons performing open heart surgery in modern operation room Related: California Hospital Facing Federal Civil Rights Investigation for Treatment of Black Women in Childbirth Levine shares how the familys purpose of bringing the suit is to hold these people accountable for what they did. Now this young woman, 33 years old, she's dead. And her five kids are going to grow up without their mother, says Levine. And it's just a really, really sad story. 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. Seduction Cosmetic Center did not respond to PEOPLEs request for more information. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The Benjamin Franklin we meet in Apple TV+s limited series Franklin may be in his golden years, but he still has a few tricks up his sleeve. Oscar winner Michael Douglas stars as the famed Founding Father in the eight-episode series, debuting Friday, April 12 on the streamer with the first three episodes. Apple TV+ has released a new trailer, which you can watch above, with a 70-year-old Benjamin Franklin heading to France in 1776 with his teen grandson Temple (The Undoings Noah Jupe) on a diplomatic mission to secure Frances support for Americas fight for independence in the Revolutionary War. More from TVLine Without your aid, Franklin warns a French envoy, the United States will end before it has begun. He aims to charm the French over to the American side: Diplomacy must never be a siege, but a seduction. (In related news, we see Franklin eagerly hop into bed with a French maiden.) He does face stiff resistance, but he declares, If the price is our lives, well pay it. And when hes warned that hes playing a dangerous game, he smiles: Thats just the kind of game I like. In December 1776, Benjamin Franklin is world famous for his electrical experiments, according to the official synopsis. But his passion and power are put to the test when he embarks on a secret mission to France with the fate of American independence hanging in the balance. Press PLAY above for a sneak peek at Franklin, and then tell us in the comments, history buffs: Will you be watching? Get more from TVLine.com : Follow us on Twitter , Facebook , Newsletter French President Emmanuel Macron married his former high school teacher, Brigitte Macron, in 2007 Chesnot/Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron attend a dinner with Heads of State at the Orsay museum on November 10, 2018 in Paris, France. French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte have been married for over 15 years, but their relationship dates back even further. Emmanuel, who became president in 2017, and Brigitte first met when the now-president was in high school. In a November 2023 interview with Paris Match translated by The Independent Brigitte shared how she never thought of entertaining a relationship with her student, who was 15 at the time. For me, such a young boy was crippling, she said. The two did not date right away, but kept in touch while Emmanuel was in college and later reunited. Now, their marriage continues to get stronger, Emmanuel told CNN in September 2017. Love is part of my life and my balance, he said. I do believe that you dont build something great and you dont behave properly if youre not balanced and a strong couple. Ive been with my wife for decades now and shes part of me. So who is Emmanuel Macrons wife? Heres everything to know about Brigitte Macron and her relationship with the French president. She was his teacher in high school Chesnot/Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron stand side-by-side prior to a state dinner with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and his his daughter Laura Mattarella at the Elysee Presidential Palace on July 05, 2021. Brigitte and Emmanuel met when he was a student at Le Providence, a Catholic school in northern France. Brigitte worked as a drama teacher and was 39 years old at the time, while Emmanuel was 15. The presidents parents originally thought he was seeing Brigittes daughter, but when they found out he had feelings for the teacher, they sent him to boarding school. "Emmanuel had to leave for Paris," she told Paris Match. "I told myself that he would fall in love with someone his [own] age. It didnt happen." The two kept in touch over the years, but Brigitte was married at the time and had three children who were around Emmanuels age, and she chose to prioritize them. "That lasted 10 years, the time to put them on the rails. You can imagine what they were hearing," she said. "But I didnt want to miss out on my life." She is 25 years his senior Brigitte, who is 25 years older than Emmanuel, was already married for three years before he was born in December 1977. She admitted in an interview with France's RTL radio station that having an age gap in their relationship has been difficult. "We are not a model couple," Brigitte said. "Of course we are not the ideal couple. Being a couple is complicated, it's an everyday struggle (...) When you have a big age difference, it can be even more complicated." She added, however, that she doesn't feel the word "cougar" applies to her, and is offensive. "What is this word, it doesn't describe anything!" she said. "I have always been attracted to men of my age. Except Emmanuel Macron, who was the exception." She is a mother to three children LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP/Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron smile during their visit of the Airbus plant in Hamburg, northern Germany, on October 9, 2023. Brigitte and her first husband Andre-Louis Auziere, a banker, had three children together: Sebastien, Laurence and Tiphaine. She also has seven grandchildren. All of Brigittes children went on to be successful in their own careers, becoming a cardiologist, lawyer and a statistical engineer. When Brigitte started her relationship with Emmanuel, she knew that it would hurt her children, but after putting it off for a decade, she also realized she had to do what would make her happy. I know that I have hurt my children, and that is the thing I reproach myself for the most. But I couldnt not do it, she told Elle in December 2017. There are times in your life when you make critical choices. And for me, this was one of those times. They got married in 2007 Chesnot/Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macon prior to the inauguration of the exhibition "Paris-Athens. Birth of Modern Greece "at the Louvre Museum on September 27, 2021. Emmanuel and Brigitte tied the knot in 2007, a year afer she divorced her ex-husband, who later died in 2019. Before the reception, Brigitte told Paris Match that Emmanuel thanked her children for supporting their relationship. Thanks for accepting us, a not-quite-normal couple, he said. Emmanuel has called her his anchor Jack Hill - WPA Pool / Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron attend a drinks reception for Queen Elizabeth II and G7 leaders at The Eden Project during the G7 Summit on June 11, 2021. The politician has cited his wife as his anchor, helping to keep him honest and focused in his job, without sparing him the truth. For me, its very important for my personal balance to have somebody at home telling you the truth every day, he told CNN. He continued, Access to truth is one of the main challenges. Somebody with her deep convictions and knowing you for what you are and loving you for what you are not for what you represent or your role or your honors That is very important to me. That is my anchor. They have met with President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg/Getty US First Lady Jill Biden, from right, US President Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron, France's president, and wife Brigitte Macron at the White House ahead of a state dinner in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022. As two world leaders, Emmanuel and President Joe Biden have met on numerous occasions. While Joe was meeting with Emmanuel at the French embassy in Rome in October 2021, First Lady Jill Biden went out to dinner with Brigitte where the two enjoyed glasses of white wine. Jill described their meeting after as "two friends together, just like sisters, adding that the dinner was wonderful. In December 2022, the White House hosted the first State dinner of the Biden administration where Brigitte and Emmanuel were special guests. They dont like to spend a night apart Aurelien Meunier/Getty Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron in front of the Eiffel Tower after after giving a speech after beating his far-right rival Marine Le Pen for a second five-year term as president on April 24, 2022. Brigitte confirmed to Elle that she and her husband try to avoid spending nights apart if possible, even with his busy schedule. It comforts me when Emmanuel is by my side, she said. I wouldnt want to speak for him, but Im pretty sure he feels the same way. Were just like any other couple. We agree, we disagree. We argue, we stop arguing. Its very fluid. Brigitte added that while she used to be a big worrier before she married Emmanuel, since they got together they both have ceased worrying as much. A bit like the Platonic idea that you meet your better half and you fit together, she said. Given our age difference, that fit wasnt so obvious for us, but we fit. When I read about us as a couple, I always feel like Im reading someone elses story. Yet its a simple story. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has been cleared of allegations that he plagiarized his Oscar-winning 2021 feature A Hero from a former students work after a Tehran-based panel of experts in copyright law and art found the charges to be baseless, according to multiple media reports. Farhadi, winner of two Academy Awards for foreign language films, was found guilty in 2022 in an Iranian court of plagiarizing the story and faced everything from prison time to fines. The Wednesday ruling was expected put the matter to rest. A Hero centers on a man who finds a bag of gold coins while on a brief leave from debtors prison. He resists the temptation to keep the treasure and tries to find its owner a choice that leads to a cascade of unintended consequences. The fictional film is based on the same true story as All Winners and Losers, a documentary that Azadeh Masihzadeh developed while she was a student of Farhadis. The director maintained that he had been researching the tale independently. Masihzadeh called him out, triggering a defamation lawsuit against which she countersued and won. According to multiple accounts in Iranian media, the panel examined both filmmakers works and several hours of footage from the film workshops she attended before clearing Farhadi, noting that the true story had been widely reported in the news and on social media in Iran. U.S.-based representatives for Farhadi did not have an immediate comment on Wednesday. News of the ruling broke in Iranian outlets and was first reported in the West by The Hollywood Reporter. The post Iran Court Clears A Hero Director Asghar Farhadi of Student Plagiarism Allegations Tied to Oscar-Winning Film appeared first on TheWrap. Iranian authorities have rejected as baseless allegations that director Asghar Farhadi stole the idea for his acclaimed 2021 feature A Hero. A former student of the two-time Oscar winner, director of A Separation and The Salesman, sued Farhadi for allegedly pilfering her premise for A Hero. Farhadi had always denied the allegations. More from The Hollywood Reporter On Wednesday, a group of three professors at Tehran University specializing in copyright law, along with four official art experts, rejected the claims as invalid and baseless, clearing Farhadi of all blame. The student, Azadeh Masihzadeh, claimed Farhadi plagiarized the story for A Hero from a documentary (titled All Winners, All Losers) she made for his class. Both the documentary and Farhadis fiction film share the same basic story of an inmate in debtors prison who, while on leave, finds a bag of gold coins and struggles with the decision to keep the money or return it. Masihzadeh developed the documentary project in a workshop taught by Farhadi. The expert panel examined both A Hero and Masihzadehs All Winners, All Losers and reviewed hours of footage from Farhadis workshop, coming to the conclusion that the events depicted in Masihzadehs documentary were widely reported news in newspapers, social media, and television and therefore fair game for Farhadi to use as the basis for his fictional film. The mere retelling of published news does not confer ownership rights to an individual, the verdict reads. Therefore, the similarities between these two films (documentary and fictional movie) stem from the common source of reality and media coverage, as well as the teachings and style of the workshop teacher (Farhadi). The panel also found that A Hero diverged significantly not only from the documentary, but from the actual events and news reports about the man at the center of both films. Thus establishing that no copyright infringement has occurred. Best of The Hollywood Reporter For the record: 4:12 p.m. March 13, 2024: An earlier version of this report stated that RuPauls Drag Race star Valentina will be part of an event titled Everything Latinidad: Challenging the Myth of the Monolith. Valentina will not be participating in the Festival of Books. The L.A. Times Festival of Books is back for another year of readings, discussions, panels, signings and demonstrations featuring an eclectic lineup of authors including filmmaker Miranda July, actors Kerry Washington and Lauren Graham, drag star RuPaul, reality TV personality Ariana Madix and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Viet Thanh Nguyen. On Wednesday, The Times released a list of more than 550 speakers and authors to be featured at the annual event, scheduled for April 20 and 21 on the USC campus. Other notable authors and personalities appearing over the weekend include Maggie Nelson, Lance Bass, Ed Begley Jr., Maria Bamford, Blippi, Sophia Bush, Tiffany Haddish, Jonathan Lethem, Lois Lowry, Octavia Spencer, George Stephanopoulos, Amber and Russ Tamblyn, Hector Tobar, Henry Winkler, Radhi Devlukia, John Green, Tamron Hall, Hayley Kiyoko and Ed Zwick. Read more: Raja Shehadeh, Yiyun Li and Maria Bamford among L.A. Times Book Prize finalists After a year's hiatus, this year's festival will see the return of the cooking stage and with it an assemblage of well-known chefs, internet personalities and cookbook authors, including Mozza's Nancy Silverton, whose cookbook "The Cookie That Changed My Life" came out late last year, and actor Tiffani Thiessen with her cookbook about upping your leftovers game, "Here We Go Again." Three special ticketed events are on offer. RuPaul will be part of The Times' Ideas Exchange series, and will discuss his new memoir, "The House of Hidden Meanings." James Beard Award-winning chef Jose Andres will also partake in an Ideas Exchange conversation about his new cookbook, "Zaytinya: Delicious Mediterranean Dishes from Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon." Finally, Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor will preview their upcoming book, "Democracy or Else: How to Save America in 10 Easy Steps." Their talk is being presented in partnership with Crooked Media/Pod Save America. Read more: Hollywood Behaving Badly, Chapter 47: Ed Zwick explains why his new book spills so much tea Book to Screen events include the Max feature film "Turtles All the Way Down," which will debut on the streaming service in May. Author John Green , director Hannah Marks and cast members will participate in a panel discussion following the screening. Next, author Karin Slaughter and the showrunners for ABC's "Will Trent" will be on hand for an episode screening of the police procedural. There will also be a screening of Hulu's eight-part drama series "Queenie," based on Candice Carty-Williams' eponymous novel, scheduled to premiere in June. The L.A. Times en Espanol Stage is now the Latinidad Stage, and is being produced by The Times' Espanol and De Los teams. This stage will feature a wide variety of programming including children's readings, conversations about futbol with Angel City FC, a 30th anniversary celebration of the 1993 cult crime classic "Blood In Blood Out" with director Taylor Hackford and conversations with National Book Award winner Justin Torres, bestselling author Alejandra Campoverdi and others. The fest will kick off with the annual L.A. Times Book Prize Awards ceremony on April 19. The event will honor Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jane Smiley with the Robert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement and present Access Books with the Innovators Award. It recognizes outstanding literary achievements in 13 categories, including a new prize for achievement in audiobook production. Get the latest book news, events and more in your inbox every Saturday. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. YouTube Former MSNBC star Mehdi Hasan told Piers Morgan this week that despite concerns about President Joe Bidens cognitive abilities, its actually Morgans old friend Donald Trump who is the most mentally unfit person ever to run for any office in the United States. After Morgan pushed back by citing Trumps favorable poll numbers in comparison to Biden, Hasan argued that the British tabloid host didnt give me any facts about Trump before rattling off an extensive list of the ex-presidents most cringeworthy moments. Appearing Tuesdays on Piers Morgan Uncensored for a wide-ranging interview, the ex-MSNBC host and Morgan engaged in spirited debate over the Israel-Hamas War, Hasans controversial exit from MSNBC, and the upcoming presidential election. Mehdi Hasan Announces Hes Leaving MSNBC During Final Show I was going to ask you if hell win, but I think the more interesting question is should he win, Morgan asked at one point. I mean, is he good for America? If a guy who is literally almost incapable now of speaking a sentence without making a gaffe or staying on his own two feet, should he be the candidate? Would that be such a bad thing for America for the next five years that it should render the Democrats disqualified? Agreeing with Morgan from a different direction, Hasan said that, morally speaking, Biden shouldnt be the Democratic candidate given the situation in Gaza. Many would prefer to see Biden stand aside given how he has written a blank check to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to carry out a plausible genocide, Hasan explained. And yet, the progressive commentator continued, while it would be strategically best if Biden stepped aside, that does not make him the least mentally fit contender in the race. He is going to be the candidate, whether we like it or not, and the reality is the other candidate is Donald J. Trump, your old friend, Hasan stated, tweaking the ex-Celebrity Apprentice castmember over his chummy relationship with the former president. And if were going to talk about mental un-fitness, we cant stop by talking about Biden. We have to talk about the most mentally unfit person ever to run for any office in the United States. And that is Donald J. Trump. Morgan responded by giving some facts about Trump, which largely consisted of numbers about the former presidents growing approval among minority voters, Muslim Americans anger towards Biden over his Israeli policies, and the fact that nearly 75 million Americans voted for Trump in 2020. You said we were going to deal with some facts, but you didnt give me any facts about Trump, Hasan retorted. You gave me some facts about Trump supporters. Do I deny he has support? Of course not. I spent the last eight years documenting the crazy high levels of support for Trump, and in 2020 it was deeply shocking to see people voting for him after everything they had seen over the previous four years. Continuing his rebuttal, the Zeteo founder offered Morgan some actual facts about Trump, laying out a laundry list that showed the twice-impeached ex-president either exhibiting diminished cognitive skills or just flat-out making unhinged remarks. Piers Morgan Accused of Being Phlegm on Royal Doormat on His TV Show Donald Trump recently confused Nancy Pelosi with Nikki Haley. He claimed he ran against Barack Obama in 2016; he ran against Hillary Clinton, Hasan recalled. He thought we were about to enter World War II, weve actually had World War II. If we enter another world war, itll be World War III. He added: He thinks you can stop a hurricane with a nuclear weapon. He thinks you need ID to buy cereal. He thinks he can buy Greenland from Denmark. He thinks England and Great Britain are the same thing. He thinks that stealth bombers are literally invisible. He thinks you can beat COVID by injecting disinfectant into your veins. Hasan concluded by saying it was absurd that Trump would even be elected to a school board, let alone president once again. The idea that this man should be allowed near the White House, again, is madness, he exclaimed. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. URUMQI, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yunfeng, who is in charge of a farmers' cooperative for aquaculture in Dongbag Township in Shache County, located in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was struck by the astonishment on the faces of local villagers upon seeing the Australian freshwater crayfish for the first time. Living in southern Xinjiang with the expansive Gobi Desert for generations, the locals, who have endured poverty, struggled to comprehend how people outside the region considered this "unusual" aquatic product a delicacy. Australian freshwater crayfish, originally from the tropical regions of northern Australia, are often cultivated in the eastern coastal provinces of China. Since 2021, when having completed six months of aquaculture training in Shanghai and east China's Shandong Province, technician Mubarek Abulaiti has been leading a team of over 10 breeders responsible for aquaculture in around a dozen ponds in the farmers' cooperative. Although far from the sea, the unique geographical advantage of being located along the Yarkant River gives Dongbag Township the possibility to develop aquaculture. In addition, the township boasts a wide range of crops such as wheat and beans, and these green agricultural products can become ideal feed for aquatic products, such as crayfish, crabs and fish, after simple processing, Mubarek Abulaiti explained. The arrival of the Australian freshwater crayfish piqued the curiosity of people in Dongbag and its surrounding areas. The production process of the crayfish, including breeding, fishing and packaging, has also become a source of fascination for the villagers. "I winced in pain as the crayfish's pincers caught my fingers. The villagers burst into laughter that seemed to last forever," said Mutellip Tursun, a breeder in the cooperative. Over time, the Australian freshwater crayfish gained increasing acceptance among the locals. "Now, with the penetration of internet and smartphones in the village, everyone knows that the crayfish bred here is an expensive delicacy in big cities," said Mutellip Tursun, adding that the villagers even "brag" to their relatives and friends in other places about the local crayfish. On holidays, the villagers would also put a plate of crayfish next to their local cuisines, such as laghman and roast meat, as a main course for the family dinner. Before this year's Spring Festival holiday, the cooperative secured orders from distributors in several cities, including Xi'an and Lanzhou in northwest China, and even the eastern metropolis of Shanghai. It is currently in talks for collaboration with some large chain supermarkets, according to Wang. "Crayfish have served as a window to the outside for the villagers," said Abulait Memet, head of Dongbag Township, noting that unlike their earlier generations, who primarily lived off a few acres of fields and some cattle, the younger villagers are now focusing on new business models and societal developments. According to Abulait Memet, in recent years, new ventures, such as tropical fruit cultivation, flower and tree cultivation for ceremonies, and ornamental bird breeding, have also emerged in the surrounding townships. "It is almost always youngsters who start these new projects." Upon graduating from college, Atungul Abdukram, Mubarek Abulaiti's friend also in Dongbag, set her sights on the downstream industry of Australian freshwater crayfish, and decided to start a business using the popular e-commerce model. "I plan to sell crayfish bred in my hometown online so I can directly deal with sales enterprises in other cities across China," she said. After the Spring Festival holiday, Dongbag Township launched a series of projects including an "aquatic town" and the construction of scenic spots for fishing and leisure. "Many young villagers are now eager to explore new avenues for employment and business. Perhaps soon, besides crayfish farming, we'll see a variety of novel ventures emerging here," Abulait Memet said. The Academy Award winner stars as founding father Benjamin Franklin in the new limited-series from Apple TV+ America is at a tipping point, and its future lies in Michael Douglas hands in an all-new historical series from Apple TV+. In Franklin, Douglas, 79, brings Benjamin Franklin to life as the founding father journeys to France in 1776 to sway the country into supporting the United States efforts in the American Revolution. The Congress has sent me here as a representative of the United States to elicit France in our war against England, he says as the trailer begins, setting the scene for the eight-episode drama that traces the course of one of the most influential figures in the Revolutionary War. America requires men, money and arms. Without your aid, the United States will end before it has begun. Benjamin brings his grandson, Temple Franklin (Noah Jupe), along for the journey, which ends up spanning eight years. Related: Michael Douglas Quips He's Playing 'Rascal' Benjamin Franklin Because 'I Wanted to See How I Looked in Tights' Grandfather, how long must we stay? Temple asks in the trailer, as Benjamin responds, Until we win France to our side, or we are hanged. Temple questions, Is there a third choice? Per a description from the streamer, the series which is based on Stacy Schiff's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America explores the thrilling story of the greatest gamble of Benjamin Franklins career, as he begins his secret mission in France, with the fate of the burgeoning United States hanging in the balance. Apple TV+ Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin in Apple TV+'s 'Franklin' Ultimately, Franklin succeeds in his mission and convinces the French monarchy to underwrite Americas experiment in democracy, but the journey is not without its challenges. Benjamin deals with spies and traitors Someone is spying on us, Temple warns in the trailer and lives are on the line as he wields his weapons of diplomacy as wisely as he can. As Douglas' Benjamin explains, despite his lack of experience in the delicate art, Diplomacy must never be a siege, but a seduction. The inventor, credited as the father of electricity, is willing to sacrifice himself and his grandson, for that matter in order to secure French support, but hes up against some major resistance. Related: Michael Douglas Transforms into American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin for Apple TV+: First Look France has nothing to gain, joining with America, one Frenchman tells him in the trailer. The British will defeat you. It may cost us. It will cost you more. If the price is our lives, well pay it, Franklin replies. As the challenges stack up and the clock keeps ticking, the 70-year-old inventor says of his efforts: I dont know who I can trust. Im here to help my country, but time is running out. Apple TV+ Noah Jupe and Michael Douglas in Apple TV+'s 'Franklin' The eight-episode series tells the story of Benjamins most vital service to his country. Diplomats and historians still regard it as the greatest single tour of duty by an ambassador in our nations history, as without French aid, America could not have won the Revolution, per a release. As a result of Franklins efforts, he engineered the Franco-American alliance of 1778 and the peace treaty with Great Britain in 1783, securing Americas place as a beacon of democracy in the 18th century. Franklin also stars Daniel Mays Edward Bancroft, Thibault de Montalembert as Comte de Vergennes, Ludivine Sagnier as Madame Brillon, Eddie Marsan as John Adams, Assaad Bouab as Beaumarchais, Jeanne Balibar as Madame Helvetius and Theodore Pellerin as Marquis de Lafayette. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The first three episodes of Franklin premiere on April 12 on Apple TV+, with the remaining episodes airing every Friday through May 17. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A legal showdown has erupted between Michael Kassan and United Talent Agency over the MediaLink founders departure, with Kassan claiming that he resigned after being lied to about his responsibilities and privileges at the firm and the agency saying it fired him for misusing company funds. In an arbitration action initiated by Kassan on March 12 against UTA that names chief executive Jeremy Zimmer, he claims that UTA fraudulently induced him to agree to a sale of MediaLink only to then walk back the very promises made regarding what he would oversee at the agency and allowances for his special expenses budget. He resigned on March 6, preempting the agency terminating him the next day. UTA, in a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday, accuses Kassan of treating company money as a personal slush fund. More from The Hollywood Reporter In a statement, Sanford Michelman, a lawyer for Kassan, denied allegations that his client stole money from the agency. UTAs claims are a desperate attack in response to Kassman resigning and then suing them, he said, adding that its an attempted diversion tactic by UTA to hide that they fraudulently induced Michael into agreeing to a transaction when Zimmer had no intention of honoring his word. Bryan Freedman, a lawyer representing UTA, said in a statement that Kassan was terminated by UTA on March 7 and made aware well before that that UTA had grounds to fire him. His claim against UTA has no merit and is an attempt to divert attention from the misappropriation of company funds that led to his termination, Freedman added. In 2003, Kassan founded the strategic advisory firm MediaLink, which was then acquired by UK-based Ascential in 2016. Five years later, UTA bought the company after an aggressive courting effort. As part of the deal, Kassan remained as chief executive of MediaLink and became a partner at UTA. According to the complaint against Kassan, he almost immediately began to abuse his authority by using company funds to pay for personal expenses. In December 2021, two weeks after UTA closed its purchase of MediaLink, Kassan wrote checks to himself from the companys business checking account for $155,000, which he said was for personal charitable donations, the lawsuit claims. A year later, he allegedly directed MediaLink to divert his special expenses budget to his S-corporation, a pass through entity generally used for tax purposes. He ultimately received over $700,000 before the payments ceased when MediaLinks top finance executive allegedly realized that his contract did not allow lump sum payments, according to the complaint. The lawsuit claims Kassan further breached his contract by using MediaLinks bank account to pay nearly $500,000 of personal credit card debt. UTA argues that Kassan failed to direct clients to deposit funds into a UTA-managed account instead of one previously used by MediaLink, which he still had control over as the sole signatory. When confronted, Kassan allegedly could not justify or provide documentation for his expenses, UTA claims. Other allegedly improper expenditures include giving his wife, who is not affiliated with UTA, a company credit card, spending a small fortune on luxury travel and expensing his personal drivers housing, per the lawsuit. As a result, following an investigation, Kassan was terminated for cause, states the complaint, which notes that his contract was due to expire in 2026. Kassan tells a different story about his departure from UTA. According to him, the agency, in violation of representations made to him, concocted a scheme to silo MediaLink and pressure Kassan into increasing prices, on top of refusing to invest in the advisory firm and slashed its marketing spend. He says he submitted his resignation on March 6, with an effective date of April 5 unless changes were made at the company. In response, Zimmer, sticking with his style of intimidation, tried to reject Kassans resignation and then issued a termination for Cause, states the complaint. Ironically, the invalid termination after Kassan had already resigned was based on Kassans marketing spend and charitable giving which UTA alleged was too high and inappropriate. On allegations that he improperly spent company funds, Kassan claims that he was transparent about his level of spending, the level of which was agreed upon when Kassan agreed to sell MediaLink to UTA. He argues his special expenses budget was used to create new business opportunities for the company. According to the arbitration filing, Ascential provided him with a $1.5 million discretionary fund budget paid upfront each year to MEK, Inc. to net him $950,000 after taxes, which is allegedly still in effect following MediaLinks sale to UTA. As an express condition to Kassans accepting UTAs offer, he stated in writing that his marketing allowance must continue per past practices,' states the filing, which claims that Zimmer conducted a sham audit of his spending as pretext to fire him. When Zimmer started to prioritize cost-cutting, Kassan argues that the firm backtracked on its promises. This allegedly included UTA directing Kassan to drastically discount services to UTA clients at the expense of MediaLink, shuttering its profitable executive search business and promoting certain people in exchange for their complicity in UTAs scheme to induce Kassan to agree to the UTA and Ascential transaction. The lawsuit from UTA details expense allowances for Kassan. Per the agreement, he was given a special budget of up to $950,000 to be used consistent with past [MediaLink] practice. This money was intended to serve for expenses he incurred over and beyond normal business expenditures, such as private jet travel, according to the complaint. UTA argues that he was entitled to these charges only with respect to a budget that meets certain EBITDA goals. UTAs lawsuit against Kassan, who claims he waived his nearly $10 million severance payment by resigning, may be moved into arbitration, per the partner services agreement. Hes expected to move for sanctions over the agency filing its legal action in the improper venue so that it would become public, Michelman says. If the case is allowed to proceed in Los Angeles Superior Court, however, it could possibly unearth whether UTA reneged on promises it made to Kassan when it was pursuing his approval for the merger, which could dampen its acquisition prospects. This embedded content is not available in your region. This embedded content is not available in your region. Best of The Hollywood Reporter Investigators say Reyna Hernandez's death was an act of domestic violence Renton Police Department/Facebook Reyna Hernandez An American woman who had not been seen since Feb. 26 has been found dead. The body of Renton, Wash. resident Reyna Hernandez, 54, was recovered from a cemetery in Mexicali, Mexico. According to Seattles Fox 13, authorities confirmed there were signs of torture, saying Hernandez was bound at the hands and feet, and wrapped in a blanket. She had also been shot in the head. 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. Her death was also confirmed by the Renton Police Department through a statement shared to their Facebook account on Monday. This is the worst possible outcome, and our hearts go out to Reynas family and friends, said Investigations Commander Chandler Swain. We are working closely with Mexicali police and our U.S. Federal partners to determine when and where Reyna was killed. Getty Images crime scene -- stock image Police added, On March 8, detectives were alerted to a news article in Mexicali about an unidentified body found in a local cemetery on the Tijuana Highway. Investigators contacted Mexican authorities and were able to provide enough information to identify Hernandez over the weekend. Per the release, a 61-year-old Renton resident is currently in custody in Mexico, where they were also recovered Hernandezs vehicle. Detectives say this was a domestic violence crime, the department said in their Facebook post. While investigators have confirmed her death to be a homicide, they must still determine if the act took place in the United States or Mexico to see if they will seek to extradite the suspect to face charges in that jurisdiction. Related: South Carolina Man Pleads Guilty, Faces Life in Prison After Wife's Burned Body Discovered in 'Makeshift' Grave In a March 5 report by local news station KIRO 7, Renton Police Department public information officer Meeghan Black told the media that they did suspect she could be in danger. Theyve served many search warrants and uncovered evidence that leads us to believe she was taken against her will. We do expect foul play in this case, Black said. Authorities also did not believe that her car was currently in the area following her disappearance. Renton Police Department, WA/Facebook Reyna Hernandez After Hernandezs body was found, the Renton Police Department said they were also able to recover her vehicle. Hernandez had been reported missing by her friends on Feb. 28 when she failed to return home from running errands and did not open her small business in the Renton Highlands, police said. German Sahagun had known Hernandez for a decade since his familys restaurant was next door to her hair salon. When she first disappeared, he spoke to KOMO News about the last time he had seen her, adding that her behavior seemed a bit off. She was kind of quiet that day, which I thought was kind of odd, he said. Sahagun described Hernandez as a very outspoken, loud, [and] friendly person. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Leonid Volkov, the former chief of staff of late Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, was attacked on Tuesday outside his house in Vilnius, Lithuania. Navalnys former press person and assistant Kira Yarmysh reported the attack on social media. More from Deadline Leonid Volkov has just been attacked near his home. They broke the window in his car and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker began to beat Leonid with a hammer. Now Leonid is at home, the police and an ambulance are on their way to him, she wrote in a post on X. A later post on the Team Navalny X handle showed a photo of Volkov being wheeled out of an ambulance. (https://t.co/qaoYuCGYlg) pic.twitter.com/4d0llz0ozK (@teamnavalny) March 12, 2024 Volkov, 43, served as Navalnys chief of staff for his 2018 presidential election campaign and was also the chairman of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023. He was one of the key interviewees in Daniel Rohers Oscar-winning documentary Navalny with Navalny, his wife Yulia Navalnaya, Bellingcat journalist Christo Grozev and Anti-Corruption Foundation investigator Maria Pevchikh. Volvok has lived in Lithuania since 2020 after groups linked to Navalny were classed as extremist by Russian authorities. The attack on Volkov comes on the eve of Russias upcoming presidential election, running from March 15-17, which President Vladimir Putin is expected to win having neutralized his political opponents. Last month, Volkov urged Russians to turn out in big numbers for an election-day protest against Putin called by Navalny shortly before he died suddenly in an Arctic prison on February 16. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Credit: Ari Marcopoulos* I speak to Brooklyns MIKE while hes lounging in the Netherlands before another show on his ongoing Somebody Fine Me Trouble Tour, on which hell traverse Europe and then the United States through May. He tells me that hes enjoying his time overseas so far. We hit a lot of places I never performed at, he says. Its always cool going to different places and [seeing] what the younger crowd looks like in certain countries. But he tells me it hasnt been completely smooth sailing. He says that tourists have to take their time to find good food overseas, bemoaning a night where niggas was just eating unlimited veggie hot dogs. He notes, Hella shit is banned out here thats not banned in America that be making the food taste good as fuck. More from Rolling Stone We was in the whole Scandinavia, he says. I aint even know that its just a region. That shit was ridiculous [but] cool. They hella strict about weed. Yesterday, we dodged the G Co. Whats a G Co? I ask. The German RICO, he jokes. They were trying to get us out of here, no cap. [But] we back in the weed land, the Netherlands. I first saw MIKE in a pretty cramped space in Bushwick, in 2019. I didnt know much about him at the time, but his hold on the crowd, who danced and rapped almost every word with him, made me realize I needed to quickly get familiar. At that point, he was two years into a prolific career that, at just 25, has him on many peoples short list for the best rapper out there. When I talked to Earl Sweatshirt and the Alchemist last year about VOIR DIRE, where MIKE raps on Sentry, Earl called him incredible and one of my favorite rappers ever. The Alchemist called him one of the great ones. He has a knack for dense lyricism packed with reflections on grief, growth, mental health, and all of the other permutations of being a Black person in a white-supremacist society. He was born in New Jersey, spent time in London, came back to Philadelphia, and then settled back in Brooklyn, where, as the recently released Pinball affirms, he co-founded the sLUms collective and became an Underground King. Hes lived many lives and seems to have a different set of gems from each of them. The drumless soul sample has permeated hip-hop as of late, and MIKE, a rapper and producer, is often regarded as a modern flagbearer of that sound. However, the MIKE experience is broader than the confines of categorization. He expressed throughout our interview that he refuses to be relegated to any scene or subgenre. Enter Pinball, with producer Tony Seltzer, where they build on prior collaborations with an 11-track dose of MIKE getting off myriad flows on smooth trap-driven production. Throughout the project, he trades in muddy soul loops for entrancing synth melodies on 100 Gecs and Reminiscing with Jay Critch, who MIKE lauds as one of his GOATs. He also trades bars with Earl Sweatshirt and Tony Shhnow on On God, a record that came after an Atlanta night where he, Earl, and friends got lit at Hooters and briefly marched in a pro-Palestine demonstration before heading to a packed studio session. Throughout our talk, he seemed easygoing and you could see how hed be willing to let life happen, assured that his powerful pen could shape the experience into something riveting. I talked to MIKE about controlling the narrative as an artist, his Young World festival, and how a wild night out can inspire great music. The interview, lightly edited for clarity, is below. How are you feeling about the reception to Pinball? Its cool. Im not going to lie, I was nervous because I was like, Yo, Ill be listening to this type of music, and I got hella songs that I feel go in this way. But sometimes fans be so hooked onto you being one type of person, or being one type of artist, that at a certain point Im like, Damn, not my fans bullying me into thinking I could only do one style of rapping. But then when it dropped and everybody was so accepting of it, shit had me hella gassed. [It] also opened my eyes to bigger possibilities of how comfortable niggas could be [on] any side of hip-hop. How intentional are you about evading the box that people put a lyricist from New York in? Ive been trying to do it. I always try and put something [on my projects] thats a little bit different from the regular boom-bap or loop type of thing. On Disco!, I had the song At Thirst Sight With Assia. Thats more-dance-y kind of shit. Even now, its me trying to step towards more of a more-turnt instrumental type vibe. But I strategically put it in the music in a way where people are like, Oh, that was exciting for that quick little moment. Ive always been a big fan of different types of music. I have a song on May God Bless Your Hustle from 2017, the outro of Rock Bottom/Peace To Come. The chorus is inspired by a Young Gleesh song from back in the day. When I was working on God Bless Your Hustle, thats the year Tay K had got locked up or it mightve been midway through the race type shit, but niggas used to listen to Tay K The Race so much. The energy of that low-key inspired the album. As an artist, do you think the notion of genre has value in music? I think for artists sometimes it can be annoying and almost restricting because it stops you from wanting to go into other bags. It could be a risky thing. A lot of people are doing this music shit to put money in their pockets. So sometimes you might try something new and fuck your whole shit up [laughs]. Its a crazy thing. But sometimes [parasocial relationships] be happening with the supporters where you feel like, I cant [change the sound they know me for]. But these niggas dont necessarily know you, they know of you. They supporting what you doing, that shit shouldnt pull you away from trying out new things. I think the more niggas loosen away from that shit and treat music as a whole, youll be surprised at what collaborations could come to life through shit like that, or what little discoveries could possibly come to life during that shit. Even working with Tony helped me find out so many different pockets that I was unaware of in my own music [and] in my own production that Im like, All right, cool. Maybe I can incorporate this without steering too far into one place or the other. What are some of the biggest moments on the album that speak to those new pockets? Shit like Underground Kingz, On God, Lethal Weapon, just the bounce of shit. Underground Kingz felt close to home. It showed me how shit could work. Or even on a lot of the songs, I like using Auto-Tune on some of those. And I thought about using Auto-Tune for such a long time. This shit gave me the confidence to try and see Does Auto-Tune only got to exist on this type of beat or can it exist on different types of instruments? How much do you think fan expectation played into you dropping it as a surprise album and not wanting to have a grand buildup to it? I think its like a half-and-half thing. I do come from dropping shit randomly without the full rollout. But then it was also one of those things where Im like, all right. I think people create these funny fantasies about rappers. I didnt want to get caught in other peoples fantasies and [want to] be able to portray what I wanted to portray. Which I thought was cool with Tony, because we worked on the project and usually Im doing my own production for projects, but Tony still allowed me to feel so much a part of the music and the art. Even with Vinny Fanta doing the artwork for the project. We was sitting down with him going through what style made sense. Even that shit felt closer to home for me because artwork is always a big part of the process for me. [Collaborating on the artwork] pushes that energy where its like, All right, now Im not too worried about putting something out there that doesnt reflect also who I am. I think where we got it was like, All right, cool, we control the narrative. I feel like sometimes Id be afraid. And really what it is, white people be fantasizing over how niggas is supposed to be as rappers. And Im like, Bro, you will never know or understand. And not even on no hater shit. At this point, yall can enjoy the music, yall can love this shit, yall can do whatever yall want with the music. But Im like, I cant let yall build my narrative. One of the most helpful things for me in music so far is that weve had so much control of the narrative because we drop shit the way that we want. I think once that screw screwed in my head, then I was like, All right, Pinball is actually fire, because we choosing to do whatever the fuck we want to now. From day one, how much do you feel like fan feedback and expectation played into your creative process, if at all? I think from day one, it was conflict because Im already the type of person in life [who cares] about what people would think way too much. So when it came to my music, my music was my main place where I could choose not to give a fuck, which is why my songs would be a minute long. When niggas is like, All right. Weve got to start doing the three-minute song, Im still like, All right, we about to make the song shorter. I had this laptop that I got [when] I graduated high school in 2016. My sister got me a MacBook Air and Beats headphones. I made May God Bless Your Hustle and every project until Beware of the Monkey on that laptop. Part of me would feel shitty because Id be seeing artists go do the big studio jawn. Im like, Niggas be showing me mad love and Im doing this shit off the laptop I got in high school. So then I finally got a new setup. But its always been a thing where regardless of how big it gets, we treat it like a mom-and-pop shop and work with the techniques that we know how to use. That helps [us] not adhere [to] other fans and the music industrys expectations. I think once we started doing things in our way and its working in our way, then the dependency of other peoples expectations doesnt necessarily have to be that important. Was there a lightbulb moment when you decided to do this album? Or was it moreso you and Tony collaborating and then yall realizing you had something? Me and Tony been cool for a second. We worked in 2017 for May God Bless Your Hustle. And were always around similar scenes. One day [we were like], We should go make another slap. And then we were just in the shit. Tony had put together some beats for me. But it was more like chill shit. This is while Im working on Burning Desire [last year] at the crib. [Id] go to Tonys and work on Pinball. When I got to Tonys, I was like, Im trying to rap over a real Tony Seltzer beat. I aint trying to be on no laid-back shit [laughs]. Then we made the first jawn and then it was like, cool. And then I came back maybe two weeks later, and [it] became a thing where every time I would come, he would be playing me beats the whole day. But as soon as you get on some turnt shit, Im like, Yeah, thats the one, bro. Every time I would go, [I] would make sure I wouldnt leave the studio until we recorded one song. We low-key got double [Pinballs 11 tracks] thats in the vault. For me, it was training camp to work my pen in different areas, which was fun. What did the process of simultaneously doing Burning Desire and Pinball, exploring two different moods, do for you creatively or even personally? I think it helped bring all of it into one. I think Im the person that [strategizes] being a certain way in different places. So this endeavor helped solidify everything into one, which I like. Even when people have heard Burning Desire, theyre like, Oh, its like a different energy of Mike. And then also some of the beats and stuff and some of the shit is like, Oh, these are the ones that niggas could be in their crib and jam to or turn up to. Not put your head down and close your eyes and listen to the music type vibe. How much does this project play into your intentions with your live show? I was talking with another artist recently and they were discussing how they have a sound that people would categorize as boom-bap, but they wanted to do more trap sonics so concertgoers could vibe in different ways and not just nod their head. How does that dynamic reflect for you, if at all? I still havent performed any of the Pinball songs yet. Even though I plan to, I have so much trouble remembering my own lyrics, I be fucked up. But I think the one thing I will say, regardless of how the beat is, if you know how to make people feel something, youre doing a great job at performing. I think some of my favorite performers, they dont necessarily need a trap beat. All we need to see is you shedding your heart onstage. And that would be enough to jump up and down even to a soul sample. I think thats one technique that I always took with me. Even sometimes I play I have African Sex Freak Fantasy thats kind of a turnt song on Burning Desire Ill play that song. And Ill do that in maybe the middle of the set when Im already burnt-out. And I guess people could feel the burnt-outness from me so theyd be chill. But thats supposed to be a turnt song. But then I could play Gods With Me and then everybodys [turnt up]. So I dont know. If you know how to put your heart in your performance then you could play anything and people would fall in love with that shit or want to dance with you. How hands-on is Tony as a producer? Hes pretty hands-on. I be going to Tonys for that type of album because usually if not, then Im recording my own shit or sequencing my own beats. So when I go to Tonys, Ill be like, Yeah, Im on real rapper mode. Im about to sit back on the couch and let this nigga Tony do his thing. And itd be fire, because niggas dont be realizing how much work it is to record yourself or sequence a beat. Id be in the shit rolling up, drinking [while] this nigga Tony really at work, and then you play the beat and Id be like, All right, cool. I think that that even goes to what you were saying about what that whole experience was doing for me, and other aspects of music for Burning Desire, is that there was times where I was really focusing on being a rapper more so than production in terms of What am I writing about, and how am I writing? What flows can I put together? How did On God come together? Bruh, I went on a tour with Thebe (a.k.a. Earl Sweatshirt). We go to the Atlanta stop [a day early]. I have so many homies in Atlanta that I love so much. I think we shot the R&B video that day. And then we went to Hooters and was drunk as shit for mad long. And then niggas was like, All right, we need to go eat. We go to this other random bar restaurant where they playing live music where you could also eat. Its me, Thebe, Black, my homie Taka, my homegirl Imani, we all in there drunk as shit, listening to these niggas do covers of music. Then we look outside, its a pro-Palestine march going on. Low-key it was crazy because before we left, me and Taka was like, Yeah, it sucks we doing all this touring because were not having much time to be at the marches. We run out of the restaurant without paying on some super-faded shit. And we walked like three blocks with these niggas marching and protesting and doing chants. And then, the niggas who had stayed at the restaurant was like, Bro, yall got to come back because yall need to pay for yalls shit. So then were jogging back, and then we get the call [where] Tonys like, Yeah, we should go hit the studio. We pull up to the studio. Tony had a session with Tony Shhnow. We had all pulled up [with] so much energy because its been a crazy-ass day. I promise you the studio looked like a fucking strip club. I remember the next day I woke up and was like, Bro, why do I feel like we went to the strip club last night? It was funny. Alchemist had pulled up as well. It was a crazy group of people in the studio that night. And then Tonys just playing shit. We heard the beat for On God, and everybody like, Yeah, this is the one type shit. We was in there hella deep. Niggas rolling up and drinking and then said, Fuck it, we all about to hop on this jawn, and made that shit. It was so late, maybe three, four a.m. in the morning. How often do you record from that kind of vibe? Just having fun, out already type shit? It [happens] every now and then. When we recorded Real Hip Hop, it was another vibe like that; a random day out. And we wasnt even supposed to be in the studio that day. But then we all end up at the studio. Im like, Yo, I got to leave out so let me record my verse first. Thebe recorded his verse first, then I recorded my verse and then left. And then when these niggas came to link me later on in the night, I heard the rest of the song. Im like, Oh, this shit is fire as fuck. But its always random shit. Even Nothing I Could Do Is Wrong came from a night where I came back home faded as fuck. I was like, Yeah, Im about to write this rap in 15 minutes. And I wrote that shit. Its funny because in the beginning of the song, I fucked up badly, but niggas be thinking that its some steez or swag stuff. Nah, thats a one-take right there. A lot of the music be coming out of special moments [that] manifest themselves into a thing. Its not always so organized or planned. How did Reminiscing, with Jay Critch, come together? What makes Jay Critch a special MC to you? We used to have metal detectors in my high school. So low-key, youre not supposed to bring no phone in. And niggas had put me on to the jug: You take your battery out of your phone, put your phone inside your sock and then slide through the metal detector. And then you get through with your phone. I used to be in the bathroom blasting Jay Critch music all fucking day, I swear to God. Skipping class in the bathroom, blasting Jay Critch music. Before Instagram Live, we used to be on Facebook Live bumping Jay Critch in the bathroom, I swear to God [laughs]. Those are the first times Im hearing about LaRon and listening to [his] production. Im not even realizing how close in age we are. This shit was crazy. There was a time in Brooklyn when we was all teenagers, 2015, 2016, [and] we was all rooting [Jay Critch]. So when he came up, it was just victory for everybody type shit. So hes always been one of my favorite GOATs when it comes to rap music in New York. And then Ive been cool with his homie LaRon, wholl be producing a lot of his music for a second. I feel like shit had always been up in the air, in the talks. There was supposed to be a crazy-ass show in 2016: It was supposed to be my homie Daryl Johnson, who produces music, my homie Ken Carter, Jay Critch, Young Lunchbox, all at one show that we was trying to put together. This is 2016. I remember the day of the show, the lady had some shit that had happened and she canceled on the venue. And then it was fire because this time around, we got him to play for the Young World shit last year. And he was down. And then that was [our] first day really formally talking. It was cool linking up. And then I think Tony had reached out to him like, Yo, we trying to get you on one. He was super down. And then niggas linked up in the studio and got that one through. What do you think is the future of Young World? Could you ever see expanding it beyond New York City? Im not sure what the future of it is yet. It started off at [Manhattans] Abrons Arts Center, and one of the things that we started there was the sliding scale. People could pay depending on how much theyre able to pay. And that was one thing that always stood important to me. So when we took it over to Herbert Von King Park, and it was fully a free thing, that was important to me because one of my biggest beliefs is that when you give Black people space to do shit, the capabilities are going to be unheard of. And a lot of the reasons why we dont be having the space to do shit is because we dont be having the money for spaces, especially in New York. Whether it be a home or an event space or a venue, whatever the fuck it is, its always a difficult thing. So as much as I do think sometimes about expanding Young World, I think one of the most sacred things of it, to me, is the fact that everybody could come for free and we can enjoy it in a place like Herbert Von King, where Ive walked past that park, bought weed in that park, done so much surrounding that park. And so it feels important to me. I only moved to Brooklyn maybe when I was 13, 14, but it feels like me paying back in a way. Even for the old heads, we try and incorporate one act that [they] could really tap in with. Thered always be all the old heads sitting in their lawn chairs. Its something [where] I want to keep the accessibility, especially in a time where niggas is making you pay for accessibility for everything. But if we was to do it somewhere else, I think it would have to grow with the same type of foundation that grew it back home. You mentioned Earl Sweatshirt earlier, I interviewed him a couple of months back, and he had great things to say about you and your craft. I was wondering if you could speak to what your friendship and creative kinship means to you? Thats honestly my big brother, man. I did an interview recently that Im like, Yo, the homie Sage (a.k.a. Navy Blue) and the homie Earl, those are my big brothers. They really looked out for me. And the dude was like, Yeah, bro, theyre four years older than you. Im like, Yeah, what do you think be going on out here? Niggas be kids taking care of kids, bro. In a world where young niggas be competing with niggas thats supposed to be our old heads, I think it does put us in a space where the homie who is three, four years older than me is about to be the nigga who looks out for me. And then that teaches me to look out for my homie who might be two years younger than me or three years younger than me. Im putting them in a path to realize shit that these niggas helped me realize. Youre currently on tour, and you just dropped Pinball. What are your plans for the rest of the year? Im trying to flood the streets, bro. Im trying to keep dropping. I cant lie. Im in a mode right now. Im trying to fuck shit up, and Im trying to see all my homies fuck shit up. So thats my main shit right there. World takeover. [Does fake evil laugh.] But, nah, for real. Just trying to give my life back to this shit. Best of Rolling Stone Found guilty of involuntary manslaughter last week out of the fatal 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, former Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed will find out her incarceration fate in just over a month. Today New Mexico Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer designated a sentencing hearing for April 15 at 10 am local time. More from Deadline Relatively inexperienced armorer Gutierrez-Reed was charged in January 2023 with involuntary manslaughter and later evidence tampering. She faced up to three years in state prison if found guilty on both charges. After a two-week trial and the jury reaching its verdict in less than three hours on March 6. The seven women and five men found Gutierrez-Reed guilty of the first charge and innocent of the second. With the split verdict, the most Gutierrez-Reed could potentially receive now is about 18 months and a fine of several thousand dollars. Hutchins was killed by a Colt .45 in the hands of Rust star/producer Alec Baldwin on the Bonanza Creek Ranch set of the low-budget Western on October 21, 2021. The live rounds that got in the gun, also injured director Joel Souza. Set to go to criminal trial himself in July and facing numerous civil suits, Baldwin has always insisted he never pulled the trigger on the gun a judgement the FBI and other investigators profoundly disagree with. Despite the protests of defense lawyers, Judge Sommer ordered Gutierrez-Reed taken into custody immediately after the verdict. She has been held in a facility close to the Santa Fe County courthouse ever since. Recharged with involuntary slaughter in late January, Baldwin also is looking at some four figure fines and around 18 months in state prison in the Land of Enchantment if found guilty by the jury in his trial this summer. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. "We pray for help in making their country safe for them again and we will be back with them the moment it is possible," Albom said Rob Kim/Getty Mitch Albom attends AOL BUILD Presents: Mitch Albom Discusses His Book "The Magic Strings Of Frankie Presto" at AOL Studios In New York on November 10, 2015 in New York City. Mitch Albom, the author of Tuesdays with Morrie, said in a post on Instagram Tuesday that he and his wife were evacuated from Haiti amid turmoil in the country "We were luckier than a lot of others," he said in his post Regional leaders are working to help the country install a transitional council following the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry Author Mitch Albom was evacuated from Haiti as conditions in the country have continued to deteriorate amid unrest and gang violence. The Tuesdays with Morrie author said in a post on Instagram Tuesday that a group from his orphanage, Have Faith Haiti, including him and his wife, had been evacuated and were back in the United States. "We had been sheltering in place since a state of emergency was declared," he said in the post. "I had a responsibility to bring home 8 wonderful volunteers who were working with us. But my wife's and my hearts ache for our kids still there." The orphanage in Port-au-Prince is operated by the A Hole in the Roof Foundation, a nonprofit founded by the author and journalist. Related: Daycare Evacuated Moments Before Nearby Building Explodes in D.C.: 'We're Very Lucky' Mayor Says "Saying goodbye to them this time was horribly difficult," he continued. "We pray for help in making their country safe for them again and we will be back with them the moment it is possible." 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. He shared his "deepest thanks to everyone who sent messages and prayers," adding, "We were luckier than a lot of others. Please don't forget about them." Guerinault Louis/Anadolu via Getty A man sets a tire on fire during a demonstration against CARICOM for the decision following the resignation of Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry as representatives of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Haitian actors made an agreement for political transition in Haiti it a historic decision that was made by the formation of a seven-member Presidential Council (CP), and the Haitian government on Tuesday extended the night-time curfew and state of emergency in the capital of Port-au-Prince for a month amid a wave of violence triggered by armed groups in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on March 12, 2024. Related: Thousands Told to Evacuate as Apple Wildfire Rages in SoCal with Over 25,000 Acres Burned At the request of the State Department, the U.S. Southern Command "deployed a U.S. Marine Fleet-Anti-terrorism Security Team," which among other things, allowed "non-emergency personnel to depart," the department said in a statement on Wednesday. "Our Marines in Haiti completed their assignment and were relieved by a secondary team of Marines," the U.S. Southern Command said. "The U.S. Embassy remains open, and limited operations continue, focused on assistance to US citizens and supporting Haitian led efforts to secure a peaceful transition of power." Wednesday's move came a day after the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, according to CBS News. Regional leaders are working to help the country install a transitional council. Related: Swiss Village Evacuated as Huge Rock Mass Teeters Over Homes: 'Nothing You Can Do Against Nature' However, the violent gangs largely in control of Port-au-Prince want to be consulted, and they would not recognize the new government, per the report. Albom noted that many "Americans, Canadians, and others who are still stuck are not" safe. "The people of Haiti are not," the author continued. "I hope that our attention can turn to them and how we can help restore peace and safety to a beautiful country and its people, including our kids, who deserve so much better." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. As the 27th anniversary of the Phoenix Lights approaches, the puzzling occurrence continues to captivate the public imagination, and it remains shrouded in controversy and conspiracy for many. On March 13, 1997, thousands of witnesses reported seeing a series of mysterious lights forming a distinct V-shaped pattern in the night sky over Arizona. Despite attempts by the U.S. Air Force to attribute the phenomenon to military flares, skepticism persists among those who question the official explanation. The enduring mystery of the Phoenix Lights has fueled speculation about the possibility of extraterrestrial visitors or clandestine government activities. As the anniversary nears, one can't help but wonder: Were the Phoenix Lights merely a product of misidentification and coincidence, or did they signify something more profound and otherworldly? Celebrity sighting: Actor Kurt Russell claims he saw and reported the Phoenix Lights What were the Phoenix Lights? The Phoenix Lights are a series of widely reported unidentified flying objects seen in the night sky over Arizona, Nevada and the Mexican state of Sonora on March 13, 1997. Thousands of people reported witnessing a triangular formation of lights moving silently across the sky. The lights were described as bright, steady and in a V-shaped or boomerang formation. This sketch f the Phoenix Lights by a witness appeared in USA Today The Phoenix Lights are divided into two distinct sightings: First Sighting (7:30-8:45 p.m.): Although the exact time is unknown, witnesses reported seeing a formation of lights moving from the northern part of Arizona southward toward Tucson. The lights were described as a series of orbs or a solid object with a row of lights. Second Sighting (10-10:30 p.m.): Later that night, a more significant and widely observed event occurred when a large V-shaped formation of lights passed over the Phoenix metropolitan area. The lights appeared to be connected to or part of a massive object. This sighting was captured on video by some witnesses. The Phoenix Lights gained international attention and the mystery surrounding them gave rise to many theories and speculations. The official explanation provided by the U.S. Air Force later was that the lights were flares dropped by A-10 Warthog aircraft during an exercise at the Barry M. Goldwater Range, a military training range in southwestern Arizona. This explanation was met with skepticism as many witnesses claimed the lights they saw did not resemble flares. Alejandro Rojas is a prominent figure in UFO research and advocacy. He writes about sightings and related phenomena. Rojas also is the master of ceremonies for the annual International UFO Congress, based in Phoenix, which convenes researchers, enthusiasts and experts from around the world to discuss the latest developments in ufology. Sightings were tracked from there to Tucson for the next couple of hours. At least one witness north of Phoenix claimed to have looked at the lights with binoculars and saw a formation of A-10 aircraft. A military training operation called Snowbird was underway in which the A-10s were training to the south and could have been in transit. "However, more is needed to account for the hundreds of reports from others across the state, Rojas said of the Phoenix Lights. More: Arizona has 4th most UFO sightings in the US. See the rankings What does UAP mean? According to NASA, UAP stands for Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon. It is a term used to describe any aerial object or phenomenon that cannot be readily identified or explained by conventional means. UAP encompasses a wide range of sightings, encounters and reports of unidentified flying objects or unexplained aerial phenomena. The term UAP is often used in discussions related to UFO research, government investigations and scientific inquiries into aerial phenomena that defy conventional explanations. Were the Phoenix Lights a hoax? That depends on who you ask. Not everyone believes the Air Force's explanation that the Phoenix Lights were simply military flares dropped by A-10 Warthog aircraft during a training exercise. While the military's explanation has been accepted by some, many witnesses and enthusiasts express skepticism for several reasons: Shape and Formation: Witnesses often describe the Phoenix Lights as forming a solid triangular or V-shaped object, which doesn't align with the explanation of flares drifting in the wind. Silent Movement: Many witnesses said the lights moved silently, without the sound typically associated with military aircraft. A 1997 article in The Arizona Republic reported that military bases say repeatedly that they had nothing in the air." Duration: The length of the sightings was longer than what would be expected for flares descending from an aircraft. Typically, flares used in military training exercises are visible for a few minutes to around 10 minutes. The lengthier duration reported by witnesses of the Phoenix Lights contrasts with this expectation. Speed and Altitude: Some witnesses said the lights moved at a speed and altitude inconsistent with flares or conventional aircraft. Variety of Testimonies: There was a large number of witnesses, including pilots, law enforcement officers and civilians, whose testimonies varied but collectively added to the mystery. Christopher Impey is a professor of astronomy at the University of Arizona. He recalls reading reports that linked the sighting, particularly the triangular shape witnesses described, to a formation of about 10 jets flying together; the lights observed being associated with these aircraft. There was a second incident and the same day, I think, in the evening, which lots of people saw, and it was reported by many people and lots of photographs and that apparently was a flare drop, said Impey. So it would have been quite spectacular when a squadron drops a lot of flares, which looks pretty impressive. If you're looking at it from a distance low on the horizon I'm sure there's optical effects and it looks, you know, things look like they're hovering and moving around, and simply you don't know what it is. "So people tend to connect dots that aren't there. You know, they see something that's unfamiliar, they don't understand and that's genuinely unusual because you don't see it in an average day, week, month or even year, and then say, Oh it must be aliens. "Well, as a scientist, that's not the first place I go. The last place I go is that it must be aliens. Did the military explain the Phoenix Lights? Yes. The U.S. Air Force said the lights observed on the night of March 13, 1997, were flares dropped by A-10 Warthog airplanes at the Barry M. Goldwater Range. The flares were part of a routine training mission, and the lights observed by witnesses were the result of these flares descending in the night sky. The Air Force maintained that the lights seen in the Phoenix area were a combination of the flares and the reflection of city lights on clouds. We contacted Luke Air Force Base near Glendale, Arizona, for comment about the Phoenix lights. Sean Clements, chief of media relations, emailed back: "Unfortunately, no one at the 56th Fighter Wing is going to be able to speak on this specific subject as the event happened over 26 years ago. Were happy to discuss our modern operations or how were preparing pilots for the future of warfare, but we just dont have any experts to speak toward Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena reports from the 1990s." Impey said many reported UFO sightings can be explained as common phenomena such as weather balloons or planets. A significant number of sightings could be aircraft, including military planes, that might appear unfamiliar to observers not accustomed to seeing them in certain formations or numbers. Arizona has a lot of UFO sightings but it also has a lot of military bases and a lot of Air Force activity and a lot of flights and different types of aircrafts. Not everyone's familiar with those, Impey said. What do skeptics say about the Phoenix Lights? Skeptics of the idea that the Phoenix Lights were UFOs offer alternative explanations that emphasize more mundane and conventional causes. These include: Military Flares: The Air Force's explanation satisfies some UFO skeptics, who accept that characteristics reported by witnesses, such as the V-shaped formation, could be attributed to the arrangement of flares in the night sky. Human Perception and Memory: Skeptics point out that perception and memory can be fallible. They say witnesses might have misinterpreted or exaggerated what they saw, and the collective memory of the event may have been influenced by media coverage and discussions. Mass Hysteria: Skeptics suggest that widespread reports of the Phoenix Lights may be attributed to a form of mass hysteria or a psychological phenomenon in which people influence one another's perceptions and memories. Misidentified Celestial Objects: Others propose that witnesses might have misidentified celestial objects or atmospheric phenomena, such as planets, stars or unusual cloud formations. Social and Cultural Influences: Some suggest the possibility that social and cultural factors played a role in shaping the interpretation of the events. Media coverage and preexisting beliefs about UFOs may have influenced how witnesses perceived and reported the lights. It's important to note that skepticism doesn't necessarily dismiss the experiences of witnesses but seeks to provide plausible and conventional explanations for observed phenomena. While some skeptics find the military's flare explanation plausible, others acknowledge that some aspects of the Phoenix Lights incident remain unexplained. We need scientific-quality data from instruments that are calibrated and under control in order to make progress about the nature of UAPs, said Avi Loeb, Baird Professor of Science and director of the Institute for Theory and Computation at Harvard University. Clearly, they represent a mixed bag with lots of human-made objects. But even if one out of a million is extraterrestrial, that finding would have a huge impact on the future of humanity. "If we find a gadget that was manufactured by a cosmic neighbor, we could learn something new about our technological future. These neighbors must be more advanced than we are because they reached our doorstep before our spacecraft got to them. Were there any official investigations into the Phoenix Lights? The U.S. military conducted an investigation that produced the Air Force's explanation of military flares. Aside from that there has been no comprehensive, independent government investigation into the Phoenix Lights. I think it is important for the public to understand UFOs, or UAP, the term the government is using, research and the search for extraterrestrial life are two different things, said Rojas, the UAP writer and researcher. Congress has defined UAP as objects that cannot be readily identifiable and we do not know their origins. As the Pentagon and NASA have noted, there is no evidence for extraterrestrial life. However, as they have also both stated, UAP are a serious issue and deserves serious attention. "We don't know for sure what flew over Phoenix or who is responsible and we will likely never know. We don't have enough data to work with. Have there been any similar sightings since the Phoenix Lights? Since the Phoenix Lights in 1997, there have been numerous reports of UFO sightings around the world. Here are a few notable examples, according to History.com: Chicago O'Hare UFO Sighting: In November 2006, airline employees and pilots at Chicago O'Hare International Airport reported a saucer-shaped object hovering over Gate C17. The object then reportedly shot up through the clouds, leaving a hole in the cloud cover. The incident generated media attention and discussions within the UFO community. Stephenville Lights: In January 2008, residents of Stephenville, Texas, reported seeing strange lights and formations in the sky. Witnesses described bright lights moving at high speeds and in unusual patterns. Jerusalem UFO Incident: In January 2011, a video surfaced showing a bright light hovering over the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. The light then appeared to shoot up into the sky. The authenticity of the video has been debated. Phoenix Lights Anniversary Sightings: On anniversaries of the Phoenix Lights there have been reports of lights or formations in the sky, often near the Phoenix area. Some of these reports have been attributed to military exercises or other causes, and they occasionally reignite public interest in the original incident. It's important to note that UFO sightings are reported regularly, and many turn out to have conventional explanations such as aircraft, drones, satellites or natural atmospheric phenomena. The term "UFO" itself refers to any unidentified flying object and doesn't necessarily imply an extraterrestrial origin. Arizona does have a lot of sightings reported. I have often found the southwest has more reports than most of the country, said Rojas. If people are true believers, then they will find any reason to keep believing. We know that's how conspiracy theories persist in the absence of evidence and in contravention to the facts. So UFOs are in unfortunately in that category where some of the classic instances just are sticking, said Impey. Is there photographic or video evidence of the Phoenix Lights? Numerous witnesses captured the mysterious lights on camera during the events of March 13, 1997. Lynne Kitei is a physician and health educator who wrote a book and produced an award-winning documentary called "The Phoenix Lights." Her video footage, showcasing the V-shaped formation of lights, has been widely circulated. Numerous eyewitnesses captured photographs of the lights using different types of cameras and news outlets including CNN, ABC News, NBC News, CBS News and Fox News covered the incident, capturing footage during their broadcasts and conducting interviews with witnesses. Is there any new information about the Phoenix Lights? There have been no significant developments or new information regarding the Phoenix Lights. There are many possible answers for the Phoenix Lights. Aliens is just one," Rojas said. "Other exotic possibilities are that it could have been a secret advanced aircraft, from the future or from another dimension. "Of course, there are also less exciting possibilities, such as a misidentification of conventional aircraft, or a large dirigible. We have no good photos, videos or other data to be sure. Despite that, the large amount of witness testimony makes this one of the most famous UFO sightings ever. Are there documentaries or movies about the Phoenix Lights? Yes. Documentaries and TV programs have explored the Phoenix Lights incident, providing examinations of the sightings, witness testimonies and various perspectives on the occurrence. Here are a few documentaries and programs related to the Phoenix Lights: "The Phoenix Lights...We Are Not Alone" (2005): This documentary, directed by Kitei, features witness testimonies, expert interviews and footage of the Phoenix Lights. Kitei, who witnessed the Phoenix Lights, also produced and narrated the documentary. You can buy the documentary on Amazon. "I Know What I Saw" (2009): This documentary, directed by James Fox, features firsthand accounts from individuals who have experienced UFO sightings, including the Phoenix Lights. You can see the documentary on AppleTV. "The Phoenix Incident" (2015): This fictionalized thriller is based on the Phoenix Lights. Incorporating elements of science fiction and drawing inspiration from the events of March 13, 1997, it explores a fictional narrative surrounding the mysterious lights. You can watch the movie on Sling. Got a story you want to share? Reach out at Tiffany.Acosta@gannett.com. Follow @tiffsario on Instagram. Support local journalism and subscribe to azcentral.com. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Lights UFO mystery: 27 years later, is the truth out there? A 100-year-old giant alligator snapping turtle is at large after mysteriously disappearing somewhere along Interstate 40 in Durham, North Carolina. The turtle, named "Thanos" by his owner Dan Hemby, vanished from Hemby's vehicle Sunday en route from Jacksonville, North Carolina, to the Durham Reptile Expo, Hemby told ABC affiliate WTVD. "We weren't even maybe 30 minutes away from the convention center, and we get there ... first thing I see is all three straps were popped open and moved to the side, and the grates were moved over," Hemby said. "It's almost like losing a piece of myself, to be honest with you," Hemby added. MORE: New flying dinosaur skeleton discovered on Isle of Skye in Scotland Alligator snapping turtles have a hard, armor-like shell, a sharp beak and a bite fierce enough to sever human bone. At 100 years old, Thanos is a mature turtle, weighing 140-180 pounds and spanning 38 inches, according to WTVD. Thanos' puzzling disappearance has led Hemby to hypothesize he must have been stolen, alleging the theft may have happened at a rest stop outside of Benson, North Carolina, which was the last time Hemby saw him. PHOTO: In a video posted to his TikTok account, Dan is seen holding his snapping turtle Galactus. (@turtlemandan910/TikTok) "He couldn't bite his way out. I don't think he could strong arm his way out, honestly, especially not with the three ratchet straps that were on there," Hemby told the outlet. "I think somebody messed with him, I honestly don't know what to think." Hemby said he retraced his route on the Interstate to check for possible signs Thanos had escaped his enclosure, such as blood marks, but didn't find anything. "If he did fall, he probably got scraped up," Hemby said. "He probably survived long as he was on this front. But if he got on his back, I don't know if he would be able to get back on after that much impact. His first thing he would do is probably go for water." MORE: 9 people dead and 78 others hospitalized after eating sea turtle meat on Zanzibar's Pemba Island State wildlife officials told WTVD there is a chance Thanos could be alive if he survived the possible fall and was able to access a river, noting that snapping alligator turtles are a largely aquatic species. Hemby shared a warning for anyone who may encounter Thanos and pleaded for his safety if Thanos was stolen. "If you see him, please let us know. Be careful. Do not handle him," Hemby said. "He couldn't go out as far as regular turtles, or regular common snappers. If somebody stole them, please just get him home or just make sure he's safe." MORE: 'Dinosaur-like' snapping alligator turtle mysteriously discovered in England Thanos' mysterious disappearance follows another strange alligator snapping turtle encounter in the United Kingdom. In February, Dr. Dominic Moule, a veterinary surgeon at Wild Side Vets in Cumbria, England, told ABC News that such a turtle, named Fluffy by Moule and his colleagues, was discovered in Urswick Tarn, a pond in England, and delivered to his clinic. The "dinosaur-like" reptiles are native to rivers and swamps in Florida and do not migrate, according to Moule, who suspects the turtle was an exotic pet owned by someone in the area, who dumped it in the local pond. 100-year-old giant alligator snapping turtle disappears on North Carolina highway to reptile expo originally appeared on abcnews.go.com This isnt the first time a pig named Kevin Bacon has wandered away from home, but this might be the first time Oreos were involved. Jack Molgaards wife first spotted Kevin Bacon (the II) on the family security camera, meandering around just outside their home in Brighton, about 40 miles south of Milwaukee in Wisconsin. My wife spotted an unusual shaped figure on our driveway camera walking along our garage, Molgaard told the Associated Press on Wednesday. Kevin Bacon actually ended coming up right up to our back door, Molgaard said. Molgaards wife did what any animal lover would do when presented with a similar situation, coaxing him over with a couple of treats. "My wife started feeding him right away. Thats what she does with every animal that comes to our backyard, Molgaard said. He ate a couple of things, including apples, tomatoes and carrots. After the Molgaards indulged Kevin Bacon a bit, they decided it was time to figure out how to get him home. Kevin Bacon's owners found It didnt take long for Molgaard to figure out who the pig belonged to, phoning a farmer friend he thought might be able to help. Molgaards farmer friend did in fact know Kevin Bacons owner, passing along his phone number. Kevin Bacons owner hoped the family might be able to lure him back to his pen with some sweet treats, telling the Molgaards that cookies and marshmallows were some of his favorites, AP reported. The owner also told Molgaard that Kevin Bacon was actually a little lonely, so he was just probably just looking for company, KKTV reported. Oreos and a police escort The Molgaard family grabbed some Oreo cookies, leading the pig down a trail and along a side road, the AP reported. Kevin Bacon even got a police escort back home, with deputies from the Kenosha County Sheriff's Department helping get him get back on the property safely, according to a Facebook post from the sheriff's office. As you can tell by the smile in the deputy's face, he was thrilled to meet a new friend and handle a 'typical county call' as our city friends would say, the post reads. The deputies arrived at the home, snapping photos with Kevin Bacon, Molgaard said. The couple were joined by their 16-year-old daughter, who helped get the big piggy all the way home. She hopped on the pigs hairy back, pushing him to keep moving forward, according to the AP. From Oreos to donuts They managed to get Kevin Bacon back into his pen more than two hours later, leading him home by the glow of a flashlight. He is a massive creature, but the owner says hes a gentle giant, Molgaard told AP. "We have been over there every day giving him a dozen donuts." Another pig named Kevin Bacon ran away last year Kevin Bacon, the pig, is seen in this photo from Chelsea Rumbaugh. The original Kevin Bacon pig ran away from his Pennsylvania home on Oct. 14, spending a little over two weeks playing hide and seek with his owner before being re-captured, Chelsea Rumbaugh, USA TODAY previously reported. Kevin Bacon became an internet sensation over the time he spent missing in action, even catching the attention of actor Kevin Bacon, who petitioned for his safe return, according to previous USA TODAY reporting. Rumbaugh managed to make contact with the porcine Kevin Bacon on Halloween, ending a weeks-long struggle to get him back in his pen. Contributing: Saman Shafiq and Harrison Jones of The Evening Sun, part of the USA TODAY Network This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Runaway pig named Kevin Bacon lured back to Wisconsin home with Oreos BEIRUT, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon needs to invest around 7.6 billion U.S. dollars between 2024 and 2030 in energy, water, transport, and solid waste to mitigate the impact of climate change on its development path, according to a report released by the World Bank on Wednesday. The Lebanon Country Climate and Development Report noted that the energy sector alone would require about 4 billion dollars in investments to diversify the generation mix toward cleaner and more affordable renewable energy sources and to shift from liquid fuel to natural gas. According to the report, other critical investments would include over 1.8 billion dollars in the water sector, 200 million dollars in solid waste management, and 915 million dollars in the transport sector. The report said Lebanon is one of the countries least prepared to face climate change, second only to Yemen in the Middle East and North Africa region and ranking 161st out of the more than 190 countries globally in terms of climate change readiness. The report also highlighted the impact of climate change in Lebanon, saying that it's expected to reduce the country's growth potential by up to 2 percent annually by 2040 and decrease water availability by up to 9 percent in the same year. This will result in significant economic losses, including 250 million dollars in agriculture and 75 million dollars in tourism, threatening the livelihoods of a large portion of the population, it added. "Climate change poses a real threat to any country's development prospects. Lebanon is no exception: the cost of inaction today will be too high for future generations," Jean-Christophe Carret, World Bank country director for the Middle East Department, was quoted as saying in the report. "Lebanon needs to prioritize and sequence recommended measures and interventions in the energy, water, transport, and solid waste sectors, reflecting their urgency, synergies, and trade-offs in responding to development and climate needs," he added. A concerning incident recently occurred in Hopkinton, Rhode Island, where 27 vulnerable Golden Retrievers living in distressing conditions were rescued. The officials had arrived at the property to investigate claims of unlicensed puppy breeding and conditions that posed a health risk to the dogs. 20 puppies and 7 adult Golden Retrievers rescued from Rhode Island property Following reports of unlicensed breeding, authorities intervened at a property in Hopkinton, People reported. They found seven adult Golden Retrievers and 20 puppies from what was described as terrible living conditions. These distressed animals are now in the care of the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RISPCA), where they are receiving treatment for ringworm. Authorities rescued the canines on Friday, March 8. After the rescue, the Hopkinton Police Department shared a post on Facebook providing details of the situation. The post also contains a series of photos showing officials transporting the dogs from the residence. The police stated that the RISPCA and Hopkinton Animal Control helped them in the rescue mission of the pups. Images shared on the agencys social media post depict individuals wearing gloves, masks, and foot coverings carefully carrying puppies away from the residence. Moreover, the photos show puppies housed in dog crates in vans stationed at the property. As per the police department, the resident of the property housing the dogs was described as cooperative. They voluntarily surrendered the canines. RISPCA took custody of the dogs and plans to initiate an adoption process once the Golden Retrievers receive medical clearance. However, RISPCA shared an update on the dogs health status, revealing that they tested positive for ringworm. Due to this fungal infection, the furry animals will be unavailable for fostering or adoption for several weeks. They are under necessary medical care, and once they are healthy, Goldie lovers can adopt them. The post 27 Golden Retrievers Rescued From Rhode Island Puppy Mill appeared first on DogTime. Hundreds of newly arrived Sudanese refugees wait for the distribution of UNHCR relief kits at the Madjigilta site in Chad, on the border with Sudan. - Colin Delfosse/UNHCR Nearly 230,000 children, pregnant women and new mothers in Sudan could die from starvation in the coming months, experts have warned. The East African nation has been engulfed by war and fighting since April 2023. Since then, more than 10 million people have been forced to flee their homes, making it the worlds largest internal displacement crisis. Hunger, dehydration and disease are all on the rise. More than 2.9 million Sudanese children are acutely malnourished, with 729,000 under-fives suffering from severe acute malnutrition the most deadly form of extreme hunger according to new figures from the Nutrition Cluster, a partnership of organisations including the UN and Save the Children. Of these, more than 110,000 children are likely to suffer from severe medical complications, including dehydration, hypothermia and hypoglycemia a condition that requires intensive and specialised hospital care to survive. In total, about 222,000 severely malnourished children and more than 7,000 new mothers are likely to die in the months ahead if their nutritional and health needs remain unmet, the Nutrition Cluster said. Dr Arif Noor, Country Director for Save the Children in Sudan, called the grim food insecurity situation in Sudan one of the worst in the world. No planting last year means no food today. No planting today means no food tomorrow. The cycle of hunger is getting worse and worse with no end in sight only more misery, he said. Nutrition experts at Save the Children have reported seeing many pregnant women skipping meals to provide food for their families, critically restricting the available nutrients to their growing foetuses and causing grave health concerns for them in later life. The charity said an estimated 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women will suffer from malnutrition this year, leaving them vulnerable to dangerous health complications during and after their pregnancy. Sudan has been forced to the brink of collapse after 11 months of war, which has cut civilians off from access to aid. Between November and December of last year, the number of areas deemed hard-to-reach by the Nutrition Cluster increased by 71 per cent due to intensified fighting. Restricted movement of food across the country, particularly to rural and remote areas where most of the population live, has pushed over 37 percent of people into above crisis levels of hunger. Dr Noor blamed the intense fighting across the Al-Jazirah state that broke out in December a region known as the breadbasket of Sudan for the unprecedented disruption of food systems. In February, the UN appealed for 3.25bn to meet Sudans humanitarian needs and support those who have fled to neighbouring countries, amid warnings by the UNs World Food Programme (WFP) that people are starving to death in areas cut off by fighting. Protect yourself and your family by learning more about Global Health Security Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Photograph by Isa Zapata As long as weve had butter, sugar, and Instagram, lines have formed for the croissant of the moment, or the doughnut of the moment, or the croissant-doughnut hybrid of the moment. Maybe youve camped out to try the latest pastry monopolizing your own feed, which would make it easy to stroll right past another queue and shrug it off as the result of some fad. But follow the procession that takes shape each day outside of Librae Bakery in Manhattans East Village and it will lead you someplace special. In a kitchen framed by big glass windows, a team of bakers turn out zippy zaatar-labneh morning buns and saag-inspired focaccia dressed with braised greens, garam masala, and pickled chiles. These pastries bring together ingredients and influencesof Morocco, India, Denmark, and Bahrain, among othersthat might not ordinarily find their way into one treat, and artfully capture their makers identities. The results, as Libraes legion of fans will attest, arent just picture-perfect algorithm fodder. Theyre delicious proof of a baking revolution that has been building for years, one thats reached its flaky, layered, pastry-cream-topped peak. Photograph by Gerard \+ Belevender Photograph by Nicola Parisi Librae is part of a nationwide shift thats been building for years, as bakers push back against rigid expectations of authenticityand incorporate their lived experiences into their work. Breadbelly, which opened in San Francisco in 2018, blends Asian ingredients and baking traditions with Californian influences, leading to creations like dulce de leche-filled sesame cookies and focaccia topped with mapo tofu. In Chicago, the Filipino restaurant Kasama, which opened in 2020 to much fanfare, fills its pastry case with matcha-pandan eclairs and decadent foie gras danishes, along with more traditional European offerings; and Third Culture Bakery in Berkeley has been turning out kimchi and cheese-topped mochi waffles and chewy, many-flavored mochi donuts since 2018. This movement was fast-tracked in the early days of the pandemic, as dedicated pastry roles in restaurants became scarce. Pastry chefs needed work, and selling their boxed-up goods online was a way to stay afloat, but for some, being freed from the confines of restaurant menus also created space to experiment and stretch out. They harnessed their creativity into dishes like street corn focaccia and Spam musubi-inspired croissants. Now, an entire constellation of hard-to-define bakeries is reshaping what baking looks like in America. The nine bakeries on this list exemplify this movement, imbuing their work with an unmistakable flair and sense of personality. Theyre helmed by people who value experimentation and self-expression over strict ideas about what does and doesnt belong in a scone, a concha, or any number of classic pastries. At Comadre Panaderia in Austin, baker Mariela Camacho has updated the classic Barbie-pink sheet cake of her youth to incorporate local grain and a coat of prickly pear buttercream. In New Orleans there are king cakes that pull apart like braided babka, and in Detroit, puffy Roman maritozzi filled with makrut lime whipped cream. These bakeries offer something much more rare than a precisely laminated croissant: pastries with a story to tell. The kind worth waiting in line for. Elazar Sontag, restaurant editor This list is organized alphabetically. 801 Frenchmen St, New Orleans AYU KAYA BUN Photograph by Brittany Conerly With its light blue facade, white shuttered windows, and stately columns, Ayu Bakehouse blends in with the historic architecture of downtown New Orleans. But inside the space is sleek and modern, with a display of pastries that deftly nod to local flavors and pull from those of New York, Southeast Asia, and beyond. From the dining room, theres a clear view of the workstation where bakers spin out flaky red bean rolls, muffuletta breadsticks, and kaya morning buns. The bakerys take on the iconic king cake is a braided crown of babka, a nod to New Yorks Breads Bakery, where co-owners Kelly Jacques and Samantha Weiss met. Boudin, the famed Cajun pork and rice sausage, makes an appearance as well, sandwiched between layers of laminated dough alongside soft-boiled eggs for something akin to a ham and cheese croissantor maybe a Hot Pocket. These combinations might not be traditional to New Orleans, but they make perfect sense in one of Americas most diverse and thriving food cities. Kate Kassin 1204 Cedar Ave, Austin Photograph by Brittany Conerly Photograph by Brittany Conerly The Earl Grey concha at Comadre Panaderia is striking: a plush swirl of dough dotted with chocolate chunks and draped in a ridged sugary armor. Its visually similar to a traditional concha but a far cry from the ones Mariela Camacho grew up eating as a first-generation Xicana in Texas. The rotating menu at her small East Austin bakery explores and celebrates this dynamic, as Camacho puts her spin on everything from alfajores to apple fritters. In addition to revolving conchas in flavors like red berry, Mexican hot chocolate, and hibiscus, there are tender chocolate-dipped puerquitos (cute little pig-shaped cookies) and square sourdough croissants cradling pools of mole. Even Camachos take on a traditional panaderia sheet cake is special. Varnished with a pink prickly pear buttercream and speckled with rainbow sprinkles, it looks like a standard birthday cake. Each delicious bite, humming with the gentle flavor of heirloom Texas corn, is at once familiar and entirely unexpected. Olivia Quintana 2710 E 4th St, Long Beach, CA Photograph by Lorena Caro Some will say the star at Gusto Bread is the Dona, a twice-baked concha layered with almond cream, seasonal jampeach one week, prickly pear the nextand finished with a dramatic storm of slivered almonds and powdered sugar. Others have eyes only for the Nixtamal Queen, an ingenious play on a classic kouign-amann featuring layer upon layer of masa, sourdough, and butter. Each flowerlike edge is gloriously caramelized and chewy, with just a whisper of sweet corn. Equally impressive are the orejas, thin and flaky pastry hearts dusted with heady toasted corn husk sugar. At the Long Beach bakery, which opened in 2020, baker Arturo Enciso and partner Ana Belen Salatino pay respect to tradition while blending Mexican and European approaches to baking, rewriting and marrying until each of their creations positively sings. Leaving Gusto with just one of these pastries is an ill-advised exercise in restraint. Elazar Sontag 35 Cooper Sq, New York A full pastry case is a rare sight at Librae Bakery. Youll have to arrive before the troves of loyal fans and eager first-timers clear it outwhich is to say, early. But its worth setting an alarm for: Halva croissants rub elbows with flaky disks carrying layers of Marmite and cheddar, babka buns flecked with black lime, and a uniform army of tahini chocolate chunk cookies. These baked goods are recognizable in form but incorporate creative and unexpected flavor combinations at every opportunity. One of Libraes most popular (and photographed) pastries is a croissant that splits at the seam to reveal a rich frangipane perfumed with pistachio and rose. The treat embodies Libraes approach to baking, which draws together flavors from across the Middle East and countless other baking traditions. New York is saturated with glitzy pastry chefs turning out croissants and sourdough boulesbut Librae, with its genre-bending flavors and manifold influences, emerges from the pack as the rare bakery with something new to say. Li Goldstein; photographs by Isa Zapata 198 Gough St, San Francisco Photograph by Nicola Parisi Weekends are special at Loquat, a San Francisco bakery that opened in 2022 and taps into the diverse baking traditions of the Jewish diaspora. Thats when youll find platters of the Yemeni bread called kubaneh, a savory pull-apart loaf served in hypnotically precise spirals. Lead pastry chef Kristina Costa rolls the buttery dough with nigella seeds and serves each platter with bowls of briny feta, a bounty of bite-size vegetables, plump olives from Palestine, and sliced and fanned-out hard-boiled eggs. Its a dish thats hard to find outside of home kitchens and one of many ways that Loquat honors the past. The ancient Shabbat specialty has been recreated with an eye for tradition but shares snug cafe tables with decidedly more modern interpretations of Jewish baking. There are braided loaves of babka amped-up with cardamom and ricotta, fat slices of banana-date cake inspired by Southern hummingbird cake, and dainty pine nut tarts that are this bakerys answer to pecan pie each pastry a delicious reminder of where Jewish baking has been and where its headed. Elazar Sontag 131 Washington Ave, Portland, ME Courtesy of Onggi Courtesy of Onggi Onggi is not quite a bakery at first glance. Inside the cheery green market in Portlands East End, youll be met by shelves stocked with carefully sourced treasures like koji salt, sea urchin shoyu, and wild Maine blueberry sriracha, plus a cooler of assorted kimchis and sauerkrauts. But while the fermentation-focused shop is named for the Korean earthenware vessels in which many of these products come to life, some of Onggis finest work is tucked into a small pastry case near the register. Co-owners Marcus Im, Amy Ng, and Erin Zobitz, who opened the shop in April 2021, offer a tight rotating roster of baked goods that highlight fermentation, including chocolate chip cookies bearing an unmistakable sourdough twang and savory kimchi-cheddar-corn souffles reminiscent of Korean American corn cheese. A heavy dose of miso in a scallion-flecked scone offers a punch of pungent soy and an almost caramellike nuttiness. Each umami-packed bite is a triumphant reminder that fermentation in baking is the domain of so much more than bread. Kate Kassin Locations vary Photograph by Stephanie Shih Photograph by Stephanie Shih Azikiwee Anderson started selling loaves of sourdough out of his backyard in the wake of George Floyds murder. He saw his fledgling business, Rize Up, as a way to channel energy into something healing while pushing the art of bread forward. Andersons classic boules are as shapely and golden as any, but his most eye-catching bakes blend traditional sourdough techniques with bold spices and unexpected ingredients. He makes the convincing case that bread is at its most deliciousand interestingwhen treated as a stage for all sorts of culinary intervention. One loaf is stained with turmeric and charged with cumin, curry leaves, and cilantro. Another invokes the spirit of gumbo with little morsels of andouille, okra, and sauteed bell pepper. Reinventing sourdough is not easy to do in San Francisco, where this baking practice has been akin to religion for more than a century. But as Rize Up bread is carted off to grocery stores, farmers markets, and restaurants to meet its many fans, it would seem Anderson is well on his way. Elazar Sontag 1421 NE Boat St, Seattle Photograph by Michael Raines Clusters of cyclists post up in front of Saint Bread and nibble on shimmering saffron buns whose cardamom-spiced slopes and ridges conceal rich ginger pastry cream. Nearby, just feet from the serene Lake Washington Ship Canal, families tuck into fried egg sandwiches on sweet Japanese melonpan that sport crackly cookie domes. These creations come from an expert team of bakers who have danced between French, Japanese, Scandinavian, and American flavors and techniques since opening this bakery in 2021. They dress a Spanish-style tortilla with Kewpie mayonnaise and all the trappings of Japanese okonomiyaki and fill Norwegian school bunssweet yeasted rolls usually containing vanilla custardwith rotating fillings like toasted coconut pastry cream, cherry blossom mascarpone, and caramelized pineapple. These pastries would be irresistible even under the glare of LED office lights. In Saint Breads cathedral-like storefront, awash in warmly tinted sunlight, theyre downright magical. Elazar Sontag 70 W Alexandrine St, Detroit Warda Patisserie is as Detroit as a bakery can get. While the baked goods on offer here pull influences from around the globe, theyre just as much a reflection of their immediate surroundings, a city with French street names, Mexican and Greek restaurant districts, and suburbs with more than 300,000 people of Middle Eastern and North African ancestry. Owner Warda Bouguettaya, who won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef in 2022, is a native of Algeria. Her background and training in France and Asia shine through in creations like chocolate halvah cookies, madeleines kissed by passion fruit glaze, and a to-die-for mango cheesecake. Her savory Greek torta, a square puff pastry shell filled with greens, olives, and feta, would stand out anywhere in the world, but here in Michigan, it has the unmistakable crispy-edge crunch of the best Detroit pizza. Jamila Robinson; photographs by Gerard + Belevender Originally Appeared on Bon Appetit More Restaurant Stories From Bon Appetit Dave Calhoun, the CEO of Boeing, a man groomed in the screw the last dime out of a company culture under Jack Welch at General Electric before taking over at Boeing, delivered a gem of management-speak in trying to explain why the companys 737 MAX jets are so plagued with problems: there had been a quality escape on the production line. Under Calhoun, Boeing, in just four years, has lost all trace of its legendary reputation for pioneering the jet age and keeping a relentless focus on safety. The most egregious thing about todays Boeing is not quality escape but the escape of Calhoun and his C-suite colleagues from all accountability for systematically destroying the institutional memory and gutting an engineering culture that supported a peerless planemaker. Numerous accounts have shown how bean-counting pressures from above have worked like a contagion by infecting every level of managers and supervisors, driving them to get new airplanes delivered without due diligence being given to safety. Many experienced engineers have left. Feds Slam Boeing for Withholding Key Documents in 737 Max 9 Probe In 2019 John Barnett, a quality control manager at a plant at North Charleston, South Carolina, turning out the 787 Dreamliner, went public with his concerns: As a quality manager youre the last line of defense before a defect makes it out to the flying public. And I havent seen a plane out of Charleston yet that Id put my name on saying its safe and airworthy. Last Saturday, Barnett committed suicide in a Holiday Inn parking lot in Charleston, a day after giving evidence to lawyers in a case heading for trial this summer in which he appeared as a whistleblower accusing Boeing of giving priority to profits over quality and safety. Ironically, by then there could have been no doubt about the issues Barnett had raised. Years of sub-standard engineering have left airlines furious about the companys failure to deliver airplanes on time, often causing drastic reductions in their ability to meet planned increases in peak time schedules. The North Charleston plant was a big departure for Boeing. For the first time it took away the final assembly of a jet from Boeings home turf in Seattle, and also away from the traditional engineering skill pool of Washington stateand the negotiating power of the unions based there. The 787 was a radical departure in the way jets were built, replacing the metal airframe with composites making it both lighter and stronger. It was also the first design that Boeing subjected to the scrutiny of passenger focus groups and airline crews, resulting in a cabin that in its climate and ergonomics has won passenger approval and loyalty. But the composite structure meant a steep learning curve for those who designed the new plant and its production lines. As production was stepped up there were mounting problems about reaching the demanding standards of how the finite precision of joining parts together could be met. This was the collision of interests that Barnett witnessed, between engineers who saw quality slipping away and managers who, in their turn, were being pressed to get the airplanes delivered, no matter what. Boeing Keeps Stretching the 737. Heres Why Thats a Big Problem. By 2020 the situation was so bad at North Charleston that over the next two years correcting production flaws resulted in abnormal costs of $6.3 billion. Analysts believe that Boeing will never see a profit from the 787 program. This inevitably affected the mindset of a new generation of top managers who were committed to the idea that Boeing should make money as readily as it made airplanes. If the Dreamliner made airlines and passengers happy but not money, where could they turn to for a milk cow? For years the 737 had been the best-selling single-aisle jet in the world, and Boeings only big profit maker. Given another life extension as the 737 MAX, with more fuel-efficient engines and avionics upgrades, it promised decades more of profits for a company that could, in effect, be used as an ATM for stockholders and senior executives between 2014 and 2018 alone it produced $53 billion in dividends and buybacks. That bonanza was cast into doubt when the two crashes involving the 737 MAX, in 2018 and 2019, killed 346 people. The crash investigation exposed the same corporate culture pressures that pervaded the 787 production line. Although the direct cause of the crashes was faulty software, managers at every point in the 737 MAX production chain felt the imperative from above to get airplanes delivered. And they hadthere were 387 of them flying worldwide when the whole fleet was grounded for twenty months. The CEO at the time of the crashes, Dennis Muilenburg, was firedbut he collected more than $80 million in pay and benefits. He was succeeded by Calhoun. The crash investigation found an unhealthy collusion between Boeing and the FAA in cutting corners to certify the airplane as safe. The FAA has since transformed its oversight of Boeing, putting every part of the design, testing and production of airplanes under intense scrutiny. But the Boeing management wanted a scapegoat andexhibiting a proclivity to reach down rather than up to place the blamelanded on a seasoned test pilot, Mark Forkner. It was Forkners job to assure airlines that pilots moving from the previous generation of the 737 to the 737 MAX would not need an expensive training course on simulators to adapt to the new jets cockpit. Should You Feel Safe Flying on a Boeing 737 MAX? Forkner became the only Boeing employee to face a criminal charge brought by the Department of Justice. There were conflicting views about whether Forkner had known about the fatal software flaw before the first crash and failed to warn the airlines. Forkner denied that he had. Four years after the crashes the case against Forkner collapsed. In 2022, after a four-day trial, he was found not guilty by a jury in Fort Worth, Texas. Today, Boeing veterans I have spoken to all point to the treatment of Forkner as a salutary example of the companys corporate practice: absolution for the top executives and selective punishment for anyone found to be overzealous in carrying out orders. This clearly has an intimidating effect on would-be whistleblowers, even though quality control on the 737 MAX production lines in Wichita, Texas and Seattle remain unable to meet required safety standards. This week The New York Times reported that a six-week audit of the production lines by the FAA found that Boeing failed 33 of the 89 audits. Meanwhile, NPR reported that Barnetts family said that he had been hoping that his day in court would force Boeing to change its culture. They added that he was suffering from PTSD and anxiety attacks as a result of being subjected to the hostile work environment at Boeing, which we believe led to his death. In 2019 Barnett told Ralph Nader that the stresses of being a whistleblower had taken a serious mental and emotional toll. He added that the last thing I wanted to do is wake up in the morning and see a 787 has gone down I mean, its just, it keeps me up at night. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Attorneys for Boeing whistleblower John Barnett, who police say died by suicide on Saturday, have claimed their client never gave any indication he would take his own life in the days leading up to his death. In a joint statement texted to The Daily Beast, Robert Turkewitz and Brian Knowles said Barnett, 62, was in very good spirits and excited to complete a deposition in his whistleblower retaliation case against Boeing. They added Barnett was in really looking forward to putting this phase of his life behind him and moving on. On the final day of his deposition, however, Barnett never showed, his attorneys had earlier told the BBC. They called in a welfare check, and police said he was eventually discovered inside a pickup truck parked at his Charleston hotels parking lot with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. We didnt see any indication he would take his own life. No one can believe it, the statement said. Boeing Whistleblower Found Dead Amid Testimony Against Company Now Turkewitz and Knowles are calling on police in South Carolina to launch a thorough investigation into Barnetts death, suggesting there may be more at play. John was a brave, honest man of the highest integrity, the statement said. He cared dearly about his family, his friends, the Boeing company, his Boeing co-workers, and the pilots and people who flew on Boeing aircraft. We have rarely met someone with a more sincere and forthright character. They continued: We need more information about what happened to John. The Charleston police need to investigate this fully and accurately and tell the public what they find out. No detail can be left unturned. There has been no suggestion from authorities that foul play was a factor in Barnetts death. Charleston police did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday night. Barnetts passing comes on the heels of a rough stretch for Boeing amid issues with its 737 Max jets. Barnett had filed a complaint against Boeing with the U.S. Labor Department in 2017, alleging Boeing retaliated against him for raising concerns about quality issues at a factory in his role as a quality manager. Those concerns had merit, the Federal Aviation Administration determined after an investigation into the airline giants manufacturing was launched because of Barnetts public pleas. He told The New York Times in 2019 that he was yet to see a plane leave Boeings factory in Charleston that hed put my name on saying its safe and airworthy. United Airlines Rough Week Somehow Just Got Worse Barnetts concerns were amplified after a pair Boeing 737 Max jets crashed in 2018 and 2019, and again after a fuselage panel blew out on a Max flight operated by Alaska Airlines earlier this year. Since that incident, federal investigators have found dozens of issues on other Boeing jets, the agency announced Monday. In a statement to the BBC, Boeing said it was saddened by Mr. Barnetts passing and our thoughts are with his family. If you or a loved one are struggling with suicidal thoughts, please reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by dialing or texting 988. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. PARIS Chanels collective of makeup artists discussed allure at the Palais de Tokyo. The three initial members of the Cometes Collective shared their thoughts Tuesday in one of the Paris museums vast, rough-hewn rooms. It marked the first time they made a public appearance together in Europe since Chanel revealed the collectives creation in October 2022. More from WWD Valentina Li, Ammy Drammeh and Cecile Paravina were at the time described by the house as a group of emerging talents shaping the future of beauty. They were signed on to accelerate the creative momentum of the Chanel Makeup Creation Studio and take a pluralistic vision of beauty through a collaborative effort. Drammeh is of Spanish and Gambian heritage, was raised in Spain and moved to London. Paravina was born in Belgium, went to school in Antwerp and then relocated to Paris. Li is a native of Guangxi, China, who studied makeup in Beijing and Paris. Valentina Li, a member of Chanels Cometes Collective. Cometes is French for comets, and was chosen as a moniker for the infinite possibilities the word invokes. Li said in the beginning she wondered how the three makeup artists could work as one, for the same brand. As a makeup artist, normally we work alone, she said. In terms of creations, we never share our visions with others. To be honest, its a bit lonely. At the outset she was a bit afraid of working with others in the collective. So Li secretly checked out their star signs to see if those jibed with hers. They did, and also, Li found an image from Paravina on her inspiration board and in her library there was a magazine whose cover Drammeh helped to create. The moment we met and started to talk about beauty, we clicked, Li said. The worry I had was completely gone. Each makeup artist works individually on ephemeral projects, such as seasonal collections, but they bounce ideas off each other and will collaborate on bigger projects looking ahead. Drammeh pointed out that its not unheard of to have more than one makeup artist at Chanel. Dominique Moncourtois and Heidi Morawetz together crafted the houses color cosmetics for almost three decades. It wasnt alien to Gabrielle Chanel. She collaborated with different creatives, Drammeh said. Were just following the path of the house. Ammy Drammeh, a member of Chanels Cometes Collective. Its one for which allure has always been key. To Paravina, allure is indistinguishable from movement. Theres really this idea of something that is flowing and really hard to grasp or to catch, she said. In that way it is really linked to beauty. Beauty, when you try to define it, stop it and frame it, it starts becoming ugly. At the outset, Li did not know the meaning of allure. For me, its very pure its like attraction, she said. It can be a sense of feeling, the smells of the ocean when you vacation at the beach. It can be a great idea that pops up in your head. Everyone has their own perspective of allure. Allures meaning is hard to grasp, said Drammeh, but thats the beauty. [Allure] might move you toward something or someone. So, I like to compare it with energy. Its something you find in objects, humans, friendships or places. Its a great starting point to create a [makeup] collection. For the making-of the summer 2024 collection, she was inspired by the allure of nature and colors Gabrielle Chanel developed from that, like raspberries, greens and purples. Lis first collection, for spring 2024, is already on the market. The moment I swim in the ocean, I feel this endless inspiration, this attraction like the ocean is calling me this ultimate freedom, she said. Youre isolated, but youre not alone, surrounded by this amazing marine life with so many different forms and colors, it keeps inspiring us. So the hues she chose for makeup were inspired by such sea creatures. Cecile Paravina, a member of Chanels Cometes Collective. Allure, to Paravina, has a sense of mystery. Its this intangible thing, but theres many facets, she said, explaining she tried in the fall 2024 collection to honor an element of Chanels personality: her passion for fortune telling. A little bit like a fortune teller, she foretold what the future of design was made of. Paravina explained it was not difficult for the collectives members to take the historic codes of the house and make them into their own, especially since they were able to visit Chanels patrimony. We have now access to an amazing archive and also even her own apartment we were able to visit it, she said. Thanks to this exclusive access to the house, we quickly picked up on a lot of things that were part of the ethos and what Gabrielle embodied. I was personally really touched by the way that she designed shes a no-compromise kind of woman, Paravana continued. [It] was super sincere. She had it all, Li said. What we do here is infuse our different perspectives of beauty. Were adding a little bit our twist inside. The market is super saturated with new ideas and new things. Whats important is to stay true to ourselves, Drammeh added. If we follow what Gabrielle Chanel was doing, she was really staying true to herself. Best of WWD Delta will relaunch nonstop service between New York's JFK and Venice Marco Polo Airport and add new service from Atlanta. scaliger/Getty Images Delta Air Lines has a stacked schedule to make it easier for travelers to get to Italy, with several new routes to Venice ahead of the summer. By the end of this month, Delta will relaunch nonstop service between its New York-JFK gateway and Venice Marco Polo Airport on a Boeing 767-300, configured with Delta One, Delta Premium Select, Delta Comfort+, and Main Cabin seats, the airline announced this week. This seasonal route will be operated daily through the end of October before being reduced to a 5x/weekly schedule. In addition, Delta will introduce two daily flights between its main hub in Atlanta and Venice this summer, giving U.S. travelers more options than ever to get to the City of Canals. These new routes are all bookable on Deltas website and mark a total of 17 weekly flights between the U.S. and Venice this summer. As one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Venice is hugely popular with U.S. travelers, and our flights bring valuable tourism and trade opportunities to the city and the region as well as unrivaled opportunities for Venetians looking to explore destinations across the Americas, Deltas senior vice president for Europe, Middle East, Africa, and India, Matteo Curcio, said in a statement. Were glad to offer customers increased choice this summer with flights from New York and additional service from Atlanta. The announcement comes as Delta plots its largest transatlantic schedule for Summer 2024 with a particular emphasis on Italy, operating nonstop routes to four cities: Milan, Naples, Rome, and Venice. With its European alliance partners Air France and Virgin Atlantic, Delta will be able to codeshare these new services to connect travelers from hundreds of cities worldwide to Italy. Travelers flying in premium cabins can look forward to Deltas newest airport lounge at its New York-JFK hub in Terminal 4 opening in the coming months. The nearly 40,000-square-foot space will boast a year-round outdoor terrace and a chefs kitchen, among other premium amenities. For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on Travel & Leisure. A month ago, riders traveled to South Africa for the first major freeride event of the year Darkfest. The riders hucked themselves down Sam Reynolds enormous jump line. As you can imagine on jumps that big, even pros had some close calls. Watch a compilation of sketchy moments from Darkfest below. In this video, riders got had narrow misses and slams on the enormous jumps. It is a surprise more of them did not get hurt. Related: Red Bull Rampage Rookie Crashes Spectacularly On 100+ Foot Jump Watching this compilation out of the context of hundreds of successful jumps from each rider can give the impression that these big jumps are dangerous. While everyone is fallible and will slip up eventually, professional riders are incredibly consistent on these jumps and they kept the crashes to a minimum. The biggest problem jump this year was the 110-foot gap jump. The site of the world record-setting backflip in 2023, the 110-footer had some variable conditions and caused some sketchy moments, including the two riders ditching their bikes and sliding down the landing seen in this video. Don't miss another headline from Bike Mag! Subscribe to our newsletter and stay connected with the latest happenings in the world of bike riding. We're always on the lookout for amusing, interesting, and engaging bike-related videos to feature on our channels. Whether you're a professional rider 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 Bike Mag and our social channels. Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch high-quality bike videos. A startup company called Space One launched a rocket earlier in hopes of becoming the first private entity in Japan to put a satellite in orbit. Unfortunately, its attempt ended in a fiery explosion, mere seconds after lift off at 11AM local time. Its 60-foot-long rocket Kairos launched from the company's Space Port Kii in Wakayama, a prefecture south of Osaka in Japan's Kansai region. Space One director Mamoru Endo told reporters at a conference that the rocket's automated system detected an anomaly five seconds after liftoff and triggered its self-destruct function. The company has yet to figure out what that anomaly is and will be investigating the incident for answers. Kairos was carrying payload for the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, which collects and analyzes imagery information for the Japanese government. That satellite was supposed to be an alternative to an existing Japanese satellite monitoring military facilities in and rocket launches from North Korea. Masakazu Toyoda, the company's president, said during the conference that Space One is "prepared to take up the next challenge." He also emphasized how common failed launches are in space travel. And that is true SpaceX, for instance, lost several Starship vehicles over the past few years when they blew up during testing. Space One, backed by Canon and aerospace manufacturer IHI, eventually hopes to offer satellite launch services using small rockets, which it says "offer greater scheduling flexibility than large ones." It's also aiming to provide the "world's shortest lead time from contractual engagement to launch, as well as the world's most frequent launching schedule" while also minimizing the costs of putting satellites into orbit. Since the company must be able to stage a successful launch before customers come knocking on its doors, it will most likely announce its next attempt in the near future. Last year, Japanese company ispace also failed to become the first private company to land on the moon when it lost contact with its Hakuto-R lander. But the country's space agency, JAXA, is doing better than its private counterparts: Its SLIM lunar lander successfully touched down in January and is expected to resume its operations in late March after the lunar night is over. It used to be that small towns were more affordable than big cities, but thats not really the case anymore. During the pandemic, Montana became a refuge for Americans who craved more space and a lower cost of living. Its no surprise, then, that the state is booming with buyers, and as a result, real estate is getting more expensive. In Bozeman, the so-called Queen City of the Rockies, the median sales price of a single-family home soared to $1.16 million in January. For context, thats a roughly 40 percent increase compared to a year prior, according to a new report from the Bozeman Real Estate Group. More from Robb Report The steady increase in buyers, combined with the lowest number of homes for sale that we had ever seen, drove the price of a home in Bozeman up faster than you can say powder day, the firm wrote in the report. From the start of 2021, the city saw a 60 percent spike in demand for homes, and at the same time, sales rose by 50 percent. According to Newsweek, the brokerage recorded a 300 percent increase in queries from affluent, out-of-town shoppers who wanted to relocate. Bozeman is rural, theres no doubt about that. But does a rural location matter when there are Zoom meetings and Google Hangouts along with direct flights to 21 major metropolitan areas? Throw in a global pandemic, and all of a sudden working remotely from a place like Bozeman seems like a pretty good idea, the real estate group told the magazine. In Bozeman, Montana, the median sales price of single-family homes in February was $1.16 million. Bozeman isnt the only small mountain town facing sky-high housing costs. In Colorado, which also experienced a COVID-fueled surge, workers and residents of Steamboat Springs are being pushed out of the remote community by wealthy transplants, NBC reported. In fact, the city has been unable to fill employee positions due to a lack of affordable housing. Houses used to be for employees and hotels for guests. Now houses are for guests and hotels are for employee housing, Loryn Duke, director of communications for the Steamboat ski resort, told NBC. We have a lot of great staff who are early in their careers or have young families, but they just arent able to put down those roots. Similarly, many small towns across the country, particularly those with a healthy tourism sector, now have median home values that rival those in bustling metros. In Jackson, Wyoming, the average home price clocks in at $670,100an average 8.57 times higher than the areas median household income. Best of Robb Report 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. CARACAS, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's oil production grew for the third consecutive month in February, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) reported Tuesday. According to an OPEC report, based on secondary sources, Venezuelan crude oil production reached 820,000 barrels per day (bpd) in February, after registering 804,000 bpd in January and 782,000 bpd in December 2023. Secondary sources may include oil price reporting agencies, news agencies, consultants and energy agencies. According to direct sources, those figures are higher, with Venezuela's oil production reaching 877,000 bpd in February, after registering 841,000 bpd in January and 802,000 bpd in December. OPEC's figures are well above the production averages registered by Venezuela in 2023: an estimated 749,000 bpd (secondary sources) or 783,000 bpd (direct sources). The hydrocarbons industry has traditionally been the South American country's main source of foreign revenue. According to OPEC's official averages, Venezuela has seen a slow but steady recovery in oil production since registering 684,000 bpd in 2022 according to secondary sources or 716,000 bpd according to direct sources. Venezuelan authorities maintain the decline in its crude oil production since 2017 is due to sanctions imposed by the United States against state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA). Sweden is considering reinforcing Gotland, a strategic island in the Baltic Sea, after joining NATO. Gotland's fortification is one of the first topics to be discussed with the bloc, Sweden's PM told the FT. Gotland can decisively impact the defense of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, and Poland due to its location. Sweden is open to re-fortifying a crucial island in the Baltic Sea now that it's joined NATO, its prime minister said. Ulf Kristersson told The Financial Times that reinforcing Gotland is among the first things that Sweden will discuss with its NATO partners following the country joining the military alliance. Gotland, an island with a population of about 60,000, sits roughly 50 miles from the Swedish coast and 150 miles from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. Strengthening Gotland "is one obvious thing to be discussed with our new NATO allies," Kristersson told the FT. "Everything to do with the Baltic Sea is such an obvious candidate," Kristersson said. "That goes in terms of presence on Gotland, but also in terms of surveillance, in terms of submarine capabilities." Gotland marked with an arrow in the Baltic Sea. Google Maps/Business Insider Sweden's membership of NATO was formalized last week, a move that is considered somewhat of a game changer for the bloc's ability to counter potential Russian aggression, as Business Insider's Tom Porter reported. Gotland is considered to hold a key strategic position in the Baltic Sea, and is often referred to as an "unsinkable aircraft carrier." For NATO, "the control of Gotland can make a decisive difference in the defense of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, and Poland," Atlantic Council analysts Anna Wieslander and Eric Adamson wrote last year. Sweden's military presence on the island has fluctuated in recent years. It was demilitarized in 2005 amid relatively optimistic post-Cold War relations but in 2018, after Russia's annexation of Crimea, Sweden re-commissioned an armored regiment there. In April 2022, two months into Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Swedish government announced a $160 million investment in the island's military infrastructure. Today, about 370 soldiers are stationed there, according to the FT. Leopard 2 tanks, CV90 armored vehicles, and an air defense system are also active there, according to the Atlantic Council. Sweden has shifted dramatically from its prior neutral status in recent years. In January, its civil defense minister, Carl-Oskar Bohlin, bluntly warned that "there could be war in Sweden," alarming some opposition politicians, the BBC reported. This year Sweden is also among 18 countries projected to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP NATO's recommended threshold as Russia puts its economy on a further war footing. Read the original article on Business Insider The US has increased its focus on readying a force to fight in the Arctic. After over 20 years in the Middle East, the Army established a new strategy for cold-weather combat. As Russia and China hope to gain further power in the region, the US hopes to strengthen its position. In the last few years, the US has intensified its focus on the frozen north, preparing its forces to dominate, if necessary, in the Arctic. The move reflects growing concerns about activities by Russia and China, who want to expand their access to the Arctic for trade, resources, and power projection into this strategic area. At US Army Pacific's Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center training event near Fairbanks, Alaska, last month, soldiers told Business Insider about the importance of rebuilding a cold-weather fighting force to deter American adversaries in the region. "The mission in the Arctic, the mission in the extreme cold, it's important to our Army, it's important to our nation," Col. Sean Lucas said, "and it's important to our adversaries as well. So, our ability to operate here is required. How we operate here is what we're trying to figure out, and what we're trying to master." The two-week JPMRC Alaska training exercise involved over 8,000 troops from the 11th Airborne Division, as well as international allies and partners. JPMRC also does a rotation in Hawaii for jungle training. The event is among the Army's newer combat training exercises, only three years old, and is an opportunity, soldiers said, to innovate and experiment. But it doesn't come without its stresses. The US is entering a new era of tense strategic competition in the Arctic, and as more rivals are active in the region, the more potential there is for conflict. U.S. Soldiers assigned to 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division, move to their objective outside of Utqiagvik, Alaska as part of Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Training Center 24-02, Feb. 15, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Pfc. Brandon Vasquez Back in 2021, the US Army released its new strategy on regaining Arctic dominance, leading to the reorganization of its Alaskan forces and priorities. It acknowledged that rapidly melting sea ice in the Arctic Circle, warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, was "opening up new opportunities for natural resource extraction, shipping routes, and commercial fishing," leading to a more navigable Arctic. With the melting ice comes increased access and greater unpredictability in the region. Extreme temperature variation, from repeated freezing and thawing cycles to reductions in the permafrost, raises questions about how to maintain infrastructure and consistently navigate water routes and land in the area. While the US has maintained a focus on its military presence in Alaska and its ability to project power across the Arctic since World War II, the height of that focus came during the Cold War. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the later rise of counterinsurgency warfare in the Middle East, the Army became preoccupied, letting its Arctic skills deteriorate. Now, its forces are hoping to rebuild the Arctic muscles that atrophied over the last 20 years. Part of that process means building up a stronger military presence in the area to strengthen relations with allies like Canada and Denmark. It also means using that presence to deter Russia and China. A US Army Soldier from 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division, leaves Donnelly Drop Zone after airborne operations as part of Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb 8, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Spc.Wyatt Moore / 28th Public Affairs Detachment The ever-changing, challenging Arctic tundra is increasingly becoming more of a hotbed for US adversaries than ever. In that 2021 strategy guide, US Army leaders said, "Russia seeks to consolidate sovereign claims" in the Arctic "and control access to the region," developing a strategy for the region that is contrary to that of the US. "Russian military developments in the region are by far the most advanced driver of great power competition," they wrote, pushing the US to find new ways to counter them. Moscow's further investment in the area is seen in its moves to refurbish Soviet-era airfields and military bases and deploy more air- and missile-defense units across the Arctic, as well as throw its weight around and claim more of the Arctic sea shelf. And then there's China, which sees the vast Arctic region "as a new strategic frontier," a place "where there is 'undetermined sovereignty,' suggesting a justification for access and presence in the high North." "Sovereign ambiguity allows China to justify access to the region and potentially utilize military means to do so," US Army leaders wrote in their strategy guide. All Arctic nations are keeping an eye on what could be seen as increased access to energy, minerals, and resources in the Arctic. The bounty there is critical for the survival of the Russian economy, US Army leaders said, and necessary for China. That could lead to increased competition in the region, and in turn, tension. In a 2024 Annual Threat Assessment from the US intelligence community, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence wrote: "Competition over access and economic resources in the Arctic, as sea ice recedes, increases the risk of miscalculation, particularly while there is military tension between Russia and the other seven countries with Arctic territory." In this situation, China also appears to be balancing its level of support for Russia in order to secure "favorable energy prices and greater access to the Arctic," the report added. US Army Soldiers assigned to the 11th Airborne Division patrol on snow machines during the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 exercise at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 17, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Spc. Abreanna Goodrich With China's increasing presence in the region and Russia's growing ambitions, Army leaders say the US must adapt like its rivals. The US is reinvesting in its cold-weather forces, focusing on building up enough presence and power to effectively deter conflict and training them to fight in unpredictable conditions should deterrence fail. At the recent JPMRC training event, USARPAC leaders said the strategy was part of a larger push by the Department of Defense to counter Russia and China particularly the latter, which has been identified as the US' "pacing challenge." For the Army, fighting in the Arctic would be mobile, innovative, and unpredictable. At JPMRC, troops trained to adjust in real time to changes in the environment and weather. Army paratroopers practiced jumps into enemy territory, while artillery focused on how to navigate various ground conditions. Attack helicopters conducted simulated deep-strike attack runs, navigating air defenses and electronic warfare to reach and destroy their targets. Medics, too, were busy during JPMRC, figuring out solutions for caring for patients in this challenging region. "I've practiced as a medic for 13 years, and this is definitely the hardest environment that I've worked in," Sgt. First Class Zachary Burns told BI, noting the difficulty it takes to house medical supplies, reach or retrieve injured soldiers on the battlefield, and care for patients in extremely cold temperatures. While also taking care of various injuries, the medics also have to worry about soldiers suffering from hypothermia. The intense cold can completely change how they conduct wound care, as affected areas have to be protected from exposure to the elements. And blood transfusions are also complicated by the cold temperatures, leading to experiments with soldiers serving as a "walking blood bank." Medics would have a living person serve as a donor for injured troops. U S Army Spc. Sammantha Ohm assigned to 5th Squadron, 1st Calvary Regiment, Delta Co, 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division pulls security on the M2HB .50-caliber machine gun during the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 exercise at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 17, 2024. US Army/Spc. Abreanna Goodrich In their 2021 strategy, Army leaders said the priority was also to "employ calibrated force posture and multi-domain formations," on land, in the sky, and in other areas, which "creates new options for joint force commanders to achieve their missions." The problem, they added, was that the Arctic had its own set of problems "significant distances, lack of commercial and military infrastructure, and harsh climates" that had made Arctic campaigns relatively small and decided mainly by the quality of troops. For that reason, the Army appears to be encouraging its Arctic soldiers to be creative and able to adapt to whatever conditions or situations they might encounter. At JPMRC, soldiers told BI they were being encouraged to find solutions in the moment to a variety of problems, whether that be keeping warm in subzero temperatures, pulling off a "whiteout" landing in an attack helicopter, or navigating snowy forests and frozen open fields. "Our soldiers here are encouraged to innovate," Command Sgt. Maj. Joseph Gaskin said. "We don't have all the answers for this environment," he added, and while conducting war games, troops are figuring it out in real time. "They have the answers to a lot of these problems that we have," he said. Read the original article on Business Insider In the quest to create the most delicious Irish coffee ever, we spoke to Molly Horn, manager of cocktail strategy at Total Wine & More. She revealed the secret to elevating this classic libation: the addition of Demerara sugar. As Horn told Mashed, this sweet element brings a more pleasant palate to the caffeinated, boozy beverage by mellowing out the innate bitterness of coffee and Irish whiskey. Many conventional Irish coffee recipes call for brown sugar to be dissolved into the coffee-meets-whiskey concoction. The sugar serves to harmonize the diverse elements, resulting in a well-rounded potable that can be enjoyed on St. Paddy's Day or any other occasion. Horn emphasizes the importance of balance, asserting that the acidity of hot coffee and the gentle aura of Irish whiskey find their equilibrium with a spoonful of sugar. Demerara sugar, Horn's sweetener of choice, is hailed for its mild, rich flavor and naturally tanned hue. Though it is often mistaken for a variety of brown sugar, there are some real differences between Demerara sugar and brown sugar, including the addition of molasses to the latter. Understanding the unique qualities of Demerara sugar is crucial to appreciating its role in enhancing the caife Gaelach experience. The light brown, partially-refined sugar, which originates from the Demerara region in Guyana, boasts large, golden crystals and a caramel-like flavor. Its distinct characteristics make it ideal for enhancing the Irish coffee without overpowering the delicate essence of the distilled spirit. Read more: Popular K-Cups, Ranked Worst To Best Demerara Sugar Offers A Touch Of Sweetness Spoonful of Demerara sugar - rodrigobark/Shutterstock Demerara sugar emerges as a crucial ingredient in Molly Horn's recipe for Irish coffee. Traditional light and dark brown sugars carry bold notes of molasses that can potentially overshadow the nuances of uisce beatha ("water of life," the term for whiskey in the Emerald Isle). For this reason, Horn recommends Demerara sugar as the best way to infuse the drink with sweetness without overwhelming intensity. If you don't have Demerara sugar at the ready, there are a few substitutes for Demerara sugar that do the trick. Horn prefers agave nectar over conventional brown sugars, emphasizing the need for a sweetener that complements the cocktail's strong flavors rather than dominating them. Horn shared some valuable Irish coffee-making tips for skilled mixologists and home bartenders alike. For one, she advocates for tempering the glassware by letting it sit with hot water for a minute before rustling up a mug. "You don't want a cold or room-temperature glass to bring your coffee down in temperature, especially because you're adding room-temperature whiskey and you need the sugar to dissolve into the mixture." Horn advises pouring the coffee into the glass before adding the sugar and then giving it a few stirs before introducing the whiskey. This meticulous approach allows the sugar to integrate seamlessly, contributing to a well-balanced Irish coffee experience. Read the original article on Mashed. Traveling by yourself can feel scary and exciting at the same time, especially if you're a woman. Azmanjaka / Getty Images So I'm curious: If you identify as a woman and have traveled somewhere by yourself, what is the best destination you traveled solo and why? For instance, did you take a solo trip to Copenhagen, Denmark, and were pleasantly surprised by the coffee scene, which made you feel close to the community? Xsandra / Getty Images Or perhaps you visited Washington, D.C., and never felt bored while exploring all the museums it has to offer. Finally, maybe you loved going to Japan by yourself because you felt incredibly safe, even though you were in a huge city like Tokyo. Davidf / Getty Images Also, do you recommend any tips or tricks if another woman decides to travel to these places by herself, too? For instance, maybe you'd recommend staying in a very specific hotel in Washington, D.C., because of their top-notch security. Or perhaps you'd suggest not exploring a certain part of Tokyo. Catherine Falls Commercial / Getty Images If the above resonates with you and if you identify as a woman, please share the destination you loved visiting as a solo traveler and why. Plus, the tips or tricks you would recommend for this place in the Google Form or comments below to possibly be featured in a BuzzFeed Community post. Americans are often envious that McDonald's has menu items that are only available outside of the U.S., such as arepas and churros. Now, McDonald's Japan is giving international fans a new thing to covet from afar: french fry-scented perfume. According to Fresh Plaza, McDonald's Japan is set to release a line of perfumes designed to mimic the distinct scent of McDonald's french fries. Although McDonald's restaurants in the U.S. only offer fries in one flavor, McDonald's Japan also sells Shaka Shaka Potatoes; after finding success with the Shaka Shaka Chicken, McDonald's Japan decided to build on that success, giving customers the option to shake their fries with different flavored seasoning packets. In a sort of tribute to those flavors, the perfume collection will include the classic salted McFries scent, as well as two Shaka Shaka flavors: plum nori seaweed salt and garlic black pepper mayo. While this may seem hard to believe, McDonald's Japan apparently confirmed the move with a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. Read more: McDonald's Menu Items That Even The Staff Won't Eat You'll Smell Good Enough To Eat French fries on wooden table - Lomonosov Alex/Shutterstock Although McDonald's Japan is known for its quirky collaborations, even local fans couldn't believe their eyes. "It's not April 1st yet...," one commenter wrote on X. McDonald's post also did little to quell suspicions. In front of an image of a person spritzing perfume on their outstretched neck are the three perfume bottles, made to look perfectly like their respective french fry containers. The McFries scent, of course, has the red rectangular packaging with the iconic yellow "M." The plum nori seaweed salt and garlic black pepper mayo bottles, on the other hand, are made to look like tiny, white Shaka Shaka bags -- a visual almost too surreal to accept as genuine. This isn't the first time a french fry-scented perfume took the internet by storm. In February 2022 just before Valentine's Day The Idaho Potato Commission released a limited edition perfume that made you smell just like Idaho Potato french fries. McDonald's Japan has yet to release any additional information about the price or release date of this perfume collection. If it is a legitimate product offering for McDonald's customers in Japan, though, it might only be a matter of time before fans from across the world book flights to the island nation just to snag a bottle. Read the original article on Mashed. PROVIDENCE Robert Pena and his partners in PVD Flowers have planned a fundraiser for Wednesday evening at the Point Tavern as they pursue becoming the states first worker-owned cooperative marijuana store. Theyre looking to attract investors and generate community interest in an enterprise only now possible with the passage two years ago of legal recreational marijuana. But their ambitions are outpacing whats immediately feasible. The states Cannabis Control Commission, which has only been in existence since June, must still, among many other decisions to be made, determine how six regional co-op retail licenses up for grabs will be issued, and who will qualify as eligible applicants. The same holds true for the six so-called social equity retail licenses, which the legalization law also reserves to help minorities and their communities disproportionally hurt by past drug prosecution enter the marijuana business. A marijuana plant. Pena says he and his business partners, who have been working on a co-op business plan for almost a year, are anxious and essentially stalled from moving forward until the Cannabis Control Commission finishes writing the rules for the new program. Oh yeah. I feel like weve been ready to accept a license for a while, but we are kind of stopped, just from a legal standpoint because there are no licenses to apply for. It forces us to change our business plan. We might have to wait a year-and-a-half to even get a license, never mind open up a [marijuana] dispensary. $1.1M held for social equity applicants but no one to give it to Other questions linger around another special provision of the legalization law: the newly created state social equity assistance fund. Funded through the license fees of some 60 operating marijuana cultivators and seven dispensaries, the fund was established to offer financial assistance and business guidance to qualified social equity applicants wanting to get into the marijuana industry. (The fund currently stands at about $1.1 million.) What qualifications will be necessary for applicants to receive state financial assistance? How much could each applicant receive? The details of the future program are still being crafted and reviewed and are not yet ready to be shared publicly, Matthew Touchette, spokesman for the Department of Business Regulation, said in an email. The Cannabis Control Commission is actively engaged in efforts to create and establish the details of Rhode Islands social equity program, including hosting several public listening sessions, meeting with stakeholders, and learning from programs established in other states. The commission aims to complete its work by years end, said Touchette. More: RI's first pot co-op hopes to light the way toward social equity for cannabis businesses Bill would put more money into the still untapped social equity fund Meanwhile, there is concern among social equity advocates that the social equity fund wont be big enough for everyone it is intended to support, considering, they say, that the cost for each social equity applicant to get a business off the ground could exceed $1 million. State Rep. Leonela Felix is sponsoring a bill this legislative session (H7855) to create an additional revenue stream for the social equity fund to grow the pot of assistance. The bill would redirect half of the states 10% excise tax now levied on recreational pot sales and distribute that money evenly between the social equity fund and a new fund earmarked for improvements in "disproportionate impacted areas," like housing. (In the first full year of recreational pot sales, from December 2022 through December 2023, recreational cannabis sales amounted to $77,655,420.) The bill would also close a loophole, Felix says, that now exists in the current legalization law which potentially allows anyone with a lot of money who donates in some way to a disproportionately impacted area to qualify for a social equity license, reserved for a minority. As written right now, someone like [Amazon founder] Jeff Bezos could give to a disproportionate impacted area and qualify for a social equity license, she says. We want to make sure these licenses and these monies are really earmarked for the purposes they were intended. More than a year after legalization, no social equity rules yet The 2022 Rhode Island Cannabis Act that legalized recreational marijuana gave the Cannabis Commission some guidance in getting the social equity program started. It defines a social equity applicant as someone who has been disproportionately impacted by criminal enforcement of marijuana laws, including individuals convicted of nonviolent marijuana offenses, immediate family members of individuals convicted of nonviolent marijuana offenses and individuals who have resided in disproportionately impacted areas for at least five of the last 10 years as determined by the commission after consultation with the cannabis advisory board. But the commission must still create guidelines to determine how to assess which communities have been disproportionately impacted and how to assess if someone is a member of a community disproportionately impacted. It will all take time. Much of the early guideline discussions are being hashed out by the Cannabis Commissions 18-member advisory board. Felix says Id rather they get things right than rush through the process and then we regret going too quickly. Because once we [award] a [retail] license, we wont be able to, as I see it, just take it back. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI taxes cannabis businesses for social equity fund; none has been spent COLOMBO, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka is to introduce a modern multi-day fishing trawler equipped with advanced technology and operational methods to enhance the fishing industry, a state minister said on Wednesday. Addressing a press conference at the Presidential Media Center, State Minister of Fisheries Piyal Nishantha de Silva said the development of the new trawler is conducted under the Ocean Freight Replenishment Program (OFRP), to align with changing times and incorporate climate change and alternative technologies, he said. The government is also holding discussions with relevant institutions regarding the introduction of mechanical boats and boats utilizing solar technology, emphasizing a commitment to embracing environmentally friendly and sustainable practices, he added. The state minister said that a fishing vessel monitoring system has been installed in 2,350 multi-day fishing trawlers in the country. The fisheries sector plays a pivotal role in Sri Lanka's social and economic life, with some 2.4 million people directly and indirectly employed in this sector. A man has been charged for a deadly shooting at a convenience store Wednesday on the Concord-Huntersville line. ALSO READ: One person hospitalized after shooting in northeast Charlotte It happened around 8 a.m. Wednesday at the 7-Eleven on Ellenwood Road off of Harris Road. Concord Police Department officers found the victim, 38-year-old Michael Edward Pride Jr., outside the store. He had died after being shot. Police said they were investigating the case as a homicide. Witnesses told Channel 9s Joe Bruno they heard multiple gunshots. Bruno found shell casings scattered throughout the parking lot. Concord PD confirms a homicide at the 7-Eleven in Concord on Ellenwood near the Meck Co line. One person is dead. Shell casings are scattered throughout the parking lot. Witness heard multiple shots. Not looking for any suspects @wsoctv pic.twitter.com/Grrzdp5xCo Joe Bruno (@JoeBrunoWSOC9) March 13, 2024 Concord police told Channel 9 everyone involved had been identified and was accounted for. There is no threat to the public. Its not clear what led up to the incident. Police said the suspect, 23-year-old Salverio Antonio Campagna, has been charged with murder. He was taken to the Cabarrus County jail where he is being held without bond. A man has been charged for a deadly shooting at a 7-Eleven near the Concord-Huntersville line. Police said the suspect, 23-year-old Salverio Antonio Campagna, has been charged with murder. No further information was released. (WATCH BELOW: Police investigating deadly shooting near South End) CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) At least one person was injured in a crash that completely shut down an intersection in Clarksville, officials said. According to the Clarksville Police Department, the crash occurred just before 11:30 a.m. at the intersection of Madison Street and Richview Road on Wednesday, March 13. Have breaking come to you: Subscribe to News 2 email alerts Authorities reported one person had to be removed from a vehicle and was flown to a Nashville hospital for treatment. There is no word on the extent of their injuries. Madison Street will stay closed until crews are able to clear the scene, police said. Its unclear when the roadway will completely reopen. | READ MORE | Latest headlines from Clarksville and Montgomery County According to officials, eastbound traffic is being diverted into Alfred Drive. Meanwhile, westbound traffic is being diverted on Richview Road. No other information about the crash was immediately released. Download the News 2 app to stay updated on the go. Sign up for WKRN email alerts to have breaking news sent to your inbox. Find todays top stories on WKRN.com for Nashville, TN and all of Middle Tennessee. This is a developing story. WKRN News 2 will continue to update this article as new information becomes available. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRN News 2. A person has been hospitalized following a house fire early Wednesday morning, according to the Concord Fire Department. Firefighters said they responded to a fire at a home on James Street Southwest just before 1:45 a.m. At the scene, they found heavy smoke and fire coming from the single-story home. ALSO READ: Grandfather dies in east Charlotte house fire, paramedics say Firefighters were able to get it under control within 10 minutes. However, one person had to be rescued from the home. They were transported to an area hospital with life-threatening injuries, according to firefighters. The Cabarrus County Red Cross will be assisting the six residents who were impacted. VIDEO: Man dies in east Charlotte house fire, paramedics say One person is in the hospital after a shooting in Dayton Tuesday night, according to Dayton Police Sergeant James Gallagher. After 8:45 p.m., police received reports that someone showed up at a local hospital with a gunshot wound, according to a Montgomery County dispatch supervisor. Gallagher said he was told the victim was shot in the face, but sustained non-life-threatening injuries. >> Man shot outside Dayton grocery store, police investigating Police responded to the hospital and the victim told them the shooting happened in the 5000 block of Eichelberger Avenue. Gallagher said this shooting appears to be a neighbor dispute. A person of interest is currently in police custody, Gallagher said. We will continue to follow this story. Kennewick is bringing in a new method to help an area of the city that has seen skyrocketing 911 calls. Last year, officers were called more than 280 times to a 1-mile stretch of Clearwater Avenue for problems ranging from thefts to loitering to overdoses and assaults. Kennewick police told the Tri-City Herald that rampant drug use in the area has led to other related crimes and its taking a toll on business owners and residents in the area that stretches from North Arthur Street near WinCo Foods to North Morain near Walkers Furniture. The Kennewick City Council voted unanimously to shift the area into its no Sit-Lie zone ordinance, swapping it for a stretch of Canal Drive that police say is no longer a big trouble spot. Its a tool that police already have seen success with in downtown Kennewick less than a year after implementing a zone there, Stephanie Button, director of the Historic Downtown Kennewick Partnership, told the Herald. The new zone encompasses just a few blocks of commercial and retail space with residential neighborhoods to the north and south. The new Sit-Lie zone for Clearwater Avenue includes WinCo, Maveriks Adventure Stop and several smaller shopping areas. Its second one on Clearwater and one of four total in the city. New Sit-Lie zone Assistant City Attorney Laurencio Sanguino told the council that the WinCo shopping area is getting more calls than any other business in the city. Clearwater Avenue is the most important patrol area and WinCo is the most frequent caller in the city, and the second most frequent is Walmart, Sanguino said. Kennewick police investigate a hit-and-run domestic violence incident in the parking lot of a Kennewick apartment complex on North Union Street. But instead of adopting a new ordinance, officials instead updated the existing Sit-Lie code to substitute the Clearwater hot spot for the Canal Drive stretch. The Canal Drive area was between North Kellogg Street and North Young Street, and it included The Colonnade and Canal Crossing shopping centers. That stretch had just three calls for police last year. These Sit-Lie ordinances are often seen in areas where businesses are struggling with issues related to homelessness, drug use or street crimes. They prohibit certain types of activity between 6 a.m. and midnight, with exceptions such as medical emergencies, business uses and people waiting to catch a bus. It allows police an enforcement mechanism to encourage people causing problems to leave the area and is enforceable with a misdemeanor charge if necessary. They are not public camping bans, though other Washington cities have run into trouble for trying to tie the two together. Ordinances like this are never taken lightly, this wasnt a knee jerk reaction. It was built on several years of data collection, Button said. Its important to recognize that people have a right to exist and its hard, we realize that, but we needed a solution that would allow us to conduct our business. In 2023, the area around WinCo received calls for 36 welfare checks, 20 calls for suspicious activity, 14 for drug activity, 11 calls for loitering and three suspected overdoses, according Kennewick police data. By far the largest number of calls was for thefts at 131, followed by 47 trespassing calls. There also were two assaults reported and two calls for destruction of property. Kennewick police responded to six weapons complaints in the same area. It provides officers with more to work with, which hopefully will lead to a decrease in calls for service. As you can imagine when (someone) is charged with theft or trespassed, they remain in the area, Sanguino said. It increases the likelihood that residents leave the area after officers contact them. The city also heard from both council members and the public over the past year about drug use at Union Street and Clearwater near the Maverik. Council members Loren Anderson and Jason McShane mentioned seeing issues on the side streets as well, such as North Volland Street. Thats a common area for drug use and people camping out, Anderson said. I pass through there regularly and its very common. The area near Maverik was cited as one of the areas where public drug use was most visible when the council passed new public drug use ordinances last year. If you remember, this is where the drug ordinance originated from because residents there saw a concentrated number of residents using or disposing in or around WinCo, Sanguino said. While the city now has ordinances to help discourage public drug use and disposal of paraphernalia, such as foil used to smoke fentanyl, those tools require a much narrower set of circumstances. With the Sit-Lie area, the hope is that when someone is caught stealing from a business or causing a disturbance, they wont remain in the area causing more problems. A homeless man holds a sign in September 2022 at the entrance to the WinCo grocery store on West Clearwater Avenue in Kennewick. Making a difference Button said the city was able to tailor the ordinance in a way that wouldnt punish people who werent being disruptive or engaging in illegal activities in the downtown area. She said the combination of the ordinances has started to make a real difference, and gone a long way to help business owners and customers feel safer. It takes thought, it takes an understanding of the environment, she said. Its just one tool in our toolkit with our partners across the city. We believe in a clean, safe, connected downtown Kennewick. Button said they worked with police and city staff to weigh options that would allow business owners to protect themselves and their customers, while also recognizing that someone might be struggling. She said that the organization didnt want to infringe on anyones right to public spaces, but because their businesses front sidewalks and most have no parking lots, owners needed some kind of recourse to rising crime, public drug use and disruptive behavior blocking the walkways into their stores. We think its helping. When we would have gatherings of individuals we did see open drug use. I think it was at its worst the summer of 2022 and we were seeing a lot of open drug use in parking lots, street corners and on benches, she said. We have also observed a decrease in the number of sharps (such as needles) and paraphernalia. We think it has created a greater sense of safety now that theres something that can be done about it. She said theyre also ready to partner with the Columbia Valley Center for Recovery, the regions first public behavioral health center, which will be located downtown. Its set to open within the next two years. Kennewick police investigate a hit-and-run domestic violence incident in the parking lot of a Kennewick apartment complex on North Union Street. Data driven changes Kennewick Police Chief Chris Guerrero said the department planned to gather more data and come back to council in the future if it supported expanding the zone near Winco to Hood Avenue to the north and Union Street and the Kennewick Avenue intersection to the south. Kennewick police Commander Isaac Merkl told the Herald that the department used data and feedback from community members to assess whether this stretch of Clearwater being shifted to a Sit-Lie area would have more of an impact on public safety than the Canal zone. The calls range from all over the map but some of the consistent issues there besides theft were drug use, were welfare checks on people experiencing the effects of drug use and the other activities that come with the constant impact of drug use in the area, Merkl said. Kamiakin High School is just a few blocks from the new zone, and hundreds of students walk to school along Edison Street to the west and Arthur Street to the East. They also stop at businesses along the way. Ensuring their safety while doing so is a priority for Kennewick police. Kennewick police officers investigate the scene of a 2021 hit-and-run in the parking lot of a Kennewick apartment complex next to WinCo Foods. The city has approved a new ordinance for that troubled stretch of Clearwater Avenue. Any time we have youths out walking about we want them to feel like they dont have a care in the world and theyre safe and can be a kid., Merkl said We have to look at that (crime in the area) and see how that can impact our children. The neighborhoods around the area also saw a lot of high profile crime in 2023, including the murder of Arthur Amaya at a nearby apartment complex and several drive-by shootings. Interim City Manager Lisa Beaton, who is the city attorney, said that the areas need to be narrowly defined in order to keep the city from being opened up to legal action. Beaton said that previous legal challenges in the state show that there must be a business impact. Canal didnt seem to be as much of a problem, whereas clearly this area of Clearwater there is. Theres a nexus between the conduct thats occurring impacting our business areas, she said. Merkl said their goal is to prioritize safety in the area and improve quality of life for business owners and residents. Were constantly looking at the data and figuring out how we can best use our resources to protect these hot spots, he said. Concerned residents or business owners can reach out to Kennewick police to discuss issues in their community by calling the departments non-emergency number at 509-628-0333. The four areas of Kennewick where the Sit-Lie ordinance is in place include: Clearwater Avenue to Kennewick Avenue, between Yelm Street and Huntington Street. 24th Street to 28th Street, between Tweedt Street and Olson Street. Clearwater Avenue between Arthur Street and Morain Street. 1st Avenue to Canal Drive between Dayton Street and Washington Street. CHICAGO An 11-year-old boy was killed and his pregnant mother was critically injured Wednesday morning in Edgewater. According to police, officers were dispatched to the 5900 block of North Ravenswood at around 8 a.m. Police said 11-year-old boy, later identified as Jaydone Perkins, sustained multiple stab wounds to his chest. He was pronounced dead at the hospital. The circumstances around his homicide are unclear at this time. A 33-year-old woman sustained multiple stab wounds to the body. She was transported in critical condition to St. Francis. According to neighbors, the woman is eight months pregnant and is the mother of the slain boy. She lived in the apartment with her fiance, Jaydone and a younger son. Im devastated. I live on this compound. I have a two-year-old, 7-year-old and 11-year-old and I just cant wrap my head around it. The summertime comes around, him and my daughter play in the yard together, well-mannered child. Its going to be hard to break this news to my daughter that she lost a friend, a neighbor said. Chicago Public Schools released a statement Wednesday evening, saying, With great sadness, we are devastated at the loss of another young life. The thoughts and condolences of the entire Chicago Public Schools (CPS) family are with all those impacted by this tragedy. One neighbor noted that they heard screaming in the morning. She was a loveable woman and her son was very well-mannered and he spoke to me all the time and Im sorry for this tragedy, a neighbor said. Teen girl among 5 killed in rash of overnight gun violence across Chicago A person of interest was later taken into custody, CPD said in the afternoon. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. Products advertised as containing synthetically derived delta-8 THC are offered for sale at a smoke shop in Seattle. (Gene Johnson / Associated Press) A molecular lookalike of the intoxicating compound found in marijuana has become popular among teens in the United States, especially in areas where marijuana use is illegal, a new study shows. More than 11% of high school seniors who took part in a national survey last spring said they had used delta-8 THC, a psychoactive compound typically derived from hemp, in the last year. That figure surprised researchers at USC and the University of Michigan, who published their findings this week in the Journal of the American Medical Assn. Products containing delta-8 "have really only been on the market since 2018," said study leader Alyssa Harlow, a USC epidemiologist and faculty member of the school's Institute for Addiction Science. Gummies, vapes and other products containing delta-8 are available online and in gas stations and convenience stores. They are often marketed as a federally legal substitute for marijuana and often without solid measures for age verification. "We don't know enough about these drugs, but we see that they are already extremely accessible to teens," said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which helped fund the research. "Cannabis use in general has been associated with negative impacts on the adolescent brain." Delta-8 looks much like delta-9 THC the more common molecule in cannabis that makes people feel high but has a slightly different structure, with a double bond located between a different set of carbon atoms. Although both are naturally found in cannabis, delta-8 is less abundant. In a 2021 survey, delta-8 users reported it to have less intense effects than delta-9, on average. But the Food and Drug Administration has warned consumers that it has not evaluated the safety of delta-8 products. Chemicals used to convert cannabinoids found in hemp into delta-8 may include harmful contaminants, the agency cautioned. Read more: Overwhelmed by all the non-THC cannabis compounds? Our weed guru breaks it down Products containing delta-8 exploded in popularity after the 2018 passage of an agricultural bill that eased federal restrictions on hemp and created a legal loophole for the compound. The Agriculture Improvement Act allowed for the broader production of hemp, "which is cannabis that has only a very small amount of delta-9 THC," said Ziva Cooper, director of the UCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids. That opened the door for people to extract chemical compounds from hemp, such as CBD, and convert them into other substances that can produce intoxicating effects, she said. The result was that "delta-8 THC now seems to be legal, because it's not specifically banned," Cooper said. However, another federal law restricts a broader category of compounds that includes delta-8, she said, making things "very, very confusing." Some states have restricted or banned delta-8. But as of November, the National Cannabis Industry Assn. described it as "de facto legal" in nearly half of the states. The new findings on teen use of delta-8 come from the annual Monitoring the Future survey, a NIDA-funded project that asks U.S. adolescents about drug and alcohol use. Some were using delta-8 fairly frequently: Among high school seniors who said they had used it in the previous year, more than a third said they had done so 10 or more times during that period. It's unclear whether delta-8 affects teens differently than other forms of THC, but "even if it's the same as other forms, we're not in favor of 13-, 14- and 15-year-olds using cannabis," said Dr. Wilson M. Compton, NIDA's deputy director. For teens, "we'd be concerned about its impact on learning and memory and day-to-day brain function," Compton said. "There are also concerns about its use being associated with development of psychiatric illness, particularly psychotic disorders in those that are using cannabis particularly earlier in life." Harlow and her colleagues found that in states where marijuana use is illegal for adults, 14% of high school seniors said they had used delta-8 in the last year. However, in states where marijuana was legal for adults, 8% of high school seniors said they used delta-8 in the previous year. There was no clear difference based on state policies when it came to marijuana use, with more than 30% of the seniors overall saying they had used the drug in the last year. Among teens who reported using delta-8, nearly 91% said they had used marijuana as well. The survey also revealed that teen use of delta-8 was more common in states where the psychoactive compound was not regulated. "The alarm bells go off for me that these products are being marketed with claims of being a completely legal substitute for marijuana and they seem to be proliferating in areas where there's really no regulation," Harlow said. That lack of oversight can mean no required testing for potential contaminants, she said. "We don't necessarily know what is in the product that you are using and you don't know, either," Cooper said. "People are not making sure that there's quality control or that there's accurate labeling. ... That in itself should make people who are thinking about experimenting pause." Read more: Number of high school seniors hooked on vaping more than doubled in the last year Other researchers have warned in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine that because of the lack of federal regulation, "products may be packaged in brightly colored containers featuring cartoon characters, sweet or fruity flavors and candy-themed images that may be attractive to young children." In California, industrial hemp products that contain chemically synthesized versions of THC including delta-8 THC are prohibited, according to the state's Department of Public Health. Products that cause illness or injury are prioritized for investigation and enforcement, the department said in a statement. But Dale Gieringer, director of California NORML, an advocacy group focused on the rights of cannabis consumers, said "there is widespread flouting" of the state rules and called enforcement efforts "practically nonexistent." The result is "an enormous amount of delta-8 available by internet and convenience stores." Californias Department of Cannabis Control said in a statement that it was concerned about the easy availability of delta-8 products to young people and that the new study reinforces the need to apply stricter controls on cannabis-derived intoxicants. Last year marked the first time the Monitoring the Future survey included a delta-8 question, which was posed to more than 2,000 high school seniors. In the coming years, researchers plan to query younger teens as well. Compton said the numbers show that in a typical high school classroom, a handful of teens are probably using delta-8. In light of that, he said, "it's incumbent on us to expand our research to understand the health impacts." This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. A 117-pound dog was rescued after falling and getting trapped in a filthy grain storage bin, according to a Utah animal rescue. An Ogden warehouse employee heard whining coming from an unused building but couldnt find the source on Friday, March 8, KSL TV reported. The whining, however, was still there when employees returned for work on Monday, the outlet reported. This time, they found a dog trapped. A dog fell 8 to 10 feet down a hole in Ogden, Utah. The dog fell 8 to 10 feet down a hole and landed in the bin, Weber County Animal Services said in a March 11 Facebook post. She became trapped surrounded by trash and in a foot of water, the rescue said. We had to go in with flashlights, watching our footing, Officer Rachel Toone with Weber County Animal Services told ABC 4 of the rescue. The rescue said it got all 117 pounds of her out. The rescue said it got all 117 pounds of her out. Photos shared by the rescue team on social media show the dog being carried out of the hole up a ladder. She was exhausted, Toone told ABC 4. The dog is expected to be just fine. Despite being filthy, feverish and some minor scrapes, the group said with a little veterinarian care, the dog will be just fine. Using the dogs microchip, the rescue team said it tracked down her owner, who picked her up from the vet. The owner had been looking for her since Friday, the rescue said. Ogden is about 40 miles north of Salt Lake City. Horse loses footing, falls into trench. California video shows challenging rescue Horse falls into 12-foot deep sinkhole in Montana horse pasture, dramatic photos show Lucky the horse sinks neck-deep into muddy backyard sinkhole, California rescuers say DENVER (KDVR) A northern Colorado task force arrested 13 people accused of distributing fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine throughout the state as part of a drug trafficking organization. Northern Colorado Drug Task Force detectives working on Operation Pin Drop identified a regional network of suspects that the task force alleges are affiliated with international drug cartels, including the Sinaloa cartel, according to a Tuesday release from the Larimer County Sheriffs Office. I am so proud of everyone who worked tirelessly to bring this investigation to a positive conclusion. Any reduction of Fentanyl that is coming into our communities has the potential to save a life, Lt. Mark Hertz, commander of the regional task force, said in a release. The NCDTF is committed to doing our job of supply reduction, as well as partnering with those who are working towards awareness, prevention and education in our local communities as it relates to the opioid crisis. Garfield County anti-human trafficking operation leads to 10 arrests Detectives conducted search warrants at 11 homes. The detectives reported seizing as evidence: 8.5 pounds of fentanyl made up of 21,000 pills, fentanyl powder and fentanyl designed to look like other substances 32 pounds of methamphetamine 3 pounds of cocaine More than $42,000 in cash allegedly associated with drug distribution 28 firearms, including several classified as dangerous weapons or that had the serial numbers removed or altered 2 still wanted in northern Colorado drug bust The task force is still searching for two suspects associated with the case. Lissbeth Juarez-Marquez, 24, is accused of the distribution of controlled substances (fentanyl). Jose Gil-Ochoa, 31, is facing charges of: 13 counts of distribution of controlled substance fentanyl 10 counts of distribution of controlled substance (meth/heroin/ketamine/cocaine) One count of special offender controlled substance Five counts of distribution of controlled substance fentanyl Three counts of distribution of controlled substance (meth/heroin/ketamine/cocaine) Seven counts of counterfeit controlled substance Two counts of money laundering (f3) One count of the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act a pattern of racketeering The task force also announced the identities, counts and bond amounts for suspects arrested in the case. Almost all are facing charges of racketeering, distribution of controlled substances or money laundering, but charges vary by defendant. The full list of charges can be found in the Larimer County release here. Unless otherwise noted, all were booked into the Larimer County jail: Carlos Reyes, 44, was given a $5 million cash or surety bond. Oscar Astorga-Gamez, 32, was given a $740,000 cash bond. Sandra Ramirez, 34, was given a $150,000 cash or surety bond and booked into the Denver County jail. Juan Sandoval, 31, was given a $100,000 cash or surety bond. Giovanni Castillo-Munoz, 22, was given a $50,000 cash or surety bond and was booked into the Adams County jail. Luis Ramirez Rangel, 22, was given a $500,000 cash or surety bond. Jose Torrez-Ordaz, 24, was given a $100,000 cash or surety bond. Sarah McDougall, 39, was given a $250,000 cash or surety bond. Wendy Denton, 45, was given a $1 million cash or surety bond. David Roth, 48, was given a $1 million cash or surety bond. Susan Stevenson, 61, was given a $500,000 cash or surety bond. Jae Lee, 38, was given a $500,000 cash or surety bond. Full charges, names and information of the Norther Colorado Drug Task Forces investigation The task force listed 25 agencies it thanked for assistance with the investigation. Operation Pin Drop is a perfect example of local and federal agencies working together to positively impact the region, Acting Special Agent in Charge David Olesky, of the Drug Enforcement Administrations Rocky Mountain Field Division, said in a release. While it might feel unnerving to know the Sinaloa Cartel has a presence here, Northern Coloradans can count on our Agents from the Fort Collins Post of Duty to continue working side by side with the Detectives from the Northern Colorado Drug Task Force to stem the cartels influence. Reward offered for information on deadly stabbing of Denver man Anyone with information about the wanted suspects current location is asked to contact the Northern Colorado Drug Task Force at 970-416-2560 or nocodtf.com. Tips will remain anonymous if requested. Investigators say additional charges are anticipated. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. Fourteen Democrats voted with Republicans on Tuesday to pass a GOP-led resolution condemning President Biden's immigration policies. The resolution was introduced by Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-Texas, a Republican who represents a border district and who was chosen to give the Spanish-language rebuttal to Bidens State of the Union last week. WHITE HOUSE SAYS BIDEN ABSOLUTELY DID NOT APOLOGIZE FOR CALLING LAKEN RILEY'S ALLEGED KILLER AN ILLEGAL The House of Representatives voted to formally condemn President Biden over his border policies. Her legislative text targeted both Biden and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, accusing them of having "created the worst border security crisis in the Nations history." The resolution also accused the Biden administration of pushing asylum policies that critics argue helped fuel the border crisis and that the administration "has purposely violated United States immigration law by refusing to detain inadmissible aliens arriving at the border." The vote comes hours after House Democrats newly created task force on border security held its first press conference calling for bipartisan solutions to the crisis. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP BIDEN ADMIN SIGNS 5-YEAR CONTRACT TO HOUSE MIGRANT KIDS AT FORMER NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was also criticized in the resolution. In particular, they are pushing for consideration of the Senates bipartisan $118 billion border security and foreign aid package, which Republicans in both the House and Senate have criticized. "To solve this problem, you need to have action by the United States Congress. And this group has come together to say, listen, we see this bipartisan bill in the Senate. It doesn't do everything we want, but it will solve this problem. So, let's do it. Let's move forward," Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., said. MIGRANTS CAUGHT ON NEW VIDEO STREAMING DOWN REMOTE CALIFORNIA MOUNTAINSIDE TO ILLEGALLY CROSS THE BORDER Volunteers provide migrants with dry firewood at a makeshift camp near the Jacumba Hot Springs, California, on Feb. 23, 2024. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has made the border crisis and immigration a central focus of his since taking the helm of the House GOP Conference in October. Earlier this year, he led a delegation of more than 60 Republicans to the U.S.-Mexico border to call attention to the issue. He also led the House through a historic vote to impeach Mayorkas in February. Prior to that, a Cabinet secretary had not been impeached by the U.S. Congress since 1876. Almost 7.3 million migrants have illegally crossed the southwest border since Biden took office, a number greater than the population of 36 individual states, a recent Fox News analysis found. Original article source: 14 Democrats vote with Republicans to condemn Biden immigration policies MOGADISHU, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations-backed Green Climate Fund (GCF), believed to be the world's largest multilateral climate fund, has committed 100 million U.S. dollars for a climate action investment program in Somalia over the next year. The funds, announced Tuesday in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, during a visit by Mafalda Duarte, GCF executive director who led the first-ever GCF delegation to Somalia, will help bolster the country's climate resilience efforts, according to a statement issued in the Somali capital Tuesday evening. Duarte said Somalia is the second most vulnerable country to climate change in the world, despite contributing only 0.03 percent of total global greenhouse gas emissions, the statement said. "The interlinked impact of climate change and lack of security has had a devastating effect on people, causing some 43,000 excess deaths in 2022 due to drought, displacing more than 6 million people, pushing Somalis away from their homes into overcrowded towns and cities," Duarte was quoted as saying in the statement. Recurrent drought and regular flooding lead to failed crops, loss of livestock and chronic food insecurity problems in Somalia, she said. "GCF is committed to working with the government of Somalia and its partners to better address the extreme vulnerability the country and its population face," Duarte said. Duarte said the GCF is ready to commit to a strategy of investments and readiness support of over 100 million dollars to Somalia by mid-2025, as well as a long-term commitment to empower Somalia to develop country-priority projects and subsequent investments. While in Somalia, Duarte met with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and other senior government officials, and launched an investment pipeline including a project that will provide affordable, reliable off-grid energy access to unelectrified populations in sub-Saharan Africa. The program prioritizes capital investment and technical support in Somalia, accelerating disbursements of over 3 million dollars for 2024-2025, with funding from the GCF and other funders, the statement said. A 14-year-old boy died after he was stabbed near his Missouri middle school, police say. The incident happened around 3:05 p.m. Tuesday, March 12, about a block away from Jennings Junior High School, according to the St. Louis County Police Department. The school dismisses at 3 p.m., KSDK reported. The boy, identified as Justin Brooks, was found by school resource officers suffering from a life-threatening stab wound, police said. He was taken to a hospital, where officers said he died. Brooks lived about two blocks away from where the stabbing occurred. Police said the attack is not believed to be random. There are no suspects in custody as of Wednesday morning. Officers will provide additional patrols at the school in the coming days, police said. In a statement to KMOV, the Jennings School District confirmed there being an incident near the school. Unfortunately, we lost our JSD student. Please keep our families in your prayers during this time, the statement read. We will be on-site tomorrow at the junior high with members of the crisis team to support the students, staff and family during this incredibly difficult time. Weed cartridge deal turns deadly, Missouri cops say. 15-year-old, 16-year-old killed Principal used school money to hire hitman to kill teacher he impregnated, feds say In addition to celebrating Easter Sunday with many crafts and activities, there are also some egg-cellent Easter movies to watch that will keep you wrapped up for the holiday. These festive films are fun for the whole family: Find a mix of religious offerings like "The Passion of the Christ," animated flicks geared toward kids and classic movies that continue to stand the test of time. Some of these movies available on Netflix, Hulu and other streaming services provide an opportunity to teach little ones about the true meaning of Easter (and remind adults that there's more to the day than setting up egg hunts and filling baskets). While most films are centered on Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection (and understandably so), "The Ten Commandments" focuses on Moses and his desire to free people from captivity. However, if that film is too serious for your crowd, then you can always watch something lighter to bring the laughs. That means, there's truly something for everyone on this list. So, let's hop to it! 'Peter Rabbit' This family-friendly flick centers around a mischievous rabbit named Peter (James Corden), who just can't seem to get out of trouble. When a warm-hearted animal lover, played by Rose Bryne, moves in next door, he rivals for her affection with Mr. McGregor (Domhnall Gleeson) and the funny escapades begins. 'Ice Age: The Great Egg-Scapade' Can't get enough of the "Ice Age" films? Try "Ice Age: The Great Egg-Scapade." This fun adventure shows what happens when Sid starts his own egg-sitting service and encounters a few hiccups along the way. 'Easter Under Wraps' There's nothing like a springtime romance to bring the cheer. In this Hallmark Channel original movie, a woman (Fiona Gubelmann) goes undercover at her familys chocolate plant to see why sales are down and finds a little love (and a genius business idea) along the way. 'Miss Potter' Get to know Peter Rabbit in a whole new way. "Miss Potter" tells the story of Beatrix Potter, the author behind the best-selling childrens book The Tale of Peter Rabbit." With an overactive imagination, Potter finds comfort in drawing and writing about the animals that she's adored since childhood. But after her attempts to find a publisher for her novels are unsuccessful, she soon finds a small firm that turn her luck and her entire life around. 'The Passion of the Christ' Want to learn about the story of Jesus Christ? Watch "The Passion of the Christ" to get a fictional glimpse into day of Jesus' crucifixion in Jerusalem. 'Yogi the Easter Bear' Yogi the Easter Bear is another Easter-themed classic. In this movie, Yogi and Boo Boo try to rescue the Easter Bunny when they learn that hes been kidnapped. 'The Ten Commandments' "The Ten Commandments" is one of the most popular biblical movies that have ever been made. Though it was released in 1956, the story Moses that we see on screen still holds up to this day. 'The Dog Who Saved Easter' "The Dog Who Saved Easter" is basically "Home Alone" set in the spring, but instead of Kevin McCallister defending his home from invaders, it's a cute dog saving a local daycare from criminals. 'Hank and Mike' If you have a dark sense of humor, this one's for you. It's about two blue-collar Easter Bunnies who lose their jobs and try a bunch of odd jobs as a result. They hilariously fail at each and every one, and their lives start to unravel the longer they stay unemployed. 'Peter Rabbit 2: The Runaway' Peter Rabbit ventures to the big city after he gets tired of his life at home, and as always, he ends up in trouble. Easter Sunday Easter Sunday is loosely inspired by standup comedian Jo Koys life growing up in a Filipino family. If you love his on-stage work, then youre bound to love this movie even more. 'It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown' Another great throwback film that you and your family can watch on Easter. This 1974 flick follows the beloved Peanuts gang as they prepare for Easter. Hilarity ensues, of course. 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' Sure, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" isn't exactly about Easter, but it has a ton of candy in it. When Charlie wins the winning ticket and tours Willy Wonkas mysterious chocolate factory, he gets to see how chocolate is made, all while helping his family. 'Jesus Christ Superstar' One way to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ is to watch "Jesus Christ Superstar" with your family and friends. This movie, which is based on the Broadway hit musical of the same name, shows what the last few weeks of Christ's life must have been like. 'Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert' If you loved "Jesus Christ Superstar," then you'll love NBC's live 2018 star-studded musical of "Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert," featuring John Legend as Jesus, Sara Bareilles as Mary Magdalene and Alice Cooper as King Herod, and more. The performances were so great that the film won a Creative Emmy for outstanding variety special (live). 'Hodge Saves Easter' Ever wonder how Easter is celebrated in the galaxy? Well, this kid-friendly animated film tells the fictional story of Bert, the Easter Bunny, who has no other option but to enlist the help of his goofy older brother, Hodge. Together, they team up to retrieve a powerful golden egg that's stolen by Dracula and Frankenstein in a fun, silly globetrotting adventure. 'A Week Away' "A Week Away" will have your family dancing and singing along to the amazing songs in the film. This Christian musical tells the story of Will Hawkins (Kevin Quinn), a troubled teen, who gets his life back on track after he agrees to attend "church camp." At Camp Aweegaway, Will finds the home that he so desperately craved in his youth when he starts making friends and opens his heart up to new experiences. 'Zootopia' Here's another one that isn't exactly tied to Easter, but still deserves a spot on our list. The reason? It's about a rabbit who teams up with a cynical con artist fox to solve a mystery in her police force. 'Eater Land' Time to get into the holiday spirit with "Easter Land." This movie is about a beloved Easter bunny who got banished away to the dreaded land of the holiday misfits and needs Santa Claus' help to help him return home. 'Risen' Another great religious movie to watch on Easter is "Risen." This film takes place in 33 AD, where a Roman Tribune in Judea is tasked with finding the missing body of Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead. 'Come Sunday' What happens when you start to challenge some of the theories in the bible? "Come Sunday" tells the story of a man (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who gets ostracized by his church for preaching that there is no Hell. Some other actors who are in this film are Danny Glover, Jason Segel and LaKeith Stanfield. 'Rabbit School Guardians of the Golden Egg' Celebrate Easter with this 2017 film. "Rabbit School Guardians of the Golden Egg" is a cool animated movie about a bunny who gets trapped in an old-fashioned school. While there, he learns about friendship while taking down a sneaky fox family and learning about the secretive skills of the Easter rabbits. 'Noah' Watch the story of Noah unfold in cinematic (and thrilling, and often scary) detail. 'I Can Only Imagine' Love MercyMe's music? You're going to love this film even more! The movie starring Dennis Quaid tells the exciting story of how the Christian band came up with their chart-topping song, "I Can Only Imagine." 'Steel Magnolias' If you've ever seen the 1989 film "Steel Magnolias" starring Sally Field, Dolly Parton and Julia Roberts, then you know it's not your typical Easter movie. In fact, the movie is about a young beautician who assimilates into a small Louisana town and befriends a small group of women. But even though "Steel Magnolias" isn't all about Easter, there is a scene towards the end of the movie where the cast takes part in an egg hunt. Now, that's something you have to see! 'Pieces of Easter' "Pieces of Easter" is the perfect feel-good Easter movie to watch with your family. It shows what happens when an unlikely pair take a cross-country trip together just before the Easter holiday. 'A Walton Easter' Still not convinced that any of these Easter movies are right for you? Try "A Walton Easter." This 1997 flick follows the life of John-Boy, a New York anchorman who goes back to his suburban hometown to celebrate his 40th wedding anniversary with his wife, Olivia. The more time he spends there, the more he realizes that New York might not be the right fit for him and his hometown has everything he needs. 'Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo' What better way to celebrate the arrival of spring than to watch "Winnie the Pooh: Springtime with Roo?" In this film, Roo is upset when Rabbit cancels Easter and declares Spring Cleaning Day instead. 'Alice in Wonderland' "Alice in Wonderland" isn't about Easter Bunnies, per say, but it is about bunnies. Go deep into the crazy world of "Alice in Wonderland." This hit film starring Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway shows what happens when a little girl trails a white rabbit who ends up taking her to a very peculiar place. 'Easter Bunny, Kill! Kill!' Maybe horror is the right genre for you. If that's the case, then you might want to give this Easter film a try. It's about a killer who dresses up as the Easter Bunny and targets a teen's tormentors. 'Eating Up Easter' Ever wonder what happens on Easter Island? This film takes a deep dive into the environmental and social challenges that the island has faced when it deals with globalization on a large scale. 'Hop' Have you ever seen an adorable rabbit who's also a drummer? Well, you're about to see it in "Hop." This movie is about a little bunny who heads to Hollywood to realize his dream of being in a rock n roll band. 'Mary Magdalene' "Mary Magdalene" tells the story of a woman who once walked the Earth with Jesus Christ. After watching this movie, you'll feel inclined to read her story in the Bible all over again. 'The Greatest Story Ever Told' "The Greatest Story Ever Told" chronicles the life and ministry of Jesus Christ's life. 'Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit' "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit" is sure to entertain all of your family and friends. This hilarious film takes viewers on a wild ride of Wallace's life when he tries to rid a local town of a rabbit infestation. 'Ben-Hur' There's no better Easter tale of revenge than "Ben-Hur." This film tells the story of a Jewish prince who was once betrayed and sent into slavery, but ultimately regains his freedom and comes back for revenge. Watch either version, including the 1959 classic. 'Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie' There are so many creative ways to tell biblical stories to children including telling them with vegetables, as happens in "Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie." These singing veggies relive quite a bit of biblical moments when they find themselves stranded at an old seafood restaurant. 'VeggieTales: Twas the Night Before Easter' Loved "Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie"? Give give this spinoff film a try! In this flick, the cast of the Veggie Tales tries to enlist a superstar to help them save an old theater in Crisper County during Easter time. 'The Golden Goose' This movie is a great way to teach kids about Easter. In this family-friendly flick, a golden goose named Goldie, who is the Easter Bunny's favorite helper, learns all about the holiday alongside her charismatic friends, who happen to enjoy Easter just as much as she does. 'The Golden Goose 2' In "The Golden Goose 2," Goldie returns to celebrate Easter with her friends. However, her plans get derailed once she realizes the Easter Bunny has lost its magic easter egg. Using only her witts, Goldie tries to solve the mystery of the lost egg before it's too late. 'Redemption for Easter' "Redemption for Easter" follows the Wright family as they come together for Easter weekend after experiencing a tragic event. Once they reunite, many things are brought to light, including their past turmoil, individual trauma, dark family secrets and more. 'Easter Parade' This 1948 film tells the story of a nightclub performer who tries to make his former dance partner jealous by hiring a naive girl to be his new second. Fred Astaire plays the role of Don Hewes, while Judy Garland stars as Hannah Brown, who showcases her stellar singing skills in some of her scenes. This article was originally published on TODAY.com A school community is mourning the loss of a 16-year-old killed in a Georgia crash. Lakeside High School student Guillermo Aguas-Bahena died Tuesday, March 12, marking the fifth Lakeside student to be killed in a crash this school year, news outlets reported. Officers were called around 1:40 a.m. about a single-car wreck in DeKalb County, police said in a news release. The driver, later identified as Aguas-Bahena, died at the scene. Relatives said the teen was riding with his brother and a friend when they crashed, according to a GoFundMe page for the family. The two passengers were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. Authorities didnt release additional details. We understand the enormous impact the death of another student will have on our community, Principal Susan Stoddard said in a letter to families shared with McClatchy News. Resources and personnel for grief counseling are here to support anyone affected by this tragedy. Its the latest tragedy to rock the Atlanta-area high school. In February, Sophie Lekiachvili, 18, died and two other students were injured in a car crash, WSB-TV reported, citing police. Three Lakeside students were among five people killed in September when police said the car they were in went over a ramp wall and crashed on Interstate 85, McClatchy News reported. A sixth student also died from cancer this year, Decaturish.com reported, citing a teacher. School officials offered condolences to Aguas-Bahenas loved ones. Our hearts go out to Guillermos family and friends during this most difficult time, Stoddard said. Our goal is to support and uplift them in any possible way. 4-year-old run over by car after falling onto roadway, Georgia deputies say 5-year-old killed after driving ATV in front of familys tractor, NE officials say High-speed crash in stolen car leaves 2 teens dead after police chase, Texas cops say WALTON COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) A 16-year-old from Texas was arrested after he shot at a family walking home from dinner in Florida, according to the Walton County Sheriffs Office. Deputies said they were called to the Adagio Condos in Santa Rosa Beach on Saturday evening after someone reportedly fired about 20 rounds from a BB gun from a dark-colored car at a family. The sheriffs office said a 10-year-old, a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old were hit by the BBs. Investigators said they found they found a black Audi matching the description with a Texas tag about two miles from the shooting location. They said they saw a Glock-19 BB gun lying on the rear passenger floorboard. I just want my baby back: Family of 3-year-old shot killed in Lakeland shootout wants justice The sheriffs office said a 16-year-old from Texas was identified as the suspect and deputies used Snapchat to locate the teen nearby. According to deputies, the 16-year-old admitted that he shot the BB gun at people walking on the sidewalk. He was charged with aggravated battery, shooting deadly missiles from a vehicle, and child abuse. The sheriffs office said additional charges may be forthcoming. This is not the first such instance of this happening during Spring Break in Walton County, the sheriffs office said. BBs can cause serious harm to those on the receiving end. This type of behavior is not a game. Not only is it dangerous for those being shot at, but a weapon of this kind can be mistaken for a real gun putting others in fear for their lives. Anyone shooting one of these runs the risk of being shot at in return possibly with a real weapon. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Republican attorneys general from 16 states are threatening to sue Maine if it passes a law shielding providers of gender-affirming care and abortion from out-of-state legal action. Maine legislators are considering a bill, Legislative Document 227, which aims to protect health care providers from subpoenas or warrants, health records requests, extradition requests and other civil or criminal proceedings if they provide care including abortion and gender-affirming care that has been banned in a patients home state, the Portland Press Herald reports. It would also allow these health care professionals to sue out-of-state officials who take action against them. Seventeen states and the District of Columbia have adopted similar shield laws regarding abortion providers, and 11 states and D.C. have such laws regarding providers of gender-affirming care. The letter from the Republican AGs, led by Jonathan Skrmetti of Tennessee, claims that LD 227 violates the United States Constitution and flouts the federalist structure that allows each of our States to engage in self-government responsive to the will of our citizens. LD 227s ill-considered attempt to influence and intimidate officials in other States could also trigger a rapid tit-for-tat escalation that tears apart our Republic, the letter continues. One could easily envision a First Amendment Protection Act that creates state law liability for people, even people out of state, who seek to suppress purported hate speech, or a Second Amendment Protection Act that creates liability for those who seek to regulate firearms. If Maine pursues LD 227s constitutionally defective approach, we will vigorously avail ourselves of every recourse our Constitution provides, the missive concludes. In addition to Skrmetti, the letter, dated Monday. is signed by AGs from Arkansas, Louisiana, Florida, Montana, Idaho, Nebraska, Indiana, Oklahoma, Iowa, South Carolina, Kansas, Texas, Kentucky, and West Virginia. It is addressed to Maine Gov. Janet Mills and other statewide Maine officials, all Democrats. Lisa Margulies, vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, issued a statement saying the letter highlights the need to pass LD 227. This threat from Republican attorneys general makes clear that people opposed to safe, legal, life-saving medical care in Maine will continue their attacks with complete disregard for standard of care medicine and patient and provider needs, she said, according to the Press Herald. If there was any doubt that reproductive health care and care for transgender people is under attack in Maine, this threat from out-of-state actors should serve as the latest proof that Maine needs to protect our providers, our health care infrastructure and access to this care. We cannot let politicians or politically motivated attorneys general interfere with safe, legal medical care in our state. Recently, Maine lawmakers abandoned a bill that would have offered similar protections to individuals who come to Maine to access gender-affirming care that is banned in their home states. Anti-transgender activist Chaya Raichik had campaigned against the bill on her Libs of TikTok social media account. The Maine legislatures Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services Committee plans to hold a work session on LD 227 in the near future, Maine's public broadcasting service reports. The aftermath of the Russian attack on the town of Myrnohrad. Photo: Vadym Filashkin on Telegram Two people were killed and five injured in a Russian attack on the town of Myrnohrad (Donetsk Oblast) late on 12 March. Source: Vadym Filashkin, Head of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration; Ukraine's State Emergency Service (SES) on Telegram Quote from Filashkin: "In addition, emergency workers managed to rescue a teenage girl, 13, from the rubble uninjured. All injured civilians are being provided with medical care: one person is in serious condition, and three are in moderate condition." Russian forces drop aerial bomb on Myrnohrad Photo: Filashkin on Telegram Details: SES explained that the bodies of those killed had been retrieved from the rubble. Six more people, including one child, were rescued alive from the destroyed house. Six more people, including one child, were rescued alive from the destroyed house. Photo: Ukraine's State Emergency Service Filashkin noted that Russian troops dropped a Grom-E1 bomb, which struck a 5-storey building, on the town at around 23:00 on 12 March. A total of 4 houses were damaged in the attack. The search and rescue operation at the scene has been completed as of the morning of 13 March, Filashkin concluded. Support UP or become our patron! PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) Two Oregon state senators who are barred from reelection under voter-approved Measure 113 for accruing 10 or more unexcused absences during a legislative walkout are now running for statewide offices in 2024. Senators Brian Boquist and Dennis Linthicum are running for state Treasurer and Secretary of State, respectively, as reported by Oregon Public Broadcasting. Their campaigns come after Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade and the state Supreme Court said senators who garnered at least 10 unexcused absences during the Republican-led walkout are ineligible for reelection under Measure 113. The two senators can seek election for these statewide positions as Measure 113 only bars reelection for state senator and representative roles. Salem fire chief calls for end to ambulance service amid response time delays The senators accrued unexcused absences during a Republican-led legislative walkout in May 2023 over unreadable bills as the Senate was poised to vote on bills protecting abortion rights and gender-affirming care, and outlawing the sale and manufacture of ghost guns. Republican Sen. Boquist announced his campaign for state Treasurer on Tuesday, stating, I am offering my name for State Treasurer because I have a deep understanding of the State of Oregon finances and revenue after years in the citizen legislature. I have honed the ability to speak bluntly and truthfully to Oregonians about where their hard-earned money is going and how the government machine spends it. I want to provide voters a choice in the primary, and as State Treasurer, I would invest in all Oregonians, not just New Yorkers and Wall Street barons. Independent Sen. Linthicum filed for the secretary of states race on March 12, according to state records. KOIN 6 News has reached out to Linthicum for comment on his campaign. The statewide campaigns also come as the U.S. Court of Appeals filed an opinion Feb. 29, finding that Oregon state senators who were deemed ineligible for reelection after accruing 10 or more unexcused absences during the walkout are not protected under the First Amendment. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. ALLERTON, the Bronx (PIX11) Police are searching for two suspects who beat a man with a metal pole in a Bronx building last month, police said Tuesday. The men repeatedly hit the victim, 55, over the head with the pole during a fight inside a warehouse at 2800 White Plains Rd. in Allerton at 6 p.m. on Feb. 3, according to the NYPD. The man was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Man shot to death at Brooklyn NYCHA complex: police The suspects ran off after the attack, police said. There have been no arrests. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Mira Wassef is a digital reporter who has covered news and sports in the New York City area for more than a decade. She joined PIX11 News in 2022. See more of her work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. A Dallas law firm has sent warning letters to two school districts in Tarrant County, saying their at-large school board seats and off-cycle elections deny diverse representation on their school boards and limit voting by people of color. Brewer Storefront, a public service legal affiliate of the national litigation firm Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors, sent the letters to the Arlington Independent School District and the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw Independent School District on March 6. The law firm sent similar letters to nine other school districts across Texas. The letters accused the districts of violating the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which forbids any electoral system that denies voters of color an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice. The law firm ties the issue to other problems in schools: A lack of diversity and equitable geographic representation on school boards often leads to underfunded schools, school and student achievement gaps, and disenfranchised voters, it says in a news release. Representatives of the Arlington and Eagle Mountain-Saginaw school districts did not respond to a request for comment. The law firm says that neither the Arlington nor the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw school boards represent the diversity of their communities. Enrollment in Arlington is 83 percent nonwhite but the school board consists of six white members and one Hispanic member, the law firm said. Eagle Mountain-Saginaws school board members are all white even though 39 percent of the districts students and voting age population are Hispanic, the law firm says. What were hoping is that the letters would be greeted with a positive response and that the outcome would be an invitation to work with our experts to help define a voting system that actually encourages participation and engender change, William Brewer III, founding partner of Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors, told the Star-Telegram. According to last years STAAR results published by the Texas Tribune, 58 percent of white students in Texas were at grade level in math compared to 36 percent of Hispanic students and 28 percent of Black students. And 68 percent of white students were at grade level in reading, compared to 45 percent of Hispanic students and 41 percent of Black students. The letters sent to school districts gave each school district potential solutions, including adopting single-member school board election districts that would create the opportunity for representation by Black or Hispanic board members and moving elections to November. The districts were asked to respond within seven business days outlining their intended actions. Brewer Storefront has challenged other voting right issues in Irving, Frisco, Grand Prairie, Carrollton-Farmers Branch school districts and has advocated for single-member districts to ensure minority voters have a fair opportunity and can participate in the electoral process. Brewer says he hopes the school districts will work with his team to address the issues, but his firm is also prepared to affect change through the courts. The primary contests for the 2024 Republican and Democratic presidential nominations are still underway, but former President Donald Trump and President Biden have already won the delegates they need to secure their party nods. On the GOP side, Trump's wins in Iowa, New Hampshire and most Super Tuesday states led to all of his top rivals, including former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, to withdraw from the race. President Biden also dominated a similar slate of contests against a thin Democratic field in his bid for reelection. Biden and Trump, who ran against each other in 2020, are now set for a rematch. The last time that happened was in 1956, when President Dwight Eisenhower won a second time against Democrat Adlai Stevenson. See below for the primary election schedule, results in each state, and the latest delegate counts for each candidate. This embedded content is not available in your region. A worker transports seedling trays at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) A worker checks the growth of seedlings at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) A worker checks the growth of seedlings at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) An aerial drone photo shows an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) Workers spread rice seeds at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) A robot carries seedling trays at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) This photo shows seedlings at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) A worker pours rice seeds at an intelligent seedling breeding base in Shuangxing Village of Xianlong Town, southwest China's Chongqing, March 12, 2024. With a total area of 4,608 square meters, the intelligent seedling breeding base yields 12,000 mu (about 800 hectares) of rice seedlings per year. (Xinhua/Huang Wei) The Humane Society of the United States assists the Johnston County Sheriffs Office in the rescue of dozens of dogs and puppies from a rural property as part of an alleged cruelty situation at two puppy mills in Milburn, Okla on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Credit: Meredith Lee/HSUS) The Johnston County Sheriffs Office and the Humane Society of the United States have reported the rescue of approximately 250 dogs from two alleged puppy mills in Milburn, authorities said. The dogs were transported to an emergency shelter to receive veterinary exams. Local authorities served search and seizure warrants Monday after complaints of animal cruelty at the two residential properties in Milburn, about 130 miles south of Oklahoma City. Johnston County Sheriff Gary W. Dodd said the operation was part of an ongoing investigation during which authorities have received complaints as long ago as two years at one of the properties. At least one arrest has been made on a felon in possession of a firearm. This is not in keeping with the western way of life that we strive to protect every day, Dodd said in a statement. A culture in which both man and animal work together in a strong agricultural society where we protect and care for the animals that we also rely on. When presented with probable cause of alleged animal cruelty, we will not hesitate to act. Several dogs were pregnant, more found to be living in poor conditions Dogs and puppies were found living in poor and unsanitary conditions throughout the properties, with many contained in outdoor pens with little protection from the weather. Veterinarians said many of the dogs were underweight and had ailments including dental disease as well as skin and eye issues. There were about 15 nursing dogs and litters among the population removed from the two properties. Several dogs are pregnant and veterinarians expect more pregnancies will be identified as they continue exams. A neonatal puppy found to be in respiratory distress was removed immediately from the scene for emergency veterinary care. We had an intense day and a late night helping these animals get out of that situation and settled into our emergency shelter, said Shalimar Oliver, animal crimes manager for the Humane Society of the United States. The Humane Society of the United States assists the Johnston County Sheriffs Office in the rescue of dozens of dogs and puppies from a rural property as part of an alleged cruelty situation at two puppy mills in Milburn, Okla on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Credit: Meredith Lee/HSUS) Authorities said one of the breeders has puppies listed for sale on the American Kennel Clubs website. The breeders each advertise that they sell their dogs at a market in Canton, Texas that has been the subject of multiple animal welfare investigations and complaints, authorities said. Its a bleak existence for these dogs, said Cynthia Armstrong, Oklahoma state director for the Humane Society. No one would want to live like this. We are grateful to the Johnston County Sheriffs Office for intervening on behalf of these animals and getting them the care they need. The rescued dogs are not available for adoption at this time. The Humane Society of the United States assists the Johnston County Sheriffs Office in the rescue of dozens of dogs and puppies from a rural property as part of an alleged cruelty situation at two puppy mills in Milburn, Okla on Monday, March 11, 2024. (Credit: Meredith Lee/HSUS) This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma puppy mill investigation: 250 dogs rescued amid cruelty complaints The Washington state Legislature has made its first significant investment in nuclear energy generation in more than a decade. Before adjourning last week the Legislature unanimously passed a 2023-25 state supplemental capital budget that includes $25 million for Energy Northwest to continue its new nuclear development efforts. This is a big moment for our region, said Rep. Stephanie Barnard, R-Pasco, who was instrumental in getting the money included in the budget. The people of the 8th District are energy savvy consumers who understand the importance of clean nuclear energy. The capital budget still needs to be signed by Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who could veto parts of it. The $25 million also faces another potential hurdle. It is tied to the 2021 Washington state Climate Commitment Act, which caps and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. But the act faces a repeal effort, Initiative 2117, on the November ballot. Should the initiative succeed in repealing the Climate Commitment Act, the $25 million would not be given to Energy Northwest. However, the Legislature likely would again consider budgeting the money for the new nuclear project. Energy Northwest would like to use the funding to continue its ongoing due diligence, or feasibility analysis, and an environmental impact review for a new nuclear energy project to be located on leased land at a site adjacent to its existing nuclear reactor. Energy Northwests goal is to be producing electricity using an advanced small nuclear reactor by 2031. The $25 million would be added to about $15 million already set aside for the project, including $10 million from Puget Sound Energy and about $5 million from Energy Northwests business development funds and Northwest utilities. This ($25 million) investment reaffirms our states position as a committed leader in nuclear energy innovation, said Bob Schuetz, Energy Northwest chief executive officer. It demonstrates critical support from the state for our ongoing efforts to deploy advanced small modular reactors in central Washington and will build upon Energy Northwests continued leadership in helping the state meet its commitment to increase production of carbon free energy, he said. The Columbia Generating Station near Richland is the only nuclear power plant in the Pacific Northwest now, but Energy Northwest is evaluating adding a modular advanced small nuclear reactor project. Energy Northwest now operates the Columbia Generating Station, the Northwests only commercial nuclear power plant. It is eight miles north of Richland on Hanford nuclear site land in Eastern Washington that was not used by the federal government for the sites weapons work. The plant produces 1,207 megawatts of electricity, or enough to power about 1 million homes. Energy Northwest could potentially deploy as many as 12 of X-energy Reactor Co.s small Xe-100 reactors. Together the modular advanced nuclear reactors would be capable of generating up to 960 megawatts of electricity. New nuclear technologies, such as the Xe-100 reactors, are approaching commercial readiness and are designed to have simplified, standardized and scalable designs, according to Energy Northwest. This project holds great promise in providing clean, safe and cost-effective energy options as we strive to meet our climate goals and create new job opportunities in our state, said Rep. Chris Stearns, D-Auburn, the prime sponsor of the capital budget proviso. Barnard, whom Stearns acknowledged as being instrumental in getting the money included in the budget, highlighted the importance of diversifying energy sources to meet growing electricity demands. Nuclear energy provides safe, clean, dependable, dispatchable and affordable energy for our state, she said. Barnard also acknowledged the combined advocacy for the money of former Sen. Sharon Brown of the Tri-Cities; Sen. Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick; Rep. April Connors, R-Kennewick; and Sen. Drew McEwan, R-Shelton. New year, new home? As we enter into a busy spring homebuying season, many are looking into different areas and seeing which is the right fit. Independent research house Creditnews Research ranked the fastest-selling housing markets in America within the top 100 most populous metropolitan areas. However, three Florida markets saw themselves in the bottom of the ranking. While experts claim 2023 was Americas worst year for home sales in nearly three decades, they advise there are still red-hot housing pockets where listings are going off the market within weeks particularly in smaller cities. Experts analyzed the largest metros in the U.S. by population to determine the fastest and slowest-selling housing markets in the country and count of unique listings that were active at any time in a given month. The study also used data sourced from Zillow to find the number of days before a listing goes into sale-pending status. They compared these metrics to those pre-pandemic. Is your neck of woods deemed one of the slowest in the country? Here's what to know. Here are the top 10 slowest-selling metros: Of the slowest-selling metros, seven are in the South, and three are in Florida alone. At the top in Austin, it takes 66 days for a home listing to go to pending status after being shown for sale. Between January 2020 and January 2024, its median listing time jumped from 23 days to 66 days. Here's the rest of the slowest-selling metros: Austin, TX - median days on the market: 66 McAllen, TX - 53 day Poughkeepsie, NY - 51 days San Antonio, TX - 49 days New Orleans, LA - 48 days Jacksonville, FL - 42 days Cape Coral, FL - 41 days Colorado Springs, CO- 41 days Deltona, FL - 39 days New York, NY - 37 days Why are Jacksonville, Cape Coral and Deltona housing markets so slow? Theres a strong correlation between housing inventory and selling pace between January 2020 and January 2024, revealing a major shift in best-selling markets since the onset of COVID. The study shares none of the top 10 fastest-selling metros pre-pandemic remain on the list today, and vice versa, Part of the reason behind this realignment is different inventory levels across the nationwhich, experts found, has a strong connection with how fast listings sell. Listings in Jacksonville took 42 days to go to pending, which is still up20% compared to January 2020. However, the amount of listing was down 12% compared to pre-pandemic. Right below the North Florida city, Cape Coral was downroughly 15% compared to January 2020 with 41 days. The Southwest city also saw a 5% decrease in listing over four years. Here are the top 10 fastest-selling metros: More inventory in the Boston area housing market will mean more home sales in 2024. As of January 2024, Hartford has the fastest-selling housing market with a median days-to-pending of eight days, down from 52 days in January 2020. Thats the biggest percentage drop (-84.6%) of all the metros in the study. Hartford also posted the second-biggest decline in per-capita housing inventory since the pandemic. Here's the rest of the fastest-selling metros: Hartford, CT - 8 days Rochester, NY - 9 days Syracuse, NY - 9 days Harrisburg, PA - 9 days Richmond, VA - 11 days Grand Rapids, MI - 11 days New Haven, CT - 11 days Boston, MA - 12 days Columbus, OH - 12 days Worcester, MA - 12 days This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Florida homes sales rankings for slowest housing markets A group of teenagers crouch down after shots were fired at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVIII championship rally on Wednesday, Feb. 14, at Union Station in Kansas City. One person was killed and more than 20 more people were injured when struck by gunfire during the mass shooting event. Three Kansas City men face federal charges of illegal gun trafficking and straw purchases of firearms related to the mass shooting at the Chiefs Super Bowl rally, according to the U.S. Attorneys office in Kansas City. These cases underscore the importance of enforcing federal firearms laws, said Teresa Moore, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, in a news release. Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence, Moore continued. At least two of the firearms recovered from the scene of the mass shooting at Union Station were illegally purchased or trafficked. The charges do not allege that the men were among the shooters, but rather that they were allegedly involved in illegal straw purchases and trafficking of firearms. The Feb. 14 shooting that erupted at the celebration at Union Station killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a Johnson County mother of two and beloved disc jockey in Kansas City. Two dozen others were injured by gunfire, including two alleged shooters who face murder charges, and at least 18 others were hurt in the stampede that followed. Roughly half of those wounded by gunfire were under the age of 16. A dozen people brandished firearms and at least six people fired their weapons, according to the news release. Kansas City police recovered several guns, spent casings and other evidence. Two of the firearms recovered after the shooting were cited in the federal criminal complaints that were filed under seal on Monday in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City. The complaints were unsealed and made public Wednesday after the suspects were arrested. The defendants are 22-year-old Fedo Antonia Manning, 21-year-old Ronnel Dwayne Williams Jr. and 19-year-old Chaelyn Hendrick Groves. Manning faces a 12-count criminal complaint accusing him of one count each of conspiracy to traffic firearms and engaging in firearm sales without a license, and 10 counts of making a false statement on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives form. Williams and Groves, who were charged in the same complaint, both face one count each of conspiracy to make false statements in the acquisition of firearms, aiding and abetting the making of false statements in the acquisition of firearms, and making a false statement to a federal agent. Firearms found at Union Station mass shooting Manning allegedly purchased an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol from Frontier Justice in Lees Summit on Aug. 7, 2022, according to court documents. That pistol was one of the guns found at Union Station following the shooting along a wall with a backpack, next to two AR-15-style rifles and backpacks. The pistol was in fire position and there were 26 live rounds in the magazine. The pistol is capable of holding 30 rounds, indicating several rounds may have been fired before it was discarded, according to the news release. Manning allegedly illegally trafficked dozens of firearms, including many Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 firearms. The second firearm recovered from the mass shooting was a Stag Arms 300-caliber pistol, which was allegedly purchased by Williams from The Ammo Box during a gun show at the KCI Expo Center in Kansas Citys Northland on Nov. 25. William allegedly purchased the firearm for Groves, who attended the gun show with Williams but was too young to legally purchase the weapon himself. Bernard Hansen, the ATFs Kansas City Field Division special agent in charge, said the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act has given the bureau additional tools needed to go after straw purchasers and firearms traffickers who flood our streets with weapons that pose a threat to every single person in Kansas City. These arrests serve as a notice to those who think they can illegally traffic guns into our communities or straw purchase firearms, Hansen said. Three men are facing federal charges for illegally purchasing and trafficking multiple guns that were found at the scene where gunmen opened fire during a Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl victory celebration packed with fans caught intoe crossfire, prosecutors said Wednesday. Fedo Antonia Manning, 22; Ronnel Dewayne Williams Jr., 21; and Chaelyn Hendrick Groves, 19, were charged in a separate four-count federal criminal complaint on Wednesday. None of the three men are accused of firing or using the weapons recovered outside Kansas City's Union Station following the Feb. 14 shooting that killed one woman and injured at least nearly two dozen other people. CHIEFS FAN WHO TACKLED PARADE SHOOTING SUSPECT DESCRIBES 'CHAOTIC' SCENE: 'I'VE GOT TO KEEP HIM DOWN' "These cases underscore the importance of enforcing federal firearms laws," said U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. "Stopping straw buyers and preventing illegal firearms trafficking is our first line of defense against gun violence. At least two of the firearms recovered from the scene of the mass shooting at Union Station were illegally purchased or trafficked." The shooting killed Lisa Lopez-Galvan, a mother of two and beloved disc jockey in Kansas City. Roughly half of those wounded by gunfire were under the age of 16. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Manning faces a 12-count criminal complaint accusing him of one count each of conspiracy to traffic firearms and engaging in firearm sales without a license, and 10 counts of making a false statement on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) form. He allegedly purchased an Anderson Manufacturing AM-15 .223-caliber pistol from Frontier Justice gun shop on Aug. 7, 2022, the Justice Department said. VETERAN DETAILS CHASING DOWN KANSAS CITY CHIEFS PARADE SHOOTER, CREDITS MILITARY TRAINING, 'GUARDIAN ANGELS' Tony Janssens shared photos of one of the Kansas City Chiefs parade suspects handcuffed on the sidewalk, with the shooter's backpack on the ground nearby. That weapon was one of the firearms found by law enforcement at Union Station after the shooting. Manning also allegedly trafficked and purchased multiple firearms as a straw buyer, federal prosecutors said. Williams and Groves both face one count each of conspiracy to make false statements in the acquisition of firearms, aiding and abetting the making of false statements in the acquisition of firearms, and making a false statement to a federal agent. A second firearm, a Stag Arms .300-caliber pistol, was also recovered from the scene of the shooting. Williams allegedly purchased the gun for Groves from a gun show in 2023 because Groves was too young to legally obtain the weapon, prosecutors said. Groves told investigators the Stag Arms pistol was stolen during a shootout. Instead of reporting it stolen, he allegedly went to another gun show with a different friend who purchased another weapon for him. Two men, Dominic Miller of Kansas City and Lyndell Mays of Raytown, are charged with second-degree murder, armed criminal action, and unlawful use of a weapon in connection with the shooting. Two juveniles were also previously charged as well. Investigators said the shooting began when Mays got into a verbal argument with another person that he had no connection with. Miller soon became involved just before both men drew handguns and exchanged gunfire, authorities said. Original article source: 3 Missouri men face federal weapons charges related to firearms found at Chiefs parade shooting TWO RIVERS The search for 3-year-old Elijah Vue has spanned 23 days and several Wisconsin counties, but still no sign of the missing child has been found. The last update from Two Rivers Police Department was a news release March 11. The release stated the search efforts had continued throughout the weekend and that the combined reward amount for information leading to the discovery of Elijah or the arrest of the person responsible for his disappearance is now up to $40,000. Police have also arrested two individuals on suspicion of child neglect Jesse Vang, 39, of Two Rivers, who was responsible for caring for Elijah when he went missing, and Katrina B. Baur, 31, of Wisconsin Dells, who is Elijah's mother. Community members are organizing a candlelight vigil for Elijah. The event is set for 6:30 p.m. March 16 at Walsh Field in Two Rivers. Two Rivers City Council President Adam Wachowski is expected to speak, along with Marcos Alfaro Sr., team president for the Manitowoc County Mariners football team; and a representative from the Two Rivers Fire Department. The first 600 people to arrive will receive a free candle. Here's what we know about the case so far. The Two Rivers community continues to show up in support of Elijah Vue. After 23 days, civilian volunteers continue to search for Elijah Vue across multiple counties. In addition to Manitowoc County, searches are being done in Outagamie County, Fond du Lac, Green Bay and Wisconsin Dells. Searches are scheduled through March 17, but a schedule for beyond that has not yet been released. In a March 8 news release, Two Rivers Police Captain Andrew Raatz said, "The community support we have received has been amazing as we continue to look for Elijah." He said a group of community members began decorating light poles in the downtown area of Two Rivers with blue and green ribbons in support of efforts to find Elijah, and he encouraged people to do the same as they continue to search for the boy. Blue hearts adorn the window at GJs Salon N Spa supporting missing three-year-old Elijah Vue along Washington Street, March 5, 2024, in Two Rivers, Wis. The community has also come together to raise an additional $15,000 to add to the rewards posted for information on Elijah's disappearance. The FBI has also posted a $15,000 reward and Manitowoc County Crime Stoppers has posted a $10,000 reward, which brings the total to $40,000. The Two Rivers Police Department is still accepting donations on its website, www.two-rivers.org/police. People can choose whether their donation will go toward the reward or toward food, water and other costs of the investigation. Missing Wisconsin children: Elijah Vue is one of more than 30 missing children in Wisconsin The law enforcement search for Elijah Vue continues to include local waterways and rural areas. In the March 11 news release, Raatz wrote police are following up on numerous tips and leads and are reviewing the large amounts of video that have been submitted. The Two Rivers Police Department asked for residents and businesses in Manitowoc and surrounding counties to review any surveillance footage they have for Feb. 19 from 2 to 9 p.m. for any glimpses of a beige 1997 four-door Nissan Altima with Wisconsin registration beginning with "A" and ending with "0." Police ask public to search security footage on Feb. 19 for a 1997 four-door Nissan Altima, biege in color, bearing Wisconsin registration beginning with "A" and end with "0." Police said they already have the car in question, but are interested in its whereabouts during that time. Police also said the car does not belong to Vang or Baur, who are both currently held at the Manitowoc County Jail, and that they are not interested in the current owner of the car. Raatz also said in the release that the search continues this week and will focus on local waterways and other rural areas. In a news release March 8, Raatz said the search conducted at a Calumet County landfill had been completed, but did not say if any leads had been found there. The Two Rivers Police Department said they've been partnered with the FBI and the Wisconsin Department of Justice in the search for Elijah. They've also received assistance from the Wisconsin National Guard, the U.S. Coast Guard, sheriffs' offices and police departments from across Wisconsin, including Fond du Lac and Wisconsin Dells. They've also been assisted by non-profit organizations like Wings of Hope. Katrina Baur and Jesse Vang expected in court March 14. Baur and Vang are expected to appear in Manitowoc County Circuit Court March 14 for their respective preliminary hearings. Baur, Elijah's mother, faces a felony charge of chronic child neglect, a second charge of felony child neglect involving a different child, and two misdemeanor charges of obstructing an officer. At a previous court date for Baur March 7, the judge declined to change her bail from a $15,000 cash bond. Vang faces one charge of felony child neglect. At his previous court date March 7, he had not yet been assigned an attorney from the Office of the State Public Defender. Amended criminal complaint: Elijah Vues mother faces additional charges as amended criminal complaint details further suspected neglect Do you have information about Elijah Vue? Police describe Elijah as being of Hmong and white ethnicity with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He is approximately 3 feet tall and has a birthmark on his left knee. He was last seen wearing gray pants, a dark-colored, long-sleeve shirt and a pair of red-and-green dinosaur slip-on shoes. He may also be carrying a red-and-white plaid blanket. If you have information that could help the Two Rivers Police Department find Elijah Vue, contact their tip line at 844-267-6648 or submit information via the Crime Stoppers app P3. Alisa M. Schafer is a reporter for the Herald Times Reporter in Manitowoc. She can be reached by email at aschafer@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Elijah Vue still missing in Wisconsin as candlelight vigil is planned Three young girls under the age of 12 are facing major consequences for starting an apartment fire over the weekend, WPDE reports. It happened in Richland County, South Carolina. Now, nearly two dozen residents are looking for a new place to live. ALSO READ: Grandfather dies in east Charlotte house fire, paramedics say An incident report says the girls were starting small fires for fun at the apartment complex on Sunday evening. One resident said his dog was trapped inside for an hour before jumping out the window. RIGHT NOW: Our 3rd Shift crews are working with Irmo Fire District to contain a fire thats reached 3-Alarm status at The Hollows apartments off the 1300 block of Longcreek Drive. Our crews responded to the complex shortly before 7 p.m. Upon arrival firefighters found heavy fire working through the building and spreading through the roof. Additional alarms were sounded - dispatching more resources. The building has suffered significant damages and parts of the roof have collapsed. No injuries reported at this point. Well have more updates as they become available. Posted by Columbia Fire Department (SC) on Sunday, March 10, 2024 Concerned that he wasnt going to be able to get out, and he ended up jumping out of the window of the second story and ended up jumping into the pool and going swimming for 20 minutes, Dalton Olson said. The sheriffs department said the three girls have been referred to a diversionary program through the fire marshals office. (WATCH BELOW: Woman, adult son die after Lancaster house fire, chief says) This photo taken by Zhou Longshan on July 19, 2023 shows egrets at Baiyangdian Lake in Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. (Photo by Zhou Longshan/Xinhua) SHIJIAZHUANG, March 13 (Xinhua) -- When Zhou Longshan started filming birds 10 years ago at Baiyangdian Lake, a major wetland in northern China, he just wanted to record his favorite species -- egrets. Then things snowballed. In the following years, the teacher became a bird watcher, a volunteer ranger at the lake, a shutterbug documenting over 110 bird species, and an educator popularizing bird-related knowledge among students. "Sharing bird-protection knowledge with children can make them feel the beauty of their hometown and the importance of birds, and help them cultivate the habit of protecting birds from an early age," he said. Zhou, 60, is a native of Xixiangyang Village, Anxin County, in the Xiong'an New Area of north China's Hebei Province. Growing up in the village, a five-minute bike ride from Baiyangdian Lake, he has fond childhood memories associated with the wetland. "When I was a child, the water in Baiyangdian was limpid. The fish and aquatic plants in the water could be seen clearly. And there were many lotus flowers as well as lotus roots," he said. "I often caught fish with my friends, rowed boats and drank the lake water when I was thirsty." Between the 1960s and 1980s, however, Baiyangdian suffered severely from industrial pollution. Chemicals carried by sewage poisoned the water and lake beds, decimating the aquatic life. In the 1990s, the lake nearly dried up due to climate change. When Zhou became a teacher at Xixiangyang Primary School in the 1990s, the stink from the lake could sometimes be smelled from his village. "The lake became stinking, the population and species of fish and birds decreased, and the locals were unwilling to go near the lake," he recalled. Then, efforts were made to turn the tide and restore the lake to its former state of health. Since the Xiong'an New Area was established in 2017, Baiyangdian's rehabilitation and protection activities have improved greatly. The local authorities took a series of measures to cope with the situation, such as pollution control, ecological water replenishment and ecological restoration, according to the ecology and environment bureau of the Xiong'an New Area. Over time, Zhou's interest in birds continued to grow. In 2021, he was appointed as a bird observer by the natural resources bureau of Anxin County, responsible for conducting regular patrols and popularizing bird-related knowledge. To monitor birds, Zhou would ride a bike to Baiyangdian almost every day before dawn, whatever the weather. He would record the birds appearing at the lake, along with their locations, where they fed and when they migrated, thus providing reference data for staff members of the natural resources bureau of Anxin County. Although Zhou takes delight in the role, there are still many challenges. Sometimes, he has to navigate earth embankments on his bike. One summer day in 2021, he fell into a ditch with water more than a meter deep, resulting in water damage to his cellphone. However, these difficult episodes have not undermined Zhou's love of birds. Over the years, he has taken more than 100,000 pictures recording the birds at Baiyangdian. During his spare time, he reads books on China's birds, discusses with other bird enthusiasts and university professors, and updates his WeChat official account to introduce Baiyangdian to a wider audience. According to the bureau of natural resources and planning of Xiong'an New Area, as of the end of February, 276 wild bird species have been spotted at Baiyangdian Lake, an increase of 70 since the establishment of the new area. Tian Yongchang, who works at the natural resources bureau of Anxin County, said that nine avian habitats have been designated in the wetland to better protect the birds. Signs have also been erected and an intelligent habitat-monitoring system has been installed. A mode of management that incorporates government departments, non-governmental associations and volunteers has also been adopted to mobilize more people to participate in bird-protection work, Tian said. In 2018, Baer's pochards, a species under first-class national protection, were spotted at Baiyangdian for the first time. And in July 2022, the birds were observed brooding at the lake for the first time, meaning it has become a breeding area for the species. "The birds at Baiyangdian are not only increasing in terms of population but also in terms of species. The appearance of rare birds signifies that the diversity and stability of Baiyangdian's ecosystem have been improved significantly," Tian said. Additionally, since the establishment of the new area, the water quality in Baiyangdian has improved from Level V -- the lowest in China's five-tier water assessment system -- to Level III. These days, Zhou's schedule is growing busier. In addition to his regular patrols near the lake, he is sometimes invited to local schools to give lectures, keeping students informed about birds and how to protect them. Under his influence, his two grandsons have also developed a great interest in birds. On weekends, after finishing their homework, they watch birds with Zhou, and his elder grandson has become a keen amateur photographer. Zhou will retire in April. "I will continue patrolling the lake and photographing the birds, to contribute to the protection of birds in my hometown," he said. This photo taken by Zhou Longshan on June 8, 2023 shows Baer's pochards at Baiyangdian Lake in Xiong'an New Area, north China's Hebei Province. (Photo by Zhou Longshan/Xinhua) A death investigation is underway after a man was killed in a brazen highway shooting in Chicopee on Tuesday night, state police said. The man, who was not identified, was reportedly traveling with others in an SUV on Interstate 391 in Chicopee when another vehicle drove up next to the SUV and someone fired gunshots into the SUV, killing the man, state police said. At approximately 8:45 p.m. Tuesday, state police received a report of an apparent car-to-car shooting on I-391 south in Chicopee. Troopers who responded to the scene learned that two victims from one of the vehicles had gone to Baystate Medical Center on their own. One victim, the 35-year-old man, was rushed into surgery but did not survive, state police said. The extent of another victims injuries was not known on Wednesday. State police detectives responded to the hospital and interviewed three other occupants of the vehicle, another victim, and two others who were not injured. A preliminary investigation found that the victims SUV was traveling southbound on I-391 in the area of the 2.6-mile marker when another vehicle pulled up along the victims drivers side and gunshots were fired into the victims vehicle, state police said. The occupants of the SUV stopped to try to flag help, but when no passing vehicles stopped, they drove themselves to the hospital, state police said. Members of the State Police Crime Scene Services Section and Firearm Identification Section responded to the shooting scene, where they recovered evidence from the roadway. Springfield police responded to the hospital to assist state police investigators. Just weeks earlier, 37-year-old Justin Parker of North Attleboro was killed in a highway shooting on Route 95 in Foxboro. Police have released dashboard cam video of the suspect car, but there have been no arrests. Nowadays you just never know if somebody has a gun and is feeling a certain way, said Lauren Sevion, a driver from the Bronx, NY. She regularly commutes from New York to Boston, and she tells me shes constantly aware of other drivers, and tries not to react to them. I have no defense against that, so Im just going to try to stay safe, Sevion said. People just dont know how to control their anger it escalates a weapon comes out, and unfortunately people arent afraid to use them anymore, Jay Costello of Webster added. Veteran Mass Pike drivers, like trucker Matt Edwards, tell me they learned long ago, its best to stay out of the way of angry drivers. You never know whos going to follow you home or something, or pull over here (at the Mass Pike Service Center in Framingham), Edwards said. You just got to let it go, just keep driving. Hopefully drive tomorrow. Mass State Police say they have made no arrests in the Chicopee or Foxboro fatal highway shootings. There is no indication these two shootings are connection. 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 The U.S. Army has sent four Army boats loaded with equipment toward the eastern Mediterranean Sea as Washington plans to construct a port off the coast of Gaza to alleviate a humanitarian crisis in the territory. The 7th Transportation Brigade Army ships James A. Loux, Monterrey, Matamoros and Wilson Warf left Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia on Tuesday evening carrying equipment and supplies to construct the pier, according to U.S. Central Command. The four Army ships follow a logistics support vessel that left Sunday for Gaza carrying the first batch of equipment. The pier will take 1,000 troops to build and is not expected to be operational for two months, but it will be able to facilitate the delivery of up to 2 million meals a day, Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Tuesday. The U.S. is not expected to put any boots on the ground with the pier. Instead, troops will work closely with partnering groups to get aid into Gaza. The aid is expected to flow from the island of Cyprus toward Gaza. A charity ship carrying 200 metric tons of food began an initial delivery down the Cyprus-Gaza corridor for the first time this week. Israels war against Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza has stretched the territory thin as the United Nations warns of a potential famine. Only limited amounts of aid are coming into the strip through land crossings. The U.S. began airdropping humanitarian aid into Gaza this week to alleviate the situation, though critics say the efforts to bring in more assistance through airdrops and the sea will only put a bandage on a mounting crisis. Its highly appreciated, said Jens Laerke, a spokesperson for the UNs aid office, in comments shared by the organization. But its not a substitute for the overland transport of food and other emergency aid into Gaza and particularly northern Gaza. It cannot make up for that. Ryder said Tuesday the U.S. has so far airdropped 204,000 meals, 48,000 bottles of water, and more than 5,000 pounds of food items. Ryder told reporters the maritime pier, the airdrops and efforts to open more land crossings into Gaza are all part of a broad effort to get more aid into the coastal strip. This is just part of a bigger effort, an international effort to get aid into Gaza, he said. We will continue to do our part as the Department of Defense, again, cognizant of the fact that this is not just us. There is a much broader effort. More than 30,000 people have died in Gaza as Israeli forces battle Hamas across the strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack that killed more than 1,100 people and saw the kidnapping of another roughly 250 hostages in southern Israel, about 100 of whom are believed to still be alive in Gaza and held by Hamas. Israel is also warning that it will next move into Rafah, the southern Gaza city that is facilitating the most humanitarian aid into the strip. More than a million Palestinians are sheltering there. President Biden has raised concerns about Israeli forces moving into the city without a plan to evacuate civilians, creating a rift in recent days with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who says he must move into Rafah to destroy Hamas. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A woman cooks at shelter for families displaced by gang violence, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, March 8, 2024. The violence as anti-government gangs battle police in the streets has crippled Haitis economy and made it extremely difficult for many of the country's most vulnerable to feed themselves.(AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph) UNITED NATIONS (AP) Four million people face acute food insecurity and one million of them are one step away from famine, the U.N. food agencys director in the conflict-wracked Caribbean nation said Tuesday. Jean-Martin Bauer told a virtual press conference that hes ringing the alarm bell because the recent increase in gang violence has made a very bad situation even worse and displaced an additional 15,000 people just over the first weekend in March in the capital, Port-au-Prince. That brings the total number of displaced people in Haiti to over 360,000, he said, and the U.N. says half of them are children. The country has more than 11 million inhabitants. Bauer said, there were 4 million food insecure and hungry Haitians during the COVID pandemic in 2020 and that number hasn't gone down, but the number on the brink of famine has escalated to one million. Port-au-Prince has been turned into a bubble where gangs control the roads, the port and airport are closed, and no one can get in or get out, Bauer said. The World Food Program director said the agency and its partners started a hot meal service for newly displaced people in the capital, starting with 2,000 meals a day and now up to nearly 14,000 meals a day. But he said the WFP warehouse will run out of supplies in a few weeks unless the port is reopened to replenish the agency's stocks. Haiti depends on food imports for 50% of its food supply, and Bauer said WFP can confirm that the cost of a food basket is rising in Port-au-Prince as well as elsewhere in Haiti. There were disturbances in January and food prices jumped 25% in the south where roadblocks came up and trucks werent able to get to Port-au-Prince with basic necessities, he said, and there was a scarcity of propane which is the basic fuel, including for cooking. In recent days, because of the gang violence, food prices have jumped at least 10%, Bauer said. The economy in rural areas outside the capital depends on links to Port-au-Prince, he said, and food prices have also risen elsewhere in the country because of disrupted trade. A WFP survey found that as prices go up household incomes are going down because people cant go to work, are sheltering in place, and arent earning money, Bauer said. Asked about the impact of Prime Minister Ariel Henrys resignation, which will take effect once a transitional presidential council is created, Bauer said he isnt good at reading political dynamics but we certainly hope that there will be an improvement in security. Insecurity is hampering people from doing very simple things right now like taking their children to school, or going to the supermarket or work which are extremely risky, he said. Speaking from Cap Haitien in northern Haiti, Bauer stressed, however, that the focus cant just be on security, We also need a robust humanitarian response, he said. But the U.N.s $674 million humanitarian appeal for Haiti this year is just 2.6% funded. On a positive note, Bauer said thanks to supplies WFP can purchase from local farmers, it was able to feed about 160,000 school children on Monday in north and south Haiti and other calm areas, part of an ongoing program. He said despite difficulties of access because of the violence, WFP has been able to deliver money to some of Haitis poorest on their mobile phones. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday that many health facilities have been forced to shut down because of the gang violence. Blood shortages persist at the National Blood Transfusion Center and efforts are underway to bring in blood from the neighboring Dominican Republic, he said. TYLER, Texas (KETK) The University of Texas at Tyler announced on Wednesday that four of their school of medicine researchers were awarded a total of $8.6 million in grants from the National Institute of Health. Van PD identify man suspected of fleeing scene after driving into gas pump, sparking fire The university said the R01 grant, the oldest NIH grant mechanism, is given to a researcher for a specific project in their area of interest with the goal to support health-related research. According to UT Tyler, four of their researchers were awarded the following amounts: Dr. Xia Guo, awarded $2.3 million to fund her research in treatments for heart disease, she is exploring the use of nanotechnology to block the gene RUNX3. Dr. Maolin Lu, awarded $2.2 million to support her research in understanding viruses, such as HIV and COVID-19 and how they enter the host cell. Dr. Guoqing Qian, awarded $1.4 million to fund his research in treatment options for pleural fibrosis, the thickening and stiffening of the lungs membrane. Dr. Shashikant Srivastava, awarded $2.7 million for his research in treating mycobacterium avium complex, the most common non-tuberculous mycobacterial lung disease in the U.S. At UT Tyler School of Medicine, we believe in fostering an environment where innovation thrives, Dr. Brigham C. Willis, school of medicine founding dean said. These grants not only highlight the outstanding quality of our faculty but also underscore the critical importance of their research in addressing some of the most pressing health issues of our time. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KETK.com | FOX51.com. The number of injured in a Russian missile attack against Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on the evening of March 12 has risen to 49, Governor Serhii Lysak said on March 13. At least three missile hits were recorded in the city, one of which struck a nine-story building and another hitting the roof of a five-story building. Lysak's previous update on the casualties said that five people had been killed and 44 wounded. The governor said on March 13 that ten adults were still in the hospital, five of them with severe injuries. Seven children were also hospitalized, all with moderate injuries. Kryvyi Rih, with a population of around 660,000, is the second most populous city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. It has suffered multiple deadly attacks by Russian forces since the outbreak of the full-scale war. The hometown of President Volodymyr Zelensky came under a particularly heavy attack in July 2023, which resulted in six people killed and over 70 injured. "Every day, our cities and villages are subjected to such attacks. Every day, Ukraine loses people to Russian evil," Zelensky wrote on social media following the March 12 attack. Read also: UPDATED: Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih kills 5, injures dozens Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Wildlife experts in Southwest Florida recently snagged 500 pounds of Burmese pythons - including one more than 16 feet long, after finding a large mating ball of the snakes not far from the city of Naples. The Collier County catch came this month during National Invasive Species Awareness Week, according to the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, and marked what the Miami Herald called a reported record for the environmental advocacy organization that has worked for a decade to remove the invasive snakes from the region. Conservancy wildlife biologist Ian Bartoszek with a large mating ball of pythons captured in southwest Florida in March 2024. The group caught 11 pythons weighing a total of 500 pounds, according to its Facebook page. For 10 years, weve been catching and putting them (Burmese pythons) down humanely," conservatory wildlife spokesperson Ian Bartoszek wrote in the post. "You cant put them in zoos and send them back to Southeast Asia. Invasive species management doesnt end with rainbows and kittens. These are remarkable creatures, here through no fault of their own. They are impressive animals, good at what they do. A snake stuffed into his pants: Man who stuffed three Burmese pythons in his pants sentenced in smuggling attempt The snakes are non-native, invasive and cause ecological disturbance The Sunshine State, the group said, is home to thousands of non-native species of plants and animals. "When these introduced species reproduce in the wild and cause economic, social, or ecological disturbance, they reach invasive status," the group wrote. Burmese pythons are invasive and destructive The Burmese python's impact in South Florida is well documented so much the state holds an annual hunt for the non-native species in that region. There the snakes thrive and eat everything, but nothing often eats them leading the United States Geological Survey to don the pythons one of the most concerning invasive species in that region especially Everglades National Park. According to the federal agency, since 1997, the pythons have been the cause of drastic declines in raccoon, opossum and bobcat populations. "The mammals that have declined most significantly have been regularly found in the stomachs of Burmese pythons removed from Everglades National Park and elsewhere in Florida," the science bureau posted on its webpage. Wildlife enthusiasts rejoice: Florida woman captures Everglades alligator eating python Contributing: Julia Gomez Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Massive ball of invasive Burmese pythons found in Southwest Florida The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Texas law requiring parental consent to obtain contraception for minors. The decision from a three-judge panel of the federal appeals court in New Orleans largely affirms a 2022 ruling from U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, that ended one of the only avenues for Texas teens to confidentially obtain birth control, through federally funded family planning clinics. Since 1970, the federal Title X program has provided free contraception to anyone regardless of age, income or immigration status. The 5th Circuit panel, which heard the case last year, found parental consent required for minors medical treatment under the Texas Family Code does not conflict with federal law that allows U.S. teens to obtain contraception confidentially at federally-funded family planning clinics. Moreover, Title Xs goal (encouraging family participation in teens receiving family planning services) is not undermined by Texass goal (empowering parents to consent to their teens receiving contraceptives), wrote Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan. To the contrary, the two laws reinforce each other. The decision, from Duncan and Circuit Judges Priscilla Richman and Catharina Haynes, mostly affirms the findings by Kacsmaryk, who ruled that the Title X program violates parents rights and state and federal law. Texas law requires minors to get parental permission before obtaining medical treatment but Title X clinics were previously exempt from that law. The case was filed by Jonathan Mitchell, a former Texas solicitor general, the legal architect behind the 2021 Texas law that banned abortion after the sixth week of pregnancy. Mitchell represented Alexander Deanda, an Amarillo father who said he raised his three minor daughters in accordance with his Christian beliefs to abstain from premarital sex. Although Deanda didnt show that his daughters obtained birth control without his consent, he still argued that the program violated his rights as a parent in Texas. Under Title X, clinics are to encourage family participationto the extent practical. Federal courts have repeatedly held that clinics cannot require parental consent. U.S. Department of Justice attorneys had argued in 2022 and again last year in New Orleans that Deanda had no standing to bring the case forward. The three-judge panel ruled Deanda did have standing because the program prevents him from exercising his parental rights to consent to his childs medical care. The three-judge panel did reverse part of Kacsmaryks ruling. The district judge had struck down a regulation that barred Title X-funded groups from notifying parents or obtaining consent. The 5th Circuit said it was too soon to rule on the new regulation. Every Body Texas is the nonprofit that administers the Title X grant in Texas. Since 2022, the group has advised its 156 clinics in Texas to require parental consent for minors "out of an abundance of caution" as it awaits further guidance from the federal government. The Texas Title X administrator filed an amicus brief in the case before the 5th Circuit. On Wednesday, the group issued a statement, pointing out the mixed ruling from the 5th Circuit was not a clear statement on whether minors in Texas can legally access confidential contraceptive care without parental consent in Title X clinics or whether the clinics must continue to comply with Texas state parental consent law. For now, Every Body Texas believes its clinics should continue operating as they had after Kascmaryks ruling, by requiring parental consent for minors seeking birth control, as the group consults with the federal government as to how to proceed. While we agree with the courts decision to keep in place the 2021 Title X rule that prohibits clinics from requiring parental consent, we remain concerned that the ambiguity of the ruling continues to impose barriers for young people in Texas who are trying to access birth control. said Stephanie LeBleu, Title X Project Director. Minors have been unable to access confidential contraceptive care in our network of Title X clinics for more than a year, said LeBleu. Title X encourages young people to involve a parent or guardian in their healthcare decision-making. However, not all teens have a trusted adult with whom they can have those important conversations, and they turn to their healthcare provider for confidential care. and on Wednesday said but had little comment about the ruling late Tuesday. We are currently working to understand the full implications of the opinion from the 5th circuit today, Mimi Garcia, spokesperson for Every Body Texas, said in a statement. We continue to operate under previous guidance at this time. DOJ attorneys also declined to comment on the ruling or appeal plans. The decision could have ripple effects across the country if other states adopt similar parental consent policies, said Lucie Arvallo, executive director of Janes Due Process, an organization that helps young people access abortions and contraceptives. We know from over two decades of working with teens that young people will frequently include parents in their reproductive health care decisions, but for some, parental involvement and legal decisions like this one are insurmountable barriers, Arvallo said. Teens should be able to access birth control, no matter their circumstances or where they live. Arvallo added that abortion rights groups will likely be hesitant to appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, which in 2022 revoked a constitutional right to abortion. She said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that affirms the 5th Circuits decision could decimate teen access to birth control nationwide. Reporter Neelam Bohra contributed to this story. We cant wait to welcome you to downtown Austin Sept. 5-7 for the 2024 Texas Tribune Festival! Join us at Texas breakout politics and policy event as we dig into the 2024 elections, state and national politics, the state of democracy, and so much more. When tickets go on sale this spring, Tribune members will save big. Donate to join or renew today. A family remains shaken up after a homeless man brutally attacked a 6-year-old girl as she was walking in Santa Monica. The girls family, who was visiting California from the East Coast, was walking along Main Street on March 10 when the attack happened. As they exited an ice cream shop, the suspect, who was sitting at a nearby bus stop, suddenly approached them. Without provocation, he struck the young girl in the face and knocked her to the ground. It was awful, said Christina Tullock, a friend of the girls family who had been showing them around town. I was afraid he was going to hit her again. I was afraid that my friend was going to get hurt protecting his kid. I picked her up and we ran as far away as we could get quickly. Tullock was able to take a picture of the suspect on her phone as she called the police for help. She doesnt know the mans motives but believes he is homeless and was experiencing a psychotic episode at the time. Tullock describes the suspect as a man between 25-35 years old. He has a tall figure and was last seen wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and black pants. Photo of the suspect walking away after assaulting a 6-year-old girl in Santa Monica on March 10, 2024. (Christina Tullock) Bus stop in Santa Monica where a 6-year-old girl was attacked by a homeless man on March 10, 2024. (KTLA) Metro bus stop in Santa Monica, located on Main Street. (KTLA) Pedestrians walking in Santa Monica, California. (KTLA) Photo of the suspect walking away after assaulting a 6-year-old girl in Santa Monica on March 10, 2024. (Christina Tullock) Pedestrians walking on Main Street in Santa Monica, California. (KTLA) I dont have training to deal with someone in a psychotic break, Tullock said. So, unless we have more protection, enforcement and mental healthcare, theres nothing you can do. Nicole Niss, whose fitness studio is located in front of the bus stop where the attack happened, said she feels concerned the incident happened so close by. I think about the safety of my employees, Niss said. Were here open until 9 oclock during the week. Theyre here until 9:30, its late. I always worry about them. Obviously, this person needs to be held accountable for violence, but theres also probably deeper issues going on and I think thats something the city really needs to be addressing. Some Santa Monica and Venice residents believe an increasing mental health crisis affecting the area needs to be tackled. Suspect steals over $1,200 worth of items from Macys in Orange County While local politicians have promised to address the issue, Tullock said its not enough to prevent an assault on a child. She now believes many coastal communities are no longer a safe place to visit. I think the County Board of Supervisors, in particular for our case, Lindsey Horvath, needs to answer as to why we are continually asked to fend for ourselves as we live amongst people who are so sick and so ill, Tullock said. They are not doing their job managing it. Police are searching for the suspect who faces charges of child abuse and assault. The victims family said the young girl remains shaken up and is still recovering at home. Tullock said the family does not plan to visit Los Angeles again in the future. L.A. County Supervisor Horvath responded to KTLAs request for comment saying theyve begun piloting a program that involves a therapeutic transport van staffed by members of the L.A. County Department of Mental Health. The team will focus on supporting people experiencing a mental health crisis while also supporting local law enforcement. U.S. says these mistakes could get spring breakers hurt or killed in Mexico The pilot program only covers Santa Monica for now, but could eventually expand to other cities. Horvath said over the last few weeks, theyve began a Pathway home operation that has housed around 25 people in Santa Monica so far. The incident involving the young girl remains under investigation. For the girls safety, the family involved did not wish to be identified. Anyone who recognizes the suspect or has information on the case is asked to call Santa Monica Police at 310-458-8427. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. Taking photos is definitely a pet peeve, and not for the reasons you may think. whitebalance.oatt via Getty Images Now that were all back to dining out like we did in the good old days (pre-COVID), the rules of whats acceptable and what isnt have changed. For instance, fine dining once required specific place settings and dress codes, but that hardly exists anymore. Fine dining, as we used to know, is almost entirely dead, author and teacherMatt Batt told HuffPost. I think so many of the old rules of etiquette are kind of gone, and I think its for the better really. For several years Batt worked in restaurants, including a mob-run diner in Milwaukee, an Asian-German fusion restaurant in Columbus, and the James Beard-nominated Brewers Table located above Surly Brewing in Minneapolis, which shuttered in 2017. It was in almost every way the best job Ive ever had, he said. Last year he published the book The Last Supper Club: A Waiters Requiem about his experience waiting tables and working almost every position imaginable at restaurants. Michelle Wildgen is a novelist and writes about her experiences in the food industry through the books Wine People and Bread and Butter. Based in Madison, Wisconsin, she waited tables in high school and college, and for a few years worked at the James Beard award-winning restaurant LEtoile. Post pandemic, I do feel like the standard of service has kind of gone down, she told HuffPost. I think people are stretched thin. Theyre looking for more staff. They dont have as much to work with as they used to, in terms of who the restaurant can hire and how great those people are going to be and how happy they are to be there. I do feel like its a lot more common for there to be a kind of dismissive attitude or for you to wait for a while, and its not as great as it used to be. But I think the food is often better. According to Batt and Wildgen, here are some rules to follow so dining out isnt the stuff of nightmares. Be respectful with your phone usage You can really tell by what people do with their phones what kind of table theyre going to be, Batt said. If you approach a table and not only are their phones out, but theyre all on them doing separate things, communication is going to be a nightmare. They dont listen to each other, so theyre not going to listen to you. Wildgen worked at restaurants before phones were ubiquitous, but said the customer needs to pay attention. I personally wouldnt care that much about phones as long as you stop talking and turn and talk to your waiter, she said. Theyre there to help you have a good experience. If you want to be on your phone the rest of the time, so be it. But its really about getting that connection made so you can actually enjoy your time. However, be mindful of taking photos were looking at you, influencers. It always irked me, Batt said. This is supposed to be a gustatory experience. At the best restaurants, they dont let food sit under heat lamps at all. They want to plate it the moment its ready to go and get it to the table as soon as possible. And even just a minute of screwing around with taking pictures can cool down a dish. Your sauce can get craggy and gross. Its food. Eat it. Even worse than snapping photos is when customers use photo equipment. When you see the ring light come out, you know its going to be a bad table, Batt said. Wildgen agreed: The ring light coming in that would be completely insane. Dont be afraid to ask questions Its the worst when [diners] dont ask questions, Batt said. A lot of fine dining restaurants have really oblique menus where itll say scrod, tapenade and thats it. And youre like, I dont know what any of that is. Its the worst when people order stuff thinking they know what theyre going to get, but then they didnt ask any questions and they didnt let me explain. Then theyre super frustrated they didnt get what they wanted when its like, well, I could have told you what it was going to be, but you didnt let me tell you. Its better to be safe than sorry, so dont be embarrassed to inquire about anything.I really wanted people to feel relaxed and comfortable to ask whatever they wanted to know and not feel stupid about it, Wildgen said. At the same time, Wildgen said dont be afraid to send a dish back to the kitchen if its not good enough. Theres a way to be completely respectful and nice but still say, Im sorry, this is not great, or this is not what I pictured, she said. May I have something else? Restaurants understand that. Keep your drinking in check What if a customer gets out of hand with the boozing? Who handles it? A bartender or a maitre d or manager would likely be the one to do that, Wildgen said. Its likely theyd first try to soft-pedal it just drop the check and try to smoothly move them out. Luckily with a restaurant there is more of a finite endpoint than a bar where people expect to sit and drink. You dont want to make a big deal out of somebody whos not drinking and you want to make a big deal out of somebody who is drinking [too much], Wildgen said. You cant overdo it or its going to be really unpleasant. I think most people kind of get it together. And if theyre really hitting the drinks, then theres usually a bigger problem afoot than just etiquette. Be respectful of how many samples you request. Caia Image via Getty Images Dont ask for too many samples or substitutions One of the biggest frustrations I get working at a restaurant in a brewery is people want to sample everything first, Batt said. After a while its like, Dude, order a beer and drink it. And if you dont like it, order something else. It drives me crazy when people kind of fail to understand that if they order a drink or a sample of something, its the same amount of work for the server. They still have to get it from the bartender. Wildgen spoke about a substitution request she had with a customer 20 years ago. She wasnt able to accommodate the customer, though he kept bringing it up. Every time I went back to the table for the rest of the night to say, What can I get for you? he would ask for the same thing again, just to make sure that I knew that he was upset about it, she said. Its a dish of caramelized turnips. I highly doubt you woke up that morning and were like, My life is worthless unless I can get my hands on caramelized turnips today. Get some perspective. The customer isnt always right Theyre absolutely not always right and sometimes need to be called out on it, Batt said. He explained when he worked at Brewers Table, one time a group of drunken people came in and wanted to order fries from Surly Brewing, located downstairs. However, food from downstairs didnt go upstairs and vice versa. You wouldnt go to a food court at the mall and order from Sbarro and go, Will you get me a rootbeer float from A&W next door? Thats a different place. You got to go through the different menu and ordering system and all that. Eventually, the chef kicked the misbehaving table out. Wildgen echoed Batts thoughts. I think that youre all just trying to have a nice business relationship and a good interaction, she said. There are reasonable limits that I do think a lot of people forget because theyre busy thinking they can do anything they want because theyre the customer, which is not a reasonable way to go through life. Dont split the bill with multiple cards Finally, the bill comes. These days its easy to split bills, but its not advised to have multiple cards. I have been out with people who became so angry at being told they couldnt split the bill entree by entree that they really acted rudely that, of course, is not acceptable, Wildgen said. As long as you tell the server pretty much when you sit down or when you order, its not a problem at all, Batt said. But if youre like, By the way, heres a stack of six credit cards and I want all this different stuff assigned all these different ways, the risk of server suicide just went through the roof. I still have nightmares about it. Related... Plans are underway to open a behavioral health hospital in east Charlotte for children and teenagers, a facility that would be the largest of its kind in North Carolina, Starmount Healthcare Management announced on Wednesday. The Katie Blessing Center will provide services for people ages 5 to 18, the Charlotte-based healthcare company said in a news release. Its expected to open in 2025 at 5516 Central Ave. Starmount purchased the 5-acres property from the city of Charlotte for $2.7 million last year. Its namesake comes from Starmount founder Michael Estramontes mother. Starmount has committed $20 million to the project and has received $17.5 million in state funding. The company is trying to raise another $25 million to complete the facility and is seeking the publics help for funding through capital investment and naming opportunities for amenities in the center, Estramonte said. Some of the features for the 70,000 square-foot facility will include therapy rooms, group activity areas, a gym, tutoring center, salon, barbershop, animal therapy and outdoor spaces. The first phase for the Katie Blessing Center, a 70,000-square-foot facility, is scheduled to open in early 2025. The project from the Starmount Healthcare Management will provide youth behavioral services. Starmount is focused on improving the pediatric mental health crisis, which impacts one in four youths, according to the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. North Carolinas Health Department said the state ranked almost last in access to quality psychiatric care for young people. The Katie Blessing Center will offers services in one place that other North Carolina facilities dont have under the same roof, according to Starmount. Some of these services include behavioral health urgent care, 72 inpatient beds, a psychiatric residential treatment program and outpatient services. Starmount is hiring about 300 people for the center. Atrium Healths Behavioral Health Service Line is working with Starmount through Dr. Rabiya Hasan, who will serve as interim director during the planning, design and building phases of the project. Suicide is now the second leading cause of death among children, stated Martha Whitecotton, a retired health services leader at Atrium Health and Katie Blessing Center board member, in a news release. Jail is quickly becoming an alternative to treatment for children experiencing mental health issues. Starmount Healthcare Management is planning to build a 70,000 square-foot pediatric and adolescent behavioral health hospital in east Charlotte with a variety of services. About Starmount and StarMed Starmount was founded in 2014 and operates several affiliated services such as StarMed Healthcare. StarMed opened in 2018 as a 24/7 walk-in clinic and immediate care center for underserved communities. During the COVID pandemic, StarMed managed thousands in 40 counties in North Carolina. More than 2 million vaccines, tests and antibody treatments were distributed during the pandemic. The Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) has signed a collaboration Letter of Intent with Western Australias (WA) Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation to accelerate growth across shared areas of economic interest. The collaboration is part of a series of strategic ADIO initiatives to drive greater private sector opportunities through strengthened relations with Australia. The Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation delivers strategic initiatives on behalf of the Western Australian Government, supporting large-scale mining and industrial operations through to innovate startups and small to medium sized businesses across the state. ADIO is working with the department to explore avenues of cooperation within their Diversify WA Strategy and ADIOs Strategic Clusters. The agreement also promotes cross-sector activities, including supply chain development, advanced manufacturing, science innovation and technology, and environmental, social and governance frameworks. Growing trade relations Badr Al-Olama, Director General of ADIO, said: "ADIO is proud to drive and grow trade relations between Abu Dhabi and Western Australia. Our strategic collaboration with the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation will unlock opportunities for Australian companies, enabling their growth into Abu Dhabi and new markets in the region, as do the same for Emirati companies seeking to expand their activities in Australia and its surrounding region. Reece Whitby, Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Action, said: Western Australia has significant economic ties with the United Arab Emirates, with this agreement a good example of the State Governments strong working relationship with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office. The State Government will continue to find ways in which Western Australia and Abu Dhabi can cooperate to achieve mutually beneficial economic outcomes. The UAE and Australia enjoy long-standing economic ties, where the UAE is Australia's largest Middle East trade and investment partner. Australia was also among the 192 participating countries at Expo 2020 Dubai, which provided a key platform for Australian companies to engage with key partners from the Middle East and South Asia. Start of CEPA talks Bilateral trade of goods and services between both countries stood at $9.3 billion in 2022. Furthermore, the UAE and Australia announced the commencement of talks for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in 2023. The UAE is currently home to almost 16,000 Australian expats. Western Australias economy is export-oriented, with around half of Australia's exports of goods originating from the state each year, including minerals, petroleum, agri-food and specialised manufactured goods. Its gross state product (GSP) was AUD445.3 billion ($294.29 billion) in 2022-23, which was 17.4% of Australias gross domestic product (GDP).-- TradeArabia News Service Military personnel are seen in southwestern Lebanese city of Tyre on March 13, 2024. A Hamas official and a Syrian national were killed, and two other civilians were injured in an Israeli raid on Tyre on Wednesday, Lebanese military sources said. (Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) BEIRUT, March 13 (Xinhua) -- A Hamas official and a Syrian national were killed, and two other civilians were injured in an Israeli raid on the southwestern Lebanese city of Tyre on Wednesday, Lebanese military sources said. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Hadi Ali Mohammad Mustafa, a Hamas official from the Rashidieh camp near Tyre, was killed inside a car. The second victim, a Syrian national passing through the area during the raid, succumbed to his wounds after being transported to the hospital. Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border have been on the rise since Oct. 8, 2023, after Lebanese armed group Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets toward Israel in support of the Hamas attack on Israel the previous day, prompting Israel to respond by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon. The site of the raid is seen in southwestern Lebanese city of Tyre on March 13, 2024. A Hamas official and a Syrian national were killed, and two other civilians were injured in an Israeli raid on Tyre on Wednesday, Lebanese military sources said. (Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) FREMONT As part of six federal funding bills passed by Congress in the 2024 Consolidated Appropriations Act, Rep. Marcy Kaptur has secured $850,000 in funding for a streetscaping project on State Street. Mayor Danny Sanchez commented on Kapturs inclusion of the West State Street Pavement and Pedestrian Access Revitalization project. The $850,000 is part of a larger project for streetscaping through downtown Fremont, meant to improve pedestrian access. Rep. Marcy Kaptur The City of Fremont has a Think Fremont Plan, passed in 2018. We are project-ready on many projects. We applied for some federal dollars, through Congresswoman Marcy Kapturs office, with one of our potential plans, which I call the West State Street Project, Sanchez said. We submitted a $2.3 million request to the federal government to clean up State Street, from Front Street up to Rawson Ave. He gave added explanation of the remainder of the financing. We were awarded $850,000 of the $2.3 million. Obviously, that is not enough to complete the project, so we have a current ask into our state officials, state Sen. Bill Reinecke, R-Tiffin, and state Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery, to help fund the other half of that project. With the street funding going down, the city is doing everything it can to apply for state and federal funding, to continue making improvements throughout the city," Sanchez said. Sanchez expects to hear about the remaining funds from the state in the next few months. Concerns had come to the city from people using the Fort Stevenson House on State Street. Sanchez said some sidewalks were showing signs of age that made it difficult to navigate for individuals with some types of motorized wheelchairs or scooters. Sanchez defined streetscaping as resurfacing State Street, combined with curb work and also making sure that area is handicap accessible, and we're replacing the dilapidated railing that is going along State Street. Its not in the best shape, so it will also give it more curb appeal, (and) it could include portions with sidewalk replacement. Sanchez spoke about the methods hes had his administration use to get an unprecedented amount of funding for the city. This is a big win for the City of Fremont. The city has received close to $3 million in federal funding thats never been seen here before. I think that is attributed to being project-ready, for when these grant funds become available you only have a small window, of sometimes only a week, to submit your project requests. That isnt enough time to put a project of this magnitude together, Sanchez said. The administration is also submitting another request to Kaptur, D-Toledo, and Sen. Sherrod Brown for street improvements and infrastructure work on Oak Harbor Road. Sachez said after that project they arent going to apply for anything for some time. I can tell you that we are out of the ability to match projects from the general fund. That means we will be very limited on what we can apply for, because we just dont have the funding available Sanchez said. To match funds with this project, the city was able to pair this State Street project with the previous Front Street project. Its no new matching dollars, because the two projects connect, Sanchez said. The two projects connect and both Front Street and Rawson Avenue had matching dollars that make it work. This project is one of 13 community-funded projects across Kapturs Northwest Ohio district totaling more than $13 million. More: Fremont aerospace company wins $282.1 million NASA contract Kaptur is the ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, which released a statement Friday including the list of projects being funded in the 9th Congressional District. The House and Senate passed omnibus appropriations legislation to partially fund the federal government for Fiscal Year 2024. President Joe Biden signed the legislative package Saturday. Through the bipartisan effort of Republicans and Democrats working together, Congress is finally delivering much needed critical investments in the services, and programs, people across our region depend on, Kaptur said. Were serving as a reliable federal partner by securing over $13 million for an array of community-led projects that will lower costs, revitalize neighborhoods, equip police, firefighters and first responders with the latest tools and prepare our students and workforce for the careers and jobs of the future. Congress ought lift up, not tear apart, the American fabric. rlapointe@gannett.com 419-332-2674 This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Fremont OH streetscaping project gets $850,000 boost GARLAND, Texas - An 86-year-old man will likely live out his final years in prison after being captured and convicted for a murder that happened nearly 40 years ago. Advances in DNA technology made it happen. The family of Barbara Villarreal traveled a long way for a short hearing Tuesday morning. But theyve been waiting 38 years to hear the man who brutally killed the Garland woman admit in court he is a murderer. "Barbaras mother is 93 years old and is still alive," said Dallas County lead prosecutor Leighton DAntoni. "It was very important to her that she lived to see the day to see someone convicted for murdering her daughter." On Nov. 7, 1986, Villarreal was found stabbed to death at a home off Colbath Street in Garland. For nearly 40 years, the case turned cold until a new forensic technique matched a decades-old blood sample to now 86-year-old Liborio Canales, Villarreals brother-in-law. Tuesdays murder conviction is the Dallas County District Attorneys Offices first using whats called investigative genetic genealogy or IGG. One of Caneles' family members had DNA in a public database. "This is an investigative tool, but its not solving our cases. We still need traditional police investigative methods, detectives and agents out working the grounds and interviewing people," DAntoni said. "This doesnt replace any of that, but this helps us identify and put people on the right track so that we do get it right." Canales, a Mexican citizen, was arrested in New Mexico last summer. Investigators noticed he was traveling back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border. When he went to visit family in New Mexico in July 2023, the FBI was waiting for him. Once in custody, Canales confessed to the murder, stating he killed Villareal over a family dispute. After Tuesdays guilty plea, Canales was sentenced to 20 years in a Texas prison. Right before Canales was taken away, Villarreals family sent a strong message stating they "will never let him occupy their thoughts again, and the life he lived should be considered a gift." "They may have done some ungodly acts in their lives. They know they are meeting their maker sooner than later," DAntoni said. "I do think that helps people to accept responsibility and plead guilty." Back in 1986, Villarreals husband was interviewed by police but then was cleared. The husband was later killed in a shootout in Mexico in 1988 two years after Villarreal was murdered. Editors Note: This story is based on dozens of interviews with Ukrainian active servicemen, veterans, and experts with knowledge of Ukraines military medical system. Some of the soldiers and veterans in the story are identified by their first name or callsign only because they fear retribution as they continue fighting for their benefits or to be discharged following injuries. One soldier, entangled in a legal battle to be discharged, is identified under a pseudonym. The Kyiv Independent corroborated their stories by reviewing their medical records and listening to recordings of some of their conversations with doctors. The last thing National Guardsman Yurii Sluchynskyi, callsign Luch, remembers from that summer day in 2022 is holding a sniper nest with his team in Sievierodonetsk, listening for enemy weapons. Then, the Russian airstrike hit, folding a big part of the building down on top of them. When they pulled Sluchynskyis broken body from the rubble, the Ukrainian intelligence operators thought he was finished. Out of his whole team, he was mangled the hardest. His legs were sticking out at odd angles, he was convulsing and struggling to breathe. There was a hole the size of a small apple in the side of his head and his eyes showed signs of a massive hematoma. The boys of Ukraines Main Intelligence Directorate put him in a helicopter just in time. He credits their rescue and the will of God for his survival. After many months spent recovering, with a metal plate now sealing his broken skull, Sluchynskyi regained independent function but his fighting days were over. Before he could go home and re-enter civilian life, he just had to go to a medical commission to do his physicals, arrange the medical discharge, and apply for his legally entitled disability benefits. After what he survived, Sluchynskyi didnt expect his daily life to take another turn for the worse. But the Ukrainian military medical bureaucracy seemed determined to add insult to injury, making him fight for adequate treatments, his combat pay, and his freedom every step of the way. "Sometimes people say war is hell, Sluchynskyi told the Kyiv Independent. The hell is when you return from the war (to face) the indifference. It is very demotivating. The Kyiv Independent interviewed him and dozens of other veterans, military personnel, and civilian volunteers helping the military. They describe a military medical system thats fundamentally broken on every level, no matter where you are, no matter how youre injured. As a reward for fighting Ukraines battles, veterans have to fight a callous, sometimes corrupt, outdated bureaucracy thats often working against them, while they are at their most physically and psychologically vulnerable. Luch photographed in Djinn's apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine on Jan. 29, 2024. (Olena Zashko / The Kyiv Independent) Military medical commissions (abbreviated locally as VLK) are central to many issues. A VLK is a quorum of doctors who decide the medical status of service members passing through their hospital. Many doctors have questionable competence and integrity, according to veterans. Ukraines obsolete military protocols have also done a lot of damage. Starting treatment in spring 2023, Sluchynskyi got the full experience. He sat in long lines of injured veterans for days at a time. He ran around trying to track down medical specialists, with extremely tight schedules and deadlines. According to him, their examinations were perfunctory at best, actively diminishing the severity of his injuries at worst. To complete his medical checkups, his unit made him find two eyewitnesses to testify that he actually got his injuries in front-line combat. Throughout, military regulations did not allow him to leave his base to rest at home, except by the leave of his commander. And in spite of his near-fatal injuries, Sluchynskyi was not initially granted a clean separation he said they put him down as partially suitable for military service. Sluchynskyi said he ultimately had to hire a lawyer and go to court to fight for his discharge. Getting his disability benefits was also a struggle. Sluchynskyis story is so common across the Ukrainian military that when Tetyana Ostashchenko, the head of the military medical service was fired in November, new Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said in a statement that every service member knows why she had to go. The legal volunteer movement Yurydychna Sotnya said that unfortunately, the number of (legal) requests tied to medical issues is significant. The Defense Ministry and the General Staff of the Armed Forces each wrote detailed replies to the Kyiv Independent about these issues. Both avoided directly addressing the prevalence of specific findings. "Today, the military is a vast living organism of about a million people. With that, there are of course many problematic situations in need of investigation and intervention," the Defense Ministry wrote. Since 2022, the Ukrainian healthcare system has faced a situation unprecedented for the modern world. We are constantly working to eliminate existing problems we are creating a qualitatively new healthcare and rehabilitation system. The Defense Ministry and the General Staff listed the reforms that have been planned, launched, or completed, acknowledging the problems indirectly through moves to fix them. On the technical side, the ministry and the Armed Forces introduced things like electronic queues and simplified document exchanges, and cut down how long it takes for soldiers to get critical files like circumstances of injury. Regulation-wise, old standard operating procedures are being changed, international medical standards have been adopted, and a dedicated hotline and website for injured vets have been introduced. The Defense Ministry changed leadership in November and is reorganizing some departments in December, Deputy Minister Stanislav Haider told the Kyiv Independent hed like to see personnel affairs and social security combined into one. The General Staff, which changed leadership in February, wrote that its continually working to improve the quality of medical care and administrative services for veterans and trying to make things more human-centric. And Bill 10449 On Mobilization, now in parliament, is meant to resolve multiple issues with how VLKs determine fitness to serve. According to veterans and volunteers, major reforms began to arrive in the second half of 2023. Improvements have been made but there is a long way to go. Many veterans of the full-scale invasion still feel stuck fighting a system that ought to be on their side. Problems on every level All troops pass through a VLK on recruitment. Some of the interviewees said that any issues with recordkeeping at this stage can hurt servicemen later. During active service, sick or injured warriors ability to get the care they need depends on their command staff, troops say. In multiple cities, survivors have had to sit in long, disorganized queues just to get doctors to look at them and sign a piece of paper. This included people who were weak and recovering from physical or mental trauma. This system is improving, especially in Kyiv. Until recent reforms began to nip this practice in the bud, any interruption in treatment could have made the veteran lose all their combat bonuses from that day onward, as well as other financial compensation, even if the interruption was involuntary (like being transported to another hospital). While not a military-wide practice, units often require veterans to prove that they took their injuries or lost their gear in combat. When this is done, two witnesses are typically required to avoid being accused of malingering or theft. A few of the interviewees were denied bonuses because the life-threatening wounds they took from enemy fire could not be officially confirmed as front-line injuries. This practice is also undergoing reforms. Injured service members often have to travel across Ukraine collecting medical documents that determine their future. Some soldiers said their discharge procedures dragged on indefinitely, even as their military status precluded them from getting a civilian job. Many are not released from service at all, if they have functioning limbs. Occasionally, even amputees or the critically wounded have to fight to get a discharge. Those who are allowed to walk away frequently have to fight for the money to which theyre legally entitled. From how the interviewees described it, only a fraction will have the stamina to see it through to the end. Core issue: Military-medical commissions Many of these problems arise at the so-called military medical commissions. A commission (pronounced in Ukrainian as Viiskovo-Likarska Komisiia or VLK) is like a panel of doctors who decide what to do with service members based on their medical files. VLKs are second only to unit commanders in how much control they have over the fate of every fighting Ukrainian. Any time a soldier has a wound, injury, or other condition and has to pass through the hospital or several, the resident VLK will be waiting at the end, to decide just how healthy they are and whether theyre fit for duty. To pass a VLK, a soldier has to get a list of specialists, wait in line for each one, get their tests, and make sure every document is accounted for and hasnt vanished into the bureaucracy, as they often do. Reformist NGOs and military staff who know this system blame outdated Soviet orders, the lack of clarity or transparency in the system, the overwhelming scale of the war, and the fact that most records are on paper. They also point out the incompetence, callousness, or corruption among medical commissions or unit command staff. Ivan Minchenko in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine on Feb.11, 2024. (Kate Klochko / The Kyiv Independent) Efforts at reform have been made and some improvements have already been implemented, both during the tenures of previous Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov and his successor, Umerov. However, reforming and auditing the whole system will be a major challenge that will require unbroken political will and dedication to making things right. The Soviet system can be blamed on the civilian leadership politicians, parliament, and military leaders who are against any changes, said Ivan Minchenko, a veteran. I understand that it is very hard to reform an army at war. But it is quite possible to improve the medical system or treatment of the injured. It wont affect combat but it will affect people. The corruption factor Some medical commissions are corrupt. Its hard to determine exactly how many, but enter VLK and bribe in Ukrainian into Google and the examples spill out in abundance. The head of a VLK in Chernivtsis regional hospital was arrested for allegedly demanding $500 from a wounded vet to arrange disability benefits. A hospital deputy head in the region was allegedly asking for the same, for similar services. In Kirovohrad Oblast, a surgeon is suspected of charging Hr 40,000 (about $1,000) for a negative combat fitness verdict. Some doctors appetites didnt appear to stop there. The head of a garrison VLK in Khmelnytskyi was accused of charging $5,000 to mark a service member unfit for duty. One doctor allegedly tried to charge for the same $4,000 in Poltava Oblast; another one was arrested in Kyiv after reportedly trying for $3,000. Some appeared to be raking it in. One former Chernihiv VLK head who allegedly participated in a draft evasion bribery scheme was found to have $1 million by the Security Service of Ukraine, or SBU. His accomplices reportedly included people who sit on local VLKs and medical offices. In the interviews, volunteers and service members said that corruption is widespread in VLKs and recruitment offices whose conscripts must go through VLKs before they join their units. People with disposable income could buy their way out of mobilization, while recruiters swept poorer areas for conscripts, according to interviewees. Alleged VLK forgeries were detected on people trying to flee Ukraine under false pretenses. It became such a big problem that President Volodymyr Zelensky fired all recruitment office heads in August. One conscript, a Kyiv resident identified in the story as Anatolii, was sent recruitment papers in his home village. His daughter, who worked closely on his case with a lawyer, said it was common practice for recruiters to come with buses to villages in the area and collect as many men as they could. Rural residents tend to be poorer, with less access to civic infrastructure. The Defense Ministry said it takes corruption seriously and asked for any known cases to be reported to both it and the police. The General Staff said the same thing that it encourages reporting corruption to both the police and the military. Luch: Put through the wringer After a series of hospital stays in Bakhmut, Dnipro, and Vinnytsia, Sluchynskyi was up but plagued by problems with his vision, memory, and knee. He came to Kyiv in May 2023, to sort out his documents and try to get discharged. "That was when the bullshit started," he said. Just getting to the doctors was a pain. The time window to get specialist referrals and to then see those specialists was one and the same between 8 and 10 a.m. Some of the tests were being done in a different hospital. There were times that Id speak to the doctor for 10 minutes and I stood in line for eight hours. Its not organized. It strongly affects morale, Sluchynskyi said. Many cant bear it and go home. Previously, if you missed one day of care, you didn't get combat bonuses. One surgeon measured the hole in Sluchynskyi's skull and wrote its dimensions as 1 square centimeter. The actual size was 26 square centimeters. Sluchynskyi found another doctor and had him watch the surgeon take another measurement, writing it correctly this time. All this effort went to waste because the checkups expired while he was waiting for the military to establish that he was wounded in combat. He had to start over. This meant he couldnt go home. "Until you have the VLK results, you have to be constantly stationed at the base, Sluchynskyi said. And theoretically, you might have to fight. When the findings came back, he said that they were riddled with wrong dates and other errors. When it was redone, the commission ruled to summarily discharge him. A little prematurely, it turns out, because Sluchynskyi was then denied access to a scheduled appointment in a military hospital. Luch photographed in Djinn's apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine on Jan. 29, 2024. (Olena Zashko / The Kyiv Independent) As long as you are intact, the country needs you, Sluchynskyi said. When youre not whole, youre not really needed. To qualify for disability benefits, he had to go through a different panel called a medical social expertise, abbreviated as MSEK in Ukraine. There are three tiers of disability in Ukraine, from requiring round-the-clock care at category one, to having full function and minimal entitlements at category three. Sluchynskyi applied for category two, for people who can take care of themselves but cannot hold down a job. He said his doctors recommended he be granted category two, yet the medical expert panel went with category three. He surreptitiously recorded a doctor from the panel telling him that they would not grant him anything but the lowest tier the Kyiv Independent listened to this recording. Sluchynskyi said he then appealed and finally got category two but per the rules, he must return each year to repeat the procedure. How this comes about Lyubov Halan, spokeswoman of Pryncyp, the top veteran care reform organization in the country, said these problems come from outdated Soviet military rules, a callous culture among doctors and commanders, reliance on hardcopy, disorganization, and corruption. But if she were to rank one reason above all others, she would single out the militarys flowchart for medical decisions. Written in peacetime, it could not cope with the scale of Russias invasion. Until recently, the military medical commission system was based on Order 402, an outdated standard operating procedure. Order 402 has a rudimentary model for how to treat casualties and decide if theyre fit to serve. But this order was vague. Partially fit, service members cannot be in the special forces, but they can be in light territorial defense units meant to defend the rear. However, with Russia's invasion, territorial defense sees about the same amount of action as the special forces do. When reviewing a persons medical file, medical commissions dont consider comorbidity or the sum impact of all conditions. They only look at the main diagnosis. In this situation, many physically unwell people may be forced to continue serving. According to the General Staff, Ukraine has now adopted the international ICD-10 diagnostic system. Before the adoption, Ukraine used an older model, leading to communication issues with allies. Commanders who dont know medicine or dont trust VLKs often ignore them. Worse, many service members are required to have a document Form 5 or circumstances of primary trauma that establishes a causal relationship between defense of the homeland and the injury. This affects a service members future status and available benefits. Investigating every time someone is wounded takes forever and runs into a problem if all eyewitnesses are dead and the paper combat log is gone. Halan said her organization successfully fought to reduce how long it takes to get a Form 5 and eliminate the mandatory investigation requirement. However, some units still investigate. In August, the old system for determining fitness for duty was changed with the adoption of Order 490. Halan said there were clear improvements in the procedure. Unfortunately, the changes also increased the number of conditions that under certain diagnoses can be ruled as fit to serve. Pryncyp said these conditions dont lead to fitness. Djinn: Thanklessly discarded The circles of Dantes hell are a popular metaphor for the systems many torments. National Guard infantry squad commander Viktor Shepelia, callsign Djinn, said hes been through all of them. This volunteer fighter was heavily wounded twice in the span of two months in 2022. The first time, a mortar shell collapsed his earthen dugout on top of him and set him on fire. When they pulled him out, he had a skull fracture, shrapnel wounds, ruptured eardrums, and an intense concussion. The second time, an anti-tank shell flew over him and blew behind his back, flinging him forward. Four fragments shot into his knee. They were so close to an important nerve bundle that Ukrainian surgeons were afraid to operate and risk permanent damage. Casevac couldnt get to him right away, so he had to do his best to command his men, as the officer in charge. The injuries gave him epilepsy, but when he showed up for treatment, he was confined to a hospital ward filled not just with other epileptics but all kinds of emotionally disturbed soldiers, with a strict ban on letting people go home for the weekend or step out to eat soldiers could only be picked up by members of their unit. He felt worse after these treatments. A soldier comes to recuperate they shove them in the nuthouse, he said. Ivan Minchenko, another veteran, shared a similar description of hospitals. He said the strictness made him feel like a prisoner. All told, the injuries created a litany of acute and chronic health problems for Djinn. "My diagnosis is a long read that's what this (combat) cost me," he said. Thats why he was stunned when the VLK investigation concluded that of the above injuries, only his knee and hearing damage are verifiably connected to combat with the enemy. This directly affects how much money the military has to pay him. He, too, had to produce witnesses to testify that his shrapnel injuries to the back and being buried alive happened in the line of duty, which is a lot to ask on Ukraines battlefields. If there is only one witness available for trial or both witnesses have already been killed youre f*cked, Djinn said. If I don't have these witnesses or if they're dead, nobody saw it. If I'm the only one left alive, how am I going to prove anything? Djinn photographed in his apartment in Kyiv, Ukraine on Jan. 29, 2024. (Olena Zashko / The Kyiv Independent) Many say they stop receiving their combat bonuses and injury compensations during treatment. At the time of the interview, Djinn said the state owed him Hr 600,000 or $15,500. As of publication, he has received Hr 150,000 ($3,900). "I didnt go to war for the money," he said. But if you owe me money, you better give it to me. Serhii: Fighting for release Serhii Shuliepov used to command a squad in the National Guard. He fought in the Kyiv suburbs: Bucha, Irpin, and Hostomel, and in eastern Ukraine. His recollections include guarding bridges for friendlies around Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk, being the last to leave. At Rubizhne, his squad had to break out of an encirclement to escape the enemy. Eventually, he was concussed in combat. During treatment, medics found that Shuliepov had untreated gout in his body and it weakened a big part of his skull. He had to get surgery reinforcing the weakened areas with a metal plate. Doctors said that any sufficient pressure vibrations on this metal plate, like from incoming or outgoing fire, would reliably kill him. The VLK surgeon suggested discharging Shuliepov. However, the chief medic wrote in the conclusion that Shuliepov is partially fit for the service. Being partially fit is no guarantee that he wouldnt be ordered into combat. One has no way out, Shuliepov said during his interview. Shuliepov challenged the decision with a lawyer, submitting a request to undergo a VLK at the Central Medical Commission of the Interior Ministry. After one month of waiting, the Central VLK sent him back to undergo an initial phase of the medical commission. Eventually, the VLK granted Shuliepovs discharge documents. It took him from March to the end of October 2023 to finalize the discharge decision. Yurii: Betrayed by his commanders Yurii Shapoval moves about on crutches as he tells his tale. When the war started, the 49-year-old single dad had a good job, taking care of his three-year-old daughter. But he wanted to fight for the motherland. He left his daughter with his mother and joined the military. He was hoping Russia would be sent packing in six months. He said his unit, 53rd Brigades 1st Battalion, was in a ramshackle state. I left military service soon after the Soviet Union collapsed, he said. I thought I knew what a mess was. That was a holiday by comparison. Deployed to the hot battlegrounds around Volnovakha and Volodymyrivka in Donetsk Oblast as a combat medic, Shapovals squad was among the last to retreat from an overrun position. The man behind him was hit and as Shapoval stopped to help him, he was also hit. The bullet destroyed his ankle joint. He eventually crawled away and was picked up by friends. It took 12 surgeries to start repairing the damage. His leg still hurts so much, he needs painkillers just to get through the day. When he tried to get help for his dependency in a Dnipro military hospital, he said they called him an addict and threw him out. He said that hospitals in Irpin and Vinnytsia treated him much better. Now he has to prove he was wounded in the line of duty or he said the 53rd wont give him the document that certifies that he was wounded in combat. But during the retreat, the paper combat log was lost. Hes been calling them since spring 2023. They tell me: Present two witnesses. I say: Are you morons? What two witnesses? Im the only one left. Out of the last 10 guys, Im the only survivor. But they demand two witnesses I was told that I was labeled absent without leave. Anatolii: Disabled man ordered to fight A Kyiv woman, named Anna for this story, granted multiple lengthy interviews to the Kyiv Independent over the past five months while helping her 53-year-old father Anatolii with his case. By request, both real names have been altered to avoid military and legal backlash. Anatolii was judged unfit for the front line when he was mobilized at the start of spring 2023. But in April, he was sent to Vinnytsia for infantry training. Less than a month later, he sent a message that he was being sent to reinforce the 110th Motorized Brigade near Avdiivka. Anna found out later that while in Avdiivka, he was woken up in the middle of the night and sent to the zero line, where he spent three days in a trench. When he got back from the trench, his section leader chewed him out for disappearing. Anatolii called the recruitment office, trying to get a copy of his medical documents to prove hes unfit for the front line. He said they showed him a brief snapshot, which said that the 53-year-old had no health problems. Wearing armor tore his meniscus and his health declined. While in his deployment area, he often had to sleep outside in a sleeping bag, which aggravated his thrombosis. The military doctors couldnt offer more than topical cream and painkillers at first. When Anna found him a civilian doctor, they refused to see him, saying theyd be in trouble with the military. After eventually going through two hospitals, he was resting in Kyiv. Before he could recover fully, his section leader ordered him back to Donbas to wait in reserve, west of Avdiivka. The 110th was recently pushed out of the town after defending it for close to two years. Anatolii wasnt part of this retreat he and some comrades were waiting for their orders at the time. Flawed system with unscrupulous administrators Mykhailo, who lost his legs in Donbas fighting the Russian-controlled proxies several years before the full-scale invasion, said the flawed system has been in place for a long time. He said wounded people had to wait in line for an indeterminate number of days. That included people with holes in their skulls or concussions that made them unable to stand or sit up for extended periods. Sometimes, only to be told, You have arms and legs, why are you here? The doctors treat the casualties with contempt. Theres a feeling like you came to ask (the doctors) to borrow money even though Im just asking for them to follow procedure, he said. It makes you want to open the conversation by rolling a grenade (into their office). Soldiers rarely get told that they need to collect all their documents from their unit and the hospital where they were treated. That includes the primary injury report, an unbroken chronology for the health condition, and how its tied to the motherlands defense. Djinn said veterans have to be careful to track what they need. If some pencil pusher takes your document, youll never see it again if you didnt photograph it, it doesnt exist. It takes as little as one missing document for the whole thing not to exist. Mykhailo said that even though the law is very clear, VLKs often scrupulously forget it and only remember when you come to them with an envelope with a bribe inside. A soldier comes to them and says I heard Im entitled to this. And they tell him What you heard isnt a thing. Except it is a thing, but the soldier believes them because theyre officials. But if he goes to a lawyer, the lawyer confirms that they are eligible. Soldiers can fight this in court but few of them bother, said Mykhailo, whose pension should be higher than what he gets now. As someone who is creating a health center for disabled veterans and interacts with many of them, he thinks that few have the drive to go all the way. Out of 100 eligible pensioners, only 10 will make it to the fund, out of those 10, just four will make it to court, he estimated. And that's in Kyiv. Imagine someone who lives in a village, with a once-per-week marshrutka to a nearby city. Ivan: Standing up to the system Ivan Minchenko is one of the stubborn soldiers who fought for everything the country owes him. He joined up on the day of the invasion, serving in the 110th Territorial Defense. In April 2022 he was wounded near Novodarivka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast in connection with defense of the motherland, as the VLK established. He managed to escape half-encirclement near the Donetsk regional border, with the 114th battalion. He then participated in an assault on Pryiutne. His unit was trapped and couldn't retreat, taking over 20 casualties. Minchenko had bullet and concussion wounds, which disrupted his neurological function, affecting his use of one arm. He went to his disability panel in 2023, which gave him disability 2 and confirmed he had major health problems. And yet, he said the VLK found him partially fit for duty. When I went into the VLK and said I have disability 2 officially confirmed, and have medical documents backing it up, they said that's logical, we'll talk to the leadership. I spoke with the VLK head and she said directly we're putting you as partially fit because we put you down as partially fit before. There are no ways to leave, meaning disabled service members are often forced to keep serving. Meanwhile, service members whose family members are disabled can leave with no issue. This is f*cked up, Minchenko said. Why isn't anyone taking political responsibility? He said there's an unwritten rule in the military that your treatment can take up to a month, which was inadequate for many, including himself. Though he was wounded in April 2022, he didnt get a certificate of his circumstances of injury until November. This process has officially been sped up to a maximum of five days, but that wasnt the case when he was serving. Denied their legally entitled benefits Minchenkos story is common. Service members wounded in combat are entitled to their combat bonus for the entire treatment period. Many dont get theirs, but are too afraid to go to court for it. Soldiers who fight for theirs like Shepelia and Minchenko are in the minority. Service members simply dont know their own rights, Minchenko said. I solve these kinds of issues very simply. I submit it for consideration by the Cabinet of Ministers, the Veterans Ministry, and the Defense Ministry. Ivan Minchenko in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine on Feb. 11, 2024. (Kate Klochko / The Kyiv Independent) In reply, the ministry said that Minchenko must receive his full combat bonuses, which he eventually secured. After that, in our separate battalion, everyone else also started getting money, he said. In the previous battalion, they had told me that they never paid anyone like this. I said Guys, there is no question here I will take you to court, and youll be forced to pay. Minchenko also had to fight for his disability. He said he mailed a request to Veterans Affairs and they made sure he got the right status. He expects to have problems claiming his pension and plans to fight for it in the European Court of Human Rights. Reforms from late 2023 In August 2023, changes were made to the main by-law on military medical examination, and standards for VLKs themselves. Legal aid volunteer group Yurydychna Sotnya praised the automation of some procedures, the expansion of electronic document management, and the introduction of electronic queues. Throughput in many places is still low but the Kyiv Independent got to see these improvements firsthand in Kyiv accompanying a veteran named Oleh, who had a fairly smooth ride through his physicals. Changes were made to how fitness to serve is determined and the list of documents proving a causal relationship between injury and defense of the motherland has been broadened. VLKs must consider medical results conducted by non-state doctors. Oleh in Kyiv, Ukraine on Feb. 17, 2024. (Liza Pyrozhkova / The Kyiv Independent) Deadlines for processing complaints have been clarified. Special mandatory medical examinations have been established for service members who were Russias POWs, and who have been treated abroad. The reform also clarified the exchange of service members documents between healthcare institutions and military units, territorial recruitment, and social support centers. However, confusion still remains about the practical status of people deemed partially fit for duty, according to Yurydycha Sotnya. Many other things have not changed either: a rather opaque procedure for passing the VLK, corruption risks, the difficulty of appealing decisions, and more. As for the procedure for passing the military medical examination itself: the procedure has not changed in principle, Yurydychna Sotnya wrote. Read also: After 10 years of war, Krasnohorivka in new danger as Russia advances in the east Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Before getting his head bitten off by Republican U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace on Sunday, ABC News "This Week" host George Stephanopoulos had asked her a perfectly reasonable question. Why, as a rape survivor, he wondered, would you support someone for president who sexually abuses women? Stephanopoulos had just played a 2019 clip of Mace, then a member of the South Carolina Legislature, speaking emotionally about having been raped at 16, how ashamed she had been and how long it took her to come forward because she was scared no one would believe her. She was asking state lawmakers, in the most personal way, to carve an exception for rape and incest into a draconian anti-abortion bill, which they did. Describing Maces testimony as candid and courageous, Stephanopoulos asked why, given that history, she would support former President Trump. Judges and two separate juries have found him liable for rape and for defaming the victim of that rape, Stephanopoulos said. How do you square that endorsement of Donald Trump with the testimony we just saw? Read more: Abcarian: Bravo to France for enshrining the right to abortion in its constitution a worldwide first That circle can only be squared on Planet MAGA, where nothing the former president has ever done is considered disqualifying. In the surreal exchange that followed, Mace repeatedly accused Stephanopoulos of trying to shame her as a rape victim, and declared that his very question would make it more difficult for rape survivors to come forward. I live with shame, and youre asking me a question about my political choices trying to shame me as a rape victim, said Mace, and I find it disgusting. Its not about shaming you, Stephanopoulos replied. Its a question about Donald Trump. How I hate to write this, but I dont think I have ever seen a woman invoke the rape card like this. So disingenuous. So damaging. Read more: Abcarian: How the Alabama IVF ruling unmasks the hypocrisy of antiabortion zealots And before you start yelling about how Trump was not technically found guilty of having raped E. Jean Carroll, its important to remember that even the judge in that case said that what Trump did to Carroll all those years ago in a Bergdorf dressing room was, indeed, rape. The finding that Ms. Carroll failed to prove that she was raped within the meaning of the New York Penal Law does not mean that she failed to prove that Mr. Trump raped her as many people commonly understand the word rape, U.S. District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote. Indeed, as the evidence at trial recounted below makes clear, the jury found that Mr. Trump in fact did exactly that. Not content to accuse Stephanopoulos of trying to shame her, Mace also accused Carroll of trivializing sexual assault by making a small joke about how she might spend the $83 million she was awarded by the juries in her two defamation cases. Read more: Abcarian: Would you expect a firefighter to run into a burning building to save a frozen embryo? And quite frankly, E. Jean Carrolls comments, when she did get the judgment, joking about what she was gonna buy? said Mace. It makes it harder for women to come forward when they make a mockery out of rape. I'm just guessing here, but I think news that a victim's attacker has to pay her millions of dollars in damages for saying she lied about it might inspire others to come forward. Maybe even in droves. Anyway, what Carroll said hardly trivialized rape: Id like to give the money to something Donald Trump hates, Carroll said on Good Morning America in January. If it will cause him pain for me to give money to certain things, thats my intent. Well, perhaps a fund for the women who have been sexually assaulted by Donald Trump. On Sunday, to her credit, Carroll refused to tangle with Mace, instead posting on X that she wished Mace well. And, Carroll added, I salute all survivors for their strength, endurance, and holding on to their sanity. That was a neat trick Mace tried to pull off trying to shame Carroll while declaring herself to be the real shaming victim. Read more: Abcarian: Trump sexually abused and defamed E. Jean Carroll. There's still no denying it Mace is not the only high-profile Republican lawmaker to disingenuously invoke rape to support Trump. Last week, Alabama Sen. Katie Britts much maligned response to President Bidens State of the Union speech raised rape in a totally bizarre way. Britt, whose histrionic presentation instantly became fodder for Saturday Night Live, implied that Bidens border policies were to blame for the sex trafficking of a Mexican woman who, as it happens, was actually exploited in Mexico during the George W. Bush administration. The cartels put her on a mattress in a shoe box of a room, and they sent men through that door over and over again for hours and hours on end, Britt said, her voice trembling with emotion. We wouldnt be OK with this happening in a Third World country. This is the United States of America, and it is past time, in my opinion, that we start acting like it. President Bidens border policies are a disgrace. I doubt Britt believed what she was saying, just as I doubt Mace really believed that Stephanopoulos was trying to shame her. This is political theater at its worst Read more: Female lawmakers speak about rapes as abortion bills advance In Mace's case, trying to turn the tables on Stephanopoulos was a convenient way of deflecting her obvious hypocrisy, and the hypocrisy of all the family-values-professing types who embrace the reelection of the twice-impeached former president who is still facing 91 felony counts for a wide variety of crimes, and who has bragged please, lets not forget that he can grab women by the genitals with impunity. Like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and countless other Republicans, Mace once condemned Trump, blamed him for the insurrection and declared he was unfit for office. Her change of heart came about, she told Stephanopoulos, because I listened to my voters in South Carolina, and they have moved beyond Jan. 6. But she never explained why, as an outspoken advocate for survivors of rape, she supports a man judged to be guilty of that very misdeed. That, I would suggest, is because she can't. Her only defense, as she demonstrated last week, is a nonsensical offense. @robinkabcarian 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. NEW YORK The criminal justice system had two recent run-ins with accused subway pusher Christian Valdez before he shoved a woman under a Manhattan train including a day before the attack, when the suspect removed an ankle monitor but was still allowed to walk free, the Daily News has learned. The other encounter took place almost three months before the Saturday shove that cost Valdezs 29-year-old girlfriend the lower parts of her legs, when Valdez was charged with stabbing a woman in the Bronx. Valdez, who was already on parole for stabbing a woman and her young daughter, was locked up without bail. But not for long. Valdezs defense lawyers fought the parole revocation and got him released after a January hearing in Bronx Supreme Court. A condition of that release was an electronic monitoring device. On Friday, Valdez dodged another potential date with a jail cell, just hours before the Fulton St. station attack. Valdez cut off an ankle GPS monitor, leading to a visit from state parole officers who arranged for him to get medical help. Before they could return to his home to fit Valdez with a new GPS monitor, the parolee had vanished. They reached him in New Jersey, where he admitted pushing someone onto the tracks, officials said. State parole officials said Tuesday that removing a GPS monitor isnt enough to trigger an automatic violation and re-arrest. An investigation must be conducted by parole staff to determine if the individual violated the conditions of their release in an important respect before a warrant can be produced, said Rachel Connors, a spokesperson with the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, or DOCCS. Valdez, 35, had been released to parole a year earlier, in January 2023, after being sentenced to two-and-2/3 to eight years in prison for stabbing Jenny Aquino and her then 4-year-old daughter, Bella, in 2017. They let me down, Aquino told the Daily News on Monday. They told me he was locked up and then deported to Peru. Within the year Valdez was in trouble again. On Dec. 20, Valdez repeatedly stabbed a woman on E. Tremont Ave. in the Bronx outside a transitional housing facility where they both lived, prosecutors allege. The woman needed about 50 stitches to close stab wounds to her leg, stomach and armpit, according to a criminal complaint. Valdez was arrested, and after a hospital stay for psychiatric treatment, he was arraigned on attempted murder, assault and other charges, sources said. A parole official attended the arraignment and asked that Valdez be held without bail pending a parole hearing. Under the 2022 state Less is More Act, a suspect accused of a parole violation is entitled to a speedy hearing, where law enforcement officials must meet a high standard of proof that a violation took place. Valdezs attorneys with the Legal Aid Society filed a motion seeking their clients release after a Jan. 3 hearing in Bronx Supreme Court. On Jan. 18, that motion was granted. Defense lawyer Michelle McGrath argued that prosecutors had insufficient evidence in the stabbing case, and pointed out the defense team wasnt allowed to properly cross-examine the stabbing victim about a prior mental health exam, and about her history of past assault convictions. We also were not permitted to know what section of the penal law our client was alleged to have violated, McGrath said at that proceeding, before Justice George Villegas ordered Valdez freed without bail, and he was fitted for an ankle monitor. The stabbing case is still pending. Legal Aid declined comment Tuesday. Valdez removed the ankle monitor on March 8 and triggered an alert, according to prosecutors and parole officials. Parole officers visited Valdez at home that day, said Connors, the DOCCS spokesperson. Parole officers determined during the visit that Valdez was in need of immediate medical attention and ensured that he was transported to receive it, Connors said. She couldnt comment further on the medical attention, citing federal privacy law. At some point, the officers returned to Valdezs home to fit a new ankle monitor. But Valdez wasnt there. Even so, Connors said, For the brief period that Valdez did not have a GPS monitor including while he was receiving medical care and upon discharge parole officers actively supervised and engaged Valdez. On Saturday at 10:30 a.m., Valdez pushed the subway victim into the path of a downtown No. 3 train after an argument, cops and prosecutors allege. Medics rushed her in critical condition to Bellevue Hospital, where both her legs were amputated below the knee, prosecutors said. Valdezs parole officer called after they didnt find him at home, and Valdez admitted to pushing someone onto the tracks that morning, Connors said. The officer was able to convince Valdez to return to New York to face charges, she said. It is important to note that GPS monitors do not prevent individuals from committing crimes nor do they predict them, Connors said. There was no gap in supervision; a GPS monitor would have served to provide his location at the time the crime was committed, which has been confirmed through alternative means. She said DOCCS is still investigating the case. _______ Once again, politicians in Concord are trying to make it harder for people to vote. House Bill 1569 is the most recent effort, and will be going to the House floor on Thursday with no recommendation after the House Election Law Committee deadlocked, 10-10. This bill would remove the sworn legal statements that people use to prove their qualifications (like age, identity, and citizenship) if they dont have documentary proof with them when they go to register to vote. Henry Klementowicz, Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU of New Hampshire. Make no mistakethis bill would disenfranchise eligible voters. Dont have your birth certificate or passport? Under HB 1569too bad; you cant register to vote. It is no exaggeration to say that thousands of people do not have documents to prove all their qualifications and instead sign a sworn statement each general election, and under this proposal, those thousands of people might not be able to vote. Never mind that it costs more than a hundred dollars to get a passport, and that birth certificates can be pricey too. In pursuit of their campaign against the phantom boogeyman of voter fraud, some state representatives are set on creating roadblocks even though everyone who has ever looked at it, from Governor Sununu to the Secretary of State to the courts, all agree that our elections are safe and secure and that there is no widespread voter fraud. Never mind too that this law is unconstitutional and would likely end up costing the state millions in legal fees if signed into law. In 2020, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a similar scheme in Kansas where people were required to use documents to prove their citizenship. And the last time that a voter suppression law was ruled unconstitutional here (New Hampshire Democratic Party v. Secretary of State from 2021) the state ended up paying over four million dollars in legal fees. So why are they doing this? Its not because of voter fraud. Even the conservative Heritage Foundation has found only one or two convictions for voter fraud in the state per year (in 2020 there were over a million votes cast between the September and November elections). And although exceedingly rare, those convictions are overwhelmingly cases of double voting, like when someone votes in New Hampshire and in Massachusetts in the same election. This bill would not even address such a double-voting situation. In my research, I couldnt come across a single case of a non-citizen voting in New Hampshire. This bill also will do nothing to increase voter confidence. Remember the Special Committee on Voter Confidence in 2022 by the Secretary of State? The Committee held meetings in excess of 37 hours and received testimony from over 400 people. It put out a huge report and made numerous recommendations on how to improve voter confidence. But none of these recommendations included making it harder to register or vote or to remove the ability of people to file sworn statements when registering. Politicians on all sides, state officials, and the voter confidence special committee have all recognized that voter fraud in New Hampshire is extremely rare and that voter confidence in our elections is extremely high. Theres simply no good reason to erect roadblocks that could stop thousands of eligible voters from participating in our democracy. Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy and the fundamental right upon which all our civil liberties rest. I urge Granite Staters to take great concern with proposals to create unfounded, unnecessary barriers to that fundamental right. Henry Klementowicz, Senior Staff Attorney at the ACLU of New Hampshire. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: ACLU of NH: Its time to protect not strip away voting rights The Scene Firefly, Adobes AI image creation tool, repeats some of the same controversial mistakes that Googles Gemini made in inaccurate racial and ethnic depictions, illustrating the challenges tech companies face across the industry. Google shut down its Gemini image creation tool last month after critics pointed out that it was creating historically inaccurate images, depicting Americas Founding Fathers as Black, for instance, and refusing to depict white people. CEO Sundar Pichai told employees the company got it wrong. The tests done by Semafor on Firefly replicated many of the same things that tripped up Gemini. The two services rely on similar techniques for creating images from written text, but they are trained on very different datasets. Adobe uses only stock images or images that it licenses. Adobe and Google also have different cultures. Adobe, a more traditionally structured company, has never been a hotbed of employee activism like Google. The common denominator is the core technology for image generation, and companies can attempt to corral it, but there is no guaranteed way to do it. I asked Firefly to create images using similar prompts that got Gemini in trouble. It created Black soldiers fighting for Nazi Germany in World War II. In scenes depicting the Founding Fathers and the constitutional convention in 1787, Black men and women were inserted into roles. When I asked it to create a comic book character of an old white man, it drew one, but also gave me three others of a Black man, a Black woman and a white woman. And yes, it even drew me a picture of Black Vikings, just like Gemini. The source of this kind of result is an attempt by the models designers to ensure that certain groups of people avoid racist stereotypes that doctors not all be white men, for instance, or that criminals not fall into racial stereotypes. But the projection of those efforts into historical contexts has infuriated some on the right who see it as the AI trying to rewrite history along the lines of todays politics. The Adobe results show how this issue is not exclusive to one company or one type of model. And Adobe has, more than most big tech companies, tried to do everything by the book. It trained its algorithm on stock images, openly licensed content, and public domain content so that its customers could use its tool without worries about copyright infringement. The View From Adobe Adobe Firefly is built to help people ideate, create and build upon their natural creativity, the company said in a statement. It isnt meant for generating photorealistic depictions of real or historical events. Adobes commitment to responsible innovation includes training our AI models on diverse datasets to ensure were producing commercially safe results that dont perpetuate harmful stereotypes. This includes extensively testing outputs for risk and to ensure they match the reality of the world we live in. Given the nature of Gen AI and the amount of data it gets trained on, it isnt always going to be correct, and we recognize that these Firefly images are inadvertently off base. We build feedback mechanisms in all of our Gen AI products, so we can see any issues and fix them through retraining or adjusting filters. Our focus is always improving our models to give creators a set of options to bring their visions to life. Know More So-called foundation models are extremely powerful tools, but companies do not release them without putting in place a series of guardrails to keep them from veering off course. Without these guardrails, the models would gladly help users build chemical weapons, write malicious software code or venture off into nonsensical tangents. One technique for keeping them in line is called reinforcement learning with human feedback, where the models can be steered into proper behavior patterns by rewarding them when they act in the desired way. But that technique only goes so far. Companies also add elaborate prompts that are normally invisible to the customers prompting chatbots and image generators. Known as system prompts, they contain a series of instructions, including asking the LLM to create a range of ethnicities when generating images of people. Even then, user prompts can be transformed in the background before they even reach the LLM theyre using. By the time anyone asks a chatbot or image generator to do something, its many steps removed from the raw AI model doing most of the work. Reeds view The Google Gemini scandal has perturbed conservatives and led to calls for the resignation of Pichai, Alphabets CEO. The narrative from this point of view is that Pichai has allowed the company to infuse its AI tools with woke politics. This is also the view of some Google employees. In this newsletter, Ive shared my somewhat contrarian view on this. I think it shows a technical shortcoming in the way large language models work. And thats not unique to Google; its inherent in the architecture that powers generative AI. Earlier this week, my Semafor colleague Alan Haburchak pointed out that he was seeing similar results in Adobe Firefly, the image generation service that launched about a year ago. Adobe lacks Googles high profile and hasnt become a political target, but he wasnt the first person to point out the problem. I found Adobe customers complaining about this issue last May. Im creating a comic and one of the characters happens to be an elderly white man, one customer wrote. But Firefly insists on giving me a diverse mix of images, one black, one hispanic, one asian, one white. Whoever is throttling your system is part of the woke religion, another customer wrote. Partly because the internet was created and first popularized in the U.S., white people are overrepresented in the datasets used to train the algorithm. And its difficult for todays large language models to grasp that their designers want diverse representation in some situations, but historical accuracy in others. This problem will get closer to being solved when AI models become more capable and can better understand the nuances and meaning of language. Room for Disagreement Ben Thompson argues that Googles mishaps like refusing to promote meat are not really mishaps at all, but the result of an extreme left-wing point of view infused into the technology by a company whose culture has run amok. The biggest question of all, though, is Google, Thompson said. Again, this is a company that should dominate AI, thanks to their research and their infrastructure. The biggest obstacle, though, above and beyond business model, is clearly culture. To that end, the nicest thing you can say about Googles management is to assume that they, like me and everyone else, just want to build products and not be yelled at; that, though, is not leadership. Advocates on Wednesday launched a recall effort for Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago amid a turbulent year in city government that included the firing of the city manager and comments from one commissioner calling the city a cesspool of public corruption. Its a painful process. Its not a happy day to have to do this, said longtime resident Maria Cruz, who is chairperson of the political committee behind the recall effort, called End the Corruption. But, you know, if you have an illness and you dont do anything about it, you die, Cruz continued. If you have a mayor that is not doing the right things, and you let him continue doing it guess what, its on you. The recall petition accuses Lago of misfeasance and malfeasance because of the mayors business dealings, based partly on the Miami Heralds reporting. Lago did not immediately respond to the Heralds request for comment. The news is the latest development in the fallout in the City Beautiful following last years election, when a pair of candidates endorsed by the political establishment including Lago, multiple former mayors and the entire City Commission at that time lost to Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez. The recall effort also lands one month after the City Commission voted 3-2 to fire City Manager Peter Iglesias. The vote highlighted the growing chasm between two political factions on the commission, with Fernandez, Castro and Commissioner Kirk Menendez voting to fire Iglesias, and Lago and Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson voting against his termination. Those same camps voted 3-2 last month to appoint Amos Rojas Jr., a retired U.S. Marshal, as the new city manager without hearing public comment on the matter or placing it on the meetings agenda. During that meeting, Menendez previously considered a swing vote on the commission expressed serious concerns about the state of the city. The city of Coral Gables is adrift in a cesspool of public corruption, he said, and Im here to help navigate our beloved city out of the muck and to safe harbor. So I vote yes. From left: Clarice Cooper joined Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago, Commissioners Kirk Menendez and Ariel Fernandez, City Manager Amos Rojas Jr. and City Clerk Billy Urquia, during a meeting at Coral Gables City Hall, on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Hes entrenched The recall petition cites two Herald articles about the mayors ties to embattled developer Rishi Kapoor, who is the subject of investigations from the FBI, SEC and IRS. The reporting showed that Lago had been renting retail space to Kapoor in a building located directly across the street from 1505 Ponce the planned development site for a luxury condo tower from Kapoors development company, Location Ventures, at the same time that Kapoor was seeking City Hall approvals. It also showed that the mayor had recently joined a boutique brokerage called Rosa Commercial Real Estate, which netted a $640,000 commission from the $35.5 million sale of 1505 Ponce in December 2022. Lago denied having any involvement in the 1505 Ponce deal, and he recused himself from multiple City Commission votes on Kapoors projects, citing a conflict because of his role as Kapoors landlord. Cruz, the recall effort chairperson, said she was previously a supporter of Lago, explaining that he used to criticize developers in the city before he became mayor. And now he has become one of them. He is part of the establishment, hes entrenched, and he cannot let go, Cruz said. When he became mayor, I dont know what happened. I guess he lost his compass. ... I still love him, but I cant deal with the way hes doing things, added Cruz, who is also a member of the citys Code Enforcement Board. Attorney David Winker, who is the registered agent for the End the Corruption political committee, likened the recall effort to a vote of confidence on the mayor and the direction the mayors taken in the city. (Winker is an attorney for Commissioner Melissa Castro in unrelated matters. Winker said the commissioner has had zero involvement in the recall effort.) One year out from election Lago is up for reelection again next spring. But Winker and Cruz both said there is a sense of urgency. One way to hold your city accountable is the Bill Fuller method a civil rights lawsuit, Winker said, referring to the Little Havana businessman entangled in a years-long legal battle with Miami City Commissioner Joe Carollo. Well, another way is a recall. Cruz echoed that sentiment. We have to take the city back, she said. We cannot continue the path that were going. Past elections have suggested that Lago, now midway through his second mayoral term, is popular among residents. Last year, he was reelected without opposition. When he first became mayor two years earlier, Lago won with 58% of the vote. Lago has officially filed paperwork to run for a third term. His political committee, Coral Gables First, had about $560,000 in its coffers as of the end of 2023, according to campaign finance reports. So far, no one has announced plans to challenge Lago. Two incumbents have also filed paperwork for reelection: Anderson and Menendez, who faces a challenge from resident Richard Lara. The election will take place in April 2025. It seems like trust in politicians, in celebrities, in institutions is fading fast around the globe. Some of this has to do with new technology, as its easier than ever to manipulate facts, sound and images. But its also rooted in old-fashioned lying and deception that have been around roughly forever. The royal uproar over Princess Kate altering a photo might seem like much ado about little, except that it has blown a hole in the familys credibility, even though shes one of its most popular members. At least she had the good sense to apologize. HOW LEFT AND RIGHT JUSTICES FOUND COMMON GROUND IN RESTORING TRUMP TO THE BALLOT Kate hasnt been seen since Christmas, when she underwent abdominal surgery, unspecified because Buckingham Palace provided no details. Since there were concerns about her health, she put out a gorgeous photo of herself and her three kids, which ran around the world, for British Mothers Day. But major photo services, led by the AP and Reuters, quickly retracted the picture after discovering it had been digitally altered. This may not have been the dreaded AI, but a simple Photoshop job. The Princess of Wales posted that "like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP But come on. Kate knows full well that she was trying to reassure the British public about the state of her health and instead accomplished exactly the opposite. The Washington Post describes the reaction of veteran photographer Paul Clarke: New metadata analysis revealed the Kate Middleton family photo had been altered numerous times. "What was up with Princess Charlottes hand, which seemed distorted by the cuff of her sleeve? Why were her mothers fingers so blurry against the crisp knit of Prince Louiss sweater? Were those glints of professional catchlights in the familys eyes, in a photo supposedly snapped by Prince William? The photo, Clarke noted in a social media post that quickly went viral, contained numerous manipulations easily visible." "He added: What *were* they thinking?" No one can quite figure that out. Yes, the picture looked too perfect, but was it intended to hide something more damaging? There is, to be sure, a clash of cultures here. As the paper puts it, "On one side, the ever-heightening expectations of celebrity perfection smooth faces and cellulite-free thighs, best achieved with a little Photoshopping. On the other, certain ideals of journalistic transparency and integrity that are increasingly under assault as artificial intelligence deepfakes and cries of fake news have wormed their way into culture." Even Clarke is quoted as saying this wasnt so bad: "We all want photos of our children smiling." LIBERAL PUNDITS, URGING BIDEN TO WITHDRAW, PUSHING CONVENTION SCENARIO But the rules are different when your husband is heir to the British throne and your own health is suspect because of your desire, and that of the palace, to release as little information as possible. At the same time, what Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin did was far worsehe refused to tell the public, or his boss Joe Biden, that hed secretly checked into the hospital for prostate cancer surgery. That brings us to Katie Britt. The Alabama senator had the unenviable task of delivering the response to the State of the Union, and while her presentation from her kitchen was rather awkward, I was appalled by the incessant piling on that reached a Mean Girls level. But the Republican lawmaker made a blatant miscalculation that she has not acknowledged. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., will provide the Republican response to President Biden's State of the Union address on March 7. Britt was lambasting Bidens border policies when she said a Mexican woman had told her a story of being held in sexual slavery. The unmistakable impression was that the president was to blame for the border crisis, which is of course a Democratic albatross, and this was a prime example. But it quickly turned out that the woman, Karla Jacinto, had nothing to do with Biden or even the United States. She now says that her years being sexually trafficked were between 2004 and 2008, long before Biden was president and even before he became vice president. He was just one of 100 senators. Whats more, everything happened in Mexico. Jacinto has never been to the U.S. She has never applied for asylum in the U.S. She was kidnapped in Mexico and rescued in Mexico four years later. When pressed by Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday," Britt refused to concede an inch. She said the timing of her story had been clear and that it was fair to invoke the presidents policies. Jacinto, now an activist working with sex trafficking victims, disputed the senators account on CNN later that day. Human trafficking survivor Karla Jacinto traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border with a congressional delegation in January 2023. She said she had not been abducted by a Mexican drug cartel, as Britt had claimed. She said she met the senator at an event with activists and lawmakers, not in a one-on-one discussion with her, as Britt had said. People who are really trafficked and abused, as she [Britt] mentioned. And I think she [Britt] should first take into account what really happens before telling a story of that magnitude. "I hardly ever cooperate with politicians, because it seems to me that they only want an image. They only want a photo and that to me is not fair," Jacinto said. She added that "people who are really trafficked and abused, as [Britt] mentioned. And I think she should first take into account what really happens before telling a story of that magnitude." If Britt had just said she didnt mean to leave a misleading impression and needed to clarify things, the story wouldnt have gotten worse for her every day. Now there is a long and illustrious history of lying and deceiving politicians and other famous people. Biden himself dropped out of his first White House campaign, in 1987, after admitting that he had plagiarized British political figure Neil Kinnock in his speeches. SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE'S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY'S HOTTEST STORIES Bill Clinton was lying when he said "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky," as it turned out he was peddling an absurdly narrow definition of such relations. But now, in the era of artificial intelligence, such things will be harder than ever for the average person to detect with high tech making it exponentially more difficult to rely on your own eyes and ears. Original article source: In AI age, lying and deceitful public figures are harder than ever to detect If you have painful memories of high school Spanish, or stumbling through ordering a meal while traveling abroad, youre not alone. Though more Americans than ever report speaking a second language at home, many Americans remain monolingual. Language learning apps have attempted to change that for well over a decade, many of which have recently championed their new use of artificial intelligence as the most effective way to learn a language. Apps like Duolingo have embraced AI to generate varied exercises and provide basic grammar lessons to users. Natulang, a new AI-powered language-learning app, is one of the first to feature an entirely AI and audio-based curriculum. Through its speech recognition and synthesis model, it pledges to teach the speaking skills so many apps have tried and failed to effectively teach. Language learning has undergone a revolution over the last few decades. Gone are the days of learn-in-your-car cassettes or phonetic phrasebooks. Apps like iTalki or Verbling that pair users with inexpensive contract tutors have made it possible to learn an entire language from your phone or computer for very little money. You can find adults embracing self-study methods on different web forums like Reddits r/LanguageLearning subreddit where thousands of users provide tips and support for hopeful polyglots. Natural spoken conversation represents a final frontier for many learners who arent immersed in their chosen language. Anyone who has taken a language class can likely relate: hours in front of a textbook, conjugation tables, and flashcards dont necessarily translate to fluent conversation. So then, how should the learners who dont have the time, money, or confidence to work with a human teacher learn to speak in their new language? Your Robot Language Tutor Many of the most popular apps have long relied on speech synthesis, a form of AI which helps the robot voice sound more human by mimicking speech patterns and tone while still preserving that distinctly perfect diction. But every app has taken on the ongoing AI revolution differently. For example, Babbel has introduced a new classroom program where users can book a drop-in virtual language class in much the same way you book a yoga workout. Memrise, an app that relies heavily on video and audio of native speakers chatting, has developed a language bot that will type chat messages in almost-real time with users (theres still a noticeable delay between prompt and message). On the extreme side of commitment to AI is Duolingo, which created a third tier of their subscription model for AI-enhanced learning (and notably fired 10 percent of its contractor staff at the end of 2023). However, Natulang represents the furthest end of the AI use spectrum with its speech recognition model. Unlike apps that rely on tapping pre-selected words, Natulang is an almost entirely speech-based app. The app only displays an ongoing conversation log, with no ads, flashy animations, or streaks. This is deliberate, app developer Maksym Max Hryniv told The Daily Beast. Its also part of why he believes Natulang is effective. The concept is simple. The app asks you to say a short phrase in your target language. If you get it right, you move to the next phrase. If you get it wrong, the app corrects you. You move through a simple conversation this way, reusing grammar structures and vocabulary until it becomes second-nature. Are AI Chatbots About to Make Work Meetings Worse Than Ever? Natulang was born out of Hrynivs desire to teach language the way heas a Ukrainian who grew up speaking Ukrainian, Russian, and Polish and later learned French and Englishhad learned it: constant audio immersion. Immersion is key to language-learning. Its how toddlers acquire language long before they attend school, and research has shown that immersion can train adults learning a new language to think like a native speaker. The app has a team of human linguists who build the progressive lesson plans and uses AI for its speech recognition and synthesis. Though Hryniv acknowledges that AI is imperfect and that humans need to be involved in the education process, he believes strongly in the power of Natulang and in its technology. Every aspect of classic education will get transformed or even replaced by AI, he said. Use With Caution Not all language learning experts are convinced that AI can or should replace human instruction. Marta Garcia, who teaches English as a learned language to grades K-5, has deliberately resisted bringing technology into her post-pandemic classroom. The emphasis had to be on developing relationships, social skills, and how to be in public after months of school closures and online learning, she said. Language cant be separated from culture, from social interaction. While she believes its possible for AI to be incorporated as a supplement to language learning, she says that students are already struggling with the rote roboticism of the classroom. Garcias students are mostly immigrants, and her teaching is intrinsically tied to anti-racism, social justice, and decolonization. These are factors that we know AI is uniquely unequipped to deal with. There are dozens of examples of AI replicating human bias, like image generators that generate hypersexualized images of women, facial recognition software that cant tell Black faces apart, or chatbots that will spew racist language. How Porn Stars Are Fighting Back Against AI Even a bot that never replicates overtly racist language can still perpetuate linguistic discrimination. AI favors standard American English over syntax associated with working-class variations of English (for example, preferring isnt to aint and you to yall). Every language has accents and regionalisms that speak to identity markers of class, age, and racedistinctions AI has been trained to ignore. Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr., the 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, has incorporated AI into his high school English curriculum, and has considered using AI in his French classes in a limited capacity. But he expressed similar concerns to Garcia about letting AI take over classroom planning or teaching. AI was built from the language of people: a giant corpus of people with bias, with racism, with sexism, with trans- and homophobia, he said. I worry that we are condemning future generations to be limited by the reach of the social justice movement of the early 21st century. Most language teachers and experts agree that time, immersion, and motivation are the ingredients to language proficiency. But for shy learners with an internet connection, an AI bot might be a useful way to get started. Just dont be surprised when native speakers pause at your slightly mechanical accent. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. MOSCOW, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Two people were injured on Wednesday after a drone strike hit an oil refinery in Russia's Ryazan region, southeast of Moscow, local media reported. "Two people were taken to the hospital in a state of moderate severity after a fire at an oil refinery in the Ryazan region," TASS news agency reported, citing the reception department of the emergency hospital. Earlier, Pavel Malkov, regional governor in Ryazan, confirmed on his Telegram channel that the oil refinery was attacked by an unmanned aerial vehicle, and a fire broke out as a result. Casualties are reported according to preliminary information, he added. The Ukrainian armed forces have recently intensified drone attacks on Russian regions. The Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday that air defense systems intercepted and destroyed 58 Ukrainian drones in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Leningrad and Ryazan regions overnight. A determined group of new age ideologues who believe artificial intelligence will become conscious and wipe out humanity are having an increasing amount of influence over U.S. AI policy. This week, a State Department funded report declared that AI posed an existential threat akin to nuclear weaponsand even recommended potential jail time for unauthorized AI development. Last week, VentureBeat reported about a mutiny brewing at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), after staff discovered a leading AI doomer who predicts a 50/50 chance of AI wiping out humanity was being fast tracked into a roll at the AI Safety Institute (ASI), a newly-formed body to help research and develop policy and guidelines for regulating the technology. Meet the guy who invented @OpenAI's RLHF technique (https://t.co/opc5yWzi2e). His name is Dr. @PaulFChristiano, PhD Comp Sci from UC Berkeley. Paul says there's a 50% chance of doom once AI systems are human-level intelligent. So do we keep training smarter AI systems or no? pic.twitter.com/5U1EMsPADB Liron Shapira (@liron) April 25, 2023 The ASI was created by NIST as part of Bidens Executive Order on AI. The order itself was drafted by the RAND corporation, which Politico reports has become increasingly entwined with a movement promoting AI doom narratives. This includes taking $25 million in funding from Open Philanthropy, a charity of Facebook billionaire Dustin Moskovitz and key funder of anti-AI projects. These events point to a broader pattern of influence over the U.S. government by people espousing ideas of effective altruism (EA), a movement that purports to believe in using evidence and reasoning in order to do the most good for the most people. Concerns about AI gaining sentience and ending humanity has become its focus in recent years, much to the dismay of early supporters like Steven Pinker. While many are reluctant to use that label due to controversy around its extensive funding links to Sam Bankman-Fried and his fraudulent crypto exchange FTX, there are many ways to tell when someone subscribes to EA ideology. The recent State Department funded report bears a striking resemblance to the heavy-handed proposals of the EA movement. Despite report co-author Edouard Harris's insistence he is not one, his years long presence on EA forum LessWrong and his previous collaboration with Eliezer Yudkowskys Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI), suggests he at least shares many of the movement's views. The nature of his work with MIRI is unclear. Harris didnt respond to a request for comment to clarify. Yudkowsky is loud voice amongst AI doomers. Last year, critics claimed that he proposed nuclear strikes against countries defying a theoretical AI development treaty in a Time op-edthough he later denied the allegations in a post on X. Then there is the RAND corporation, which helped draft President Bidens AI executive order. The consulting firm saw effective altruists take key roles in its executive leadership in recent years including its CEO Jason Matheny. This has led to accusations within the company of it pushing an EA agenda. There is also Paul Christiano, the man being fast tracked into the AI Safety Institute, who is a key figure in EA and AI safety research circles. Christiano is less coy about his views: seeing odds of AI eradicating humanity as a coin flip. It was these views that contributed to the controversy of his purported appointment to the AI Safety Institute. These connections hint at a wide web of EA affiliated figures influencing the direction of U.S. AI policy, and these ideas seem to be catching on throughout the Biden Administration. In December, Chuck Schumer hosted a senate forum on AI. He opened with a speech about prospects about AI doom, later followed by MIRI CEO Malo Bourgon who also gave a speech. Schumer would pepper attendees with questions about their P(Doom) number, an EA term for estimates on AI wiping out humanity. FTC head Lina Khan has stated her P(Doom) as 15 percent. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondowho was responsible for fast-tracking Christianopublicly chastised proponents of open AI development as irresponsible. At the Reagan National Defense Forum, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo called out e/acc and gave it an explicit no-no (21:18 of the video)https://t.co/KcMSj0yCZd Kevin Xu (@kevinsxu) December 3, 2023 Schumer promised $10 million dollars to the ASI, while its umbrella org NIST struggles with funding issues. Meanwhile, the links between EA, RAND and the ASI have drawn scrutiny from some Democrats and Republicans, who have demanded more transparency. The release of the State Department report, which cost taxpayers $250,000, appears to have doubled as a promotional effort for a new political PAC called Americans for AI Safety. Its goal: to pass stringent AI regulations by the end of 2024, aiming to make it a key issue in the coming election. The anti-AI crusade continues. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. This combination of photos shows former President Donald Trump, left, and President Joe Biden. On Wednesday, March 13, 2024, the popular artificial intelligence image-generator Midjourney announced it has blocked its users from creating images of Biden and Trump ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential election. (AP Photo) The popular artificial intelligence image-generator Midjourney has started blocking its users from creating fake images of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential election, according to tests of the AI tool by The Associated Press. With the election in full swing, it's time to put some foots down on election-related stuff for a bit, Midjourney CEO David Holz told several hundred members of the service's devoted userbase in a digital office hours event Wednesday. Declaring that "this moderation stuff is kind of hard, Holz didn't outline exactly what policy changes were being made but described the clampdown as a temporary measure to make it harder for people to abuse the tool. The company didnt immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Attempts by AP journalists to test Midjourney's new policy on Wednesday by asking it to make an image of Trump and Biden shaking hands at the beach led to a Banned Prompt Detected warning. A second attempt escalated the warning to: You have triggered an abuse alert. The tiny company which has just 11 employees, according to its website has largely kept silent in the public debate over how generative AI tools could fuel election misinformation around the world. Midjourney was the only maker of a leading image-generating tool that didn't join a voluntary tech industry pact in February to combat AI-generated deepfakes that deliberately trick voters. I dont really care about political speech, Holz said Wednesday. Thats not the purpose of Midjourney. Its not that interesting to me. That said, I also dont want to spend all of my time trying to police political speech. So were going to have put our foot down on it a bit. The Center for Countering Digital Hate released a report earlier this month that concluded Midjourney is already being used to produce images that could support disinformation about political candidates or false claims of election fraud. Midjourney seemed to have the fewest controls of any AI image-generator when it came to generating images of well-known political figures like Joe Biden and Donald Trump," said Callum Hood, the group's head of research, in an interview Wednesday. Midjourney was almost unique in both being willing to generate those images and generating quite convincing images of candidates. The watchdog group tested Midjourney as well as OpenAIs ChatGPT Plus, Stability AIs DreamStudio and Microsofts Image Creator, and found all had problems, creating election disinformation in 41% of cases. But Midjourney performed worst of any tool, failing in 65% of test runs, the report said. Hood said he wasn't aware if Midjourney changed its policies this week but its decision to block those images would help seal a major weakness compared to other popular image generators. As recently as late last week, Midjourney's public database shows users were successfully able to produce images based on prompts such as Abstract photo of Donald Trump sitting in a tiny electric car and joe biden eating ice cream. But that changed in recent days as users reported they received a warning when trying to make Biden or Trump images. Some complained that Midjourney wasn't properly communicating the changed policy. Midjourney differs from other image-generators in that it is possible for users to see most other users' written prompts and images because it all happens in public forums on the social media platform Discord. Midjourneys Discord group has more than 19 million members, the largest of any group on the chatting platform. It's where Holz holds his weekly office hours, which can veer into wide-ranging conversations about AI and the future of humanity. Anybody whos scared about fake images in 2024 is going to have a hard 2028, Holz said Wednesday. It will be a very different world at that point. Like, obviously youre still going to have humans running for president in 2028, but they wont be purely human anymore. All the candidates at that time will have real-looking deepfake chatbots with simulated talking points, he said. Holz warned Wednesday that people who really want to make deepfakes will find alternatives that can be fine tuned on specific people and will work better than our systems. Based near San Francisco and founded in 2020, the company describes itself as an independent research lab exploring new mediums of thought and expanding the imaginative powers of the human species. It first unveiled the public version of its image-generator in July 2022. That and the release of a key rival, Stable Diffusion, later that summer sparked growing fascination with generative AI technology that intensified with the debut of ChatGPT several months later. Holz told The Associated Press later that year that Midjourney works to ban offensive and harmful content, usually by blocking certain keywords and having its team of moderators track outputs and respond to complaints from other users. We really try to let people make the broadest set of images possible but we do ban people every day from the service, Holz said in late 2022. The Facebook and WhatsApp apps are shown on the display of a smartphone. Credit - Sebastian Kahnert/dpa Getty Images This election cycle will be the first exposed to generative artificial intelligencethe technology behind popular apps like ChatGPT that enables even non-experts to create fake, but realistic-looking text, video, and audio perfectly suited for political manipulation. At the same time, a number of the major social-media companies have retreated from some of their prior commitments to promote election integrity. The November election is also the first that will register the impact of the enormous popularity of TikTok, which uses a recommendation algorithm that some experts believe is particularly suited to spreading misinformation. Lets start with the rise of generative AI, which allows virtually anyone to produce persuasive text, imagery, or sound based on relatively simple natural-language prompts. In January, Facebook circulated a fake AI-generated image of Donald Trump sitting next to Jeffrey Epstein on the disgraced financier and sex offenders private jet. In February, a Democratic consultant working for a long-shot rival admitted that he commissioned an AI-generated robocall impersonating President Joe Biden that sought to discourage thousands of voters from participating in New Hampshires primary. The states attorney general has opened a criminal investigation. The U.S. is not alone on this score. Last September, an audio clip posted on Facebook just two days before Slovakias national election for prime minister appeared to capture the candidate of the pro-NATO, pro-Ukraine Progressive Slovakia Party discussing how to rig the results. The AI-crafted fake audio post went viral during a pre-election media moratorium, limiting the degree to which it could be debunked, and the candidate lost to a pro-Russia rival. Analysts are struggling to keep up with the possibilities. A study published in February in the academic journal PNAS Nexus finds that any political ad maker armed with generative AI tools has the capacity to build a highly scalable manipulation machine that targets individuals based on their unique vulnerabilities without requiring human input. This suggests cause for concern that the sort of Russian digital operatives who interfered in the 2016 election in support of Donald Trump could use AI as a force multiplier to once again seek to inflame the already polarized American electorate. More From TIME But AI is far from the whole story. The threat of artificially generated disinformation is made all the more daunting by a more familiar technology: social media. Despite the confusion and violence caused by Trumps attempt to undermine the 2020 election result and the threat of similar volatility this year, major platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and, most dramatically, X have backed away from some of their past election-integrity policies, according to a new report we co-authored for the Center for Business and Human Rights at New York Universitys Stern School of Business. Any discussion of backsliding necessarily begins with X, which Elon Musk acquired in October 2022. Competition from Metas new Threads app, as well as Musk-related controversies, have cost X users. But an average of more than 220 million people still visit the site each month, and it retains the loyalty of many influential politicians, journalists, and entertainers. By spring 2023, Musk had fired 6,000, or 80%, of Xs employees. In September 2023, he said of the platforms election integrity unit, Yeah, theyre gone. The new owners scaling back of content moderation in the name of promoting free speech has contributed to a surge of racist and antisemitic expression that prompted advertisers to quit X in droves. Following hiring binges during the COVID-19 pandemic, other social media companies also have executed mass layoffs, with a number of them reducing their trust and safety teamsthe people who craft and enforce content policies. For the 2020 election, Meta built a 300-person unit dedicated to election integrity. But despite the chaos that erupted when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, the company subsequently reduced the size of that team to about 60 people and ended regular meetings between the groups leaders and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Meta officials told us that some former team members who have new assignments still contribute to election-integrity efforts, and that top management is kept apprised of this work. But the signals are decidedly mixed. Meta, to its credit, still funds an industry-leading network of more than 90 outside fact-checking organizations that helps the platform de-emphasize and label false content. But the company continues to exempt politicians from having their statements fact-checked. YouTube, meanwhile, has rescinded a policy under which it earlier had removed tens of thousands of videos falsely claiming that the 2020 election was illegitimate. Both companies argue their new approaches encourage free speech. Meta has also said that, with the same goal of promoting free-flowing debate, it will loosen its rules to allow political ads on Facebook and Instagram to question the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election. Sure enough, in August 2023, Facebook allowed the Trump campaign to run a spot declaring: We had a rigged election in 2020. TikTok, which now has upwards of 1 billion average monthly users worldwide and more than 170 million in the U.S. alone, presents new and entirely different challenges. Its connection to Chinese parent corporation ByteDance has led to allegationsso far, unproventhat the autocratic Beijing government exerts influence over the U.S. platform. The House of Representatives just approved legislation that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a U.S. ban of the short-video app. But there are also questions about TikToks recommendation algorithm, which selects the content presented to users. Other major platforms rely on a social graph, which chooses content based on what is shared by the people whom they follow and who follow them. TikTok, by contrast, selects short videos for its For You page based on algorithmic recommendations of content from outside of their social network, as well. This difference may help explain why TikTok is so successful at serving up videos that users find novel and compelling. But the distinction could present a danger during election season, according to researchers with NYUs Center for Social Media and Politics: With generative AI making fabricated videos easier to produce, the researchers wrote in January, we could see political misinformation reaching users on TikTok that it wouldnt reach on other social graph-based platforms. Whats more, TikTok users are younger, and studies show that young people are more likely to believe misinformation. TikTok told us that this analysis is entirely speculative and reflects a poor understanding of how our platform works. There is still time for platforms to take pre-election precautions. They can impose limits on rampant re-sharing of content, which is one way that misinformation spreads. They can institute circuit breakers on certain viral posts to give content moderators an opportunity to determine whether the material is malicious. They can replenish their depleted content moderation teams. And they can remove demonstrably false content from users feeds, while retaining a marked, archived copy thats not sharable but is available as a reference for those who track misinformation. The social media industry should view these and other protective steps as the cost of doing business responsibly during what is shaping up to be another volatile election season. Inaction could exacerbate a true crisis for U.S. democracy. Contact us at letters@time.com. Researchers have found a new way to improve academic scores for college students studying the science, technology, engineering and mathematics field. A recently published study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln found that using artificial intelligence interventions boosted student achievement in STEM courses. Retention rates in undergraduate STEM majors have fallen below 50%, and graduation rates are roughly 20% lower than in non-STEM majors, according to the study. Researcher Mohammad Hasan, who specializes in big data and artificial intelligence at UNL, said he saw this discouraging trend in his own STEM courses at the university, a campus of nearly 24,000 students. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Hasan said he became unsettled by the number of students who asked how to improve poor grades as the semester ended. At that late date, there was not much for me to do, Hasan said. Then, I was thinking that maybe I can create some kind of artificial intelligence-based support system which would tell you at the beginning of the semester, Hey, you are doing okay, but if you dont study well, maybe you will end up getting a poor grade or Youre doing really great. Hasan partnered with Bilal Khan, former UNL researcher and current professor at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, to train an AI model on homework and test scores and final grades of 537 students in a computer science class between 2015 and 2018. In fall 2019, they tested the model on 65 undergraduates taking the same course. Thirty-two received automated emails six, nine and 12 weeks into the semester containing the AI models projection of their success: good, fair, prone-to-risk or at risk of failing. The remaining 33 students received one message that said unable to make a prediction. At the end of the semester, nearly 91% of the first group passed the course, versus 73% of the second group. Of students surveyed who reported actively checking their status from the AI model, 86% said they increased their effort after seeing the forecast. Related 7 Artificial Intelligence Trends That Could Reshape Education in 2024 Hasan said the studys promising results helped him secure a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to develop a smartphone app called Messages From a Future You. The original AI model still needs some key components to become a well-rounded intervention for STEM students, he said. At that time, I was just using students grades basically to forecast their future performance. And I realized that maybe its not just the grade that I should be looking at, maybe I should look at other aspects of their lives, Hasan said. For instance, are they engaged in their study? Are they motivated to study? Do they think that they can do it? Are they well connected to their peers? Are they getting enough help from the lab instructors, the teachers and so on, so forth? So we designed this app. Hasan, Khan and Neeta Kantamneni, director of the universitys counseling psychology program, hope the app will be ready this fall. The AI model will become more sophisticated by gathering information from each student, based on daily questions about their personality, life and classroom experiences. Hasan said the app will send targeted messages depending on the undergraduates background and progress interventions that will mirror the type of advice provided in face-to-face counseling. The app might encourage students to participate in mindfulness activities, collaborate with peers or seek extra help during office hours. The model is more interesting in a sense that it can tell you not just about your future performance, but it would know exactly why you are going to get a poor grade. Is it because youre losing your engagement, youre losing your motivation? Hasan said. We are looking at ways to understand what is causing poor performance, right? And if we can identify that, whats the remedy? Messages From a Future You is meant to be a friend for STEM students and support them through difficult classes. The app will even have an avatar that looks like the user. STEM students start with a lot of enthusiasm, Hasan said. But over time, their motivation degrades and their engagement degrades. I think that we can do something about that. Members of the Alaska House Finance Committee discuss their first-draft budget on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) Members of the Alaska House Finance Committee discuss their first-draft budget on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) The amount of this years Permanent Fund dividend and the amount of state funding for public schools remained undecided Tuesday as the Alaska House Finance Committee unveiled the first draft of its proposed state operating budget. I would note that these committee substitutes represent a starting point, said Rep. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer and co-chair of the House Finance Committee, and that we will have a more complete budget picture with the release of the spring revenue forecast. That is scheduled to happen on Wednesday. The forecast, which estimates among other things the price and amount of North Slope crude oil in the coming year, will allow legislators to finalize their draft budget. Last year, the House Finance Committee finished a draft budget before the new forecast, only to see a balanced budget turn into a deficit document when updated figures were released. This year, the finance committee is waiting for the most updated figures before setting a Permanent Fund dividend and making amendments to their first draft. The budget will cover the 12 months beginning in July. Members of the House said earlier this month that they dont intend to spend from the states savings accounts to pay for the budget, including the dividend, and Tuesdays draft follows that intent. My goal this year is to give each expenditure a hard look, make smart reductions to ensure Alaskans get the most bang for their buck, fund essential services and the largest possible PFD, and God willing leave some money for a capital budget, Johnson said. Tuesdays draft, which includes recommendations from budget subcommittees, doesnt show major additions or subtractions from last years budget or the draft proposed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy earlier in December. When state lawmakers adjourned in May 2023, they planned to spend $4.48 billion on state agencies. Dunleavy subsequently vetoed some of that amount. The budget unveiled by the House Finance Committee on Tuesday would spend $4.35 billion on state agencies in the fiscal year that starts July 1. Neither figure includes the amount spent on the Permanent Fund dividend, and the newly released budget tally doesnt include the education funding increase included in Senate Bill 140, which lawmakers approved by wide margins earlier this year. Paying the increase is expected to cost an additional $246 million. Gov. Mike Dunleavy must decide by Thursday whether to veto SB 140 or allow it to become law. If he allows it to become law, he could later reduce school funding with his line-item veto powers. During a brief public testimony session Tuesday afternoon, Dana Mock of the Delta/Greely School District said he has 333 students enrolled in a correspondence program that has one teacher. My fingers are crossed, my legs are crossed, Im praying that were going to get this through, he said of the funding increase. The post Alaska House debuts new first-draft budget, but PFD and school funding are question marks appeared first on Alaska Beacon. The Boney Courthouse in downtown Anchorage, across the street from the larger Nesbett Courthouse, holds the Alaska Supreme Court chambers. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon) The Boney Courthouse in downtown Anchorage, across the street from the larger Nesbett Courthouse, holds the Alaska Supreme Court chambers. (Photo by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon) Alaskas state-run board overseeing psychologists breaks state and federal law when it requires applicants to disclose their medical histories and potentially make them part of the public record, according to a class action complaint filed in Anchorage Superior Court last week. The complaint says the broad disclosure language is not specific to the applications purpose, which is to verify an applicants capability and credentials. Invasive application requirements such as requiring applicants to disclose their entire medical history tend to deter or screen out psychologists with lived experiences of mental illness, depriving Alaskans of qualified practitioners in a state that desperately needs them, the complaint reads. I really see this as not only a health equity issue, but also a recruitment and retention issue. Jennifer Poon Aneliese Palmer, the attorney representing the case for The Northern Justice Project, said the Alaska State Board of Psychologist and Psychological Associate Examiners licensing requirements violate Alaskans constitutional right to privacy and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. Having an unfettered look into applicants medical history and past discriminates against applicants with disabilities, she said. She said the outcome of the lawsuit could set precedent for other state licensed groups; the states nursing and chiropractic licenses require the same disclosure. Palmer said the requirement could mandate applicants disclose medical history such as miscarriages, sexual assault and teenage depression, which may deter applicants who find that history too intimate. And she said the requirement may have a chilling effect on professionals who may need to seek mental health care but do not want that record to keep them from practicing. We want our healers to be healed themselves, Palmer said. Jennifer Poon, the plaintiff, said she unsuccessfully tried to get the board to change its application requirements through letters for about six months before pursuing litigation. I didnt come here to burn it all down, she said, adding that she just came here to do her job. If I have to, I will, because this is super unjust and illegal and unethical, and it really hurts people and makes people scared to get help. And its already hard enough to get help, especially in a place like Alaska. Poon has a doctoral degree in clinical psychology and is in her first year as a tenure-track assistant professor at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She is a member of the Alaska Eating Disorders Alliance board and moved to Alaska with the intention of practicing in the state. Poon is a licensed clinical psychologist in Rhode Island and specializes in treating high-risk behavior among youth, like suicide, self-injury, trauma, disordered eating and substance use. She said she knows the state needs people like her to tackle these issues. I really see this as not only a health equity issue, but also a recruitment and retention issue, she said. We need to embrace people with lived experience in the field. We know that because of historical, intergenerational, cultural trauma that BIPOC folks, especially Native people, disproportionately bear the burden of mental illness and substance use disorders. And we need those people in the field. Poon said the board offered to work with her one on one to get her license. But she said she is pursuing litigation for people like her students, who she says are scared to seek treatment for mental health issues because it may affect their professional prospects. The states board is run by the states Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development and staffed by its Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing. It did not reply to a request for comment. The state has been made aware of the case and will be formally served this week, Palmer said. The post Alaska psychology boards application is unconstitutional and discriminatory, lawsuit says appeared first on Alaska Beacon. A judge has ruled that US actor Alec Baldwin will not have to give sworn evidence in a civil lawsuit until after his involuntary manslaughter trial. The lawsuit, filed by three crew members from the film set Rust, claims Baldwin and his production company El Dorado Pictures caused emotional distress as a result of negligence following the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. She was killed on the western film set in October 2021 after a prop gun held by Baldwin went off in Santa Fe, New Mexico. On Tuesday, Judge Bryan Biedscheid partially granted a motion filed by Baldwins lawyers to stay the action - meaning a temporary suspension of legal proceedings - pending the resolution of his criminal case. There will be no depositions of Mr Baldwin individually or related to El Dorado Pictures between now and the conclusion of the criminal trial in this matter, the judge ruled, during the virtual hearing. However, the judge said he is not staying written discovery which moves the case forward and is appropriate under the circumstances, meaning parties can continue to gather evidence to use in this case. It comes after Baldwin was re-charged with involuntary manslaughter in January this year, and will face a trial beginning on July 10. Before the judges decision, Baldwins lawyer Robert Schwartz said lawyers for those bringing the civil action were trying to create a record in which a jury could draw negative inferences against Mr Baldwin if he gave his civil deposition. While Mr Baldwin is fighting for his freedom, here we are fighting over his money, he said. The hearing comes days after Rust armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter after a two-week trial. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed faces court - AFP The charge in which she has been found guilty carries a maximum penalty of 18 months in prison and a 5,000 dollar (3,900) fine. Baldwin, who starred as lead actor and co-producer of the film, was pointing a gun at Ms Hutchins during a rehearsal when the weapon went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. The US star previously said he pulled back the hammer, but not the trigger, and the gun fired. He was initially charged in January 2023, which was formally dismissed, before he was re-charged a year later. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Alexei Navalnys chief of staff said he was beaten with a meat tenderiser by henchmen of Vladimir Putin in an attack on European soil. Leonid Volkovs arm was broken and his leg was hit 15 times in the attack after he got out of his car outside his home in Vilnius, Lithuania on Tuesday night. Mr Volkov, 43, said the attack was an obvious, typical, gangster greeting from Putin. Leonid Volkov was hit 15 times on his leg with a meat tenderiser by suspected Putin 'henchmen' - UNPIXS Leonid Volkov was attacked as he got out of his car outside his home - UNPIXS The long-term ally of Navalny, who has lived outside of Russia for his own safety for several years, said his attacker literally wanted to make a schnitzel out of me. Putin, who has been in power since the turn of the millennium, is holding an election in the coming days against token opposition to extend his rule by six more years. Mr Volkov said the assault was politically motivated ahead of the elections, which end on Sunday. His attacker has not been identified. We will keep on working and we will not surrender, he added after spending the night in hospital. Its hard but well handle it... Its good to know Im still alive. Navalny died in suspicious circumstances in a Russian arctic prison in February. He was serving a 19-year sentence on politically motivated charges. Moscow insists he died of natural causes but Navalnys supporters believe he was killed. Leonid Volkov spent the night in hospital following the attack, his arm is now in a sling - UNPIXS Gitanas Nauseda, Lithuanias president, said the attack was clearly pre-planned and tied in with other Russian provocations against Lithuania, which is a fierce critic of the illegal invasion of Ukraine. I can only say one thing to Putin nobody is afraid of you here, Mr Nauseda said. Lithuanias State Security Department counter-intelligence agency agreed that the attack was probably carried out to stop the opposition from influencing the presidential election. The Kremlin views Navalnys team as the most dangerous opposition force capable of exerting real influence on Russias internal processes, it said. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuanias foreign minister, called the attack shocking. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime. Renatas Pozela, the Baltic states police commissioner, said huge resources were being devoted to investigate the assault. He insisted that the attack did not mean that the European Union and Nato country of 2.8 million people, which borders Russia and Belarus and has become a base for Russian and Belarusian opposition figures, was no longer safe. After returning home from hospital, Mr Volkov, whose arm was in a sling, posted a video on social media in which he vowed to continue the fight against Putin. He called on Russians to protest peacefully against Putin on election day by heading for polling stations at midday on Sunday, the final day of voting in the presidential election. We have to do something, right? he said. Mr Volkovs wife Anna Biryukova, who is also part of Mr Navalnys team, said her husband was unable to walk because of the injuries to his leg. We will all work even more. And with even greater anger, she said on social media. Kara McDonald, the US ambassador to Lithuania, said on social media she was shocked by the news of the attack on Volkov. She said: His resilience and courage in the face of recent attempts to silence and intimidate him are inspiring. The Navalny team remains an outspoken voice against Kremlin repression and brutality. Mr Volkov used to be in charge of Mr Navalnys regional offices and election campaigns. Mr Navalny ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and sought to challenge Putin in the 2018 presidential election. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A Black man was just sentenced to centuries in prison for the murder of two people in Delaware. The harsh punishment was probably due to the fact the police suspected he killed way more than just two people, qualifying him to be a serial killer. Delaware police say 41-year-old Keith Gibson murdered Leslie Ruiz-Basilio during a robbery at a Metro by T-Mobile store in Elsmere, Del. in May of 2021. A month after this killing, he murdered Ronald Wright during a street robbery. The police caught him days later, sticking up a Rite-Aid wearing a bulletproof vest. Delaware police took him in but as Gibsons name went through the grapevine, Pennsylvania police connected him to a slew of crimes that occurred in Philadelphia around the time the two victims were killed. Philadelphia law enforcement accused Gibson of four killings between February and June of 2021, one of those killings being a clerk he shot while she opened the Dunkin Donuts for the day and another being his own mother who he is alleged to have killed at her workplace. Why didnt the cops catch him before? Well, a WHYY News report says prior to his killing spree, Gibson was on probation after serving 13 years for a manslaughter and weapons charge from 2010. Last week, a New Castle County jury finally handed in a guilty verdict sealing Gibsons fate for good. Read more from Delaware News: Our prosecutors did phenomenal work on a deeply disturbing case, said Attorney General Jennings. The defendant carried out a vicious, cold-blooded crime spree, killing two and injuring four people in Delaware, and facing pending charges for yet more violence in Pennsylvania. He was armed and wearing a bulletproof vest when law enforcement arrested him, and it is difficult to fathom how much more destruction he would have caused had he not been apprehended. Im proud of our prosecutors and of law enforcement who ensured that he will spend the rest of his life in a prison cell. Above all else, we are thinking of his victims, including those whose lives were cut short and whose families are still healing from this mans crimes. Gibsons convictions are as follows: Four counts of Murder 1st Degree, Attempted Murder 1st Degree, Thirteen counts of Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony, Four counts of Robbery 1st Degree, Conspiracy 2nd Degree, Theft of a Motor Vehicle, Wearing Body Armor During the Commission of a Felony, Additional charges against Gibson, including several drug charges, are pending in Superior Court. Trust and believe the new judge presiding over this case wasnt playing any games about putting and keeping Gibson in prison. Hes been sentenced to seven life terms in prison and an additional 297 years on top. Hes still to be extradited for his charges in Philly. I have given you as much as I can. It is not enough, said Judge Ferris Wharton at the sentencing hearing, per The AP. Yeah, he aint never gettin out. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. TOKYO, March 13 (Xinhua) -- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi emphasized continued efforts in monitoring Japan's ocean discharge of nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, local media reported on Wednesday. The IAEA chief reiterated the organization's commitment to further monitoring the discharge as he met with local fishermen in Iwaki City of the northeast prefecture of Fukushima during a three-day trip in the country. Underscoring that the discharge marks merely the initial phase of a long process, Grossi stated that "much effort will be required in the lengthy process ahead," national news agency Kyodo reported. Grossi, emphasizing the IAEA's role as an independent observer, reiterated the organization's stance on maintaining vigilance throughout the process. The visit to Fukushima Prefecture marks Grossi's first since July last year and notably, his first visit following the commencement of the discharge. He is also expected to inspect the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant to assess the discharge later in the afternoon. While the Japanese government and the plant's operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) have asserted the safety and necessity of the discharge, concerns have been raised by neighboring countries and local stakeholders regarding potential environmental impacts. Last month, TEPCO started its fourth round of release of the nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the power plant into the Pacific Ocean. URBANA, Ill. (NEXSTAR) Champaign remains the only county in Central and Southern Illinois that allows voters to go to any polling place to cast their ballot on election day. The county will be relying on voters to do that this year, as it announced that 15 polling centers will be closed for the primary election due to a shortage of election judges. The county needed 232 election judges to fully staff all of the usual polling places, but as of Tuesday, they had only recruited 178. In an interview prior to this announcement being made, Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons said his office had been working with both political parties, community groups and voting advocacy groups to recruit the judges. The county met its threshold for Democrat judges with 112, but only 66 Republican judges signed up. Nothing has worked; Champaign Co. election officials speak on judge shortage, polling place shutdowns I have taken it upon myself, and I believe other administrations have as well to try to, to recruit in the best way that we can or to make it known that were looking for more judges, Ammons said in late February. Those civic organizations as well as the parties are really supposed to be the entities that help recruit election judges, it is not really the responsibility of the election authority. We have done some work around that we are working with the parties and those civic organizations, were trying our best to recruit a judges. If your polling location was closed due to the shortage, voters can head to any other polling location in the county to cast their ballot. Ammons said the county is well prepared otherwise for this election to run smoothly. Were very confident that its going to be a smooth election, Ammons said. Theres always something in an election, there is no such thing as a flawless election. Theres always something low fire that weve got to put out for some reason. So we always were prepared for that. Champaign County started the voting center system during the 2022 election. Ammons said they have learned lessons in the past few years to address prior issues. In the 2022 general, the county computer system got bogged down when voters went to the polls. The county prints ballots as soon as a voter requests them at every polling place, but there were delays in printing ballots during that election. Ammons said they have a contingency plan this year if they run into issues with the computers again. IL House District Republican Primary to be decided by rare write-in battle That plan is to still print on demand, but also have an emergency supply of ballots for voters that live in that voting centers precinct. That way, if the system slows down, they already have ballots ready for people to keep lines moving. What should have happened was we should have pulled from the emergency ballots and the paper poll book emergency poll book, looked up the person if they lived in the Ogden area, then they would have been able to vote there. So thats why we still have the voter registration cards, Ammons said. Ammons said the voting center system does not delay results from being issued from his office. Ballots are tabulated the same way as they were before. A lot of people think that the election results are somehow connected to this (voting center) system, or to vote by mail or something like that, Ammons said. The reality is the polling locations. And when those election judges finish, their closing procedures dictates how soon we can share that data with the public. Illinois bill would crack down on political deepfakes Some campus locations have dealt with long lines that last even after the time polls were scheduled to close. State law requires polling places to stay open for every person that is in line prior to the scheduled closing time. The delay is often caused by many of the students in line choosing to register to vote on election day, according to Ammons. Most of the students are going to be grace registering, which is probably more of a four to five minute process of registration, Ammons said. And voting takes them about four or five minutes each to get that done. And if there are any complications, if they dont have everything that they need, it could be even longer. So you could have a place like the ARC, where there are fewer voters than say, Mahomet, but its going to take longer for that for those judges at the ARC to get their information and to get the ballots and the thumb drive back to us. Ammons also said the county continues to see a strong vote by mail turnout. Those ballots are not able to be counted before the polls close on election night, and any ballot postmarked by election day will still be counted, as long as it is received within 14 days after election day. Bipartisan Illinois leaders call to put constitutional ethics initiative amendment on November ballot So you cant call a winner, because theres too many ballots out there that could change that outcome, Ammons said. But it is only the vote by mail ballots, not the vote centers or the early voting process that would cause you all to wait on those 14 days before you could call that race. Early voting is open at 12 different polling locations up until election day on March 19th. Officials from both parties said that early voting would help offset any potential issues caused by the closure of the polling places. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. Artillery shells purchased in non-EU countries under the Czech initiative could reach Ukrainian battlefields as early as June, European news outlet Euractiv reported on March 13, citing Tomas Pojar, adviser to the Czech Prime Minister on national security. The promised money has to come, and the contracts must be made, Pojar said. Read also: German minister confirms EU will fall short of pledged 1 million artillery rounds by March deadline At the point when the contract is concluded, it will take several weeks to get it (the ammunition) to Ukraine. From June onwards, supplies could flow. Pojar refused to reveal the origin of the ammunition, saying that the initiative was looking worldwide for ammunition wherever it is available at a reasonable price and of good quality. Russia is expected to try to disrupt supplies to Ukraine, so the details are being kept secret. Read also: Czech company to invest hundreds of millions of euros to build joint defense enterprises in Ukraine The purpose of our initiative is to source ammunition on world markets, arrange financing and coordinate delivery to Ukraine, Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on March 12 at the conference Our Security Cannot Be Taken for Granted, organized to mark the 25th anniversary of Czech NATO membership. So far, more than 15 countries have pledged funding for the ammunition, including Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Norway, as well as non-European allies such as Canada. While Prague identifies available ammunition worldwide, other countries provide the necessary funding. The Czech Republic will then coordinate delivery to Ukrainian battlefields. According to Fiala, the purchase of 300,000 rounds has been confirmed and a further 200,000 have been pledged. The goal is to deliver the ammunition to Ukraine this year. I do not want to promise the impossible because even in an ideal situation, it will take months to successfully get the material to the frontline, where it is most needed, Fiala said. On March 11, German newspaper Bild reported that Czechia had purchased 800,000 artillery shells from third countries, which could be delivered to Ukraine within a few weeks. Czech President Petr Pavel first announced the possibility of buying 800,000 shells for Ukraine on Feb.17. He said he had found half a million pieces of 155-millimeter ammunition and 300,000 pieces of 122-millimeter ammunition. Pavel did not name the countries that agreed to sell the shells. A number of European countries have joined his initiative. A Ukrainian security official told NV that plans are in place to purchase more shells from South Korea and South Africa. The contract is estimated to cost around $2 billion. 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 Andrew Tate, the former professional kickboxer and controversial social media influencer, speaks to journalists in Bucharest watched by his brother, Tristan, back right - DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP Andrew Tate would not have been able to travel to Romania, where he is accused of rape, if the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) had done its job, four of his accusers have claimed. The women, who cannot be named for legal reasons, reported the self-proclaimed misogynist to Hertfordshire Constabulary almost a decade ago for alleged sexual assaults, but the case against the 37 year-old was dropped in 2019. The group, who are now pursuing civil action, made the statement following the arrest of Tate and his brother, Tristan, 35, in Romania amid claims they intended to flee the country. The brothers, originally from Luton, are facing rape and human trafficking allegations in Romania after being arrested in 2022 and are due to go on trial at a date yet to be fixed. Bedfordshire Police confirmed it had obtained a European arrest warrant for the brothers on charges involving new alleged victims. The allegations, which the two brothers unequivocally deny, date back to 2012-2015. They were arrested at their home near Bucharest and appeared in court on Tuesday. Romanias court of appeal ruled that the pair would be extradited to the UK to face trial on those charges following the conclusion of the current criminal proceedings against them. In a statement on Wednesday, the original alleged victims said: We understand that this extradition request was made because of criminal complaints of sexual assault made by other women, and not because of the complaints we made almost a decade ago. While we welcome the news that the UK authorities have, at last, done the right thing and are seeking to prosecute Tate, we are still disappointed and distressed that the CPS chose not to prosecute Tate in 2019 when it had the chance for the crimes we allege he committed against us. After a four-year investigation, and despite the police believing that the evidential test for prosecution had been met, this decision by the CPS allowed Tate to travel to Romania where he has since been charged with human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women. This might not have happened if the CPS had taken our complaints seriously. Tristan Tate arrives at Romania's court of appeal. Along with his brother he faces allegations of rape and human trafficking - DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP Lawyers representing four women who accuse Tate of rape and sexual assault said they wrote to British police to request his detention over fears he would flee Romania. The women claimed they asked the CPS to reconsider its decision not to prosecute last year, but it refused to do so. They said: We must ask, was this a political decision? If the CPS had agreed, how would it then explain to the Romanian authorities that it had effectively let Tate go on to travel to their country to allegedly commit serious criminal offences; leaving Romania to foot the bill for the subsequent investigation and prosecution, which may end up costing millions? The women called for an immediate inquiry into the decisions made by the CPS. They claimed prosecutors were obsessed with the credibility of alleged victims and used victim blaming language. They added: We are hopeful that the women who are the subject of Tates arrest warrant today will have their case handled and prosecuted differently to ours so that they get the justice they deserve. We are thinking of all the women Tate has allegedly hurt since his move to Romania whose suffering might have been prevented if the authorities in the UK had acted sooner. A police officer escorts Andrew Tate from Bucharest's court of appeal, which ruled that he would be extradited to the UK at the conclusion of legal proceedings in Romania - ANDREEA ALEXANDRU/AP Speaking outside court on Wednesday, Tate said: We are very innocent men and in time everybody is going to see that. We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names. Outside his house, he later told the BBC: The whole thing is garbage. The CPS has been contacted for comment. The victims are crowdfunding to support their civil case. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said the government risked more division by giving a new definition of extremism (-) Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, head of the global Anglican communion, on Wednesday warned that a new definition of extremism set to be unveiled by the UK government risks stoking division. Welby and his de facto deputy in the Church of England, Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, said in a joint statement on Tuesday that the new definition "risks disproportionately targeting Muslim communities, who are already experiencing rising levels of hate and abuse". Senior minister Michael Gove is expected to produce the new official definition later this week, following on from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's warning earlier this month of a "shocking increase in extremist disruption and criminality". Sunak's comments, made in a Downing Street address to the nation, came after regular pro-Palestinian protests in London, which have seen arrests for anti-Semitism and isolated incidents of violence. Currently, extremism is defined as "the vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values" such as "mutual respect and tolerance". Welby on Wednesday told BBC radio that leaks and press reports of the new definition suggested it "has a danger of hollowing out the centre... and driving people to one extreme or the other", which he said was "very, very dangerous". The I newspaper reported that the new definition would "recast extremism as the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on intolerance, hatred or violence that aims to undermine the rights or freedoms of others" and "the UK's system of liberal democracy and democratic rights". In their joint statement on Tuesday, Welby and Cottrell warned that it could end up "labelling a multi-faceted problem as hateful extremism" and "may instead vilify the wrong people". It could also threaten freedom of speech and the right to peaceful protest, they said. "We join calls for the government to reconsider its approach," added the senior clerics. Sunak, responding in parliament on Wednesday, insisted that it was "important we have the tools to tackle this threat" and that the move was "absolutely not about silencing those with private and peaceful beliefs, nor will it impact free speech". Welby -- who sits in the upper chamber House of Lords -- has also criticised the government over its plan to send asylum seekers from the UK to Rwanda. jwp/phz/bc Voter turnout for the March 12 presidential preference primary was slow at Harmon Pitner Elementary in Cobb County and many other polling places across Georgia. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder This story was updated at 6:45 a.m. on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Georgia voters on Tuesday helped cement Donald Trump and Joe Biden as the Republican and Democratic presidential nominees for the 2024 election. The presidential preference primary wrapped up Tuesday with the incumbent president securing enough delegates in Georgia and a couple other states hosting primaries to clinch the Democratic Partys nomination at the national convention. Biden is headed toward a rematch against the former Republican president, who also easily won Georgia on Tuesday and later in the evening surpassed the GOP delegate threshold to win the nomination after western state primaries closed voting. As of early Wednesday morning, 495,880 votes were counted for Trump in Georgia. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley trailed Trump with 77,737 votes, or about 13% of the vote, a week after she withdrew from the race as Georgia early voting ended. As Trump swept the other Republican primaries leading up to Tuesday, Haley was the last major contender to withdraw from the race. Meanwhile, Biden had earned 274,390 of the 288,265 Democratic primary votes in Georgia as of early Wednesday morning. Georgia will remain in the spotlight in November when state election officials predict 6 million voters are expected to go to the polls to vote for candidates for president, the state Legislature, Congress and various down ballot contests. One hour after the polls closed on Tuesday, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said about 12% of Georgia voters cast ballots in the presidential primary. Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger declared Tuesdays presidential preference primary a successful first statewide election utilizing a new voter registration system. Stanley Dunlap/Georgia Recorder Raffensperger estimated about one-third of Georgias 7 million active voters will participate in the May 21 general election primary and that number will greatly increase once Novembers high stakes general election comes around. I dont really do the prediction game too much, he said. But we know that in November itll be just like 2020 with big numbers coming out so well prepare the counties for that. Voters declare sides for 2024 election It remains to be seen whether Biden can repeat his upset victory over Trump, who in 2020 became the rare Republican presidential candidate to lose in Georgia since 1992. The Peach States performance in the 2020 election was a crowning achievement for the Democratic Party as voters elected Biden to the White House, and Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff to the U.S. Senate. Poll workers in north Cobb and Cherokee counties said Tuesday mornings voter turnout didnt hold a candle to recent years big turnout elections, but a slow and steady trickle of ballot casters kept Carmel Elementary in Woodstock from feeling empty on Election Day. Cherokee County voter Peggy Poole emerged from the school bearing a classic peach sticker proving her status as a Georgia voter. Poole said she happily cast her ballot for Trump. He has to be better than what we have, which is the main reason, but I didnt really necessarily see anything wrong with him when he was elected, Poole said. And I just think he got a shoddy time in 2020. And I just think that we just need a change. Poole said she was referring in part to Trump getting an unfair shake because of the economic issues that followed the pandemic. And then the voting, polls, the accusations of fraud or whatever it was, she added. And you know, it could have been, but well never really know. Cherokee voter David Watkins. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder Trump maintains that the 2020 election was rigged against him, even though multiple investigations, court cases and recounts have turned up no evidence of widespread fraud that November. Fellow Cherokee voter David Watkins pulled the lever for Biden, but Watkins also had strong feelings about Trump. I voted for Biden because I dont need a fool in the office of president, he said. Im sorry, its just the way that I feel. Hes too controversial, and with him in office, the country would go to hell. Watkins said his vote was not just anti-Trump. He said hes been happy with Bidens term so far, listing health care as a top priority. They always say Do you feel youre better off or worse off? Personally, Im better off, he said. Thats how I feel. I feel like Ive been listened to by the things that he said he was going to do, and he did them. He had to fight tooth and nail along the way, but he did it. Election officials brace for rest of cycle Although local election officials managed to conduct a smooth primary process on Tuesday, concerns remain heading into the general election primaries in May and general election on Nov. 5. Paulding County Deidre Holden said her office has been waiting since Feb. 13 to receive new precinct cards notifying voters of changes in redistricting. Holden says the United States Postal Service has been slow to deliver those cards and mail absentee ballots to voters who requested them. Her office has issued public notices about the changes to voters districts and she is encouraging voters to apply early for absentee ballots and to drop their ballots off at the election office or at a polling place instead of mailing them. Their lack of concern in delivering mail will be detrimental to our absentee voters in May and November, when their votes can affect the outcome of a close election, Holden said. It should not take 2-3 weeks for an absentee application to reach a local voter. This delays the issuing of the absentee ballot and the voter receiving their ballot in enough time to vote it and return it. The fallout from the 2020 election still lingers after Trump and many of his allies blamed rampant voter fraud for the former presidents losses in Georgia and several other states. Several months after the 2020 election, Georgia Republican lawmakers passed a controversial overhaul of the states election laws. Gov. Brian Kemp talks to reporters at the Capitol Tuesday morning. Jill Nolin/Georgia Recorder Georgia election officials are bracing for new voting rules that could be in place in time for November. Bills passed by one legislative chamber in the current session would add watermark security requirements to paper ballots, require the secretary of state develop an online system for the public to inspect ballots after elections and also require that text portions of ballots be used to tabulate votes instead of QR codes. Republican Gov. Brian Kemp became one of Trumps favorite targets after refusing to help overturn the states 2020 election results. Kemp said Tuesday that he voted in the Republican primary, but he did not say which GOP candidate got his vote. Despite the fraught history between them, Kemp said Tuesday that he would support the GOP nominee. Kemp acknowledged that Georgias significance in this years presidential preference primary was more of an afterthought by the time polls opened on Tuesday. Regardless, theres other things on the ballot, and people can send a message with their vote today. But the real action is going to be happening here in November, and I know were preparing for that and looking forward to it. Its going to be a crazy, crazy election season for sure, he said in remarks to reporters at the state Capitol Tuesday morning. Georgia Recorders Jill Nolin and Ross Williams contributed to this report. The post Another fraught Georgia election season after predictable 2024 presidential primary appeared first on Georgia Recorder. Vitaly Robertus, 54, Vice President of the Russian oil and gas firm Lukoil, has been found dead. He is the fourth Lukoil top manager to die since the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Source: Lukoils press release Details: "We are deeply saddened to announce that Vitaly Vladimirovich Robertus, Vice President of the company, died suddenly at the age of 54," the press release reads. Robertuss death was the fourth among Lukoils top managers in the last two years. Vladimir Nekrasov, Chairman of Lukoils Board of Directors, died in October 2023 from acute heart failure. Nekrasov headed Lukoil after Ravil Maganov, the previous chairman, died after falling out of a window of the Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow in August 2022. Alexander Subbotin, the company's former top manager, died in May 2022; his body was found in a private house. An investigation concluded that Subotin also died of acute heart failure. Support UP or become our patron! Fighting between anti-Kremlin militias and the Russian army is taking place in five settlements near the Ukrainian border, Oleksii Baranovskyi, a fighter with the Freedom of Russia Legion, said on air on March 13. The Freedom of Russia Legion and another militia, the Siberian Battalion, crossed the border into Russia from Ukraine on March 12 to conduct combat operations in Belgorod and Kursk oblasts. Both the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Siberian Battalion posted videos on their social media platforms purporting to show their respective groups operating in Russia. The Freedom of Russia Legion then claimed to have taken under control the village of Tyotkino in Kursk Oblast. The legion launched an incursion into Belgorod Oblast in May 2023. Baranovskyi said that the Russian army was well prepared for the new incursion in the region, as "additional fortifications appeared there and they dug various trenches." The Kyiv Independent could not verify Baranovskyi's claims. Baranovskyi also discussed the upcoming presidential election in Russia on March 16 and 17, which is set to cement Russian President Vladimir Putin's grip on power. The attacks were "timed with the so-called elections," Baranovskyi said, and referred to the fighting as a "voting method." "We, as caring citizens of Russia, have thus decided our political will, our attitude towards these elections, and the regime of Vladimir Putin." "I have no doubt that the main purpose is to, if not disrupt the presidential elections in Russia, then at least somehow interfere with the normal process of expressing the will of citizens," Putin said in an interview with Russian state-controlled news agency RIA Novosti and Russia-1 TV channel on March 12. Read also: What do we know about the Siberian Battalion that reportedly crossed into Russia? Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. An anti-terrorism team of U.S. Marines has been dispatched to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to bolster the protection of the U.S. Embassy amid escalating gang violence and a deepening political crisis that has left some Americans stranded. With no clear plan for a transition to a new government and with free and fair elections in doubt, Haitians are seeking to escape their turmoil-ridden country. Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced Tuesday that he would resign once a transitional presidential council is created. Henry made the announcement hours after officials that included Caribbean leaders and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met in Jamaica to urgently discuss a solution to halt Haiti's spiraling crisis. Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic is tightening its borders against undocumented Haitians, sending many back to a homeland facing an unclear future. "They treat us like dogs," a man told CBS News after saying he had been detained without food. Earlier in the day, a woman collapsed as she was being taken off an overcrowded immigration truck. Haitian-American Dana Josephs happened to be driving by and put her in the back of his truck and rushed her to the hospital. "It could be my family, but even though ...I don't even know her, so this is my car that I have to use. Just save her life. I'll do it," Josephs said. These scenes at the border come after a coalition of Haitian stakeholders and international leaders including the U.S. helped usher in the agreement to dissolve Henry's failing government and replace it. Haiti has struggled with tumultuous political unrest for decades, along with crippling gang violence. In September, the Biden administration pledged $100 million, and, later, another $65 million, to support the Haitian National Police and improve security in the island nation. The U.N. Security Council voted in early October to approve the mission and send a multinational force to Haiti for one year in hopes of quelling the rising violence. The latest bout of gang violence erupted at the end of February as Henry flew to Kenya to push for the deployment of that multinational force. Heavily-armed gangs attacked key government sites and attempted to seize control of the airport in Port-au-Prince, forcing businesses and schools in the area to close and displacing an estimated 15,000 people from their homes in the capital city. Attacks on Haiti's two largest prisons also led to a mass escape of thousands of inmates. Now, some Haitians are skeptical about what comes next. "The resignation of Ariel Henry is a game that the Americans are playing," one man told CBS News. But there remains a sense of duty among some, like a local shoemaker who expressed optimism about the state of the affairs in Haiti. "Haitians have a duty to see if we can find someone who can put the country back on track," he said. The ongoing unrest has left some Americans in Haiti stranded, like missionary Jill Dolan. "When we've contacted agencies to extract us out, they have just said, 'It's way too dangerous where you are. You have to stay put.'" What to know about taking out a 401(k) loan Olivia Munn reveals breast cancer diagnosis, says she had double mastectomy How a proposed U.S. TikTok ban would work "Undoubtedly, China is one of the leaders of global economic development." A Russian expert has spoken highly of China's economic performance in 2023. Produced by Xinhua Global Service ANTIOCH, Ill. An Antioch man faces several charges after allegedly stabbing a family member in the face in their home overnight. 54-year-old Aaron Locklear faces several felony charges of domestic battery, causing bodily harm with a deadly weapon. Police responded to a domestic incident in the 21200 block of Route 173 in unincorporated Antioch around 12:23 a.m. Wednesday. 5 killed in rash of overnight gun violence across Chicago According to police investigation, two men who live under the same address had gotten into a verbal argument when Lockner produced a blade. Police say the man a laceration to the right side of his face, causing a very serious injury from near his eye extending to his lip. The man was transported to a local hospital for the injuries. Locklear was arrested and transported to an area hospital for treatment to a finger as he sustained a cut during the incident. Investigation shows that alcohol was a factor in the incident. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. The Republican House majority will become even thinner next week as Representative Ken Buck departs several months before his final term comes to an end. In an unexpected Tuesday evening announcement, Mr Buck a Republican from Colorado said he would leave Congress next Friday, rather than retiring at the end of his term as originally planned. Afterwards, Republicans will hold just 218 seats out of 435 in the House, leaving Democrats one step closer to clinching the majority. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York and member of the progressive Squad, told The Independent her party must take advantage of Mr Bucks early departure. Ms Ocasio-Cortez said Democrats have to make sure that that we see that do the best we can to navigate how razor-thin the situation is. Continuing to push some of our priorities that we think can peel some folks off on the Republican side I think that remains our thinking, she told The Independent. Republicans will now hold just a two-seat majority following resignations from three other GOP members in recent months including former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. With 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats, the GOP can only afford to lose two votes in a party-line contest that is, only if there are no absences, which is a rare occurrence for the House. Mr Buck initially planned to leave at the end of his term when he announced his retirement last year. Since then, Mr Buck has blamed his departure on disagreements with the GOP. Earlier this month, he told NewsNation he wanted to step down because hes not willing to lie on behalf of the party or Donald Trump. But really were at a time in American politics, that I am not going to lie on behalf of my presidential candidate on behalf of my party, the Colorado representative said. And Im very sad that others in my party have taken the position that as long as we get the White House, it doesnt really matter what we say. ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) A first-of-its-kind program led to a 47% decrease in gunshots in one Albuquerque neighborhood. The Albuquerque Police Department launched a new program using data from their Shot Spotter program which is a real-time gunshot detection system. Sandoval County Sheriffs Office seeking answers more than 3 years after teens death With the new program, anytime theres a rise of gunshots in a neighborhood, police will gather the date, time, and place of where it happened and attempt to pinpoint the person who committed the crime. Its important that we do this, whether its reducing violent crime, ensuring that the neighborhood knows that their concerns are being heard, and making sure that were working with them to make sure to fix some of the problems that are occurring within the community, said APD Chief Harold Medina. APD will send affected residents a letter letting them know police are aware of gunshot activity in their neighborhood and warn them of the consequences of firing guns. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. FILE - Former DeKalb County police officer Robert Olsen prepares to be processed after his sentencing, Friday, Nov. 1, 2019, in Decatur, Ga. An appeals court has overturned the convictions of Olsen, Wednesday, March 13, 2024, who shot and killed an unarmed, naked man. (Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP) ATLANTA (AP) An appeals court has overturned the convictions of a former Georgia police officer who shot and killed an unarmed, naked man. Robert Chip Olsen was responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically at an Atlanta-area apartment complex in March 2015 when he killed 26-year-old Anthony Hill, a black Air Force veteran whod been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. Olsen, who worked for the DeKalb County Police Department, said he was acting in self-defense. A jury in 2019 found Olsen guilty of one count of aggravated assault, two counts of violating his oath of office and one count of making a false statement. But jurors found him not guilty on two counts of felony murder. He was sentenced to serve 12 years in prison, followed by eight years of probation. Prior to trial, Olsens lawyers had argued against the DeKalb County Police Departments use of force policy being submitted as evidence. They said some of its provisions conflicted with Georgias self-defense law and that admitting it would confuse the jury. The trial court was wrong to admit the policy into evidence without identifying and redacting the portions that conflict with Georgia law, state Court of Appeals Judge Brian Rickman wrote in a unanimous opinion Tuesday. That error was compounded, he wrote, when jurors were told the policy could be used to assess the reasonableness of Olsens using deadly force. The prosecution also said repeatedly during closing arguments that the policy provided the legal standard for determining whether Olsens use of force was reasonable. Georgia law says the use of force that is intended or likely to cause death is justified if a person reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony. That law expressly nullifies any local rules or policies in conflict with its provision, Rickman wrote. The DeKalb County police use of force policy instructs that officers must exhaust every means available of non-lethal force, prior to utilizing deadly force. It also says, Any threat used to justify the use of deadly force must be immediate and there must be no other possible remedy. Rickman, writing for a three-judge panel, noted that prosecutors can retry Olsen on the aggravated assault charge. But the opinion says the state cannot retry him on the violation of oath counts because those were based on a violation of the use of force policy. Don Samuel, an attorney for Olsen, 61, said they are delighted with the ruling. It was clear from the outset of this case that the local police departments Use of Force Policy was not a document that supersedes the state law that governs all cases involving self-defense, Samuel wrote in an email. The Court of Appeals was correct in denouncing the prosecutions use of that county policy instead of state law. DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said she plans to appeal. We have worked tirelessly to hold Robert Olsen accountable for the death of Anthony Hill, Boston said in an emailed statement. While we respect the Court of Appeals, we wholeheartedly disagree with their decision and will appeal this matter to the Georgia Supreme Court. Hill's shooting prompted protests and calls for police accountability. Days after his killing, more than 100 people gathered, expressing hope that his killing would become part of an ongoing national discussion on police interactions with citizens, particularly people of color. At trial, the apartment complex manager where Hill lived testified that she saw him wearing only shorts and behaving strangely on March 9, 2015. After returning to his apartment briefly, Hill reemerged without clothes. The property manager called 911 three times. Dispatch told Olsen there was a naked man who was possibly demented. Hill was squatting in a roadway when Olsen arrived but jumped up and ran toward the patrol car, witnesses said. Olsen exited his car and yelled, Stop! Stop! Hill didnt stop and Olsen shot him twice, witnesses said. Prosecutors told jurors Olsen unreasonably and unnecessarily used deadly force to deal with the unarmed, naked man who was suffering a mental health crisis. Defense attorneys argued Olsen had limited information, feared for his life, had only seconds to make a tough decision and acted in self-defense. Archbishops Justin Welby (left) and Stephen Cottrell (right) released a joint statement on the new extremism definition - Charlotte Graham/2022 CAG Photography Ltd The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have claimed the Governments planned new definition of extremism risks more division which could disproportionately target Muslim communities. In a joint statement, the Most Reverend Justin Welby and the Most Reverend Stephen Cottrell said labelling a multi-faceted problem as hateful extremism could vilify the wrong people and increase divisions within communities. Their comments come ahead of a new definition of extremism to be unveiled by Michael Gove, the Communities Secretary, which will enable universities, councils and other public bodies to crack down on a wider range of Islamist and Right-wing groups. It will enable the Government and public bodies to bar groups from venues or campuses and block funding if they are judged to be promoting extremist ideology that undermines British values and democracy. Mr Gove is expected to use parliamentary privilege to name groups that will be captured by the new definition and announce the creation of a new counter-extremism unit tasked with naming groups and individuals which breach the new definition. Rishi Sunak earlier this month used an address to the nation outside Downing Street to warn of extremist disruption and forces here at home trying to tear us apart after a surge in anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim incidents following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. However, the Church of Englands two most senior clerics have claimed the new definition of extremism may threaten freedom of speech, worship and protest. They said: How our leaders respond to this is far too important for a new definition of extremism to be its cure. Instead of providing clarity or striking a conciliatory tone, we think labelling a multi-faceted problem as hateful extremism may instead vilify the wrong people and risk yet more division. The new definition being proposed not only inadvertently threatens freedom of speech, but also the right to worship and peaceful protest - things that have been hard won and form the fabric of a civilised society. Crucially, it risks disproportionately targeting Muslim communities, who are already experiencing rising levels of hate and abuse. The archbishops continued: We are concerned - like so many others - by its implications for public life. We join calls for the Government to reconsider its approach and instead have a broad-based conversation with all those who it will affect. The UK has a proud history of welcoming people from all walks of life and celebrating diversity. We are a community of communities. Our leaders should cherish and promote that - and pursue policies that bring us together, not risk driving us apart. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Anti-abortion activists celebrate Friday after the U.S. Supreme Court ended a woman's right to abortion. The Arkansas State Capitol. (Getty Images) Arkansas prison board will investigate when and how changes were made to a legal contract without the knowledge of state procurement officials. State legislators, prison leaders and financial officials were perplexed Tuesday about unusual language inserted into an agreement between the Arkansas Department of Corrections/Board of Corrections and the Hall Booth Smith law firm that could subject the state to liability. State Procurement Director Ed Armstrong discovered the addition in the middle of a legislative meeting, prompting the prison board to commit to investigating who made the changes to the agreement and when. A request that the Arkansas Legislature ratify the $207,000 contract with the law firm and attorney Abtin Mehdizadegan which began in December amid the legal fight between the board and Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Attorney General Tim Griffin was shelved for the time being. Armstrong told lawmakers that the changes to the contract presented a host of concerns, including waiving the states immunity from lawsuits and binding the state to a court ruling that could be overturned in the future. Tracking how the contract changed over time 1) The initial version of the contract drafted by state procurement officials had very little narrative and three attachments. 2) Attorney Abtin Mehdizadegan said he made some additions to the version of the contract he signed before returning it for Board of Corrections Chairman Benny Magness signature to reflect the boards legal disagreements with other state officials. 3) The final version of the contract with Magness and Mehdizadegans signatures was presented to a legislative panel on Tuesday. There were concerns at Tuesdays meeting about potential criminal violations if changes were made to the agreement after it had been signed by Board of Corrections Chairman Benny Magness, who said he wasnt sure whether the additions were included when he signed the contract earlier this month. Reached by the Advocate after Tuesdays meeting, Mehdizadegan said that he made the changes to the contract before it was signed by Magness, and he provided a copy of the contract with the changes and only his signature. The changes, he said, were made to reflect the ongoing differences in opinion between the prison board, lawmakers and executive branch officials over the independence of the Board of Corrections under the Arkansas Constitution and state law. I believe this approach was reasonable, Mehdizadegan said in a text message to the Advocate. I left the handwriting, etc. [to] specifically identify that a proposed term was altered, and I expected that the procurement manager would advise me if those proposed changes were problematic. The changes were apparently never noticed by Magness or the departments procurement officials, who told the Arkansas Legislative Councils Review subcommittee that they werent aware of them until Tuesdays meeting. Mehdizadegan and his firm have been representing the prison board in litigation since December, but so far, the board hasnt been able to pay the more than $135,000 legal bill, due to state financial officials opinion that the agreement wasnt properly procured. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US That has left the board with the option of seeking the Legislatures retroactive approval of the agreement. Absent that approval, the law firms only recourse for seeking payment would be to go through the state Claims Commission. While both cases litigated by Mehdizadegan for the board are being appealed to the Arkansas Supreme Court, a lower court judge in the first case blocked a pair of new state laws, which the board argued usurped its authority over state prisons by putting the state corrections secretary under the governor rather than the board. Another circuit judge dismissed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the board filed by the attorney general. Those disputes grew out of an impasse over temporary prison beds. With that disagreement behind them, the conflict has morphed into a broader debate about who has the ultimate authority over the Department of Corrections the board or the governor? In some ways, Tuesdays dustup over the legal contract is a continuation of that dispute. Procurement problems Lawmakers spent the bulk of Tuesdays hearing questioning Magness and Department of Corrections staff about the process for hiring the Hall Booth Smith firm. Under questioning, Magness told the committee that the firm was retained on the advice of board member Lee Watson and that no competitive bidding process had occurred. Further, he told lawmakers the board hadnt voted to approve the contract presented on Tuesday. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE He admitted that the board had not followed procurement law. We made an error, theres no question about it, Magness said. Thats why were here. State Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, urged Magness to pull back the contract and investigate further. I think youve been taken for a ride, and the state of Arkansas has been taken for a ride by someone who was going to manipulate documents before or after your signature, Dismang said. I think youve been taken advantage of. Mehdizadegan defended his firms work on behalf of the board, noting that its efforts have been successful and that he expects to win the appeals. He also said there is disagreement with procurement officials over the boards authority to enter a special counsel agreement in unique circumstances under Arkansas Code Annotated 25-16-711, which for now has been affirmed by Circuit Judge Patricia James. He said that tweaks to the contracts language about the states sovereign immunity were added because A.C.A. 25-16-711 could be read as a waiver of immunity by the state. But as Ive maintained, we will attempt to cooperate in good faith with this process, without waiving any legal arguments that might apply, and then wait for the courts to sort out the rest if we cant get it resolved now, Mehdizadegan said. Meanwhile, lawmakers want the prison board to report back soon. The post Arkansas Board of Corrections to probe changes to special counsel contract appeared first on Arkansas Advocate. Arkansas will no longer permit residents to identify as "X" rather than male or female on state-issued drivers' licenses or identification cards, officials announced Tuesday. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said it would rescind rules that allow license holders to change their gender "without any verifiable information," or to use "X" in lieu of gender. Those rules were put in place in 2010 to allow transgender, nonbinary or intersex residents to change the sex listed on their licenses and IDs. "This policy is just common sense. Only women give birth, men shouldnt play womens sports, and there are only two genders. As long as Im Governor, Arkansas state government will not endorse nonsense," said Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders.3 RESEARCHERS ARGUE RAPID ONSET GENDER DYSPHORIA DOES EXIST, DESPITE NARRATIVE AGAINST IT Arkansas will no longer allow residents to use "X" instead of male or female on state-issued driver's licenses or identification cards, officials announced under new rules Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Sanders defended the new rules as "common sense." The rule change must be approved by a legislative committee of the Arkansas General Assembly. If the policy moves forward, all previously issued licenses and IDs with the "X" designation will remain valid through the existing expiration date, the department said. Residents will have to update their gender when they renew their license or ID. The move is the latest effort by a Republican state to legally define sex as binary, which critics say is discriminatory towards transgender and nonbinary people and creates uncertainty for intersex people those born with sex chromosomes, external genitalia or an internal reproductive system that is not considered typical for a male or female. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP GENDER-AFFIRMING TREATMENTS DON'T BENEFIT YOUTH, SAYS PEDIATRICIANS GROUP: IRREVERSIBLE CONSEQUENCES "This proposed policy seeks to erase the existence of non-binary and intersex Arkansans by denying them identity documents that reflect their true selves, forcing them into categories that do not represent their identities," the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas said in a statement. At least 22 states and the District of Columbia allow "X" as an option on licenses and IDs. Arkansas has more than 2.6 million active driver's licenses, and 342 of them have the "X" designation. The state has about 503,000 IDs, and 174 with the "X" designation. DETRANSITIONER WARNS GENDER IDEOLOGY COULD HAVE LONG-TERM RAMIFICATIONS FOR KIDS: THEY CANNOT CONSENT A legislative committee of the Arkansas General Assembly must approve the driver's license and state ID rule change. DFA Secretary Jim Hudson said the discontinued policy was not supported by state law and had not gone through the public comment process and legislative review required by state law. "This change announced today reflects a commonsense approach that ensures a license or ID issued by the State of Arkansas is based on objective, verifiable information," said DFA Secretary Jim Hudson. "All of our stakeholders in law enforcement, other government agencies, caregivers, schools, and businesses depend on DFA-issued licenses and IDs to keep our communities safe and to prevent fraud." The Associated Press contributed to this report. Original article source: Arkansas drops 'X' from driver's licenses and IDs: State 'won't endorse nonsense,' Governor Sanders says MEMPHIS, Tenn. A Blytheville Police Department officer was arrested Tuesday morning for allegedly viewing inappropriate sexual material on the internet involving a child. David Paul Cross, 25, is charged with Distributing, Possessing, and/or Viewing Materials Depicting Sexually Explicit Conduct Involving a Child. Arkansas State Police were investigating the incident and arrested Cross. ASP agents also seized electronic devices and other evidence in Crosss home after executing a search warrant. Once the Blytheville Police Department was made aware of the allegations against Cross and that he was arrested, he was fired from the police department. He was a police officer with the department for three years. Cross was taken to the Mississippi County Detention Center. He is being held on a $75,000 bond. This is still an ongoing investigation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. Arkansas will no longer allow drivers to use an X for their gender on drivers licenses, state regulators said Tuesday, rolling back a policy that was inclusive to nonbinary people. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration said the changes are being made to safeguard state IDs. The agency also announced it will make it more difficult for transgender people to change the gender listed on their ID. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) celebrated the announcement, comparing the ID changes to fraught conservative culture war talking points. This policy is just common sense. Only women give birth, men shouldnt play womens sports, and there are only two genders, she said in a statement. As long as Im Governor, Arkansas state government will not endorse nonsense. The effort continues moves by Republican state governments to legally mandate gender as binary, a move which goes against the common academic understanding of gender and which critics argue completely erases the recognition of transgender and nonbinary people. The changes also raise concerns for intersex people, those with sex traits of either both or neither gender. There are approximately 1.2 million nonbinary or transgender Americans, according to a 2021 study. Nonbinary driver license gender labels are allowed in 22 states plus the District of Columbia, and are supported for federal IDs, including passports. The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas denounced the changes on Tuesday, saying they threaten the safety and dignity of transgender, nonbinary and intersex Arkansans. Accurate and consistent identity documents are a fundamental necessity, enabling individuals to travel, secure employment, open bank accounts, and enroll in educational programs, the group said in a statement. For transgender people, in particular, an ID that accurately reflects their true self is not just a matter of dignity it is crucial for their safety and well-being. We strongly oppose the Governor and the Department of Finance and Administrations (DFA) attempt to implement this regressive and damaging policy, the statement continues. It is shameful that they have failed to consider the significant impact such measures will have on the lives of many Arkansans. Just 342 of the states more than 2.6 million active driver licenses use the X gender designator, the DFA said, in addition to 174 of 503,000 other state IDs. Those IDs will remain valid through their expiry date, when owners will be forced to choose male or female for their documentation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BLYTHEVILLE, Ark. Arkansas State Police investigators said they have arrested a police officer in Blytheville who is accused of possessing child pornography. ASP officials said that 25-year-old Officer David Paul Cross was arrested Tuesday. David Paul Cross booking photo Image courtesy Mississippi County Sheriffs Office Authorities said ASP agents served a search warrant on Crosss home in Blytheville and seized electronic devices and other evidence. Agents said Cross is facing a charge of distributing, possessing, and/or viewing of materials depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child. Former Washington County deputy arrested, charged with murder Cross was taken to the Mississippi County Detention Center where he is being held on a $75,000 bond. He is scheduled to be in court on Wednesday morning. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KARK. UNITED NATIONS, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Tuesday asked the European Union (EU) to uphold the idea of common security. Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, made the appeal at a Security Council meeting on UN-EU cooperation. China supports UN-EU cooperation in accordance with the purposes and the principles of the UN Charter, with a view to making greater contributions to the maintenance of international peace and security, enhancing the well-being of humanity, and addressing global challenges. China expects such cooperation to be guided by the principles of true multilateralism, common security, and a common future for mankind, said Geng. "As an advocate of multilateralism, the EU should take the lead in upholding the purposes and the principles of the UN Charter, respecting international law and universally recognized basic norms of international relations, defending the multilateral system with the United Nations at its core, and promoting solidarity and progress among nations under the banner of multilateralism," he said. Security is indivisible. The security of one country cannot be secured at the expense of the security of others. And equally, there is no ground for achieving regional security by strengthening or even expanding military blocs. The legitimate security concerns of all countries should be taken seriously and properly addressed. The EU should work with the United Nations to promote the political solution of hot-spot issues and to resolve conflicts and disputes by peaceful means, he said. In the face of changes unseen in a century, countries in the world should rise above their historical, cultural, geographic, and institutional differences, and work together to create a better future through win-win cooperation. The EU should work with other UN member states to promote consensus and action-oriented action at the Summit of the Future to be held later this year, so as to send a positive signal to the outside world about opening up new prospects for humankind, he said. The crisis in Ukraine poses a great challenge to European security. The ultimate resolution of this crisis must be through dialogue and negotiation. The EU, as an important stakeholder, should do more to promote political settlement and create favorable conditions for a balanced, effective, and sustainable security architecture in Europe, said Geng. The war in Gaza continues to rage, creating an unprecedented and worsening humanitarian catastrophe. To protect civilians, provide assistance, save lives, and restore peace is the common responsibility of the international community, he said. "We appreciate the positive efforts made by the EU in this regard, and hope that the EU will leverage its influence and role to make greater contributions to the promotion of an immediate cease-fire, the expansion of humanitarian assistance, the implementation of the two-state solution, and the realization of lasting peace in the Middle East." Africa is facing growing challenges in pursuing peace and development. China hopes that the EU will shoulder greater responsibility, adhere to the principle of African solutions to African problems, and support African countries in strengthening capacity-building to better address risks and challenges in realizing sustainable development, he said. It is important to support the building of the collective security mechanism of the African Union (AU) and provide more predictable and sustainable financial contributions to AU-led peacekeeping and counter-terrorism operations, he added. China has always attached great importance to its relations with the EU, as it regards the latter as an important force in the process of multi-polarization. China is pleased to see the EU strengthen its strategic autonomy, play a greater role in international affairs, and make greater contributions to the maintenance of international peace and security, he said. China is willing to deepen multilateral cooperation with the EU, work with the bloc to promote multilateralism, advocate opening and development, and advance dialogue among civilizations, so as to make unremitting efforts to safeguard world peace, promote common development, and strengthen global governance, said Geng. Armenia will leave the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if the military alliance fails to address Armenia's collective security concerns, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a press conference on March 12. If the CSTO answers the question of where the organizations area of responsibility is in Armenia, and this question corresponds to our vision, then we will consider that the issue between us has been resolved. If not, then Armenia will leave the CSTO, Pashinyan said. The threat comes amid a growing rift between Yerevan and Moscow, which was exacerbated when Russia and its "peacekeepers" in Nagorno-Karabakh did not prevent Azerbaijan's armed seizure of the region. According to Article 4 of the CSTO Treaty, if a member state experiences aggression, then all members states must come to its aid - similar to NATO's Article 5 principles. The CSTO did not intervene during Azerbaijan's offensive in September 2023. Pashinyan said in February that Armenia had "frozen" its participation in the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) because it failed to uphold its objectives regarding Armenia. In recent months, Armenia has further sought to distance itself from Russia - repeatedly accusing Moscow of being an unreliable partner. Last week, Armenia's Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan revealed that the country is considering applying for membership in the European Union, aiming to strengthen ties with the West. Yerevan also asked Russian "peacekeepers" who have been stationed at Yerevan's international airport since the country's independence to leave. Since coming to power in a 2018 revolution, the government of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has steadily deepened the country's ties with the West while drawing condemnation from Russia. Pashinyan and other Armenian officials have sought to foster security ties with other countries, such as France, the U.S., or India. In January 2024, Armenia joined the International Criminal Court becoming one of 124 countries obliged to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin if he steps foot in national territory. The Kremlin decried the move as an "unfriendly step" and "the wrong decision." The CSTO, which was established in 2002, includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Read also: Armenia considering applying for EU membership amid growing tensions with Russia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. The U.S. Army will hold a seminar this summer to improve the joint forces ability to quickly and effectively manage logistics and sustainment at the outset of a large-scale war, according to the Army Materiel Command commander. The seminar will include Air Mobility Command, U.S. Transportation Command and Air Force Materiel Command as well as a host of other senior leaders, said Gen. Charles Hamilton, who took over AMC a year ago. The event will focus on coordination in the first 30 to 60 days of going into a conflict, he said. While the Army is required to support the joint forces logistics and sustainment needs in operations globally, planning and managing the vast network of moving equipment from fort to port and into theater, as well as maintaining capability on the battlefield, has been siloed among the services. But in actual operations, its a joint effort. When Hamilton took over AMC, he immediately changed the commands mission statement to focus on the joint global force. Ive never gone into a major operation without it being joint, he said said at a March 13 Association of the U.S. Army event in Arlington, Virginia. In fact, Im held to that standard to support joint, so why not embrace it and articulate that back to the Army, and in particular [the Office of the Secretary of Defense], that potentially could lead to some resources down the road? All of the moving parts across these commands result in a congested space, Hamilton said. Theres a lot of moving pieces and what weve got to do is detangle it and integrate better in time. With the new focus on how to do all of this in a contested environment, its really going to get interesting and sporty, he added. The seminar will focus on the Armys most challenging operational theater the Indo-Pacific. The Army continues to build its capability in the Pacific and a major aspect of its pivot to the region will be to work through theater sustainment and logistics and setting the theater in order to deter Chinas aggression. In the fiscal 2025 budget request released Monday, the Armys portion of the Pacific Deterrence Initiative would be $1.5 billion. The service plans to spend $461.4 million on Operation Pathways exercises and another $337 million for other exercises with allies and partners in the Pacific, a 200% increase over FY24. The service also wants to spend $38 million in theater sustainment there. The Army is requesting funding for contested logistics including new watercraft, command-and-control gear, and point-of-need sustainment capabilities. While some experimentation exists already with the Joint Staff, the seminar in August will take it to a larger scale and bring in experts and industry partners to contribute to the conversation, Hamilton said. While allies and partners will not be a part of the conversation in this first round, the Army plans to include them down the road because their participation is a huge part of the equation, he said, adding that theres no way we go into a large-scale fight without relying on allies and partners for supply chain, airfields and ports. Taking what comes out of the seminar, Hamilton said the Army will design an exercise that is solely focused on sustaining the force over the first two months of operations in large-scale combat to see how planners and commanders react to the situation. The U.S. military should reassess its force posture in Europe and reduce its reliance on revolving door-style unit rotations, a major think tanks analysts concluded in a Monday report. The Center for Strategic and International Studies transnational threat team based their study on official documents, open-source materials and interviews with subject-matter experts. The reports authors recommend that the Army abandon the rotational armor brigade deployment model that eats up ... the Armys force structure and long-term readiness. Currently, two armor brigades are deployed to Europe. Instead, the report said, the service should permanently station an Armored Brigade Combat Team in Poland to replace one rotational unit and eliminate the remaining rotation altogether. An Army Times investigation found that tank brigades and enlisted tank crew members were at higher risk of suicide than other soldiers in recent years, due in part to a decade of high operational tempo fueled by such non-combat deployments. The service once had armor brigades in Europe, but they were removed in the early 2010s. BROKEN TRACK: Suicides & suffering in Armys exhausted armor community Currently, the Army maintains a large presence of rotational forces in Europe. V Corps forward headquarters in Poznan, Poland oversees the three temporarily deployed brigade combat teams, which includes one light infantry brigade in addition to the two armor brigades. Other rotational forces include division headquarters, a combat aviation brigade, fires assets and sustainment units. But the short-tour model has consequences, the reports authors argued. They cost more money in the long-term compared to permanent bases, and they are less integrated into the continents culture and defense network. The deployment-based model negatively impacts soldiers, too the authors said evidence suggests they separate military personnel from their families, causing low morale that can spawn discipline issues and increased divorce rates. Army spokesperson Col. Roger Cabiness II told Army Times, however, that forward basing of an ABCT is not a simple task. Doing so would require diplomatic and legislative approvals both at home and abroad. Despite efforts to reduce their operational tempo, the Armys armor units continue to deploy at a high rate to fulfill the Europe requirements. The 4th Infantry Divisions 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team cased its colors Monday, signifying its departure for an eight- or nine-month Europe rotation. The Iron Brigades new mission is beginning roughly 16 months after returning to Fort Carson, Colorado from another Europe deployment that wrapped in December 2022. The reports authors also recommended that the Air Force station an additional F-16 squadron in Germany; increase anti-submarine warfare capability and air defense forces; bolster stockpiles of prepositioned equipment and ammunition; and continue modernization, cyber, space and security cooperation efforts. A suspect has been arrested in connection with a social media threat made towards Taft High School in Woodland Hills on Tuesday. According to a letter sent to parents from the Los Angeles School Police Department, law enforcement was able to identify the person responsible and determine that there was no indication that the they posed a credible threat to students and staff.. The suspect was not identified, but police confirmed they are not a Taft High School student. Southern California father found guilty of murdering his 4 children, their grandmother The department initially said that they had taken appropriate action and later confirmed that an arrest was made. We take the safety of our students very seriously, the police departments letter to parents said. Our campus remains safe and open for instruction. A social media threat towards a high school in Woodland Hills sent the student body into a panic, eliciting a massive police presence and causing hundreds of parents to rush to the school on Mar. 12, 2024. (RMGNews) A social media threat towards a high school in Woodland Hills sent the student body into a panic, eliciting a massive police presence and causing hundreds of parents to rush to the school on Mar. 12, 2024. (RMGNews) A social media threat towards a high school in Woodland Hills sent the student body into a panic, eliciting a massive police presence and causing hundreds of parents to rush to the school on Mar. 12, 2024. (RMGNews) Los Angeles School Police Department officers will be providing more support and extra patrols in and around the Taft High School campus. Extra support staff will also be provided to ensure the safety of the school community, school police said. Lawmaker wants to reintroduce this apex predator in California Taft High School officials first learned of the social media post that raised concerns about the safety of the campus early Tuesday morning. Hundreds of parents rushed to the school to pick up their children as students hopped over fences and scaled walls to get off campus and to safety out of an abundance of caution. The account that posted the threat was called @taftcaughtslippin and included a post that alleged a school shooting was going to take place during fourth period. The account that posted the threat was called @taftcaughtslippin and included a post that showed a gun on someones lap. The threat which, according to one student, was posted on an Instagram account called @taftcaughtslippin contained a post that alleged a school shooting was going to take place during fourth period on Tuesday. Another post showed a gun on someones lap. The school district reminds parents and students that they should report all behavior or statements that raise concerns to our staff or local authorities by calling the Los Angeles School Police Departments communication center at 213-625-6631. Nancy Fontan contributed to this report. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) An arrest has been made in connection to a fatal shooting near UB South on New Years Day, Buffalo police said Tuesday. 21-year-old Terrance Johnson is accused of shooting and 18-year-old Rashaad Brown in the head at the intersection of Main Street and Merrimac Street around 3:30 a.m. on New Years Day. Brown later died at ECMC. Johnson was arrested on Tuesday. He is charged with second-degree murder. Latest Local News Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo. WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) Ascension Via Christi St. Francis got an interactive coloring wall for its pediatric unit. Via Christi Associates, Amy Gunderson (left) and Hannah McKibben (right) are seen using the coloring wall. (Courtesy: Ascension Via Christi) The hospital says the wall will provide a positive distraction for children and adults during their visit. Designed for both children and adults, Dimensional Innovations Interactive Coloring Wall employs a hygienic, multi-user, touchless gesture-tracking technology, said Ascension Via Christi. It allows multiple users to simultaneously engage in coloring by simply moving their hands across the scene, transforming the black and white outlines into a vibrant display of color. The St. Francis pediatric unit was able to try the wall for themselves. SpaceXs Dragon Endurance passes over Kansas as it reenters Earths atmosphere This interactive wall has transformed our waiting area into a vibrant and engaging space, making our young patients visits more enjoyable, says Pediatric Nursing Manager Amy Gunderson. The wall was made possible by a donation from Spirit of the Children. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSN-TV. ASHEVILLE - As Asheville's metro faces some of the highest fair market rent in the Southeast, the area also faces a several thousand-unit housing shortage a problem Buncombe County is trying to solve, whether it be through short-term rental regulations or encouraging housing developments, county officials are looking to solve it. One of their solutions is Ferry Road, a sprawling 137-acre project that would bring over half of its projected 645 units to market at affordable rates. The project was unanimously approved during the March 6 Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, where commissioners heard the projects goals to bring both affordable housing, conservation and, potentially, a childcare facility or clinic to the development site. After Planning and Zoning, its next stop will be a March 26 City Council meeting. Sarah Odio, an associate director with the Development Finance Initiative at the UNC Chapel Hill School of Government, presented on the project during the meeting, noting the county is currently estimated to commit $34 million to see the project to the end. Buncombe County Director of Economic Development Tim Love said the monetary commitment reflects how housing affordability often has to be subsidized, noting "it's not rocket science." "Part of it is you subsidize what the market won't deliver," Love said of affordable housing. "And when we talk about commission and what they're doing, we can talk about conditions and rezoning and how we can try to encourage it by that." Buncombe County Director of Economic Development and Governmental Relations, Timothy Love. "But the real test is when a local government body agrees to put dollars down on the table to subsidize those rents to drive a need in our community." The project is estimated to cost a total of $210 million, for which Love told the Citizen Times that he "wouldn't be surprised" if the development saw the collaboration between multiple developers by the end of the project. The project site is located near Bent Creek and is adjacent to the French Broad River. The parcel is within the city of Asheville, meaning city committees and City Council will hear on the project. This embedded content is not available in your region. How many units? Ferry Road is set to include a wide range of affordable apartment and homeownership opportunities, where a total unit count has been projected to be around 645-units, though the range for the unit counts does go higher. If built to the proposed maximum, 935 units could come the property. The lower estimate is more realistic, those who've worked on the project say. "We took a very low parking ratio and took a look at unit sizes and crunched it all out and we came out on the lower end of that range," said Bob Begle, an architect and designer with Lord Aeck Sargent. Begle noted the upper range of units is included if "somebody can find a way to do it a little denser," which could provide more affordability on the site. Here is the current proposed range of unit counts for the development: Multifamily North: 190-350 units. Mixed-use Core: 0-85 units. Multifamily West: 260-360 units. Mixed Residential: 100-140 units. Transit as part of the 'affordability picture' Vicki Meath, CEO of Just Economics of Western North Carolina, made a public comment on Ferry Road during the meeting, where she said the organization supports the Ferry Road proposal but brought up some suggestions when it came to including "transit as a part of the larger affordability picture." Just Economics is part of the Asheville Regional Transit Coalition, alongside Hi-Wire Brewing, Children First, MountainTrue and the Sierra Club of Western North Carolina. Currently, the county uses Mountain Mobility a county-based public transit system but also coordinates with the Asheville Rides Transit fleet to bring stops to different areas around the development. A conceptual rendering of central greenspace to be developed at Ferry Road in West Asheville. Meath called for collaboration between the county and city to bring more transportation options to the development. "Collaboration does not just mean asking the city to extend their route," Meath said of adding an ART stop nearby the development. "It means partnering on both planning and funding, because the city system is a complex scenario." From the early January city proposal to the Planning and Zoning Commission, one distinct change was made to the project's road layout, where a connecting road was proposed from the multi-family apartments in a northern district to the "mixed-use core" connected to the rest of the development. During the meeting, Love said the change adds to the current transportation commitments made by the county. Other improvements include a new access road off of Brevard Road and improvements to Ferry Road and Dry Ferry Road. Buncombe County Planning Director Nathan Pennington said the county would have "no problem" if conditions to explore transit options were included in the proposal. He also expressed a desire for the routes to be efficient if the ART system expands to include the development. "What you want to avoid in mass transit are just 'one offs,'" Pennington said. "You want to pick up as many stops as possible, and as many people along the way." Commissioners voted to include a condition that the county would explore further transit options for the development. More than just affordable housing: Conservation Out of the proposals in the project, Love told the Citizen Times that the conservation element of the project is "one of the strongest points." While the project does emphasize affordable housing, a majority of the site is being placed under conservation easements, where residents will be able to travel through the community using greenways and trails. A map of the proposed conservation area for Ferry Road. The area has a "broad diversity of wildlife that will be protected through conservation," according to development documents. Salamanders and "evidence of river otters" have been spotted in the area. The project's roadways and proposed parking has seen changes as the result of the conservation model, where the county has intentionally proposed a technical modification to city plans, which will get rid of minimum parking requirements for the project. In the homeownership district, other measures have been taken to include low density roads that allow their "footprint to be a little more skinny," protecting conservation easements, Love told the Citizen Times. Want to hear more about affordable housing projects? Give your input. Ferry Road is not the only county-backed affordable housing project. County-owned properties at 50 and 52 Coxe Avenue in downtown Asheville have also seen affordable housing pitches in the past year, with a recent presentation outlining two plans the county may move forward with. The plans reflect what will be shared with potential development partners on the project. The county is currently looking for feedback on the plans. You can learn more about the project at https://engage.buncombecounty.org/coxeaveaffordablehousingsurvey. More: Answer Man: Asheville faces highest rent in NC; How much funding for affordable housing? More: Downtown Asheville 6-story hotel OK'd; Nearby investment group preserves historic churches Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville 645-unit affordable housing project to see City Council vote ASHEVILLE - The Florida-based hospitality brand that runs and owns the Grand Bohemian Asheville in Biltmore Village has clinched approval for another hotel just across the street. Asheville City Council on March 12 approved a 99-room hotel, restaurant and retail space at 10 Kitchin Place in a 4-2 vote, with council members Sage Turner and Kim Roney voting against. The project was brought before the board by The Kessler Collection, which owns 11 hotels and resorts, along with other boutique and high-end developments, including a mansion, several art galleries and a commercial business district in Savannah, Georgia. Asheville City Council on March 12 approved a 99-room hotel, restaurant and retail space at 10 Kitchin Place in a 4-2 vote, with council members Sage Turner and Kim Roney voting against. Vice Mayor Sandra Kilgore was not in attendance at the meeting. The new hotel falls within the Biltmore Village Historic District overlay, a few hundred feet from the entrance to Biltmore Estate off Hendersonville Road in South Asheville. Architect Christian Sottile, representing the applicant at the March 12 meeting, said the project "map(s) to the architectural history of Biltmore Village," representing a "restoration" of the village on a site that currently houses a former ATM and vacant bank building in a low 1960s-era structure. The project received Historic Resource Commission approval Sept. 13. The Kessler Hotel is proposed to be at 10 Kitchin Way in Biltmore Village, as seen here Oct. 31, 2023. Project details The .77-acre, trapezoidal site is boxed by Angle Street, Kitchin Place, Hendersonville Road and Boston Way. It sits at the core of Biltmore Village, adjacent to the historic All Souls Cathedral, whose dean, Sarah Hurlbert, voiced support of the project at a Feb. 7 Planning and Zoning Commission. Hurlbert also spoke in favor at the March 12 City Council meeting. The proposed building, according to the staff report, will have a gross floor area of 105,000 square feet, 4,250 square feet of which will be retail and amenity space, to include a ballroom, spa, gallery, bar and restaurant. The property's existing structures will be demolished for the construction of the new four-story building. The proposal is architecturally consistent with the historical designs of the area, according to the findings of the Historic Resources Commission, from the building's use of brick masonry and pebbledash, to its terracotta roof, half-timbering, brick inlays and pressed copper ornaments. A rendering of the new Kessler hotel from the vantage on Hendersonville Road. A looped drive and pathways along Kitchin Place will serve as guest drop off and primary pedestrian access. There will be 186 parking spaces for hotel guests, employees and restaurant goers in two below-grade parking levels. Among the project's conditions is a promise to work in "good faith" with the city and the N.C. Department of Transportation for installation of a signalized pedestrian crosswalk at the intersection of Hendersonville Road and Boston Way, connecting the project to transit route stops. It also proposed the creation of a new pocket park across from All Souls Cathedral, allowing for preservation of a "significant" Oriental spruce tree, and the installation of a below-ground retention system for stormwater, intended to alleviate flooding impacts. Both Turner and Roney voiced support for assurances of employee parking as part of the project. Roney noted that the two bus routes serving this South Asheville neighborhood only run every 90 minutes, making it difficult for area employees to rely on it for transportation. Asheville City Council on March 12 approved a 99-room hotel, restaurant and retail space at 10 Kitchin Place in a 4-2 vote, with council members Sage Turner and Kim Roney, center, voting against. "Land use decisions are one of the most important roles that council has. And so when we're having conditional zoning conversations ... it falls on us to connect land use with the goals in our Living Asheville Comprehensive Plan, and it is my assessment that this use will not help us to meet those goals," Roney said of her vote against the project. Public benefits? While the project falls in the "all hotels" Hotel Overlay district, it requires a Level III conditional zoning approval, in part because of its size, which tops the 100,000-square-feet cutoff for Level II projects, further complicated by the contradicting elements of the hotel and historic district overlays, both at play for the property. Because it is a Level III approval, which goes to the planning board and City Council, rather than a lower level planning application, the project is not required to provide certain "public benefits." The Public Benefits table was created after the 2019 hotel moratorium, and requires hotels developers seeking Level I or Level II approval to provide cash toward affordable housing or reparations funds or provide residential units to meet a required standard amount of Public Benefit points. Despite this, at the February Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, the developer voluntarily offered up public benefits anyway. They include a $6,000 per room contribution to the city's affordable housing or reparations fund and a $300 per room contribution to the city for public art. Asheville City Council on March 12 approved a 99-room hotel, restaurant and retail space at 10 Kitchin Place in a 4-2 vote, with council members Sage Turner, right, and Kim Roney voting against. Senior Assistant City Attorney Jannice Ashley advised in February that while the two monetary contributions, legally, should not be added as conditions of the conditional zoning request, they could be brought to council outside of the zoning process and a donation agreement could be created. In response to a question from Turner at the March meeting, City Attorney Brand Branham took a similar stance, saying the city prefers to take a "somewhat conservative approach," and his office feels it is more appropriate to provide a separate document to "memorialize" voluntary contributions, rather than including it in zoning conditions. Prior to the final vote, Turner motioned for the voluntary conditions, including those relating to public benefits, be included in the actual project conditions. The motion failed for lack of a second. More: Biltmore Village annual festival canceled for 2024: What to know More: ACS votes to close Montford North Star, consolidate with Asheville Middle in 5-2 vote Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: 99-unit Biltmore Village hotel clinches final approval from Council Police investigate the scene where Leonid Volkov, a close ally of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was attacked outside his home in Vilnius (PETRAS MALUKAS) Lithuanian intelligence services on Wednesday said that the attack on Russian opposition figure Leonid Volkov, a close ally of late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was likely "organised by Russia". The Baltic state's president said Moscow's potential involvement should not come as a surprise, before striking a note of defiance against Russian President Vladimir Putin: "No one is afraid of you here". Volkov, 43, was briefly admitted to hospital after he was repeatedly struck with a hammer outside his home in Lithuania's capital Vilnius late on Tuesday. The attack came almost a month after Navalny's death in an Arctic prison, which Volkov blamed on Putin, and days before elections that look set to extend the Kremlin chief's stay in power. Police refused to comment on what security arrangements had been made for Volkov either before or after the attack in Lithuania, which hosts many Russian and Belarusian opposition activists. The NATO and EU member has been a staunch Ukraine supporter since Russia invaded its neighbour more than two years ago. - 'We should not be surprised' - In a statement, the state security department said that the assault was "likely" an operation "organised and implemented by Russia, the purpose of which was to stop the implementation of Russian opposition projects". No suspects have been identified but Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said the country's services were looking into the attack and would hopefully find the perpetrators. Speaking to Lithuanian reporters from Paris, he said there had been a recent uptick in incidents involving Soviet monuments and the desecration of the Lithuanian flag. "All of this adds up to a whole set of issues, incidents, where it is clear that such things are planned. We should not be surprised," he said. "As for Putin, I can only say one thing: no one is afraid of you here," he added. Asked by AFP to clarify the word "here", the president's office said Nauseda was referring to both Lithuania and Europe. - Black eye, bruises, fracture - Deputy chief of police Saulius Tamulevicius earlier said that investigators were looking into various theories, without elaborating. "We are taking all steps to clarify the motives and causes of the crime. Several versions are being investigated," he told LRT radio. Volkov on Telegram said that he was struck 15 times on the leg during the attack late on Tuesday evening. Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh earlier said that "someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes" before hitting him with a hammer. Volkov's wife, Anna Biryukova, on social media shared photos of her husband's injuries, which included a black eye, a red mark on his forehead and blood on his leg, which had soaked through his jeans. A governmental source told AFP that Volkov was released from the hospital early on Wednesday after "bruises on various parts of the body and a fracture of the palmar bone were identified". "More serious injuries were avoided," the source said. sau-amj/mmp/giv Over two days, Ukrainian drones attacked oil refineries in Russia, damaging 12% of oil processing capacities. Source: Bloomberg Details: On 13 March, an air attack caused a fire at one of the largest oil processing plants in Russia, the Rosneft plant of the JSC Ryazan near Moscow. The operation of a smaller Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the south of Rostov Oblast was also halted by a drone attack, which added to the damage caused by a similar incident at Lukoils Norsi refinery on 12 March. The strike on the oil refinery in Ryazan, located about 200 km away from Moscow, was launched on a facility that produces 17.1 million tonnes of oil products a year, or about 340,000 barrels per day. The Ryazan oil refinery is the main supplier of petrol for the capital regions of Russia. Later on 13 March, the operation of the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in the south of Rostov Oblast was halted after a drone attack, as reported by Vasilii Golubev, the governor of the region. The capacity of the plant is 5.6 million tonnes per year or about 112,000 barrels per day. Russias Defence Ministry stated that at night the military "intercepted" 58 drones in Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Ryazan and Leningrad oblasts in Russia. This was one of the largest attacks in the last few months. Three facilities struck with Ukrainian drones within the last two days account for 12% of Russian oil processing capacities. Background: On the night of 12-13 March, the Security Service of Ukraine attacked three oil refineries in Russia with drones: in the cities of Ryazan and Kstovo in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast and Kirishakh in Leningrad Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! KABUL, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Thirty-eight embassies and consulates in various countries are operating under the control of the Afghan caretaker government, acting Minister for Foreign Affairs Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi has said. "The revenues of the embassies and consulates of Afghanistan abroad are collected in a transparent manner," TOLO news TV channel quoted Muttaqi as saying on Tuesday. Emphasizing the importance of good relations with the world, Muttaqi asked countries to interact with the Afghan caretaker government. The Afghan caretaker government, which took power in August 2021 in the wake of withdrawal of the U.S.-led troops from Afghanistan, has reaffirmed its commitment to develop friendly relations with other countries. AUSTIN (KXAN) Austins newest hospital has welcomed its newest addition to the world. Texas Childrens Hospital North Austin said the first baby born at the hospital was delivered on Monday. A first look at Texas Childrens new hospital in northwest Austin to open in 2024 The little girl named Evie was delivered at 12:40 p.m., weighing 7 pounds, the hospital said. Evie and her mother, Ellen, are doing well and resting in the hospitals Mother Baby Unit, according to Tuesdays announcement. Evie, first baby born at Texas Childrens Hospital North Austin (Photo courtesy: Texas Childrens Hospital) Texas Childrens Hospital recently opened the facility in the Presidio neighborhood at 9835 North Lake Creek Parkway. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. By Lewis Jackson SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia is confident the U.S. will follow through with the sale of nuclear-powered submarines as part of the AUKUS deal, a minister said on Wednesday, after mooted cuts to the U.S. program sparked concerns the deliveries could be delayed or scrapped. Under the AUKUS partnership signed in 2021, the United States will sell Australia between three and five Virginia-class attack submarines from the early 2030s as a stopgap while Australia and Britain build a new SSN-AUKUS class due roughly a decade later. Fears that long-standing backlogs at U.S. shipyards and a shrinking submarine fleet could undercut willingness for the sales boiled over this week when the Biden administration cut its funding request for the Virginia class. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said Australia had total confidence in the AUKUS deal and that the U.S. was making good progress upgrading its shipyards so they could produce the Virginia class for both navies. "I see a lot of hyperbolic headlines about the death of AUKUS, I think it's the fourth time AUKUS has died in the last year," he told Reuters by phone. "We remain very confident that we'll be in a position for the Virginia class to be sold to Australia on the timeframes articulated." The U.S. navy is building an average of slightly more than one Virginia-class submarine a year, well short of the estimated 2.33 needed to grow its fleet and sell Australia boats. At a budget briefing on Monday, U.S. Under Secretary of the Navy Erik Raven said the submarine industrial base was stressed, but an $11.1 billion, five-year investment in the budget request plus a promised $3 billion from Australia as part of AUKUS would lift production to target. But by the time the sales near in 2030, the number of attack submarines in the U.S. navy is set to fall to a historic low of 46 versus a target of 66, according to Michael Shoebridge, founder of Strategic Analysis Australia and a former defence official. "It's going to get harder for a commander of the U.S. submarine force to say, no, I can get by with less submarines, I'm happy to sell three to my Australian friends," he said. "A U.S. president will come under more pressure to say, I need to look after my own security first." Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, whose plan to buy French submarines was scrapped by his successor in favour of AUKUS, said on Wednesday the U.S. was unlikely to make its own deficit worse by sending submarines to Australia. "This is really a case of us being mugged by reality," he told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. (Reporting by Lewis Jackson; Editing by Jamie Freed) Eleven years ago, Australian mining billionaire Clive Palmer traveled to New York and unveiled his legacy project: a full-scale replica of the Titanic that he pledged would sail from Shanghai to Southampton by the end of 2016. Its going ahead, no doubt about that, Palmer insisted. Most things that I say I do, I do. In this case, not so much. The project was sidelined in 2015 due to reported financial issues; in 2018, Palmer revived the project, but the second attempt fizzled out, too. This week, Palmer announced his third bid to build the ship, and he projected total confidence. Speaking at the Sydney Opera House, he dismissed questions about his credibility as bullshit, according to The Guardian. Its a lot more fun to do the Titanic than it is to sit at home and count my money, he added. All you need to be happy, Ive found in my life, is to have someone that loves you, somewhere to sleep at night, and enough for a good meal. Anti-Vax Aussie Billionaire Is a Wannabe Trump on Steroids Palmer has previously expressed excitement about joining the ship on its voyage, declaring at his 2013 press conference that he intended to ride in third-class, where passengers hosted freewheeling, raucous parties, as depicted in James Camerons 1997 film. I'll enjoy it. I'll be looking forward to banging the drum and doing the fiddle, and all those sorts of things that Leonardo did in the movie, he said. Palmer conceded this week that he still has not finalized the logistics, including which shipyard will construct the boat. He said he expected the project to begin in 2025, and that it would sail to New York two years later. Palmer, worth an estimated $4.2 billion, according to Forbes, said the project might cost well above $500 million. He shrugged off those numbers, telling journalists he has enough money to build the Titanic 10 times over. Palmer is known for making boldand at times unsubstantiatedstatements. He sparked backlash in Australia at the height of the pandemic for stirring doubts about the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, including by paying for full-page newspaper ads and distributing flyers. It made me really angry, to be honest, Member of Parliament Patrick Gorman told The Daily Beast at the time, because Clive Palmer is someone who has just tried to insert his way into national debates for his own business interests or because he has vendettas against various people. Palmer has spent heavily to influence Australian politics. His United Australia Party spent more than both of the countrys major parties in the run-up to the 2022 elections; virtually all of UAPs donations came from his company. In addition, the billionaire has warred directly with the Australian government and regional officials. He is suing the government for $200 billion over a longstanding mining disagreement, and in 2022, he and the former Premier of Western Australia were forced to pay each other damages over a defamation dispute. The question with the Titanic, as with many of Palmers other declarations, is whether he can be taken at his word. Hes got this sort of ridiculousness about him as well, a bit like Boris Johnson, Benjamin Reilly, then a professor at the University of Western Australia, told The Daily Beast in 2022. You never know if anything that hes actually doing or saying is serious. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. China imposed tariffs on key Australian exports -- such as wine -- in 2020 (GREG WOOD) The Australian wine industry welcomed news on Wednesday that China could begin lifting punitive tariffs within weeks, raising hopes that the country's red wine glut will soon ease. China imposed tariffs on key Australian exports such as wine, barley and beef in 2020, after Canberra legislated against overseas influence, barred Huawei from 5G contracts and called for a probe into the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic. But trade restrictions have tapered since Australia's centre-left government won the election in 2022 and adopted a less confrontational approach. Melbourne-based Treasury Wine Estates said on Wednesday that it had been advised by Chinese and Australian authorities of Beijing's "interim draft determination" to remove the tariffs following a five-month review. China's Ministry of Commerce is expected to make a final decision "in the coming weeks", according to the global wine giant, which owns the Penfold label. Tariffs and barriers have already tumbled for commodities, including Australian coal, timber and barley. If wine tariffs are removed, only Australian rock lobster, hay and beef from some abattoirs will be subject to Chinese trade restrictions. Beijing's foreign ministry declined to confirm if the tariffs would be lifted, but said it was "willing to continue to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with Australia based on the principles of mutual respect". "China and Australia have gone through dialogue and consultation to properly resolve each other's concerns, jointly promoting momentum for improving and developing bilateral ties," ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing. Treasury Wine Estates chief executive Tim Ford said he was hopeful. "This is subject to change, however we're optimistic that the final determination will be a positive outcome for the Australian wine industry," he said. - Too much red wine - Before the trade restrictions were imposed, China was the largest destination for Australian bottled wine, accounting for 33 percent of export revenue in 2020, data from the Australian government shows. The tariffs added up to 200 percent to the cost of Australian wine imported into China, and effectively halted an industry worth $1 billion per year. Australian winemakers responded by turning to other Asian markets, including Hong Kong and Thailand. Tim Mableson, a market analyst at consultancy KPMG, said Australia now has an oversupply of red wine, which would be eased by the reopening of China's export market. But he cautioned that globally wine consumption has declined. "The assumption that the market will return to or be the same level as before should be still treated with some caution by some producers," Mableson said. "If we don't adjust levels of production, then ultimately we won't be able to address the oversupply." Industry body Grape and Wine's chief executive Lee McLean welcomed the indication of tariff relief. "We appreciate the collaborative efforts from both the Australian and Chinese governments, and industry partners, in working towards a resolution," he said. lec-oho/lb Austria had expelled two Russian diplomats over actions "incompatible with their diplomatic status," the Heute newspaper reported on March 13, citing the Austrian Foreign Ministry. The Russian officials have been declared "personae non gratae" and have to leave the country at the latest on March 19. Russia's Foreign Ministry said it was "outraged" by what it called a "purely political" decision. The move came shortly after the Falter newspaper reported on a dossier according to which 23 Russian diplomats have been engaged in intelligence activities in Austria. The document claims that the Russian embassy officials maintained contacts with local parties and politicians to foster Russian influence in the country. According to the dossier, Austria's Former Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl, who currently lives in Russia, allegedly helped Moscow gain access to information from her ministry. Russian diplomats were also said to spy on dissidents and opponents of Vladimir Putin's regime living in Austria. Vienna has denounced Russian aggression against Ukraine and provided Kyiv with economic and humanitarian aid but refused to donate lethal military assistance due to its neutrality policy. Austria also has close and long-standing economic ties with Russia. The Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International has not left Russia despite sanctions and is one of two foreign banks classified as "systemically important" by the Russian central bank. The country expelled four Russian diplomats in February 2023, after which Russia expelled four Austria diplomats in retaliation. Four other Russian diplomats had to leave Austria in April 2022. Read also: Reuters: Ukraine refuses to remove Austrian Raiffeisen bank from sponsors of war list Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Author Mitch Albom was among a group of 10 Americans rescued Tuesday from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where gangs have plunged the country into lawlessness, orchestrating prison breaks, battling police forces and shutting down international airports. Albom, a longtime columnist for the Detroit Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, communicated with the newspaper late Tuesday afternoon and confirmed that he had left the country and was is on the way home. "Well, were pretty grimy and exhausted, but after two days of coordinated efforts, a group of us from the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage, including my wife and myself, were evacuated in the middle of the night from a site in Haiti (not our orphanage)," Albom said in a statement Tuesday night. The rescue was arranged, in part, by Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., who connected with Albom via phone over the weekend after one of McClain's constituents called her "extremely distraught" about the fact that Albom and nine other Americans eight from Detroit were stranded in Haiti. "It was a helicopter effort and was pretty crazy. I want to thank Cory Mills and Lisa McClain, who were instrumental in making this happen as an independent effort. We were lucky to get out," Albom said. Free Press columnist Mitch Albom with Knox, 8, an orphan from the Have Faith Haiti mission. Albom had gone to Haiti earlier this month to visit the Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage he has run after a devastating 2010 earthquake ravaged the country's infrastructure and killed at least 100,000. Early in Albom's visit, the Haitian government declared a state of emergency after two mass prison breaks in a country that already has large-scale safety and security problems. On Tuesday morning, Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced plans to resign while stranded in Puerto Rico. Over the weekend, the U.S. military airlifted some nonessential personnel from the American Embassy. Haiti has been declared a Level 4: Do Not Travel destination by the U.S. State Department since before the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise on 2021. The U.S. Embassy in Haiti repeated that warning on Sunday, urging Americans not to travel there. "Many other Americans, Canadians and others are still stuck in Haiti in an extremely volatile situation and they need help getting out and it seems very little is coming from our governments," Albom said in the statement. "Our personal biggest concern is our 60 children and 40 staff at the Have Faith Haiti Orphanage who have to endure their countrys violence and danger everyday with no option to leave. We truly implore our U.S. leaders to be more active in helping to save their country." 'We couldn't get any answers' Albom was sheltering in place at the orphanage for more than a week as the Haitian capital devolved into chaos. All the while, McClain and her staff made calls. We tried to use the government channels. ... We tried to go through the proper channels, she said. No one was calling us back. We couldnt get any answers. Republican Lisa McClain is running for Michigan's 10th Congressional District Finally, frustrated and knowing the desperation Albom and his party were feeling as the situation deteriorated she contacted Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., an Army veteran who served with the 82nd Airborne Command and who has played a role in getting Americans out of other countries in dangerous situations, including Afghanistan and Israel, where he helped get Michigan Rep Bill Huizengas son out last year. Mills began making arrangements and coordinating an evacuation strategy. Because of the circumstances, she said, the plan changed several times. We were not going to leave them there, she said. We were going to get them out at any cost. They found a helicopter, but it needed maintenance work first. There was also a question about where to land to pick them up: Albom didnt want it near the orphanage for fear it could be compromised. The landing spot was kept secret. Because there were so many of them, the passengers were also told they could bring only the clothes on their back. Finally, she said, the helicopter landed about 2:30 a.m. Monday, with night vision equipment for landing and takeoff, and flew Albom and the rest to the Dominican Republic. Congressman Cory Mills from Florida's 7th Congressional District speaks at Turning Point USA 2023 America Fest in the Phoenix Convention Center on Dec. 17, 2023, in Phoenix. 'Please dont forget about them' On Tuesday, McClain, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, peppered Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, with questions about the upheaval in Haiti and the Biden administrations handling of the violence there. I asked, 'Were you notified of this potential uprising in Haiti? No. We had no idea it was going to happen, McClain said. Which is kind of odd. I asked, 'Do you have a plan to get Americans out?' and she said flat-out, No. Haiti is burning and you do you not have a plan? Thats my frustration thats your job to protect Americans abroad. As for her role in helping to get Albom and the rest out, McClain said she was just glad it worked out. It does kind of make you feel good, Ill be honest with you, she said. Albom said he remains committed to the orphanage's mission and intends to reunite with the children and staff there when it's safe to do so. "Since I was the one who asked these wonderful eight other volunteers to come help at our orphanage, I felt it my obligation to get them out safely," he said. "But my wifes and my heart aches for the kids still there. Saying goodbye to them this time was horribly difficult. "We pray for help in making their country safe for them again and we will be back with them the moment it is possible. Our deepest thanks to everyone who sent messages and prayers for us. We were luckier than a lot of others. Please dont forget about them." This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mitch Albom among small group from his orphanage rescued from Haiti In this Oct. 5, 2018 file photo, Author Mitch Albom is interviewed in Detroit in this Oct. 5, 2018 file photo. Albom and nine others have been rescued by helicopter from Haiti after becoming stranded in the poverty-stricken and violence-torn Caribbean nation while visiting an orphanage. Albom says in a statement on X that the group was forced to shelter inside the Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage in Port-au-Prince. The helicopter flew into Haiti, landing about 2:30 a.m. Monday and took the group to neighboring Dominican Republic. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio_File) DETROIT (AP) Author and Detroit Free Press columnist Mitch Albom and nine others have been rescued by helicopter from Haiti after becoming stranded in the poverty-stricken and violence-torn Caribbean nation while visiting an orphanage. The group was forced to shelter inside the Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Albom said Tuesday in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter. A group of us from Have Faith Haiti, including my wife and myself, were evacuated overnight from Haiti, where we had been sheltering in place since a state of emergency was declared, he wrote. Heavily armed gangs seized power in much of the nation's capitol following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and now control about 80% of the city. Murder, rape and robberies have become commonplace as gang members battle what's left of the nation's beleaguered police and military. Earlier this month, Haitis main international airport closed after gangs tried to seize it. Thousands of inmates also were freed when gangs overran two prisons. U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, a Republican from Bruce Township in southeastern Michigan, helped arrange this week's rescue from the orphanage after being alerted by a constituent to the groups predicament. McClain contacted U.S. Rep. Cory Mills, a Florida Republican and U.S. Army veteran, who devised a plan to evacuate the group. The helicopter flew into Haiti, landing about 2:30 a.m. Monday at a location that had been kept secret. Leaving with only the clothing on their backs, the group was flown into the neighboring Dominican Republic. On Tuesday, McClain told a House Armed Services Committee about the evacuation. Last night, I coordinated with Congressman Cory Mills to rescue several Americans trapped in Port-au-Prince," she said. Several minutes earlier, McClain had asked Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, if the White House or U.S. State Department had made Richardson aware there were Americans trapped in Haiti. There possibly were discussions above my level regarding that, Richardson responded. Richardson later said she didn't have a request not just yet for support to bring any Americans out of Haiti. McClain did not say during the meeting that the rescue was at an orphanage. Albom has run the orphanage since an earthquake in 2010 devastated Port-au-Prince. I had a responsibility to bring home 8 wonderful volunteers who were working with us, Albom said in his statement. But my wifes and my hearts ache for our kids still there. Saying goodbye to them this time was horribly difficult. We pray for help in making their country safe for them again and we will be back with them the moment it is possible. We were luckier than a lot of others. Please dont forget about them, he said. Albom told the Detroit Free Press that 60 children and 40 staff members remain at the orphanage. Haitis Prime Minister Ariel Henry on Tuesday announced he will resign, bowing to international pressure to save his homeland. Gang leaders had demanded that Henry step down and that elections be held. On Sunday, the U.S. military said it had flown in forces to beef up security at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti and allow nonessential personnel to leave. The neighborhood around the embassy in Port-au-Prince has been largely controlled by gangs. The U.S. State Department has issued a Level 4 Do Not Travel advisory for Haiti. DETROIT (AP) Author and Detroit Free Press columnist Mitch Albom and nine others have been rescued by helicopter from Haiti after becoming stranded in the poverty-stricken and violence-torn Caribbean nation while visiting an orphanage. The group was forced to shelter inside the Have Faith Haiti Mission & Orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Albom said Tuesday in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter. A group of us from Have Faith Haiti, including my wife and myself, were evacuated overnight from Haiti, where we had been sheltering in place since a state of emergency was declared, he wrote. Couple collects donations for Haitians amid political unrest Heavily armed gangs seized power in much of the nations capitol following the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and now control about 80% of the city. Murder, rape and robberies have become commonplace as gang members battle whats left of the nations beleaguered police and military. Earlier this month, Haitis main international airport closed after gangs tried to seize it. Thousands of inmates also were freed when gangs overran two prisons. Armed members of the G9 and Family gang stand guard at their roadblock in the Delmas 6 neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, March 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph, File) U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, a Republican from Bruce Township in southeastern Michigan, helped arrange this weeks rescue from the orphanage after being alerted by a constituent to the groups predicament. McClain contacted U.S. Rep. Cory Mills, a Florida Republican and U.S. Army veteran, who devised a plan to evacuate the group. The helicopter flew into Haiti, landing about 2:30 a.m. Monday at a location that had been kept secret. Leaving with only the clothing on their backs, the group was flown into the neighboring Dominican Republic. On Tuesday, McClain told a House Armed Services Committee about the evacuation. Last night, I coordinated with Congressman Cory Mills to rescue several Americans trapped in Port-au-Prince, she said. Hart-area family kidnapped in Haiti welcomed home Several minutes earlier, McClain had asked Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, if the White House or U.S. State Department had made Richardson aware there were Americans trapped in Haiti. There possibly were discussions above my level regarding that, Richardson responded. Richardson later said she didnt have a request not just yet for support to bring any Americans out of Haiti. McClain did not say during the meeting that the rescue was at an orphanage. Albom has run the orphanage since an earthquake in 2010 devastated Port-au-Prince. I had a responsibility to bring home 8 wonderful volunteers who were working with us, Albom said in his statement. But my wifes and my hearts ache for our kids still there. Saying goodbye to them this time was horribly difficult. We pray for help in making their country safe for them again and we will be back with them the moment it is possible. We were luckier than a lot of others. Please dont forget about them, he said. Albom told the Detroit Free Press that 60 children and 40 staff members remain at the orphanage. Haitis Prime Minister Ariel Henry on Tuesday announced he will resign, bowing to international pressure to save his homeland. Gang leaders had demanded that Henry step down and that elections be held. On Sunday, the U.S. military said it had flown in forces to beef up security at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti and allow nonessential personnel to leave. The neighborhood around the embassy in Port-au-Prince has been largely controlled by gangs. The U.S. State Department has issued a Level 4 Do Not Travel advisory for Haiti. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) The cause of death for 39-year-old Allisha Watts, the Moore County woman who went missing last summer and whose body was eventually found in Montgomery County, is still unknown. In Watts autopsy report, released by the North Carolina Chief Medical Examiners office on Wednesday, lists her cause of death as undetermined. Given the scene findings, autopsy findings, and toxicological findings, as well as the impossibility of ruling out other competing causes of death because of skeletonization, the cause and manner of death in this case are best left as undetermined, the report summary says. PREVIOUSLY: Remains of Allisha Watts found, boyfriend charged with murder The report details how Watts severely decomposed body made it hard to determine how Watts died. Her remains were identified through dental records, the autopsy said. Watts, who lived in Southern Pines, was last seen alive on July 16 in Charlotte. Her family reported her missing on July 19, a day after her vehicle was found abandoned in Anson County with an unresponsive man inside. That man was later determined to be Watts boyfriend, James Dunmore. Watts remains were found in a forest near Adams Circle in Candor in Montgomery County on Aug. 24, according to the autopsy report. Dunmore was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the case. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to CBS17.com. After the first day of contract negotiations between the city and the union representing Austin police officers, one thing remains clear: Neither party seems willing to budge on issues related to implementing the voter-approved police oversight ordinance. The Austin Police Oversight Act, formerly known as Proposition A, was overwhelmingly approved by voters last May to increase police oversight in the city. The Austin Police Association held steadfast on Wednesday that it was not our objective to be in compliance with Prop A, lead negotiator Ron DeLord said. The citys lead negotiator, Lowell Denton, essentially said a contract would not be ratified unless it was in accordance with the police oversight ordinance. A major point of contention on both sides has been the use of what's called a "G-file." This is a secret personnel file that some police and fire departments keep in Texas under state law. The Austin Police Oversight Act calls for doing away with this file, but the union says it would be against state law for the city to force the Austin Police Department to do so. The city of Austin's lead negotiator, Lowell Denton, speaks during contract negotiations with the police union Wednesday. For the first time in more than a year, the Austin Police Association and the city have restarted contract talks. Austin Police Association President Michael Bullock has previously told the American-Statesman he's concerned that doing away with the file would allow unfounded complaints against officers to be made public and could ultimately harm members. The city said that a contract between the two cannot include a G-file. Additionally, Equity Action, the organization that got the Austin Police Oversight Act on the ballot last year, filed a lawsuit in December stating that the city has not moved fast enough to implement the ordinance. The G-file was one of the issues cited in the lawsuit. A hearing is set for April 9 that will likely determine the future of the G-file and its use in Austin. More: Lawsuit alleges Austin needs to do more to implement Prop A, police oversight referendum While the conversations became tense and made it seem like bargaining could stall between the two sides, Bullock said after negotiations ended that he remained optimistic that theres a path forward to a contract. Getting back to the table hasnt been an easy process, though. Last year, Mayor Kirk Watson and the City Council rejected a long-term contract that had been agreed upon by the union and then-City Manager Spencer Cronk. The reason given was that voters should be allowed the opportunity to decide whether they wanted to increase police oversight. More: No contract puts Austin police at 'disadvantage' in recruiting efforts as vacancies persist But unlike previous times, the city will no longer make drafts of the contract available to the public after the police union asked and the city agreed to these terms. Versions of the contract language will no longer be put up on a screen during the negotiations. On Wednesday, both sides read from articles already shared with each other. The Austin Police Association's lead negotiator, Ron DeLord, speaks during contract negotiations with the city Wednesday. A long-term contract is viewed as key to resolving the Austin Police Department's staffing crisis. Bullock said he does not believe this affects the transparency of the process. He noted that state law does not require them to make the drafts available. Denton said making this change was not the citys preference and that city leaders would ask the union to reconsider making the draft available once theyve "set the tone of bargaining." In a statement to the Statesman, interim Assistant City Manager Bruce Mills said the contract "will be available to the public prior to any council action." "There are too many unknown factors to definitively say at this time how far in advance but it will be as much as is reasonable and practical," Mills said in the statement. This stance by the city seems to differ from what was said in the city's Monday news release, which said that state law would only allow it to be made public "after the agreement is ratified by the City Council." Additionally, previous bargaining sessions prohibited the union from speaking with City Council members and other elected officials. But this year, the union asked that it be allowed, and the city agreed to those terms. A key issue in the contract negotiations between the Austin Police Association and the city of Austin is whether the police contract will comply with the Austin Police Oversight Act approved by voters last year. Bullock said this was done since the previous two contracts one in 2017 and the other last year were shot down by council members. The goal now is to ensure there are no disagreements once the city and union come to an agreement on a possible contract. More: Will the Austin police union and city reach a long-term contract this year? What we know. Ultimately, a contract is seen as key by both city leaders and Bullock to helping with retention and recruitment efforts of officers at a time when the Police Department continues to face a staffing crisis with over 340 officer vacancies. A lot of this is going to be us trying to work together to get to the solution that we think is possible," Bullock said. "We may differ on how that path comes about, but I do believe there's a way that this can all be accomplished." Either way, for advocates such as Kathy Mitchell, who was in attendance Wednesday and has been at the past few bargaining sessions, the changes reflect a concern about whether the contract will comply with the Austin Police Oversight Act. Mitchell, a policy adviser for Equity Action, told the Statesman that while the city said it would ensure the contract complies with the ordinance, shes concerned that negotiations could change that. Both sides have laid out their starting position, Mitchell said. And a negotiation is a move to the center, which means that every step on the city side is a move back or away or towards the (Austin Police Association) position. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin police union, city differ on oversight at contract negotiations TEHRAN, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned that Israel's continued killing of Palestinians and siege of Gaza had sounded the alarm about an "unprecedented humanitarian disaster" of the century, according to a statement released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday. He made the remarks in a letter addressed to United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Hissein Brahim Taha, UN Security Council President Yamazaki Kazuyuki as well as foreign ministers of Muslim and other countries, according to the statement. "With the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan and under the present circumstances where we are witnessing the UN Security Council's continued inability to stop the war against the Gaza Strip and the West Bank due to the completely conspicuous and deliberate obstruction by the U.S., which blocks any effective measure by the council through the extreme use of its veto power, it is absolutely necessary that the international community find practical ways and take serious measures to support the Palestinian people, immediately stop the military attacks against the Gaza Strip and put an end to the present dire situation," said the foreign minister. He added that Israel's continued attacks in the Gaza Strip, including its southernmost city of Rafah, and its "war crimes" in the West Bank, coupled with its obstruction of humanitarian aid and food deliveries to the coastal enclave, had sounded the alarm for the occurrence of the "unprecedented humanitarian disaster of the present century." Amir-Abdollahian said Iran strongly condemned Israel's actions in separating the northern and southern parts of the Gaza Strip, starving the Palestinian people, forcefully displacing them from north of Gaza, planning to attack Rafah, obstructing people from returning to their houses in Gaza, and denying the UN rescue and relief institutions' access to all citizens in the war-torn region. The Iranian foreign minister also highlighted the necessity to take effective measures to prevent Israel from carrying out any "potential aggressive action" against Palestinian worshipers in Jerusalem during Ramadan. As of Tuesday, the Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has climbed to 31,184, with 72,889 more injured, according to Gaza's health ministry. If you wanted to bottle the scent of childhood, your first port of call would surely be the puff of sugar that hits you square in the face when you uncrumple a paper bag filled with boiled sweets. Its that hit of buttery toffee that takes you back (or sharp sherbet, or aniseed, or cola, depending on your preference). For the past 20 years, if you were to stroll through the market town of Saxmundham in Suffolk on a Wednesday morning, you could treat yourself to a dose of nostalgia. Kevs Pick n Mix has long provided people here with little luxuries to perk up their day all you had to do was fish a pound from your purse and you could snaffle a fistful of knobbly blue spogs into your pocket to take home. One customer has 5 of toffees off me every week, says Kevin Hilliard. Customers like that keep me going. Thats why Ive been loyal to the place. From next month, if you want a few rhubarb and custards in Saxmundham, youll have to go elsewhere. At the end of March, Hilliard will be forced to pack up and find a new spot to sell his old fashioned sweets. The council has, rather unceremoniously, served him his notice. Why? Because a trestle table laden with boxes of humbugs just doesnt fit with their vision for a smart little farmers market. Hilliard has lived in Suffolk all his life. He has four daughters and seven grandchildren. At 68, he was looking forward to slowing down after spending over 20 years on a market stall and more still as a lorry driver. He was hoping to keep going for a couple further summers before handing the business over to his youngest daughter. Now, he has found himself the victim of a rebranding. The council wants to give a boost to its Wednesday market, which has a lower footfall compared to its Saturday one. Theyre renaming it Fresh Fare at Fromus Square and introducing a greater focus on healthy produce. Out goes the sweet stall, then, and with it a friendly face who many look forward to visiting every week. I think its wrong, says Michael Light, 63, a local resident who comes by every week on his dog walk to see about a bag of liquorice whirls and another of torpedoes. I dont believe a council whether it be this council or another one can dictate what people can and cant buy. Let people make their own choice. At the end of the day, you cant buy sweets because its not healthy or fresh but you can buy cakes? The stall next to Hilliards, he points out, sells beautiful looking homemade cakes. More to the point, he says, you can go into Tesco and get pick n mix. Understandably, he would rather give the money for his weekly treat to Hilliard than to Tesco. Michael Light is a regular at the stall - John Lawrence Hilliard was served notice two weeks ago. He was manning the stall after a week off (he was on grandpa duty, picking up his brand new grandson from hospital) when a man from the council handed him a letter. He gave me a letter first off about what theyre planning to do with the market and when that was all decided. Then after Id read that one he gave me the other one which was my termination letter. The letter informed Hilliard he would have to vacate his spot by March 27. A month, that was, he says. He isnt prone to hyperbole but admits he was a bit shocked when he opened the letter. It just said we dont think we can support a pick n mix stall on the market anymore with the way we want to take the market forward, and youve got a month to terminate your pitch. He didnt think it worth fighting the councils decision, though he did feel it was a shoddy way to treat a longstanding stall holder. Ive been loyal to this for over 20 years. All through Covid. I was trying to deliver to my regular customers on Facebook. His youngest daughter, Michaela, felt differently. An online petition she created has more than 1,000 signatures; people in Saxmundham and further afield rushed to support a man who has been a regular fixture in their lives for two decades. On a Wednesday morning, two weeks before what is set to be Hilliards final day on the square, a steady flow of people are pottering around the stalls. Do you have the petition to sign? asks Eva Halliday, a regular customer who brings her nine-year-old grandson, Elliott, to buy sweets when he comes to stay. Its just horrible. My grandchildren if they come here they can spend 1. If they go to the shop they have to spend 5, which is absolutely wrong. She is incredulous at the idea of sweets being too unhealthy for a food market. Even her nine-year-old grandson knows its a case of everything in moderation. Its his treat once every couple of months when he comes for his holiday. Its a big thing for him, coming here. He buys sweets and next he goes to that stall and buys fruit. Hes nine. He knows he cant buy as much as he wants. He doesnt eat everything at once. He knows he can have five sweets a day, thats it. Regular customers like Eva Halliday, left, enjoy the alternative of coming to Kev's stall instead of supermarkets - John Lawrence Denise Hallant feels similarly. Its silly, she says, summing up in two words the whole sorry affair. Youve got a choice, havent you, whether you want sweets or not. Sharon Smith, a council clerk, said the response to Hilliards story had been genuinely unexpected. We sincerely wish that everyone who has engaged with this debate online would come out and regularly support their local market. Despite the success and support we have experienced for the monthly Saturday markets, this has not carried over to Wednesdays, which are a source of regular complaints, use valuable council resources and are not well supported by the public. We firmly believe we must act now to save our weekly market and that a focus on fresh produce will draw in more weekday shoppers. For a number of years, she said, stall fees have been waived to help traders, but footfall has been low for some time. That may be the case, but its hard to see how replacing one stall is going to change that. Today, the market, in a small square in front of Waitrose, has just three stalls other than Hilliards. One sells quiches and cakes, one sells fruit and veg, another fish. On a Saturday, the market is bigger; for the Wednesday stallholders its really just about ticking along, providing locals with a few essentials and, crucially, an alternative to the supermarket. Its easy to see why, in the midst of a rebrand, Kevs Pick n Mix has been deemed no longer fashionable. The council have told Kevin Hilliard to vacate his stall in Saxmundham, Suffolk - John Lawrence The coffee shop on the square, with its 3 cortados and 4.50 kombucha, and the homeware store with its 25 candles are of a different breed. They wouldnt look out of place in east London (and indeed any city escapees in Saxmundham must be thrilled by these newer additions) the other three stalls with their fresh produce make sense in this foodie enclave. Hilliards stall, with its functional plastic boxes and green and white striped tent is a simpler, less trendy affair. But it does the job. You just wonder if he would be turfed out if his sweets were displayed in retro glass jars or his stock featured a nice artisan fudge. You know what, years ago I went to a firm to see about having tubs [made], says Hilliard. This was 10, 15 years ago and that was going to cost me 1,500. You can go out and buy them in the shops and just one of them costs about 72. You just cant do it. He is trepidatious about starting afresh somewhere new. When you come onto a market youve got to start down there and build your trade up. Its a case of ooh, new stall there. And then another week theyll walk past and have another gander. In the third week they might come in and have a gander round. And then the fourth week they might buy something. You know what shopping habits are like. Its like everything else, its the customers choice. Choosing sweets is a private affair, according to Hilliard, who lets people take a bag and pick their own quietly. Theyre not keen on stating exactly what [theyre getting], he tells me, as I discover when I ask one regular customer what she has plumped for. Toffees, if you must know, she says, before dashing off back to her day. She might like to buy double next week. Unless the council changes its mind, she doesnt have long to stock up. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. [Source] The professor who saw his children crash his BBC interview in 2017 has celebrated the seventh anniversary of the viral moment by sharing new photos of his family on social media. Catch up: Robert Kelly, who teaches political science at Pusan National University, became known as the "BBC Dad" after the viral moment from the live BBC interview, where he offered commentary on South Korean politics. Marion, then a playful 4-year-old, barged into her father's home office, followed by her younger brother James in his baby walker. Despite the interruption, Kelly remained composed, while his wife, Jung-A Kim, frantically scooped the children out of the room. All grown up: On Sunday, Kelly took to X to share new family photos, depicting him, his wife and their children now visibly older in various heartwarming moments. The images included moments from Marion's recent birthday party and some father-son bonding during a hiking trip. Trending on NextShark: Chinese vlogger sparks outrage for using AI to resurrect Coco Lee, Godfrey Gao Another hiking picture, and some Christmas 2023 pictures pic.twitter.com/CiZVPvYoC8 Robert E Kelly (@Robert_E_Kelly) March 10, 2024 Trending on NextShark: Video: Violinist bullies street singer to take over her spot in Sydney Cartoon series: The family's viral fame led to Marion and James becoming the inspiration for an animated cartoon series. The show, titled "Mina and Jack," takes the siblings' playful personas, showcasing their adventures in fictionalized storytelling. What people are saying: Fans of the viral video celebrated with Kelly, expressing their continued fondness for the hilarious yet relatable family moment. "She is so big omg!! And still very very adorable," one X user wrote. "Beautiful family." Trending on NextShark: Blackpink becomes first K-pop girl group to surpass 1 billion Spotify streams "Beautiful family! I forgot all about your familys first appearance," another commented. "Thanks for the smiles and Im so glad your family is doing so well. Just lovely!" "What a beautiful family," another chimed in. "Probably dated a while before building something like this." Trending on NextShark: S. Korean man sentenced to 10 months in prison for shooting dog with arrow Download the NextShark App: Want to keep up to date on Asian American News? Download the NextShark App today! An employee at the M Beauty store in Commerce was assaulted last week and remains hospitalized. (Google Maps) As a group of four women attempted to leave a beauty supply store in Southeast Los Angeles County with several stolen items in tow, their heist took a turn, officials say. One of the employees at M Beauty in the City of Commerce attempted to block the doorway. That's when one of the women attacked the worker, grabbing her and violently throwing her to the ground outside the shop, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. The employee "fell to the ground headfirst causing her to lose consciousness," the L.A. County Sheriff's Department said in a statement on last week's incident. It wasn't immediately clear from the store's surveillance footage, however, when the woman lost consciousness. The video, reviewed by The Times, shows her tussling with a person who tosses her to the ground, after which she stands again before staggering and falling back to the asphalt, flat on her back. The 32-year-old employee is now fighting for her life, her family and boss said. The woman was not identified by her family, who said they were afraid for her safety but declined to elaborate. She remained unconscious for days after the March 6 incident, and suffered two heart attacks in its aftermath, family members and her boss said. "My daughter is in a delicate state," Enrique Sandoval, the employee's father, told The Times in Spanish. "She opens her eyes and moves them from side to side, but thats it. "Were devastated," he said. "To see my daughter in this situation, in this state, I almost want to go crazy, but I need to be strong to keep going. ... May God help us to get our daughter through this." Sandoval said his daughter is currently in the intensive care unit, hooked up to a machine to help her heart keep pumping. His family has started a fundraiser for her medical care, which he expects will be extensive and probably require a heart transplant. According to a report from KTLA-TV Channel 5, the woman had prior heart issues. Its very heartbreaking to see that this happened to her," said Daniel Min, who owns and runs the M Beauty store with his parents. He said she had worked at the store on Whittier Boulevard for about five years, earning the title of assistant manager. Read more: Raid finds more than $1 million in cosmetics said to be stolen from CVS, Sephora and 99 Cents Only stores Min said he did not know why she decided to try to intervene with the shoplifters last week but said that's not something that's expected of employees. I always tell them their health and safety are priority, Min said. He said his teams had been directed to tell anyone stealing that they were being recorded and would be reported to police, but not to physically step in. But he said he understood that it's hard to watch thefts continue, seemingly without consequence, over and over. Shes been working with us for a long time; even our employees get sick and tired of all these people who steal, Min said. "These people try to come in grab a bunch of stuff and run out. ... It happens everywhere, and I feel like its getting worse and worse." Sandoval said his daughter had urged the store to invest in more security, but Min said security guards also can often do little in the face of such thefts. Read more: Arrest made after woman threatens customers and staff with ax at South L.A. tire shop, police say After this incident, though, Min says he is looking to hire a security guard, to ensure other employees feel safe. "My daughter would make a comment to me that she had told the owner that they need some kind of security guard ... before something worse happened," Sandoval said. "The owners are good people, but that doesnt take away that he could have put a security guard there. Unfortunately, now were in this situation." No one has been arrested in this case, and the investigation is ongoing, according to the Sheriff's Department. The suspects drove away from the store in a white sedan, and officials asked anyone with information to contact the East Los Angeles sheriff's station detective bureau at (323) 264-4151. Sandoval remained hopeful that those involved would be held responsible. He called his daughter a hard worker both on the job and on behalf of her family. He said she had always dreamed of becoming a mother. "If someone from the community knows anything or has seen anything related to this case, please notify the sheriffs office," Sandoval said, noting that people have the option to remain anonymous. "My family would be grateful to anyone who came forward." 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. Hoosiers can become citizen scientists for the April 8 solar eclipse and help Indiana geologists collect data. The Indiana Geological and Water Survey is offering the opportunity for people to contribute on-the-ground data to an eclipse-related research project. The geologists need participants from across Indiana. Heres how to participate. 2024 Total Solar Eclipse path How to help science during the eclipse Anyone with a smartphone can participate in the IGWS citizen science program. To take part, download a free lux meter application. This will take measurements of the brightness of the light. Take measurements outside and submit the data to IGWS through its online portal, which can be found at igws.indiana.edu/eclipse. Submit the light measurement, time, date and location. Eclipse fashion: Here's which colors to wear and avoid during the April 8 solar eclipse When to submit eclipse data IGWS asks Hoosiers to collect data between March 21 and April 10. The survey asks participants to send data through the online portal as many times as they can between those dates during daylight hours. What is the data used for? IGWS will issue a post-eclipse report using the citizen science data it has collected. The geologists will then observe how the eclipse affected the water balance in Indiana. This will help IGWSs Indiana Water Balance Network with its work on long-term trends with the hydrologic cycle. The group studies temperature, humidity, solar radiation, wind speed and other factors to evaluate data and help agricultural, industrial and municipal planners. The survey will also conduct experiments studying groundwater tides during the eclipse. This will help geologists understand how the eclipse may affect underground drinking water reservoirs. Karl Schneider is an IndyStar environment reporter. You can reach him at karl.schneider@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @karlstartswithk IndyStar's environmental reporting project is made possible through the generous support of the nonprofit Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Solar eclipse viewers in Indiana can become citizen scientists (BCN) Berkeley police are asking for the publics help in finding a 76-year-old man who was last seen early Wednesday morning. Frank Hill was last seen around 1 a.m. in the 1600 block of Alcatraz Avenue and is known to travel by walking, according to police. He is described as a Black man standing about 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing 220 pounds with short black hair and brown eyes, and was wearing all dark clothing, police said. Protesters calling for Gaza ceasefire impacting SFO travelers Anyone with information about Hills whereabouts is asked to call 911 or their local law enforcement agency. Copyright 2024 Bay City News, Inc. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is leading renewed efforts to institute a 32-hour work week nationwide one that crucially does not result in a decrease in pay. Sanders, who helms the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), will introduce a bill Thursday that seeks to reduce the standard federal work week from 40 hours to 32 hours, without a reduction in compensation. Sanders justified the shift in work hours by citing productivity increases made via automation and AI. The financial gains from the major advancements in artificial intelligence, automation, and new technology must benefit the working class, not just corporate CEOs and wealthy stockholders on Wall Street, Sanders said in a statement. The 40-hour federal standard work week was established in 1940, a couple of years after the Fair Labor Standards Act was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Sen. LaPhonza Butler (D-CA) will co-sponsor Sanders legislation, saying in a statement: the Thirty-Two-Hour Workweek Act would allow hardworking Americans to spend more time with their families while protecting their wages. In the House, Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA) introduced similar legislation in 2021, though it has failed to make waves in the GOP-controlled legislative body. Takanos bill, which was reintroduced last year, would shorten the standard federal work week from 40 hours to 32 hours over a phase-in period of three years. The bill would also standardize language around overtime pay for workdays more than eight hours long. Similar legislation had been proposed in California, which would reduce the hours of the standard work week to 32 per week for companies with more than 500 employees, though it has not made its way through the state legislature. Although such legislation has yet to reach the point of a legislative vote, some trade organizations have voiced criticism of the 32-hour work week. The Society for Human Resource Management, a trade association for HR professionals, came out against the California bill in 2022, with its Chief of Staff Emily M. Dickens calling it a one-size-fits-all approach that would create a significant logistical burden for human resource professionals. Though no country has a standard 32-hour work week codified into law, many have shorter work weeks on average than the United States. France has had a 35-hour federal work week since 2000, and several Scandinavian nations, such as Denmark and Norway, also have work weeks under 40 hours. Advocates for the 32-hour work week legislation include United Auto Workers, AFL-CIO, SEIU, and several other major labor unions. It is time to reduce the stress level in our country and allow Americans to enjoy a better quality of life, Sanders said. It is time for a 32-hour workweek with no loss in pay. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone A North Carolina bar and restaurant serves pecan pie and fans cant get enough of each bite. So much so, the pie now ranks No. 1 in the state, according to results published March 5. The slices on the dessert menu at The Crunkleton in Charlotte reigned supreme after the review website Yelp said it turned its attention to businesses that had several pie-related reviews. It studied numerous metrics, including the number of ratings and comments that customers left over time, to determine the best pie to eat in each state. The resulting list of 50 pies you need to try was published ahead of Pi Day, a March 14 celebration of the mathematical constant. Some people mark the occasion with a slice of their favorite pie. No matter the time of year, people have praised the house-made pecan pie at The Crunkleton. The beloved Southern treat is served warm with salted caramel ice cream and is a fan-favorite on Yelp. One customer said the pecan pie wasnt overwhelmingly sweet and is delicately balanced with the ice cream. Another raved that the pecans were beautifully caramelized, and the sweet, buttery filling had just the right level of richness. Though The Crunkleton has a presence in Chapel Hill, the Charlotte location ranked No. 1 on the list. The establishment, on East 7th Street in the Elizabeth neighborhood, places an emphasis on cocktails and has brunch and dinner menus, according to its website. Yelp said the restaurants pecan pie was more traditional compared to other states winners, such as the savory crawfish hand pie sold in Louisiana. This barbecue joint ranks as North Carolinas best again. What makes it so special? Eight North Carolina hotels among most outstanding in the world, new rankings show LAS VEGAS (KLAS) Police are looking for the suspect who gunned down a man standing in front of a residence in a south valley neighborhood. The shooting occurred around 10:45 a.m. Tuesday in the 5700 block of Ritter Lane, near Hacienda Avenue and Jones Boulevard. The victim was transported to UMC where he was later pronounced dead. Las Vegas triple shooting leaves 2 women dead, 1 man injured; suspect on bicycle at large According to Las Vegas Metropolitan police, the suspect who is described as a Black man, was wearing dark clothing and riding a bicycle. The suspect rode towards the victim. After several shots were fired, the suspect was seen running towards his bicycle and riding away north on Steinbrenner Lane. A neighbor who has lived nearby for years told 8 News Now she walked her dog just before the shooting happened on Tuesday morning and she came back outside to the sight of police tape. Its frightening I think its happening everywhere, Terri Mccallun, who lives around the corner from the victims house, explained. There are a lot of nice neighbors in this area. We kind of watch out for each other. You just have to care about where you live. The victims identity will be released by the Clark County coroners office. Police urge anyone with information about the shooting to contact the LVMPD HOmicide Section at (702) 828-3521, or by email: homicide@lvmpd.com. Contact Crime Stoppers at (702) 385-5555, to remain anonymous. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. NICOSIA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The long-expected aid vessel heading for Gaza via the Cyprus-based corridor sent out the first consignment on Tuesday morning. It was part of a joint aid project known as "Amalthea." Though the Cyprus-proposed aid project has been endorsed by the European Union and several European countries, as well as the United States, security concerns from the Israeli side and the lack of proper jetties on the Gaza coast means it still takes time for the materials to reach the needy in the enclave. "The journey of hope and humanity has just started," Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said in a statement after a ship owned by Spanish NGO (non-governmental organization) Open Arms left the Larnaca port in southern Cyprus, towing a barge loaded with food, water and pharmaceuticals. He said more aid is expected to be shipped soon. Local media said that due to the low towing speed of the barge, the 400-km journey to Gaza is anticipated to span two days, contrasting with the usual 15-hour duration. The aid project was activated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Christodoulides on Friday in Larnaca and later endorsed in a joint statement by the European Commission, Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the United Kingdom, Greece, Italy and the Netherlands. According to Cypriot media reports, upon arrival in Gaza, the aid will be received by activists from the NGO World Central Kitchen (WCK), which will help distribute it to the local population facing dire food shortages. WCK revealed plans to create a maritime route for ongoing aid deliveries to Gaza, with an additional 500 tons of aid already prepared in Cyprus for shipment. Furthermore, WCK highlighted that the jetty constructed on the Gaza coast utilized rubble from buildings demolished during Israeli airstrikes. This jetty serves as a separate facility from a temporary pier that will be built at another location with support from the U.S. military, facilitating the docking of larger aid vessels. Von der Leyen announced the launch of the Amalthea project on Friday, however, the aid shipment, initially supported by contributions from the United Arab Emirates and Cyprus, experienced a three-day delay due to ongoing construction of a jetty at the Gaza coast, which is necessary for unloading the 150 tons of aid. On Thursday, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that he had directed the U.S. military to lead a coalition effort to construct a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza to facilitate the delivery of additional humanitarian aid. But it is expected to take up to two months for an auxiliary U.S. Navy ship departing from Virginia for Gaza to undertake the construction of the pier. A few months ago, Cyprus launched the Amalthea initiative, aiming to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza through a maritime corridor via Cyprus. However, the corridor has only been used once thus far. In January, a shipment of 87 tons of UK and Cypriot tents and medicines was delivered by a British navy ship to the Gaza people via the Egyptian city of Port Said. Cypriot media reported the delay in the Amalthea project was due to the prolonged construction of a jetty on the Gaza coast, which is necessary for docking and unloading the 150 tons of aid from the barge. According to local media, before the aid was loaded on the ship, it had been vetted by Israeli officials, as Israel expressed concern that weapons or other military equipment that Hamas could use might be included in the cargo. Israel has been launching a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. The Gaza Health Ministry reported on Monday that the Palestinian death toll has climbed to 31,112 since then. JERUSALEM The Biden administration is facing growing pressure over its policy of pumping billions into the cash-starved economy of Irans regime after its proxies were accused of killing three U.S. soldiers in Jordan in late January. It's been reported that Biden might again extend this month's sanctions waiver to the Islamic Republic of Iran that would result in as much as $10 billion funneled into Irans coffers. Richard Goldberg, a former member of then President Trumps National Security Council, told Fox News Digital, "In the four months since President Biden last renewed this waiver and gave Iran access to billions of dollars, Biden has subsidized the murder of three American soldiers, non-stop attacks on the U.S. Navy and American-owned ships in the Red Sea, and a threatening expansion of Irans nuclear program. If the president extends Irans access to these funds, Senate Republicans should mount a campaign to force a vote on legislation that would lock down the cash." Iranian regime-backed proxies murdered three American soldiers at Tower 22 in Jordan. Tehrans wholly-owned Houthi terrorist movement based in Yemen has launched fierce attacks on U.S vessels, as well as disrupted maritime trade in the Red Sea. THE SITUATION IN THE RED SEA IS DRAMATICALLY ESCALATING: GRIFFIN An Iranian military truck carries surface-to-air missiles past a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a parade on the occasion of the country's annual army day on April 18, 2018, in Tehran. Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, added, "The responsible path forward would be to revert the waiver to older language that denies the mullahs access to the money while still allowing Iraq to physically import electricity from Iran." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The U.S. State Department under both Republican and Democratic administrations has classified Irans clerical regime as the worlds worst state-sponsor of terrorism. A U.S. State Department Spokesperson told Fox News Digital they disagreed that unfreezing the sanctioned funds held by Iraq will add to Irans terrorist superstructure. The spokesperson claimed, "That characterization of Iraqs electricity waiver is wholly inaccurate. Under these waivers, no money has been permitted to enter Iran. Any notion to the contrary is false and misleading. These funds, which are held abroad in third countries, can only be used for transactions for the purchase of food, agricultural commodities, medicine, medical devices, and other non-sanctionable transactions. The money goes straight to the trusted vendor or financial institution in another country. The money never touches Iran." Last year Irans U.S.-sanctioned President Ebrahim Raisi boasted that the money will be used "wherever we need it." The Trump administration sanctioned Raisi for his role in the massacre of thousands of Iranian protesters and dissidents. TED CRUZ SLAMS BIDEN'S $6B IRAN HOSTAGE DEAL AS CRITICS CALL IT A WIN FOR TERRORISTS, PUTIN The State Department spokesperson said about Raisis defiance that "Irans political leadership can say what they want, but we are confident in the restrictions in place to ensure these funds are not used for any sanctionable purpose, or we would not have made the deal that led to the release of the U.S. citizens unjustly held by Iran in September." The spokesperson continued, "While Iran has said publicly that it can use these funds any time it wants, this is false. In coordination with the Department of the Treasury, we have established rigorous oversight mechanisms to ensure these restricted funds can only be used for humanitarian trade, meaning food, medicine, medical devices, and agricultural products from third-party vendors, as well as certain other non-sanctionable purposes with separate authorization by the U.S. government. U.S. sanctions are not intended to punish ordinary people in Iran." The State Department spokesperson did not know at this stage if Biden will waive the sanctions imposed on Irans regime. "We have nothing to share today about the possible renewal of the waiver, but the waiver has been regularly renewed since 2018, continuing a practice from the prior administration. We do not support, license, or provide comfort for transactions that could be used for malign purposes," they said. This handout photo provided by Yemeni Al-Joumhouria TV, shows the British-registered cargo ship 'Rubymar' sinking after it was targeted by Yemen's Houthi forces in international waters in the Red Sea, on March 7, 2024, in the Red Sea. According to the spokesperson, "Iraq is making progress in its path to energy self-sufficiency by increasing regional electricity interconnections, capturing and utilizing natural gas associated with oil production, and developing new domestic gas resources. Over the past two to three years, Iraqs reliance on Iranian electricity and natural gas imports has significantly decreased." When asked if a planned sanctions waiver would be as much as $10 billion or another amount, the spokesperson explained, "This is a misunderstanding of the waiver. The waiver authorizes Iraq to pay Iran for electricity imports into Irans restricted accounts held in Iraq. It does not permit some amount of money to be transmitted to Iran." Republicans have strongly objected over the years to Biden repeatedly waiving sanctions imposed on the theocratic Iranian regime. Palestinian Hamas terrorists are seen during a military show in the Bani Suheila district on July 20, 2017 in Gaza City, Gaza. The Washington Free Beacon first reported on Tuesday that four House Republican lawmakers sent a letter to the Biden administration, noting that, "Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria have launched over 160 attacks on U.S. troops since Hamasanother Iran-backed terrorist organizationmurdered over 1,200 innocent people in Israel, kidnapped over 240 people, and committed depraved sexual violence on October 7, 2023." ISRAELI PM NETANYAHU DECLARES 'WAR AFTER HAMAS TERRORISTS LAUNCH MASSIVE ATTACK: LIVE UPDATES The lawmakers also highlighted, "An Iran-backed proxy militia group conducted a lethal drone attack on a U.S. base in Jordan. The attack resulted in the deaths of three American service members and injured over forty others." According to the letter, "These attacks raise serious questions about the Biden Administrations Iran sanctions policy. Only six months ago, the Administration authorized the transfer of over $6 billion worth of Iranian funds from South Korea to a Qatari bank, as a part of a hostage deal that many viewed as tantamount to ransom. Later in October, Hamas conducted a devastating attack on Israel. In response, the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan bill to block the Iranian regimes access to those funds." The departure point of the lawmakers letter is, Biden will green light the waiver and fail to ensure that the money does not advance Iranian regime terrorism. "We presume that the Biden Administration will renew the waiver again to continue to allow for the transfer of funds from Iraq to Oman. By waiving the application of sanctions, the Administration is maintaining a financial lifeline for the Iranian regime, even as it continues to support terrorist organizations around the world." The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The letter continued, "Iran has a history of lying about humanitarian transactions. There is no reason to think that they will not try to skirt these restrictions again. Additionally, money is fungible, and the waiver and subsequent transfer will free up billions in funds that Iran can now spend on its terrorist proxies, nuclear activities, and military." The lawmakers who authored the letter are: Bill Huizenga,Mich., Brian Mast, R-Fla., Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-MO., and Joe Wilson, R-SC. Original article source: Biden admin under pressure to stop billions of dollars in sanctions relief to Iran President Biden will announce billions worth of new infrastructure investments to reconnect communities while he is in the battleground state of Wisconsin on Wednesday. The funding, $3.3 billion in total, will focus on communities in more than 40 states that were divided by transportation infrastructure decades ago, according to the White House. Biden will be in Milwaukee as part of his travel to swing states following the State of the Union address last week. The new funding will include $36 million for Milwaukees 6th Street Complete Streets Project, which aims to reconnect communities along 2.5 miles of a corridor that was cut off in the 1960s. The Department of Transportation estimates that at least 1 million people and businesses were displaced by decades of urban renewal projects, according to the White House. It outlined that highways and rail lines have disproportionately torn through Black communities, neighborhoods of color and low-income communities, which led to displaced residents, businesses and hurt economic development. The money comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and will fund other projects giving residents increased access to health care, schools, jobs and places of worship, according to the White House. And, the funds will go toward covering highways with public spaces, creating new transit routes and adding sidewalks, bridges and bike lanes. The funds include $158 million in Atlanta to reconnect Midtown and downtown; $159 million in Philadelphia to cover blocks of expressway; and $450 million in Portland, Ore., to construct a highway cover for a pedestrian and bike bridge. Additionally, $180 million will go to Syracuse, N.Y., to construct a grid that will reconnect residents, and $139 million will go to Los Angeles to create 14 miles of bus priority lanes. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Last Thursday, Joe Biden went before Congress to deliver his State of the Union speech. To quote the legendary Rowdy Roddy Piper in the cult classic movie They Live, the president had to choose between kicking a*s and chewing bubble gum and he was all out of bubble gum. Biden presented the 2024 presidential election as a stark and clear choice between protecting American democracy or imperiling it by putting Donald Trump back in the White House, a man who has promised to be a dictator on day one of his return to the White House. In perhaps Bidens strongest moment, he described Trump as an insurrectionist, a likely traitor and an enemy of American democracy and freedom. The former president's coup attempt in January 2021 and his "plots to steal the election," Biden said, had "posed the gravest threat to our democracy since the Civil War": But they failed. America stood strong and democracy prevailed. But we must be honest: The threat remains and democracy must be defended. My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth of Jan. 6. I will not do that. This is a moment to speak the truth and bury the lies. And heres the simplest truth. You cant love your country only when you win. Biden also identified the 2024 election as part of a larger global battle to defend democracy, saying that Ukraines fight against Russian invaders is central to Americas interests and to preventing a new era of Russian aggression against the West. In thrall to Donald Trump and enamored of autocratic leaders like Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orban, Republicans in Congress continue to block vital military assistance for Ukraine. "Not since President Lincoln and the Civil War have freedom and democracy been under assault here at home as they are today," Biden continued. "What makes our moment rare is that freedom and democracy are under attack, both at home and overseas, at the very same time." Without mentioning Trump's name or his obsequious relationship with Putin, Biden said that a "former American president" had "bow[ed] down to a Russian leader. Its outrageous. Its dangerous. Its unacceptable." There were other important issues in the president's speech. He pledged to restore women's reproductive rights, expand the social safety net, continue to grow the American economy, confront corporate greed and force the richest Americans to pay their fair share of taxes. Biden also attempted to shame the Trump-controlled Republicans in Congress for refusing to pass a bipartisan bill to address the border crisis. Unfortunately, they are incapable of shame. Biden concluded with bold rhetoric meant to push back against the narrative that he is too old to serve a second term, positioning himself instead as wise and battle-tested, with a hard-earned perspective on the American democratic experiment. "My lifetime has taught me to embrace freedom and democracy," he said, "a future based on core values that have defined America: honesty, decency, dignity, equality, to respect everyone, to give everyone a fair shot, to give hate no safe harbor." As I've written previously, Bidens speech amounted to one broadside after another fired at Trump and his Republican allies. Predictably, Trump took to Truth Social and tried to retaliate with weak and empty insults, even calling Biden a "psycho." By his usual standards of bluster and menace, it was a pathetic reaction. The GOP's official response came in an eerie Stepford Wife-style speech from Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama, who was clearly out of her depth. Reactions from the media were largely heartening. Jennifer Senior of the Atlantic described Bidens speech as "stunning," and it wasnt just because there was a game on quality to his remarks, the thwapping sound of a gauntlet hitting the ground. Its because he managed to do that thing he does best, which his aides long ago described to Richard Ben Cramer in "What It Takes" as the connect. Bidens primary strength has never been formulating policy or grand ideas. Its been his ability to read a room, to sweep in the energy thats already there, and to make the most impersonal settings feel deeply intimate, like one-on-one discussions. ... There was a call-and-response quality to the whole affair. In the after-chatter, the one spontaneous part of this ritual, Representative Gregory Meeks told Biden he was a Baptist preacher tonight! And Senator Raphael Warnock, an actual Baptist preacher, approvingly called it a sermon. At Esquire, Charles Pierce summoned up an unforgettable description of Bidens speech as a "First round knockout, delivered with the kind of 19th hole bonhomie that allows anyone to be in on the joke ... in vivid contrast to Speaker Mike Johnson, who was sitting behind the president and looked throughout like a man eating toads." At his website Enough Already, D. Earl Stephens admitted that Biden had moved him to tears: I cried not so much for the man, but for the moment the man was meeting. I cried because weve heard a lot of guff from a lot of people who want to remind us every other damn minute that the man is too old, and out of touch. I cried because weve heard a lot of outright crap that the mans predecessor had all the momentum and was leading one stupid, meaningless political poll after another. I cried because we know in our hearts which man really has Americas best interests at heart .... I cried because we know when it comes to preserving a womans right to choose what is best for HER, this man will be there for her, unlike his grabby, grotesque predecessor. I cried, because FINALLY everybody in the world was about to hear from our side the silent majoritys side. And let me tell you this: The man positively delivered. I have watched too many big speeches in my lifetime, and I swear to God I have never seen anybody come right out of the chute and unequivocally say exactly what needed saying. ... [T]he Man from Scranton was clearly packing a punch. Then we arrive at a more troublesome question: How did the American people at large respond to Bidens speech? An ABC News/Ipsos poll found that roughly three in 10 Americans said that Biden had "outperformed their expectations," slightly more than the number who said "he was in line with their expectations." But more than one-third of the Americans surveyed, including nearly half of those under age 30, "did not read, see, or hear about the address." Bidens State of the Union address provided a badly needed jolt of inspiration and energy to Democratic voters and other Americans who feel despair at the prospect of Trump's return to power, which has almost seemed like a fait accompli and like a potential death sentence for our ailing democracy. But for all the positive emotions generated by last Thursday night's speech, we don't know much about its potential impact on voting and overall public opinion. The president of the United States occupies a unique position in the world as head of state, chief executive and enforcement officer, and commander in chief of the most powerful military in the world. The president also serves as a symbolic leader, a cheerleader and caretaker of the national mood. But for all his power, the president is not a superhero with magical abilities to solve all the countrys problems although too many members of the public seem to view the position in those childish terms. One thing is clear: The presidency offers the ultimate bully pulpit, and the State of the Union is one of its showcase moments. Political scientists and other experts have repeatedly demonstrated that, for all its symbolic and performative power, the State of the Union address has little ability to decide a presidents political fortunes. It's basically an opportunity to claim credit, stake out a potential legislative agenda, mobilize and rally ones supporters and perhaps win over new ones. But the speech itself does not generally have a significant impact on elections. Moreover, in our climate of partisan division the State of the Union is inevitably seen through a distorted lens, with each side interpreting it in terms most favorable to their perspective. Philip Bump of the Washington Post compared the State of the Union to the Oscars and the Super Bowl, calling it the "big game, when the president puts it all on the line": The speech and the media interest it generates are unquestionably a moment of attention that presidents can and do want to leverage. But it is also a moment that, historically, hasnt done much to change how Americans view the president. On average, presidential approval since 1988 increased by about half a percentage point a week after a SOTU speech. After four weeks, the average change was at zero. Fewer people typically tune in to the speech than in years past, as Bump observes. When George W. Bush made the case for invading Iraq in 2003, "some 62 million people tuned in, about 1 in 5 Americans. Last year, only 27 million watched, or about 8 percent." Many other people only heard about Biden's speech "through secondhand coverage or snippets shared on social media and framed in service of one sides narrative." As a tool of political persuasion, Bump concludes, "State of the Union addresses generally come up short." Of course there's also the much-discussed independent or undecided voter. NPR profiled one such person, a 52-year-old woman who is "less than enthusiastic" about the Biden-Trump rematch: "I wish I could take bits and pieces, from their track records and put them together and add a few ingredients and make the perfect president," she told NPR. She tries to watch the State of the Union every year, usually with popcorn and wine. This time she watched it with an eye to how she'll vote in November. But at the end of the evening, she was still very much undecided. "I wanted to say that I could have come away from this saying: 'I'm ready to vote for this guy for president,'" the woman told NPR. Instead, what she took away "is that I feel the same way that I did before: that he's really just a nice guy." In the end, she found Biden's speech overly "vanilla," saying, "I'm never going to get that hour of my life back, you know? I just have that feeling." Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. In more normal times, the State of the Union address barely matters. These are not normal times. Bidens speech offered a powerful example of the type of narrative and communication style he must summon to defeat Donald Trump and the neofascist movement. It now appears that Biden's campaign will seek to focusing that momentum by making this year's election a referendum on Trump and the MAGA movement as an existential threat to America's future. To this point, however, public opinion polls suggest that a large percentage of Americans remain unaware of the danger Trump presents, and the ways he is literally channeling the evil energy of Adolf Hitler and 20th-century fascism. As Jonathan Cohn writes at HuffPost, "one energetic speech" will not be enough to quell voters' doubts about Biden or to "transform the campaign," but it offers the president a crucial chance "to shift the focus of conversation away from questions about mental or physical acuity, and onto the substantive stakes of the election." For far too long, Bidens advisers and Democratic Party consultants have tried to keep him away from the press, and by extension from the American public. That is a losing strategy in a decisive battle against fascists and other malign actors; by supposedly playing it safe, the Democrats are playing to lose. To defeat Trump, Biden must be unleashed to fight, as he was last week. Now we know he can definitely do it. Biden speaks upon his return to Washington from New Hampshire By Andrea Shalal and Nandita Bose MILWAUKEE (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden visited the political battleground state of Wisconsin on Wednesday after clinching the Democratic Party's nomination, and focused on hunting for votes among suburban women, Black voters and Latinos across the Midwest. Biden announced over $3 billion in infrastructure investments in disadvantaged communities across 40 states, which will be funded through the bipartisan infrastructure law and the Inflation Reduction Act He said the projects should help repair neighborhoods in states such as Wisconsin where Black, Hispanic and Chinese communities were isolated years ago by major highways and roads. "I'm here to announce the first of its kind of investments...to help right historic wrongs," Biden said. "These are life-changing improvements," he added. During the speech, Biden also opened the campaign's local headquarters and touted his administration's economic policies, a strategy that so far has failed to persuade many likely voters. Biden said there is an "awful lot at stake" and his campaign will "get down to knocking on doors" in Wisconsin and several other states.On Thursday, Biden plans to move on to Michigan, part of a month-long "I'm on board" blitz by top administration officials aimed at rallying supporters in the seven battleground states that could decide the 2024 election. In the past week, Biden has been in Pennsylvania, Georgia and New Hampshire. On Tuesday, Biden's campaign issued a new video entitled "Let's Go" after voters in Georgia helped the 81-year-old incumbent president secure the last of the 1,968 delegates needed for the nomination, teeing up what would be the first U.S. presidential rematch in nearly 70 years. In Wisconsin, Biden continued to attack former President Donald Trump, 77, and what he called Trump's "campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America." U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who campaigned in Colorado on Tuesday, visited Wisconsin last week to trumpet White House economic policies and talk about apprenticeship programs and "good-paying union jobs." "Now, the general election truly begins, and the contrast could not be clearer," Harris said in a statement on Tuesday. Wisconsin is a politically important state the Biden team wants to win in November to amass the 270 electoral votes required for reelection. Biden won the state of nearly six million people in 2020 by less than one percentage point. Wisconsin and Michigan are part of the "blue wall," along with Pennsylvania, that Biden will need to hold to secure a second term. In 2016, Trump flipped all three to win the White House, but Biden took them back four years ago. About a hundred protesters waving Palestinian flags and shouting "Free, free Palestine," rallied not far from Biden's campaign headquarters in Milwaukee. The protesters marched through the streets earlier to protest Biden's response to Israel's war on Gaza, which was sparked by the Oct. 7 attack of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, that killed some 1,200 people. More than 30,000 people in Gaza have been killed as a result of Israel's military response, according to Palestinian authorities, and the war has angered some of Biden's core group of voters, including young people and left-leaning progressives. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal and Nandita Bose; Editing by Lincoln Feast, Angus MacSwan and David Gregorio) President Bidens campaign is increasingly out of step with his administrations positions, and White House officials appear to have their hands tied. When pressed, officials have repeatedly declined to provide clarity on the White House's positions on issues while privately acknowledging any comment would reflect negatively on the incumbent presidents re-election effort. Hours before President Bidens State of the Union address in which he would highlight the importance of NATO and contrast his support of U.S. alliances with former President Donald Trumps the Biden campaign shot off an email that contained a weighty foreign policy statement, referring to the right-wing prime minister of Hungary, a NATO ally, as a "dictator." TRUMP MEETS WITH HUNGARIAN PM ORBAN IN FLORIDA, BIDEN CLAIMS HES LOOKING FOR DICTATORSHIP' President Biden speaks at the YMCA Allard Center in Goffstown, New Hampshire, on Monday. "Whos Donald Trumps squad? Lets take a look at their rap sheets," Biden-Harris 2024 Rapid Response spokesperson Sarafina Chitika wrote. "Donald Trump is kicking off the general election with a starting lineup guaranteed to repel the moderate Republicans Hungarian dictator Viktor Orban, and convicted felon Roger Stone." The punchy note titled, "Donald Trump: Who U Wit?," was written by Chitika, a 2019 Harvard graduate who was also responsible for a Democratic National Committee statement in January that mocked the end of Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinsons 2024 bid, prompting President Biden to direct his chief of staff to apologize to Hutchinson by phone. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP In the highly choreographed foreign policy world, statements representing the views of the incumbent President of the United States would not be made without careful consideration much less in the footnote of a campaign email. In fact, Secretary of State Antony Blinken visibly winced when President Biden referred to Chinese Communist President Xi Jinping as a dictator when questioned by reporters at a recent summit. Chitikas remark about Hungarys Orban also comes as the Biden administration is withholding support for Ukraines accession to NATO, citing outstanding democratic benchmarks. Although U.S. officials have previously voiced deep concern over Hungarys democratic backsliding and close ties to Russia, no U.S. administration has deemed Hungary to be a dictatorship. In 2014, Sen. John McCain sparked a diplomatic feud that prompted Hungarys foreign minister to summon the U.S. envoy after McCain said in a speech that Hungary was "on the verge of ceding its sovereignty to a neo-fascist dictator." For several days following Chitikas email, White House and campaign officials ignored or declined requests to comment. At Tuesdays White House briefing, national security adviser Jake Sullivan dodged answering whether the U.S. officially sees its NATO ally as a dictatorship. "I know why you're asking the question. I'm not going to speak on behalf of the Biden campaign. You should direct those questions to the campaign," Sullivan said. "What I will say, as the Biden administration, is that we have made no bones about our deep concerns about Hungary's assault on democratic institutions, including the judiciary, Hungary's corruption and other erosion of democracy in Hungary from the leadership there." Orban has openly supported former President Donald Trumps 2024 candidacy, including in a meeting at Mar-a-Lago in Florida last week. Biden remarked on it at a campaign stop near Philadelphia on Friday. "[Trump] thinks Putin is a strong, basically decent guy," Biden said. "You know, hes meeting with today down at Mar-a-Lago, Orban in Hungary who stated flatly he doesnt think democracy works. Hes looking for dictatorship." Hungary protested Bidens comments as a "very serious insult" and burden to the bilateral relationship, demanding a meeting with the U.S. ambassador in Budapest. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said at a press conference, "We are not required to take such lies from anyone, even if that person is the President of the United States." President Donald Trump, left, shakes hands with Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, at the West Wing of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 13, 2019. Sullivan, asked about the incident Tuesday, again attempted to walk the delicate line between upholding the campaign-trail commentary of his boss and the official positions of his bosss government. "The president stands by his statement, and Im not walking back his statement," Sullivan said. "All Im saying is that our position is totally consistent." DEFYING TRUMP, HOUSE GOP PLANS TO FORGE AHEAD WITH TIKTOK BILL THAT COULD BAN APP The Biden campaign has also encountered contradictions with the administrations official position through its embrace of TikTok. Despite reportedly vowing last year that it would not join the app, the campaign launched an account last month as part of its strategy to "reach the voters where they are." The decision boxed in White House officials once again, with the federal inter-agency committee known as CFIUS (Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States) still mulling its decision to recommend a nationwide ban over national security concerns. White House national security communications adviser John Kirby said in a Feb. 12 briefing, "I can only tell you that its not allowed on government devices. That policy remains the case. And I just cant speak for the campaign on their decisions." Kirby declined to answer why the president would partake in videos on a platform his administration deems to be a threat. Despite reportedly vowing last year that it would not join TikTok, the Biden campaign launched an account last month as part of its strategy to "reach the voters where they are." This week, FBI Director Christopher Wray affirmed at a Senate worldwide threats hearing that the app is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and poses a significant national security concern, in part because its algorithm could be manipulated to help or hurt candidates in the 2024 U.S. election. "The key point is that the parent company is, for all intents and purposes, beholden to the CCP," Wray said. Meanwhile, the House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill with both Democratic and Republican support that could pave the way for TikTok to be banned in U.S. app stores. Original article source: Biden campaign out of step with admin's positions as officials try to walk delicate line President Biden won the Georgia Democratic primary, according to Decision Desk HQ projections, giving him enough delegates to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination and all but guaranteeing he will face off against former President Trump again in November. DDHQ projected Biden the winner in Georgia at 7 p.m. EDT Tuesday. Biden is expected to notch at least 1,968 delegates, the minimum number needed to secure the Democratic nod. Ahead of the Tuesday primaries, Biden had 1,867 delegates, according to DDHQ, meaning he needed at least 101 delegates. Georgia offered 108 delegates on the Democratic side, and there were 241 delegates up for grabs altogether on Tuesday between Georgia, Mississippi, Washington state and the U.S. territory of the Northern Mariana Islands. Although Biden wasnt expected to face any serious challenge to the Democratic nomination on Tuesday, Georgia and Washington were home to campaigns looking to protest Biden and his administrations handling of the Israel-Hamas war. Organizers in Washington urged Democratic primary voters to cast a ballot for uncommitted, while organizers in Georgia urged members of the party to leave their ballot blank. The initiatives are similar to ones in Michigan and Minnesota, where portions of the Democratic electorate cast a protest vote against the president. The protest vote surprisingly has proved more potent than any of Bidens long-shot Democratic challengers, including Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.). Meanwhile, on the GOP side, Trump is expected to receive the Republican presidential nomination. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. MILWAUKEE (AP) President Joe Biden is getting to be a familiar face around the Great Lakes and with a November rematch against Donald Trump looming, that's no accident. He started a two-day swing through Wisconsin and Michigan in Milwaukee on Wednesday as he tried to shore up a Democratic blue wall and build momentum for his reelection campaign after a fiery State of the Union address last week. Aiming to show voters that his administration has improved their lives, Biden used the stop to announce $3.3 billion for infrastructure projects in disadvantaged communities, including $36 million to reconnect parts of Milwaukee's 6th Street, which had been divided by highway construction in the 1960s. Were rebuilding the roads, were filling in the cracks in the sidewalk, were creating spaces to live and work and play safely, and to breathe clean air, and to shop at a nearby grocery stocked with fresh and healthy food, he said. Youve lived and felt decisions made decades ago," Biden said. "Today, today, were making decisions to transform your lives for decades to come. The money comes from the bipartisan infrastructure law that Biden signed in the first year of his presidency. Biden told voters that Donald Trump, his Republican predecessor and likely opponent in this year's election, had promised infrastructure improvements but never delivered. He didnt get a single thing done," Biden said. "Not one. Biden and Trump clinched their parties' nominations on Tuesday after decisive victories in the primaries, setting up what promises to be a grinding rematch between the two men. Much of that battle will be fought in Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as Pennsylvania, which was Biden's first stop after his State of the Union. They're collectively known as a blue wall" because of their historic support for Democrats. Trump flipped all three to win the White House in 2016, but Biden took them back four years ago and likely needs to hold them if he's going to secure a second term. Biden also plans to travel to North Carolina and other battleground states in the coming weeks. He has been overseeing openings of field offices as his campaign hires and trains organizers and begins assembling volunteers. That's meant as a show of political organizing strength an area where the president has so far outpaced Trump, who has been occupied for months with a competitive primary and four ongoing criminal cases in which he faces 91 felony counts. Biden's reelection campaign hopes on-the-ground organization can neutralize the president's low approval ratings and polling showing that a majority of voters even a majority of Democrats don't want him to seek reelection. This particular president is a really impressive retail politician. He doesnt just do the rally and leave, said Jim Paine, the mayor of Superior, Wisconsin, a port city on the border with Minnesota. Biden has been there twice, including in January to promote a bridge built as part of the infrastructure law. He really puts time in with people, listens to individual stories, he talks about his own life one-on-one, Paine said. The $3.3 billion in grants announced on Wednesday covers 132 total projects, including in Atlanta; Los Angeles and Philadelphia as well as Birmingham, Alabama; Syracuse, New York; and Toledo, Ohio. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said that some of the projects are relatively modest and can be completed in short order, while others are massive and ambitious undertakings that will take many years. Biden visited the opening of his campaign headquarters in Milwaukee, where nearly 40% of residents are Black, rather than Madison, the state capital that typically serves as the fulcrum for Democratic campaigns. He said volunteers and staff in places like Milwaukee would help ensure his victory over Trump. This is how we are going to win again," he said. A lot of you helped me in 2020, and we made sure he was a loser and is a loser and were going to make sure that happens again, right? Its Bidens ninth visit to Wisconsin as president and his fifth to Milwaukee, where Republicans are holding their national convention this summer. Chris LaCivita, an adviser to Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson 's successful reelection campaign in 2022, is also a top Trump campaign aide another signal that the state is a top GOP priority. On Thursday, the president heads to Saginaw, north of Detroit, which has high concentrations of Black and union-affiliated voters. It was once reliably Democratic, but swung to Trump in 2016 and only narrowly backed Biden four years ago. Biden and top advisers, both from the campaign and the White House, have made frequent trips to Michigan recently amid criticism of his administration's handling of the war in Gaza, visiting places like Dearborn, a Detroit suburb with the nation's highest concentration of Arab Americans. His challenge was demonstrated in Michigan's Democratic presidential primary last month, when activists promoted an uncommitted movement that garnered about 13% of the vote. Thursday's visit won't take him to Dearborn, but will instead help Biden connect with key constituencies in other parts the state. The campaign promises to open more than 15 Michigan field offices, complementing the 44 it and the state Democratic Party have in Wisconsin. Early polls have shown Biden faring better against Trump in Wisconsin than Michigan. Richard Czuba, a longtime Michigan pollster, said far more potentially decisive in November than supporters of the uncommitted movement during the Democratic primary are many double-unfavorable" voters. He described those as state residents who plan to vote in November but dont like either Trump or Biden. If they are persuaded to vote for Joe Biden, Joe Biden will win the state of Michigan, Czuba said. But, for Donald Trump, I think its an easier assignment to make sure that those double-unfavorables get divided. One way Biden can win over such voters might be to make the race about issues like abortion rights, rather than himself, Czuba said. He noted that the president's criticism of a suggestion by Trump that hed allow Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" to some NATO allies might resonate with Michigans large Polish-American population as well as immigrants from the Baltic nations. Bidens campaign moved quickly to highlight those comments in a three-week, six-figure digital ad campaign that targeted roughly 900,000 Baltic Americans in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Still, that may not be enough for some voters in Michigan, where apathy about the Trump-Biden rematch is palpable. Said Saginaw resident Jeffrey Bulls: I probably will be skipping that top spot on the ballot." ___ Associated Press writers Joey Cappelletti in Saginaw, Michigan, and Josh Boak and Chris Megerian in Washington contributed to this report. President Joe Biden clinched the Democratic presidential nomination, clearing his path to a rematch with Donald Trump in November. Bidens victory in Georgia on Tuesday pushed him over the delegate threshold to become the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Biden will be formally named the partys nominee this August at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The former president is also expected to clinch the number of delegates he needs for the Republican nomination this week. Biden became the presumptive Democratic nominee by securing a majority of the 3,933 pledged delegates available during the primary process. Maryland businessperson Jason Palmer is the only other individual to earn delegates to the convention so far, though 20 delegates will arrive as uncommitted following protest votes in Michigan, Minnesota and Hawaii against Bidens handling of Israels war against Hamas. The Biden-Trump rematch is expected to be the most expensive and nastiest in modern political history, as two incumbent presidents face off for a second time this fall. Biden has consistently trailed Trump in national and battleground polling in recent months, but he holds a significant fundraising advantage over Trump. "I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever," Biden said in a statement from the campaign. Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country." Following Bidens State of the Union address last week, the Biden campaign kicked into overdrive last week with a six-week $30 million ad buy and stepped up Bidens travel to swing states. Hes stumping in Wisconsin and Michigan this week, as well as adding a stop in North Carolina with Vice President Kamala Harris later this month. The campaign also announced it would hire 350 staffers and open 100 field offices, a rapid expansion of its operational footprint that Democrats long worried wasnt happening fast enough. The Biden campaign has argued that once the general election clarified into a choice between Biden and Trump, the president would regain an advantage in the race. Trump, who is currently leading in public polling, faces a number of legal challenges that could also shake up the race, including a trial in New York that centers on hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels on March 25. Biden, for his part, emphasized that choice in his speech before Congress, when his explicitly political rhetoric did not mention Trump by name but referred to his predecessor 13 times. He leaned heavily into their differences on abortion access, immigration policy and democracy, citing the Jan. 6 insurrection. More evidence of their contrast-heavy strategy comes through in a new TV ad that was released over the weekend. Direct to camera, Biden ticks through his accomplishments, leading the country through the Covid crisis and today, we have the strongest economy in the world, while attacking Trump for taking away the freedom of women to choose. For four years, Donald Trump tried to pass an infrastructure law and he failed, Biden continues in the ad. I got it done. Now, were rebuilding America. The ad also tackles one of Bidens biggest vulnerabilities head-on and with a bit of humor: Look, Im not a young guy. Thats no secret, Biden says in the ad. But heres the deal. I understand how to get things done for the American people. Biden, 81, and Trump, 77, are the oldest presidential nominees in history. But their advanced age has presented more of a challenge for Biden with voters than it has for Trump, according to public polling. For example, a majority of voters who backed Biden in 2020 now say that hes too old to lead the country effectively, a New York Times/Siena College poll found last week. Just 15 percent of voters who backed Trump in 2020 said the former president was too old to be effective in a potential second term. (Bloomberg) -- Most Read from Bloomberg US President Joe Biden pledged to look into a petition from a group of unions asking his administration to review Chinas subsidies for shipbuilders, as tensions between the worlds two largest economies simmer on trade during a critical American election year. US Trade Representative Katherine Tai will take a hard look at this petition in accordance with the law, Biden said Tuesday DC time in a post on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. Well always stand against Chinas unfair practices and as long as I am president, Ill fight for US workers and jobs. Shipbuilding is emerging as the latest battleground in the US-China trade war, which has ensnared products ranging from solar panels and semiconductors to electric cars. While strains eased late last year after a meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping that resulted in some agreements to better manage potential flare-ups, the two sides remain at odds over areas of strategic economic and military importance. Tai referenced Washingtons concerns about risks to global supply chains in a separate statement citing Chinas acts, policies, and practices in shipbuilding, maritime business and logistics. The Asian nation has created dependencies and vulnerabilities in steel, aluminum, solar, battery and critical mineral sectors, she said. Chinas Ministry of Commerce did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment Wednesday. Shares of Chinese shipbuilders dropped after Bidens announcement, with China CSSC Holdings Ltd. a subsidiary of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation falling as much as 3.3% in Shanghai. Markets across Asia were broadly lower during the trading day. A coalition of five US unions the United Steelworkers, the AFL-CIO Maritime Trades Department, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers filed the petition in a bid to urge action on what it called Beijings non-market policies to dominate the commercial shipbuilding industry. If we do not act quickly, we will soon be dependent on China not only for the products their vessels bring into our ports but also for the ships themselves, USW International President David McCall said in a statement. The petition and Bidens response also came as former President Donald Trump clinched the Republican presidential nomination, setting up a rematch with his Democratic rival in Novembers general election. Trump has vowed to increase tariffs on Chinese imports if elected for a second term, and has privately floated levies as high as 60% on Chinese goods. We will see trade with China as a point of contention right up to the elections, said Dylan Loh, assistant professor of politics at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore who specializes in Chinas international relations. The flurry of actions from the Biden administration shows that neither he nor Trump can afford to look weak on China. China already dominates the global shipbuilding industry, having in 2019 merged its two biggest shipmakers to create a state-owned industrial and military behemoth that dwarfs international rivals. That support helped it to surpass previous global leaders South Korea and Japan. In 2022, Chinese yards constructed almost half the gross tonnage of merchant ships built that year, according to United Nations data. Such size has allowed the nation to quickly expand its merchant and military fleets, with about 400 vessels giving it the worlds largest navy. The Chinese shipbuilding industry received extensive policy-support in the past, facilitating the development of several domestic champions, said Jens Eskelund, president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China. The dominant market position held by these players today, as well as their immense size largely a direct result of this support means, we assess, they generally no longer need subsidies to be globally competitive. In a statement published in the state-owned Economic Daily newspaper last week, the director of a CSSC-linked research institute said the country should consolidate its leading role in the global shipbuilding sector. We must focus on filling in the gaps in materials for building high-tech ships, Wang Qihong said, according to the newspaper. The US, meanwhile, is struggling to repair the naval fleet it has, and is in talks with Japan to use that nations shipyards to do repair and maintenance on military vessels. That deal may be signed at a summit in the US next month. The USW pointed to US job losses resulting from the closure of shipyards as a key concern, and stressed in its statement potential national security implications from becoming too reliant on China for shipping. Rebuilding the US Merchant Marine the organization making up hundreds of civilian and federally owned mariners and merchant vessels will help shore up the critical supply chains our military and commercial shipbuilding industries share, making us safer and more resilient, McCall said. Amid growing concerns that hackers could roil crucial supply chains, Biden last month said he would sign an executive order designed to implement new cybersecurity requirements for the nations port owners and operators. Washington is pushing allies including the Netherlands, Germany, South Korea and Japan to further tighten restrictions on Chinas access to semiconductor technology. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on Monday signaled the US may intensify its campaign on China curbs, saying the government will do whatever it takes to protect our people including expanding our controls. Biden has also said he would sign a bill in the US House of Representatives that would force TikToks Chinese owners to sell the app due to national security concerns. The US intends to investigate potential data and cybersecurity risks posed by Chinese electric vehicles and other internet-connected cars, too. --With assistance from Yujing Liu and Kelly Li. (Updates with comments in 13th paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. YAOUNDE, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The World Food Program (WFP) has said that a "catastrophic funding crisis" has forced it to cut operations across the board in the central African country of Chad. WFP assistance will be suspended for 1.2 million Sudanese refugees and crisis-affected people in the country in April due to funding shortfalls, including for new Sudanese refugees, the WFP said in a statement Tuesday. "We are in a race against time. The small window to pre-position supplies is closing rapidly and our funding is drying up at this dramatic juncture," WFP Chad director Pierre Honnorat said. "We've already cut our operations in ways that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, leaving hungry people close to starvation." The WFP said it "urgently" requires 242 million U.S. dollars to support people in Chad for the next six months. "We are forcing families to skip meals and eat less nutritious food, laying the ground for crises of nutrition, crises of instability, and crises of displacement. We need donors to prevent the situation from becoming an all-out catastrophe," Honnorat said. More than 550,000 refugees and 150,000 Chadian returnees have crossed from Sudan into Chad since war erupted 10 months ago between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, according to the International Organization for Migration. President Biden on Tuesday shared a message of unity and optimism ahead of November after he received enough delegates to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination. Four years ago, I ran for president because I believed we were in a battle for the soul of this nation. Because of the American people, we won that battle, and now I am honored that the broad coalition of voters representing the rich diversity of the Democratic Party across the country have put their faith in me once again to lead our party and our country in a moment when the threat Trump poses is greater than ever, the president said in a statement. He won the Georgia Democratic primary, according to Decision Desk HQ, to give him enough delegates. The win all but guarantees that the general election will be a 2020 rematch between Biden and former President Trump. I believe that the American people will choose to keep us moving into the future. With every crisis, America has always emerged stronger and more united on the other side. This November will be no different and I believe we will do it together, Biden said. The president argued that Trump is running a campaign of resentment, revenge, and retribution that threatens the very idea of America and said that freedom and democracy are at risk. Voters now have a choice to make about the future of this country. Are we going to stand up and defend our democracy or let others tear it down? Will we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms, or let extremists take them away? Will we finally make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes or will we allow corporate greed to run rampant on the backs of the middle class? Biden said. The president is traveling this week as part of a tour across battleground states following his State of the Union address Thursday. He will be in Wisconsin on Wednesday and will later travel to Michigan. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Border wall construction resumes near the Eli Jackson Cemetery in Pharr on March 21, 2022. Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune The Biden administration is temporarily barred from redirecting $1.4 billion that Congress allocated for a barrier along the U.S.-Mexico border. U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton of the Southern District of Texas issued the temporary injunction last week. Congress allocated the money in 2020 and 2021 during former President Donald Trumps term. Tipton, who was appointed by Trump, wrote that the Biden administrations spending decisions run afoul of administrative law, rejecting the federal governments argument that it has discretion in how to spend the money. Tipton said Texas needed to prove the funds arent being spent on additional border walls and that such barriers would result in fewer illegal aliens entering the country. Texas has done so, Tipton concluded. Tipton gave the Biden administration seven days to appeal the order. Biden acted completely improperly by refusing to spend the money that Congress appropriated for border wall construction, and even attempting to redirect those funds, state Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement. His actions demonstrate his desperation for open borders at any cost, but Texas has prevailed. In 2021, George P. Bush, then-commissioner of the Texas General Land Office, and Paxton sued the Biden administration after the president directed to pause construction of a border wall. The cases were combined and a state district judge originally dismissed the lawsuit. But in June 2023, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the lower courts decision, reviving the Texas lawsuit against the Biden administration. In the meantime, the Biden administration has used the money for projects along different parts of the 2,000-mile border. That includes closing gaps of current border barriers, environmental remediation, clean-up efforts and erecting 15-foot concrete panels topped with 6-foot steel bollards in the Rio Grande Valley. The Biden administration has described the project as repairing earthen levees, not a border barrier. Still, in 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection detailed plans to build 86 miles of border wall in the Rio Grande Valley. Last year, Biden said his administration is required by law to continue certain wall construction because Congress appropriated money for it. That appropriation occurred in 2019, before Biden took office. I tried to get them to reappropriate it, to redirect that money, he previously said. They didnt. They wouldnt. And in the meantime, theres nothing under the law other than they have to use the money for what it was appropriated. I cant stop that. For the past four years, Gov. Greg Abbott and Paxton have filed lawsuits against Bidens immigration policies, describing an them as open- border policies and claiming the president has incentivized illegal immigration. The Biden administration has mostly dropped Trump-era immigration policies but has continued to apprehend and process for deportation many migrants crossing illegally. During his administration, Biden and Texas officials have escalated legal fights over immigration. Since March 2021, the state has spent over $10 billion as part of Abbotts Operation Lone Star, a state effort to deter people from illegally crossing the Rio Grande. As part of the operation, Abbott has ordered National Guard members and state troopers to different parts of the border to arrest migrants illegally crossing the border. The state has also erected 23 miles of border barrier along different parts of the border. In Eagle Pass, Abbott ordered the National Guard to prevent Border Patrol agents from accessing Shelby Park, a 47-acre city park, which is along the Rio Grande. Immigration has also become a key issue in the upcoming presidential election. Last month, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump each visited different Texas-Mexico border cities. During his term, Biden has coupled strict immigration enforcement with narrow programs that allow some migrants to enter the country legally. Trump wants to reimplement policies that would force some migrants to wait in Mexico as their asylum cases are pending in U.S. courts. He has also said his administration would round up as many suspected undocumented immigrants for deportation. Disclosure: Texas General Land Office has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. We cant wait to welcome you to downtown Austin Sept. 5-7 for the 2024 Texas Tribune Festival! Join us at Texas breakout politics and policy event as we dig into the 2024 elections, state and national politics, the state of democracy, and so much more. When tickets go on sale this spring, Tribune members will save big. Donate to join or renew today. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican, are headed for a rematch in the 2024 presidential election. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Quality Journalism for Critical Times President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump cruised to wins in Washington states presidential primary on Tuesday, and the two men are now firmly on track for a rematch this November. Around 8 p.m., just minutes after vote tallies became available, the Associated Press called Washingtons nominating contests for Biden and Trump. Biden commanded about 86% of Democratic ballots, as Trump claimed nearly 74% among Republicans. Earlier Tuesday, Biden swept up Georgias delegates to officially clinch the Democratic nomination in this years presidential contest. Trump on Tuesday cleared that threshold as well. A twist for Biden in recent weeks has been an activist campaign to get voters to choose uncommitted delegates on their ballots in protest of the presidents handling of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Progressives driving the effort want Biden to press harder for a ceasefire. A ballot dropbox in Olympia, Wash. on March 12, 2024. (Bill Lucia/Washington State Standard) Only Democratic voters in Washington could select the uncommitted option on their ballots. Activists said uncommitted delegates received around 6,400 votes in Washington in 2020 and that 12,000 uncommitted votes would send a clear message to President Biden that he must change his policies and strategy. Theyd far surpassed that goal Tuesday evening as voters had cast at least 48,000 uncommitted votes about 7.5% of Democratic ballots. Tonights numbers show that President Bidens current policies towards Gaza and Palestine are not in line with his voting base, said Rami Al-Kabra, a lead organizer with Uncommitted WA and Bothells deputy mayor. Shasti Conrad, chair of the Washington State Democratic Party, said voters viewed the primary as the opportunity to use the uncommitted delegate to send a message. I do think people recognize the stakes and when it is President Biden versus Trump, they will support Biden, Conrad added. Meanwhile, on the Republican side, Nikki Haley was still walking away Tuesday with 21.7% of the vote even though she dropped out of the race last week, scoring a win only in Vermont among the 15 contests held on Super Tuesday. Trump easily won in the other states. Washington State GOP Chairman Jim Walsh pointed to overall Republican voter turnout and the number of younger voters the party had attracted as positive signs. We look forward to building on that success through this election cycle, he said. The last time Washington state voted for a Republican in a presidential election was in 1984 when Ronald Reagan defeated Walter Mondale. In 2020, Biden carried the state with nearly 58% of the vote, to Trumps roughly 39%. Two longshot candidates, Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips and self-help author Marianne Williamson, also appeared on the states Democratic primary ballot this year. Theyd each captured around 3% of the vote as of Tuesday night. Phillips suspended his campaign last week. Williamson unsuspended her campaign in late February after dropping out of the race earlier in the month. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie and investor Vivek Ramaswamy all appeared on the Republican side of the ballot, but theyd all dropped out of the race in January and each only received about 2% or less of the votes counted Tuesday in Washington. The state votes by mail and using ballot dropboxes so more votes will be tallied in the days ahead. The Standards Jerry Cornfield contributed to this report. This story was published earlier by the Washington State Standard, an affiliate of the nonprofit States Newsroom network, which includes the Florida Phoenix. The post Biden and Trump easily win in WA presidential primary, clinch nominations appeared first on Florida Phoenix. President Biden has won the Mississippi Democratic presidential primary, according to Decision Desk HQ. Biden was the only candidate listed on the ballot and will likely receive most if not all of the states 35 pledged delegates. Five of the states 40 total delegates are not pledged and will be decided at the Democratic National Convention this fall. He has already clinched enough delegates to win the Democratic nomination, having won the Georgia primary earlier Tuesday. A candidate must receive at least 15 percent of the statewide result or the result in a congressional district to receive a delegate, so Biden is likely to sweep all of them. The uncommitted effort that has gained some support in other states including Michigan and Minnesota is not an option in Mississippi. Author Marianne Williamson, who remains in the race, was also not on the ballot. Voters could cast a write-in ballot. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. President Biden is projected to win the Democratic primary in Washington State, according to Decision Desk HQ. Biden wasnt expected to face any serious competition in the Evergreen State, which awards 92 delegates on the Democratic side. However, organizers angry at the Biden administrations handling of the Israel-Hamas war established a campaign encouraging Democratic primary voters to cast ballots for uncommitted. The campaign has been endorsed by the largest labor union in the state, United Food and Commercial Workers 3000, in addition to American Federation of Teachers 1789 in Seattle. The campaign is similar in nature to the uncommitted campaign that started in Michigan in which Democratic voters were encouraged to cast ballots for uncommitted in the primary. That effort notched 13 percent of the vote in the Great Lake State and saw momentum in Minnesota, where the uncommitted vote received 19 percent of the ballots cast. Democrats are expected to win Washington state handily in November given Biden beat former President Trump there in 2020 by close to 20 points. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Biden delivers remarks before a meeting of his Competition Council, at the White House in Washington WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden sat for hours of questioning with Special Counsel Robert Hur over two days in early October, related to his handling of classified documents. The transcripts, released by Congress Tuesday, give a rare candid view of Biden who has not granted many long interviews while in office and often delivers carefully scripted remarks, . Hur declined to charge the president for mishandling classified information in a February report that criticized Biden's memory; he said Tuesday his report did not exonerate the president. FIRST JOB, A 'PHOTOGRAPHIC' MEMORY Hur's report called Biden an "elderly man with a poor memory," but the 250 pages of transcripts depict a loquacious Biden offering detailed descriptions of everything from the first legal memo he ever wrote (a case related to an oil refinery worker who was wearing the "wrong jeans, and ... a spark caught fire and got caught in the containment vessel and he lost part of his penis") to the time he embarrassed the leader of Mongolia, to the construction of his Delaware home. He's particularly impassioned about his Delaware home; at one point Hur tells Biden "you appear to have a photographic understanding and, and recall of the house." What Biden most often says he does not recall is who packed his documents or other personal items when he left the vice presidency in 2009 and in the aftermath. "My problem was I never knew where any of the documents or boxes were specifically coming from or who packed them," Biden said, telling Hur he relied on staff to do that instead. A FAMILY MEETING AND AN UGLY MEME At one point, Biden repeats a familiar explanation for his decision to run for the presidency in 2020, the neo-Nazi Charlottesville march in 2017 that he said led him to think "I was the antithesis of everything that this guy stood for," referring to Donald Trump. But, he says, that wasn't when he made the final decision. Even after Charlottesville, he still had reservations about a race, because of "how terrible they'd be" about his family. His granddaughter Naomi called a "family meeting," Biden says, in which his youngest grandson Robert talked him into it - by showing him a right-wing meme that involved Robert. "He said, pop, we know it's going to be mean, and he opens up his cell phone and there's a picture of me walking out of Beau's funeral," Biden recalled. "They could see it was a military funeral, and my arm around my grandson, and the bottom line was 'Biden molests another child'." Biden recalls his grandson then said: "'But pop, you've got to run. Daddy'd want you to run.' That's when I decided to run." The meme is part of debunked theory spread by online conspiracist group QAnon, whose followers often allude to "a secret campaign" being waged by Trump against a pedophile sex trafficking ring that includes prominent Democrats. THE CORVETTEBiden's Corvette, which was stored in a garage, was a gift for him and his wife, from his father who managed a car dealership. It cost $5,700 and Biden is barely allowed to drive it, to his frustration, except to do a show with Jay Leno. And "the worst part was they said I couldn't drive it outside the driveway. I'd a long driveway. So I'd get to the bottom of the driveway, tack it up to about four grand (makes car sound)." There's laughter, the transcript says, then Biden adds: "You think I'm kidding. I'm not." (Reporting by Heather Timmons; Editing by Stephen Coates) The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to ban TikTok, a highly controversial move done in the name of national security that has sparked accusations of First Amendment violations. The House voted 35265 to pass the bill. It will now go to the Senate, where it is likely to pass again, as TikTok is one of the few issues that unites Democrats and Republicans. President Joe Biden, who is currently campaigning for reelection on TikTok, has said he will sign the measure if it reaches his desk. Only 15 Republicans and 50 Democrats voted against the legislation. Here are all the members who voted no: Andy Biggs (AZ) Dan Bishop (NC) Suzanne Bonamici (OR) Jamaal Bowman (NY) Brendan Boyle (PA) Cori Bush (MO)* Greg Casar (TX) Joaquin Castro (TX) Katherine Clark (MA) Jim Clyburn (SC) Warren Davidson (OH) John Duarte (CA) Adriano Espaillat (NY) Maxwell Frost (FL) Matt Gaetz (FL) Ruben Gallego (AZ) Chuy Garcia (IL) Robert Garcia (CA) Jimmy Gomez (CA) Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA) Jahana Hayes (CT) Clay Higgins (LA) Jim Himes (CT) Steven Horsford (NV) Val Hoyle (OR) Jonathan Jackson (IL) Sheila Jackson Lee (TX) Sara Jacobs (CA) Pramila Jayapal (WA) Sydney Kamlager-Dove (CA) Ro Khanna (CA) Rick Larsen (WA) John Larson (CT) Barbara Lee (CA) Summer Lee (PA) Zoe Lofgren (CA) Nancy Mace (SC) Thomas Massie (KY) Tom McClintock (CA) Morgan McGarvey (KY) Jim McGovern (MA) Gregory Meeks (NY) Grace Meng (NY) Alexander Mooney (WV) Barry Moore (AL) Gwen Moore (WI) Kevin Mullin (CA) Jerry Nadler (NY) Richard Neal (MA) Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY) Ilhan Omar (MN) Scott Perry (PA) Dean Phillips (MN) Mark Pocan (WI) Katie Porter (CA) Ayanna Pressley (MA) Delia Ramirez (IL) Janice Schakowsky (IL) David Schweikert (AZ) Greg Steube (FL) Eric Swalwell (CA) Norma Torres (CA) Juan Vargas (CA) Nydia Velazquez (NY) Nikema Williams (GA) The bill stipulates that ByteDance, TikToks Chinese parent company, must sell TikTok to an American company within six months. Otherwise, TikTok will be banned from U.S. app stores. A company associated with the Chinese government owns a 1 percent stake in Bytedance, leading politicians on both sides of the aisle to warn that TikTok poses a threat to national security and data privacy. With both political parties eager to seem tough on China, particularly during an election year, cracking down on TikTok is an easy move. But critics of the bill have accused lawmakers of seeking to make themselves look good instead of actually enacting meaningful legislation. Were deeply disappointed that our leaders are once again attempting to trade our First Amendment rights for cheap political points during an election year, Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement last week. Just because the bill sponsors claim that banning TikTok isnt about suppressing speech, theres no denying that it would do just that. This article has been updated. *This article originally misidentified Cori Bushs state. The House of Representatives has advanced a bill that could effectively ban TikTok within the United States. The legislation will now advance to the Senate, where it will likely face a steeper road to adoption. The bill, titled the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, would require TikTok to sever itself completely from its Chinese parent company ByteDance or face a potential ban from mobile app stores and web-hosting services. The bill would also create a process through which the president can designate certain social media applications with ties to foreign governments as a national security risk. Lawmakers in the Republican-controlled lower chamber overwhelmingly supported the legislation, with 352 representatives voting in favor of the act, and just 65 opposing it. The vote breakdown contained little rhyme or reason in terms of party alignment, a rarity considering the months of partisan paralysis in the House. Despite being supported by President Joe Biden and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), several prominent Democrats voted no including Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.). Among Republicans, opposition from former President Donald Trump seems to have moved some die-hard MAGA sycophants like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to vote no, while others, like House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), voted yes. This is not an attempt to ban TikTok; its an attempt to make TikTok better, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said during floor debate ahead of the vote. Tic-Tac-Toe, a winner. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who indicated on Tuesday that he would oppose the bill, told the chamber that either intentionally or unintentionally this legislation to ban TikTok is actually a Trojan horse and that some of us are concerned that there are First Amendment implications here some of us just dont want the president picking which apps we can put on our phones or which websites we can visit. Im currently on the floor managing the debate AGAINST the TikTok ban. This is my opening statement. Tune in to CSPAN live now for more. pic.twitter.com/yFqdYt4Pxd Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) March 13, 2024 Lawmakers have long sought to place restrictions on TikTok, accusing the app and its parent company ByteDance of exploiting American user data on behalf of the Chinese government. Many Republicans, often the fiercest critics of Chinese influence in the U.S., chose to vote against the bill following opposition from Trump. The former president unsuccessfully attempted to ban the app while in office. Trump has now done a 180, telling CNBC on Monday that while theres a lot of good and a lot of bad with TikTok without TikTok you can make Facebook bigger and I consider Facebook to be the enemy of the people along with a lot of the media. Conservative billionaire Jeff Yass, a prominent donor to the Republican Club for Growth and a large stakeholder in TikTok, has also been directing overtures to members of Congress in opposition to the legislation, and recently met with the former president at Mar-a-Lago. As previously reported by Rolling Stone, Trump and some of his advisers may also feel that taking a soft approach to TikTok could boost his profile with young voters and contrast him with Biden who promised to sign the legislation should it reach his desk. A Biden administration spokesperson added to Rolling Stone ahead of the vote that foreign powers can use the app to influence Americans views and beliefs. The warning echoes comments made by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre last week. The administration doesnt see this as banning these apps thats not what this is, she said, but rather ensuring that their ownership isnt in the hands of those who may do us harm. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone As public officials, we are accustomed to vibrant discussion and heated debate about issues impacting our communities, commonwealth, and nation. We disagree at times with our colleagues from the other side of the proverbial political aisle. We stand united, however, in strong opposition to the proposed construction of a 25-foot-high, 1.8-mile-long dam and power turbine pump storage facility along the lower Susquehanna River at Cuffs Run in York County, Pennsylvania. This project is being proposed by York Energy Storage, LLC of Berks County, which has applied for a preliminary permit application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). This project will flood 580 acres of a protected landscape rich with natural, cultural, and recreational resources. Construction of this project will impact hundreds more acres. The landscape of the lower Susquehanna River gorge has been recognized by both the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government as a landscape worthy of protection and investment. This area was designated as a Conservation Landscape by the Commonwealth in 2010 and a National Heritage Area by an Act of Congress in 2019. National Heritage Areas are designated by Congress as places where natural, cultural, and historic resources combine to form a cohesive, nationally important landscape. More: Cuffs Run hydroelectric project gains preliminary approval. Environmental groups oppose it More: 'Horrendous': Big contingent of political leaders oppose Cuffs Run pumped storage project In the last 10 years, over $100 million has been invested by non-profits, municipalities, county, state, and federal governments, to create a thriving outdoor recreation and tourism economy, an economy that will be threatened by yet another hydroelectric power generation facility on this stretch of the river. The river plays a considerable role in the outdoor economy of our region. Both Lancaster and York Counties benefit tremendously as outdoor enthusiasts from across the country and across our counties utilize the many outdoor assets and amenities of the natural landscape. Based upon a recent economic impact report by the York County Economic Alliance, 5,240 York County residents work in the outdoor economy. These jobs generated $135 million in wages and are among the largest growth occupations; largely a result of outdoor amenities such as our river. This project, if allowed to proceed, would destroy preserved farms, a regional scenic trail, the viewshed of a popular multimodal rail trail, and forested lands needed to help protect the ecological health of this landscape and an already impaired waterway. The proposed York Energy Storage LLC project would irrevocably damage the most pristine area of the lower Susquehanna. The impacted area is one of the last bits of unprotected nature left on the river, and we believe it is worth fighting for. Additionally, nearly forty families could be uprooted as a result of this project. Upper reservoir and power house site plan for York Energy Storage LLC at Cuffs Run. We believe that any net environmental benefits from additional low-carbon energy will be outweighed by the loss of trees and farmland. As part of its review, we argue that FERC should consider the disproportionate burden placed on the residents along the lower Susquehanna, as well as study the impact this proposed dam would have on the whole of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, which already has multiple existing dams for hydroelectric power. This is significant as dams are actually being removed in the lower Susquehannas tributaries to improve water quality and improve aquatic habitats. In 2023, Pennsylvania led the region in net exports of electricity. At +83 million megawatt hours, Pennsylvania is comfortably in first place in our 8-state region. We are doing more than our fair share of energy generation. Maryland, however, is a different story. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Maryland consumes about five times more energy than it produces and is taking additional power generation offline. While Pennsylvania remains an energy leader in the region, we understand the need to continue to build our energy infrastructure to help meet the growing demand for electricity. Given this proposed projects low power generation, the costs of this project would far outweigh the benefits. We stand united in opposition to this project and York Energy Storage LLCs application and urge FERC to respect the decades of hard work and millions of dollars of investment made to preserve our unique landscape, protect our natural resources, and grow a thriving outdoor tourism economy that will support our community for generations to come. You can make your voice heard too. FERC is accepting public comment on York Energy Storage, LLCs preliminary permit application until March 31, 2024. You can learn more about how to submit a comment by visiting FERCs Office of Public Participation website: https://www.ferc.gov/how-file-comment U.S. Rep. Lloyd Smucker represents Pennsylvania's 11th District, which includes Lancaster and southern York counties. This letter was also signed by the following: State Senator Kristin Phillips-Hill, 28th Legislative District State Senator Mike Regan, 31st Legislative District State Representative Joe DOrsie, 47th Legislative District State Representative Dawn Keefer, 92nd Legislative District State Representative Mike Jones, 93rd Legislative District State Representative Wendy Fink, 94th Legislative District State Representative Carol Hill-Evans, 95th Legislative District State Representative Kate Klunk, 169th Legislative District State Representative Seth Grove, 196th Legislative District President Commissioner Julie Wheeler, York County Board of Commissioners Vice President Commissioner Scott Burford, York County Board of Commissioners Commissioner Doug Hoke, York County Board of Commissioners State Senator Ryan Aument, 36th District State Senator Scott Martin, 13th District State Senator Chris Gebhard, 48th District State Representative Mindy Fee, 37th Legislative District State Representative Brett Miller, 41st Legislative District State Representative Keith Greiner, 43rd Legislative District State Representative Mike Sturla, 96th Legislative District State Representative Steve Mentzer, 97th Legislative District State Representative Tom Jones, 98th Legislative District State Representative David Zimmerman, 99th Legislative District State Representative Bryan Cutler, 100th Legislative District County Commissioner Josh Parsons, Chair of the Lancaster County Board of Commissioners County Commissioner Ray, DAgostino, Lancaster County Board of Commissioners County Commissioner Alice Yoder, Lancaster County Board of Commissioners This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Elected officials united in opposing Cuffs Run hydro project FILE PHOTO: Bird Flu outbreak in Sao Jose do Norte in the State of Rio Grande do Sul FILE PHOTO: Bird Flu outbreak in Sao Jose do Norte in the State of Rio Grande do Sul By Jake Spring SAO PAULO(Reuters) -The deadly H5N1 bird flu virus has spread more aggressively than ever before in wild birds and marine mammals since arriving in South America in 2022, raising the risk of it evolving into a bigger threat to humans, according to interviews with eight scientists. Of more immediate concern is evidence the disease, once largely confined to bird species, appears to be spreading between mammals. This strain has already killed a handful of dolphins in Chile and Peru, some 50,000 seals and sea lions along the coasts, and at least half a million birds regionwide. To confirm mammal-to-mammal transmission, scientists would likely need to test infections in live animals. "It's almost certainly happened," said Richard Webby, a virologist at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. "It's pretty hard to explain some of these large infections and die off without having mammal-to-mammal spread." The strain has shown up in dozens of bird species, including some migrating species, which can spread it beyond the region, scientists told Reuters. As climate change escalates, animals will be forced to move into new territories, mixing with one another in new ways and possibly boosting opportunities for the virus to further mutate. "It's a matter of time before you will detect the first South American strain in North America," said Alonzo Alfaro-Nunez, a viral ecologist at University of Copenhagen. HUMAN RISK The growing concern has prompted the 35 countries in the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to convene regional health experts and officials at a meeting this week in Rio de Janeiro. The group plans to launch the world's first regional commission to oversee bird flu monitoring and response efforts, a PAHO official told Reuters. This has not been previously reported. Since the virus was first detected in Colombia in October 2022, there have been two known cases in humans on the continent, one each in Ecuador and Chile. Both came from exposure to infected birds. While those patients survived, H5N1 bird flu is deadly to humans in roughly 60% of cases worldwide. The World Health Organization is unlikely to raise the risk level for humans from the current "low" without evidence of human-to-human transmission or mutations adapted to human receptors, experts said. Drugmakers, including GSK and Moderna, have said they are developing bird flu vaccines for humans, and have the capacity to produce hundreds of million so doses within months utilizing production lines used for seasonal flu vaccines. "We're seeing (the virus) doing little evolutionary steps that are on the long-term moving towards a potential human infection," said Ralph Vanstreels, a University of California, Davis researcher studying South American variants of H5N1. Every year, Argentina's Peninsula Valdes on the windswept Atlantic coast teems with densely packed elephant seals rearing pups. Last November, Vanstreels came across a grim scene: hundreds of dead and rotting pups on the beach. Researchers estimate 17,400 pups died, nearly all born to the colony that year. For each of those pups to have been infected by birds is highly unlikely, scientists said. Pups usually have contact only with their mothers, leading scientists to suspect this is how it spread. Vanstreels is part of a group of scientists working to trace the virus' genetic mutations in South America. In a draft paper posted on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, they analyzed samples from sea lions, seals and birds from up the coast from Peninsula Valdes. Comparing the genomes from these samples with those collected in North America in 2022 and Asia earlier, the team identified nine new mutations. The same mutations were found in samples collected in 2022 and 2023 in Chile and Peru, which were also hit by mass mortality of sea lions and birds. "This is the first time this virus is so adapted to wildlife," Vanstreels said. "Clearly something happened in Peru and in northern Chile where they acquired these new mutations." In the draft paper, researchers noted that the same mutations were present in one of the continent's two human cases, a 53-year-old man who lived one block from the seashore where seabirds congregated. Researchers said that case "highlights the potential threat posed by these viruses to public health." REGIONAL RESPONSE With health officials and experts meeting in Rio this week, Latin American countries will be pressed to boost disease surveillance in the wild. The region's patchy data and limited resources has left scientists struggling to understand how the disease is spreading in the wild, with the number of cases likely much higher than reported. Some cases are not being sampled or lab-tested, scientists said. Bolivia, for example, did not register a case in the wild last year, though the disease has been detected in surrounding countries, said Manuel Jose Sanchez Vazquez, epidemiology coordinator for PAHO's veterinary health center. Managing the disease response can also be complex, Sanchez noted. Threats to humans are dealt with by public health officials, while threats to poultry or livestock fall to agriculture or veterinary authorities. In wild animals, the purview typically falls to environmental officials. The new regional commission, expected to be announced on Thursday, would aim to set standard protocols for monitoring, handling and reporting cases among various government agencies. It could also help in pooling laboratory resources, Sanchez said. "We are worried and we are vigilant," Sanchez said. "The more adaptation of the virus to mammals, the more likely it is that transmission to humans could happen." (Reporting by Jake Spring; Editing by Katy Daigle and Bill Berkrot) BEIRUT, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Foreign Minister of Cyprus Constantinos Kombos on Tuesday called for intensified joint efforts to resolve the rampant illegal immigration of Syrians from the Lebanese coast to Europe via Cyprus. "The Syrian refugees' issue has become a source of concern for both Lebanon and Cyprus, and it must be solved effectively by addressing the roots of the problem and cooperating more because the situation is getting worse daily," Kombos said during his meeting in Beirut with his Lebanese counterpart, Abdallah Bou Habib, according to the National News Agency. In the process, he added, "the European Union must be part of the solution concerning the Syrian refugees' issue, not part of the problem." For his part, Bou Habib emphasized the importance of assistance from other nations to address the issue. As regards the Israel-Hamas conflict, Bou Habib expressed appreciation to Cyprus for opening a sea corridor to deliver aid to the Palestinian people in Gaza, hoping that the corridor will contribute to reducing hunger there. The first consignment of aid through the Cyprus-based corridor left Tuesday morning for Gaza, with more aid expected to be shipped soon. According to Cypriot media reports, upon arrival in Gaza, the aid will be received by activists from the NOG World Central Kitchen, which will help distribute it to the local population facing dire food shortages. Former President Donald Trump plans to argue in his upcoming New York hush money trial that he committed no wrongdoing because lawyers were involved with the alleged misconduct that brought about his indictment, according to a filing made public Tuesday. Attorneys for the former president said in the filing that part of his defense will be that he "lacked the requisite intent to commit the conduct charged in the indictment," according to NBC News. While President Trump intends to elicit evidence concerning the presence, involvement and advice of lawyers in relevant events giving rise to the charges in the Indictment, he does not intend to assert a formal advice-of-counsel defense," his lawyers wrote. The filing came in response to an order from presiding Judge Juan Merchan to notify the Manhattan district attorney's office by this week if they intended to use the advice-of-counsel defense, which Trump had previously said he planned to do. The district attorney's office requested that notice, according to NBC News, because that argument would entitle them to more information about Trump's correspondence with his attorneys. But the notion that "since there were lawyers representing him, he could not commit crimes" that Trump seems to be arguing is "illogical, nonsensical, and laughable," Bennett Gershman, a law professor at Pace University and former New York prosecutor, told Salon. "Its not exactly clear what Trump is arguing," he said, adding: "Is he arguing that because lawyers were involved he did not or could not violate the law? That is a nonsensical argument. Its a non sequitur. What lawyers is he referring to? Why would the presence of lawyers be a hindrance or obstacle to Trump committing crimes?" Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicted Trump last March on 34 felony charges, alleging he concealed a $130,000 payoff his then-attorney Michael Cohen gave adult film actress Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election to prevent her from going public about a sexual encounter she said she had with Trump in 2006. The former president has denied sleeping with Daniels but did acknowledge repaying Cohen. He has pleaded not guilty, and the trial is slated to begin jury selection on March 25. Bragg's case against Trump is "quite strange" because the former president is being charged with trying to cover up a crime, but not being charged with the crime itself, Gregory Germain, a Syracuse University professor of law, told Salon. "The D.A. has very strong evidence that Trump was trying to cover up the payment," he said. "Whether his reason for the coverup was to hide a campaign finance crime, or to avoid personal or political embarrassment rather than to cover up a crime, is the main weakness in the case" that prosecutors will have to address at trial. Prosecutors from Bragg's office accuse Trump of falsifying the records surrounding his payments to Cohen. Two of three theories the prosecution has raised to show an underlying crime and warrant felony charges argued that Daniels' hush money payments amount to an illegal contribution to Trump's campaign, violating federal and state election law, according to Politico. The third claims Trump intended to breach New York tax law "by inflating and falsely characterizing the reimbursement to Cohen to manipulate its tax consequences." "Trump was surely aware that he was covering up the payments in a convoluted way," Germain said. "Whether his lawyers suggested the arrangement or not doesn't change the fact that he knew it was a coverup. But covering up what he thought was a legal payment is not a crime." In employing the advice-of-counsel defense, "whether lawyer advice is an excuse depends on what the defendant knew and intended," he added. A formal advice-of-counsel defense intends to show the defendant is "innocent of wrongdoing" because he was acting on the advice of lawyers, Gershman explained. Raising the defense would require Trump to prove he "fully disclosed his actions" to his counsel, requested their advice and was informed his conduct was legal, and then acted on the guidance in "good faith belief." To raise the defense, the former president and the involved lawyers would "certainly have to testify to the advice and that he relied on it," Stephen Gillers, a New York University professor of law, told Salon. Trump would have to waive his attorney-client privilege with any lawyer who provided that advice or contrary guidance even if he doesn't mention them in testimony, Gillers explained. Those lawyers could then be called as witnesses and asked about their communications with Trump, subpoenaed for relevant documents and asked to turn over the research that led them to offer the advice. In Tuesday's filing, Trump's lawyers said they would ask ex-Trump attorney Michael Cohen and others involved in the Daniels discussions about Trump's "awareness of counsel's involvement," NBC News reported. But because they're not using a formal advice-of-counsel defense, they don't need to provide Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg with more evidence, they said. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. The move could also be an attempt for Trump and the lawyers to avoid having to testify at trial, "but it won't work," Gillers argued. Trump would have to take the stand to raise the defense unless the judge were to allow its employment with lawyers' testimony alone, "which is not likely." That result would still require Trump to waive his attorney-client privilege and the lawyer to endure "intense and probably embarrassing, even humiliating, cross-examination and subpoenas," he added. Gershman, Germain and Gillers all agreed that nothing will come of the Trump legal team's defense filing. The argument is "completely irrelevant," and Trump has "zero chance" of actually taking the witness stand, Gershman said. The claim is also so "bizarre" that it's unclear how Judge Merchan will respond to it, he added. Merchan may allow Trump to make the argument to the jury, but it isn't poised to be "very persuasive," Germain said, noting the judge doesn't have much to rule on with this matter. "Trump wants to make an argument that he didn't previously plead," Germain said. "Courts are quite liberal in allowing amendments to pleadings. So the judge will probably let him make the argument. But it doesn't stop the case from going forward." NEW YORK (PIX11) Youth incarceration in New York has nearly doubled in the past two years. The spike has led to concerns about overcrowding in juvenile facilities, culminating with a heated exchange during a City Council criminal justice hearing last Friday. Brooklyn Councilwoman Sandy Nurse joins PIX11 to discuss the situation. Watch the video player for the full interview. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. Stanley Black & Decker told the state that it plans to close its Fort Mill manufacturing plant near Carowinds. That decision means the loss of 192 jobs. The company filed a WARN notice on Monday with the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. That document is required when companies plan large closures or layoffs that will impact workers. The 4260 Pleasant Road facility will be closed between May 10 and the end of the year, according to the notice. Stanley Black & Decker makes DEWALT cordless power tools in Fort Mill. In 2017 the company announced it would move into a 345,000-square-foot facility in Lakemont Business Park, across Carowinds Boulevard from the Carowinds amusement park. That move would bring a $31 million investment and 500 new jobs, York County economic development officials said at the time. Stanley Black & Decker officials could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday. The new layoffs filing is the 11th WARN notice in South Carolina this year, but the first for any company in the Rock Hill region. This Google Earth image shows the view from the Carowinds side of Carowinds Boulevard, of the Stanley Black & Decker site in Fort Mill. The plant there will close later this year. Its the second largest in terms of employees impacted in the state, behind only a MAHLE Behr closure in Charleston County at 466 workers. About the Stanley Black & Decker layoffs The Fort Mill plant closure follows an enterprise-wide assessment of the companys manufacturing network and will happen in four phases starting this spring, according to the WARN notice sent by company global vice president of manufacturing operations Steve Maddocks. The first 158 workers will lose their jobs by May 10, followed by 10 more on July 15, according to the notice. A dozen each will be gone by Sept. 15, and by the end of the year. At the end of the process, all positions and jobs at the facility will be permanently eliminated, although it is possible that some employees will be offered transfers to another area, Maddocks wrote. About Stanley Black & Decker According to its website, Stanley Black & Decker began in 1843 and is headquartered in Connecticut. The Fortune 500 company includes brands like DeWalt, Craftsman, Stanley, Cub Cadet, Hustler and Troy-Bilt. It has more than 50,000 employees. Dublin, Pennsylvania, company Alpha Z Charlotte Industrial owns the Stanley Black & Decker building in Fort Mill. Its on almost 37 acres and also includes an address on Rubin Center Drive. The building was constructed in 2018. The owners bought the site in 2019 for $28.8 million, according to county land records. Unless youre chronically online (which most people prefer not to be these days), its near impossible to keep up with all the internet slang and viral trends circulating at any given time. In 2023, twink death began trending on Twitter, leading to some interesting discourse about how harshly people in the public eye are judged based on their natural aging process especially those who entered the industry at a young age and grew into adulthood as the world watched on. What Is Twink Death? If youre not familiar, Dictionary.com defines a twink as a young, attractive gay man with a slim, boyish appearance. Leonardo DiCaprio (who rose to fame throughout the 90s thanks to leading roles in Titanic, Whats Eating Gilbert Grape and more) was the public figure being bashed in the original viral tweet. A throwback image from the early days of his career alongside him as a 48-year-old was described as twink death and called a terrifying thing, causing fans to rush to DiCaprios defense. More recently, Dune actor Timothee Chalamet moving toward his 30s has the phrase coming up in conversation once again. Whats interesting is that neither of these actors have come out as members of the LGBTQ+ community, and theyve consistently been in public relationships with women. Nevertheless, their boyish good looks cause them to be lumped into the twink category alongside people like Prince and Todrick Hall. When examining how entertainers of color change in appearance as they get older versus their White counterparts, the phrase Black dont crack has been thrown around for decades. If youre concerned about your favorite stars falling victim to twink death, weve rounded up some examples who are aging like fine wine with no signs of slowing down. Let us know in the comments which other actors you would add to our list! Michael Ealy Being Mary Jane episode 411 Michael Ealy as Justin Talbot. (Photo: BET) Piercing blue eyes like those that Michael Ealy is blessed with make his face an incredibly welcome inclusion in so many classic Black movies from across the past two decades. 2002s Barbershop is where the 50-year-old got his big break, though 2 Fast 2 Furious, Think Like a Man (and its sequel), The Intruder and About Last Night are standouts from his filmography as well. LL Cool J Twink Death pictured: LL Cool J Even in his mid-50s, LL Cool Js sweet smile manages to melt our hearts the same way it did throughout the late 90s and early 2000s. At the time, the rapper-turned-actor was appearing in projects like Deep Blue Sea, In Too Deep, Any Given Sunday and Charlies Angels. In 2006 he appeared opposite Queen Latifah in the feel-good romantic comedy, Last Holiday, reminding viewers exactly why hes so crush-worthy. All this time later, social media users continue to hype up Cool J during debates about the finest oldheads in Hollywood, even arguing amongst themselves whos more desirable between the New York native and Method Man. Shemar Moore On Criminal Minds, Shemar Moores suave portrayal of Derek Morgan either had you drooling and dreaming of dating him, or rolling your eyes at his constant baby girls and other pet names for on-screen co-worker Penelope Garcia. No matter how you feel about his most famous TV role, its impossible to deny that the 53-year-old looks fantastic, and only seems to be embracing his youthfulness from the inside out since the birth of his first daughter in 2023. Boris Kodjoe There are a lot of beautiful Black models out there, but none of them are beating the twink death allegations quite like Boris Kodjoe. The Austria-born entertainer looks virtually identical to versions of himself from years before, and his skin looks to be almost totally devoid of wrinkles ahead of his 51st birthday on March 8th. If the father of two looks familiar, you might recognize him from Station 19, Brown Sugar or Doing Hard Time, though hes been booked and busy since he made his debut in a 1995 TLC music video. Pharrell Williams Virgina Beach-born multi-talent Pharrell Williams has received so many compliments about his flawless complexion that the only logical next step was for him to launch a skincare collection. His Humanrace brand boasts products that will keep both your face and body looking and feeling fresh, though we cant promise youll look as youthful as The Neptunes member unless youre also willing to take some of his trendsetting style risks. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday said the crisis in Haiti "has been a long unfolding story" that will require coordination from the international community to solve. The suffering of the Haitian people, Blinken said, can only be solved by a functioning democracy as well as humanitarian and developmental assistance to rebuild the economy. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a news conference at the State Department Harry S. Truman headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. "Fundamentally, we need to see security, because its very hard to do either of the first two things in an environment that is profoundly insecure," Blinken said. In recent weeks, Haiti has been overrun by gangs, effectively shutting the country off from the rest of the world. PENTAGON ALERTED TO POTENTIAL MARITIME MASS MIGRATION FROM HAITI AMID CARIBBEAN NATION'S SPIRALING CONFLICT The attacks began when Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry was in Kenya to push for the U.N.-backed deployment of a Kenyan police force which has been temporarily suspended. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Since late last month, armed men in the capital of Port-au-Prince have set fire to police stations and stormed the country's two biggest prisons, releasing more than 4,000 inmates. Among those who fled are gang leaders of at least seven communities, according to a new report by the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti, known as BINUH. As of Sunday, gunmen had attacked, looted or torched at least 30 state institutions, more than 600 homes and private businesses and nearly 500 public and private vehicles, BINUH said. Gangs also have attacked neighborhoods in a rampage that has left scores dead and more than 15,000 homeless. More than 130 people were killed between Feb. 27 and March 8. HAITI'S FUTURE GOVERNANCE FACES STRUGGLE BETWEEN POLITICAL POWER AND GANG INFLUENCE Blinken met with Caribbean leaders in Jamaica earlier this week to search for a solution to the crisis. Officials came up with a plan to install a temporary presidential council responsible for selecting an interim prime minister and a council of ministers that would attempt to chart a new path. By Wednesday, however, the plan was showing some cracks after some political parties signaled their disapproval. Harvey, who has been stuck in Puerto Rico, said Tuesday he would resign once the council was in place, saying that his government "cannot remain insensitive to this situation." A policeman throws tear gas as people demonstrate over the rise in the cost of living in Petit-Goave, Haiti, on Sept. 14, 2023. The nine-member council has seven positions with voting powers. The remaining two nonvoting positions would go to a member of Haiti's civil society and its religious sector. It was not immediately clear who would be awarded a position on the council if it was rejected by certain political parties. Blinken said he had spoken with Kenyan President William Ruto, who confirmed his countrys preparedness to lead a mission into Haiti once the council is established. Blinken also reiterated the U.S. pledge of $300 million to support a multinational security mission to Haiti. That includes $200 million from the Department of Defense and another $100 coming from the rest of the U.S. government. "Having done all this work, we should be in a place where that mission goes forward," Blinken said. "It will, we believe, help reestablish security and take back control of the country from gangs." Original article source: Blinken says crisis in Haiti is 'long unfolding story' as US pledges millions to help stabilize country Ruins are pictured near the Fish Creek area of Bears Ears National Monument in San Juan County, Utah, on May 18, 2018. (Kyle Dunphey/Utah News Dispatch) The federal government has unveiled its new plan to manage Bears Ears National Monument in a first-of-its-kind collaboration between five tribal nations and the Bureau of Land Management that seeks to emphasize Traditional Indigenous Knowledge. Its a big step forward for the controversial monument, which was designated by former President Barack Obama, reduced in size by former President Donald Trump, restored by current President Joe Biden, then challenged in court by the state of Utah in a lawsuit that could make it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. The plan released last week covers everything from road closures and motorized use, to livestock grazing and resource management. Its what BLM Utah director Greg Sheehan calls the next step in the Bears Ears National Monument planning process. I greatly appreciate the extensive knowledge provided by the commission and the state, and welcome substantive public input as the vital next step in considering the alternatives in the draft, Sheehan said in a statement. Bear Ears plan is a collaboration between Native tribes and the federal government The plan is a product of collaboration between the Ute Indian Tribe, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Zuni Tribe, Hopi Tribe and the Navajo Nation which make up the Bears Ears Commission and the federal government. According to the nearly 700-page draft management plan and environmental impact statement released last Friday, the BLM is eying alternative E, one of six possible management plans. Alternative E emphasizes Traditional Indigenous Knowledge and a holistic approach to stewardship of this sacred landscape that addresses tangible and intangible aspects of Bears Ears, the plan states. It would prohibit recreational shooting inside Bears Ears, while restricting livestock grazing in about 170,000 of the monuments 1.36 million acres. About 570,000 acres of the monument would be closed to vehicles, while an additional 795,000 acres would be managed as OHV limited areas meaning motorized use is limited to certain times or designated routes. The plan also describes an approach to vegetation management focused on indigenous practices that use techniques and natural processes to restore ecosystems, return natural fire intervals, vegetation conditions and landscape characteristics. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US The draft resource management plan represents the culmination of our shared knowledge and insights, offered willingly to federal agencies for the betterment of the monument. Our ancestors have faithfully safeguarded this land for centuries, and as collaborative stewards, we pledge to uphold this sacred duty into the boundless future, said Curtis Yanito, Navajo Nation Council member and Bears Ears commissioner, in a statement. The BLM also announced a 90-day public comment period, clarifying in its draft plan that Alternative E is the agencys preferred alternative, but the final record of decision is still pending. At the end of the comment period, the BLM could identify a different alternative, or a combination of alternatives. The other options identified include a range from taking no action at all, to plans that promote building infrastructure and facilities and take a more laissez-faire approach to resource management. While the draft management plan offers five different alternatives, public feedback will help us to refine the final plan, said Barbara Van Alstine, acting Manti-La Sal Forest supervisor. Its through these public comments we are able to find the best course forward. Utah sued over Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante national monuments in 2022, arguing the Antiquities Act did not grant Biden the authority to issue such a large land designation. The case was dismissed in August by a U.S. District Judge but within days Utah filed an appeal with the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox has previously said he expects the case to end up before the U.S. Supreme Court. Utah News Dispatch, like the Idaho Capital sun, is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Utah News Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor McKenzie Romero for questions: info@utahnewsdispatch.com. Follow Utah News Dispatch on Facebook and Twitter. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post BLM looks to emphasize indigenous knowledge with newly unveiled Bears Ears management plan appeared first on Idaho Capital Sun. Polish farmers near the Dorohusk checkpoint have decided to let the lorries heading to Ukraine pass through the Yahodyn checkpoint, but they will not halt their blockade of vehicles leaving Ukraine. Source: European Pravda with reference to RMF24 Details: Wojciech Los, the leader of the protest, called it a "gesture" in favour of Ukrainian drivers "so that they can come back to their families". He noted that farmers have been blocking the Polish-Ukrainian border for 35 days. "Nobody turns to us, but we have reached an agreement with the head of the Dorohusk municipality and the drivers to be humane and let them go home," he said. When asked how long the checkpoint would be open for, Los responded that "we are just opening the border but do not know when exactly so far". At the same time, he noted that the protesters will remain near the border crossing in Dorohusk. "We are letting Ukrainian drivers out of Poland, but the blockade of trucks heading from Ukraine to Poland will constantly be ongoing," Los added. A representative of the Chelm city police reported that the queue to the Dorohusk crossing is 8 km long, consisting of 300 lorries. They have to wait for about 70 hours to pass. At the moment, the protesters are letting two lorries per hour pass towards Ukraine. Background: In February, farmers in Poland resumed all-national protests, blocking the checkpoints at the border with Ukraine and disrupting the operation of ports and roads. Support UP or become our patron! Blood-based screening tests are more acceptable to people than colonoscopy and stool tests and likely will increase screening compliance, said the studys corresponding author, Dr. William Grady, a gastroenterologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle. Photo courtesy of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center NEW YORK, March 13 (UPI) -- A blood test to screen for colorectal cancer in average-risk individuals without symptoms accurately detected the malignancy in 83% of people confirmed to have the disease, a study released Wednesday showed. The study was published in The New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers said the blood test's accuracy rate for colorectal cancer is similar to at-home stool tests. It's a promising step, they said, to developing more accessible screening tools for catching the disease early -- when it's easier to treat. The test would could improve upon low levels of colorectal cancer screening -- a major cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States that results in some 50,000 deaths each year. That's because in certain populations, such as adults ages 45 to 49, fewer than half of people who are offered screening with a stool-based test or colonoscopy elect to do neither, the study's corresponding author, Dr. William Grady, a gastroenterologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, told UPI via email. "Blood-based screening tests are more acceptable to people than colonoscopy and stool tests and likely will increase screening compliance.," said Grady, who is the medical director of Fred Hutch's Gastrointestinal Cancer Prevention Program. "This would lead to fewer colorectal cancer-related deaths." These findings come from the ECLIPSE study, a multisite clinical trial of nearly 8,000 people ages 45 to 84. Led and funded by Guardant Health Inc., a precision oncology company in Palo Alto, Calif., the trial validated the performance of what is called the Shield test using colonoscopy -- the gold standard of screening -- to confirm the results. In December, Guardant Health announced that the Food and Drug Administration is tentatively scheduled to review the premarket approval application for the Shield test March 28. Currently, the cash-pay price would be $895. "Once the test is FDA-approved, we expect Medicare coverage to follow," Guardant Health spokesman Michael Weist told UPI via email. "And we will work with private and government payers to finalize pricing, with our goal being to provide the broadest access to eligible individuals with as minimal out-of-pocket costs to patients as possible." The test detects colorectal cancer signals in the blood from DNA that tumors shed. This is called circulating tumor DNA, and it's also being used in "liquid biopsy" tests to monitor for recurrence in people treated for cancer. Of the 7,861 people included in the report, 83.1% of those with colorectal cancer confirmed by colonoscopy had a positive blood test for circulating tumor DNA. Meanwhile 16.9% had a negative test -- in which a colonoscopy indicated colorectal cancer but the ctDNA test did not. The test was most sensitive for colorectal cancers, including early-stage malignancies. It was less sensitive for advanced precancerous lesions, which can progress to cancer over time. Colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer mortality in adults in the United States and is expected to account for 53,010 deaths in 2024, according to the American Cancer Society. While death rates from colorectal cancer in older adults have declined, rates among those under age 55 have increased by about 1% a year since the mid-2000s. Current guidelines recommend that people at average risk begin regular screening at age 45. Colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer for people under age 50, Grady said, noting that having a blood-based test available during routine doctor's visits could help more people be screened. The blood test's sensitivity for colorectal cancer is similar to stool-based tests and lower than that of colonoscopy, which Grady still considers the most accurate screening test for colorectal cancer. It's intended for average-risk individuals with no family history of colorectal cancer and no personal history of colorectal cancer or advanced polyps or large polyps, he said. Grady added that the people enrolled in the trial reflected U.S. demographics, including proportional enrollment of African American/Black, Hispanic and Asian Americans populations. "This means the results of the Shield test are generally applicable to all people living in the U.S.," he said, adding that the novel and promising technology is the basis for blood-based cancer screening under investigation for breast cancer, lung cancer and other malignancies. The blood test represents "a clear advance" to offer patients who don't want to have a colonoscopy, but it's not a substitute for the gold-standard procedure, Dr. Harshabad Singh, an oncologist in Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's gastrointestinal program in Boston, told UPI in a telephone interview. He was not involved in the research. "We cannot forgo colonoscopy based on these data," Singh said, adding that "colonoscopy not only identifies cancers but intervenes on advanced precancerous lesions, which this test isn't sensitive enough to identify." Dr. Alan Venook, a professor of medical oncology and translational research at the University of California-San Francisco, told UPI in a telephone interview that "this test is an early effort, but it can be built on -- it is not a sea change at this point." Venook added that "numerically, it is not any different from stool testing. Ideally, the study should have done both stool sampling as well as the blood sampling. There will probably be better screenings down the road." While the test appears very promising, nearly 17 out of every 100 patients who use it and have cancer will receive a negative result, Dr. Ronald Charles, program director of the colon and rectal surgery residency at University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center in Cleveland, told UPI via email. "The ultimate goal is to find a test that can detect polyps and colon cancer at an early stage," said Charles, who also is an assistant professor of surgery at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland. "The hope is that the test will find cancer and polyps as close as possible to 100% of the time." Cost also is a consideration. "This is a funded study by a company with financial interest, so some bias may exist. In the past, these types of tests have cost thousands of dollars, but it does appear that the company is trying to make the test available for about $900, which is an improvement," Dr. Sean Langenfeld, chief of the division of colon and rectal surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, told UPI via email. "Colorectal cancer is common, deadly and preventable," Langenfeld said. Still, "many members of the general public will not follow through with stool-based screening or colonoscopy due to fears regarding the procedure and the sensitive nature of the topic." He added, "We thus have two jobs -- first, destigmatize screening, and second, to find effective screening alternatives for those who simply refuse the currently available tests." The European Investment Bank (EIB) is in talks to invest in defense companies amid heightened urgency to scale up Europe's defense industry, Bloomberg reported on March 13. The colossal output of the Russian military-industrial complex since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine has put the performance of the European defense industry into sharp relief. The EU failed on its promise to deliver 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine between March 2023 and 2024, while Russia is reportedly set to produce nearly three times as many artillery munitions as the West this year. According to Bloomberg, the move would require the EIB to extend its definition of dual-use goods, which are categorized as items, software, and technology that have both civilian and military uses. The EIB launched its Strategic European Security Initiative in 2022, paving the way for investments in technology, civilian security, and drones. This made funding available "for dual-use projects with a chiefly civilian purpose," Bloomberg said. Weapons and ammunition "are currently on a list of excluded activities and aren't eligible for financing," Bloomberg said, like other items that are defined as "dedicated to military or police use." The EIB is the lending arm of the European Union and typically provides finance to initiatives in the spheres of sustainability, innovation, urban development, small- and medium-sized enterprises, and renewable energy. Since the start of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the EIB has disbursed over 1.7 billion euros ($1.86 billion) to help finance emergency repairs to the countrys ravaged infrastructure. Read also: We have to speed up: European Investment Bank head Hoyer calls for swift reconstruction of Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. CHESTERFIELD, Mo. Police were called for a body recovery on Johnson Island in the Missouri River Tuesday, according to officials. Around 4:30 p.m., marine division troopers entered the river around a mile downstream from Daniel Boone Bridge to recover the remains, which were on the river bank. Missouri State Highway Patrol will be conducting an investigation. This is a developing story. More will be posted as it comes into the FOX 2 newsroom. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. Maggioni with Prince Khaled and Alkhoshaibi at the meeting. Raimondi Cranes, a heritage manufacturer of intelligently-designed scalable heavy lifting solutions, has announced the appointment of Luigi Maggioni as its new Group Chief Executive Officer. An industry veteran with 16 years of experience in European manufacturing, Maggioni is widely acknowledged as one of Europes leading senior executives. As former CEO of TK Elevator overseeing nine countries, his career achievements include extensive experience in managing global large-scale enterprises and corporate internationalization, alongside effective M&A, said the company in a statement. The Board of Directors, represented by Raimondi Chairman Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, together with Executive Vice Chairman Ahmed Alkhoshaibi, formalized Maggionis appointment during their official visit to company headquarters in Milan, Italy. The key appointment builds on Raimondis recent corporate invigoration programme, including the launch of the company vision and brand identity. On the production front, the Italian group saw a significant number of new models rolled out, with the wider aim of increasing global market share. Welcoming him into the fold, Prince Khaled said: "Maggioni joins Raimondi Cranes bringing with him years of high-level executive experience. His recruitment reflects the companys intentions to focus on upward trajectory and an overall business transformation." "His appointment is in line with the companys vision, aiming for an intersection of innovation and exemplary quality," stated Prince Khaled. Building on Raimondis evolution and its mission of becoming the most responsive global leader in heavy lifting solutions, Maggionis CEO role extends to the entire conglomerate, including subsidiaries in Turkey and across the Middle East, he added. Strategically, Maggioni will initially focus on maximising production efficiency, quality control excellence, and aggressive expansion under the Made in Italy hallmark. Additionally, drawing on various segment strengths, he intends to purposefully unify the wider group, thereby unlocking further growth potential. Shortly after Maggionis appointment, Raimondis senior leadership team welcomed additional new recruits, meant to bolster and execute tailored operational and financial strategies, to better harness competitive advantages. "I welcome this role as both a personal and corporate opportunity to carve out a new path for one of Europes homegrown manufacturers," said Maggioni, remarking on his appointment. "I am proud to be joining a heritage entity like Raimondi, founded on a prestigious past. The current day company has a fresh approach to innovative R&D, and is steadfast in its core values," he stated. "I firmly believe in the vision of the Raimondi Board of Directors. I am committed to injecting energy and momentum into activating the larger conglomerates mission, with the support of an experienced group of multinational team members," noted Maggioni. "The passion, vigour, and determination, coupled with a strategic business development plan of action, will facilitate the internationalisation of the brand while increasing the market share," he added. Maggioni said his upcoming plans include building out digital operations, mastering the after-sales offer and other initiatives. Further, M&A and consolidations will be key strategies to advance the conglomerate's overarching vision, he added.-TradeArabia News Service SUVA, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has called for collective effort to tackle Fiji's growing HIV epidemic, as Fiji is one of top two countries in the Asia-Pacific region with rapidly rising new HIV infections, after the Philippines. The UNAIDS estimated that between 2010 and 2022, new infections in Fiji increased 260 percent, with 2,000 people living with HIV in the country in 2022, the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation reported on Wednesday. It said Fiji needs rapid action to strengthen national HIV surveillance system and have a more accurate picture of the epidemic's dynamics. The UNAIDS called for a comprehensive response that addresses the needs of all vulnerable people, including children, young people, women of childbearing age, and key populations. According to Fiji's Health Ministry, the country recorded an alarming 415 new HIV cases in 2023 compared to 245 cases in 2022. The ministry said unsafe sexual practices and use of injectable drugs are contributing to the rise of HIV cases in Fiji. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) called Rep. Ken Bucks (R-Colo.) decision to resign early weak sauce but said she would not be resigning to run in the special election to fill his seat. Boebert represents the states 3rd Congressional District, which includes the Western Slope and much of southern Colorado. She announced late last year, however, that she would run for Bucks seat, which is the 4th District in eastern Colorado, after Buck announced he would not seek reelection. But Buck moved up his retirement, saying Tuesday he plans to leave Congress at the end of next week. The decision triggers a special election this summer to fill out the remainder of his term and threatens Boeberts chances of being elected to his seat. The development raised questions about whether Boebert would try to fill Bucks seat for the remainder of his term. However, Boebert told The Hill: Im not leaving my constituents in the 3rd district. Boebert said shes still planning to run in the GOP primary in June to serve the full two-year term in the 4th District and criticized Bucks decision to leave his House seat early in a statement issued through her campaign. Ken Bucks announcement yesterday was a gift to the Uniparty. The establishment concocted a swampy backroom deal to try to rig an election Im winning by 25 points, she said. Forcing an unnecessary Special Election on the same day as the Primary Election will confuse voters, result in a lame duck Congressman on day one, and leave the 4th District with no representation for more than three months. The 4th District deserves better. Boebert also touted that she was the only Trump-endorsed, America First candidate in this race. Boebert, who entered Congress in 2020, is in a tough spot politically. The Colorado Republican barely won reelection in the states 3rd District against Democrat Adam Frisch in 2022. Her decision to switch districts was seen as a move to avoid losing in her current district, where Frisch has announced he is running again. But the special election triggered by Bucks earlier-than-expected retirement has thrown a wrench in her electoral prospects. Each party gets to nominate a candidate to face off in the June 25 special election held the same day as the states primaries. Because Bucks district is reliably red, whichever Republican gets chosen to compete in the special election is better positioned to win the GOP primary for the two-year term to serve in the district beginning in January because voters will weigh in on both races on the same day. Boebert would have had to resign from her seat to compete in the special election for Bucks seat, which would have further imperiled the GOP majority in the House. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Boeing is taking immediate actions to address issues relating to its manufacturing processes, the company told staff in a memo Tuesday, after an audit by the Federal Aviation Administration found a series of problems with the aircraft makers production methods. The memo from Stan Deal, president of Boeings commercial plane division, included details about how the company will address quality lapses. The FAAs six-week review was launched after a panel blew off one of Boeings 737 Max 9 jetliners during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. Boeing Executives Cant Keep Getting Away With This The FAA announced last week that it found multiple instances in which Boeing and one of its suppliers had failed to adhere to quality-control requirements, with a New York Times report alleging that Boeing failed in 33 out of 89 aspects of production reviewed at the companys plant in Renton, Washington. Deal wrote in his memo that the vast majority of the compliance failure involved employees not following Boeings approved procedures, according to the Associated Press. He said one of the steps the company would take to address the situation involved working with each employee noted with a non-compliance during the audit to ensure they fully understand the work instructions and procedures. He added that weekly compliance check are also being introduced for each of the work teams at the Renton plantswhere the Max jets are assembledand said that Boeing will simplify and streamline our processes after a panel of outside industry and government experts said existing procedures for safety changed too frequently and created confusion among workers. The FAAs audit came after a door plug blew out of a Boeing 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight on Jan. 5. The plane made an emergency landing with a large hole in its fuselage, and no one was injured in the incident. The day before the blowout, the airlines workers wanted to take the plane out of service the following night for a maintenance check after becoming concerned about warning lights on the aircraft, according to the Times, but Alaska kept the plane in service before the check took place. The carrier told AP the scheduled maintenance plan had been in line with all processes and procedures and that nothing required or suggested that the aircraft needed to be pulled from service. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. PINEVILLE, La. (KLFY) Former Boeing employee and whistleblower who was found dead in South Carolina was a Pineville, La. native. John Barnett, 62, of Pineville, worked as a Boeing employee for 32 years before retiring in 2017. Barnett was in the midst of a whistleblower retaliation case against Boeing and had been in Charleston, South Carolina to appear for further questioning. After failing to appear, Barnett was later found dead in his truck in a hotel parking lot. Rare two-faced calf born in Acadiana The Charleston County Coroner confirmed Barnetts death, and said in a news release he died from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The Charleston Police Department have also released an incident/investigation report. The investigation is reportedly ongoing. incident-2403740-redacted-j-barnettDownload Barnett had worked as a quality manager at Boeings North Charleston plant which manufactured the 787 Dreamliner. He had been outspoken towards Boeings production quality, sharing with the New York times in 2017 and BBC in 2019 about serious problems in the production of the companies planes. Boeing denied these claims. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now KLFY Daily Digest A 2017 review by the Federal Aviation Administration of the South Carolina factory found many problems with airplane parts, lending more truth to Barnetts allegations. The last several months Boeing has drawn much attention due to a series of incidents involving their planes. In January, a door plug flew off of an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max in Oregon, prompting an emergency landing. On Monday, at least 50 people were injured by what officials described as strong movement on a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner traveling from Sydney to Auckland, New Zealand. Latest Posts For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLFY.com. An Army bomb disposal unit has been sent to a residential street to deal with an "ongoing incident", police have said. Greater Manchester Police said emergency services were deployed to Ellesmere Street in Failsworth. A force spokesman said: "Explosive Ordinance Disposal have been tasked to attend the scene and inspect the property." Several houses have been evacuated as a precaution, he added. A police cordon was in place and people were being asked to avoid the area. Why not follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk GENEVA COUNTY, Ala (WDHN) One of two charged in a kidnapping and attempted murder in rural Geneva County from early 2024 has been granted a bond reduction during a court hearing this week. During a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, Shailyn Diazs bond was reduced from $150,000 to $100,000. Diaz and Robert Lane Hall were arrested in early January and charged with one count of attempted murder and one count of kidnapping in the first degree in the stabbing of Matthew Angelino. Hall is held in the Geneva County Jail on a $250,000 bond. According to the Geneva County Sheriffs Office, Diaz lured Angelino onto a fake date on Sunday, January 7, where they rode around together on rural Geneva County roads with Hall hiding in the trunk of Diazs car. Geneva County Investigator Cory Dean says after pulling over, Diaz convinced Angelino to wear handcuffs and a blindfold before Hall exited the trunk, snuck into the backseat, and began choking Angelino with a cord and stabbing him with a knife. Diaz opened the door, and Hall drug Angelino out of the car by the cord around his neck and stabbed him several times on the side of the road before driving away, leaving him to die, Investigator Dean says. Geneva County Sheriff Tony Helms said Angelino suffered 19 stab wounds. Angelino was later found by a driver on Holmes Creek Road, still wearing handcuffs with the cord around his neck. Sheriff Helms tells WDHN that Hall and Diaz admitted to the crime after their arrest. Robert Lane Hall (Courtesy of the Geneva County Sheriffs Office) For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDHN - wdhn.com. BOYNTON BEACH Homeowners in the Valencia Reserve development west of Boynton Beach have overwhelmingly approved a referendum calling for the expenditure of $9.3 million to rebuild their 13-year-old, 42,000-square-foot clubhouse. That's about $8,000 for each of the 1,043 homeowners. It would be one of the most expensive renovation projects undertaken in Palm Beach County at a non-golf course community. Theresa Fowler, who worked for GL Homes while Valencia Reserve was being built but is now a real estate agent, said more older communities are realizing they need to stay competitive with those communities that have updated their facilities and with new ones coming on the market. The first thing that buyers look at are amenities, and if they are worn and tired, buyers often move on, she said. We were, you could say, trying to keep up with the Joneses, said Jeffrey Schepp, president of the Valencia Reserve Homeowners Association. We were the oldest Valencia that had not done a renovation. Comedians performing in our showroom would sometimes make fun of how aged it looked. It kind of resembled your grandmothers living room. Schepp noted that 943 of the 1,043 homeowners voted, a turnout of 90% one that has never before been reached. Among those, more than 84% voted to approve the project. Valencia Reserve, built between 2009 and 2013, is a 55-plus community located off Lyons Road west of Boynton Beach. It stretches west with another entrance on State Road 7. What is the Valencia Reserve development west of Boynton? An artist's rendering of the new lobby at the clubhouse in Valencia Reserve, west of Boynton Beach. Homeowners recently approved a $9.3 million referendum to rebuild the facility. Many of the Valencia Reserve buyers are from the greater New York and Philadelphia area, a major market for GL Homes for the past 25 years. The homebuilder is currently building its 11th Valencia-named development in Palm Beach County; all of the Valencias are 55-plus communities. Schepp said he was elated with the outcome of the referendum. I was totally floored, said Schepp, of how residents overwhelmingly supported the project. It is a lot of money, and you are always going to get some people who are not going to support an improvement like this, but it was time. We had to do it. The clubhouse needed a refresh and our people realized that. Several 55-plus communities in Palm Beach County have updated clubhouses in recent years or are in the process of doing so, including Valencia Lakes, Venetian Isles, Valencia Shores and Valencia Isles. New nearby Valencias, built by GL Homes, features state-of-the art clubhouses that offer better amenities than the older Valencias. Rendering of the new clubhouse at Valencia Reserve, west of Boynton Beach. Homeowners recently approved a $9.3 million referendum to rebuild the 42,000-square foot facility. The current clubhouse features a cafe, a showroom, a fitness center, several card rooms, a room for arts and crafts and a business center/library. The HOA held two forums to explain why the work was needed. Both drew a capacity audience of 750 people and additional homeowners viewed the sessions through Zoom. We went out of our way to detail this as much as possible and get out ahead of objections, Schepp said. MORE: Editorial: The arrogance of west Boynton water-ski lake developers has been tolerated long enough This embedded content is not available in your region. Gerald Garfin, a resident of Valencias Reserve, said he voted for the improvement, noting that the board and the committee promoting the work did an excellent job explaining what the community would be getting and why it was important for it to be done. "It was very impressive," he said, and the overwhelming yes vote shows that. Michael Heiserman, a licensed architect, was one of the 149 homeowners who voted against the project. "They are overpaying when you consider that this is complete renovation," he noted. "We are not adding any new space. And there are things that are included that are not needed like extra seating for the cafe." Fowler, the former GL Home employee, oversaw the opening of the clubhouse in 2011 for the homebuilder. At the time, she called it the premier clubhouse in the county. "It really was back then, but time takes it toll," she said. Fowler noted that Valencia Lakes is going through its second capital improvement program. It was the first Valencia built by GL Homes. It opened in 1999. RELATED: Thumbs up for GL Homes' 322-unit townhouse project west of Boca Raton RELATED: Lotus Edge to get large walls and wide buffers to protect homeowners from high school impacts RELATED: GL Homes settles lawsuit with Valencia Sound; HOA will refund buyers charged $5,000 When Fowler worked at Valencia Reserve, homes were priced in the $200,000s. GL Homes' newest development, Valencia Grand, is just to the south of Valencia Reserve. The starting point for houses there now is more than $1 million. I think it was a smart move for Valencia Reserve to do this, Fowler said. It was a way to protect the investments of homeowners. There has been a turnover. Many of the people who bought at Valencia Reserve paid a lot more for their homes than the original buyers. They are the ones that probably were strongly in favor of redoing the Clubhouse. What is Valencia Reserve getting for $9.3 million? The footprint wont change but the entire clubhouse will be updated. Rooms will be repurposed. A 161-inch giant TV screen will be installed in the showroom along with two smaller screens, making for great Super Bowl parties, Schepp said. New tile flooring and carpeting will be installed. There will be a loop system for people who are hard of hearing. The cafe will get a new kitchen along with 48 more seats. One negative is that the existing clubhouse will be closed for about a year. Schepp said he is in discussions with other Valencias to see if some of their facilities can be used. A 40-by-40-foot air-conditioned tent will be installed for socializing and card games while the clubhouse is reconstructed. No other Valencia has ever done that during a renovation, Schepp said. The HOA hopes to have a shovel in the ground by Thanksgiving and expects the project to be completed within 14 months once construction begins. Mike Diamond is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. He covers Palm Beach County government and transportation. You can reach him at mdiamond@pbpost.com. Help support local journalism. Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Boynton Beach's Valencia Reserve is getting a renovated clubhouse SOLON, Ohio (WJW) A Tuesday evening brawl involving about a dozen people ended in gunfire, according to police. Officers responded to a report of shots fired just before 5 p.m. at Solon Park Apartments along Park North Drive. Witnesses reported a large group of people were fighting outside and that they heard what sounded like gunshots. Some NE Ohioans confused by new street sign with flashing lights: Police This embedded content is not available in your region. Investigators learned the fight started as a domestic dispute between a 23-year-old man and a 27-year-old woman who lived at the apartments. The two called people they knew to intervene. As the rival groups arrived on scene, a physical fight broke out, involving 12 to 15 people, according to witness accounts, reads the release. The fight broke up after a gun was fired during the fracas. Police officers detained five people from the apartments, and interviewed them at the police department. A 29-year-old Euclid man admitted to firing a weapon into the air. He was treated at a local hospital for a possible head injury. Everyone who was detained was later released without charges. Video: Puppy stolen from Petland in Parma Officers also stopped three vehicles spotted leaving the scene. From one of those vehicles, they arrested a 22-year-old Cleveland man on an outstanding warrant for a felonious assault charge. Five other adults were released. No injuries or property damage from gunfire were reported. Several people believed to have been involved in the fight appeared disheveled or had superficial injuries, according to the report. They all refused treatment. Officers recovered four shell casings outside the apartment building, as well as five firearms from one of the apartments. Anyone with information on the incident is urged to email Detective Jim Fiktus at jfiktus@solonohio.org. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. (Reuters) - A Brazilian court on Wednesday suspended multiple criminal lawsuits against Vale's Chief Executive Fabio Schvartsman over the deadly 2019 collapse of a tailings dam at a mine owned by the company. A Minas Gerais state court said in a statement to press that public prosecutors had not presented enough evidence of criminal conduct by Schvartsman. The court said it had not discussed the former Vale CEO's innocence or culpability. The court did not respond to a Reuters inquiry on the number of lawsuits dismissed. Vale said it was not involved in Schvartsman's appeal for the lawsuits' suspension. His defense said in a statement that the decision recognizes the non-existence of any act or omission by him with any causal link with the dam collapse. A tailings dam at a Vale iron ore mine in the city of Brumadinho, located in Minas Gerais, collapsed in early 2019, killing 270 people, while also damaging homes, forests and rivers. The court said new cases against Schvartsman over Brumadinho case can be filed by prosecutors. Criminal lawsuits against another fifteen people were not affected by Wednesday's decision, it added, as it only encompass Schvartsman's case. (Reporting by Patricia Vilas Boas in Sao Paulo; additional reporting by Marta Nogueira in Rio de Janeiro; writing by Andre Romani; EDiting by Alistair Bell) LUANDA, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank has granted Angola 300 million U.S. dollars to help it diversify its economy. The funding for the "Diversifica Mais (D+)" project was announced Tuesday in Luanda, the Angolan capital. The project focuses on accelerating Angola's "sustainable and geographically balanced" economic diversification, with the private sector as the main actor, according to Ivan dos Santos, the Angolan secretary of state for public investment. One of the project's objectives is to improve the regulatory and institutional environment for trade, company registration and growth, and financial services, especially for companies owned or managed by women, which is expected to absorb 40 million dollars, Santos said. He said that 12,000 private companies are expected to directly benefit from the project. Statement: A woman was sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12. We wouldn't be OK with this happening in a third-world country. This is the United States of America. Delivering the Republican response to President Joe Bidens State of the Union address, U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told the harrowing story of a woman who was sex trafficked by drug cartels when she was 12. In the same breath, Britt blamed Biden for not only creating but inviting a crisis at the U.S. southern border. Britt listed actions Biden took in his first 100 days in office and said she took a different approach, traveling to the U.S.-Mexico border when she took office in 2023. "That's where I spoke to a woman who shared her story with me. She had been sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12," Britt said. "She told me not just that she was raped every day. But how many times a day she was raped. The cartels put her on a mattress in a shoebox of a room and they sent men through that door over and over again for hours and hours on end." "We wouldn't be OK with this happening in a third-world country. This is the United States of America," Britt continued. "And it is past time, in my opinion, that we start acting like it. President Biden's border policies are a disgrace. This crisis is despicable. And the truth is it is almost entirely preventable." But the woman Britt was speaking about was trafficked in the 2000s in central Mexico, not in the U.S. or during Bidens presidency. The survivor has said it was not a drug cartel that trafficked her, and PolitiFact found no evidence that she was trying to migrate to the U.S. when it happened. Jonathan Katz, a freelance journalist and former The Associated Press reporter, posted a video March 8 on TikTok fact-checking Britts retelling of the events notably that this did not happen during Bidens presidency, or in the United States. On "Fox News Sunday," Britt told host Shannon Bream that she was contrasting Bidens first 100 days with hers, during which she visited the southern border. "I very clearly said I spoke to a woman who told me about when she was trafficked when she was 12. She was a victims rights advocate who was telling this is what drug cartels are doing, this is how they're profiting off of women and it is disgusting," Britt said. A Britt spokesperson did not respond to PolitiFacts request for comment, but confirmed to The Washington Post that Britt was talking about Karla Jacinto Romero, a Mexican woman in her 30s and an activist against sex trafficking. She has told her story about surviving sex trafficking in Mexico at various forums, including before the U.S. Congress in 2015. Britt met Jacinto in Del Rio during a discussion about human trafficking. Heres a look into Britts misleading framing of Jacintos story, and the facts she got wrong: The facts behind Jacintos sex trafficking story Jacintos trafficking happened in the 2000s: Jacinto was sex trafficked at 12 years old, as Britt said. But this didnt happen during Bidens administration. Jacinto was trafficked decades before, from 2004 to 2008, during President George W. Bushs administration, according to Jacintos bio in U.S. House records. Britt used Jacintos story to illustrate the dangers of migration through the U.S.-Mexico border under Biden. "We wouldn't be OK with this happening in a third-world country. This is the United States of America," Britt said. (The term "third-world country" is an outdated label often used to describe developing, low-income countries.) Puebla is a city in central Mexico where sex trafficking victim Karla Jacinto Romero said she was forced to "serve" more than 40,000 clients. Jacintos trafficking happened in Mexico: Jacintos trafficking occurred in central Mexico, not in the United States. While retelling her story on a Mexican government agencys YouTube page, Jacinto said she grew up in an abusive home and at 12 fell in love with a man. She eventually left her home and went to live with him in central Mexico near a city called Puebla. "For years and years, I was coerced, intimidated, threatened, beaten, robbed of my children and emotionally and sexually violated time and time again," Jacinto testified to Congress in 2015. "During those years, I was forced to serve every type of fetish imaginable to more than 40,000 clients. Of those, many were foreigners visiting my city looking to have sexual interactions with minors like me." Jacinto said a pimp trafficked her: Britt also claimed it was cartels that trafficked Jacinto. However, PolitiFact listened to multiple videos from different sources of Jacinto telling her story and did not find any mention of cartels being responsible for the trafficking. Jacinto wasnt trafficked by Mexican drug cartels, "but by a pimp that operated as part of a family that entrapped vulnerable girls in order to force them into prostitution," said CNN Reporter Rafael Romo, who spoke to Jacinto, on March 11. Jacinto told CNN that Britt did not ask for permission to use her story. "I hardly ever cooperate with politicians because it seems to me that they only want an image, they only want a photo and that to me is not fair," Jacinto said, according to CNNs translation of her interview. "I think Sen. Britt should first take into account what really happens before telling a story of that magnitude." No evidence that Jacintos trafficking was related to immigration: Britts recounting of Jacintos story also gave the impression that Jacintos trafficking happened as she tried to migrate to the United States. But Jacinto did not say that in her testimony to Congress or various news and podcast interviews. PolitiFact's ruling While speaking about Bidens immigration policies, Britt said a woman had been "sex trafficked by the cartels starting at the age of 12. We wouldn't be OK with this happening in a third-world country. This is the United States of America." Britt was talking about Jacinto, who was sex trafficked when she was 12 years old. But Britt omitted significant facts and context about when and where this happened. It was in the early 2000s in central Mexico, not during the Biden administration or in the United States. Jacinto has said a pimp trafficked her after she left an abusive home and went to live with a man she fell in love with. Jacinto has not said this was related to immigration to the United States. We rate Britts claim False. Our sources This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Sen. Katie Britt misrepresented story of sex trafficking victim UPDATE 3/13/24: The Russell County man accused of brutally killing and raping a five-year-old girl pled guilty to capital murder charges on Wednesday afternoon. Jeremy Williams also pled guilty to videoing sex with child under 16, knowingly having sex with a corpse and human trafficking. Williams plea carries the possibility of the death penalty. Williams is entering a blind pea and there will be no plea deal. The state is still required to prove to a jury that Williams is guilty of the crime despite the plea. This would have to be done for him to receive the death penalty. Details of the moments leading up to Kamaries death were revealed in the courtroom. The content is graphic and reader discretion is advised. According to Russell County District Attorney Rick Chancey, Williams raped and performed anal and oral sex on Kamarie. Chancey added Williams took video of the entire incident, including sex with her before and after her death. The mother of a second victim was in the courtroom today. The incident happened at the same home Kamarie was found dead in, according to court evidence. Williams pleaded guilty to sodomy and having sex with a child under 6 in reference to that case. Two psychological exams on Williams stipulate that he was mentally competent at the time of Kamaries murder and today. When the judge asked Williams why he is entering the plea knowing he could face execution, Williams said he wants to expedite the process. Kamaries dad, Corey Holland, was in the second row of the courtroom. When WRBL spoke with Corey yesterday, he said this hearing is about justice for his little girl. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled. The jury trial will be in April. The blind plea comes not long after Kamaries mother, Kristy Siple, pled guilty to selling her child for $2,500 to perform oral sex on Williams. Siple will be formally sentenced at a later date. She has also agreed to testify against Jeremy Williams. A gag order remains in effect for this case. PHENIX CITY, Ala. (WRBL) More than two years after a five-year-old Columbus girl was brutally killed and raped, the girls mother pleaded guilty to her role in the childs death on Wednesday afternoon. Kristy Siple entered a guilty plea to human sex trafficking, which carries a 20-year sentence per agreement. Siple has also agreed to testify against Jeremy Williams, who is accused of killing Kamarie Holland. The sex trafficking plea takes the murder charges off the table, but Siple still faces unrelated charges related to the alleged chemical endangerment to a child. Williams is expected to plead guilty later today. He has a hearing scheduled in front of Johnson. On Dec. 13 of 2021, Kamarie Holland was originally reported as a missing person by Siple. Within 24 hours of being reported missing, Kamarie was found dead at a Phenix City home that had previously been rented by Williams. Williams was taken into custody and charged with capital murder in connection to Kamaries death. Williams indictment alleges he videotaped the sexual abuse of Kamarie after he strangled her to death. Williams is also being investigated for the 2005 death of his daughter, Naudia Treniece Williams, as well as having been indicted on a sexual abuse charge involving another child. About three weeks after Williams arrest, Siple was arrested in connection to the death of Kamarie. Siple was charged with felony murder, and later charged with human trafficking as an indictment alleged Siple sold Kamarie to Williams for U.S. currency. A human trafficking warrant previously obtained by News 3 stated Siple did knowingly subject another person to labor servitude or sexual servitude.she did agree with another person to pay her for having sexual intercourse and sodomy with her minor child. Because of a gag order put in place by Circuit Court Judge David Johnson, prosecutors and law enforcement in Russell County cannot comment on the case. A filing by the judge does indicate Williams hearing later on Wednesday is for a guilty plea. WRBL will keep you updated on that hearing. Previous Coverage For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL. The Republican gubernatorial primary can be understood through the lens of one obscure issue: qualified immunity. U.S. Sen. Mike Braun has faced a barrage of attacks over a 2020 bill he introduced that would have limited police officers' use of qualified immunity to avoid lawsuits. Braun backpedaled after Tucker Carlson accosted him on live TV. Nonetheless, the bill has come back to haunt him since he announced his candidacy for governor last year. Republican candidate Eric Doden suggested Braun wanted to "make it easier to unfairly sue law enforcement officers for doing their job." Republican Brad Chambers' campaign said Braun's position was "damaging to the recruitment, retention and morale of law enforcement." Braun's flip flop on qualified immunity really is indicative of his weak Senate term but not for the reasons other Republicans are citing. Braun's opponents are beating around the bush because more direct criticism would expose their spinelessness. Mike Braun's record on qualified immunity When six Republican candidates debated in Carmel on Monday, you would have thought term-limited Gov. Eric Holcomb was running for reelection. Braun is way ahead in polls, but his opponents spent far more time criticizing Holcomb and his record during the pandemic. "I look back at your 2018 campaign and you said you were opposed to career politicians," Chambers said to Braun in what amounted to a zinger in an otherwise staid debate. "It seems like you're heading down the path of a career politician." If I can translate for Chambers, I think what he's saying is: Braun has achieved nothing in five-plus years, he's bored and now he's asking voters to believe he'll magically become a better leader as governor. "If you like me as a senator, you'll like me better as governor," Braun said. But qualified immunity is an example of why few people like Braun as a senator. Republican gubernatorial candidates gathered, Monday, March 11, 2024, at The Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, Ind., to debate one another. Qualified immunity is a legal doctrine that protects police and other government officials from civil suits, even when it's clear that an officer violated someone's constitutional rights. It is more or less impossible for people to sue the police now. Braun's bill would have reduced officers' protection by limiting qualified immunity to cases where their conduct is protected by an existing law or previous court ruling. There is conservative support, especially in libertarian circles, for reducing the scope of qualified immunity. Braun seemed to deeply care about the issue. But, when law enforcement and Carlson came out hard against Braun, he retreated and disowned his position. Mike Braun's philosophy: 'Don't fight it' Braun summed up his own political philosophy last month on Fox Business when he offered advice for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to reconcile with Trumpworld: Dont fight it; you gotta go along with it. Braun has spent the past six years going along with it and sacrificing his values for political self-interest. He's an accomplished businessman who forfeited his dignity to genuflect to Donald Trump; he feigned concern for election integrity and pledged to cast a "protest vote" against election certification Jan. 6, 2021, until mobs stormed the Capitol and assaulted police, causing him to revoke his righteous commitment to stopping the steal. That's Braun in a nutshell: lukewarm for MAGA and lukewarm for public service. Even when Braun demonstrates belief in a course of action, he suppresses those feelings as soon as he finds a better path to career advancement. Like running for governor. Braun is unprincipled. That's the case against him. But his opponents can't make it because they are, too. Suzanne Crouch throws Eric Holcomb under the bus Listen to Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, who's polling a distant second to Braun. "During COVID, we were lied to by (Anthony) Fauci and the federal government. We can't go back and change what happened, but I've learned from the mistakes of our top executive," Crouch said during Monday's debate, courageously criticizing the policies she rolled out alongside the unnamed Holcomb. She might have learned from the pandemic years, but it strains credulity to believe Crouch in her heart has lined up with all the other right-wing Republicans who want to write off the Holcomb years as failed government overreach in Indiana. It's her record, too! She was there! That's the problem for Crouch and the other Republicans contenders for governor. They're challenging a weak, inauthentic frontrunner in Braun with weak, inauthentic campaigns of their own. They're just as afraid to offend Republican primary voters as Braun was to defend his views on qualified immunity against an onslaught from the right. Calling out Braun's timidity would require looking in the mirror. So far, Braun's opponents would rather let him win. Contact James Briggs at 317-444-4732 or james.briggs@indystar.com. Follow him on X and Threads at @JamesEBriggs. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Why Mike Braun is winning the race for Indiana governor British Prime Minister came through Wednesday on his pledge to bring legislation before parliament to quash the wrongful theft, fraud and false accounting convictions of hundreds of Post Office sub-contractors who were found guilty on the say-so of a flawed computer program. File Photo by Simon Walker/No. 10 Downing Street/UPI March 13 (UPI) -- The British government introduced legislation to parliament Wednesday that will quash the wrongful theft, fraud and false accounting convictions of hundreds of Post Office sub-contractors who were found guilty on the say-so of a flawed computer program. The law will automatically overturn convictions resulting from prosecutions brought by the Post Office and the Crown Prosecution Service between 1996 and 2018 with hundreds more who were never convicted but covered losses from their own pockets receiving $96,000 compensation under a separate scheme. The Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill is expected to void the convictions of the majority of the 900 victims of the faulty Fijitsu-developed Horizon accounting software by July. Those electing to have their convictions quashed will receive $208,560 within 28 days after which they can opt to accept a one-off $768,000 settlement or have their case adjudicated on an individual basis. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the legislation would go some of the way to helping put back together lives that had been "callously torn apart, although he acknowledged the tragedy of the some 200 people who had since died without receiving justice. "I want to pay tribute to all the postmasters who have shown such courage and perseverance in their fierce campaign for justice, and to those who tragically won't see the justice they deserve," he said in a news release. "While I know that nothing can make up for what they've been through, today's legislation marks an important step forward in finally clearing their names. "We owe it to the victims of this scandal who have had their lives and livelihoods callously torn apart, to deliver the justice they've fought so long and hard for, and to ensure nothing like this ever happens again." The government had previously admitted that the plan for blanket exoneration of all those convicted could result in a small number of those who actually were guilty of offenses being wrongly cleared, but said it the scale of the injustice meant it was "a price worth paying". Hudgell Solicitors, a law firm with offices in London, Manchester and Hull, which acts for 100 convicted sub-postmasters welcomed Wednesday's publication of The Post Office Offenses Bill. Lawyer Neil Hudgell said the day when his clients' names would finally be cleared "cannot come soon enough." The law will only apply to those convicted in courts in England and Wales. Calling it "extremely disappointing," Scottish Justice Secretary Angela Constance, urged the legislation be widened to cover all four countries of the United Kingdom -- England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. However, she said Scotland was prepared to introduce its own parallel legislation to the Scottish Parliament, if necessary. Just six Scottish former sub-postmasters have succeeded in getting their conviction overturned in the courts. The legislation comes two months after Sunak promised to put right the two-decade-long scandal. "This is one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in our nation's history," Sunak told parliament. "People who worked hard to serve their communities had their lives and their reputations destroyed through absolutely no fault of their own. The victims must get justice and compensation." His intervention followed the Jan. 1 airing on national television of an ITV miniseries, Mr. Bates vs. the Post Office, a dramatization of the scandal in which the Horizon software falsely showed financial losses at post offices, leading to sub-postmasters being prosecuted, fined and forced to repay the shortfalls. Many received prison sentences or became bankrupt. By Andrew MacAskill LONDON (Reuters) - The British government is planning to pay asylum seekers up to 3,000 pounds ($3,836) each to move to Rwanda under a voluntary plan to help clear the backlog of refugees who have had their applications to remain in the country rejected. The new agreement with Rwanda is separate from the government's stalled plan to forcibly deport most asylum seekers to the East African country, which was last year ruled unlawful by the UK's Supreme Court. Instead, it mirrors an existing government policy, where asylum seekers are offered financial assistance to leave the Britain for their home country, but under the new plan people will get the money if they agree to live in Rwanda. Kevin Hollinrake, a junior business minister, said on Wednesday the new policy was a good use of public money because it was cheaper than the cost of looking after people in Britain who had been denied asylum, but not yet removed. There are tens of thousands of asylum seekers in Britain who have been refused asylum, but they cannot be removed because the government is not allowed to return people to a war-torn country or one with a poor human rights record. "So, 3,000 pounds, of course that's a lot of money, but nevertheless, it costs a lot of money to keep people in the UK who are failed asylum seekers," Hollinrake told LBC Radio. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has invested huge amounts of political capital in a promise to stop the arrival of asylum seekers who arrive without permission on England's southern coast in small, inflatable boats. Under that plan, the government wants to send thousands of people to Rwanda, but the Supreme Court ruled last year the policy was unlawful as it would violate British and international human rights laws. In an effort to overcome resistance from the courts, Sunak's government is passing legislation through parliament that would block further legal challenges by declaring Rwanda a so-called safe country for asylum seekers. Rwanda currently has the capacity to accept a few hundred asylum seekers a year from Britain, the British government has said, adding the capacity could be increased. Sunak has said he wants the first deportation flights to leave in the next few months - ahead of a national election expected in the second half of this year - so he can meet a pledge to "stop the boats". ($1 = 0.7820 pounds) (Reporting by Andrew MacAskill. Editing by Jane Merriman) The couple had been at Paradise Beach on the Caribbean island of Carriacou, part of Grenada A British woman is suspected of drowning on holiday in Grenada trying to save her husband, who had got into difficulty in the sea and also died. Police on the Caribbean island believe David John Foster, 77, might have had a heart attack while in the sea at Paradise Beach in Carriacou. His wife Rosaline, 76, later died in hospital, Royal Grenada Police Force told BBC News. A post-mortem examination will determine the couple's cause of death. The couple had been at Paradise Beach near the village of L'Esterre on the island of Carriacou, part of Grenada, when Mr Foster got into difficulty on Saturday. Police found him lying in the sand. He was declared dead at the scene by a doctor, police said. Mrs Foster was taken to Princess Royal Hospital where she was examined and pronounced dead. Speaking to BBC News, Cpl Ardell Lewis said: "The basic facts seem to suggest the man may have suffered a heart attack and the lady may have gone to his assistance, and she probably would have drowned." Police said the couple were retired and with other family at the time. The force is continuing to investigate their deaths. The UK Foreign Office said it was assisting the family of two British people who had died in Grenada and was in touch with local authorities. Paradise Beach was voted best Caribbean beach in 2022 famed for its clear waters and turquoise waters. Carriacou is the second-largest island within the state of Grenada. The couple had been holidaying on the Caribbean island of Carriacou, part of Grenada Michele Faiers, 66, and Michael Whitbread, 74, moved to Italy three years before her death A British man accused of murdering his partner at their home in Italy before driving to England is to be extradited, a court in London ruled on Wednesday. Michael Whitbread, 74, is wanted by the Italian authorities for allegedly stabbing Michele Faiers, 66, to death last October at the home they shared near the town of Casoli in the southern region of Abruzzo. The couple had allegedly had a row because Ms Faiers, who has three grown-up daughters, suspected he was having an affair with another British expat who lived in the area. She had allegedly seen him playfully slap the womans bottom at a New Years Eve party in December 2022, according to Italian prosecutors. Shortly after Ms Faiers was found dead with seven knife wounds to her back at their house in the hamlet of Verratti, Mr Whitbread drove his Jeep Compass 1,300 miles via Switzerland and France back to the UK. He headed for his daughters house in Shepshed, Leicestershire. Days later, he was arrested by police and has been in custody ever since. Police tape at the home the couple shared near the town of Casoli in the southern region of Abruzzo - STEVE REIGATE Westminster magistrates court in London ordered that Mr Whitbread be extradited to Italy, where he will face trial. Italian investigators have said that they are not looking for any other suspects in the case. Mr Whitbread said nothing in court other than to confirm his name. His lawyer said his client didnt consent to extradition but didnt oppose it. Ruling that the defendant should be sent back to Italy, David Robinson, the judge, said: Italian authorities have indicated an immediate trial. The offence is of a most serious and grave nature. Shortly after Faiers was found dead, Mr Whitbread drove his Jeep Compass 1,300 miles back to the UK John Sheehan, the head of the extradition unit at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: Our thoughts are primarily with the grieving family of Michele Faiers. We ask that there be no speculation about the facts of the case which may be subject to appeal, and so that Michael Whitbread can receive a fair trial in Italy. Mr Whitbread, who is originally from Torquay in Devon, was remanded in custody. He has seven days in which to lodge an application for permission to appeal the decision. Mr Whitbread and Ms Faiers had moved to Italy about three years before her death and together refurbished the house that they lived in. Her body was found by a British friend and fellow expatriate, who had become concerned that she had not responded to phone calls for four days. Ms Faiers body was lying in a bedroom, clad in underwear but covered by a sheet. She and Mr Whitbread were part of a large British expat community that had settled amid the rolling hills and vineyards of the Abruzzo region, which extends from the Apennines to the Adriatic coast. The area offers properties that are cheaper than better known regions such as Tuscany and Umbria. Casoli is a picturesque hilltop town that in winter is framed by snow-covered mountains. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. NEW YORK (PIX11) A Brooklyn family plans to sue the MTA for $28.5 million, alleging that a transit worker took a photo of their dying loved one on the subway and shared it on social media. Jakeba Dockery says her grief over her husbands murder was intensified after images of his final moments on the No. 3 train surfaced on social media. It was just breathtaking, Dockery recalled. MTA workers allegedly snapped and shared the crime scene photos of Richard Henderson, according to attorneys representing Dockery. The MTA is liable for the act of its employees, said attorney Sanford Rubenstein. Instead of taking pictures, the MTA employee should have done something about getting him medical care. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now PIX11 News Headlines Dockery is speaking out for the first time since the January subway shooting in Brooklyn, seeking justice from the shooter and for her family and children. They shouldnt have seen their father for the last time laying in his blood, said Dockery. The family is following Vanessa Bryants lead, who won similar damages in Los Angeles following Kobe Bryants death and leaked photos in 2020. In an internal memo obtained by PIX11 following the alleged incident, MTA officials condemned any photo-sharing, citing agency policy and standards. However, they are investigating the validity of the claims. If MTA staff were involved in distributing a photo or taking a photo and sending it to others and putting it on the web, its a heartless thing, said MTA Chairman and CEO Janno Lieber. California has since passed a law making it illegal to share crime scene photos in a public forum. Rubenstein hopes this planned litigation sends a similar message to Albany. The NYPD has released images of the suspected shooter but has yet to identify that person or make any arrests. Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. A flashy, jewelry-wearing Brooklyn pastor was convicted Monday in federal court of using a parishioners retirement savings and trying to extort a businessman while touting he had connections to the New York City mayor. Lamor Whitehead, nicknamed the Bling Bishop, is a pastor at the Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries. He was found guilty of five counts, including wire fraud, attempted extortion and making false statements to the FBI. The convictions are from three separate schemes. Whitehead, known for his Louis Vuitton suits and extravagant jewelry, also made headlines in 2022 after he said he and his wife were robbed of $1 million worth of jewelry at their church. As a unanimous jury found, Lamor Whitehead abused the trust placed in him by a parishioner, tried to obtain a fraudulent loan using fake bank records, bullied a businessman for $5,000, tried to defraud him out of far more than that, and lied to federal agents, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said in a news release. Whiteheads reprehensible lies and criminal conduct have caught up with him, as he now stands convicted of five federal crimes and faces time in prison, Williams said. Prosecutors said that Whitehead defrauded one of his parishioners by convincing her to invest $90,000 of her retirement savings with him, according to the indictment. The document said Whitehead would help her buy a home and invest the money, but he used it on luxury goods and personal expenses instead. Whitehead also extorted a businessman for $5,000 and then attempted to convince the man to loan him $500,000 and grant him a stake in real estate transactions in exchange for obtaining favorable connections by the New York City government that he knew he could not provide, according to the indictment. Whitehead used his ties to New York City Mayor Eric Adams to try to make the deal, the US attorneys office said in a news release. As the U.S. Attorneys office said when they brought this case, the defendant knew he could not obtain favors from city government. With this ruling, that was proven right, Charles Kretchmer Lutvak, a spokesperson for the mayors office told CNN Tuesday. Whitehead also made false statements by telling FBI agents he only had one phone, when he actually had two, according to the indictment. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, except for the false statements count, which is a maximum sentence of 5 years, according to the US attorneys office. Dawn Florio, one of Whiteheads attorneys, said they plan to appeal the verdict. His sentencing is scheduled for July 1, she added. CNNs Eric Levenson, Christina Zdanowicz and Lindsey Knight contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Fran Kaufman (R, front), curatorial director of the Liu Shiming Art Gallery, speaks during an inaugural exhibition at the gallery in New York, the United States, March 12, 2024. (Photo by Yu Zheng/Xinhua) NEW YORK, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A new art gallery honoring the late Chinese sculptor Liu Shiming opened to the public in Midtown, New York City, on Tuesday. Located on the 5th floor of 15 East 40th Street, the Liu Shiming Art Gallery greeted visitors Tuesday evening with an inaugural exhibition entitled "From The Beginning: Sculpture by Liu Shiming," set to run throughout the summer. Featuring over 35 pieces, the exhibition offers a glimpse into Liu Shiming's prominent role in modern Chinese sculpture. Liu, who died in 2010 at the age of 84, was among the first generation of homegrown artists from the People's Republic of China, who mined his grassroots experiences and research into classic Chinese art to create "Chinese methods" of sculpture. Liu's works often depict ordinary people he knew, such as villagers, herders and opera performers, and vividly record the daily lives of China's countryside residents in the 1960s. According to Fran Kaufman, the gallery's curatorial director, the gallery is committed to showcasing Liu Shiming's work through solo and combined exhibitions. A monograph on Liu's work, authored by Richard Vine, former managing editor of the New York-based monthly magazine Art in America, is scheduled for release in early 2025. A visitor looks at Chinese sculptor Liu Shiming's works at the Liu Shiming Art Gallery in New York, the United States, March 12, 2024. (Photo by Yu Zheng/Xinhua) A visitor looks at Chinese sculptor Liu Shiming's works at the Liu Shiming Art Gallery in New York, the United States, March 12, 2024. (Photo by Yu Zheng/Xinhua) If you own a property in one of Britains 10,000 or so conservation areas, then there is good news and bad. The good news is that you are in a very exclusive club. Conservation areas have been around since 1967, but only around 2.2pc of England is considered architecturally or historically special enough to deserve this status, according to Historic England. Conservation areas cover a tremendous range of landscapes, from ancient fishing villages and inner city enclaves to picture-perfect villages and classic period suburbs. The idea of the special status is to keep these precious streets looking their best. And recent research by the London School of Economics found properties in conservation areas enjoy higher prices and stronger house price growth than other areas. The bad news is that if you live in a conservation area and you want to upgrade your home, you will miss out on some of the opportunities to utilise permitted development rights, which allow other homeowners to make quite significant alterations to their home without needing planning permission. Whats more, anything you do get permission to build will need to enhance the look of your neighbourhood. But that doesnt mean property alterations and improvements are impossible as long as you follow the rules. Not all conservation areas are created equal Since no two conservation areas are the same, councils can introduce bespoke controls called Article 4 directions (A4D) for individual areas. These directions restrict work youd normally be able to do without planning permission, such as replacing a door or window, or altering guttering. In Kemptown, Brighton, for example, homeowners in key historic streets need permission to repaint the front of their homes, and can only paint their homes white (though architectural ironwork can be painted black). In Bournville, near Birmingham, UPVC windows are banned in some areas and plastic doors are 'discouraged' - Andrew Fox In Bath, homeowners within the Georgian conservation area cannot take down walls, gates or fences (standing 1m or less) without permission to do so. In Bournville, the model village built for chocolate factory workers near Birmingham, UPVC windows are banned in some areas, and plastic front doors are discouraged by the Bournville Village Trust, which manages the village. Depending on where you live, its best to find out about any specific restrictions or discouragements in your local area before you start planning any changes, so you can build them in any proposals are unlikely to be granted if they flagrantly ignore the basic rules of the local area. Consciously build them in, and you might get in the planners good books. As a very general rule, conservation area controls exist to protect individual streetscapes. This means that changes you want to make to the inside of your home, unless it is listed, are unlikely to be an issue, and you can in theory decorate as you like. The conservation rules you need to know There are some rules that apply across all conservation areas, which residents should be aware of before going ahead with even basic changes to their properties and land. If you want to cut down or prune a significant tree, you must give your local council six weeks notice. This will give it the time to consider the contribution the tree makes to the character of your area. If you want to cut down or prune a significant tree, you must give your local council six weeks' notice - Clara Molden In your application, youll need to detail the reasons for wanting to prune or cut down the tree, so be as specific as possible in your explanation to improve the chances of the council agreeing. If the council wants to protect the tree, it can create a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) preventing you from removing it. For a drastic home improvement, you definitely need to liaise with local planners. Demolition, or substantial demolition, of any building within a conservation area usually needs planning permission. Without it you could face criminal charges. To improve the chance of your plans being given the green light, you should consider how they will preserve and enhance the area, according to the firm Urbanist Architecture. It also suggests hiring an architect with experience in conservation area projects, and seeking out pre-application advice from your local council. The professionals should help you to build a compelling case, and provide high-quality designs so planners can easily envisage what you have in mind. If your grand design plans are more modest a kitchen extension or loft conversion, perhaps then you still need to take care. Installing solar panels overlooking the road also requires planning permission - ideeone/Getty Images Contributor Outside of conservation areas, homeowners can often use permitted development rights to carry out this kind of project without needing planning permission at all (although they do need to check the small print very carefully to make sure their project fits within strict, and complicated, size and height restrictions). But in a conservation area you will have to apply for planning permission for some work which would normally fit within the permitted development umbrella. These include any two-storey extensions, dormer windows for a loft conversion, or adding cladding to your property, according to Historic England. You will also need permission if you want to install solar panels overlooking the road. Be prepared to wait, and pay more This process will inevitably delay your project: councils have a statutory eight weeks to decide on applications, but it often takes longer and could add to the cost if you need an architect to draw up plans for you. But winging it could be far more costly. At the start of this year, the Governments planning inspector upheld Kirklees Councils decision to order the owners of a Victorian villa in Dewsbury, Yorkshire, to demolish a large and unsympathetic single-storey side extension built in the Northfields Conservation Area without planning permission. Not only had they paid for the extension to be built, but the bill to tear it down is also their responsibility. Recommended The area of Britain where only 59pc of planning permissions are approved Read more Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Newport Beach Police Department has reported another recent burglary that was made possible by a thief using a hillside to access a homes backyard. According to an NBPD press release, a burglar broke into a home in the Newport Ridge North Community sometime between 3 a.m. Feb. 17 and 11:40 p.m. March 9. Police offer safety tips after burglars break into Newport Beach home That thief used a hillside behind the house to get into the backyard, then climbed a tree to get to a second-story balcony and smashed a glass door, police said. Once inside, the suspect ransacked the master bathroom and closet. The suspect also attempted to forcibly remove a safe without success, then fled the scene, the release said. The burglar ultimately got away with watches, a wallet, cash, gift cards and personal documents, police added. The incident is similar to a similar burglary in Newport Beach late last month. Police offered several tips for keeping your home and neighborhood safe: Always lock your windows and doors when you go out, even if for only a few minutes. Second-story windows and doors should be secured as if they were on the first story. Use timers on indoor lamps to give the appearance that you are home. If youre going out for the evening, leave a television or a radio on in the home. If your home is equipped with an alarm, always activate it, even if youre only going out for a short walk. Always keep your front and rear porch lights on from dusk to dawn and use motion detector lighting along the sides of your home or areas with little foot traffic. If you return home and find your door locked and you are certain that you left it unlocked, dont go inside; instead call 911 immediately. Burglars often lock this door to slow down a victim, allowing the burglar extra time to get out of the home before the resident enters. When you leave on vacation, remember to call the Police Department for a Vacation Check at 949-644-3681. Also, ask a trusted friend or neighbor to pick up your newspaper and mail while you are away. If you see suspicious activity within your neighborhood (especially at a home where you know your neighbors are on vacation, have gone out for the evening, or their home is for sale), please call the Newport Beach Police Department immediately at 949-644-3717. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA. Bus passengers around England receive a wide variation in service, and many feel "let down", a major new passenger survey revealed. Passenger watchdog Transport Focus asked people to rate 35,000 bus journeys across 34 local authorities last year. Overall, 80% were satisfied with their trips, but some areas scored much lower. Charity Bus Users UK said cuts to services left many without bus access. Punctuality and waiting times were areas which received low scores by many of those surveyed. The East Riding of Yorkshire and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole came top with 90% satisfaction. Passengers who were least satisfied with their buses were in West Yorkshire, where service was rated at 73%. Other low scoring areas include Tees Valley, Durham and the West Midlands. Bus use increasing in England after Covid - chart The results provide a benchmark study of passengers' satisfaction, with marks given for punctuality, journey times, the bus driver and value for money and were collated from 34 local authority areas in England, excluding London. The BBC spoke to bus users in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, some of whom laughed when asked if their bus was on time. One person said buses were "constantly late, constantly missing, not turning up", with others saying services regularly made them late for work or college, but added "if they turn up - they are good". In East Yorkshire, Timmy Ogunnuga was on the 23 bus. She uses buses for work and to explore different parts of the UK. Timmy Ogunnuga While she says they are "convenient", she's also faced problems. When the BBC spoke to her, her bus to work had not shown up so she was running late. Meanwhile in West Yorkshire, outside Huddersfield bus station, Ian Buckley says he has noticed fewer services "than there used to be". He lives in a village a couple of miles outside Huddersfield and feels it's not well served by buses. "We could do with more. And we could do with better reliability for the school buses", he told the BBC. Ian Buckley said his area near Huddersfield is not well served by buses Mr Buckley's children travel into Huddersfield for school. He says they often get stuck due to "delayed" or "missing" buses. He says when buses are delayed "[they] end up having to do quite considerable detours and walk from the next village down". Tracey Brabin is the Mayor of West Yorkshire and said the situation was "hopeless". Speaking to the BBC outside Leeds bus station, she said: "I am a bus user myself, I know there are too many delays, not many options and too many cuts to the services". There has been significant investment in buses in recent years, to try improve services after years of cuts. Just before the pandemic in 2020, former PM Boris Johnson announced bus services across the country would be transformed with simpler fares, new routes and cleaner buses. The following year the National Bus Strategy was launched and nicknamed "Bus Back Better". A billion pounds of funding was allocated. Ms Brabin said West Yorkshire had been spending 17m a year to improve journeys across West Yorkshire. In addition, the area got tens of millions from the government which it has used to improve services and lower fares. "We've been building bus priority lanes so buses don't get stuck in traffic and recruiting and running courses for more bus drivers", Ms Brabin said. A Department for Transport spokesperson said the government had invested more than 3.5bn into the sector since the pandemic, including over 1bn "to make buses more frequent, more reliable, easier to use and cheaper". "On top of this, to help people get around for less, we have extended the popular 2 single bus fare cap until the end of 2024, thanks to reallocated HS2 funding." Bus mileage falling again in England outside London - chart The bus satisfaction survey carried out by Transport Focus does target a captive audience: those who are lucky enough to be on a passenger on a bus. But many services across Britain have been cut due to falling passengers numbers and revenues since the pandemic, meaning many areas and people become disconnected from the bus network. David Sidebottom, director of Transport Focus, said: "It is good to see many passengers are satisfied with their journey. 80% overall satisfaction is a good start. However, wide variation in scores show that some passengers are being let down. "As congestion continues to bite, government, bus operators and local authorities must work together so that passengers see the improvements in reliability, journey times and better value for money fares promised in the national bus strategy". Additional reporting by Hope Rhodes. Banner saying 'Get in touch' Do you feel 'let down' by your bus service? Has there been cuts? Do you struggle to get to work using the bus? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways: If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission. Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on March 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee webcast) WASHINGTON Business owners, CEOs and a steelworkers union official urged lawmakers Tuesday to quickly pass a tax policy bill that has been stalled in the U.S. Senate since the end of January. The witnesses invited to testify on manufacturing taxation before the Senate Committee on Finance told the panel that the proposal, which includes extending and restoring three business tax incentives, is critical to growing their businesses. The ability of manufacturers to innovate is so important to global competitiveness, and our fear is without appropriate tax incentives to do that, companies will stand still for too long, Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy for the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based United Steelworkers, testified. The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, which passed the U.S. House in January in an overwhelming bipartisan 357-70 vote, has been touted by both parties as a compromise to temporarily expand the child tax credit while also temporarily reviving or enhancing tax credits available to small businesses and corporations. Empty spot in the machine shop Courtney Silver, a business owner in North Carolina, told the lawmakers that the current laws phasing-out of an additional tax break on new equipment purchases is something I think about every day when walking by an empty spot in her machine shop that she had hoped to fill with a new piece of equipment by now. I know the piece of machining technology I would like to invest in. It would decrease our lead times, it would increase our productivity, it would get us into new markets that were not currently in, and it would create jobs, highly skilled highly paid jobs in machining, said Silver, owner and president of Ketchie Inc. in Concord, where her company plays a role in the supply chain by making machine parts for manufacturers. Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar near Toledo, Ohio, said the company is planning a $400 million investment in a research and development center in the state. He told Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden that the passage of R&D tax incentives contained in the stalled tax bill would accelerate his company in the race against Chinas solar industry. If were not able to out-innovate, we will not be able to survive the onslaught that were facing today. This bill is critical from that standpoint as it relates to R&D and the opportunity to expensing the R&D versus deferring R&D, Widmar said. Plus its also very critical to the bonus depreciation thats enabling a lot of the factory expansions that were making right now, he added, referring to the expiring tax break on business equipment and property purchases that is also a concern for Silver. And putting everything off just generates more uncertainty and delay? Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, asked in a follow-up question. Delay and loss of thousands of jobs, Widmar answered. The time to act is now The bill would buy lawmakers time as they stare down a looming tax code negotiation in 2025 when numerous Trump-era provisions wind down, including the child tax credit refund amounts, lowered individual income tax rates and changes to business taxes. A provision in the proposed tax bill would actually delay a section of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that critics say disadvantages businesses who write off research and development costs. The 2017 law mandated that businesses to begin gradually writing off domestic research and development costs over five years starting in 2022. Wydens tax legislation, a bicameral bill with Missouri Republican Rep. Jason Smith, would restore companies abilities to expense the R&D costs immediately through 2026. The Wyden-Smith bill would also restore bonus depreciation to 100% until 2026, meaning businesses could claim additional deductions, beyond the allowable amount, on qualifying business purchases and property. The 100% bonus depreciation initially established in the 2017 tax law has been waning with each passing year and is currently at 60%. It will continue to decrease until 2027 if lawmakers do not restore it in the proposed tax bill. Silver, who told lawmakers about her delay in an equipment purchase for her machine shop, said the dwindling bonus depreciation is a roadblock. That changes my return on investment calculation (on the purchase), and it feels like an irresponsible business decision, and it feels too risky. Its honestly an awful feeling, she told lawmakers. GOP unhappy with provision in child tax credit Movement on the tax bill has stalled as Republican senators remain opposed to a provision that would allow families to temporarily use prior-year income on their tax returns to calculate their child tax credit if their earnings were higher than the current tax years. The GOP lawmakers maintain that allowing families to choose a higher-year income strips the work incentive for middle- and low-income households that seek the credit. Child tax credit proponents refute that argument. Wyden urged his colleagues that the time to act is now. I continue to be open to all sides who want to work in good faith to get this done, he said in his opening remarks during Tuesdays hearing. Some of my colleagues understand the urgency here. And lets understand that this set of policies isnt going to be on the table in 2025 if this bill stalls out. Ranking member Mike Crapo said he doesnt know that theres a stronger advocate in Congress for extending and making permanent the business tax incentives. My hope is that we can get there, sooner than later, said Crapo, an Idaho Republican. There are, as everybody knows, some concerns on the Republican Senate side with regard to other provisions in the bill, and my hope is that the Republican Senate can have its voice, we will be able to deal with it, and get something resolved quickly. Its a difficult time, and as almost every single issue in this Congress today, there are difficult battles to deal with. That being said, I dont disagree with the testimony of any one of you, he said to the witnesses. The post Business owners, union leader urge U.S. Senate to move ahead soon on stalled tax package appeared first on Daily Montanan. Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee webcast) WASHINGTON Business owners, CEOs and a steelworkers union official urged lawmakers Tuesday to quickly pass a tax policy bill that has been stalled in the U.S. Senate since the end of January. The witnesses invited to testify on manufacturing taxation before the Senate Committee on Finance told the panel that the proposal, which includes extending and restoring three business tax incentives, is critical to growing their businesses. The ability of manufacturers to innovate is so important to global competitiveness, and our fear is without appropriate tax incentives to do that, companies will stand still for too long, Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy for the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based United Steelworkers, testified. The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, which passed the U.S. House in January in an overwhelming bipartisan 357-70 vote, has been touted by both parties as a compromise to temporarily expand the child tax credit while also temporarily reviving or enhancing tax credits available to small businesses and corporations. Empty spot in the machine shop Courtney Silver, a business owner in North Carolina, told the lawmakers that the current laws phasing-out of an additional tax break on new equipment purchases is something I think about every day when walking by an empty spot in her machine shop that she had hoped to fill with a new piece of equipment by now. I know the piece of machining technology I would like to invest in. It would decrease our lead times, it would increase our productivity, it would get us into new markets that were not currently in, and it would create jobs, highly skilled highly paid jobs in machining, said Silver, owner and president of Ketchie Inc. in Concord, where her company plays a role in the supply chain by making machine parts for manufacturers. Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar near Toledo, Ohio, said the company is planning a $400 million investment in a research and development center in the state. He told Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden that the passage of R&D tax incentives contained in the stalled tax bill would accelerate his company in the race against Chinas solar industry. If were not able to out-innovate, we will not be able to survive the onslaught that were facing today. This bill is critical from that standpoint as it relates to R&D and the opportunity to expensing the R&D versus deferring R&D, Widmar said. Plus its also very critical to the bonus depreciation thats enabling a lot of the factory expansions that were making right now, he added, referring to the expiring tax break on business equipment and property purchases that is also a concern for Silver. And putting everything off just generates more uncertainty and delay? Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, asked in a follow-up question. Delay and loss of thousands of jobs, Widmar answered. The time to act is now The bill would buy lawmakers time as they stare down a looming tax code negotiation in 2025 when numerous Trump-era provisions wind down, including the child tax credit refund amounts, lowered individual income tax rates and changes to business taxes. A provision in the proposed tax bill would actually delay a section of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that critics say disadvantages businesses who write off research and development costs. The 2017 law mandated that businesses to begin gradually writing off domestic research and development costs over five years starting in 2022. Wydens tax legislation, a bicameral bill with Missouri Republican Rep. Jason Smith, would restore companies abilities to expense the R&D costs immediately through 2026. The Wyden-Smith bill would also restore bonus depreciation to 100% until 2026, meaning businesses could claim additional deductions, beyond the allowable amount, on qualifying business purchases and property. The 100% bonus depreciation initially established in the 2017 tax law has been waning with each passing year and is currently at 60%. It will continue to decrease until 2027 if lawmakers do not restore it in the proposed tax bill. Silver, who told lawmakers about her delay in an equipment purchase for her machine shop, said the dwindling bonus depreciation is a roadblock. That changes my return on investment calculation (on the purchase), and it feels like an irresponsible business decision, and it feels too risky. Its honestly an awful feeling, she told lawmakers. GOP unhappy with provision in child tax credit Movement on the tax bill has stalled as Republican senators remain opposed to a provision that would allow families to temporarily use prior-year income on their tax returns to calculate their child tax credit if their earnings were higher than the current tax years. The GOP lawmakers maintain that allowing families to choose a higher-year income strips the work incentive for middle- and low-income households that seek the credit. Child tax credit proponents refute that argument. Wyden urged his colleagues that the time to act is now. I continue to be open to all sides who want to work in good faith to get this done, he said in his opening remarks during Tuesdays hearing. Some of my colleagues understand the urgency here. And lets understand that this set of policies isnt going to be on the table in 2025 if this bill stalls out. Ranking member Mike Crapo said he doesnt know that theres a stronger advocate in Congress for extending and making permanent the business tax incentives. My hope is that we can get there, sooner than later, said Crapo, an Idaho Republican. There are, as everybody knows, some concerns on the Republican Senate side with regard to other provisions in the bill, and my hope is that the Republican Senate can have its voice, we will be able to deal with it, and get something resolved quickly. Its a difficult time, and as almost every single issue in this Congress today, there are difficult battles to deal with. That being said, I dont disagree with the testimony of any one of you, he said to the witnesses. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Business owners, union leader urge U.S. Senate to move ahead soon on stalled tax package appeared first on Alabama Reflector. Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, talks at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee webcast) Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, talks at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee webcast) WASHINGTON Business owners, CEOs and a steelworkers union official urged lawmakers Tuesday to quickly pass a tax policy bill that has been stalled in the U.S. Senate since the end of January. The witnesses invited to testify on manufacturing taxation before the Senate Committee on Finance told the panel that the proposal, which includes extending and restoring three business tax incentives, is critical to growing their businesses. The ability of manufacturers to innovate is so important to global competitiveness, and our fear is without appropriate tax incentives to do that, companies will stand still for too long, Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy for the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based United Steelworkers, testified. The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, which passed the U.S. House in January in an overwhelming bipartisan 357-70 vote, has been touted by both parties as a compromise to temporarily expand the child tax credit while also temporarily reviving or enhancing tax credits available to small businesses and corporations. Empty spot in the machine shop Courtney Silver, a business owner in North Carolina, told the lawmakers that the current laws phasing-out of an additional tax break on new equipment purchases is something I think about every day when walking by an empty spot in her machine shop that she had hoped to fill with a new piece of equipment by now. I know the piece of machining technology I would like to invest in. It would decrease our lead times, it would increase our productivity, it would get us into new markets that were not currently in, and it would create jobs, highly skilled highly paid jobs in machining, said Silver, owner and president of Ketchie Inc. in Concord, where her company plays a role in the supply chain by making machine parts for manufacturers. Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar near Toledo, Ohio, said the company is planning a $400 million investment in a research and development center in the state. He told Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden that the passage of R&D tax incentives contained in the stalled tax bill would accelerate his company in the race against Chinas solar industry. If were not able to out-innovate, we will not be able to survive the onslaught that were facing today. This bill is critical from that standpoint as it relates to R&D and the opportunity to expensing the R&D versus deferring R&D, Widmar said. Plus its also very critical to the bonus depreciation thats enabling a lot of the factory expansions that were making right now, he added, referring to the expiring tax break on business equipment and property purchases that is also a concern for Silver. And putting everything off just generates more uncertainty and delay? Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, asked in a follow-up question. Delay and loss of thousands of jobs, Widmar answered. The time to act is now The bill would buy lawmakers time as they stare down a looming tax code negotiation in 2025 when numerous Trump-era provisions wind down, including the child tax credit refund amounts, lowered individual income tax rates and changes to business taxes. A provision in the proposed tax bill would actually delay a section of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that critics say disadvantages businesses who write off research and development costs. The 2017 law mandated that businesses to begin gradually writing off domestic research and development costs over five years starting in 2022. Wydens tax legislation, a bicameral bill with Missouri Republican Rep. Jason Smith, would restore companies abilities to expense the R&D costs immediately through 2026. The Wyden-Smith bill would also restore bonus depreciation to 100% until 2026, meaning businesses could claim additional deductions, beyond the allowable amount, on qualifying business purchases and property. The 100% bonus depreciation initially established in the 2017 tax law has been waning with each passing year and is currently at 60%. It will continue to decrease until 2027 if lawmakers do not restore it in the proposed tax bill. Silver, who told lawmakers about her delay in an equipment purchase for her machine shop, said the dwindling bonus depreciation is a roadblock. That changes my return on investment calculation (on the purchase), and it feels like an irresponsible business decision, and it feels too risky. Its honestly an awful feeling, she told lawmakers. GOP unhappy with provision in child tax credit Movement on the tax bill has stalled as Republican senators remain opposed to a provision that would allow families to temporarily use prior-year income on their tax returns to calculate their child tax credit if their earnings were higher than the current tax years. The GOP lawmakers maintain that allowing families to choose a higher-year income strips the work incentive for middle- and low-income households that seek the credit. Child tax credit proponents refute that argument. Wyden urged his colleagues that the time to act is now. I continue to be open to all sides who want to work in good faith to get this done, he said in his opening remarks during Tuesdays hearing. Some of my colleagues understand the urgency here. And lets understand that this set of policies isnt going to be on the table in 2025 if this bill stalls out. Ranking member Mike Crapo said he doesnt know that theres a stronger advocate in Congress for extending and making permanent the business tax incentives. My hope is that we can get there, sooner than later, said Crapo, an Idaho Republican. There are, as everybody knows, some concerns on the Republican Senate side with regard to other provisions in the bill, and my hope is that the Republican Senate can have its voice, we will be able to deal with it, and get something resolved quickly. Its a difficult time, and as almost every single issue in this Congress today, there are difficult battles to deal with. That being said, I dont disagree with the testimony of any one of you, he said to the witnesses. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Business owners, union leader urge U.S. Senate to move ahead soon on stalled tax package appeared first on Alaska Beacon. After facing criticism, California water regulators have proposed new conservation rules that would ease requirements for urban suppliers and lead to smaller statewide water savings than originally planned. An initial proposal from the State Water Resources Control Board ran into strong opposition last year, with managers of water agencies arguing that the large proposed cuts in water use between 2025 and 2035 would be costly and difficult to implement. Those criticisms were echoed in a scathing review by the nonpartisan Legislative Analysts Office. In response, the state water boards staff rewrote its blueprint for regulations, proposing less stringent water-saving standards while reducing the number of suppliers that would be required to achieve large cuts of more than 20% and extending the timeline for water reductions an additional five years to 2040. If approved by the state board later this year, the proposed regulations, dubbed Making Conservation a California Way of Life , would apply to about 400 urban water suppliers, requiring them to adopt water-use budgets and meet locally tailored conservation goals. The latest changes would bring smaller mandatory reductions for many water agencies than had been expected, and would give them more time to take steps to decrease water usage. We've provided additional flexibility that adds to the overall budgets of many of the suppliers, said Eric Oppenheimer, the state water boards executive director. The new proposal, he said, maintains the states commitment to conservation while making it easier for water suppliers to meet their efficiency goals. The changes were praised by representatives of local water agencies as a more reasonable approach. But conservation advocates criticized the revisions as a major watering down of rules that are supposed to help California adapt to the worsening effects of climate change. The revised regulation makes our communities less resilient to climate change and allows water suppliers to continue a business-as-usual path, said Tracy Quinn, president and chief executive of the group Heal the Bay. This approach is shocking considering what we know about changing precipitation patterns and Californias lip service about preparing for climate change. Quinn said the rules as proposed would fall far short of the steps California needs to take to adapt to more intense droughts and less reliable water supplies. She said the state water board caved to unreasonable water agency complaints by allowing weak standards with semi-truck sized loopholes that make it too easy for water suppliers to shirk their obligation to use water more efficiently. A front yard is filled with drought-tolerant plants in Altadena. (Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times) State officials said their revisions were based on extensive input from managers of water agencies and the public. Many local water suppliers raised a lot of concerns with the first draft of the regulation, Oppenheimer said. We really took stock in those comments that we received, and really took the concerns that were raised to heart. In November, state officials formed a group of water managers and conservation experts to discuss options for revising the regulations and held a series of meetings, where Oppenheimer said officials heard a lot of really useful and meaningful input. Read more: Tracking Californias water supplies State regulators also considered the critique by the legislative analysts, who warned that the original proposal would be expensive, overly complicated and difficult to implement. Generally what we did was push out all of the dates about five years to provide more flexibility, Oppenheimer said. This provides additional time for the suppliers to meet those increasingly more efficient water use objectives. The regulations, which were required under 2018 legislation, are expected to take effect in January 2025, and the state would begin to assess whether suppliers are complying in 2027. The targets for reductions in water use would be phased in until 2040. State officials had estimated that their original proposal would have slashed Californias urban water use 12% by 2035. With the changes, the state estimates the revised rules could reduce water use by 7% by 2035, and 9% by 2040. The state boards staff calculated those estimates using a baseline period of 2017 to 2021 for comparison, and found that the 2040 reduction goals would mean a statewide reduction of about 500,000 acre-feet of water per year, roughly equivalent to the annual water use of Los Angeles. State officials acknowledged that some of these reductions would be expected to occur even without the regulations in place. They also said their estimates dont account for measures in the proposal that would give some suppliers additional time to meet water-saving targets. The number of water suppliers required to achieve reductions of more than 20% would decrease from 165 under the initial proposal to 108 under the new proposal. Of those, the number of agencies required to cut water use more than 30% would shrink from 84 to 47. The rules would bring vastly different requirements for cities in Southern California. On the high end of reductions, Arcadia would be required to cut water use 37.6% by 2040, while Beverly Hills would need a 34.6% reduction and Burbank would be tasked with a 32.4% reduction. Elsewhere, the 2040 reductions would be 29.1% for Covina, 17.8% for Redlands, 15.7% for Thousand Oaks and 9.3% for the L.A. Department of Water and Power. In all, 274 water suppliers statewide would be required to reduce water consumption by some amount by 2040. In some areas, water purveyors are already meeting their long-term conservation targets. The rules would require no reduction in usage for 122 water agencies an increase from 71 agencies under the initial plan representing nearly a third of the states urban suppliers. Among the cities that would not see any mandatory reductions in water use through 2040, according to state data, are Santa Ana and Compton. The proposed changes address concerns raised by the Assn. of California Water Agencies, which represents public agencies that supply most of the states cities and farms. Chelsea Haines, the associations regulatory relations manager, said the state has now offered a more reasonable yet strong regulation that will continue to push Californians to advance long-term water use efficiency. The new urban water efficiency rules are intended to drive permanent reductions to adapt to climate change part of Gov. Gavin Newsoms strategy to prepare for an estimated 10% decrease in Californias water supply by 2040. Urban retail water suppliers see water use efficiency as an important tool in the state's strategy for adapting to climate change, Haines said. Our focus has been just making sure that the regulation that's ultimately adopted puts us on a path of success that is cost effective, that is feasible, that provides adequate time for Californians to make the shifts that would be required. The states updated proposal, Haines said, will provide more flexibility on how to achieve those goals, and recognizes that increasing long-term water use efficiency will require time. Native flowering plants fill a yard in Los Angeles. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) The proposed regulations wont apply to individual households or businesses, only to cities and water districts. The rules also dont apply to agriculture. Under the regulations, each water supplier will be tasked with working toward a locally tailored water use budget, which accounts for indoor and outdoor residential water use, water lost to leakage, and landscape irrigation at businesses and institutional properties. Each city or water district can choose how to meet its overall water use goal. There are special allowances for communities where residents have livestock, or where many homes have swamp coolers that consume more water. The rules also include bonuses that would increase water budgets for suppliers that use recycled water, or for those that are struggling to meet targets and have non-irrigated areas that could be irrigated in the future. In addition, the states proposal would allow some suppliers that are facing large reductions in water use to apply for alternative compliance. Based on current data, this would allow as many as 63 suppliers serving lower-income areas to reduce water use at the slower pace of 1% each year while working toward reduction goals. An additional 19 suppliers in higher-income areas would also qualify and could reduce water use 2% each year. The state water board has the authority to issue orders if suppliers fail to comply, and to impose fines if necessary up to $1,000 a day in a non-drought year, and $10,000 a day in a drought year. State officials say, however, that fines would be a last resort and they plan to work with local agencies to help them meet their targets. Read more: Newsom wants to build a $16-billion water tunnel. Will it destroy California's delta? Quinn, of Heal the Bay, said the expanded loopholes, delayed timeline and less stringent standards in the states proposal would be irresponsible and reckless. The proposed delay means the majority of water suppliers dont have to save a single new drop of water until at least 2035, Quinn said. Quinn said she is concerned that the regulations as written would allow for backsliding and that some suppliers could increase water use. The 2018 legislation that laid the groundwork for the rules included a provision aimed at ensuring a previous goal of reducing water use 20% by 2020 would remain the minimum goal for all local agencies. Unfortunately, the State Board has decided not to enforce the no backsliding provision until 2040, meaning water suppliers can use more water than their 2020 goals for the next 16 years, Quinn said. Quinn said the alternative compliance measure, which was originally intended to help disadvantaged communities catch up on saving water, shouldnt be used to ease the requirements for any supplier that hasnt adequately invested in conservation. We need to be adapting our communities to climate change, and we needed to start yesterday or a decade ago, Quinn said. Water agencies should be leaning into conservation and efficiency instead of fighting for the right to waste more water. Quinn pointed out that during the drought in 2022, parts of Southern California were under severe water restrictions , which were lifted only after the wet winter of 2023 ended the emergency. Our climate amnesia is almost as devastating as climate whiplash, Quinn said. The recent rain and snow seems to have faded our memories that just two years ago parts of Los Angeles were dangerously close to running out of water. Now is not the time to take our foot off the pedal. Read more: The Colorado River is overused and shrinking. Inside the crisis transforming the Southwest She and other advocates say conservation is the fastest and cheapest way of securing water supplies for cities, and that moving to change landscapes from thirsty lawns to native plants can help California not only become more resilient but also reduce energy use by pumping and treating less water. A study in 2022 by researchers at the Pacific Institute, a water think tank in Oakland, found that California could reduce urban water use by 30% to 48% by investing in measures to use water more efficiently, such as fixing leaks in pipes, replacing inefficient appliances and replacing lawns with low-water-use plants. And experts say that from now until 2026, water districts have an opportunity to take advantage of federal funds from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support investments in conservation efforts. California has a tremendous untapped potential to reduce urban water use, said Heather Cooley, the Pacific Institutes research director. Now is exactly the time for the water board to push to ensure urban water conservation remains a priority. The state water board will hold a workshop on the proposed draft regulation March 20 and will accept comments until March 27. Meanwhile, some water districts that are facing significant reductions including Walnut Valley Water District, Rowland Water District and Bellflower-Somerset Mutual Water Co. announced that they are supporting SB 1330 , a bill introduced by state Sen. Bob Archuleta (D-Pico Rivera) that they say would make it easier to meet conservation goals. The districts managers said they are supporting the legislation to extend timelines for compliance, simplify procedures and ensure water remains affordable while they promote conservation. The Assn. of California Water Agencies has not taken a position on the legislation. Californians have dramatically reduced water use over the last decade. According to the state water board, per-capita urban water use decreased by more than 20% between 2013 and 2022. Oppenheimer said the new rules would secure a significant amount of additional water savings. The state is facing major water supply challenges in the face of climate change, he said. And conservation is an important tool to help mitigate that reduction in water supply. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. JASPER COUNTY, Mo. A California man, who police say fired shots at them during a pursuit, asks to be moved out of the Jasper County Jail. Attorneys for Johnny Crowels, 50, filed two motions in Jasper County Court one for bond reduction and one to have him transferred to the Newton County Jail. Johnny Crowels, 50. His attorneys argue Crowels fears for his safety because some of the alleged victims in the case are Jasper County deputies. Among the charges hes facing are first-degree assault, armed criminal action, and resisting arrest by fleeing. PREVIOUS: Suspects arrested in stolen vehicle pursuit, shooting in Carthage Crowels is accused of running from officers, firing a weapon at them, and ramming a vehicle into one of the patrol cars involved in the pursuit in April 2022. His attorneys say Crowels has been in solitary confinement and that hes been denied basic human rights since last November. The judge denied both motions. FOUR STATES CRIME Crowels will be back in court for a pre-trial hearing or change of plea on May 7. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com. SYDNEY, March 13 (Xinhua) -- New research led by Australian marine scientists has shed light on the severe impact of fishing gear entanglements on the survival of North Atlantic right whales, a species listed as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. In their study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B journal, the researchers analyzed 40 years of data on 199 female right whales together with known fishing-gear entanglements to calculate the impact of these encounters on whale reproduction. Modeling of whale-sightings data suggested that when female right whales get tangled in ropes from lobster and crab pots, they are less likely to calve, which potentially leads to extinction for this species. "Poor calving is one of the main factors behind the decline of North Atlantic right whales and, until now, the reason for these whales' failure to calve wasn't clear," said Joshua Reed, lead author of the study and doctoral candidate from Macquarie University. "This study makes it clear that all types of entanglement in fishing gear impact females' ability to calve, helping address one of the big, outstanding questions for saving North Atlantic right whales," Reed noted in a statement on Wednesday. Currently, fewer than 350 North Atlantic right whales remain alive worldwide, making them the second-most endangered great whale species. Fishing gear entanglement is considered a major threat to their survival. Prior work showed that 89 percent of females experienced at least one entanglement event during their lifetime, with almost two-thirds of them enduring two or more. According to the new study, pre-breeders who endured minor or severe entanglements in a particular year had a lower chance of transitioning into the breeding population, compared to those not entangled or who had moderate entanglements. Surprisingly, those with minor entanglements showed the lowest probabilities, with individuals being on average 47 percent less likely to breed in contrast to the non-entangled females. "This study makes clear that using value-laden terms such as 'minor', 'moderate' and 'severe' to describe the relative severity of scars from entanglements is inappropriate," said co-author Rob Harcourt, honorary professor from Macquarie University's School of Natural Sciences. "These terms lead to an unconscious assumption that 'minor' injuries aren't important, when in fact they are," he added. The research team delivered a conclusion that management actions are needed to address the lethal and sub-lethal impacts of all entanglements, regardless of severity classification. California saw a spike in tuberculosis cases in 2023, returning to levels not seen since before the pandemic. In 2023, there were 2,113 reported cases of tuberculosis (TB) in California a 15 percent increase from the 1,842 reported cases in 2022. The number of cases in 2023 mirrors those in 2019, which saw 2,110 cases. After reported cases dropped by 20 percent from 2019 to 2020, the number has steadily risen each year. Since 2020, reported cases have increased by 24 percent. But the 15 percent increase in 2023 marks the largest year-over-year jump in recent years. In 2022, reported cases were up by 5 percent; in 2021, reported cases were up 3 percent. The recent jump has prompted the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to issue a health advisory to health care providers about the substantial increase in Tuberculosis in California. The CDPH recommended that health care providers consider TB when TB risks, signs, symptoms, or imaging findings compatible with TB are present in a patient with a respiratory illness. The department also noted that the risk for TB is substantially higher when the person has lived in a country with an elevated TB rate. Those who are immunocompromised, have been in close contact with someone with active TB disease, lived in a congregate setting such as prison/jail, or have experienced homelessness are all risk factors, too. Symptoms include a cough that persists for more than two weeks, weight loss, fever or night sweats, and hemoptysis. Health officials warned that the symptoms are highly variable and sometimes TB does not present with any symptoms. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Im writing from rural Kansas, where the sunsets are wide and the communitys spirit is strong. However, these past few years there is a shadow that has been cast over our towns, and it is not from the beautiful prairies we are proud to call home. It is the dark cloud of rising prescription medication costs and the disappearing act of our independent pharmacies. You see, there is a big piece of this puzzle that many folks are not talking about, and that is the role of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. These companies are the middlemen of the prescription drug world, and they have got their fingers in almost every pie. They decide the price tags at the pharmacy and which pharmacies are covered on insurance plans. And they dictate which medicines folks insurance will cover. Now, I am no expert in economics, but when just three companies control 80% of the entire market, that can not be a good sign for competition, or for keeping prices fair for consumers like us. It is not just the control they have that is troubling it is the lack of oversight. These PBMs operate with a freedom that is unheard of in other industries. They use vertical integration, which is a fancy term for owning different stages of the same supply chain, to keep their grip tight and the rest of us at their mercy. As a result, we are seeing our local pharmacies shut their doors one by one because they cannot compete with the PBMs own pharmacies. Its a sad day when you have to drive an hour or more to find the nearest place to fill a prescription. Thankfully, there is a flicker of hope on the horizon as Congress steps up with new legislation that aims to break the link between the profits of PBMs and the soaring price of drugs. This legislation is not just a piece of paper it is a lifeline for folks who depend on their medications to live a normal life, and it is a lifeline for independent pharmacists pursuing the American dream of owning their own business. The problem is, these PBMs play a clever game. They own pharmacies and insurance plans, so they get to set high prices and then turn around and profit from them at both ends. They are the pitcher and the batter in a game that only they can win. That is not just unfair it is downright wrong. It is taking hard-earned money from Kansans who toil through tornadoes and droughts, who support our communities, and all we expect is a square deal in return. Now, there are some bills in Congress, S. 1542 in the Senate and H.R. 6283 in the House, that are designed to correct these wrongs. These bills aim to replace the twisted incentive structure that allows PBMs to inflate drug prices with a system that rewards them for finding the best deal for patients. Its a system that would put our interests first, not the profits of some far-off company. I have got to put my hope in our representative, Ron Estes, to step up and take a leadership role in making sure these bills do not just sit on a shelf gathering dust. We need action, and we need it this year. Our health and financial well-being are on the line. It is high time for Congress to put its constituents first, and to make healthcare costs transparent and affordable. Passing these bills would mark a victory for Kansans and for all Americans who have been held captive by the hidden and complicated maneuvers of PBMs. We are counting on our legislators to cut through the tangle and deliver us from the grip of these corporate giants. Ben Jones lives in Pratt and is a former member of the Kansas State Board of Education. Rep. Adam B. Schiff questions special counsel Robert Hur on Tuesday, backed by a photograph of a bathroom at Mar-a-Lago where Donald Trump kept boxes of classified documents after he left the White House. (Nathan Howard / Associated Press) For years now, the single most common complaint Ive heard from Democrats is that their party doesnt fight as hard, and never dirty, like Republicans do they dont bring guns to a gunfight. Since 2016, Ive heard that rap from Republicans too: Never-Trump types express surprise and exasperation that their Democratic comrades in arms against the former president dont, well, take up arms politically. Democratic pols will concede as much: They worry about how they might come off to the poli-sci profs, pundits and civic-minded idealists. Their good-government bent is commendable. But getting bested repeatedly by the likes of Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is not. One of us is playing with a rolling pin, and the other is fighting with a gun, an aide to Senate leaders once told me, frustrated that Democrats were adhering to Marquess of Queensberry rules as Republicans busted norms to pack the federal courts. We always bring a butter knife to a gunfight, longtime Democratic strategist Brian Fallon similarly groused not long ago. Fallon felt that so strongly that Democrats were wimping out that in 2017 he co-founded a liberal activist group, Demand Justice, to give the left a more combative approach in judicial confirmation contests. He recently left the group for a job in the Biden campaign , as the communications director for Vice President Kamala Harris. Thats good: Democrats need scrappers, lots of em, and the ever-cautious Harris in particular needs communications firepower. Even better signs of a more fired-up Democratic Party have emerged lately, just as Biden and Trump each secured their respective parties nominations Tuesday with wins in several states' primary contests. Read more: Biden and Trump clinch nominations, setting the stage for a grueling general election rematch One sign was Bidens plucky State of the Union address last week, in which he took a bakers dozen shots at my predecessor and parried House Republicans taunts like a smiling Dark Brandon come to life, shooting red lasers from his eyes. To hear Republicans carp afterward that Biden was too partisan gave new meaning to the pot calling the kettle black. Another indication of an amped-up Democratic offense was news of a big $30-million Biden campaign ad buy, along with the presidents busy stumping schedule in battleground states and the campaigns plans to hire hundreds of aides. The first ad was a good one, too, featuring a lively Biden poking fun at his age, noting his achievements, drawing contrasts with Trump and, appropriately, promising to fight for you. And on Tuesday came some evidence that other Democrats will have Bidens back. Those on the House Judiciary Committee came loaded for bear to the hearing that the majority Republicans held showcasing Robert Hur, a Republican and the former special counsel whose recent report on Bidens handling of classified materials included damaging commentary about the presidents age and alleged diminished faculties. Read more: Column: Biden says America is 'coming back.' Trump says we're 'in hell.' Are they talking about the same nation? The committees Democrats, notably California Reps. Ted Lieu , Adam B. Schiff and Eric Swalwell, appropriately focused less on Hurs asides about mental lapses and more on his reports conclusions that no criminal charges are warranted against Biden (compared to 41 felony counts against Trump). And that despite Republicans' claims to the contrary, what Biden did with top-secret documents was in no way comparable to the far more serious allegations against Trump for conspiracy and false statements. The committee Democrats didnt ignore the issue of age and mental acuity; they simply turned it against Trump. Several of them came, yes, armed with video montages of the former presidents verbal flubs, slurred words and non sequiturs at recent MAGA rallies. But Democrats' more typical lack of fight explains why Hur, a former Trump Justice Department official, was tapped as special counsel by Biden's Atty. Gen. Merrick Garland in the first place. Democrats, wanting to be seen as fair, keep giving Republicans a virtual monopoly on independent counsel jobs each time Washington decides it needs another high-profile investigation. Whether the person being investigated is a Democrat (Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton) or a Republican (Donald Trump), Democrats have supported having a Republican prosecutor. Read more: Opinion: What a doctor sees when Joe Biden hesitates Republicans don't reciprocate. David Brock, now a Democratic operative but notorious in the 1990s as a ruthless, right-wing scourge of the Clintons, a few years ago confessed to me his occasional irritation with his new party for its punch-pulling, say, by rejecting a line of attack as somehow unfair. Now, that's nothing that I ever experienced as a young conservative, he told me. There's a different ethic. Republicans just want the result, they just want to get there, they want the win, Brock added. Democrats, on the other hand, do a lot of hand-wringing about how to get there, about whether they are being respectful of the process. And yet, ask most Republican voters and theyll tell you that its Democrats who are the dirty fighters, cheating in elections and weaponizing the government against their foes, chiefly Trump. Because that is what Trump tells them. Thats Republicans' dirtiest play of all. Lying to their own voters. This election year will likely be as mean as any in memory. Heres hoping Im correct that Biden and the Democrats have sheathed the butter knives and shelved the rolling pins. Its not like Trump hasnt given them the ammunition for a gunfight. @jackiekcalmes Get the latest from Jackie Calmes Commentary on politics and more from award-winning opinion columnist. Sign me up. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. DAKAR (Reuters) - Backers of detained opposition presidential candidate Bassirou Diomaye Faye are taking his campaign to the streets of Senegal with posters and bracelets, drumming up support in the hope he will be released before the vote. Faye was relatively unknown within Senegal's tumultuous political scene until popular firebrand opposition leader Ousmane Sonko backed his candidacy for the March 24 vote. Sonko, who enjoys widespread support among Senegal's jobless youths, is also in detention and disqualified from the race over a defamation conviction. Sonko denies any wrongdoing. Faye, who is facing charges including defamation and contempt of court, remains eligible because there has been no ruling yet against him. There are no public opinion polls in Senegal, but Faye is seen as a strong contender among the 19 candidates vying for the presidency - with the campaign condensed into a little over two weeks after uncertainty of the date of the vote was settled by a court ruling after widespread protests. Members of Sonko's dissolved Pastef party and other parties that formed a coalition to back Faye, tax inspector, launched his campaign in his absence on Saturday. High-profile politicians, including former prime minister Aminata Toure, who had a public falling out with outgoing President Macky Sall and left the ruling coalition last year, have thrown their support behind Faye. Supporters with bright bracelets and campaign posters bearing the images of both Faye and Sonko have joined the campaign caravan crisscrossing the country. "We are here for the project. Even in prison, our resolve remains strong. I left everything for this project. I'm a tailor but I left everything to help this project," said Cheikh Omar Sow, who joined a throng of supporters in Dakar on Tuesday. The Faye coalition has promised institutional changes, and plans to create a new national currency, which could have significant implications for the eight-nation West African Economic and Monetary Union. It also plans to renegotiate mining and energy contracts. Both Faye and Sonko were expected to be released after parliament passed an amnesty bill on March 6, aimed at easing the political tension, but it remains unclear if they will be released before election day. Their lawyer told Reuters on Wednesday and there was no indication that they would be released any time soon. (This story has been refiled to correct the picture captions) (Reporting by Ngouda Dion and Sofia Christensen; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by Alison Williams) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is threatening his most tyrannical attack on freedom yet through his governments proposed Online Harms Act (currently Bill C-63). Brought to you by the same farcically-named Liberal party who froze the bank accounts of the truckers who protested vaccine-mandates, the OHA is the governments overzealous attempt to promote online safety. The proposed legislation supposedly achieves this by requiring operators of social media services to adequately mitigate the risk that their users will be exposed to harmful content through measures such as publishing standards of online conduct, providing blocking tools and ways to flag and label harmful content. The OHA would create a Digital Safety Commission to administer and enforce its rules along with a Digital Safety Office to support social media users and advocate for online safety. These agencies can investigate complaints, summon people to testify in hearings and to produce records. Costs of all this will be paid by unspecified charges on social media platforms, presumably contemplating Canadas planned Digital Services Tax on big tech platforms. Most controversially, the OHAs provisions on posting hateful content would require amendments to Canadas Criminal Code as well as its Human Rights Act. While the victims of online hate may be comforted by tough new penalties, the changes are radical, particularly a new hate crime offence which can lead to life imprisonment. Worryingly, the criminal provisions of the OHA would give judges the ability to put people under house arrest because they might commit a hate crime in the future. The potential criminal could also be made to wear an electronic tag if the Attorney General requests it. Former Canadian Supreme Court Justice Beverly McLachlin has already suggested that many of the OHAs criminal provisions will be challenged in court if they stay in their present form. Under the proposed act, online hate complaints can also be referred to the Canadian Human Rights Commission, notorious for its tough stance on politically incorrect speech. In an era in which the expression of hatred has intensified in Canada and elsewhere, the OHA would appear to offer some comfort to internet users. But while there are unquestionably unpleasant people lurking online who exploit the anonymity and reach of the internet to say all sorts of nasty things, policing offence caused by online content in such a harsh way is a dangerous, totalitarian step. As Jordan Peterson rightly warned of the OHA in a recent op-ed drawing parallels to the overreach of Covid mitigations: we need to be careful that the cure is not worse than the disease. Online content moderation is a difficult exercise; one with which the various social media platforms are struggling to varying degrees of success, depending on who you are asking the nature of their opinions and biases. In seeking to do this via wide ranging, vaguely-articulated duties and draconian enforcement provisions, the OHA is as good as an example of a supercharged nanny-statism which can be conceivably envisioned in a notionally free country. It is an idea pushed by the same power-drunk politicians who took over our lives during the pandemic. If enacted, the result would be an Orwellian nightmare of restrictions on making or consuming online content stifling the culture of debate and discussion that is protected by Canadas Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the now-hollow Article 2 on Freedom of Expression. That freedom is rightly subject to reasonable limits, but these have been pushed by OHA beyond their breaking point to the detriment of the society which they were constructed to serve. Far from the wild west of a freewheeling world wide web where you could virtually see or do anything from the comfort of your home, for Canadians, Trudeaus OHA will drive the internet to another extreme, a tightly-monitored police state more suited to North Korea than North America. It will harm more people than it protects. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. (Bloomberg) -- Canada is rebooting an official forum to smooth its C$3.4-billion-a-day ($2.5 billion) trading relationship with the US ahead of the unpredictability Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sees with a potential return of Donald Trump. Most Read from Bloomberg A meeting to gather Canadian business input for the Canada-United States Regulatory Cooperation Council, held on Tuesday in British Columbia, marks the revival of activity for a cross-border forum that last met in September 2019, according to Canadian Treasury Board President Anita Anand. Shell be holding more meetings across Canada to canvass ideas to remove barriers from one of the worlds busiest trading borders. In 2022, Canada was the USs biggest purchaser of export goods, while the US represented two-thirds of Canadas global trade. Its useful because we prefer that issues dont elevate to the area of a trade dispute, Anand said in an interview with Bloomberg. Im going to be working with other ministries and other ministers to bring to their attention the issues that Ive heard. In January, Trudeau spoke about efforts to deepen Canadas relationship with its closest ally and trading partner as the country gears up for the possible reelection of Trump as US president, despite the challenges his past administration presented. Read More: Trudeau Prepares Team Canada Approach to Possible Trump Return The RCC really doesnt depend on who is in office in the White House, Anand said when asked about Novembers presidential election. Its really focused on making sure that we as a country have the most robust trading relationship possible with the United States. Anand assumed the Treasury post in July after serving as defense minister for the first 18 months of Russias invasion of Ukraine and procurement minister amid the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. In BC, she met with businesses including truckers and retailers, who shared feedback around digitizing border trade documentation and a level playing field between e-commerce imports and domestically manufactured goods. (Updates headline.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. A bill proposed in the Canadian House of Commons has sparked claims that Christians could face legal consequences for their beliefs. This is misleading; the party sponsoring the bill said it seeks to remove faith as a defense for hate speech , which a law professor told AFP does not encompass most public religious expression . "There is a new bill being proposed that any Christians in Canada that quote the Bible could end up in prison," says the speaker in a March 8, 2024 TikTok with more than 610,000 views. Different versions of the clip spread across Facebook, X, TikTok and the video-sharing platform Rumble. Screenshot of an X post taken March 11, 2024 Other posts on Instagram, Facebook, X and TikTok have also claimed Canada is weighing a bill that would "essentially ban the idea of Christianity." Screenshot of an X post taken March 11, 2024 Screenshot of an Instagram post taken March 11, 2024 Many posts link to articles claiming Bill C-367 (archived here) would "silence believers who oppose the woke ideology." Yves-Francois Blanchet, leader of the federal Bloc Quebecois party (archived here), tabled the bill in Canada's Parliament on November 28, 2023. Bloc Quebecois spokeswoman Joanie Riopel told AFP the legislation would remove religious exemptions for the crimes of public incitement of hate and willful promotion of hatred and anti-Semitism. "The bill provides for the removal of paragraphs ... of the Canadian Criminal Code, which allow anyone to hide under the cloak of religion in the context of public incitement to hatred," Riopel said in a March 8, 2024 email. She said Blanchet introduced the bill after an imam called on God to "exterminate" the "enemies of the people of Gaza" while leading a prayer at a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Montreal in October 2023. Local media reported the speech sparked concerns about violence. Richard Moon, a law professor at the University of Windsor (archived here), said the proposed amendments would have minimal effect on religious expression since they would only apply to hate speech. "It's not going to shut down general Christian speech," he said March 8. Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees freedom of religion and freedom of speech within "reasonable limits" that can be "demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society" (archived here). AFP has previously fact-checked misinformation about private member bills such as C-367, which face an uphill battle in Parliament since the cabinet does not introduce them. What the Criminal Code says Canada's Criminal Code defines "public incitement of hatred" as statements against certain groups that are "likely to lead to a breach of the peace" (archived here and here). Incitement, "wilful promotion of hatred" and "wilful promotion of antisemitism" are indictable offences. Moon said Canadian courts have found the hate speech section of the Criminal Code only applies to extreme expressions that vilify or dehumanize certain groups. Defendants can argue their statements were made in good faith to reflect a religious opinion or text, but he said that approach is rarely successful. An Ontario court in 2001 dismissed such an appeal from a man convicted for promoting hatred after he distributed pamphlets and left phone messages claiming all Muslims were capable of terrorism and cruelty (archived here). The judgment said that "although the pamphlets and recorded message did contain statements of religious belief, they went above and beyond this." Some of the posts circulating online allude to Christians facing possible legal consequences for speaking in opposition to the LGBTQ community if Bill C-367 passes. But Moon said someone who calls LGBTQ lifestyles "sinful" would not meet the legal threshold for incitement or promotion of hatred -- unless they advocate for the extermination of certain groups or mischaracterize them in a way that could lead to ostracization. "We're talking about really extreme speech," Moon said. LGBTQ Canadians have told local media outlets they do not feel adequately protected from hatred under the current Criminal Code. Legislating speech Bill C-367 is not the only proposal looking to curb hate speech and anti-Semitism. The Liberal Party has introduced Bill-C63, known as the Online Harms Bill (archived here). The legislation proposes restrictions on online communication that could expose a person or group to hatred. With the federal justice minister's backing, the bill has a better chance of passage -- but it also sparked freedom of expression concerns after its first reading. Read more of AFP's reporting on misinformation in Canada here. WASHINGTON (DC News Now) Members of Congress awarded medals to seven dogs last Wednesday for their courage and bravery while serving the U.S. The Fourth Annual Animals in War & Peace Medal Ceremony honored dogs who show bravery in times of war and peace. The 2024 Animals in War & Peace Medal of Bravery recipients include: K9 Yoda U.S. Border Patrol Tactical Unit BORTAC, Detroit Sector (presented by Cong. Jamie Raskin-MD) K9 Endo and K9 Ax Volusia, FL Sheriffs Office (presented by Cong. Julia Brownley-CA and Cong. Gus Bilirakis-FL) K9 Kitt 823KBraintree, MA Police Department (Posthumously honored and presented by Cong. Jamie Raskin-MD) Single-engine plane crashes in Warren County The prestigious Animals in War & Peace Medal of Bravery award was bestowed upon animals that have served in past conflicts, as well as current working or retired military dogs representing various branches of U.S. military services, service animals, and First Responders, a press release from the Livingood Group stated. The 2024 Animals in War & Peace Distinguished Service Medal recipients include: K9 Cody U.S. Embassy in Baghdad / American K9 Interdiction, VA (presented by Cong. Michael Quigley-IL) K9 Bane St. Francis Police Department / FBI Milwaukee SWAT, WI (presented by Cong. Bryan Steil-WI) K9 Sonya V558 U.S. Coast Guard MSST (Seattle)/MSRT-W, San Diego, CA (presented by Cong. Marc Veasey-TX) The Distinguished Service Medal recognizes animals for their exceptional service in the U.S. in roles of great responsibility. Maryland Board of Public Works approves additional wage theft settlement Congressman Jamie Raskin (D-MD) awarded Yoda, who worked in Detroits Border Patrol Tactical Unit, and posthumously honored Kitt from the Braintree Police Department in Massachusetts. Raskin also co-sponsored a bill in the House of Representatives that is working to create an annual nomination process for these awards. The bill, introduced by Representative Julia Brownley (CA) on March 5, states that animals that serve in war and peace in the United States are currently not recognized for their acts of gallantry and bravery, and do not have an official medal to honor their distinguished service. The ceremony, created in 2019, has since celebrated over 20 dogs for their service. The bill hopes to expand the ceremonys scope in recognizing the contributions that military animals make. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. A judge in Woodland on Wednesday ordered that the trial against Carlos Reales Dominguez, the former UC Davis student accused of a stabbing spree that left two dead and rocked the Davis community last year, will begin as early as June. Yolo Superior Court Judge Samuel T. McAdam bound Reales Dominguez for trial last month after hearing testimony from Davis police officers detailing the attacks inflicting upon three people. On Wednesday, McAdam set the trial date for June 18. Reales Dominguez is charged with murder and attempted murder with special circumstances in the three attacks in late April and early May. David Breaux, 50, and Najm, 20, were killed in separate Davis city parks days apart. Their slayings were followed by the brutal attack on 64-year-old Kimberlee Guillory as she slept in her tent May 1 in a homeless encampment. She survived the stabbing. At Wednesdays brief hearing, public defender Daniel Hutchinson entered not guilty pleas to all charges for his 22-year-old client. Reales Dominguez appeared as well, in gray and navy blue jail clothing, and showed no reaction during the proceedings. He briefly said yes when asked by McAdam if he understood he was waiving his right to a speedy trial. Prosecutors had said during a February hearing that they would not seek the death penalty against Reales Dominguez, whose mental health had deteriorated in the months before the knife attacks but was later deemed mentally fit to stand trial. The criminal case against Reales Dominguez was suspended after prosecutors conceded he was mentally incompetent to understand the charges he faced and assist in his own legal defense. This announcement came after impaneled jurors heard testimony from his ex-girlfriend, roommates and friends to determine whether he was mentally fit. In December, state hospital doctors determined that Reales Dominguezs mental competency was restored after receiving treatment at Atascadero State Hospital to restore his mental competency. Reales Dominguez was quickly brought back to Woodland where McAdam reinstated criminal proceedings against the 22-year-old on Jan. 5. At the time, the judge said the doctors report indicated that Reales Dominguez has sufficient knowledge and sufficient understanding of the legal procedure and charges, and his mental health disorder of schizophrenia with catatonia. The report also indicates that the defendant has the capacity to rationally assist legal counsel, McAdam said. The report further indicates that the risk of self-harm is low, and the risk of harm to others in an institutional setting is low. And again, most importantly, the report indicates that the defendant is certified as competent to stand trial. Before he was transferred to the state, Reales Dominguez at times had refused antipsychotic medication while at the jail. Reales Dominguez was a UC Davis biological science major who had excelled as a high school student-athlete in the East Bay but was dismissed from the university for academic reasons on April 25, two days before the deadly rampage started. In court testimony in June, his friends described him displaying bizarre behavior, becoming further withdrawn from society. CARTHAGE, Mo. Carthage Police make two arrests in an ongoing human trafficking case. Criminal charges have been filed against Jose Rabanales-Miranda, 47, and Judith Cancinos-Huinac, 50. Jose Rabanales-Miranda Judith Cancinos-Huinac Court documents allege that for the last six months, Rabanales-Miranda and Cancinos-Huinac forced four adults to work for free or extremely low pay under threat of deportation. FOUR STATES CRIME Carthage Police said the two suspects provided fake documents in two of the cases, and seized the young son of the one of the alleged victims, trying to take custody of him. Officers said that Rabanales-Miranda admitted he got the fake identities and used them to extort work from the victims. Authorities say Rabanales-Miranda then apologized and told them he was wrong. The pair is facing multiple charges including trafficking for the purpose of slavery, trafficking in stolen identities, and contributing to trafficking through the misuse of documentation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com. BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- A mainland spokesperson on Wednesday condemned Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities for evading their responsibilities in the handling of a fatal boat incident. Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks at a press conference on the incident of Feb. 14 when the Taiwan side's brutal expulsion of a mainland fishing boat resulted in injuries and deaths of the fishermen aboard. Chen said up till now, the families of the fishermen have not received a single apology or any truth, while the Taiwan authorities have been delaying the resolution of the incident under the pretext of "investigation procedures." "The Taiwan authorities are indeed heartless, unrighteous and unreasonable," the spokesperson said. Chen urged the DPP authorities to approach the issue with the right attitude and to demonstrate sincerity in reaching a consensus to resume follow-up negotiations regarding the fatal incident. "It is a miscalculation that stalling tactics will help you get by." A new court filing details how Rudy Giuliani is paying his bankruptcy attorneys using money from two defense funds. Those third-party legal funds paid Berger, Fischoff, Shumer, Wexler & Goodman, LLP a $70,000 retainer fee, according to an amended bankruptcy motion filed by the firm this week. The Giuliani Freedom Fund Legal Defense T.R. paid $40,000, and $30,000 came from Giuliani Defense, a fund run by his son Andrew. Rudy Giuliani speaks to members of the media where Republican candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was scheduled to host a campaign event on Jan. 21, 2024 in Manchester, New Hampshire. (Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images) That court filing also states that Giuliani has agreed to pay between $585 and $675 per hour to the firms partners, $425 to $510 for associate lawyers, and $210 per hour to paralegals. Giuliani still plans to appeal the $148 million penalty he owes ex-poll workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss for defaming them. The multi-million-dollar judgment has raised questions about how the former New York mayor will satisfy the payment. Freeman and Moss have asked for transparency on that front, noting the secrecy surrounding his defense funds and how they are being backed. Given the totality of the circumstances including that Mr. Giulianis son is President of Giuliani Defense it is essential to obtain clarity on how the Legal Defense Funds were themselves funded, a February filing from Freemans and Moss attorneys states. In a hearing last month, Giulianis bankruptcy lawyers stated that Giuliani has not contributed to either fund. One of the funds has received hundreds of donations, most of which are under $100, one court document stated. Still, a judge ordered Giulianis attorneys to provide more detail and clarity on the source of the money and how he is paying his legal team. The former Trump attorney filed for bankruptcy a day after a jury announced the $148 million award in Freemans and Moss defamation case. In bankruptcy filings from last month, his attorneys wrote that his net income is only $2,308 per month. Giuliani also claimed that he is still waiting for Donald Trump to pay his unpaid legal fees. He said he never got a salary while working as Trumps attorney and estimated the former president owes him $2 million in legal fees. Giuliani is also still wading through some other legal straits. He faces unsettled debts owed to his former attorneys. One of those former lawyers, Robert Costello, claims Giuliani owes him $1.36 million in unpaid legal fees. Hunter Biden has also sued Giuliani for allegedly violating his privacy after accessing data from his private laptop. Where Is Rudy Giuliani Today: Relying on Two Defense Funds to Pay Bankruptcy Lawyers As Questions Remain About How Hell Cover $148M Judgment to Former Georgia Poll Workers A city in Japan is on high alert for a cat that fell into a tank of hazardous chemicals before disappearing into the night. Officials in Fukuyama, Hiroshima prefecture, said they have stepped up patrols and warned residents not to approach the animal, which was last seen in security footage leaving a plating factory on Sunday. A trail of pawprints discovered by a worker on Monday led to a 3-meter-deep vat of hexavalent chromium, a cancer-causing chemical that can induce rashes and inflammation if touched or inhaled, officials said. Neighborhood searches had yet to find the cat, and it remains unclear whether the animal is alive, a Fukuyama City Hall official said. Akihiro Kobayashi, manager of the Nomura Mekki Fukuyama factory, said a sheet covering the chemical vat was found partially torn when employees returned to work after the weekend. Workers have since been on the lookout for the cat, he said. Factory employees typically wear protective clothing and no health issues have been reported among the staff, Kobayashi added. Hexavalent chromium, or Chromium-6, is perhaps best known as the carcinogenic chemical featured in the 2000 movie Erin Brockovich, starring Julia Roberts. The dramatization, based on a real-life legal case, focuses on the titular activists fight against a utility company accused of polluting the water in a rural California community, causing increased cancer levels and death among its residents. The substance is harmful to the eyes, skin, and respiratory system, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Workers may be harmed from exposure to hexavalent chromium, the CDC says on its website. The level of exposure depends upon the dose, duration, and work being done. Experts cast doubt on whether the cat could survive for long after coming into contact with the substance. Even if the fur would protect the skin from immediately getting large burns, cats clean their fur by licking it, moving the corrosive solution into the mouth, said Linda Schenk, a researcher specializing in chemical risk assessment at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden. My guess is that the cat unfortunately is dead or will be dying shortly, from the chemical burns. This story has been updated. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com FILE - Catalan President Pere Aragones addresses the media in front of the Spanish Parliament in Madrid, Spain, Thursday, April 21, 2022. The leader of Spain's Catalonia called a snap election for May on Wednesday, March 13, 2024 after his minority government failed to pass a budget for the wealthy northeast region surrounding Barcelona. The election will be held on May 12. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez, File) BARCELONA, Spain (AP) The regional president of Catalonia has called an early election for May 12 after his minority government failed to pass a budget for Spain's wealthy northeast region that includes Barcelona. The move by Pere Aragones on Wednesday came on the eve of a vote in Spain's national parliament on a contentious amnesty law that could pardon hundreds of leaders and supporters of the separatist movement, including those involved in Catalonia's unsuccessful bid to declare independence from Spain in 2017. Some separatists leaders were jailed at the time, and others like ex-regional President Carles Puigdemont fled the country. The amnesty proposal has aroused the ire of millions of Spaniards. Those who oppose the bill believe that the people involved in provoking one of the country's biggest crises since the transition to democracy after the death of Gen. Francisco Franco in 1975 shouldn't get away with charges including sedition and rebellion. But Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's government in Madrid relies on Catalan separatist parties to approve laws in Spains parliament. The central government is also trying to win the backing of those parties to pass a national budget. Sanchezs Socialist party and his allies are expected to give their initial backing to the amnesty law in a parliamentary vote on Thursday, while the conservative Popular Party and hard-right politicians will oppose it. The Catalan regional election had to be held before the end of the year. Catalonia has been governed by separatist parties for more than a decade, but Sanchez's Socialists have polled strongly in the region recently. [In the video above: Meteorologist Scott Sabol tells us everything wed ever want to know about , and maybe some things we dont care to know. ] AKRON, Ohio (WJW) One of Northeast Ohios favorite pie places in gearing up for Pi Day! No, thats not a typo. We arent talking about Pie Day. That scrumptious celebration falls on Jan. 23. But, this other slightly made-up holiday is pretty yummy too! On March 14, we are talking about Pi Day the day math wizards tend to show off by listing the infinite numbers of . Thankfully, for the rest of us, the day also involves the kind of pie you eat. Local luxury home up for auction In Akron, The Gardner Pie Company is celebrating with $3.14 pies at their outlet store located at 191 Logan Parkway in Akron. This embedded content is not available in your region. According to the companys Facebook page, The Outlet Store will be open 8:00-4:00 and we will have a great variety of pies available for $3.14! Watch for this tall bird it could be dancing The pies will be sold on first-come, first-served basis and they are not accepting call-ahead orders. According to the post, the deal is limited to select flavors. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. CHICAGO House music will be celebrated once again in its rightful birthplace of Chicago this Labor Day weekend. ARC Music Festival will be held at Union Park in Chicagos West Loop from Friday, Aug. 30, to Sunday, Sept. 1. There is no festival in Chicago that focuses on house and all its different forms, which is crazy considering Chicago is the birthplace of house music, ARC Music Festival Founder John Curley said. This will mark the fourth year that ARC Music Festival will celebrate the house music genre at Union Park, less than two miles away from where it all started at The Warehouse. Chicago & House Music: A relationship over four decades in the making The following list showcases the 2024 lineup for ARC Music Festival: PREVIOUS: ARC Music Festival celebrated Chicago and house music for third year What has made ARC a one-of-a-kind music festival has been their ability to blend new and old artists throughout a weekend celebrating the house music genre. Its important for me that ARC brings all of these talented DJs from all over the world to the city that birthed this music, South Side of Chicago-native and DJ Terry Hunter said. Even if you play EDM, techno, or whatever the case my be, you have to come back home to the motherland. Auris Presents organizers have made ARC Music Festival a cornerstone in the global festival circuit while spotlighting the rich cultural heritage of Chicago. Organizers will also bring back ARC After Dark showcasing 13 Chicago venues and 80 artists from Thursday night to the early morning hours of Monday during the Labor Day weekend celebration. With a lineup that reflects the rich history of house and electronic music, festival-goers can look forward to a weekend of legendary proportions. House music remains Chicagos gift to the world and its time to remind people where it came from, Fatboy Slim said in the aftermovie. Single day and weekend pass will be available at 12 p.m. CST on Friday, March 15. Click Here for ticket information. Click Here for more information on ARC Music Festival. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. Central Bucks School District will implement full-day kindergarten under a grade reconfiguration plan impacting all 23 schools approved Tuesday night. The board voted 6-0 for the plan which includes $12 million in renovations to the three high schools to accommodate ninth graders. Students currently start high school in the tenth grade. The new grade format also impacts the 15 elementary and five middle schools, but does not include closing any schools or require redistricting attendance boundaries. The Central Bucks School District Board re-org in Doylestown on Monday, Dec. 4, 2023. [Daniella Heminghaus | Bucks County Courier Times] CBSD settles lawsuit with teacher Central Bucks to pay suspended teacher, attorneys $425k, remove references to report A committee made up of staff, parents and students started working on the realignment proposal in 2022. These changes will have wide-reaching and impactful benefits for our students, Board President Karen Smith said. Here are the highlights of what the plan proposes: Full day kindergarten, elementary school ends at fifth grade Under the plan the district's elementary schools will move to a K-5 model to accommodate the the proposed full-day kindergarten program. The full-day kindergarten will not be fully implemented until the 2026-27 school year, under the plan, but a pilot program will start for the 2025-26 school year. The location of the pilot classes will be determined by Nov. 1, according to a district press release announcing the changes. A pilot kindergarten program will give us the opportunity to work with our teachers and curriculum department as we continue to refine our plan and make adjustments for it to expand across the district, Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education Nadine Garvin said. Ninth-grade moves to the high schools, sixth grade to middle schools Sixth-graders will be added to the district's middle schools starting in the 2026-27 school year. Currently sixth-grade is part of the elementary school grade structure. The plan did not mention if school renovations will be necessary to accommodate the new grade. In addition to the planned renovations at the three high schools, the district has estimated $9.9 million in ongoing operational costs for staffing and supplies, according to the district. The costs involving the high school changes will be phased in over three budget years and they are expected to add an estimated $7 each month to the average taxpayers bill over five years. What the 2022 alignment study said Central Bucks School District study eyes grade realignment, closing Linden Elementary Why does Central Bucks need to realign its grade structure? While Central Bucks is one of the largest school districts in Pennsylvania, its enrollment has declined over the last 14 years, according to the district. Current enrollment is at 17,195 students, down 16% from the 2009-10 school year when more than 20,000 students attended the district, according to the district. The district is projecting enrollment will be stable over the next decade with a projected 17,168 students enrolled for the 2033-34 school year. This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Central Bucks OKs full-day kindergarten, moving grades US troops are preparing to deliver aid to the Palestinians (ROBERTO SCHMIDT) While the US plan to build a pier off the Gaza coast to increase aid deliveries is a technique tried and tested throughout military history, it presents logistical hurdles that may limit the international community's ability to bring critical supplies to Palestinians. US President Joe Biden announced the initiative last week as the war has left Gaza's population struggling to survive, especially in the north where Israeli restrictions have hampered overland access. The plan to build a "floating pier" would provide some two million meals or bottles of water per day, but Pentagon spokesperson General Pat Ryder said the project could take "up to 60 days" to be fully operational. In late February, the United Nations warned famine in Gaza was "imminent", with one in six children in the north under the age of two considered "acutely malnourished". But experts say the maritime route will not be as efficient as supplies brought overland, and many are pushing Israel to allow aid through border crossings. Troops to remain offshore The "temporary offshore" pier will allow military and civilian vessels to drop off their cargo, Ryder explained at a press briefing last week. Aid will then be transported by Navy support vessels to a 500-metre-long, two-lane wide "floating causeway" before being "transported onto land and distributed into Gaza." Roughly one thousand US soldiers will assemble the structure, but Ryder reiterated Biden's promise that troops will stay offshore with "no US forces on the ground". While the pier will address some of Gazans' dire needs, Norwegian Refugee Council chief Jan Egeland had one message for donors. "Push Israel to open borders," he wrote on X. "The airdrops, the construction of a port, are a sign of powerlessness and weakness on the part of the international community," Agnes Callamard, Amnesty's secretary general, said in Madrid. - Alternative to airdrops - The attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas against Israel on October 7 resulted in the deaths of about 1,160 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures. Israel's retaliatory military campaign against Hamas has killed at least 31,272 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory which is now battling a humanitarian crisis. Aid groups say only a fraction of the supplies required to meet basic humanitarian needs have been allowed into the Palestinian territory since October. An average of 112 trucks per day -- down from 500 before the war -- have been able to enter Gaza since the first checkpoint, in Rafah on the border with Egypt, opened on October 21, according to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. The United States is among the countries that have responded by carrying out airdrops, but while they are "precise and speedy," airdrops are also "limited" and "relatively expensive", wrote retired US general Mark Hertling on X. For maritime historian Salvatore Mercogliano, the port would be an upgrade from airdrops. "It is not fast, it is not going to deliver huge amounts of cargo in, but over nothing coming in or air drops... it is a big improvement," he said. But it would be "much easier" if Israel and Egypt allowed overland shipments, he added. Security concerns Building a pier is "the most complicated solution," agreed retired colonel and French military historian Michel Goya. Security remains a major challenge in bringing aid into the Palestinian territory. Dozens of Palestinians were killed in early March in a chaotic rush for aid from a truck convoy. The Gaza health ministry said Israeli forces shot at them, but the Israeli army insists most died in a stampede. Experts also worry that a fixed structure is vulnerable to attack. "Drones... will be a major concern. They will require constant surveillance... but I am not sure how or who will accomplish this," said Mercogliano. The last time the US implemented a floating pier was in Haiti, after an earthquake killed over 200,000 people in January 2010. The temporary structure replaced the extensively damaged infrastructure in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, according to the US Transportation Department's website. The first iteration, however, dates back to the D-Day landings in 1944 and the famous "Mulberries" which allowed critical supplies to enter France following the successful invasion. They were invading a beach without a port, Mercogliano told AFP, adding the Allies learned their lesson after the disastrous 1942 raid on Dieppe saw troops slaughtered while stranded without support or provisions. dla-ekf/sjw/rlp Habitat Charlotte Region has been recognized as the top contributor to the organizations global housing initiative. The organization was recognized last week at the Habitat for Humanity International bi-annual conference in Atlanta for reaching $10 million in tithe contributions over 40 years. It is the first and only Habitat affiliate to reach this milestone. Habitat for Humanity said its affiliates are encouraged to tithe or give 10 percent of unrestricted funds to help Habitat create safe, affordable homes in countries without significant resources. The tithe concept began in 1979 to create a cycle of partnership that transcends borders and languages. As part of this program, Habitat Charlotte Region has partnered with affiliates in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Cambodia, sent volunteers to help build homes in those countries, and contributed to global disaster relief efforts. ALSO READ: Woman thanks volunteer for Habitat home nearly 40 years later We are committed to providing affordable housing solutions for low-to-moderate-income families in the Charlotte area and to Habitats global mission where everyone has a decent place to live, said Habitat Charlotte Region CEO, Laura Belcher. We are honored to be catalysts of positive change, making a difference not only within our community but also around the world. Habitat Charlotte Region contributes 10% of unrestricted funds, including ReStore net profits, to the program. Restricted dollars, such as those pledged to specific home builds or developments, are not included in the tithe contribution. Investing funds in housing opportunities internationally multiplies HCRs impact, as the cost to build is far less around the world, according to the organization. VIDEO: Woman thanks volunteer for Habitat home nearly 40 years later When he first started visiting Miami in 2018, Portuguese chef Henrique Sa Pessoa noticed something surprising about the citys dining landscape. The acclaimed force behind the upscale Lisbon restaurant Alma, which was awarded two Michelin stars, saw many restaurants and ate in quite a few, too. But something was missing. I really wanted to understand what would work in Miami, says the internationally famous chef, also the owner of several other restaurants in Portugal and spots in Amsterdam, London and Macao. Miami is such an amazing, vibrant city close to the ocean, but theres not much emphasis on seafood aside from Japanese restaurants. Now, Sa Pessoa, who has been at the forefront of what he calls Atlantic cuisine, has opened Sereia, his first restaurant in the U.S., in Coconut Grove in partnership with Miami-based Sault Hospitality. Its mission: highlighting the treasures of the sea. Located in the former Nave spot next door to Chef Michael Beltrans Michelin-starred Ariete, Sereia offers some of the best dishes from the Iberian coast as well as bestowing a firm and loving nod to the classic dishes of Portugal. Chef Henrique Sa Pessoa (seated) with Alan Drummond, Sven Vogtland and Jourdan Binder from Sault Hospitality. Were not a traditional Portuguese restaurant, explains Sa Pessoa, who once took the late Anthony Bourdain on a culinary tour of Lisbon on No Reservations. But we still wanted to keep the rustic flavors of Portuguese cuisine. Jourdan Binder, who with partners Sven Vogtland and Alan Drummond runs Sault Hospitality, echoes Sa Pessoas desire to show off the best of the chefs home country, especially at a time when Portugal has become a popular travel destination. When we set out to do this project, we didnt set out to just do another restaurant in Miami, Binder says. We wanted to bring Henrique to us, bring his food and Portuguese food as a whole to Miami. It felt like there was a huge hole with little representation. This is a great opportunity to show people what Portuguese food is all about. Designed by Bishop Design, Sereia features indoor and outdoor dining rooms, a full bar at the front of the restaurant and an omakase-style bar for crudo inside. Theres a private dining room for events and, eventually, chef tasting experiences. The interior of Sereia restaurant. Led by chef de cuisine Miguel Massens, the kitchen serves a menu thats about 60-70 percent seafood. This means there are also good choices for meat eaters, like the pica pau com pickles, a seared filet of beef with pickle, and an absolutely stunning arroz de pato or ducked rice with smoked bacon, chorizo and parsley aioli. Main courses run between $36 and $48. The ducked rice, Sa Pessoa says, is a traditional dish that he didnt expect to be immediately loved but it was. Its the grandmother dish, he says. At home, we take these recipes for granted. Im not a particular fan of duck, but I really love that recipe. Its really unique, a comfort food that the people of Miami seem to appreciate. Its these type of dishes that bring me back home. Arroz de pato or ducked rice with smoked bacon, chorizo and parsley aioli at Sereia restaurant in Coconut Grove. The spectacular crudo menu, Sereias nod to the influence of Miami, is significantly different from the popular Peruvian-style ceviches or Japanese sashimis so well represented in South Florida. Instead, youll find unusual pairings on the plate, like the dazzling creamy marinated scallops with tomato, capers and caviar or the richly textured cured wahoo with sweet potato puree, lime and Salicornia (an herb). Theres also a cold octopus salad with paprika potatoes and bell pepper vinaigrette. Entrees include Yorkshire milk-fed pork belly with pickled onions; red wine-braised beef cheeks with celery root puree, pickled turnip and broccolini; and a traditional fish stew. But one of the standouts is a deceptively simple signature Sa Pessoa dish: bacalau a bras, made with salted cod and fried string potatoes with an egg on top. Its on the menu at several of Sa Pessoas restaurants, for good reason. The signature dish bacalau a bras from Chef Henrique Sa Pessoa is a traditional Portuguese favorite with salted cod, fried string potatoes and an egg yolk. Being Portuguese, salted cod is one of my passions, he says. Funny enough, its always a favorite, and its such a basic recipe. It surprises me how much people love it. Its just potatoes, eggs, onion and cod, but the combination really works. Its always a favorite. Paying attention to simple things, though, is part of Sereias code. Even the bread service, an important part of Portuguese cuisine, has been well thought out. The Portuguese corn and rye bread, sourced from Majestic Portuguese Bakehouse on Coral Way, is served with olive oil and, at Sa Pessoas other restaurants, with smoked butter. Sereia didnt have a smoker, but when Massens discovered the nearby Taurus restaurant did, he asked to use it. I was like, What better way to get that smoked flavor? he says. We did it and got good results. A couple of days after I came in, they lit it up again, and we smoked it again and got an even better result. This past weekend the butter was delicious. Vieiras marinadas, marinated scallops with caviar, is one of the crudo dishes at Sereia restaurant in the Grove. The restaurant has not yet rolled out the full menu Binder estimates only about 70 percent of it has been introduced so far but plans to over the coming weeks. The restaurant also plans to introduce a tinned fish menu for the bar as well as a small bites menu that could include items like cod fritters or tempura cuttlefish, Massens says. There are also plans for crudo tastings. The idea, Sa Pessoa explains, is to have layers of experiences to accommodate diners who want a full-service meal and more casual visitors who want a craft cocktail and a snack at the bar. The gorgeous Mermaid Margarita, with strawberry, kombu (sea algae), tequila, dragonfruit, Aperol and lime is an excellent place to start drinking, although Sereias wine features a nice variety of Portuguese wines. As for Miami itself, Sa Pessoa is a fan and believes the Grove location is a great fit for his first U.S. restaurant. If I could choose another city or country to live in, I would only consider the U.S. and Miami, he says. I have restaurants in other countries. I love London and Amsterdam, but I would never consider living there. . . . I fell in love with Miami the first time I went. The interior of Sereia in Coconut Grove. Sereia Where: 3450 Main Hwy., Miami Hours: 6-11 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday Reservations: OpenTable More information: www.sereia.miami or 305-967-8152 This small seafood restaurant in Kendall was just named one of the best in the U.S. Speculation is growing about the role former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) will play in the 2024 election as President Biden and former President Trump barrel toward a rematch. Cheney has vowed that shell do whatever it takes to keep Trump from returning to the White House. She has left the door open to running an independent bid and recently launched her political action committee, the Great Task, after Nikki Haley dropped her long-shot primary challenge against Trump. At the same time, she has said she wont be a spoiler third-party candidate if it helps Trump leaving some Democrats curious, even hopeful, shell publicly endorse Biden instead. If you had asked me 20 years ago, whether I thought it was a really good idea for Democrats to team up with a Cheney, I would have told you that you were drinking something, said Democratic strategist Jennifer Holdsworth. But in this day and age, I think the more democracy-focused folks we have working towards the same goal, the better. Holdsworth said she would welcome a Cheney endorsement despite their policy differences and Cheneys track record on issues such as womens rights, while also acknowledging such a move would complicate the former congresswomans future political ambitions. Cheney underwent a sudden political evolution in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, going from a once-rising GOP star to someone vilified by her party for her opposition to Trump. Former Rep. Liz Cheney speaks at The 92nd Street Y New York on June 26, 2023 in New York City. (Gary Gershoff/Getty Images) Despite her conservative track record, she was ousted from her position as House GOP conference chair and lost her primary last cycle to a Trump-backed challenger over her objection to Trumps baseless claims about the 2020 elections and his conduct during the Capitol riot. Instead, shes become one of the main faces of the anti-Trump movement, having sat on a bipartisan panel to investigate Jan. 6 and using her platform to target Trump-aligned candidates, including Arizonas Mark Finchem and Kari Lake, during the November 2022 midterms, while endorsing some Democrats, such as Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.). Since leaving office, she has also released a memoir and doubled down on her criticism of Trump the kind of behavior that might signal presidential ambitions. Cheney has said as recently as January that she is leaving the door open to a White House run. I havent made a decision about that, she said on The View in January. But I think its really important, I mean, what you said this election cycle, everybody has to go vote. Everybody has to go vote, and youve got to be willing to say, Look, Im not necessarily going to vote for the candidate who belongs to the party that I belong to, Im going to find the candidate who I know I can trust to defend the Constitution. Cheney has also said she would not do anything to aid Trump. Some Democrats are skeptical shell launch an independent candidacy given concerns that it could hurt Biden, but it has left the party wondering what exactly she will do. Florida-based Democratic pollster Fernand Amandi said it was critical for Cheney to publicly endorse Biden, in the hopes it will attract anti-Trump voters who might otherwise support a third-party candidate. The problem is that the specter of third-party candidates means that there could be off-ramps for anti-Trump conservatives swayed by Cheney who might then vote third party, which would be a benefit for Trump, not Biden, Amandi said. Top Stories from The Hill But some of Cheneys Democratic colleagues in the House see her message resonating regardless of what she does. Thats up to Liz, but she clearly has been a defender of democracy and someone who is sounding the alarm about how dangerous Donald Trump is. Im comfortable if thats the role that she occupies, said Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), who served with her on the House panel investigating the Capitol riot, when asked what role he believed she should play in the 2024 race. I think her continuing to talk about Donald Trump being a threat to democracy is enough, the California Democrat added. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), another member who served on the House panel, said he hoped to see her reach out to disaffected and disenchanted Republicans about Trump and the threat he poses. He didnt advise her on whether she should endorse Biden. I want her to do what is going to be most effective for the preservation of the republic, and she has a very strong gut check on that, he said. So far, Cheney has not said whether shell endorse the president in the 2024 election, underscoring the tricky political terrain she must navigate as a vocal Trump critic whose ideologies largely still align with the Republican Party. Though the anti-Trump faction is a minority within the GOP, Cheneys actions have the potential to sway voters and make the difference in a presidential election that will come down to the wire again in key states such as Arizona and Georgia. Biden for his part has not talked much about Cheney publicly in recent months, but he has expressed admiration for her, saying in 2022 that I dont agree with anything that Liz Cheney believes about the substantive issues, but I admire the hell out of her. Still, theres hope among some Republicans that she will ultimately come home. Former Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.), who was close to Cheney when they served in the House, said that while he understands Cheney is a Trump critic, he cant see her backing Biden either. He said hed prefer to see her back the former president. That doesnt mean she has to agree with President Trump, Byrne said, but added that this is truly a binary choice between Biden and Trump. Its an argument other Republicans, like former Attorney General Bill Barr, have made too, though it hasnt swayed Cheney. Democrats believe theres a place for her in this election even if she occupies her own lane. You dont have to always put on the same jersey to be on the same team. And I think that there are ways that [anti-Trump Republicans] can play ball without wearing our jersey, Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright said. Because it truthfully could, again, have unintended consequences if they were to do so. Mychael Schnell contributed to this report. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. JERUSALEM, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Israeli officials said on Wednesday that the country is resolved to attack Rafah, the Gaza Strip's southernmost city sheltering some 1.4 million internally displaced Palestinians by the Israeli strikes elsewhere, and will evacuate most of the residents ahead of the attack. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Spokesman Daniel Hagari stated in a press briefing that the military intends to guide the population of Rafah towards "humanitarian islands" that Israel planned to create with the international community in central Gaza before launching the offensive. He said that basic needs, including housing, food and water, would be provided in these designated areas. Hagari did not mention a date for the beginning of Rafah's evacuation or the commencement of the planned offensive. The international community and various humanitarian organizations have expressed deep concerns about Israel's plan to carry out a ground operation in Rafah, a small city densely populated by displaced people, which also serves as Gaza's primary gateway for crucial aid supplies from Egypt. They have warned that any military operation in Rafah would result in a humanitarian catastrophe. In the morning, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant visited the Gaza Strip and held an operational situation assessment, said his office in a statement. During the visit, he "observed the work carried out in preparation for the maritime corridor," which is expected to be used for aid shipments from Cyprus to the war-ravaged enclave. Regarding the military plans to conduct a ground operation in Rafah, Gallant said: "Even those who think we are delayed will soon see that we will reach every location necessary." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said the army will expand the offensive into Rafah, where Israel believes some Hamas militants are hiding in underground tunnels. More than five months of Israel's relentless attacks in Gaza have left much of the Palestinian territory devastated, exacerbating a deepening humanitarian crisis. According to warnings issued by the United Nations, approximately one in every four of Gaza's 2.3 million population is at risk of starvation. Since Israel began its retaliatory offensive on Oct. 7, 2023, at least 31,272 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, with more than 75 percent of them being civilians, according to an update from the Hamas-run Health Ministry. Additionally, more than 7,000 people are missing and are believed to be trapped under the rubble of bombarded homes. A woman who said she endured years of body-shaming has reached a settlement with her former dance school. The woman, now in her 30s, said she suffered from a mental health condition caused by criticism of her weight by staff at Cheshire's The Hammond school. She said all she had wanted was a written apology but was refused. The school did not admit liability but reached what it called an "appropriate settlement". The former student - who cannot be named for legal reasons - started at the performing arts school, near Chester, in 2006 when she was 18, and left three years later. "I remember being told that if you pressed into your belly button, you should be able to feel your spine," said the dancer. "Even at the audition, I was on my own with a teacher and they said that they would like to keep an eye on my weight." 'Humiliated' She said her name was placed on a list on the school notice board which was referred to by students as the "FatClub", and she was regularly weighed in a teacher's office. She said that she was humiliated in front of the whole class when a teacher made her repeatedly jump up and down and point out her "wobbly bits". She said she developed disordered eating during her time at the school - sometimes eating in secret or not at all. Two other students who were there at the same time and supported her in her High Court legal action said they were also body-shamed by teachers. The dancer's lawyers, Leigh Day Solicitors, claimed she had been "abused and belittled" about her body shape, but had never been given any advice about how to lose weight in a healthy and safe manner. The lawyers also said the school should have foreseen this could lead to her suffering physical or mental harm. The former dancer says she has now developed mental health issues because of her time at the school The woman said she had initially contacted the school to tell it about her experiences, but received no reply until after she had said she wanted to make a formal complaint. The school later invited the woman to meet senior leaders and teachers, but she refused because she couldn't bring herself to go to the site again. She said she had been unable even to go to Chester in case she bumped into someone she had known at the school. The legal case she brought was settled out of court and her lawyers described the settlement as "significant." "We would say this case sets a precedent," said her solicitor, Dino Nocivelli. The dancer said she has been diagnosed with body dysmorphic disorder - which the NHS describes as "a mental health condition where a person spends a lot of time worrying about flaws in their appearance" which are often "unnoticeable to others". "We don't have mirrors in the house. I don't go shopping with friends," she said. The Hammond school said it wanted to resolve the claim out of court partly because of concerns about the legal costs. The school said it took safeguarding of all its pupils extremely seriously and constantly reviewed current practices, learning from experiences of the past. It also said the meeting it had suggested would have been "an opportunity for the former pupil to fully describe her experiences and concerns and for the school to acknowledge and learn from the same". The BBC has spoken to more than 100 former dancers who attended UK dance schools from the 1990s through to the present day, all of whom claimed they experienced a "damaging" culture. Mr Nocivelli said he has been contacted by 180 former dancers who said they experienced bullying and body-shaming by staff at 12 different ballet schools. He said four clients are currently considering legal action. If you're affected by the issues in this piece, you can find support from BBC Action Line. Why not follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, S.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) The South Carolina Department of Education has placed the Chesterfield County School District under a Fiscal Watch. The declaration comes after an audit of the districts finances. Chesterfield-LetterDownload The state Department of Education issued the notice after an audit this past December, which looked at the 202223 school year. That was the first year with a new superintendent, Dr. Chan Anderson, at the helm. The audit found that the district did not have certain internal accounting controls in place. Program-to-Identify-Fiscal-Practices-Act-23-v.03-1-29-19Download Auditors say the district did not comply with wage rate requirements on federally funded construction contract language, did not record or reconcile certain purchasing card transactions, and did not properly document personnel expenses. According to the audit, the district did not timely claim certain federal funds and overclaimed funds, requiring the district to return $114,865 to the SC Department of Education. 2023AuditedFinanicalStatements-Issued12.14.23Download Fiscal Practices Summary March 2024Download Chesterfield County Schools released the following statement to Queen City News when we asked about the districts Fiscal Watch declaration: On February 23rd, the SC Department of Education placed Chesterfield County School District on a one-year fiscal watch designation as a result of the fiscal year 2023 Financial Statement Audit findings. As a result, the district has provided a corrective action plan that has not only been fully implemented but has been approved by the SC Department of Education. The district fully expects to be removed from this designation when we are re-evaluated following the fiscal year 2024 audit next winter. These findings did not come as a result of any lost or misallocated funds but were simply the result of deficiencies in our internal control framework. All of the deficiencies have been corrected. We want to extend our appreciation for the State Departments willingness to provide technical assistance and guidance as we navigate this designation. Unresponsive baby in Statesville reveals sexual abuse of 15-year-old; 3 charged: Police A Fiscal Watch is the lowest level of declaration. If the state finds that the district took the proper steps to fix everything, they can be released from Fiscal Watch after their next audit. State law allows the state Department of Education to take over the finances of districts that dont comply and dont fix issues over time. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. At the port of Igarape da Fortaleza, in the far north of Brazil, dock workers unload large orange-red sacks from small wooden boats. Small dark berries scatter around the dock, staining everything purple and making the pavement slippery. After being washed, processed, and blended, each sack will make about five gallons of acai pulp that will go into bowls, smoothies, and freeze-dried supplements. In Spring, when most fruit is not yet ripe, each 130-pound sack is being sold to wholesalers for about $80, more than double the price it sells for when it is in season. Buyers may or may not know that the superfood they are purchasing to sell to multinationals may have been picked by children no one is checking. Eighty dollars would be a fortune for harvesters to take home, but they still need to pay the crossers, who provide boat transportation from nearby villages to the jungle and back, and the landowners whose trees they harvested. It has not always been this way. Growing demand has transformed what was once a mostly local industry into an international operation that puts pressure on communities that have, for decades, depended on the fruit for economic survival and their own subsistence. In 2012, the state of Para, which produces more than 90% of Brazils acai, exported 39 tons of the fruit; in 2022, 8,158 tons were exported generating over $26 million in revenue, according to industry data. As a result, children are being sent on dangerous journeys to harvest the fruit, climbing trees as tall as 70 feet without harnesses, and exposing themselves to the perils of the swamps of the rainforest, including venomous snakes, scorpions, and jaguars. Picking berries to help feed his family Lucas Oliveira, 13, of the Fazendinha village outside Macapa, is one of these children. He goes to school, but he also helps his brother Wengleston pick acai whenever he can to help feed their seven other siblings. CNN joined them on a typical harvest day in early March. They woke up at 3am, headed to a motorboat with a handful of other boys and young men, and crossed the Amazon river, the largest in the world. Once on the other side, they jumped into canoes to reach a private property where acai palms grow in the wild. Aged just 13, Lucas Oliveira is an acai harvester. - Julia Vargas Jones Lucas walked through the jungle using a machete as big as his arm to slice large leaves and branches. As he cleared the path, he looked up as much as he looked ahead, scanning each palm tree in the canopy. Here, this ones got some, Lucas said, dropping his tarp bag. He tucked his machete into the waist of his shorts, and with a single jump wrapped his skinny legs around the trunk of a palm tree. He pulled himself up, scaling 20 feet up the palm before disappearing into the canopy. After some rustling, Lucas yelled, Its ripe! The rustling increased, and leaves, sticks and tiny, rock-hard purple-black berries began to fall. Wengleston was pleased. You got two! Lucas slid down with two bunches of acai, weighing about 10 pounds each. Lucas will do this dozens of times on a single day. Wengleston, now 20 years old, dropped out of school when he was Lucas age to work full time. In these seven years, hes developed serious back pain from carrying up to 200 pounds of acai on his back daily. One day I was lifting a sack and I felt that my back just ripped open, Wengleston said. Some days I cant work because of all the pain, so I have to stay home. He said he is afraid of losing more mobility soon, or ending up like other acai harvesters who have developed back issues so severe they can no longer walk. The stories of harvesters whove fallen from trees are numerous some have had severe injuries and never walked again. In these remote areas of the jungle, rescue can be hours away. On the day CNN joined the group, one of the workers harvesting on a nearby island lost consciousness after falling from an acai tree. Acai harvesters expose themselves to the perils of the rainforest. - Julia Vargas Jones Policing hard-to-reach locations Across the country, 1.9 million children between the ages of 5 and 17 were engaged in child labor in 2022, according to a December report from Brazils statistics bureau. Of those, at least 756,000 worked in what the International Labor Organization calls the worst forms of child labor, which includes dangerous conditions. One of the biggest challenges when it comes to tackling this problem is that regions where child labor is most pervasive are the hardest ones to police, authorities say. Thats why theyre called hard-to-reach locations, where you can only reach and get there with a lot of effort and overcoming all these obstacles, said Allan Bruno, a prosecutor with Brazils Public Ministry of Labor. Bruno said they have a special focus on the Marajo archipelago and the coastline of Amapa, where rural work is characterized mostly by buffalo breeding and acai harvesting, and they investigate the use and recruitment of children for this type of work. Bruno is part of a special joint task force of prosecutors, investigators, and federal police that investigates situations akin to slavery and raids properties to rescue workers and children. Dozens of times a day, Lucas Oliveira climbs trees to bring down heavy bunches of acai. - Julia Vargas Jones Usually, Bruno said, the people being rescued are not aware that their rights are being infringed upon. These are people who are inserted at the bottom of society, who did not have the right to education, did not have the right to health, and did not have the right to basic rights that could enable them to develop minimum employability. So, these are pockets of poverty that are the focus of recruitment by recruiters who seek cheap labor to exploit, Bruno said. He adds that the system is too slow, understaffed, and lacking the resources to inspect such a big swath of the country and one that only now is starting to fix itself after years of not being a priority for the federal government: There are currently 900 openings waiting to be filled for labor inspectors. For now, Lucas will continue to scale these towering trees, but authorities focus on his region offers hope for a future where children arent forced to risk their lives in dangerous labor to feed themselves and their families For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com When Mona Rippy took her 7-year-old son for surgery at Children's Minnesota, he was embarrassed to find that the only hospital gowns available were ones that exposed his backside. As Muslims, Rippy wanted an option for her son to cover himself and dress more modestly, but it didn't exist. It's been an issue for other Muslim families as well, and Children's staff started looking into a solution a few years ago, said Rippy, who leads the hospital's Muslim Employee Resource Group. To address this, the hospital on Tuesday announced new "modesty gowns," which will be offered to all pediatric patients as part of a new partnership with the Minnesota-based company Henna & Hijabs. These modesty gowns are among the first offered in the country for pediatric patients, the hospital says. Rippy said she and her son, who is now 11, are "thrilled" about the addition. "Whether a patient is Muslim or not, we know that this gown will serve a purpose for so many kids and make their hospital stay a better experience," said Rippy, who also works as a change-management consultant. Unlike typical hospital gowns, these can be closed along the back with buttons. There are also buttons along the collar for attaching a head covering. The sleeves are extended to cover about three-quarters of the patient's arms, and the gown can be reversed so the buttons are in the front. The hospital consulted with nurses, doctors and clinical staff to ensure the design still had the features required for hospital gowns, Rippy said. They were created with Muslims in mind, but will be offered to any patient who wants a gown that covers more of their body. They were designed by Henna & Hijabs founder and CEO Hilal Ibrahim, who said the need goes far beyond Muslims; she thinks many will benefit from the gowns. "We all want to feel dignified," Ibrahim said following a news conference Tuesday about the new gowns. "It's a vulnerable space, and we want to feel covered and comfortable. To create a gown that fits exactly that and meets that need has been incredible." Ibrahim founded her company in 2017, and in 2019 created the first ever medical-grade hijab for health care workers. She said an adult version of the modesty gowns is still a work in progress. Part of the need came from the fact that Children's serves a relatively large Muslim and Somali population. During a photo shoot for the gowns at Children's, one Muslim patient overheard what was going on and was so excited that she asked to model some of the gowns herself, Rippy said. "She couldn't wait to try it on and express how she felt seen," Rippy said. The hospital did not say how much it is spending on the new gowns. The gowns are one step by Children's to offer more inclusive and equitable care to its patients, nearly 40% of whom are people of color. But it was also an opportunity to partner with a local minority-owned supplier, another priority for Children's, according to senior equity and inclusion consultant Allen Malicsi. "It's a way we show up in the community, trying to figure out where we can provide a spending opportunity for businesses that are minority-owned" and also "create that economic inclusion opportunity around the Children's system," Malicsi said. The new gowns will offered to some of the patients in March as part of a pilot phase before later rolling them out for all patients, according to a hospital news release. (Bloomberg) -- China needs to adjust its industrial policy to counter rising criticism of overcapacity from the US and Europe, two government-linked economists said, highlighting growing awareness of a pushback against hi-tech exports. Most Read from Bloomberg Huang Yiping, a former advisor to Chinas central bank, on Wednesday said Chinas industrial policy is at the heart of US concerns about Chinese overcapacity and the European Unions anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese electric vehicle imports. His comments represent a rare admission among government advisers of the external challenges facing President Xi Jinpings efforts to drive growth by pouring money into manufacturing. We should pay serious attention and recognize that this could be an important development in geopolitics, Huang said during an online forum held by China Macroeconomy Forum, a think tank associated with the Renmin University of China in Beijing. A widespread protectionist wave against Chinese products would be bad for Chinas future development and innovation. Huang, who was consulted by Premier Li Qiang as recently as October, is one of the few elite domestic economists commenting in detail on the issue since trade tensions with Europe and the US heated up in recent months. US President Joe Biden pledged this week to look into a petition from a group of unions asking his administration to review Chinas subsidies for shipbuilders. While top policymakers have identified overcapacity as one of the main challenges facing the economy this year, and pledged to reduce financing to sectors with too much capacity, they havent given more detailed policies or named the sectors theyre targeting. Huang said China should also address its domestic economic imbalances while refuting unreasonable criticism, which he didnt identify. The economys reliance on investment-driven growth over the past few decades has led to overcapacity in sectors from clothing to steel at different times because domestic consumption is weak compared to investment, he said. The government should improve residents income and social welfare to lift overall consumption, he added. China also needs to make its industrial policy more efficient, market-oriented and conforming to global economic conditions, Huang said. Such policy should focus more on helping innovation rather than production, and be phased out when appropriate, he said. Read More: Xis Solution for Chinas Economy Risks Triggering New Trade War Chinese industries with risk of overcapacity include computer chips, internal combustion engine automobiles, electric batteries, steel and household appliances, said Lu Feng, a professor at Peking Universitys National School of Development, one of the countrys top state think tanks. Some of these sector are pillar industries in developed economies, so the impact of overcapacity is larger, Lu said in a separate presentation Wednesday. The US has already sent warnings about overcapacity. While the growth of high-efficiency production capacity in one country would previously replace higher-cost production elsewhere, the rise of protectionism and measures to boost domestic production worldwide means this adjustment mechanism is no longer effective, Lu said. (Updates with second economist comments, chart) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. China warned Wednesday that a potential TikTok ban would come back to bite the United States. The House is expected to vote Wednesday morning on a bill that would force TikToks China-based parent company ByteDance to divest the video-based social media app or face a ban in the U.S. Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said, according to Agence France-Presse. This kind of bullying behaviour that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order, he added. In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself, Wang continued. House Republicans remained hopeful Tuesday that the legislation would pass the lower chamber, even as former President Trump voiced his opposition to a potential TikTok ban. The former president, who officially locked up the GOP nomination Tuesday night, suggested that a TikTok ban would empower Facebook. Frankly, there are a lot of people on TikTok that love it. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it. There are a lot of users, Trump said Monday on CNBCs Squawk Box. Theres a lot of good and a lot of bad with TikTok. But the thing I dont like is, without TikTok you can make Facebook bigger. And I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with the media, he added. Facebook banned Trump in January 2021 in the wake of the Capitol riots, during which hundreds of his supporters attempted to stop the certification of the 2020 election results. He had spent months spreading false claims about the election on social media in the lead-up to the riots. His account was reinstated last year. Trumps current position on TikTok represents a significant shift from when he was in office. In 2020, he vowed to ban the app from operating in the U.S. and issued an order calling on ByteDance to divest from TikToks U.S. operations. However, the order was later blocked in court. The former presidents comments came after he confirmed he recently met with Jeff Yass, a major GOP donor and investor in TikTok, although Trump said Yass did not bring up TikTok during the conversation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. US lawmakers are set to vote on a bill that would force TikTok to cut ties with its Chinese owner or get banned in the United States (LOIC VENANCE) Beijing warned on Wednesday that a proposed ban on Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok would "inevitably come back to bite the United States". The US House of Representatives is set to vote later Wednesday on a bill that would force the app to cut ties with its Chinese owner or get banned in the United States. The legislation is the biggest threat yet to the video-sharing app, which has surged to huge popularity across the world while raising fears among governments and security officials over its Chinese ownership and potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. Ahead of the vote, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin condemned the proposed ban. "Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok," he said. "This kind of bullying behaviour that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies' normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order," he added. "In the end, this will inevitably come back to bite the United States itself," Wang said. The vote is likely to occur at 10:00 am (1400 GMT) and is expected to pass overwhelmingly in a rare moment of bipartisanship in politically divided Washington. The fate of the bill is uncertain in the Senate, where key figures are against making such a drastic move against an hugely popular app that has 170 million US users. President Joe Biden will sign the bill, known officially as the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," into law if it comes to his desk, the White House has said. TikTok staunchly denies any ties to the Chinese government and has restructured the company so the data of US users stays in the country, the company says. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is in Washington, trying to shore up support to stop the bill. "This latest legislation being rushed through at unprecedented speed without even the benefit of a public hearing, poses serious Constitutional concerns," wrote Michael Beckerman, TikTok's vice president for public policy, in a letter to the bill's co-sponsors seen by AFP. pfc-oho/mca (Bloomberg) -- Chinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi is set to travel to Australia next week, the highest level visit from Beijing in almost seven years and the latest sign of warming ties after years of frosty diplomacy. Most Read from Bloomberg Wang will arrive in Canberra on March 20 for talks with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong in his first visit to the country since 2017. The two senior officials will meet for the seventh Australia-China Foreign and Strategic Dialogue, which was postponed for years during a period of tense relations. Its Australias view that a stable bilateral relationship would enable both countries to pursue respective national interests, if we navigate our differences wisely, Wong said in a statement on Wednesday. The Australian official said that dialog was important to ensure a constructive relationship with China and to support regional peace and stability. Wangs visit will take place against the backdrop of a review by Beijing to potentially remove punitive tariffs on Australian wine, a move suggesting that a three-year trade dispute is nearing resolution. Beijing has already scrapped trade curbs on Australias barley, coal and timber and has eased restrictions on beef exports. Ties between Australia and China worsened following a decision by Canberra in 2018 to ban technology giant Huawei from its 5G network, a move which was then followed by a number of Western nations. Relations further deteriorated in 2020 when then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison called for an international investigation into the origins of Covid-19. Beijing retaliated with curbs on Australian products. Exports of barley, beef and wine were targeted with trade barriers including tariffs as high as 218% on Australian wine. The restrictions were devastating for Australian winemakers, given that sales to China yielded A$1.1 billion ($728 million) in 2019. The election of Australias center-left Labor government in 2022 saw the steady warming of relations with China, including a resumption of high-level meetings. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met with President Xi Jinping in November, months after barley tariffs were withdrawn. The wine tariffs are expected to be removed soon. Questions recently arose on the sustainability of improving ties after a Beijing court handed down a suspended death sentence to Australian writer Yang Hengjun for espionage in February. Officials from both sides are adamant that Yangs case wont impact broader relations. Wong said on Wednesday that human rights, consular matters and regional security would be among the matters raised during her meeting with Chinas Wang. Australias approach is consistent; we seek to cooperate with China where we can, disagree where we must and engage in our national interest, Wong said. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visits the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence during an inspection tour in Beijing, capital of China, March 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Bin) BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called for efforts to deepen the integration of scientific and technological innovation with industrial innovation, and accelerate the cultivation of new driving forces and new advantages of high-quality development. Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during an inspection tour in Beijing on Wednesday. During his inspection at an operation center of the city's high-level autopilot demonstration zone, Li urged strengthening support in setting standards and factor guarantees, so as to boost the development of the automobile industry and the construction of smart cities with the upgrading of the autopilot technology. At the Yizhuang office area of Chinese tech giant Baidu, the premier stressed that it is necessary to give full play to the advantages of rich application scenarios in China, enhance institutional support, and create a more relaxed environment for the development of the artificial intelligence industry. While visiting Naura Technology Group Co., Ltd., Li encouraged the company to further increase sci-tech investment, accelerate R&D on advanced process equipment, and better promote collaborative innovation across the whole industrial chain. The premier also inspected the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence and called for achieving new breakthroughs with advanced resources and cooperation. Li also presided over a symposium and noted that developing new quality productive forces is an intrinsic requirement and an important focus to promote high-quality development, urging efforts to achieve breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields, and promote industrial innovation through sci-tech innovation to accelerate the development of a modern industrial system with advanced manufacturing as the backbone. Noting that artificial intelligence is an important engine for developing new quality productive forces, he also called for achieving key breakthroughs in areas such as computing power, data and algorithms to let artificial intelligence better empower various industries. At the symposium, the premier also stressed the need to actively promote inclusive and prudential supervision on the basis of maintaining the bottom line of safety. Li expressed the hope that Beijing will give full play to its advantages, take the lead in the development of new quality productive forces, and play a leading role in demonstration. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visits Naura Technology Group Co., Ltd. during an inspection tour in Beijing, capital of China, March 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Liu Bin) Within the span of about six weeks this winter, a trio of fishing shacks were swept away in Maine, a piece of the backyard vanished from an oceanfront home Kid Rock owns in Florida and high tides in California sent beachgoers running for their lives. With every inch of sea level rise, communities along coasts and rivers near the sea face greater risks and events like the king tides and severe storms this winter further illustrated the growing threat. The start of this year has been absolutely incredible," said John Dickson, president and CEO of Aon Edge, a private flood insurance provider. The weather is changing rapidly and the consequences are dramatic. High-tide flooding in the U.S. occurs nearly three times as often today as it did in 2000, according to William Sweet, an oceanographer with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's National Ocean Service. For the meteorological year that ends in April, NOAA had forecast a 9-14 day increase in high-tide flood days along the Atlantic Coast compared to 2000, thanks to a combination of the El Nino pattern in the Pacific Ocean and sea level rise. Over just six days in January, between the 8th and 13th during the new moon high tides, known as king tides, and winter storms the National Weather Service reported coastal flooding in 57 counties across 17 states on the Atlantic Seaboard and Gulf of Mexico. Rising sea levels, warmer water temperatures and more intense rainfall compound the effects of natural weather events such as high tides and the El Nino, leaving communities struggling for answers. As erosion and tidal inundation accelerate and reach further inland, the flooding events highlight the need for better decisions, better mapping and a focus on improving disaster preparedness and catastrophe models, Dickson said. Local, state and federal governments are trying a variety of approaches to work together to address the massive challenges ahead, including devoting millions to protect and restore coastal wetlands that could help buffer future impacts. Federal officials collaborated with partners on the recent release of two major coastal mapping projects. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration published high resolution mapping to help communities map emerging threats and the U.S. Geological Survey partnered with Virginia Tech on a project looking at the rates of land subsidence. Over 30 years, the 20-year average number of high tide flood days for the meteorological year between May and April has increased at all but three locations on the U.S. mainland with reliable measurements dating back to the 1970s, according to NOAA data. The three are on the California coast, Port San Luis, San Francisco and Alameda. That number is six times higher in Charleston, South Carolina and twice as high in Portland, Maine. While sea levels aren't rising as fast on the Pacific Coast, Sweet said higher ocean levels during El Nino exacerbate things and can bring "a decade's worth of sea level rise in a season." A high tide and coastal flooding in Kennebunk, Maine on Jan. 13, 2023. Maine town used to flooding 'but not like this' In Kennebunkport, more than a foot of water flowed into the downtown village during one flood event this winter, a trend occurring more frequently with routine astronomical high tides, Town Manager Laurie Smith told USA TODAY. The town was founded in 1653, more than a century before the Industrial Revolution, when the world began pumping more of the greenhouse gasses into the air that started warming the planet. Today, more than 300 years later, leaders in the region are discussing potential solutions to the problems created by a warmer world. Theyve seen flooding before, but not like this, said Laura Dolce, executive director of the Kennebunk-Kennebunkport Chamber of Commerce. This time rushing water found its way into some new areas that were quite surprising. The ocean has always been the communitys economic bread and butter, and people have visited for that reason for hundreds of years, Dolce said. Now that same sea threatens the very livelihoods of those businesses. Big waves off California signal an uncertain future In Ventura, California, storm-driven waves fueled in part by warmer waters offshore flooded streets and sent bystanders running for safety in late December. Extreme storms and large swells associated with El Nino this winter show what future sea level rise will look like, said Paul Jenkin, the Ventura campaign coordinator for the Surfrider Foundation, an organization dedicated to protecting and preserving the oceans waves and beaches. Thats my concern, as somebody whos watched this for decades, to start seeing these kinds of impacts, knowing what is to come, Jenkin said. Although there has been discussion in Ventura about a managed retreat from the shoreline to move infrastructure away and restore the natural shoreline private property owners along the coast dont want to retreat, Jenkin said. That has become a bad word. At the end of the day, its going to be the only economically feasible way to manage sea level rise. To think these are one time events that arent going to recur is just foolhardy, he said. Our concern is that were going to lose our recreational beaches. It will just be seawalls and other coastal structures with no sandy beach left. Flood days keep inundating South Carolina's 'low country' Charleston, South Carolina and the surrounding region is known as the low country for a reason. Much of the area sits near sea level, and it's dominated by three rivers and boundless coastal marshes. Occasional flooding has been a problem since it was founded in 1670, but today coastal flooding occurs more often. Cruise passengers returned to port on December 15 shocked to find their cars flooded. During a historic high tide on December 17, the citys fire department rescued or assisted more than 40 people in flood waters. Coastal flooding was reported at least 10 times since Jan. 1. Between 1950 and 2014, flood events in the city grew from a couple of days a year to 25 days a year. By 2050, NOAA projects the city could see 60 flood days or more each year. Tide gauges show the city has experienced 13 of sea level rise over a century, about half that in the last 20 years, according to NOAA. The city is projected to see another 14-18 inches of sea level rise by 2050. Dozens of projects are ongoing or underway aiming to protect the city and its historic homes and businesses. The water is rising, the clock is ticking, and the future of our city is in the balance, stated former Mayor John Tecklenburg, in the latest version of the citys flooding and sea level rise strategy. A car drives through a flooded street on Dec. 17, 2023, in Charleston, S.C. Charleston also is one of the cities highlighted in the USGS study looking at how fast some coastal areas are sinking, even as the ocean is rising. The study, focused on the East Coast, found the land is susceptible to sinking at a rate ranging from 1 to 2 millimeters a year, affecting up to 14 million people and more than half the crucial infrastructure in major cities along the coast. Mapping the risk of coastal flooding To help cities like Kennebunkport, Charleston and Ventura, NOAA recently released new high-resolution land cover data for coastal communities, to improve long-range planning and climate resilience projects, funded in part by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The maps cover 1.5 million square miles of coast, and each pixel of imagery represents a square meter, NOAA said, revealing data 900 times more detailed than previous mapping. We need to be able to classify how communities are changing, said Brandon Palin, senior director for public sector science at Ecopia Tech, a mapping company that partnered with NOAA, using AI-powered technology to develop the new maps. The maps can help communities more accurately assess flood risk and water movement across the landscape, Palin and colleague Harneet Singh, Ecopias director of growth and corporate marketing, told USA TODAY. Communities cant rely on 30-year-old data, especially when it comes to choosing where to build new infrastructure, said Palin and Singh. As one example, they pointed to how the impacts of tidal surge can change in a community where natural landscapes that once absorbed the waters impact are now covered by buildings and pavement. Computer models that predict future change in a community are great, but if the data youre putting into the model is old or not necessarily accurate, then the model itself can be useless to a certain point, Palin said. The higher resolution maps can help each coastal community see its individual challenges. 'Something has to change' Along the Kennebunk River in Maine, community officials are looking at improved mapping and have discussed options such as tide gates, a dike to hold back water or raising buildings and infrastructure, said Smith, the Kennebunkport town manager. A high tide and coastal flooding in Kennebunk, Maine on Jan. 13, 2023. The potential costs for such measures seem overwhelming, but something has to change, said the chambers Dolce. There are so many discussions right now in the state and community about what coastal resiliency will look like and what kind of initiatives we can take. We either have to make those changes, and its going to be really expensive, or youre going to have to let the sea take everything, she said. And I dont think since this is the economic driver for the town that thats a possibility. I think we have to come up with a solution. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Winter flooding shows climate change effects on both US coasts Juvenile American eels are transparent and called glass eels. They annually migrate north to New York's Hudson River from February through May. The Hudson River used to be among some of the most contaminated rivers in the United States. Following decades of environmental legislation and activism , wildlife including bald eagles , bears, and whales are being spotted in New York in larger numbers. The Hudson is also an important habitat for migratory American eels, who are now getting some help from citizen scientists . For the first time, this citizen science data will be treated as official data entered in the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission s (ASMFC) peer-reviewed eel stock assessment report. Since 2008, the Hudson River Eel Project has relied on close to 1,000 citizen scientists donating their time every spring to net, count, and release about two million juvenile American eels. What I love about the eel project is it takes another step deeper toward volunteers actually becoming scientists and thinking about research methods and the research questions were trying to answer, Chris Bowser, project leader and Cornell University environmental scientist and educator, said in a statement . [Related: How eels might hitch a ride to Europe .] The project has several monitoring sites between Troy south towards New York City. Volunteers count and track the juveniles who are often called glass eels, since they are transparent at this stage of life. Their data helps inform conservation management decisions, since the species is an essential part of the food web. An eels life American eels hatch about 3,700-miles miles southeast of the Hudson in the salty Sargasso Sea . When they are larvae, the eels are shaped like willow leaves and they migrate north towards the freshwaters of the Caribbean islands, South America, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic coast from Florida to Canada. To get to New York, the eel larvae catch a ride on the Gulf Stream current. They transform into their translucent 2-inch long glass eel state when they hit the brackish waters of coastal estuaries. They migrate into the 150-mile Hudson River tidal estuary every year from February through May. Glass eels then serve an important form of prey for larger organisms. When they move into freshwater streams and creeks, they develop pigment and turn into miniature adults called elvers. The elvers become sexually immature yellow eels in their next adult phase, turning a brown, dark green, gray, or mustard yellow color. These older eels become apex predators that help balance the ecosystem by eating fish, aquatic insects, and crustaceans . They may remain yellow eels for five to 30 years before they reach sexual maturity and turn into silver eels. The sexually mature silver eels then head back down to the Sargasso Sea to spawn and likely die. Citizen scientists stepping in Tributaries and estuaries can create a bottleneck for the swimming juveniles, which provides those studying them an opportunity to catch, count, and release the eels to get an idea of population trends that can inform larger scientific studies. When done right, citizen science can be very helpful because it can greatly expand an agencys or a biologists geographic spread, and also a time series [spread over time] with tens of thousands of volunteer hours over the years, said Bowser. We have tried to collect data that is as robust as whats been done at the agency level. [Related: How to become a citizen scientistand when to leave it to the professionals .] ASMFC accepted the most recent data in August 2023, partially due to the eel projects strong data quality-control procedures. Partners from Cornell University and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation developed these standards to make sure that their protocols were easy to follow, standardize, and could be repeated every year. According to Bowser , the citizen scientists are all well trained and their eel count numbers and procedures are checked. Eels have been found in every waterway that connects with the Hudson River, including urban rivers such as the Saw Mill River in Yonkers, the Fall Kill Creek in Poughkeepsie, and the Poesten Kill creek further north in Troy. They also swim in rural areas, including the Hannacroix Creek in New Baltimore and Black Creek in Esopus. The widespread geographic diversity of eels means that you also have widespread diversity of volunteers, said Bowser. "Different ages, different socioeconomic backgrounds, different experiences." Monitoring at the Fall Kill Creek site in Poughkeepsie for this migration season began in late February . There, local high school students and their teachers wade into about two feet of water around nets and traps that are set up along the shoreline where the glass eels swim. Another group may be counting and weighing the eels, while others gather air and water temperature data. Every single dam is a potential barrier Chemical pollutants, overfishing, climate change, habitat loss and human-man obstructions like dams have all taken their toll on the eels over the years. Every single dam is a potential barrier for eels on their migration route, Bowser said. To help combat this, the eels that the project counts are released past at least the first known barrier to their migration, whether it be a road, culvert, or dam. If you are interested in participating in a citizen science project like the Hudson River Eel Project, visit citizenscience.gov to find something nearby. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A longstanding partnership between the City of El Paso and the El Paso Zoological Society is coming to an end after the City decided not renew the non-profits contract. The Zoological Society is run by a volunteer board and receives funds from local donors. For more than 60 years, the organization has worked with the El Paso Zoo assisting with education programs, operational support and memberships. The contract was initially set to expire in December 2022 but was granted two extensions. On Feb. 26, the Zoological Society was notified that the contract would not be renewed, and the non-profit would need to vacate zoo grounds by March 17. Supporters and staff of the non-profit organization spoke out during the Tuesday, March 12, City Council meeting expressing their disappointment with the Citys decision. Pam Agullo, board president of the Zoological Society said: I am extremely saddened to say that despite the societys best efforts, the city has not shown willingness to engage in a constructive dialogue for a new agreement. We were led to believe that negotiations would begin before the agreement extensions expired. The Citys Communications Director, Laura Acosta-Cruz, said it is not unusual for the City to let an agreement expire. She said: It really is a direction from the City Council members in terms of being able to look at ways that we can improve the services that we provide for the community. That is a goal. Since 2019, the Zoological Society has contributed 25% of gross membership revenue to the zoo. The society says it has acquired over $10 million for the zoo within the last seven years. We fear that without the involvement and support of the society, both the quality of the zoo and taxpayers of El Paso will suffer. It is unclear as how the City plans to fund these programs without our continued support, Agullo said. The City said it is looking to create a seamless process for new and existing memberships with the zoo. For now, new memberships are suspended but the City said it is looking for a new membership manager to take over that role. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas and his City Council colleagues must proceed carefully before extending City Manager Brian Platts employment contract. On balance, Platts service over the past three years has been a positive for the city streets have been resurfaced, parks and pools are being repaired, streetlights have been upgraded. Platt has brought an interesting, younger, outsiders approach to a City Hall too often hidebound by tradition and habit. In an interview, Lucas said that among Platts unlimited number of accomplishments were delivering the new KCI Airport terminal on time and on budget, which was not a given when he took the job, overseeing a pay increase for every city employee and quadrupling since 2019 the number of street lane miles resurfaced each year The city also did a good job of keeping the streets cleared of snow this winter, although it didnt snow very much. Platts record is not without flaws, however. In a lawsuit, a former city communications worker claimed Platt wanted to lie to the public about city projects. A focus on public relations, ahead of policy, is always a disservice to the community. Just as seriously, Platt remains a divisive figure in Kansas Citys Black community, which has accused him of insensitivity to racial concerns. Nearly a year ago, a handful of Black advocacy groups called for Platts removal after the resignation of the citys director of civil rights and equal opportunity because she allegedly violated a residency requirement. The groups claimed Platt could and should have more aggressively promoted minority and women business hiring requirements for a big Northland construction project. Four council members, all Black, voted against hiring Platt in 2020. This year, four Black council members voted against a plan to negotiate a new deal with the city manager. The mayor said what that tells him is that Platt has more one-on-one work to do with those members. Last week, word surfaced that Platt was a finalist for the city managers job in Austin, Texas. Naturally, that set off alarm bells for some at Kansas Citys City Hall. Lucas said he spoke to Austins mayor, who told him they used a search firm. He didnt blame Platt, he said, for entertaining other offers for a lot more money. Hes human, the mayor said. But was Platt looking for a new job? If so, why? Did he pursue the Austin job to obtain negotiating leverage here in Kansas City? The City Council, and the public, should have the answers to those questions. Platt withdrew from the Austin job search after word of it leaked. Will he promise to stop looking anywhere else for a job? The city manager job in Kansas City is an important and powerful position. The city manager proposes the budget and implements the City Councils spending and policy decisions. With a few exceptions, he or she hires and fires department heads, and controls the citys organizational structure. Platt cannot claim he lacks the authority here to do his job well. Kansas City isnt, or shouldnt be, a consolation prize, or a fallback job if a higher-paying position falls through. It shouldnt be treated that way. Thats why any new contract with Brian Platt should include a substantial buyout clause to be paid to the city if he leaves before the end of its terms. Lucas is negotiating with Platt over a new deal, and he should make sure Platt still wants to be here before recommending anything to the full council. Kansas City has made progress over the past three years, but much more needs to be done. Transportation systems must be solidified and improved. Public safety and equity must be addressed. If voters approve a stadium tax, construction of a new downtown ballpark and a nearby ballpark village will have to be managed. Platts full record must be examined before offering him a sizable raise and an extension of his contract terms. We think Platt is the person for the job, but only if he promises to stay and work on these problems and others, and not dash for the exit the next time another city expresses interest. And he must do a much better job of connecting with the citys Black community, which remains underserved. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) Elementary school students are speaking out against Charlotte-Mecklenburg school leaders decision to discontinue the use of an online library program. CMS district officials issued a notice of cancellation of the Epic service to educators in late February. They cited the North Carolina Parents Bill of Rights, which received lawmaker approval about a year ago. In response to state requirements put forth in the Parents Bill of Rights, it has been determined that the e-book platform, Epic, does not meet the requirements for use a supplementary instructional service, the district said. They removed student and staff access to the e-library on Feb. 26. NC principals attempt to change how theyre paid Parents Bill of Rights supporters of the measure said it allows guardians more oversight of classroom materials and enables them to raise any moral or educational objections to said materials. Those opposed to the bill said it could lead to unnecessary censorship. CMS administrators said the recommended alternative to Epic is a platform called Sora. Some teachers, however, dont believe Sora is an equal replacement. They say Sora lacks the interactive features and many of the titles featured on Epic. They also note many of the materials available on Sora are often checked out and students must wait weeks to access books. About a dozen parents and children showed up to Tuesdays CMS Board of Education meeting. They held hand-made signs asking for elected leaders to reinstate their access to the online books. Students with Paige Andersons fourth-grade class at Charlotte East Learning Academy led the charge. They outlined 25 reasons why they want the Epic system back. The best thing about Epic is it makes reading fun, said Fincher Nelson. If one parent doesnt want their child to read on Epic, it shouldnt be blocked for others, said Alexandra Diaz. We have over 500 signatures and were still collecting. This proves that these kids want Epic back, said Elliot Vargas. Anderson said Epic has been a tool she has used for many years. She said teachers have the ability to block their class from content on the site or curate collections of approved books. She said she wants the district to reinstate access to the resource. I foresee that kids are not going to read as much because Epic makes reading fun and thats the bottom line, Anderson said. They are learning to love to read. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) A now-former Clearwater preschool employee was charged Tuesday with child abuse, according to the Clearwater Police Department. Noel Michelle Savoy, 36, of Clearwater, was charged with nine counts of child abuse, police said. All five victims were about 1 year old. Savoy allegedly acted in a rough manner toward the children in the infant room at Kid City USA, along McMullen Booth Road, police said. An employee reported the behavior to police on Feb. 14. Savoy was accused of yanking multiple childrens arms to pull them off the ground or out of cribs. The children were between the ages of 9 months and 1 year old. She was accused of slamming one child into a crib mattress and another into a seated position. Police said she stepped on one childs hand, and when he tried to free it, she allegedly knocked him over with her foot and yanked his arm to pull him off the ground. Savoy was fired from the facility last month, according to police. Savoy reportedly admitted that her actions were wrong and could have injured the children, according to police. Police said Savoy has worked in other child care facilities in the past. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Microphones stand on a table before the start of a press conference of the Last Generation climate group. The German climate activist group Last Generation announced it has collected enough signatures to put candidates on the ballot for European Parliament elections in June. Christoph Soeder/dpa The German climate activist group Last Generation announced it has collected enough signatures to put candidates on the ballot for European Parliament elections in June. Over the past four weeks, activists with Last Generation have collected and certified 8,800 signatures, about twice as many as needed, the group said on Wednesday. Last Generation rose to national prominence, and widespread controversy, with a campaign of aggressive street blockades in which activists sometimes glued their hands or feet to roadways. Last Generation activists also sprayed paint on political offices and major landmarks, threw substances on famous paintings in art galleries and staged other headline-grabbing actions. Leaders of the activist group announced earlier this year that they would halt its street blocks and change tactics. They announced plans to run for European Parliament in February. The ballot petitions will be submitted to Germany's Federal Election Commissioner on Friday, which will then review the signatures and decide whether the group will be allowed to run in the EU election. The electoral hurdles to win a seat in the European Parliament are lower compared to domestic German parliamentary elections, where parties are generally required to win at least 5% of the vote to take seats. There is no such threshold for the European Parliament. Last Generation leaders said they believe they can win a seat in European Parliament with around 250,000 votes. The group said it raised more than 50,000 ($55,000) and attracted 150 volunteers for the campaign. Jessie Milo began serving a 200-year-plus prison sentence when he was 21 years old. During the summer of 2022, Cocroran State Prison, where he was housed, underwent a scheduled power outage. While prisoners were locked in their cells, the ventilation was completely shut off in the housing units, Milo said. With no air flow, the temperature monitors in the cells showed 98 degrees. As an elected member of the Inmate Advisory Counsel, which acts as a go-between for the incarcerated population and staff, Milo went from cell to cell, checking on the elderly population, in their seventies and eighties. The old guys were getting lightheaded and sweating, said Milo. The guards wouldnt even open their cell doors so they could get a little more air. Milo, now 43, feels he grew up behind bars and sees prisons as communities that need to be livable. Right now, many prisons are failing that test: Its not equipped to handle the population without harming the health, he said. Theres black mold in the chow hall, leaky roofs, and during the summer months, without air conditioning, the housing units stay over 90 degrees. When Milo asked the administration about repairs and upkeep of the prison, he says he was told that there were no plans for improvements because there was no money in the budget for them. No matter the problem or emergencyincluding infectious diseases, such as colds, staphylococcus, and norovirusthe problem is exacerbated by overcrowding. To find out how the incarcerated population feel about housing conditions and emergency preparedness, we teamed up with the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and the University of California, Los Angeles to produce The Hidden Hazards Report. More than 2,200 surveys were sent to incarcerated people in 25 prisons. Their names came from EBCs mailing list. Using both randomized selection and snowball sampling, the survey collected firsthand experiences and perceptions of more than 560 incarcerated people. The conclusion was that incarcerated Californians face life-threatening risks from wildfires, extreme temperatures, and flooding. The survey identified 18 prisons with about 46,000 incarcerated people at risk. The surveys report shows that there is no mention in the states emergency plans to respond to climate emergencies in state prisons. The emergency plans do, however, make plans for vulnerable populations. Whats most shocking to me is how even in cases where the prison did have an emergency plan, that plan was not followed during an emergency, said Maura ONeill, one of the UCLA researchers. It appears that the normal reaction was to lock incarcerated people in their cells, which I believe increases their level of vulnerability. The Hidden Hazards survey and report shows that prison officials have not prepared a course of action or even explored ways to reduce the harm that incarcerated people face as floods, extreme temperatures, and wildfires hit Californian prisons. As climate hazards are increasingly affecting prisons, officials persist in a reactive policy of Dont look up, as in the movie in which a planet-killer comet is headed for earth. When top scientists inform government officials, their response is to ignore the bad news. As incarcerated journalists, Brooks and I find it troubling that prison officials provide state lawmakers with minimal information on the emergency preparedness of the states prisons. Evacuations are described in a limited way, and procedures for fires, floods, and earthquakes are so narrow that it leaves questions about how prison officials will keep incarcerated people safe. Our concerns are rooted in prison officials long and extensive history of past failuresfailures that cost people their lives. The most recent example was the 2020 Covid-19 outbreak at San Quentin, where 28 incarcerated people and a corrections sergeant died. In 2011, with San Quentins population nearly double its design capacity, there was an outbreak of chickenpox. But instead of reducing the population to ease the diseases ability to spread, a mitigation tactic was adoptedlock people in their cells which is the same tactic used to combat San Quentins annual influenza outbreak. In 2015, Legionnaires disease found its way into a newly built health care facility building. The source: shoddy construction of a poorly maintained ventilation system. Though each incident could have served as a wake-up call, the warnings went unheeded and subsequent planning for the next emergency never materialized. With little accountability, there is little incentive for prison officials to proactively institute more humane policies rather than reacting to state directives in the wake of individual crises. To avoid the loss of life during these imminent dangers, the survey recommends cutting the incarcerated population in half. But closing prisons with a massive release would generate public outrage. The Hidden Hazards report does offer achievable solutions. Brooks and I believe adopting its recommendations would significantly reduce the risk of death to a dependent and vulnerable population. First, the states emergency plan should be changed by recognizing the vulnerability of incarcerated people, which would be in line with Governor Gavin Newsoms March 2023 proposal to make California prisons as humane as possible. In addition, this would let the incarcerated population know that policymakers want life in prison to be as close as possible to life outside of prison. In addition, the state should establish a minimum standard for emergency plans and require prison officials to develop a biannual report defining the protocol and resources on hand to carry out the plan. Tracking the number of climate hazards at each prison would provide added accountability to prison officials. Finally, we need increased funding for heating, air conditioning, ventilation, shade structures, and backup generators, which are reasonable facility upgrades. What people fail to realize, Milo told us, is that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, or CDCR, does not measure the heat index in the housing unit cells, which is the actual true temperature, impacting the body. So when the monitor reads 98 degrees in the cell, the heat index temperature is around 110 degrees, and thats dangerous for anyones health. If CDCR cant house people in a way that doesnt put their lives at risk, then prisons like Corcoran need to be closed. JERUSALEM, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli parliament on Wednesday approved a revised state budget for 2024 to fund the country's war against Hamas in Gaza. According to the Finance Ministry, the updated budget stands at about 584 billion shekels (about 161 billion U.S. dollars), an increase of 70 billion shekels compared to the original budget approved in May last year. Defense spending alone will go up by 55 billion shekels. The fiscal plan envisages a deficit of 6.6 percent of the gross domestic product. The statement noted that the budgets of all government ministries were cut to support the balancing measures. The new budget also includes several measures to increase state revenues, such as taxing bank profits and reducing convalescence payments for employees, as agreed with the largest Israeli worker union Histadrut. Leonid Volkov, associate of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, arrives at the M100 Media Award ceremony at the Palace Theater of the New Palace. Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago, has shown himself to be combative following a violent attack outside his home in Lithuania. Jorg Carstensen/dpa Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago, has shown himself to be combative following a violent attack outside his home in Lithuania. "We will carry on and not give up," said Volkov in a video published on Telegram on Wednesday. Volkov, who lives in exile in Lithuania and served as Navalny's chief of staff, was attacked and injured outside his home Tuesday evening. The attack was a "typical bandit salute" by Russian President Vladimir Putin's henchmen, he said. "They literally wanted to beat me to a pulp with a hammer," he said after his release from hospital. According to the Lithuanian police, Volkov was attacked near his home in Vilnius at around 10 pm (2000 GMT) on Tuesday. "The man attacked me in the courtyard and hit my leg about 15 times. The leg is fine. It hurts when I walk," Volkov said in the video. "But my arm is broken." The motive for the attack is still unclear. According to the police, Volkov was attacked and beaten by unknown persons when he arrived in a car in the courtyard of his house. The investigation is ongoing, the police said. Leonid Volkov, associate of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, arrives at the M100 Media Award ceremony at the Palace Theater of the New Palace. Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago, has shown himself to be combative following a violent attack outside his home in Lithuania. Jorg Carstensen/dpa Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago, showed himself to be combative following a violent attack outside his home in Lithuania. "We will carry on and not give up," Volkov said in a video published on Telegram on Wednesday. Volkov, who lives in exile in Lithuania and served as Navalny's chief of staff, was attacked and injured outside his home on Tuesday evening. The attack was a "typical bandit salute" by Russian President Vladimir Putin's henchmen, he said. "They literally wanted to beat me to a pulp with a hammer," Volkov added after his release from hospital. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda believes the attack on Volkov was a deliberate act. "It is clear that such things are planned and we should not be surprised," Nauseda asserted. "But I want to make it very clear: the relevant authorities are investigating and will hopefully find the culprits," Nauseda told Lithuanian radio on Wednesday on the sidelines of a visit to France. He added: "I can only say one thing to Putin: Nobody here is afraid of you." According to the Lithuanian police, Volkov was attacked near his home in Vilnius at around 10 pm (2000 GMT) on Tuesday. "The man attacked me in the courtyard and hit my leg about 15 times. The leg is fine. It hurts when I walk," Volkov said in the video. "But my arm is broken." The motive for the attack is still unclear. According to the police, Volkov was attacked and beaten by unknown persons when he arrived in a car in the courtyard of his house. The investigation is ongoing, the police said. FILE - Geert Wilders, leader of the far-right party PVV, or Party for Freedom, talks to the media after a meeting with speaker of the House Vera Bergkamp, two days after Wilders won the most votes in a general election, in The Hague, Netherlands, on Nov. 24, 2023. Two days of behind-closed doors talks between four Dutch political leaders appear to have forced a breakthrough in negotiations to form a new ruling coalition nearly four months after a general election won by Wilders. While the exact contours of a new coalition Cabinet remain unclear, Kim Putters, who led the talks, believes that the parties are now ready to hammer out a deal. Putters was writing up a report Wednesday March 13, 2024 that he will present to lawmakers on Thursday. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, File) THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) Geert Wilders, whose anti-Islam, anti-immigration rhetoric swept him to a stunning victory in the November election, said Wednesday he doesnt have the support of his prospective coalition partners to become the next Dutch prime minister. Wilders took to X, formerly Twitter, to say that I can only become premier if ALL parties in the coalition support that. That wasnt the case. His comment came after media reported, citing unnamed sources, that a breakthrough in coalition talks announced Tuesday night was that the leaders of all four parties involved in drawn-out coalition negotiations would remain in parliament. That sets up the likelihood of some sort of technical Cabinet made up of experts. While it now looks like Wilders will not lead the government, he and his Party for Freedom will remain the driving force behind the next administration. Wilders did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Other leaders involved in the talks also did not immediately comment. But Wilders later added another comment on X to say that, one day, he still wants to be prime minister. Don't forget: I will still become premier of the Netherlands, he said. With the support of even more Dutch people. If not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow. Because the voice of millions of Dutch people will be heard! After the Nov. 22 elections, Wilders' party holds 37 seats in the 150-seat lower house of the Dutch parliament. The four parties in government talks hold a combined 88 seats, giving them a comfortable majority. Polls since the election show that support for Wilders' party continues to grow. After two decades of trenchant opposition, Wilders seemed to have a shot at leading a nation that long prided itself on its tolerant society, but he has stepped aside in the interests of pushing through most of his agenda. I really wanted a right-wing Cabinet. Less asylum and immigration. Dutch people number 1, Wilders said on X. The love for my country and voter is bigger and more important than my own position. The rise of the populist far right in a polarized political landscape has been underway for years in Europe but Wilders' election victory still came as a shock to the Netherlands and well beyond. Wilders has often called for a ban on mosques, Islamic schools and the Quran, but in a concession to his prospective coalition partners in January, he withdrew draft legislation to implement the bans. The Netherlands is not alone in seeing a shift to the right. Far right parties also are expected to make significant gains in June elections for the European Union's parliament and Portugal's inconclusive result in Sunday's election thrust the populist Chega or Enough party into a possible kingmaker's role. Chega's leader, Andre Ventura, has made common cause with other right-wing parties across the continent. Wilders spent Monday and Tuesday in talks with the leaders of the center-right People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, populist Farmer Citizen Movement and centrist New Social Contract. With New Social Contract leader Pieter Omtzigt ruling out joining a majority Cabinet led by Wilders, the four parties now will likely look at other options a Cabinet made up of experts and politicians or a minority Cabinet propped up by support from Omtzigt's party. The Netherlands could turn to Italy for a model of how to move past its political stalemate. Italy has a history of resorting to technical governments headed by figures outside the political party mainstream. These experts are called on to guide the country through a particular period, often due to economic instability or political gridlock, before fresh elections are held. The most recent such government was headed by Mario Draghi, the internationally respected former European Central Bank chief who was called on to shepherd Italy through the second half of the COVID-19 pandemic and reboot economic growth. Despite his broad-based support, Draghis coalition collapsed in July 2022 and fresh elections were called that were subsequently won by Premier Giorgia Meloni of the far-right Brothers of Italy and her right-wing allies. ____ Associated Press writer Nicole Winfield in Rome contributed. The grand undoing of progress in the name of making America great again is tough for anyone who has only known the moral arc of the universe to bend toward justice. Jianan Liu/HuffPost Journalism has always been a wild profession. The hours can be nutty. The pressures are severe. The competition is stiff, and the money is often nonexistent, as the closure of dozens of newsrooms over the last few years attests. Basically, its not for the faint of heart. But Im not sure anything in modern history has challenged journalism and its limits quite like the 2016 election and the presidency of Donald Trump. The already rapid-fire news cycle went from 24 hours to some supercharged new controversy, wild statement or possible constitutional crisis about every 24 seconds punctuated by COVID-19 and its lockdowns; nationwide protests over police brutality; the war in Ukraine; and the devastating and deadly fiasco that was the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. Needless to say, most journalists were tired by the time Joe Biden was sworn in, and a lot of us, including me, have never really recovered. There was no time: to process, to think, to reflect on what wed collectively gone through. And now its 2024, and we have to do this all over again, with our unprocessed grief from the pandemic, the compressed news cycle and the grim reality of how unhinged and toxic our national discourse has become. To some, it may seem hyperbolic, but to those of us who are both blessed and cursed with information, 2016 and the pandemic offered sobering realizations that no one is actually in charge. Oh sure, we have a president, a Congress and a judiciary. We have laws, and institutions that enforce them, if sometimes unevenly. But no one is really in charge. Theres no single person or entity who can actually stop us from sliding into anarchy. There is no hand at the wheel. America is essentially held together by things like norms and social contracts that are only as strong as our belief in them. Trump, an iconoclast, a smasher of norms, has pushed us all to the limits of understanding and reality, as the things we were told as children were wrong are apparently fine if theyre done in the name of your team. Lying? No problem. Violence? Encouraged. Cheating? Everyone does it. Serving your country or paying taxes? For suckers. Caring about your fellow human beings? Damn them all and let God figure it out. The ends justify the means no matter how ugly and unfortunate, causing the death of what one once thought America was, and the birth of a new, even uglier reality than one could have imagined. I have post-traumatic stress disorder. My first experience with it came from a long-gone, almost-forgotten romantic relationship that turned sour in my 20s. I would be perfectly fine and happy until that person would reach out to me, triggering a response that was one part screaming and another part paralytic. I didnt want a return, ever, to the status quo. I wanted my new life without this person. I wanted them to disappear. Their insistence on thinking they had any right to have access to my life led to hospitalizations and my almost quitting journalism by the time I was 30. My second experience with PTSD came from being a working journalist during the 2016 election; its deadly aftermath of Charlottesville violence and empowered white supremacists; the pandemic; the slow bleed-out of American journalistic institutions; the racial reckoning of 2020; and the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6. But unlike with my toxic relationship, I didnt seek help, because I didnt see the problem for what it was. I allowed myself to lose interest in things Id always loved, and found myself shutting out the information Id consumed since I was about 11 or so, when I started reading the newspaper every day. I could read the news, but I couldnt watch it anymore. Things that used to be daily and nightly habits Morning Joe on MSNBC, CNN at night turned into reruns of Bravos Real Housewives. Knowing that there was no one in charge. Knowing that our fates were literally in our own hands, and that it was up to us whether wed continue the progress of the past 60 years or completely regress to an authoritarian state. It both humbled and horrified me. The idea of an illuminati some shadowy cabal actively reinforcing the status quo sounded comforting compared to the actual, cold reality. Its not that things havent been bad before. My 82-year-old father survived the 1950s and 60s when we were essentially an apartheid state, with democracy for some and autocracy for everyone else. But this grand undoing of progress in the name of making America great again is tough for anyone who has only known that long, moral arc of the universe to bend toward justice, and not toward the complete regression of everything. I am not built for this. I was born in 1977. The president was Jimmy Carter. He was a Christian Southerner, a former peanut farmer who seemed to have actually read the New Testament, which is all about loving the poor, the sinners and the sick, with the meek inheriting the earth and us all being good stewards of it. Carter put solar panels on the White House, got too honest when he (more or less) told America it was in a malaise, got waylaid by a hostage crisis in Iran, and then was called weak and ineffective. He was voted out after one term. The great undoing technically started with the first president I actually remember, Republican icon Ronald Reagan, who raged against progress by pushing myths about welfare queens, ignoring the AIDS crisis and downplaying the racialized violence of the 1960s. But, again, there did seem to be a patina of sanity, as Reagan also supported gun control even if the reasoning behind it was race-based and riddled with double standards and hes credited with ending the Cold War with the former Soviet Union. Subsequent presidents, Democrats and Republicans alike, attempted to at least pretend like there were some rules and decorum, and parameters about what a president could and could not do. For the racists, sexists and -phobes of all kinds, both parties mostly offered lip service, deregulation and some conservative judges. But the Republicans took it a bit further by entertaining the far right, making them think they had power. Still, the GOP establishment was slow to deliver on the things the fringe wanted, because what they truly desired a return to authoritarianism for anyone not a heterosexual, white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant man would screw up everything. All the progress, wealth and prosperity the United States had experienced after the 1970s would be devoured in civil unrest and a collapsed economy. Mind you, that wealth and prosperity wasnt for the people. It accrued to a select few, as laws meant to rein in excess were rolled back under both Democratic and Republican presidents. But those same select few didnt want their apple cart upset by political violence and an unpredictable discourse. So the religious right, Christian conservatives, the moral majority, Tea Partiers and other culture warriors were disempowered and reduced to a sideshow. But like the Pied Piper, these angry, anti-everything patriots were going to demand, at some point, to be paid for consistently voting Republican. Donald Trump was that payment that came due, and the Republican Party wasnt willing, or able, to stop it. He swallowed them whole, causing waves of resignations of establishment conservative politicians unable to survive this new MAGA reality. Soon, the discourse was led by the loudest, most crass voices in the room, regardless of competence, intellect, experience or understanding. At the same time, with the increasing browning and liberalization of America, capitalism declared that racism, sexism and all those phobias were bad for business. That message became widespread, drawing irrational rage from some quarters at everything from pride flags in Target to trans people drinking Budweiser. Racism and sexism werent the problem; the problem was the policing of it. Experiencing racism? Tired. Claiming that being called a racist is worse than actual racism? Wired! The real victims of an unjust society werent the people who had always been marginalized, but the people who had always benefited and profited from that injustice. Some people would rather watch it all burn than share. Nobody is in charge. Were on our own. And help is not coming. It never occurred to me to talk to a therapist about the existential crisis I was going through until nearly a month ago, after Jan. 6 returned to the news and the 2024 campaign kicked into full gear. The conversation was prompted by my significant other, who told me I needed some hobbies upon realizing that I was often lonely, isolated, bored and disengaged. It was then I realized how Id lost interest in so many things post-2016: art, cartoons, drawing, reading, writing, long walks, politics, international relations, history, books, film, most TV, dancing, singing, songwriting, museums and all the things that used to fill my free time. My world just kept getting smaller and smaller, the pandemic accelerating and exacerbating this. The only interests Id retained post-2016 were cooking, shopping, reality television and listening to music. And then, when I became worried about my spending, I lost shopping as well. I was living in two realities. In one, Im happy. My life is good. I recently lost 75 pounds. I have a job I love, a great family and lots of friends, and Im in a loving, supportive relationship. On the other hand, I feel like the world is ending. Im trapped in the climate change satire Dont Look Up, and Im just raging into nothingness as no one can agree on what reality is anymore. As I talked to my therapist and finally unpacked this, pinpointing that my waning interest in things Id loved was clearly tied to 2016 and its aftermath, the tears came hard and fast. Id lost belief in the idea of justice in our society for those long denied it, and it had poisoned my well of hope. There was no comfort, just the truth. Ordinarily, having my back against the wall would have ignited my desire to fight against ignorance, apathy and oppression via my chosen profession of disseminating information. But for the first time in my life, I was tired. I was full of dread as one presidential candidate vowed revenge on the free press and his many enemies, and the other seemed to be struggling to stave off World War III. I never thought Id want to go back to the halcyon days of our checkered, messed-up past, as I have always believed the future would be better than what we had left behind. Im pro-progress. I always joked Id never get into a time machine, that I didnt even want to go back to last week, let alone yesteryear. But now, Im pining for my past ignorance. The rose-colored lenses are gone. The party is over. I am sober, and existing in the waking nightmare rather than pretending its not there. I have no answers, other than that I dont want to do this but I have to do this. The only path that remains is the path forward. I cant go back to before 2016 and change anything. I cant bring back those who died unnecessarily of COVID because people cared too little about each other to wear masks, get vaccinated or self-isolate. I cant bring back the people killed by police brutality. I cant save the people harmed over and over, who have died because of racialized, sexualized and anti-LGBTQ+ violence. I cant stop the crisis at the border. I cant reverse the overturning of Roe and the criminalization of womens bodies. I cant make corporations choose the planet and people over profits. I can only move forward, hoping that by giving the marginalized a voice, by giving the truth a voice, Ill help open someones eyes and they will be able to make a better, healthier decision for our society. And as frustrated and defeated as I sometimes feel, I know I wont stop fighting. I love my life. I love my friends and family. I love my extremely dysfunctional home country and my equally dysfunctional profession. I want things to get better, not worse. I want to be part of the solution, not the problem. So Im not going to stop until something makes me stop. Like the end of everything. Like death. And even then, I still might be swinging at something, anything, everything, raging against the dying light as I want to leave this world a better place than I found it. There is no salve that will heal my lost hope except justice. So I guess I better stop feeling sorry for myself, and get back to the business of living. Related... Police arrested a 25-year-old Harding University High School teacher on Wednesday, accusing her of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old male student. Social studies teacher Jasmine Wooten was charged with the felony of taking indecent liberties against a student and is free on $50,000 unsecured bond, Mecklenburg County jail records show. A second person with the same name teaches English at Harding, but shes not charged in this case. Wooten was arrested Wednesday morning after school resource officers alerted police to a potential inappropriate relationship between the teacher and student, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department news release. Police said they spoke with the student and later interviewed Wooten at police headquarters. At the end of the interview, police obtained a warrant for her arrest. Wooten was suspended with pay on Wednesday, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. CMS hired her in August 2022. Wooten didnt reply to a phone message from The Charlotte Observer. Police urged anyone with information about the incident to call CMPD at 704-432-8477 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tips line at 704-334-1600. This is a developing story. Check back for updates. CNN legal analyst Elie Honig criticized Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) after a judge overseeing former President Trumps election interference case in Georgia threw out some charges against him. I dont think this ruling changes the type of evidence that the DAs going to be able to introduce, but it does knock out some of the charges and look, its embarrassing for prosecutors, Honig said Wednesday on CNN. Its a screwup by prosecutors when you bring a charge and then a judge throws it out before it even goes to trial. Honigs comments were first highlighted by Mediaite. Judge Scott McAfee tossed six of the charges Trump and his allies face in Georgia, ruling that prosecutors failed to provide enough detail for the defendants to mount their defenses. There have been several screwups, frankly, by the DA throughout the history of this case. Going back to the investigative phase, the DA got herself disqualified from a small piece of the case because she created a political conflict of interest, Honig said, in reference to a separate examination the judge is conducting into an alleged relationship between Willis and a special prosecutor on the case. Weve seen Fani Willis make public statements in the church and elsewhere that have now been called into question that I think violate the ethics of prosecutorial rules, and now weve seen six of the charges thrown out of the case and unlike the conflict of interest issue, this does go to the charges against the defendant. This does go to the indictment itself. Trump, who is expected to be the Republican nominee for president, has argued the charges against him are politically motivated and designed to keep him from winning his bid for the White House this fall. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. FIRST ON FOX: CNN was forced to issue a correction to its reporting this week aimed at discrediting a portion of Republican Alabama Sen. Katie Britt's State of the Union rebuttal in which she included the tragic story about an unnamed sex trafficking victim to emphasize the effects of the ongoing border crisis. That victim of sex trafficking was later identified as Karla Jacinto, who faced immense brutality from the ages of 12 to 16 at the hands of traffickers in Mexico, which Britt detailed in her rebuttal. CNN paraded Jacinto in front of its audience over the weekend with an appearance on the network and in a subsequent story in which it made a number of claims attempting to derail Britt's portrayal of the story. However, those claims ran in stark contrast to past reporting on Jacinto, as well as her own words. BLESS YOUR HEART: RISING REPUBLICAN STAR KATIE BRITT SHREDS BIDEN ON BORDER, RISING COSTS IN SOTU REBUTTAL Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., listens during a news conference on border security at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 27, 2023. In its piece following the weekend interview with Jacinto, CNN wrote that Britt inaccurately said she met one-on-one with Jacinto. However, Britt never claimed in her rebuttal to have had a one-on-one meeting, only stating that she "spoke" with Jacinto while traveling to the border in Texas. When reached for comment on the inaccuracy, CNN responded that it had corrected the piece to reflect it was Jacinto's view that Britt claimed the two met one-on-one, and not the outlet's. "CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to clarify the circumstances of Britts meeting with Jacinto," a note at the bottom of the story now reads. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP CNN also portrayed Britt as incorrectly claiming Jacinto was trafficked by Mexican drug cartels, but the senator never said "drug cartels" during her rebuttal. She specifically talked about "cartels," referring to organized crime along the border, similar to how Jacinto previously described her traffickers as a "crime organization" during testimony before the House Foreign Affairs Committee in May 2015. FLORIDA SHERIFF: MILITARY, TEACHER INCLUDED IN THOSE APPREHENDED IN MASSIVE HUMAN TRAFFICKING BUST During the hearing, Jacinto referenced a "pimp, or the crime organization" that she said took her 1-year-old daughter from her, so she could continue her work for them. A Fox News report from later that year also detailed how Jacinto's pimp, who was described as her boyfriend, was "working as part of an international organized crime ring, and he forced her into a life of prostitution and violence." She has also described the criminal organization as an organized crime "family." CNN was forced to issue a correction to its reporting this week aimed at discrediting a portion of Republican Alabama Sen. Katie Britt's State of the Union rebuttal. Jacinto has talked about being trafficked on numerous other occasions, including during a roundtable discussion with Britt, as well as Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., in January 2023, in which she said she was almost trafficked to the U.S. at the age of 14. Following the meeting, Hyde-Smith said, "We had the opportunity to meet with a young lady. Her name was Karla. She was under control of a drug cartel and a human trafficker from the age 12 to 16, before she was able to escape that." When reached for comment on the inaccuracy, CNN expressed disagreement with Fox that their portrayal was inaccurate. FLORIDA SHERIFF TO CONGRESS AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS NABBED IN HUMAN TRAFFICKING PROBE: SHAME ON ALL OF THEM Additionally, CNN itself reported in September 2017 that Jacinto, "by her own estimate," was raped 43,200 times "after falling into the hands of human traffickers." Fox News Digital has reached out to Jacinto for comment. Reintegra, an advocacy group that works with Jacinto, responded to a request for comment on her behalf, telling Fox that she "was not pressured or coerced nor did she alter her story in any way." Karla Jacinto speaks during an interview at a park in Mexico City, on Jan. 4, 2018. The group added that her story "has been consistent through the years," and the CNN reporter who wrote the story was "very reputable and trustworthy." "Ms. Jacinto has made it clear that she does not wish to be a pawn in political discussions around immigration policies or other political issues. Her focus is to help open peoples' eyes and let the world know about the evils of human trafficking. She understands that people are [on] both sides of the political aisle can and must be united in this fight for the sake of vulnerable people," the organization said. Despite Britt not using Jacinto's name, the organization suggested the senator needed her permission to use her story during the rebuttal, and called for her to apologize. 14 DEMOCRATS VOTE WITH REPUBLICANS TO CONDEMN BIDEN IMMIGRATION POLICIES "We invite Senator Britt and all who care about vulnerable people to join us in working together in a bipartisan, multinational way to help provide safe, migration and resettlement opportunities to help prevent this issue. We believe that we can't fight this common enemy if we are instead fighting across party or racial divides. We ask all to reject language that dehumanizes those seeking asylum and treat others in a dignified, humane way as we work as one to make this world a better place," it added. Republicans rallied around Britt this week, accusing the media of undertaking a "smear" campaign against her. "Joe Biden's policies have been a gift to the cartels that are engaged in horrific sex trafficking and bringing fentanyl to the U.S. Katie Britt is absolutely right and that's why the media is attacking her. They want to smear any conservative who speaks out," Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., wrote in a Monday post on X. Cotton was echoed by former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who wrote, "The media is targeting Senator Katie Britt because shes a strong conservative who told the truth about open border policies. And Katie is exactly right: these border policies have been a disaster for the American people." Britt also responded to the media's apparent blitz against her, telling Fox, "Its past time for the media to stop covering for Joe Bidens re-election campaign and start talking about the immense, very real human suffering thats occurring right now." "The cartels are making record-shattering profits from human trafficking. Historic numbers of migrants are dying at the border. And between brutal murders and fentanyl poisonings, far too many Americans are being killed. Thats the story the media doesnt want to tell and now theyre trying to silence me for telling it," she added. Britt, long considered a rising star within the Republican Party, has been rumored as a potential vice presidential running mate for former President Donald Trump in the general election this November. Original article source: CNN forced to correct story after accusations of 'smear' campaign against Katie Britt During a week-long celebration of Black-owned businesses in Richmond, Virginia, a vegan restaurant has surfaced as a standout in the food scene with its delectable plant-based cuisine. According to WTVR, Philly Vegan was among 37 Black-owned businesses and food trucks participating in Richmonds Black Restaurant Experience to showcase the variety of culinary styles in the Black restaurant industry. The now-popular eatery has not only captured the hearts of local customers but actor, writer and social media personality Tabitha Brown has tapped the establishment for a special request. Brown contacted Philly Vegan to cater her 45th birthday since she was in town for a book signing event, per WTVR. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Philly Vegan (@philly_vegan_9) Philly Vegan co-owner Celicia Hartridge couldnt believe Brown wanted the restaurant to cater her special occasion. What?!? Hartridge recalled saying after receiving the phone call. Tabitha Brown wants us? She loved it, Hartridge continued. So much that she follows up on our social media platforms, WTVR reported. Customers have also raved over Philly Vegans food, including Dexter Harris Jr. The military service member said he always grabs a meal from the restaurant every Friday and described it as a home-cooked meal. It shows how much preparation, energy, love, affection, whatever you want to say that they put in their food. You really cant tell the difference. Its actually very, very, very, very, very good. And its very well seasoned. So you definitely wont leave here disappointed. I can assure you that, Harris said. Hatridge expressed gratitude for the support she has received from the community, acknowledging that she initially created Philly Vegan in her kitchen with her family. She also admitted that most of her customers are non-vegans who enjoy plant-based meals. WTVR reported Harris said, Over 70% of our customers, arent vegan. She added, So to have this transitional type food to help people see that vegan isnt just salads, makes us feel proud. A bill adding hurdles for companies looking to close fossil fuel-fired power plants passed the Senate Monday with overwhelming support from Republican legislators. Senate Bill 349 from Sen. Robby Mills, R-Henderson, would create an 18-member commission to review requests to close fossil fuel-fired power plants before the states Public Service Commission can approve or deny such a retirement. The commissions recommendations would not be binding, but they could extend the overall timeline between application and retirement of plants. It builds off of a bill passed last session that made it harder to retire coal-fired power plants. Sign up for our Bluegrass Politics Newsletter A must-read newsletter for political junkies across the Bluegrass State with reporting and analysis from the Lexington Herald-Leader. Never miss a story! Sign up for our Bluegrass Politics newsletter to connect with our reporting team and get behind-the-scenes insights, plus previews of the biggest stories. The Energy Planning and Inventory Commission also would study Kentuckys overall energy needs. The bill creating it passed 28-9 in a mostly party line vote. Proponents of the bill its sponsor is from the Western Kentucky coalfields and has a powerful co-sponsor from Eastern Kentucky in Senate President Robert Stivers say it is needed to ensure that Kentucky has an adequate amount of energy to meet the demands of an increasingly electrified economy. They also mention avoidance of blackouts, some of which were experienced during Winter Storm Elliott in 2022, as a reason to pass the bill. Senate Bill 349 has been decried by utility companies and some free-market advocates who say it will cause rate increases for customers. Joining them in opposition are environmentalist groups, who say the bill is designed to benefit coal producers and encourages reliance on a declining source of energy. Louisville Gas & Electric/Kentucky Utilities President John Crockett was among those who testified against the bill in committee. He also was an opponent of previous legislation that made it harder to retire coal-fired power plants. Coal has fallen from more than half of the nations utility-scale electricity generation at the turn of the century to 16.2% last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Association. Meanwhile, natural gas, which is also a fossil fuel, and renewable energy have increased. Coal power generation is declining in Kentucky, but it still made up a majority of all generation in the state in 2022, per U.S. Energy Information Association. That year, about 68% of Kentuckys utility-scale electricity net generation was coal-fired. That was the third-highest percentage of any state, trailing West Virginia and Wyoming. Although bill sponsors have stressed the measure is not only about coal, Senate Bill 349 has major backers in the coal industry. Dependable Power First Kentucky, an arm of the coal industry-supporting group Americas Power, has been a strong public advocate for the bill. Joe Craft, a billionaire Kentucky native and energy executive whos made his fortune in the coal industry, sat on the board of Americas Power as of its last publicly available tax filing ending December 2022. Craft and his wife, Kelly, a former ambassador to the United Nations who ran for governor last year, are two of the nations biggest donors to Republican candidates. Both are co-chairs of the national partys effort to raise money for GOP nominee and former president Donald Trump. Both Kelly and Joe Craft gave the maximum amount to Stivers re-election campaign late last year, totaling $4,200 of Stivers impressive $400,000-plus pre-election year account. Crafts company, Alliance Resource Partners, touts itself as the largest coal producer in the eastern United States. Stivers said that Joe Craft was one of many individuals involved and engaged in the discussions around the bill, including representatives from utility companies, electric co-operatives, industrial electric consumers, the University of Kentucky, the gas industry and more. The Kentucky Coal Association, which is led by an ex-official in Trumps Department of the Interior, has been lobbying the legislature itself. Its also contracted with McCarthy Strategic Solutions, one of the most influential lobbying groups in Frankfort, this session. The commission would be administratively attached to the University of Kentucky Center for Applied Energy Research. Its 18-member body would be comprised of: Three people tied to the coal industry, including a coal producer, transporter and buyer/seller. Two from the oil and gas industry. One from an investor-owned utility. One from an electricity generation and transmission co-operative. Two from the nuclear power industry. One representing commercial and industrial electric consumers. One representing producers of renewable electricity. One nominated by the chief executive officer of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. One investment banker or utility financier. One representing residential electricity consumers. One representative each from the Energy and Environment Cabinet and the Cabinet for Economic Development. One non-voting member each from the House and Senate. The boards executive committee would consist of the director of the University of Kentucky Center of Applied Energy Research, two people appointed by the governor and subject to Senate confirmation with the qualifications of a CEO or a board member of a coal company and an electric utility, and two members of the commission appointed by the commission membership. Mills said that the federal government is intentionally sabotaging the national grid by allowing radical environmentalists to steer energy policy. Senate Bill 349, he says, adds a buffer between state and national energy policy. Mills added one key change between the initially proposed bill and the version changed via a floor amendment adopted Wednesday is that utilities aiming to retire a fossil fuel-fired power plant would need to notify the Energy Planning and Inventory Commission 180 days before filing a request to the Public Service Commission instead of 365. Mills said he made the change in consultation with utility companies. He mentioned the bill as related to Senate Bill 4 from last year, which created obstacles for utilities asking the Public Service Commission for permission to replace coal-fired power generation with new sources. Stivers underscored his belief the bill is not a coal bill, pointing to the fact that the bill is aimed at analyzing Kentuckys energy portfolio beyond just coal. Ive been on the periphery, as some of us in this chamber have, of the coal industry for probably 30 years now, Stivers said. This bill was not, as some people have tried to portray it, a coal bill. Most Democrats, with the exception of former coal miner and Eastern Kentucky native Sen. Robin Webb, D-Grayson, voted no. What they have told us is that our actions today will increase costs to ratepayers, Sen. David Yates, D-Louisville, said. .Im a strong believer in a diverse portfolio of energy, but I do worry whenever we tip the scales too far. The bill drew some fire from the political right, too. Andrew McNeil, a former member of GOP Gov. Matt Bevins cabinet whos now president of the Kentucky Forum for Rights, Economics & Education, wrote straightforwardly in a Herald-Leader op-ed column the bill is designed to serve the coal industry. He sympathized with defenders of coal but said that the bureaucracy of the new commission would lead to higher costs for ratepayers. A new state bureaucracy isnt the answer to the attack on coal from Washington D.C., Kentuckys attention should be focused on winning that battle in the courts. SB 349 does nothing to support that fight, McNeill wrote. As much as Id like to see coal prevail in the ideological war thats been waged against it, moving forward with an orderly transition to natural gas for baseload power is in Kentuckys best interest. Partners in the German government coalition are trying to convince Chancellor Olaf Scholz to change his position on the supply of Taurus missiles for Ukraine, hoping for a positive decision. Source: Bloomberg, with reference to informed sources, cited by European Pravda Details: Bloomberg reported that German Finance Minister Christian Lindner, leader of the Free Democratic Party, disagreed with Scholz's position and hoped that he would change his mind. Another informed source told Bloomberg that Robert Habeck, Vice Chancellor and Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, is sympathetic to lawmakers who support the supply of Taurus missiles to Kyiv and is annoyed by Scholz's unilateral decision. The day before, the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) opposition bloc threatened to initiate a parliamentary investigation into Chancellor Olaf Scholz's refusal to send long-range Taurus missiles to Ukraine. The CDU/CSU demands to find out how Scholz came to the conclusion that supplying long-range missiles to Kyiv would risk drawing Berlin directly into a conflict with Russia and that the German military should program targets in Ukraine, after Russian intelligence released an intercepted phone call between senior German Air Force officers that contradicted Scholzs statements. In the intercepted conversation, the German officers stated that Taurus missiles could be launched by Ukraine without German involvement, at least under certain conditions. On 14 March, German lawmakers are set to vote on another CDU/CSU proposal that would require Scholz to immediately send the Taurus missiles to Ukraine. Background: Earlier, Scholz rejected the idea of swapping missiles with the UK so that Ukraine could get more long-range weapons. However, Johann Wadephul, a representative of the opposition CDU/CSU faction in the Bundestag, said he was against such an exchange, as he believes that Ukraine should receive specifically Taurus missiles. Support UP or become our patron! SHIJIAZHUANG, March 14 (Xinhua) -- Seven were killed and 27 others injured following an explosion in north China's Hebei Province on Wednesday, local authorities said Thursday. The blast, suspected to have been caused by a gas leak, occurred at 7:54 a.m. Wednesday at a shop in Yanjiao township in the city of Sanhe, according to the city's emergency management bureau. All the injured have been rushed to the hospital, and their injuries are not life-threatening. Of all the injured, 14 have been discharged from hospital. An investigation of the cause of the explosion is under way. AUBURN, Ala. (WRBL) One of the worlds most beloved brands is breaking ground on a new 18-million-dollar facility in Auburn, bringing 75 new jobs and opportunities to the area. With a Coca-Cola toast, followed by the ceremonial tossing of dirt Coca-Cola Bottling Company United readies for a new sales center in Auburn completing the transfer from West Point, Georgia. We were already looking for a facility and unfortunately we were hit by the storm in March 2022 and just destroyed that building and made it, so we just couldnt operate out of that building. The city of Auburn in the community here has been amazing, they allowed us to find a property we could rent temporarily, and eventually, we found this permanent home where we are going to do an $18 million investment, said Mike Suco President/CEO Coca-Cola United. All West Point employees kept their jobs. The 5-acre spread off West Veterans Boulevard will house a sales center, merchandising, warehouse, and distribution. Its a perfect spot for us with the interstate nearby it allows us to get to a lot of places quickly and when people welcome you like they have here, you just wanna be a part of the community, said Suco. For more than a century Coca-Cola UNITED, headquartered in Birmingham, has distributed Cokes hundreds of products across the southeast. I think the brand is connecting with people its about bringing a little happiness a little joy to someones day, said Suco. Local officials, including Auburn Mayor Ron Anders, expressed excitement about the investment, emphasizing the strong partnership between the company and the city. Coca-Cola UNITED, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, has a rich history of more than a century in manufacturing and distributing Coke products across the southeastern states. They are making a long-term investment in this facility and we believe theyre starting point of 75 to 100 employees its only gonna grow as our area continues to grow, said Mayor Anders. The facility is slated for completion in 2025. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL. At least seven new retailers are coming to Rosevilles Westfield Galleria over the next two years selling everything from clothing and cosmetics to Japanese pastries and Taiwanese boba tea. The indoor shopping center at 1151 Galleria Blvd. in Roseville offers shoppers 168 stores to choose from in a two-story, 1.3 million-square-foot space. The changes include expansions, relocations, and a variety of offerings, further solidifying the malls dedication to providing an unparalleled retail environment, mall officials said in a Tuesday news release. A big goal for Rosevilles Galleria is to bring new brands to the broader region, the release said. Heres which businesses will open at the Roseville mall in the next two years and which retailers are relocating throughout the mall. What are new restaurants, stores coming to Roseville mall? A handful of new restaurants and retailers are scheduled to open at the Roseville Galleria in the coming years, according to the release. However, there were no exact opening dates for those vendors as of Wednesday. World Traveler Coffee Roasters, a local coffee chain, is expected to open a new location at the galleria this year. Other eateries with plans to open in 2024 include Mochi Munch, a pastry shop serving up Japanese and American food, and Share Tea, a Taiwanese-style boba tea shop. On the retail side, Gorjana jewelry brand is set to open a Galleria store on March 27. Rothys, a shoes and accessories store, and Amour Vert, a womens clothing retailer, are also opening locations at the mall this year. In 2025, Chanel Beauty plans to open a luxury cosmetics store at the Galleria. An additional five retailers are slated to sign leases soon, although those vendors werent identified in the release. Stay tuned for further details and grand opening celebrations, the release said. What recently opened at Westfield Galleria? Q1227 Restaurant, a Roseville institution, opened a location at the Roseville Galleria. The restaurants menu fuses global influences with a contemporary twist, according to its website. Customers can expect seafood and meat dishes as well as sandwiches. Retail brands that recently opened locations at the mall include Aritzia womens clothing and Jo Malone fragrance. What stores are relocating or upgrading? If youve taken a stroll recently through the Roseville Galleria, you may have noticed a few stores are boarded off due to renovations or relocations. YSL recently expanded its store and added 2,000 square feet to introduce a new apparel section, the release said. Build-A-Bear Workshop toy store and Buckle an apparel store reopened at the start of the year inupdated spaces. American Eagle clothing store plans to reopen in May in a new and bigger space. Aeire, an activewear and loungewear brand, also plans to open in a new location in May. The retail will introduce its offline collection to the store, the release said. Abercrombie and Fitch clothing store will open at its new Galleria spot in July. There will also be an Abercrombie and Fitch Kids standalone store offering a dedicated space for younger shoppers, the release said. LOccitane, a French luxury retailer of face, body and hair products, recently relocated, too. What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com. Gov. Ron DeSantis holds up three bills that he signed May 15, 2023. One of them bans the use of state funds for DEI programs at Florida's universities and colleges. New College President Richard Corcoran is at right. Corcoran's NCF boast doesn't hold up Last week, Sarasota Tiger Bay Club hosted the Cross College Alliance presidents for a panel discussion. In response to a Tiger Bay members question about the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion programs (DEI) at public universities, New College of Florida President Richard Corcoran asserted that eliminating DEI has made the school more welcoming. Corcoran observed that when he joined New College, the percentage of white and female students was too high. In addition, Corcoran said he was proud that there are now significantly more Black, Hispanic and male students at New College. Write to us: How to send a letter to the editor Corcoran didnt mention that the student demographic shift resulted from the aggressive recruitment of athletes, whose average grade point averages and SAT/ACT scores were lower than the historical average for the school. Corcoran also didnt acknowledge that the elimination of DEI at New College has ushered in an era in which nearly all leadership roles are occupied by white men. New College Board Trustee Christopher Rufo has said the past legacy of New College was that of an affirmative action program for left-leaning scholars, but the school now appears to be an affirmative action program for white male administrators. Felice Schulaner, Sarasota Veterans should steer clear of Trump As a veteran and former law enforcement officer, it is beyond my comprehension why former President Donald Trump is receiving undying support from my former Republican Party. War heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our liberty and freedom have been called "losers" and "suckers" by this known draft dodger. Trump once inquired, as he looked over rows and rows of headstones honoring our heroes, what was in it for them. If someone must explain that to Trump, he has no business being commander in chief. This is very similar to when he disparaged the late Sen. John McCain by saying he was no war hero because he was captured; Trump likes those who were not captured. Obviously, Trump didnt know that McCain could have been freed earlier from the POW camp in Vietnam, but he refused to go without his men. Finally, the Republican Party, which previously stood for law and order, now supports a man who says, if elected, he will pardon those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 and assaulted law enforcement officers. When speaking about those convicted of crimes associated with this insurrection, Trump has had the gall to call them "hostages." I sincerely hope veterans and law enforcement officers recognize this man has no business occupying the White House again. Russell L. Pillifant, Lakewood Ranch Biden disrespected victim, her family So, it has caused a huge uproar that President Joe Biden, in his State of the Union Address (campaign speech?), referred to a Venezuelan man charged with murder who had illegally entered the U.S. as an illegal. Imagine that! Yet nary a peep about Biden not caring enough about the victim to learn her name. How disrespectful to Laken (not Lincoln!) Reilly and her parents! Clearly, mentioning Laken's name wasn't in Biden's prepared remarks, but it certainly wasnt unanticipated as a memorial button that he held up was close at hand. There was no apology from Biden to the grieving parents for not knowing their daughter's first name, but there was an apology on MSNBC for using the term illegal. President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Mar 7, 2024. Immediately after botching Lakens name, we were treated to some classic Bidenese: But how many thousands of people are being killed by illegals? before his voice trailed off. What was that supposed to mean? The thinking that would generate that muttering is truly scary and upsetting. Its hard not to think the unspoken words to complete that utterance werent so whats one more? If you missed Biden's State of the Union speech, go ahead and view a replay of it. But dont plan on a good nights sleep afterward. Thomas Smith, Sarasota This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: New College believes in affirmative action - for white male leaders Riley Strain, a 22-year-old University of Missouri student, was drinking with friends on downtown Nashvilles bustling Broadway thoroughfare Friday night when he walked out of a bar and crossed a nearby street, police said. He hasnt been seen since. Nashville authorities are continuing to look for the missing student after an initial air and ground search were unsuccessful, and theyre urging anyone with information about his whereabouts to come forward. Strain is 6 feet 5 inches tall, with a thin build, blue eyes and light brown hair, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said in a post on X. He was last seen at 9:52 p.m. Friday on Gay St. after drinking downtown, another post said. A friend told officers Strain disappeared after getting kicked out of Lukes 32 Bridge, country singer Luke Bryans bar in Nashville, according to a police report. The bartender said he had been overserved, Strains stepfather Chris Whiteid told CNN affiliate WZTV. He was trying to pay his tab. Strains friends tried looking for him using his last known Snapchat location and repeatedly called him, only to get his voicemail, according to the police report. When Strains friends called his parents to alert them, they drove to Nashville from Springfield, Missouri, to assist in the search, the report said. Lukes 32 Bridge said in an Instagram post Riley was served one alcoholic drink and two waters before security escorted him out. At 9:38 p.m., our security team made a decision based on our conduct standards to escort him from the venue through our Broadway exit at the front of our building, the statement said. He was followed down the stairs with one member of his party. This individual with Riley did not exit and returned upstairs. Police searched the area, including a riverbank near where he was last seen on video, with a helicopter and by ground Monday. On Tuesday, the department released surveillance video it said showed Strain, wearing a two-tone shirt, crossing a street at 9:47 p.m. Strain was on a weekend trip to Nashville with friends when he disappeared. - Metro Nashville Police Department Though Strains cell phone was off by the time police were looking into his whereabouts, Verizon Wireless shared the last known location of the phone was less than a mile from a cell tower located at 19 Oldham Street, according to the report. Police said they searched the area with no luck. Riley is going to tower and stand out in a crowd, Whiteid told WZTV. Hes got a big personality and doesnt really know a stranger. He can walk up and talk to anybody. Bryan said in an Instagram post Tuesday he is praying for Strains safe return and urged anyone with information about his whereabouts to come forward. TC Restaurant Group, operator, and owner of Lukes 32 Bridge is continuing to work closely with the Metro Nashville Police Department to provide security camera footage and any other potentially helpful information to aid in the search for Riley Strain, the venue said in a statement posted on Instagram. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones for his safe return. The Tennessee Alcohol and Beverage Commission said in a statement it is investigating the incident. There are no specific rules or statutes that govern escorting out intoxicated patrons from their businesses or providing assistance in getting someone home. However, state law prohibits serving alcoholic beverages to someone who is visibly intoxicated. A violation is a class A misdemeanor. The TABC has opened an investigation into this matter to see if any violations have occurred, Aaron Rummage, the commissions director of legislation, policy and communication, said in the statement. Strain was in Nashville attending a private event, the University of Missouri said in a statement, adding university officials are in touch with his family and Nashville authorities as the search continues. The safety of our community is our highest priority, said Angela King Taylor, the universitys interim vice chancellor for student affairs. Our thoughts are with Rileys family as the search continues. We will be offering any support to them that we can. Strains stepfather said the disappearance is the familys worst nightmare. He talks to his mom three or four times a day, he told WZTV. For him to go this long without talking is not normal by any means. Hes my baby, Strains mother, Michelle Whiteid, told WZTV. CNNs Michelle Watson and Jamiel Lynch contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com DENVER (KDVR) Colorado marijuana businesses have sold about $115.4 million in cannabis products just in January, according to the Colorado Department of Revenue. Believe it or not, thats lower than what the state reported for January 2023, when the state reported $129.4 million in marijuana sales. 79% of Americans live in a county with legal cannabis dispensary: report The largest difference was in retail marijuana sales, according to the DOR. The department reported that during January 2024, $100.1 million was contributed by retail sales, and $15.3 million was contributed by medical marijuana sales. In January 2023, those numbers were $113.2 million and $16.2 million, respectively. The state also provides a county-by-county breakdown of marijuana sales, but not all counties report (and not all counties offer retail marijuana, like Arapahoe County). The county with the highest-reported medical sales for January 2024 was El Paso County, reporting $6.8 million from medical sales and an additional $3.1 million for recreational sales. Denver was close behind for medical, but blew past in recreational sales, reporting $5.1 million in medical sales and a whopping $24 million from recreational. Colorados marijuana market has seen some larger challenges recently, including the closure of five southern Colorado locations of Maggies Farm, resulting in many employees losing jobs and communities losing access. A few longterm edible brands have also reported an exit from the Colorado marijuana market, including 1906 Edibles, Curaleaf Holdings and Coda Signature. Curaleaf pointed to the difficulties of operating in some of the first-adopting states of legal marijuana as it exited not only Colorado, but also California and Oregon and consolidated operations in Massachusetts. While these states have contributed to the growth of Select and other Curaleaf wholesale brands, the Company acknowledges the difficult operating environment in these investment states and will instead place a laser focus on cash generation in its core revenue-driving markets moving forward, the company said in a release. Gen Z is more than twice as likely to drive high: CDOT Colorado saw a marijuana industry boom during the COVID-19 pandemic, but cannabis jobs rates have fallen to around 30% of 2022 rates in 2023, and Colorados number of retail cultivation permits has dropped about 21%. The state still profits from the industry, scoring nearly $2.7 billion since the state legalized the drug back in 2014. Just from January and February sales, the state reported receiving almost $43.6 million from tax revenue generated by marijuana sales. Last year, the state earned $274.1 million in marijuana tax revenue, which was a marked drop from 2022s earnings $325.1 million. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. A special election to fill the House seat vacated by outgoing Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) will be held on June 25, the same day as the states primary, Gov. Jared Polis (D) announced Tuesday. Buck unexpectedly announced his resignation from the House on Tuesday, effective next week, after previously declaring that he would not seek reelection. The special election adds wrinkles to an already complicated House election in Colorado, where Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) is attempting to switch districts to succeed Buck. Boebert will be on the ballot in the districts primary election but would have to resign from her House seat to run for the special election. Each party is allowed to nominate one candidate for the race, and Boebert currently represents Colorados 3rd District. The split ballots could hurt Boebert, with GOP voters more likely to back the same candidate for both the special election and primary. Top Stories from The Hill The 4th District primary is busy, with 11 candidates registered for the ballot. The district is solidly red, meaning the primary victor is likely to take the seat in November. It has been an honor to serve the people of Colorados 4th District in Congress for the past 9 years, Buck said in a statement. I want to thank them for their support and encouragement throughout the years. Today, I am announcing that I will depart Congress at the end of next week, he said. I look forward to staying involved in our political process, as well as spending more time in Colorado with my family. Bucks departure further erodes an already thin majority for Republicans in the House. With Bucks seat empty, the GOP can only afford to lose two members on any party-line vote. The Hill has reached out to Boeberts campaign for comment. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Civil rights groups filed a lawsuit against Columbia University on Tuesday over the universitys suspension of a pair of pro-Palestine student groups last fall after the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. Columbia suspended the groups, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), in November after they held what the university described as unauthorized protests, citing campus safety. The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and Palestine Legal suit accuses the university of targeting the two student groups over the protests and disproportionately punishing them with suspension over what the suit describes as merely procedural violations. Universities should be havens for robust debate, discussion, and learning not sites of censorship where administrators, donors, and politicians squash political discourse they dont approve of, NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said in a statement. These student groups were peacefully speaking out on a critical global conflict, only to have Columbia University ignore their own longstanding, existing rules and abruptly suspend the organizations. Thats retaliatory, its targeted, and it flies in the face of the free speech principles that institutes of higher learning should be defending, she continued. Students protesting at private colleges still have the right to fair, equal treatment and we are ready to fight that battle in court. Private universities are not bound by the First Amendment, though New York law requires that schools follow their own policy in disciplinary proceedings. The suit alleges that Columbia broke its own policies in targeting the student groups. SJP and JVP are at the center of a national debate over campus protests in relation to the Israel-Hamas war, with colleges and universities struggling to balance speech concerns with accusations of antisemitism and pressure from Congress on the topic. Florida education leaders ordered that SJP be banned from public university campuses just weeks before Columbia suspended the groups, sparking a legal challenge and outrage from activists. The suit follows a threat from the NYCLU last month, with the organization demanding that Columbia reinstate the groups in order to avoid legal action. Columbia University declined to comment on the suit, noting that it does comment on pending litigation. A university spokesperson said the student organizations have met with staff about ending the suspensions. Representatives from the group have met with staff advisers to discuss steps toward reinstatement. Most importantly, the groups would have to agree to fully comply with the universitys policies and procedures, the spokesperson said. If the groups agree to follow these prescribed steps and fully comply with university rules, they may be reinstated. At present, they have not yet committed to doing so and remain suspended. Story updated at 10:07 p.m. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) An officer for the Columbus Division of Police died Wednesday morning in a motorcycle crash in Delaware. CPD announced that Andrew Mott was killed in a motorcycle crash while he was off-duty and heading home. Mott was an officer with Columbus police for the past five years and was most recently part of the downtown patrol team. Circleville chief of police escorted out of office after being placed on administrative leave During his tenure, Officer Mott exemplified professionalism, respect, integrity, dedication, and enthusiasm in every aspect of his duty, wrote Columbus police in a statement. Officer Motts legacy will endure through the lives he positively impacted and the countless individuals he helped during his service. Delaware police confirmed the crash occurred at the intersection of U.S. Route 23 and Cottswold Drive. This embedded content is not available in your region. In a statement, Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther offered Motts family his condolences. Our officers serve bravely every day to protect our residents, and I am deeply grateful to Officer Mott for his years of service to Columbus, Ginther wrote. Please lift up his family who is experiencing an unfathomable loss. Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin and councilmember Emmanuel Remy issued a statement as well: Along with our Council colleagues, we mourn the loss of Officer Mott. We would like to extend our deepest condolences to Officer Motts family as well as his colleagues at the Columbus Division of Police. Both Columbus police and the Fraternal Order of Police declined to comment Wednesday out of respect for Motts family and fellow officers. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. California Gov. Gavin Newsom kicks off his campaign for Proposition 1 the measure that would overhaul the state's mental health services at Los Angeles General Medical Center on Jan. 3. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times ) Gov. Gavin Newsom should have learned this four years ago: You dont try to sell voters on more government spending in a primary election. Particularly Sacramento spending. Newsoms Proposition 1 a proposal to pump more money into treating homeless people who are mentally ill, drug addicted or alcoholics may finally pass after vote counting is completed. But as of this writing, it is still too close to call, with the yes and no votes virtually even. Newsom must be shocked. In January, the cocksure governor told Times reporter Taryn Luna in an interview: I think its going to win overwhelmingly. Period. Full stop. Typical Newsom hubris. Many politicos were surprised last year when he insisted that his proposal be placed on the March 5 presidential primary ballot. Primary elections are often graveyards for liberal causes. Thats because they typically suffer from low voter turnouts. And that helps conservative agendas. When turnouts are low, the electorate consists of a higher proportion than usual of right-leaning voters, including older white people and Republicans. In this election, the final turnout will probably be a pathetic 33% of registered voters, says Paul Mitchell, who runs Political Data Inc. Read more: Opposition concedes that Newsom likely to eke out a win on Proposition 1 in California So far in the vote count, 38% of Republicans have returned their mailed ballots, compared with only 31% of Democrats, Mitchell says. Also, 51% of voters over age 65 have sent back their ballots, compared with just 13% of those under 35. White people account for 67% of those who cast ballots, although theyre only 55% of registered voters. Conversely, Latino voters make up just 17% of the ballots cast, although they amount to 28% of those registered. When the youth turnout drops, Latino turnout drops with it. Latinos are younger, Mitchell says. Four years ago in a March 3 presidential primary, the turnout was a bit higher: 47%. But it wasnt pro-Democrat enough to rescue a $15-billion school construction bond proposal that was crafted in the Legislature with Newsoms heavy input and support. Voters rejected it by six percentage points. The proposition number 13 may have confused voters. The measures backers theorized that people feared it would weaken the sacrosanct 1978 property tax reduction initiative, Proposition 13. Maybe some did. But the real reason it failed was that the turnout was low and voters objected to the spending. That measure should have been placed on the November general election ballot when the turnout was 76%. In 2008, on an even earlier presidential primary ballot Feb. 5 voters rejected a measure to spend more money on community colleges. Youd think Newsom would have understood the lesson. Always go to the general election if youre going to ask voters for money, says Democratic consultant David Townsend, who has run many local bond and tax measures. There are more liberal voters and theyre younger. They have a longer view of life. They want things to be better for themselves. Primaries have a bunch of old guys like you and me. Across California on March 5, roughly as many local school bond measures failed (14) as passed (15), according to the California Taxpayers Assn. Some measures are still too close to call. Newsoms Proposition 1 included a $6.4-billion bond. But the cost would double when interest on the borrowing is added. Not all voters are dumb. Many do the math and frown about the many billions California already has spent trying to reduce homelessness. The Proposition 1 money would finance construction of 4,350 housing units. Thered be new treatment facilities for 6,800 homeless people. Newsom hyped the housing number higher. Perhaps if the governor had focused more on selling his confusing ballot measure and less on promoting his national political profile, Proposition 1 would have fared better. But mainly, the proposal did worse than expected because it was placed on the wrong ballot despite Newsom raising more than $20 million for the campaign and opponents spending virtually zilch. Good day for moderate Democrats Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) celebrates with his wife during an election night party in Los Angeles as he seeks to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein in the U.S. Senate. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) It was a bad day for several Sacramento politicians, especially liberals. Its looking like at least 10 legislators seeking another office failed. Several moderate legislative candidates did well. But the next Legislature elected in November will still be dominated by liberals. By and large, it was a pretty good night for the moderate side, says Marty Wilson, chief political strategist for the state Chamber of Commerce. It was a solid performance by business-backed Democrats. In the U.S. Senate race, the more moderate candidate Democratic Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank easily beat out two more liberal Democrats, Rep. Katie Porter of Irvine and Barbara Lee of Oakland. Read more: How Trump propelled Schiff to the general election and likely a Senate seat But I suspect Schiffs victory was due mainly to his solid name identification earned by being the Houses leading anti-Trump crusader. Likewise, Republican Steve Garvey finished in the top two qualifying for the November ballot because of fame gained by being a former star ballplayer for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. Schiffs cynical TV ads boosting Garvey among Republican voters to assure that Porter didnt become his November competitor probably werent needed at all. He could have emerged with a cleaner image. Porter ran a poor campaign, emphasizing issues that didnt click with a low-turnout electorate, railing against corporate corruption of politics. Unmoved voters probably asked: Yeah, what else is new? Lee was the most impressive candidate for me. She handled herself well and stuck to her principles, even if they were far too liberal, even for California. No one will get elected senator advocating a $50 national minimum wage. All that said, there must be a way to count votes faster even while painstakingly making sure theyre legit. 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 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) can seek civil penalties against a company if it proves that the company knew conduct was unfair or deceptive and the FTC had already issued a written decision that such conduct is unfair or deceptive. One way to trigger its authority to seek penalties is sending a company a Notice of Penalty Offenses. This notice is a document listing certain types of conduct that the FTC has determined, in one or more administrative orders (other than a consent order), to be unfair or deceptive. In September, the FTC sent Notices of Penalty Offenses to five well-known tax preparation companies expressing its concern that they might use or disclose confidential information collected from consumers in preparing their taxes for unrelated purposes, such as advertising, without first obtaining their consent. Better Business Bureau: Remember Miracle Cars scam with a tie to Memphis? That was an example of affinity fraud Here are the practices FTC asked the companies to review The FTC didnt accuse any company of specific wrongdoing, so I wont name them here. But the notices said the agency was aware of information suggesting that you may have engaged in or are engaging in deceptive or unfair conduct. It asked the companies to review all of their practices to ensure they werent doing anything deceptive or unlawful. Chairperson of the Federal Trade Commission, Lina Khan, answers questions at the Kroger town hall meeting in Phoenix to discuss the pending acquisition. Specific practices cited included: using information collected in a context where an individual reasonably expects that such information will remain confidential for purposes not explicitly requested by the individual; using such information to obtain a financial benefit that is separate from the benefit generated from providing the product or service requested by the individual; and using such information to advertise, sell, or promote products or services. The FTC referred the companies to a 1973 administrative action against Beneficial Corporation in which it found that Beneficial had engaged in unfair and deceptive practices by using information collected in preparing consumers taxes to solicit them for loans. The FTC noted advances in online marketing since 1973 and warned the five companies against using tracking technologies such as pixels, cookies, APIs, or SDKs to amass, infer, or transfer customers personal information without first obtaining their express consent. Businesses should know what 'affirmative express consent' means Samuel Levine, the director of the FTCs Bureau of Consumer Protection, said, Consumers trust tax preparers with sensitive information about their finances, marital status, children, and health. Companies that violate Americans privacy by seeking to monetize personal data without consent can face significant financial consequences. The FTC says the lesson from this action as well as recent settlements against other companies, some of which Ive written about, is that every business should know what constitutes affirmative express consent. It defines affirmative express consent as any freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous indication of an individual consumers wishes demonstrating agreement by the individual, such as by a clear affirmative action. Randy Hutchinson It should be in response to clear and conspicuous disclosure of what information will be collected and how it will be used or shared. In a spoiler alert, the FTC says that burying something in a Privacy Policy or Terms of Service doesnt meet the clear and conspicuous standard. Randy Hutchinson is president & CEO Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Better Business Bureau: Don't misuse confidential consumer information CAIRO, March 13 (Xinhua) -- China's economic development serves as a primary driving force for global economic development, benefiting Chinese people while contributing to global growth, said Tarek el-Sonoty, deputy editor-in-chief of Egypt's state-run Al-Ahram newspaper. "The importance of the Chinese role as a world economic engine has been recognized during the COVID-19 pandemic and the global disruption in supply chains," Sonoty told Xinhua in a recent interview. He reiterated that China's growth rates in recent years were not "luck," but a tangible result of stable and firm policies pursued by the country. China aims to strengthen economic cooperation and trade relations with other countries while boosting coordination among different economic groupings by creating investment access to the Chinese market, according to Sonoty. He emphasized that China's high-level opening-up enhances cooperation with other countries based on common interests. "China has been emerging as the epicenter of the industrial world," he added, noting that China's economic policies were the main pillar for the eradication of absolute poverty, a remarkable accomplishment of China, and "a lesson to learn from" for the rest of the world. Sonoty also noted that China's various projects in developing countries have delivered multi-faceted benefits to these countries, as China offered them feasibility studies, mechanisms of implementation, and funding sources, among others. He underscored that China is open to the world and seeks to provide its experience for global good. Noting that the Chinese leadership has proposed several initiatives for the prosperity of mankind, he singled out the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which supports developing countries and enhances relations with them. Beijing has allocated substantial funds to develop infrastructure in regions under the BRI cooperation, Sonoty said, citing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, the Horgos International Border Cooperation Center on the China-Kazakhstan border, as well as the China-Europe Railway Express. He emphasized that the China-proposed development initiatives have huge potentials to foster cooperation between nations and establish new partnerships to bolster the global economy. Describing the Chinese political approach as "balanced," Sonoty affirmed that the Chinese economic policy is mirrored by its foreign policy based on non-interference in other countries' domestic affairs. China aims to cultivate relationships with nations based on mutual benefit and respect for the sovereignty of each state, a practice that garnered world applause, he added. The Egyptian expert said that "establishing a fair and just international order is a challenging task amid American hegemony," citing the continuous U.S. support for Israel against civilians in Gaza. Against such a backdrop, "China respects other nations' interests when addressing regional political issues," Sonoty said, hailing the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind as a milestone of partnership and affinity among nations. TOWN OF TRENTON Nestled between West Bend and Cedarburg, a family of farmers is hoping to win permission for an expansion of their dairy operation, creating a factory farm less than an hour outside of Milwaukee. For the most part, the fight over factory farms, or concentrated feeding operations, has been in rural counties, where neighbors could be half a mile or more away from the expanding facility. Places like Kewaunee County or Crawford County, where rolling hills and fields of crops are a more common sight. But now the fight is moving closer to the city, where residents in subdivisions can smell the odors wafting from the barns, and nearby homeowners can see the large barns encasing nearly 1,000 cows. Roden Echo Valley Ranch is asking the Town of Trenton and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources for forgiveness after expanding their operation without permission, and for the permits and zoning to expand bigger in the future if they so choose. Residents of the small town are pushing back, and asking leaders to remember that having a large farm in the middle of a largely residential area could be harmful. One of many signs in opposition to a proposed large dairy farm is shown Wednesday, March 6, 2024 along Highway 33 in the Town of Trenton outside West Bend, Wisconsin. Trenton officials and the Department of Natural Resources are considering granting the Roden Echo Valley Ranch farm permission to become a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation, or CAFO, but residents are pushing back, and asking leaders to remember that having a large farm in the middle of a largely residential area could be harmful. "The farm's on an island. It's surrounded by residents and it's surrounded by valuable natural resources," said resident Jay Koenitzer, who also serves as an alternate for the Planning Commission. He's worried about the nearby Cedarburg Bog and Cedar Creek, which cuts through the Roden property and eventually empties into the Milwaukee River. "In this town, there's a lot of green space," Koenitzer said. "There's a lot of natural resources. It just doesn't seem like the right place for this." The farm is waiting on its permit from the DNR to operate as a CAFO, or concentrated animal feeding operation. The Rodens are also waiting on a town zoning permit, which would change the farm to an agricultural enterprise zone and allow the farm to grow. The Friends of Trenton, a group started in opposition to the expansion of the farm, has been collecting signatures from residents who want to push back against the growth of the farm. Emily Kearns, an organic farmer down the road from the Rodens and one of the members of the group, said concerns include groundwater contamination from excess amounts of manure being spread, increased truck traffic on the normally quiet country roads and the odors that could come from the operation. "This is not the right location for a farm this size," she said. "We as a community have to be thoughtful of the ramifications this will have on the whole lower part of the state." The farm is an island in Washington County, surrounded by land that is quickly being developed into subdivisions and housing people with a desire for open spaces on the edge of the metro area. Downtown Milwaukee is about a 40-minute drive away. Kearns worries that if the CAFO is granted the expansion, and if it were to continue growing, it could spell doom for the residents' quality of life in Trenton and surrounding areas. She worries that land that would normally be tended by smaller farmers could be gobbled up so the Roden farm can have more space. She urged residents to regularly test their drinking water wells. "We're going to be the next Kewaunee if we keep having so much manure spread in our area," Kearns said, referring to the area of northeastern Wisconsin that's been an epicenter for concerns about factory farms and residential water quality. "This is a bigger issue than just our community." A farm for future generations Roden Echo Valley Ranch dairy farm owner Rick Roden stands in a rotary milking parlor as dairy cows are milked at his family's farm in Washington County on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. The farm is currently seeking zoning changes for expansion to increase the number of cattle it can house at the location. The Roden family says worries over their farm are unfounded because, after all, their family lives in and cares deeply for Trenton, said Rick Roden, one of the owners. Roden's father started the farm in the 1970s, and moved its operation to Trenton more than 20 years ago, slowly growing the number of cattle raised. The extended family is largely still involved in running the operation. His mother and father still help, as well as an uncle. "We're trying to set up our farm to be sustainable, sustainable for the future generation," he said. And because they want to be able to operate their farm well into the future, the family wants to protect the natural resources, he said. "We're not out to pollute the waters or harm anybody. You know, I care just as much about my neighbors in this township as I do myself," he said. "We spread manure on our land here. Me and my family drink the water out of our wells. Nothing is going to change." But his farm has grown substantially over the last few years, as it's expanded to keep up with the economics of farming and the dips during the COVID pandemic. In the last few years, the farm installed a milking parlor capable of handling up to 1,500 cows a day, nearly double the farm's current herd of 850, a mixture of female milking cows and younger calves. Roden Echo Valley Ranch dairy farm owner Rick Roden stands with a herd of dairy cows in the holding area before they lead themselves into the milking parlor to be milked at his familys farm on County Highway Y in Trenton on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. The farm is currently seeking zoning changes for expansion to increase the number of cattle it can house at the location. As that number has grown, the farm has had to spread manure on more fields, trucking it farther to avoid oversaturating the land as required in a nutrient management plan mandated by the county. On their property, they've started using sustainable solutions to prevent manure from running off into nearby rivers, streams or the Cedarburg Bog. "We plant more cover crops, do minimum-till or no-till, and do spread manure, but less gallons per acre," Roden said. "Those are all some of the things we have been implementing here in recent years to help improve the quality of our soil health and the quality of the water." He knows there are concerns about the ability for the farm to expand in the future, but said at this point, that isn't planned. "It may not happen in 10 years, it may not happen in five years. It may never happen," he said. "But at least we have the opportunity to maximize our milking facility if we ever choose to." "We would like to continue to be able to be a successful farm setup," he said. "We want to let the future generations have the opportunity to be able to come into partnership with us in farming and work alongside our kids. We want to continue doing what we think we know how to do." Future of the CAFO is still unsure The DNR's review of the CAFO permit could take months. The farm was asked to submit an application after the DNR found they were over the limit on the number of animals that could be kept on a farm without it being labeled a CAFO, said Tyler Dix, the CAFO permit coordinator. The agency received the application in January. The Roden herd qualifies as a CAFO, which is typically defined as livestock operations with 1,000 animal units, based on weight. After a technical review of the application, the public will be permitted to submit comments or request a public hearing. Dix anticipates holding a hearing, because of the interest in the farm. But first, Trenton needs to decide whether the Roden farm will be granted a rezoning. Dairy cows are milked in a rotary milking parlor at Roden Echo Valley Ranch dairy farm in Trenton on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. The farm is currently seeking zoning changes for expansion to increase the number of cattle it can house at the location. Town Administrator Cindy Komro said the town could use zoning to hold the farm accountable and ensure safety for nearby residents and water in ways not available to the DNR. Komro said the town has created a checklist to help the Planning Commission through its decision. She's seen the division this issue has caused in the town. The board is trying to manage that while working toward an objective conclusion. "The division is very much, I think, based on a lot of misinformation," she said. There have been allegations that because Bob Roden, Rick Roden's father, is on the plan commission, the town is in his pocket. Komro is aware that with the zoning change, more CAFOs could seek out permits in Trenton or neighboring communities. But the commission and the town have to focus on the Roden CAFO for now. "We're just doing the best we can, and it's hard to manage that," she said. "I don't think I'm stupid, I'm trying to remain neutral here. I see both sides." As time goes on without a decision, residents' worries are growing. The CAFO permit was recently released by the DNR, and residents are worried that the local geography, which consists of porous rock, making it easy for contamination to seep into the groundwater, isn't getting attention. And that the land where manure spreading is currently taking place is too close to the Milwaukee River and other natural resources. Koenitzer said residents just want to feel as if they're being heard in the decision, that the taxes they pay matter and their input is included. They want to ensure their little slice of the country not far from Milwaukee's tall buildings and city streets stays pristine. "I think there's a mentality maybe in the state that farming is good. And, with the dairy state, right, who wants to go against the dairy state?" Koenitzer said. "But it's the it's the way that these farms have changed. How they're farming today is quite different than it was a couple of decades ago. I don't think it's good for the environment. "It's definitely a concern and it doesn't seem like the appropriate location for a CAFO." Laura Schulte can be reached at leschulte@jrn.com and on X at @SchulteLaura. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: CAFO conflicts come to Milwaukee area withfarm's expansion plan A former police officer serving prison time after shooting and killing a mentally ill veteran has had his conviction overturned. The Georgia Court of Appeals announced Tuesday the decision to overturn a lower courts ruling against for police officer Robert Chip Olsen, who shot and killed Anthony Hill at a DeKalb County apartment complex. In 2019, Olsen was sentenced on Friday to 20 years, with 12 to serve in prison in Hills death but was found not guilty of murder. The appeals court says DeKalb County polices use of force policy and the states self-defense law conflict with one another. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Channel 2s Tom Jones sat down with a defense attorney on Wednesday to break down what happened. Former prosecutor and current criminal defense attorney Marsha Mignott believes the Court of Appeals got it right when it ruled to overturn Olsens conviction. She says the court ruled the trial court was wrong to allow evidence that conflicted with Georgia law. The Court of Appeals is saying no rule, no policy, no governance, nothing. No municipality can set any laws or rules in place that conflict with state law, she explained. The appeals court said the trial court did that when evidence was presented to the jury that Olsen violated the departments use of force policy that conflicts with Georgias law governing self-defense. The use of force policy requires the officer to come up with other means before using deadly force. Mignott says Georgias self-defense law sets a lower standard. That does not require you to have to do anything, except believe the officer reasonably believes he or others are in imminent danger, she says. The court has now reversed his convictions for aggravated assault and violation of oath of office. RELATED NEWS: Testimony indicated that the U.S. Air Force veteran was naked and ran toward Olsen when he was shot. Mignott wonders why the state even introduced the use of force policy as evidence given the circumstances of the case. The state had enough, in my opinion, to have convicted this officer without the use of force policy, she said. DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said her office disagrees with the ruling and will appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court. The jury found Olsen not guilty of Murder in this case. Olsen was also sentenced to probation for violating his oath after making false statements. He did not challenge that conviction. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Federal spending on fundamental scientific research is pivotal to Americas long-term economic competitiveness and growth. But less than two years after agreeing the U.S. needed to invest tens of billions of dollars more in basic research than it had been, Congress is already seriously scaling back its plans. A package of funding bills recently passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden on March 9, 2024, cuts the current fiscal year budget for the National Science Foundation, Americas premier basic science research agency, by over 8% relative to last year. That puts the NSFs current allocation US$6.6 billion below targets Congress set in 2022. And the presidents budget blueprint for the next fiscal year, released on March 11, doesnt look much better. Even assuming his request for the NSF is fully funded, it would still, based on my calculations, leave the agency a total of $15 billion behind the plan Congress laid out to help the U.S. keep up with countries such as China that are rapidly increasing their science budgets. I am a sociologist who studies how research universities contribute to the public good. Im also the executive director of the Institute for Research on Innovation and Science, a national university consortium whose members share data that helps us understand, explain and work to amplify those benefits. Our data shows how underfunding basic research, especially in high-priority areas, poses a real threat to the United States role as a leader in critical technology areas, forestalls innovation and makes it harder to recruit the skilled workers that high-tech companies need to succeed. A promised investment Less than two years ago, in August 2022, university researchers like me had reason to celebrate. Congress had just passed the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act. The science part of the law promised one of the biggest federal investments in the National Science Foundation in its 74-year history. The CHIPS act authorized US$81 billion for the agency, promised to double its budget by 2027 and directed it to address societal, national, and geostrategic challenges for the benefit of all Americans by investing in research. But there was one very big snag. The money still has to be appropriated by Congress every year. Lawmakers havent been good at doing that recently. As lawmakers struggle to keep the lights on, fundamental research is quickly becoming a casualty of political dysfunction. Researchs critical impact Thats bad because fundamental research matters in more ways than you might expect. For instance, the basic discoveries that made the COVID-19 vaccine possible stretch back to the early 1960s. Such research investments contribute to the health, wealth and well-being of society, support jobs and regional economies and are vital to the U.S. economy and national security. Lagging research investment will hurt U.S. leadership in critical technologies such as artificial intelligence, advanced communications, clean energy and biotechnology. Less support means less new research work gets done, fewer new researchers are trained and important new discoveries are made elsewhere. But disrupting federal research funding also directly affects peoples jobs, lives and the economy. Businesses nationwide thrive by selling the goods and services everything from pipettes and biological specimens to notebooks and plane tickets that are necessary for research. Those vendors include high-tech startups, manufacturers, contractors and even Main Street businesses like your local hardware store. They employ your neighbors and friends and contribute to the economic health of your hometown and the nation. Nearly a third of the $10 billion in federal research funds that 26 of the universities in our consortium used in 2022 directly supported U.S. employers, including: A Detroit welding shop that sells gases many labs use in experiments funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense and Department of Energy. A Dallas-based construction company that is building an advanced vaccine and drug development facility paid for by the Department of Health and Human Services. More than a dozen Utah businesses, including surveyors, engineers and construction and trucking companies, working on a Department of Energy project to develop breakthroughs in geothermal energy. When Congress shortchanges basic research, it also damages businesses like these and people you might not usually associate with academic science and engineering. Construction and manufacturing companies earn more than $2 billion each year from federally funded research done by our consortiums members. A lag or cut in federal research funding would harm U.S. competitiveness in critical advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics. Hispanolistic/E+ via Getty Images Jobs and innovation Disrupting or decreasing research funding also slows the flow of STEM science, technology, engineering and math talent from universities to American businesses. Highly trained people are essential to corporate innovation and to U.S. leadership in key fields, such as AI, where companies depend on hiring to secure research expertise. In 2022, federal research grants paid wages for about 122,500 people at universities that shared data with my institute. More than half of them were students or trainees. Our data shows that they go on to many types of jobs but are particularly important for leading tech companies such as Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Intel. That same data lets me estimate that over 300,000 people who worked at U.S. universities in 2022 were paid by federal research funds. Threats to federal research investments put academic jobs at risk. They also hurt private sector innovation because even the most successful companies need to hire people with expert research skills. Most people learn those skills by working on university research projects, and most of those projects are federally funded. High stakes If Congress doesnt move to fund fundamental science research to meet CHIPS and Science Act targets and make up for the $11.6 billion its already behind schedule the long-term consequences for American competitiveness could be serious. Over time, companies would see fewer skilled job candidates, and academic and corporate researchers would produce fewer discoveries. Fewer high-tech startups would mean slower economic growth. America would become less competitive in the age of AI. This would turn one of the fears that led lawmakers to pass the CHIPS and Science Act into a reality. Ultimately, its up to lawmakers to decide whether to fulfill their promise to invest more in the research that supports jobs across the economy and in American innovation, competitiveness and economic growth. So far, that promise is looking pretty fragile. This is an updated version of an article originally published on Jan. 16, 2024. This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Jason Owen-Smith, University of Michigan. Read more: Jason Owen-Smith receives research support from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Wellcome Leap. More than three years after the January 6, 2021 attacks on the U.S. Capitol, the FBI is still looking for the person who planted pipe bombs around DCs Capitol Hill neighborhood the night before. Several videos released by the FBI map out where the suspect went that night. Police say those explosives were found the next day not far from the U.S. Capitol near the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican National Committees. As the investigation continues, current and former law enforcement officials faced questions from Congress about the police response to those pipe bombs that day. The officers did the best that they could, we just didnt have enough resources there, said Assistant Chief Sean Gallagher with U.S. Capitol Police. Some lawmakers raised concerns about the poor police perimeters near one of the suspected bombs. Trying to get to the bottom of what may have gone right, what may have gone wrong, how can we improve the security of members of both parties here, said Rep. Barry Loudermilk, R Georgia. But Assistant Chief Gallagher said in addition to the pipe bombs on January 6, the agency was also investigating a suspicious pickup truck with nearly a dozen Molotov cocktails, machetes, ammunition and guns into and responding to hundreds of rioters storming the Capitol. I would gladly give up a perimeter not being perfect to get officers to responding to their brothers and sisters who are calling for help at the U.S Capitol. It was a chaotic day, said Assistant Chief Gallagher. It was mentioned that we didnt have enough Capitol police officers, we did not and we didnt have any mutual aid on site. The suspect is still on the run three years later. Barry Black, a former FBI bomb technician, told lawmakers eyewitnesses are often the key to crack these cases. Black said thats what helped authorities track down the infamous Unabomber. It wasnt until his manifesto was published that his brother provided a tip and that tip is what brought focus to Mr. [Ted] Kaczynski, not the years of forensic examinations, he said. Some Democrats believed this hearing was premature with the FBI continuing its investigation into the bombs. All critical and sensitive investigations take time. Experts are tasked with not only solving a crime but also identifying potential characteristics to prevent future events, said Rep. Norma Torres, D California. The FBI is offering a $500,000 reward for information leading to the suspects arrest and conviction. Andy Street is the first Conservative figure to suggest returning the donation - Andrew Fox Andy Street, a Tory mayor, has said he would hand back donations from Frank Hester amid a racism row. Critics have called on the Conservatives to return 10 million paid by their biggest donor last year in light of his alleged comments about Diane Abbott, which were branded racist by the Prime Minister. The West Midlands mayor said that he would return the money and think about the company I kept. Asked on Wednesday if he would hand back the cash, he told BBC Radio 4: I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. I have to give you my view rather than what the party should do, but I have thought about how I would handle that situation. He is the first Tory figure to say he would return the donations after allegations emerged that Mr Hester said Ms Abbott makes you want to hate all black women and that she should be shot. On Tuesday, Rishi Sunak described the comments, reportedly made in 2019, as racist and wrong. Downing Street had previously declined to categorise the remarks as racist, instead branding them clearly unacceptable. Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow paymaster general, said the delay was absolutely staggering and shows how weak Rishi Sunak is. Mr Hester gave 10 million to the Conservatives last year, Electoral Commission records show. Frank Hester is reported to have said Diane Abbott makes you 'want to hate all black women' and that she 'should be shot' - PA The Tories are now facing mounting pressure to hand back the money back, including from Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. But Conservative ministers have so far rebuffed those demands that Mr Hesters donations be returned. Asked about Mr Streets comments, Post Office minister Kevin Hollinrake said the mayor was entitled to his own opinion. He reiterated that the Tories were unlikely to return the 10 million that Mr Hester donated in 2023 but did not commit to accepting more cash from the entrepreneur. Asked whether the party would take money in future from Mr Hester, the minister told the BBC: I dont look after the donations in this party. That will be a decision for others to decide whether Mr Hester is the right person based upon what has happened in recent days. Earlier, Mr Hollinrake had said he did not think returning the cash was the right thing to do. I think his comments were clearly racist and wrong, there is no question about that. You dont judge somebodys character based on their skin colour, he told Sky News. He has apologised for that. I dont think that means Frank Hester is necessarily a racist. Mr Hester said that he had personally phoned Ms Abbott on Monday to apologise for his comments. Mr Hester tried to call Diane Abbott to apologise for his comments - Geoff Pugh for The Telegraph In a statement, a spokesman for the Tory donor said: Frank Hester accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. The Guardian is right when it quotes Frank saying he abhors racism, not least because he experienced it as the child of Irish immigrants in the 1970s. He rang Diane Abbott twice today to try to apologise directly for the hurt he has caused her and is deeply sorry for his remarks. He wishes to make it clear that he regards racism as a poison which has no place in public life. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. There are just a few months to go before the election campaigning will begin in earnest. One problem for the Conservatives is pointing to a legacy from their 14 years in office. The Government needs to do something beneficial beyond the Budget tax changes, which seem to have had little impact so far on the polls. One idea is put forward by Robert Jenrick, until recently a member of the Cabinet. He says EU planning rules obstructing the building of new homes could be removed. These so-called nutrient neutrality regulations restrict where houses can be built. The Government said it would scrap them under the freedoms provided by leaving the EU, but was defeated in the House of Lords. However, rather than take on the peers, No 10 abandoned the idea, saying there was not enough parliamentary time to bring it to fruition before the election. Mr Jenrick begs to differ. He has organised a group of former ministers to call on the Prime Minister to try again. Apart from the Finance Bill, there is little major legislation in the Commons and time is available if the political will exists. Mr Jenrick believes Parliament is often dormant and time wasted on general debates could be used to get a six-clause Bill through to remove the roadblock. Campaigners say it would unlock permissions for 150,000 new homes and has almost unanimous support on the Tory benches. Mr Jenrick says this measure can create jobs now and would show voters the Government is serious about building new homes, especially for the thousands of young people frozen out of the market. He is right. The Government should take up this Bill and get on with it. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Conspiracy theorists Aaron Rodgers and Jesse Ventura top the running mate wishlist for independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr. Mr Kennedy, himself an avowed anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist, initially ran for the Democratic nomination against President Joe Biden before dropping the party label and becoming an independent. Mr Biden and former president Donald Trump have now officially clinched enough delegates to secure their respective nominations ahead of the November election when third-party candidates may play a pivotal role in a race expected to be tight. Both Mr Ventura and Mr Rodgers have reacted positively to Mr Kennedy reaching out, according to The New York Times. Mr Rodgers is an NFL quarterback and anti-vaxxer, while Mr Ventura is a former professional wrestler who later served as the mayor of Brooklyn Park north of Minneapolis between 1991 and 1995 and subsequently as the governor of Minnesota between 1999 and 2003, running under the Reform Party banner. He left the Reform Party in 2000. On Tuesday, Mr Kennedy confirmed that the two men topped his list of possible running mates for his independent presidential campaign. But Mr Kennedy may still be considering other options and it remains unclear if anyone has been offered the running mate slot. Aaron Rodgers, Robert F Kennedy Jr, and Jesse Ventura (Getty) Mr Kennedy said that he has spoken with Mr Rodgers, who is expected to play for the New York Jets this autumn, on repeated occasions, adding that he has been in contact with Mr Ventura, 72, since he introduced Mr Kennedy at an event in Arizona in February. Mr Venturas son, Tyrel Ventura, told The New York Times in an email: No one has officially asked Governor Ventura to be a vice-presidential candidate so the governor does not comment on speculation. According to polling, Mr Kennedy, 70, is pulling votes away in a nearly equal measure from Mr Trump and Mr Biden. An environmental lawyer and vaccine sceptic who has more recently received attention for pushing conspiracy theories about the federal government and public health institutions, Mr Kennedy is the son of former Attorney General and New York Senator Robert F Kennedy, who was shot and killed while running for president in 1968, and the nephew of President John F Kennedy, who was killed in 1963. Allies of Mr Biden appear worried about his candidacy and have attempted to block him from the ballot. Mr Kennedy is expected to announce his choice within the next few weeks. He is also reported to have spoken to former Democratic Hawaii Rep Tulsi Gabbard, who has now left the party and has also been in discussions regarding Mr Trumps possible VP picks. Other possible VP candidates for Mr Kennedy include Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, and former presidential and New York mayor candidate Andrew Yang. Puck News initially reported the contact between Mr Kennedy and Mr Yang. But according to The New York Times, all have rejected the overtures or the conversations have not advanced further apart from with Mr Ventura and Mr Rodgers. The paper also noted that the domain name kennedyrodgers.com was registered last week. In 2021, Mr Rodgers auditioned to become the new host of Jeopardy! even as he was still playing in the NFL. The New York Jets is owned by Woody Johnson, a top Trump donor and his ambassador to the UK between 2017 and 2021. iONLINE, a global IoT connectivity solutions provider, has partnered with eSIM specialist Workz to help businesses tackle connectivity challenges and the growing demand for sustainability. The collaboration has created an advanced hybrid eSIM solution that offers remote online and offline network switching capabilities. Companies face several challenges when managing connected assets on the move, including being hit by expensive roaming charges when moving outside of subscribed coverage zones and losing signal in weak or low coverage areas, leading to decreased visibility of devices and leaving businesses unable to perform critical tasks. Additionally, managing these changes requires dedicated resources, potentially straining operational efficiency. Lowering running costs The solution helps businesses lower running costs and avoid service disruption by automating network switching as conditions change. The eSIM component also enables on-demand network selection, freeing companies from being locked into the network options assigned to the SIM at manufacture. The offering also provides a more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional SIMs, with custom-sized modules that use 50% less plastic and rewritable eSIM technology that allows remote network updates and eliminates the need for any physical replacement of the card. Through its global, private network, iONLINE provides secure, high-speed connectivity in 189 plus countries across more than 700 carrier networks. FlexiSIM is the result of iONLINEs partnership with Workz, which launched the first cloud eSIM platform and now hosts over 100 telcos worldwide. It launched in South Africa and the UK in 2023 and is due to be released in the US later this year. Benefitting companies Companies benefitting from the solution include Fujifilm, AIoTSense, BrightBlue, Trellis Works, Online Direct, and Amber Group. Fidelity ADT, the largest security services provider to medium and large-scale enterprises in South Africa, utilises thousands of FlexiSIM cards to stay connected daily to protect infrastructure, including airports, government, health and education departments, hospitality venues, casinos, shopping centres, and residential estates. David Farquharson, CEO of iONLINE, said he approached several SIM manufacturers when first investigating options but that none brought the flexibility he wanted for the product. "Workz was uniquely positioned to help us develop customised solutions to meet our clients' needs, and in them we found a supplier and like-minded ally to achieve our global IoT vision. Workz's dedication, innovation and collaborative spirit resonate deeply with our values at iONLINE. Their SIMs are manufactured on site with sustainability front of mind, ensuring minimal environmental impact." Workz CSO Robert Varty added: "We enjoyed working on this project with iONLINE. Their willingness to utilise new technology encouraged us to push the boundaries. It's been great to see how companies leverage our technology to protect their assets, react quicker to situations, and gain greater visibility of their business. This partnership provides a springboard for us both as we continue to help businesses gain a competitive advantage from IoT."--TradeArabia News Service ANTANANARIVO, March 12 (Xinhua) -- In the first two months of 2024, Madagascar welcomed a total of 22,333 international tourists compared with 19,348 in the same period last year, according to data released Tuesday by the Ministry of Tourism and Handicrafts. This increase shows an "encouraging" recovery of the Malagasy tourism sector, although the figures are still below the levels recorded in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, when 25,068 international visitors set foot in Madagascar during the same period, said the ministry. However, to effectively revive the sector, further efforts are needed to reach the ambitious target of 400,000 tourists by the end of the year. According to the Madagascar Tourism Confederation, this will involve stepping up domestic air services, which are suffering from a lack of aircraft to meet the current high tourist demand, as well as rehabilitating road infrastructure and access routes to tourist areas. The ministry also highlighted a boom and a "particularly encouraging trend" in domestic tourism. The data show that in 2020, the number of domestic visitors was 12,018; this number doubled the following year, reaching 46,965 in 2022, and then increased again to 63,897 in 2023. Now that detectives have found the vehicle at the center of the 1976 disappearance 72-year-old Everett Hawley and 65-year-old Clarence Owens, those who remember the 48-year-old case say it's one few will forget. "It was frustrating for law enforcement because we didn't have a crime scene," said former Winnebago County Sheriff Dick Meyers, who was a detective with the county in 1976. "The vehicle was missing, and contrary to the usual case, say if it were a homicide, in a lot of ways it didn't fit the patterns that you would expect." Hawley, a Freeport real estate broker specializing in farm property, and Owens, his business partner, began their day on Thursday Feb. 19, 1976, nonchalantly. Owens picked Hawley up at his Stockton home in his newly painted 1966 Chevrolet Impala and the pair headed to the Pecatonica American Legion for a political rally for gubernatorial candidate James Thompson. Just before noon, the men walked across the street to Rocky's Cafe for pie and coffee before heading to Clarence's son's house to show him the car's new paint job. His son wasn't home but the men reportedly told Owens' daughter-in-law that they were heading to a farm auction about six miles south of Seward on their way to appraise some property in the town of German Valley. Witnesses told police Owens and Hawley were at the auction from 2:40 p.m. to 3 p.m., but they never showed up for their appraisal appointment and were reported missing the next day. Winnebago County Sheriff's deputies and dive team members watch Monday, March 11, 2024, as a crane pulls a brown 1966 Chevrolet Impala from the Pecatonica River near the corner of East First and Washington streets in Pecatonica. More: Federal authorities still searching for former Rockford doctor Gautam Gupta Hundreds of leads Meyers, who served with the Winnebago County Sheriff's Department for 47 years 17 as sheriff before retiring in 2014, said several law enforcement agencies investigated the case and chased hundreds of leads. There were a pair eyeglasses found alongside the road, a gold car spotted on a flatbed trailer and numerous other tips from citizens. Each proved to be a dead end. Investigators thought they had a break six years after Hawley and Owens vanished when they arrested a man who was eventually convicted of fatally shooting elderly Pecatonica couple Lloyd and Anna Schrader in June 1976 inside their home. "We looked at him real hard in reference to Owens and Hawley," Meyers said. "But we found absolutely nothing to tie him to the case at that time anyway. He ended up killing himself in the penitentiary." When police learned years later that a Rockford-area man named William Exline, who had several junk cars on his property, was arrested for robbing two people at gunpoint at a Green County, Wisconsin, farm auction in May 1976, Meyers said things started looking up again. Detectives did flyovers of Exline's property in hopes of spotting the Impala but came up empty. They tried to interview him but hit a wall. "He was in a nursing home and was totally out of it," Meyers said. "We couldn't get anywhere with him so it ended up the same way no way to tie him to this one here." Now that the Impala has been found, Meyers said investigators will attempt to locate anything of note from the car. But because it has been at the bottom of the Pecatonica River for what could be the last 48 years, any evidence inside may have been destroyed. Photos of Everett Hawley and Clarence Owens appeared on the front page of the Feb. 28, 1976, edition of the Freeport Journal-Standard, nine days after the two men disappeared. Vanished into thin air Kathi Kresol, an author and historian who has delved into the case for the website, Haunted Rockford, and wrote about it in a weekly newspaper column, said there are things about Hawley and Owens that could shed some light on what may have happened to them. As realtors specializing in farms, Hawley and Owens were known to log long hours on backroads looking for property to buy. As regulars at farm auctions, they were known to carry significant amounts of cash, Kresol said. Because there has never been a crime scene, it is not known whether or how that knowledge fits in the puzzle. Until there's a connection, the case could continue to be as if the men vanished into thin air. "This case will continue to intrigue us because we will never fully know what took place on that February day so long ago," Kresol said. "I think it has stayed in people's minds because there weren't any clues about what had happened to these men." At around 2:30 p.m. Monday, crews used a crane to pull a 1966 Chevrolet Impala sedan from the Pecatonica River near the corner of East First and Washington streets in Pecatonica after fishermen spotted it with a sonar fish finder last week. Officials say it is the vehicle Owens and Hawley were in on Feb. 19, 1976. The coroner was called to the scene, although no information about whether anything was inside the car has been released. "This case has had the interest of many law enforcement people working today and retired," Meyers said. "Because it's one of those that you just can't close out." Jim Hagerty writes about business, growth and development and other general news topics for the Rockford Register Star. Email him at jhagerty@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Missing persons case has had grip on Rockford area for 48 years On April 8 this year, a total solar eclipse will sweep across the contiguous U.S. and while it'll be perfectly lovely to catch the rare event by standing outside and gazing up at the sky, there may be an opportunity to see it from the sky itself. The public charter jet service JSX has announced it'll be arranging a specialty eclipse flight for winners of an online sweepstakes. Flight 4824, a release put out by the airlines says, will depart on April 8 from a JSX-dedicated hangar at Dallas-Love Field in Texas at 1:00 p.m. CT. The 30-seat jet will ascend 30,000 feet (9,144 meters) and travel within the path of totality aka, the path along which you can see the moon totally eclipse the sun then land back at the hangar by 3:00 p.m. CT. Everyone, of course, will get a window seat. Related: Total solar eclipse 2024: Everything you need to know "With Dallas taking claim as the biggest city in the path of totality, we are thrilled to make this ultra premium and rare viewing opportunity a reality via JSX," JSX CEO Alex Wilcox said in an emailed press release. "We're committed to prioritizing safe, simple, joy-filled flights for all and are ecstatic to be able to provide travelers with the ultimate JSX experience in tandem with this once-in-a-lifetime celestial event." You can enter the sweepstakes just here ; entries will be accepted until March 14. If you win, you're also allowed to bring one guest on the trip. There will be six total winners (technically 12, if you count guests). During the flight, JSX's Bill Gregory will offer expert commentary about the solar eclipse in real-time. Gregory previously served as NASA's Space Shuttle Endeavour pilot, having completed 262 orbits and clocking more than 400 hours in space. He also received the NASA Space Flight Medal for his achievements. Interestingly, JSX says the jet will have free high-speed SpaceX Starlink Wi-Fi in addition to other amenities like business class legroom and in-seat power. If this sounds fascinating to you, you're not alone. JSX's flight experience isn't the only one that's been making headlines. Delta Airlines' path of totality flight was popular enough that the company decided to open up a second one dedicated to the event. United Airlines also announced a flight of its own . It's worth considering as well that other flights in the air during the eclipse may serendipitously offer a birds-eye-view glimpse of the phenomenon even if they don't fall along the path of totality, anyone on board may be able to see a partial solar eclipse in which the moon doesn't appear to entirely cross in front of the sun, but does so a little bit. If those flights are close to the path, though, that'd be more like a "lotta" bit. Related Stories: A chronology of the April 8 total solar eclipse 6 reasons why the 2024 total solar eclipse could be the best eclipse for hundreds of years Solar eclipse viewing through history: A roundup of some of the best photos But, flight or not, the upcoming total solar eclipse is going to be a sight for the ages. And it's very much fine to watch while planted on the ground. No matter where you are, however, please make sure to wear protective solar eclipse glasses. You can buy them online , find them in some stores or even pick up a free pair from Warby Parker if you're quick enough. There is nowhere on Earth from which it's okay to stare directly at the sun, even if it's eclipsed by the moon. Flower beds will be placed in front of cash machines to protect against a spate of ram raids in the Midlands. South Cambridgeshire Council has agreed to spend up to 100,000 on the concrete flower planters to block burglaries in which a heavy vehicle is driven into a building to gain access. Such attacks are carried out against jewellery shops, but are also used to attack cash points. Criminals use heavy-duty forklifts and diggers, such as JCBs, which are widely used in farming, to lift out a machine from its hole in the wall, after it has been rammed by a different vehicle. In February, two Co-ops in Cambridgeshire were attacked in the space of a week in Marleigh and Longstanton, with criminal gangs targeting cash points. This followed other ram-raids in Bassingbourn, Whittlesey and Soham last year. The council first installed a concrete planter outside a Tesco cash machine in Huntingdon in December 2022, following a run of at least ten attacks on cash machines that year, but more are now to follow. It is hoped that the flower planters will act like bollards, making it more difficult for criminals to drive cars or vans into ATMs - CambsNews The first new flower bed will be installed in Cambourne, the council said. It is not yet known how many planters will be installed. It is hoped that the heavy-duty flower planters will act like bollards, making it more difficult for criminals to drive cars or vans into ATMs. The move comes as the number of cash machines across the country continues to drop. The number of both free-to-use and pay-to-use cash machines fell from 68,998 at the end of 2015 to just 47,711 by the end of last year. Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Dr Nik Johnson, said: Ram-raids on cash machines can be distressing for communities and often disproportionately impact the most vulnerable. I hope the steps being taken give confidence and reassurance to those communities impacted by previous ram-raids. Criminals use heavy-duty forklifts and diggers to lift out an ATM from its hole in the wall - CambsNews Detective Chief Inspector Chris OBrien of Cambridgeshire Police said: We know how much misery and devastation ATM thefts and ram raids can bring. This innovation and joint working showcases our commitment to tackling serious and organised crime within the county. DCI OBrien said after a foiled attack in November that residents should be wary of farm or plant machinery being driven about at night, when it is not usually used. In April 2023, a gang of four men were jailed for a total of 29 years at Liverpool Crown Court following a string of attacks on at least 19 cash machines. More than 500,000 is estimated to have been stolen by the gang, as they used stolen vehicles and power tools to break into the ATMs in overnight attacks. In 2022, six forces from across the North West, including officers from Lancashire, Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and north Wales, began covert patrols to protect cash transport vehicles. Recommended Is your local bank branch closing? Use our postcode checker to find out Read more Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. NEW YORK Council Speaker Adrienne Adams took aim at New Yorks skyrocketing costs of living in her annual State of the City address Wednesday and floated a handful of proposals she argued will help turn the tide on the problematic trend. The speaker, whose Democratic Council majority has clashed intensely with Mayor Eric Adams on policy and budgetary matters in recent months, did not explicitly blame him for the citys troubles in her speech. But she suggested the citys workforce and social safety net has been weakened under his two years in office and drew a parallel between that and issues of affordability in housing, health care, childcare and education. A lack of capacity within our city agencies has undermined access to assistance that families could once rely on. This does not have to be our reality, the speaker said before a packed Brooklyn Academy of Music audience that included the mayor. We know our government can work because it has before. Weve got to get back to basics strengthen our city government to work for all New Yorkers. We can and must do better, she said. A persistent struggle for the mayors administration has been to process public benefits like food stamps and cash assistance within a legally required time frame, an issue exacerbated by staff shortages at the citys Human Resources Administration. Even though the mayor touted earlier this month that his administration has nearly cleared a backlog of tens of thousands of overdue public benefits applications thanks to reforms to the processing protocols, Human Resources Administration officials testified before the Council this week that more than 1,000 budgeted vacancies remain at the agency. Other city agencies have thousands more vacancies. The speaker said a key starting point for the city must be to fill those vacancies. To do so, she said the Council plans to establish a program in partnership with the City University of New York and DC37, the city governments largest union, to create pathways to careers and jobs in our municipal workforce. This initiative will prioritize participants in CUNY programs to fill persistently vacant city job titles and provide students with the mobility and long-term security of a career in city government, she said. Though light on details, the speaker also said the program will include a separate track focused on hiring for seasonal jobs in city government, like the ones contained in the City Cleanup Corps initiative operated by the Departments of Parks, Sanitation and Transportation during the summer months. Our economic and job recovery has been uneven, and we must provide opportunities for people at every level to succeed, she said. Even before the speakers remarks, there was palpable tension between the mayor and Council members in the auditorium. Brooklyn Councilwoman Crystal Hudson, who introduced the speaker, said in her remarks that the Council will fight tooth and nail in this years budget negotiations to reverse public library spending cuts enacted by the mayor. She also lauded the speaker for pushing for the How Many Stops Act, an NYPD transparency bill the mayor vetoed in January, a move that was then overridden by the Council in order to force it into law. I could say a lot, Hudson added, as the mayor looked on from the front row, but I wont. In a statement after her address, the mayor focused on what he described as his partnership with the speaker. The priorities the speaker laid out today are our shared priorities: child care, housing, womens health care, and more, he said. We look forward to digging into the speakers proposals and continuing to build on two years of collaboration with her and the City Council to deliver on our shared goals and make sure the city we all love works for working-class New Yorkers. Beyond municipal hiring, the speakers address echoed the mayors push for building more housing to tackle the citys soaring rents. She didnt announce any new initiatives on that front, but said the Council will work with the mayor to adopt a citywide zoning law text amendment that his administrations pushing to pave the way for more housing development across all five boroughs. She also said the city can tailor the zoning amendment in such a way that would place new requirements on landlords as it relates to accepting CityFHEPS vouchers, which subsidize rent for low-income New Yorkers on open market apartments. The speakers CityFHEPS reference comes as the mayor refuses to implement Council laws expanding access to the voucher program. The Council has joined a lawsuit seeking to compel the mayor to implement them. Though she didnt outline any specific plans, the speaker said another path for building more housing is incentivizing development of apartments on top of public libraries in the city. Such efforts have drawn controversy in the past, including when the city started building apartments on top of the Sunset Park Library in Brooklyn in 2015. A 174-unit affordable housing building is currently being constructed on land owned by the New York Public Library in Inwood, Manhattan. Ultimately, the speaker agreed with the mayor that to truly make a dent in the housing crisis, state lawmakers in Albany must this year replace expired tax breaks incentivizing affordable apartment developments an effort that failed during the 2023 session. It is imperative that Albany provides funding and tax incentives to help us achieve truly affordable housing and prevent New Yorkers from being priced out, she said. On childcare, the speaker reiterated that she finds the mayors cuts to the 3-K program unproductive and signaled her body will strive to reverse them as budget talks heat up this spring. We need to support children and families so they can grow their futures here, she said. This couple lost their home after police seized their cash. A jury awarded them $1 million Jurors awarded an Alabama couple $1 million after deputies took thousands of dollars from them in a warrantless raid that left them broke and living in a shed. A deputy from the Randolph County Sheriff's Office in January 2018 showed up at Gregory and Teresa Almond's home in Woodland, Alabama, to serve Greg with civil papers, Reason Magazine reported. The deputy left, but reported smelling marijuana. Hours later, a drug task force broke down their door, threw a flash grenade that detonated at Greg's feet and started ransacking the couple's home. Alabama police raided Greg and Teresa Almond's home in 2018 without a warrant, seizing a small amount of marijuana as well as thousands of dollars in cash and other valuables. Six years later, a jury awarded the couple $1 million in damages. LEGAL THEFT': TEXAS CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AIMS TO MAKE IT HARDER FOR POLICE, PROSECUTORS TO SEIZE CASH "I'm confused, I feel violated, I'm thinking the people who are supposed to serve and protect you basically just threw a bomb in my lap," Greg said in a 2019 Reason article. Police found one marijuana plant, part of a joint, a glass pipe and a few leaves. They also seized about $8,000 in cash, a single Lunesta pill, Greg's gun collection and other valuables, according to media reports. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP The Almonds' son told authorities the marijuana was his, but his parents were charged with second degree possession of marijuana and felony possession of a controlled substance because the Lunesta pill was outside of Greg's prescription bottle, the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice reported. The charges were later dropped, but without the seized money, the Almonds couldn't pay their mortgage and lost their home, according to case records. They moved into a shed on a family member's property. Police in Alabama collected around $2.2 million through civil asset forfeiture in 2015, according to a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Alabama Appleseed Center. No charges were filed in a quarter of the seizures. CANCER SURVIVOR DEALT NEW BLOW AFTER TEXAS POLICE DESTROYED HER HOUSE, BUT LAWYERS SAY CITY STILL HAS TO PAY Police seized the couple's money and belongings through a process known as civil asset forfeiture . It's meant to punish criminal activity by depriving criminals of property that is used in or acquired through illegal activities. But critics have called it "legal theft," arguing police and prosecutors often abuse the practice, taking innocent American's money to fill their own coffers. The Almonds filed a federal lawsuit, alleging the police violated their Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure. In January, a jury awarded the Almonds $1 million in punitive and compensatory damages. WATCH MORE FOX NEWS DIGITAL ORIGINALS HERE No one involved in the raid had a written search warrant. One deputy testified that he spoke with a judge on the phone and believed she had granted him a telephonic search warrant, but the judge "emphatically denied having ever issued" such a warrant, according to an Alabama appeals court (emphasis theirs). "It's made me distrust law enforcement on every level," Greg previously told Reason. "Going down the road I can see a police or state trooper, not that I'm doing anything wrong, and it's kind of like my adrenaline goes up. My heart just pounds seeing them." The Randolph County Sheriff's Office did not immediately return a request for comment. Alabama law enforcement collected about $2.2 million through civil asset forfeiture in 2015, according to a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Alabama Appleseed Center. A quarter of those seizures did not involve any criminal charges, the report found. In 2019, the Alabama legislature passed a bill requiring law enforcement and district attorneys to report all seized property, as well as how much of their budget forfeiture proceeds account for. Original article source: This couple lost their home after police seized their cash. A jury awarded them $1 million The nearly $92 million bond former President Donald Trump proposed to block advice columnist E. Jean Carroll from pursuing his assets was approved by a New York federal court Tuesday. The bond, which Carroll's legal team didn't object to after Trump's team agreed to a slight modification of the details, will prevent her from collecting on her $83.3 million defamation trial win against the Republican national frontrunner while the appeal Trump filed on Friday runs its course. The bond is designed to ensure Carroll will be able to collect on the judgment if Trump loses his appeal. The major win for Carroll came after a judge limited the January trial to the issue of damages, ruling that a separate jury's verdict in May that Trump had sexually abused Carroll in the 1990s and then defamed her in 2022 meant two lengthy denials he issued as president in 2019 were also defamatory. In those denials, which were made soon after Carroll came forward with her sexual assault allegations, Trump said she is "trying to sell a new book" and "people should pay dearly for such false accusations." E. Jean Carroll arrives at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in New York City on Jan. 25, 2024 for the defamation lawsuit against Donald Trump. Carroll is suing Donald Trump for assailing her character and credibility after she accused him of sexual assault. Another jury has already held that Trump owes Carroll at least $5 million. Ongoing Trump attacks Carroll's legal team argued at trial that, with his 2019 statements, Trump unleashed his followers to go after Carroll and it was now his turn to "pay dearly" for what he has done. They urged jurors to hit the self-proclaimed billionaire with punitive damages that were large enough to get him to stop defaming Carroll. More: Did Donald Trump rape E. Jean Carroll? Here's what a jury and judge said. Even during the trial, in which Carroll testified to receiving death threats and sleeping with a gun near her bed, Trump continued attacking her on social media, including posting that he "NEVER TOUCHED HER, OR IN ANY WAY WOULD WANT TO TOUCH HER," despite having previously confused Carroll in a photograph for his former wife, Marla Maples. The jury returned a verdict of $65 million in punitive damages and $18.3 million more in compensatory damages. Trump has filed a motion that is still pending asking the trial judge to give him a new trial or reduce the damages. Trump has also asked to be declared the winner of the case despite the jury's verdict. Scrambling after court losses Trump posted the bond as he was running up against a deadline of early this week before Carroll could begin collection actions. He appeared to be feeling the pressure recently as he scrambled under the weight of not just the Carroll verdict, but also a New York civil fraud loss that already totals more than $450 million, with interest that continues to grow. Trump only posted the bond after Judge Lewis Kaplan denied his request last week to delay Carroll's ability to collect until three business days after Kaplan rules on an earlier request by Trump to block her from collecting until 30 days after Kaplan rules on Trump's post-trial motions. Kaplan said Trump's predicament arose from "his own dilatory actions" because he waited 25 days after the jury verdict to request the longer-term shield. Separately, a New York state appellate judge denied Trump's request in the civil fraud case to post just $100 million to block the New York attorney general from collecting on that judgment. Unless Trump can find some relief beforehand, he'll be vulnerable to collection actions in that case in late March. More: Donald Trump faces more than $500 million in legal penalties. Will he pay it? Can he appeal? On Monday morning, Carroll's legal team told Kaplan they and Trump's team had resolved a dispute about how long the bonding company has to pay Carroll in the event that Trump's appeal runs out, he doesn't pay the judgment, and Carroll promptly sends notice. His team had proposed 60 days from when the appeal concludes, but after discussions they agreed to 30, Carroll's team said. Kaplan approved the bond in a Tuesday order after a Trump lawyer submitted documentation reflecting the agreement with Carroll's team. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's $92 million bond to protect assets during appeal approved A Fifth Circuit ruling upholding a Texas law that requires parental consent for under-age teens to access contraception gives validity to the argument that Republicans dont know when to stop. Emboldened by the conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe, conservative activists will keep pushing to curtail contraception cloaking it in the guise of parental concern for children. For most Americans, this is a bridge too far. For the true believers, its a goal that they believe is within reach. Clarence Thomas, the longest serving justice on the Supreme Court, signaled after Roe fell that the right to contraception should be re-evaluated along with the right to same sex marriage. Its more of the same out of Texas, and another push toward the dystopia that overturning Roe made possible. Wake Up! Republicans Really Are Trying to Ban Contraception Texas state law already requires parental consent for minors, and for the last year, providers receiving federal money have followed Texas rules, anticipating the crackdown. Conservative Trump-appointed judges are the driving force, and the goal is to get the issue of Title X, which funds free confidential contraception for teens, before SCOTUS as a violation of parental rights. The program has been in place since Richard Nixon was in the White House, with bipartisan political support. Roe, Griswold and Obergefell, the landmark rulings that school children should learn about, codify individual freedom. They are derived from the doctrine of substantive due process, an implied right of privacy that Thomas and other conservatives say is not in the Constitution, and should therefore be subject to the same scrutiny that doomed Roe. Justice Thomas calls himself an originalist, and conservative activists are doing all they can to tee up cases that could assemble the Courts conservative majority to go beyond Roe and take up this unfinished business, whatever the political consequences. The Trump appointee who initially ruled on teen contraception is U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a religious liberty lawyer when Trump elevated him to the bench in 2019. As the only federal judge in Amarillo, Texas, he is a favorite of conservative activists who go judge shopping before they file a case because they know what theyre getting. The case originated with Alexander Deanda, a father of three under-age daughters who is raising them in accordance with Christian teaching on matters of sexuality, which requires unmarried children to practice abstinence and refrain from sexual intercourse until marriage, according to his complaint. None of his daughters had sought contraception at a Title X clinic, but that didnt mitigate his complaint, according to Kacsmaryk, who ruled in December 2022 that the federal program violated the fathers rights under the Due Process Clause of the 14th Amendment, denying him the fundamental right to control and direct the upbringing of his minor children. The GOP Hopes Contraception Can Solve Its Abortion Problem It's worth mentioning Deanda is represented by Jonathan Mitchell, the former Texas solicitor general responsible for putting in place the states abortion ban after six weeks of pregnancy. Once you see who the players are, you get the idea of where this is going, together with the political strength and religious fervor behind these court cases. On the three-judge panel that upheld Kacsmaryks ruling was another Trump appointee, Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan. He successfully argued the Hobby Lobby case before SCOTUS that allowed religious employers to exclude coverage for contraception in their health insurance plans. Judge Duncan likened the parental rights statute in Texas to a fence around your home that helps you be a parent. The federal government comes in and says, No more fence for you. Good luck. Maybe your daughters will listen to you. I hope they do, but maybe they wont, he said. How can we say that he [Deanda] is not injured by that? Liz Sepper, a law professor at the University of Texas at Austin, told the Texas Tribune before the Fifth Circuit ruling was handed down that the parental rights case resembled other cases conservative lawyers have brought to Kacsmaryk about sexual and reproductive health. I think it similarly showcases a willingness to bulldoze over lots of precedent and lots of procedural arguments, she said, adding that if it is upheld, as it was on Tuesday, it will serve as a harbinger for things to come. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. The drama surrounding the owners of the famed Turkey Leg Hut in Houston, Texas, has thickened as the restaurants office caught fire on March 9. According to KHOU 11 News, firefighters arrived on the scene on Rosedale Street sometime after 4 a.m. No injuries were reported. Fire Chief Sam Pena told reporters that investigators were working to determine whether arson was involved in the office fire. Turkey Leg Hut co-owners Lyndell Price (left) and Nakia Price (right). (Photo: theturkeyleghut.com) The Turkey Leg Hut saga began in December 2022 after the restaurants owners, Nakia Price and her soon-to-be ex-husband, Lyndell Price, were sued by their food supplier for more than $1.2 million. The lawsuit claimed the couple owed US Foods for unpaid invoices, which the couple denied. The couple were previously sued by co-owner Steven Rogers in 2020 during negotiations to buy him out. Rogers claimed the duo breached fiduciary duty and accused them of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud. The couple countersued and denied the accusations. The busy restaurant also faced scrutiny after the owners began charging $100 for reservations. The drama intensified in February 2024 after Nakia Price announced that her husband had been terminated. The move came following rumors that Mr. Price had been cheating on his wife with female staff members of the establishment, leading Nakia to file for divorce. Her divorce petition was revealed in November, and Nakia accused her husband of being a narcissist and abuser to her and their family. The abuse, manipulation, the lies, the deceit, the gaslighting and narcissism have become unbearable, she wrote on Instagram. The world thinks hes a man who stands on business, but yall are sadly mistaken. The man that me and my children know is cruel, abusive emotionally and mentally and completely void of any emotion. From the time we wake up, til the time we close our eyes each night we are literally in a fight for our peace and sanity. Lyndell Price denied that hed been fired from the Turkey Leg Hut and claimed that he was still a co-owner. It aint no truth to it at all. If I was fired, I wouldnt be on the property. Its kind of hard to fire the owner. My face is still up there, he told Chron News last week. On the contrary, a lot of people think that we got what we got going on, but me and my wife alright; were still in business together. Lynn claimed that he was still in business with his wife days after he began a grilled oyster pop-up across the street from Turkey Leg Hut. The oyster pop-up is a new partnership with New Orleans cook Royal Tiger Bellock. On the same day the fire took place, he shared a photo of himself smiling with the caption, Thru it all I smile and push on and let the work do the talking . We cry in the shower and let it blend in then push on .. @hardriders_mc for life. In a separate deleted post from his IG story, Lynn appears to have shared a promo image for an upcoming show titled, Love & Smoke: Houston featuring images of him and his wife. He continued, Love is best served smoked, and tagged a woman named Carmen Key, who goes by the username officialcarmenkey online. Fans of the restaurant made light of the couples drama on social media. Lynn wife kicked him outta turkey leg hut and now he selling oysters. lol cant hate the hustle, wrote one. Another fan shared a picture of Prices oysters and wrote, Eating the Turkey Leg Hut divorce oysters (divoysters) and becoming incredibly strong. Another x user wrote, Yall about to get food poisoning from eating oysters out of a parking lot next to Turkey leg hut. I thought bro was fired@turkeyleghut @HoustonChron @HoustonHealth. Eating the Turkey Leg Hut divorce oysters (divoysters) and becoming incredibly strong pic.twitter.com/9DJAOPBk1Q Dan Carson (Big Shogun Guy Now) (@thedoctorcarson) March 7, 2024 Nakia Price has not yet commented on her husbands oyster pop-up. But the two have still been spending time together according to Lynns IG page. She can be seen in photos in January. However, leaked court documents reveal she filed to seek an immediate restraining order from her, their children and their business, noting the abuse and threatening text messages Lynn had allegedly sent to her in December. He allegedly said, Bh I built you and made you hustle now watch this and Shes going to run into me somewhere and she has to come back to the restaurant one day. In one message allegedly sent to their daughter in November, Lynn wrote, Trust me this is going to get ugly. Houstons Turkey Leg Hut Catches Fire, Court Documents Reveal Premeditated Behavior from Co-Owners Estranged Husband Who Opened Oyster Pop-up Across the Street This week a federal appeals court upheld a Texas law that requires minors in the state to get parental permission to access contraception through a federally funded family planning program known as Title X. In its appeal to the Fifth Circuit, the Biden administration argued that as a federal program, Title X preempts the Texas family law requiring parental consent. But the three-judge panel disagreed and largely upheld a ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk from a case filed by a Texas father who says hes against Title X, citing his Christian values of abstinence. Moreover, Title Xs goal (encouraging family participation in teens receiving family planning services) is not undermined by Texass goal (empowering parents to consent to their teens receiving contraceptives), Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan wrote in the appeals courts ruling. To the contrary, the two laws reinforce each other. Before Kacsmaryks decision, the Texas state law didnt apply to Title X clinics. But now it does. Heres what else you should know: What is Title X? Title X is a federally funded program created in 1970 that provides family planning and preventative health services, including free contraception to anyone, despite their age, income or immigration status. Title X is administered by the Department of Health and Human Services and is implemented through grants to over 3,500 clinical sites, also known as Title X clinics. What the ruling means for Texas minors The ruling affirms that Texas minors cannot access prescription birth control without parental consent at federally funded Title X clinics. There are still services that minors in Texas are allowed to obtain without involving a parent, such as testing/treatment for sexually transmitted infections, Dr. Kari White, executive and scientific director of Resound Research for Reproductive Health, said in an emailed statement to Yahoo News. Meanwhile, Lucie Arvallo, executive director at Janes Due Process, which helps young people in Texas navigate parental consent laws, clarified that the ruling wont affect teenagers ability to get over-the-counter birth control or emergency contraception. The first over-the-counter birth control pill, Opill, will be available nationwide including in Texas by the end of this month. Still, Arvallo emphasized the implications of the latest ruling. That means in a state where we still have abstinence for sex education, where teenagers are having to navigate almost insurmountable barriers to access abortion, we also are taking away their ability to access birth control in a way that feels safe and meaningful for them, Arvallo said. The Fifth Circuit is upholding a multitiered system in which whether or not a young person has control over their own body and future depends on the luck of where they live. How does Texas compare with other states? According to the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports reproductive health rights, 27 states and the District of Columbia, specify that all or some people younger than age 18 can obtain contraceptive health care without parental permission. Meanwhile, 19 states allow specific categories of people younger than age 18, like those who are married, pregnant or already parents, to access contraceptive care. The remaining four states dont have an explicit policy or previous case law to cite, according to Guttmacher. Whats next? Health centers with Title X funding in Texas have been requiring parental consent for contraceptive services since the district court ruling was issued, White said in the emailed statement. Until the health centers get different guidance, that will likely remain the case. Its not clear if the Biden administration will further appeal the decision, according to the Associated Press. If this case ends up before the Supreme Court, Arvallo says this could have wide ripple effects across the nation. [If] the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Fifth Circuit, it could affect access to birth control in Title X clinics in every state where there's a general right for parents to direct their children's medical care, Arvallo said. Meanwhile, Kacsmaryks name will soon be in the headlines again. Appointed by former President Trump, hes the same judge who suspended FDA approval of a widely used abortion pill, mifepristone. The Justice Departments appeal of that ruling will be heard before the Supreme Court on March 26. DODOMA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian authorities said on Monday that plans are underway to implement new projects in the 2024/2025 financial year that will accelerate economic growth, reduce poverty and increase government income, especially foreign currency. Kitila Mkumbo, minister of state in the President's Office responsible for planning and investment, said the implementation of the new projects has been outlined in the Third Five-Year National Development Plan, which spans 2021/2022 to 2025/2026. Mkumbo made the remarks while presenting the government's proposals for the National Development Plan for the 2024/2025 financial year at a special meeting for all members of parliament in the capital of Dodoma. Mkumbo said priority will also be given to increasing industrial production and value addition in agriculture, fisheries, forestry and minerals. "The government also intends to stimulate and improve the quality of education and training at all levels, increase and strengthen the use of technology, especially information technology and communication," he said. He said the government will continue to increase the participation of the private sector in investment activities and business, adding that the government will continue to withstand the effects of climate change as well as natural and non-natural disasters, including drought, epidemics and floods. The First Minister Mark Drakeford said Boris Johnson said "we must carry on, we must tell people this is a mild illness, they're not to get anxious about it" Boris Johnson was like an "absent" football manager during Covid, an inquiry has heard. First Minister Mark Drakeford criticised the former prime minister's leadership during the pandemic. He also said Mr Johnson made comments "designed to minimise the seriousness" of Covid at the beginning. Mr Drakeford's comments came on the penultimate day of the UK inquiry's Welsh module in Cardiff as he gave a whole day of evidence. In a written statement to the inquiry, Mr Drakeford described Michael Gove, who was minister for the Cabinet Office during the early part of the pandemic as "a centre forward without a team behind him, and where the manager was largely absent". At the inquiry, Mr Drakeford said: "The absent manager was the prime minister because he was never in these meetings or at the table, and while Mr Gove was a senior minister he has influence rather than the determinative impact which a message from the prime minister would have." Mark Drakeford was giving evidence on the 11th day of the Welsh module of the Covid Inquiry He added he would have liked to have seen Mr Johnson chairing Cobra meetings sooner in the pandemic. He said it would not necessarily change actions taken, but would have "sent a stronger signal about the seriousness with which the gathering storm was being taken". But it was put to Mr Drakeford that his own absences from the first three Cobra meetings indicated a similar lack of serious approach being taken in Wales He argued that at that stage it was a "health dominated" matter, requiring health advisors and decision-makers. He also said Mr Johnson "deliberately" made it unclear lockdown rules only applied to England. He told the inquiry the heads of the devolved nations had told the then-prime minister he needed to be clear in a press conference that changes to rules in the pandemic only applied to England. "[We said] he must make clear that what he is about to say does not apply to Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland, and he gives assurance in the Cobra meeting that he will do his very best to make sure that he does that. "He then heads to the cameras, and provides a script which the only time he refers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is when he says early in the press conference 'as the prime minister of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland'. "It is a very clear indication to people that what he's about to say applied to the whole of the United Kingdom, and he never once says that is not the case." Mr Drakeford described this as a "bleak moment" and "deliberate". The first minister also referenced a message the then-UK health secretary, Matt Hancock, had sent to Michael Gove which incorrectly stated public health was not devolved. He added this showed a "lack of clarity" over the legislative basis for powers that would be needed to deal with the pandemic. "My belief right up until 20 March [three days before the first lockdown], is that the essential decisions would remain in the hands of the UK government and that devolved governments would be implementers of those decisions," he said. He added it was "pretty alarming" this was still being resolved on 20 March. Mr Drakeford told the inquiry mass gatherings were allowed during the early stages of the pandemic because Dominic Cummings refused to stop them. He said large events, such as the Cheltenham Festival, were allowed to run at the start of the pandemic despite him arguing "mass gatherings should not go ahead" because Boris Johnson's former advisor dismissed the idea. He added he made the argument in a Cobra meeting on 12 March, weeks before the first lockdown. "In this discussion, the prime minister did go around the room, he took views from anybody who wanted to contribute and in that discussion I was arguing for a four-nation agreement that mass gatherings would not go ahead. "The reason I have such a vivid memory of it is that having gone around the table the prime minister summed up against that course of action by saying: 'Dom says no'. That was his final contribution. "I did not know who Dom was at this point," Mr Drakeford added. He described the introduction of international travel lists in the summer of 2021 as "chaotic and shambolic" because of the "pace at which changes are made". Mr Drakeford told the inquiry he asked for decisions on travel be taken on a UK-wide basis and not without the agreement of devolved administrations. "In this area, the Welsh government only had theoretical powers of agency because most people who travel abroad from Wales don't do so from Wales and back to Wales," he said. "So, in effect, we simply had to do whatever the UK government decided." Mr Drakeford also told the inquiry he regretted everything that had led to loss of life in care homes during Covid. He said there were not enough Covid tests to do "all we'd like to have done with them". "Of course, there are instances where coronavirus is seeded into care homes by people being discharged from hospital, but the primary reason why coronavirus ends up in a care home is because of the necessary ingress into care homes of people who are there to care for people there. "As coronavirus rises in the community, the risk that it will be carried into a care home in that way increases." He dismissed calls for a UK-wide response in the event of a future pandemic. "I don't think the evidence suggests to me that the decisions made in London would have been better decisions as far as Wales is concerned," he said. "I definitely don't agree that better decisions would have been made from Whitehall than in Wales." He added he would have welcomed a "strengthened ability to co-ordinate" between the four nations. The Welsh module of the UK Covid Inquiry concludes on Thursday. GRAFTON, Wis. (WFRV) A cyber tip warning for possible child pornography led to the arrest of a southeastern Wisconsin man who allegedly had multiple encounters with a 14-year-old girl he met on social media. The cyber tip was flagged in late December 2022 by the Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce. According to the Village of Grafton Police Department, 25-year-old Samael Torres was arrested and charged with 2nd Degree Sexual Assault of Child, Child Enticement-Sexual Contact, and two other felonies. Two arrested, one injured after car crashes into Appleton apartment building Officers say that an investigation into Torres, who is from Mount Pleasant, revealed that Torres allegedly met the 14-year-old victim on social media. The release notes that Torres and the girl met at her residence and engaged in sex acts on multiple occasions, one of which was allegedly recorded and posted online, triggering an alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Court records show that Torres signed a cash bond of $100,000 and has been charged with the following felonies: Use a Computer to Facilitate a Child Sex Crime Child Sexual Exploitation Employ, Use, Induce 2 counts of: 2nd Degree Sexual Assault of Child 2 counts of: Child Enticement Sexual Contact Around $40K in damages after vehicles and homes graffitied in Sheboygan This is an example of exemplary police work, said Chief Jeff Caponera, Grafton Police Department. Detective Gehm received a video tip with nearly no information, worked tirelessly and was able to use investigative tools to identify the victim and Torres. Torres has a preliminary hearing scheduled for March 18. No additional information was provided. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton. Ukrainian artillery in action on the front line. Supplies of artillery shells are a critical issue in the struggle to hold the Russians back - Jose Colon/Anadolu via Getty Russia went to war in Ukraine two years ago with twice as many artillery pieces as Ukraine had. But it isnt the advantage in howitzers that really matters its the advantage in shells. After all, a single gun firing 50 shells a day is about as useful as two guns each firing 25. For hundreds of years, artillery has dominated land warfare. Firing far and hitting hard, its the biggest killer of infantry, the main means of supporting an attack and the main means of supporting a defence. Its for that reason that, in charting the supply of artillery ammunition on both sides of a war, you can map the progress of that war. The side with the most shells is probably going to win. And its why a surprise initiative, led by the Czech Republic and involving more than a dozen European countries, has been so critical to Ukraines survival as Russias wider war on the country grinds into its third year. The Czechs found, for Ukraine, nearly a million shells precisely when Ukraine needed those million shells the most: at the peak of Russias winter offensive. Its not an exaggeration to say that the Czech artillery initiative probably saved entire Ukrainian cities, by giving the Ukrainian army the firepower to resist a much bigger Russian army. Its no secret how Ukraine got into an artillery bind late last year. In early 2023, according to The Washington Post, the United States quietly brokered a deal with South Korea a country with sprawling artillery factories to purchase, likely for billions of dollars, a whopping one million shells in the standard Nato 155mm calibre, now also the standard artillery round of Ukraine. Those million shells, heaped on top of ammunition Ukraine was getting directly from the USA and European countries, freed Ukraines 3,000 or so howitzers to blast away at a rate of at least 10,000 rounds a day matching, for the first time, the daily firing rate of Russias 6,000 howitzers. For months, the Ukrainians at least achieved firepower parity with the Russians. While many analysts rate Ukraines mid-2023 counteroffensive, which liberated just a few hundred square miles in southern and eastern Ukraine, as a profound disappointment, even modest gains are preferable to losing ground. And losing ground is exactly what the Ukrainians did after their counteroffensive petered out around October. Thats when the Russian army, swelling to nearly half a million deployed troops thanks to a nationwide mobilisation, went on the attack. The Russians concentrated tens of thousands of their best-equipped troops for a drive on the most vulnerable Ukrainian city: Avdiivka, a former industrial centre just a few miles from the front line in eastern Ukraines Donetsk Oblast. Those troops suffered astounding casualties probably tens of thousands but steadily advanced. They surely noticed that, with every day that passed as fall turned to winter, Ukraines artillery fire became more sporadic and, in some sectors, even fell completely silent. To understand how Ukrainian howitzers that once fired non-stop eventually went idle, you have to understand American politics. Americans elect the US Congress every two years. And in 2022, they narrowly chose Republicans to lead the US House of Representatives, one of two houses of Congress. The presidency and the US Senate remained in the hands of the Democratic Party. Before losing the House in November 2022, the Democrats approved $75 billion dollars in military aid to Ukraine. That aid began to run out in October. President Joe Biden promptly proposed an additional $61 billion in funding for Ukraine but, to the shock of the political mainstream in the USA, the Republican speaker of the house, Representative Mike Johnson, declined to exercise his exclusive authority to bring the aid to a vote. This, despite the fact that majorities of both parties were in favour. Johnson told a lot of stories to explain his opposition to helping Ukraine, but theyre all spin. The simple truth is that disgraced ex-president Donald Trump, who is running for the presidency this year and is weirdly fond of Russian strongman Vladimir Putin, voiced his ambivalence toward Ukraine. And Johnson translated that ambivalence into a one-man Congressional blockade of US support for Ukraine. Support that would have paid for hundreds of thousands of shells. Ukraine began running out of ammo because thats what Trump wanted. And because a European Union project to manufacture a million shells for Ukraine was six months late for its 2023 deadline, Ukraines daily artillery usage fell from 10,000 rounds to just 2,000 rounds, while Russias own usage remained elevated thanks to a huge ammo consignment from North Korea. By mid-February, the Russians were on the march in and around Avdiivka. The ammo-starved Ukrainian garrison retreated and kept retreating as the Russians momentum carried them farther and farther west. But then, on Feb. 18, Czech defense policy chief Jan Jires shocked his audience when he announced at a Munich security conference that his government had identified 800,000 artillery shells sitting in non-Western countries. Those countries apparently include South Korea, Turkey and South Africa. The shells could be had for $1.5 billion, Czech officials said. Most of these countries [are] unwilling to support Ukraine directly for political reasons so they need a middleman, Jires said, according to Politico reporter Paul McLeary and other sources. The Czech Republic would be that middleman, if Ukraines allies other than the USA, of course would help to pay for the ammo. Belgium, Canada, Denmark and The Netherlands quickly signed up. Soon, another 13 countries joined the Czech artillery club. In three weeks, Jires and his colleagues collected all $1.5 billion. Shells were on their way within weeks. With months worth of shells on the way, Ukrainian brigades no longer had to conserve what little ammo theyd been saving for emergencies. In early March, Ukraines batteries opened fire. Five miles west of Avdiivka, Ukrainian troops halted their retreat, turned and counterattacked. Finally enjoying something approaching adequate artillery support, they stopped the Russian offensive dead in its tracks in villages with names like Berdychi, Orlivka and Tonenke. Artillery a shortage of it is the main reason the Ukrainians nearly lost a whole eastern oblast to the Russians this winter and spring. And artillery a million shells brokered by a tiny Eastern European country is the main reason the Ukrainians didnt lose that whole oblast. If artillery is the king of battle, the current kingmaker is the Czech Republic. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Besides the already contracted artillery munitions from third countries, Czechia is able to purchase 200,000 moreif funding is made available Czech PM Petr Fiala said on March 12, as reported by Ceske Noviny. According to Fiala, Prague has already signed binding contracts to procure 300,000 shells to address Kyivs needs. Funding for the initiative was provided by 18 partners and allies, including Canada, France, Germany, and Belgium. Read also: Bild names three countries from which Czech Republic could buy 800,000 shells for Ukraine I consider this a great success; It's another proof that the Czech Republic is a fully active player in European security policy," Fiala said. Read also: Lithuania backs Czech plan to buy artillery shells for Ukraine On March 11, German newspaper Bild reported that Czechia had purchased 800,000 artillery shells from third countries, which could be delivered to Ukraine within a few weeks. Read also: Russia produces almost three times more artillery shells than the US and the EU can supply to Ukraine President of the Czech Republic Petr Pavel first spoke about the possibility of acquiring 800,000 shells for Ukraine on February 17. He mentioned finding half a million units of 155millimeter caliber and 300,000 of 122millimeter caliber. Pavel did not name the countries willing to sell the munitions. A Ukrainian security official told NV that plans are in place to purchase more shells from South Korea and South Africa. The contract is estimated to cost around $2 billion. 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 father killed his 4-year-old son and disposed of his body, then reported him missing seven months later, Virginia officials said. Now, Cory Bigsby has been found guilty of second-degree murder and concealing a death following the disappearance of his son, Codi, WTKR reported. The boys body has not been found. The March 12 guilty verdict follows a week-long trial that involved the testimony of family members, including Bigsbys now-7-year-old son, prosecutors said. The child told the jury that he saw his brother, Codi, lifeless, with a bruised, red face when he was 4 years old, WAVY reported. In a news conference after the verdict, Hampton Commonwealth Attorney Anton Bell said the childs testimony helped him put together a puzzle. He was also able to confirm that that baby had been dead for months, because the last time he saw him, he was dead, Bell said. Bigsby didnt take the stand himself. That child was innocent, Bell said. And the last image that that child had was his father beating him to death. Investigators placed the day of Codis death as June 18, 2021, but said Bigsby waited to report his son missing until Jan. 31, 2022, McClatchy News reported. Three days after Bigsby reported his son missing, investigators charged him with seven counts of child neglect, the Hampton Police Department said in a news release. He still awaits trial on those charges. Bigsby was indicted on charges of murder and concealing a dead body in June 2023, nearly two years after investigators believed the killing took place, case records show. Bell said he would ask for the maximum of a 45-year sentence for Bigsby for the childs death and disposal of his body. He added hes certain Bigsbys attorney will appeal the guilty verdict. McClatchy News could not immediately locate the contact information for Curtis Brown, Bigsbys attorney. Yall presented the case as if he was already guilty, so I hope yall are happy, Brown told WVEC, the outlet reported. In an interview with WVEC, Bigsby said he was wrongfully convicted and wasnt responsible for his sons death. I dont know what happened, Bigsby told the outlet. All I know is, of course, he had to wander away, but did someone take him? I wouldnt know. The case drew widespread attention, and Bell said it touched not only the family, but people across the country. I had people texting me from Boston, from out of the area, wishing me good luck, expressing to me, please get justice for Codi, Bell said. Police are still looking for Codis body, Hampton Police Chief Jimmie Wideman said. Where is Codi Bigsby? Police most interested in parents of missing Virginia boy Wifes body still missing after blood found in husbands truck, cops say. He gets prison Mom found bloody following shovel attack, cops say. Son faces attempted murder charge Multiple 911 calls from injured child lead to 3 bodies in rural home, Florida cops say Scruggs, who holds a doctorate in the history of art and architecture from Harvard, will gather essential pieces of African-American art and contribute to the exhibition program at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The Smithsonian American Art Museum has its first Augusta Savage Curator of African American Art. According to ARTNews, Dalila Scruggs an educator and curator with a background in mediums including 19th- and 20th-century painting, prints, sculpture, and photography will start her new position on April 22. I am delighted to welcome Dalila Scruggs to SAAM as the inaugural Augusta Savage Curator of African American Art, said museum director Stephanie Stebich. Dalila Scruggs has been named joined the Smithsonian American Art Museum as its first African-American art curator. (Photo credit: Jeffrey Mercado) Scruggs who received her doctorate in the history of art and architecture from Harvard University will gather essential pieces of African-American art in her new role and contribute to SAAMs exhibition program. She will also support the cross-departmental project American Voices and Visions, which aims to reinstall the museums collection. Since 2021, Scruggs has been the photography and prints curator at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in New York City. She worked as a guest curator at the Brooklyn Museum in 2020. She had previously worked as a curatorial fellow at the Williams College Museum of Art, an assistant curator of American art at the Brooklyn Museum, and a consultant curator at the University of Alabamas Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art, ARTnews reported. Scruggs has also contributed to books such as Brooklyn Museum: Highlights and The Awe of the Arctic: A Visual History for the New York Public Library and written articles, including Activism in Exile: Elizabeth Catletts Mask for Whites for the American Art Journal. Named in honor of Augusta Savage, a sculptor, educator, and director of a community art program connected to the Harlem Renaissance, Scruggs new role is supported by an endowment of $5 million from anonymous contributors. According to SAAM, Savage was among the pioneering artists who often worked with Black physiognomy. Her most well-known creation from the 1920s is Gamin, a bust portrait of her nephew that earned her a Julius Rosenwald Fellowship to pursue further studies in Paris in 1929. SAAM is home to one of the most significant collections of African-American art in the world, added Stebich, ARTnews reported, and I am so pleased that Dr. Scruggs will bring fresh, thoughtful analysis to these works that evoke themes both universal and specific to the African-American and the American experience. Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrios newsletter. The post Dalila Scruggs named Smithsonian museums first African-American art curator appeared first on TheGrio. DANVILLE, Ill. (WCIA) A man from Danville has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after he pleaded guilty last week to a pair of sexual assault charges involving children. The Vermilion County States Attorneys Office said Troy Barnes pleaded guilty to predatory criminal sexual assault, a Class X felony, and aggravated criminal sexual assault of a family member. He was sentenced to six years in prison for each charge, sentences that will be served consecutively and must be served at 85%. Evidence presented in court showed that in 2019, a child came forward to report a sexual assault by Barnes. Further investigation revealed prior incidents with a second child victim, one who was a family member of Barnes. Former Springfield charity treasurer pleads guilty to defrauding own organization I must thank the victims for their courage in coming forward to law enforcement. The victims support of each other during this traumatic time was crucial, said Vermilion County States Attorney Jacqueline Lacy. It is inconceivable that children must suffer such forms of abuse. It is important that our children know if someone hurts them it is safe to speak out. Lacy also thanked the Danville Police Department for their efforts in the case. Upon release from prison, Barnes will serve a mandatory period of supervised release lasting anywhere from three years to life. He will also have to register as a sex offender for life. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. Much of the discussion over illegal immigration to the U.S. has in recent weeks moved its focus south to the Darien Gap. This treacherous route that spans parts of Central and South America has seen an increasing number of people attempting to pass on their way to claiming asylum in the U.S. To explore the reasons why, The Conversation turned to Sara McKinnon, an immigration scholar at University of Wisconsin-Madison, who knows the region well and has interviewed people who have traversed the jungle crossing. Where is the Darien Gap? The Darien Gap is a stretch of densely forested jungle across northern Colombia and southern Panama. Roughly 60 miles (97 kilometers) across, the terrain is muddy, wet and unstable. No paved roads exist in the Darien Gap. Yet despite this, it has become a major route for global human migration. Depending on how much they can pay, people must walk anywhere from four to 10 days up and down mountains, over fast-flowing rivers and through mud, carrying everything they have and often carrying children who are too young to walk to make it through the pass. Those who make it through then take buses through most of Central America and make their way north through Mexico to the U.S. border zone. Cellphone service stops once people enter the dense forest; migrants rely on the paid guides and fellow migrants to make it through. In the decade prior to 2021, 10,000 people annually took this route on their way north to seek residence in the United States and Canada. Then, in 2021, the Panamanian government documented 133,000 crossings, a dramatic increase in human movement in such a volatile stretch of land. In 2023, more than half a million people transited through this part of the Isthmus of Panama. Why is it so dangerous? The route, and really the entire trajectory that people take when they migrate from South America to North America, is controlled by criminal organizations that make millions, if not billions of dollars, annually in the human migration economy. It is impossible to cross this stretch of land without the help of a smuggler, or guide, because the criminal organizations who control the territory demand payment for passage. Payment does not, however, assure safe passage. Sometimes the very people paid to facilitate the journey extort migrants for more money. There are also reports of armed groups ambushing those in transit to seize their belongings and steal what money they may have stowed away and sewn into clothing seams. Extortion and kidnapping are common occurrences, and the medical aid charity Doctors Without Borders recently reported a surge in instances of mass sexual assault in which hundreds of people have been captured, assaulted and raped often in front of family members. In December 2023, one person was sexually assaulted every 3 hours while crossing, according to Doctors Without Borders. The extreme nature of the swamplike jungle also makes the journey dangerous. The paths can be very muddy, especially in the rainy season. In mountainous sections, it is often necessary to climb over steep rocks, or cling to a rope to not slip and fall off a cliff. The Missing Migrant Project reported 141 known deaths in the Darien Gap in 2023, which is likely a fraction of the actual number due to the challenges in reporting and recovering bodies. Many of the people I interviewed who had made the journey talked about seeing bodies along the path covered in mud, likely the result of slipping or falling to their death. Fellow migrants left markers close to the bodies, such as pieces of fabric tied to a tree, and took photos of the dead in the hopes that this evidence might someday help recover the bodies. The rivers are also dangerous. Flash floods and rushing rapids mean that many people are swept away and drown in the muddy waters. Bruises, cuts, animal bites and fractures are common. The high humidity and heat each day, combined with a lack of clean drinking water, mean that many fall sick with symptoms of severe dehydration. Vector-borne, water-borne and fungal-related illnesses are also quite common. What is behind the recent surge in crossings? Violence, insecurity and instability in their home countries cause many people to move. They may move to elsewhere in their region. But when the level of violence and insecurity is similar in that country, they keep moving to find a safer place to live. Options for legally allowed immigration are increasingly limited for those in low-income countries. For example, when governments implement travel visa restrictions for certain nationalities, it impacts the options available to the people of that country for movement. In 2021, with pressure from the United States, Mexico started requiring Venezuelans traveling to Mexico to carry travel visas. This meant that Venezuelans hoping to seek asylum in the United States could no longer first fly to Mexico as a tourist and then present themselves at the border to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent to express their fear of returning to their home country. Venezuelans had to find another route to move, and for many, that was and continues to be irregular transit through the Darien Gap without travel documents. Who is making the journey? In 2023, of the 520,085 people who moved through the region, Venezuelans counted for over half at 328,650. But the total also included 56,422 Haitians, 25,565 Chinese, 4,267 Afghans, 2,252 Nepali, 1,636 Cameroonians and 1,124 Angolans. Haitian migrants wade through water as they cross the Darien Gap. AP Photo/Ivan Valencia Human migration in the Americas is a global phenomenon. It is also increasingly gender and age diverse, as figures from the Panamanian government show. Adult men made up just over half of those moving through the Darien Gap in 2023, and adult women counted for 26% of the population. Children under 18 constituted 20% of those crossing, with half of those children under the age of 5. Parents may be carrying children for long stretches of the journey, or children may have to walk even though they are tired. The stress and fatigue add to the likelihood of injury along the way. How have authorities responded? The travel visa restrictions of many governments has only pushed more people to attempt this dangerous route. Governments have also been lukewarm to the presence of humanitarian groups who assist migrants in transit. On March 7, 2024, Doctors Without Borders reported that the Panamanian government would no longer permit the organization to provide medical support to those in transit through the Darien Gap. This reduced access to health care will certainly mean a more dangerous passage. In May 2022, countries across the Americas jointly announced the Los Angeles Declaration on Migration and Protection to improve regional coordination to manage migration. Through this, the U.S. government implemented a series of new legal programs to move to the U.S. and application processing offices in South American and Central American countries that give people the opportunity to apply for U.S. refugee resettlement, humanitarian parole and family reunification, and have the visas processed while waiting abroad. But these programs are not available to people of all nationalities. And some of the programs also require official documents like passports, a requirement that excludes many of those who make their way through the Darien Gap. 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. It was written by: Sara McKinnon, University of Wisconsin-Madison Read more: Sara McKinnon 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. Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, and former Assemblyman Rudy Salas, D-Bakersfield, are in for a toss-up November election rematch. Valadao and Salas will advance from the March 5 primary, the Associated Press projected at 8:33 a.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday, indicating that Democrats escaped from the fearful prospect of not getting a candidate on the Nov. 5 general election ballot in this left-leaning congressional district. With an estimated 97% of the votes counted, Valadao earned 33% and Salas got 30.6%, per the AP. Republican Chris Mathys, a rancher and businessman, had 22.4% and State Sen. Melissa Hurtado, D-Bakersfield, had 14.1%. National Democrats were concerned about getting locked out of Californias 22nd Congressional District, one of the most Democratic-leaning districts in the country currently held by a House Republican. Democrats are desperately trying to flip Californias 22nd Congressional District in November when nonpartisan election analysts predict the race will be a toss-up. Our job now is to mobilize a coalition of our friends, families, and Valley neighbors who are ready for a member of Congress who fights and delivers for them, Salas said in a statement before the AP called the race Wednesday. Together, we are going to win this race and deliver for hardworking families. In the lead up to March 5, national Democrats threw their weight behind Salas, who came within a 3% margin of Valadao in the November 2022 congressional election. But a challenge from Democrat Hurtado raised concerns that Democrats could be locked out of the primary altogether. A Republican lockout seemed less likely, but not impossible. Mathys, an ardent Donald Trump supporter, challenged Valadao over his vote to impeach the former president. Im once again humbled to receive the support of so many voters across the Central Valley, Valadao said in a statement sent to The Bee after the AP called the race. Ill continue working hard to earn your support again in November. This and other 2024 battleground races in November will determine which party holds the House majority. Who holds House power in 2025 could go either way, analysts say. The 22nd, a Latino-majority voting district, includes in most of Kings County and parts of Kern and Tulare counties. Voters here backed President Joe Biden over Trump by 13 percentage points in 2020. There are far more Democrats than Republicans registered to vote; 60% of voters are Latino and 36% are young. But a tendency toward low turnout in the district and what is expected to be historically low turnout statewide this primary election has meant that local races are disproportionately determined by older, white, conservative voters. Valadao, 46, has represented the area in Congress for the better part of a decade. Salas, 47, served in the Assembly for a decade. The 22nd is one of several California toss-ups for the House. The 13th, located above the 22nd in the Central Valley, is also a toss-up rematch between Rep. John Duarte, R-Modesto, and former Assemblyman Adam Gray, D-Merced. Both moved on from the primary as they were the only candidates. It is going to be tougher for Republicans like John Duarte and David Valadao in the presidential cycle when the Latino vote is a higher share of the overall electorate, said Dave Wasserman, an editor at The Cook Political Report, which analyzes elections. And when Trump is on the top of the ticket, it really is up to these Republicans to separate themselves from Trump that they are going to win. That could be slightly easier for Valadao to do because hes done it a lot before. Army National Guard veteran Ryan O'Leary saw what a difference it made when U.S. cluster munitions were delivered to the front lines in Ukraine. O'Leary, who left the Guard as a corporal in 2015, is one of dozens of U.S. veterans who felt compelled to join the fight in Ukraine after Russia launched its invasion there in February 2022. O'Leary also saw what happened to Ukrainian forces when U.S. weapons ran out. For most of 2023, he fought just south of the city of Avdiivka in the Donetsk region, which Ukrainian troops were forced to withdraw from last month as their ammunition dwindled after months of daily Russian bombardment. Read Next: Marine Corps Sends Special Response Unit to Haiti After Partial US Embassy Evacuation "When the cluster munitions got over there, we used them effectively, like nonstop," he said Wednesday. "The cluster munitions worked great to break up the assault. The problem is, we ran out of them within months. "When we ran out of the shells, it became harder and harder to push back the Russian troops," he added. "And then when Russia launched the Avdiivka offensive, it was even harder. Like, there would be days where we wouldn't even shoot any artillery because we didn't have any." O'Leary, a self-described conservative who said he voted for former President Donald Trump twice, was speaking to reporters after a news conference outside the Capitol building in which he, the father of a U.S. Marine veteran killed fighting in Ukraine, more than a dozen Democratic lawmakers and liberal advocacy group VoteVets implored House Republicans to allow a vote on a stalled bill to provide more U.S. weapons and other aid to Ukraine. "It is unconscionable to me as a Marine Corps veteran who loves his country and who lost a son who died protecting freedom and democracy that the speaker [of the House] won't even allow a vote on an aid package that has already cleared the Senate," said Rick Harris, whose Marine veteran son Thomas was killed fighting in Ukraine last year. "If he were here today, he would be joining me in saying these four words -- however, he would use much more colorful language than I would use -- and I would say to the speaker: Call the vote now." The news conference was part of a campaign VoteVets, a political action committee of left-leaning veterans, launched Wednesday advocating for the bill. The campaign also includes an ad that will air on Fox News over the next week. The ad was played on a video billboard that circled that Capitol on Wednesday, though many Republicans the ad is aimed at left town immediately after the House's 10 a.m. vote in order to attend the annual House GOP retreat in West Virginia. The bill containing Ukraine aid passed the Senate last month in a bipartisan 70-29 vote. It would provide about $60 billion for the war in Ukraine, including about $48 billion for weapons, training and other U.S. military support. The bill would also provide about $14 billion for the war in Israel and about $8 billion for U.S. partnerships in the Indo-Pacific region to counter China. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has resisted taking up the bill in the face of hard-right opposition to providing more funding for Ukraine -- even though the legislation would likely pass by a large bipartisan majority if it received a vote. Johnson has said the House would "work its will" on the issue of Ukraine aid, without elaborating on how. On Tuesday, House Democrats launched an effort to try to force a vote in their chamber on the Senate bill. But that effort is seen as a long shot because of opposition both by moderate Republicans who are typically supportive of Ukraine aid but wary of defying their leadership and progressive Democrats who oppose aid to Israel. As of Wednesday afternoon, 177 members, all Democrats, had signed onto the effort, known as a discharge petition. The petition needs at least 218 signatures in order to force a vote. "In the military, we have a phrase: Lead, follow or get out of the way," Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., a Navy veteran, said at Wednesday's news conference. "That's exactly what our speaker has to do." A separate discharge petition filed by centrist Republicans to force a vote on a bill to provide about $66 billion for Ukraine, Israel and the U.S. southern border has garnered 14 signatures as of Wednesday. In the meantime, U.S. officials have issued increasingly dire warnings about Ukraine's doom if U.S. aid dries up. On Tuesday, the Biden administration announced a $300 million weapons package -- the first new package since December -- after it said it was able to find savings in a previous Army contract. But officials also warned such budget tricks aren't enough to save Ukraine as it runs out of munitions. U.S. veterans who have fought in Ukraine and family members of veterans killed in Ukraine have previously tried to break the congressional gridlock over the aid, but the political fighting continues. In addition to participating in Wednesday's news conference, O'Leary said VoteVets helped him arrange meetings with some congressional offices while he was in town, including with some Republicans who have expressed firm opposition to Ukraine funding. He said he's hopeful hearing from someone "physically invested" there will change minds. Regardless of whether more U.S. aid comes, O'Leary is planning on returning to the fight. He got back to the U.S. a week ago and is leaving again for Ukraine in another week. "I ain't stopping, not till the end of this war," he said. "If the Ukrainians have to, they'll fight with shovels. They don't care. It's their country; they're not going to stop. And I'll be right alongside them, fighting with a shovel, I guess." Related: Marine Veteran Ethan Hertweck Died Helping Ukraine. Now, His Family Begins the Daunting Task of Bringing Him Home. NAIROBI, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Energy regulators from across Africa began a two-day meeting in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, Wednesday to discuss ways of accessing electricity in the region. The African Development Bank (AfDB) electricity workshop brought together electricity regulators from 21 African countries in northern, eastern and southern Africa to discuss ways to reduce the percentage of the population without access to electricity. Mohamedain Seif ElNasr, chief executive officer of the Regional Association of Energy Regulators of Eastern and Southern Africa, said Wednesday that more than 300 million people in the region are not connected to the national electricity grid. "We need to tap the abundant geothermal, solar and wind resources in order to enable households and businesses to benefit from renewable electricity." He noted that harmonized electricity laws and regulations will allow the trade of electricity between countries with surplus production to those with deficits and result in increased access to reliable electricity across Africa. Solomon Sarpong, senior energy economist at the AfDB, said that countries in Africa should cooperate in the development of their electricity generation capacity, given that some of the green energy sources are transboundary. He suggested that countries should endeavor to attract private investment in the energy sector to augment public resources in the exploitation of renewable energy sources. Lee Okombe, senior research and policy analyst at Kenya's Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority, said that Africa lags behind the rest of the world in access to electricity despite its abundant energy sources. He added that one avenue to reduce the gap of the population without access to electricity is the harmonization of electricity tariffs across Africa, which will promote competition in the energy trade. WASHINGTON (DC News Now) The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) said it was investigating after a body was recovered in the Potomac River near Georgetown on Wednesday afternoon. DC Fire and EMS said it responded to a water rescue assignment north of Key Bridge at 12:30 p.m. after there was a report of someone in the water. DC police arrest man for assault on police officer, robbery First responders said on X, formerly Twitter, that land and water units investigated the scene and uncovered that the rescue was a recovery mission instead. Crews passed the case on to MPD, which is now investigating. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. Washington, D.C., delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) has introduced a bill to expand commercial filming at the U.S. Capitol to showcase Congress in its fullest authenticity. In our open and free democracy, it should be unthinkable to deny access to film the Capitol, one of our nations most iconic democratic symbols, Norton said in a statement. It is neither business-friendly nor true to the nations democratic traditions to exclude filming of the Capitol, and there is no justifiable policy reason to limit filming to Union Square. Nortons bill would allow commercial filmmaking and photography to take place at the Capitol Complex beyond where its permitted now, at Union Square, when both chambers of Congress are out of session. She said there is no good reason as to why filming is currently limited to Union Square. In a statement released Wednesday, Norton said the bill would provide an economic and patriotic boost to the nations capital by allowing creatives to showcase the Capitol. The expanded filmmaking and photography would still be subject to the same conditions and requirements that exist for commercial purposes in Union Square. The bill also gives U.S. Capitol Police full discretion on when to issue permits to address security concerns. Her statement said it is part of her efforts to expand public access to public spaces, particularly around the Capitol. Encouraging commercial photography and filmmaking at the Capitol would help spread the story of our democracy and our national legislature around the world, while providing a boost to the District of Columbias economy, she said in a statement. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. WASHINGTON (DC News Now) D.C.-based nonprofit World Central Kitchen (WCK) set sail Tuesday morning to bring meals to Gaza. WCK said that its ship, crewed by the Spanish non-governmental organization Open Arms, left from the Larnaca Port in Cyprus just before 9 a.m. local time. DC-based Chef Jose Andres nominated for Nobel Prize In tow was a barge with almost 200 tons of food on it for the Gaza Strip, where hunger has been worsening during the war between Israel and Hamas. A ship from D.C.-based nonprofit World Central Kitchen set sail from Cyprus on Tuesday carrying tons of food for Gaza amid increasing rates of hunger. (Image courtesy of World Central Kitchen) Crews worked 24/7 to load tons of food onto a barge for Gaza. (Image courtesy of World Central Kitchen) A ship from D.C.-based nonprofit World Central Kitchen set sail from Cyprus on Tuesday carrying tons of food for Gaza amid increasing rates of hunger. (Image courtesy of World Central Kitchen) WCK said that the food included rice, flour, lentils, dry beans, canned beans, canned tuna, canned beef and canned chicken almost enough food for half a million meals. The organization has another 500 tons of food on standby in Cyprus, ready to make the trip on later boats. WCK said that it was not sure how long the journey would take. WCK named the effort Operation Safeena, which means boat or vessel in Arabic. It said that it was working with the United Arab Emirates and the government of Cyprus to make this possible. It is crucial to stave off the hunger catastrophe that is unfolding in Gaza, WCK said in a news release. Crews were working 24/7 on this project, starting on-site work with the necessary equipment on March 10. Ramadan begins in Gaza with hunger worsening and no end to the war in sight WCK said that it has been pushing for more access points for humanitarian aid in Gaza since October. Since then, it said it has served more than 35 million meals, dispatched more than 1,400 trucks across the Rafah Crossing, and opened more than 60 community kitchens across Gaza. Our goal is to establish a maritime highway of boats and barges stocked with millions of meals continuously headed towards Gaza, WCK said. WCK said that it will provide Jordan with food for daily airdrops that are planned during the month of Ramadan. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. Paradise Beach on the island of Carriacou in Grenada was voted best Caribbean beach by USA Today in 2022 - NANDANI BRIDGIAL/ISTOCKPHOTO A British woman is suspected of having drowned off the coast of an idyllic Caribbean island while trying to save her husband who also died. David John Foster, a 76-year-old retiree, is thought to have had a heart attack while swimming near Paradise Beach on the island of Carriacou in Grenada. Police believe his wife Rosaline, 77, headed into the water to save him, but drowned in the process. Mr Fosters body was discovered on the beach on Saturday, where authorities declared him dead at the scene. Mrs Foster was taken to the islands Princess Royal Hospital, where she was pronounced dead by a doctor. The basic facts seem to suggest the man may have suffered a heart attack and the lady may have gone to his assistance, and she probably would have drowned, Cpl Ardell Lewis, of the Royal Grenada Police Force, told BBC News. Staying with relatives Police believe the couple were retired and staying with relatives. An investigation is under way and a post-mortem examination will be carried out to establish the cause of death. The Foreign Office has been approached for comment. Paradise Beach was voted best Caribbean beach by USA Today in 2022, with reviewers praising the sites white sand and clear turquoise waters. Carriacou, which means Isle of Reefs, is a popular holiday destination for its diving spots, festivals and coral reefs. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The death toll following the Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, on 12 March has risen to five, as the body of a man was found under the rubble. Source: Oleksandr Vilkul, Head of Kryvyi Rih Defence Council, on Telegram Quote from Vilkul: "Unfortunately, there's the fifth fatality in yesterday's missile attack. A man was found during the dismantling of the rubble on one of the floors." Details: Vilkul expressed condolences to the mans family. Background: On 12 March, the Russians fired a Kh-59 air-launched missile on Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. Missile debris landed on a high-rise building, causing a fire. Initial reports indicated that three people had been killed and over 40 injured. Later, it was reported that a wounded woman died in the hospital, bringing the death toll from the Russian missile strike to four people. Ukraine's National Police released a video showing the first minutes of rescue efforts after a Russian strike on the town of Kryvyi Rih. Support UP or become our patron! For years, contractor Jeremey Lawson took advantage of numerous customers in Iowa and several other Midwest states, defrauding them out of thousands of dollars for jobs he never completed. But this week, the longtime felon received a stiff prison sentence of 20 years in connection with a crime spree in Bloomfield, where he and another felon burglarized businesses and robbed local Amish while they were in church on a Sunday in March 2023. Lawson, 48, and alleged accomplice Michael Diedrick II broke into several businesses, including Wagler Metals, Hwy. 2 Discount Groceries, Midwest Truss Co. and KW Welding, as well as two residences. At one of the homes, according to court documents, a boy and two teen girls, one in a wheelchair, hid in a back bedroom as Lawson and Diedrick broke in. Jeremy Lawson Lawson was sentenced for four felony burglary counts, as well as for being a felon in possession of an offensive firearm, under a plea agreement reached with Davis County prosecutors. In July, Diedrick was sentenced to 10 years in prison after being convicted on four burglary counts and one of control of an offensive weapon by a felon. Lawson, who has lived in Bloomfield and nearby Drakesville, could not be reached for comment. Court records show Lawson has a decades-long, documented history of taking large advances from customers for construction jobs and then walking away. He's been the subject of news stories since a December 2014 Watchdog probe found that he and his brother, Marvin, had racked up criminal convictions, civil court judgments and allegations of construction fraud and theft in at least four counties in Missouri, four in Illinois and 19 in Iowa, including Polk. As a contractor, Lawson been a top generator of complaints over the past two decades to the Iowa attorney general's Consumer Protection Division, even though a judge barred him in 2015 from taking further advance payments for any construction jobs. In the case that prompted that ruling, Lawson owed more than $102,000 in restitution tied to 25 victims in connection with court action initiated by a consumer protection lawyer in then-Attorney General Tom Miller's office. One of the last times Lawson was imprisoned was after his sixth conviction for OWI in 2018. With two sheriff's deputies in pursuit, Lawson sped and drove drunk in Davis County, crashing into a stop sign and plowing into a bridge before flipping his Chevy Silverado, according to a criminal complaint against him. Two of three passengers were taken to the hospital. Lawson received a 10-year sentence, but he wasnt imprisoned until he violated probation. He spent only a year behind bars, Iowa Department of Corrections and court records show. Davis County Attorney Rick Lynch said the latest convictions are all tied to crimes involving people Lawson victimized. "I think it's a good resolution and it's going to protect society for a while," Lynch said. Lee Rood staff photo, Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021. Lee Rood's Reader's Watchdog column helps Iowans get answers and accountability from public officials, the justice system, businesses and nonprofits. Contact her at lrood@dmreg.com, 515-284-8549 on Twitter @leerood or at Facebook.com/readerswatchdog. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Notorious Iowa contractor Jeremey Lawson gets 20 years in prison The Kane County Sheriffs Office announced Wednesday that decorated K9 Arko, who retired March 1 after serving the department for more than seven years, has died. In a news release, the Sheriffs Office says K9 Arko passed peacefully, surrounded by his K9 handler, Lt. (Michael) Wilgosiewicz, and other members of the K9 community. According to the release, K9 Arko was born Oct. 18, 2014, and imported to the Kane County Sheriffs Department from Hungary. K9 Arko began serving on Sept. 30, 2016, as an Explosive Detection K9. What is the safest affordable city in Illinois? Certified in obedience and handler protection, according to the release, K9 Arko participated in many article searches, which included evidence recovery, tracking, building searches and the apprehension of dangerous felons, during his time with the Sheriffs Office. K9 Arko, along with his handler, successfully located and apprehended numerous violent offenders, at times directly linking suspects to crimes, which included firearms and spent shell casings, the Sheriffs Office says. K9 Arko conducted well over 300 protective explosive detection sweeps throughout his decorated career, which included an integral role in partnering with federal and other governmental agencies statewide. Lt. Wilgosiewicz said in the release that K9 Arko was indispensable to him. With K9 Arko as my partner, I was told no less than 12 times by suspects I arrested that if I did not have my partner by my side that night, they were planning to either fight with me, flee from me, or harm me in some way, Wilgosiewicz said. The simple presence of my partner by my side prevented me from being harmed. Read more: Latest Chicago news headline I came home to my family each night because K9 Arko was there with me. My partner would have done anything to keep me safe. The Sheriffs Office issued this final statement: K9 Arkos dedication to his handler, Lt. Wilgosiewicz, the Kane County Sheriffs Office and the citizens of Kane County will never be forgotten. Rest easy, K9 Arko. We will take it from here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. The case against the Duchess of Sussex has been thrown out A US judge has dismissed a defamation case brought against the Duchess of Sussex by her half-sister. Samantha Markle was suing Meghan over comments she made in a Netflix documentary and a 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey. In her ruling, Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell found these comments were either opinions, substantially true, or did not plausibly defame Samantha. The case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning she will not be able to refile. Samantha had taken issue with Meghan's comment, made in her interview with Winfrey, that Samantha had changed her surname back to Markle when her half-sister had started dating the Duke of Sussex. But in her ruling Judge Honeywell said: "The court has taken notice of the fact that [Samantha] used the surname Rasmussen in September 2016 and Markle two months later, soon after [Meghan's] royal relationship was first reported. "Therefore, the gist of the statement - that [Samantha] switched to her family name a short time after it was reported [Meghan] was involved with Prince Harry - is true." The lawsuit also took issue with Meghan's remarks on how close they were growing up, with Meghan telling Winfrey: "I grew up as an only child, which everyone who grew up around me knows, and I wished I had siblings." Judge Honeywell ruled that this was Meghan's expressed opinion of the relationship. The judge added that Samantha had failed to identify any statements that could support a defamation claim. According to the court document, this was Samantha's third try at amending her complaint against Meghan, with whom she shares a father, Thomas Markle. She first took legal action in March 2022, alleging the duchess had defamed her by giving information to an unauthorised biography called Finding Freedom and by discussing their relationship with Winfrey on live television. The case was thrown out last year after Judge Honeywell found the duchess could not be liable for the contents of the book because she had not published it. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has had at least one legal dispute resolved with a 27-year old woman who claims to be his biological daughter. A defamation lawsuit alleging that Jones and his attorneys portrayed her as an extortionist was dismissed by a judge in federal court on Wednesday. Alexandra Davis had accused Jones and others of executing a false and purposeful character assassination attack on her after she sued him to establish paternity. Davis contended that she attempted to reach an agreement with Jones outside the public eye. She denied ever demanding money. Jones and his attorneys said Davis asked whether he wanted to make a deal and that she filed litigation after he declined to pay, the lawsuit said. Portions of the lawsuit were later dismissed on Oct. 31, 2023. Davis legal team to amended the complaint and refiled it at the end of November. The case has now been dismissed. This comes almost three weeks after a judge upheld a decision requiring Jones to take a paternity test to determine if Davis is his biological daughter. Jones had appealed a 2022 ruling in a paternity case brought by Davis, who had alleged in a previously separate lawsuit she was conceived from a relationship Jones had with her mother in the mid-1990s. In March 2022, Davis sued Jones in Dallas County, asking a judge to void a legal agreement she said her mother, Cynthia Davis, reached with Jones two years after she was born. The 1998 settlement allegedly said Jones would support them financially as long as they didnt publicly say he was Alexandras father something the married owner of the Cowboys has denied. Attorneys for Jones say Alexandra Davis has received millions of dollars from Jones in her lifetime, according to court documents. *The Associated Press contributed to this report. The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the DeepStateUA analytical project have signed a memorandum of cooperation on fast data exchange to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Source: press service of the Ministry of Defence; DeepStateUA Quote: "The purpose of the memorandum is to ensure the exchange of data between the Ministry and the NGO DeepStateUA to strengthen the Armed Forces of Ukraine with relevant information." Details: Kateryna Chernohorenko, Deputy Minister of Defence, said that the Ministry of Defence was interested in using the best practices of IT projects to improve the country's defence capability. "Cooperation with DeepStateUA will allow us to quickly and efficiently accumulate and process the necessary data on the course of combat actions," she said. Roman Pohorilyi, co-founder of the DeepStateUA, stressed that their map is already used by various services and the military in their work. "Together with the Ministry of Defence, we will be able to work more efficiently for our common victory," he said. For reference: DeepStateUA is an analytical project that provides information on the course of the Russian-Ukrainian war through an interactive online map of combat actions. DeepStateMap.Live allows a user to monitor changes in the front line and the course of combat actions; it also contains marks on the status of different territories: occupied, liberated, recently liberated, and grey zones. Support UP or become our patron! CAPE TOWN, March 13 (Xinhua) -- South Africa on Wednesday urged leaders and policymakers to create an enabling environment for entrepreneurs in the African continent to thrive. South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile made the appeal at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress Africa (GEC+Africa) taking place in Cape Town, the legislative capital of South Africa, from Wednesday to Thursday. GEC+Africa is a gathering of entrepreneurs and leaders from more than 50 African nations committed to advancing entrepreneurial activity throughout their own countries. Hosted by the South African Department of Small Business Development, the two-day event is attended by more than 1,500 delegates, including representatives of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs), investors, policymakers and representatives of organizations. While delivering the keynote address, Mashatile said the congress came at the right time for Africa. "This GEC+ Africa congress is timely and extremely important given the current global economic situation, especially the African continent's continued efforts to reinvent itself as a more influential actor in shaping the global agenda," he said. The deputy president noted that Africa is a continent overflowing with untapped potential, a hub of innovation and invention waiting to be reawakened. "As a continent, we need to rise to a level where we have well-integrated production networks, are equally participating in global trade, and are rapidly improving our export mix," said Marshatile. "As policymakers, we have to create an enabling environment for our entrepreneurs," he stressed. "It is critical that as policymakers, we create a more supportive policy environment." Marshatile suggested that leaders should ensure that the core foundations of the digital economy are in place, including digital infrastructure, digital skills, cybersecurity capabilities, and affordable and accessible data. He also called for the elimination of red tape to facilitate cross-border trade for African entrepreneurs. The deputy president also emphasized the need to enhance governance systems, such as combating corruption, improving macroeconomic management, and resolving disputes through negotiation rather than violent conflict. "This event should serve as a call to action for this generation of African leaders to do the work and leave a lasting legacy of economic growth, regional integration and overall African prosperity," he added. South African Minister for Small Business Development Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams also addressed the gathering, calling on governments to create enabling policy frameworks to effectively support entrepreneurship on the continent. "Besides making policy, governments must lead and direct their respective entrepreneurship eco-systems," said Ndabeni-Abrahams. "To effectively co-ordinate the eco-system, the government must also provide strategic leadership." The military is not expecting 500,000 men to be mobilized immediately, and this figure is a general estimation that will be adjusted depending on the situation at the front, the Defense Ministry said in a comment to the Financial Times (FT) on March 13. President Volodymyr Zelensky said in December 2023 that Ukraine's military leadership proposed to mobilize 450,000 to 500,000 new conscripts. Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief at the time, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, then denied that the military had submitted a formal request for this number of additional conscripts. "For security reasons, we cannot comment on the exact number of people needed" by the military," the Defense Ministry told the FT. "At the same time, 400,000 to 500,000 are general estimates, which are adjusted depending on the development of events in the theatre of operations, and which cannot be satisfied immediately." The Defense Ministry said it published its comments online in full after the FT's article provoked "significant public interest." "Ukraine was attacked by a state with a population three times larger" and therefore the mobilization of civilians is the "only mechanism" that allows for the defense of the country, the Defense Ministry said. The Defense Ministry said that some Ukrainian men try to avoid mobilization due to a "lack of understanding" of issues such as training, selecting units, and the terms of service. The Defense Ministry denied, however, that this "misunderstanding" applied to all Ukrainians, referencing the recent launch of a recruitment campaign. The campaign "has already demonstrated that there is no general misunderstanding," the Defense Ministry said, as there are currently "more than 90,000 applications for almost 8,000 open vacancies." The Ukrainian government aims to ramp up mobilization efforts in 2024 and has pledged to change the approach to military recruitment, giving more choices to potential conscripts. The parliament is now considering a new draft of the mobilization law after its initial, contentious version was withdrawn. Read also: Ukraine struggles to ramp up mobilization as Russias war enters 3rd year Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. In closing arguments of James Crumbleys manslaughter trial Wednesday, prosecutors said he was responsible for his sons mass shooting at a Michigan high school because he was grossly negligent, while the defense said the prosecutions case lacked evidence. Crumbley bought a SIG Sauer 9mm gun for his son, failed to properly secure it, ignored his sons spiraling mental health and did not take reasonable care to prevent foreseeable danger, Oakland County Prosecuting Attorney Karen McDonald said. James Crumbley is not on trial for what his son did, she said. James Crumbley is on trial for what he did and what he didnt do. In response, defense attorney Mariell Lehman said the prosecutions case was based on assumptions and hindsight and asserted Crumbley simply didnt know about his sons issues or plans. You heard no testimony and you saw no evidence that James had any knowledge that his son was a danger to anyone, she said. After closings, the jury deliberated for about an hour Wednesday before ending for the day. They are set to return Thursday morning to continue their deliberations. James Crumbley declined to testify in his own defense at his manslaughter trial. - Mandi Wright/Pool/Detroit Free Press/AP The closing arguments came more than two years after Ethan Crumbley, then 15, used the SIG Sauer 9mm weapon to kill four students and wound six students and a teacher at Oxford High School on November 30, 2021. James Crumbley has pleaded not guilty to four counts of involuntary manslaughter and faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. His wife, Jennifer Crumbley, was convicted of the same charges last month in a case highlighted by her own testimony in which she pushed blame onto others and expressed no regrets. The cases against the parents test the limits of who is responsible for a mass shooting. Prosecutors aiming to expand the scope of blame in mass shootings have used an unusual and novel legal strategy by arguing the shooters parents are responsible for the deaths because they got him a gun and disregarded signs of his mental health issues. Parents have previously faced liability for their childs actions, such as with neglect or firearms charges. Yet Jennifer Crumbleys case was the first time a parent of a school shooter was held directly responsible for the killings. Earlier Wednesday, the prosecution rested its case after calling 15 witnesses over the past week. The defense called one witness, James Crumbleys sister Karen, who testified that she had spent several days with the Crumbley family in April and June 2021 and did not notice anything concerning. The defense then rested its case. With the jury out of the room, James Crumbley declined to testify. It is my decision to remain silent, he said. Ethan was sentenced last year to life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to terrorism causing death, four counts of murder and 19 other related charges. He did not testify in either of his parents trials, as his attorneys said he would invoke his Fifth Amendment right to silence. Trial focused on how guns were secured In a screengrab from video, tan empty gun case and ammunition box are seen on the bed of James and Jennifer Crumbley during his trial on Tuesday. - Carlos Osorio/Pool/AP The case against James Crumbley has been altogether similar to the one against his wife, featuring testimony from shooting survivors, police investigators and school employees. However, there have been some key differences, as prosecutors have focused more on James decision to purchase a firearm for his son as a gift four days before the shooting and how he stored the weapon, while featuring less evidence about his personal life and interests. In particular, how the murder weapon was secured and how the shooter gained access to it has been a key point of contention. Investigators who searched the home after the shooting found an empty gun case and an empty box of ammunition sitting on the parents bed, according to photos of the search. In an interview with police, James Crumbley said the gun case had been hidden in an armoire, with the 9mm ammunition hidden under a pair of jeans. The SIG Sauer had been sold along with a cable lock, and a detective said that cable lock was found still in its plastic packaging. No other firearm locking mechanisms were found in the home, the detective said. Did James ever once tell you that the SIG Sauer 9mm used to commit the Oxford high school shooting was ever locked up? Oakland County assistant prosecutor Marc Keast asked. He did not, said Adam Stoyek, a detective with the Oakland County Sheriffs Office. However, the defense has questioned whether a different locking mechanism may have been used to secure the firearm. At Jennifer Crumbleys trial, she testified that her husband secured the firearm with a cable lock and the key was stored in a beer stein in the home. In addition, two other firearms in the home a .22-caliber Derringer and a .22-caliber KelTec were locked in a gun safe in the parents bedroom dresser, but the combination to unlock the safe was 0-0-0, the default factory setting, Stoyek said. Under the safe, investigators found two empty magazines, a holster and a box of .22 caliber ammunition, he testified. What he knew about shooters mental health Clockwise from top left: Hana St. Juliana, Justin Shilling, Madisyn Baldwin and Tate Myre were killed in the attack. - Obtained by CNN Prosecutors have also argued James Crumbley missed clear warning signs that his son needed help. I have zero HELP for my mental problems and its causing me to SHOOT UP THE FING SCHOOL, the shooter wrote in a journal entry. I want help but my parents dont listen to me so I cant get any help. He also texted a friend in April 2021 to say he was hearing people talking to him and seeing someone in the distance. I actually asked my dad to take (me) to the Doctor yesterday but he just gave me some pills and told me to Suck it up, he wrote. Lehman, the defense attorney, has argued there was no evidence the shooter actually asked for help and no evidence his father declined to help. James had no idea that his son was having a hard time, she said. Further, on the morning of the shooting, both parents were called into school to discuss Ethans disturbing writings on a math worksheet, including the phrases help me, blood everywhere and my life is useless and drawings of a gun and bullet. Oxford High School counselor Shawn Hopkins testified he recommended the parents take Ethan out of school to get mental health treatment that day, but Jennifer Crumbley said they wouldnt be able to do so that day because they had work. James Crumbley did not protest, the counselor testified. The school employees and the parents agreed to keep Ethan in class for the day, the employees testified. About two hours later, the teenager took the gun out of his backpack and opened fire. After learning of the shooting, James Crumbley rushed home to look for the gun, according to the evidence. He then called 911 to report the gun was missing and noted his son had been in a meeting earlier that day a call that McDonald, the prosecutor, said was foreseeability. Lehman disagreed: James Crumbley had no idea what his son was capable of, he had no idea what his son was planning, and he had absolutely no idea that his son had access to those firearms. CNNs Nicki Brown contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Democratic Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock called the Republican-led Laken Riley Act "smoke and mirrors" on Tuesday, accusing lawmakers of failing to do anything substantive to address the crisis at the southern border. The legislation, which was passed in the House, would require the Department of Homeland Security to take illegal immigrants into custody if they have been charged with theft-related crimes. Warnock appeared on MSNBC's "The ReidOut" with host Joy Reid on Tuesday when he was asked about what the legislation would do to address crime. REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN INTRODUCES LAKEN RILEY ACT U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., said the legislation named after Laken Riley was "smoke and mirrors" when asked about how it would address crime. "Let me, first of all, just say that my heart goes out to this young womans family. Laken Riley did not deserve what happened to her," he said. "To answer your question succinctly, this is smoke and mirrors by people who are not serious." "We had a bipartisan piece of legislation in front of us. It had a lot of provisions, some provisions that some folks on my side didnt like," he added. "But the only way to get comprehensive immigration reform, the only way to address the current crisis on the border in divided government, is on a bipartisan basis." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Riley, 22, a nursing student, was killed in February on the campus of the University of Georgia. Jose Antonio Ibarra, the illegal immigrant from Venezuela charged with the killing, was arrested in New York prior to the murder, but was not detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Republicans have tried to pressure the Biden administration to get behind the bill introduced by Rep. Mike Collins, R- Ga. Twenty-six attorneys general across the U.S. penned a letter to Senate leadership on Wednesday urging the passage of the Laken Riley Act. Laken Rileys killing has gripped the nation as the border crisis continues. Warnock previously criticized Republicans, saying they were trying to "score cheap political" points in connection to Rileys death after her name was wrongfully invoked by President Biden during last week's State of the Union address. "Rather than demagoguing this tragic death by this young woman, they ought to get serious," Warnock told Reid. "And lets pass some bipartisan legislation and deal with the crisis at the border." Original article source: Dem Sen. Warnock calls Laken Riley Act 'smoke and mirrors,' by people who aren't 'serious' Denmark's armed forces currently number about 20,000 active personnel, including some 9,000 professional troops. Denmark has announced plans to extend military conscription to women for the first time and increase the standard service time. It also wants to boost its defence budget by nearly $6bn (4.6bn) in the next five years to meet Nato targets. "We do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want to avoid it," said PM Metter Frederiksen. Tensions in Europe have spiked since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Unveiling the reforms on Wednesday, Ms Frederiksen said the government was seeking to achieve "full equality between the sexes". Meanwhile, Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said: "More robust conscription, including full gender equality, must contribute to solving defence challenges, national mobilisation and manning our armed forces." Women in the Scandinavian country can already volunteer for military service. Now the government plans to introduce female conscription from 2026, making it only the third European nation - alongside Norway and Sweden - to require women to serve in the armed forces. It also says the conscription service will be extended from four to 11 months for both men and women. Last year, 4,700 people served military service, of which about 25% were women. This number will be increased to 5,000 per year. Denmark's armed forces currently number about 20,000 active personnel, including some 9,000 professional troops. The country, which has a total population of nearly six million, is also raising its military spending from the current 1.4% of GDP to 2% to meet targets set by the Nato military alliance. Last year, lawmakers voted to abolish a springtime public holiday to boost spending on the military. Denmark has been one of the staunchest supporters of Ukraine, providing it with advanced weapons and funds, and also training Ukrainian pilots on US-made F-16 war planes. Two Nordic countries - Finland and Sweden - have recently joined Nato, as the alliance is bolstering its defences in Europe following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. DENVER (KDVR) Clouds will stick around on Wednesday with mild highs in the low 50s. Then, evening rain will swap to snow as Colorado will get a decent snowstorm on Thursday. Thursday is a Pinpoint Weather Alert Day in the Denver weather forecast. Pinpoint Weather: Pinpoint Weather Alert Day on March 13 Weather today: Cloudy, evening rain Cloudy skies stick around Denver for most of the day on Wednesday, as highs stay mild in the lower 50s. How much snow is expected to fall during Thursdays storm? Rain will arrive through the evening and change over to snow after sunset. Pinpoint Weather: Daily forecast on March 13 Weather tonight: Rain to snow Once the rain changes to snow, it will stay as snow for at least 24 hours. Lows are mild in the low 30s with brisk winds. Pinpoint Weather: Overnight forecast on March 13 Winter storm warnings and watches go into effect at 9 p.m. and linger through Friday morning. Snow will become an issue throughout the day on Thursday with some areas seeing high snow totals. Pinpoint Weather: Winter weather advisories on March 14 Pinpoint Weather: Statewide winter advisories on March 14 Looking ahead: Heavy snow, Pinpoint Weather Alert Day Thursday Snow will continue to fall around Colorado on Thursday with wet and heavy snow expected along the Front Range and into the foothills. High temperatures will be in the low to middle 30s with a brisk wind at 10-15 mph. Snow will continue overnight and wrap up early on Friday morning. Snowfall totals in the metro will stretch from 8-18 inches with more snow towards the base of the foothills. Denvers mysterious tradition of March 13-14 snowstorms Downtown Denver could see a foot of snow. The Palmer Divide could get 14-24 inches, and spots in the foothills could see even more with 16-38 inches or more. Pinpoint Weather: Statewide snow totals by 11 p.m. on March 15 Pinpoint Weather: Metro snow totals by 11 p.m. on Friday Snow ends on Friday morning with partial clearing by the evening hours and cool highs near 40 degrees. Saturday and Sunday have partly cloudy skies with below-average highs in the middle 40s. Pinpoint Weather 7-day forecast for Denver on March 13 Monday is back to seasonal averages in the middle 50s and sunny skies. Tuesday is even warmer with highs near the low 60s and sunny skies. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. JAKARTA, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Indonesian President Joko Widodo convened a special meeting on Wednesday with Vice President Ma'ruf Amin, representatives from the Public Works and Housing Ministry, the Nusantara Capital City Authority, and other relevant staff members to discuss expediting the development of the country's new capital. According to Public Works and Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono, the meeting decided to quicken the process of determining the land status and providing it for investment in the new capital. To improve communication with investors, the meeting also decided to provide Persons in Charge (PIC) with an investment complaints desk. Apart from that, the provision of clean water and toll roads is targeted to be completed by the middle of this year. President Joko Widodo plans to start working in the new capital in Kalimantan in July, following the completion of the airport and the availability of clean water. The Osceola County Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics help to be on the lookout for a bank robbery suspect. On Monday, deputies responded to South State Bank, locate at 850 Cypress Parkway, in reference to a bank robbery. When deputies arrived, the victim told them that while she was working behind the teller counter, a Black male approached the counter and immediately pulled out a note, demanding money. Read: Madeline Soto case: Stephan Sterns faces 60 new charges The teller gave the suspect an undisclosed amount of money, deputies said. The suspect ran from the bank, and last seen wearing a camouflage hat, blue pullover jacket, and blue pants. Read: A miscarriage of justice: Charges against an Orange County deputy will not go forward Deputies have not released any other information at this time. If you have any information regarding this bank robbery, call the Osceola County Sheriffs Office at (407) 348-2222. Read: See where Brightline plans to open another Central Florida station Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. A deputy town clerk in the small town of Northumberland has been arrested for improperly accessing Division of Motor Vehicle records, state police said. Courtney McLain, 32, of Northumberland, was arrested on March 8 and charged with 14 counts of tampering with public records and 14 counts of computer related offenses, state police said. An investigation found that McLain accessed Division of Motor Vehicle records for the purpose of processing vehicle-related transactions, without proper credentials, state police said. The charges against McLain are Class A misdemeanors, which carry a maximum possible penalty of up to a one year in jail and a $2,000 fine for each offense. McLain was released on personal recognizance bail. She is scheduled to be arraigned in a Lancaster courtroom on June 3. Anyone with information on this case is asked to email Trooper Brandon Girardi at Brandon.M.Girardi@dos.nh.gov. Northumberland is a small town in northern New Hampshire, north of Lancaster. The towns population was 2,126 as of the 2020 census. 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 Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis skewered the right-wing social media account Libs of TikTok on Wednesday, accusing it of concocting lies to engagement farm and get rage clicks. DeSantis was set off by a Wednesday morning post from the pages account on X, formerly Twitter, where it wrongly stated Florida provides drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants. The governor chimed in after a community note on X called out the page out for sharing incorrect informationan increasingly common occurrence for Libs of TikTok. (Libs of TikTok) got community noted for lying about FL law, which not only prohibits illegal aliens from getting drivers licenses but also prohibits recognition of licenses issued to illegal aliens from other states, DeSantis said. Truth shouldnt be a casualty of attempts to generate clicks and engagement farm. .@libsoftiktok got community noted for lying about FL law, which not only prohibits illegal aliens from getting drivers licenses but also prohibits recognition of licenses issued to illegal aliens from other states. Truth shouldnt be a casualty of attempts to generate clicks https://t.co/tdJs3x42iH Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) March 13, 2024 Libs of TikTok is run by Chaya Raichik, a former real estate agent who has become infamous for her hateful comments against LGBTQ people and her relentless mocking of those who dont agree with her. Her pages post on Wednesday clipped local news segments to tell a story about three undocumented immigrants who were arrested following accusations they forced a woman into a car and sexually battered her twice on Tuesday. Libs of TikTok declined to take the post down after DeSantis called it out. Instead, the page tried to explain how it reached the incorrect conclusion about Florida law, somehow blaming the Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg for the gaffe. Making the ordeal all the more baffling, the mentioning of drivers licenses appears to be irrelevant to the news story Libs of TikTok was addressing, having seemingly thrown a line about licenses in the original posts final sentence at random. This normally quiet, peaceful neighborhood in Florida was shaken this week when 3 illegals from Guatemala were arrested for forcing a woman into a car and s*xually ass*ulting her. Apparently FL also gives illegals drivers licenses! Bidens open borders allows v*olent criminals pic.twitter.com/MzBtUk5BU1 Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 13, 2024 This normally quiet, peaceful neighborhood in Florida was shaken this week when 3 illegals from Guatemala were arrested for forcing a woman into a car and s*xually ass*ulting her, Libs of TikTok wrote, referring to the alleged Palm Beach County assault. Apparently FL also gives illegals drivers licenses! The alleged assault has garnered heavy media attention in South Florida where the local sheriff, Ric Bradshaw, pointed to the chaos at the U.S. southern border as reason behind the attack. Don't think for a minute that what happens at the Mexican border doesnt affect us here, he said Wednesday. They shouldnt be here. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Gov Ron DeSantis announced on Feb. 1, 2024, that he was sending National Guard and Florida State Guard troops to help control the Texas-Mexico border. On March 13, he deployed Guard and law enforcement resources against immigration from Haiti. Source: Screenshot/Florida Channel Quality Journalism for Critical Times Gov. Ron DeSantis has mobilized the National Guard and law enforcement units against a potential influx of illegal immigrants from Haiti, where armed gangs have taken control of large sections of the capital of Port-au-Prince. Thats the way the governors office put it in a press release announcing his mobilization of state assets to the Keys and southern waters of the state of Florida. For quite some time, the state of Florida has been dedicating significant resources to combat illegal vessels coming to Florida from countries such as Haiti, DeSantis said in a written statement. Given the circumstances in Haiti, I have directed the Division of Emergency Management, the Florida State Guard, and state law enforcement agencies to deploy over 250 additional officers and soldiers and over a dozen air and sea craft to the southern coast of Florida to protect our state. No state has done more to supplement the (under-resourced) U.S. Coast Guards interdiction efforts; we cannot have illegal aliens coming to Florid, he added. Illegal immigrants feel empowered to enter the sovereign territory of the United States because of the federal governments refusal to diligently enforce our immigration laws and protect the integrity of the border. When a state faces the possibility of invasion, it has the right and duty to defend its territory and people. Under Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida will act, the press release says. The press release said nothing about the humanitarian crisis. Blame Biden The Florida Guard comprises more than 12,000 troops, according to a recent Florida legislative request that Congress add strength to the organization. Thats one for every 1,833 residents, placing Florida No. 53 among the 54 states and territories. The state was already contributing to immigration-control efforts in the Caribbean; the new push will add 39 Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers; 23 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers with eight additional seacraft; 48 guardsmen with an additional aircraft and drones; 30 state troopers; and 133 members of the Florida State Guard, according to the governors office. Assistant Secretary of Defense Rebecca Zimmerman told a Congressional committee Tuesday that the agency hadnt seen maritime mass migration yet but that we are alert to that possibility. I think youre right that the driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people. We recently approved some additional assistance we could provide to the Coast Guard, Fox News reported. Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry is in Puerto Rico and unable to return to his capital because criminal gangs have closed the airports amid attacks on public institutions, banks, and private homes and businesses, the AP has reported. Henry has announced his willingness to stand down amid plans to convene a governing council but those efforts have broken down. The attacks, which have resulted in scores of deaths, began in late February as Henry was in Africa discussing introduction of a Kenyan police force. The post DeSantis mobilizes National Guard, state police off South FL against any influx of Haitians appeared first on Florida Phoenix. TALLAHASSEE, Florida Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who routinely slams Democrats and the corporate media, on Wednesday went after a one-time ally @LibsofTikTok the social media account run by conservative activist Chaya Raichik. DeSantis ripped into Raichik for lying about Florida law after she posted a link to a television news story about three undocumented migrants from Guatemala who are accused by Palm Beach counties authorities of forcing a woman into a car and sexually assaulting her. In her post on X, Raichik stated apparently FL also gives illegals drivers licenses. DeSantis, in response, pointed out that Florida doesnt issue divers licenses to undocumented immigrants and that the state also now refuses to recognize licenses handed out to migrants from other states which was part of an anti-illegal immigration law the governor pushed legislators to adopt last year. Truth shouldnt be a casualty of attempts to generate clicks and engagement farm, the governor posted. DeSantis press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, also tried to defuse the dust-up over the Libs of TikTok error, posting screenshots of people asking on X why DeSantis would allow undocumented immigrants to get drivers licenses, saying, This is something our comms team will be dealing with in perpetuity. Its another false narrative that will never go away. All for clicks. But even before DeSantis upbraided Raichik, she did post a follow-up message saying to clarify Florida law does not allow illegals to get a drivers license. Some other conservatives on Twitter defended Raichik and questioned whether DeSantis or someone on his staff made the post. Jenna Ellis, a lawyer who was part of former President Donald Trumps legal team but backed DeSantis campaign for president, said in her own response Why is everyone complaining that Gov DeSantis rightly called out Chaya? She should delete her post not just clarify several posts down in the thread. Truth cannot be a casualty of personality tribalism. Do better, conservatives. The back-and-forth is notable since DeSantis usually directs his ire toward his most ardent critics, although at the end of his presidential campaign he took swipes at Fox News and other conservative outlets that he said were propping up former President Donald Trump. While @LibsofTikTok has 2.9 million followers, DeSantis has an even larger network. The two-term Florida governor, and one-time presidential candidate, has 4.7 million followers for his social media account on X. The governor uses his main account to highlight speeches and press conferences and also has a separate personal account that focuses on more political topics. In many instances, it has been the governors top aides who have clashed loudly and often with political foes, including with Trump backers. But on both accounts, DeSantis has shown a feisty and more personal approach since he dropped out of the presidential race in January, including posting videos of him with his children. Raichik, whose @LibsofTikTok account picked up attention and support from conservatives due to her frequent broadsides against the LGBTQ+ community, told Tucker Carlson in a December 2022 interview that the DeSantis administration offered to let her stay at a guest house at the governors mansion for her safety. Raichik, who initially had been posting anonymously, said the offer came shortly after her identity was revealed. A living link to victims of one of Thibodaux's darkest and bloodiest hours was laid to rest Saturday with full military honors. Sylvester Arthur Jackson, 91, was the great-grandson of Jack Conrad, whose sworn testimony of the Thibodaux Massacre of 1887 is a firsthand account from a surviving victim of the shooting that left countless dead, including Conrad's son and brother-in-law. Conrad and his daughter survived the event, Conrad having taken four gunshot wounds, Nov. 23, 1887. Jackson was entombed with his grandparents, Clara and Jesse Jackson, March 9, at the Thibodaux Allen Chapel Cemetery. After a service at St. Luke Community Center, mourners followed the hearse in a second-line for nearly three blocks, garbed in Mardi Gras-style clothes, parasols, white gloves and sashes with doves on their shoulders. Earl Vanburen, 63, friend of the late Sylvester Jackson, gives his condolences to Jackson's wife Delores, March 9, at the Thibodaux Allen Chapel Cemetery. "If Clara hadn't survived, we wouldn't be here," Barron Jackson, 63, Sylvester's son said. Sylvester Jackson represents a family tradition of service. Like his great-grandfather, Jackson joined the military. He served active-duty in the Air Force for four years, then with the Air Force, Army, and Navy Reserves for an additional 30 years. Afterward, he continued a professional career of service, becoming the head of the U.S. State Department's passport center in Houston and continuing the work in Washington, D.C., for a total of 20 years. Don Kollins, 47, Jackson's son-in-law, said when Jackson led, everyone followed. No one in the family questioned his decisions. He described him as dignified and honorable. "He is a man of his words," Kollins said. "What I mean is he is a patriarch. What he says, he stands by, and when he says it, he does it. He is a man who stands by his words." In his off-time, Jackson enjoyed carpentry, woodwork and photography. Baron recalled how his father's love of carpentry played into his early life. He said his father encouraged his passion for science by building a science table, complete with beakers and test tubes, for him to do experiments. "I was all into science, so he helped me build stuff like a workbench with test tubes and microscopes," Baron said. "He bought me a telescope it was during the Apollo program." Little did Baron know that encouragement tied directly into his future. He now works for the Space Force, which focuses on all aspects of space defense. Baron pursued video technology but was persuaded by his father to join the Air Force, so he signed up for four years. Thirty-nine years later 22 active and 17 as a civilian he now plans to retire in three years. For those wanting to see Jackson's craftsmanship, a house still stands at 417 Brandywine Blvd. that he built, Barron said. Even those who weren't immediate family said Jackson had a fatherly approach with them. Earl Vanburen, 62, was enlisted as an Army Infantryman when he met Jackson and began a 25-year friendship. The two were activated for Operation Desert Storm and sent to Fort Hood Texas now Fort Cavazos. Twenty-nine years his senior, Vanburen said Jackson was a supply runner and gofer and used his free time to look after him. "He was like a daddy to me," Vanburen said. "The drill was like a week and a month and every month he'd come pick me up from my house." Asked what the two bonded over, he grinned, chuckled, and said, "I can't talk about that." The History A local journalist, John DeSantis, uncovered a day of violence that left 30 to 60 Black residents murdered by white vigilantes, for a sugarcane strike in 1887. DeSantis and Jackson's lives became entwined as the writer told the family's and the city's past. "Sylvester Jackson was the epitome of a gentleman, and I have wondered how God could have gifted one man with so much grace and so much dignity," DeSantis said. The history had been buried along with an alleged unmarked mass grave, and the story never told. DeSantis found Conrad's affidavit tucked away in a file held in the U.S. National Archives. It was created when Conrad sought a special military pension. At the time, military pensions extended beyond active duty, so long as the injury wasn't from gross negligence. Conrad's injury was not self-inflicted. Thibodaux had become a gathering site for freed Black sugarcane workers who were protesting unlivable wages. White vigilantes, 50 to 60 depending on the account, spread throughout the city and killed Black men they found. "There were several companies of white men and they went around... shooting colored men who took part in the strike," according to one witness account. They arrived at Conrad's home, threatened his wife, and demanded all the men come outside. When Conrad stepped outside, according to his own words, one of the mob said "crack down on him," and the bullets began flying. Jackson's mother, Clarrise (Clara), said her father crawled under the home for safety, but they continued firing on him. When all was said and done, Conrad had been shot in both arms and twice in the chest. One gunshot left his collar bone protruding from his body. Confident in their grisly work, the gunmen left him for dead. Local oral histories maintain that the bodies were disposed of in an unmarked mass grave that has to this day remained unfound. Efforts were made with tools like ground-penetrating radar at the lot behind the Raymond Stafford Post 513 American Legion Hall. The search was inconclusive, due to the site being used as a landfill and capped over by concrete between the time of the massacre and present day. This article originally appeared on The Courier: Descendant of Thibodaux Massacre survivor laid to rest The survey found that adults 30 and under typically disagree that the police are doing a good job in their city. Detroit residents who have had contact with police are more likely to be critical of them, regardless of how cordial the interaction might have been, a study shows. A new survey by the University of Michigans Detroit Metro Area Communities Study (DMACS) initiative analyzed data from resident interactions with police officers from 2020, shortly after George Floyds murder. With Detroit nearly 80% Black, the analysis is primarily about the perception Black residents have of the officers. This report shows that personal experiences with the police matter for how residents view the police, the study says. Individuals who have either personally experienced forceful contact or have friends or family who have experienced forceful contact are consistently more critical of the police than those who have no contact with the police, even when taking demographic factors into account. Around 41% of Detroit residents either had forceful contact (17%) or non-forceful (24%) contact with the police or knew someone who did in 2020, according to the survey. The 17% number represents 74,424 people who interacted forcefully with the police themselves or through a family member or friend. Detroit police officers stand watch as a group of Trump supporters argue with anti-Trump protesters outside the TCF Center on Nov. 6, 2020 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Elaine Cromie/Getty Images) The vast majority of residents (59%) reported no contact at all with the police. The survey found that adults 30 and under typically disagree that the police are doing a good job in their city. If the interaction was forceful, they were more likely to be against the police and distrust them. For people over 60 in Detroit, even if they came into forceful contact with the police, they were more likely to believe that law enforcement did a good job and trusted them. The similarities in views between residents who have experienced forceful and nonforceful contact with police suggest any type of contact with police may be enough to change peoples views on policing, Lauren Chojnacki, a research associate with DMACS, who authored the report, said in a statement. The analysis also reports that there are no significant racial differences among residents who dealt with forceful contact from the police. However, Black Detroit residents are 14% more likely to disagree that the police are doing a good job of protecting them and their communities compared to white residents of the city. This reflects some of the national perspectives Black Americans have on police. According to a 2023 Gallup poll, 73% of all adults are confident in the police, but for Black citizens, its 56%. The Black population is also less satisfied with community-police relations and respectful treatment by the police. Thats why, according to the same Gallup poll, 73% of Black Americans want major changes to policing. Theres a simultaneous desire for police reform and favorable public opinion regarding police, Chojnacki said in a statement. Theres a tension among residents who want both change in a system and the security and protection experienced within that system. Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrios newsletter. The post Detroit survey shows personal experiences shape the view of police appeared first on TheGrio. Get The State Worker Bee newsletter in your inbox every Wednesday This is a preview of our weekly state worker newsletter. Subscribers receive more exclusive tidbits like this one, as well as a weekly roundup of all our state worker coverage. Sign up using the form linked here, or by emailing mmiller@sacbee.com. One point that state employees love to make is that telework during the pandemic helped the state save money on rented office space. But how true is this theory? And if the state did save taxpayer dollars by terminating or not renewing leases, how much are we talking about? New data from the Department of General Services offer some clues. The data, obtained through a Public Records Act request, dont include reasons for why leases were terminated or renewed. That being said, California issued a mandatory statewide stay-at-home order on March 19, 2020, that ended on Jan. 25, 2021. The Sacramento Bee examined data from 2017 through 2023. The stay-at-home period marks a natural dividing line between pre-pandemic (from Jan. 1, 2017, through Feb. 29, 2020) and post-pandemic (from March 1, 2020, through Jan. 1, 2024) lease behavior. The state shed about $3.4 million worth of monthly lease rent prior to the pandemic. Post-pandemic, that monthly offload jumped to roughly $6.5 million. Surprisingly, though, the state spends roughly the same amount of money as it did on new and renewed leases post-pandemic as it did prior to the pandemic. From 2017 through early 2020, the state spent about $13.8 million per month on leases. From March 2020 through January 2024, the state has spent about $13.6 million in monthly rent. Predictably, the number of state lease terminations increased after the pandemic. From 2017 through 2019, state agencies terminated a total of 131 leases with 1.3 million square feet of office space. By comparison, from 2021 through 2023, state agencies terminated a total of 141 leases with 1.8 million square feet of office space. Terminations were higher in 2020, the year the pandemic first hit and the state imposed stay-at-home orders. State agencies canceled 54 leases with 735,000 square feet of office space in 2020, and terminations peaked in 2021 when agencies shed 830,000 square feet of leased space. In that same vein, lease renewals fell after the pandemic. From 2017 through 2019, state agencies renewed or signed 283 new leases for 4.7 million square feet of office space. In contrast, in the three years post-pandemic, the state has only renewed or signed 251 leases worth 3.6 million square feet of space. Lease renewals peaked in 2019, when state agencies renewed or signed leases with 2.3 million square feet of office space. In 2020, the year of the pandemic, state departments renewed or signed 96 leases for 1.7 million square feet of office space. The Bees Phillip Reese contributed to this story. Want state worker news in your inbox? Sign up for our weekly newsletter using the module below or by emailing mmiller@sacbee.com. Activists in Enid, Oklahoma say a man photographed marching in the 2017 "Unite The Right" white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia is Enid City Commissioner Judson Blevins. Illustration: Damon Dahlen/HuffPost; Photos: Unicorn Riot/Getty ENID, Okla. On the evening of Nov. 7, 2023, Judson Judd Blevins, a city councilman in Enid, Oklahoma, took his seat inside the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Municipal Complex and watched as local constituents took turns at a lectern. A lot of people want to give you a pass, Mr. Blevins, because youre an honorably discharged veteran, said Father James Neal, a local priest, wearing a black cassock and white clerical collar. I am an honorably discharged veteran, and I tell you, as a fellow veteran, the Commandant of the Marine Corps made it clear in 2017 that your actions in Charlottesville were a betrayal of the core values of the Marine Corps and of this country Time, Mayor David Mason interjected, enforcing a strict one-minute limit on public comments. Neal ignored him. As a priest, I will continue to pray for you, he continued. And after you are a private citizen, if you desire and pursue Your time is up! the mayor interjected again. Youve had six months of silence! Neal shot back at the mayor. Your time is up! He turned his attention back to Blevins. We will be ready to help you Im gonna have to ask you to stop! the mayor yelled. Neal kept his focus on Blevins. We will be ready to help you on a path to reconciliation, he said, walking away from the lectern and taking a seat in the gallery among his fellow citizens, some of whom wore purple shirts emblazoned with Enid Social Justice Committee. The scene was the culmination of a simmering political fight in Enid, a deeply conservative town of 50,000, home to Vance Air Force Base, an hour-and-a-half drive north of Oklahoma City, where a small band of progressive activists in town have begged their elected officials to, at the very least, acknowledge that there might be a neo-Nazi in City Hall. Four years earlier, in 2019, journalists and anti-fascists had published research identifying Blevins as a leader in the now-defunct white nationalist group Identity Evropa. Blevins announced his candidacy for city council in late 2022, prompting the local newspaper to publish an article rehashing all the evidence of his connections to the group. But voters in Ward 1 of Enid elected Blevins anyway. And since Blevins took his oath of office, the mayor and other city commissioners have remained largely silent about his past. Reporters for Unicorn Riot photographed this man at the 2017 Charlottesville rally. Anti-fascists and a reporter for Right Wing Watch identified the man as Judson Blevins. Courtesy Unicorn Riot Blevins has neither acknowledged nor denied his role in Identity Evropa, a profoundly racist and antisemitic group that advocated transforming America into a whites-only ethnostate. He has also repeatedly refused to acknowledge photos appearing to show him participating in the deadly 2017 Unite The Right white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia: marching in the infamous tiki-torch march and carrying an Oklahoma state flag during the main event the next day, when a fascist drove a car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing a 32-year-old woman and injuring dozens of others. Nearly a year into his four-year term, Blevins continues to receive support from prominent members of the Enid community, as well as from everyday citizens some of whom refuse to believe the allegations against him, and some of whom refuse to believe that Identity Evropa or the rally in Charlottesville were really all that bad. The Blevins saga has left progressives in Enid dumbfounded and infuriated: How could their community allow this man, who wouldnt deny participating in one of the most infamous fascist gatherings in a generation, join the city council? How could Enid let this man, who wouldnt deny that he once expressed admiration for Adolf Hitler, make policy decisions that will affect peoples lives? Initially the activists gave their neighbors who voted for Blevins the benefit of the doubt, thinking maybe they hadnt heard about his past when they went to the polls. But over the last year, that shock has given way to horror at the seeming indifference of so many in Enid to the possibility that a neo-Nazi is helping to run their town. Then came the creeping thought that maybe it wasnt indifference at all, but something even worse. These activists fear whats happening in Enid is part of a larger national trend, in which conservatives and Republicans maintain a never punch right ethos, shamelessly allying themselves with extremists. Moreover, the rhetoric currently coming from prominent conservative and Republican figures about an invasion of immigrants at the border and rampant anti-white discrimination could have been copied word-for-word from the Identity Evropa message groups. Although Identity Evropa has been dissolved, in many ways the groups ideas have gone mainstream. In Enid, those ideas might have a seat in the city council. Blevins did not respond to multiple HuffPost requests for comment for this story. Nor did he address why a Texas man with business ties to a member of an active white supremacist group donated nearly $2,000 to his 2023 campaign for city council. Perhaps the closest Blevins has come to acknowledging allegations of his white supremacist activism came at the end of that heated city council meeting this past November, after the Enid Social Justice Committee announced it was launching a recall campaign against him. The First Amendment gives us freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom to petition the government with grievances, which all of you have done tonight, he told the assembled crowd, some of whom held up photos that seemed to show Blevins marching at the Charlottesville rally. We either have these rights, or we dont. And if we find ourselves having to make apologies when we exercise these rights, then we dont have them. And I want to be clear: I am a different man today than I was yesterday. There is no hate in my heart. All there is is the desire to follow the Lord. But Im not going to apologize for things I never was. And I am not going to apologize for the lies that others tell. The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Municipal Complex in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Nick Oxford for HuffPost Father James Neal poses for a portrait in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Nick Oxford for HuffPost Times up, Mr. Mayor! Neal yelled, pushing Mason to enforce the same time limit hed forced on the gathered constituents. A commissioner can speak as long as they want! the mayor responded. But not the public? Not the public, thats right. Youre a coward! If you continue Im gonna ask you to leave. Point of order, I have the floor! Blevins barked. Youre not gonna be able to hide behind decorum, Neal said. Over 800 people went to the polls that day and I got the majority of their votes, Blevins continued. Now, I wish my detractors could accept the results of the decision the voters made that day. I thought for a long time for the last few days about how I could address the people who are unhappy with me, but they made it clear that theres nothing I can say to them that will satisfy them and honor God. We wrote down what you could say! one of the Enid Social Justice Committee members screamed. The progressives had offered to strike a deal with Blevins: Sign a statement denouncing your past neo-Nazism, and the committee wouldnt instigate a recall effort. Blevins had refused the offer. If it comes to it, Blevins growled, I will stand before the voters of Ward 1 and I will defend the job Ive done here in my first six months and I will let them decide. A contingent of Blevins supporters stood up, hollering and applauding. Neal screamed at Blevins fellow commissioners, begging them to speak up, eventually leading the mayor to summon security. As the martial escorted Neal out of the meeting, Blevins openly laughed, his face turning red with delight, a trollish grin drawn across his face Whats so funny? one of the Enid Social Justice Committee members screamed at him. Blevins stopped laughing, quickly reconstructing his face to make it appear serious and respectable. Unmasking Conway Identity Evropa founder Nathan Damigo, right, holds a press conference with white supremacist Richard Spencer, left, on August 14, 2017, two days after the violent "Unite The Right" rally. Tasos Katopodis via Getty Images Identity Evropa was founded in 2016 with a focus on recruiting college-aged white men, by an Iraq War veteran named Nathan Damigo. The group eschewed explicit neo-Nazi imagery and slogans, attempting to put an intellectual veneer on its racism and antisemitism, branding itself as a white identitarian organization. Its members alternately wore suits and ties, or khakis and white polo shirts, often sporting the high-and-tight haircut that was all the rage among fascists at the time. Damigo once claimed that there were over 700 white men in the group, a small army of young Americans who proved eager participants in what has been called the Summer of Hate, a period of intense white supremacist organizing in 2017 born out of excitement for former President Donald Trumps election victory. Members often kept their real identities a secret, choosing pseudonyms to communicate with each other in a private Discord message server. In 2019, anti-fascist activists infiltrated Identity Evropa and managed to download the contents of the server, which contained some 770,000 messages. Of those messages which were published online by Unicorn Riot, an independent media outlet that often reports on right-wing extremism over 1,100 belonged to someone using the pseudonym Conway. Conway said he was the regional coordinator for Identity Evropa in Oklahoma, and could be seen in chat messages coordinating membership fees, onboarding new members and conducting propaganda missions. Im Dannion Phillips from Oklahoma looking to make contact with my Local Coordinator, a new recruit, using his real name, wrote in one 2018 message. Hello Dannion Im at gym and need to finish this workout, Conway wrote back. In the meantime, pls set an avatar, and send proof of paid dues.(In an investigation into white nationalists in the military, HuffPost later revealed that Dannion Phillips was an active-duty airman in the U.S. Air Force.) Conway also frequently posted photos of the Identity Evropa posters and flyers he said hed placed around Oklahoma. He claimed to have targeted at least five universities, including the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University. CNN has picked up on our banner! Conway wrote in one message, linking to a tweet from a CNN reporter about an Identity Evropa banner he and his crew had hung from a highway overpass. As delighted as Conway was about seeing the groups activism in the news, he also expressed a seething hatred for journalists. Not all liars are journalists but all journalists are liars, he wrote once. Journalism is not a profession, its a tactic, he argued in another message. They want you to empathize with others and their interests before yourself and your people and our interests. And once, in January 2019, Conway wrote: MASS LAYOFFS AT HUFFINGTON POST PRAISE ALLAH. In a Discord server used to plan the 2017 Unite The Right rally in Charlottesville, Conway frequently posted antisemitic messages, once calling a leftist activist in the Virginia city a Jewish hag. Noting that this activist was originally from Boston but had moved to Charlottesville, Conway called them part of the (((rootless international clique))), a riff on the old antisemitic phrase rootless cosmopolitan. Good, we have enough f*gs in Boston, a user named Johnny OMalley replied. (HuffPost later reported that OMalley was an active-duty cop in Woburn, Massachusetts.) Although Identity Evropa often avoided using Nazi symbols in public, members like Conway made their Nazi sympathies plain in private messages. The burden of rehabilitating the roman salute will fall on a future generation, Conway wrote, referring to the stiff-armed fascist salute most often associated with the Nazis. Our burden is to ensure that generation exists. Hitler never would have allowed this shit, Conway wrote another time. Messages written by "Conway," a pseudonymous member of white supremacist group Identity Evropa. Courtesy Unicorn Riot Conway seemed at his most white-pilled, or optimistic, when he saw Identity Evropas brand of white nationalism starting to gain purchase among prominent Republicans and right-wing pundits. Identity Evropa sought to infiltrate and influence mainstream conservative circles in hopes of nudgingthe Overton Window the spectrum of ideas acceptable to the general public ever rightward toward explicit white nationalism. The Overton Window is shifting our way when Tomi Lahren starts tweeting about anti-whiteness, Conway wrote once, referring to a tweet from the popular conservative commentator, currently a host on Fox Nation. He was especially excited about Steve King, the former U.S. congressman from Iowa, who had made a series of statements embracing white nationalism. Conway urged his fellow Identity Evropa members to donate to Kings campaign. Our opponents have turned their gaze upon him, he wrote in Oct. 2018, likely referring to a series of HuffPost reports about the congressman. We need to keep him in office. We need 100 Steve Kings in office. And Conway was also an admirer of Paul Nehlen, a Wisconsin Republican running to replace then-House Speaker Paul Ryan in 2017. Although Nehlen enjoyed prominent support, including from the likes of media figure Steve Bannon and then-GOP Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore, HuffPost reported that hed started to appear on neo-Nazi podcasts to discuss how he became redpilled on the JQ, or the Jewish Question. Paul Nehlen does not cuck! Conway wrote in a December 2017 message, reveling in Nehlens radicalization. Nehlen would go on to advocate the mass murder of Jews. "Conway" posted photos of Identity Evropa propaganda he claimed to have placed on universities across Oklahoma. Courtesy Unicorn Riot Conways final post in the Identity Evropa Discord server, which included pictures of the groups propaganda he said hed placed at the University of Central Oklahoma, came on March 3, 2019 a few days before Unicorn Riot published the groups 770,000 leaked messages online, allowing journalists and anti-fascist researchers to mine the messages for clues about the identities of some 700 pseudonymous extremists. Conway had left a lot of clues. He once posted a link to an article in the Enid News & Eagle, a newspaper based in Enid, Oklahoma, noting that the publication was in his hometown. He also told his Identity Evropa compatriots that he was moving back to Enid to work for his fathers business. But most importantly, Conway had announced in a message that he would be carrying the original Oklahoma state flag at the rally in Charlottesville. (He preferred this flag over the current Oklahoma flag, which pays tribute to Native Americans. Such a shame OK lawmakers cucked to the Indians in 1925 and adopted the current flag, he explained.) Photos taken by HuffPost at the Charlottesville rally show a man with dark hair and beard, wearing khakis and a white polo shirt, marching with the original Oklahoma state flag. Other photos, including one taken by reporters from Unicorn Riot, show this same man among the crowd of neo-Nazis who marched through the University of Virginia campus with tiki-torches on the eve of the Charlottesville rally, chanting Jews will not replace us! Its unclear if he chanted along. On March 29, 2019, Right Wing Watch, a site that documents right-wing extremism, published an article identifying Conway, the Oklahoma regional director for Identity Evropa, as Judson Gannon Blevins, an Iraq War veteran who lived in Enid and worked at his fathers roofing business. They described anonymous sources who they said identified the man in the photos from Charlottesville as Blevins. A photo taken by HuffPost of a participant in the 2017 Charlottesville rally. Anti-fascists and Right Wing Watch later identified this man as Judson Blevins. Christopher Mathias/HuffPost Identity Evropa dissolved soon after the contents of its Discord server were published online. The group later rebranded as the American Identity Movement, but that eventually disbanded too. But Blevins seemed to use other social media accounts to continue to post support for white nationalism, including once under his own name. James Allsup is a good man, Blevins wrote in December 2019 on his own Facebook account. Allsup was well-known at the time. As reported by multiple national media outlets, Allsup was a member of Identity Evropa, and had participated in the Charlottesville rally, but had nevertheless been elected to a precinct committee seat in the Washington state Republican Party. Elsewhere online, Blevins appeared to maintain a Twitter account with the username @AbolishJournalism. (In the Identity Evropa Discord server, Conway had indicated the account belonged to him.) The account expressed a particular contempt for Native Americans, which is notable considering Blevins home state has one of the highest populations of Indigenous peoples in the country, due in part to the U.S. governments forced removal of tribes from eastern states to Oklahoma in the 19th century an act of ethnic cleansing, carried out at gunpoint, thats often called the Trail of Tears. But the @AbolishJournalism account supported a racist distortion of this history. When you lost your land because you sold half of it for booze and rifles, and the other half was taken because of the wars you kept starting while you were drunk using the rifles you bought, so you tell everyone the white man stole it all, read one tweet. The @AbolishJournalism account also expressed hopes that white nationalists would run for public office. I agree with the argument GOP cannot be changed from the bottom up, however I do not believe in discouraging our guys from getting elected into smaller offices such as city council, county commissioners, or even state legislators, read a 2019 tweet. Basically positions where one can fly under the radar yet still be effective, it said. Blevins For Ward 1 A campaign sign for Judson Blevins is displayed at the entrance to a neighborhood in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Blevins announced his candidacy to represent Ward 1 in the Enid City Commission in November 2022. The next month he declined an interview request from the Enid News and Eagle about his involvement with Identity Evropa, but later sent over a statement that did not deny the allegation. I think we can all see this for what it is, a hit piece posted four years ago by a George Soros funded leftist outlet, Blevins said in the statement, referring to Right Wing Watch. They were smears then and they are smears now. The labels applied to me are the same applied to any American who speaks out against the ruling liberal establishment. I am proud to have served this country honorably and defended our rights in the United States Marine Corps. I am absolutely opposed to the erasure of Americas history and heritage. On Jan. 8, 2023, the Enid News & Eagle published the statement in a story headlined, City candidate accused of white nationalist ties, laying out the evidence obtained by Right Wing Watch. The paper spent a month reporting out the story, checking every fact and detail, reviewing every photo of Blevins in Charlottesville and interviewing the author of the original Right Wing Watch article to verify every step of his investigation. Nevertheless, many Enid residents angrily refused to believe what their local paper had reported. Kelci McKendrick, the reporter who wrote the article, was shopping at a Walmart when she received a call from one such reader: City Commissioner Scott Orr. She remembers Orr yelling at her down the phone for what he called irresponsible journalism with no hard evidence. McKendrick, then 25 years old, said she broke down in tears after the call. Reached for comment via email, Orr didnt respond to a question regarding his call to McKendrick. Explaining why he disputed the allegations against Blevins in McKendricks article, Orr told HuffPost: We all perceive things differently. A handful of local politicians did offer criticism of Blevins including Jerry Allen, the incumbent commissioner running against him, who told the paper there was no place in Enid for those kinds of attitudes. Derwin Norwood, the Ward 2 commissioner and the citys only Black commissioner, also said there was no place for Blevins alleged views. Were all created equal in the image and likeness of God, he said. And perhaps the strongest denunciation came from Ward 3 Commissioner Keith Siragusa, a former cop, who said: If, in fact, any of it is true, I dont feel that he should be eligible to hold office because thats not a representation of what the city of Enid is. But the three other commissioners demurred or declined to comment to the News & Eagle. David Mason, then just a candidate for mayor, said he didnt know Blevins and couldnt speak for him in any way. In a healthy, multiracial democracy, a political campaign would be torpedoed by compelling evidence of the candidates participation in a white supremacist group. But it quickly became clear that something else was happening in Enid. Within a week of the article in the Enid News & Eagle, Blevins found himself with a powerful, vocal supporter: Wade Burleson, an evangelical pastor who led the towns biggest church, Emmanuel Enid, for three decades. Im stunned that the Enid News & Eagle would publish this article about Judd Blevins, Burleson wrote in a post on Facebook, where he has 8,000 followers. Judd is an honorable, kind, compassionate Christian who served our country as a Marine. Judd loves Jesus and his country and has not one racist bone in his body. Burleson called the article yellow journalism that relied on an accusation by a far left socialist organization to falsely call an American patriot who fought for his country a white nationalist. He also expressed skepticism that Identity Evropa was actually an extremist group, noting that it was founded by a Marine. I refuse to go along with the leftist communist cancellation of good people, Burleson said. Judd, wear this news article as a badge of honor, he added. Enid citizens, do not fall for it. Burlesons resume is long. He served two terms as president of the Oklahoma Baptist General Convention; was appointed by former Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating as a regent for the Northwest Oklahoma Board of Higher Education; ran in the 2022 Republican primary for Congress (losing to the incumbent but still receiving some 25,000 votes); worked for years as chaplain for the Tulsa Police Department, claiming to have investigated crimes that involved the occult; and boasts close relationships with a host of influential figures, including both of Oklahomas U.S. senators. He stepped down as pastor of Emmanuel Enid in 2022, after years of making the church a hub of conservative politics, known for inviting MAGA luminaries like Charlie Kirk and Dinesh DSouza to give speeches from a stage in the nave. Burleson now runs Istoria Ministries, a nonprofit aimed at spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. When HuffPost met with Burleson early one morning at Istoria Ministries, a new single-story building in Enid, hed just finished leading his weekly men-only Bible study. Before talking about his support of Blevins, Burleson held forth on why he thinks trans people are psychotic; why Western civilization is superior to other civilizations; why Christianity is superior to both Islam and Judaism; and why the real antisemites are actually pro-Palestinian protesters calling for a cease-fire in Gaza. Burleson had come to Blevins defense, he said, because he knew Blevins pastor. His pastor said hes amazing, Burleson recalled. We have children in our community whose parents are either incarcerated or too poor, or too uninterested for their children to attend church. Judd drives a bus for them, picks up the children and brings them to church. And what about the evidence that Blevins marched with Nazis in Charlottesville, and had never denied doing so? I dont trust what I read in the news or see in the news, Burleson said, doubting whether the rally in Charlottesville was actually racist or white supremacist. HuffPost emphasized to Burleson that the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville chanted Jews will not replace us and that they beat a Black counter-protester with flag poles while calling him slurs. I go to the sources, Burleson said. He recounted a conversation he had with Blevins in which, he said, Blevins had admitted to attending the Charlottesville rally an admission Blevins has never made publicly. Judd told me he was there because he feels like our country is being subverted and the Constitution is being overturned, Burleson said. And Im telling you, I will stake my reputation on him not being racist. A mural welcomes visitors to town in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Shops line the streets of downtown in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Campaigns for city commissioners or councilors in any city, especially a relatively small one like Enid, are typically low-budget affairs. Blevins campaign listed only three donations in its financial reports. There was $100 Blevins had contributed himself; another $10 from a local woman; and then a third, significantly larger donation from a man living a four-and-a-half-hour drive south of Enid, near Dallas. Joshua Berkau of Irving, Texas, gave $1,944 to Blevins campaign. Berkau is 26 years old and, according to public records, and aworked as a field director in 2021 for a county commissioner campaign in Denton County, Texas. He also appears to be connected to a series of blogs and other sites that include racist content and betray a fluency in white supremacist lingo. An account on Pastebin, a site used to publicly store links and text files, belonging to a Joshua Berkau includes a folder labeled crime and non-whites. Its full of links to articles on American Renaissance, a white supremacist website, all falsely arguing that Black people are inherently more prone to violence. Another folder is labeled Migrant Crime. And yet another is labeled Race & IQ & Time Preference. An account registered to Joshua Berkau on Gravatar a service that creates globally unique avatars that can be used across different internet platforms linked out to an old blog called American Homeland. The blog is empty of content save for a message stating that it was meant as a backup in case the owners other blogs got shoahed. Shoah is a word for the Holocaust that white supremacists, in a cruel appropriation, often use to describe their social media accounts or blogs being banned for violating terms of service, usually for being too racist or antisemitic. But perhaps the most compelling evidence that Berkau is mixed up in white supremacist circles comes from examining a series of limited liability corporations registered to his name, including Sphinx Vending LLC, Spanish Horses LLC, and Ghost Dancing Redux LLC. Its not entirely clear what any of these businesses actually do. What is clear is that Berkau started one of them with a known member of an active white supremacist group. Berkau registered Sphinx Vending as an LLC in January 2023, according to public records, with a co-owner named Robert Whitted. Whitted was convicted last year on misdemeanor charges of conspiring to riot. He was among some 30 masked members of Patriot Front a white supremacist group known for holding flash-mob style demonstrations in cities across the country arrested in 2022 in Coeur DAlene, Idaho, just as they were about to ambush and disrupt a LGBTQ Pride event in a lakeside park. Whitted was later sentenced to five days in jail. Berkau did not respond to a request for comment about his relationship with Whitted or why he donated to Blevins, a man who was running for a city commission seat 300 miles away from his home. Whitted didnt respond to a request for comment. Racist, Sexist, Anti-Gay! Judd Blevins, Go Away! In the leadup to the Feb. 14, 2023, election, Blevins appeared at two town forums where he answered questions alongside his opponent, the incumbent Jerry Allen. At the first forum Blevins did not address ties to Identity Evropa, instead talking about improving infrastructure. But afterward, two local Democrats, Connie Vickers and Nancy Presnall, confronted Blevins, asking him to admit or deny his white supremacist activism and his participation in the Charlottesville rally. According to Vickers and Presnall, Blevins literally ran away from them. At the next forum, a week before the election, the moderator asked Blevins directly to clarify his involvement with Identity Evropa. This time Blevins repeated the statement hed previously given to the Enid News and Eagle, calling the initial Right Wing Watch article about him a hit piece by a leftist outlet. It was, yet again, not a denial. Recent years have seen a wave of far-right extremists across America running for seats on local school boards, library boards, health boards and city councils. They have also increasingly run for often uncontested positions as GOP functionaries, like precinct captains and election inspectors, as a way of taking over the Republican Party from the bottom up. This localized, flood-the-zone approach grew, in part, out of the fallout from the unsuccessful attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election via the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, when the far right found itself in disarray, reeling from a wave of arrests and prosecutions. Local elections, which in a depleted local media ecosystem tend to garner less scrutiny, typically have low turnout. This provides extremists with an opportunity: If a radical minority of voters turn up and vote as a bloc, getting their candidate into office isnt all that hard. Its a strategy, the NPR podcast No Compromise once described, of leveraging voter apathy to impose your will on society. Progressive activists in Enid think this is how Blevins got into office. Protesters wear red shirts inside the City Commission chambers in Enid, Okla., during a meeting on whether or not to make wearing a mask mandatory during the coronavirus pandemic, Wednesday, July 15, 2020. Billy Hefton/The Enid News & Eagle via AP In 2020 they watched as a group of local anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers formed a group called the Enid Freedom Fighters. This new far-right coalition showed up to city commission meetings in red shirts, shouting at commissioners who voted for mask mandates and other measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus, which has now killed over 1.1 million Americans. The next year, the Freedom Fighters joined the anti-transgender backlash sweeping the nation, turning their ire toward the indoctrination of children with an LGBTQ+ agenda at Enids local libraries. Suddenly library board meetings, normally tame affairs, became one of the biggest shows in town, with large, angry crowds of screaming constituents. By 2022, the library board voted to prohibit programs that featured sexual perversion or referenced gender or sexual orientation. And so by Election Day in February 2023, when Blevins was on the ballot, this far-right coalition was already mobilized. That evening, the Enid News and Eagle reported the results: out of over 800 votes cast, Blevins had won by 36 votes. He thanked his family and friends for his victory. The credit really goes to them tonight, Blevins told the paper. They got me across the finish line. Blevins was scheduled to be sworn into office on May 1, 2023, during a city commission meeting inside the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Municipal Complex. Some 50 progressive activists gathered outside on that day, holding up signs including one with a photo of Blevins in Charlottesville, reading, ONLY A NAZI MARCHES WITH NAZIS. Its abhorrent, Neal, who was there protesting, told local news channel KFOR about Blevins. Its inexcusable. Of course, as a priest, I pray for him. Neal, a Navy veteran and recently ordained priest in the Orthodox Catholic Church, was wearing his black cassock and white clerical collar. He and the head of the local chapter of the NAACP, Lanita Norwood, had spearheaded the formation of the Enid Social Justice Committee, the liberal group fired up over Blevins election. The group was not a radical band of antifa, as Blevins has sought to portray them, but was made up of pretty moderate, everyday Democrats. They couched their opposition to Blevins in patriotism, pointing to Enids history as a military town. Enid Army Airfield trained pilots to fight Nazis and their Axis allies in World War II, the Enid Social Justice Committee website stated. Enids sons and daughters did more than their share in the fight against Nazism and fascism, the statement continued. Now, their descendants have a new fight to win. Enid City Commissioner Judd Blevins embraces the same Nazi ideology we defeated almost 80 years ago. City ordinances would only allow a recall effort to be launched after Blevins had served six months in office, so until then the Enid Social Justice Committee was focused on getting Blevins to acknowledge and renounce his time in Identity Evropa, and to pressure the mayor and his fellow city commissioners to speak out against him. Their protest during Blevins swearing-in proved a preview of how hard those tasks would be. As they held up their signs and chanted Racist, sexist, anti-gay! Judd Blevins, go away! they were approached by an angry man many of them recognized: Kyle Williams, one of the richest guys in town. The owner of Jiffy Trip, a chain of gas station-convenience stores across Oklahoma, Williams is perhaps best known as the man determined to make Enid the annual home of the worlds tallest fresh-cut Christmas tree, each year shipping a gigantic fir 2,000 miles from California to Enid, where its decorated with 20,000 lights and 10,000 ornaments, looming over the town at a height of 140 feet. (In 2021, Oklahomas high winds swept across the arid plains of Enid and broke off the top of the Christ tree, as Williams calls it.) Neal says Williams disrupted their protest, getting in the face of an Enid Social Justice Committee member and yelling at her. Williams, it turned out, was a big Blevins supporter. We just kept asking him, Why are you supporting somebody whos tied to Nazism? Neal recalls, to which Williams kept responding I support him over and over. Williams didnt respond to a HuffPost request for comment about the confrontation. Later, a group of young white men waving a Trump flag out of their car kept driving by the protest and revving their engine. After the protest, members of the Enid Social Justice Committee, most wearing purple shirts, filed inside the municipal building, where Allen, the incumbent from Ward 1 who Blevins had defeated, gave a farewell speech. He recalled a trip hed recently made to the National Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., where he felt moved after seeing a crowd of rowdy middle schoolers fall silent as they made their way through the exhibits. I was so proud of them, that they were recognizing what that museum represented, Allen said. Were very fortunate we have a military that protects all of us. We have a police department that protects all of us. No race, no nationality, no creed. Everyone counts. Thats what this nation was founded on. Inclusivity. We welcome everybody. And so, to that end, Mr. Judd Blevins will take the seat here in a few minutes... The ESJC members braced themselves. Maybe, finally, someone was going to denounce Blevins. But Allen didnt. He deserves the respect of the office, Allen said. So I hope you give him the opportunity that I was given many years ago when I first started doing this Thank you. The commissioners, the mayor and many in the crowd broke into applause. (Allen has since died.) Blevins lifted up his right hand and took the oath of office a short time later, taking his seat for the first time on the city commission. Then the newly-elected mayor, David Mason, announced the public comment portion of the evening, begging the assembled crowd for decorum, and announcing a new rule: a one-minute time limit. Wow, one minute? the first speaker, Ben Ezzell, a member of the Enid Social Justice Committee and a former city commissioner himself, said as he took to the lectern. Heres the thing, everything you just said about decorum is important, but were right now sitting in the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Municipal complex. And the thing about Dr. King that we all laud is that Dr. King pointed out that sometimes decorum isnt the right solution. There are times where we have to stand up to point out when things are simply wrong. ... So decorum is a shield 30 seconds, the mayor interjected. And when you use that shield to protect white nationalists, thats wrong. Its not okay to say we need decorum so dont point out that Judd Blevins is a white nationalist, a member of Identity Europa. ... Show leadership and say no to the wrong thing. Times up. Well, one minute is kinda chickens**t, Ezzell shot back. Do better. Ben Ezzell poses for a portrait in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Nick Oxford for HuffPost The meeting ended a short time later. KFOR chased down Blevins, asking him on camera to address his history with Identity Evropa. I understand that youre never going to please everyone, a visibly nervous Blevins said, his voice quaking. As far as the people outside, ultimately, theyre here because an election did not go their way and thats fine. So are the claims true? the KFOR reporter asked. Do you have ties Thats all I have to say, Blevins said, ending the interview and walking away. For the next six months Blevins dutifully avoided answering questions like these. Mason and the five other city commissioners seemed uninterested in pressing him on the matter. By November, the Enid Social Justice Committee had decided to offer Blevins an olive branch: just sign this letter acknowledging and denouncing your time in Identity Evropa, and your participation in the Charlottesville rally, and the group would not pursue a recall effort. Norwood, the only Black city commissioner, encouraged Blevins to sign it, but at the Nov. 7 city commission meeting Blevins announced that he would refuse to do so. This refusal meant the Enid Social Justice Committee would commence the recall effort, members informed him during the public comment portion of the meeting. They then took turns at the lectern reciting racist messages they said Blevins, as Conway, had written in Discord, including Hitler would never have allowed this shit. Then Blevins gave his statement, yet another non-denial denial. This was when Neal interrupted him and was removed by security, causing Blevins to laugh. As ESJC members yelled at Blevins at the end of the meeting, a coterie of Blevins supporters mocked them. Oh my Lord, you whiny people, Neanne Clinton said. Clinton, a middle-aged real estate agent with long, straight blond hair, is a conservative fixture at city commission meetings, and has spoken out against LGBTBQ books in libraries and mask mandates. Black Lives Matter is the real Nazis, she told HuffPost. They hate Jews and protest for Palestine. Im a conservative Christian Republican who is a patriot and believes in our nation and our Constitution. And so is Judd, Hes never been a Nazi. He has nothing to apologize for. Just because these people label him a Nazi does not make it so. HuffPost repeatedly pressed her about the photos of Blevins in Charlottesville, but she refused to acknowledge them. Outside, another local woman, 65-year-old Trudi Bandi, was walking back to her car. She said she didnt like the name-calling and attacks against Blevins. Mostly, she said, she didnt get what all the fuss was about. HuffPost asked her if a white supremacist should be on the city council. What difference will that make towards the city council? she said. Thats what I dont understand. When HuffPost explained that it would likely be disconcerting for Black residents of Enid to have a white supremacist on city council shaping policy, Bandi responded that Blevins owned a roofing business in town that hires non-white workers. Im just saying if that was what he believed at that time, and he may still believe it or not, hes not living that life right now in this town because Ive witnessed it, she said. Ive seen it in my neighborhood for the work that hes done. And the people that he hired to do the jobs in my neighborhood were of every color. The Recall A few days later Blevins announced in a press release that he had filed a police report. The mechanic informed me that my brake lines had been cut, he wrote. There is currently an investigation to identify those responsible and I will be pursuing criminal charges. He added that he had been receiving threats from far-left wing fringe groups for years, but since the Enid City Commission meeting on November 7th, verbal harassment and threats have now escalated to criminal violence. Blevins didnt provide any evidence that this alleged crime was politically motivated, but told police he suspected three members of the ESJC. I never imagined I would face domestic threats for upholding these beliefs, he said. ESJC chairwoman Kristi Balden denied that her group was responsible for vandalism. All our group has done is we are engaging in the democratic process that is afforded to us in the charter of Enid, she told the Enid News and Eagle. Cass Rains, a spokesperson for the Enid Police Department, told HuffPost the investigation into Blevins brake lines was closed, as officers could neither prove nor disprove that a crime had occurred. In the following weeks, Mayor Mason introduced aresolution to censure Blevins, condemning hisfailure to explain and apologize for his participation in a White Nationalist, Neo-Nazi demonstration in Charlottesville, Virginia on August 11 and 12, 2017. But at the Nov. 20 city commission meeting, the mayor and the commissioners voted unanimously to table the resolution. They would not vote on it. Instead, one of the commissioners, Norwood, asked Blevins to stand up alongside him. Do you love me? Norwood asked Blevins. I love you as a Brother in Christ, Blevins replied. I love you too. I forgive you. Thank you, Blevins said. Norwood then hugged Blevins, as the other commissioners and the mayor gave them a standing ovation. For the ESJC members in the audience, the whole scene was profoundly confusing. Why was Norwood forgiving Blevins for something that Blevins had never asked forgiveness for? It felt like a desperate, hollow ploy to mollify the ESJC. commissioner blevins has actually not apologized for his participation in a hate group, but norwood offers him forgiveness anyway pic.twitter.com/rJWwkRppjI molly conger (@socialistdogmom) November 22, 2023 By the end of November, the ESJC had collected enough signatures from voters of Ward 1 to initiate a recall, leading Blevins to issue a particularly hostile statement about the group. I am eager to see who, if anyone, is willing to attach themselves to the so called Enid Social Justice Squad a small group of antifa-adjacent leftists, who seek to bring family friendly drag shows to our community, promote a gospel contrary to the teachings of Jesus Christ, and whose rhetoric and behavior is actively dividing and destroying our nation, he told the Enid News and Eagle. It is unfortunate that Enid is being held hostage by a group of people who harbor so much hate against those with different views that they cannot control themselves in our public meetings. The attacks against me are inspired by the same antifa radicals that rioted and burned cities across this country in 2020, he added. Despite the best efforts of this fringe group, great things are coming to Enid in the years ahead, and I look forward to being a part of that process. In January, when a local business owner and educator named Cheryl Patterson announced that she would be running against Blevins in the recall election, she was careful to distance herself from the ESJC, saying the group had not asked her to run. Her major platform as a candidate, she said, was a return to normalcy. I would love to see people show up to the meetings because they want to be involved in whats going on in our community, she said. But unfortunately, I think we have two different sides coming in and sometimes shouting. So just civility we need civility. The recall election is now set for April 2. Darkest Before The Dawn Michelle Solano, 42, remembers how segregated Enid used to be just decades ago; when Black people like her and her family knew to stay on their side of the railroad tracks. She remembers being called the N-word in elementary school, and she remembers rumors of KKK meetings a few blocks from her house. Seeing Blevins on that city commission, she said, has conjured up all those feelings again. I know that racism is still alive and well, Solano told HuffPost. And its just sad that the city is kind of like sweeping it under the rug. It also beggars belief, she said, that so many people in Enid refuse to believe that Blevins was mixed up with white supremacist groups. Do you want him with the white [KKK] hat? she said. What do you want? Do you want him with a sign saying I am a Nazi? Solano spoke to HuffPost inside a Sunday School classroom at First Missionary Baptist Church on the east side of town. The building, with a nave bathed in sunlight pouring in through stained glass windows, was only built in 1997 one year after the congregations previous place of worship, a 103-year-old church, was set on fire by a white man. Police could never prove the arson at First Missionary was racially motivated, but parishioners felt it was a casualty of a wave of arson attacks that targeted predominantly Black churches across America in the 1990s. Solano, also a member of the Enid Social Justice Committee, still believes in the fundamental goodness of most people, including Blevins fellow city commissioners. She was just saddened, she said, that Blevins presence on the board has taken a lot of away from what the city actually needs. Were supposed to be focused on education, the youth here, after-school programs, she added. Were not supposed to be worried about racism. Father James Neal poses for a portrait in Enid, Oklahoma February 20, 2024. Nick Oxford for HuffPost Nick Oxford for HuffPost Neal agrees that there are other urgent, even existential, problems facing Enid problems that could be compounded by the bad press Blevins is bringing to the city. The ultimate threat to this town is when the next round of BRAC base realignments and closings comes up, he said, referring to when the federal government decides which military bases are slated to close. And if the Air Force goes, we can have a base over here training student pilots, or we can have a base in the Nazi town, Enid loses that battle. And If the Air Force Base goes away, this town dries up like a dog turd and floats away in the wind. But for Neal, perhaps the most disturbing part of the whole Blevins saga has been witnessing the degree to which so many lawmakers across Oklahoma are embracing rhetoric and policy positions that would likely be cheered by Identity Evropa, were the group still around. Over the last year Oklahomas Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) has signed one of the nations strictest anti-choice laws, banning abortions from the moment of conception; hes advocated sending Oklahomas national guard to the U.S.-Mexico border to defend our country against an invasion of immigrants and asylum seekers; and hes made Oklahoma into a testing ground for the countrys most severe anti-transgender laws. The way theyve attacked transgender people, in particular, I mean, if its bad enough if youre gay, but if youre trans around here, its like a whole other order, Neal told HuffPost. As a man of the cloth, what most infuriates Neal is the way men like Blevins, Stitt, and Burleson, the megachurch pastor, gussy up plain old bigotry with the poetry of the Bible, twisting the word of the Lord for their own cruel ends. It is the worst form of evil I can think of, besides crimes against children and genocide, and things like that, he said. Manipulating peoples faith to stir up oppression and hatred and violence is reprehensible beyond reproach. The shame of it all, Neal says, is that he loves Enid from the bottom of his heart, and he also believes the people here are fundamentally good, even if they often get manipulated by the rhetoric of powerful pastors and politicians. He still has hope. Sometimes things have to get a lot worse before they get better, he said. The good thing about all of this is that its bringing all of this latent hatred out into the open. And people are beginning to be forced to have to deal with it. People like the mayor and business leaders. The majority of the pastors in this town may still want to pretend like its not happening, but that momentum is there now, he continued. People, pastors and business leaders and politicians didnt want to acknowledge the civil rights movement. The momentum was there, and it was gonna move whether they got on board or not. And I think were at that place where things are gonna get worse before they get better, but theyre gonna get better. Related... Its the most wonderful time of the yearfor mathematicians, anyway. Pi Day is Thursday, March 14. The relatively new holiday is a celebration of the mathematical calculation pi, or the infinite number representing the constant ratio of a circles circumference to its diameter. Pi is essential to engineering and modern construction. Although many sought to find it, the calculation of pi, which is also expressed by the fraction 22/7, is commonly credited to Greek mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse more than 2,200 years ago. According to History.com, physicist Larry Shaw founded Pi Day day in 1988, selecting March 14 because the numeric date represents the first three digits of pi (3.14). It also happens to be Albert Einsteins birthday. The first Pi Day took place at the Exploratorium, a San Franciscobased science museum, and featured a circular parade and fruit pies. The latter has become a delicious tradition among academic and office settings. In 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution recognizing March 14 as National Pi Day. According to the Exploratorium, mathematicians began using , the Greek letter pi, for the calculations symbol in the 1700s, starting with William Jones in 1706. Leonhard Euler subsequently popularized the symbol. As for Archimedes, you might be surprised to learn that pi was just one of his many important discoveries and inventions. Who Was Archimedes? Getty Images According to NOVA, Archimedes was born in Syracuseon the Mediterranean island of Sicily, not upstate New Yorkaround 287 BCE. He was the son of astronomer Phidias and a close ally of Syracuses King Hieron and his son, whom he served many years. Archimedes traveled to Egypt to study at the Library of Alexandria at age 18 and, upon completing his work, returned to Syracuse around 263 BCE for the remainder of his life. Over roughly the next 50 years, Archimedes developed most of his major theories. These included the fundamental principles of mechanics; methods for finding the center of gravity, surface area, and volume of geometric figures; the principle of buoyancy; and, of course, an estimate for the value of pi. Archimedes was obsessed with math, often getting lost in his work and forgetting to eat. Legend has it he discovered his principle of buoyancy while taking a bath. Excited, he leapt out of the tub and ran naked through the streets of Syracuse shouting, Eureka! By one account, Greek philosopher Plutarch reported that Archimedes died while solving a math problem. In 212 BCE, during the Second Punic War, a Roman solider asked Archimedes to accompany him amid a siege of Syracuse. Archimedes refused, and the angry soldier stabbed him with a sword. What Else Did Archimedes Do? Archimedes is often credited with inventing the Archimedes screw, a device for raising water, while in Egypt. The large helix is encased lengthwise in a watertight covering with openings at both ends. When one end is placed in water and the device is elevated at an angle and turned, water trapped in air pockets rises from the lower end through the open upper end. Back then, it was used to pump water out of ships and for irrigation. But the design is still used today. According to Scientific American, modern examples include lifting wastewater in treatment plants and even lifting water for some amusement park rides. Archimedes also created a means for approximating square roots and devised ways of calculating area and volume two millennia before the invention of calculus. When the Romans invaded Syracuse, Archimedes engines of war helped defend the city. These devices included cranes to drop rocks, claws to lift ships from the water, and machines to fire wooden missiles. He also devised a set of mirrors that focused sunlight on enemy ships, setting them on fire. Finally, Archimedes proved the volume of a sphere is two-thirds the volume of a circumscribed cylinder. He considered this his greatest accomplishment and asked that a representation of a sphere inside a cylinder be left on his tomb. He is likely buried in Sicily. Tracing Archimedes Legacy According to NOVA, scribes copied Archimedes writings onto parchment in 300 AD. His manuscript explaining how he developed his mathematical theorems was copied and bound onto vellum sheets around 1000. Archimedes treatise Measurement of a Circlewhich helped spread his process for calculating pi around the world, according to the American Mathematical Societywas part of this manuscript. Around 200 years later, a monk reused the manuscript to make a prayer book. Finished in 1229 and likely made in Jerusalem, this manuscript became known as the Archimedes Palimpsest. It is the only surviving copy of Archimedes manuscript and contains several of his treatises. For about 400 years, the Palimpsest was stored in a monastery in the Judean desert before being moved to a library in Old Jerusalem. German scholar Constantine Tischendorf discovered it in Constantinople in 1846, and Danish scholar Johan Ludwig attempted to transcribe it in 1906 using a magnifying glass. Shockingly, the Palimpsest disappeared for much of the 20th century. It resurfaced in a damaged state in Paris in 1998 and was sold at auction for $2 million to an anonymous American collector. The buyer then donated the book to the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore in 1999. It was featured there in a 2011 exhibit titled Lost & Found: The Secrets of Archimedes. You Might Also Like HANOI, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's automobile sales in February fell 50 percent year on year to 11,633 units, marking the largest decline in three years, Vietnam News Agency reported Wednesday, citing the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers' Association. The figure was lower than the 13,585 units recorded in February 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the report. The association attributed the auto sales slump chiefly to the week-long Lunar New Year holidays. Businesses and experts also blamed it on economic challenges and expiration of the 50 percent registration fee reduction on Jan. 1. From the beginning of March, many of the car brands in the Southeast Asian country have offered discounts and run various promotion programs to boost sales. The Brooklyn, New York bling bishop notorious for showboating his luxury items has been found guilty of scamming and exploiting a 58-year-old woman who saw him as a man of God. Following a two-week trial, Lamor Whitehead was convicted of several charges, including one count of making false statements to the FBI, one count of attempted extortion, one count of attempted wire fraud, and two counts of wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office Southern District of New York. As a unanimous jury found, Lamor Whitehead abused the trust placed in him by a parishioner, tried to obtain a fraudulent loan using fake bank records, bullied a businessman for $5,000, tried to defraud him out of far more than that, and lied to federal agents, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement. Brooklyn Bishop Lamor Whitehead. (Photo: Facebook/Brooklyn Bishop Lamor Whitehead) Officials alleged that Whitehead convinced a parishioner, Pauline Anderson, to give him the $90,000 out of her retirement fund to help her purchase a new home. He reportedly used the money at luxury stores like Louis Vuitton to pay his bills, according to reports. After receiving no update, Anderson asked for her money back, but officials said he kept making excuses and lying. This sparked a legal battle between the two. He was a man of God, Anderson said, per The New York Times. I believed him as the leader of his church. Her son, Rasheed Anderson, initially viewed Whitehead as a spiritual father, the outlet reported. The 30-year-old testified in court that he met Whitehead at a service in 2020. Since then, he officiated his wedding and played a role in helping him buy his home. Rasheed Anderson testified that Whitehead was supposed to take Pauline Andersons money, buy and renovate an investment property, and then give it back to her a short time later, the newspaper reported. Prosecutors said that Whitehead also tried to extort $5,000 from a man identified by outlets as Brandon Belmonte, a businessman. He later circled back to convince Belmonte to lend him $500,000 and give him a stake in certain real estate transactions. In exchange, according to the DA, he promised favorable actions from New York City Mayor Eric Adams, although he knew he couldnt fulfill that obligation. During his testimony, Whitehead alleged that an FBI agent alluded to wanting to target Adams, but he declined to be an informant, the New York Times reported. The bishop was thrust into mainstream media after gunmen stole $1 million in jewelry during a livestreamed service at his Brooklyn church, Leaders of Tomorrow International Ministries, in 2022. He recently offered to officiate the funeral of one of the suspects, whom U.S. marshals shot in January. The bishop seemingly responded to the conviction in several Instagram posts on Tuesday. He plans to appeal the conviction. The story isnt over. Its just a new chapterstay [tuned]. God is still God. They can all laugh now and talk, he wrote, reiterating that the FBI wanted him to turn against the citys mayor. After this, Jesus will still get the glory. Stay Tuned for this new chapter calledtruth and vindication. Disgraced Bling Bishop Convicted of Fraud After Allegedly Abusing Religion to Exploit Black Worshipper Claims FBI Targeted Him Because He Refused to Snitch on Mayor Eric Adams The Democratic National Committee (DNC) gifted the Republican National Committees (RNC) new chairs a piggy bank to mock them about cash after the GOP groups poor fundraising numbers and major staff shake-ups. In the announcement first shared with The Hill, the DNC said it has the piggy bank for the RNC as a gift, and theyre welcome to pick it up if they want it. The so-called gift comes after Tuesday reports that the RNC is slashing its staff and that more than 60 people have been fired. The RNC officially voted to make Michael Whatley, former President Trump loyalist and chair of the North Carolina GOP, and Trumps daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, its new chair and co-chair, respectively. The RNC has lagged far behind Democrats in bringing in cash over the past year, with campaign finance disclosures revealing it has $8 million in the bank and $1 million in debt. It must be demoralizing walking into your first week in a new job knowing that youre boarding a sinking ship. So, as newly elected Trump loyalists Michael Whatley and Lara Trump start as chair and co-chair of the RNC, we wanted to send them something to raise their spirits even if it doesnt fix their abysmal fundraising numbers, DNC rapid response director Alex Floyd said in a statement. Lucky for them, this piggy bank isnt just a great tool to teach basic fiscal responsibility its also plastic, so itll be the last thing the Republican Party has that isnt broken past the point of repair by November, Floyd said. The DNC argued that the RNC is undergoing an extreme MAGA rebrand and said Lara Trump is a co-chair so that she can make the committee pay for [former President Trumps] legal expenses. Lara Trump, who is married to Eric Trump, in February vowed to spend every single penny of the RNCs funds to help reelection Trump. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. OLIVE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners has approved an agreement to use $715,000 in funding from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources to continue work on the Idema Explorers Trail. The Ottawa County Parks & Recreation Commission says this is the third grant and the largest, by far provided by the DNR for this project. Ottawa County reached an agreement in 2022 with the DNR to design, build and maintain the Idema Explorers Trail at the Bass River State Recreation Area that covers parts of Robinson Township and Allendale Charter Township. A map of the Bass River Segment of the Idema Explorers Trail. The 7.4-mile stretch of trail will be split up into four phases, working west to east. (Courtesy Ottawa County Parks & Recreation Commission) The Idema Explorers Trail is part of the grandiose Grand River Greenway campaign that aims to build a system of green space that follows the river from Grand Haven all the way to Grand Rapids. In all, the trail will stretch 36.5 miles, from the Grand Haven Channel to Millennium Park in Walker. The entire project was forecast to cost $41 million. At least $7 million has already been raised from private philanthropic groups. Sneak peek at transformation coming to GRs Canal Park The Bass River Segment spans 7.4 miles, picking up the trail at Riverside Park on North Cedar Drive and carrying it all the way to the Eastmanville Bayou near 68th Street. The trail will be broken up into four phases, with crews starting at the western edge and working east. Phase one is expected to be completed in the 2024-2025 fiscal year. Each following phase is expected to take an additional year to finish. DECADES OF PLANNING The project was one of the first major goals of the Ottawa County Parks Commission when it was founded in 1987. Two years later, the commission adopted its first ever Parks and Recreation plan, which introduced the Grand River Greenway. The concept was a mission to protect the land around the Grand River and convert it into more recreational opportunities. Sign up for the News 8 daily newsletter It started with, OK, lets get these properties, lets conserve this parkland, make sure weve got these individual parks for people to recreate throughout the county. And then lets get them connected, the OCPRCs Jessica VanGinhoven told News 8 in 2022. At that time, there were only two county parks along the Grand: Riverside Park and Deer Creek Park. They constituted 38 acres of land and less than half a mile of riverfront. By 1994, those numbers had jumped to more than 3,100 acres and more than 13 miles of riverfront, boosted primarily by the Bass River State Recreation Area a converted gravel mine site purchased by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Prescribed fire season underway in Huron-Manistee National Forests The Grand River Greenway study was completed and presented in 1995. After more than two decades of work and planning and the approval of a second park millage, the Grand River Greenway Project was launched in 2016 building new trails and incorporating existing ones to connect Grand Haven and Grand Rapids. Were completing the project in segments, VanGinhoven said. We really had to break it down to smaller pieces for a lot of reasons: to get funding, to work with landowners, to get easements. A lot of the trail goes through (county) property, but a lot of (other property owners) have worked together with us in order to make this a reality. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A 54-year-old woman shot and killed her husband last year two days after Christmas in South-Central El Paso after she found out that he was having an affair, according to court documents obtained by KTSM. UPDATE: Husband fatally shot by wife in South-Central El Paso Court documents say Luz Elena Martinez is facing a murder charge after she intentionally and knowingly caused the death of her husband Jose Luis Avalos Reyes (age 47) by shooting him with a firearm. Court documents say just before 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 27, Martinez called 911 to report that she had shot her husband and officers responded to the 400 block of French Place in South-Central El Paso. When officers arrived at the scene, they met Martinez who was sitting inside a taxi van which was parked right in front of the home. Officers entered the home to check on Reyes and found him dead. Court documents say Reyes had suspected gun shot wounds and officers also saw a pistol on the nightstand next to the bed where Reyes was laying. Officers also saw a knife positioned in Reyes left hand which was later discovered to be his non-dominant hand, according to court documents. Martinez told officers that she had been raped and requested a lawyer. However, the investigation revealed that Martinez admitted to a witness that she allegedly shot Reyes. Court documents say Martinez made a call to a family member after she shot Reyes and prior to dialing 911. A sexual assault evidence collection kit was also performed on Martinez by a sexual assault nurse examiner and Martinez told her, At one point, he came at with me the knife so I shot him, then he stood up with the knife and I shot him again. Court documents say Martinez found out that Reyes was having an affair and she hired a private investigator to follow him. Court documents also say Martinez hired a divorce lawyer. Evidence at the scene indicated that Reyes was laying down on the bed when Martinez allegedly shot him at a close distance. Court documents also say evidence contradicts the statement she provided the sexual assault nurse examiner in which she said she shot Reyes when he stood up with a knife. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. With the news that some charges were dropped against former president Donald Trump and other defendants in Fulton Countys election interference case, we took the ruling to the legal experts to see what this means for Trump and others. The judge got rid of six of the 41 charges levied against the 15 remaining defendants in the case, saying the charges were too vague. But legal experts Channel 2s Richard Elliot spoke to said Wednesdays ruling isnt much of a victory for Trump and his allies, and none of what happened today affects the rest of the case. This is not a Trump victory, Georgia State University constitutional law professor Anthony Michael Kreis said. Kreis doesnt think the fact that Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee dismissed some of the charges against Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and others is really not a big deal because, he says, all Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has to do is tweak the charges and present them to a grand jury all over again. RELATED STORIES: Ultimately, the DA has the opportunity to either appeal or to go back to the grand jury and just button up her theory of constitutional law and present it to the grand jury and get an indictment, Kreis said. Wednesdays decision by McAfee revolved around the infamous phone call by Trump to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Look, all I need is 11,780 votes, Trump told Raffensperger on the call. The ruling also has to do with the appearance by Giuliani and others before a state Senate committee. The DA alleges the defendants attempted to try and get the lawmakers to violate their oaths of office by overturning the 2020 presidential electors. But in his nine-page ruling, McAfee said Willis didnt go far enough laying out exactly what crimes they allegedly broke doing that, making the charge too vague to allow to continue. Former DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James told Elliot that he agrees that the ruling has little or no effect on the rest of the racketeering and conspiracy charges Trump and the others face. If its a victory, its a very hollow victory, James said. This is not even close to being fatal. The only way its fatal is if the DA decides not to bring these charges back, which would not even be fatal to her cases against these individuals or her indictments. There was no comment from the Fulton County DAs office over the ruling. We are still waiting on McAfees decision on whether Willis will be allowed to continue prosecuting this case. RELATED NEWS: BROCKTON - Thousands of Haitian migrants have flooded Massachusetts to escape political unrest and turmoil in their country, and one local man is trying to make life easier for them by delivering homecooked meals that remind them of the food from the motherland. Kervin Edouard, the owner of Swerv Catering, is doing what many have called "God's work" because his team is able to make and deliver hundreds of meals to Haitian migrants at Boston Logan Airport and many hotels in the area. The young entrepreneur "decided to put himself out there," which caused a chain reaction. Many locals are donating and helping Edouard's cause to feed more local migrants. One of Edouard's Instagram posts went viral of him delivering food, reaching over 219,000 views, dozens of comments, and hundreds of dollars in donations. Kervin Edouard, owner of Swerv Catering, makes traditional Haitian dishes and delivers them to hundreds of Haitian migrants living in hotels in the Boston area. So far, he's raised over $3,000 and counting, but plans to raise more. The menu changes weekly, but the meals consist of legume, a traditional Haitian stew with vegetables and meat, rice and beans with chicken, spaghetti, fried pork, baked mac and cheese, and salad. Edouard cooks all the popular dishes in Haitian culture. Traditional Haitian dishes created by Kervin Edouard the owner of Swerv Catering. Edouard makes meals weekly and delivers them to hundreds of Haitian migrants living in hotels in the Boston area. "I honestly feel great about giving back to my community. I was originally born in Florida until I moved here. Still, both of my parents were born in Haiti, and I grew up spending the summers there, so it means the world to me to help the people starting a new journey in the United States," Edouard said. More about 'Mango Man Swerv' 'Fruit that sells itself': Haiti's succulent mangos journey from family farm to Brockton How his journey started As a kid, Edouard spent a lot of time in the kitchen with his mother. In a Haitian household, families don't directly teach you how to cook; you "learn by observing." "When I was in the kitchen with my mom, she would tell me to pass her this and that, and my knowledge of cooking grew," Edouard said. Traditional Haitian dishes created by Kervin Edouard, the owner of Swerv Catering. Edouard makes meals weekly and delivers them to hundreds of Haitian migrants living in hotels in the Boston area. Edouard felt compelled to help since his own family once migrated to the USA for a better life. Edouard went to culinary school and expanded his cooking skills, launching his Haitian catering business almost a decade ago. The journey of feeding migrants has caused Edouard to think deeply about his life and everything the migrants went through to reach Massachusetts. He remembers, as a distant memory, what Haiti felt like, from the beautiful flowers growing up every wall to the smooth rivers flowing downstream and the smell of his mother's cooking as he walked home. Traditional Haitian dishes created by Kervin Edouard is the owner of Swerv Catering. Edouard makes meals weekly and delivers them to hundreds of Haitian migrants living in hotels in the Boston area. Edouard felt compelled to help since his own family once migrated to the USA for a better life. It weighs heavy on his heart to hear the stories of how bad Haiti has gotten and the trek many have taken, from crossing the borders of Chile and Guatemala to Mexico and having to figure it out with barely any money or resources. And, Edouard said, the worst part about this is hearing how many will take advantage of migrants eager to start a new life by charging them for each route and adding additional fees to show how to get over the border. Kervin Edouard, 33, owner of Mango Man Swerv, a Haitian mango exportation company, posing next to his shipment of Madame Francique mangos during its peak season. Although hearing the heart-wrenching stories saddens Edouard, he is happy to be able to provide a slight sense of home through food and culture. "Seeing the happiness food brings people makes everything worth it," Edouard said. This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Kervin Edouard of Mango Man Swerv provides meals to Haitian migrants Dollar General employees at a Wisconsin store walked out over the weekend due to concerns over pay, work hours, the company's donation policy and their overall treatment. The staff of the Dollar General in Mineral Point, a city in Iowa County, Wisconsin, stormed out for three hours on Saturday and left signs explaining why on the store's doors and windows. "The store is closed," one of the signs reads. "The whole team has walked away due to a lack of appreciation, being over overworked and underpaid." Another sign said, "We quit!" On the same sign, the employees thanked the store's "amazing customers" and said, "We love you and will miss you!" The final piece of signage left by the employees was a note thoroughly describing the employees' dismay for Dollar General. "We will not work for a company that does not stand behind in true honest form of what they want the world to see them as," the note read. "... we must take a stand for the community and not allow corporate greed to continue preventing people in need of help they need and could receive. Policies, processes and procedures need to change!" Store closures: Nearly 1,000 Family Dollar stores are closing, owner Dollar Tree announces Dollar General's Mineral Point store reopened after closing for 3 hours, company says In a statement emailed to USA TODAY, Dollar General said, "We are committed to providing an environment where employees can grow their careers and where they feel valued and heard." "We apologize for any inconvenience our customers experienced during the three hours the Mineral Point store was closed this past weekend," the Tennessee-headquartered company's statement said. "The store reopened at 11 a.m. last Saturday morning and remains open to serve the community." It is unclear if employees who participated in the walkout faced any consequences. Dollar General's donation policy led to the walkout, former manager says This is a file photo of a Dollar General store. Dollar General employees at a store in Mineral Point, Wisconsin quit and walked out over working conditions. Trina Tribolet, the store's former manager, told WKOW in Wisconsin that understaffing and excessive work hours only contributed to the employees' decision Saturday. She said a primary reason for the walkout was a disagreement on what employees could and couldn't donate. Dollar General's donation policy requires employees to discard items approaching the expiration date or that the store no longer sold, Tribolet told the TV station. To work around the policy, employees would label items as damaged and donate the products to community members, she said. When corporate found out about the employees' workaround and told them to stop it, they all quit, according to Tribolet. In Dollar General's emailed statement, the company addressed its donation policy. "We are proud to serve local Wisconsin communities with donations through our Feeding America partnership at 21 stores across the state," Dollar General said. "The Mineral Point Dollar General store has donated nearly 7,500 pounds of food to local food banks such as Second Harvest Food Bank of Southern Wisconsin over the past twelve months. Food safety is a top priority for Dollar General, therefore, DG stores are required to follow Company donation policies." Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@gannett.com This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Dollar General employees quit at Mineral Point, Wisconsin store (KRON) A Santa Rosa man suspected of felony assault against a significant other was hospitalized Tuesday with life-threatening injuries following a police standoff at a Petaluma hotel, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department. On Saturday just before midnight, Santa Rosa police responded to a report of domestic violence at a residence on the 2700 block of Harvest Lane. The man suspected of felony assault and other charges was no longer at the residence, and a be on the lookout was issued countywide to all Sonoma County law enforcement agencies, Santa Rosa PD said. Two days later, on Monday, the suspect was spotted by Santa Rosa police officers driving his blue Ford F-250 in the city at around 1 p.m. A vehicle pursuit began when the suspect refused to stop for the police, SRPD said. Due to public safety concerns, however, the chase was quickly terminated. Shortly after the pursuit, the Santa Rosa Fire Department and police officers responded again to the suspects residence on Harvest Lane on a report of a possible fire. Authorities said that the flames were hastily extinguished. The Santa Rosa PD Property Crime Team executed a search warrant of the residence and located a dozen firearms, including privately manufactured rifles, assault rifles, shotguns and a handgun, SRPD said. Vallejo cop injured after being rammed by retail theft suspect The following day, on Tuesday morning, the suspects vehicle was once again located, this time at the Best Western Petaluma Inn parking lot on 200 S McDowell Boulevard. At noon, the Santa Rosa PD SWAT team and crisis negotiators attempted to serve a search warrant and arrest warrant. The arrest warrant was for felony domestic violence, felony vehicle pursuit, felony arson and felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. The suspect made threats of violence to authorities and fired a weapon several times inside the motel room, according to authorities. Some time later in the afternoon as the standoff was ongoing, another shot was heard from the suspects motel room. When SWAT officers entered the room, the suspect was located with a significant injury and was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, SRPD said. Police said the suspect is an adult male in his mid-50s, but provided no other identifying information. The man remains in critical condition. No police officers or citizens were injured during the incident, SRPD said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. Ah, Valentines Day: that Hallmark holiday of greeting cards and chocolates, its bloody origins almost entirely forgotten over the last 2,000 years! What began as a Christian feast day honoring two or three early Christian martyrs the original Valentines is now associated with flocks of winged cherubic Cupids, whose innocuous-looking bows and arrows symbolize gentle romance instead of death-dealing war. Somehow, the phrase struck by Cupids arrow is supposed to be exciting rather than excruciating. The original Cupid was the son of Venus, Roman goddess of love and beauty. He himself was a Roman deity associated with lust and love, based on the Greek Eros. In Greece and Rome, both figures were depicted as handsome young men, not as winged infants. But ancient poets and artists also imagined a troop of Erotes or Cupidines as attendants of these gods. The Romans portrayed them as winged infants, or putti, as they became known in Italian Renaissance art. These, in turn, became the chubby cherubs of todays valentines. Despite envisioning the god with a troop of adorable attendants, even the Romans understood that Cupid had a darker, more dangerous side one whose power you wouldnt want to dismiss. Small but mighty The archer god Apollo found this out the hard way, as the poet Ovid told in his epic of A.D. 8, Metamorphoses. Having just slain the dragon of Delphi with 1,000 arrows, Apollo provoked the fierce fury of Venus son by mocking Cupids seemingly toylike weapons. Cupid and Apollo by Pontormo (attributed to the School of Andrea del Sarto) Samek Art Museum at Bucknell University/National Art Gallery Cupid swiftly took his revenge. He pierced Apollos heart with a golden arrow, causing him to fall passionately in love with the nymph Daphne. But Daphne was a sworn virgin, and Cupid shot her with a lead arrow, intensifying her loathing for all things amorous. She fled from Apollos advances. The desperate deity pursued her relentlessly, until Daphnes father turned her into a laurel tree to save her. Cupids arrows, however diminutive, were more powerful than Apollos. The unseen spouse But the most famous characterization of Cupid in Latin literature appears in the work of Apuleius, who lived during the second century in what is now Algeria. He wrote a story about Psyche, a princess so exceedingly beautiful that mortals worshipped her as if she were the goddess of love herself. Enraged by jealousy, Venus commanded her son to make Psyche fall in love with the most wretched man possible. But an oracle told the royal family that their daughter was destined to marry a savage, untamed creature that flew about tormenting everyone with fire and they abandoned her on a cliff to meet this terrifying fate. Instead, Psyche found herself borne by a gentle breeze to an elaborate palace inhabited by invisible servants. That night, an unknown husband arrived and made Psyche his wife, departing before sunrise. Her unseen spouse continued to visit nightly, and Psyche was soon overjoyed to find herself pregnant. But she also became increasingly lonely. Her mysterious husband agreed that her sisters could visit as long as she did not try to investigate his appearance. She happily agreed, telling him, Whoever you are I love you deeply. Not even Cupid could compare to you. But when Psyches two older sisters visited, they became envious of her luxurious life. She must be married to a god! they intuited unlike Psyche, who remained inexplicably clueless. Hoping to break up the marriage, they offered a false explanation for her husbands secrecy: He must be a monstrous serpent intent on devouring her and her unborn child. A horrified Psyche believed them, despite her intimate physical knowledge of her spouse his perfumed locks, tender cheeks, and warm chest. Armed with a dagger, she prepared to kill her husband as he slept. But first, ignoring his repeated warnings, she gazed at him by the light of an oil lamp. Here, halfway through the story, the audience finally finds out his identity: none other than Cupid himself! Psyche finally gets a good look at her husband. Cupid and Psyche by Giulio Kartar. leoaleks/iStock via Getty Images Plus At the sight, Psyche fell in love with Love. But a drop of scalding oil awakened Cupid. Utterly dismayed at his wifes betrayal, he flew away but first explained: I have disobeyed my mothers orders to fill you with passion for some vile wretch. I flew to you as your lover instead. Love lost and found The rest of the narrative involves Psyches long, arduous quest to win Cupid back. Though despairing and exhausted, Psyche willingly submitted herself to a series of brutal tasks imposed by Venus, only to fall into a deathlike slumber just before completing them. And where is Cupid during all this? If he is characterized as a powerful, dangerous force in the first half of the story, the second half depicts him as a helpless mamas boy. He flew back to Venus palace, where his mother furious that he had secretly married Psyche scolded him righteously, screamed that he had embarrassed her, and locked him in his room. Finally, recalling his love for Psyche, Cupid escaped out the window and saved her from eternal slumber. Then he made a savvy deal with Jupiter, king of the gods: Psyche could be made immortal, clearing the way for her to officially marry Cupid in an arrangement that even satisfied Venus. Complex vision of love Apuleius story is rare in focusing on a female character and how love and desire affect her. The audience follows Psyche through several rites of passage. Initially, as an unmarried girl, she has not fulfilled her expected role of wife and mother. As a frightened bride, she has no say in whom she marries an experience common for young wives in ancient Roman society. Love does not enter the picture. But Apuleius portrayal of Psyches situation suggests a lesson Roman writers of the day wanted readers to believe: that young married women eventually come to desire and love their husbands. Although that process can be long and difficult, wives and husbands both adjust to their roles over time. The birth of Psyches child, Pleasure, at the end of the story results in harmony all around, an idealized image of marriage. Ovid and Apuleius remind us that the original Cupid is not the benign little bearer of valentines but an elemental force of human nature a savage, untamed creature that lights the fires of passion in unpredictable ways. Whereas Apollos lust for Daphnes visible beauty remained unsated, Psyche eventually enjoyed sex with her unseen husband. Apollo learned that longing isnt always mutual, while Psyche realized that love and trust must be earned. Apuleiuss story suggests that Cupid and all the intense emotions he represents, once tempered, can provide the basis for a loving, long-lasting relationship. In short, both stories contain valuable lessons about the nature of romance. 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. It was written by: Debbie Felton, UMass Amherst Read more: Debbie Felton 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. The TikTok application is seen on an iPhone 11 Pro max in this photo illustration in Warsaw, Poland on September 30, 2020. The TikTok app will be banned from US app stores from Sunday unless president Donald Trump approves a last-minute deal between US tech firm Oracle and TikTok owner ByteDance. US authorities say the Chinese video sharing app threaten national security and could pass on user data to China. (Photo Illustration by Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images) In April 2022, Donald Trump watched a new conservative documentary that blamed spending by Mark Zuckerberg for the former presidents loss to Joe Biden in the 2020 election. The movie, produced by Citizens United president David Bossie, deepened Trumps animosity toward the Meta chief executive, who the likely 2024 Republican nominee has become increasingly convinced was responsible for the result in 2020, according to three people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. Bossies film was titled Rigged: The Zuckerberg Funded Plot to Defeat Donald Trump. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. Trumps growing antipathy toward Zuckerberg - as well as advocacy and lobbying from several former administration and campaign officials tied to a GOP billionaire with a big financial stake in TikTok parent company ByteDance - helps illuminate the former presidents position on the video-sharing app. Trump tried to ban TikTok when he was in office before a court blocked the effort toward the end of his presidency. But lately, hes signaled opposition to fast-moving House legislation that targets the app. Last week, the former president argued that a TikTok ban would primarily help Zuckerberg and Meta, which also publishes short videos on several apps. He appeared to reiterate his opposition to a ban in an interview on CNBC on Monday. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, Trump said on Truth Social, his social media site, last week. The former president provided no evidence for his claim. They are a true Enemy of the People. On CNBC, Trump said that he believes TikTok is a national security threat. But, he added, You ban TikTok, Facebook and others, but mostly Facebook, will be a big beneficiary. And I think Facebook has been very dishonest. I think Facebook has been very bad for our country, especially when it comes to elections. Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said Tuesday that Trump views Chinese ownership of TikTok as a national security threat but appreciates that millions of people like the app. President Trump believes Congress must take action to protect the security and privacy of American users on all social media platforms, Cheung said. Trumps comments on TikTok have had immediate reverberations on Capitol Hill, where Republicans who had for years called for prohibiting the app over concerns that ByteDance might be controlled by Chinese authorities were torn between their loyalty to the former president and their prior positions. The House is expected to vote Wednesday morning on legislation that would force ByteDance to divest TikTok within 165 days of enactment - and would prohibit the app from being used in the United States if the company didnt comply. The Senate hasnt yet signaled whether it will follow suit. As president, Trump issued an executive order in 2020 that declared that TikTok threatened the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States, although he backed off a ban before that falls election, in part because he saw the move as unpopular and likely to alienate young voters. His reversal now is also partially the product of a lobbying campaign connected to a GOP megadonor with connections that reach into Trumps inner circle. The investment company of billionaire Jeff Yass owns 15 percent of ByteDance, which would amount to roughly $40 billion of the companys $268 billion valuation. Asked by CNBC about a recent meeting he had with Yass, Trump said that the GOP donor never mentioned TikTok in their conversation and that Yasss wife instead pushed for school choice reform. Yass had been a critic of Trumps in the past. Behind the scenes, however, Trump and his aides have spoken about TikTok to people with direct financial ties to Yass. Yass is the biggest donor to the conservative organization Club for Growth, which is currently paying former Trump senior counselor Kellyanne Conway to defend TikTok on Capitol Hill and which recently reconciled with Trump after a feud last year. Conway has also spoken to Trump about the importance of defending the social media app, according to two other people familiar with the matter, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity to reflect private deliberations. These people said Conway told Trump that the app was popular and that many of his supporters were on it - an argument echoed by other pro-TikTok allies - and that they were not being censored in their support of him. I made clear that its Trumps supporters who are organically posting on TikTok their support for him and his reelection, Conway said in an interview. For President Trump, he has made clear this is about abruptly taking away something from millions of users, many of whom are his people on TikTok, and its about Mark Zuckerberg, she said. Trump does not want Zuckerberg to ever own TikTok, she said. Conway said she was paid to conduct a poll on a TikTok ban and presented the results to Trump and Republicans. Conway said the polls 11 questions gave Americans a chance to say what they viewed as most important to taking on China. The choices, she said, including banning TikTok: It polled dead last on the list of 11. Another figure who played a role in his decision was David Urban, a longtime adviser and a registered lobbyist for ByteDance. Trump advisers say Urban - who ran Pennsylvania for Trump in 2016 and has kept relationships in his orbit - has pitched TikToks effectiveness as a campaign tool for some time to people around Trump, and he was spotted at Mar-a-Lago last week, where he met with Trump. Urban declined to comment. Former Trump aide Tony Sayegh, head of public affairs at Yasss Susquehanna International Group, has also been in communication with people close to Trump about TikTok, the people said. Sayegh was a senior adviser under Trump and viewed as a loyal defender of the former president. Sayegh has close ties to Jason Miller, the Trump campaign spokesman and a key political adviser, the people said. Sayegh and Miller overlapped in college and at Jamestown Associates, a GOP public affairs and advertising firm. Sayegh also remains close with numerous members of Trumps inner circle, including members of Trumps family and political aide Brian Jack, the people said. Trump personally liked Sayegh, calling him Tony the Tax Man, one former Trump adviser said, because of his work on Trumps tax cuts. Sayegh declined to comment. Its no secret that Tony left on really great terms with the White House, and continued to be helpful when called upon for the duration of the Trump administration, said one of the people who spoke on the condition of anonymity. He left in good graces, and hes continued to stay in good graces. Sayeghs connections are part of a broader spending campaign by tech firms in Washington. ByteDance spent nearly $9 million in federal lobbying last year, nearly double its total lobbying expenditures from the year before, according to Anna Massoglia, investigations manager at OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan group. The tech firms that rival TikTok have also spent heavily on lobbying. Metas Reels on Facebook and Instagram are direct rivals to TikToks short-form videos. ByteDance is steering more money than ever to lobbyists working to further its agenda in Washington, and spending countless more on grass-roots lobbying efforts encouraging its users to advocate on its behalf, Massoglia said. American Big Tech companies have also been strategic in pushing for more scrutiny of TikTok while protecting their own interests against the potential for additional regulation. Trumps preexisting dislike of Zuckerberg appears to have meshed well with the defenses of TikTok hes hearing from trusted sources. On CNBC, Trump also referred to what Facebook did was lockboxes, citing $500 million Zuckerbucks lockboxes that he put in - I mean, I consider illegal. The comment was an apparent reference to a nonprofit funded in part by Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, that provided assistance to local officials election efforts. The Federal Election Commission, in a 6-0 vote in 2022, dismissed a complaint over the grants, to the ire of some conservatives. Despite their frustrations with Meta, Trumps comments on TikTok were frustrating to some of the China hawks in his orbit who want the former president to take a tougher line. Still, one person in Trumps orbit, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to candidly reflect their thinking, called TikTok a Chinese disinformation warfare tool but said that the former president also needs to get elected to deal properly with China. - - - Drew Harwell contributed to this report. Related Content The Taliban once smashed TVs. Now it fosters YouTubers to promote its image. This agency is tasked with keeping AI safe. Its offices are crumbling. U.S. floods arms into Israel despite mounting alarm over wars conduct NEW DELHI, March 12 (Xinhua) -- An indigenously made light combat aircraft (LCA) "Tejas" belonging to the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in the western state of Rajasthan on Tuesday during a training, confirmed an official source. The lone pilot inside the ill-fated jet ejected out safely. This was the first crash of the indigenous jet since it first flew for the first time 23 years ago, said local media. "Initial reports point towards engine failure as cause behind LCA Tejas crash in Jaisalmer. A Court of Inquiry has been constituted to find out the cause of the accident," media reports quoted defence officials as saying. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has reiterated his unwillingness to supply Taurus cruise missiles to Ukraine. Source: Scholz in a speech in the Bundestag, reported by Tagesschau Details: The chancellor considers it unacceptable to supply such a weapon system, "which can only be used effectively if they involve German soldiers." He said this was unacceptable even if the German soldiers were outside Ukraine. "This is a line I do not want to cross as chancellor," Scholz added. Background: Bloomberg reported that partners in the German government coalition were trying to persuade Scholz to change his position on the Taurus. On Thursday, German lawmakers are due to consider another proposal from the CDU/CSU that requires Scholz to immediately send the Taurus to Ukraine. Earlier, Scholz rejected the idea of swapping missiles with the UK so that Ukraine could get more long-range weapons. Support UP or become our patron! Battling against criminal kidnap gangs is just one of the challenges for Nigeria's armed forces (Audu Marte) Gunmen have abducted dozens of people from a northwestern Nigerian village, according to two local representatives and a UN source, just days after the kidnapping of more than 250 pupils from a school in the same region. Criminal gangs often carry out mass kidnappings in northwest Nigeria, targeting schools, villages and highways where they can quickly snatch large numbers of people for ransom payments. Tuesday's abductions in Kaduna State's Kajuru district came as security forces searched for the pupils who were kidnapped last week from their school in Kuriga village about 150 kilometres (93 miles) away. The spate of large-scale abductions is challenging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's government, which promised to tackle insecurity while also managing a cost-of-living crisis and bringing more investment to Africa's most populous nation. Kaduna State officials did not immediately respond on Wednesday to requests for information on the new attack. But local councillor Abubakar Buda told Channels TV that gunmen stormed the village early Tuesday morning, going house-to-house to kidnap residents and opening fire sporadically. Buda said only a military intervention stopped more people from being kidnapped, according to Channels. State lawmaker Usman Danlami Stingo told Arise News that 32 women and 29 men had been snatched. A UN source, who was not authorised to speak publicly to the media, also told AFP that gunmen stormed the village early Tuesday morning. "The initial tally showed 40 persons were abducted but the figure rose to around 60," the source said. Officials say troops are searching forests in the northwest to rescue the Kuriga students, but families say little detail has emerged since the abductions. "We will continue praying for divine help in resolving this tragedy while the government takes up the issue with the kidnappers," relative Muhammad Kabir told AFP on Wednesday. On Tuesday, inspector-general of the national police force Kayode Egbetokun vowed to deploy officers across the state to "allay fears and build confidence of Kaduna residents, especially those in rural communities". The mass kidnapping in Kaduna State and another in the northeast came almost 10 years after Boko Haram militants triggered a huge international outcry in 2014 by abducting more than 250 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno state. abu/pma/lcm/bp BALTIMORE Dozens of women filed lawsuits on Tuesday accusing a Baltimore County facility for troubled youth of sexual abuse and blaming Maryland state agencies for failing to protect them. In total, 39 women joined lawsuits against the agencies that contracted Good Shepherd Services, a facility run by a Catholic religious order that operated in Halethorpe, Maryland for nearly 50 years. That facility is now shuttered and abandoned. The lawsuits allege that a chance at reform turned into trauma for dozens of women. One lawyer involved in the case said he expects the number of plaintiffs to triple. "It's extremely emotional," said attorney Frank Natale. He is representing 26 of the 39 women who claim they were sexually abused at Good Shepherd Services. The program was founded in 1864 by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, a Catholic religious order focused on helping women and girls. What allegedly happened at Good Shepherd Services Natale's lawsuit is one of two filed Tuesday under the Child Victims Act. The suit alleges that the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services and the Department of Human Services sent children to the program, and along with the Maryland Department of Health, failed to monitor the facility as children were allegedly sexually abused by guards, counselors, and teachers, as well as nuns and priests. The lawsuit accuses staff members of bribing and grooming children before abusing them. Some abusers allegedly drugged their victims and told them not to tell, according to the lawsuit. "The state was sending children to this facility," Natale said. "They put warnings out about this facility, yet they still allowed children to go there." Past abuse allegations at juvenile facilities This is just the latest round of allegations of abuse against juvenile facilities in Maryland. In October 2023, CBS News spoke with Claudia McLain, who at 13 was sent to the Charles H. Hickey School, a state-run juvenile detention center in Baltimore, for stealing bikes and other minor offenses. She said she was abused at the school repeatedly. "I was in my room, it was night. The door opened, [and] your body clenched because you don't know what the f*** is going on. You['re] so shocked," McLain explained in an interview with CBS News. "[A] short time later [the assaults] happened again, then again, then again." McLain is one of a dozen people who have reported sexual abuse while in the care of Maryland's juvenile detention centers in recent years. "I used to hear the keys turn at night, but I never knew what it was until it happened personally to me," McLain said. Her story is echoed by those who stepped forward on Tuesday claiming those entrusted to protect them at juvenile facilities did the opposite. In a joint statement, spokespersons for DJS, DHS and the Maryland Department of Health said they had not been served with the lawsuits yet, but that they took the allegations of sexual abuse of children in the state's care seriously. Some charges against Trump, others dismissed in Georgia election interference case House passes TikTok crackdown bill with fate in Senate unclear Watch: Marjorie Taylor Greene voices opposition to TikTok bill Police arrested the driver of a crash that killed an 18-year-old DeKalb County high school student last month on charges of driving under the influence. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Sophie Lekiachvili was killed in an early morning crash on Oak Grove Road on Feb. 24. TRENDING STORIES: The cars driver, Hannah Hackemeyer, 18, was was arrested at the scene and investigated on charges of DUI for a person under the age of 21 in the crash. According to a police report, Hackemeyer lost control of her SUV on a curve and plowed into a tree. The SUV then flipped over. Speed was a contributing factor in the crash, according to the report. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Lekiachvili was in the front passenger seat and was trapped in the crash. She was later pronounced dead. According to the police report, the other student injured in the crash was 17-year-old Ananya Rao, who was sitting in the rear left side. She was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Rao is a member of the class of 2025. Her current condition has not been released. Hackemeyer was not injured. She was taken to the DeKalb County Jail and later released. Its unclear if Hackemeyer is facing additional charges. A man traveling along an Oklahoma highway the morning of Wednesday, March 13, fatally hit an animal he believed was a deer, according to news reports. The Sequoyah County Sheriffs Office said the driver was shocked when he realized hed actually hit a kangaroo, according to Arkansas KHBS and KNWA. Sequoyah County Deputy Jeff Neighbors was on patrol in the area near Roland and witnessed the kangaroo jump out of the woods and onto the highway, and get struck by a passing vehicle, according to KSFM-TV. The Sequoyah County Sheriffs Office is searching for the owners of the kangaroo, KNWA reported. Oklahoma state laws permit kangaroos and a wide variety of other exotic species to be kept as pets. Over the last several years, there have been numerous sightings involving kangaroos that escaped zoos and private properties. Roland is near the border with Arkansas and about a 180-mile drive east of Oklahoma City. Im so confused. Runaway wallaby causes drivers to do double-takes on New York road Runaway emu almost got away with his escape then someone recognized him in Colorado Elusive creature spotted scurrying near Oregon highway in rare sighting, video shows AUSTIN (KXAN) Less than a week after Waymo announced it began testing fully autonomous vehicles in Austin, company heads joined panelists from different subsectors of the disability community to discuss how the technology can expand accessibility for riders. The panel was held as part of the 2024 South by Southwest Conference and Festivals. Among those speaking Tuesday included Emily Coleman, the superintendent of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired in Austin. Coleman said one of the key focuses of the school is to encourage students to be as independent as possible while gaining the tools and skillsets necessary to making decisions about their own futures. [Its about] finding more and more ways where our students or individuals who are blind can be independent in their own lives to make their own choices, and having agency of self is so important, she said. And just that whole concept that you can get from Point A to Point B with just relying on yourself and not another human being is I cant think of anything more empowering and a bigger stride toward greater independence. Part of that independence comes through access to choice. Lauren Schwendimann, Waymo Ones head of UX design, told KXAN Tuesday its also about diversifying local transit systems to incorporate both public, mass transit options in addition to autonomous technology. ICYMI: Waymo starts testing fully autonomous vehicles in Austin Yes, we are adding an option and choice is important, Schwendimann said. But also, its important that the service integrates into the interfaces within the existing ecosystem and meets people where theyre at.by understanding peoples needs, you can kind of fit into their life in a way that its not about your product or service, [but] its about really enabling them to achieve their goals. Part of the way to fully integrate the technology into an existing transit system is by working cooperatively with those within the disability community. Tuesdays panel also included Bee Martin Lee, CEO at Epilepsy Foundation Of America, and Camille Ridley, the vice president of marketing and development at United Cerebral Palsy of Central Arizona. By working with these various organizations and community members, Schwendimann said Waymo is able to solicit direct feedback on ways to better adapt the technology to be as accessible as possible. Some of the AV fleets current features came from that same feedback, Schwendimann added. One added component is a compass-like feature that will tell people how far away they are from a Waymo vehicle, which can be particularly helpful for those who are blind or have vision impairments. A second element and one of Waymos most loved features, Schwendimann said is riders can use the apps technology to honk the horn of the vehicle to ensure theyre near the correct one. Those are just two examples of features weve built while kind of trying to understand the needs of blind and low-vision people and get their feedback and refining it, Schwendimann said. In the near-term future, Schwendimann said Waymo is working to hone its pickup and drop-off capabilities to better meet people who have vision impairments or mobility limitations. Longer term, Waymo is striving to expand its technology to build out fully autonomous, wheelchair accessible vehicles. Right now, the company does offer wheelchair accessible options, but those feature human drivers. All of this conversation, Coleman said, is rooted in this idea of equity. Its not uncommon for people who are blind or have other physical disabilities to be denied access for service, she said; she recounted instances of students and staff at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired experiencing it firsthand. But by removing that human bias factor, Coleman said she hopes this broadens out access so riders of all capabilities can utilize the service. Taking that human bias out of a rideshare is, I think its kind of an equity game changer, really, Coleman said. Because [human bias] is just an innate part of who we are. So its going to make a big difference as a person with a cane doesnt have to be afraid that the cars gonna pull up, see a cane, and then decide not to give them a ride. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin. SUMMIT COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) A man was arrested in Summit County on Monday after officers reported finding more than 150 pounds of raw marijuana in the rental car he was driving, according to an affidavit of probable cause from the Third District Court. The man reportedly told police his name was Raymond Holmes, but he was later identified as Victor Wallace, 49, with a Minnesota drivers license. Wallace was arrested on five different charges, including marijuana possession 100 lbs. or greater, possession of a controlled substance, manufacture/deliver drug paraphernalia, driving on suspended or revoked license and obstruction of justice. READ NEXT: Provo parents arrested after they allegedly had sex with their 15-year-old child, claimed it was safer While Wallace initially told police he was in possession of about 75 pounds of marijuana, officers measured the six bundles of raw marijuana found in the trunk of the car and said they seized about 153 pounds of the raw plant. Wallace was initially stopped for multiple lane travel violations, as stated in the affidavit. When the arresting officer approached the vehicle, they reported seeing the backseats of the car laying down with a blanket partially covering numerous large trash bags, the affidavit says. The driver immediately appeared confrontational asking me why I stopped him, the officer wrote in the probable cause statement. According to arrest documents, Wallace was unable to locate his license at first, and when the officer saw a pistol in the glove box, they asked Wallace to step out of the vehicle. The driver appeared nervous and disoriented as he exited the vehicle and for some reason opened the hatch of his vehicle using his key fob, the statement says. Another large trash bag was in the trunk, the statement says, and Wallace reportedly tried to close the trunk after he realized it was open. While being questioned by the officer, Wallace reportedly became more nervous and began to breathe heavily, as stated in the affidavit. According to the affidavit, Wallace has a criminal history and allegedly had warrants out for his arrest in Tooele and Minnesota, in addition to upcoming court proceedings in Minnesota. Police say Wallace was arrested for committing the same criminal acts on a larger scale. Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah. Geert Wilders stunned the Netherlands in November with a convincing election win for his far-right Freedom Party (Sem van der Wal) Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders said Wednesday that he would not be prime minister despite his stunning election win in November, due to a lack of support across the political spectrum. "I can only become Prime Minister if ALL parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case," Wilders said on X. "The love for my country and voters is bigger and more important than my own position." The announcement came on the eve of an eagerly awaited report on Dutch coalition talks, amid speculation of a breakthrough that could result in a technocratic government. The man overseeing the negotiations, Kim Putters, has said the bickering parties were ready to take the "next step" after two days of "good and intense" talks at a country estate. Wilders posted on X that he wanted a "right-wing cabinet... less asylum and immigration. The Dutch come first." Party leaders have been tight-lipped during the process but public broadcaster NOS reported that the most likely outcome for Thursday's report was an "extra-parliamentary" or technocratic cabinet. It is unclear exactly what form this could take, but it is expected that four party leaders will serve as MPs. Parties would appoint the members of the cabinet but they could be drawn from "ordinary" party members or even from outside politics, according to media reports. Wilders stunned the Netherlands and Europe with a convincing victory in November elections that put him in pole position to lead coalition negotiations. Unlike Britain, France or the United States for example, the Netherlands has a very fractured political system that means no party is strong enough to govern on its own. The far-right leader's Freedom Party (PVV) therefore started talks with the centre-right Liberal VVD party, the BBB farmers' party, and a new party, the New Social Contract (NSC). The NSC, led by anti-corruption champion Pieter Omtzigt, was the other new factor in the election, gaining 20 seats and making it indispensable in any coalition. - Nexit referendum? - But cracks began to show in the talks almost immediately, with sniping on social media and by the NSC in particular raising questions about the PVV's far-right manifesto. Among other things, the PVV manifesto calls for a ban on mosques, the Koran and Islamic headscarves. It also wants a binding referendum on a "Nexit" -- the Netherlands leaving the European Union. In February, Omtzigt abruptly quit the coalition talks, plunging the process into chaos with the differences between his party and the PVV "too big" to bridge. At the time, the Algemeen Dagblad newspaper described the talks as a "slow-motion disaster" with "poison, mutual sniping, gossiping". A new person, known in the Netherlands as an "informer", was appointed to oversee the talks and this appears to have unblocked the stalemate. The new informer, Putters, managed to get the four party leaders back to the negotiating table with talks reportedly moving towards a technocratic government. Time is ticking for the Netherlands to find a prime minister, as the man holding the fort, Mark Rutte, is widely expected to become the new NATO secretary general. Since the election, support for the PVV has only increased, surveys suggest, as voters voice frustration at the slow pace of talks. "Do not forget: I will become prime minister of the Netherlands one day. With the support of even more Dutch," Wilders posted. "If not tomorrow, then the day after tomorrow. Because the voices of millions of Dutch will be heard!" ric/js/imm Travel company TUI has apologised after offering Dutch tourists the chance to follow in the footsteps of their brave ancestors who enslaved people in the former colony of Suriname. The Netherlands colonised the South American country in the 17th century, establishing a plantation economy driven by African slave labour and producing sugar. It gained independence in 1975. The German company came under fire after the description of its Suriname tour was posted on social media. Step into the shoes of our brave ancestors and follow their tracks in green and adventurous Suriname, it read before inviting holidaymakers to sample the atmosphere of the plantations. It added: You cannot escape Dutch influences in Suriname. Our colonial ancestors founded hundreds of plantations that determined the image of the Commewijne district. Tui has now changed the description because it did not fit with its goal of introducing people to the beauty of Suriname, with respect for the country, its people, and history. We read this message with our heads bowed deep in the dust, TUI, which apologised with embarrassment, said. No doubt the copywriter did not mean it in a bad way, but we completely understand that it is hurtful and just stupid of us not to have noticed it. The Dutch colonised Suriname in the 17th century, establishing a plantation economy driven by African slave labour and producing sugar - Getty Images/Marica van der Meer Anti-racism group Kick Out Zwarte Piet had demanded whether the term brave ancestors was a reference to the raping, violent, robbing colonisers in Suriname. It pointed out that the holiday cost 2,023, which matched with the year of a royal apology for Dutch crimes against humanity. The King of the Netherlands last year apologised for Dutch involvement in 250 years of slavery in places including Suriname. The Dutch government, which has also apologised, has resisted calls to pay reparations. Right-wing firebrand Geert Wilders, who won a shock victory in Novembers general election, has called for the Dutch apology to be rescinded. He remains in difficult coalition talks to form a new government. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Earl Spencer has a new book out. Its called A Very Private School, and it reveals, in intense and harrowing detail, the abuse that he suffered at boarding school. According to the book blurb, the memoir offers a clear-eyed first-hand account of a culture of cruelty at the school Spencer attended in his youth and provides important insights into an antiquated boarding system. But thats not the only antiquated system that comes under scrutiny, because Spencer also writes about the time he took himself off to see a prostitute and lose his virginity, aged just 12. He was on holiday in Italy with his mother and stepfather when he saw a woman standing on a street corner and offered her 15. The experience left him hollow and cold and he was unable to sleep with anybody else for five years. Is it appalling to say this revelation didnt shock me much? The boarding school snippets that Ive read are awful. Grim. Tragic. Another early life damaged by horrors which, at the time, Spencer presumably thought were normal because various other boys were similarly treated. From time to time, you may still come across a man of his generation refer to stories like this from his own childhood with the jocular quip, Never did me any harm. But mostly now, thankfully, even the upper classes have grasped that this sort of behaviour was bad. A young Charles Spencer, pictured at the family home in Northamptonshire, 1980 - Ian Tyas Spencers story about sleeping with a prostitute wasnt enormously surprising, though. His age perhaps was; the fact that it happened, not so much. Many years ago, as a teenager, I read actor David Nivens memoir The Moons A Balloon and was agog at his stories of visiting Nessie, a Piccadilly whore, when Niven was 14. (I flicked back through the book this week and remembered that Niven had fairly robust views about the British public school system, too. Remember that the memoir was published in 1971, and also that he was David Niven, but as he says in the first chapter, Apart from the Chinese, the only people in the world who pack their sons off to the tender care of unknown and often homosexual schoolmasters at the exact moment when they are in need of parental love and influence are the British so-called upper and middle classes.) When I was on holiday a few years ago, Nivens book came up in conversation. Two male friends were playing chess beside the pool, casually discussing it, while I lay on a sunbed a few metres away. I remember the scene because it was such an extraordinary moment. Your fathers did what? I asked, overhearing and sitting up. Both their fathers, they repeated, had offered to send them to see a prostitute when they turned 16. No big deal, added one: my fathers dad did it for him. I returned to the Tatler office after that holiday and set about writing a story about this Tudor-esque ritual. I dont believe Im particularly prudish or naive, but how could this possibly still be going on? Another male friend subsequently told me that his father had taken him off to Amsterdam for the weekend when he turned 15, first to a casino, and then to the red-light district. Dad bought some tickets to a live sex show front-row seats because hes a bit hard of hearing, he told me. When the naked woman on stage asked the audience for a volunteer for the night, my father stood up and pointed at me with one hand, raising my arm with the other. I was pretty scared, so crossed my arms and stubbornly refused to stand up. I dont think we stayed much longer. I talked to various others male friends and acquaintances who had similar stories, and read about others still. Richard Branson, according to Tom Bowers biography, was dispatched by his father to see a prostitute when he was still a schoolboy at Stowe. The snappily-named Baron Lorne Thyssen-Bornemisza, son of the Swiss aristo-industrialist Hans, was also sent to be thus initiated when he was 15. The poor girl was so bored with the whole thing that she never took his glasses off, he said. She kept saying, Are you finished yet? It was an extremely unpleasant experience. Less daunted by this initiation ritual was a chap called Charlie Mortimer, author of the very funny memoir Dear Lupin, who told me that he snuck out of Eton one night in the 60s to visit a lady in the West End called Denise who would apparently welcome public schoolboys with open legs. Unfortunately for Charlie and his friend Jerry (Jeremy Soames, brother of Nicholas Soames who is now Baron Soames of Fletching), they didnt bring any cash and Denise refused their Coutts cheques. She flung them out and they slunk back to school only to discover theyd been discovered missing. Jeremys godfather, Field Marshal Montgomery, later wrote him a letter stating that he was a disgrace to [his] family, [his] school and even [his] country. In that case, the pair had gone off by themselves. But the reason for posh fathers deciding this was a suitable outing for their teenage sons, Charlie told me, was because nice girls didnt do sex. And if they did, theyd be terribly inexperienced. Either way whether sent by a father or heading off into the night at a tender age unaccompanied because you knew this was what others did it feels a peculiarly feudal practice to have been going on not so long ago. And what double standards! Because only a few years after Earl Spencers scarring fumble in Italy, his uncle was busy proclaiming to the country that the Charless sister, Diana, was a bona fide virgin ahead of her marriage to the king. A few decades later, I wouldnt exactly say that our attitudes towards sex have been perfectly ironed-out, but at least theyve improved a bit. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. VIENTIANE, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A total of 76 extreme weather events and accidental fires were reported across Laos in 2023, causing damage estimated at more than 1,114 billion Lao kip (some 53 million U.S. dollars). The disasters included storms, floods, landslides, and wildfires, causing severe damage across the country, Lao National Radio reported on Tuesday. In 2023, more than 107,000 households in 125 districts across Laos were heavily affected by these disasters. In July and August, 12 provinces suffered storms, landslides and flooding, with many people affected. The report said that local authorities are strengthening disaster management across the country, including warning systems, so that people receive flood warnings promptly and are able to interpret the data provided. During a meeting last week chaired by Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Chansamone Chanyalath, participants asked the Lao government to improve coordination among disaster management committees at every level so that they operate more efficiently and speed up post-disaster recovery. The participants also discussed ways to resolve some of the pressing issues in this field and ways to develop a unified response in disaster management to minimize losses by extreme weather in 2024, according to the report. Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks to employees at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg while holding a child in his arms. Following an attack on the electric car manufacturer Tesla's power supply, the factory is back online after a power outage lasting several days. It could take some time to ramp up production. Carsten Koall/dpa Tesla boss Elon Musk arrived in Germany on Wednesday for a short visit to the electric carmaker's only European plant, located just outside of Berlin, about a week after an attack on the site's electricity supply. Production at Tesla's so-called "giga-factory" in the town of Grunheide was brought to a standstill for several days due to a sabotage attack on the plant's power supply. A left-wing extremist group has claimed responsibility for the attack. The previously unknown Volcano Group declared that it was responsible for setting fire to an electricity pylon that serves other businesses and residents alongside the Tesla plant. Production at the Grunheide plant resumed on Wednesday. Workers at the plant greeted Musk with cheers and shouts of "Elon" on Wednesday during the visit. He spoke to employees in a large tent on the factory premises at around midday on Wednesday. After Musk, Tesla plant manager Andre Thierig also addressed employees and thanked them for their handling of the situation. "This is an attack on the Gigafactory," he said. "We are all sticking together." Thierig also promised workers changes in their annual wages and a bonus system: "You can count on that." He also argued that a union collective bargaining contract for the plant is not necessary. Local officials in Germany had expressed worries that the attack on the Tesla plant might raise concerns at the electric vehicle manufacturer about long-term prospects for the site. Plans by Tesla to expand the plant are controversial due laregely to concerns about the potential impact on nearby protected wetlands. Environmental activist have set up a protest camp with tree houses very near to the factory, which police have announced they would only tolerate through this coming Friday. The activists have begun preparing for a possible police operation to clear the forest, which is on state-owned land. Musk, a billionaire entrepreneur, also owns the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), the private space flight company Space X and a number of other companies. Tesla CEO Elon Musk (C) arrives at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. Following an attack on the electric car manufacturer Tesla's power supply, the factory is back online after a power outage lasting several days. It could take some time to ramp up production. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa Tesla CEO Elon Musk (C) arrives at the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg. Following an attack on the electric car manufacturer Tesla's power supply, the factory is back online after a power outage lasting several days. It could take some time to ramp up production. Sebastian Christoph Gollnow/dpa EMPORIA (KSNT) Emporia has been nominated by USA Today as one of the nations favorite main streets for the 2024 Readers Choice Awards. Every year nominees are selected by a panel of experts. This year six 10Best editors narrowed the final list of nominees. Each year the panel of experts selects 20 cities across the nation. Emporia Main Street has been nominated as one of the Best Main Streets in the country by USA TODAY! Help us win the top spot by voting each day between NOW and Monday, April 8th, Emporia Main Street wrote on Facebook. In 2016 Emporia took the title of best main street and now Emporia Main Street is reaching out to its community to take home another win. Emporia wins title of Best Main Street in US Other cities nominated include: Bellevue, Pennsylvania Callicoon, New York Cope May, New Jersey Deland, Florida Ellicottville, New York Eureka Springs, Arkansas Grand Junction, Colorado Haddonfield, New Jersey Hickory, North Carolina Howell, Michigan Leeburg, Virginia McMinnville, Oregon Ogden, Utah Sag Harbor, New York Scottsdale, Arizona Solvang, California St. Charles, Missouri Talkeetna, Alaska Traverse City, Michigan Emporia shop owner looks to expand skateboarding scene For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. I was a judge and chief judge of Delaware's Family Court for over 17 years. In those roles, I held trials and oversaw plea agreements where I was required to order youths under 18 to pay fines and fees that ended up pushing them deeper into the criminal justice system when they inevitably did not pay. I have thus seen firsthand the problems that court-imposed financial obligations create for young people and their families who are often already struggling financially. During my tenure and with my support, Delaware began to move away from imposing financial penalties in juvenile Family Court proceedings. I am proud that in 2023, Delaware joined a growing number of states and jurisdictions when we passed into law major reforms to our criminal legal system's financial obligations, including eliminating fines and fees for our young people in Family Court. Delaware Family Court judges are not only not required to impose fines or fees as a penalty for children found delinquent; they are no longer permitted to do so. Delaware is known as the "First State," but we were not the first state to make these changes. We are one of eight states to eliminate all fines and fees in juvenile cases, joining Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Washington. A dozen others have made strides toward this goal, including Arizona, Louisiana, South Dakota, Texas, and others who eliminated all fees, but not all fines, for adjudications of delinquency. In fact, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an organization of state legislators dedicated to limited government, free markets, and federalism, adopted model legislation in August 2023, urging more states to eliminate all fees, fines, or other financial obligations (other than restitution) against minors in criminal or juvenile proceedings. As a judge, I took my role of enforcing personal accountability seriouslywhich is why I support these reforms. Children should not be expected to earn wages, and sometimes the children who appeared in front of me were too young to legally do so. When we punish children with financial obligations, it's their families that pay them, if they get paid at all. Children from wealthy families who appeared before me could pay off their cases quickly and would receive record-clearing expungements when the time came. Children from poor families were not so fortunate, and with their families unable to pay off their court debts, they would often enter adulthood still trying to make monthly payments and still unable to clear their criminal record. A 2016 study co-authored by Alex Piquero, currently director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, finds evidence from a survey "of 1,167 adolescent offenders in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania" to "suggest that financial penalties in general and the sheer amount of financial penalties in particular significantly increase the likelihood of recidivism, even after controlling for relevant demographics and case characteristics." I also believe in a small, efficient government. A 2019 study from the Brennan Center for Justice that examined 10 counties across Texas, Florida, and New Mexico found that collecting fines and fees is incredibly inefficient. It cost Texas and New Mexico counties, for example, 41 cents of every dollar of revenue they raised from fees and fines to pay for in-court hearings and jail costs alone. One county in New Mexico spent $1.17 to collect every dollar of revenue it raised through fines and fees, losing money through this system. Before eliminating all fines and fees in 2021, Oregon charged families for the costs of having their children in custody. For fiscal year 2019, Oregon reported that they spent $866,000 to collect $864,000 in such fees. Before California eliminated juvenile fees in 2017, Santa Clara County spent $450,000 to collect just $400,000 in fees in fiscal year 2014-15, according to a March 2017 report from the University of California Berkeley Law's Public Advocacy Clinic. This is government waste at its worst. Eliminating fines and fees for children often has a low fiscal impact (or even savings!) because of how inefficient or wasteful it is for governments to try to collect this money. Delaware is in many ways a microcosm of the rest of the country. The Mason-Dixon line runs through our state. Northern Delaware is urban and densely populated; southern Delaware is split between sparsely populated agricultural land and more densely housed retired beachcombers. If Delaware can make these reforms, any state in this country can, and I urge them to join us in doing so. Our court system is meant to require accountability and rehabilitation. Fines and fees stand in the way of that. Eliminating them levels the playing field while clearing the way for American youth to concentrate on their education and flourish. The post Ending Fees and Fines for Juvenile Offenders is Best for Rehabilitation appeared first on Reason.com. A 112-mile stretch of pylons is proposed for East Anglia New offshore wind, nuclear and solar power projects are all planned for the East of England, but how will that energy be transported elsewhere? A network of pylons and underground and undersea cables have been proposed. National Grid says the electricity network in East Anglia "doesn't have the capability needed to reliably and securely transport all the energy that will be connected by 2030". Campaigners say the plans will impact small villages and the tourism sector. Nearly 20 windfarms are planned or are already functioning off the coast. A new nuclear power station at Sizewell in Suffolk is awaiting a final investment decision, but has development consent. The BBC looks at how these projects could affect the region. Norwich to Tilbury pylons Map of East Anglia showing proposed pylon route National Grid wants to build a 112 mile-long (180km) power line from Norwich to Tilbury in Essex. The plan has attracted opposition from campaigners, county and district councils and many of the region's MPs. Some want the cable line to be built out at sea, but that is likely to be much more expensive in the short term. Some campaigners want underground cables to be preferred over pylons National Grid has previously said that "every penny we spend appears on consumers' bills". Critics responded by saying it was resorting to outdated 1950s technology. A statutory consultation on the plans is due in 2024. LionLink LionLink would connect offshore windfarms and transfer electricity between the UK and the Netherlands The project would create an energy connection between Suffolk and the Netherlands, via offshore windfarms in the North Sea. National Grid wants cables to reach land at either Walberswick or Southwold. A converter station would be built on the outskirts of Saxmundham and could cover a six-hectare area. That would then connect to a substation being built at the village of Friston. Suffolk County Council has called the plans "unacceptable and unfair". Sea Link Suffolk and Kent would be connected by Sea Link if the 90-mile (145km) electricity infrastructure project is given the go ahead. National Grid says the project is needed to create "a more secure and resilient energy system". It would also include some onshore stations and connect to the Friston substation and Saxmundham converter station. Some residents are worried about about the potential impact that could have. Tarchon Energy interconnector This would create an energy connection between Essex and Germany. Tarchon Energy says it would allow surplus renewable energy to be exported in both directions. A planning application is unlikely to be submitted until 2026. Nautilus Interconnector A similar idea, this time between Suffolk and Belgium. It would feature an offshore converter station, along with infrastructure at either end. National Grid says this project could be moved to Kent. In March 2024, The Electricity System Operator (ESO) published a report into how best to upgrade the energy grid in East Anglia. It warned that "critical trade-offs will need to be made" and no single option would provide value for money, be easy to deliver - or minimise the impact on communities. Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp 0800 169 1830 Englands National Health Service (NHS) has stopped prescribing puberty blockers for children and young people with gender dysphoria or gender incongruence, saying there is not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of puberty-suppressing hormones. NHS England said it made the decision, which was widely condemned by LGBTQ groups, after it carefully considered an evidence review it commissioned in 2020. It also reviewed evidence published since then, it said in a policy document published Tuesday. Puberty blockers will now only be available to young people in clinical research trials and some private clinics, UKs PA Media reported Tuesday. Fewer than 100 young people are currently on puberty blockers via the NHS and they will be able to continue the treatment, it added. Puberty blockers will also available through some private gender identity clinics. According to the NHS clinical policy, treatment for young people focuses on psychosocial and psychological support. Gender-affirming hormones and surgery may be available later or in adulthood. Gender-affirming care for young people in England has faced legal and political scrutiny in recent years that has coincided with rising anti-trans rhetoric in the country, say LGBTQ advocates. Some British politicians welcomed NHS Englands announcement. The UKs Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins said on X that care that affects our childrens health and wellbeing so profoundly must always be based on clinical evidence. Health minister Maria Caulfield also welcomed the policy, calling it a groundbreaking change as childrens safety and wellbeing are paramount. Stonewall, a LGBTQ campaign group in the UK, criticized Tuesdays announcement, writing in a statement that all trans young people deserve access to high quality, timely healthcare. For some, an important part of this care comes in the form of puberty blockers, a reversible treatment that delays the onset of puberty, prescribed by expert endocrinologists, giving the young person extra time to evaluate their next steps, it wrote. We are concerned that NHS England will be putting new prescriptions on hold until a research protocol is up and running at the end of 2024, the charity added. Mermaids, a charity that supports trans, non-binary and gender-questioning children and young people, said that the NHS announcement is deeply disappointing, and a further restriction of support offered to trans children and young people through the NHS, which is failing trans youth. Gender-affirming care is medically necessary, evidence-based care that uses a multidisciplinary approach to help a person transition from their assigned gender the one the person was designated at birth to their affirmed gender the gender by which one wants to be known. Puberty blocking is a noninvasive therapy that can be reversed. Doctors inject a compound or use an implant that mimics the actions of a puberty-stimulating hormone that is released in the brain known as gonadotropin-releasing hormone. The compound makes the pituitary gland less sensitive to that hormone and, in doing so, it essentially pauses puberty. Puberty starts again after the drugs are stopped. In the US, where several Republican-led states have banned gender-affirmative healthcare for young people, every major medical association agrees that gender-affirming care is clinically appropriate for children and adults. This includes the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Gender-affirming care can include puberty blockers, which may not be a part of every associations treatment. The AMA and LGBTQ advocates stress that gender-affirming care can be a life-saving treatment for trans youth. In the US, transgender and nonbinary youth are twice as likely to have attempted suicide compared to their cisgender peers, according to a 2022 survey by the Trevor Project, a suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ youth. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com ROME, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday the government will create an investment fund worth 1 billion euros (1.1 billion U.S. dollars) to promote the development of artificial intelligence (AI). Speaking via video link at a meeting on "Artificial Intelligence for Italy" in Rome, Meloni said the fund will come from the venture capital unit of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, the state lender. It will be activated in conjunction with a yet-to-be-finalized Italian law on AI aimed at regulating the new technology, she said. "The government is preparing a new law that will establish principles and set rules complementary to European Union regulations... and identify the most effective measures to stimulate our productive capabilities," Meloni said. She said the government has not yet decided what entity will oversee the regulation of AI-based technologies. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has supported discussions about possible deployment of foreign troops to Ukraine for exercises. Source: LRT with reference to Nauseda, reported by European Pravda Details: "I welcomed the idea of sending missions to Ukrainian territory as an idea, and I think we should discuss it. Of course, it would be best if we all unanimously agreed on the need for this and assessed the intelligence and other information we have very well," Nauseda said. He also stressed that fear of a possible Kremlin reaction should not be a determining factor in making a common European decision. "If we start saying that no, Vladimir Putin will not like this or that... we will never make a decision. And that's why I told both the President [Emmanuel Macron] and the media yesterday that we have to stop drawing red lines for ourselves," Nauseda said. He stressed that by drawing red lines, the West is only helping Putin, "who is beginning to think that we are predictable and that he can control and manipulate us." Background: Earlier, Macron said the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine in the future could not be ruled out, although he stressed that there is currently no consensus among the allies on this issue. France later clarified that the participation of foreign troops in the fighting was out of the question. Macron's words provoked a strong reaction from the governments of many allied countries, whose leaders were quick to state that they had no plans to send their military to Ukraine. Macron later noted that his resonant words had been carefully considered. Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba believes that the discussion between the allies initiated by Macron will "save Europe a lot of time" in realising that more needs to be done to support Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! The passengers of the Indonesian aircraft were left unharmed in the incident, which took place in January Pascal Pavani/AFP/Getty Batik Air jet An investigation is being carried out in Indonesia after two pilots led a local airliner off course while falling asleep. A Batik Air flight was sent in the wrong direction while traveling from Kendari, Indonesia, to the countrys capital, Jakarta, on Jan. 25 as both the pilot in command and secondary pilot slept on the plane, according to a report by Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee. The Airbus A320, which carried 153 passengers, veered off course approximately one hour and 45 minutes into the flight after the secondary pilot, who had taken over flying duties from his colleague as he took a nap, also fell asleep. According to the report, the 28-year-old co-pilot was tired after tending to his 1-month-old twin babies at home with his wife. Adek Berry/AFP/Getty A passenger flight with 153 Passengers veered off course in Indonesia in January Related: 5 Dead, 379 People Evacuated After Japan Airlines Passenger Plane Bursts into Flames on Tokyo Runway While flying the plane, the co-pilot kept in contact with Jakarta air traffic control as he experienced light turbulence and he was instructed to report back when the aircraft was clear from bad weather conditions. A few moments later the co-pilot fell asleep, the report stated. Jakarta air traffic control repeatedly attempted to get back in contact with the pilots with no response. After 28 minutes, the co-pilot finally woke up and realized that the aircraft had strayed off the flight path. Related: Man Rescued After 9 Hours When Small Plane Crashes in the Florida Everglades He then woke up the 32-year-old pilot in command and the plane eventually landed safely in Jakarta. All passengers were left unharmed in the incident. No one was injured in this occurrence and there was no damage to the aircraft, the report added. The pilots have been temporarily suspended following the incident, according to a statement from Batik Air obtained by The New York Times. PEOPLE has reached out to Batik Air for further comment. 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 celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Despite medical tests determining the pilots capabilities to fly the airliner, the results didnt align with what ended up happening. Following the incident, Indonesia's head of air transport, M Kristi Endah Murni, shared the opinion, per the BBC, that Batik Air should pay more attention to their crew's rest time. Batik Air said in response that it "operates with adequate rest policy" and that it was "committed to implement all safety recommendations," reported the outlet. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Actor Michael Culver, who suffered one of the most iconic on-screen deaths in the Star Wars franchise, died at the age of 85. Culver passed away on Feb. 27, according to a statement from his agency. Culvers career spanned more than five decades, but he was perhaps best known for his role as Captain Needa in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. In the 1980 classic, Culvers character flies to villain Darth Vader, ready to apologize and take responsibility for losing track of the rebels. The scene cuts, and we see Culver doubled over gasping for breath before collapsing on the floor, a victim of Vaders Force-choking. Apology accepted, Captain Needa, the villain drawls. The iconic scene has become a fixture in the film series, and the character of Captain Needa has remained a fan favorite. The British actor was born in London in 1938. He began acting on television in 1961, with notable appearances in the BBCs 1970s drama series Secret Army and mystery series Cadfael in the 1990s. He also appeared in several films, including Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969) and A Passage to India (1984). During the Iraq War, Culver began supporting anti-war protester Brian Haw, who camped out in demonstration of the conflict in Parliament Square. In 2023, Culver helped campaign for a statue of Haw to be erected in south London. His agency, Alliance Agents, said in a statement that it had been an honour to represent Culver and connect him with Star Wars fans around the world. A real highlight was taking Michael to Celebration in Chicago in 2019. He was lost for words when he saw his queue line with nearly 200 people waiting to see him, the agency said. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Some students who attend El Paso Community College and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso will need to pay more for their tuition and fees as early as this summer. EPCCs Board of Trustees and the TTU System Board of Regents approved increases during their respective meetings Feb. 29. At EPCC, trustees voted to raise the price of parking on campus as well as increases to 34 Continuing Education courses including 17 in Allied Health. An annual parking permit will jump from $40 to $60, and a semester pass will go from $30 to $40. The prices also will increase for staff and faculty from $40 to $70 for an annual permit, and from $30 to $50 for a semester pass. In a response to a board question, Carlos Amaya, vice president of Student & Enrollment Services, said the requested increase the first since 2018 was needed to address a significant decrease in revenue from parking permits since the pandemic. Amaya said income from permit sales go toward support staff, parking lot maintenance, vehicle purchases, and to help keep the campuses safe and secure. More: US Supreme Court maintains hold on SB 4, continues mulling Texas' sweeping immigration law Carlos Amaya, vice president of student and enrollment services at El Paso Community College, said that the institution needed to increase its parking permit fees to offset decreased revenue in that area since COVID-19. We are increasing (parking fees) to keep up with those challenges, said Amaya, who added that financial aid such as Pell Grants could be used to pay parking fees. The tuition for the Workforce and Continuing Education courses range from as little as $7 for Pharmacy Drug Therapy and Treatment to as much as $135 for Nursing Assistant or Nursing Assistant Clinical. In some cases, the price of the courses had not changed since 2013. The additional tuition would go toward higher instructional costs, miscellaneous fees or to match the amount for a credit course. Blayne Primozich, associate vice president of EPCCs Workforce & Continuing Education, said that some of the larger tuition increases were requested in preparation for House Bill 8 and to make Continuing Education credits transferable to credit courses. He said CE tuition must match credit tuition if a student requests transferable course credit. HB 8 is the outcomes-based funding model for community colleges that the Texas Legislature passed in 2023. It will reward colleges for the number of degrees, certificates and credentials of value that it awards. Its goal is to create a growing, diverse and competitive workforce. The TTU System regents approved changes to tuition and fees for the next three fiscal years beginning with Fiscal Year 2025, which starts Sept. 1. The tuition increases over the three years range from $22 at the School of Nursing to $2,647 at the School of Dental Medicine. Most of the fee increases are a few dollars with a few up to $150. The biggest one listed is the educational tech fee in the School of Dental Medicine that will jump from $7,289.20 to $10,205 this fall and then $10,613 in Fiscal Year 2027. During his presentation to the board, James Mauldin, vice chancellor and chief financial officer, said that the new tuition rate aligned with the Higher Education Price Index, and that the Board of Regents had not reviewed tuition and fee increases at health-related institutions since 2019. Tedd L. Mitchell, TTU System chancellor, added that the tuition and fees charged by the systems health-related institutions make up a small percentage usually single digits of their overall budgets with the bulk coming from state funding. The cost that they charge is exceptionally low relative to medical schools across the country, Mitchell said. Despite the approval of the changes, institution presidents may establish waivers and exemptions for the fees. The University of Texas at El Paso announced in 2023 that it would not increase tuition or mandatory fees through the 2024-25 academic year. The last time UTEP raised its tuition was for the 2021-22 school year. This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso Community College, TTUHSCEP boards OK increases to fees, tuition The total solar eclipse, set to cross Erie County on April 8, is not just a cosmic event: Its also affecting the local election season. Since April 8 is also the last day to register to vote for the April 23 primary election, Erie County Council on Tuesday passed a resolution to extend the registration deadline to April 9. Heres what to know. Why the extension? The deadline was extended for public safety reasons. The total solar eclipse could draw 200,000 visitors to Erie County and hinder the ability of residents and county employees to safely access the Erie County Courthouse, according to an Erie County Board of Elections news release. Since April 8 is also the last day to register to vote for the April 23 primary election, Erie County Council on Tuesday passed a resolution to extend the registration deadline to April 9. Moreover, if the countys election offices in the courthouse were to remain open on April 8, the Erie County Sheriffs Office would have to serve at the courthouse on a day when emergency services will already be strained due to the event, the release stated. Solar eclipse 2024: Erie is in path of totality. Here's what to know The decision to extend the deadline was made in consultation with the Pennsylvania Department of State, the office of Gov. Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, the release continued. Prior to Tuesdays council meeting, council members received a resolution from the Erie County Board of Elections as well as a court order signed by Judge John Mead of the Erie County Court of Common Pleas. Can you still register to vote on April 8? The Voter Registration office at the Erie County Courthouse will be closed to the public on April 8. However, there will be a sign at the front of the courthouse with directions on how to register: A QR Code will be provided for those who wish to register to vote online; or A folder with applications and pens will be located at the front of the courthouse with an option to drop the application into the secure box. If any application has an issue or has any missing information, someone from the Voter Registration Office will contact the applicant to resolve those issues. The Voter Registration Office will reopen on April 9 to receive applications. Any application received by April 9 will be considered valid and timely. How to register to vote? Erie County Clerk Karen Chillcott is encouraging residents to plan ahead by either registering to vote online or by coming into the Voter Registration Office before April 5. To register online, visit the Erie County website at eriecountypa.gov and click on the Departments tab and then Elections and Voter Registration. There, voters can access an online voter registration form or print out a PDF voter registration form. Frequently asked questions and a mailing address are provided. Voters can also access registration forms at a state wine and spirits store; a state representatives office; any library; or the Erie County Voter Registration Office, located in Room 112 of the Erie County Courthouse. A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on X @ETNRao. This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie County Council extends voter registration due to solar eclipse Over the past 30 years, Tony and Marilee Hyman have enjoyed the fruits of what they describe as 10 years of doing three jobs to retire in their Shell Beach dream home. Their home on Indio Drive just north of Pismo Beach proper is perched on a bluff more than 25 feet above sea level, with a lush garden backyard standing between their living room and the open ocean. But even as little as 10 years ago, the Hymans had more backyard than they do today. The property has been victim to pounding ocean waves and storm runoff that have eaten away at the coastline over the past few years, Tony said. They and other oceanfront homeowners have found themselves on the front lines of a fight against the worst of Mother Natures appetite, and in many cases, state regulators are siding with nature on whether its better to protect valuable property by armoring the coast or give way to the inexorable forces of the sea. Luckily, the Hymans already have a seawall protecting their backyard but their neighbor to the north, John Okerblom, was denied permits to similarly armor his property. This unprotected property has allowed the crashing waves to work their way around the back of the Hymans seawall and erode the bluff once protecting the side of their home. As this erodes, its getting closer and closer to us, Tony said of the neighbors property. Its now down to 26 feet, where at one time it was more than 50 (feet). The Hymans property was equipped with a seawall when they purchased the property for around $1.16 million in the early 1990s, Marilee said. She said they partnered with Okerblom about five years ago to apply for the necessary permits to extend their seawall and build one in their neighbors backyard but have been denied by the California Coastal Commission at seemingly every turn. On Jan. 10, the Coastal Commission sent a letter to the Hymans making clear that any future armoring of the coastline along their neighbors backyard would be prohibited even if it means leaving their home at risk. In light of the dangers to development at this site, we advise that you pursue courses of action associated with this site that do not include shoreline armoring, and that you start planning for next steps that might be necessary in light of such dangers at this location, including potential removal of any threatened development before it falls to the beach below and creates public hazards, the letter read. The commissions hard-line stance against seawalls has displeased some in the Shell Beach community. Homeowners want to protect their homes from falling into the ocean while the Coastal Commission says such armoring is too harmful to the environment to justify. I wish they would just come out and say it: They dont want private property on the coast, Shell Beach homeowner and Central Coast home developer Gary Grossman said of the Coastal Commission. For now, (my house is) protected and they better have a darn good reason to deny me that right. Tony Hyman, left, and Marilee Hyman, right, are worried their oceanfront home in Shell Beach is in danger of being damaged as the bluff erodes. Coastal Commission, experts warn of environmental harm caused by seawalls Coastal Commission staff said they do have a good reason for denying seawall permits requested along Shell Beachs coast: protecting the environment. Seawalls cause beaches to drown, said Kelsey Ducklow, the Coastal Commissions coastal resilience coordinator. When a bluffside is armored, it stops the normal erosion processes that would otherwise allow the bluff to move backward as the oceans rise. This causes the beach area enjoyed by people for recreation and animals for habitat to slowly disappear, Ducklow said. It is unfortunate that so much of the development boom in California was at a time when we just didnt know about sea level rise, Ducklow told The Tribune. But moving forward, we have to understand that the coastline is dynamic. ... So even if we attempted to protect every single piece of development thats along our coast right now you cant protect it in place forever, no matter what we did. In Shell Beach, the cliffs are eroding at average rates of at least 4 to 7 inches every year, according to Gary Griggs, a professor of earth sciences at UC Santa Cruz. However, most bluff erosion is episodic, Griggs noted, meaning you could lose 10 feet of bluff in one year, and none the next. Storm-driven erosion in Pismo Beach has oceanfront homeowners concerned. Some houses have seawalls, while others do not. The California Coastal Commission is generally against issuing private property permits for seawall construction. Although not quite clear yet, its possible that climate change caused by excessive fossil fuel emissions could be worsening bluffside erosion in areas such as Shell Beach, Griggs said. This kind of coastal erosion is mostly caused by two factors: waves crashing against the bluffs and storms pouring water over and through them, Griggs said. Particularly in El Nino years when larger storms are more likely to hit the Central Coast bringing massive waves and torrential rainfall bluffs can erode quite quickly, he added. The major damage weve seen in the last half-century has been because of these storms, and it is not because of a few millimeters (of) sea level rise, Griggs said. Until probably at least mid (21st) century, its going to be these short-term, extreme events that are going to be the most problematic. Overwhelming scientific evidence indicates that as the planets climate changes, extreme storm events are likely to become more frequent and more damaging. Studies have even shown how winter waves along Californias coast are getting bigger. When we armor the coast, were basically making a decision to lose the beach, Griggs said. Storm-driven erosion in Pismo Beach has oceanfront homeowners concerned. Some houses have seawalls, while others do not. The California Coastal Commission is generally against issuing private property permits for seawall construction. Can armoring alternatives fill the gap? There are alternatives to constructing seawalls along the coast, including erosion control measures and drainage fixtures. But those measures only slow not stop the problem at hand. Another alternative, called managed retreat, is one that Shell Beach residents told The Tribune they feel the Coastal Commission favors. The concept involves moving homes and other infrastructure inland away from the eroding bluffs. Its not necessarily that were advocating for managed retreat, or prioritizing managed retreat specifically, so much as it is one of the best ways to ensure that we can protect beach areas, Ducklow said of the Coastal Commissions stance. Over the longest timescales, in some cases, it is going to make sense to retreat from the shoreline. And thats true not just to protect the beach, but also to protect those homes, all of that infrastructure, Ducklow continued. We dont want to be in a time X number of years from now where were spending millions and millions of dollars to continuously repair infrastructure, repair homes (and) repair or armor roads. Managed retreat is difficult in a neighborhood such as Shell Beach. Homes with little to no front yard space directly abut roads that are lined on the other side with more homes, businesses and eventually Highway 101. Legislators have attempted to create loan programs to help local jurisdictions buy homes at risk of falling into the ocean. In one veto of such a bill, Senate Bill 83 proposed by Democrat Sen. Ben Allen of El Segundo in 2021, Gov. Gavin Newsom noted that more work needs to be done before such a program could be implemented. Financial tools, such as the one proposed in SB 83, have the potential to play an important role in a portfolio of strategies that will help build coastal resilience in California, Newsom wrote in a letter to legislators about his veto of the bill. However, such an effort should be considered within a comprehensive lens that evaluates properties to be included in a statewide plan. The city of Pismo Beach and the Coastal Commission alike are now trying to figure out comprehensive solutions to those homes that get closer to falling into the ocean each year. Dr. John Okerblom has been losing bluff to ocean erosion at his Pismo Beach house on Shoreline Drive, seen here Nov. 23, 2022. Neighbors with existing sea walls are not seeing erosion at the same rate. The California Coastal Commission has denied a request to build a sea wall. Pismo Beach is currently updating its local coastal program, the planning document that guides coastal cities on development and protection of coastal resources. The new local coastal program, which must be approved by the Coastal Commission, will likely closely align with the commissions language on seawalls, the citys new community development director Scot Graham said. That process is still in the early stages, Graham noted, and he hopes there will be a public meeting in the spring to discuss the best steps forward for updating the citys local coastal program. It sits squarely right on private property rights issues versus preservation of our beaches and our ecological systems that are along the coast, Graham said. Those things are both valid: People should have a right to protect their property, probably not to the disadvantage of our ecosystems and our beaches, because thats what makes this place nice. Whats the line (between those two things)? Graham asked. Were trying to figure that out. Lawsuit could decide future of shoreline armoring in CA Grossman, the Hymans and Graham are hoping a clearer line on managed retreat will be drawn by a coming ruling in a San Mateo County Superior Court case between bluffside residents of Half Moon Bay and the Coastal Commission. In the summer of 2019, the Casa Mira Homeowners Association sought to armor a stretch of coastline near a condominium complex, apartment building, sewage line and California Coastal Trail segment but were only authorized by the Coastal Commission to build 50 feet of seawall to protect the apartments. The association filed a lawsuit against the Coastal Commission, arguing that homeowners had a right to protect their property under the 1976 California Coastal Act, which allows for the protection of existing structures. After releasing new sea level rise policy guidance in 2015, the Coastal Commission started arguing that the Coastal Act defines an existing structure as buildings and development in place before 1977. This makes it difficult to maintain an unbroken stretch of armoring along bluffs in danger of collapse as some homes were built after 1977 and therefore do not qualify for seawall protection according to the Coastal Commissions policies. Though his home on Indio Drive has been protected by a seawall constructed in 2003, in 2020 Grossman discovered a cave forming under the bluff his home sits on as a result of unarmored parts of the coast, putting the property at risk of catastrophic collapse. The Coastal Commission accepted his application to fix his seawall in February 2023 but added a $1.3 million mitigation fee to account for the environmental damage wrought by the armoring. Pismo Beach homeowner Gary Grossman said the California Coastal Commission appears to oppose protecting private property threatened by bluff erosion. Coastal Commission staff have said the environmental impacts from seawalls are often too great to justify. Grossman argued that by tacking on hefty fees and repeatedly denying proposals to repair and improve seawalls against future erosion, the Coastal Commission appears to be sending a clear message to smaller cities such as Pismo Beach: Seawalls arent welcome. Everybody is waiting on Casa Mira to set the standard for how cities, homeowners and the Coastal Commission can deal with bluff erosion, Grossman said. One of the ironies of it is theyre (the Coastal Commission) going after very small coastal communities that are visitor-serving exactly what the Coastal Act is supposed to promote, Grossman said. Coastal Commission staff told The Tribune that they dont want anyones home to fall into the ocean, but, as the law stands now ahead of a ruling in the Casa Mira lawsuit, seawalls are not the solution because of the environmental impacts. Its not that were saying you have to pack up and leave, its that armoring is not a permissible approach to address your concern, said Kevin Kahn, the Central Coast District manager for the Coastal Commission. This is one aspect of climate change thats just creating a lot of urgency around figuring these problems out. Marilee and Tony Hyman are worried their home in Shell Beach is in danger of being damaged as the bluff below erodes. Estonia has proposed a 120-billion-euro ($131.3 billion) financing plan for Ukraine, according to Kusti Salm, Permanent Secretary of the Estonian Defense Ministry, European outlet Euractiv reported on March 13. The country is currently seeking 100 billion euros ($109.4 billion) to achieve this goal. Salm stated that borrowing from financial markets or national budgets is the optimal approach to provide Ukraine with the resources it needs to succeed in the war. Allocating 120 billion euros annually for military aid to Ukraine is an approximate figure that should be sufficient for Ukraine to prevail, Salm said. Part of this funding could be sourced from Eurobonds, with the European Commission raising funds from financial markets and EU countries serving as guarantors. Estonian politicians have emphasized that for Ukraine to win the war, Western allies should invest 0.25% of their GDP in military assistance to the country. Read also: Estonian PM's cleverly responds to allegation of 'eating Russians for breakfast If the 50-plus countries in the US-led Ramstein coalition supporting Ukraine militarily allocate that percentage, it would surpass 120 billion euros per year, noted the Permanent Secretary of the Estonian Defense Ministry. With this funding, by 2025, Ukraine will attain a level of capability to effectively resist Russia.However, even if funding begins now, it will take nearly a year to ensure Ukraine receives the necessary supplies. It will take an additional approximately nine months to ramp up supplies to the required level for Ukraine to credibly reach this level of resilience, added the Estonian defense official. Read also: Estonia to sign security deal with Ukraine 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 EU ambassadors have agreed in principle on 5 billion euros ($5.5 billion) in defense assistance for Ukraine in 2024 within the framework of the European Peace Facility (EPF), the Belgian Presidency of the EU Council said on March 13. The EPF has been a key tool for supporting Ukraine's defense capabilities since 2022 but has been largely depleted as member states disagreed on the best way to replenish it and unlock further cash for Ukraine. "The (European Union) remains determined to provide lasting support to (Ukraine) & ensure that the country gets the military equipment it needs to defend itself," the Belgian presidency said on social media. The funds to purchase military supplies for Ukraine will be disbursed via the Ukraine Assistance Fund, a newly created tool under the EPF. The Financial Times reported on March 12 that EU member states are near the deal on additional funds for Ukraine's defense. According to the outlet, the agreement will prioritize weapons produced inside the EU but will not exclude those manufactured outside the bloc. Larger states contributing to the EPF have previously complained that smaller countries with stockpiles of Soviet-era equipment sent outdated military gear to Ukraine and used the reimbursements to modernize their own arsenals. The FT reported in February that countries like Germany and France want to phase out the reimbursement model this year and instead focus EU funds directly on arms contracts within the continent. Foreign arms supplies are now critical for Ukraine as assistance from the U.S., a key military donor, has been stalled for months by domestic political infighting. Read also: US announces $300 million defense aid package for Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. LJUBLJANA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Members of the majority of Slovenian parliamentary parties on Tuesday filed a proposal for a referendum on whether the country should build its second nuclear power plant, in order to ensure a stable energy source in the future. According to the proposal, the referendum would be held in the second half of November. The parties that filed the motion together hold 82 out of 90 seats in parliament, and include the Freedom Movement and the Social Democrats, both members of the incumbent center-left government coalition. They also include the opposition center-right parties the Slovenian Democratic Party and New Slovenia. "This is a project of the whole country and several generations," said Natasa Avsic Bogovic, a parliamentary member of Prime Minister Robert Golob's Freedom Movement. Slovenia's sole nuclear power plant NEK, which is equally owned by Slovenia and its neighbor Croatia, was built in cooperation with U.S. firm Westinghouse and started operating in 1983. It is scheduled to close in 2043. The plant covers about a fifth of Slovenia's electricity needs. The new parliamentary motion is in line with an increased global demand for nuclear energy amid a global energy crisis. Later on Tuesday, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry welcomed the motion, and said that building a second nuclear power plant is a precondition for retaining the competitiveness of the Slovenian economy. The European Parliament voted to amend the EU Commission's proposal on extending free trade with Ukraine until 2025, returning the proposal to the parliament's International Trade Committee, the parliament's press service said on March 13. The parliament's amendments are meant to reinforce "safeguards for EU farmers in case of a surge in Ukrainian products." The changes were backed by 347 members of the parliament (MEP), with 117 voting against it and 99 abstaining. The EU introduced a free trade agreement for Ukraine to overcome export restrictions following Russia's full-scale invasion and the blockade of Ukraine's Black Sea ports in 2022. Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia became alternative export routes, agitating local farmers. Polish farmers are currently blocking several crossings with Ukraine in protest to Ukrainian agricultural imports, claiming their Ukrainian competitors are running them out of business. The International Trade Committee on March 7 supported the European Commission's proposal to again extend the trade agreement from June 2024 until June 2025 while introducing an "emergency brake" in case the import of Ukrainian poultry, sugar, and eggs exceeds the levels from 2022 and 2023. MEPs voted to amend the proposal to include more sensitive products and a wider reference date for calculating average volumes. The committee should now start negotiating the changes with the EU Council. The European Parliament also approved the extension of free trade with Moldova until June 2025 without additional changes. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. The EU decided on March 12 to lift sanctions against Arkady Volozh, the co-founder of Russia's most popular search engine, Yandex. Volozh's name was listed in an announcement on the EU's website along with 11 other individuals who were removed from the sanctions list. The EU sanctioned Volozh in June 2022, arguing that Yandex promotes pro-government narratives and is complicit in Russia's war against Ukraine. Volozh resigned as CEO of Yandex after being sanctioned. Volozh has publicly spoke out against the war, calling it "barbaric." He has since been presenting himself as an "Israeli entrepreneur born in Kazakhstan" in his online biography, omitting his Russian ties. In late August 2023, the Financial Times (FT) reported that Volozh had made a formal request for the EU to lift its sanctions against him. A source told the FT that Volozh then waited to condemn the war publicly until people he felt responsible for were able to leave Russia. Reuters reported in February 2024 that the EU was planning to remove Volozh from the sanctions list. Read also: European Parliament votes to criminalize circumvention of EU sanctions Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. The European Union has approved the first comprehensive AI regulations in the world, sweeping guardrails meant to put real-world limits on the development of the technology. The straightforwardly named AI Act was passed by the bloc's parliament today, which could set the tone for similar rules in other parts of the world. In May, EU countries will formally vote on the new rules, which could come into effect in 2026, with some provisions kicking in earlier, as Reuters reports. Lawyers still have to pore over the exact text and its translations, but that's unlikely to stand in the way. "The AI act is not the end of the journey but the starting point for new governance built around technology," said member of European Parliament and one of the leading authors Dragos Tudorache in a statement. "The adoption of the AI Act marks the beginning of a new AI era and its importance cannot be overstated," analyst Enza Innapollo told the BBC. "The EU AI Act is the world's first and only set of binding requirements to mitigate AI risks." So what does the AI Act entail exactly? The Act brings the use of generative AI models in line with specific EU copyright laws and transparency obligations. For instance, companies will have to clearly disclose if a given piece of content was generated by an AI. And AI developers will have to hand over a detailed summary, including text, pictures, and video, of the data they've scraped to train an AI model to bring it in line with existing copyright law. That's a particularly noteworthy new rule, considering companies in the US have been scraping huge amounts of likely copyright-infringing data from the internet to train their AIs. This trend has already led to several copyright lawsuits in the US. As part of the AI Act, the government will determine the level of risks based on the AI model in question. Broadly speaking, the higher the perceived risk of a given AI, the stricter the rules. If an AI system were to be deemed as an "unacceptable risk," it would be banned. These models include ones that manipulate cognitive behavior, classify people based on behavior or socio-economic status, or biometric identification. Other "high risk" models will have to be registered in an EU database, including ones responsible for operating critical infrastructure, managing employment, or law enforcement. Some AI companies are wary of the new rules, arguing that they could end up limiting innovation in the EU. "It is critical we don't lose sight of AI's huge potential to foster European innovation and enable competition, and openness is key here," Meta's head of EU affairs Marco Pancini told Reuters. Other companies welcomed the rules. "We are committed to collaborating with the EU and industry to support the safe, secure, and responsible development of AI technology," an Amazon spokesperson told the agency. The EU isn't the first to attempt to implement AI rules but it's signaling a willingness to go a lot further than other governments have gone so far. Last year, US president Joe Biden signed an executive order to address AI risks, but critics have pointed out that carrying out the order's directives will be extremely difficult. And China's president Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party have also called for greater state control over the tech in light of risks to data security. Before the AI Act can go fully into effect, lawmakers still have work ahead of them. The EU is planning on setting up an AI Office, which is designed to be an independent body within the European Commission. "The rules we have passed in this mandate to govern the digital domain not just the AI Act are truly historical, pioneering," Tudorache said. "But making them all work in harmony with the desired effect and turning Europe into the digital powerhouse of the future will be the test of our lifetime." More on AI regulation: Joe Biden's Executive Order on AI Is Expansive, But Vague A general view of a plenary session of them European Parliament. The European Parliament gave the green light to a flagship new artificial intelligence (AI) regulation on Wednesday, paving the way for the law's final adoption by EU member states. Philippe Stirnweiss/European Parliament/dpa The European Parliament gave the green light to a flagship new artificial intelligence (AI) regulation on Wednesday, paving the way for the law's final adoption by EU member states. The majority of parliamentarians voted in favour of the law in Strasbourg on Wednesday. The AI Act is "the first regulation in the world that is putting a clear path towards a safe and human centric development of AI," said EU legislator Brando Benifei in a press conference ahead of the vote. The forthcoming law establishes a certification regime for AI systems intended for "high-risk" uses listed in the legislation, such as law enforcement, healthcare or hiring and firing. AI systems intended for such purposes will have to be certified as compliant with the legislation before being put on the market. For example, high-risk AI products must meet certain transparency standards and have adequate risk management systems. They will also have to be designed to allow human oversight, and the data used to train their algorithms must conform to certain quality standards. Providers of general-purpose AI systems with diverse potential uses will have to demonstrate that their system doesn't pose a significant risk, or else comply with the rules for high-risk systems. Some uses of AI will be banned outright, such as systems designed to manipulate people subliminally. Police use of AI will also be restricted. For example, using AI to identify people from live CCTV feeds would only be allowed in specific circumstances, such as a targeted search for a victim of kidnapping. The legislation still needs the final approval of EU member states before it can become law. Ministers are expected to vote on the legislation later in the spring. President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola (C) speaks during a plenary session of them European Parliament. The European Parliament gave the green light to a flagship new artificial intelligence (AI) regulation on Wednesday, paving the way for the law's final adoption by EU member states. Philippe Stirnweiss/European Parliament/dpa A general view of a plenary session of them European Parliament. The European Parliament gave the green light to a flagship new artificial intelligence (AI) regulation on Wednesday, paving the way for the law's final adoption by EU member states. Philippe Stirnweiss/European Parliament/dpa The European Parliament on Wednesday approved a draft law intended to protect media freedom in the European Union. The European Media Freedom Act establishes EU-wide legal safeguards for editorial independence and the protection of journalistic sources. It also requires regulators to keep an eye on media market concentration. Large online platforms such as Google, X - formerly known as Twitter - and Facebook would also have to give bona-fide media organizations up to 24 hours notice and a right of reply before censoring their content. Media organizations would have to register in advance to benefit from the provision. The law was drafted in response to concerns about media freedom in countries such as Hungary and Poland. However, enforcement is largely a matter for individual member states. An EU-level assembly of national media regulators will be able to issue opinions on the state of media freedom in any given country. But if member states fail to apply the law properly, it would be up to the European Commission to pursue legal action in EU courts. The law sparked some controversy in Germany because under the country's federal constitution, media regulation is generally a matter for its 16 federal states and not the federal government, much less the EU. There were also concerns in Germany and elsewhere that the legislation would open the door to more EU involvement in a matter traditionally left to member states. Nevertheless, EU member states are expected to give their final approval to the European Media Freedom Act later in the spring. The future of proselytizingand surveillancehas arrived. An app called Bless Every Home , which has been backed by some of the biggest names in evangelical circles, is mapping the personal information of immigrants and non-Christians in a bid to conduct door-to-door religious conversions and prayerwalking rituals through their neighborhoods. The app boasts influential supporters, including the former leader of the Southern Baptist Convention, Jim Henry, and controversial Christian data-harvesting firm Gloo. It puts a lot of features at the fingertips of the faithful, including the ability to filter whole neighborhoods by religion, ethnicity, Hispanic country of origin, assimilation, and whether there are children living in the household. Naturally, the app also comes bundled with less attractive bells and whistles, including a range of serious privacy and data security concerns. Nevertheless, it highlights how a network of evangelists, determined to bring back the Lord to an America that has seen Christian beliefs and church attendance steadily receding, plans to reverse these trendswhether its targets like it or not. Published by nonprofit missionary group Mapping Center for Evangelism and Church Growth, the Bless Every Home app describes itself in its own promotional video as a harvest tool to reach souls for Christ. Its core function is to produce neighborhood maps and detailed tables of data about people from non-Anglo-European backgrounds, drawn from commercial sources typically used by marketing and data-harvesting firms. Its all fairly innocuous on the surface, but training videos produced by users show the extent to which evangelical groups are using sophisticated ways to target non-Christian communities, with questionable safeguards around security and privacy. One video obtained by The New Republic from missionary monitoring organization Beyneynu rates Houston suburbs with large Muslim populations as shooting fish in a barrel when it comes to evangelism. Kevin Greeson, Texas hub leader of Global Gates, a large missionary network and enthusiastic customer of Bless Every Home, explains the ways the app can be used. In one instance, he points to the sharable note-taking function and suggests leaving information for each household, such as Daughter left for college and Mother is in the hospital. Asked by a trainee how to respond to concerns that people may have about the app during the training video, Greeson concedes that this thing is so powerfulits an invasion of privacy. He claims that there are 50 different sources of information that are used to provide the comprehensive dataset, which is all public information. This is a bit of a dodge: Much of the data that Greeson is talking about harvesting in this fashion is commercial information not generally available to the public. Moreover, the way he intends it to be used, which in this case would lead to missionaries essentially publishing online lists of information about targeted ethnic groups in specific locations, could conceivably be dangerous in the wrong hands. Contacted by The New Republic about privacy and data security concerns, Greeson, who emphasized that Global Gates is a paying customer of the app and not responsible for its content, said that data remains within the confidentiality of each Global Gates missionary. Sharing with partnering churches, he added, means that only one or two people in the church have access to it. Greeson added that Global Gates only uses the lists of houses with children for Vacation Bible School invitations, saying, We always strive to protect privacy and especially the safety of children. A privacy statement on the Bless Every Home website says that it does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. (Representatives for Bless Every Home did not respond to requests for comment.) Whatever specific use they might have for the app notwithstanding, Bless Every Home customers are attracted by a marketing pitch that offers solutions designed to support the Great Commission in America, which includes receiving weekly updates about new people moving into their area. The Great Commission is a widely used term in evangelical communities, derived from the gospel of Matthew, where Jesus urges his apostles to make disciples of all nations. Once the motivation behind foreign missionary efforts, these days it has been inverted to target multicultural, multifaith America. The Mapping Center for Evangelism and Church Growths founder and president Chris Cooper suggests using the app to conduct neighborly activities such as putting on a barbecue for potential converts, but scattered throughout the apps training and promotional videos are suggestions to undertake the controversial practice of prayerwalking. An idea becoming increasingly popular among Christian supremacist groups, prayerwalking involves believers flooding so-called un-Christian territories in order to combat demonic strongholds. In practice, it varies from blessing new neighbors to gathering groups to pray in front of everything from mosques to drag bars in service of spiritual warfare. The practice is derived from a term that comes from Ephesians 6:12, describing a struggle that is not against flesh and blood but opposing the powers of this dark world and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Far from obscure, spiritual warfare is possibly the most influential doctrine in evangelical circles today, encouraging true believers to put on the full armor of God and go into battle in their everyday lives. To be clear, no one is demanding that their flock go out to storm a synagogue or shoot up a mosque. This brand of warfare instead calls on believers to wage violent prayer (persistently and aggressively channeling emotions of hatred and anger against Satan), engage in spiritual mapping (identifying areas where evil is at work, such as the darkness ruling over an abortion clinic, or the spirit of greed ruling over Las Vegas), and conduct prayerwalking (roaming the streets in groups, praying on-site with insight). Prayerwalking is a relatively recent form of spiritual warfare, and the most widely used one, and its adherents would say that it is simply a peaceful form of intercession. But the practice developed a dark reputation in an incredibly short amount of time. It was, after all, a prayerwalk on January 5, 2021, that was cited by the January 6 report as one of two critically important rallies that helped pave the way for the violent events the following day. (Ironically, Kevin Greeson of the aforementioned training video shares his name with a man who died after a medical emergency during the January 6 riot at the Capitol.) Following the prayerwalk, on January 6, there was a Jericho march. Arguably an outgrowth of the prayerwalking movement, Jericho marches are an idea taken from the Old Testament book of Joshua, where God instructed the Israelites to march around the city of Jericho seven times praying, singing, and blowing shofars. While this wasnt the first march of its kind, they have since become a feature of right-wing protest movements across the world. Jericho marches have, so far, been used as a weapon of protest rather than evangelism, but the fact that this is their antecedent is troubling. It doesnt take a leap of faith to appreciate that Muslims, Hindus, and Jews might feel uncomfortable seeing a group of hard-core Christians prayerwalk past their house or place of worship, seeking to drive out demons and force heathens to see the light. Equally, newly arrived refugees might well find a knock on the door from strangers with knowledge of their personal circumstances distressingand thats before these surprise visitors even begin to attempt to convert them. There are already hints that this ecosystem has moved beyond simple prayer. Global Gates, whose training video was the catalyst for this story, previously employed David and Rivka Costello, an evangelical couple who allegedly posed as Orthodox Jews to convert Jewish people to Christianity in the Chicago neighborhood of West Rogers Park (and now preach a form of Messianic Judaism that is not recognized by the major Jewish sects). Another organization, the Unreached People Groups of North America, of which Global Gates is a partner, has searchable online databases that use the information available to Bless Every Home customers. Deploying scores of pages devoted to specific ethno-religious subgroups, such as Bozniaks in Chicago and Bukharan Jews in New York, it provides comprehensive breakdowns of demographics, places of worship, and even cafes that are frequented by the targeted communities. Its not pleasant, but neither is it hard to imagine the aftermath of an incident of political violence, where an ethno-religious group in the United States is subject to a pogrom based on online lists. Dissidents from foreign regimes could rightly have cause for concern. But whats being done, allegedly in Gods name, is already enough to make anyone feel squeamish. Bless Every Home and its many subscribers may be using commercial data with the best of intentions, but placing people of different ethnic and religious backgrounds on easy-to-access databases is a dangerous road to go down, no matter how urgently they want to spread the good news. The White House and House Democrats both made moves Tuesday to get aid to Ukraine, a burning priority for Democrats that Republicans are blocking in the House. The White House announced at a Tuesday press conference that it would send an emergency package of $300 million worth of weapons and equipment to the besieged country. The Pentagon pulled together the money from various contracts that had come in under bid, per the administration. Its little more than a stopgap measure, as the Pentagon has said it needs $10 billion to replace the stockpile the U.S. has sent to Ukraine. It would have that and more in the package the Senate passed back in February with bipartisan support. But Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has ducked calls to bring the package up for a floor vote; at least one member of his conference has threatened to trigger a motion to vacate if he does. Hes hand-waved that he may turn back to the issue after Congress finishes the slog of funding the government. But Ukraine supporters, who still comprise a majority in both chambers, fear the country cant wait that long. House Democrats Tuesday opened up a discharge petition for signatures to circumvent Johnson and force a vote on the Senate aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The uncommon and usually unsuccessful maneuver is a way for members to bring legislation to a vote without the speaker doing so; it will require 218 signatures. Republicans currently control the House at 219 seats (a majority thats getting slimmer all the time). Democrats will need Republican votes to both add to their 213 seats and make up for the defections from progressive Democrats who either oppose Israel aid altogether, or demand that more of it be conditional. Theres a dueling discharge petition from Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) a former FBI agent who was stationed in Kyiv expected to go live later this week. Hes tweaking his package to try to increase its bipartisan appeal, throwing in some border red meat for Republicans (one-year Remain in Mexico and expulsion policies) and adding in new humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza, per Punchbowl News. Fitzpatricks discharge petition, unlike the House Democrats, which would just bring the Senate bill to the House floor, would involve legislation bouncing back to the upper chamber for a vote. These are well-meaning members. But we disagree that that is the right solution, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), chair of the Democratic House caucus, said Tuesday at the House Democrats press conference. Under any scenario, that bill, that discharge, would force a vote on something that still has to go to the U.S. Senate. And that could take weeks or months to deliver the critical aid thats necessary. The Best Of TPM Today Ron Klain Thinks The Biden Alliance Is Strong Enough To Withstand Gaza And Trump Experts Place New Secret Society Squarely In The Christian Nationalist Revival Aileen Cannon Continues To Make A Mess Of The MAL Case Yesterdays Most Read Story Inside A Secret Society Of Prominent Right-Wing Christian Men Prepping For A National Divorce Josh Kovensky What We Are Reading Young Indian Method Teaches TikTok Spammers How to Hire and Control Third World Country Workers 404 Media Inspired by the Confederacy and Czarist Russia, Ortho Bros Are on the Rise Texas Monthly Trumps Corruption-Policy Nexus Comes Into Focus Off Message Leading Saudi telecom group stc has announced a strategic collaboration with Oracle to deliver cutting-edge cloud solutions tailored for the unique needs of the Saudi Arabian market. stc Group has deployed Oracle Alloy to help organisations leverage hyperscale cloud services while also supporting data residency and data sovereignty. With this sovereign cloud capability, stc Group will be able to capitalize on the business opportunities, scale, and performance of the cloud, and innovate at the speed of hyperscale cloud providers. "This collaboration represents a significant step forward in stcs mission to empower organizations in Saudi Arabia with innovative cloud solutions. By combining stcs deep understanding of the local market with Oracles leading-edge cloud technology, this capability will enable our customers to achieve their digital transformation goals securely and efficiently," remarked Saud Alsheraihi, the Vice President, Products and Solutions, stc Group. stc Group and Oracle combine the expertise of two industry leaders to provide a highly secure and reliable cloud infrastructure with features to support the requirements of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Oracle Alloy will be hosted in the state-of-the-art data centers of Center3 and leverage the distinctive and advanced capabilities of the stc Group entities to streamline and enhance the cloud customer journey. By leveraging Oracles cloud technology and stc Groups extensive local market knowledge, the new platform will offer a comprehensive suite of cloud services while offering features to support data sovereignty, it stated. "Oracle Alloy is a complete cloud infrastructure platform that enables organizations to become cloud providers. It is a key component of Oracles distributed cloud strategy, which aims to give our partners and customers more choice in how they build, deploy, and operate cloud services," said Nick Redshaw, Senior Vice President (Technology) Middle East & Africa at Oracle. "Oracle Alloy functions as a full cloud region that Oracle supports and updates with new features as they become available in other Oracle public cloud regions around the world, benefiting from continuous hyperscaler innovation for local and sovereign needs," stated Redshaw. "It enables partners to control the commercial and customer experience and extend it to address their specific market needs. With its strong customer network and local capabilities, stc Group is well positioned to help organizations in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain harness the high performance, flexibility, security, and scalability offered by Oracle Cloud Infrastructure," he added.-TradeArabia News Service LONDON, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Cultural exchange is especially important during uncertain times, and books help build the bridge between different civilizations, the director of the London Book Fair (LBF) said this week. Gareth Rapley said he is "delighted" to see an increase in participation by Chinese publishers at the LBF after COVID, showcasing a vast array of talent from China. "We're delighted to see an increase (in participation) this year from China. Hopefully, this year is a building block for further Chinese participation here at London book fair," Rapley told Xinhua in an interview. London Book Fair 2024, one of the world's biggest, kicked off on Tuesday. First launched in 1971, the three-day event is expected to attract over 30,000 publishing professionals and 1,000 companies from around the globe. This year, around 50 Chinese publishers are showcasing more than 3,200 types of Chinese-themed books, covering a wide range of areas including politics, culture, academic works, and trending topics such as low-carbon and artificial intelligence (AI). "I think books provide a platform for literacy skills, education, understanding, and helping to create dialogue (between different cultures)," said the LBF chief. Rapley has visited China's biggest cities Beijing and Shanghai, and said he was impressed by the hospitality of the Chinese people, the rapid development of infrastructure and the country's rich culture and history. "It's a beautiful country and I'm looking forward to coming back this summer for the Beijing International Book Fair," he said. According to Rapley, China and Britain have maintained "a great trade relationship", especially in the publishing industry. "I think cultural exchange and dialogue, as we've seen over many centuries, are important aspects. As humans we are all different, from one country to the next and within our own countries as well, so that cultural exchange is an important part of fostering relationships and building awareness," he said. Commenting on AI, which presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the publishing industry, Rapley said it is "an existential threat" to creative content and to writers of all genres. Copyright needs to be protected with fair use of new technology, he stressed, adding that however, AI technology can enhance data, business and operations. Everything Andrew Tate and brother Tristan have been accused of as influencers face trial A UK request to extradite social media influencer Andrew Tate and his brother has been granted by a Romanian court. Bedfordshire Police said officers were working with authorities in the country as part of an investigation into the 37-year-old and his 35-year-old brother Tristan. The pair were detained on Tuesday and appeared at the court of appeal in Bucharest, Romania, where it was ruled they would be extradited after their trial for separate charges of rape, forming an organised crime group, and human trafficking ends. They have both been released from police custody following the hearing. It comes after lawyers representing four women who accuse Tate of rape and sexual assault wrote to UK police to request his detention over fears he would flee Romania. But what are the allegations against Tate and his brother?The Independent has put together a list of everything you need to know below. A Romanian court granted a UK request to extradite the brothers (AP) Allegations in Romania Tate and his brother, Tristan, are charged with rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women in Romania after being arrested in the countrys capital in December 2022 alongside two Romanian women. The brothers were jailed and had some of their luxury cars and assets seized before they were released under house arrest. They were later able to leave their home but were made to stay in Romania. In December 2023, Tate had his request to visit his mother in hospital in the UK rejected by a Romanian court after she suffered a heart attack. All four deny the allegations. Tate said he and his brother were very innocent men and claimed the West was owned by Satanists determined to put him in jail. The Tate brothers attending a hearing in Bucharest, Romania, earlier this year (AP) Allegations in the UK Following the conclusion of legal proceedings, Tate and his brother will be extradited to the UK after Bedfordshire Police secured a European arrest warrant in connection to an investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking. A spokesperson for Bedfordshire Police said: As part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of rape and human trafficking, Bedfordshire Police has obtained a European arrest warrant for two men in their 30s. We are working with authorities in Romania as part of this investigation and will provide an update in due course. The two brothers unequivocally deny the allegations which date back to 2012-2015. Matthew Jury, managing partner at McCue Jury & Partners, which has made the claims, said: Todays news is very welcome as it has been a significant concern to many that Tate would seek to avoid justice in Romania and abroad. He added that Tate had spread a vast amount of disinformation about the criminal allegations he faces in the UK since his first arrest in Romania. Four British citizens have accused Tate of rape and human trafficking between 2012 and 2015 (EPA) What have the brothers said? Speaking to reporters outside the Romanian court following the ruling, Tate told reporters he and his brother were very innocent men. He said: I want to give absolute credit to Romanian justice for making the correct decision today. Were very innocent men and in time everybodys going to see that. We are excited to finish this judicial process and clear our names. In a short statement issued on Tuesday, the Tates representative added: This bewildering revival of decade-old accusations has left the Tate brothers dismayed and deeply troubled. They categorically reject all charges and express profound disappointment that such serious allegations are being resurrected without substantial new evidence. The Tate brothers assert that the timing and circumstances surrounding the reappearance of these allegations raise serious questions about the motives behind this legal action. The suggestion that Mr Tates rise to fame may have played a role in these developments adds another layer of distress and concern. A former Customs and Border Protection officer who worked at a Texas port of entry pleaded guilty this week to letting undocumented people into the U.S. and allowing what he thought was cocaine into the country, officials said. Emanuel Isac Celedon pleaded guilty in two federal cases Monday one dealing with smuggling people into the U.S. and a second that involved taking a bribe for what he believed was a shipment of cocaine, prosecutors said. Celedon, 36, worked at the Juarez-Lincoln Port of Entry in Laredo on the U.S.-Mexico border. He let people through the lane he controlled without inspection at least nine times from September to November and told smugglers in advance what his lane assignment was, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Texas said in a statement. Celedon also took a $6,000 bribe to allow vehicles with what he believed were kilograms of cocaine but which was actually sham cocaine and part of an undercover investigation into the U.S., the prosecutors office said. Celedon's attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday afternoon. He pleaded guilty Monday to four counts of bringing an undocumented alien to the U.S. in one criminal case and to counts of bribery and attempted importation of a controlled substance in the second, the U.S. attorney's office said. The Juarez-Lincoln Port of Entry is one of five border land crossings in Laredo. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) Former Honduras first lady Ana Garcia de Hernandez said Tuesday, just days after her husbands U.S. drug trafficking conviction, that she plans to seek the countrys presidency next year. Ex-President Juan Orlando Hernandez was convicted of conspiring with drug traffickers moving tons of cocaine to the United States in a federal court in Manhattan Friday. On Tuesday, his wife said in a news conference: I want to tell you that from this moment I will start an active and proactive fight for the world to know the injustice that was committed. She said she would do so by seeking the nomination of Hernandezs National party. Hernandez, who maintained his innocence throughout his trial, could be sentenced to life in prison. I know what has to be done, I know the job, I know the dedication and the fight my husband has had every day and I know Honduras great needs, and one of the greatest is the injustice weve just seen, Garcia de Hernandez said. Marco Eliud Giron, a lawmaker from the ruling LIBRE party, said that Garcia de Hernandez could run, but asserted that she surely knew of her husbands ties to drug traffickers. He suggested her entry into politics had more to do with reducing her own legal exposure. Hernandez was arrested at his home in Tegucigalpa, the Honduran capital, three months after leaving office in 2022 and was extradited to the U.S. in April of that year. By David Gauthier-Villars, Laila Bassam and Tom Perry ISTANBUL (Reuters) - An Israeli tank killed Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah in Lebanon last year by firing two 120 mm rounds at a group of "clearly identifiable journalists" in violation of international law, a U.N. investigation into the Oct. 13 incident has found. The investigation by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), summarized in a report seen by Reuters, said its personnel did not record any exchange of fire across the border between Israel and Lebanon for more than 40 minutes before the Israeli Merkava tank opened fire. "The firing at civilians, in this instance clearly identifiable journalists, constitutes a violation of UNSCR 1701 (2006) and international law," the UNIFIL report said, referring to Security Council resolution 1701. The seven-page report dated Feb. 27 said further: "It is assessed that there was no exchange of fire across the Blue Line at the time of the incident. The reason for the strikes on the journalists is not known." Under resolution 1701, adopted in 2006 to bring an end to the war between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters, U.N. peacekeepers were deployed to monitor a ceasefire along the 120 km (75 mile) demarcation line, or Blue Line, between Israel and Lebanon. As part of their mission, U.N. troops record violations of the ceasefire and investigate the most egregious cases. Besides killing Abdallah, the two tank rounds also wounded six other journalists at the scene. Asked about the UNIFIL report, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson Nir Dinar said Hezbollah had attacked the IDF near the Israeli community of Hanita on Oct. 13. It responded with artillery and tank fire to remove the threat and subsequently received a report that journalists had been injured. "The IDF deplores any injury to uninvolved parties, and does not deliberately shoot at civilians, including journalists," Dinar said. "The IDF considers the freedom of the press to be of utmost importance while clarifying that being in a war zone is dangerous." He said the General Staff's Fact Finding and Assessment Mechanism, which is responsible for reviewing exceptional events, will continue to examine the incident. According to the IDF's website, the fact finding team submits its reviews to the Israeli military's legal affairs department, which decides whether a case warrants a criminal investigation. 'MUST BE PROTECTED' Reuters Editor-in-Chief Alessandra Galloni has called on Israel to explain how the attack that killed Abdallah, 37, could have happened and to hold those responsible to account. The UNIFIL report was sent to the United Nations in New York on Feb. 28 and has been shared with the Lebanese and Israeli militaries, two people familiar with the matter said. "(The) IDF should conduct an investigation into the incident and a full review of their procedures at the time to avoid a recurrence," the report said in its recommendations. "The IDF should share their investigation's findings with UNIFIL." A U.N. spokesperson confirmed that the UNIFIL report had been shared with the parties. "We reiterate that all actors should uphold their obligations under international law, and that civilians, including journalists, should never be a target. Journalists and media professionals must be protected," the spokesperson said. For its investigation, UNIFIL sent a team to visit the site on Oct. 14, and also received contributions from the Lebanese Armed Forces and from an unnamed witness who was present on the hill when the strikes occurred, the report said. Details of incidents in UNIFIL's area of operations are included in regular reports by the U.N. Secretary-General on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701. UNIFIL's investigations, however, are not usually made public and Reuters was unable to determine if there would be any U.N. follow-up. UNIFIL spokesperson Andrea Tenenti said he was not in a position to discuss the investigation. UNIFIL's findings lend further support to a Reuters investigation published on Dec. 7 that showed that seven journalists from Agence France-Presse, Al Jazeera and Reuters, were hit by two 120 mm rounds fired by a tank 1.34 km away in Israel. The group of reporters had been filming cross-border shelling from a distance in open area on a hill near the Lebanese village of Alma al-Chaab for nearly an hour before the attack. The day afterwards, the IDF said it already had visuals of the incident and it was being investigated. The IDF has not published a report of its findings to date. UNIFIL said in its report that it sent a letter and a questionnaire to the IDF requesting their assistance. The IDF replied with a letter but did not answer the questionnaire. Reuters has not seen a copy of the IDF letter, the contents of which were summarized in the UNIFIL report. (Reporting by David Gauthier-Villars in Istanbul, Laila Bassam and Tom Perry in Beirut; Additional reporting by Maya Gebeily in Beirut and Eleanor Whalley in London; Graphic by Jackie Gu; Editing by David Clarke) FILE PHOTO: A boy holds a sign to protest against, what a teacher, local councilor and parents said, the kidnapping of hundreds school pupils by gunmen after the Friday prayer, in Kaduna By Garba Muhammad KADUNA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Gunmen who kidnapped 286 students and staff from a school in northern Nigeria last week have demanded a total of 1 billion naira ($620,432) for their release, a spokesman for the families of the hostages and a local councillor told Reuters. The school children, some older students and members of the school staff were abducted on March 7 in the town of Kuriga, in Nigeria's northwestern Kaduna State, in the first mass kidnapping in the country since 2021. Jubril Aminu, a community leader who acts as a spokesman for the families of the hostages, said he had received a call on his phone from the kidnappers on Tuesday. "They made a total of a 1 billion (naira) ransom demand for all the pupils, students and staff of the school," Aminu said. "They gave an ultimatum to pay the ransom within 20 days, effective from the date of the kidnap. They said they will kill all the students and the staff if the ransom demand is not met." Idris Ibrahim, an elected official from the Kuriga Ward municipal council, confirmed the ransom demand and the amount. "Yes, the kidnappers called the community through Jubril Aminu's number and made the demand," he said. "They called from a hidden number but the authorities are working on getting the number," Ibrahim told Reuters. He added that the security forces were taking "adequate measures" to secure the release of the students. Samuel Aruwan, commissioner of internal security and home affairs in Kaduna State, did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment about the kidnappers' demands. Spokespeople for President Bola Tinubu and the army also did not respond to requests for comment. The country's information minister, Mohammed Idris, told reporters on Wednesday that Tinubu's position on the kidnappings in Kuriga was that security forces should secure the hostages' release without any payment to the kidnappers. "The president has directed that security agencies must as a matter of urgency ensure that these children and all those who have been kidnapped are brought back to safety and also in the process ensure that not a dime is paid for ransom." Under Tinubu's predecessor, legislation was introduced imposing jail time for anyone found paying a ransom to free a hostage as kidnappings in Nigeria became ever more frequent. The ransom demand for the Kuriga students and school staff amounts to more than $2,000 per hostage, or more than the annual per capita income in Nigeria, according to International Monetary Fund data. ($1 = 1,611.7800 naira) (Reporting by Garba Muhammad in Kaduna, Giulia Paravicini in Nairobi and Felix Onuah in Abuja; Writing by Bate Felix and Alexander Winning; Editing by Silvia Aloisi, Jon Boyle and Alex Richardson) By Andrius Sytas VILNIUS (Reuters) - Hours before an assailant attacked him with a hammer and tear gas outside his home in Lithuania, the top aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny told Reuters he and other exiles feared for their lives. Leaders of Navalny's organisation knew they were facing "high individual risks", Leonid Volkov said in an interview filmed on Tuesday hours before an unidentified attacker assaulted him outside his home. "They know that Putin not only kills people inside Russia, he also kills people outside of Russia", he said. "We live in very dark times". Lithuania has accused Moscow of being behind the attack. Volkov blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin. "This is an obvious, typical criminal hello from Putin, from criminal Petersburg, Volkov wrote on Telegram. "We will keep on working and we will not surrender." There was no immediate comment from Moscow on the incident. In his interview with Reuters hours before the attack, Volkov said the death of Navalny last month in an arctic prison had inspired Navalny's supporters to ensure that his sacrifice was not in vain. "Alexei's death was a devastating loss, and it's a bleeding wound (in) our hearts, but also of course it produced a lot of energy, a lot of political momentum," he said. "It's our task and responsibility to convert this energy into meaningful political action that would make Putin weaker." Navalny's followers believe he was killed in prison by the Russian authorities. Moscow says he died of natural causes. Volkov said he drew encouragement from initial moves by Navalny's widow Yulia Navalnaya's to assume her husband's mantle, and from the tens of thousands who had risked arrest by turning out in Moscow for his funeral. The number of small private donors to Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation, where Volkov is chief of staff, had risen by half, he said. Nevertheless, he said, the death of Navalny was a severe blow. "The situation is terrible... It can't be underestimated - there is no other Navalny, no spare Navalny, no other person like him," Volkov said. Navalny "had quite a unique ability to frame ideas in a way that were able to ignite millions. We don't have any ability to compensate for this loss." Volkov said the West was partly to blame for failing to impose consequences on Putin for his actions. U.S. President Joe Biden had said after meeting Putin in Geneva in June 2021 that there would be "devastating" consequences for Russia if Navalny were to die in prison, Volkov said. "Do you see any devastating consequences? No. Is the West actually able to impose any devastating consequences on Putin? I doubt it." The task now facing the opposition was to stay united and keep working. "It's our job to not let it die, because it's a very important part of his legacy. Not to let it fall apart due to internal conflicts, or something like this", said Volkov. "These are very dark times for us, very challenging ones. But of course we have a very strong determination to carry on." (Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius Editing by Peter Graff) [Source] A series of extortion attempts targeting South Asian businesses since October 2023 has led to at least 14 arrests across Canada, with incidents linked to organized crime. Key details: Extortion threats have surfaced in various cities in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, with at least five policing jurisdictions currently investigating 74 related incidents or cases. Perpetrators are reportedly using physical letters, phone calls and social media apps to demand protection money primarily from South Asian business owners. Those who refused to comply have suffered gunfire or arson attacks. RCMP national team: In January, Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown and Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke expressed concerns to Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc regarding the rise of such threats, emphasizing the need for a coordinated response across jurisdictions. Subsequently, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) announced in February the establishment of a national team to coordinate investigations regarding the schemes. The investigation: According to RCMP Supt. Adam MacIntosh, the team is looking into similarities and motivations behind the threats, which are believed to be linked to organized crime groups. Peel police in Toronto noted that while the attacks are predominantly targeting the South Asian community, they are also carried out by members of the same community. Trending on NextShark: Video: Violinist bullies street singer to take over her spot in Sydney Possible motivations: According to MacIntosh, it is possible that the attacks are tied to geopolitical tensions related to India and the Khalistan separatist movement, along with potential international connections. Law enforcement also suggests that the ease of executing the threats through a simple phone call has led to a proliferation of copycat incidents, complicating the investigation and resulting in an unprecedented surge in violence. Advice from police: Police strongly advise against paying extortion demands, as it only escalates the problem and results in recurring demands. MacIntosh encourages victims to come forward, expressing concerns that some incidents may have gone unreported. Trending on NextShark: Blackpink becomes first K-pop girl group to surpass 1 billion Spotify streams Download the NextShark App: Want to keep up to date on Asian American News? Download the NextShark App today! A former San Francisco State University employee who oversaw the handling of sexual misconduct and discrimination cases alleged that the campus president and an official with the state university system tried to interfere with an investigation into harassment allegations against a professor and said that the school failed to properly investigate hundreds of claims of wrongdoing. In a 20-page complaint filed Wednesday against the campus and the California State University system, Heather Borlase said that she was terminated last summer after she launched an investigation into multiple Muslim students complaints that a professor showed a drawing of the prophet Muhammad in his Islamic studies class without warning or reason. Borlase alleged that San Francisco State President Lynn Mahoney and CSU Vice Chancellor of Human Resources Leora Freedman believed the professors actions were protected under academic freedom and asked Borlase to halt the investigation. But Borlase said that a probe was necessary to determine whether the professors actions constituted religious harassment. Visual depictions of Muhammad are considered offensive for many Muslims. Freedman wanted to offer time "for the parties to reach an informal resolution," according to the complaint, and took the case from Borlase in April 2023. Roughly a week later, after the case faced public criticism by an outside advocacy group, Borlase said she was placed on administrative leave and learned months later that her job would not be reinstated. According to the complaint, she was told the decision was in the best interest of the university. Read more: Former San Francisco State manager accused of calling worker a 'runaway slave,' suit says The university said that "the change wasn't made to influence the outcome of any investigation." "Like all CSU campuses, S.F. State takes seriously its responsibility to provide students and employees a safe learning and working environment," director of communications Bobby King said. "Different leadership was desired to lead work in the department, which was already happening to improve processes and outcomes." Borlase claimed that she inherited more than 400 unresolved cases of harassment, misconduct and discrimination when she started in 2021 and had received pushback from university officials who expressed concern about the exposure when she tried to address the reports. According to the complaint, the university encouraged her to only work on the most egregious cases involving current students or faculty. Ms. Borlase insisted on bringing all cases into compliance. In one instance, an investigation into sexual harassment allegations against a professor found that people were dissuaded from bringing such claims forward. But Borlase said she was discouraged from taking corrective action that could put the university in a negative light, the complaint said. In another instance, an investigation found that a campus administrator had racially harassed an employee, calling them "a runaway slave." According to the complaint, Borlase was asked to "downplay the university's failure to act when concerns ... were first raised." S.F. State's failure to timely respond to student and staff complaints, its interference with the integrity of investigations, and scapegoating and terminating Ms. Borlase cannot be condoned, said Katherine Smith, one of the attorneys representing Borlase. Read more: What you need to know about the sexual misconduct scandals at CSU Borlases concerns coincided with CSUs examination of its policies around Title IX the federal ban on sex discrimination following multiple accounts of inconsistencies over how university officials handled complaints of sexual misconduct and retaliation. On several of CSU's 23 campuses from San Diego State University to California State University Maritime Academy, Times investigations found that students and employees lacked confidence in the Title IX process and often feared that their issues would be ignored. A Times analysis of complaints from the 2021-2022 school year found that about 3% of more than 2,600 reports of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct were formally investigated. "It is critical for students to know it is safe to come forward and when they do, their complaints will be fairly investigated," said Wendy Musell, another attorney for Borlase. Shortly before Borlases dismissal last year, the Cozen OConnor law firm shared a report with CSU's Board of Trustees and the university community that found flaws in how CSU campuses collect data, widespread distrust by students and employees in how wrongdoing is addressed and a low number of investigations. A state audit found similar breakdowns. And in a push for broader accountability, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law that would require the CSU system to disclose the outcome of sexual harassment cases and investigations. The CSU is the largest four-year public university system in the nation. It has previously said that it will make changes to its handling of complaints and is hiring additional staff to improve its investigative process. Transforming culture is not easy or quick. It takes time and significant resources, Board Chair Wenda Fong told The Times last year. 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. Claim: In March 2024, viral videos authentically showed the corpses of Haitian men being roasted over open fires. Rating: Rating: Miscaptioned In March 2024, a viral video was circulated on X, formerly Twitter, that claimed to show the gruesome footage of two Haitian men's corpses being roasted over an open flame, similar to pigs on a spit. "In Haiti, civil war is raging, and cannibalism has returned," said one X post, translated from Portuguese to English using Google Translate. "Basically, these are their customs, we have to respect them, right?" Below the text was a video that purported to show an open-air setting featuring two corpses tied with ropes and bound by their torsos and legs to two wooden structures. The bodies were being cranked over what looked like open flames by a person just out of view. At the time of this writing, that video had been viewed more than 490,000 times, and numerous other accounts shared the footage as well, with one containing a racist message that garnered more than 10 million views before being removed for violating X rules. But the video, as shared across social media in March 2024, was miscaptioned. A Community Note attached to one instance of the video explained that the footage was from a Halloween party at a Chinese theme park in 2018. The note linked to an article from the Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew Daily, which operates out of Malaysia and is circulated throughout Southeast Asia. The Sin Chew article from Jan. 14, 2020 included a still image from the viral video and its headline, translated to English, said: "African restaurant being banned for roasting human meat? It turned out to be a Halloween party decoration." At that time, according to the Sin Chew article, the video was attributed not to so-called cannibals in Haiti, but instead to a restaurant in Nigeria that "openly grilled human flesh in the restaurant." Per the article: The video in question was shot at a Halloween party at Chimelong Ocean Kingdom Theme Park in Zhuhai, China, in October, 2018. The information posted online is purely false. Further, Snopes found another article, published by Indonesian news outlet Jawa Pos, on Dec. 30, 2019, stating that the story of human meat being served at a Nigerian hotel restaurant first surfaced in 2014 but was then "accompanied by a video about the process of making the menu." Jawa Pos discredited that claim, explaining of the video: If you look closely, the two baked figures look more like human replicas. Another oddity is that the roasting location is in the open air. This is different from the video narrative which states that the location is a hotel kitchen. There is also a spotlight pointing at the person being roasted. A similar video was found by Jawa Pos on the Chimelong Ocean Kingdom theme park's Instagram account, which was uploaded to the platform Oct. 31, 2018. The caption that accompanied that video was translated to read: "Smoked little man": In that video, not only is a man with ghoulish red face paint seen hand-cranking the spit, but the apparent flames have wires protruding, likely connected to a power source. Additionally, on Oct. 27, 2018, YouTube channel SviatMe uploaded a video titled, "Halloween Party at Chimelong Ocean Park | Zhuhai, China," along with the caption, "What fun is it to join a Halloween Party at the Ocean Park? Let's see together! Sea lions, whales, jellyfish, Ancient Egypt Halloween party and much more!" The footage from the Halloween celebrations at Chimelong showed the park's aquatic life, light shows and frightening installations featuring actors dressed as spooky characters and, at the 5:25 mark in the video, the replicas of the two corpses are seen being roasted over what are clearly fake flames. So, upon closer examination, it is clear that the viral video is not a genuine depiction of cannibalistic events in Haiti, but rather footage that has been miscaptioned to incite a negative response. Delving into the historical context of Haiti reveals a complex narrative surrounding rumors of cannibalism, owing to its history of Vodou, a religion derived from tribal religions in West Africa, often steeped in sensationalism and colonial stereotypes. Despite occasional isolated incidents, cannibalism does not represent Haitian culture as a whole. Furthermore, it's important to consider the current political and social climate in Haiti, which has been marked by political instability, poverty and gang violence, contributing to social unrest and a breakdown of law and order, further exacerbating the country's already dire situation. We've fact-checked other claims about cannibalism, which you can find here. Sources: "Does Viral Video Show Haitian Gang Eating Human Body Parts? Truth behind the Incident." Hindustan Times, 11 Mar. 2024, https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/does-viral-video-show-haitian-gang-eating-human-body-parts-truth-behind-the-incident-101710136566462.html. Gangs Tighten Grip as Haiti Spirals to Collapse. 11 Mar. 2024. www.bbc.com, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-68531759. Halloween Party at Chimelong Ocean Park | Zhuhai, China | SviatMe. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50Z_PCWqZ-k. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. "Https://Twitter.Com/Racismocontrapt/Status/1767135497862680808." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/racismocontrapt/status/1767135497862680808. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. "---." X (Formerly Twitter), https://twitter.com/racismocontrapt/status/1767135497862680808. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. Hurbon, Laennec. "Haitian Vodou." Cambridge Encyclopedia of Anthropology, Apr. 2022. www.anthroencyclopedia.com, https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/haitian-vodou. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/Bpmh1MDA0O3/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=79d55a41-142d-4fb3-8c99-35434e6b8f9e. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. Magazine, Smithsonian, and Mike Dash. "The Trial That Gave Vodou A Bad Name." Smithsonian Magazine, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-trial-that-gave-vodou-a-bad-name-83801276/. Accessed 12 Mar. 2024. Rey, Michelle Del. "Haiti News Live: Kenya Refuses to Send Troops after Prime Minister Resigns." The Independent, 12 Mar. 2024. www.independent.co.uk, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/haiti-gang-violence-state-emergency-travel-news-b2511060.html. Safutra, Ilham. "Heboh Menu Daging Manusia Mirip Kambing Guling - Jawa Pos." Heboh Menu Daging Manusia Mirip Kambing Guling - Jawa Pos, 30 Dec. 2019, https://www.jawapos.com/ternyata-hoax/01249273/heboh-menu-daging-manusia-mirip-kambing-guling. " - - ." Sin Chew Daily Malaysia Latest News and Headlines, 14 Jan. 2020, https://www.sinchew.com.my/news/20200114/nation/3080281. Claim: A photograph shared on social media in March 2024 showed a real urinal for women. Rating: Rating: Miscaptioned Context: The photograph was authentic and it depicted a real object. However, the urinal was part of an art installation. There's no evidence of it being installed somewhere for actual use. On March 8, 2024, a photograph circulated on social media allegedly showing a urinal designed specifically for women. "Urinal for ladies," one Reddit post captioned the photograph. "Female urinal. Is this AI?" another Reddit user asked. The captions suggested the urinal was a publicly usable receptacle that is, that it was fixated on a wall somewhere for women to use to go to the bathroom. TinEye search results indicated the photograph has been shared online at least since 2016. Moreover, Google reverse-image search results showed the photo was shared on social media platforms such as 9GAG, Instagram, Pinterest, and Reddit. In short, although the photograph was authentic, it did not show an actual "female urinal" available for actual use. Rather, the fixture was part of an art installation. Therefore, we have rated this claim "Miscaptioned." Before the image circulated on social media with misleading captions, it was shared on a website called Toilography in 2015. Here's how the founder of Toilography described himself: My name is Dan and I find great amusement in taking photos of toilets. Some people think this makes me weird, but I assure you I'm (mostly) normal I just happen to find them very photogenic. In an article titled "Female Urinal," Toilography said the photo was captured in the Museum of Sex in New York City. I was walking along 5th Avenue in NYC and chanced to pass the Museum Of Sex, where they have this fascinating example of a female urinal on display. 'The female urinal elaborates on the traditional structure of a male urinal, adding an extended tray to more accurately accommodate the female form' In an email to Snopes, the designer behind the item, Alex Schweder, said it was made in 2001 during an artist residency at Kohler, a plumbing equipment and furniture manufacturer. Schweder has described the female urinal as "fully functional," but when we asked him if it was installed for actual use, he said, "A version of the urinal was installed for public use during an exhibition at the now defunct Vital 5 venue in Seattle in 2003. It was installed but not plumbed at the [Museum of Sex] in NYC." The Toilography article included other shots of the urinal, one of which you can see below. (toilography.files.wordpress.com) Taking a closer look at the wall plaque visible near the item, we learned it was part of a so-called "Peescape Series" by Schweder who, according to his website, "coined the term 'Performance Architecture' in 2007." (toilography.files.wordpress.com) Schweder described the "Peescape series" like this on his website: Made during a residency at the Kohler plumbing fixture company, Peescapes view the removal of our bodily waste as a poetic opportunity. Each pair of urinals consists of one male and one female urinal. These diptychs use terms commonly associated with the choreography of water such as fountain, dam, and aqueduct to sensualize urine as it flows to the drain. These terms are used to inform alterations to the interior landscapes of urinals to aesthetisize rather than economize the removal of pee. (www.alexschweder.com) Schweder's Instagram account shared similarly designed urinals, as well: Sources: "About." Alex Schweder, 6 Mar. 2017, http://www.alexschweder.com/about/. "Peescapes." Alex Schweder, 1 Apr. 2001, http://www.alexschweder.com/peescapes/. says, Van E. Wahlgren. "Female Urinal." Toilography, 17 July 2015, https://toilography.wordpress.com/2015/07/17/female-urinal/. BEIJING, March 13 (Xinhua) -- Despite U.S. President Joe Biden's brief remarks on China in his State of the Union address, the underlying tone of confrontation remains unmistakable. Alleging that he wants "competition with China, but not conflict," Biden described the United States as "in a stronger position" to win the competition of the 21st century against China or anyone else. This rhetoric, in effect, echoes the blunt assertion of U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken that "if you're not at the table in the international system, you're going to be on the menu." It also smells of the mentality behind U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns' undiplomatic declaration that "we don't want to live in a world where the Chinese are the dominant country." Such unsubtle statements from prominent U.S. politicians betray a deeply ingrained sense of superiority and a constant dread of losing global hegemony, which are reinforced by Washington's obsession with branding China as a "long-term strategic competitor" to be contained. Washington's ploys to contain China have been coming thick and fast. Under the pretext of national security, it has removed Chinese battery giant CATL from a Marine Corps base, announced plans to invest billions to replace China-made "spy cranes" in U.S. ports, put more than 1,000 Chinese companies on various sanctions lists, and imposed export controls over advanced technologies such as biotech and AI, to name just a few. Yet U.S. politicians need to understand that playing the "China card" can never shake off America's internal woes. Its domestic challenges, including partisan strife, political polarization, populism, racism, soaring national debt and gun violence, come from within, not from China, and can only be tackled that way. As Ryan Hass, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, has wrote, "Any effort to lean on the external threat of China as a basis for overcoming domestic divisions at home is unlikely to succeed and likely to harm U.S. interests at home and abroad." Casting China as an "imaginary enemy" carries the peril of escalating tension and increases the risk of conflict with China. It also undermines efforts towards constructive engagement and mutual understanding, and erodes the trust needed to foster a healthy and stable relationship between the two major countries. China's strategic aims are transparent and unambiguous. It has no intention of supplanting the United States, and is committed to making steady progress in its socioeconomic development and thereby meeting its people's expectation for a better life. Meanwhile, China aims to provide more public goods for the world and promote peace and development without imposing its will on others. This approach, emphasizing cooperation and mutual benefit over unilateral dominance, stands in stark contrast to U.S. hegemonic bullying. In the face of global uncertainties, the United States and China have taken different approaches. America has taken a self-serving posture, attempting to limit and even stifle the growth of other countries. China, by contrast, has chosen to promote its own development while supporting the creation of a global community that prioritizes mutual benefit and cooperation and builds a shared future for all people. Ultimately, the divergent paths represent a critical choice the world has to make: whether to prioritize unilateralism under the guise of competition or embrace mutual cooperation and collective prosperity. The better way ahead is no less plain than Washington's hegemonic anxiety. (Reuters) - An Israeli tank killed Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah in Lebanon last year by firing two 120 mm rounds at a group of "clearly identifiable journalists" in violation of international law, a U.N. investigation into the Oct. 13 incident has found. The investigation by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), summarized in a report seen by Reuters, said its personnel did not record any exchange of fire across the border between Israel and Lebanon for more than 40 minutes before an Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Merkava tank opened fire. Under Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1701, adopted in 2006 to bring an end to the war between Israel and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters, U.N. peacekeepers were deployed to monitor a ceasefire along the 120 km (75 mile) demarcation line, or Blue Line, between Israel and Lebanon. Following are the conclusions and recommendations from the seven-page report dated Feb. 27, 2024. CONCLUSIONS 30 - On 13 October, at 1802 hrs the IDF fired two 120 mm Merkava shells in quick succession, from the southeast direction, across the Blue Line striking a group of seven journalists ivo Alma ash Sha'b, UTM 705120 3664648, killing one, Mr. Issam Abdallah, and injuring six, in violation of UNSCR 1701 (2006). 31 - It is assessed that there was no exchange of fire across the Blue Line at the time of the incident. The reason for the strikes on the journalists is not known. 32 - The firing at civilians, in this instance clearly identifiable journalists, constitutes a violation of UNSCR 1701 (2006) and international law. 33 - The exchange of fire across the Blue Line, prior to the strikes on the journalists, constitutes a violation of UNSCR 1701 (2006). It also confirms the presence of armed personnel, assets or weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and UNIFIL between the Litani river and the Blue Line, in violation of UNSCR 1701 (2006). RECOMMENDATIONS 34 - IDF must not fire on civilians, including journalists, and adhere to their responsibilities under UNSCR 1701 (2006) and international law and, regardless of the circumstances, to ensure the safety and security of civilians at all times. 35 - IDF should conduct an investigation into the incident and a full review of their procedures at the time to avoid a recurrence. The IDF should share their investigation's findings with UNIFIL. 36 - LAF (Lebanese Armed Forces) should take appropriate action to ensure there are no armed personnel, assets or weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL between the Blue Line and the Litani river. 37 - LAF should take appropriate action to ensure full coordination with UNIFIL regarding access to the UNIFIL area of operations, in particular to the Blue Line. 38 - LAF should take appropriate action to ensure access to the Blue Line is supervised. (Editing by David Clarke) Ryan Gosling arrives for the world premiere of "The Fall Guy" at the Paramount Theatre during the South by Southwest Film Festival on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP) AUSTIN, Texas (AP) Coming nearly straight from the Oscars with a truck full of Kenergy, Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt rolled into the South By Southwest Film and TV Festival to premiere The Fall Guy, an affectionate, action-fueled ode to stunt work and the dedicated professionals that throw their bodies into filmmaking. The Fall Guy, directed by stuntman-turned-filmmaker David Leitch, was perhaps the most anticipated world premiere to hit this years edition of SXSW. Given that Blunt and Gosling were both coming off Sundays Oscars where they were each nominated and where Goslings Im Just Ken brought the house down the buzz was even stronger Tuesday night. Dont worry, Im not going to sing. I promise, Gosling said before the film, prompting the crowd to boo. But that was the only sound of disappointment that emanated from the raucous Austin, Texas, audience that lapped up every minute of The Fall Guy, an action movie loosely based on the 1980s TV series that Universal will open in theaters May 3. In the film, Gosling stars as Colt Seavers, stunt double for a major movie star named Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) who, after a back-breaking fall, is coaxed into returning to set to work on the sci-fi directorial debut of his lost love (Blunt). The Fall Guy has wall-to-wall action set pieces, both staged in the movie-within-the-movie and that occur in off-set adventures. We really wanted to celebrate crews and the magic behind the scenes, said Leitch, who was Brad Pitts stunt double, among others, before making his first feature, 2014s John Wick. His last film, Bullet Train, also starred Pitt. But that clever bit of casting had nothing on the playful role reversals of The Fall Guy. It features a megawatt A-lister playing a stuntman whose face is treated like a liability for movie, acting alongside many of the stunt workers who actually worked on The Fall Guy. That includes Logan Holladay, who performed Goslings stunts, like a record-breaking car crash with 8 rolls. Theres a moment in the film where he buckles me in for a stunt hes about to do. And after it happens, I come out of the car and he pats me on the back for a stunt he just did, Gosling said. What I love about this movie is that in any other film you would not know that, but in this film, you do. The SXSW premiere of The Fall Guy came with some of its own stunts. A pair of motorcycles sped through the crowds milling outside the Paramount Theater before Blunt and Gosling arrived in the back of a pick-up. Blunt and Gosling werent the only ones fresh from the Academy Awards. Leitch and his wife, Kelly McCormick, (a producer on The Fall Guy) produced a clip reel of stunts for the telecast. Though stunt performance isnt an Oscar category (a sore point that comes up in The Fall Guy), Leitch thinks it will happen soon. The academy recently voted to add an Oscar for casting. I do feel its changing, Leitch said. I think the academy wants it and its going to happen. But, in the meantime, The Fall Guy seeks to give stunt performers among other crew members a moment in the spotlight. There are so many cynical movies about movie making. But the truth is in my experience, everyone cares so much, Gosling said. Even if its a prop, even if its a mug, the prop person will bring out 10 mugs and will have broken one of the handles and glued it back because they thought maybe it broke at one point but has sentimental value to you. Sentiment plays more of a role in The Fall Guy than you might think, too. Though Leitch said it was initially less prominent in the film, Gosling urged him to expand the love story component. The Fall Guy may exalt anonymous film workers, but its lifted by the charisma and chemistry of its two leading stars. Emily could create chemistry with a trash can, Gosling said of Blunt, who was nominated for her supporting performance in the best-picture winner Oppenheimer. Another Fall Guy" co-star an attack dog that responds only to commands in French had particular poignance for Gosling. Eva (Mendes) and I used to have a dog named Hugo who was a Belgian malinois, who was an attack dog. And he only spoke French," Gosling said. "Hes passed now and this is my homage to him. I miss that dude. He was a bon garcon. But in countless ways, the greatest romance in The Fall Guy is for the movies. Among those that get specifically name-checked are Rocky" and The Last of the Mohicans." In those films and others, the bruising toil of stunt workers is designed to be invisible. The Fall Guy flips the script. I have to say," Gosling said, "I'm Ryan Gosling and I did almost none of my own stunts in this movie. ___ Follow AP Film Writer Jake Coyle at: http://twitter.com/jakecoyleAP A Fresno County raisin growers widow and his two daughters were awarded $2.7 million in a wrongful death lawsuit involving the murder of Jerry Vulich at the hands of his brother Norman Vulich. The jury returned its verdict on Monday after a one-week trial. They awarded Jerry Vulichs wife Sharon Vulich $529,447 for economic losses and $2.2 million in non-economic damages for Sharon and her adult daughters, Nicole Vulich Miller and Crystal Vulich. Norman Vulich, 61, is charged with killing his brother Jerry Vulich, 68 on Oct. 23, 2020, as they argued over bulldozing the familys 40-acre vineyard. Jerry Vulich inherited the farm and his childhood home after his mother passed away. Norman Vulich had living rights to the home on the property, but he was living in an old chicken barn on the farm. Detectives said Norman Vulich confronted his brother that morning, armed with a shotgun. He opposed getting rid of the vineyard in favor of planting almonds. He told his brother he was worried about what would happen to the stray cats on the property, said his attorney Daniel Harralson during the trial. As Jerry Vulich turned to walk away, Norman Vulich raised the shotgun and fired two blasts, hitting his big brother in the back. The elder Vulich collapsed on the dusty earth. Norman Vulich dragged his body to a nearby compost bin and covered it with a piece of tin siding, an inner tube and some dirt. When Sheriffs deputies arrived, Norman Vulich gave up willingly. This verdict represents the first step in receiving justice for the Vulich family. They suffered an immense loss of their husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather on October 23, 2020. The family looks forward to the resolution of the criminal case, the final step in receiving justice for the senseless death of Jerry Vulich, said Lyndsie Russell, Sharon Vulichs attorney. Norman Vulich remains in the Fresno County Jail where he waits for his criminal trial. Russell deposed Norman Vulichs appointed financial manager about available assets and is confident damages awarded by the jury will be recovered. Protesters gather in support of womens right to access the abortion medication, mifepristone, in Amarillo, Texas on Feb. 11, 2023. (Meridith Kohut/The New York Times) When anti-abortion activists sued the Food and Drug Administration in 2022 seeking to overturn the approval of the abortion drug mifepristone, they filed their suit in the federal court in Amarillo, Texas, where it was all but assured that the case would be heard by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, an outspoken opponent of abortion. Kacsmaryk, the sole federal judge in Amarillo, wound up agreeing with the plaintiffs that the drug was unsafe. In his ruling, he invalidated the FDAs 23-year-old approval of the drug and opened a new front in the post-Dobbs reckoning over abortion rights. The suit and the role of Kacsmaryk, who handles 95% of the Amarillo civil caseload was one of the most striking recent examples of forum shopping, where plaintiffs to try to cherry-pick sympathetic judges. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times Now, forum shopping is about to get harder. The panel of federal judges who set policy for the rest of federal judiciary on Tuesday announced a new rule intended to curb the practice in civil cases with nationwide implications, like the mifepristone suit. In such cases, where plaintiffs are seeking a sweeping remedy, like a nationwide injunction, the judge will be assigned at random from across the district instead of defaulting to the judge or judges in a particular courthouse. Forum shopping has been used for years by litigants from across the political spectrum who file suit in districts and appellate circuits where they believe the pool of judges will play to their advantage. In challenging federal immigration policies, advocates for immigrants have often sought out federal courts in California, reasoning that in a more liberal state, theres a better chance of the case being assigned to a judge who is sympathetic to arguments against the government. In some cases filed by conservatives, such as the mifepristone challenge, plaintiffs have sought to take forum shopping even further, aiming to have cases assigned to a specific judge they think will take a favorable view of their arguments. While some of the countrys 94 federal district courts already assign cases randomly, most sort them into divisions, judicial subdistricts that funnel cases down to smaller groups of judges. In at least 90 of those divisions, a single judge handled more than half the caseload, according to a 2018 article in the Columbia Human Rights Law Review. Eleven of those, according to the article, are in Texas, where conservatives have won nationwide injunctions against immigration programs, transgender rights and labor policies from the Obama era. The rulings have then been mostly upheld by the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Kacsmaryks ruling, which was upheld in part by the 5th Circuit, is on hold while it awaits review by the Supreme Court. The effort to address forum shopping comes as the federal judiciary faces mounting pressure to reform itself. After revelations that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had failed to disclose lavish gifts and a forgiven loan on his annual financial disclosures, the Judicial Conference tightened the requirements for reporting free travel and gifts, and the Supreme Court adopted a new code of conduct. Critics have said that these self-imposed measures dont go far enough to ensure compliance. Judge Robert J. Conrad Jr., head of the federal courts Administrative Office, said the new forum-shopping rollback promotes the impartiality of proceedings and bolsters public confidence in the federal judiciary. While the new policy takes effect immediately, how and when to put it into practice will be left to the district courts, said Judge Jeffrey Sutton, who chairs the Judicial Conferences executive committee. Critics of forum shopping tend to focus on high-stakes political issues, but the practice has far-reaching implications for more arcane areas of the law as well. In a 2021 letter to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, two U.S. senators raised concerns about a report that a single judge from the Western District of Texas was hearing 25% of patent cases nationwide. The senators claimed the judge, Alan Albright, was soliciting cases from potential plaintiffs and called the practice unseemly and inappropriate. In his 2021 year-end report, Roberts wrote that geographic divisions were beneficial insofar as federal judges were tied to their communities but that they should also be generalists capable of handling the full range of legal issues. Albright did not respond to a request for comment sent to his courtroom aide Tuesday. In the days after the Texas mifepristone ruling, two Democrats in Congress introduced a bill that would have mandated random case assignments and restored a practice that was put in place between 1937 and 1976, in which any lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a state or federal law was heard by a three-judge panel. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the bills Senate sponsor, also called on the Judicial Conference to make that change. No single judge should have the power to make sweeping decisions that could harm millions of Americans, he said. If a decision will have national consequences, it should be heard by a panel of judges. c.2024 The New York Times Company FALL RIVER The administrations initiative to revitalize Pleasant Street in the Flint just received a more than $1.66 million infusion of funding thanks to an appropriation by the Massachusetts federal delegation. The award that will fund streetscape projects on Pleasant Street, once known as the citys second downtown back in the day, was announced Friday by the delegation as part of a $175 million in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) in the first six Fiscal Year 2024 spending bills for projects across the state. That money is a tremendous opportunity for the city, said Coogan. Weve got a lot of work to do on streetscapes on Pleasant Street and we may have to take some property down. Once we make it look better, we can get some more private investment down there. Once the center of neighborhood and commercial activity, the Flint area has struggled in recent years to keep stores and apartments occupied to stem the tide of blight. Pleasant Street runs through the Flint neighborhood in Fall River. Coogans initiative started around the summer of 2021 when the city received a $120,000 state grant to help fund the creation of an urban renewal plan and a neighborhood revitalization plan for the Pleasant Street area. A closed up storefront on Pleasant Street in Fall River. Streetscape debate Council, administration battle over Fall River streetscape money Improvements are already underway In a partnership with the Fall River Redevelopment Authority and funding from the citys Community Development Agency projects have already started and there has been at least one community meeting where residents were asked to share their ideas about Pleasant Street revitalization. People are looking for a more vibrant Pleasant Street, said CDA Executive Director Michael Dion. One that has less vacancies, one that has less turn-over of renters. A motorist was stranded at the intersection of Pleasant and Quarry streets during last summer's downpour. Dions agency has earmarked $800,000 of its American Rescue Plan Act money for a storefront improvement program. Flint neighborhood fire Fall River hardware store destroyed by fire He said that four businesses are in different stages of applying for the money, including White Rose Bakery, Avo's Feast, Gilberts Jewelers and the city is working with the owner of the large building at 1709 Pleasant Street across from the former Nite Owl Diner near Eastern Avenue. He would like to rent out those spaces and a new storefront would go a long way in renting out those spaces, said Dion. In speaking with Flint residents, Dion said there is a need for affordable housing. Its an issue that has plagued communities around the country. Were staying true to housing projects that weve done in other areas of the city, by funding projects with a mix of affordable housing and market rate housing, said Dion. He said hes working with a property owner on a project located on Pleasant Street that will produce 13 units, with five or six of those units to be affordable housing. Revitalization plan So, we have a draft of a roadmap for neighborhood revitalization which has lots of goals and objectives in it, said RDA Executive Director Sarah Page. And we also have a draft of the urban renewal plan for the Flint. Page said both drafts are about to be submitted for approval from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities, and a review from the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act Office. They will be reviewing it from an environmental perspective, said Page. The administration and RDA held its community meeting in November to get input and to update the community, including plans to address the extreme flooding at Stafford Square that has plagued the city and Flint neighborhood. Paul Ferland, Fall Rivers Department of Community Utilities administrator, has $2 million to begin the project, said Page, adding Pauls department is working on it and is making good progress. In addition to the public meeting, Page said they put together a survey and really got it into the neighborhood on Facebook. And we got 500 responses, and with some really great narrative responses that we want to follow up on, said Page. Some of the feedback and concerns included road design on Quequechan Street that is difficult for drivers to maneuver onto Pleasant Street. She said other concerns were lighting and the need for more crosswalks along Pleasant Street. This article originally appeared on The Herald News: The city just recieved $1.66 million for Pleasant Street revitalization ST. LOUIS A report from USA TODAY identifies more than 1,300 outlets nationwide that sold at least 25 guns traced to crimes in a single year, including more than 20 St. Louis-area gun shops. USA Todays Nick Penzenstalder revealed these findings in February. The report cited data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) after USA Today filed a Freedom of Information Act request. How Walmart self-checkout may be changing soon According to USA Today, the ATF listed hundreds of outlets nationwide that were involved in sales of guns later traced to crimes in a year with a time-to-crime of less than three years. This short period of time, per law enforcement that spoke with USA Today, is often an indicator of the illegal trafficking of guns. Locally, that list included 12 stores with a zip code in St. Louis County, five with a zip code in St. Charles County, three with a zip code in the City of St. Louis, two with a zip code in Jefferson County, and two with a zip code in the Metro East. Large retailers, like Bass Pro Shops and Cabelas, appeared on the list in many states and regions, including Greater St. Louis. Shops on the list must submit quarterly reports to the ATF detailing secondhand gun sales, which the agency otherwise doesnt track. According to USA Today, ATF records do not specify how the guns sold were used. They also dont indicate any wrongdoing individually on behalf of the listed gun shops. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News The ATF is responsible for tracing crime guns, a process that includes collecting information on the make, model, and serial number. ATF officials analyze records to find the chain from manufacturer to first retail sale, a process intended to help local law enforcement agencies solve crimes. The public can access ATF trace data reports for all 50 states online. The latest one for Missouri, which accounts for the 2022 calendar year, notes that more than 10,000 firearms were recovered and traced to Missouri that year. That total includes more than 8,400 pistols traced to the state and more than 3,200 firearms traced to St. Louis, the most of any city in the state. Missouri does not have any specific regulations pertaining to firearms retailers as far as sales are concerned. However, the ATF says anyone in the state who intends to engage in a business involving the dealing, manufacturing, or importing of firearms, or manufacturing or importing ammunition is required to have a federal firearms license. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. Airbnb says it's banning the use of indoor security cameras in listings around the world by the end of next month. (Patrick Semansky / Associated Press) Airbnb is banning all use of indoor security cameras in its listings worldwide beginning next month, reversing a longstanding policy that allowed homeowners to peek in on guests in common areas, the company announced this week. The company said in a statement Monday that most listings on Airbnb do not have a security camera, so the update in policy isn't expected to affect many rentals on the platform. The policy change, which takes effect on April 30, is meant to simplify rules on cameras and prioritize guests' privacy, according to the statement. The company has allowed indoor security cameras in places like hallways and living rooms as long as they were disclosed as part of the listing before a guest booked the property. Cameras have always been prohibited in bedrooms and bathrooms. Read more: 'The tenant from hell': She refused to pay for her luxury Airbnb for 540 days. She says she has a legal right to stay "Our goal was to create new, clear rules that provide our community with greater clarity about what to expect on Airbnb," Juniper Downs, the company's head of community policy and partnerships, said in a statement. "These changes were made in consultation with our guests, hosts and privacy experts, and well continue to seek feedback to help ensure our policies work for our global community." It is not clear what prompted this change. However, privacy in short-term rentals has been a hot topic of discussion for years. Guests have long posted on public forums about feeling uneasy after finding cameras in common areas of homes where the devices were not disclosed. Secret cameras have become so ubiquitous in short term rentals that Saturday Night Live this month featured a "camera in the toilet" in a spoof on Airbnb interior designs. Read more: Squatters set up at a Hollywood Hills home. When police knocked, an OnlyFans model answered Doorbell cameras and noise decibel monitors will continue to be permitted under the new policy. Airbnb described such devices in a news release as an "effective, privacy-protective way for hosts to monitor security for their home and get ahead of issues like unauthorized parties." Under the new policy, hosts will be required to disclose the presence and location of the outdoor cameras before guests book the property. The cameras also can't monitor any outdoor areas where there's an expectation of privacy, such as an outdoor shower or sauna. Guests will also need to be told about any decibel monitors, which are only allowed in common areas of homes, before they book the property, according to the company. 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. MARLBORO COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) Ferroglobe will establish its first South Carolina operations with a $20 million investment in Marlboro County, according to a Wednesday news release from the governors office. The $20 million investment will create 19 new jobs. Ferroglobe, a global producer of silicon metal, has 25 operations around the world and produces silicon metal and other silicon-based alloys for things like aluminum, solar cells, semiconductors and batteries. The new operation will be on Brickyard Road in the Wallace area, the release said. The company will filter and process quartz from the soil which will then be distributed to Ferroglobes silicon plants across the country. This embedded content is not available in your region. Todays announcement is proof that Marlboro County has a business-friendly environment and that were open for business, Marlboro County Council Chairman Anthony Woods said. We would like to welcome Ferroglobe to the Marlboro County community and we look forward to a prosperous working relationship in the future. Operations are expected to be online in the second half of 2024, according to the release. Those interested in joining the Ferroglobe team can contact Mary Collins. * * * Caleb is a digital producer at News13. Caleb joined the team in January 2023 after graduating from Liberty University. He is from Northern Virginia. Follow Caleb on X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW. BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said on Wednesday Russia was gearing up for a "long conflict with the West" and he asked for more spending and coordination on European defence. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in remarks published on Wednesday that Finland and Sweden's entry into NATO was "a meaningless step" and that Russia will deploy troops and systems of destruction to the Finnish border after Finland joins the alliance. Orpo told the European Parliament: "Russia is evidently preparing for a long conflict with the West and represents a permanent and essential military threat to Europe." "If we, as a united Europe, fail to respond sufficiently to this challenge, the coming years will be filled with danger and the looming threat of attack," Orpo, whose country neighbours Russia, urged the 27-country EU to step up defence spending and said the bloc had to take care of its own defence. "Russia is not invincible," he added. Putin also warned the West on Wednesday that Russia was technically ready for nuclear war and that if the U.S. sent troops to Ukraine, it would be considered a significant escalation of the conflict. (Reporting by Inti Landauro, Sudip Kar-Gupta, Nette Noestlinger, Editing by Angus MacSwan) LAS VEGAS (KLAS) Firefighters are working to clear the rubble of a house fire Wednesday afternoon to check for victims after being told there may have been seven people trapped inside. According to the Clark County Fire Department, several people called 911 at around 9 a.m. to report black smoke coming from a house in the 900 block of De Met Drive, near Maryland Parkway and Tropicana Avenue. While crews were responding, 911 dispatch told firefighters that there could be seven older people trapped inside the burning building. According to CCFD, heavy smoke was coming from the back of the house. Crews were assigned to search the building, extinguish the fire, and ventilate the roof. Firefighters protected adjoining homes from catching fire, but the fire spread to a shed in the backyard. Crews inside the home were able to complete a primary search for victims, but the conditions of the fire forced crews to be pulled outside before the building collapsed. CCFD said a primary search is a rapid check of rooms in an attempt to locate obvious victims who are down. Firefighters found no victims during the primary search and all crews were removed from the structure so the bulk of the fire could be knocked down. According to CCFD, as of 11:30 a.m., crews were still on the scene and began searching through the rubble to make sure no victims were in the structure. According to the Red Cross of Southern Nevada, one elderly man was displaced. The cause of the fire is under investigation. This is a developing story. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. New Metro Rail Boost for Delhi-NCR and Strategic Partnerships with Bhutan, UAE Approved by Cabinet: In a recent Cabinet briefing on March 13, Minister Anurag Thakur announced significant decisions aimed at enhancing transportation infrastructure and fostering international cooperation. The government has greenlit the construction of two new Metro rail corridors in the Delhi-NCR region. These corridors will connect Lajpat Nagar to G Block in Saket and Inderlok to Indraprastha, spanning a total length of approximately 20 kilometers. The Delhi Metro Phase-IV project, encompassing these two corridors, is estimated to cost Rs 8,399 crore. The first corridor will span about 8.4 kilometers from Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block, featuring eight stations. The second corridor, stretching around 12.4 kilometers from Inderlok to Indraprastha, is slated for completion by March 2029. This approval comes just ahead of the announcement of dates for the Lok Sabha elections, indicating the government's commitment to infrastructure development. Additionally, the Cabinet has given the green light to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Bhutan for the general supply of Petroleum, Oil, Lubricants (POL), and related products. Furthermore, the Cabinet approved the Inter-Governmental Framework Agreement (IGFA) between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to bolster cooperation for the empowerment and operation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). The agreement aims to strengthen bilateral relations, particularly in the Ports, Maritime, and Logistics sectors, and explore opportunities for joint investment and collaboration. Another significant development is the MoU between India and Bhutan on cooperation in the field of Energy Efficiency and Energy Conservation Measures. Under this MoU, India will assist Bhutan in enhancing energy efficiency in the household sector by promoting the star labeling program developed by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency. Moreover, India will facilitate the formulation of building codes tailored to Bhutan's climate conditions and institutionalize the training of energy auditors to create a pool of energy professionals in Bhutan. These decisions reflect the government's commitment to infrastructure development, regional cooperation, and sustainable energy practices. Yogi Adityanath Inaugurates Agra Metro's Priority Corridor, Begins Maiden Ride After PM Modi's Virtual Launch New Train Service to Link New Jalpaiguri and Patna Begins March 14 Editor's Note: This is a developing story. A fire broke out at an oil refinery in Russia's western Ryazan Oblast in the early hours of March 13, according to reports by Russian Telegram channels. Local Telegram channels report that explosions were heard at the outbreak of the fire, after eyewitnesses reported seeing drones in the area. The Kyiv Independent cannot independently verify these reports. Russian officials have yet to comment on the fire. Firefighters are reportedly on scene extinguishing the blaze. On March 12, several fires broke out at Russian oil refineries in Oryol due to Ukrainian drone strikes, Russia claimed. Although Ukraine has not commented on the alleged attack, if accurately attributed, the attack would have been one of the largest conducted against Russia since the start of the full-scale war. In recent weeks, Ukraine launched several drone attacks on Russian refineries, including in St. Petersburg, Volgograd, and Krasnodar Krai. Kyiv often does not comment on alleged attacks on Russian soil. Ukraine regularly launches drones over Russian territory. In recent weeks and months, Russian authorities have reported an increasing number of drone strikes targeting Belgorod, Bryansk, Oryol, and Leningrad oblasts, as well as other regions. Read also: Russian media: Fire reported in St. Petersburg near power plant Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Semafor Signals Insights from the Associated Press and the Financial Times The News An aid ship bound for Gaza set sail from Cyprus, carrying 200 tonnes of food along a newly opened maritime corridor to assist a population on the brink of famine. The enclave has been hit by a desperate shortage of humanitarian supplies as ground-based aid transfers have been curbed by Israeli restrictions amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. It could take the Open Arms ship up to two days to reach Gaza, which currently lacks an operational port. The U.S. is constructing a new dock but the project is expected to take several weeks. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Children and babies suffering acute malnutrition Source: The Associated Press Officials from the United Nations have repeatedly said that Palestinians in Gaza are facing a famine, and children are dying of hunger. At least 20 people have died of hunger in the enclaves north, Gazas health ministry said last week, and in the southern city of Rafah, 16 premature babies died of malnutrition. One doctor told the Associated Press that his team treats as many as 400 children per day, and 75% are suffering from malnutrition. Breastfeeding mothers, meanwhile, are too malnourished to feed their babies, meaning that within days newborns are brought back to us in a terrible state, the doctor said. Aid by sea is insufficient to address crisis Source: The Financial Times Experts are questioning whether humanitarian supplies delivered by sea will be enough to avert the growing hunger crisis in Gaza. The population already depended on aid: Before the war at least 500 truckloads of food and fuel entered the enclave every weekday. That figure has fallen to typically under 200 a day, the Financial Times reported, as Israeli inspections slow down deliveries. Israels allies, including the U.S., have urged the government to send more humanitarian aid to Palestinians displaced by the conflict. The only solution to the worsening situation is to flood the enclave with supplies, officials have said, not only to help starving children, but also to undercut gangs and a flourishing black market by disincentivizing looting. STAGE IS SET Trump earns presumptive GOP presidential nod, to face Biden in first WH rematch since 1956. Continue reading CULTURE OF ABUSE Jill Biden's 'work husband' plagued by disturbing claims, deemed untouchable. Continue reading SCHIFF SHOW Hur fires back at Democrat in heated exchange over report that 'disparaged' Biden. Continue reading UP IN THE AIR United tells Boeing to stop making Max 10s the airline ordered: report. Continue reading GAME OVER Nick Saban recalls 'red alert' conversation he had with his wife before retirement. Continue reading READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP HATE IN ALL FORMS 'Squad' member's controversial bid to 'gaslight Americans' and 'whitewash' racism. Continue reading HEALTH SCAM SCARE Braun calls for a full Medicare audit in the wake of a massive fraud discovery. Continue reading JOINING FORCES Democrats vote with Republicans to condemn Biden's immigration policies. Continue reading ASSURANCE IN 45 New poll reveals Americans trust Donald Trump over Biden to lead the US as president. Continue reading Click here for more cartoons NETWORKS ERROR ABC anchor repeatedly used inaccurate phrase about Trump in viral interview, legal experts say. Continue reading IN YOUR CLASSROOM? Anti-indoctrination group warns of Chinese-owned tutoring company found in schools across USA. Continue reading HE ABSOLUTELY KNEW Former federal prosecutor says Hur did find 'some evidence of criminality.' Continue reading JONATHAN TURLEY Menendez and Hunter both face similar claims of illegal actions But DOJ only has eyes for one man. Continue reading LIZ PEEK The issue that could cost Trump the 2024 campaign. Continue reading LAURA INGRAHAM Hur's report transcript is worse than we even thought. Continue reading JESSE WATTERS Biden's poor mental state let him escape justice. Continue reading SEAN HANNITY Explosive Hur hearing is another example of America's two-tiered justice system. Continue reading GREG GUTFELD The left's finally learning that hit pieces on regular people are no replacement for content. Continue reading VACATION HORROR American texted friend just before dying on flight from Dominican Republic. Continue reading A BRUTAL EXPERIENCE Princess Diana's brother reveals devastating family secret. Continue reading NO LAUGHING MATTER Jimmy Failla fights for the soul of comedy, free expression with new 'Cancel Culture Dictionary.' Continue reading SHADY TACTICS Suspect in LSU student's attack claims victim's romantic history 'crucial' to defense. Continue reading BRAZEN BEARS Watch as three crafty critters work together and make off with a Connecticut homeowner's trash can. See video TED CRUZ Texas senator warns terror threat to America is greater than any time since 9/11. See video REP. JAMES COMER House Oversight Committee chair says Biden is 'entitled career politician' after Hur revelations. See video Whats it looking like in your neighborhood? Continue reading THE LAST WORD Facebook Instagram YouTube Twitter LinkedIn Fox News First Fox News Opinion Fox News Lifestyle Fox News Entertainment (FOX411) Fox News Fox Business Fox Weather Fox Sports Tubi Fox News Go Thank you for making us your first choice in the morning! Well see you in your inbox first thing Thursday. Original article source: First WH rematch since 1956, disturbing claims about Jill Biden's 'work husband' and more top headlines PARSONS, Kan. Multiple Kansas law enforcement agencies worked together to apprehend several people allegedly involved with a kidnapping and robbery from February. The Parsons Police Department says the incident began with a robbery on February 18, where the accuser, a man from Independence, Kansas, was confronted by four armed men while at Robyn Bennetts home in Parsons. There, he says he was beaten, stripped down, blindfolded, and driven to a remote Labette County location and dropped off. The suspects then reportedly drove the man back into Parsons to another secluded location and allegedly deserted him once again. FOUR STATES CRIME Since that incident PPD has worked with Woodson County Sheriffs Office, Labette County Sheriffs Office, and the Kansas Highway Patrol to locate and arrest the following suspects: Christopher Hilton arrested on March 4, 2024, in Parsons, KS, by the Labette County Sheriffs Office, on charges of aggravated robbery, battery and, assault, criminal possession of a weapon, and other crimes. Christopher Harold Hilton Daquan Edwards arrested on March 5, 2024, in Parsons, KS, by the Parsons Police Department, on charges of aggravated kidnapping, robbery, battery, and assault, criminal threat, among other charges. Daquan Trevell Edwards Alex Stevens arrested on March 9, 2024, in Woodson County, KS, by the Parsons Police Department, with assistance from the Woodson County Sheriffs Office and Kansas Highway Patrol, on charges of aggravated kidnapping, robbery, battery, and assault, and criminal threat, among other charges. Alex Michael Stevens Jacqulynn Jenkins, Stevens girlfriend, arrested on March 8, 2024, in Woodson County for Felony Interference and faces charges of Aggravated Kidnapping and Aggravated Robbery in Labette County. Sir Christuffer Roeder held at the Parsons Police Lockup on other charges, faces charges of Aggravated Kidnapping, Aggravated Robbery, Aggravated Battery, and Aggravated Assault in Labette County. Bennett and another suspect Nathaniel Steel remain at large. Steel has an outstanding warrant out of Labette County for his arrest. Bennett faces kidnapping and robbery charges. This is an on-going investigation. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact the Parsons Police Department at 421-7060 or call the Tip Line at 421-7057 or email at tips@parsonspd.com. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com. A Florida bus mechanic was killed in a shootout with law enforcement after it was discovered he shot a co-worker at point blank range in an alleged premeditated attack. According to surveillance footage, 59-year-old Rafael Molina ended his shift at Broward County Copans Regional Transit Center last week when he began plotting the demise of his co-worker, Warren Chambers. Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony said Molina was seen formulating, contemplating and further planning his next move. After going into the locker room and reappearing into surveillance view, police said Molina changed out of his uniform into civilian attire and just waited Suddenly, Molina removed a firearm from his lunchbox and shot Chambers multiple times at point-blank range, putting him down, the sheriff said. In a sort of exit strategy, the sheriff said Molina then took out a hammer and destroyed his iPhone. By that moment, witnesses already made a chilling call to 911, reporting that a man in a white t-shirt and khaki pants was walking around with a gun in his hand. The sheriff said Molina then strategically went into an ambush position hiding himself inside an empty bus as he waited for the cops to pull up. Read what happened next from The New York Post: At least six deputies were then seen in bodycam footage running toward the bus while Molina fired shots at them with one shouting, Move, move, move, move, move! After a few seconds, a deputy told the others to hold, saying, Hes down. A gun was on the ground next to Molinas body. The killer got off six shots at the deputies who fired back nearly 50 times, Tony said. He made his mind up that he was going to die that day or kill as many people [as possible], including law enforcement, the sheriff said at the news conference on Friday. No ones expecting us to come here and negotiate with someone who is gunning down individuals. Its unclear what the motive for the sneaky killing was. However, NBC Miami reports it stemmed from an argument of some sort. Deputies are currently investigating the contents of his phone to find the motive. The ones involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative assignment upon department protocol, the report says. No matter what Molinas beef was, the Chambers family is now left grieving their father, son, brother and friend. To know him, was a gift. To be loved and cared for by him was a blessing. As we attempt to deal with the shock and unbearable grief of this incident, we ask for privacy to mourn, the family said in a statement per NBC. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Wengenbahn Alpine Train (Gary Brown) Switzerland is a world-class winter vacation destination for many reasons this alpine nation is home to stunning scenery, rustic villages, delicious haute cuisine and top-tier winter sports. It also claims one thing that none of its neighbors can: the highest railway station in Europe. The Jungfraujoch station sits at 3,454 meters (11,332 feet) above sea level, making it the highest place you can visit by train in Europe. Despite sitting atop an ice-covered mountain in the middle of the Alps, it is surprisingly easy to visit the self-branded Top of Europe. Here is your guide to the perfect day trip for those staying in Central Switzerland! The Jungfraujoch sits on the northern edge of the Bernese Alps, one of the highest mountain ranges in Europe. If you want to visit this bucket-list destination, begin in Interlaken. This lakeside town is a hub for alpine adventure in Switzerland and offers routine rail and bus connections to other cities in the region. The Eiger, Jungfrau, and Monch Mountains (left to right), with the Sphnix Observatory and Jungraujoch visible inbetween the latter two (Gary Brown) Quickest Route Trains bound for Jungfraujoch depart from the Interlaken Ost (East) Station. There are two ways to reach your destination from here. The quickest way is to take the southbound R61 train for Grindelwald. Hop off at the second-to-last station (Grindelwald Terminal) and immediately transfer to the Eiger Express gondola. Over fifteen minutes and 6.5 kilometers (4 miles), this cable car ascends 2,300 meters (7,500 feet) to the Eigergletscher (Eiger Glacier). From there, simply board the next train on the Jungfrau Railway to take you the remaining 30 minutes and 1,100 meters to the top. Prettiest Route The gondola may be the fastest way to the top, but I would wager it is not the most beautiful. For that, take the R62 train from Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen. This route allows you to kick back, relax, and enjoy scenic vistas from the comfort of vintage alpine cogwheel trains. From Lauterbrunnen, transfer to another train bound for Wengen, and thereafter on to Kleine Schedegg. These towns are also connected by ski runs and are lively in winter. Theyre all worth a visit in their own right, if you have the time. Board one more train at the Kleine Scheidegg to reach the Eigergletscher. Here you can rejoin he hustling crowd that took the cable car and continue onto the end of the line, the Jungfraujoch. Collectively, the journey from Interlaken via Lauterbrunnen takes around 2.5 hours. If you are strapped for time, you can use the same ticket to take this way up the mountain, and then use the gondola to return to the bottom. View from Jungfraubahn approaching to Eiger Glacier (Gary Brown) Top of the Jungfraujoch The train ride to the Jungfraujoch itself is the undoubted highlight of this adventure. You can admire snow-capped cottages, thousand-foot waterfalls and majestic mountains, all while enjoying the comforts of classic railway carriages recalling a more glamorous and slower age of travel. Once you reach the top there is still plenty to do though, like: Head up to the Sphinx Observatory, the highest astronomical observatory and weather station in Europe, to enjoy views of Italy, France and Germany. Walk on the Jungfrau-Aletsch Glacier, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the longest glacier in the Alps. Tour an underground ice palace filled with frozen sculptures reminiscent of a certain popular Disney film. Sample Swiss and international fare at one of four restaurants or bars open at the top, or try chocolates from Europes highest chocolate shop. Mail a letter to your friends and family back home from the highest post office in Europe. Good to Know Dress appropriately The Jungfraujoch is open 365 days a year. Temperatures at the top range from warm and pleasant in the summer to well below freezing in the winter. Keep in mind that conditions in the valley are much milder than at elevation, and altitude sickness can affect those coming from sea level. Prepare for the sun Pack sunscreen and shades when visiting, even in winter. The Jungfrau region is high enough that clouds are usually below it. Ditch das auto Limited car parking is available in both Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen, but is virtually impossible to find during peak season. Do what locals do and leave the car in Interlaken, then ride the train in. Matten bei Interlaken has a new and spacious park-and-ride facility next to the train station offering parking for only 5 CHF (6 USD) per day. Take your time Between traveling to Jungfraujoch and the things to do at the top, you will regret it if you dont give yourself enough time. Plan for a full-day trip and leave in the morning to get the best bang for your buck. Budget accordingly Switzerland is already an expensive country to visit, but the Jungfraujoch is almost painfully pricey. Tickets start at almost mind-boggling 223 CHF (250 USD) for adults (16 years and up), making it one of the most expensive excursions you will find in Europe. Some discounts are available for those with the Swiss Travel Pass. Jungfraubahn from above (Gary Brown) No matter what you decide to do, or when you go, one thing is guaranteed a visit to the Jungfraujoch is a unique and unforgettable experience for all those bold enough to seek it out! Florida education officials and civil rights attorneys for LGBTQ advocates, students, teachers, and parents have settled a two-year lawsuit filed after the passage of the so-called Dont Say Gay bill. Under the terms of the settlement announced Monday, the controversial law that bars classroom instruction of LGBTQ issues will remain in place, but teachers and students will now be allowed to discuss those topics on school grounds so long as they are not part of a lesson plan. Both sides of the debate hailed the settlement as providing clarity to the law. A spokesperson for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called it a major win against LGBTQ groups who sought to stop Floridas efforts to keep radical gender and sexual ideology out of the classrooms of public school children in kindergarten through third grade. GLSEN an LGBTQ organization that advocates for students and educators in grades K-12 told Yahoo News in a statement that the settlement dismantled the vague and harmful provisions of the original law and will strengthen equality standards for LGBTQ students, families, and educators. Whats in the deal? The deal requires the Florida Board of Education to make clear to schools that the following is now permissible under state law: Students mentioning their own sexual or gender identity on school grounds Classroom references to a persons family members and their sexual or gender identity Debate among students regarding LGBTQ issues, so long as it is not a part of a lesson plan Educators displaying photos of LGBTQ family members, or referring to an LGBTQ spouse or partner Library books that feature LGBTQ characters Participation in extracurricular activities that cater to the LGBTQ community Anti-bullying programs for LGBTQ students How did 'Don't Say Gay' come about? On March 28, 2022, DeSantis signed Floridas Parental Rights in Education Act, which banned classroom instruction about sexual orientation or gender identity in the states public K-12 schools. The law, which was championed by conservatives who claimed schools were promoting a liberal agenda, left some educators, students, parents and advocates for LGBTQ rights on edge about the extent of the laws reach. Opponents said the bill led to confusion about what could be discussed, read or displayed on school grounds. In March 2022, 19 plaintiffs sued the state of Florida for limiting classroom instruction in a way that was not developmentally appropriate. Some questions remain The settlement doesn't remove the law, Shahar Pasch, an education lawyer who represents children and families, told Yahoo News. It just provides more context and guidance to districts about implementation of the law. So it narrows it a bit. But the deal leaves some questions. A teacher can go through these very specific items listed in the settlement and still say I can put a picture of my family up. I can have a safe space picture up, but am I going to be sued if I have a pride flag up? Another section of the settlement references school library books a major point of contention in 2023 when Florida school district officials banned books and material containing LBGTQ characters and themes from classes and libraries. But library books are not considered classroom instruction and are not covered by the statute. If you're in the media center, and you're in second grade, and the teacher picks out a book with two gay characters to read to the class, have we now moved from having it be just a library book to now being classroom instruction? The settlement isn't clear about that. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican, are headed for a rematch in the 2024 presidential election. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Quality Journalism for Critical Times Florida is holding a presidential preference primary election next Tuesday, though it doesnt really feel like it. Start with the fact that both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump already clinched their respective party nominations for president on Tuesday night after scoring additional primary wins in a handful of states around the country. And while there are seven candidates listed on the GOP presidential ballot, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haleys departure from the race last week meant there was no active campaign in the Sunshine State leading into the contest. But while the stakes are virtually nonexistent now, at least registered Republican Florida voters can exercise their right to vote if they want to. Registered Florida Democratic voters dont even have that option. U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House on Feb. 8, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images) The Florida Democratic Partys State Executive Committee met last October and voted to place only President Joe Biden on its primary ballot, even though there were other candidates opposing him in the race at the time. Criticism ensued, but the party stood firmly behind its decision. And in January a federal judge rejected a legal complaint from a Tampa Democrat that the decision had violated his constitutional rights as a voter. Because Florida election law says that if a political party has only one presidential candidate, that candidates name will not be placed on the ballot. Therefore, there wont be any Democratic election at all. Theres no Democratic primary? Some Democrats tell the Phoenix that theyre unhappy that theres not a primary, because they say it robs them of its ability to show their displeasure towards the president in part because of his handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict. I didnt even realize that there wouldnt be a Florida (Democratic) presidential primary election, Chaize Harrell told the Phoenix earlier this week. The 25-year-old St. Petersburg resident says he was hoping to write-in a candidate for the Democratic nomination, either uncommitted or AOC (U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) or (U.S. Sen.) Bernie Sanders, but definitely not Joe Biden. Uncommitted or No Preference is not an option for Florida voters, unlike other Democratic primaries that have taken place this year. Thats where theres been an organized movement for critics of the president to express their disappointment with his performance, as opposed to voting for other Democrats in the race Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips and New Age author Marianne Williamson (Phillips exited the race last week). Since there is no uncommitted option even if we had a primary here in Florida, Id probably write somebody in, says Jamie Kidder, 35, who has been an active member of the Pinellas County Democratic Party since he graduated from high school. Bidens approval ratings are pretty low, and Id like to see the party go in another direction. Some young Democratic-leaning voters are also down on the president regarding his efforts on cancelling student debt. The U.S. Supreme Court last year blocked his plan last year to cancel up to $400 billion in student loans but hes still been able to save millions of borrowers. Biden announced last October he had cancelled $127 billion in student debts for 3.6 million borrowers since he was elected in 2020. Im definitely used to being disappointed by the Democratic Party from time-to-time, because it kind of feels like my only option in terms of the two-party system, says Tampa resident Cat Champion, 27. But she adds that, Id definitely be voting Biden if that is the choice against Trump in November. Only Bidens name Members of the Florida Democratic Party (FDP) scoff at the notion that there is anything remotely controversial or nefarious about their decision to place only Bidens name on the primary ballot. No other candidate made a reasonable attempt to sway the Democratic Party, says Sarasota County Democratic Executive Committee Chair Daniel Kuether. This demonstrates the united support behind the Biden-Harris ticket. The rules say if you dont have a primary challenger, you win by default, the primary. So, Im okay with not breaking the rules, adds Angela Birdsong, the president of the Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus. Members of the FDP have also cited historical precedence of only listing Biden on the Democratic presidential primary ballot: The last two times a Democratic incumbent president was running for reelection in Florida, the party eschewed primary elections for Bill Clinton in 1996 and Barack Obama in 2012. Yet Matthew Isbell, a data consultant who primarily works with Democratic candidates, says he would have gone in a different direction that the party chose to do this year. Mario Tama/Getty Images If it had been up to me, I would have said have a primary anyway, because of the sort of situation where people are upset, he says. Granted, its a small group of people, but even if you try to explain, this is the way its always been, then the answer comes back, well, who cares how its always been. We want to vote. Isbell also says that as a data scientist, hes disappointed he wont be able to study where the protest votes against Biden would have come from. That would have been interesting, to see the stuff from the [college] campuses, but the real area where you would have seen large protests were going to be in those rural, North Florida counties because were still a closed primary state and you would have had a lot of old Dixiecrats that would have been coming out and voting for Phillips or somebody else, he says. Michael Steinberg, the Tampa-based attorney and former Hillsborough County Democratic Executive Committee Chair who took the Florida Democratic Party to federal court earlier this year challenging the partys decision not to hold a primary, tells the Phoenix his motivation to go to court was to ensure that a similar situation doesnt happen in the future. I am going to support Joe Biden 100%, now that he is the presumptive nominee, Steinberg said this week. The lawsuit was really about the fact that the Democratic Party did not follow their own rules and denied the voters the opportunity to choose between qualified candidates. Florida is not the only state in a Democratic Party to submit only Bidens name for inclusion on their primary ballot. North Carolina, Mississippi, Tennessee and Delawares Democratic parties also opted only to put Bidens name into consideration, but North Carolina and Tennessee offered Democratic voters the choice of voting for No Preference, and Uncommitted, respectively, whereas Delaware joins Florida in not holding an election. Biden vs. Trump Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel and Convention Center on Feb. 24, 2024, in National Harbor, Maryland. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) This is hardly the first presidential primary election in Florida where there is little at stake on both sides of the aisle. Unlike the halcyon days, Florida is no longer at the center of the political universe when it comes to deciding presidential elections. Following his State of the Union address last week, President Biden has taken to the road this week to campaign in essential swing states like Georgia, New Hampshire, Wisconsin and Michigan but not the Sunshine State. Isbell says that he doesnt expect there to be much interest in the GOP primary next week, but also believes theres a lot of Trump people who are going to show up to cement their support for him. Top Florida Republicans agree. Obviously there is going to be lower turnout than we see in a competitive primary, but we have had a healthy turnout in early and VBM (vote-by-mail) so I expect a decent turnout on Election Day, says Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power. Lake County Republican Executive Committee Chair Anthony Sabatini concurs. Absolutely, he says about whether there is enthusiasm about the race. Youre still gonna see a very strong turnout. Theres definitely excitement, adds James Stratton, the president of the Tampa Bay Trump Club. The organization continues to get a minimum of 100 people who attend monthly meetings at a Clearwater-based restaurant, he says. Yeah, hes already got the nomination, but were going to vote for him, Stratton says about Trump. Not every Republican is convinced that turnout will be robust next week, however. I dont know. It just doesnt seem that its that big of a deal, says Cliff Gephart, the owner of Conservative Grounds, a Trump-themed coffee shop based in Pinellas County. However, he says hell vote next week, if for no other reason to maintain his status as a super voter. In addition to Trump, the other GOP candidates on next weeks ballot include Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Ryan L. Binkley. The post Floridas unusual (or boring?) presidential primary set for next week appeared first on Florida Phoenix. Related video: A man went overboard on a Carnival Cruise ship just off the coast of Florida in July. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Police are investigating the death of a Florida woman who was found dead on a Bahamas-bound cruise ship cabin on Monday, according to the Royal Bahamas Police Force. Officials said around 5:30 p.m., the Criminal Investigation Department Grand Bahama was notified of a 27-year-old woman who was found unresponsive in her cabin. The cruises medical personnel performed CPR but found no vital signs and declared the woman dead. Floridas public sleeping ban awaits DeSantis signature During their investigation, police seized suspected cocaine from a 32-year-old man in the same cabin and arrested him. Officials said an autopsy will be conducted to determine the womans cause of death. No details surrounding which cruise line the woman and man were on were released. This 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. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) A Florida woman abandoned her 18-month-old daughter after trying to sell her to a bystander for $500, police say. On March 5, Jessica Woods, 33, was approached by an employee of a nearby business, who asked if she needed help, according to the Palatka Police Department. The employee told police Woods was loitering around the business for days. Florida woman found dead on cruise ship, man arrested for suspected cocaine: police When the worker went to check on her, she said she did not need help, but offered to sell her daughter for $500, according to police. When the employee refused, Woods was accused of putting the child on the ground and walking away. The worker picked up the toddler and brought her to the police department to report what happened. Palatka police officers with assistance of the Departments Victim Advocate provided care to the child until the Department of Children and Families responded and took custody of her, a PPD social media post stated. The child has since been placed in foster care. Woods was arrested two days later and charged with child abuse, child neglect, and abandonment of a child. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Children line up to drink water from a fountain at a New Cuyama, Calif., elementary school in September. California is one of about a dozen states that requires fluoridation by most public water utilities, but some states and localities are moving in the opposite direction. (Photo by Marcio Jose Sanchez/The Associated Press) Children line up to drink water from a fountain at a New Cuyama, Calif., elementary school in September. California is one of about a dozen states that requires fluoridation by most public water utilities, but some states and localities are moving in the opposite direction. (Photo by Marcio Jose Sanchez/The Associated Press) Kentucky state Rep. Mark Hart has been drinking fluoridated water his entire life. In 1954, five years before Hart was born, his home state mandated adding or adjusting levels of the mineral, which occurs naturally in water, in drinking water systems of populations larger than 3,000. But after hearing from a constituent a few years ago, Hart believes the matter of whats in Kentucky cities drinking water should be a decision made by those drinking it. Hes been trying to reverse the states mandate since 2018, with several unsuccessful legislative attempts. This year, with more than 20 co-sponsors, his bill has so far passed out of committee on its route to the House floor. In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan, became the first city to fluoridate its water. The decline in tooth decay that followed the widespread adoption of fluoridation has been hailed as one of the greatest public health achievements of the past century. Fluoridation lessens tooth decay in children and adults by 25%, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But theres been pushback against fluoridation, including a lawsuit by advocates seeking the federal government to ban the practice entirely. Some state lawmakers want to reverse or relax requirements for communities to fluoridate, and several localities across the country in recent years have chosen to stop doing it. Health experts say the rise in anti-fluoridation measures is an example of the increased skepticism toward science and public health measures exacerbated by the mask and vaccine mandates during the pandemic. Water fluoridation At least a dozen states have laws mandating that larger communities fluoridate their water. Grand Rapids, Michigan, was the first city in the U.S. to fluoridate its water, in 1945. In 2020, about 73% of the U.S. population with public water access got drinking water with fluoride. At the heart of these big public health issues including water fluoridation is science. But over the past few years, theres been skepticism of science, said Jane Grover, senior director of the Council on Access, Prevention and Interprofessional Relations at the American Dental Association. Roughly 73% of the U.S. population with public water access in 2020 received drinking water with fluoride adjusted to the optimal concentration of 0.7 milligrams per liter, according to the CDC. At least a dozen states have laws mandating that larger communities fluoridate. Among them are California, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio and South Dakota. Yet lawmakers in three of those states Georgia, Kentucky and Nebraska have filed bills that would reverse the mandates and leave the choice up to a local voter referendum or to the governing body of local water systems. Three states Maine, New Hampshire and Utah require a public vote for fluoridation by municipalities and their public water systems. What the science says Hart, a Republican, said he didnt give much thought to his drinking water until a constituent sent him studies that linked very high levels of fluoridation to lower IQs in rural communities of China and India. (U.S. public health experts say those cases dont correspond to fluoridation in the United States.) I was shocked by all the research I was reading. I hadnt put much stock into my drinking water when I first joined the [Kentucky legislature], said Hart. Hed personally rather avoid fluoridated water altogether, but said at a minimum Kentuckys statewide mandate ought to be overturned. What goes in your drinking water isnt for the states or big government to decide. That to me is a local control issue give people a choice on what theyre drinking, you know? Hart said. Much of the research used by anti-fluoride activists has been resoundingly debunked by the medical community. Public health officials note that studies touted by anti-fluoridation groups are often cited out of context, may not be peer-reviewed, and often are conducted in countries where fluoridation levels can be several times that of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys recommendation. Good public health policy is built on decades and decades of scientific review, not junk science. Kathleen Hoke, University of Maryland law professor and eastern region director of The Network for Public Health Law Good public health policy is built on decades and decades of scientific review, not junk science. Because we need reputable, peer-reviewed science to assess whats necessary to protect public health, said Kathleen Hoke, a University of Maryland law professor and the eastern region director of the Network for Public Health Law, a professional group that provides technical legal assistance on public health matters. The EPAs recommendation for fluoride levels is based on scientific, peer-reviewed data. Its up to our public health measures to reflect that same type of reputable science, she added. And organizations such as the CDC, the American Dental Association and the National Cancer Institute are in consensus that U.S. fluoridation is safe, and is not linked to lower IQs or critical health problems. Local debates For most of the United States, fluoridation already is a matter of local control. Hawaii is the only state that bans fluoridation; most others leave it to individual water systems or localities. There are bills in Hawaii and New Jersey to mandate water fluoridation statewide, but the legislation is stalled in committee. Hawaii state Sen. Stanley Chang, a Democrat, said his concern over the oral health of his newborn daughter inspired the bill, which would require all state suppliers of public water to meet fluoridation levels set by the EPA. I think this will prevail in the end. When it comes to health and science, theres an information plateau if youre not an expert, Chang told Stateline. Im not an expert. Its why my job is to ask experts, so that I can be equipped to make that information accessible and reliable for my constituents. Debora Teixeira, the oral health systems coordinator at the Vermont Department of Public Health, said her agency will send educators to local communities to talk about fluoridation in the hope of helping residents understand the benefits. When requested, we go to the place where fluoridation is being challenged, Teixeira said. Its less of advocating law, and more of an education and information about the science behind it, she said. Because theres decades and decades of research that supports fluoridation, but we want to engage with those who may be skeptical or have been misinformed. This year, local governments in Union County, North Carolina, and Collier County, Florida, prohibited the adding of fluoride to their drinking water. Last year, State College, Pennsylvania, and Brushy Creek, Texas, stopped adding fluoride to their water systems. In a September 2023 memo announcing the decision to terminate fluoridation, Shean R. Dalton, general manager of Brushy Creek Municipal Utility District, cited health concerns, personal choice and cost-effectiveness as reasons to forgo the practice. A 2022 University of Calgary study showed increases in tooth decay procedures in Calgary, Canada, and Juneau, Alaska, after each city ended water fluoridation. Last month, a federal court in San Francisco heard arguments in a lawsuit by Food and Water Watch and anti-fluoridation advocacy groups against the EPA, arguing that fluoride ought to be regulated as a toxin. The lawsuit, filed in 2017, is seeking a ban on fluoridation of drinking water to protect fetuses and children from the risk of neurodevelopmental problems. There is a very real trend of states looking to reverse these mandates. We believe that the courts ruling which we hope is in our favor will give more states cause to look at what were doing to our drinking water, said Stuart Cooper, executive director of the Fluoride Action Network, an anti-fluoride advocacy group that is among the plaintiffs in the case. Meanwhile, residents of Buffalo, New York, have filed a class-action lawsuit against the city after it quietly ended fluoridation without informing residents. One resident said her elementary school-aged son suffered from oral health problems from a lack of fluoride. The latest effort at stopping fluoridation was in Rutland, Vermont, where residents this week took their second vote in less than a decade on whether to keep adding the mineral to their drinking water. In 2016, the ballot measure failed. On Tuesday, it failed again. Rutland will keep its fluoride. Stateline originally published this article. Like the Alaska Beacon, Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. The post Fluoride in public water has slashed tooth decay, but some states may end mandates appeared first on Alaska Beacon. Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has stated that according to the signals received by Kyiv, Ukrainian military forces will soon experience an increase in ammunition supplies as part of the Czech initiative. Source: European Pravda, citing Kuleba at a joint press conference with his Moldovan counterpart Mihail Popsoi in Kyiv Quote: "Based on early signals we received, our guys on the front will experience an increase in ammunition supplies in the very near future. It won't take many months," noted Kuleba. He said that contacts with Czech colleagues would take place this week, during which they would outline the plan for ammunition deliveries and how the ammunition initiative would work. He added that Kyiv was ready for full cooperation and support. "The Czech initiative is designed to be implemented throughout the year. The first ammunition will start arriving in the near future. Then, new batches will continue to arrive throughout the year," emphasised Kuleba. Background: On 12 March, it was reported that in addition to the commitment to purchase 300,000 artillery shells for Ukraine under a Czech-led initiative, the Czech government received an early approval from fellow EU countries to purchase an additional 200,000 shells; they can be bought by these countries that have joined the initiative. Czech President Petr Pavel announced at the Munich Security Conference that Czechia had found up to 800,000 NATO standard-calibre shells that could be sent to Ukraine within a few weeks if proper funding could be found. Last week, the Czech prime minister announced that enough money had been raised to purchase the first batch of 300,000 artillery shells. Support UP or become our patron! Alex Chalk told the Commons foreign prisoners were 'putting a strain on the public purse [and] reducing the capacity of the prison system' - REUTERS/Toby Melville Foreign prisoners will get 1,500 if they agree to be freed early to be deported to their home country in a major expansion of a scheme to tackle the jail overcrowding crisis. Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, has extended a scheme so that foreign offenders can go back to their home country 18 months before their release date, an increase of six months from the previous 12 months. They are entitled to 1,500 each and a further 1,500 each for their partner, spouse and any of their children aged under 18 as long as they agree to deportation and a ban on returning to the UK. Once home, they do not have to serve any more jail time. The early removal scheme, originally set up 17 years ago, is being expanded as a central part of Mr Chalks efforts to double the number of foreign prisoners cleared out of jails in England and Wales from 1,800 to 3,600 in the next year. It comes after it was announced on Tuesday that failed asylum seekers would be offered 3,000 to move to Rwanda under a voluntary scheme drawn up by the Government to help clear the backlog of migrants stuck in Britain. The new agreement with Rwanda, which is separate to the stalled deportation scheme, is aimed at removing thousands of migrants whose claims have been rejected and cannot remain in the UK but are unable to return to their own country. In return for the 3,000 support normally offered to repatriated migrants and the prospect of citizenship in Rwanda, they would be able to opt to be sent to the central African state, deemed by the Government a safe third country. Rwanda flights still grounded The move comes as the Government is attempting to get deportation flights off to Rwanda, with the scheme blocked by legal challenges since June 2022 and amid criticism of the 350 million cost of the agreement with the African state. The Safety of Rwanda Bill, which is designed to secure the deportation flights, returns to the Commons next week when the Government will reverse Lords amendments in a ping-pong battle to get it on to the statute book. Rishi Sunak has made stopping the boats across the Channel one of his key five pledges with the deportation flights central to his strategy of creating a deterrent to further crossings. New laws mean anyone who arrives illegally will be deported to their home state or a safe third country like Rwanda. The prisoner scheme is not designed to deter further illegal crossings but instead mirrors the existing voluntary returns system that enables failed asylum seekers, foreign criminals and other migrants with no right to remain in the UK to return to their home country. There are currently more than 10,000 foreign offenders in jails, accounting for 12 per cent of the prison population at a time when the number of spare places in mens jails has fallen below 250, or just 0.3 per cent of the 85,000 capacity. It follows warnings that prisons could run out of space within weeks. The move comes on top of a major expansion of an early release scheme for UK prisoners under which they will be freed up to 60 days before they are due to be released. It had previously been limited to only those who were up to 18 days from release. In a statement to the Commons on the crisis on Tuesday, Mr Chalk said: These foreign criminals are not only putting a strain on the public purse, they are reducing the capacity of the prison system. They should, wherever possible, be removed back to their own countries of origin. The Ministry of Justice said the scheme would save the taxpayer up to 70,000 over 18 months per prisoner as it costs 47,000 a year to accommodate a foreign offender. The scheme was originally set up by the Labour government in 2006 when it faced a similar prisons crisis. It is one of five measures put in place by Mr Chalk to try to prevent prisons running out of space. Foreign criminals will also become eligible for deportation for any offence where they face a suspended sentence of more than six months, down from 12. The Government will create a unit of 400 case workers in an effort to increase the number of foreign criminals deported. They will be tasked with dealing with prisoners seeking to avoid deportation by claiming breaches of their human rights or modern slavery. Mr Chalk confirmed plans, first revealed by The Telegraph, to allow foreign shoplifters, thieves and drug dealers to be deported rather than prosecuted if they agreed to a conditional caution under which they will be expelled and banned from returning to Britain. He is also seeking new prisoner transfer agreements emulating Albania which has agreed to take up to 400 of the most dangerous criminals held in UK jails so that they serve the rest of their sentences in a prison in their home country. Shabana Mahmood, the shadow justice secretary, said the 60-day early release scheme was unprecedented and the most drastic the country had ever seen. This is a measure which will cause shockwaves and deep concern across our country, and the Secretary of State seems to think a quiet written ministerial statement published late last night and one paragraph today is good enough - it is not, she said. The Government has refused all requests to be transparent about the scale and the impact of this scheme, this is no way to run the criminal justice system, or indeed the country. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A former attorney for an embattled Broward town says she was tormented while working for the municipality due to her gender and sexual orientation. Shes suing and seeking more than $100,000. According to a lawsuit filed in Broward court Friday, former town attorney Melissa Anderson is alleging that the town of Pembroke Park and specifically Commissioner Geoffrey Jacobs maintained a hostile work environment, discriminated against her due to her gender and violated Floridas civil rights act. Anderson, a gay woman, began working as town attorney in September 2020. Throughout her employment..., [Anderson] performed her job duties and responsibilities as the Town Attorney in an exemplary manner, attorney Diane P. Perez says in the filing. However, during her employment, [Anderson] was subjected to discriminatory treatment and to a hostile work environment based on gender, gender stereotypes (i.e., a belief [Anderson] is masculine), and sexual orientation. The Miami Herald reached out to the town for comment but hasnt received a response as of Tuesday evening. The lawsuit accuses Jacobs of engaging in a campaign of discrimination and harassment against Anderson. According to the filing, the commissioner referred to her as a f---ing c--t, and told her several times to shut up and f--k off. At some point during Andersons employment, Jacobs sent the attorney a TikTok that she deemed misogynistic, homophobic and threatening, the filing states. It featured a lesbian woman asking a nightclub owner what angers him about masculine women. The owner replied that they think they are hot s--t until they find out he can beat the crap out of them. Pembroke Park Mayor Geoffrey Jacobs After sending the video, the commissioner forwarded it to the town manager, writing this is your town attorney. She has seen it, the lawsuit alleges. Jacobs later claimed he sent the video accidentally. Anderson reported the conduct to Babette Friedman, the towns human resources director, and contacted the Broward Sheriffs Office. When notified about the complaints by Friedman, Jacobs falsely alleged that Anderson had harassed him and other men in the town, according to the filing. Jacobs maintained that he wasnt homophobic because he worked with a great deal of gay flight attendants and accused Anderson of weaponizing her gender. The lawsuit also alleges that Jacobs recruited friends to file false and unsubstantiated complaints against the attorney, the lawsuit says. [The town] investigated those baseless and harassing complaints despite having failed to investigate [Andersons] legitimate complaints against Jacobs... Perez says in the filing. Anderson was fired by the town commission in December 2022. After she was let go, the town hired an outside investigator, who, according to the lawsuit, ultimately found that [Jacobs] behavior was likely harassing and created a hostile work environment. Jacobs attorney Michael Pizza told the Herald that Jacobs denies any wrongdoing and believes there is a vendetta against him among town officials because he calls out corruption and refuses to be a part of the clique. Saga in small Broward town? Pembroke Park and commissioner Jacobs have been no stranger to scandal. In February, Jacobs was charged with a misuse of 911 a misdemeanor after prosecutors say he falsely accused Mayor Ashira Mohammed of bringing a gun to a public meeting in November. Shortly before the meeting, Jacobs called the Broward Sheriffs Office and Florida Department of Law Enforcement, according to a probable cause affidavit. He told authorities Mohammed was armed with a weapon and he was scared for his life. Mohammed, confident she didnt have a gun on her, demanded to be searched in plain view of the public, video shows. She didnt have a gun on her. READ MORE: Drama over an alleged gun in meeting is latest controversy for embattled Broward town In August 2023, a report commissioned by the town and compiled by attorney Tonja Haddad found that Jacobs created a hostile, volatile and toxic work environment. The 17-page report included information from interviews with 13 witnesses, video evidence, messages and social media posts that revealed a consistent narrative. The report, according to Local 10, accuses Jacobs of: Calling the towns former human resources director, who is Jewish, a Nazi; Sending the towns former attorney, who is openly gay, a homophobic and misogynistic TikTok, and calling her a f---ing c---; Referring to two commissioners as the two idiots and overpaid, non-working a--holes. When he commented on the reports findings in August, Jacobs said: If everything they said was true, its not illegal to be an a--hole. In 2020, Mohammed was also accused of blurring the lines between official town business and her personal endeavors. An inquiry from the Broward Office of the Inspector General found that the mayor was using town employees to do work for her law firm and a campaign staffer to post from the towns Facebook page. A former Fayette County Schools board member has asked for a state mediator to hear her dispute with the local school district over special education services for her son. Christy Morris resigned from the school board in November 2022 after serving for three years as the First District representative. She said at the time her family needed more of her. Morris told the Herald-Leader Monday she left the school board, in part, because she had struggled with the district for years over her sons special education plan. She says her son, who is in the fifth grade at Rosa Parks Elementary, has not been offered the appropriate help for his dyslexia, a learning disability that involves difficulty reading. Morris is asking for the Kentucky Department of Education to intervene in her sons Individualized Education Plan, created by Fayette County Public Schools, to sufficiently address her sons needs and provide transparency around tracking his progress. District spokesperson Dia Davidson-Smith declined to comment Tuesday. A school district employee reportedly told Morris that her son would not be eligible for protections under the American Disabilities Act-Section 504 if she declined special education services. The provision requires a school district to provide a free, appropriate education to each qualified student with a disability. Morris later confirmed with the state this was not accurate, she said. She started declining services on January 26. Can you imagine feeling forced to accept special education services that werent a good fit for your child? said Morris. What is Morris requesting from Fayette County schools? Morris said her child cant succeed without accommodations because he cant read and write anywhere close to grade level because of his disabilities. The districts current draft of her sons Individualized Education Plan has the potential to do more harm than good, she said. She said she cant monitor his progress because the district isnt being transparent in the methods they are using to measure his progress. Her childs evaluation indicates significant deficits in areas that include grade-level word recognition, spelling and reading fluency. However, the school has focused on monitoring for comprehension, she said, when there is zero evidence that my child struggles in this area. School officials are refusing to define progress monitoring methods so they can have flexibility, Morris said. If I dont know what assessment or monitoring method they are using or what they are measuring, how can I be assured we are making data-informed decisions? said Morris. I want (district officials) to define their progress monitoring methods that should be based on the results of the evaluation. I want professional development and training for teachers who work with dyslexic kids or a more appropriate provider, such as a reading interventionist, Morris said. What happens next? In a March 8 request to the state for mediation under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Morris asked that learning goals be set based on data from her sons school evaluation. The request to the state said Morris wants to know which measurements the district is using so she can clearly monitor her sons progress. She also has asked the state what a schools obligations are to provide a teacher with training and educational materials specific to dyslexia. Tina Drury, with the Kentucky Department of Education, responded to Morris on March 8, according to a copy of the email Morris provided to the Herald-Leader. Hi Christy - the district will not agree to mediation at this time. Since mediation must be agreed to by both parties, we are unable to assign a mediator, Drury said in the email. You may file a state complaint or request a due process hearing without the districts consent. When contacted by the Herald-Leader about Morris concerns, Joe Ragusa, a spokesperson for the Kentucky Department of Education, said the office couldnt comment on individual student issues. Morris told the Herald-Leader she had not decided how to proceed. We will weigh our options carefully and do what we think is best for our son, she said. In the 2022-23 school year, Fayette County had 5,809 students under an IEP out of its population of 40,494 students, according to the state school report card. Morris said every year she has had to fight for appropriate services for her son. She said her concerns heightened in early January about teacher training and she had been trying to find a solution. There were problems before that, Morris said, but thats when we decided that enough was enough. Former Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Raymond Chan, left, and his former attorney Harland Braun, center, walk out of the downtown federal courthouse last year. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) Federal prosecutors launched their second attempt at convicting former Los Angeles Deputy Mayor Raymond Chan on corruption charges this week by portraying him as a central figure in a sprawling "pay-to-play" scheme. In opening arguments on Tuesday, Assistant U.S. Atty. Brian R. Faerstein told jurors that Chan and former City Councilmember Jose Huizar used the downtown real estate boom of the prior decade to enrich themselves and their allies. Faerstein described Chan as a crucial intermediary between Chinese developers looking to build downtown high-rises and Huizar, who headed the powerful committee that served as a clearinghouse for such projects. "[Chan] got bribes for himself, and he got bribes for other public officials," Faerstein said. Chan's first trial on charges of racketeering, bribery, honest services fraud and lying to federal investigators was derailed after his lawyer, Harland Braun, was hospitalized and unable to return to work for months. A judge declared a mistrial in April. Chan is the last defendant charged in the City Hall corruption investigation, dubbed "Casino Loyale" by the federal government, to go on trial. Huizar, who pleaded guilty to racketeering and tax evasion charges, was sentenced in January to 13 years in prison. Read more: Judge declares mistrial in bribery case of former L.A. Deputy Mayor Raymond Chan George Esparza, Huizar's onetime aide, pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy but has not yet been sentenced. He is scheduled to testify against Chan. Real estate consultant George Chiang, who worked with Chan and also pleaded guilty to racketeering, is expected to testify as well. John Hanusz, Chan's new attorney, agreed that Huizar and the others were deeply corrupt, committing crimes on a level that was "cinematic in scope." But while Huizar and Esparza accepted flights to Las Vegas, casino chips and lavish hotel stays, Chan received none of those things, he said. Chan, while working with developers, was motivated not by greed but by a desire to make L.A. more business-friendly, Hanusz said. "There was no quid pro quo in this case with Ray Chan," he said. "With Jose Huizar, there absolutely was." Hanusz told the jury that some of the government's witnesses are liars who committed crimes and now hope that their testimony will result in a lighter prison sentence. The case against Chan covers the five-year period from 2013 to 2018, when Huizar was in charge of the council's Planning and Land Use Management Committee. In that position, Huizar had the power to decide when real estate projects received a public hearing and when they would be sent to the full council for a vote. Chan was the top executive at the Department of Building and Safety until 2016, when he became the deputy mayor in charge of economic development under Mayor Eric Garcetti. He held that job for slightly more than a year, then left city government to become a private-sector consultant, representing real estate developers. Prosecutors have accused Chan of secretly setting up a consulting firm while working for the city and overseeing government actions for which he was paid by a developer after he left his city employment. The federal government also alleges that Chan helped Huizar obtain a bribe from a Chinese developer who later sought to build a 77-story skyscraper in Huizar's district. Huizar later admitted that the developer helped him secure a $600,000 loan that he used to secretly settle a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a former staffer, right before a reelection campaign. Prosecutors said Chan helped Huizar obtain the funds after Huizar killed a proposed merger of the Department of City Planning and the Department of Building and Safety. That merger threatened Chan's job as general manager at Building and Safety, prosecutors said. Shen Zhen New World I, the company that proposed the 77-story tower, was convicted of providing Huizar a vast array of bribes, including trips to Vegas. A judge fined the company $4 million. Its owner, Wei Huang, fled the country and is now a fugitive, according to the Department of Justice. Hanusz, in his remarks, called the government's case against Chan a "fiction." Chan was a respected city leader with decades of experience who focused on tearing down bureaucratic obstacles to new construction, he said. "He rolled out the red carpet" for real estate development, the lawyer said. "And this city benefited." 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. Princess Lilo and Buzz Leapyear (Lisa Rivera) These are the voyages of the starship Economize. Right from the start, Space Wars at Ramstein Air Bases Razz Ma Tazz Theatre proves itself as a true, frenzied British-style panto or pantomime. Directed by Mandie La Bell, this is a rough-and-tumble family show that completely disregards the fourth wall and incorporates the audience into the bucket of laughs. The audience is part of the show at a pantomime, and Buzz Leapyear (A1C Kaleb Spiers) - no relation to that Disney space hero - makes it clear that we are all new cadets along for the crazy ride. The plot parodies every favorite space-based movie and show franchise, but in true panto fashion, we are constantly veering into goofy sidetracks, joke battles and slapstick scenes. We first meet the loveable plumber Buzz and his mother, wacky and unseemly fellow custodian Stella Leapyear (Jacki Aguiar). They clean the starship Economize which has just returned from a mission to capture evil Barf Raider (Debra Duckett). But, of course, Raider has escaped, so Flash Jordan (Steven Partin), whose overt self-confidence, physical humor and constant innuendo had me constantly cracking up, must ship out again. His love interest Princess Lilo (SPC Sierra Whitley) joins in. Flash Jordan (Lisa Rivera) Space Wars is performed at the Ramstein community center which provides a great open space for kids to sit right up front, in the heart of the action. A simple stage set allows for the nearly constant scene changes that keep the audience on their toes. Costumes cleverly mimic the character parodies and help us track this amalgamation of sci-fi whos-who. As the play continues, we meet the obliviously confident Capt. Berk (Liz Seligman) and their Vulcan sidekick Dr. Smock (Kayce Stanford), who are sent as a backup for Flash Jordan. Even the crew gets involved with a classic and hysterical whose-on-first-style banter between the captain and Ensign Riley (Mandie La Bell). Over on the dark side, Raider has acquired two droids, C3BO (Cameron Rahe) and RU12 (Cathy Kelly Stolle) whose dance number and constant references to old computer operating systems were super funny. Fellow baddy Grabba the Butt (Rober Soules) joins the evil cause and chaos ensues. Suddenly, we all find ourselves doing the Timewarp, and I lost count of the sci-fi referencesStar Trek, Star Wars, Toy Story, Flash Gorden. You dont just watch a panto, you participate. Be ready to hiss at bad puns, cheer for Flash Jordan, boo for Barf Raider and yell beyond when loveable Buzz joins the cast. Upcoming Space Wars performances: March 15 and 16 at 7 p.m. Razz Ma Tazz is also performing a youth panto Cinderella in Space on Sunday March 17, 2024 at 3 p.m. Former Rep. Mark Walker is ending his campaign without requesting a runoff election against former lobbyist Addison McDowell in order to work for former President Donald Trump. His campaign confirmed its end to McClatchy Wednesday afternoon. That means McDowell is likely heading to Congress in January, since he will not face a Democratic challenger in November. Trump had endorsed McDowell in the crowded race to represent the Triad in the U.S. House. McDowell, in a written statement on Wednesday, praised Walker while also thanking Trump for his support, along with Republican Sen. Ted Budd and McDowells family. I would like to commend Mark Walker for his passion for public service, McDowell said in the statement his campaign sent to McClatchy. I might be the younger of the two of us, but Mark Walker is the higher energy candidate. Ive no doubt what feeds that energy is his passion for service. He ran a tough race and made me a better candidate to win this thing. I dont know what his future holds, but I have faith God has a great plan for Mark. Spectrums Reuben Jones first reported Walkers plans to leave the race. Beginning in 2025, the 6th District will include Davie County, where McDowell grew up, and Davidson, Rowan and parts of Cabarrus, Guilford and Forsyth counties. McDowell led last weeks primary with 26% of the vote, but he didnt clear the 30%-plus-one threshold needed to stop Walker, the second-place winner, from requesting a runoff election to be held on May 14. Attorney Kelly Daughtry and former federal prosecutor Brad Knott found themselves in the same predicament in the 13th Congressional District, based in the Triangle. Runoff plans Walker isnt the only congressional runner-up allowed to request a runoff. Attorney Kelly Daughtry and former federal prosecutor Brad Knott found themselves in the same predicament in the 13th Congressional District, based in the Triangle. Both Walker and Knott immediately announced their plans to challenge McDowell and Daughtry to runoffs. And Walkers campaign reiterated his intention to continue his campaign Monday when McClatchy asked about rumors floating in North Carolinas political circles that Walker would leave the race. Interesting that rumor is going around, said Jonathan Bridges, a spokesman for Walkers campaign. Team Walker is in the office today going full speed and our attorney has already drawn up the paperwork to file (for the runoff). Then on Tuesday, Walker hinted that he still planned to go forward with the runoff election. He posted on social media his acceptance of an invitation to debate McDowell on High Points Fox affiliate, WGHP, and challenged McDowell to do the same. A live debate on broadcast TV, Walkers campaign wrote. What could be better for the people in the heart of the district? Count me in. How about you, @Addison_McD? Working for Trump But on Wednesday afternoon, Trump posted on Truth Social that he hired Walker to work with outreach to faith groups and minority communities on behalf of his campaign team. Trump listed off several accomplishments Walker had in Congress that led to this decision. He is very well suited for this important work, Trump said. As a former Pastor, Mark is respected across the Evangelical Communities, and lived out his Faith in Congress. Mark and I had many Wins together, and we look forward to continuing to build bridges to all Communities in our Great Nation, and advancing this important work in the White House. Its not clear whether this is a volunteer or paid position. Controversy in Walker campaign A race against McDowell would be an uphill battle for Walker, and McDowells campaign was quick to point that out following the primary. Walker had openly criticized Trump the Republican presidential nominee on television, and he campaigned against Republican gubernatorial nominee Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson before switching to a congressional race. McDowells campaign said that made Walker out of touch with North Carolina Republicans. Walkers campaign also faced nonstop controversy in the weeks leading up to the primary. It began with various Republicans, including U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Sen. Markwayne Mullin and Reps. Matt Gaetz and Gus Bilirakis announcing that they either didnt endorse Walker or were withdrawing their endorsement, after the campaign announced their support. Walker was also snubbed for the second time by Trump when the former president decided to endorse McDowell instead of Walker as McDowell announced his candidacy in December. Walker had to endure a conservative super PAC, Club for Growth, spending more than $1 million against him, while supporting his other opponent, Bo Hines, instead. Walker also became the victim of two videos dubbed to look as though he were telling a friend that he was not qualified to be in Congress, and another opponent was better for the job. Triad representation Walker spent three terms representing the 6th District when it straddled the borders of Rockingham and Guilford counties. But in 2020, state lawmakers redrew the district to favor a Democrat, and Walker walked away from a reelection campaign. That led to Walker becoming a perennial candidate, often teasing voters on whether he would run in various races before solidifying his run for Senate in 2022 and House this time. Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from Greensboro, succeeded Walker and represents the 6th District, but chose not to run for reelection after legislators redrew the district again, this time to favor a Republican. Former special counsel Robert K. Hur prepares to testify to the House Judiciary Committee on March 12, 2024 in Washington, DC. Hur investigated U.S. President Joe Bidens mishandling of classified documents and published a final report with contentious conclusions about Bidens memory. (Photo by Win McNamee | Getty Images) Former U.S. Justice Department special counsel Robert Hur on Tuesday defended from both Republican and Democratic critics on the U.S. House Judiciary Committee his conclusion that President Joe Bidens mishandling of classified documents likely broke federal law but was not worthy of prosecution. Few new facts emerged from the acrimonious five-hour hearing. But, Hurs conclusions gave members of the panel ammunition to promote their partys presumptive presidential nominee and criticize the other, while also giving each side things to complain about. Biden knowingly took classified papers in the waning days of his vice presidency and read classified material to a ghostwriter, Hur said. But, Hur concluded, a prosecution would likely not yield a conviction and he therefore opted not to recommend charges. We identified evidence that the president willfully retained classified materials after the end of his vice presidency when he was a private citizen, Hur said. We did not, however, identify evidence that rose to the level of proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Because the evidence fell short of that standard, I declined to recommend criminal charges against Mr. Biden. Hur takes issue with Biden rebuttal Bidens public response to Hurs report contained inaccuracies, Hur said. In a hastily organized press conference the day Hur published his report, Biden said he never shared classified material with his ghostwriter and that all the material in question was either locked away or in areas that could have been locked. Hur said those descriptions were inconsistent with the findings of our investigation. Prosecutors discovered an audio recording of Biden telling his ghostwriter, Mark Zwonitzer, that he had found all the classified stuff downstairs, Hur said. They also discovered that Zwonitzer attempted to delete computer files once Hur was named as special counsel. Hur defended his finding that a potential jury may have declined to convict Biden of a serious felony because he presents as an elderly man with a poor memory. Biden strongly objected to the characterization, and many of the presidents supporters considered it an unfair criticism from a registered Republican that was extraneous to the investigation. But Hur said Tuesday it was Biden who raised the issue of his memory. We interviewed the president and asked him about his recorded statement Well, I just found all the classified stuff downstairs, Hur said. He told us that he didnt remember saying that to his ghostwriter. He also said he didnt remember finding any classified material in his home after his vice presidency. And he didnt remember anything about how classified documents about Afghanistan made their way into his garage. My assessment in the report about the relevance of the presidents memory was necessary and accurate and fair. Hur said from the hearings outset he was appearing solely to clarify information contained in his report and would decline to expand on any questions beyond the reports scope. But committee members seemed less interested in examining the reports details than in making partisan appeals highlighting sections of the report that could support their partys candidate for president Democrats for Biden and Republicans for former President Donald Trump while finding elements of Hurs conclusion or process to criticize. Hur testified as a private citizen no longer associated with the Justice Department after he resigned from the department Monday. Republicans see double standard Several Republicans on the panel noted Hurs finding that Biden knowingly took classified documents at the end of his vice presidency, held them in unsecured areas and shared them with a ghostwriter. Joe Biden kept classified information, Chairman Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican, said. Joe Biden failed to properly secure classified information. Joe Biden shared classified information with people he wasnt supposed to. Joe Biden broke the law. But because hes a forgetful old man who would appear sympathetic to a jury, Mr. Hur chose not to bring charges. Biden received an $8 million advance for a memoir of his vice presidency, Jordan said, citing Hurs report. Biden used classified materials to inform the book and shared them directly with the ghostwriter, Jordan said. He had 8 million reasons to take classified documents, Jordan said. Doing so put national security at risk, he added. Republicans also claimed a double standard occurred when Hur declined to prosecute Biden after the U.S. Department of Justice opted to prosecute former President Donald Trump on similar charges. The Trump case, one of four felony prosecutions the former president faces even as his general election campaign against Biden approaches, accuses Trump of keeping classified documents unsecured at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Donald Trumps being prosecuted for exactly the same act that Joe Biden committed, Rep. Tom McClintock, a Republican of California, told Hur. A separate special counsel, Jack Smith, oversaw the investigation into Trump. Hur declined to answer questions from Republicans about Smiths decision to recommend charges against Trump. Trump has made central to his campaign the idea that political and governmental elites the so-called deep state that includes the Justice Department are unfairly targeting him. He renewed that theme Tuesday in a post about the hearing to his social media site, Truth Social. Big day in Congress for the Biden Documents Hoax, Trump wrote. He had many times more documents, including classified documents, than I, or any other president, had. He had them all over the place, with ZERO supervision or security. The DOJ gave Biden, and virtually every other person and President, a free pass. Me, Im still fighting!!! Democrats embrace Trump comparison Democrats appeared happy to contrast Biden and Trumps approaches to being investigated. Hurs report noted that Biden cooperated with an investigation, authorizing searches of his homes and voluntarily sitting for an interview with prosecutors. Trump, on the other hand, refused repeated chances to avoid prosecution by returning missing classified material. Trump is also accused of lying about what documents he still had, Maryland Democrat Jamie Raskin said. The federal indictment against Trump also accused him of obstructing the investigation by hiding documents and destroying incriminating video evidence. And unlike Biden, Trump did not agree to sit for an interview with prosecutors. This report is so damning in the contrast between Biden and Trump, it is hard for me to see why our (Republican) colleagues think that this hearing advances their flailing and embarrassing quest to impeach the president of the United States, Raskin said. What America sees today is evidence of one president who believes in the rule of law and works to protect it, and one who has nothing but contempt for the rule of law and acts solely in pursuit of his own constantly multiplying corrupt schemes. Several Democrats also said that Bidens performance at the State of the Union last week should dispel any concerns that the octogenarians age is holding him back. Most important, Democrats said, was the first sentence of Hurs report that found no criminal charges are warranted in this matter. President Biden probably committed a verbal slip or two during the interview, House Judiciary ranking Democrat Jerry Nadler of New York said. Im not sure any of that matters, because when the interview was over, Mr. Hur completely exonerated President Biden. The post Former special counsel in Biden classified documents probe attacked by both sides in hearing appeared first on Daily Montanan. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) A Springfield woman faces up to 20 years in federal prison after she pleaded guilty to defrauding a State Police-related organization out of thousands of dollars. Federal prosecutors said LeAnn Shirley, 57, pleaded guilty to wire fraud relating to funds from the Illinois State Police Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation is a 501(c) charity committed to preserving the history of the Illinois State Police and Shirley was its Treasurer when the fraud occurred in 2019. Federal funding bill provides $7 million for Central IL projects Shirley admitted in court to wiring $79,000 out of the Heritage Foundations bank account and into an account in Vermont. After the money was transferred, all but $5,000 of it was then transferred into a cryptocurrency account by a third party. To facilitate the initial transfer, Shirley falsely claimed to bank employees that the payment was being used to ship items for the foundation and that the foundation would be reimbursed in a few weeks. Shirley is scheduled to be sentenced on July 17 at the U.S. Courthouse in Springfield. In addition to prison time, she faces a maximum $250,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. A former Tory chairman has urged Rishi Sunak to hand back 10 million from the Conservatives biggest donor, insisting a racism row over alleged comments about Diane Abbott is an open and shut case. Pressure is mounting on the Tories after Frank Hester allegedly said Diane Abbott makes you want to hate all black women and should be shot. The Prime Minister has suggested he does intend to give back the money as Mr Hesters remorse should be accepted. But Lord Patten, a Tory peer, asked how the party could possibly take 10 million smackers of the entrepreneurs money if he had made racist comments. It comes as the Scottish Tories have said the UK party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. Andy Street, a Conservative mayor, has also said he would hand back the money. In an interview with Times Radio, Lord Patten said: If hes made remarks which are racist, how can you in a reasonable way take 10 million smackers of his money? It seems to me that its pretty open and shut, as people like Andy Street and others have said. So I think the sooner this is brought to an end the better. And as soon as this donors bank account has got another 10 million in it, which he probably doesnt need, the better. Mr Sunak indicated that he did not intend to return the donations when challenged by Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Ministers Questions on Wednesday. The Labour leader asked him whether he was proud to be bankrolled by someone using racist and misogynistic language. The Prime Minister replied: The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist, he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. There is no place for racism in Britain, and the Government I lead is living proof of that. Ms Abbott could be seen shaking her head at Mr Sunaks answers, while other Labour MPs cried: Shame! Asked earlier on Wednesday if he would hand back the cash, Mr Street, the West Midlands Mayor, told BBC Radio 4: I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. I have to give you my view rather than what the party should do, but I have thought about how I would handle that situation. In a statement, the Scottish Tories said: The Scottish Conservative Party has never accepted a donation from Frank Hester and the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. The Prime Minister first described Mr Hesters alleged comments as racist on Tuesday night. Downing Street had previously declined to use the term, instead branding them clearly unacceptable. Mr Hester has admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. Downing Street said donations were a matter for CCHQ. But the Prime Ministers press secretary reiterated that Mr Hester had apologised. He has said very clearly on the record that racism is abhorrent; very strong words, she said. And ultimately he has been donating to the most diverse Cabinet in history, led by the first non-white prime minister. Lee Anderson, who defected to Reform UK after being stripped of the Tory whip over an Islamophobia row, suggested the Conservatives should return the money to show some consistency. The MP insisted his remarks about Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor, were not racist, but said the party should show the same sort of discipline towards Mr Hester that he received. 04:59 PM GMT Thats all for today... Thank you for joining our coverage of another busy day here in Westminster. My colleague Jack Maidment will be back tomorrow to guide you through another day. 04:54 PM GMT Jeremy Corbyn brands treatment of Diane Abbott a disgrace If Parliament had listened to Diane Abbott: We wouldn't have invaded Iraq. Black Britons wouldn't have been deported in the Windrush Scandal. Our country wouldn't have been decimated by austerity. Diane's voice should not be ignored her ongoing mistreatment is a disgrace. Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) March 13, 2024 04:52 PM GMT Your thoughts: Why Sunak returning 10m could be a risk 04:42 PM GMT Labours statement as Andy McDonald regains the party whip The Chief Whip has today restored the Labour whip to Andy McDonald MP. This follows a full investigation by the Labour Party into complaints received about public remarks that he made in October 2023. Andy McDonald, who will once again sit as a Labour MP following an investigation - Mark Pinder The investigation concluded that he had not engaged in conduct that was against the partys rulebook but reminded him of the importance of elected representatives being mindful, not only of what they say in public but how their words may be interpreted, especially in reference to controversial or emotive issues. The Chief Whip met with Andy following the outcome of the investigation and received assurances that he understands the need to be mindful and about his future conduct. 04:38 PM GMT Former Tory chairman: Open and shut decision to hand back 10m It should be an open and shut decision for the Conservatives to hand back Frank Hesters donations following a racism row, a former party chairman has said. Mr Sunak has faced calls to return 10 million to Mr Hester after comments he allegedly made in the past about Diane Abbott sparked a political firestorm. The Prime Minister suggested in the Commons earlier today that he did not intend to return the money as he said Mr Hesters remorse should be accepted. But in an interview with Times Radio, Tory peer Lord Patten said: If hes made remarks which are racist, how can you in a reasonable way take 10 million smackers of his money? It seems to me that its pretty open and shut, as people like Andy Street and others have said. So I think the sooner this is brought to an end the better. And as soon as this donors bank account has got another 10 million in it, which he probably doesnt need, the better. Mr Hester has admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott, but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. 04:36 PM GMT Have your say: Should Sunak and the Tories return 10m donation? 04:35 PM GMT Labour MP Andy McDonald has the whip restored Andy McDonald has had the Labour whip restored following his suspension for making reference to the controversial from the river to the sea chant at a pro-Palestine rally. The MP for Middlesbrough was stripped of the whip by Sir Keir Starmer in November after a backlash to a speech he made in response to the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. Speaking at a pro-Palestine march in London, Mr McDonald said: We wont rest until we have justice, until all people, Israelis and Palestinians, between the river and the sea can live in peaceful liberty. The chant from the river to the sea is viewed by many as anti-Semitic and his use of the phrase was criticised by Downing Street, which urged MPs to be sensitive to the real fear many communities may be feeling. 04:17 PM GMT Mrs Murty smells the coffee Akshata Murty has visited Fair Shot cafe this afternoon, a social enterprise which helps adults with learning difficulties to meet employees - Edward Massey/CCHQ 04:02 PM GMT Rishi Sunak urged to go long and call an autumn general election Rishi Sunak should go long and call an autumn general election, members of the 1922 Committee executive have urged. Eighteen Conservative MPs on the ruling body of the backbench group held their termly meeting with the Prime Minister on Monday night, when some reportedly warned him against a snap poll in May. Senior Labour figures are insisting the Tories are planning to hold the election in two months, despite trailing Sir Keir Starmers party by around 20 points. Mr Sunak has said an autumn election was the working assumption but refused to categorically rule out a May election in the wake of the Budget, prompting renewed speculation about when he will trigger the vote. Read the full story here 03:54 PM GMT Good afternoon Dominic Penna here, The Telegraphs Political Correspondent, guiding you through the rest of the day. 03:52 PM GMT Pictured: Grant Shapps meets soldiers during visit to north east Poland Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, meets soldiers during a visit to Orzysz in north east Poland today - Tomasz Waszczuk/Avalon 03:43 PM GMT Jenrick criticises plan to pay failed asylum seekers to move to Rwanda Robert Jenrick has accused Rishi Sunak of betrayal over plans to offer failed asylum seekers 3,000 to move to Rwanda (see the post below at 08.36). The former immigration minister tweeted that symbolic flights of people being paid to leave would not stop the boats as they were no deterrent to further crossings. He warned they could be counterproductive by consuming finite resources in Rwanda that would be needed for forcibly deported migrants. He said in a Twitter thread: Faced with a life in the UK, with all the benefits that accompany it, or travelling to Rwanda, almost all failed asylum seekers will choose the former. It speaks to astonishing naivety about what we face. 03:31 PM GMT Hester should not be cancelled, says Hunt Jeremy Hunt said a Tory donors alleged comments about Diane Abbott were both rude and racist but he should not be cancelled. Frank Hester was alleged to have told colleagues in a 2019 meeting that looking at Ms Abbott, who now sits as an independent MP, makes you want to hate all black women. Mr Hunt told the Treasury Select Committee this afternoon: It was a despicable comment that should not have been made. He added: He has apologised for his comments which I believe were racist, and rightly so. Asked if he thought the Tories should return the 10 million Mr Hester has donated to the Conservative Party, the Chancellor said he does not believe someone should be cancelled for a comment they made in the past and for which they have apologised. He added: That does not make the comments any less despicable and I dont defend them. 03:24 PM GMT Abbott lobbied Starmer to restore Labour whip at end of PMQs Diane Abbott lobbied Sir Keir Starmer to restore the Labour whip when they talked at the end of PMQs. Ms Abbott and the Labour leader were seen talking when the session finished and the former shadow home secretary has confirmed that she asked for the whip to be restored. Owen Jones, a journalist, tweeted that Sir Keir had told Ms Abbott let me know if theres anything I can do to which she replied: You could restore the whip. Ms Abbott quote tweeted the exchange posted by Mr Jones and said: This is true. Ms Abbott was stripped of the Labour whip in April last year after she suggested that Jewish people do not suffer racism all their lives. 03:02 PM GMT Abbott criticises Hoyle after she failed to get question at PMQs Diane Abbott has criticised Sir Lindsay Hoyle after he failed to call her to ask a question at PMQs. Ms Abbott, the former shadow home secretary, stood up repeatedly during the session in the House of Commons as she tried to ask Rishi Sunak a question amid the Frank Hester row. But the Speaker did not select Ms Abbott. She tweeted: I dont know whose interests the Speaker thinks he is serving. But it is not the interests of the Commons or democracy. A spokeswoman for the Speaker said there was not enough time to call all MPs during PMQs: During Prime Ministers Questions, the Speaker must select MPs from either side of the House on an alternating basis for fairness. This takes place within a limited timeframe, with the chair prioritising Members who are already listed on the order paper. This week as is often the case there was not enough time to call all Members who wanted to ask a question. 02:51 PM GMT Postpone net zero targets indefinitely, says Rees-Mogg Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg has called for net zero targets to be postponed indefinitely. Sir Jacob, the former business secretary, said the Government announcement on gas-fired power stations yesterday was extremely welcome. He told the Commons: We have become fundamentally uncompetitive because of this green obsession. We want cheap electricity, and we should have gas and we should have coal and we should postpone net zero indefinitely, because we are only one per cent of global emissions, we are making no difference and the US economy is growing consistently faster than ours because of cheap energy. This is a good first step against the net zero obsession, we need to go further. Graham Stuart, an energy minister, replied: I would chide [Sir Jacob] with the science and the evidence which is emerging all the time that there is a climate challenge and a climate emergency, thats why were looking to reduce our emissions. 02:18 PM GMT Pictured: Kemi Badenoch and Greg Abbott sign UK-Texas trade deal Kemi Badenoch, the Business and Trade Secretary, and Greg Abbott, the Governor of Texas, sign a trade deal this afternoon - Peter Nicholls /PA 01:59 PM GMT Tories and Labour trade attack ads over unfunded promises Labour and the Tories have traded social media attack ads as they accused each other of making unfunded spending pledges. The Conservatives have zeroed in on Labours green plans. Labour has dropped its 28 billion investment figure but insisted it remains committed to getting to clean power by 2030. The Tories said this will result in higher taxes and higher bills: Labour are trying to pretend they can drop the 28 billion per year price tag for their eco pledge but keep the policy. Keir Starmer can't say how he's going to afford it because he has no plan. That means going back to square one with higher taxes and higher bills #PMQs pic.twitter.com/Sc4sBnHJVd Conservatives (@Conservatives) March 13, 2024 Meanwhile, Labour has sought to portray Rishi Sunak as being the same as Liz Truss. The party said the Prime Ministers plan to eventually abolish National Insurance would leave you paying the price: Rishi Sunak has a plan for an unfunded tax cut that will leave you paying the price. Now where have we heard that before? #PMQs pic.twitter.com/sxurbnGl3e The Labour Party (@UKLabour) March 13, 2024 01:40 PM GMT Tories wont give back Hesters 10m because he has apologised, suggests No 10 The Tories will not hand back donations from Frank Hester because he apologised for remarks about Diane Abbott and condemned racism, Downing Street suggested. The Prime Ministers press secretary told reporters after PMQs: Obviously donations are a matter for CCHQ (Conservative Campaign Headquarters) and youre welcome to go to them. Ill reiterate though, he has apologised for these alleged remarks. He has said very clearly on the record that racism is abhorrent; very strong words. And ultimately he has been donating to the most diverse Cabinet in history, led by the first non-white prime minister. 01:34 PM GMT Conservative Party should carefully review Hester donations, say Scottish Tories The Scottish Tories said the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Frank Hester amid a row over his alleged comments about Diane Abbott. A Scottish Conservative spokesperson said: These comments were racist and wrong. The Scottish Conservative Party has never accepted a donation from Frank Hester and the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks. The statement represents a blow to Rishi Sunak after he attempted to draw a line under the racism row at PMQs. 01:15 PM GMT Sir Simon Clarke issues cryptic iceberg warning Sir Simon Clarke has appeared to double down on his warning that the Tories are heading for an electoral disaster with Rishi Sunak in charge. The former Cabinet minister said in January that Mr Sunak should be replaced, writing in a piece for The Telegraph: The unvarnished truth is that Rishi Sunak is leading the Conservatives into an election where we will be massacred. Sir Simon today published a one word tweet - iceberg - following todays edition of Prime Ministers Questions, a likely reference to the Titanic. Iceberg. Simon Clarke MP (@SimonClarkeMP) March 13, 2024 12:40 PM GMT SNP accuse Sunak of putting money before morals Stephen Flynn, the SNPs leader in Westminster, accused the Prime Minister of putting money before morals. Mr Flynn told the Commons: The Conservative Party have accepted a 10 million donation from an individual who has said that one of our Parliamentary colleagues in this chamber should be shot. Why is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom putting money before morals? Rishi Sunak replied: The comments were wrong, the gentleman in question has apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. 12:31 PM GMT Sunak too scared to call a general election, claims Starmer Sir Keir Starmer claimed Rishi Sunak was too scared to call a general election. The Labour leader told the House of Commons: Two weeks ago the Prime Minister promised to crackdown on those spreading hate. Today he has shrunk at the first challenge. Last week he promised fantasy tax cuts now he is pretending it can all be paid for with no impact on pensions or the NHS. All we need now is an especially hardy lettuce and it could be 2022 all over again. Is it any wonder that he is too scared to call an election when the public can see that the only way to protect their country, their pension and their NHS from the madness of this Tory Party is by voting Labour. Mr Sunak said: He talks about pensions. Pensions are going up by around 900 in this year. It is this Government that has protected the triple lock for the last 10 years. 12:18 PM GMT Starmer claims Sunak is tongue-tied amid Hester row Sir Keir Starmer referred to Rishi Sunaks recent speech on the steps of Downing Street about extremism as the Labour leader claimed the Prime Minister had sought to anoint himself as the great healer and as some kind of unifier. But Sir Keir said that amid the Frank Hester row, Mr Sunak suddenly finds himself tongue-tied, shrinking in sophistry, hoping he can deflect for long enough that we will all go away. Mr Sunak hit back and said: I am absolutely not going to take any lectures from somebody who chose to represent an anti-Semitic terrorist group, Hizb ut-Tahrir... Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, addresses the House of Commons during PMQs today - PA 12:13 PM GMT Sunak accuses Labour of double standards Sir Keir Starmer said: The man bankrolling the Prime Minister also said that the member for Hackney North should be shot. How low would he have to sink, what racist, woman-hating threat of violence would he have to make before the Prime Minister plucked up the courage to hand back the 10 million that he has taken from him? Rishi Sunak replied: As I said, the gentleman apologised genuinely for his comments and that remorse should be accepted. He talks about language, he might want to reflect on the double standards of his deputy leader calling her opponents scum. His shadow foreign secretary comparing Conservatives to Nazis. And the man that he wanted to make chancellor talking about lynching a female minister. His silence on that speaks volumes. Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, addresses the House of Commons today during PMQs - PA 12:09 PM GMT Sunak responds to Hester row: Remorse should be accepted Sir Keir Starmer raised the Frank Hester row and asked: Is the Prime Minister proud to be bankrolled by someone using racist and misogynist language when he says the member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington makes you want to hate all black women? Rishi Sunak replied: The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist and he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. There is no place for racism in Britain and the Government that I lead is living proof of that. 12:06 PM GMT Starmer pays tribute to Theresa May Sir Keir Starmer used his opening remarks at Prime Ministers Questions to pay tribute to Theresa May after she announced she is stepping down at the next general election. The Labour leader said it would be a well-deserved retirement and she had served with a real sense of duty. We thank her for her service, he said. 12:03 PM GMT Sunak determined to give Horizon IT scandal victims justice and redress Prime Ministers Questions is now underway in the House of Commons. Rishi Sunak started by confirming the Government will today publish its draft laws to exonerate wrongfully-convicted sub-postmasters caught up in the Horizon IT scandal. The Prime Minister told MPs that he was determined that the victims get the justice and redress that they deserve. 11:48 AM GMT Pictured: Rishi Sunak leaves 10 Downing Street ahead of PMQs at noon Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, leaves 10 Downing Street this morning - Peter Nicholls /Getty Images Europe 11:30 AM GMT Analysis: Sunak under pressure over handling of Hester row Rishi Sunak faces a potentially very difficult Prime Ministers Questions at noon. The row over Frank Hester dominates Westminster this morning and Mr Sunak is facing pressure over his handling of the affair. Ministers and No 10 declined yesterday morning to label the Tory donors alleged remarks about Diane Abbott as racist. But Kemi Badenoch, the Business and Trade Secretary, then did exactly that after 4pm, with Downing Street subsequently changing its position a couple of hours later as it put out a statement labelling the comments racist and wrong. It is supposed to be Mr Sunak and Downing Street setting the Governments position on issues, not individual ministers. Sir Keir Starmer will almost certainly seek to capitalise at PMQs and Mr Sunak will likely be asked to explain why the Governments stance had not been firmer from the outset. Yesterday gave the impression of a Prime Minister and a No 10 not in control of events but rather being buffeted and bounced by them. That will have worried Tory MPs. 11:19 AM GMT Pictured: Lord Cameron arrives in Downing Street this morning Lord Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, is pictured this morning arriving in Downing Street - Tayfun Salci /Shutterstock 11:15 AM GMT Archbishops claim Muslim communities at risk over new extremism definition The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have claimed the Governments planned new definition of extremism risks more division which could disproportionately target Muslim communities. In a joint statement, the Most Reverend Justin Welby and the Most Reverend Stephen Cottrell said labelling a multi-faceted problem as hateful extremism could vilify the wrong people and increase divisions within communities. Their comments come ahead of a new definition of extremism to be unveiled by Michael Gove, the Communities Secretary, which will enable universities, councils and other public bodies to crack down on a wider range of Islamist and Right-wing groups. You can read the full story here. 10:59 AM GMT Greenpeace UK urges Government to address cost of cold homes Greenpeace activists have erected hundreds of cemetery headstones made from insulation boards outside Parliament today to warn a failure to tackle cold homes is costing thousands of lives. It is urging the Government to invest 6 billion a year to make homes warmer, improve health, cut bills and tackle climate change. Greenpeace UK activists erected "tombstones" outside Parliament to raise awareness of the impact of cold homes - Tayfun Salci /Shutterstock 10:43 AM GMT If Sunak had any backbone he would return Hester donation, says Labour Jonathan Ashworth said if Rishi Sunak had any backbone he would immediately return Frank Hesters donation amid a racism row. Mr Hester gave the Tories 10 million last year but there are calls for the money to be given back after a storm erupted over comments he allegedly made in the past about Diane Abbott. The shadow paymaster general told Sky News: I thought it was absolutely staggering it took Rishi Sunak 24 hours to condemn these racist, reprehensible comments about Diane Abbott. I think that shows how weak Rishi Sunak is. You will remember a couple of weeks ago it took him a while to take on, now the Reform MP, Lee Anderson for Islamophobic comments. He should have been out there condemning these comments immediately. But, fundamentally, he has taken 10 million from this individual. Every Tory MP and candidate handing out leaflets, paying for Facebook advertising it is funded by this 10 million from this individual who has made these deeply, deeply racist, offensive comments. If Rishi Sunak had anything about him, if he had any backbone, he would pay that money back today. 10:29 AM GMT Hunt: GDP figures show we are making progress Jeremy Hunt said todays GDP figures show we are making progress in growing the economy. But Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, claimed the UK was still in economic decline. Mr Hunt said: While the last few years have been tough, todays numbers show we are making progress in growing the economy - part of which makes it possible to bring down national insurance contributions by 900 this coming year. But if we want the rate of growth to pick up more we need to make work pay which means ending the unfairness of taxing work twice. And Ms Reeves tweeted: After fourteen years of economic decline under the Conservatives, Britain is worse off. Now the Conservatives risk re-running Liz Truss' disastrous mini-Budget with their 46 billion unfunded tax plan. We need an election now. Rachel Reeves (@RachelReevesMP) March 13, 2024 10:07 AM GMT Mark Drakeford gives evidence to Covid Inquiry Mark Drakeford, the First Minister of Wales, is giving evidence to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry in Cardiff today. Mr Drakeford, who will stand down as Welsh Labour leader this month, will answer questions throughout the day on the nations response to the pandemic. You can follow the latest updates on The Telegraphs Covid Inquiry live blog here. Mark Drakeford, the First Minister of Wales, arrives at the Covid Inquiry in Cardiff this morning - Matthew Horwood /Getty Images Europe 10:03 AM GMT Pictured: Michael Gove, the Levelling Up Secretary, arrives in Downing Street today Michael Gove, the Levelling Up Secretary, is pictured this morning in Downing Street - Tayfun Salci /Shutterstock 09:51 AM GMT UK economy returned to growth in January The UK economy returned to growth at the start of the year, according to official figures published this morning, raising hopes that the country could be on its way out of a shallow recession. Gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to have risen by 0.2 per cent in January, following a decline of 0.1 per cent in December, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. The nation fell into a technical recession in the second half of 2023, defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction. 09:47 AM GMT 1,000 new members joined Reform on day of Anderson defection, says Tice Reform UK recorded a membership surge on the day that Lee Anderson joined the party, with 1,000 people signing up, Richard Tice has said. Mr Anderson announced he was joining Reform on Monday. Mr Tice, the Reform leader, tweeted this morning: 1,000 join [Reform UK] the day of [Lee Andersons] defection. Welcome.Onwards and upwards. 09:33 AM GMT Boris Johnson election campaign return isnt going to happen, says Farage Nigel Farage has rubbished the suggestion that Boris Johnson could return to campaign for the Tories at the next general election as he said: It isnt going to happen, folks. A report earlier this week suggested Mr Johnson could return to the political frontline to help the Conservatives in the run up to polling day. But allies of the former prime minister poured cold water on the idea, telling The Telegraph that Mr Johnson has barely spoken to Rishi Sunak in the past year. Mr Farage weighed in last night, telling his GB News show: Well, one reason why he wont do it is he doesnt really like Rishi Sunak very much. The second reason he wont do it is thered be nothing in it for him. And the third reason he wont do it is because the last time it was polled, 50 per cent of those in the Red Wall who voted Boris in 2019 now had no confidence in him whatsoever. It isnt going to happen, folks. 09:13 AM GMT Andy Street says he would return Tory donation to Frank Hester Andy Street, the Conservative Mayor of the West Midlands, said he would return Frank Hesters donation amid a row over comments the Tory donor allegedly made about Diane Abbott. Mr Street said he would think about the company I keep. Mr Hester gave 10 million to the Conservatives last year. Asked if the Tories should give the money back, Mr Street told the BBC: Obviously I have been thinking about this, about what I would do if this was a donation to my campaign in the West Midlands which of course is separate from the main funding. And the answer is I would think about the company I kept and I would give that money back. I have to give you my view rather than what the party should do but I have thought about how I would handle that situation. He added: There is a principle here. Those comments were offensive, they were racist as the Prime Minister said, and you do need to think about the company that you keep. 09:02 AM GMT Minister defends Governments response to Frank Hester comments A minister said the situation was unfolding pretty quickly after he was asked to explain why the Government had initially been reluctant to label controversial comments made by a Tory donor about Diane Abbott as racist. A number of ministers and No 10 had declined to call remarks made by Frank Hester racist but Downing Street did later change its stance as it said the alleged comments were racist and wrong. Mr Hester gave 10 million to the Conservatives last year and opposition parties are calling for the Tories to give the money back. He was alleged to have told colleagues in a 2019 meeting that looking at Ms Abbott, a former Labour MP who now sits as an independent, makes you want to hate all black women. Asked about the Governments changing stance on the comments, Kevin Hollinrake, the postal affairs minister, said this morning: The situation was unfolding pretty quickly and as far as I am concerned these comments were racist, they were absolutely the wrong thing [to say]. You dont judge somebodys character by their skin colour. That is effectively what those comments meant. Asked whether the Tories should give the money back, Mr Hollinrake said: He has apologised, we should move on from that in my view. 08:47 AM GMT Pictured: Sir Keir Starmer leaves his London home this morning Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, is pictured this morning leaving his London home - TS/GoffPhotos.com 08:36 AM GMT 3,000 for failed asylum seekers to move to Rwanda a good use of public money, says minister A plan to offer 3,000 to failed asylum seekers to voluntarily move to Rwanda is a good use of public money, a minister insisted this morning. Kevin Hollinrake, the postal affairs minister, said that it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country. Asked if the plan was a good use of taxpayers money and if it would undermine the separate deportation flights scheme, he told Times Radio: He said: Yes and no in terms of yes, it is a good use of public money, no it doesnt undermine the scheme. Quite the opposite. This is a scheme that already runs, we are looking at this, we havent announced thats exactly what we are going to do yet. But what we do if we return a failed asylum seeker back to their home country we do pay these monies to help them resettle back in their home country and we are considering doing that for people who we relocate to Rwanda. So clearly 3,000 is a lot of money but it costs a lot more money than that to keep people in this country who are without merit, who have come here illegally and failed the asylum tests. The 3,000 plan relates to people who have already been through the asylum system and been rejected. The separate Rwanda flights scheme will see small boat migrants sent to Rwanda straight away to have their claims processed. 08:18 AM GMT Minister: Sub-postmaster Horizon scandal convictions to be quashed in July Sub-postmasters wrongfully convicted as part of the Horizon IT scandal will have their convictions quashed in July, the postal affairs minister said this morning. Asked when it will happen, Kevin Hollinrake told Times Radio: We think in July, before the summer recess. So, by sometime around mid-July and it wont just be one conviction that is quashed, it will be literally hundreds, probably around 700 convictions will be quashed at that time. That will open the door to paying those people compensation. So literally within weeks from that, so probably in August, we can start paying compensation to those individuals, quite rightly. Rishi Sunak will unveil the Governments exoneration plan today. Mr Sunak said the proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill marked an important step forward in finally clearing the names of hundreds of wrongfully convicted branch managers who had their lives callously torn apart. 08:13 AM GMT Post-Budget poll puts Tories at lowest level since Truss Rishi Sunak and the Tories have sunk to their lowest level of poll support since the resignation of Liz Truss as last weeks Budget failed to deliver a boost. A new Savanta survey conducted between Mar 8-10 in the days after the Budget put the Conservatives on 25 per cent and Labour on 43 per cent, giving the latter a lead of 18 points. The Tories were down by two points and Labour were down by one point when compared to the companys previous poll from Mar 1-3. NEW Westminster Voting Intention 18pt Labour lead - lowest Conservative vote share since final week of Truss Lab 43 (-1) Con 25 (-2) LD 11 (+1) Reform 9 (+1) Green 4 (=) SNP 3 (=) Other 4 (=) 2,032 UK adults, 8-10 March (chg 1-3 March) pic.twitter.com/uYrOMCyZJk Savanta UK (@Savanta_UK) March 13, 2024 Savanta said the 25 per cent figure for the Conservatives was the lowest voting intention Savanta has recorded for the Conservatives since the final week of Liz Truss turbulent premiership in October 2022. Chris Hopkins, political research director at Savanta, said: The last time we recorded the Conservatives vote share this low, their leader resigned within the week. Not since the final days of Prime Minister Liz Truss have so few of the UK public expressed a willingness to vote Conservative. This is just one poll, yes. But what should concern Rishi Sunak - less than two months from crucial local elections - is that these numbers fit part of a wider trend. Our latest voting intention isnt a sudden drop, it looks like a long-term downwards trend that the Prime Minister cant seem to reverse. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A new nasal spray was approved by the FDA for first responders to use in cases of fentanyl overdoses. Endorsed by former United States Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, OPVEE is the first nalmefene nasal spray to be approved by the FDA. Adams says the spray could be more effective than Narcan in certain situations. It was designed specifically to respond to a fentanyl overdose, Adams said. Scientists looked at the potency of fentanyl, the quick onset, sometimes the very long duration of fentanyl. They designed an agent that was specific to the pharmaceutical kinetics and the pharmaceutical dynamics of fentanyl. The East Moline Police Department says through the years, theyve seen trends in the opioid crisis and are open to making changes to better serve the community. Weve seen multiple instances where subjects are completely unresponsive, Lt. David Rummery said. Its definitely different. We obviously are not typically the first person or primary administrator for Narcan. Rummery reflected on treating citizens with overdose reversal nasal sprays. East Moline Police Officers use Narcan, a brand of Nalaxone, which is described as a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. Theyve definitely shown significant efectiveness, Rummery said. Weve seen very quick reversals of those overdoses be they again intentional, or accidental. Illinois is one of 19 states where the medicine is available through statewide standing orders. In Illinois standing order, first responders and teachers in schools are allowed to us the nasal spray if a student is experiencing an overdose. They can be in a position to save a life, Adams said. Whether at a school, at a concert or if youre a first responder being called to respond to an opioid overdose. The United States Food and Drug Administration approved OPVEE for use last May. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. FILE - UFC Hall of Famer Mark Coleman gestures during the weigh-in ahead of his UFC 109 fight against Randy Couture Friday, Feb. 5, 2010, in Las Vegas. Former UFC champion Mark Coleman was airlifted to a hospital and was battling for his life after saving his parents from a house fire in Ohio this week, his daughter said on Instagram. Morgan Coleman posted Tuesday night, March 12, 2024, that her father went into the burning house several times and was able to bring out his mother and father. (Neil Davidson/The Canadian Press via AP, File) TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) UFC Hall of Famer and former champion Mark Coleman was airlifted to a hospital and was battling for his life after saving his parents from a house fire in Ohio this week, his daughter said on Instagram. Morgan Coleman posted that her father went into the burning house several times and was able to bring out his mother and father. Coleman said her 59-year-old father was at the hospital battling for his life after this heroic act. Our father has always been our hero and means the world to us, Morgan Coleman wrote. He is and always will be a fighter. The strongest and bravest man I know. Colemans mother, Connie, posted on Facebook, saying Thank God we are alive and asking for prayers for Mark." A post on X from UFC writer Jonathan Snowden showed massive damage to the house. Coleman, form Fremont, Ohio, was UFCs first heavyweight champion in 1997 when he defeated Dan Severn. He won 16 of 26 fights over his 14-year career and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2008. Coleman was an amateur wrestler before his Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) career, winning an NCAA title at Ohio State in 1988 and competing in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Morgan Coleman said in her post that Mark went back in after bringing out his parents to rescue a dog, Hammer, from the fire. She said Hammer did not survive despite her father's efforts. Another of Coleman's daughters, Kenzie, said on Instagram that Hammer woke her father up with his barking. Morgan Coleman has organized a gofundme.com site for her father with a photo of him in a hospital bed connected to monitors and other medical necessities. As of Wednesday afternoon, the site had raised several thousands dollars of its stated goal of $50,000. ___ AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports New defensive lines are being constructed along the border with Belarus in the north of the Rivne oblast, Oleksandr Koval, head of the Rivne Oblast Military Administration, announced on Facebook on March 13. The work is being carried out in close coordination with the military. Read also: Ukraine strengthens defense with three lines of fortifications Zelenskyy In the north of the oblast, we continue to equip the defense lines, with construction of non-explosive barriers and platoon strongholds ongoing. Builders are currently engaged in earthworks and trench arrangement. Koval emphasized that the work is progressing according to the approved schedule, highlighting it as a priority area. / Facebook / Facebook / Facebook On March 12, Bohdan Bondar, head of the State Special Transport Service of the Ministry of Defense, noted the challenges posed by spring weather but emphasized that fortification construction efforts persist daily. Additionally, Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhya Military District, revealed a significant allocation of UAH 1.3 billion ($33.5 million) for fortification construction in Zaporizhzhya oblast, following a previous allocation of UAH 20 billion ($516 million) announced by Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of Ukraine. Read also: 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 Savannah-Chatham County Public School System board members (left to right) Denise Grabowski, Dionne Hoskins-Brown, Cornelia Hall, Shawn Kachmar, Roger Moss, Superintendent Denise Watts, Paul Smith, David Bringman, Michael Johnson and Tonia Howard-Hall pose for a photo before the March 2024 meeting. Editor's Note: This article has been updated to clarify that Stephanie Collison Campbell and James "Jay" Jones are both residents of Pooler, Georgia. A previous version of this article stated that Campbell was "the only candidate on the school board ballot to have Pooler listed as their city of residence." Candidates qualified last week for the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System board seats that are up for election this year. Districts 1, 3 and 7 have at least one challenger to the incumbents who are seeking another term. Non-partisan general elections will be held on May 21, the same day as the general election primary. Board members serve four-year terms. The positions of board president and district 4, 5, 6 and 8 school board representatives will be up for re-election in 2026. County Board of Education District 1 Denise Grabowski seeks a second term as Savannah-Chatham's district 1 school board representative Incumbent Denise Grabowski is an urban planner with two children in the public school system. She is the founder of Symbiocity, an urban planning consulting firm. She has served many community and education related roles, such as the President of the School Council at Charles Ellis Montessori Academy, Chair of the Friends of Massie for Massie Heritage Center, Board of Trustee of the Ossabaw Island Foundation member and as a member of the Metropolitan Savannah Rotary. She is seeking her second term as the District 1 representative after having won in June 2020 to succeed long-time board member Julie Wade. Armstrong State University Notable Alumnae and long-time educator, Barbara Hubbard has qualified for the 2024 Savannah-Chatham County district 1 school board representative election Challenger Barbara Hubbard earned a number of degrees throughout her 47-year career as a professional educator. Her highest degree is a Doctorate in Educational Administration from Georgia Southern University. Most of her time as an educator was spent employed by SCCPSS from elementary school teacher to assistant principal to roles in the district's central office that included Acting Associate Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction and Director of Gifted Education Programs. After she retired, she moved into higher education holding positions at the University of South Carolina Beaufort and the College of Education at Armstrong State University. She also serves on the Altar Guild (Chancel Society) and has been a member of the Junior League of Savannah, Junior Achievement and the College Board. Her husband Carter Hubbard announced her candidacy on his Facebook page on March 5. County Board of Education District 2 Dionne Hoskins-Brown is once again running unopposed for the district 2 school board representative seat. Current District 2 Representative Dionne Hoskins-Brown is running unopposed. She has been on the board since September 2011 when she was appointed to serve the rest of Floyd Adamss term after he stepped down to run for Mayor of Savannah. Hoskins is a research fishery biologist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fisheries and director of NOAA-sponsored programs at Savannah State University. She is also a Beach High School graduate with a degree from SSU and a Doctor of Philosophy in marine sciences from the University of South Carolina. County Board of Education District 3 Cornelia Hall is running for a fourth term as the Savannah-Chatham County district 3 school board representative Incumbent Cornelia Hall served as an assistant principal and principal in South Carolinas Beaufort and Jasper Counties until 2007. She retired and then worked at SCCPSSs Thunderbolt Elementary as a Reading Resource teacher through 2010. In 2012, Hall was appointed to finish out Alexander Lutens term after he stepped down due to health concerns. She is currently serving her third full term as the District 3 representative. Challenger Tanet Taharka Myers is currently a campus liaison at South University. Prior to that she has served as an assistant city manager for the City of Brunswick, Georgia and as an executive assistant at SSU. She also worked for over seven years within the City of Savannah as a revenue manager and a deputy city clerk. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Marketing from Morris Brown College and a Master of Public Administration from SSU. County Board of Education District 7 Michael Johnson, district 7 school board representative. Incumbent Michael Johnson is a local realtor with Keller Williams Realty where predominantly focuses on first-time home buyers and military relocation. Prior to working in real estate business, he had earned a Culinary Arts degree from Le Cordon Bleu and spent more than a decade in the food service industry. He is seeking his third term as the District 7 representative, a post he has held since 2016. He has been a Savannah resident for nearly 30 years and has a child who attends Savannah Classical Academy. Challenger Stephanie Collison Campbell resides in Pooler, which has been one the fast-growing towns in the coastal Georgia region. Western Chatham County has seen the most growth in new developments over the last decade, which has begun to impact the school district's facilities and transportation offerings to that side of town. Families and school leaders were at odds throughout most of the end of last year upon release of SCCPSSs Long-Range Facilities Plan Phase 1, which has redrawn school attendance zones in West Chatham. Jay Jones, a former Chatham County Commissioner, is running for Savannah-Chatham to be the school board district 7 representative. Challenger James Jay Jones is another Pooler resident seeking the district 7 seat. He is a local business solutions consultant and co-owner of Adventures of Botanical Boy, which he started with his son who attended Virginia Heard Elementary School. Jones has been heavily involved in the Savannah-Chatham community through a number of organizations from Chatham Area Transit to the Chatham County Democratic Committee as well as the local NAACP chapter. He has also served in the past as a Chatham County Commissioner for District 6 from January 2017 to December 2020. His most recent attempt to win a public office was for Georgia Senate District 1 in the 2022 midterm elections. Jones launched his campaign on Facebook on Tuesday, March 12, with a post proclaiming that he is a "Proud product of Savannah-Chatham County Schools." He attended SCCPSS institutions 1st through 12th grade. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: See qualifiers for 2024 Savannah-Chatham school board elections OHIO (WJW) New poll numbers show State Sen. Matt Dolan surging to the head of the Republican Senate primary field. Your Local Election Headquarters Less than a week before Election Day, Dolan is in first at 25.5% followed by Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno at 22.8% and Secretary of State Frank LaRose at 15.9%. However, the largest chunk of Republican voters, 32%, tell pollsters they have not yet made up their minds. The campaigns and outside groups have recently begun making their cases directly to voters through a series of debates and blanketing the airways with ads. This poll shows the potential impact of those efforts and just how much the race has changed. Since January, Dolans support has increased 11 points, Trump-endorsed Bernie Morenos support has gone up by one point, and Frank Larose has lost five points. The winner of this GOP primary will go on to face incumbent Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in the fall. Hes running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Right now, the poll shows Brown leading all three possible Republican opponents in head-to-head matchups. Against Matt Dolan: Brown is at 37% with Dolan at 34%. Against Bernie Moreno: Brown is at 39% with Moreno at 34%. And against Frank LaRose: Brown is at 39% with LaRose at 33%. Watch: 3 Ohio Republican Senate candidates debate On the issues that matter, 34% of Ohio voters say its the economy at number one, followed by immigration at 13%, then healthcare, threats to democracy, crime and education. The poll also gauges Ohio voters on Novembers presidential election. Former President Donald Trump with a substantial lead over President Joe Biden: 50% to 41%. Nine percent of voters remain undecided in that race. Ohios primary election is set for March 19. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. French President Macron and Lithuania's President Nauseda speak before a concert at Saint-Louis des Invalides cathedral in Paris French President Macron and Lithuania's President Nauseda speak before a concert at Saint-Louis des Invalides cathedral in Paris BERLIN (Reuters) -Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to meet in Berlin on Friday for hastily arranged talks on aid for Ukraine. The talks, announced by Tusk and confirmed by a German government source, will be the first top-level meeting of the "Weimar Triangle" - a platform of political cooperation between Germany, France and Poland created in 1991 - since he returned as Polish prime minister late last year. "I talked to the president about how we mobilize our partners in Europe," Tusk told state-run news channel TVP Info in an interview late on Tuesday after talks with U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington. "A Weimar Triangle summit was urgently convened for Friday." Scholz and Macron will speak to each other first before being joined by Tusk, a German government source said. The meeting follows tension between the French and German leaders over issues such as Ukraine policy, most recently stirred by Macron not ruling out the deployment of ground troops in Ukraine. Since the new Polish government's formation late last year, there has been only one Weimar Triangle meeting at foreign minister level but all three countries have voiced a desire to intensify relations. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke, John Irish, Alan Charlish, Pawel Florkiewicz, Writing by Miranda Murray, Editing by Bartosz Dabrowski) Description For Grades 6 & up. Do you love manga? Graphic novels? Once a month we'll meet at the Bridgehampton Starbucks to discuss a specific book! Each title will be raffled away to one participant. Light snacks will be provided. Each participant will receive a $5 Starbucks gift card to purchase a drink or snack of their choice, redeemable the day of the program.Selected book titles will be available for checkout -- teens will need an active library card. Space is limited, registration is required. Click here to sign up: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/846165733487?aff=oddtdtcreator Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has resisted opposition calls to return money to a Conservative donor who reportedly said MP Diane Abbott "should be shot". The PM said Frank Hester's alleged comments were "wrong" and "racist". But he repeatedly told MPs Mr Hester had apologised and his "remorse should be accepted". Mr Hester has donated more than 10m to the Tories and in November gifted Mr Sunak the use of a helicopter for a political visit, valued at 15,000. At Prime Minister's Questions, Labour MP Marsha de Cordova asked Mr Sunak directly if he would return the helicopter donation. He replied: "No. And I am pleased that the gentleman is supporting a party that represents one of the most diverse governments in this country's history, led by this country's first British Asian prime minister." Ms Abbott - who sits as an independent MP after being suspended by Labour - was in the Commons chamber but did not succeed in getting Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to call her, so she could ask a question of her own. A spokesperson for Sir Lindsay said he had to prioritise MPs listed on the order paper and "there was not enough time to call all members who wanted to ask a question". Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer - who has so far resisted calls to reinstate Ms Abbott as a Labour MP - said the PM should pluck up the "courage to hand back the 10m". "Is the prime minister proud to be bankrolled by someone using racist and misogynistic language when he says the Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington (Ms Abbott) 'makes you want to hate all black women?'," Sir Keir asked. Mr Sunak replied: "The alleged comments were wrong, they were racist, he has rightly apologised for them and that remorse should be accepted. "There is no place for racism in Britain, and the government I lead is living proof of that." Sir Keir also suggested that Mr Sunak had attempted to "pose as some kind of unifier" with his speech on extremism outside Downing Street, but now found himself "tongue-tied, shrinking in sophistry, hoping he can deflect for long enough that it will all go away". Mr Sunak said he was "absolutely not going to take any lectures" from Sir Keir, who he said "chose to serve a leader who let antisemitism run rife in his Labour Party, those are his actions, those are his values and that's how he should be judged". Sir Keir responded: "The problem is that he's describing a Labour Party that no longer exists." SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn also called on the PM to return the donations and accused him of "putting money before morals". He described Mr Sunak's defence of Mr Hester as "complete rubbish" and branded the businessman a "racist" who was "downright bloody dangerous". "Isn't the extremism that we should all be worried about [are] the views of those Tory donors that we've read about this week?" he asked the PM. Mr Flynn and Sir Keir were seen speaking to Ms Abbott after the session ended. Ms Abbott is understood to have asked Sir Keir to readmit her to the Parliamentary Labour Party, when he asked her if there was anything he could do. Ms Abbott has sat as an independent since April 2023 when she was suspended from the parliamentary party for a letter she sent a letter to the Observer, in which she wrote that Irish, Jewish and Traveller people were not subject to racism "all their lives". She withdrew her remarks and apologised "for any anguish caused". In a comment piece for the Guardian on Thursday, Ms Abbott said she was she was "upset but not surprised" by Mr Hester's alleged remarks and accused the Conservative Party of planning to "play the race card" at the coming general election. A Tory source, in response, pointed to her April 2023 letter, for which she remains under investigation by Labour. Ms Abbot said it would be "strange" if Sir Keir kept her out of the party because of it. She also warned Labour to "step up to challenge racism", claiming the party had failed to apologise to her for the content of WhatsApp messages previously sent about her by some Labour officials, found in a report by Martin Forde KC to have, "consciously or otherwise", drawn on racist tropes. Labour did not respond to a request for comment. Labour's Paulette Hamilton, Birmingham's first black MP, told BBC News Midlands she feared the comments towards Ms Abbott had added to "the threat and anxiety levels of MPs in Parliament". She said female MPs - and black women in particular - were very close to their constituencies and walk around them a lot. The row over returning Mr Hester's money was sparked by an article in Monday's Guardian. The newspaper reported that in 2019 Mr Hester said: "It's like trying not to be racist but you see Diane Abbott on the TV, and you're just like I hate, you just want to hate all black women because she's there, and I don't hate all black women at all, but I think she should be shot." The BBC has not heard a recording, or been able to independently verify the alleged remarks. Mr Hester has been asked whether the reported comments are accurate. In a statement released on Monday, Mr Hester's company said he "accepts that he was rude about Diane Abbott in a private meeting several years ago but his criticism had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin". The Scottish Conservative Party said it had never accepted a donation from Mr Hester and "the UK Conservative Party should carefully review the donations it has received from Hester in response to his remarks". Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said she was writing to every Conservative MP to urge them not accept "tainted" money from Mr Hester. Activists are kicking off two days of action at Europes biggest airports today, demanding a limit to the number of climate-wrecking flights. A coalition of 25 organisations - including local residents associations and climate groups - are targeting airports across France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and the UK. They are calling for flights to be capped below 2019 levels, in line with the historic decision taken at Amsterdams Schiphol Airport. We, the victims of airport nuisance and present and future victims of global warming, call on our governments and on Europe to follow the necessary path opened up by the Netherlands by finally taking concrete measures, a statement shared with Euronews Green says. These measures involve limiting and reducing the number of flights while ensuring that noise, air pollution and CO2 emissions are also brought down - and generalising curfews at airports, aerodromes and heliports. Where are the airport protests taking place? Actions are planned at Europes five largest airports: Paris Charles de Gaulle, London Heathrow, Madrid Barajas, Frankfurt Airport and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. France will see the bulk of protests today (13 March). According to a statement from campaign group Stay Grounded, 20 mobilisations are planned across the country in order to put pressure on the Minister of Transport. The groups are due to meet with the minister on Friday 15 March. Stay Grounded says this meeting will be followed by a humorous musical event and speeches at 12.30pm. Airport protests are also due to take place in other European countries on Friday. Why are activists targeting Europes biggest airports? According to the Transport and Environment campaign group, Europes five biggest airports emit more CO2 than the entire Swedish economy. Predictions from the aviation industry itself show air traffic on course to double by 2040, Stay Grounded notes. "Aviation is the fastest way to fry the planet," says Magdalena Heuwieser, spokesperson from the campaign network. "Taking one flight generates more emissions than many people around the world emit in an entire year. We need to urgently cap flights at airport level. The attempts at Schiphol airport to reduce the amount of flights and ban private jets and night flights need to be applied in Paris and other airports. In 2022, the Dutch government announced a world-first plan to reduce the number of Schiphol flights from 500,000 to 460,000, largely to limit noise pollution. But it shelved the plan in November 2023 following protests from other countries and aviation companies. A Supreme Court ruling on the issue is expected in the next couple of months. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) People who are still navigating the impacts of Januarys severe storm and flooding are being offered free mental health resources to help them cope with their recovery efforts. On Wednesday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services activated a Disaster Distress Helpline for people displaced by the flooding. The helpline is free and available all day for San Diego residents trying to recover from the historic flooding that struck the region Jan. 21 to 23 and the emotional distress caused by the aftermath of losing their homes and property. County votes to extend temporary lodging program for flood victims Residents can contact the helpline by calling or texting 800-985-5990. Staff will then provide confidential counseling and other services, or connect residents to trained professionals from local mental health centers. Spanish-speakers can press 2 when calling for bilingual support. Counselors are available in more than a hundred other languages. Passport assistance being offered for flood victims in San Diego County People who need emergency crisis support may call the San Diego Access and Crisis Line (ACL) at 1-888-724-7240. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. Itay Regev was among 105 hostages who were released during a brief truce in November An Israeli hostage freed from Gaza three months ago has accused the world of forgetting those still held by Hamas and urged the Israeli government to do whatever it takes to bring them home. Itay Regev, 19, told the BBC he was held in "horrific" conditions by "very, very vicious" captors and he did not think he would get out alive. He was kidnapped from the Nova music festival with his sister and a friend. Talks on a ceasefire and hostage exchange have been ongoing for weeks. But as yet there is no deal, with reported sticking points including Hamas's demand for a permanent ceasefire and Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza, which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called "delusional". However, Itay - who was released along with his sister, Maya, and 103 other hostages in return for some 240 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails during a brief truce in November - is clear about what needs to happen. "I think we should do anything we possibly can to get them out of there, whatever the cost... It's people's lives," he said, speaking to the BBC in London in his first UK interview. "I'm sure if anyone had their child kidnapped, they wouldn't really care about what price needed to be paid. We need to return the hostages at any cost." About 130 hostages, including Itay's friend Omer, are still being held in Gaza. Israeli officials have said they believe about 30 of those still in Gaza are dead. Itay is in London to raise their plight with British MPs - he said he was there to "scream their cries from Gaza" - and wants the international community to do more to secure their release. "The hostages have been there for five months now. The answer is unequivocally, no they're not doing enough," he said. "For five months not to see the sunlight and you don't know what's happening with your family, for five months to be in horrific conditions and hungry... They have to be taken out of there as quickly as possible. They have the horrible feeling of not knowing what their fate will be from one second to the next." Describing his 54 days of captivity, Itay said he had to come to terms with the fact that he might be killed. "We were very, very hungry. I didn't have a shower for 54 days. My captors were very, very vicious. They didn't care. I had wounds in my legs, big holes in my legs. "And you lived there in a horrific sense of fear. Every second that you live with this feeling is a terrible feeling, that you don't really know if you're going to wake up in the morning, or in a minute, if a missile is going to fall on you, if they're going to come in with a Kalashnikov and start spraying us with bullets. The conditions are very, very difficult there." More than 360 young partygoers were shot, beaten or burnt to death at the Nova festival and another 40 taken hostage The war began when Hamas gunmen attacked southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people and seizing 253 hostages. More than 31,200 people have been killed in Gaza since then, the Hamas-run health ministry says. During their early morning assault, Hamas attackers stormed the Nova music festival site near the Israel-Gaza perimeter fence. More than 360 young partygoers were shot, beaten or burnt to death. Another 40 were taken hostage, including Itay. He remembers hearing rockets and shooting as gunmen encircled the festival, followed by screaming. "We went in a vehicle trying to escape the place and after five minutes, we encountered a van of terrorists spraying all the vehicles with bullets without any mercy. I got shot in my leg. My sister also got shot in the leg," he said. "And the terrorists got out of the van. They pulled me out, they tied my hands, and simply started driving into Gaza." He said he thought he would be murdered when he was taken, with Hamas fighters making throat-slitting gestures at him. "I saw my sister Maya injured and crying. Maya also that day said goodbye to me and told me if I come out of this alive, tell our parents that she loves them. This is a day I will never forget for the rest of my life." Initially, he was taken to a house with a tunnel entrance inside and then, he believes, to a hospital. "We entered Gaza and the terrorists started shouting and screaming and celebrating. It was like a big party. They brought us into the house and in the middle of that house there was a shaft. They made us go down into it." He said he was taken to a hospital where a "very, very anxious" doctor and several Hamas fighters were present. The doctor took the bullet from his leg without any anaesthetic or painkillers, he said. "They put the forceps into my leg and they pulled out the bullet without anaesthetics. They told me to be quiet because if I wasn't quiet they'll kill me. In all that time there was more abuse, slaps to the face, spitting." Itay and Maya, both shot in the leg, underwent hospital treatment after their release He was separated from Maya, who was also given medical treatment. Her dangling foot was re-attached in surgery, but sideways, at an unnatural angle. But they still managed to communicate. Maya's request to see her brother was refused by her captors, but they passed on a note from her. Itay wrote back and they communicated in this way throughout their ordeal. Maya, who was unable to walk when she was released, is now undergoing extensive rehabilitation on her leg. Itay, who turned 19 last week, is happy to have his freedom but struggles when others like his friend Omer are still held hostage there. "Why is Omer still there and I'm here? Sometimes I feel bad about it. I would simply do anything to bring him back," he said. "I was there with him and I know exactly how he is feeling and I want to shout his cry on his behalf because he can't do it himself. He's helpless." The Freedom of Russia Legion says that Russian volunteer formations are fighting with Russia's regular army in five settlements in Belgorod Oblast. Source: Alexei Baranovsky who goes under the alias Liutyk on air during the national joint 24/7 newscast; Ukrinform Details: Liutyk said that the village of Tyotkino in Kursk Oblast is at the epicentre of all military operations and combat clashes occur in other settlements. Quote: "Now the situation of instability extends to neighbouring settlements, not only in Kursk Oblast but also in Belgorod Oblast. There are also more than three; rather, we can talk about five settlements where there are combat clashes between the volunteer army and Putin's troops This is all dedicated to the so-called elections. The electoral procedure that will begin tomorrow to usurp power by Vladimir Putin once again. We, as concerned citizens of Russia, have decided to express our political will and attitude towards these elections and the regime of Vladimir Putin. We have taken tools for voting (smiles - ed.), and all the surprises will start tomorrow because tomorrow is the election." Previously: Russian volunteer soldiers fighting on the Ukrainian side have announced strikes on Russian military positions in Belgorod and Kursk and called on local residents to evacuate. Background: On 12 March, soldiers of the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Sibir (Siberian) Battalion have reported that they have crossed the Russian border. The military volunteer groups have posted an address online, and a video has appeared on Telegram channels purporting to show military personnel firing their weapons on Russian territory. Military volunteers from the Freedom of Russia Legion claimed they had taken full control of the Russian town of Tyotkino in Kursk Oblast. The founder of the Russian Volunteer Corps (RVC) said that fighters of the RVC will make efforts to ensure that no sham elections of Russian president Vladimir Putin take place on the territories bordering Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! Cassie Reinecke of Hartwell drives a forklift on Feb. 20 during a Lift the Tristate workforce development class provided by the Freestore Foodbank nonprofit. Cassie Reinecke, 41, was choosing groceries at the Freestore Foodbank Liberty Street Market when she saw a "take-one" notice: "LIFT the Tristate," it read. It described a 10-week Freestore Foodbank program that gives people a chance to earn a living wage. Reinecke took the literature home, thinking her 21-year-old son might be interested. The Freestore Foodbank one of Ohio's largest food banks, and one that is struggling with a drop in donations also provides work training to people who are struggling financially. About 40% of the nonprofit's annual budget goes for support and "wrap-around" services for clients, said Kurt Reiber, president and CEO. And despite a $3.5 million deficit this fiscal year, he said, the board of directors is committed to keeping its programs going to help families recover from financial instability. Theyre just not making enough money to make ends meet," Reiber said. Lift the Tristate is a logistics, inventory management, facilities management and transportation education program. Freestore Foodbank staff and Gateway Community and Technical College provide the program. Students get hands-on training, working with experienced staff at the Freestore Foodbank and, upon graduation, links to Freestore partners that need workers. Reinecke's son found a job without that help so she enrolled. Her family is among countless impacted financially by the COVID-19 pandemic emergency and its repercussions. We were living in Norwood and our (rental) house sold out from under us. We were told to leave within 30 days," she said. A Cincinnati resident her entire life, she said, she, her husband and kids love the rental home they found in Hartwell, but it came with a higher rent, and that, plus the need to move quickly, set her and her husband back. Reinecke said the job opportunities provided through the Lift program will help her family stabilize and end her trips to the Freestore market for food. The average pay of graduates is $20 to $25 per hour, said Katie Young, Lift program manager. ChrisGlass practices using a cherry picker machine during a LIFT program class at the Freestore Foodbank in Cincinnati on Feb. 20. The current class of 21 students is set to graduate on March 14, and Reinecke's classmate, Christopher Glass, said he can't wait. Glass, 40, said he learned about the workforce training program while staying at a Cincinnati shelter for people experiencing homelessness. He moved to Cincinnati after the sawmill in Puryear, Tennessee, where hed worked for five years, shut down. His wife, Gina Glass, moved with their young daughter Helen to Lorain, Ohio, in July 2023, to live with and care for a grandmother. As Chris Glass sought work in Ohio, he landed in Cincinnati, where he figured a bigger city might mean a better chance at finding work. Katie Young, LIFT program manager, speaks with Delonya Beal and Christopher Glass during a program class. The Lift program is helping him get re-certified in operating a forklift, a certification he had that lapsed as he looked for work. Glass said the program will help him regain work and bring Gina and Helen, who turned 5 on Feb. 9, to Cincinnati, so they can again live together as a family. I miss my wife and my daughter, he said, tears spilling over. This is whats gonna get me back on track. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Freestore Foodbank workforce training leads to living wage for clients Members of the French National Assembly (the lower house of the parliament) voted on the evening of 12 March to approve Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's report on the strategy to support Ukraine and the bilateral security agreement. Source: European Pravda, citing the French newspaper Le Figaro A total of 372 members of the lower house of the French Parliament voted in favour of the bilateral agreement on security cooperation between France and Ukraine, while 99 voted against. The vote is not binding. Before the vote, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal spoke to the National Assembly and urged MPs to express support for the agreement and for Kyiv. "To vote against it is to give Vladimir Putin all the arguments and signals he is waiting for... To abstain is to shirk our responsibility to history," he stressed. During the debate, most MPs expressed support for Ukraine, though they were critical of certain remarks made by President Emmanuel Macron regarding the possible deployment of Western troops to Ukrainian territory. Background: French President Emmanuel Macron had instructed the government to make a statement to parliament on the bilateral security agreement signed with Ukraine on 16 February and the situation in Ukraine in general, followed by a debate and vote. Last week, he brought party leaders together for a discussion and said that he did not intend to set "any limits" or "any red lines" on Frances support for Ukraine. Support UP or become our patron! Francois Verove appeared on the game show Everyone Wants to Take Their Place in 2019 One of Frances most elusive serial killers appeared on a popular television game show during the 35-year police hunt for him, where he spoke about keeping people safe. Francois Verove, also known as the pockmarked killer because of his complexion, has been linked to nine murders, including minors, and 30 cases of rape and abuse. The married former officer of the cavalry regiment of the Republican Guard managed to evade capture for decades, even though he appeared in 2019 on the show Everyone Wants to Take Their Place on state channel France 2. You were a policeman, said presenter Nagui. Yes, on foot, on motorbike and horseback, the bespectacled and bearded killer responded with a smile. He said he operated in the Bois de Boulogne a park notorious for its prostitutes after dark where he kept walkers safe in the daytime. It has since emerged he was sacked in 1986 for a possible affair of vice in the Bois. In 2021, Verove died by suicide after receiving a police summons following the discovery of DNA that detectives believed may match his. His body was discovered in an Airbnb at Le Grau-du-Roi, in the Gard department, a few miles from his home in La Grande-Motte in southern France. On a desk was a letter in which he admitted to killing innocent people following a mad rage that had turned me into a criminal. He said he had managed to rid himself of his murderous impulses once and for all in 1997. Francois Verove on the set of Everyone Wants to Take Their Place where he was knocked out in the first round of the popular television game show His wife told investigators that she had never been aware of her husbands dual personality. She said he never gave the impression that he wanted to protect his identity. As proof, she told them he even took part in a game show, but was unable to provide an exact date. On Wednesday, Marianne, the weekly magazine, finally unearthed the show in which he appeared alongside five contestants. He was knocked out in the first round. Speaking to BFM TV, Denis Jacob, a former police colleague, said: I worked in close proximity with him. He was my former colleague. In the period I knew him he may well have killed someone, raped someone and we detected no signal. The man I knew appeared incapable of such atrocities, thats what is so chilling. Detectives from a new French cold case bureau surmised from witness accounts that the killer they were hunting was a former gendarme who was stationed in Paris in the 1980s. After they had pinpointed the same DNA profile from several crime scenes, Verove was among 750 gendarmes who were summoned as part of the investigation. A composite portrait released by French police of 'the pockmarked killer' - PHOTOPQR/LE PARISIEN After his suicide, forensic experts checked his DNA with the genetic profiles from the crime scenes and they matched. His DNA was found in a Paris cellar where 11-year-old Cecile Bloch was raped and killed in May 1986. Her body was found hidden under an old piece of carpet. Her brother saw the killer in the lift and gave a description, but he escaped detection for another 35 years. Police also matched his DNA to the murder of a couple in the Marais district of Paris in 1987 and Karine Leroi, 19, in Meaux, outside Paris, in 1994. His DNA was also recovered from the crime scene where five children were raped. Police are examining his potential link to nine murders and 30 rapes, which if proved would turn him into one of Frances worst serial killers. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. An elite French university was dragged into the national spotlight on Wednesday as its director quit over alleged domestic violence and a pro-Palestinian demonstration sparked accusations of anti-Semitism. Mathias Vicherat, director of the prestigious Sciences Po school in Paris, said he was stepping down after being ordered to stand trial in a domestic violence case. Students demanded his resignation after he and his partner Anissa Bonnefont were briefly detained in December, each accusing the other of domestic violence. Sciences Po, founded in 1872, is a hugely influential cornerstone of French elite education and a cradle of political power. Its alumni list features President Emmanuel Macron and several former French and foreign leaders, as well as top names in literature, media, culture and fashion. Vicherat, 45, said he was resigning to "protect" the school from any fallout from the domestic violence case. "What counts here is not me but the institution," he said. Accusations of violence against him had been made in a "vague manner", Vicherat said, and the legal system would "allow the facts to be established". The criminal case was brought by prosecutors, as neither Vicherat nor his former partner filed any legal complaint. - 'People would step down' - The Paris prosecutors' office confirmed that both had been served a summons on charges of reciprocal domestic violence "leading to an incapacity to work of more than eight days". The case will go to trial in the autumn, added a source close to the investigation who asked not to be named. Vicherat already stepped aside temporarily in January after a preliminary investigation was launched and students blockaded the school, protesting against what they said was "impunity" for people committing "sexual and sexist violence". Sciences Po students welcomed his decision to quit but regretted that the matter had dragged on for so long. Lachlan, an Australian exchange student who declined to give his last name, said: "If something like this happens in my country, people would step down quite quickly." A French student, who declined to give her name, said Sciences Po "should apply the values that they advertise". Sciences Po's reputation had already been tarnished when Vicherat's predecessor Frederic Mion was accused of covering up incest allegations against star political scientist Olivier Duhamel. After Mion resigned in 2021, Vicherat took over, saying the fight against sexual violence was an "absolute priority". Meanwhile, more controversy struck the Sciences Po campus after around 100 students occupying the main lecture hall as part of a pro-Palestinian demonstration on Tuesday were accused of barring entry to a Jewish student and insulting her. The student, a member of the Union of Jewish Students in France (UEJF) that claims a national membership of 15,000, was greeted with shouts of "Don't let her in, she's a Zionist", the union said on X. - 'Unspeakable and perfectly intolerable' - The incident sparked condemnation at the highest level of government, with Macron telling Wednesday's cabinet meeting that the remarks were "unspeakable and perfectly intolerable". Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and Higher Education Minister Sylvie Retailleau went to the Sciences Po Foundation's board to "underline the seriousness" of what happened and urged the university to remain a "place of teaching" and "healthy debates", its management said. The management added it was taking legal action over anti-Semitic acts and said it regretted a "hardening" of relations between students and the "embedding of an unacceptable poisonous climate". But students on the ground said the government should be more circumspect in its condemnation. "It's really sad that unverified information is taken directly to the French president," said one student who declined to be named. "We don't tolerate any form of anti-Semitism." Another student told AFP that the Jewish student had been denied access to the lecture hall because "she previously intimidated pro-Palestinian students" at the protest. The student had been the only representative of the Jewish student union to be barred from entering. "Other UEJF members were able to take part in the debates," said the student, who declined to give her name. France is home to the world's largest Jewish population after Israel and the United States, as well as Europe's biggest Muslim community. The country has seen a rise in pro-Palestinian protests since militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, sparking a retaliatory Israeli military campaign in the besieged Palestinian territory of Gaza. Anti-Semitic acts in France have also increased, according to the Council of Jewish Institutions in France. burs-ah/imm/js A Gastonia home health care agency agreed to pay $600,000 after the U.S. and N.C. governments accused the owner of submitting thousands of fake Medicare reimbursement claims. The U.S. Attorney for Western N.C. says the claims date from 2015 to 2020. Family First Home Health Care, Inc. and its owner Marion James were accused of billing Medicaid for services that never happened, like billing for in-home services while patients were in the hospital. James and the company are also accused of claiming James daughter was providing personal care under the company name, but she was actually hours away at college. Scammer tries to refinance house behind owners back, lawyer saves the day Attorneys for both the U.S. and N.C. governments stated that James tried billing Medicaid for personal care within the family and forging documents and signatures in these cases. These defendants stole hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars while never actually providing the care they claimed to, said North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein. My office will hold accountable those who defraud the Medicaid system and take away resources from people who need them. These claims were resolved by the settlement and are allegations. There has been no determination of liability. (WATCH: Granite Falls business owner pleads guilty to tax, credit card fraud) A woman in Gastonia was arrested and charged after insurance officials accused her of claiming to lose her jewelry for the insurance payout. Agents with the N.C. Department of Insurance claim Dawn Cullom, 47, submitted false statements to two insurance companies, claiming to have lost jewelry while surfing at Kure Beach in July. Photographs discovered by the agents show the jewelry was still in her possession, according to North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey. Woman accused of filing claim for crash she was never in Insurance fraud hits consumers in the wallet, Commissioner Causey said. Approximately 20 cents of every insurance premium dollar goes to covering the cost of fraud. She got $7,476 from the insurance companies and tried to submit the same loss claim with another agency in September. Gaston County officials issued a warrant for her arrest in January. (WATCH: Charlotte business owner indicted in $1.2M COVID loan fraud scheme) When a small group of pro-Palestinian protesters arrived to the Miami Beach Convention Center on Monday evening, hoping to hand out flyers to attendees of the Aspen Ideas climate conference, they were surprised to be met by police. They say officers told them that only conference attendees could enter the area around the Convention Center, with one exception: a barricaded free speech zone for protesters at the southwest corner of Pride Park. Members of the group, however, say the zone is too far away from the conference entrance for most attendees to see or hear them. We were surrounded by cops. The most people who wouldve seen us there would be the odd man out trying to get their car in the Meridian [Avenue] garage, said Glory Jones, a protester with Jewish Voice for Peace, referring to a nearby parking garage. By having borders to where we speak, youre essentially saying theres certain zones that free speech doesnt apply, that the Constitution doesnt apply. A security zone around the Convention Center campus was set up at some point Monday afternoon, hours after the conference began that morning. Similar security zones were not in place during the first two years of the conference in 2022 and 2023, except when Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at the conference last year and roads were closed off by the Secret Service. Miami Beach police set up the perimeter to provide security for high-level officials and other attendees, including federal cabinet level officials, a U.S. governor, foreign dignitaries, and over 50 United States mayors, police spokesperson Christopher Bess said in a statement Monday night. He did not respond to an inquiry about why a different approach was taken for this years conference. Speakers at this weeks event include U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Lauren Sanchez, vice chair of the Bezos Earth Fund. The conference runs through Wednesday. Only credentialed attendees can enter the security zone around the Convention Center campus, said Bess, except for those who wish to exercise their First Amendment right to protest, demonstrate, or leaflet. A demonstration zone has been created within Pride Park to provide a forum to exercise those rights, he said. Police said the pro-Palestinian protesters could stand in an area at the southwest end of Pride Park, which remained surrounded by barricades Tuesday. The group said it would have been too far away from the conference entrance at the Miami Beach Convention Center (left) for most attendees to see or hear them. Ashley Miznazi/amiznazi@miamiherald.com Bess added that demonstrators are also free to speak to and interact with all convention attendees at the entrance to the Security Zone, through which all credentialed attendees must pass. That is ultimately what approximately two dozen pro-Palestinian protesters decided to do Monday, standing in front of a parking garage on 17th Street near Convention Center Drive rather than utilizing the designated protest zone in Pride Park. This embedded content is not available in your region. On Tuesday morning, conference organizers sent attendees an update, telling them to enter from 17th Street due to road closures and to wear your badge at all times. Pro-Palestinian protesters moved to the sidewalk across from the 17th Street parking garage after being told by police they couldnt stand outside the Miami Beach Botantical Garden across from a climate conference at the Convention Center. Ashley Miznazi/amiznazi@miamiherald.com The U.S. Supreme Court has said that governments can limit the time, place and manner of speech if it serves a significant government interest and is content neutral and narrowly tailored. Thomas Julin, a First Amendment attorney with the Gunster law firm in Miami, said the constitutionality of free speech zones depends on the specific circumstances. Governments cant limit speech based on the type of message protesters are espousing, he said, and shouldnt interfere with their ability to communicate with people they are hoping to reach. Julin also said cutting off the ability to protest on public streets and sidewalks is typically difficult to defend. Concerns would arise if the restrictions are actually very content- or speaker-specific, and [police] are just doing things because the [city] officials disagree with the content of the speech, Julin said. Mayor wants to regulate protests Some of the citys elected officials, including Mayor Steven Meiner, previously raised concerns about a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Convention Center during Art Basel in December. Days after the Dec. 8 protest, Meiner sponsored an item on the City Commission agenda in which he pointed out that protesters were chanting the controversial phrase, From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. The mayors item called for the city to set parameters for reasonable time, place and manner restrictions for protests, including discussion of incitement to violence vs. free speech. At a virtual meeting with residents in January, Meiner said he was upset that the protest was allowed to take place directly outside the Convention Center entrance. A group of artists unfurled a banner that read, Let Palestine Live, and about 100 people rallied while waving Palestinian flags and holding signs to call for a permanent ceasefire in the ongoing war in Gaza. During that event, Miami Beach police tried to keep protesters away from Convention Center doors. Police arrested two protesters and charged one with resisting without violence and the other with resisting without violence and disorderly conduct. READ MORE: Artists and activists stage pro-Palestinian protest in front of Art Basel Miami Beach Miami Beach police try to keep pro-Palestinian protesters away from the Miami Beach Convention Center doors at a protest during Art Basel on Dec. 8, 2023. Alexia Fodere/for The Miami Herald Meiner never called the December item for discussion by city commissioners. But he is now sponsoring a resolution on the agenda for Wednesdays City Commission meeting that calls for the city to create time, place and manner restrictions in order to regulate and control future protests and demonstrations to the fullest extent permitted by law. The resolution does not refer to pro-Palestinian protests or any specific types of demonstrations. The mayors resolution also calls for police to inform him and city commissioners of all protests planned in the city within one hour of police learning a protest is expected to occur. In December, Commissioner David Suarez raised concerns that police didnt tell elected officials about the pro-Palestinian protest outside Art Basel until the day before it was set to take place. Suarez emailed City Manager Alina Hudak to say that the failure to provide us with this information when it first came to the administrations attention is very disappointing. Miami Beach police did not immediately respond to an inquiry about whether the demonstration zone at the Aspen conference was implemented in response to concerns from elected officials. Meiner and his chief of staff, Veronica Coley, did not respond to requests for comment. Miami Herald staff writer Alex Harris contributed to this report. Ashley Miznazi is a climate change reporter for the Miami Herald funded by the Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Family Foundation in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. UNRWA said up to 60 people were believed to have been working at its Rafah distribution centre when it was hit The UN agency for Palestinian refugees says a member of staff was killed and 22 others were injured when Israeli forces hit a food distribution centre in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said attacks on its facilities had "become commonplace in blatant disregard to international humanitarian law". The Hamas-run health ministry said an Israeli air strike killed five people. The Israeli military said it killed a Hamas commander in a "precise strike". It identified him as Mohammed Abu Hasna and alleged that he had been a "combat support operative" in Hamas's military wing in the Rafah area. A man with that name was on a list of five fatalities given by health officials. Rafah is crammed with an estimated 1.5 million Palestinians who are seeking shelter from Israel's ground offensive elsewhere in Gaza. The UN's secretary general has warned that a threatened Israeli assault on the city could "plummet the people of Gaza into an even deeper circle of hell". The war in Gaza began when Hamas gunmen attacked southern Israel on 7 October, killing about 1,200 people and taking 253 others as hostages. More than 31,200 people have been killed in Gaza in the military campaign that Israel launched in response, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Wednesday's strike reportedly hit the eastern side of the UNRWA food distribution centre, which is in the eastern part of Rafah. UNRWA spokeswoman Juliette Touma told the BBC that up to 60 people were believed to have been working at the facility, which also served as a warehouse for food and other critical supplies. "We know that it is the Israeli forces who were responsible. Our teams were on site and they reported back the casualties," she said. Pictures of the aftermath showed a pool of blood in a courtyard outside a blue-and-white painted warehouse, and another pool just inside the doorway of the building, next to boxes of aid. A 15-year-old boy and four men aged between 27 and 50, one of them called Mohamed Abu Hasna, were reported killed. People were also filmed at a local hospital next to the bodies of five people, one of whom was a man wearing a blue UN tabard. "It's a UNRWA centre, expected to be secure," UNRWA staff member Sami Abu Salim told the AFP news agency as he surveyed the damage. "Some came to work to distribute aid to the people in need of food during the [Islamic] holy month of Ramadan. Suddenly, they were struck by two missiles." An estimated 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering in Rafah with scarce access to safe drinking water or food On Wednesday evening, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) put out a statement saying its aircraft had "precisely targeted and eliminated a terrorist in Hamas's Operations Unit in the area of Rafah, Mohammed Abu Hasna", without mentioning the UNRWA facility. "He was also involved in taking control of humanitarian aid and distributing it to Hamas terrorists," it added. "Furthermore, [Abu] Hasna co-ordinated the activities of various Hamas units, as well as communicated with and activated Hamas field operatives. [Abu] Hasna was also responsible for an intelligence operations room which provides information on IDF positions for use in Hamas attacks." Mr Lazzarini said: "Today's attack on one of the very few remaining UNRWA distribution centres in the Gaza Strip comes as food supplies are running out, hunger is widespread and, in some areas, turning into famine." "Every day, we share the co-ordinates of all our facilities across the Gaza Strip with parties to the conflict. The Israeli army received the co-ordinates including of this facility yesterday." UNRWA says at least 165 of its 13,000 employees in Gaza have been killed and more than 150 of its facilities have been hit since the start of the war. More than 400 people have also been killed while seeking shelter under the UN flag, according to the agency. Israel has accused UNRWA of supporting Hamas, which is proscribed as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the UK, US and other countries. The agency has denied this, but in January it sacked nine of the 12 employees accused in an Israeli document of playing a part in the 7 October attacks. The UN has yet to publish the results of an internal investigation launched as the US and other donors paused funding in response to the allegations. Case is being levelled against Lloyds of London and Bermuda-based Arch group of insurers Nord Stream AG is seeking more than EUR 400 million ($436m) from its insurers for refusing to cover explosions in 2022 which ruptured pipelines designed to transport Russian gas to Germany, Financial Times reported on March 12. Londons High Court documents show the Switzerland-based company brought a lawsuit last month claiming that insurers failed to pay for damage done by underwater explosions that mangled and deformed the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. Read also: Nearly simultaneous leaks in Nord Stream undersea gas pipelines could be sabotage Nord Streams preliminary and high-level estimate of the costs to remove water from the pipelines and stabilize them, undertake a repair and replace lost gas is between 1.2bn ($1.31bn) and 1.35bn ($1.47), according to the legal documents. The case is being levelled against Lloyds of London among insurers that provided the so-called primary policies, which take the first losses from any event. The second defendant is a group of insurers led by an arm of Bermuda-based Arch, which provided the so-called excess cover. Such policies typically kick in after the primary policies have paid out. Nord Stream is arguing the explosions were a separate occurrence for the purposes of both sets of policies. The claim of 400m is split evenly between the primary and excess groups. The company also claimed for about 3.7m ($4.1m) for a damage survey, plus other costs. The cause of the explosions, which took place in international waters in September 2022, has not been determined. Read also: Russia was initially suspected of sabotage but has denied responsibility. Ukraine also denied involvement after media reports in the US and Germany suggested pro-Ukrainian operatives may have been behind the attacks. Both Denmark and Sweden have dropped their investigations, saying they did not have enough evidence to charge anybody, leaving only Germany at present conducting a probe. On the night of Sept. 26, 2022, three of the four Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines were destroyed by explosions at the bottom of the Baltic Sea in neutral waters. Read also: Second line of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline probably destroyed by explosions, Germany says Neither of the gas pipelines were in operation at the time they were filled with pressurized methane. Supplies in Nord Stream 1 were halted by Russia after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Nord Stream 2 never came into operation after Germany cancelled its approval process. Poland and Ukraine accused Russia of the bombings, while the Kremlin regime, in turn, denied any involvement and blamed the Anglo-Saxons (probably referring to the United States and the UK, and possibly Australia and other English-speaking nations as well). In November 2022, the Swedish security service confirmed that explosive remnants were found near the pipelines. The Swedish prosecutors office believes that the investigation into the explosions could end in the fall. Earlier, U.S. newspaper the New York Times reported, citing U.S. officials who had reviewed early U.S. intelligence and spoke on condition of anonymity, that a pro-Ukrainian group may be behind the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines. Read also: German journalists investigate new Ukrainian connections to Nord Stream explosions The German media, citing sources, claimed that the yacht used by the group of alleged bombers belonged to Ukrainian citizens. The news outlets also reported that one of the men who rented the yacht lived in Ukraine. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the head of the Presidents Office, said that Ukraine had nothing to do with the destruction of the gas pipelines. Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said it was a rather strange story that has nothing to do with us. I am the president and I give the appropriate orders, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in June, also denying that Ukraine was involved in the incident. Ukraine has never done anything like this. I would never do that, Zelenskyy said. Were bringing the voice of Ukraine to the world. Support us with a one-time donation, or become a Patron! Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine In this article, we discuss the 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee. If you want to skip our detailed analysis on the coffee market, go directly to 5 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee. In the ever-expanding realm of the global coffee market, where the intoxicating aroma of freshly brewed beans captivates the senses, the demand for diverse and exceptional coffee experiences continues to soar. The global coffee beans market reached an impressive $35.23 billion in 2023, poised for a robust 6.10% growth rate until 2032, culminating in a staggering $60.07 billion. The US coffee market mirrors this upward trajectory, with a forecasted value of $33.64 billion by 2029, expanding at a commendable 3.69% pace. Arabica, with its premium allure and dominance in the coffee bean segment with a 70% market share, has become the discerning choice for both large consumers and coffee shops alike. Meanwhile, robusta, constituting 25% of global demand, is prized for its high caffeine content and robust flavour profile, making it less sour and significantly stronger than its counterparts. In the dynamic tapestry of the Global Coffee Market, instant coffee emerges as the reigning monarch. Designed for convenience, instant coffee caters to the on-the-go lifestyle, providing an easy and quick solution without compromising on taste. The unwavering passion for coffee among Americans is at an all-time high, with three-quarters of the population indulging in the daily ritual. Ground coffee and specialty blends have also carved out a significant market share, reflecting the discerning tastes of consumers who seek a more hands-on and customized approach to their coffee experience. In this dynamic coffee landscape, where innovation and variety are key, we delve into the realm of alternatives to Starbucks, exploring 15 exceptional coffee options that cater to the diverse tastes and preferences of the discerning coffee connoisseur. Join us in this article about 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee as we unravel the nuances of each alternative, celebrating the vibrant and ever-evolving world of coffee. In the vast and aromatic world of coffee, it's worthwhile to pause and recognize the prominent players that have secured their positions such as The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQGS:KHC), Nestle S.A. (Other OTC:NSRGY), and McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) at the zenith of the industry before delving into an exploration of the 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee. Story continues The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQGS:KHC) In July 2023, Maxwell House, a brand under The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQGS:KHC), entered the arena with a groundbreaking move the introduction of their instant iced lattes with foam. Marking their significant foray into the market after nearly a decade, the brand aimed to captivate a younger demographic while engaging in a fierce competition with industry giants such as Starbucks and Dunkin'. During the year 2023, Maxwell House witnessed a notable 0.6% increase in net sales, reaching a substantial $26.6 billion, while their net income soared remarkably by 20.2% to an impressive $2.8 billion. These numbers underscore Maxwell House's triumphant trajectory, affirming that they are indeed concocting a recipe for substantial success in the ever-evolving coffee market. Nestle S.A. (Other OTC:NSRGY) In 2023, Nestle S.A. (Other OTC:NSRGY), a key player in the coffee industry, marked a commendable year with robust performance metrics. The company showcased impressive organic growth and pricing, standing at 7.2% and 7.5%, respectively. Despite a slight dip in real internal growth at -0.3%, Nestle distributed its success across various segments. Sales reached $105.61 billion, slightly lower than the previous year's $107.2 billion, attributed to a 7.8% impact from foreign exchange and a 0.9% decrease from net divestituresa testament to their resilience amid external challenges. McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) McCafe, a subsidiary of McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) established in 1993 in Melbourne, Australia, offers a diverse range of upscale espresso-based beverages globally. Despite McDonald's operating 40,275 stores worldwide in 2023, the majority do not feature a McCafe. However, reports suggest that McCafe is on track to reach 4,500 stores worldwide. With over $1.4 billion in sales in 2023, McCafe ranks among the top three coffee sellers for the year. In the same period, McDonald's reported revenue of $25.49 billion, marking a 9.97% year-over-year growth. For the quarter ending December 31, 2023, the revenue stood at $6.41 billion, representing an 8.09% year-over-year growth. 15 Best Alternatives to Starbucks Coffee A closeup of a customer tasting a freshly-made cold brew coffee product from the company's shop. Methodology In our quest to discover the 15 best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee, we scoured diverse sources including Product Hunt, The Street, CBS News, The Guardian, and Business Strategy Hub. Our meticulous search aimed to unearth hidden gems in the coffee world. After penning down a list of alternatives, we selected alternatives that stood out based on their ratings and the number of reviews they've garnered on various sources such as Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Amazon. We also made sure to include alternatives for all Starbucks products. Be it ready to consume coffee, instant coffee mixes, coffee pods, ground coffee or whole coffee beans, you will surely find a replacement for it. Presenting to you, a curated list that goes beyond the ubiquitous Starbucks experience, showcasing unique and exceptional coffee options that have captured the admiration of discerning customers; join us as we explore 15 best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee, each promising a distinctive and satisfying coffee journey. By the way, Insider Monkey is an investing website that tracks the movements of corporate insiders and hedge funds. By using a similar consensus approach, we identify the best stock picks of more than 900 hedge funds investing in US stocks. The top 10 consensus stock picks of hedge funds outperformed the S&P 500 Index by more than 140 percentage points over the last 10 years (see the details here). Whether you are a beginner investor or professional one looking for the best stocks to buy, you can benefit from the wisdom of hedge funds and corporate insiders. 15. Dutch Bros. Coffee Rating: 4.5 Number of Ratings: 98 Dutch Bros Coffee's ranks number nine on our list of 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee and its journey is nothing short of remarkable, evolving from a modest pushcart on railroad tracks to a formidable coffee empire. Renowned for its indulgent brews, this coffee establishment is a compelling choice for aficionados. Among the standout offerings are the esteemed white mocha cold brew and the beloved Golden Eagle breve, both earning fervent admiration from Dutch Bros patrons. The brand's narrative is not merely a tale; it's a testament to the evolution of a coffee powerhouse that has captured the hearts of discerning coffee enthusiasts. 14. Caribou Coffee Rating: 4.5 Number of Ratings: 122 Caribou Coffee stands as a beacon of excellence in the world of handcrafted, high-quality coffee-centric beverages, epitomizing their philosophy with the slogan "Life is short. Stay awake for it." Their diverse menu caters to all tastes, offering classic and signature coffee drinks, teas, cocoas, and a delectable selection of all-day breakfast items like sandwiches, bagels, and baked goods. Committed to sustainability, Caribou has achieved significant milestones, boasting 100% Rainforest Alliance certification and exclusively serving 100% Clean Label beverages. Furthermore, the company prioritizes ethical sourcing, obtaining primary eggs from cage-free suppliers for their breakfast offerings. While international franchising has been a continuous endeavour, Caribou Coffee officially launched its domestic franchising program in 2021. As of 2023, the brand proudly boasts over 750 locations globally, including 339 company-owned, 144 non-traditional, and 288 franchised coffeehouses spread across 11 countries. 13. Dunn Brothers Coffee Rating: 4.3 Number of Ratings: 224 Dunn Brothers Coffee distinguishes itself by prioritizing the daily small-batch roasting of coffee in-store, ensuring a superior, freshly brewed experience. Only roasters who have successfully completed the Dunn Brothers Coffee Certified Roaster Program are entrusted with this meticulous process. Beyond an extensive array of coffee beverages, most locations boast all-day breakfast options, featuring build-your-own sandwiches and hearty oatmeal. Established in the Twin Cities in 1987 by Ed and Dan Dunn, Dunn Brothers Coffee ventured into franchising in 1994. Though the number of locations has experienced fluctuations over the years, the chain operated with 68 outlets in 2020, including five company-owned establishments, all strategically situated within the United States. 12. Peets Coffee Rating: 4.3 Number of Ratings: 237 Peet's Coffee has been a key player in shaping the coffee industry since the 1960s. Alfred Peet's cafe in Berkeley became a standard-bearer for coffee quality in the United States, leaving an indelible mark on the industry. The Major Dickason blend, in particular, has earned a devoted global following for its rich, complex, and full-bodied profile. A favourite among Peet's customers, this iconic blend is readily accessible at their nationwide coffee bars or through online purchases, ensuring coffee enthusiasts can savour its distinctive qualities wherever they may be. 11. Dunkin Rating: 4.4 Number of Ratings: 174 Once recognized as Dunkin' Donuts, Dunkin' has undergone a transformative rebranding, shifting its focus to coffee and sandwiches, steering away from its initial image. Famed for the slogan "America Runs on Dunkin'," this global coffee industry heavyweight operates under Dunkin' Brands, which also owns Baskin-Robbins. Originating as Open Kettle in the mid-1940s, the brand transitioned to Dunkin' Donuts in 1950 and has evolved significantly since. Expanding its offerings to include espresso machines and cold-brew on tap, Dunkin' boasts a global presence with 3,713 franchised outlets across nearly 40 countries, marking a shift from its peak of 12,957 locations in 2020. 10. Barretts Coffee Rating: 4.4 Number of Ratings: 192 Barrett's Coffee Roaster is the epitome of good vibes and fantastic coffee, injecting over two decades of Austin cool into each sip. With their roots deeply embedded in the local coffee scene, they're not just serving coffee; they're crafting an experience. Specializing in dynamic single origins, their in-store lineup keeps things exciting, while the online world beckons with a full spectrum of irresistible blends. Whether you're there for work or chill time, Barrett's is your go-to spot, boasting the smoothest brew in town and a staff that brings the sunshine with every order. Fresh, vibrant, and dedicated to global bean excellence, Barrett's roasting lets each coffee's natural flavours shine. 9. The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf Rating: 4.5 Number of Ratings: 171 Dedicated to the principles of ethical sourcing, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf goes beyond just crafting beverages; it's committed to impacting lives from seed to cup. By establishing direct partnerships with coffee and tea growers, the company ensures fair practices and supports initiatives like the Caring Cup program. This program extends its influence to uplift local school children in the US, foster employee development, and improve the well-being of producers. In 2019, the chain underwent a significant development when it was acquired by Jollibee Foods Corp., the Philippines' largest restaurant company, for a substantial $350 million. Founded by Herb Hyman in 1963, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf has flourished into a global presence with over 1,000 locations across dozens of US states, the District of Columbia, and 40 other countries worldwide. 8. Coffee Beanery Rating: 4.2 Number of Ratings: 435 Starting our list of 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee with Coffee Beanery. Pioneering the specialty coffee movement in the 1970s, Coffee Beanery emerged as a trailblazer with a distinctive concept that was groundbreaking for its time. Beyond an extensive selection of coffee and tea offerings, the menu at Coffee Beanery extends to include an array of smoothies, along with breakfast sandwiches, toasted signature sandwiches, paninis, and specialty wraps. Established in 1976 by JoAnne and Julius Shaw in Dearborn, Michigan, Coffee Beanery expanded its influence by venturing into franchising in 1985. With a robust presence, the franchise boasts over 200 locations across the country, showcasing its enduring commitment to providing a diverse and satisfying coffee experience. 7. Andersons Coffee Rating: 4.7 Number of Ratings: 174 Anderson's Coffee, the heartbeat of Austin's coffee culture since Jamie Anderson's inception in '72, has become an indispensable part of the city's caffeinated landscape. Renowned for crafting top-notch, hand-crafted brews that epitomize quality and freshness, this iconic establishment offers a unique experience where excellence meets affordability. Surprisingly, for just a dollar, you can savour a remarkable cup of their meticulously prepared coffee. The pound packs they offer are more than just a steal; they house blends that stand unrivalled in Austin's coffee scene. With fans singing praises nationwide, Anderson's Coffee promises a delightful experience. Venture into their Austin store, and you might encounter Jamie Anderson himself, embodying the brand's hands-on dedication to every aspect of the coffee journey. 6. Proud Marys Rating: 4.5 Number of Ratings: 258 Sixth on our list of 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee is Proud Marys Coffee. Proud Mary understands that exceptional coffee and delectable food form a heavenly duo. Their commitment to excellence extends to serving mouthwatering breakfasts, lunches, teas, smoothies, and pastries crafted from ethically sourced and fresh ingredients. Infusing Melbourne's coffee culture with Austin's eclectic tastes, Proud Mary strikes a perfect balance between sophistication and vibrancy in their creations. The passionate team at Proud Mary delves into a realm of top-quality products, people, and processes, creating a harmonious experience for patrons. Click to continue reading and find out about 5 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee. Suggested Articles: Disclosure: None. 15 Best alternatives to Starbucks Coffee is originally published on Insider Monkey. ASHEVILLE - General Electric Aerospace announced a $11.3 million investment in its Asheville location on March 11, where the company will bring new high-precision machines used to produce critical components in military and commercial aircraft engine parts. Investment in the Asheville location is part of a $650 million investment in GE locations across the country. The company announced a $46 million total investment in North Carolina locations, with facilities in Durham, Wilmington and West Jefferson also receiving investment monies. GE employees, dignitaries, politicians and more mingle at the grand opening outside GE Aviation's new plant in South Asheville, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2014. The new plant is the only facility in the U.S. that will be mass-producing jet-engine components using a ceramic matrix composite invented by GE Aviation researchers. 10/15/14 The Asheville factory produces various widebody and narrowbody engines used in Boeing, Airbus, Bombardier or Embraer aircraft, GE Aerospace spokesperson Matthew Lehner told the Citizen Times. The facility also produces various components that go into U.S. Fighter Jets and U.S. military rotorcraft. Additional facility investments include heating and cooling upgrades for the building, Lehner said. "These investments in Asheville come at a great moment as GE Aerospace becomes an independent company, ensuring we have a strong future and can increase the production of cutting-edge parts that provide our engines with greater capabilities," said site leader for GE Aerospace Asheville Stephen French in the news release. GE Aviation employee Loong Yap works at the company's facility in Asheville, which makes jet engine parts. GE Aviation in Asheville has more than 450 employees, and its employee base here has grown by around 200 employees over the last 10 years. The company has hired 30 more workers in the last six months. The company also announced an investment of $100 million to international facilities and another $100 million to be provided to supplier partners across the United States, according to the news release. The Asheville GE Aviation plant opened in 2014, changing its name to GE Aerospace after General Electric officially spun off three companies: General Electric Healthcare, General Electric Aerospace and General Electric Vernova. As GE Aerospace prepares to become a standalone company this spring, we are making significant investments in the future of flight and in the dozens of communities and supplier partners helping us build it,said H. Lawrence Culp, Jr., Chairman and CEO of GE and CEO of GE Aerospace in the news release. These investments are part of the next chapter for GE Aerospace, supporting cutting-edge equipment and safety enhancements that will help us meet our customers growing needs. More: Downtown Asheville 6-story hotel OK'd; Nearby investment group preserves historic churches Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: General Electric invests $11.3 million in Asheville engine facility SPOTTED: A Georgetown crowd toasting the release of a new book that details the most important neighborhood in America. Revelers feted Beth Solomon Tuesday at the launch party of her book, Georgetown Dish: Dishy Dollops from the Worlds Most Important Neighborhood, a collection of favorite tidbits and stories from the society reporting-heavy website of the same name that she created in 2009. Georgetown is so interesting its kind of our Hollywood on the Potomac. You have this mix of famous people around. You might be in a dry cleaner and you notice a senator standing behind you in line, or youre having a glass of wine at Cafe Milano and the king of Jordan strolls in. Its that kind of place, Solomon told ITK at the soiree hosted by Didi Cutler, Kate Lehrer and Colleen Nunn. The party was held at the Georgetown home of Lehrer, a writer and wife of the late journalist Jim Lehrer. Some of Solomons most treasured political moments from over the years included a visit by then-President Obama to the now-defunct Rays Hell Burger in 2010 with then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and former President George W. Bush stopping by the historic Martins Tavern, which marked its 90th anniversary last year. Georgetown is a place where people of all different ideas, all different kinds of extreme views of the world, they can sit down and have a drink together and dish together, said Solomon, a radio reporter-turned-speechwriter for former Sen. Sam Nunn (D-Ga.). So this slice of life in Georgetown you see people mingling, you see famous people, and ordinary people, and journalists and politicians they somehow all kind of mix and mingle in a very interesting melting pot, Solomon, 58, said of the famed Washington neighborhood. And I think we need more of that. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The judge overseeing an election interference case against Donald Trump in Georgia has thrown out some criminal charges, but left most in place. Judge Scott McAfee found six counts in the 41-count indictment against Mr Trump and some of his co-defendants, including Rudy Giuliani, lacked detail. But he said the charges can be refiled at a later date. Mr Trump was among 19 people charged with a conspiracy to overturn the state's 2020 election results. "The lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigned's opinion, fatal," Judge McAfee wrote in his order on Wednesday. He said the charges do not provide the accused with enough information to prepare their legal defences "intelligently", adding that "this does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed". Mr McAfee was randomly assigned the Trump case in 2023, just six months after being appointed as a judge by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, a Republican. He previously worked as a prosecutor, including for the Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, a Democrat who led the investigation into the former president. Mr McAfee's ruling affects three of the 13 charges against Mr Trump. They relate to a call Mr Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which he told him: "All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have." One of the charges accused the former president of soliciting public officials to break the law by violating their oath of office. But Mr McAfee said the indictment was not specific enough about exactly what Mr Trump wanted the officials to do. The other dismissed charges apply to some of his most prominent co-defendants: Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman and Mark Meadows. In his order, Judge McAfee said the charges "contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited". It comes as a win for Mr Trump and his co-defendants, who had filed to dismiss the charge. Prosecutors could now choose to refile the charges with more information in their allegation, or let the ruling stand and focus on the other charges. The group had initially faced 41 total charges. The former president is facing up to 20 years in prison in Georgia if convicted of the most severe charge of racketeering. In a statement, Mr Trump's lawyer in the Georgia case, Steve Sadow, called the ruling "a correct application of the law, as the prosecution failed to make specific allegations of any alleged wrongdoing on those counts". "The entire prosecution of President Trump is political, constitutes election interference, and should be dismissed." Mr Trump, who is running for president against Joe Biden in November, has slammed the case as politically motivated. The Georgia ruling does not address the defence's effort to dismiss Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over ethics claims that she had an improper relationship with a lawyer she hired to work on the case. Mr McAfee is expected to rule on the the ethics complaint soon. If he finds that his former boss should be removed from the case, a trial could be delayed for months. Mr Trump is the defendant in four criminal cases as well as several civil lawsuits. On Tuesday, the judge in his defamation lawsuit brought by writer E Jean Carroll accepted a $92m (72m) bond from Mr Trump while the former president appeals against the verdict. A jury in January found Mr Trump owed the former columnist millions of dollars for defamation when he denied he sexually assaulted her. If he loses his appeal, the bond ensures Ms Carroll will be paid. He has also been ordered to pay over $450m to the state of New York after he was found to have committed fraud by lying to banks about the value of his properties. The judge overseeing Donald Trumps Georgia election subversion case on Wednesday dismissed six counts in the indictment, including three against the former president, but said prosecutors can seek to bring the charges again. Judge Scott McAfee wrote in an order that he is dismissing six counts charging Trump and several co-defendants with soliciting public officials to break the law because they contain all the essential elements of the crimes" but "fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission." "They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways, McAfee wrote. The ruling affects three of the 13 felony counts Trump faces but not the central charge of a racketeering conspiracy intended to overturn the 2020 election. The other dropped charges applied to former chief of staff Mark Meadows, former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Jan. 6 architect John Eastman and two Trump campaign lawyers. Georgia State University Law Prof. Anthony Michael Kreis told The New York Times that the ruling does not weaken the racketeering charge that remains central to the case and that prosecutors could reintroduce versions of the dismissed charges to a grand jury with more specifics. I think it is a minor hiccup for the DA and less so signs of a fatal flaw, Kreis told The Guardian. It was never particularly clear what constitutional theory undergirded the oath of office charges. I suspect the DAs office will button up their theory and go back to the grand jury. Still, if prosecutors seek a superseding indictment it will make it difficult to try the case before the election, warned Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University. This does not disable the case, but it adds yet another set back for the prosecution as it awaits the disqualification decision, he tweeted. The ruling came as McAfee is expected to rule on a motion from several defense lawyers in the case seeking to disqualify District Attorney Fani Willis over an alleged improper relationship with a special prosecutor she picked to lead the case. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. CNN legal analyst Norm Eisen suggested that McAfees ruling on Wednesday is somewhat of an indication that the judge wont disqualify Willis. If he were gonna disqualify Willis, he likely would not have bothered to wrap up this very detailed order, since hes busy and disqualification will effectively freeze the case for a while, Eisen wrote on X/Twitter, noting that McAfee is also giving something to Trump which allows him to balance things a bit if he rules for Willis on DQ. But that is only a mild indication, not a strong one. He could be thinking something different. That being said, it tends to reinforce my strong view of the applicable law and the evidence that disqualification does not apply, Eisen added, noting it is not a strong indicator but a possible hint. I think Norm may be right here, Kreis tweeted in response to Eisens theory. Georgia judge expected to rule on Fani Willis disqualification: What we know A Georgia judge is expected to decide this week whether to boot Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) and her office from former President Trumps election interference case because of her romance with a subordinate. Judge Scott McAfee has said Williss relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade could result in their disqualification if evidence shows an actual conflict of interest or the appearance of one. Any decision the judge makes could have resounding implications for the historic prosecution, from sharpening already intense scrutiny of Willis to catapulting the case into uncertainty. Heres what we know ahead of the judges ruling. How did we get here? Fani Willis, Fulton County District Attorney, at the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, US, on Friday, March 1, 2024. The judge overseeing Fulton Countys prosecution of Donald Trump and others over his alleged effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election is holding the hearing as he considers whether he should disqualify Fani Willis over claims she gained a financial and personal benefit from her romantic relationship with the lead prosecutor, Nathan Wade. Photographer: Alex Slitz/AP/Bloomberg via Getty Images Trumps Georgia election interference case went on a weeks-long detour after a January motion filed by defendant Michael Roman, a Trump 2020 campaign operative, accused Willis of benefiting financially from her romance with Wade through lavish vacations they took together. Both prosecutors were called to the witness stand to defend their integrity in fiery hearings where, at times, the drama rivaled any legal soap opera. They confirmed their relationship but said it began in early 2022 after Wade had been hired to prosecute Trump. What happens if Willis is disqualified? Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis looks on during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, March, 1, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Alex Slitz, Pool) If Willis is disqualified, Trumps case would be handed over to a state entity called the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia. The agency would appoint another Georgia district attorneys office to take up the prosecution, even though the case would still have a Fulton County judge and jury. If he removes her, thats not going to kill the case, but its going to make the case far more difficult, said Darryl Cohen, a former Fulton County assistant district attorney. Because that will mean, in all likelihood, that the Fulton County DAs office will not prosecute it, and that leaves only a few other district attorneys in Georgia who are capable of handling it. Cohen said that only a few counties in Georgia have the manpower to take on such a case and even then, some of their district attorneys may not want to take it up. The councils executive director, Pete Skandalakis, previously said he would consider how far from Fulton County the new prosecutor would be, indicating a nearby county might be tasked with the massive prosecution if Willis and her office are removed from it. The new prosecutors could handle the case at their discretion, meaning they could alter charges or even drop it altogether. How long would it take to reassign the case? FILE Burt Jones, then a candidate for Georgia lieutenant governor, participates in a Republican primary debate, Tuesday, May 3, 2022, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, Pool, File) Theres no timetable dictating by when the council must appoint a new prosecuting office, which could cause delays. In July 2022, Willis and her office were disqualified from prosecuting Georgia Lt. Gov. Burt Jones after the district attorney headlined a fundraiser for one of his political opponents. The council still has not reassigned the case, a year and a half later. Any delay could be exacerbated by an appeal of McAfees decision by the district attorneys office. Skandalakis told NBC News that he would hold off on choosing a new prosecutor until after the appeal was resolved. What happens if Willis is not disqualified? Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis gestures while testifying as Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee presides during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer/Pool Photo via AP) If McAfee rules that Willis can continue prosecuting the case, he could grant the defense a certificate to appeal immediately or make them wait for a post-trial conviction to appeal, according to Anthony Michael Kreis, a law professor at Georgia State University who has closely followed the case. The defense could then request discretionary review by the appellate court though grants of such appeals are rare, said Melissa Redmon, director of the University of Georgias Prosecutorial Justice Program. If they do choose to apply for a review of the matter, defense attorneys would have 10 days after McAfees order to do so, she said. But a decision not to disqualify Willis would hardly let her off the hook, Cohen said. If you think that shes been under a microscope now it wont matter what she does; shes going to be wrong, he said. If she turns left, she should have turned right. If she turns right, she should have turned left. How will Judge McAfee make his decision? Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee speaks in court, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, in Atlanta. Terrence Bradley, Wades former law partner and onetime divorce attorney, testified as a judge considered an effort by lawyers for former President Donald Trump to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with Wade, a top prosecutor who had been Bradleys law partner. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, Pool) McAfees decision on whether to disqualify Willis could hinge on how he weighs the evidence. Fulton County prosecutors want the judge to consider whether an actual conflict of interest arose from Willis and Wades relationship, while defense attorneys say the appearance of a conflict is enough to kick them off the case. The entire outcome is pretty much contingent on what standard of disqualification he applies, Kreis said. [The defense] has come up quite short of proving or demonstrating that Fani Willis received a considerable kickback, or anything of that nature, from the prosecution, so if the standard is an actual conflict, I think they have a pretty uphill battle, he continued. But if the standard is an appearance of a conflict or an appearance of impropriety I think its possible that the defense has muddied things up enough. Top Stories from The Hill During the states closing arguments earlier this month, McAfee pushed back on prosecutors contention that an actual conflict must be proven, citing several cases that he said seem to exclusively rely on the appearance of impropriety. The exchange could indicate the judge is looking at a broader method to examine the evidence. Could there be other penalties? ATLANTA, GA FEBRUARY 15: Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade testifies during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on February 15, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. Judge Scott McAfee is hearing testimony as to whether DA Fanni Willis and Wade should be disqualified from the case for allegedly lying about a personal relationship. (Photo by Alyssa Pointer-Pool/Getty Images) Even if Willis and her office are not disqualified from the case, they and other witnesses who testified during the hearings could still face other penalties. For example, while Willis and Wade maintained that their relationship began after Wades hiring, two defense witnesses testified that they started seeing each other romantically years before then. If new evidence surfaces to support the defense testimony, Willis and Wade could face disciplinary action from the State Bar of Georgia or, a criminal perjury inquiry, though Cohen said thats unlikely. However, the testimony of one defense witness was also drawn into question. Terrence Bradley, Wades ex-law partner, claimed the prosecutors began dating before Wades hire, but on the witness stand, he called his remarks speculation. His testimony could easily spark an inquiry from the state bar or a criminal inquiry, Cohen said. Will it delay Trumps trial? File Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at a Super Tuesday election night party Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) A trial date has not yet been set in Trumps Georgia case, though prosecutors proposed an Aug. 5 start. Either outcome could tie up the case in appeals, but the former presidents other legal matters might already make delay inevitable. Trumps federal election interference case in Washington, D.C., is on pause as he appeals the issue of presidential immunity, and delays in his Florida federal case appear imminent which could push back the start of a Georgia trial. I think the August trial date was ambitious, Redmon said, citing numerous unresolved motions that could still be appealed once ruled on by McAfee. I would be surprised if the case went to trial before the election. How will it affect key players reelection campaigns? Fulton County Superior Judge Scott McAfee presides in court, Friday, March, 1, 2024, in Atlanta. The hearing is to determine whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be removed from the case because of a relationship with Nathan Wade, special prosecutor she hired in the election interference case against former President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Alex Slitz, Pool) In the weeks since the Willis-Wade romance saga began, both McAfee and Willis have been challenged in their upcoming reelection contests. Any decision the judge makes or fate the district attorney faces could serve as fodder for their opponents, raising the possibility that either of them could be taken out of office before Trump heads to trial. In an interview with local radio station WSB Atlanta, McAfee said his campaign will have no bearing on his ruling. Ive had a rough draft and an outline before I ever heard a rumor that someone wanted to run for this position, so the result is not going to change because of politics, McAfee said. I am calling it as best I can in the law, as I understand it. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Donald Trump and his 17 co-defendants woke up to some good news regarding their Georgia election interference case on Wednesday: Judge Scott McAfee threw out some of the charges. McAfee decided that six of the charges against Trump and some of his co-defendants lacked too much detail to be brought to trial. That includes charges related to Trump and Mark Meadowss alleged pressure campaign on state officials, like Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and thenGeorgia House Speaker David Ralston, to unlawfully appoint alternative presidential electors. Trump will now face 10 felony charges in Georgia, instead of the original 13. The Courts concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendantsin fact it has alleged an abundance. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigneds opinion, fatal, McAfee wrote in Wednesdays order. As written, these six counts contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited, McAfee continued. They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways. In other words, a naked charge of solicitation cannot survive unless accompanied by additional elements establishing the solicited felony, he added. Still, the Georgia Superior Court judge did leave most of the case intact, noting that the entirety of the indictment is not dismissed. He also wrote that several of the overt acts related to racketeering charges that Trump had attempted to dismiss will in fact remain. Meanwhile, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Williss future on the case remains murky. McAfee has said he will rule on her alleged ethics violations pertaining to her relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, and potential disqualification from the case, by the end of the week. In this article, we will discuss the 15 biggest skincare companies in the US. You can skip our detailed analysis of the global skincare market, the growing organic skincare industry, and skincare companies are evolving rapidly, go directly to the 5 Biggest Skincare Companies in the US. Beyond aesthetics, skincare is a type of self-care that may boost confidence and attitude. From cleaning and moisturizing to protecting and renewing, it encompasses processes and products devoted to promoting and improving skin health. Through a perfect fusion of science and beauty, skincare products enable people to embrace their inherent radiance and make progress toward having skin that is youthful and beautiful. Global Skincare Market: Grand View Research estimates that the size of the global market for skincare products was $135.83 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.7% between 2023 and 2030. It is anticipated that the global market for face creams, body lotions, and sunscreens will boost growth. Additionally, significant market expansion is anticipated as a result of the booming e-commerce sector. The COVID-19 epidemic had a serious effect on the cosmetics and beauty industry. Store closures were the result of strict lockdown procedures, which had detrimental implications. Between March and April 2020, global sales decreased by 6070%. As customers reduced their spending on cosmetics and grooming products, companies responded positively by increasing manufacturing and offering hand sanitizers and cleaning agents. In the US, people's desire for individualized products has been growing. Asia-Pacific was the most prosperous region globally in 2022, with a revenue share of 39.65%. North America's CAGR is predicted to be 4.4% between 2023 and 2030. Consumers in North American countries such as the US and Canada are willing to pay extra for skin that appears more youthful and vibrant. Face creams and moisturizers had the largest revenue share (42.11%) in 2022, and it is expected that this trend will be steady for the duration of the forecast. Story continues The Growing Organic Skincare Industry: As more individuals seek natural and eco-friendly substitutes for traditional cosmetics, organic skincare products are becoming increasingly popular. The size of the global market for organic skin care was valued at $9.83 billion in 2021, and it is projected to increase at a CAGR of 8.9% between 2022 and 2030, as per Grand View Research. Throughout the projected time frame, the demand for organic skin care products is anticipated to be driven by consumers' growing preference for chemical-free beauty products as well as the expanding ideas of creams, serums, and moisturizers infused with organic ingredients. Customers are anticipated to use these products more frequently since they are considered to be more efficient and have fewer negative effects on the skin. To satisfy the rising demand for organic skincare products, skincare companies are concentrating on product breakthroughs, new product launches, and portfolio expansion. For instance, in June 2022, the Australian natural skincare company Biologi introduced the first anti-pollution serum ever made with strawberry gum leaf extract. A major participant in the skincare industry, Loreal, acquired the California-based American skincare brand Youth to the People for an undisclosed amount in December 2022. The acquisition was made to produce vegan skin care products that are mindful of our health. Businesses are switching to skincare products without parabens. Renee Cosmetics introduced its premium facial oils in January 2021. This product is FDA-approved and makes claims that it is organic, cruelty-free, and paraben-free. Skincare Companies are Evolving Rapidly: In response to the increasing consumer desire for sustainable, natural, and organic products, the skincare sector is changing quickly. To meet the evolving needs and tastes of their customers, businesses are putting a greater emphasis on sustainability, innovation, and transparency. The organic skincare market has been significantly impacted by e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF)'s recent $355 million acquisition of Naturium. With this calculated decision, e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) is better positioned to develop its market share in the skincare industry and meet the growing demand for high-quality, natural skincare products. With the acquisition of Naturium, E.l.f. Beauty aims to increase its retail skincare sales share to roughly 18%, giving it a stronger position in the market. In 2023, e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) earned $578.84 million in revenue annually. Naturium's emphasis on reasonably priced and efficient skincare aligns with the goals and principles of E.l.f. Beauty, which makes it a perfect partner for the skincare industry's expansion and growth. Since Naturium is only available in the United States through Target and Amazon in addition to its direct-to-consumer website, E.l.f. Beauty also intends to increase its partnerships with retailers. e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) CEO Tarang Amin stated in a conference: In terms of our plans, Id say first, near term its to really maximize where Naturium already is, Tarang said. Certainly given the momentum that Naturium has, there are going to be other distribution opportunities for Naturium that well look into. Were not ready to talk about those yet but obviously, you can see the track record weve had on E.l.f. and our ability to get E.l.f. broadly distributed. ... We feel there are opportunities not only in the U.S. but also internationally. Naturium is a skincare brand dedicated to providing environmentally friendly, clinically effective skincare products for all skin types. The brand highlights how effective and powerful actives and organic ingredients can be in helping consumers attain a healthy complexion. The cruelty-free, paraben-free, vegan, gluten-free, and dermatologist-tested nature of Naturium's products demonstrates their dedication to skin compatibility and clean beauty. The beauty industry has been significantly influenced by Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) recent purchases in the skincare sector. Farmacy Beauty, a 'farm-to-face' company acclaimed for its cruelty-free and sustainable procedures, was purchased by Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) in 2021. Through this acquisition, Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) has been able to increase its market share in the skincare sector and provide customers with more options that support ethical beauty practices. In 2023, Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) had an astonishing annual revenue of $82 billion. Furthermore, Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) acquired Tula Skincare in 2022, a company that makes probiotic skincare products. Tula Skincare was co-founded by Dr. Roshini Raj, Ken Landis, and Dan Reich, and its revenues surpassed $150 million in the United States in 2021. Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)'s acquisition of Tula Skincare enhances its standing in the premium beauty industry and gives it access to the expanding market for probiotic skincare products. With that said, here are the 15 biggest skincare companies in the US. 15 Biggest Skincare Companies in the US vgstudio/Shutterstock.com Methodology: We have picked the 15 biggest skincare companies in the US based on their annual revenue figures for 2023. For private companies on our list, we estimated their revenues by comparing them with public companies of the same size and in the same industry. It is pertinent to note that we have taken into account conglomerates although they are not pure-play companies and dont make the bulk of their revenue from skincare, still have a significant impact on this industry. By the way, Insider Monkey is an investing website that tracks the movements of corporate insiders and hedge funds. By using a similar consensus approach, we identify the best stock picks of more than 900 hedge funds investing in US stocks. The top 10 consensus stock picks of hedge funds outperformed the S&P 500 Index by more than 140 percentage points over the last 10 years (see the details here). Whether you are a beginner investor or a professional one looking for the best stocks to buy, you can benefit from the wisdom of hedge funds and corporate insiders. 15. Sunday Riley 2023 Revenue: ~$26 million Sunday Riley is one of the top skincare lines in America, which provides focused treatments and advanced products for both instant and long-term benefits. The company's line of expensive and high-quality skincare products goes beyond conventional beauty regimens. Some of its best-selling products include Good Genes Glycolic Acid Treatment, C.E.O. Glow Vitamin C + Turmeric Face Oil, A+ High-Dose Retinoid Serum, and U.F.O. Ultra-Clarifying Face Oil. Founded in 2009, Sunday Riley Modern Skincare is a well-known brand in the beauty business, supporting sustainability and human rights. 14. Mario Badescu 2023 Revenue: ~$30 million Mario Badescu Skin Care, Inc. has been a New York-based skin care product manufacturer since 1967. To help customers treat skin conditions as well as enhance the quality of their skin, this company provides customized skin care products. Products including face creams, body lotions, body washes, acne treatment kits, facial cleansers, and more are accessible from Mario Badescu. The Acne Facial Cleanser, A.H.A. Botanical Body Soap, A.H.A. Body Lotion, and A.H.A. & Ceramide Moisturizer are a few of its most popular items. It is among the 15 largest skincare companies in the US. 13. Glossier 2023 Revenue: ~$275 million The prominent private beauty brand Glossier is recognized for its skincare, fragrance, and makeup products. It sells a wide range of products, including cleansers, serums, blushes, lipsticks, lip balms, and more. Glossier is committed to producing user-friendly, premium skincare products that accentuate inherent beauty. Their items are available straight from their website or at stores like Sephora. Hence, Glossier is one of the largest skincare brands in the US. 12. The Honest Company, Inc. 2023 Revenue: $344.36 million One of the 15 biggest skin care companies in the US by revenue and digital-first consumer goods companies The Honest Company, Inc. was created by actress Jessica Alba, Christopher Gavigan, and Brian Lee. It is headquartered in Los Angeles. The Honest Company, Inc. makes items for homes and babies that are practical, economical, and environmentally friendly. Skincare products such as the 3-in-1 Detox Mud Mask, Vitamin C Serum, and Prime + Perfect Mask are a hit. Numerous The Honest Company, Inc. products come in carefully curated kits, like the skin-improving brightening kit and the acne-fighting complexion goals set. 11. e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) 2023 Revenue: $578.84 million e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) is an American multi-brand beauty company that was founded in June 2004. e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) sells cruelty-free, vegan, clean, inclusive, and accessible skincare and makeup products. It has a skincare range that includes products like serums, moisturizers, and face masks. Some of the brands owned by e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) are Keys Soulcare, e.l.f. Cosmetics, e.l.f. SKIN, and Well People. 10. NU Skin Enterprises 2023 Revenue: ~$1.97 billion Nu Skin's US headquarters are located in Provo, Utah. Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. is a company that combines wellness and beauty. Its US headquarters are located in Provo, Utah. This company produces and provides an extensive variety of wellness and skincare products in about 50 global markets. The company carries three brands, which are ageLOC, an anti-aging line; Pharmanex, a health brand; and Nu Skin, a beauty brand. 9. Revlon 2023 Revenue: ~ $2 billion Revlon, Inc. is a private global American firm that sells skin care products, makeup, fragrances, and personal hygiene items. On March 1, 1932, Revlon opened its headquarters in New York City, where it is still located today. Charles Lachman, a chemist, and his brother Joseph Revson invented Revlon. Elizabeth Arden, Almay, Cutex, and SinfulColors are a few skincare brands connected to Revlon. It is one of the top cosmetic brands in the world. 8. Mary Kay Inc. 2023 Revenue: ~ $2.5 billion Mary Kay Inc., is a privately owned multi-level marketing business based in Texas. According to Euromonitor International, Mary Kay Inc., the well-known beauty brand and multinational entrepreneurship firm, is the top direct-selling brand of color cosmetics and skincare products worldwide. A natural skincare brand with certification, Mary Kay Naturally specializes in mild formulas for delicate skin types, containing ingredients like vitamin E, sweet almond oil, olive oil, and cornflower floral water. Throughout the world, millions of independent beauty consultants sell Mary Kay products in almost 40 nations. Hence, this company is expanding significantly and reaching more than 20 new international markets to become one of the most famous cosmetics brands on the globe. 7. Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) 2023 Revenue: $5.55 billion Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) is one of the top-notch multinational beauty companies with French and American roots that produces and distributes skincare, color cosmetics, and beauty items. Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) is divided into three business segments: skin and body care, color cosmetics, and fragrances. The names that fall in the fragrances category include fashion designer labels, lifestyle brands, and brands connected to celebrities like Kylie Jenner. Products for coloring the lips, eyes, nails, and face are available under the Color Cosmetics section. Among the skin and body care brands are TJoy, Adidas, Lancaster, Philosophy, and Orveda. 6. Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) 2023 Revenue: $7.56 billion One of the biggest skincare companies in the United States, Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) was established in 1990 and offers an array of products, such as candles, hand sanitizers, liquid hand soaps, body creams, lotions, and diffusers for the house. Tropidelic, Waikiki Beach Coconut, and Pink Pineapple Sunrise are among the newest offerings. The secret to Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)s success is its ability to creatively reimagine a single fragrance in a variety of ways to draw in more consumers. It was a smart move for Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) to formally split from Victoria's Secret in 2021 and launch as a standalone brand. In 2022, overall revenue climbed from $6.43 billion to $7.9 billion, a 22% increase from 2021. Even though the pandemic had an impact on the company's overall growth, it nevertheless managed to flourish through digital platforms and develop the buy-online-pick-up-in-store model, or BOPIS, which bolstered the company's online visibility and grew its customer base. Click to continue reading and see the 5 Biggest Skincare Companies in the US. Suggested Articles: Disclosure: None. 15 Biggest Skincare Companies in the US is originally published on Insider Monkey. Boris Pistorius, German Minister of Defense, arrives at Stockholm International Airport at the start of his multi-day trip to Scandinavia. Pistorius has given the green light for the German air force to drop urgently needed aid supplies over the Gaza Strip. According to the German Press Agency, the SPD politician signed a corresponding order to the German Armed Forces on Wednesday. Kay Nietfeld/dpa German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has given the go-ahead for the country's air force to drop urgently needed supplies over the Gaza Strip, joining several other countries that have airdropped aid on the besieged Palestinian territory. Pistorius signed a corresponding order on Wednesday to Germany's armed forces, the Bundeswehr, dpa has learned. "The people in Gaza lack the most basic necessities. We want to do our part to ensure that they have access to food and medicine," said Pistorius. The Bundeswehr will provide two C-130 Hercules transport aircraft, each of which can transport up to 18 tons of cargo, the minister said. According to the Bundeswehr, the mission will be carried out by German aircraft from a joint Franco-German air transport squadrom based in Evreux, France. "The truth is that the drop is not without danger. The crews assigned to this task are trained and highly experienced for the operation involved." Germany's air force chief, Lieutenant General Ingo Gerhartz, has meanwhile issued a special permit authorizing the airdrop. Wednesday's order sees Germany joining an initiative launched by Jordan to supply Gazans with aid from the air. Other countries, including the United States and France, have joined the operation. The first of the German aircraft took off from Evreux on Wednesday for the Gaza aid mission. After a stopover in Toulouse, it was initially destined for Jordan, where the aid supplies were to be loaded. According to aid organizations, the situation of the people in Gaza, a narrow and densely populated coastal strip, is becoming increasingly desperate. The United Nations has warned that a hunger crisis and starvation loom if aid deliveries by lorry are not expanded. Israel has strictly limited land deliveries of aid to the Gaza Strip, home to around 2.2 million people, during a months-long Israeli military campaign of airstrikes and ground attacks. Israel launched its war and largely blockaded access to Gaza after the Palestinian militant group Hamas led unprecedented attacks on Israel on October 7 that included brutal massacres of civilians. According to the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in Gaza, more than 31,100 people have been killed on the Palestinian side since the start of the war. Efforts are also under way to deliver aid supplies to Gaza by sea. On Tuesday, the aid group Open Arms set sail from the Cypriot port of Larnaca towards the Gaza Strip with a converted tugboat pulling a platform loaded with around 200 tons of drinking water, medicine and food. The ship's journey could take up to 60 hours as the ship is moving slowly. However, according to a UN spokesman, sea transportation of relief supplies to the Gaza Strip does not make up for the lack of urgently needed lorry deliveries, especially at border crossings into northern Gaza from Israel. On Tuesday evening, it was announced that an aid convoy carrying food had reached the north of the Gaza Strip via a new Israeli military road. According to the Israeli military, the convoy was a pilot project aimed at preventing aid from falling into the hands of Hamas. Humanitarian aid being airdropped from a a Jordanian military aircraft over the Gaza Strip. -/petra/dpa COLOGNE, Germany German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is reiterating his opposition to supplying Kyiv with German Taurus cruise missiles, arguing the long-range weapons would require a level of tactical assistance from Berlin that contravenes NATO nations mantra of containing the war in Ukraine. Speaking at a March 13 parliamentary question-and-answer session, Scholz stuck to his long-held talking points for Taurus, a bunker-busting, terrain-hugging missile with a range of 500 kilometers that can fly below the radar of air defenses. He argued the complex sequence of identifying targets and programming the weapon to strike them, theoretically as far away as Moscow, should remain in Bundeswehr hands. Scholzs remarks drew a sharp rebuke from opposition lawmakers of the Christian Democratic Union, who accused him of mistrusting Ukraine and disregarding the possibility local forces could eventually use the weapon entirely without German assistance. Ukrainian officials have said there are no plans to hit targets in Moscow. Instead, they want Taurus missiles for striking Russian ammunition depots behind the front line and for attacking resupply routes, like the Kerch Bridge, that fuel Moscows assault. The chancellors remarks in Berlin came after Russian state media publicized an intercepted conversation in which four German air force officials discussed options for minimizing the German governments fingerprints if the weapons were to be given to Ukraine. While experts here have hotly debated the details of the call, including whether German involvement in using the weapons could be avoided altogether, the conversation suggested it would be tricky for German officials to donate Taurus with no strings attached. Germany ranks as Europes biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine. By the governments own accounting, roughly 28 billion worth of equipment has already been provided or is earmarked over the next few years. Opposition says it will only fly the drones outside the voting areas Ghana's electoral body has rejected a plan by the main opposition party to use drones during the upcoming polls. The National Democratic Congress (NDC) says the use of drones will be aimed at preventing potential irregularities in December's general election. But the electoral commission said such a move would contravene security protocols and jeopardise the confidentiality of the voting process. Ghana has a history of closely fought but peaceful elections. December will see a new president elected as Nana Akufo-Addo is stepping down after completing his second term in office. The presidential election is expected to be a two-horse race between current Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia, of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), and the NDC's John Mahama, who has already served as president between 2012 and 2017. He was also the losing candidate in the 2020 election. Mr Mahama has alleged that plans to rig the vote in favour of the NPP are already in place. But both the Electoral Commission and the governing NPP have denied the allegation. On Monday, a senior NDC official revealed plans to deploy drones in the region around the capital, Accra, in an effort to enhance election monitoring. Emmanuel Nii Ashie Moore said the plan was part of the strategy to secure over two million votes for the party in the region, which they believe will be crucial in determining the outcome of the poll. "Next week, we are going to train constituency executives on how to use drones to monitor what happens during the elections," Mr Moore was quoted as saying. He did not give further details about the planned deployment of drones but stressed the party's commitment to securing all necessary resources for a smooth electoral process. However, the country's director of electoral services Serebour Quaicoe opposed the move, saying it might compromise voters' electoral privacy and security. Mr Quaicoe said the commission was yet to receive an official request from the party regarding the deployment of drones. "They have to apply but it will be very difficult for the Electoral Commission or the police to approve people to be using drones at polling stations," he said. "Polling stations are security zones and we want to ensure the secrecy of the ballot." But Mustapha Gbande, the NDC deputy general secretary, said the party would strictly observe all the laid-down electoral rules by flying the drones outside the voting areas. Mr Mahama, who is determined to make a comeback after the 2020 defeat, has urged opposition members to be vigilant throughout the electoral process. The opposition candidate has maintained Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, a former education minister, as his running mate. The NDC and the NPP have dominated Ghanaian politics since 1992, and the upcoming presidential vote is expected to be keenly contested. More stories from Ghana: Lawyers for Ghislaine Maxwell asked a New York federal appeals court Tuesday to toss her conviction for aiding Jeffrey Epsteins sexual exploitation of teenage girls contending she was protected by a 2007 sweetheart deal between the deceased financier and the feds. Arguing before the 2nd Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan, the former British socialites appellate lawyer, Diana Fabi Samson, said a section in Epsteins nonprosecution deal with the Southern District of Florida covering potential co-conspirators should have prohibited the feds from charging Maxwell 13 years after it was penned. Denying the viability of this agreement strikes a dagger in the heart of the trust between the government and its citizens regarding plea agreements, Samson argued. Arguing for the government, Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Rohrbach said the deal which saw Epstein dodge meaningful responsibility a decade before his 2019 arrest and suicide didnt stop New York prosecutors from bringing charges. The central promise in the nonprosecution agreement is a promise by the Southern District of Florida not to prosecute Epstein in that district, Rohrbach said. It is not clear which potential co-conspirators were named in the document. Judge Raymond Lohier asked Rohrbach whether he knew of any similar deal binding every federal prosecutors office in the country. Rohrbach said he didnt and described any reference to United States in Epsteins deal as generic. It says nothing about the national scope, Rohrbach said. Evidence at the Manhattan Federal Court trial revealed how the multilingual, Oxford-educated daughter of a publishing baron who introduced Epstein to the likes of her old school pal Prince Andrew acted as the Brooklyn-born multimillionaire predators lady of the house for at least a decade beginning in 1994, procuring disadvantaged teens and young women for him to abuse around-the-clock under the guise of receiving massages, with Maxwell participating in some of the sessions. Annie Farmer, one of the Epstein victims who testified at Maxwells trial, released a statement on the effort to overturn the conviction. It took far too many years for the Epstein survivors to get some small piece of deserved justice with Ghislaine Maxwells conviction and prison sentencing, Farmer said Nothing in Maxwells appellate argument today changes the fact that she does not get a free pass and her conviction should be upheld. Survivors deserve nothing less. Maxwells summer 2020 arrest came about a year after Epstein killed himself at lower Manhattans now-shuttered Metropolitan Correctional Center while awaiting trial. Maxwell has long claimed prosecutors scapegoated her with egg on their faces after losing a high-profile inmate. Epsteins second arrest on sex-trafficking charges carrying the potential for decades in prison came after a bombshell report by the Miami Herald accused him of abusing dozens of young girls in plain sight at his properties worldwide for decades, including at his Palm Beach, Fla., mansion, private Caribbean Island and Upper East Side townhouse, where he hosted some of the worlds most famous names. The highly unusual nonprosecution agreement afforded him by former Southern District of Florida U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta allowed him to plead guilty in a state court in 2008 to soliciting a 14-year-old for sex and to leave jail for work during his 13-month sentence. Police records unsealed in a related lawsuit in January detailed how Palm Beach police had identified up to 33 girls recruited for Epsteins abuse around the time Acosta offered him the deal. The appeals court panel did not indicate when it would rule. _____ Giant redwoods - the world's largest trees - are flourishing in the UK and now even outnumber those found in their native range in California. The giants were first brought to the UK about 160 years ago, and a new study suggests they are growing at a similar rate to their US counterparts. An estimated 500,000 trees are in the UK compared to 80,000 in California. However they aren't yet as tall. In California they can reach 90m-high, but in the UK the tallest is 54.87m. But that's because the introduced trees are still very young. Giant redwoods can live for more than 2,000 years, so there's still plenty of time for the UK's trees to catch up "Half a million trees is quite a lot to go under the radar until now, but it's when you start looking for them in the landscape, and compiling these datasets, that you realise how many there are," said Dr Phil Wilkes, one of the authors of the study, from Kew's botanic garden at Wakehurst in Sussex. Giant redwoods (Sequoiadendron giganteum) were first brought to the UK by the Victorians. They were the ultimate botanical status symbol, typically planted in the grand estates of the wealthy. Today, some form sweeping avenues while others stand in ones or twos. But they're easy to spot: their dense, cone-shaped crowns stand proud of everything around them. To assess how these towering giants are adapting to their UK home, scientists selected a sample of nearly 5,000 trees to study at Wakehurst, Benmore Botanic Garden in Argyllshire, Scotland and Havering Country Park in Essex. They used laser scanners to measure the heights and volumes of some of the trees - it's also a way to weigh the trees without cutting them down. The researchers found that the trees were growing about as fast as the giant redwoods in their native home in the mountains of Sierra Nevada. The UK climate seems to suit them, says Dr Wilkes. "Where they grow in California, it's cooler and moister than you would typically envisage California to be," he explained. "And we have a reasonably similar climate here - it's very wet and they need the moisture to grow." The scientists also looked at how much carbon dioxide the trees were absorbing - trees soak up and store the greenhouse gas and planting more trees can play a role in helping to tackle climate change. The researchers found that because of their sheer size, giant redwoods can lock up large amounts of carbon dioxide in their wood - although not as much as their US counterparts. The trees at Wakehurst, which are about 45m tall, have about 10 to 15 tonnes of carbon stored in them, Dr Wilkes explained. "But compare this to the largest tree in California, which has about 250 tonnes of carbon stored in it, and they're quite small. But you know, these could get as big." The scientists involved in the research are quick to point out that planting forests of giant redwoods would not be enough to significantly reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. But these majestic giants can play a part in a mixed forest plantation with a variety of other trees, both native and imported. The trees in California's ancient forests are under threat from climate change In California, the natural wonders are under threat from climate change - they're not faring well with hotter and drier weather and more intense wildfires. So could the UK become their new home? In an avenue of trees originally planted as a grand entrance to a now demolished mansion in Havering Country Park, Prof Mat Disney, from University College London, says he thinks it's more than possible. "In terms of climate, it's probably the case that they're going to have a less pressured existence here than they do in California," he said. Although he pointed out that conditions are also changing in the UK with climate change. Giant redwoods are being planted as saplings all over the country, often by local authorities in public parks or recreation grounds. Prof Disney says they have a long life ahead of them - and they won't stay small for long. "They're very fast growing, and they grow large. Once they reach about 60m, they will be the tallest trees in Britain, and then they will keep on growing," he said. However, while the trees are doing well in the UK, there's little chance of them taking over our native forests any time soon - they're not reproducing here as they need very specific conditions to take seed. The study is published in the Royal Society journal Open Science. Follow Rebecca on X, formerly known as Twitter. Moenchengladbach's Jordan Beyer in action during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Hertha BSC and Borussia Moenchengladbach at the Olympiastadion. Andreas Gora/dpa Borussia Monchengladbach forward Jordan was racially abused on social media after Tuesday's German Cup quarter-final defeat to third division Saarbrucken, the Bundesliga side said on Wednesday. "Disappointment and criticism are understandable reactions to losing a game. Hate, insults and racism are not and never will be," a statement said. United States forward Jordan is on loan from Union Berlin. On Monday, the 36 clubs in the top two German tiers announced a campaign for this weekend's matchday entitled: "Together! Stop hate. Be a team." The campaign will coincide with the International Weeks against Racism from March 11 to 24. Ukraines Ministry of Defence has said that the figure of 400,000 to 500,000 mobilised people needed in the battlefield is a rough estimate which is adjusted depending on the situation in the combat zone and cannot be achieved right away. Source: the full text of a comment that the Defence Ministry gave to the Financial Times Quote: "The Defence Ministrys recruitment campaign, which has just started and so far covers a limited range of military specialisms, has demonstrated that there is no general lack of understanding. The Ministry has received over 90,000 applications for almost 8,000 vacancies. Concerning the number of mobilised people, it must be stated right away that for security reasons we cannot disclose the exact number of people needed by the Defence Forces. 400,000-500,000 is a rough estimate depending on the situation in the combat zone and cannot be achieved right away." Details: The Defence Ministry says the process of strengthening the armed forces is ongoing, and it is also essential in order to relieve those soldiers who have been defending Ukraine since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion. The Defence Ministry also commented on calls to send police officers and members of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) to the combat zone. It explained that the SSU has both its own combat units, which engage in combat action directly on the contact line, and units that plan and carry out operations to strike the Russians in the rear. The SSU also works to combat espionage. Quote: "In general, calls to send police officers and members of the Security Service of Ukraine are, sadly, only made speculatively in order to spread the opinion that defending Ukraine is not the obligation of all its citizens, but only the task of particular groups of society." Support UP or become our patron! DANVILLE, Va. (WFXR) Gods Pit Crew is sending additional relief to the Texas Panhandle as the state continues to battle the deadly Smokehouse Creek Wildfire. After sending relief to Amarillo during the first week of March, Gods Pit Crew will be sending a second semi-load containing bottled water, Gatorade, and additional relief supplies. Blessing buckets, containing non-perishable food, water, hygiene products, first-aid kits, Bibles, and handwritten notes of encouragement will also be sent. All items are being sent to the First Southern Baptist Church in Fritch, Texas (FSBC) and will be distributed by officials in the area. RELATED STORY: Gods Pit Crew sending relief supplies to Texas Pandhandle We continue to pray for everyone who has been affected by the horrifying scene out in Texas, remarked Randy Johnson, Gods Pit Crew President. We hope our efforts and materials not only help the victims as they move to recover but also the first responders and all those who are working hard to contain this situation.? Also, volunteers from Gods Pit Crews Immediate Disaster Response team will be leaving Danville with equipment to the Panhandle on Wednesday, March 13. This team will help to clear debris and demolish any structures impacted by wildfire. Crews plan to stay in the area until Sunday, March 24. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. Wolves have been reintroduced in a number of European countries but protests have led to their protected status being relaxed - bjmc/E+ Footage of dozens of deer stopping traffic in Lincolnshire has prompted calls for the return of wolves to the UK. Ben Goldsmith, a former adviser to the environment department, said the return of native lynx and wolves would be the ideal solution to reducing the problems. He was responding to a video of deer crossing the A15 bringing a line of traffic to a halt, which was posted on social media this week. Of course, we can accommodate wolves, even in East Anglia perhaps especially in East Anglia, where crops badly need protection from hungry deer, he said. Wolves were once common in Britain, but were hunted into extinction by the end of the 18th century. Natural predators of deer, they will also kill livestock such as sheep. Meanwhile, the UK deer population has soared to an estimated 2m, and is now believed to be the highest in 1,000 years. Without any natural predators, the deer can cause devastation to crops, as well as damaging woodland and newly-planted trees. Although farmers acknowledge the harm from deer, they have pushed back on proposals to reintroduce the wolf. Ben Goldsmith calls for wolves to be reintroduced into the wild in England - John Lawrence We couldnt entertain the idea on any level of reintroducing wolves, Minette Batters, the former head of the National Farmers Union, told the BBC on Wednesday. I think that would be a danger to the public, a danger to pets, and its proven to take out livestock. Wolf numbers have been steadily recovering in several European countries, including Germany, France and Italy, thanks to conservation efforts, and now number around 17,000. But their presence has been controversial, with farmers complaining about the impact on their livestock, with tens of thousands of sheep killed. Killed by wolf Last year, the EU said it would weaken protections on the species after Dolly, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyens favourite horse, was killed by a wolf. Mr Goldsmith, who was an adviser to the environment department between 2018 and 2022 and is the brother of Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative peer, said the problems were surmountable. He told the BBC he did not want to minimise the idea that this will be difficult. But he said: Having large animals in the landscape is a nuisance, but all wildlife was a nuisance. If we had somehow eradicated foxes, would we get permission to reintroduce them today? I suspect we wouldnt. Campaigners have been more focused on pushing for the return of lynx, with specific proposals for projects in Scotland and Northumberland in recent years. The reintroduction of wolves has also been proposed, as part of a latent government strategy to support the reintroduction of lost species. Last year, the environment department said species reintroduction was not a government priority. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. (Bloomberg) -- Sign up for the India Edition newsletter by Menaka Doshi an insider's guide to the emerging economic powerhouse, and the billionaires and businesses behind its rise, delivered weekly. Most Read from Bloomberg Alphabet Inc.s Google is curbing its generative artificial intelligence chatbot, Gemini, from responding to queries directly related to Indian general elections starting next month, conforming with similar controls in the US and other countries holding elections. We have begun to roll out restrictions on the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses, Google said in a blog post on Tuesday. We take our responsibility for providing high-quality information for these types of queries seriously and are continuously working to improve our protections. At the same time, the company is collaborating with the Election Commission of India to enable people to easily discover critical voting information on Google Search, such as how to register and vote in both English and Hindi languages. The Indian government has voiced concerns over misinformation and conspiracies about elections being released via AI tools and has thus taken measures to regulate them. Last week, the country told technology firms to get approval before releasing any AI tools. The action comes as elections are scheduled to be held in over 60 countries around the world this year including the US, UK and South Africa. --With assistance from Saritha Rai. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Less than three months into 2024, the usual suspects are lifting the stock market higher. The so-called "Magnificent Seven" (Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms, and Tesla) remain some of the hottest stocks on Wall Street. But investors want to know which of these stocks, if any, remain screaming buys. Here are the two that I believe still have plenty of gas left in the tank. Image source: Getty Images. 1. Amazon Topping my list is Amazon. Shares of the e-commerce leader are up 88% over the last 12 months, helping founder Jeff Bezos climb back atop the list of richest Americans. But what puts Amazon at the top of my list isn't its recent performance -- it's the company's long-term prospects. As the world's top cloud services provider, Amazon Web Services (AWS) stands to reap enormous benefits from the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution. That's because developers will look to AWS for support, guidance, and infrastructure to scale their AI-powered applications. Simply put, hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta Platforms own a significant portion of data centers globally, with some estimates putting the figure at 40% of overall capacity. Financially, the effects of the AI revolution are already evident. In Amazon's most recent quarter (the three months ending on Dec. 31, 2023), the company reported AWS revenue of $24.2 billion, which was up 13% from a year earlier. Amazon's new generative AI assistants like Q (a chatbot for businesses) and Rufus (an online shopping assistant) represent opportunities for Amazon to have its own ChatGPT moment. And, with 500 million Alexa-enabled devices already sold, Amazon already has a hardware foothold in many households. It simply needs the software buzz to truly capture the moment. In any event, Amazon's combination of fantastic leadership, outstanding financials, and leading market share in cloud services make it a screaming buy in my book. Story continues 2. Nvidia Yes, Nvidia is still a screaming buy, too. I know that might be hard to believe, with shares recently up an astounding 600% in only 18 months. However, just like how the result of one coin flip doesn't impact the outcome of the following one, Nvidia's unbelievable last 18 months say nothing about where the stock is headed. In a nutshell, past performance doesn't imply future returns. There is, however, one interesting trend that potential investors should keep in mind: That's the company's valuation. And contrary to what you might think, Nvidia's shares keep getting cheaper -- not more expensive. In fact, as you can see in the chart below, Nvidia's forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio has decreased by more than 50% over the last three years. NVDA PE Ratio (Forward) Chart And P/E ratios are volatile because they're based on either trailing earnings or future earnings estimates -- meaning they often soar or collapse around earnings announcements, as you can see in the chart above. At any rate, Nvidia's forward P/E ratio has significantly dropped because analysts expect the company to score from rising sales of its graphics processing units (GPUs), which are used to power many of today's cutting-edge AI applications. In summary, investors shouldn't shy away from Nvidia just because its stock has been on a tear. To the contrary, Nvidia's future looks bright thanks to the skyrocketing demand for AI chips. Granted, its not a stock for every investor. But for those who are willing to buy and hold, Nvidia could still be a screaming buy right now. Should you invest $1,000 in Nvidia right now? Before you buy stock in Nvidia, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Nvidia wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than tripled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of March 11, 2024 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Jake Lerch has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2 "Magnificent Seven" Stocks That Are Screaming Buys in March was originally published by The Motley Fool House Republicans took aim at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) at a Wednesday hearing over its proposed rule regulating financial services like digital wallets and payment apps. The agency announced its proposal to supervise the nonbank financial technology in November, with CFPB Director Rohit Chopra saying the rule would crack down on one avenue for regulatory arbitrage by ensuring large technology firms and other nonbank payments companies are subjected to appropriate oversight. But Republicans say its the latest example of the CFPB overstepping its mandate and unnecessarily imposing regulation on private companies. So for the people watching at home, the CFPB is looking for something to do because they are busy bodies, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said at the hearing of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion. There is no need for them to regulate in the space. Mr. Chopra once again is way beyond his bounds, he added Donalds argued the rule would limit Americans ability to buy and sell goods and services and overly involve CFPB in digital transactions. Subcommittee Chair Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.) said the proposal was overly broad and ambiguous and assumes applications like digital wallets are interchangeable with payment applications like PayPal, Venmo and Cash App. The CFPB is trying to cast as wide a net as possible and become a technology regulator, Hill said. In many more ways than one, this proposal marks a sharp departure from the CFPBs previous large participation rules. Jack Solowey, a financial technology policy analyst at the Cato Institute, drew a distinction between payment apps, which require a service provider to facilitate transactions, and digital wallets, which allow users to access their holdings, generally by securely storing information on smartphones. He said the new rule would make it unclear what tools are regulated and muddies the waters for many tech companies. And he warned the regulation of digital wallets would raise serious concerns under the Administrative Procedure Act and the Consumer Financial Protection Act itself. Subcommittee Ranking Member Rep. Stephen F. Lynch (D-Mass.) referenced a statement from the CFPB saying the lines between banking and commerce have blurred and that regulation is crucial to protecting consumers. CFPB is not becoming a tech regulator as much as tech companies are becoming banks, Lynch said. Christopher Odinet, professor of law at the University of Iowa, said nonbank platforms are more often playing similar roles to banks in the payments ecosystem and acting as powerful intermediaries, which requires more supervision to reduce risk. They add additional parties in the payment process that has the effect of increasing the chances of losses related to fraud, data breaches and the insolvency of these powerful intermediaries, Odinet said. CFPB oversight also allows for more consistent regulation across state lines and helps prevent possible discrimination that could result from technology companies collecting data, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The House GOPs effort to impeach President Biden appears to be in deep trouble. Republicans are privately admitting that their case against Biden has fizzled. Moderate GOP lawmakers are signaling dread of any impeachment vote. GOP leaders are pathetically concocting an alternative to impeachment in hopes of keeping the MAGA base happy. But as we watch all this unfold, lets not lose sight of one critical piece of the story: If the impeachment push has devolved into a farce, it isnt just because the case against Biden is so weak. Its also because the parallel case against Donald Trump is so strong. That might seem counterintuitive. What does Trumps culpability have to do with the case against Biden? Yet step back a bit and the dynamic becomes clear: The GOP arguments for impeaching Biden are revealed at their most absurd when the two cases are laid side by side. Whats more, when the GOPs game is fully exposedthat its not just about hatching fake evidence of crimes by Biden but also about muddying the waters around evidence of crimes by Trump that is very realthats when the GOP posture becomes most indefensible. Signs of this dynamic are everywhere. On Tuesday, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing that purported to grill Robert Hur, the special counsel who recently released a report exonerating Biden that also contained damning but gratuitous claims about his age and memory. The Hur hearing was an opportunity for Republicans to highlight the damaging stuff in the report, which, in addition to faulting Bidens memory, detailed evidence that Biden did willfully retain classified documents. Hur recommended against criminal charges because he couldnt find evidence that Biden did this with corrupt intent despite searching high and low for many months. But the hearing was largely a bust for Republicans. The savvy observers at Politicos Playbook called it a dud and reported that it has prompted Republicans to look for an off ramp from their impeachment push, which turns on a separate set of claims about the Biden familys business dealings that have also largely collapsed. Republicans of all ideological persuasions are increasingly admitting that they pulled the trigger on Bidens impeachment too soon and that the effort has been hobbled by embarrassing setbacks, Playbook concluded, noting that this comes after the GOPs much-advertised FBI informant was indicted for fabricating a story thats central to the GOP case. The Hur hearing helped demonstrate why all this is happening. Some of the biggest moments featured Republicans raging at Hur for failing to recommend criminal charges. Inside the MAGA universe, this is a no-brainer: Of course Hur was supposed to recommend charges, and of course the failure to do so can only have been supreme dereliction of duty. But outside that information space, whats become unavoidably obvious is that Republicans are demanding that Biden be charged with crimes no matter what the evidence actually shows. Meanwhile, many of the hearings other breakthrough moments came when Democrats managed to make the proceedings about the former president: a brilliant line of questioning from Rep. Lieu, who cleverly asks Hur if he found evidence of Biden mishandling classified docs or engaging in criminality in the ways Trump did pic.twitter.com/ct3lF7GN03 Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 12, 2024 As youll note, in this exchange, California Representative Ted Lieu recited a litany of things that Trump did with regard to classified documents, and he asked puckishly whether Biden had done them, to which Hur was forced to answer in the negative. Importantly, Liu was drawing on Hurs own report, which explicitly compares Trumps handling of documents to Bidens, demonstrating why the former merited criminal charges while the latter did not. The Democratic strategy in this hearing was to draw out this contrast. As one House Democratic aide told me, the goal was largely to stick to attacking Trump rather than Hur, because Democrats wanted to draw Republicans into a conversation about Trump. This led to some ripe moments. After the hearing, CNNs Laura Coates grilled Ohio Representative Jim Jordan, the Judiciary chair, by pointing out the contrast in the two presidents handling of documents. Coates asked Jordan if Trump would have been indicted if hed done what Biden didturn over documents and cooperate with investigators. Jordan haplessly answered with a yes, but he could only sputter aimlessly when Coates noted that Hur was originally a Trump appointee. Underscoring the absurdity of all this, ABC News now reports that Republicans may send referrals to the Justice Department recommending prosecutions related to their findings, as an exit strategy from impeachment. While its very possible Republicans will ultimately impeach Biden, the case for it has imploded, and this would plainly be the consolation prize thrown to Trump and the MAGA base if it doesnt happen. Yet that too only reveals the core absurdity of the GOP game. Republicans wont even name which Biden family members would be the target of such referrals, and they know the current Justice Department wouldnt prosecute them anyway. But Representative James Comer, chair of the Oversight Committee, recently told Fox News that such referrals would lay the groundwork for prosecution under a victorious Trump, who has vowed to prosecute the Biden crime family without cause. Incredibly, the Republican message here is basically this: OK, we cant find any evidence of Biden crimes, but just wait until the guy who promises to prosecute Biden regardless of what the facts show is back in charge! Then well get justice! The GOP scam exposes itself. Trump doesnt bother trying to hide the corrupt nature of all of this. He openly declares that he will prosecute the Biden family as revenge, i.e., because of what was done to him, not because of anything the Bidens actually did. Similarly, he is calling on Republicans to impeach Biden primarily as retributionright out in the open, as an applause line at political rallies. For Trump, all this is perfectly natural: Impeachment and prosecutions cant ever be legitimately predicated; all is tit for tat; everything is political all the way down. By contrast, Republicans like Jordan and Comer want to retain the thinnest veneer of legitimacy to these proceedings. Yet thats become impossible. At the most fundamental level, the Republican project here is to use all the levers of power at the partys disposal to erase a reality that cannot be erased: The case against Trump is based on things that actually happened, while the case against Biden is based largely on inventions. This project utterly collapses at precisely the moments when the two cases are compared side by side most unflinchingly. And given that this juxtaposition derives its ultimate force from the damning evidence of Trumps transgressions, Republicans have no one to blame for this fiasco but Trump himself. A House GOP lawmaker targeted former Special Counsel Robert Hur over what he called a "perverse implication" that the current prosecution of former President Donald Trump at least partially factored into Hurs decision not to recommend charges for President Biden. Hur testified before House lawmakers on Tuesday in a lengthy and, at times, heated hearing on his report the product of a monthslong investigation into Bidens handling of classified documents. Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., took issue with a part of Hurs report that downplayed the "deterrent effect" of charging Biden, both because of "little risk he will reoffend" and that "future presidents and vice presidents are already likely to be deterred by the multiple recent criminal investigations, and one prosecution, of current and former presidents and vice presidents for mishandling classified documents." HUR TESTIFIES BIDEN 'WILLFULLY RETAINED CLASSIFIED MATERIALS,' BUT PROSECUTORS 'HAD TO CONSIDER' MENTAL STATE Rep. Kevin Kiley, left, accused ex-Special Counsel Robert Hur, right, of implying President Biden did not need to be charged partially because deterrence of future leaders mishandling classified documents can be achieved by the prosecution of former President Trump. Kiley argued during the hearing, "The perverse implication here is that the administration, by the very terms of your analysis, actually made it less likely that the president would face charges by [Special Counsel Jack Smith] bringing an indictment [against Trump]." "Ill stand by the way and the specific terms in which I characterize my assessment of deterrence value of a case under the principles of federal prosecution," Hur told him just minutes earlier. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Kiley stood by his argument in a brief interview with Fox News Digital on Tuesday afternoon, explaining, "It's the implication that is perverse, because it means that Biden sort of lowered his chances of facing charges when the administration brought charges against former President Trump." Trump has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges stemming from Smiths federal investigation into alleged election interference. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review whether Trump has presidential immunity from prosecution in the case. BIDEN RETAINED RECORDS RELATED TO UKRAINE, CHINA; COMER DEMANDS 'UNFETTERED ACCESS' AMID IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY Hur said in his interview Biden came off as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.' "I think there's a lot here that's fairly troubling," Kiley said. "Thats why I wanted to sort of bring it to light. I didn't know, maybe, even if Mr. Hur had really thought that through, that particular implication." "I think that really, broadly, the report was well done. I think that particular factor was not thought through as carefully as it should be." Meanwhile, Fox News contributor and Georgetown University law professor Jonathan Turley argued that the section of the report suggesting Biden himself was at "little risk" of reoffending is not an accurate conclusion on deterrence. SPECIAL COUNSEL CALLS BIDEN 'SYMPATHETIC, WELL-MEANING, ELDERLY MAN WITH A POOR MEMORY,' BRINGS NO CHARGES Former U.S. President Donald Trump was charged over mishandling classified documents by Special Counsel Jack Smith. "The finding seems inherently in conflict with the acknowledgment that Joe Biden continued to remove classified material over 40 years since he was a senator," Turley said. "There was no evidence of deterrence despite repeated warnings given to him by counsel and staff. If anything, that record shows a certain habitual violation of well-known rules on the handling of classified material." Hur found that Biden did willfully mishandle classified materials but did not recommend charges, citing, in part, that he came off "as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory," and that "it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him by then a former president well into his eighties of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness." Fox News Digital reached out to the Justice Department but did not immediately hear back. Original article source: GOP lawmaker reveals perverse implication of Robert Hur's argument on Trump 'deterrent effect' Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford speaks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol about border policy negotiations on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON Washington state Democratic Sen. Patty Murray tried to pass a bill Tuesday that would expand access to in vitro fertilization for military service members and veterans, but Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford raised an objection and prevented the legislation from moving forward. The recent chaos in Alabama caused by far-right ideology put a national spotlight on just how crucial IVF is to so many women and families who are desperately hoping and trying to have children, Murray said. Lankford cited procedural concerns with the bill, including that it hasnt been debated and reported out by the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee during this Congress and that it didnt have a price tag from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The Alabama state Supreme Courts ruling last month that frozen embryos are regarded as children under state laws inserted considerable uncertainty into IVF there. State lawmakers have since approved a bill to provide protections for IVF doctors and clinics in the state, though there are still numerous unanswered questions. The Alabama state Supreme Courts actions led to a nationwide debate among Republicans about whether they should support IVF throughout the country. If Republicans really do now want to support IVF, if they really do want to help people trying to grow their family why not start with our veterans and our service members? Murray said. These are the men and women who fought to protect our families, she added. Why dont we make sure they have the support they need to grow theirs? Lankford questions definition of infertility Lankford rejected the idea that Republicans dont support IVF. I understand its become vogue in this current season right now to be able to say Republicans are somehow opposed to life because theyre opposed to IVF, Lankford said. I just dont find that. Lankford questioned definitions in the bill, including that the definition of infertility includes inability to reproduce or safely carry a pregnancy to term. That was very broad and Lankford said he was trying to figure out what that means. One senator can block a bill Murray tried to pass the bill through unanimous consent, a process that allows any senator to object to approving it. While unanimous consent is the fastest way to approve bills in the Senate, its also the easiest way to block them if any one senator doesnt like the policy. The unanimous consent process lets lawmakers avoid having to hold numerous procedural votes to advance a bill, which require the support of at least 60 lawmakers, followed by the simply-majority passage vote. That process can take weeks in the Senate. Murrays attempt to pass her IVF for veterans bill through the Senate came one day after the Department of Veterans Affairs announced it would expand access to the procedure for eligible unmarried veterans and those in same-sex relationships. In order to qualify, veterans must be able to connect their difficulty having children or infertility to a military connected health issue. The new VA policy also allows the use of donor eggs, sperm and embryos. Duckworth attempt on IVF also stymied Lankfords objection to Murrays IVF for veterans bill happened less than two weeks after another Republican senator, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, blocked Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth from passing a bill through unanimous consent to protect access to IVF nationwide. Murrays bill, titled Veteran Families Health Services Act, would allow all veterans to access IVF treatments as well as other fertility treatments at VA facilities. The legislation would allow military members to freeze their eggs or sperm before shipping out to a combat zone or a hazardous duty assignment. It would broaden access to VAs adoption services as well. Resolve, the national infertility association, supports the bill, saying it would expand DoD and VA health care to include comprehensive family-building assistance for servicemembers and veterans allowing servicemembers to freeze their eggs prior to deployment, providing adoption assistance, and expanding access to IVF. Murray, speaking from the Senate floor Tuesday, said the bill was the type of straightforward legislation that lawmakers should approve through unanimous consent. The bill, she said, should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious, even in the slightest, about supporting IVF. But Murray noted that fetal personhood laws, backed by many conservative Republicans and anti-abortion groups, would throw IVF access into question. When Republicans support legislation that says a fertilized egg has the same rights and protections as a living, breathing human person, that is fundamentally incompatible with supporting IVF, Murray said. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post GOP U.S. Sen. Lankford of Oklahoma blocks bill expanding IVF for vets, service members appeared first on Alabama Reflector. While the weather in Central Indiana this week has started off unseasonably warm, the National Weather Service predicts that windy, colder temperatures on Saint Patrick's Day will have some Hoosiers saying, "Erin Go Brrrraugh."And the Saint Patrick's Day parade downtown Friday could see some rain, according to the forecast. Temperatures Wednesday are expected to be pleasant, reaching the low to mid-70s, according to the NWS. After a day or two of rain and storms, the mercury will dip Friday just as Saint Patrick's Day revelers kick off the weekend. "We'll start to see some storms mainly across southern portions of Central Indiana but they'll move toward the Indianapolis area later Wednesday night," said meteorologist Greg Melo with NWS, adding a potential exists Thursday as well for severe weather with damaging winds and hail. Is there a chance for severe weather Thursday? "There's a low chance for possible tornadoes across the area mainly for Thursday and Thursday night," Melo said. "Our rain chances decrease into Friday morning as we start to get colder into the weekend." Melo said Friday night temperatures will be just above freezing. On Saturday, winds could gust as high as 28-29 mph and by Sunday daytime temperatures will hover in the 40s on Saint Patrick's Day. Showers and thunderstorms will move across central Indiana at times Thursday into Thursday night. Some severe storms are possible, mainly Thursday afternoon and night. The primary threats will be damaging winds and large hail, but tornadoes cannot be ruled out. #inwx pic.twitter.com/K2X9nICInk NWS Indianapolis (@NWSIndianapolis) March 13, 2024 What is the weather for Central Indiana this week? Here's what NWS weather forecasters say Hoosiers can expect this week. Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 74. South wind 6 to 9 mph. Wednesday night: A 50% chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 54. South winds 6-8 mph. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Thursday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8 a.m., then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 8 a.m. and 11a.m., then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after 11 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70. South winds 10-18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms. Thursday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Low around 52. South southwest winds 11-15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible. Friday: A 30 percent chance of showers before 2 p.m. Cloudy, with a high near 59. North northwest winds 10-13 mph, with gusts as high as 18 mph. Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 36. North northwest wind 8 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 58. Breezy, with a west southwest wind of 7-12 mph increasing to 15-20 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 29 mph. Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 40. West southwest winds 14-18 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph. Sunday, Saint Patrick's Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 49. Breezy, with a west northwest wind at 13-20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 31. West northwest winds 13-17 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph. Others are reading: You're saying 'Slainte' wrong. How to sound authentically Irish on Saint Patrick's Day John Tufts covers trending news for the Indianapolis Star. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com. Follow him on X at @JTuftsReports. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis weather for Saint Patrick's Day will be cold and windy Gov. Kevin Stitt, middle, is flanked by House Speaker Charles McCall, left and Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat during a recent event at the state Capitol. Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed a bill Tuesday afternoon that would have protected two members of his Cabinet from an opinion recently issued by Attorney General Gentner Drummond. The governor's veto surprised some lawmakers and drew a harsh rebuke from Drummond. Senate Bill 1196 would have exempted Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur from the dual role prohibition of the Oklahoma Constitution. Arthur serves as Stitt's Cabinet secretary for agriculture and at the same time is the CEO of the state Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. The bill also applied to Susan Winchester, Stitt's Cabinet secretary for licensing and regulation. Winchester is president of the Regents of the Regional Universities System of Oklahoma. The measure, written by House Majority Leader Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City, and Sen. Brent Howard, R-Altus, carried over from the 2023 session and was supported by the leaders of each chamber. The bill passed the House of Representatives on a 94-1 vote and later cleared the Senate 41-0. Stitt announced the veto in a media statement. He said the legislation wasn't necessary because the law was already clear: The governor can choose his cabinet from among the agency directors. "It was clear in 2019 when I hired Blayne Arthur as Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and it was clear in 2019 and again in 2023 when I chose her as my Secretary of Agriculture, the governor's statement said. She is one of the most respected agriculture professionals in the nation, and we are lucky to have her here in Oklahoma. Not only that, but she has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times." Stitt said Arthur would, without question, continue to operate as his secretary of agriculture and as the commissioner of the Department of Agriculture. "I want the best people leading agencies and advising me on policy as we work to be a Top Ten state," he said. Debate rages between Stitt, Drummond Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. Not long after the governor's announcement, Drummond responded to Stitt in a tersely written media statement. Drummond praised the Legislature's efforts in passing the bill. The attorney general's opinion noted there are already 30 statutory exemptions to the prohibition on dual office-holding. I applaud the Legislature for its efforts to provide dual-office exemptions to Secretaries Arthur and Winchester, which is the only appropriate way for one person to legally hold multiple offices, Drummond's statement said. The Governor could have approved these exemptions and allowed his appointees to continue serving without any uncertainty regarding their proper status. However, his veto makes clear that he is more interested in pursuing needless litigation than working with policymakers to solve the problem. Drummond's opinion, requested by Democratic Sen. Mary Boren, of Norman, forced the resignations of Transportation Secretary Tim Gatz, who also headed the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and the Turnpike Authority, and Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, who served as the Stitt's secretary of workforce development. Since the opinion's release, Stitt has doubled down on his criticism of Drummond, claiming Drummond had weaponized his office. "Unfortunately they (Gatz and Pinnell) have been caught up in some political games up to this point," the governor said during a recent meeting with reporters. "It's just super disappointing. I know it's disappointing for Oklahomans that we have these type of political games happening instead of doing the business of making Oklahoma a top 10 in everything we do." Echols said last week the bill was sparked by Drummond's opinion and was designed to protect Arthur's position. "The current Secretary of Agriculture is a well-respected and talented public servant who is almost universally respected both in the Agriculture community and in the political world," Echols, wrote in a summary of the measure. "It is not an attempt by the legislature to wade into areas it should not. It is not an attempt to legislatively affirm or overrule any decision by the honorable attorney general or of the honorable executive. It is an attempt to reach a policy objective. And that objective is to ensure an incredible public servant does not lose her position." State Rep. Mickey Dollens, an Oklahoma City Democrat, criticized the veto but added he was proud of the bipartisan work done on the bill. "As the adage goes, 'pride leads to destruction and arrogance to downfall,'" Dollens said in a message to The Oklahoman. "I am proud of the state legislature for upholding the rule of law and working together in a bipartisan fashion to provide dual-office exemptions as recommended by Attorney General Drummond." Neither Echols nor Howard could be reached for comment. While the large margin of votes on the bill could ensure a successful override of Stitt's veto, it's unclear what action lawmakers are planning. Currently, Drummond's opinion is the subject of a lawsuit filed in Oklahoma County District Court. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OK gov. vetoes bill in continuing fight over Cabinet appointments Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz recalls with vivid clarity the day his wife Gwen called him crying. Trying to start a family, they'd been going through fertility treatments at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester for seven years. Each time they hoped for good news, only to be told the treatments hadn't worked. "I said, 'not again,'" Walz asked his wife when he picked up the phone. "She said, 'No, I'm pregnant.' It's not by chance that we named our daughter Hope." The DFL governor is opening up about his family's experience going through fertility treatments in the wake of an Alabama Supreme Court ruling last month that said embryos created through in vitro fertilization (IVF) should be considered children. Several IVF clinics in Alabama immediately suspended treatments in response to the ruling, and lawmakers across the country are scrambling to shore up laws to prevent something similar happening in their state. Minnesota Democrats, who narrowly control the Legislature, are expected to add language to a law passed last year to codify abortion rights to also guarantee access to IVF and fertility treatments. "I think it was inconceivable that the Alabama Supreme Court would issue the kind of decision that they did without realizing the impacts that they have, so people are rightfully concerned and want to make sure our laws are clear in protecting their ability to access that health care," said House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park. No bill has been introduced yet, but lawmakers are expected to debate language during the legislative session, which must adjourn in May. Other legislation up for debate this year would require insurance plans to help cover the costs of fertility treatments. Not all plans currently cover the treatment, which can cost families tens of thousands of dollars per round of IVF. The proposal cleared the House commerce committee last week, but it's unclear if it will pass this year because it comes with a price tag for the state. "There's a lot of bipartisan support for that, it's also a bill that has passed in red and blue states," said House Majority Leader Jamie Long, DFL-Minneapolis. "It does have a cost, so I don't know whether that will be a cost we can afford this year, but it is a really important discussion with a lot of support from the public." Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Minnesota Thursday as part of a tour promoting reproductive rights. There's been some debate over whether the language of the PRO Act, which codified abortion rights last year, already protects access to fertility treatments. Walz said extra clarity is needed after Alabama. "For folks who said there's redundancy in them, OK, but I want to build redundancy in them," Walz said. "I'm going to build up the battlements around protection as much as I can." Five children were returned from Russian captivity on March 13, said Oleksandr Prokudin, governor of Kherson Oblast. Ukraine's Armed Forces liberated part of Kherson Oblast on the west bank of the Dnipro River in the fall 2022 counteroffensive. Russian troops continue to occupy the river's east bank, separating thousands of families. At least 19,500 children have been confirmed as abducted by Russia since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and less than 400 of them have been returned home, according to the Children of War database. Prokudin said that 35 children have been returned from Russian captivity in occupied parts of Kherson Oblast since the beginning of 2024. The children who were brought back will receive psychological, medical, and social support to help with their transition back home. Read also: Kherson Governor: 5 children returned from Russian captivity Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. EXEED by Al Ghurair, a premium automotive brand exclusively represented by AG Auto in the UAE, has unveiled its latest showroom in Abu Dhabi. Marking its second showroom in the country, and its first in the capital, the grand opening was commemorated in the presence of esteemed EXEED representatives and stakeholders. The new showroom underscores EXEEDs commitment to expanding operations and delivering luxury driver experiences, exceptional customer service, and premium SUVs in the UAE. Refined design Situated on Corniche Road in Abu Dhabi, the state-of-the-art EXEED showroom boasts a spacious area of 400 sq m. It offers a refined design equipped with cutting-edge services including reception spaces, vehicle showcases, a children's play area, customer relaxation zones, and innovative interiors, ensuring customers enjoy a seamless journey when seeking to purchase luxury SUVs at affordable price points. Commemorating this milestone, EXEED launches its exclusive Ramadan 777 offer for UAE residents including 7 years warranty, 7 years road assistance, and 7 years on vehicle service across its premium range of SUVs. Mohammed Maktari, General Manager at AG Auto, says: "Our investment underscores our dedication to providing a smooth, positive customer experience and convenient access to high-quality EXEED cars. In 2023 we consistently surpassed expectations through remarkable service delivery, leveraging technology and superior design aesthetics to ensure a memorable experience. As we accelerate our pursuit of better, we do so with a future-focused mindset, delivering cutting-edge vehicles and services that uplift the UAEs mobility market. SUV line-up The Abu Dhabi Corniche showroom will feature EXEEDs state-of-the-art SUV line-up, including the VX, TXL, LX, and RX models. Drivers seeking their next SUV purchase can explore a wide range of EXEED vehicles and the full brand experience by using the in-store digital car configurator. With its open floor plan, customers are welcomed into an environment where they can comfortably engage with staff and familiarise themselves with the SUVs. EXEEDs success in the UAE is attributed to its competitive pricing and quality offerings, catering to diverse customer demographics. Its range of SUVs offers luxurious driving experiences and has risen in popularity among UAE residents. EXEED showcased stellar performance in the UAE in 2023, solidifying its position as a competitive force within UAEs premium vehicle segment. This significant milestone accentuates the brand's commitment to design, safety and innovation, and optimising the total cost of ownership. Addressing the rising demand for the luxury automotive sector, the premium SUV brand will expand its operations across the UAE with further showroom openings in the coming months, including a second showroom in Mussafah (Abu Dhabi) and another in Dubai.--TradeArabia News Service It's difficult to find a group of companies that have performed better than the "Magnificent Seven" in the past decade. This clique includes the following market leaders: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. These companies have achieved outsize returns partly due to being pioneers, leaders, and innovators in their respective industries and delivering consistently strong financial results. Though the Magnificent Seven stocks are a rare breed, some other corporations on the market would fit right into the fold and are most certainly worth investing in. If I had to create a "Magnificent Nine," here are two stocks that would be prime candidates to join the existing seven: Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) and Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX). GOOGL Total Return Level Chart 1. Eli Lilly Eli Lilly would be right at home among the Magnificent Seven in terms of stock market performance. Only Nvidia has performed better than the drugmaker in the past decade. The company has achieved strong returns largely due to its dominance in the market for diabetes drugs. For much of the past 10 years, Trulicity, a medicine for type 2 diabetes first approved in the U.S. in 2014, was Eli Lilly's most important growth driver. Now, Eli Lilly has a new crown jewel: the clinical compound known as tirzepatide, marketed as either Mounjaro in treating diabetes or Zepbound in obesity. Tirzepatide arrived on the market in 2022, and sales have been growing rapidly. It generated more than $5 billion in revenue in 2023, its first full year on the market. Some say it could hit annual peak sales of $25 billion on the back of a fast-growing anti-obesity drug market. Eli Lilly has been a leader in diabetes care for decades where arguably the only drugmaker that has been able to keep up is Novo Nordisk. That's one more reason Eli Lilly belongs in a "Magnificent Nine." Turning to the company's financial results, Eli Lilly's revenue and earnings have been excellent -- and that won't likely stop anytime soon. Analysts predict that, on average, Eli Lilly's earnings per share (EPS) will increase by 50.7% per year for the next five years. Story continues LLY Revenue (Quarterly) Chart Tirzepatide will play an important role here, but Eli Lilly's lineup is much broader than this one medicine. The drugmaker earned approval for some brand-new drugs last year, including cancer therapy Jaypirca and ulcerative colitis medicine Omvoh. This year, it could launch donanemab, a medicine for Alzheimer's disease. In short, the company's overall prospects are rock-solid. Then, there is Eli Lilly's excellent dividend record. Over the past 10 years, the pharmaceutical giant has increased its payouts by 165%, which rivals Microsoft, the best dividend stock among the Magnificent Seven. That's just one more reason why Eli Lilly is a table-pounding buy. 2. Netflix Like several members of the Magnificent Seven, Netflix faced severe headwinds between 2021 and 2022. And like those same members of the Magnificent Seven, Netflix has bounced over the past year. The streaming specialist's stock performance in the past decade would be more or less middle of the pack within this group. True, a lot has changed in 10 years for Netflix. It faces more competition than ever, with brand-new streaming platforms popping up left and right. However, having been the pioneer, Netflix remains one of the undisputed leaders in streaming. As of December, Netflix accounted for 8% of television viewing time in the U.S. Only Alphabet's YouTube did better in the streaming world at 9%, and that's not quite an apples-to-apples comparison. YouTube for the most part features independently created videos, not the kinds of shows and movies people go on Netflix to watch. Regardless, Netflix is undoubtedly near the top of the industry, where plenty of white space remains. In the U.S., one of the most penetrated markets, streaming made up just 36% of total television viewing time. That should keep increasing while other regions play catch-up. How long will the shift take? It might be a while. In the meantime, Netflix should continue delivering excellent financial results, just like it has in the past. NFLX Revenue (Quarterly) Chart Here's one reason why: Netflix arguably benefits from the network effect. It uses the data it collects from viewers and their habits to craft its content creation strategy. The more viewers there are on its platforms, the more valuable it becomes. That's a big reason why Netflix's productions have been massively successful, whether in viewership or awards. Netflix's master plan will continue working even with more competition, as the company has shown in recent years. The stock should still massively reward shareholders over the long run, making it a great Magnificent Nine candidate. Should you invest $1,000 in Eli Lilly right now? Before you buy stock in Eli Lilly, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Eli Lilly wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than tripled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of March 11, 2024 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Prosper Junior Bakiny has positions in Amazon and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends Novo Nordisk and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2 No-Brainer Stocks I'd Add to the "Magnificent Seven" was originally published by The Motley Fool MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) With green beer, classic Irish cuisine and live music, bars and restaurants like the Ole Shillelagh and Drunken Jacks are getting ready to celebrate one of their busiest days of the year and kick off the summer season. Creating a fun celebration is not just the luck of the Irish. It takes a lot of hard work and preparation. Drunken Jacks is gearing up for the 9th annual Luck of the Marshwalk by making sure they have all the necessities for everyone to enjoy. We are, of course, stocking up in Guinness and we have green beer because those will be the high points for the day, said Laura Wilkes, the Information, Technologies & Marketing manager at Drunken Jacks. Both Drunken Jacks and the Ole Shillelagh said St. Patricks Day weekend is great for business as hundreds of people both locals and visitors, come to the area to celebrate. It has a definite impact on our March, Wilkes said. This is sort of a kickoff into that spring break mode and getting ready for the summer season. Located right off of S. Kings Highway, the Ole Shillelagh has been a local favorite for many years, especially when it comes to its St. Patricks Day celebrations. You know, you have your liquor, you have your beer that you have to really stock up on because its not like a normal weekend, Jari Hilpipre said. Its triple the sales, its triple the people, its just a very fun weekend and you have to prepare. Economically, its a great day for business, but Hilpipre says thats not what its all about. She said the holiday brings back their family and friends who have been gone awhile. Both Wilkes and Hilpipre said St. Patricks Day is one of the most fun holiday celebrations and encourages everyone to take part. In North Myrtle Beach, the 34th Annual St. Patricks Day parade starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday. For a list of St. Patricks day events happening along the Grand Strand, click here. * * * Gracie is a multimedia journalist at News 13 and is from Cleveland, Ohio. Gracie joined the team in June 2023 after graduating from the University of Alabama in May. Follow Gracie on Facebook, Instagram and X, formerly Twitter, & read more of her work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WBTW. Was it really worth 50,000? One in five students would have been better off had they not gone to university at all, according to the IFS - PA The streets of Oxford, wrote the essayist William Hazlitt, are paved with the names of learning that can never wear out. Much has changed since the 19th century. Yet Hazlitts bold prediction is being sorely tested by the crisis facing the higher education sector, which is often billed as purely financial, but points to something existential. The international student racket overtly discriminating against domestic students has become too blatant to ignore. This newspaper reports that universities, fearful of going bust, are considering reducing the number of British students they admit, to focus on lucrative foreign students. Many provincial universities are opening dubious London campuses to help recruit these golden geese. Even supposedly first-rate institutions have been accused of lowering entry standards for foreign applicants. Such a reliance on a two-tier admissions system destroys any pretence at rigour and is a national scandal. This situation elicits dishonesty from all quarters. Some MPs champion university expansion for the short-term cash and employment their local institution brings (all subsidised by graduates and their eye-watering loan repayments). For a profession supposedly geared towards discovering the truth, academia practises industrial-level self-deception. Masters degrees are fast becoming academias dirty little secret. Privately, academics know full well that therell be students studying, say, a masters in law who would never, be admitted for an bachelors degree. It is an embarrassing wheeze to pretend these students are up to scratch. Meanwhile, the post-study work visa for graduates reintroduced under Boris Johnson does not seem to be benefiting only the best and brightest. The Migration Advisory Committee, not usually famed for its plain speaking, has called for a rigorous evaluation of the route. Separate analysis has shown that more than 50 per cent of international students who switch to a skilled worker visa are becoming care workers, putting them on a speedy path to permanent settlement. And what of the deal for students? Data journalist John Burn-Murdoch has analysed the dramatic decline of the graduate wage premium over the past 25 years. More than a third of graduates now work in jobs that do not require a degree. Arguably this premium was already inflated by the credentialism arms race accompanying expansion, since many jobs that never used to require a degree now do. The Institute for Fiscal Studies claims that one in five students would have been better off financially had they not gone to university at all (accumulating 50,000 worth of debt on the way). All this brings into sharper focus the question: what, exactly, are universities for? Are they academic institutions, committed to the pursuit of knowledge, or are they businesses? Are they a private or public good? Do they exist for British students first and foremost, or are they an international export, even poorly-disguised promoters of mass migration? University officials insist the stalemate is necessary to keep the sector buoyant, though this is belied by the vast sums splashed on costly new buildings and the explosion of administrative jobs. Support staff outnumber academics at two thirds of universities. No one wants to believe theyre in a non-job, so this bureaucratisation often brings growth for growths sake even ideas that run counter to the priorities of rank-and-file academics. New students at St Andrews must attend an induction requiring them to agree with certain statements about personal guilt and unconscious bias. It embodies the clash between the spirit of inquiry universities are meant to foster and institutional dogma; almost akin to a religious test where students must swear allegiance to a set of ideas which they might later critique in a philosophy tutorial. Multiple administrations share blame for this dismal state of affairs; John Major, for abolishing the distinction between universities and polytechnics. Tony Blairs disastrous mission to send 50 per cent of young people to university brought further expansion (it is grimly amusing that Euan Blair has amassed a fortune from an apprenticeship startup helping school leavers sidestep his dads legacy). Under the Coalition, the tripling of tuition fees and the removal of the student cap finally cemented universities status as (increasingly venal) businesses. Whatever your views on the previous setup, its social contract at least made sense; free or subsidised education, funded by the taxpayer on the understanding that these were the best and brightest, who might serve their country in some way. As an English graduate, I despise attacks on the humanities, the erosion of the idea of learning for the love of it, and the suggestion that a degrees value should be solely determined by future earnings. However, with half of school leavers attending university, and any outstanding debts forgiven by the taxpayer, it inevitably becomes a public policy issue. You can have subsidised education, or the relentless expansion of the sector. You cant have both. British academia was once the gold standard, resting on solid foundations: sound learning, finances and organisation. Now, as the sectors reliance on smoke and mirrors becomes ever-clearer, how long its reputation can continue to rest on past glories and self-deception remains to be seen. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. ATHENS (Reuters) - The Greek islands of Crete and Gavdos have seen a steep rise in migrant boats landing on their shores from Libya this year, U.N. data shows, piling pressure on ill-equipped authorities and raising fears of a new smuggling route in the Mediterranean Sea. More than 1,075 migrants - mostly from Egypt, Bangladesh and Pakistan - have arrived on the islands this year, up from 860 in the whole of 2023, according to the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR. Greece has been a favoured gateway to the European Union for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia since 2015 when nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, causing an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Thousands of others died at sea. Crete and its tiny neighbour Gavdos, which are relatively isolated in the central Mediterranean, had until now not been favoured by migrants over other islands further east near Turkey. "This is an unprecedented situation," Migration Minister Dimitri Kairidis told a local TV station on Wednesday. "The numbers are small ... but the trend is showing a momentum which is troubling us." Gavdos Mayor Lilian Stefanaki told Reuters that since the weekend boats carrying dozens of people had been arriving almost daily. Around 63 migrants were currently on the island awaiting transportation to Crete. Gavdos has about 60 permanent residents and one police officer, she said. Neither Gavdos nor Crete have migrant facilities. New arrivals were sheltering in an abandoned building on Gavdos or disused children's camps on Crete. The UNHCR, which does not have a presence on Crete, sent supplies including sleeping bags and hygiene kits. "This is a big burden for us. We're a small island, we haven't got supplies or shops. Food is a big problem. Our finances are limited," Stefanaki said. Most migrant arrivals to Europe this year have been to Spain, followed by Greece and Italy, according to U.N. data. Historically, boats that leave Libya in north Africa generally have gone to Italy. "It appears that most of the boats travelling from Libya to Crete and Gavdos are heading directly to Greece, rather than being accidental detours," said Stella Nanou, spokesperson for UNHCR Greece, adding it was soon too say whether it would become an established route. (Reporting by Karolina Tagaris; Editing by Edward McAllister and Lucy Marks) RACINE, Wis. - In a state with razor close elections, third party presidential candidate Jill Stein campaigned in Racine on Tuesday, March 12. Could her Green Party accidentally make Wisconsin red? "Are you going to cost Joe Biden this election in 2024?" asked FOX6 Political Reporter Jason Calvi. SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News "This is exactly the message they're trying to get out. Because they want to intimidate you against standing up and voting for a candidate that will really represent you, not continue to throw you under the bus," Stein answered. Jill Stein In 2016, Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin by about 22,000 votes. That year, Stein got more than that margin 31,000 thousand Wisconsin votes. Stein backs a liberal platform which means she could pose more of a challenge to Democrats. "There were all kinds of ways that Hillary Clinton lost Wisconsin, like by not coming here to actually campaign," Stein said. "No politician owns your vote. Any politician who claims to own your vote should be disqualified from even consideration. Politicians have to earn your vote, they don't own your vote and if they think they're entitled to, they're absolutely not deserving." In 2016, 1% nationally chose Stein, the same percentage she gained in Wisconsin. The Green Party did not make it onto the Wisconsin ballot in 2020 the year Joe Biden won by about 20,000 votes. Now, Stein is hoping to have another shot in 2024. "So we're saying we need some different choices. We need choices that will stand up for us, because of the crises we are facing can be solved, but we need the political representatives who are representing us, not the big donors, which unfortunately is the driver inside the Democratic and Republican parties," Stein said. Jill Stein "Is it a waste of a vote to vote for you when maybe you only get one to 3% in the United States?" asked Calvi. "So the real waste of a vote is when you don't vote on your own interests, on behalf of your own interests, and you just give a stamp of approval to a political machine that is throwing you under the bus, that cannot raise your wages to a living wage," Stein answered. Jill Stein Jill Stein is a medical doctor and environmental activist. She calls for a Green New Deal and promotes Medicare for All. "If you simply expand Medicare so that it covers everyone comprehensively, and you get rid of the middle man, the profiteering insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies, big pharma, if you take their profits out of the equation, then we save half a trillion dollars every year, at the same time we provide health care to everyone as a human right," Stein said. FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android Stein also calls for cutting military funding. Now she's campaigning in Racine, Milwaukee and Madison, urging Wisconsin voters to vote Green in a purple state. The Marquette Law School Poll last month found former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden were tied, in a two-person race. However, when third party candidates were added, Trump took a three-point lead: Donald Trump: 40% Joe Biden: 37% Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.: 16% Jill Stein: 4% Cornel West: 2% The New York times reported one of those third party candidates, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., was considering former Green Bay Packer Aaron Rodgers as a possible running mate. The Gallup Poll last fall found 63% of American adults said "a third major party is needed." Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) cited her previous ban on Twitter, the platform now known as X, in opposing legislation that could ban TikTok on Wednesday. I rise today as the only member of Congress that has ever been banned by social media, Greene said on the House floor, as the lower chamber prepared to vote on the bill. Twitter banned me banned my personal account on which I was campaigning for Congress, raising money and using my free speech to inform the voters in my district they can vote for me, she continued. This was not by a company owned by China. This was by American-owned Twitter. Greene was suspended from the platform then known as Twitter in January 2022 for violating its COVID-19 misinformation policies. Her account was reinstated in November 2022, after Elon Musk purchased the social media company. I believe that this bill can cause future problems, Greene added. Its opening Pandoras box. The House ultimately voted 352-65 in favor of the bill, which would require TikToks China-based parent company ByteDance to divest from the video-based social media app or face a ban in the U.S. Greene, who is a close ally of former President Trump, also went after Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebooks parent company Meta, on Wednesday. Trump, who once vowed to ban TikTok as president, has recently voiced opposition to the legislation, suggesting it would empower Facebook and Zuckerberg. The former president was banned from Facebook following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The Democrats are claiming that election meddling can happen on social media, Greene said Wednesday. Well, we could never forget Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. We can never forget the election meddling that happened there. Greene also questioned who would buy TikTok if ByteDance was forced to divest from the popular app. Thats the question that we should be asking, Greene said. Who is going to buy it? Who will be the next to control the data of over 170 million Americans? Are we going to trust Mark Zuckerberg to control their data? I certainly dont. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henrys resignation on Tuesday marks a watershed moment for U.S. diplomacy, which for the last 32 months focused on keeping him in power against the warnings of experts and Haitian civil society. Under Henry, who served as acting prime minister and acting president, armed gangs grew stronger as the governments reach shrank, with the Caribbean nation becoming more and more reliant on U.S. support and the promise of an international police mission. Its maddening for the Haitians and its maddening for me, and two weeks ago, if you recall, this situation was not at all urgent to the secretary of State and the U.S. government, despite the fact that it has been urgent for 32 months, said Dan Foote, the Biden administrations former special envoy to Haiti, who in 2021 resigned in protest against deportations back to the country. Henrys resignation came as criminal gangs heightened their attacks on key installations in Port-au-Prince, including the airport. Henry himself was unable even to return to Haiti after an attempt to secure a Kenyan police force to bolster Haitis National Police. Henry, who was officially a transitional figure, was the longest tenured prime minister since the end of the Duvalier dictatorship in 1986. Though the State Departments support was officially intended to help him rebuild a government structure in the wake of the 2021 assassination of former President Jovenel Moise, Henry had shown few signs of relinquishing power until he was shut out of the country. If you look at the background and the context, Prime Minister Henry has always been a transitional figure, State Department Matt Miller told reporters Tuesday. If you look at the way he came into office, the tragic circumstances, the assassination of the president we have always called, along with Haitian civil society, Haitian political leaders for a transition to free and fair elections and a transition to democracy, which of course requires stable security in which you can hold elections. Miller added that over the past few days it became clear not to the United States, but to members of CARICOM [the Caribbean Community], to members of Haitian civil society, to a number of Haitians, that the political situation under Henry was untenable. In response to the developing crisis, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been busy engaging with Caribbean allies and Kenya to plot a path forward. After a phone call with Kenyan President William Ruto on Saturday, Blinken traveled to Kingston, Jamaica, on Monday, where he discussed the issue with Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who hosted a Haiti summit that included input from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, France, CARICOM and some members of Haitian civil society via Zoom. We support the plan to create a broad-based, inclusive, independent presidential college that would, in particular, first, take concrete steps to meet the immediate needs of the Haitian people; second, enable the swift deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission; and third, through that deployment, through a reinforced Haitian National Police, create the security conditions that are necessary to hold free and fair elections, to allow humanitarian assistance to get to people who need it, and to help put Haiti back on a path to economic opportunity and growth, Blinken said in Kingston on Monday, adding that the Department of Defense doubled its peacekeeping mission support from $100 million to $200 million, and the United States pledged an extra $33 million for health and food security. State Department officials in a call Tuesday focused on deployment and funding of the Kenyan-led multinational police force. An official said the departments previous $100 million allocation to Haiti will be used to reimburse Kenya for its contributions and emphasized the dire need for the security assistance despite failed missions in the past. The international community, as well as Haitian stakeholders, are very cognizant of the mistakes of the past, a senior State Department official said. And theyre taking proactive measures to ensure that they are never repeated. The official said that the new security mission has a crucial difference from those of the past because it will be integrated into the Haitian fabric of policing and security, rather than operating outside of that context. The CARICOM-sponsored plan for Haitian governance calls for a transitional presidential council that will have presidential powers and be composed of Haitians who agree not to compete in the next presidential election, have not been sanctioned by the U.N. or charged or convicted with a crime and who commit to supporting an international police force. That last requirement is not landing well among parts of Haitian civil society. We welcome the support of the international community. We are grateful that they are now really looking into how to make a commitment to Haiti. However, a true Haitian-led solution cannot be contingent on having that person accepting conditions they do not agree with or may not be in the best interest of Haiti and its people in order to be in a position of power, said Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, a diaspora nonprofit organization. Though the presidential council will include representation from a broad array of political groups within Haiti, the requirement to support foreign military intervention welcome in an immediate sense or not strikes a raw nerve in a country that since 1791 has been fighting to rid itself of foreign dictates. What has not been tried in Haiti, say experts, is allowing actual self-governance, with support rather than imposition from abroad. The international community has this this wrong understanding that if theres no government in Haiti, its just gonna go to s. It already has gone to s. Its been to s since Moise got clipped, and it will get better if we just leave them alone for a little while, said Foote. And Haitians both in country and in the diaspora are bracing for another go at a familiar pattern. What Im hearing from Haiti, from the Haitian community both in Haiti and in the United States once again is a here we go again, because there were no Haitian representations, said Jozef. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti A crisis involving armed gangs and anti-government factions threatens to further destabilize the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere that not only relies on aid for daily life but for responses to natural disasters. The destabilization of government entities in the Caribbean nation has increased ever since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in July 2021 and led to the recent resignation of the countrys prime minister. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports life-saving humanitarian assistance and transportation across the countrys capital has virtually come to a halt as the official government has grown powerless. The state of affairs is of concern to aid groups, who are regularly called on to help support the more than 11 million residents. "The situation in Haiti is heartbreaking. Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee for their lives as gang violence in Port-au-Prince spreads to other areas," Allen Speer, CEO of Agape Flights, said in a statement. The Florida-based group is a donor-supported Christian aviation ministry that has delivered aid in the Caribbean for decades but has suspended operations in Haiti because of the violence. HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER The countrys lawlessness, terrain, poor infrastructure, and economy make it one of the most susceptible to natural disasters, which are common on the island of Hispaniola. Since 2000, more than a dozen significant events have impacted the nation, killing hundreds of thousands of residents and leaving millions homeless. Flooding, earthquakes and hurricanes are among the most frequent weather disasters, but journal publications say preparations are often underwhelming. ANTARCTICAS DOOMSDAY GLACIER IS MELTING AWAY DIFFERENTLY THAN SCIENTISTS FIRST THOUGHT Haiti and the neighboring Dominican Republic lie between two plates, making the region a hotbed for tremors, with many that have been significant. According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey, the primary strike-slip type fault, known as the Enriquillo-Plaintain Garden Fault, has produced quakes with magnitudes greater than 8.0, which are capable of widespread destruction. A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the nation on Jan. 12, 2010, and is considered to be the countrys deadliest event, with over 200,000 people killed. Damage estimates topped $7 billion, with over 1 million people who became homeless. USGS topographic map A little more than two years later, a powerful 7.2-magnitude quake is estimated to have killed over 2,000 people, with many more that were forced out of their homes. The more powerful of the two earthquakes was credited for doing far less damage because of its distance from the all-important city of Port-au-Prince. The 2021 event was centered about 78 miles west of the capital city, while the 2010 quake was only about 15 miles away. A lack of building codes ensures that structures composed of bricks and stones are often impacted by even the weakest of earthquakes. ACCESS TO REMOTE LEARNING, TELEMEDICINE DURING EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS COULD END FOR MILLIONS Due to the islands location near the 20th parallel north of the equator, the region known as the Great Antilles sits in the most vulnerable location for tropical cyclones in the Atlantic basin. Water temperatures year-round are sufficient enough to support these storms, which can be catastrophic in a county where more than two-fifths of the population relies on farming. According to the National Hurricane Center historical database, 106 cyclones have passed within a distance of 40 miles or less from the nation. Paths of tropical cyclones within 40 miles of Haiti Some of these events were rather strong and led to the deaths of thousands. In 2016, Hurricane Matthew made landfall as a Category 4 cyclone with sustained winds around 145 mph. The UN reported communities to the southwest of the capital were devastated with over 30" of rain in the mountainous regions and at least 600 were pronounced dead. Some years, the nation doesnt just deal with one or two storms - in 2008, cyclones pounded Haiti, causing a death toll that reached above 1,000. A result of many of these disasters was an increase in cholera, which, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is a diarrheal infection caused by ingestion of contaminated food or water. The CDC reports that after the catastrophic earthquake in 2010, more than 800,000 cases were observed, with around 10,000 deaths. "Improving Haitis water and sanitation infrastructure, strengthening cholera surveillance, and targeted use of oral cholera vaccine are key," health officials stated after the historic outbreak. Geographical distribution of suspected cholera cases in 2022 Original article source: Haiti crisis plunges country into extreme vulnerability to natural disasters With Haiti in disarray, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday the state will be sending hundreds of law enforcement officers and soldiers to patrol the southern coast of Florida to combat illegal vessels that may be carrying desperate Haitians fleeing a country whose government is under attack by gangs. So far, a surge of migrants has not materialized in Florida. But DeSantis, who has taken measures to crack down on undocumented immigrants over the years, said in a statement that he is deploying more than 250 state officers and soldiers as well as helicopters, aircraft, drones and boats to protect our state from arriving migrants. The deployment will include up to 133 members of the Florida State Guard, a civilian military force under the governors command that has mainly responded to natural disaster emergencies. Last fall, a select group of State Guard members with the power to make arrests and carry weapons was trained to intercept migrants at sea at a Panhandle combat-training facility. When a state faces the possibility of invasion, it has the right and duty to defend its territory and people, the governors office said in a statement. Under Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida will act. READ MORE: Wary that Haiti crisis may prompt a migrant surge to South Florida coast, feds look for signs In January 2023, DeSantis directed the Florida National Guard and other state agencies to set up camp in the Florida Keys to keep an eye on migrants arriving on shore from Cuba and Haiti. His actions empowered through a state-of-emergency executive order came after hundreds of Cuban and Haitian migrants traveling in makeshift boats were frequently landing in Florida. DeSantis blamed President Joe Bidens immigration policies for the migrant arrivals and said his executive actions on immigration which has cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars have been necessary to help local law enforcement officers who lack the resources to deal with the crisis. Haiti in turmoil Haiti is facing a political crisis that threatens to topple its government. Two weeks ago, gangs declared their intentions to overthrow Prime Minister Ariel Henry and wrought havoc on Port-au-Prince, Haitis capital. Henry has since agreed to resign, but its uncertain who will lead the Caribbean country. The international community, along with Haitian political and civil society leaders, are trying to hash out a plan for transitional governance, but disagreements abound. Most of the capital is currently under criminal control, according to the United Nations. A Department of Homeland Security spokesman said on Wednesday that while irregular migrations flows through the Caribbean remain low, the agency was monitoring the situation with Haiti and coordinating with the State Department and other foreign partners. All irregular migration journeys, especially maritime routes, are extremely dangerous, unforgiving, and often result in loss of life. DHS will continue to enforce U.S. laws and policy through the Florida Straits and the Caribbean region. US policy is to return noncitizens who do not have a fear of persecution or torture or a legal basis to enter the United States, said the spokesperson. Those interdicted at sea are subject to immediate repatriation pursuant to our longstanding policy and procedures. During a Capitol Hill hearing on Tuesday, Rebecca Zimmerman, assistant secretary of defense for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, said the federal government has not yet seen a large number of Haitians fleeing on boats after GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida raised concerns about the impact a possible wave from Haitians would have on South Florida. At the moment we have not yet seen large numbers that we would characterize as a maritime mass migration, she said. We are alert to that possibility. I think you are right that the driving conditions in Haiti could very well press more people. Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, added that she has put in a request for increased capability to deal with a mass migration event if it happens. Stopping boats before they come to Florida Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay told the Herald that federal officials have spoken with him this week about having his deputies prepared for an above-normal effort to leave Haiti and come to the U.S. The Florida Keys saw the majority of Haitian and Cuban arrivals during the height of the exodus from those countries in 2022 and 2023. Weve had some discussions with federal officials about the civil unrest in Haiti and the belief that more Haitian sail freighters may be trying to get to the United States, Ramsay said. Ramsays deputies were often the first contacts for Cubans and Haitians arriving in large numbers throughout the island chain between 2022 and 2023. Most of the migrants were coming from Cuba on small boats. This happened several times a day at the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023. But there were also large overloaded vessels from Haiti carrying hundreds of people. So many people were landing in the Keys during that time that sheriff deputies had to wait with them for hours on the side of U.S. 1 until overwhelmed Border Patrol agents could arrive in vans to pick them up. This took the deputies away from their regular law enforcement duties, prompting Ramsay to complain about a lack of federal and state resources in the area. Ramseys complaints played a key role in DeSantis January 2023 executive order to send the Florida National Guard and state police officers to the county to help patrol the air and water around the Keys. Ramsay said federal officials told him this week that they are hoping to stop migrant vessels from leaving Haiti, but some could get past their patrols. They told us they are going to try to put more resources in that area to ward off any mass evacuations and for us to be vigilant for the potential for more migrants coming from Haiti, he said. After DeSantis January 2023 executive order, between 100 and 150 National Guard soldiers were sent to the Keys, in addition to 22 additional Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers, 24 Florida Department of Law Enforcement agents and 30 Florida Highway Patrol troopers. State law enforcement officers would rotate in and out of the Keys and return to their regular assignments every few weeks, a police source told the Herald. Alecia Collins, spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Emergency Management, said the number of officers temporarily stationed in the Keys as part of the executive order fluctuated and went down to 63 before the latest order Wednesday. Now, there will be 44 FDLE agents, 32 FWC officers and 39 FHP troopers, along with 88 Florida National Guard soldiers sent to the Keys, Collins said. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava wrote to President Joe Biden on Tuesday that the crisis in Haiti has profound implications for Miami-Dade County due to our significant Haitian community and proximity to the island. She requested multi agency community briefings. Migrants stopped On March 8, the marine unit of the police in Turks and Caicos, just south of the Bahamas, said they had stopped a 25-foot power boat carrying 31 Haitian migrants in Northern Caicos. There were 22 men and nine women on board. Meanwhile, the Coast Guards 7th District, which is headquartered in Miami and has operations from Florida to South Carolina, announced it had repatriated 65 Haitians from a distressed boat in the Bahamas on Tuesday. The Coast Guard has repatriated 131 Haitians since Oct. 1, the beginning of the governments fiscal year. Puerto Rico is also a point of destination for Haitians, who depart on rickety boats from the neighboring Dominican Republic. Smugglers often abandon the migrants on remote Mona Island, a nature reserve that sits between the American territory and the eastern end of the Dominican Republic. The Coast Guard told the Miami Herald that it has interdicted 41 Haitians in waters near Puerto Rico and the Mona Passage as of Feb. 29. Customs and Border Protection headquartered in Puerto Rico has apprehended 112 Haitian nationals since Oct. 1. The embattled Haitian prime minister, Ariel Henry, said in a video message Tuesday that he plans to resign soonan announcement that comes after months of chaos in the Caribbean nation thats been plagued by gang violence. Henry, whos stranded in Puerto Rico, said hell remain prime minister in a caretaker role until a new government is installed. He asked his countrymen to remain calm, assuring them that he was working to have a new seven-member council installed to lead the country until elections are held again. The prime minister has been in power since July 2021, when the then-Haitian President Jovenel Moise was assassinated. Elections were paused in the aftermath, with Henry, the new acting leader of Haiti, repeatedly postponing elections on grounds that order needed to be restored first. U.S. Urges Haitis Prime Minister to Transfer Power as Gangs Threaten Genocide Armed gangs have run rampant in Haiti as theyve called for Henry to resign, with one gang leader threatening a civil war that will lead to genocide if he didnt soon comply. As part of their protests against Henry, gangs have swarmed Henrys home and prevented him from returning from Puerto Rico. Theyve also taken over swaths of the nation of 11 million with little pushback from authorities. The U.S. State Department urged all Americans to flee Haiti last week, citing the growing violence and instability there. On Tuesday, embassy staff were airlifted out of Port-au-Prince, which had its international airport overrun by gangs. Henry had been under intense pressure from U.S. officials, the international community, and gangs in the Haitian capital to step down as prime minister. He appears to have eventually given in to the calls to resign on Monday, which came shortly after the ending of an hours-long meeting between the Caribbean Community, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Haitian politicians, and others in Jamaica. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Key Insights Significantly high institutional ownership implies Oakley Capital Investments' stock price is sensitive to their trading actions The top 8 shareholders own 52% of the company Recent purchases by insiders If you want to know who really controls Oakley Capital Investments Limited (LON:OCI), 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 48% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn). 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. Hence, having a considerable amount of institutional money invested in a company is often regarded as a desirable trait. Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Oakley Capital Investments. Check out our latest analysis for Oakley Capital Investments What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Oakley Capital Investments? 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. Oakley Capital Investments already has institutions on the share registry. Indeed, they own a respectable stake in the company. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Oakley Capital Investments' earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters. Story continues We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Oakley Capital Investments. The company's CEO Peter Adam Dubens is the largest shareholder with 11% of shares outstanding. With 10% and 6.9% of the shares outstanding respectively, Asset Value Investors Limited and Lombard Odier Asset Management (Europe) Ltd. are the second and third largest shareholders. On further inspection, we found that more than half the company's shares are owned by the top 8 shareholders, suggesting that the interests of the larger shareholders are balanced out to an extent by the smaller ones. 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. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar. Insider Ownership Of Oakley Capital Investments 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. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it. 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. It seems insiders own a significant proportion of Oakley Capital Investments Limited. It has a market capitalization of just UK823m, and insiders have UK99m worth of shares in their own names. That's quite significant. Most would be pleased to see the board is investing alongside them. You may wish to access this free chart showing recent trading by insiders. General Public Ownership The general public, who are usually individual investors, hold a 35% stake in Oakley Capital Investments. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies. Private Company Ownership It seems that Private Companies own 4.5%, of the Oakley Capital Investments stock. 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: I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. I like to dive deeper into how a company has performed in the past. You can access this interactive graph of past earnings, revenue and cash flow, for free. Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. Therefore, you may wish to see our free collection of interesting prospects boasting favorable financials. 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. Haiti has not had a national election since 2016, and there is currently no parliament or president (Clarens SIFFROY) A powerful Haitian gang leader pledged Wednesday to continue the fighting that has plunged the country into chaos, as stakeholders work toward establishing a transitional governing body to replace the outgoing prime minister. Gangs that control most of the capital Port-au-Prince launched an armed campaign almost two weeks ago saying they intended to topple Prime Minister Ariel Henry, sending the nation into violent conflict with warnings of possible famine and civil war. Henry agreed to step aside after an emergency meeting Monday that brought together US, UN and Caribbean representatives, among others, and yielded a blueprint for Haitians to form a governing Transitional Presidential Council until elections can be held. But Jimmy Cherizier, a powerful Haitian gang leader known as "Barbecue," said Wednesday his coalition of armed groups "do not care about Ariel Henry's resignation." "We are going to continue the fight for Haiti's liberation," the former policeman under UN sanctions told Spanish-language network W Radio. Haiti has not had a national election since 2016, and there is currently no president or parliament. President Jovenel Moise, who was assassinated in 2021, was not replaced, with Henry leading the country after his death. Henry has been stranded in Puerto Rico after a visit to Kenya, where he hoped to nail down details of a plan for Nairobi to lead a UN-approved police force to restore order in Haiti. He announced late Monday he would resign when the transitional council is stood up. Kenya said it had put its plans on hold, but President William Ruto confirmed Wednesday that his country still intended to follow through with the support mission once the transitional council is installed. Guyanese President Irfaan Ali, who heads the regional bloc CARICOM, said the crisis in Haiti was likely beyond the capacity that Caribbean militaries could handle. "The situation in Haiti tells you how ill-prepared we were as a region," he said at a University of Guyana event in Georgetown. "We are now scrambling to put together joint command, joint operation." - Tough talks - The transitional body is to have seven voting members drawn from political parties, the private sector and the Montana Group, a civil society coalition that had proposed an interim government in 2021 after Moise's assassination. There will also be two non-voting seats on the council: one for civil society and another for the church. The body is supposed to quickly name an interim prime minister. The US State Department said Tuesday the council should be formed in 24 or 48 hours, but the talks are turning out to be arduous and most parties contacted by AFP said they were not yet near agreement. Parties close to Moise have selected their delegate to the transitional body but politicians loyal to Henry are still in disagreement over who will represent them. "We're talking about political parties, which have not been able to see eye to eye over the last few years," Ivan Briscoe, head of the International Crisis Group's Latin America and Caribbean program, told AFP. Now that Henry is heading out, "possibly they will look to the national interest and leave aside their party interests for a while until the elections," he said. - Slow return to normalcy - In Port-au-Prince, shops were open Wednesday and life was slowly returning to normal, an AFP reporter observed. Buses were running and some government offices were open after a two-week closure. But schools stayed shut, as did the city's airport. Several countries and the European Union have evacuated their diplomatic personnel due to the instability. The UN mission in Haiti said Wednesday it would be launching an "airbridge" from neighboring Dominican Republic to facilitate the movement of aid into the country. Several residents welcomed the resignation of Henry but wondered how the powerful gangs -- who control vast swaths of the country and 80 percent of the capital -- will behave as Haiti tries to get back on its feet. A man named Emmanuel, who declined to give his last name, said Henry "was the biggest obstacle we had." "He did not really have a plan for what to do with the country. We need a fast mechanism to replace him," Emmanuel told AFP. Another Haitian, named Jean Dieuchel, said "it is now up to the people to decide who should be prime minister and who should be president. These people should be Haitian patriots and they should have a sense of national sovereignty." str-gma-iba/nro/mlm Gang leader Jimmy "Barbecue" Cherizier speaks into his phone before a mission, as two of his men watch, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on March 5, 2024 (Clarens SIFFROY) After years of chaos in Haiti, ultraviolent gangs have turned into their own power centers, posing a massive challenge as the international community pushes a political solution for the country's crisis. Caribbean leaders and key outside powers agreed at emergency talks in Jamaica on Monday to a plan that includes the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry, and, on the security side, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken offered major new US funding for an international intervention. Henry will be replaced by a new transitional council with seven voting members that aims to set the stage for elections, the first since 2016 in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country, and the arrival of the Kenyan-led force. The council will give space to representatives of major political parties, civil society and the church but drew the line at anyone under UN sanctions or charged or convicted of crimes. The prohibition would rule out roles for two of the most feared gang leaders -- Jimmy Cherizier, a former policeman nicknamed "Barbecue" whose 2022 blockade of Haiti's fuel terminal plunged the nation deeper into collapse, and Guy Philippe, who pleaded guilty in a Miami court in 2017 to accepting up to $3.5 million in bribes from drug traffickers when he held a senior police position. Barbecue in a video vowed not to recognize the council's authority, accusing the international community of favoring a small coterie of politicians. "Our goal is to topple the system. I call on the Haitian people to take to the streets and voice their frustrations and exercise legitimate violence against those who have made us suffer for so many years," Barbecue said. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said it was no surprise gang leaders would oppose the deal as they "thrive on the chaos" that the international community is seeking to control. - Gangs 'won't go away' - Public order and basic services have broken down in Haiti after years of intertwining political, security and health crises which have been aggravated further by natural disasters. Haiti in recent weeks has descended into virtual anarchy, with bodies strewn on the streets, armed bandits ransacking basic infrastructure and fears rising of famine. Gangs control around 80 percent of the capital Port-au-Prince, according to the United Nations. Ivan Briscoe, program director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the International Crisis Group, said that gangs have "penetrated deep into communities" in the past few years of crisis, including by recruiting youths. "They've preyed on the desperation of young people," he said. "They won't go away, and they have taken on an increasingly belligerent political rhetoric," he said. "Will they accept the new equation of power? Or will they try to sabotage it in any way? We simply don't know at the moment. Much depends on a stronger official law enforcement capacity with support from abroad." The United States and Canada have declined to commit troops to another high-risk intervention in Haiti but have together committed more than $350 million to the international mission. Kenya has agreed to lead the force. It put its plan on hold after Henry announced his resignation, but US officials voiced confidence that Kenya will step up once the transition moves forward. - Negotiate with gangs? - Eddy Acevedo, chief of staff and senior advisor at the Wilson Center in Washington, said it was not out of the question for Barbecue or Guy Philippe to seize the presidential palace. "Haiti is at the brink of falling with our worst nightmare coming true," he said. The fledgling national police force could simply give up if it feels powerless, he said. "This situation can unfortunately lead to forcing political leaders to negotiate with gangs," he said. Pablo Calderon Martinez, an associate professor of international relations at Northeastern University London, said that Haiti's crisis had been allowed to fester too long, strengthening the gangs. "Once criminal organizations have the capacity to really start challenging government for control and almost legitimacy, then it is very hard for governments to rustle back control without the country descending into further violence," he said. gma-lb-sct/caw A headteacher has slammed his school's caterers for serving 'completely unacceptable' food to pupils - Redbridge Community School/Solent News & Photo Agency A head teacher has apologised to parents over school caterers who cant bake a potato. Jason Ashley, who leads Redbridge Community School in Southampton, said he was exceptionally unhappy with the dishes being served to pupils aged 11 to 16 by a private caterer. In a letter to parents, the head teacher supplied photos of bland-looking meals, showing pie and mash, baked potato and tuna, chicken and veg, and chips and beans. He blamed the problems on Chartwells, a company that describes itself as the UKs leading school catering company serving more than 2,000 schools. Mr Ashley wrote: As the Headteacher, you will often hear me say if its good enough for my own children, it has to be good enough for yours. Frankly, the food that is served in the canteen is completely unacceptable, so much so that if my own childrens school served this I would be exceptionally unhappy. He added: We have concluded with our photo evidence that Chartwells do seem to be unable to bake a potato correctly... I keep asking myself how difficult is it to bake a potato? Mr Ashley said that numerous meetings between himself and the company had proved fruitless. He also claimed that portions are shrinking and prices are rising, which Chartwells has denied. For example, recently it was British pie week and the pie served was of extremely poor quality when compared to our partner schools, he wrote. I can no longer tolerate the unacceptable nature of the food Moreover, for many of our students a school meal is so important to them but I can no longer tolerate, provide reasons or even justify to you the unacceptable nature of the food. Now, I could be completely wrong, misguided, fussy, difficult or on a different planet; so I will leave you to decide with a selection of photos taken (and this is served to staff) for you to make up your own mind. Therefore, I hope that you are as angry and as disappointed as me. For those of you that pay from your hard earned wage I can only apologise and I am sorry. James Ashley wrote that the food served by Chartwells was 'completely unacceptable' - REDBRIDGE COMMUNITY SCHOOL/SOLENT NEWS AND PHOTO AGENCY Redbridge, a mixed secondary foundation school, has its support services run through a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract which, according to Labour-run Southampton city council, gives head teachers little or no control over the quality of the services provided. PFIs were first launched in 1992 by John Majors Conservative government, before expanding widely under Tony Blairs administration. Chartwells said in a statement: We apologise that in this instance our usual level of service has fallen below the high standards we demand. We are committed to working in collaboration with the school and are implementing an immediate action plan to rectify these issues. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Rite Aid on Woodward Avenue near Forest on Friday, March 8, 2024. The store is closing soon leaving many that rely on the location for its pharmacy and other items for sale searching for another location or a different name brand store. The recent news that a busy Rite Aid store in Midtown Detroit will soon be closing reportedly because of theft was disappointing for some longtime shoppers, although not a big surprise to everyone. Detroit resident Aaron Boone, 61, recalled how he was standing in the checkout line a few months ago when he saw a man simply walk out of the store without paying for a large pack of beer. "He (came) right there like he was going to pay for a 30-pack of beer, and he walked right out," Boone said. "Its terrible, man." Aaron Boone, 61, of Detroit, in front of the Rite Aid on Woodward Avenue near Forest on Friday, March 8, 2024. The Rite Aid at 4612 Woodward is among the latest batch of "underperforming" stores that the drugstore chain has made plans to close since filing for Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy last fall. The Pennsylvania-based Rite Aid chain intends to stay in business, but with hundreds fewer of the 2,000 stores and retail pharmacies that it had last year in 17 states. More: Village-like Core City development in Detroit expands with new duplexes, restaurant A Rite Aid corporate spokesperson didn't give the specific reasons why it was decided to close the Woodward Avenue location. However, store staff have been telling customers that theft was a reason. One employee, who did not provide their name, told the Free Press last week that theft was among the reasons for the closure. The store at one time stationed a security guard near the entrance. However, the guard wasn't directed to chase after suspected shoplifters and therefore didn't deter all of the theft, one staffer told a customer. Some of the more expensive merchandise in the store, including laundry detergents and hair regrowth products, are placed behind locked shelves. The landlord of the building said Rite Aid had been a tenant for 20 years and didn't specify why it is leaving. The store is on the ground floor of an Albert Kahn-designed building that is over 100 years old and has 56 residential apartments. "We dont know why they left. Frankly, their sales were going up every year," Christine Jonna, of Bloomfield Hills-based Jonna Companies, said Monday. "It wasnt a matter of rent; we even offered them a sweeter deal. Story continues The Federal Trade Commission in December barred Rite Aid from using facial recognition technology in its stores for five years in a settlement for allegations that the drugstore chain's efforts to stop known shoplifters from entering its stores resulted in false accusations toward innocent shoppers, particularly people of color. The FTC claimed Rite Aid had at one time deployed the facial recognition technology in multiple states, including Michigan. Once the doors shut next month, the Midtown Detroit Rite Aid will become at least the fifth drugstore to close in the past six or seven years along a stretch of Woodward Avenue running through Detroit and Highland Park. The other shuttered pharmacy stores include: A CVS at 10301 Woodward Ave. that closed in 2019 and briefly became a charter school. A CVS at 7451 Woodward Ave. that closed in 2018 or early 2019 and is now a Happy Pizza. A CVS at 14140 Woodward Ave. in Highland Park that closed in 2019 or 2020 and is now a Family Furniture store. A Walgreens at 14048 Woodward Ave. in Highland Park that closed in about 2017 and is now a Family Dollar. A CVS at 7451 Woodward that closed in 2018 or early 2019 and is now a Happy Pizza. Asked about its past store closures, a CVS spokesman said many factors are taken into consideration when deciding to shut a location, including "local market dynamics, population shifts, store density and other access points to meet the communitys health and wellness needs." Nationwide, drugstore chains have been closing various urban locations in recent years amid a rise in thefts and robberies. And retailer Target last fall said that theft and "organized retail crime" that threatened the safety of employees prompted their decision to close nine stores in four states. A representative for the nonprofit community and development group Midtown Detroit Inc. said they haven't done any recent formal surveys of area retailers on the subject of theft. "It never feels good to see a staple store that supports community members in our neighborhoods close, especially as this isnt just a Midtown Detroit issue, but an example of what is happening across the country," Maureen Stapleton, the group's interim director, said in a statement. "We will certainly continue to monitor this situation and observe if there are some lessons learned to ensure we take the proper steps within our control to prevent this from happening again." The Rite Aid store closure, set to happen March 25 for the pharmacy and April 21 for the store, will be an inconvenience for residents such as Ross Consuegra, 67, who said he will likely transfer his prescriptions to a 24-hour CVS that is in the general area at the corner of Brush Street and East Warren Avenue. Ross Consuegra, 67, of Detroit, in front of the Rite Aid on Woodward Avenue near Forest on Friday, March 8, 2024. Consuegra visits the store a few times a month and with it closing soon he'll have to look for another place to have his prescriptions filled. "So I got my options," Consuegra said. "But for other people, its very disappointing." More than two dozen Rite Aid locations in Michigan have closed or will be closing as part of the company's ongoing reorganization. The Rite Aid website says there are now about 1,700 total stores. Contact JC Reindl: 313-222-6631 or jcreindl@freepress.com. Follow him on X @jcreindl. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 5th metro Detroit drugstore closes and customers think they know why In this Sept. 14 photo, a woman views damage to a commercial building that collapsed during the Sept. 11 floods in Leominster. In a letter to President Joe Biden, Massachusetts Gov. Maura T. Healey appealed the Federal Emergency Management Agency's decision to deny a disaster zone designation to parts of Worcester, Hampden and Bristol counties that were hard hit by torrential rainstorms and flash floods in September. A federal disaster area designation would unlock federal funds and emergency aid, offering financial relief to the families, businesses and governmental agencies that are still in the process of recovery and rebuilding. In her letter, Healey wrote that the storms were devastating for our communities, that she had witnessed the impacts herself, and that businesses were destroyed, roadways and bridges were inaccessible, and some residents had to be evacuated. Healey wrote that Massachusetts had released $10 million in aid two months ago to the affected communities. Her administration has allocated another $5 million to recovery efforts and expects to release that money in the spring. The state has done all that we can to support their recovery, but the needs far outpace our available resources, Healey said in her letter, adding that she believes FEMAs assessment of our request failed to include certain identified costs. Leominster Mayor Dean J. Mazzarella, whose city was hit hard by torrential rain Sept. 11, called it a perfectly written letter. Were still shocked, Mazzarella said of the initial denial that came down Feb. 11. City officials have since been working to collect and prepare documentation of the damage to support Healey's official appeal. In her letter, the governor questioned why only seven of the 56 repair projects submitted by the city were approved by FEMA, adding that a project-by-project explanation is needed for why a specific project was removed from the process and deemed ineligible. Leominster hired a former FEMA employee to help it meet requirements, process the application and fill out the reams of paperwork. No community our size is prepared to deal with 11 inches of rain in four-and-a-half hours, Mazzarella said, adding that Leominster was not flooded due to failure to maintain its infrastructure. Gov. Maura Healey surveys damage in Leominster Sept. 12. With her are state Rep. Natalie M. Higgin, Sen. John Cronin and Mayor Dean Mazzarella. In her letter, Healey said our communities must know that both their state and federal governments understand the severe challenges and stress they are facing, and that we are here to help. Their recovery is particularly daunting given the knowledge that the next severe storm could be around the corner as we continue to see the escalating impacts of climate change, Healey said. Healey wrote that Providence County in Rhode Island had received a federal disaster area proclamation for the same rainstorm. While acknowledging that the two states differ in size and ability to raise taxes, she wrote that the demographics of the affected communities is comparable. Many residents are economically challenged and 45% of Leominster households qualify for federal and state affordable housing programs. In its denial last month, FEMA wrote that its officials determined the damage "was not of such severity and magnitude as to be beyond the capabilities of the state, local governments, and voluntary agencies to recover from," according to CBS Boston. The federal agency, Healey said, failed to weigh other factors in making its decision to deny aid to homeowners, businesses and governmental agencies. She cited the unusually high levels of rainfall through the spring and summer months that saturated the ground, high groundwater tables and the location of furnaces and hot water heaters in basements. As a consequence of climate emergencies endured by Massachusetts in 2023 including a hard freeze in February that devastated the states stone fruit crop, frosts in May that affected the apple and pear crops and summer rainstorms that washed away crop fields Healey has proposed creating a disaster relief and resiliency fund to give the state greater flexibility to respond to natural and manmade disasters. State Sen. Jo Comerford, D-Northampton, and Rep. Natalie Blais, D-Deerfield, filed similar legislation. -With reports from State House News Service. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Healey appeals FEMA decision to deny disaster aid for Sept. rainstorms Stephanie Jacobson from Otsego County spoke during public comment at the Health Department of Northwest Michigan Board of Health meeting on March 5, encouraging them to continue the discussion of holding board meetings in other locations throughout the four-county region. CHARLEVOIX At their meeting on March 5, the Health Department of Northwest Michigans Board of Health voted to not support Otsego County Commissioner Henry Masons suggestion to recommend reconsideration of former board member Antrim County Commissioner Jarris Rubingh. Following their meeting on Jan. 18, Antrim County Commissioners chose to replace Rubingh, who has served on the Board of Health for two years, with Commissioner Terry VanAlstine. More: Board of Health considers rotating meeting locations More: Antrim County votes to replace Jarris Rubingh on Board of Health Masons resolution was meant to be a request to the Antrim County elected officials asking that they reconsider removing Rubingh from the Board of Health. Respectfully, I dont think it is the position of this board to dictate to any county who represents them on this board, said Charlevoix County Commissioner and board chair Scott Hankins. The Board of Health is made up of two county commissioners from each of the counties in its region, including Antrim, Charlevoix, Emmet and Otsego counties. Each county's board of commissioners decides who will represent them on the Board of Health. Subscribe: Check out our offers and read the local news that matters to you Mary Lieberman of Emmet County echoed Hankins' sentiments during public comment. I dont believe it is the responsibility, the right or the role of this body to insert itself into the governing procedures of our four individual counties, said Lieberman. Surely before giving this anymore consideration, this should be submitted to the boards attorney for legal guidance. Otsego County Commissioners Mason and Jonathan Turnbull were the only two who voted in favor of the proposed resolution. The Otsego County commissioners also disagreed with their fellow board members in a vote regarding a proposal to hold the boards monthly meetings in other locations throughout the four-county region. After a discussion and information provided by Chief Medical Officer Dan Thorell indicated that thousands of extra dollars would be spent if the meetings were to be moved locations each month, the board voted 6-2 to leave the meetings at the current location at the Shirley Roloff Center in Charlevoix. The board meets at 10 a.m. on the first Tuesday of each month at the Shirley Roloff Center, located at 13513 Division St. in Charlevoix. Their agendas can be found at nwhealth.org. Contact reporter Annie Doyle at (231) 675-0099 or adoyle@charlevoixcourier.com. This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Health Department of Northwest Michigan rejects call for reinstatement, stays put in Charlevoix for meetings A city council has put its plans to buy a hotel building on hold after a thirty party offered to develop the site. Construction of the new Hilton Hotel at Fletton Quays in Peterborough stalled in 2020 and the developer fell into administration last year. Peterborough City Council has been planning to buy the freehold and oversee the project's completion. Councillors were told on Monday that an unannounced "third party" had come forward. At the cabinet meeting John Howard, a councillor and cabinet member for corporate governance and finance, said: "The administrator of the hotel had advised officers that a bid for the hotel has been received by a third party. "Given the timing of the notification there has been insufficient time for officers to fully consider the implications of the bid and thereby, fully advise us as members on the options available in time for this meeting". The issue is due to be discussed at another cabinet meeting on 22 March. The council previously loaned developers 15m for the project - which was due to be paid back in December - and the authority estimates it will cost about 14.4m to complete the scheme. Follow East of England news on Facebook, Instagram and X. Got a story? Email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp 0800 169 1830 Hobart police offer $5K reward for information on double homicide in 2022 HOBART, Ind. Hobart police are still seeking information in an incident where two women were found shot dead in their apartment in 2022. Hobard police are offering a $5,000 reward for anyone with information that would lead to criminal charges being filed in the double homicide. On Nov. 4, 2022, Hobart police responded to a welfare check in the 400 block of Ruta Drive and found 20-year-old Nazirah Muhammad and Destiny Jackson dead inside their apartment with gunshot wounds to the head. Their deaths were ruled homicides. Anyone with information regarding the incident are instructed to contact Corporal Gallagher at 219-942-4991 or by email at mgallagher@cityofhobart.org. Tips may remain anonymous. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV. SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) A fire marshal investigation is underway after a home on the intersection of West Highland Boulevard and South Randolph Street caught fire during the late afternoon hours of Wednesday, March 13. Several San Angelo Fire Department firefighters were present at the scene, where a portion of the homes exterior was visibly charred by flames. Our reporter at the scene observed fire department members inspecting the electrical systems attached to the home as well as a nearby power pole. Further information has been withheld pending the conclusion of the fire marshals investigation. This is a developing story. Stick with Concho Valley Homepage for updates as more information becomes available. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ConchoValleyHomepage.com. Ana Garcia, wife of a former Honduran leader convicted for drug trafficking, announced she will run for president (Orlando SIERRA) A former Honduran first lady said she will contest the 2025 presidential elections, an announcement that follows days after her husband's conviction for trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into the United States. "I have decided to launch my pre-candidacy for the Presidency of the Republic for the National Party," Ana Garcia de Hernandez posted on social media platform X on Tuesday. The lawyer, whose husband Juan Orlando Hernandez served as president from 2014-2022, added that from Wednesday she will begin a "crusade for justice" in his defense. He was found guilty of drugs and arms trafficking by a New York federal court on Friday and could spend the rest of his life in prison. The 12-member jury unanimously found Hernandez guilty for conspiracy to import cocaine, illegally using and carrying machine guns and possessing machine guns as part of a "cocaine-importation conspiracy." "I am innocent, tell the world," he told friends, relatives and supporters -- including three generals who testified on his behalf -- as he was escorted from the courtroom. Honduras will hold elections in November 2025 to choose a replacement for President Xiomara Castro. Parties must call primaries to choose their candidates before the vote. nl/atm/ssy/lb Every year, on March 17, St. Patricks Day is celebrated in earnest all over the world. Although the holiday has become synonymous with wearing green and downing pints of Guinness among other libations, theres much more to it. The festivities surrounding the holiday honor the life and teachings of Saint Patrick, Irelands patron saint who is believed to have been born as Maewyn Succat and later adopted the moniker by which hes known today. But what exactly is Patricks story and how do we separate the fact from fiction when it comes to the traditions and religious symbols he inspired hundreds of years ago? Here are seven lesser-known facts about the national apostle of Ireland. Saint Patrick wasnt Irish The biggest misconception about Saint Patrick was that he was Irish. Born in England circa 385 AD, Saint Patrick didnt make his way to Ireland until Irish pirates kidnapped him at age 16 and sold him into slavery. Later, he dedicated his life to converting the Irish to Christianity. He taught himself to read and write Because of his enslavement, its believed Saint Patrick missed out on education opportunities such as learning to read and write in his youth. Saint Patricks education seemed limited to religious teachings where he studied under a French bishop and was eventually ordained. Still, lack of a formal education embarrassed Saint Patrick, who is believed to have taught himself to read and write beyond his basic Latin. According to a blog on the Oxford University Presss website, Saint Patricks success as a missionary was due to tenacity and dogged determination, even in the face of uncertainty and second guesses about his own self-worth. Some believe that Saint Patrick created the Celtic cross Getty Images Although the exact origins of the Celtic cross remain uncertain, some believe that Saint Patrick created the symbol. The Celtic Cross features a circle, which some refer to as a halo or circle of light, around the center of a traditional Christian cross. It is frequently seen on tombstones in cemeteries, sometimes with intricate designs carved onto its surface. It is said that Saint Patrick created the Celtic cross by embedding pagan symbolismthe circle of lightto help him convert pagans to Christianity. Saint Patrick used a shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity The shamrock (or three-leaf clover, as its often called) has long been an Irish symbol, and according to Time, is also recognized as the unofficial national flower of Ireland. According to some, Saint Patrick used the shamrock as an aid to explain the Holy Trinity to people he tried converting to Christianity. In fact, botanist Caleb Threlkelds 1726 treatise on native Irish flora mentions Saint Patricks use of the shamrock as a religious tool. Although the religious meaning Saint Patrick mightve applied to the plant hundreds of years ago depicted the three holiest entities in Christianity, today the shamrock endures as an image of Irish pride. The original color for St. Patricks Day wasnt green Green wasnt the original color used to represent St. Patrickit was blue. After the Order of Saint Patrick was established in 1783, the organizations color had to stand out from those that preceded it. And since dark green was already taken, the Order of Saint Patrick went with blue. There were no snakes for Saint Patrick to banish in Ireland According to folklore, Saint Patrick chased away snakes in Ireland, thus protecting townspeople from the mysterious creatures and sending them to the sea. However, Ireland didnt have snakes at the time. Surrounded by icy water, Ireland was the last place that these cold-blooded reptiles would want to go. Its much more reasonable to think that the snakes that St. Patrick banished were representative of the Druids and Pagans in Ireland since they were considered evil. Saint Patrick was never canonized by a pope Despite his name, its worth noting that a pope never canonized Saint Patrick, making his saintly status somewhat questionable. In all fairness, Saint Patrick wasnt the only saint that didnt go through a proper canonization. In the Catholic Churchs first millennium, there wasnt a formal canonization process at all, so most saints from that period were given the title if they were either martyrs or seen as extraordinarily holy. You Might Also Like Its just over six months until Election Day. The president faces a tough fight for reelection. His approval rating has cratered below 40% in the polls, his party is divided over a foreign war, and a bipartisan chorus declares that hes no longer up to the job. Polls show him running neck and neck with the likely Republican nominee. Faced with this grim situation, the president decides to put country before his own political ambition and declares he wont run for reelection. Joe Biden in 2024? Nope, its Lyndon Johnson in 1968. On March 31 of that year, LBJ shocked the nation when, at the end of a televised address on the Vietnam War, he declared, I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president. Today, a chorus of political commentators predict or hope that Biden will follow LBJs example. But 2024 is not 1968, and Joseph Robinette Biden is not Lyndon Baines Johnson. Divisions over a war In 1968, the Democratic Party was deeply divided over the Vietnam War. Despite having deployed over 500,000 troops and suffered over 20,000 deaths, the U.S. seemed no closer to victory. So-called hawks demanded that the president hold the line in Vietnam or even escalate further in order to achieve total victory. Doves argued that the war was unwinnable and the U.S. should look for a negotiated settlement. Today, many Democrats oppose Bidens support for Israels military campaign against Hamas, but its easy to overstate this division. A recent Gallup poll found that only 1% of Americans cited war in the Middle East as the nations top problem. In contrast, early in 1968, Gallup found that a majority of Americans 53% said that Vietnam was the most important issue facing the nation. Furthermore, most Democrats remain supportive of Israel. A recent Reuters poll found that 46% of Democrats blame Hamas for the war compared with only 22% who blame Israel. Whatever concerns Democrats might have over Biden, the fact remains that no prominent Democrats have chosen to oppose him for the party nomination. Even leading progressive Democrats like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have endorsed Biden. Ocasio-Cortez even went so far as to call Biden one of the most successful presidents in modern American history. Bitter differences over the Vietnam War were on display at the 1968 Democratic convention. Washington Bureau/Getty Images After LBJ, no unity In contrast, differences over the Vietnam War and other issues led two sitting U.S. senators, Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota and Robert F. Kennedy of New York, to challenge Johnson for the Democratic nomination. And despite low name recognition and a shoestring campaign, McCarthy even managed a near upset of Johnson in the New Hampshire primary, held on March 12, 1968. Given these differences, it seems very unlikely that Biden will seek to follow LBJs example by dropping out of the race. And for those who hope Biden will do so anyway, they should be careful what they wish for. Johnsons withdrawal failed to unify the party. Far from it. McCarthy, Kennedy and Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who joined the race after Johnsons exit, fought a bitter battle for the nomination. Tensions exploded during that years Democratic convention in Chicago. Americans watched on live television as police brutally beat anti-war demonstrators in the streets outside the convention hall. Inside the convention, Sen. Abraham Ribicoff of Connecticut denounced Gestapo tactics on the streets of Chicago. In response, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley unleashed a torrent of vulgar, antisemitic comments. Humphrey eventually won the nomination, but his candidacy was deeply wounded and he went on to narrowly lose the election to Richard Nixon. Should Biden decide not to run, Democrats might face a similar situation. There is no obvious candidate to replace him, and the contest to do so would likely inflame Democratic divisions over ideology, gender and race. Furthermore, at this late date, it would be nearly impossible to win the nomination via the remaining caucuses and primaries. Instead, the Democratic convention, slated for late August in Chicago, would probably end up choosing the nominee, leaving him or her open to criticism that they were selected by party bosses rather than the people. 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. It was written by: Philip Klinkner, Hamilton College Read more: Philip Klinkner 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. Seema Misra's conviction was quashed by the Court of Appeal in 2021 Plans to clear the names of wrongly convicted sub-postmasters have been described as a "tiny step forward" by a woman from Surrey who was wrongfully jailed. Sub-postmistress Seema Misra was pregnant with her second son when she was sent to prison for an alleged 70,000 shortfall at the West Byfleet branch she ran. A new law being introduced on Wednesday is expected to exonerate the majority of victims in England and Wales by the end of July. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it is "an important step forward in finally clearing" hundreds of sub-postmasters. The proposed Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill will help people whose lives had been "callously torn apart", Mr Sunak said. Mrs Misra told BBC Radio Surrey the plans were "a very tiny step forward". She called for an independent body to take charge of the compensation scheme, but said the government's decision to step in was a positive move. She said: "There are so many people who are still waiting for their money, that needs to be sorted as well." In 2010, Mrs Misra she was given a 15 month sentence in Bronzefield Prison. She lied to her parents, who were living in India and have since died, to protect them from the truth that their daughter was in jail. Wrongly convicted The government's plans include an "enhanced" financial redress for sub-postmasters who, while not convicted or part of legal action against the Post Office, made good the apparent losses caused by the Horizon system from their own pockets. Those wrongly convicted will get an option to settle for 600,000, without the need to bring a formal claim. The government said the new Horizon Convictions Redress Scheme will be open for applications "as soon as possible" for people who have had their convictions quashed. Follow BBC South East on Facebook , on X , and on Instagram . Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. More on this story WASHINGTON The House approved a bill Wednesday that would force TikToks parent company to sell the juggernaut social media app or face a practical ban in the U.S. President Joe Biden has said he would sign it if it makes it to his desk, but the legislations fate is uncertain in the Senate, where the bill has proved much more divisive. The bill cleared the House with strong bipartisan support, 352 to 65, with one member voting present. The legislations proponents argue the app, immensely popular with teens and young people for its customized song and dance features on short clip videos, poses national security risks. TikTok's parent company ByteDance, is based in Beijing and may expose American user data to Chinese government surveillance. The FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that the company could share sweeping user data, including browsing history, location and other identifiers, with Chinese authorities. Mar 13, 2024; Washington, DC, USA; Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) after the House approved a bill Wednesday, March 13, 2024, that would force TikToks parent company to sell the popular social media app or face a practical ban in the U.S. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY ORG XMIT: USAT-tik tok vote (Via OlyDrop) For its part, TikTok says it stores all American user data in a U.S.-based entity, and the storage is solely managed by the companys U.S.-based security. Their efforts, however, have done little to alleviate lawmaker concerns. The Biden administration last year called on federal agencies to delete TikTok from all government-issued mobile devices. Congress, the White House and the U.S. armed forces had already banned TikTok from the devices. TikTok launched an intense lobbying campaign ahead of the House vote, urging its users to call their representatives and urge them to vote against the bill. The companys CEO Shou Chew also visited Capitol Hill on Tuesday to persuade lawmakers mainly senators to oppose it. Former President Donald Trump waded into the debate as well, coming out against the bill and posting on Truth Social, his social media app, If you get rid of TikTok, Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business, referring to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The bill was fast-tracked to the House floor after it was approved by the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee last week by a unanimous vote of 50-0, a stunning, unusual sight for the lower chamber. The FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that TikTok could share sweeping user data, including browsing history, location and other identifiers, with Chinese authorities. As bipartisan as the bills support was, the effort still received pushback from lawmakers who say an effective ban on the app would limit freedom of expression. Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., along with a handful of other progressive lawmakers, held a press conference Tuesday with TikTok content creators warning against an effective ban. Any ban on TikTok is not just banning the freedom of expression. You are literally causing huge harm to our national economy, Garcia said, noting TikToks use as a platform for small businesses. Legislation on TikTok faces uphill climb in the Senate The upper chamber has also been less bullish about the legislation. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has not said whether he would bring the Houses bill up for a vote, explaining he would have to confer with committee chairs. Mar 13, 2024; Washington, DC, USA; Protesters outside of the United States Capitol as the House voted and approved a bill Wednesday, March 13, 2024, that would force TikToks parent company to sell the popular social media app or face a practical ban in the U.S. Mandatory Credit: Jack Gruber-USA TODAY ORG XMIT: USAT-tik tok vote (Via OlyDrop) While most senators agree that TikToks Chinese parent company poses a security threat to the U.S., many have concerns about the legality of singling out one company. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., the chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, said Tuesday shes not sure what her committee would do once the House passed the bill. The committee has been working on this (issue) diligently for a while with the goal of finding a tool that could stand up to legal scrutiny. The whole point here is you have a dilemma: You want free speech, but you also want the United States to have some ability to protect U.S. citizens or U.S. military from foreign actors who might be deleterious in what they would be using as a tool of communication, she said. Trump attempted to ban TikTok when he was president, but it was blocked by courts for failing to adequately consider an obvious and reasonable alternative, a federal judge wrote at the time. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, the top Republican on the Commerce Committee, said he has deep concerns with TikTok, but said he hasnt looked at the House bill yet. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said Monday he would block speedy passage in the Senate because it violates the First Amendment rights of 180 million Americans. Others have said theyre strongly supportive of any effort to block TikTok. I think if you get it to a vote, its hard to vote no on, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who supports the House bill and banning TikTok generally, said Monday. But I think there will be a fierce effort to prevent any vote. Contributing: The Associated Press This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: House approves TikTok bill that would force sale or effective ban Spring the time of the year where we try to rid ourselves of all of the dirt, grime and clutter we somehow accumulated during the dark winter months. There's nothing more satisfying than deep cleaning your entire home as the weather finally warms up, and opening your windows to let in some of that fresh spring air. If you're looking to rid yourself of those bad winter germs and start fresh for the new season, here are some things you should do to make the most of your home spring cleaning: Wipe down your baseboards, doors, walls and ceilings While you may regularly mop your floors and vacuum your rugs, how often do you clean surfaces like your walls, ceilings and doors? While they may not cross your mind as often, these areas are still worth some attention during your spring cleaning session. Start by removing any excess dust off of these surfaces with a dry microfiber towel or with the dust attachment of a vacuum cleaner. Then, mix some dish detergent and warm water together in a bucket, and use a sponge or another microfiber towel to thoroughly clean off any built up grime. Wash window screens, wipe down windows and clean curtains Cleaning your windows improves the look of your home both inside and outside. Deep cleaning your windows is essential, as it was improve the appearance of your home both inside and out. Start by creating a mixture of warm water and dish detergent or, one part vinegar to three parts water, if you prefer and scrub both sides of your window screens with a soft-bristled brush. Then, rinse off the screens to remove any leftover soap and stubborn particles. For the window frames, you can use this same cleaning solution and a microfiber towel to wipe off any dirt. To clean the window glass, there are several methods you can use. This includes using a spray glass cleaner or making your own with rubbing alcohol, water and vinegar and a cloth to remove smudges. Or, you can opt for warm, soapy water and a small squeegee. Shampoo rugs, mop hardwood floors and clean tile grout Use baking soda, hydrogen peroxide and dish soap to clean dirty tile grout. Your floors see a lot of traffic on a daily basis, so no matter how much you vacuum your rug and sweep your floors, there's just some grime that won't go away without some elbow grease. Story continues For rooms that are entirely carpeted, using a designated carpet cleaning machine is your best best. For area rugs, you can take them outside and use either a sponge or soft-bristle brush to scrub the rug with a cleaning solution. This can either be a specific rug shampoo mixed with water, or mild dish soap mixed with water warm water for synthetic fiber rugs and cold water for wool rugs. Then, rinse the rug to remove any excess soap and let it fully dry before bringing it back inside. For hardwood or tile floors, simply mix warm water and a gentle dish detergent in a bucket, and use a microfiber mop to clean small sections at a time. Then go over the surface with a dry mop to remove excess water. Finally, to clean tile grout, you can mix baking soda, hydrogen peroxide and dish soap together. Put some of this mixture onto the dirty grout, and let it sit for five to ten minutes before scrubbing and wiping the area clean. Deep clean your home appliances Deep clean the inside and outside of your appliances, including your oven, stove, microwave and fridge. Take this time to give all of your home appliances a good cleaning. This includes wiping down items like your microwave, refrigerator and freezer, as well as your stove and oven, with soap and water. Also, if necessary, consider pulling out these appliances and cleaning any dirt that has made their way under them. Make sure not to neglect other frequently used appliances either, like your washer and dryer. You can clean your washer by adding bleach or another designated cleaner to the machine and turning on its self-cleaning cycle. If you'd like, you can run an additional rinse cycle while the machine is empty to make sure any excess bleach or cleaner has been removed before adding in clothes. For your dryer, use a crevice tool to remove any hard-to-reach line. Additionally, use your vacuum's hose to clean as far into the dryer vent as possible while it's unplugged, and vacuum under, around and behind the dryer to clean any extra debris. Unclog and clean drains Deep clean your drains to remove odors and prevent clogging. A slow-moving drain is enough to drive anyone crazy. While your drains should receive regular cleanings, add them to your list of chores to complete this spring. You can start the process by using a plunger to take care of any potential clogs. If there is a clog near the top of the drain, you can also use a barbed plastic cleaning tool to remove it. Then, you can properly clean the drain. You can opt for a biological cleaner, such as Zep and Citra-Drain. But, if you're looking for a more natural option, you can use items you likely already have in your home. Pour half a cup of baking soda down your drain, followed by half a cup of white vinegar. Cover the opening of the drain, and let the mixture sit for 15 minutes before pouring boiling water down the drain to flush it out. Dust ceiling fans, light fixtures, bookcases, shelves, etc. Take the time to dust areas of your home that are typically overlooked during your regular cleanings. Our homes have a lot of hidden crevices that can collect an abundance of dust and dirt. This includes things like ceiling fans, light fixtures, wall shelves, the tops of bookcases and various knick-knacks. Take the time to use a microfiber cloth or another tool to remove built-up dust in any hidden areas or surfaces in your home. Wash bulky bedding items and deep clean your mattress While you may wash your sheets and throw blankets regularly, your pillows, comforters, duvet covers and mattresses only need to be cleaned about two to three times per year. So, spring cleaning is the perfect time to tackle these items. For pillows and blankets, check the label on your items to ensure you take the proper steps when cleaning them. Some of these items can be tossed in the washer with basic laundry detergent, but certain fabrics may need special care. To clean your mattress, you can use a carpet cleaning machine attachment, if you have one. Otherwise, combine alcohol, vinegar and a bit of bleach into a bottle, and spray that onto your mattress. Then, dust the surface with baking soda, let it sit for a few hours and vacuum it up. Make sure you do this early enough in the day so your mattress has to time to dry. And, if you don't already have one, consider getting a mattress protector to keep fresh for a longer period of time. Maddie McGay is the real estate reporter for NorthJersey.com and The Record, covering all things worth celebrating about living in North Jersey. Find her on Instagram @maddiemcgay , on X @maddiemcgayy , and sign up for her North Jersey Living newsletter. Do you have a tip, trend or terrific house she should know about? Email her at MMcGay@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Spring cleaning checklist: 7 ways to freshen up your home Recorded earlier The House passed a bill Wednesday presenting an ultimatum to the ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok. Under the measure, the company would have to sell the popular video platform or face a ban in the U.S. The bill has bipartisan support in the House, and President Biden has said he would sign the legislation. But passage in the Senate is not guaranteed. Former President Trump, who attempted to ban TikTok in 2020, has nonetheless come out against this bill. Free speech advocates have voiced their own opposition to a ban. The vote is expected to take place after 10 a.m. EDT. Watch the live video above. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. More than two dozen House Democrats established a new border security task force on Tuesday, as members double down on border policy amid the 2024 election. The task force, co-chaired by Reps. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) and Tom Suozzi (D-N.Y.), is dedicated to countering the surge of illicit narcotics threatening communities across the country and addressing the influx of irregular migration at the southern border, Cuellars office said in a statement. Moderate Democrats have increased pressure on President Biden in recent weeks to make a deal with Republicans on border security measures. House Republicans previously threw out a bipartisan border security bill passed in the Senate last month. Cities across the country are now feeling the consequences of the humanitarian crisis at the border something border communities have been dealing with for years, Cuellar said in a statement. This crisis is unsustainable, and Democrats need a forum to approach border security policy as the GOP continues to play partisan politics with the issue. Republicans have demanded major changes in border security policy, which most Democrats have refused. Republicans claim Democrats offered reforms are not far enough. The debate has brought legislation in the House to a standstill, including government funding measures. The border is consistently one of the most important issues to voters in 2024, according to public opinion polls. Suozzi won a Long Island special election last month with a campaign that emphasized border issues, urging reform but falling short of fully criticizing the president. Cuellar, one of the most moderate members in the House Democratic Caucus, has been among the loudest Democratic critics of the presidents border policies. On Tuesday, he and 13 other Democrats voted for a GOP-led measure criticizing Biden over the border and urging him to use expanded executive authority to rein in immigration. The task force will act as a forum for Democrats to discuss and participate in border security issues, Cuellars office said, and hold meetings with the Biden administration and stakeholders to develop policy. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives kicked off a signature-gathering drive for a procedural move aimed at forcing a vote on aid to Ukraine, despite House Speaker Mike Johnson's reluctance to bring the bill to the floor, Reuters reported on March 12. Petition was initiated by Democrat Jim McGovern, a key member of the House Rules Committee, and requires 218 signatures more than half of the House's 435 voting members to compel consideration of a Senate-passed foreign aid package. This package includes $95 billion for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and humanitarian aid in Gaza. Read also: Russia does not want a war with the US and NATO, but will continue asymmetrical activities - US intelligence As of 11:39 PM EET, the petition had garnered 165 signatures. The Senate overwhelmingly passed the aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, along with replenishments for U.S. weapon stockpiles last month, with a vote of 70-30. Twenty-two Republicans joined the majority of Democrats in support. The matter is currently in limbo in the House due to resistance from Republicans particularly those closely aligned with former President Donald Trump, who opposes the aid to Kyiv. Read also: Russia can start ground invasion of NATO countries without using nuclear weapons Zelenskyy The U.S. Senate in a final vote on Feb. 13 supported a bill that provides aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan amounting to $95 billion, with $60 billion designated for Kyiv. That same day, House Speaker Johnson once again criticized the Senate's proposal, stating he had no plans to bring the Senate-backed bill to the floor for consideration. U.S. House of Representatives went on recess on Feb. 15 without passing the aid for Ukraine, postponing the matter until at least mid-March. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson promised a timely vote on extending aid to Ukraine following a meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House on Feb. 27. During the meeting with congressional leaders from both parties, Biden emphasized the "urgent need" to allocate the aid for Ukraine. Speakers of 23 parliaments and President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola have called on U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson to introduce a bill that would allocate $60 billion to help Ukraine, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk, who initiated the letter of appeal, reported on Facebook on Feb. 28. 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 House passed a bill that could ban TikTok in a 352-65 vote Wednesday, putting the spotlight on the Senate on how to handle the controversial legislation that has support from President Biden. One lawmaker voted present. The Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act would force ByteDance, TikToks China-based parent company, to divest the app within roughly five months of going into effect, or be banned from U.S. app stores and web hosting services. The bill passed quickly through the House in a floor vote scheduled less than a week after it was first introduced by Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), the top lawmakers on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. House Republicans invoked a special rule for the vote that required two-thirds majority to pass rather than the simple majority needed for most House bills to expedite the process. Republicans also raced to pass the bill in the face of opposition from former President Trump, who tried and failed to ban TikTok as president before reversing his position. Supporters of the bill say it aims to curb national security posed by ByteDance, which they say could share sensitive data from American users with the Chinese government. TikTok has pushed back on accusations that it poses national security risks and strongly opposed the legislation. A TikTok spokesperson slammed the House for a rushed process on the bill. This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: its a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service, the spokesperson said. Although the ban passed with bipartisan support, there was also vocal opposition on both sides of the aisle. I am highly concerned about our data being collected and being misused by both foreign adversaries and also domestic companies. But this bill does not fix that problem, Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) said Tuesday. He was also among Democrats who raised concerns about how the bill could infringe on users free speech rights. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University also raised those concerns about the bill. Trump, the presumptive GOP 2024 presidential nominee, was the strongest force from the right who opposed the bill. He cast his opposition around how a ban might benefit rival social media company Facebook. Trumps opposition to a possible TikTok ban came after he met with Jeff Yass, a major GOP donor and investor in TikTok. Trump said Yass did not bring up TikTok during the conversation. Biden said he would sign the bill if passed by Congress, leaving it now up to the Senate to act. It is unclear if the Senate will bring up the legislation. In a statement, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the Senate will review the legislation when it comes over from the House. Gallagher said Tuesday, ahead of the vote, that theres a lot of interest and praised Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), the chair and ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, respectively, for their work. They clearly understand the threat that the current ownership structure poses, and so I look to work with my Senate colleagues as this moves forward, Gallagher said. In a statement released after the vote, Rubio and Warner expressed support for the House bill and highlighted the lower chambers strong bipartisan support for the measure. We are united in our concern about the national security threat posed by TikTok a platform with enormous power to influence and divide Americans whose parent company ByteDance remains legally required to do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party, they said. We were encouraged by todays strong bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives, and look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law. Warner said in a statement last week he has some concerns about the constitutionality of an approach that names specific companies. The senator added that he has tremendous respect for Congressman Gallagher, and hes going to be taking a close look at this bill. If the law is enacted, it may still face constitutional challenges like other bills that sought to ban TikTok before it. Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi said that the way it is drafted goes around issues that were brought up in other bills, highlighting the choice it gives ByteDance to divest TikTok. But experts said the bill would likely face the same fate. Susan Ariel Aaronson, a research professor of international affairs at George Washington University, said the bill is contradictory to the rule of law. She also said it doesnt address the root of the problem, and banning one firm will likely lead to another popping up in the future without addressing the real problem. Sarah Kreps, director of the Tech Policy Institute at Cornell University, said she isnt confident the bill will actually sidestep the free speech concerns raised in previous attempts. ByteDance has said they will not divest TikTok, so I have no reason to think they would exercise that option, she said. Updated at 11:44 a.m. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. A short-lived bipartisan effort to move sexual harassment investigations outside the purview of the legislature to the Attorney Generals Office died on Tuesday as House Republicans declined to discuss the proposal preventing a former lawmaker who resigned amid a harassment report from testifying on the bill. The proposal followed a long list of sexual harassment complaints in recent years, including one that led to Rep. Scotty Campbell's resignation last year. Currently, all sexual harassment complaints are handled internally through a confidential investigation by the Office of Legislative Administration. Rep. Todd Warner, R-Chapel Hill, and Rep. Aftyn Behn, D-Nashville, sponsored the legislation and said the current system gives legislative leadership too much power, and does not provide adequate transparency or accountability. As the youngest woman in the Tennessee House, and as a woman who works here in this body: the process is being weaponized right now, Behn said. This is not against anyone in particular in leadership. It needs to be removed from this body because of the weight and the subjectivity that is put on it. Warner and Behn appeared to present the bill to the House Public Service Subcommittee late Tuesday afternoon. But while Rep. Vincent Dixie, D-Nashville, made a motion to take up the bill, no Republican seconded it. Rep. Aftyn Behn D-Nashville and Former Republican state representative, Scotty Campbell speak to member of the press at Cordell Hull State Office Building in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Youve got to be kidding me, Warner said to Republican colleagues after they killed the bill. Afterward, Warner told reporters the committees action was not unexpected, as hed asked members of the committee ahead of time for their support. I absolutely knew it was coming. Its what they told me they werent going to support it, Warner said, explaining that some members of the committee objected to his working with a Democrat and others didnt support having Campbell back to testify. Its my members. Ive got nobody else to blame. Its my members. Rep. Todd Warner R- Chapel Hill, Rep. Aftyn Behn D-Nashville and former Rep. Scotty Campbell, R-Mountain City, speak to the media at the Cordell Hull State Office Building in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Behn and Warner both said they will continue to seek to remove the process from the purview of the General Assembly. It's incredibly sad. I know a lot of women that work in this building don't feel comfortable coming forward and feel like the process would be weaponized and to force them to exit, Behn said. I'm not saying it's a bad place to work, Warner added of the legislature. I'm just saying we can make it a better place. Campbell, R-Mountain City, was present in the committee chamber to testify on the bill on Tuesday evening but was not able to do so as Republicans on the panel did not allow the bill to be heard. Campbell resigned last April after a House ethics panel found that he sexually harassed a legislative employee. Campbell has since contended that all interactions were consensual and outside of the workplace and work hours. That was planned, Campbell said of the committees action Tuesday. That was basically a wellorchestrated sham much like something else Ive been through in the last year. Former Republican state Rep. Scotty Campbell speaks to the media at the Cordell Hull State Office Building in Nashville , Tenn., Tuesday, March 12, 2024. After the hearing, Campbell reiterated allegations made in a lawsuit filed earlier this year that he was forced by House Republican Caucus Chair Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, to resign. Campbell claimed shortly after reports of the ethics finding came out that Faison called him on the phone as he was walking back to the House chamber for session. He said, If you dont resign today, youre going to get expelled, today, and youre going to lose your health insurance, Campbell told The Tennessean. Campbell said he understood Faisons words to be a threat and decided to resign. Last month, Faison declined to comment when asked if he asked Campbell to resign last year. He did not respond to a text message from The Tennessean on Tuesday evening. Last month, Faison also denied Campbell's allegations and the existence of any complaint against him, without explaining why a judge would reference one related to Faison in a separate public records lawsuit. In that lawsuit, a Nashville judge detailed records that the Office of Legislative Administration provided him to review. They included a "second blue letter-sized file folder dated 4/5/23, with an alleged victim's first name containing two pages of notes pertaining to a complaint against Representative Faison," according to the judge's order. Whatever he's alleging is not there, Faison said of Campbell at the time. It's non-existent. The judge said some stuff, but there is no complaint against me. House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, has also stood by Faison and said no complaint was filed against him. Campbell told reporters Tuesday that he knows the identity of the person who filed allegations against Faison, but would continue to protect the person's identity. This embedded content is not available in your region. Scotty Campbell statement 3-12 by USA TODAY Network Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@tennessean.com. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TN House: Republicans quash effort to send harassment inquires to AG The US House of Representatives has voted to approve a bill that could ban TikTok from US app stores. The bill Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applicants Act overwhelmingly surpassed the 2/3 majority needed when lawmakers cast their votes on Wednesday morning. Authored by a bipartisan group of representatives, the bill would allow federal law enforcement agencies to label certain apps as national security threats if they are determined to be under the control of foreign adversaries. If the bill becomes law, TikTok parent company ByteDance will have 180 days to sell 80 per cent of its stake to a US company or face the app being removed from American app stores. The FBI has previously warned that TikTok could spread harmful propaganda due to ByteDances alleged ties to the Chinese government. So now the House has voted in favour of the bill what happens now? Following a successful House vote, the bill will now go to the US Senate for a vote. However, given the upper chambers Democratic majority, it is unclear whether the bill will survive this next step. However, some Republican Senators have already expressed their support. Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, called for the chamber to take up the bill immediately. If it does indeed pass the Senate, President Joe Biden has already told reporters he is committed to signing the bill into law. Despite overwhelming support for the bill among the House, it has also faced opposition from both parties. Representative Jim Himes, a Democrat and ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, voted against the bill. I have more insight than most into the online threats posed by our adversaries, Mr Himes said in a statement. But one of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations, and social media platforms. We do not. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right Republican, also voted no. As the only member of Congress who has ever been banned from social media, I oppose todays TikTok ban bill, she wrote on X. This bill would open Pandoras box and create a slippery slope for future government censorship of Americans and our precious First Amendment. The bill also faces backlash from former president Donald Trump, who reversed his position on the potential TikTok ban only recently and now claims it will allow Meta platforms like Facebook and Instagram to become more successful. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, the former president said, referring to his baseless conspiracy theory that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. Amid these threats to its app, ByteDance has launched a massive campaign to kill the bill. Last week, some TikTok users got a push notification urging them to call their representatives and speak out against the bill. Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin and co-author of the bill, told NBC News his office was then inundated with calls. This strategy came as a House committee advanced the bill on a rare unanimous bipartisan vote of 50-0 earlier this month, making its success on Wednesday morning unsurprising. TOPEKA (KSNT) The Kansas House of Representatives has passed Senate Bill 233 supporting the ban on gender-affirming care for children. The bill prevents minors from gender reassignment surgeries and treatments by passing the Help Not Harm Act. If it becomes law Kansas would join 22 other states in providing legal recourse for minors who were victimized, according to a press release from the Kansas House of Representatives. The bill overwhelmingly passed 80-40 and will now go to the senate. Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins, House Majority Leader Chris Croft and Speaker Pro Tempore Blake Carpenter released the following joint statement: One of our jobs as legislators is to ensure the right protections are in place for the well-being of Kansas kids. There are numerous examples of this including age restrictions for the purchase of alcohol or cigarettes, gambling, and other practices that can lead to sustained, negative outcomes for vulnerable youth. Kids brains arent fully developed to the point they can make these life-altering decisions. These procedures have been found to lead to long-term consequences such as sterilization, permanent voice changes, and the increased risk of cardiovascular issues and osteoporosis. For all of the time spent by this body discussing parental rights, SB 233 sure throws them to the wind, House Democratic Leader Vic Miller said. Not only does the Republican Party think they have the right to tell parents how to best raise their children, but theyre criminalizing health care workers during a time when we struggle to find enough doctors in the state for basic care. Theyre hungry for control. They just cant help themselves, as proven by the annual iterations of bills like this. Let parents parent and let health care workers provide care. Nexstars Kansas Capitol Bureau spoke with Democratic Governor Laura Kelly about the bill on Friday. This is not the first time theyve passed that bill out and I think you can look back in history and see how Ive responded in the past, and I really havent changed my position, Kelly said. The governor has vetoed similar legislation in the past. Gender-affirming care ban advances to Kansas House floor; Whats next? For more Capitol Bureau news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) The House passed a bill Wednesday morning that would force the Chinese owners of TikTok to sell the app or risk having it banned in the U.S. The bill passed with 352 lawmakers voting in support, but this does not mean the app goes away instantly. With every dance challenge and lip sync video, American users are unknowingly contributing to a vast surveillance apparatus, said Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-N.Y.). The legislation requires TikToks parent company ByteDance, which is based in China, to sell TikTok in the next six months or see the app deleted from app stores in the U.S. Supporters of the bill say the app is a national security threat as the Chinese government could force TikTok to hand over American users data. I think the Congress is stating the data rights of Americans have got to be safe from foreign government manipulation, said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) Illinois Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi says the goal is not to ban TikTok. Our intention is for TikTok to continue to operate, but not under control of the Chinese Communist Party, Krishnamoorthi said. Some lawmakers voted no, such as California Democrat Sydney Kamlager-Dove, who says this legislation wont stop China from getting Americans data. Even without TikTok the PRC could still be able to conduct influence operations on other social media platforms, Kamlager-Dove said. Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie says the bill could be unconstitutional. Some of us are concerned that there are First amendment implications here, Massie said. The legislation now heads to the Senate where senators seem less enthusiastic. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia and Senator Marco Rubio of Florida head the Senate Intelligence committee and put a statement out urging support of the House bill. However, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is uncommitted and said the Senate will review the legislation. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. WASHINGTON The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a bill that would force ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok, to sell the popular app or see it banned in the U.S. The legislation sailed through the House by an overwhelming bipartisan margin, with a 352-65 vote, due to concerns about national security and data privacy. But the bills fate is uncertain in the Senate, where it faces bipartisan opposition. TikTok is a threat to our national security because it is owned by a company which does the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party, bill sponsor Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) said before the vote. This bill therefore forces TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. It does not apply to American companies. It only applies to companies subject to the control of foreign adversaries defined by Congress. The bill aims to outlaw the distribution of foreign adversary controlled applications, such as TikTok and any successor application or service and any other application or service developed or provided by ByteDance Ltd. or an entity under the control of ByteDance Ltd. TikTok is used by more than 170 million Americans, including many children and teens. Over the past few days, congressional offices were flooded with calls after the app sent a pop-up message to users urging them to tell their representatives in Congress to oppose the bill. Speaking on CNN on Wednesday, Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.) said he had a bunch of 12- and 13-year-olds calling my office because TikTok directed them that way, and they were irate, some of them were suicidal, some of them were threatening. Advocates of the legislation worry the app can be easily manipulated by Beijing to spread propaganda in the U.S. and influence elections. TikTok and critics of the bill, however, argued it would stifle creators and their free speech. Rep. Thomas Massie, a libertarian-leaning Republican from Kentucky, spoke out against the legislation ahead of the vote. Theyve described the TikTok application as a Trojan horse, but theres some of us who feel that either intentionally or unintentionally, this legislation to ban TikTok is actually a Trojan horse, Massie said. Some of us are concerned that there are First Amendment implications here. Americans have the right to view information. We dont need to be protected by the government from information. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew pleaded with lawmakers during a hearing last year, saying all U.S. user data was rooted to servers in Texas. The bottom line is this: American data stored on American soil by an American company overseen by American personnel, Chew said. Chew acknowledged that he did have routine contact with ByteDance executives. A vote on the bill wont be scheduled in the Senate anytime soon, if at all. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said on Tuesday he would first discuss the issue with the heads of his relevant committees, who have introduced other proposals to deal with the matter. Senators were careful not to endorse the House bill this week, even as they said they agreed about the underlying risks posed by the viral video app. Members on both sides of the aisle in the upper chamber expressed concerns about how the bill specifically singles out one company, and whether it could backfire on U.S.-owned companies abroad. On Wednesday, however, the top two members of the Senate intelligence committee endorsed the bill, in a major boost to its prospects. We were encouraged by todays strong bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives, and look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law, Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said in a statement after the House vote. Former President Donald Trump, whod previously said he supported banning TikTok, reversed himself when he voiced his disagreement with the legislation last week, splitting Republicans on the bill and turning it into a hot-button political issue. Many suspected Trumps shift was related to a lobbying effort by the group Club for Growth, which opposes the bill, and that hes doing the bidding of a wealthy donor with a stake in ByteDance. President Joe Biden, meanwhile, has said he would sign the bill into law if it reaches his desk, drawing criticism from some progressives who fear he could alienate younger voters who are key to the Democratic coalition ahead of Novembers presidential election. There are first amendment issues I see with taking away a platform that over 170 million Americans use, and this wont fix the serious issues we have with data privacy, Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), the first Gen Z member of Congress, wrote in a post on X, the former Twitter. If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for mental health support. Additionally, you can find local mental health and crisis resources at dontcallthepolice.com. Outside of the U.S., please visit the International Association for Suicide Prevention. Related... The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would require TikToks Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell it within 180 days or risk TikTok being banned from U.S. app stores and web hosting services. The concern from lawmakers stems from ByteDance's connection with the Chinese government, which could reportedly demand access to U.S. TikTok users' data. TikTok has around 170 million monthly users in the U.S. alone. "This process was secret, and the bill was jammed through for one reason: It's a ban," a TikTok spokesperson told Yahoo News. "We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses and the 170 million Americans who use our service." Participants hold signs in support of TikTok outside the U.S. Capitol Building on Wednesday morning. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) Who opposes the ban Fifty Democrats and 15 Republicans voted against the bill. Some lawmakers including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Robert Garcia, who spoke during the hearing oppose the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act because they don't believe TikTok is an immediate security threat, and they think a ban could negatively affect the economy and take away a major platform for social connection. Democrat Rep. Jim Hines, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, voted against the bill. In a statement, he said, "I have more insight than most into the online threats posed by our adversaries. But one of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact that they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations and social media platforms." Who supports the ban There were 352 votes for the bill in the House vote. Last week, the bill was unanimously approved by a House committee. Supporters of the legislation, including Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, have emphasized that its not about banning TikTok but about separating the app from ByteDance. There was a 40-minute debate on Wednesday, with each party getting roughly half of that time for floor remarks. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Republican from Washington state, who was in charge of the committee that advanced the bill after its introduction last week, kicked off the debate and pushed for the bill to be passed. She referenced the in-app pop-up messages TikTok used last week to urge users to contact their representatives as evidence of the apps influence over Americans. What happens next The bill now moves on to the Senate, where experts say its fate is still being determined. There is no specific date set yet for the Senate to deliberate. President Biden said that if Congress passes the bill, he will sign it. He joined TikTok in February. In March 2023, senators unveiled a bipartisan bill to encourage Biden to ban TikTok and other foreign-linked producers of electronics or software that the Commerce Department could deem a national security risk. If the Senate approves the bill, it would set a six-month deadline for ByteDance to sell its stake in the U.S. version of TikTok or the app would be banned. The sale must be to a buyer that is approved by the U.S. government and must guarantee that ByteDance has no control over TikTok or its algorithms for U.S. users. If ByteDance cannot or refuses to sell TikTok after six months, it will be illegal for app stores and web hosting companies to distribute or update the app. Any company that works with TikTok or offers downloadable versions of TikTok to U.S. users can be fined by the Justice Department. Our CEO Shou Chew's response to the TikTok ban bill: pic.twitter.com/7AnDYOLD96 TikTok Policy (@TikTokPolicy) March 13, 2024 Will the bill pass in the Senate? Its unclear where the Senate stands on the issue. Republican Sen. Rand Paul, of Kentucky, has been pledging in interviews that he believes a TikTok ban would violate the Constitution. Pauls opposition blocked the other bid to ban TikTok in 2023. Sen. Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, has been open about his long-standing support for banning any apps that are deemed to be under the influence of China or Russia. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also told outlets he will have to consult with committee chairs to determine the bills path. As of Wednesday, its not clear if he has committed to bringing the ban up for a vote in the Senate. However, in February, he did say that he supported consideration of a national TikTok ban. What this means for American TikTok users If the bill is signed into law, app stores like Apple's or Google's can face fines of $5,000 per user of a banned app. In the case of TikTok, Apple and Google could potentially face up to $850 billion in fines each. If the ban goes into effect, and you already have TikTok on your phone, the restriction on available updates for the app is likely to degrade access and quality of the app. But individual users will not face punishment under the bill unless someone is engaged in "sabotage or subversion" by using the technology that causes "catastrophic effects" on U.S. infrastructure such as "interfering in or altering the result of" a federal election. Would it be easy for ByteDance to sell TikTok? TikTok would carry an enormous price tag due to its hundreds of millions of U.S.-based users. Its unclear whether, if forced to sell, ByteDance would sell the apps global presence or just the U.S.-based operation. Tech giants like Microsoft, Google and Meta might be able to afford to buy TikTok (Microsoft nearly did in 2020), but it goes against the Biden administrations attempts to block those companies from becoming even bigger. China might also not let the sale even happen. In 2020, when there were first talks of selling TikTok, China placed export restrictions on technology. Trump flip-flops on a ban Former President Donald Trump reversed his opinion and now opposes a ban on TikTok conflicting with the overarching Republican consensus on Capitol Hill. President Joe Biden, on the other hand, has endorsed the bill. On CNBC earlier this week, Trump said that he agreed TikTok is a national security threat but would not support banning the app because it could help Facebook, which Trump referred to as the enemy of the people. During the House vote, Rep. Thomas Massie agreed with Trumps sentiment about Facebook. It could also be named the Facebook Protection and Enhancement Act, because its not the American people who are going to benefit most from this. It will be Facebook, Massie said.Their stock is going to go up. Chinas response Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin warned that a potential TikTok ban would come back to the bite the United States, The Hill reported on Wednesday. Although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens US national security, it has not stopped suppressing TikTok, Wenbin said. This kind of bullying behavior that cannot win in fair competition disrupts companies normal business activity, damages the confidence of international investors in the investment environment, and damages the normal international economic and trade order. Admiral Group plc (LON:ADM) has announced that it will pay a dividend of 0.52 per share on the 7th of June. This payment means the dividend yield will be 3.8%, which is below the average for the industry. Check out our latest analysis for Admiral Group Admiral Group's Payment Has Solid Earnings Coverage The dividend yield is a little bit low, but sustainability of the payments is also an important part of evaluating an income stock. The last payment was quite easily covered by earnings, but it made up 151% of cash flows. The company might be more focused on returning cash to shareholders, but paying out this much of its cash flow could expose the dividend to being cut in the future. The next year is set to see EPS grow by 59.0%. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 62%, which is in the range that makes us comfortable with the sustainability of the dividend. Dividend Volatility The company has a long dividend track record, but it doesn't look great with cuts in the past. Since 2014, the dividend has gone from 0.906 total annually to 1.03. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 1.3% over that duration. We're glad to see the dividend has risen, but with a limited rate of growth and fluctuations in the payments the total shareholder return may be limited. Admiral Group May Find It Hard To Grow The Dividend Given that the dividend has been cut in the past, we need to check if earnings are growing and if that might lead to stronger dividends in the future. Admiral Group has seen earnings per share falling at 3.7% per year over the last five years. Declining earnings will inevitably lead to the company paying a lower dividend in line with lower profits. It's not all bad news though, as the earnings are predicted to rise over the next 12 months - we would just be a bit cautious until this can turn into a longer term trend. The Dividend Could Prove To Be Unreliable In summary, while it's good to see that the dividend hasn't been cut, we are a bit cautious about Admiral Group's payments, as there could be some issues with sustaining them into the future. While the low payout ratio is a redeeming feature, this is offset by the minimal cash to cover the payments. Overall, we don't think this company has the makings of a good income stock. Companies possessing a stable dividend policy will likely enjoy greater investor interest than those suffering from a more inconsistent approach. However, there are other things to consider for investors when analysing stock performance. For example, we've picked out 2 warning signs for Admiral Group that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield dividend stocks. 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. WASHINGTON (AP) The House on Wednesday passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app TikTok if its China-based owner doesn't sell its stake, as lawmakers acted on concerns that the company's current ownership structure is a national security threat. The bill, passed by a vote of 352-65, now goes to the Senate, where its prospects are unclear. TikTok, which has more than 170 million American users, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd. The lawmakers contend that ByteDance is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikToks consumers in the U.S. whenever it wants. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering. We have given TikTok a clear choice, said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. Separate from your parent company ByteDance, which is beholden to the CCP (the Chinese Communist Party), and remain operational in the United States, or side with the CCP and face the consequences. The choice is TikTok's. House passage of the bill is only the first step. The Senate would also need to pass the measure for it to become law, and lawmakers in that chamber indicated it would undergo a thorough review. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said he'll have to consult with relevant committee chairs to determine the bill's path. President Joe Biden has said if Congress passes the measure, he will sign it. The House vote is the latest example of increased tensions between China and the U.S. By targeting TikTok, lawmakers are tackling what they see as a grave threat to America's national security but also singling out a platform popular with millions of people, many of whom skew younger, just months before an election. In a video posted on Wednesday evening, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said that the company has invested to keep user data safe and the TikTok platform free from outside manipulation. If passed, he said the bill would give more power to a handful of other social companies. We will not stop fighting and advocating for you. We will continue to do all we can, including exercising our legal rights, to protect this amazing platform that we have built with you, Chew said in his message to the apps users. In anticipation of the vote, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Wang Wenbin, accused Washington of resorting to political tools when U.S. businesses fail to compete. He said the effort would disrupt normal business operations and undermine investor confidence "and will eventually backfire on the U.S. itself. Overall, 197 Republican lawmakers voted for the measure and 15 against. On the Democratic side, 155 voted for the bill and 50 against. Some Republican opponents of the bill said the U.S. should warn consumers if there are data privacy and propaganda concerns, but the final choice should be left with consumers. The answer to authoritarianism is not more authoritarianism, said Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif. The answer to CCP-style propaganda is not CCP-style oppression. Let us slow down before we blunder down this very steep and slippery slope. Democrats also warned of the impact a ban would have on users in the U.S., including entrepreneurs and business owners. One of the no votes came from Rep. Jim Himes, the ranking Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee. One of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact that they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations, and social media platforms. We do not, Himes said. We trust our citizens to be worthy of their democracy. We do not trust our government to decide what information they may or may not see. The day before the House vote, top national security officials in the Biden administration held a closed-door briefing with lawmakers to discuss TikTok and the national security implications. Lawmakers are balancing those security concerns against a desire not to limit free speech online. What we've tried to do here is be very thoughtful and deliberate about the need to force a divestiture of TikTok without granting any authority to the executive branch to regulate content or go after any American company, said Rep. Mike Gallagher, the bill's author, as he emerged from the briefing. TikTok has long denied that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared U.S. user data with Chinese authorities and wont do so if it is asked. To date, the U.S. government also has not provided evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities. Republican leaders moved quickly to bring up the bill after its introduction last week by Gallagher and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill. A House committee approved the legislation unanimously, on a 50-0 vote, even after their offices were inundated with calls from TikTok users demanding they drop the effort. Some offices even shut off their phones because of the onslaught. Supporters of the bill said the effort backfired. (It) provided members a preview of how the platform could be weaponized to inject disinformation into our system, Gallagher said. Lawmakers in both parties are anxious to confront China on a range of issues. The House formed a special committee to focus on China-related issues. And Schumer directed committee chairs to begin working with Republicans on a bipartisan China competition bill. Schumer is likely to feel some pressure from within his own party to move on the TikTok legislation. Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner announced after the House vote that he would work to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law. In a joint statement with Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, the top Republican on the intelligence panel, Warner said that we are united in our concern about the national security threat posed by TikTok a platform with enormous power to influence and divide Americans whose parent company ByteDance remains legally required to do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party. Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell, who chairs another panel with jurisdiction on the issue, said she would "try to find a path forward that is constitutional and protects civil liberties. Roughly 30 TikTok influencers and others who traveled with them spoke out against the bill on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. They chanted phrases like Keep TikTok ahead of the vote. They also held signs that read TikTok changed my life for the better and TikTok helped me grow my business. Dan Salinger, a Sacramento, California-based TikTok creator in attendance, said he started creating content on the app during the COVID-19 pandemic purely out of boredom. But since then his account, which features videos about his life and his father, who suffers from dementia, has grown in popularity. Today, he has 2 million followers on the app. Im actually appalled for many reasons, Salinger said. The speed with which theyre pushing this bill through does not give enough time for Americans to voice their concerns and opinions. Former President Donald Trump has spoken out against the House effort, but his vice president, Mike Pence, is urging Schumer to bring the House bill to a vote. There can be no doubt that this app is Chinese spyware and that a sale to a non-foreign adversary company is in the best interests of the American people, Pence said in a letter to Schumer. ___ Associated Press staff writer Didi Tang contributed to this report. On Wednesday, members of the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to ban TikTok in the United States unless the Chinese-owned app is sold to an American company. The ban, which has the support of President Joe Biden but must clear the Senate before becoming law, comes as members of both parties warn that the Chinese government could access American users data through the app. Large majorities of both Republicans and Democrats voted 352-65 to pass the proposed legislation, which would ban TikTok from operating in the United States unless it is sold to a U.S.-based company. The popular, Chinese-owned social media app has been painted as a potential national security threat by both parties. TikTok is owned by Chinese-based company ByteDance, and Chinese law could allow the Chinese government to demand access to user data and potentially use such data for spying or blackmail purposes. The vote by the House is the latest move against TikTok in the United States. Former President Donald Trump was once a leading voice in the call to ban TikTok, labeling it a tool for the Chinese government to spy on Americans. This was part of Trumps larger rhetoric against China, which he painted as a dangerous adversary and also blamed for the COVID-19 pandemic. While in office, Trump attempted to ban TikTok unless its parent company, ByteDance, sold the U.S. version of the app to an American company; the former president also attempted to ban the Chinese-owned messaging platform WeChat, but both orders were blocked in federal court, leaving TikTok and WeChat to operate freely within the United States. Most states in the United States ban the TikTok app from being used on government devices. A 2023 statewide ban on TikTok passed by the Republican-led government in Montana to protect Montanans from Chinese Communist Party surveillance was blocked by a federal judge as being unconstitutional and exceeding the states power. The Chinese government rejects this speculation, calling the ban bullying and a result of American companies being unable to compete with TikTok, which has 170 million users in the U.S. TikTok, meanwhile, has said the ban will hurt millions of businesses that use the platform. Content creators have called the ban an attack on free speech and many of these creators, some of whom have millions of followers, have spoken out against the ban and how it could impact their income. Trump has changed his stance on TikTok after having previously tried to ban it. Trumps shifting position is based on his growing feud with Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg; Trump has increasingly blamed Facebook for his 2020 election loss, and Trump sees TikTok as a social media rival to Facebook and its parent company, Meta. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better, Trump posted on his Truth Social media platform. He has also reportedly been told that many of his supporters use TikTok. The bill now has to be passed by the Senate. It is unclear whether or not there are enough senators willing to pass the ban, and it remains to be seen if opposition from TikTok creators will sway senators to block the ban. If the bill does pass in the Senate, Biden has indicated that he will sign the ban into law. Tensions between House Republicans have gotten so high that a swath of the caucus is thinking of opting out of a free, luxury vacation in order to avoid spending more time together. Fewer than 100 Republicans have so far RSVPd to the annual retreat, set to begin Wednesday, and they are using every excuse under the sun not to attend, from prescheduled appearances on late-night TV to having a farm to run. Those who decided to skip include House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, and Representatives Nancy Mace, Tim Burchett, Matt Gaetz, Kelly Armstrong, Dusty Johnson, Stephanie Bice, and Dave Joyce. Collectively, more than half of the entire conference has decided to skirt attendance. Privately, some lawmakers complained to CNN that the choice of locationthe Greenbrier Resort in West Virginiawas not as enticing as former Speaker Kevin McCarthys prior picks in Florida. But others told the outlet that their choice simply boiled down to not wanting to spend more time with their boisterous colleagues. Together, the Republican-led House has amounted to one of the least productive congressional sessions in history, passing a measly 27 bills that became law in 2023 out of a sum total of 724 votes. That same Republican-led House has continued to stall on core elements of their jobs well into 2024, including passing government spending bills and foreign aid assistance. Altogether, its another bad omen for the health of the legislature, which is witnessing resignations en masse, citing similar complaints of Republican infighting and lack of competency. On Tuesday, Colorado Representative Ken Buck submitted his resignation in a hurry, giving less than two weeks notice for the historically coveted job, which surprised everyone, including his boss, Speaker Mike Johnson. Heres a rarity for House Republicans they just bucked Donald Trump. Weeks after walking away from a bipartisan border deal at the former presidents behest, House Republican leaders on Wednesday rammed through a bill that could eventually ban TikTok over Trumps objections. Republicans who rejected Trumps warnings on Wednesday included some of his staunchest supporters. Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) were among the 197 Republicans who voted in favor of the bill which easily cleared the two-thirds vote threshold it needed to pass the lower chamber. So, too, did Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who was on Fox News minutes before the vote waffling over whether to support it. And he wasnt the only Republican openly disregarding Trumps guidance. I always like to know what President Trump was thinking, said Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.). But I definitely believe this is a good bill. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) said the former presidents opposition was not at all a factor in his decision to support the bill. Hes getting bad advice from somebody. I dont know why, Crenshaw told POLITICO. Its okay, we dont have to agree on everything. Such defiance probably wont last. Unlike on the border negotiations, Trump, now the GOPs presumptive presidential nominee, didnt push lawmakers hard on TikTok limiting his protestations to a Truth Social post and an appearance on CNBC. But in this one instance, at least, Republicans shrugged him off. Republicans wisely looked at the threat from our largest geopolitical foe as much greater than pushback from Donald Trump, Republican consultant Alice Stewart said. Trump had warned Republicans against approving the bill that would force Beijing-based ByteDance to divest TikTok within six months or face a ban on the app in the U.S. While Trump believes TikTok is a national security threat, he also said barring it would empower Facebook, which he considers an enemy of the people. The stance marked a reversal for Trump, who had issued an executive order when he was president attempting to ban TikTok. And it came as the prominent Club for Growth and a former senior Trump senior adviser, Kellyanne Conway, were on Capitol Hill advocating for the app. But unlike with the border bill which Trump actively pushed Republicans to walk away from to deny rival President Joe Biden an election-year win the former president did not directly pressure lawmakers to vote against the TikTok legislation, a person close to Trump and granted anonymity to speak freely said. Trumps campaign declined comment. House Speaker Mike Johnson, who derailed the border deal amid pressure from Trump, hailed the resoundingly bipartisan vote in favor of the TikTok bill as demonstrating Congress opposition to Communist Chinas attempts to spy on and manipulate Americans, and signals our resolve to deter our enemies. Given Trumps decision not to mount a pressure campaign, the vote was more likely a one-off rejection of the former presidents positions than a sign of growing GOP willingness to defy him. Trump still has a lot of power to help shape votes on key pieces of legislation, Stewart said. Members of Congress, especially in the House where theyre all up for reelection, [know] its better to fall in line behind Donald Trump than face the consequences of standing up to him. Indeed, some of Trumps allies in the House did just that on Wednesday. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and recent Trump endorsee Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) were among the 15 Republicans who joined with some House progressives in voting against the bill. I voted no against the bill because I think that it opens up many possibilities. There could be unintended consequences or maybe some intended consequences, Greene said. if we care about protecting peoples data, then we should protect Americans data universally from every company that is using their data or selling their data. The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Biden, despite recently joining TikTok for his reelection campaign, has said he would sign it if it reaches his desk. House Republicans are moving ahead with a bill that would require Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban in the United States even as former President Donald Trump is voicing opposition to the effort. House leadership has scheduled a vote on the measure for Wednesday. A Republican congressional aide not authorized to speak publicly said thats still the plan and there has not been significant pushback to the bill from lawmakers. A vote for the bill would represent an unusual break with the former president by House Republicans, but Speaker Mike Johnson and others have already forcefully come out in favor of the bill, and dropping it now would represent a significant reversal. Its an important bipartisan measure to take on China, our largest geopolitical foe, which is actively undermining our economy and security, Johnson declared last week. Trump said Monday that he still believes TikTok poses a national security risk but is opposed to banning the hugely popular app because doing so would help its rival, Facebook, which he continues to lambast over his 2020 election loss. Frankly, there are a lot of people on TikTok that love it. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it, Trump said in a call-in interview with CNBCs Squawk Box. Theres a lot of good and theres a lot of bad with TikTok. But the thing I dont like is that without TikTok youre going to make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with a lot of the media. When I look at it, Im not looking to make Facebook double the size, he added. I think Facebook has been very bad for our country, especially when it comes to elections. Trump has repeatedly complained about Facebooks role during the 2020 election, which he still refuses to concede he lost to President Joe Biden. That includes at least $400 million that its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, and his wife donated to two nonprofit organizations that distributed grants to state and local governments to help them conduct the 2020 election at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The donations which were fully permitted under campaign finance law went to pay for things like equipment to process mail ballots and drive-thru voting locations. TikTok, a video-sharing app, has emerged as a major issue in the 2024 presidential campaign. The platform has about 170 million users in the U.S., most of whom skew younger a demographic that both parties are desperately trying to court ahead of Novembers general election. Younger voters have become especially hard for campaigns to reach as they gravitate away from traditional platforms like cable television. Bidens 2024 campaign officially joined TikTok last month, even though he has expressed his own national security concerns over the platform, banned it on federal devices, and on Friday endorsed the legislation that could lead to its ban. The bill being considered by the House would require the Chinese firm ByteDance to divest TikTok and other applications it owns within six months of the bills enactment to avoid a nationwide ban. The legislation also creates a process that lets the executive branch prohibit access to other apps that pose a threat to national security. This legislation will trample the First Amendment rights of 170 million Americans and deprive 5 million small businesses of a platform they rely on to grow and create jobs, TikTok said last week as a House committee took up the bill, passing it on a 50-0 vote. Some advocacy groups and members that often align with Trump said Monday they disagreed with him on the TikTok bill. Hes wrong, said Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, on Trump. And by the way, he had his own executive orders and actions he was doing. Now hes suddenly flipped around on that. Heritage Action, a conservative advocacy group, said it would include the vote in its scorecard grading members. The legislation establishes an important national security standard for social media companies: Dont be controlled by a foreign adversary, the group said. And, showing the issue sparks strong opinions across party lines, Democratic Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida said he opposed this masked effort that will most likely result in TikTok being banned. I think its going to have drastic impacts for businesses, content creators, and a lot of folks in our country, Frost said. Rep. Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said hes still confident about the bills prospects in the House. Its going to sail, and then it will be up to the Senate, McCaul said. And the White House has already acknowledged that theyre going to sign it into law. So I think this is a real positive step. The bill will likely need support from at least 60 senators to make it across the finish line and be signed into law. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said he would encourage colleagues to vote for it. Also, Sen. Eric Schmitt, a Missouri Republican who is often aligned with Trump, said of TikTok that the amount of data and information they have on Americans is very concerning and could get in the wrong hands. As president, Trump attempted to ban TikTok through an executive order that called the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies in the Peoples Republic of China (China) a threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States. The courts, however, blocked the action after TikTok sued, arguing such actions would violate free speech and due process rights. Biden in 2022 banned the use of TikTok by the federal governments nearly 4 million employees on devices owned by its agencies, with limited exceptions for law enforcement, national security, and security research purposes. Both the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that TikTok owner ByteDance could share user data such as browsing history, location, and biometric identifiers with Chinas authoritarian government. TikTok said it has never done that and wouldnt do so if asked. The U.S. government also hasnt provided evidence of that happening. House lawmakers are expected to receive a briefing Tuesday on TikTok from the FBI, Justice Department, and intelligence officials, according to a congressional aide, who was granted anonymity to disclose details of the briefing that has not yet been made public. Trump, in the interview, said he had not discussed the company with Jeff Yass, a TikTok investor and a major GOP donor. Trump said the two had recently met very briefly but that Yass never mentioned TikTok. Trump also confirmed he met last week with Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX who has increasingly aligned himself with conservative politics. Trump said he didnt know whether Musk would end up supporting his campaign, noting they obviously have opposing views on a minor subject called electric cars, which Trump has railed against. ___ Associated Press staff writers Farnoush Amiri, Stephen Groves , and Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report. 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 Despite drumbeating for more than a year to impeach Joe Biden, House Republicans have quietly begun looking for an off-ramp in the face of an overwhelming lack of evidence against the presidentand a rapidly shrinking majority in the chamber. Republicans have accused Biden and his son Hunter of corruption and influence peddling, but their lengthy investigation has failed to turn up any proof of the presidents wrongdoing. In fact, the biggest criminal act revealed during the course of the probe was committed by the GOPs own star witness, Alexander Smirnov. The Department of Justice has accused him of making up the allegations against the Biden family that jump-started the whole impeachment effort. As the investigation crumbles, Republicans are starting to sour on it entirely. I dont think we have the will to impeach Joe Biden, Texas Representative Troy Nehls told Fox News on Tuesday. We just dont. Some lawmakers dont even want to bring the impeachment to the floor for a vote. Although Tennessee Representative Tim Burchett warned Politico that the base is going to demand it, his fellow party members dont think its worth it. Thats not a vote you put on the floor if you dont have a chance of passing it, North Dakota Representative Kelly Armstrong said. Whats more, Colorado Representative Ken Buck announced Tuesday that he would leave Congress in a matter of days. His departure further shrinks the House GOPs already razor-thin majority, making it that much more difficult to pass anything, let alone articles of impeachment. Republicans have three main options to take their foot off the gas. First, they could issue criminal referrals to the Department of Justice, recommending that the department prosecute certain people. These referrals are nonbinding, meaning the department can choose whether or not to act on them. At the end of the day, what does accountability look like? House Oversight Chair James Comer, who has spearheaded the charge against the Biden family, said last week on Fox News. It looks like criminal referrals. It looks like referring people to the Department of Justice. A criminal referral falls far short of Comers originally stated goal, which was to impeach and ultimately remove Biden from office. But with his probe going up in flames around him, the Kentucky representative is just looking for an exit strategy, a congressional Republican told ABC, speaking anonymously. Comer could be seeking to play a longer game here, though. He could issue criminal referrals in the hope that Donald Trump will be reelected in November. Trump, who backs the impeachment effort, could then instruct the Justice Department to take up the charges. Republicans could also seek to pass laws that tighten restrictions on influence peddling, but that could backfire. Its unclear whether the Democratic-controlled Senate would pass such a bill, but Democrats could agree to pass the measures in order to crack down on Trumps profiting off the Oval Office. Finally, the GOP could continue to subpoena documents and witnesses and even sue people who dont comply. But this could drag the process out for years, which would do nothing to actually help Republicans going after Biden. WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) The House of Representatives is moving forward with a bill that could ban TikTok if it doesnt cut ties with its Chinese parent company. House lawmakers are bringing the bipartisan bill to the floor Wednesday for a vote. They say its a matter of national security. Algorithms, tracking people, its dangerous for our young people and weve got to rein it in, said Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas). The bill would require the Chinese company ByteDance to sell their app within six months or face a ban in the U.S. Our bill is not an act of censorship, it is a safeguard for our citizens, a firewall against foreign adversary controlled applications, said Rep. Ben Cline (R-Va.). Republicans and Democrats say the app poses a national security threat. What were dealing with here is very specific concerns about the structure of this company and its relationship with the Chinese government and the Chinese communist party, said Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) Opponents of the bill, including California Democrat Rob Garcia, say banning the app would violate the first amendment rights of the more than 150 million Americans on TikTok. To single TikTok out in this way we believe is dangerous and certainly against freedom of expression, said Rep. Rob Garcia (D-Calif.). Supporters of the bill say its not an outright ban and passing it is critical to protect Americans and their data. The overwhelming issue here is, do we protect our national security? asked Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.). The House is scheduled to vote on the bill Wednesday morning. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 352-65 to ban the social media app TikTok in the U.S. unless its parent company Beijing-based ByteDance agrees to sell it. Supporters of the measure say that it is a security risk for U.S. citizens to hand over their data to a Chinese-owned company, and that the Chinese Communist Party uses the app to spread government propaganda. Opponents of the bill say that it unfairly singles out one social media app over others, and that TikTok is a vital source of information and communication for many, including marginalized communities such as people of color and the LGBTQ community. After the bill passed, TikTok released a statement calling the bill a ban and saying it was jammed through the House. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service, the company said. The bill had strong bipartisan support, including from a majority of lawmakers representing districts in the Sacramento, Northern California and Central Valley regions. Republican Reps. Kevin Kiley, R-Roseville; Doug LaMalfa, R-Richvale; and David Valadao, R-Hanford; joined with Democratic Reps. Ami Bera, D-Elk Grove, and Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, in voting for the ban. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, who is running for the late Sen. Dianne Feinsteins Senate seat, also voted in favor. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, defended the bill in a floor speech, saying This is not an attempt to ban TikTok. Its an attempt to make TikTok better. Tic-tac-toe, a winner. A winner. She spoke of how Tibetans argue that they are suppressed on the app, and how China used the app to spread propaganda into Taiwan and Hong Kong about its treatment of the Uygher Muslim minority, which the U.S. government has described as genocide. Democratic Rep. Josh Harder of Tracy did not vote on the bill. However, two Republicans Rep. John Duarte of Modesto and Rep. Tom McClintock of Elk Grove voted against the proposal. In floor remarks, McClintock questioned the wisdom of the bill. Do we really want to give the President the power to declare foreign adversaries and then require a communications platform within them to be banned or sold to a government-approved owner? McClintock asked. McClintock said that consumers should be trusted to make their own decisions if there are data security concerns, and that if members of Congress are concerned about foreign propaganda, they should defend the free and open debate that our First Amendment protects and trust that people will sort the facts out for themselves. The last thing we should do is take that power away from the people and give it to the government. The answer to authoritarianism is not more authoritarianism. The answer to CCP-style propaganda is not CCP-style oppression. Let us slow down before we blunder down this very steep and slippery slope, he said. Despite overwhelming support in the House, the bill faces an uncertain future in the U.S. Senate, where lawmakers can filibuster a bill in order to force a 60-vote requirement. McClatchyDCs David Lightman and Gillian Brassil contributed to this story. Highlights: The Pulse Guru: A smart sensor wearable that redefines access to signal data for vital cardiovascular insights. Designed for healthcare innovators, researchers, and others in need of essential "raw" signal capture. The Pulse Guru's continuous stream of rich time-series data is not accessible from mainstream smartwatches such as Apple, Google, Garmin, or Fitbit. VICTORIA, BC / ACCESSWIRE / March 13, 2024 / AI/ML Innovations Inc. (the "Company") (CSE:AIML)(OTCQB:AIMLF)(FWB:42FB), a leading company committed to acquiring and advancing Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning technologies that address urgent societal needs, is pleased to have received the following press release from its majority-owned subsidiary, Health Gauge Inc.: Health Gauge Inc., a leader in health tech innovation, proudly introduces The Pulse Guru (formerly known as The Pulse Whisperer), the second innovative product based upon the Company's wearable technology patented solution and advanced Neural Network. The Pulse Guru offers healthcare innovators, researchers, and other users unparalleled access to rich biometric raw ECG and PPG signal data capture through Health Gauge's proprietary and patented AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network solution. This enables in-depth analysis and insights into cardiovascular health and wellness that is not possible with the mainstream wearables on the market today. Empowering Users with Vital Insights - The Pulse Guru Value Proposition The Pulse Guru stands out in the competitive landscape of smart sensor wearables by delivering a continuous stream of rich time-series data, unlocking vital insights into cardiovascular health. The comprehensive value proposition includes: 1. Rich Time-Series Data: The Pulse Guru provides a continuous and rich stream of time-series data from both ECG and PPG data streams, setting it apart from mainstream wearables such as Apple Health, Google Fit, Garmin, and Fitbit that do not provide access to streaming biosignals and measurements. This wealth of information from The Pulse Guru allows for the ability to conduct greater in-depth analysis and insights into cardiovascular health, as well as making it easier for innovators to conduct their own original research. Story continues 2. Proprietary AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network: Health Gauge's AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network, based on our a proprietary and patented technology, sets a new standard for accuracy and precision in analyzing raw biometric signals. This advanced neural network ensures reliable and real-time health & wellness data assets, providing users with a more comprehensive understanding of their well-being. 3. Neural Network Licensing Program: The introduction of the Neural Network licensing program signifies a strategic move towards collaboration. Wearable device manufacturers, medical device developers, researchers, data scientists, and machine learning engineers in Health Tech, along with educational institutions, now have the opportunity to leverage the power of the AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network. 4. Micropay Access for Blood Pressure Measurement: The Pulse Guru offers micropay access to the proprietary AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network for Blood Pressure Measurement. This opens avenues for seamless integration of this cutting-edge technology into various applications and services. 5. Target Buyers: Wearable Device Manufacturers Medical Device Developers and Innovators Medical Researchers Clinical Trial Researchers Data Scientists and Machine Learning Engineers in Health Tech Educational Institutions "We're pleased to introduce the Pulse Guru solution, which includes our AI Precision Pulse Neural Network for researchers and innovators as a new tool to do original research in digital health", said Randy Duguay, CEO of Health Gauge Inc. "We have been making our solution available for research uses for over 2 years with select clinical research partners now, and we are looking forward to doing more to support the growing R&D interests in AI-based wearable technology which is becoming more widely adopted." Paul Duffy, CEO of AI/ML Innovations Inc., added, "We are excited to unveil The Pulse Guru, a proprietary suite of software, smart sensors and Neural Networks that provides a completely unique approach to cardiovascular health monitoring. The continuous stream of rich time-series data, combined with the power of our AI PrecisionPulse Neural Network, is key to making The Pulse Guru novel in the industry. This release not only marks a new era for Health Gauge but also signifies our commitment to providing users with a deeper understanding of their well-being." ### About Health Gauge https://www.healthgauge.com/ Health Gauge Inc., a majority-owned subsidiary of AI/ML Innovations Inc., is a leading health tech company dedicated to pushing the boundaries of innovation in cardiovascular health monitoring. With a focus on providing users with unprecedented access to biometric raw signals, Health Gauge's solutions empower individuals to take control of their health and well-being in a manner which was never before possible in a wearable. About AI/ML Innovations Inc. https://aiml-innovations.com/ AI/ML Innovations Inc. has realigned its business operations to capitalize on the burgeoning fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), with an initial investment focus on emerging digital health and wellbeing companies that leverage AI, ML, cloud computing and digital platforms to drive transformative healthcare management solutions and precision support delivery across the health continuum. Through strategic partnerships with Health Gauge (95.2% owned by AIML), Tech2Heal (up to 22% ownership rights, with 12.44% currently owned by AIML), AI Rx Inc. (70% owned by AIML) and other planned accretive investments, the Company continues to capitalize on expanding growth areas, to the benefit of all the Company's stakeholders. AI/ML's shares are traded on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol "AIML", the OTCQB Venture Market under "AIMLF", and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under "42FB". On behalf of the Board of Directors Tim Daniels, Executive Chairman For more information about AI/ML Innovations : For detailed information please see AI/ML's website or the Company's filed documents at www.sedarplus.ca For further information, contact: Blake Fallis at (778) 405-0882 or info@aiml-innovations.com Neither the CSE nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. For AI/ML Innovations Investors Certain statements made in this press release that are not based on historical information are forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties. This press release contains express or implied forward-looking statements relating to, among other things, AI/ML Innovations' expectations concerning management's plans, objectives, and strategies, including strategies for defending the Company's intellectual property. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. Existing and prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. AI/ML Innovations Inc. undertakes no obligation to update or revise the information contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events, or circumstances or otherwise except as expressly required by applicable securities law. Further information regarding the uncertainties and risks can be found in the disclosure documents filed by AI/ML with the securities regulatory authorities, available at www.sedar.com. SOURCE: AI/ML Innovations Inc. View the original press release on accesswire.com Hunter Biden could face trial in Delaware on federal firearms charges as soon as June, in the midst of his fathers reelection campaign. U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika set the tentative date during a short telephonic hearing Wednesday, though she is still weighing several defense motions to toss out the case against the presidents son that could yet derail any potential trial. The trial is slated to begin June 3 and could last up to nine days. A separate trial on tax charges against him in California is now tentatively set to begin later that month. Hunter Biden, the son of President Joe Biden, has pleaded not guilty to lying about his drug use in October 2018 on a form to buy a gun that he kept for about 11 days. He has acknowledged an addiction to crack cocaine during that period, but his lawyers have said he didnt break the law and another nonviolent, first-time offender would not have been charged. He was indicted after a plea deal that would have resolved the case without the spectacle of a trial imploded in July 2023 when a judge who was supposed to approve it instead raised a series of questions. Hunter Bidens attorneys have since sought to have the case tossed out by arguing that prosecutors bowed to political pressure after the agreement was publicly pilloried by Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, as a sweetheart deal. They also argue that immunity provisions from the original deal still hold, a position that defense attorney Abbe Lowell pressed with the judge Wednesday. Noreika said she hadnt fully decided how she would handle the cases four pending motions to dismiss but wanted to ensure that time for any trial would be available on her calendar. Prosecutors have said theres no evidence the case is politically motivated, the evidence against him is overwhelming and the immunity deal blew up with the rest of the plea deal. Hunter Biden has also pleaded not guilty to the separate tax charges in Los Angeles alleging a four-year scheme to avoid paying $1.4 million in taxes while living an extravagant lifestyle. US President Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who is to go on trial in June on gun charges (Nicholas Kamm) A US federal judge on Wednesday set June 3 as the tentative date for the start of the trial of President Joe Biden's son Hunter on charges of illegal gun possession. District Judge Maryellen Noreika, in a court filing, set aside the weeks of June 3 and June 10 for a jury trial in Wilmington, Delaware, for the 54-year-old Hunter Biden. In October Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to the gun charges. He also faces tax evasion charges in California. The judge in that case has said he is aiming for a trial to begin on June 20. Hunter Biden faces three felony charges stemming from his purchase of a .38-caliber Colt Cobra revolver in 2018 when, by his own admission, he was heavily addicted to drugs. He is charged with two counts of making false statements for claiming on forms required for the gun purchase that he was not using drugs illegally at the time. He faces a third charge, based on the same statements, that he illegally possessed the gun -- which he had for only 11 days in October 2018. If convicted, Hunter Biden could in theory face 25 years in prison, though in practice such offenses, if not accompanied by other charges, are seldom punished by jail time. His legal troubles and controversies -- which include accusations from Republican politicians that he engaged in corrupt business practices in China and Ukraine -- are a constant drag on his father's political standing as he seeks a second term in the White House. Republicans have opened an impeachment inquiry in Congress into what they claim is a Biden family criminal conspiracy but have provided no evidence that the president did anything wrong. Hunter Biden has not been charged with any crimes related to his foreign business dealings, despite the Republican allegations. Hunter Biden is a Yale-trained lawyer and lobbyist-turned-artist, but his life has been marred by alcoholism and crack cocaine addiction. cl/mlm Arthur Schubarth breeds sheep and goats for hunting ranches, where customers pay to shoot captive animals (YURI CORTEZ) A US man who tried to breed enormous hybrid sheep using genetic material from endangered animals so he could sell them to trophy hunting ranches faces jail time after pleading guilty to wildlife crimes on Tuesday. Arthur Schubarth, 80, illegally imported parts of the world's largest species of sheep from Kyrgyzstan, which he used to create cloned embryos in the United States. The resulting fetuses were then implanted in ewes on his Montana ranch, resulting in the birth of a genetically pure Marco Polo argali, an endangered species that can weigh more than 300 pounds (135 kilograms) and has horns more than five feet (1.5 meters) wide. Schubarth then used semen from this specimen to impregnate various species of sheep in an effort to create never-before-seen hybrids, with a goal of making even larger sheep. He hoped to sell the resulting animals to "canned" hunting ranches, facilities where customers pay to shoot captive animals, and where bigger animals can command higher prices. "This was an audacious scheme to create massive hybrid sheep species to be sold and hunted as trophies," said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division, who prosecuted the case. "In pursuit of this scheme, Schubarth violated international law and the Lacey Act, both of which protect the viability and health of native populations of animals." The Lacey Act prohibits interstate trade in certain wildlife and is used by authorities to combat wildlife trafficking. Schubarth, whose ranch breeds and sells mountain sheep, mountain goats and other ungulates primarily for game ranches, admitted one count of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act, and one of substantively violating the Lacey Act. The felonies carry a maximum penalty of five years' prison and a fine of up to $250,000. hg/nro Immigration and border security have been a top issue in the political scenes in Washington D.C. and Boise. Questions about how to address a need for an immigrant workforce while ensuring the safety and the safety of U.S. citizens swirl in the halls of Congress and the Idaho Legislature. The Idaho Dairymens Association, the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation and the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry commissioned a study from the University of Idahos McClure Center to help lawmakers, business leaders and community members understand who the undocumented immigrants are in Idaho and how they contribute to the state. Here are eight findings of the report to know: 1. Theyre overwhelmingly Mexican The most recent available data from the Center for Migration Studies, a New York think tank that studies migrant patterns, said that nationally 39% were born in Mexico in 2021. In Idaho, Mexicans make up a far greater percentage of the undocumented population at 78%. The composition of unauthorized immigrants in Idaho remained steady from 2010 to 2019, with more than 80% of unauthorized immigrants in Idaho coming from Mexico and Central America. 2. Their numbers were no greater in 2005 According to the 2021 data, the estimated number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. grew from 3.5 million in 1990 to 12.2 million in 2007. Between 2007 and 2021, the undocumented immigrant population declined to 10.5 million in 2021. Those numbers dont reflect possible numbers of undocumented immigrants entering the U.S. after 2021. NPR reported that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents encountered around 2.5 million migrants ath the southern border in 2023. NPR points to other news reports about an increased number of displaced immigrants in the U.S., like a lack of shelter beds for immigrants available in New York City. These reports suggest the U.S. has seen an increase in immigrants since 2021. In Idaho, the population of unauthorized immigrants in Idaho remained stable from 2005 to 2021, according to the Census Bureau. In 2021, there were an estimated 35,000 unauthorized immigrants in Idaho. Between 2005 and 2021, the number of undocumented immigrants living in Idaho ranged from 30,000 to 45,000. 3. Half of them stay in Idaho at least 16 years One possible reason why Idahos undocumented immigrant population has remained steady for the last 16 years is because at least half of the undocumented immigrants in Idaho stay for more than 16 years. In 2021, 76% of unauthorized immigrant adults in Idaho had been in the state for six or more years, according to the Census Bureau and Pew Research Center. The most recent detailed data about length of stay was collected in 2014. Then, at least half of unauthorized immigrants in Idaho had been in the state for more than 16 years, the longest length of stay in the nation. 4. Most are working age and employed Most unauthorized immigrants in Idaho are working-age adults. According to the Center for Migration Studies, in 2019, 89% of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S., and 92% in Idaho, were ages 18-64. In Idaho just 6% were school-age children and 2% retirement-age adults. Idahos employment rate for undocumented immigrants is higher than the national average, according to Pew Research Center data. In 2021, 86% of undocumented workers in Idaho were employed, compared with 74% nationally. Unauthorized immigrants made up an estimated 4.6% of the U.S. labor force and 3% of Idahos labor force in 2021, according to Pew. 5. Most work in agriculture, construction and service Nationally, undocumented immigrants worked mostly in agriculture in 2021, although many also work in construction and leisure and hospitality, according to the Center for Migration Studies. Nationally, an estimated 45% of all agricultural workers were unauthorized immigrants in 2019. Idaho had an estimated 30,000 unauthorized immigrants in the workforce in 2021, and one-third worked in agriculture, according to the Center for Migration Studies. The remaining two-thirds were split about evenly among four sectors: construction, manufacturing, professional services, and leisure and hospitality. With U.S. Department of Labor data, the McClure Center found that in Idaho, businesses are seeking more workers than are entering the workforce. This means it is unlikely that unauthorized immigrant workers in Idaho are affecting wages of authorized workers, the center said. Many agriculture, construction and hospitality businesses report filling positions are a top concern. 6. They pay taxes but dont benefit from most public aid Undocumented workers often work with false Social Security numbers, so they pay Social Security taxes but are not eligible for its benefits. The only undocumented workers who do not pay income and Social Security taxes are ones who may be paid under the table, but the McClure Center could not estimate how many were. Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for most taxpayer-funded programs like Medicaid, but most pay income tax, and all pay sales taxes when they make purchases. Undocumented immigrants are eligible only for emergency Medicaid, public education and the National School Lunch Program. In 2014, Idaho collected $1.6 billion in sales and excise taxes, $1.3 billion in individual state income tax and $1.5 billion in property taxes,according to data from the Idaho Tax Commission. Of this, undocumented immigrants paid an estimated $15.5 million in sales and excise taxes, $2.4 million in state individual income taxes and $8.4 million in property taxes, for a total of $26.3 million. 7. Few are highly educated The most recent data on the educational attainment of undocumented immigrants is from 2019, which shows 40% of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. had less than a high school diploma or equivalent, and 19% had a bachelors degree or higher. About 40% of Idaho undocumented immigrants also had a high school diploma or equivalent. But In Idaho, in 2019, only 5% of unauthorized immigrants had a bachelors degree or higher. 8. More are speaking English English proficiency among unauthorized immigrants is increasing. In 2007, 25% of undocumented immigrants nationally spoke English at home or spoke English very well, according to the Center for Migration Studies. That increased to almost 60% in 2019. In Idaho, 58% of undocumented immigrants identified themselves as speaking English well or very well. The remaining 42% identified themselves as speaking English a little or not at all. When extreme heat hits Idaho, farmworkers struggle. What protections do they have? Idaho outpaces most other states in Latino income growth. Why? And how much? The Idaho Supreme Court on Tuesday denied an appeal to have an indictment nullified for Bryan Kohbergera move that will allow the accused quadruple murderers trial to be scheduled sooner than it otherwise could have. In the appeal, filed this year, Kohbergers attorneys claimed their client was improperly indicted last year on four counts of murder by an Idaho grand jury. The defense claimed jurors were improperly told there only needs to be probable cause of the defendants guilt instead of the higher threshold of beyond a reasonable doubt, a designation thats typically needed to convict a suspect, but not indict. Judge Rejects Bryan Kohbergers Request to Dismiss Idaho Murders Case Despite conceding the defenses arguments were creative, Latah County Judge John Judge denied the appeal in January, saying precedent proved that beyond reasonable doubt wasnt needed to indict. Kohbegers attorney, a public defender, then brought the case to the states supreme court, where they ultimately sided with the lower court on Tuesday without citing a legal reason. With the appeal process complete, Kohbegers criminal trial is free to be scheduled to take place in Moscow, Idahothe same city where hes accused of massacring four University of Idaho students as they slept in their home just off campus. A trial date is yet to be set, however, with Kohbergers legal team indicating they have some other delay tactics up their sleeves. Namely, the defense has motioned to have the trial moved from Latah County, where the murderand fallout from itconsumed its population of 40,000 in late 2022. A hearing for that motion, which prosecutors have opposed, is slated for May 14. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Autonomous vehicle company Waymo plans to begin offering ride-booking in Austin through its Waymo One service later this year. Autonomous vehicle company Waymo will begin offering ride-booking in Austin through its Waymo One service later this year, as the company continues to step up its testing in Central Texas. Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana offered more details on the timeline for its Austin ride-hailing program during a South by Southwest session Wednesday when she explored the company's road map for multicity autonomous vehicle service. Waymo One works similarly to apps such as Uber and Lyft. During the session, Mawakana also announced that Waymo would begin offering rides to the general public in Los Angeles through Waymo One. Waymo has previously said that Los Angeles and Austin would be the third and fourth cities, respectively, to gain Waymo's ride-hailing service, but the announcement brought clearer timelines on the service's availability in both cities. Waymo is one of several autonomous vehicle companies that has tested the technology in Austin in recent years. The company started as a project of Google before becoming a Google subsidiary in 2016. The company already operates 24/7 ride-hailing services in San Francisco and Phoenix, and it has been operating an invitation-only program in Los Angeles since last year with plans to expand to the general public. Waymo has already served thousands of people who have taken over 15,000 rides in Los Angeles during its invitation-only program. The company also has more than 50,000 people on its waitlist in Los Angeles. On its website, Waymo already has a similar waitlist for Austin residents interested in taking an autonomous vehicle ride through the company. Waymo returned to Austin about a year ago to test its self-driving technology. The company has been testing its fifth generation Waymo Driver, an all-electric Jaguar I-Pace outfitted with the companys latest sensor technology. "Coming into Austin and knowing that later this year we'll be offering rides to members of the public is just really exciting," Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said. Mawakana said the company had achieved key milestones in both Austin and Los Angeles. Wednesday's announcements came about a week after the company began testing completely driverless cars, with no human safety driver behind the wheel, in Austin. The company said its initial driverless rides in Austin would be offered to Waymo employees. At the time, the company said it aimed to open its Waymo One program to Austinites at a later date but did not share a timeline. Story continues After Wednesday's session, Mawakana told the American-Statesman that Austin has been a welcoming city over the past year. "Coming into Austin and knowing that later this year we'll be offering rides to members of the public is just really exciting," she said. "Austin has this natural convening point where people from all over end up here, and what we've heard about people's transportation pain points and needs really feels like something we can address." Mawakana also said Austin is following similar steps to other cities that the company has expanded its ride-booking to. This timeline includes engaging with community groups, first responders and policymakers to make Waymo's plans clear before moving to driving "around the clock to verify and validate (Waymo's software)." From there, the company moves to driverless operations with a human in the car, to driving with no one in the car and to offering rides to employees, before ultimately offering rides to members of the public. Mawakana said the company has not decided on exact timing of when it will offer ride-booking to the public in Austin, adding that the decision will be made in part by employees' feedback as they test ride the vehicles as passengers, as well as feedback from community partners. "It's not like we've decided (the timeline), and we're keeping it close to the chest," Mawakana said. "We know that sometime this year we'll be in the position to do it. We're really excited about it." The company previously had been one of the first companies to test its technology in Austin, first testing a fully self-driving vehicle on Austin streets in 2015, but later closed its Central Texas operations in 2019. The company has said that it intends for its ride-booking service to be "truly useful" in Austin from its start, covering a large portion of the city day and night. In Austin, Waymo has been testing its vehicles in about a 50-square-mile area that includes downtown, Barton Hills, Riverside, East Austin and Hyde Park, with plans to expand over time. Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana, right, explored Waymo's road map for the future and its relationships with cities, including Austin, during a South by Southwest session Wednesday with journalist Laurie Sega. Other autonomous vehicle operations in Austin Volkswagen is also currently testing its own autonomous vehicle technology on Austin roads. The company announced last year it would start testing a small fleet of autonomous electric "ID. Buzz" vehicles in Austin, as the company's first autonomous driving test program in the United States. Volkswagen has said it will have a commercial launch of autonomous vehicles in 2026. Through that year, the company said it will continue to have human safety drivers. Other such companies have previously tested in Austin in recent years, including Argo AI, a Ford subsidiary, that tested from 2019 to 2022, with operations that included ride-hailing and delivery partnerships with Lyft and Walmart, before it shut down. Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors was also testing and operating autonomous vehicle ride-hailing service in Austin as recently as October before it initiated a nationwide pause, after a high-profile incident in which a vehicle hit and dragged a pedestrian. Mayor Kirk Watson discussed autonomous vehicles at SXSW Earlier last week, in a separate SXSW session with Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, Mayor Kirk Watson said that during his first six months as mayor a number of autonomous vehicle companies came into the city with a lot of promise. But he said autonomous vehicles have also brought issues such as not pulling over for emergency vehicles and parking or stopping places they should not. He also alluded to Cruises nationwide pause. With the growth of Austin, and the desire for sustainability ... I see a lot of promise in (autonomous) vehicles," Watson said. "But we're not there yet." During his session, Watson invited the companies to proactively work with the city and said it's an area where the state has preempted the local government's ability to regulate. He shared a message to the autonomous vehicle companies looking to come to Austin. "Let's not worry about the preemption," Watson said. "Show up, work with the local governments. ... Come talk to us." Under a Texas law passed in 2017, autonomous vehicles can operate without a driver inside and can be used on highways as long as they can follow traffic laws, have insurance and are equipped with video recording equipment. Manufacturers are considered responsible for any collisions or broken traffic laws. During her session, Mawakana responded to Watson's comments, and said Waymo aims to be a community partner that works with local governments from the start. "Not all companies are created equal; we've been focused on deep engagement from the beginning. I don't think theres another way to do this," she said. After Wednesday's session, Mawakana again emphasized her company is "deeply engaged" with the city through its public affairs team and is working to engage the community at large. "We want an open door. We want to serve as a resource. We've been at this a long time," Mawakana said. "We want to do it in a way that works for Austin." This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: At SXSW, Waymo CEO says Waymo One service to be in Austin this year The Idaho Supreme Court denied a request Tuesday from Bryan Kohberger, the man charged with killing four University of Idaho students in 2022, who sought to have his grand jury indictment thrown out. Based on their interpretation of Idaho law, Kohbergers lawyers argued that grand jurors were inaccurately told that the standard for an indictment is that there is probable cause of the defendants guilt, instead of the higher threshold of beyond a reasonable doubt. The court did not provide a reason in its filing for denying the request. Kohberger, a Ph.D. student at the nearby Washington State University, is accused of brutally murdering four studentsMadison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves and Ethan Chapinin a rental house near the University of Idaho campus. The grand jury indicted Kohberger last May on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. He was arrested following a several weeks-long investigation after surveillance footage showed his car at the scene of the crime multiple times around the time of the killings in Moscow, Idaho. Hes pleaded not guilty on all counts. A trial date has still not been set. Kohbergers defense team is seeking to have the trial moved to a different county. Related... The armed conflict between the Ethiopian army and rebels in the northern Amhara region continues, with fighting reportedly returning to the region's capital. Social media posts claim to show photos of Ethiopian troops captured by Fano rebels in Amhara in February 2024. However, this is misleading: while the images feature government soldiers, they were captured during the Tigray war that ended in 2022. An X post published on February 29, 2024, claimed rebel fighters had taken more than 450 Ethiopian soldiers prisoner and seized their weapons during recent battles in Gendwein and Mertule Mariam, two towns in east Gojjam zone in Amhara region. Fano has gained historic victory during the recent heavy fighting, it said. Screenshot of the misleading post, taken on March 11, 2024 Four images in the post showed dozens of soldiers seated on the ground in military uniform. The claim was shared on a page called Amhara Fano central command official, which regularly publishes content about the Fano militia group. The rebels have been fighting the Ethiopian army in Amhara since July 2023. A similar post was also published on Facebook on the same day. Continued clashes Fighting in Amhara, Ethiopia's second most populous region, erupted less than a year after the government signed a peace deal with forces in the neighbouring Tigray region where a two-year war that ended in November 2022 killed hundreds of thousands of people (archived here). International media recently reported that clashes had returned to Bahir Dar, the capital of Amhara, at the end of February 2024 (archived here). Battles were also reported in Gojjam, North Shoa, Gondar and Wollo (archived here). During the Tigray war, the Ethiopian army and Fano were allies. That changed when the government later tried to disarm groups like Fano, who resisted, leading to more bloodshed. However, the photos do not show federal troops captured by Fano in Amhara in February 2024. Unrelated photos AFP Fact Check conducted reverse image searches and established that the images were of government soldiers detained by Tigrayan forces in 2021. Search results led to a 30-second footage (archived here) published on Facebook by a pro-Tigrayan account on August 17, 2021. New prisoners of war, reads the caption in Tigrigna. They were captured by the Tigray Defence Force. AFP Fact Check found that at least three of the images in the misleading post are screengrabs taken from the same footage in August 2021. Screenshots from the Facebook footage (left) matched to pictures in the misleading post (right), taken on March 11, 2024 A keyword search in Amharic for captured soldiers in 2021 yielded a news video published (archived here) on September 3, 2021, by Tigrai TV, a broadcaster based in the Tigray region. It contained images of captured soldiers from the misleading post and scenes of fighting. Screenshots of the video by Tigrai TV in 2021 (left) and the misleading post, taken on March 11, 2024 The heroic Tigray Defence Force captured several soldiers of the regime along with heavy firearms in a battle in Kobo and surrounding areas on August 22, 2021, the news anchor said. Kobo is located in the North Wollo zone in Amhara. Tigrayan forces had pushed the war into Amhara and captured Kobo in August 2021 (archived here). The Ethiopian army retook the town months later (archived here). The fourth image is a screenshot from a video shared on Facebook (archived here) on September 3, 2023, by an account called Ethio Fast News. The footage appears to show soldiers seated on the ground surrounded by a large group carrying weapons and wearing a mixture of civilian and military uniforms. Fano captured more than 300 fascist Abiy Ahmed regime soldiers along with their firearms, reads the Amharic caption. Abiy Ahmed is Ethiopias prime minister. AFP Fact Check found the screengrab was taken five seconds into the clip. Screenshot of the Facebook video (left) and the misleading post, taken on March 11, 2024 We could not verify what the video showed but its publication date means it could not have been filmed in 2024, as claimed in the posts. March 14, 2024 The story was corrected to fix an erroneus link about Tigrayan forces capturing Kobo in August 2021. The IMF said it hopes to conclude the process by the end of April (Stefani Reynolds) The International Monetary Fund officially launched the selection process to find the organization's next leader on Wednesday, with current managing director Kristalina Georgieva widely expected to be renominated for a second five-year term at the Washington-based financial institution. Georgieva, 70, has run the IMF since 2019, and indicated last week that she would be "honored" to helm the organization once more after her current term expires on September 30 -- if she is backed by member states. "The Executive Board has adopted an open, merit-based, and transparent process for the selection of the next Managing Director," the IMF executive board coordinators Afonso Bevilaqua and Abdullah BinZarah said in a statement. "The Board intends to complete the process by end-April 2024," they added. Under a controversial, decades-old agreement between Europe and the United States, the International Monetary Fund has historically been led by a European, and the World Bank by a US citizen. This unwritten arrangement was reaffirmed last year when the Biden administration nominated Ajay Banga, an Indian-born, naturalized US citizen, to run the World Bank, which sits just across the street from the IMF in Washington. Prior to her comments last week, speculation had swirled about whether Georgieva, a Bulgarian economist, might run again once her current term expires. She has received backing from key European allies in recent weeks, including French finance minister Bruno Le Maire, and Dimitar Radev, the head of Bulgaria's central bank. On Tuesday, European Union (EU) finance ministers agreed to back Georgieva for a second term. "I'm very happy to announce that all European member states actually expressed that support for Kristalina," Belgium Finance Minister Vincent Van Peteghem said after a meeting with his EU counterparts in Brussels. He pointed to the "trust" that the European Union had in Georgieva, adding: "Kristalina showed strong leadership the last couple of years especially during unprecedented crises and... she also provided support to all the members." The EU's decision sharply reduces the chances of success for other individuals whose names have appeared in connection with the role in recent months, including Paschal Donohoe, Ireland's minister for public expenditure. da/caw Senators in both parties are warning that a political food fight over funding for the Department of Homeland Security could cause a partisan government shutdown this month by derailing a second tranche of spending bills that Congress needs to pass by March 22. Congress came within hours of a partial shutdown last week before it managed to pass a package of six largely noncontroversial spending bills before the Friday deadline. But lawmakers say the next package of bills, which would fund the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), State and Homeland Security (DHS) as well as foreign operations, will be a much heavier lift because of deep partisan divisions over President Bidens immigration policy. Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) told The Hill on Tuesday that the DHS funding bill is the most challenging one, an assessment shared by other senators. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Homeland is absolutely the toughest of the bunch but pointed out all of them are getting weighed down by fights over policy riders being pushed by House conservatives. You got Defense in there, she noted. Labor, HHS is not an easy account either, but nobodys talking about that. Were all talking about Homeland and how challenging thats going to be. Murkowski said DHS funding is snarled up with demands for the Biden administration to continue construction of a border wall and adopt the Trump-era policy of requiring migrants to remain in Mexico while their asylum claims get processed in the United States. House Republicans are also pushing to zero out Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkass salary; to prohibit funding for the CBP One app, which the Biden administration has used to parole migrants into the country; and to defund memos limiting Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection enforcement operations. Murkowski floated the possibility of separating the appropriations bill funding Homeland Security from the rest of the package to avoid a broader government shutdown after March 22. I think you may have a situation where you could bifurcate this whole thing. If Homeland could not be resolved, you could move through those we have agreement on so that theyre at least in a better place process-wise, and then we deal with Homeland differently, she said. Sources familiar with the negotiations say that House Republicans are insisting on a variety of immigration-related policy riders that are unacceptable to Senate Democrats. Theres also a fight over how to spend billions of dollars that would be newly allocated to Mayorkas to deal with the huge surge of migrants across the southern border. Its a big mess, said a Senate Republican aide about the impasse over the Homeland Security funding measure. It could jeopardize the larger package. A Senate Democratic source familiar with the negotiations between Senate and House appropriators said that House Republicans dont want to greenlight the billions of dollars in new funding allocated to the Biden administration to handle the hundreds of thousands of migrants coming across the border. The Republicans wanted a lot more money in the allocations for the Department of Homeland Security, but now they dont want to spend it because it might make things better, and they dont want to make things better. They want policy riders on everything, the source added. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), the chair of the Homeland Security appropriations subcommittee, broadly corroborated that claim without discussing any of the details inside the negotiating room. I think weve plainly seen that Republicans do not want to fix the problem at the border. I think their focus is very clearly on keeping this a pretty big mess. Their priorities on the border are political, not practical, he said. Murphy noted the increase in the allocation for Homeland [Security] is much more significant than the increases for any other appropriations subcommittee. Thats in part because there are enormous emergency expenses that the Biden administration has had to pay out over the past year due to the number of migrants crossing the border, which exceeded 300,000 people in December alone, he said. He confirmed there are many policy riders under discussion, declaring: This will be the hardest bill to finish. Senators say the tentative plan is to unveil legislative text of the second funding package by Sunday evening, which would give House lawmakers and senators enough time to review it and pass it by the March 22 deadline. One alternative option would be to separate the Homeland Security bill and pass a stopgap funding measure to keep the Homeland Security Department and its agencies operating beyond the deadline while passing a full-year appropriations package for the departments of Defense, Labor and HHS and other less controversial priorities. Or congressional leaders could opt to pass a broader funding stopgap postponing the March 22 deadline for all departments and agencies covered by the second tranche of appropriations bills until sometime in April. Both chambers are scheduled to take an extended recess beginning March 23. Lawmakers would want to avoid setting a new funding deadline on March 29, which is Good Friday. They need to wrap up the full-year appropriations bills by April 30 to avoid triggering an across-the-board 1 percent funding cut that would impact all discretionary spending programs. The 1-percent cut is required by law to take effect after April 30 if Congress hasnt passed all of its regular appropriations bills by that date. The penalty was a concession to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) included in last years bipartisan deal to raise the debt limit. Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) warned that failing to get all of the spending bills passed in time to avoid the cut would be a disaster. Its unclear how [the Office of Management and Budget] would interpret that if its just one bill that doesnt pass and it gets a [continuing resolution], she said. Collins confirmed that Homeland Security funding looms as the biggest obstacle to getting the second funding package passed. Immigration, border security are difficult issues as weve shown earlier this year, she said, pointing to the collapse of a bipartisan Senate border security deal last month. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday pleaded with colleagues not to stumble into a shutdown because of disagreements over border security. Its a difficult issue, he acknowledged. But we have to get it done. We dont want to shut down the government. Its going to cause huge problems for everybody, including our military, including our veterans, including so many other people. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Carefully managed hunting gives a financial incentive to protect wildlife, the southern African nations claim - ECOPIC/ISTOCKPHOTO A proposed ban on the import of game hunting trophies will backfire and only increase poaching, harm conservation and cause the loss of wildlife habitat, southern African nations have warned British MPs. Five southern African countries have taken the rare step of writing directly to MPs to argue against a proposed new bill being debated in the Commons next week. A delegation from Botswana is also expected in London early next week to make their case face to face. The private members bill introduced by John Spellar, a Labour MP, would make it illegal for hunters to import trophies such as heads and skins taken from threatened and endangered wildlife. Mr Spellars bill is an attempt to revive a similar ban which last year stalled in the Lords, despite having wide cross-party backing and being a 2019 Tory manifesto pledge. The MP for Warley said this week: The time has come for the government to make good on its repeated promises to end this brutal trade and protect animals from British hunters. Vital funds Yet the legislation is strongly opposed by governments in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe, who say the money they gain from selling hunting permits to foreigners is vital to funding conservation. Carefully managed hunting gives a financial incentive to protect wildlife and the countries should be able to manage their own natural resources as they see fit, they argue. In the letter seen by The Telegraph, High Commissioners from the five countries say much of the debate has confused animal welfare with conservation and wildlife-management. In Southern Africa, hunting does benefit conservation because our governments conserve large areas of land for wildlife. They can do this because of the sustainable revenue that trophy hunting generates. Sources in the hunting industry said Britons make up only a tiny and dwindling proportion of the international trophy hunting market, which is dominated by American, German and Spanish hunters. New British legislation could be copied elsewhere, however. The letter to MPs says: If income streams from trophy hunting were substantially reduced because of this Bill, the land would be abandoned, with the animals becoming vulnerable to poaching. Income streams Alternatively, the land could be converted to less biodiversity-friendly uses, such as agriculture and livestock production. It is important to note that in its present form, this bill will disenfranchise rural communities who depend on hunting for their livelihoods, and who live daily with dangerous wildlife in their backyards. Sir Bill Wiggin MP, Conservative MP for North Herefordshire, said the intervention from African countries was unusual. He said: Its highly unusual for African governments to approach MPs directly in this way. Its a clear indication of the concern and irritation they have in the UK presuming to tell them how to run their own affairs. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Cudahys District 3 aldermanic seat is up for grabs and incumbent Randy Hollenbeck is facing a newcomer to politics but someone who has been involved in local elections. Rob Haines has been an election worker/chief inspector for District 3 since 2014. Hollenbeck has served Cudahy as alderman for nine years, from 2013 until 2021 and from 2023 to present. Voters living in District 3 will vote at the Cudahy Family Library, 3500 Library Drive, on April 2. Heres more about each candidate, what they stand for, who supports them and why they think theyre the right choice to make a difference in Cudahys Third District. Both candidates were asked about the same topics and given the same opportunity to respond. Rob Haines The reason I'm running for the Third Aldermanic District is I care about Cudahy and every citizen, Haines said. I feel that its the right time to put my name in the hat to take the next step to serve the citizens in the Third District and City of Cudahy. Haines has lived in Cudahy since 2009 and all three of his children graduated from Cudahy High School. What is Haines' background and experience? A Navy veteran, Haines has been a truck driver/trainer for over 30 years. In addition to his work with elections, Haines has served on Cudahys Rules, Laws and Licensing Committee since 2016. Since moving to Cudahy, I felt the city has so much to offer being next to the airport, Lake Michigan, and close to downtown and there is so much opportunity with development and redevelopment even in a down economy, Haines said. Haines says local government needs to listen more closely to citizens While acknowledging there has been progress in recent years to develop Cudahy, Haines said it needs to continue and he thinks the local government needs to be more receptive to citizens. Some of the biggest issues residents have in Cudahy, according to Haines, are the roads and alleyways, trash removal service and government transparency. The city does have issues and the answer can't always be the status quo or kick the can down the road, he said. City government can be better. The best way to contact Haines, per the election page on the Cudahy website, is rbhaines1980@gmail.com. Haines did not provide a headshot. Randy Hollenbeck (inc.) Randy Hollenbeck Hollenbeck said he originally decided to run in 2013 when my alderman for over six months just stopped showing up for meetings and we had no voice (or) representative. When District 3 Ald. Paul Marifke moved out of Cudahy in 2022 he was no longer allowed to sit on the council. Hollenbeck said he was asked to run again for the shortened one-year term. He claimed, no one stepped up to run and my current opponent thought one year was not enough time to do anything and not worth his time. Hollenbeck has a long history of service in Cudahy. In addition to his aldermanic duties, he has served as the chair of numerous committees including the Finance Committee, Personnel Committee, Rules, Laws and Licensing Committee, Contract Negotiating Committee, Traffic and Safety Committee, Community Development Authority and as vice chair of the Board of Public Works. As alderman, Hollenbeck is especially proud of his efforts to stagger the elections for Cudahys aldermanic districts. In 2018 when he was proposing this move, Hollenbeck said it brought the aldermanic districts into line with Cudahy school board elections and committees. Now he wants to continue this work and add term limits to alderpersons. Other issues in Cudahy that Hollenbeck is passionate about Hollenbeck said he has tough stances on vacant properties, crime and lower taxes (and) fees. He wants to add a vacant property inspection and fee amnesty ordinance to Cudahys books. Additionally, Hollenbeck said he is pushing for LED street lighting, a public market with green space, repairing roads and attracting new development. I want to help move Cudahy into the future, he said, marketing Cudahy as the place you want to be. Being alderman is not about me, it is about we the people. What is Hollenbeck's experience? A graduate of UW-Milwaukee for Engineering and Milwaukee Area Technical College for retail management, Hollenbeck was a retail store manager for 11 years and co-owned a computer/networking consulting business for 17 years. He has been an IT architect for the last 11 years. Comparing himself to Haines, Hollenbeck said he is the most qualified and can hit the ground running through his past experience as alderman, solid plans in mind and his knowledge of development, city policy and procedure. I am a natural leader who leads I dont just talk a good game, I walk the walk, he said. He highlighted his participation with Cudahys gateway and city center plans along with other efforts to incentivize development. What are some opportunities in District 3 and Cudahy as a whole? Hollenbeck said District 3 has excellent opportunity for development with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources approving the last portion of the Iceport land for development and space near Pennsylvania and Layton avenues awaiting approvals. While the former Kmart property is not in District 3, Hollenbeck has some ideas for its use. I think the City should try to entice Hy-Vee to redevelop that property, he said. It might take the city or Community Development Authority to purchase the property from Transformco given their 30-day window to sell and close on the property. Hollenbeck said Cudahy is looking at a potential tax incremental financing district to deal with the blight in that area. Otherwise, the building should be razed and made into a new residential area and add a new road along it, he said. Hollenbeck's biggest supporters and how he can be reached My wife Carrie and my daughter Ria, my sister Dawn, and my parents, Hollenbeck said in response to who his biggest supporters are. He also cited support from Stacy Ann, Heidi Dauer, Chris Galewski, Bob Grams, Scott Grams, Frank Magestro, Diana Rowland, Dan Zweck and Jay Weber of WISN 1130. The best way to reach Hollenbeck is randy4alderman@gmail.com, 414-881-1686 (cell) or 414-483-7377 (home). Contact Erik S. Hanley at erik.hanley@jrn.com. Like his Facebook page, The Redheadliner, and follow him on X @Redheadliner. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hollenbeck faces newcomer Haines for seat on Cudahy Common Council Small New Jersey colleges public and private alike were challenged by falling enrollments during the pandemic and decreasing state aid over time. None, though, was likely as beleaguered as New Jersey City University, a 97-year old, minority-serving public college with deep roots in Hudson County. A state investigation last year revealed a slew of bad calls by former NJCU leaders including $14 million in wrongfully handled federal COVID relief funds and irresponsible real estate expansion even as the pandemic's revenue declines snowballed into a full-blown fiscal crisis for the institution. A new recommendation in a report issued by independent state monitor Henry Amoroso, an attorney and faculty member at Seton Hall University, envisions NJCU as a an affiliate institution connected to another higher-education entity, calling it Jersey City College, with its resources focused on its main campus in Jersey City while it disinvests in its satellite campuses' real estate expansions. New Jersey City University campus in Jersey City, NJ on Tuesday Feb. 7, 2023. NJCU announced ongoing university-wide efforts to reduce its academic portfolio by 37%. Remaining an independent city university is a "narrow pathway," Amoroso wrote, "fraught with numerous, significant challenges," and NJCU's long-term fiscal survival will not be possible without "significant additional state investment." Affiliation, partnerships encouraged The university should engage an adviser "to explore any type of affiliation or partnership that could help create long-term financial sustainability with improved student outcomes," Amoroso told reporters Tuesday. "We owe it to NJCU's storied history and its students to create something better." Anything beyond a simple partnership might require legislative approval and full transparency, Amoroso said. The report mentions Rutgers as an institution with a chancellor model that would serve NJCU well. Amoroso gave NJCU's interim president, Andres Acebo, credit for steering responsible decision making since he took over in January 2023, but placed fault with former leaders responsible for campus expansions that bled resources when the school was already burdened with "old debt." Amoroso's report says a fiscal audit in 2022 showed that the university had only $4 million remaining, after paying salaries amounting to $88 million, to meet operating expenses of around $76 million. Salaries usually come out of revenue from tuition and fees, which totaled around $92.5 million. Adding to its financial mismanagement was NJCU's practice of "consistently" underfunding its capital expenditures, the report says. The total debt is $287 million, resulting mostly from NJCU's investment in long-term leases at Fort Monmouth and the Harborside Jersey City campus. This is "too high for the university to meet," Amoroso said. Real estate investments will have to be exited in responsible ways," he added. The university also has an "immediate" need for $50 million in capital expenses to pay for roofs, doors and building infrastructure to operate effectively. The universitys capital needs were "underreported for a long time ... but moving into campus expansions while neglecting its main campus," along with revenue declines since 2017, falling state appropriations and the depletion of millions of dollars in federal COVID relief, resulted in the financial crisis, Amoroso told reporters. New Jersey City University appropriations from the state budget for 2022-23 were $33.9 million. It received $24 million in 2020-21 and $26.6 million in 2019-20. NJCU also received $49.45 million in federal COVID relief, the report says. Former university leaders misallocated $14 million of that to preexisting student scholarships in 2021, knowing that was likely unlawful, the Office of the State Comptroller revealed in a report last May. Special report: Competing for students, NJ private colleges borrow, build and devise new courses Investigation begun in 2022 Gov. Phil Murphy announced a state investigation in August 2022 into financially strapped NJCU, citing a deficit of $67 million and an additional $156 million in debt, to see if it can remain open at all." The crisis also spurred passage of a new law, the Higher Education Accountability & Monitoring Act, which requires institutions to submit fiscal monitoring reports to the state. The law also empowers the secretary of higher education to monitor schools that the office deems fiscally unstable. The university challenged reports first published in The Jersey Journal that blamed poor financial management under former President Sue Henderson for spurring the crisis. Henderson oversaw real estate expansion on the west side of Jersey City in a 22-acre University Place project, estimated to cost $400 million, that was widely criticized by faculty and students. The state investigation began even as NJCU's deficit was contested. Gothic Times, the college's student newspaper, reported that the NJCU board of trustees announced a $20 million deficit in June 2022. Murphy's statement said it was $67 million. And the university said in a statement at the time that were it not for a 2015 change in accounting standards showing a $61 million deficit, NJCU's net position would be positive around $84 million. The university went into right-sizing mode in December 2022, eliminating 48 undergraduate degree programs, 24 minors, 28 graduate programs, 10 certificate programs and one doctoral program. Acebo took over last January. Furloughs, further program cuts and layoffs followed, though Acebo is credited with preserving some critical programs. The root cause of NJCU's financial woes was a big drop in enrollment revenues, which were worsened by its leadership's spending decisions, Acebo told NorthJersey.com early last year. "My philosophy is not one of contraction," he said last year, noting that he wanted to "reallocate" money. However, the latest recommendations from the state monitor propose cuts. Leasing out surplus real estate, selling capital assets, and restructuring and cutting programs are among Amoroso's recommendations, which follow a timeline with specific goals including hiring an adviser, identifying an institution to be a partner and reorganizing its leadership and finances by fiscal year 2026. "Debt must be reduced," Amoroso said. "The university is already determining market value of its properties. It might mean exiting long-term leases, but it definitely means we need a plan to finance capital and exit long-term debt." Amoroso also slammed the board of trustees and wants it reorganized before a new, permanent president is hired. The board is not fully engaged, he told reporters, with some more involved than others. The expectation is that by this May, the board will replace four members to bring in new talent and expertise, the report says. The report also asks to establish a post of vice president for student success to report directly to the university president. This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: New Jersey City University: Path forward for strapped college Editors note: Vivek Raghuvanshi, a journalist and freelancer to Defense News for more than three decades, was jailed in May 2023 by Indias Central Bureau of Investigation on charges of espionage. The Indian government has released minimal information on his arrest. Sightline Media Group, which owns Defense News, has not seen any evidence to substantiate these charges and repudiates attacks on press freedom. CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand Indias Cabinet Committee on Security has given a green light to continue development of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, Indias indigenous fifth-generation fighter jet. The state-run Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. are leading this development effort. The committee early this month granted the project 150 trillion rupees (U.S. $1.8 billion) to fund the twin-engine AMCAs full-scale design and development, flight testing and certification. Krishna Rajendra, AMCA project director at the Aeronautical Development Agency, said five prototypes are expected. He also confirmed the fighters maiden flight should occur before the end of 2028. The Indian Air Force previously said it would like seven squadrons of these stealthy fighters. Although the government has not formally stated when AMCA will commence series production, Indian media are quoting a date of 2035. K.P Sanjeev Kumar, a former Indian naval aviation test pilot and aviation commentator, told Defense News an optimistic and realistic timeframe for final operational clearance would be 2040 or beyond. Final operational clearance refers to an aircraft attaining its full capabilities so it is ready for service. The Air Forces first two AMCA squadrons will receive Mk-1 aircraft, powered by General Electric F414 engines that produce 22,000 pounds of thrust. Later, the next five squadrons will receive the AMCA Mk-2, with bigger engines producing nearer 25,000 pounds of thrust for a supersonic cruising capability. The new engine with thrust vector control will be co-developed with a foreign partner. Development of the AMCA commenced in 2008, and its design was finalized in 2022. Last December, it successfully passed a platform-level critical design review. This is Indias second domestic fighter program. However, the preceding Tejas fighters maiden flight occurred in 2001, and the first Tejas entered an operational squadron 15 years later suggesting AMCAs timeline may shift. India also suffered a costly failure when it attempted to develop the Kaveri engine for the Tejas light fighter. Sanjeev Kumar stressed the importance of the AMCA to India. [They are] required as of yesterday, given the woefully short numbers of squadrons with gen-four aircraft and below, plus the looming threat of growing Chinese aggression, he said. INDIAN ROCKS BEACH, Fla. - Spring break is in full swing, and many visitors may be staying in vacation rentals. State lawmakers are one step closer to regulating vacation rentals after approving a bill Thursday with the goal of cracking down on so-called party houses and disturbances. The bill, Senate Bill 280, is now on the way to Governor Ron DeSantis desk. Judy Sexton-Bails, an Indian Rocks Beach resident, doesnt want the governor to sign the bill, though, and wrote him a letter detailing why. RELATED: Spring break brings numerous travelers to Bay Area "Were such a small community, and we can take care of our own and our legislators, locally, our leaders have diligently worked on keeping our neighborhoods safe," she said. Sexton-Bails has lived in the area for decades, but over the past few years, she said it feels like she has new neighbors every few weeks, finding herself surrounded by vacation rentals. "We dont know who they are. We dont know if theyre here to do harm. We dont know if theyre just here to party. We dont know them," she said. "I dont begrudge anyone for coming to our great little town. I just dont want them to come in such a deluge that we lose our peace and our tranquility," Sexton-Bails said. PREVIOUS: Sarasota vacation rental regulations expanded citywide She said she has noticed positive changes when it comes to regulating so-called party houses, though, thanks to a city ordinance cracking down on vacation rentals that went into effect last year. She thinks SB 280, though, will derail the progress by putting the state in charge of regulating vacation rentals. "We just need to keep big government out of our, particularly this situation, but in many situations, you have no say. It takes the say away, and it benefits the large investors that are coming in," Sexton-Bails said. Indian Rocks Beach Mayor Joanne Cookie Kennedy and local city officials also wrote a letter to Governor DeSantis asking him to veto the bill. "We stated the reasons that we believe that this is a local governance bill, the fact that this is not a one size fits all," Kennedy said. "And that each of our communities throughout the state are unique unto themselves." "I'm concerned that they're not going to be able to regulate it. This is a huge issue It's not just our community. It is communities across the state of Florida. There's 400 plus communities, many of which are having these issues," Kennedy said. READ: 2.49 million passengers flew in and out of St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport in 2023 Kennedy said local leaders in Indian Rocks Beach are also frustrated, because they worked on the citys ordinance for more than six months to fight issues with vacation rentals. "We wonder what would happen if there was a bad actor that several times had been a problem or had inspection issues. And if all of these kinds of, you know, the kinds of issues that come up before a city, how are they going to be able to regulate," Kennedy said. "Its not like they're going to be able to fly down here at a minute's notice from Tallahassee and try to take care of these issues." Senator Nick DiCeglie of Indian Rocks Beach disagrees with the mayor. He sponsored the bill. "I think any time we have a uniform set of regulations, regardless of the activity, it creates predictability," he said. "So, predictability for local governments, for the local community, for the property owners, for the platforms. There's a level and consistent set of regulations from jurisdiction to jurisdiction," DiCeglie said. He said the bill balances the needs of the property owners and regulating who he calls bad actors causing disturbances. "This goes back to 2011, and I've reiterated that over and over again. I do that, because this bill did not create a new preemption, local governments have been finding it very difficult to figure out how to strike that balance," DiCeglie said. MORE: Tampa rebounded from pandemic faster than any city in the country, industry report says The law right now bans local ordinances passed after 2011 that prohibit vacation rentals or regulate how long or how often someone rents. This bill would let local municipalities create short-term rental registration programs, and would set a statewide overnight occupancy limit. The bill would grandfather in regulations adopted by counties before 2016. Senator Jason Pizzo pointed out that that only includes the House Speakers district of Flagler County. "Want to know why the public doesnt have confidence in state government," Pizzo pointed out last week. "Its because of that." DiCeglie said the bill is modeled after ordinances like Indian Rocks Beachs, and said state leaders will work with local leaders to regulate vacation rentals. The decision is now up to Governor DeSantis to either sign it into law or veto. WATCH FOX 13 NEWS: SIGN UP: Click here to sign up for the FOX 13 daily newsletter TechCrunch As of Thursday, when people in Texas try to access any of the porn sites owned by Aylo, formerly MindGeek, they'll instead see a long message in opposition to age verification laws. Laws requiring age verification on adult entertainment sites have already gone into effect in states including Louisiana, Mississippi, Virginia, Utah, Montana and North Carolina. Steam rises from the chimneys of a power plant on a frosty day in Moscow By Simon Jessop, Virginia Furness and Ross Kerber LONDON / BOSTON (Reuters) -A U.N.-backed banking climate coalition on Wednesday released updated guidance for members requiring them to disclose more about how they plan to cut carbon emissions, including from their capital markets activities. The Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), whose 143 members oversee $74 trillion in capital, said the guidelines will also require data disclosure on transition planning and climate-related advocacy by the banks. The guidelines, which confirm a story first reported by Reuters, maintain the coalition's ambitions in the face of a tough political backdrop, the group said. Some U.S. politicians have been the most vocal in their criticism, citing anti-trust concerns. "We are still here at the table, we are not watering down, we are expanding the scope, doubling down on 1.5 degrees and not moving away from that," said Remco Fischer, head of climate at the U.N. Environment Programme Finance Initiative, which acts as the secretariat for the NZBA. The 2015 United Nations Paris Agreement commits countries to limit the global average temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to aim for 1.5 C (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit), a level that, if crossed, could bring far more severe climate change effects, scientists say. The latest guidelines highlight that each bank should act independently, given the antitrust backlash, but they also refer to a global plan to shift from fossil fuels, something that has also prompted political push-back in Europe. The guidelines require banks to report capital markets emissions, such as those tied to money raised for companies via bond or share issues. They will also have to disclose the coverage of each of their emission reduction targets as a percentage of their exposure. Sarah Kemmitt, who heads up the NZBA secretariat, said legal advice meant they were confident there was no case to answer in reference to criticism of banks' membership of climate-related coalitions. Story continues "We have obtained a legal view... we think we are on very safe ground as regards to antitrust." Netherlands-based Triodos Bank said it had voted against the new guidelines as it did not believe they were strict enough, but would remain in the group. "The updated guidelines are not strict enough and provide banks with too much leeway," said Jacco Minnaar, chief commercial officer at Triodos Bank. "We do see the guidelines improved compared to the first proposal, partly answering our criticism." Among top U.S. banks that participate in the NZBA, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo all declined Reuters requests for comment. Ivan Frishberg, chief sustainability officer at labor-affiliated Amalgamated Bank, said the new capital markets guidance was "incredibly significant" since among other things it defines what disclosures banks should make about their plans for reducing emissions. West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore, among the U.S. Republicans who have criticised banks for paying too much attention to environmental considerations, said the new guidance conflicted with banks' fiduciary duties and represented an attempt to cut off capital from coal, oil and natural gas. In a statement sent by a representative, Moore said U.S. banks and financial institutions should withdraw from the NZBA and similar organizations "and reject these attempts to impose globalist climate policies on the American banking system. (Reporting by Simon Jessop and Virginia Furness in London and by Ross Kerber in Boston. Additional reporting by Isla Binnie in New York. Editing by Barbara Lewis and Jane Merriman.) By Kate Lamb JAKARTA (Reuters) -Indonesian presidential candidate Anies Baswedan plans to file a case at the country's Constitutional Court contesting the results of last month's election, he told reporters on Wednesday. Unofficial results show Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, who had the influential backing of incumbent President Joko Widodo's, won the Feb. 14 poll with nearly 60% of votes. The national election commission is expected to announce the official results by March 20. Anies said he plans to file a case to the Constitutional Court (MK) after the official results are announced next week, but declined to provide further details. "We plan to file to the MK for sure but the content is not something that we can disclose," he said. The former governor and education minister criticised what he said was a lack of state neutrality. "When we are talking about free and fair elections this also means that the state takes a neutral position toward any contestants and organises the election in a neutral way. That has been absent," he said. Anies has previously been vocal about what he has described as irregularities in the months leading up to the election, including the massive distribution of social assistance in key electoral regions, such as Central Java. "If you talk to most people in the general public I think most people will say that the election is over and done with. The majority are not paying attention, so we would like to see this also as public education," he said of the planned court case. "We want to make sure that irregularities don't go unchecked," he added. The move comes as parties supporting Anies and another presidential candidate, Ganjar Pranowo, have also discussed launching a parliamentary investigation into the government's conduct in the lead-up to voting day and alleged election violations. Though the Constitutional Court typically handles election disputes, Indonesia's parliament has the power to investigate government policy or implementation of certain regulations and can examine the conduct of public officials, including the president. Prabowo, an ex-special forces commander, looks to have swept the presidential election on his third try, boosted by the unofficial support of the president, who has faced mounting allegations of ethical breaches and meddling, which his allies deny. (Reporting by Kate Lamb; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor and Michael Perry) My friend Julia got a telling off from her sons school recently. Harrys attendance, the head warned in a letter, had dropped below 95 per cent. It needed to improve. Julia fired back an email. Thats pretty rich coming from a school that closed its doors to Harry for over a year during the pandemic and was in no hurry to reopen, even when it was crystal clear that children were at no risk from Covid. I understand teachers were at very low risk compared to other professions, but they seized any excuse to not get back to the classroom. Our happy, confident little boy really missed his school, his teacher and his friends. Harry developed facial tics and struggled to complete the few worksheets you sent home. As Harrys dad and I are self-employed, and worked at home, we struggled to keep his lessons going. The disruption to his education has had long-term consequences which sadly are ongoing. The main reason Harrys attendance has dropped is because, when he should have been in school picking up germs, he was in isolation at home. Since being back in the classroom, his immune system has struggled to cope. He has had several bouts of strep throat and was hospitalised with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) when his breathing was affected. The doctors tell us many kids are suffering the same issues because of lockdown. The paediatric ICUs are full. I dont think its fair for the school to blame the parents. Before the pandemic, Julia was one of those mums who was an absolute stickler for the rules. She wouldnt have dreamt of taking her kids out of school before they broke up to take advantage of cheaper holiday prices. This summer, she intends to do just that, and to pay the increased fine a panic-stricken government has introduced. The way that schools over-reacted, and the damage lockdown has done to a whole generation of children, broke the contract of trust that existed between parents and teachers. It will be very hard to mend. Adding insult to injury has been the UK Covid-19 Inquiry. Initially, Baroness Halletts hearings were apparently not going to discuss the impact on children at all. It was only after protests by Molly Kingsley and the parenting lobby group, Us For Them, that the way childrens rights were not considered adequately, or even at all, by ministers were raised in Module Two. It is bad enough that so many unevidenced non-pharmaceutical interventions (many of them plain daft) were foisted on people who were not allowed to ask questions at the time. To watch the official inquiry skate over, even flatly ignore, the collateral damage caused by draconian measures never before recommended in any pandemic plan has been absolutely infuriating. I have been shouting abuse at the television. So I am delighted and relieved to see the open letter from 55 leading scientists and academics to Baroness Hallett, which suggests that a fundamentally biassed inquiry has failed so far to hear evidence from those who suffered the negative effects of the decision to shut down society. Organised by professor Sunetra Gupta, one of the worlds most distinguished epidemiologists, and Dr Kevin Bardosh, director of Collateral Global, a British think-tank set up to examine pandemic policies and an expert in infection medicine at Edinburgh University, the letter points out that there is a total lack of curiosity as to whether Covid measures were appropriate and what mistakes were made which should never be repeated. The inquirys presumption, so distressing to those separated from loved ones for long periods, and to those whose mothers and fathers, husbands and wives died not of Covid but of neglect or an inability to see a doctor, is that, if only we had locked down faster, matters would have been improved. There is little evidence for that hypothesis as levels of infection fell before many lockdowns. The scientists also point out that preferential treatment has been given to advisers on SAGE who have a vested interest in maintaining the justification for their policy recommendations. Very few scientists with an alternative position have been asked to testify, and the inquiry has been confrontational rather than inquisitorial in its questioning of these views, they say. Quite so. The treatment of Carl Heneghan, a professor of evidence-based medicine, was disrespectful and downright rude. Unbelievably, Gupta, one of the authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, which opposed universal lockdowns, preferring focused protection for the elderly and the vulnerable, has not even been called to testify. Why is Baroness Hallett ignoring the person who I believe knows more about coronaviruses than all the other expert witnesses rolled together? The inquiry should not be a backside-covering exercise for officials who floundered and made poor choices. Lockdown criminalised human contact for the first time in our history; the loss of freedoms was devastating for the elderly and the isolated as well as for children like Harry, cut off catastrophically from his teachers and friends. It now looks as if the numbers killed or harmed by lockdown will far exceed the numbers who died of the virus. The damage to our society the breakdown in trust is incalculable. The first act of Covid was a tragedy. If the recommendations in this important letter are not adopted, and urgently, it risks ending in farce. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. INK!s 2024 senior scholarship applications are open INK! Jump Start Winner Celine Taylor The St. Johns County Education Foundation, under the auspices of Investing in Kids (INK!), has announced that scholarship applications for public school graduating seniors in St. Johns County, including St. Augustine, are available online. Funding will assist with education and training for college, university, technical and vocational schooling. Click here for eligibility requirements and criteria. Application deadline is Saturday, March 23. The application portal will guide applicants through two applications: a standard application and one that requires needs-based information. "It's no secret that post-secondary education can be expensive," said Cathy Newman, INK!s executive director. "With the support of local donors, INK! can offer over $50,000 in scholarships to graduating seniors to pursue their educational goals to fulfill their potential and their dreams." INK! scholarships totaling up to $50,000 include: + Tanner Gillespie Memorial Firefighter Scholarship: $3,800 to a St. Johns County a high school senior interested in becoming a firefighter. The scholarship honors Jacksonville firefighter Tanner Gillespie, who died in an off-duty accident in November 2023. + Rays of Hope Foundation Scholarship: $1,000 to one senior attending an accredited vocational or technical school in Florida. + Dr. Wayne Hartley Memorial Scholarships for The Academies: $1,000 to six graduating seniors from Allan D. Nease High School, St. Augustine High School or Pedro Menendez High School. Established in memory of Dr. Wayne Hartley, a St. Johns County educator. Hartley Memorial Scholarships will be awarded to two students from each school. + Jack Hamilton Wheeler Memorial Scholarships: $2,500, $2,000 and $1,500 to students pursuing college or vocational schools this fall. The scholarship honors the legacy of Jack Hamilton Wheeler, a senior at Creekside High School who lost his life in a tragic accident in 2019. + David Toner Scholarship: $1,000 to a student attending Florida State University this fall. Applicants must demonstrate the 6 Pillars of Character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. + Tucker McCarty Health Science Scholarship: $1,000 to a Pedro Menendez High School student graduating from UF Health Academy of Medical and Health Careers. + MacDonald Family Education Scholarship: $1,000 to a Bartram Trail High School graduate or the teaching academies at Creekside High School, Ponte Vedra High School and St. Augustine High School. + Lt. Col. Sally MacDonald Memorial Scholarship: An active senior member of the Junior Reserve Officer's Training Corps (JROTC) receives a tuition value of 30 credit hours at a Florida public state college. The scholarship is need-based and available to students whose families meet the required income eligibility. Investing in Kids Jumpstart Scholarships offers six need-based scholarships valued at 30 credit hours to any Florida state college. Applications also can be submitted as a hard copy to public school guidance counselors or to INK! directly by March 23. Visit https://apply.ink-stjohns.org/ for application information. INK!, a 501(c)(3) organization, supports St. Johns County public school students and teachers through innovative programs, teacher support and classroom resources, benefitting 52,000 students and approximately 3,200 teachers. This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: INK! Scholarship applications are open to St. Augustine public high school seniors Students work on the FAFSA form and website in the Bronx, on Jan. 10, 2024. (Casey Steffens/The New York Times) WASHINGTON There were just days left to process a batch of federal financial aid applications when Education Department officials made a fateful discovery: 70,000 emails from students all over the country, containing reams of essential data. They were sitting in an inbox, untouched. That discovery last week started a panicked, three-day crash effort by more than 200 of the departments employees, including Richard Cordray, the nations top student aid official, to read through each of the emails one by one and extract crucial identifying information required for financial aid. The students futures depended on it. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times It needs to get untangled, Cordray told his staff members Thursday, according to recordings of two back-to-back meetings that The New York Times obtained. So, you know, Im getting pretty impatient. An exasperated staff member shot back, We worked all night long literally all night. It was another setback in the botched rollout of a new version of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as FAFSA, that millions of families and thousands of schools rely on to determine how students will pay for college. Three years ago, Congress ordered the Education Department to revamp the new form to make it easier and more accessible. It has been anything but. For nearly six months, students and schools navigated a bureaucratic mess caused by severe delays in launching the website and processing critical information. A series of blunders by the department from a haphazard rollout to technical meltdowns have left students and schools in limbo and plunged the most critical stage of the college admissions season into disarray. Hanging On by Their Fingernails In a normal year, students would be sorting through their financial aid offers by now, giving them plenty of time to prepare for the traditional decision day May 1, when many schools expect commitments. But this is not a normal year. Because of the delays in the FAFSA rollout, schools do not have the information they need from the government to assemble financial aid offers. Students have had to postpone decisions about where to attend college because they have no idea how much aid they will receive. Many schools are pushing back their enrollment deadlines to give students more time to figure out their finances, throwing college budgets and waitlists into chaos. The Education Department has promised to meet a self-imposed deadline of Friday to start sending students financial information to schools. A Biden administration official, who asked for anonymity to discuss details of the process, said the department had begun sending out small batches of data over the weekend. But the task ahead is monumental. The department is working with 5 million applications that are in so far, but more than 10 million additional ones are expected to roll in as students make their way through the process, which is still not functioning without delays. Financial aid offices across the country are hanging on by their fingernails at this point, said Justin Draeger, CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. A Broken System The goal of the revamped FAFSA system was to simplify the notoriously bewildering form by whittling it down from more than 100 questions to fewer than 40 and making it more accessible to lower-income students. But it was not ready to roll out in October, when the FAFSA form usually becomes available for students to submit their families financial details to the government. In late December, when the system finally launched, the problems were immediately apparent. Technical malfunctions prevented many students from gaining access to the form on the website. Students reported being repeatedly kicked out or locked out of the form, or hung up on after holding for 30 minutes to three hours for someone to answer the departments help line. The bungled rollout has upended a critical function of the federal student aid process. The government needs the FAFSA information to calculate how much federal aid students should receive. The schools, in turn, need that number to make their own calculations about how much a student should expect to pay at that particular college or university, after tallying up tuition and any extra scholarships. For many students, the FAFSA estimate, which is sometimes received before they even hear back from any of the schools they applied to, is the first sign of hope that college is within reach. Students in Limbo Andrea, a senior at KIPP Denver Collegiate High School in Colorado, will be the first person in her family to attend college. She has her heart set on Duke University. But first, she has to navigate FAFSA. Its agonizing, said Andrea, 17, who asked to be identified by her first name to protect her parents, who immigrated to the United States from Mexico and are in the country illegally. Its deeper than a form. Its our futures. Her case collided with perhaps the most pernicious flaw in the rollout: The new form froze out applicants who could not provide a Social Security number for themselves or their parent or caregiver, something that had not been an issue with the old form. To get students with missing Social Security data approved, the Education Department asked applicants like Andrea to submit by email photographs of a drivers license, identity card or other documents that would verify their identity. As the department prepared to announce last week that the Social Security number issue had been resolved, officials realized that the inbox, and its 70,000 emails, had gone untouched. That prompted Cordray to assemble emergency teams of volunteers to work overtime to blast through the backlog. The students, he said, were relying on them. This is a lot of the Dreamers, new immigrants and the kind of people who, if they can just get a hand up in the higher education process, can make their way in this country, Cordray said. We want them to be able to do that. Although the previous FAFSA form was long and complex, seniors at Andreas school managed to fill out their forms without much incident in previous years. KIPP Colorado, part of a network of public charter schools with some of the highest college acceptance rates for low-income students in the country, holds an annual FAFSA night, when families gather to complete the form together. This year, only about 20% of the students at FAFSA night were able to complete the form a huge change from previous years, school officials said. Karen Chavez, an assistant principal of college and career for KIPP Colorado, said she usually tried to assure students that college is in reach. But she is struggling with that message this year. Its hard for us as counselors, having to watch what I say or how I say things, she said, because I want to guard their hearts and manage their expectations. Whos to Blame? The Government Accountability Office has started an investigation into the FAFSA rollout at the request of Republicans, who say it took a back seat to other priorities, like President Joe Bidens student loan debt forgiveness programs. Several senior officials at the White House and the Education Department have cited unreasonably short timelines, problems with contractors and insufficient funding. Speaking on the condition of anonymity to openly discuss the problems, the officials acknowledged that other important assignments, such as restarting federal loan repayments and reopening schools after the coronavirus pandemic, used up vital resources. Some Education Department officials privately complained that the contractor hired to build the new FAFSA platform was missing deadlines, according to two people familiar with the concerns. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. The company, General Dynamics Information Technology, had been involved in HealthCare.gov an Obama-era online insurance marketplace that had a notoriously rough rollout in 2013. A representative for General Dynamics Information Technology declined to comment, citing the companys contract, which requires that it refer questions back to the Education Department. Its not the case that anyone here didnt realize how important this project is or how big this project is, said James Kvaal, the undersecretary at the Education Department. And its been a top priority for us at the very highest levels of the department going back a year and a half now. There were obvious misses, such as a lack of robust user testing needed to catch what would turn out to be dozens of major technical problems. And the Education Department realized only in November that it had not adjusted a critical income formula, which would have denied more than $1 billion in aid to students. Even as the department has tried to project optimism about its progress, officials privately harbored doubts. On Feb. 13, Miguel A. Cardona, the education secretary, told reporters that once the technical problems were cleared, FAFSA would be a 15-minute process and a net win for students and schools. A week later, at a staff meeting, Cordray had a different assessment: Its really bad, he said, according to people who heard the remarks. It may get worse. In response to a request for comment for this article, Cordray said the Education Departments focus was on delivering an updated and streamlined FAFSA. Our team is focused not on finger-pointing, he said, but on getting more federal student aid to deserving students and families. The Stakes There are growing concerns that the FAFSA problems will disproportionately affect traditionally underserved communities, particularly Black, Latino, first-generation and low-income students. For many of them, the biggest factor in deciding on a college is how to pay for it. Student advocates fear many of them will simply give up, skipping college or relying on expensive loans to pay for it. The equity stakes are monumental, said Kim Cook, CEO of the National College Attainment Network. The later those letters come, the more the conversation shifts from where to go to if to go. This month, the Education Department began deploying its staff across the country to provide a so-called concierge service, backed with $50 million from the departments budget, to provide technical support to colleges struggling with the delays. But as of last week, officials had met in person with only 20 of the 180 schools that had reached out for extra support, according to a senior department official. Lodriguez Murray, senior vice president for public policy and government affairs at the United Negro College Fund, said the consequences of the FAFSA delays could be on par with the devastation that historically Black colleges and universities experienced in 2011, when the government made it harder for parents to obtain loans to help pay for their childrens educations. Enrollment at HBCUs plummeted by 40,000 in one year when the aid stream was cut off. Its a crisis that seems unnecessary, Murray said of the FAFSA fallout, and one that we hope can still be averted. c.2024 The New York Times Company A highly anticipated report from the United Nations top investigative agency is poised to shed new light on Israels allegations that U.N. workers participated in the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks, with the fate of the U.N.s aid agency for Palestinians hanging in the balance. In the weeks since Israel issued the shocking allegations, key donor nations including the United States have suspended funding to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, known as UNRWA, whose role providing food, water, medicine and shelter in the Gaza Strip is a critical lifeline for civilians. Yet the allegations have fueled a raging debate about the limited evidence Israel has produced. The allegations were conveyed in Israeli officials public statements as well as a diplomatic document known as the UNRWA File, which was not distributed widely but was given to NBC News. They center on the claim that at least a dozen UNRWA staffers took part in the Oct 7. attacks and that 1,468 employees or more than 11% are active members of Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the second most prominent militant group in Gaza. NBC News cant verify the identities of the staffers Israel says participated in the attacks, or the veracity of the claims about the evidence. An initial report from the U.N.s Office of Internal Oversight Services, which investigates wrongdoing by U.N. staff, is expected in the coming weeks. The U.N. secretary-generals spokesperson said late last month that the office was still waiting for Israel to hand over evidence and expected to receive it shortly. No further updates have been released. The investigation remains ongoing, said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, adding that investigators planned to visit Israel soon. The U.S. State Department, meanwhile, says its waiting for that report before deciding whether to restore badly needed funding to UNRWA. Yet some experts doubt the U.N. can competently investigate itself. Peter Gallo, a former OIOS investigator, said that the agencys authority is limited to investigating and punishing U.N. employees and has no mandate to force broader UNRWA reforms. In this case, UNRWA has already terminated the staffers initially accused by Israel. So they have no control over them, Gallo told NBC News. They cant require them to turn up for an interview. They cant threaten them with anything, because theyve already been fired. Several countries -- including the United States, Britain, Germany and Japan -- have suspended funding to the UNRWA agency in response to Israeli allegations that some of its staff members participated in the October 7 attack by Hamas militants. (AFP via Getty Images) The UNRWA allegations mark a new low in a fraught relationship between Israel and the U.N. that has further deteriorated since the start of the war. Israeli officials have long campaigned for UNRWA to be disbanded. A recent UNRWA report also alleged Palestinian detainees were physically and sexually abused in Israeli custody, while a separate U.N. report found convincing evidence that Israeli hostages in Gaza have been raped. NBC News takes a look at the UNRWA allegations: Israels allegation: Staffers participated in Oct. 7 attacks In late January, Israel accused 12 UNRWA staffers of involvement in the attacks, according to UNRWA and Israeli officials public statements. In the following days, UNRWA said two of those 12 were confirmed dead, although its not clear how they died. The number later grew to 13, according to a diplomatic memo known as the UNRWA File, first referenced by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz during the Munich Security Conference in February. According to a copy of the 13-page document, Israel alleges that six staffers infiltrated Israel on Oct. 7, while another four are said to have helped kidnap Israelis. The memo alleges three employees were summoned by text message the day before the attacks to arrive armed at the assembly point. In addition to those 13, the memo says that at least one UNRWA employee supplied logistical support to the infiltration attack and an additional employee was directed to establish an OPS room on Oct. 8, referring to an operations room. Israels defense minister later raised the number of those allegedly involved further, saying more than 30 UNRWA employees either killed Israeli civilians, kidnapped soldiers or helped detain them. What Israel says: In mid-February, Israels military identified the 12 staffers initially accused of involvement, including their photos, dates of birth and job titles. Israel named two that it said were found or arrested inside Israel. The disclosure included a photo and CCTV footage Israel said showed one of the staffers, an UNRWA social worker, inside Kibbutz Beeri on Oct. 7 helping move the limp body of an Israeli into a Jeep. NBC News verified the location of the CCTV footage as Kibbutz Beeri, but cant independently confirm the identities of the staffers named by Israel. An intelligence dossier containing what Israel says is additional evidence was also transmitted to the U.S. and other allies, but has not been made public. Last week, Israels military also released two phone recordings it says further prove UNRWA staffers involvement. In one, a man Israel says was an UNRWA teacher says in Arabic, We have female captives and I captured one. In the other recording, another man also identified by Israel as an UNRWA teacher says, Im inside with the Jews. NBC News cant independently confirm who is speaking in the recordings, or whether these were edited. What the U.N. says: On Jan. 26, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was horrified by the allegations and immediately launched an investigation. UNRWA said it immediately fired 10 of the 12 staffers initially accused by Israel who were still alive. It has promised that anyone involved in terrorism will be held accountable, including through criminal prosecution. UNRWA said Israel hadnt presented it with any evidence substantiating that more than 30 staffers were involved. It noted that this number would be a tiny fraction of the agencys roughly 13,000 staffers in Gaza. The head of the main United Nations agency supporting people in Gaza alleges that Israel is intent on destroying it along with the idea that Palestinians are refugees and have a right one day to return home. (Mahmoud Illean / AP) Israels allegation: UNRWAs staff is filled with Hamas operatives In addition to having an armed wing, Hamas is a social movement and the governing authority in Gaza. Last week, Israel said 450 UNRWA employees are military operatives enrolled in Gaza terror groups. What Israel says: Israel has not publicly provided evidence documenting large numbers of UNRWA employees being members of Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad. What the U.N. says: UNRWA says it first learned about this allegation in the media and has received no evidence from Israel or any other nation to support it. It says it has zero tolerance for terrorism and that the overwhelming majority of staff adhere to U.N. principles. The agency says it conducts detailed reference checks on recruits and regularly provides lists to Israel of all its staffers, including their names, job titles and I.D. numbers. UNRWA says Israel has never previously voiced concern about anyone on the list including the 12 originally accused of participating in Oct. 7. Last week, UNRWA alleged in a report reviewed by Reuters that some UNRWA staffers, while in Israeli detention during the war, were coerced by Israel into falsely confessing ties between the agency and Hamas, and the involvement of UNRWA staffers in Oct. 7. UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma confirmed to NBC News that UNRWA collected written testimonies from previously detained staffers released into Gaza that included those allegations, but said it was unclear whether those testimonies will be made public. Israel has not responded specifically to those allegations other than to say that its military follows international law regarding detainees. Israels allegation: Hamas uses UNRWA facilities for terrorism Israel says that UNRWA schools, aid depots and headquarters throughout the Gaza Strip have been used by Hamas to launch rockets, store weapons and plan operations. What Israel says: Last month, Israel said its forces found a tunnel underneath UNRWAs main Gaza headquarters containing large quantities of weapons and explosives. Israel said electrical lines directly connected to UNRWAs headquarters above provided the underground Hamas facility with power. The Israel Defense Forces released drone footage, video of the weapons it says it found, and video of its troops conducting the operation. NBC News cant independently verify what the IDF presented. Israel has also released videos it says show rocket launches from inside an UNRWA school in Beit Hanoun. NBC News geolocated the video to an UNRWA primary school in Beit Hanoun, but cannot confirm who launched projectiles seen in the video provided by Israeli officials or when it was filmed. What the U.N. says: UNRWAs commissioner general, Philippe Lazzarini, did not dispute the Israeli allegations about the tunnel, but said UNRWA did not know what is under its headquarters in Gaza. He said that during peacetime UNRWA inspects its facilities quarterly, but has been unable to access the site since abandoning it on Oct. 12, when Israel ordered that the area be evacuated. Lazzarini did not specifically address the allegations that the Hamas underground facility was receiving electricity from the UNRWA headquarters above. UNRWA has said there have been instances since the mid-2000s, when armed actors from both sides have violated the agencys neutrality, including rockets placed in its schools. The agency says it has systematically condemned those violations, protested to Gaza authorities and informed Israel when it occurred. The agency also said that when it finds suspected tunnels, it seals them by injecting cement and discloses the discoveries publicly. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com The News Saudi Arabia sees vast riches beyond oil within its reach. The kingdoms broad-ranging ambition, a top mining official told Semafor, is to extract the more than $2.5 trillion in metals in its soil, invest in minerals extraction around the world, and capture as much of the minerals value chain as possible. Saudi Arabia is being transformed. Through this transformation we want to be an economic powerhouse, Khalid al-Mudaifer, the vice minister for mining, said. To be an industrial [power], we need minerals. To build projects, we need minerals. Therefore, mining of Saudi Arabia [is] the first step, bringing minerals from outside is the second step, third step is to build Saudi Arabia as a hub. As part of its Vision 2030 effort to refashion and diversify its economy, the kingdom is adding mining as a pillar of its industrial foundation joining the mainstays of oil, gas, and petrochemicals and creating a new economic backstop against the eventual decline of fossil fuels. It aims to use its targeted role as a commercial, refining, and research hub to attract companies in other minerals-dependent sectors, from electric-vehicle makers to battery manufacturers, while bolstering its domestic infrastructure along the way. It is, however, unlikely to join a largely Western club of buyers and sellers that Washington envisions as heading off the formation of an OPEC-like grouping for minerals. Saudi Arabia needs more minerals, and different types of minerals, Mudaifer said. We developed our mining strategy to make mining an economic driver And we developed our mining strategy to also provide for developments for remote areas. Know More Mudaifer is a minerals specialist he has been vice minister for mining since 2018, and for the seven years prior he ran Saudi Arabias state mining company Maaden, armed with degrees from the countrys King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals. In a wide-ranging, nearly hour-long interview, he outlined Saudi Arabias aims, its plans, and its challenges. Objectives When it came to Saudi Arabias ambitions in the sector, Mudaifer did not beat around the bush: Our strategy is for minerals or mining to maximize their value to the kingdom. He said Riyadh was focused on capturing the high end of the EV manufacturing process, including battery making as well as the expensive and complex metals required to build modern cars. Its the entire value chain, whenever possible. Scale Mudaifer also provided more details on Saudi Arabias January announcement that the country may hold up to $2.5 trillion in untapped mineral resources, largely phosphate and rare earths. This figure, he said, covers economically exploitable resources with current technology and current infrastructure in effect saying that this figure may be revised upwards as extraction technology, shipping infrastructure, and market prices improve. (It is already an upward revision from a prior forecast of $1.3 trillion.) Beyond such improvements, Mudaifer argued the kingdom had for decades been under-explored when it came to minerals. When oil was good enough, we stopped most [mining exploration] activity, he said. We are exploring so we will know more. A regional geoscience survey is about 40% complete. Taking into account all those factors, he continued, Saudi Arabia likely had trillions of dollars more of minerals reserves in its territory. International targets Despite Saudi Arabias huge aspirations and potentially huge scale, Mudaifer acknowledged that whatever we mine in Saudi Arabia will not be enough for Saudi Arabia, because while the kingdom holds large concentrations of certain resources, other ones critical for manufacturing such as nickel, cobalt, and lithium are found elsewhere. That prompted the kingdom to establish its Manara Minerals fund, a state-backed venture that aims to increase Riyadhs access to minerals worldwide and potentially help funnel them to processing facilities in Saudi Arabia. One of its earliest investments so far has been to take a 10% stake in a copper and nickel-focused spinoff of the Brazilian mining giant Vale. Those minerals could then be refined into more lucrative products within Saudi Arabia, developing the kingdom into a hub: We have the leadership, the vision, the geographic location, the infrastructure, and the energy. Mudaifer also largely shrugged off suggestions from Western diplomats I spoke to that Saudi Arabias global mining ambitions would inevitably put it into competition with China, which has similar goals. (Such a contest would likely be viewed favorably by Washington, which regards Riyadh as a key ally, and Beijing as a global rival.) Though China had been the dominant investor in mining and minerals abroad in prior years, Mudaifer dismissed the premise that the kingdom would have to compete with China, saying: If [the energy transition] is to be successful, the whole world needs to invest. An OPEC for minerals? The vice minister sidestepped questions over whether Saudi Arabia would consider joining the Minerals Security Partnership, a bloc grouping both metals buyers and sellers promoted by Washington and London in an effort to head off the more adversarial oil market in which Riyadh is the de facto leader of the OPEC club of fossil-fuel exporters. Minerals were a totally different commodity to oil and gas, he acknowledged because of their extraction and refining processes, the former being harder to consolidate in one country or region than the latter making broader partnerships more beneficial than with fossil fuels. Saudi Arabia was in alignment with the objective of the MSP, Mudaifer said, but he put off any firm decision on joining the organization, so far made up of 14 countries and the European Union, with major minerals extractors Australia and Canada among the members. Prashants view Perhaps no country on Earth, bar China, is as ambitious when it comes to the minerals sector. Riyadh wants to be a powerhouse a word Mudaifer used multiple times in our conversation and its plan to elevate the role of mining and minerals is a key part of its strategy to ensure it is not left out of the energy transition, even as it continues to pump huge quantities of oil. There are caveats, of course. For one, its targets are enormous, and its not always clear how attainable those targets are. Saudi Arabias de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has said in the past notably in a 2018 interview with Bloomberg that, in general, he wanted to aim high, adding: If we achieve 100 percent, great. If we achieve more, even greater. If we achieve 50 percent, great! Better than achieving nothing. Riyadhs effort is already well underway, and to listen to Mudaifer and other Saudi officials speak is to hear the well-worn language of Western business consultants: The kingdom has approved its mining strategy, and now has KPIs, quarterly reviews, and traffic lights. Opposite Mudaifers office is a sign for a room identified as the Vision Realization Office. Yet the ambition nevertheless speaks to the scale of the task, and the ensuing opportunity: The energy transition away from fossil fuels to a cleaner economy will be highly reliant on digging up vast quantities of minerals to build EV batteries, wind turbines, solar panels, and the plethora of other technologies necessary to eliminate carbon emissions. In some respects, oil and gas powers both companies and countries are well suited to doing so, having already built up some understanding and comfort with extractive industries. Room for Disagreement Riyadh has a poor record on human rights, and the global mining industry is itself blighted by seemingly unending controversies over its own operations, suggesting a toxic mix. Saudi Arabia faces a number of other obstacles, something Mudaifer himself acknowledged: When you have an ambitious plan, you will have equal challenges, he said. The three principal ones, as outlined to me by analysts and diplomats studying the Saudi plans are a lack of access to the talent required for specialized mineral extraction and refinery, a shortage of the water needed to actually dig up what is purportedly underground, and a heavily centralized governing apparatus with a small handful of decision-makers across government, with a heavy focus on MBS himself. On labor, Mudaifer said Saudi Arabia would rely on imported, expatriate specialists while it developed in-house expertise, a model it utilized previously to build up its state oil giant, Saudi Aramco. Already, he said, researchers from the U.S., Europe, China, India, and elsewhere were working in the kingdoms mining sector. Water is also essential to mining, and Riyadh lacks significant supplies of it. The kingdom as a result is increasingly using graywater waste water that does not have fecal contamination in its mining sector: Around 80% of its phosphate and 70% of its gold is mined using graywater, according to Mudaifer. Saudi Arabia will also allocate all taxes levied from mining activities to a dedicated fund that will pay for research into an array of mining-related issues, among them reducing water use. God, he put mines and minerals where water is not there, he said. Mudaifer did not speak to the question of over-centralization, though he acknowledged that the Saudi government was exerting more overarching strategic control than it had in prior decades. Central government is a new word for Saudi Arabia: We were vertical, every ministry was almost a government by itself. He also disputed the characterization of Riyadhs relationship with mining being a potentially negative one, saying the mining-related fund, which will amount to about $2 billion over the next three years, will also include funds to help mining companies accommodate communities, while Riyadh was working on land use, social engagement, and training and development over the issue. The country was also, he added, making significant investments in green cement and green hydrogen. Notable In a podcast interview with BloombergNEF founder Michael Liebreich, Vale Base Metals chairman Mark Cutifani set out how the mining industry can improve on sustainability and strengthen its relationships with the communities in which it operates. Bloomberg previously outlined some of Saudi Arabias plans and policies when it came to building up a mining sector. Like many other offices on Capitol Hill recently, a Republican staffer picked up the phone on Tuesday and was subjected to the tearful pleas of an unlikely constituency. Just got a call from a group of crying middle schoolers, a Republican aide told The Daily Beast, asking that their bosss name not be identified. The reason these desperate tweensin additions to actual teens and senior citizens and many othersare besieging Congress with angry calls is simple: Lawmakers could soon ban from the U.S. TikTok, the Chinese-owned video app they use constantly. House Committee Passes Bill for ByteDance to Part With TikTok Its not just tear-streaked phone calls that lawmakers are facing. On Tuesday, content creators assembled on Capitol Hill begging Congress to save TikTok. At a press conference, dozens waved signs with the phrases TikTok changed my life for the better and #KeepTikTok outside the U.S. Capitol. My voice is on TikTok. My purpose is on TikTok, J.T. Laybournea Utah influencer with 1.7 million followerstold reporters. We cant let this happen. The legislation in question isnt exactly an outright ban of TikTok. Instead, it would effectively force the platforms Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app to a U.S.-based entity for the platform to be used domestically. There is considerable bipartisan backing for the bill, which stems from many lawmakers concerns over the national security risks of a Chinese-owned company using the platform to potentially conduct surveillance and manipulate the media habits of U.S. citizens. On Wednesday, the House passed the legislation by a wide bipartisan margin: 352 members voted yes, while 65 voted no. The dissenters included 50 Democrats and 15 Republicans. The proposal now heads to the U.S. Senate, where it is unclear how Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) will handle it. While President Joe Biden has indicated he would sign the bill into law, TikTok, its lobbyists, and many of its estimated 170 million U.S. users are doing everything in their power to stop that from happening. Participants hold signs in support of TikTok at a news conference outside the U.S. Capitol Building on March 12. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images The aggressive campaign kicked off last weeksomewhat controversiallywith a feature on the TikTok app that funneled users toward making calls to their congressional representatives to oppose the bill. TikTok CEO Shou Chew even made a personal appearance on Capitol Hill to lobby lawmakers on Tuesday. According to Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI)whose office was one of many to get inundated with constituent calls about TikTokthe companys case to lawmakers is simple. Were so surveilled today already, its not as big a deal as they say, Grothman relayed to The Daily Beast. The flurry of activity has sparked curious bedfellows, expensive lobbying campaigns, and a jarring flip-flop from a one-time critic of TikTok: former President Donald Trump. The drama has proved a rare display of GOP rebellion against the former president, with many Trump-adoring conservatives enthusiastically supporting the potential ban. Montanas TikTok Ban Blocked by Judge: Oversteps State Power But on the other side of the Capitol Hill pressure campaign has been a number of competing social media and technology companies, quietly shopping opposition research on TikTok and making the case that the app is a security risk. In fact, some companies are now pointing out to reporterswithout fingerprintsthat the European Union has largely given TikTok a pass on oversight and regulation because of the companys strong lobbying efforts and proposed investments in data centers in Ireland and Denmark. In the United States, TikTok has been the subject of intense bipartisan scrutiny since the Trump administration threatened to ban the app over concerns that Beijing could access and manipulate data from U.S. users. Under the Biden administration, those worries have continued to mount. In 2022, he signed into law legislation to ban the app from federal government devices. The years of anti-TikTok rhetoric have turned the platform into a big enough boogeyman that House lawmakers of both parties are prepared to take a dramatic step. If it becomes law, this latest legislative push would put the most extreme restrictions on TikTok to date. Should the push fizzle out, though, it may not mean there was a groundswell in genuine support for TikTok or that the barrage of constituent calls was decisive. Instead, it may mean that good old fashioned lobbying and Washington factional rivalries were successful in killing yet another piece of legislation. The competing explanations for why Trump flip-flopped on TikTok illustrate the dynamic. One explanation is that the former president is animated, above all else, by his hatred for Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, who he partially blames for his 2020 election defeat. If you get rid of TikTok, Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business, Trump said on Truth Social. I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last Election, doing better. They are a true Enemy of the People! Trump-aligned strategists took note when The Washington Post reported in 2022 that Meta tapped Targeted Victorya major GOP consulting firm launched by alumni of Mitt Romneys 2012 presidential campaignto shift negative media attention from Meta to TikTok. Trump Makes Obnoxious Return to Facebook After 2-Year Ban One operative in the former presidents orbit told The Daily Beast that many in Trumpworld began questioning whether the push to ban TikTok was born out of genuine concern of Chinese influence, or if it was really a Meta-orchestrated plan to knock a competitor down a peg. When we found out the Romney-aligned Targeted Victory was involved in the advocacy of it we started to think What is up? the Trump-aligned political operative said, simultaneously airing their camps suspicion of anything that has to do with the Utah senator and Trump critic. But others suggest Trumps animosity for Zuckerberg does not fully explain his 180-degree turn on TikTok. Trump-aligned operatives also suggest that billionaire conservative megadonor Jeff Yassa major investor in ByteDancehas been in Trumps ear. Jeff Yass got to Trump, a source familiar with the matter told The Daily Beast. I dont know exactly what theyre expecting to accomplish out of this, but this thing will pass. I get why Trump did it, Yass has promised to dump a lot of money into the presidential race and you gotta do it. Even Trumps former chief strategist Steve Bannonwho supports the Houses TikTok billhas publicly signaled that Yass and his deep pockets swayed Trump. After Trump came out in opposition to the bill, Bannon posted a link to a story by Axiostitled Inside Trumps TikTok Flipto the Gettr social media platform. Bannon captioned it with three words: Simple: Yass Coin. Yass is a major donor to the powerful conservative political organization Club for Growth, which has led the opposition to the TikTok bill. But Trump denied that Yass ever talked to him directly about TikTok, telling CNBC on Monday that when he spoke with the billionaire during a Club for Growth event in Florida, TikTok did not come up. However, there is one person who has spoken to Trump about TikTok: Kellyanne Conway. Club For Growth is paying Conwaya former senior Trump aideto advocate for TikTok on Capitol Hill as well as conduct surveys of public opinion around the app, though she is not registered as a lobbyist for TikTok. How This Rookie Congressman Got TikTok Famous This is what the polling says good, bad, and ugly, Conway said, in an interview with The Daily Beast on Tuesday. Im a pollster, not a plastic surgeon. I cant guarantee what your nose will look like. I just perform the surgery and deliver the result. So I had occasion to explain the polling results. Despite the high-profile advocacy and lobbying against the TikTok bill, most lawmakers voted in favor of the bill Wednesday. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and GOP leadership were so confident in the legislations success that they used a procedural maneuver that requires two-thirds of the chambers support to pass it, which allows them to bypass certain procedural hurdles. Ultimately, four out of every five House members voted in favor of the bill. Within the GOP, such defiance of Trumpeven among many of his most loyal foot soldiers in Congresshas become a rarity on Capitol Hill. Last week, the TikTok legislation passed out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously. To avoid sparking early pushback from lobbyists, the bills GOP lead, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), crafted it as quietly as possible. Gallagher told The Daily Beast he workshopped the legislation with the Energy and Commerce Committee and the White House for three months until the bill was ready to roll. Now, advocates for TikTok, such as Conway, see the only play to stop the bill is in the Senate. She said she has had conversations with senators asking about the political ramifications of voting for the legislation, as well as the underlying constitutionality of it. As in the House, several hardline Trump supporters are nevertheless supportive of banning TikTok. But unlike in the House, a small group of senators can hold up legislation, and passing it would take at least 60 votes. You do have more people sort of calling this into question now than they were before, she said. Just, you know, Hey, are we doing it the right way? Are we doing it the China way, of all things? Are we going to alienate and anger the tens of millions of users who also happen to be our constituents and happen to be our voters? So theres a lot of questions that are being asked. While Democrats may loathe figures like Conway, many of them are asking themselves the same questions. Progressives in particular are emerging as a center of opposition to the TikTok legislation. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA), who led the Tuesday press conference featuring content creators, is rounding up Democratic opposition to the TikTok bill. As an openly gay person, its a place where I get so much gay information where gay creators come to share news and let me bring them to Congress, Garcia told reporters. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) speaks at a news conference on TikTok on March 12. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images We should also be honest with each other, he added. TikTok is also fun. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL)who is the youngest lawmaker in Congress at 27is also championing the app as a forum to combat conservative education policies like Floridas so-called Dont Say Gay law. Frost cited the American Civil Liberties Union, which opposes the TikTok bill on free speech grounds. I hear from students all the time that they get their informationthe truth of what has happened in this countryfrom content creators on TikTok, Frost told reporters. Other Democrats worry that young voters could blame Biden for a TikTok bannot exactly a boost for a president struggling with youth voter support in his re-election bid. I think it hurts Biden with young people, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY)a TikTok user and opponent of the billtold The Daily Beast. Congressional offices have been inundated with calls from young peoplesome so young that they cant vote. But if this is their first interaction with politics and Biden and Democrats go along with the GOP effort to ban TikTok, it could be the party of the man in the White House who gets the blame. TikTok has become an essential part of many teenagers lives, and even if the intention of the legislation is just to get the Chinese-owned ByteDance to divest, the optics could be bad enough that lawmakers find themselves facing considerable fallout from a vote that Republican leaders sped through the House. Still, theres no telling what might happen to the bill. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) is apparently considering a filibuster to block the measure in the Senate, and there is considerable conservative backlash in the House to the TikTok banand not just because Club for Growth is opposed to it. The legislation would actually give the president the power to ban any website controlled by foreign adversaries, not just TikTok, as libertarian-minded Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) pointed out on Twitter. The so-called TikTok ban is a trojan horse. The President will be given the power to ban WEB SITES, not just Apps. The person breaking the new law is deemed to be the U.S. (or offshore) INTERNET HOSTING SERVICE or App Store, not the foreign adversary.https://t.co/iKtAQFGeQH pic.twitter.com/P26hEbzQrf Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) March 12, 2024 Free speech concerns have played a core role in past legal fights over TikTokincluding one pushed by Trump himself. When he was president, Trump tried to ban the app using an executive order that deemed Beijing-owned apps a national security threat to the U.S. When TikTok sued to block the order, courts agreed that Trumps action would impinge on free speech rights. Its taken as gospel among members of both parties that TikTok is a threat to user data, and federal officials have issued warnings to the public in the past that information like browsing history could be shared with Beijing. But TikTok insists it has never done so. With the bill expected to pass in the House, TikTok lobbyists have already turned their attention to the Senate, but plenty of key senators have already made up their mind. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA)who used TikTok heavily during his 2022 campaignsaid TikTok lobbyists shouldnt waste their breath trying to convince him to oppose the bill. He told reporters that he firmly supports the legislation due to security concerns, and another reason thats nagging seemingly everyone on Capitol Hill: tweens. Ive spent hundreds of dollars on Drunk Elephant at Sephora because of my tween and thats annoying, he said. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Thursday is officially Pi Day, offering Americans the annual opportunity to geek out over math, geometry and all things STEM. (Its also recently become #DressForSTEM Day, celebrating women in science more on that below) In honor of 3.14, we recently canvassed the country, searching out STEM students with noteworthy projects and inventions. You can see all our recent profiles on our STEM Superstars microsite; here are our most recent video profiles of four remarkable teenagers: Helping Amputees Virginias Arav Bhargava The 18-year-old senior at The Potomac School in McLean, Virginia has developed a universal fit, 3D-printed prosthetic for amputees missing their forearms. (Read the full story) Confronting Depression & Suicide New Yorks Natasha Kulviwat The 17-year-old from Jericho researched a biomarker to help identify those at risk of suicide. (Read the full story) Easing Anxiety Philadelphias Gavriela Beatrice Kalish-Schur The 18-year-old senior at Pennsylvanias Julia R. Masterman High School gave fruit flies anxiety to gain a deeper understanding for what makes us anxious and to pave the path for better treatments. (Read the full story) Improving Rural Health Care Marylands William Gao The 18-year-old from Ellicott Citys Centennial High School created an AI-enabled diagnostic app that could help save rural cancer patients. (Read the full story) And in honor of March 14 and Womens History Month, The 74s Trinity Alicia explores womens ongoing impact in STEM and how a hashtag is driving the Pi Day conversation to representation of women in the field: The logo of the real estate company Signa is displayed on the facade of a high-rise building at the company's Berlin headquarters. The public prosecutor's office in the southern German city of Munich is investigating suspicions of money laundering at the insolvent Signa Group owned by Austrian entrepreneur Rene Benko, a spokeswoman told dpa on Wednesday. Monika Skolimowska/dpa The public prosecutor's office in the southern German city of Munich is investigating suspicions of money laundering at the insolvent Signa Group owned by Austrian entrepreneur Rene Benko, a spokeswoman told dpa on Wednesday. The spokeswoman for the investigating authority did not name any specific suspects when asked by dpa, but she pointed out that there is no corporate criminal law in Germany: In other words, companies cannot be investigated, only individuals. "It goes without saying that the facts of the case will be examined comprehensively from a legal perspective, that is also with regard to other possible criminal offences," the investigators said in a statement. The Sunday edition of the mass-circulation Bild newspaper first reported on the proceedings at the weekend. The impacts of climate change in central Californias agriculture hub are causing such drastic increases in irrigation demands that annual water use over the past decade now matches the volume of the regions biggest reservoir, a new study has found. Californias San Joaquin Valley among the most productive farming regions in the world has in recent years endured both excessive heat and multiyear droughts, leading to unseen upsurges in groundwater consumption, according to the study, published Wednesday in the journal PLOS Water. Its water thats effectively disappearing, senior author Joshua Viers, a professor and associate dean of research at the University of California Merced School of Engineering, told The Hill. It goes unnoticed, but its very real. The valley is a critical region for global fruit and nut production, due to its Mediterranean climate, per the study. California as a whole provides 81 percent of the worlds almonds, 42 of its pistachios and 26 percent of global processing tomatoes. Yet in a region with a rapidly dwindling water supply, these crops necessitate significant irrigation provided by a combination of surface and groundwater sources, the authors stressed, noting that the latter has been overtaxed for more than a hundred years in parts of the state. Theres a dynamic tension between supply and demand, Viers said. Attributing the supply variability to the Mediterranean climate, he explained that wet winters and hot, dry summers create an inherent disconnect between water availability. That disconnect applies both in time and space, with the most precipitation occurring in areas far removed from the principal demands in cities and farms. Nonetheless, the San Joaquin Valleys agricultural production remains a key driver of the regional economy and important contributor to the nations food supply, according to a 2023 brief from the Public Policy Institute of California. The 2023 policy brief estimated that by 2040, average annual water supplies could plunge by 20 percent and eliminate up to 50,000 jobs and require the fallowing of nearly 900,000 acres in a worst-case scenario. Although the regions groundwater levels have been subject to a centurylong downswing, the pace of that shrinkage has accelerated in the past two decades, according to the Wednesday study. This acceleration of groundwater depletion coincided with multi-year to multi-decadal droughts that have been among the most extreme in a millennium, the authors stated. To determine the magnitude of crop water loss in recent decades, the scientists harnessed both climate data and crop coefficients ratios used to determine the total water loss a plant incurs. They found that climbing demand could explain about half the cumulative deficits of the regions agricultural water balance since 1980 a situation that has increased reliance on depleting groundwater supplies and unstable imports. Dubbing this phenomenon an invisible water surcharge, the scientists determined that from 2012-2023 alone, such demand has risen by 4.4 percent in comparison to a 1980-2011 baseline. This translates to an annual increase of 717.9 gigaliters per year, which surpasses the 690-gigaliter capacity of the San Joaquin Valleys largest storage site, the Millerton Lake Reservoir, per the study. Its effectively this surcharge that were paying because of human activity, Viers said. And when considered cumulatively over the 12-year study period, this demand exceeds the storage capacity of the valleys five largest reservoirs combined, the researchers noted. Sustainable water management is of particular importance in the southwestern U.S. given the dual stressors of climate change and overallocation of water resources, the authors stated. At the same time, however, they warned that the invisible water surcharge jeopardizes the sustainability of fruit, nuts and vegetable production, while deepening the industrys dependence on dwindling groundwater, declining snowpack and unreliable water imports. Surging water demands, they concluded, have created a stressor to the sustainability of these industries and require changes in management and policies to consider the shifting hydroclimate. Among the solutions Viers said he could foresee for the region is an increased use of precision irrigation or switches to more drought tolerant crops. For example, he explained, some farmers in the San Joaquin Valley have begun growing agave the desert plant used to produce tequila. Theres some seasonal following of some particular crops that could be advantageous, he added, pointing to alfalfa as one such water-intensive crop that could be grown during just part of the year. While the 4.4 percent might not sound like much, the area of the San Joaquin is so large that it actually does translate into quite a bit of water, Viers said, referring to rise in demand over the past decade. It effects a big portion of the American grocery basket, he added. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Beckley Retreats LONDON, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Beckley Retreats, a psilocybin retreats and holistic wellbeing company, has achieved more than double its previous years revenue in 2023, and has facilitated psilocybin retreats for more than 350 participants in Jamaica and the Netherlands since its inception. The company also announced a round of extremely positive feedback in the form of an 83 Net Promoter Score in 2023 and new and expanding initiatives for the coming year. In addition to its paying guests, Beckley Retreats funded $150,000 in scholarships in 2023 to participants from low-income or underserved communities. It also hosted free retreats for 21 veterans of military conflicts as part of an ongoing program with Heroic Hearts and Imperial College London to explore the effects of psychedelic therapy on Traumatic Brain Injury. Both the scholarship and veterans programs are slated to expand in 2024. We truly are changing lives and setting the standard for psychedelic retreat programs, said Neil Markey, co-founder and CEO of Beckley Retreats. 2023 was a year of incredible growth and accelerating potential for the psychedelics sector broadly, and our success at Beckley Retreats represents the ongoing acceptance of the remarkable potential of these compounds. Beckley Retreats is part of the expanding Beckley Waves ecosystem of mission-driven psychedelic organizations, which have all been founded or co-founded by Amanda Feilding and dubbed the Queen of Psychedelics by The Economist. Feilding has co-authored over 80 peer-reviewed scientific studies and was a friend of and thought partner to psychedelic pioneers such as Albert Hofmann, Sasha and Ann Shulgin, Terence McKenna, and many others. "My experience at Beckley Retreats changed my life I wish I would have recognized the value of this transformational experience earlier in my career, said Jim Macphee, former COO of Disney World at the Walt Disney Company. If you want to fundamentally accelerate every aspect of your life - at work or at play - its clear both from quantitative and qualitative views this is the transformative path that will change the world." Story continues About Beckley Retreats Beckley Retreats is a leading psilocybin retreat and holistic well-being company offering self-development programs in the Netherlands and Jamaica. The startup belongs to the Beckley Waves ecosystem and the Beckley Foundation one of the worlds top psychedelic research institutions led by Amanda Feilding, dubbed the hidden hand behind the renaissance of psychedelic science. Through this connection, Beckley Retreats has direct access to modern psychedelic science, implementing this research into its programming and protocols. In addition to its psilocybin retreats, Beckley Retreats has expanded its operations to include research collaborations, thereby helping to set a precedent and best practices for the re-emergence of psychedelics in modern society. Media Contact: Neil Davies neil@broadsheetcomms.com Iowa state lawmakers are moving forward with a bill that would outline education about fetal development for students. The original bill indicated the curriculum should include a video like one made by a prominent anti-abortion group. An update to the bill takes out the language about the video. Doctors and teachers say some videos show inaccurate pregnancy milestones. The bill would still require schools to show a development video. Some education professionals spoke out against the bill for how specific the legislation is when it comes to what needs to be taught in the classroom. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. Iowa House lawmakers approved a bill ramping up regulations on hemp products Tuesday, capping how much THC can be contained in consumables and imposing an age-21 requirement to buy them. House File 2605, which passed on a 78-16 vote, imposes a limit of four milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) per serving in a consumable product, and no more than 10mg per container, which would apply to popular drinks. The bill also ramps up regulations and penalties for violating Iowa's existing hemp possession, sales or manufacturing laws, and prohibits synthetic THC. And consumable THC products would be required to have a warning label, much like alcoholic products. Rep. Steve Holt, R-Denison, the bill's sponsor, said the changes to Iowa's hemp laws were necessary to regulate the availability and potency of consumable products. "It is a bit of the wild, wild west out there in Iowa right now, thanks to the loopholes we did not know we created," Holt said. Rep. Steve Holt sits during a committee hearing on HF2389 Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, at the Iowa State Capitol. Democrats said they were concerned that the regulations would hamper both local businesses that sell THC products and Iowans who rely on them for medical reasons. "This legislation will make it much more difficult for people in the state of Iowa," said Rep. John Forbes, D-Urbandale. "They're going to go out and buy this stuff online they won't have a business they can go into." Rep. Bob Kressig, D-Cedar Falls, warned that upward of 1,100 retailers in Iowa could be affected by the rules, and that container potency limits and warning labels could spur some national providers to avoid shipping products to Iowa and send customers across state lines. "They could go to Minnesota. They could go to Illinois. They could go to Missouri," Kressig said. Holt urged for passage of the regulations that he said in hindsight should have been included in earlier law. "In the legislation we passed, there were no provisions for age requirements precisely because we did not believe, or have any idea that there would be a need, since we had limited the THC," Holt said. "We were not approving THC to be used in intoxicating products, or we would have added age restrictions." Scott and Whitney Selig of Lua Brewing created Climbing Kites, a cannabis-infused sparkling water. The bill now heads to the Senate ahead of a Friday legislative "funnel" deadline. Des Moines-based THC drink line lobbies against bill A previous version of the bill that contained stricter potency limits spurred online advocacy efforts by one local vendor. Climbing Kites, a line of THC-infused sparkling water drinks developed by Lua Brewing and distributed by Big Grove Brewery, wrote in a social media post this week that the legislation would "gut" Iowa's hemp market. "From the small business retailers to producers, suppliers and consumers this devastates the work we've been doing," the brand wrote on Instagram. "If having access to 2mg+ matters to you, take the time to have your voice heard." Galen Bacharier covers politics for the Register. Reach him at gbacharier@registermedia.com or (573) 219-7440, and follow him on Twitter @galenbacharier. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa House passes age minimum, potency limit on THC for consumable hemp By Steven Scheer and Maayan Lubell JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israeli lawmakers gave their final approval on Wednesday to an amended 2024 state budget that adds tens of billions of shekels to fund Israel's war against the Islamist Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza, as the conflict runs into its sixth month. The amended budget adds more spending on defence and compensation to households and businesses hurt by the war, which was sparked by Hamas' shock attack on Israel on Oct. 7. Members of the Knesset, or parliament, voted 63-55 in favour of the spending package of 584 billion shekels ($160 billion), or 724 billion including debt repayment. The plan also includes higher allocations for health, education, police and welfare. "The amended war budget... has clear goals - to win the war, support the reservists, strengthen the home front and continue to grow the Israeli economy," Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said after the vote. The budget sets a deficit of 6.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, revised from a pre-war level of 2.25%. But in February, the deficit rose to 5.6% over the previous 12 months from 4.8% in January. Israel last year approved a two-year budget for 2023 and 2024, but the Gaza war has shaken up government finances, requiring budget changes and additional spending. Spending was boosted by 70 billion shekels from the original budget - with 55 billion shekels going to the military and 15 billion to finance civilian needs. The budget has become politically charged, in particular over funds to religious institutions that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party agreed to under a 2022 coalition accord with religious parties. Despite calls by the central bank and opposition lawmakers to cut spending not related to the war, most of the so-called coalition funds will still be allocated, though there will be some tax hikes on cigarettes, tobacco products and bank profits. Moody's last month downgraded Israel's credit rating to A2, citing material political and fiscal risks for the country stemming from the war. It was the first time that Israel's rating has ever been cut. "Israel's most sectarian, disconnected (from reality) and irresponsible budget ever has been approved with cowards' votes," said opposition leader Yair Lapid. Speaking in the Knesset, Lapid accused Netanyahu's coalition of abandoning ordinary Israelis and said the public would be paying for the failures of his government. ($1 = 3.6483 shekels) (Reporting by Steven Scheer and Maayan LubellEditing by Gareth Jones) Ben & Jerry's announced Wednesday it is bringing back its annual Free Cone Day celebration on April 16. Ben & Jerry's is bringing back its annual Free Cone Day celebration this spring and is asking fans to help them beat a lofty goal. The company wants this year's Free Cone Day to be the "biggest and best yet with 1 million scoops served," it announced Wednesday. This year's celebration will take place on Tuesday, April 16, the company said in a news release. Free Cone Day made its return last year after a four-year hiatus. It was nothing short of amazing to see our fans back in our shops in their full Free Cone Day glory, said Dave Stever, Ben & Jerrys CEO, who dished out ice cream at Ben & Jerry's shops in Vermont last year. We gave out over 970,000 scoops across the globe, but we know together with our fans we can break 1 million scoops, Stever said in the news release. Ben & Jerry's announced Wednesday it is bringing back its annual Free Cone Day celebration on April 16. The company said its Free Cone Day tradition began in 1979 as a way to give back to the community and thank fans for their support. Flavors may vary by location but fans are welcome to try all available flavors and are encouraged to get back in line as many times as they'd like, Ben & Jerry's said in the announcement. To find your nearest Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop, visit https://www.benjerry.com/scoop-shops/free-cone-day. Free Cone Day is BACK! Join us April 16, 12-8pm for a free cup or cone of your favorite Ben & Jerry's flavor! No fine print, no catch, just a sweet celebration of our incredible fans (that's you). Learn more: https://t.co/btgkdnfiED pic.twitter.com/JBCnAEvjww Ben & Jerry's (@benandjerrys) March 13, 2024 Dairy Queen's Free Cone Day also returns this spring Ben & Jerry's isn't the only ice cream maker offering customers freebies this spring. Back by popular demand, Dairy Queen announced last week it will once again offer a free ice cream cone in March. Story continues But the offer is for one day only, the business said. Nothing says warmer weather is around the corner quite like Free Cone Day," DQ posted on X. "Were inviting fans everywhere to grab their friends and families and get their Treat Szn started with something sweet on us! Free Cone Day will take place at participating restaurants nationwide March 19 on the first day of spring. Customers will receive one free small vanilla soft-serve cone. If you are a DQ Rewards member, the business said, you will receive double points on any food purchase that day, too. The treat is limited to one cone per person while supplies last, DQ said. Contributing: Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day 2024: Date, everything to know The air fryer has revolutionised the way people cook, says Jamie Oliver - PAUL STUART/Television Stills Jamie Oliver will cook Baked Alaska in an air fryer as part of a new show devoted to the kitchen gadget. Oliver hopes to prove that there is so much more to an air fryer than nuggets and chips. The show will be sponsored by Tefal, which manufactures air fryers. Airing as a two-part series this spring on Channel 4, Jamies Air Fryer Meals will include recipes for grilled vegetables, Keralan roast chicken, pork belly and roasted pineapple with noodles. Its super-rare for a piece of kitchen kit to revolutionise how people are choosing to cook in the way the air fryer has done. At first, I was sceptical, but as soon as I started to test and play around with ideas, settings and new ways to create flavour and texture, I was totally hooked, Oliver said. In my mind, anything that gets people cooking is a win. And the fact that the air fryer uses less energy, saves time and creates much less washing-up all while turning out delicious, nutritious food can only be a good thing. Its a great solution for the modern family, where days are often hectic and decent meals are needed, fast. Oliver began posting air fryer recipes on his website last year and said they had been a huge hit, with more than 500,000 views. Recipes there include bubble and squeak, cauliflower curry and oat cookies. Potato recipes and spiced lamb chops The programme will feature Poppy OToole, a chef and TikTok influencer who specialises in potato recipes, and Sabrina Gidda, the author of Modern South Asian Cuisine, who will use the gadget to cook spiced lamb chops. Katie Millard, of Jamie Oliver Productions, said: Working with our long-term partner, Tefal, Jamie was able to respond to the huge public demand for more air fryer recipes and loved every second developing the new recipes. As this series will show, there is so much more to an air fryer than nuggets and chips. Oliver is not the first celebrity chef to embrace air fryers, which began gaining in popularity during lockdown and are said to be quicker and more economical than an oven. Nigella Lawson used one of the gadgets for the first time during her 2023 Christmas special after previously admitting: I know nothing of the world of air fryers. Demonstrating a recipe for Indonesian biryani, she placed the skin from chicken thighs into an air fryer to make crackling, which she sprinkled over the finished dish. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The rocket exploded just seconds after launch in western Japan (-) A rocket made by a Japanese company exploded seconds after launch on Wednesday, in a spectacular failure for the startup's bid to put a satellite into orbit. Tokyo-based Space One's 18-meter (60-foot) Kairos rocket blasted off from the company's own launch pad in the Wakayama region of western Japan, carrying a small government test satellite. But seconds later, the solid-fuel rocket erupted into balls of flame, sending smoke billowing into the remote mountainous area, live footage showed. "The launch of the first Kairos rocket was executed, but we took a measure to abort the flight," Space One said in a statement, adding that "details are being investigated". Burning debris fell onto the surrounding slopes as sprinklers began spraying water in dramatic scenes watched by hundreds of spectators young and old gathered at public viewing areas including a nearby waterfront. "I had high hopes for this, so I'm disappointed. I want to know what happened," one elderly man told public broadcaster NHK. The fiery failure marks a blow to Japan's efforts to enter the potentially lucrative satellite-launch market. The government wants to assess if it can quickly launch using private firms small satellites when and if its existing satellites gathering intelligence, including on North Korea's missile activities. Success on Wednesday would have given insight into the feasibility of such programmes. The plan had been for Kairos -- an ancient Greek word meaning "the right moment" -- to put the satellite into orbit around 51 minutes after take-off. Parts shortages and other problems had reportedly led Space One to postpone the launch of Kairos five times before Wednesday's attempt, most recently on Saturday. - 'Didn't even imagine' - The mayor of Kushimoto, the town of 15,000 residents in Wakayama where the failed launch took place, voiced his surprise and disappointment. "I didn't even imagine an outcome like this," Katsumasa Tashima told reporters shortly after the explosion. But the town "will continue to support Space One, and we want to continue to offer our help so that the first rocket will have a successful launch", he said. Space One was established in 2018 by a team of major Japanese tech businesses, including Canon Electronics, IHI Aerospace, construction firm Shimizu and the government-owned Development Bank of Japan. Last July another Japanese rocket engine exploded during a test around 50 seconds after ignition. The solid-fuel Epsilon S was an improved version of the Epsilon rocket that had failed to launch the previous October. The malfunction came after Tokyo in March 2023 had seen its second attempt to launch its next-generation H3 rocket fail after liftoff. Last month though Japan's space agency toasted a successful blast-off for its new flagship rocket, the H3, after years of delays and two previous failed attempts. The H3 has been mooted as a rival to SpaceX's Falcon 9, and could one day deliver cargo to bases on the Moon. That followed Japan's successful landing in January of an unmanned probe on the Moon -- albeit at a wonky angle -- making it just the fifth country to achieve a "soft landing" on the lunar surface. In April last year, another Japanese startup, ispace, tried in vain to become the first private company to land on the Moon -- losing communication with its craft after what it described as a "hard landing". hih-tmo-kaf/stu/mtp A rocket touted as the first from a Japanese commercial company that would put a satellite into orbit self-destructed shortly after its launch Wednesday when the startup encountered an undisclosed problem, according to reports. Livestream videos showed the Kairos rocket developed by Space One exploding in a plume of smoke and flames within seconds of liftoff from a launch pad in western Japan. The explosion left behind debris scattered about the ground and a forest fire that firefighters later put out, footage on public broadcaster NHK showed. As Japan tries to enter into a growing commercial space sector, the rocket's aborted mission stalled Space One's intentions of the Kairos becoming the first from the nation's private sector to bring a satellite into orbit. Mission 'benefitting humanity:' NASA's Crew-7 returns to Earth in SpaceX Dragon from ISS Why did Space One's Kairos rocket explode? The small, solid-fuel rocket was designed to self-destruct when it detects errors that could trigger a crash and put people on the ground at risk. However, it was not immediately clear what caused Wednesday's explosion and company officials have not specified what triggered Kairos to abort the mission so early into its launch. The 60-foot-long rocket, which weighs 23 tons, was launched from a port in the mountainous Kii peninsula in Wakayama Prefecture on Japans main island, according to the companys website. The launch attempt came about six years after Space One was established in 2018 with the backing of four Japanese investors, including Canon Electronics, IHI, Shimizu and major banks, the Associated Press reported. The company has hopes of eventually providing a commercial space transportation service for sending satellites into space, it says on its website. Speaking to reporters at a Wednesday news conference, Space One Director Mamoru Endo declined to specify why company officials believe the rocket triggered its self-destruction after the first-stage engine ignited. An investigation into the malfunction is underway, Masakazu Toyoda, the companys president, told reporters. No injuries were reported near the launch pad, Shuhei Kishimoto, governor of Wakayama prefecture, told reporters, according to the New York Times. What was the mission of the Kairos rocket? Visitors look on Wednesday as smoke rises from behind a hill after a small rocket by Tokyo-based startup Space One exploded upon take-off, at the Spaceport Kili site in Kushimoto, Wakayama prefecture. The rocket made by a Japanese startup exploded just after launch when the company aborted its attempt to become the nation's first private firm to put a satellite into orbit. The government-made satellite that the Kairos rocket was carrying would have gathered intel about rocket launches from its neighboring North Korea, as well as other information, according to media reports. The satellite belongs to a branch of a Japan spy agency called the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center and would only have served as a backup if other satellites were down, the center said in a statement. Its failure to reach orbit also represents a setback for Japan as the nation seeks to become a player in the commercial space transportation market. Commercial companies across the globe have been increasingly partnering with government space agencies on various cosmic endeavors. Just within the past few months, Intuitive Machines in Houston became the first private company to ever land an uncrewed robotic craft on the lunar surface in a NASA-funded mission. And earlier this week, four spacefarers returned to Earth from the International Space Station as part of a partnership between the U.S. space agency and SpaceX. However, Toyoda and other officials rejected calling the mission a failure, stressing to reporters that it will help them learn from what went wrong on future attempts. We are taking what happened in a positive way and remain prepared to take up the next challenge, Toyoda told reporters. Contributing: The Associated Press Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Space One Kairos rocket explodes seconds into launch in Japan: Reports TechCrunch Amazon, Microsoft and Google have relaxed their egress fees, which are a tax of sorts that the cloud companies charge customers to move their data to another vendor. Its a way to keep existing customers in the fold, but its kind of a ham-handed way to do it, and doesnt exactly foster goodwill. For example, there are limits to the kind of data you can move, and each requires you to contact the vendor and open a request to get your own data out of the cloud. Former JEA executives Aaron Zahn, left, and Ryan Wannemacher appear at a December 2019 Jacksonville City Council meeting to answer questions about JEA's potential privatization and a controversial bonus plan. Testimony wrapped up Tuesday in the trial of two former JEA executives as jurors heard dueling portrayals about how much a sale of JEA would have generated in incentive payouts to employees, one of the key pieces of evidence that jurors will weigh when they render verdicts on Aaron Zahn and Ryan Wannemacher. Defense attorneys for Zahn, who was CEO of JEA, rested their case after calling an accountant expert who testified his analysis found the incentive payouts would have been about $31 million, a fraction of the government's drumbeat of assertions that JEA employees stood to gain hundreds of millions of dollars. Defense attorneys for Wannemacher, who was the utility's chief financial officer, told the jury about sworn statements made by Zahn in January 2020 when city attorneys questioned Zhan on what happened during the JEA sales process. That part of the trial occurred behind closed doors after U.S. District Judge Brian Davis ordered the public and prosecutors out of the courtroom. Timeline: Conspiracy trial of Aaron Zahn and Ryan Wannemacher caps tumultuous years for city and JEA Meet the defendants: Former JEA executives Aaron Zahn and Ryan Wannemacher are on trial: How they got there No photos, no videos: In ex-JEA executives' trials, these are rules for reporters, spectators Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Tysen Duva argued Davis should not close the courtroom. "The public has a right to be in a public trial," Duva said. He said it also would put prosecutors at a disadvantage to be outside the courtroom because they would not be able to evaluate that evidence in preparation for closing arguments. Davis said he was being consistent with how he has previously handled situations that involved sworn statements compelled by the city of Jacksonville during the city's own investigation in 2020 of whether Zhan should be fired with cause. Courts have ruled government employees have constitutional protections against compelled statements being used against them in a criminal proceeding. Two juries are simultaneously hearing evidence in the conspiracy and fraud trial. When Wannemacher's attorneys presented statements made by Zahn, only the jury that will decide Wannemacher's case was in the courtroom. The judge removed the Zahn jury for that part of the trial that lasted several minutes. Davis previously ruled Wannemacher could present evidence to the jury drawn from Zahn's sworn statements. The judge's order does not show the exact statements but says they "speak directly to how the performance unit plan would calculate payouts" and also "what Wannemacher said to Zahn and what Wannemacher understood regarding Zahn informing JEA board members." Money & Power: Inside the campaign to privatize JEA More big cases: Before Aaron Zahn's JEA trial, Jacksonville had lots of scandals in court. Remember these? Aside from that closed-door evidence, the bulk of testimony Monday and Tuesday immersed jurors in the complicated world of accounting with repeated references to GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Standards) and GASB (Governmental Accounting Standards Board) and how they do or do not apply to the JEA incentive plan. That "performance unit plan" was called PUP for short, adding to the alphabet soup of acronyms jurors have digested during the trial that started Feb. 28. Ernest Dixon of Berkley Research Group, who was hired by Zahn's defense team, testified the City Council Auditor's Office neglected to apply the necessary accounting standards when the auditor calculated how much the PUP would generate in payouts if JEA were sold. Dixon said the city would have to use those accounting standards because anyone interested in buying city-issued bonds would only do so if the city's financial statements are in compliance. "It had to happen," Dixon said of applying the standards. "Absolutely that is what would occur." The major difference between Dixon's calculations and those done by the City Council Auditor is that Dixon said accounting standards require accounting for JEA's agreement to buying high-priced electricity from the Plant Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia. That accounting would put a nearly $3.9 billion liability on the city's financial statement if JEA were sold and that would have to be factored into the PUP formula, Dixon said. His calculations put the cost for the PUP at about $31 million in payouts if the city had sold JEA for just over $11 billion. That would be in the same range as the $30 million figure that Wannemacher told the JEA board the PUP plan could cost if the payouts for the long-term incentive plan were made based on JEA's financial performance over three years. In response to board member questions, Wannemacher said at the July 2019 meeting a sale of JEA would accelerate the time frame for the payouts. He did not give the board a figure for what the PUP plan's value would be to employees in the event of a sale. During cross-examination, prosecutors showed emails between Wannemacher and the City Council Auditor's staff in November 2019 when he wrote, "Your methodology is correct" as the auditor was working through the PUP calculations. Duva also played video clips of Zahn and Wannemacher appearing before City Council members Rory Diamond and Ron Salem in December 2019. Wannemacher told them it's "pretty easy math" to figure out the PUP payouts. Duva said through cross-examination that Zahn and Wannemacher had the "perfect opportunity" to explain at the time that the accounting standards would have resulted in a much lower payouts than what the auditor showed but they did not do so. The testimony part of the trial ended Tuesday afternoon after prosecutors called Jeff Rodda, an auditor in the council auditor's office, as a rebuttal witness. Rodda said there was no need to account for the Plant Vogtle liability in the PUP calculations because of how a potential deal would have been structured to handle the Vogtle obligation. He said the formula for the PUP payout is a "construct of whoever created the plan" and it didn't mention GAAP or GASBY standards. He said when Wannemacher wrote in 2019 the City Council Auditor's methodology was correct, he took that to mean "that we calculated it the same way he did." The prosecution and defense could make their closing arguments on Wednesday. This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: JEA trial: Government and defense wrap up their cases House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is floating an ambitious deadline for the chamber to pass Ukraine aid, urging GOP leaders to send a Senate-passed foreign aid package to President Bidens desk by the end of next week. The clock is ticking, and we have to get the bipartisan national security bill over the finish line before we leave town next Friday, March 22 before we leave town, Jeffries said Wednesday during a press briefing in the Capitol. Its reckless to do otherwise. Jeffries, as leader of the minority party, has virtually no power to control what legislation comes to the floor. And Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), while voicing his support for more Ukraine aid, is opposed to the $95 billion foreign aid package that passed last month through the Senate, where 70 senators including 22 Republicans supported the legislation. Still, the longer the impasse grows, the more pressure is building on Johnson to move some form of Ukraine aid before Novembers elections. Several prominent GOP committee heads have stressed the importance of providing more military help to Kyiv amid recent Russian advances. A handful of Republicans, led by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), have launched a discharge petition designed as a pressure point to compel GOP leaders to bring Ukraine aid to the floor. And on Tuesday, Polish President Andrzej Duda met with congressional leaders, including Johnson, to deliver warnings that a Russian victory in Ukraine would put Poland in the crosshairs next. Jeffries on Wednesday was quick to highlight Dudas message, warning that a Russian invasion of a NATO ally would likely accelerate U.S. involvement, putting American troops in harms way. We cannot allow Ukraine to be overrun by Russia, because what will happen is that American lives are likely to be on the line unless we were to believe that if Putin wins in Ukraine, he stops there, when he didnt stop in Georgia, and he didnt stop in Crimea, Jeffries said. Breaking news: Hes not stopping in Ukraine, if hes allowed to be successful. And in that neighborhood, its filled with NATO allies, including Poland, which is one of the reasons why President Duda was so strongly supportive of making sure we continue to support the Ukrainian effort. Johnson, after meeting with Duda, praised Poland as one of Americas key NATO allies and a strategic partner in promoting a free and prosperous future and in advocating for greater defense spending by our European partners. In an increasingly dangerous world with growing threats, America must remain united with our friends against those who threaten our security, Johnson said in a statement. The Speaker is demanding that any new foreign assistance be accompanied by House-passed measures to limit migration on the southern border provisions that are a non-starter with Democrats in Congress and the White House. The impasse has raised real questions about how, or if, Johnson intends to move more Ukraine aid through the House, where a number of conservatives oppose more Ukraine aid and want Washington to focus its attention instead on domestic problems a more isolationist position also championed by former President Trump as he races for another term in the White House. In an attempt to break the deadlock, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) this week launched a second discharge petition designed to force a vote on the Senate Ukraine bill over the objections of Johnson and his leadership team. Jeffries noted that McGoverns petition has already attracted almost 180 signatures, versus just 14 for Fitzpatricks petition. Thats not dueling discharge petitions, he said. Its a reaffirmation that the only clear path is to put the bipartisan, comprehensive Senate-passed bill on the House floor for an up-or-down vote. And it will pass overwhelmingly with Democrats and Republicans. That is the only path forward. Jeffriess target date of March 22 aligns directly with the deadline for the remaining six bills to fund the government through the remainder of fiscal year 2024. As both debates evolve, some lawmakers have floated the idea of attaching some form of Ukraine aid to the omnibus spending package. Johnson, however, has said preventing a shutdown should be Congresss first priority. The House is actively considering options on a path forward [on Ukraine], Johnson said late last month, but our first responsibility is to fund the government. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Constance Marten has defended taking her newborn baby to live in a tent in the middle of winter, telling jurors at the Old Bailey: Jesus survived in a barn. The 36-year-old is on trial accused of the manslaughter by gross negligence of her daughter Victoria. The baby died while Miss Marten and her partner, Mark Gordon, were on the run and sleeping rough on the South Downs last January. Under crossexamination, Miss Marten, who comes from a wealthy, aristocratic background, denied that it had been inappropriate to live in a tent with a newborn baby. She accused Joel Smith KC, the prosecution barrister, of looking at things through a Western perspective. Miss Marten, whose four older children were taken into care before Victorias birth, told the court: There are societies like Bedouins who walk through a cold desert with children and they survive. Jesus survived in a barn. I would do anything for my child to prevent her being taken by a system thats abhorrent. I will do anything for my child She added: I have grown up with a lot of luxury. I have been blessed in that respect. I like feathered duvets and comfort, but I will do anything for my child, anything for my baby, anything. I would rather be in a plush bed in a palace. I would rather be in a nice big bed. Miss Marten insisted she had been left with no other choice than to hide baby Victoria from the authorities, alleging that two of her other children had been physically abused after they were removed by social services. She told the court: A mothers love of her child is incredibly strong and there is no way I was going to be parted from my child. We were hiding from the entire British public because I was worried about Victoria being taken. My other choice was putting her in care and my two older children would turn up to contact meetings with bruises. They were abused, spat on and thrown on the floor and I am not going to put them in that position. Miss Marten accepted that camping in a tent meant there was no heating, hot water or electricity, but added: People around the world live in conditions like that... as long as your child is well taken care of and loved. Victoria was our number one priority Asked what she and Mr Gordon, 49, had planned to do about food, she said: It was only a pitstop. We were not thinking about being there for months. It was more in the immediacy rather than long-term planning. Mr Smith suggested that she and Mr Gordon were hideously ill-prepared to look after Victoria when they went on the run with her last winter. But the defendant, who described Mr Gordon as her amazing husband, told jurors: We had enough to keep her warm, absolutely. She was our number one priority. The court previously heard that Miss Marten gave birth to Victoria at a rented holiday cottage in Northumberland on Christmas Eve 2022. After that, the couple travelled across the country before going on to the South Downs in Sussex where they camped in a tent on Jan 8. Police search a field in Brighton as they hunt for baby Victoria in March 2023 following her parents' arrest - LEON NEAL/GETTY IMAGES Miss Marten claims Victoria died after she accidentally fell asleep on her during their first night in the tent. Mr Smith pressed Miss Marten on the decision to take a newborn baby into a tent in winter, asking: Do you accept now it was the wrong thing to do? Breaking down in tears, she replied: I accept now that her passing away was awful. If I could stop that sequence of events I would. Miss Marten said her daughter had not died because she had been in a tent, but because she had fallen asleep on her. I do not think being in a tent to be a wrong thing to do. Me being exhausted and sitting up at the moment in time was very unfortunate. I do feel very responsible. I feel responsible for her death, absolutely, but I do not think the way it happened had anything to do with being in a tent. It could have been in a hotel where I fell asleep. I have to love and forgive myself Miss Marten went on: I have to live with that because she died in my arms. I feel responsible as her mother. I feel responsible for her death but I have to love and forgive myself. I do not think I could have helped falling asleep and that is why I need to learn to forgive myself. Miss Marten also claimed her family bore some responsibility for the decisions she had taken and the tragic consequences. She told the jury: I have had a very privileged upbringing but my family are used to getting what they want and they wont stop until they get it. They are very well-connected people. I am up against a lot. My family have worked with the authorities because they do not agree with who I have children and they think I have had children outside what is appropriate. The couple are accused of manslaughter by gross negligence, concealing the birth of a child, cruelty to a person under 16, causing or allowing the death of a child and perverting the course of justice. They deny all the charges and the trial continues. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A Lawrenceville woman was arrested after police say she assaulted a man and caused thousands of dollars in damage at a church in Floyd County. On Sunday, Rome police were called to the Assembly of God church on Callier Springs Road regarding a person causing a disturbance. Dispatch told police that a woman, identified as Kail Schemmel, 28, was saying that the church was killing dogs and banging on doors after she was locked out of the church. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] When officers arrived, they said Schemmel was on the church porch jumping up and down, banging on the door and acting erratically. Rome police said Schemmel could be heard yelling, Im going to kill him, while children were around her. When officers asked Schemmel what her name was, she said, Dont got one, and, You already know who I am. Authorities said she would only scream that the church was killing dogs and that Jesus wasnt real and said that the church had taken her child from her in the past. As Rome officers tried to handcuff Schemmel, she allegedly bit the officers forearm, resulting in broken skin and a bite mark. Officers said during the time of the scuffle, the children were trying to shove the officers off Schemmel, throwing rocks at and hitting them in various places, including their heads. Officers were finally able to put her in handcuffs. When authorities spoke with the man who was allegedly attacked, he told them service began and thats when Schemmel burst into the sanctuary screaming and threw her two dogs onto the pulpit. TRENDING STORIES: Rome police said at some point, Schemmel went to the victim and hit him in the face, causing the cut. While attacking the man, she allegedly said she was going to slit his throat and cut his [expletive] off. One of the church owners told officials that Schemmel broke the door handle, and kicked it until it cracked. This caused about $1,400 in damages. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Schemmel was arrested and booked into the Floyd County Jail. Shes charged with disorderly conduct, vandalism to a place of worship, two counts of terroristic threats and acts, criminal damage to property in the second degree, and four counts of cruelty to children, two counts of obstruction of an officer and two counts of battery. Police said she also had an active warrant out of Moultrie, Ga. IN OTHER NEWS: FIRST ON FOX: Democratic Congressman Jamaal Bowman recently argued that a mural of Minister Louis Farrakhan should remain in a New York City suburb, prompting outrage from Jewish activists. The "Squad" Democrat from New York recently sparked controversy over comments he made regarding a Black Lives Matter mural that featured Black figures, including Farrakhan, who has infamously made disparaging comments about Jews, including calling them the "the synagogue of Satan" and "termites." "Regarding the minister, you know, he said many things that I fully disagree with, you know, period," Bowman said during an interview last year according to a New York Daily News report about the mural in Westchester County. "But he is a part of Black history, you know? Thats a fact. And if the Greenburgh community particularly that section of Greenburgh, you know supports the mural, then the mural should be there as is." Bowmans position sparked strong pushback from Jewish advocates. SQUAD MEMBER IN FIRE ALARM FIASCO TAKES HEAT FROM WITHIN HIS OWN PARTY: 'NEED NEW LEADERSHIP' L - Jamaal Bowman R - Minister Louis Farrakhan "Farrakhan has singlehandedly done more damage to the positive relations and cooperation among different minority groups that has existed since the civil rights movement," Brooke Goldstein, human rights attorney and executive director of The Lawfare Project, told Fox News Digital. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Including Farrakhan on any sort of mural is nothing less than an attempt to whitewash his blatant racism, and to gaslight Americans into viewing him as anything other than a bigot," Goldstein said. "Jamal Bowmans failure to acknowledge the trauma caused by Farrakhan, and unwillingness to act on this mural, shows indifference to the harm and an appalling lack of fitness to lead, especially when it comes to minority rights." "Louis Farrakhan is an unabashed Jew-hater who has used his very public platform to spread abhorrent antisemitic stereotypes, while at the same time recruiting and developing a veritable army of followers indoctrinated into the cult of hatred towards Jews and marginalized communities," she continued. "Farrakhan - whose support for, and appreciation of, Islamist regimes like Iran, which deprive their own citizens of basic human rights while exporting global terrorism - has spread vitriol accusing Jews of, among many other things, seeking to manipulate and exploit Black people." 'SQUAD' DEMOCRAT JAMAAL BOWMAN ARGUES BIDEN INACTION ON REPARATIONS IS HOLDING HIM BACK Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., arrives to the U.S. Capitol during the last votes of the week on Thursday, May 25, 2023. Lizzy Savetsky, a Jewish activist in nearby New York City, told Fox News Digital that it is "unconscionable and reprehensible that Rep. Jamal Bowman would choose to glorify a blatant antisemite like Louis Farrakhan." "This is not just an error in judgment; its a blatant endorsement of hate and antisemitism. Such actions should not only be condemned but also met with the sternest opposition to prevent any semblance of acceptance for hate-filled bigots. Rep. Bowman must resign immediately." Farrakhan has called Jewish people "termites", praised Hitler, and has become one of the most controversial religious figures in the United States due to his derogatory comments about Israel. "Louis Farrakhan is one of the most notorious, vitriolic anti-semites in our country," Congressman Carlos Gimenez, who represents Miami-Dade County which is home to one of the largest Jewish populations in the U.S. and the world, told Fox News Digital. "It is entirely reprehensible for any public official to use their platform to venerate someone who has perpetuated hateful canards and tropes for the purpose of ostracizing, targeting, and relegating the Jewish community. Whether as Mayor of Miami-Dade County or as Member of Congress, I have been proud to stand with the Jewish community against anti-semitism and hate in all of its forms." Bowmans office did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital regarding the hotly debated taxpayer-funded mural. Bowman, who represents Greenburgh in Congress but did not at the time that the mural was constructed, told New York Daily News that Farrakhan has made "horrific" and "despicable antisemitic" comments but said "the local community living near the mural should have the power to decide how to move forward." Bowman, who has been a vocal advocate of a cease-fire in Gaza which he said was "uplifting deeply what it actually means to be Jewish", is not a stranger to controversy stemming from supporting radical activists. In 2014, Bowman honored a radical Black activist and convicted murderer during a special project at a New York City middle school he founded before he was elected to Congress. The special project wall included former Rep. Cynthia McKinney, D-Ga., a known antisemite and promoter of conspiracy theories, such as that Jews were responsible for the September 11 terrorist attacks. Fox News Digitals Brandon Gillespie and Emma Colton contributed to this report Original article source: Jewish activists blast 'Squad' Dem for 'appalling' defense of Farrakhan mural: 'Lack of fitness to lead' A new study has found more than 80 percent of high schoolers value on-the-job training over other postsecondary options, including a four-year degree laying bare students interest in immediate employment and disdain for a college education. The study, commissioned by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, surveyed more than 1,700 high school juniors and seniors, with 83 percent saying they value professional development leading to a job compared to 72 percent who value a four-year degree. In collaboration with HCM Strategists and Edge Research, the study also surveyed more than 3,000 non-enrolled adults ages 18-30 who either chose not to attend college or left their postsecondary program. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Both groups not only placed higher value in on-the-job training, but also licenses and professional certificates. But a panel of experts came together yesterday to discuss the reports findings expressing concern over the growing apathy high schoolers and non-enrolled adults are showing in a college education. This is an acute concern to us particularly because our North Star is pretty simple, said Patrick Methvin, director of pathways and postsecondary success strategies at the Gates Foundation, to dramatically increase opportunity for the socioeconomic advancement of Americans and to eliminate race, ethnicity and income as predictors of student success. Because we know a postsecondary credential is the most sure path to that, these attitudinal changes are a concern, said Methvin. Despite the empirical value of a college degree, Methvin said high schoolers waning trust comes from the negative media they consume, including the Supreme Court decision ending race conscious college admissions which students view as an attack on campus diversity along with crippling student loan debt. But Methvin insisted a college education is still the most valuable option. People are living in very different worlds where theyre getting their information and what thats doing in terms of influencing their choices, Methvin said. This data builds on a fall 2022 study that examined students declining enrollment in higher education. The postsecondary value narrative has been prevalent in policy wonk circles for some time, but the interesting thing from this research is were hearing those exact same words now from students themselves, Methvin said. They are talking about value. They are talking about [the return on investment] in ways they werent 10 years ago. Related: Job Focused Community College Programs Grow But Grim Transfer Trend Continues Here are four key takeaways from the report: 1. High schoolers and non-enrolled adults value on-the-job training the most out of all postsecondary options. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, HCM Strategists and Edge Research Terrell Dunn, founding partner and consultant at HCM Strategists, said students value on-the-job training because theyre shorter and cheaper options that lead to well-paying jobs such as careers in the oil and gas industry that offer six figure salaries without needing a college degree. Adam Burns, chief operations officer and senior research analyst at Edge Research, said theres uncertainty that investing in a college degree will help students reach their career goals. When it comes to paying for college, this is when the gloves come off [and] folks really seem to have a lot of problems, Burns said. Theyre really lost in understanding how much college really costs, how financial aid works and even just managing when to fill out the forms and how to fill out the forms. 2. High schoolers are more likely to align college importance with future job placements and income. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, HCM Strategists and Edge Research High schoolers that value a college education are focused on real life concerns such as earning more money and getting a better job as opposed to learning or networking. Pam Loeb, principal at Edge Research, said high schoolers main focus is finding the best pathway to a well-paying job. How do I find the right job once Im finished? How do I choose what classes to take so Im not wasting my time and money as I go through the college process, Loeb said. A concerted effort to engage and reach out to [high schoolers] is really needed. 3. The importance of a college degree declined among non-enrolled adults compared to those surveyed in the fall of 2022. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, HCM Strategists and Edge Research The top reasons non-enrolled adults value earning a college degree aligns with high schoolers to earn more money and get a better job. But every reason for getting a college degree declined across the board for non-enrolled adults compared to those surveyed in the fall of 2022. Burns said non-enrolled adults declining value stems from the opportunity cost of transitioning away from their full-time jobs to work towards a college degree theyre already skeptical about. They need help from someone who can connect the dots [and] make sure they can see the return on investment, Burns said, such as ensuring they will secure an internship or full-time job after graduating. 4. Most non-enrolled adults see more value in licenses, professional certificates, and trade schools compared to a four-year degree. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, HCM Strategists and Edge Research About 75, 72 and 63 percent of non-enrolled adults respectively value licenses, professional certificates and trade or vocational schools an increase of five percent compared to those surveyed in the fall of 2022. But just 57 percent value a four-year school a three percent decline. A lot of their concern is around making the right choicesat each juncture of their journey, said Jessica Collis, director of advocacy and change management at HCM Strategists. Dunn said non-enrolled adults might find value in a college degree if higher education institutions were more intentional about reaching out to them. Theyre pretty rational in weighing their opportunity costs as they think about higher education, Dunn said. So although theyre skepticaltheyre also persuadable. Disclosure: The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provides financial support to The 74. Total spending using international cards in the UAE witnessed a growth of over 25% during the year 2023, a report said. J K Khalil, General Manager, MENA East, Mastercard, told Emirates News Agency (WAM) that digital payments continue to experience remarkable growth in the UAE, with more users and companies opting for them due to the convenience and security they offer compared to cash payments. He said that the spending patterns using international cards in the UAE and the GCC countries highlight their pivotal role in boosting the travel sector's recovery. Transactions via cards and digital payment solutions in the Middle East and North Africa surged by 20 percent in value and over 50% in volume, indicating a significant shift towards digital payments for everyday expenses. Anticipating continued growth, he attributed this trend to consumers' desire for speed, convenience, and security, noting these as key drivers fuelling the expansion of digital payments. He reaffirmed Mastercard's commitment to streamline transactions and enhance payment efficiency in the region, emphasising partnerships to offer comprehensive digital payment features. Khalil shared insights from Mastercard's payment index, indicating a high adoption rate of new payment methods, with 85% of individuals in the region embracing them. In the UAE, 88% adopted new methods, including mobile contactless payments (39%), "buy now, pay later" services (29%), cryptocurrencies (20%), and wearable technology (18%). He highlighted the significant growth of cross-border payments, particularly in connecting expatriates with their home countries, especially in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries with large expatriate populations. Regarding Mastercard's cross-border payments report for 2023, it indicated that 48% of UAE residents anticipate an increase in cross-border transactions over the next 12 months, while 36% expect to receive more cross-border payments during the same period. He reiterated Mastercard's commitment to supporting communities by providing safe, convenient, and rapid international money transfer methods at reasonable costs. Mastercard's cross-border services facilitate money movement to over 180 countries, enabling senders to reach over 90 percent of banked populations worldwide. Khalil emphasised that financial inclusion is a cornerstone of Mastercard's mission, extending beyond bank accounts to address systemic financial inequalities. The company aims to include one billion individuals and 50 million micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in the digital economy by 2025. He said that small businesses require digital support to thrive in the digital economy. Therefore, Mastercard offers tailored payment solutions for startups and SMEs, facilitating swift, secure transactions and broadening their customer base. He pointed out that Mastercard unveiled the "Sustainable Cards Pledge" at COP28 in the UAE, aiming for banks to adopt sustainable card materials by 2025. Over 10 financial institutions promptly joined the initiative, making the UAE the first nation to achieve this milestone three years ahead of Mastercard's global target for 2028, where 80% of Mastercard cards issued in the market will be sustainable by 2025. A Mastercard study found that Middle Eastern consumers are increasingly prioritising sustainability, with nine out of 10 adults willing to take action. Over 72% believe companies should prioritise environmental measures, and 25% would cease support for brands lacking sustainability commitments, with 15% having already boycotted such companies. Bruce Benedict / Kia The average cost of a used car in the U.S. is $26,533, according to Kelley Blue Book (KBB). But if youre on a tight budget, or if youre looking for a starter vehicle, this price point might still be a bit too high. Watch Out: 5 Used Cars You Shouldnt Buy Read Next: How To Get $340 Per Year in Cash Back on Gas and Other Things You Already Buy Fortunately, there are some vehicles around the $10,000 price range that are worth checking out. This mostly includes models that are at least five or 10 years old, but even then, many of these cars are still reliable and will get you where you need to go. GOBankingRates asked several auto industry experts about the top used cars theyd suggest for around $10,000. Heres what they said and why. Sponsored: Owe the IRS $10K or more? Schedule a FREE consultation to see if you qualify for tax relief. 2018 Kia Rio Joyce Ann Gutierrez, an automotive expert at 4WheelOnline, suggested the 2018 Kia Rio. On Edmunds, you can find several of these used vehicles for between $7,000 and $10,000. This includes sedans and hatchbacks. Shopping for older car models within this price range allows buyers to potentially access features and reliability that might be out of reach with newer models at a similar price point, Gutierrez said. Older car models often offer great value for [the] money due to their depreciation over time. The 2018 Kia Rio sedan offers about 29 MPG in the city and 37 MPG on the highway, so its economical for both road trips and daily commutes. Some models also have such features as keyless entry and an integrated infotainment system. Check Out: 6 New Cars for 2024 That Will Hold Their Value 2013 Honda Fit The average listing price for the 2013 Honda Fit is around $12,000, but you can find models for under $10,000. This vehicle is economical, affordable and reliable. It handles well and is an exceptionally comfortable ride, seating five occupants with ease. It also boasts plenty of cargo room in addition to its spacious seats, making it feel exceptionally large and accommodating for a small car, said Nigel Tunnacliffe, co-founder and CEO at Coastline Academy. It is not quite as hardy as the Prius C or Rio, but it is still a worthwhile investment for under $10,000. Story continues 2019 Nissan Sentra Starting at $8,950, the 2019 Nissan Sentra also makes the list of affordable used cars. The 2019 Nissan Sentra is a versatile and efficient sedan with impressive features across its six trim levels, said Gutierrez. With up to 29 city [and] 37 highway MPG rating, the Sentra offers an economical driving experience without sacrificing performance. This vehicle also offers such safety features as an automatic braking system and forward collision warning for a reliable, safe driving experience. Some models also feature a roomy interior and a power moonroof, though you might need to go beyond your $10,000 budget for that. 2014 Toyota Prius C Starting at about $7,500, the 2014 Toyota Prius C is another good choice for a used vehicle as its reliable and affordably priced. It gets a combined MPG of about 50, which is still impressive even by todays standards. Plus, it has good handling and safety features. Before the Prius C was discontinued, it was the standard vehicle at Coastline Academy, and it served our instructors and students well for years, said Tunnacliffe. We purchased hundreds of models and ran into minimal problems thanks to its reliable build and strong fuel economy. It delivered great value at the time of its release, and it continues to do so today. 2016 Toyota Corolla The 2016 Toyota Corolla, particularly the LE Eco model, boasts a reliable engine with 140 horsepower and 126 lb-ft of torque, offering a blend of power and efficiency, said Gutierrez. With an impressive fuel economy of up to 30 city/42 highway MPG, its a practical choice for those seeking cost-effective transportation. If you check out sites like Edmunds, youll find several models for $10,000 or less. 2015 Kia Rio For the 2015 Kia Rio, the average listing price is $9,963 though some models might be even less than that. So, if youre on a budget and want something reliable, check out this option. Kia is known for making exceptionally reliable cars, and the Rio is no exception. The Rio combines strong fuel economy with good acceleration, allowing for a smooth and enjoyable ride, said Tunnacliffe. It is both highly reliable and safe, making it a great choice for younger drivers, or for anyone looking for an affordable everyday vehicle. The main downside is that this particular model doesnt have a lot to offer in terms of tech features or infotainment systems. But for the price point, you might not mind. 2013 Honda Civic Erin Kemp, automotive expert and consumer advocate at Bumper, suggested the Honda Civic. On Edmunds, you can find listings for around $9,000 with some being even lower than that. The key here is to search for vehicles that offer reliability, durability and a good track record, instead of merely opting for popular makes and models, Kemp said. For starters, the Honda Civic and the Toyota Corolla would make excellent selections. These vehicles have unfailingly received high marks for their reliability and longevity, and they also offer great fuel efficiency which is a significant cost-saving factor over time. 2013 Subaru Outback Kemp also suggested the Subaru Outback as an option worth considering. On Edmunds, you can find older models, such as a 2013, for around $9,500 or less. This vehicle has an estimated gas MPG of 24 in the city and 30 on the highway. It also has a good deal of interior space and standard safety features, which is great for families or those looking to transport a lot. Opt for Safety Over Price When it comes to used cars, affordability is important, but so is safety. Keep in mind that no matter what make or model you opt for, getting a detailed inspection and a complete vehicle history report is crucial to ensure that your used car purchase is a savvy one, said Kemp. When considering a used car, its especially important to do your research beforehand. Reliability scores are a good place to start, but what ultimately matters is looking at the features that go into determining such a score: namely, good fuel efficiency, a well-built engine, a strong chassis and high-quality brakes, added Tunnacliffe. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: The Best $10K You Can Spend on a Used Car, According to Experts The Georgia judge overseeing the election-interference case against Donald Trump and 14 defendants dismissed six of the charges in the wide-ranging indictment on Wednesday, saying they were not detailed enough. One of the 41 charges Trump and some of the co-defendants in the case were charged with was soliciting officials in Georgia to violate their oath of office. Those charges were dismissed. The other charges in the case against Trump and other defendants remain. The six defendants who had the charge at issue in the case were Trump, Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, John Eastman, Ray Smith and Robert Cheeley. In different ways all six men attempted to get Georgia officials to violate their oath of office as part of Donald Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election, prosecutors said in their August indictment. Those efforts ranged from pressuring Georgia lawmakers to appoint fake electors, to Trumps infamous phone call with the secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger, urging him to find enough votes to overturn the election. Related: Georgias election investigation: who are the main characters in Trumps case? But McAfee said on Wednesday that Fani Willis, the Fulton county district attorney, had not given enough detail in charging documents as to what specific language in the oaths of office defendants were pressuring officials to violate. The August indictment says the defendants sought to get Georgia officials to violate their oaths to the Georgia constitution and to the United States constitution. That language was too vague, McAfee said on Wednesday. The United States Constitution contains hundreds of clauses, any one of which can be the subject of a lifetimes study, he wrote. The Georgia Constitution is not a mere shadow of its federal counterpart, and although some provisions feature similar language, the Georgia Constitution has been interpreted to contain dramatically different meanings. As written, these six counts contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, ie, the underlying felony solicited, McAfee wrote in his opinion. They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways. Jeff DiSantis, a spokesman for Willis office, declined to comment on the ruling, but said it was being reviewed. All of the defendants continue to face racketeering charges. I think it is a minor hiccup for the DA and less so signs of a fatal flaw, said Anthony Michael Kreis, a law professor at Georgia State University who has been closely following the case. It was never particularly clear what constitutional theory undergirded the oath of office charges. I suspect the DAs office will button up their theory and go back to the grand jury. The ruling is consistent with Judge McAfees approach all along. It is a very thorough opinion, he added. Importantly, I think hes explaining the law in very plain terms, which I think is meant to communicate what hes doing and why to the public in addition to the parties. That suggests to me that he understand his rulings need a public education component, too. ATLANTA The judge presiding over the election interference case in Georgia has dismissed some of the criminal counts against former President Donald Trump. In a ruling Wednesday, Judge Scott McAfee found that six of the counts in the indictment against Trump and some of his co-defendants, including his former chief of staff Mark Meadows and lawyer Rudy Giuliani, lacked sufficient detail. The judge left open the possibility that prosecutors could re-file the counts. Former President Trump Holds Super Tuesday Election Night Event At Mar-A-Lago (Win McNamee / Getty Images) "As written, these six counts contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited. They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently," McAfee wrote. The counts the judge tossed involved accusations that Trump and his co-defendants had requested state officials violate their oaths of office. The judge found that the language used in the indictment was too "generic" and did not specify which part of which oath of which constitution the state or federal they'd been accused of requesting the officials to violate. "The Courts concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants in fact it has alleged an abundance. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is," the judge wrote, "fatal." One of the dismissed counts involved Trump's call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, urging him to "find" enough votes for him to be declared the victor in the state, which he'd lost to Joe Biden. Another involves a letter Trump sent to Raffensperger urging him to "decertify" the 2020 election results. Trump was indicted on three of the six counts that were dismissed. He still faces 10 other counts in the case. In a footnote, the judge said the DA's office could "seek a reindictment supplementing these six counts" with more information. He also allowed the "overt acts" the counts were tied to to remain as part of the larger racketeering indictment. Trump attorney Steve Sadow praised the judge's decision in a statement. "The ruling is a correct application of the law, as the prosecution failed to make specific allegations of any alleged wrongdoing on those counts. The entire prosecution of President Trump is political, constitutes election interference, and should be dismissed, he said. A spokesperson for Giuliani, Ted Goodman, praised the ruling and said, The sooner this whole show trial is dismissed, the sooner we can restore the rule of law in this country." The DAs office and Raffenspergers office declined to comment. Trump and the co-defendants affected by the ruling, including Giuliani, Meadows and lawyer John Eastman, have pleaded not guilty. The decision comes ahead of another highly anticipated ruling McAfee is expected to issue this week whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified from the case. The judge has said he plans to issue that ruling in the coming days. This article was originally published on NBCNews.com Alex Brandon - Pool via CNP/SplashNews.com / Alex Brandon - Pool via CNP/SplashNews.com The Biden administration recently paused approvals for proposed liquefied natural gas shipments. Current LNG exports will continue, but a new Energy Innovation analysis shows the LNG export terminal pause could protect U.S. consumers from massive natural gas costs up to 14% higher in extra costs per year, Forbes reported. Find Out: A $150K Income Is Lower Middle Class In These High-Cost Cities Learn More: 5 Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money According to the analysis, approving pending LNG export terminals would increase expenditures on natural gas by U.S. households, businesses and industry by up to $18 billion per year. The largest burden would fall on low-income households. Forbes noted that every new LNG export terminal built means more gas sent overseas by oil and gas companies seeking the highest bidder, regardless of what it costs U.S. consumers. Plus, when oil and gas companies increase LNG exports to foreign markets where prices are higher, they reduce the available supply in domestic markets. Read Next: How Far a $100,000 Salary Goes in Americas 50 Largest Cities This could worsen price volatility at the expense of consumers in three ways, Forbes pointed out. Not only will electricity prices increase because of natural gas-fired power plants, but 60% of Americans still use gas to heat their homes, and any price increases from exports will have a direct effect. According to Forbes, low-income households spend more than 8% of their total income on energy bills, three times higher than the rest of the U.S. population. The third possible outcome is that manufacturing costs and economic competitiveness will be affected by increased gas prices. Manufacturing groups and consumer advocates warn that Americas relationships with global markets could make price instability more likely, the Wall Street Journal reported. Over the next decade, additional projects could increase heat and power bills, including costs to make everything from drywall to steel. Story continues But this isnt necessarily new. Forbes noted that in 2022, winter gas prices increased by an average of 27%. This forced a third of U.S. consumers to sacrifice essentials like food or medicine to pay their energy bills. Forbes added that the majority of voters support limiting LNG exports by a 2-to-1 margin, and 60% of likely voters support this sort of pause and re-evaluation. At a Senate hearing, Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk said the Biden administration aims to keep the countrys gas prices low. That is a huge economic advantage, he said, as reported by WSJ. Do we want to give that up as a country? Again, we need to analyze that. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Biden and Your Utility Bills: Could Prices Go Up If He Doesnt Step In? GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) Notes and other work product from an audit of the Johnson City Police Departments (JCPD) handling of sexual assault cases cant be withheld from attorneys whove filed two separate federal lawsuits against the city and several current and former police officers. RELATED: Report: JCPD sexual assault investigations didnt meet legal requirements, industry standards Federal Magistrate Judge Jill McCooks multiple orders Tuesday covering both lawsuits require the city or Eric Daigle, who conducted the audits, to turn over requested materials within seven days. The lawsuits filed in June 2022 and June 2023 in the Eastern District of Tennessee federal court both relate to former downtown Johnson City business owner Sean Williams. Theyre centered around allegations that Williams drugged and raped multiple women at his fifth-floor apartment over a period of years and that the Johnson City Police Department (JCPD) either corruptly or incompetently failed to stop him. The city has denied all allegations against it and the JCPD in both lawsuits. The ruling represents a blow to the city as it had attempted to limit plaintiffs use of the so-called Daigle Report that it commissioned in August 2022. Johnson City and other defendants have denied all allegations in both civil lawsuits. Attorneys for Kat Dahl, a former special assistant United States attorney who worked with the JCPD before being fired in 2021, and for multiple alleged Sean Williams victims whove filed a separate suit alleging sex trafficking abetted by JCPD, both have subpoenaed Eric Daigle. Their requests were for notes, interviews with police or city leaders and other background materials related to Daigles audit, which was released to the public in July 2023. Dahls lawyers her suit alleging retaliatory discharge is the older of the two and was filed in June 2022 have also requested that their Dec. 28, 2023 deposition of Daigle be unsealed and made publicly available. In a short separate order, McCook gave lawyers for the city and other defendants until Monday to file a supplemental brief for why the Daigle Deposition should remain sealed in its entirety. Daigles audit found multiple and significant weaknesses in how JCPD had handled sexual assault cases during the period studied, from the beginning of 2018 through 2022. The citys lawyers have argued that plaintiffs arent entitled to the background documents and that the audit findings themselves should not be admissible. They have called the report a remedial measure taken in the aftermath of Dahls lawsuit filing. Theyve also argued that Daigle is a non-testifying, consulting expert, which should exempt him from having to produce documents, be deposed or otherwise provide any material that could aid in the plaintiffs cases. JC Planning Commission fails to recommend amendment on Washington County, Tenn. event venues McCook dismissed those and other attempts by defendants to shield Daigles work product. Of the claim that Daigle was enlisted based on allegations in Ms. Dahls lawsuit, McCook found evidence otherwise. (T)he scope of Mr. Daigles investigation was not related to Ms. Dahls retaliation claim and there are no entries in Mr. Daigles invoices that reference the Dahl action, McCook wrote in her order in the Does case. Further, the citys services agreement with Daigle does not reference Ms. Dahls litigation. In Dahls case, McCook wrote she found the city hired Mr. Daigle based on citizens concerns over the JCPDs alleged improper handling of sexual assault cases. That conclusion is bolstered by the fact that Defendants have never asserted that Mr. Daigle created his notes and Excel spreadsheet in anticipation of litigation with Ms. Dahl or anyone else. The findings have similarities to an explanation provided by Johnson City City Manager Cathy Ball in an Aug. 26, 2022 interview with News Channel 11. A reporter asked about the citys claim in the Dahl lawsuit that each complaint against Williams was properly investigated and how the Williams case (then identified by the pseudonym Robert Voe) might or might not tie into the nascent Daigle audit. I can see how our community could be very confused, Ball said. I think in our response of the cases around Mr. Voe, those have been reviewed by our attorney and thats the response that you see (in the lawsuit answer). We are not saying that we are aware of every situation. Thats what Daigle is doing is looking back for four-and-a-half years and investigating all of the incidents where people have reported assault, rape and looking into those. So that has not been completed. With regard to (Williams), the incidents that were reported specifically around (Williams) have been looked into. Williams was never charged by the JCPD with any crime other than felon in possession of ammunition related to the departments investigations. His three child rape charges and the allegation of digital evidence he raped more than 50 women in his apartment all are the result of a search warrant by Western Carolina University police obtained after they arrested Williams on April 29, 2023. McCook also rejected a claim the Daigle audit was a subsequent remedial measure that shouldnt be disclosed for use by plaintiffs. Legal rules allow measures that would have made an earlier injury or harm less likely to occur to be inadmissible for plaintiffs to prove a variety of claims including negligence or culpable conduct. But both lawsuits remain in the discovery stage. A separate ruling would be required on whether Daigles material, deposition or report could be admissible at trial. McCook rejected the citys argument that Daigles material isnt proportional to the needs of the case for the plaintiffs in the Doe case. The issues in this case are important as the allegations relate to Defendants failure to investigate crimes and provide assistance to individuals who were allegedly sex trafficking, she wrote. The discovery Plaintiffs seek is important given that Defendant Johnson City retained Mr. Daigle to investigate how the JCPD handled sexual assault investigations, she continued. As Plaintiffs explain, the police reports provided to (Mr.) Daigle, containing reports from female victims of sexual violence during the same timeframe (as those in the Doe suit) are necessary and relevant to the Equal Protection Claim alleged on behalf of the Reporter Survivor Class. That class is one of three in the Does class action and consists of people who reported sexual assaults by people other than Williams. Williams federal trial on three counts of child pornography production is currently scheduled to begin May 21 in Greeneville. He also faces a raft of other federal and state charges. The trial in Dahls civil suit is scheduled to start May 14 in Knoxville. The alleged victims trial is scheduled for April 14, 2025 in Chattanooga. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather. Will Judge Scott McAfee reassign his former boss away from her biggest criminal prosecution? Misconduct allegations against the lawyer prosecuting Donald Trump in Georgia threaten to derail her case. A rookie judge - her former subordinate - is deciding whether to keep her on the case or reassign it to another prosecutor, or even possibly throw it out. At just 34 years old, Judge Scott McAfee recently marked his first year on the bench but he has already presided over the trial of a lifetime, one involving criminal charges against a former president. The prosecution in Fulton County, for allegedly conspiring to interfere in the 2020 election, is the most legally and logistically complex of the four criminal cases against Mr Trump. Not only are 18 alleged co-conspirators charged alongside the current Republican presidential nominee, the trial will also likely be the only one that is televised. But even before it has been scheduled, Superior Court Judge McAfee is contending with whether or not a new team of prosecutors is needed in the case. Over the past two months, Mr Trump and his co-defendants have sought to prove that District Attorney Fani Willis inappropriately hired her "boyfriend", took vacations using his pay from the case, and should be disqualified. The allegations led to a four-day hearing centred on Ms Willis' sex life that was broadcast to the world, replete with fiery exchanges and salacious stories. Judge McAfee will rule by Friday. Ahead of that decision, the millennial jurist weighed in on the 41-count indictment on Wednesday, dismissing six charges - three of which relate to Mr Trump - for insufficient evidence. The youngest member of the Atlanta-area bench, Judge McAfee is described by those who know him as a tough but level-headed professional. He has built an impressive CV over a relatively brief career, working for both Ms Willis, a Democrat, and the state's Republican governor, Brian Kemp. Fani Willis was once Judge McAfee's boss in the Fulton County district attorney's office His conservative legal bona fides and demeanour may also shield him from potential accusations of bias, a charge Mr Trump has frequently flung at judges and prosecutors in other cases. "His prior experience indicates that he is highly competent and well-qualified for the challenge of presiding over the massive indictment that places Donald Trump at the head of an alleged criminal enterprise," Clark Cunningham, a professor at Georgia State University College of Law, told the BBC. That prior experience checks many boxes typical of a rising legal star, with a couple of interesting quirks thrown in. He is a volunteer scuba diver at the Georgia Aquarium, where his work includes "a few different things" such as cleaning exhibits, according to the institution. He studied politics and music at Emory University in Atlanta, where he played cello for the school's orchestra. At the University of Georgia Law School, he belonged to the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group that serves as a pipeline for lawyers and judges on the right, and the Republican student group. He also interned for Georgia Supreme Court Justices David Nahmias and Keith Blackwell. "What really stands out is his temperament - he's not excitable, he's even-keeled," Mr Blackwell told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. After graduating in 2013, Judge McAfee served as both a local prosecutor and in private practice, before eventually taking a job prosecuting homicides in the Fulton County district attorney's office in 2015. There, Ms Willis was his supervisor. In an interview with the Washington Post last year, she described him as one of her "baby attorneys", praising him as "immensely talented". Ms Willis was elected Fulton County district attorney in 2020, and shortly after began her investigation into Mr Trump's frantic efforts to overturn his narrow loss in Georgia that November. Judge McAfee worked on "hundreds of felony cases ranging from armed robbery to murder" for the county, according to the Georgia governor's office, A year into his tenure, he was named trial court lawyer of the year. In 2018, he moved to the federal government, as an assistant US attorney in Atlanta, and eventually caught the eye of Governor Kemp, who appointed him as inspector general in 2021. "His experience as a tough prosecutor equips him to search out fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption, and bring those to justice who break the law," Mr Kemp said in a statement at the time. Just two years later, Judge McAfee ascended once again when Mr Kemp appointed him to the bench. Six months later, in August 2023, the court system randomly assigned him the case of the decade - one that charges a former Oval Office occupant under racketeering laws used to take down mob bosses. The Trump case in Georgia is expected to be the most legally and logistically complex of the four criminal cases against the former president Its high stakes, during a presidential race involving Mr Trump, have quickly become clear. Judge McAfee has faced months of threats, including a swatting incident at his home in January. So have Ms Willis and other Fulton County officials. And his handling of the case has already drawn at least one Democratic challenger ahead of an election for his post in May, local radio host and activist Robert Patillo. Fulton County is dominated three-to-one by Democratic voters. Mr Patillo told the New York Times the judge had mishandled the motions to disqualify Ms Willis. "The court has turned this from one of the most solemn prosecutions of a former president into a daily reality show something that you'd see on Real Housewives," Mr Patillo said. In a radio interview, Judge McAfee said politics would not influence his decision on Ms Willis, adding he wrote a rough draft of his ruling before Mr Patillo announced his challenge. "I am calling it as best I can in the law, as I understand it," he told WSB Atlanta. Regardless of how he rules, one thing is for sure - Judge McAfee's actions will be scrutinized now and possibly for years to come. Donald Trump and some of his co-defendants scored a win on Wednesday when a Fulton County judge dismissed six counts in the Georgia RICO case. In an order, state Judge Scott McAfee dismissed counts brought under Georgias solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer statute. Prosecutors with Fulton County DA Fani Willis office will be able to refile the charges that McAfee dismissed. In striking down the six counts, McAfee also handed prosecutors a limited victory: he upheld several overt acts that the DAs office included as part of its RICO conspiracy charge against Trump. Nevertheless, the ruling is a blow for prosecutors. The Fulton County DAs office brought the furthest-reaching attempt to hold Trump and those around him accountable for the effort to stay in power after losing the 2020 election, treating the sprawling scheme as a conspiracy aimed at coercing state officials and others into violating their oath office and handing the state of Georgia over to Trump. Now, McAfee found that a key part of that story Trump asking state officials to violate their oath of office lacked enough detail in the indictment to justify the charges. In particular, McAfee ruled that prosecutors failed to specify what part of the federal constitutional oath and Georgia constitutional oaths Trump was supposed to have been asking officials to violate. The Defendants could have violated the Constitutions and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways, McAfee wrote. Willis position overseeing the prosecution is in severe jeopardy at the moment. Trump defendant Mike Roman moved to disqualify Willis in January, alleging that she was improperly benefitting from the prosecution after she took lavish vacations with an attorney she hired to prosecute the case. That led to a damaging, multi-day hearing on Willis relationship with the attorney. The proceeding examined whether she reaped benefits from his payment for taking the case, and other questions of whether she and the attorney she hired misled the judge as part of their defense. Judge McAfee is expected to rule on the disqualification motion this week. The six counts that McAfee dismissed undermine key portions of the indictment, including a charge related to Trumps infamous January 2021 call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. As a result of that call, Trump was charged with having unlawfully solicited, requested, and importuned Raffensperger to violate his oath. McAfee found that the state failed to specify what part of Raffenspergers oath or constitutional obligation Trump was asking him to violate. If and when prosecutors refile the charges, they will have to specify what was solicited in violation of the oath. This Court finds that the incorporation of the United States and Georgia Constitutions is so generic as to compel dismissal of the six counts, McAfee wrote. He left an additional 35 counts in place. A Georgia judge dismissed some of former President Trumps charges Wednesday in the sweeping election interference case against him due to a lack of detail. Judge Scott McAfee tossed six charges contained in the indictment, including three of Trumps counts, but his ruling does not impact the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act charge that serves as the foundation of the historic prosecution. McAfees ruling is not linked to the judges examination of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Williss (D) relationship with a special prosecutor on the case, which he is also expected to rule on this week. Each of the tossed charges related to alleged efforts by Trump and some of his co-defendants, including former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, to solicit Georgia officials to violate their oaths of office. The judge ruled that while the charges do contain the essential elements of each crime, they fail to provide enough detail for the defendants to mount their defenses. Under the current charges, McAfee said, the defendants could have violated the law in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways. The Courts concern is less that the State has failed to allege sufficient conduct of the Defendants in fact it has alleged an abundance, McAfee wrote. However, the lack of detail concerning an essential legal element is, in the undersigneds opinion, fatal. McAfee made clear that his ruling does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed and said the Fulton County district attorneys office could seek reindictment after supplementing the charges he deemed insufficient. The judge wrote that, even if the statute of limitations expires, the state will receive a six-month extension from Wednesday to resubmit its case to a grand jury. He also said prosecutors could request to a certificate allowing them to appeal, which he would likely grant because of a lack of precedent. McAfees decision marks the first time Trump has gotten any of his 91 criminal counts across his various indictments tossed. He has pleaded not guilty in each case and has numerous motions pending that seek to dismiss remaining charges. Updated at 10:42 a.m. ET For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The News In an unexpected move on Wednesday, the judge overseeing former President Donald Trumps 2020 election interference case in Georgia dismissed six of the charges, including three counts against Trump. Judge Scott McAfee of Fulton Superior Court said the counts in question were too vague: They do not give the Defendants enough information to prepare their defenses intelligently, as the Defendants could have violated the Constitution and thus the statute in dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways, he wrote. The dismissed charges pertain to soliciting elected officials to violate their oaths of office, including two counts related to Trumps infamous phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Jan. 2, 2021, in which the then-president said:I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. McAfee said prosecutors could seek a new indictment for the dismissed charges. This marks the first time charges in any of the criminal cases against Trump have been dismissed, notching a win for his team and another setback for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis who is awaiting a verdict on whether she could be dismissed from prosecuting the case over a romantic relationship with her colleague. The Judicial Conference, the policymaking body for federal courts, announced Tuesday that it would take action against the judge-shopping that has let right-wing litigants funnel cases to friendly, often Donald Trump-appointed judges. The policy addresses all civil actions that seek to bar or mandate state or federal actions, whether by declaratory judgment and/or any form of injunctive relief, the conference said in a press release. In such cases, judges would be assigned through a district-wide random selection process. It will apply to cases involving state or federal laws, rules, regulations, policies, or executive branch orders. For the past few years, those who want to challenge Biden administration policies have often sought out divisions with one or two ideologically-aligned judges, all but guaranteeing their desired outcome. Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, most infamous for his ruling against the abortion drug mifepristone, has become the poster boy for this practice. Kacsmaryk and his ilk have worsened the problem with their willingness to hand down nationwide relief, rather than narrowing it to the plaintiffs before them. This dynamic vests one district judge with enormous power to dictate federal authority, shutting down policies irksome to right-wing plaintiffs as the cases work their way through the courts. For experts who have been pounding the alarm on judge-shopping, Tuesdays announcement came as a welcome surprise. Im absolutely delighted that courts have recognized the importance of this issue, Amanda Shanor, assistant professor of legal studies and business ethics at the the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, told TPM. They appear to have adopted a policy that will address some of the major, most egregious and troublesome forms of judge shopping. But even evangelists of judge-shopping reform had some reservations about the press release, which did not link to any policy text and was devoid of details, including about how it would be enforced. The Judicial Conference did not immediately respond to TPMs questions about policy text. Judge Jeffrey Sutton, Chief Judge of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, said in a Tuesday press conference that a memo would be circulated to federal judges by the end of the week with final text expected to be published in a few months, per Courthouse News. The Judicial Conference usually puts out recommendations for lower courts to follow; some experts were unsure whether it has the authority to enforce something more binding. The real question is whether the statutes authorize the Judicial Conference itself to promulgate this rule, as distinguished from recommending to the judicial councils of the circuits that they promulgate a rule, Arthur Hellman, a professor emeritus and expert in federal courts at the University of Pittsburghs school of law, told TPM. Other experts think the Conference can promulgate its own policy, but worry about how aggressively itll be enforced. Shanor and Alice Clapman, senior counsel in the Brennan Centers Voting Rights Program, have put forward their own proposal for a more ironclad and enforceable new federal rule to the Judicial Conferences Rules Committee, which is still pending. Is this a recommendation? How strong of a recommendation? What does this mean, how will it be rolled out in clerks offices around the country? Shanor asked about the new policy. This is why we filed with the Rules Committee having this be a rule that you can actually cite and seek to enforce as a party in court, as opposed to a policy, strikes me as important to address these very questions of transparency and uniformity. While the details of the policy have yet to take shape, the Judicial Conferences announcement reveals that it sees judge-shopping as significantly damaging to courts legitimacy. The random case-assignment policy deters judge-shopping and the assignment of cases based on the perceived merits or abilities of a particular judge, Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr., secretary of the Conference, said in the Tuesday press release. It promotes the impartiality of proceedings and bolsters public confidence in the federal Judiciary. Prompting internal change from judicial institutions can be slow going, and was likely helped along by how blatant the judge-shoppers have been. The practice has produced headline cases including the challenge to mifepristone, which will be argued before the Supreme Court later this month. The practice has also become commonplace beyond laymen activist litigants. When you have major litigants like the state of Texas blatantly judge-shopping, the optics of that are contributing to the crisis and the perception, even within judiciary, that it needs to change its policies, Clapman told TPM. Senate Democrats noted in a letter last summer that the state of Texas habitually avoids filing its anti-Biden administration lawsuits in Austin, preferring more dependable courtrooms like Kacsmaryks. The new policy seems to sweep wide, encompassing both federal and state laws. Still, it wouldnt root out all judge-shopping. Clapman and Professor Katherine Macfarlane, an expert in civil procedure at Syracuse Universitys College of Law, both pointed TPM to a case brought by anti-abortion activists meant to bankrupt Planned Parenthood, unrelated to any federal or state action. Such private party action would be harder to rulemake against. But the announcement has the potential to significantly reduce the influence of some of the most partisan Trump appointees, and to clog a pipeline through which right-wing litigants have been routinely stymying the Biden administration on everything from abortion to environmental policy to voting rights. Its all the more significant given that legislative attempts to address the problem have been nonstarters due to a combination of the Senate filibuster, lack of Republican support and lukewarm Democratic enthusiasm outside a select few. Some of the more egregious examples weve seen, like the mifepristone litigation and challenges to Bidens immigration policies, would certainly be covered by this solution, Clapman said. The Judicial Conference of the United States announced new rules for the federal judiciary Tuesday that would prevent the practice of judge-shopping, where litigants choose where to file their suit based on the near-certain knowledge that a specific judge will hear their case. Judge-shopping has come under increasing fire since President Joe Biden was elected. Conservative activist groups have sought to block his administrations policies by filing lawsuits in federal courthouses where they expect to draw a sympathetic conservative judge to hear their case. Often the justification for the filing location rests only on a tenuous connection to the region. The most glaring example occurred in the twin cases now before the U.S. Supreme Court that challenge the validity of the Food and Drug Administrations approval of the abortion drug mifepristone and the Biden administrations rules allowing the prescription drug to be mailed to patients. Anti-abortion groups initially filed the suit at the federal courthouse in Amarillo, Texas. The location had nothing to do with any claim of harm caused by mifepristone in Amarillo. Instead, they chose that courthouse because they knew that Matthew Kacsmaryk was the only judge who drew cases there. Kacsmaryk, who was nominated by President Donald Trump and has a history of opposing reproductive rights, ruled as expected and imposed a nationwide injunction blocking the distribution of the drug in April 2023. An appeals court partially sided with Kacsmaryk, but the U.S. Supreme Court put that decision and Kacsmaryks injunction on hold before the month was out. Arguments in the case are scheduled before the high court on March 25. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, shown here at a 2017 confirmation hearing, has been a favorite of judge-shopping conservatives seeking rulings that would strike down Biden administration policies. Senate Judiciary Committee via Associated Press The new rules issued by the Judicial Conference, the 26-member body that sets rules for the entire federal judiciary, save for the U.S. Supreme Court, would prevent such judge-shopping. Instead of allowing litigants to file suit in single-judge geographical divisions, the new rules, which take effect immediately, will require that a case seeking to bar or mandate actions by federal or state governments be randomly assigned to a judge from within the whole district, not just the smaller, single-judge division. There are 13 federal circuit courts across the nation, with 11 circuits covering discrete geographical regions, one covering the District of Columbia and one for certain federal lawsuits. Texas, one of several states with single-judge districts, is within the jurisdiction of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit and has within it four federal court districts (the Northern District, Eastern District, Southern District and Western District). Within those four judicial districts are 27 geographical divisions. Eight of those divisions, including the one covering the Amarillo area in the Texas Panhandle, have just one federal judge. Under the new rules, lawsuits filed in a single-judge district will not automatically be assigned to that judge. Instead, the case will be randomly assigned to a judge from the entire judicial district. If the mifepristone case had been filed under the new rules, for example, it would have been randomly assigned to one of the 11 U.S. district judges in the wider Northern District of Texas rather than simply going to Kacsmaryk. Ten out of those 11 judges are Republican appointees, but not all of them are known to be anti-abortion activists, such as Kacsmaryk. The issue of judge-shopping has gained attention since Biden took office. Republicans including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and a plethora of conservative activist groups have routinely made use of Texas single-judge divisions to funnel cases to hard-right, Trump-appointed judges whom they expect to issue nationwide injunctions on Biden policies. Besides Kacsmaryk, federal judges Drew Tipton and James Wesley Hendrix, both Trump appointees in Texas; and Reed OConnor, a George W. Bush appointee in Fort Worth, have also been regular targets for the filing of conservative lawsuits. Anti-abortion groups filed the suit to block the distribution of the medication abortion drug mifepristone in Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk's court because they saw him as an ally. David Erickson via Associated Press In 2021, Paxton filed suit in Kacsmaryks courthouse to block the Biden administration from reversing the Trump-era Remain in Mexico immigration policy. Kacsmaryk sided with Paxton and blocked the administration from revoking the harsh policy. His decision was eventually reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court but only after the high court allowed his injunction to remain in place for a year. In another case filed by Paxton, Tipton blocked Bidens 2021 executive order imposing a 100-day pause on the deportation of unauthorized immigrants. The Supreme Court reversed Tiptons decision by a lopsided 8-1 vote in 2023, but it allowed his injunction to remain in place for the two years in between, thus preventing Biden from enforcing his own immigration policies. In February, Hendrix declared a $1.7 trillion spending bill that Congress passed in 2021 unconstitutional because proxy votes were cast in the House during the COVID-19 pandemic. Though Hendrix did not nullify the entire law, he declared part of it unenforceable against the state government: the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which mandated that employers provide accommodations to pregnant employees. The Department of Justice challenged each of these cases, plus the Kacsmaryk mifepristone ruling in 2023, for being improper instances of judge-shopping. They argued that each case should have been filed in a different venue one that actually had some connection to the issue. Lawmakers had also raised concerns about judge-shopping in recent years. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) introduced legislation to ban the practice in 2023, as did Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). The Judicial Conference also noted a 2021 letter from former Sen. Pat Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) stating their concerns about judge-shopping in patent cases. Additionally, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts called for a study on the assignment of judges in patent cases in his 2021 year-end statement. Related... Ukraine would likely be willing to accept U.S. assistance partially in loans if it were necessary to expedite further funds for Ukraine, Justice Minister Denys Maliuska said on March 13, Reuters reported. Aid for Ukraine has been stuck in the U.S. Congress since autumn 2023. The U.S. Senate on Feb. 13 passed a $95 billion foreign aid bill that includes $60 billion for Ukraine, as well as funds for Israel and other allies, but House Speaker Mike Johnson has so far refused to put it to a vote in the House of Representatives. Some House Republicans are reportedly working on another version of the bill that would treat the nonmilitary portion of the package as a loan in hopes of winning support from more hesitant lawmakers. Maliuska told journalists in Washington that Kyiv would prefer receiving the support as a grant but would likely accept a loan as well. He stressed that the final decision would rest with the Finance Ministry. "If this sort of discussion will delay the process of the provision of financial assistance, then let's put the discussion aside and take whatever is given," the minister said. Maliuska said he met with a number of U.S. lawmakers during his trip to the U.S. capital, who were "quite optimistic" about the assistance for Ukraine eventually passing Congress. "What we call for is to put aside any divisions or political disputes aimed at internal needs since we see that in both camps - Republicans and Democrats - they all agree that support shall be provided," Maliuska commented. The Ukrainian minister did not meet Speaker Johnson, who remains the main obstacle to passing the bill. Several high-ranking U.S. officials voiced confidence that aid would be approved with overwhelming support if actually put to a vote. A possible way to bypass the House speaker is the so-called "discharge petition," which could force the vote without Johnson's approval. Democrats and Republicans have launched two separate petitions on different versions of the aid bill. The Democratic-led petition has gathered 177 signatures, the other one 14 as of March 13. In order to be successful, they need to gather 218 signatures. Read also: US announces $300 million defense aid package for Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. (FOX40.COM) Records filed with the city of Sacramento show a proposed project regarding a Kaiser Permanente medical center in the neighborhood known as the Railyards, an area directly north of downtown. Documents were submitted to Sacramentos planning department on March 1. Kaiser is seeking approval to build an eight-story, 657,500-square-foot hospital with 312 beds. The healthcare company also proposes to build a 171,500-square-foot medical office that is five stories tall, along with a two-story central utility plant, and a seven-level parking garage and surface parking lot. The hospital and medical center are proposed to be built on 17.41 acres on 105 Bercut Drive near Railyards Boulevard. Popular clothing retailer opening first Sacramento location at Arden Fair Mall The next step for the proposed project will be a process that includes reviews and approvals. Kaiser Permanente is fully committed to building a state-of-the-art medical center at the Railyards in Sacramento to expand access to care in our community, Kaiser said in a statement sent to FOX40.com. The proposal of a Kaiser medical facility at the Railyards was first introduced in 2015 along with the new Sacramento County courthouse, a proposed Republic FC stadium, retail shops and restaurants. Courtesy of SmithGroup, Kaiser Permanente and the city of Sacramento. An 18-story, 53-courtroom courthouse is currently under construction near the Railyards at the intersection of H and 6th streets and is expected to be completed in October 2024, according to the Superior Court of California. In April 2022, Republic FC CEO Kevin Nagle introduced plans to build a stadium in the Railyards, but it has not yet broken ground. Report shows how the Golden 1 Center has impacted downtown Sacramentos economy The AJ Apartment Community, the first housing complex in the Railyards District, opened in the summer of 2023. The complex has community rooms, a pool, a fitness center, barbeque and outdoor dining areas, and pet washing stations. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40. WASHINGTON Despite efforts by the White House to rehabilitate Vice President Kamala Harris's image, she continues to struggle winning over Americans outside of the Democratic tent, an exclusive USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll shows. The national survey found 52% of registered voters disapprove of her job performance as President Joe Biden's vice president. About 36% approve of how shes handling the role, trailing Biden's almost equally dismal 41% approval rating. Asked to weigh Harris personal popularity the numbers dont get much better. Roughly 38% of Americans have a favorable view of Harris, lagging behind Biden, who is viewed favorably by 41% of registered voters. Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, was viewed favorably by 40% of respondents in the poll. Democratic allies warned Biden's team a year ago about the need to boost Harris and clap back against the withering effectiveness of Republican attacks. Now with the general election informally underway at a time when the age and acuity of both presumptive presidential nominees is being driven to the forefront, experts say questions about Harris and eventually Trump's running mate will only get louder. Usually, it's a secondary and muted discussion about vice presidents. This time, it's going to be almost a parallel and loud discussion in comparison, said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center. Mar 8, 2024; Phoenix, Ariz, U.S.; Vice President Kamala Harris gives a speech on her nationwide ?Fight for Reproductive Freedoms? tour at the South Mountain Community Center during a visit to Phoenix. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-Arizona Republic "I think she's very smart. I think she's confident," said Democrat Alissa Morris, 49, an administrator of a developmental disabilities program in Ronkonkoma, New York, who plans to vote for Biden. "She knows what she's doing. I think her role that she's in now does not take full advantage of her abilities." Republican Rose Marie Livings isn't as forgiving. She pointed to Biden tapping Harris to lead efforts to address migration at the U.S.-Mexico border amid the ongoing migrant crisis. "She's pathetic," Livings, 87, a retired public school administrator in Vero Beach, Florida, said in an interview. "She was supposed to deal with the border." More than half don't view Harris as qualified to be president Harris poll numbers have long been a sore spot for the White House and Democrats, who often say she is unfairly judged as the first Black and South Asian woman to hold the office. The vice president has faced detractors who say she's failed to define an effective role in the administration. Some of her assignments have included the thorny tasks of solving Central American migration along the southern border and ensuring voting rights amid a barrage of new state election laws. Vice President Kamala Harris walks to the stage before people walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge commemorating the 59th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday voting rights march in 1965, Sunday, March 3, 2024, in Selma, Ala. Harris has shined as the White House's culture warrior-in-chief, leaning into progressive causes such as slamming Floridas education guidelines targeting Black history last summer. Recently, the vice president has emerged as one of the administration's leading voices pushing Israel to do more to limit Palestinian casualties in its war against Hamas and to get humanitarian aid into Gaza. She has also led the White House's charge on restoring abortion access after the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade. Harris on Thursday is set to visit a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota, marking the first visit by a president or vice president to a clinic that provides abortion services. Harris hasn't publicly sweated poll numbers or GOP-fueled attacks, saying in a recent interview: "I am ready to serve. Theres no question about that." This latest poll, however, show voters still have their doubts. And a significant portion lack of confidence in her ability to take over should Biden be unable to lead: 54% of survey respondents said Harris isn't qualified to serve as president versus 38% who believe she has what it takes. Republican Nathan Conder, 59, a retired veteran, said she "just seems invisible to me most of the time." "There doesn't seem to be an agenda at all, except for waiting for her turn to be the president and if something were to happen to Joe Biden," said Conder, who lives in Freeport, Illinois. The Trump campaign and its allies have sought to seize on Harris unpopularity and concerns about her ability to serve as president. In a television ad released last week by MAGA Inc., a super Pac supporting Trump, a narrator asked: "We can all see Joe Biden's weakness. If Biden wins, can he even survive till 2029?" The narrator added: "The real question is: Can we?" The ad then shows a clip of Harris laughing. While a whopping 92% of Republican voters said Harris is not qualified to be president, doubts are also within key voting blocs the Biden campaign will need in the fall: 56% of independents; 37% of African Americans; and 48% of Hispanic voters said she isn't qualified. "I don't even know why she was selected," said Sandra Luby, 75, a former special ed teacher who hails from Bainbridge, Ohio. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks before President Joe Biden at an event on the campus of George Mason University in Manassas, Va., Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2024, to campaign for abortion rights, a top issue for Democrats in the upcoming presidential election. "I think the only reason she was selected is because she's Black, to be honest with you, and she's a woman," the self-described independent told USA TODAY. "Is she articulate? Yeah. Shes relatively articulate and so I suppose that counts," Luby added. "But we're at that point where that's the only thing that counts? Thats sad." The poll's findings are bound to infuriate Harris's most fervent backers, who argue she has faced a steeper and nastier hill to climb as the first Black woman and first South Asian woman to have what historians often call Washington's most thankless gig. "I think if anything happened to Biden, I think she would be able to step in very, very nicely, and I don't think there would be any qualms," said Democrat Cynthia Lowe, 67, a school bus driver who lives in Gladstone, Oregon. "Given that I don't know who else would be a better candidate at this point in time than I would have to say yes, she probably is the best that I'm aware of. Queen of the Dems: VP scores big with Black voters The poll isnt all doom and gloom for Harris, who is immensely popular among fellow Democrats. Overall, 76% of voters who identified as Democrats approve of Harris' job performance which slightly trails the 84% of Democratic voters who approve of Biden's performance in office. Harris gets her highest marks from Black voters, who at 51% approve of her job performance, compared to 33% of white voters and 39% of Hispanic voters, according to the USA TODAY/Suffolk University survey. In terms of her overall popularity, she is viewed favorably by 59% of Black voters, while only 34% of white voters and 37% of Hispanic voters said they viewed Harris favorably. "As I say, she's queen Kamala when it comes to Democrats," Paleologos, the Suffolk researcher, said. "Independents, you know, she's quite suitable Kamala. Among Republicans, she's court jester Kamala." Harris approval rating is just 28% among independent voters and 4% among Republicans. Still, when voters were asked to say a word to describe Harris, 46% had positive responses such as "smart," "intelligent," "knowledgeable," "competent" and "strong/confident." "I think she's a really high-quality human being with great integrity smart as a whip, very strong and I would be comfortable if she became president if Biden had to resign or had some health issue," said Craig Richey, 62, a film and television composer from Los Angeles. Richey, a Democrat, commended Harris' background as a prosecutor, which he said shined during her time as a U.S. senator from California. He questioned why "in some circles or in the press" Harris has endured criticism. "I'm not sure for what because I don't know that there's been much out front that she can be measured on," Richey said. Rick Davis, an insurance agent in Pembroke Pines, Florida, agreed that the vice president is doing an "excellent" job. The 52-year-old independent voter, who is Black, cited her efforts to reach out to younger voters and lobbying against gun violence. "I follow her on Instagram and I see exactly what she's doing every day," he said. "I see her going out and getting things done." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kamala Harris approval rating high among Dems but not elsewhere: poll "When we collaborate with Microsoft we make it easier for clients to say '...through you, we can access the whole ecosystem,'" said Akash Shah, chief growth officer at BNY Mellon. Bank of New York Mellon is taking the next step forward with its software and data management business. The New York City custody bank announced in February that it was enhancing the tools it offers to clients, which include asset and wealth managers, in a combined effort with Microsoft . For BNY, it's important to be the place "where clients trust us to connect with their data, store and analyze it, and give them insights to make better trade, risk or operational decisions," said Akash Shah, chief growth officer at BNY Mellon. BNY's data and analytics unit is more than 20 years old and has more than 800 clients, including asset managers, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, broker-dealers and registered investment advisors. It connects them to third-party data sources and provides analytics tools that can be accessed via application programming interface, data feeds or a portal and kept on premise, in the public cloud or in the private cloud through Microsoft Azure. Although its relationship with Microsoft stretches back for years for instance, the two companies announced several features in 2020 including one that lets investment managers customize their portfolios to environmental, social and governance factors the February announcement marks the first joint marketing effort by the two companies to sell the software to clients. BNY will offer its data management clients advanced analytics software from Microsoft that lets them crunch their own data, combine it with external data that BNY already provides for one comprehensive view and analyze it in near-real time, using the latest versions of Microsoft's public and private clouds. It also signifies a nascent trend among custody banks. J.P. Morgan launched Fusion , its cloud-native data management platform for institutional investors, in 2022, with Amazon Web Services as part of its tech stack. State Street acquired Charles River Development, a provider of investment management front office tools, in 2018. Story continues "It's a competitive space in data management and we're seeing expansion there," said Adler Smith, advisor for capital markets at Datos Insights, noting that custody banks are competing with traditional data management players such as SimCorp and GoldenSource. "We've been working closely with Microsoft on our core data management platform for a while, but we thought this was the right time to announce that we are taking these steps beyond that, bringing the latest in technology, cloud and analytics to companies" to help them manage their data, Shah said. "Microsoft doesn't typically do this, going to market with clients as a joint solution." With this latest version of BNY's data and analytics platform, clients will be able to track the performance of their portfolio and analyze investments according to benchmarks and indices. For instance, a dashboard might show a breakdown of a company's market value and book value, with unrealized gains and losses on a position, and construct pie charts illustrating positions in different currencies. "Part of our special sauce is we help clients connect and analyze all sorts of data that lets them get a sense of what their absolute returns are," said Shah. Microsoft has also partnered with the London Stock Exchange Group and Moody's in recent years to jointly develop new products for data and analytics. "The framework of our partnership enables BNY Mellon to take advantage of multiple technologies from Microsoft to develop next-generation data management and software products tailored to the unique needs of capital markets firms," said Karen Del Vescovo, U.S. financial services lead at Microsoft, via email. "We're also actively collaborating on several artificial intelligence capabilities that can be incorporated for improved productivity and better-informed decision making." Aligning itself with a name like Microsoft could give BNY a competitive edge, said Smith. "Clients don't tend to easily change who they use for data management solutions," said Glenn Kurban, a partner at Capco. "We're seeing this buying pattern and behavior with clients more and more," he said. "Even if there is better and more competitive technology available they'll say no, we're a Microsoft shop, or we're a Google shop." Shah echoes a similar sentiment. "When we collaborate with Microsoft we make it easier for clients to say 'BNY Mellon has both the knowledge of the data and the best technology, [so] through you, we can access the whole ecosystem,'" said Shah. Vice President Kamala Harris smiles at a crowd of supporters as she comes on stage at a campaign event on March 12, 2024, at ReelWorks Denver. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline) Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to a crowd of supporters at a campaign event in Denver Tuesday, contrasting what a second Biden-Harris administration would look like with what former President Donald Trump has said hed do if reelected. This state is so important, Harris said. Colorado is so important, and you will be part of deciding the future of our country. If reelected, Harris said the administration would push to raise the federal minimum wage, reinstate the federal right to abortion care, create a pathway to citizenship for immigrants and invest in affordable child care and housing. Harris touted policy achievements from the administration of President Joe Biden, such as lowering the cost of insulin, canceling nearly $138 billion in student loan debt, and passing the first major gun safety law in nearly 30 years. She noted that gun violence is the leading cause of death of children in America. In my leadership as the head of the White House Council on Gun Violence Prevention, and in memory of Columbine, Aurora, Uvalde and Club Q, we continue and we all continue to fight for an assault weapons ban, universal background checks and red flag laws, Harris said. Colorado in 2019 adopted a red flag law, which allows local authorities to confiscate firearms from a potentially dangerous person. The law was expanded last year. A few dozen protesters with the Colorado Palestine Coalition gathered outside ReelWorks Denver, in the RiNo neighborhood, both before and after Harris spoke there, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and chanting as event attendees left the venue. A group of protesters calling for a ceasefire in Gaza gathered outside of a campaign event featuring Vice President Kamala Harris on March 12, 2024, at ReelWorks Denver. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline) Juan Franco, a Denver resident who works in social work, said he came to hear what the vice president had to say about housing inequality and the rising cost of living. As a fresh college graduate, he said its hard to break out in the adult world and live independently. Franco said hes glad to see the Biden-Harris campaign putting in effort with voters in Denver, showing that the candidates are not just expecting that Colorado voters will automatically support them. Theyre going to come out and earn it. Im hoping that not only are we able to reelect her and Joe Biden to see how they do in the office, but Im hoping were able to really take the House and the Senate to make sure that theyre actually able to act on the promises they make, Franco said. Were gonna treat this election like it's life or death because frankly, for too many of our friends and neighbors, it actually is. Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib Several local elected officials spoke to the crowd before Harris came out, highlighting policy achievements the Biden administration has supported in Colorado. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said the citys support for newcomers immigrating from across the southern border as well as its work to house more than 1,000 people experiencing homelessness would not have been possible without support from the president and vice president. Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib said some of the big achievements Colorado has seen in recent years would not have been possible without the support of the Biden-Harris administration particularly keeping Space Command in Colorado Springs and designating Camp Hale as a national monument. Were gonna treat this election like its life or death because frankly, for too many of our friends and neighbors, it actually is, Murib said. Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib speaks at at a campaign event featuring Vice President Kamala Harris on March 12, 2024 at ReelWorks Denver. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline) Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said he welcomes the attention the state has received from the White House, noting that Biden recently visited Pueblo to tout Bidenomics and that he came to Boulder County following the devastation from the Marshall Fire. We know that with President Biden and Vice President Harris, we can support a thriving Colorado now and in the future, tackling costs head on to make Colorado more affordable for everybody, Polis, a Democrat, said. We know that the president and vice president wake up every day to fight for all Americans to bring us together rather than separate us, to elevate the best of us rather than to speak to the worst of us. People who spoke ahead of the vice president also included Denver City Council member Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, former Denver Mayor and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Federico Pena and local business owner Ana Temu Otting. Do we want to live in a country of liberty, freedom and rule of law, or a country of disorder, fear and hate? Vice President Kamala Harris On immigration, Harris said a bipartisan border security bill hasnt passed only because Trump, the Republican front-runner in the presidential race, told House Republicans to reject the legislation. If he is reelected, the former president has openly vowed to carry out, quote, the largest domestic deportation operation in American History, Harris said. And that is not all: If he is reelected, the former president has openly said he intends to weaponize the Department of Justice against his enemies. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to a crowd of supporters at a campaign event on March 12, 2024 at ReelWorks Denver. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline) Harris said Trump also shares openly that he is proud to have overturned Roe v. Wade, that he would make cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and that he admires dictators. The vice president told her audience that voters in the 2024 presidential election have to make a decision about the kind of country they want to live in. Do we want to live in a country of liberty, freedom and rule of law, or a country of disorder, fear and hate? Harris said. So Colorado, in this election let us together fight for our freedoms, for individuality, for self-determination, for dignity for all people. Harris shouted out Denver City Council member Amanda Sandoval, who introduced Harris as she came on stage, and also thanked Johnston and Polis for their support. Harris said Polis is a true and powerful fighter for the people of Colorado and a great friend to the president and me. Other Colorado officials in attendance included Democratic Attorney General Phil Weiser, Democratic Speaker of the House Julie McCluskie and Democratic state Reps. Tim Hernandez, Sheila Lieder and Leslie Herod. Biden won Colorados Super Tuesday primary with nearly 85% of the vote, while 7% went to Noncommitted delegate, the choice progressives who sought to protest Bidens handling of the war in Gaza endorsed last-minute. The presidential election will take place on Nov. 5. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Kamala Harris visits Denver to tout reelection campaign, forewarn of dangers if Trump wins appeared first on Colorado Newsline. For months, the U.S. Postal Service has struggled to deliver mail on time in the Kansas City area, sometimes resulting in late bill payments or delayed medications delivered through the mail. Now, three Kansas City area lawmakers want the U.S. Postal Service to pay up. Reps. Sam Graves, a Tarkio Republican; Emanuel Cleaver, a Kansas City Democrat; and Mark Alford, a Lake Winnebago Republican sponsored a bill Wednesday called the Pony Up Act. It would allow customers to seek a reimbursement from the U.S. Postal Service if they get late fees on a bill the post office failed to deliver on time. Late deliveries arent just a frustration; they cost people money, Graves said in a statement. If a bill shows up late, you ultimately pay it late and that comes with an additional fee. For many small municipalities, they depend on bills getting paid to operate. That cant happen if it never shows up on time. If the Postal Service cant get their act together and get bills delivered on time, then they should pony up and pay the late fee. The bill comes after lawmakers have repeatedly implored the U.S. Postal Service to make improvements to mail delivery in the Kansas City area. Cleaver, Graves and Alford have all written letters to the post office demanding audits and changes, as have Rep. Sharice Davids, a Johnson County Democrat, and Sens. Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt of Missouri, and Sens. Roger Marshall and Jerry Moran, of Kansas. An audit of the U.S. Postal Service in Kansas City, prompted by a complaint by Hawley, found that the largest issue affecting timely delivery is staffing. When the audit was released in August, the post office was down 77 employees in the Kansas City area, even though the system said it was only down 44 employees. Cleaver has been critical of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a former logistics CEO who was appointed during the administration of former President Donald Trump. DeJoy has spoken about his efforts to make the U.S. Postal Service self-sufficient, but it has continued to struggle, even after Congress passed a bill injecting money into the troubled institution. Hardworking families, Missouri small businesses, and local municipalities shouldnt have to pay the price for the failures of Postmaster General DeJoy and his disastrous Delivering for America Planwhich has led to a substantial rise in complaints about the postal service, Cleaver said. While President Joe Biden has now appointed the majority of the members of the board, they havent attempted to remove DeJoy from his position. Bidens administration does not appear particularly concerned about mail delays. When asked about it earlier this month, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre indicated the issue wasnt on her radar. The President always wants to make sure that every agency, every department in this administration obviously, in the federal government operates at its best capacity, right? At full capacity, Jean-Pierre said. And so, thats what we want to see. KANSAS CITY, Mo. A Kansas City woman charged with killing her 6-year-old son has been deemed fit to stand trial, health officials say. Tasha Haefs, 35, is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the death of Karvell Stevens. Kansas will pay $1M over KCK 7-year-olds brutal death Kansas City police found Stevens body inside a home near East 73rd Street and Indiana Avenue in February 2022. Officers were dispatched to the home after receiving a call from a woman inside who claimed the devil was trying to attack her. Court documents say when officers entered the home, they found Haefs covered in blood and two bloody knives and a screwdriver also inside. Prosecutors say Haefs admitted to killing her son in the bathtub. Last year, the court ordered that she undergo a mental evaluation. A judge then temporarily ordered a suspension of the case in May 2022, saying Haefs lacked the capacity to understand the charges against her and couldnt assist in her own defense. Download the FOX4 News app on iPhone and Android Haefs has been in the Missouri Department of Mental Healths custody since then. Now nearly two years later, the Missouri Department of Mental Healths attorney filed a motion last week asking the court to proceed with the case. A judge must still make a ruling for the case to continue. A case management hearing is set for March 29. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. TOPEKA, Kan. Kansas will pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit over 7-year-old Adrian Jones murder in 2015, alleging that the states child welfare agency should have removed him from an abusive home before he was starved and tortured and his body was fed to pigs. Gov. Laura Kelly and top leaders of the Kansas Legislature approved the settlement during a brief public meeting Tuesday after conferring with state Attorney General Kris Kobachs top deputy in private for 30 minutes. Systemic failures at Kansas DCF allowed Adrian Jones torture to continue The lawsuit was filed in 2017 in Wyandotte County in the Kansas City area by the boys mother, maternal grandmother and adult sister, and a district court trial was scheduled for April 2025. The 7-year-old was living with his father, Michael Jones, and his stepmother, Heather Jones, in Kansas City, Kansas, when he died. Both are serving 25 years-to-life prison sentences for his murder, and authorities said the boy was beaten and locked naked in a shower stall for months as a closed-circuit surveillance camera recorded his deteriorating condition. The Kansas Department for Children and Families received reports that Adrian was being abused several years before his death, but its last physical contact with him was almost four years before his death, according to more than 2,000 pages of records released in 2017 by the agency. The records showed that the three of them moved frequently between communities in Kansas and Missouri. Kansas Gov. Kelly signs welfare bill Adrians Law, named for murdered KCK boy This has been a long journey for Adrians family, said Matt Birch, an attorney representing the family members. The most important thing for the family was to hopefully make a change and make this less likely to happen in the future. The family members lawsuit argued that the state and social workers could have stepped in and rescued Adrian at any point during the childs lengthy, unimaginable ordeal but chose to act like disinterested bystanders. The Kansas agency argued that frequent moves made it difficult to keep tabs on the boy. Kansas Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes, a Kansas City-area Democrat and one of the lawmakers who approved the settlement, said Wednesday that she believes the state faced a lot of liability legally for what happened. But Kelly told reporters Wednesday at the Statehouse that the issue wasnt the potential damages in a lawsuit but the litigation distracting it from the mission at hand of improving the child welfare system. Why didnt the state step in before Kansas 5-year-olds death? It really had to do with wanting to get that settled and not spend time litigating in courts for what could be definitely months, maybe even years, she said. The resolution approving the settlement, made public Wednesday, shows that the department will pay half of the settlement and the other half will come from a special state fund that covers damages in lawsuits. An attorney and its employees in the lawsuit did not immediately return a telephone message Wednesday seeking comment. Kobachs office also did not comment. The Democratic governor and leaders of the Republican-controlled Legislature approved the settlement during a public meeting, but its open portions totaled less than five minutes before and after the closed session with Chief Deputy Attorney General Dan Burrows. While Kelly read the lawsuits title before the vote, neither she nor the lawmakers discussed details publicly Tuesday, following what has been a standard practice for years. Typically, there is no formal follow-up announcement to the public. FOX4 newsletters: Get the latest news delivered to your inbox Told about the $1 million settlement Wednesday, state Rep. Susan Concannon, a Republican from western Kansas who chairs the Legislatures Joint Committee on Child Welfare Oversight, said: I am a little bit surprised that its not more than that. A multiyear legislative review of the child welfare system followed the boys death. In 2021, Adrians Law created the committee Concannon heads and required officers and caseworkers to visually observe children who are alleged victims of abuse or neglect. The state also has moved to improve doctors training in recognizing abuse and to provide wrap-around services for troubled families. Birch said that he and the family hope that through the lawsuit and 2021 law there will be more eyes on these kids. Adrians family members also filed a lawsuit in 2017 in Jackson County, Missouri, also in the Kansas City-area, against officials in that state. The case was settled in 2020, but the details were not immediately available, and Birch said he couldnt comment. Download the FOX4 News app on iPhone and Android Adrians remains were found in November 2015 in a pigsty on his father and stepmothers rental property after officers responded to a domestic violence call. Heather Jones accused Michael Jones of beating and choking her, according to affidavits and search warrants later released by authorities. According to court records the Joneses used increasingly severe methods to control the boys behavior, including strapping him to an inversion table, handcuffing him and shocking him with a device called a Zap Enforcer. He also suffered from extreme starvation, court records said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Kansas will pay $1 million to the family of a 7-year-old child who died of starvation in Kansas City, Kansas, and his body was fed to pigs. Despite numerous contacts with child welfare authorities in Kansas and Missouri, Adrian Jones remained in the home with his biological father and stepmother. On more than one occasion, Adrian told authorities he was being abused. A panel composed of Gov. Laura Kelly and legislative leaders approved the settlement in the lawsuit against the Kansas Department of Children and Family following a closed-door discussion Thursday Im glad its over, said Judy Conway, Adrians maternal grandmother. Its bittersweet. It makes me happy, but at the same time it infuriates me that Adrian had to die because of peoples failure to protect him. This should have never happened. If people would have just listened to him and him using his words and him saying that this is happening to me, I believe the outcome would have been entirely different. Conway, who has become an advocate for other Kansas kids, said that goes for all children out there that are using their voices and saying that, you know, bad things are happening to them. And for some reason, Conway said, sometimes we let politics and money, and were too busy, get in the way of protecting these children. The settlement concludes a nearly decade long saga for the family, nine years after Adrian was found dead following reports of torture and abuse at the hands of his father and stepmother. The family filed dual civil lawsuits in Kansas and Missouri arguing child welfare workers had failed to remove Adrian from his home despite reports of abuse. Adrian lived in Plattsburg, Missouri, before moving to Kansas City, Kansas. During that time, he interacted with social workers for both states. Records obtained by The Star in 2017 showed he told a Missouri social worker he was being physically abused in his home. The Missouri Court of Appeals dismissed the case in that state two years ago but the Kansas case was headed for trial next year before the settlement was reached. In a statement Kelly, a Democrat, emphasized the efforts her administration had made towards improving the child welfare system since she came into office including the passage of Adrians Law in 2021 which requires law enforcement or DCF caseworkers to visually observe all children who are alleged victims of abuse or neglect. I, along with so many others, was horrified by the torture Adrian Jones endured at the hands of his abusers. Reforming our child welfare system has been a high priority of my administration, Kelly said. We will continue to work diligently to ensure that our child welfare system has the resources it needs to provide the highest quality services possible to care for Kansas children. The settlement came after Wyandotte District Judge William Mahoney in October ruled that damages against DCF would not be limited to $500,000 at trial. Kansas law limits liability involving claims against government agencies to $500,000 per single occurrence or accident, but Jones family successfully argued they had alleged multiple occurrences under the law, bypassing the damages cap. DCF had urged Mahoney to defer deciding the issue until trial, which had been tentatively scheduled for April 2025. Speaking to reporters at an unrelated event Wednesday Kelly said the decision to settle at a remarkably high number was not related to potential liability in the case. It really had to do with wanting to get that settled and not spend time litigating in courts for what could be definitely months, maybe even years, and distracting us from the mission at hand, which is making sure that our child welfare system is as good as it can get, Kelly told reporters. There is no better example of the damage done by President Joe Bidens border policies than the story of Karla Jacinto, Sen, Katie Britt, a Republican from Alabama, told Americans last week. The Senator recounted Jacintos experience Thursday evening as Britt provided a response to the State of the Union address for the Republican Party, sharing that she had heard the testimony of a woman who was sex trafficked by cartels at the age of 12 after traveling to the Del Rio sector of Texas, USA TODAY previously reported. We wouldnt be OK with this happening in a third-world country. This is the United States of America, and its past time we start acting like it," Britt said. "President Bidens border crisis is a disgrace." This screen grab shows Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala) responding to US President Joe Biden's State of the Union address on March 7, 2024. The anecdote, as told by Britt, was not entirely accurate. Jacinto was a victim of child sex trafficking, but the series of events described by Britt took place in Mexico while former Republican President George W. Bush was in office, according to previous USA TODAY reporting. The woman Britt mentioned in her response was not initially named, later confirming to the Associated Press that the details she divulged were part of Jacintos story. People are still victims of "disgusting, brutal trafficking by the cartels, Britt said. Heres what we know about Karla Jacinto, the anti-trafficking advocate whose story Katie Britt thrust into the spotlight. Who is Karla Jacinto? Mexican Karla Jacinto, 25, who was victim of white slavery, speaks during an interview with AFP at a park in Mexico City, on January 4, 2018. The most powerful pimps of Mexico have virtually built walls around Tenancingo, the city where according to authorities, most of them were born. In Tenancingo, boys dream of becoming pimps and girls are treated like prostitutes. Karla Jacinto was a victim of child sex trafficking in Mexico, who now uses her voice to empower others. I work as a spokesperson for many victims who have no voice, and I really would like them to be empathetic: all the governors, all the senators, to be empathetic with the issue of human trafficking because there are millions of girls and boys who disappear all the time, Jacinto told CNN. Jacinto went on to say that Britt should have first taken into account what really happens to people who are really trafficked and abused before telling a story of that magnitude. Jacinto was quick to correct the narrative, telling CNN Sunday that she was trafficked from 2004 to 2008 in Mexico. President Joe Biden was a senator then, not finishing his last term until January 2009. She also said that she was not trafficked by Mexican drug cartels, but by a pimp who operated as part of a family that entrapped vulnerable girls to force them into prostitution, CNN reported. Jacinto did confirm meeting Britt, explaining that they met an event at the southern border with other government officials and anti-human-trafficking activists, according to CNN. How has Karla Jacinto responded? Karla Jacinto was a victim of child sex trafficking in Mexico from 2004 to 2008. This isnt the first time politicians have used Karla Jacintos story to make a point, telling CNN that its happened in Mexico. I hardly ever cooperate with politicians, because it seems to me that they only want an image. They only want a photo and that to me is not fair, Jacinto reportedly said. "Fox News Sunday" host Shannon Bream asked Britt on Sunday whether she meant "to give the impression that this horrible story happened on President Biden's watch?, USA TODAY reported. Britt said no and that it was clear from her remarks she was referring to an event that took place years ago: "I didnt say a teenager. I didnt say a young woman. A grown woman, a woman, when she was trafficked when she was 12. Britt went on to criticize immigration policies, including a pause on border wall construction and deportations. (Border wall construction resumed last fall, and Biden's attempt to temporarily pause deportations was stopped by a judge.), USA TODAY reported. Britt said the reason for mentioning Jacintos story was to raise awareness of sex trafficking, according to USA TODAY reporting. "We have to tell those stories, and the liberal media needs to pay attention to it, because there are victims all the way coming to the border, there are victims at the border and then there are victims all throughout our country," she said during the Fox interview. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Get to know Karla Jacinto, Katie Britt's anecdote in SOTU response Appropriate conditions are necessary for the Kastus Kalinouski regiment to enter Belarus, the deputy head of the Belarusian United Transitional Cabinet, Pavel Latushko, said in an interview with Radio NV on March 12. The conditions are Lukashenkos participation in a ground operation on the territory of Ukraine by the armed forces of the Republic of Belarus, he said. Read also: Lukashenko says he will participate in the upcoming Presidential "election" in Belarus Lukashenko is the aggressor, we understand that, but he is not directly involved in the war. In this regard, there are probably no legal or other grounds for the Belarusian soldiers of the Kalinouski regiment to enter the territory of Belarus. At present, the regiment is a part of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and under its command. If it crosses the border with Belarus, Lukashenkos regime will consider it an act of aggression, which may provoke some actions on his part. Read also: Belarus schedules large-scale military exercises with Russian forces on its territory in 2025 At the same time, if Lukashenko crosses this red line, I think there will be no obstacles for the Belarusian heroes of the Kalinouski regiment to enter the territory of Belarus. This option is also possible if they leave the Ukrainian Armed Forces, become a volunteer unit and enter the territory of Belarus to liberate it. For example, in case of Lukashenkos death, in case of destabilization of the situation in Belarus. On Feb. 22, the monitoring group Belaruski Hajun reported that Belarus would hold joint military exercises with Russia on its territory in 2025. In December 2023, the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev, stated that the border with Belarus is currently calm, but the situation could change at any moment. On June 24, 2023, during the rebellion of PMC leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, the commander of the Kastus Kalinouski Regiment, Denis Prokhorov, addressed the Belarusian people, calling on citizens to be ready to liberate Belarus from dictatorship and occupation. Read also: 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 I am quite certain that the Duchess wouldn't dream of kicking the Princess when she's down - SUZANNE CORDEIRO/AFP Secretly editing a family photo isnt a mistake Meghan would ever make. That, at least, was what sources close to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry supposedly told a US newspaper. Subsequently, however, the Sussexes official spokesperson has said that such remarks did not come from us. Thank goodness for that. What a relief to hear it. Because, after reading the quote attributed to these mysterious unnamed sources, the public might have been tempted to infer that the Duchess of Sussex is revelling in the Princess of Waless week from hell. I for one, however, never thought any such thing. The Duchess is simply incapable of such heartless schadenfreude. After all, as we know from the work of Omid Scobie, her acclaimed biographer, she is a saintly figure who feels nothing but compassion for those less fortunate than herself. Those who are suffering. Those who are in desperate need of her bountiful grace and kindness. It would, therefore, have been wholly out of character for her to spend the week triumphantly gloating over her poor sister-in-laws woes, obsessively zooming in on the offending photo, guffawing her head off at the endless satirical spoofs of it online, and writhing ecstatically on the floor of her lavish Montecito home while screeching, SERVES YOU RIGHT, PRINCESS PERFECT, YOU STUCK-UP LIMEY HAG! I TOLD YOU ONE DAY MY VENGEANCE WOULD COME! Nothing could be less likely. In fact, it wouldnt surprise me if, with typical warmth, selflessness and empathy, the Duchess were to announce that, in light of this weeks unfortunate saga, shes launching another of her wonderful charities. I can see it now. Harry and I know how important it is, in the modern world, to be able to master digital technology. Thats why weve created Sussex Software Skills: a non-profit organisation specially dedicated to supporting those who lack even the most basic aptitude for Photoshop. Together, we will ensure that everyone the poor, the needy, and even the most humble princess can successfully manage to retouch the sleeve of their daughters cardigan without being brutally roasted by the entire world on social media. Because, although weve been fortunate enough never to have had such an experience ourselves, we can imagine just how very, very embarrassing it must be. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Note: this story contains graphic descriptions of violence. Nearly two years after a Kansas City mother was charged with murder in the gruesome killing of her 6-year-old son, the Missouri Department of Mental Health is asking the court to resume proceedings in the criminal case. Tasha Haefs, 37, has been in the custody of the Missouri Department of Mental Health since the case was stalled in the summer of 2022. A judge temporarily ordered a suspension upon a finding that Haefs lacked the capacity to understand the governments case or substantially participate in her own defense. Last week, the state health departments attorney filed a redacted mental health report along with its motion. A judge must make a ruling for the case to resume. Haefs competence was re-evaluated after several months of treatment, according to Michael Mansur, a spokesman with Jackson County Prosecutors Office. In February 2022, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker pledged her office would do everything in its power to bring justice for 6-year-old Karvel Stevens. It takes our breath away, Baker said of the terrible details of the childs death, in a statement two years ago. Haefs is represented by the Missouri Public Defenders Office. Her attorney did not respond to The Stars requests for comment. Gruesome scene described in police search warrant Kansas City police officers were called to the 7300 block of Indiana Avenue shortly before midnight on Feb. 15, 2022, in response to a disturbance. A 911 call had come in from a woman who reported the devil was trying to attack her, according to a police affidavit filed in Jackson County Circuit Court. Arriving officers saw blood leading up from the sidewalk to the front door, the affidavit says, and heard what sounded like a woman singing inside the residence. The singing grew louder as they knocked. Through a window, one of the officers saw what appeared to be a severed head inside. The officers forced their way into the home based on the belief that the children and woman inside were in danger, the affidavit said. Police entered the rear door of the home to find Haefs on the kitchen floor, the affidavit said, with blood on her hands and feet. The affidavit said officers saw the severed head of a child near the rest of his body outside the kitchen. According to the affidavit, Haefs admitted to officers that she killed her son, Karvel, in a bathtub. After searching the home, police found a decapitated dog in the basement. In an interview with The Star two years ago, relatives of Haefs said she spent years battling drug addiction, depression, severe trauma and hallucinations. Haefs attorney will appear for a case management conference March 29 in Division 3 of Jackson County Circuit Court. According to state statutes, legal counsel for the department of mental health can participate in hearings on motions to proceed. Haefs and her attorney will have the opportunity to contest the motion. If the court finds the accused mentally fit to proceed after a hearing on the motion, the statute states, the criminal proceedings shall resume. This story includes reporting from The Stars Bill Lukitsch, Matti Gellman and Anna Spoerre. KANSAS CITY, Mo. This week, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) announced it has been approved for multi-million dollar funding to benefit the environment. Last week, the House and the Senate passed a bill to fund the U.S. Department of Transportation and other federal agencies. That included $4.88 million going to the KCATA for low and no-emission buses and to support infrastructure. Three facing federal gun charges from Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting President Joe Biden signed the legislation on Saturday. The funding allows KCATA to buy battery-powered buses and their charging sources along with low-emission buses. Through this investment, KCATA will be able to continue our efforts to modernize our bus system, provide riders a smoother trip and reduce impacts on the regions air quality, KCATA Chief Executive Officer Frank White III said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Boeings (BA) legal problems are mounting. They are starting to become a problem for the rest of the airline industry too. Alaska Airlines (ALK) said Tuesday its 2024 capacity estimates are "in flux" due to federal scrutiny of Boeing. United Airlines (UAL) said it asked Boeing to stop building planes not yet certified by the FAA. Southwest Airlines (LUV) said it cut its capacity forecast, citing fewer Boeing deliveries than expected. "Boeing needs to become a better company, Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said Tuesday as his company's stock dropped nearly 15%. Southwest Airlines talked Tuesday about how its business is being affected by the problems of Boeing and its stock dropped nearly 15%. (Matt York/AP Photo, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) Boeing's challenges are a problem for major airlines "because they cant grow as much as they originally thought," Helane Becker, a TD Cowen senior research analyst, said on Yahoo Finance Live Tuesday. She predicted the airlines will do what they always do, which is adapt. Boeings increased exposure to aircraft delivery delays and legal risks is spooking its own investors, too. Its stock fell 4.5% Tuesday after the New York Times revealed details of an FAA audit that followed an accident involving a door plug on an Alaska 737 Max-9 flight on Jan. 5. The incident unleashed widened regulatory scrutiny and temporarily grounded Boeing's 737 Max 9 planes in the US. The Department of Justice has reportedly also recently launched an investigation into the incident. An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that four bolts meant to fasten the Alaska door plug in place were missing and likely not installed at the time the aircraft was delivered to the airline. The FAA audit, according to the New York Times, found that Boeing's Max production practices failed 33 of the FAAs 89 quality control requirements. Boeings supplier Spirit AeroSystems, which makes the fuselage for the Max aircraft family, failed seven of the regulators 14 audit checks. Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Stan Deal said in a memo to employees Tuesday that "the vast majority" of the noncompliances in the audit "involved not following our approved processes and procedures." Story continues The Alaska Airlines blowout in January led dozens of passengers on board the flight to file lawsuits against Boeing. Those passengers are seeking punitive damages meant solely to punish Boeing for the alleged production lapses plus damages to compensate them for their alleged physical and emotional injuries, including stress, anxiety, trauma, PTSD, and hearing damage. Boeings current and former CEO and senior leadership have prioritized profits and share price over the safety of the flying public despite repeated design, manufacturing, production, testing, and systemic quality-control issues and defects with the Boeing 737 Max aircraft, Mark Lindquist, a lawyer who sued Boeing on behalf of 26 of those Alaska Airlines passengers, said. The long legal road ahead Past history suggests it will take years to untangle all of the legal challenges. Boeing, after all, has faced a mountain of litigation and government investigations before. A prior round of trouble for Boeing began in 2018 and 2019 with two crashes of Max-8 jets operated by Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines. Dozens of lawsuits followed. Families of victims who died in the crashes alleged Boeing had recklessly installed and failed to fully inform pilots about a new anti-stall system on its 737 Max-8 planes called MCAS (Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System). Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun. (Aaron Schwartz/NurPhoto via Getty Images) (NurPhoto via Getty Images) Boeing shareholders sued, waging similar claims. Once federal authorities confirmed that the MCAS system played a role in both crashes, the Justice Department filed criminal charges against Boeing, accusing the company of criminally defrauding the FAA. To avoid liability, Boeing entered a deferred prosecution agreement in January 2021. The agreement requires it to compensate airlines and victims families and steer clear of reporting and transparency lapses for three years. The agreement is suspected to have piqued the DOJ's attention again. On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reported the department had opened a criminal investigation into the Alaska blowout. Other headaches Boeings current troubles extend to other aircraft too. In February, pilots for United Airlines reported that a 737 Max-8s controls jammed during a landing at New Jerseys Newark airport. A federal investigation into the incident is now underway. In another report in February, the FAA documented that de-icing equipment installed on 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner aircraft could decrease engine thrust. Compounding the bad news, a 787 Dreamliner flying from Australia to New Zealand and operated by LATAM plummeted during a flight this week. Roughly 50 passengers are said to have reported injuries with one passenger in serious condition. What caused the drop in altitude is not yet known. According to Reuters, passengers said one of the aircrafts pilots communicated that he had temporarily lost control. Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on Twitter @alexiskweed. Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferre also contributed to this report. Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices. Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance Sir Keir Starmer has pledged that parliament will debate and vote on changing assisted dying laws if Labour wins the next general election. In a phone call to TV presenter and assisted dying campaigner Dame Esther Rantzen, the Labour leader said he was personally in favour of changing the law around assisted dying. In footage shown by ITV News, Sir Keir told the Childline founder: I think we need to make time. We will make the commitment. Esther, I can give you that commitment right now. Dame Esther has been a persistent advocate for a vote on assisted dying since her terminal cancer diagnosis in 2023. She revealed that she joined the Swiss assisted dying society Dignitas to ensure that her familys last memories of me are not painful because if you watch someone you love having a bad death, that memory obliterates all the happy times. Dame Esther Rantzen has said people should no longer be able to claim allowing assisted dying is detrimental to a countrys palliative care system, after a parliamentary report found no indications this is the case (PA) She added that if her family accompanied her to Switzerland the police might prosecute them. At present, assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to potential murder charges. A bill to make assisted dying legal in Scotland being put forward by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur is expected to come before Holyrood in the coming weeks. The Health and Social Care committee has also warned that the government must consider what to do if the law is changed in part of the UK, Isle of Man or Jersey. It said legalisation in at least one jurisdiction was looking increasingly likely and suggested the government must be actively involved in discussions about how to approach differences in the law. Sir Keirs pledge marks a historic juncture after years of campaigning by pro-assisted dying groups. In his previous role as director of public prosecutions, the Labour leader recommended that families who assist terminally ill loved ones to die should not be subject to prosecution. The man who wants to be the next prime minister has said he would offer MPs a free vote meaning members would not be compelled by party line to vote for or against the proposal. But Sir Keirs personal position means that this would be the first time the law would be debated under a prime minister who was supportive of the plans. The last time MPs voted on legalising assisted suicide was back in 2015, when the bill was defeated by 330 votes to 118. The bold new stance catapults the UK into alignment with its European neighbour after French president Emmanuel Macron announced that a bill on assisted dying would go before the French parliament in May. Under the proposed legislation, doctors would be able to prescribe a lethal substance to those suffering from incurable illnesses and pain, but who were still in control of their faculties. Mr Macron said the bill showed people were facing up to death and that it would reconcile the autonomy of the individual and the solidarity of the nation. Emmanuel Macron has said a bill on assisted dying will be presented to Frances Council of Ministers in April (AP) A poll by Opinium on behalf of pro-assisted dying group Dignity in Dying showed an overwhelming majority of support for a change in the law across England, Scotland and Wales. Of 10,000 people polled, 75 per cent said they supported a change in the law, versus 14 per cent who were opposed. The poll found a majority of support across all age groups, with most Christians, Jews, Hindus and Sikhs favouring a change in the law. Those of the Muslim faith are the only demographic to broadly oppose assisted suicide, reducing support in some constituencies with large Muslim populations. Sir Keir said the new law would address concerns about pressurising vulnerable people into assisted deaths and include the introduction of safeguards. He said: When I consulted on this for the prosecutors guidelines, the churches and faith groups and others were very, very powerful in the arguments they made. We have to respect that and find the right balance in the end. I do think most people coalesce around the idea that there is a case [for assisted dying] where it is obviously compassionate, it is the settled intent of the individual, and there are safeguards with teeth to protect the vulnerable. Sarah Wootton, chief executive of Dignity in Dying said that Sir Keirs intervention shows that parliamentarians are listening: Assisted dying has emerged as a vital issue among voters of all political persuasions...Crucially, Parliamentarians are listening. Both the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition have committed to give this historic matter the time it needs in Parliament, should they be our next Prime Minister. She added: Only a free vote early in the next parliament can deliver what our terminally ill citizens need a safe and compassionate law providing choice at the end of life. Voters are rightly demanding to know which political parties and candidates will give assisted dying the time and attention it deserves, and which will cling to a status quo that is unsafe, unfair, unequal and more than six decades out of date. As Sir Keir has recognised dying people simply do not have time to wait. WASHINGTON Rep. Ken Bucks decision to leave Congress next week could make it more difficult for fellow Colorado Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert to remain next year. Buck had already said he would retire after his current term, then announced Tuesday that he would step down early, triggering a special election to replace him in June. Boebert was already gunning for Bucks seat in Colorados fourth district, having barely won reelection in Colorados less conservative third district in 2022. Now, whoever wins the special will likely try to hold onto Bucks old seat with the advantage of incumbency rather than running in a wide-open race. Buck is a conservative with an independent streak who has sometimes defied his party, such as by criticizing election denialism and the impeachment inquiry against Joe Biden. His decision to retire early will make the slim GOP House majority even slimmer, intensifying headaches for House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.). The Republican primary for Bucks seat the contest Boebert had already entered alongside several other Republicans will be June 25. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) said Tuesday that the special election for filling Bucks seat for the rest of the year will be the same day as the primary, saving the state money on running two separate elections. One of the reasons I chose this time was because I didnt want them to have to have a special election with all the cost, Buck told HuffPost on Wednesday of his retirement. So this way, they can run it at the same time as the primary. Several political commentators have speculated Bucks decision was an intentional effort to spoil Boeberts campaign plans. By resigning early, Ken Buck is giving an advantage to anyone but Lauren Boebert, former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) said on social media. She cannot run in the special election since she already occupies a seat, so another person will be elected to serve out the term, and it wont be Lauren. But Buck said Wednesday he wasnt sure what effect his decision would have on the wacky, attention-seeking House sophomores reelection bid. Youll have to ask her, he said. I dont really know. Boebert announced her switch to Colorados 4th district in December, claiming dark money was out to get her after Democratic challenger Adam Frisch came within 500 votes of defeating her in 2022. Frisch said Boebert provided angertainment rather than political leadership. Boebert said Wednesday that she will stick with her plans to run in the primary for CO-4 and not jump into the special election. Im gonna win the primary and the general, Boebert told HuffPost. As for Buck, she called his decision to retire weak sauce. Related... A repeat Kennewick felon with a long history of violently beating people is heading back to federal prison for another 6 1/2 years. This time, Marc Steven White, 44, who also goes by Mark, pleaded guilty to being a felon possessing a gun. Kennewick police seized one gun from White after he crashed a vehicle in May 2022, and about three weeks later he already had another firearm, according to federal court documents. Both had serial numbers obliterated. The sole reason for an individual to possess a firearm with an obliterated serial number is to avoid detection and engage in crimes without being tracked, said Rebecca Perez, assistant U.S. attorney in Eastern Washington, in a court document. Defendants ability to quickly obtain not just firearms, but firearms which are particularly valuable to criminals, demonstrates the level of criminal thinking and activity which surrounds defendant. Defendant is violent, regardless of who is watching, his location, or the potential consequences, according to Perez. He simply cannot or will not control himself. Perez said White is associated with the Gypsy Jokers motorcycle gang and law enforcement officers have watched him develop into a violent offender. His history includes eight assault convictions or theft convictions that included assaults starting when he was a juvenile and began punching a victim in the face because the victim flipped him off, according to a court document. Mark Steven Marc White In one 2001 case he began hitting a victim without provocation, causing significant facial injuries. That same year he caused life-threatening injuries to a victim he hit in the head, according to a court document. In one of two 2003 theft convictions he kicked and hit a victim over the head with a glass picture frame and in the other he punched a victim and demanded their property, according to a court document. In a 2019 third-degree assault conviction, he threatened to shoot a victim and told him he would be killed, according to Perez. He struck the victim in the head with a club, fracturing the victims skull and breaking his arm, she said. Whites attorneys submitted a Benton County court document that said the victims drug use may have prevented an accurate account of that assault and injuries could have been caused by jumping out of a moving vehicle. Whites violent behavior continued when he was incarcerated, including breaking the eye socket of another inmate, according to Perez. That case is pending and he has not been convicted, according to his attorneys, Christine Bennett of Richland and Rick Smith of Yakima. Gun found in rolled car White has spent two decades in federal prison or on federal probation, according to court documents. He also was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison in 2004 for being a felon in possession of a gun. Eastern Washington U.S. District Court cases are heard at the federal courthouse in Yakima, Wash. The sentence handed down Tuesday by U.S. Judge Mary Dimke in the Yakima U.S. Courthouse stemmed from a Kennewick Police Department case. Officers found a stolen Toyota 4Runner that had driven onto the sidewalk, hit a pile of dirt and flipped on its side at 1717 S. Garfield St., in Kennewick. A person who lived nearby said they saw a man climb out of the window of the 4Runner and run away. Officers arrested White four blocks away. His shoes matched the shoe prints leading from the 4Runner, according to a court document. A loaded 9MM semi-automatic handgun with an extended magazine was found in the 4Runner, according to a court document. On June 23, 2022, U.S. Marshals spotted White driving a Chevrolet Avalanche in West Richland. A warrant for escape of community custody on a third-degree assault charge had been issued for him. They followed him to Kennewick, where in fled into an apartment on Ninth Avenue before marshals took him into custody, according to a court document. In the Avalanche, a .45 caliber pistol, body armor and a ballistic helmet were found, according to a court document. Our community is safer with Mr. White behind bars, said Richard Collodi, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigations Seattle Field Office. Vanessa Waldref, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Washington, said, Armed felons present a real danger to our neighborhoods and communities. Dimke sentenced White to three years probation after he serves his prison term. The case was investigated by the FBIs Southeast Washington Safe Streets Task Force which includes officers and detectives from the Kennewick, Pasco and Richland police departments Border Patrol and Department of Corrections. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Stephanie Van Marter and Perez. Choreograph / Getty Images/iStockphoto Research conducted last decade by Chase Bank and the University of Colorados Research on Consumer Financial Decision Making found out something interesting about baby boomers and financial discussions: The parents of boomers didnt talk much about money with their offspring but boomers themselves spent a lot of time discussing money with their kids. Check Out: 5 Items From the 1970s That Are Worth a Lot of Money For You: 5 Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money In fact, boomers made financial discussions with their kids as important as talks about the birds and the bees (though they held those discussions as well). Today, many boomers have reached retirement age, and their Gen X and millennial kids have kids of their own. The lessons learned from money talks that occurred decades ago still resonate with younger people, many of whom are already much more financially savvy than previous generations. Separate research from Forbes found that nearly three-quarters of millennials (73%) and more than half of Gen Xers (57%) reported growing up in families that talked about money vs. only 41% of boomers. Heres a look at the five best strategies many boomer parents passed on in their quest to raise financially savvy children, based on various studies and personal testimonies. Sponsored: Protect Your Wealth With A Gold IRA. Take advantage of the timeless appeal of gold in a Gold IRA recommended by Sean Hannity. Be Prepared The famous Boy Scout motto also applies to financial education. One reason so many boomer parents held financial talks with their kids is so their kids wouldnt go into the adult world not knowing the importance of budgeting and saving money. Among the best strategies passed down was how to make a financial plan for different stages of life, from renting your first apartment to buying a home, starting a family and preparing for retirement. Study the Financial Markets Some boomer parents spent a lot of time talking about stock picks with their kids and would often have the family watch financial shows on TV reviewing the days stock market activity. One millennial child of boomer parents told USA Today that from an early age she knew what percentage of each parents salary went toward their 401(k) retirement accounts. Story continues Factor in Healthcare Costs Researchers have found that boomer parents especially women stressed the importance of how rising healthcare costs can impact financial and retirement security. Many discussions centered on medical expenses. Be Smart About Credit Chad Lewis, a 36-year-old Northwestern Mutual private wealth adviser in the Chicago area, told USA Today that he has been talking with his parents about money since middle school. Many of those discussions centered on credit. We talked about things like credit cards, your credit score, making sure that youre paying off cards on a monthly basis, Lewis said. Be Careful About Who You Trust Boomer parents have put special emphasis on the importance of vetting people properly before signing a contract or paying money. These lessons proved especially useful amid the rise in online payments, financial apps and digital invoicing. Many boomers were in their late 30s to early 50s when e-commerce began to take hold and had kids still in high school or younger. Defending against online scams became a bigger part of the conversation. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Boomer Parents Reveal Best 5 Strategies for Raising Financially Savvy Children Gov. Kristi Noem is facing legal action after her latest endorsement caused an online furor that now risks taking a bite out of her standing in South Dakota at a time when shes rumored to be among the front-runners on Donald Trumps vice presidential shortlist. Nearly 48 hours after she posted an uncanny, infomercial-style testimonial video running nearly five minutes in praise of the deluxe work she received at Smile Texas, a Houston-area cosmetic dentistry firm, Noem and her political team have not responded to questions over why she traveled so far for the procedure and whether the clip, which features images of her speaking at a political rally, was used to pay or defray from the cost of the work. Noem is also facing a new lawsuit, filed by the consumer advocacy group Travelers United, accusing Noem of doing an undisclosed advertisement for Smile Texas. There are many dentists and cosmetic dentists in South Dakota, the lawsuit claims, adding, No one with an extremely important job in the South Dakota would fly to Texas to receive dental treatment and then sit in that office and film an advertisement without some form of compensation. Drs. Rick Kline and Bret Davis, a pair of dentists at Smile Texas, have, according to federal records, donated to Republican candidates and, in Klines case, the Texas state GOP. Davis, in a post to the Smile Texas Instagram account, used some of the video of Noem and wrote, This gracious leading lady @kristinoem just received an executive, feminine, beautiful smile here at Smile Texas. Neither is on record donating to Noem. For all the fuzziness, at least one thing is clear: the South Dakota governor is delighted with the results. I love that my bite is better, that my teeth are a better shape, that they feel better in my mouth, Noem says in the spot, speaking directly to the camera. I can be confident when I smile at people and know that they can actually appreciate and see the kindness in my face and the love that I have for them. CNN has reached out to Noem and Smile Texas asking about their financial arrangement and to the governors office about why she sought the treatment out-of state. None have responded. In the video, Noem explains that she has long been self-conscious about her teeth and that she knocked out a bunch of them years ago during a bicycle accident. When the Smile Texas team showed Noem her new grill, the governor says, she began to cry. I think it was because I had an uncle that was an orthodontist and he did braces on all of his nieces and nephews, everyone, except for me, Noem says. And I remember being a little girl and him saying, your teeth just arent bad enough. That assessment, she adds, lingered in her mind as she got older and thought and hoped that someday I could address it. Nowadays, Noems smile is featured in a series of television ads touting her Freedom Works Here workplace recruitment campaign, which, at a cost of about $5 million, has raised the ire of a handful of South Dakota leaders from both parties. Their gripes include fuzzy metrics for success and how the contract for the campaign, which is handled by the governors office, was given to a firm with roots in Ohio the same one that consulted on her 2022 reelection campaign. (Its CEO, Benjamin Yoho, had the same title on Vivek Ramaswamys 2024 presidential campaign.) The spots feature Noem, front and center, play-acting at an assortment of jobs and touting the economic benefits of pulling up stakes and moving to South Dakota to delight in a business-friendly, worker-needy economy and the promise youll never pay a penny in personal state income tax. Noem isnt the first South Dakota leader to spend state bucks in a bid to draw prospective employees to the Mount Rushmore State. (Notably or not none of the faces on the monument itself show their choppers.) In 2015, the administration of her predecessor, Dennis Daugaard, cheerfully asked Americans, Why die on Mars when you can live in South Dakota? Compelling as that pitch mightve been, Noem, who became governor in 2019 and previously served in Congress and the South Dakota legislature, adjusted course and ultimately inserted herself as the pitchwoman, talking up the jobs available in a variety of industries. In one of the spots, she appears as a police officer. In another, as a welder, then as a nurse and even an accountant. She also shows up on screen wearing scrubs, safety glasses and a mask, sitting beside a reclining patient head back, looking skyward, sounding anesthetized as a dentist. CNNs Virginia Langmaid, Chris Boyette and Andi Babineau contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Ukrainian soldiers are expected to receive the first ammunition purchased by allied countries under the Czech-led initiative "in the foreseeable future," Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on March 13. Czech President Petr Pavel said in February that Prague had identified 500,000 155 mm shells and 300,000 122 mm shells outside Europe that could be bought and sent to Ukraine after the necessary funds were allocated to the initiative. The fulfillment of the initiative is designed for a year, but the earliest shell deliveries to the front line "will not take many months," Kuleba said at a conference with his Moldovan counterpart Mihai Popsoi in Kyiv. Tomas Pojar, a Czech national security adviser, said that purchased ammunition could be sent to Ukraine as early as June, Euractiv reported. "We will contact our Czech colleagues this week to present the supply plan in detail and how it will work. We are ready for full cooperation and assistance," Kuleba said. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said on March 12 that the initiative, joined by 18 countries, received "non-binding commitments" for a further 200,000 rounds, in addition to the confirmed purchase of 300,000 shells. Artillery shells are a crucial capability for Ukraine as the country faces critical ammunition shortages. Delays in U.S. military assistance have already had a direct impact on the battlefield, contributing to the loss of the key front-line city of Avdiivka. Read also: The Invisible War: Inside the electronic warfare arms race that could shape course of war in Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Kyoto is cracking down after locals complained that Instagram-obsessed tourist "paparazzi" are harassing the Japanese city's famous, immaculately dressed geisha. Real-life geisha, or "geiko" ("women of art") as they are known locally, work for a living -- as they have for centuries -- in teahouses in Kyoto's picturesque Gion district where they perform traditional Japanese dance, music and games. However, like other major tourist attractions around the world such as Bruges in Belgium, Venice in Italy, or Rio de Janeiro's Sugarloaf Mountain, locals are fuming. Residents are fed up with visitors sometimes rudely demanding selfies with or otherwise bothering the geiko, who wear smart kimonos and white make-up, with their hair styled in an elaborate bun. Signs will go up in the coming weeks asking tourists to refrain from entering privately run alleyways in Gion, although the area's main public streets will remain open. "We don't want to do this, but we're desperate," Isokazu Ota, an executive member of a residents' council, said last week, comparing tourists who crowd around geisha emerging from the narrow alleys to "paparazzi". Jane Stafford from Australia told AFP in Gion at the weekend that she and her travel companions had been advised by a family member not to take photos there. But she also questioned restricting movement in the bustling district lined with old-style wooden buildings. "To me, this is a unique heritage area that people want to enjoy, and we'd like to photograph the architecture," she said. "It's a shame that people can't enjoy it in smaller groups," she said, suggesting that big tours be broken up. - 'Not a theme park' - Tourism to Japan has been booming since pandemic-era border restrictions were lifted and other attractions are also taking steps against overcrowding. This summer, hikers using the most popular route to climb Mount Fuji will be charged $13 each, with numbers capped to ease congestion and improve safety. The mayor of the western metropolis Osaka has also said he is considering charging a new fee to foreign tourists, separate to an existing tax on hotel stays. The residents' council in Gion -- the setting of the hit Netflix show "The Makanai: Cooking for the Maiko House" -- urged Kyoto City in December to tackle the issue, saying their neighbourhood "is not a theme park". They have put up signs since 2019 banning photography in the private alleys, warning of fines of up to 10,000 yen ($68). One council member also told Japanese media about an instance of the kimono of a geisha's apprentice being torn and another who had a cigarette butt put in her collar. - 'Don't be 'that guy'' - Dutch tourists Anna and Mark Van Diggenen said they were in favour of the policy. "You have to respect the women" and their privacy, Anna said. But Mark said the new restrictions would be difficult to police. "You can make rules, but you can't keep them," he said. Resident Tetsuo Nishizawa, who owns a bar and event space, said he thought the new rules were "a good thing". "It is important to clarify what is allowed and what is not," he told AFP. Dressing up in brightly coloured kimonos is popular among tourists excited to get the perfect Kyoto shot. But one user on a Facebook group called "Japan Travel Tips & Planning" pleaded with visitors to Gion not to behave badly. "I've been going to Japan for more than half a century and as the rest of the world increasingly discovers its charms, those charms are forced to become less accessible," wrote the user, Doug Burckhard. "Please don't be 'that guy'," he said. str-kaf/stu/ Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman has won her bid for a second term, securing the majority vote needed to avoid a runoff in a district that straddles the Hollywood Hills. The latest batch of returns showed Raman with 50.6% of the vote, compared with 38.6% for her nearest opponent, Deputy City Atty. Ethan Weaver. In third place was software engineer Levon "Lev" Baronian at 10.7%. Raman thanked her supporters, her campaign volunteers and the district's residents on Thursday, saying her conversations with voters during the campaign showed that the city is "full of hope and possibility." "Im truly grateful to everyone who took the time to share their passion for the city with us," she said in a statement. "And I really look forward to carrying that sense of optimism and insistence on a better L.A. with me over the next four years." Weaver, who resides in Los Feliz, had sought to make major issues of public safety and homelessness, criticizing Raman for opposing a package of police raises and fighting an ordinance that prohibits homeless encampments near schools and day-care centers. He said he called Raman on Thursday to concede, wishing her "tremendous success" in her next four-year term. Read more: Tenant rights lawyer Ysabel Jurado will face Councilmember Kevin de Leon in runoff "I am so proud of the campaign we ran and the community voices that we raised," he said. "It's always a difficult thing to lose. But I step away with my head high, proud of the work we've done running this race." Raman and her two challengers were competing to represent a district that straddles the Hollywood Hills, stretching from Silver Lake in the east to the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Reseda in the west. Raman campaigned in a district that is significantly different from the one that elected her in 2020. A year after she took office, the City Council redrew about 40% of the district, taking out such areas as Hancock Park and Park La Brea and adding all or part of Encino, Studio City and other neighborhoods. During the campaign, Weaver received huge financial support from unions that represent police officers and firefighters, as well as landlords, business groups and other donors, which spent a combined $1.35 million on his behalf. Raman, who lives in Silver Lake, worked to turn that huge outside spending into a negative for Weaver, saying it showed that special interests were unhappy with her votes in support of new tenant protections and against police raises and digital billboards. Raman ran on her record of passing new renter protections, moving homeless residents indoors and advocating for new reforms at City Hall, including an expansion in the size of the council. Her supporters portrayed the race as one that would determine the future of progressive politics at City Hall. Read more: Your guide to the L.A. City Council District 4 race: Nithya Raman faces two challengers Baronian, the third-place candidate, voiced disappointment in the outcome. The Sherman Oaks resident said he believes the district will continue to see fewer police, an unresponsive city government and spending on homelessness that lacks "accountability." "I think it's going to be more of the same in Los Angeles," he said. In an Eastside district, attorney Ysabel Jurado, another candidate backed by the city's political left, also had a strong showing, remaining in first place ahead of Councilmember Kevin de Leon. The two will compete in a Nov. 5 runoff election. In the east San Fernando Valley, former state Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian heads to a runoff against small-business owner Jillian Burgos. And in a Crenshaw-to-Koreatown district, Councilmember Heather Hutt will face a runoff challenge from attorney Grace Yoo. On Thursday, election officials said they still had an estimated 8,200 ballots left to count countywide. Those ballots were not expected to significantly change the outcome of the City Council contests. 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 Labour movement is in mourning after the death of Tommy McAvoy, the former MP for Rutherglen and, since 2010, a member of the House of Lords, on March 8. Tommy was the answer to an obscure pub quiz question: apart from Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who was the only MP to hold exactly the same government office for the duration of Blairs government? As pairing whip, it was Tommys job to say yay or nay to colleagues requests to go home early or to take time off the whip for whatever reason. Despite having a fearsome reputation, there was a deeply kind aspect to his character which, for public relations reasons, he rarely allowed to be shown publicly. He was also part of a generation of MPs who held fast to personal faith when it came to votes on matters of conscience. A devout Roman Catholic, Tommy would reliably vote against any extension to the right to abortion, daring any Left-wing critics to challenge him on the matter. No record exists of any such challenge having been made. Whether such a tolerant approach continues to prevail in the modern Labour Party remains to be seen, for there has not been a vote on abortion in a long time. Particularly on the Left, views that were once considered reasonable and moderate might now be considered unforgivably misogynist. Polite disagreement seems to be going the way of the dodo. But there will be a chance in the near future to gauge whether matters of conscience are still to be considered as such in parliament. Keir Starmer has undertaken, in the event of a Labour victory at the next general election, to allow MPs a free vote on assisted dying. This seems a sensible way forward; to make such a sensitive issue one of party politics would be unwise. There are a couple of problems with Starmers approach, however. The first is that this issue has arisen from the horrendous experience and subsequent campaign by a high-profile and much-loved celebrity, namely Dame Esther Rantzen, who has terminal cancer. While it is perfectly acceptable for famous individuals to lend their names to campaigns to change the law, submission to a high-profile demand for change smacks of populism rather than earnest consideration. The last time a national treasure intervened so successfully and so robustly in a political debate was in 2009, when Joanna Lumleys view on the right to UK citizenship of former army Gurkhas prevailed against the then Labour governments wishes. That was a poor decision and an unnecessary capitulation in the face of a popular celebritys demands. We must ensure that any change in policy this time around is based on cool and considered logic rather than fear of getting on the wrong side of celebrity. The second problem surrounding any free vote on assisted dying is that in the age of social media, our elected representatives are far more concerned with likes and ReTweets than they should be. Something as serious as the right of terminally ill citizens to choose a swift and dignified death should occupy more than the character limit of a social media platform or a mic-drop moment on a TikTok video. Sitting in the chamber during a long debate, even if you have no intention of speaking, and carefully considering the points made by speakers on both sides of the argument, is surely more important than simply turning up to vote according to the position youve already settled on and publicly signalled days or months in advance. More importantly, the sincerely held views of those of a religious bent cannot be airily dismissed or mocked, just as those who voted against abortion in all its forms in previous generations were rightly regarded with respect and tolerance by dissenting colleagues. Voltaire may never actually have declared that while disapproving of what his listeners said, he would nonetheless defend to the death their right to say it. But in an age of culture wars, where political opponents are rarely wrong or misguided, or happen to have reached different conclusions on an issue, but are in fact evil or bigoted (and the choice of bigotries grows ever greater every day), the nation deserves a return to the more civilised and respectful rules of debate that prevailed in the past. Given Tommys personal faith, I suspect I know how he would have voted had this issue presented itself while he was still alive. But he would never have condemned anyone who thought or voted differently. And no one would have taken him to task on his own actions or views. Not if they had any sense, anyway. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Andy McDonald insisted prior to his suspension that he was making a 'call for peace' at the rally - Ian Forsyth/Getty Images Europe Andy McDonald has had the Labour whip restored following his suspension for making reference to the controversial from the river to the sea chant at a pro-Palestine rally. The MP for Middlesbrough was stripped of the whip by Sir Keir Starmer in October after a backlash to a speech he made in response to the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict. Speaking at a pro-Palestine march in London, Mr McDonald said: We wont rest until we have justice, until all people, Israelis and Palestinians, between the river and the sea can live in peaceful liberty. The chant from the river to the sea is viewed by many as anti-Semitic and Mr McDonalds use of the phrase was criticised by Downing Street, which urged MPs to be sensitive to the real fear many communities may be feeling. Sir Keir Starmer stripped Andy McDonald of the whip after a backlash to the Middlesbrough MP's words in October - Ian Forsyth/Getty Images Europe In a statement on Wednesday, a Labour spokesman said: The chief whip has today restored the Labour whip to Andy McDonald MP. This follows a full investigation by the Labour Party into complaints received about public remarks that he made in October 2023. The investigation concluded that he had not engaged in conduct that was against the partys rule book but reminded him of the importance of elected representatives being mindful, not only of what they say in public but how their words may be interpreted, especially in reference to controversial or emotive issues. The chief whip met with Andy following the outcome of the investigation and received assurances that he understands the need to be mindful and about his future conduct. Baseless and harmful accusations Mr McDonald insisted prior to his suspension that he was making a call for peace and said accusations that his language was anti-Semitic were baseless and harmful. As I said at Saturdays rally in London, it is time for political leaders everywhere to call out the crimes against humanity that are being perpetrated in Gaza, he said at the time. There is a concerted campaign to silence those who are speaking out. We must and will not be intimidated. Party split Sir Keirs party has been significantly split over his handling of the conflict in the Middle East, which started with the Oct 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas terrorists. Many MPs on the Left of the party including Mr McDonald believe their leader has not gone far enough in his criticisms of the subsequent Israeli bombardment of Gaza and criticised his initial refusal to call for an immediate ceasefire. Mr McDonald has said more death, more killings is not the answer to the conflict and stressed that he utterly [abhors] every single murder of innocent Israeli and Palestinian civilians. Mr McDonald said on Wednesday that he was grateful to the chief whip for the restoration of the Labour Party whip, and to all those who have supported me whilst I have been suspended. I am pleased that the investigation found I had not breached the rules of the party, he added. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. When deaths and mistakes happen inside hospitals, experts say, there is a growing consensus about how doctors and nurses should respond: Be candid with family members about what happened and apologize for any errors. For years, a culture of silence surrounded medical errors, health policy experts say. A desire to avoid malpractice lawsuits and other consequences made many hospital employees, lawyers and risk managers reluctant to share information about mistakes. But healthcare providers increasingly recognize that silence and secrecy arent the best policies. Its particularly important for hospitals to be open with parents who lose newborns in the hospital, according to research. In cases where a baby dies in the neonatal intensive care unit, hospitals should meet with parents four to six weeks after the babys death to help them understand what happened, according to a 2015 article in the Journal of Perinatology. Hospitals should also refer parents to support groups and offer counseling regarding the physical and psychological considerations of attempting another pregnancy, the article says. Helping families whove lost babies is an essential part of our care, said Carole Kenner, one of the articles authors and CEO of the Council of International Neonatal Nurses. We are changing lives by providing the support families need, said Kenner, who is Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences at the College of New Jersey. And were changing lives in a bad way if we dont provide the support the family needs. A traumatic ordeal LaChunda Hunter said she has learned that firsthand. In a lawsuit filed in early March, the Charlotte mother described the harrowing circumstances that followed the 2022 death of her premature baby, Legacy. Three days after being told Legacy had died at Novant Presbyterian Medical Center, the lawsuit says, Hunter got a call from a doctor who told her that her baby was alive and that her test results were improving. The doctor hung up the phone after Hunters work assistant, who was listening in by speaker phone, told the doctor that Hunter had been informed her baby was dead, the lawsuit says. A different doctor called several hours later to tell Hunter that the encouraging test results shed been provided were for a different baby. Hunter said she wanted to go to the hospital to see the baby whose test results had been reported, but the doctor said that if she tried to do that, she would be arrested, according to the lawsuit. Hunter said the ordeal has traumatized her, leaving her to wonder for more than two years whether her baby is alive or dead. Her attorney, Kristin King, said she repeatedly asked Novant Health and its lawyer for a meeting to better understand what happened, but was never given an opportunity. Aside from having her return to the hospital to hold the dead babys body, Novant failed to offer Hunter any support after Legacy died, she said. If anything, they made me feel worse, she said. LaChunda Hunters baby girl, Legacy, was born prematurely at Novant Presbyterian hospital in 2022. Hunter later got contradictory messages from doctors about whether her baby was dead or alive. Novant wouldnt discuss Hunters complaints, citing patient privacy laws. King gave the hospital system written permission to discuss Hunters case with a Charlotte Observer reporter. But Novant said that it would not talk about the case unless Hunter signed a consent form that King said was inappropriate and overreaching for the circumstances involved. In a statement to The Observer, a Novant spokeswoman said the hospital systems neonatal intensive care unit teams develop strong relationships with patient families and guide them through what is an understandably stressful time. From physicians, to nurses, to social workers and child life specialists, open, consistent communication with families is a vital aspect of the care that we provide. Novant said it provides a dedicated parents space that allows families to stay overnight, and also serves as a private bereavement room. Helping families honor the memory of their babies is an important part of what we do, and our teams provide commemorative keepsakes in addition to other grief resources, the Novant statement said. Communicating disrespect Told of Hunters account, leaders of two patient advocacy groups found fault with the way the hospital reportedly handled the situation. It sounds like a horrific charting error that was not handled as sensitively as it could have been, to put it mildly, said Lindsey Wimmer, executive director of the Star Legacy Foundation, which supports families who lose newborns. LaChunda Hunter flips through medical records for her baby girl, Legacy, who was born prematurely at Novants main hospital in Charlotte in 2022. Doctors later gave her conflicting messages about whether Legacy was alive or dead. Hunter said Novant has yet to provide a full explanation about what happened. Helen Haskell, Founder of Mothers Against Medical Error, a group based in Columbia, S.C., said medical mistakes and errors in charting and reading medical records sometimes happen inside hospitals because doctors and nurses are rushed. But what reportedly happened in Hunters case is inexcusable, she said. I cannot imagine threatening a bereaved mother, Haskell said. Its baffling to me how this mother was treated. Poor communication by healthcare providers can lead to medical complications, studies have found. Hunter says it can lead to trauma, too. The 2022 experience has haunted her, causing her to suffer PTSD, anxiety and depression, her lawsuit says. At least one influential organization has required hospitals to be more transparent about errors. The Joint Commission, the oldest and largest hospital accreditor, told hospitals in 2001 that they must inform patients about medical errors. The regulations came in response to a 1999 Institute of Medicine report that estimated that preventable medical mistakes killed more than 44,000 hospital patients each year. It does seem to me if a hospital chooses to be excessively non-transparent if they err on the side of opacity they sometimes do themselves more harm than good, said Dr. Albert Wu, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University who has studied the challenges of acknowledging mistakes in healthcare. Theres no such thing as not communicating. If you say nothing, youre in many cases communicating disrespect. LaChunda Hunter leafs through the medical records for her baby girl, Legacy, who was born at Novant Presbyterian hospital in February 2022. Hunter subsequently got conflicting messages from doctors about whether Legacy was alive or dead. She has asked for an explanation about what happened and why, but says the hospital system has refused to meet with her. How lack of transparency at hospitals does more harm than good for grieving families A barn where the public watch the arrival of new born lambs had to be evacuated during a major blaze. Eight fire engines from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service including a mobile command unit tackled the fire at Mrs Dowsons Farm in Clayton-le-Dale. Farmers called the emergency services after nearly 40 tonnes of straw bales, used for bedding animals, caught fire late on Monday evening. The farm owners said this was "one of the toughest days" in its history. Animals in nearby buildings were taken into fields as firefighters and the farmers tackled the blaze using tractors to pull apart stacks of straw bales away from the barns and buildings. A farm statement said: "The remarkable efforts from our family, farm team and the emergency services meant the fire was extinguished as quickly as possible. "Farmers were able to evacuate lambs from the Lambing Live barn as well as the farm's own dairy herd to safety. "The work now begins on rebuilding animal pens and barns at the rear of the working farm as well as relocating some of the 'Lambing Live' event which opened on Saturday and runs until 19 May. "The cause of the fire is currently unknown, but we will be working to investigate over the coming days and weeks. We would again, like to thank the emergency services for their swift response." 'Spontaneous combustion' The farm's management said spontaneous combustion in bales was a phenomenon which means they can ignite without an external heat source. "Moisture content is the main factor that causes hay and straw to spontaneously combust. "Hay fires are more common than straw fires, for reasons involving the type of forage, the moisture content in the stored forage, and heat production." The farm park is due to reopen as normal this weekend. Why not follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk LEAVENWORTH, Kan. A 48-year-old Lansing, Kansas man is sentenced for the November 2023 shooting death of his stepson, Andrew Glenn Wiley. According to Leavenworth County Attorney Todd Thompson, Robert Quasa was sentenced Wednesday to three years of probation after pleading guilty last month to involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutor finds deadly shooting involving Leavenworth police was justified On November 3, 2023, Lansing police officers responded to a home where they found a person, later identified as Wiley, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Lifesaving efforts to save the victim were unsuccessful and Wiley was pronounced dead at the scene. According to court records, Quasa and a group of men had visited a local gun range earlier in the day to shoot guns. The men returned to Quasas home and were cleaning guns when Quasas handgun discharged a single round, striking Wiley. While at the scene, Quasa told officers that he was teaching Wiley how to clean guns. Quasa stated he was showing how to remove a bullet from the chamber when his handgun just went off. Three facing federal gun charges from Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting During Wednesdays sentencing hearing, Quasas father, Wileys mother (who is married to Quasa), Wileys two brothers, and Wileys former fiance addressed the court, asking the judge not to send Quasa to prison, according to Thompson. If Quasa violates the terms of his probation, he could be forced to serve over two years in the Kansas Department of Corrections. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. If you are building a properly diversified stock portfolio, the chances are some of your picks will perform badly. But long term Boston Omaha Corporation (NYSE:BOC) shareholders have had a particularly rough ride in the last three year. Regrettably, they have had to cope with a 63% drop in the share price over that period. And over the last year the share price fell 29%, so we doubt many shareholders are delighted. On the other hand, we note it's up 8.0% in about a month. With that in mind, it's worth seeing if the company's underlying fundamentals have been the driver of long term performance, or if there are some discrepancies. See our latest analysis for Boston Omaha While Boston Omaha made a small profit, in the last year, we think that the market is probably more focussed on the top line growth at the moment. Generally speaking, we'd consider a stock like this alongside loss-making companies, simply because the quantum of the profit is so low. It would be hard to believe in a more profitable future without growing revenues. In the last three years, Boston Omaha saw its revenue grow by 28% per year, compound. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. The share price has moved in quite the opposite direction, down 18% over that time, a bad result. This could mean hype has come out of the stock because the losses are concerning investors. But a share price drop of that magnitude could well signal that the market is overly negative on the stock. The company's revenue and earnings (over time) are depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers). We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Having said that, most people consider earnings and revenue growth trends to be a more meaningful guide to the business. This free report showing analyst forecasts should help you form a view on Boston Omaha A Different Perspective Investors in Boston Omaha had a tough year, with a total loss of 29%, against a market gain of about 32%. Even the share prices of good stocks drop sometimes, but we want to see improvements in the fundamental metrics of a business, before getting too interested. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 7% per year over five years. Generally speaking long term share price weakness can be a bad sign, though contrarian investors might want to research the stock in hope of a turnaround. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Boston Omaha that you should be aware of before investing here. Story continues There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. The only operating Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in Russias Rostov Oblast was forced to halt operations after a drone attack, Ukraines Main Intelligence Directorates (HUR) spokesman Andriy Yusov said on national television on March 13. The shutdown of this military facility, a crucial supplier of fuel to the Russian army, is expected to disrupt some enemy plans and provide defense forces with additional time, Yusov stated, refraining from confirming or denying HURs involvement in the attack. While there were no casualties reported, the refinery was compelled to cease operations, and the extent of damage is currently being assessed, acknowledged regional governor Vasily Golubev. He noted that the UAVs landed on the plants premises due to electronic warfare systems. Earlier, Golubev had alerted about the approach of three drones to Novoshakhtinsk. The refinery, established in 2009, is the primary fuel provider in southern Russia, processing over 4.8 million tons of oil in 2023. It sits approximately one and a half kilometers northwest of Novoshakhtinsk and about 250 kilometers from Ukrainian-controlled territory. Read also: Russia awakes to biggest attack on Russian soil since World War II This incident is not the first time the plant has been targeted by drones; a similar occurrence took place in the summer of 2022, resulting in an explosion and fire. Ukrainian authorities have historically refrained from officially confirming their involvement in such attacks. Overnight on March 13, at least 60 drones were sighted across seven Russian oblasts, with an additional seven spotted in the morning wave, as announced by Russias Defense Ministry. It marks the most extensive attack on Russian soil since World War II. These drone waves follow a series of attacks on March 12, during which Russia encountered at least 25 drones across nine regions, striking at least two oil facilities. Russia has claimed to have intercepted and destroyed 58 out of 60 attack drones in the overnight wave. Strikes on oil refineries, vital to Russias revenue, have the potential to curtail the countrys gasoline and diesel output, leading to price increases. In response, Moscow imposed a six-month ban on gasoline exports effective March 1. Read also: UA attacks 9 Russian oblasts, hits two oil depots and a city admin building in biggest attack of war 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) Crime Stoppers of Las Cruces-Dona Ana County is asking for the publics help in identifying two suspects who broke into and burglarized the American Legion Post in Las Cruces on Valentines Day, according to the Las Cruces Police Department. The Police Department says shortly before 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 14, two people, believed to be men, broke into the American Legion located at 1185 E. Madrid Ave. in Las Cruces. The suspects stole a replica firearm and caused an estimated $16,000 in damages to the building, according to the Police Department. The Police Department says investigators are trying to identify the two suspects and surveillance photos of the suspects will not be released at this time. Anyone with information that can help investigators identify either one or both suspects is asked to call Crime Stoppers of Las Cruces-Dona Ana County at 1-800-222-8477. Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 for information that helps identify the suspects and allows tips to be provided anonymously. Anyone with information that can help in this case is asked to call Crime Stoppers. Tips can also be provided through the Las Cruces Crime Stoppers app, P3 TIPS. The app is available through the App Store on most devices. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) The driver whom two Nevada state troopers were investigating before a second alleged impaired driver hit and killed them agreed to serve 10 days in jail and pay a fine as part of a plea agreement, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned. Police found Guillermo Pacheco, 33, asleep at the wheel of a Jeep on an Interstate 15 offramp minutes after Jemarcus Williams, 46, allegedly drove impaired and collided with Sgt. Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix on Nov. 30, 2023. Officers later found Pacheco asleep at the wheel with an open can of beer in the car, according to documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained last year. Pacheco, who told police he was coming home from a party at Planet Hollywood, faced a misdemeanor DUI charge. Documents reveal he pleaded no contest Tuesday in Las Vegas Municipal Court. Sgt. Michael Abbate and Trooper Alberto Felix died on Nov. 30, 2023. (NSP/KLAS) As part of the agreement, a judge ordered Pacheco to pay a $910 fine, complete DUI school, and serve 10 days in city jail, documents said. Pacheco would be allowed to serve during the weekends, the agreement said. In addition, the judge said Pacheco must complete an alcohol evaluation, wear an alcohol monitor for 90 days and abstain from alcohol and drugs, documents said. If Pacheco fails to stay out of trouble for 18 months, he will be sent to jail for six months. Abbate and Felix responded to a call for the sleeping driver on the D Street exit at 3:23 a.m. The crash happened a minute later as the two men were outside of their cruisers to the left side of the parked vehicle, Metro police said in the documents the 8 News Now Investigators received. Minutes later, two Las Vegas Metro police officers responded to the crash site, finding Pacheco unharmed and asleep in the drivers seat with the ignition running, documents said. A third NHP officer who also responded had to wake up [Pacheco] to get him out of the vehicle following the collision involving Abbate and Felix, documents said. Police said they found an open 24-ounce can of beer in the cars center console as well as a second can sitting on a floorboard, documents said. Williams had a blood-alcohol level more than twice the legal limit several hours after the crash that killed the two men, the 8 News Now Investigators first reported. At 3:15 a.m., video shows a highly intoxicated Williams leaving the Palms casino with security officers, prosecutors said. Williams then hid behind a tree and, six minutes later, got into the car. Williams faces two felony counts each of DUI resulting in death, reckless driving resulting in death, and failing to stop at the scene of a crash. He also was charged with three traffic-related misdemeanors. During his first court appearance, a judge set Williams bail at $500,000. Should he post bail, he must wear an ankle monitor with GPS and alcohol monitoring. His next court date was scheduled for April 2. His court record indicated his preliminary hearing was delayed several times pending a possible resolution. Pachecos sentencing was scheduled for May 13. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) A customer service manager at a Las Vegas grocery store allegedly stole $142,000 in cash over three months, police said in documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained. Mackenzie Gilles, 40, faces a charge of theft above $100,000, records said. On Friday, March 8, police responded to a call to the Smiths Food & Drug store on Maryland Parkway near Sahara Avenue in the east valley. A district manager told police the stores customer service manager, identified as Gilles, allegedly stole nearly $90,000 since December, documents said. An audit conducted between December and February found the store was short more than $122,000 in cash, documents said. Between Dec. 22, 2023, and March 8, more than $142,000 was stolen, police said. Mackenzie Gilles, 40, faces a charge of theft above $100,000, records said. (LVMPD/KLAS) Police obtained store surveillance, which they said showed Gilles making withdrawals from the self-checkout machines and placing the currency into a blue cash bag, like those used in a bank, documents said. Gilles allegedly admitted to the theft when another employee confronted her, police said. During an interview with police, Gilles said she took the money to support herself and her five children, documents said. Gilles stated she would take $100 bills from the self-checkout machines and proceed to the area where the safe is located, police said in court documents. Gilles stated along the way, she would stop in an area where the cameras do not see and take the money and conceal it on her person in her clothes. Police arrested Gilles and booked her into the Clark County Detention Center. Judge Daniel Westmeyer released Gilles after her probable cause hearing as prosecutors requested more time for their investigation, documents said. Gilles was not due to return to court until July. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLAS. Vrbo lists a variety of spring break destinations for whatever you're into. Whether you're looking to bring the family, save some money, or go to a quiet hideaway, the travel website company has some suggestions. Nothing to do in West Texas? Here are 30 day trips on a tank of gas from Lubbock Here are some Texas locations available to visit from late February through the end of April. South Padre Island People gathered on the beach in front of Clayton's Beach Bar during spring break on South Padre Island on Wednesday. After Texas college towns initially emerged as coronavirus hot spots during the beginning of the fall semester, university officials are hoping the same wont occur after the spring break period. For young people looking to catch a break from homework and studying, South Padre Island is the place to be. If you like beaches, live music, wild parties or all of the above, the island may be just what you need. Inertia Tours is offering college spring break deals while South Padre Trips has some affordable condo rentals, according to Spadre's website. More: 11 cities where you can fly to for spring break for under $200 from Austin Corpus Christi The Texas State Aquarium is just one of the many family-friendly attractions Corpus Christi has to offer. If South Padre Island is beyond your budget, don't sweat it. Visit Corpus Christi's spring break website outlines some local eateries and attractions. Stay in the city for museums, restaurants and the Texas State Aquarium, or take a ferry out to Port Aransas and its beautiful Mustang Beach. Other activities in the Corpus Christi area include exploring public art, doing floating yoga on the Marina, taking a glow-in-the-dark bike tour and more. More: Consider a stop in Port Lavaca on your way down the the Texas coast Galveston Island State Park (GISP) People play on the beach after a soft reopening of part of Galveston Island State Park last June. Galveston Island State Park, or GISP, has been open for about a year since it closed for a three-year, $24 million renovation, Chron reports. Despite being an urban area, its mix of beach and bay ecosystems offers opportunities to spot wildlife. A particular group of coyotes has caught the attention of locals, who refer to the reddish-tinged pack as "ghost wolves." Looking for a getaway? Here's a check list before booking a trip to Mexico San Antonio After much anticipation, a ride in SeaWorld called Catapult Falls is now open. The family-friendly city of San Antonio is home to attractions for people of all ages. Visit the Alamo museum before stopping for some Tex-Mex cuisine. If the kids don't have much interest in historical sites, you can always take them to a theme park or the LEGOLAND Discovery Center. The complete list of things to do can be found on Visit San Antonio's website. Lake Lewisville If you wish to stay further inland while enjoying water activities, Lake Lewisville may be the ideal location. A short drive from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Lake Lewisville is one of the largest lakes in North Texas. It covers 29,000 acres with 233 miles of shoreline, according to the Lake Lewisville website. Whether you like to be on the water or prefer to camp on solid ground, there's something for everyone. Lake Texoma Another lake with fewer crowds, Lake Texoma is known for its cabin-style retreats. If you wish to spend some time with nature, you can enjoy prime fishing spots, horse trails and campgrounds. Lake Texoma's website introduces it as "a lake for all seasons," making it a memorable spot even beyond spring break. The Hill Country Texas Hill Country If spending time around a bunch of people isn't really your thing, the Texas Hill Country is here to help you get away from the stresses of civilization. With a more relaxed, historic vibe, the region offers natural beauty and a taste of a simple life and wine, too. Travel Texas urges you not to run for the hills, but to unwind among them. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Spring Break 2024: Last-minute mini vacation ideas in Central Texas One can see why the government should float the idea of paying failed asylum-seekers up to 3,000 to go voluntarily to Rwanda, in the same way as it already offers similar sums to those from certain other Third World countries who are prepared to return there. The theory is that if it works, then even with free flights thrown in it might well cost the government a great deal less to pay irregular immigrants off than foot the bill for providing them with indefinite housing and anti-destitution payments, not to mention the cost of fighting interminable legal battles against an entrenched human rights establishment determined to stymie as many forced deportations as possible. It would also provide an alternative to using the embattled Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill which Rishi Sunak has to rescue next week from a series of wrecking amendments introduced by a very unfriendly House of Lords. But will it work, and will it convince a sceptical public smarting from the knowledge that the existing Rwanda plan has already cost it 300 million and rising, without a single person having yet set foot in Kigali? There is considerable room for doubt. For one thing, will there be take-up? Its worth remembering that the current Rwanda scheme already contains provisions for the UK to contribute to the support of those removed. Although it is technically mandatory, its a racing certainty that if anyone eligible for removal volunteered to be included in it, the government would be only too happy to oblige. To date none has, as far as we know. Would the offer of an extra 3,000 change matters? Its possible, but Im not betting on it. Indeed, putting money openly on the table could well give rise to a kind of unholy bidding war. Those approached by Home Office officials offering them 3,000 to go to Kigali might well get into the habit of suggesting that the money is derisory, but that an offer of a good deal more, perhaps 10,000, might possibly change their minds. Do we really want a situation where the British government is reduced to offering ever-increasing wads of cash to people its desperate to pay to go away? And this leaves the biggest objection. Hitherto the government line has been that irregular boat crossings need to be deterred. The new moves, by contrast, seem pretty well guaranteed to encourage them. People-smuggler fees have been dropping fast: last year, it was reported that an illicit Channel passage could be had for as little as 1,500. Imagine the new sales ploy: We can get you to the UK for 1,500. If you like it there we can put you in touch with lawyers who will stop the stupid British government throwing you out. And if you dont, that same stupid government will give you free flights and 3,000 to to go away. That pays my fee and leaves you some over. Whats not to like? Rishi no doubt means well, but this scheme as currently planned is likely both to enrich people-smugglers and to feature in the text-books on the law of unintended consequences. He needs to send it back to the flip-chart of the adviser who drew it up. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. WORCESTER Dejan D. Belnavis, one of two men accused of killing Chasity and Zella Nunez March 5, remained held in California Wednesday pending an extradition hearing. The Worcester police declined to reveal the location where Belnavis is being held. According to police, Belnavis, 27, and Karel Mangual, 28, opened fire on an SUV parked on Englewood Avenue around 3 p.m. March 5, killing 27-year-old Chasity Nunez and her daughter, Zella. Belnavis was arrested Monday afternoon in San Diego following a traffic stop. Mangual was arrested March 6 in Worcester. Authorities are hoping Belnavis returns to Massachusetts soon. The next step is an extradition hearing. A spokesperson for the Worcester County District Attorneys Office said Tuesday that Belnavis is expected to appear for an extradition hearing in front of a judge in California, but it is not clear when that will happen. Extradition is the process of returning a fugitive back to one state from another. The accused can deny the accusations leading to their arrest, requiring an extradition hearing within 10 days. At the hearing, a judge will determine whether the right person was arrested and review transfer paperwork. If the judge determines the request is proper, the fugitive is held for pickup. The accused may also waive the extradition hearing and agree to return to the other state. Tuesday, Mangual appeared in Central District Court. His charges were upgraded to include two murder charges. Mangual never entered the courtroom after his lawyer, without opposition, asked the judge to allow him to appear from behind a door. The attorney entered a not guilty plea on Mangual's behalf. Mangual was ordered held without bail and is scheduled for a probable cause hearing April 12. Callahan Fay Caswell Funeral Home will host visiting hours for Chasity and Zella Nunez Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to their obituary. After blowing past initial goals, A GoFundMe organized to pay for funeral expenses and to support Chasity's surviving 2-year-old daughter had raised $52,526 by Wednesday and had a new goal of $100,000. Wednesday morning, flowers and two candles were located by the section of Englewood Avenue where Chasity and Zella Nunez were killed. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Chasity and Zella Nunez murder suspect still awaits extradition The Kansas House has advanced a bill banning gender-affirming care for transgender youths, but it is unclear whether it will have a veto-proof majority. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly indicated she will veto Senate Bill 233 if the Republican-led Legislature passes the bill. "You can look back in history and see how I've responded in the past, and I really haven't changed my position," Kelly told reporters on Friday. Republicans did not have the votes last session to override Kelly's veto of Senate Bill 26, which targeted gender-affirming care. The Senate was one vote short, which meant the House never took up the override, but it was presumed to be 12 votes short based off previous voting history. Rep. Ron Bryce, R-Coffeyville, presents SB 233, which targets gender-affirming care, in the House Chambers Tuesday at the Statehouse. Lawmakers are trying again this year with SB 233. The Kansas House gave it initial approval on a voice vote on Tuesday. A final roll-call vote was expected Wednesday. The bill would then goes to the Senate, which is anticipated to move quickly on the bill after having a previous informational hearing on it. More: Kansas Republicans want to ban transgender youths from getting gender-affirming care The bill is a gut-and-go using the contents of House Bill 2791, dubbed the "Forbidding Abusive Child Transitions Act," which was introduced by Rep. Ron Bryce, R-Coffeyville. Because the House used a gut-and-go of a Senate bill, the Senate can bypass a public committee hearing. SB 233 would ban health care professionals from providing gender-affirming care, including surgery and puberty blockers, to children. If they did so anyway, their licenses would be revoked. They could also be sued, and they would be banned from having liability insurance to cover such lawsuits. There would also be a ban on state money being used for such care and on state employees promoting it or social transitioning. Bryce likened gender-affirming care to saying, "We must change reality to meet what's in the child's head." Rep. Heather Meyer, D-Overland Park, wears pro-LGBTQ+ attire while debating SB 233, which targets gender-affirming care, Tuesday at the Statehouse. He said "more and more children have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria" and acknowledged there is an elevated suicide rate, but alleged that gender-affirming care is not effective at reducing suicides and "do more harm than good." According to PolitiFact, "most available research suggests that suicidal behavior is reduced when youth have access to gender-affirming care." More: Gender-affirming care is life-saving, research says. Why is it so controversial? Despite being the carrier of the bill, Bryce refused to answer questions from Rep. Heather Meyer, D-Overland Park, and Rep. Lindsay Vaughn, D-Overland Park. Meyer criticized the bill's definitions, or the lack thereof, and how it could be interpreted to ban social workers and teachers from using preferred pronouns or accepting clothing choices. Vaughn alleged that Bryce "knows this bill is unconstitutional." "In one breath, my colleagues say we should have less government and that government should not impede on personal rights," said Rep. Nikki McDonald, D-Olathe. "But in the next breath, they work to micromanage personal medical decision-making, saying that the Legislature knows better than parents and doctors." More: Kansas must deny gender marker changes on IDs after judge sides with Kobach over Kelly Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd. This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas Republicans advance ban on gender-affirming care, face veto Members of the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority board named in lawsuits against the agency will retain legal protection provided by the bureau until the suit is concluded whether or not they currently still serve on the board. The board in a special meeting Monday approved the amendment to a resolution passed in January 2023 originally enacted to provide legal representation to board members named in litigation due to their involvement with the bureau. The amendment extends that protection to board members named in litigation initiated while they were on the board but who no longer serve. Attorney Scott McClure said the amendment clarifies the original resolution and extends indemnification to individuals who may not be reappointed or who are no longer on the board. McClure said the threat of exposure to litigation could impact people who are willing to serve on the volunteer board. The initial resolution was approved on the heels of a wrongful termination lawsuit by former President and CEO Speros Batistatos. Batistatos sued the bureau and individual board members including Chairman Andy Qunell and board members Matt Maloney, Brent Brashier, Matt Shuffert and Tom Dabertin. Dabertin is no longer on the board. The suit also names Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., and Attorney Kevin Smith. The amendment appears to come in anticipation of the potential impact Senate Enrolled Act 37 a bill that shifts oversight of the SSCVAs budget would have on board members if Gov. Eric Holcomb signs the measure into law. Changes to the qualifications for board members as outlined in the statute could potentially disqualify nearly half of the boards existing members from serving. According to the original legislation, the appointing authority shall give sole consideration to individuals who are knowledgeable about or employes as executives or managers in one of the following businesses: hotel, motel, restaurant, travel, transportation, convention, trade show, certain licensed riverboats, banking, real estate and construction. SEA 37 takes out the phrase knowledgeable about and makes the requirement more stringent, so a board member must be working as an executive or manager in the related industries. Board member Matt Maloney, who served as chair during the meeting for Qunell who unable to attend, said about nine board members could be impacted by the legislation. McClure said via email Wednesday the meeting he does not believe the board has determined what members may be in jeopardy as a result of the legislation. Mr. Maloney sounds as if he has determined that six to nine members may be in jeopardy, but I am unaware of who he believes those members to be at this time, McClure said. After the meeting, Maloney would not elaborate on who he thought might be impacted. Current board members include Qunell, who is the lieutenant governors appointment; Maloney, Munsters appointee; Brashier, Dyers appointment; Shuffert, Griffith; Chareice White, Crown Points appointee; Taryl Bonds and Darnail Lyles, Garys appointees; John Bushemi, Scherervilles appointee; Christine Cash, Highlands appointee; Salvador Sal Espino and Doug Spencer, the Lake County Councils appointees; Shane Evans, Hobarts appointee; Bernard Grisolia and Kymberli Roberts, Hammonds appointees; Peter Klideris, St. Johns appointee; Fred Goegel, Lake County Commissioners appointee; Deann Patena, Merrillvilles appointee; and Terry Velligan, East Chicagos appointee. Lake County Council President Christine Cid, D-East Chicago, said she is not sure how the legislation impacts the councils two appointments and will be working with the council attorney in anticipation of the measure becoming law. The special meeting also gave officials a chance to approve claims for March, as well as the amendment. While officials appeared to downplay the impact SEA 37 might have later in the meeting, Chief Financial Officer Nicole Wolverton said early on claims needed to be approved in case we dont have a meeting in the next week or two. cnapoleon@chicagotribune.com (Bloomberg) -- BP Plc and the United Arab Emirates state oil firm suspended a $2 billion bid to buy a major stake in Israels NewMed Energy as the war in Gaza upends politics across the region. Most Read from Bloomberg The companies halted talks because of uncertainty created in the external environment, according to a statement from NewMed. Despite the pause, the Israeli firm said BP and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. again expressed interest in the proposed transaction. Shares of NewMed fell as much as 8% in Tel Aviv. The deal was announced in March last year, highlighting the burgeoning financial ties between the UAE and Israel since the normalization of diplomatic relations. At the time, the countries said the political accord would lead to billions of dollars of investment. Saudis, UAE Join Condemnation of Israel After Gaza Deaths But negotiations between NewMed, BP and Adnoc were thrown off course by Hamass Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which strained ties with Arab states as Israeli forces launched an assault on Gaza. A person familiar with the deal said the regional conditions since the conflict began made it difficult to complete the deal. As soon the situation calms down, there is a possibility it can go ahead, the person said. Israels military operations have angered most of the Arab world, including the UAE. Abu Dhabi has consistently criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus government for the devastation in the Palestinian enclave and the rising death toll among civilians. The incursion by Hamas, considered a terrorist organization by the US and European Union, killed 1,200 people in southern Israel. Israels retaliatory air and ground assault on Gaza has killed around 31,000, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Story continues The UAE and Israel only formally recognized each other in 2020 through the US-brokered Abraham Accords. The UAE has said it wont back out of that deal, even as it pushes Israel to stop fighting and allow more aid into Gaza. The NewMed deal would have extended BPs presence in the eastern Mediterranean while marking Adnocs first foray into the region. The two companies continue to work on other projects together, having last month said they would form a joint venture in Egypt focusing on natural gas. Adnoc is also pressing ahead with its own plans to build a global natural gas business. On Tuesday it said it would make final investment decision on a liquefied natural gas export plant this year. The United Arab Emirates is expanding its gas output to become self-sufficient in the fuel by the end of the decade. NewMed owns a 45% stake in Leviathan, Israels biggest gas field, and 30% of Aphrodite, located off Cyprus. Soon after the war started, Israel shut down one of its biggest fields, called Tamar, citing safety concerns. But it was restarted in November and since then the countrys gas production has been steady. --With assistance from Ben Bartenstein and Paul Wallace. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. (KRON) A former law firms office manager was sentenced to three years in prison for embezzling more than $1.1 million from his San Francisco law firm, announced United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey on Wednesday. Church of 8 wheels hosts receive SF landmark status Jairo Tomas Santos, 42, was sentenced to 36 months in prison and ordered to pay nearly $1.2 million for embezzling funds from his former law firm. According to his plea agreement, Santos began embezzling from his employer in March 2016 and continued through February 2023. As part of his scheme, Santos obtained checks given out to victims in the law firm and addressed them to his name. According to the lawsuit, Santos would sign the checks under the name of the law firms senior partner even though he was not allowed to do so before depositing the checks in his Wells Fargo bank account. According to the plea agreement, Santos admitted to depositing approximately 806 fraudulent, unauthorized checks from the victim law firm since he started over seven years ago. Santos sentence hearing was on March 12. Since he agreed to his plea agreement, his maximum statutory penalty for the bank fraud violation is 30 years in prison and a fine of $1,000,000. The court also ordered Santos to serve an additional term of supervised release. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. Controversial lawmaker Oleksandr Dubinsky was found guilty of an administrative offense and fined for exerting pressure over the investigation of his corruption case, according to the National Agency on Corruption Prevention's statement on March 13. The Pechersk district court in Kyiv ordered Dubinsky to pay a fine of Hr 6,800 ($175.45). He can appeal the court's ruling within 10 days. Dubinsky is a suspect in a number of criminal cases related to corruption and treason. He was charged with document forgery in August 2023 after he allegedly traveled abroad under a false pretext. After the criminal case was opened against him last summer, the lawmaker sent appeals to the Health Ministry and the State Bureau of Investigation to "obtain information necessary for his own protection against criminal prosecution," the National Agency on Corruption Prevention said. In one of the appeals sent in August 2023, Dubinsky demanded information from the Health Ministry on the progress and results of the review of the documentation related to his forgery case, the agency reported. The agency's statement did not mention Dubinsky by name, but the facts of the case make it clear that he is the suspect in question. The lawmaker was detained last November after being accused of high treason. He remains in custody as he awaits trial. Dubinsky has also been charged with violating martial law by allegedly helping the brother of his civil partner illegally leave Ukraine. Read also: Media: MP searched by law enforcement over role in illegal border crossing Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. The Nebraska Legislature could not override Gov. Jim Pillens veto of a safe needles bill on Tuesday, losing by just three votes. Thirty supporters were needed to override the veto, but only 27 voted to do so despite previous broad bipartisan support for the bill that wouldve established a syringe service program (SSP) to reduce HIV and other blood-borne infections by distributing clean syringes and creating touchpoints to access addiction treatment. State Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha, who introduced the legislation, said the governors veto was personal after she helped filibuster a ban on gender-affirming care for minors last session. This veto is not about me, its not about your feelings about me, its about Governor Pillens feelings about me, Hunt said to her legislative colleagues before the voting began. We played it straight, we did it right. Its a good bill. Nebraska State Sen. Megan Hunt. Pillen did approve final rules on gender care regulations on Tuesday for hormonal treatment, which applies to Nebraska minors 19 years of age and will take effect next week. The bill hit a roadblock last week when seven conservative state senators walked back their support for Hunts bill after the governor expressed his concern about making the public more desensitized to substance abuse and increasing opioid drug use in the state, potentially turning Nebraska into San Francisco. Im calling on state senators to sustain my veto to prevent our government from aiding and abetting the use of dangerous, illicit, and dehumanizing drugs, the governor said in a statement. Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, asked about a story written by Flatwater Free Press reporter Yanqi Xu detailing high levels of the pollutant nitrate found in the groundwater near his familys massive hog operations, responded: "All you got to do is look at the author. The author is from communist China. What more do you need to know? Four of the 20 senators who did not vote to override the veto stated that while SSPs would help decrease rates of HIV infections, they would exacerbate opioid use in the state. Enabling addiction in any way is a really dangerous path to get started on, Sen. Kathleen Kauth said. By allowing for the distribution of clean needles, SSPs lower the risk of HIV transmission that occurs when needles are reused. In recent years, rates of HIV infection in Nebraska have continued to rise as national rates fall, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Sen. Tom Brant, who represents Legislative District 32 just southwest of Lincoln, noted that opioid addiction is an issue across the state, especially in rural areas, and SSPs would help combat it. Everybody is afraid for our children, and theres going to be needles everywhere, and this bill does quite the opposite, Sen. Brandt said. More: Needle exchanges find new champions among Republicans After multiple senators flipped on their original support, some members, including Sen. Danielle Conrad of Lincoln, spoke on how refusing to override the gubernatorial veto sends a more significant message that the legislature is letting the executive branch control it. This is a classic sneak attack, Conrad said. Nobody from the governors office stepped forward at any round of debate to ask for an amendment, to show what they needed to have the bill passed. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nebraska lawmakers fail to override veto of 'safe needles' bill Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge. (Provided by the Montana Department of Corrections.) The plan to replace the low-security inmate housing at the Montana State Prison now includes blueprints of what the new facilities will look like, and costs for the project are coming in at or under the $156 million budget, planning and construction officials told an interim committee tracking the project on Tuesday. Lawmakers on the Select Committee on Corrections Facility Capacity and System Development heard from Department of Corrections Director Brian Gootkin and representatives for DLR Group and Sletten Construction, which are managing the design and construction phases of the rebuild. The project will replace three deteriorating housing units at the state prison in Deer Lodge with three new ones that will house 256 inmates each. Currently, the prison is operating at 803 beds in buildings that were only supposed to house 373 inmates, meaning every room has bunks, some inmates are staying in closets and offices, and more than 15 inmates are sharing one toilet at a time. It was the select committees first meeting since December, and in the months since, Gootkin, DLR Groups civic design leader Andrew Cupples, and Sletten Construction senior vice president Tony Ewalt toured newly built prisons in Washington and Tennessee to glean more insight into what will work in Montana, and have been laying out a timeline and budget. Gootkin said the teams and process so far, paired with DOCs hitting full staffing levels in what he said was the first time people can remember, have meant a good start for the year for DOC. But as he and the project managers dived into plans and timelines for the project, the other question at the heart of the committees considerations during the interim of how many prison beds the state will need in the future remained a central question, and lawmakers on Wednesday started toying with the idea they might need to budget in construction of a fourth 256-bed housing unit for the state prison in the 2025 session. In the short-term, the team is planning to build the three 256-bed units, which will be separated into two wings of 128 beds each, each with their own common area and a combined outdoor recreation area and a monitoring area in between each wing. A concept mock-up of what the inside of the three new housing units at MSP would look like. (Screenshot courtesy committee meeting) A concept mock-up of what the inside of the three new housing units at MSP would look like. (Screenshot courtesy committee meeting) Learning from their Tennessee and Washington trips, Gootkin and the team members said they wanted to keep the footprint of the new housing small, while allowing correctional officers sightlines throughout each building to reduce the number of cameras needed and the number of officers necessary to patrol. The layout of the planned units would allow for five or six officers to monitor one building per day, and two at night, since the cells will be able to be locked. The smaller layout would also reduce crossover between different classifications of inmates that officials in Washington said they were dealing with due to having a larger campus, Gootkin said. The team wants to put the new housing on the south end of the prison campus so they can fully cordon it off during construction to not affect any other part of the prison, and planned to build the units so plumbing and other maintenance points can be accessed without needing to get inside of the housing side of the facility itself another way they said maintenance delays and conflicts could be avoided. There will also be parts of each unit that can be used for vocational training and personal time. Gootkin said the current design plan takes a lot of what the team liked in Tennessee and Washington. When you walk into these units, you can see how open and big and bright it is. So not only (do inmates have) their own rooms to be able to go into, not only do they have the day room, but then they also have the rec area, Gootkin said. When we walked in and the unit was full, it still did not feel full, and it was. And I never felt unsafe. It was a totally different environment than what were dealing with right now at low side (low security). Ewalt said Sletten Construction has spent the past couple of months working with DLR to flesh out the design concept and has put together a cost analysis of materials the team plans to use modular builds where it can at the current market rate. He said the analysis so far has looked into prices for each individual cell, door, hardware, concrete, and different security systems, among other things. He said that building the three 256-bed units can be done at current costs within the $156 million budget for that part of the project. That includes connecting utilities to the infrastructure that is already in place, but a deeper infrastructure analysis is underway to determine the costs of the rest of the infrastructure buildout and should be ready in June. The bulk of the low-security housing project will be built between the spring of 2025 and fall of 2027, but other parts of the full prison project will get kicked off starting in May, Ewalt said. Replacing roofing at the prison will start this summer, and infrastructure upgrades will as well once the site study is complete. The perimeter fence for the new housing will come next, with high-security housing and the remodel of Unit D, which contains another 152 beds, further down the road. The team is also planning out what further down the road means exactly, as the states prison population is forecast to grow, lawmakers heard in December, and capacity throughout the corrections system is still nonexistent. So were crystal clear and transparent: Were full, Gootkin said. Not only are we full; were full in Arizona, were backed up in the jails. Plans presented at Tuesday's meeting of where a potential fourth housing unit and general support building could go. (Screenshot via committee meeting) Plans presented at Tuesdays meeting of where a potential fourth housing unit and general support building could go. (Screenshot via committee meeting) Gootkin, Cupples and Ewalt told lawmakers they had built into the plans a site for a fourth housing unit that would go next to the other three that are planned, as well as another general building, should Montana decide it needs to further expand the prison. We wanted to plan this so if and when the decision was made to add additional housing units, the infrastructure and everything was ready to roll, and to be able to give you that option, Gootkin told the committee. With the 768 beds in the low-security phase and 152 beds coming later in the Unit D remodel, there would be 920 beds at the prison. But adding a fourth unit would give MSP 373 more beds than it currently has available in modern facilities, he said. Since lawmakers on the committee are tasked with both monitoring the longterm project and other facets of the corrections issues in Montana and coming up with recommendations for next years legislative session, Gootkin and the team offered some thoughts on costs of a potential fourth unit and how they could change over time. He said at todays costs, a fourth 256-bed unit would cost $53 million, the additional general support building would cost $27 million, and DOC would need about 14 full-time equivalent employees to run the extra unit, he said. The rest of the team forecasted that building that same project 10 years in the future would cost about $81 million for the housing unit and $41 million for the general support building. Lawmakers from both parties praised the three for the work so far and the look into the future, saying it was likely a prescient move to start those conversations now instead of running up against another capacity issue down the road and having to pay more for the same building. Between now and June, the committee has to come up with recommendations to two other committees to prepare reports to be presented in the late summer and fall. Along with likely including recommendations about future beds, lawmakers said they also wanted to look further into why the prison and corrections populations are continuing to grow and what kind of policy choices could be made to try to stem the tide. Committee chairman Sen. John Esp, R-Big Timber, said it was healthy that both the legislature and DOC were looking longer term at the issues they are facing and looking for long-term solutions. Im assuming this future building will show up in House Bill 5 or somewhere next time, and that well be asked to look at funding that. And I think well be asking to look at funding it at a much lower rate than it would have been if we dont include it in this project. So, I think thats probably wise too, he said. The post Lawmakers say they might have to consider additional space at Montana State Prison appeared first on Daily Montanan. If the state Legislature has its way, changes are coming to a teacher signing bonus program that state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters has championed, but which saw numerous implementation problems with its administration by the Oklahoma State Department of Education. House Bill 4017, approved by the House and under consideration by the Senate would reduce the amount of the bonuses offered to teachers and pay the money in yearly installments over five years instead of in a lump sum in the first year and would delegate responsibility for fact-checking the applications of teachers each year to the state Education Department. The new legislation would also avoid the problem encountered in the administration of the first program the need to claw back money from teachers who were either mistakenly paid a bonus or who failed to meet eligibility requirements. The clawback effort drew the ire of lawmakers after the state Education Department sent letters to at least nine teachers, demanding they pay back the bonuses they received by the end of February. Bonus amounts ranged from $15,000 to $50,000. A report published Jan. 25 by nonprofit news organizations Oklahoma Watch and StateImpact Oklahoma said at least $290,000 was overpaid to teachers who were either not qualified for the bonus or qualified for a lower amount. Walters first blamed the teachers, and later the media's reporting of the story, for the issues with the program and has yet to accept responsibility for any errors that might have been made by him or his agency. Although details have yet to be disclosed, Walters has said the agency was working with teachers on ways they wouldn't have to pay back the money they received in error, which already had had federal taxes taken out and/or been spent in good faith. What to know about the bill that would change Oklahoma's teacher bonus program Under HB 4017, the top bonus amount would be $35,000, down from the $50,000 allotted in the original program. Teachers awarded the bonus would be paid in $7,000 installments each year by Sept. 1 or within 30 days of the first day of school. Different from the original program, now teachers need at least three years of prior teaching experience and a valid or expired teaching certificate but cannot have been employed by an Oklahoma public school in the past five years. They must agree to teach full-time for at least five years in a public school and meet additional requirements set by the board. The bonus does not count toward salary calculations or retirement benefits. Teachers must provide proof of teaching employment and proof from the school district where they'll be a full-time teacher, plus any other requirements established by the State Board of Education. More: Ryan Walters blames teachers, media for fallout over erroneously paid teacher bonuses The program would cover just the 2024-25 school year, but could be renewed again, said Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, who co-authored the bill with Rep. Rhonda Baker, R-Yukon. McBride believes the previous bonus program was a good idea, but poorly executed. We didnt dislike the program. We just disliked the way it was implemented, McBride told The Oklahoman. The program attracted 951 teachers to apply for the bonus, and a bonus was awarded to 522 teachers, according to Oklahoma Watch. You just cant do clawbacks. They dont work, McBride said, adding that lack of experience in rolling out such a program was a main factor in the administration issues encountered by the state Education Department. The appropriation for the new program is $10 million, McBride said, enough for about 285 bonuses. In floor discussion, McBride said if an application was found to be errant after the money was disbursed, the state Education Department would be liable, not teachers. Teachers need to provide proof every year that they're still eligible for the program. If you dont do your due diligence in the application process, then someones got to be held responsible, he said. In the Senate, HB 4017 is sponsored by that chamber's Education Committee chair, Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond. 'We have a long way to go before we have teachers running to apply in Oklahoma' Torie Luster Pennington, president of the Oklahoma City Public Schools American Federation of Teachers, said the proposed program changes were a drastic improvement. She said capping the bonus at $35,000 leaves more funds for public schools, which is needed to recruit and retain current teachers. "I think it is one step towards attracting teachers, but we still have a long way to go before we have teachers running to apply in Oklahoma," she said. Last year, a bill McBride supported created the "Inspired to Teach" program that was signed into law. That law adjusted scholarship eligibility requirements to allow high school graduates, homeschooled students and General Education Development (GED) students to apply. At the end of last years legislative session, almost 2,000 students applied, and 23 Oklahoma educator preparation programs reported a 53.28% increase in enrollments from fall 2022 to spring 2023. The initial bill was passed in 2022, authored by Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee. I think the desires still there. People want to teach, McBride said. "But I do think the rhetoric and some of the stuff thats going on in public school does cause problems. Even if he and Walters dont agree on some issues, McBride said, they do both want to recruit teachers to come to Oklahoma. We welcome teachers, anyone, to come to Oklahoma and work, he said. Meanwhile, Sen. Pugh said a bill he sponsored to increase teacher salaries by $1,500-$3,000 would cost $143.56 million, more than his education funding subcommittee was willing to spend, and "the bill did not progress," Oklahoma Voice reported. The article noted that last year teachers' salaries were raised $3,000-$6,000 at a cost of $286 million. Pugh also has sponsored a bill to give a $2,500 stipend to all support staff employed by public schools. The measure was moved ahead by the Senate Appropriations Committee, but has yet to receive consideration in the House. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma teacher signing bonus program could see major changes A former legislative aide has accused state Rep. Carolina Amesty of urging his employer to fire him and claiming his mother one of Amestys primary opponents in 2022 exploited the Social Security system, according to a complaint filed this week in Leon County Circuit Court. The former aide, Nicolas Frevola, filed a defamation lawsuit against Amesty in September, claiming Amesty falsely accused him of trying to run her over with a car two years ago as she and Frevolas mother vied for the Republican partys nomination in the competitive Florida House race. Amesty has denied that allegation. The amended complaint filed this week expands on those claims, accusing Amesty of engaging in a one-way mudslinging campaign, against her Republican opponents, including Frevolas mother, Janet Frevola. Amesty responded to questions about the matter from the Orlando Sentinel on Wednesday in an email sent through her attorney, Paul Thanasides of Tampa. To be clear, this sweeping, vague allegation is untrue, the emailed response said of the mudslinging allegation. Nicolas Frevola was an aide to former state Rep. Scott Plakon in 2022, and the suit alleges that Plakon called to tell him that Amesty had demanded that Plakon fire Frevola for engaging in inappropriate actions toward her and her campaign staff. But Plakon said Wednesday that Amesty did not urge him to fire Frevola. Though Plakon said he served as an unofficial political consultant to Amesty and several other new candidates in 2022, he would not say if Amesty had ever discussed Frevola with him. Frevola, 26, is no longer working for the Florida House, his attorney, Cindy Myers, said Wednesday. Amesty defeated Janet Frevola and three other Republicans in the August 2022 primary before going on to win her District 45 seat, which covers Windermere, other west Orange County communities and a northern slice of Osceola County. A first-term lawmaker, Amesty was the subject of an Orlando Sentinel investigation last year that documented unpaid taxes on the home where she lived, misleading assertions about her businesses and false claims on the website for her familys small university. Earlier this month, Amesty resisted requests in a court filing from Frevolas attorneys to turn over text messages, emails and other communications with Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, another lawmaker and state House employees. Amestys attorneys argued she was acting as a state House member and should be immune from the suit, including the discovery process. According to Frevolas amended complaint, Amesty told a crowd at an Osceola County Republican Executive Committee meeting in April 2022 that Janet Frevola was fraudulently living off of Social Security disability. Janet Frevola was not present at the meeting, but the suit says several people who attended told her about Amestys alleged comments. A former law enforcement officer who was injured in the line of duty, Frevola receives disability benefits, her sons suit says. Through her attorney, Amesty denied making the comments and said the accusation was unrelated to Nicolas Frevolas suit, as the allegation did not pertain to him. The new complaint also says Amesty claimed the homeowners association at the guarded community where she was living with her parents during the 2022 election, and where Janet Frevola and her husband live, revoked Amestys gate pass needed to enter the development. She claimed that members of Frevolas family had denied her access to the community as an act of retribution, the complaint alleges. Janet Frevola confirmed Wednesday that her husband was on the homeowners association board, but said any action taken against Amesty wasnt politically motivated. Rather, the association board decided to confront Amesty after several residents had complained about her driving vehicles sporting campaign ads and planting yard signs in forbidden areas of the exclusive Keenes Pointe neighborhood, the complaint alleges. In response to the Sentinels questions, Thanasides said Amesty doesnt think she planted signs in any community areas and asked why the newspaper was inquiring about the matter. If Rep. Amesty or campaign staff inadvertently drove a car with a campaign wrap to her fathers house in violation of some technical HOA rule, is that a newsworthy allegation? Thanasides wrote. What if her father went on vacation and accidentally let his grass grow an inch too tall? Do you report on every minor mistake people make (like every human being) in their daily lives or is it only Rep. Amesty that you scrutinize in this way? Nicolas Frevola also has a lawsuit outstanding against another lawmaker, Republican Rep. Fabian Basabe of Miami Beach. Frevola, a former aide for Basabe, and Jacob Cutbirth, a former intern in Basabes office, filed a lawsuit against Basabe last July, accusing him of sexual harassment, unwanted touching, making lewd comments, showing them a photo of a naked man on his phone and slapping Frevola. A week later they also filed a complaint against Basabe with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Miami Herald reported. Basabe has denied the accusations leveled against him by Frevola, whose employment he described as a mountain of disappointment. Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Basabe said that a House investigation into the alleged slapping incident had been concluded rightly in my favor. But the investigation by an outside law firm was inconclusive, according to the Miami New Times, which published a copy of it because it failed to determine what happened because of conflicting accounts and a lack of corroborating witnesses. anmartin@orlandosentinel.com (Bloomberg) -- Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva wants to expand agriculture exports to India and Africa, focusing more on new markets while trade talks between a South America trade bloc and the European Union languish. Most Read from Bloomberg Lula wants to send a trade mission with over 300 entrepreneurs to the worlds most populous country by about mid-year, Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said in an interview. The government is eyeing Indias growing appetite for goods including fruits, juices, coffee and black beans, he said. Favaro said there are also opportunities to boost sales of meat and grains to Africa following Lulas trip to Egypt and Ethiopia in February, when he met with leaders of the African Union, an association of the continents nations. He goes there, strengthens diplomatic relations and asks us to go after him with trade missions to open markets, Favaro said following a conversation with the leftist head of state. Brazil, an agricultural powerhouse thats a top exporter of meat, soybeans and orange juice, is shifting its focus as trade deal talks between the Mercosur bloc and the EU remain deadlocked. European farmers fear an accord would bring cheap imports from countries with inferior environmental standards, and French President Emmanuel Macron stepped up his criticism earlier this year. Read more: Farmers Flank EU Headquarters as Agriculture Ministers Meet Latin Americas largest economy has taken advantage of Lulas global popularity to open 96 new markets since the start of his third term in January 2023. The number of meat-packers qualified to export to China rose to 146 in March, according to the Brazilian government. On Tuesday alone, 38 plants were authorized by China and there are still another 39 awaiting approval. Story continues During the interview, Favaro was informed that Brazil will be able to export beef, pork and poultry to the Philippines through the so-called system accreditation that bypasses importer missions to inspect Brazilian facilities. That was one of the priority demands of the animal protein sector, Brazils Agricultural Defense Secretary Carlos Goulart said in the same interview. While a breakthrough between Mercosur comprising of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay and the EU is possible, Brazil sees those trade talks at a gridlock, Favaro said. France has adopted a more protectionist stance on trade and the environment. We are not going to stay here complaining because we are having difficulty overcoming this barrier imposed by the European community, he said. If they dont want to expand trade relations with agribusiness, then we will look at Asia, Africa, the Middle East. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. An octogenarian wants to join an Everest expedition, and is told, No; youre too old. No one asks, Too old for what? The meaning is clear: too old to meet the requirements to accomplish the job. If the same octogenarian wants to be president, and a detractor says, Hes too old, it is reasonable to ask, What essential functions of POTUS are impaired by advanced age? Some say, Biden is too old; he shuffles when he walks, but the ability to walk shuffling-free is not a POTUS job requirement. Similarly, Biden speaks too haltingly. Measured speech is a sign of having thought through things. The opposite is to speak rashly. Some say that advancing age impairs the ability to act quickly and decisively in a crisis. Presidents do face crises, but hardly ever of a nature demanding an immediate response. FDR waited a day after Pearl Harbor before asking Congress to declare war. A crisis that did require an immediate presidential response was the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, but it was not forthcoming. It is ironic to believe Biden is too old for making immediate decisions in a crisis, so lets entrust the presidency to one who, when such a decision was required, miserably failed the test. President Bidens tendency to consult advisors, analyze a situation carefully, and avoid too-hasty decision-making are hallmarks of a wise and mature man. These attributes come with age. They are assets. Marilyn Goldfarb, Boalsburg Boalsburg pharmacy will be missed On Tuesday, March 5, there was a front page article about the Boalsburg Apothecary moving to Centre Hall. We are sad to see it go as the wonderful staff there shepherded us through our childrens growing years. Having a pharmacy in the same building as the doctor was a wonderful convenience. And when our family switched to general practitioners, Boalsburg Apothecary was right in our neighborhood. We felt the article put a best face forward on the move, but at the same time it left us with two questions. Why is the move is happening so quickly? Who owns the building and are they planning to replace Boalsburg Apothecary with another pharmacy? It would be nice to have those answers. Having said that, we will still use the apothecarys new location and their delivery service; loyalty for the outstanding service they have provided our immediate and extended family for decades. Dotty Delafield, Boalsburg All should be outraged by Trump Are you as outraged as I am? After Super Tuesday, Donald Trump is now the presumptive Republican Presidential nominee. Think about that. A treasonous conman found civilly liable for sexual assault, who has been using election funding to pay his legal bills, and is currently facing 91 criminal charges, including using fraud to obtain business loans, is the best the Republicans can do? As former presidential candidate Nikki Haley said, chaos and confusion swirl around him. He led an insurrection against his own country, admires and praises the worlds most brutal dictators, including Americas perennial enemies, Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Xingping. He has voiced opposition to helping Ukraine defend itself against Russias brutal and unprovoked war. If the U.S. repeats in Ukraine the mistakes that led to WWII, Europe will be next, drawing America into World War III. To our NATO allies who have not yet increased their defense investments to 2%, he says Russia should do whatever the hell they want! He quashed a tough, desperately needed, and long-overdue bipartisan border deal, written by a conservative Republican, because hed rather America suffer than allow what he perceives as a Democrat win. This morally bankrupt and mentally unfit man actually said he hoped the U.S. economy crashed before the election so he doesnt get the blame for a downturn if he wins a second term! And yet Republicans think he should be president? If youre not as outraged as I am, you should be. William J. Rothwell, State College Guilty PA GOPers Donald Trumps 91 indictments, four criminal trials, numerous bankruptcies, and constant lies should embarrass any normal political party and instantly disqualify him from consideration for office. But his Republican enablers across the country, who havent the courage to send him packing, have allowed him to continue his bullying campaign to return to the White House. In Pennsylvania, seven current Republican Congressmen ran from the insurrectionist mob on Jan. 6, 2021, then returned to vote, without evidence of voter fraud, against certifying the Electoral College results. They then had the gall to run for reelection to sit in the Congress of the country they tried to destroy. They are guilty of aiding and abetting Donald Trumps anti-democracy schemes. The Pennsylvania Seven, who dont want you to remember their cowardice on Jan. 6, 2021, and who dont have the courage to speak against Trump even now, are Pennsylvanias Republican Congressmen John Joyce, Mike Kelly, Dan Meuser, Scott Perry, Guy Reschenthaler, Lloyd Smucker and Glenn Thompson. They share responsibility for the continuation of the Trump cult that is a danger to their own party and to our country. Donald Trump would have been exposed as a shallow Emperor with no clothes, long ago except for the Republicans who put party above country. If Trump is still the GOP nominee for president in November Pennsylvania voters should send him packing. And we should send the cowardly Pennsylvania Seven along with him. This will start the healing that America so sorely needs. Bob Potter, Boalsburg The surface of Mars is seen from a height of 33 feet in a photo captured by the Ingenuity Mars helicopter in 2021. (Associated Press) To the editor: The print version of the op-ed article calling on Congress to fund a mission to bring Mars rocks back to Earth says this would "help us beat China and send humans into space." I read this article with interest because I wanted to know how Mars rocks could help us "beat China." The article made a case for congressional funding, but the only reference to "beating China" was about reaffirming U.S. leadership in the robotic sciences. Such casual and empty use of the phrase "beat China" does nothing for public discourse, conveys the sense that we are at war with China and contributes to anti-Asian hate. I urge The Times to use such phrases with more care. Heidi Hu, Los Angeles .. To the editor: With all the problems facing this planet and our $34.5-trillion national debt, why spend billions of dollars sending people and robots to the moon and Mars? That money could be better spent helping the poor here and around the world. It could be spent fighting and preparing for climate change. It could be spent making college education less expensive, or free like it was for me in the 1960s. It could improve our healthcare "system." It could be spent fixing our decaying roads. I can go on and on. Redirect that money and brain power where it will have an impact on the people living on Earth. Herb Adelman, Del Mar This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. SIR The belated recognition by the Government of the need to both retain and increase gas-fired electricity generation is a welcome step towards a more rational energy policy (report, March 12). So too is the recognition of the costs involved, and of energy loss from long-distance electricity transmission even though this will undoubtedly result in higher electricity charges for consumers in the South and South East. Dare we hope that the next step will be an announcement that, rather than promoting an expansion of unreliable and energy-inefficient renewables for local power generation, the Government will finally recognise the huge potential benefits of small modular nuclear reactors as a dependable and energy-dense alternative which will not require the extensive use of arable land currently protected from residential development? Meanwhile, a reversal of the fracking ban would provide a home-grown power source for the additional gas facilities and a welcome stream of tax revenue. Philip Nierop Exeter, Devon SIR Rishi Sunak is right to highlight the need for gas as part of the mix for electricity generation in Britain for years to come. For every gigawatt of installed wind- or solar-powered generation there has to be a similar alternative capacity as standby. What he fails to mention, however, is that this comes at a huge cost and explains to a large extent why electricity is so expensive. P J Clifton Colchester, Essex SIR This is a retrograde way of ensuring continuity of supply. Gas plants emit carbon dioxide and need to be operated for decades to recoup the investment. Far better for the environment and cheaper for us all would be investing in predictable renewable sources such as geothermal and tidal, coupled with energy storage. As well as batteries, there are many other methods for energy storage being developed and installed, such as pumped hydro, gravity weights in redundant mineshafts, flywheels, compressed air, green hydrogen, superheated salts and more. Michael Miller Sheffield, South Yorkshire SIR We are pressured to switch from domestic gas boilers to electric heat pumps. Meanwhile, the Conservatives and Labour agree that new gas-fired power stations are needed to avoid blackouts. Those power stations will have switchgear containing sulphur hexafluoride, the most potent of the global warming gases. Is this the script for a new series of Yes, Prime Minister? John Knight Bristol Voting for change SIR Lee Andersons defection to Reform UK (Letters, March 12) is great news for the people of this country. Based on lifelong political beliefs, his move will encourage MPs of other parties, who only wish to serve the electorate, to jump ship. If voters want reform they have to vote for it. Voting for the same party over and over and hoping for change is a road to escalating disappointment. Cutting tax, cutting government spending and cutting red tape will allow the entrepreneurs to restore growth and fill the coffers once more. Rob Williams Church Stretton, Shropshire SIR While I am aware that my vote for Reform UK will not keep the Labour Party out of office, it may do one of two things. A shattering loss for the Conservatives might finally bring them to their senses in time for a return to power after what will inevitably be a disastrous Labour term. Alternatively, if the Tories still fail to see sense, this will result in the partys demise, leaving the way clear for Reform UK or another party, which will listen to, and act upon, the wishes of the silent voting majority. David Vincent Cranbrook, Kent SIR Miriam Cates and Danny Kruger (Commentary, March 12) can talk all they like about why Lee Andersons defection to Reform UK is guaranteed to ensure a Labour victory, but until we have a proportional representation voting system, at least disillusioned Tory voters who vote for Reform UK will have a clear conscience. Women suffered and even died to give others like me the vote, and I dont intend to waste it. Sue Heeley Storrington, West Sussex Jobs for asylum seekers SIR We receive relatively small numbers of asylum seekers (report, March 11) in the UK compared to other European countries. Many are highly skilled and all can make much-needed contributions to our economy and society. We should be much more efficient at enabling them to do so. Asylum seekers and refugees typically only receive one English lesson a week and very little help to find work when they are eligible. This means we all miss out on tax revenues and other potential economic and social benefits. This is a sensible and compassionate nation. Surely we can do better and make the most of our opportunities. Simon Milward Stroud, Gloucestershire Smart policing SIR I am staying on a small Caribbean island that was once a British colony. I recently saw an immaculately dressed police officer directing traffic at roadworks. As I drove past I thanked him. He came smartly up and gave a Dixon of Dock Green salute. What has happened to the British bobby? Robert Ashton Shrewsbury Mustard dot SIR My great uncle Willie, who fought in the First World War, had a special plate with a large yellow dot painted on it. On to this, a small amount of Colmans mustard was always added (Letters, March 12). This was to avoid him smothering his food with it, as he had lost all his taste and some of his vision when gassed. Marie-Louise Neill Battle, East Sussex A pretty picture SIR Why on earth are people so petty as to question the Princess of Waless family photo (report, March 12)? Anyone keen on photography loves playing around with their pictures to try and perfect them, if they have the time to do it, which, with her busy schedule, she normally does not. Im sure she amused herself while recuperating by making a pretty picture to celebrate Mothers Day for our benefit. Phyllis Jones Bedford Too much traffic SIR From the age of eight I was allowed and able to visit my best friend. She lived a mile and a half (a 30-40 minute walk or 10-15 minute cycle ride) away. This gave me a sense of independence, connected me with my surroundings and doubtless freed up precious time for my busy parents. The physical road infrastructure has not changed; what has changed is the sheer number of vehicles. In recent years, when I needed to push my father in his wheelchair, I couldnt even cross the roads I used to ride on. Drivers were coming so frequently there were no gaps for me to cross, and they were going so fast that they were oblivious to our need. Drivers who oppose moves towards low-traffic neighbourhoods clearly feel that something has been taken from them. What they may fail to see is what has been taken from us all: the right to residential spaces not totally dominated by motor traffic, and the right of children to independence and safety. Maybe now is a good time for us all to reflect on how our choices to drive for any and every journey have affected others and start to correct the balance of how we travel. Mary Walton Exeter, Devon Parakeet lottery SIR We live just eight miles from West Malling and can assure Philip Pretty (Letters, March 11) that the Underriver parakeet population is flourishing. Nick Jordan Underriver, Kent SIR There certainly used to be parakeets in north Kent. In 1970 we lived in Southfleet and had a flock that regularly sat on my whirligig washing line. They seemed to enjoy going round and round. Im not sure that my washing was pleased. Diane Holland Gravesend, Kent Museums can help new technologies take off A French Caudron G.3 biplane at the Royal Air Force Museum in Hendon, London - alamy SIR Im not surprised that museums are using their collections to great effect. Science, transportation and military museums have a particular relevance to todays problems. They hold historic information, often backed up by original objects available for examination. During my time at the Royal Air Force Museum, I assisted the RAF and industry on a number of occasions. We worked on in-flight refuelling and celestial navigation for the long-range flights to attack Port Stanley airfield during the Falklands conflict, special fuel valves for land-speed record-breaking, and multi-fuel engine technologies for future aircraft designs. Museums are not just visitor attractions; they are repositories of information, experience, successes and failures. Their often derided reserve collections, characterised as gathering dust in basements, are actually treasure troves of stored knowledge. Centres of excellence, such as the Tank Museum in Bovington, Dorset (Features, March 6), are all around us, but it often takes an emergency to recognise their full potential. Dr Michael A Fopp Soulbury, Buckinghamshire Theresa Mays mistake in Brexit negotiations SIR Charles Moore (Comment, March 9) is right about Theresa May, and Philip Duly (Letters, March 11) cuts her too much slack. Having ordained an overlong six-week campaign before the 2017 general election, Mrs May threw away a 24-point lead in the polls mainly by staying almost completely absent from the campaign after humiliating herself early on with a U-turn on social care. Having chickened out, she lost an overall majority against a Labour Party that was led by the unelectable Jeremy Corbyn. Worse than that, Mrs May seemed not to understand how negotiation works. Her trump card with the EU was the timing of the submission of notice under Article 50, which set a two-year clock ticking for Britains departure from the EU. The European Commission was desperate to clarify the British position so the EU could arrange its coming budget. We were in no hurry, and she should have made clear that we would not submit notice until broad parameters for negotiation had been agreed. That would, for example, have prevented the disastrous Northern Ireland Protocol and enabled negotiation to be restricted to economic matters only. Instead, Mrs May submitted Article 50 rapidly, giving away her ace in the hole and setting the two-year clock ticking against herself. Somehow she seems not to have anticipated that this would happen. Gregory Shenkman London SW7 Letters to the Editor We accept letters by email and post. Please include name, address, work and home telephone numbers. ADDRESS: 111 Buckingham Palace Road, London, SW1W 0DT EMAIL: dtletters@telegraph.co.uk FOLLOW: Telegraph Letters on Twitter @LettersDesk NEWSLETTER: sign up to receive Letters to the Editor here Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Oklahoma 16-year-old Nex Benedict died by suicide, according to an autopsy report summary released Wednesday by the state's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The full report will be released on March 27. Benedict, a member of the 2SLGBTQ community, died one day after getting into a physical fight with several other students at Owasso High School. Benedict was nonbinary and went by they/them pronouns, according to Benedict's family. 2SLGBTQ includes Two Spirit, an umbrella term used to describe a third gender in Native and Indigenous communities. Sue Benedict, their mother, is a registered member of the Choctaw Nation. Freedom Oklahoma, a political advocacy group that fights for LGBTQ+ issues, said in a statement to ABC News that Benedict's death highlights attacks on the transgender and gender non-conforming community. "2STGNC+ students are the ones at risk; they are under attack in their schools, and they are under a coordinated attack by extremist politicians who care more about soundbites than childrens lives," the organization's statement read. "Nexs death occurred during a nationwide effort to push 2SLGBTQ+ people out of public life and back into the closets." PHOTO: People gather outside the Stonewall Inn for a memorial and vigil for the Oklahoma teenager who died following a fight in a high school bathroom on Feb. 26, 2024, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images, FILE) Anti-LGBTQ bullying and violence have been the center of conversation in the aftermath of Benedict's death earlier this month, as Benedict's family called for action and answers concerning the bullying they say Nex faced in school. "The Benedicts know all too well the devastating effects of bullying and school violence, and pray for meaningful change wherein bullying is taken seriously and no family has to deal with another preventable tragedy," the family said via their attorney in a statement to ABC News. LGBTQ+ youth are at greater risk for poor mental health, bullying and violence than their non-LGBTQ+ peers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which encourages schools to implement supportive policies and practices for students who will in turn experience better health outcomes. LGBTQ students are also more likely to seriously consider suicide or attempt than their non-LGBTQ peers, the CDC reports. MORE: Students walk out over nonbinary student Nex Benedict's death, anti-LGBTQ bullying in Oklahoma The Department of Education has opened an investigation into Owasso Public Schools following a complaint from the Human Rights Campaign related to such concerns. "Bullying in any form is unacceptable," the district said in a past statement. "We take reports of bullying very seriously and have policies and procedures in place to address such behavior." Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has raised concerns over the role bullying played in Benedict's death by suicide, saying his heart is "broken." "Combating this problem likely means strengthening laws against bullying, as well as increasing emphasis on mental health services," he said in a post on X. "Perhaps most immediately it means rejecting the cruelty of words and actions so often inflicted by other students, adults and algorithms on our youngest generations." Local lawmakers have come under fire for anti-LGBTQ legislation and rhetoric following Benedict's death, with open calls for removals against Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters, who has spoken out in favor of anti-LGBTQ policies. "To make sure that all individuals are safe in a school, we want every student to be protected, we want every student to be successful," Walters told ABC News in an interview recently. "That also means we're not going to lie to students. And we're not going to push a gender ideology." An open letter signed by about 350 local, state and national organizations called for his removal. PHOTO: Nex Benedict, 16, died one day after a physical altercation with other students in their Oklahoma school. (Courtesy Sue Benedict) In a statement to ABC News, the Owasso Police Department said it suspected the cause of Benedict's death, but refrained from saying anything pending the results of the medical examiner's office. "From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office," the police said in a statement. "The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's report has now been made public," the statement continued, adding, "The Owasso Police Department would like to take this moment to inform anyone in crisis or contemplating suicide of the Oklahoma Mental Health Lifeline, just call or text 988." The Human Rights Campaign released a statement condemning anti-LGBTQ violence and bullying following the release of the medical examiner's report. As parents, we send our kids to school expecting that they will be safe and cared for," the statement read. "Nex was failed by so many and should still be here today. We hold their family in our hearts as they grapple with the devastating reality that their beloved child, a teen with a bright future, is no longer making this world a brighter place." If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide or worried about a friend or loved one, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for free, confidential emotional support 24 hours a day, seven days a week. LGBTQ teen Nex Benedict died by suicide, medical examiner says originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Jan 31, 2024; New Albany, Ohio, USA; Construction cranes pierce the landscape at the Intel site at in New Albany. An Ohio Environmental Protection Agency proposal to allow small, privately operated sewage-treatment plants to aid rapid development in rural Delaware and Licking counties has raised concerns among local officials about potential pollution of waterways. "Significant and rapid development is projected in central Ohio in the next several years," the EPA wrote in an online notice of the plan and a public meeting on the topic set for 6 p.m. March 20 at the Mary E. Babcock Library in Johnstown. "Many local wastewater authorities are developing plans to provide sanitary sewage collection and treatment systems, but growth is expected to outpace capacity increases in the near-term." Licking County officials said that state officials have told them the proposal was driven by the need for housing for construction workers and employees of Intel and related companies coming to the New Albany International Business Park in western Licking County. Intel is building what it says will be the largest computer-chip manufacturing complex in the world a $20 billion factory covering nearly 1,000 acres of former farmland in New Albany, just south of Johnstown. The EPA said it is considering fast-tracking small treatment plants, which are sometimes called "package plants," as an interim measure "to ensure treatment capacity can meet the increasing wastewater demand." Ohio EPA Director Anne M. Vogel acknowledged in an introduction to the proposal that she has "determined that a lowering of water quality in water of the state in central Ohio is necessary." Such treatment plants could each handle up to 75,000 gallons of sewage a day, which Licking County authorities say could accommodate subdivisions of up to 60 houses or a hotel-restaurant complex. The Licking County commissioners sent a letter to the EPA last week to say this is a bad idea and that they oppose it. The Licking County Health Department did the same on Monday with a letter to the EPA saying the facilities would increase the likelihood of untreated wastewater being discharged to waterways across Licking County. "This will result in the degradation of our environment and pose a public health risk to drinking water for county residents," wrote Chad Brown, Licking County Health Commissioner, who said in an interview that many Licking County residents depend on local waterways for drinking water and use them for recreation, such as fishing and swimming. Brown wrote to the EPA that the health department supports growth and development and has worked to improve its processes so that it does not inhibit growth, but it opposes the EPAs proposal. "Willingly adding (such facilities) serving large developments poses an unnecessary risk to the public health of the citizens of Licking and Delaware counties," Brown wrote. Kristy Hawthorne, program administrator for Licking County Soil and Water Conservation District, said its an environmental mess in the making. "The long-term vision for this is terrifying," Hawthorne said. "First and foremost, there would be no limit on the number of them in any particular watershed. So if hundreds of them wanted to come in and develop housing subdivisions or motels, they could all dump effluent into Raccoon Creek, for example." And when these plants are not operating properly, or they fail, the result is that poorly treated or untreated sewage will flow into area waterways, Hawthorne said. The EPA proposal would allow developers to build the small sewage-treatment plants and turn them over to homeowners associations to operate them until water and sewer lines are extended to the development. "Homeowners associations are good at throwing parties, but they dont know anything about running sewage-treatment plants," Hawthorne said. "And even if they wanted to hire someone to do it, there is a shortage of certified treatment-plant operators." Licking County Commissioner Tim Bubb said he and his fellow commissioners have seen what happens when such treatment plants fail. "They dont last forever," he said. "Weve had to decommission several of them. The plants failed; the developers and (homeowners associations) were long gone. So guess what? The taxpayers of Licking County had to clean up the mess. "Weve already been in the decommissioning mode at taxpayer expense," Bubb said. "Were very concerned." Bubb said allowing small treatment plants could up-end local comprehensive development plans and the countywide growth recommendations by Framework planners after a yearlong series of meetings held after Intels announcement to build in western Licking County. "Its not good land-use planning," Bubb said. "It would allow for a haphazard development. The proper way to do this is to plan out and install water and sewer lines. What theyre proposing is almost a wild-west kind of situation. Western Licking County doesnt deserve that." The commissioners letter to the EPA says the proposal is "woefully insufficient to address long-term maintenance of these facilities. It is simply unrealistic to expect developers or homeowners associations to be accountable for long-term maintenance of these facilities, which, of course, means taxpayers will ultimately have to foot the bill." The commissioners also said the proposal does not grant sufficient local regulatory control or enforcement authority or funding for either to assure that the facilities would be properly monitored and inspected to assure they are operated properly. They said the proposal also does not adequately address or fund the decommissioning of such plants when they are no longer viable. And the commissioners said that if such sewage-treatment plants are allowed under this proposal, their presence would reduce the motivation of local utilities to expand services to underserved areas. Hawthorne said the goal of creating more housing for Licking County where the housing market is already tight is laudable. The best way to do that and protect the environment is to "help Johnstown and other municipalities fund expansion of their water and sewer systems," she said. Doing that, she said, would also allow school systems, fire departments and road systems to keep up with growth in those areas, rather than encouraging unplanned, rapid development that puts pressure on the rural areas unprepared for that scale of development. "Theyre talking about wanting 30 hotels in western Licking County," Hawthorne said. "We need affordable housing for the people of Licking County. If someone is going to build temporary housing for construction workers, make them apartment complexes and condos, so that when the construction workers leave, Licking County residents can utilize the housing long-term to address our shortage." The EPA says on its website that anyone who wants to offer their thoughts on the proposal can submit written comments by email to epa.dswcomments@epa.ohio.gov or by mail to: Ohio EPA, Division of Surface Water-Permits Processing Unit, P.O. Box 1049, Columbus, Ohio 43216-1049 by March 27. All comments should include OHI000001 in the subject line for email or next to the Ohio EPA address on the envelope and on each page of mailed comments. And the EPA says that comments received after March 27 may not be considered as part of the administrative record. 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 Newark Advocate: Ohio EPA's small sewage plants proposal to pollute water, officials say OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) Lionsgates film Arthur the King is teaming up with the Oklahoma City Animal Welfare to help save dogs. According to officials, the films story follows an adventure racer and his journey after adopting a stray dog. Opening in theaters March 15, the movie shows if you adopt a stray dog, you might obtain a king as well. LOCAL NEWS: City of Newcastle cuts ribbon for new animal shelter The film is sponsoring the first 20 paid dog adoptions on Saturday, March 16, and the OKC Animal Shelter. Dogs 40 lbs. and over will have fees waived. We are excited to partner with Lionsgate on this event, OKC Animal Welfare Superintendent Jon Gary said. This movie shows that any dog, regardless of where they come from, is special and deserves an opportunity to have a loving home. Much like the stray dog in the film, Arthur, dogs at the shelter are looking for a chance to show that they can be good companions. Apart from finding a furry friend, the first 20 people to adopt a sponsored dog will get Arthur the King promotional items and tickets to see the movie in theaters, according to the shelter. LOCAL NEWS: Fan Fest returns to Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark Also, a local photographer from OKKat Photography will be taking free photos of every pet after adoption from noon to 2 p.m. on March 16. Lionsgates sponsorship is a great opportunity for the dogs at the OKC Animal Shelter and the community to reach its goal and save 650 lives this month through adoption. said the city of Oklahoma City. To learn more about the OKC Animal Welfare, visit OKC.gov. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Welcome to Wednesdays installment of The Miami Heralds Dolphins/NFL free agency blog. Beginning at 4 p.m., the Dolphins can finalize and announce deals with pending free agents. Signings with street free agents, such as outside linebacker Shaq Barrett, can be announced at any time. As of Wednesday morning, Miami agreed to terms with five players from other teams: Barrett, center Aaron Brewer, inside linebackers Jordyn Brooks and Anthony Walker Jr., and safety Jordan Poyer. The signing of tight end Jonnu Smith has already been announced. Miami also retained Elijah Campbell, Jake Bailey, Nik Needham, Rob Jones and Salvon Ahmed. Five players are on their way out after agreeing to terms with other teams: defensive linemen Christian Wilkins and Raekwon Davis, right guard Robert Hunt, outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel and safety Brandon Jones. The Dolphins became cap compliant ahead of the start of the new league year after freeing about $29 million through salary conversions on Monday. But Miami enters Wednesday with about $1 million in cap space and this does not account for the signings of Needham and Jones who all received very modest deals. Miami is also expected to get millions in cap relief from left tackle Terron Armsteads reworked deal. But more cap-saving moves will be needed to fit in the teams new additions and continue to make more moves. Miami still needs to add at least two accomplished defensive linemen to make up for recent losses, one or two interior offensive linemen, wide receiver depth and possibly a starting cornerback. We will have live updates throughout the day all week, as the Dolphins try to fill more holes. Please keep checking back for updates. 6:30 p.m.: The Dolphins, needing defensive tackles after the departure of two starters in free agency, agreed to a deal with former Dallas Cowboys backup and part-time starter Neville Gallimore. The deal, confirmed by a league source, gives Miami depth - and a possible starter, if needed - in the wake of Christian Wilkins joining the Raiders and Raekwon Davis committing to the Colts. Gallimore, 27, had 90 tackles, including 11 for loss, as well as four sacks and three passes defended in four seasons for the Cowboys. The 6-2, 302-pound Gallimore appeared in 52 games and started 14 over his four years in Dallas. Last season, he had 16 tackles in 17 games and 288 defensive snaps but didnt start a game. Pro Football Focus rated him 69th of 130 defensive tackles in the web sites evaluation of 2023 performance. 5:22 p.m.: The Dolphins announced the signing of cornerback Siran Neal. 4:17 p.m.: The NFL announced the list of free agents from each team and while wide receiver Cedrick Wilson Jr. is an unrestricted free agent, he will not count toward any compensatory pick formula because his contract was voided on Feb. 16. Miami reworked his contract last year and replaced the final year of the original three-year contract with a void year. 4:10 p.m.: The Dolphins officially announced the release of cornerback Xavien Howard. Miami announced that the release came with a failed physical designation; Howard missed the seasons final two games with a foot sprain. The move will save $18.5 million in cap space but cannot be used until later as it is a post-June 1 cut. But the failed physical designation triggers a $4 million injury guarantee that will be offset after he signs with a new team. Heres how it would work: Hypothetically, if Howard remains unsigned on say, June 3, Miami would be able to use only $14.5 million of his cap savings. The other $4 million in cap space wouldnt become available to Miami until after he signs somewhere. 4:06 p.m.: The Vikings announced the addition of Van Ginkel, who is leaving Miami for a reported two-year deal worth $20 million. 4:00 p.m.: The new league years started and teams can begin to announce free agent signings. 2:09 p.m.: The Dolphins have agreed to terms with former Buffalo Bills defensive back Siren Neal, a league confirmed to the Miami Herald. Neal, who was released by Buffalo last week, will likely contribute as a core special teamer in Miami; he played at least 57 percent of those snaps in each of his six seasons with the Bills. Neal, whose deal was first reported by ESPN, is the second ex-Bill to agree to terms with the Dolphins, joining safety Jordan Poyer. 1:02 p.m.: The Dolphins introduced Smith on a Zoom conference call Wednesday morning and he credited Hard Knocks in-season look at the team signing for part of the reason hes back in South Florida after starring at Florida International University. Im like, man, thats awesome. You know, thatd be a special group to be part of, Smith recalled as he binge-watched the show this offseason. Noon update: Whether Connor Williams intends to play again after Decembers knee injury remains a question. His agency declined to comment on the issue on Wednesday morning. ESPNs Louis Riddick said Wednesday that he hasnt heard anything definitive on the matter after saying this on television on Tuesday: Before Connor Williams got hurt late in the season, on a Monday night game against the Titans, this guy was an absolute monster. Hes big, strong, hes physical. Hes a guy that can play in a zone or gap scheme. This is the kind of dude who is really a foundational piece. He had a bad ACL knee injury, significant knee injury late in the season. There may be some speculation as to whether or not hes going to continue playing football. This is guy who for me would be kind of a foundational piece on the inside that youre looking for. Asked recently if Williams has communicated if he wants to play again, Dolphins GM Chris Grier said: No. He just wanted time to rehab and focus and get his mind clear and were giving him that space. We just told him theres no pressure on him. Hell communicate and him and his agent will communicate with us at the appropriate time. In the meantime, Miami this week moved forward with a new center: Tennessees Aaron Brewer, who also can play guard. But Williams began his career as a guard for the Dallas Cowboys before moving to center with the Dolphins. Pro Football Focus rated him one of the best two centers in football this past season before his knee injury in December. He allowed only one sack and rated highly as a run blocker. So there might yet be an opportunity for a return to the Dolphins, at some point next season, if both sides decide they want that, and if Williams is able and wants to play this season. 9:10 a.m. update: Not only are the Dolphins poised to receive third-round compensatory picks in the 2025 Draft after losing Christian Wilkins (Raiders) and Robert Hunt (Carolina), but overthecap.coms Nick Korte said Miami also is positioned to received a 2025 sixth-round pick after losing Raekwon Davis to the Colts. The Dolphins could end up losing one or more of those picks if they sign a similar number of free agents to similar contracts -- which is unlikely. When Miami signs free agents who are simply released by other teams, that doesnt count toward the compensatory pick formula. So Miami lost nothing by signing street free agents Smith, Poyer and Barrett. 8:50 a.m: The one-year deal that running back Salvon Ahmed is signing to re-join the Dolphins is worth the veteran minimum ($1.125 million) and includes up to $167,500 in per-game roster bonuses. 7:28 a.m.: Former Dolphins inside linebacker Jerome Baker is visiting the Tennessee Titans, ESPN reported. Miami released Baker last week after six seasons in a move that saved about $9.8 million in cap space. While a return wasnt ruled out, the Dolphins are moving on after agreeing to terms with Brooks on a three-year deal that could be worth as much as $30 million. Quantum computers are considered 'critically important' for defence and national security - Google Quantum AI/PA The Government is cracking down on exports of quantum computers to foreign buyers amid mounting concerns that the technology could be weaponised by foreign militaries. Exporters will be banned from selling powerful quantum computers unless they obtain a licence from the start of this month. The technology has been added to a list of dual use items that could have military uses maintained by the Export Control Joint Unit, which scrutinises sales of sensitive goods. It comes as both China and Russia make substantial investments in quantum technology as part of what has been described as a global race. Quantum computers harness the peculiar qualities of quantum physics in a way that could see them vastly outpace traditional supercomputers in some areas, such as developing chemicals and cracking secure communications. A national quantum computer strategy published last year described the technology as being critically important for defence and national security and said the UK was in a global race to develop it. The Department for Business and Trade updated export rules this week to add multiple technologies related to quantum computers. They include any quantum computer featuring more than 34 qubits a measure of how advanced and powerful quantum computers are. Google has developed a 70-qubit quantum computer while IBM has built a machine with 1,121 qubits. Several companies have ambitions to build million-qubit computers, which could reshape science by inventing new materials and chemicals, modelling climate change and running advanced artificial intelligence systems. There are also concerns that the systems will make it simple to decode secret communications, and intelligence agencies are believed to be harvesting encrypted messages today in the hope they will one day be able to read them. The restrictions also include semiconductors that work at the ultra-low temperatures close to absolute zero at which quantum computers typically operate, and the cryogenic cooling systems used to keep the systems cold. Story continues The changes have been introduced as part of a broader update to export rules agreed by Western allies including the US and major European countries. Several nations with particular expertise on quantum computer technologies have added specific curbs, including France which introduced rules at the start of this month. Last year, industry body Quantum UK said British companies were concerned about the prospect of further export controls, and that they could even put off US companies seeking to relocate to the UK. Quantum computer exports only previously required licences in specific cases, such as when they were likely to lead to military use. Oxford Instruments, which makes cooling systems for quantum computers, said last year that sales in China had been hit by increasing curbs. James Lindop of law firm Eversheds Sutherland said: Semiconductor and quantum technologies two areas in which the UK already holds a world-leading position are increasingly perceived to be highly strategic and critical to UK national security. This will undoubtedly create an additional compliance burden for businesses active in the development and production of the targeted technologies. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Boundary Stone Partners (BSP) announced the addition of Emily Domenech as a senior vice president. Domenech was most recently a senior policy adviser to Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), a position she also held with former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), managing the work of the committees on Energy and Commerce; Transportation and Infrastructure; Natural Resources; Agriculture; and Science, Space and Technology, as well as House Republicans permitting and climate policy. BSP has also added Dane Bahnsen as a director, Olivia Folger as a manager and Kathleen McLean as an associate in the firms Washington, D.C., office. Bahnsen was most recently managing director of market development and government relations at Hover Energy. During the Trump administration, Bahnsen worked in the Energy Departments offices of International Affairs and Fossil Energy, in the Department of Agricultures Office of External Affairs for rural development, and in the executive office of the president. He also previously served as finance director for Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.). The National Organization on Disability (NOD) announced former Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.) will co-chair the Disability Employment Roundtable and be a policy ambassador for NOD. Langevin, the first quadriplegic to serve in the House, left Congress in 2023 after more than 20 years in office, where he helped pass the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Amendments Act. Dan Black has joined Lot Sixteen as a vice president. Black was most recently chief of staff to Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), a member of both the House Energy and Commerce and House Natural Resources committees. Randi Hutchinson has rejoined Greenberg Traurig as a counsel in the firms government, law and policy practice. Hutchinson most recently served as chief of staff at the Department of Agricultures Rural Utilities Service, and she was previously chief counsel at the Transportation Departments Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Former CBS Evening News anchor Walt Cronkite is joining the Structured Finance Association as communications director. Cronkite most recently worked on public relations for the law firm Latham & Watkins. Anna Hughes is joining the U.S. Council for International Business as vice president of communications. She was previously head of policy communications at Twitter, now X, and is an alum of the Software Alliance and American Composites Manufacturers Association. Meenakshi Srinivasan is joining the New York City office of Cozen OConnor Public Strategies as a senior principal. Srinivasan was previously chair of the citys Landmarks Preservation Commission and Board of Standards and Appeals. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. LITTLE ROCK, Ark. Local advocates reacted to Tuesdays new mandates for how gender is referred to on Arkansas drivers licenses. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and the Department of Finance and Administration announced Tuesday that drivers must have male or female on their license and reflect what is on their original or amended birth certificate. They also added that the X gender-neutral marker cant be used, changing a policy that was made in 2010. Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders mandates drivers license gender must align with birth certificate For 14 years Arkansans could change genders on licenses or IDs with essentially no questions asked, according to the DFA. People also could put X down in place of male or female, but Tuesdays announcement retracts that, leaving some worried about the ramifications for the community of people this affects. Joesph Johnson with Central Arkansas Pride said this will directly affect the transgender, non-binary and intersex community. On paper, oh it looks like were going to change this, but its so much deeper than that, Johnson said. The mental health, the safety and the potential confusion around my outward identity versus my state-issued ID, that could really create some issues. Johnson said this will potentially cause problems when anywhere an ID has to be presented, including opening bank accounts, finding employment and more. That individual has to live in their gender identity before going into that surgical procedure, this new policy prevents individuals from having the appropriate state-issued Arkansas IDs and documentation prior to that gender reassignment surgery, Johnson said. Arkansas lawmakers, ACLU, transgender teen react to overturning of Arkansas youth gender-affirming care ban According to the Department of Health, gender can still be changed on a birth certificate following a surgical procedure and subsequent court order. The governor endorsed the move, calling previous policies referring to gender on licenses nonsense. This policy is just common sense. Only women give birth, men shouldnt play womens sports, and there are only two genders, Sanders said. As long as Im governor, Arkansas state government will not endorse nonsense. All licenses and IDs with the X designation will be valid until they expire. The changes will take place when renewing licenses. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signs school bathroom bill into law The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas released a statement regarding the policy change stating it was in opposition to the move. This proposed policy seeks to erase the existence of non-binary and intersex Arkansans by denying them identity documents that reflect their true selves, forcing them into categories that do not represent their identities. The ability to use a gender-neutral marker, such as X is essential for the safety and recognition of non-binary and intersex individuals a stance supported by 22 states, the District of Columbia, and federal regulations regarding passports and other documents. The statement concluded that the ACLU will continue to fight for our right to live authentically and safely in our communities. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KLRT - FOX16.com. NEW OXFORD. Pa. (WHTM) When Patty Musselman learned she was selected as an abc27 Remarkable Woman, she was shocked. I was shocked, I was like, Doug, what did you do? she said. Doug Wherley is Musselmans boss at New Oxford High School. Hes the Conewago Valley School District athletic director and he nominated Patty, his administrative assistant, to be honored. I was very excited for her, he said. [Patty is] one of the hardest working people that Ive ever worked with and she is so caring and goes well beyond any job description Ive ever read, he said. Musselmans job description keeps her plenty busy, but when she started hearing about hungry students, she knew she had to do more. When a girl came to her and shared that her mom struggles to feed her and her three siblings, Patty remembers crying with her and making the decision to help. In 2016 she started Pack Pals, with her own space in the high school where she stores food for low-income kids. Musselman works hard to raise enough donations from the community to be able provide enough food for hungry students in all five schools in the district. Its just heartbreaking, the need for these kids and the stories and the families that would call me and say, Thank you, I didnt know how I was going to buy groceries for my kids this week, she said. When students head home for the weekend and they cant access school food, they get a full bag from Musselman. She just grabs hold and takes control and gets things done. In a very organized and passionate way, Keelie Tullis said. Tullis is Musselmans co-chair of Pink Out, a local foundation that raises money to support women with cancer. Musselman is motivated by the memory of her grandmother who had cancer. Pink Out has raised $1.4 million over the years. Now, theyre planning for another big fundraiser this summer. Pattys daughter Ashley is grown and a mother herself now. Her husband Andy marvels at her energy. He just says you need to learn how to say no. But he knows I cant. For being dedicated to helping others in the New Oxford, Hanover area and demonstrating excellence in her job and volunteer work, Patty Musselman is an abc27 remarkable woman. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. The recent 22% drop in United Natural Foods, Inc.'s (NYSE:UNFI) stock could come as a blow to insiders who purchased US$1.23m worth of stock at an average buy price of US$19.84 over the past 12 months. This is not good as insiders invest based on expectations that their money will appreciate over time. However, as a result of recent losses, their original investment is now worth only US$715.2k. While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares. Check out our latest analysis for United Natural Foods The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At United Natural Foods In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when President James Alexander Douglas bought US$1.0m worth of shares at a price of US$22.22 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being US$11.55). Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. As a general rule, we feel more positive about a stock if insiders have bought shares at above current prices, because that suggests they viewed the stock as good value, even at a higher price. In the last twelve months insiders purchased 61.92k shares for US$1.2m. But they sold 16.06k shares for US$240k. In total, United Natural Foods insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. They paid about US$19.84 on average. I'd consider this a positive as it suggests insiders see value at around the current price. 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! Story continues United Natural Foods is not the only stock insiders are buying. So take a peek at this free list of growing companies with insider buying. Insider Ownership Of United Natural Foods Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It appears that United Natural Foods insiders own 2.1% of the company, worth about US$15m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders. What Might The Insider Transactions At United Natural Foods Tell Us? The fact that there have been no United Natural Foods insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Insiders do have a stake in United Natural Foods and their transactions don't cause us concern. 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. While conducting our analysis, we found that United Natural Foods has 1 warning sign and it would be unwise to ignore this. 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. From the G-File on The Dispatch Hey, So last night we did a special Dispatch Live on last weeks editorial, which had elicited a lot of conversation, comments, compliments, and criticism (and if you give me a minute or two I can probably keep the alliteration going). I dont want to wade too deeply into all of that or repeat myself herenot when I can repeat myself elsewhere! But one point I made last night seems worth expanding upon. I think Robert Hur is kind of a spirit animal for The Dispatch. I dont know the guy (Sarah does, and she says hes a good dude). I only vaguely knew who he was until Attorney General Merrick Garland named him as the special counsel in the Biden classified documents case. As you probably know, he submitted a report to Garland explaining why he declined to recommend indicting Biden over hisobviousmishandling of classified material. This report is required by law, by the way. Hur even took pains to note that the charges against Trump for hiseven more obviousmishandling of classified material were substantially different and more serious than the charges against Biden. Under normal circumstances, this would endear him to Democrats. But Hur stated another obvious fact: Bidens age and poor memory would make him difficult to prosecute. As Hur wrote: We have also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Based on our direct interactions with and observations of him, he is someone for whom many jurors will want to identify reasonable doubt. It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him-by then a former president well into his eighties-of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness. In response, Democrats, including Biden himself, went ballistic. When Hur testified before the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday, various Democrats accused him of lying. Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia said that Hur intended to trash and smear Biden in an attempt to curry favor with Trump and win a judgeship or high ranking position in the Trump DOJ. This was an actual smear. Well get to the lying charge in a second. But its worth pointing out that the Republicans rhetorically defecated over Hur, too. They accused him of being a swampy protector of Biden. I want to thank you for the work you did as far as you could, Rep. Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin said, but unfortunately you are part of the praetorian guard that guards that swamp out here in Washington, D.C., protecting the elites. I dont want to take the bait on this elites stuff. But just for the record, congressional representatives are elites, too. And, just to hammer home the point, the billionaire celebrity former president of the United States who just secured enough delegates to be the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party is an elite as well. And thats sort of the point. At yesterdays hearing praetorians of two different factions of elites were jostling to protect the respective leaders of those factions. The Democrats behaved like partisan jackasses and so did the Republicans. The Democrats tried to bully Hur into saying that hed exonerated Biden. Republicans tried to bully him into saying Biden was guilty. Hur steadfastly rejected both claims. Instead, he told the truth as he sees it. On truth and opinion. Let me pause here for an eggheady point. I use the phrase tell the truth as I see it a lot. I consider it to be my own professional and ethical credo. Until the rise of Trump and Trumpism, I didnt use the phrase a lot because I didnt think it was all that necessary. But then I saw a lot of people with nominally the same job as mepundit, commentator, journalist, whateverlie. A lot. Ive written and talked about this experience a lot so I dont think I need to repeat it all now. Suffice it to say that I think telling the truth as you see it is the job of all journalists, whether theyre opinion journalists or straight reporters. How you do that, and by what rules you follow, can differ. But any rules that allow you to deliberately deceive arent journalistic rules. Entertainers and activists can make stuff up, journalists cantor I should say, shouldnt. Opinion journalists can obviously offer opinions, but if theyre offering opinions they dont actually believe are trueto pander to a politician or to an audiencetheyve wandered outside the borders of journalism. Colloquially, tell the truth as I see it isnt very different from, say, offering my honest opinion. (This is pretty much the opposite of the relativistic and romantic codswallop my truth.) And in most everyday cases, I think theyre probably interchangeable. But in my head at least, I see them differently. Telling the truth feels different than merely offering an opinion, because opinions dont necessarily require a lot of fact-finding or rigorous thinking. Everyone has opinions. But a lot of those opinions are fairly free-floating, untethered from serious thinking and unconstrained by the ballast of facts. Telling the truth is different than offering an opinion. Because if you think youve actually got a handle on what the actual truth is, other peoples contrary opinions are, as a matter of logic, necessarily wrong. For instance, when I say that Dominion didnt steal the election for Biden by switching millions of votes, I dont think Im merely offering an opinion. I think Im telling the truth as revealed by a vast amount of evidence and the application of reason. That means people with a different opinion are wrong. It also means that some people arent merely wrong, theyre actually lying. Im the first to admit theres a lot of shades of gray here. Not every dispute is as black and white. And thats why I say, tell the truth as I see it. The as I see it allows for the possibility that Im seeing things wrong or incompletely. Its a concession to epistemological humility. Im always open to new facts. Im not always open to new opinions if they dont come with new facts and arguments attached. Again, just to illustrate the point, I believe Hitler was a bad person, 9/11 wasnt an inside job, America put a man on the moon, etc. Im not open to any contrary opinions on these conclusions unless they come with some really startling new facts and arguments. This, by the way, dovetails with my philosophical and ideological conservatism. I have strong views about all sorts of moral and empirical questions. I think the facts and the lessons of history are on my side. Im open to the idea that some of my positions are mere opinions because the facts they depend on are less clear or because other facts I am unaware or appreciative of lead to different philosophical or ideological conclusions. In short, I think some things are simply the truth while others may just be my opinions of the truth. Over the weekend, I gave a talk on how we live in a philodoxical age. Philodoxy means love of opinion, specifically ones own opinion. Philosophy means love of wisdom. Wisdom is always fact-dependent, opinion is only occasionally so. Hot take culture is the gateway drug to conspiratorial delusion, because it celebrates shock, novelty, and transgressiveness over fact and reason. But we can talk more about that later. Lets get back to Hur, The Dispatchs spirit animal of the week. When I say that he told the truth as he sees it, I mean he wasnt offering some glib opinionthats what his inquisitors were doing. Hur and his team interviewed the president and numerous other peopleunder oath. They searched his home, they consulted the relevant law, they adhered to the rules of evidence. And after this process, he wrote a report that pissed off pretty much every hyper-partisan out there. You can call his conclusions mere opinion if you like, but it was a deeply informed opinion made all the more valid because it came at a cost. None of this, by the way, is to say that Hur was obviously right in his decision. Ive heard legal arguments on both sides that have merit. And, personally, I think politicians should be charged with these sorts of crimes whenever theres a remotely plausible legal case for doing so. It is un-republican to hold leaders less accountable than the rank-and-file for these sorts of offenses. But we did not get serious arguments about the law yesterday, we got partisan theater. Which brings me to the charge that Hur lied. Lets start with what I think is a true statement. Joe Biden is an elderly man with a poor memory. Or to be more humble, the claim that Biden is an elderly man is a statement of fact. He is eight years past the average life expectancy of an American male. If that doesnt make him elderly, then I do not know what does. Hes just released new ads admitting that hes old. I think he has a poor memory. We can debate what constitutes poor, but given his long history of faulty memoryeven when he wasnt elderlyI dont think its worth debating a lot. But I will provide one example. When Robert Hurs report was publicly releasedby the attorney general, not HurBiden gave a press conference in which he angrily claimed that Hur had broached the subject of Beau Bidens death. I know theres some attention paid to some language in the report about my recollection of events. Theres even a reference that I dont remember when my son died. How in the hell dare he raise that? Frankly, when I was asked the question, I thought to myself it wasnt any of their damn business. But heres the problem: Bidens memory of the interview is poor, given that he was the one who brought up the date of Beaus death in the first place. Or, he could have been lying. But it really doesnt matter becauseand this is just my opinionall of the Democrats freaking out over the claim that Biden is an elderly man with a poor memory almost surely believe that Biden iswait for itan elderly man with a poor memory. Indeed, that is why they are freaking outto shut down that conversation and make the charge radioactive. Thats how I see the clean-up operation over the thrust of the transcript as so revealing. Across the non-Fox News mainstream media, reporters are trying to contextualize the claim that Biden has a poor memory. Context is good. But if you just read the transcript you see this (emphasis mine): PRESIDENT BIDEN: Well, um, . . . I, I, I, I, I dont know. This is, what, 2017, 2018, that area? MR. HUR: Yes, sir. PRESIDENT BIDEN: Remember, in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying, and, so it was and by the way, there were still a lot of people at the time when I got out of the Senate that were encouraging me to run in this period, except the President [Obama]. Im notand not a mean thing to say. He just thought that she [Hillary Clinton] had a better shot of winning the presidency than I did. And so I hadnt, I hadnt at this point even though Im at Penn [his post-presidential think tank], I hadnt walked away from the idea that I may run for office again. But if I ran again, Id be running for President. And, and so what was happening though what month did Beau die? Oh, God, May 30th MS. COTTON: 2015. UNIDENTIFIED MALE SPEAKER: 2015. PRESIDENT BIDEN: Was it 2015 he died? I am totally open to the idea that this isnt the searing indictment of his memory that some Biden haters want it to be. Indeed, this passage is becoming the What color is this dress? controversy of 2024. Im also extremely sympathetic, thanks to personal experience, to the tricks of memory that swirl around the deaths of loved ones. But the only relevant question here is, How would this exchangeand exchanges like itlook to a jury in a criminal trial of a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man? If you think a jury would say, Bidens memory is a steel trap based on a performance like this, fine. But come on. Is Hurs professional and quite humane reading really so outrageous? What Biden defenders are mad at is that Hur made a high-stakes equivalent of a Kinsley gaffetelling impolitic truththat inconvenienced the narratives of both parties. And thats why I am with Hur. Its also why I think its relevant to the debate over The Dispatchs editorial. We are stuck with a terrible choice between two presidential candidates. Thats the truth as we see it. We didnt tell people how to respond to this truth, because thats not what the editorial was about. That made a lot of people angry. I dont want to speak for The Dispatch outside the four corners of the editorial, so Ill stop using we here and just say that I dont think that just because both options are bad that means they are equally bad. If presented with a choice between financial bankruptcy and death by torture, it is objectively true that both choices are bad. That doesnt mean they are the same or equally undesirable. Its not like my viewsor the views of most of my colleagueson Donald Trump are some impenetrable mystery; barring some truly shocking new facts, I will never vote for Donald Trump or deny his unfitness for office. But you can shout binary choice! at me until youre blue in the faceyoure not going to get me to say I think Biden is a good choice. After eight years of insistingoften in uncomfortably self-righteous termsthat I wont carry water for the Republican Party, Im not remotely interested in carrying water for the Democratic Party because, among other reasons, thats not my job. Both the Democrats and the Republicans in the Hur hearing lied and distorted the truth towards partisan ends. Thats to be expected from partisans and politicians, alas. But Id like to think thats not to be expected from meor The Dispatch. Id rather just tell the truth as I see it. Of course, opinions vary on all of this, and Im happy to have those arguments. 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. Photo by Greg LaRose | Louisiana Illuminator My name is Mya. Im 14 years old, I have two sisters and I am the youngest. I live in Tucson with my parents and one of my sisters with lots more family nearby. Im in eighth grade, and next year Ill be a freshman in high school. I love Tucson because its where Im from, where my family is, and where my community is. As a teenager, I want to spend my time hanging out with my friends, practicing a new cheer routine, or planning my quinceanera. But, because Im transgender, I also have to worry about politicians in Phoenix creating problems where none exist. When I was 8, and in second grade, my mom and I were already talking about me socially transitioning: using a new name, wearing new clothing and living life as the girl I know myself to be. The plan was for me to do all that in third grade, when I would be starting at a new school. But no one should have to wait to be themself, so I went straight to the principals office to tell her, Im Mya. Thats who I am. Since then, the vast majority of my classmates, teachers and school administrators have supported me. My mom once asked my principal, What happens if other parents have questions? The principal said, You dont worry about that, and that the principal would handle any questions. Its important for people to be able to ask questions, but that principal allowed my family and me to focus on the reason Im in school: to receive a good education. I wish Republican lawmakers could walk in my shoes, so they could see that they are creating a problem that doesnt exist. I wish Republican lawmakers could walk in my shoes, so they could see that they are creating a problem that doesnt exist. Ive been using the girls restroom since second grade, and no one cares. Its ridiculous that I even have to say that, but Republican politicians seem so concerned about where people like me go to pee. All Im doing is the exact same thing as everyone else, which is why my classmates dont care: Its not their problem, and so they dont judge or treat me differently than any other girl. These Republicans were elected to help people in our state, so why arent they focusing on issues that actually matter? The data shows that LGBTQ students who experience discrimination the same types of discrimination these politicians are trying to write into law are more likely to miss school, have lower GPAs and are less likely to graduate. Our elected officials should care about those issues, and about helping the LGBTQ community, not targeting us. There are a few bills that Im really worried about. Senate Bill 1166 would also make it harder for teachers to use the correct names and pronouns for their students, and could even force them to use the wrong ones. Senate Bill 1182 would make me less safe by forcing me into the boys restroom. And Senate Bill 1628 would rewrite Arizona law to erase transgender people entirely. Ive met with Arizona elected officials to explain how these bills would harm me, and countless other Arizonans like me. I hope those elected officials listen, because we need more kindness and less hate. Most people who have actually met a transgender person know that we just want to live and let live. I hope we can all agree that its wrong to single out and attack anyone including transgender people just for living their lives and being who they are. I hope Arizonas elected officials will vote to reject SB1166, SB1182, SB1628 and any other bills targeting the trans community. Mya is an eighth grade student who lives in Tucson with her family. Her last name is known to the Arizona Mirror, but is not being published at the request of her family. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Im a trans teenager. Why cant GOP lawmakers focus on real problems, not where I go pee? appeared first on Arizona Mirror. Isabel Diaz Ayuso, the president of the Community of Madrid, has not been personally accused of any wrongdoing - Clara Molden Isabel Diaz Ayuso, Madrids popular firebrand president, has accused Spains prime minister of trying to destroy her reputation after her partner was accused of tax evasion. The public prosecutor suspects Alberto Gonzalez of evading tax worth more than 300,000 made as a fixer on sales of personal protective equipment (PPE) during the Covid pandemic. Ms Diaz Ayuso, one of the conservative Partido Populars (PP) biggest stars, has not been personally accused of any wrongdoing. But critics have said she should offer explanations because she lives with Mr Gonzalez in a Madrid apartment worth at least 1 million (855,000) that he bought in 2022, one of the tax years under investigation. St Isabel The 45-year-old is derided as a Trumpista by her critics but remains loved as St Isabel in Madrid for making the region one of the first in Spain to leave lockdown. Since then, she has moved to cut taxes, while acting as a thorn in the side of Pedro Sanchez, the socialist prime minister, and some members of her own centre-Right PP. Ms Diaz Ayuso accused Mr Sanchez, who has demanded her resignation, of using the institutions of the state against her partner. He is a private citizen who is being besieged by the entire power of a state because he is my partner, Ms Diaz Ayuso said. She said Mr Sanchez was trying to distract attention from the most corrupt law in the democratic era. Witch hunt against Ms Diaz Ayuso Spain is expected to approve an amnesty on Thursday that will free Catalan separatist politicians of responsibility for attempting to secede from Spain through an illegal referendum. Miguel Tellado, the chief PP spokesman, described the leaking of Mr Gonzalezs conflict with the tax office as a witch hunt against Ms Diaz Ayuso. Mr Gonzalez faces two accusations of tax evasion from 2021 and 2022 amounting to 351,000 (300,000), El Diario reported. He is accused of document fraud after tax inspectors alleged he used offshore companies to create fake expenses to reduce his declared profits. Isabel Diaz Ayuso with Alberto Gonzalez, who arranged sales of PPE during the Covid pandemic At the centre of the allegations are 1.97 million (1.69 million) in sales commissions Mr Gonzalez received in 2020 from a company called FCS Select Products for his role in selling PPE to businesses and public administrations, including Madrids health department. It is the second time one of Ms Diaz Ayusos personal connections has come under scrutiny for their actions during the health crisis. Two years ago, it came to light that Ms Diaz Ayusos brother earned a commission of 200,000 selling face masks to the Madrid health department. The deal was investigated but no charges were brought by prosecutors. Asked for explanations In 2022, Pablo Casado, the leader of the PP at the time, said he had asked Ms Diaz Ayuso for explanations regarding the contract won by her brother. Ms Diaz Ayuso countered by claiming that she had been spied on by the PP leadership and Mr Casado was soon forced to resign. On Wednesday, the prime minister challenged Alberto Nunez Feijoo, the leader of the PP, to demand the Madrid presidents resignation even though it costs you your position as with Mr Casado. His government was rocked this month after it was claimed that a ministers top aide organised a network of businessmen and corrupt officials to gather millions of euros in kickbacks on sales of PPE during the pandemic. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Columbia Basins 2024 growing season got off to a rocky start when a major irrigation canal north of Pasco breached as March 6 it was being filled with water. The South Columbia Basin Irrigation District reported the Potholes Canal developed a leak near Cherry Drive and Dogwood Road, near Glade Road North in unincorporated Franklin County. The breach happened five days after the district began filling the canal and just days before it was expected to begin offering water to farms and orchards. Area farmers fear the damage could be particularly harmful to orchards, which spray water on blossoms for apples and other fruit to protect them against freezing temperatures, which remain a possibility in mid-March. Canals filling now The breach occurred as the three irrigation districts that distribute water from the massive Columbia Basin Project begin filling canals to serve farms emerging from their winter slumber. Together, South Columbia Basin, East Columbia Basin and Quincy-Columbia Basin irrigation districts provide water to hundreds of thousands of acres that collectively produce crops worth nearly $2.7 billion. South Columbia Basin Irrigation District, based in Pasco, began filling its 70-mile Potholes Canal on March 1 and expected to begin delivering water to the area on March 13. The South Columbia Basin Irrigation District reported a breach in the Potholes Canal north of Pasco. Water flowed from the canal in the upper right corner of this photo and across a field before entering a lateral canal to the left. Images supplied by Ross Fox, who farms north of the area, show water flowed freely through a gap in the Potholes Canal, south and southeast across a field and into a smaller channel that appeared overwhelmed in the aftermath of the deluge. The floodwater damaged farmland and county roads and left a large amount of silt in its path. In a statement posted to its website, the irrigation district advised onlookers to steer clear of the area, saying it is unsafe to be around the heavy machinery trying to repair the damage. Burrowing rodents John OCallaghan, manager of the irrigation district, said burrowing rodents and sugar-like soils in the area contributed to the canal breach. He said the main canal was repaired and back in service by March 9. Work continues on the damaged lateral canal and other structures. Heavy equipment works to clean up the Potholes Canal breach north of Franklin County. He said the March timing is working in the districts favor.. Theres very little crop ground needing early water right now, he told the Tri-City Herald. That buys us room to maneuver. But there is some (need for water), and we are very concerned and doing everything we can. Fox feared the breach will affect early season activities, including spraying fruit blossoms when frost is expected. A badly timed freeze could wipe out an entire orchard, he said. OCallaghan was mindful of the need to protect blossoms from frost, but noted the forecast doesnt currently anticipate freezing temperatures. Columbia Basin Project The Columbia Basin Project is the largest managed by the federal Bureau of Reclamation and primarily spans Franklin, Adams, Grant and Lincoln counties. The region produces fruit, vegetable, hay, grain and other agriculture products that collectively support 45,000 jobs in Washington, according to a 2022 analysis by Highland Economics shared by the irrigation districts. South Columbia Basin serves 233,000 acres and counts Potholes Canal as one of its four main canal features. It delivers approximately 825,000 acre feet of water annually, enough to fill the Houston Astrodome 850 times. The other two are the East Columbia Basin Irrigation District in Othello and Quincy-Columbia Basin Irrigation District in Quincy East Columbia serves 4,500 landowners and currently irrigates 169,000 developed acres. It expects to begin delivering water on March 18 and will begin filling its East Low Canal on March 20, with a delivery start date of March 25. East Columbia calculates the economic value of the crops it irrigates at almost $305 million. Quincy-Columbia Basin, with offices in Quincy, said it delayed the filling of its West Canal after the Bureau of Reclamation spotted issues. The canal was being dewatered to assess the situation, according to a March 11 notice. A new filling date will be set once repairs are completed. Go to scbid.org/potholes-canal-breach Sign Up: Boom Town Tri-Cities Stay up to date on Tri-Cities growth and development with our weekly business newsletter. Get the latest on restaurant and business openings and closings, plus the regions top housing and employment news. Click here to sign up. In your inbox every Wednesday. A 20-year-old man has been arrested for submitting fake documents to town officials to try and get a New Hampshire title for a vehicle which had a dead person listed as its owner, state police said. Wyatt P. Hugg, 20, of Charlestown, was arrested on a warrant without incident on Tuesday, state police said. He is charged with tampering with public records or information and unsworn falsification. Deputy town clerk in small New Hampshire town arrested for improperly accessing DMV records Huggs arrest came after investigators received information that Hugg submitted fraudulent documents to the Charlestown Town Clerks Office for the purpose of obtaining a New Hampshire title in his name, state police said. After determining that the owner of the vehicle was dead, and prior to the alleged sale of the vehicle, Hugg allegedly signed documents that were fabricated and submitted to the state, state police said. Hugg is scheduled to be arraigned in a Claremont courtroom on May 13. Anyone with information on this case is asked to contact Detective Christopher Prenaveau at Christopher.J.Prenaveau@dos.nh.gov. 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 LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) A 57-year-old Macomb County man will face six felony charges for allegedly threatening public officials in Shiawassee. The Office of the Michigan Attorney Dana Nessel reports George Hamas of Washington, Mich. waived his preliminary examination Tuesday, sending the case to the circuit court. Hes been charged with 6 felonies: four counts of False Report or Threat of Terrorism and two counts of Use of a Computer to Commit a Crime. If convicted as charged, Hamas could be incarcerated for up to 20 years in prison. Hamas, the Attorney Generals Office alleges in a news release, sent multiple threats to Shiawassee county public officials in June 2022. Those included threatening death and specific violent acts upon them, the news release alleged. The threats were delivered by both social media messages and phone calls. Hamas will appear in 35th Circuit Court in Shiawassee County on March 22nd. Instances of violent threats and even death threats made to public officials are occurring at increasing and alarming rates. The Hate Crimes and Domestic Terrorism Unit in my department stands ready to prosecute these very serious crimes, but it is also crucial that local authorities take these threats seriously, as they did here. We will not stand by and watch this behavior become a normal expectation for public servants and elected officials. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel statement March 13, 2024 For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News. SANTA MONICA, Cali. (KTLA) A family remains shaken up after they say a man, who appeared homeless, brutally attacked a 6-year-old girl as she was walking in Santa Monica. The girls family, who was visiting California from the East Coast, was walking along Main Street on March 10 when the alleged attack happened. As they exited an ice cream shop, the suspect, who was sitting at a nearby bus stop, suddenly approached them. Without provocation, the family says he struck the young girl in the face and knocked her to the ground. It was awful, Christina Tullock, a friend of the girls family who had been showing them around town, told Nexstars KTLA. I was afraid he was going to hit her again. I was afraid that my friend was going to get hurt protecting his kid. I picked her up and we ran as far away as we could get quickly. Riley Strain: 22-year-old Mizzou student missing in Nashville Tullock was able to take a picture of the suspect on her phone as she called the police for help. She doesnt know the mans motives but believes he is homeless and was experiencing a psychotic episode at the time. Tullock describes the suspect as a man between 25-35 years old. He has a tall figure and was last seen wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and black pants. I dont have training to deal with someone in a psychotic break, Tullock said. So, unless we have more protection, enforcement and mental healthcare, theres nothing you can do. Nicole Niss, whose fitness studio is located in front of the bus stop where the alleged attack happened, told KTLA she feels concerned the incident happened so close by. I think about the safety of my employees, Niss said. Were here, open until 9 oclock during the week. Theyre here until 9:30, its late. I always worry about them. Obviously, this person needs to be held accountable for violence, but theres also probably deeper issues going on and I think thats something the city really needs to be addressing. Some Santa Monica and Venice residents believe an increasing mental health crisis affecting the area needs to be tackled. Dollar Tree, Family Dollar to close 1,000 stores While local politicians have promised to address the issue, Tullock said its not enough to prevent an assault on a child. She now believes many coastal communities are no longer safe places to visit. I think the County Board of Supervisors, in particular for our case, Lindsey Horvath, needs to answer as to why we are continually asked to fend for ourselves as we live amongst people who are so sick and so ill, Tullock said. They are not doing their job managing it. Police are searching for the suspect who faces charges of child abuse and assault. The victims family said the young girl remains shaken up and is still recovering at home. Tullock added the family does not plan to visit Los Angeles again. L.A. County Supervisor Horvath responded to KTLAs request for comment saying theyve begun piloting a program that involves a therapeutic transport van staffed by members of the County Department of Mental Health. The team will focus on supporting people experiencing a mental health crisis while also supporting local law enforcement. U.S. says these mistakes could get spring breakers hurt or killed in Mexico The pilot program only covers Santa Monica for now, but could eventually expand to other cities. Horvath said over the last few weeks, theyve opened a halfway home operation that has housed around 25 people in Santa Monica so far. The incident involving the young girl remains under investigation. For the girls safety, the family involved did not wish to be identified. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. An 80-year-old man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two felony wildlife crimes connected to his years-long efforts to create giant hybrid sheep using cloning and illegal insemination, federal prosecutors said. Arthur "Jack" Schubarth was creating the hybrid sheep as a target for hunters at private facilities, officials said. He violated both international and federal law, Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division said. "This was an audacious scheme to create massive hybrid sheep species to be sold and hunted as trophies," Kim said in a statement. Schubarth, who owns a 215-acre alternative livestock ranch in Montana, conspired with several others starting in 2013, officials said. They were working to create a large hybrid species of sheep to sell to game ranches. The Montana man brought parts of the Marco Polo argali sheep, which can weigh more than 300 pounds, into the U.S. from Kyrgyzstan without declaring the importation, authorities said. The sheep species is protected internationally by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and protected domestically by the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The species, which is the largest type of sheep in the world, is prohibited in Montana as a way of protecting native sheep from disease and hybridization. "Schubarth sent genetic material from the argali parts to a lab to create cloned embryos," prosecutors said. The skulls of two Marco Polo sheep in the Wakhan Corridor of north-eastern Afghanistan, 2004. / Credit: Scott Wallace/ Getty Images Schubarth provided a deposit of $4,200 for the cloning in 2015, according to the indictment, and received 165 cloned Marco Polo embryos on Nov. 22, 2016. "Schubarth then implanted the embryos in ewes on his ranch, resulting in a single, pure genetic male Marco Polo argali that he named 'Montana Mountain King' or MMK," prosecutors said. Montana Mountain King's semen was used to artificially impregnate various other sheep and create hybrid animals, all with the goal of creating larger, more valuable sheep for hunting, officials said. Schubarth and his unnamed conspirators allegedly forged veterinary inspection certificates to move the prohibited sheep in and out of Montana. He also sold Montana Mountain King's semen directly to other breeders, prosecutors said. "The kind of crime we uncovered here could threaten the integrity of our wildlife species in Montana," Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Chief of Enforcement Ron Howell said. "This was a complex case and the partnership between us and U.S Fish and Wildlife Service was critical in solving it." Schubarth faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each felony count. He also faces a fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release. Schubarth's set to be sentenced on July 11. Biden-Trump rematch: What's changed since 2020? Biden, Trump campaigns pivot to general election mode Biden, Trump increase efforts in swing states after clinching nominations DidaTravel a tech-driven global travel distribution company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at ITB Berlin with Visit Oman, under which the two companies will embark on joint marketing initiatives to increase brand awareness and drive travel demand from China to Oman. The MoU outlines potential areas of collaboration between DidaTravel, a network of 25,000+ travel trade partners in China, and Visit Oman, the digitally native travel booking gateway of the Sultanate of Oman. DidaTravel will integrate Visit Oman's varied portfolio of contracted properties, transfers, and experiences to their extensive B2B network through API integration. Visit Oman will also be able to access DidaTravel's consolidated portfolio of high value, yet hard to reach, Chinese travel trade customers. Jinyan Li, VP Global Account Management at DidaTravel, said: We are thrilled to partner with Visit Oman and leverage our B2B distribution network to introduce the beauty and cultural richness of Oman to our extensive network of travel partners in China. This collaboration holds immense potential to foster cultural exchange and strengthen ties between our nations. TradeArabia New Service Key Insights Tribune Resources' estimated fair value is AU$4.23 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity Tribune Resources' AU$3.48 share price indicates it is trading at similar levels as its fair value estimate Tribune Resources' peers seem to be trading at a lower discount to fair value based onthe industry average of 17% How far off is Tribune Resources Limited (ASX:TBR) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. Our analysis will employ the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Believe it or not, it's not too difficult to follow, as you'll see from our example! We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model. Check out our latest analysis for Tribune Resources The Calculation We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Seeing as no analyst estimates of free cash flow are available to us, we have extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the company's last 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 need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate: Story continues 10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (A$, Millions) AU$12.6m AU$12.4m AU$12.3m AU$12.3m AU$12.4m AU$12.5m AU$12.7m AU$12.9m AU$13.1m AU$13.4m Growth Rate Estimate Source Est @ -3.89% Est @ -2.08% Est @ -0.80% Est @ 0.08% Est @ 0.71% Est @ 1.14% Est @ 1.45% Est @ 1.66% Est @ 1.81% Est @ 1.92% Present Value (A$, Millions) Discounted @ 7.2% AU$11.8 AU$10.7 AU$9.9 AU$9.3 AU$8.7 AU$8.2 AU$7.8 AU$7.4 AU$7.0 AU$6.7 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = AU$88m After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 2.2%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 7.2%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = AU$13m (1 + 2.2%) (7.2% 2.2%) = AU$270m Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= AU$270m ( 1 + 7.2%)10= AU$135m The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is AU$222m. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of AU$3.5, the company appears about fair value at a 18% 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 We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Tribune Resources 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 7.2%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.099. 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 Tribune Resources Strength Currently debt free. Weakness Earnings declined over the past year. Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Metals and Mining market. Opportunity Current share price is below our estimate of fair value. Lack of analyst coverage makes it difficult to determine TBR's earnings prospects. Threat Dividends are not covered by earnings. Moving On: Although the valuation of a company is important, it ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. For Tribune Resources, we've compiled three additional elements you should look at: Risks: For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for Tribune Resources (1 is a bit concerning) you should be aware of. 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! Other Environmentally-Friendly Companies: Concerned about the environment and think consumers will buy eco-friendly products more and more? Browse through our interactive list of companies that are thinking about a greener future to discover some stocks you may not have thought of! PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Australian 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. LIVINGSTON, Texas (KETK) The Polk County Sheriffs Office (PCSO), aided by several other agencies, used tracking dogs to find a man who allegedly fled from police on Saturday. Panola County officials locate 29 firearms during search warrant, 3 arrested According to the PCSO, on Friday the Livingston Police Department attempted a stop on a vehicle that they believed to be stolen out of Houston. Officials said that the driver fled and was being pursued by Livingston PD, PCSO, and Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). Authorities said that the driver was allegedly driving at high speeds, turned onto loop 116, then drove through a gate and into a pasture where he jumped from the moving vehicle and fled into the woods on foot. Officials said that tracking dogs were requested from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to aid in the search. PCSO said that they received a tip in reference to the suspect on Saturday afternoon near Moscow, units from PCSO, Livingston PD, and Texas Parks and Wildlife responded to the reported area. Man sentenced to 20 years in prison for aggravated robbery in connection to 2023 shooting at Tyler apartment complex The suspect identified as Brian Brown, of Point Blank, was reportedly located and taken into custody without incident. Brian Brown of Point Blank Texas, courtesy of Polk County Jail PCSO said that Brown was transferred to the Polk County Jail and was charged with evading arrest or detention with a vehicle, unauthorized use of a vehicle and four outstanding warrants from other counties. His bond was set at $40,000. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KETK.com | FOX51.com. PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) A 37-year-old man is facing multiple charges related to a string of burglaries in Gresham throughout October 2023. Authorities first investigated a break-in at the Bedrooms West and iCandy stores, where they found evidence that Adam Samuel Johnson had forced his way into the buildings and stole things inside. Boeing promises changes after getting poor grades from FAA audit Officials later found that Johnson may also be tied to three other burglaries at Modo Boutique in Portland, the Oregon Foot Clinic in Portland, and a UPS Store in Gresham. The Multnomah County District Attorneys Office announced Tuesday that Johnson has been indicted on 17 counts, including five counts of first-degree, four counts of first-degree criminal mischief, and four counts of first-degree theft. He also faces one count each of second-degree criminal mischief, second-degree theft, unlawful use of a vehicle, and possession of a stolen vehicle. Stay with KOIN 6 as this story develops. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. A couples late-night quarrel turned violent when an enraged man slashed his boyfriends face with a machete, then stabbed him with a kitchen knife, according to Florida investigators. The victim survived by escaping to a neighbors home and was hospitalized for a series of serious injuries that included facial fractures, the Hernando County Sheriffs Office said in a news release. Investigators say the initial 911 call came around 11 pm. on Monday, March 11, from a home in Brooksville, about a 50-mile drive north from Tampa. An individual ... stated that his boyfriend stabbed him in the face and arms with a machete and was chasing him. Minutes later deputies arrived on scene to find the male victim, outside of a neighboring residence, covered in what appeared to be blood, with a large laceration to the left side of his face, the sheriffs office said. The victim advised (his boyfriend) had gained access to his digital devices and was spying on his text messages and thats when he was confronted about doing so. (His boyfriend) went into another room, retrieved a large machete and swung it, hitting him in the face. The victim said he grabbed the blade to prevent being hit with it again. That prompted the suspect, Douglas Albert Fullerton, 24, to grab a knife from the kitchen and stab the victim in his back as he ran, officials said. The victim was eventually able to flee the residence, but Fullerton was close by and began chasing him, officials said. When (the victim) reached a neighboring residence, he noticed Fullerton was no longer in sight. He was able to stay on the neighboring property until help arrived. He was hospitalized with a deep laceration to his face, fractures to his facial bones, and minor cuts to his hands and back, officials said. Fullerton, who was out of jail on probation, was overheard yelling during one 911 call, including a demand that the victim report his injuries as an accident. He was also heard saying: I dont wanna go back to jail, officials said. He fled the home and eluded deputies for nearly a day before being found March 12 and arrested on a charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, officials said. He was also wanted on for violation of probation for possession of a controlled substance, officials said. Angry ex-girlfriend jailed for pickled pork attack in mans home, Florida cops say 73-year-old on date with woman half his age was set up to be robbed, Florida cops say Housekeeper pawned dead clients $20,000 ring she took as memento, Florida cops say PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) A man accused of killing his mom in Siletz allegedly told officials he did it because he thought she was a vampire, according to court documents. Lincoln County deputies responded to East Logsden Road just before 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday after they received a call from Robert Bruce Poe, 56, saying he accidentally killed his mom. Stretch of I-84 closed due to rollover crash involving windmill tower When the deputies approached Poe, they say he had blood on his hands and clothing while holding a bloody purse and letter that belonged to his mother. The woman was found near a 2004 Gold Chrysler PT Cruiser that appeared to be stuck in gravel. When officials approached her body, they found her with a large round stake which appeared to be the broken end of a garden tool protruding from her throat, court records show. Officials say Poe told deputies he believed his mom was a vampire who would poke him at night and cause him to wake up with blood on his sheets. New details revealed in Scappoose double homicide Poe was taken into custody and now faces charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact police. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KOIN.com. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A 58-year-old man was arrested and is facing a murder charge in connection with a fatal stabbing in Central El Paso on Monday, March 11, according to court documents obtained by KTSM. Police initially responded to a request for a welfare check at about 4:15 p.m. Monday along the 2900 block of Porter Avenue. 1 person stabbed to death; 1 in custody in Central EP There, they found a man, described in court documents as being in his 30s or 40s, in an alleyway with stab wounds. The victim was taken to the hospital where he later died, police said. The victim has not been identified. Court documents said the victim had been stabbed multiple times with a Bowie knife. According to court documents, Oscar Guzman Jr., 58, was arrested and charged with murder. The suspect was seen to have blood on his clothing and a witness said he observed a man discard a knife on his property. Guzman also told officers that he had been jumped in the alleyway, according to court documents. When officers asked the suspect who jumped him, the suspect used an expletive and a racial slur sometimes used to describe a person of Mexican descent, according to court documents. The suspect admitted to stabbing the victim after he had been read his rights, according to court documents. The suspect also repeatedly told police that they could shoot him or take him to jail. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. NEW YORK (PIX11) A 25-year-old man is accused of fatally shooting a man he used to be a caregiver to 11 times inside a Manhattan apartment, according to police. Joseph Fulford allegedly shot Tyrone Swinton, 60, twice in the head, once in the neck, twice in the chest and five times in the back on Feb. 29 around 11 a.m. at a home on 116th Street, according to the NYPD. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police said Fulford was Swintons caregiver for around five years after they met as part of the Boys and Girls Club. The two men had a falling out over Fulfords alleged use of drugs and bringing people unknown to Swinton inside his home, according to the NYPD. Fulford moved to Georgia for a couple of years before recently returning to New York City. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now PIX11 News Headlines Swinton called his mom on the day of the shooting and told her Fulford was back and looked bad, according to police. Police said Fulford was mad at Swinton for allegedly disrespecting his family and a dispute over drug use. After carrying out a search warrant on Fulfords home, police said they found two pistols, an AR-15 rifle and a 9mm gun that Fulford allegedly told police was the murder weapon. Police said they are waiting on lab results for four 9mm shell casings they believe match the gun found in Fulfords home. Fulford is accused of murder and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, according to police. Jonathan Rizk is a digital journalist who has covered local news in the New York City and Washington D.C. areas. He has been with PIX11 since August 2022. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. TOPEKA (KSNT) A Shawnee County Jury has found Austin Langley, 44, guilty of attempted murder in relation to a 2020 stabbing incident. On July 2, 2020, officers with the Topeka Police Department responded to a reported stabbing at a fireworks stand around in the Dillons parking lot at 5311 SW 22nd Pl. Witnesses told police Langley walked up behind a man and stabbed him in the back before running away. Topeka police arrested Langley shortly after the report a few blocks from the stand. On March 13, Langley was found guilty of attempted murder in the first degree and aggravated battery knowingly causing great bodily harm. Criminal charges filed against man accused of stabbing fireworks stand owner According to the District Attorneys Office, Langleys sentencing date hasnt been scheduled yet. He has a criminal assignment docket scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on March 21, 2024. For more crime news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News. ST. LOUIS A Columbia, Missouri, man is accused of groping a nurse while she was caring for his son over the weekend. According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Departments probable cause statement, the incident occurred on Sunday, March 10, at St. Louis Childrens Hospital. Police claim the nurse had walked into a young patients bathroom when the boys father, identified as Zacori E. Parker, 31, followed the nurse into the bathroom. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News Parker is accused of lifting the nurse and groping her. Police claim the nurse resisted and Parker let her go, but he then blocked the doorway. The nurse was eventually able to squeeze past Parker, but he again groped her and said, I would have a lot of fun with you. The nurse reported the incident and police were called to the hospital. The St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office charged Parker with third-degree kidnapping, fourth-degree assault, and second-degree sexual abuse. Parker was jailed without bond. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. A young man who was a teenager when he was arrested following a fatal shooting was recently convicted of murder, the 5th Circuit Solicitors Office said Tuesday. On March 7, Camron Ezekiel Hyatt was found guilty by a Kershaw County jury, the solicitors office said in a news release. The victim was Thomas Keitt Jr., a 55-year-old Elgin resident, who was found dead on Jan. 15, 2020, officials said. Little more than a week later, a then 17-year-old Hyatt and then 18-year-old Albertina Hattie Jolera Bennett were arrested, according to the Kershaw County Sheriffs Office. Hyatt is now 21, jail records show. The crime A passerby discovered Keitts body behind his white Cadillac sedan near the Sand Mines in the area of Green Hill Road, the solicitors office said. The car was parked on a dirt and gravel lane in Lugoff, according to the sheriffs office. Both the sheriffs office and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division were investigating, and tire marks were discovered that appeared to show another vehicle had been at the scene, according to investigators. On Jan. 24, Hyatt and Bennett were arrested, and Kershaw County Sheriff Lee Boan said the teenagers knew Keitt, and the killing was planned or a targeted crime. During Hyatts trial, the prosecution said Keitt was lured to the location, where he was then shot twice in the head. There was no word on a motive for the shooting. Keitts phone and wallet were missing from the scene, but cellphone records placed Hyatts phone near the area where the body was found, the solicitors office said in the release. Those records also showed communications from Hyatt to Keitts phone just hours before his body was located, according to the release. Additional text messages recovered from Hyatts phone showed conversations with two people about disposing of Keitts cellphone and wallet, removing shell casings from the scene, and getting rid of the murder weapon, the solicitors office said. Additionally, Hyatt left a fingerprint that was found on Keitts vehicle, according to the release. The solicitors office said Hyatt is awaiting sentencing. He remains behind bars in the Kershaw County Detention Center, jail records show. Curtis Pauling, Donna Green and Michael Bradbury prosecuted the case for the solicitors office. Camden attorney Jason Kirincich, a member of the Kershaw County Public Defenders office, represented Hyatt, according to court records. The co-defendant The murder charge against Bennett is pending, and she was released from the detention center after posting $150,000 bond in August 2021, Kershaw County court records show. Bond was also set at $150,000 for Hyatt, but never posted, according to court records. While out on bond, Bennett has been charged with more unrelated crimes, court records show. On Aug. 30, 2023, Bennett was arrested and charged with unlawful carrying of a pistol, transporting alcohol in a motor vehicle with seal broken, drug possession, as well as driving on wrong side of road, according to court records. The weapon charge is pending, but Bennett previously pleaded guilty to the three lesser charges, court records show. A Miami County man has pleaded not guilty to 30 felony counts of child porn. >>At least 1 hurt after suspected stabbing in Sidney Keeshawn Satterwhite, 29, was arraigned on March 7 in Miami County Common Pleas Court, according to online court documents. He is alleged to have several videos on his cell phone and a tablet of young children performing sex acts. Satterwhite is currently in Miami County Jail, online jail records indicate. The judge has set a bond for $100,000. Satterwhites next scheduled court appearance is March 19. Key Insights Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad's estimated fair value is RM1.00 based on Dividend Discount Model With RM1.15 share price, Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad appears to be trading close to its estimated fair value When compared to theindustry average discount of -6.3%, Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad's competitors seem to be trading at a lesser premium to fair value Today we will run through one way of estimating the intrinsic value of Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad (KLSE:TGL) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. This will be done using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they're fairly easy to follow. Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. 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. View our latest analysis for Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad Step By Step Through The Calculation As Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad operates in the specialty retail sector, we need to calculate the intrinsic value slightly differently. Instead of using free cash flows, which are hard to estimate and often not reported by analysts in this industry, dividends per share (DPS) payments are used. This often underestimates the value of a stock, but it can still be good as a comparison to competitors. We use the Gordon Growth Model, which assumes dividend will grow into perpetuity at a rate that can be sustained. For a number of reasons a very conservative growth rate is used that cannot exceed that of a company's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In this case we used the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield (3.5%). The expected dividend per share is then discounted to today's value at a cost of equity of 12%. Compared to the current share price of RM1.2, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind. Story continues Value Per Share = Expected Dividend Per Share / (Discount Rate - Perpetual Growth Rate) = RM0.08 / (12% 3.5%) = RM1.0 dcf The Assumptions We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Teo Guan Lee Corporation 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 12%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.260. 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 Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad Strength Debt is well covered by earnings. Dividend is in the top 25% of dividend payers in the market. Weakness Earnings declined over the past year. Current share price is above our estimate of fair value. Opportunity TGL's financial characteristics indicate limited near-term opportunities for shareholders. Lack of analyst coverage makes it difficult to determine TGL's earnings prospects. Threat Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow. Paying a dividend but company has no free cash flows. Next Steps: Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Instead the best use for a DCF model is to test certain assumptions and theories to see if they would lead to the company being undervalued or overvalued. For example, changes in the company's cost of equity or the risk free rate can significantly impact the valuation. For Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad, we've compiled three additional factors you should further research: Risks: For example, we've discovered 4 warning signs for Teo Guan Lee Corporation Berhad (1 is a bit unpleasant!) that you should be aware of before investing here. 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! Other Top Analyst Picks: Interested to see what the analysts are thinking? Take a look at our interactive list of analysts' top stock picks to find out what they feel might have an attractive future outlook! 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. A 17-year-old girl escaped a mans locked car at his work after he is accused of holding her hostage at his California home for nearly a week, deputies say. Zackary Dourousseau, 26, was arrested and is facing a number of charges, including kidnapping, false imprisonment and statutory rape, the San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department said in a March 12 news release. Dourousseau is accused of picking up the girl the evening of March 1 and driving her to his Sugarloaf home, deputies said. He asked the teen to perform sexual acts, but she refused, according to deputies. Afterward, Dourousseau refused to let her leave, keeping her at his home for six days, deputies said. While she was there, deputies said she was not given much food or water, adding that Dourousseau forced her to consume large amounts of alcohol. In exchange for her freedom, Dourousseau raped her, deputies said. Six days after he is accused of picking up the teen, deputies said Dourousseau drove her with him to his workplace in Big Bear Lake. She was held inside of his locked vehicle, deputies said. There, she escaped and ran to a nearby business, where employees called 911, according to deputies. Deputies said they later found Dourousseau at his home, where he was arrested. He is expected to appear in court March 18, deputies said. Sugarloaf is about a 3 mile-drive south from Big Bear City and about a 105-mile drive northeast from Los Angeles. Teen changes voicemail to get help and is found in hotel room with man, Utah cops say Woman kidnapped by her ex and taken to Idaho is rescued after 911 text, feds say Accused kidnapper chases screaming girl as she walks to school, Arizona video shows A cat walks past containers in Kofinou. An Istanbul court has sentenced a man to two-and-a-half years in prison for deliberately killing a cat, state news agency Anadolu reported on Wednesday. Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa An Istanbul court has sentenced a man to two-and-a-half years in prison for deliberately killing a cat, state news agency Anadolu reported on Wednesday. The court separately issued a travel ban on the man. The verdict is not final. CCTV footage presented during the trial shows the man chasing and kicking a stray cat named Eros inside an elevator for several minutes until it lays motionless. The incident on January 1 sparked a national outcry. Several activists and politicians followed the hearing on Wednesday. The defendant said he was suffering from psychological issues, according to Anadolu. Videos circulating on X, formerly Twitter, showed people inside the courthouse chanting, calling the perpetrator a murderer. The hashtag "Justice for Eros" was trending on the platform. The punishment is the highest ever imposed under the Animal Protection Act, Justice Minister Ylmaz Tunc said on X. The Turkish metropolis Istanbul is known for its stray cats. Violence against animals often makes headlines in Turkey. Animal rights activists criticize legal loopholes and lack of punishment on violence against animals. The perpetrator had already been sentenced to one year and three months in jail. Shortly afterwards, the court reduced his sentence to three months for good behaviour. Lawyers had appealed against that decision. BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) A man was sentenced to prison Tuesday after pleading no contest to threatening to kill shoppers at a Foods Co. in Bakersfield. Adrian Aceves, 36, was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison, according to court records. Bakersfield Dollar Tree employee accused of fatally stabbing shoplifter On Feb. 5, 2023, Aceves allegedly yelled racial slurs and threatened patrons of the Foods Co. on Haley Street while brandishing a hammer and knife in the stores parking lot. Aceves has previously been in prison for similar behavior. In July 2021, he wielded a knife and called employees terrorists at the Kings Drive-In on Niles Street, authorities said. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison after pleading no contest to a felony threats charge. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KGET 17. Editors Note: Andrew Gaines has stood trial in this case in March 2024. He was acquitted of all charges. Police are searching for an armed and dangerous man they say shot another man to death at a Georgia Waffle House. The Richmond County Sheriffs Office said the shooting happened around 1:54 a.m. at a Waffle House on Gordon Highway in Augusta. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] TRENDING STORIES: The Sheriffs Office has identified the shooter as Andrew Gaines, 31. Deputies say he was last seen driving a silver 2018 Kia Sportage with South Carolina tag number 1897NL. Gaines has active warrants out for his arrest. Deputies believe he is armed and dangerous. Anyone with information is asked to call the Richmond County Sheriffs Office at 706-821-1082. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] Assessing the Sustainability and Growth of CNQ's Dividends Canadian Natural Resources Ltd (NYSE:CNQ) recently announced a dividend of $1.05 per share, payable on 2024-04-05, with the ex-dividend date set for 2024-03-14. As investors look forward to this upcoming payment, the spotlight also shines on the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. Using the data from GuruFocus, let's look into Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's dividend performance and assess its sustainability. What Does Canadian Natural Resources Ltd Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 7 Warning Signs with ICE. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Canadian Natural Resources Ltd is an independent crude oil and natural gas exploration, development, and production company. The Company's exploration and production operations are focused in North America, largely in Western Canada; the United Kingdom (UK) portion of the North Sea, and Cote d'Ivoire and South Africa in Offshore Africa. The Company's exploration and production activities are conducted in three geographic segments: North America, the North Sea, and Offshore Africa. These activities include the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas. The company has two divisions; Oil Sands Mining and Upgrading Midstream and Refining. It derives a majority of its revenue from North America. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's Dividend History Canadian Natural Resources Ltd has maintained a consistent dividend payment record since 2001. Dividends are currently distributed on a quarterly basis. Below is a chart showing annual Dividends Per Share for tracking historical trends. Breaking Down Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's Dividend Yield and Growth As of today, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd currently has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 3.85% and a 12-month forward dividend yield of 3.99%. This suggests an expectation of increased dividend payments over the next 12 months. Story continues Over the past three years, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's annual dividend growth rate was 29.60%. Extended to a five-year horizon, this rate decreased to 23.60% per year. And over the past decade, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's annual dividends per share growth rate stands at an impressive 17.90%. Based on Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's dividend yield and five-year growth rate, the 5-year yield on cost of Canadian Natural Resources Ltd stock as of today is approximately 11.11%. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability To assess the sustainability of the dividend, one needs to evaluate the company's payout ratio. The dividend payout ratio provides insights into the portion of earnings the company distributes as dividends. A lower ratio suggests that the company retains a significant part of its earnings, thereby ensuring the availability of funds for future growth and unexpected downturns. As of 2023-12-31, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's dividend payout ratio is 0.48. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's profitability rank, offers an understanding of the company's earnings prowess relative to its peers. GuruFocus ranks Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's profitability 7 out of 10 as of 2023-12-31, suggesting good profitability prospects. The company has reported net profit in 7 years out of past 10 years. Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook To ensure the sustainability of dividends, a company must have robust growth metrics. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's growth rank of 7 out of 10 suggests that the company's growth trajectory is good relative to its competitors. Revenue is the lifeblood of any company, and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's revenue per share, combined with the 3-year revenue growth rate, indicates a strong revenue model. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's revenue has increased by approximately 35.80% per year on average, a rate that outperforms approximately 84.33% of global competitors. Engaging Conclusion: Dividend Prospects and Investment Considerations In conclusion, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd's consistent dividend payments, robust dividend growth rate, manageable payout ratio, solid profitability, and promising growth metrics paint a picture of a company with a strong commitment to shareholder returns. The balance between returning profits to shareholders and reinvesting in the business suggests that CNQ is well-positioned to sustain its dividends in the foreseeable future, making it an attractive option for value investors focused on income-generating stocks. As you contemplate your next investment move, consider how Canadian Natural Resources Ltd fits into your portfolio strategy. Will its dividend performance continue to provide the stability and growth you're looking for? GuruFocus Premium users can screen for high-dividend yield stocks using the High Dividend Yield Screener. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Former Rep. Mark Walker (R-N.C.) has accepted a position with former President Trumps campaign and will apparently not contest a primary against fellow Republican Addison McDowell, a former staffer to Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.) endorsed by Trump in the House race. Ive asked Congressman Mark Walker to join my Campaign team to work with Faith Groups and Minority Communities, and he has agreed to immediately do so, Trump said in a post on Truth Social Wednesday. Mark and I had many Wins together, and we look forward to continuing to build bridges to all Communities in our Great Nation, and advancing this important work in the White House. Welcome Mark! Trump continued in his Truth Social post. In his own statement posted to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Walker said he was honored to hear from President Trump asking if I would take the lead position as the Director of Outreach for faith and minority communities effective immediately. Im delighted to accept this position and after the Biden administration is defeated in November, Im grateful for the offer to continue our work with President Trump in the White House, Walker continued in the statement. My heart is to see all Americans succeed, as evidenced by my work in Congress with [Historically Black colleges and universities] along with minority and evangelical initiatives. Walkers statement did not explicitly state that he was not going to continue to contest the GOP nomination for the seat, though he confirmed to several local media outlets that he was ending his campaign. In a primary last week, McDowell won 26 percent of the vote compared to 24 percent for Walker, which had set up a runoff election. McDowell will be the heavy favorite to win the seat this fall given the makeup of the district. Rep. Kathy Manning (D-N.C.) announced at the end of last year that she wont seek reelection to the seat, calling the new North Carolina congressional maps egregiously gerrymandered. I would love nothing more than to continue representing our community in Congress. Unfortunately, the egregiously gerrymandered maps do not make this race competitive, and I cannot in good conscience ask people to invest their time, resources and efforts in a campaign that is rigged against us, Manning said in a statement. Walker launched and then dropped a bid to become the Republican nominee for governor of North Carolina in a span of a few months last year. He dropped the gubernatorial bid to instead run for his old House seat, following new congressional maps being approved for the Tar Heel State. The Hill has reached out to Walkers campaign. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Jonathan Lispcome and Samantha Lewis in "Alabama Story" at Theatre Jacksonville. The production continues, Thursday through Sunday, the next two weeks. This is a story about two rabbits. So begins Alabama Story, a play being performed this month at Theatre Jacksonville in San Marco. In the opening scene, the characters tell you that this is a story about much more than two rabbits, one black and one white, in a 1958 children's book, The Rabbits Wedding. Its a story about how that book ended up in the middle of 1950s culture wars; with some in Alabama saying it was indoctrinating children by pushing a pro-integration agenda; with a state senator calling for the book to be banned and burned, and the state's head librarian to be removed from her position; and with that librarian standing up for more than this one book. This is about books, she says, many books. The script has the characters tell audiences that what theyre about to hear is a childrens story, a love story, an Alabama story, a story within a story, and somewhere between the lines a true story. What it doesnt say what it doesnt have to say is that its not just a story about the 1950s, Alabama and two rabbits. 'We have to do this play' Sarah Boone, executive director of Theatre Jacksonville, grew up with The Rabbits Wedding in her house. The illustrator, Garth Williams, was best known for his artwork for Charlottes Web, Stuart Little and Little House on the Prairie. For this book, he made one rabbit black and one white for a practical reason. He wanted kids to be able to tell the rabbits apart. So he made the male rabbit black and the female one white. It wasnt a statement about integration or interracial marriage until some in Alabama, led by one prominent politician, made it one. Not that Boone knew any of this when she was growing up. She hadnt even thought about the book for decades, until she was in a New York drama bookstore, checking out some of the new plays, thinking about Theatre Jacksonville's next season. Alabama Story was first produced nearly a decade ago, but wasnt published and widely available until 2022. I read it and I just thought it was so timely, Boone said. Gloria Ware plays Emily Reed, the librarian at the heart of "Alabama Story," in the production at Theatre Jacksonville. She also thought something about the story sounded familiar. It wasnt until she pulled up the cover of The Rabbits Wedding" that she realized why. She remembered it from her childhood, simply as a sweet story about two rabbits who wanted to be together forever. When she brought the Alabama Story script back to Florida, members of the Theatre Jacksonville repertory committee and board also read it. Everybody said, We have to do this play, she said. Every year, when the Theatre Jacksonville is putting together the next season, they include at least one show about an issue. The goal is to have theater do what maybe other venues, like social media, often fail to do: start a thoughtful conversation. For Theatre Jacksonville's 104th season, "Alabama Story" seemed remarkably fitting. An ode to books and librarians Boone ended up having a long conversation over coffee with Kenneth Jones, the playwright of Alabama Story. When Jones explains the origin of his play, he points to reading the obituary pages of the New York Times one day in 2000, seeing a story about a librarian. Emily W. Reed, who in 1959 enraged Alabama segregationists by allowing a book about a fuzzy white rabbit marrying a fuzzy black rabbit onto the shelves of the state's central library, died on May 19 at a retirement community in Cockeysville, Md. She was 89. The confrontation came as blacks were fighting to be allowed in public libraries throughout the South and a segregationist in Florida was demanding that ''The Three Little Pigs'' be removed from library shelves because the pigs were depicted in different colors. In Ms. Reed's case, the book in question was ''The Rabbits' Wedding.'' Reed grew up in Culver, Indiana, graduated from the University of Michigan and worked at numerous public and academic libraries (including Florida State) before becoming Alabamas library director. In that role, she was responsible for the selection and purchases of library materials across the state. She not only refused to remove The Rabbits Wedding from her library she put it on a reserve shelf she later was attacked for including Martin Luther King Jr.s Stride Toward Freedom: A Montgomery Story on a list of notable books. Josh Rutgers plays Senator Higgins in "Alabama Story" at Theatre Jacksonville. When Jones read about this and how Alabama State Sen. E.O. Eddins led the fight against the books and the librarian it leaped out at him as a story ripe for the stage, with heroes and villains, tension and conflict, small moments and big ideas. For Alabama Story, he added a fictional story, about two childhood friends Lily, who is white, and Joshua, who is Black who meet again as adults at the same time as the true story of The Rabbits Wedding is playing out in Montgomery. While this blend of fiction and non-fiction certainly carries messages about race and censorship, it also is an ode to librarians and books. At one point in Alabama Story, Emily Reed says: A librarian must be a repository of all sides of the question. . I believe that the free flow of information is the best means to solve the problems of the South, the nation, and the world. This isnt just a line that Jones wrote for a character. In a 2022 interview, he explained that this was something Reed said. And it's at the heart of what he wanted the play to say. The free exchange of books, ideas, information is a primary tenet of librarianship, Jones told Alabama journalist Alec Harvey. That exchange happens over and over in the play, between Lily and Josh and between Emily and the senator and others. The exchange of books and intellectual material changes peoples lives. The battle over The Rabbits Wedding made national, even international news. It led some in the Alabama capitol who had fought integration to tell the state senator to let it go, that what he was doing was backfiring, embarrassing the state. While the days of a whites only park bench (part of the plays set) may be gone, issues involving race and books are not. Florida has made plenty of national and international headlines in recent years, sometimes about books that have been pulled off bookshelves. One modern-day controversy involved a true tale of two animals in a zoo, penguins, both black and white, but also both male. Its telling that in 2024, Alabama Story is being produced all over the country because obviously its about much more than the 1950s, Alabama and a book with two rabbits. Its not only about past, and all that led up to 1959, its about the future. And in the end, Theatre Jacksonvilles Sarah Boone says, it ties all the stories together and tells one more. Ultimately, she said, its very much a story of hope. mwoods@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4212 "ALABAMA STORY" What: Alabama Story, by Kenneth Jones, a drama based on true events, directed by Amy Love Where: Theatre Jacksonville in San Marco When: March 14, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24 (Sunday performances are 2 p.m. matinees, all other performances are at 7:30 p.m.) The cast: Gloria Ware, Jacob Dinkel, Samantha Lewis, Jonathan Lispcome, Josh Rutgers, Neal Thorburn. For more information: www.theatrejax.com or (904) 396-4425 This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Theatre Jacksonville's 'Alabama Story' tells of 1959 book battle Mary Mulhern tasted political victory at a young age when she won the vice presidency of Detroit St. Catherine High Schools senior class of 1948. The family she nurtured as a wife and mother of seven experienced it, too. During her lifetime, her late husband was an elected Inkster city councilman. One daughter became a city council member in Tampa, Florida. And a daughter-in-law, Jennifer Granholm, became Michigans first female governor. Through electoral defeats her husband lost a bid for Inkster mayor and triumphs, Mary Mulhern was a rock, anchored by her deep Catholic faith and commitment to serving others. Mulhern, 93, died Monday of heart failure in her Canton Township home. Mary Mulhern, mother-in-law of former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, died Mach 11, 2024, at 93 She was always about helping others, whether working in a soup kitchen or organizing rotating shelters for the homeless. She was a person of service. And by her actions, she imparted the notion that were all here to do something beyond self, said Granholm, the U.S. secretary of energy since 2021 and Michigans governor in 2003-11. When I think of her, I think of just pure love. She was so much my mother in Michigan. Her mother-in-law volunteered constantly for campaign events, said Granholm, and talked back to critical commentators on the TV set. Everyone in the campaign knew her presence silvery hair crowning her like a halo on a 4-foot-11 frame. The daughter of Italian immigrants and the oldest of seven, Mulhern was born Maria Concetta Nicola Teresa Sanitate. She met Korean War veteran John Jack Mulhern, who died in 1996, at a church dance. As Jack Mulhern served on the Inkster City Council, his wife won an election to the parish council at the now-closed St. Kevin Catholic Church. I remember Dads pride that my mom was among the first women elected to the parish council and that she rose from the Altar Guild, said Daniel Mulhern, Michigans first first gentleman. Later when the family moved to Lathrup Village, Mary Mulhern joined the choir at St. Bede Catholic Church in Southfield. She coordinated housing and meal prep for the homeless through South Oakland Shelter events at area churches. For many years, she drove friends to volunteer making sandwiches for meal programs at St. Aloysius and St. Josaphat churches in Detroit. She also volunteered as a literacy teacher through the Southfield library. She did what she believed in and set an example for all of us, said daughter Kathy Mulhern Rizzo. Her children knew her as a loving confidant and counselor, who also was meticulously organized. Charts affixed to the family refrigerator dictated a schedule of chores and even until recently she participated in family book clubs with her grandchildren, nieces and nephews. My mom was the executive and she took care of everything, said daughter Mary Susan Mulhern, who was a Tampa councilwoman for eight years. After decades of their mom being president and CEO of Mulhern Enterprises, as son Patrick Mulhern dubbed her, Mary Mulhern's children stepped in to care for her as she aged. Her youngest son, Jim Mulhern, visited every Sunday to make breakfast during the last two years and another daughter, Ann Mulhern, provided regular care. Even through her last years, Mary Mulhern remained the steady all-knowing family boss, and shed be able to tell any one of us about every single thing our siblings and every grandkid was up to. She knew everything that was going on, said her daughter Sheila Mulhern, who lived with her mom. Mary Mulhern is also survived by 16 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; two brothers, and two sisters. Visitation is from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at Schrader-Howell Funeral Home, 280 S. Main St., Plymouth. A funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Kenneth Catholic Church, 14951 N. Haggerty Road, Plymouth. Burial will be in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, Southfield. Memorial donations may be made to Hospice of Michigan, 3200 Greenfield Road, Suite 250, Dearborn, MI 48120 or www.hom.org. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mary Mulhern, mother-in-law to Jennifer Granholm, dies at 93 ANNAPOLIS, Md. (DC News Now) The Board of Public Works (BPW) approved an additional settlement to Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) employees on Wednesday morning. The additional settlement will disburse nearly $10 million to the employees a result of a years-long investigation into wage theft in the agency, affecting thousands of employees who have worked for DPSCS. Last July, BPW approved a settlement of over $13 million, bringing the total to $23 million. This is the second largest wage theft settlement for correctional officers in the nations history, according to a press release from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Single-engine plane crashes in Warren County DPSCS illegally altered employees timecards for years, a violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, stated AFSCME. Union members raised these issues to upper management and AFSCME filed complaints with the Department of Labor, alleging that the state was illegally changing time records for employees. This should have never happened to us as state employees. The State of Maryland is supposed to be a model employer. And in a time where we are already short-staffed and working in dangerous conditions, this is not how you treat state employees, stated Patrick Okafor, a Correctional Officer Sergeant at the Dorsey Run Correctional Institution in Jessup. AFSCME said union members found the initial settlement last July to be inadequate, failing to include all affected employees. Wednesdays settlement now includes correct amounts owed to employees and includes all hourly DPSCS employees who were erroneously excluded from the initial settlement, stated AFSCME. Final settlements will vary for individual employees, depending on how their hours were impacted. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) announced Wednesday that she intends to pardon misdemeanor marijuana possession charges, a move that could impact hundreds of thousands of Bay State residents. Nobody should face barriers to getting a job, housing or an education because of an old misdemeanor marijuana conviction that they would not be charged for today, Healey said in a statement. Were taking this nation-leading action as part of our commitment to using the clemency process to advance fairness and equity in our criminal justice system. Healey lauded the action as a follow-up to President Bidens federal pardon of marijuana possession charges in 2022 and expansion of the move in December, which impacted thousands of people. Biden had called on states to follow his lead. Just as no one should be in a federal prison solely due to the use or possession of marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either, he said last year. The pardons would apply to simple marijuana possession charges and not to those that include distribution, trafficking or driving under the influence, the governors office said. Most people impacted by the pardons would not have to take action. Healeys proclamation must first be approved by the Governors Council. The pardons would take effect immediately upon the councils approval, though they would take time to update in state records, the governors office said. State Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell (D) praised the action as critical to rectify racial injustices in policing. Convictions for simple marijuana possession which someone could not be charged with today have led to the disproportionate incarceration of Black and brown people and made it nearly impossible for them to obtain a job, housing, educational opportunities and more, Campbell said in a statement. As the AGs Office also works to address injustice and close the racial wealth gap, this proposed pardon meaningfully moves the Commonwealth in the right direction. Marijuana was legalized in Massachusetts in 2016, and a booming industry has formed in the state despite the drug remaining illegal federally. Multiple other states have also made mass-pardons for marijuana possession offenses in recent years, including Missouri, Connecticut and Rhode Island. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BOSTON Gov. Maura Healey on Wednesday proposed a blanket pardon of misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions in Massachusetts in what she described as the broadest action taken by a governor to forgive past marijuana crimes since President Joe Biden handed down federal pot pardons. Healeys move to wipe out all past adult state court misdemeanor convictions for possession of marijuana comes seven years after the state legalized cannabis. The pardons will be mostly automatic, she said, and could potentially clear the charge from hundreds of thousands of peoples records. The reason we do this is simple: Justice requires it, Healey said during a press conference announcing her plans at the State House. Healeys proposal still needs approval by the states Governors Council, which is comprised of all Democrats and has a record of backing Healeys past requests for clemency for certain individuals. Four of the seven current members have already expressed support for the pot pardons in interviews with POLITICO ahead of Healeys announcement. Biden granted a pardon to all people convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal law back in 2022, saying in a statement at the time that sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit. He urged governors to take similar action for state offenses. Healey did not put a hard timeline on when or how quickly pardons will be issued in Massachusetts, saying only that she intends for the process of going through peoples records to be operational as soon as there is a vote by the Governors Council. State officials said it could take months to update peoples criminal records. People who need faster proof of the pardon will be able to request a certificate. The broad pardons represent somewhat of a reversal for Healey, who had opposed legalizing marijuana when the question went before voters on the 2016 ballot. Then the states attorney general, she had raised concerns about drug trafficking and about the potential mental health effects for young people. Hopefully people want a governor who is willing to evolve, Healey said Wednesday when asked about her past stances. We all grow with more understanding. Healey cast the pardons as a way of reducing disparities in the states criminal justice system and of removing barriers to housing and jobs for something that is no longer cause for arrest today. The move has won support from top Democrats and law enforcement officials in the state. Healey unveiled her plans with Andrea Campbell, the states first Black female attorney general, the state Senate president and the head of the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association by her side. President Biden urged governors to take action in their own states. And once again, Massachusetts is leading the nation as the first state in this country to answer that call, Campbell said. Other states have already moved to pardon or expunge the records of people arrested for low-level marijuana-related crimes. In 2022, then-Oregon Gov. Kate Brown moved to pardon roughly 47,000 adults convicted of simple marijuana possession. Missouri courts have cleared more than 100,000 marijuana charges after voters in 2022 passed a ballot measure legalizing marijuana that also included an automatic expungement provision. And Illinois wiped out nearly 500,000 marijuana convictions under a law requiring the automatic expungement of some non-felony cannabis-related arrest records by the start of 2025. Healey said she chose pardons over expungement because only the former was within her power as governor. Ive got to execute on what I have the power to execute on, which is to pardon, she said. By Nate Raymond BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey on Wednesday announced she was seeking to pardon hundreds of thousands of people convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession in the years before the state legalized cannabis in 2016. The Democrat's action followed President Joe Biden's earlier moves to pardon thousands of people convicted of marijuana possession offenses under federal law and in Washington, D.C., a step he urged governors to follow for state offenses. The Massachusetts pardons would fulfill a campaign promise Healey made when seeking election in 2022 and are, according to her office, the most comprehensive action a governor has taken since Biden, a fellow Democrat, called on them to issue marijuana pardons. "Nobody should face barriers to getting a job, housing or an education because of an old misdemeanor marijuana conviction that they would not be charged for today," Healey said in a statement. The blanket pardon would apply to all past adult state court misdemeanor convictions for possession of marijuana. The pardon is subject to approval by the Massachusetts Governor's Council, an elected body that provides advice and consent on pardons. Biden in October 2022 pardoned many people convicted of simple marijuana possession under federal and D.C. law. He issued another proclamation in December that expanded that relief by adding to the list of pardoned offenses. In his State of the Union address to Congress last week, Biden cited those pardons in saying "no one should be jailed for using or possessing marijuana," and he has directed his administration to review federal restrictions on marijuana. Nearly 40 U.S. states have legalized marijuana use in some form, but it remains completely illegal in some states and at the federal level. Massachusetts voters legalized marijuana for recreational use in 2016. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, a Democrat, in a statement said the pardons would help rectify historic racial disparities that have "led to the disproportionate incarceration of Black and brown people and made it nearly impossible for them to obtain a job, housing, educational opportunities and more." Governors in others states including Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin have since 2018 taken actions to pardon marijuana-related offenses. Unlike many of those pardon actions, the Massachusetts one does not require those convicted of marijuana offenses to apply to obtain relief and does not require it to be a person's only offense, a spokesperson for Healey said. (Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill Berkrot) SPRINGFIELD Thousands of non-U.S. citizens living in Illinois will no longer receive state-funded health care benefits as Gov. J.B. Pritzkers administration looks for ways to cut the costs of two programs that threatened to derail state budget talks last year. The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services projects that as many as 6,000 people will lose coverage when the state stops offering the programs benefits to those who have green cards but have not completed a five-year waiting period in the U.S. Individuals in that category may no longer be eligible for the benefits provided through two programs, Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults and Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors, by as early as May 1. The affected individuals would then have to reapply for coverage through the federal Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Marketplace, which provides subsidies to noncitizens who are living in the country legally, the department said. It is important to note that all of the enrollee groups identified for changes have alternative coverage options, HFS spokesperson Jamie Munks said in an email. These individuals will qualify for Medicaid coverage if they meet the eligibility requirements once they have been in the country for five years. We understand this creates turbulence for these individuals in their medical coverage and will do everything we can to help make the transition as smooth as possible. Munks said HFS is working with the states Department of Insurance to ensure that so-called navigators can assist these recipients with enrolling in a new plan. The state budgeted $550 million for the programs last year, and Pritzker is proposing $440 million for them during the fiscal year that begins July 1. During a meeting before the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules on Tuesday, Healthcare and Family Services chief of staff Dana Kelly said removing the designated group recipients from the two programs would save a little over $13 million. Story continues We will be notifying them in the next week of that change and they will be made eligible for a special enrollment period on the Health Insurance Marketplace, she said. State Rep. Norma Hernandez, a Democrat from Melrose Park, criticized the changes as a short-term cost-saving measure, not a long term solution, and raised concerns about whether the navigators will suffice to help thousands of people through a complex enrollment process that could also be complicated by language barriers with only about a month and a half left before their state-funded health care begins to expire. Even for me, and I have an education, I have a health care background, a masters, its hard for me to navigate and understand copays, deductibles, all of that stuff, Hernandez said. I actually have a decent way of living, right? And then theres folks that make less than $30K a year, less than $20K a year, and are now going to have to figure out how to pay for health care. Related Articles In addition to proposing $440 million from the states general revenue fund for the programs in the coming year, Pritzker also proposed that an additional outlay of nearly $200 million could be allocated toward the two programs through other revenue streams. More than half of that would come from a federal match to emergency services funding. Illinois initially offered the health care benefits in 2020. The programs initially provided Medicaid-style coverage to immigrants 65 and older who were in the country without legal permission, or who had green cards but hadnt completed a five-year waiting period and are therefore ineligible for the traditional health insurance program for the poor, which is jointly funded by the federal government. The state-run immigrant health care programs have been expanded twice and now cover those 42 and older. They do not extend to the asylum-seekers primarily arriving in Chicago from Texas. The two programs launched in Illinois at a time when Medicaid redeterminations annual checks that verify whether an enrollee is eligible for that benefit were put on pause by the federal government during the COVID-19 pandemic. Munks said this year will be the first time enrollees in the state-funded immigrant health care programs, which are separate from Medicaid, will be subject to redetermination. The health care programs became a major sticking point in budget negotiations last year. In his budget proposal a year ago, Pritzker pitched $220 million for the program. But as projected costs rose to $1.1 billion, he ended up striking a deal that set aside $550 million for the benefits. The subsequent move to limit enrollment drew criticism from Latino communities at the time. The group Healthy Illinois, which advocated for the program, called Pritzkers decision immoral and fiscally short-sighted. Prior to the funding issues last year, Pritzker had said he believes everyone, regardless of documentation status, deserves access to holistic health care coverage. The latest changes have left some immigrant rights advocates concerned about the programs future and the Pritzker administrations commitment to expanding health care accessibility. The difficulty in obtaining alternative insurance could lead to people developing more serious health issues, which in the end could cost the state more than what theyre saving, said Constantina Mizis, founder and executive director of the Latino Alzheimers and Memory Disorders Alliance, a nonprofit organization that works to provide Spanish-speaking caregivers of older adults with training and support. While the new move offers an avenue for those affected to get health care coverage through the marketplace, it does not guarantee it. Most of the people who will be affected are older adults who do not speak English or use a computer, barriers that may discourage some from enrolling in the marketplace, advocates said. Among the beneficiaries who could be affected by the changes is Manal Alabdallah, 44, whos from Jordan and has been living in Illinois as a legal resident for four years. Speaking in Arabic through a translator, the mother of three said she has tried enrolling for health insurance through the marketplace but found she couldnt afford that. I cant even afford copays, she said. Olander and Rodriguez Presa contributed from Chicago. Mastodon, along with rivals Threads, Bluesky and Substack, has been vying to pull in users leaving X in the wake of new platform policies announced since the company, formerly Twitter, was bought by tech billionaire Musk. Zacharie Scheurer/dpa No ads, no trackers, no prompts to get you to spend $8 a month for a premium version - Mastodon has been welcoming users fleeing Twitter ever since tech billionaire Elon Musk rebranded it as X. However one of Mastadon's biggest advantages has also been something of a headache when it comes to finding and following new users. Unlike X's one-platform-for-all approach, Mastodon uses a decentralized approach, allowing people to pick from a broad range of versions of Mastodon, with each different instance of the platform having its own rules and servers. However, the distribution across countless servers makes it tricky to connect and communicate with others, since searching for a profile name or handle, as you would on X, is often not enough to find the user you're looking for. To follow someone, you need to also know the server address (domain) of the community where the profile is hosted. This combination is called a handle - for example, @profilname@community-name.de. To simplify things, Mastodon has now updated its Android app to make it easier for users to find each other, especially in real life. Say you meet someone at an event, you can now show them a QR code they can scan to quickly find and follow your account. A QR code symbol now also appears next to the name of your own profile or the profiles of others in the Android app. This can be used to open up the QR code for scanning or sending. In further updates: If you tap on the domain name in a profile, you will receive a detailed explanation of the components that make up the handle. More information has also been included in the confirmation dialogues for muting or blocking profiles. These dialogues explain exactly what effects the respective action has on your own Mastodon usage, as well as what the muted or blocked contact will notice when you block them. Henry Houghton denied murder but was found guilty after a trial at Preston Crown Court A man has been found guilty of murdering a 19-year-old who was stabbed during a fight. Matthew Daulby, of Liverpool, was found with stab injuries near Railway Road, Ormskirk, Lancashire, on 29 July. He died a short time later in hospital. Henry Houghton, now 19, of Scarisbrick, denied murder but was convicted by a jury at Preston Crown Court. He will be sentenced on Friday. Finley Cook, 20, of Ormskirk, was cleared of murder. Lancashire Police said officers went to Railway Road at 00:05 BST after reports of an altercation. Matthew Daulby died in hospital shortly after the attack Mr Daulby was struck to his head by Houghton who used a "makeshift weapon comprising of a tied up sock containing a rock", police said. Such was the force of the blow, it caused damage to Matthew's brain and likely disorientated him before the fatal stab wound. Police said it was the prosecution's case that although he did not deliver the fatal blow to Mr Daulby, Houghton assisted in his murder and had a shared intention to cause really serious harm or to kill. Det Ch Insp Andy Fallows said: "As a result of his senseless and violent actions, Houghton contributed to Matthew losing his life. "The jury have recognised that in their considered verdict, and I thank them for that. "I hope this conviction give Matthew's family some comfort and understanding of what happened to him on that fateful night." Detectives want to speak to Thomas Dures as part of the investigation He added the force wanted to speak to 20-year-old Thomas Dures "as part of our ongoing enquiries". "I want to appeal to anyone with any information on his whereabouts to either get in contact with the police or Crimestoppers, who continue to offer a 10,000 reward for any information which leads to his arrest," he said. A second man injured in the fight was treated in hospital and discharged. Why not follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk Next weeks special election to replace former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has another layer of intrigue, after The Associated Press projected that the November general election will feature McCarthys chosen successor running against another Republican. Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux secured the second general election spot on Wednesday, eclipsing Democrat Marisa Wood and setting a November matchup with state Assemblymember Vince Fong, a former McCarthy aide. The results set the stage for the March 19 special election to fill out McCarthys unexpired term. Whoever emerges from that race whether next week or in a potential May 21 runoff if no candidate earns a majority of the vote will have a powerful incumbent's advantage going into November. McCarthy and much of the Republican establishment coalesced behind Fong, who also snagged a critical endorsement from former President Donald Trump. He piled up funds and benefited from a McCarthy-linked Super PAC. But that was not enough to block Boudreaux from advancing as the sheriff accumulated local endorsements and channeled skepticism of the Bakersfield-area machine that produced both McCarthy and Fong. As of late Wednesday morning, Fong led Boudreaux, 41 percent to 25 percent suggesting Fong has an outside chance of getting a majority in next weeks special election. While the primary for November included 11 candidates seven of whom identified as Republicans the special election ballot is smaller: nine candidates, with only four Republicans. California's 20th Congressional District is a rare Republican outpost in a deeply Democratic state, which makes it all but certain to stay in Republican hands. Fong's allies sought to seal his ascension by spending money to boost Wood, whom Fong likely would have crushed in a general election. If a potential special election runoff in May is also between Fong and Boudreaux, the race will turn on geographical and ideological fissures and could illuminate the kind of disagreements within the Republican Party that fueled McCarthy's ouster from the speakership. Note: This is a developing story and is being updated. Ukrainian drones attacked three oil refineries in Russia, as well as a Russian Air Force air base, and an airfield in Voronezh Oblast overnight on March 13, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing an unnamed source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). Oil refineries were allegedly attacked in Ryazan, in the cities of Kstovo, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, and Kirishi, Leningrad Oblast, according to the media outlet. The attacks, which Ukrainska Pravda's source called "a continuation of a series of special operations against Russian oil refineries that were launched earlier," were reportedly carried out by the SBU itself. "Our task is to deprive the enemy of resources and reduce the flow of money from oil and fuel that the aggressor direct to the war and the killing of Ukrainian citizens," the unnamed source told the media outlet. The reports came after Moscow's claims that 65 drones were shot down over six Russia's regions overnight and in the morning on March 13, including 35 over Voronezh Oblast. The SBU, together with other representatives of the Defense Forces, also reportedly attacked the Russian air base in the town of Buturlinovka in Voronezh Oblast and a military airfield in Voronezh. The Kyiv Independent could not verify the information, and there were no official comments from the Ukrainian authorities. In recent weeks, Ukraine reportedly launched several drone attacks on Russian refineries, including in St. Petersburg, Volgograd, and Krasnodar Krai. Read also: Fire reported at oil refinery in Russias Ryazan Oblast Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. Thousands of non-U.S. citizens living in Illinois will no longer receive state-funded health care benefits as Gov. J.B. Pritzkers administration looks for ways to cut the costs of two programs that came close to derailing state budget talks last year. The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services projects that as many as 6,000 people will lose coverage by next month when the state stops offering the programs benefits to those who have green cards but have not completed a five-year waiting period in the U.S. Individuals in that category will no longer be eligible for the benefits provided through two programs, Health Benefits of Immigrant Adults and Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors, by May 1. The affected individuals would then have to reapply for coverage through the federal Affordable Care Act Health Insurance Marketplace, which provides subsidies to noncitizens who are living in the country legally, the department said. It is important to note that all of the enrollee groups identified for changes have alternative coverage options, HFS spokesperson Jamie Munks said in an email. These individuals will qualify for Medicaid coverage if they meet the eligibility requirements once they have been in the country for five years. We understand this creates turbulence for these individuals in their medical coverage and will do everything we can to help make the transition as smooth as possible. Munks said HFS is working with the states Department of Insurance to ensure that so-called navigators can assist these recipients with enrolling in a new plan. The state budgeted $550 million for the programs last year, and Pritzker is proposing $440 million for them during the fiscal year that begins July 1. During a meeting before the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules on Tuesday, Healthcare and Family Services chief of staff Dana Kelly said removing the designated group recipients from the two programs would save a little over $13 million. Story continues We will be notifying them in the next week of that change and they will be made eligible for a special enrollment period on the Health Insurance Marketplace, she said. State Rep. Norma Hernandez, a Democrat from Melrose Park, criticized the changes as a short-term cost-saving measure, not a long term solution, and raised concerns about whether the navigators will suffice to help thousands of people through a complicated enrollment process that could be complicated by language barriers with only about a month and a half left before their state-funded health care expires. Even for me, and I have an education, I have a health care background, a masters, its hard for me to navigate and understand copays, deductibles, all of that stuff, Hernandez said. I actually have a decent way of living, right? And then theres folks that make less than $30K a year, less than $20K a year, and are now going to have to figure out how to pay for health care. In addition to proposing $440 million from the states general revenue fund for the programs in the coming year, Pritzker also proposed that an additional outlay of nearly $200 million could be allocated toward the two programs through other revenue streams. More than half of that would come from a federal match to emergency services funding. Illinois initially offered the health care benefits in 2020. The programs initially provided Medicaid-style coverage to immigrants 65 and older who were in the country without legal permission, or who had green cards but havent completed a five-year waiting period and are therefore ineligible for the traditional health insurance program for the poor, which is jointly funded by the federal government. The programs have been expanded twice and now cover those 42 and older. The two programs launched in Illinois at a time when Medicaid redeterminations annual checks that verify whether an enrollee is eligible for that benefit were put on pause by the federal government during the COVID-19 pandemic. Munks said this year will be the first time enrollees in the state-funded immigrant health care programs, which are separate from Medicaid, will be subject to redetermination. The health care programs became a major sticking point in budget negotiations last year. In his budget proposal a year ago, Pritzker pitched $220 million for the program. But as projected costs rose to $1.1 billion, he ended up striking a deal that set aside $550 million for the benefits. The subsequent move to limit enrollment drew criticism from Latino communities at the time. The group Healthy Illinois, which advocated for the program, called Pritzkers decision immoral and fiscally short-sighted. Senate Republicans, meanwhile, this year indicated they had issues with continuing to fund the program. Prior to the funding issues last year, Pritzker had said he believes everyone, regardless of documentation status, deserves access to holistic health care coverage. The programs do not extend to the asylum-seekers primarily arriving in Chicago from Texas. _____ (Olander reported and Laura Rodriguez Presa contributed from Chicago.) _____ Thick smoke billows from an explosion on the Israel-Gaza border, as seen from Sderot. Ilia Yefimovich/dpa Qatar, engaged in mediation between Israel and Hamas, hopes a truce deal will be reached in the Gaza war before the Muslim Eid al-Fitr festival, marking the end of Ramadan next month, a Qatari official has said. Eid al-Fitr, expected to start on April 10, marks the end of the lunar Islamic fasting month of Ramadan that began earlier this week. Spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry Majed al-Ansari said the Gulf country is seeking to push both sides to reach an agreement. "Qatari efforts continue to halt fighting in Gaza despite the complexity of the situation and the deteriorating humanitarian scene," he said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. Qatar, a major ally of Palestinian extremist organization Hamas, has been trying to negotiate a truce deal in the ongoing conflict for weeks, together with delegations from the US and Egypt. Initially, negotiators were hopeful that an agreement could be reached before the start of Ramadan, but talks have stalled. One of the main points of contention between Israel and Hamas is the duration of a ceasefire. Hamas is demanding an indefinite ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip. Israel rejects this. In November, the oil-rich emirate helped broker a temporary ceasefire agreed by Israel and Hamas that also facilitated hostage-for-prisoner swaps. If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text, or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services. An Oklahoma teen whose death sparked widespread outrage and calls for change died of an overdose, authorities said Wednesday. Nex Benedict was pronounced dead Feb. 8, one day after being injured in an altercation inside an Owasso High School bathroom. A summary autopsy report concluded the 16-year-old died of toxicity from diphenhydramine, an antihistamine, and fluoxetine, an anti-depression medication. The medical examiner ruled the teen died by suicide, and that the full report would be released in about 10 business days. The findings cap weeks of speculation over how the teen died, but many questions remain unanswered about the fight that preceded Nexs death. Nex had been bullied in the past over their gender identity, which did not align with societal stereotypes. Nex, a descendant of the Choctaw Nation, used the pronouns he, him, they and them, friends and relatives have said. A memorial for Nex Benedict is pictured outside Owasso High School in February. Jacob Biby, a lawyer for the teens family did not immediately return messages regarding the medical examiners conclusions. In the past, family members said they were troubled by the basic facts of what happened, even while they were waiting for more information. While at Owasso High School, Nex was attacked and assaulted in a bathroom by a group of other students, the family said in a statement released by Biby. A day later, the Benedicts' beautiful child lost their life. Police are separately investigating what led up to the fight in the school bathroom, including whether the teen was targeted in an act of gender-based violence. Federal civil rights investigators in the U.S. Department of Education have also said they will look into allegations that the school failed to adequately address past instances of sex-based bullying. More: What we know about death of Oklahoma teen Nex Benedict after beating in school bathroom Nex told a school resource officer that the bathroom fight started because a group of girls they did not know were making fun of the way the teen and their friends dressed and laughed. Police released a recording of the conversation captured by the officers body camera. Their death has led to national scrutiny over the safety of transgender and gay children in Oklahoma, with particular criticism focused on rhetoric espoused by state Schools Superintendent Ryan Walters. He promoted a new state rule that requires schools to get approval from the state Board of Education before changing a childs gender in official records. Kody Macaulay holds a sign outside Owasso High School during a February demonstration in honor of Nex Benedict. Dozens of people called on school and state officials to better protect LGBTQ+ students. More than 350 organizations and public figures signed a letter calling for Walters to be removed. Vice President Kamala Harris and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona have both spoken out in response to Nexs death. Owasso school officials have refused to disclose whether the school had received past reports involving the bullying of Nex. District spokesman Brock Crawford said all reports of bullying are investigated and denied allegations that any such reports were mishandled. He said school officials will cooperate with the federal investigation. This is a developing story and will be updated. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Nex Benedict autopsy report reveals suicide as cause of death President Biden emerged bruised but not bloodied from a day of testimony by special counsel Robert Hur on Tuesday. The big headline came from Hurs comments that he had not fully exonerated Biden over classified documents found in the presidents possession in several locations, including his Delaware home. The prosecutor noted repeatedly that his decision not to recommend charges against Biden was based on two related issues. First, serious doubts as to whether Biden had been willful in retaining the documents; and second, the assessment that conviction at trial was unlikely. But if the non-exoneration was a blow to Biden and his allies, the Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee fought their Republican counterparts to a draw over Hurs hours of testimony. In particular, Democrats constantly emphasized salient differences between Bidens behavior and that of former President Trump, who has been charged over sensitive documents that were finally recovered after a court-approved FBI search at his Florida resort of Mar-a-Lago. In particular, they contrasted the cooperation Bidens team had shown with Trumps alleged efforts to frustrate authorities. Hur had already inflicted serious political damage on Biden in a report released early last month, describing the president as coming across like a well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory. Those comments put Bidens age and cognitive capacities front and center at the start of an election year and provoked an ill-advised, angry news conference at the White House. But if Tuesdays hearing put a spotlight back on the description itself, the release of the full transcript of Bidens remarks presented a more nuanced picture. On one hand, the transcript showed that Biden had been inaccurate at his news conference in suggesting that Hur and his team had unfairly raised the subject of Beau Biden, the presidents elder son who died from brain cancer in 2015. In fact, Biden had raised his sons death of his own volition and had indeed appeared confused as to the year in which it had occurred. On the other hand, the full transcript showed Biden largely composed and sure of himself, despite the fact that the first interview with Hurs team took place on Oct. 8, the day after the Hamas attack in Israel that killed more than 1,100 people. The transcript begins with Biden noting that he had just spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On Tuesday, Hur defended his references to Bidens powers of recall, asserting that they were salient in determining whether or not to press charges. Hur insisted that his description in that regard was necessary and accurate and fair. Whether this was in fact the case became a predictable topic of contention in the hours that followed. Some Democrats on the panel, notably Reps. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and Hank Johnson (Ga.), were especially aggressive in suggesting that Hur originally appointed as a U.S. attorney by Trump had been out to get Biden or had been acting out of GOP-friendly political motives. Schiff lambasted Hur for, as the California congressman saw it, making a gratuitous effort to disparage Biden. An indignant Hur pushed back, insisting that politics played no part whatsoever in his words or decisions. In truth, Hur was the one clear victor to emerge from Tuesday, thanks to serious and measured testimony, an absence of gaffes and an obvious unwillingness to do the bidding of partisans. Prior to the hearing, loud voices on both sides of the partisan divide sought to characterize Hur as a patsy of the other side conservatives because of his refusal to charge Biden, liberals because of his comments about the presidents acuity. Those accusations looked increasingly implausible by the time Hur had finished his day in the spotlight. Around him, it often felt as though the election campaign was being fought under the guise of a congressional hearing. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), in characteristically inflammatory style, seemed eager to get the word senile in as often as possible to refer to Biden during his questions to Hur. The elevator didnt go to the top floor, Gaetz asserted. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) shot back that the reference to senility was shameful. Democrats, for their part, sought to cast aspersions on Trump that were not all that different from the GOP charges against Biden. In fact, the opening moments of the hearing were dominated by the committees chairman, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) playing Bidens Februarys news conference almost in its entirety only to be followed by ranking member Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) playing an extensive compilation of bizarre or fumbled comments from Trump. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) also played an embarrassing Trump video, showing the former president unable to recall the years of his marriage to his second wife, Marla Maples. Closer to the hearings end, Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) said Trump was in no position to talk about the mental acuity of anyone else. Bush further opined the overall pursuit of Biden amounted to an irresponsible and easily repudiated Republican clown show. So it often goes on Capitol Hill in the current political climate. For once, however, it was a day when both sides got some of what they wanted and neither scored an emphatic victory. For Biden, who faced real dangers on Tuesday, that is likely to be good enough. The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Disability Rights California, a nonprofit that advocates for people with disabilities, criticized Los Angeles County for transferring mentally ill people in conservatorships to locked facilities only. (Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press) People with mental illnesses who are in conservatorships are being held in Los Angeles County jails even after their criminal charges are dropped, according to a report released Tuesday by Disability Rights California. Similarly, they are staying months in county psychiatric hospitals after doctors have agreed that it's safe for them to leave, the report said. The issue is partly one of capacity. Facilities where they could be sent after being released from jail or hospitals are often full and have months-long waiting lists. But Disability Rights California, a nonprofit that advocates for people with disabilities, criticized L.A. County for transferring them only to locked facilities, when they could be safely treated in unlocked community settings such as group homes or supportive housing. In recent years, the county Board of Supervisors has approved almost $400 million for more locked facilities but failed to adequately fund less restrictive community housing, the report said. The report examined a subset of jail inmates in conservatorships those whose care is overseen by the L.A. County Office of the Public Guardian because no friends or family can take on the task. The people in the report, who also include those in locked healthcare facilities such as psychiatric hospitals, have been assessed by doctors or jail staff as not dangerous and able to leave. Read more: State regulators find mold, broken toilets, missing fire safety records in L.A. County jails A person is placed in a conservatorship when a judge determines that they cannot care for themselves and names a third party to be responsible for them. Many conservatees with mental illnesses stayed in the jails for months after their charges were dropped, according to the report. Some were put in conservatorships after they were found incompetent to stand trial and still weren't well enough to stand trial after two years of treatment. In December, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, which runs the jails, adopted a policy that ended its practice of holding people in conservatorships after their criminal case has been resolved, the report said. But as of February, according to the report, nearly 130 such people were still waiting to be transferred from a jail to a mental health facility. According to the report, this is "flatly illegal" under a state law that requires conservators to place people "in the least restrictive alternative placement." Read more: 'Excuses, excuses, excuses': A desperate father, a tormented son, an overburdened system L.A. County is also violating the federal Americans with Disabilities Act when it holds people with mental illnesses in locked hospitals months beyond what's deemed medically necessary by their doctors, the report said. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the unavailability of beds is not a defense to confine people in hospitals. The county Department of Mental Health said in a statement that it is committed to providing healing and recovery to people with serious mental illnesses, including those whose conservatorships are overseen by the county. "Where possible, we aim to place and treat clients in the least restrictive setting available in alignment with Californias Welfare & Institutions Code and to support our clients journey toward well-being, self-sufficiency and belonging in a community," the statement said. "We are taking the allegations set forth by the Disability Rights California report seriously, will be examining their findings, and are always exploring ways to ensure clients are in the least restrictive and most appropriate settings to meet their needs." In the county's inpatient psychiatric hospitals, people under conservatorships stay "for months or years after they are ready for release" while the county waits for a locked bed in a "less restrictive" setting, the report said. Read more: Strapped down: Psychiatric patients are restrained at sky-high rates at this L.A. hospital Asked how many of the patients were ready to be discharged, county staffers responded, "All," according to the report. Two patients had been at L.A. County General Hospitals acute inpatient psychiatric unit for 423 days and 593 days, the report said. The report also highlighted the cost of keeping people with mental illnesses locked up $19,760 per person a month in the county jails mental health unit and $46,600 per month in the county inpatient psychiatric unit, according to the report. The Office of the Public Guardian, which is part of the county mental health department, oversees the care of about half, or 2,300, of the people in mental health conservatorships, including those not in the jails. According to a joint report in January from county Mental Health Director Lisa H. Wong and Health Services Director Dr. Christina R. Ghaly, the county's mental health court judges have imposed "an incredible number" of court-ordered sanctions, including daily fines, on the public guardian's office for failing to place conservatees in treatment in a timely manner. In response, the county started moving some conservatees to mental health urgent care centers after they were authorized to leave jail. But the centers are designed for outpatient care and short stays, the county report said. 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. Editor's Note: This page is a summary of news on the Israel-Hamas war for Wednesday, March 13. For the latest news on the conflict in the Middle East, view our live updates file for Thursday, March 14. Displaced Palestinians will have to be on the move again, this time to "humanitarian islands.'' Israel plans to relocate a large portion of the 1.4 million people sheltering in Rafah to protect them from its anticipated major offensive in the southern Gaza city as it pursues Hamas militants, the Israel Defense Forces' chief spokesman said Wednesday. We need to make sure that 1.4 million people or at least a significant amount of the 1.4 million will move. Where? To humanitarian islands that we will create with the international community, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said at a press briefing. The U.S., it allies and multiple aid organizations have warned of a humanitarian catastrophe if Israel invades Rafah, where more than 60% of Gazans are now located, the majority of them refugees from other parts of the territory trying to escape the war. Israel says it must destroy four Hamas battalions in Rafah to complete its mission of crushing the militant group. Hagari said civilians would be redirected to central Gaza and provided food, water and shelter, though he didn't say when the mass mobilization might start. The U.S. and fellow mediators Qatar and Egypt worked to broker an extended cease-fire before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan began this week, to no avail. The Biden administration has pressed Israel to devise a workable strategy to spare innocent people in Rafah from the bloodshed that has left more than 31,000 dead and 73,000 injured in Gaza as Israel responded to Hamas' brutal attacks of Oct. 7. We need to see a plan that will get civilians out of harms way if theres a military operation in Rafah, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Washington. Weve not yet seen such a plan. First aid ship heads to Gaza, where 2 million face threat of starvation: Live updates Developments: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas plans to soon name close ally and economic adviser Muhammad Mustafa as his new prime minister, resisting international calls for the organization's reform, the New York Times reported. Israel said one of its airstrikes around Rafah killed Muhammad Abu Hasna, describing him as an operations unit commander for Hamas. "Among other terrorist activities, Hasna was involved in taking control of humanitarian aid and distributing it to Hamas operatives,'' the Israeli military said. More children have been reported killed in just over five months in Gaza than died in four years of wars around the world combined, Lazzarini said. "This war is a war on children," he said. "It is a war on their childhood and their future." According to UNRWA, more than 12,000 kids have died in the conflict. Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor of South Africa, which has accused Israel of genocide at the U.N.'s top court, said any South Africans who fight for or alongside Israelis in Gaza will be arrested when they return home. A Congress-mandated group cut short a mission to Saudi Arabia after officials there ordered a Jewish rabbi to remove his kippah a head covering also known as yarmulke in public, highlighting religious tensions in the Middle East. Rabbi Abraham Cooper refused, and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom left. But Cooper said he sees progress, with the kingdom quietly allowing different faiths to worship privately. A Lebanese army officer stands next to a car destroyed in a drone strike that killed a Hamas leader in the southern outskirts of Tyre, Lebanon, on March 13, 2024. Get the hostages out 'at any cost' former captive says A young Israeli man who was among the 100-plus hostages released in November described living in "horrific conditions'' under "vicious'' captors as he pleaded for more efforts to free the remaining captives. On a London visit to make a case for the hostages to British lawmakers, Itay Regev told the BBC he and his sister Maya were each shot in a leg while being abducted along with a friend from the Nova music festival Oct. 7. Regev, who turned 19 this month, said throughout his nearly two-month-long ordeal he felt the stress of knowing he might be killed at any moment. "You don't really know ... if a missile is going to fall on you, if they're going to come in with a Kalashnikov (assault rifle) and start spraying us with bullets. The conditions are very, very difficult there," he said. "We were very, very hungry. I didn't have a shower for 54 days. My captors were very, very vicious. They didn't care. I had wounds in my legs, big holes in my legs.'' Regev and his sister were among 103 hostages freed as part of a weeklong truce more than three months ago, but further attempts at a cease-fire and more hostage releases have failed as Israel and Hamas refused to relent on some of their demands. He said not enough is being done to get the captives out and feels they have been forgotten. "I'm sure if anyone had their child kidnapped, they wouldn't really care about what price needed to be paid,'' Regev said. "We need to return the hostages at any cost." Israeli solidarity over war shows cracks Israeli solidarity over the war in Gaza showed signs of erosion Wednesday with the opposition leader claiming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus amended 2024 wartime budget tears the mask off all the governments talk of unity. Yair Lapid said the plan provides insufficient help for soldiers returning from the fighting while increasing funding for government ministers and programs not directly associated with the war but popular with segments of Netanyahu's coalition government. Lapid also lashed out at Netanyahu for failing to have provided adequate security for the border communities ahead of the Hamas-led attack Oct. 7 that resulted in 1,200 deaths and the seizing of about 250 hostages, prompting the deadly military operation in Gaza. You dont want unity, you want to be paid, Lapid said during debate in the Knesset translated by the Times of Israel. You messed up, you destroyed, and now you are giving us the bill. The public will pay ... for the war you are guilty of." The Knesset later narrowly passed Netanyahu's budget, which the prime minister promoted as necessary to take care of reservists, their families, the self-employed, government ministries "and the needs of the public." Israeli strike kills aid worker in Gaza, damages relief center At least one aid worker was killed and 22 others wounded when Israeli forces struck a humanitarian aid distribution center in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, U.N. officials said Wednesday. Philippe Lazzarini, commissioner-general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestinians, said the agency provided the Israeli Army with coordinates of the facility a day earlier so it would not be hit. Todays attack on one of the very few remaining UNRWA distribution centers in the Gaza Strip comes as food supplies are running out, hunger is widespread and, in some areas, turning into famine," Lazzarini said in a statement. "Every day, we share the coordinates of all our facilities across the Gaza Strip with parties to the conflict." The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a USA TODAY request for comment on the strike. Lazzarini said UNRWA has recorded an "unprecedented" number of violations against its staff and facilities, surpassing all other world conflicts. At least 165 UNRWA team members have been killed in the conflict, and more than 150 UNRWA schools and other facilities have been hit and in some cases destroyed, he said. He repeated his call for an independent inquiry and "the need for accountability." "Since this war began, attacks against UN facilities, convoys and personnel have become commonplace in blatant disregard to international humanitarian law," Lazzarini said. More aid shipments from Cyprus planned for Gaza A day after the first ship carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza set sail from Cyprus, the island nation's foreign minister said more are coming soon. Constantinos Kombos said Cyprus' proposal to send assistance from its ports to Gaza about 230 miles away gained traction in recent weeks, and a larger shipment of food and other goods will follow in a matter of days. "The whole point is to try to offer much-needed assistance to the people who are in this horrible situation," Kombos told media outlets including Reuters on Wednesday. Workers for World Central Kitchen, the nonprofit founded by Spanish chef Jose Andres that collected supplies for the first shipment, have been assembling a jetty to get the cargo into Gaza when it arrives in the next day or two. "We are confident that when the aid gets to Gaza there will be a way to offload it and get it into the hands of Gazans who are starving and need this food aid urgently," Linda Roth, chief communications officer at WCK, told Reuters. Iran-backed Houthi rebels fire missile at Navy ship Houthi militants fired a close-range ballistic missile from Yemen toward the USS Laboon, a guided-missile destroyer in the Red Sea, U.S. Central Command said Wednesday. The missile missed and there were no injuries or damage reported, the U.S. military said in a social media post. Central Command and a coalition ship then destroyed two drones launched from a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen that "presented an imminent threat" to commercial and U.S. Navy ships, the post added. The clash occurred one day after the Iranian-backed militants fired two anti-ship ballistic missiles toward the merchant ship Pinocchio, a Singaporean-owned, Liberian-flagged ship. No damage or injuries were reported. Central Command said it then conducted six "self-defense strikes," destroying an unmanned underwater vessel and 18 anti-ship missiles. Houthi rebels have been attacking ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since November, saying they are showing solidarity with Palestinians in the Hamas-Israel war. The attacks have caused a 40% decline in shipping through the Red Sea and Suez Canal "in spite of successful defense measures by naval forces and attacks on (Houthi) missile, launch and command-control facilities," retired Vice Admiral Robert Murrett, deputy director of the Institute for Security Policy and Law at Syracuse University, told USA TODAY. High-ranking Hamas militant killed in Lebanon An Israeli drone strike Wednesday killed Hadi Ali Matzafa, a key Hamas operative who directed terror squads and promoted attacks against Israel, the Israeli military said. The attack targeted a vehicle in the Tzur territory of Lebanon near a refugee camp. Hamas confirmed Matzafa's death, and the Hamas radio channel described him as a primary leader of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades in Lebanon. Lebanese media said a passerby on a motorbike also was killed. Hamas has a political and military presence in Lebanon based out of refugee camps where Palestinians have lived for decades. Hezbollah, an ally of Hamas, has been engaged in military clashes almost daily with Israel since the war in Gaza began. Contributing: The Associated Press This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Israel war live updates: 'Humanitarian islands' for Rafah civilians Metro Bank is to end seven-day trading in all its branches and cut about 1,000 jobs after reporting losses. From 29 March, all 76 branches will close on Sundays and Bank Holidays, with more than half of them closing on Saturdays as well. The lender also said it would cut 22% of its workforce by mid-April as part of a huge cost-cutting exercise. The struggling High Street bank began a review of operations last autumn in an effort to save about 50m a year. But on Wednesday Metro Bank said it was looking to cut another 30m by the end of 2024, which would lead to further job losses. Chief executive Daniel Frumkin said not all the additional cost savings would come from more job losses, but said "inevitably some will have to come from colleague costs". Mr Frumkin said even though branches would no longer be open every day Metro Bank would "still be open more hours than other competitors on the High Street". It does not intend to close any branches and has plans to open about 11 more branches, mainly in the North of England. The changes come as part of an overhaul, confirmed as the struggling lender reported a 16.9m underlying loss for 2023 - although this was less than the 50.6m seen the year before. It was launched in the wake of the financial crisis and was the first High Street bank to open in the UK in more than 100 years. Its founder, American businessman Vernon Hill, said at the time that he wanted to do things differently so the bank offered customer-friendly perks, even putting out water bowls and dog biscuits for customers' pets. But following a review launched last November, the group has now said that the bulk of its branches, 44 sites, will only be open five days a week, from Monday to Friday, 09:30 to 17:00. The remaining 32 stores will be open six days a week, from 09:30 to 17:00 on Monday to Friday, and 11:00 to 16:00 on Saturdays. At present Metro Bank branches open from 08:30 until 18:00 from Monday to Saturday and 11:00 to 17:00 on Sunday. Metro Transit has let two key agreements intended to boost safety of employees and passengers aboard the Blue Line expire, saying the agency now has enough staffing to handle the job. The transit agency signed pacts with the Bloomington and Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport police departments last year to add officers at both MSP terminals and at the Mall of America as safety concerns aboard the light rail system escalated. The idea was to help bolster the Metro Transit Police Department, which was having trouble hiring and retaining officers. But Metro Transit Police Chief Ernest Morales III, who assumed the department's top post last March, said this week the agreements with the MSP Airport and Bloomington departments are no longer needed. Metro Transit has put in place a multi-pronged approach to beef up the presence of police and community service officers, private security, as well as Transit Rider Investment Program agents who help those using public transit connect with housing, mental health and substance abuse issues. The plan is working, Morales said. "We're definitely seeing success, complaints and crimes have gone down dramatically," he said, noting crime declined 24% so far this year, although overall crime in 2023 increased by a third when compared with the previous year. The agreement with MSP police, which expired Feb. 16, came after airport employees implored the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) to do something last winter. Many employees who park at Terminal 2 and take the light rail to the main terminal said they felt unsafe aboard the trains due to drug use, violence and erratic behavior. They even created a Facebook page, MSP Airport Light Rail Incidents, to share their stories. If recent posts are any indication, some employees still feel the safety measures aren't working, while others say they're starting to see a difference. There were 132 reported crimes last year at both airport Blue Line stations, which accounted for nearly 10% of light-rail ridership last year, according to Metro Transit. So far this year, there have been 27 reported crimes more than 70% of the police calls for service at these stations in 2023 were initiated by officers as a result of "proactive patrols." Wade Luneburg, political director of UNITE-HERE Local 17, the union that represents some 1,200 airport employees, said the safety situation appears to have calmed down at the airport over the past year. "It seems like the dust has really settled on this," he said. Paul Slattery, an organizer and political director for Teamsters Local 120, which also represents airport workers, declined comment on the matter. The MSP agreement called for two airport police officers to patrol the Blue Line trains and stations at Terminals 1 and 2 daily from 4 a.m. to noon, when many workers begin their shifts. The agreement was always seen as a stopgap measure as Metro Transit implemented its safety plan, a big part of which relies more personnel presence on light rail trains and buses. MAC Spokesman Jeff Lea said airport officers will continue to patrol the Blue Line stations at both terminals. Metro Transit said private security officers are now riding the trains between Terminals 1 and 2, and patrolling the airport stations from 4 a.m. to 1 a.m. daily. The agreement with Bloomington called for its officers to patrol on board the Blue Line and at stations between the Mall of America and the airport on an overtime basis. Hourly overtime rates varied from $62.38 to $108.25 an hour, depending on the officer's rank, according to the agreement, which expired Dec. 31. It's not uncommon for local police departments to strike up mutual aid agreements Metro Transit has pacts in place with the St. Paul Police and Ramsey County Sheriff's departments and with the University of Minnesota police force. U of M officers currently patrol the Green Line between the West Bank, East Bank and Stadium Village stations. These agreements "provides a uniformed presence" on transit, Morales said, adding it's important to "work smartly and collaboratively." Usually, this collaboration occurs on an as-needed basis. Other cities have struggled with increased crime aboard public transportation as they recover from a ridership decline during the COVID-19 outbreak. Last week, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul called in National Guard soldiers and State Police officers to patrol New York City subway platforms following a spike in crime on the nation's biggest transit system. That doesn't appear to be in the works for Metro Transit, although Gov. Tim Walz served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades. Officials with his office said he continues to implement and develop strategies to improve transit safety. General Manager Lesley Kandarassaid this week Metro Transit hasn't asked for National Guard assistance. "We are always willing to work with our partners to promote public safety," Morales said. "At this time, we're happy where we are." Me The Miami Beach City Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to support a resolution by Mayor Steven Meiner for the city to set parameters for reasonable time, place and manner restrictions for protests, pointing to several pro-Palestinian demonstrations in the city in recent months. The resolution also calls for police to inform elected officials of all protests planned in the city within one hour of police learning a protest is expected to occur. It comes two days after police directed pro-Palestinian protesters to a free speech zone near the Aspen Ideas climate conference at the Miami Beach Convention Center, saying they could not stand directly outside the events entrance for security reasons. READ MORE: Gaza war protesters told to use free speech zone outside Miami Beach climate conference To support his proposal, Meiner cited pro-Palestinian protests at which he claimed our laws have been violated. During a public comment period, the mayor cut off one speaker who referred to the Israeli governments war in Gaza as a genocide and suggested that Meiners proposal was aimed at restricting free speech related to Israel. Im not going to sit here and allow you to make accusations about the Israeli government, Meiner said, calling the statements antisemitic. Several speakers said they believed the proposal was aimed at speech that city officials find objectionable. The U.S. Supreme Court has said governments can limit the time, place and manner of speech if it serves a significant government interest and is content neutral and narrowly tailored. Meiners item Wednesday calls for the city to create restrictions in order to regulate and control future protests and demonstrations to the fullest extent permitted by law. The resolution does not refer to pro-Palestinian protests or any specific types of demonstrations but notes that the city recognizes the importance of fostering strong and peaceful international relations by supporting nations that share [its] values, including the State of Israel. The details of the citys regulations on protests have not yet been determined by city staff. A separate ordinance approved unanimously Wednesday prohibits protesters from blocking streets or sidewalks, making it a crime to obstruct a public right of way after being ordered to leave by police. The ordinance says police should provide protesters an adequate and available alternative forum nearby. Pro-Palestinian protesters rallied outside of Art Basel at the Miami Beach Convention Center on Dec. 8, 2023. Mayor cites protest at synagogue At Wednesdays meeting, Meiner showed video clips of pro-Palestinian demonstrators protesting a speech late last month by lawyer Alan Dershowitz at Temple Emanu-El in Miami Beach. In one clip from outside the synagogue, elderly people are seen crossing the street and walking through a group of protesters chanting and holding signs on a sidewalk. As mayor, I will not tolerate our residents being harassed and accosted and threatened for simply trying to pray, Meiner said, comparing the images to Nazi Germany. There were no reports of protesters causing physical harm to synagogue members. Commissioner David Suarez said he believed the video showed an insufficient police presence outside the synagogue protecting its members and suggested that Police Chief Wayne Jones handling of the incident was grounds for firing. If that was a KKK rally, it would have been different, Suarez said. He added that, as someone who is half Israeli and one of four Jewish elected officials in Miami Beach, including Meiner, he found it concerning that they were not notified of the protest. Jones was sworn in as the first Black police chief of Miami Beach in August. In response to Suarezs comments, Jones said he should have informed elected officials of the protest ahead of time but defended the policing of the event. He said there were 22 police officers present, including four inside the synagogue who removed three protesters who interrupted Dershowitzs speech. Those three people said they had obtained tickets to the event, as previously reported by the Miami Herald. Video showed one of the protesters being physically attacked by a man inside. Jones said during Wednesdays meeting that the protester was battered by a congregant, though no charges have been filed. READ MORE: Protesters forcibly removed from Miami Beach temple hosting Alan Dershowitz, one attacked After Meiners resolution was approved, multiple members of the public said they disagreed with the way Suarez had spoken to the police chief. Miami Beach resident Carla Probus said she supports the Israeli government but was troubled by the conversation. It is a constitutional right to be able to speak, Probus said. Weve got to stop the bullying. Its out of control. Jones told the Herald in a statement after Wednesdays discussion that as the chief of police and a former resident of Miami Beach, I emphasize my unwavering commitment to the safety and well-being of every resident in our city, including our valued Jewish community. Upholding the provisions of the U.S. Constitution and prioritizing the protection of all who live, work and visit in our city remains my top priorities, he said. Previous concerns about pro-Palestinian protest In December, Meiner had raised concerns about a pro-Palestinian protest outside the Convention Center during Art Basel, at which a group of artists unfurled a banner that read, Let Palestine Live. About 100 people rallied while waving Palestinian flags and holding signs to call for a permanent ceasefire in the war in Gaza. During that event, Miami Beach police tried to keep protesters away from Convention Center doors. Police arrested two protesters and charged one with resisting without violence and the other with resisting without violence and disorderly conduct. READ MORE: Artists and activists stage pro-Palestinian protest in front of Art Basel Miami Beach Miami Beach police try to keep pro-Palestinian protesters away from the Miami Beach Convention Center doors at a protest during Art Basel on Dec. 8, 2023. Days later, Meiner sponsored an item on the City Commission agenda in which he pointed out that protesters were chanting the controversial phrase, From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. The mayors item called for the city to set parameters for reasonable time, place and manner restrictions for protests, including discussion of incitement to violence vs. free speech. Meiner never called that item for discussion by the City Commission. It was retooled without any reference to specific pro-Palestinian protests in Wednesdays resolution. This is a nonpartisan government, Meiner said Wednesday. Clearly, we are respectful of free speech. Michaela McAreavey was killed while on honeymoon in Mauritius in 2011 Two County Londonderry men who took part in singing an offensive song mocking the murder of Michaela McAreavey have been convicted of stirring up hatred. The 27-year-old teacher from County Tyrone was killed on honeymoon in 2011. They were two of three men charged over a video streamed from an Orange hall in Dundonald in May 2022. Steven Kane, 26, was sentenced to four months in prison suspended for 18 months, after pleading guilty. His co-accused Dillion Kelly, 22, Edmund Court in Tobermore, denied the charge but was found guilty at Belfast Magistrates' Court and will be sentenced next month. Kelly, and Kane, of Coolshinney Heights in Magherafelt were charged with the same offence. Earlier in March, 23-year-old Cian Jones, from Craigadick Road, Maghera, who also took part was given 240 hours community service, after a guilty plea. Footage of the singing, which involved members of a flute band punching the air as they chanted about the schoolteacher's death, was played in court. 'Abhorrent' The prosecution said the lyrics of the chant mocked the murder of a young Catholic woman in a venue surrounded by Union flags. "The words used can only be regarded by any right-minded person as abhorrent," a lawyer said. "The only reasonable inference is that the intent was to incite hatred," the lawyer added. Kelly declined to give evidence at the hearing, but during police interviews he denied taking part in the singing. His solicitor argued that the lyrics made no reference to Michaela McAreavey's religion. "The song is undoubtedly mocking... but the legislation is not designed to deal with bad taste, even appallingly bad taste," he submitted. The judge ruled that Kelly had joined in the singing. "I'm satisfied, having regard to all the circumstances, that hatred was likely to be stirred up and there will be a conviction," Mr Conner held. Kelly will appear again in six weeks time to be sentenced. The murder victim's widower, John McAreavey, provided a statement describing the distress the singing caused to him and the wider family circle. He said he believed that there was a hateful and hurtful intent behind it. 'Foolish behaviour' Kane's lawyer said he was too young to have been aware of the murder but "foolishly" decided to join in at an alcohol-fuelled environment. "In that male company, being a young man trying to fit in, he went along (with it)," counsel said. He added that his client had lost a well-paid IT job and had to move home due to threats after the footage was published. "This is something that has brought shame to his door and caused a lot of personal problems," he said. Imposing the four-month suspended prison sentence, the judge said: "he has brought so much against himself by such foolish behaviour." A PSNI detective said the sentencing should send a "clear message to those involved in this type of crime that they will be vigorously pursued and brought before the courts to face the consequences of such activity." (Bloomberg) -- Chinas beleaguered solar manufacturers have seen their shares rebound in recent days as speculation mounts that the government will take steps to maintain the industrys rapid build-up of capacity. Most Read from Bloomberg Beijing could end its policy of limiting installations when power curtailments rise above 5% of installed capacity for a given source, according to local media reports, which didnt say where they got the information. The National Development and Reform Commission, which imposed the rule in 2018 to make electricity supply more efficient, didnt respond to a faxed request for comment. To meet its climate targets, China has engaged in a world-leading buildout of renewable energy. But the electricity grid at times has been overwhelmed by the additions, forcing plants to stop generating or even offer power at negative rates. The expansion has also left the solar industry with excess manufacturing capacity, which has weighed heavily on valuations in recent years. Doing away with the cap could allow developers to keep installing solar panels in several regions where grid constraints may have forced them to ratchet back, JP Morgan Chase & Co. analysts including Alan Hon said in a research note on Sunday. The bank has boosted its forecast for installations this year by 21% to 225 gigawatts even higher than last years record. Shares in Xinyi Solar Holdings Ltd., a leading solar glass manufacturer, have surged 10% this week through Tuesdays close in Hong Kong, while equipment-maker Sungrow Power Supply Co. has risen 9.4% in Shenzhen. Top panel producers such as Longi Green Energy Technology Co. and Trina Solar Co. have also seen their stocks gain. Story continues Curtailments have been a persistent headache for the industry because its difficult and costly to store renewable power. Electricity worth billions of dollars was squandered in 2017 when a boom in wind and solar aided by generous government subsidies couldnt be absorbed by the grid. That was followed by years of slower installations. This time might be different. Government officials have softened their tone on wasted power as clean energy becomes a major source of growth for the economy, Hon said. But even if the policy ends, the more fundamental problem with grid congestion will have to be addressed, said Dennis Ip, an analyst with Daiwa Capital Markets. That will require major investment in energy storage and transmission. On the Wire The National Peoples Congress emphasis on cutting Chinas carbon emissions further could brighten the solar sectors outlook. Australian vinters and lawmakers said China proposed lifting punitive tariffs on the nations wine, signaling the end is near to a three-year trade dispute as both countries seek to strengthen ties. Chinas urgent iron ore hunt looks set to increase competition. The Weeks Diary (All times Beijing unless noted.) Wednesday, March 13: China to release February aggregate financing & money supply by March 15 CCTDs weekly online briefing on Chinese coal, 15:00 China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association holds Copper Smelting Enterprise Symposium in Beijing Mysteel hosts international iron ore conference in Qingdao, day 1 Thursday, March 14: Mysteel hosts international iron ore conference in Qingdao, day 2 EARNINGS: Rusal Friday, March 15: China sets monthly medium-term lending rate, 09:20 China new home prices for February, 09:30 China weekly iron ore port stockpiles Shanghai exchange weekly commodities inventory, ~15:30 Mysteel hosts international iron ore conference in Qingdao, day 3 EARNINGS: CATL Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. A mother and her child selling candy on a train in New York, on March 8, 2024. (Andres Kudacki/The New York Times) NEW YORK On a subway platform in the Bronx recently, a girl in a puffer coat strolled past passengers with a basket of M&Ms, Kit Kats and Trident gum slung across her shoulder. She looked to be 7 or 8. One rider captured her on a video posted on X, formerly Twitter, calling out, No parent, no parent, where the parent at? as she walked by. Of all the manifestations of human misery that the two-year-old migrant crisis has brought to New York City, few trouble the conscience more than the sight of children selling candy on the subway sometimes during school hours, sometimes accompanied by parents, sometimes not. Sign up for The Morning newsletter from the New York Times On trains and on social media, New Yorkers have asked: Isnt this child labor? Is it illegal? Shouldnt someone be doing something to help these children? Children between the ages of 6 and 17 are required to be in school. Children under 14 are not allowed to do most jobs. You cant sell merchandise in the transit system without a permit. But whose job is it to do something? Recent queries to seven city and state agencies found the consensus to be not mine. More than 180,000 migrants have been processed by New York City agencies in the last two years, and about 65,000 are staying in homeless shelters. Many of the newcomers are desperate to find ways to survive in an expensive city, but unable to work legally. Selling food is one of their main sources of income. A 16-year-old recently spotted selling candy on a downtown 1 train in Manhattan at 10:45 on a weekday morning said she was there because I have to help my parents. She refused to give her name. The Department of Education has attendance teachers who work to ensure families send their children to school, but they do not go out on patrol. I think Ill refer you to the NYPD on this, a spokesperson wrote. The Police Department said that it issued more than 1,100 summonses last year for unlawful vending and unlawful solicitation/panhandling in the subways. But the department declined to say whether officers are instructed to do anything if they see school-age children selling candy during school hours. The state Labor Department said it was difficult to determine whether the practice of children selling candy in the subway would violate labor law, which generally regulates employment relationships (i.e., between employers and employees). The citys child welfare agency, the Administration for Childrens Services, said that anyone who sees a child in a situation that seems unsafe can call the state child abuse hotline. But the State Office of Children and Family Services, which runs the hotline, said that a child selling merchandise or panhandling would not be considered maltreatment or neglect unless there was a specific concern about possible harm, like children selling candy at a dangerous intersection. (While crime has declined in the subways in recent years, the governor deployed the National Guard and the State Police to subway stations last week to allay persistent concerns about safety.) There are logistical hurdles to addressing the issue. By the time someone called the state hotline and the report was evaluated and passed along to ACS, a candy seller could have already moved to a different location. The police can respond more quickly, but they typically are dispatched only in emergencies. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs the subways, cited its rule against unauthorized commercial activity, which carries a $50 fine, and referred further inquiries to the police and City Hall. Most of the candy sellers come from Ecuador, advocates for migrants say, and photos of children selling candy here have stirred concerns there. When Mayor Eric Adams visited Ecuador in October on a whirlwind tour of Latin America to discourage migrants from coming to New York, a local reporter confronted him at a news conference. Whats going to happen to our Ecuadorian children, who we have seen selling candy in Times Square, in the subway? she demanded. The mayor responded obliquely. I have noticed children selling candy on the streets of all my countries, he said, adding, In New York City, we do not allow our children to be in dangerous environments. Migrants are hesitant to talk about their work or where they buy the candy. New York Magazine reported last year that some get it from wholesalers or cheap stores. Monica Sibri, an Ecuadorian immigrant who advocates for migrants in New York, listed a number of reasons that she said newly arrived migrants had given her for bringing their children with them to sell on the trains. Some, she said, wrongly assume that their children can miss a semester of school and catch up easily. Some face delays getting their children enrolled because of paperwork and vaccination records. Some, she said, sold candy with their children back in Ecuador and are simply doing the same thing here as a temporary measure. The families are not saying they dont want to put their kids in school, Sibri said. What theyre saying is they havent figured out the paperwork that they need to be able to put them in, and some of them arent trusting the system. Sibri and other advocates are holding sessions this spring for migrant children and their families who have become candy sellers, to help provide resources for them to pursue an education and live with dignity. At 2:25 p.m. on Friday on the uptown platform at Columbus Circle in Manhattan, a woman with a small girl and smaller boy was selling Snickers and Welchs Fruit Snacks. Kristina Voronaia, a 32-year-old caterer from Kazakhstan, was sitting near them on the bench and glanced over. It would be better if they were at school, she said. The girl went off by herself in search of customers. Josefina Vazquez, 50, a home health aide, asked where her mother was. Close by, the girl said. Thats bad, Vazquez said, using kids. The candy seller said she was 9 years old. She was not in school, she said in Spanish, because she hadnt gone for a vaccine appointment. Further down the platform, she approached Sandra Acosta beseechingly. Acosta bought a bag of peanut M&Ms. She should be in school, said Acosta, 55, who is also a home health aide. And its dangerous theres a lot of crazy people. She thought a little more and said she felt sympathy for the childs mother. Maybe she doesnt have anyone to leave them with, to care for them, she said. We have to see the balance from both sides. c.2024 The New York Times Company Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., abruptly announced on Tuesday that he will resign from Congress later this month instead of serving out the rest of his term. Buck announced on social media that he would step down at the end of next week. The longtime lawmaker, a member of the House Freedom Caucus who has emerged as a critic of the MAGA wing of the party, previously said he would not run for another term. He was one of three Republicans to vote against the impeachment of Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas and criticized the GOP push to impeach President Joe Biden. The move will shrink the Republican majority to 218 seats to the Democrats 213 seats meaning the GOP cant afford more than two defections on any party-line vote. Democrats are expected to pick up a seat next month in the special election to replace Rep. Brian Higgins, D-N.Y., who resigned last month, but Republicans are in line to add seats in special elections in May and June to replace former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and former Rep. Bill Johnson, R-Ohio, according to Axios. Twenty-three Republican lawmakers have already announced they will not run for re-election but Bucks abrupt departure blindsided House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and House GOP Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., according to Politicos Jonathan Martin. I was surprised by Kens announcement. Im looking forward to talking to him about that, Johnson told reporters on Tuesday, admitting he did not know it was coming. Speaker Mike Johnson was caught off guard by the announcement from Ken Buck retiring early. I was surprised by Kens announcement. I look forward to talking to him about that, he told reporters. He said he did not know in advance: I did not know. pic.twitter.com/7egUzQcBRg Haley Talbot (@haleytalbotcnn) March 12, 2024 The shrinking majority has alarmed some Republican lawmakers. "It lowers the margin and that creates an obvious challenge for leadership," Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., told Axios. Obviously, it makes the numbers much tougher, agreed House Rules Committee Chair Tom Cole, R-Okla. "I am concerned about the majority," Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., told the outlet, adding, "I just wish the rest of our party was." Bucks departure also has the potential effect of short-circuiting Rep. Lauren Boeberts, R-Colo., bid to succeed him, The Associated Press reported. Boebert, who narrowly won re-election in her current district, is running this year in Bucks district after he announced he wouldnt seek re-election. Now, a committee of Colorado Republicans must pick a nominee for a special election to serve out the rest of Bucks term that will be held on the same day as the party primary for the district, according to the AP. That nominee is unlikely to be Boebert, who has no prior ties to the district and has drawn backlash for moving out of her tight district. That means there will only be one nominee on the special election ballot and that person could also be a candidate alongside Boebert on the primary ballot. By resigning early, Ken Buck is giving an advantage to anyone but Lauren Boebert, tweeted former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill. She cannot run in the special election since she already occupies a seat, so another person will be elected to serve out the term, and it wont be Lauren. Former House aide Aaron Fritschner explained that Boebert could run in the special election if she resigns her seat but that would create a new vacancy. But if she doesn't run in the special she risks losing her chance to remain in Congress, he added, noting that its a big headache for House GOP leadership and their small majority. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. Boebert complained that the move has a lot of potential to confuse voters during an XSpace discussion with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and disgraced former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., according to Business Insider. Boebert called Bucks early departure kind of swampy and said that while shes not making any official statement of what Im doing, suggested she would prefer the party nominate someone in the special election who is not running in the primary. "We're all figuring this out," said Boebert. "We're talking to the vacancy committee, seeing what their plan is, seeing if they have someone who's not a candidate who's going to run in the special." Buck told CNN on Tuesday that he was leaving Congress because this place is dysfunctional. Instead of having decorum, instead of operating in a professional manner, this place has just devolved into this bickering and nonsense and not really doing the job for the American people, he said. "And having talked to former members, it's the worst year in 40, 50 years to be in Congress," he added. "But I'm leaving because I think there's a job to do out there that I want to go do." A nationwide debate over the safety of gas stoves is now entering Minnesota politics. Republican state lawmakers are angling to protect gas as an option for home heating and cooking by preventing local governments from banning it. It's an idea that has drawn support from homebuilders and also reflects concern among conservatives of a local or federal crackdown on gas appliances and stoves from climate-conscious Democrats. The DFL may broadly favor carbon-free energy, but two bills preserving gas and propane sponsored by Sen. Andrew Mathews, R-Princeton, were entertained Wednesday by Democratic lawmakers who control the Minnesota Senate. "I haven't seen it in Minnesota yet, I expect it probably will come at some point," Mathews said of local bans. "But other municipalities or states around the country are trying to start limiting and ruling out different sources of energy." The legislation got a hearing in the chamber's Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Committee. The hearing for Mathews' bills do not mean they are on a fast track to become law. The Senate hearing may have been more a gesture of bipartisan goodwill from DFL lawmakers than an endorsement of the policy. House Democrats are also considering energy-efficiency legislation that could lead to less gas in homes. "I do not know that it has the votes to pass out of committee," said Sen. Nick Frentz, a North Mankato DFLer who chairs the energy committee. "I think it's important for us to hear bills from both sides." The focus on gas stoves came after Purdue and Indiana University researchers found that methane emitted from gas stoves in the U.S. had a concentration one to two times greater than that of outdoor air affected by car traffic. The San Francisco Bay Area and New York are among the progressive jurisdictions that have tried to ban or limit the appliances. Mathews' legislation illustrates one priority of Republican legislators who are frustrated with government restrictions on fossil fuels like the landmark DFL climate law targeting a carbon-free electric grid by 2040 and who are wary of any broader effort to halt gas for cooking or heating. Last year, a member of the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission drew backlash from conservatives when he said it was possible the agency could ban gas stoves. President Joe Biden said he wouldn't support a ban and the commission instead advanced a more modest plan aimed at energy efficiency for stoves. Mathews also said his legislation has a wider appeal than Republicans who fear government blocking a cooking option. He said the bills would give more certainty to homebuilders and more choices for consumers at a time when lawmakers have focused on promoting more housing in Minnesota. And he said the trend toward electrifying home heating and cooking along with other energy use like charging electric vehicles could be risky given a strained regional grid. "If we're putting all our eggs in one basket and if something happens to the electric grid then you've got even larger problems," he said. Housing First Minnesota, a trade association representing homebuilders, supported the legislation. Mark Foster, vice president of legislative and political affairs for the organization, said as lawmakers work to boost housing, Mathews' bill would keep "affordable and reliable fuel source options for residential construction legal as well." The St. Paul-based nonprofit Fresh Energy opposed the legislation. In a letter, the organization's public affairs leader Justin Fay wrote that pre-empting local governments "on the front lines of this transition" is unnecessary, and would run counter to the direction energy markets are heading. Fay wrote gas also shouldn't be singled out. "For the state to specifically elevate gas, and only gas, for this type of protection would send an unmistakable signal that all other sources of energy networked geothermal, wind, solar, etc. are not deserving of the same degree of state policy certainty," he said. Last year, the DFL-controlled Legislature passed a law that directs the state to update codes every three years to require increasingly more energy-efficient new commercial buildings. Rep. Larry Kraft, a St. Louis Park DFLer who sponsored the measure, proposed a similar bill this year aimed at updating codes for new residential housing. He said the legislation could lead to less gas because builders aiming for more efficient homes might not pay for a gas hookup if they're already installing electric systems. "It doesn't explicitly say you can't have [gas] but I think economically over time and also health-wise over time that we'll see a transition away from gas being used as much in new homes," Kraft said. He said nothing in his legislation would force people to get rid of gas stoves in their current homes. "I would encourage people to think about doing that from their overall health perspective," Kraft said. "Because as we're learning more and more, gas stoves in homes are really nasty things. But there's nothing we've done to require that." Charges have been dropped in the case of an Orange County Deputy who shot a man during a traffic stop. WATCH CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS 9 Investigates told you last week, the case which centered around a traffic stop - followed by a shooting, was in jeopardy after questions were raised by State Attorney Andrew Bains office. Newly released documents give a look as to why. Read: Madeline Soto case: Stephan Sterns faces 60 new charges A memo from Chief Deputy Ryan Williams stated that Bruce Stolk told investigators he shot Edenilson Urbina in self-defense, but prosecutors didnt believe it because evidence showed he likely fired his weapon accidentally instead. Williams wrote that a former prosecutor went forward with the charge relying entirely on a statement they believed was likely false and presented it to the grand jury as if it was true. Their failure to promptly address Stolks false statements and pursue appropriate charges for two years allowed the statute of limitations to expire, leaving us unable to file any criminal charges against Stolk at this time, said State Attorney Bain. A law enforcement officers conduct must be above reproach and even though Stolks actions do not constitute a provable crime i do not believe he is blameless. Read: Deputies identify woman, 26, killed in Orange County shooting Stolks defense attorney said it should have never been handled this way. They cant have their cake and eat it too, said defense attorney David Bigney. What we do have is a document here that outlines the hypocrisy of the prosecution of this case from the get-go. Much of the testimony has been redacted, as grand jury indictments are sealed, but according to the memo, the states own investigator and an expert witness didnt believe the charge of aggravated battery was warranted or could be proved beyond a reasonable doubt. However, Williams said the grand jury didnt hear all of that. Read: National Kidney Month: 9 ways to help prevent kidney disease Bain sent a statement after those documents were released which said in part, The decision to drop the aggravated battery charge against Bruce Stolk brings to light deeply troubling ethical concerns with the previous administrations handling of this case. Williams blamed the prosecutor who presented the case, but said he believes the direction came from the state attorney herself. As for Stolk, he will be under an internal investigation for that shooting. WFTV has reached out and are awaiting a statement from Sheriff John Mina. A spokesperson for Monique Worrell sent Eyewitness News a statement, which reads: While we appreciate the opportunity to comment, its important to note the irony in critiquing the decision to take this case to the grand jury, especially considering it aligns with the grand jury policy of the appointed administration. The facts of this case are simple: Bruce Stolk shot an unarmed man and stated he did so because he alleged the individual had a gun, but there was never any evidence of a gun. Ryan Williams skepticism about Bruce Stolks honesty regarding this statement does not alter the established facts of the case. Theres evident disagreement regarding the outcome, particularly as State Attorney Worrell had signed off on the case proceeding to the grand jury. However, without access to the case files, providing a meaningful response is impractical. The case files as well as the investigation that led to the Grand Jury indictment are in the sole possession of the appointed administration. Neither Andrew Bain nor Ryan Williams have not been elected by the people of this circuit to prosecute cases on their behalf. Their unjust appointment necessitates justification for this decision, yet their legal analysis is inconsistent with the facts of the case. Their actions fail to represent the will or position of the people who elected the State Attorney to bring accountability to law enforcement when violations of the law are present. Just because this is the decision of the governors appointed administration doesnt mean its in alignment with justice, truth, or the determination made by the Grand Jury months ago. Restoring public trust in law enforcement begins with a State Attorneys Office that can make decisions independent of law enforcements influence. During State Attorney Worrells administration, there were dozens of cases that were reviewed by our Officer-Involved Critical Incidents team that were not prosecuted when a violation of the law was not present. Even in cases where the State Attorney faced public scrutiny for not prosecuting the officers involved. The team she selected was comprised of experienced prosecutors and investigators who presented a case that required the attention of the Grand Jury. Out of all of the cases reviewed, the Grand Jury determined this incident warranted prosecution. This situation is not unique to Florida. Part of the Republican playbook across the country is to vilify and remove elected prosecutors who demand accountability from law enforcement. As the State Attorney mentioned upon her removal, this scenario illustrates precisely what some in law enforcement sought to achieve with her removalspecificallyJohn Mina. Today, that agenda has succeeded, and the part he played in State Attorney Worrells removal has paid off. Read State Attorney Andrew Bains full statement below: The decision to drop the aggravated battery charge against Bruce Stolk brings to light deeply troubling ethical concerns with the previous administrations handling of this case. While we are unable to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt, it is also abundantly clear this criminal charge never should have been pursued after a thorough evaluation of the facts, evidence, a review of Florida law and the ethical rules that guide prosecutors. The previous administrations reliance on Stolks unreliable statement, despite glaring inconsistencies with evidence, reflects a disregard for the pursuit of truth and justice. Their failure to promptly address Stolks false statements and pursue appropriate charges for two years allowed the statute of limitations to expire, leaving us unable to file any criminal charges against Stolk at this time. A law enforcement officers conduct must be above reproach and even though Stolks actions do not constitute a provable crime I do not believe he is blameless. Per the Orange County Sheriffs Offices standard procedures now that the criminal case is closed, they will conduct an internal investigation. We look forward to the results of OCSOs internal investigation into Stolks actions and his truthfulness. There are dangers when prosecutors seek a specific end rather than an objective presentation of the evidence in the interest of furthering justice. As prosecutors, we have special obligations that other attorneys do not, including working as ministers of justice. We promise to uphold ethical rules and regulations that govern prosecutors, including the Rules Regulating the Florida Bar. Florida Bar Rules 4-3.8 and 4-3.3 impose upon a prosecutor the duty to present all material facts known to the lawyer to a grand jury and that was not done in this case. It is my sincere hope the prior administrations actions in this case do not erode the publics trust in the legal system. According to the American Bar Associations Criminal Justice Standards, prosecutors must seek justice within the bounds of the law and should act with integrity and balanced judgment by pursuing appropriate criminal charges of appropriate severity and exercising discretion to not pursue criminal charges in appropriate circumstances all in the interest of increasing public safety. Under my leadership, this office aims to fulfill that promise and be as transparent as legally possible during the process so the public may hold us accountable. WATCH CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS Read: Read: Read: Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. PHELPS COUNTY, Mo. A missing Phelps County, Missouri, teenager has been found safe and a 20-year-old man is in custody. The teenager had been missing since Monday evening. According to a report appearing in the Great Bend Post, Phelps County law enforcement notified police in Atchison, Kansas, about the missing 13-year-old. Atchison police received word that the girl was in the area with a 20-year-old man. Desperate search for Mizzou student missing in Nashville drags on Police located the mans vehicle parked at a hotel. They claim the teenager and man, identified as Osias W. Everson, were inside the hotel. Everson was arrested at the hotel. The Great Bend Post identified Everson as a resident of Deer Lodge, Montana; court documents from the Phelps County Prosecuting Attorneys Office gave an address of Bothell, Washington. Phelps County prosecutors charged Everson with one count of child kidnapping. His bond was set at $500,000. He remains in custody in Atchison County. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. A missing woman from Alabama was found dead in a Florida bay days after police found her apartment unlocked and empty, authorities said. A Florida man has been charged with murder and tampering with evidence, the Dothan Police Department said in a March 12 news release. A friend of 32-year-old Marisa Allen requested a wellness check on Oct. 31 after not being able to reach her, according to authorities. When police arrived, Allen didnt answer the door. They found her back door unlocked and went inside, but Allen was gone, police said. A missing person investigation began, but it took a turn with the discovery of Allens body. On Nov. 5, her body was found 80 miles south in a bay near Lynn Haven in the Florida Panhandle, police said. Investigators then obtained a search warrant for her apartment, where evidence of foul play was found, police said. The Bay County Sheriffs Office in Florida arrested 41-year-old Santeni Green and charged him with tampering with physical evidence. The Panama City man was booked into Bay County jail on Nov. 15, records show. His attorney information is not available in jail records. Green and Allen knew each other, but investigators did not disclose further details about their relationship. Police obtained forensic evidence, and after an analysis that came back March 11, they also charged Green with murder. Investigators believe the crime began in Alabama, so Green will be extradited from Florida to Alabama, a spokesperson for the Dothan Police Department told McClatchy News. Dothan is in southeast Alabama, about a 110-mile drive from Montgomery. Teens body found under bridge after a late-night walk with neighbor, Texas cops say Teen found buried on neighbors property 5 months after going missing, Indiana cops say Woman vanishes after being swept away while crossing river, California cops say Body of missing man pulled from bayou a week after car crash, Louisiana troopers say A Mississippi cop forced a man to drink his own urine while detained in a holding cell, according to federal court papers first obtained by The Daily Beast. Patrolman Michael Christian Green of the Pearl Police Department was dispatched to a local Sams Club on Dec. 23, 2023 to handle a family disturbance call, according to a bill of information unsealed Wednesday. There, Green arrested a man identified in court filings as B.E., and transported him to the police station for booking. While B.E. was waiting to be processed, he needed to use the bathroom, the bill of information says. So, he knocked on the door of the cell he was in to try and get Greens attention. B.E. attempted to communicate to Green that he needed to urinate, the document states. After waiting a period of time for a response, B.E. walked to the back of the cell and urinated in a corner. At some point later, Green returned to the cell to retrieve B.E. and escort him to the booking area, according to the information. When they got to their destination, another officer called Green and told him that someone had urinated in the holding cell, it says. Green looked at B.E. and stated, Let me tell you somethin. You see this phone? I will beat your fucking ass with it. Youre fixin to go in there and youre gonna lick that piss up. Do you understand me? U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi Green again commanded B.E. to lick it up, and that he needed to go suck it up right now, the information goes on. Green returned B.E. to the cell, then stood in the doorway and instructed B.E. to get on the ground and suck it up, it continues. Green removed his duty vest and filmed B.E. while B.E. got on the ground and licked his urine, the information states. B.E. gagged when he made contact with the floor. In response to B.E.s gagging, Green told B.E., Dont spit it out. B.E. gagged again. Green responded to B.E.s second gagging episode by stating, Lick that shit up. Drink your fuckin piss. B.E. gagged a third time. Green did not have a government interest or law enforcement purpose in ordering B.E. to lick his urine. B.E. was eventually permitted to exit the holding cell and return to the booking area, according to the information, which says he then repeatedly vomited into the booking area garbage can. He was later transported to the Rankin County Detention Center. The incident was also captured on jailhouse security cameras. Green, who was unable to be reached on Wednesday, is charged with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law. His attorney, Bradley Alan Oberhousen, did not respond to The Daily Beasts request for comment. If convicted, Green faces up to one year in prison. He is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday afternoon. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. As Missouri abortion rights groups mount a campaign to overturn the states ban on abortion, new polling suggests that the petition does not currently have the required majority support to pass on the ballot. But proponents of the measure still have significant time to boost support and past polling indicates that a majority of Missourians are in favor of some form of abortion access. The poll, released Wednesday by Saint Louis University and British pollster YouGov, found that a plurality of 44% of those surveyed supported the proposed constitutional amendment to overturn the ban while 37% disagreed. The remaining 19% said they were not sure, a percentage of voters that abortion rights supporters will have to tap into. The proposed constitutional amendment, if it were to reach the ballot, would require support from more than 50% of votes cast to pass. The survey of 900 likely Missouri voters was conducted between Feb. 14 and Feb. 26. It has a margin of error of 3.74%. The poll also asked voters to weigh in on a host of other issues, including results that suggest Missourians generally favor the death penalty and which candidates voters would support in the upcoming race for Missouri governor. Steve Rogers, an associate professor of political science at Saint Louis University who directed the poll, said that he expects the proposed constitutional amendment would pass in a general election. But he said that support could hinge on informing voters about what the measure would do. Theres going to need to be a little bit of education going on about what this constitutional amendment is about, he said. Rogers pointed to the significant percentage of voters who said they were unsure about the proposal voters he said he was confident have opinions on abortion. Unlike the poll, voters will be unable to select a not sure option if the measure reaches the ballot. There are people out there that do have opinions about abortiongenerally those opinions are more favorable towards legalizing abortion. But the constitutional amendment language may be a little more dense, Rogers said. The campaign called Missourians for Constitutional Freedom is currently seeking to gather roughly 171,000 signatures by May 5 to get the measure to a statewide vote either in November or at an earlier election if called by Republican Gov. Mike Parson. The proposed constitutional amendment would enshrine the right to an abortion in the state constitution but also give lawmakers leeway to regulate the procedure after fetal viability. The measure defines fetal viability as the point in pregnancy when, in the good faith judgment of a treating health professional and based on the particular facts of the case, there is a significant likelihood of the fetuss sustained survival outside the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures. Thursdays poll appears to be the first public survey that analyzed Missouri voters support of the exact wording of the proposed constitutional amendment. Supporters of the procedure have consistently pointed to general support for abortion rights statewide. Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Kansas City Democrat, told The Star at the beginning of this years legislative session that its important for the campaign to focus on the people who have been harmed by the states ban on abortion. Its fundamentally about rights, she said. Daughters and granddaughters have fewer rights under this Missouri government than they did a couple of years ago. Some opponents of the procedure have over the past several months acknowledged voter support for abortion rights and Missouri Republicans have embarked on a plan to curb direct democracy by raising the threshold for constitutional amendments to pass on the ballot in an attempt to block the proposal. Rep. Brian Seitz, a Branson Republican, said before the poll was released that he didnt think the abortion rights petition would reach the ballot. He also touted the Republican-led effort to make it harder for voters to amend the state constitution. Missouri is gonna stay a pro-life state, he said. And were gonna work very hard to keep it that way. The poll results found that support for the measure was largely split among party lines. For Democratic voters, 71% supported the measure while 11% disagreed. The remaining 19% were unsure. And 24% of Republican voters supported the amendment while 56% were against it and 20% were unsure. The results come as women and medical providers across the state have grappled with and criticized the states ban on abortion, which was triggered after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the federal right to the procedure in 2022. Shortly after the ban went into effect, SLU and YouGov released polling that showed a majority of Missourians support some level of legal abortion and disagreed with the states abortion ban. The 2022 poll found that 58% of those surveyed supported a womans right to an abortion after eight weeks of pregnancy compared to 32% who disagreed. It also showed that 75% of respondents agreed that a women should be able to get an abortion in a cases of rape and 79% supported abortions in cases of incest. Missouris abortion ban does not include exceptions for rape or incest. Only a single exception, for medical emergencies, was included. The 2022 poll results also showed that a plurality of 48% would support a ballot initiative to reverse the ban. Republicans expected to keep governors office Wednesdays poll also analyzed Missouri voters thoughts on the upcoming race for governor, indicating that Republicans are expected to hold onto the office this year as the state has grown staunchly Republican. The poll found that 52% of those surveyed would vote for a Republican candidate for governor while 38% would vote for a Democratic candidate. Only 8% said they were not sure. Of the Republican candidates for governor, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft was leading in the poll with 18% of respondents saying they would most likely support his campaign. Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe was second in the poll with 8% followed by Sen. Bill Eigel with 5%. But a majority of respondents, 52%, said they were still not sure. The poll also dove deeper into the results, specifically asking the 414 voters who said they would support a Republican candidate which candidate they would support. Those results showed Ashcroft still in the lead with 28% support followed by Kehoe with 10% and Eigel with 8%. On the other side of the political aisle, the poll showed House Minority Leader Crystal Quade leading in the Democratic primary for governor with 8% of voters saying they would support her campaign. Of the voters who said they would vote for the Democratic candidate, Quade had broader support with 21% of respondents saying they would support her campaign. While Democrats are a longshot to take the governors office, Quades campaign could receive a boost if the abortion amendment is placed on the same ballot, Rogers said. Missouri is a red state, but theres a lot of pro-choice voters out there so that can help Crystal Quade, he said. Can that help her overcome like a 14% deficit? Thatd be impressive. But we have seen many impressive things in politics in the last 10, 20 years. The next two Democratic candidates who received support in the poll were Springfield businessman Mike Hamra, who has not yet filed for governor, and Rep. Sarah Unsicker, whose filing fee was rejected by the Missouri Democratic Party after she was ousted from the House Democratic caucus over her affiliation with a man decried as a Holocaust denier. Missourians thoughts on the death penalty The poll showed that Missourians generally favor the use of the death penalty, but support for capital punishment drops off when a jury does not unanimously agree to a death sentence. Sixty-five percent of men and 60% of women favor death penalty sentences in cases of first-degree murder. The poll also found: Support varied more widely by race: 63% of white people support the death penalty while support among Black people was at 51%. Thirty-seven percent of the Democrats surveyed favored the death penalty while 86% of Republicans and 58% of Independence voiced support for it. Education levels factored in strongly. Seventy-two percent of people with a high school education or less support the death penalty. That rate dropped to 64% for those with some college, 58% for those with a four-year degree and 44% for those with a graduate degree. Missouri is one of three states along with Florida and Indiana that allow a judge to impose the death penalty. Forty-eight percent of those surveyed said they favored that system, while 35% opposed it and 16% were unsure. The majority of people 52% support allowing the governor to change a capital sentence to life without parole. According to a Gallup poll released in November, a majority of Americans now believe the death penalty is applied unfairly. Fifty-three percent said they still support the death penalty, down from 60% a decade ago. Two lethal injections are scheduled in Missouri so far this year: Brian Dorsey is scheduled to be executed April 9 and David Russell Hosier is scheduled for June 11. (Bloomberg) -- Most Read from Bloomberg Australian vintners and lawmakers said China proposed lifting punitive tariffs on the nations wine, signaling the end is near to a three-year trade dispute as both countries seek to strengthen ties. Treasury Wine Estates Ltd. referenced Chinas plan in an exchange filing on Tuesday, adding that the final decision will be made in the coming weeks. The Ministry of Commerce in Beijing did not respond to a question about when they would release the report. The interim recommendation to remove tariffs on Australian wine is a welcome development, Australias Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement on Tuesday. It vindicates the governments preferred approach of resolving trade issues through dialog rather than disputation, he added. In a separate statement, Foreign Minister Penny Wong pledged to continue to push for all remaining trade impediments to be removed. Removing the import taxes would help revive a billion-dollar Australian market and put an end to Beijings yearslong campaign of punitive trade actions to try to influence policy in Canberra. Before tariffs of up to 218% were imposed on Australian wine in March 2021, China was Australias largest market for vintners, accounting for A$1.1 billion ($728 million) in 2019. This is a positive step towards resuming trade with what was formerly our largest export market, said Lee McLean, chief executive of Australian Grape & Wine Inc., who said the industry remains hopeful about Beijings proposed removal of the tariffs. We are optimistic yet cautious with this news as there is a very large job for Australian winemakers to re-invigorate this market after three years of being out of it, said Mitchell Taylor, third-generation winemaker at Taylors Wines. Despite the challenge, Taylor said this is a big win for the industry which has been under enormous pressure as it sought to adjust to changing economic circumstances. Story continues With the lifting of the wine tariffs now highly likely, China is on the brink of ending its trade campaign against Australia, as the interim plan unveiled on Tuesday becomes the latest in a slew of positive developments. Chinas Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian this week said things are moving on right tracks with the right direction on the wine tariff review. Last month, Farrell made similar remarks. The wine tariffs were part of a series of trade curbs to punish Canberra for actions including calls by then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison for an international probe into the origins of Covid-19. Australia withstood the backlash from its largest trading partner, even as the specific industries targeted were hurt. Australias ability to ride out the trade tensions, with effectively no public concessions to Beijing, raises questions about the effectiveness of Chinas campaign. The tariff news comes at a good time for local wine producers as Australia is struggling with historically high inventory levels, according to a report by Wine Australia. In August, Rabobank estimated it would take at least two years to work through a glut. At the time, the bank estimated Australia had 2.8 billion bottles of wine in storage enough to fill 859 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Before the trading issue, we exported 150 cases of wine a year, said Alex Xu, a director of the Royal Star Wine Company. Now we only export 10 containers to other countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and India. But these markets arent as profitable as the Chinese market. --With assistance from Janine Phakdeetham, Michael Heath and Evelyn Yu. (Updates chart with latest data.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. FOX 2 (WJBK) - Mitch Albom, a Detroit Free Press columnist, was airlifted out of Haiti on Tuesday along with a group of volunteers from Michigan. Haiti is once again facing a wave of chaos fueled by ongoing gang wars. The helicopter extraction took place in the middle of the night, Albom told FOX 2. It was spearheaded by congress members Lisa McClain and Corey Mills. "It was something that was planned for several days. You have to be very careful, because there are gangs out, and they've been known to shoot at helicopters for fear that they might be carrying Ariel Henry the prime minister who has now stepped down." After multiple failed attempts to escape Haiti with other groups, Albom, his wife Janine Sabino, and the eight volunteers they were with are now safe. "It was very, very fast, very, very hectic, like something out of a movie," Albom said. "But what's important to remember isn't just that we got out, it's that there's so many people there who are still there Americans, Canadians who are not getting the help that they need, particularly from their governments." Mitch Albom. (Photo from HaveFaithHaiti.org) Albom was in Port-au-Prince for his monthly visit to an orphanage that is run by his charity, Have Faith Haiti. He was supposed to leave on Saturday but got stuck there due to the ongoing conflict. The organization provides nourishment, education, and more for children in need and orphans of Haiti, according to its website. "What's most important is that our kids and other Haitians like them don't have an option to get out. And we got to feel what that was like, for seven or eight days when you can't go home and they say 'there is no airport, and there is no boats, and there are no borders, and there's no roads that you can go on, you go where we tell you to go.' And that's a very frightening way to live, and that's how our kids have to live all the time." Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry announced Tuesday that he will resign once a transitional presidential council is created, bowing to international pressure that seeks to save the country overwhelmed by violent gangs that some experts say have unleashed a low-scale civil war. "I pray that there's some kind of change, but it can't go on the way it was," Albom said. "I've seen a lot of violence in Haiti, and we were there when the President got assassinated, but this last stretch was as bad as I've ever seen. Police stations literally set on fire and destroyed, office buildings, Interior Ministry buildings, the building which contains all of our paperwork for all the orphanages in Haiti it was overrun by people needing shelter. And they destroyed the building trying to find a place to sleep at night. This isn't a way for people to live." Street battles between anti-government gangs and police have crippled Haitis fragile economy, with United Nations officials saying half of the countrys more than 11 million inhabitants dont have enough to eat and 1.4 million are starving. "Basic necessities of life are just denied, or they jack up the prices on it because it's like a black market thing," Albom said. "When violence and terror reign, normal life can't go on, and it's not fair to the people who have to live with that all the time." The AP News contributed to this report. McDonald's says it's hiring, but who's the real employer? (Associated Press) The Biden administration's support of worker rights and union organizing has become a byword. President Biden has restored the National Labor Relations Board to its traditional role as protector of collective bargaining rights. He walked the United Auto Workers picket line during its ultimately successful contract negotiations with the Big Three automakers. He has nominated and renominated the outstanding worker advocate Julie Su as secretary of Labor. And he swept a gaggle of Trump-appointed union-busters and anti-union ideologues out of a key federal agency responsible for ruling on disputes involving government union contracts. As major companies have consciously invested in building brands...as the cornerstone of their business strategy, they have also shed their role as the direct employer of the people responsible for providing their products and services. David Weil, "The Fissured Workplace" But now he has run up against a brick wall of hard-right anti-union ideology put in place by his predecessor: another Trump-appointed ultra-partisan federal judge using his perch in an obscure courthouse to make policy for the entire nation. We're talking about J. Campbell Barker of the U.S. District Court of Tyler, Texas. Last week Barker, ruling in a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and 12 other business lobbies, invalidated an NLRB rule aimed at broadening the standard by which big corporations could be held jointly responsible for the welfare and unionization rights of workers employed by their franchisees. Barker was appointed by Trump in 2019 after a career as a Texas state lawyer writing briefs to restrict voting rights and LGBTQ+ rights, supporting Trump's travel ban on Muslim-majority nations and attacking access to contraceptives and abortion. On March 8, he ruled that the NLRB's joint-employer regulation, issued in October, was so broad that it would "treat virtually every entity that contracts for labor as a joint employer." Story continues Many workers whose wages or workplace conditions were effectively dictated by big companies that fobbed their responsibilities onto franchise owners would consider that anything but a drawback. The NLRB is certain to appeal Barker's decision, probably to the New Orleans-based 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has set its own standard for far-right judicial overreach. The board had earlier argued that Barker shouldn't have taken the lawsuit in the first place, because by law NLRB final rules can be appealed only to the federal appeals court in the District of Columbia. Barker rejected that argument. Read more: Column: Elon Musk is suing to stop the government from enforcing labor laws. The Supreme Court might agree with him Big business has been fighting efforts to broaden legal interpretations of joint-employer status for decades. The plaintiffs in this lawsuit included lobbies for builders, restaurants, hotels and convenience stores. Many of them base their business models on their ability to control workplace conditions from afar while pushing legal liability for labor violations onto franchise owners, whom they often describe (inaccurately) as small mom-and-pop operations just scraping by. Among the plaintiffs is the Chamber of Commerce of Longview, Texas. Longview is a small city in the east Texas oil patch; presumably its chamber was recruited because the plaintiffs figured that its presence would give them standing to sue in the federal district court in Tyler, which has two judges, both appointed by Donald Trump, including Barker. They got their wish. Another plaintiff is the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace. You might suppose that an organization bearing that name represents the whole panoply of business stakeholders, from fast-food workers to corporate employers, but no. "Democratic" here means much the same thing as it did when "German Democratic Republic" signified a Communist dictatorship in East Germany, which was anything but a democratic workers' paradise. The coalition comprises 600 employer groups "joined by their mutual concern over regulatory overreach by the National Labor Relations Board." Now let's turn to the lawsuit itself. If you surmise that its opening brief, filed on Nov. 9, bristled with disinformation, you would be right. The brief stated that the NLRB "rammed" the rule changes through on the claim that "the 90-year-old National Labor Relations Act has been misinterpreted for most of its existence." (Actually, the board is only 88 years old.) A couple of points here. First, it's a little unclear what the plaintiffs meant by "ramming through" the new rule. The NLRB first proposed the rule in September 2022, and didn't promulgate it until 13 months later. In the interim it put the proposal out for public comments, of which it received 13,000. Read more: Column: American unions have finally remembered how to win The plaintiffs implied that the NLRB's joint-employer rules have been static since the board's founding in 1935. Nothing could be further from the truth. The standard came before the Supreme Court more than once, starting in 1964. The board amended it, sometimes narrowing and sometimes expanding its definition of joint employer, in 1982, 2002, 2007, 2018 and 2020, before the latest version was issued in October. The plaintiffs wring their hands over the fact that the board reversed a rule that it "promulgated just three years ago." You might ask yourself: Hmm, what changed in Washington between 2020 and 2023? If you guessed that the Trump administration was turned out of office and replaced by the Biden administration, well done. The latter gave the NLRB a Democratic majority, just as the former had given it a Republican majority. Presidents have the power to do that and most have done so when they were succeeding a president of the other party. So when the plaintiffs depict the board as an unchanging entity that reversed itself, they're lying, possibly in the hope that a judge will be too stupid to notice their sleight of hand. Or too partisan to care. But they can't avoid explicitly stating their true concern with the joint-employer rule: The rule threatens employers with "billions of dollars in liability and costs." Defining joint-employer responsibilities has become more important in recent decades as more businesses turn to the franchise model, which gives fast-food, hotel and retailing behemoths plausible deniability over how their front-line workers are treated and paid. "As major companies have consciously invested in building brands ... as the cornerstone of their business strategy," labor expert David Weil wrote in his 2014 book "The Fissured Workplace," "they have also shed their role as the direct employer of the people responsible for providing their products and services." The trend, Weil wrote, encompasses hotel maids, cable installers, commercial janitors and merchandise pickers in Amazon warehouses all are actually on the payroll of third-party employment firms. Read more: Column: It's a happy Labor Day indeed after NLRB cracks down on employer sabotage of union elections (By the way, Biden nominated Weil in 2021 to a high-level position at the Department of Labor, but the nomination was killed by opposition from Republicans and Big Business.) In recent years, the principal target of joint-employer cases at the NLRB has been McDonald's. That's unsurprising, since with more than $119 billion in overall international sales it's the largest franchisor in the world. The Obama-era NLRB brought a massive case against the company and 29 franchisees in 2014, which turned into what was regarded as the biggest case the board ever instituted, and the longest. The main issue was whether the company had participated in in fact, helped to run a nationwide attack on the Fight for $15 union campaign for a higher minimum wage at its restaurants. Then-NLRB general counsel Richard Griffin alleged at the outset that the franchisees fired, suspended, cut work hours, threatened, spied on and interrogated employees involved in the union campaign, all of which he interpreted as illegal responses to union organizing. Administrative Law Judge Lauren Esposito cited evidence that the anti-union response was "formulated and implemented" from McDonald's headquarters in Chicago and that the company provided franchisees with "suggested policies" and legal training in labor relations so much so that the company was properly regarded as the franchise workers' joint employer. By the time Esposito prepared to rule, Trump was president. He replaced Griffin with Peter Robb, whose record as an anti-labor lawyer was well nigh unassailable and whose hostility to the joint-employer rule was manifest. Before Esposito could rule, Robb settled the cases against the franchisees by ordering back pay for the workers who were fired or had their hours cut. But the settlements didn't involve McDonald's Corp., which therefore skated on the joint-employer issue. Read more: Column: Businesses keep complaining about shoplifting, but wage theft is a bigger crime Esposito rejected the settlements, but she was overruled by the NLRB's new, Republican majority. The sole dissent came from Lauren McFerran, an Obama appointee who was the only Democrat then on the board. "A finding of joint-employer status," she wrote, "would have important collateral consequences for McDonalds, in both unfair labor practice proceedings involving its franchisees and ... if workers employed at McDonalds franchisees sought to organize (that is, unionize)." In other words, the Trump NLRB moved heaven and Earth to keep McDonald's from being declared a joint employer. McFerran is now chair of the NLRB, presiding over a 3-1 Democratic majority. (One seat on the five-member board is vacant.) The NLRB's joint-employer rule would bring millions of workers typically low-wage workers without health or retirement benefits and virtually no job security under the umbrella of their well-heeled ultimate employers. It's possible, if not certain, that they would see an improvement in their working lives, through better wages and more opportunity to unionize. Even big franchisees or labor brokers don't have to care about their public image most customers don't even know they exist. But McDonald's, Marriott, Walmart and Amazon have a lot to lose in public esteem by getting tagged as an abuser of workers. If the NLRB had its way, they would no longer be getting away with shedding their responsibilities. Let's hope that Judge Barker's ruling is a temporary obstacle to making the world work better. Get the latest from Michael Hiltzik Commentary on economics and more from a Pulitzer Prize winner. Sign me up. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. FIRST ON FOX: Twenty-six attorneys general across the U.S. penned a letter to Senate leadership on Wednesday urging the passage of H.R. 7511, or the Laken Riley Act, which would detain illegal immigrants for some criminal offenses until they can be deported. Led by South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr and Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, the lawmakers wrote to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., saying the bill needs "immediate attention." "President Bidens repeated actions of ignoring the rule of law and abandoning successful policies have created a border crisis of historic proportions," the letter states. "As attorneys general, we are fighting to preserve the rule of law and keep our states safe when the federal government fails to act or, in the case of illegal immigration, actively makes it worse. To that end, we applaud the bills enforcement provision for State Attorneys General." REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN INTRODUCES LAKEN RILEY ACT Laken Rileys killing has gripped the nation as the border crisis continues. "Unfortunately, the entire country has seen the news of the tragic and avoidable murder of Laken Riley. In broad daylight, Jose Ibarra is alleged to have brutally attacked and killed Riley while she was on a morning run. Reports show Rileys skull was beaten so violently with an unidentified object that her skull was disfigured," the attorneys general wrote. "Rileys death could have been prevented on multiple fronts, but the system failed her," the prosecutors wrote, adding that H.R. 7511 is "a strong bill that can act as another arrow in the quiver when it comes to combatting illegal immigration and protecting Americans." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP In addition to Florida and South Carolina, attorneys general in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Utah and West Virginia all signed the letter. The House of Representatives last week passed the Laken Riley Act, which would require federal immigration authorities to detain illegal immigrants charged with local theft or burglary, after Ibarra, who was accused of similar offenses, was arrested for Riley's murder. LAKEN RILEYS MOTHER SPEAKS OUT ABOUT AVOIDABLE TRAGEDY AFTER DAUGHTERS FUNERAL A group of migrants wait to be processed in Jacumba, California. The act, which was passed by a 251-170 vote, is named after 22-year-old Laken Riley, a college nursing student who was recently killed on the campus of the University of Georgia. Jose Antonio Ibarra, the illegal immigrant from Venezuela charged with the brutal murder, was arrested in New York prior to the murder, but was not detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Before being charged with felony murder, Ibarra was once arrested in New York for endangering a child, and he was cited in Georgia for misdemeanor shoplifting in October 2023 along with his brother, Diego Ibarra, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. After the bill's passage in the House, the author of the bill, Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., urged the Senate to take up the legislation immediately to "ensure justice for Laken and give ICE more tools to detain and deport criminal illegal aliens before they commit more serious crimes." TRUMP MET WITH LAKEN RILEYS FAMILY BACKSTAGE BEFORE GEORGIA RALLY: 'PROFOUNDLY HONORED' A red, black and white bow is among scores of memorials attached to trees, Feb. 29, 2024, in preparation for the funeral at Woodstock City Church for nursing student Laken Riley. In addition to requiring ICE to issue a detainer for illegal aliens charged with theft or burglary, the bill will also allow individual states to take action against the federal government "if an immigration related action harms the state or its citizens." On Wednesday, two Senate Republicans introduced the Senate version of the bill as a companion to H.R. 7511. Fox News' Kyle Morris, Greg Norman, Aubrie Spady, Thomas Phippen, and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report. Original article source: More than 25 state attorneys general urge Senate to pass Laken Riley Act Kaduna, Nigeria Gunmen have abducted dozens of people from a northwest Nigerian village, according to two local representatives and a United Nations source, just days after the kidnapping of more than 250 pupils from a school in the same state. A ransom demand emerged on Wednesday for the release of the larger group, taken last week, meanwhile. CBS News correspondent Debora Patta says armed groups, known locally as bandits, have wreaked havoc for years in northern Nigeria, where they target villagers, motorists on highways and students in schools, hoping to barter for ransom payments. The latest attack took place around midnight, with gunmen firing sporadically to scare residents in Kaduna state's Kaiuri district. It follows a similar pattern seen over the last couple weeks in remote communities across northern Nigeria, where there is little security and residents have been left feeling helpless. Nura Ahmad, assistant head teacher of LEA Primary and Secondary School, speaks during an interview in Kuriga, Kaduna, Nigeria, March 9, 2024, after gunmen seized more than 250 students from the schools. / Credit: Sunday Alamba/AP The spate of recent abductions drew a warning from a regional security expert, who told CBS News' producer Sarah Carter over the weekend that Nigerian security forces appeared to have lost control of the country. Tuesday's abductions in Kaiuri came as security forces searched for the pupils who were kidnapped last week from their school in Kuriga village, about 93 miles away in the same state. Before that, gunmen abducted another group of children early Saturday morning from a school in Sokoto, another state in northwest Nigeria. Saturday's was a smaller kidnapping, with about 15 children said to be missing, but it was the third incident reported in just a week following reports that as many as 300 internally displaced people had gone missing near a camp in the northeast state of Borno. The security expert, David Otto, told CBS News many of those individuals likely were not abducted, but rather chose to leave the grim situation in their IDP camp and return to the bush and, in many cases, to relatives aligned with the terror group Boko Haram. The mass kidnappings come almost 10 years after Boko Haram militants triggered a huge international outcry in 2014 by abducting more than 250 schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno state. About 100 of them remain missing. The series of large-scale abductions is challenging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's government, which promised to tackle insecurity while also managing a cost-of-living crisis and bringing more investment to Africa's most populous nation. Nigerian officials have not provided information on the Tuesday abductions in Kaiuru, but local councillor Abubakar Buda told Channels TV that gunmen stormed the village early in the morning, going house-to-house to kidnap residents and opening fire sporadically. Buda said a military intervention stopped more people from being kidnapped, according to Channels. State lawmaker Usman Danlami Stingo told Arise News that 32 women and 29 men had been snatched. A U.N. source, who was not authorized to speak publicly to the media, also told AFP that gunmen stormed the village early Tuesday morning and that "around 60" people were taken. Former Nigerian Senator Shehu Sani told CBS News on Wednesday that the bandits would likely split up the people they seized to avoid drone detection while they negotiate with the government for ransom payments. Nigeria's criminal gangs know the families themselves don't have money to pay for their loved ones' return, but they've made a lucrative business out of abducting people for ransom anyway. The still-unidentified group of bandits behind the huge Kuriga kidnapping have demanded about $620,430 for their release, a spokesperson for the hostages' families and a local councillor told the Reuters news agency on Wednesday. A general view of Kuriga school, in northern Nigeria's Kaduna state, March 8, 2024, after more than 280 pupils were kidnapped by gunmen. / Credit: Haidar Umar/AFP via Getty Images Reuters quoted the spokesperson, Jubril Aminu, a local community leader, as saying he'd received a call on from the kidnappers on Tuesday demanding "a total of a 1 billion (naira) ransom" for all of the students and a few staff members taken from the adjoining elementary and high schools. "They gave an ultimatum to pay the ransom within 20 days, effective from the date of the kidnap (March 7)," Aminu told Reuters, adding: "They said they will kill all the students and the staff if the ransom demand is not met." Reuters said Idris Ibrahim, an elected member of the Kuriga Ward council, had confirmed the 1 billion naira ransom demand, and added that security forces were trying to track the kidnappers and taking "adequate measures" to secure the students' release. President Tinubu said later Wednesday that he had ordered security forces not to pay the ransom, but several officials told CBS News that, in the past, the government has quietly dealt with kidnappers and made some ransom payments without public acknowledgement. Kidnapping is illegal in Nigeria and carries a possible life sentence, but so is paying kidnappers ransom officially, at least. Sani, the former senator, said the government would likely pay the ransom but not disclose any details of the negotiations or any payment made. The gangs use ransom money to buy more weapons and expand their areas of operation. A screengrab taken from video shows families of abducted pupils gathering during the visit of Kaduna state Gov. Uba Sani on March 7, 2024, after gunmen kidnapped more than 280 pupils from a school in Kuriga, Kaduna, northern Nigeria. / Credit: AFPTV/AFP via Getty Images Troops were still scouring forests in the northwest, meanwhile, in an effort to rescue the students kidnapped last week from Kuriga, but families have said they've been given little information since the abductions. "We will continue praying for divine help in resolving this tragedy while the government takes up the issue with the kidnappers," relative Muhammad Kabir told AFP on Wednesday. On Tuesday, inspector-general of the national police force Kayode Egbetokun vowed to deploy officers across the state to "allay fears and build confidence of Kaduna residents, especially those in rural communities." Why a judge dismissed some charges against Trump, others in Georgia election case Watch: SpaceX successfully launches Super Heavy-Starship rocket on 3rd test flight Trump expected back in court, trying to get classified documents case dismissed 92% of Ukrainians regularly donate to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine or those affected by the conflict, which is 2% more than in 2022. Source: a study on the Consumer Sentiment of Ukrainians in the Second Year of Full-Scale Invasion conducted by Deloitte 33% of respondents donate systematically, 13% higher than in 2022. The study indicates that the number of Ukrainians who donate regularly while being abroad has more than doubled, from 17% to 38%. At the same time, the vast majority of consumers (70%) continue to boycott products/sellers who have not left the Russian market. Quote: "Ukrainians have the most trust in fundraising by acquaintances, friends, and colleagues. More than 75% of respondents join such initiatives, with an average donation amount being UAH 147 (about US$4). These are followed by large charitable foundations, including Return Alive, the Serhiy Prytula Foundation, and the Lachen (Ihor Lachenkov) fundraising campaigns, to which almost 71% of respondents donate. Also, a significant part of the population more than 60% donates via UNITED24, the official fundraising platform, with an average donation amount being UAH 121 (about US$3)." The survey of Ukrainians that formed the basis of the study was conducted during the period from 13 to 28 November 2023 and completed by more than 1,000 respondents representing all regions of Ukraine (other than temporarily occupied territories and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea), aged 18 and older, who use smartphones. The survey was held by means of online interviews based on a quota sample that corresponds to the social and demographic portrait of Ukrainian people. Support UP or become our patron! An inflatable green pig known as Bacon towers over the parade route in downtown Ventura during the annual St. Patrick's Day parade in 2023. The parade returns Saturday morning. You dont need the luck of the Irish to enjoy St. Patricks Day on Sunday in Ventura County. There's plenty of fun afoot over the weekend. Here's a leprechaun-friendly guide to some local gatherings: Camarillo Ninth Annual Beer March: 1-4 p.m. Sunday. Craft beer, wine, cocktails and treats will be served at Old Town locations along Ventura Boulevard. The event includes bands and a St. Patrick's Day costume contest. Tickets cost $45 in advance and $60 at the door. For more information, go to camarillo-old-town-association.ticketleap.com. Oxnard St. Patricks Day Tea Party: 1-3 p.m. Saturday at Heritage Square Hall, 715 S. A St. The event will include a costume contest, games and boutique shopping. Cost is $50. More information is at visitoxnard.com/events/st-patricks-day-tea-party. Ventura Irish Mass: 8 a.m. Friday at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, 3175 Telegraph Road. The service is presented by the Ventura Ancient Order of Hibernians, which will also participate in the County Ventura St. Patricks Day Parade. For more information, call Paul Caron at 805-701-7574 or John McNally at 805-804-7558. County Ventura St. Patricks Day Parade: 10 a.m. Saturday on Main Street, from Lincoln Drive to Fir Street. The 70 entries will vary from high school bands to equestrians and a giant green, inflatable pig. To learn more, go to www.venturastpatricksdayparade.com. St. Patricks Day Party: 1-6 p.m. Sunday at Topa Topa Brewing Co., 4880 Colt St. Claddagh Irish Dancers, Ventura City Firefighters Pipes and Drums and fiddlers will perform during the Rotary Club of Ventura-East event. Tickets cost $25 and include Irish stew and beer. Proceeds will benefit the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Ventura County Medical Center and Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Californias Walk for Kids. For details, visit rotaryventuraeast.org. Dargans: Bagpipers will perform throughout the day Sunday at the Irish restaurant, 593 E. Main St. Ventura City Firefighters Pipes and Drums will perform that evening. More information is at dargansventura.com. Thousand Oaks Crown & Anchor: Bagpipers, drums and dancers will perform at 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the British restaurant, 2891 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd. Bagpipers will also play at 12:30, 4:30, 7 and 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Learn more at crownnanchor.com. This story may be updated. Dave Mason covers East County for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at dave.mason@vcstar.com or 805-437-0232. This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: St. Patrick's Day 2024 events near Ventura County, California Editors note: This is issue 46 of Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniaks weekly Ukrainian Economy in Brief newsletter, covering events from March 4- 10, 2024. The digest highlights steps taken in the Ukrainian parliament related to business, economics, and international financial programs. The Kyiv Independent is republishing with permission. World Bank priorities The president signed the draft law on corporate governance reform in state-owned enterprises On March 5, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed draft law #5593-d on state-owned enterprise (SOE) corporate governance reform. Its one of the three draft laws which had to be signed to ensure that the World Bank will send to Ukraine $1.5 billion guaranteed by Japan. The President's Office plans to veto the draft law on financial markets in favor of the NSSMCs chairman. Draft law #5865 on strengthening the independence and institutional capacity of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC) according to the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles hasnt been signed yet. According to our information, the President's Office is preparing a veto in response to a request from the head of the NSSMC, Ruslan Mahomedov. According to the letter from the head of the NSSMC, which appeared at our disposal, he asks the president to veto draft law #5865 as it doesnt include the provisions of increasing salaries to Hr 300,000 ($7,800) a month. Furthermore, Mahomedov asks to eliminate provisions which ban the right for a person to work or lead the NSSMC if they have a relative working for a market player. This request considers the current heads conflict of interests as Mahomedov's partner, Yevhenia Hryshenko, works as the head of a department at Investment Capital Ukraine. The adoption of the draft law #5865 was one of conditionalities for Ukraine to $1.5 billion from the World Bank guaranteed by Japan. Other key economic issues The draft law on mobilization may come into effect in early May. The Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence sent lawmakers the pre-final table of amendments to the second reading of the draft law #10449 on mobilization. Overall lawmakers submitted 4269 amendments. At this stage, the Committee accepted 45% (1976) of amendments partly or fully. Read also: Revised mobilization bill seeks to reinforce conscription in Ukraine in 2024 This week, the Committee is going to prepare the final table of amendments. Thus, the parliament may start to consider the draft law the next plenary week and adopt it in the second reading by the end of March. In the best-case scenario, the draft law could be signed in early April. Regarding the one-month transition period, the bill may come into effect no earlier than in the first weeks of May. Lawmakers suggest to forbid SOEs to hide prices of procurements for construction works. Last week lawmaker Anastasiia Radina and several other, including myself, submitted to the parliament draft law #11057 on changes in public procurement procedures for SOEs. Currently several provisions, including those adopted due to the martial law, give SOEs a right not to show the detailed cost estimate within the procurements related to construction works. Read also: Ukraine state-owned enterprises weekly Issue 121 Numerous journalists investigations show that its an opportunity for corruption and fraud as the SOEs often buy overpriced construction materials. For example, Energoatom purchased concrete for construction at twice the market price. Draft law #11057 obliges the state contracting authorities to publish the detailed cost estimate of construction works under the signed contracts. The Parliament cancelled voting plans last week because the majority of loyal lawmakers went on international business trips. The Verkhovna Rada planned to have meetings on March 6-8. However, these plans were cancelled due to the absence of votes. A big number of lawmakers who voted for the Cabinet of Ministers' draft law on restarting the Bureau of Economic Security received permission to go abroad for business trips as a token of appreciation for complying with the requirement of the President's Office. In contrast, as we reported in Issue 45, several MPs both from coalition and opposition factions received a rejection of requests for business trips after not voting for the Cabinet of Ministers' draft law #10439. According to our information, the President's Office banned lawmakers' trips despite all permissions from the parliament's management. The official reason for cancelling plenary meetings was said to be the urgent need to prepare some report for the U.S Senate. State law enforcement bodies supervised by the President's Office deputy put pressure on anti-corruption activists The State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) registered criminal proceedings against the Head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center Vitaliy Shabunin. According to Shabunin's statement, the SBI is incriminating him for avoiding military service and forgery of National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) documents. Shabunin says that he voluntarily mobilized in the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the first days of war and that the NACPs documents couldnt be falsified as the NACP works with an e-document system. The SBI is a part of law enforcement state bodies which are supervised by the Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Oleh Tatarov. Read also: DBR: Criminal case against anti-corruption activist Shabunin in accordance with courts decision Journalists discovered a network of Ukrainian officials related to Oleh Tatarov. The Hromadske news outlet said it discovered a network of officials and top law enforcement officers who worked under the supervision of Oleg Tatarov. According to the journalists, among those are judges of the Pechersk District Court Svitlana Shaputka, Svitlana Smyk, and Vita Bortnytska, who left the court in 2023 but in previous years, sometimes in pairs, decided the most high-profile processes in Ukraine. For example, they judged high-profile cases such as the case of the ex-deputy of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Pavlo Lebed and decided house arrest for the activist Roman Ratushnyi. The network found by the journalists is wider. We also have reasons to suspect that the watchdog over the law enforcement state bodies on behalf of Tatarov is also listed in this network. State TV channel Rada buys production services from the company affiliated with Zelenskys business partner in Kvartal 95. Over the last three years, the state TV channel Rada made several procurements of production and other media services from the company Kinokit worth Hr 350 million ($9 million) in total. According to an investigation by Bihus.Info, the owner of Kinokit is Yuliia Drozdova who previously worked as a legal advisor to Volodymyr Zelenskys ex-business partner Timur Mindich. Mindich is a film producer and businessman, one of the co-owners of the Kvartal 95 company, which was co-founded by Zelenskyy himself before the presidency. Read also: Ukraine Business Roundup March 5 Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Marshfield police Sgt. Liam Rooney, left, and Police Chief Phil Tavares provide an update on a double-homicide in Marshfield on Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2022. MARSHFIELD The town paid its school and municipal employees nearly $75 million in 2023, a $2.5 million increase over 2022. Most of that increase came from the schools' side, which had twice as many people on its payroll compared to the municipal side. Pay raises for employees under contract contributed to the increase. The payroll included regular pay, overtime and other pay, which can include things such as shift differentials or training certification, Town Administrator Michael Maresco said. What they made: A database of Marshfield employee compensation for 2023 Our town is no different than any other town, Maresco said, referring to the reason for the pay increases. More than 1,500 people were on the payroll in Marshfield, which has about 25,000 year-round residents and 40,000 during the summer. Quincy's payroll: Who made $386,000 in 2023. And every city salary Overtime pay on the town side accounted for 11% of the total salaries paid in 2023. The police department had the most overtime of any department. We have to have shifts filled, Maresco said. We cant operate without police and we cant operate without fire and we cant operate without ambulance. He noted a trend in younger workers choosing not to take overtime shifts. That leaves older workers, with longer tenures and therefore higher pay rates, to take on these shifts, driving up overtime costs, he said. Who were Marshfield's top-paid employees? Here are Marshfield's highest-paid employees for 2023. Totals include salaries, overtime and other pay. Police Lt. Arthur Shaw, $282,317 Police Capt. Michael McDonough, $279,252 Police Chief Phillip Tavares, $277,110 Police Lt. Steven Marcolini, $230,140 Fire Capt. William Shields, $229,004 School Superintendent Jeffrey Granatino, $219,915 Police Lt. William Sullivan, $214,495 Town Administrator Michael Maresco, $212,722 Police Lt. Christoph Jones, $200,795 Police Sgt. Stephen Mulligan, $196,188 Tavares had the highest regular pay at $239,956, followed by Granatino at $217,255 and Maresco at $196,761. Which department was compensated the most? The Marshfield Police Department was paid the most out of all the towns departments. Its 56 members received more than $7.25 million in 2023. The second-highest paid department was the fire department with 56 members receiving more than $6.3 million. The towns 20-person water department was paid $1.32 million. The fire department led in overtime pay. How much did it receive? While it was the second-highest paid department, the fire department led with $1.16 million in overtime. The police department received the second-highest overtime pay, a little over $1 million. Combined, that's roughly two-thirds of the overtime paid last year to municipal and school employees. Among the 1,010 people on the school payroll, $222,112 was paid in overtime. How many employees received more than $100,000 in regular pay? Based on regular pay, and excluding overtime or other pay, 122 town and school employees each made over $100,000. Nine received over $150,000 in regular pay and two received over $200,000. Editor's note: This story has been updated to correctly reflect the overtime pay within the town departments. Hannah Morse covers growth and development for The Patriot Ledger. Contact her at hmorse@patriotledger.com. This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Which Marshfield employees made the most money in 2023 Tom Gabriel knows how much a family of four would need just to squeak by in Westchester. The number is his go-to economic barometer. The survival budget has room for rent and utilities, for child care and transportation, for health care and a cellphone, for food and taxes. Theres no room for extras. Not for savings. Not for college funds. Not for emergencies. That family of four two adults with an infant and a child in pre-K would need to make $94,140 a year (or $47.07 an hour) to survive in Westchester County. In Putnam County, the same family would need $101,652. (Or $50.83 an hour.) In Rockland, theyd need $100,524. (Or $50.26 an hour.) And those numbers are already out-of-date, failing to take into account the toll inflation has taken in recent years. Tom Gabriel, president and CEO of United Way of Westchester and Putnam, chats with a community resource specialist at the 211 helpline call center March 12, 2024 in White Plains. Meet ALICE The number is called ALICE short for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed and the United Way generates it in a report every two years, from thousands of data points in 28 states and the District of Columbia. The ALICE number measures the working poor. It's people who have jobs like waiters and waitresses, security guards, home health aides, preschool teachers, salespeople at big box stores, said Gabriel, president and CEO of United Way of Westchester and Putnam. ALICE is national but its also local. It uses standardized measurements to generate a specific snapshot of financial insecurity in the United States and in specific counties. But heres the thing: The latest report, issued last year, represents data from 2021, when the government was still propping up the COVID economy with all sorts of incentives: child tax credits, the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, the Excluded Worker Fund, enhanced unemployment. Those dollars are gone now, Gabriel said. We know based upon 2023 data, what it looks like and it is stark right now. How stark? If that Westchester family were able to scrape together their $94,140, Gabriel said, theyd be $22,380 short. The preliminary ALICE number for Westchester in 2023 the data that will be analyzed and reported in 2025 is $116,520. Just to squeak by. Anybody who tells you this economy is humming is lying, or they've got their head in the stock market and they think that's the only indicator, Gabriel said. It is yet again, the wealthy, the upper middle class, they're doing well. Everybody else is getting squeezed. Poverty and ALICE Everybody else includes two important segments: those who live below the federal governments poverty line, making less than $26,500 a year, and those ALICE families who have jobs but live paycheck to paycheck in one of the nation's most expensive regions. In 2021, the latest year for which there are full statistics: Westchester had 371,736 households, of which 37,425 (or 10%) lived below the poverty line while 88,137 (or 23.7%) were ALICE families. Putnam had 34,651 households, of which 1,836 (5.2%) lived below the poverty line and 9,538 (27.5%) were ALICE families. Rockland had 102,609 households, of which 12,722 (12.3%) lived below the poverty line and 27,426 (26.7%) were ALICE families. The poorest of the poor are always affording themselves of the nonprofit community, Gabriel said. Its the ALICE population that we really focus on because nobody takes care of them. A housing crunch Consider, Gabriel said, the well-documented lack of affordable housing. "For a family of four, we're looking at a minimum of almost $1,700 a month for housing costs, but, it's more likely $2,500 for basic housing. We're not talking about a house. We're talking about a rental unit somewhere. So you do $2,500 times 12 and that's $30,000 a year on housing alone." Stephen Papas, president and CEO of United Way of Rockland County, where the ALICE number is higher than Westchester, said housing is a primary cause for anxiety among ALICE households, amounting to a quarter of the phone calls to his agency. "Our housing rates are actually higher than their housing rates when you average it out across the entire county," he said. "That's really where it boils down that people are having the most difficult time in Rockland County, because for two adults and two children with childcare, it's $2,157 a month. If they're renting, that's the bare minimum that they're paying." The housing costs are creating a pinch for non-profits, too, Papas said, with staffers unable to live in the county based on their state-set salaries. "It's created a little bit of a housing crisis for them because they have people that are coming from the Bronx and from New Jersey to work there," he said. "And very few people are willing to travel that far to work there." And United Way isn't the only agency relying on ALICE, Papas said. "The Workforce Development Board utilizes these same numbers in Rockland County because they're trying to get the younger generation into employment," he said. "They look at these numbers because they have to also look at supportive services, not just, hey, we need to get people into jobs. It's what are their barriers in order to get a job? What supportive services would they need around in Rockland County to ensure that they are part of the workforce?" Helping in-person workers Gabriel's agency helps those ALICE families who run out of money before they run out of month. "They're trying to make ends meet and they cannot, because what they make per hour versus what the costs are in Westchester, it's impossible," Gabriel said. "It doesn't add up." ALICE may be a number a vital number to gauge, in real terms, how much it really costs to live here but the people Gabriel and his team serve are not numbers. They are seniors on fixed incomes. They are parents trying to figure out the child-care puzzle. They are children who are outgrowing their clothes. Tom Gabriel, president and CEO of United Way of Westchester and Putnam, in White Plains March 12, 2024. ALICE families those in hospitality and retail, construction and trade, health care, child care and education dont have the option of working from home, Gabriel said. When they're not in person, they don't get paid. That reality, and a need for child care, led to a $6-million, multi-year state grant that helps the bottom line for 500 ALICE families in Westchester, Gabriel said. The grant, which runs from July 2022 through June 2027, funds a bilingual after-school program for about 325 children in Ossining and Greenburgh and, pending state approval, another 175 children in Tarrytown come April. The program is a win-win for these families. The after-school care is free, which means parents don't have to pay what normally would cost them $100 for child care. And they can stay on the job for three extra hours, where they might make $20 and hour. "They make an extra 60 bucks a day," Gabriel said. "It's a game-changer for the 500 or so families that we're serving through this." 'There, but for the grace of God...' Gabriel doesn't need the ALICE number to weathervane the economy. He has listened to the anxious voices of neighbors, at the end of their rope, who call the free 211 help line when they have nowhere else to turn. The line operates 24/7, through calls, text messages and email, too, in every community in the U.S., and in Canada. The White Plains office fields calls from the entire Hudson Valley, Long Island and the Adirondacks. "It could be: 'I just lost my job. How do I apply for unemployment insurance?' 'I'm being evicted. Where do I get rental assistance? How do I fight my eviction?' It could be: 'I am thinking about suicide.' We get crisis calls all the time. It could be 'I'm the victim of domestic violence. Where do I turn?'" The need expressed on the 211 help line is heart-rending, Gabriel said. "I listen to some of those calls and the stories are unreal and 98% of the time these are stories where you can say, 'There but for the grace of God, go I." Last year, the 15 counselors made 680,000 referrals, a skyrocketing demand. Gabriel said in 2023: Housing insecurity calls were up 20%, on top of a 20% increase in 2022; Food insecurity calls were up 40%, on top of an 80% increase in 2022; Child care calls rose 30% on top of a 30% increase in 2022; and Calls regarding financial assistance with rent or utilities were up 20%, after a 115% increase in 2022. The staggering increases in 2022 came "when the rug got pulled out," Gabriel said, meaning when emergency rental assistance disappeared, when the child tax credit disappeared, when all of those stimulus measures disappeared. "When we took that away, we took away their floor. They fell through the floor," he said. "And again, we're not talking about people in poverty. We're talking about people who were working." Stephen Papas, the president and CEO of United Way of Rockland County on Main St. in Nyack March 8, 2024. More than just one issue A call that is made for one reason a mother who has run out of baby formula often reveals a host of other issues when handled by a trained professional. Each of those issues could result in a referral to a wide network of non-profits. "You always have a secondary and a tertiary issue going on," Gabriel said. "They may be connected. When you finally call and say, 'I can't feed my family,' it's probably because you just lost your job. And the pride that you take in work is not something you're able to share with someone. So you call about the food insecurity and not about the job loss. That's why 211 exists." The number of calls to 211, Gabriel said, "flies in the face of everything we're hearing that this economy is doing well." "It's not. It's just not." Is making ends meet a struggle for you? If you're having trouble getting by in Westchester, Rockland or Putnam counties, we'd like to hear from you. How hard was it for you to find housing? Is your grocery bill unbelievable? How long did it take you to find child care you could afford? Share your story and you might be contacted for future stories about affordability or unaffordability in the northern suburbs. Reach Peter D. Kramer at pkramer@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: What's the cost of living for Westchester, Rockland NY? What you need In our Reality Check stories, Modesto Bee journalists deliver fast facts about the issues that matter to local residents to hold officials and institutions accountable. Read more. Story idea? Tips@modbee.com. During public comment at the Modesto City Schools board meeting March 4, Modesto High teacher Aimee Shepherd-Matlock and others spoke about how health insurance is a major out-of-pocket expense that should be considered when talking about teacher compensation. According to the Modesto City Schools Employee Benefits Guide for certificated staff, she is correct. Modesto City Schools teachers looking for healthcare coverage for themselves alone can expect to pay as much as $6,476.40 per year or as little as $1,377.84 per year, depending on the plan they select. For coverage for themselves and their partners or spouses, teachers would have to spend between $12,355.68 and $22,552.80, depending on the plan they select. And teachers who want to cover themselves and their families, including children, would need to pay between $18,942.36 to $32,198.64 per year, depending on the level of coverage they select. Those premiums reflect an $800 monthly contribution by the district. In January, the district increased their monthly contribution for employee health insurance to $900 a month. These amounts are teachers contributions on a monthly basis. Depending on their experience level and whether they have a postgraduate degree, the health care contributions can be a significant chunk of their annual salary. According to the certificated salary schedule, an entry-level teacher with little to no experience will make a minimum of $68,150. If that teacher needs family health insurance coverage, the cost could be as much as 47% or as little as 28% of the annual salary, depending on the plan chosen. In comparison to other districts in similar size, Sacramento City Unified School District pays the entire cost of premiums for individuals and families. A stack of protest signs sits outside the Modesto City Schools Board of Education room on Monday, March 4, 2024. Teachers rallied outside the meeting before it started and packed the room when the board was in session. Modesto Teachers Association and Modesto City Schools are currently at an impasse in their negotiations. They have agreed on health insurance, which will increase the districts benefit contribution from $9,600 to $10,800 per year. Chris Peterson, president of the Modesto Teachers Association union, said the district ranks eighth among Stanislaus Countys 24 school districts for health care contributions. He said these rates are very difficult for young families and single parents to absorb. Even with the Affordable Care Act and Covered California as options for millions of our citizens, teachers do not qualify to participate in these federal and state programs because their income is too high, for assistance, he said. The explosion of health care costs places economic pressure on most Americans, including teachers. The Modesto Bee reached out to Modesto City Schools for comment but did not hear back by deadline. Demonstrators protest outside the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, October 3, 2017, as the court hears arguments against gerrymandering (AFP via Getty Images) Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has long argued that Wisconsin is a purple state. The states voting record on the national level would suggest hes right. In 2020, President Joe Biden won the state by just around 20,000 votes less than one percentage point. In 2016, former President Donald Trump beat former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton by about the same margin also within one percentage point. But looking at the state legislature over the last decade, you would see a solidly red state. It was just clear over the last 10 years that the previous maps did not reflect the peoples wishes, Evers tells The Independent. Lets just use my race as an example: I won one race by 1 per cent and another one by 3 per cent [but] the Republicans had a supermajority in the Senate and a huge majority in the assembly. When Evers was elected in 2018, Democrats won the popular vote in the state assembly by 53 to 45 per cent, but the heavily skewed map still gave the Republicans a majority of 63 to 36 seats. Gerrymandering is one of the biggest risks we face for democracy This was the result of gerrymandering the practice of drawing districts in a way that maximizes the seats of one party or another. The practice was named after Elbridge Gerry, a vice president of the United States at the time of his death, who in 1812, when he was the governor of Massachusetts, signed a bill that created a district the shape of which was compared to a mythological salamander. Political science Professor Christopher Warshaw of George Washington University tells The Independent that gerrymandering is one of the biggest, if not the biggest, risks we face for democracy in the United States. Obviously, I think [former President Donald] Trump presents a whole other set of risks. But at a structural level, I think gerrymandering is a really profound risk for democracy. The central impetus [for] gerrymandering in most places, historically, has been partisanship one party tries to screw over the other party, he adds. Certainly the other motivation for gerrymandering in many places is racial, for the part of white people that controlled offices of power [to] minimize the voting power of African Americans and other racial minorities. Districts are redrawn every 10 years after the census, and Republicans took advantage of their 2010 midterm gains when Americans came out to vote against Obamacare and its new namesake president. The only way forward in Wisconsin On December 22 last year, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that the gerrymandered maps were unconstitutional, but that ruling only came after liberal judge Janet Protasiewicz won a seat on the court, flipping its ideological majority. Evers tells The Independent that having the state Supreme Court declare the maps illegal was the only way forward. The new maps were created by Evers and his staff and were approved by Republicans and Democrats in the legislature out of four options. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers raises a bill which re-defines the state's legislative maps after signing it at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis., on Monday, Feb. 19, 2024 (AP) Republican state Senator Van Wanggaard said in a statement after the passing of the new maps that Republicans were not stuck between a rock and a hard place. It was a matter of choosing to be stabbed, shot, poisoned or led to the guillotine. We chose to be stabbed, so we can live to fight another day. That was a clever statement, but Im not sure it was accurate, Evers says. The four maps that were still in play in the Supreme Court were almost identical, so I dont think between stabbing or a guillotine is necessarily an appropriate observation. This is reflective of Wisconsin, its a purple state When the legislature is either mildly red or violet blue, thats going to force people to collaborate if they want to get something done, he adds. Nonpartisan commissions and ballot initiatives Evers laments the lack of a nonpartisan commission in Wisconsin, saying it would be preferable instead of his office creating the new maps. Commissions take the redrawing of the maps out of the hands of legislators to create fairer maps. But theyre almost exclusively available in states with ballot initiatives the practice of handing a decision on a specific issue over to the voters. John Johnson, a research fellow at Marquette University in Milwaukee, tells The Independent that ballot initiatives are an idea that became popular later in Americas history and so you mostly see it in the constitutions of western states who joined the US much later than eastern states. So to get something like an independent commission in Wisconsin, you would have to get legislators to agree with that. And it doesnt matter what party a legislator is they usually dont like that idea. Seat-rich Southern states Its not surprising that Republicans are the biggest beneficiary of gerrymandering because they control far more space and far more seats in the drawing of the maps, Michael Li at the Brennan Center for Justice tells The Independent. He notes that a lot of Democratic states, such as California, are governed by an independent commission, and theyre not gerrymandered. Democrats didnt have a lot of seats where they could gerrymander. Meanwhile, Republicans control seat-rich Southern states where they can maximize [their] advantage. Li says gerrymandering doesnt only give an outsized advantage to one party, it also eliminates competition. There are only about 25 seats right now that are toss-ups of the 435 in the US House. Compare that to 1998, when there were 186 seats that were competitive There was much more in play three decades ago than there is today a large part of that is gerrymandering, he says. When Republicans drew maps in Texas, they didnt sit there and say, Okay, lets get rid of this Democrat but what they did is they took what they had and said, Gosh, you know, these seats are really competitive, lets make them non-competitive. And thats sort of the danger, he adds. Most Americans live in the suburbs, which are usually swing areas, and should be the most competitive places regardless of state, and yet in most of the country, that doesnt happen because of the way the maps are drawn, Li says. Republicans won a small majority in the US House in 2022, which has shrunk further since following resignations and special elections. Why do we have elections every two years? Because [when] the mood of the country changes, so should the composition of Congress. But that really doesnt happen for most people, Li says. Democrats would have an easier path to a House majority if you had better balanced and more competitive maps in North Carolina, Texas, Georgia, and Florida, he argues. The great gerrymander of 2012 But a lot of progress has been made since the 2010 midterms. Gerrymandering is not going to determine who controls Congress in 2024 thats a big victory for democracy, Warshaw says. Thats not where we were 10 years ago, when Republicans won a majority in the House, even while Democrats won a majority of votes. One academic called the 2012 election the great gerrymander of 2012, Warshaw adds. And I think that really does fairly describe it Gerrymandering was pivotal in determining the outcome of elections across that decade starting in 2012. Thats true now at the state-by-state level [but] at the national level, thats no longer true. Johnson notes that a recent study found that Democrats are good enough at gerrymandering in the places where they had control that the main consequence in net terms was a reduction in competitive seats, but not a big change in terms of the partisan balance. In a consequential swing state like Wisconsin, the Democratic governor thinks the new maps will encourage more people to vote on both sides. Well hopefully set some records as far as the number of people voting, Evers says. One example of where things are developing in the opposite direction is in North Carolina. The state currently has seven Democrats and seven Republicans in the US House but thanks to a new Republican majority on the Supreme Court, that may flip in 2024 to 11 Republicans and three Democrats. Li calls it a wild skew in a state that is about 50-50. Now you have a map that is 10-4 maybe in the right cycle could even be 11-3 and that is just out of whack for a state that is a presidential battleground every cycle for every election, he says. In swing states during the 2010s, most had deeply pro-Republican gerrymanders that led to massive Republican biases in the legislatures, Warshaw says. So in places like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio, you had huge advantages for Republicans. The maps in all of those places now are [fairer]. Ohio had a ballot initiative that required fairer maps and the maps there are not what advocates wanted theyre not totally fair. But theyre probably better than the counterfactual what they would have been absent that ballot initiative, he adds. How the maps look hinges on whos in power when its time for redistricting. Republicans dominated the 2010 elections and were then able to aggressively gerrymander as much as they wanted in many states but in more recent elections Democrats won governorships in a bunch of states that were the most gerrymandered, Warshaw notes. The role of the federal government East of the Mississippi [River], very few states allow for ballot initiatives. And almost no southern states do, and so the South, which has some of the worst gerrymandering, is also where its hardest to reform. And I do think that you will ultimately have to have the federal government play some role, Li argues. Congress has the power to set the rules for redistricting. It could require partisan fairness, require potentially the use of independent commissions even short of that it could just have a robust anti-partisan gerrymandering standard, which I think is going to be key, he adds. For now, its up to each state to find a solution if the political will exists among lawmakers or the public. There are lots of ways to get to fair maps, Li says. Unfortunately, the road there, short of congressional action, is a little bit of a patchwork quilt. For Michigan, there was a nonpartisan commission, Warshaw says. In Wisconsin, it was dual litigation and changes in the composition of the Supreme Court. And I think also just in politics. How where people live affects map-drawing There were changes in the bipartisan commission that led to fairer maps in Pennsylvania. Another factor was simple geography, specifically in the upper Midwest. Whereas rural areas have gotten more Republican and the suburbs have gotten more contested, its made it a little bit easier to draw fair maps and harder for Republicans to draw super aggressive gerrymanders, Warshaw notes. Speaking about the new map in Wisconsin drawn up by the governors office and grudgingly accepted by the Republicans in the state legislature, Johnson says it doesnt actually increase the number of competitive seats all that much compared to the old gerrymandered maps. What it does is it raises the Democratic floor a lot and it lowers the Republican ceiling a lot. It makes the relatively small number of competitive seats that remain actually determine which party controls the assembly. So the competitive seats we do have are very consequential. And in that sense, the map is competitive. But its not a map that maximises the number of competitive seats, he argues. For the first time in over a decade, we dont know which party will control the state assembly after the next elections. The consequences of a skewed map When asked what couldve been passed in Wisconsin if it werent for gerrymandering, Evers mentions Medicaid expansion, saying that the state did not receive several billion dollars over time which would have gone a long way to take care of all sorts of disproportionate health outcomes. While Evers has been able to block Republican initiatives, he says that before he came to office in early 2019, Republicans decided to essentially neuter teacher unions in the state of Wisconsin making it much more difficult for teachers to unionize and, frankly, take away a lot of side benefits, like health care. The measure took money right out of their pockets and the issue hasnt been resolved even though about a decade has passed, the governor tells The Independent. Johnson says another example is medical marijuana, which overwhelming majorities of Wisconsin voters support. There are Republican members of the legislature who publicly support this. And yet, they failed to even bring such a bill to a vote in the assembly. Johnson adds that the Republicans in Wisconsin didnt need to do anything to keep their legislative majority there was not really any electoral pressure on them to do popular things or refrain from doing unpopular things in the state legislature. Its easier to gerrymander than its ever been before The effects of gerrymandering go beyond the districts that are gerrymandered themselves, Li says. Having seats be non-competitive means that many voters wont be targeted by mobilizing efforts, which in the end may result in lower turnout across large swaths of the country, affecting races up and down the ballot. Due to polarization and improving technology, its easier to gerrymander than its ever been before, Warshaw says. If you have the ability to gerrymander, and you want to draw a map that locks your party into power, its pretty easy to do so. Gerrymandering has long been used to target racial minorities. The reality right now is that if you are trying to gerrymander a map, its much easier to target communities of color to get there and thats true whether youre a Democratic gerrymanderer or a Republican gerrymanderer, Li says. Its all about residential segregation. Lets say youre a Republican gerrymanderer. The problem with trying to target white Democrats is that they oftentimes live really close to white Republicans sometimes in the same house, Li notes. Unless you can figure out a way to draw a line on somebodys bed to separate spouses, its really hard. Its much easier to say, Oh, well, lets just pack all these Black neighbourhoods together, or, Lets split these Black neighbourhoods apart and lose the partisan valence of a map up or down, he adds, about the gerrymandering tactics known as packing and cracking. Its hard to decouple that from partisanship given that the vast majority of Black voters are Democrats how much of that is racial animus versus partisan animus? Warshaw asks. But he adds that if we didnt have the Voting Rights Act, you would see a mass disenfranchisement of Black voters throughout the South. Johnson notes that in Wisconsin, Black and Latino voters are the only groups who live in sufficient concentrations that the Voting Rights Act applies to them. Whats weird about that is that the Voting Rights Act requirements and Republican goals for gerrymandering are in agreement in a place like Wisconsin the VRA basically says you have to pack Black and Latino voters into majority-Black and Latino districts, he adds. And because Black and Latino voters vote strongly for Democrats, that amounts to legally-mandated packing of Democratic voters, which Republicans are enthusiastic to do. A transformation across almost the entire upper Midwest When asked which state is the worst for gerrymandering, Warshaw says, Until recently, I would have said Wisconsin, but the new map is a huge improvement. Illinois on the Democratic side, thats probably the worst remaining one, he adds. After Wisconsin on the Republican side Ohio, despite being better than it could be, its still pretty deeply gerrymandered. Reformers in Ohio are trying to pass a truly nonpartisan commission, which would be a huge reform, Warshaw says. Getting [fairer] maps in Ohio will really lead to a transformation across almost the entire upper Midwest compared to 2012. But in the end, when thinking about the general election in the autumn, Johnson argues that almost everyone has an opinion about Joe Biden or Donald Trump. Its those attitudes towards the top of the ticket that are going to drive down-ballot voting more than the other way around. So even though we have this more competitive state legislative race in Wisconsin, I dont think thats going to drive turnout up for the presidential election. Encapsulating the change over the last decade, Johnson says its possible that Trump will win in November, but that Democrats could still win a majority in the House even in that scenario, which would be remarkable. The Marquette research fellow goes on to say that partisanship may be replacing gerrymandering, producing similar effects. The growing problem is going to be that so many voters vote the same way every single time. There are so many people who only vote for Republicans or only vote for Democrats that even if youre trying to draw non-partisan maps, you will still end up with a situation where there just arent very many competitive seats, and you dont have a very responsive legislature for that reason, Johnson says. The parties are so bad at competing for votes they have their bases locked up. Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST) isn't exactly a high-yield stock, but what it lacks in yield, it makes up for in dividend growth. It has increased its payment for 19 years and counting, with the average annual dividend boost over the past decade sitting at a heady 12%. Those two stats are built on what is now a customer foundation worth $4.5-billion-plus annually. Here's what you need to know about Costco's secret weapon. Costco isn't like most retailers Every retailer will tell you that customer satisfaction is important. Customers don't return to stores that upset or anger them. But Costco isn't any old retailer; it is a club store that charges a membership fee. So in order to shop at Costco, a customer has to dole out some cash before they can even buy anything. Image source: Getty Images. This is a big model shift. Costco has to go above and beyond to keep its customers happy because otherwise, they will cancel their memberships. One of the biggest ways that Costco keeps members satisfied is by keeping the cost of the products it sells low. But it goes beyond that. For example, the company is known for treating its employees well so that the employees, in turn, create an enjoyable shopping experience for customers. A great example of how important customers are to Costco occurred during the supply-chain disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The retailer temporarily created a shipping fleet so it could ensure that it would have products on its shelves when members showed up at its stores. This effort was a time-consuming and costly one, notably requiring a write-down when the arrangement was unwound. While this move was clearly about making money, the real impetus was to make sure its members remained satisfied with their memberships at a time when other retailers had empty shelves. A $4.5 billion (and growing) secret weapon From a revenue perspective, the roughly $4.5 billion that Costco collected in membership fees in fiscal 2023 was dwarfed by its $237.7 billion in product sales. At first glance, membership fees would seem like an afterthought. However, these two figures aren't the full picture. Story continues The company's cost to attain that membership revenue is virtually nothing. The cost of the products Costco sells is around $212.5 billion. And selling, general, and administrative costs (basically what it costs to run the stores) is $21.5 billion or so. To figure out how much Costco really makes from its stores, you need to subtract these two expenses from the store revenue, which comes out to about $3.5 billion. So memberships generated $4.5 billion but the stores themselves only really made $3.5 billion or so. Suddenly that $4.5 billion in membership fees looks a lot more important. And it is those fees that allow Costco to be aggressive on product prices. Yes, it has to accept lower margins when it sells products. But the membership fees make up for that, and the low product prices keep those fees rolling in. As the company opens new locations, investors shouldn't be thinking about the revenue that will be generated. Instead, investors should be thinking about the new members that will be added. There were 73.4 million North American household memberships at the end of the fiscal second quarter of 2024. And when the company reports results, another vital figure to watch for is the renewal rate, which stood at 92.9% for North America in the fiscal Q2 2024. That's not meant to suggest that product sales and operating costs aren't important. It's just that the results on the membership side of the equation are at least equally, if not a little more, important. Costco stock is always expensive Costco's dividend yield is tiny at 0.5%, largely thanks to its long history of successful growth. Value investors and those trying to maximize the income they generate probably won't find it attractive. However, dividend-growth investors and growth-and-income investors should have this retailer on their wish list (if not their buy list). And the big secret -- that's really not so secret -- is the $4.5 billion-plus in membership fees that underpin the company's business model. Should you invest $1,000 in Costco Wholesale right now? Before you buy stock in Costco Wholesale, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Costco Wholesale wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than tripled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of March 11, 2024 Reuben Gregg Brewer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Costco: A Dividend Stock With a $4.5 Billion Secret Weapon was originally published by The Motley Fool A Missouri university student has vanished after being kicked out of a bar in Tennessee, while on a trip with his fraternity. Riley Strain, 22, was last seen on Friday night as he left Lukes 32 Bridge Food + Drink in Nashvilles Broadway area. The seniors stepfather said in an interview on Monday that the days since Rileys disappearance had been pure hell. His family has travelled to the city and been walking the streets looking for the young man who called his frat brothers after leaving the bar, saying he was going back to their hotel. Rileys friends tried to call him repeatedly after that on Friday night and on Saturday morning, but the calls kept going to voicemail. Riley Strain was last seen wearing this shirt while on a night out in Nashville, Tennessee on Friday 8 March 2024 (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department) Metropolitan Nashville Police Department released video footage on Tuesday, showing Riley wearing a two-tone shirt, crossing 1st Avenue North to Gay Street at around 9.45pm on Friday. That spot is just over half a mile from the bar. Investigators are asking anyone who could help locate the 65" tall man with a thin build, blue eyes and light brown hair to come forward. The department said on Monday that it had searched the downtown area where Riley was last seen, including the riverbank, but to no avail. Rileys mother Michelle Whiteid told WSMV that she and his stepfather Chris had driven down from Springfield, Missouri when they heard the news. Detectives today continue to pursue tips & investigative leads concerning missing person Riley Strain, 22. Strain, wearing a 2-tone shirt, is seen in this video crossing 1st Ave N to Gay St (right to left), at 9:47 p.m. Fri. Have info about him? Plz 615-742-7463. pic.twitter.com/fE86dlqeOC Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 12, 2024 We talk every day, multiple times a day, Ms Whiteid told the outlet. This is the longest Ive ever gone without talking to him. Oh, God bud, we love you so much and were all looking for you, all of us, the mother added. Riley was on an annual trip with his Delta Chi fraternity at the University of Missouri, or Mizzou. On Monday, the school said it had been in touch with his family The safety of our community is our highest priority, Angela King Taylor, interim vice chancellor for Student Affairs, said in a statement. Our thoughts are with Rileys family as the search continues. We will be offering any support to them that we can, and we encourage anyone who needs help to reach out to our counselling resources. Anyone with information on Rileys whereabouts is asked to call the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department on 615-862-8600. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) The Metro Nashville Police Department is continuing to try to track down the citys Most Wanted fugitives, including one man who has reportedly managed to evade capture for over a year. The police departments list of Top 10 Most Wanted fugitives is updated every Wednesday on the Criminal Warrants Divisions Facebook page. Each week it features 10 people who police said are considered to be some of the most violent offenders in the city. Man wanted for February Antioch shooting arrested in Robertson County Of the suspects on this weeks list, half are wanted on homicide, attempted homicide or murder charges. The rest of Nashvilles Most Wanted suspects are accused of crimes such as rape, child abuse, burglary and aggravated assault. One of this weeks suspects was added back to the list after first appearing on it in November 2022. According to officials, Aury Newsom is still at large after being indicted on more than a dozen charges ranging from burglary to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. While the search for these suspects continues, the Most Wanted list has aided police in several arrests. Within the last two months, 11 suspects have been taken into custody. One of those people, Devon Guerrier, was finally arrested last week after reportedly shooting and robbing a man who had just sold him a gun back in December 2023. Teen arrested for allegedly shooting man who sold him gun in Bellevue Investigators said tips from the public have been vital in several Most Wanted arrests. In total, at least 93 people who have appeared on the Most Wanted list have been arrested since the program was launched in October 2022. Below is a list of the suspects who made the police departments Top 10 Most Wanted list the week of March 13. 1. Lagarrion L. Blacksmith Lagarrion Blacksmith (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) At number one, Lagarrion Blacksmith, 34, is considered this weeks Top Most Wanted fugitive, according to the MNPD. He was added to the list on Nov. 29, 2023, after police were reportedly able to connect him to a deadly shooting that took place outside a Dickerson Pike bar last year. Officers said they found 35-year-old Chancellor Eddins lying on the ground just outside of Trvth Lounge on Feb. 18, 2023. He had been shot and later died at the scene. Another man who had also been hit by the gunfire was able to give officers an account of what happened. RELATED: Man wanted for homicide, other charges following fatal February shooting on Dickerson Pike According to police, the injured man told them he and Eddins had gotten into an argument with the suspect inside of the bar. Then, shots were fired as they left the location. At the time, the identity of the alleged shooter was unclear. Months later, investigators announced Blacksmith had been identified as a suspect. On Nov. 22, 2023, officials said arrest warrants had been issued against Blacksmith for criminal homicide, attempted homicide, and felon in possession of a handgun. However, efforts to locate him have reportedly been unsuccessful. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the MNPD at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463. 2. Raceme Crutcher Raceme Crutcher (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Police have been looking for Raceme Crutcher, 21, since July 2023, when he was named as one of two suspects in a deadly Fourth of July shooting. Officials said the shooting happened at the Fallbrook Apartments on Dellway Villa Road. Etabo Malanda, 16, was reportedly standing on the porch of an apartment when two armed individuals came from around the corner and confronted him. RELATED: Teen killed in shooting at East Nashville apartment complex Malanda allegedly tried to pull out a pistol that was inside his hoodie, but he was shot. Police said he died shortly after he was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. According to investigators, four guns were recovered from the apartment, including one that was reported stolen. Crutcher and 17-year-old Jaylin Brown were reportedly connected to the crime through witness accounts. Investigators also obtained surveillance footage and additional information from community members that they said pointed to Crutcher and Brown as suspects in the case. Officials believe the motive may have been an ongoing dispute between the suspects and Malanda. SEE ALSO: Teen wanted in connection with deadly Fourth of July shooting arrested Brown was taken into custody on Aug. 31, 2023, after police reportedly caught him driving a stolen car. However, authorities said Crutcher is still on the run. He was added to the Most Wanted list on Nov. 15, 2023. His last location is unknown. 3. Kejuan Jordan-Cole Kejuan Jordan-Cole (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Kejuan Jordan-Cole, 21, is believed to be one of seven suspects involved in another deadly shooting on the Fourth of July, according to officials. RELATED: Man dead after 7 people reportedly shot at him on Buena Vista Pike Investigators said the victim, 27-year-old Christopher L. Harris, was found with multiple gunshot wounds inside his vehicle on Buena Vista Pike. Witnesses told police a group of young men approached Harris and around seven of them opened fire. Harris was reportedly struck by the gunfire while standing next to his vehicle. Officers told News 2 as many as 100 rounds may have been fired during the incident. The suspects one of whom appeared to be shooting a rifle left the scene in three separate vehicles, officials reported. Since the shooting, authorities have arrested and charged 16-year-old Jaden Wright, 17-year-old Erion Nesbitt, 16-year-old Kentrell Baugh and 23-year-old Deandre Jordan. SEE ALSO: Metro police arrest 4th of 7 suspects from deadly July 4 shooting in Bordeaux However, police said Jordan-Cole, who was identified as a suspect on Aug. 16, 2023, is still on the run. The charges against him include criminal homicide and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was added to the list on Dec. 13, 2023. Officials said his last location is unknown. 4. Tyrone D. Walker Tyrone D. Walker (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Tyrone Walker, 29, has repeatedly appeared on the list since July 12, 2023, after being named in a grand jury indictment charging him with first-degree murder. Police said the charge is related to the August 2021 shooting death of Cecil Holmes Jr. The 39-year-old was reportedly found dead in the Edgehill Homes parking lot on 11th Avenue South after being shot multiple times. RELATED: Police searching for suspect charged in 2021 Nashville apartments parking lot murder Further investigation into Holmess death led to the identification of Walker as the suspected gunman, officials reported. In addition to the murder charge, Walker has also been indicted on charges of felon in possession of a weapon, felony probation violation and four counts of failure to appear. Police said his last location is unknown. 5. Michael A. Yarlett Michael A. Yarlett (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Michael Yarlett, 28, is wanted on three counts of aided and abetted rape, according to police. Court documents indicate he is one of two suspects in the incident, which happened in September 2022. Yarlett was added to the Most Wanted list on Nov. 22, 2023. Officials said his last location is unknown. 6. Elaura R. Settles Elaura Settles (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Elaura Settles, 29, is wanted on multiple outstanding warrants for alleged violent crimes, police reported. The charges include attempted homicide, felon in possession of a handgun, reckless endangerment, aggravated assault with serious bodily injury and another weapons offense. Wanted fugitive surrenders after indictment in Nashville shooting, carjacking Officials said Settles, who was added to the list on Jan. 3, was last seen in the Hermitage area. 7. Cameron J. Glenn Cameron Glenn (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) While he was added to the list last month, this isnt the first time Cameron Glenn, 32, has appeared among Nashvilles Most Wanted fugitives. Glenn was initially added to the list in November 2022 following several alleged domestic violence incidents involving the same victim. Glenn was accused of strangling and beating the woman on three separate occasions, causing visible injuries to her face, including redness, abrasions and a missing tooth. In one incident, authorities said Glenn pulled out a gun and threatened to kill her if she didnt do what he said. PREVIOUS: Man accused of beating, threatening to kill woman arrested after 6-month search Glenn was on the run until May 1, 2023, when officers found him at an apartment in the James Cayce neighborhood. After his arrest, Glenn was being held on a $60,000 bond. However, court records show many of the charges Glenn was initially arrested for have since been dismissed. Now, police are looking for Glenn again following a grand jury indictment. The charges hes been indicted on include aggravated assault with serious bodily injury, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated assault by strangulation, child abuse, domestic assault and interference with an emergency call. Authorities said his last location is unknown. 8. Aury T. Newsom * Aury Newsom (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Aury Newsom, 24, was added back to the list this week more than a year after police began searching for him in connection with multiple outstanding warrants. He first appeared on the Most Wanted list about a month after the program was launched in October 2022. At the time, he was listed as Nashvilles Top Most Wanted fugitive. However, he has reportedly continued to evade police. Most Wanted: Suspect in North Nashville shooting in custody Officials said Newsom has now been indicted by a grand jury. The charges against him include eight counts of burglary, two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated child endangerment, reckless endangerment and vandalism. According to police, Newsom was involved in a shooting in May 2022 that left his girlfriend seriously injured. Investigators said he shot the woman twice in the upper leg while she was holding their 3-month-old baby. The woman ultimately survived her injuries, and the baby was not injured. Authorities said Newsom was last seen in East Nashville. 9. Ricky C. Roach Ricky Roach (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Ricky Roach, 42, who was the subject of a massive manhunt in Cheatham County in 2022, is wanted by police after being indicted on multiple charges out of Davidson County. Those charges include aggravated burglary, aggravated burglary acting in concert and theft of property less than $250,000. Court records show those offenses date back to March 4, 2022 only about two months before he escaped from corrections officers at an Ashland City hospital. At the time, Roach was reportedly serving jail time in Cheatham County for a parole violation. Cheatham County court records indicate that Roach has previously pled guilty to charges for robbery, assault, theft and contempt of court. SEE ALSO: New details released after escapees arrest caught on camera After hours of searching, the May 26, 2022, manhunt ended when a reserve off duty Ashland City police officer spotted Roach and held him at gunpoint until other officers arrived. Following his arrest, Cheatham County Sheriffs Office Lt. Ken Miller told News 2, Ive been dealing with Mr. Roach for quite some time, pretty much my whole career here actually. Now, Metro Nashville police are looking for Roach in connection with more alleged crimes across county lines. Authorities said his last location is unknown. 10. Joseph Cavaleri Joseph Cavaleri (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department) Joseph Cavaleri, 39, is wanted by the MNPD on outstanding warrants for five counts of burglary, three counts of theft of property, criminal impersonation, and four counts of failure to appear. Cavaleri was added to the list on Feb. 7. Authorities said he was last seen in the Central precinct. CRIME TRACKER | Read the latest crime news from Middle Tennessee Anyone with information on any of the suspects listed is asked to contact the MNPD at 615-862-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 615-742-7463. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WKRN News 2. With National Reading Month nearly halfway over, advocates are highlighting the difficulties students face when it comes to getting a book in their hands and staying engaged with the content. Reading, either for school or pleasure, has taken a dip for students from elementary to high school as educators and parents struggle to get them to choose books over social media and navigate different instructional methods for reading at all. Experts are focused not just on how to get students to read but ensuring they have a wide variety of options as book bans across the country refuse to abate. Its certainly a complex time. You have the NAEP [National Assessment of Educational Progress] scores in reading at a 30-year low. A lot of people are rallying right now around the science of reading and getting more evidence-based reading instruction into schools. And, alongside that, the recent NAEP data showed that only 14 percent of students say that they read for fun every day, said Erin Bailey, the director of literacy and content for Reading is Fundamental. National Reading Month is celebrated across the country in honor of Dr. Seusss March 2 birthday, with schools and libraries creating challenges to encourage students to read more. Bailey argues that difficulties with getting students to read start with two factors that are interrelated: low test scores and a lack of desire. In addition to students not being able to read proficiently, they also dont want to read, she said, adding, Of course, you are not going to want to read for fun if its something that is difficult for you. The 14 percent of students who read for pleasure daily according to the NAEP is down 3 percent from 2020 and 13 percent from 2012. The latest report showed 31 percent of students never or hardly read for fun. Blame for the decline in reading for fun often lands on phones and tablets, with Stanford Medicine showing back in 2022 that the average age of a child receiving their first phone has gone down to 11. In 2015, Common Sense Media had that number at 14. I do think we need to be more format-inclusive, so when we think about What does it mean to read for fun? That may include reading a book, it may include reading an e-book on a tablet, but it also can be reading in different digital spaces, so maybe thinking about reading posts on social media also as reading for fun, Bailey said. But of course before students can be encouraged to read, they must first know how, and there has been growing focus at the state level on how exactly they are taught. Dozens of states in the past few years have switched requirements for educators to teach the science of reading, which puts emphasis on phonics, or the ability to understand how letters go together and sound them out. While the switch to the science of reading has been important, Susanne Nobles, chief academic officer of Read Works, argues there needs to be more emphasis on what happens after a student starts to understand phonics and word recognition. The most critical aspect of successful reading is knowledge and vocabulary, Nobles said. I think its really important for teachers to think about that because once a student can learn from a text, not just understand how to pronounce it, it builds more knowledge and vocabulary to bring to the future reading, she added. And underlying other concerns during National Reading Month is the political fight over which books are available to children. Numerous Republican-led states in recent years have taken books off classroom and school library shelves, largely ones that relate to race and LGBTQ topics. While proponents of this move say it is to protect children from sexually explicit materials, critics counter that many students are being denied the ability to read about characters similar to themselves. I think that is front and center for this month, around how do we defend the right to read for students and how do we ensure that students have access to diverse and inclusive books in their classrooms and school libraries, said Kasey Meehan, Freedom to Read program director at PEN America. And I think we see this movement target certain types of books that include representations of LGBTQ+ individuals or Black and Brown individuals and families and histories. We need to ensure that suppression does not have a place in our public school classrooms. Between National Reading Month, Right to Read Day on April 24 and reading week earlier this month, experts say this is a time to recognize the task before educators and libraries and what might lie ahead. This springtime is a really amazing time to elevate the importance of reading and to reaffirm our librarians and our educators and our libraries and public schools in the job and the roles that they play in helping young people read, Meehan said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Interview with Leonid Volkov, the top aide of Alexei Navalny, in Vilnius Interview with Leonid Volkov, the top aide of Alexei Navalny, in Vilnius By Andrius Sytas VILNIUS (Reuters) -Lithuania blamed Moscow on Wednesday for an overnight attack by a hammer-wielding assailant on an exiled top aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny outside the aide's home in Vilnius. President Gitanas Nauseda said the attack on Navalny aide Leonid Volkov was clearly pre-planned and tied in with other provocations against Lithuania, which is a member of NATO and the European Union. "I can only say one thing to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin - nobody is afraid of you here," Nauseda said. Lithuania's State Security Department counter-intelligence agency said the attack was probably carried out to stop the Russian opposition from influencing Russia's presidential election. Russia's embassy in Vilnius declined to comment on the accusations. Putin, in power for nearly a quarter of a century, is expected to extend his rule by a further six years in the March 15-17 election. The Kremlin views Navalny's team as "the most dangerous opposition force capable of exerting real influence on Russia's internal processes", the Lithuanian security agency said. Volkov himself pointed the finger directly at Putin. In a post on Telegram, he said he had returned home on Wednesday morning after a night in hospital, having suffered a broken arm and injuries from about 15 hammer blows to the leg. "This is an obvious, typical criminal 'hello' from Putin, from criminal Petersburg," Volkov wrote. "We will keep on working and we will not surrender," he added. "It hard but well handle it... Its good to know Im still alive." Navalny, Putin's most prominent critic, died last month in an Arctic prison. Russian authorities say he died of natural causes. His followers believe he was killed by the authorities, which the Kremlin denies. 'VERY DARK TIMES' In an interview with Reuters hours before Tuesday night's assault, Volkov said leaders of Navalny's movement in exile feared for their lives. "They know that Putin not only kills people inside Russia, he also kills people outside of Russia," Volkov said in the interview. "We live in very dark times". Former Navalny spokesperson Kira Yarmysh posted images of Volkov with a bruise on his forehead, blood coming from a leg wound, and a vehicle with damage to the driver's door and window. "Volkov has just been attacked outside his house. Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes, after which the attacker started hitting Leonid with a hammer," she wrote on social media platform X. A lone police car could be seen on patrol on Wednesday afternoon outside Volkov's house, in a pine forest on the outskirts of the Lithuanian capital. Lithuanian Foreign Affairs Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said the perpetrators must "answer for their crime". Lithuania's police commissioner Renatas Pozela said police were devoting "huge resources" to investigate the assault. He said the attack did not mean that Lithiania was no longer safe. The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people, which borders Russia and Belarus, has become a base for Russian and Belarusian opposition figures. "This is a one-time event which we will successfully solve... Our people should not be afraid because of this", said Pozela. The U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania, Kara McDonald, condemned the attack on Volkov. "His resilience and courage in the face of recent attempts to silence and intimidate him are inspiring. The Navalny team remains an outspoken voice against Kremlin repression and brutality," she said on X. (Reporting by Andrius SytasEditing by Gareth Jones) A close ally of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny accused Moscow of directing a brutal attack at his home in Lithuania that left him hospitalized. Leonid Volkov, a top aide to Navalny at his Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), posted a video to Telegram with his arm in a cast and held up by a sling. He vowed to carry on with the groups anti-corruption mission. We will work, we will not give up, Volkov said in the video, according to a translation provided by The Associated Press. It was a characteristic bandit greeting from Putins henchmen, he added of the attack. The FBK said when Volkov arrived at his home in Vilnius, where he lives in exile, he was confronted by an assailant in his front yard. The assailant broke Volkovs car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes before beating him repeatedly with a hammer, the FBK said. Volkov was hospitalized but has since returned home after being treated. He has a broken arm, and for now he cannot walk because of the severe bruising from the hammer blows, according to the organization. The FBK posted photos from the attack, including of the broken car window, bruising around Volkovs eyes, a bloody leg, and a photo of Volkov on a stretcher being loaded into an ambulance. FBK will not be stopped by such threats. We understand that they exist. That no matter what security measures are taken, the amount of resources against us is still incomparably greater. But there are more of us. There are more honest people. Someone will always come to take our place, FBK Director Ivan Zhdanov, citing Volkovs message, wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. It is obvious that after the murder of Navalny, they will now completely take on those who left the Russian Federation. Here you dont even need a separate order from the Kremlin: different groups of bandits around Putin will try to curry favor with him and show who is cooler, he added. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda spoke to reporters after the attack, the AP reported, and placed blame on Putin. I can only say one thing to Putin nobody is afraid of you here, Nauseda said. Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis wrote on X that the attack was shocking, adding, Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime. Putins empty threats are simply his expressions of panic every time we get close to a breakthrough. His words shouldnt scare us. He himself is scared that everyone will one day see the Emperor wears no clothes and has no intention of doing the things he warns us about, he wrote in a subsequent post. The Kremlin has vehemently denied accusations of involvement in the attack, the AP reported. The attack comes about a month after Navalny died in Russias highest-security penal colony at the age of 47. Russian officials denied involvement in the death, but news of the death sparked global outrage and western leaders quickly placed blame on Russia for Navalnys death. Close allies of Navalny, including his wife, Yulia Navalnaya, have taken up the mantle and have pledged to keep fighting for Navalnys goal of a free Russia. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Volkov is a leading Russian opposition figure and was one of Navalny's close allies (Philip Davali) Leonid Volkov, a close ally of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was assaulted outside his home in Vilnius on Tuesday, an incident that sparked an uproar from the Lithuanian government. Volkov vowed to continue his struggle against President Vladimir Putin in a video posted on Telegram early Wednesday after he was discharged from hospital. "We will work and we will not give up," he said, adding that the attack, which left him with a broken arm, was a "characteristic bandit hello" from Putin's henchmen. Volkov, 43, is one of Russia's most prominent opposition figures and was a close confidant of Navalny, working as the late leader's ex-chief of staff and as chair of his Anti-Corruption Foundation until 2023. In his post on Wednesday, Volkov said he was struck 15 times on the leg during the attack. "The leg somehow is OK, it hurts to walk... However, I broke my arm," Volkov said Wednesday. "They literally wanted to make a schnitzel out of me," he added. Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh earlier said that "someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes" before hitting him with a hammer. Volkov's wife, Anna Biryukova, earlier shared photos of her husband's injuries on social media, including a black eye, a red mark on his forehead and blood on his leg, which had soaked through his jeans. Lithuanian police spokesperson Ramunas Matonis confirmed to AFP that a Russian citizen was assaulted near his home in the capital Vilnius around 10 pm local time (2000 GMT). The suspects have not been identified and more details about the assault are expected on Wednesday morning, he said. - 'Shocking' attack - The attack comes almost a month after Navalny's death in an Arctic prison, which Volkov blamed on Russian President Vladimir Putin, and days before elections set to extend the Kremlin chief's stay in power. The day before he was attacked, Volkov wrote on social media: "Putin killed Navalny. And many others before that." Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis condemned Volkov's beating in a social media post. "News about Leonid's assault are shocking. Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime," he said on social media platform X. NATO member Lithuania is home to many Russian exiles and has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine throughout Russia's invasion. Russian dissidents who have spoken out against the Kremlin often complain of being targeted with threats and attacks. Volkov told independent Russian news outlet Meduza hours before he was beaten on Tuesday that he was worried for his safety after Navalny's death. "The key risk now is that we will all be killed. Why, it's a pretty obvious thing," the outlet quoted him as saying. Volkov went into exile in 2019 along with several other Navalny allies after authorities launched a criminal probe into the leader's Anti-Corruption Foundation. Volkov was declared wanted by Russian authorities in 2021 over his role in drumming up mass protests against the Kremlin together with Navalny. bur-cad/giv/dhw/cwl The attack on Leonid Volkov in Vilnius on 12 March was likely a Russian-organised and implemented operation, Lithuania's State Security Department claimed on local television. The organisation said it was aimed at stopping Volkovs projects in connection with the forthcoming undemocratic Russian presidential elections. Leonid Volkov, a top ally and strategist of Alexey Navalny, was reportedly assaulted near his home in Vilnius. According to Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmish, an assailant smashed through a window of Volkov's car and sprayed tear gas into his eyes before hitting him with a hammer. Gabrielius Landsbergis, Lithuania's Foreign Minister, called the attack "shocking" on X. The attack in Vilnius comes nearly a month after Navalny was pronounced dead in a remote Artic penal colony. The fierce critic of Russian president Vladimir Putin was there serving a 19-year prison term on charges of extremism. The cause of his death has been widely contested, with opposition figures and many international leaders blaming the Kremlin. Putin and his government have denied any involvement. Volkov was previously in charge of Navalny's regional offices and election campaigns when Navalny ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013. He left Russia several years ago under increasing pressure. He also launched a project called "Navalny's Campaigning Machine" aiming to talk to as many Russians as possible in order to turn them against Putin for the upcoming presidential election. Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, called for the rejection of results for the upcoming elections in her home country in an opinion piece Wednesday. Im not promising that refusing to recognize the results of the Russian presidential elections this weekend would lead to the instant collapse of the Putin government, Navalnaya said in the piece in The Washington Post. But it would be an important signal to civil society in Russia and the elites still loyal to Putin, as well as to the world, that Russia is ruled not by a president recognized by all, but by someone who is despised and publicly condemned, she continued. Only then will those who remain loyal to Putin start to see that the one way to return to normal economic and political life is to get rid of him. Navalnayas husband died last month in a remote prison near the Arctic Circle, sparking backlash from world leaders including President Biden, who blamed his death on Russian President Vladimir Putin. I call on political leaders of the West to help all Russian citizens who stand up against Putins gang. I urge you to finally hear the voice of free Russia and take a principled stand against him to not recognize the results of the falsified elections, to not recognize Putin as the legitimate president of Russia, Navalnaya said. Navalnaya also called for the maximum expansion and careful enforcement of sanctions against all more or less prominent Putin-allied politicians, so-called businessmen, civil servants and law enforcement officials. By depriving thousands of influential figures of their capital and assets, you lay the groundwork for internal divisions and ultimately the collapse of the regime, she continued. Navalnaya has also called on her late husbands supporters to protest the Russian presidential election. She told people who are against Putin to get in line at polls on the last day of voting on March 17 in a video address, according to The Associated Press. We need to use election day to show that we exist and there are many of us, we are actual, living, real people and we are against Putin. What to do next is up to you. You can vote for any candidate except Putin. You could ruin your ballot, Navalnaya said, according to the AP. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Leonid Volkov, the former chief of staff to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, said on March 13 that he would continue his work after being attacked with a hammer and tear gas by an unknown assailant at his home in Lithuania the previous day. Volkov was one of the top members of Navalny's presidential campaign in 2018 and chaired his Anti-Corruption Foundation, but has lived since 2020 in Lithuania. In a video posted on his Telegram channel after being released from the hospital, Volkov said "I will keep working and I won't give up." Volkov said that he had been hit 15 times with a hammer, and his arm had been broken in what he called a "characteristic gangster greeting from Putin." Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that the "news about Leonid's assault (is) shocking." "Relevant authorities are at work. Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime," he added. Volkov relocated from Russia to Lithuania in 2020 after Russian authorities began an investigation of the Anti-Corruption Foundation. He was later added to a wanted persons list in Russia. Navalny, Putin's main political opponent, died on Feb. 16 in a penal colony in the Russian town of Kharp, Yamal Nenets Autonomous District. Read also: Alexei Navalnys life and death as main opponent to Putin regime Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Key Insights Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Decisive Dividend fair value estimate is CA$22.12 Decisive Dividend's CA$11.11 share price signals that it might be 50% undervalued Our fair value estimate is 88% higher than Decisive Dividend's analyst price target of CA$11.79 In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Decisive Dividend Corporation (CVE:DE) by taking the forecast future cash flows of the company and discounting them back to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward. We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model. Check out our latest analysis for Decisive Dividend Step By Step Through The Calculation We're using the 2-stage growth model, which simply means we take in account two stages of company's growth. In the initial period the company may have a higher growth rate and the second stage is usually assumed to have a stable growth rate. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years. Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value: Story continues 10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (CA$, Millions) CA$19.9m CA$21.0m CA$21.9m CA$22.6m CA$23.3m CA$24.0m CA$24.6m CA$25.1m CA$25.7m CA$26.3m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x4 Analyst x2 Est @ 4.14% Est @ 3.50% Est @ 3.05% Est @ 2.73% Est @ 2.51% Est @ 2.35% Est @ 2.24% Est @ 2.17% Present Value (CA$, Millions) Discounted @ 7.1% CA$18.6 CA$18.3 CA$17.8 CA$17.2 CA$16.5 CA$15.8 CA$15.2 CA$14.5 CA$13.8 CA$13.2 ("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St) Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = CA$161m 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 (2.0%) 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 7.1%. Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033 (1 + g) (r g) = CA$26m (1 + 2.0%) (7.1% 2.0%) = CA$520m Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= CA$520m ( 1 + 7.1%)10= CA$261m The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is CA$422m. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of CA$11.1, the company appears quite good value at a 50% discount to where the stock price trades currently. The assumptions in any calculation have a big impact on the valuation, so it is better to view this as a rough estimate, not precise down to the last cent. dcf The Assumptions We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Decisive Dividend 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 7.1%, which is based on a levered beta of 1.120. 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 Decisive Dividend Strength Earnings growth over the past year exceeded the industry. Debt is well covered by earnings and cashflows. Weakness Earnings growth over the past year is below its 5-year average. Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Industrials market. Shareholders have been diluted in the past year. Opportunity Annual earnings are forecast to grow faster than the Canadian market. Trading below our estimate of fair value by more than 20%. Threat Dividends are not covered by earnings and cashflows. Revenue is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year. Next Steps: Valuation is only one side of the coin in terms of building your investment thesis, and it ideally won't be the sole piece of analysis you scrutinize for a company. It's not possible to obtain a foolproof valuation with a DCF model. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. For instance, if the terminal value growth rate is adjusted slightly, it can dramatically alter the overall result. Can we work out why the company is trading at a discount to intrinsic value? For Decisive Dividend, we've put together three additional factors you should explore: Risks: You should be aware of the 4 warning signs for Decisive Dividend (1 can't be ignored!) we've uncovered before considering an investment in the company. Future Earnings: How does DE'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. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the TSXV every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Navy fired the commanding officer of the guided-missile submarine Ohios gold crew on Monday. The service said it removed Capt. Kurt Balagna, who has served as the commanding officer of the vessel since at least 2021, due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command. The Navy provides such boilerplate when announcing every CO relief and provided no further details to Navy Times for Balagnas removal. Capt. Andrew Cain is now stepping in to lead the submarine, the Navy said. Navy commanding officers are held to high standards of personal and professional conduct, the Navy said in a news release Wednesday. They are expected to uphold the highest standards of responsibility, reliability and leadership, and the Navy holds them accountable when they fall short of those standards. The Ohio is based out of Bangor, Washington. Balagna previously served as the commanding officer of the fast attack submarine Annapolis and the executive officer of the fast attack submarine Virginia, according to his Navy biography. He is at least the third commanding officer the Navy has relieved this year. The Navy removed the commanding officer of the Japan-based destroyer Howard in February, and the commanding officer of the guided-missile submarine Georgia in January. In an administrative message released with little fanfare on Monday, the Navy quietly embarked on an ambitious effort that leaders hope will reshape culture and the relationships commanders have with their sailors. Dubbed "Culture of Excellence 2.0," or COE 2.0, the initiative and its goals come across as complex and grand. It attempts to make about 34 instructions more relevant and accessible to the fleet. It also looks to introduce new tools and methods for leaders to root out toxicity in the ranks while instilling new sailors with better leadership techniques. But, behind all that, the admiral driving the new policy had a more succinct goal -- "make giving a s**t a standard." Read Next: Air Force Finds Elevated Cancer Rates in Initial Results of Study Looking at Health Risks at Missile Bases Rear Adm. Brett Mietus was one of several Navy officials who exclusively spoke with Military.com ahead of the policy's unveiling. He said a main aim of the initiative, which took him and his team nearly two years to develop, was the desire to explain to the whole fleet -- not just junior sailors -- what being a good leader or sailor means in ways that go beyond just high-minded, if somewhat nebulous, ideals such as "honor, courage and commitment." The outcome, according to Mietus, is that "you can really, from beginning to end, understand ... in a detailed way, what right looks like." The "playbook" that was released as part of the initiative features a page that offers multiple examples of what honor, courage and commitment actually look like in practice. Mietus noted that the standards they've laid out for the Navy are "designed to be hard because what we don't want to do is make everybody go, 'Oh, yeah, I'm there,' and move on." Though, more interestingly, the book also offers examples of what "faking" those ideals looks like as well. Faking honor, for example, would be "avoiding tough situations and/or conversations through inaction" while faking courage is "leading through fear and compliance versus respect," the book explains. The book also lists 30 warning signs of bad people, leaders and teams. The policy and the efforts of Mietus and his team come at a challenging time for the Navy. The service has been rocked by a series of scandals over suicide clusters, which have made it hard to ignore some of the challenges facing sailors today. Plus, like the other services, the Navy is struggling to recruit enough sailors. Last year, the sea service fell more than 7,000 recruits short of its goals. After Military.com revealed at least nine suicides between November 2019 and April 2022 aboard the USS George Washington -- a carrier undergoing a yearslong refit in the shipyards outside of Norfolk, Virginia -- the subsequent investigations and sailor interviews showed that sailors were largely left to suffer alone while facing tough living conditions in industrial sites with long commutes and oblivious leaders. That fall, another cluster of four suicides in the span of a month was revealed at a nearby regional maintenace center where staff had a large population of sailors undergoing some sort of medical issue or event. An investigation into that cluster revealed that, among other issues, leaders there were "not well-suited" to provide effective management, administration and oversight of the sailors, and the Navy's own audit service "recently determined that the Navy, writ large, has failed to fully implement the suicide prevention program." Finally, a report on one suicide out of several on the USS Theodore Roosevelt not only found similarities to the George Washington, but that the Navy's approach of supplementing mental health-care professionals with regular sailors was not working. Many sailors in that case blamed one chief petty officer for the suicide while another, senior chief petty officer was "specifically cited by multiple witnesses as being unsupportive of sailors accessing mental health resources." The Navy's latest fleetwide survey also found that stress and burnout are on the rise across the fleet, and sailors struggle with finding good work-life balances. Force Master Chief Jason Knupp, another member of the team behind the initiative, passionately noted that his hope for COE 2.0 was to address some of those issues so that "I can look a parent in the eyes, I can look a spouse in the eyes, I can look the community in the eyes and say, 'Your sons and daughters are on loan to me, to the United States Navy; I'm going to return them with honor.'" "'I care about them because you've given them to me, and you've given me your most precious asset,'" he added. Mietus acknowledged that the Navy has had trouble creating a healthy culture servicewide. He noted that many commanders simply struggle, because managing increasingly diverse and generationally different crews is just a challenge. "We would never willfully violate a safety procedure ... but we eat into the margin when it comes to our people," Mietus said. According to data provided in the playbook, the Navy's enlisted population is now more Gen Z than millennial -- 49.8% to 45.5%, respectively. Meanwhile, its officer corps is 63% millennials, and the next largest segment is Gen X at 19.8%. "My generation looked up, saw positional authority -- check, are you ethical -- check, and then it was, 'Do you care about me?'" Mietus, who joined the Navy in 1992, remarked. "The younger generations, it's more, 'Do you care about me,' and so part of this pivot is helping people acknowledge that younger generations aren't as enamored with positional authority as they used to be," he went on to explain. As part of this new initiative, the Navy is planning on rolling out several new methods for commanders and Navy leaders to know what is going on in their commands. One will be a "virtual CO suggestion box", an easy and electronic way for sailors to submit complaints, critiques and suggestions to their command's leadership anonymously. Knupp said the idea behind the move is "to create different avenues" for sailors to make their voices heard. "It makes the crew accessible to the other commanding officer to get after those things that might be hidden," he added. In fact, much of the policy documents are sprinkled with QR codes to help ease sailors' access to either the underlying policy documents or the resources being referenced. Another tool that rolled out alongside COE 2.0 is the commander's risk mitigation dashboard -- a website that aims to use statistical models to "analyze data from 31 databases consisting of over 16 million columns of possible predictors and over 6,000 events to generate command-specific risk scores for suicide, illicit drug and alcohol use, sexual assault (both victim and perpetrator), and sexual harassment," according to the initiative's website. Knupp explained that this data should tell commanders that they need "to work on my messaging, maybe assign an investigator to go look at this or request external resources to come in here and help my command." "There might be some stuff that's hidden, and so we're using products and survey tools to make this more apparent to the other commanders so he or she can get after it," he added. One of the investigations into the George Washington suicides found that the warning signs were in the ship's survey data but went unheeded. In a 2019 command climate survey, the George Washington's results were below aircraft carrier and Navywide averages in all assessment categories. A 2020 survey showed the same results. Plus, from 2019 to 2020, those same surveys showed that sailors' "awareness of suicidal ideations" on the ship ballooned from 31% to 56%. Now, Mietus and his teams say they are also introducing new ways to hold commands more accountable for the standards that are being laid out or clarified in the new policy push. The admiral said the Navy has now managed "100% accountability" on debriefing the results of the command climate surveys with commanders and their bosses. "What happens a lot of times in commands is if you're my boss, I may have some things that are not very good, but unless we have that deep conversation, then maybe they're not going to be uncovered," Mietus said. The goal for 2024 is to have those climate surveys linked to the Culture of Excellence materials, "so that if a command is not meeting the standards here, it should be pretty obvious and that will give the [Navy leaders] the tools to step in," he said. Mietus also said that a command's yearly assessment will be based on the criteria they've rolled out "so nobody can ignore COE 2.0, or if they do so, it's at their own peril, because they've got to talk to their boss about how they're implementing it." But ultimately, the goal is much broader. Mietus and his team are looking to shift the Navy's culture to a place where the place mats, books and other tools are not necessary and many of the concepts they've developed are second nature. "I think what would be different is that our Navy would be more deeply invested in our people," he said. "Gen Z is pretty clear on what they want. They want to join a group, they want to feel like they're protected by their leaders, they're in a group that gives them a sense of purpose and some meaning." As part of that effort, the team hopes to include many of the COE 2.0 materials in the curricula of various training events and schools that will touch every sailor in the fleet. Knupp said that "we'd like to have a recruiter talking about this, and they're already doing it at [boot camp], we're already doing it at [the enlisted leader development courses]" before noting that the Navy's top surface warfare officer, Vice Adm. Brendan McLane, "is layering this in and deliberately developing his officers to this standard." However, despite the lofty aims, there was a sense of pragmatism among the team. "We shouldn't wake up tomorrow morning and say, the Navy's changed -- It's not," Knupp said. "I expect the needle's really going to move in about a year to two." In the meantime, Mietus and his team are already looking to make improvements. "One of the great things about this document is that it's living and breathing," Capt. Walter Mainor, a former destroyer squadron commander, said on Monday. "The key is, we're getting that constant feedback and keep trying to tweak it to make the process better. I think that's very, very important." Related: Navy Survey Shows Continued Problems with Stress, Burnout Among Sailors, But Progress on Culture CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) Its not just about teachers salaries anymore. Principals are jumping in on the action to change the way theyre paid. The average base pay for school principals is currently around $85,000 a year. What they receive beyond that, however, depends on test scores and school size. But the administrators believe more factors should come into play when it comes to their paychecks. Education Department starts sending financial aid data to colleges after months of delays Since weve had the plan a few years now, weve seen some unintended consequences, and we think now is a great time to try to address a few of those, said Katherine Joyce, executive director of the N.C. Association of Administrators. For years, the state has paid principals on several factors, including the number of students enrolled in the school or if their test scores met or exceeded growth. Under the current plan, a principals salary can jump 10 percent if they meet annual growth objectives, and 20 percent if they exceed it. That could result in as much as an $18,000 salary bump. Educators argue the current plan leads to big swings in a principals salary, but it doesnt factor in the true complexity of a school and de-incentivizes principals to work at lower-performing schools. Not all 400 student schools are created equally, Joyce explained. A 400-student school and a very affluent community probably have lots more parental support at home for those students than a 400-student school in a high-poverty community. For that reason, the states principals presented a new compensation plan to legislators this week to consider adding to the state budget. It would assign points to schools that have so-called complexity factors like multi-language learners, homelessness, economically disadvantaged students, exceptional children, and academically gifted students. NC Law enforcement leaders facing unprecedented hiring challenges The plan was met with skepticism from some lawmakers who fear the new plan would give money to principals for running a school with more hurdles than gauging pay on student success. We say this is the right place to start, Joyce said. Our plan may have pieces of it that may need to be reviewed and further tweaked, but we think we put forward a great start and hope this is something our legislature will be supportive of moving forward with. The state budget comes together this summer. N.C. principals are hoping legislators will write this plan into that budget and adjust the principal salary framework to the new plan. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Arabian Travel Market (ATM), which takes place from May 6-9 at the Dubai World Trade Centre, will host prominent international airlines and aircraft manufacturers to explore the latest industry innovations and solutions. Transformative areas that are likely to be high on the agenda are sustainability and the role of startups and innovators in transporting the industry into the next era. The theme for the 31st edition of ATM is Empowering Innovation: Transforming Travel Through Entrepreneurship, championing start-ups and innovators making a significant contribution to the travel and tourism sector. ATM has partnered with Aviation X Lab and the Intelak programme, which have a shared mission to revolutionise the travel industry by providing a platform for startups and innovators. Founded in 2017, Aviation X Lab is an aviation-specific incubator which unites international aviation leaders Emirates Airline, Thales Group, Collins Aerospace, GE Aerospace and Airbus, with a mission of reshaping the future of the aviation sector through innovative, sustainable ideas. The Intelak Programmes include the Intelak Idea Lab, Intelak Incubator and Intelak Accelerator, which support startups and foster the development of new ideas to meet the challenges across the travel, aviation and tourism sectors. Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market, said: ATM 2024 will showcase entrepreneurs in aviation, accommodation, hospitality and attractions, among many others, and explore how innovative sustainable trends will evolve, identifying strategies for growth within key vertical sectors. For the upcoming edition, we have partnered with Aviation X Lab and the Intelak programme to further our focus on entrepreneurship. Visitors to ATM will have the chance to stay up to date with the latest developments from the world's most influential airlines and aviation companies during our programme of aviation industry sessions, which will explore key topics for the sector, including technology, innovation and sustainability. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the aviation industry was responsible for 2% of global energy-related CO2 emissions in 2022, contributing significantly to the global carbon footprint. Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) has emerged as one of the most effective solutions for mitigating the emissions from aviation fuel, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that SAF could contribute around 65% of the reduction in emissions needed by aviation to reach net zero by 2050. Curtis said: Amid growing concerns over climate change and the aviation industrys contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, embracing sustainable alternatives has never been more critical. With a steadfast commitment to sustainability in the travel and tourism sector, ATM proudly provides a platform for the global aviation sector to exchange the latest insights and industry updates on environmental initiatives, including SAF. Airlines featured at the exhibition this year include Emirates, flydubai, Saudia, flynas, Qatar Airways, and Egypt Air, which is making its debut at ATM 2024. In addition, private jet companies MayFair Jets Group and Air Charter Service will have a presence. The ATM conference programme takes place over four days and features presentations from global travel and tourism leaders. Innovation in the aviation sector will also be highlighted on May 7 when industry leaders from Cirium, Riyadh Air and IATA will convene on the global stage for the session Looking Skyward for Innovation: How Aviation is Changing. Held in conjunction with Dubai World Trade Centre, ATM 2024s strategic partners include the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), Destination Partner; Emirates, Official Airline Partner; IHG Hotels & Resorts, Official Hotel Partner and Al Rais Travel, Official DMC Partner. TradeArabia News Service An In-Depth Look at Digital Realty Trust Inc's Upcoming Dividend and Financial Health Digital Realty Trust Inc (NYSE:DLR) recently announced a dividend of $1.22 per share, payable on 2024-03-28, with the ex-dividend date set for 2024-03-14. As investors look forward to this upcoming payment, the spotlight also shines on the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. Using the data from GuruFocus, let's look into Digital Realty Trust Inc's dividend performance and assess its sustainability. What Does Digital Realty Trust Inc Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 10 Warning Signs with DLR. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Digital Realty Trust Inc operates over 300 data centers across the globe, offering a variety of services from retail co-location to full-scale "cold shells" for large cloud service providers. The company, which functions as a real estate investment trust, has shifted its focus towards delivering higher-level services, catering to clients' IT needs. With a significant footprint spanning five continents and nearly 40 million rentable square feet, Digital Realty Trust Inc is a key player in the data center space. Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividend History Since 2004, Digital Realty Trust Inc has established a reputation for consistent dividend payments, distributed quarterly. Recognized as a dividend achiever, the company has increased its dividend annually, marking a commendable track record of financial commitment to its shareholders. Below is a chart showcasing the annual Dividends Per Share to track historical trends. Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividend Analysis Breaking Down Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividend Yield and Growth Digital Realty Trust Inc boasts a trailing dividend yield of 3.33% and a forward dividend yield of 3.33%, indicating consistent dividend expectations over the next year. Over the past three years, the company's annual dividend growth rate was 2.90%, which climbs to 3.90% over a five-year period, and stands at 5.00% over the past decade. Story continues Considering Digital Realty Trust Inc's dividend yield and five-year growth rate, the 5-year yield on cost for the company's stock is approximately 4.03%. Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability The sustainability of Digital Realty Trust Inc's dividend can be gauged by examining the dividend payout ratio. With a ratio of 6.47 as of 2023-12-31, there are concerns about the sustainability of the company's dividend. However, the profitability rank of 7 out of 10 suggests robust earnings potential, supported by a decade of positive net income, which could mitigate these concerns. Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook Digital Realty Trust Inc's growth rank of 7 out of 10 indicates a strong trajectory when compared to its competitors. The company's revenue per share and 3-year revenue growth rate, averaging 6.00% annually, outperform 64.89% of global competitors. Additionally, the 3-year EPS growth rate of 11.70% per year and a 5-year EBITDA growth rate of -1.10%, which outperforms 38.75% of global competitors, further reinforce the company's capacity for sustained growth and dividends. Concluding Insights on Digital Realty Trust Inc's Dividends For value investors, Digital Realty Trust Inc presents an intriguing dividend profile, with a history of consistent growth and a forward-looking approach underscored by its robust profitability and growth metrics. While the payout ratio raises questions about dividend sustainability, the company's financial health and growth prospects suggest a capacity to maintain its dividend commitments. Investors should continue to monitor these aspects to make well-informed decisions regarding Digital Realty Trust Inc's dividends. GuruFocus Premium users can screen for high-dividend yield stocks using the High Dividend Yield Screener. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) A Newport News man has been sentenced on Friday to nine years and 11 months in prison for leading a prolific card-swiping operation that caused at least $1.5 million in losses. Court documents reveal 29-year-old Damier Dorsey purchased account information for identity theft victims through the darknet with his co-conspirators. Dorsey was able to reencode the information from the victims onto credit and debit cards. Dorsey utilized the altered cards in 2017 to purchase cartons of cigarettes that he would later resell to local businesses, according to officials. Starting in 2018, Dorseys scheme evolved to purchasing other items for resale and purchasing lottery tickets in order to launder proceeds through the Virginia Lottery. On April 14, 2018, Dorsey, along with his co-conspirators, purchased $2,716.06 of merchandise from Toys R Us in an attempt to resell the items on Facebook Marketplace. Later on that same day, Dorsey used the same card to withdrawal $300 from an ATM. On June 27, 2018, Dorsey used a re-encoded card to purchase $200 worth of lottery tickets. According to court documents, Dorsey and his co-conspirators were aspiring musicians, releasing music under the name $wipaG@ng. Dorsey can be seen in several of the music videos boasting about committing fraud and other criminal activities. Dorsey and a co-conspirator were stopped by the Virginia State Police while driving on Aug. 2, 2018. During the stop, police were able to find a credit card embossing machine, multiple credit cards in various states of imprinting and over $23,000. A search of Dorseys home resulted in enforcement recovering multiple re-encoded credit cards, magnetic strip cards without labels, a magnetic strip card reader and writer, lists of numbers, lottery tickets and W-2G tax forms for lottery winnings. A co-conspirator of Dorsey estimated that she spent about $10,000 per week with Dorsey on re-encoded and re-embossed credit and debit cards. Dorsey pleaded guilty on Sept. 11, 2023 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Check back with WAVY.com for updates. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) News 4 is your local election headquarters, and on April 24 News 4 will host a debate between the candidates for the special election for New Yorks 26th Congressional District. The candidates for the April 30 special election are New York State Senator Tim Kennedy (D) and West Seneca town supervisor Gary Dickson (R). The seat is to fill the vacancy left by former Congressman Brian Higgins, who resigned from his seat in February to become the president of Sheas Performing Arts Center. New Yorks 26th Congressional District represents Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Lackawanna, Tonawanda, North Tonawanda, among other municipalities. The debate, which will be moderated by News 4s Marlee Tuskes and Dave Greber, will air that evening at 7:30 p.m. on WIVB. Your Local Election Headquarters Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo. California lawmakers and labor leaders are calling for change within the states workplace safety agency following a four-month Sacramento Bee investigation into the organizations hiring practices. The Bees reporting found numerous troubling examples of how a staffing shortage within the Division of Occupational Health and Safety, also known as Cal-OSHA, causes serious harm both to state employees and Californias front-line workers. Of the more than 920 positions listed in Cal-OSHAs most recent organization chart, about a third were vacant. Current and former employees say the lack of staff in the enforcement branch translates to fewer on-site safety inspections and less employer accountability. The unit that investigates criminal negligence in workplace accidents only has two investigators for the entire state. Given the tremendous case load they bear, theyre only able to open criminal probes into fatal workplace accidents. Employees who lose body parts or are permanently paralyzed will likely never know if their employers were criminally liable for their life-altering injuries. Legislators, worker advocates and even current and retired state employees have called on Gov. Gavin Newsom and his administration to take serious action. But so far, theres been only silence from the governors office. Repeated calls, voicemails and emails to his communications director Erin Mellon to discuss the situation at Cal-OSHA went unanswered. Cal-OSHA is experiencing a staffing crisis. Heres how that endangers California workers Democratic lawmakers such as Assemblywoman Liz Ortega of Hayward and Senator Dave Cortese of San Jose say the Legislature only has so much power to change hiring practices within state agencies. Without buy-in from Newsom and the executive branch, the problem wont go away. It takes the gravitas of the governors office, Cortese said. Theres a limit to what we can do as a Legislature when it comes to bureaucratic reform. A lot of that has to come from him, because thats what an executive branch does. It has to run its own agencies. Legislators know their laws wont enforce themselves While Ortega has called for an audit of Cal-OSHA, Cortese argues that the historical evidence should be enough to give lawmakers a sense of the issue. Although an audit would provide a truly independent assessment of the situation, such a probe takes time. And for California workers, time is of the essence. The bottom line is, we know what the problem is, Cortese said. And I think we know that there needs to be a dramatic urgency around hiring. Critics of Cal-OSHA have pointed out that Californias world-class labor standards dont do much good if they arent enforced. The understaffing hinders the agencys ability to hold employers accountable to the groundbreaking labor laws that legislators such asCortese and Ortega work to enact. Past legislation is not being complied with, let alone what were thinking about for new legislation, Cortese said. And Cal-OSHA is the one thats supposed to be going out there and enforcing that. Last year, Cortese sponsored a bill that required all employers to adopt workplace violence prevention plans. The bill, which Newsom signed in September, came in response to the 2021 workplace mass shooting at a railyard in his San Jose district. Given Cal-OSHAs staffing issues, Cortese doesnt know how many workers will actually benefit from the new law. What are the chances that thats going to get enforced well enough to actually elicit compliance? Cortese said. Instead of solely responding to worker complaints, Cortese says Cal-OSHA should be entering workplaces and conducting proactive, preventive inspections. But right now, overburdened inspectors dont have time for such visits. Will Newsom weigh in on Cal-OSHAs staffing problems? Cortese says he hasnt sensed unusual reticence from the governors office on the Cal-OSHA issue thus far. But time is running out for Newsom to take action. If he wants this done by 2026, its going to require him pulling out all the stops in terms of his executive powers, Cortese said. Clearly it goes beyond hiring a few new people at the top and enacting a few reforms. The senator admits he isnt sure exactly what tools the governor has at his disposal to hasten the hiring process. But given the severity of the staffing shortage, he suggested the idea that Newsom could issue executive orders that exempt Cal-OSHA from Californias arduous and lengthy merit-based hiring process. A precedent for this exists at the federal level. National OSHA struggled for years to fill its compliance safety and health officer positions in a timely way. In 2023, according to U.S. Department of Labor spokesperson Frances Alonzo, the federal equivalent of CalHR gave OSHA privileges to expedite its hiring process This Direct Hire Authority has allowed federal OSHA to hire a whopping 68 safety inspectors in the last 12 months, Alonzo said. In the last three years, Cal-OSHA has managed to hire just 32 people in its enforcement branch (this includes positions other than safety inspectors). Agency data shows the enforcement branch lost 34 people to retirement, promotions and resignations in that same time frame. Cortese said if he could speak directly to Gov. Newsom, the top item on his wish list would be to ask the governor to find out if he could issue an executive order to speed up the hiring process for Cal-OSHA and its parent organization, the Department of Industrial Relations. Thats it, right there. Period. Full stop, Cortese said. I dont know exactly how much he can do before he exceeds his own authority, but he should be maxing out his own authority right now or in the very near future to straighten this out. Workers health and safety are on the line Ortega said she intends to find a permanent solution to the Cal-OSHA staffing problem no matter how long it takes. Whats been missing up until this point, she said, is a champion in the Legislature who will commit to prioritizing the issue year after year. Now, as the chair of the Assemblys Labor and Employment Committee, Ortega says she will make the health and safety of Californias working people and families her committees top priority. She already held a more than three-hour hearing last month in which Cal-OSHAs staffing shortage took center stage. These issues were talking about, theyre not new. Theyve been happening for decades, Ortega said. Whether it takes me a year or my entire time in the Legislature, Im going to prioritize this issue. To Ortega, Cal-OSHAs vacancy rates and the struggles with internal workplace culture came as no surprise. What did shock her, though, was how the lack of adequate staff led to harmful outcomes for California workers and families. For instance, the Bees investigation highlighted the experiences of one San Jose construction worker, Carlos Castro, who was paralyzed from the chest down three years ago when he was crushed by a heavy pipe at his worksite. Ultimately, Castros life-altering injuries werent enough to warrant a criminal investigation. The unit that investigates criminal negligence now only has two staffers for the entire state. Those two investigators only have time to pursue cases in which workers die. Since Castro survived his accident, his case wasnt considered for a Cal-OSHA criminal probe. No one will ever know whether his employer should have been held criminally liable for his paralysis. That story just blew my mind, Ortega said, and really solidified why Im doing what Im doing. What she doesnt want to have happen is for lawmakers like herself to call hearings, garner media coverage, pass legislation to give the agencies more funding and then watch in disappointment as nothing changes. Ortega said Gov. Newsoms office called her staff the day of the Feb. 7 hearing and asked to arrange a time This wasnt about pointing a finger to any one individual, Ortega said. This is about identifying a problem and working as a coalition to get the governor on board. Labor advocates such as Stephen Knight, executive director of Worksafe, say theyve called for a better-staffed Cal-OSHA for decades. Knight calls the failure to prioritize worker safety a costly and avoidable crisis that needs to end. This level of negligence, of deprioritizing enforcement, of undermining state law is taking the burden of health and safety at work off of employers where it belongs and dumping it onto the bodies and well-being of Californias working families, Knight said. And thats bad for Californias economy. Even though the staffing shortage is a longstanding problem, Knight says hes optimistic that now could be the right moment for change. The pandemic drilled home for the importance of health and safety on the job. And as labor-friendly Democrats have gained power in state government, the conditions for change could be just right. But, Knight added, buy-in from the top is crucial. We do need to see leadership from the governor, Knight said, that this is an issue that matters to him as much as it matters to California workers. Want state worker news in your inbox? Sign up for our weekly newsletter using the module below or by emailing mmiller@sacbee.com. Women who miscarry in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy will be offered up to 10 paid days off and their partners five days. NHS England has said any of its staff who miscarry in the first 24 weeks of pregnancy can take 10 days' paid leave. Partners can take five days. And staff who miscarry after six months will still be offered paid maternity leave. The policy, adopted by Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust last year, is now being rolled out nationally. An official for the NHS in Wales said it would consider offering a similar scheme. BBC News has also contacted NHS Scotland and Northern Ireland. UK workers who miscarry before 24 weeks have no legal right to maternity or parental-bereavement leave - although, a number of large companies, including Tesco, Lidl, John Lewis and Santander, offer it. Some may choose to take sick pay or compassionate leave - but this is at the discretion of employers. Specialist support NHS England's new pregnancy-and-baby-loss policy will also ask trusts to give staff paid time off to attend appointments, scans and tests, plus for any mental-health interventions. And staff returning to work after a miscarriage will be given specialist support by their NHS trust or baby-loss charities. After a trial at Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Hospital Trust, staff said the policy meant they were twice as likely to keep working for the trust. One in four pregnancies in the UK ends in miscarriage. And a Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) survey found just under a quarter of employees who had experienced pregnancy or baby loss had left their jobs following a poor response from their company. Women's Health Strategy Minister Maria Caulfield said: "Our brilliant NHS workers look after us when we need it most and this new guidance is a positive step towards ensuring they are supported through the tragedy of losing of a baby." Kath Abrahams, who runs the baby loss and pregnancy research charity Tommy's, said: "As the largest employer in the UK, the NHS is sending a powerful signal that staff going through this experience deserve understanding, compassion and the right to grieve - and that support is possible no matter what your workplace looks like." In despair ... Nicola Sturgeon, pictured in 2022, said she 'liked' Sir Chris Whitty but was concerned 'past mistakes could get in the way of doing the right thing' during later stages of the pandemic - Andrew Cowan/Scottish Parliament/PA Nicola Sturgeon complained to a key adviser that she could not get the UK Government to sign up to her controversial strategy to eliminate Covid shortly after the pandemic started, secret messages have disclosed. The former first minister told Prof Devi Sridhar in July 2020 that she was trying to get the UK to adopt the controversial zero Covid policy but that she had been informed that Sir Chris Whitty was not keen on using the word. She said she eventually succeeded in getting the UK Government to sign up to maximum suppression, which she said doesnt go as far as Id like but which Ill interpret and describe as elimination. Private Twitter messages published by the UK Covid inquiry last week, together with hundreds of other pieces of evidence, showed Prof Sridhar told Ms Sturgeon she was working on an exciting & feasible plan for elimination. The Edinburgh University public health academic became a key adviser to the first minister during the pandemic. She argued in 2020 for a zero Covid Scotland, which means theres no acceptable level of number of cases and they get driven down to become negligible so we get the economy going and society going. During her evidence session in January, Ms Sturgeon denied the zero Covid strategy meant her government took its eye off the ball when preparing for a second inevitable wave. But Prof Mark Woolhouse, an eminent epidemiologist, told the inquiry that the policy meant there was no practical alternative to the lockdown in January 2021. In his submission to the inquiry, he said zero Covid was never a rational basis for making health policy, not least because it was bound to fail. He said the only way to achieve this would be to go into immediate lockdown and stay there until a fully effective vaccine had been rolled out, and completely sealing off the border with England. Not keen ... newly discovered messages show Sir Chris Whitty, pictured arriving at the Covid Inquiry last November, did not want to use the word 'elimination' - Heathcliff O'Malley for The Telegraph The inquiry has also been shown graphs that show the proportion of Scotlands population in hospital was very similar to Englands for nearly all of the pandemic. But on July 30, 2020, Prof Sridhar sent Ms Sturgeon a Twitter message citing figures at the time that showed England had far more infections. She said: Your influence is working if only they could see elimination strategy is optimal. Ms Sturgeon replied: Im trying to get them there on elimination Im told Whitty not keen on using the word?? Sir Chris, Englands chief medical officer, is an eminent epidemiologist. Prof Sridhar replied: Had several exchanges with Whitty on this. I think hes worried about having advised against full suppression in Feb and March and now changing completely the other way. She described Whitty as a block, prompting Ms Sturgeon to complain: I like Whitty but I despair if worry about past mistakes gets in way of doing right thing now. Ms Sturgeon messaged Prof Sridhar again on the subject on August 5, 2020: Confidentially, on my attempt at a 4 nations statement on elimination, the UKG simply wont use the word. I think Ive got them to suppressing virus to lowest possible level and keeping it there. I think I might bank that as progress... After Prof Sridhar pressed her to get them to agree to no acceptable level of infection, Ms Sturgeon replied: I suspect Ive got them as far as theyll go. After the four nations agreed on maximum suppression the following month, Prof Sridhar texted: Maximum suppression = elimination strategy = Zero COVID strategy. Interchangeable terms but mean the same thing. But, in a diary entry later in September 2020, Sir Patrick Vallance said that any talk of elimination is long gone in Scotland. He said: Devi Sridhar and Scotland seem to have forgotten their elimination strategy that England should follow as students are locked in Glasgow University and cases soar. The following month, Sir Patrick, who was the UK Governments chief scientific adviser, wrote: Devi Sridhar has revised her position again but Times give her great coverage as a sort of prophet! Ms Sturgeons spokesman said: As Nicola made clear when she gave evidence to the inquiry, every decision she made throughout the pandemic sought to protect people across Scotland as best as possible during an incredible difficult and uncertain time. A spokesman for Edinburgh University said: Professor Sridhar has nothing further to add beyond the comments she made at the Covid inquiry in January. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Conservative Party is toast. There is no path to a Tory victory. Rishi Sunak cuts an increasingly tragic and isolated figure. I write this with great sadness, but the Prime Minister has never looked so powerless, so unable to command the countrys attention. His podium speech on extremism was ignored by Scotland Yard. His Budget has made zero impact. There is little prospect of No 10 seizing the narrative. Tory MPs are either in open panic or are trying to coast through their last few months in office, though not in power. The Government has alienated every segment of the Conservative base without gaining any new voters. Its only hope is a schism on the Left that limits Labours gains. One experienced political figure has put money on a sub-100 Tory seat outcome. The best case scenario a 1997-style shellacking with 165 Conservative seats, and a 179-seat Labour majority looks optimistic. The mid-range scenario a 1906-Liberal landslide-style thumping, with the Tories losing more than half their seats feels equally bullish. The worst case scenario a Canada 1993 replay, where the ruling Canadian Tories lost all but two of their seats may be too pessimistic and would involve the Lib Dems becoming the Opposition, but it would be foolish to rule it out. The best polls for the Tories put them on 24-27 per cent; the worst on 18-20 per cent, less than John Majors 30.7 per cent. The Red Wall is furious about Brexit betrayal, immigration, defence, the cost of net zero, wokery and a lack of levelling-up; the Blue Wall is appalled by high tax, red tape, low-traffic neighbourhoods, rampant crime, the sub-postmasters scandal and the lack of a pro-growth strategy; the young are apoplectic about house prices; and the country is united in disgust at our broken infrastructure, pothole-strewn roads, calamitous NHS and gradual impoverishment. The Tory heartlands loathe the Islamist-inspired extremist chants evident on the demos that hijack central London weekly, and members hate David Camerons cowardly decision to turn against Israel. The Tories have failed in three critical ways. First, they squandered the anti-establishment protest vote behind Brexit, Boris Johnsons 2019 victory and which is fuelling every single Right-wing or populist party across the West. The great realignment whereby culturally conservative, patriotic voters shifted Right-wards, and the ultra-urban woke Left-wards has been wasted. The future of the centre-Right globally is to harness the rage of the working and middle classes, to act as competent revolutionaries, to make peoples lives better via reforms, to root out wokery, regain control of the borders and boost growth. Instead, the Tories have acted as incompetent, purveyors of the status quo. Angry voters are thus voting for Right-wing parties everywhere bar Britain. Second, they lost the under-40s: again this is a British aberration. Donald Trump is leading 51-45 among under-30s, a Fox News poll reveals. Pierre Poilievre, the Canadian Conservative, leads 36-21 among under-30s, and 41-21 among the 30-44s, an Abacus poll shows, partly because of a strong offering on house building and a backlash against Justin Trudeaus authoritarianism. Populist and Right-wing parties in Europe are also doing well among the young. Third, the Tories are catastrophically behind among ethnic minorities. Their erstwhile progress with British Hindus, British Chinese and Christian British Africans has been squandered through ineptitude and the partys insufficiently robust conservatism. Disgusting racist reported comments by a donor arent helping. By contrast, the US elections may herald a historic shift of ethnic minorities towards the Republicans, as anti-woke, pro-aspiration, pro-family voters are repelled by Joe Bidens critical race theory and high taxes. A New York Times poll suggests Democrats have lost most Hispanics, and are only ahead 56-44 among all non-white voters. With the Tories lacking agency, it will be incumbent upon Nigel Farage to once again determine their future. Does he give up his media career he is a brilliant broadcaster for GB News and cash in his Im a Celebrity-enhanced reputation to re-enter the nasty, ungrateful world of politics? If he jumps in nearer to the vote, and launches a lightning air war, making a series of striking promises, by how much would his Reform UK jump in the polls? Or does he stand aside, allowing the Tories to be crushed but not obliterated, with the risk that they are subsequently captured by their anti-Brexit Left-wing? Farages calculation will take account of four factors. He would want not merely to bruise the Tories but inflict upon them their greatest ever humiliation. His revenge would need to be total: he would want to overtake them in vote share. This isnt as fanciful as it seems: YouGov puts the Tories at 20 per cent and Reform on 14. The caveat is that most other pollsters suggest a wider gap, and Reform may be underperforming slightly in actual votes. The second requirement would be for him to win a seat for himself and hopefully others: hard, but doable. The third would be to reunite the Right of British politics, either by absorbing any Right-wing Tory survivors into Reform post-election, or by merging into (and possibly leading) a rump Tory party purged of its Lefties. The fourth, most tentative goal would be to bolster the case for PR or an AV transferable vote system. A Farage re-entry would guarantee a Tory implosion, multiple defections to Reform, and an apocalyptic loss of scores more Tory seats. But whether or not Farage presses the button, there is a gaping market gap on the Right, as well as more broadly for a party aligned with the electorates wishes. If Reform isnt the answer, another group will be. Labours triumph will be short-lived. It, too, is an unstable coalition between centre-Left and far-Left. It, too, will fail to mend Britain. Political entrepreneurs will soon begin to circle: by 2025-26, it is easy to conceive of a Macron-style Left-Right start-up party boasting 20 policies, all with 75 per cent support in the polls, and fielding a list of candidates (such as nurses and small business leaders) with no prior political experience. Such a grouping which would promise to spend yet more on the NHS, quit the ECHR, build prisons, slash immigration to near zero would upend politics. One way or the other, the old order is finished, as Rishi Sunak is about to discover. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Islamic police, known as Hisbah, will continue to look for people not observing the fast The Islamic police in Nigeria's northern state of Kano arrested 11 Muslims on Tuesday who were seen eating food during the Ramadan fast. Kano has a majority Muslim population, where an Islamic legal system - Sharia - operates alongside secular law. The Islamic police, widely known as Hisbah, carry out searches of eateries and markets every year during Ramadan. The 10 men and one woman were released after swearing an oath that they would not purposely miss a fast again. "We got 11 persons on Tuesday including a lady selling groundnuts who was seen eating from her wares and some persons alerted us," Hisbah spokesman Lawal Fagge told the BBC. "The other 10 were men and were arrested across the city especially close to markets where a lot of activities happen." He added that the search operations would continue but said that non-Muslims were exempt. "We don't arrest non-Muslims because this doesn't concern them and the only time they could be guilty of a crime is when we find out they cook food to sell to Muslims that are supposed to be fasting." Regarding those who were arrested he said that they were freed after promising to start fasting from now on and "for some of them we had to see their relatives or guardians in order to have family monitor them". Just over two decades ago, Sharia was introduced to work alongside secular law in 12 of Nigeria's northern states that all have a majority Muslim population. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It has a special significance in Islam. It is during this month that Muslims believe the first verses of the Quran - Islam's holy book - were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Fasting is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, which lay the basis for how Muslims are required to live their lives. The fast is observed during daylight hours. This year, Ramadan is expected to last 30 days, with fasting starting on Monday 11 March and predicted to end on Tuesday 9 April. More Nigeria stories from the BBC: GARWOOD, N.J. (PIX11) If Amy Pastrana-Flores has to pay more at the pump, she hopes the money will be put to good use. A proposed bill in Trenton would look to renew the states Transportation Trust Fund, in part, through raising the gas tax. Any type of pricing going up is really not helping us, said Pastrana-Flores. Our generation cant afford a lot of stuff. Gas is up already, so I think its not right, bringing the gas up again, said Darwin of New York. The bill would increase the gas tax by about 2 cents every year for five years and create a $250 fee for electric vehicles. New Jersey communities receive federal funds to address flooding issues New Jerseys gas tax sits at just over 42 cents. Karanjit Singh, owner of a Mobil station in Garwood, said another gas tax increase would hurt his business. They should look at some other reason to raise the money, not on the gas tax, said Singh. Republicans in Trenton are working on legislation to find other ways of raising the funds, which includes getting a slice of money from electric vehicle sales. State Senate Minority Leader Anthony Bucco said in a statement, in part, If Republicans had been consulted regarding the Democrats proposal, we would have had the chance to present an alternative plan which we believe is a better and smarter approach one that honors our commitment to providing safe infrastructure, builds upon previous program success, and gives voters an option for better governance without the tax first approach we see across the aisle. Some drivers, like William Lopez of Garwood, are happy to pay a little more at the pump if it means better transportation infrastructure. It is a small price to pay for something better thats going to stay forever, said Lopez. One of the original bills sponsors, Democratic Assemblyman Clinton Calabrese, said in part, Renewing the Transportation Trust Fund is crucial for allocating the necessary financial resources to support vital projects, ensuring the safety and reliability of New Jerseys transportation infrastructure. The original bill is set to be discussed in Trenton again on Thursday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. In March 2023, I stood up on the Assembly floor to denounce the Democrats so-called Elections Transparency Act for killing New Jerseys campaign finance rules that thwarted corruption and abuse. Its been a year, and I find myself preparing once again to vigorously defend true transparency and accountability as the majority party fast-tracks its continued assault on good governance with a bill restricting the peoples access to public records. This time, the legislation lacks a creatively deceptive name, and Im encouraged that most people see this bill for exactly what it is: a blatant attempt to keep the public in the dark. To the disgust of many, the measures first scheduled public hearing was just a few days after it was introduced and during Sunshine Week, a time to celebrate open government. Moreover, Democrats posted it for simultaneous consideration in both the Assembly and state Senate, and at the same time as an open meeting on the states upcoming budget priorities. The timing wasnt only calculated, it underscores the bills bad intentions and the importance of a robust system of accountability. After hours and hours of testimony from everyday citizens, journalists, watchdogs and others on how access to municipal budgets, government emails and police body-camera footage has helped shine a light on misconduct, it became clear the bill was not a collaborative effort, as the state Senate sponsor contends. District 26 Assemblyman Brian Bergen speaks during the 2023 Morris County Republican Committee Convention at the County College of Morris in Randolph. The states Open Public Records Act, or OPRA, rules what documents created by state, county and local governments are open to public inspection. The new bill not only builds barriers between the public and public records, but it discourages residents from even putting in a request. Its practically a handbook on how to deceive and deter public inquiry. It allows governments to keep more documents private and to seek a protective court order if they deem OPRA requests harassing, and it financially burdens those who challenge denials of records in court. Anyone requesting a public record will have to narrowly define what they want to know and use a specific form, while the government can take more time to respond and more easily object to releasing information, or hand over such a heavily redacted file that it is hardly worth the effort of submitting. When the public demands public records, we owe it to them to hand them over willingly. A public servant who supports hiding fraud, waste and abuse shouldnt be employed with taxpayer dollars. OPRA is responsible for exposing nursing home deaths and the mismanagement of the states veterans homes during the pandemic, misuse of taxpayer money in school construction projects and how much the state spends on lawsuit settlements. Public records requests have even helped inform new legislation to protect students from bad bus drivers and prevent teachers accused of sexual misconduct from getting jobs in different districts. These findings came to light in spite of the states failing OPRA law. Thats right, New Jersey ranks among the worst in the nation for complying with our current public records law. And now, Democrats in New Jersey want to make it harder to get access to public records. What New Jersey residents need to understand about the Democratic establishment in Trenton is they dont tolerate dissent among their members. Its why legislative leaders substituted "no" committee members with "yes" ones at the last minute and other Democrats fell in order and predictably voted to advance the bill, despite the overwhelming public testimony in opposition. Democrats also included a provision in the bill that changes the makeup of the Government Records Council, the independent agency that oversees compliance with OPRA, by adding more political appointees and paying them. Opinion: NJ labor leaders: OPRA 'reform' is 'severly limiting,' wrong and foolishly rushed Our view: Don't be fooled by OPRA 'reforms.' NJ deserves more transparency In a state like New Jersey, where corruption has its own gold-bar-bribed Democratic poster child, we simply cannot afford to cement our bad reputation any further. I will not let Democrats limit another good-government policy or weaken another watchdog entity. I will not sit down as they attempt to destroy our states democracy. Brian Bergen Democratic leaders view me as a gadfly who should be shoved behind a column in the Assembly chamber so that I am dissuaded from questioning the status quo. But I dont care where my seat is, because Ill always stand up for what is right. And in this case, an open and transparent government is the right of all New Jersey residents. Assemblyman Brian Bergen represents parts of Morris and Passaic counties in the 26th Legislative District. He also serves as the Assembly minority whip. This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ Open Public Records Act: Democrats will destroy transparency If you buy and hold a stock for many years, you'd hope to be making a profit. Better yet, you'd like to see the share price move up more than the market average. Unfortunately for shareholders, while the Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB) share price is up 30% in the last five years, that's less than the market return. Meanwhile, the last twelve months saw the share price rise 3.6%. On the back of a solid 7-day performance, let's check what role the company's fundamentals have played in driving long term shareholder returns. View our latest analysis for Dolby Laboratories To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price. During five years of share price growth, Dolby Laboratories achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 1.1% per year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 5% per year, over the same period. This suggests that market participants hold the company in higher regard, these days. And that's hardly shocking given the track record of growth. The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image). Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here. What About Dividends? As well as measuring the share price return, investors should also consider the total shareholder return (TSR). The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. In the case of Dolby Laboratories, it has a TSR of 39% for the last 5 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence! Story continues A Different Perspective Dolby Laboratories provided a TSR of 5.1% over the last twelve months. But that return falls short of the market. It's probably a good sign that the company has an even better long term track record, having provided shareholders with an annual TSR of 7% over five years. It may well be that this is a business worth popping on the watching, given the continuing positive reception, over time, from the market. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Dolby Laboratories better, we need to consider many other factors. For example, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Dolby Laboratories that you should be aware of before investing here. If you like to buy stocks alongside management, then you might just love this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. A parental rights law may soon lose a lot of the controversial elements that led critics to give it the well-known nickname Dont Say Gay. The state reached a settlement Monday that provides new guidance and removes what lawsuit plaintiffs described as the most discriminatory interpretations of a 2022 law known as Parental Rights in Education. The law bans or restricts instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. While the original language in Parental Rights in Education never specifically banned gay-straight alliances, library books with gay characters or class projects on LGBTQ subjects, the laws vague language led to different interpretations and inconsistent enforcement. Were excited that we will know what we can and cant do, Broward Schools Superintendent Peter Licata said Tuesday. It gives teachers clarity on what they can teach, how they can teach it and what they can say. Here are some common questions about what the law allows and still prohibits. Q: Will teachers now be able to teach about LGBTQ topics? A: The law remains in effect that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K-8 and limits it in high school. But the settlement clarifies that its not LGBTQ-specific. The Statute restricts classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity, not homosexuality and transgender identity, the settlement said. For example, it would violate the statute to instruct students that heterosexuality is superior or that gender identity is immutable based on biological traits. Still not allowed would be a teacher saying, All right guys, today, were going to talk about heterosexuality and homosexuality. Get out your notebooks, said John Quinn, of Kaplan, Hecker & Fink, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. Q: Do any mentions of sexual orientation or gender identity in class count as instruction? A: No. Incidental references of LGBTQ people in classroom discussions are allowed, the settlement says. Class discussions and schoolwork are not considered instruction, even if the student addresses sexual orientation or gender identity. Teachers will be free to respond or answer questions if students discuss their identities or family life, the settlement says. Just as no one would suggest that references to numbers in a history book constitute instruction on mathematics, the statute would not prohibit incidental references in literature to a gay or transgender person or to a same-sex couple, the settlement said. Q. Will library books on LGBTQ topics be allowed? A. Yes. Library books that are not used for instruction would not fall under the restrictions of the law, the settlement said. This has been a major issue as Florida school districts have reviewed and sometimes removed numerous books with LGBTQ content. The settlement does not affect the ability of parents or residents to challenge books they believe are sexually explicit or not age appropriate. Q. Are teachers allowed to talk about their LGBTQ family or display a Pride flag, a safe space sticker or a photo of their same-sex partner? A. The law does not prohibit mere classroom references to a persons family whether gay or straight, transgender or cisgender, the settlement states. The statute does not restrict gay and transgender teachers from putting a family photo on their desk. Safe space stickers, which teachers put up to oppose bullying and show support for LGBTQ students, are not prohibited, the settlement says. The settlement is silent on whether teachers can display Pride flags or other rainbow items as part of their classroom decorations. Q. Will gay-straight alliances be allowed to meet on school campuses? Can students bring same-sex dates to dances? A. Yes. The statute does not prohibit participation in extracurricular activities such as Gay-Straight Alliances or book fairs. The law does not restrict lines about LGBTQ issues in school musicals, dancing between persons of the same gender at a school dance or wearing clothing inconsistent with students gender assigned at birth. None of that is classroom instruction,' the settlement said. While extracurricular activities were never part of the law, some of these events received scrutiny. Last year, Boone High School in Orlando canceled a Drag and Donuts event after the Florida Department of Education questioned whether it was age and developmentally appropriate and indicated any administrator, teacher or staff member in attendance may be investigated and jeopardize their professional license, the schools principal told parents. Quinn said one of his plaintiffs in the lawsuit was president of a gay-straight alliance but their faculty sponsor said that they didnt think that they could participate anymore so it collapsed. In 2022, the Broward School District asked schools to cancel book fairs, where students and families can buy donated books, out of concern that some of the titles might violate the state law. The district later reversed that decision. Q. Does the settlement impact laws that ban transgender girls from playing on girls sports teams and transgender students using the restroom that matches their gender identity? A. No. Those bans were the result of laws separate from the Parental Rights in Education law and are not affected by the settlement. Related Articles Q. Will teachers be required to use students preferred pronouns? A. No. A law passed last year, deemed by critics as dont say they, said no teacher or student can be required to refer to a person by pronouns that dont correspond with their sex at birth. That law is separate from the one referenced in the settlement. Q. Can school boards pass resolutions in support of LGBTQ students, staff and community members. A. Yes. All three South Florida district considered resolutions recognizing October as LGBTQ History month. While Palm Beach Countys resolution passed without issue, some School Board members in Broward and Palm Beach County argued that the resolution might violate the Parental Rights law. A split Broward board approved it, while the Miami-Dade board rejected it. Roberta Kaplan, a plaintiffs lawyer form Kaplan, Hecker & Fink, said theres still no requirement that school districts recognize LGBTQ-related occasions. But if its part of their past tradition, and theyre going to all of a sudden decide not to do it, the justification for that cant be this law, Kaplan said. A Florida parental rights law may soon lose a lot of the controversial elements that led critics to give it the well-known nickname Dont Say Gay. The state reached a settlement Monday that provides new guidance and removes what lawsuit plaintiffs described as the most discriminatory interpretations of a 2022 law known as Parental Rights in Education. The law bans or restricts instruction of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools. While the original language in Parental Rights in Education never specifically banned gay-straight alliances, library books with gay characters or class projects on LGBTQ subjects, the laws vague language led to different interpretations and inconsistent enforcement. Were excited that we will know what we can and cant do, Broward Schools Superintendent Peter Licata said Tuesday. It gives teachers clarity on what they can teach, how they can teach it and what they can say. Here are some common questions about what the law allows and still prohibits. Q: Will teachers now be able to teach about LGBTQ topics? A: The law remains in effect that bans classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K-8 and limits it in high school. But the settlement clarifies that its not LGBTQ-specific. The Statute restricts classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity, not homosexuality and transgender identity, the settlement said. For example, it would violate the statute to instruct students that heterosexuality is superior or that gender identity is immutable based on biological traits. Still not allowed would be a teacher saying, All right guys, today, were going to talk about heterosexuality and homosexuality. Get out your notebooks, said John Quinn, of Kaplan, Hecker & Fink, a lawyer for the plaintiffs. Q: Do any mentions of sexual orientation or gender identity in class count as instruction? A: No. Incidental references of LGBTQ people in classroom discussions are allowed, the settlement says. Class discussions and schoolwork are not considered instruction, even if the student addresses sexual orientation or gender identity. Teachers will be free to respond or answer questions if students discuss their identities or family life, the settlement says. Just as no one would suggest that references to numbers in a history book constitute instruction on mathematics, the statute would not prohibit incidental references in literature to a gay or transgender person or to a same-sex couple, the settlement said. Q: Will library books on LGBTQ topics be allowed? A: Yes. Library books that are not used for instruction would not fall under the restrictions of the law, the settlement said. This has been a major issue as Florida school districts have reviewed and sometimes removed numerous books with LGBTQ content. The settlement does not affect the ability of parents or residents to challenge books they believe are sexually explicit or not age appropriate. Q: Are teachers allowed to talk about their LGBTQ family or display a Pride flag, a safe space sticker or a photo of their same-sex partner? A: The law does not prohibit mere classroom references to a persons family whether gay or straight, transgender or cisgender, the settlement states. The statute does not restrict gay and transgender teachers from putting a family photo on their desk. Safe space stickers, which teachers put up to oppose bullying and show support for LGBTQ students, are not prohibited, the settlement says. The settlement is silent on whether teachers can display Pride flags or other rainbow items as part of their classroom decorations. Q: Will gay-straight alliances be allowed to meet on school campuses? Can students bring same-sex dates to dances? A: Yes. The statute does not prohibit participation in extracurricular activities such as Gay-Straight Alliances or book fairs. The law does not restrict lines about LGBTQ issues in school musicals, dancing between persons of the same gender at a school dance or wearing clothing inconsistent with students gender assigned at birth. None of that is classroom instruction,' the settlement said. While extracurricular activities were never part of the law, some of these events received scrutiny. Last year, Boone High School in Orlando canceled a Drag and Donuts event after the Florida Department of Education questioned whether it was age and developmentally appropriate and indicated any administrator, teacher or staff member in attendance may be investigated and jeopardize their professional license, the schools principal told parents. Quinn said one of his plaintiffs in the lawsuit was president of a gay-straight alliance but their faculty sponsor said that they didnt think that they could participate anymore so it collapsed. In 2022, the Broward School District asked schools to cancel book fairs, where students and families can buy donated books, out of concern that some of the titles might violate the state law. The district later reversed that decision. Q: Does the settlement impact laws that ban transgender girls from playing on girls sports teams and transgender students using the restroom that matches their gender identity? A: No. Those bans were the result of laws separate from the Parental Rights in Education law and are not affected by the settlement. Q: Will teachers be required to use students preferred pronouns? A: No. A law passed last year, deemed by critics as dont say they, said no teacher or student can be required to refer to a person by pronouns that dont correspond with their sex at birth. That law is separate from the one referenced in the settlement. Q: Can school boards pass resolutions in support of LGBTQ students, staff and community members. A: Yes. All three South Florida district considered resolutions recognizing October as LGBTQ History month. While Palm Beach Countys resolution passed without issue, some School Board members in Broward and Palm Beach County argued that the resolution might violate the Parental Rights law. A split Broward board approved it, while the Miami-Dade board rejected it. Roberta Kaplan, a plaintiffs lawyer form Kaplan, Hecker & Fink, said theres still no requirement that school districts recognize LGBTQ-related occasions. But if its part of their past tradition, and theyre going to all of a sudden decide not to do it, the justification for that cant be this law, Kaplan said. _____ Image source: Getty Images Travel is one expense that I always make room for in my budget. My travel budget has increased as I've grown my small business. But my travel spending looked a lot different five to six years ago. I took advantage of hotel and airfare deals to save money. I also reduced my travel spending by taking advantage of free and low-cost activities. If you want to see more of the world while on a limited budget, you can benefit by doing the same. Here's one nearly free activity you may want to make time for when visiting a new destination. Free walking tours are an excellent way to explore a new place Whether visiting a new domestic or international destination, looking for free and low-cost activities can benefit your personal finances. By spending less on activities and events, you'll have more room left in your vacation budget for other expenses like transportation and food. One of my favorite ways to discover a new destination is to explore by foot. I do a lot of walking and exploring independently, but I also take advantage of walking tours. In many cities worldwide, you can book free walking tours. A local guide or expert will walk you and other tourists around the destination while giving insider travel tips and a brief history lesson. Some tour companies offer multiple free tours with different themes, so research before you arrive at your destination. Here are a few destinations that have tours like this: Austin Boston Denver London New York City Paris Seattle Sydney Toronto Washington D.C. Here's how free walking tours operate While free walking tours aren't entirely free, they're nearly free. The cost of the tour itself is free, but the tour guides make money through tips. So, if you plan to take advantage of this nearly-free travel activity, you'll want to budget for the cost of gratuities. Not having to pay an expensive entry fee for tours like this can allow you to save money on travel. Plus, it's a great way to acclimate to a new place. If you like taking tours and want to keep more money in the bank, consider making time for this activity on your next vacation. Story continues When visiting a new city and researching things to do, I check to see if any free walking tours are available. I usually take a walking tour within two to three days of arriving. Doing this gives me time to get back on a regular sleep schedule and helps me plan the remainder of my adventure. Travel doesn't have to break the bank It's a privilege to be able to travel -- and it costs money. But don't assume that you need to be rich to travel. Exploring new destinations without going broke or racking up debt is possible. You can travel affordably by taking advantage of low-cost and free activities and events like walking tours. It's also beneficial to stay alert to deals that could help you save on transit and accommodation costs. One way I save on airfare costs is through flight deal subscriptions. Another strategy that could result in savings is to use travel credit cards to pay for your trip expenses. You can earn valuable rewards and access travel benefits from your credit card issuer. Learn more by reviewing our list of the best travel rewards credit cards. Alert: our top-rated cash back card now has 0% intro APR until 2025 This credit card is not just good its so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a lengthy 0% intro APR period, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee! Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes. We're firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Discover Financial Services is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Citigroup is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Natasha Gabrielle has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Discover Financial Services. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Don't Miss This Nearly Free Activity When Traveling to a New Place was originally published by The Motley Fool NYC official on warrant for one of the worst landlords NEW YORK (PIX11) Following a court-issued warrant for their arrest, one of New York Citys worst landlords could be extradited from California where he now lives. Adolfo Carrion Jr., the Department of Housing Preservation and Development commissioner, joins PIX11 to discuss landlord Daniel Ohebshalom, and the unprecedented steps taken by the courts to crack down on landlords. Watch the video player for the full interview. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. A New York Police Department group is "strenuously" objecting to one of President Bidens judicial nominees for his alleged connection to organizations that "glamorize" individuals that "distort" facts about the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The NYPD Sergeants Benevolent Association (SBA) sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., expressing concerns about Bidens nomination of Adeel Abdullah Mangi to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. "While Mr. Mangi does not have any prior judicial experience that would recommend him to an appellate court position, he does have a long resume working with organizations that, among other things, glamorize individuals convicted of brutally murdering police officers and distort the truth about the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001," the association wrote. "Over the years, Mr. Mangi has worked for, with, and contributed to groups that sought to defund the police, and have celebrated individuals responsible for brutally murdering police officers," the group wrote. JUDICIAL GROUP TARGETS 'ANTISEMITE' BIDEN NOMINEE WITH ALLEGED TIES TO TERRORIST SYMPATHIZERS Members of a New York Police Department class raise their right hands as they take their oath during graduation from the NYPD Police Academy. "While this should be sufficient to disqualify Mr. Mangi from serving on a federal court one step below the U.S. Supreme Court, the SBA takes particular exception to his ostensible support for recharacterizing 9/11 as something other than the deadliest foreign terrorist attack on U.S. soil in our nation's history," they continued. The group noted that while Mangi was on its board, the Rutgers Center for Security, Race and Rights held an event on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks and featured speakers "with ties to terrorist organizations and which sought to blame the U.S. for the attacks." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP On Sept. 11, 2021, the center sponsored Whose Narrative? 20 Years since September 11, 2001, billed as an event to challenge the "exceptionalization" of the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 Americans. "Confirming Adeel Mangi gives credence to these false, irresponsible, and dangerous conspiracy theories and amounts to an endorsement of them," the sergeants wrote. BIDEN JUDICIAL NOMINEE APPEARS STUMPED BY BASIC LEGAL TERMS: 'I'M NOT SURE' Adeel Abdullah Mangi, a U.S. circuit judge nominee by President Biden, speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee nomination hearing in Washington, D.C., Dec. 13, 2023. "SBA members were at the World Trade Center on 9/11. We know what happened. We know that terrorists were responsible, not the United States government. We feel the losses every day. And we continue to watch too many of this nation's first responders succumb to the long-term health effects of 9/11," they wrote. The group added that "the criminal justice system functions best when all parties law enforcement, judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys are rational actors who base their decisions on objective facts, follow the rule of law, and are unbiased against any party." WHO ARE SOME OF THE BIDEN-APPOINTED JUDGES THE SENATE JUST CONFIRMED? "At a time when communities around our nation are struggling to recover from a declining respect for the rule of law that has fueled rising crime and lawlessness in cities across America, it sends the wrong message to appoint someone like Mr. Mangi, who has fed lies and distortions that encourage such despicable and irresponsible behavior," they wrote. Mangi advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on an 11-10 party-line vote. His nomination has yet to be scheduled for a full Senate vote. Mangi, a New Jersey resident and partner at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, has been praised by Democrats for possibly being the nations first Muslim American federal appellate judge. President Biden's 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals nominee Adeel Abdullah Mangi. "Mangi is a standout figure in New Jerseys legal landscape. It speaks volumes that his exceptional legal abilities are only exceeded by his character and unwavering commitment to fairness in the administration of justice," Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey said in a statement. By contrast, the Coalition of the Underrepresented Law Enforcement Associations, which includes the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Muslim American Law Enforcement Association and the New Jersey LGBTQ Law Enforcement Liason, sent a letter to the Senate in support of Mangi's nomination, saying "[h]is record, both in his personal and professional capacities, demonstrates his respect for the rule of law and the role of law enforcement in promoting public safety." "As law enforcement professionals, it is our collective belief that Mr. Mangi will help ensure equity in the administration of justice in all communities," the coalition wrote. White House spokesperson Andrew Bates previously told Fox News Digital "President Biden is deeply proud" to have nominated Mangi, calling him "an indisputably qualified and experienced attorney who has lived the American dream and is devoted to our Constitution and the rule of law." McConnell, in a post on X Tuesday, said, "Law enforcement and Jewish groups nationwide are sounding the alarm on @POTUS attempt to give life tenure on the federal bench to a nominee with ties to terrorist sympathizers and cop-killers. The Senate must reject Adeel Mangis nomination." Original article source: NYPD group slams Biden judicial nominee with ties to 9/11 hijacker sympathizers: 'Despicable' House Democrats have begun their efforts to force a vote on Ukraine aid on the floor of the House over the protestations of Speaker Mike Johnson. Democrats are attempting to use a discharge petition to circumvent the Republican leaders in charge of what gets a vote of the full House. The effort, which faces long odds of success, was put into action on Tuesday. Democratic Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the ranking member on the House Rules Committee, sponsored the petition, which would need 218 signatures to force the lower chamber to consider a $95bn bill passed by the Senate which includes aid for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. I dont believe in unconditional aid to the Israeli Government particularly, especially in this juncture, when theres been a total lack of restraint, New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told The Independent on Wednesday. But some progressive Democrats fear have serious reservations because of Israels conduct during its war with Hamas in Gaza. The discharge petition that has unconditional aid to Israel? Im voting no, Illinois Democratic Representative Delia Ramirez said. A discharge petition, in US parliamentary procedure, is a way of pushing a bill out of a committee by discharging the panel from considering the legislation at hand. An absolute majority 218 signatures is needed for passage. Democrats currently have 213 members. Democratic Virginia Representative Abigail Spanberger, one of the signatories of the petition, told The Independent: Do we want to coddle Vladimir Putin and allow Russia to win? Or do we want to do the job of supporting an ally in their fight for freedom? I mean, that's essentially the question. While some Republican members support aid for Ukraine, many of them would be hard-pressed to go around their leadership. Discharge petitions are also used in state legislatures when a committee chair refuses to put legislation on the panels agenda, meaning that it would never reach the full House. The use of a discharge petition means that an absolute majority of the House can force a vote on legislation over the opposition of House leaders who control what bills and resolutions make it to the floor. Using this method, the opposition party, currently the Democrats, can hijack the legislative agenda on an issue that divides the majority party, such as Ukraine aid. Successful discharge petitions are exceedingly rare the last petition to force a bill to the floor of the House was in 2015. The problem is that the issue at hand has to be important enough for members to disobey their leaders, something becoming rarer as politics becomes more tribal and extreme partisanship pushes the parties further apart. The discharge petition was put into House rules in 1910 when a package of measures was intended to limit the power of the Republican Speaker Joseph Gurney Cannon of Illinois. The version now used was adopted in 1931. Four years later, the rules were changed so that an absolute majority was needed instead of just a third of the chambers members. A number of progressive Democrats are hesitant to send more aid to Israel, which the bill passed by the Senate does, after more than 30,000 people have been killed in Gaza. Calls have been made to put conditions on the aid to make sure that Israel follows guidelines on international human rights. Some Republicans open to more aid to Ukraine have slammed the Democrats for insisting on passing the Senate version of the aid package, as they connect foreign aid to the security at the Southern border. This comes after Republicans rejected a bipartisan border security bill after former President Donald Trump came out against it, but some Republicans are still arguing that border funding must pass alongside foreign aid. Ukraine has divided congressional Republicans between old-school establishment types such as outgoing Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who strongly supports sending aid to Ukraine, and the Trump wing of the party which is steadfastly moving in a more isolationist direction. Republican Pennsylvania Representative Brian Fitzpatrick introduced his own discharge petition, which included both aid for Ukraine and border security funding. A number of moderate Democrats backed the package. But Democrats have argued that Mr Fitzpatricks proposed measure would still need to be approved by the Senate and Ukraine simply doesnt have the time to wait. The White House announced on Tuesday that the US will send $300m of weapons to Ukraine even as $10bn is needed to restore the stockpiles of weapons it has sent to Kyiv to aid them in its fight against the years-long Russian invasion. The Pentagon located some cost savings in its contracts to find the funds for the weapons package while Congress has so far failed to pass further aid. Its the first weapons package announced since late last year when the Pentagon said it was out of funding to send more weapons to the wartorn country. More recently, officials have revealed the $10bn overdraft. The funds used to replenish stockpiles have meant that the Pentagon has been able to send existing munitions, and air defence systems, in addition to other weapons from reserve inventories using a presidential drawdown authority to send weapons to Ukraine and subsequently order new weapons to replenish the stores. Despite it being likely to pass the lower chamber, House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring the $95bn package to the floor. While Russia has plenty of supplies as its transformed into a war economy, Ukrainian forces are now rationing munitions on the front lines as they attempt to hang on. In June last year, the Pentagon also suddenly found extra funds for Ukraine after it said it had overestimated previous weapons shipments to the country by $6.2bn. The US has sent more than $44.2bn of aid to Ukraine since the start of Russias invasion. The Director of the CIA William Burns has told Congress that Ukrainian units have told him that they were down to their last dozens of artillery shells and other kinds of ammunition. He added that the recent Ukrainian withdrawal from the eastern city of Avdiika was caused by resupply failures, not a lack of Ukrainian willpower. Shocking video shows an off-duty Connecticut cop punching a driver after he threatened to ticket him because the man honked at him for not turning at a red light. Dashcam footage from Thomas Brocuglios company van caught Meriden Police Department Corporal Allen Ganter stopped at a red light in Rocky Hill in December, NBC Connecticut reported. Brocuglio, 37, whose dog was riding shotgun with him, pulled up behind the off-duty officer, waiting for him to make a right turn on red. Meriden Police Department off-duty cop Allen Ganter is seen exiting his truck and waving his badge after being honked at for not turning right on red. YouTube/NBC Connecticut What are you doing? Brocuglio asks the driver in front of him inside his car while he honks the horn. Ganter, 57, then exits his Toyota Tacoma wearing gym shorts and a zip-up hoodie, waving his badge as he approaches Brocuglios vehicle. You cant take a right on red here, you asshe, the 20-year veteran of the Meriden Police Department shouts. Brocuglio points out that the sign says Stop here on red and not No turn on red before accusing Ganter of being on his phone and not paying attention to traffic. I saw you looking down doing everything else, Brocuglio says. No, I was moving something in my bag, Ganter responds. The back-and-forth between the men then begins to heat up. Ganter is seen punching Thomas Brocuglio in the face after a heated interaction. YouTube/NBC Connecticut The off-duty cop drove off and Brocuglio called 911 to report the assault. YouTube/NBC Connecticut Ganter threatens to write the man a ticket and call his supervisor for merely honking. Brocuglio then asks the off-duty cop for his badge number. Ganter is then seen reaching into Brocuglios car and punching him in the side of the face, video obtained by the outlet shows. You are going to get arrested for assaulting a civilian, Brocuglio shouts at him as Ganter retreats to his truck. Ganter drives off, and Brocuglio calls 911 to report the on-camera assault. Brocuglio had swelling and redness on his cheek that was documented by responding officers. YouTube/NBC Connecticut Ganters hand also had a mark on it when officers went to his residence to question him about the assault. YouTube/NBC Connecticut Brocuglio told officers he was left dazed by the punch, and possibly concussed, an arrest warrant obtained by the outlet shows. Photos taken by responding officers with the Rocky Hill Police Department show swelling and redness on his left cheek. Later, police approached Ganter at his home for a statement, bodycam footage obtained by the outlet shows. The off-duty cop admitted to punching the man while being questioned. YouTube/NBC Connecticut So, he is saying that I hit him? Ganter asks the officer. And there is nothing I can press for breach of peace, for him yelling at me? Ganter then admitted he punched Brocuglio while making his statement. My fault, Im wrong, I shouldnt have, Ganter said. The officers also documented his hands, with a red mark on his right index finger. Ganter was charged with breach of peace and third-degree assault. YouTube/NBC Connecticut Meriden police launched an internal affairs investigation into the assault and found the off-duty cop broke the departments rules of conduct. Ganter, who works as a school resource officer for the Thomas Edison Middle School in Meriden, was charged with breach of peace and third-degree assault. [Ganter] was also removed from his assignment as a School Resource Officer and as a result of the discipline which was rendered as a part of the IA investigation, Corporal Ganter was permanently removed from his assignment as an SRO, Meriden police wrote in a statement to Fox61. He was also suspended for five days without pay and will have to attend de-escalation training for the next three years. A driver threw an object at a womans car and tried running her off the road in a road rage incident, Connecticut State Police say. After the woman reported what happened to police, state troopers identified the driver as 54-year-old David Vetare, according to a criminal information summary provided to McClatchy News on March 13. Vetare is a Norwalk Police Department officer. Hes accused of following the woman in an attempt to run her off the road after throwing an object at her vehicle March 9 along Route 15 in Trumbull, the criminal information summary says. State troopers located Vetare later that day, and he admitted his involvement with the incident, according to the summary. Vetare has been arrested on charges of reckless driving, second-degree reckless endangerment, operating a motor vehicle with the intention to harass or intimidate and second-degree breach of peace, according to state police. Information regarding his legal representation was immediately available. On March 12, Chief of Police James Walsh said three Norwalk Police Department officers were recently arrested in a statement shared to Facebook. The officers names werent specified in the Facebook post. The recent arrest of three of our officers has understandably raised concerns and shaken the trust that we have worked tirelessly to build within our community. While recent events may cause uncertainty, I want to emphasize that these actions do not define our department as a whole, Walsh said. On March 13, Walsh provided the same statement to McClatchy News in response to an inquiry about Vetares arrest. We are committed to conducting a thorough and transparent investigation into these matters, Walshs statement said. Vetare was off-duty on March 9, according to Walsh, who told McClatchy News in an email he was placed on administrative leave, pending our receiving the police reports and the internal investigation. On Feb. 23, Norwalk Police Officer Hector Delgado was arrested on charges of stalking and harassment in connection with an incident involving his ex-wife, according to an arrest warrant, the Connecticut Post reported. A third Norwalk police officer, Sgt. Shannon Sherry, was arrested on a charge of misconduct related to a car crash that killed a resident of New Britain in April, according to the newspaper. He was off-duty during the collision. Vetare was issued a $5,000 non-surety bond, according to state police. Hes due to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on March 20, the criminal information summary shows. Road rage between truckers erupts into rolling gunfight on Florida highway, cops say Road rage crash ends with 2 girls thrown from SUV, 5 others injured, Michigan cops say Deputy shot man dead during traffic stop, cops say. Now, he faces murder charge Officers broke inmates ribs, forced him to crawl to the emergency room, feds say WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) For the first time in more than 60 years, the 2024 presidential election will be a rematch. In a surprise to no one Tuesdays primaries cemented President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump as their parties presumptive nominees. George Washington University Political Science Professor Todd Belt says polling shows most voters dont want a repeat of 2020. Heres the rematch that very few people wanted, but we were probably going to get anyways Belt said. However, because both leaders are so well known it gives voters a very clear choice in the election. People have to decide: do I want to live under Bidens America, or do I want to go back to Trumps America? Belt said. Former President Trump celebrated Tuesdays results in a video message sent out to voters. Then he quickly turned to a general election pitch. Now we have to get back to work because we have the worst president in the history of our country, Trump said. President Biden has been campaigning all week, talking to voters at events in New Hampshire, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Im optimistic not just about winning, but Im optimistic about the country, Biden said. Both leaders have a long campaign in front of them, with the general election still more than 7 months away. We are in the age of permanent campaigning, and this is going to be an exhausting election for Americans, Belt said. Professor Belt predicts this election will be very negative and focused on attacking the opposition. Were going to hear a lot about abortion and democracy, and Trump being a threat to democracy. And on Trumps side were going to hear a lot about Bidens failed policies, Belt said. The last time we saw a Biden-Trump face off the election came down to just a small number of votes in key swing states. Belt believes thats likely to happen again. Its going to be very very close because people havent shifted their attitudes on the candidates that much, Belt said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Former President Donald Trump, at last, is the Republican Partys presumptive presidential nominee, after notching a majority of the delegates to the GOPs July convention. Trump crossed the threshold of 1,215 delegates on Tuesday night, according to The Associated Press, as he won elections in Georgia, Mississippi, Hawaii and Washington, following a near-sweep of Super Tuesday states a week before. The first candidate to enter the Republican presidential primary, Trump enjoyed front-runner status throughout the campaign, and his eventual nomination seemed inevitable for months as he dominated public polling and then early primaries. His last remaining challenger, Nikki Haley, exited the race last week, after winning contests only in Washington, D.C., and Vermont. Now, the race pits Trump against President Joe Biden, who also clinched his partys nomination on Tuesday. A redux of the Biden-Trump faceoff will test the limits of campaign finance and decorum in a modern presidential contest. Trump is currently in the lead, both in national and battleground polling in recent months, but he lags behind Biden in fundraising. He also faces a number of legal challenges ahead, including a trial over hush money payments to a porn star that begins in New York on March 25. In a Super Tuesday speech from his Mar-a-Lago club and before Haley had exited the race Trump last week had already begun to call for the party to unite around him as the nominee. We want to have unity, and were going to have unity, and its going to happen very quickly, Trump said. For that to happen, Trump will have to persuade some Haley voters, who skewed independent, to back him in November. Haley has not endorsed Trump, and at least some of her supporters have told pollsters they will not support Trump in November. But influential donors and the party infrastructure are already lining up behind the former president. Members of the Republican National Committee on Friday declared that Trump was the partys presumptive nominee, doing so moments before Ronna McDaniel resigned as chair so that her Trump-selected replacement, Michael Whatley, could be installed. The committee also signed off on Trumps pick for co-chair, his daughter-in-law Lara Trump. Trumps senior adviser Chris LaCivita is among the other Trump staff now running the RNC as Trump seeks to ensure the committee offers its full support in his general election rematch against Biden. Republicans will gather in Milwaukee July 15-18, where Trump will formally be nominated. Trumps delegates are bound by RNC rules to support him in the first round of voting on the nomination. Meanwhile, Trump and Biden both have already pivoted to the general election and are aggressively campaigning, including this week over Social Security and other government spending . Friends fans, get excited! The Friends experience is returning to Boston this spring for the shows 30th anniversary. The exhibit called The One in Boston, will be located in Bostons Back Bay at 343 Newbury St. The immersive experience features several sets from the show including Monicas apartment and the Friends fountain. We look forward to bringing The FRIENDS Experience back to Boston, said Stacy Moscatelli, Chief Executive Officer of OGX. As the iconic series celebrates 30 years, we will bring Boston area FRIENDS fans the opportunity to step inside the world of FRIENDS with new experience additions and more seasonal programming. Guests will be able to relax in Chandler and Joeys famous recliners and help Ross pivot his couch up the stairs. Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston Friends experience returning to Boston The experience last came to Boston in 2019 for the shows 25th anniversary. Fans can also get a peek behind the scenes and learn about the shows production, costume design, sets, and more. The opening comes after a Friends-themed coffeehouse opened in Boston in November 2023. An opening date has not yet been released. Tickets will start at $22 plus taxes and fees, timed entry tickets will go on sale Tuesday, April 9 at 10 a.m. For more information on tickets and opening dates, guests can visit the link here. 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 An Ohio Chick-fil-A owner has been arrested after authorities say he drove more than 400 miles south to North Carolina to meet a 15-year-old he met online, reportedly broke into the family's home and allegedly molested the child. Stacy Lee Austin, 49 of Belmont, was being held without bond at the Rowan County Detention Center Wednesday in connection to the alleged March 5 incident, officials said. The small village of Belmont is about 110 miles east of Columbus. The Rowan County Sheriffs Office, in Salisbury, North Carolina, reported Austin communicated with the child on an unnamed social media app and had arranged to pick the child up in The Tar Heel State. On the day of the alleged crime, officials said, deputies responded to the child's home for a report of a burglary in process after the child's father called 911. An Ohio Chick-fil-A owner has been arrested after authorities say he drove more than 400 miles south to North Carolina to meet a 15-year-old he met online, reportedly broke into the family's home on March 5, 2024, and allegedly molested the child. NYC 'Bling Bishop' convicted: Brooklyn's 'Bling Bishop' convicted for stealing from parishioner, extortion attempt Deputies allegedly found suspect's underwear in the child's home Arriving deputies, the sheriff's office reported, said the father, who lives in the home, told officers he found Austin with his 15-year-old child and dialed 911. Inside the home where the child lives, deputies reported, they found Austins underwear in a bathroom trash can along with some of the child's clothes. A preliminary investigation by detectives revealed and while the suspect was at the victims home, he performed sexual activities with the child, the sheriff's office wrote in a news release. 'Concerned about losing his job' "When questioned about the incident, Austin admitted to the sexual acts and was concerned about losing his job as owner of a Chick-fil-a in Ohio," officials wrote in the release. Austin was booked into the jail and a judge ordered him be held with no bail until a pretrial hearing occurs. Austin is is charged with statutory sexual offense with a child and slated to appear in court on the charge June 5, online records show. USA TODAY has reached out to Chick-Fil-A. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ohio Chick-fil-A owner allegedly drove 400 miles to abuse teen By Christoph Steitz, Tom Kackenhoff and Vera Eckert FRANKFURT/ESSEN (Reuters) - E.ON has no interest in creating a pan-European mega-utility, its CEO told Reuters, rejecting suggestions that recent energy market turmoil might spur consolidation in the sector. "Creating an Airbus equivalent would only distract us from our actual task," Leonhard Birnbaum said in an interview, referring to the planemaker part-owned by the German, French and Spanish governments. "I don't see any benefit in that." Birnbaum added he saw little chance that E.ON, Europe's biggest energy networks operator with a market value of about 32 billion euros ($35 billion), could become a bid target itself. "The best takeover defence is to get the best value out of your company and to grow," he said, on the heels of announcing plans for a big increase in investment to 42 billion euros over the next five years. "And we do both." Europe's energy sector has been undergoing major changes since once-close energy ties with Russia were severed in the wake of the Ukraine war. That sparked a crisis in supplies and a surge in prices which led several governments to rescue or take stakes in power firms and critical energy infrastructure. At the same time, oil majors have muscled into the renewables space, boosting speculation about dealmaking. Birnbaum said that while Russia's invasion of Ukraine highlighted the need for closer cooperation in Europe in areas such as cyber security, energy served as an example where that was already happening. So the merits of combining major cross-border entities are limited, the 57-year old said. Likewise, Birnbaum doesn't see much value in spending heavily on mergers himself, saying E.ON's investment push was mainly focused on growing its own businesses and acquisitions would only be made to add certain skills to the group - "not to make the organisation bigger". Birnbaum said E.ON could spend even more than the 42 billion euros planned for 2024-2028, but cautioned that depended on a favourable regulatory environment. Story continues E.ON operates 1.6 million kilometres (994,000 miles) of gas and power grids, serving around 48 million customers in Europe, a region Birnbaum said would remain its focus going forward. The company went through a revamp when it agreed to buy key assets from Innogy, a former division of RWE, in 2018. Birnbaum said he was still satisfied with the structure of the group, which mainly consists of grids and low-margin retail energy operations, adding the idea of an eventual break up had lost momentum. ($1 = 0.9161 euros) (Reporting by Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff and Vera Eckert; Editing by Mark Potter) SALISBURY, N.C. (WCMH) Deputies in North Carolina have arrested an Ohio Chick-fil-A franchise owner and accused him of engaging in sex acts with a teenage girl. Stacy Lee Austin, 49, faces a charge of statutory sex offense with a child, according to the Rowan County Sheriffs Office. Investigators said he spoke with the victim on social media and arranged to drive over 6 hours from his Belmont home to meet her at her house in North Carolina. Deputies originally went to the home on March 5 when another resident found Austin inside with the teen and called to report a breaking and entering. They said they found Austins underwear in a trashcan in the home. This embedded content is not available in your region. The suspect later admitted he engaged in sex acts with the teen to deputies, according to the sheriffs office. He told them he was concerned about losing his job as the owner of an Ohio Chick-fil-A franchise. Circleville chief of police escorted out of office after being placed on administrative leave Business records from the Ohio Secretary of State showed Austin registered as the agent for CE Chicken, LLC, with an Akron mailing address. OSHA inspection records tie the LLC to a Chick-fil-A at 67950 Mall Ring Rd. in St. Clairsville. This embedded content is not available in your region. Austin was being held in the Rowan County Detention Center without bond as of Tuesday. A Chick-fil-A spokesperson told Nexstar station WTRF that the company has zero tolerance for the type of serious conduct alleged. Stacy Austin currently is an independent franchise owner, but as the investigation and legal process continues, he will not be present in the restaurant, the spokesperson said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. An Ohio man was sentenced to more than a decade in prison for trafficking cocaine into western Pennsylvania. Norberto Castillo-Lopez, 34, was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine after a trial in November 2023. Evidence from the trial established that Castillo-Lopez was the organizer and leader of an organization that was trafficking kilogram-quantities of cocaine from Columbus to Western Pennsylvania, the Department of Justice said. Officials began conducting a wiretap investigation into the organization in December 2019, during which Castillo-Lopez was intercepted agreeing to supply kilograms of cocaine to his co-conspirator. The co-conspirators role was to redistribute Castillo-Lopezs cocaine to lower-level distributors for resale in the cities of New Castle and Farrell. The wiretap investigation concluded in August 2020, and in September 2020, investigators conducted a search warrant at Castillo-Lopezs house. They found cocaine, bulk money and a kilogram wrapper. Castillo-Lopez was sentenced to 135 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Name revealed for Kennywoods Potato Patch-themed bumper cars Complete devastation: Man, woman killed in Crescent Township house explosion Grandmother killed in head-on crash on East Carson Street was driving to meet newborn grandson VIDEO: 7 people charged with breaking into old Century III Mall DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts CLEVELAND (WJW) The Ohio Supreme Court has stayed the execution of convicted East Cleveland serial killer Michael Madison, who was scheduled to be put to death in May. Justices on Wednesday ordered Madisons execution to be put off until he has exhausted all appeals and state post-conviction proceedings. Jason Iverson pleads to killing pregnant sister, her unborn child, husband in Labor Day shooting at Stafford Park Madison, 46, was convicted of killing Shirellda Terry, Angela Deskins and Shetisha Sheely, whose bodies were found in plastic bags near Madisons East Cleveland home in 2013. (Fox 8 file photo) Jurors in May 2016 found Madison guilty on all six counts of aggravated murder and recommended the death sentence. He was sentenced to die the following June and given a May 15, 2024, execution date. Attorneys with the Office of the Ohio Public Defender argued Madison is entitled to a stay until he exhausts one round of post-conviction relief and a motion for delayed reconsideration. Madison could seek post-conviction relief if he claims his constitutional rights were violated during his criminal proceedings. A post-conviction relief petition was filed in December. Jail call: Woman explains taking dead man to bank to withdraw cash All executions in Ohio have been effectively on hold since 2020. Gov. Mike DeWine that year created an unofficial moratorium by requiring an alternative execution method to lethal injection, citing the states difficulty in sourcing the necessary drugs, reported The Associated Press. The states last execution was in July 2018. As of January, there were 119 convicts on death row in the state, AP reported that month. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) As technology on the battlefield advances at a rapid pace, and warfare accelerates that, our military works to find ways to protect our soldiers from it on the battlefield. On Tuesday, a symposium was held by the Oklahoma National Guard in a meeting of the minds for ideas to do just that. LOCAL NEWS: City of Newcastle cuts ribbon for new animal shelter OK National Guard holds Counter Unmanned Aircraft Systems symposium. Image KFOR. Military officials and their state and federal industry partners explored ways help service men and women survive, fight and win again those technological advancements, more specifically advancements in drone technology. Drone technology in the fight in Ukraine is becoming as important as the invention of airplanes were in World War I and World War II, Maj. Gen Tom Mancino said. Mancino described it as a major fundamental shift in modern warfare. Small drones capable of targeting down to individuals that are destroying tanks, he said. Improvise, adapt and overcome is a popular unofficial slogan for the U.S. Armed Forces and the same goes for those that met at the Hamm Institute in Oklahoma City. Military leaders joined with their state and federal partners to better understand not only how drones are used on the front lines across the world, but also how they can be used against the U.S. military. Our role in the National Guard is really to provide a way of taking those theoretical technologys and testing them at our camp, Mancino said. LOCAL NEWS: Family gets portraits back after waiting four months Policy, readiness and academic research in the unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) industry were topics at the symposium. Others included UAS threats, Department of Defense and National Guard integration in advanced air mobility, maneuver training, integrating UAS in interagency operations, and counter-UAS initiative development. Months ago, three U.S. service members were killed in a drone incident on the Syrian border that injured dozens more, which highlights this new threat to U.S. forces. You know, we dont get scared, but we identify threats and we take action, Mancino said. Its the Oklahoma National Guards first ever symposium on UAS, but it wont be the last as new threats and tools emerge on the front lines of modern warfare. The symposium wraps up Wednesday afternoon. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Oklahoma high school student Nex Benedict died from suicide, the state medical examiners office ruled Wednesday, ending more than a month of speculation. The 16-year-old, who identified under the two-spirit, transgender and gender-nonconforming umbrella, died Feb. 8 after ingesting a lethal amount of antihistamines and antidepressants, according to a summary report obtained by The Hill. The full medical examiners report will be released March 27, per Oklahoma law. Benedict, a sophomore at Owasso High School, collapsed at home on Feb. 8, one day after they were involved in what the school district and local authorities described as a physical altercation in a bathroom at school. Sue Benedict, Benedicts grandmother whom they called mom, said she took Benedict to the hospital both immediately after the fight and the following day. In body camera footage released last month by Owasso Police, Benedict said they were jumped in the bathroom on Feb. 7 by three girls they did not know. Benedict in the video said they threw water at the girls after the girls made fun of the way Benedict and another student dressed, and the girls responded by punching them. Sue Benedict in an interview with The Independent in February said Benedict had been bullied at school since at least the beginning of last year. Benedicts district, Owasso Public Schools, said in a Feb. 20 statement it followed all its protocols after the fight, including giving the students involved a health assessment by a registered nurse and informing parents of the option to file a police report. Owasso Police said Wednesday investigators had long suspected that the cause of Benedicts death was suicide. From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiners Office, police said in a statement. Benedicts death has reverberated through the LGBTQ community and cast a national spotlight on Oklahoma schools. Top Stories from The Hill The Education Department announced earlier this month it is opening an investigation into allegations made by the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ advocacy organization, that Owasso Public Schools failed to respond to sex-based harassment that may have contributed to Benedicts death. As parents, we send our kids to school expecting that they will be safe and cared for. Nex was failed by so many and should still be here today, Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said Wednesday in a statement that followed the release of the medical examiners report. We have heard from so many parents and students that this culture of bullying and harassment is both pervasive at Owasso Public Schools and that many within the school had actual knowledge that it was occurring and took no steps to fix it, Robinson said. Current and former Owasso students told The Oklahoman late last month that the Tulsa suburb of about 40,000 has a long history of bullying that targets LGBTQ people. Lance Preston, the founder and executive director of the Rainbow Youth Project, told reporters last week that calls to the groups emergency hotline have skyrocketed since Feb. 16, when Benedicts death began receiving widespread media attention. Most Oklahoma callers reported instances of bullying, he said. Hundreds of LGBTQ and civil rights organizations in the wake of Benedicts death called for the removal of Ryan Walters, Oklahomas top education official, in a letter to Oklahoma House leadership. Oklahomas constitution grants authority to the state House to begin impeachment proceedings against elected officials. Walters, an outspoken critic of policies that accommodate transgender individuals, has described transgender students as a danger to their classmates. The Human Rights Campaign has called for a separate federal investigation into Walters and the Oklahoma State Department of Education, citing Walterss troubling history of transphobic and racist behavior and his appointment of Chaya Raichik, the conservative activist behind Libs of TikTok, to a state library advisory board. Updated at 6:15 p.m. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Two pictures of what appear to be a burned village resurfaced in Burmese-language Facebook posts that falsely claimed they show the aftermath of a military bombardment in Myanmar's western Rakhine state in February 2024. The pictures, however, previously appeared in posts about an air strike near Myanmar's border with Thailand in November 2022. The pictures were published on Facebook here on February 20, 2024. The Burmese-language post reads: "Feb 20. The rocket launched by the Tatmadaw [Myanmar Military]. The sound could be heard but couldn't see it. The sound from the rocket flame was very loud. When I went and checked there in the morning, the spot where the rocket hit was seen as shown in the images. It was in Rakhine." A screenshot of the false post, taken on March 11, 2024 Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military staged a coup in February 2021 that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's democratically-elected government. The junta has struggled to crush resistance to its rule by long-established ethnic rebel groups and newer pro-democracy People's Defence Forces. In western Rakhine state, clashes erupted after the armed ethnic group Arakan Army attacked security forces in November 2023, ending a ceasefire that had largely held since the coup. Similar Facebook posts were also shared here, here and here. While AFP was not able to verify the claim there was a rocket strike in Rakhine on February 20, the pictures featured in the posts were shared in a false context. Old pictures Reverse image searches on Google found the pictures were published here on Facebook by People's Spring, a pro-shadow government outlet, on November 16, 2022 (archived link). The post's caption reads: "Air strike killed and wounded Chinese citizens in a mine". The same pictures were also featured in an article on the website of People's Spring and appeared in local media reports here and here (archived links here, here and here). Below is a screenshot comparison of the pictures in one false post (left) and those published on the Facebook page of People's Spring (right): Screenshot comparison of the photo from the false post (left) with the photos from People's Spring Facebook post (right) AFP reported on November 16, 2022 that the rebel group Karen National Union (KNU) said it was investigating whether Chinese nationals were among those killed and wounded in a military air strike on a mine that it runs near the Thai border. Both sides said the military clashed with KNU fighters near the border one day earlier. AFP had previously debunked misinformation swirling around clashes in Myanmar here, here and here. Denise Fractious of Pasadena receives her COVID-19 vaccine during a clinic at Kaiser Permanente Pasadena in October 2023. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) Older Californians who received last autumn's updated COVID-19 vaccination can now get another shot, state health officials said. Adults 65 and older should get a second dose of the updated shot that first became available in September, as long as at least four months have passed since that injection, the California Department of Public Health said Tuesday, echoing a recommendation issued Feb. 28 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For older adults who got the updated COVID-19 vaccine, getting another dose of the 2023-24 version "provides added protection to residents who are at increased risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19," the L.A. County Department of Public Health said in a statement. "An additional dose of the updated COVID-19 vaccine may restore protection that has waned since a fall vaccine dose, providing increased protection to adults ages 65 years and older," the CDC said in a statement on Feb. 28. For seniors 65 and up, "You are up to date when you have received 2 updated 20232024 COVID-19 vaccine doses," the CDC says on its vaccine guidance page. Read more: Older U.S. adults should get another COVID-19 shot, CDC recommends People currently sick with COVID-19 should wait to be vaccinated until they have recovered. Those who have recovered can get their shot as soon as they are healthy, or they can get their vaccination three months later. Reasons for why a person may want an updated vaccination promptly after recovering from a COVID infection include personal risk of severe disease or the risk of disease in a loved one or close contact, the CDC says. "People who already had COVID-19 and do not get vaccinated after their recovery are more likely to get COVID-19 again than those who get vaccinated after their recovery," the CDC said. The L.A. County Department of Public Health said that a preliminary analysis of national data from October and November showed that more than 95% of all adults hospitalized with COVID had not received the latest vaccination. About 34% of California's seniors 65 and older have received one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine since September. The vaccination rate among seniors in Santa Barbara County was 38%; San Diego County, 36%; Ventura County, 35%; Orange County, 32%; Los Angeles County, 29%; and San Bernardino County, 24%. The highest updated vaccination rates among seniors in California were in Marin County (57%), Sonoma County (53%) and Santa Cruz County (50%). Read more: U.S. health officials drop 5-day isolation time for COVID-19 The five most populous counties in the Bay Area Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco and San Mateo counties reported updated senior vaccination rates between 44% and 49%. In the Central Valley, Sacramento County the most populous county in the region had an updated senior vaccination rate of 42%, and the second most populous, Fresno County, was at 26%. Everyone 6 months and older should have received one updated COVID-19 vaccination since September, the CDC recommends. COVID-19 levels have been declining in Los Angeles County's wastewater system since the winter peak, which occurred around mid-January. For the week that ended Jan. 13, coronavirus levels in sewage reached 67% of the prior winter's maximum. For the most recent data available, the week that ended Feb. 24, coronavirus levels in L.A. County wastewater were at 16% of last winter's peak. Scientists say COVID vaccinations reduce the risk of long COVID. New research from UC San Francisco noted that pieces of the virus that causes COVID have been found in the blood up to 14 months after infection and after more than two years in tissue samples. Scientists there are continuing research into whether these fragments are a factor in causing long COVID to persist. Kaiser Permanente expects to start offering the second dose of the 2023-24 COVID vaccine to seniors in mid-March, once its computer systems are updated to accommodate the latest recommendation. The second dose could be available earlier in some locations. CVS, RiteAid and Walgreens said in statements that senior customers can schedule their second dose. California's COVID vaccination appointment website, MyTurn.ca.gov, is accepting requests from seniors wanting a second dose. The L.A. County Department of Public Health said it offers a directory of vaccine providers at ph.lacounty.gov/vaccines; those who have additional questions can call the county's public health call center at (833) 540-0473 seven days a week between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. The public health call center line also can arrange for vaccinations to be administered at home for residents who cannot leave, such as elderly and disabled people. L.A. County also offers COVID vaccinations at Ted Watkins Memorial Park in Florence-Firestone and Eugene A. Obregon Park in East L.A. Wednesday through Sunday, between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. 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. Amid a buoyant mood in global markets, Singapore's Straits Times Index reflected investor optimism with a modest uptick, bolstered by strong performances across regional indexes and positive earnings reports from local companies. In such an environment, dividend stocks like Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Holdings stand out for their potential to offer investors a steady income stream alongside the prospects of capital appreciation. Top 10 Dividend Stocks In Singapore Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Singapore Exchange (SGX:S68) 3.63% DBS Group Holdings (SGX:D05) 6.45% Oversea-Chinese Banking (SGX:O39) 6.42% Civmec (SGX:P9D) 6.17% UOL Group (SGX:U14) 3.50% Asia Enterprises Holding (SGX:A55) 7.25% UOB-Kay Hian Holdings (SGX:U10) 6.67% Aztech Global (SGX:8AZ) 7.92% Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) (SGX:BS6) 3.58% Oiltek International (Catalist:HQU) 6.40% Click here to see the full list of 24 stocks from our Top Dividend Stocks screener. Here's a peek at a few of the choices from the screener. Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) Ltd. is an investment holding company specializing in shipbuilding across China, Canada, Japan, Bulgaria, and various other Asian and European nations, with a market capitalization of approximately SGD 7.11 billion. Operations: Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) Ltd. generates revenue primarily through its shipbuilding segment, which contributed CN22.79 billion, and its shipping operations, which added CN1.02 billion to the total revenue. Dividend Yield: 3.6% Yangzijiang Shipbuilding's P/E ratio at S$9.30 is below the Singapore market average, suggesting a value opportunity. Despite a history of dividend volatility over the past decade, its dividends are well-covered by both earnings and cash flows, with payout ratios at 33.6% and 19.1%, respectively. However, its yield of 3.58% falls short compared to Singapore's top dividend payers. Recent contracts for eco-friendly ships align with maritime decarbonisation efforts, potentially bolstering future performance amidst environmental concerns. Story continues SGX:BS6 Dividend History as at Mar 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: UOL Group Limited is a diversified company operating in property development, investment, and hospitality sectors across various countries including Singapore, Australia, the UK, China, and more, with a market capitalization of approximately SGD 4.83 billion. Operations: UOL Group Limited generates revenue primarily through its Property Development segment in Singapore with SGD 1.16 billion, followed by Property Investments at SGD 518.93 million, and Hotel Operations across Singapore and Australia contributing SGD 590.57 million combined, alongside Technology Operations which add another SGD 110.08 million to the total revenue. Dividend Yield: 3.5% UOL Group's dividends, with a 3.5% yield, are underpinned by a decade of stability and growth, supported by earnings and cash flows with payout ratios of 17.9% and 59.3%, respectively. Despite trading below its estimated fair value by 28.4%, UOL faces headwinds: forecasted earnings declines averaging 30.3% annually over the next three years could pressure future payouts. Recent executive changes signal strategic shifts, while the announced special dividend reflects confidence in current financial health after reporting S$707.71 million net income on S$2.68 billion sales for FY2023. SGX:U14 Dividend History as at Mar 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Limited is an investment holding company offering a range of services including stockbroking, futures broking, and margin financing across Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, and other global markets with a market capitalization of approximately SGD 1.24 billion. Operations: UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Limited generates its revenue primarily from securities and futures broking and related services, amounting to SGD 539 million. Dividend Yield: 6.7% UOB-Kay Hian Holdings' recent S$165.64 million net income marks a significant uptick from the previous year, aligning with a proposed dividend of S$0.092 per share, evidencing a commitment to shareholder returns. The firm's dividends are well-covered by both earnings and cash flows, with payout ratios at 49.6% and 22.4%, respectively, suggesting sustainability despite past volatility in dividend distribution. The appointment of Michael Tay as an independent director could infuse new perspectives into the company's strategic direction amidst its current financial performance. SGX:U10 Dividend History as at Mar 2024 Make It Happen Click through to start exploring the rest of the 21 Top Dividend Stocks now. Are you invested in these stocks already? Keep abreast of every twist and turn by setting up a portfolio with Simply Wall St, where we make it simple for investors like you to stay informed and proactive. Take control of your financial future using Simply Wall St, offering free, in-depth knowledge of international markets to every investor. Ready For A Different Approach? 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. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com Haitis embattled Prime Minister Ariel Henry says his countrys constitution states that only he and his cabinet can appoint a council for the transition of power, Henrys office told CNN exclusively on Wednesday. After a meeting of regional Caribbean leaders on Monday, Henry agreed to leave power once a transitional council had been set up to lay the foundations for future elections, following weeks of violence in Haiti where social order has all but collapsed. But Henrys office told CNN that only he and his cabinet can appoint the transitional council and will not simply deliver the country to new leaders without following constitutional procedures. According to the Haitian constitution, only the prime minister with the cabinet can appoint the presenting council. Yes, the PM expresses his patriotic intentions to resign with his cabinet, but we have to do this in order, special adviser to Prime Minister Ariel Henry, Jean Junior Joseph, told CNN. We will not deliver the country to just a group of people without following the procedure. We are in crisis as a country, but we must stay inside of the law and set a good example, he added. Henrys office said Article 149 of Haitis constitution states that once the president is not available, only the ministerial cabinet possesses powers to make decisions in his absence. The council will have to go through the same process he went through when Ariel Henry became PM, the statement said. Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry speaks to students during a public lecture on bilateral engagement between Kenya and Haiti, at the United States International University Africa, in Nairobi, on March 1. - Simon Maina/AFP/Getty Images The United Nations secretary-generals spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Wednesday that the transitional council under the CARICOM agreement for Haiti is the path forward. When asked if the announcement weakens Haitis political transition towards elections, Dujarric said, Its not for the secretary-general or for the UN to impose a solution on the people of Haiti. As weve seen thats been tried many times without great success. Henry came to power unelected in 2021 following the assassination of Haitis then-President Jovenel Moise. His premiership has been marred by months of spiraling gang violence, which grew more intense after he failed to hold elections last month, saying the countrys insecurity would compromise the vote. His decision only further enraged protesters who had for months demanded he stand down as Haiti slid further into poverty and unchecked chaos. When the worst of the violence erupted at the start of March, Henry was in Kenya to sign an agreement to send 1,000 Kenyan police officers to Haiti to restore the security situation. Their deployment was postponed Tuesday following Henrys announcement of his resignation. After Mondays meeting of the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM), Henry agreed that a transitional council would be established and endowed with some powers of the presidency including the ability to name a new interim prime minister. The resulting government would be expected to eventually hold elections in the country for a complete political reset, although it is unclear how long this would take. Jimmy Barbecue Cherizier, the leader of the alliance of gangs known as Viv Ansanm (living together), warned Monday that his group would not recognize any government resulting from the CARICOM agreement. The agreement was struck while Henry was in the US territory of Puerto Rico, where he arrived last week. While Henry was out of the country, gangs laid siege to Haitis main airport to prevent his safe return. Amid the chaos, the neighboring Dominican Republic has remained the only country to continue deporting people back into Haiti, according to new data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), which tracks migration flows around the world. In the month of March, the Dominican Republic which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti - deported 4,151 people to its neighbor, per IOM figures. The majority of the people deported into Haiti were men, along with 716 women, 45 boys and 55 girls. The IOM data shows no apparent reaction from Dominican authorities to worsening conditions on the ground, with 640 Haitians deported on March 4, the day after Haiti declared a state of emergency. Asked to comment on the Dominican Republics recent deportations, Dujarric said the UN was against the forced mass displacement of people back into a country that is clearly not safe. The UNs office in Haiti said it is establishing an air bridge between Haiti and the Dominican Republic to facilitate the movement of UN staff and humanitarian assistance. The air bridge will facilitate the temporary relocation of some UN staff outside Haiti and will facilitate the arrival of crisis management personnel into the country, BINUH said. Meanwhile, aid is tricking into the country. A major Haitian port terminal, which was breached by looters and protesters last week, came back under government control on Monday. The World Food Program (WFP) said it carried out its first maritime aid operation since late February out of Port-au-Prince to the south of Haiti on Monday, according to a post on X on Tuesday by its Haiti director Jean-Martin Bauer. The WFP transferred eight trucks carrying medical items by ferry which will be distributed to 80 health facilities, according to Bauer. Food and other aid previously couldnt enter the Haitian capital by sea due to the interruption of maritime ports, Bauer explained. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Sora for the Delay OpenAI made a big splash when it showed off its new video generator Sora last month. The text-to-video model can be used to "create videos of up to 60 seconds featuring highly detailed scenes, complex camera motion, and multiple characters with vibrant emotions," according to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. And with stunning results, from a camera gliding through a snowy scene to photorealistic wooly mammoths. One catch: though we've seen its outputs, the tool remains internal, and until now there'd been no hint of when it might be publicly released. But now, OpenAI chief technology officer Mira Murati told the Wall Street Journal that the company will publicly release Sora "later this year." Red Team, Green Team OpenAI is still in the throes of "red-teaming" the text-to-video model, instructing testers to probe the tool for vulnerabilities and enhancing its guardrails. For instance, Murati told the WSJ that Sora likely won't be able to generate videos of public figures or explicit nudity. Despite the big impact it made upon its reveal last month, Sora is far from perfect. A closer look at the generated video samples reveals some glaring inaccuracies, suggesting OpenAI may be overselling the tool's real-world capabilities. While the released version of the tool will address any of these shortcomings remains to be seen. Nonetheless, Hollywood is already paying attention, with filmmaker and actor Tyler Perry announcing he was pausing an $800 million expansion of his gigantic Atlanta studio after expressing amazement at the power of Sora. As for its potential to replace video producers and editors a common refrain when it comes to the development of AI and its impacts on the workforce Murati told the WSJ that "we want people in the film industry and creators everywhere to be a part of informing how we develop it further." The company has yet to give an exact date as to when and who will be able to access the tool. But given AI image generators' already considerable processing power requirements Murati told the WSJ that it's far more expensive to generate video OpenAI is unlikely to open the floodgates for its video generator in one go. More on Sora: Tyler Perry Nixes Huge Film Studio Expansion, Says He Can Just Green Screen in Backgrounds From OpenAI's Sora Like most people, Sarah Stevens is looking for a little peace, love and understanding. As a longtime fan of the transformative power of yoga, Stevens is launching Sanctuary Studios, 1800 7th Ave., Moline, on the second floor of the Spotlight Theatre and Event Center, formerly occupied by The Market: A Journey to Joy. A literal sanctuary and refuge (to include space for yoga classes, Reiki and massage therapy), the new business will celebrate its grand opening Tuesday, March 19, at 5:30 p.m. with Bites by Cavort, and 6:15 p.m. Beats by Natalie Brown. Stevens, 45, is a former healthcare executive turned writer, speaker, and entrepreneur. After leaving her career in corporate healthcare in 2016, she founded The Beautifull Project a storytelling collective that has reached tens of thousands of women across the globe with its powerful message about learning to take up space. Sarah amplifies a message that moves beyond a body positive sentiment and creates a movement that makes room for every body to tell their truth and take up space, says her project website. She draws out confidence and courage. She believes in being free and full. And she will make a believer out of you, too. Sanctuary Studios is an extension of her Beautifull Project. I used to talk, when I started The Beautifull Project, of this pipe dream can you imagine one day, us being able to have a space where the walls would hold our stories? I was just dreaming. Sarah Stevens is starting Sanctuary Studios on the second floor of the Spotlight Theatre building, 1800 7th Ave., Moline (photos by Jonathan Turner). This is the brick-and-mortar evolution of The Beautifull Project, Stevens said of the new space. Its the thing I was setting out to do, to create connections with each other. She took her first yoga class in 2011. Yoga has been the single consistent way Ive moved my body for 13 years now, Stevens said, noting it has healed her relationship with her body. Shes struggled with eating disorders, and instead of trying to change myself from the outside in, it changed me from the inside, she said. Yoga helps improve mental health. For me, my mat is the safest place for me to work out whatever is happening on the inside of me, and I think thats true for a lot of people, Stevens said. Being with a group of other people is part of the benefit (she was certified as a yoga teacher in 2018), as a safe, close community for all. We will offer yoga, but it is more than a yoga studio, she said. I talk a lot about how sanctuary means safety and refuge. Its not so much the absence of a threat, but the presence of connection. One of the things that was really important to me we are moving our body in classes, traditional yoga postures. But this is a community space. Sanctuary Studios will be open to anyone between classes for anyone to visit and sit in their church pews. It is intended as a place to create connection, to yourself and to each other, Stevens said. Growing up Catholic, she studied theology and philosophy in college. One of the things she wanted pull from was the best parts of her religious experience when she was younger. With an emphasis on inclusivity and the best parts of sacred experiences for me, thats really how I planted this, Stevens said. Sanctuary will offer group movement and solitary silence. I made it so it has this warm and soothing vibe to it, she said. Its always an invitation here. Connection and alone time Stevens said she has to have both connecting with other people and solitude. During COVID isolation, she practiced yoga at home by herself, and it was terrible, she said. It was the first time I really thought, I need other people, and I know that now. Sarah Stevens at Sanctuary Studios, Tuesday, March 12, 2024. The number of connections Stevens has made in making Sanctuary has been astounding, she said. We need each other, and thats the point, she said. Stevens chose Moline since there is no longer a main yoga studio in the city, after Indigo closed (which was her home studio). She has taken yoga with Shannon Moran (who owned Indigo) of Zen Yoga & Meditation on the third floor of Spotlight. Hes been her teacher for 13 years. Its accessible from the bridge; the fact that Moline needed it, she said of starting Sanctuary, in the former Scottish Rite Cathedral. It felt like a church, and I couldnt afford to renovate a church. This is perfect. Other QC yoga studios do monthly memberships, but no one else offers pay what you can, which Sanctuary will. I have no desire to get competitive about the offerings, Stevens said. I think Sanctuary will appeal to people who dont think yoga is for them. Those people dont have a home; those are my people. Every class is donation-based, up to each person how much they can pay. For people who can afford a market rate, they can choose the outer circle membership, which is equivalent to other studio rates at $99 a month for unlimited classes, a minimum six-month commitment. Classes will be offered weekdays from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and Saturday mornings. The first class will be March 23. Stevens also will pay teachers a living wage, which has been $25 for a two-hour class, but shes doubling that to $50 per class. That will also, over time, attract the best teachers in the Quad Cities, she said. She knows how many members she needs in the outer circle (becoming sustainable with just 40). There are 40 people in the Quad Cities who can pay $100 a month to practice unlimited yoga, Stevens said. I know this community can support me at that level. She also wants to offer yoga teacher training. Inspired by elephants Stevens loves elephants, and got a print from a friend about female elephants being fierce protectors. This is who we are and who we are meant to be for each other, the print says, and walls in the new studio display quotes from that story. One of the walls of the new Sanctuary Studios. Thats the point of the outer circle sometimes were the ones in the middle needing help, and sometimes were the ones on the outside, Stevens said. Shes been renovating the space since Feb. 1, with local artist Eve Van Kampen painting the new walls, including the Sanctuary logo and based in a light green (evoking Stevens Irish roots). While yoga is popular among women, Stevens also wants Sanctuary to attract more men, LGBTQ and non-binary customers. I think every gender deserves aspects of moving their body with other people, she said. This is an invitation to every body. The class schedule will be available on the Sanctuary website this weekend. Stevens has an administrator for the new business, Brooke Birmingham. Stevens works full-time as development director for The Project of the Quad Cities (TPQC), where shes been for three years. It recently opened its new space at 4101 John Deere Road, Moline. They currently have 40 employees. Stevens served on the groups board from 2012-2016, around the time they had eight staff. The new Project of the Quad Cities lobby, 4101 John Deere Road, Moline. Weve been able to expand into broader LGBTQ health care, Stevens said, moving beyond HIV case management testing and prevention, to a sexually-transmitted disease clinic, pharmacy, LGBTQ primary care, and gender-affirming care for transgender youth and adults. Its a really powerful organization doing really important work, she said. Once the studio is up and running, I will be reassessing my professional workload and making some choices. In 2022, Stevens also launched Branded by Sarah Stevens, a full suite of marketing services that center on storytelling (video is her favorite). I need a yoga class, real badly, she said Tuesday. I cannot wait to lay out my own damn mat, and light some incense, put on some music and just be in here. Stevens posted this photo of herself in 2018 for The Beautifull Project. The Project has been wonderfully supportive in her starting Sanctuary, crediting CEO Caitlin Wells. They want that holistic wellnessI cant say enough good things about Caitlin, Stevens said. Ive worked for a lot of CEOs and shes probably the best Ive ever worked for. TPQC has taught her, you have to actually remove barriers for people. This is a 3,000-year-old tradition that I dont own, Stevens said. I cant people out of it because they cant pay me $25 to come lay down on a mat. The Project means, removing barriers, and I see that all over Sanctuary Studios. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. Editors Note: Adam Kinzinger is a CNN senior political commentator and a former Republican congressman from Illinois. He served 10 years on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Kinzinger is also a lieutenant colonel and pilot in the Air National Guard. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. Read more opinion at CNN. Twice in 2011, I was awakened by pounding on the door of my Washington, DC, apartment. During the first of those incidents, no fewer than five officers stormed in, guns drawn, demanding that I tell them where Tina was, and if she was all right. Adam Kinzinger - CNN Law enforcement had been sent to my home in response to a non-existent emergency phoned in by an anonymous caller. Police had closed off the entire street while a helicopter hovered overhead. I was a victim of swatting. Swatting occurs when a false report of gunfire or some other emergency is phoned to local police dispatchers who send officers, medics and even SWAT teams to a particular address. Expensive resources will have been wasted and the people the swatters want to frighten are scared out of their wits. Both incidents happened about a year after I was elected to Congress. The second incident, which took place just a week after the first, was much less intense, with only a couple officers pounding on my door at 3 a.m. I later learned from law enforcement that my having been swatted apparently had nothing to do with my job as a newly elected official: Apparently, a scorned lover thought their ex-partner still lived in the apartment I had moved to a short time earlier. Even though I wasnt the intended target, the shock and the potential danger posed to me and my neighbors in the building during the police operation was substantial. Speaking earlier this year on NBCs Meet the Press program, Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley revealed details about a swatting incident that occurred at her South Carolina home and said it wasnt the first time it had happened. Haley said she and her husband were not home when the swatting episode took place, but that her elderly parents were. I will tell you that the last thing you want is to see multiple law enforcement officials with guns drawn pointing at my parents and thinking that something happened, the former South Carolina governor told NBC. It was an awful situation, adding that it wasnt the first time that it happened. At least one case of swatting has led to the death of the individual to whose home police were sent. In 2017, a swatting that targeted a Wichita, Kansas, man named Andrew Finch escalated. The local police department responded to a false report that a man had shot his father and taken family members hostage and was threatening to light the house on fire and kill himself. With police gathered outside, Finch went to his front door. After he dropped his hands as officers were telling him to raise his arms, he was shot to death by a police sniper. Although it wasnt linked to politicians, as many prominent cases are these days, Finchs death shows us that swatting can turn deadly. The word swatting comes from Special Weapons and Tactics or SWAT teams that sometimes rush to targeted homes. The FBI described swatting as a new phenomenon in 2008, just a few years before I was a victim of it. Its been in the headlines recently because of a spate of incidents involving public officials. A new FBI unit created last May to monitor the incidence of swatting across the US has identified more than 500 cases since its inception. A number of public servants are being targeted in what appear to be acts of alarming political intimidation. When prominent public officials are victims of swatting, one cant always prove a cause-and-effect relationship between inflammatory rhetoric posted online or delivered during a speech and a callers reckless false emergency call to 911. In one recent case, GOP Florida Sen. Rick Scott revealed at the end of December that his home was swatted during the holiday break. These criminals wasted the time & resources of our law enforcement in a sick attempt to terrorize my family, read a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, written by Scott, one of a number of Republican officials to have been targeted by swatting since December. Another Republican member of the US Congress, Rep. Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, has suggested that threats of violence have influenced his decision to abandon public service rather than risk the lives of his family members. Politicians have to do more to apprehend and punish the perpetrators of these dangerous crimes. We need tougher laws to protect public servants, and some states are increasing penalties for perpetrators of swatting. Last year, Ohio made it a felony to call in a false emergency if it leads to a law enforcement action. Meanwhile, Virginia last year stiffened penalties, making swatting calls punishable by up to 12 months in jail. But we need more than just stiffer punishment. We also have an interest in toning down the potentially incendiary rhetoric that ignites this kind of dangerous behavior by dangerous and misguided people. Some of the most prominent victims of swatting in recent months have been associated in some way with former President Donald Trump. As The Washington Post reported recently, While some on the right have been affected, many targets share a common attribute: They have done or said something that has earned Trumps ire. In January, a day after Trump berated Judge Arthur Engoron, who is presiding over his New York civil fraud trial, as TRUMP HATING on social media, Engoron was swatted; A caller reported to police that a bomb had been placed at Engorons home. A contingent of police officers, including members of the local bomb squad, rushed to Engorons residence, but no bomb was discovered. Other officials involved in Trump-related cases have also been swatted in recent weeks. Jack Smith, the special prosecutor in two criminal cases involving Trump, was swatted on Christmas Day. On January 7, police received a call about gunfire at the home of Federal Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is presiding over a federal case in which Trump is charged with election interference. Again, the reported emergency was false. Shenna Bellows, the secretary of state in Maine, was swatted in late December after making public her finding that Trump had participated in an insurrection on January 6, 2021, when more than a thousand of his followers fought their way into the US Capitol, which she concluded made him ineligible to run for president in her state. Her decision has been suspended pending a US Supreme Court ruling in the case. Swatting increases the likeliness of inadvertent harm to the public by the very people whose job it is to protect us. As someone who has received his share of threats from Trump supporters who remain incensed by my participation in the congressional investigation into January 6, I can tell you that its very difficult to stay calm when someone tells you they are ready to come kill you. Officials have been swatted at every level even the highest office in the land. Earlier this month, firefighters rushed to the White House after a caller falsely reported a fire. (President Joe Biden was at Camp David at the time.) Meanwhile, local elections officials across the country also are being threatened by people who dont trust the vote-counting system. In Arizona, a Republican member of the Maricopa County Board who had been subject to threats after he certified 2020 election results, has decided he will not seek reelection. In Nevada, an election official resigned after receiving numerous threats, including an email that said, count the votes correctly as if your life depends on it, because it does. According to an April report by the Brennan Center for Justice, 20% of election workers say that colleagues have left their positions due to threats and harassment. And Im not comforted by a recent survey that estimated that about 12 million Americans think violence would be justified to put Trump back in power, according to one researcher at the University of Chicago. I see the issue of violent threats and swatting through the lens of January 6, 2021. I am disturbed but no longer shocked by the intimidation and threats made against politicians and others. During the siege on the Capitol, I saw a snarling, violent mob of pro-Trump people assault police. Many of them looked like the people I represented as a member of Congress from Illinois. Some looked like the men and women Id run into at a coffee shop in the early morning or the folks I might meet at a town hall gathering. But under Trumps spell, many of them have become angry warriors against anyone or anything Trump opposes in his speeches and social media posts. As Trump has evoked violence in some of his public statements, including saying death & destruction would result from criminal charges against him, Attorney General Merrick Garland has said that the Justice Department is witnessing a deeply disturbing spike in threats against those who serve the public. An article in The Washington Post reported that the number of federally charged threat cases is up 47% compared with the preceding five-year period. An expert quoted recently in the Post said that repeated threats and swatting directed against local institutions like schools and hospitals were likely designed to harass, not to create danger. Sometimes its harassing someone for political or ideological reasons, and sometimes its a true threat, said former FBI agent Katherine Schweit. But with all due respect, as my former colleagues say in Congress, I dont care about the intentions of those who make threats or carry out swatting. If you act on a grudge against your neighborhood school principal or feel fired-up by Trump and harass a federal judge, you are committing a crime. And you are putting innocent people in danger because you can never predict what the outcome will be once armed law enforcement responds to someones home. Editors Note: This piece has been updated. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Berlin, Germany--(Newsfile Corp. - March 12, 2024) - Fahrengold, a global leader of innovative staging, storage & security solutions for the automobile industry & car collectors, announced that former MINI CMO & CIO, Esther Bahne, has joined the company's advisory board. Beyond her leadership at MINI, Esther brings a wealth of industry experience with an extensive track record of leadership across the realms of business and product innovation, branding & strategy across several of the industry's leading automobile companies, including BMW & Audi. She also sits on the board of two Swiss luxury watch brands. "Fahrengold has quickly won over luxury auto customers and, subsequently, manufacturers. Its design strikes the perfect balance between craftsmanship and technology, offering immense potential for expansion beyond this niche," Bahne commented. Esther joins TJ Grewal, former CPO & EVP of Global Operations for Beats by Dre, who currently serves on the company's advisory board. TJ has delivered a deep level of knowledge and tremendous value to the company, especially with core product advancements as well as new product innovation. "As a young company, it is a huge honor to have such accomplished and respected advisors like Esther & TJ on board. We believe it reflects and highlights the strong positioning, traction and reputation we have established," noted Fahrengold Founder Nikita Fahrenholz. The Fully-Mobile FG2 Storage Solution With the 2020 launch of the FG1, Fahrengold delivers a stylish and advanced 'center-stage' home for cars. The FG1 provides security, regulates moisture & temperature, and provides protection from the elements within an illuminated state of the art, gallery-like glass setting. Since the product's debut, world-renowned collectors and leading automobile manufacturers have deployed the FG1 solution across the globe. To additionally address corporate customers expressing the need for a more modular version (to utilize in pop-up retail locations, for example) the company developed the fully-mobile FG2. The innovative FG2 boasts the German-manufactured quality and sophistication of the FG1 but provides the ability to move with a truck and without building permit requirements. Removing logistical and administrative challenges facilitated a natural line extension which addresses the expanding needs and use cases of their core customer base. The FG2 is now exclusively available for purchase globally at fahrengold.com. Story continues Fahrengold's Fully-Mobile FG2 Fahrengold's Fully-Mobile FG2 To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8798/196593_2f3d5be344914b11_001full.jpg The New BikePad: CarPad Staging Solution, Now for Motorbikes In collaboration with a world-renowned motorcycle manufacturer, Fahrengold has developed The BikePad, an elevated and illuminated stage for motorbikes utilizing the same technology and prestige of the company's CarPad Product Line which many of the world's leading automobile brands utilize to launch and present their most important models and private collectors use to profile their prized automobiles. The BikePad is now exclusively available for purchase globally at fahrengold.com. Fahrengold's New BikePad Fahrengold's New BikePad To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8798/196593_2f3d5be344914b11_002full.jpg Fahrengold's Carpad High-Performance Vehicle on Fahrengold's Carpad To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/8798/196593_2f3d5be344914b11_003full.jpg Media Details: www.fahrengold.com Fahrengold GmbH Markische Allee 84a 12681 Berlin, Germany lisa.schink@fahrengold.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/196593 Editors Note: Frederick D. Baron served as director of the Executive Office of National Security at the Department of Justice, associate deputy attorney general and counsel to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. Dennis Aftergut is a former federal prosecutor and currently counsel to Lawyers Defending American Democracy. The views expressed in this commentary are their own. Read more at CNN Opinion. With Donald Trump garnering enough primary wins to clinch the Republican presidential nomination on Tuesday night, President Joe Biden has apparently opted to remain above politics on national security matters by giving Trump access to some classified intelligence. The White House reportedly plans to follow tradition and authorize national security briefings for Trump after he officially becomes his partys nominee at the Republican National Convention in July. Frederick Baron - Courtesy Cooley LLP This decision is one of many where Biden is damned if he does and damned if he doesnt. Sensible people rightly wonder what could justify intel briefings for a presidential candidate currently under a 40-count federal indictment in the Southern District of Florida for mishandling classified information and obstructing the governments effort to have those documents returned. Trump has denied the grand jurys allegations. Dennis Aftergut - Courtesy of Dennis Aftergut The risk of briefing Trump on intelligence matters was underscored at a House Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday on Bidens handling of classified documents. Ranking Democrat Jamie Raskin of Maryland highlighted the risk when he compared special counsel Robert Hurs investigation of the president and the Trump prosecution helmed by special counsel Jack Smith. Raskin described Trump as someone who has nothing but contempt for the rule of law and acts solely in pursuit of his own constantly multiplying corrupt schemes. With that reality front and center for the intelligence community, there is still a way to carefully craft briefings for Trump that can protect national security information while preserving the 72-year tradition of briefing candidates on the threat landscape. That tradition has been followed by presidents of both parties and has well-served the national interest. Biden has been around the national security block more times than virtually any elected leader on the federal government scene, given his lengthy chairmanships of the Senate Judiciary and Foreign Relations committees. He will have to draw on that experience to thread a very fine needle: He can preserve a bipartisan norm by sharing some intel without exposing intelligence agency sources and methods. In three important respects, Trumps relationship with Russia raises questions about entrusting him with sensitive governmental information. First, at a 2018 joint press conference in Helsinki Trump famously sided with Putin over the US intelligence community on the question of Russias interference with the 2016 election. Second, as Biden emphasized in his State of the Union address, Trump recently invited Russia to do whatever the hell they want to NATO allies that pay less than 2% of their GDP to finance the alliance. This invitation is yet another example of Trump currying favor with Putin. Third, Trump is now reportedly desperate for cash to secure a bond or loan in order to appeal his $450 million civil fraud judgment in New York. Serious financial need is a top reason for denial of clearances for federal government positions requiring access to classified national security information, due to vulnerability to bribery or coercion. A presidential candidate should not be held to a different standard than other applicants seeking a security clearance. And there is a concerning track record to take into account as well: Trump reportedly has benefited from the generosity of Russian oligarchs before. Even assuming for the sake of argument that Trump would not intentionally sell out the nation, MSNBC columnist Steve Benen assembled a worrisome Top 10 list of instances of Trumps reckless sharing of sensitive national security information. These include the former president allegedly showing a highly confidential war plan to a writer with no security clearances at Trumps Bedminster home (he claimed there was no document in the meeting) and allegedly sharing information on US nuclear submarine capabilities with a foreign businessman at Mar-a-Lago, with the former presidents spokesperson saying Trump did nothing wrong. Both instances occurred after Trump left office. Given the risks posed by Trumps access to national security intelligence, we must ask whether Bidens asymmetrical belief in sticking to political norms is an Achilles heel. Biden and his National Security Council team surely analyzed the competing considerations with a fine-toothed comb. In opting to provide intelligence briefings to candidate Trump, they are likely to impose conditions on the briefings for security reasons. This approach has been endorsed by senior intelligence veterans across the spectrum, from Trumps former National Security Advisor John Bolton to former Obama administration CIA Director John Brennan to former House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff. To honor Bidens briefing pledge while securing sensitive information, the intelligence community can adopt protocols along the following lines: Provide intel briefings to Trump alone, without permitting his advisors to attend. Doing so sends the message to Trump that if leaks occur he will be pinpointed as the obvious source. Briefings can be entirely oral. Giving no documents to Trump would further reduce the risks of leaking and diminish the credibility of any leaks should they occur. The briefings should carefully avoid any information that might disclose, or lead to discovery of, intelligence sources and methods such as specific human informants or technical means of communications interception. Rather than disclosing actual data, in many circumstances briefings can be limited to signaling which public commentary by national security experts is consistent with intelligence community findings. Still, with such strictures, why do intel briefings for Trump at all? Biden believes in a rule-of-law society. He knows that constitutionalism depends on maintaining norms of good governance that go beyond legal requirements. Biden also believes he will win re-election, in part due to his adherence to certain time-honored rules of fair play. And when Trump is gone, it will have been important to preserve balanced standards that have long sustained our system of government. Of course, Biden may be accused of providing only limited information. But that accusation will pale in comparison to the political storm that would follow a complete denial of briefings. Moreover, any debate over briefing restrictions would bring to the foreground Trumps horrendous record of compromising classified information. That debate is one Biden should welcome. At Thursdays State of the Union, Biden showed himself to be a vibrant master of American government. In granting intelligence briefings to his rival, he clearly reasoned that preserving a nonpartisan tradition was the wisest decision at this difficult moment in the nations history. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Editors Note: Carrie Sheffield is author of Motorhome Prophecies: A Journey of Healing and Forgiveness (Center Street, March 12). The views expressed here are her own. Read more opinion at CNN. In our age of soaring rates of despair, powerful scientific evidence suggests faith in God brings healing. I have experienced this firsthand. As I write in my memoir, I grew up one of seven biological siblings with a violent, mentally ill, street-musician father. An offshoot Mormon cult leader claiming a prophetic role that would lead to president of the United States, my dad said Satan reassigned lesser demons to personally torment our family. Carrie Sheffield - Barry Morgenstein My dad was excommunicated from the official LDS Church, which I believe is, overall, a positive organization with impactful humanitarian work and strong community values. We lived a transient life, skirting authorities by constantly moving. Besides various houses, we lived in motorhomes, tents, mobile homes and sheds. One of my five brothers was born in a tent while our family lived in the public campground woods of Greenbelt Park, Maryland. I took my ACT exam when all 10 of us lived in a shed in the Ozarks with no running water. In our dysfunctional and itinerant lifestyle, we parked our motorhome at truck stops and Walmart parking lots while performing classical music on streets and distributing religious pamphlets. Throughout my childhood, I attended 17 public schools and homeschool amidst poverty and welfare. Two brothers eventually developed schizophrenia. One of those brothers sexually assaulted me and the other accused me of trying to seduce him for sex. Eventually, I had enough and told my dad I wanted out. He pronounced in the name of Jesus that I would be raped and murdered if I left. When I departed, he said my blood changed, and that I was no longer his daughter. He banished me, claiming I was satanic and would corrupt my siblings, since I was first to leave but fifth in birth order. Declared legally estranged from my parents to obtain Pell Grants for college, I scraped by with scholarships, janitorial work and jobs at Taco Bell and Subway. After numerous unexpected turns, including a full tuition scholarship to Harvard for a masters degree, a successful media career and financial analysis work at Wall Street giants Goldman Sachs and Moodys Investors Service, I became a Protestant Christian in December 2017, following nearly 12 years as a bitter agnostic. Carrie Sheffield with the family cat Buff, approximately age 11 in fifth grade in the family backyard of their Springville, Utah mobile home park. - Courtesy Carrie Sheffield Now a recovered agnostic, I have personally experienced faiths role in healing my mental health. Before embracing a healthier, balanced view of faith and religious practice, I visited hospitals nine times (sometimes in multiple overnight stays) for depression, fibromyalgia, suicidal ideation and PTSD. Sadly, three of my siblings attempted suicide, and I struggled with severe anxiety before returning to faith and eventually forgiving my dad for the severe abuse he wrought on our family through his toxic behaviors. The biggest hurdle I needed to overcome was comprehending the difference between human religious abuse and healthy faith in God. Blaming God for manmade abuse is like blaming Beethoven for a bad concert. Blame the musicians, not the composer. I recently described in Christianity Today the longer path that led me to my conversion, but the short version is that it happened after I tried everything else. I tried putting career, relationships, travel, work and other good things first, as my ultimate sources of meaning but they all kept failing me. My struggles and those of my family dont exist in a vacuum. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) late last year released provisional data showing that nearly 50,000 people died by suicide in the United States in 2022. This nearly 3% increase from 2021 is the highest number ever recorded and the highest rate since 1941 during the aftershocks of the Great Depression. Loneliness is so prevalent that its being described as an epidemic among adults; according to the CDC, adolescent mental health, especially among teen girls, is at a crisis point. Yet women and men attending weekly religious services are 68% and 33% less likely respectively to die deaths of despair suicide, drug overdose or alcohol poisoning according to 2020 research from Harvard Universitys School of Public Health. National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) research found states with decreased religious participation correlated with increased deaths of despair. A Psychiatric Times academic literature review reported, Of 93 observational studies, two-thirds found lower rates of depressive disorder with fewer depressive symptoms in persons who were more religious. Boston University researcher Brian J. Grim notes, more than 84% of scientific studies show that faith is a positive factor in addiction prevention or recovery and a risk in less than 2% of the studies reviewed. Knowing that faith and science can go hand in hand to promote better mental health has been life changing for me. Being part of faith communities and participating in transformative prayer practices has had profound effects on my brain. Dr. Curt Thompson, a renowned Christian psychiatrist with expertise in neuroscience and spirituality, wrote a book, Anatomy of the Soul: Surprising Connections Between Neuroscience and Spiritual Practices That Can Transform Your Life and Relationships, that changed my thinking about my brain. Thompson describes the neuroplasticity of the brain, the ability for us to create new neural pathways that underlie our thought patterns. He illuminates what the Bible says about loving ourselves and others in a healthy manner and contrasts that with the toxic inner scripts that arise from depression, personality disorders and other mental illnesses. Thompsons work shows that with conscious effort, patients can rewrite the underlying code of our subconsciousness. It was deeply moving and hopeful to learn about this neuroplasticity, proving indeed that I could change my brains wiring. And, with Gods help, I did. Ive benefited from womens Bible studies that helped me identify negative self-talk. Intensive prayer ministries (including with Christian Union, an organization serving Ivy League students and alumni) allowed me to pray with others to redeem specific traumas in my past. Im grateful for a brilliant Jewish therapist who integrates spirituality into our conversations. Ive been mentored by remarkable spiritual leaders, including Pastor A. R. Bernard, a renowned Brooklyn pastor and adviser to presidents, who tells his flock: The quality of your thinking determines the quality of your life. (Bernard endorsed and is interviewed in my recent book.) While I struggle like everyone does to some extent, since embracing faith in my mental health treatment, I gradually stabilized and today experience what the Bible calls the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding. During Americas growing mental health crisis of record suicides and depression rates, I think thats partially why Gen Z is seeing a faith revival. Young people are reporting to researchers that Covid-19 isolation and ensuing mental illness leaves them more open to God than they were before the pandemic. I believe its because they are intuitively drawn to the life force that is far above any broken human institution like government or corporations. And while yes, religion too is one of those broken human institutions, at its best, it still connects us with God. My prayer is that more people suffering from mental illness seek out healers who embrace the power of faith to save lives and heal minds. If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters, please call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988 to connect with a trained counselor, or visit the 988 Lifeline website. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com (FOX40.COM) Opponents of a California ballot measure that centers around behavioral health services recently conceded because of a perceived likelihood that it will pass. We almost took down the bear, but it looks like we will fall short, Prop 1 opposition said in a joint statement on Tuesday. Today, as the principal opponents of Proposition 1, we concede that it is almost certain to pass. Yes votes lead on Proposition 1 in early vote result If passed, Proposition 1, also known as the Behavioral Health Services Program and Bond Measure would reportedly change how the government funds mental health services in California. It amends Mental Health Services Act and authorizes the state to borrow $6.38B to build mental health treatment facilities for those with mental health and substance use challenges and housing for the homeless. Prop 1 is It is said to prioritize getting people off the streets, out of tents, and into treatment. Flojaune Cofer takes significant lead in Sacramento mayoral race We know that many people who voted yes on Prop. 1 thought they were doing a good thing, Prop 1 opposition said. Before the vote, we found it easy to show people how Prop. 1 would actually hurt people, and that changed votes. They cited their opposition to being expensive for taxpayers, destructive and not a solution to homelessness. Prop. 1 could be a humanitarian disaster if it is not well managed, the opposition said. The incredibly narrow approval of Prop. 1 is the voters saying do not let that happen. Prop. 1 faced bipartisan opposition that included American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) California, League of Women Voters of California, Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, Disability Rights California, Mental Health America in California, Cal Voices, and more. The fight over Prop. 1s passage is over, said opponents of Prop 1. The battle ahead is to protect what we have, and to regain the dignity that all people facing mental illness deserve. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40. Israeli settlers and right-wing activists celebrate last month after breaching the barrier around the Gaza Strip. Some erected symbolic outposts before Israeli troops eventually ousted them. Carrying planks of plywood, a group of Israeli settlers pushed past soldiers guarding the barrier surrounding the Gaza Strip and quickly got to work. Within minutes, the young men had erected two small buildings outposts, they said, of a future Jewish settlement in the war-torn Palestinian enclave. Their movement had hungered for this moment for years, but now, after Oct. 7, they felt it was just a matter of time before Jews would be living in Gaza again. "It is ours," said David Remer, 18. "[God] said it is ours." Protesters march to a border checkpoint in Kerem Shalom, Israel, hoping to block aid shipments into war-torn Gaza. Israeli troops stand by at Erez Crossing as activists try to enter the military buffer zone into Gaza. Israeli troops remove a protester from a sit-in intended to block shipments of aid into the Gaza Strip. Religious Zionists, who believe the Jewish people have divine authority to rule from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, make up only around 14% of Israel's population. But in recent years they have greatly expanded their influence in the military, the government and society at large, and their often extremist ideology is helping shape Israel's war against Hamas. Although they are not politically homogeneous, most religious Zionists embrace far-right views. They loudly oppose a cease-fire deal to bring home Israeli hostages, and have repeatedly blocked humanitarian assistance from entering Gaza by standing in front of aid trucks. They see the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel as proof of their longtime assertion that peace cannot be made with the Palestinians, and view Gaza as a territory that they have a religious obligation to conquer. Increasingly, they have called for the expulsion of the 2.3 million Palestinians living there. Jewish settler activists hastily erect outposts inside the Israeli military's buffer zone for the Gaza Strip at the Erez crossing. First, they dream of reestablishing Gush Katif, a bloc of Jewish settlements that existed in Gaza until Israel withdrew from the enclave in 2005. It's a goal embraced by some of the top leaders in Israel's far-right government, many of whom appeared at a recent Jerusalem rally pushing for Gaza's resettlement. While videos played showing Israel's brutal military assault on the enclave and organizers shared brochures promising new houses with views of the Mediterranean Sea, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir sang religious songs alongside participants and told them: "Now is the time to return home." On the battlefield, some religious soldiers have recorded themselves dancing with Torah scrolls and waving the orange flags of Gush Katif. Other combatants travel with mezuzahs, small boxes containing biblical Scriptures meant to be hung outside Jewish residences, to affix to Palestinian homes. Reuven Gal, former chief psychologist for the military and a researcher at the Israel Institute of Technology, says that for many soldiers, the Gaza conflict that has killed more than 30,000 Palestinians is "not just a military operation." "For them," he said, "it's a holy war." A hand pointing to a passage in English in the Torah, and a sprawling community in the valley below Top, Settler Avraham Sheinman, overlooking Nablus in the West Bank from Mt. Gerizim, points out passages in his Torah that he says show Jews have a religious obligation to conquer Palestinian territories. Bottom, Yishai Sheinman, left, and father Avraham Sheinman uncover the Torah in a synagogue in Yitzhar, West Bank. Yishai, 27, belongs to a violent extremist group devoted to expanding Israeli control of the region. Yair Margolis, an army reservist who was called up from his yeshiva studies last year to fight in Gaza, said during a recent break from battle that the war had a clear spiritual dimension. "Going back to that land is returning home," he said. "This is where we are from, and this is what we are fighting for." Its a vision starkly at odds with Israels mainstream, even as the countrys political center has shifted discernibly to the right in recent years. A January poll by Israel's Channel 12 broadcaster found that 51% of Israelis oppose building Jewish settlements in Gaza, compared with 38% who support doing so. Israel's national security chief and leader of the far-right Jewish Power Party, Itamar Ben-Gvir, center, called at a recent convention for rebuilding Jewish settlements in Gaza and expanding those in the occupied West Bank. The crowd celebrates at the Jerusalem convention, organized by far-right activists seeking expansion onto more Palestinian land. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a right-wing populist, has called settling Gaza "unrealistic." But in 2022, as his ongoing corruption trials left him isolated, Netanyahu made a deal with several religious Zionist parties to form a coalition government, and his political future is now closely tied to theirs. Beyond a pledge to maintain indefinite military control over Gaza and eventually turn over administrative duties to Palestinians, Netanyahu's postwar strategy remains murky, leaving a vacuum, political analysts say, that the religious right is eager to fill. Israeli forces arrive at the Erez border crossing next to the northern Gaza Strip. In a recent video from Gaza circulated on social media, an Israeli soldier dressed in camouflage stands smiling with a machine gun in front of a bombed-out building. He directly addresses Netanyahu, who is widely known by his nickname "Bibi." "We are occupying, deporting and settling," the soldier says. "Do you hear that, Bibi?" :: During the war in 1967, Israel captured a wide swath of Palestinian land that included the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip. Almost immediately, Jewish settlers began establishing communities in each of them, displacing Palestinians who lived there. Tuvia Levy, far right, and Marom Harel, center, look over Palestinian towns from a security outpost in Yitzhar, West Bank. Both men live in West Bank settlements and were called up for reserve duty after Oct. 7. While the settler movement isn't composed just of religious people, and over the years it has received backing from both right- and left-wing Israeli governments, it is ideologically driven by practitioners of Orthodox Judaism who believe God gave what they call the Land of Israel exclusively to the Jews. Unlike the ultra-Orthodox, some of whom oppose the Zionist project and decline to serve in the military, religious Zionists embrace the teachings of rabbis who say believers have a spiritual imperative to expand Israel's borders. Read more: Two friends, each with family trapped in Gaza, are united by anguish. 'I should be there to protect them' Read more: A port in Gaza: Why the U.S. sees it as a solution to aid deliveries By 2005, around 8,000 mostly religious Zionists were living in Gaza, often in neighborhoods that resembled Southern California subdivisions, with their orderly rows of red-tile-roofed homes. The settlements were heavily guarded by the military, and residents frequently clashed with their Palestinian neighbors. Amid growing concerns about high casualties among the troops tasked with protecting the settlements, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered a complete Israeli withdrawal from the enclave. Sharon, who was a supporter of settlers in the West Bank, now instructed soldiers to forcibly remove them from Gaza. The disengagement from Gaza, with its scenes of screaming settlers being pulled from their homes and synagogues, was transformative for religious Zionists. Many vowed to gain more influence in the traditionally secular institutions they felt had betrayed them. For them it was a traumatic event, said Yagil Levy, a professor of political sociology at the Open University of Israel. They want to erase this trauma by any means. Palestinians take in the rubble left by an Israeli airstrike on residential buildings and a mosque in Rafah, Gaza Strip. (Fatima Shbair / Associated Press) That meant building a political movement that has sought "to push the government as far right as it can go" and "completely demolish any talk of a Palestinian state," said political scientist Dahlia Scheindlin. Over time, she said, ideas that once seemed extreme like expanding settlements in the West Bank became normalized. Helping their cause were the country's changing demographics: Religious Zionists, like the ultra-Orthodox, were having children at a much higher rate than their secular peers. At the same time, they were making new inroads in the army. Read more: Israel's media mostly keep Gaza's human toll out of sight The military academy that has become the West Point for the religious right is built atop a wind-swept hill in the West Bank settlement of Eli. Here, young men wearing yarmulkes spend their days studying both the Torah and military strategy. For many years, religious Zionist families were hesitant for their sons to fulfill Israel's mandatory three-year army service, worried that exposure to secular peers would erode their faith. This school, Bnei David, promised to minimize that risk, offering teenage boys a chance to fortify their religious beliefs before entering the military. Its website boasts of starting a "quiet revolution in the Israel Defense Forces." At Bnei David in the West Bank settlement of Eli, young religous Zionist men study both the Torah and military strategy; the academy's website boasts of starting a "quiet revolution in the Israel Defense Forces." Students are taught that God "wants a people of Israel, and there is no state of Israel if there isnt a strong army," said Rabbi Eli Sadan, the school's founder. They're also taught by instructors who oppose the presence of women in the military and who have described gay people as "sick and perverted." Speaking from behind a large desk strewn with rabbinical texts, Sadan said he supports a scorched-earth military strategy in Gaza, "so Israel's enemies will see the ruins and think: 'I don't want to mess with the Jews.'" He is against the rebuilding of Palestinian society in Gaza, where at least half of all buildings have been damaged or destroyed during Israel's fierce bombing campaign. "We must eliminate the possibility of Gazans returning," he said, arguing that displaced civilians should be forced to live in tents for many years until they decide "to emigrate willingly." A closeup of a man with glasses and a white beard, holding his fists together near his face as he speaks Top, Rabbi Eli Sadan, the founder of the Bnei David military academy, said he supports a scorched-earth strategy in Gaza. Bottom, Students attend a class in a room at Bnei David that honors alumni who died serving in the Israeli military. The school has lost 18 former students in the Gaza war. Sadan said his school, which recently hosted events with both Netanyahu and Israel's defense minister, has produced 3,000 soldiers, more than 50% of whom have risen to the rank of officer or higher. Since the conflict broke out, 18 alumni have died in Gaza. The rise of religious military academies like this one has dramatically changed the makeup of the army, said Levy, the sociologist. Religious Zionists made up about 3% of officer school graduates in 1990, Levy's research shows; in 2018, they accounted for over a third. Levy, who has written about what he calls the "theocratization of the Israeli military," said the trend has caused conflicts, with some religious soldiers refusing to serve alongside women. A student does push-ups at the religious and military academy for religious Zionists. A pressing question, he said, is whether religious soldiers would comply with orders to forcibly remove Jewish residents from a settlement a scenario that could play out under the creation of a Palestinian state. Sadan said he teaches his students to always heed commands from military superiors. But during the 2005 disengagement from Gaza, other rabbis called on soldiers to refuse orders, and some did. "What we see is growing resistance in the ranks," Levy said. "They're trying to challenge the formal codes of the military." :: Those hoping to establish Jewish settlements in Gaza say they will model their strategy on the West Bank, where today 500,000 settlers live among 3 million Palestinians. Since Oct. 7, tensions here have been simmering as the line between settlers and soldiers has become increasingly blurred. Reservist Yosef Shalom Sheinman, 30, was called up after Oct. 7 to help protect Jewish settlements in the West Bank, where he lives. After the Hamas attack in southern Israel killed around 1,200 people, hundreds of thousands of Israeli reservists were called up for duty. Many reservists in the West Bank were instructed to don uniforms and guard their own communities. Read more: Palestinians face beatings, fires and drones from Israeli settlers in West Bank Among them were Yosef Shalom Sheinman, 30, who is from Har Bracha, a mountain settlement overlooking the Palestinian city of Nablus. Sheinman's parents helped found Har Bracha in 1987 amid protests from Jewish leftists and the Palestinians who once grazed sheep here. His younger brother, 27-year-old Yishai, belongs to a famously violent extremist group known as the Hilltop Youth, which is devoted to expanding Israeli control of the region. "These are kids who would eat Arabs for breakfast," their father says proudly. For decades, Israeli soldiers have been deployed throughout the West Bank to protect existing settlements, which most of the world considers illegal under international law. But the soldiers are also often instructed to stop the building of illegal settlement outposts. In the past, they sometimes clashed with Yishai Sheinman, tearing down new outposts he and his friends had erected. Like many religious Zionists, Yishai Sheinman, his wife, Rashid, and their children live in a settlement on Palestinian territory despite the disapproval of Washington and international law. Now many of the soldiers in the region are his friends or, in the case of his older brother, his family. The reservists are not curtailing settlement expansion, the older brother said. Instead, they're focused on patrolling nearby Palestinian villages and making sure they aren't growing. His unit recently cut a new road through a stretch of hillside between a Palestinian hamlet and Har Bracha, in effect claiming the area for the settlement. "This is our land," he said. "And God is with us." On a recent afternoon, Sheinman stood with his father, Avraham, taking in views sweeping from the peaks of Jordan to the skyscrapers of Tel Aviv. Avraham Sheinman clutched a well-worn Torah, which he consulted frequently to highlight passages that he says show Jews have a religious obligation to be here. "We have a commandment to conquer it," he said. He spoke of a war with Palestinians, but also of "an inner war" within Israel. "Who are we? What direction are we going?" he asked. "Are we going in the direction of our destiny as a chosen people in the Land of Israel as a Jewish state according to Jewish law? Or are we a secular leftist copy of Europe or America?" Israeli troops try to to stop one of many far-right activists from entering the Erez Crossing military buffer zone into Gaza. Many on the other side of the political divide view that question with the same urgency. In an interview with Sky News this month, writer and historian Yuval Noah Harari said the biggest threat to Israel is not Hamas, Hezbollah or Iran, but Jewish extremism: "There is really a battle for the soul of the Israeli nation between patriotism on the one side and ideals of Jewish supremacy on the other." It is too early to say exactly how the Hamas attack and the Gaza war will shape that debate. But early indications suggest they have awakened new support for the right. Protests near the Egyptian border to halt aid delivery into Gaza were first organized by religious Zionists, but now draw secular participants. And while much of the international community holds out hope that the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza will one day be recognized as a Palestinian country, faith among Israelis in a two-state solution has dimmed. A Tel Aviv University poll found that support for peace negotiations among Israeli Jews had fallen from 48% just before the Hamas attacks to 25% a few weeks after. Supporters of Jewish settlements talk with Israeli troops in an effort to enter war-ravaged Gaza. Leaders of the religious right, meanwhile, are using the war as an opportunity to push through extreme policies. Ben-Gvir, the national security chief, leads the Jewish Power party and has helped arm thousands of Israeli civilians by relaxing restrictions on gun ownership. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, head of the Religious Zionist Party, recently announced plans to expand settlements in the West Bank by more than 3,000 homes. Both Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, who has been convicted of inciting racism and supporting terrorism, live in the West Bank. Life for Palestinians there has gotten markedly worse since Oct. 7, with more than 600 settler attacks against Palestinians recorded since the war broke out, according to the United Nations, and more than 1,200 Palestinians displaced from their homes. Palestinian activist Issa Amro lives in the historic center of Hebron, the largest city in the West Bank, in the midst of a heavily guarded Jewish settlement. On the day of the Hamas attack, he was returning from work when several neighbors surprised him in an olive grove and began assaulting him. Some, he said, wore army uniforms probably left over from their military service. Palestinian Issa Amro says he has lived in fear since he was assaulted by settlers, then detained and beaten at a military base. He's surrounded in Hebron, West Bank, by a heavily guarded settlement. Amro was then taken to a military base, where he says he was detained for 10 hours and beaten. He said he lives in fear. Every day he passes former Palestinian businesses shuttered by settlers, as well as a sign that says: "Were occupying Gaza now." "Every meter I walk, I think I may be shot," he said. Amro said he doesn't blame the settlers so much as the political leaders who have allowed the settlements to flourish. He pointed to Netanyahu, who allied with Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, and to Donald Trump, who as president abandoned Washington's long-held position that West Bank settlements violate international law. "Netanyahu made them mainstream," Amro said. "The Trump administration made them mainstream." An Israeli soldier orders Palestinian children in the West Bank city of Hebron to go back inside, barring them from playing on the street. President Biden has since reversed the U.S. stance on West Bank settlements and recently imposed sanctions on four Israeli settlers for carrying out violence against Palestinians. And Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken says Washington opposes the reoccupation of the Gaza Strip by Israel and any reduction of the Palestinian territory's size. Joel Carmel, a former Israeli soldier who is now a peace activist, said the future of Jewish settlements in Gaza may depend on who wins the U.S. election in November. "Probably the only thing holding back the resettlement of Gaza is the Biden administration," he said. "And who knows how long that's going to last." Many Palestinians in the West Bank think it's only matter of time before Israeli settlers move permanently into Gaza. Areej Al Jaabari, who lives in Hebron, West Bank, points toward the settlement where Israel's national security minister lives. Areej Al Jaabari, a mother in Hebron, has watched as settlements have crept ever closer to her family home. Ben-Gvir lives in a sprawling suburban community she can see from her living room window. "Theyre gradually accomplishing their goals," she said of the settlers. "Eventually they will control everything in Gaza too." Linthicum reported from Jerusalem and from Yitzhar, Har Bracha and Hebron in the West Bank. Times staff photojournalist Marcus Yam contributed to this report from Erez Crossing, Israel. 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. Recognition highlights commitment to employee and product safety as plans for growth continue RICHMOND, British Columbia, March 13, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fine Choice Foods, a leading producer of Asian-inspired foods throughout North America, today announced it has attained the Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence (OSSE) certification for manufacturers and food processors in British Columbia. Only one percent of food processing companies in British Columbia achieve OSSE certification, distinguishing Fine Choice Foods as an industry leader. Fine Choice Foods specializes in spring rolls, gyoza dumplings, and the original apple pie roll under the SUMM! brand. "A key component of our ongoing plans for growth is centered around social accountability, which includes creating and maintaining a healthy work environment, and this certification highlights the commitment weve made to keeping our employees safe," said Jason Longden, Chief Executive Officer of Fine Choice Foods. "As a leading employer in the region, and as we continue to penetrate the US retail market, the benefits of OSSE certification are substantial and were proud to have reached this goal and for the effort required by everyone at Fine Choice Foods to achieve this." The Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence certification is awarded by the Manufacturing Safety Alliance of BC to companies that demonstrate a comprehensive safety management system, including policies, procedures, training programs, and incident reporting. "Achieving the Occupational Safety Standard of Excellence sets Fine Choice Foods apart as a leader in their industry. Earning this certification would be impossible without committed and caring leadership, and the buy-in of the whole team," said Lisa McGuire, CEO, Manufacturing Safety Alliance of BC. "This pinnacle achievement demonstrates that people are a clear priority at Fine Choice Foods. We are beyond pleased to celebrate their success as a company that lives its brand values." Story continues Dr. Sean Tucker, a researcher from the Centre of Management Development at the University of Regina, compared the average injury rates of manufacturing companies before and after OSSE certification. Preliminary results reveal an approximately 50 percent reduction in time-loss injuries in OSSE certified companies from three years before certification to three years after. Following the vibrant rebranding of its SUMM! line of products in 2022, Fine Choice Foods opened a second state of the art facility to support the companys continued growth strategy with existing customers and new strong relationships with national retailers in the United States. About Fine Choice Foods Located in Richmond, BC, Fine Choice Foods is a market-leading producer of high-quality Asian-inspired foods for the North American market. Founded by the Lui family in 1986, Fine Choice Foods specializes in spring rolls, gyoza dumplings, and the original apple pie roll under the SUMM! brand. Starting as a small store on Cambie Street in Vancouver employing three people, the company has grown to a staff of more than 300, serving consumers throughout Canada and parts of the United States from two facilities totaling more than 100,000 sq ft. For more information, please visit www.SUMMFOODS.com. About MSABC The Manufacturing Safety Alliance of BC is the industry-driven, not-for-profit health and safety association for manufacturers and food processors in British Columbia. The organization exists to provide confidential, professional support to manufacturing and food processing companies to help them improve health and safety performancebuilding effective systems to prevent workplace injuries. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240313501150/en/ Contacts Jeremy Milner BackBay Communications jeremy.milner@backbaycommunications.com (401) 862-9422 DENVER (KDVR) A family living in their car is looking for a permanent place to call home, but a past eviction is making it challenging. In Denver, 1 in 3 households is paying more than a third of their income toward housing, according to the citys website. How much you need to make to afford a home in Denver Leticia Dela Rosa and her husband told FOX31 they are currently living out of their car with their dog, Cash, after being evicted in 2022. This is the first time for me to be in this situation, Dela Rosa said. Its just been so hard. Ive made mistakes in my past, which I dont feel like it should be held over my head, especially because Im getting assistance. Youre going to be guaranteed rent every month, and they dont look at that part of it. Past evictions can block some rental applications With some help from the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, Dela Rosa said theyre receiving rental assistance, but with an eviction on their record, the application process has been challenging. We get down to the question, Have you ever been evicted from a place within the last seven years? And unfortunately, the answer is yes. Some of the applications dont even let you proceed after that, Dela Rosa said. It is a challenge many Coloradans are facing. A report from Colorado Housing Connects shows evictions are already trending higher than last year. I hope it doesnt last too much longer, but Im losing hope, Dela Rosa said. Im just hoping someone gives me a chance to have a place to call home. And with the incoming storm, time for this family is of the essence. A foot of snow. Im not looking forward to it, but we do the best we can, Dela Rosa said. We have each other and our dog likes to cuddle, so he provides good warmth, and we just try to get by. FOX31 reached out to the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless about their process and guidance when it comes to evictions and is waiting for a response. The city of Denver does offer resources for those facing an eviction, including rental and utility assistance, as does the state. Dela Rosa has also started a GoFundMe to help raise funds for housing. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. DALLAS Paul Alexander, a North Texas man who lived in an iron lung for most of his life, has died. According to his obituary, he died on March 11. He was 78. To the world, Dallas native Paul Alexander was known as "the man in the iron lung" or "polio Paul," but to his younger brother, Philip, Paul was a role model. "He wanted to change the world," said Philip Alexander. "He wanted to help people out. He wasn't going to leave [this world] until, in his mind, he did something grand." Paul Alexander was diagnosed with polio in 1952 during an outbreak in Dallas at just 6 years old. The disease paralyzed him from the neck down and could not breathe on his own. Doctors put Paul Alexander in an iron lung, a mechanical respirator that controls the air pressure around his body to help his lungs expand. A supportive group of family and friends made sure Paul Alexander kept breathing when his machine would lose power. He supported them by boosting their spirits with his positive outlook on life. "Life is such an extraordinary thing." "He was a person with or without the handicap. He liked everything else that we all have, he just had to do it a little differently with a little bit of help," Philip Alexander said. Philip Alexander said his brother's life was all about adapting. Paul Alexander learned to write, type, and paint using only his mouth and a stick. He also didn't let his handicap slow down his academics. Paul Alexander / Credit: Alexander family Paul Alexander graduated with an economics degree from Southern Methodist University, earned a law degree from the University of Texas, passed the bar exam, practiced law in Dallas, was an advocate for polio research, and wrote a book. In March 2024, the Guinness World Records declared Paul Alexander as the longest-living iron lung patient in history. "If [he] didn't have really strong positive parents, he would've never made it. If [he] didn't have family and close relations all these years, he never would've made it," says Philip Alexander. Paul Alexander even took to social media, where he shared countless videos with messages of hope and joy, garnering thousands of followers across the world. His posts sometimes exposed his unrelenting hardship. "I love the sun, but I haven't felt it in a long time. It's lonely," Paul Alexander says in a TikTok video. But his inspiring messages left a lasting impact on the outside world, like "just hold on because it'll get better." A GoFundMe was created after Paul Alexander was taken advantage of by previous caregivers. The money went towards maintaining the Iron Lung, housing and healthcare. "I am so [grateful] to everybody who donated to my brother's fundraiser," his brother, Philip said. "It allowed him to live his last few years stress-free. It will also pay for his funeral during this difficult time. It is absolutely incredible to read all the comments and know that so many people were inspired by Paul. I am just so grateful." A few weeks ago, his social media manager posted a video saying he was rushed to the emergency room and hospitalized after contracting COVID-19. He was then released from the hospital. Paul Alexander knew the virus would likely be fatal if he ever became infected. It eventually claimed his life. But not before he laid claim to a life well lived. "The night before he died he just opened his eyes and looked at me and said, 'This is perfect,'" Philip Alexander said. The iron lung helped keep Paul Alexander alive longer than anyone else ever, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. "Even at the end, I don't think he really realized what kind of effect he had," Philip Alexander adds with tears in his eyes, "He wants people to remember that you can get through any struggle and it's all [about] how you treat each other. That was his life's cause." The Alexander family said Paul's funeral service will be held in Dallas next Wednesday, March 20. Why a judge dismissed some charges against Trump, others in Georgia election case New rules aim to prevent "judge shopping" in major court cases Is TikTok a threat to national security? The polio survivor known as "the man in the iron lung" has died at the age of 78. Paul Alexander contracted polio in 1952 when he was six, leaving him paralysed from the neck down. The disease left him unable to breathe independently, leading doctors to place him in the metal cylinder, where he would spend the rest of his life. He would go on to earn a law degree - and practise law - as well as publish a memoir. "Paul Alexander, 'The Man in the Iron Lung', passed away yesterday," a post on a fundraising website said. "In this time Paul went to college, became a lawyer, and a published author. "Paul was an incredible role model." His brother, Philip Alexander, remembered him as a "welcoming, warm person", with a "big smile" that instantly put people at ease. "He was just a normal brother to me. We fought, we played, we loved, we partied, we went to concerts together - he was just a normal brother, I never thought about it," he told the BBC. Philip said he admired how self-sufficient his brother was, even as he dealt with an illness that stopped him performing daily tasks such as feeding himself. "He was the master of his domain, helping people to help him," Philip added. Paul's health deteriorated in recent weeks and the brothers spent his final days together, sharing pints of ice cream. "It was an honour to be with him in his last moments," said Philip. In 1952, when he became ill, doctors in his hometown of Dallas operated on him, saving his life. But polio meant his body was no longer able to breathe on his own. The answer was to place him in a so-called iron lung - a metal cylinder enclosing his body up to his neck. The lung, which he called his "old iron horse", allowed him to breathe. Bellows sucked air out of the cylinder, forcing his lungs to expand and take in air. When the air was let back in, the same process in reverse made his lungs deflate. After years, Alexander eventually learned to breathe by himself so that he was able to leave the lung for short periods of time. Like most polio survivors placed in iron lungs, he was not expected to survive long. But he lived for decades, long after the invention of the polio vaccine in the 1950s all but eradicated the disease in the Western world. He graduated from high school, then attended the Southern Methodist University. In 1984, he gained a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Admitted to the bar two years later, he practiced as a lawyer for decades. "I knew if I was going to do anything with my life, it was going to have to be a mental thing," he told the Guardian in 2020. That year, he published a memoir which reportedly took him eight years to write using a plastic stick to type on a keyboard and dictating to a friend. Paul's brother Philip said it was following its publication that he realised how much of an inspiration his brother was to people across the world. Advances in medicine made iron lungs obsolete by the 1960s, replaced by ventilators. But Alexander kept living in the cylinder because, he said, he was used to it. He was recognised by Guinness World Records as the person who lived the longest in an iron lung. Additional reporting by Ellie Price Paul Alexander: held the Guinness World Record for daily use of an iron lung for the longest period - GOFUNDME Paul Alexander, who has died aged 78, managed to attend university, publish a memoir, qualify as a lawyer and even represent clients in court, despite living for more than seven decades in an iron lung. Paralysed from the neck down by polio at the age of six, Alexander used a long plastic wand clenched between his teeth to type, answer the telephone and wield a pen. A mirror above his face gave him a view of his interlocutors. When modern ventilators became available in the 1960s, he decided to remain in his iron lung, because he was used to it. Startled legal clients entering his office in Austin, Texas, in the 1980s sometimes assumed he was getting a tan. He taught himself to breathe independently, gulping down air with his throat as he had no control of his lungs, but this frog-breathing, as he called it, was draining work. At his fittest, he managed several hours a day outside the iron lung, enough to attend court hearings in his wheelchair, dressed in a three-piece suit, where he specialised in family law, helping those filing for bankruptcy. At his fittest, he managed several hours a day outside the iron lung Iron lungs became increasingly rare and hard to maintain. (One of the parts came from a Model-T Ford.) But Alexander described his iron lung as part of myself: if somebody touched the metal cylinder, he felt their hand; if the fan belt was worn out or needed grease, he breathed differently. Eventually he had to stockpile four of them, which he cannibalised for parts. He accepted that he would always be dependent on the kindness of others (when his carer failed to turn up at the University of Texas in Austin, his dormitory mates voluntarily took care of him for a month), but he maintained a strong sense of dignity, and was furious when waiters asked his dining companions: What will he be having? Highly determined, he was able to carry out a surprising amount of mischief from his iron lung, persuading one of his friends to throw eggs at the door of a manager who had evicted Alexander from his apartment. Paul Alexander reflected in the mirror of his iron lung, in his apartment in Dallas, Texas, 2019 - Allison V. Smith Paul Richard Alexander was born in Texas on January 30 1946 to a Greek father and Lebanese mother. In the plague year of 1952, when the polio epidemic was at its height, Paul came indoors with a stiff neck and a temperature of 102. His mother said: Oh God, not my child. Within a week, he had lost all his movement, and stopped breathing. He was pronounced dead This happened quite a few times over the rest of my life, he said, drily but was given a tracheotomy to get air into his lungs, and he regained consciousness in an iron lung. I figured Id gone to hell, he said. His parents had to read his lips as he could not make a sound. He was placed in a ward with other children in iron lungs, who communicated by smiling. Sometimes his neighbours would be moved out, which annoyed him. Later realised he that they had died. The doctors advised that Paul had not long left, and let his parents take him home for Christmas, in a van, with a generator for the iron lung. His parents slept with him on the ground floor, and during power cuts would pump the iron lung by hand. Paul Alexander's 2020 memoir Miraculously, and sustained by his familys Pentecostal faith, he did not die. The tube was removed and he was able to speak. A physical therapist bribed him with a boxer puppy if he could spend three minutes breathing outside the iron lung. It took a year, but he did it. He was home-schooled under the supervision of WW Samuell High School in Dallas, coming second in his year in 1967, with straight As apart from biology, in which he got a B because he could not dissect a rat. He attended Southern Methodist University, Dallas, then moved to Austin for his law degree. He was briefly engaged, but his fiancees parents objected. In 2020, he published a memoir, Three Minutes for a Dog, and last year he was recognised as holder of the Guinness World Record for daily use of an iron lung for the longest period. Paul Alexander, born January 30 1946, died March 11 2024 Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) on Wednesday endorsed a statewide carbon-trading market in the state while seeming skeptical about a regional market embraced by his predecessor. Speaking in Scranton, Shapiro endorsed pending legislation in the state Legislature that will create a statewide carbon-capping market, with proceeds paying for rebates to electricity ratepayers and renewable projects in the Keystone State. We will not take direction from anyone outside of this commonwealth, Shapiro said during his remarks. This initiative will be established by us, run by us. We will set our own cap, we will set our own price. We wont have any other state determining what is right for us in Pennsylvania. The proposal would remove Pennsylvania from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a multi-state carbon-capping market, in favor of the new Pennsylvania program, the Pennsylvania Climate Emissions Reduction Act. Shapiros predecessor, Gov. Tom Wolf (D), joined RGGI during his term, making Pennsylvania the first major fossil fuel-producing state to do so. Last November, however, Pennsylvanias Commonwealth Court ruled with Republicans in the state Senate that the state Department of Environmental Protection is not authorized to collect revenues under the program. Shapiro also announced a new renewable energy standard for the state that would require renewables supply at least 50 percent of consumer electricity. It is the first update in more than 20 years to the state standard, which currently requires only 18 percent of electricity be renewables. Pennsylvania is falling behind in the race to create clean and reliable energy and we must take action to be more competitive, ensure our consumers pay less for their electricity bills, and create more jobs and opportunities for our businesses to grow and our workers to get ahead, Shapiro said. In a statement Wednesday, Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania Executive Director Molly Parzen praised the renewable energy standard but expressed concerns about a full exit from RGGI. RGGI has a 15-year track record of reducing carbon pollution while investing billions of dollars in expanded clean energy, she said in a statement. Any new plan that is adopted must provide at least the same benefits to the environment and to our communities as RGGI. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. The Defense Department said Tuesday it has officially made its long-awaited decision to move forward with full-rate production on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. William LaPlante, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, signed a memo approving a Milestone C decision and full-rate production earlier in the day, the Pentagon said in a statement. The Defense Acquisition Board, which LaPlante chairs, met on March 7 to consider whether to move the F-35 into full-rate production. This is a major achievement for the F-35 program, LaPlante said in the statement. This decision backed by my colleagues in the department highlights to the services, F-35 cooperative program partners, and foreign military sales customers that the F-35 is stable and agile, and that all statutory and regulatory requirements have been appropriately addressed. The decision came more than four years after the Pentagon originally planned, and followed multiple years of delays due to troubles setting up the necessary Joint Simulation Environment tests. The Pentagon said that the Milestone C approval sets the F-35 program up to efficiently produce and deliver the next generation of jets. Before the jet could move into full-rate production, the department said the program needed control of its manufacturing process, acceptable performance and reliability, and for adequate sustainment and support systems to be established. Lockheed Martin is already building F-35s at essentially full capacity, producing about 150 of the jets each year. This means authorizing the F-35 for full-rate production will likely have a somewhat muted effect on how many jets are built. The F-35 enterprise has made significant improvements over the last decade, and we will always be driven to continuously improve sustainability, interoperability, and lethality so warfighters have the capability needed to fight and win when called to do so, F-35 program executive officer Lt. Gen. Mike Schmidt said. Moreover, the program and our great people can now focus on the future of the F-35 instead of the past. The F-35 completed the series of Joint Simulation Environment tests known as runs for score in September. Those 64 tests, carried out at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland, put all three versions of the jet through scenarios akin to what they might encounter in combat, such as defensive counter-air, cruise missile defense, and destruction of enemy air defense trials. The Pentagons Office of the Director, Operational Test and Evaluation, then analyzed the data collected in the F-35s tests and produced a report used to arrive at the milestone C decision. Raymond OToole, acting director of operational test and evaluation, said his office had some concerns and recommendations, which the program is now working to address. One such concern was the need to improve test infrastructure that can be used to support the jets development, and make sure future upgrades known as Block 4 can be tested. More than 990 F-35s have so far been delivered to the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps, allies, and foreign military sales customers. urbazon / Getty Images In a survey conducted February 26 through 28, GOBankingRates asked 1,395 Americans ages 18 and older their thoughts on a variety of issues, including which states in the South and the Midwest they considered the best places to retire. The group from 18 to 24 differed from respondents the ages of their parents and grandparents in most instances. Check Out: 8 Things You Must Buy at Aldi While on a Retirement Budget Read Next: 5 Genius Things All Wealthy People Do With Their Money And heres some good news, too. None of the states identified by Gen Z as their top retirement preferences top of the bank-breaking list. None appear in another GOBankingRates study as a state where $1 million is the minimum amount needed to retire comfortably. So which are the top states to make Gen Zs list of best places to retire? Read on to find out the six locations three in the South, three in the Midwest named by at least 10% of the respondents. cdwheatley / Getty Images/iStockphoto Florida Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 19.86% Long a retirement haven for seniors, Florida also topped the southern-state list for the Gen Z group, with nearly 20% of them giving it the nod as a great place to retire. But that is a much lower percentage than their elders, with 25.57% of those 55 to 64 and 28.42% in the 65 and over range preferring Florida the only state to receive at least 20% of the responses from all age groups aside from Gen Z. Learn More: 7 Bills You Never Have To Pay When You Retire Trending Now: Social Security: What Bidens Updated Payment Plan Means for Your Money Sponsored: $20k or more in credit card debt? Lower the amount you owe in just 3 simple steps. f11photo / Getty Images/iStockphoto Texas Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 17.81% Just as they like to say in the Lone Star State, everything is better in Texas. At least thats what the youngest generation thinks, perhaps lured by the hip city of Austin. Not all of their elders share their passion for Texas, however. Among the group ages 45 to 54, only 7.44% thought Texas was the best southern state to retire. Story continues Read This: 8 Signs Youll Retire Wealthy J.C. Marciniak / Getty Images/iStockphoto Ohio Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 17.12% The first Midwest city on the list, Ohio was favored by more than 17% of Gen Zers. That number is consistent among all age groups, with the range from 15.47% (ages 65 and older) to 18.22% (ages 25 to 34). Another GOBankingRates study ranked Toledo and Cleveland as the cheapest places to retire in the U.S. EJ_Rodriquez / Getty Images/iStockphoto Illinois Percentage of Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 15.07 Chicago was named the best large city to visit by readers of Conde Nast Traveler, and maybe Gen Zs attraction to Chicago has something to do with its being its second-choice state in the Midwest for retirement. Respondents in the groups encompassing ages 45 and older didnt give Illinois higher than a 9.30% approval rating, however. Sean Pavone / iStock.com Georgia Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 12.33% Georgia was favored as a retirement location by 12.33% of those ages 18 to 24, but it didnt rate nearly as well with the other groups. Only 3.65% of people 55 to 64 found the southern state to be an ideal location for retirement. Read More: 3 Ways Upper Middle Class Retirees Stay Rich in Retirement pawel.gaul / Getty Images Michigan Percentage of Respondents Ages 18 to 24: 12.33 The amount of money needed to retire comfortably in Michigan was on the lower side of the list in GOBankingRates study that ranked the U.S. states on that criteria. Among Gen Z, 12.33% of respondents considered it a great retirement location in the Midwest, and every age group except ages 45 to 54 voted Michigan 10% or higher. Methodology: GOBankingRates surveyed 1,395 Americans aged 18 and older from across the country between Feb. 26 and Feb. 28, 2024, asking six different questions: (1) Which part of the U.S. would you prefer to live in when you retire?; (2) Which state in the South do you consider to be the best place to retire?; (3) Which state in the Midwest do you consider to be the best place to retire?; (4) Which state would you choose to move to if you had to relocate to the Midwest?; (5) Which state would you choose to move to if you had to relocate to the South?; and (6) Which of the following personal finance issues are most important to you in 2024?. GOBankingRates used PureSpectrums survey platform to conduct the poll. This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Gen Z Says These Are the 6 Best Places To Retire And Wont Cost a Fortune The Pentagon is exploring options to build a second track to test hypersonic systems that can travel at speeds above Mach 5. George Rumford, director of the Test Resource Management Center, told lawmakers this week the effort is in the study phase, but he expects adding another test track to the Defense Departments inventory could offer a significant boost to hypersonic development efforts. The track we have now is 70-plus years old. It was originally designed to test ejection seats in airplanes, Rumford said during a March 12 House Armed Services Strategic Forces subcommittee hearing. If were really going to move after and get after testing hypersonics, were going to need a new track capability in our nation. The track Rumford referenced is located at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico and operated by the Arnold Engineering and Development Complex. Its used for warhead and lethality testing and also to better understand the effect weather and erosion could have on a hypersonic weapon. The department operates two other tracks one at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and another at China Lake in California and has access to two more tracks in New Mexico and Utah. But at more than 50,000 feet long, only Hollomans track DODs longest can achieve the speeds needed to test hypersonic systems. The department has upgraded the Holloman equipment over the years, Rumford said, and there are plans for further modernization. But completing that work disrupts testing schedules, and having a new high-speed track would increase the capacity at a time when DOD is pushing to improve its testing cadence. As a nation, we need a new track, he said. When we modernize the track, we have to take the track offline for a period of time, which is the exact opposite of what we want to be doing when were trying to go fast and take on more risk. The Pentagon in recent years has been working to increase the number of hypersonic tests it can support, both in the air and on the ground. Its fiscal 2025 budget request, released March 11, includes $9.8 billion to develop hypersonic and other long-range missiles. It also proposes $163.4 million to support production, supply chain and test capabilities for hypersonic systems. The department has a number of efforts underway to boost its testing capacity. On the ground, the TRMC is investing in improvements to government-owned test facilities and is partnering with private sector organizations to address shortfalls in propulsion testing for air-breathing hypersonic vehicles and aeroshell materials for boost-glide systems. To boost its high-speed flight test enterprise, the organization is growing a fleet of modified Global Hawk uncrewed aircraft equipped with sensors and instrumentation to support hypersonic flight tests from the air. The program, dubbed SkyRange, has three Range Hawks on hand and has plans to convert more in the coming years. In collaboration with the Naval Surface Warfare Centers Crane Division, TRMC is also investing in the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed program, or MACH-TB, to create a flying testbed that can validate subsystems, advanced materials and other technologies as a system is being developed. TRMC is also working with the Defense Innovation Unit to funnel emerging technology into MACH-TB through the Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities program, dubbed HyCAT. The goal of HyCAT is to leverage commercial innovation to make flight testing more affordable. Technologies matured through HyCAT will transition into MACH-TB. Rumford said funding for these efforts is critical to support the departments push to field hypersonic systems on faster timelines. Asked how his office would spend additional resources, he said any new money would support more flight tests. On the other hand, Rumford said, a drop in funding would slow down the entire enterprise. Its like molasses to an engine, he said. It slows everything down by not having that volume of flight throughput. The owner of a pet grooming franchise in Florida has been accused of abusing animals at the facility after former employees said she threw cats into the wall and punched dogs as she groomed them, police said. The owner and operator of a Woof Gang Bakery and Grooming franchise was charged with five counts of felony aggravated animal abuse and five counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty, according to a March 13 news release from the Sarasota Police Department. Four former employees of Woof Gang Bakery and Grooming told investigators they had seen the owner get violent with pets while grooming them, according to an arrest affidavit. Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming has a zero-tolerance policy for abuse of any kind. We want to make it clear that Woof Gang does not condone, tolerate, or in any way endorse such behavior, a spokesperson for the company told McClatchy News in a statement. While we can not comment on the specifics of the police investigation, we can confirm that we were contacted by the Sarasota Police Department and took immediate action to terminate Ms. Stevens franchise agreement. This location is no longer authorized to operate as a Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming location and is currently in the process of being unbranded. One employee said the owner would punch and hit cats and dogs when she got frustrated, according to the affidavit, and would tether cats by the neck. The employee said doing that was dangerous because cats could break their necks that way, police said. On one occasion, a goldendoodle was being difficult, an employee told police, and the owner said this dog is a piece of (expletive) and started to punch the dog in the ribs and abdomen while yelling other expletives to the dog, according to the affidavit. The employee stepped in to stop her, leading the owner to later apologize to the employee over text, police said. Another time, the former worker said the owner was grooming a white Persian-ragdoll cat and when she began slinging the cat around, she got scratched by the cat and began shaking it, police said. She then grabbed the cat by the scruff and swung the cat into the wall, according to the arrest affidavit. The employee said she intervened and finished grooming the cat. A different employee said they had seen the owner working with a red doodle who was afraid of the blow dryer, according to police. The red doodle urinated on itself and therefore had to be washed again. (The owner) became upset, she grabbed the dog by the scruff and threw it into the tub. (She) rewashed the dog, grabbed it by the scruff again and threw it across the room onto the drying table. (She) pinned the dog down and forced the blow dryer into the dogs face, police said. The dog became so afraid, it defecated on itself and had to be washed again. The employee said at that point they stepped in and took over the grooming because the owner was so aggressive, according to the affidavit. When she was not grooming animals, former employees said the owner bought several French Bulldog puppies in Georgia and brought them back to Florida to sell for $5,00 to $12,000 each, according to court records. The owner left the puppies in their own urine and feces, the employees told police, and then put them in the sink and left them overnight so it would be easier to clean them up the next day. One of the puppies choked while left alone overnight and died, according to the affidavit, and its body was kept in a box at the facility until (the owner) figured out what to do with it. Police checked surveillance footage in the grooming areas which showed multiple cases of abuse toward the animals from the owner, according to the affidavit. We emphasize that all Woof Gang locations are independently owned and operated. This incident is not reflective of our brand, our franchise owners, or the high standards of love and care for pets that Woof Gang represents across all other locations. As fellow pet owners, we are devoted to the spirit and bond we share with our pets and have always made health and safety our top priority, the company said. The owner was arrested March 8 and taken into custody, police said. Sarasota is about a 60-mile drive south from Tampa. 117-pound dog falls in grain bin and spends weekend trapped until rescuers step in 15-year-old dog thrown out like trash. Now, Florida shelter hopes for a miracle Chaotic video shows irritated turkey attack Florida deputy during traffic stop Father and son dogs need a new home and to stick together after surviving outside Animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) told the White House that it's time for a fresh starch, urging first lady Jill Biden to swap chicken eggs for potatoes at the annual Easter Egg Roll. In a pun-heavy letter to the first lady, PETA said they wanted to "respectfully suggest an appeeling way to modernize the White House Easter Egg Roll," which is set for April 1. In the letter, PETA president Ingrid Newkirk argued that a potato roll "would be truly inclusive and welcomed by every tot who doesnt eat eggs for religious, cultural, or environmental reasons or because they object to the way animals are raised and killed these days." "Instead of promoting the deleterious factory farming and slaughter industries, will you please initiate the annual White House Potato Roll?," the letter inquired. PETA TAKES JAB AT TAYLOR SWIFT, TRAVIS KELCE FOR VISITNG AUSTRALIAN ZOO DURING ERAS TOUR STOP Newkirk said that the potato roll would not "exploit any sentient beings and would encourage empathy and kindness to animals while supporting potato farmers in the U.S." READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Potatoes are the most popular vegetable in the country and can be safely dyed, allowing for spudtacular traditional activities, such as rolling them, seeking for them, and decorating them," the letter said. "You could even hold potato sack races and games of hot potato!" PETA argued that potatoes can be dyed, decorated and rolled. President Biden, first lady Jill Biden, and two Easter bunnies on the Blue Room Balcony at during the White House Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn on April 18, 2022. PETA argued that in the spirit of the joy-filled season that Easter brings, chickens' eggs should be spared the "pain and fear" brought about by the annual White House Egg Roll. "Easter should be a time of renewal and joy for everyone, including chickens. But chickens suffer in the cruel, environmentally destructive meat and egg industries, which raise and kill millions of sensitive birds each year. Farms that use "free-range" or "cage-free" labels confine chickens to cramped, filthy sheds, where they cant even stretch their wings, root in the soil, or breathe fresh air. Farmers often cut off the tips of chicks sensitive beaks with a hot blade to prevent anguished, frustrated birds from pecking at each other," PETA said in the letter. PETA TARGETS KANSAS MERRY-GO-ROUND MAKER OVER ANIMAL-THEMED CAROUSELS "In starch contrast, a potato roll would support U.S. potato farmers and teach tots that our fellow animals are sensitive, feeling beings who deserve respect," the organization said. "Chickens form complex social hierarchies and can recognize more than 100 individuals of their own species. They feel pain and fear, just as humans do." PETA president Ingrid Newkirk said the proposed change would be "leaving a legacy of kindness." PETA also cited the rising cost of eggs and the ongoing avian flu outbreak to consider economical alternatives. "Amid the worst avian flu outbreak in history, in which almost 82 million birds most of them egg-laying chickens have been slaughtered, and during a period of rising egg prices, were rooting for you to leave a legacy of kindness by starting this new Easter tradition," PETA said. Fox News Digital has reached out to PETA and the White House for comment. Original article source: PETA pressures first lady Jill Biden to swap eggs for potatoes at annual Easter egg roll: 'Spudtacular' (FOX40.COM) Comedian Pete Davidson is scheduled to bring his Prehab Tour to Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Sacramento on May 10. Davidson is known as a stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He was most notably a cast member on the hit television show Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 2014-2022. Brian McKnight coming to Hard Rock Sacramento Most recently, Davidson released a special on Netflix called Pete Davidson: Turbo Fonzarelli and was named as one of Time Magazines 100 Most Influential People. Davidson is scheduled to perform at 8 p.m. on May 10 at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Sacramento, 3317 Forty Mile Road, Wheatland. The venue reported that tickets go on sale March 15 at 10 a.m. more information visit hardrockhotelsacramento.com. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40. PETOSKEY Petoskey Middle School Principal Jon Wilcox has been named Michigan's 2024 Principal of the Year. The Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals and the Michigan Association of Student Councils and Honor Societies surprised Wilcox on Wednesday morning during the school's Career Day with the honor. Jon Wilcox was named 2024 Michigan Principal of the Year and will be the state's nominee for the National Association of Secondary School Principals's Principal of the Year competition. With Wilcox's wife and two oldest children in the room, Petoskey Superintendent Jeff Leslie took to the stage to announce the award. Wilcox said he knew he was a finalist, but Wednesday's announcement was a shock. His character, demeanor, empathy and leadership have made Petoskey Middle School the flagship of our school district, Leslie said in a statement. My greatest challenge as superintendent is to replicate what Jon is doing at the other five buildings. Jon Wilcox poses with the Petoskey Board of Education and Superintendent Jeff Leslie after receiving the 2024 Principal of the Year honor on March 13, 2024. To be eligible for the award, nominees must demonstrate a sense of collaborative leadership, involvement in curriculum, instruction and assessment, and a personal positive involvement with district staff, students and families. Wilcox has worked in education for 20 years, working as an administrator for 14 years, nine of which have been spent in Petoskey. He also served as interim superintendent in 2022 before Leslie's hire. Mary Ling, chair of the Petoskey Education Foundation and a former school board member, said Wilcox helped transition the district past a challenging time and into an exciting one through his installation of a sense of belonging and mutual respect. He simply has the respect and admiration of the entire school district, Ling said in a press release. Now, Wilcox will represent the state as the nominee for the National Association of Secondary School Principals Principal of the Year Competition. The award will be given in October at a gala in Washington, D.C. Jon Wilcox, acting superintendent for the Public Schools of Petoskey, speaks on Sunday, June 5, 2022 at the Petoskey High School commencement ceremony. Subscribe: Get unlimited access to our coverage about your community Wilcox said the nominations and words of encouragement, which came from students, teachers, board members and more, "means a lot." "We all come to work every day and try to do what's best for students and for their families, and we work hard to try to be a positive force in their lives," he said. "It's nice to get that feedback that we are making a difference, and I think it's a testament to the whole team." He said the staff at Petoskey Middle School works well together and is constantly driven to improve. "It was special," Wilcox said. "It definitely is very much appreciated, the work that people put in to make this happen." Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN. This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey Middle School Principal Jon Wilcox named 2024 Michigan Principal of the Year DENVER (KDVR) The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. DFD said crews were working to access the building, which was complicated due to the nature and size of the building. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. A large fire burning in a home at Colfax and Franklin Street on March 13, 2023 A large fire burning in a home at Colfax and Franklin Street on March 13, 2023 The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. (Photo: Denver Fire Department) The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. (Photo: Denver Fire Department) The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. (Photo: Denver Fire Department) The Denver Fire Department is fighting a fire at an abandoned building near Colfax Avenue and Franklin Street Wednesday. (Photo: Denver Fire Department) Windy conditions posed a challenge, so firefighters are working to stop the fire from the outside. Download the FOX31 App: Breaking news alerts & Pinpoint Weather No injuries had been reported as of 2:30 p.m. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver. (Bloomberg) -- The Securities and Exchange Commission can proceed with its suit accusing Gemini Trust Co. and bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Genesis Global Capital of illegally offering unregistered securities through their interest-paying Gemini Earn product. Most Read from Bloomberg US District Judge Edgardo Ramos in New York on Wednesday denied a request to throw out civil claims the SEC filed in January 2023. The agency is seeking an order barring Gemini and Genesis from selling unregistered securities, requiring them to give up money they illegally earned from the program plus civil penalties. Earn allowed customers to lend their cryptocurrency to collect interest. The defendants argue that the transactions are loan agreements that dont constitute securities under US law. Ramos said that, according to the SECs complaint, Earn met the US Supreme Courts test for a security because customers were investing in a common enterprise and had a reasonable expectation of profit. Therefore, the SEC plausibly alleges that defendants offered and sold unregistered securities through the Gemini Earn program, the judge said. That same test has been used by other judges to determine whether digital assets themselves are securities, though courts have reached different conclusions. Genesis filed for bankruptcy soon after the SEC filed suit. Gemini Trust Co., the crypto exchange founded by twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, last month agreed to return at least $1.1 billion to customers through the Genesis bankruptcy as part of a settlement with the state of New York. Wednesdays ruling allows both sides to go forward with pretrial evidence gathering. The companies may try again to have the case thrown out once they have exchanged records and taken pretrial deposition testimony from witnesses. Story continues The case is Securities and Exchange Commission v. Genesis Global Capital LLC, 23-cv-00287, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan). Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Assessing the Upcoming Dividend and Historical Performance of GILD Gilead Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:GILD) recently announced a dividend of $0.77 per share, payable on 2024-03-28, with the ex-dividend date set for 2024-03-14. As investors look forward to this upcoming payment, the spotlight also shines on the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. Using the data from GuruFocus, let's look into Gilead Sciences Inc's dividend performance and assess its sustainability. What Does Gilead Sciences Inc Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 5 Warning Signs with GILD. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Gilead Sciences develops and markets therapies to treat life-threatening infectious diseases, with the core of its portfolio focused on HIV and hepatitis B and C. The acquisitions of Corus Pharma, Myogen, CV Therapeutics, Arresto Biosciences, and Calistoga have broadened this focus to include pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Gilead's acquisition of Pharmasset brought rights to hepatitis C drug Sovaldi, which is also part of combination drug Harvoni, and the Kite, Forty Seven, and Immunomedics acquisitions boost Gilead's exposure to cell therapy and noncell therapy in oncology. Gilead Sciences Inc's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Gilead Sciences Inc's Dividend History Gilead Sciences Inc has maintained a consistent dividend payment record since 2015. Dividends are currently distributed on a quarterly basis. Below is a chart showing annual Dividends Per Share for tracking historical trends. Breaking Down Gilead Sciences Inc's Dividend Yield and Growth As of today, Gilead Sciences Inc currently has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 4.02% and a 12-month forward dividend yield of 4.13%. This suggests an expectation of increased dividend payments over the next 12 months. Over the past three years, Gilead Sciences Inc's annual dividend growth rate was 3.30%. Extended to a five-year horizon, this rate increased to 5.50% per year. Story continues Based on Gilead Sciences Inc's dividend yield and five-year growth rate, the 5-year yield on cost of Gilead Sciences Inc stock as of today is approximately 5.25%. Gilead Sciences Inc's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability To assess the sustainability of the dividend, one needs to evaluate the company's payout ratio. The dividend payout ratio provides insights into the portion of earnings the company distributes as dividends. A lower ratio suggests that the company retains a significant part of its earnings, thereby ensuring the availability of funds for future growth and unexpected downturns. As of 2023-12-31, Gilead Sciences Inc's dividend payout ratio is 0.50. Gilead Sciences Inc's profitability rank, offers an understanding of the company's earnings prowess relative to its peers. GuruFocus ranks Gilead Sciences Inc's profitability 8 out of 10 as of 2023-12-31, suggesting good profitability prospects. The company has reported positive net income for each year over the past decade, further solidifying its high profitability. Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook To ensure the sustainability of dividends, a company must have robust growth metrics. Gilead Sciences Inc's growth rank of 8 out of 10 suggests that the company's growth trajectory is good relative to its competitors. Revenue is the lifeblood of any company, and Gilead Sciences Inc's revenue per share, combined with the 3-year revenue growth rate, indicates a strong revenue model. Gilead Sciences Inc's revenue has increased by approximately 3.30% per year on average, a rate that underperforms approximately 61.16% of global competitors. The company's 3-year EPS growth rate showcases its capability to grow its earnings, a critical component for sustaining dividends in the long run. During the past three years, Gilead Sciences Inc's earnings increased by approximately 24.50% per year on average, a rate that underperforms approximately 32.13% of global competitors. Lastly, the company's 5-year EBITDA growth rate of 4.80%, which underperforms approximately 59.67% of global competitors. Conclusion: Evaluating Gilead Sciences Inc's Dividend Prospects The analysis of Gilead Sciences Inc's upcoming dividend, historical dividend performance, payout ratio, and growth metrics presents a multifaceted view of its investment potential. With a consistent dividend history and a solid profitability rank, Gilead Sciences Inc appears to have a stable foundation for sustaining its dividend payments. The dividend growth rate and yield on cost offer an attractive proposition for income-focused investors. However, the growth metrics suggest there is room for improvement when compared to industry peers. Investors will do well to consider these factors in light of their investment strategy and goals. GuruFocus Premium users can screen for high-dividend yield stocks using the High Dividend Yield Screener. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) While police and health experts are concerned about the prevalence of xylazine in the illicit drug supply in North Carolina, some state lawmakers said they were unsure what to do to address it following a hearing Wednesday. Xylazine is a sedative thats approved for use in animals in the United States but not in people. In 2020, Dr. Nabarun Dasgupta, a leading scientist at UNC-Chapel Hill who studies drugs and infectious diseases, said he started receiving calls from people seeing a large increase in wounds and unsure what was causing it. Dr. Dasgupta found that xylazine was being mixed with drugs like fentanyl and heroin. What we have encountered with xylazine is different than everything else weve seen in the drug supply, he told state lawmakers. He said he has three chief concerns about the issue: wounds, withdrawal and overdose. Xylazine has gotten the nickname the zombie drug because of the severe effects it can have. The wounds that people have from xylazine are some of the most gruesome Ive seen in 20 years of doing this work and looking at skin wounds from different types of substances, said Dr. Dasgupta. But, he added that new research shows those wounds can be treated if theyre caught early. Hes concerned doctors are performing unnecessary amputations in North Carolina. Jacksonville Police Capt. Richard Kellum said investigators have found xylazine mixed with fentanyl in his community. In Jacksonville, weve had some overdoses that involved Xylazine, he said. The biggest problem is where its coming from. You can order it on the internet. He pointed out that police often use naloxone to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, but said it had no effect on xylazine. Dr. Dasgupta said new research shows naloxone is still effective, but it can take 45 minutes to an hour longer to see its effects because of the sedative nature of xylazine. He urged more education for medical professionals and others as researchers learn more about the drug. Capt. Kellum urged lawmakers to add xylazine to the schedule of controlled substances. Some legislators were skeptical of that idea. With the trend, xylazine may be for now. And then in six months, it may be something else. It changes and its so fluid, said Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg). But, its changing so often. So, once you put it on that controlled substance, thats a whole other ballgame when it shifts and thats no longer the primary item that theyre cutting it with. Rep. Stephen Ross (R-Alamance) said it may take action by the FDA. Last summer, the Biden administration announced a plan to address the rising prevalence of illicit xylazine including tacking unapproved shipments of the drug. You have to be very careful about how you regulate that because you dont want to take away the proper and good uses of it, he said. This is a bigger issue than maybe us in the state can handle. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to CBS17.com. Lowell police issued a warning Wednesday for those who drive Hyundais or Kias. Police say they have noticed a significant increase in car thefts of Kia models from 2011 to 2021 and Hyundai models from 2016 to 2021. Lowell police say they have been in contact with each respective car manufacturer. The Lowell Police Department has recently seen a significant increase in motor vehicle thefts where thieves are specifically targeting certain Kia models (manufactured from 2011 to 2021) and certain Hyundai models (manufactured from 2016 to 2021). Lowell PD (@LowellPD) March 13, 2024 The car models have been the target of thieves over the past three years as video tutorials showing ways to break into the vehicles have spread on social media. Worcester PD warning Hyundai and Kia drivers their cars are at risk of theft due to viral trend Police issue warning to Kia and Hyundai owners after string of car thefts in Salem A free software update is available for drivers to help protect their vehicles. Vehicle owners can also contact Kia at (800) 333-4542 and Hyundai at (800) 633-5151 for more information. Lowell police also say security items like steering wheel anti-theft devices can deter thieves. In addition to this software upgrade, the Lowell Police Department strongly recommends Kia and Hyundai owners utilize security items, such as a steering wheel anti-theft device, which can serve as a visual deterrent to would-be thieves. LPD6 pic.twitter.com/ZVxFT4F3BW Lowell PD (@LowellPD) March 13, 2024 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 Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk this week called on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to move a Senate-passed Ukraine funding package that has stalled in the House, warning the fate of millions of people hangs in the balance. Speaking outside the White House after meeting with President Biden and his staff Tuesday, Tusk warned Johnsons failure to act could cost thousands of lives in Ukraine, including those of women and children. He said he hoped the voice of Poland will influence and change the attitude of the Speaker of the House. Mr. Johnson, me must be aware, and I hope that he is already aware, that on his individual decision depends the fate of millions of people in fact on his decision depends thousands [of] lives in Ukraine. Tusk recognized the political differences in Congress over funding Ukraine but argued Johnsons decision would have a global impact. This is not some political skirmish that only matters here in America. The absence of this positive decision of Mr. Johnson will really cost thousands of lives there: children, women. He must be aware of his personal responsibility, the Polish leader said. Tusks remarks were delivered in Polish and later translated in a foreign pool report. They came after Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) on Tuesday called on Johnson to bring the Senate-passed foreign aid bill to the House floor. I want to encourage the Speaker again to allow a vote. Let the House speak on the supplemental that we sent over to them several weeks ago, he said, referring to the $95 billion emergency spending package that passed the Senate on Feb. 13. It received 70 votes, including the support of 22 Republican senators. Ukrainian forces, hampered by dwindling supplies of weapons and ammunition, have lost territory to Russia in recent weeks, pulling out of the city of Avdiivka last month. The Biden administration announced Tuesday it will send a $300 million military package to Ukraine to help resupply its forces but its a paltry amount compared to the $60 billion for Ukraine that was included in the Senate-passed bill. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Polish President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk at a meeting with US President Joe Biden. Photo: Biden on Facebook Preserving and strengthening support for Ukraine to resist Russian aggression was one of the topics of conversation between Polish President Andrzej Duda and Prime Minister Donald Tusk at a meeting with US President Joe Biden. Source: This was reported by RMF24, European Pravda writes. Details: In a press statement after the meeting, Duda said that Biden had asked for Warsaw's assessment of current events at the front for Ukraine and a strategic vision of the situation in general. Quote: "There is no doubt that Russian imperialism has been revived and must be resolutely opposed. Russian imperialism must be stopped, and we have also talked about this," the Polish president said. Tusk elaborated that they talked about the general situation with the assistance to Ukraine from the allies. Quote: "We talked about how quickly American aid can be unblocked and exchanged comments on how we, the Poles, are mobilising the EU in this matter," the Prime Minister said, adding that European partners are asking whether they can count on consistency from Washington moving forward. Tusk said he had stressed the importance of unblocking the next aid package for Ukraine, which is stuck in Congress, and Biden responded by saying he was optimistic. Quote: "I hope that the voice of Poland and Europe will change the attitude of House Speaker Mike Johnson... This is not some political dispute that matters only in the American political arena. The absence of a positive solution will cost thousands of lives in Ukraine children, women, and entire families. And he (Johnson) will be personally responsible for this," Tusk stressed. Andrzej Duda said that they told Biden about Poland's initiative to increase the "target standard" of NATO countries' defence spending to 3% of GDP. Quote: "It's not just about how much we spend on buying weapons. It's also about whether we can revive the defence industry in Europe on a large scale, whether we can produce enough ammunition relatively quickly to protect our countries and be able to help those who could potentially be attacked," Duda said. Donald Tusk noted a great "unity of views" with the US president on almost all points brought up in the conversation. Background: At the beginning of the meeting, Biden stressed that the US$300 million aid package for Ukraine, made up of unanticipated cost savings in US government contract fulfilment, was insufficient. The White House stressed that the visit of the Polish leaders coincides with the 25th anniversary of Poland's accession to NATO and underscored the joint unwavering commitment to the Alliance on the part of the United States and Poland. Support UP or become our patron! U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson is personally responsible for the failure to agree on the extension of aid to Ukraine, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said during a visit to Washington, Reuters reported on March 13. The fate of millions of people and thousands of lives depends on Johnson, said the Polish official. Read also: Top House Republicans consider separate Ukraine aid bill Assistance to Ukraine is not some kind of political skirmish that only matters on the American political scene, Tusk stated. Mr. Johnsons failure to make a positive decision will cost thousands of lives. He takes personal responsibility for that, the Polish premier said. During a meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden, Tusk and Polish President Andrzej Duda urged Johnson to speed up the vote to extend aid to Ukraine. The United States announced a new $300 million military aid package for Ukraine on March 12. U.S. aid to Ukraine Earlier, CNN reported citing sources that the Pentagon is exploring the possibility of using the last source of funding for military aid to Ukraine until Congress approves additional money. The Pentagon has approximately $4 billion in presidential drawdown authority funds, but has been reluctant to spend them until Congress guarantees their replenishment. Bloomberg reported that the White House is considering using about $200 million from the U.S. Armys budget to send aid to Ukraine. Read also: US announces first Ukraine military aid package since late 2023 Washington allocated the last military aid package to Ukraine at the end of December 2023. The Department of Defense reported on March 11 that the Pentagons budget request for fiscal year 2025 included $300 million for Ukraine. The document stated that the budget request was based on the 2022 National Defense Strategy, and that one of the priorities of this strategy was to meet the acute threat of a newly aggressive Russia. The U.S. Congress has not yet approved a $60 billion aid package for Ukraine. The Senate supported the bill on Feb. 13, but the House of Representatives has yet to consider it. CNN reported that the House may consider the aid package in late March or April. 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 Polish farmers protesting at five checkpoints at the Ukrainian-Polish border have agreed to let two trucks per hour pass from 13:00 to 21:00 through the Uhryniw checkpoint. Source: Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, in a commentary for the Ukrinform information agency Details: At the moment, the Polish protesters are fully blocking truck traffic in the direction of Poland through the Shehyni, Yahodyn and Ustyluh checkpoints. In addition to this, yesterday they let only a few vehicles headed from Poland to Ukraine pass through the Yahodyn and Shehyni checkpoints 100 and 20, respectively. As a result of the blockade, 1150 trucks in total are in queues in Poland, most of them at the Yahodyn checkpoint. Background: Polish farmers stated that they would temporarily unblock the Dorohusk checkpoint and let the trucks stuck at the border pass. Earlier, the Poles reported that on 13 March at 11:00, protest actions would start in front of the Krakovets-Korczowa checkpoint, and truck traffic would be blocked there. Support UP or become our patron! First aid consignment via Cyprus corridor departs for Gaza Xinhua) 09:10, March 13, 2024 A boat carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza departs from the port of Larnaca, Cyprus on March 12, 2024. (Photo by George Christophorou/Xinhua) NICOSIA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- The first consignment of aid through the Cyprus-based corridor left on Tuesday morning for Gaza, with more aid expected to be shipped soon, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides announced. "The journey of hope and humanity has just started," Christodoulides said in a statement after a ship owned by Spanish NGO (non-governmental organization) Open Arms left the Larnaca port in southern Cyprus, towing a barge loaded with food, water and pharmaceuticals. Due to the low towing speed of the barge, the 400-km journey to Gaza is anticipated to span two days, contrasting with the usual 15-hour duration. The ship was part of an aid project known as "Amalthea." The Cyprus-proposed project was activated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Christodoulides on Friday in Larnaca and later endorsed in a joint statement by the European Commission, Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the United Kingdom, Greece, Italy and the Netherlands. According to Cypriot media reports, upon arrival in Gaza, the aid will be received by activists from the NOG World Central Kitchen, which will help distribute it to the local population facing dire food shortages. Since the Israel-Hamas conflict in October last year, the Palestinian death toll has climbed to 31,112, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. A boat carrying humanitarian aid for Gaza departs from the port of Larnaca, Cyprus on March 12, 2024. (Photo by George Christophorou/Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Straits Research - Market Research Strategy | Strategy Consulting | Business Research | Business Consulting | Market Research An increased focus on improving building energy efficiency and increased funding for the development of environmentally friendly buildings will drive the growth of the glass curtain wall market over the period under review. New York, United States, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fronts with glass curtain walls consist primarily of glass or metal panels, while the fronts are framed with lightweight aluminum. These glazing materials are incapable of supporting the roof or floor. They are also incapable of supporting the ceiling's weight. These glass curtain walls must be integrated with adjacent structural elements, such as roofs and wall claddings, with extreme care. Numerous product variations, including prefabricated systems, customized and custom wall modules, and generalized wall modules, are available. Modern architecture is characterized by curtain walls, frequently comprised of glass and aluminum frameworks. These products are used nationwide in commercial structures and high-rise and low-rise apartment complexes. Throughout the period encompassed by this forecast, a significant increase in the number of construction projects worldwide will stimulate the growth of the glass curtain wall industry. During the period under review, the glass curtain wall market will expand due to a greater emphasis on enhancing building energy efficiency and an increase in funding for developing environmentally friendly structures. Download Free Sample Report PDF @ https://straitsresearch.com/report/glass-curtain-wall-market/request-sample Market Dynamics Rapid Urbanization and Growth of the Construction Industry Drive the Global Market According to Straits Research, The global glass curtain wall market was valued at USD 52.39 billion in 2022. It is estimated to reach USD 110.99 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 8.7% during the forecast period (20232031). Due to the increased demand for homes, businesses, and public structures, the glass curtain wall industry is continually expanding. The construction industry is expected to contribute substantially more to the global economy. The demand for glass curtain walls is anticipated to increase significantly as the urban population and construction industry expand. Increasing urbanization has also affected the global construction industry. Due to their accelerated infrastructure growth, the world's emerging economies, where urban population growth is concentrated, are also crucial for developing glass curtain walls. Story continues Rapid urbanization in developing nations increases the demand for superior public services and infrastructure in these nations. Therefore, government initiatives to enhance airports, educational facilities, hospitals, parks, and other public places will create lucrative business opportunities for market rivals. Government Investments in the Building Infrastructure Sector Creates Tremendous Opportunities There have been numerous government initiatives concerning infrastructure development. The increase in real estate market investments increases the demand for glass curtain walls to construct infrastructure initiatives in other industries. The Canadian government implemented the Investing in Canada plan, a comprehensive, long-term strategy for establishing a prosperous and inclusive nation through historic infrastructure investments. In addition, the reduction of taxes, the introduction of new tax incentives, relatively inexpensive lending rates, and the expansion of the economy all contribute to the expansion of the construction industry in the United States. The federal government of the United States planned to invest one trillion dollars from public and private sources in the nation's infrastructure. Due to government investments in the building infrastructure sector, market participants are expected to have access to lucrative opportunities. Regional Analysis Asia-Pacific is the most significant global glass curtain wall market shareholder and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 9.7% over the forecast period. Asia-Pacific is anticipated to be a leading market and a supporter of market progress due to a rise in the need for residential buildings. A high growth rate in the Asia-Pacific glass curtain wall market is projected due to rising economies. India and China are the most populous nations in the Asia-Pacific region, with a dense population overall. This drives real estate and business markets. Growing demand for glass curtain walls in the commercial sector is anticipated to promote market progress in developing nations like China and India. Moreover, the rapid urbanization and population growth in Asia-Pacific are factors in the market's expansion. The installation of renovation and repair projects in industrialized nations increases demand for glass curtain walls. Due to the nation's increasing urbanization and commercialization, rise in income levels, expansion in population, and increase in family income, the building market is also anticipated to grow. The market is anticipated to develop due to increased demand for glass curtain walls from both the residential and commercial sectors. North America is anticipated to exhibit a CAGR of 8.6% over the forecast period. Regarding revenue, North America is the second-largest market for glass curtain walls. Because of the building sector's expansion and the popularity of modular construction projects, the glass curtain wall market is growing quickly in North America. Numerous businesses are growing their operations through various tactics to keep up with the increased demand for modular construction. Under the terms of the agreement, HWH is anticipated to become SGB's preferred partner for completing site preparation and single-family container-based modular home assembly. Due to the increase in end users' spending power, the market in the area also demands premium-range glass curtain walls. Furthermore, the demand from the residential sector is anticipated to be driven by an increase in population and expanding urbanization, consequently accelerating the need for cheap housing units. The residential sector's significant increase in demand for infrastructure maintenance and repair is also anticipated to drive market expansion in the area. The number of infrastructure and new development projects has increased, which has given participants in the glass curtain wall market greater chances. Key Highlights Based on type, the global glass curtain wall market is bifurcated into unitized and stick systems. The unitized systems segment dominates the global market and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 8.9% during the forecast period. Based on glazing application, the global glass curtain wall market is bifurcated into exterior and interior glazing. The exterior glazed segment owns the highest market share and is predicted to exhibit a CAGR of 9.3% over the forecast period. Based on end-users, the global glass curtain wall market is divided into commercial, public, and residential. The commercial segment is the most significant contributor to the market and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 8.7% over the forecast period. Asia-Pacific is the most significant global glass curtain wall market shareholder and is estimated to exhibit a CAGR of 9.7% over the forecast period. Competitive Players The key players in the global glass curtain wall market are AGC Glass Europe, China Glass Holdings Limited, EFCO Corporation, Guardian Industries, Hansen Group Ltd., Kawneer Company, Inc., Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd., Oldcastle Building Envelope, Saint-Gobain S.A., Asahi Glass, Central Glass, Avic Sanxian Co Ltd, Schott AG, Vitro, and Schuco International KG. Market News In February 2023, One Madison Avenues new glass curtain wall began installation in the Flatiron District, Manhattan. In October 2021, Permasteelisa Group, a leading global contractor in the building industry, announced the completion of the facade for the Dubai Creek Tower, which features a glass curtain wall system that is more than 6,000 square meters in size. Global Glass Curtain Wall Market: Segmentation By Type Unitized systems Stick Systems By Glazing Applications Exterior Glazed Interior Glazed By End-User Commercial Public Residential By Regions North America Europe Asia-Pacific LAMEA Get Detailed Market Segmentation @ https://straitsresearch.com/report/glass-curtain-wall-market/segmentation About Straits Research Pvt. Ltd. Straits Research is a market intelligence company providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision-makers. Straits Research Pvt. Ltd. provides actionable market research data, especially designed and presented for decision making and ROI. Whether you are looking at business sectors in the next town or crosswise over continents, we understand the significance of being acquainted with the clients purchase. We overcome our clients issues by recognizing and deciphering the target group and generating leads with utmost precision. We seek to collaborate with our clients to deliver a broad spectrum of results through a blend of market and business research approaches. For more information on your target market, please contact us below: Phone: +1 646 905 0080 (U.S.) +91 8087085354 (India) +44 203 695 0070 (U.K.) Email: sales@straitsresearch.com Follow Us: LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter NEWTON, Kan. (KSNW) A leading mental health provider in south-central Kansas is shifting its focus. The shift means a temporary furlough for some of its workers. Prairie View Hospital will transition to a Behavioral Urgent Care Center (BUC), with an anticipated opening in early April. Officials say the shift is to meet the evolving needs of the community. BUC will offer crisis intervention and emergency assessments to those experiencing a mental health crisis. We are taking an exciting step forward in our commitment to serve patients in crisis with this new level of care, Dr. Alisha Coulson, psychiatrist and Prairie View medical director, said in a news release. We are thrilled to introduce this new level of care for patients who need it the most. Not once did I feel down: Kansas track coach gives ultimate lesson on perseverance Prairie View is committed to meeting the communities needs. The goal of this unit is to do just that for citizens and partners alike, Marcy Johnson, Prairie View president and CEO, said. Prairie View has temporarily furloughed inpatient staff because of the hospital closing and to get ready for the BUC opening. A news release says, We appreciate the understanding and cooperation of our staff during this transition period, and we are committed to supporting them throughout this process. Prairie View is one of the states first Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers to provide crisis intervention. Wichita ranks 19 on list of Most Overweight and Obese Cities Prairie Views main campus is in Newton. It has outpatient locations in Hillsboro, Hutchinson, McPherson, and Wichita. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSN-TV. Scientists said there was no evidence Covid-19 vaccines can cause cancer, contrary to a Facebook post on an anti-vaccine page in Australia that falsely linked the jabs to a rise in pancreatic cancer cases. The post shared a screenshot of an article by Britain's MailOnline website that reported a surge in diagnoses in pancreatic cancer in young women in the United Kingdom before the pandemic. A Facebook page called "Aussies Novaxx" posted a screenshot of the MailOnline article from February 23, which is headlined: "Alarm over 200% explosion in young women and girls getting pancreatic cancer as top experts admit they are baffled by 'frightening' rise of deadly disease" (archived link). 'Novaxx' appears to refer to tennis superstar Novak Djokovic, who was deported by Australia in January 2022 over his lack of a Covid-19 vaccine (archived link). "NEVER FORGET, NEVER FORGIVE," the Facebook post wrote, prompting comments that questioned the safety of Covid-19 vaccines. The account has previously spread Covid-19 vaccine misinformation, including false claims that the jabs could slash a person's life expectancy by 24 years. Health authorities say the benefits of Covid-19 vaccination far outweigh potential risks (archived link). Screenshot of a Facebook post sharing the false claim, taken on March 7, 2024 The article was shared in similar Facebook posts, including in Australia and the United States, that said it showed a link between Covid-19 vaccines and cancer. However, the MailOnline article in fact reported that the surge in pancreatic cancer cases was recorded between 1993 and 2018. This was before the pandemic and subsequent roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines. "Anti-vaxx theories that Covid jabs are behind a rise in cancer incidences have not been proven," it said. Pre-pandemic figures The article shares figures from Cancer Research UK, which showed a 208 percent increase in the number of women under 25 diagnosed with pancreatic cancer from 1993 to 2018 (archived link). Pancreatic cancer typically affects older people. A spokesperson from Cancer Research UK said the percentage increase in young women diagnosed with the condition was so dramatic because the overall number of diagnoses in this demographic was incredibly small. "The number of women under 25 who were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in the 1990s was 0.0 per 100,000, and today that number is 0.1 per 100,000," he told AFP. Nicola Smith, senior health information manager at Cancer Research UK, said it was not clear what was driving the increase. "We do know that smoking or being overweight can increase people's risk of developing the disease," she told AFP. "There is no good evidence of a link between the Covid-19 vaccine and cancer risk. The vaccine has been deemed a safe and effective way to protect against Covid-19 infection or developing serious symptoms." Justin Stebbing, a professor of biomedical sciences at Britain's Anglia Ruskin University, said that while the increase in pancreatic cancer diagnoses in young women was concerning, there was no evidence of a link to Covid-19 vaccines. "There's no basis in science or reality to suggest Covid-19 shots would or could play a role," he told AFP. In November 2022, Britain's National Health Service (NHS) reported there were more patients diagnosed with cancer at an earlier stage than ever before, following a drop in people getting themselves checked during the pandemic (archived link). There was a large fall in reported cancer diagnoses in 2020 as the pandemic "had an impact on cancer testing and diagnostic services", according to a UK parliamentary report (archived link). AFP has previously debunked misinformation around Covid-19 vaccines and cancer. If you want to ask Google's AI chatbot a question about an upcoming election, you will have to do it from a country where there are no elections taking place. TechCrunch has learned that the search giant has started to restrict queries made in Gemini when they relate to elections, in any market globally where elections are taking place. The search giant confirmed to TechCrunch that it started rolling out the restrictions on Gemini to limit surfacing answers about election-related queries globally. TechCrunch understands that the update is already live in the U.S. and has begun rolling out in India and all major countries where elections are taking place in the coming months. The shift highlights not only the role that generative AI has been playing, and has the potential to play, in the election process, but also Google's concern about how the service might get weaponized, as well as produce inaccurate or misleading responses. The switch in India comes just days after India issued an advisory requiring tech firms to get government permission before launching their new AI models. Queries regarding political parties, candidates or politicians now return a preset message. When a query about a particular political party or candidate is asked, Gemini shows a message: "I'm still learning how to answer this question. In the meantime, try Google Search." In some cases, the tool can still be gamed. TechCrunch found the AI tool did show answers when passing on queries with typos. It's likely that the responses will continue to be tweaked in a game of prompt engineering whack-a-mole. Google Gemini restricting answers to election-related queries Google Gemini restricting answers to election-related queries (left) but not when questions contained typos (right). Image Credits: Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch "Out of an abundance of caution on such an important topic, we have begun to roll out restrictions on the types of election-related queries for which Gemini will return responses. We take our responsibility for providing high-quality information for these types of queries seriously, and are continuously working to improve our protections," Google said in a blog post related to the move in India earlier today. Story continues The update was released just before the announcement of the general elections in India. Earlier this month, New Delhi issued an advisory to tech firms restricting them from releasing their new AI models in the country without government approval. After facing some backlash from global VCs and AI startup founders, the Indian government clarified that the restriction was for "significant" tech companies and not for startups. The advisory followed a mini-scandal over Gemini and the Indian government last month. The AI tool, responding to a query about whether Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a fascist, responded that Modi had been accused of implementing policies that some had characterized as fascist. India's deputy IT minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar called it "direct violations" of the IT Rules, 2021. Last month, Google also suspended Gemini's ability to generate people's images after it showed historical inaccuracies. The company then said it would soon re-release an improved version to address the issues. It is unclear whether Google will unblock Gemini for answering election-related queries after the elections end later this year. We have contacted Google about this and will update this story when the company responds. We are also awaiting a full list of countries where the update is live now, and we will update the post as we learn more. This article originally appeared on TechCrunch at https://techcrunch.com/2024/03/12/google-gemini-election-related-queries/ Diane Abbott has confronted Sir Keir Starmer and told him to give her the Labour whip back to show solidarity over the Tory donor racism row. The MP says she urged the Labour leader twice to readmit her to the parliamentary party when he approached her to offer his support after Prime Ministers Questions. According to Ms Abbott, Sir Keir asked her if there was anything he could do to help after Frank Hester, the Torys biggest donor, allegedly made racist comments about her. When she suggested twice he could restore the whip, he is said to have told her: I understand. He does not appear to have made any promises. The account of the conversation was posted on X, formerly Twitter, by political commentator Owen Jones, who claimed it had been overheard in the Commons, and verified by Ms Abbott, who said simply: This is true. Labour has been approached for comment. Senior Labour figures want to see Diane Abbott's suspension lifted - Justin Ng / Avalon It comes as Sir Keir is facing mounting pressure from all corners of the Labour Party to lift Ms Abbotts suspension. Ed Balls, a prominent figure in New Labour, Harriet Harman, a senior moderate MP, and John McDonnell, who was Jeremy Corbyns shadow chancellor, all said he should restore the whip. Ms Abbott also accused Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle of failing to act in the interests of the Commons or democracy after she was not called to speak at PMQs, despite trying repeatedly to catch his eye. Writing on X, she said: I dont know whose interests the Speaker thinks he is serving. But it is not [in] the interests of the Commons or democracy. A spokesman for the Speakers Office said there was not enough time to call all MPs. The Hackney MP has been suspended by Labour for nearly a year, pending an investigation, after suggesting in a letter to The Observer that Jewish people do not suffer racism all their lives. At the time, Sir Keir swiftly stripped her of the whip and described her comments as anti-Semitic. Ms Abbott, who served as Mr Corbyns shadow home secretary, later apologised for the remarks, claiming that they were a first draft sent to the newspaper in error. She has sat as an independent ever since. Figures from across the party have now called for her to be readmitted following Mr Hesters alleged comments, branded racist by the Prime Minister. It poses an awkward dilemma for the Labour leader, who has been accused of attempts to force Left-wing Corbynites out of the party as he pursues a shift towards the centre. He has defended Ms Abbott over the Hester row, describing her as a trailblazer. But he has also pledged to be tough on anti-Semitism, and could face a backlash if he readmits her. Mr Balls, a former Labour MP who served in both Sir Tony Blair and Gordon Browns governments, said Ms Abbott should be brought back into the fold following her apology, rather than left on her own. Speaking on ITVs Good Morning Britain, he said: She was suspended from the parliamentary Labour Party a year ago for saying something which she probably shouldnt have said and she apologised for it. Sir Keir Starmer asked Diane Abbott if there was anything he could do for her. She replied: 'Restore the whip' - TS/GoffPhotos.com The fact that a year on, shes still outside the parliamentary Labour Party, my personal view is she should be brought back following that apology and she should be being supported and defended rather than left on her own, which is whats happening at the moment. Mr McDonnell shared the comments on X, adding: Here it is. Members on the Left, Right & centre of the Labour Party are calling for the whip to be restored to Diane Abbott. She made a mistake. She swiftly & profusely apologised. She should be treated in the same way as others who have gone through this and have the whip back. Dawn Butler, another Left-wing MP, also said: Diane needs to have the whip returned. Harriet Harman, the former deputy Labour leader, said she would be very sad if Ms Abbott were to leave Parliament still exiled from the party she has served for almost four decades. In a briefing after PMQs, Labour said there was no update on Ms Abbotts case and refused to speculate on the timeline for a decision. Mr Hester has admitted making rude comments about Ms Abbott but claimed they had nothing to do with her gender nor colour of skin. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. The Princes unveil a statue they commissioned of their mother Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace in 2021 - Dominic Lipinski/WPA Pool/Getty Images/Getty Images Europe Prince William and Prince Harry will take part in an award ceremony to honour their late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. The Prince of Wales will attend the Diana Legacy Awards at the Science Museum on Thursday evening to deliver a short speech to mark the charitys 25th anniversary. The Duke of Sussex will meet award winners virtually after the ceremony when he speaks to them from his home in California. The brothers are not on speaking terms but they are keen supporters of the Diana Award and have long championed the event. It is the only charity that bears the Princesss name and honours people aged from nine to 25 who work to improve the lives of others. However, they are not expected to be in the same room at the same time, even virtually. Last year, the princes each recorded a video segment that was played during the ceremony. Young people can change the world William said he was proud to continue the belief shared by his mother that when we invest in young people they can truly change the world. Harry said his mother recognised the unique ability of young people to challenge the status quo and push for a more inclusive and compassionate society. In 2022, the Duke of Sussex recorded a message to open the ceremony in which he said his mother had instilled in him a drive to speak up and fight for a better world. William sent a written message saying there was no better way to celebrate his mothers life than by recognising those who gave so much time to others. In 2021, the event was held virtually and Harry recorded an address in which he praised his late mother for living by truth and service to others and for believing young people had the power to change the world. He also addressed the first virtual ceremony in 2020 on behalf of himself and his brother. Last joint engagement The last official joint engagement the brothers carried out in person was the unveiling of their mothers statue at Kensington Palace in July 2021. In September 2022, they were joined by their wives, the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Sussex, to view flowers and tributes left in honour of Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle and attended their grandmothers funeral and the Kings Coronation. The young princes were brought up to be very by their mother, Diana Princess of Wales, but are not thought to be on speaking terms after the Duke of Sussex's decision to cease being a working royal - Tim Graham/Tim Graham Photo Library The Diana Legacy Awards, founded in 2017, are held every two years to celebrate the achievements of 20 young leaders who are inspiring the next generation to follow in the late Princesss footsteps and have a positive impact on the world. The original Diana Award was founded in 1999. Kensington Palace has confirmed Prince William will meet staff and supporters before joining the ceremony, during which he will make a short speech and present the awards. Afterwards, he will meet the winners, who represent countries such as Australia, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Oman, Pakistan, Romania, the UAE, the UK and the US. A spokesman for The Diana Award said: The Duke of Sussex will be a key part of our Legacy Award celebration, which takes place over the course of this week. He is scheduled to speak with the award recipients, virtually, on the evening of the awards to celebrate their accomplishments. It is hoped footage of his involvement will be released later. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Milton Mayor Peyton Jamison has received death threats since at least September 2023. Now, a man has been charged with making those threats, at least since December. As previously reported by Channel 2 Action News, threats came in the form of text messages and phone calls, beginning on Sept. 3, 2023. Months later, the threats were still coming. Channel 2s Bryan Mims spoke with the Milton Police Department about the threats, which theyd continued investigating throughout the year and into 2024. The most recent threats came in December, according to police. On December 17th, 2023, I was assigned a Terroristic Threats and Acts call, the incident reports narrative said. I spoke to the suspect who made threats against several individuals. The investigation continues. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] In an update on Wednesday, Milton police said the December phone call was tracked to the cell of a man serving a life sentence in the Georgia State Prison system. Police said Jamison wasnt the only one to receive threats from 30-year-old Eric Elam. Elam, 30, faces two charges of Terroristic Threats and Acts one directed at Milton Mayor Peyton Jamison and the other towards Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, police said. While Elam has been identified as the one making threats against Jamison and Kemp in December, police said they are working to determine if it was connected to the earlier threat in September which was made against Jamison and his family. TRENDING STORIES: Elam is serving a life sentence in Macon State Prison for armed robbery, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections. Hes been serving his sentence since February 2020. Both stem from a phone call made on December 16, 2023, that authorities determined came from a mobile phone inside a Georgia State Prison. The phone used to place that call was later located in Elams prison cell, Milton police said. While Elam has been charged with making threats against Jamison and Kemp, police said they believe that he did not have any independent reason to make the threats on his own. Instead, police say it is presumed other individuals and/or groups were behind the effort for yet-to-be-determined reasons. They are now working to find out who may be responsible and bring them to justice. Milton Police Chief Jason Griffin thanked the GDC for their help in the case, as did Jamison. Crimes like this in the cybercrime underworld and dark web are typically very hard to investigate, Griffin said. Yet our smart, dedicated detectives in conjunction with the Department of Corrections bucked the odds and determined the source of this threat. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: The Isle of Man Prison has joined the UK-wide scheme Manx prisoners are to be able to record themselves reading bedtime stories to send their children at home. The new scheme launched at the Isle of Man Prison will help "stay connected" with their children, the charity behind it said. Prisoners will be able to record themselves at the Jurby prison, before the files are sent to the UK to be burned onto disc. The Storybook Dads and Storybook Mums project was launched in Dartmoor in the UK in 2002. 'Loved and missed' The UK charity said the scheme helps children feel "they are loved and missed". It said: "For many families, these story discs are a lifeline, helping to heal rifts and build vital family relationships. "It helps prisoners to feel valued as parents and gives them the opportunity to have a positive impact on their childrens lives." "Prisoners' children haven't committed a crime," it added. Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and Twitter? You can also send story ideas to IsleofMan@bbc.co.uk More like this Related internet links Republicans in the General Assembly Wednesday revived a private-school vouchers bill that failed on the final days of last years legislative session. The House Education Committee passed Senate Bill 233, which would provide vouchers of up to $6,500 to let students attending low-performing public schools. Gov. Brian Kemp endorsed the legislation during his State of the State address to the General Assembly in January, and House Speaker Jon Burns urged committee members at the beginning of Wednesdays meeting to approve it. We will not let our children continue to be trapped in failing schools, said Burns, R-Newington. The state Senates Republican majority passed the vouchers bill last year during the waning weeks of the legislative session, voting along party lines. But the measure fell short in the House when 16 Republicans joined Democrats opposed to diverting funds from public schools in voting against it. Burns said those GOP opponents have provided feedback since last year that has led to changes to improve the bill. For one thing, only parents earning 400% or less of the federal poverty limit would qualify for private-school vouchers for their children, said House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, R-Milton. Currently, that amounts to an annual income of $120,000 or less for a family of four, she said. Also, the $6,500 limit on vouchers would be reduced in any year the states Quality Basic Education (QBE) student funding formula isnt fully funded. The state has fully funded the QBE for six of the last seven years. An additional change aimed at funding accountability would cap the vouchers program at 1% of the total QBE budget, Jones said. Georgia has a long history of offering state education funding to students in private institutions, she said. This is one more iteration of offering our students in Georgia choices. Jones said several other proposed changes to the vouchers bill incorporate other areas of education policy. The legislation would codify in state law several teacher pay raises lawmakers have included in state budgets since 2019, Kemps first year in office. The measure also would let public schools use capital projects funding to pay for construction, renovation and improvements to pre-kindergarten facilities, a move aimed at increasing enrollment in pre-k classes. Another new provision would extend a state income tax credit supporting public schools due to expire in 2026 through 2029. It also would add another $10 million to the tax credits current $5 million annual cap, with the additional funding only to be used to benefit students attending low-performing schools. House Democrats still didnt appear to be impressed with the legislation, despite the changes. The committee defeated two amendments proposed by Democrats on the panel, who subsequently voted against passing the bill. The measure now moves to the House Rules Committee to schedule a floor vote. The road in front of the international terminal sits empty at San Francisco International Airport on April 2, 2020. Pro-Palestinian protesters blocked off a security line at the airport Wednesday morning. (Justin Sullivan / Getty Images) Pro-Palestinian protesters calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war blocked off a security line at San Francisco International Airport on Wednesday morning. More than two dozen protesters linked arms and blocked the entrance to the airport's G gates, photos from the scene show. The protesters held a Palestinian flag with the words "Permanent Ceasefire" written on it. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that there were "as many as 200" protesters and that they were also blocking the A gates. Some protested outside the airport as well. The airport continued operations. "There is a protest in the International Terminal," the airport said in a post on the social media site X. "The terminal remains open. Passengers are being re-routed around the activity." The airport also recommended that travelers get dropped off at the Kiss and Fly lot at the Rental Car Center and take the AirTrain as opposed to trying to arrive directly at the International Terminal curb. "We do not want to be here. We are forced to be here because we have lost count of the petitions we've sent, the emails we've sent, of the meetings we've had with our congresspeople, of the days we've marched through the streets begging our government to hear the millions of voices for cease-fire," said one protester, in a video shared by reporter Dena Takruri. 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 Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion announced their intention to carry out fire strikes on military positions in the Russian cities of Belgorod and Kursk in a joint statement on Telegram on March 13. Russian forces have been attacking Ukrainian cities from Belgorod Oblast on a daily basis, taking up positions among residential buildings. The shelling of Ukraine from Belgorod Oblast must stop! The statement urges the local authorities to evacuate the residents of the two Russian oblasts to ensure their safety. The Freedom of Russia Legion also showed how they repelled the Russian armys attack from the rear. Read also: Pro-Kyiv Russian fighters at home in Russia after seizing border village, top Ukrainian spy says On March 12, the three units in which Russian citizens are fighting crossed the border into Russia, announcing the start of an operation to liberate the Russian Federation from dictatorship. According to preliminary data, it is taking place in Belgorod and Kursk oblasts of the Russian Federation. On the evening of March 12, the RVC announced a second entry into Russia to bring closer the moment of death of Putin and the entire Kremlin regime. The Russian Defense Ministry announced the neutralization of 234 Ukrainian saboteurs in Belgorod and Kursk oblasts. On March 13, the Freedom of Russia Legion announced that it had taken control of a part of the village of Tiotkino in Kursk Oblast on the border with Ukraine. On the same day, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin claimed that the raid was an attempt to disrupt the so-called elections in Russia and to get a trump card in the upcoming peace talks. Read also: Freedom of Russia Legion claims full control of village in Kursk Oblast 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 How producer Nick Lee helped Ariana Grande make the most personal song on her new album Ariana Grande's new album "Eternal Sunshine" ends with a personal ballad called "Ordinary Things." Nick Lee is credited as a coproducer on the song, as well as the album's intro track. Lee spoke to BI about working with Grande and making a pop album from opposite coasts. If Ariana Grande's new album "Eternal Sunshine" has a moral, it won't be found on the club-ready lead single "Yes, and?" or the aching title track. It's the closer, "Ordinary Things," that shimmers with growth, clarity, and generational wisdom. After spending much of the album awash in heartache and uncertainty, Grande lets her grandmother, Marjorie Grande, credited as "Nonna," have the album's literal last word. As the horn loop on "Ordinary Things" fades out, she explains in a candid voice recording how it feels to be in love, nudging her granddaughter to find divinity in the everyday: "When he'd come home and I'd see him, it was like God almighty arrived. It was like seeing daylight," she says. It's the most intimate moment on Grande's seventh album, "Eternal Sunshine," released Friday, and it all came together with the help of Nick Lee. Lee, who is credited as a coproducer on "Ordinary Things," made the song's original beat with his friend Luka Kloser. It was one of dozens they sent to Max Martin while he was working with Grande to record "Eternal Sunshine" in New York City, hoping something might pique her interest. Something did. The track she hand-picked for "Ordinary Things" was also Lee's favorite among the options they pitched. "When you work with a bunch of artists, it's not a lot of the time when they'll open up so personally on a song that you did," Lee told Business Insider. "This one immediately felt special." "Having her grandma on the song obviously added layers of meaning," he added. "We heard from Max Martin that she really felt a certain way about this one." Lee, Kloser, Martin, and Grande all worked remotely to flesh out the song's production, sharing updated drafted and tweaked mixes from coast to coast. In working on the track, Grande's most consistent focus was her vocals how they sit in the song, the ebbs and flows in volume and texture. "She did all of her vocal production," he said. "She was very, very involved in recording herself and the engineering and the production aspect of it." The Los Angeles-based producer, who trained as a classical jazz musician at Julliard, recorded about 20 layers of trombone for the final cut of "Ordinary Things," cushioning the song with a sense of warmth and triumph. Then he and Kloser refined the beat to suit the mood. "We wanted the drums to match the same character and attitude as the horns: elegant and subtle but with soul and a lot of depth to it," he explained. Lee also coproduced the album's first track with Grande, Shintaro Yasuda, and Aaron Paris. "Intro (End of the World)" is intended as a companion to "Ordinary Things," lyrically and sonically. Both songs feature Lee's signature brass instrument, filtered through the same production effect to give the horns a "washy, vibey, wavy sound." The intro and closer are arguably an album's most consequential songs the listener's first impression and lasting taste. For "Eternal Sunshine," this is especially true. "Intro (End of the World)" and "Ordinary Things" frame the album as a sacred quest to find peace and romantic clarity. In the former, Grande asks, "How can I tell if I'm in the right relationship?" In the latter, Nonna offers an answer: "Never go to bed without kissing goodnight," she advises. "If you don't feel comfortable doing it, you're in the wrong place. Get out." Lee wasn't involved with the other 11 tracks, so he was delighted to hear how everything fell into place on the finished album. Particularly in the era of remote work, music production can be a solitary process; it doesn't often lead to a blockbuster pop album like "Eternal Sunshine," which already broke this year's record for the most streams in a single day on Spotify. But for Lee, that's not the point. "I just make stuff with my friends that I really, really love," Lee said. "Then eventually and hopefully it ends up with the right artist who also loves it." Read the original article on Business Insider Rep. Leigh Finke wants to make the state's schools safer for LGBTQ students by expanding the trans refuge bill and other protections Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz signed into law last year. The first-term DFL lawmaker from St. Paul has introduced a series of bills to do just that. One would bar schools from banning the display of rainbow flags and another would require school districts to adopt gender-inclusive policies for extracurricular activities including sports. Another would provide funding for nonprofits that help LGBTQ families relocate to the North Star State. Finke has also introduced legislation that would require insurers to cover gender-affirming care in Minnesota. Some of last year's reforms have drawn families from other states including Texas, Tennessee and Florida that enacted restrictions on reproductive healthcare and banned books on "obscene material" in schools that typically take aim at LGBTQ issues. "It's a promise," Finke said of the bills she introduced, "that at least our legal space will protect you." Finke, the state's first trans legislator, was also moved in part by efforts by Minnesota school boards in Minnesota to ban Pride flags on campuses. A recent incident in Worthington caught her attention, but she said previous proposals in communities like Annandale also illustrated the need for such legislation. Still, Finke stressed that her bill is specifically meant to bar schools and other public agencies from banning rainbow displays think of it more as a pro-refracted light stance. "This is not a Pride flag bill," Finke said. All of her proposals have had at least one committee hearing. But that doesn't guarantee they'll reach either the House or Senate floor. Finke believes there's momentum behind the boost for further LGBTQ protections at the Capitol but that the legislation still has hurdles to clear. She said St. Paul voters signaled their support for her policies, given that she won her seat by more than 60 points. "There's certainly no glide path," Finke said. It's not immediately clear what kind of opposition her proposals will face. House Republicans did not respond to a request for comment. Still, diversity and inclusion initiatives, particularly those focused on LGBTQ youth, have become a flashpoint in Minnesota school board politics in recent years as the issue has become a consistent presence in the national consciousness. That's partly why Kat Rohn, executive director of the LGBTQ+ advocacy organization OutFront, said the Legislature should pursue policies that strengthen those protections at the state level. "It's really important that we have as many solid policies as we can," she said. James Crumbley enters the Oakland County Courtroom of Cheryl Matthews on Wednesday, March, 13, 2024 in Pontiac, Mich. Crumbley is charged with involuntary manslaughter, accused of failing to secure a gun at home and ignoring his son's mental health. Ethan Crumbley killed four students at Oxford High School in 2021. (Mandi Wright/Detroit Free Press via AP, Pool) PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) A prosecutor urged jurors to convict the father of a Michigan school shooter on Wednesday, saying he ignored the "easiest, most glaring opportunities" to prevent the killing of four students, especially when confronted with his son's violent classroom drawing. Instead of taking Ethan Crumbley home, James Crumbley left Oxford High School with his wife and made DoorDash runs, passing near their home during deliveries, prosecutor Karen McDonald said. He didn't check the house for a gun similar to one in the drawing until news of the shooting started to spread in the small community. That's when he frantically called 911 and said the gun was missing and his 15-year-old son could be the killer. There were 1,800 students at Oxford High School, McDonald said. There was one parent who suspected their son was a school shooter, and it was James Crumbley. You know what thats called? That's called foreseeability. Parents are not responsible for everything their kids do, she said later, but "this is a very egregious and rare set of facts. A jury of six men and six women will resume deliberations Thursday after meeting for roughly 90 minutes Wednesday. Crumbley, 47, is charged with involuntary manslaughter, accused of failing to safely secure the gun used by Ethan and not seeking help for the boy's mental distress. Parents in Michigan have a legal duty to exercise reasonable care to prevent their child from harming others, the prosecutor said. James Crumbley was presented with the easiest, most glaring opportunities to prevent the deaths of four students and he did nothing," McDonald said. He did nothing over and over and over again. The boy took the gun to school, killing four students and wounding seven more people on Nov. 30, 2021. Investigators said a cable that could have locked the gun was still in its package. McDonald demonstrated for the jury how to use it, picking up the murder weapon, inserting a lock and removing the keys. Ten seconds, she said, of the easiest, simplest thing. Ethan's mental state was declining: He made a macabre drawing of a gun and a wounded man on a math assignment and added disturbing phrases, The thoughts wont stop. Help me. Blood everywhere. The world is dead. But the parents declined to take Ethan home following a brief meeting at the school, accepting only a list of mental health providers. They didn't tell school staff that a Sig Sauer 9 mm handgun had been purchased by James Crumbley just four days earlier. Ethan called it my beauty on social media. He pulled it from his backpack and began shooting. No one had checked the bag. Earlier in November 2021, he wrote in his journal that he needed help for his mental health "but my parents dont listen to me so I cant get any help. Defense attorney Mariell Lehman rested her case after calling just one witness, Ethan's aunt. James Crumbley declined to testify, telling the judge he understood the risks and benefits of speaking to the jury. In her closing remarks, Lehman said the father didn't know that Ethan knew where to find the gun. She also noted that school officials didn't seem to think the teen was an immediate threat to others. A day earlier, a teacher saw him looking up bullets on his phone. They saw images that weren't concerning, that are common, that other kids write and draw about, Lehman said of the anguished drawing on the math paper. The concern was that he was sad and needed to talk to someone. James Crumbley had no idea that his son was capable of a mass shooting, she said. You can come up with your own reasonable doubt. Youre not limited with what I come up with, Lehman said. The Oxford victims were Justin Shilling, 17, Madisyn Baldwin, 17, Hana St. Juliana, 14, and Tate Myre, 16. The Crumbleys are the first U.S. parents to be charged with having criminal responsibility for a mass school shooting committed by a child. Jennifer Crumbley, 45, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter last month. Testifying at her own trial, she told the jury that she wouldnt have done anything differently. Ethan Crumbley, now 17, is serving a life prison sentence for murder and terrorism. ___ Follow Ed White on X, formerly Twitter: https://twitter.com/edwritez Oscar Wong/Getty Images A FlexJobs survey suggests Americans still prefer work-from-anywhere roles. Many workers are willing to take pay cuts, increase working hours, or give up benefits for remote work. That comes as remote work becomes more scarce, and workers are further from offices. It turns out that remote work is still valuable at least for prospective employees. A new FlexJobs survey of 4,000 workers in the US, conducted in February 2024, found that workers are clamoring for work-from-anywhere roles. If every employer offered a remote-work policy, per FlexJobs' polling, 75% of workers would take them up on it. And they're willing to pay for that ability: Half of workers surveyed said they would take a pay cut for the policy. And it's not just pay that workers are willing to forego. Around a fifth of workers said they'd increase their working hours to work from anywhere, and 15% said they'd even give up their vacation days. Millennials led the charge, as 69% were willing to give up something to work from anywhere. This percentage fell to 59% for Gen X and 50% for boomers. The workers surveyed said they would give up other benefits as well 23% would give up professional development opportunities, while 13% would voluntarily lose company-provided insurance. Another 10% said they would abandon retirement-focused company contributions. A majority of workers also reported being willing to move elsewhere for work if given the chance to work remotely. About 41% said they would move to a different state if given the opportunity for remote work, while 40% said they would relocate to a different city. Over one in four said they would move to a different country. About 16% said they would become digital nomads and live globally. Most were motivated by lower costs of living, climate, and culture. Data compiled by Stanford, WFH Research, and Gusto economists reveals that the share of workers living over 50 miles away from their offices increased more than five-fold from 2019 to 2023. Workers are also increasingly living further away from their offices, due both in part to people moving away from their previous bases, and companies willing to extend their candidate searches wider as remote work became more prevalent. Story continues The willingness to take a pay cut for remote work is not a new sentiment, but it's one that's stood the test of time even as layoffs have swept many of the industries that might offer virtual opportunities. A March/April 2023 Washington Post-Ipsos poll of 1,148 workers found that 55% of remote workers would take a lower-paying role if they could stay virtual. Workers have long valued the ability to work flexibly, with Stanford professor and work-from-home expert Nick Bloom finding that workers view the ability to work hybrid as essentially equivalent to an 8% raise. Jay, an elder millennial, previously told Business Insider that he took a $35,000 pay cut so he wouldn't have to live near his office. "People who sit at the computer all day, and that's literally their job sit at a computer and review records, whether they be financial records, medical records, whatever it can be done successfully from anywhere," he said. But the odds may not be in favor of workers eager to log on from home. As Business Insider's Aki Ito reported, remote jobs have been receiving an onslaught of applications in one case, the odds of landing a role were worse than those of getting into Harvard. Have you taken a pay cut or given up other benefits to get a remote job? Contact these reporters at nsheidlower@businessinsider.com and jkaplan@businessinsider.com. Read the original article on Business Insider SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) Protesters calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war descended onto San Francisco International Airport on Wednesday morning. Hundreds of protesters began occupying the International Terminal at around 8:30 a.m. The protest inside the terminal blocked the entrance to the international gates for nearly three hours before the demonstrators began to march away at around 11:20 a.m. Transportation Security Administration workers closed the A and G gates security entrances and left as the protest unfolded. Passengers were guided to other areas to go through security screening. As of 11:30 a.m., the security screening gates at the A and G checkpoints reopened for passengers. Demonstrators outside the terminal also disrupted the flow of traffic to the dropoff curb. Roadway traffic was routed from the impacted areas before reopening at 11:42 a.m. As the saga began to wind down, hundreds of protesters were seen filing away to the Bay Area Rapid Transit train station to disperse. KRON4s Charles Clifford at the scene said that he witnessed no arrests being made. Protesters called for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the United States arming Israel. The world has denounced the Israeli war against Palestinians in Gaza and our politicians continue to fuel and fund this genocide, protester Jennifer Trang wrote in a statement. We need a permanent ceasefire and an end to the siege on Gaza now. Domestic violence suspect in critical condition following Santa Rosa police standoff Wednesdays protest at SFO follows another large-scale demonstration that shut down the Bay Bridge for over four hours during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November. During that protest, dozens of vehicles were abandoned in the middle of traffic lanes as hundreds of demonstrators called for a ceasefire in Gaza. Eighty protesters were arrested on the Bay Bridge before being cited and released. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. (PUEBLO, Colo.) A Pueblo man who was reportedly well known by the Pueblo Police Department (PPD) has been found guilty of multiple drug trafficking charges as well as a weapons charge. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Colorado, 46-year-old Timothy Martinez of Pueblo was found guilty on Thursday, March 7 of numerous charges: One count of Possession of Methamphetamine with an Intent to Distribute One count of Possession of Para-Flurofentanyl with an Intent to Distribute One count of Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime One count of Being a Felon in Possession of a Firearm The Attorneys Office for the District of Colorado said Martinez was well known to PPD at the time of his arrest in July of 2023 on an unrelated active warrant. During his arrest, officers found a loaded semiautomatic handgun, fentanyl pills, methamphetamine, other drugs, and various types of ammunition. The U.S. Attorneys Office said Martinez has prior felony convictions for Aggravated Battery, Sexual Assault, Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, Trespassing, Domestic Violence, Controlled Substance Possession, and Possession of a Controlled Substance with an Intent to Distribute. Martinez will be sentenced at a later time, the Attorneys Office said. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX21 News Colorado. Given to a birthing parent for enduring pregnancy and childbirth, push presents can cause unintended hurt for some and raise questions about rewarding a natural process. Push presents have existed for centuries, but the debate around them is mostly a 21st-century phenomenon. Given to birthing parents as a thank you and congratulations for all they endured while bringing a new life into the world, a push present is usually from a partner, but can also come from family. The present can be given before or after the birth, sometimes even in the delivery room. It is a token of appreciation for delivering the baby as well as carrying the baby or babies through pregnancy, certified birth and postpartum doula Kristin Revere told Yahoo Life. Push presents for giving birth are growing in popularity, but they are controversial. (Photo credit: Adobe Stock) According to Healthline, a push present typically costs between $25 and $300, but Massachusetts-based etiquette expert Jodi RR Smith advises people to consider their finances before purchasing. With a new baby, no one should go into debt to give a gift, she said. While some parents look forward to receiving a push present, which continues to grow in popularity, more people are beginning to view the name as discriminatory and controversial for a number of reasons. In the 21st century, families welcome children in a number of ways, and the phrase carries binary baggage. The term inherently excludes people who have cesarean sections and non-birthing parents who adopt or choose surrogacy. According to Utopia, even alternative names such as new mama gifts have the potential to offend nonbinary people and others who give birth, such as transgender men who carry children. There are alternate terms such as baby baubles or birthing gifts but push present is the most popular, though it can cause pain to many people, Utopia reported. Additionally, the binary, cisgender nomenclature is intrinsically sexist, given that the name means only a person born female would receive a gift. For others, push presents are unnecessary. One blogger opined, Giving birth is a natural thing, women have been doing it for thousands of years. Childbirth makes a woman special, but does a woman need to be rewarded with a materialistic gift for successfully giving birth?Its incredibly exciting and should be celebrated, but maybe not in the way that these push gifts are sometimes intended. Did you not expect us to be delivering this child after all these months of being pregnant? That blogger, offended by the celebrities expressing their desire for pricey gifts such as Kim Kardashians $1 million choker, because nature took its course, clearly overlooked the disproportionately high rate of maternal mortality for Black birthing parents. But her complaint raises another potentially harmful consequence of prematurely giving a push present and tragically the infant or birthing parent does not survive the process. Despite the growing number of push-present detractors, Brookwood Womens Medical Center asserts that such gifts are essential for several reasons. The primary one is that the nonbirthing parent likely may never know what its like to give birth and might want to express gratitude for the less physically taxing role. For centuries, women have maintained that men will never understand the intense pain associated with giving birth. For many, a push present serves as a recognition of pregnancys mental, emotional and physical strain. Its an effort those who dont carry children can never understand, regardless of how active they are during the journey to delivery. Secondly, after the babys delivery, life often revolves around the child and the birthing parents work deserves recognition. People who are pro-push present contend gifts unrelated to the baby can make the birth giver feel loved, cared for and appreciated during the hectic newborn phase, as many parents forget or postpone self-care. Pregnancy, labor and delivery are not easy tasks but the most challenging aspects of parenthood are just beginning. Thats another reason Brookwood listed in favor of push presents. The most difficult phase of parenthood is the early years, especially for the person who carries the child, as hormonal fluctuations, insomnia, and postpartum depression can add to the exhaustion of caring for a newborn, infant or toddler. A push present to say I love and appreciate you during this intensely emotional and draining period can make a significant difference. Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrios newsletter. The post Push presents, with their binary and biological slant, can be unnecessarily offensive appeared first on TheGrio. Harvard Business Schools generative AI policy is that its use is allowed for preparation outside of class, but inside and during exams students must use whats in their brains Way back in 1984, when personal computers were becoming more popular for both homes and businesses, Harvard Business School became one of the first B-schools that required PCs for some classwork. While students were not required to purchase the IBM Portable Personal Computer recommended by the school, 787 out of 800 incoming HBS students arrived on campus with the devices, according to this 1986 Harvard Crimson article. That move not only helped students prepare for the coming era, but it helped usher in a wave of teaching and research innovation at the school, says Mitchell Weiss, the Richard L. Menschel professor of management practice chair. We felt we were moving through a similar moment in the fall of 2023. That moment? The arrival of generative AI. As part of an ongoing two-year project to review and enhance the required curriculum for first-year students, Harvard Business School has been crafting a policy on generative AI and other tools since early 2023 shortly after ChatGPT rolled out the previous fall. HBSs policy translates roughly to this: Use Generative AI for preparation outside of class, but inside and during exams, use whats in your brain. STRIKING A BALANCE IN GEN AI POLICIES Harvard Business Schools Mitchell Weiss: In class, students are still meant to use only what was in their heads. Of course, there are a growing number of sessions where faculty are inviting the use of tools in the classroom as part of exercises and discussions about generative AI ChatGPT officially rolled out to the public in November 2022. It delighted users with original rap lyrics, relationship advice, and jokes about Open AI cofounder Elon Musk. It awed with its ability to write, debug, and explain computer code. Other generative AI tools like Bard, DALL-E, and Stable Diffusion soon followed. Story continues On the one hand, the capabilities of generative AI open immense opportunities for innovation, creativity, and efficiency not just in classrooms, but in workplaces, research labs, and all manner of tasks of daily life. On the other hand, it raises real and difficult questions surrounding cheating and how to evaluate what students are actually learning versus what they are regurgitating from a large language model. Business schools, in turn, have rolled out AI policies that attempt to strike a balance between harnessing AIs transformative capabilities while protecting academic integrity. Shortly after ChatGPT hit the scene, The Wharton School left guidelines for AI use up to the professors. Operations Management Professor Christian Terwiesch, who famously fed his final MBA exam into ChatGPT and which the chatbot famously passed, decided he would encourage generative AI for preparation and other work, but forbid it for exams and graded homeworks. Operations Management as a discipline is still a bit more bread-and-butter skill certification, he told P&Q at the time. Another Wharton professor, Ethan Mollick, associate professor of management teaching innovation and entrepreneurship, published his own AI policy which basically required students to use the tool in his class. At Columbia Business School, faculty generally will indicate in their course syllabi and assignment instructions whether or not generative AI is permitted. When it is permitted, students are required to cite which platforms they used and how they used them. Using generative AI tools without this permission is considered a violation of the CBS Honor Code. And, Stanford Graduate School of Business follows the general guidelines set up by the universitys Office of Community Standards: Instructors may use AI tools as they see fit, but must set clear expectations for its use in their syllabi while reinforcing that policy in class. AT HBS, A BALANCE BETWEEN USE & RELIANCE Harvard Business Schools policy can be simplified thusly: HBS invites students to use generative AI before class to prep for case discussions and after class to reflect on what was learned. But, in class, students are still meant to use only what was in their heads, Weiss tells P&Q. HBS also has policies on citing and disclosing the use of generative AI, mostly in written work. Of course, there are a growing number of sessions where faculty are inviting the use of tools in the classroom as part of exercises and discussions about generative AI, he says. The policy is based on two principles: First, HBS wants its MBA students to be inventive, responsible, and flexible leaders in an era of AI. Second, AI should enrich and support the MBA experience and human judgment not replace it. As the technology and peoples understanding of it develops, so will the HBS policy evolve over time. We believed, and continue to believe, these tools will have a massive impact in businesses and leadership broadly, and we wanted our students to begin to uncover for themselves how they would use generative AI tools and make a positive difference in the world using them well, Weiss tells Poets&Quants. AI TOOLS IN HBS CLASSROOMS Weiss also serves as the practice chair of the Required Curriculum (RC) Renewal Project, a two-year review of HBS foundational first-year courses. (A similar effort is ongoing for HBS second-year elective curriculum.) Part of that process means weighing how to stay current for the needs of future business leaders without chasing fads. Like PCs 40 years ago, generative AI is certainly no fad but a tool that will transform how we work. So, even as HBS strives for balance in the classroom, it is also requiring the use of GenAI in some instances. In fact, the school provides every first-year student with a ChatGPT Plus/Advanced Data Analysis account. We felt it signaled how important it was for students to become proficient with these tools overall. More specifically, we also felt it was important for students to have some of the advanced data capacities as they worked to become proficient in the area of data science management, Weiss says. We also wanted there to be equitable exposure to these tools across the class of 900-plus. The school has also conducted student trainings on using the tools to advance learning, push thinking, and test their knowledge. We know that they could use the tools to short-circuit their learning, but we also know that they came to HBS to learn, so we showed them ways they could use the tools to increase their learning instead. DONT MISS: CHATGPT: HOW TO USE IT IN A BUSINESS SCHOOL CLASSROOM and HOW CHATGPT RANKS THE WORLDS BEST MBA PROGRAMS The post How Harvard Business School Uses Generative AI In Its MBA Classrooms appeared first on Poets&Quants. Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that he "does not understand" why Finland has decided to become a NATO member after decades of neutrality, adding that Russian weapon systems will now be deployed near its border. Source: Putin in an interview with Kremlin-aligned propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov Details: Putin claimed that Russia and Finland had "perfect relations" with no complaints against each other, and he, therefore, "did not understand" why Helsinki decided to join NATO after Russia launched a full-scale war against Ukraine. "We didn't even have troops there, we withdrew all our forces from the Finnish border. Why would they do that? I think it was purely for political reasons. They probably wanted to be members of the Western club under some kind of umbrella," said Vladimir Putin, adding that he considered it a "senseless step" for Finland's interests. "But it's up to them, they made the decision. We had no troops there, and now we will have them deployed. We didn't have any weapons [near the Finnish border], but now we will," he added. Background: Russia began threatening Finland over its NATO aspirations even before Helsinki had made a final decision to apply, with the Russian Foreign Ministry promising a response of a "military, technical and other nature". At that time, a video, which appeared to be staged, was also released, supposedly featuring the deployment of Russian Bastion coastal defence systems towards the Finnish border. Back then, Finnish experts noted that the presence of these weapons systems on the Karelian Isthmus was not something out of the ordinary, while Finnish activists jokingly filmed an identical video of "tractor forces" being sent to the border with Russia. In early 2023, Russia's Defence Minister announced the creation of a new army corps in Karelia, which will include three motorised infantry and two air assault divisions. At the same time, the creation of the Leningrad Military District was announced. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, congratulating Sweden on completing its accession to NATO, reminded the Kremlin that Russia should "thank" itself for the new expansion of the Alliance. Support UP or become our patron! Semafor Signals Insights from The New York Times, CNN, and Reuters The News Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a stark warning Wednesday, saying that Moscow is prepared for a nuclear war if there is a threat to Russias sovereignty or independence. However, when asked if he has considered using nuclear weapons on the battlefield in Ukraine, he responded that there has never been such a need. From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready, Putin told state media outlets in a television interview. I dont think that here everything is rushing to it [nuclear confrontation], but we are ready for this. The Russian president also said that the U.S. sending troops to Russia or Ukraine which the Biden administration has stressed it does not plan to do would significantly escalate the conflict. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. White House feared use of nuclear weapons early on in Ukraine war Sources: The New York Times, CNN Washington has insisted since the beginning of the war that it sees no change to Moscows posture on deploying nuclear weapons. However, The New York Times reported that in October 2022, the White House was worried the Kremlin might actually use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, with the CIA saying the likelihood of their use may have been above 50%. That potential flashpoint has passed, but, The Times reported, officials described those weeks as a glimpse of a terrifying new era in which nuclear weapons were back at the center of superpower competition. Similarly, CNN reported that the Biden administration began rigorously preparing for Moscow to carry out a nuclear strike on Ukraine, in what would be the first use of an atomic weapon since the U.S. attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki almost eight decades earlier. I dont think many of us coming into our jobs expected to be spending significant amounts of time preparing for a scenario which a few years ago was believed to be from a bygone era, one senior administration official told CNN. Ukraine says saber-rattling reveals a frightened Putin Sources: Reuters, CNN Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior Ukrainian presidential official, told Reuters that Putins warning shows hes worried about losing the war. Realizing that things are going the wrong way, Putin continues to use classic nuclear rhetoric. With the old Soviet hope - be scared and retreat!, Podolyak said. The U.S. intelligence community believes that Russia views its sizeable stockpile of nuclear weapons as an important tool for achieving its goals in a potential conflict with the United States or NATO, CNN reported. However, intelligence officials are also concerned that Moscows frustration with its slow progress on the battlefield may spur it to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine. Putin seeks to project stability to Russians ahead of election Sources: The New York Times, The Global Times The New York Times characterized Putins most recent remarks as a softer threat than hes issued about nuclear weapons in the past, calling his comments an apparent attempt to bolster his domestic image as a guarantor of stability ahead of his practically guaranteed reelection this weekend. Putins State of the Nation address at the end of February was a similar attempt to project confidence to the nation over the war in Ukraine, with analysts telling Chinese state newspaper the Global Times that Putin was seeking to tell the world Russia is not concerned at all and is even satisfied with the current situation. Russian President Vladimir Putin has amped up his nuclear threats to the West, saying that his military is technically prepared to launch a strike if Russias sovereignty or independence comes under threat. Speaking in an interview with state television, Putin also said he hoped the U.S. would avoid taking actions that would increase the risk of nuclear conflict and expressed doubt that the world is on the brink of Armageddon. Nevertheless, when asked if Russia is ready for nuclear war, he said: From the military-technical viewpoint, were prepared. Alexei Navalnys Ex-Chief of Staff Attacked With Hammer Outside Home Putin, who is all but guaranteed to win a new six-year term in Russias presidential election this week, also denied that he had ever considered using a tactical nuclear weapon at any point during his war in Ukraine. He said that weapons of mass destruction would only be used in the event of a threat to the existence of the Russian state, our sovereignty and independence. He also said that if American soldiers were sent to Russian territory or Ukraine, Moscow would consider their deployment an intervention. But he added that he believed that in the U.S. there are enough specialists in the field of Russian-American relations and in the field of strategic restraint, and that the conflict is therefore not rushing towards nuclear catastrophe. Since launching his full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Putin has repeatedly issued warnings about his willingness to use Russias nuclear arsenal. In a state-of-the-nation address last month, he accused Ukraines Western allies of selecting targets for striking in our territory and slammed talk of sending NATO troops to Ukraine (he spoke after French President Emmanuel Macron said the possibility shouldnt be ruled out). He said Western leaders shouldnt forget we also have the weapons that can strike targets on their territory, and what they are now suggesting and scaring the world with, all that raises the real threat of a nuclear conflict that will mean the destruction of our civilization. Putin reiterated the bellicose rhetoric on Wednesday, saying states that say they had no red lines in relation to Russia must understand that in Russia there will be no red lines in relation to them either. Elsewhere, Putin once again blamed former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson for the failure of negotiations to end the war in its early months and said that Russia remains ready to hold talks on bringing the conflict to a close. Any such talks, he added, should be based on realityand not on cravings after the use of psychotropic drugs. Both Ukraine and Russia reported suffering fresh attacks on their countries on Wednesday morning. Two people were killed and five others were injured in a Russian strike in Ukraines eastern Donetsk region, according to a local governor. Russian authorities separately claimed another large drone attack from Ukraine was launched in the early morning, with Moscows Defense Ministry claiming to have destroyed 58 drones across six regions. As on Tuesday, two of the drones purportedly targeted oil facilities, with a refinery in the Ryazan region being hit. Another unmanned aerial vehicle was allegedly shot down as it flew towards another refinery close to St. Petersburg. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Putin warns the West that Russia is 'ready' for nuclear war: 'Weapons exist in order to use them' Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned the West that his country was ready for a nuclear war and said that he would consider the U.S. sending troops to Ukraine as a significant escalation of the war. "From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready," Putin told state media Rossiya-1 television and news agency RIA after he was asked about a potential nuclear war. The Russian president said he knows the U.S. is aware that deploying troops to Ukraine or on Russian territory would be viewed by Moscow as intervening in the war. He also urged "strategic restraint." The comments come after the Pentagon announced Tuesday that it is sending approximately $300 million in weapons to Ukraine in its fight against Russia. RUSSIA SAYS IT KILLED 234 FIGHTERS WHILE THWARTING AN INCURSION FROM UKRAINE Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday warned the West that his country was technically ready for nuclear war. In his comments, Putin added that he was neither "rushing" to use nuclear weapons nor did he believe their use in Ukraine was necessary. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "Therefore, I don't think that everything here is rushing to it [nuclear confrontation], but we are ready for this," he added. Putin has warned several times since Russia invaded Ukraine more than two years ago that the West risks a nuclear war if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine. Putin said Russia would consider the U.S. sending troops to Ukraine a significant escalation of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. On Wednesday, Putin explained the potential use of nuclear weapons was outlined in the Kremlin's nuclear doctrine. "Weapons exist in order to use them," Putin said. "We have our own principles." Putin said in the interview on Wednesday that if the U.S. conducted nuclear tests, Russia might conduct tests as well. "It's not necessary ... we still need to think about it, but I don't rule out that we can do the same," he said. THE TOP STRATEGIST OF LATE RUSSIAN OPPOSITION LEADER NAVALNY IS ATTACKED IN LITHUANIA'S CAPITAL Putin has warned several times since Russia invaded Ukraine more than two years ago that the West risks a nuclear war if it sends troops to fight in Ukraine. The Russian leader said Russia had never been presented with a need to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine since the war began. "Why do we need to use weapons of mass destruction? There has never been such a need," Putin said. In recent months, Putin suggested a ceasefire in Ukraine to pause the war, but it was rejected by the U.S. after contacts between intermediaries. The Russian president reiterated Wednesday that Russia was prepared to engage in serious talks regarding Ukraine. "Russia is ready for negotiations on Ukraine, but they should be based on reality," he said. Russia and the U.S. are the biggest nuclear powers in the world, together controlling more than 90% of the world's nuclear weapons. Western leaders have promised that Russia will be defeated in its fight in Ukraine, but Russian forces continue to control nearly one-fifth of Ukrainian territory. Reuters contributed to this report. Original article source: Putin warns the West that Russia is 'ready' for nuclear war: 'Weapons exist in order to use them' A study participant plays with researcher Onyoo Yoo's standard poodle, Aroma, who was used in the study on human mood and concentration. Photo courtesy of Yoo et al., 2024, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) NEW YORK, March 13 (UPI) -- Petting, walking and playing with a dog decreases stress and increases the power of brain waves associated with relaxation and concentration, a new study suggests. Conducted by Konkuk University in Seoul, the study was published Wednesday in PLOS One online. Animal-assisted interventions, such as canine therapy, are used widely in hospitals, schools and other places to help reduce anxiety, relieve stress and foster feelings of trust. Research into the potential benefits of animal interactions often compares people's mood or physiological responses, such as blood pressure and hormone levels, before and after spending time with a service animal. However, most studies don't differentiate between types of interactions, such as grooming, feeding or playing with an animal, which limits understanding of how each specific interaction affects health and well-being, the study's authors noted. "This study demonstrated that specific dog activities could activate stronger relaxation, emotional stability, attention, concentration and creativity by facilitating increased brain activity," said Onyoo Yoo, the study's first author. Photo courtesy of Onyoo Yoo To better gauge how such animal-related activities influence mood, investigators recruited 30 adult participants in their 20s to 40s to each engage in eight activities with a 4-year-old female silver standard poodle, Aroma, or Aro for short, owned by the lead researcher. "The dog was ready for this type of work, had a compatible personality, and was fully trained in basic obedience, manners, aggression and sociability as verified through its prior participation in numerous dog shows," the authors wrote in the study. A study participant plays with Aroma, or Aro for short. Photo by Onyoo Yoo Animal-assisted activities with the dog consisted of meeting, play, feeding, massaging, grooming, photography, hugging and walking. Recruitment of participants occurred between May and June 2022 via notices posted in pet salons and at a dog beauty academy. Participants wore electroencephalography electrodes to record electrical activity from the brain during interactions with the dog. They also recorded their subjective emotional state immediately after each activity. All the activities were completed in 60 minutes. Aroma takes a walk. Photo by Onyoo Yoo "The information received and processed by the body triggers diverse physiological responses, which are reflected in distinct brain wave patterns," the study's first author, Onyoo Yoo, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Bio and Healing Convergence at the Graduate School of Konkuk University, told UPI via email. "EEG is a noninvasive technique that utilizes electrodes placed on the scalp to offer a precise and immediate reading of brain electrical activity," Yoo said. The relative strength of alpha-band oscillations in the brain increased while participants played with and walked the dog, reflecting a state of relaxed wakefulness. During grooming, gently massaging or playing with the dog, relative beta-band oscillation strength received a boost, a surge typically linked to heightened concentration. Participants also reported feeling much less fatigued, depressed and stressed after all dog-related activities. "This study demonstrated that specific dog activities could activate stronger relaxation, emotional stability, attention, concentration and creativity by facilitating increased brain activity," Yoo said. "In addition, interactions with dogs could decrease stress and induce positive emotional responses." Some participants owned pets, while others didn't, but a fondness for animals likely motivated their willingness to participate in the experiment, potentially biasing the results, the authors acknowledged. Even so, "the unique relationships between specific activities and their physiological effects could serve as a reference for programming targeted animal-assisted interventions in the future," Yoo said. The study presents novel findings to better guide current animal-assisted interventions, Nisha Ver Halen, a psychologist in the Integrative Health and Wellbeing program at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, told UPI via email. She was not involved in the research. "As a psychologist and dog-owner, it is plausible to me that these activities can produce a state of relaxation similar to that of quiet rest, prayer or meditation," said Ver Halen, who has a 1 1/2-year-old male mini goldendoodle named Banjo. "I hope these findings encourage further research into the psychophysiological benefits of human-animal interaction," she said. The vast majority of physiological animal-assisted intervention studies have looked at stress hormone levels and cardiac activity, Emma Grigg, a research associate in the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California-Davis, told UPI via email. This study, however, focused on the mechanisms for potential benefits by measuring brain activity during human-dog interactions. The researchers also used self-report scales of stress and mood to assess participants' subjective responses to dog-human interactions, Grigg said. "I like the goal of potentially identifying the types of benefits gained in the various types of activities, with an eye to informing best practices when using dogs in animal-assisted interventions," she said. The findings also highlight that increased brain activity during human-dog interactions produces calming effects and enhances creativity, Lynn Grattan, a neuropsychologist and professor emerita at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, told UPI via email. "This is a well-planned and executed study that confirms the role of dogs in helping with stress reduction using electrophysiological methods," Grattan said. It is well known that alpha-band oscillations in the brain are associated with relaxed wakefulness, Kymberly Young, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, told UPI via email. "This study provides scientific evidence for something dog owners intuitively know -- that engaging with our furry friends is an effective way to reduce stress and improve mood," Young said. It was a difficult study to conduct, as the authors had to carefully standardize how each participant interacted with the dog. The rigor of their approach included evaluating participants' mood after each interaction, Andrew James, a professor of psychiatry and neurology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, told UPI via email. "I'm intrigued that these brief human-dog interactions can significantly improve mood," James said, while noting that the improvements were modest, presumably because the participants had high mood scores before meeting the dog. "Nonetheless," he added, "this work lays the groundwork for future studies seeking to quantify how animal-assisted activities may improve mood in people with major health issues, including people with mood disorders." LAS VEGAS, March 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Inner Mountain Foundation , the newly-launched global women's empowerment organization, is excited to join this year's ASD Market Week in Las Vegas to introduce its US chapter to ASD visitors alongside its corporate partner, leading global B2B ecommerce marketplace DHgate . The Inner Mountain Foundation Joins DHgate to Empower Female Entrepreneurs at ASD Market Week As the largest annual B2B wholesale trade show in the US, ASD Market Week (March 10th to 13th, 2024) is a regular fixture on the DHgate agenda. This year, the company is pleased to welcome The Inner Mountain Foundation as a co-host on activities such as a party bus experience with Natasha Walstra, host of the Foundation's podcast The Climb . Interested participants have two opportunities to join the March 11th party bus, first at 12pm and then again at 6pm, for a scenic tour of Las Vegas. The event is a chance to mingle and network with like-minded female entrepreneurs and learn more about The Inner Mountain Foundation, its US-based initiatives and activities, the wide range of resources available to its members, as well as its shared values with DHgate. Throughout the one-hour party bus tour, Natasha shares stories of female empowerment, self-discovery and personal growth journeys. "We are very excited to expand The Inner Mountain Foundation's presence to the US and look forward to introducing the many female entrepreneurs present at ASD Market Week to the resources and support network that the Foundation has amassed," said Diane Wang, Founder of The Inner Mountain Foundation and Founder, Chairperson and CEO of DHGATE Group. The Inner Mountain Foundation is an initiative started by Diane to foster a community of like-minded women who can lead, nurture, and inspire those around them starting with themselves by providing access to various entrepreneurial resources, mentorship, training, information, support, recognition, and even funding for women-owned businesses. As a forward-thinking social enterprise committed to women's evolution and self-empowerment, the Foundation has a global outlook and aims to expand beyond its initial launch in China and North America by establishing branches in other major cities worldwide. These branches resemble satellites orbiting different trajectories, each having its own unique color while sharing a common mission and vision. Story continues The Foundation's party bus tour at ASD Market Week is the first in a series of offline events in the LA chapter. These events are designed to foster stronger connections with local female communities, starting with female MSME entrepreneurs across different cities in CA in the coming months. Stay tuned for updates and learn more at innermountain.org. DHgate will be present throughout the four-day ASD Market Week at Booth #SL42277 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, where visitors can speak to company representatives and learn more about the company's vast e-commerce B2B marketplace of 33 million products and 2.6 million suppliers, all backed up by a world-class logistics support and integrated cross-border payment system. Visitors will also be able to see, touch and get a better feel of a selection of products available through the DHgate platform, and learn more about the company's innovative e-commerce solutions for established retailers to micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. About The Inner Mountain Foundation The Inner Mountain Foundation promotes the empowerment of women through education, community, and outreach. We are led by our Founder and Chairperson Diane Wang, who first articulated the principles of Inner Mountain Thinking in her 2024 book, The Inner Mountain. As a global foundation and women's empowerment community, we invest in impact-making educational resources that we seek to make as broadly accessible as possible. Our goal is to focus the work of the Inner Mountain on the soft skills training that we believe helps equip women to be their greatest, most empowered selves across their most wholly integrated life (connecting the self with work, family, community, and legacy). For more information, please visit innermountain.org About DHgate Founded in 2004, DHgate has become the leading B2B cross-border e-commerce marketplace in China, boasting over 34 million live listings annually. Through their global operations and offices, including in the USA and UK, DHgate reaches millions of people with trusted products and services. As of December 31, 2022, DHgate served more than 59.6 million registered buyers from 225 countries and regions, connecting them to over 2.54 million sellers in China and other countries. For more information, please visit DHgate.com and follow @DHgate.com . Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-inner-mountain-foundation-joins-dhgate-to-empower-female-entrepreneurs-at-asd-market-week-302087415.html SOURCE DHGATE Group MINERAL POINT, Wis. (WJW) All that was left behind were some signs. Employees at a Dollar General in Southwest Wisconsin walked off the job over the weekend, leaving the store closed. Potential shoppers were greeted Saturday with signs and a letter taped to the front door, as seen on the Iowa County Confessions Facebook page. The store is closed, one sign read. The whole team has walked away due to a lack of appreciation, being overworked, and being underpaid. Jail call: Woman explains taking dead man to bank to withdraw cash We quit! another sign said. Thank you to our amazing customers. We love you and will miss you. An issue with the companys donation policy also led to the walkout. Former store manager Trina Tribolet told TV station WKOW that the policy required employees to throw out anything near an expiration date or that was no longer being sold at the store. Employees said they felt the items were still usable and should have been donated. Dollar General said in a statement to WKOW that it makes donations through its Feeding America partnership at 21 stores across the state. The Mineral Point Dollar General store has donated nearly 7,500 pounds of food to local food banks such as Second Harvest Food Bank of Southern Wisconsin over the past twelve months, the store said. Food safety is a top priority for Dollar General and Feeding America members, therefore, DG stores are required to follow Feeding America donation policies. WWE SummerSlam to be held at Cleveland Browns Stadium this year Dollar General also apologized to customers following the walkout: At Dollar General, we are committed to providing an environment where employees can grow their careers and where they feel valued and heard. We apologize for any inconvenience our customers experienced during the three hours the Mineral Point store was closed this past weekend. Dollar General said the store reopened at 11 a.m. Saturday. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. (Bloomberg) -- Iron ore extended a slide as Chinas economic prospects weighed on the steelmaking ingredient, with futures nearing $100-a-ton levels that could begin to squeeze out higher-cost producers. Most Read from Bloomberg The commodity plunged more than 5% in Singapore on Wednesday, extending a rout thats seen it slump from more than $140 a ton early this year on fears over Chinas demand prospects. Steel consumption hasnt ramped up as some investors had expected in March. Without major new stimulus measures from Beijing, a key focus of attention for iron ore is cost support. While major global miners like BHP Group Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group enjoy very low costs, some more marginal output in China or India for example will feel the pinch if prices fall further. Cost support will be an important consideration, Vivek Dhar, an analyst at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said in a note. Iron ore will struggle to stay meaningfully below $100 a ton if Chinas steel demand tracks sideways this year. Iron ore fell as much as 5.3% to $103.45 a ton the lowest since mid-August and was at $104.30 at 3:05 p.m. in Singapore. Futures in Dalian dropped 3%, and steel contracts in Shanghai were also lower. Across commodity markets, prices typically meet downside resistance at levels where higher-cost producers are no longer profitable. That may force them to reduce or halt operations, cutting supplies to rebalance the market. In iron ore, the marginal price level has risen substantially in recent years, especially following widespread disruptions to production in Brazil. The first line of cost defense for iron ore lies at about $90 to $95 a ton, at which some non-mainstream producers would be loss-making, Citigroup Inc. analysts wrote in a note last month. The majors might pursue curtailments below $75 to $80, they said. Story continues Read More: Iron Ores Split With Stocks Shows Chinas New Economy in Favor The main culprit in iron ores slide towards two digits has been weak demand prospects, which grew dimmer after Chinas biggest annual political gathering of the year delivered only incremental pro-growth measures. Chinas real-estate woes continue to weigh on appetite for iron ore, with investors tracking the latest debt stress at major developers including China Vanke Co. and Country Garden Holdings Co. Falling home sales and funding issues look structural, signaling little room for any improvement in this construction season, Australia & New Zealand Banking Group wrote in a note. --With assistance from Winnie Zhu. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) Whether she is addressing a church congregation, a room full of reporters or counseling a victim of rape or abuse, YWCA of Hampton Roads CEO Michelle Ellis Young lives her mission. On any given day, I am really looking at and leaning into our community of 757 Hampton Roads and really looking at what does it look like to create an equitable and just community for women and girls, Ellis Young said. She never knows from day to day how she will be called to serve. On a recent morning when we sat down to interview with her she told us, right now, this morning, I am working with a community partner who texted me at 7 this morning about an 80-year-old woman who is being sexually assaulted and living at a bus station. A former co-worker, Kia Moten, who nominated Ellis Young as a Remarkable Woman, said clients and co-workers alike feel safe opening up to her. She is just a remarkable woman all the way around, Moten said. And she pushes civility into the community, which is a huge thing as well, because we often forget about civility, too, you know, just being kind to people. Under her leadership, the YWCA launched Amend Together, a program teaching boys how to be better men. Another program, Get your finances right, addresses money issues that can impact a persons health and personal relationships. Ellis Young also started R.E.S.T., the annual Racial Equity and Social Transformation Conference, which focuses on all forms of oppression including access to health care and housing. She is also a founding board member of the Public Health Foundation. The work that we do and when we talk about public health and when we talk about racial justice, they are synonymous, Ellis Young said. Her work is emotionally draining yet charges her spirit. As hard as it is to have these conversations yeah, I dont want to deal with it every day, but I have to, right? if not us, then who? Who will champion the cause that shows civility and community, Ellis Young said, that allows all people to come together in a uniquely woven way? For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. Theres a renewed, bipartisan effort to create a public watchdog armed with subpoena power to investigate fraud and corruption in state government. On Tuesday, Delaware lawmakers introduced proposed legislation in its latest effort to create a nonpartisan Office of the Inspector General. The office would be tasked with undertaking investigations, issuing public opinions and initiating civil proceedings against state officials accused of unethical behavior. Officials in the office would have subpoena power to compel telling documents from the targets of its investigations and be empowered to initiate their own investigations into both violations of state law, as well as the state employee code of conduct. State Sen. Laura Sturgeon, D-West Brandywine Hundred, is one of the bill's primary sponsors. She told reporters that it is "incredibly important" that Delawareans have "full faith and confidence" in their government. She noted that Delaware does have oversight entities, like the auditor's office, but none that have full investigative powers with no political aspect to their existence. She noted that some question whether a state like Delaware, where one party essentially dominates the other, can have "really, really strong transparency and accountability." "I think we can, but should there be any question, I am more than happy to create an office that is not in any way dependent on party politics," Sturgeon said. Under the bill, Delaware's secretary of state would convene a nominating panel to produce names for the governor to pick to fill the job upon confirmation by the Delaware Senate. The head of the office will appointed for five years before the nominating panel could recommend reappointing the inspector or selecting new candidates. High-level state officials will not be allowed to run the office for three years after they leave their state government position. The office would alert state prosecutors to any violations of the law uncovered in its investigations and publish summary information about its investigations on a public website. It would also take tips from the public. State Senator Laura Sturgeon delivers remarks during a Chinese New Year celebration event on Sunday, February 18, 2024 at the Chinese American Community Center in Hockessin. The aim is to have the office up and running next year if the legislation is approved by the General Assembly. Old idea, bipartisan support Delaware is one of 15 states that do not have such an office, supporters said. And the idea is not a new one. Public watchdogs in the state have been clamoring for such a figure for many years. Two similar bills were filed in 2022, one by a Democratic senator and one by a Republican representative. The two were similar in that theyd establish an inspector general office, arm the office with subpoena power and task it with investigating possible fraud, waste, abuse and corruption in state government. But neither of the bills was raised by legislative leadership for a floor vote in either chamber. Gov. John Carney's position on the proposal is unclear. His office did not respond to a request seeking comment on the legislation. The new legislation does have sponsors from both sides of the aisle. Republican Sen. Brian Pettyjohn, a sponsor of the bill and the Senate's minority whip, said a "responsible government is an accountable government." "Having an official and agency free from electoral politics to help keep the government in check is necessary and long overdue," Pettyjohn, R-Georgetown, said in a written statement. Recent: Delaware Republicans want to make lawmakers more accountable and increase transparency Meanwhile, Republican legislators have put forth their own slate of state government watchdog measures. Those include rules against state lawmakers creating a conflict of interest by accepting a paycheck from nonprofits that they are responsible for funding through state coffers, as well as creating an office of ethics within, but independent of, the General Assembly. Holes in transparency, accountability Advocates have long argued that arming a nonpartisan, independent watchdog with subpoena power will fill a need in the state. Currently, as it relates to digging for corruption in government there are not many shovels and the state bureaucracy makes the ground hard. Public records law gives state agencies wide latitude to hide telling receipts of their work: things like emails, police reports and other records. What records that are made available can also be expensive to receive. The press corps in Delaware has also been diminished in recent decades with few outlets set up to ask adversarial questions of the state's power structure and pay the high legal cost to fight for transparency within the state's public records laws. Litigation also sometimes reveals dirt within state government, though it is usually only through the context of an individual litigant seeking a payout from the state and rarely, if ever, becomes a larger inquiry into the work of state officials. Records relevant to those cases are also often hidden through wide-ranging and court-approved protective orders. Additionally, the state's Public Integrity Commission largely exists to give advisory opinions at the request of state bureaucrats. The commission also is the keeper of legislators financial disclosure forms, but it does not provide oversight or scrutiny of those disclosures. The inspector general proposal would have ethics oversight over legislators. And so, the primary watchdog is the Office of Civil Rights and Public Trust within the Delaware Department of Justice. That office has a handful of attorneys and a few investigators tasked with, among many other things, policing public officials. But their office is small, largely complaint-driven and has other tasks to handle including prosecuting civil rights violations and investigating police uses of force. In recent years, theyve brought cases against public officials fudging paperwork, police officers abusing their authority as well as perhaps the most prominent prosecution in Delaware's recent history: former Auditor Kathy McGuiness. Delaware State Auditor Kathy McGuiness watches on as the state Senate votes on a resolution that will petition for Gov. John Carney to remove McGuiness from office Monday, July 25, 2022. In 2022, McGuiness became the first sitting, statewide public office holder to be convicted of criminal charges when a jury found her guilty of conflict of interest and official misconduct, two misdemeanors, tied to her hiring her daughter as a part-time employee in the auditors office. A third guilty verdict based on state purchasing rules was tossed by the trial judge after the proceeding, and she was acquitted of a felony theft charge tied to her daughters employment as well as felony witness intimidation. Late last month, the state's Supreme Court also invalidated her official misconduct charge, leaving the misdemeanor conviction for conflict of interest, the charge pertaining to hiring her daughter, as the only one that has stuck. Pointing fingers: Convicted Delaware Auditor Kathy McGuiness refusing calls to resign In the public relations battle that followed her conviction and preempted her election defeat months after, she argued that prosecutors had unfairly picked on her by filing criminal charges when members of the Delaware General Assembly have also been in power when their children have been hired to work under them. Prosecutors have argued that the circumstances of lawmakers' children becoming employed under their parents was different than McGuiness' situation. Contact Xerxes Wilson at (302) 324-2787 or xwilson@delawareonline.com. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: A renewed effort to create Delaware government inspector general TechCrunch In March, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that could force ByteDance to divest TikTok or face a ban in U.S. app stores. Much of the related discussion and debate has centered around American data security and speech rights, but a potential move also highlights something else: TikTok is growing its focus on e-commerce, but the interplay of tech giants and geopolitics is squeezing smaller merchants. Over the past few months, merchants -- many of them from China -- looking for an Amazon alternative have flocked to TikTok to peddle clothes, cosmetics, electronics and a variety of other products to U.S. buyers, by way of TikTok Shop. Debbie Farka, marketing manager for Intermountain TeleHealth Services, demonstrates what a virtual visit with a doctor would be like at the Intermountain TeleHealth Center in Murray on Tuesday, March 10, 2020. Rep. Moore pointed to Utah's Intermountain Health as an example of a successful telehealth program that has cut red tape and costs incurred by patients. Rep. Blake Moore has four boys under 12. His wife, Jane, is very busy, especially with me being gone so much, he said at a Ways and Means Committee hearing Tuesday morning. The committee was tackling enhancing access to care at home in rural and underserved communities, an issue personal to Moore, the vice chair of the House Republican Conference. Finding telehealth opportunities for ailments or conditions that could be solved at home would give his family more flexibility, he said. And he believes he wouldnt be the only one to reap the benefits. In Utah, Intermountain Health has several telehealth programs, like acute care, hospital-level care at home and remote patient monitoring, that emerged in response to changes required during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to testimony given at the hearing. The Ways and Means Committee invited Dr. Nathan Starr, a medical doctor and the lead of the tele-hospitalist program at Intermountain Health, headquartered in Salt Lake City, to testify about the policies necessary to support current and future at-home care. Moore, who represents Utahs 1st District, said he appreciates the desire to reduce red tape and offer more affordable options in health care. Utah has all the right answers in most cases, Moore said in an interview with the Deseret News, accompanied by Starr. How can telehealth save money for patients? At the hearing, Starr said the response he and his teams have received from patients has been really positive and said because of the increased accessibility, patients are encouraged to keep up with their medical care. So far, Intermountain Health has reported zero in-home safety events, saved 4,000 bed days and received a Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction score of 85%, according to Starrs written testimony. Starr said using the program also saves patients money. Our telehealth program runs in the red significantly if (we) just look at net operating income, he said. But, he said, his hospital system believes it creates value for their patients. Care recipients can economize on gas money and child care costs as well as time away from family and work, Starr said. They also save in hospital fees related to transferring the patient from one location to another and unnecessary interventions, whether its imaging or procedures that can be avoided because of the large pool of on-deck experts. In his written testimony, Starr cited an example of chemotherapy patients receiving treatment through video visits from oncologists, allowing them to stay in their communities with family and friends. Typically, in-person infusion times can last up to 12 hours, and if a patient needs to drive hours to get to infusion, each treatment could be a multi-day trip, Starr said. For 849 patients receiving Tele-Oncology services in Richfield, Utah, the total drive time saved was 232,626 minutes. Of course, guardrails should also be in place. We cant take it too far, where were performing surgery over Zoom, Moore said. How can telehealth unburden health care workers? The other side of the coin is the workforce shortages, especially in rural and underserved areas, the Utah representative said. In his interview with Deseret News, Starr said offloading work from areas experiencing staffing shortages, and accommodating them into the telehealth program, can provide assistance from a central location efficiently. It also allows the providers in those rural areas to sleep at night knowing that patients are being cared for and theyre not getting woken up by nurses with questions, he added. The remote monitoring program allows a medical practitioner to see more patients, said Starr, noting the high involvement of nurses, who support physicians and patients. This results in higher job satisfaction reported by health care and frontline workers in remote areas, he said. But the top limitation of telehealth is the lack of face-to-face contact. Sometimes being able to see a patient in person, press on their belly yourself, is so reassuring and helpful, said Starr. Virtual visits are often a little tighter, with less time for chitchat. What can Congress do to expand telehealth? At the hearing, Starr urged Congress to pass the Expanding Care in the Home Act, introduced in the Ways and Means Committee last year. This legislation would make at-home care a viable option for more patients. Starr also urged lawmakers to extend the pandemic-era Acute Hospital Care at Home Initiative by five more years. He told the Deseret News he sees an urgency to pass this bill and the extension. Should Congress fail to pass an extension, it would force many hospitals to drop telehealth programs, which could call for reinvestments, reeducation and retraining while patients find limits on their options. If hospitals are forced to put telehealth programs on pause, health care providers would have less confidence and stability to keep operating, Moore said, adding, So, lets continue making sure they have an environment that is predictable. Moore said he sees strong bipartisan support behind remote health care and hes hopeful these pieces of legislation pass. But Congress sometimes likes to screw up the two car parade, if you will, he said jokingly. This is a simple reauthorization. Lets not let Congress and all the drama get in the way. What I mean by that is when theres something popular, things get tacked on to it, or you get leveraged in one way or another, Moore said. Well do our best to try to avoid that. This story has been updated. Colorado's 4th Congressional District Republican Rep. Ken Buck announced Tuesday that he will leave Congress before the end of the month. Now, Coloradans are left wondering who will take his place. Buck first announced he wasnt seeking reelection for Colorados 4th Congressional District in November 2023, but that timeline was expedited Tuesday when Buck announced that he will leave the House of Representatives early despite having over nine months left in his term. His last day will be Friday, March 22. U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, who represents Colorado's 4th District, participates in a tour of Liberty Common High School in Fort Collins on Jan. 30, 2020. "It has been an honor to serve the people of Colorado's 4th Congressional District in Congress for the past 9 years. I want to thank them for their support and encouragement throughout the years," Buck said in a statement. "Today, I am announcing that I will depart Congress at the end of next week. I look forward to staying involved in our political process, as well as spending more time in Colorado with my family." More: Ken Buck says he won't run for reelection to Congress, citing wayward GOP Gov. Jared Polis calls for special election after Buck's resignation After Buck's announcement on Tuesday, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said in a press release that he plans to call a special election to select a replacement for the rest of Bucks term on June 25, the same day as the state's general primary elections. More: Colorado primary election 2024: Add these 13 important dates to your calendar How will candidates get on the special election ballot? According to Colorado law, it is required that the governor should call a special election between 85 and 100 days after a vacancy in Congress. This means that Coloradans in the 4th District can expect multiple items on their June ballot, including a vote for their political primary choice as well as their vote for the interim representative to fill Buck's seat in Congress. What is a Congressional District? A voter guide to districts for Colorado's House and Senate, U.S. Congress According to the law, political parties pick the candidates in special elections for congressional vacancies. Unaffiliated candidates can also try to run in the special election by collecting petition signatures. The interim representative will serve the remainder of Buck's term. The seat is up for election again in November. Nearly 20 candidates hope to take Buck's seat in November election Nearly 20 candidates are in the running to represent the 4th Congressional District for the next full term. Colorado's 4th District Candidates Wondering who Lauren Boebert might face? These candidates are vying for the 4th Congressional District However, that that field will narrow further after the June primary when Republican and Democratic voters will select their respective party representatives for the General Election on Nov. 5. 4th Congressional District unaffiliated voters will receive ballots for both the Democratic and Republican candidates but should only fill out one of the ballots in order for their vote to count. This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado Rep. Ken Buck resigns from 4th Congressional District ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) A suspect accused of attacking and raping a woman who was walking in Abilene 20 years ago has finally been arrested in connection to the crime. Walter Smith was taken into custody Tuesday on a warrant for Sexual Assault in connection to the allegations, which stem from an incident that took place near Lincoln Middle School in Abilene in December 2004. Court documents state police were contacted that day after witnesses found a woman screaming near the school. This woman told police she had left her friends house and was walking on the 900 block of Sycamore Street when she noticed a suspect, later identified as Smith, following her. The documents state that the woman claims Smith eventually forced her into a vacant lot, where he forcibly sexually abused her. Detectives were able to observe signs that an assault had taken place, such as trampled grass at the scene of the incident and dirt stains on the victims jeans, according to the documents. Smith was finally arrested after a DNA profile that was taken from the body of the victim following the assault returned as a match to him in February 2024. No further information has been released. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTAB - BigCountryHomepage.com. MEMPHIS, Tenn. Republican Representative John Gillespie of Memphis and a House bill he sponsored are now coming under fire from Memphis Democrats. The bill was aimed at stopping the local ban on traffic stops in Memphis. John Gillispie lied to Mr. & Mrs. Wells as to when this bill would be presented, said Representative Justin Pearson (D-Memphis). There is absolutely nothing new to the way theyre treating our legislation and nothing new to the way theyre treating our communities taking away local control on so many issues. The bill would repeal a Memphis City Council ordinance that banned pretextual stops passed after the death of Tyre Nichols. Tennessee lawmakers advance bill to undo Memphis traffic stop reforms after Tyre Nichols death I know they pass ordinances that violate state law and violate common sense, Gillespie said. I have constituents and I have neighbors and members of the community that are begging, begging, begging for safer streets and this will do exactly that. Democrats say Nichols parents wanted to be in Nashville to attend the House session when the bill was passed, but according to their attorney, Gillespie told them not to come because he did not plan to bring the bill to the floor. This is what they are. This is who they have been, Pearson said. They are operating with white supremacy and racism as their guiding post for how theyre going to legislate and its incumbent upon us to speak up and speak out against it. Democrats call the measure Republican overreach. The (Nichols) family is the most important part of it. They were the advocate for the ordinances that took place in Memphis and Memphis City Council made a decision that we should support and uphold, said Representative Torrey Harris (D-Memphis). Download the WREG App today and stay up to date with breaking news and weather. Sign up for WREG newsletters and have the latest top stories sent right to your inbox. See more breaking news, local news and weather from WREG.com for Memphis and the Mid-South. They say some state laws are making the crime problem worse. Our D.A., our police, everyone is following the laws put into place by us on the state level, Harris said. If there is an increase in crime its because of a law we put into place, permitless carry was put into place. As for reducing Memphis crime, lawmakers say will do their part. And were going to get there, but we dont need the state of Tennessee or one member of the delegation Memphis making a decision on the whole place of Memphis, Harris said. Representative Gillespie recently said on social media, I am committed to defending our state against crime. When crime is on the rise, our law enforcement must be equipped to combat it. He also released the following statement: My heart breaks for Tyre Nichols entire family. They have lost a son, and they are in unimaginable pain. I have talked with them, and I hope to continue to keep an open dialogue. They were aware that this item would be on the calendar today. My No. 1 priority has always been to improve public safety and to make Memphis a safe city again. This legislation is about enforcing the state laws we already have on the books. No local government should be allowed to make any city less safe, nor should our law enforcement ever be put in the position of choosing which laws they should enforce. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com. With two and a half months of 2024 behind us, its fair to say that last years rally is still with us, with the S&P 500 up 8.5% so far this year. In an interesting development, the Magnificent 7 mega-cap tech firms, or at least some of them, have slowed down, giving investors a chance to diversify their portfolios without sacrificing gains. Madison Faller, global investment strategist for the investment firm JPMorgan, sheds light on the situation: We agree that the path forward for markets is higher. We think big tech can continue to climb and other segments of the market can also join in Other sectors and pockets of the market, such and consumer-linked names, health care and small and mid-cap companies, stand to join in the rally. Last year, the Magnificent 7 contributed 60% of the S&P 500s 26% total return, while remaining 493 companies accounted for just 40%. So far this year, thats flipped, with everything else now driving almost 60% of the S&Ps return, Faller added. Following her lead, the JPMorgan stock analysts have identified two small-cap stocks that show potential to gain as much as 140% in the coming months. In fact, JPMorgan analysts are not the only ones singing the praises of these stocks. According to TipRanks database, they are both rated as Strong Buys by the analyst consensus. Lets take a closer look. Annexon Biosciences (ANNX) First on our list of JPMorgan picks is Annexon Biosciences, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company working on new treatments for patients who suffer from complement pathway-mediated disorders of the brain, body, and eye. The company works with a distinct approach designed to stop C1q and all inflammatory aspects of the complement pathway before activation begins. Annexon is the only biopharma active now to focus solely on C1q, and its flagship programs target several conditions, including Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), geographic atrophy, and other autoimmune indications. Story continues The leading program in the companys pipeline is ANX005, a proposed treatment for GBS. This condition is an autoimmune disease of the peripheral nervous system, characterized by sudden-onset muscle weakness. The condition can be life-threatening when it affects the muscles that control breathing or when it causes abnormal heart rate or blood pressure. ANX005 has received both Fast Track and Orphan Drug designations from the FDA, and Annexon expects to report data from the drug candidates Phase 3 pivotal clinical trial results during Q2 of this year. The company is on track to prepare and submit the BLA (Biologics License Application), a key regulatory milestone, during 2H24. Also on track for this year is Annexons ANX007 program. This drug candidate is under study as a treatment for geographic atrophy, a form of dry age-related macular degeneration. Currently, the company plans to initiate the Phase 3 ARCHER II trial in mid-2024, as well as the Phase 3 ARROW trial during the second half of this year. The companys solid pipeline, and particularly the advanced state of its leading ANX005 program, has caught the eye of JPMs 5-star biotech expert Anupam Rama, who is bullish on Annexon. We see a high probability of success for the near-term ANX005 pivotal phase 3 readout in Guillain-Barre Syndrome. Recall, data are expected in 1H24 and is a key near-term value driver of ANNX shares We are conservatively on the lower end of Street peak sales for ANX005 in GBS (JPMe: WW $500M+; Street range $500M-$1B in US / EU). On positive pivotal data in GBS, we see ANNX shares trading to the high-single digits / share level versus downside to the low-single digits / share level; hence balanced reward / risk profile at current levels (though again, we see a high probability of success and see potential for sentiment based upside), Rama opined. Quantifying his bullish stance, Rama gives Annexon shares an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating, and he supports that with an $11 price target that shows his confidence in a 140% potential gain for the stock over the course of this year. (To watch Ramas track record, click here) The JPMorgan view may turn out to be the conservative look at Annexon the stocks Strong Buy consensus rating is based on a unanimous 5 analyst reviews, and the average price target of $14.80 suggests 222% upside from the current share price of $4.59 (See Annexon stock forecast) EverQuote (EVER) Next up is the online insurance marketplace EverQuote. This company operates a platform that connects insurance buyers with insurance agents and covers multiple aspects of the industry, including life insurance, car and vehicle insurance, and home and renter insurance. Agents can post policies and pricing on the platform in a format that is searchable for potential buyers. Buyers can use the search capability to seek out specific insurance products and specific policy pricing ranges. EverQuote provides these services free of charge to the policy buyers and takes its own cut after policies are purchased through fees paid by the issuing insurance company. EverQuote was founded in 2011 and is one of many companies that have taken advantage of the digital economy to streamline consumer or financial industries for both customers and vendors. The company describes its mission as empowering insurance shoppers and uses the combination of digital tech and data to make the insurance market traditionally viewed by its customers as too complex simpler and more affordable, as well as more personalized to the buyers needs. The end result is cost savings for the customer through better risk management. As more and more consumers, across the economy generally, turn to online and digital business, EverQuote has found itself realizing some overall gains, reflected in a 49% increase in the companys stock year-to-date. In the latest reported quarter, 4Q23, EverQuote recorded revenues of $55.7 million, exceeding expectations by nearly $6 million. The companys bottom line figure, the GAAP EPS, was a loss of 19 cents per share but this compared favorably to the 26-cent loss in the prior-year quarter and beat the forecast by 13 cents per share. Overall, it was a solid quarter for EverQuote. Those sound results were expected by JPMorgan analyst Cory Carpenter, who sees this company in a sound position to continue delivering strong results. We expected strong results after peers MAX/QNST called out improved auto carrier spend into year end, but EVERs 1Q outlook far exceeded expectations Indeed, EVER is still operating far below its pre-hard cycle revenue runrate, though Adj. EBITDA has almost returned to prior highs of ~5.5-6% margin due to structural improvements made during the downturn. We are increasing our 2024 revenue by 26% and our 2024 Adj. EBITDA from $5M to $17M. EVER shares are up 200%+ over the last 6 months, but we continue to like EVER as a levered play on the auto carrier recovery, which we expect to drive accelerating revenue growth and healthy margin expansion through 2025, Carpenter stated. Looking ahead, Carpenter puts an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating on EVER stock, with a $25 price target that implies a one-year upside potential of ~37%. (To watch Carpenters track record, click here) The Strong Buy consensus rating on EVER shares is based on 7 recent analyst reviews, which break down to 6 Buys and 1 Hold. The stock is currently trading for $18.30 and its $24.33 average price target indicates room for ~33% gain on the one-year horizon. (See EverQuote stock forecast) To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment. FIRST ON FOX: A top House panel is planning an oversight hearing to examine the threat China poses to the U.S. agriculture industry as part of broader efforts to curb foreign influence in the key strategic sector. The hearing titled "The Danger China Poses to American Agriculture" will be hosted by the House Agriculture Committee on March 20 and will cover a range of issues related to China's involvement in the domestic agriculture sector. Notably, the hearing will include testimony from South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who has enacted aggressive limitations on foreign ownership of agricultural lands in her state. "Its no secret that China poses significant threats to our way of life, agriculture is no exception," Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., said in a written statement to Fox News Digital. "Weve seen China steal our intellectual property, hack our cyber infrastructure, and buy up American farmland," Thompson continued. "We will look to every available legislative vehicle, including the farm bill, to stop China in its tracks and strengthen our food and national security." REPUBLICANS UNVEIL EFFORT BARRING CHINA, RUSSIA FROM BUYING US LAND "We will look to every available legislative vehicle, including the farm bill, to stop China in its tracks and strengthen our food and national security," said House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn Thompson. According to the committee, the hearing will focus on various ways Chinese entities seek to influence the agricultural industry. In addition to China's growing ownership of productive lands in the U.S., it will examine the intellectual property theft of patented seeds and how cyberattacks harm the industry. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Noem will testify during the hearing's first panel alongside other officials, including Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., who chairs the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. A second expert panel will include testimony from Kip Tom, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture. FORMER CIA DIRECTOR LEON PANETTA WARNS CHINA MAY USE MICHIGAN EV PLANT FOR ESPIONAGE Last week, Noem signed legislation prohibiting six foreign governments China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia and Venezuela and associated entities from owning agricultural land in South Dakota. Her office explained at the time that the bill was one of her "top priorities." "China is aggressively purchasing land and purchasing property close to our strategic national areas that will house our greatest weapons, and we are going to ensure that, in South Dakota, that never happens," Noem remarked at a bill signing event on March 4. The House Agriculture Committee's hearing comes shortly after the U.S. Government Accountability Office released a sprawling report earlier this year showing that the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has failed to consistently share timely data on foreign investments in U.S. agricultural land as required under the 1978 Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act. The USDA's most recent data suggests that, as of 2021, foreign investment in U.S. agricultural land grew to approximately 40 million acres. Additionally, Chinese agricultural investment in the U.S. increased tenfold between 2009 and 2016 alone. However, data on Chinese ownership since 2016 has yet to be released. REPUBLICANS UNVEIL EFFORT PROTECTING FEDERAL LANDS FROM FOREIGN INVESTORS, CLIMATE ACTIVISTS Additionally, in recent months, certain Chinese projects have received local and federal scrutiny. For example, officials in Grand Forks, North Dakota, rejected a Chinese company's proposed corn mill over concerns about its proximity to a U.S. Air Force base in February 2023, and locals have pushed back against Chinese green energy firm Gotion High-Tech's purchase of 270 acres of land in Michigan months later. The Government Accountability Office conducted its review after Thompson and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., led a letter alongside nearly 130 fellow House Republicans requesting such a probe in October 2022. "Growing foreign ownership of U.S. farmland, particularly by China, poses a direct threat to our food security and national security," Thompson and Comer said in a joint statement in January. The USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Original article source: Republicans to spearhead oversight hearing on growing Chinese threat to US agriculture A cat fell into a chemical vat at a factory in a western Japan city. Now authorities have warned residents to stay away from the feline (1 News) Residents of a Japanese city have been warned to stay away from a cat that reportedly fell into a vat of toxic chemicals and is now missing. Footage from a surveillance camera shows the cat making an escape, leaving yellowish-brown pawprints in its wake on the factory floor at Nomura Plating in Fukuyama. Residents have reportedly been told to look out for the cat that might be behaving strangely and stay away as it is possibly carrying carcinogenic chemicals on its body. Yellow paw prints seen by workers (Nomura Plating/AFP via Getty Images) The vat contained the carcinogenic chemical hexavalent chromium. The chemical can cause skin irritation, respiratory problems, and blindness. The company stated that factory workers are required to wear masks and rubber gloves while managing the substance. A company spokesperson was quoted as saying by AFP: The incident woke us up to the need to take measures to prevent small animals like cats from sneaking in, which is something we had never anticipated before. According to the Asahi Shimbun newspaper, a member of the factory staff discovered the paw prints of the cat on the factory floor and alerted the authorities. The environmental team of Fukuyama city cautioned the public against touching any cat that seems abnormal while also noting that the animal might have succumbed to injuries from the incident. The whereabouts of the cat are currently unknown. The Independent has reached out to Nomura Plating for a comment. The logo of the Retirement Systems of Alabama features the letters RSA floating over an outline of Alabama in the center, surrounded by a circle. The logo is done in gold. A logo of the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA) seen in Montgomery, Alabama on January 24, 2023. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) The head of Alabamas state retirement systems Tuesday criticized the states new school voucher-like law, saying it could impact the teachers retirement system and health insurance once fully implemented. Retirement Systems of Alabama CEO David Bronner said at a meeting of the State Employee Retirement System board meeting the impact from the law may be minimal in the first two years with eligibility limited by income. But Bronner said that once the state opens the program to all Alabamians, the effects could spill over into the state employee retirement system. What Im telling you is in roughly three years and four years, weve got a really big problem if things dont change a little bit, Bronner said. The legislation would allow households with school-age children to claim up to $7,000 in tax credits to be spent on certain education-related expenses, including private school tuition, tutoring or education services for children with disabilities. The program will initially be limited to families making less than 300% of the federal poverty line, or around $75,000 for a family of three, but it would give priority to households with lower incomes. The funds would eventually be made available to all households. The special needs-reserved spots are not limited to the income level. The law requires the Legislature to appropriate at least $100 million for the program in 2026. It also says the Legislature intends to increase that funding if 90% or more of the funds are spent in a given year. The current Education Trust Fund budget (ETF) is about $8.8 billion. Bronner said he was concerned that diverting funding from public schools for private education could cause school districts to lose students and, as a result, teachers, which would affect the agencys funding formula for teachers retirement system and health insurance. Bronner said that about a decade ago when the state made changes to the state employee health insurance, the state lost about 5,000 employees. [Public Education Employees Health Insurance Plan] is so much bigger, if you take people away from public schools, no matter how many you take away, you affect funding for public schools, Bronner said. Rep. Danny Garrett, R-Trussville, chair of the House Ways and Means Education fund, said that is not a concern he has. School choice has been around for about 20 years, he said, and as more states have been taking up voucher-like programs, there is no indication losing teachers has been an issue. Weve not seen school choice programs in other states lead to mass exoduses that cause problems of that nature, and I dont see any reason why that would be a concern here, Garrett said. Neah Scott, legislative counsel for the Retirement Systems of Alabama, said after the meeting that they tried to look at the potential concern early on, but there isnt a state that has had a program like Alabamas running long enough to provide that kind of information. Arizona approved a similar program last year that will provide up to $7,000 to all families. It is projected to cost nearly $1 billion in the upcoming fiscal year. Scott said that the reporting data has a two year delay, so by the time Alabama is able to analyze another states program, Arizona will be into year four of its program. We can guess well, what if funding decreases by this much, what if enough public schools end up closing and you lose this many active education employees but we dont have any real evidence to kind of back up any of those assumptions, Scott said. Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, chair of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education, did not return a request for comment. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Retirement Systems of Alabama CEO criticizes Alabamas new school voucher-like law appeared first on Alabama Reflector. A review of Baltimore City schools that examined more than 18 million records found no widespread grade manipulation across the system, officials said at Tuesday nights Board of School Commissioners meeting. The states Department of Education ordered the audit after a 2022 Maryland Inspector General for Education report found the city school systems grading policies were inconsistent, particularly when grades were rounded up within 1 to 3 percentage points of passing. There were more than 12,500 instances where high school grades were changed from a fail to a pass between 2016 and the end of the 2019-20 school year. Consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal analyzed records from the 2022-23 school year, the first near-normal school year since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to school officials. More than 250,000 records were identified as grade changes but about 40% of those changes, or 107,400 records, were considered technical record-keeping documents with no effect. Overall, just 0.02% of all the modified records were considered changes to final report card grades. Sonja Santelises, CEO of the Baltimore City Public Schools System, said grades can be changed for legitimate reasons, such as correcting entrance errors or miscalculations. She emphasized that out of millions of grade entries, only four final grades were changed from fail to pass. When we talk about mass grade changing, we are talking about four grades that benefited students out of 18 million, Santelises said. The primary driver of the systems grade change issues was teachers, mostly in elementary schools, entering grades late after the marking period ended, said Jim Grady, an Alvarez & Marsal managing director of public sector services. The majority of grades entered late were because a student transferred to a new school and their grades from the previous school were sent late. Nearly 3,500 final grades were changed from null to pass, according to the analysis. Rachel Pfeifer, BCPSS executive director of academics, presented an overview of the audits result Tuesday. The review was not an investigation, Pfeifer said, but rather a performance tool used when updating the systems grading policies, which occurs every five years. City schools overhauled their grading policies in 2017 and in 2019 after school officials discovered administrators at Augusta Fells Savage Institute of Visual Arts fabricated classes and approved students for graduation by changing falling grades. A damning OIGE report on the scheme was published after a two-year investigation. Also Tuesday, school officials announced that students who attended a city prekindergarten program or Judy Center outperformed their peers on the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment. The assessment includes observations of a childs behavior and motor skills, as well as verbal questions to gauge math and language skills. Preparing 3- and 4-year-olds for kindergarten and elementary school is a major priority for the state education department and a focus of the Blueprint for Marylands Future, the states education reform plan. The Blueprint calls for adding more Judy Centers across the state; the centers help children from all backgrounds build social and academic skills needed for school. All of our student [racial and socioeconomic] groups equaled or outperformed the same groups at the state level, Santelises said. Studies have shown that children who have a strong foundation for learning are more likely to succeed in later grade levels. About 46% of city school students demonstrated readiness on the 2023-24 assessment, compared with 44% of Maryland students overall. Multilingual learner students in Baltimore increased readiness by 9 percentage points from 15% to 24%, doubling the states readiness of 12%. Students with disabilities increased by 11 percentage points to equal the states readiness of 18%. What we are doing for our youngest learners is working, its making a difference, its having an impact, said Joan Dabrowski, BCPSS chief academic officer. Baltimore City and Cecil County have the most Judy Centers in Maryland. An annual report on the assessment will be published in the next few weeks, a spokesperson for the state education department said. Nearly five years after Prairie Village mother Angela Green mysteriously disappeared, setting in motion what is still considered an open police investigation, national interest in the unsolved case has prompted two new developments. Steve Ridge, a Cedar Rapids, Iowa, private investigator who last year offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the location of Green or her remains, now tells The Star he is increasing his offer to $50,000. I am fully confident that more than one person knows exactly what happened to Angela, Ridge wrote in an email. Eventually someone will talk. My goal is to accelerate discovering the truth. This has been five years of living hell for Angelas loving family. Meanwhile, the 2019 case that has been covered by People magazine, Dateline NBC and true crime YouTube host Kendall Rae, amassing more than 1.7 million views since 2022, is now the subject of the true crime podcast Crime Junkie, Apples top podcast of 2023. Its most recent episode, released Monday, lays out the details of the case. When Angela Green vanished from her home in a Kansas suburb in 2019, she left behind a web of her husbands lies and a mystery thats been haunting her loved ones and baffling police, the episode description says. Green was 51 in June 2019 when she vanished from her home in the 7600 block of Tomahawk Road. Ellie Green last saw her mother on June 20, 2019. In 2020, Angelas daughter, Ellie an honors graduate from Shawnee Mission East High School, who was then a student at the University of Kansas spoke to The Star in detail of the strange circumstances surrounding her moms disappearance. She filed a missing person report in February 2020 and has come to believe that her mother is likely dead, perhaps at the hands of her father. In the episode, which is available to listen to on Spotify, Apple, Amazon and Pandora, hosts Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat describe the Prairie Village police visiting the Green home at the urging of Ellies cousin, Michelle Guo, as Ellies father, Geoffrey Green, continued to avoid Guo. Later that day, she gets a call back from the officer who went to the house and were like, Wow, you sure had it wrong; Angelas not dead, the podcast host says. (The police) say that Geoffrey said that Angelas completely fine. Shes just out with friends, enjoying the long Presidents Day weekend. Shell be back on Monday, no big deal. Angela Green, 52, of Prairie Village was reported missing by her daughter, Ellie Green eight months after Green said she last saw her mother in person. Here are some of the details Ellie Green previously told The Star: On June 20, 2019, her mother went missing. Only a few days prior, Ellie had returned from a month of studying in northern Italy following her freshman year at the University of Kansas. Angela, although devoted to her daughter, had also been what Ellie called a tiger mom, driving her daughter to achieve academic excellence. She was prone to what Ellie wondered might be depression or bipolar disorder. They argued over Ellies independence. One day, she lashed out at me, Ellie said. That night, Ellie left, crying in Shawnee Mission Easts parking lot, before going to stay with her then-boyfriends grandmother and, later, his family. Three days after the argument, she received a text from her father saying he had gotten her mother admitted to a nearby mental hospital, although he would not say where. He would never give me the place. Anything, Ellie said. I asked. I asked. I asked plenty of times. Every single time, he shut me down. Three and a half weeks later, Ellie said, her father shocked her, delivering news that her mother had died of a stroke. Nearly eight months passed, and there was no casket, no cremated remains that Ellie saw, no funeral or memorial. She said her father put her off each time she brought it up. People are like, Did you not ask questions for the next eight months? Ellie said. Of course I asked questions, like every single weekend, or whenever I went over there, or saw him, I would ask questions. But he would not answer anything about Mom. Angela Green, seen in this old family photo taken when she was about 20 years old. Prairie Village police have searched property owned by Geoffrey Green. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has also been involved. No arrests have been made. No charges have been filed. Ellie has since moved out of state. Anyone with information is asked to call the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477) or the Prairie Village Police Department at 913-642-6868. Igor Krasnov, the head of the short-lived presidential campaign of Russian anti-war politician Boris Nadezhdin, was arrested in the Russian city of Vladivostok on March 13 and sentenced to six days in prison for "propagating extremist LGBT," Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported. Nadezhdin was the only potential candidate planning to compete in Russia's upcoming presidential election to openly speak out against Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. He had his hopes to be registered on the ballot dashed earlier in February when Russia's Central Election Commission ruled that too many of the signatures he collected in support of his candidacy were invalid. Nadezhdin's team posted pictures of the court ruling on Telegram, which said that the charge stemmed from a message Krasnov sent on the messaging app that contained the rainbow flag emoji. Krasnov's colleagues told RFE/RL that other former members of the team were also arrested. Russia tightened its already restrictive laws on LGBT people in November 2023 when the Supreme Court labeled the "LGBT movement" an "extremist organization" and banned its activities. It is not clear how Russian authorities define the "international LGBT movement" and its symbols. The six-color rainbow flag has been a global symbol of LGBT rights since the 1970s, but Russian lawmaker Alexander Khinstein told the state news outlet Kommersant that the law did not ban rainbows outright. Khinstein claimed a "classic" seven-color rainbow was permissible under the new law. Russian courts have nonetheless charged individuals with violating the law for displaying a rainbow flag. Laws in Russia are often enforced arbitrarily or used to target perceived opponents of the regime. Read also: Short-lived rise of Boris Nadezhdin, Putins anti-war opponent Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. TOKYO (Reuters) -Nissan Motor is considering seeking a business partnership with Honda Motor, TV Tokyo reported on Wednesday, while the Nikkei business daily said they could collaborate on electric vehicles. Nissan's board of directors decided on Tuesday to consider a potential alliance with its larger Japanese rival, TV Tokyo said, citing unidentified sources. The Nikkei reported that Nissan and Honda could work together on electric vehicles to better compete with Chinese rivals. A Nissan spokesperson declined to comment on the report, and said he did not know whether its board met on Tuesday. A Honda spokesperson said there was nothing the company could say about the report. Nissan, which has a longstanding alliance with French automaker Renault, intends to sign a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Honda, TV Tokyo said, adding the areas of cooperation were not yet decided. Citing multiple Nissan sources, the Nikkei said specific steps could include the introduction of a common powertrain, joint procurement and development of a common platform. The collaboration could potentially extend to battery procurement and joint development of electric vehicles, the Nikkei added. Nissan already cooperates with Renault on EVs, mainly in Europe. The next Nissan electric Micra will share the same architecture as the new Renault Five and be built in the same plant in northern France. Nissan has also committed to invest up to 600 million euros ($656.64 million) in Renault's new electric vehicle entity Ampere. But the two firms last year reduced the scope of a years-long alliance to allow for a more agile partnership, and Renault has since signed agreements with new partners such as China's Geely. "Under the new framework agreement of the alliance, the partners are free to make strategic decisions outside of common projects together," said a Renault spokeswoman. Nissan and Honda both lost market share in the world's top auto market, China, last year amid heavy competition from BYD and other electric vehicle makers. They may cut production in the country, the Nikkei newspaper said on Tuesday. ($1 = 0.9137 euros) (Reporting by Daniel Leussink, Maki Shiraki and Makiko Yamazaki; Additional reporting by Gilles Guillaume in Paris; Editing by David Goodman, Mark Potter, Jane Merriman and Cynthia Osterman) Blazing Glory A Japanese rocket by startup Space One has exploded in spectacular fashion following a launch attempt earlier today. It's yet another major setback for the company, which was hoping to become Japan's first commercial entity to launch a satellite into orbit, the New York Times reports. Drone footage shows the dramatic scene. At first, everything appears to go fine as the solid-fuel rocket dubbed Kairos lights its engines. But it doesn't take long for the rocket to seemingly veer off path, erupting into a massive cloud of smoke just seconds later, causing major pieces of debris to rain down on the launch pad and engulf parts of the facility and a neighboring forest in flames. https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1767874497091383584?s=20 Flight Termination At a news conference following the attempt, Space One director Mamoru Endo revealed that the rocket automatically self-destructed after detecting an abnormality. "The rocket terminated the flight after judging that the achievement of its mission would be difficult," company president Masakazu Toyoda told reporters, as quoted by Reuters. The launch took place at Space Port Kii on Japan's main island. The 60-foot-long rocket is designed to carry up to 550 pounds into low-Earth orbit. Kairos was carrying a spy satellite by Japan's Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, which was meant to serve as a backup satellite in case other government satellites were to go down. While Space One is still struggling to become one of many private space companies to launch humanmade objects into orbit, the country's national space program has fared quite well recently. Case in point, the Japanese space agency managed to make a soft landing on the lunar surface with its Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) earlier this year, making Japan only the fifth country to do so. It's unclear when Space One will try to launch its next rocket. But the company's unperturbed by its latest launch failure. "We don't use the word 'failure', because each trial brings us... new data and experience for another challenge," Toyoda said. "Rocket Lab, too, did not achieve its mission at the inaugural [Electron rocket] flight, but it went on to launch three rockets in its second year," he added, referring to the US-based rocket company, which ironically launched a Japanese satellite from its New Zealand launch site less than 24 hours ago. "We can't stop here we need to compete with this company," Toyoda said. More on satellite launches: Alarming New Satellite Can Spy on Individual People (Bloomberg) -- As some of the harshest Republican critics of TikTok soften their stance on the China-backed social media app, one billionaire donors name is ricocheting around Washington. Most Read from Bloomberg The prospect that the app will be banned has thrust Jeff Yass, the trading mastermind behind market-maker Susquehanna International Group, into an uncomfortable spotlight. Thats because he owns a stake in TikToks parent company, ByteDance, thats worth $15 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, the largest single asset in his $40.8 billion fortune. Yass has used that wealth to become the biggest donor in the 2024 election cycle, with $46.4 million spent so far, mostly focused on the issue of school choice. Hes also been mentioned as a possible candidate for Treasury secretary along with hedge fund billionaire John Paulson and former US trade representative Robert Lighthizer should Donald Trump win in November, according to people familiar with the matter. But with such a large chunk of Yass fortune at risk, the registered libertarians connections are now being closely watched in particular whether theyll try to muster support to kill the bill passed Wednesday by the House of Representatives to ban the app in the US unless ByteDance sells it. Read more: Why TikTok Faces a US Ban Over National Security: QuickTake The clearest signal of a reversal came last week when Trump said he was opposed to the bill. That declaration came after he attended a donor event in Palm Beach, Florida, put together by conservative organization Club for Growth, which counts Yass as one of its biggest backers. (Trump said he hadnt discussed the issue with Yass in a subsequent interview with CNBC.) Story continues Club for Growth has also dispatched former Trump aide Kellyanne Conway to lobby lawmakers to oppose the TikTok ban. Meanwhile, Vivek Ramaswamy went from calling the platform digital fentanyl to opening a TikTok account himself after a super PAC that supported his failed bid for the Republican nomination received money from Yass last year. A spokesperson for Yass declined to comment. The legislation, which passed the House by a vote of 352 to 65, next heads to the Senate, where the outlook is less certain. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has so far declined to endorse it, and members including Republican Rand Paul have come out against it. Some proponents of a ban include Republican politicians who Yass has backed, like Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Senator Ted Cruz. Tough Sell If the bill becomes law, and withstands the expected wave of legal challenges, finding a buyer for TikTok might not be so easy. The largest US technology companies, with some of the deepest pockets in corporate America, would likely face regulatory scrutiny over a purchase, though Microsoft Corp. was said to be exploring an acquisition of TikToks US operations in 2020. Read more: US House Passes Bill That Would Force TikTok Sale or Ban It Bobby Kotick, the former chief executive officer of Activision Blizzard Inc., has expressed interest, the Wall Street Journal reported, but he would need to raise more money through partners. (ByteDance denied its co-founder, billionaire Zhang Yiming, was approached.) And any divestiture would also require approval by the Chinese government, which said last year that it would firmly oppose a forced sale. As well as TikTok, Beijing-based ByteDance operates a China-only version of the app called Douyin. ByteDance offered to buy back its shares at a valuation of about $268 billion in December. Yass is far from the only investor with billions riding on ByteDance. Carlyle Group Inc., KKR & Co., SoftBank Group Corp. and General Atlantic have all invested, according to data provider PitchBook. But Susquehanna was one of the first to back the company. SIG China, a venture capital firm Yass established in 2005 to place bets on Chinas technology industry, invested in 2012 and owns about 15% of the company. Art Dantchik, co-founder of Susquehanna, is on the ByteDance board. Back then Yass wasnt a significant donor in elections, giving about $78,000 in the 2012 federal election cycle, according to data compiled by OpenSecrets. That ballooned to $56.2 million in the 2022 midterms, when he was the fourth-largest donor. --With assistance from Molly Schuetz, Pratish Narayanan, Jennifer Jacobs and Jordan Fabian. (Updates with potential Treasury secretary candidates in third paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) A Rockford tree service has settled with the Attorney Generals office after a lawsuit claimed the company used illegal business practices and misled customers. Michigans Choice Tree Service, LLC, Storm Support Emergency Tree Removal, LLC, and their owner David Foster have agreed to pay $13,500 to cover customers losses, civil fines and lawsuit expenses. As part of the settlement signed by both parties last week, Storm Support has agreed not to operate in Michigan unless it gets a certificate of authority required from the Michigan Limited Liability Company Act. It also pledges not to help other companies with emergency tree services or operate under other business names without notifying the AGs office in advance. Excessive prices: AG sues tree service LLCs, owner The lawsuit, filed by Michigans Attorney General, accuses the tree service of violating MLLCA, Michigan Consumer Protection Act (MCPA) and breaches of contract. During investigation into the company, the AGs office said it found evidence that Michigans Choice was confusing customers about their rights and misleading them about the agreements they were signing, the costs of the services and their responsibility for the costs insurance didnt cover. The lawsuit said Foster did not give any cost estimates and led customers to believe he would work with insurers so they would not have to pay anything out of pocket. Then, Michigans Choice would allegedly have customers sign contracts holding them liable for any costs that insurance did not cover. The LLC also demonstrated a pattern of charging grossly excessive prices, a release from the AGs office said. Storm Support charged about $23,700 to remove three branches from a roof in Lansing, about $39,500 to remove a tree that fell on a Grand Rapids house and about $26,100 to remove a tree that fell on a Cedar Springs home, according to the AGs office. The office said it has dual goals of allowing Defendants to continue operating so long as they can do so in a lawful manner and securing binding assurances that Defendants will permanently cease their unfair and deceptive business practices. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. Read the full story on Modern Car Collector Rolls-Royce Ghost Prism Is A Modern Collectible With the announcement of the new Rolls-Royce Ghost Prism to mark the brands 120th anniversary this year, were seeing yet another modern collectible car in the making. Getting your hands on one could prove to be difficult unless you have considerable pull with the storied British automaker, which is why everyone will want one. See the one-off Rolls-Royce shooting brake which recently sold. Production of the Prism will be limited to just 120 units. Each one wears Gunmetal paint, which Rolls-Royce says has a rich mineral finish. Application of four layers of the paint is followed by 16 hours of hand polishing, creating a dramatic effect. Image via Rolls-Royce Motorcars The Gunmetal paint is accented by a buyers choice of one of four accent colors in the front lower fascia, pinstriping down the sides, brake calipers, and is also present in details throughout the interior, including all 1,040 lights in the Starlight Headliner. Those color choices are Phoenix Red, Turchese, Mandarin, and Forge Yellow. It will be interesting to see how many of each are ordered. Image via Rolls-Royce Motorcars Instead of the usual bright mirror-polished stainless steel finish on the Ghost Prisms grille and trunk lid, a high-gloss Burnout finish which Rolls-Royce describes as a smoked black-grey hue is applied. To achieve that effect, artisans use a light abrasive on each piece of trim. After they apply primer, four coats of Burnout paint are applied in turn. Once the paint has fully cured, its polished to a high-gloss finish, creating a dark mirror appearance. Image via Rolls-Royce Motorcars The pairing of darkness with a splash of color is supposed to mimic a prism effect, with inspiration drawn from contemporary design. Further punctuating the theme of contrast is a black interior with white on the seats, door panels, center console, etc. With global production capped at 120 Rolls-Royce Ghost Prisms, we expect these to be spoken for rapidly. And as they enter the private market or cross public auction blocks, our anticipation is the value will increase robustly. Images via Rolls-Royce Motorcars Follow us on Facebook and Twitter Director Roman Polanski will face a civil trial in Los Angeles in 2025 over an alleged rape half a century ago (Loic Venance) French-Polish director Roman Polanski, who fled the US more than four decades ago after being convicted of sexually assaulting a child, will face a civil trial over the alleged rape of another minor years earlier, the woman's lawyer said Tuesday. The case against the director of "The Pianist" will be heard in Los Angeles in August 2025, said Gloria Allred, a Hollywood lawyer who has represented victims of rapist Harvey Weinstein and others who emerged in the #MeToo era. While Polanski cannot be forced to attend the trial, said Allred, the civil hearing will be a chance for her client, named in the suit as Jane Doe, to seek justice for the alleged attack in 1973. The suit, filed last year, claims Polanski took the then-teenager to dinner in 1973 at a restaurant in Los Angeles. He allegedly gave her tequila, and when she began to feel dizzy, drove her to his home in the tony Benedict Canyon, where he forced himself on her. "She told him: 'please don't do this,'" Allred told reporters. "She alleges that he ignored her pleas. She also alleges that defendant Polanski removed plaintiff's clothes and he proceeded to sexually assault her, causing her tremendous physical, emotional pain and suffering." The woman, whose age was not given, first came forward with allegations against Polanski in 2017, at which time she was identified as "Robin." The civil suit, which seeks unspecified damages, was filed in June 2023, just before the expiration of a California law that allowed for an extended window for claims against the alleged perpetrators of sexual crimes. Oscar-winner Polanski, now 90, is a divisive figure, with some in the movie world hailing his creative genius, while others insist he was always a sexual predator. In the late 1970s, Polanski fled the US while awaiting sentencing for the assault of Samantha Geimer, a 13-year-old whom he drugged and raped. Geimer has subsequently defended Polanski, and was photographed with him last year. Polanski, who also directed "Rosemary's Baby" and "Chinatown," currently faces a defamation trial in France by British actress Charlotte Lewis, who claims he assaulted her in 1983, when she was 16. The director has always denied wrongdoing. pr-hg/nro If Florida Governor Ron DeSantis had a signature policy, it was Dont Say Gay. The law, which prohibited discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in schools, and was interpreted more broadly to remove LGBTQ books and students Pride flags from classrooms, burnished the governors national profile as he launched his failed run at the White House. His staff were so committed to defending the law, they launched conspiracy theories accusing anyone who opposed it of being groomersi.e., sexual predators. Now, two years after it was signed, a courtroom settlement has determined that students and teachers are allowed to talk about sexual orientation and gender identity after all. This result, advocates involved in the suit say, has successfully dismantled the most harmful impacts of the law. Is it possible that the DeSantiss reign of terror on queer and trans Floridians is coming apart? While the DeSantis administration immediately issued a press release calling the settlement a win, in that the law has not been struck down entirely, theres no denying that its scope is now severely curtailed; the settlement stipulates that only formal instruction of gender and sexuality has been restricted. And the anti-queer and anti-trans lawmakers in the Florida state legislature should see this as a double rebuke: When their session closed last week, 21 of the 22 anti-LGBTQ bills they had proposed were effectively dead. Certainly, the governors own self-aggrandizing pose as the last man standing between his state and all those he chastises as woke has taken a hit. Following the collapse of his presidential campaign, the governors return to Tallahassee could have freed up more time for him to focus on his anti-LGBTQ platform. But perhaps hes too late. Even before the legislative session had ended, Carlos Guillermo Smith, senior policy adviser at Equality Florida and a former state representative, told me, It appears that right-wing lawmakers who followed DeSantis off a cliff may have been the last ones to get the memo that Floridians are tired of this culture-war bullshit. With Dont Say Gay, DeSantis and the Florida state legislature inspired similar bills all over the nation. More than a dozen states introduced their own copycat versions before the Florida law had even gone into effect. Alabama got there first. It had been 21 years since such a law had been passed in any state, Kate Sosin at The 19th reported; the quick regression was even more striking given that the same governor who signed Alabamas Dont Say Gay law in 2022 had just the year before signed a law removing similar prohibitive language from a state sex education law. By 2024, according to the Movement Advancement Project, or MAP, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, and North Carolina had passed their own versions too. Common to much of the new wave of anti-LGBTQ legislation is vague language, leading those who would face penalties (and the lawyers advising them) to take a conservative path to life under the laws: Dont do anything that could risk violating the law, even if it might not be clearly spelled out. These Dont Say Gay laws opened up opportunities to police classroom behavior similarly. It was this vagueness that the laws opponents seized on in their legal challenge. As one of the parents involved in the suit told The Tampa Bay Times this week, The law was so vague that people stayed away from everything. Of the settlement, she said, it really defines what is not allowed, and everything else that is allowed. Its going to change students experience. On the other hand, the fact that this had to be fought in court at all could be considered a testament to how well these laws worktaking up advocates time and energy fighting policies that are pretty clearly illegal, and doing so as the political environment accompanying the law makes queer and trans peoples identities a point of debate. While the Florida law was being challenged in court, it was reshaping the lives of queer and trans adults and kids alike in the state, in ways that cant necessarily be recovered. More than half of 113 LGBTQ+ parents in Florida surveyed by the Williams Institute in 2022 had considered moving to another state because of the Dont Say Gay law, as detailed in a report published in January 202316.5 percent had taken steps to leave Florida, and 21 percent said they were less out about their own identity. Though DeSantis and his legislative allies ought to be chastened by this settlement, as well as the failure of other bills in the legislature, the fallout of these laws in Florida and elsewhere is dangerous and will last for years. School hate crimes have quadrupled in states that have recently passed anti-LGBTQ laws, as was uncovered in a new investigation this week by The Washington Post. The number of anti-LGBTQ+ school hate crimes serious enough to be reported to local police more than doubled nationwide between 2015-2019 and 2021-2022, reporters wrote. The rise is steeper in the 28 states that have passed laws curbing the rights of transgender students at school and restricting how teachers can talk about issues of gender and sexuality. Then too, while the DeSantis agenda targeting queer and trans Floridians may be faltering and may be unpopular, he could not have gotten the agenda this far if it were his alone. There will be others waiting to take up the baton. Florida has shown how far some states will go to make life unlivable for queer and trans people, and its too soon to know whether this agenda is really crumbling. As LGBTQ+ Floridians and their allies celebrate a limited victory, a lot of uncomfortable questions remainnot just about how to fight off DeSantis and how to be resilient but how to prevent another DeSantis from ever getting this far. Statistically speaking, long term investing is a profitable endeavour. But unfortunately, some companies simply don't succeed. For example, after five long years the KMD Brands Limited (NZSE:KMD) share price is a whole 79% lower. We certainly feel for shareholders who bought near the top. And we doubt long term believers are the only worried holders, since the stock price has declined 51% over the last twelve months. Shareholders have had an even rougher run lately, with the share price down 35% in the last 90 days. With that in mind, it's worth seeing if the company's underlying fundamentals have been the driver of long term performance, or if there are some discrepancies. Check out our latest analysis for KMD Brands To quote Buffett, 'Ships will sail around the world but the Flat Earth Society will flourish. There will continue to be wide discrepancies between price and value in the marketplace...' One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS). Looking back five years, both KMD Brands' share price and EPS declined; the latter at a rate of 27% per year. This change in EPS is remarkably close to the 27% average annual decrease in the share price. That suggests that the market sentiment around the company hasn't changed much over that time. Rather, the share price has approximately tracked EPS growth. The company's earnings per share (over time) is depicted in the image below (click to see the exact numbers). We consider it positive that insiders have made significant purchases in the last year. Even so, future earnings will be far more important to whether current shareholders make money. Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here.. What About Dividends? When looking at investment returns, it is important to consider the difference between total shareholder return (TSR) and share price return. Whereas the share price return only reflects the change in the share price, the TSR includes the value of dividends (assuming they were reinvested) and the benefit of any discounted capital raising or spin-off. Arguably, the TSR gives a more comprehensive picture of the return generated by a stock. As it happens, KMD Brands' TSR for the last 5 years was -61%, which exceeds the share price return mentioned earlier. And there's no prize for guessing that the dividend payments largely explain the divergence! Story continues A Different Perspective Investors in KMD Brands had a tough year, with a total loss of 48% (including dividends), against a market gain of about 1.9%. However, keep in mind that even the best stocks will sometimes underperform the market over a twelve month period. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 10% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand KMD Brands better, we need to consider many other factors. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for KMD Brands you should know about. There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying. Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on New Zealander exchanges. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty or independence is threatened, issuing another blunt warning to the West just days before an election in which hes all but certain to secure another six-year term. The Russian leader has repeatedly talked about his readiness to use nuclear weapons since launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. The most recent such threat came in his state-of-the-nation address last month, when he warned the West that deepening its involvement in the fighting in Ukraine would risk a nuclear war. Asked in an interview with Russian state television released early Wednesday if he has ever considered using battlefield nuclear weapons in Ukraine, Putin responded that there has been no need for that. He also noted that he doesnt think that the world is heading for a nuclear war, describing U.S. President Joe Biden as a veteran politician who fully understands the possible dangers of escalation. When asked for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reaction to Putins remarks, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that all rhetoric that could lead to miscalculation or escalation with obvious catastrophic consequences for the world must be avoided." Putin's comments appeared to be a message to the West that he's prepared to use all means to protect his gains in Ukraine. He said that in line with the countrys security doctrine, Moscow is ready to use nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the existence of the Russian state, our sovereignty and independence. All that is written in our strategy, we havent changed it, he said. In an apparent reference to NATO allies that support Kyiv, he also declared that the nations that say they have no red lines regarding Russia should realize that Russia wont have any red lines regarding them either. Lithuania's foreign minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, recently lamented that the West too often constrains itself with self-imposed red lines regarding Russia. He also welcomed a comment by French President Emmanuel Macron that the possibility of Western troops being sent to Ukraine couldn't be ruled out. Putin noted the statements from Biden and his administration that the U.S. wasn't going to send its troops to Ukraine. He charged that if the U.S. acts otherwise, Moscow would see the American troops as invaders and act accordingly. He claimed that even if some NATO allies deploy troops to Ukraine, it won't change the course of the war. If it turns to official foreign military contingents, I'm sure it will not change the situation on the battlefield ... just as the weapons supplies haven't changed anything, he said. In the wake of recent battlefield gains, Putin argued that Ukraine and its Western allies will eventually have to accept a deal to end the war on Russian terms. It shouldn't be a break for the enemy to rearm, but a serious talk involving the guarantees of security for the Russian Federation, he said. Putin said that a recent spike in Ukrainian drone attacks deep inside Russia is part of efforts to derail the country's three-day presidential election, which starts Friday and which he's set to win by a landslide, given his near total crackdown on dissent and tight control over Russia's political system. Russian authorities reported another major attack by Ukrainian drones early Wednesday. The Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 58 drones over six regions. One of the drones hit an oil refinery in the Ryazan region, injuring at least two people and sparking a fire. Another was downed as it was approaching a refinery near St. Petersburg. Along with drone attacks on facilities deep inside Russian territory, Ukrainian forces have launched a series of successful attacks on Russia's naval and air assets in the Black Sea region with sea drones and missiles. The strikes have crippled Moscows naval capability and forced it to limit its operations in the Black Sea. Earlier this week, Russian media reported that the Russian navy chief, Adm. Nikolai Yevmenov, was fired and replaced with Northern Fleet commander, Alexander Moiseyev. The Kremlin and the Defense Ministry haven't yet confirmed the reshuffle, which Russian commentators linked to the latest Black Sea Fleet's mishaps. Ukraine, meanwhile, reported more Russian attacks early Wednesday. A Russian strike killed two people and wounded another five in the town of Myrnohrad in the eastern region of Donetsk, about 30 kilometers (about 20 miles) from the front line, according to Gov. Vadym Filashkin. Local rescuers managed to pull a 13-year-old girl out of the rubble of an apartment building. A five-story building in the northern city of Sumy was struck by a drone launched from Russia overnight, killing two people and wounding eight, according to the regional administration. In Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's hometown, the death toll from a Russian missile attack the previous night rose to five, Gov. Serhii Lysak said. He said that 43 people were wounded in Kryvyi Rih, including 12 children, the youngest a 2-month-old infant. Every day our cities and villages suffer similar attacks. Every day Ukraine loses people because of Russian evil, Zelenskyy said. ___ Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia said on Wednesday it was alarmed by what it described as insulting rhetoric and ultimatums directed at Moscow from the political leadership of Armenia and advised Yerevan to use the proper communications channels instead. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was reacting to a statement made the previous day by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan who said his country would leave the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) unless the security bloc detailed its commitment to uphold Armenia's security in a satisfactory way. Ties between Armenia, traditionally a close ally of Moscow and host to various Russian military facilities, are strained after Azerbaijan retook its breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in September last year despite the presence there of Russian peacekeepers. The CSTO did not intervene either and the military action prompted a mass exodus of the area's ethnic Armenian population to Armenia. Zakharova said on Wednesday that Russia did not object to any country's right to determine its own foreign policy based on its national interests, but said Armenia's behaviour was improper. "We cannot but be alarmed by the ultimatums and sometimes insulting rhetoric from the Armenian leadership," she told a briefing. "The consistent desire of parts of the Armenian elite to discuss the CSTO outside this organisation is puzzling." She advised Armenia to discuss the future of its membership of the CSTO within the CSTO and to use two-way communication channels with Russia for anything concerning bilateral ties. Pashinyan has in recent months expressed discontent with Armenia's longstanding ties with Russia and said Yerevan could no longer rely on Moscow to ensure its defence needs. Armenian Foreign minister Ararat Mirzoyan said on Friday his country was also considering applying for European Union membership as it seeks to forge closer ties with the West. (Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Andrew Osborn) Russia will not attend the Ukraine peace summit scheduled to be held in Switzerland later this year even if it is invited, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on March 13. Switzerland agreed in January 2024 to host a global peace summit on Ukraine. Over 160 countries will be invited to discuss Kyiv's peace formula and create a joint document on what needs to be done to restore the countrys sovereignty. Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine's Presidential Office, suggested the following month that representatives from Russia might be invited. Kyiv has long emphasized its 10-point-peace plan. President Volodymyr Zelensky presented the proposal in a virtual speech to G20 leaders in November 2022. The plan envisages preventing ecocide in Ukraine, punishing those responsible for war crimes, withdrawing all Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine, the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity, and the release of all prisoners of war and deportees. The proposal also calls for ensuring energy security, food security, and nuclear safety. Moscow has rejected this proposal. An article on the Russian state-run media outlet RIA Novosti that carried Zakharova's comments claimed that Russia is open to negotiations, but it is Ukraine that is not willing. Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview published earlier on March 13 that it was "ridiculous" to start negotiations with Ukraine just because Kyiv is facing an increasingly critical ammunition shortage. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian forces fired at Ukraine's northeastern Sumy Oblast 82 times on March 12, striking 14 communities, the Sumy Oblast Military Administration said in its daily update. Five children were wounded in the Velyka Pysarivka community, and one man received injuries following Russia's shelling of Myropillia village. The communities of Yunakivka, Khotin, Bilopillia, Vorozhba, Myropillia, Krasnopillia, Velyka Pysarivka, Trostianets, Pytuvl, Nova Sloboda, Shalyhyne, Esman, Seredyna-Buda, and Znob-Novhorodske were targeted. The attacks caused at least 383 explosions in the region. Throughout the day, Russia assailed the border communities with mortar, artillery, drone, guided and unguided bombs, and rocket launchers. Russian forces also dropped mines onto at least two communities over the past 24 hours. The village of Velyka Pysarivka experienced the bulk of the attacks reported with 130 explosions recorded in the area. Russian attacks on Sumy Oblast have become increasingly destructive in recent weeks. Earlier this week, a Russian drone strike in Sumy during the early hours of March 6 injured four people and caused damage to multiple homes, schools, and medical centers. Another attack on March 7, killed two people and injured 26, with six civilians hospitalized. Late last month, a Russian attack on the community of Khotin killed two police officers and injured eight others. Read also: UPDATED: Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih kills 3, injures 44 Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. BEIRUT (AP) Three and a half years after hundreds of tons of improperly stored ammonium nitrate ignited at the Beirut port, setting off one of the worlds biggest non-nuclear explosions, Lebanese and French officials put forward a plan for reconstruction and reorganization of the port Wednesday. The Aug. 4, 2020, explosion at Beiruts port killed more than 200 people, injured and displaced thousands and devastated entire neighborhoods of the city. Since then, an investigation into the causes of the blast has ground to a halt, and reconstruction of the damaged areas has largely been carried out piecemeal with private funding as international funds promised for rebuilding were largely contingent on political reforms that never materialized. A number of proposals that have been floated for reconstruction and redevelopment of the still-functioning port have floundered, including an ambitious plan suggested in 2021 by a group of German companies to redevelop the port alongside new commercial and residential developments. In 2022, French shipping giant CMA CGM Group won a 10-year contract to run the container terminal at the port. The French government funded the development of the plan presented Wednesday by two French engineering firms, Artelia and Egis. It will focus on rebuilding quays damaged in the explosion, reorganizing the ports layout to streamline traffic, and shifting the facility to solar power. A French public agency, Expertise France, conducted an assessment with recommendations for improving security at the port. Lebanon will need to come up with an estimated $60- $80 million to complete the reconstruction. It plans on using the ports revenues which have been on the rise after a slump amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Lebanons descent into an unprecedented economic crisis reaching $150 million in 2023, the ports Director General Omar Itani said at a press conference Wednesday. The Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and French Ambassador to Lebanon also were also in attendance, along with representatives of the French companies. Story continues Mikati told reporters that Lebanon and France have strong historical relations that we are proud of, referring to ties that go back to when the small Arab nation was a French protectorate after World War I until independence in 1943. We consider Frances support for Lebanon to be particularly important because it represents the heart of the international community, he said. Magro said rebuilding the Beirut port is one of Frances priorities in our support for Lebanon. He added: The Lebanese economy indeed needs a reconstructed, modernized and secure port of Beirut." However, the plan presented Wednesday did not address the fate of the port's massive grain silos, which had absorbed much of the shock of the explosion, effectively shielding the western part of Beirut from the blast. The Lebanese government at one point planned to demolish the damaged silos but decided against it after families of the blasts victims and survivors protested, demanding their preservation as a memorial and in case they might contain evidence useful for the judicial probe. A large portion of the silos collapsed in 2022, while the remaining section has been left in place. The operational situation in eastern Ukraine remains challenging, with Russian troops concentrating their efforts and advancing in several areas, including Terny, Ivanivske, Berdychi, and Tonenke in Donetsk Oblast, as well as Verbove and Robotyne in Zaporizhzhya Oblast, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said during his visit to the front on March 13. Despite sustaining significant losses in two weeks of intense fighting, the Russian military has failed to capture any targeted settlements, all of which remain under Ukrainian control. Read also: Kyiv hopes to withdraw and replenish bruised brigades Decisions have been made to reinforce military positions in key areas with reserves, ammunition, and electronic warfare equipment, in coordination with commanders and staff officers. Elsewhere along the frontline, Russian activity has diminished notably due to enhanced defensive measures and unit rotations, according to General Syrskyi. Despite the challenges, General Syrskyi continues to operate in the frontline areas. The Tavria Operational and Strategic Troop Grouping reported in early March that Ukrainian forces successfully halted the advance of Russian invasion forces near Avdiivka, although they only partially control the villages of Berdychi and Tonenke. Read also: Ukrainian forces battle Russian invasion in eastern Donetsk Oblast Tavria group On March 11, the Ukrainian military observed increased hostilities near Novomykhailivka in Donetsk Oblast, with reports of Russian army reinforcements. Additionally, the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War indicated on March 12 that Russian forces were advancing further east of Terny and north of Heorhiyivka, Pobeda, and Novomykhailivka in Donetsk Oblast. 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 Leonid Volkov, associate of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny, arrives at the M100 Media Award ceremony at the Palace Theater of the New Palace. Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago, has shown himself to be combative following a violent attack outside his home in Lithuania. Jorg Carstensen/dpa Russia is suspected of being behind a violent attack in Lithuania on Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov, a close ally of the late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny who died in an Arctic prison just over three weeks ago. Volkov, who served as Navalny's chief of staff, lives in exile in Lithuania. He was attacked and injured outside his home on Tuesday evening. The 43-year-old was combative following the altercation. "We will carry on and not give up," he said in a video published on Telegram on Wednesday. He called the violence a "typical bandit" behaviour by Russian President Vladimir Putin's henchmen. "They literally wanted to beat me to a pulp with a hammer," Volkov added after his release from hospital. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda believes the attack on Volkov was a deliberate act. "It is clear that such things are planned and we should not be surprised," Nauseda asserted. "But I want to make it very clear: the relevant authorities are investigating and will hopefully find the culprits," Nauseda told Lithuanian radio on the sidelines of a visit to France. He added: "I can only say one thing to Putin: Nobody here is afraid of you." According to the Lithuanian police, Volkov was attacked near his home in Vilnius at around 10 pm on Tuesday. "The man attacked me in the courtyard and hit my leg about 15 times. The leg is fine. It hurts when I walk," Volkov said in the video. "But my arm is broken." According to the police, Volkov was attacked and beaten by unknown persons when he arrived in a car in the courtyard of his house. The investigation is ongoing, the police said. The Lithuanian secret service believes that there is a 50% to 75% probability that the operation was "organized and carried out by Russia." According to its intelligence assessment, the attack on Volkov aimed to stop projects by the Russian opposition in the run-up to presidential election in Russia. Just a few hours before the attack, Volkov told the portal Meduza, which features Russians in exile, that he and other opposition figures fear for their safety after Navalny's death. "The main risk now is that we will all be killed. Well, that is pretty obvious," Volkov added. Three Russian anti-Kremlin militias issued a joint statement on March 13 telling Russian citizens located by the Ukrainian border to evacuate, saying that they planned to launch attacks against Russian military positions in the area. The statement came a day after the Freedom of Russia Legion and Siberian Battalion, both militia groups consisting of Russian citizens that fight alongside Ukraine against Russia, crossed the Ukrainian border into Russia's Belgorod and Kursk oblasts and began engaging the Russian military. The Freedom of Russia Legion later said that it had taken control of the village of Tyotkino in Kursk Oblast. The joint statement, issued along with the Russian Volunteer Corps, appealed to citizens and officials of Belgorod Oblast. "(Russian President Vladimir) Putin's killers are carrying out massive attacks on peaceful Ukrainian cities, placing their positions between your homes, your children's schools and government institutions," the statement said. "The shelling of Ukraine from the territory of Belgorod must stop!" As a result, the militias said they have been "forced" to fire upon Russian military positions in the area. They also urged authorities in Belgorod and Kursk oblasts to evacuate civilians in order to prevent casualties. Russia's Defense Ministry claimed the previous day that it had repelled the militias' incursions and caused hundreds of casualties on the attackers. The Kyiv Independent cannot verify either the claims of territory seized by the militias or the accounts from the Russian side. Read also: What do we know about the Siberian Battalion that reportedly crossed into Russia? Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. An overnight Russian drone attack on a five-story apartment building in Sumy killed two people and injured at least eight, Ukraine's State Emergency Service said on March 13. The bodies of two resident were removed from the rubble in the afternoon, according to the report, which didn't specify the age or gender of the victims. Earlier, three people were considered missing, and at least ten have been rescued, the authorities reported. People may still be under the rubble, rescue operations are ongoing. A total of 15 apartments were damaged and another 30 destroyed in Sumy as a result of a Shahed-type drone attack, the region's administration reported. Over the past day, Russia attacked two more residential high-rise buildings in Ukraine. A missile strike on a nine-story apartment building in Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, killed five residents, injured 43, including children. A total of two people were killed, and seven wounded as a result of a bomb attack on a residential building in Myrnohrad, Donetsk Oblast. Read also: 5 children killed in single attack: We should never forget what Russia did Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian troops hit a five-story apartment building in Sumy with a Shahed-type drone overnight on March 13, injuring at least eight people, the region's administration reported. There were residents killed in the attack, authorities said, adding that the information was being clarified. Three people are considered missing, according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko. A total of 15 apartments were damaged and another 30 destroyed in a drone attack. At least ten people have been rescued from the rubble, the authorities said. Rescue operations are ongoing. Settlements in Ukraines northeastern Sumy Oblast suffer from daily Russian strikes due to their proximity to the border with Russia. Russian forces launched a total of 82 strikes against the parts of Sumy Oblast bordering Russia on March 12, regional authorities reported. Over 380 explosions were recorded, while three people were injured by gliding bomb strikes in the Velyka Pysarivka district. Read also: UPDATED: Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih kills 3, injures 44 Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. During another Russian attack, a drone hits a residential apartment building in Sumy Three people wounded after a Russian kamikaze drone attack on a residential building in Sumy are in serious condition, the city military administration reported via Telegram on March 13. Seven other people sustained less severe injuries. Read also: Russian bombing strikes family in Sumy Oblast, injuring children "Seven out of ten wounded are being treated on an outpatient basis; three are hospitalized," the message says. Read also: Explosion hits Sumy during air raid alert; Russian army launches reported air missile strike The drone strike collapsed two sections of the residential high-rise, damaging windows and balconies across the rest of the building. The authorities have relocated two families in need of temporary housing. Read also: Russia strikes again: Six dead, 50+ injured after Russia hits apartments in three Ukrainian cities During another Russian attack overnight on March 13, a drone hit an apartment building in Sumy, northern Ukraine. Russia attacked Kryvyi Rih and hit two residential buildings on March 12. Five people were reported dead and 44wounded. 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 Fighters of the Russian Freedom Legion on the territory of the Russian Federation Alexei Baranovsky, one of the representatives of the Russian Freedom Legion spoke about the purpose of Russian volunteers operation in the Russian Federation. He told NV in an interview on March 13, stating, With a broad front of united revolutionary forces, we have entered the territory of Kursk and Belgorod oblasts and are conducting special electoral events. Read also: Russian partisans use tanks to move on Russian border towns in the Belgorod and Kursk oblasts All of this is happening during the week when Russia is holding the so-called elections, he said. Of course, this is not an election. But we, the citizens of Russia, also have the right to vote, and we decided to present it in this way - to say what we think about these elections, about the Putin regime, and about everything that is happening in Russia and Ukraine. He mentioned that compared to previous campaigns, Russian volunteers have grown in quantity and quality, received new iron horses, and can set themselves more ambitious military tasks. Read also: Russia reports drone attack on oil depot in Kursk There was a big discussion among the Russian opposition about what to do with these elections: whether the opposition should participate in them or not, the volunteer added. Actually, we, the real Russian opposition, are showing how it should act in these quasi-elections. We believe that these elections should not take place. Baranovsky clarified that there should be no elections not only in the occupied territories but also in the border regions of the Russian Federation, particularly Kursk and Belgorod. We are making efforts to disrupt these elections, the soldier pointed out. Because these are not elections at all; this is another stage in the usurpation of power and the establishment of a complete dictatorship of Putins gang. We will work as hard as we can. If it is enough for Kursk and Belgorod, good. If its enough for more, then more. Perhaps not now, but the maximum plan is to overthrow the Putin regime: no one has canceled the march on Moscow. The other thing is that perhaps this is not the task for today, he also said. Read also: Pro-Kyiv Russian fighters at home in Russia after seizing border village, top Ukrainian spy says On March 13, the Freedom of Russia Legion, the Russian Volunteer Corps, and the Siberian Battalion, which consist of Russian citizens, announced strikes on military positions in Belgorod and Kursk. They called on the population of these regions to evacuate immediately. On March 12, these units crossed the border into Russia and announced the start of an operation to liberate the Russian Federation from dictatorship. According to preliminary data, it is taking place in the Belgorod and Kursk oblasts of the Russian Federation. On the evening of March 12, the RDC announced a second entry into the Russian Federation to bring closer the moment of death to Putin and the entire Kremlin regime. The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed the neutralization of 234 Ukrainian saboteurs in the Belgorod and Kursk oblasts. On March 12, the Russian Freedom Legion announced that it had taken control of part of the village of Tiotkino in Kursk Oblast, and the advance continues. The ASTRA Telegram channel cited a source saying that at least four Russian soldiers were killed, and nine others were wounded in massive drone attacks and volunteer raids on March 12. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin commented on the volunteer raid in an interview with propagandists, calling it an attempt to disrupt the elections in Russia and get a trump card in the upcoming peace talks. Read also: Ukraine carries out massive drone attack on multiple oil refineries in at least 6 Russian 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 Military exercises have begun in Belarus, with Russians serving as instructors for the Belarusian soldiers. Source: Ukraines National Resistance Center (NRC) Details: The Belarusian Defence Ministry announced the beginning of a combat readiness test for the armed forces. During the exercises, personnel will be deployed to specific areas, including along the border with Ukraine, where combat shooting training and military vehicle movements will take place. Temporary restrictions on civilians using public roads and oblast territories were also implemented. Residents reported that the instructors participating in these exercises are Russian citizens. They do not have support among the personnel of the Belarusian Armed Forces. In particular, Igor Kruchkov, the commander of Belarusian State Border Committees separate unit of active measures, expressed dissatisfaction with how Russian military instructors, including mercenaries from the Wagner Private Military Company, interact and behave with the Belarusian border guard special unit personnel. The NRC stated that the presence of Russian instructors indicates that the Kremlin is not abandoning the idea of using Belarusian military personnel for its own purposes. It also noted that military exercises have been almost continuously conducted in Belarus since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine to put pressure on the Ukrainian military-political leadership. Support UP or become our patron! (Bloomberg) -- Ukrainian drone attacks halted three oil refineries deep within Russian territory in an assault President Vladimir Putin said was aimed at disrupting his presidential election later this week. Most Read from Bloomberg An aerial strike on Wednesday caused a blaze at one of the countrys biggest crude-processing facilities, Rosneft PJSCs Ryazan plant near Moscow. The smaller Novoshakhtinsk refinery in the southern Rostov region was also halted by a drone attack, adding to the disruption caused by a similar incident at Lukoil PJSCs Norsi plant on Tuesday. Since the start of this year, Ukraine has used drones to target important Russian oil facilities from the Black Sea to the Baltic Sea. As fighting on the front lines swings in Moscows favor, Kyiv has been trying to hamper the countrys oil-product exports and its ability to send fuel to its forces. An initial flurry of attacks in February affected almost a fifth of the countrys crude-processing capacity, but by early March the industry was already recovering. Ukrainian strikes in Russian regions are aimed at, if not frustrating the elections in Russia, then interfering with them, Putin said in an interview with the RIA Novosti news service published Wednesday. Another goal is to get some kind of trump card in a possible negotiation process. The Ryazan refinery, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) southeast of Moscow, has a capacity of 17.1 million tons a year, or around 340,000 barrels a day. It is a major supplier of motor fuels for Russian regions around the capital. The drone attack started a fire at Ryazan that was later extinguished, regional Governor Pavel Malkov said Wednesday on his Telegram channel, without giving details of the extent of any damage. Two people were hospitalized, the Tass news service reported. The plant had to shut down two primary oil refining units, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. Story continues The attacks underline how the invasion of Ukraine that was intended to last a few days is instead leading to growing insecurity for ordinary Russians living in regions near the border as the war enters its third year. Thats in sharp contrast to Kremlin claims that Putin is the guarantor of the countrys defense. The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces intercepted 58 drones overnight in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Ryazan and Leningrad regions. Thats among the largest assaults in recent months. Later on Wednesday, the independent Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Russias southern Rostov region halted operations after a drone strike, regional governor Vasily Golubev said on Telegram, while giving no details of any damage. The facility has a capacity of 5.6 million tons per year, or around 112,000 barrels a day. The three facilities hit by Ukrainian drones in the past two days account for about 12% of Russias oil-processing capacity. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was totally fair to inflict losses on the Russian state in retaliation for missile and drone attacks that are killing and injuring civilians in his country. I think everyone sees that our drones work, and they work at long distance, Zelenskiy said in an address late Tuesday. Our ability for long-distance strikes is the real way to move towards security for everyone. The latest wave of attacks that started Tuesday damaged a unit of Lukoil PJSCs Norsi refinery in Nizhny Novgorod and hit an oil depot in the Oryol region. Ukrainian drones also repeatedly targeted Surgutneftegas PJSCs Kinef refinery in Kirishi, on the Baltic coast, according to Leningrad region Governor Alexander Drozdenko. A drone targeting the Kinef refinery early Wednesday was downed, Drozdenko said. Kinef is a major facility focused on making fuel for exports. Any significant disruption at this plant would have knock-on effects on the global diesel market. Russia Battles Attacks by Ukrainian Drones, Rebel Troops Ukraine was targeting the refineries in Ryazan, Kirishi and Norsi, a Ukrainian official with knowledge of the matter said. The governor of Russias southern Voronezh region, Aleksandr Gusev, said 30 drones were destroyed. Some infrastructure and residential properties sustained minor damage, he said. The attacks are taking place as Russia prepares for the March 15-17 presidential election thats been tightly controlled by the Kremlin to deliver an overwhelming victory for Putin and another six years in power. Ukraine has launched drones targeting Russian infrastructure and industrial facilities, as it seeks to undermine the Kremlins war effort and retaliate for waves of missile and drone assaults on its own territory since the February 2022 invasion began. The strikes on oil facilities also aim to disrupt Russias exports and fuel supplies to the Russian army on the front lines. We are fighting everything that finances Russias army and the war, Andriy Yermak, Zelenskiys chief of staff said, after Russian air strikes killed and injured civilians in three cities overnight. Russia is fighting civilians and apartment blocks. Ukraine Says Russia Strikes Apartment Blocks, Killing Civilians In his interview with state-run RIA, Putin said Russia would demand security guarantees to consider talks to end the war in Ukraine and reiterated that realities on the ground should be the basis of any negotiations. We are primarily interested in the security of Russia, Putin said. We will proceed from that. Asked if a fair deal with the West is possible, Putin replied: I dont trust anyone, but we need assurances. Ukraines government has previously rejected any deal involving territorial concessions that would reward Putins aggression. Putin has declared four annexed regions of eastern and southern Ukraine to be forever part of Russia, even as his forces dont fully control them. Russian troops have made recent advances as the government in Kyiv struggles to keep its military supplied with munitions following delays in aid from its US and European allies. Zelenskiy claimed this week that his forces have halted Russias offensive and were stabilizing the front line. Putin said the thought of using tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine had never crossed his mind and theres never been a need for them. He didnt think Russia and the US were heading toward a nuclear conflict. Still, he said countries that declared they had no red lines toward Russia should understand that Russia would respond in the same way. --With assistance from Daryna Krasnolutska. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. FILE PHOTO: A Bank of America logo is pictured in the Manhattan borough of New York City FILE PHOTO: A Bank of America logo is pictured in the Manhattan borough of New York City By Paritosh Bansal (Reuters) -A proposal by global regulators to change how the largest banks report key risk metrics at the end of the year could deal a blow to their U.S. short-term funding businesses, the latest salvo in a battle over tighter capital rules. The largest global banks are required to hold more capital than others, with a surcharge calculated every year from Dec. 31 values of a set of risk measures. In a bid to reduce the capital hit, which hurts profitability, some banks adjust businesses at year-end to lower those numbers, a tactic called window dressing. JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, for example, reported lower risk measures at the end of last year than they were earlier in 2023, avoiding what would have been an additional surcharge of more than $8 billion each, according to Reuters calculations of risk metric scores. Last week, the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, a global watchdog, cracked down on window dressing. It proposed that banks use the average of values over the reporting year for most of these risk metrics, rather than the year-end snapshots. In making the proposal, the committee joined the U.S. Federal Reserve, which proposed a similar move a few months ago. While window dressing is a well-known phenomenon, the mechanics of the practice are complex, with multiple factors affecting banks' decisions. A closer examination of how JPMorgan and Bank of America lowered one of the risk measures provides fresh insights about some of the factors at play and the potential impact of the proposed change. In this example, the measure is affected in part by the banks' activity in the repurchase agreements, or repo, market, in which investors borrow against Treasuries and other collateral for the short term. Interviews with banking sources and a review of bank disclosures show daily averaging would make it harder for the biggest banks to make money from the U.S. repo business, while raising costs for participants such as foreign hedge funds. Story continues That could impact Treasury markets, where the lack of market makers during times of stress has been a problem, and make it more costly for the government to issue debt, one of the banking sources said. The proposal also has broader benefits, however, these conversations show. Any move toward data that better captures activity through the year would bolster global financial stability by giving regulators a more accurate picture of banks' risk profile. It would also likely smooth out functioning in repo, where rates tend to rise at year-end because of window dressing. The tweak to the way the capital surcharge is calculated is among a slew of regulatory measures in recent months that seek to tighten capital rules and improve market resiliency. Some proposals have drawn fierce push-back from the industry, leading the Fed to rethink them. The Basel committee's proposal is in its comment period. It remains to be seen whether the changes will go through as proposed, with banks arguing for measures that rely on month-end or quarter-end figures instead of daily averages. JPMorgan has, for example, supported the move to "averaging on a conceptual basis" but called daily averaging unnecessary. Banks have also raised broader issues with the way the surcharge is measured, including saying that it doesn't account for economic growth, which inflates the capital requirements without a change in their risk profile. Pushing back against any implication that banks try to manipulate the numbers, one of the banking sources said many variables are outside their control. A rising stock price, for example, increases one of the risk measures. Lower numbers on Dec. 31 also reflect year-end slowdown in activity as people go away for the holidays, the source said. BIG SURCHARGES Regulators created the GSIB score, a reference to global systemically important banks, after the 2008 financial crisis to prevent the failure of a major bank from causing broader problems. A banks score determines how much additional capital - called the GSIB surcharge it must hold to absorb losses. The surcharge increases by 0.5% each time the score crosses a threshold. While the GSIB surcharge is calculated based on the Dec. 31 score, U.S. banks report the risk numbers every quarter. Reuters calculated the GSIB scores for all eight U.S. banks that fall in that category for each quarter in 2023. The calculations show that in the second and third quarter JPMorgan's score would have put its surcharge at 5%, but it lowered the score enough by Dec. 31 to hit the lower level at 4.5%. Bank of America breached the 3.5% surcharge level in the third quarter but brought the score down to end the year comfortably at 3%. A 0.5% surcharge equals more than $8 billion for each of the two largest U.S. lenders. GSIB scores fluctuated last year for other U.S. banks, too, but not enough to impact their surcharge levels. Non-U.S. banks employ window dressing as well, but differences in publicly available data and methodology make it impossible to do the same calculations for them. Their methodology also leads to lower scores than the one used for U.S. banks. In the case of Bank of America, for example, the international method would have led to a 2% surcharge, one of the banking sources said. REPO MARKET One source of change in the scores at both JPMorgan and Bank of America is in the metrics for cross-jurisdictional claims and liabilities, which measure the scale of their global activities, the calculations show. An example of that activity is repo between the banks and entities such as hedge funds based outside the country, according to two of the banking sources. U.S. banks lower the scores by moving those trades to the Fixed Income Clearing Corp, the central clearing agency, which becomes the domestic go-between, reducing the cross-jurisdictional risk measure, the sources said. The trades are cleared through a process called sponsoring. Both JPMorgan and Bank of America saw sponsored repo rise at year-end. JPMorgan's exchange and clearing house guarantees and commitments, which include sponsored repo exposure, rose to $265.9 billion at year-end, versus $118 billion in the third quarter. Bank of America's sponsored repo exposure rose to $132.5 billion from $43.6 billion. Not all of the increase may be linked to year-end adjustments. In a statement, Bank of America said, "The industry continues to see increased client interest in these transactions given emerging rules and regulations." Moving business to the sponsored repo market can be a costly prospect for the largest banks, which prefer to do business bilaterally with clients. With daily averaging, these banks' activity throughout the year - and not just at year-end - will determine the GSIB score, so they will not be able to take on more risk during the year without attracting higher capital or sponsoring costs. That would leave banks with the choice of either passing costs to customers or getting smaller, one of the sources said. (Reporting by Paritosh Bansal; Editing by Anna Driver) San Diego man who Googled 'how to kill your ex's fiance,' found guilty of gunning him down A California man who Googled "how to kill your exs fiance" was convicted Monday of killing a Catholic high school teacher. San Diego County prosecutors said Jesse Alvarez, 33, gunned down Mario Fierro as he was leaving his home to go to work at Cathedral Catholic High School on Feb. 1, 2021. He was found guilty of first-degree murder. Prosecutors said Alvarez killed Fierro out of jealousy after he learned the victim had gotten engaged with his ex-girlfriend, Amy Gembara, also a Cathedral Catholic teacher. MAN ARRESTED IN CALIFORNIA IN CONNECTION TO FATAL SHOOTING OF MASSACHUSETTS WOMAN, DAUGHTER Alvarez and Gembara broke up after 3 years together, and he developed an unhealthy obsession, he testified, FOX 5 KUSI in San Diego reported. At one point, she changed her phone number, moved and tried to get a restraining order. A California man Googled how to kill his former girlfriend's fiance, prosecutors said. After learning Gembara and Fierro had gotten engaged, Alvarez began plotting the murder, prosecutors said. He planned and researched how to commit the slaying by ambushing him outside his apartment. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP "'I was brewing anger' his words. Yes he was. And he continued to brew anger. And what else did he say? That he wanted Mr. Fierro gone or dead," Deputy District Attorney Ramona McCarthy told the jury. To plan the killing, Alvarez made several Google searches on how to get away with the murder. CA MOVIE THEATER MURDERER SENTENCED TO LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE FOR FATALLY SHOOTING 2 TEENAGERS "As far as the Google searches are concerned, it definitely was a big piece of evidence in this case," McCarthy said after the verdict was read. Alvarez claimed he approached Fierro and introduced himself. Fierro got angry and threatened to kill him, he said. Alvarez said he tried to calm Fierro down before pulling out a gun. "If this is premeditated, then hes just shooting him right away. Hes not trying to talk to him, not trying to make conversation," said defense attorney Peter Blair. Fierro was shot six times four times in the head, prosecutors said, while dismissing Alvarez's claims of self-defense. "Mr. Fierro had no idea the defendant was there and no idea of his presence had no idea the defendant waited almost an hour for him and watched him and waited right until he had his back to him. Hes a coward," said McCarthy. Alvarez is slated to be sentenced May 10. He faces life in prison. Original article source: San Diego man who Googled 'how to kill your ex's fiance,' found guilty of gunning him down This San Diego pub named No. 1 beer bar in US SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) Its a well-known fact that San Diego is a beer town, earning the moniker of Craft Beer Capital of America. Now, one of the citys very own beer bars is being recognized as the top in the country. Just in time for St. Patricks Day, it was OBriens Pub in Kearny Mesa that recently topped USATodays list of best beer bars for its 10Best Readers Choice Awards. The pub, which boasts a whopping 28 craft beers on tap, was one of the citys first craft beer bars. Thats what its really about showing love to the local beer scene as well as whats happening in California and throughout the nation and in Europe, and showing homage to Belgian and European-style beers as well, pub co-owner Tyson Blake said to KUSI Wednesday. 9 experiences in San Diego that are a must, according to National Geographic When asked why people love his pub, co-owner Tom Nickel answered, high quality. We curate a really nice list of beers, Nickel said. We put on beers that we want to drink, that we want to share with peopleand thankfully people respond to that. Yes, were just a pub, but we try to do everything to a really high level great food, great beer, great staff, Nickel added. Its attracted a great group of customers that are very passionate about the place. More St. Patricks Day events in San Diego The pub, located on Convoy Street, will be kicking off St. Patricks Day celebrations on Friday ahead of the green holiday Sunday. In alignment with their commitment to the San Diego beer scene, theyll be pouring local beers with Irish-inspired styles like reds and stouts. Theyll also be serving up corned beef sandwiches and other specials. You wont find green beer at this pub, though. Theres hops in beer, and hops are green, so theres already green in beer, Blake laughed. View the full list of top beer bars on USAToday.com. Slainte! For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. (KRON) A 37-year-old Antioch man is accused of stealing money from banks stretching between San Jose to Modesto, and using a woman as his getaway driver. On Wednesday the San Jose Police Department identified the serial bank robbery suspect as Brandon Lopez, 37, of Antioch. His alleged getaway driver was identified as Tamara Bush, 43, of Antioch, according to police. The duo was arrested on March 6 at Lopezs Antioch home. Officers said they searched his house and found a gun, as well as ammunition. Police said Lopez used a hand-written note to pull off the alleged bank heists. The note told bank tellers, I need all the money in both your drawers. Be quick. No games. San Jose police said this note was used during bank robberies. (San Jose Police Department photo) San Jose police launched an investigation after a bank was robbed of $1,000 cash on West Capitol Expressway on February 12. Domestic violence suspect in critical condition following Santa Rosa police standoff Robbery Unit Detectives said they determined that Lopez was responsible for more bank robberies throughout Northern California, including in Modesto, Milpitas, Fremont, and Sacramento. Detectives also identified suspect Tamara Bush as the getaway driver for all six robberies, police wrote. Lopez remained locked in a Santa Clara County jail with no bail on Wednesday, inmate records show. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4. By Eva Mathews (Reuters) -Metro Bank posted a smaller annual loss on Wednesday and set out plans for further cost cuts as it looks to rebound from a year that saw deposit outflows require it to seek a hefty capital injection. Launched in 2010 to challenge the dominance of Britain's big banks, Metro struck a 925-million-pound ($1.18 billion) rescue deal in October in the wake of volatile trading. In the months that followed, the lender announced cost-cutting plans including layoffs and an end to some its biggest customer perks including seven-day opening hours. On Wednesday the bank reported an annual underlying loss before tax of 16.9 million pounds ($22 million) after a loss of 50.6 million a year earlier. It posted a reported profit of 30.5 million pounds, its first in four years. Metro Bank shares ticked up 1% to 34.75 pence after CEO Daniel Frumkin announced a further 30 million pounds in cost savings by the end of this year. Although that does not include store closures, a significant portion of it will come from reducing contracts and store costs and inevitably some of that could include a reduction in employees, Frumkin told reporters on a post-earnings media call. "2023 was certainly an eventful year for Metro Bank. But I'm confident we are now a stronger business with stronger foundations." Deposits as of end-2023 were up 1% from June to 15.62 billion pounds. The lender launched a campaign late last year to make up for significant withdrawals by customers amid reports on its financial health. However, the company expects deposits and net interest margin (NIM) a key measure of a bank's underlying profitability to drop slightly in 2024 reflecting higher costs of deposits. Frumkin said the bank's conservative outlook for the year also stemmed from macroeconomic uncertainties and growing competition among banks. Metro Bank set aside 199 million pounds for expected credit losses in 2023, up from 187 million for 2022. Story continues "We believe there is a long road ahead and execution will be key, but the refinancing package has bought management time to reshape the bank," RBC analysts said in a note. ($1 = 0.7816 pounds) (Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Jason Neely) Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday the Senate will review the House-passed bill that would force TikToks Chinese owner to sell the app or see it banned in the U.S., but he stayed firmly noncommittal about bringing the legislation to the floor. The legislation passed the House with an overwhelming margin, 352-65, earlier Wednesday and seemed to have strong momentum heading over to the upper chamber. But Schumer made it clear he does not plan to rush it to the Senate floor, despite President Bidens Friday statement saying he would sign a TikTok ban if it passes Congress. The Senate will review the legislation when it comes over from the House, Schumer said in a short statement. The Democratic leader was similarly noncommittal when asked about the measure Tuesday, indicating the measure is unlikely to come to the Senate floor anytime soon. Lets see what the House does. Ill have to consult and intend to consult with my relevant committee chairmen to see what their views would be, he said. Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.) issued a joint statement with Intelligence Committee Vice Chair Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) Wednesday, pledging to work on getting the House bill through the Senate. But the bill faces skepticism from Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and other senators notably Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), the ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security Committee. Im not sure what well do yet, got to talk to lots of people, Cantwell told NBC News. Cantwell has raised free speech concerns about banning TikTok, while also recognizing the federal governments interest in protecting U.S. citizens from intelligence collection activities by foreign actors. Senate Homeland Security Committee Chair Gary Peters (D-Mich.) has yet to weigh in on the House-passed TikTok ban. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. plans to release artificial intelligence tools on April 1 that will help cybersecurity workers produce summaries of suspicious incidents and ferret out the devious methods hackers use to obscure their intentions. Most Read from Bloomberg Microsoft unveiled its Copilot for Security about a year ago and has been trialing it with corporate customers ever since. Testers include BP Plc and Dow Chemical Co. and now number hundreds of partners and customers, according to Andrew Conway, Microsofts vice president of security marketing. Customers will pay a fee based on usage, much as they do with the companys Azure cloud services. The security Copilot is part of Microsofts ongoing effort to infuse its major product lines with artificial intelligence tools from partner OpenAI and persuade corporate customers to buy subscriptions. While AI can help generate content and synthesize corporate data, it also makes errors that can be costly or embarrassing. Because computer security is so critical and the risks so high, Conway said the software giant has taken extra care with this Copilot. The software combines the power of OpenAIs model with the massive troves of security-specific information that Microsoft collects. There are a number of things, given the seriousness of the use case, that were doing to address [risks], he said, including seeking constant feedback on the product and where it falls short. All of that said, security is still a place today where security products generate false positives and generate false negatives. Thats just the nature of the space. The Copilot works with all of Microsofts security and privacy software, offering an assistant pane that can produce summaries and answer questions. For example, one of the companys security programs already collects a variety of security alerts and combines the related ones into a single incident. Now, when a user clicks on each incident, the Copilot can summarize the data and write a report, a typically time-consuming process. Often during an attack, hackers will use complicated programming scripts to obfuscate what theyre trying to do, making it harder to track. The Copilot is designed to explain the attackers aim. Story continues The software will free up experienced cybersecurity workers for more complex tasks and help newer ones get up to speed more quickly as well as supplement their skills, Conway said. In its tests, Microsoft said newer security workers performed 26% faster and with 35% more accuracy. Thats helpful because the cybersecurity industry is suffering from a chronic labor shortage. Microsoft said the AI program can also link to security software from rival companies, not just Microsofts. Twenty to 30 BP employees have been testing the Copilot, said Chip Calhoun, the oil giants vice president of cyber defense. Setting it up required just one or two clicks, he said, but it took a few months for his security professionals to really get used to using the tool. Some members of his team are using the Copilot to hunt for threats, relying on the AI to quickly scan masses of data and alerts for evidence of security compromises. More experienced analysts can ask the tool questionsin plain English sprinkled with security speak the AI is trained to understand. For example, an analyst could ask for evidence that a hacker is moving through BP systems using living off the land techniques, a type of attack that uses a networks own tools to evade security defenses. Such intrusions are popular with Russia- and China-linked hackers. The bad guys are getting faster, and were having to get faster as well, so tools like this really help us, said Calhoun, whose team also builds its own customized AI tools from publicly available models. Its not perfect yet. It will get perfect. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. (Bloomberg) -- The president of one of Frances top universities resigned from his post months after controversy over domestic violence allegations. Most Read from Bloomberg Sciences Po head Mathias Vicherat said in an internal email Wednesday that he and his former partner had been referred to a criminal court following an investigation by the Paris police. It is less my person than the institution that matters to me, which is why I have decided, in order to preserve it, to resign from my duties as President of the Institut detudes politiques de Paris, Vicherat wrote, referring to the schools official name. His resignation comes after he was reinstated by the schools governing bodies earlier this year despite student protests. Vicherat and his then partner were briefly taken into police custody in December after they accused each other of domestic violence, according to Agence France-Presse. He temporarily withdrew from his post after students held a sit-in calling for his resignation. Vicherat has denied the claims reported by media and said that no complaint was lodged after the incident. Sciences Po said in a statement that it had taken note of Vicherats decision and that an interim administration would be named soon. (Updates with Sciences Po statement) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. The House on Wednesday passed a controversial bill to restrict materials children can view at libraries, the fourth iteration this year of a bill to crack down on books that Republicans deem are harmful to minors. Proponents of the bill, House Bill 710, have argued itll keep graphic sexual books out of the hands of children, while opponents have said those books already arent placed in childrens sections and that the threat of lawsuits could lead libraries to remove any challenged material from their shelves. The bill allows community members to file written requests to remove materials from a librarys shelves. The library or its board would then have 30 days to move the material, after which the community member could file a lawsuit for $250 in fines plus unlimited actual damages. The bill draws on Idahos obscenity laws and incorporates the Miller test, a legal standard to determine what materials are obscene. That includes materials that appeal to the prurient interest of minors as judged by the average person and that depict sexual activity patently offensive to the prevailing standards in the adult community. The states obscenity law also includes acts of homosexuality, but exempts books with literary or educational value. What this bill actually is is codifying a relocation policy that they are all going to follow, Rep. Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, who sponsored the bill, told House lawmakers, noting that not all libraries have such policies in place now. The bill would apply to public libraries as well as private and public school libraries. Losing parties will have to pay attorneys fees, he told the Statesman, which he thinks could limit frivolous lawsuits. Supporters of bill oppose LGBTQ+ content Testimony in support of restricting harmful materials in recent weeks has been linked by sociologists to conspiracy theories like QAnon and has also focused on limiting media that feature LGBTQ+ characters or themes. One testifier said her child had seen a film cover that displayed two men kissing, which she thought the library should remove from public view. Backers of the bill have declined to say whether they consider depictions of gay people obscene. When asked by an Idaho Statesman reporter whether he thought such a film should be taken off of shelves visible to children, Crane said he didnt know. She has every right to ask that it be moved, he said. Theres nothing wrong with her requesting that. Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa, who is Jarons brother and chair of a House committee that sent the bill to the floor, declined to say whether depictions of gay people should count as obscene. Its not up to what Brent Crane thinks, he told the Statesman, adding that any book challenges would have to meet the states definition of harmful to children, which dates from the 1970s. Rep. Chris Mathias, D-Boise, said in written testimony that he believes the law violates the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment because of the states inclusion of homosexuality in its obscenity law. The law also mentions sexual conduct generally, but does not mention any act of heterosexuality. Mathias said that distinction creates a sex-based classification that targets gay sexuality and could violate constitutional rights. House holds fiery debate on harmful materials bill Efforts in the past two years to crack down on library materials available to children have so far failed. Earlier this year, Jaron Crane and Sen. Geoff Schroeder, R-Mountain Home, separately introduced bills related to library materials. The two lawmakers then worked together on a new bill, which failed in the Senate last month by one vote. Last year, Gov. Brad Little vetoed a similar bill that would have let parents claim damages over library materials their children were exposed to. Another bill that would have removed an exemption that librarians get from prosecution for disseminating harmful materials to minors failed to become law in 2022. That law would have allowed librarians who provide the materials to be jailed. In a fiery debate on the House floor, Republican lawmakers argued over whether the bill addresses a real problem. The concept that its not going on anywhere is simply not true, said Rep. Dale Hawkins, R-Fernwood, citing an article about the Kootenai County sheriffs efforts last year to check out and refuse to return books he thought were inappropriate for children. Two of the books he objected to were a sex education book and a young adult novel about a girl who experiences sexual abuse and other struggles, according to the Spokesman-Review. Rep. Lori McCann, R-Lewiston, said she has talked to librarians in her district who said they have had few to no book challenges in the last quarter century. She voted against the bill. Rep. Kenny Wroten, R-Nampa, also said the problem is overblown. The legislation makes it seem like its an epidemic here in Idaho, he said, but most libraries already have review processes in place and rarely have issues. Its a bill and legislation in search of a problem, he added, calling the $250 rewards an enticement. In testimony at hearings this year, several librarians have told lawmakers that pornography is not available to children at Idaho libraries. Brent Crane said that if his younger brothers bill didnt pass, lawmakers would bring back a previous bill to allow prosecution of librarians. He and Wroten who represent the same district quarreled on the House floor, after which Crane asked the House to take a break. You better pick which one you like, Brent Crane said on the floor, adding that a parent in his district filmed their 15-year-old daughter who was allowed to check out books that he thinks violate the states obscenity law. To say that this does not exist in Idaho libraries is patently false. Want the latest news on the Idaho Legislature? Sign up for Capitol Letters, a newsletter we send for every day of the legislative session. We'll keep you up to date on bills in the process of becoming law. EXETER TWP., LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) Police are searching for a man who has been reported missing in Luzerne County. The Wyoming Area Regional Police Department is asking for help in locating Martin Merder, 60, of Exeter Township. Woman charged with hiding death of unborn child Police say Merder was last seen on Sunday, March 10 around 10:00 p.m., the clothes he was wearing are unknown. Anyone with information is asked to contact 911. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PAhomepage.com. Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey thanks his dog team shortly after winning the 52nd Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Nome Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey thanks his dog team shortly after winning the 52nd Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Nome By Brad Brooks (Reuters) - Musher Dallas Seavey became the first six-time champion of the grueling Iditarod sled-dog race on Tuesday in the 52nd annual running of the event in Alaska, event officials said. Seavey overcame not only the brutal Alaska elements, but just two days into the race was forced to shoot a moose that "became entangled" with his team of dogs on the trail. "Dallas has proven his ability to overcome adversity on multiple occasions and this historic win is the embodiment of his professionalism, strength and full exemplary dog care," Rob Urbach, the chief executive of the Iditarod, said in a written statement. Seavey finished in nine days, two hours, 16 minutes and eight seconds, the Iditarod's statement said. For his victory, Seavey will win the largest percentage of a $500,000 purse. The rest of the field will continue the race until the last person crosses the finish line and wins the "red lantern" award for demonstrating perseverance. The event opened with a ceremonial running through Anchorage, Alaska, on March 2 and ended on Tuesday in the Bering Sea town of Nome after mushers and their teams of dogs traveled 1,000 miles. The Iditarod organization said on social media that Seavey crossed the finish line at 5:16 p.m. local time with 10 dogs. On March 4, Iditarod officials said in a written statement that Seavey had been forced to shoot a moose in self-defense "after the moose became entangled with the dogs and the musher on the trail." Seavey was given a two-hour penalty for not sufficiently gutting the animal, as required by the race rules. The moose meat was salvaged and distributed to people to eat. Seavey, who finished first in 2012 as the youngest Iditarod champion in its history, at age 25, went on to win four more races before his historic win this year. He has also won the Yukon Quest sled dog race twice, and is the son of three-time Iditarod champion Mitch Seavey. The number of competitors this year, 38, was one of the smallest fields going back to the first year of the race in 1973, when 34 signed up. Last year was the smallest roster, with just 33 entries. In its heyday, the race featured 70 to 80 entrants. The race, commemorating a famed dog-sled relay to deliver diphtheria serum to Nome in 1925, has come a long way since it began as a low-budget novelty event consisting entirely of amateur mushers and taking 20 days to complete. Now, top Iditarod contestants are professionals with high-tech gear bearing sponsors' logos. Teams are tracked by global positioning satellite, and live coverage is streamed worldwide to audiences via the internet. (Reporting by Brad Brooks in Longmont, Colorado. Editing by Gerry Doyle) ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) Its an antiquated warehouse hidden away in Albuquerques northwest commercial district. Twin World War II era corrugated steel Quonset huts house an unusual museum the likes of which you have never seen. Welcome to the New Mexico Museum of Military History. Never heard of it? Thats because the privately owned museum collection is closed to the public. In fact, despite support from the cities of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho, the National Guard, and the State Legislature, the stealth museum has no phone, no signs, and no visiting hours. Its not listed in tourist brochures and the door is always locked. Take a peek inside and the first thing to hit you will be clutter and disarray. You see, this collection is less a museum and more a vast hodgepodge of military memorabilia including trucks, jeeps, trailers, ambulances, motorcycles, parts, uniforms, hats, ribbons, ammo boxes, maps, paperback books, and miscellaneous papers. New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE New Mexico Museum of Military History collection on 6th Street in Albuquerque, N.M. | KRQE At the core of the museums collection are nearly 100 historic military vehicles that once saw service in far-flung conflicts across the globe. Some vehicles are in working condition, some not. The assemblage is owned by a non-profit group called the New Mexico Museum of Military History. The World War II generation is all but gone, said museum Board Member Gregg Hartz. This is what they took and fought a war with. Wed like to preserve it here in New Mexico for future generations, Hartz said. Faced with the challenge of owning historic military equipment with no place to display it, the museum sought public funding for a permanent location to showcase its vast collection. The State Legislature chipped in $830,000 and the City of Rio Rancho offered to donate five acres for a museum complex. But those commitments turned into just another expensive government boondoggle. The New Mexico Museum of Military History was a project that could have been but never was. The first legislative appropriation was in 2006 when state lawmakers authorized $100,000 for architects to design a 76,000-square-foot museum complete with exhibit halls, storage areas, and a gift shop. However, after the private museums board failed to come up with $8,000,000 to cover construction costs, the architectural plans were discarded. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. New Mexico Museum of Military History Architectural Plans. The military history museum has lost more than $700,000 in state appropriations because the non-profit group couldnt meet New Mexico funding deadlines. Lawmakers reallocated the funds to other capital projects. Meanwhile, the New Mexico National Guard helped out by allowing the museum to temporarily store vehicles at the Rio Rancho Armory. However, the non-profit museum wore out its welcome after temporary storage stretched into almost 20 years. Because it had breached its agreement, the museum was directed to remove all its equipment from the Armory. Despite the eviction notice the museum still stores many of its military vehicles on National Guard property. After being stored for years unprotected from the elements at the Guards Armory, those historic trucks have lost much of their historic value. Vehicles at the Rio Rancho Armory | KRQE Vehicles at the Rio Rancho Armory | KRQE Vehicles at the Rio Rancho Armory | KRQE Vehicles at the Rio Rancho Armory | KRQE In 2006, the City of Albuquerque agreed to store the private collection in a warehouse complex on 6th Street, NW. In exchange for rent-free use of city property, the museum agreed to display its memorabilia in parades and other events for the benefit of the public. Bottom line, there has to be a benefit to the general public when we lease (city) property, Director of Albuquerques Municipal Development Pat Montoya said. It was only after the lease was signed that city officials discovered the private military history organization is a museum in name only. For example, the non-profit group has packed the warehouse with so much military stuff it cant keep track of it all. Despite accumulating thousands of items, board members admit there is no organization to the collection and they do not have an inventory. When asked how the museum could know whats in the warehouse if they dont have an inventory, museum Board Member Gregg Hartz responded, Its a good question. Even though the collection includes almost 100 historic military vehicles, museum officials admit they cant find the paperwork documenting ownership. We had titles on everything that we had in the collection at one time, but they have all disappeared, Gregg Hartz said. I saw paperwork on almost every vehicle that we have at one time when I first started. Is that still here in the building? No, its not, Hartz said. The non-profit museum generates a little income by loaning vehicles to Hollywood movie productions like Oppenheimer, but its not enough. Plagued with a dwindling membership, lack of financial resources, shoddy record keeping, disorganization, and dependency on a small, yet dedicated, group of volunteers, the museum is unable to meet its obligations. (Some of the vehicles from the New Mexico Museum of Military History used in the Oppenheimer movie.) Today, the museum is not in compliance with the City of Albuquerques lease, Albuquerques Municipal Development Director Pat Montoya said. This group intended well. However, for a number of reasons, they just werent able to comply, Montoya said. In 2021, Museum officials ignored requests for required annual reports, vehicle titles or insurance coverage. However, rather than enforce the lease, city officials looked the other way. That was three years ago. The city was at fault here, Pat Montoya admits. This one fell through the cracks and we just did not enforce the policy or the procedures or what was identified in the lease, Montoya said. In September last year, the museum was given another deadline to comply. It didnt. In October, city inspectors cited the organization for fire code violations. There was discussions within city government that (the military museum) was completely out of compliance and that we needed to hold them accountable since they were not going to be able to comply, the citys Pat Montoya said. The decision was made giving them a 90-day notice that they had to vacate the property, Montoya said. In January, the museum moved out and relocated its collection of military artifacts to private properties in Albuquerque and Cabezon. This is very unusual, Pat Montoya said. In my five years here this is the first time that weve had to deal with an organization where weve actually evicted them, Montoya said. We have a responsibility to the taxpayers. We have an obligation to protect their money. And when we have a nonprofit that is in a (public) building, there is still a responsibility for them to comply. Pat Montoya said. KRQE News 13 asked Museum Board Member Gregg Hartz how the future looked for the New Mexico Museum of Military History. Theres a pretty black cloud over the top of it right now, Hartz said in November. Last week, Board President Mike Fuller made it official. Fuller confirmed the New Mexico Museum of Military History has decided to disband and transfer its entire historic military collection to another non-profit organization, the New Mexico Wounded Warriors Project. New Mexico does have a bonafide military history museum operated by the states Department of Military Affairs in Santa Fe. Its open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays. Admission is free. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. See how badly your home could be hit by heat, wind, and bad air over the next 30 years New tools from Realtor.com allow users to view a home's vulnerability to heat, wind, and air quality. The tools let homeowners and buyers view risks today and projected impacts over the next 30 years. Climate risk leads to higher insurance costs in disaster-prone states like California and Florida. The impact of the climate crisis looks different for every homeowner. Realtor.com has unveiled a set of climate risk tools that homeowners and homebuyers alike can use to learn the specific climate risks of a property. The tools, called Heat Factor, Wind Factor, and Air Factor, are available starting Wednesday and can map out a neighborhood's risks of above-normal days on the heat index, chances of experiencing wind gusts over 50 mph, and days of poor air quality. The tools also show the projected increase in these events over the next 30 years. More than 40% of US homes, valued at a combined $20 trillion, are vulnerable to extreme heat, wind, and poor air quality, according to a Realtor.com analysis. The new tools come as climate-fueled disasters intensify and more people move into disaster-prone parts of the country including Florida, California, and Texas. Homeowners in Miami hold the highest value of homes at risk for severe or extreme heat ($1.26 trillion), while San Francisco homeowners hold the highest value of homes at risk for severe air quality ($1.28 trillion), according to Realtor.com. The trends are scrambling insurance companies, which one executive told Business Insider can no longer rely on the old models they once used to predict the chances and severity of extreme weather events. "Everything has been a surprise. They're in panic mode," insurance executive Oscar Seikaly said last year. Some insurance companies have pulled out of California and Florida over concerns about increasingly volatile wildfires and hurricanes, respectively. In some California towns, homeowners can no longer find property insurance, while the Florida condo market has ground to a halt over rising insurance costs. Some homeowners have given up searching for insurance entirely. "It's like being on the Titanic," Bob Stephens, who couldn't find insurance for his $3 million Florida home, said last year. "You know you're going down. How are you going to stop it?" Understanding your home's climate risk Prior to releasing the heat, wind, and air quality tools, Realtor.com already provided fire and flood risks for properties based on data from First Street. First Street, a climate-risk firm, is also behind the data on extreme heat, wind, and air quality now added to listings. The firm's air-quality data includes two common pollutants: particulate matter, often caused by wildfire smoke, and ozone, which is the result of reactions between other pollutants from chemical plants, tailpipes, and power plants. The new risk scores will help homebuyers make an informed decision about whether to go through with a purchase, Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale told BI. Hale added that the company has studied whether property-level climate risk data shifts homebuying decisions. The answer is complicated because people consider many different factors before buying a home. How recently a flood or fire happened in the area tends to have an impact. But affordability often trumps climate-risk calculations, she said. "It is often the case that homes in areas with the greatest risk of fire also tend to be the cheapest on a per-square-foot basis," Hale said, pointing to parts of California where catastrophic wildfires are increasing. Surveys show that affordability remains the top priority even as homebuyers increasingly consider climate and environmental hazards. Zillow found that 36% of millennials and 19% of Gen Z homebuyers they surveyed were considering moving to areas with climate risks. Meanwhile, an analysis by Redfin found that about 1.2 million more homeowners and renters moved out of than into cities with high risk of poor air quality between 2021 and 2022. But more space, proximity to family, and getting a better deal on a home were the most common reasons home sellers cited for moving not air quality. Many of the movers headed to Sun Belt states where heat, flooding, and hurricanes are more likely. "I do think it's important for people to realize just how much property is at risk, especially when we've been building a lot of homes in the South and in the West that are most likely to face extreme heat risk," Hale said. Read the original article on Business Insider Donald Trump still hasnt posted bond in his New York civil fraud trial, but his lawyer Alina Habba wants you to know that its definitely not because theyre having trouble getting the massive amount together. The former president was fined $354 million for committing real estaterelated fraud in New York. In order to appeal the decision, Trump must post a bond of the full amount plus interestwhich has already reached nearly $467 million, with interest adding $112,000 per day. When asked Wednesday if Trump was any closer to posting bond, Habba had a very clear answer that raised no red flags. Yeah, no, unfortunately I cant speak to that. Thats privileged, and I am the attorney, one of the attorneys on that case, Habba told Fox News, stating the obvious. She quickly pivoted to attacking the case altogether, calling the judgment absurd and expressing hope that an appeals court would overturn it. MacCallum: Any closer to getting a bond in the real estate case? Habba: Yeah, no, unfortunately I can't speak to that. That is privileged. pic.twitter.com/EjvCUFtjLI Acyn (@Acyn) March 13, 2024 Trump, who claims to be a billionaire, has tried to delay posting bond and offered to post just $100 million. His efforts have been roundly rejected by the judge who presided over his trial. He has until March 25 to stay the fraud judgment, meaning he would need to put up the money, assets, or an appeal bond to cover the full amount. If he fails to do so, New York Attorney General Letitia James has warned she will start seizing his assets. Despite constantly bragging about how much money he has, Trump appears unable to post bond in his fraud case. He recently launched a line of sneakers and promoted a fan-funded GoFundMe to help with his many legal bills. Last week, Trump finally managed to post the $91.6 million bond in E. Jean Carrolls defamation lawsuit against him. The bond was guaranteed by the Chubb Corporationand the insurance groups customers are already unhappy about it. Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg, whom Trump appointed in 2018 to a White House advisory committee for trade policy and negotiations, sent a letter Wednesday assuring clients that the decision was not a political one and that the companys assets were fully collateralized, or protected against failure of repayment. Trump still owes Carroll $5 million for sexually assaulting her and defaming her a separate time. He also owes $400,000 to The New York Times, thousands of dollars for gag order violations, and $382,000 to Orbis Business Intelligence, the consulting firm owned by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. Trump had sued Orbis over a dossier Steele compiled in 2016 that alleged Trump and members of his inner circle had been compromised by Russias security service. Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, meets with Senate Democrats during their caucus meeting at the Capitol in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024. Sen. Mitt Romney criticized President Joe Bidens new $7.3 trillion budget proposal as a sleight of hand at a Senate Budget Committee hearing Tuesday. He also said the committee wasnt serious about putting together a bipartisan budget. Its appropriate that this hearing is being held during Academy Award season. Im afraid what we do here is more Barbie than it is Oppenheimer, said Romney, referring to the movie Barbies fantasy-land setting, compared to the reality-based Oppenheimer. Romney said the Budget Committee has spent more time talking about climate change than they have about the budget and cutting the deficit. The public thinks we work on the budget, but we dont, he said, adding he wished lawmakers would meet to discuss how to deal with the debt. Weve had 28 hearings before today. Do you know how many of those hearings have been on the budget? Two. Now, Im concerned about the climate, but 14 of our hearings have been on climate change. ... This is a committee thats about performing, getting on stage and acting like we care about these things, but theres actually no work being done by this committee to deal with our budget and to deal with federal spending, Romney said. After Romney, R-Utah, was finished with his remarks, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., chairman of the committee, defended the committees work, saying they needed to prepare for the costs of climate change. Romney: Wealth tax the stupidest idea Ive ever heard Bidens budget director, Shalanda Young, was at the hearing to introduce Bidens just-released budget proposal, which lays out the Biden administrations fiscal priorities for the coming year. Bidens budget would raise taxes by $4.9 trillion over 10 years, in part by not renewing most of the Trump-era tax cuts, which will expire at the end of next year. Romney said Bidens proposal has no chance of making it through Congress. I can put a proposal out there that I know has no chance of passing and pretend like Im doing something responsible, he said. The administration puts a proposal out it knows has no chance whatsoever of passing it because we have Republicans and Democrats we have to come together and work together, but we dont. Bidens budget proposal includes tax increases on corporations, on Americans earning over $400,000 a year, and new minimum taxes on unrealized capital gains. Biden has frequently discussed raising taxes on wealthy Americans, claiming they pay little in taxes. Romney said this was disingenuous, because Biden is referring to taxes on wealth versus taxes on income. He asked Young if any other country taxed assets instead of income, and when she didnt answer directly he said no other country levies taxes this way that he knows of. I think its the stupidest idea Ive ever heard. It would devastate our economy, he said. Im not worried about how much money the billionaires are going to be paying in taxes. Thats not my concern. Its the idea that wed be transferring everything from the public markets into private assets that couldnt be valued easily. Romney asked Young if she supported his Fiscal Stability Act, which he sponsored alongside Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. It would establish a bipartisan commission to find solutions to the nations $34 trillion national debt. Young said it would take bipartisan solutions to deal with our fiscal path, but didnt endorse Romneys plan. Rep. Blake Moore weighs in on Bidens budget In an interview with the Deseret News, Rep. Blake Moore also weighed in on Bidens budget proposal, saying it moves in the opposite direction of the budget proposal from the Republican-led House Budget Committee. Weve got to get serious about this, and the House budget focuses on the keys things that we need to do to find wasteful spending. It balances the budget over 10 years and doesnt double down on the things that weve been doing in the last several years that led to higher deficits, said Moore, who represents Utahs 1st District. So its a stark contrast between what President Biden has put out and what House Republicans have put out. When you buy shares in a company, it's worth keeping in mind the possibility that it could fail, and you could lose your money. But on a lighter note, a good company can see its share price rise well over 100%. One great example is Molina Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE:MOH) which saw its share price drive 176% higher over five years. Meanwhile the share price is 4.4% higher than it was a week ago. The past week has proven to be lucrative for Molina Healthcare investors, so let's see if fundamentals drove the company's five-year performance. Check out our latest analysis for Molina Healthcare There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time. During five years of share price growth, Molina Healthcare achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 10% per year. This EPS growth is lower than the 23% average annual increase in the share price. So it's fair to assume the market has a higher opinion of the business than it did five years ago. That's not necessarily surprising considering the five-year track record of earnings growth. The graphic below depicts how EPS has changed over time (unveil the exact values by clicking on the image). We know that Molina Healthcare has improved its bottom line lately, but is it going to grow revenue? You could check out this free report showing analyst revenue forecasts. A Different Perspective It's good to see that Molina Healthcare has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 54% in the last twelve months. That gain is better than the annual TSR over five years, which is 23%. Therefore it seems like sentiment around the company has been positive lately. Someone with an optimistic perspective could view the recent improvement in TSR as indicating that the business itself is getting better with time. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Molina Healthcare better, we need to consider many other factors. To that end, you should be aware of the 1 warning sign we've spotted with Molina Healthcare . Story continues But note: Molina Healthcare may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with past earnings growth (and further growth forecast). Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on American exchanges. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. FIRST ON FOX: Two Senate Republicans introduced the Laken Riley Act, a measure requiring federal immigration authorities to arrest and detain illegal immigrants charged with local theft or burglary, in the upper chamber Tuesday evening. Introduced by senators Katie Britt, R-Ala., and Ted Budd, R-N.C., the bill serves as the Senate companion to H.R. 7511, originally introduced in the House by Georgia GOP Rep. Mike Collins. The measure would require U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to arrest illegal immigrants who commit theft, burglary, larceny or shoplifting offenses and mandate that those who commit such crimes are detained until they are removed from the United States, so they cannot break the same law or commit further crimes. Additionally, the bill would ensure that states have standing to bring civil actions against federal officials who refuse to enforce immigration law or who violate the law. HOUSE PASSES LAKEN RILEY ACT REQUIRING ICE TO DETAIN MIGRANTS ARRESTED FOR THEFT The measure is named after 22-year-old Laken Riley, a college nursing student recently killed on the campus of the University of Georgia. Jose Antonio Ibarra, the illegal immigrant from Venezuela charged in the murder, was arrested in New York prior to the murder but was not detained by ICE. READ ON THE FOX NEWS APP Before being charged with felony murder, Ibarra was once arrested in New York for endangering a child, and he was cited in Georgia for misdemeanor shoplifting in October 2023 along with his brother, Diego Ibarra, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The measure is named after 22-year-old Laken Riley, a college nursing student recently killed on the campus of the University of Georgia. "Make no mistake, Laken Rileys heartbreaking murder was a direct, preventable consequence of willful open border policies by President Biden and his administration. This commonsense legislation would ensure ICE detains and deports criminal illegal aliens, so more innocent American families do not have to face this kind of unimaginable tragedy," Britt told Fox News Digital. "I am grateful for Rep. Collins strong leadership and for Sen. Budds partnership in introducing this Senate companion bill. Sen. Schumer should bring this bill to the Senate floor immediately." JOHNSON CHASTISES BIDEN FOR 'REGRET' ON CALLING LAKEN RILEY MURDER SUSPECT 'ILLEGAL': 'WHAT AN EMBARRASSMENT' "States should be able to protect their citizens from the Biden administrations lawless, open border policies by seeking relief in federal court," Budd told Fox. "Thats why I am joining Sen. Britt to introduce the Senate version of the Laken Riley Act. Introduced by senators Katie Britt, R-Ala., right, and Ted Budd, R-N.C., left, the bill serves as the Senate companion to H.R. 7511, which was originally introduced in the House by Georgia GOP Rep. Mike Collins. "We simply cannot tolerate any more senseless tragedies like this one. What happened to Laken Riley should never happen to any American citizen." Collins, who has urged the Senate to take up the legislation immediately to "ensure justice for Laken and give ICE more tools to detain and deport criminal illegal aliens before they commit more serious crimes," said in a statement shared with Fox he's "grateful" the "vital" legislation has been introduced in the Senate. TRUMP MET WITH LAKEN RILEYS FAMILY BACKSTAGE BEFORE GEORGIA RALLY: 'PROFOUNDLY HONORED' "The Laken Riley Act passed the House of Representatives overwhelmingly and on a bipartisan basis," Collins said. "I am grateful to Sen. Britt for taking the lead on getting this vital legislation through the Senate, so we can put Laken Riley's name on Joe Biden's desk and take a step toward preventing this from happening to another American." Collins' measure was passed by a 251-170 vote last week by the House. All 170 no votes were Democrats. However, 37 Democrats joined Republicans to advance the bill. Collins, who represents Georgias 10th Congressional District of Athens, where the fatal attack happened Feb. 22, said the murder of Riley is a "wake-up call" for America and that the measure seeks to combat the "illegal crime wave" that he attributes to the ongoing border crisis. The measure introduced by Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., passed by a 251-170 vote last week in the House. All 170 no votes were Democrats. However, 37 Democrats joined Republicans to advance the bill. In the days following Riley's death, President Biden faced scrutiny for his comments on the subject. At the urging of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., Biden, during an off-script moment in his State of the Union address last week, decried Riley's killing by "an illegal." The president later backtracked during an interview with MSNBC's Jonathan Capehart, saying he should have instead used the word "undocumented" to describe Ibarra. "I shouldn't have used illegal, I should've it's undocumented," Biden told Capehart. "And, look, when I spoke about the difference between Trump and me, one of the things I talked about on the border was his the way he talks about vermin, the way he talks about these people polluting the blood . I talked about what I'm not going to do, what I won't do. I'm not going to treat any, any, any of these people with disrespect. Look, they built the country." The White House said Monday Biden "did not apologize." "First of all, I want to be really clear about something: The president absolutely did not apologize. There was no apology anywhere in that conversation," principal deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton told reporters aboard Air Force One. "He did not apologize. He used a different word." The companion measure in the Senate included more than 30 original GOP co-sponsors, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Fox News' Greg Norman, Aubrie Spady, Thomas Phippen, and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report. Original article source: Senate Republicans introduce Laken Riley Act, urge immediate consideration of 'commonsense' bill A mom had her first baby at 25 and her second at 42. There were big differences. Angela Lambert got pregnant at the age of 25, raising her child as a single mom. She had her second child at the age of 42 with her partner of nine years. The mom said the experiences were different in some ways and similar in others. Angela Lambert was near the beginning of her nursing career when she found out she was pregnant at 24. "I was in a casual relationship," she told Business Insider of the surprise news in 2004. She said her boyfriend reacted by saying "he couldn't be bothered" to have a baby, and she barely saw him again. But her family rallied around her. "My mom, dad, two sisters, and brother were amazing," she said. Lambert described her daughter, Jasmin, now 18 and in college, as a "kind, smart introvert" and thought she would always be an only child. But, after Lambert met her partner, Mark Lockitt, she realized she wanted another baby. Their daughter, Alyssa, was born in 2022 more than 16 years after Jasmin. Lambert, who was 25 when she had Jasmin, was 42 when Alyssa arrived. She said she was often asked what it was like to revisit diapers and nursing after such a long break. People were also interested in the contrast between being a young, first-time, and mature second-time parent. The 43-year-old described the differences, including the ways her body coped with pregnancy and birth at different ages. The earlier pregnancy was easier Lambert told Business Insider she had a simpler ride during her first pregnancy than her second. "When I was expecting Alyssa, I remember phoning my mom, saying, "Why am I so tired all the time?'" she said. "Mom is a very blunt speaker. 'It's because you were 24 when you had your last pregnancy, and you're not that age anymore,' she replied." The biomedical scientist said she suffered bouts of morning sickness both times. But she " bounced back much faster" in the mid-2000s. "I'd vomit and then just get on with things, as if nothing had happened," she said. "But, 16 years later, I felt constantly exhausted." Story continues Lambert's daughters are aged 18 and 1. Courtesy of Angela Lambert She said that she put on nearly twice as much weight with Alyssa than Jasmin and the pounds had proven harder to shift as an older mom. But, she said, she doesn't beat herself up about it. "I belong to groups on Facebook for older moms dealing with pregnancy," Lambert went on. "We share the same concerns and can discuss them freely." She said social media made her feel "more supported" and "less alone" as a mom in her 40s in 2024. She said she was reassured by statistics that showed more women than ever were having babies in their 40s, creating a community for older moms. Lambert experienced birth complications as an older mom The mom said that she was in such little pain when she had Jasmin, she fell asleep "in the middle of pushing." The labor lasted about 26 hours, but her 25-year-old body took it in stride. "She was three and a half weeks early and only weighed 5 five pounds," Lambert said. "I was very lucky because everything went smoothly." She recalled how the midwife "shouted 'Wake up!'" when the baby was crowning. "It didn't hurt at all until that point," she said. The second time when she was considered a "high-risk pregnancy" because of her older age was more complicated. "They monitored my blood pressure closely and saw that I was at risk of pre-eclampsia," Lambert said. She experienced dizziness, headaches, and swollen legs and feet. The doctors induced her at 39 weeks, and the labor lasted around six hours. Alyssa weighed 9 ounces more than Jasmin at birth. "Mom was my birth partner with Jasmin, and Mark stepped up this time," Lambert, who had an epidural and "breathed through the contractions," said. Lambert doesn't want her baby to look at her older sister as a parent figure Lambert said her experience as a single mom was "unusual" because she moved in with her parents during her pregnancy. She stayed until Jasmin was 13 months old. She said her mom, dad, brother, and older and younger sister surrounded them with "love and security." It helped because her two younger siblings were over decade younger than her. As a result, her mom wasn't "as far past" the diaper stage as she might have been. Lambert said the veteran nurse from Hong Kong seized the opportunity to teach her daughter parenting techniques she grew up with. Lambert with her partner, Mark Lockitt, their daughters Jasmin, 18, and Alyssa, 1, and late dog, Ludo. Courtesy of Angela Lambert. "She would bring Jasmin to me to breastfeed and we established a regular sleep pattern," the mom said. "The baby had her own bedroom at 6 months old. There were so many times in the middle of the night when my mom would just get up and go deal with her rather than me. "Jasmin was an easy baby. When we moved out, I said to my mom, 'You were right about everything.'" Lambert said that she and Lockitt, a 46-year-old IT worker, followed much of the same advice when Alyssa was born. As for Jasmin, Lambert said she didn't want the teen to feel like she had "a responsibility" to "take care" of Alyssa because she was old enough to be her mother at the age of 18. "When I was pregnant, people would say, 'Oh, you've got a built-in babysitter,'" the mom said. "I'd correct them and say, "No, I want her to be a sister to her. Not a parent figure.' "There's a big age gap but I just want them to be friends." Do you have a powerful story to share with Business Insider? Please send details to jridley@businessinsider.com. Read the original article on Business Insider Assessing the Sustainability and Growth of MSI's Dividends Motorola Solutions Inc (NYSE:MSI) recently announced a dividend of $0.98 per share, payable on 2024-04-15, with the ex-dividend date set for 2024-03-14. As investors look forward to this upcoming payment, the spotlight also shines on the company's dividend history, yield, and growth rates. Using the data from GuruFocus, let's look into Motorola Solutions Inc's dividend performance and assess its sustainability. What Does Motorola Solutions Inc Do? Warning! GuruFocus has detected 5 Warning Sign with MSI. High Yield Dividend Stocks in Gurus' Portfolio This Powerful Chart Made Peter Lynch 29% A Year For 13 Years How to calculate the intrinsic value of a stock? Motorola Solutions is a leading provider of communications and analytics, primarily serving public safety departments as well as schools, hospitals, and businesses. The bulk of the firm's revenue comes from sales of land mobile radios and radio network infrastructure, but the firm also sells surveillance equipment and dispatch software. Most of Motorola's revenue comes from government agencies, while roughly 25% comes from schools and private businesses. Motorola has customers in over 100 countries and in every state in the United States. Motorola Solutions Inc's Dividend Analysis A Glimpse at Motorola Solutions Inc's Dividend History Motorola Solutions Inc has maintained a consistent dividend payment record since 2011. Dividends are currently distributed on a quarterly basis. Motorola Solutions Inc has increased its dividend each year since 2011. The stock is thus listed as a dividend achiever, an honor that is given to companies that have increased their dividend each year for at least the past 13 years. Below is a chart showing annual Dividends Per Share for tracking historical trends. Breaking Down Motorola Solutions Inc's Dividend Yield and Growth As of today, Motorola Solutions Inc currently has a 12-month trailing dividend yield of 1.07% and a 12-month forward dividend yield of 1.16%. This suggests an expectation of increased dividend payments over the next 12 months. Motorola Solutions Inc's dividend yield of 1.07% is near a 10-year low and underperforms than 74.07% of global competitors in the Hardware industry, suggesting that the company's dividend yield may not be a compelling proposition for income investors. Story continues Over the past three years, Motorola Solutions Inc's annual dividend growth rate was 11.20%. Extended to a five-year horizon, this rate stayed the same. And over the past decade, Motorola Solutions Inc's annual dividends per share growth rate stands at an impressive 12.20%. Based on Motorola Solutions Inc's dividend yield and five-year growth rate, the 5-year yield on cost of Motorola Solutions Inc stock as of today is approximately 1.82%. Motorola Solutions Inc's Dividend Analysis The Sustainability Question: Payout Ratio and Profitability To assess the sustainability of the dividend, one needs to evaluate the company's payout ratio. The dividend payout ratio provides insights into the portion of earnings the company distributes as dividends. A lower ratio suggests that the company retains a significant part of its earnings, thereby ensuring the availability of funds for future growth and unexpected downturns. As of 2023-12-31, Motorola Solutions Inc's dividend payout ratio is 0.33. Motorola Solutions Inc's profitability rank, offers an understanding of the company's earnings prowess relative to its peers. GuruFocus ranks Motorola Solutions Inc's profitability 8 out of 10 as of 2023-12-31, suggesting good profitability prospects. The company has reported net profit in 9 years out of the past 10 years. Growth Metrics: The Future Outlook To ensure the sustainability of dividends, a company must have robust growth metrics. Motorola Solutions Inc's growth rank of 8 out of 10 suggests that the company's growth trajectory is good relative to its competitors. Revenue is the lifeblood of any company, and Motorola Solutions Inc's revenue per share, combined with the 3-year revenue growth rate, indicates a strong revenue model. Motorola Solutions Inc's revenue has increased by approximately 10.80% per year on average, a rate that outperforms than approximately 69.04% of global competitors. The company's 3-year EPS growth rate showcases its capability to grow its earnings, a critical component for sustaining dividends in the long run. During the past three years, Motorola Solutions Inc's earnings increased by approximately 26.20% per year on average, a rate that outperforms than approximately 66.74% of global competitors. Lastly, the company's 5-year EBITDA growth rate of 12.30%, which outperforms than approximately 54.36% of global competitors. Next Steps Considering Motorola Solutions Inc's consistent dividend payments, robust dividend growth rate, reasonable payout ratio, strong profitability, and positive growth metrics, the company presents a compelling case for value investors seeking stable income streams. As the company continues to navigate the complexities of the hardware industry, its strategic initiatives and competitive position may further bolster its dividend prospects. With the next dividend payment approaching, investors should consider whether Motorola Solutions Inc aligns with their investment goals and risk tolerance. For those seeking additional high-dividend opportunities, GuruFocus Premium users can utilize the High Dividend Yield Screener to discover other potential investments. This article, generated by GuruFocus, is designed to provide general insights and is not tailored financial advice. Our commentary is rooted in historical data and analyst projections, utilizing an impartial methodology, and is not intended to serve as specific investment guidance. It does not formulate a recommendation to purchase or divest any stock and does not consider individual investment objectives or financial circumstances. Our objective is to deliver long-term, fundamental data-driven analysis. Be aware that our analysis might not incorporate the most recent, price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative information. GuruFocus holds no position in the stocks mentioned herein. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. (Bloomberg) -- Rupert Murdochs News Corp. and the publisher of the UKs Daily Mail tabloid are weighing an offer for the company that owns the Telegraph newspaper and Spectator magazine, alongside United Arab Emirates-backed investment fund RedBird IMI, people familiar with the matter said. Most Read from Bloomberg Such a bid would reduce RedBird IMIs ultimate stake in the Telegraph Media Group Ltd. and may ease UK government concerns over control of the legacy media outlet, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Jonathan Harmsworths Daily Mail & General Trust Plc and News Corp.s News UK unit have held back-channel conversations on how to structure a deal, they said. The discussions are preliminary and it isnt clear whether parties would reach an agreement and whether they could ultimately split up the assets, they said. Murdoch has coveted the Spectator for decades, and has previously bid for it, Bloomberg reported last year. DMGT is not involved in any discussions with News Corp. about taking a stake in the Telegraph, a DMGT spokesperson said. A representative for News UK declined to comment. A spokesperson for RedBird IMI said it isnt involved in the discussions and declined to comment further. RedBird IMI, fronted by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker, has been approached by a number of parties interested in teaming up, but is focused on buying the paper outright, one of the people said. The nearly 170-year-old Telegraph newspaper and the Spectator magazine have out-sized influence in British politics, and are seen as a mouthpiece for the UKs governing Conservative Party. The potential for a foreign government to gain control over the assets via UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansours majority holding in RedBird IMI has caused an uproar in Westminster. Story continues Conversations about a bid began after a Conservative backlash to RedBird IMIs takeover offer, people familiar with the situation said. Mansours involvement sparked concerns from Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks cabinet, Bloomberg previously reported. The UKs Department for Culture, Media and Sport is expected to make a decision on whether to refer RedBird IMIs offer for a more in-depth review in the coming days, and on Wednesday, the House of Lords will weigh an amendment that could give Parliament veto power over foreign state control of media properties. RedBird IMI a joint venture between a New York investment firm had agreed last year to provide loans of about 600 million ($750 million) to gain control of the Telegraph and Spectator from the Barclay family. The titles, which form part of a complex ownership structure, were seized from the family after they fell behind on debt payments. A fourth rival bidder, hedge fund manager Paul Marshall, may be excluded from the joint proposal, the people said. Marshall declined to comment. News UK is interested in the Spectator rather than the Telegraph titles, a person familiar with its thinking said, though at this early stage its not clear exactly what form the structure would take and who would control which assets. While a joint bid could ease concerns about the UAEs involvement, it may raise new issues for media plurality and competition if Harmsworth and Murdoch took on more interest in UK news titles. Under one scenario that has been discussed, RedBird IMI would take a stake as low as 25% in the Telegraph in an attempt to satisfy concerns about foreign state interference, the people familiar with the talks said. DMGT and News UK have previously proposed a joint venture to combine their printing operations. Meanwhile, opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer is concerned about foreign state ownership of British news outlets but is not at this stage actively opposing the RedBird IMI bid, a person familiar with his thinking said, contradicting a statement that Shadow Culture Secretary Thangam Debbonaire made this weekend about the Labour partys plans to oppose the takeover. (Updates with DMGT comment) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Council Speaker Adrienne Adams took aim at New Yorks skyrocketing costs of living in her annual State of the City address Wednesday and floated a handful of proposals she argued will help turn the tide on the problematic trend. The speaker, whose Democratic Council majority has clashed intensely with Mayor Adams on policy and budgetary matters in recent months, did not explicitly blame him for the citys troubles in her speech. But she suggested the citys workforce and social safety net has been weakened under his two years in office and drew a parallel between that and issues of affordability in housing, health care, childcare and education. A lack of capacity within our city agencies has undermined access to assistance that families could once rely on. This does not have to be our reality, the speaker said before a packed Brooklyn Academy of Music audience that included the mayor. We know our government can work because it has before. Weve got to get back to basics strengthen our city government to work for all New Yorkers. We can and must do better, she said. A persistent struggle for the mayors administration has been to process public benefits like food stamps and cash assistance within a legally required timeframe, an issue exacerbated by staff shortages at the citys Human Resources Administration. Even though the mayor touted earlier this month that his administration has nearly cleared a backlog of tens of thousands of overdue public benefits applications thanks to reforms to the processing protocols, Human Resources Administration officials testified before the Council this week that more than 1,000 budgeted vacancies remain at the agency. Other city agencies have thousands more vacancies. The speaker said a key starting point for the city must be to fill those vacancies. To do so, she said the Council plans to establish a program in partnership with the City University of New York and DC37, the city governments largest union, to create pathways to careers and jobs in our municipal workforce. This initiative will prioritize participants in CUNY programs to fill persistently vacant city job titles and provide students with the mobility and long-term security of a career in city government, she said. Though light on details, the speaker also said the program will include a separate track focused on hiring for seasonal jobs in city government, like the ones contained in the City Cleanup Corps initiative operated by the Departments of Parks, Sanitation and Transportation during the summer months. Our economic and job recovery has been uneven, and we must provide opportunities for people at every level to succeed, she said. Even before the speakers remarks, there was palpable tension between the mayor and Council members in the auditorium. Brooklyn Councilwoman Crystal Hudson, who introduced the speaker, said in her remarks that the Council will fight tooth and nail in this years budget negotiations to reverse public library spending cuts enacted by the mayor. She also lauded the speaker for pushing for the How Many Stops Act, an NYPD transparency bill the mayor vetoed in January, a move that was then overridden by the Council in order to force it into law. I could say a lot, Hudson added, as the mayor looked on from the front row, but I wont. In a statement after her address, the mayor focused on what he described as his partnership with the speaker. The priorities the speaker laid out today are our shared priorities: child care, housing, womens health care, and more, he said. We look forward to digging into the speakers proposals and continuing to build on two years of collaboration with her and the City Council to deliver on our shared goals and make sure the city we all love works for working-class New Yorkers. Beyond municipal hiring, the speakers address echoed the mayors push for building more housing to tackle the citys soaring rents. She didnt announce any new initiatives on that front, but said the Council will work with the mayor to adopt a citywide zoning law text amendment that his administrations pushing to pave the way for more housing development across all five boroughs. She also said the city can tailor the zoning amendment in such a way that would place new requirements on landlords as it relates to accepting CityFHEPS vouchers, which subsidize rent for low-income New Yorkers on open market apartments. The speakers CityFHEPS reference comes as the mayor refuses to implement Council laws expanding access to the voucher program. The Council has joined a lawsuit seeking to compel the mayor to implement them. Though she didnt outline any specific plans, the speaker said another path for building more housing is incentivizing development of apartments on top of public libraries in the city. Such efforts have drawn controversy in the past, including when the city started building apartments on top of the Sunset Park Library in Brooklyn in 2015. A 174-unit affordable housing building is currently being constructed on land owned by the New York Public Library in Inwood, Manhattan. Ultimately, the speaker agreed with the mayor that to truly make a dent in the housing crisis, state lawmakers in Albany must this year replace expired tax breaks incentivizing affordable apartment developments an effort that failed during the 2023 session. It is imperative that Albany provides funding and tax incentives to help us achieve truly affordable housing and prevent New Yorkers from being priced out, she said. On childcare, the speaker reiterated that she finds the mayors cuts to the 3-K program unproductive and signaled her body will strive to reverse them as budget talks heat up this spring. We need to support children and families so they can grow their futures here, she said. WASHINGTON One of the most explosive claims in special counsel Robert Hurs investigative report on President Joe Bidens handling of classified documents portrayed the 81-year-old president as an elderly man with a memory so poor that he couldnt remember when his own son died. But the transcript of Hurs interview with Biden shows the exchange about Beau Bidens death was far from the senior moment that Hur made it out to be. At the same time, the transcript contradicts Bidens angry assertion that Hur raised the topic of Beau Bidens death during their interview. It was Biden, not Hur, who first mentioned Beau Bidens death, according to the transcript. The transcript, released Tuesday ahead of Hurs testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, shows that the conversation between the president and the special prosecutor that transpired over two days last October was far more nuanced than either side has suggested. Special Counsel Robert Hur appears before the House Judiciary Committee on March 12, 2024 about his report on President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents. What did Hur report say about Biden? In his investigative report released last month, Hur concluded that Biden was careless in his handling of classified documents scattered across his Delaware residence. But federal investigators declined to pursue criminal charges against Biden in part, they said, because of his poor memory. Bidens memory was significantly limited, Hur concluded, which he said would make it hard to get a jury to convict him. At another point, Hur described the president as a well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory. Biden could not remember important details of his own life, Hurs report said. He did not remember, even within several years, when his son Beau died," the report says. Visual guide How does the Biden classified documents report compare to Trump's? What did Joe Biden actually say about Beau Biden? The transcript of Hurs interview with Biden on Oct. 8, 2023, however, shows a meandering conversation that eventually led to the topic of Beau Biden, who died of brain cancer in 2015. Biden, who at times appeared to be thinking out loud, asked at one point what month Beau Biden died, but then went on to talk in detail about his close relationship with Beau and his other son, Hunter. The exchange began when Hur asked where Biden kept papers related to his work at the University of Pennsylvania's Biden Center, the University of Delaware's Biden Institute, and the Cancer Moonshot program after leaving the vice presidency. This is, what, 2017, 2018, that area? Biden asked. Yes, sir, Hur responded. Biden: Remember, in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying. Even though I'm at Penn, I hadn't walked away from the idea that I may run for office again. But if I ran again, I 'd be running for president. And, and so what was happening, though what month did Beau die? Oh, God, May 30th. Rachel Cotton, White House lawyer: 2015. Unidentified male speaker: 2015. Biden: Was it 2015 he had died? Unidentified male speaker: It was May of 2015. Biden: It was 2015. Robert Bauer, Biden's personal lawyer: Or I'm not sure the month, sir, but I think that was the year. Marc Krickbaum, Hur's deputy: That's right, Mr. President. It Biden: And what's happened in the meantime is that as and Trump gets elected in November of 2017? Unidentified male speaker: 2016. Unidentified male speaker: '16. Biden: '16, 2016. All right. So why do I have 2017 in here? Ed Siskel, White House counsel: That's when you left office, January of 2017. Biden: Yeah, okay. But that's when Trump gets sworn in then, January Siskel: Right. Biden went on to speak in detail about his close relationship with his sons, his decision to write a book and how a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., prompted him to run for president in 2020. Biden: And in 2017, Beau had passed and this is personal the genesis of the book and the title Promise Me, Dad was a I know you're all close with your sons and daughters, but Beau was like my right arm and Hunt was my left. These guys were a year and a day apart and they could finish each other' s sentences. Everybody knew how close we were. There was not anybody in the world who wondered whether or not anyway. At one point in the conversation, Hur suggested it would be a good time for Biden to take a break. No, I, Biden said, let me just keep going to get it done. A rematch: Trump shows slight lead over Biden in new exclusive poll even as views of economy brighten What did Biden say about Hur's report? Hurs portrayal of Biden as elderly man with diminished capacities quickly became a political liability for Biden because it handed his critics fresh evidence to suggest he isnt up to serving a second term. Biden is gearing up for a brutal rematch with former President Donald Trump in November, and multiple polls show Bidens age is a major concern for many voters. Hours after Hurs report became public on Feb. 9, a visibly angry Biden denounced Hurs conclusions in a prime time address from the White House. Biden was especially incensed over Hurs suggestion that he couldnt remember the year his son died. How in the hell dare he raise that?" Biden asked. "I don't need anybody to remind me when he passed away," Biden said as he clenched his teeth. The transcript, however, shows clearly it was Biden, not Hur, who first raised the topic. Ian Sams, a spokesman for the White House counsels office, defended Bidens reaction to the report, saying the president was very emotional about the fact that Hur had used the report to make a patently false claim that the president doesnt somehow remember when his son died. The transcript is now available for every American to see, Sams said after the conclusion of Tuesdays congressional hearing. And you can see the president remembers exactly the day his son died. Contributing: Joey Garrison Michael Collins covers the White House. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @mcollinsNEWS. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hur report transcript: Truth about Biden's memory of Beau Biden death Ukraines State Border Guard Service has begun issuing documents granting permission to remain in a five-kilometre-wide zone near the state border line. Source: Ukraines State Border Guard Service Details: The Ministry of the Interior has approved (by Order No. 49 of 29 January 2024, registered with the Ministry of Justice and officially published on 7 March) the form of the decision to grant permission to stay in the border strip (or to refuse permission or invalidate permission), determined according to the special regime that the government introduced in December 2023. This regime restricts free entry, stay, residence, work and movement within the border zone. Citizens must obtain permission to enter, stay and work within the border strip from the relevant body of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service (the border detachment for the relevant region). This applies to both individuals and legal entities. Permission will be granted to individuals under the age of 18 upon the request of one of their parents (adoptive parents), guardians, trustees or other legal representatives. The decision to grant a permit, refuse to grant a permit, or declare a granted permit invalid must be made within 10 business days of receipt of the application. The State Border Service administration is still working on creating a single account for people who have obtained the necessary permits so that each inspector, using a service tablet, can quickly verify a document's validity and identify the bearer. Support UP or become our patron! The Great Salt Lake on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023. A new report says the Great Salt Lake is the saltiest body of water known to contain the species of nematodes. GSL logo on collaborative stories | Great Salt Lake Collaborative Editors note: This article is published through the Great Salt Lake Collaborative, a solutions journalism initiative that partners news, education and media organizations to help inform people about the plight of the Great Salt Lake. Michael Werner was one of the many Utah residents who fled to the states sprawling parks and public lands in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to shutdowns of gathering places all over the state, leaving very few activities available outside of home. He had just started his job as an assistant professor of biological sciences at the University of Utah and decided to take up hiking after the pandemic closed the universitys lab for months on end. That led him to Antelope Island, where he stumbled across educational signage teaching visitors that brine shrimp and brine flies are the only species living in the Great Salt Lake because of its unique saline ecosystem. Being an expert on nematodes, he wondered if that was true. Nematodes, otherwise known as roundworms, are one of the worlds most abundant animal classifications. There are more than 250,000 known nematode species, including in the deep ocean, arid climates and anything and everything in between. Nematodes are a nearly ubiquitous group of organisms found in all sorts of environments. Some of those environments are very extreme, he said, recalling that day almost four years ago. So I thought, Maybe nobody has taken a close look? His question sparked conversations with lake experts and new lake studies. After a few years of research, he and other University of Utah researchers confirmed his hunch. Nematodes live in the Great Salt Lake, along with brine shrimp and brine flies, and have a role in the lakes ecosystem that is not yet fully understood. Their findings, published Tuesday in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, also note that the Great Salt Lake is now the saltiest body of water known to contain the species. A new Great Salt Lake discovery Once inspiration struck, Werner started consulting with Bonnie Baxter, a biology professor at Westminster University, and BYU biology professor Byron Adams, experts on the Great Salt Lake and nematodes, respectively. There wasnt much available to prove nematodes didnt exist in the lake, but researchers had also never found them. Finding nematodes was much easier said than done. Werner estimates it took about six months between the origin of the study and the moment the first nematodes were found. The biggest breakthrough happened when he went back to Adams and asked how to extract the species from extreme parts of the world. Werner also brought his hypothesis to his students. Julie Jung, a postdoctoral researcher at the U.s School of Biological Sciences and the studys lead author, remembers being sold right away when Werner approached her about the project. She, Werner and a group of other researchers descended on three sites at the Great Salt Lakes southern arm in the spring of 2021: the southern end of Fremont Island, the northern end of Antelope Island and a spot in between. Applying Adams method, the team found bunches of nematodes that year. Werner still remembers the thrill when a group member yelled I found one! in the lab after a successful trip. Others chimed in with their own discoveries soon after. That was a really exciting evening, he said. Nematodes and the ecosystem Almost all of the nematodes found in the Great Salt Lake came from the Monhysteridae family, considered an ancient branch of the species phylum associated with deep-sea and hydrothermal conditions, the researchers say. They add, its a branch known to adapt to extreme habitats. None have been discovered in the lakes northern arm, so far. That wasnt the only finding, though. A few months after the initial discovery, Jung tested another theory. She discovered thousands of nematodes while hammering through samples of microbialites. This discovery seemed to show some connection between nematodes and microbialites, bacterial mats that play a vital part in the Great Salt Lakes ecosystem. The connection between the two is not as clear, but both Werner and Jung say the new findings open more research opportunities. Some of this is already underway. They believe the finding ultimately creates many new questions. Where do these nematodes come from? How do the nematodes survive in the Great Salt Lake? Are nematodes helping build the lakes microbialites? Were very much at the beginning, Werner said. Just knowing that there are three and not two animals is a pretty transformative (and) important finding. Now were trying to figure out, what is their role in the environment and the ecology of the Great Salt Lake? The team has some anecdotal evidence that suggests the lakes decline may impact the species, a serendipitous finding if confirmed. Most of the work came as the lake reached all-time lows and the group switched from kayaking to biking to sites as the project continued, Jung said. The team also found more nematodes in 2021 than in 2022. The researchers say the findings may even help understand the survivability of organisms on other planets with extreme climate conditions, such as Mars. They point out that the planet may have even looked like the lake during its waning days of water. Its something they plan to add to the pile of unanswered questions. However, their research has at least changed what was known about the lakes ecosystem. It also proves its livelier than initially thought. I think people look at the lake and hear (about) the lake as this kind of stinky, lifeless place in our backyard, but its so much more than that, Jung said. The more you look the more you find. Contributing: Shelby Lofton Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on as Israel's parliament is scheduled to elect its two members to the committee that appoints judges, at the plenum of the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in Jerusalem JERUSALEM (Reuters) - A centrist bloc in Israel's unity government formed around former defence minister Benny Gantz has broken up, adding to pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu five months into the Gaza war. After months in which the normal rules of politics were suspended, the split was widely seen as an early sign of positioning ahead of a possible election in the coming months, well before the due date in October 2026. Gideon Saar, a former justice minister who left Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party to join forces with Gantz, unexpectedly announced late on Tuesday that he was ending the partnership and establishing a separate centre-right bloc in parliament. The two men had joined Netanyahu's right-wing coalition partners in an emergency government of national unity in October in the wake of the Hamas-led attack on Israel that set off the war. Such coalition shifts are a perennial feature of Israel's byzantine internal politics and the move should have no immediate effect on the stability of the government, with Saar potentially claiming his own seat in the war cabinet. However analysts said the break-up signalled a return to pre-war politics as usual in Israel. "Alongside the ongoing political disagreements, the move is evidence of a growing split in Israeli politics after Oct. 7: the return of the right-wing versus center-left," wrote Amit Segal, a columnist in the N12 news outlet. Gantz, the strong favourite to become Israel's next prime minister, had already upset right-wing and religious nationalist coalition partners with a visit this month to Washington and London, which he made without the approval of Netanyahu. "We can't ignore the fact that there are challenges in the government's conduct," he said in a speech in parliament on Wednesday, but called for unity and urged parties to "do what's right for Israel". "When the war ends, we'll hold elections and all candidates can explain what they offer and what they've done for the country during this difficult time," he said. On Wednesday, Channel 12, one of Israel's main television stations published a poll showing growing support for early elections either immediately or once the war in Gaza is over, with as many as 50% of right-wing voters in favour. The poll continued to show Gantz's National Unity Party maintaining a runaway lead over Likud, with Gantz himself holding a 12-point personal advantage over Netanyahu. (Reporting by James Mackenzie; Editing by Ros Russell) OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) The Our Blood Institute (OBI) is asking Oklahoma donors to spring into action and supporti the local blood supply through the Spring Break. Grow together and Renew Life with Our Blood Institute and Oklahomas News 4 are teaming up on Thursday, March 14 and Friday, March 15. for two of OBIs popular donor events as the new season approaches. Unraveling the mystery of the Oklahoma UFO Participants who are successful donors who give blood at an Our Blood Institute donor center for Renew Life will receive a roughleaf dogwood OR red mulberry seedling from the Oklahoma Forestry Services, a Stand Tall and Donate T-shirt and one free entry to the OKC Zoo. (while supplies last) Following Renew Life, OBIs Lotto Pot O Gold Giveaway kicks off Saturday, March 16. Participants who give blood at an Our Blood Institute donor center or mobile drive between March 16 22 to receive a Lotto Pot O Gold scratcher. Scratch your ticket to unveil a surprise! You could walk away with a $200 or $100 Visa gift card or other fun prizes. Donors will also receive a Stand Tall and Donate T-shirt and one free entry to the OKC Zoo. (*while supplies last) March is a time we typically see low donor turnout with donors out of their normal schedules due to Spring Break and having nicer weather, says Dr. John Armitage, president and CEO of Our Blood Institute. Dr. Armitage concluded saying, But accidents happen, and those battling cancer or other life-threatening conditions still need lifesaving blood. We urge all healthy adults to take an hour of their time to donate before they leave town or get busy with Spring Break activities. Headlines According to OBI, every two seconds, someone needs blood, and the supply must be constantly renewed. It takes approximately 1,200 donors a day to meet those needs. You must be healthy and 16 years old* or older to give blood. Appointments to donate can be made online at obi.org or by calling 877-340-8777. Walk-ins are also welcome. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City. The Social Security Administrations new chief is promising to overhaul the agencys system of clawing back billions of dollars it claims were wrongly sent to beneficiaries, saying it just doesnt seem right or fair. SSA Commissioner Martin OMalley said that in the coming days, he would propose changes to help people avoid crushing debts that have driven some into homelessness and caused financial hardships for the nations most vulnerable people who rely on monthly checks from the government safety net to survive. OMalley, who took office in December, spoke with KFF Health News by phone and said that addressing the injustice we do to too many Americans because of overpayments, the rather cruel-hearted and mindless way that we recover those overpayments, is among his top priorities. He said he has concrete steps in mind, such as shifting the burden of proof from beneficiaries to the agency, defaulting to reducing beneficiaries checks instead of stopping them completely, and limiting how far back the agency can go to identify overpayments and recoup debts. He did not disclose a specific number of years he plans on proposing. We do have the ability and we do have the authority to address many of these injustices, he said, suggesting that the SSA wont have to wait for congressional action. The pledge comes after our company-wide investigation in partnership with KFF Health News revealed that SSA routinely reduces or halts monthly benefit checks to reclaim billions of dollars in payments it sent to beneficiaries then later said they should not have received. In some cases, years passed before the government discovered its mistake and then imposed debts that sometimes have reached tens of thousands of dollars on people who cannot afford to pay. KFF Health News and Cox Media Group discovered that more than 2 million people a year have been hit with overpayment demands. The agency recovered $4.9 billion of overpayments during the 2023 fiscal year, with an additional $23 billion in overpayments still uncollected, according to its latest annual financial report. Nearly 74% of the money it recovered came from withholding all or part of peoples monthly checks. RELATED STORIES: OMalley said the agency plans to cease efforts to claw back years-old overpayments and halt the practice of terminating benefits for disabled workers who dont respond to overpayment notices because they did not receive them or couldnt make sense of them. Were not fulfilling congressional intent by putting seniors out of their homes and having them live under a bridge when they didnt understand our notice, OMalley said. He wants to simplify the wording in the agencys overpayment notices to make them easier for beneficiaries to understand. Internal agency records show only 12% of beneficiaries who received a notice last year took steps to challenge the overpayment. To be honest, a lot of problems [are caused by] our notices being hard to read, OMalley said. In fact, one might argue that the only thing thats really clear about the notice is to call the 800 number. OMalley said fixing that hotline is also a top priority. When you call them, youre on hold for hours and I dont have hours to just stay on hold, said Melissa Evans, a Social Security beneficiary. AARP says issues with Social Securitys wait times and customer service are the number one complaint the organization hears from its members. Its really bad. The average wait time is about 35 minutes, said Bill Sweeney, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for AARP. He says OMalley has already met with the AARP leadership to hear their concerns. I think hes doing all the right things that we would want a new commissioner to do in his first few days. And were really thrilled that hes bringing this customer service focus to this agency that so badly needs it, Sweeney said. Sweeney says in addition to the agency making changes, Congress also needs to take action by making sure the Social Security Administration has enough funding. They have the lowest staffing levels now since 1972, said Sweeney. Their budget has gone down about 17 percent while the number of their customers has gone up by 22 percent Congress is on the hook for this too, and they really do need to step up and provide the agency with the funding it needs. OMalley did not offer a timeline for the proposed changes but says he does expect them to take effect this year. He is slated to testify before multiple congressional committees next week and will likely disclose more specifics about his plans. RELATED NEWS: Company Logo Nigerian Loyalty Programs Market Nigerian Loyalty Programs Market Dublin, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Nigeria Loyalty Programs Market Intelligence and Future Growth Dynamics Databook - 50+ KPIs on Loyalty Programs Trends by End-Use Sectors, Operational KPIs, Retail Product Dynamics, and Consumer Demographics - Q1 2024 Update" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The latest market intelligence study spotlights the flourishing future of loyalty programs in Nigeria, detailed within a comprehensive databook update. Sectors including retail, financial services, and travel are poised to leverage customer loyalty to foster sustained business growth. According to a recently updated databook, Nigeria's loyalty programs market is forecasted to achieve significant growth, with a projected 10.7% annual increase culminating in a US$628.5 million valuation by 2024. The robust trajectory of this market is underpinned by a commendable compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.4% recorded from 2019-2023, with future prospects indicating a continued rise at a CAGR of 9.5% during the 2024-2028 period. By 2028, the loyalty market in Nigeria is expected to reach an impressive US$904.0 million. This detailed data-centric report encompasses more than 50 key performance indicators (KPIs), offering a panoramic view of the loyalty programs' trends across various end-use sectors. Critical operational KPIs, dynamics of retail product offerings, and consumer demographics feature prominently in this analysis, providing market participants with an invaluable tool for strategic planning. In a market segment as diverse as Nigeria's, the databook navigates through an array of loyalty program constructs, including points and tier-based systems, subscription-based offerings, and cashback programs, among others. A clear demarcation of market dynamics by channelsuch as in-store, online, and mobileis provided, reflecting the multifaceted approach businesses are taking to enhance customer engagement and retention. Story continues Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size Analysis and Forecast Breakdown by Retail Categories Consumer Accessibility Trends Loyalty Programs' Impact on Key Sectors Retail Financial Services Healthcare & Wellness Travel & Hospitality Other Emerging Sectors Furthermore, the databook offers a nuanced view on the spend market size within key sectorsan insight crucial for navigating the competitive landscape. It also delves into consumer types, membership models, and the technological backbone of these programs, including analytics-driven loyalty platforms and deployment models. The evolution of the loyalty programs market in Nigeria can notably influence consumer purchasing behavior, with the databook emphasizing strategic recommendations. Industry players, stakeholders, and decision-makers stand to gain a wealth of knowledge on sustaining growth, improving customer experience, and adapting to emerging market trends. As the loyalty programs landscape continues to mature and expand, this databook serves as a critical resource for market participants looking to elevate their customer loyalty initiatives and secure a competitive edge in Nigeria's vibrant market. This comprehensive report is integral to understanding the intricacies of the loyalty programs market in Nigeria and to forging a path towards sustained success in this dynamic sector. Key Topics Covered About this Report Nigeria Retail Sector Market Size Analysis Nigeria Loyalty Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Loyalty Program Type Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Channel Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Business Model Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Key Sectors Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend in Key Sectors by Online Channel Nigeria In-Store Loyalty Schemes Spend in Key Sectors Nigeria Mobile App Loyalty Schemes Spend in Key Sectors Nigeria Retail Sector Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Accessibility Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Consumer Type Nigeria Loyalty Schemes Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Membership Type Nigeria Loyalty Platform Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Software Use case Nigeria Loyalty Platform Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Vendor/Solution Partner Nigeria Loyalty Platform Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Deployment Nigeria Loyalty Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Software vs. Services Nigeria Loyalty Spend Market Size and Future Growth Dynamics by Custom vs. Off the Shelf Software Platforms Nigeria Loyalty Spend Market Size and Forecast by Consumer Demographics & Behavior Further Reading Key Attributes Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 117 Forecast Period 2024 - 2028 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2024 $628.54 Million Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2028 $904.05 Million Compound Annual Growth Rate 9.5% Regions Covered Nigeria For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/7fj5ti About ResearchAndMarkets.com ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends. Attachment CONTACT: CONTACT: ResearchAndMarkets.com Laura Wood,Senior Press Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./ CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 (Bloomberg) -- The United Steelworkers and Nippon Steel Corp. are staking out bargaining positions for a deal that would potentially smooth the purchase of United States Steel Corp. a key test of whether the union will ultimately back the deal and clear the way for the Biden administration to approve it. Most Read from Bloomberg Union leader David McCall is now explicitly outlining what it will take for the union to get a deal done: An in-writing, legal agreement that Nippon will honor all its labor contracts. Nippon seems to be falling short of that demand, at least for now. A document seen by Bloomberg News details what Nippon put on the the table during a discussion last week with the union. While the Japanese company offered at least $1.4 billion in new capital spending and has said it intends to uphold the agreements, it has yet to modify its public plan of merger with the assumption of the labor contracts a key step the union is seeking. As far as Im concerned, all thats gone on here, all it tells me, is our caution our concern from the beginning is more than justified, McCall said in a telephone interview. Read More: US Steel Takeovers Fate May Hang on the Words of a Union Boss Thanks to a growing political maelstrom thats thrust the American steelworker into the center of campaign rhetoric, McCall is now one of the most crucial voices that can help decide the fate of Nippon Steels proposed $14 billion takeover. Shares of US Steel rose more than 5% in after-hours trading after Bloomberg News reported McCalls comments and details of the document. Bidens Union Support President Joe Biden is expected to soon release a statement of concern about the deal, the latest show of support from the administration for the steel union as it seeks to win better terms. US Steel shares tumbled on the news Wednesday. The stock dropped as much as 15%, the biggest intraday loss since June 2020. Story continues Nippon Steel said in a Feb. 13 letter to McCall and USW Negotiating Committee Chair Michael Millsap that the parent company for US Steel would assume the labor agreements. The statement was meant to allay concerns by the union that the subsidiary set up to house the American company post-deal would assume the agreements. A spokesman for Nippon Steel on Wednesday reiterated the companys commitment to assume all of the existing USW agreements, including the basic labor agreement, pension, health and welfare plans. The spokesman said the commitments would be memorialized in legally binding documents once an agreement with the USW is reached. Read More: US Steel Falls as Biden Weighs Statement of Concern on Deal They say stuff in the press about how theyre assuming the labor agreements but they arent, McCall said, adding that a written, binding assurance from Nippon on the agreements is the most important measure the union is looking for before continuing further discussions. Political Leverage The union doesnt have any official right to simply block an offer US Steel has accepted, but it holds unique political leverage. Bidens administration has regularly sent warnings about the deal and has steadfastly sided with the USW over the sale of a once-iconic firm based in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state. So far, the White House has stopped short of calling for the deal to be blocked. Politics hang over the administrations considerations, with Donald Trump pledging to block the deal outright. The Nippon bid for US Steel is up for review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or Cfius, a process shrouded in secrecy. Allies of Biden have urged the administration to kill the deal over national security concerns despite Japan being a close ally and the threat to unionized steel jobs. Read More: US Steel Review Seen to Last Year or More, Defying Forecasts The Japanese steelmaker is offering at least $1.4 billion in capital expenditures on existing plants run by union workers from 2024 to 2026, a commitment not to lay off any steelworkers through Sept. 1, 2026 when the existing labor agreement ends and a commitment to not idle or permanently close any plants through the same period, the meeting document seen by Bloomberg showed. Thats among other promises made to the union effective as of the closing of the acquisition, the document showed. Union Letter In a letter addressed to Nippons Executive Vice President Takahiro Mori that was dated March 11, McCall criticized the companys lack of commitment during the meeting to spell out the parent companys promise to assume the labor agreements with the union. Plainly, NSCs currently expressed intent to guarantee or indemnify against future obligations is not consistent with its written promise to USW and US Steel to assume all USW agreements, and thus NSCs expressed intent falls grievously short of constituting an assumption, the letter said. USW will continue strongly to oppose Nippons proposed acquisition of US Steel in light of these failings. Nippons meeting document said the parent company would assume all agreements between the union and US Steel, in the highly unlikely event of default by both US Steel and Nippon Steel North America Inc., which is the Nippon subsidiary. McCall in the phone interview emphasized that these agreements must be met before the union can move to a second step in the negotiations. I hope they read the letter and hope they decide they need to figure out something different, he said. (Updates with US Steel after-hours share movement, in the fifth paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. U.S. investors may not have heard of Nu Holdings (NYSE: NU), which operates under the banner of NuBank in its home market of Brazil. But you should get to know this stock because it has incredible opportunities and might be one of the best growth stocks you can buy today. Nu stock more than doubled in 2023, and it's off to a great start in 2024. But can it double again? The unusual Buffett growth stock Warren Buffett and growth stocks don't usually go together. Buffett is known for his value approach to investing, which is based on the assumption that undervalued stocks will rise to meet their true values. In the case of a high-growth stock like Nu, might that mean that even at current levels, Buffett still sees Nu as undervalued? Nu is reporting impressive growth, capturing market share, and demonstrating rising profitability as it scales. It uses a strategy of hooking in customers through its low-fee products, gaining loyalty through its easy-to-use services all in one place, and cross-selling satisfied customers new products and services. Average revenue per active customer (ARPAC) continues to rise sequentially and year over year, offering insight into how Nu manages to report large revenue increases without increasing its cost to serve customers. Image source: Nu Holding. Customers are engaged, with an 83% monthly activity rate -- that means 83% of account holders have used the platform over the past 30 days. Nu has expanded beyond bank accounts to offer credit cards, investing tools, insurance products, and more. It's also expanded into new markets, with Mexico and Colombia growing faster than Brazil and holding tons of potential. The growth opportunity is huge. Is Nu stock too expensive? Buffett has been quoted many times as saying that it's better to buy great companies at fair prices than fair companies at great prices. Nu is a great company, and it might be fairly valued right now, even if it appears expensive at first glance. Story continues Whenever you consider buying a stock, you should evaluate it from multiple angles, including the angle of valuation. So while you might be put off by a seemingly high price-to-earnings ratio, consider the price-to-sales ratio, the forward price-to-earnings ratio, and other multiples. You should also consider the valuation in comparison to similar companies over time. Nu stock trades at a relatively high price-to-sales ratio of almost 10, but a reasonable P/E ratio of 54, which isn't objectively cheap but is inexpensive for a high-growth stock. Its forward P/E ratio looks very cheap, though, at only 19. As it generates higher profitability, this becomes a more accurate representation of its valuation. It also means that Nu's price could go higher without becoming meaningfully more expensive. Can Nu stock double again in 2024? Nu is an excellent choice for a profitable growth stock that could add value to your portfolio. It's already up 36% this year, and as it reports higher net income, its stock could continue to soar. To double for the full year, it would have to go from a market cap of $40 billion at the start of the year to $80 billion. Keeping the P/E ratio constant would imply net income of $2 billion. There isn't a long enough history for us to know if that's possible, but it increased more than that over the past year, going from a loss in 2022. Nu stock could double this year, and it has a compelling long-term growth story. Should you invest $1,000 in Nu right now? Before you buy stock in Nu, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Nu wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than tripled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of March 11, 2024 Jennifer Saibil has positions in Nu. The Motley Fool recommends Nu. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Nu Stock Doubled in 2023. Can It Do It Again in 2024? was originally published by The Motley Fool The artificial intelligence (AI) narrative is primarily concentrated in a small basket of stocks called the "Magnificent Seven". Indeed, Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Tesla, Amazon, and Meta Platforms are all disrupting AI in their own unique ways. But among megacap tech companies, perhaps the most important player is Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). The semiconductor manufacturer is at the forefront of generative AI -- its graphics processing units (GPUs) and data center operations are playing a critical role in accelerated computing, machine learning, and more. After generating record revenue in 2023, Nvidia is sitting on a $26 billion cash pile. Let's see how the company is investing its profits to help position itself for long-term growth. 1. Voice recognition software A couple of weeks ago, investors learned that Nvidia has a small ownership position in a company called SoundHound AI (NASDAQ: SOUN), a developer of voice-recognition software. The company works with automobile manufacturers and restaurants, and its software can be integrated into smart devices. Big tech has shown a keen interest in voice-powered assistants for many years. Apple acquired both Siri and Shazam, while Microsoft acquired Nuance in 2021 for nearly $20 billion. Moreover, both Amazon and Alphabet leverage the technology for their respective lines of smart home appliances. Considering that other major tech players have invested in technologies similar to SoundHound AI's, and the projected market size is $50 billion, it's easy to see why Nvidia is making its move now -- as use cases for AI continue to evolve. Image source: Getty Images. 2. Humanoid robotics Nvidia swiftly followed the news about SoundHound AI with an investment in a start-up called Figure AI. Figure AI is developing humanoid robots, similar to Tesla's Optimus robot. Although humanoid robots aren't commercially applied today, many companies are investing heavily in the technology. One reason could be that the addressable market is expected to reach $38 billion over the next decade, according to research conducted by Goldman Sachs. Story continues There are likely a few key reasons why Nvidia is interested in Figure AI. The combination of Nvidia's chips and its under-the-radar software business could play a unique role in developing Figure AI's robotics ambitions. Moreover, the investment by Nvidia is an important step as the company seeks to grow beyond GPUs. While I see the chip business as its bread and butter, Nvidia will have to demonstrate that it has alternative products and services that can scale as competition in the AI landscape heats up. 3. Enterprise software Many investors see Nvidia as primarily a hardware business, but one of the most overlooked areas the company is exploring is enterprise software. In September, Nvidia participated in a $500 million funding round for artificial intelligence (AI) software company Databricks. Following the investment, Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang said that "enterprise data is a gold mine for generative AI." Databricks adds a new layer for Nvidia's enterprise software services business, which is already operating at an annual revenue run rate of $1 billion. This is an important relationship for Nvidia to nurture as demand for AI-powered services continues to surge, and I don't think the partnership should be overlooked. 4. New product innovation Nvidia's A100 and H100 chips have played a major role in its growth over the last year. However, despite the popularity of these semiconductor models, the company is already designing even better technology. It's marketing its next-generation chips under the moniker Blackwell. Of particular interest, Nvidia's H200 chips reportedly double the inferencing performance of the H100. During the company's fourth-quarter earnings call, management told investors that the H200 chips are already witnessing strong demand, and Nvidia is planning to launch in the second quarter. Following the release of the H200, Nvidia is planning to encore with its most powerful chip yet later this year. 5. Supply chain The last area that Nvidia is investing in is the supply chain. Semiconductor businesses are generally cyclical, given their exposure to broader trends in technology spending and manufacturing. Over the last few years, supply chains and logistics efforts have become strained due to a mixture of COVID-induced disruption and geopolitical tensions. Nvidia has not been immune to these challenges. In order to keep up with surging demand, Nvidia has had to make some concessions on the cost side of the house. The company has been ratcheting up its spending in order to fulfill backlog. While this includes sourcing components for chips, it's important to note that Nvidia does not make its own chips. Instead, they outsource this part of the supply chain to Taiwan Semiconductor. Given Nvidia's heavy reliance on Taiwan Semiconductor's fabrication facilities, it's going to very important that this relationship remains strong. Should you invest $1,000 in Nvidia right now? Before you buy stock in Nvidia, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now and Nvidia wasnt one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Stock Advisor provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month. The Stock Advisor service has more than tripled the return of S&P 500 since 2002*. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of March 11, 2024 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Adam Spatacco has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Goldman Sachs Group, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Nvidia Is Sitting on $26 Billion of Cash. Here Are 5 Ways the Company Is Investing Its Capital. was originally published by The Motley Fool NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) A Tangier man has admitted to overharvesting Chesapeake Bay blue crabs on multiple occasions and selling them in Maryland. 45-year-old James Warren Eskridge on Wednesday pleaded guilty to one count of knowingly transporting and selling blue crab in interstate commerce between Virginia and Maryland in violation of Virginia law and one count of knowingly making and submitting a false record, according to a release from the Department of Justice. Federal prosecutors say Eskridge harvested and sold more than the 27-pound Virginia limit on 16 different occasions in a months span, from March 20, 2023 to April 20, 2023. Eskridge and two others out of Tangier were first spotted selling the overharvested crabs on April 11, 2023 by Virginia Marine Police in Crisfield, Maryland, not far over the state line. They offloaded nearly 60 bushels on several occasions, prosecutors said, and their overharvesting ranged from 32 to 59 bushels. When confronted by police, Eskridge originally said he bought the crabs from a buy boat to later sell on shore, but later admitted the crabs were his and he was overharvesting in Virginia. Eskridge faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison when hes sentenced on July 17. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. A 52-year-old U.S. man with a predilection for undercooked pork showed up at a Florida hospital complaining of brutal migraines, after which doctors found his brain infested with parasitic tapeworm larvae. The unnamed patient said his migraines had gotten worse over the previous four months, and were now occurring almost weekly, according to the American Journal of Case Reports. He said he hadnt traveled to any high-risk locations, and that his most recent trip was a cruise to the Bahamas two years prior. The man and his wife lived with a cat in a modern home, and were not food-insecure, the report states. It says his vitals were unremarkable, routine lab tests didnt raise any red flags, and a full infectious disease workup came back negative. However, a CT scan revealed numerous cystic foci within the deep cortical and periventricular white matter of his brain, which physicians regarded as suspicious, the case report, which was published March 7, goes on. On further questioning, the patient denied eating raw or street food but admitted to a habit of eating lightly cooked, non-crispy bacon for most of his life, it says. The fluid-filled cysts, subsequent tests showed, were evidence of neurocysticercosis, which the case report describes as a condition caused by infection with the larval form of Taenia solium, a pork tapeworm that uses pigs as an intermediate host. Centuries ago, the connection between human cysticercosis and pork consumption was plain, and pigs and swine were viewed as impure or unclean throughout the ancient world, the case report explains. Neurocysticercosis is virtually nonexistent in areas of the world that have banned pork consumption, further highlighting the strong link between swine and this disease. Cysticercosis remains common in Asia, Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, and Oceania, though it has tapered off in developed countries due to high scrutiny of food safety and sanitary standards, according to the case report. Still, increased mobility by the global population has brought an increase in cases to the U.S. and elsewhere. Early cases were initially puzzling, such as when members of an Orthodox Jewish community in New York became infected from their houseworkers, who themselves were Taenia carriers, distancing the disease from direct exposures to swine, the case report says. Similarly, our patient lived in the United States and had no recent travel to endemic countries or contact with pigs. The mans lifelong preference for soft bacon is likely the cause of his troubles, although simply eating undercooked pork would have led to taeniasisan intestinal tapeworm resulting from the consumption of undercooked pork containing larval cysts embedded within the meatnot cysticercosis, according to the case report. Cysticercosis, on the other hand, is contracted when humans ingest eggs found in the feces of other humans with taeniasis. It can only be speculated, the case report states, but given our patients predilection for undercooked pork and benign exposure history, we favor that his cysticercosis was transmitted via autoinfection after improper handwashing after he had contracted taeniasis himself from his eating habits. The CDC recommends washing your hands well with soap and warm water after using the toilet or changing diapers, and before handling food. The patient was admitted to the ICU and treated with dexamethasone, an anti-inflammatory, to prevent seizures and brain swelling, and the anti-parasitics albendazole and praziquantel, which stabilized his condition. The patient was successfully treated, with regression of lesions and improvement of headaches, the case report says. Neurocysticercosis is rarely seen in the U.S., although eating rare pork is a theoretical risk factor for neurocysticercosis via autoinoculation, as we suspected in this case, according to the case report. The great variability of symptoms that neurocysticercosis can present with should not be understated, it concludes, and although it is a leading cause of epilepsy worldwide, it can present with more subtlety. Lead author Dr. Stephen J. Carlan of the Orlando Regional Healthcare System did not immediately respond to The Daily Beasts request for comment. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. Video above: How does the CDC track disease? TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Researchers attribute a Florida mans battle with worsening migraines to tapeworm eggs found in his brain. In a study published to the American Journal of Case Reports last week, neurologists documented the case of a 52-year-old man who reported his chronic migraines gradually became more severe over a 4-month period. Im lucky we caught it with enough time: Olivia Munn reveals breast cancer diagnosis, double mastectomy He didnt present with common neurological symptoms like seizures, facial asymmetry and weakness or numbness, but a CT scan revealed he had a cluster of cysts in his brain. The imaging pointed neurologists toward a possible lead: Neurocysticercosis. The condition is a rare parasitic infection of the brain that is strongly linked to pork consumption. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) most neurocysticercosis patients in the U.S. are people who come from regions where the disease is common, including Latin America. According to the study: CT head showed a cluster adjacent to the occipital horn of the right lateral ventricle, which measured maximally 2.62.3 cm across (red arrow). (B) MRI brain showed multilocular cystic lesions within the frontal and parietal cortices (white arrow). (C) Cystic lesions seen in the corpus callosum (orange arrow) and occipital lobe (yellow arrow). Cysticercosis is contracted when humans ingest eggs found in the feces of other humans with taeniasis, the pork tapeworm. The report notes countries that ban pork have virtually nonexistent rates of Neurocysticercosis. The man hadnt traveled recently or had close contact with pigs, so neurologists chocked the condition up to his lifelong preference for soft bacon, which may have led to accidental undercooked bacon consumption. Undercooked pork consumption is a theoretical risk factor for neurocysticercosis via autoinoculation, as we suspected in this case, researchers concluded. Autoinoculation occurs when a person transfers a disease from one part of their body to another. In other words, its like giving yourself a disease. They concluded the man contracted the parasite by improper handwashing after he had contracted taeniasis himself from his eating habits. Researchers said the disease can easily be overlooked, especially if there is an underlying known neurological condition such as migraine. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. Robert Hur on Tuesday during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill. AP Photo/Nathan Howard Robert Hur appeared before Congress to discuss his report on Biden's handling of classified documents. Hur was peppered with questions about the report, which frustrated both Republicans and Democrats. The explosive report has put a spotlight on Biden's age as he seeks a second term. As the former special counsel Robert Hur spoke Tuesday at a congressional hearing about his investigation into President Joe Biden's mishandling of classified documents, one thing was clear: Neither Republican nor Democratic lawmakers were satisfied with his findings. The hearing displayed the expected partisanship for such an event, with Democrats criticizing former President Donald Trump's handling of classified documents and Republicans claiming that the former president had been treated differently than Biden in his unrelated case. But the hearing also revealed bipartisan frustration over the report. Rep. Adam Schiff, a former chair of the House Intelligence Committee and a California US Senate candidate, pushed back against Hur, telling the ex-special counsel that he couldn't have been "so naive" to think that his remarks regarding Biden's acuity wouldn't become a politically explosive issue. "You made a choice. It was a political choice. It was the wrong choice," Schiff told Hur. Republicans peppered Hur with questions about why he declined to recommend charges against Biden. Rep. Jim Jordan, the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said during the hearing that Biden had "8 million reasons" to retain classified documents, alluding to the president's lucrative book deal following his two terms as vice president. "Joe Biden had 8 million reasons to break the rules," the Ohio Republican said. "He took classified information and shared it with the guy who was writing the book. He knew the rules, but he broke them for $8 million in a book advance." Hur's testimony came over a month after the Justice Department released his report on Biden's mishandling of confidential documents, in which he said the president shouldn't be charged with a crime. He said he didn't recommend charges in part because he believed Biden would present himself to a jury as a "sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." Story continues Following the release of the report, prominent Republicans increased their attacks on Biden, saying he's too old and lacked the cognition to serve another four years. But the full transcript of the interviews released Tuesday morning showed that Hur's report appeared to overstate the president's memory issues. For example, while Hur said that Biden "did not remember when he was vice president," the transcript showed him correcting his mistakes quickly while asking for clarification. Several recent national polls have found that Biden's physical and mental fitness is a major source of concern among voters. In a Monmouth University survey from February, for example, less than one in three registered voters said they felt confident in Biden's mental and physical strength. Though some Democratic voters have called for Biden to end his 2024 campaign, Jaime Harrison, the Democratic National Committee's chair, mocked the idea in a late-night social-media post last month, calling it "certifiably crazy." Biden and Trump easily dominated their competition on Super Tuesday, and both are set this month to clinch the requisite number of delegates to secure their party nominations. Read the original article on Business Insider In a surprise maneuver last week, a rebel group of FedEx Express pilots forced union leadership to break off contract negotiations by requesting that federal authorities release the parties from mediation before the company could even respond to its latest counteroffer. The petition to the National Mediation Board (NMB) went against advice from Air Line Pilots Association staff and the unions governing body at FedExs airline, exposing the extent of union infighting that has continued since a tentative labor contract was voted down last summer. The division has undermined the unions negotiating credibility at a delicate moment, with growing prospects the opposition faction could move to oust the unions current leadership. A holy war is about to happen in our union and the crew force. Only thing that happens in a holy war is a high body count, said one poster on an online pilot forum. Shifting e-commerce and parcel trends have decreased overnight demand and forced the company to reimagine its air network functioning with fewer planes and crews. (Shutterstock/ Robin Guess) At a special meeting of the FedEx Master Executive Council (MEC) on March 4, eight of 14 representatives used parliamentary tactics to narrowly push through a resolution demanding ALPAs president ask the NMB to declare an impasse and offer binding arbitration to the parties. Motions to bypass original agenda items were advanced without prior notice or written material to review. The events were described in meeting memos and correspondence from union negotiators to rank-and-file pilots obtained by FreightWaves. The representatives had requested the meeting ostensibly for the purpose of getting a briefing on talks with management. That never happened. On Friday, ALPA announced it had formally requested to be released from mediation a prerequisite for eventually securing the legal right to go on strike. Union officials said the rebel group hid its true intentions until the last moment. One district council leader characterized the actions as an ambush. The board representatives made the power play even as the MEC waited for FedEx (NYSE: FDX) to respond to its most recent contract proposal. The maneuver also prevented attendees from hearing an update from the federal mediator about company plans and expectations for the next negotiating session that would have helped shape the unions decision-making on its agenda items, according to the internal bulletins. Story continues I expect the new majoritys next move will be to recall myself and the other officers, said Capt. Billy Wilson, chairman of the FedEx Master Executive Council. After this change, they have suggested that committee chairs will be removed as well. It appears control and power are goal number one, and a new tentative agreement is a goal for further down the road. Unfortunately, this will be to the detriment of the pilots they represent. Every day that goes by, we are losing money, and the company is saving money. That is why my number one goal has been to move us toward a highly ratifiable tentative agreement as soon as possible, he wrote in a letter. FedEx pilots in July rejected a tentative contract agreement worth $3.8 billion that would have raised pay by up to 30% over 4.5 years. Opponents complained about weaker job protections, back pay, alternative pension options and that pay increases were below those achieved by pilots at American, Delta, United and other airlines. Mediated bargaining sessions resumed in early December, when ALPA presented its contract terms. The next session was scheduled for March 18, when union negotiators were to receive the companys position on pay, retirement and parameters for when flights can be outsourced. That session and another one have now been canceled. Wilson said that ALPA anticipated a serious response from FedEx on March 18 because the mediator had placed significant pressure on both sides to make progress toward a deal. Documents show that the biggest movement since the summers failed agreement was on pay and the scope of third-party outsourcing. Union negotiators agreed to drop some demands for changes in work-life balance in exchange for more money. A full flight simulator at FedEx headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee, helps train pilots on Boeing jets. (Photo: Eric Kulisch/FreightWaves) This short-sighted course of action will ensure that we never know what the company was actually going to provide, complained Patrick ODell, the secretary/treasurer of Council 22. Wilson said the hard-line faction harmed pilots by circumventing the process, adding he was prepared to recommend breaking out of mediation if FedEx presented unfavorable terms next week. As pilots, we always gather all the information available and make informed decisions. They made a premature decision without all of the facts. This is like initiating a go-around before you start the approach because you are basing your decision on [pre-recorded airport information] from an hour ago rather than getting the current weather, said Wilson. FedEx officials say discord within the union has made it difficult to make progress on a contract, despite their best efforts. Since December, ALPA has repeatedly added new agenda items to its proposals, said Pat DiMento, vice president of flight operations and training, in a Monday letter to FedEx crew members reviewed by FreightWaves. It appears that the ALPA negotiating committee is severely constrained at the bargaining table and that directives to the committee to include additional items, concepts and costs are aimed at impeding the process rather than allowing the parties to reach an agreement, wrote DiMento. In the meantime, the company has continuously bargained in good faith and has also moved in our pilots direction with every offer and in almost every area of importance identified by ALPA. Disunity among FedEx pilots has grown in recent years. A 57% majority killed the tentative contract last summer, and some pilots wanted to recall the negotiating committee. Many were upset with ALPA for being too accommodating toward FedEx, including in a 2015 contract they say eroded schedule flexibility and other quality-of-life issues. Chatter on pilot forums suggests continued disillusionment with ALPA, especially on its ability to prevent FedEx from gradually giving more routes to third-party carriers. The new guard lost faith in Capt. Pat May, the chairman of ALPAs FedEx negotiating committee, after he delivered what they consider a substandard labor agreement last summer and didnt resign, as promised, when it was shot down. They believe management is stringing the pilots along because not having an updated contract saves FedEx a huge amount of money, according to several pilot. We went two years negotiating this contract and very little happened when the talks were supposed to follow an expedited track, said one captain in a text message. Many veteran pilots complain a loud minority, with unrealistic goals, is using social media to stir division and delay constructive dialogue with FedEx. They say, for example, code sharing is a reality in the airline industry and that it makes sense to outsource business on routes with limited demand. Younger pilots argue senior pilots previously voted to give away protections and benefits they enjoyed when they had less tenure. Another pilot, who goes by the online handle Anthrax, said Wilson should be recalled and that May failed us miserably the first time around. He said Wilson is stirring up fear, arguing that talks are at a dead end and that its time for a change even if the path ahead is uncertain. But the likelihood of a recall seems low for the moment because May told members several weeks ago that the negotiating committee will be replaced if a tentative agreement isnt reached by the end of April. Wilson said the hard-line factions action only served to raise questions in the NMBs mind about the stability of the union and its ability to conduct negotiations under the Railway Labor Act. Options for dispute resolution Collective bargaining for airlines is governed under the Railway Labor Act, which is much more restrictive than general labor law. Under federal rules designed to prevent work interruptions in critical interstate commerce, workers are prohibited from striking and companies from locking out workers until a lengthy series of bargaining steps, including federal mediation, are completed. The federal mediator has the power to hold the parties in mediation indefinitely. (Photo: Eric Kulisch/FreightWaves) The next step is for the NMB to decide that additional mediation efforts would not be productive and offer the parties an opportunity to arbitrate the dispute before a special panel. If either side declines the arbitration, both parties enter a 30-day cooling-off period, after which the parties can engage in self-help a strike by the union or a lockout by management. But the U.S. president could create an emergency board at that point to investigate the labor dispute and issue a report within 30 days, stringing out the process further. That is followed by another 30-day period to consider the boards recommendations and reach an agreement. If no agreement is reached at the end of the second cooling-off period, the parties may take action. Arbitration in the airline industry almost never happens. The NMB last week denied a release to cargo pilots at Air Transport International, also represented by ALPA. In fact, the NMB has only allowed one airline bargaining process (Spirit Airlines) in more than 20 years to go to arbitration. Meanwhile, the contract talks are taking place against a backdrop of falling volumes that has accelerated a streamlining effort across the Express air network, leaving the airline with hundreds more pilots than it needs. The companys strategy includes segregating parcel and heavy freight shipments so they dont fly together and slow down sort centers, as well as using more ground transportation, temporarily idling some freighters and retiring older aircraft. DiMento said it would be inappropriate for the NMB to end mediated negotiations. It is our view that political agendas within FedEx ALPA are currently frustrating efforts to make these negotiations productive. Regardless, we have been and will remain ready to bargain in good faith in the hopes of reaching an agreement that benefits everyone, he told flight crews. Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch. Sign up for the weekly American Shipper Air newsletter here. RELATED READING: FedEx pilots face pay cuts, buyouts as contract talks resume FedEx braces for 50% cut in Postal Service air contract The post Power struggle within FedEx pilots union upsets contract talks appeared first on FreightWaves. BERLIN (Reuters) - Elon Musk on Wednesday visited Tesla's European gigafactory in Gruenheide, Germany, where operations had resumed after an arson attack on a nearby electricity pylon last week led to a costly power outage that halted production. The Tesla chief executive, who was pictured at the German factory wearing a black T-shirt that read "We are (Giga) the future," shouted "Hey, Deutschland rocks! Dig in Berlin for the win!" as he walked out of the factory and got into a car. Tesla's factory on the outskirts of Berlin was reconnected to the grid on Monday after the March 5 arson attack, claimed by far-left activists. In a post on X, Musk thanked employees for their efforts: "Thanks to the hard work of the Tesla Giga Berlin team and support from the community, the factory is back online!" The attack southeast of the German capital set an electricity pylon close to the site ablaze, but the fire did not spread to the Tesla facility - the U.S. electric vehicle maker's first manufacturing plant in Europe. Tesla has said it expects hundreds of millions of euros in damages as a result of the disruption to production. Works council head Michaela Schmitz had told local radio broadcaster rbb on Wednesday that there would be a team meeting at the plant with Musk. She said production had resumed after the week-long outage. "The machines have been restarted in a controlled and safe manner so that the early shift can resume," Schmitz told rbb. Musk has not made any statements about his plans while in Germany, though local media have said that he might meet with political leaders in the state of Brandenburg. (Reporting by Tobias Schlie and Leon Malherbe; writing by Rachel More, Miranda Murray and Madeline Chambers; editing by Bartosz Dabrowski, Bernadette Baum and Emelia Sithole-Matarise) Insiders were net buyers of Promisia Healthcare Limited's (NZSE:PHL ) stock during the past year. That is, insiders bought more stock than they sold. While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. See our latest analysis for Promisia Healthcare Promisia Healthcare Insider Transactions Over The Last Year Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider purchase was by Executive Director Thomas Brankin for NZ$158k worth of shares, at about NZ$0.009 per share. That means that an insider was happy to buy shares at above the current price of NZ$0.001. While their view may have changed since the purchase was made, this does at least suggest they have had confidence in the company's future. To us, it's very important to consider the price insiders pay for shares. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. Thomas Brankin was the only individual insider to buy during the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date! There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying. Insider Ownership Of Promisia Healthcare Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Promisia Healthcare insiders own 75% of the company, currently worth about NZ$16m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders. Story continues What Might The Insider Transactions At Promisia Healthcare Tell Us? It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Promisia Healthcare shares in the last quarter. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. Judging from their transactions, and high insider ownership, Promisia Healthcare insiders feel good about the company's future. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 5 warning signs for Promisia Healthcare (of which 2 are a bit concerning!) you should know about. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies. For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions 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. Republicans who have in the past voted for Donald Trump explain exactly why they will never do so again in a damning series of testimonials released this week by the Republican Accountability PAC. The conservative political action committee is spending $50 million on its Republican Voters Against Trump campaign to spotlight real former Trump voters making the case for why they wont support him in November, according to a news release. In a video released Tuesday, one- and two-time Trump voters reel off a long list of reasons for not backing the former president as he seeks to retake the White House. They condemn the twice-impeached Trump as the biggest threat to our democracy, responsible for the violence at the 2021 U.S. Capitol riot, and more. In another video, a Virginia Republican named Beth explains how the Trump-instigated riot was like a sucker punch and made her realize this is not the party that I thought we had. Trumps 2021 decision to throw then-Vice President Mike Pence under the bus and ... to the wolves and the lions for not helping him overturn the 2020 election result made Beth sick to my stomach, she says. She says shed back any rival if Trumps evil is on the ballot, and acknowledges that President Joe Bidens administration has been a bit refreshing. Ill take kind, older man any day over the tyrant, she says. A third clip shows a man named Dennis, identified as a former service member, condemning Trump for reportedly making derogatory comments about U.S. veterans and war dead. Trump only thinks about protecting himself, he says. The Republican Accountability PAC is one of multiple conservative groups seeking to prevent Trump from returning to the White House. Its campaign will particularly focus on states that are blue wall battlegrounds, per the news release, with the goal of re-creating the anti-Trump coalition that won in 2020 by targeting soft GOP voters and Republican-leaning independents. Former Republicans and Republican-leaning voters hold the key to 2024, and reaching them with credible, relatable messengers is essential, read a statement from Sarah Longwell, the president of the Republican Accountability PAC. It establishes a permission structure that says thatwhatever their complaints about Joe BidenDonald Trump is too dangerous and too unhinged to ever be president again, Longwell explained. Who better to make this case than the voters who used to support him? The videos will air on TV, streaming, radio, billboards, and digital media, according to the group. However, while such ads attacking Trump (especially from conservatives) have gone viral in recent years, their actual effect on swaying voters remains up for debate. Related... Buyer's Remorse Elon Musk and Donald Trump apparently have a deeper bromance than anyone knew and the former president even tried to get the owner of the site formerly known as Twitter to buy his dismal social network. As the Washington Post reports based on insider sources, Trump made Musk an offer he was apparently easily able to refuse: to sell him Truth Social, the Don's crappy Twitter clone that he self-funded after getting kicked off the actual site in early 2021. Launched in February 2022 over a year, if you recall, after the ex-president and current GOP front-runner was permabanned from Twitter for inciting a riot on January 6, 2021 Truth Social has been hemorrhaging both money and followers basically since it first opened its gates. According to WaPo's two unnamed sources familiar with the conversation, Trump asked Musk if he was interested in buying Truth Social in the summer of 2023, which would have been less than two years after it launched. Around that same time, the app's head of engineering resigned and it nearly missed a filing deadline for the special-purpose acquisition company that it ultimately merged with last month. We don't know exactly what Musk said. But obviously, the deal didn't go through. Tight-Lipped It's unclear what details were discussed, and in statements to WaPo, neither man responded directly to any of the claims made in the article. When asked about the alleged acquisition discussion, Musk told the newspaper only that he had "never been to Mar-a-Lago," and a spokesperson for Trump was similarly opaque. "We heard Trump and Musk were actually discussing buying the Washington Post," Trump Media spokesperson Shannon Devine quipped, "but they decided it had no value." News of this previously unreported conversation comes after a New York Times report last week indicating that Musk, along with some other wealthy Republican donors, met with Trump in Palm Beach, Florida to discuss potential campaign donations. Following that report, which was based on information from three unnamed insider sources and also did not include much about the topics discussed during the cash-seeking summit, Musk tweeted that he is "not donating money to either candidate for US President." Nevertheless, the NYT's sources indicate that Trump is still seeking a one-on-one tete-a-tete with the South African-Canadian billionaire and God only knows what he hopes to discuss if it happens, besides the usual begging. More on Trump: Doctors Say Trump Is Displaying Clear Signs of Cognitive Issues FILE PHOTO: PwC sign is seen in the lobby of their offices in Barangaroo SYDNEY (Reuters) - PwC Australia on Wednesday said it would cut an additional 329 jobs, part of a major restructuring that follows a national scandal in which a former partner leaked government tax plans. The headcount reduction is equivalent to about 5% of staff and up to 37 partners will be accelerating their retirement over the next nine months. "This has been a very challenging and complex process, but an important one, as we realign our business structure with our new long-term strategy," PwC Australia CEO Kevin Burrowes said in a statement. The job cuts come on top of 338 announced in November. Since the scandal broke in January 2023, PwC has also spun off its government consulting practice to private equity firm Allegro Funds for A$1. About 1,400 PwC Australia staff moved over to the new firm which was renamed Scyne Advisory. PwC, one of the world's "big four" consultancy and auditing firms, said that where possible people who had lost their jobs will be invited to apply for new roles created by the changes. There will be no freeze on hiring and new partners will be appointed in July, it added. The company has been under fire after revelations that a former partner leaked government tax plans and used them to win work with global companies looking to restructure their Australian tax affairs. (Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Edwina Gibbs) FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) It was 20 years ago, on March 12, 2004, officers with the Fresno Police Department discovered nine people murdered inside the Fresno home of Marcus Wesson. In the weeks and years that followed, the officers uncovered details that would rock the Central Valley and the country. Nine people, seven of whom were younger than nine years old, were found in the home. The resulting investigation uncovered numerous other offenses, including rape and molestation. How serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer is connected to Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer, who was the citys police chief at the time, has described the case as one of the most traumatic in the history of the city. You can watch Dyers comments in the video player above. I remember initially we thought there was only going to be three or four people who were victims of homicide and the reason there was difficulty knowing how many was because they were stacked up, the bodies were stacked up, Dyer recalled. They had been killed and stacked up on top of one another. ** FILE ** Fresno police and workers remove a casket from the home of Marcus Wesson in Fresno, Calif., in this March 15, 2004, file photo. Jury selection will begin Tuesday Jan. 25, 2005 in a multiple murder case involving a domineering patriarch who allegedly controlled his family with religious teachings and sexual abuse, prosecutors said. Wesson, 57, was the only one to emerge alive from a modest one-story house where police discovered nine bodies in a bloody tangle on March 12, 2004. Wesson facesnine murder charges, and over a dozen counts of sexual abuse. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, file) Aleena Calderon, 8, places flowers at a memorial for the victims on the sidewalk outside the home of Marcus Wesson in Fresno, Calif., Saturday, March 13, 2004. Wesson, described by police as very calm, was arrested Friday after emerging blood-covered from his home, where authorities found nine bodies tangled in a back room and intertwined with clothing. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) Police officer stands outside home where nine bodies were found Marcus Wesson headshot, arrested for murder of nine family members in Fresno, California Fresno police and workers remove a casket from the home of Marcus Wesson in Fresno, Calif., Monday, March 15, 2004. Wesson was arrested Friday at his home where authorities found nine bodies. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) Wesson was described by police as very calm during his arrest, after emerging blood-covered from his home. Ive seen a lot of tragedy in my 40 years in law enforcement but when you see children, small infants, who are being brought out of the house who are in caskets little coffins it will forever cause you to believe and think that there is evil in this world, Dyer said when remembering the incident. Marcus Wesson is an evil person. Wesson was convicted in June 2005. He was sentenced to death one month later and as of March 12, 2024, remains on death row at San Quentin State Prison. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47. 3M underwent the largest restructuring in its history last year. It will spin off its largest business in three weeks. On Tuesday, it hired the person who will decide what happens next. Minnesota's most storied manufacturer, its original blue chip and for decades its largest company, will now be led by Bill Brown, former CEO of L3Harris Technologies and a longtime defense industry executive. It's only the third time in 122 years 3M has turned to an outsider for a CEO. Brown steps in after Mike Roman, a 36-year veteran of the company, led it for six dramatic years, the last one spent building to this moment. 3M's stock is trading at half the value it was three years ago. Revenue and headcount are smaller, and set to shrink even more when 3M's health care unit becomes an independent firm called Solventum next month. More than a few investors and analysts thought Roman stayed in the job too long. However, I suspect that in time they will regard Roman more favorably. Over the last year, he cleared out some vexing problems and leaves 3M positioned for speedier organic growth and dealmaking. "While we consider the company's strategy to have been poor over the last several years, we model improving returns looking forward," Joshua Aguilar, an analyst at Morningstar, wrote after the news was announced. Analysts held a brighter opinion of Roman during the pandemic, when demand for 3M's N95 respirators and other products soared. The company ramped up production while under intense public scrutiny. And he owned up to environmental costs that the company ignored or publicly deflected for decades. In the last year, Roman brought some financial certainty to 3M's future by tentatively settling one big PFAS case. There are others still pending. He also settled a sprawling product liability case involving earplugs sold to the military by a business 3M acquired. His initial strategy for that litigation was to put the by-then 3M subsidiary into bankruptcy, an approach that was ultimately rejected by a court. Story continues The decision to spin off the health care business, which accounted for about 25% of its $32.7 billion revenue last year, forced 3M to trim expenses shared by that unit with 3M's other three business lines. 3M ended 2023 with 85,000 employees, down from 92,000 at the end of 2022. "We took the biggest restructuring in the history of the company and that wasn't a top-down, eliminate 10 percent of the headcount," Roman said at an investment conference last month. "It was really to accomplish some strategies we're driving." As well, it was geared toward a leadership transition this year. Roman will remain as executive chair of 3M after Brown arrives in May. Brown, who is 61, built a solid reputation among investors with his leadership of defense contractor Harris Corp. before and after its 2019 merger with L3. The post-spinoff 3M will be slightly larger than L3Harris was immediately after it combined. One of the first things analysts will listen for Brown to say is whether he plans to maintain or cut 3M's dividend. The company is one of 50 or so known as a "dividend king" for having increased its dividend for at least 65 years. Roman told investors just a few weeks ago that "paying an attractive dividend" would remain an important part of 3M's capital allocation strategy. Morningstar's Aguilar wrote that he believes 3M will allocate "a substantial portion of its capital back to shareholders" even if it takes on some debt to do so. The magical track record of 3M's dividend, though, will no longer be in its hands. "Solventum could decide to reduce its dividend payment, effectively reducing the total dividend 3M shareholders once received," the analyst wrote. JGalione / Getty Images When many people imagine their retirement years, they picture sitting side-by-side with a beloved spouse. They look forward to making more memories while they dont have to worry about meeting deadlines or checking work emails. Be Aware: 8 Ways Baby Boomers Become Poor in Retirement Read Next: One Smart Way To Grow Your Retirement Savings in 2024 Unfortunately, sometimes these beautiful visions simply arent in the cards. Instead of planning vacations or searching for a dream house together, retirees may find themselves having to plan for a financial future without their spouse. Beyond the shock of their loss, these retirees must now make major decisions about their spouses estate and their own financial well-being. To offer some insights about the mistakes retired widows and widowers should avoid when navigating the loss of a spouse, GOBankingRates talked to several experts. Sponsored: $20k or more in credit card debt? Lower the amount you owe in just 3 simple steps. Dont Rush Into Decisions As you go through the process of setting up funerals and memorials, notifying family and going through your spouses belongings, its tempting to want to tackle everything at once to get it over with. However, according to Chris Urban, CFP, RICP, founder of Discovery Wealth Planning, the wisest course of action could be slowing down and catching your breath. People who have been recently widowed should allow themselves to grieve and not to rush into any decisions that could impact their finances. Its important to focus first on yourself and the grieving process, and then start to think about gathering information related to your financial life, he said. Take your time with the process and seek out trusted partners, [including] accountants, lawyers and financial advisors. Find Out: 7 Bills You Never Have To Pay When You Retire Dont Forget Qualified Retirement Accounts In the immediate crush of grief, many people may forget to think about the various retirement accounts that their spouse may have had. As Kelly Gilbert, owner and principal at EFG Financial explained it, not deciding how to inherit their spouses qualified retirement accounts, such as a 401(k), 403(b) or IRA, is one of the biggest mistakes widowed retirees can make. Story continues She added there are three ways a spouse can inherit qualified assets: First, if you are over the age of 59 and a half, then the best choice is to assume the account as yours, she said. This transfers the account to your name and Social Security number, and unless the deceased was already taking required minimum distributions, youre not forced to take withdrawals until youre ready. However, if youre under the age of 59 and a half, and the money is in an employer-sponsored account, you should leave it there and use the fund as needed to eliminate the 10% early withdrawal penalties. If the money is in IRAs, Gilbert suggested potentially creating an inherited IRA account though its not the most desirable option, because you must drain the account within 10 years, even if it enables you to access funds without taking on the 10% early withdrawal penalty. Dont Forget To Create a New Budget Losing a spouse up-ends almost everything in your word, and your budget is no exception. Thats why Jeff Mandel, CEO of Credit & Debt, suggested creating a manageable budget within the first 30 days. He cited a 2020 study for the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago that found income for surviving spouses dropped an average of 37% in the first three years after being widowed, compared to the prior three years. You are most likely going to have to figure out how to get by without your spouses paycheck, he said. Or, if you were both receiving Social Security, [learn] how to live on a smaller benefit. Mandel encouraged recently widowed retirees to review all sources of income compared to their expenses. From there, they can assess how much cash flow they require to live and make any changes necessary to preserve their assets. More than ever during this period, its important to evaluate all areas in which you spend money and make the requisite adjustments to ensure you have sustainable income and assets for the remainder of your life, he said. Its more important than ever to ask yourself, what do I need? vs. what do I want? to ensure that you have enough money. Dont Open the Door to Scammers Its hard to believe that people can be this cruel, but there are scammers who target older people or people in bereavement. While many people are aware that the Nigerian prince who says he needs their help isnt exactly who he claims to be, Mandel advised widowed retirees to be aware that scams arent just perpetrated by online baddies. Scams can come in the form of people you thought were close to you, family members, neighbors, co-workers, online and telephone solicitations, and can often be veiled under charitable and religious pretenses, he said. Its neither your responsibility to become the bank for everyone else in your life nor to give money to every charitable organization that reaches out to you. Mandel counseled widowed retirees to resist pressure from other people, even people they assumed they could trust, while their emotions are fragile. Dont Avoid the Hard Questions Though its tempting to put your head down and try to plow ahead with forced normalcy, the loss of a spouse does prompt hard questions about what the rest of your life could look like. You spent the last twenty, thirty or forty years or more planning your life together, and now that is no longer the case, said Amy Colton, MBA, CDFA, founder at Your Divorce Made Simple. Colton maintained that tax and financial planning is essential for helping you answer the questions that will determine how you move on. Sometimes, that means asking yourself what you want to do with the home you shared with your spouse. Your marital home is one of the largest assets you have, so youll need to decide whether you want to stay in it or sell it. Beyond the choice to leave a place of so many memories, selling comes with its own financial and tax ramifications. Questions come to mind, such as what are my new expenses going to be like for my new life? and how much income will I now have coming in?' she said. It is imperative to create a budget that supports your new life. The mortgage or rent and healthcare expenses are some of the biggest line items in your budget. Everything that money touches needs to be re-evaluated and understood. More From GOBankingRates This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Retired and Recently Lost Your Spouse? 5 Money Mistakes You Must Avoid What trends should we look for it we want to identify stocks that can multiply in value over the long term? Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. If you see this, it typically means it's a company with a great business model and plenty of profitable reinvestment opportunities. So, when we ran our eye over Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad's (KLSE:MSC) trend of ROCE, we liked what we saw. Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What Is It? If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. Analysts use this formula to calculate it for Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) (Total Assets - Current Liabilities) 0.16 = RM149m (RM1.4b - RM453m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2023). Therefore, Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad has an ROCE of 16%. In absolute terms, that's a satisfactory return, but compared to the Metals and Mining industry average of 5.8% it's much better. See our latest analysis for Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad roce In the above chart we have measured Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad's prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you're interested, you can view the analysts predictions in our free analyst report for Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad . So How Is Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad's ROCE Trending? While the returns on capital are good, they haven't moved much. The company has employed 119% more capital in the last five years, and the returns on that capital have remained stable at 16%. Since 16% is a moderate ROCE though, it's good to see a business can continue to reinvest at these decent rates of return. Over long periods of time, returns like these might not be too exciting, but with consistency they can pay off in terms of share price returns. Story continues One more thing to note, even though ROCE has remained relatively flat over the last five years, the reduction in current liabilities to 33% of total assets, is good to see from a business owner's perspective. Effectively suppliers now fund less of the business, which can lower some elements of risk. Our Take On Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad's ROCE In the end, Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad has proven its ability to adequately reinvest capital at good rates of return. On top of that, the stock has rewarded shareholders with a remarkable 185% return to those who've held over the last five years. So even though the stock might be more "expensive" than it was before, we think the strong fundamentals warrant this stock for further research. One more thing, we've spotted 1 warning sign facing Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad that you might find interesting. While Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad isn't earning the highest return, check out this free list of companies that are earning high returns on equity with solid balance sheets. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Rush Street Interactive (NYSE:RSI) Full Year 2023 Results Key Financial Results Revenue: US$691.2m (up 17% from FY 2022). Net loss: US$18.3m (loss narrowed by 53% from FY 2022). US$0.27 loss per share (improved from US$0.61 loss in FY 2022). All figures shown in the chart above are for the trailing 12 month (TTM) period Rush Street Interactive Revenues and Earnings Beat Expectations Revenue exceeded analyst estimates by 2.2%. Earnings per share (EPS) also surpassed analyst estimates by 36%. The primary driver behind last 12 months revenue was the United States and Canada segment contributing a total revenue of US$611.9m (89% of total revenue). Notably, cost of sales worth US$465.0m amounted to 67% of total revenue thereby underscoring the impact on earnings. The largest operating expense was Sales & Marketing costs, amounting to US$160.7m (58% of total expenses). Over the last 12 months, the company's earnings were enhanced by non-operating gains of US$33.3m. Explore how RSI's revenue and expenses shape its earnings. Looking ahead, revenue is forecast to grow 12% p.a. on average during the next 3 years, compared to a 9.6% growth forecast for the Hospitality industry in the US. Performance of the American Hospitality industry. The company's shares are up 12% from a week ago. Balance Sheet Analysis Just as investors must consider earnings, it is also important to take into account the strength of a company's balance sheet. We've done some analysis and you can see our take on Rush Street Interactive's balance sheet. 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. Palestinians mourn over the body of a UN staff who was killed in an Israeli air strike near a warehouse of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), at Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), which distributes food and aid supplies in Gaza, was hit on Wednesday, the organization said. There are reports that at least two UNRWA employees were killed in the incident in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, the agency said, although it cautioned it was still trying to confirm exactly what happened and the number of staff impacted. Palestinian media reported that an Israeli attack on the centre killed several people. An Israeli army spokesman said the reports were being investigated. According to the Hamas-controlled health authority in Gaza, 31,272 people have been killed and more than 73,000 others injured in the Gaza Strip since the start of the war more than five months ago. More than two-thirds of these are women and minors. The war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, carried out by militants from the Palestinian organization Hamas and other extremist groups in Israel near the Gaza border on October 7 in which more than 1,200 people were killed and 250 others taken hostage. Palestinians mourn around the body of a UN staff who was killed in an Israeli air strike near a warehouse of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), at Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa Wounded Palestinians, who were injured in an Israeli air strike near a warehouse of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), arrive at Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa Palestinians surround the bodies of those who were killed in an Israeli air strike near a warehouse of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), at Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa Since the pandemic, pressures on Chatham's housing stock have gone up, according to Housing and Sustainability Director Gloria McPherson. Prices have gone up, and when prices at the market-rate go up, that means the gap between what's affordable and what's market-rate gets even bigger, McPherson said. "So it's harder to achieve your goals." The town is looking for help from residents at a March 20 meeting to develop a new housing production plan and a housing needs assessment. Chathams last housing production plan was completed in 2018 and expired in November. McPherson said now is especially a good time to rethink these types of plans because so much has changed in housing since COVID-19. McPherson said she expects a new housing production plan to be ready by the end of July. The town of Orleans does not have a state-approved housing production plan but the town does have the highest percentage of housing inventory that is affordable of all 15 Cape Cod towns. A housing project that began in December on West Road will create 62 apartments in 2025, boosting the percentage even higher, Orleans Affordable Housing Coordinator Marsha Allgeier said. What is a housing production plan? A housing production plan is a municipality's approach to understanding its housing needs and putting strategies in place to address them. Plans are valid for five years after approval from the state Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities. Communities are not required to have the plans, said Rachel Heller, CEO of Citizens' Housing and Planning Association, known as CHAPA. She called them "incredibly helpful documents ... to understand the challenges people are facing." Housing production plans typically examine "how many people are housing cost-burdened, meaning that they pay more than 30% of their income for housing costs," Heller said. It can be powerful for residents and officials to understand the gap between how many people need affordable housing and how many affordable homes actually exist in the community. "It can often be surprising to see that so many people in the community already are eligible for affordable housing but may not actually have the opportunity to live in affordable housing," she said. Cape Cod and housing production plans Seven of the 15 Cape Cod towns' housing production plans have expired. A list provided to the Times by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities shows that housing production plans prepared by Barnstable, Yarmouth, Truro, Mashpee, Falmouth, Chatham, and Harwich have all lapsed. Orleans, Provincetown, and Edgartown do not have a current or expired plan. Dennis, Wellfleet, Sandwich, Brewster, Bourne, Eastham, Nantucket, and Oak Bluffs all have active housing production plans in place. Brewster, Nantucket, and Oak Bluffs also have plans that are certified by the state, meaning the plan was approved by the state and also the community has made progress on the plan. If certified, a community can achieve "safe harbor," which means they now have the ability to remain more in control over the kind of housing developed in their community. Chapter 40B allows developers to override local zoning codes if at least 20% of the units built have long-term affordability restrictions. Once a community has reached the threshold of having 10% of its housing units classified as affordable, it has reached "safe harbor" and is no longer subject to Chapter 40B. So if there is a proposal for a Chapter 40B development and it does not align with the community's goals for housing, then the town can reject the project. The amount of time for the safe harbor varies depending on how much progress the community makes on its housing production plan. None of the 15 towns on Cape Cod has reached the 10% threshold of housing units classified as affordable. Orleans (9.15%) is the closest to clearing the threshold, followed by Provincetown (8.03%), according to data in November. Approved housing production plans mean the community has approved it at the town Planning Board and Select Board level followed by the state's approval. Choosing to not create a housing production plan Orleans Affordable Housing Coordinator Marsha Allgeier said the town is not required by the state to have a housing production plan and that the last official state housing inventory showed Orleans to be at 9.15%, just short of the 105 threshold under 40B. "As a matter of fact, we are in the process of adding affordable housing units so that we expect to exceed the 10% threshold with the next SHI (subsidized housing inventory) update," said Allgeier in an email to the Times. One key low-income housing tax credit project in Orleans by developer Pennrose will renovate the building on West Road, which formerly housed a Cape Cod Five operations center, into 62 apartments. Demolition and construction started in December, with the development expected to be done in 2025. A second project with 14 units is expected to start construction in the spring, said Allgeier. Allgeier noted that the state ultimately determines whether a town has exceeded the 10% threshold. While the town estimates its latest projects will get it over that hurdle, the denominator total number of year-round housing units could change, so they cannot be certain what the number is. 10% affordable housing benchmark Provincetown has also decided to forgo a housing production plan. Town Manager Alex Morse said the town has already identified a number of both publicly and privately-owned properties to unlock new housing units. Developing a housing production plan can often be "all-encompassing and oftentimes repeat similar processes that communities have been through," Morse said. "Put frankly, housing production plans unfortunately are often weaponized by communities in regards to the state's low-income housing inventory," said Morse. "In many cases, communities use housing production plans as a way to limit housing development once they hit 10%." Provincetown may hit benchmark, won't be 'mission accomplished' A little over 8% of Provincetown's housing inventory is classified as affordable as of June 29, according to the state's subsidized housing inventory. Morse said the town is expected to bump past the 10% benchmark in the next two years, but "that certainly isn't mission accomplished." Instead the town, along with the town Community Housing Council, has entered into a contract with University of Massachusetts Amherst Donahue Institute to examine housing needs, he said, a core component of a traditional housing production plan that assesses the specific needs of residents. The goal will be to assess who in the community needs housing, whether housing is secure among that population, income levels, what types of units are needed, and other key questions. Having such information is intended to help town officials make better decisions on the type of developments that are needed. "When we looked at what a housing production plan consists of ... it's really the needs assessment component of a production plan that is most important to us and the most critical information we need to continue our planning processes," said Morse. Provincetown will begin outreach on a community survey to determine what the town needs for housing. All Provincetown residents are invited to participate. 'Data tells us the numbers' McPherson said Chatham's last housing production plan focused on affordable housing, as the plans are linked to Chapter 40B, which centers on affordable housing production. As the town crafts its new housing production plan, she said town officials want to understand the need for housing for those earning up to 200% area median income. "That's an important change for all our Cape communities because the affordability gap on the Cape is so high because of all the pressures of second homes and short-term rentals. It just makes it so much harder for our workforce to be able to afford housing here," said McPherson. Heller said community engagement is a key part of creating the production plan. "Data tells us the numbers. It's important to understand people's lived experiences and put life to those numbers," said Heller. Zane Razzaq writes about housing and real estate. Reach her at zrazzaq@capecodonline.com. Follow her on X @zanerazz. The Cape Cod Times mobile app gets you to the heart of the matter fast. Whether breaking news, sports, entertainment or weather get succinct, personalized coverage along with award-winning videos, captivating photography, and interactive user features. Download the app. This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod towns are assessing, and reassessing housing needs. But how? Click here to view the video March has already been quite the active month, seismically, for the B.C. coast. If you visit the Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) website, you will notice a long list of tremors this month originating off the West Coast, especially from March 6 and beyond. DON'T MISS: Everything you need to know for April's spectacular and rare solar eclipse The tremors were nothing of concern, though, with the highest rated as a 4.6 magnitude that occurred 260 km southwest of Tofino, B.C., on March 6, according to NRCan. But, what has scientists intrigued about this latest earthquake swarm is the expectation of an imminent eruption of hot magma in the deep ocean waters off Vancouver Island. On March 6, the region recorded 200 small earthquakes in one hour and as many as 2,000 that day, prompting experts to anticipate the forthcoming event. "This is a unique opportunity to witness this [event], especially locally that...it happens maybe once or twice in a lifetime," Jesse Hutchinson, a junior staff scientist with Ocean Networks Canada (ONC), told CBC News in an interview. Underwater rupture won't pose risk, but offers an opportunity As is the case with the recent barrage of earthquakes, residents won't need to worry about the projected eruption under water. Untitled 2 The expected rupture, located approximately five kilometres deep and 260 kilometres off the coast of Tofino, B.C., will likely be too remote and too small to pose any notable concern, according to ONC. Instead, it will provide scientists with a not-so-common chance to gain a better understanding of the Earth's crust formation. As for when to expect the eruption? ONC noted it could happen anywhere from a few weeks to a few years from now. When it does occur, the substance that is expected emerge has been described as an "almost fluid, runny rock," but it will solidify and turn black while the water around it fizzes something only scientists will be able to pick up on. CASCADIAZONE B.C. is no stranger to earthquakes, even swarms of them in a short amount of time. In September 2023, a swarm of more than 30 tremors were documented just a few days apart. Vancouver Island is located close to an active boundary of three tectonic plates Pacific, Juan de Fuca and North American. The ongoing interaction among these tectonic plates has the potential to generate large earthquakes, according to Rachel Modestino, a meteorologist at The Weather Network. All of these earthquakes are occurring along a subducting plate boundary, where the oceanic plate is subducting under the less dense North American Plate. This subduction zone is one of the most tectonically active locations in the world. WATCH: How likely is a devastating earthquake in Canada? Click here to view the video With files from Kim Macdonald, a content creator and weather specialist at The Weather Network. Thumbnail courtesy of Getty Images/Bymuratdeniz/2007470156-170667a. Follow Nathan Howes on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter. Representatives of the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps holding a briefing near the border in northern Ukraine last year. Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy/Future Publishing via Getty Images Paramilitary groups comprising Russian defectors attacked their own country on Tuesday. One group, the Freedom of Russia Legion said they were there to liberate their countrymen. A spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence said the groups were acting independently. Armed groups of Russian defectors attacked their homeland on Tuesday ahead of the upcoming Russian presidential elections. On Tuesday morning, paramilitary groups including the Freedom of Russia Legion and the Siberian Battalion said they were launching a joint attack across Russia's borders, per The Telegraph. Russia's presidential elections are set to be held on March 15 to 17, with incumbent Russian leader Vladimir Putin all but certain to secure his reelection. "We are not coming to kill, erase, or punish," the Freedom of Russia Legion said in a video statement, per the Kyiv Post. "We come to live, to liberate you from poverty, from the dictatorship of a terrorist organization that seized power, to give your children a normal civilized future without sanctions, without repression, without elections without choice," the video statement continued. "We come to liberate you from #Putin" - Official Statement from the Anti-Kremlin Battalion "Freedom of Russia Legion" pic.twitter.com/fHj0vpwND5 KyivPost (@KyivPost) March 12, 2024 A spokesperson for Ukraine's military intelligence, Andriy Yusov told Ukraine's Channel 24 that a third group, the Russian Volunteer Corps also took part in the attacks. Yusov said the attacks weren't directed by Ukraine. "On the territory of the Russian Federation, they act absolutely autonomously, on their own, and pursue their social and political program tasks," Yusov said. Story continues Russia's defense ministry said on Tuesday that they had responded to three different attacks in Belgorod, per state-owned media outlet TASS. The ministry told TASS that Russian forces managed to repel the attackers, who were equipped with tanks and armored vehicles. This isn't the first time that Russian defectors have mounted an attack against their homeland. In December, the Freedom of Russia legion claimed responsibility for an attack near Terebreno village, in Belgorod. The group claimed that it had destroyed a Russian troop stronghold and left landmines in the area during their assault, per Reuters. Read the original article on Business Insider The package of spending bills that needs to be passed by March 22 was always going to be more contentious than the first batch of bills approved by Congress last week. The upcoming tranche includes funding for the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, State and Homeland Security, with potential obstacles to an agreement scattered throughout. Already, The Hills Alexander Bolton reports, some senators in both parties are expressing concerns about the Homeland Security bill in particular due to divisions over President Joe Bidens immigration policy. Senate Appropriations Chair Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, an Alaska Republican, all told The Hill that DHS funding would be the toughest to finalize. Were all talking about Homeland and how challenging thats going to be, Murkowski said, though she also noted that all of the appropriations bills have been getting bogged down in skirmishes over House conservatives desired policy riders. She also suggested that the Homeland Security funding could be separated out from the rest of the package. House Republicans are reportedly pushing for hardline border security measures, including barrier construction and the Remain in Mexico policy for migrants seeking asylum. Among other demands, they reportedly continue to try to zero out the salary of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom they impeached last month. One unnamed Senate Democratic source also tells The Hill that House Republicans are balking at delivering billions of dollars in new border funding to the Biden administration for political reasons: because it might make things better, and they dont want to make things better. Whats next: As negotiations continue, lawmakers reportedly hope to release the legislative text of the next package by Sunday evening ahead of the deadline the following Friday. The Homeland Security bill could be separated out, or congressional leaders could decide that a broader stopgap funding extension is needed to push back the March 22 deadline. Both chambers are scheduled to be in recess from March 23 until the second week of April. Story continues Another twist: The full-year appropriations process has to be completed by April 30 to avoid automatic spending cuts that would kick in under last years Fiscal Responsibility Act. But the Congressional Budget Office said today that, under the complicated caps established by that law and the spending bills passed so far, the defense budget would be subject to a 1% cut at the April 30 deadline, but funding for non-defense programs would not face automatic cuts, even if Congress doesnt pass the next batch of spending bills in time. Ultimately, the authority to decide whether sequestration is required and to calculate the percentage reductions, if any, rests with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the budget office said. Like what you're reading? Sign up for our free newsletter. FILE PHOTO: A woman using a mobile phone walks behind a Singtel signage at their head office in Singapore By Scott Murdoch SYDNEY (Reuters) -Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) is looking to sell a significant stake in its wholly owned Australian unit Optus to Canadian private equity giant Brookfield, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. Southeast Asia's largest telco operator is in advanced talks with Brookfield over the stake sale, the source said, declining to be named as the information is not public yet. Earlier on Wednesday, SingTel dismissed a report by the Australian Financial Review (AFR) that it was in advanced talks to sell Optus in a deal that could value Australia's second-largest telecommunications group at up to A$18 billion ($11.90 billion). "There is no impending deal to offload Optus for the said sum, as reported," SingTel said in a stock exchange filing. "That said, we regularly conduct strategic reviews of our portfolio to optimise the value of our assets and businesses and will explore all options to maximise shareholder value." SingTel said Optus remained an integral and strategic part of the group and it is committed to Australia for the long term, as its business there drew public ire after a 12-hour network blackout in November that affected over 10 million Australians. The incident has prompted investigation, the departure of Optus's CEO and a A$1.5 million ($990,900) fine. The talks to sell a stake in Optus come just a week after SingTel sold shares worth S$950 million ($711 million) in India's Bharti Airtel to U.S. investment firm GQG Partners as part of its capital recycle plan as both its earnings and share performance stagnate. SingTel's shares jumped nearly 4% on Wednesday after the AFR report before the company requested a trading halt. The company, majority owned by Singapore's state investment firm Temasek Holdings, posted a largely unchanged profit for the third quarter, as weak local operations offset growth in its information technology and Australian telecom units. Story continues Brookfield and Optus, which SingTel has owned since 2001, did not immediately respond to Reuters' email requests for comment. ($1 = 1.5129 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Scott Murdoch, Tom Westbrook, Sameer Manekar and Rishav Chatterjee; Editing by Kim Coghill, Savio D'Souza and Mark Potter) (Bloomberg) -- The oil-rich Middle East is close to becoming the only region with three trillion-dollar wealth funds. Most Read from Bloomberg Saudi Arabia recently transfered a $164 billion stake in Aramco to the Public Investment Fund, while the Kuwait Investment Authority is on track for one of its best fiscal years on record amid a broad market rally, Bloomberg News has reported. Thats helped both entities narrow the gap with the $993 billion Abu Dhabi Investment Authority the regions largest state-backed investor according to data from the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute. Many wealth funds operate in secrecy, making it hard to ascertain the exact size of their portfolios. Globally, Norways sovereign wealth fund is the worlds largest, followed by China Investment Corp., data from SWFI shows. In the Middle East, Abu Dhabi is home to three wealth funds ADIA, Mubadala Investment Co. and ADQ. The city is among few globally that manage about $1.5 trillion in sovereign wealth capital, and recently set up a technology investment firm that could surpass $100 billion in assets under management. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. President Joe Biden uses a White House guest's phone to take a selfie. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images TikTok execs thought the US was mostly over banning the app after Biden joined, per WSJ. Then, the House introduced a bill that could result in a US ban on the social media app. TikTok and free-speech groups argue the ban violates First Amendment rights. Before the House introduced its bill to ban TikTok, executives at the social media company were convinced that calls for a ban on the app had quieted partially because of President Joe Biden. Per a report from The Wall Street Journal, the Biden campaign's decision to join the app in late February and post dozens of videos helped reassure execs, who visited TikTok's Singapore office two weeks ago and relayed the good news. "The committee and Biden administration officials operated quietly enough that TikTok's large lobbying and government-relations operations in Washington didn't realize how close the bill was to reality," the Journal wrote in its report. The House bill sponsored by Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin and Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois was introduced days after the Singapore meeting, per the Journal, citing "interviews with current and former employees of TikTok and its parent company, as well as government aides, policy advisers, and lawmakers." The bill, which would force Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok to non-Chinese owners or face a ban in the United States, had been in the works for a year and was shaped by Biden administration officials, the Journal reported. Biden has publicly indicated he would sign the ban should it hit his desk. TikTok, the American Civil Liberties Union, and other free-speech groups have argued that the ban would violate the First Amendment right to freedom of speech. A fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Caitlin Chin-Rothmann, told The Atlantic that if the company were to sue, the US government would have to prove that "a TikTok ban is narrowly tailored to advance a significant government interest, and that there are no less restrictive means of advancing that interest." Story continues Per the Journal, House legislators and Biden officials expected that the company may sue on the grounds of First Amendment violations and worked together to craft a text that could best survive a legal challenge. "Framing this as a national security threat offers the government considerable latitude when it comes to First Amendment questions," Sarah Kreps, a political scientist and director of the Tech Policy Institute at New York's Cornell University, previously told Business Insider. The House is set to vote on the bill on Wednesday. A TikTok spokesperson previously told BI it expects it to pass in the lower house. Representatives for Biden and TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by BI. Read the original article on Business Insider (Bloomberg) -- TikToks Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew went to Capitol Hill Tuesday to lobby against a bill that would force the apps Chinese parent to sell it or face a ban in the US. Most Read from Bloomberg Joined by influencers from the popular short-video platform, Chew sought to persuade senators to reject the legislation. A vote in the House of Representatives scheduled for Wednesday appeared increasingly likely to get the two-thirds approval necessary even though former President Donald Trump has reversed his stand and suggested he opposes a ban. Senator John Fetterman, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, said he was among those contacted by TikTok. Im telling them, and Ive been clear, Im voting for that, so youre wasting your time, he said, referring to the House bill. Ive spent hundreds of dollars on Drunk Elephant at Sephora because of my tween, Fetterman said, referring to a skincare brand thats gone viral on the app, prompting teens and tweens to flood Sephora locations. Thats annoying but I think theres a security issue as well too. And if they have nothing to hide, then TikTok should be the first ones to say, Lets remove any kinds of possible connection there. And I support that. But other senators expressed skepticism about the proposal to ban TikTok if its Chinese owner, ByteDance Ltd., doesnt sell it. The question is what are the unintended consequences of the approach for future companies? asked Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina. He said European countries could seize on the precedent to target US firms. Read more: TikTok Plans Full Legal Fight If US Divestment Bill Becomes Law Jake Sullivan, President Joe Bidens national security advisor, told reporters Tuesday that the issue isnt about banning TikTok. Story continues Do we want TikTok as a platform to be owned by an American company or owned by China? he said. Do we want the data from TikTok childrens data, adults data to be staying here in America or going to China? He said Biden is clear where he stands on the companys ownership but in terms of how that gets implemented precisely, thats something that we have continued to stay in touch with the Congress on. Officials from the FBI, the Justice Department and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence briefed House members on TikTok behind closed doors on Tuesday afternoon. TikToks Chinese ownership might be saved by a coalition of progressive Democrats and libertarian Republicans. Progressive Democrats coming out of the briefing said they werent persuaded that the threat warranted limits on freedom of speech. They say it is not a ban but it is, said Democrat Maxwell Frost of Florida, the first Gen Z member of Congress. Although Trump sought to ban TikTok when he was president, he said on CNBC this week that Meta Inc.s Facebook, not TikTok, was the real threat. Trump was banned from Facebook for two years following his praise for people engaged in violence at the Capitol on January 6, Facebook owner Meta said at the time. He also suggested he was wary of alienating the young Americans who use the app. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it, Trump said. The thing I dont like is that without TikTok, you can make Facebook bigger, and I consider Facebook to be an enemy of the people, along with a lot of the media. ByteDance Lobbying ByteDance spent a record $8.7 million on federal lobbying last year, congressional lobbying disclosures show. The company has put together a big team of in-house lobbyists and keeps on retainer a roster of lobbying firms with numerous former members of Congress. Kellyanne Conway, a former top Trump aide, confirmed she is advising the Club for Growth, which is against the divestiture requirement, on public opinion survey results and has spoken to members of Congress about the findings, although she said she isnt doing so this week. Dance videos and makeup tutorials have been stock content on the app, which has also seen a boom in discussions of news and politics. According to the Pew Research Center, about 43% of TikTok users say they regularly get their news there, twice the rate from three years ago, as do about one-third of all US adults younger than 30. Earlier in the day, FBI Director Christopher Wray reaffirmed his distrust of TikToks Chinese ownership in testimony before the House Intelligence Committee. Americans need to ask themselves whether they want to give the Chinese government the ability to control access to their data, which could be used to compromise their devices, Wray said. A Senate Republican aide, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said members in that chamber had concerns about the House bill, including whether it could grant the president too much leeway in how it would be implemented, the fact that it singles out a particular company and whether it would address future threats from similarly positioned companies. Even so, a strong majority of support in the House could mean the bill moves quickly in the Senate. Among potential holdouts: Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, who said he had concerns about how the bill would square with freedom of speech and the First Amendment. Ill block anything thats contrary to the Constitution, Paul said. Senator Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican who had endorsed Trump for president in 2024, said he would support the House bill despite the former presidents opposition. Ive come to the conclusion that TikTok is absolutely a national security threat to our country, Marshall said in an interview. President Trump and I wont always agree on everything but we share the same goals. --With assistance from Peter Martin, Maeve Sheehey, Justin Sink and Jennifer Jacobs. (Updates with lobbying efforts starting in 14th paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. (Bloomberg) -- TikTok intends to exhaust all legal challenges before it considers any kind of divestiture from Chinese parent company ByteDance Ltd. if the latest US legislation targeting the app becomes law, according to people familiar with the matter. Most Read from Bloomberg A sale of the viral video app is considered to be the last resort for ByteDance, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. A divestiture would also require approval by the Chinese government, which said last year that it would firmly oppose a forced sale. No plans are final, and would depend on how the legislation progresses, the people said. TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Chew went to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to lobby against a bill that would force the apps Chinese parent to sell it or face a ban in the US. The bill was advanced by a key committee last week, and to move forward, the bill would need to clear a floor vote in the US House of Representatives on Wednesday the furthest any federal TikTok legislation has gotten. The company will continue making its case to members in the Senate, where the existing bill from the House has no co-sponsor, said one of the people familiar with the matter. A TikTok spokesperson declined to comment on the companys plans. The legislation has a predetermined outcome: a total ban of TikTok in the United States, the spokesperson said. The company discussed the possibility of separating from ByteDance in March 2023, Bloomberg reported at the time. Such a move would have been pursued only if the companys existing proposal with US national security officials didnt get approved. There hasnt yet been a public resolution on the national security review undertaken by the Biden administration. Story continues In recent years, although the United States has never found evidence that TikTok threatens U.S. national security, it has never stopped suppressing TikTok, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin said Wednesday. This practice of bullying if you cannot win in fair competition disrupts the normal business activities of enterprises, damages the confidence of international investors and undermines the normal international economic and trade order, which will eventually backfire on America itself. Read More: TikTok Focuses on Senate as House Barrels Toward Divestment Vote --With assistance from Qianwei Zhang, James Mayger and Allen Wan. (Adds comments from Chinas foreign ministry in last paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. By Jaspreet Singh and Krystal Hu (Reuters) -Nvidia-backed Together AI said on Wednesday it has raised $106 million in a new funding round, doubling its valuation since last fall as investors rushed to back startups capitalizing on the generative AI boom. Led by Salesforce Ventures, the funding valued Together AI at $1.25 billion. Other investors in the round included Coatue Management and existing investors such as Lux Capital and Emergence Capital. Founded in 2022, Together AI quickly gained popularity as it offers access to Nvidia's sought-after graphics processing units (GPUs). Now it's trying to expand to a platform that helps developers to build or customize their open source AI models. Customers "come for the GPUs, but stay for the workflow services and research," said Rob Keith, managing director at Salesforce Ventures who led the investment. The new funding will be used to lease more computing power from cloud providers and for hiring researchers to build new model architecture, according to Vipul Ved Prakash, CEO at Together AI, who added the startup now has 45,000 registered users from AI startups and multinational enterprises. "We are really becoming one of the default places if you want to use open models or customized models, and deploy them for large scale applications," said Prakash. Together AI in November raised $102.5 million in a series A funding led by Kleiner Perkins at over $500 million, with participation from Nvidia. Investments in AI startups have accelerated since the launch of OpenAI's ChatGPT, as investors bet on firms that can benefit from the adoption of the technology and might challenge industry leaders. (Reporting by Krystal Hu in San Francisco and Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore and David Gregorio) In this article, we are going to discuss Top 20 Business Travel Destinations in The World. If you wish to skip our analysis of travel industry, along with the business travel market specifically, you can go directly to Top 5 Business Travel Destinations In The World. Wow, the global business travel market hit a whopping US$1.1 trillion in 2023! According to IMARC Group, they're expecting it to skyrocket to US$1.9 trillion by 2032, with a sweet growth rate of 6.6% in the coming years. Looks like business travel is set to soar to new heights! The world's become one big global village, all thanks to the digital revolution in tourism and business. With everyone connected through the Internet of Things, travelers and operators can now zip through tasks hassle-free. Plus, virtual reality tech makes customer experiences top-notch and super personalized, boosting the market big time. Add in the fusion of business and leisure travel (Bleisure), offering that perfect balance of work and play, and you've got a winning combo driving market growth. The travel and tourism sector is booming, more small and medium businesses are in the game, and globalization's moving at lightning speed. It's all about teamwork now, with companies teaming up to provide cool, customized spaces and activities, making the business travel scene even more exciting and interconnected! Moreover, tech, finance, and consulting companies love jet-setting their employees all over the globe, as business trips are just part of the game for these sectors. Anyhow, traveling gets pricey, especially when crossing borders. On average, a domestic business trip costs about $990, while an international business trip can set you back around $2,525. In the US alone, we've got around 1.3 million business trips happening every single day, and the average business traveler takes about 6.8 trips a year. Corporate travel spending hit a whopping $269.3 billion in 2021, with 371 million domestic trips. And get this by 2026, we're looking at a surge to 483 million trips. Story continues Fortunately, though, in the realm of business traveling, the APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) program is like a magic pass for entering APEC economies. With this card, you just apply once, and you're set to breeze through multiple countries without the hassle of separate applications. Lucky cardholders get a five-year pass that zips them through immigration at major airports in participating economies. Picture this: special APEC lanes at airports, swift entries and exits, and the freedom to make short-term visits without applying for more visas. Though Canada and the U.S. aren't fully on board yet, they still offer you speedy immigration at major airports. Basically, the ABTC is the ultimate travel hack for jet-setting business folks! Now before we jump on to our list of Top 20 Business Travel Destinations In The World, let's shed some light on some of the major companies that keep business travelers on the go. American Express (NYSE:AXP) American Express is a U.S. bank holding company and global financial services corporation known for its payment cards. Based at 200 Vesey Street, also called American Express Tower, in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park City, Amex hooks you up with their business travel card. You'll scoop up 5X Membership Rewards Points on Flights and Prepaid Hotels at their site, plus get access to over 1,400 airport lounges worldwide. Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQGS:MAR) Marriott (NASDAQ: MAR) is killing it with a bunch of cool brands and 1.6 million rooms in its pocket. They've got fancy ones like Marriott and Sheraton, plus hip newbies like Autograph and Moxy that fans love. Last quarter ending 31 December 2023, they saw a sweet 7.2% jump in worldwide RevPAR, especially whopping at 17.4% overseas and 3.3% in the U.S. & Canada. Adjusted net income hit $1,055 million, EBITDA reached $1,197 million; with 81,300 new rooms added and booming growth on the global scene, Marriott's on fire, but steering through the competitive travel game is still a challenge. American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQGS:AAL) American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQGS:AAL) is really rocking the airline scene, keeping passengers connected with their top-notch flights worldwide. They had a stellar year, raking in a hefty $53 billion in revenue for the year ending December 31, 2023. In the fourth quarter, they scored $19 million in GAAP net income and ended the year with a cool $822 million in the bank. Earnings per share? They hit $0.03 for the quarter and $1.21 for the full year. Looks like American Airlines is flying high. Top 20 Business Travel Destinations In The World An image of a business executive with a handshake completing a deal. Methodology So, for our Top 20 Business Travel Destinations in the World list, we scoured the web across more than 12 sources, listing the most highly recommended places, tagged as the "top best business travel destinations in the world." Then, for some cities that stood equal in terms of appearance/mention, we differentiated them based on number of listed companies in the respective countries of the cities, which tells us of financial strength and economic development in the region. Basically, it gives us a good idea of how much business potential and opportunities are bubbling up in that area, making it a hotspot for business travelers. Note that the number of public listed companies hasnt been used as a direct metric, its only a basis of differentiation between the cities standing equal out of our consensus approach. So, heres our list of Top 20 Business Travel Destinations in the World. 20. Sydney, Australia Number of Mentions: 2 Sydney is a buzzing hotspot for business travelers. With a population of over 5.48 million, it's like a city of cities, each with its own vibe and energy. You'll never have a dull moment exploring all the unique pockets Sydney has to offer. Plus, being a diverse and multicultural city, it's super easy for international business travelers to meet new people and network like a pro. For the mega infrastructure exhibition in 2024, New South Wales is rolling out the red carpet for Sydney's major projects. They've already pledged a whopping USD 37.1 billion to make these ambitious plans a reality. Sydney's commitment to growth and innovation in the business scene is crystal clear, making it a top pick for business travelers looking for fresh opportunities and exciting ventures. Sydney stands at 20th place on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World. 19. Washington, D.C., USA Number of Mentions: 2 Washington, D.C., isn't just the heart of politicsit's a hot spot for business travelers too! If you're into all things government-related or looking to network at professional events, this is the place to be. Despite the bumpy ride for startup founders seeking funding last year, with all the uncertainty floating around, the DC region managed to shine with its stellar investment performance. The Venture Monitor report, a gem released by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association, unveils some exciting numbers. In the final quarter of 2023, companies in DC and its surrounding suburbs managed to rake in a cool $2 billion through 58 deals. That's just the tip of the icebergwith nearly $5 billion raised throughout the entire year. 18. Milan, Italy Number of Mentions: 3 Milan, Italy, isn't just about styleit's a top pick for business travelers too! This vibrant city blends sophistication with commerce, offering top-notch business venues like Fiera Milano and MiCo-Milano Congressi. These spots are decked out with all the latest tech for conferences and exhibitions, making them ideal for getting down to business. Milan isn't all work and no play, though. It's home to epic annual events like Milan Fashion Week and Salone del Mobile, which attract global movers and shakers from fashion, finance, and tech. Whether you're into high fashion, finance, or cutting-edge tech, Milan has something for everyone to level up their professional game. And here's a hot tip: United Ventures, a kick-butt venture capital firm based in Milan, just launched its new fund, United Ventures III, aiming for a massive 150 million target. They've already got Italian and international investors on board, and once this baby's up and running, they'll be managing a whopping 500 million in funds. 17. Barcelona, Spain Number of Mentions: 3 Barcelona is totally rocking it with Barcelona Tech City, the Mobile World Congress, and that constant sunshine! No wonder it snagged the spot on the list. This place is buzzing with startups, tech innovations, and big-time European companies. Plus, there are hotels and event spaces galore, making it a magnet for business travelers and companies alike. Who wouldn't want to mix work with a bit of Spanish coastal charm, right? Barcelona knows how to bring the business and the good vibes! Hence, Barcelona is 17th on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World. 16. Shanghai, China Number of Mentions: 3 Shanghai, China's largest and bustling city, is a paradise for business travelers! From manufacturing to finance, tech, and retail, it's a hub for all things business. With a boom in foreign investments, international companies are flourishing in Shanghai, making it a hotspot for professionals. As a top trading hub within China, Shanghai draws business travelers from all over, whether they're working in-country or internationally. Mayor Gong Zheng is all about boosting foreign investments to give Shanghai's economy a boost. The city is on a mission to hit that solid 5% economic growth target in 2024, showing Shanghai's determination after falling just short of its 5.5% goal in 2023. Shanghai is where the action is for business travelers looking for growth opportunities and a vibrant business environment. 15. Boston, USA Number of Mentions: 3 For business travelers, Boston is a thriving city with a growing entrepreneurial spirit. It's a great place for entrepreneurs to set up their Massachusetts LLC, thanks to its strong educational system, educated workforce, biotech industry, and support for local businesses. .406 Ventures, a venture capital firm, recently raised $265 million for their new fund, Point 406 Ventures V, L.P. They got support from various partners like universities, foundations, and pension plans. The fund will focus on investing in companies tackling challenges in healthcare, data + AI, and cybersecurity, indicating prosperous signs from business perspective. 14. Las Vegas, USA Number of Mentions: 3 Las Vegas has always been a hotspot for business travelers. Before the pandemic, it was welcoming about 42 million visitors per year. In 2022, that number dipped to around 38.8 million, but in 2023, things are picking up with nearly 20.35 million visitors already. Despite the challenges, Las Vegas' meetings and trade industry kept on growing. They even beefed up their meeting spaces by 30%, from 11.5 million square feet to a whopping 15 million square feet. In 2022, the LVCVA locked in 14 new trade shows to hit up Vegas, adding to the already happening scene. They've been dominating the trade show scene for 27 years running. With 42 of the top 250 trade shows and three of the top 9 convention centers in the U.S., Las Vegas is a business traveler's dream come true, and is placed 14th on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World. 13. Munich, Germany Number of Mentions: 4 Munich is a buzzing spot for business travelers. This city is all about business events and conferences, pulling in pros from every industry you can think of. With top-notch convention centers and venues decked out with the latest tech, Munich's perfect for hosting big conventions, trade shows, and meetings. And guess what? Munich's not all talkthe city's economic game is strong with major sectors like automotive, tech, and finance leading the pack. Thanks to its awesome location in Europe and super-connected transit systems, Munich's a prime spot for organizing international events. Plus, watch out for Vanagon Venturesthey're dropping a cool 30 million fund to back B2B startups diving into the green transformation game. 12. Chicago, USA Number of Mentions: 4 12th on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World is Chicago. Chicago is the place for business travelers! It's vibrant, budget-friendly, and booming in industries like healthcare, manufacturing, finance, and tech. With over $92 billion in manufacturing activity, a strong financial sector, growing tech scene, and thriving healthcare industry, Chicago is the go-to spot. Moreover, Fortune 500 companies rely on managed IT services to keep operations smooth in these key sectors. 11. Los Angeles, USA Number of Mentions: 4 Los Angeles boasts a $1 trillion metro economy, 20 million consumers, and smashes records with massive venture deals, infrastructure projects, and public procurement annually. It's the gateway to global success with six commercial airports and the biggest port complex in the Western Hemisphere. Companies pick LA as their launchpad to the U.S. consumer market and the worldwide stage. 10. Dubai, UAE Number of Mentions: 5 The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been rocking as the top U.S. export market in the Middle East and Africa region since 2009. Dubai, UAE is a global hangout for more than 1,500 American companies making moves across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia. Its economy is on skyrocketing, transitioning fast to become a knowledge economy. With its welcoming vibe for international business and a strategic location as a gateway to the region, the UAE is a hot spot for U.S. business travelers looking to seize new opportunities. 9. Frankfurt, Germany Number of Mentions: 5 Frankfurt is a must-visit for business travelers. They've got killer transport links, a prime location, and easy access to all of Europe. With a top airport, strong infrastructure, and diverse companies, Frankfurt is a booming hub for business in Europe. It's quick, easy, and dynamicperfect for getting things done. Frankfurt is 9th city on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World. 8. Berlin, Germany Number of Mentions: 5 Berlin cemented its status as a hotspot for business travelers during the ITB Berlin Convention, showcasing its cutting-edge thought leadership. Berlin is no slouch when it comes to business centers. At ITB Berlin, with cool AI insights and Albania hosting in 2025, it's all about Berlin setting global trends and rocking innovations. In 2024, the vibe was all about prosperity. The travel event was back, showing off its commitment to setting trends and being the go-to spot for all things travel. Despite some hiccups with strikes, over 100,000 hustlers showed up, filling all 27 halls with 5,500 exhibitors from 170 countries. With 24,000 people soaking up the knowledge, it's no wonder this convention is the ultimate global hotspot for all things travel! 7. Hong Kong, Hong Kong Number of Mentions: 5 Hong Kong is a top pick for business travelers for its vibrant economic scene. The city's free-market economy is all about minimal government intervention, low taxes, and a bustling financial market. With services driving over 90% of its GDP, Hong Kong excels in financial services, trade, and tourism. Its solid economic ties to mainland China and other key Asia Pacific economies keep business booming. Known for its business-friendly environment, Hong Kong has climbed to 3rd place in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Ranking 2020, making it a hotspot for getting things done effortlessly. 6. Paris, France Number of Mentions: 6 6th on our list of Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World is Paris. Paris is a top spot for business travelers with its bustling business districts. La Defense, Europe's largest business hub, is home to 3,600 enterprises, including 15 of the world's top 50. In the city center, Bourse de Paris in the 2nd arrondissement is a key financial area. The central business district, like the 8th arrondissement, has over 33,000 organizations of office space. Known for being business-friendly, France offers perks like startup credits and company loans, a great advantage for businesses looking to set up or expand. Just remember, businesses need to register before operating. Click to continue reading and find out about Top 5 Business Travel Destinations in The World. Suggested Articles: Disclosure: None. Top 20 Business Travel Destinations in The World is originally published on Insider Monkey. FILE - This combo image shows President Joe Biden, left, Jan. 5, 2024, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, right, Jan. 19, 2024. Biden and Trump hope to clinch their parties' presidential nominations with dominant victories in a slate of low-profile state primaries as the 2024 fight for the White House lurches into a new phase. A transcript of Joe Biden's interview with special counsel Robert Hur was released Tuesday, revealing that critiques of his memory may be overblown and offering a glimpse at Biden's sense of humor. Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images A transcript of Joe Biden's interview with special counsel Robert Hur was released Tuesday. The transcript suggests critiques of his memory may be overblown and shows Biden's sense of humor. In the log, Biden cracked jokes about investigators finding photos of his wife and made car sounds. Many quickly picked apart the transcript of Joe Biden's interview with former special counsel Robert Hur when it was released Tuesday, seeking proof that the president's oft-critiqued memory is failing, but a closer look at their conversation shows Biden's wry sense of humor under pressure. The transcript, which appears to suggest critiques of Biden's memory may be overblown, also shows the president tried to lighten the tense mood in the room by cracking jokes about investigators searching his home for classified documents and laughing at himself. "I just hope you didn't find any risque pictures of my wife in a bathing suit," The Washington Post reported the president told federal prosecutors. "Which you probably did. She's beautiful." Biden also joked about FBI agents knowing the layout of his home better than he does, given how much time they spent inside, and poked fun at himself, suggesting everything he writes is probably misspelled, the Post reported, as well as laughing at a photo of himself with South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, his onetime political ally. "You can tell it's old," he said, referencing the photo. "I have my arm around Lindsey Graham." The 81-year-old president at one point turned the discussion toward his love of cars when he was questioned about several boxes found near his Corvette. The Post reported he mimicked the sound of a car twice during the discussion, with the transcript reading "(Makes car sound)" and "(Laughter)." Representatives for the Biden administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Story continues Hur last month issued a report regarding the yearlong investigation into classified documents being found at the Biden residence. He ultimately cited Biden's age and poor memory as reasons he didn't suggest criminal charges. In the report, Hur also indicated Biden may have forgotten when his son, Beau, died, a criticism Biden's political adversaries were quick to seize upon. However, the transcripts indicate that wasn't quite the case. The moment came as Biden was answering a line of questioning about where he may have stored work-related documents after his term as vice president. "Remember, in this timeframe, my son is either been deployed or is dying," NBC reported Biden said. As he continued to think back nearly a decade, Biden wondered aloud, "What month did Beau die?" before correctly answering his own question, saying: "Oh God, May 30." Others present affirmed the year, and shortly after, Hur suggested they take a break, per the Post. "No," the Post reported Biden said, explaining the significant effect Beau's 2015 death from a brain tumor had on him. "Let me just keep going to get it done." On Tuesday, Hur, a former Trump Justice Department official, defended his report in testimony to the House Judiciary Committee, with The New York Times reporting he said "partisan politics played no part whatsoever in my work." Read the original article on Business Insider A coffin containing the remains of Parker Doe is lifted from the ground at West Hills Memorial Park Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021, in Yakima, Wash. The remains were found in the Lower Yakima Valley in early 1988. Investigators exhumed Doe to extract her DNA. $25M in state budget for new nuclear in Eastern WA. Will climate initiative derail it? Trucks hauling livestock arrive at the Perry Tyson pork packing plant Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Perry, IA. Tyson announced the Perry plant's closure on Monday, March 11, 2024. Kristy Hupp couldn't sleep Monday night. Hupp's hometown of Perry had just experienced what she called the second "disaster of a lifetime" in the span of just two months with the announcement that the city's largest employer, Tyson Foods, would shutter its 1,276-employee pork plant at the end of June. The devastating news follows January shootings at Perry High School that left three people dead, including the principal, wounded six others and closed the city's schools for weeks. Iowa U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, speaking to reporters on a call Tuesday from Washington, called Tyson's announcement "a great big punch to the gut" for the Dallas County city of 8,000. Hupp, the owner of a dog grooming and boarding business, witnessed the effect almost immediately. The Tyson pork packing plant Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Perry, IA. "I had a client, 61 years old, show up yesterday crying," she said. "She has worked at Tyson for 20 years and said she doesn't even know how to look for another job. This is going to really hurt the entire community. Those jobs are what keep small businesses growing and thriving." The restless, worried Hupp on Monday night did what she had done after the school tragedy: filled a bin outside her business with dog food, free for anyone who needs it to take home to a hungry pet. More: The Tyson plant in Perry, Iowa, is closing after 61 years. What we know about its plans. "I have so many friends that work at Tyson, and I couldn't sleep thinking about what they are going through. Now they have to worry about their kids going back to school and trying to find new jobs," Hupp said, adding that at least those with dogs will have one less thing to be concerned about. Can Perry bounce back from Tyson closing? She was one of many Perry residents and leaders the Des Moines Register interviewed on Tuesday who expressed shock and dismay at the Tyson announcement, which came without warning for most. Heather Nahas, Gov. Kim Reynolds' communications director, said the state was informed about the plant closure only a short time before the public announcement. Story continues But as with the shooting tragedy, some in Perry also conveyed confidence that the city once again will be able to rebound. Among them was local banker Matt McDevitt, past president of Perry Economic Development. The organization's website recalls how, after a meatpacking plant closed in Perry in the mid-1950s, the Iowa Pork Co. organized to build a new plant on the now-Tyson site in 1962. More: New Iowa mobile workforce center to be dispatched to Perry for Tyson plant workers Oscar Mayer Inc. bought the plant in 1965. On Christmas Eve 1988, just as the company was preparing to close the plant, it announced that it would instead sell it to IBP Inc., and that it would remain in operation. Tyson took over IBP in 2001. "Perry has dealt with similar situations in the past," McDevitt said.. "This is something we can overcome." He pointed to the well-documented shortage of labor across Iowa and the soon to-be-available workforce in Perry, along with an empty 30,000-square-foot, spec-built structure in the city's 350-acre industrial park, state-certified as development ready, as assets that Perry can leverage in its favor. "This community has shown time and time again that we are resilient," he said. "We have a lot of brainpower to find solutions, a good group of leaders that care a lot about this community." McDevitt said the group's board will meet with city officials soon to discuss options and decide a plan going forward. They remain in the dark as to exactly what Tyson's plans are for the plant after it closes in June. "But we have a site, and we will have workers available, so you never know when a prospect is going to show up." McDevitt said the governor's office and Iowa Economic Development Authority Director Debi Durham already have offered support to the community. Mayor Dirk Cavanaugh said he had met with Tyson officials to press them about what help the Arkansas company might provide employees and the community. Perry Mayor Dirk Cavanaugh speaks during the Perry City Council meeting on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024. The company had already said it will seek to employ the Perry workforce in some of its other Iowa plants. Our first priority is going to be to help all the employees affected and try to get them back to work, whether it be in Perry or somewhere else, Cavanaugh said. And then we'll assess how we replace jobs that may have moved somewhere else. Key will be finding another company to purchase the 384,300-square-foot plant just west of the city limits, adding that Tyson told him its not just going to be a shut-the-door, leave-it-alone" departure. "They will find a buyer, said Cavanaugh, adding that Perry and Iowa economic development officials also will work to sell the building. A meatpacking plant would be the best fit for the space and workers' skills, he said, though hes concerned Tyson may balk at selling the building to a direct competitor. If someone else comes in, it could take months to retool the space, he said. Still, we can think of a lot of companies that could use it, he said, noting that with its sizable floorspace, the plant could serve as a capacious warehouse. Perry also would like Tyson to provide some sort of a severance, not just for the employees, but for the city, he said. We do supply them with a lot of services. "They're shutting the doors to save a bunch of money," he said, and the city wants to know if Tyson is "willing to give us a little bit of those savings to help us get through this." He said he expected to talk with state economic development officials Tuesday afternoon, "opening channels on what they can do." Closure will have 'big trickle-down' impact, mayor says Trucks hauling livestock arrive at the Perry Tyson pork plant Tuesday. Cavanaugh said it's not just Perry that will suffer from the closure. The economic effects will ripple throughout the region, hitting trucking companies, pork producers, feed suppliers and others. "There's a big trickle-down" impact, he said. It will be a topic of major concern for Lou Hoger, site manager of the Perry Food Pantry. He recalled a past board member always being protective of the $25,000 the organization had in the bank, asking, "What would we do if Tyson's shut down?" Now that the nightmare scenario is coming to pass, Hoger said his concern is more logistical than financial, pointing to the pantry's cramped quarters on Perry's east side. The food pantry served 509 households and 1,875 individuals last year, he said, adding, "We could not handle another 100 households. We would likely need to look at a different mode of distribution." If it does, it will be one of many adaptions for Perry. "There are people with whole families that work there. It's going to hurt," said Gracie Danger, owner of Perry Paint and Glass. While she is trying to remain hopeful, Danger said she fears a "mass exodus" of workers leaving town in pursuit of new jobs. So does Bonnie Ikerd, a lifelong Perry resident. My cousins daughter works there, and shes been there for 15 years," Ikerd said. "She doesnt know what shes going to do after it closes. Ikerd hopes that the plant is eventually bought out by another company that can provide those who lose their jobs a second chance. Its rough; it really is, Ikerd said. Id hate for this community to become some sort of ghost town. Thats what might happen if theres not another business. Others in the community shared Ikerds view. Vance Sturm, financial adviser and owner of Generations Wealth Advisors in Perry, envisions a wide range of potential negative effects. If the plant doesnt reopen, what are those families going to do? Sturm said. Local businesses are going to hurt, from grocery stores to restaurants. Its going to affect downtown and affect real estate evaluations. The closing of the plant may lead to less funding in local schools because of lower student counts if families decide to move out of the area, he said. I feel bad for the community, he said. "But we got to pull together. A couple months ago we had a devastating event here and now were going to have another one. It wont be as devastating emotionally, but financially for families and the city, its going to hurt. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Tyson plant in Perry, Iowa, is closing. City leaders vow to rebound. By MEGAN HUGHES [email protected] HURLEY - Amateur historian Leo Filipczak of Cornucopia, Wisconsin, paid a visit to Hurley on Monday evening to speak about the history of the Subcarphian region of Eastern Europe, it's impact during various wars, and its ties to national identity for people of Polish, Ukrainian and Slovakian descent. His interest in history began when he was young, he told the Globe following the presentation. "I've always been interested in history," he said. "I went over to Lithuania when I was 18 and started really learning the history of Eastern Europe, and became fa... Today Showers and a possible thunderstorm during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low 53F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Tonight Showers and a possible thunderstorm during the evening will give way to cloudy skies after midnight. Low 53F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 100%. Tomorrow Partly cloudy. High 71F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph. SYDNEY, March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In December 2023, students from the UTS Bachelor of Criminology program completed a unique internship program in Jakarta, Indonesia, as part of the Australian Federal Government's New Colombo Plan initiative. This initiative aims to "lift knowledge of the Indo Pacific in Australia by supporting Australian undergraduates to study and undertake internships in the region." Ashly Liu, Criminology (Forensics) and International Studies Student at UTS. (Source: UTS FASS) The UTS Bachelor of Criminology prepares students to face the transnational nature of crime with practical social science knowledge and skills, meaning an overseas study experience with one of Australia's closest neighbours is an important and highly valuable experience. One of the students, Ashly Liu, writes about her experience. We were sent to Jakarta for two weeks where the company International Internships hosted us. Our main task was to work in groups of three and conduct research on a selected vulnerable group and their access to justice in Indonesia. Our final report and presentation were then critiqued and reviewed by the Academics at the University of Indonesia. To better understand the social groups and presiding societal issues, we visited the local criminology agencies, conducting live interviews in correlation to our topics. We were also able to gain expertise from partnering up with local student interns from the University of Indonesia. Through my research project, I was able to explore the topic of vulnerable women in narcotic related crimes, and how they can access justice in the local Criminal Justice System. I worked collaboratively with a fellow UTS student as well as a final year criminology student from Universitas Indonesia. One of the key experiences for me in this process was being able to interview the people from the local agencies such as Amnesty Indonesia, Legal Aid, Commission on Violence against Women, Commission on Human Rights, Integrity Asia, Australian Embassy, IDN Media and more. It was really eye opening to have these professionals tell us about the ways our systems differ from each other, and also understanding how the socio-economic and cultural values affect how they view crime. Story continues The University of Technology Sydney (UTS) is one of the top 100 universities in the world and a leading public university of technology with global impact. Visit discover.uts.edu.au to learn more. Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/an-unforgettable-experience-university-of-technology-sydney-uts-criminology-students-complete-internship-in-jakarta-302087503.html SOURCE University of Technology Sydney Vasluienii care incendiaza vegetatia uscata risca amenzi usturatoare | VIDEO ATENTIONARE Inca o data, reprezentantii ISU Vaslui atrag atentia populatiei asupra riscurilor la care se expun cei care aleg igienizarea terenurilor prin incendiere. Pe langa pericolele la care se expun, inclusiv riscul de a-si pierde viata, [citeste mai departe] Copil in coma, dupa ce a mancat o bucata de branza infestata cu E-coli: Face 30 de crize pe zi Un copil de doar patru ani a intrat in coma, dupa ce a mancat o bucata de branza infestata cu E-coli. Micutul este in coma deja de 7 ani, iar parintii sai au cerut retragerea imediata a marcii de [citeste mai departe] For parity to become a reality, a wide range of stakeholders will need to devote greater focus and action to enable corporate boards to more accurately reflect the societies in which they operate. And boards themselves will need to continue to take action and ask the right questions. Government action has driven impact at the board level One thing that has become apparent is that government action yields results. Five of the top six countries with the highest percentage of women serving on boards in our study have some sort of mandatory quota legislation, ranging from around 33% (Belgium and the Netherlands) to 40% (France, Norway, and Italy). And continued government initiatives in the United Kingdom, through the use of targets, for example, (the 20112015 Davies Review3 and the 20162020 Hampton-Alexander Review4), have also borne fruit: Women now hold over 40% of FTSE100 board seats in the United Kingdom5 and over 34% of all board seats in our sample. Similar efforts in Australia, through voluntary targets and disclosures,6 have also moved the needlewomens representation on Australian boards has more than doubled since 2014 (15% to 34%). Yet the recent political climate in some geographies may be starting to waiver on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, which could challenge this momentum. Concerns that quotas drive overboarding may not hold water Some have criticized the practice of implementing gender quotas and targets for boards because they fear it would result in the same small circle of women being overboarded: being asked to serve on a large number of boards.7 To assess this concern, in 2014, Deloitte Global developed the stretch factor, a research tool that measures the average number of board seats an individual holds in a particular market. The higher the stretch factor, the more seats are held by any single director in a given market. This years stretch factor remains unchanged for both women (1.30) and men (1.17) at the global level. While there is no magic number of board seats an individual director should hold, the geography-level data shows that the movement to increase gender diversity on boards has not caused the kind of overboarding that some may have feared. Of the 20 geographies with the highest stretch factor for women, only four were in a geography with quota legislation for publicly listed companies. In Norway, the first country to introduce gender quota legislation for boards, the stretch factor has steadily declined from 1.15 in 2014, falling to just 1.04, well below the global average. While variations at the geography level do exist, it appears the initial fears have not come to fruition. Investor voting policies are also motivating action Government action alone is insufficient to reach parity. Investors need to remain vigilant in setting expectations around gender diversity, despite recent changes in the political climate and the number of matters competing for investor attention. In looking at the voting policies of over 100 large investors, Deloitte Global8 found that two-thirds of UK and US institutional investors had a voting policy that set a target for gender diversity. These proxy voting policies may also be creating impact in some markets. In the United Kingdom, for example, the appointment rate for women on FTSE100 boards stood at 47% in 2023, up from just 30% in 2017.9 In the United States, in 2023, across the Russell 3000, 38% of newly joining board members were women.10 Recent subtle language changes in these proxy voting policies, though, may signal a softening of investor expectations. It is important that investors remain clear on their diversity, equity, and inclusion expectations for the companies in which they invest. Continued improvement is needed to change the mathematical implications of current appointment patterns: As long as men hold the majority of board seats and continue to gain the majority of new board seats, parity will continue to be elusive. Hungary's government on Tuesday summoned the US ambassador over President Joe Biden's recent remarks on Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the foreign minister said. At a news conference on a different diplomatic event, Peter Szijjarto was asked about Biden attributing to Orban words that suggested that the Hungarian prime minister didnt think democracy worked, the foreign ministry said in a statement. We are not obliged to take lies from anyone, even if that person is the President of the United States, Szijjarto said. Since such a lie has been said in connection with the Hungarian prime minister, we summoned the ambassador of the United States to the ministry, who was here today, he said. We asked the ambassador to present to us the quote, and the time and place the prime minister allegedly made such a statement. As such a statement was obviously not made, we could not get any meaningful answer, Szijjarto said. He said that a reference made by the US ambassador to the official US position that Hungary was building a dictatorship made it extremely difficult to further build Hungarian-US relations, arguing that such a suggestion is an offence not to the government, but to the country. ******************************************************************************************** You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! U.S. Army Sgt. Juan Ramirez, assigned to 5th Squadron, 1st Calvary Regiment, pulls security during Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 18, 2024. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Sar Paw The US has increased its focus on readying a force to fight in the Arctic. After over 20 years in the Middle East, the Army established a new strategy for cold-weather combat. As Russia and China hope to gain further power in the region, the US hopes to strengthen its position. In the last few years, the US has intensified its focus on the frozen north, preparing its forces to dominate, if necessary, in the Arctic. The move reflects growing concerns about activities by Russia and China, who want to expand their access to the Arctic for trade, resources, and power projection into this strategic area. At US Army Pacific's Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center training event near Fairbanks, Alaska, last month, soldiers told Business Insider about the importance of rebuilding a cold-weather fighting force to deter American adversaries in the region. "The mission in the Arctic, the mission in the extreme cold, it's important to our Army, it's important to our nation," Col. Sean Lucas said, "and it's important to our adversaries as well. So, our ability to operate here is required. How we operate here is what we're trying to figure out, and what we're trying to master." The two-week JPMRC Alaska training exercise involved over 8,000 troops from the 11th Airborne Division, as well as international allies and partners. JPMRC also does a rotation in Hawaii for jungle training. The event is among the Army's newer combat training exercises, only three years old, and is an opportunity, soldiers said, to innovate and experiment. But it doesn't come without its stresses. The US is entering a new era of tense strategic competition in the Arctic, and as more rivals are active in the region, the more potential there is for conflict. U.S. Soldiers assigned to 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division, move to their objective outside of Utqiagvik, Alaska as part of Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Training Center 24-02, Feb. 15, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Pfc. Brandon Vasquez Back in 2021, the US Army released its new strategy on regaining Arctic dominance, leading to the reorganization of its Alaskan forces and priorities. It acknowledged that rapidly melting sea ice in the Arctic Circle, warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, was "opening up new opportunities for natural resource extraction, shipping routes, and commercial fishing," leading to a more navigable Arctic. Story continues With the melting ice comes increased access and greater unpredictability in the region. Extreme temperature variation, from repeated freezing and thawing cycles to reductions in the permafrost, raises questions about how to maintain infrastructure and consistently navigate water routes and land in the area. While the US has maintained a focus on its military presence in Alaska and its ability to project power across the Arctic since World War II, the height of that focus came during the Cold War. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the later rise of counterinsurgency warfare in the Middle East, the Army became preoccupied, letting its Arctic skills deteriorate. Now, its forces are hoping to rebuild the Arctic muscles that atrophied over the last 20 years. Part of that process means building up a stronger military presence in the area to strengthen relations with allies like Canada and Denmark. It also means using that presence to deter Russia and China. A US Army Soldier from 3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 11th Airborne Division, leaves Donnelly Drop Zone after airborne operations as part of Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb 8, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Spc.Wyatt Moore / 28th Public Affairs Detachment The ever-changing, challenging Arctic tundra is increasingly becoming more of a hotbed for US adversaries than ever. In that 2021 strategy guide, US Army leaders said, "Russia seeks to consolidate sovereign claims" in the Arctic "and control access to the region," developing a strategy for the region that is contrary to that of the US. "Russian military developments in the region are by far the most advanced driver of great power competition," they wrote, pushing the US to find new ways to counter them. Moscow's further investment in the area is seen in its moves to refurbish Soviet-era airfields and military bases and deploy more air- and missile-defense units across the Arctic, as well as throw its weight around and claim more of the Arctic sea shelf. And then there's China, which sees the vast Arctic region "as a new strategic frontier," a place "where there is 'undetermined sovereignty,' suggesting a justification for access and presence in the high North." "Sovereign ambiguity allows China to justify access to the region and potentially utilize military means to do so," US Army leaders wrote in their strategy guide. All Arctic nations are keeping an eye on what could be seen as increased access to energy, minerals, and resources in the Arctic. The bounty there is critical for the survival of the Russian economy, US Army leaders said, and necessary for China. That could lead to increased competition in the region, and in turn, tension. In a 2024 Annual Threat Assessment from the US intelligence community, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence wrote: "Competition over access and economic resources in the Arctic, as sea ice recedes, increases the risk of miscalculation, particularly while there is military tension between Russia and the other seven countries with Arctic territory." In this situation, China also appears to be balancing its level of support for Russia in order to secure "favorable energy prices and greater access to the Arctic," the report added. US Army Soldiers assigned to the 11th Airborne Division patrol on snow machines during the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 exercise at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 17, 2024. U.S. Army Photo by Spc. Abreanna Goodrich With China's increasing presence in the region and Russia's growing ambitions, Army leaders say the US must adapt like its rivals. The US is reinvesting in its cold-weather forces, focusing on building up enough presence and power to effectively deter conflict and training them to fight in unpredictable conditions should deterrence fail. At the recent JPMRC training event, USARPAC leaders said the strategy was part of a larger push by the Department of Defense to counter Russia and China particularly the latter, which has been identified as the US' "pacing challenge." For the Army, fighting in the Arctic would be mobile, innovative, and unpredictable. At JPMRC, troops trained to adjust in real time to changes in the environment and weather. Army paratroopers practiced jumps into enemy territory, while artillery focused on how to navigate various ground conditions. Attack helicopters conducted simulated deep-strike attack runs, navigating air defenses and electronic warfare to reach and destroy their targets. Medics, too, were busy during JPMRC, figuring out solutions for caring for patients in this challenging region. "I've practiced as a medic for 13 years, and this is definitely the hardest environment that I've worked in," Sgt. First Class Zachary Burns told BI, noting the difficulty it takes to house medical supplies, reach or retrieve injured soldiers on the battlefield, and care for patients in extremely cold temperatures. While also taking care of various injuries, the medics also have to worry about soldiers suffering from hypothermia. The intense cold can completely change how they conduct wound care, as affected areas have to be protected from exposure to the elements. And blood transfusions are also complicated by the cold temperatures, leading to experiments with soldiers serving as a "walking blood bank." Medics would have a living person serve as a donor for injured troops. U S Army Spc. Sammantha Ohm assigned to 5th Squadron, 1st Calvary Regiment, Delta Co, 1st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division pulls security on the M2HB .50-caliber machine gun during the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center 24-02 exercise at Donnelly Training Area, Alaska, Feb. 17, 2024. US Army/Spc. Abreanna Goodrich In their 2021 strategy, Army leaders said the priority was also to "employ calibrated force posture and multi-domain formations," on land, in the sky, and in other areas, which "creates new options for joint force commanders to achieve their missions." The problem, they added, was that the Arctic had its own set of problems "significant distances, lack of commercial and military infrastructure, and harsh climates" that had made Arctic campaigns relatively small and decided mainly by the quality of troops. For that reason, the Army appears to be encouraging its Arctic soldiers to be creative and able to adapt to whatever conditions or situations they might encounter. At JPMRC, soldiers told BI they were being encouraged to find solutions in the moment to a variety of problems, whether that be keeping warm in subzero temperatures, pulling off a "whiteout" landing in an attack helicopter, or navigating snowy forests and frozen open fields. "Our soldiers here are encouraged to innovate," Command Sgt. Maj. Joseph Gaskin said. "We don't have all the answers for this environment," he added, and while conducting war games, troops are figuring it out in real time. "They have the answers to a lot of these problems that we have," he said. Read the original article on Business Insider Although the partys two leaders have now withdrawn their resignations, commentators see the crisis of the past days as signalling the end of the fun party as we have known it one making fun of both the government and the opposition. The co-chairpersons, Gergely Kovacs - pictured above - and Zsuzsanna Dome resigned on Sunday after the party assembly was evenly split on Kovacss plan to run in the opposition primary to choose the candidate for Mayor of the 12th district of Budapest. A repeated vote gave him overwhelming support on Monday, as a result of which the two leaders withdrew their resignations. On Merce, Noemi Lehoczki suggests that the Dogs as they are called by the man in the street do not basically differ from LMP and Momentum, both of whom are also perceived by the public as critical of both sides of the political divide. She therefore believes that it would make sense for them to run in alliance to be successful in Hungarys largely majoritarian electoral system. More importantly, she thinks they should offer a consistent and positive programme to the electorate. On Mandiner, Daniel Kacsoh concedes that the Dogs have often been moderately witty over the past years but now, with about 6 percent support in the polls, they must become more serious. Two prominent figures they have recruited as candidates for the forthcoming elections, Kacsoh writes, are markedly liberal and very serious people and so is Kovacss decision to run for the post of district Mayor. Kacsoh predicts that as a result, the Dogs will subordinate themselves to a bigger party and get a new collar. This opinion does not necessarily represent the views of XpatLoop.com or the publisher. Your opinions are welcome too - for editorial review before possible publication online. Click here to Share Your Story ******************************************************************************************** You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! President Tamas Sulyok has set Sunday, June 9 as the date of the election of Hungarys MEPs for the next European Parliament as well as the date of the municipal elections, the presidential Sandor Palace announced on its website. This will be the first time in Hungary that the EP and the municipal elections are held on the same day. Meanwhile, Official: European Elite Out of Touch With European People The series of strikes by farmers and the rise of radical parties are symptoms of the yawning gap between the European elite and the European people, a government official told an international conference organised by the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Maastricht Treaty. Hungarys government considers it worthwhile making the effort to ask people about their opinions, and the Brussels elite should do the same, Marton Ugrosdy, a deputy state secretary of the Prime Ministers Cabinet Office, told the conference held in Budapest. At stake in the European parliamentary elections will be whether people choose to take their destiny into their own hands or to accept someone else controlling their daily lives, an MCC statement on Tuesday quoted the official as saying at the event entitled Hidden federalism and democratic denial. Rodrigo Ballester, the head of European studies at MCC, said the Maastricht Treaty had drastically changed the original consensus and set the EU on the path of an ever-closer political union. Todays pervasive crises were sown by the treaty, he said, referring to migration, green policy, the creation of the euro, and the ideal of European citizenship. MTI Photo: Zoltan Balogh ******************************************************************************************** You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories, via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoops groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? Then just contact us here! YORK The York County Development Corporation held its annual banquet at the York Country Club on Tuesday. The program included a social hour, dinner, a fire-side chat and a presentation of awards for three outstanding members of Yorks business community. The 2024 Impact award recipients were Kimm Klute, a co-owner of Klute Inc., Zac Holoch, President and CEO of Cornerstone Bank, and Douglas Rood, a senior manager at Collins Aerospace. Lisa Hurley, executive director of the York Economic Development Corporation, praised Klute for her tireless work effort and commitment to both her business and the community of Bradshaw. Hurley similarly thanked Holoch for his efforts at community development, in particular his commitment to improving rural workforce housing and childcare in York. Eric Montgomery, YCDC president, presented Rood with his award, noting his impact on the community as well as his wide range of interests and passions: from photography to aerospace to improving STEM education in York. Throughout her opening remarks, Hurley thanked a number of businesses and organizations involved in developing the York Community, including Preferred Snacks and LivFarms. During the fire-side chat, Bryan Slone, president of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and K.C. Beilitz, director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, discussed how to encourage economic development in Nebraska. Jim Ulrich, CEO of York General, led the conversation. Beilitz mentioned some priorities for the Department of Economic Development, including workforce development, which would require housing and childcare expansion. Slone said one of his big concerns is what he calls Nebraskas demographic problem. He said Nebraska needs to leverage its colleges and universities and expand its technology sector to attract more young people. He also said Nebraska needs to encourage legal immigration to Nebraska and counties like York. Weve done this before, Slone said, in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Living in York, youve hit the jackpot, Slone said. The state of our county is strong, Hurley said in her remarks. Its vibrant and its bursting with potential. PHOTOS: Read and Rec Students are gathering weekly this month at the York Community for "Read and Rec," a collaboration between Kilgore Memorial Library and York Parks and Recreation. A fun time at Fun City Fun City at the York Community Center. Read and Rec Students are gathering weekly this month at the York Community for "Read and Rec," a collaboration between Kilgore Memorial Library and York P Read and Rec Karter Bailey putting together a melted snow man in celebration of spring at Tuesday's Read and Rec. Read and Rec Zayne Rivera, left and Kelly Lovell, right, working on their melted snow men. Read and Rec Elks Lodge donated extra copies of Sneezy the Snowman so that everone could take one home. From left: Zayne Rivera, Audrey Richert, Ester Rich Read and Rec The students heard Sneezy the Snow Man read aloud while they worked on their melted snow men. After the arts and craft project was over, the s Read and Rec Kelly Lovell Read and Rec Read and Rec is for students between kindergarten and fifth grade and is happening weekly this month. From Left: Zayne Rivera, Audrey Richert, New Delhi: The electrifying teaser for 'Ghagra' is out now, offering a glimpse into the upcoming party anthem. Get ready to move as the full song releases today. After the phenomenal success of 'Naina,' the makers of 'Crew' are elevating the excitement with their upcoming song 'Ghagra,' featuring the dynamic trio of Tabu, Kareena Kapoor Khan, and Kriti Sanon. The foot-tapping track promises to be the next big party anthem, showcasing the three talented actresses reveling in the energetic beats of the dance number within a club setting. The song is all set to release today, with the teaser already out, offering a sneak peek into the electrifying performanceawaiting fans. In 'Ghagra,' Tabu, Kareena, and Kriti exude infectious energy, seen joyfully celebrating in a vibrant bar atmosphere, creating a visual spectacle that captures the essence of their success. Following the well-received 'Naina,' this latest song further enhances the mood of the music album of 'Crew'. The perfect blend of music, star power, and glamour is gearing up to make Crew an entertaining journey that will soar high and leave audiences wanting more. Get ready for an unforgettable cinematic experience that promises to be nothing short of spectacular! Scheduled to release in cinemas on March 29, 2024, 'Crew' is capturing attention not only for its star-studded cast but also for its diverse shooting locations across India, primarily in Mumbai. Balaji Telefilms and Anil Kapoor Film & Communications Network join forces to bring this much-awaited project to the big screen, helmed by the talented director Rajesh A Krishnan. New Delhi: Ruchit Garg, a seasoned professional with six years of experience at Microsoft, took a bold step in 2011 by leaving his high-paying job to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams in India. Read on further to find out why he takes such a radical shift in his career. Why He Takes Such Radical Shift? At 44 years old, earning a hefty salary of approximately Rs 1 crore per annum, Garg left his position as a technical program manager at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond. (Also Read: NHAI Revised Banks & NBFC List To Issue FASTags: Check New Authorized Entities Here) He expressed feeling like a misfit and confessed to being bored with his job. His long-held desire to run a business fueled this decision. (Also Read: Jharkhand Government Raises DA To 50% For State Employees; Effective From THIS Date) Earlier Approach Garg had previously dabbled in entrepreneurship in 2004, much before the startup boom took off. However, it was the sight of numerous startups flourishing in the US that reignited his passion for business ventures. Founding Harvesting In pursuit of his dreams, Garg founded Harvesting, a venture aimed at transforming the agricultural sector in India. Drawing from his family's farming background - his grandfather owned a mango farm in Uttar Pradesh - Garg aimed to make a meaningful impact in an industry close to his heart. Empowering Farmers Described as the next-generation Amul, Harvesting focuses on empowering small-holder farmers by providing them with essential resources such as advisory services, seeds, and pesticides, and facilitating direct sales channels both online and offline. The company boasts of positively impacting over 37 lakh farmers across India. Journey Garg's journey from a financially constrained upbringing to a successful entrepreneur showcases his resilience and determination. Raised by a single mother who worked as a clerk at the Indian Railways, Garg's exposure to entrepreneurship began during his visits to the railways' library in Lucknow. It was there that he found inspiration in books like the Harvard Business Review. Personal And Professional Growth Reflecting on his journey, Garg shared his excitement about a visit to Harvard University in 2018, where he was invited to speak about financial inclusion for smallholder farmers. "And I bought a copy of Harvard Business Review at the Harvard University campus, mine own copy!" he exclaimed, underscoring the profound significance of his growth, both personally and professionally. Ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold an important event this evening where he will interact with beneficiaries of PM PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (SVANidhi) scheme while also distributing loans to one lakh street vendors. PM Modi will address beneficiaries at 5 PM at JLN Stadium in Delhi. He will also distribute loans under the scheme to 1 lakh street vendors (SVs), including 5,000 SVs from Delhi on this occasion. Prime Minister Modi will also lay the foundation stone of two additional corridors of Delhi Metros Phase 4 during the programme. According to a statement by the Prime Minister's Office, the scheme is aimed at providing economic support to the marginalised sections. The PM SVANidhi was launched on 1st June, 2020 amidst the global economic crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. "It has proven to be transformative for the marginalised communities of street vendors. Till now, more than 82 lakh loan, amounting to over Rs. 10,978 crore, have been disbursed to more than 62 lakh street vendors across the country. Delhi alone has witnessed the distribution of nearly 2 lakh loans, amounting to Rs 232 crores. The scheme continues to be a beacon of financial inclusion and holistic welfare for those who have been historically underserved," said the PMO. During the programme, Prime Minister Modi will also lay the foundation stone of two additional corridors of Delhi Metro: Lajpat Nagar Saket-G Block and Inderlok Indraprastha which was approved by the Union Cabinet today. These corridors will together account for more than 20 Km in length and will help improve connectivity and further reduce traffic congestion. The stations on the Lajpat Nagar to Saket G- Block corridor include Lajpat Nagar, Andrews Ganj, Greater Kailash 1, Chirag Delhi, Pushpa Bhawan, Saket District Centre, Pushp Vihar, Saket G Block. The stations on Inderlok Indraprastha corridor will include Inderlok, Daya Basti, Sarai Rohilla, Ajmal Khan Park, Nabi Karim, New Delhi, LNJP Hospital, Delhi Gate, Delhi Sachivalaya, Indraprastha. TANCET 2024: Anna University is set to release the answer keys for the Tamil Nadu Common Entrance Test (TANCET) 2024 today, March 13. Aspirants who appeared for the MBA entrance exam can access the TANCET 2024 answer key via the official website, tancet.annauniv.edu. The TANCET 2024 examination was held on March 9, with the MCA test conducted in the morning shift from 10 am to 12 pm, followed by the MBA exam in the afternoon shift from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm. Additionally, the CEETA PG exam took place on March 10, spanning from 10 am to 12 pm. Candidates are required to utilize their login credentials, including registration number and date of birth, to download the provisional TANCET 2024 answer key. This provisional key will serve as the basis for students to raise objections, which the university will review before issuing the final answer key. TANCET 2024 Answer Key: Steps To Download Step 1: Visit TANCETs official website at tancet.annauniv.edu. Step 2: At the homepage, click on the link, TANCET 2024 answer key." Step 3: The student login window will open. Step 4: Enter the necessary information to log in. Step 5: The TANCET 2024 answer key will be displayed. Step 6: Download the TANCET 2024 answer key and save the copy for future reference. The TANCET 2024 answer key enables candidates to estimate their scores in the examination. The test consisted of 100 questions, each carrying one mark. Correct answers will be awarded one mark, while an incorrect response will result in a deduction of 0.25 marks. Subsequently, Anna University will announce the TANCET 2024 result following the release of the final answer key. The university will also provide candidates with a separate TANCET 2024 scorecard. New Delhi: Something is endearing about Park Hyung-sik. From his screen characters or his off-screen persona, he exudes a sense of relatability and calm, which translates well on screen. In his own words, he feels the need to relate to the parts he plays. The actor has over the years extended his repertoire and broken away from his King of Romance image. Here are 5 Park Hyung-sik dramas which showcase his versatility across genres. Happiness The zombie apocalyptic thriller tells the story of residents in an apartment block who are asked to quarantine at the outbreak of a new infectious virus. Park Hyung Sik is detective Jung Yi Hyun who along with Special Unit Officer Yoon Sae Bom ( Han Hyo Joo) stays in one of the blocks. The two take it upon themselves to bring order as well as combat the chaos unfolding around them. Park Hyung Siks Yi Hyun is a compassionate and strong man who is willing to put himself in the line of fire. The actors nuanced performance won him critical acclaim. Where To Watch: Netflix Doctor Slump A popular and sought-after plastic surgeon, Yeo Jeong Woo played by Park Hyung -sik loses everything he has built after a surgery goes wrong, and he is charged with medical negligence. He encounters his old classmate Kang Ha-neul( Park Shin-Hye) who was his arch-nemesis in school. But, she too like him is facing a career slump as well as battling mental health issues Who would have thought the two best students, would be taking medicines for anxiety, says Jeong Woo to Han Eul. The two strike a friendship and become each others biggest support as love blossoms. For all fans of Park Hyung-sik, you can hear him sing the mellifluous Lean On Me in the drama. Where to Watch: Netflix Our Blooming Youth Park Hyung -Sik plays the distressed Crown Prince Lee Hwan who is under a mysterious curse. Besieged by evil omens and palace intrigues as well as his inheritance at stake, he finds himself in a precarious position. The only one who can save him is Min Jae Yi ( Jeon So Nee), a woman on the run and framed for a murder she has not committed. In disguise as a eunuch, she arrives at the palace and joins hands with the prince as they set out to uncover some bitter truths. Park Hyung-sik is one of the few actors who is comfortable in narratives with strong female characters. A man who makes his women look good has won his hearts. Where To Watch: Viki Strong Woman Do Bong Soon Do Bong Soon ( Park Bo Young) is a petite young girl, but can pack quite a punch. Fondly called the force, she has superhuman strength and can take on people twice as well as thrice her size. But the unspoken rule is that she can use her superpower for a good cause. She comes on board as bodyguard to the charming and goofy Ahn Min Hyuk ( Park Hyung-sik) the CEO of a gaming company. Min Hyuk has been infatuated with Bong Soon and has a connection with her, which she seems to have forgotten. A cute romance unfolds between the two, as the two also take on some criminals on the way. Where To Watch: Viki Hwarang Hwarang, also known as the Flower Knights, were an elite group of young men from high-ranking families who were well-versed in philosophy, religion, and arts. The legend of the Hwarang has grown over the years and found its way into popular culture. A coming-of-age drama with a stellar ensemble as a group of young soldiers come together to form a new Silla. On the way to discovering love, friendship, and their selves. The cast includes Park Seo Joon as the brave and free-spirited Moo Young and Park Hyung-sik as the crown prince Sam Maek Jong. Kim Soo Ho (SHINees Minho) is the flirty yet chivalrous happy-go-lucky Suk Han Sung (BTSs V as well and Park Ban Ryu ( Do Ji Han and Kim Yoo Weol (Jo Yoon Woo) each join in with their agenda. Where To Watch: Viki New Delhi: Making its first arrest in Bengaluru cafe blast case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has nabbed a man named Mohammed Shabbir from Karnataka's Ballari, who is said to be a accomplice of the main accused. The NIA, with the assistance of the Bengaluru polices Central Crime Branch (CCB), is diligently pursuing the investigation of an explosion caused by an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at a fast-food restaurant in the Brookefield area, part of Bengalurus eastern IT corridor. The blast resulted in injuries to ten individuals. In pursuit of the suspect, investigative teams have conducted searches in Tumakuru, Ballari, and Kalaburagi. The NIA has offered a reward of Rs 10 lakh for any information that leads to the arrest of the individual responsible for the bombing and has circulated CCTV footage and images of the suspect to aid in their search. The establishment resumed operations this Friday, amidst a grand celebration of Mahashivratri, complete with heightened security protocols to prevent any future mishaps. The cafe began welcoming the general public from today. In the aftermath of the March 1 event, the cafe underwent a police cordon as a component of the city polices investigative efforts. NEW DELHI/BHOPAL: The Bhojshala Complex in Madhya Pradesh, with ties to Raja Bhoja (1000-1055 AD), has recently grabbed headlines after the Madhya Pradesh High Court ordered the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to conduct a survey at the disputed monument in the Dhar district. Hindus Vs Muslims Over Bhojshala Complex On February 19, a Hindu organization approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court, urging the ASI to conduct a time-bound "scientific investigation" of the disputed Bhojshala monument, claiming it to be a temple of Goddess Vagdevi (Saraswati). The complex holds significance for Hindus, considering it the temple of Goddess Vagdevi, while the Muslim community regards it as Kamal Maula Mosque. Historical Signficance Of Bhojshala Complex Raja Bhoj, a prominent figure in the Parmar dynasty, initially built an educational institute in Dhar known as Bhojshala. Over time, the remains of the Saraswati temple within Bhojshala were transformed into Kamal Maulana Mosque by Muslim rulers. The mosque features intricate carvings, including pillars and a prayer hall with valuable inscriptions dating back to the 11th-12th century. Archaeological Evidence And Religious Practices Based on archaeological evidence, Bhojshala is believed to have originated as a Saraswati temple, corroborated by inscriptions and historical references. According to an ASI order from 2003, Hindus worship inside the complex every Tuesday, while Muslims offer namaz every Friday. MP High Court's Mandate The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently directed the ASI to complete a survey of the Bhojshala Temple and Kamal Maula Mosque complex within six weeks. Emphasizing the need to clarify the complex's nature and character, the court mandated a comprehensive scientific exploration, survey, and excavation, led by an expert committee. The ASI is tasked with executing a thorough scientific investigation, utilizing the latest methods, and techniques. The committee must submit its findings within six weeks, including the inventory of artefacts, idols, deities, or structures. Sealed rooms and halls within the complex are to be opened for examination. Arguments From Both Sides The Hindu Front for Justice asserts that the Kamal Maula Mosque was constructed by destroying Hindu temples during Alauddin Khilji's reign. In contrast, the ASI argues that a historical report from 1902-03 supports the pre-existence of the Bhojshala Temple of Vagdevi. Dhar's Shahar Qazi, Waqar Sadiq, representing the mosque's management, plans to challenge the High Court ruling in the Supreme Court. Muslim side's senior advocate Ajay Bagadia contends bias in favor of the Bhojshala Vagdevi Temple. Roots Of The Bhojshala Controversy The dispute over the Bhojshala complex dates back to the ASI's 2003 order, allowing Hindus to worship on Tuesdays and Basant Panchami and Muslims to offer namaz on Fridays. The ongoing controversy intensified during instances when Basant Panchami coincided with Fridays, raising questions about worship rights. Activists advocating for the "liberation" of Bhojshala criticise Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for implementing massive security measures to enforce the High Court's order. As legal proceedings continue and the ASI conducts its survey, the outcome will likely have far-reaching implications for both the Hindu and Muslim communities, as well as for the preservation of historical heritage in Madhya Pradesh. By Devjyot Ghoshal BANGKOK (Reuters) -Thailand stands to gain from a move by the United States to diversify semiconductor production, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said on Wednesday, adding that American firms were ready to "supercharge" investments into the Southeast Asian country. The electrical and electronics industry is one of Thailand's main foreign investment magnets, and a key sector that Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin's government is looking to expand as it seeks to kickstart a sluggish economy. "Production of semiconductors is dangerously concentrated in one or two countries in the world," Raimondo said at an event in Bangkok, outlining that the U.S. would look to push additional investments into countries that are part of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) as it seeks to diversify production. The U.S.-led IPEF, aimed in part at providing countries in the region with an alternative to closer ties with China, consists of 14 countries, including Thailand. "So we're all in this together. It benefits everyone, the United States, Thailand, all the IPEF countries, to diversify the supply chain of semiconductor production," said Raimondo, who will hold talks with Thavisin on Thursday. In 2022, the U.S. passed the landmark "Chips and Science" law that provides $52.7 billion for U.S. semiconductor production, research and workforce development. Thailand's semiconductor industry, dominated by firms from the U.S, Japan, Korea and the Netherlands, is largely focused around the back-end process, putting the country at par with Vietnam and India, according to a 2023 Siam Commercial Bank report. "The shifting dynamics of the global manufacturing supply chain, influenced by geopolitical conflicts, have attracted semiconductor production facility relocations to Thailand," the report said. Thailand's Board of Investment is also offering incentives, such as tax breaks and duty exemptions, to draw investments into the semiconductor industry. Story continues "As U.S. multinationals look to diversify their supply chains, Thailand is increasingly a place that comes to the top of the list," Raimondo said Raimondo visited the Philippines earlier this week, where she said U.S. companies were set to announce investments amounting to more than $1 billion in the country, a staunch U.S. ally. The investments will span areas like solar energy, electric vehicles and digitisation, she said. (Reporting by Devjyot Ghoshal; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor and Raju Gopalakrishnan) Police on Wednesday cautioned commuters about the possibility of traffic movement slowing down on the Noida-Delhi routes on Thursday in view of a proposed farmers' protest in the national capital. The Gautam Buddh Nagar police also said diversions could be placed at routes in Noida near Delhi borders, where "intensive" checking of vehicles would be carried out before allowing them passage towards the national capital. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of farmers' groups, has announced holding a 'Kisan Mazdoor Mahapanchayat' at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi where a resolution would be passed to "intensify the fight" against the policies of the central government. Farmers groups from western Uttar Pradesh are also likely to participate in the programme. The Delhi Police has also permitted the farmers' congregation with a condition that the gathering will neither have more than 5,000 participants, nor tractor trolleys would be allowed near the venue, according to officials. "The general public is informed that a protest by farmers over their demands is proposed on Thursday," police here said. "During this programme, intensive checking will be done by the Delhi Police and the Gautam Buddh Nagar police by installing barriers on all the borders between Noida and Delhi, due to which, in case of an increase in traffic pressure on the routes from Gautam Buddh Nagar to Delhi border, traffic can be diverted as per requirement," it said. "In case of traffic inconvenience, you can contact the traffic helpline number 9971009001. Please use alternative routes to avoid inconvenience," police cautioned commuters. The Delhi Police has also issued a traffic advisory, urging commuters to avoid roads leading to central Delhi. Former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai is all set to make his debut in the Lok Sabha polls, almost a year after the BJP fared poorly in the assembly polls held when he was at the helm. Currently, an MLA from Shiggaon, he was picked for the Haveri seat, as the sitting MP, Shivakumar Udasi, had earlier announced his retirement from electoral politics after the current term ends. "Like the people from across the country, the electorate of Haveri and Gadag want to make Narendra Modi the Prime Minister one more time and want to make 'Bharath' strong," Bommai said as he expressed confidence that the people of the segment will elect him with a huge margin. The 64-year-old had stepped in as the chief minister, mainly due to the backing of B S Yediyurappa, who was asked by the BJP central leadership to step down in July 2021. According to some political analysts, Bommai's government was not able to counter the Congress narrative to paint his administration as corrupt, a factor that helped the Mallikarjun Kharge-led outfit to win the assembly elections in May last year. Bommai, who was elected to the assembly for the fourth time in a row, took full responsibility for the party's defeat after the poll debacle. When he assumed charge, Bommai had in fact scripted history, becoming only the second father-son duo to have led the state on different occasions, as he started a new innings at the top. Previously, JD(S) Supremo H D Deve Gowda and his son Kumaraswamy have been CMs of the southern state. Bommai's father, S R Bommai, was a Janata Parivar stalwart and had served as the 11th chief minister of Karnataka in the late 1980s. Born on January 28, 1960 in Hubballi, Bommai is a graduate in Mechanical Engineering. He worked in Tata Motors, Pune for three years and then became an industrial entrepreneur. Bommai is from the dominant Veerashaiva-Lingayat community to which Yediyurappa also belongs. The community is counted as a key vote-base of the saffron party. He started his political career with the Janata Dal, and was a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council twice (in 1997 and 2003) from Dharwad local authorities constituency. He had also served as Political Secretary to former Chief Minister J H Patel and as Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the council. Bommai quit Janata Dal (United) and joined the BJP in February 2008 and in the assembly elections held later that year, was elected as MLA from Shiggaon constituency in Haveri. He then went on to retain the seat in the 2013, 2018 and 2023 assembly polls. Married to Chennamma, he has a son and a daughter. NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced on Wednesday that it will soon launch helpline numbers to help people applying for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA-2019). Applicants can get information about the CAA-2019 for free by calling these numbers. The service will be available from 8 am to 8 pm. MHA posted about this on X. "Helpline number to assist applicants for Indian citizenship under CAA -2019 will be launched soon. Applicants will be able to get information related to CAA-2019 by calling free of cost from anywhere in India. The service will be available from 8 am to 8 pm," MHA posted on X. Helpline Number to assist applicants of Indian citizenship under #CAA -2019 is being started soon. Applicants can make free calls from anywhere in India & get info. related to CAA-2019. Helpline to be available from 8 am to 8 pm.@HMOIndia @PIB_India @ddnewslive @airnewsalert pic.twitter.com/UR54yuTVIp Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) March 13, 2024 New Rules Aim To Aid Refugees The MHA recently notified the CAA Rules, 2024, which remove legal barriers for refugees seeking rehabilitation and citizenship under the act. This move aims to provide a better life for refugees who have faced hardship for many years. Web Portal And Mobile App To Facilitate Applications Previously, the MHA launched a web portal where eligible non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, fleeing religious persecution, could apply for Indian citizenship. Additionally, they will soon introduce a mobile app called 'CAA-2019' to make the application process more accessible. Who Can Apply? Persecuted individuals from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, belonging to six minority communitiesHindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christianscan apply for Indian citizenship if they sought shelter in India before December 31, 2014. The application process is entirely online through the "Indian Citizenship Online Portal." Application Process Applicants must submit their applications to an Empowered Committee via a District Level Committee headed by a designated officer. All necessary documents and photographs are to be uploaded online, and applications undergo a security check. Additionally, applicants must appear in person to subscribe to the application and take an oath of allegiance. Documents Required Applicants must provide various documents, including those issued by government authorities in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. These documents establish the applicant's identity and their eligibility for citizenship under the CAA. Proof of Entry Applicants must prove that they entered India before December 31, 2014, to be eligible for citizenship. This initiative aims to streamline the citizenship application process for eligible individuals seeking refuge in India. New Delhi: In a recent turn of events, the State Bank of India (SBI) has dutifully submitted the intricate details of purchasers and recipients of the now-defunct electoral bonds to the Election Commission. This move aligns with the Supreme Courts directive demanding transparency. Just a day prior, the Supreme Court had mandated SBI to unveil the specifics of these electoral bonds to the Election Commission before the end of business on March 12.Sj Following the judicial order, the Election Commission is set to make these details public on its website by the late afternoon of March 15. The Election Commission announced, Adhering to the Honble Supreme Courts mandate issued to SBI, as per the orders dated February 15 and March 11, 2024, in the case of WPC NO.880 of 2017, we have today received the electoral bonds data from the State Bank of India, on this day, March 12, 2024. Insiders confirm that SBI has honored the Supreme Courts command and has handed over the electoral bonds information to the Election Commission. Since the schemes inception in 2018, SBI has rolled out electoral bonds amounting to a staggering Rs 16,518 crore across 30 separate issuances. However, in a historic decision on February 15, the Supreme Court axed the governments electoral bonds scheme, which permitted anonymous political contributions, deeming it unconstitutional. The court also decreed that the Election Commission must disclose the identities of donors, the sums they contributed, and the beneficiaries. SBIs request for an extension until June 30 to reveal these details was overruled by the Supreme Court, which insisted that the bank provide all necessary information to the Election Commission by the end of the working day on Tuesday. Former finance secretary S C Garg critiqued SBIs delay tactics in a column, finding it absurd that the bank sought to correlate each electoral bond buyer with the corresponding political party, a step not required by the Supreme Court. Garg highlighted that these bonds lacked any serial number or identifier, and the purchasing and depositing procedures did not permit SBI to track any specific electoral bond to its buyer or depositor. Introduced on January 2, 2018, the electoral bonds scheme was touted as a cleaner alternative to cash donations for political parties, aiming to inject transparency into political financing. The inaugural sale of these electoral bonds occurred in March 2018. Designed to be redeemed solely by an eligible political party via an authorized bank account, SBI stood as the only bank sanctioned to issue these bonds. Only an eligible political party could cash these electoral bonds, and that too, exclusively through a bank account held with the authorized bank. The opportunity to purchase electoral bonds was extended to Indian citizens or entities incorporated within the nation. Political parties that had garnered at least 1% of the votes in the preceding Lok Sabha or state legislative assembly elections were qualified to receive donations through electoral bonds. NEW DELHI: In a significant development, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president Chirag Paswan on Wednesday said that the seat-sharing deal with the BJP for the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha Elections has been finalised. Chirag Paswan, who represents the Jamui Lok Sabha seat, said that a formal announcement in this regard will be made soon. Chirag also confirmed that his party will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections as part of the BJP-led NDA. ''As a member of the NDA, today in a meeting with BJP National President JP Nadda, we have together finalised the seat sharing in Bihar for the ensuing Lok Sabha polls. The same will be announced in due course of time,'' Chirag Paswan said in a post on X. As a member of the NDA, today in a meeting with BJP National President Hon Shri @jpnadda ji, we have together finalised the seat sharing in Bihar for the ensuing Lok Sabha polls. The same will be announced in due course. pic.twitter.com/hpAQNC5HKo (@iChiragPaswan) March 13, 2024 Chirag Paswan made these remarks following his meeting with BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda in the national capital. #WATCH | LJP national president Chirag Paswan meets BJP national president JP Nadda, in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/Zfx9CQMhjE ANI (@ANI) March 13, 2024 Sources said that Chirag Paswan will be given 5 seats from LJP's quota in Bihar. Chirag Paswan will contest from the Hajipur Lok Sabha seat, and there is a consensus between the BJP and Chirag Paswan. BJP has also reportedly offered the post of Governor to Chirag's estranged uncle Pashupati Paras and discussed the possibility of Prince Paswan, the Member of Parliament from the Samastipur Lok Sabha constituency, becoming a minister in the the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government. Prince Paswan is the nephew of late LJP founder Ram Vilas Paswan. Prince was elected as a Member of Parliament from Samastipur in a by-poll on 24 October 2019, after the death of his father and sitting MP Ram Chandra Paswan. Speaking to journalists later, Chirag Paswan said, "Every worker of LJP expresses gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Just as we have been with the Bharatiya Janata Party in the past several elections, we will continue to be with BJP in the upcoming elections. We thank BJP President JP Nadda for not only addressing our demands but also making efforts towards their resolution." Chirag Paswan further stated, "Today, when the alliance is fully prepared, I express heartfelt gratitude to Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP President JP Nadda. In the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the NDA alliance will win all 40 seats in Bihar. I have attended the party's programs in the state, and from the experiences gained there, I feel confident that we will cross the mark of 400, and the flag of NDA will fly on all 40 seats of Bihar." When asked about the formula for seat allocation, LJP National President Chirag said, "There is a rule of the alliance. We will all sit together and then make the announcement together." What's most interesting is that Chirag Paswan said, "With the arrival of Nitish Kumar, the NDA has become stronger, and we will succeed in winning all the seats of the state." In Bihar, there are 40 Lok Sabha seats and six parties including BJP and JD(U) are the main contenders. Both Pashupati Kumar Paras and Chirag Paswan have been claiming the Hajipur seat. Pashupati Kumar Paras, who is currently serving as the Minister of Food Processing Industries in the Narendra Modi-led Government since 2021, is the founder of the Rashtriya Lok Janshakti Party. He is currently serving as a member of Lok Sabha from Hajipur since 2019. Interestingly, the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president had recently cautioned the BJP before making any final decision on seat-sharing in Bihar. Upon realising that he is likely to get fewer seats in the BJP-led alliance this time after the arrival of Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United) in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Paswan asserted that he is not afraid of anyone and neither will bow down. Giving a strong message to the BJP, Paswan said his alliance was only with the people of Bihar. In response to his statement, senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary assured that all the allies of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will get proper representation in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Chaudhary's remarks came even as the NDA in Bihar appeared to be grappling with the question of seat-sharing despite crucial meetings in Delhi and Patna to streamline the distribution of Lok Sabha seats among its constituents in the state. Responding to a question of dismay within the smaller NDA constituents, Choudhary said, "They all will be taken into account and will get proper representation". When asked about the timeline of announcing candidates in Bihar for Lok Sabha seats, the BJP leader said that there is ample time and assured that a seat-sharing deal will be revealed before the announcement of general election dates. Addressing a recent rally, Chirag Paswan dropped hints that he was weighing his options and could tilt towards the side with a better bargain. "I can see the posse of media persons here who are anxious to know whom Chirag Paswan is aligned with. I wish to tell them that Chirag Paswan is aligned only with the people of Bihar," Chirag Paswan said. "Every party, every coalition wants Chirag Paswan to be on its side," he said, adding that this was because people were enamoured with his "Bihar first Bihari first" vision that seeks to pull the state out of chronic backwardness. New Delhi: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination stands as a formidable trial of skill and determination for aspirants across India, renowned for its rigorous assessment of candidates vying for prestigious administrative roles within the Indian government. Among the multitude who undertake this daunting challenge annually, only a select few emerge triumphant, securing coveted positions of authority and responsibility. Sreedhanya Suresh's journey serves as a beacon of inspiration within this competitive landscape. As the first tribal woman from Kerala to conquer the UPSC CSE and ascend to the esteemed position of an IAS officer, her story resonates with resilience and perseverance. Coming from the Kurichiya tribe in Wayanad, Kerala, Sreedhanya's early years were marked by adversity and scarcity. Undeterred by these challenges, she remained resolute in her pursuit of education, navigating through limitations to complete her schooling at St. Josephs College in Calicut. Her academic journey continued with a focus on zoology in Kozhikode, culminating in a masters degree in applied zoology from Calicut University. Despite her academic prowess, the scarcity of resources presented formidable obstacles along her path. Following her studies, Sreedhanya ventured into the Scheduled Tribe Development Department of the state government, where she also served as a warden in a hostel for tribal students, striving to make ends meet. However, a deep-seated desire for a more impactful career path spurred her towards the challenging realm of UPSC preparation. In 2018, Sreedhanya's perseverance bore fruit as she cleared the initial rounds of the UPSC examination. Yet, financial constraints threatened to derail her aspirations during the crucial interview stage in Delhi. Despite this setback, her friends rallied to her aid, providing the necessary support to navigate through this obstacle. With unwavering determination, Sreedhanya not only overcame these challenges but excelled, securing an impressive All India Rank (AIR) of 410. In doing so, she etched her name in history as the first tribal woman from Kerala to attain the esteemed rank of an IAS officer, solidifying her legacy as a trailblazer and inspiration to countless aspirants. Tripura's Chief Minister, Manik Saha, announced on Tuesday that the Vande Bharat Express train will commence its service in Tripura soon after the electrification of rail lines, currently in its final stage, is completed. He mentioned that PM Modi has introduced the Northeast HIRA Model. "We have the Vista Dome, which we never thought of before. Soon, the electrification of the railway will be completed, and the Vande Bharat Express will commence," Manik Saha said. A few days back, Tripura's Chief Minister, Dr. Manik Saha, commended the Vande Bharat train service, hailing it as a transformative addition to Indian Railways. During his trip from Maldaha to Howrah on one of the semi-high-speed Vande Bharat trains, Dr. Saha lauded the efficiency of the service and attributed its success to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian Railways for their proactive implementation. 10 New Vande Bharat Trains Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 10 new Vande Bharat trains yesterday and laid the foundation stone for a range of transformative developmental projects worth over Rs 1,06,000 crores. These projects span various sectors, including railway infrastructure, connectivity, and petrochemicals. With the addition of these 10 new trains, the total number of Vande Bharat trains now exceeds 50, covering 45 routes nationwide. Currently, Indian Railways operates 41 Vande Bharat Express services, connecting states through Broad Gauge (BG) electrified networks, spanning 24 states and 256 districts. The latest introductions expand connectivity across several routes such as Lucknow to Dehradun, Ahmedabad to Mumbai Central, New Jalpaiguri to Patna, Patna to Lucknow, Khajuraho to Delhi (Nizamuddin), Puri to Visakhapatnam, Kalaburagi to Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal Bengaluru, Ranchi to Varanasi, Mysuru to Dr. MGR Central (Chennai), and Secunderabad to Visakhapatnam. These trains represent a significant improvement in India's railway infrastructure, facilitating smoother and faster intercity travel while strengthening connectivity across the nation. In a interesting turn of events, a Californian man came under the legal scrutiny for smuggling Greenhouse Gases (GHGs), marking a unique legal hunt in the US. Michael Hart stands accused of purchasing canisters containing banned refrigerants or coolants from Mexico, typically used in outdated air conditioning units and refrigerators, and importing them into the US concealed in his car. The US Attorney for the Southern District of California, Tara McGrath, was reported emphasizing the significance of this case, stating, This is the first time the Department of Justice is prosecuting someone for illegally importing greenhouse gases, and it will not be the last. McGrath highlighted the importance of using all available means to safeguard the planet from the adverse effects of toxic pollutants, including pursuing criminal charges. What is Michael Hart accused of? Hart, aged 58, appeared in a San Diego court on March 4, facing allegations of smuggling and illegally selling numerous canisters of the banned refrigerants in the latter half of 2022. He reportedly smuggled these substances under tarpaulin sheets and tools, selling them online through platforms like OfferUp and Facebook Marketplace. What are Banned Refrigerants? The refrigerants involved in this case are hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and a variant of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) known as HCFC 22. These chemicals gained prominence in the 1990s as alternatives to chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), following research that linked CFCs to the depletion of the ozone layer, particularly over Antarctica. Hart's indictment includes charges such as conspiracy, illegally importing regulated goods, and selling illegally imported goods. If convicted, he could face penalties as severe as 20 years in prison and $250,000 in fines, along with criminal forfeiture. His next court hearing is scheduled for March 25, underscoring the serious nature of the allegations against him. FILE PHOTO: Heavy fog hangs over New York City, as seen from Weehawken, New Jersey By Iain Withers CANNES, France (Reuters) - The troubled U.S. office market is the world's most oversupplied and property investors have taken on too much debt, a Brookfield Asset Management executive said on Wednesday. "Per capita, it's the most oversupplied office market in the world," Bradley Weismiller, Brookfield's managing partner for real estate capital markets, told the MIPIM property conference. "That's really the story. Unfortunately we (the U.S.) build too much of it in certain places ... and it doesn't need to be used as office anymore," Weismiller said at the event in Cannes. "The sector as a whole borrowed too much money," he added. A punishing rise in borrowing costs since 2022 and a jump in people working from home has emptied many offices in the United States, pummelling the value of many property assets. Office vacancy rates - at around 20% in cities - are much higher in the U.S. than in Europe. Concerns about lenders has hammered some regional bank shares this year. Blackstone's global head of real estate debt capital markets, Michael Lascher, said that there was a polarisation in values between high-quality sustainable offices and the rest. "The difference is really stark. It's very much a story of haves and have nots," Lascher said during a discussion on U.S. real estate at MIPIM . Clients are more interested in investing in logistics and data centres than offices today, panelists said. Blackstone is the world's largest commercial real estate (CRE) owner, and Lascher said non-bank lenders were increasingly important for financing property as banks retreat due to higher regulatory constraints. Regulators were putting a "clear focus" on CRE exposures at banks, said David Bouton, co-head of North America commercial mortgage-backed securities and real estate finance at Citi. But he said that lenders were more accommodating to investors than during the 2007-09 global financial crisis because they had higher capital buffers. Molly Goldfarb, principal at investor TPG, said the company was looking to convert more offices into housing but that it could be "incredibly challenging" to find suitable assets. (Reporting by Iain Withers; Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Alexander Smith) (Bloomberg) -- Investors have poured over $200 million into VanEcks spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund after it waived fees for the first $1.5 billion in assets until the end of March next year. Most Read from Bloomberg The inflows come just as competition among crypto ETF issuers is heating up, driven by strong investor demand for Bitcoin exposure. The price of the original cryptocurrency hit a new record of $73,664 on Wednesday, rising 3.6% as of 9:15 a.m in London. The VanEck Bitcoin Trust, which manages about $516 million, has attracted a net inflow of $333 million since its launch in January, with the bulk of it coming in over the past two days after the slashing the fee from 0.20% according to data compiled by Bloomberg. This marks the second fee reduction by the fund as it competes with offerings from rivals like BlackRock Inc. and Fidelity Investments, which have attracted net inflows of $11.4 billion and $6.4 billion, respectively. Other issuers Bitwise and Invesco Ltd. have also waived charges temporarily or until their funds reach a certain size. Grayscale Investments LLC on Tuesday announced the launch of a clone of its Bitcoin ETF, called the Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust, after losing billions to low-cost rivals. The Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, which charges the markets highest fee of 1.5%, has witnessed a net outflow of more than $11 billion since Jan. 11, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust fell to $78 million on Tuesday from almost $500 million the day before, the data show. That meant US Bitcoin ETFs raked in a net $1.04 billion in total, the biggest daily inflow since they launched. Story continues A spokesperson for Grayscale didnt immediately respond to an emailed request for comment outside of regular business hours. The early popularity of the 10 Bitcoin ETFs have lured $11 billion in two months. That coupled with the networks upcoming halving an event that will cut the supply of new Bitcoin in half is likely to further intensify competition for investor dollars. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. FILE PHOTO: A new logo of German carmaker Volkswagen is unveiled at the VW headquarters in Wolfsburg BEIJING (Reuters) - Volkswagen Group China said on Wednesday that the first model by its only majority-controlled joint venture, Volkswagen Anhui, has received Chinese government approval. The company told Reuters in a statement that the ID.UNYX has been registered with and approved by China's industry ministry. (Reporting by Sarah Wu; editing by Christina Fincher) A group of homeowners in a Massachusetts beach town decided that the onus to protect their homes from intense coastal storms, erosion, and hurricanes was on them. The concerned group in Salisbury Beach pooled together about $560,000, which they paid for out of pocket, and trucked in over 14,000 tons of sand to build a protective dune around several of the coastal properties over the course of five weeks. The sand barrier lasted three days. But the sacrificial dunes did their job, claimed nonprofit Salisbury Beach Citizens for Change. Without them, the Atlantic Ocean would have eaten up 10 to 15 houses in the historic enclave, the nonprofit wrote in a comment on Facebook. Salisbury Beach sits near the New Hampshire border and is home to 9,000 residents. Now the Salisbury Beach homeowners are facing a persistent problem many who live in coastal areas are dealing with: trying to secure state or local funding to protect their homes. States like Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire offer funding or collect information on coastal resiliency grants that communities can apply for. About one in four Americans live along U.S. coastlines, according to a federal report, which also found that the countrys most diverse communities live near the water. But theyre also areas that are highly vulnerable to natural disasters. According to the report, in 2020 every mile of the mainland Atlantic coast was under watch or warning from tropical cyclones at some point, and all but five coastal counties faced tropical storm-force winds. The stormier waters are caused by climate change, primarily driven by greenhouse-gas emissions from burnt fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas, which continue to warm the planet and create conditions like rising sea levels and increased droughtall of which contribute to more severe storms. And the problem is getting worse. According to the federal report, 2021 was the seventh consecutive year in which the U.S. experienced 10 or more billion-dollar natural disasters, and many of them were along the coasts. Story continues Tom Saab, president of the Salisbury Beach Citizens for Change, told NBC that what his community built this past month, sure, we thought would last longer, and that its destruction, just three days after it was finished, was a shock. Salisbury has faced storms from noreasters to hurricanes, meteorologist Jonathan Belles told the Weather Company. The towns proximity to the Atlantic Ocean gives them a source of moisture, which, combined with its northern latitude, places the town under a powerful jet stream during much of the year. In January, the beach faced severe erosion. The homeowners next plan is to establish snow fencing and plant dune grass, which, when planted beneath sand dunes, prevents sand from blowing away or washing out with currents. State Sen. Bruce Tarr estimates the new plan will cost at least $1.5 million, yet a source of funding to protect the homes there remains unclear. One of the biggest hurdles, the Salisbury group said on Facebook, is that the beach is owned by the state of Massachusetts and it seems all they do is know how to regulate, rather than maintain it. This story was originally featured on Fortune.com Wheels Up Experience Inc. (NYSE:UP) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript March 7, 2024 Wheels Up Experience Inc. isnt one of the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds at the end of the third quarter (see the details here). Operator: Welcome to the Wheels Up Fourth Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call Webcast. It is my pleasure to introduce Keith Ferguson. Mr. Ferguson, you may begin the conference. Keith Ferguson: Thank you. This morning we announced our fourth quarter financial results. The earnings release with the supporting tables as well as a copy of today's presentation can be found on our Investor Relations website at wheelsup.com/investors. Please refer to the slide with our disclaimer. Today's presentation contains forward-looking statements based on our current forecast and expectations of future events. These statements should be considered estimates only, and actual results may differ materially. During today's webcast, we will refer to non-GAAP financial measures as outlined by SEC guidelines. Unless otherwise noted, all income statement related financial measures will be non-GAAP other than revenue. Reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP financial measures and definitions of non-GAAP financial measures are found within the financial tables of our earnings release and appendix of today's presentation. An aerial shot of a busy airport, showcasing the private aviation services of the company. With that, I'd like to turn it over to Wheels Up's Chief Executive Officer, George Mattson. George Mattson: Thank you, Keith, and thanks to all of you for joining us today. Over the past five months as CEO, I've had the privilege of meeting with many of our loyal customers and partners who form a powerful Wheels Up community and also with many of our prospective customers interested in the next chapter of the Wheels Up journey launched late last year in conjunction with the strategic investment by Delta Airlines and our other new investors. I'm very pleased that following the challenging period the company faced last year, we are seeing an accelerating level of engagement and we believe that our value proposition is resonating with customers across our offerings and market segments. I'm also pleased to report on the progress we've made since our last earnings call, including solidifying our financial position, enhancing our operating team and structure, building our traditional new business pipelines and scaling our Delta customer initiative while continuing to invest and deliver an exceptional experience for our customers. Story continues Wheels Up has built a strong foundation of flexible and accessible aviation solutions to offer our customers through programmatic member offerings in the US as well as on demand private, group charter and cargo offerings here in the US and around the world, on fleet, off fleet and in partnership with Delta, offering a seamless connection between premium commercial and private travel, the only one of its kind in our industry. Although most people know Wheels Up for its well-recognized brand and membership offerings, some may view us as simply a North American operator focused on leisure customers, our signature events and legacy turboprop aircraft, but we're much more than that. With Air Partner, we are also one of the largest Part 135 charter providers in the world. See also 25 Most Earthquake-Prone Countries in the World and 15 Biggest Telecom Companies in the US. To continue reading the Q&A session, please click here. The SPDR S&P Aerospace & Defense ETF (NYSEARCA:XAR) is a strong aerospace and defense ETF with some intriguing top holdings in its portfolio. Im bullish on the $2.1 billion ETF from State Street (NYSE:STT) based on a macro situation where conflict is escalating globally, leading more countries to invest in defense and its intriguing group of top holdings, like AeroVironment (NASDAQ:AVAV), which are thus reporting surging demand and a growing backlog. What Is the XAR ETFs Strategy? According to State Street, XAR seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the total return performance of the S&P Aerospace & Defense Select Industry Index, which gives investors exposure to the Aerospace and Defense segment of the S&P Total Market Index (TMI). The Allure of Defense Stocks Data from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program shows that, unfortunately, the number of wars around the world has sharply increased in recent years, from under 100 in 2010 to nearly 200 today. This is a sad situation, but the reality is that with heightened tensions worldwide, many countries feel the need to ramp up defense spending, which is a boon to the stocks that XAR holds. These defense companies can often be good investments because they enjoy long-term contracts with stable customers (like the U.S. Government) and spending that is uncorrelated with the consumer economy. Additionally, these companies enjoy significant barriers to entry, as it is a difficult field to break into, and they have strong, established relationships with their customers (national governments). Furthermore, it may sound obvious, but these stocks are also defensive in nature, as they can perform well in market backdrops of geopolitical tension that can cause other stocks to sink. Intriguing Top Holdings XAR owns just 35 stocks, but its top 10 holdings make up just 45.1% of the fund, so it isnt overly dominated by a few large holdings. Below is an overview of XARs top 10 holdings using TipRanks holdings tool. Story continues As you can see, one of the funds largest holdings is AeroVironment, a defense company that manufactures drones and other unmanned vehicles. AeroVironment recently reported blowout quarterly results, generating record third-quarter revenue of $187 million, a nearly 40% increase year-over-year. AeroVironments Loitering Munitions segment reported record quarterly revenue as sales more than doubled year-over-year, thanks to what CEO Wahid Nawabi called high demand across the globe. The company is continuing to increase production to try to keep up with surging demand. Over 20 countries are interested in acquiring its Switchblade drone, with more than a third seeking export authorization from the Department of Defense. While this was the segments best quarter ever, Nawabi said, We believe were only getting started. Not only that, but AeroVironment also grew its bottom line, blowing away analyst estimates that it would earn $0.33 per share by reporting adjusted EPS of $0.63. The company swung from a loss during the year-ago period to net income of $13.9 million. AeroVironment CEO Wahid Nawabi said that the company is on track to have its best year ever, thanks to record demand and strong operating execution. The strong quarter and record demand prompted management to raise and tighten guidance for the rest of the year, and the company expects revenue to continue growing at a double-digit rate in Fiscal 2025. AeroVironments backlog is up 12% versus last year. AeroVironments spectacular results are important because not only is AeroVironment one of XARs top holdings, but its results may provide a read-through for the rest of the space. If AeroVironment is significantly increasing revenue thanks to record demand, then this is likely a favorable environment for other defense companies as well. AeroVironment receives an impressive Smart Score of 8 out of 10. The Smart Score is a proprietary quantitative stock scoring system created by TipRanks. It gives stocks a score from 1 to 10 based on eight market key factors. A score of 8 or above is equivalent to an Outperform rating. While the Smart Score doesnt give all of the stocks within XARs top holdings Outperform ratings, it rates some holdings highly, such as Howmet Aerospace (NYSE:HWM) with a 9 out of 10 Smart Score, and Textron (NYSE:TXT) and Raytheon Technologies (NYSE:RTX), which both enjoy Perfect 10 Smart Scores. Like AeroVironment, Textron is also seeing strong demand and increased its full-year guidance to a range of $6.20-6.40 per share versus average Wall Street estimates of $5.96 per share. Textron has a growing backlog, which grew by over 10% to $7.2 billion. Meanwhile, not only does Howmet Aerospace sport a high Smart Score, but this maker of engineered solutions for aerospace and transportation industries, like engines and forged wheels, reported full-year revenue growth of 17% and full-year adjusted EPS growth of 31% in February. The company has posted 10 consecutive quarters in which revenue, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted EPS have grown. Lastly, another attractive aspect of XAR is that it isnt overly exposed to troubled Boeing (NYSE:BA) stock, which has a weighting of just 2.9% in the fund. This is a much smaller exposure than a competitor like the iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (BATS:ITA), where Boeing has a 14.7% weighting. XARs Long-Term Performance As of February 29, XAR has generated a somewhat underwhelming 5.3% annualized return over the past three years. However, its results are better over the longer term, with an 8.2% annualized return over the past five years and an 11.4% return over the past decade. Zooming further out, the fund has returned a much more compelling 16.1% on an annualized basis since its inception in 2011. While XARs return over the past three years is somewhat lackluster, its performance over a longer time horizon inspires confidence. And if we are in an environment of escalating conflict, not to mention soaring demand, like the AeroVironment CEO discussed on the companys earnings call, then XARs performance could start to tick upwards. What Is XARs Expense Ratio? XAR features an expense ratio of 0.35%, meaning that an investor in the fund will pay $35 in fees on a $10,000 investment annually. This is a fairly middle-of-the-road expense ratio, but its also important to note that it makes XAR cheaper than its two closest peers within the aerospace and defense ETF landscape, the aforementioned ITA and the Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETF (NYSEARCA:PPA), which charge 0.40% and 0.58%, respectively. Over the course of 10 years, assuming that each fund returns 5% per year annually, the investor who put $10,000 into XAR will pay $443 in total fees. Meanwhile, the investor in ITA would pay a slightly higher $505 in fees, and the investor in PPA would pay a significantly higher $726 in fees. Below is a comparison of XAR, ITA, and PPA created using TipRanks ETF Comparison Tool, which allows investors to compare up to 20 ETFs at a time across a variety of customizable factors. Is XAR Stock a Buy, According to Analysts? Turning to Wall Street, XAR earns a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on 24 Buys, 11 Holds, and one Sell rating assigned in the past three months. The average XAR stock price target of $163.18 implies 17.7% upside potential. Investor Takeaway XAR is a solid defense and aerospace ETF with a best-in-class expense ratio. Its three-year annualized performance has been uninspiring, but over a longer time horizon, this has been a strong performer. With various conflicts heating up around the world and top holdings like AeroVironment reporting escalating demand and growing backlogs, XAR seems like it can trend upward and potentially be a sound long-term holding due to the defensive nature of its holdings. Disclosure Tuesday court filings show WARN-related claims could amount to $244 million. (Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves) Yellows Tuesday filing in a Delaware bankruptcy court said claims stemming from its failure to provide 60-day notices to employees ahead of mass layoffs should be thrown out, or at least materially reduced. Counsel for the company said WARN Act requirements dont apply as the defunct less-than-truckload carriers shutdown was abrupt and the result of the Teamsters unions refusal to allow a second round of operational changes that were integral to its survival. The turnaround plan dubbed One Yellow included consolidating its four LTL operating companies, closing redundant terminals and making some drivers work freight on the docks, among other changes. Yellow began pursuing the changes in 2022 and announced in June of last year that it would be out of cash in weeks if the Teamsters didnt acquiesce. The union contended it had given enough in the past in the form of wage and benefits concessions and that it wasnt going to keep bailing the company out. Yellow (OTC: YELLQ) believes the WARN Act doesnt apply as its closing was unforeseen. It said even in its final days it planned to keep running the business and had a private equity investor lined up to provide it needed capital. It said the unions denial of the second round of operational changes, and the issuance of a strike notice over missed benefits payments, led to a rapid deterioration in its business. The strike notice scared off Yellows customers, leading to the sudden, unexpected collapse of Yellow in a matter of days, the filing stated. The carriers daily shipments declined from 44,550 on July 12 last year to 32,500 on July 19, two days after the strike notice. Shipments fell to 10,450 on July 21 and were nearly zero by July 26. Yellow ceased operations on July 30. The company said it didnt have time to plan for mass layoffs and the issuance of WARN Act notices was neither feasible nor required. It claims protection from the notification requirement due to the sudden decline in business and argued the requirements faltering company exception applies as it was still seeking business from customers and capital from investors in its last days. The notices would have scared off both, the filing said. Story continues Of the roughly 1,300 claims referenced in filings, some were made on behalf of employees by pension or health and welfare funds, which lack standing to bring the claims, Yellow asserted. Also, some employees released the company from the claims in exchange for severance. A separate filing showed approximately $244 million in claims related to WARN Act violations but noted that many were duplicate claims filed by both employees and their unions or union-related funds. The reality is that the Debtors shut down their businesses on an extremely short time frame as the result of completely irrational behavior from the [Teamsters] that neither the Debtors nor any other rational employer would have expected or planned for. No WARN act [provision] provides for liability under these circumstances, the filing said. Yellow said it was ready for a hard fight with the union and that give-and-take often led to operational changes in the past. Based on this historical record, Yellow understood that the [union] would drive a hard bargain but never drive the Company to the brink of failure, which would risk losing 22,000 unionized jobs, the filing read. Yellows objection asked the court to grant the order with an April 4 deadline for claimants to respond and a hearing date of April 11. Discovery will continue in Yellows $137M suit against Teamsters A U.S. District Court in Kansas said discovery in Yellows $137 million breach-of-contract lawsuit against the Teamsters will continue. The union argued to stay the costly advanced stages of discovery for a case that may ultimately be thrown out. A separate motion from the Teamsters has called on the court to dismiss the case. An order denying the stay showed that the union had produced less than 1% of its total expected document production. Unsurprisingly, the filing showed Yellow had substantially completed their document production by the March 1 deadline. The suit claims the Teamsters intentionally blocked the proposed change of operations, which it didnt have the authority to do. More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden The post Yellow asks court to toss claims it failed to give layoff notifications appeared first on FreightWaves. Transparency Market Research The medical infrastructure and assistance are increasing across the world. This benefits patients in numerous ways. The required materials are available in hospitals, clinics, and other medical vendors. Therefore, this is another significant market driver. Wilmington, Delaware, United States, March 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Transparency Market Research Inc. - The forecasted market valuation of the global zinc polycarboxylate cement market is US$ 282.1 million by the end of the year 2031. It is not working that this market was valued at about US$ 164.4 million in 2021. This market advancement is significant, with a moderately developing CAGR of 5.6%. The dental health issues faced by people worldwide have been increasing significantly. It has been estimated that about 45% of the entire population is affected by certain dental diseases which are yet to be treated. Consequently, this creates significant scope for the market to advance and incorporate dental replacements using zinc polycarboxylate cement. At the same time, the dental health awareness among people is increasing. Consequently, this surges the demand for bridges between teeth, different crowns to cover the infected teeth to prevent decay, etc. Hence, this proves to be one of the crucial market drivers driving the said market significantly. Download sample PDF copy of report: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=85277 Due to the increasing dental tourism, the affordability of dental treatments has been increasing. As a result, most of the population in European and North American countries have started to choose Asian countries like India, Thailand, and many more to carry out their dental treatments cheaply. This creates another significant market driving force for the subject market. Key Findings from the Market Report The market segmentation of the global zinc polycarboxylate cement market is based on the physical form of zinc and the point of application. In the context of the physical form, the solid form of zinc polycarboxylate cement is observed to be in high demand. The main reason behind this is the ease of mixing solid zinc powder. This reduces the time for medical surgery. Large-scale hospitals often require medical instruments and materials to be replaced and replenished. This creates a demand for zinc polycarboxylate cement. Moreover, most of the demand is made from hospitals, one of the important market segments of the subject market. Dental clinics are important demand generators for zinc polycarboxylate cement. As a result, a constant supply needs to be given to dental clinics to meet their requirements. Hence, this is another important market segment for the market under consideration. Story continues Regional Profile Due to rising medical infrastructure and technological assistance, producing zinc polycarboxylate cement has become easier. As a result, Europe is leading the global zinc polycarboxylate cement market. Also, most of the European population is affected by dental problems, thereby increasing the scope within Europe. Apart from the European countries, North America also holds a respectable market share within the said market. Asia-Pacific and the Middle East are two essential channels for the market to grow in the future. Key Developments in the Zinc Polycarboxylate Cement Market In April 2019, Filtek Universal Restorative was launched by 3M, a new composite in the dental healthcare sector. With the help of this composite material, better dental results have been ensured. In the case of Dentsply Sirona, a massive economic investment of about $ 600 million was made to innovate different dental surgery instruments in the last six years. In January 2022, the terms of innovation for Ivoclar Vivadent changed. It allowed the organization to innovate its surgical instruments to serve customer needs. Competitive Landscape As far as the competition within the market is concerned, it has been identified that the competitive landscape for the global zinc polycarboxylate cement market is fierce. Ivoclar Vivadent is one of these key players known for its wide range of syringes, composites, and adhesives for dental treatments. 3M manufactures different abrasives along with adhesives. Also, it diversifies its product portfolio by entering the automotive sector. Dentsply Sirona offers CAD/CAM solutions for dental practitioners. In addition to this, it also offers dentures and digital dentures to patients. Key Players 3M Dentsply Sirona Ivoclar Vivadent Shofu Inc. BISCO Inc. Henry Schein Inc. Unlock Growth Potential in Your Industry! Download PDF Brochure: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=85277 Market Segmentation Type Solid Liquid End User Hospitals Dental Clinics Dental Ambulatory Surgical Centers Dental Academic and Research Institutes Region North America Latin America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa Buy this Premium Research Report: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/checkout.php?rep_id=85277